“Light the fire,” Wylen said as he pulled an arrow from his quill.
“And where are you going? It’s almost pitch black!”
They traveled as far as they could before the sun had set and had decided to work together as they were going in the same direction. It was more economical and safer this way.
Wylen grinned and tugged the string of his bow playfully. “Ah, but Jaelan…I can hunt better in the twilight. Just you wait and see.”
The long-haired man snorted before leaning down to assemble their collected firewood. “I guess I will have to see then. Even my people with the blood of the gods wait for the morning sun to hunt. I doubt you’ll find anything to sink your arrow into.”
Wylen cocked his head to the side like a raven and pursed his lips thoughtfully. “Well…if I do manage to catch us something nice…what will you give me?”
“Huh?”
“What will you give me?” Wylen repeated. A grin stretched across his boyish face. “After all, you just wounded my pride.” He clutched his chest playfully.
Jaelan snorted again and rubbed his brow. He gave the fellow a scrutinizing look. “If I recall, you called me a woman. If anyone has had their pride wounded today, it would be me.”
Wylen laughed and rubbed the base of his neck nervously. “Y-Yeah…sorry about that.” His eyes crinkled at the sides as he smiled sheepishly at his traveling companion. “Though…you are as beautiful as a woman…take it as a compliment.”
“Call me a woman one more time, and I will run you through, truce or not,” Jaelan grumbled, only half-joking.
Wylen held his hands up in defense, eyes reflecting laughter. “Alright, alright. But seriously, what do I get if I can bring us back a catch?”
The young warrior sighed and tucked the loose hair behind his ear before looking up at Wylen, face indiscernible. “What is it that you want?”
Wylen licked his lips. His body turned to face the crouching young man. “I want you to tell me about yourself…your clan. What’s it like?”
Two ebony eyebrows arched into Jaelan’s brow as his lips parted in something akin to surprise. “Myself? Why ever would you want to know about my clan?”
Wylen shrugged and cast his gaze to the forest floor. He did not want Jaelan to catch sight of his flushed cheeks accidentally. Truth be told, he couldn’t stop his curiosity. He wanted to know more about this skilled warrior with long flowing sable locks. How he grew up…did he have friends back home? How many siblings did he have, if there even were any? Was he betrothed? Did the clan of Ellos have any special rituals they performed? After all, they were directly linked to the Gods. There must be something fascinating and unique about them.
“Just curious.” He mumbled and tightened his hand on the bow. “I find you very interesting.” He said before looking up and catching the other’s eye.
Strangely, Jaelan felt his heart flutter unnaturally at the overwhelming gaze. It held him captive in its boldness. He coughed and forcefully tore his eyes away, focusing on the firewood. A little startled at the way he reacted towards this nobody.
“Okay…though I doubt you shall find anything.”
Wylen’s ears perked up at that, feeling his stomach grow light. “I shall hold you to that.”
Barely an hour had passed before Wylen returned. A triumphant grin on his face and a rabbit held by its long ears in his hands. Jaelan almost fell into the flames of his fire in shock. His hands came to the ground to steady him at the last second. He gaped, eyes following the tall warrior as he victoriously strutted to the fire and took a seat. Once comfortable on the forest floor, he immediately set to work preparing their dinner.
“Well then,” Wylen hummed, pulling a dagger from his boot. “A promise is a promise.”
“How did you catch that?” Jaelan gawked like a child. His eyes like two wide saucers. “It’s already so dark!”
With a cheeky grin, Wylen leaned forwards. The flames of fire cast shadows onto his face and made his eyes glow like that of a wolf. “Where I come from, I’m known for my skill in archery. I can hit a target blindfolded…from the length of fifteen tall men.”
If Jaelan’s eyes could have grown any wider, they would have.
“Now,” Wylen tweaked his nose before getting to it. “How about that promise….”
:::
After three days of traveling together, Wylen, for the life of him, couldn’t control his increasing interest in the long-legged warrior. Everything about this man captivated him for some odd reason.
His mixed blood.
