Chapter Thirty

"Let's try this shirt... Hmm... These pants make your ass look great, we'll do those. And I'm in the mood to see you in these boots. I made sure to order them a size larger this time too so your poor feet aren't smashed. And, of course, your ready to fuck you up collar."

I could only smiled as Akin handed me the clothes he'd picked out for me, and snapped the collar around my throat, pausing to jingle the dog tags dangling from them before he placed a kiss on my cheek. He helped me pulled on the leather pants with the studs down the sides, and a mesh long sleeve top over a black t-shirt. He hooked a pair of chains to the belt loops on the pants before he stepped back to admire his work, pausing to stroke his hand over my abs, making my stomach contract and groin tighten.

"Ah gosh," Akin groaned, rubbing at the side of his face with his other hand, "If we weren't on a huge mission right now, I would make you my huge mission." Heat crept toward my face and Akin laughed, stepping close to loops his fingers in the belt loops, jerking me up against him and tilting his head up to nuzzle my chin, a deep growl emitting from my throat with satisfaction.

"Oh, baby, you're so precious," Akin crooned, then kissed my chin and stepped back with a sigh, "I hope this thing goes by quickly. I'm excited to get back here and undress you. I bought a new toy I think you'll really like." My cock only ached further and I only managed a nod, not trusting myself to pull Akin toward the bed. He popped his palm against my butt before he went to grab his pirate style coat from the chain where he'd left it. He pulled it on and turned to face me with a confident smile.

"Ready to visit Olympus?" He asked.

About as ready as I am to get my teeth pulled out one by one without anesthetic.

"Yes, sir." I answered. Akin arched a brow as if he heard my thoughts before he smirked and reached out to take my hand, giving it a squeeze.

"Liar." He teased, reaching up to poke my nose. I shrugged helplessly and he gave me a grin before we teleported from our penthouse in Hell to the realm of Olympus.

Olympus was the main hub for god, faerie, and nymph activity. A large mountainous realm that was constantly plagued by fog on the outer edges, rows of grape vines out in the distance, dozens of species of trees, insects chirping in time with music that floated from the temples and river nymphs. The sweet scenes of grapes mingled with crisp fresh water, rich foods, and pine. Underneath, I picked up on the scents of soil and petrichor. It warmed my senses and I could feel that tingle in my soul that reminded me Tsukuyomi had been right about my true realm of rule.

We headed straight to Apollo's temple. I was in no mood to run into Zeus after having been free of him so long. Just being on Olympus again, beautiful though it was, made my skin crawl. I didn't really want to deal with half of these gods, particularly Apollo. The god was twisted and perverted and gave me the creeps.

We took a veering dirt path through about a mile of thick woods, occasionally a faerie running past or a nymph peering at us from the leaves before blending back in with their surroundings. Soon, Apollo's large white marble temple came into view. While his temple was built in the classical Doric style with tall ridged columns and the triangular roofing, inside the temple was a different story. The temple only remained open and public through the front entrance into the large receiving room, but the rest was closed off by marble walls and large wooden doors. The heavy scent of flowers from the Hyacinth garden in back wafted through the temple like an invisible hand of comfort.

The story went, in a nutshell, that Apollo had once been rather benevolent when he fell in love with the Spartan prince, Hyacinth. However, Apollo wasn't the only one with his eye on the prince. The West Wind god, Zephyrus, also loved the prince and had the mindset of if I can't have you, no one can, so he intercepted a game of discus between Apollo and Hyacinth, setting the extremely heavy disc off course and bashing Hyacinth so hard in the head that it killed him. Rumors said Apollo still mourned his death every night in the garden where Hyacinth's flower grew amongst the rest of its species.

Another tragic Greek love tale that made me want to vomit.

It didn't take long before we entered the receiving room, approaching the large purple and gold designed throne that looked more like a chaise lounge seat with lush pillows and a throw blanket, a couple of gold tables sitting around it for Apollo's constant eating habit. The guy binge ate like a teenage movie girl who just broke up with her boyfriend.

