Devil Dawg Donnelly

Standard disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to people or actual events is purely coincidental.

You may contact the author at Ulfr57@gmail.com All comments, suggestions and/or obsevations are welcome if presented respectfully.

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Announcement: Last chapter I forgot to post a link to my blog which contains a 7 chapter story that dove tails with Devil Dawgs.

Several have written me asking who the new characters were that just suddenly appeared in the story. I apologize for forgetting to include the link and suggest, before reading this chapter, that you go to my blog and read: "When Opportunity Knocks" so that you can be caught up with the new characters that appear in this chapter.

https://devildawgdonnellys.blogspot.com/

Devil Dawg Donnelly's: Revelations

Chapter Nineteen:

"Mmm... that's nice" JD moaned, as he lay there with his knees pulled up to his chest while Jake gripped his buns firmly while his long wet tongue probed the depths of his asshole.

As his head rose momentarily to look down at his husband greedily eating his hole. Jake looked up and smiled lasciviously, the lower part of his face looking like a glazed doughnut from all the spit he had been tongue fucking into JD's tight pucker.

"I got something that would feel a whole lot better!" Jake teased, his golden eyes brimming with enthusiasm at the thought of mounting him.

Normally, JD did most of the fucking. Jake's massive horse cock precludes any kind of frequency in their usual routine. But still, there were times, when Jake took his time and put in the needed effort to loosen him up enough to even make the attempt, that it became even remotely possible. Times like tonight.

JD knew, or at least it gnawed on the fringes of his consciousness, that part of the reason he was prepared to offer himself up this way was because of some nagging sense of guilt he was dealing with ever since his encounter with Jason the week prior.

There was no denying it, Jason's revelation had been a bombshell. One that kept exploding over and over again, despite his best efforts in distracting himself ever since.

That afternoon had shaken him to his core by the implications of the Alpha's confession and the dower, bristling intensity of his gaze, yearning for some validation, yet simultaneously fearfully vulnerable and emotionally exposed... and JD had bulked.

He had spent the last couple of months thinking this man had abandoned him, as well as the others during their and his hour of need, only to hear now, that assertion had been fundamentally wrong from the start.

What was he supposed to do now?

That was the burning question that ate at him, and it had been, with that singular thought in mind, the reason he had responded with all the snark he could muster: "You fucking dumbass!" followed by him pivoting on his heels and briskly exiting the cabin.

He didn't look back that night. There was no way he could look Jason in the eye after that. Not with the jumble of conflicting thoughts and feelings wreaking havoc in his head.

Penultimately, JD had come to the conclusion, he didn't know what to do with the information; certainly, the reasons he had concocted previously no longer applied, but that did nothing to change his current situation. He loved Jake, he had married him and now shared joint custody of his son with him.

Jake was his constant in this world. He just had to look, at any time, into those big amber-hued eyes and feel loved, desired, and safe, and let's face it, that big huge muscle butt, that even put Jason's to shame, was now his own personal playground.

Yet... why was he left with the needling impression that something had fundamentally shifted?

All that could wait, however, because right now, JD could feel the massive blunt end of Jake's gargantuan dong pressing tightly against his wet hole, and JD needed to relax so that he didn't rip him open with it.

This was usually the toughest part, willing his hole to open. Normally JD would have prepared himself. Using one of the dildos Princess had bought him to loosen up with, but Jakson had been fussy all afternoon, almost from the time he got home from school until Jake made it home from work.

Jake always seemed to be able to get Jakson to settle down, whereas, from JD's perspective, he seemed to like demonstrating, repeatedly, how loud he could wail.

Jake had offered the most reasonable explanation. JD was an alpha, or at least he would or could be, after his Heritage ceremony, and their son was an alpha too. He was just making sure his sire knew that Jake insisted.

Seemed plausible to JD, so much so, he had taken to howling with him every time he got that way.

That wail closely resembled the one he was gritting his teeth to hold back at that very moment as the widest part of Jake's glans coronal ridge, popped past his pucker and began sliding a good eight inches into him, before Jake caught himself.

'Sorry about that.." Jake groaned: "Just got a little carried away."

The smile beaming across his face suggested otherwise, but JD decided to let it slide (so to speak).

JD had been horny all day and right now Jake had what he knew would scratch this particular itch

"Get your ass in gear Bauers and fuck my butt, before the kid wakes up and decides we're havin' to much fun without him."

