Sons of Sparta - A Story of the Spartans, Book 3
(inspired by the story 'Spartan' parts 1 through 4)
by argouru
Note: All credit for the creation of the Spartans and Amazons, as well as the Spartan mythos belongs to the author 'CF', to whom I owe special thanks for his allowing me to write about these incredible people.
WARNING: Portions of this installment of the series includes a section regarding mental illness.
After Joshua, Tina and Ahmed arrived, dinner started smoothly, except for Will, who came trudging into the dining room carrying one of the good glasses and handing it to his dad Sam. "Here," he said with a sigh of annoyance.
"Where have you been?" Daniel asked his youngest child.
"In the temple basement," Will sighed with disgust.
"What were you doing down there?" the father asked. "We have special guests, you know." He added, glancing to Joshua, Tina and Ahmed, who didn't seem to mind the disturbance.
"Getting Dad Sam's drink," Will replied with an air of suffering.
Everyone looked to the priest, who held up his glass. "Thanks Will, I owe you one."
"Sam?" Daniel asked nervously, knowing his partner was about to embarrass him yet again and this time in front of a deity other than Lord Apollo.
"Dare I ask?" Ahmed said weakly.
"Our finest glassware filled with lukewarm tap water from the basement sink," Sam replied loftily.
"What?" Ahmed asked in shock.
"Sam," Daniel groaned, hiding his face in shame.
Sam smiled to their guests and adopted a haughty air and sophisticated demeanor. "One simply -must- have contrast in their life," he said impishly, extending his pinky and slurping noisily from his glass.
Tina, who had watched the exchange with an air of amusement, erupted in a fit of giggles, covering her mouth and trembling violently with mirth at the American's absurdity.
Joshua smiled in amusement, looking around the table. Matthew Mikeson, Daniel's birth father, stared at his son-in-law as if to say 'Really?'
Next to him, his human partner David Williams muttered under his breath about Sam being impossible to be around. The sons had looks of suffering, for the most part. Only Fred and the twins seemed to truly enjoy the joke. The other four sons were looking rather embarrassed.
"Dad Sam," Henry growled in a whisper across the table. "What's wrong with you? Don't embarrass me in front of a god -and- my partner!"
Giorgos was staring at Sam as if trying to figure out if the man was serious or not. John was smiling and shaking silently with laughter at the situation.
Ahmed sat there, staring at Sam in mute horror. He truly -is- mad! Josh heard His male partner think to himself in shock.
***No he's not," Josh said, making Ahmed jump slightly and glance at Him. He's just making fun of the seriousness of the situation... Just smile and nod.
Ahmed did so without enthusiasm...
The rest of dinner went much more smoothly, much to the family's relief. "So You want to make a formal temple in England?" Sam asked the immortal. Joshua began to sense a growing idea within the mortal's mind.
Joshua nodded. "I do... Admittedly it will be as much brothel as temple, but yes."
"Brothel?" Giorgos asked nervously.
Joshua turned to the man. "Yes. My powers operate on love and sex is the most powerful physical expression of love. It nourishes Me just as this food does you."
"Wait..." Giorgos said slowly, trying to grasp what he was being told. "You eat this food, yet it does not feed You as it does us? Then why eat at all?"
"Manners, mostly," Joshua said simply in reply. "I can still enjoy the taste of food even though it no longer works to sustain Me as it did when I was mortal. The love of My family and friends is what truly nourishes Me now. I eat for pleasure and to thank My hosts for the wonderful meal they worked so hard to make for us."
Suddenly, a strong mental image flashed in Sam's mind of Joshua as a burrowing parasite poking out of Sam's stomach came to him. 'Thank you my host' He said to Sam within the image, who could only drool and moan incomprehensibly in response. He shook his head to rid Himself of the image, feeling shocked.
"Are you alright?" Tina asked Him with concern, noting His sudden discomfort.
