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 Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2017 11:10 pm
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Only now did Cassius hesitate. Everything was ready, but…
He looked at Kota and knew what was still needed, “I know your heart, Kota, but yu will have to settle with Meryth and make peace with the past,” he told him softly then gestured for them all to drink the tea.
Once downed, the tea would help put them all in a more receptive mode. It wasn’t required, but it certainly helped.
He simply downed the entire cup and settled himself with his hands resting lightly on his knees and his eyes closed. After a few moments he began to sing, softly at first, his voice barely there…
But as the power of the song grew, it became more audible. Kota had seen him at full force a few times, though they were probably fuzzy memories since the Alichino had been a bit out of it at the time. Now they both were witnesses to something that even Cassius’ own people had never seen…
As he sang, his hair began to move around him as if he were floating in the water and his skin even took on a few scales, signs of how much power he was using. A bit more and what he was doing finally became visible for both males.
From all three of them, their souls moved to hover in front of them briefly. Then came the real magic: each of the souls split and shifted around until each of them would carry a piece of soul from the other two. As the song drew to a soft close, the souls settled into each of them.
But no sooner had he done that than Cassius began another song, this one more powerful. From the pieces of Cassius’ soul, the spell moved to hover between them all in a ball of dark shadows that felt as insidious as the spell itself was. The song moved into its height as a swirl of gold moved around the spell, slowly at first then faster and faster until it was encased in liquid gold. Then the song came to a sudden end and the gold seemed to be yanked out of the room in the direction of the ocean and seemed to explode above the water in a shower of golden glitter.
Cassius seemed suspended for a moment, as if he’d been paused in the moment of powerful spell-singing. In that moment, he could have been described as being at his most beautiful.
But the moment passed and he simply fell back onto the floor and cushion, breathing a bit hard. Hard to believe it, but he’d just used up a lot of energy in two very powerful spells that even experienced spellcasters would have had a hard time with. He’d also drained every crystal in the necklace…
Now, though, Kota would have to make peace with Meryth. Carrying pieces of Meryth and Cassius’ souls within him gave him a very unusual insight into what motivated both males. The same for Meryth with Cassius and Kota. And the same for Cassius with both Alichino’s. |
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Posted: Sun Sep 24, 2017 4:18 am
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Cassius accepted the help readily as Meryth pulled him into a sitting position, trying to regulate his breathing. He could feel Kota's fears and uncertainties but knew that there was something Kota was missing. He offered a small smile to the both of them then accepted their help to his feet and Kota's support once he was up.
But instead of going upstairs right away, he tenderly moved a lock of Kota's hair behind his ear then trailed the back of his fingers down his cheek in a loving touch, "You have me as both a bridge and a buffer between the two of you now, Kota. With the way we are all bound together, no one can subjugate the others. We cannot intentionally hurt each other. We are bound to see to each others' happiness. Meryth and I both cherish the way you see things, the wonder you find in the simplest things, the tenderness and care you have shown me, and your need to take care of me. I know all of that will now include Meryth, though he doesn't see all of that yet. I need you like I need air to breathe. I need you to take care of me and spoil you for the love you give me since I have seen so little of it," he told him softly before pressing a light kiss to his forehead.
Then he turned to Meryth and reached out for his hand to pull him in to feel them on either side of him, "I know you're uncertain of everything Meryth, despite what you show to the world. We both are now your support. Though us, you can see the world anew, feel again the emotions you've hidden even from yourself, and know that you won't be alone again. What Kota needs from you will come in time. But I need your strength to pull me back when I go too far into the magic growing inside of me. I need you to help pull me out of my head and temper my need to spoil Kota. I know it's alot to ask of you but I won't apologize for it," he said then laid his head against Meryth's shoulder and allowed Kota to take more of his weight as his legs threatened to give out on him.
While he'd removed the spell, his body was still dealing with being shot on top of the exhaustion of removing the spell. He should have been upstairs in bed but he didn't want to stop touching either of them. He wanted to be stuck between them in ways that would leave Kota blushing for days then to sleep between them, secure in the knowledge that if he simply let go of everything and shattered into a million pieces, they would find every one of them and put him back together again...
He held his own fears, though. Fears based on information that he'd found during the six months he was gone. He'd found out that all male Sirens had grown in power until the power drove them mad, so consumed by it that the power and insanity forced others to kill them. Some of the records he'd read were enough to terrify him to his core and had become a big influence on his dreams, turning them into nightmares and making him afraid to sleep at all.
In this moment, he hid nothing from them. He opened his mind to them both completely. He let them see that he was actually afraid of himself and his growing powers. He let them see everything he'd done during the six months he was gone, memories that terrified him as his powers.
He'd begged Meryth to take him apart and put him back together, to do the same to him what they'd done with Kota. He'd to be taken over and pulled out of his head.
But he knew that he'd been begging to be put back to what he was before he'd left. An impossibility, yes, but he'd freely admitted that his growing powers and his actions over the last six months terrified him...