JD meant that too. It was like the kid had a sixth sense or something that alerted him to their happy fun time and deciding: "Oh no you don't!"

JD was already keeping mental notes, determining that when Jakson was old enough and started bringing his own love interest around, he'd remind himself of all the times Jakson cock blocked him and Jake and he'd do his best to return the favor.

As fucks go, this one measured above the usual; mostly because JD really liked his ass eaten, and Jake was quickly becoming an expert at it.

Jake had already become proficient enough, that he could keep JD hovering close to the edge, for as long as he wanted. This explained how much closer he was right now, as Jake's fat knob raked repeatedly over his tormented prostate, eliciting a continuous loop of grunts and moans from him.

At the best of times, JD could manage to take about half of Jake's massive schlong. But it was usually quite painful for him to get there.

Jake knew this and had taken to focus his efforts instead on pummeling his ass clit with his bloated glans.

"Keep that up and your gonna make me blow my load..." JD managed to squeeze between his gritted teeth, reaching up to squeeze the nubs of Jake's large erect nipples. Something JD knew all to well, had a similar effect on Jake that he was having on his assault on JD"s prostate.

Jake yelped at the additional stimulation and smiled wickedly down at JD: "That's the plan, Mr. Bauers!"

In response, JD tugged on Jake's nipples like he was milking a cow: "If I'm gonna blow so are you Mr. Donnelly!" JD shot back, determination suffusing every muscle of his face, knowing full well they were both hovering on the precipice of pushing each other into that blessed void of carnal release, and each equally determined to make the other make that blissful leap first.

Some might say what they were doing was nothing more than a power trip or a childish game of one-up manship. But for JD and Jake, it was their life's story. They were always competitive as kids and even into their early teens, and while it didn't define their current relationship, it was still a part of who they were when they were together, and neither he or Jake saw any reason to change what worked for them, in or out of the bedroom.

"Fuck oh fuckitty fuck fuck..." JD nearly growled: "I'm gonna blow dude!"

For an instant, they locked eyes, and in that instant, JD saw the moment Jake lost his own control as his body shuddered and he could feel the hot wet blast of Jake's sperm squirting like a water canon into his lower bowels.

Neither of them could claim victory however, because just as Jake released his own seed deep inside him, JD's dick erupted like an exploding volcano sending torrents of jism flying in every direction, coating the two of them in the profundity of his ejaculation.

Dripping in jizz, the two of them collapsed together. Jake's monster cock still throbbing inside of him as their sweaty bodies shuddered as they both gasped for breath.

After a few quiet moments silently basking in the euphoric afterglow of their mutual orgasm, Jake was first to separate his body from the tangle of their limbs; sitting up with his feet dangling over the left edge of the bed and turning back to smile down at JD: "Sorry babe, gotta take a leak real quick."

JD just stretched and smiled back at him contentedly as he rose from the bed, and headed toward the bathroom door: "Would you mind checking on Jakson while you're up?" JD queried, still somewhat selfishly reluctant to disturb the warm, comforting sanctity of their shared king-size bed.

"Anything for you studly" Jake retorted jovially as he veered from his bathroom trek and walked, still naked, out their bedroom door and headed down the hall to Jakson's nursery, all the while, JD enjoying the jiggle of Jake's muscular bubble butted ass-cheeks as they shift side to side as he ambled away from him.

The sudden silence in the room made JD's thoughts drift back to his earlier ruminations about Jake, Jason, and himself, hold up in his old bedroom that night Jason's mom came for dinner and how right before the incident that inexorably set them on the path they now were on.

The one thought that stuck in his mind from that night, prior to the incident with his mother, was the now wasted potential of what that incident had robbed him and Jason from exploring that evening.

He knew he hadn't imagined it, that Jason had actually been as turned on and keen as he had been in the idea of approaching Jake with their mutual attraction toward him.

At that moment, while Jake was relieving himself in the bathroom down the hallway, they had actually agreed to explore their shared feelings if Jake was amiable to the idea.

Looking back, it had seemed a whimsical, momentary fancy, brought on by the persistent lust they also shared for each other, but had only partially explored.

That night at Jason's cabin, when he had forced himself to turn away from Jason after his admission, not because he didn't believe him, but because, if he was being truthful with himself, Jason's confession had finally made him realize what it was he had been feeling himself ever since that night in the coaches office.

In all the time that had lapsed between that moment, right up until that night at the cabin, JD hadn't been able to define what it was that had initially drawn him and Jason together.