I kept that thought to myself, though, as the air around us rippled and pulsed with power and no more than a second later, a purple column of smoke twirled in the air in front of the chaise and vanished a second later to reveal Apollo standing there, looking less than inviting. Tall, like most gods, with thick auburn hair that was currently swept back from his face, brushed to the side so it was falling over his right shoulder, and eyes a deep ocean blue. He wore a pair of snug low-ride jeans and a open white button up shirt.

His stern expression vanished when he focused his sights on Akin, and an instant spark of irritation rushed through me as he gave Akin an open once over.

"Hello," He greeted slowly, approaching Akin, who arched a brow as if hardly impressed by him, "I ordered a pizza, not an angel, but I think I can deal with this." Akin folded his arms over his chest.

"You're precious," He said, but there was enough sarcasm to have Apollo wrinkling his nose in distaste, taking a step back, "We're here on official business, Apollo. We need to speak to Callias, and you, at the same time." Apollo's brow furrowed in a frown, and placed a hand on his hip slowly, appearing to consider the request before he shook his head.

"I don't think so. Callias is... a little tied up at the moment." He paused to give Akin a smug smile. Akin's blue eyes flashed.

"Then untie him. This is important, unless you want him to be killed, then fine, be my guest. Come on, Hannibal, we're going to Costa Rica-"

"Wait," Apollo snapped when Akin started to back out of the room, only to pause and give Apollo an innocent stare, which Apollo returned with a menacing glare, "What do you mean? What happened?" Akin turned back to face him, pursing his lips and raising an eyebrow, refusing to answer. Apollo rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers. Purple smoke created a plume from the ground beside him before it dissipated to reveal Callias... looking horrible.

Bruises marred his lightly tanned flesh along his jaw, over his brow, around his throat, his wrists and ankles, and red cuts in the corners of his mouth. Callias, or Anexius as was his original name, originally had long dark hair and white eyes like his Khalian siblings, but shapeshifting was one of his best abilities and it allowed him to take on whatever form Apollo commanded. In this case, his long hair was bright red and his eyes a deep shade of indigo. He only wore a pair of nearly transparent black pants that didn't really leave much to the imagination.

"Jesus," Akin snapped suddenly, making Apollo scowl at him, "I came here to warn you to keep him safe and alive, but it looks like he's in more danger being around you." Apollo's eyes flashed.

"Excuse me? You don't come into my temple and tell me how to treat my slaves."

"You're so primitive," Akin responded angrily, "Slavery is illegal in more than five realms now. Have you guys really not caught up with the times?" Apollo tsked and rolled his eyes before turning to Callias, who remained silent, eyes hooded as if the situation bored him.

"Does it bother you that I do this?" He asked. Callias didn't look at him as he gave his head a slight bow.

"No, master. I'm perfectly capable of handling this." He responded, then lifted his eyes to meet Akin's. Something odd passed between them. I wasn't sure what it was, but whatever it was, it caused Callias's eyes to instantly become sad and he lowered them to the floor again. Akin clenched his teeth and looked like he wanted to argue, but unfortunately, Apollo was correct. Olympus still had slavery imposed and Akin literally had no right to come in and tell Apollo how to treat Callias. Hell, even if slavery was illegally on Olympus, Callias would be exempt.

His slavery was cursed to him by the Source. Realm laws held no power over Source laws.

"So are you going to tell us what you wanted to tell us or should I just send him back?" Apollo demanded. Akin visibly tensed and I could tell he wanted to grab Apollo by the throat and put him through a wall. I was tempted to do so myself, but I was still aching and sore from getting my ass handed to me by Atlan, something that continued to piss me off and bruise my pride. So much for being the savior of Atlantis.

"Atlan is looking for blood," Akin said tightly, making Callias's eyes flicker and lift slowly to peer at him through his hair, "He knows what you did, Anexius, and he's gunning for you, Xenon, and the rest of the Khalian. After that, he's going to try and go after Hannibal, Arikos, and Xiphrus again." Callias looked at us curiously. He knew who was Xiphrus was, but obviously Arikos was still a mystery to him.