"I'm fine," He replied soothingly, then glanced back at Sam, who was looking at him with a frown marring his smile. It was only now that He truly understood all of the things His father Apollo had said about this man having a very unusual sense of humor. How does dad Apollo put up with this man and remain sane?
It's not easy, Apollo told His son with a sigh of intense suffering.
Joshua smiled at that and returned His attention to the table. Throughout the meal, John had remained very quiet and looking into his mind, Josh saw the uncertainty and doubt that still filled the man. Looking deeper, He felt a new surge of pity for the human. He had thought that the healing would be enough, but apparently the immortal still had much to learn about the art of healing. After dinner, He asked John to join Him on the back porch of the house.
"John," He said slowly. "Everything -will- be alright for you now... You have been through a great deal, but now you have true happiness to look forward to."
The human sighed. "I really thought that getting rid of the depression will fix everything, but now all I have are questions without answers. I don't know who or what I am anymore. I have no idea as to what to do with my life. I never realized just how much of my life centered around my depression... With it gone, it's as if there's nothing left of who I was at all anymore."
The human's sadness and doubt filled Him, so Joshua took John in His arms and hugged him tightly. "Your entire life is now completely different from what it was two weeks ago, so it's only natural to feel lost and confused. But you have a good new start with people who truly care about and respect you. You have a stable, safe home, a new job to begin and a man who loves you very dearly."
"I don't know..." he said, surprising the immortal with his added doubts. "What if I'm making a mountain out of a mole hill?"
Joshua now saw that John was uncertain of his bond with Henry. The god reached out gently with His mind for a moment, then looked John deeply in the eye. "The partner bond is never wrong, John. The partners we feel attached to -do- share those feelings as well." Henry appeared at the door and came out as Joshua beckoned to him. "But don't just take my word for it," He said, as Henry moved up beside John and followed the instructions Joshua planted in his mind.
Henry took John into his arms and began to kiss him. Joshua walked over, placed one hand on each of their heads and reached into their minds and hearts, making Himself into a bridge between them. John gasped in shock as he felt the true depth of Henry's love for him. He let his own love for the Spartan pour forth and their kissing became more passionate. John saw that Henry's love for him hadn't only been his imagination and would never fade. This love would last for both their lives and John wished nothing more than for them to both live long, full lives and that he would live as long as Henry so that the Spartan would never be alone. Henry felt this and wept with joy at John's devotion to him. They explored each other's mouths tenderly for a countless time, even after the link had faded away. John chided himself for ever doubting that Henry really did love him and resolved to learn how to feel more comfortable around him.
Joshua walked softly back inside, leaving them alone with each other. As He quietly closed the door behind Himself, Joshua knew that things would be fine between them now...
The rest of the evening went rather quietly and before they left, Joshua pulled Sam aside. "I couldn't help but to catch your idea... You'd really want to?"
Sam thought back and nodded sincerely. "Yeah, I would. You really helped John out a lot there..." Joshua sensed old and painful memories of Sam's human past before he had met his partner Daniel. A strong memory was playing in the now Spartan's mind of him sitting alone in a bedroom, holding a razor blade to his wrist and sobbing, hating himself for not being able to go through with it.
Joshua was shocked to see this from a man who now seemed so happy. He had never known that Sam himself had once been suicidal and found Himself gaining a new sense of appreciation for the mortal. Knowing that Sam himself had once been where John had just been made the god sad to think that such a happy and well-adjusted man had once sought oblivion. Joshua felt a strong surge of pity that Sam had ever suffered that way and now understood why His father Apollo put up with the man's bizarre sense of humor. Sam might be a very odd man with a very disturbing sense of humor, but at least now he had found happiness and purpose in life and no longer sought its end. Sam was a good man who was filled with a vast amount of love for others and wanted to make the world a better place.