The exotic traditions and qualities of his clan…
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Llr wjrafgoei rxliir bo rkbgvrwjcrtlq…
Llr werlmji ijeut…
Ktf ugjmfoei jgmt bo tlr cfmx…
Qsifc rtbbx tlr tfjv. Llr tjcv mjwf eq ab klqf ja tlr ojmf kbgglrbwfis. Llr atbeutar xfqa agjnfgrlcu vjcufgber kjafgr. Pa kjrc’a tfjiats, jcv la kjr mjerlcu tlr ugblc ab ralg. Culajafvis tf ibbxfv jtfjv jcv kjamtfv jr Ajfijc rmegglfv bc obgkjgv. Llr ibcu ilwyr qertfv boo atf ugbecv jcv ugjmfoeiis rfca tlw rjlilcu atgbeut atf jlg ilxf j recyfjw.
After he grew more comfortable around him, the shorter man revealed himself to be a dizzying ball of energy. Jaelan always had something to say, a comment about every matter they discussed whether he knew the subject or not. His compassion and kindness trickled through him like sand through a fist. When they had passed through a village on their way North, hungry and thirsty from a long day’s trek, he didn’t hesitate to share his hard-earned meal with the urchins of the street. Wylen had chided him when he caught the man giving all his food away, but Jaelan would just frown at him.
“I am strong. I can eat a little less and be fine. These children need to grow, and without food now, they will never be able to take care of themselves.”
Wylen sighed and adjusted his quiver. His eyes stared ahead as he jogged the short distance to catch up to his traveling companion.
:::
Jaelan shuddered under cover of night, and his attention was focused on the sleeping man across the slowly dying fire. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the serene and peaceful expression on the other’s face. The well-defined nose and brow completed Wylen’s handsome features, and the small glittering beauty mark at the corner of his mouth accentuated his lips.
A hot wave rolled through his body as a wind blew from the west and ruffled the sleeping man’s hair, sending strands of it sailing across Wylen’s face. Automatically the warrior’s hand reached up to swat at his face, nose scrunched in the wake of his self-assault.
Unable to hold back his smile, Jaelan let it stretch across his face as he curled further in on himself.
This man…
This warrior with the skill of a bow and arrow he had never seen before…
He had captured his attention so completely that it scared him.
In only a week, he couldn’t imagine his life without the tall warrior by his side. His dry humor…his caring nature…and his ever-flowing tales and adventures he recited with the enthusiasm of a thousand men.
Jaelan licked at his lips. His fingers drew up to rub the shiver from his chest as he recalled the men from his village. Sure, he had heard about those select few who had chosen to denounce women and instead pledged their heart and soul to a fellow man. There was barely a handful, but they did exist.
At that time, Jaelan couldn’t understand their source of logic as to why they would ever decide to forgo building a family with myriads of children for a single person.
Having never experienced love, it just baffled him—especially when he heard how these warriors made love to one another.
He and Soral talked about it once. Neither could comprehend how both participants could achieve pleasure from such a union.
Now, as he lay there on the forest floor, he couldn’t stop himself from thinking about it over and over again.
Wylen was strong. His muscles bulged and stretched his tunic whenever he notched an arrow.
If he could allow himself to imagine, those muscles straining for a different reason…
His face flamed.
No, he couldn’t allow himself. These were experiences he would never have. He had a Nation that depended on him. To give his heart to a man was out of the question! He needed to keep his body pure—untainted. Even the thought of giving himself to be conquered was insane.
He was to be the father of a Nation!
The leader of his clan!
Who would respect him as a leader if they knew he parted his legs for another man willingly?
Who would follow him?
Ashamed of himself, Jaelan turned away from the fire and away from Wylen. He cursed at himself and promised to stop such thoughts from ever taking root in his head again.
:::
“Jaelaaaaan.” Wylen sulked as they trudged on through the downpour, wet and cold. “Jaelaaaaan.”
The shorter man whipped around. His wet hair smacked him in the face with the harshness of a whip. Wincing, he cursed and brought his hands up to rub the sting away from his eyes as a clap of thunder shook the ground.
Wylen’s teeth chattered as he closed the short distance between them. Water ran into his eyes and made it difficult to see.