"Arikos is your brother," I said, making Anexius snap his head to stare at me, "The only son Atlan had through, you know, somewhat normal means. He's currently staying in Hell with Lucifer along with Xenon and Xiphrus."

"The rest of the Khalian have disappeared," Akin said with a nod, "Except Drak and Zelus, who are both dead." Anexius stared between us as if he wasn't sure he was believing us. Apollo appeared confused about the whole thing until Anexius swallowed and spoke in a strained voice.

"Dead, as in... Dead dead. Like gone forever." He managed. I nodded.

"I killed them." I replied monotonously. Anexius stared at me for the longest time before he choked on a sob and stepped away from Apollo, grabbing me in his arms. I froze, instantly uncomfortable with the touch, but Anexius didn't care. He wrapped his arms around me and squeezed, pressing his face against the side of my head.

"Thank you," He whispered, "Thank you, thank you, a hundred times, thank you, Hannibal." He stepped back to hold my face in his hands and the sudden intimate touch was making me extremely uncomfortable, but there was a haunted relief in Anexius's eyes that made me accept his touch with quiet politeness. I knew what they had done to his lover and I knew how much it pained him, even worse, I knew he was going to be devastated if he ever found out that Dexius's soul was wandering Xandria, hating him every floating step he took.

I still hadn't told anyone about meeting Dexius in the catacombs. No one knew the Atlantean Prince was a skilled ghost. He couldn't escape Xandria, but something told me that if Anexius ever found out his spirit had survived the imprisonment, he would leave Olympus to find a way to reincarnate him and bring him back. It would not only be bad for Anexius and Dexius, considering the prince hated him and would probably ruin his life further, but Anexius would instantly lose Olympian protection and be vulnerable to Atlan's attacks.

Even though Olympus was a rotten place for the Khalian, it was definitely safer than being in the heart of the realm he despised.

"Thank you." Anexius whispered again, then hugged me one last time before Apollo made an irritated noise.

"You can stop that now." He said, an underlying threat to his voice. Anexius swallowed and gave me one last grateful look before stepping back, then turning to Apollo to nod his head.

"My apologies, master." He said softly before standing straight again. Akin looked at Anexius pitifully before taking a deep breath and looking at Apollo.

"Anyway, Atlan is going to do anything in his power to get to Callias. You need to protect him if you want to keep him. If not, you can hand him over to me right now and I'll do a much better job." He said, purposely making a jab at the Greek god, making him visibly tense, muscles flexing. Apollo gritted his teeth before he grabbed Callias roughly by the arm, almost knocking him over in the process.

"I can handle him just fine. You've made your warning, now get the hell off my property before you suddenly find yourselves with a nice throbbing slave brand on your feet." He threatened. I narrowed my eyes and Akin just rolled his eyes, turning to leave.

"I'll be there in a second, sir." I said to him. Akin gave me a calculating stare, like he knew what I was doing. He glanced back at Apollo, who watched us warily, then back at me and gave me an approving nod before he left the temple. I waited until he was just out of earshot before I turned to Apollo, who watched me with a menacing glare that hardly intimidated me. I approached him by a couple steps and his grip on Callias tightened to the point where the Khalian was breathing raggedly, sweat trickling down the side of his face.

"I'm only going to say this once," I said in a low voice, watching Apollo's eyes darken as he roughly released Callias to step toward me, trying to invade my personal space to intimidate me, but little did he know that was just feeding the monster inside me that laughed at his attempts to freak me out, "You will take care of Callias. I don't mean just protect him from Atlan... I mean, you will not abuse him any further. If you think I'm kidding, I'll be back in a month and if he looks like this again, I'm going to rip your spine out and play baseball with that and your head." Apollo's eyes faded to a bloody red and he bared his fangs in my face angrily.

