Akad ran his hands down the front of his white, diamond-studded suit. The mortal priests had just tied his hair back, lacing a strand of diamonds into a long braid down his back. His stomach twisted as he raised his gaze to the tent entrance. It was his wedding day, and the first day he would lay eyes on his bride to be. Outside, a gathering of gods stretched all the way to the gardens’ edge. Soon, the harps would start playing, and the gods would be waiting for Akad to step out of the tent to join his bride.
Akad wished he could relax; that he could just close his eyes and let it happen. He wanted the wedding to just be over, but something in the back of his mind kept sneaking to the fore. The feeling would come to him and linger for a moment before evaporating into thin air. Akad wasn’t sure what it meant, but ever since he left Marduk, he felt as if he was missing something. After outing Akad in front of the gods, Marduk had pursued him out of the lower hall, arguing his case the whole way. Even after Akad punched him, Marduk had continued to profess his innocence, claiming he had done it to save him.
His claims had seemed absurd, but Akad kept wondering what explanation Marduk could possibly have. He kept imagining Marduk would come knocking on his door, begging him for one more chance. Though he doubted he could forgive Marduk, he wished he would have listened to his story. When news of his wedding was released, Akad was sure this would be enough to bring Marduk to his quarters, but Marduk never came. Although it had only been four days since their breakup, Marduk’s failure to fight for him convinced Akad that he had been in it for conquest all along. Akad should have known this by how Marduk had approached him that first day in the gardens.
Akad’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of bells ringing outside the tent. His fingers tingled. Next would come the melody of harps to summon him out. Akad tried to tell himself it meant nothing. Marriage is a formality; a necessity of the gods. He knew he could take lovers; he could have an entire harem if he pleased, but he couldn’t help feeling he had just begun living, and no matter how he framed it, this marriage was like a door closing on his heart.
A roar of applause filled the air as a flurry of white and pink petals rained down on the deities outside. Akad’s breath caught in his chest. The moment was swiftly approaching.
“Anu,” an unfamiliar voice called to him from outside his tent. Akad turned in the direction he had heard the voice. A knife slashed vertically through the canvas. Akad’s eyes grew wide as a beautiful young god with long black hair climbed through the opening, regarding him with a worried look in his eyes. Akad immediately recognized the god from Marduk’s classes.
“Who are you, and what the hell are you doing?”
“Anu, please listen. My name’s Aya. I’ve come on behalf of Marduk.”
Akad’s expression darkened. “Why didn’t Marduk come to me himself?”
“Anu, please listen,” Aya said, grasping Akad by the arms. “They’ve taken Marduk, and they’re holding him prisoner. I’ve been trying to reach you for three days now, but your father wouldn’t let anyone near your quarters.”
“Who took him?” Akad’s stomach twisted.
“There’s a group of deities that preys on young virgin gods. They forced Marduk to be their sex slave, and they were coming after you to do the same. That’s why Marduk told them you weren’t a virgin. He did it to save you. Now he’s being punished for it. He sacrificed himself so they would leave you alone.”
Pain stabbed through his heart. The things Marduk had said to him in the corridor came back to him. Marduk had been trying to protect him. It didn’t make sense at the time, but it matched with what Aya was saying.
The sound of harps filled his ears. Akad’s heart leapt. His father, his bride, and over a hundred gods were all waiting for him to walk out of the tent.
“Who has him, and where is he?”
“The Order gave Marduk to Seth, and Seth has kept him locked in the dungeons ever since. I know how Seth is, so I know Seth is torturing him.”
Akad’s blood began to boil. “I want you to find my father, and tell him everything about this Order. Anshar is a high-ranking member of the council. He’ll know what to do.”
Akad slipped out through the slash in the tent. He pushed through the crowd, ignoring the deities who called after him, and ran toward the temple.
––––––––
When Akad finally arrived at the tall bronze door to the dungeons, he quietly slipped in and was plunged into relative darkness. A glimmer of light in a chamber far to his right was enough to reveal the bare stone floor and walls. Akad slowly slid the door bar out of the lock, and grasped it in his hands before venturing into the dungeon. When he neared the glowing chamber, the light grew brighter, and the sound of metal scraping on stone reached his ears. Then, a faint cry echoed from the chamber. His blood ran cold. As Akad approached the chamber entrance, his eyes fell on a pool of blood slowly expanding from the door. Akad walked through the doorway, and his heart stopped.
Marduk’s arms were chained to the floor with Shamash kneeling between them. Shamash was fucking Marduk’s mouth while Seth held Marduk’s ass up, hammering into him without restraint. Long red slashes marred Marduk’s back, and Sin stood beside him, a knife in his hand.
Akad froze, unable to move or breathe. He was once again standing on his father’s ship, desperate and powerless, as his lover was raped before his eyes. In that moment, something snapped in his mind, and molten rage erupted in his chest. This was not going to happen again. Blinding heat burned through Akad as he charged at Seth, slamming the bar into Seth’s neck. Seth flew back and hit the wall. Then a howl filled his ears and Akad swung around to see Shamash double over while Marduk’s jaw clamped down on his dick. Shamash struck at Marduk’s head, trying to break free.
Akad rushed to help Marduk, but a powerful force hit him, hurling him through the air. Akad hit the wall, the breath was knocked out of his chest, and the bar dropped from his hand, clanging to the floor. Akad remained pinned to the wall by the invisible force, and the sound of chanting filled his ears. Sin stood chanting on the other side of the chamber.