“We need to stop!”
Jaelan shook his head as the water trickled down his chin.
“You’re crazy if you think we’re going to make it to the river tonight. Hell, it’s probably flooded!” Wylen protested. His cheeks puffed as he blew the dripping water from his mouth. “We can’t swim across it. The current will be too wild! We need to stop and make camp somewhere.”
Jaelan opened his eyes and blinked ferociously to keep the droplets from piercing into his line of sight. “We can’t. We need to keep going! The moon is already half waned! If we stop now, I won’t make it to the mountain in time!”
“If we don’t stop now, you’ll never make it, period!” Wylen barked back. He grabbed Jaelan by the shoulders and gave him a good shake. “You’ll die trying to cross that river!”
“I will not!”
“You may have the blood of Gods running through your veins,” Wylen narrowed his eyes. “But you’re still a mortal! You can still die like the rest of us!”
“If you’re so scared, you can stay here!” Jaelan growled and pushed the taller man’s arms away fiercely. “I can go by myself!”
“I am not letting you go to your death!” Wylen growled, unable to believe they were having this argument. “God, you’re crazy! Are you feeling alright? This surely cannot be the Jaelan I know!”
Wylen made a grab for him again.
“Let me go!” Jaelan snarled and breathed laboriously through his gritted teeth. He hit Wylen’s arm away from himself and took a step back.
Something inside of Wylen made him suddenly stop short. He turned his full gaze to the stubborn man and strained his eyes to see him more clearly. Jaelan stood there panting in the pouring rain. The water completely soaked through his clothes and turned what was once a navy tunic, black as pitch. He took a tentative step forward, eyes focused on the unnatural flush covering Jaelan’s cheeks.
“Hey…” he shakily reached out a hand with concern. “…Jaelan…hold on for a second.”
Jaelan glared at the approaching limb, ready to strike at it when Wylen spoke again. His tone, however, gave him pause in the way it trembled.
“Jae….j-just wait a m-minute…”
He stilled, mouth parted in silent surprise as Wylen cupped his cheeks and tilted his head forward. Lips slowly came down to rest on his forehead. A shiver ran through him like a lightning bolt. He inhaled sharply and grabbed at Wylen’s wrists. He needed to pull them away…
“Jaelan,” Wylen’s voice sounded in alarm. “You’re hot.”
Blinking like an owl, Jaelan lost the ability of speech as he stared into Wylen’s worried eyes. Those handsome, almond eyes…
“Don’t you feel it?”
Even though Wylen was standing but a handful of inches away, Jaelan had trouble hearing him. His eyes were full of smooth skin, kissed by the sun, and lips pale as the pink petals of a rose.
“Jaelan….”
He smiled to himself, suddenly hot. His mouth was dry as the desert as he stood in the tirade of a storm.
“Jaelan!”
Finally hearing his name called, Jaelan broke free from his trance. His lips drew closed as he took a stumbling step back.
“Jae…” Wylen grabbed for the man again. He was more worried now than he was when the stubborn man wanted to challenge a rampaging river. “You’ve got a fever! Don’t you feel hot?”
Suddenly numb, Jaelan shivered. His nose scrunched as the wind threw the torpedoing rain into his face. The drops stung his cheeks like needles made of ivory tusks.
“Jaelan!” Wylen called again and pulled the smaller man flush against his front. “Hey, answer me!”
“I…I don’t feel so great…” Jaelan replied after a minute or so. He swallowed laboriously after finally losing to his weakened body. “…Maybe….m-maybe we should just f-find camp…”
“God, Jae…” Wylen silently cursed under his breath, feeling how the man shivered in his arms. He hugged him tighter to his chest and gazed out into the ridge beyond. He strained his eyes, peering hard into the distance for something that could make do as a shelter to sit out the storm. His gaze landed on a narrow outcropping of rocks a little to the west. With any luck, there would be a small cave they could hide out in until the storm blew over.
“Hey…” he lowered his head, water careening down his nose as he did so. “Hey…Jaelan…I think we can find a cave over there.”