The monster in me surged, but I kept it on its leash, just enough so that my eyes burned red and my vision reddened around the edges, fangs elongating into something more suitable to ripping flesh from bone, and my claws lengthened.

Apollo instantly stiffened as I bared my fangs in his face, making him take a small step back.

"Don't fuck with me, Greek," I threatened, voice lower, darker, huskier, "I can kill you and no one will be able to do a thing, not even your daddy. So you better think twice about the threats you make, and not just toward Callias or myself, but if you ever fucking threaten my master again, I'll do more than just kill you." Apollo was furious. I could see the vein pulsing in his throat, his teeth grinding together so hard, I could hear them creaking, and hear his heart pulsing a vigorous beat beneath his skin, blood flooding through his veins.

However, accompanying that flood of raw potent rage was the underlying stench of fear. It reeked like a heavy perfume and the monster inside me writhed to feed on it, but I yanked it back before I could go any further, my claws and fangs vanishing, vision fading back to normal as I stepped away, giving Apollo a quick scan from head to toe. I turned to Callias, who tensed before I bowed low.

"Sorry for disturbing you, Anexius," I stood up, meeting Anexius's wide confused indigo eyes, "Be safe. If you should need any help, I'm available at all hours of the day." I ignored Apollo's nostril flaring temper tantrum as I left the temple, knowing full well Apollo would want to take it out on Anexius, but being unable to because he was scared shitless. A little sliver of excitement rushed through me, but I quickly stamped it down.

It shouldn't feel good to scare someone that intensely, but I had to. Anexius didn't deserve to be treated that way, no one did. And Apollo had crossed the line when he'd threatened Akin and looked at him like he was a piece of meat in a factory. No one threatened my master and got away with it.

I walked out of the temple, spotting Akin leaning on a tree nearby. He pushed off the tree as I approached him, and he scanned me from head to toe to make sure Apollo hadn't done the unthinkable, and Akin breathed a sigh of relief, putting a hand on my chest.

"Jesus, baby, you really know how to freak a guy out. Are you all right? He didn't say anything to you, did he? Cuz I may not be able to kill him, but I can bring the wrath of hell down upon his head like a guillotine." He promised. I smiled at that, reaching up to take his face in my hands, savoring the softness of his pale skin, a stark contrast to my darker, rougher skin. It was times like this where he seemed almost small.

But I knew Akin wasn't small or fragile or delicate.

I kissed him on the forehead before stepping back and Akin smiled at me, taking my hands to squeeze them tight.

"All right," Akin said gently, "Now let's go visit your mom and see how she's doing. Are you ready?" I nodded. Akin still appeared skeptical, but I gave him a reassuring smile and he relaxed as we teleported from Olympus to Atlantis, which was now far more active than it had been during Atlan's short rule after his imprisonment. The island had previously been very quiet with little activity, even the gods had shut themselves up in their temples, leaving only the wildlife to blossom. Now, creatures of all kinds were moving in, especially soldiers for the bases Lucifer and Hades had set up to police what soldiers we could capture from the last battle, as well as people moving in to help keep the land safe and healthy without caretakers now.

It was starting to look like a normal realm. I just hoped they didn't destroy the forests to try and modernize it. I knew Lea and Akin loved the city, but I remembered the nature spirit telling me how he was part of the land- that he was the land. How he loved it and protected it... and to be honest, it protected me too.

"She's probably at the main temple. We should go check it out. I wonder if Zetnos is with her." Akin added curiously. I didn't know what to say to that.

Zetnos had woken from his coma shortly after the war. The clash of the powers of all the Atlantean gods had startled him from his sleep and it had taken Hades, Lucifer, and several others to calm him down when he woke up. I had yet to meet with him, mostly because there was a strange sensation in my gut that was afraid he would be disappointed in me. I wasn't sure why that bothered me, why I should care about his opinion. I could only remember very small bits and pieces from my time with him and Lea in Atlantean before I had been kidnapped.

Supposedly Zetnos had followed Lea to Atlantis to assist her in keeping the realm safe and alert in case Atlan or the other Khalian decided to return.