“Alu, Gallu, Lilu Rabisu, Asakku,” Akad shouted, calling five formidable demons to his side, just as Sin thrust his arm toward Akad, sending a volley of chains and stakes flying at him. Then a strong wind blew through the door, dropping the projectiles before they reached him. Screams echoed through the chamber and the walls shuddered as the demons dueled Sin’s spirits. In the midst of whirling wind and chaos, Akad saw that Marduk had choked out Shamash in the chains that bound his wrists. Akad whispered a command to the demons and Marduk’s chains snapped, setting Marduk free. Marduk stared at his freed wrists and glanced over at Akad. Then he grabbed a stake, stood up and jabbed it through Sin’s neck, pinning him to the wall. When Sin’s head slumped forward, the wind died down, and Akad fell from the wall where he’d been pinned.
Akad rose to his feet, but a chain struck out from nowhere, wrapping around Akad’s neck, and jerking him down to his knees. Seth’s laughter echoed off the walls, and the chain pulled harder, choking Akad so no words could escape his mouth. Seth’s voice rang out in his ears, as he banished the demons from the room. The chamber shook violently, stones falling from the ceiling as the demons vacated, then a strong blast of air threw Akad back and the pressure was eased from his neck. The demons were gone.
Akad sat up and opened his eyes just as Seth advanced on him with a knife in his hand. Akad backed up, scrambling to his feet, but before Seth reached him, Marduk rushed up behind Seth and struck him in the head. Seth immediately whirled around and slashed his knife across Marduk’s throat.
“No!” Akad roared, fire flaring in his chest as Marduk fell, blood spewing from his wound. Akad grabbed the bar he had dropped, and lunged forward, striking Seth in the head. When Seth hit the ground, Akad tore the chain from his neck, and swiftly bound Seth’s hands while Seth was still stunned. Once his hands were bound, Seth began to fight, attempting to kick Akad back. Akad punched him in the face and wrestled Seth’s legs up, using the tail of the chain to bind his ankles to his wrists. Bound and helpless, Seth began to curse. Then Akad dropped to his knees between Seth’s spread thighs, gripped Seth’s cock and balls at the base, and yanked upward, using his genitals to lift his ass off the floor. Seth cried out.
“Motherfucker!” he roared, struggling to break free, but Akad had him tied like a beast ripe for the slaughter.
“I’m going to fuck your mother!” Seth cried. “I’m going to make her my whore!” Still holding Seth’s ass up, Akad unsheathed his knife. He pressed the tip to Seth’s exposed anus and buried it to the hilt. Seth’s scream echoed through the dungeon as Akad twisted the knife inside him, but Akad was numb to the world. In that moment, Akad was the terrifying god his father had so artfully crafted. Removing the knife from Seth’s hole, Akad pulled on Seth’s cock and balls, stretching them taut. Then, with one fell swipe, he severed the flesh from Seth’s body.
Akad stared at the bloody mass in his hand, ignoring Seth’s screams that tore through the dungeon. Seth’s instrument of torture was now a worthless blob. Akad rose to his feet and stuffed the mass of flesh into Seth’s bellowing mouth. Seth’s cries instantly turned into stifled moans and gags. Taking a deep breath, Akad turned his back on the mutilated god, wiping the sight from his mind. Then his eyes fell on Marduk, lying lifeless in a pool of his own blood.
“Marduk!” Akad cried, intense pain stabbing through the void in his chest. The knife dropped from his hand, and he fell to his knees before Marduk. It’s my fault. I let this happen. Tears flooded his vision, his chest a tight mass as he pulled Marduk into his arms, hugging him. He had lost his lover again.
“No!” Akad sobbed. He was on Anshar’s ship, and Talos was bleeding out before him again. “I failed you. I’m so sorry.” Akad pressed his lips to Marduk’s bloody forehead. “I’m so sorry. I love you. Please don’t leave me.” Akad felt his heart being yanked from his body once more, but a hand was on his shoulder and a strong arm was wrapping around his chest.
“Anu.” His father’s voice came to his ears. “He’s okay.” Anshar assured him, hugging Akad to his chest. Akad could feel Anshar pulling him away, but he hugged Marduk tighter, refusing to let him go. He refused to let Anshar drop him into the ocean.
“Anu,” Anshar said. “He’s a god. He cannot die.” Anshar pressed Akad’s hand to Marduk’s chest. “Can you feel his chest move? He’s breathing; his heart is still beating. He’s a god. He’ll wake up once his strength has returned.”
Akad wondered if he was dreaming. Never had he heard Anshar speak so gently. Akad finally turned and raised his gaze to meet his father’s. Anshar’s frown deepened, but his eyes betrayed no trace of disdain. Akad had never dared cry in front of his father.
“Anu, I know what it’s like to love another so much that you would do anything to shield him from harm. You may feel you’ve done everything in your power to protect him, but you can’t blame yourself if he falls. All you can do is pick him up, let him know you love him, and be there for him while he heals.”
Anu stared at his father; trying to comprehend his words. Then Anshar hugged him to his chest. Though he had made no apology, Akad could hear the remorse in his voice. Some things he could never forgive, but he realized in that moment that his father was trying. Every harsh thing he had said or done was meant to shelter him from a fate like the one Marduk had suffered. Marduk’s parents had sent him off on his own, but Anshar was there by his side. In his own twisted way, his father was truly trying to do what was best.