"Please... Let me be the bridge you need... Love each other as I love you," he begged them softly before his knees gave way and tried to drop him to the floor. While he needed rest, he also needed to feel them touching him, skin to skin, and leaving him no doubt that their bond was real... |
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Posted: Sat Dec 09, 2017 9:32 pm
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They'd been left alone for two days. They'd had two days of peace while their new bonds settled in. Over those two days, Meryth and Kota had been working on their bond, in particular. Cassius had been put in the middle a few times but he hadn't minded mediating with them.
Over those two days, Cassius had been tested as well. His powers had, indeed, grown a great deal. He'd intended to ward the shop against the onyx, but had warded the entire building and half the village instead. There were a few other incidents that had actually frightened Cassius and it had taken both Meryth and Kota to calm him down again.
But today, Cassius sat in his favorite chair working on the huge amethyst he'd finally pulled out of his underwater cave. As he worked, Meryth played with his hair. The Alichino had become obsessed with Cassius' hair, for some reason. Cassius wasn't complaining, but he found it interesting. He could hear Kota messing around in the kitchen, apparently reorganizing it while talking to Orthius. Cassius found it adorable and hearing those sounds brought a soft smile to his face.
But his smile faded when his wards alerted him to a guest approaching the back door. He actually frowned as he got to his feet and moved to the open doors and watched the mermaid shift form and approach the building openly.
After what his father had done, Cassius had expected to be persona-non-grata with all of the mermaids. This female approached him nervously then dropped to a knee in front of him, pulling a deeper frown from him.
It didn't take him long to figure this one out, though. Apparently his method of removing the spell his father had put on him had snapped back and killed the MereKing.
He shook his head with that frown still in place, "I can't take the throne. I never wanted it to begin with. He demanded that I produce an heir for him. I did it, despite being forced into it. That is your next king. Not me," he stated firmly and turned to Meryth, dismissing the female.
The female shook her head, sending her wet hair around her half-nude form, "The pregnancy failed. There is no other heir. You are now the MereKing," she responded just as firmly with her eyes still on the floor in front of her.
They were really giving Cassius no other choice: he had to take the throne and crown.
He kept his lavender eyes on Meryth, knowing full well that Kota was listening as well. He didn't know what to do. He needed a little help from the two people that mattered the most to him... |
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Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2017 3:54 pm
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Cassius almost ruined everything when Kota came running outside and started yelling. Honestly, the female's reaction was almost too funny as she fell back on her bare a** in an attempt to get away from the small spitfire. But Kota and Meryth had reminded him of a few things and he moved closer to the two males he'd bound himself to and gently trailed a finger over Kota's cheek.
"They aren't taking me anywhere, Kota-love," he said in a soft and tender voice then gave Meryth's cheek a light kiss, "Thank you," he whispered to him softly, though Meryth likely wouldn't know why he'd said that until after he made his vocal decision.
He turned back to the female and gave her a tight-lipped smile that actually had her even more afraid, "I'll take the crown... But I'll be doing it here and ruling from here. Whatever I say, goes. My Mates will be acknowledged as my official Consorts and I will choose my heir wherever I will. There will be no females trying to seduce me or trying to lure me away from them. To make any such attempt will be considered an act of treason and punished accordingly," he said as he slowly advanced on her, making her fight between moving away from him in fear and standing her ground in pride.
"All of the other male sirens will be brought here to be assessed by us. Any more male sirens born will be brought directly to me immediately and I will decide their fate. No more will be locked up. The royal guard can decide whether or not they will continue to serve, but if they do then they will be doing it here and they will be guarding my Mates as well. This island and its inhabitants will be receiving the oceanic protection they should have been all along," he finally stopped at the water's edge with Kota and Meryth still fully able to hear every word he said.
"Those are my conditions. If the rest of the Mermaids don't like it, they can find another king. Now leave," he told her in an even harsher tone with his hair already starting to move around him on its own as if he were already in the water, his powers reacting to his own anger over the situation.
He turned his back on her and walked back up the sand to Kota and Meryth, putting his arms around their waists and tucking his face into Kota's neck as Meryth's hand found its way to the back of his own neck. He knew very well that right now, the control over his powers came from Meryth and he welcomed it in this moment because he knew he couldn't, knew that if he pushed things... Well, it wouldn't be a pretty sight... Well, he'd be beautiful, but the things his powers did wouldn't be beautiful...
Behind him, he heard the splashes that told him that the female had left them alone and closed his eyes, "I won't let them take me from you again Kota... I won't let them take me away from either of you... I need the both of you like the air I breathe or the water I swim in. The rest of the mermaids can go to hell for all I care... But I know I can put them back on track if I have you two here to help me with it..." he whispered, knowing that they could both hear him.
And that they both could feel him shaking in pure fear. Admittedly, he could look through the bonds to know what they thought and felt right now, but he was afraid to, though he wasn't sure why he was afraid... |
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Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2017 9:30 pm
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Cassius let them lead him inside and get him sitting on the couch in the living room with them on either side of him. Meryth simply telling him to put his fears to rest helped alot, maybe more than either of them could ever know. It was Meryth that kept him from losing it completely, that gave him the strength to keep his powers under control for the moment.