According to reports, Xanius and Xelius, Atlan's sister/wife and brother, had vanished completely and no one knew where they were. It was unsure whether Atlan was targeting them and the other minor gods as well as the Khalian. The hope was that some of the gods would be stupid enough to return.

Akin and I teleported from the beach entrance to the realm that was heavily guarded by military personnel, to the main temple at the top of the mountains, the one Atlan had once called home and now was under heavy construction to be transformed into a government building that would help police Atlantis until a ruler was chosen.

And of course, all those expectant eyes were on me.

"Are you sure you don't want to think about this more," Akin had asked me when I told him I wasn't going to rule Atlantis, "You'd be able to do so much with that island, I know you. You'd finally have your own private gym? Or coffee shop! You can do whatever you want with it." I shook my head and snuggled down closer to him that night we discussed it.

"I don't want to be a king, master. I just want to be here with you. For as long as you'll have me." I had told him. Akin had accepted that answer, but he still hinted around to changing my mind and I would just smile and remind him that I didn't need to be a king to be happy. The only problem was that, if I wasn't going to take the position, only I had the power to appoint a new king and I wasn't sure who yet to choose.

My original decision had been Arikos, but something told me that the last place Arikos would want to be is Atlantis. He'd spent his entire life suffering here. The place was one big bad memory and I didn't want to force it on him. I considered Xenon, but he'd instantly hissed at the idea.

"No way," Xenon had exclaimed when I suggested it, "That throne is cursed. I'm not sitting on it."

"You don't have to sit on it."

"I mean the position itself, Hannibal, not the throne. I swear, you are so dense."

"You're right; why would I ask someone like you to be king? You aren't even king of your own household."

"Excuse you. I'm always king of my household."

"What would Dorean say if he heard that?"

"Probably beat me with a bit of driftwood."

Suffice it to say, Xenon had turned down the offer quickly. The only other Atlantean I could think of was Anexius, but he was currently in no position to rule the realm. If he moved in, Apollo would become king of Atlantis by default and the very thought of that nightmare made me ill. Would it even work considering Apollo was Greek? I had heard of other realms being conquered, but never the ruler being changed.

Either way, that was a topic I was hoping Lea wouldn't bring up on our visit today. The last thing I wanted to do was discuss business. I just wanted to make our report and see about getting something to eat. The smell of grapes from Olympus, combined with the smell of sweet fruits and ocean water in Atlantis was making me extremely hungry.

We arrived at Atlan's temple to find that Lea had indeed given it a make-over. She'd carved the stories off the columns of Atlan's greatest accomplishments and had a team of people scraping the mural off the wall in the receiving room, putting the pieces into a bucket that burned and sizzled.

Akin arched a brow at me and I just shook my head. I scanned the receiving room for Lea while Akin went to ask one of the workers where she was. Meanwhile, I wandered to the right where a large heavily decorated archway opened up to a balcony that seemed oddly empty, but held a great view of the island itself. It was a lot bigger from this angle, a view of mountainous forests, forests that stretched out towards the blue ocean like a green blanket with speckles of bright colors from flowers and other flora. I spotted several temples, which were being used as base camps, the island now a flurry of activity. I imagined it to be like this years ago when the island and its worshippers were still a thing.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" A voice asked, making me snap around for a split second expecting Atlan to be there, only to see Zetnos approaching me, but keeping a good distance as if he were afraid of getting too close.

He looked just the way he had in my broken memories of him. Incredibly tall, probably Hades's height, with his wavy black hair brushed over his shoulder, eerie green eyes watching me with fascination and a strange longing that reminded me of the way Lea looked when she first saw me. Like they weren't sure if I was really there or not. He wore a black silk button up shirt with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, and a pair of black slacks; instead of the expensive heavy robes from my memories. It felt strange, almost surreal, to see him here.

"Zetnos." I murmured, unsure of what else to say aside from that. Zetnos's eyes glowed at that, as if he hearing me say my name was reassurance that I was really here.