Joshua smiled as Sam thought about Daniel and their sons and how much better his life was now. Sam also felt deeply grateful to his immortal adopted brother for helping John, who reminded Sam so strongly of himself. Joshua had caught the Spartan wondering several times this evening just how many people here in America Joshua could offer help to. "So you want to help Me found a temple here in the States?"
Sam nodded. "You do a lot of good for people. I know You're still getting used to all of this, but once You achieve omnipresence like Dad, send part of Yourself my way when You're ready and we'll start to see what we can come up with."
"Are you sure America is ready for a brothel temple?" Joshua asked nervously. "I know you've had a hard time keeping the temple open due to religious conservatives."
"Tough for them," Sam said tiredly, shaking his head in disgust. "This country belongs to -all- of us, not just them. They have no right forcing their values down everyone's throat the way they do... You know, people here always talk about freedom. Freedom to do and say what you want, but there's so many people fighting to have things their way and opposing anything that doesn't fit their idea of the way the world should be. You can't even say what you want without someone trying to censor you and freedom of speech is one of our primary rights here. Men can't even marry here. It's the twenty thirties now and there's still people who won't allow gay and lesbian marriages here in California. The Spartan Partner Non-Separation Act still has people fighting against it here, for crying out loud, saying that it 'threatens' heterosexual marriages as much as gay marriage and it went into effect about forty years ago!"
"You sound like you hate living here," Joshua said sadly.
"A little," Sam sighed. "This country was founded on the idea of freedom, but most of the people who run it don't want to people to live in a way that makes themselves happy. The politicians only want people to live in a way that makes the people in power happy, regardless of how miserable it makes individuals. Gay and Lesbian marriage shouldn't even be an issue to fight! It should just be a legally recognized reality! There's times I'm really ashamed of how this country is run, is all. Sorry to go on a political rant... I just get sick and tired of having to fight for my rights all the time... Well, when You're ready and want to found a temple here, look me up. I'll help as much as I can."
"Well one thing I want to make perfectly clear. While the idea of temples is a good one, I don't want any other priests besides Tina and Ahmed. My partners are the only priests I require. Anyone staffing My temples would serve lesser roles, such as hosts and hostesses. I do wish to help as many people as I can. Once I achieve omnipresence, I'll send part of myself to speak with you further on this. Thank you, Sam... It's very kind of you to offer."
Sam shrugged. "That's what family's for." He moved over to the god and hugged Him. "You can take it, if you want. I know it's what You need."
"Thank you," Joshua said, drinking in His brother's love for Him, touched at its depth. It seemed that Sam was a -very- loving man. When he cared for someone, he did so with all his heart. Sam chuckled slightly at the tickling sensation as Joshua fed on his love. "Sorry, should've warned you about the sensation of my feeding," the immortal apologized.
"That's fine," Sam said with a smile as they pulled apart. "I just didn't realize there was a physical sensation. I'm fine." With that, they went back inside...
The flight home was rather uneventful for the British trio. Airport security offered no hassle this time, allowing them through without incident. Ahmed also seemed calmer on the flight home, but still seemed grateful to land. They disembarked to find both Josh's dads waiting for them. He was a bit surprised that Dad Apollo was making Himself visible, but recovered quickly.
"Have a nice journey?" Dad Gabriel asked casually, but when Josh looked into His mortal father's mind, He was slightly saddened by what He read there. He did come back, Gabe was thinking. He didn't abandon me.
Joshua hugged him gently. "I promised I'd come home, Dad Gabriel. I'll always come home."
Gabe felt a sudden surge of guilt, but forced it down inside as he hugged his boy. "Welcome home, Son," he said simply, offering his love for Joshua to feed on, which He did, repressing His own worry for His father.
If only I could heal Dad Gabe of his fear and doubt... But that would mean having sex with him. He's my parent... As much as I love Him, I could never do something like that... And he'd never admit he needs it either.
Instead, He exchanged a sad look with Dad Apollo. All they could do was be there for Gabriel and hope that one day the man would see just how unfounded his fears truly were...