He leaned in to Kota with his eyes closed but kept hold of Meryth's hand like a lifeline. Part of him hoped that Kota never realized just how fragile his control really was, or that Meryth was his true control over his powers. He wasn't sure if he could handle Kota knowing just how weak he truly was. With Meryth, it was different. With Meryth he didn't have to be strong or in control.
With Kota, though, he knew that in the eyes of his first true love he had to be strong and sure of himself. He wasn't sure if he could bear to see fear of him in Kota's eyes. That, he knew, would truly defeat him.
He pulled back and cupped Kota's cheek to pull him in for a tender kiss to the softest lips he'd ever kissed before and had to smile as he pulled back at him, "My little spitfire..." he whispered softly, teasing Kota just a bit even as he let Kota feel how proud he was of him.
He looked at Meryth next but didn't know what to say at first, but knew they had to talk about what he'd just done, "You know there's a really good chance that they'll agree to my terms... If they do... I..." he didn't know how to admit out loud just how afraid he was in this moment.
He'd shown Meryth his fears once, had admitted to them fully to the older Alichino at the beginning. But he wondered if Meryth truly understood how real his fears were, and just how much he relied on his ability to reign him back if it was needed.
He closed his eyes again and felt the power cresting within him again, could feel his hair starting to move around him again, and tried to push it back down but wasn't sure if he could this time.
In all honesty, they really needed more time to assess his powers and how they were evolving. But they were running out of that precious time... Cassius was running out of time...
"I can't lose you two... I lost Kota once and it almost destroyed me... I won't lose either of you this time... I can't..." he whispered so softly that he might as well have been talking to himself, "I can feel it... Deep inside of me... Trying to..." he added, not realizing that he was getting lost within the power trying to rise within him again.
So far, Meryth had been able to keep him distracted enough that this hadn't happened. But now, with his fears so close to the surface, he didn't have anything to ground him. All he could think of was losing them and that alone terrified him beyond anything else.
But how to tell them? He didn't realize that he'd been speaking out loud. Or that his scales were slowly beginning to take form along his arms and down his back as the power tried to get him to shift form.
He hadn't taken his Mere form since before they'd bonded. In truth, he'd been a little afraid to, not sure what would happen if he did.
What he failed to realize was that the power deep within him needed the connection to his Mere form, the connection to the ocean that was his birthplace...
Meryth might make the connection, but it was Kota that would be the one to figure it out most likely: The underwater cave.... |
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Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2017 10:54 pm
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Cassius opened his eyes and actually listened. He hated it, but knew that Meryth was right. As was Kota...
He put a finger under Kota's chin and lifted his face for another kiss to those soft lips then smiled at him, "You're both right... But I want you both with me for this... I'm not sure what will happen but I need you both with me for it," he said softly.
He finally gave a small wry smile and tapped Kota on the tip of his nose before getting to his feet to cross the room to his work table and collected something from a small box there. He moved to Kota first, since he'd know what the necklaces were for and what they meant.
He put the delicately carved amonite like shell over Kota's head and gave him a teasing wink since Meryth hadn't been to the underwater cave yet. Then he moved over to Meryth a bit more shyly and put the carved star over his head. Both were made from the huge amethyst he'd been wanting to bring up from the cave but hadn't yet done so.
"Kota knows what these are for. I gave him another one once. But these are better and meant only for you two," he told them simply and gave them both a tender smile before heading back out the back door towards the water's edge.
He hesitated there, with the water gently lapping at his toes, and found his fear rising once more. He hadn't been in the water since he'd returned from helping Sebastet, since he'd used his growing powers to sink an island and drown hundreds of the Church's Hunters...
He hated it when he killed and his lovers knew it, but they also accepted that ruthless streak he carried that let him do as was necessary.
He closed his eyes and finally allowed himself to truly feel the ocean in front of him, knowing that they were following him. He let the feeling of the ocean truly fill him again and shed his shorts and shirt before walking further out into the water.
As he moved through the shallows, he could feel the scales already forming and spreading over his arms, hips, belly, and back. The spikes grew from his spine and the fins formed on the outside of his forearms. He finally dipped under the water and allowed the tail to form, contorting the bones in his legs and feet into his true form; and the rest of his features to become almost painfully beautiful to look at.
He could feel the power welling up inside of him again but limited it to activating the spells he'd put into the necklaces he'd given to Meryth and Kota, allowing them to either simply breathe underwater or take on a temporary Mere form while they were with him. Yet another sign that his powers were growing...
He swam in circles for a bit, moving around Meryth and Kota as he simply reveled in the feeling of his true form and the simple feeling of moving through the water again. But after a moment, when they were all hovering over the edge of the underwater shelf, he stopped to face them and offered his hands to them. It would be easier to get there if he helped them, after all.
And he wanted to see their faces as they saw his world with him, just as he'd wanted to watch Kota's face so long ago... |
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