"Hannibal," He said, then smiled when I looked at him oddly, "Lea has told me your name... It's a powerful and strong name."

"Doesn't it mean warlord?" I asked. Zetnos shrugged, coming over to stand beside me as we looked out over the island, his green eyes reflecting the green of the foliage around us.

"In some respects. I believe it means leader. A person who would do anything for his people, even if it means doing that from within the shadows," He explained, turning to look at me as I frowned, "I know you don't wish to rule over Atlantis. It's understandable. While the land is beautiful, the pantheon is not. We're a scarred, dark pantheon built on pain and blood and misery. Part of me is content that Atlan is seeking to destroy the Khalian... another part of me knows it is just the beginning of further destruction within our pantheon." I completely agreed, and was grateful he understood my decision. I had almost been afraid he would be disappointed in me, again, something that confused me.

"You've grown so much," Zetnos said, changing the subject and making me straighten on instinct to show him how really tall I had gotten and he smiled, "Last time I saw you, you barely reached my knee. Now you're nearly my height... And you've become strong, Hannibal. I am relieved. Though you've suffered much, but you still managed to retain yourself. You've done so well, and will continue to do so. Know that whatever decision you make, your mother and I will back you on it always." I swallowed at that and nodded. Zetnos smiled and offered me his hand. I exchanged a handshake with him before Akin came out onto the balcony with us, Lea following him. She wore a blue Hawaiian printed summer dress that fell just past her knees, a pair of leather wrap sandals with a heel clicking on the stone balcony as she came along, doing her hair up in a ponytail.

But there was something wrong and I felt it the moment Lea came onto the balcony. She didn't look at me like she normally did, and she wasn't smiling. I looked at Akin, and he just grimaced, rubbing at his arm.

"Zetnos," Lea greeted first, making her brother tense for a moment at the underlying hardness to her voice, "Do you mind if my son and I have a moment in private?" Zetnos nodded, passing her a curious stare that she avoided by staring at the ground. Akin and Zetnos left us on the balcony, my eyes following them before sliding back over to Lea, who was leaning on the balcony rail, staring out over the forests.

The only sounds now were the birds chattering in the trees lining the temple, the distant sound of a leopard shouting triumph in its first kill, muffled voices of workers and soldiers. The wind rustling the tree leaves and the ocean waves roaring softly.

I knew Lea knew. She didn't need to say anything. I could tell by the way she carried herself, stiff and stern, her expression hard and unreadable, eyes downcast and refusing to meet mine. My heart sank and it felt... uncomfortable.

I hadn't felt like this in a long time. That incredibly heavy feeling of dread, of pain. It stung and burned on its way down into my stomach, and I felt that if I even moved a muscle, it would cause her to retaliate. If Lea had ever attacked me, I wouldn't be able to defend myself. I wouldn't be able to do anything for fear of hurting her. While I had forgiven Lea and was open to attempting a relationship with her, the monster in me disagreed and still simmered over the past, a past I knew Lea couldn't help.

Now, it didn't matter, not really.

Lea was disappointed... No, more so. She was angry, and hurt, betrayed, and learning this fact about me dredged up old nightmares that were causing her unbelievable pain and knowing I was part of it made me sick to my stomach.

"I'm sorry." I said at last, voice quieter than usual. It sounded even too quiet for myself. Lea didn't respond and I wondered briefly if maybe she hadn't heard me, but I was too afraid to repeat it. I kept expecting her to whip around and backhand me, like Iapetus did whenever I had done something to anger him. I remembered the countless times I'd been forced to apologize to him when I would've rather choked on my own tongue, and he'd pretended to accept it until he got close enough to hit me.

Even now, my whole body was tense and ready for Lea to hit me.

She turned to face me and I stepped back, wincing. Lea winced too, but instead of hitting me, she just stood there and stared at me, eyes glistening. My heart twisted into a knot. I could feel my chest growing tight.