Grunting, Jaelan lifted his head. He batted his lashes and looked toward the way Wylen pointed. If he squinted, he could see a stretch of rocks. “Hmm…alright, let’s go.”
Wylen held Jaelan back as the man attempted to pull away. “Hey…you think you can make it? You want me to carry you?”
The young warrior snorted and threw his head back in disbelief. “Hey, look here, Wylen. I may not be in the best of shape right now. But hell have at me if I let you lift me like a woman and carry me. I can manage to get there by myself. Probably faster than you can, even with fever!”
Wylen winced as he forgot how easily offended Jaelan got whenever he felt his manhood brought into question. As if to prove his point, the smaller man bounded off. Hair whipped behind him as he ran through the forage. A string of curses erupted from Wylen’s lips as he dashed off behind the stubborn warrior. The image of the man stumbling and falling to an early demise rather vivid in his mind’s eye.
Jaelan leaped over a rift. His boots made a dull thud as he landed on the other side. A grimace graced his face as he felt a bout of dizziness assail him. He stumbled on his feet while his hands reached into the air in an attempt to stabilize himself.
“Oh, for the love of mankind!” Wylen growled and jumped over the rift, grabbing hold of Jaelan’s bicep in his iron grasp. Before the man could even begin to voice his protest, Wylen threw him onto his back and grunted at the extra weight.
“Put me down!”
“If you die from stupidly falling over your own two feet,” Wylen gritted his teeth as he took a step forward. “I will literally go to the underworld, drag you back by your daunting raven hair, only to kill you personally myself.”
Jaelan kicked Wylen with the insides of his feet and gnashed his teeth. “Only if I don’t kill you first! I am not a woman! Put me down!”
“So help me, God, if you cry another word about being a woman!” Wylen yelled into the woodland. “I know you are a man! I’ve seen it myself! You are the only one comparing yourself to a woman, not I! So quit your whining, and let me get us to the cave before your jabbering and tossing gets us both killed!”
Furrowing his eyebrows, Jaelan gave Wylen one last solid kick for good measure before growing silent. In response, the broad-shouldered warrior jostled him. He pulled Jaelan’s legs tighter around his torso and took a step forward.
“You tell no one about this.” Jaelan hissed into Wylen’s ear. His arms tightened around his neck like a boa constrictor.
Wylen rolled his eyes. “Who would I tell?”
“No one.”
“You will be the death of me,” Wylen grumbled, jostling his package once more and earning himself a choking hold for his worries.
He spat onto the ground and viciously blinked as he journeyed over the thick trail. His legs finally brought him to the rocky slope he had seen from back East. Wylen let go of Jaelan’s legs, letting the man separate from his back. The quiver fell back into place as he reached for an arrow and his bow.
Jaelan withdrew his sword and bit into his lower lip as they crept across the rocks. His eyes scanned the wall of grey for a cave of some sort. They searched for a good fifteen minutes before Jaelan spotted one. Like a deer, he darted towards it, yelling to Wylen as he ran past him.
Almost slipping over a slickened stone, Wylen cursed. He followed behind the excited man as quickly as he could.
“Here!” Jaelan turned his head back to Wylen in excitement.
Breathing laboriously through his mouth, Wylen grunted as he joined the shorter warrior. He spat water from his lips as he peered into the darkness.
“It would be just our luck if a bear jumped out.” He thought idly and brought his bow up to aim.
Jaelan grunted, sword already raised. “I will go first.”
“Ha!” Wylen quickly cut in front of the smaller man. “Like I would let you! You are sick, Jaelan. Let me take this one, alright?”
“I can fight just fine!”
“I know,” Wylen nudged him with his hip, pushing him away from the entrance. “But my heart will never be at rest if something happens. Alright?”
Jaelan looked up, eyes reflecting with the emotion in his own heart. Idiot…and mine would?
“Stay here, Jae…” Wylen crept towards the entrance. One foot pressed quietly in front of the other. “Please…for me…just wait here…”
ahhhhhh! I love them!
thanks for the chapter! <3
thanks for reading!
the vulnerability they show each other. gosh im blushing.