"Why?" Was all she asked. I swallowed, averting my eyes. I felt uncomfortable answering that question. I always wanted to give one straight answer, but it was never that easy... But it did all come right down to one emotion that had plagued me for years and never left, even now, it simmered under the surface of everything I was and wanted to be.

"I was angry," I said, watching Lea look at me and I avoided her eyes, not wanting to see the incredulous glare that I'm sure she was wearing, "At the time, I thought Cain was the only person in the world who gave a shit about me. He was the only one who looked at me and said I want him... It felt good, being wanted, I mean. But Cain started to drift toward Abel again and he wasn't looking at me anymore and told me to stay away from him and Abel and I was getting angrier and angrier the more he brushed me off like I wasn't important. I was so tired of people using me and throwing me away like I was nothing and I was tired of being in pain, tired of being alone. And Cain finally told me that he wanted Abel to live with him and that I would have to serve him and that infuriated me. Something in me snapped. Everything turned red, and it burned so much that I wanted it to stop, so I took it out on Abel because I blamed him for taking Cain away, the one person I thought cared about me... By the time I realized what I was doing, Cain found me and killed me. I woke up the next morning, as usual, and ran to the only person I had then."

"Prometheus." Lea said quietly, voice cracking. I nodded, raking a hand through my hair and moving to the balcony to lean on it.

"After that, he talked me into taking out the rest of my revenge, but I couldn't do it. At that point, something in me realized that there was no point. I was just going to make Cain and Abel feel more like crap and I had no right to do that. I gave up. I was tired of everything. I ended up sleeping at the docks in Styx. I managed to get enough change to put together for a cheap whiskey and I went to a club to drown everything in alcohol and loud music. And I met Akin." I explained. Lea swallowed, but it was too late. She was already crying, tears streaming down her cheeks as she covered her mouth, like she was going to be sick, and I didn't blame her. I felt like I was going to be sick just thinking about it again.

"Akin found out about a month into our relationship. He kicked me out and I went back to the docks. I wanted to see if maybe, just maybe, I could at least talk to him again, so I went back to the club to get a drink and wait for him to show up, but Epimetheus was there... he wanted to punish me for not going through with his plan with Prometheus, so he told the club what I did and I spent two weeks... on the floor of a public bathroom... getting attacked in the same way I did to Abel, except over and over and over again by men I still don't know the names of." My chest hurt even more now, tight and achy. My stomach churned. I felt like I was on the verge of a panic attack.

Lea looked like she was caught between wanting to hold me and wanting to kick me out herself. She was taking it a lot better than I thought, though. I was still waiting for the part where she laughed and told me I had gotten what I deserved.

"Abel told me he forgave me, and he still tries to act like I'm a normal person, but I know he's still angry and still hurting. And no one else in Styx let me forget what happened. It's why I never go back there, not even to visit my god-children... Not that I visited them anyway. I can't stand children. Growing up with four older brothers who were constantly tormenting me taught me that children can be just as cruel as adults and I won't let myself get near them. They're just kids, but their opinions can hurt too. And I'm tired of it."

I took a deep breath.

"What I did to Abel is unforgivable. He may be able to brush it off and walk away, and even encouraged me to do the same, but I can't. It affects my present and my future too much for me to just pull the wool over my eyes. Even after I gave up fighting in that club in Styx and accepted what was happening to me, I still didn't think that was punishment enough. So when I ended up in Atlantis and the gods tortured me the same way the people in Styx did, I didn't fight that either. And I probably never will, not really. I'm trying to make up for what I did. I really am... But I like being happy with Akin. I like having someone who gives a shit about me, who doesn't see the monster inside me... If it wasn't for Akin, I would probably still be on the floor of a public bathroom shooting up as many drugs as possible while being used more than the toilets." It was crude and cruel to be so blunt with her, but she needed to know the truth from me. I had no idea how she found out the truth in the first place, but she knew.

Lea was still crying, even after I finished speaking and I didn't know what to do. I know Akin would've hugged her and comforted her, but I knew the last thing she wanted was to be touched by someone like me. An immense misery crumbled onto my shoulders and I suddenly felt like Atlas holding up the weight of the cosmos. Except I was slowly being crushed and I needed to find Akin before I had another meltdown.

I could already feel the monster in me writhing, except this time it was pressuring me to do something awful to myself.

"I'm sorry." I told Lea again, then quickly left the balcony, relieved that she didn't try to stop me. Back in the temple, I was relieved that Zetnos had apparently gone somewhere else, leaving only Akin, who instantly went to me. I grabbed him in my arms and he hugged me back tightly, rubbing his hand up and down my back soothingly.

"Ssh, it's all right, baby. I know." He whispered, squeezing me. I buried my face against his hair, wanting to hide in case anyone walked by the alcove we were standing in. Tears burned the backs of my eyes and a lump choked me, but I refused to let myself give into them. I bit my tongue so hard I thought it would bleed, clenched my fists against Akin's back, pursing my lips as Akin continued to whisper to me.

"She hates me," I managed, "This time, she really hates me, master. She's not going to show up out of the blue again and try to hug me. I thought it would feel like before where I brushed it off, but it's not like that, Akin. I don't know what to do. The only parent I had... I don't have her anymore." Akin squeezed his eyes shut and held me close.

"No, ssh, baby. Don't say that. She doesn't hate you. She's confused and she's hurt. Give her time."

"It doesn't matter; she'll always hate me. She'll never touch me again. She'll never look at me again. And then Zetnos is going to know and he won't come near me ever again, if not kill me."

"Hannibal, stop that, no. You have to give them time. You'll be okay, sweetheart. You'll be fine. I promise. As your master, I will be here for you. Trust me, pet." Akin said softly. I let him hold me, trying to comfort me. I wanted to stay and see if maybe, just maybe Lea would come back, but she stayed out on the balcony and we couldn't stay much longer as they were planning to close the temple off to outsiders to do more cleaning and constructing.

Akin and I eventually left the temple and found a secluded beach on the other side of the mountain. Akin sat on the beach, letting me lay back against his chest, my head resting there as he stroked the hair back from my face comfortingly, his other hand laced with mine as we stared out at the ocean that seemed eerily calm now. It was a bright orange color from the sun that was dipping in the distance, the rays of it spreading out across the water's surface, making it glitter and glow. The closer water was a clear shade of blue, the foam stretching across the white sand to lick my feet before drawing back.

"It's going to be hard, baby," Akin told me softly, "But you can do this. Your mother was gone for a while, but she'll be back. And when she is, we'll beat Atlan back together. I promise you that."

"What if—"

"Don't do that, baby," Akin warned, pinching my ear and making me tilt my head back to stare up at him, "Don't do what ifs. You've grown... so much since we first met. I love you more and more with each passing day, and nothing makes me prouder than to see you grow and learn. It's like watching the phoenixes be reborn from the ashes... The phoenix may be Xenon's animal, but you are the phoenix. You are beautiful and strong and resilient. You're in a slump now, I know that, and it hurts, but don't give up hope, sweetheart. Your day will come and it'll be bright and beautiful, just like you." I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath as I felt a hot trail slide down the side of my face and Akin crooned, leaning down to kiss my forehead.

"You'll be okay, Hannibal." He whispered. I swallowed, letting him brush the tears off my cheeks before we were silent for the longest time, staring out at the ocean that rippled and whispered, the blazing orange ball of sunlight disappearing beneath the horizon, darkening the ocean and the world around us.

Yeah, maybe I will be okay.

But I wasn't so sure I could say the same about Anexius...

TO BE CONTINUED...

A/N: That's it, that's the last chapter to The Hybrid! Oh this book was long and adventurous, phew! I'm so glad I got the chance to do a book for Hannibal personally. He was a difficult guy to get to know, but he finally opened up in the end. He's still got some issues to work out, but we'll see those unfold in the next book, which I have finally titled Cursed. See you all in the next book!