That ended though, the moment Jason spoke that hauntingly singular word that brought into sharp focus, the meaning of his troubled, disquieted feelings.

The absolute truth that smacked him in the face that night and has since muddled his cogitation, was the clarity of conjoined recognition that so troubled him up till now.

He loved Jake. There was no doubt in his mind or heart about that and he could never do anything that would jeopardize what he now had with him. But he could also no longer deny that there was a bond between him and Jason as well, one he hadn't been able to put a name to until Jason spoke that fateful word: Mate.

As he lay there listening to Jakson coo and giggle through the baby monitor, as Jake gently chided him for still being awake, his thoughts once again shifted back to that night in his room, when he and Jason had mutually agreed they both found Jake desirable and had decided to test the boundaries of that attraction once Jake had returned from the bathroom.

He had been certain that night, that Jake would have shared in that desire and if not for the unsettling events that had robbed them of that opportunity, who knew where that might have led.

With that contemplation still stuck in his head and Jake's deep gruff voice, rasping what had become the familiar refrain of "Hush little baby don't you cry" wafting through the baby monitor as he attempted to lullaby Jakson back to sleep, that an inkling of a thought wriggled its way to the forefront to beg that most persistent of all unrealized fantasies..." what if? "

What if they hadn't been interrupted that night? What if things had panned out the way they had hoped and even cack-handedly plotted in the spur of the moment?

"What if..?" JD thought to himself, as he reached for his phone and excitedly clicked on the icon next to Jason's name his fingers quickly typed and sent a singular query: *Can you come for dinner Saturday around sixish?"

JD's stomach roiled in knots as he sat there expectantly looking at the screen of his phone, the anticipation mounting as the seconds ticked by.

"Who ya callin'?" Jake asked as he suddenly appeared in the frame of their bedroom doorway, smiling quizzically as he moved toward him and climbed back into the bed.

JD swallowed deeply, choking back the nervousness he suddenly felt: "Not calling..." He responded, tilting his head toward Jake and planting a kiss on his lips, before adding: "Just texting a message.."

He didn't get a chance to finish what he was going to say, when the soft ding of his phone alerted him to an inbound text.

Furtively, JD glanced at his phone, his eyes lighting up at the three-word response glaring brightly back at him: "I'll be there."

The die-cast, JD turned toward his slightly confused husband, after setting his phone down on the nightstand next to their bed, and cuddling up next to him before positing his simple query: "Guess who's coming for dinner?"

"Men!" Princess/Timmy grumbled as he plopped himself down on the log that sat around one of several fires that comprised the temporary campsites for most of the growing number of men joining their not so little ragtag group.

It was only late afternoon and most of the men were still out by the ceremonial grounds training with Jason and his beta Atticus Walker.

Normally, the man that sat next to him, Max Donnelly, would either be there assisting them or helping his mate Carl McGregor work on the cabin down by the far end of the lake. But, Carl and Brock had taken off earlier and headed to Macon to pick up some much-needed supplies and weren't due back for yet another hour or so.

"Trouble in paradise Princess?" Max queried somewhat distractedly, his gaze still fixed on the two lone figures that sat juxtaposed to their own position, around a similar campfire about sixty feet away from them.

Princess/Timmy didn't need a map to find what direction Max's thoughts were taking him.

Sighing somewhat dramatically, Princess/Timmy shrugged his shoulders, as if metaphorically testing the weight of the burden he had been struggling with ever since Paul Lakatos and his gamma Alton Becker had shown up for an extended stay.

"Well..." he began slowly, trying to be cautious with how he presented his current dilemma: "I've just spent the better part of the day plying my considerable charms on Mr. Hunky..."

Princess let his voice trail off as he glowered back at the porch of the Lodge, where Paul yet stood talking to Danal and Gavin.

Early in their conversation, they had mutually agreed to send Dalton and his twin Alton out to train with Jason and the others, hoping the two could settle their differences through a combined, albeit arranged, robust workout, while the two of them were left to spend some quiet time together.

"Let me guess..." Max interjected: "He said no again didn't he?"

Princess/Timmy frowned and met Max's eyes for the first time since he sat down next to him: "Not in so many words, but the end result is the same." They were of course discussing Paul surrendering Alton over to him so he could reunite the two brothers, thus fulfilling Aphrodite's foreboding prophecy.

Max's eyes, as usual, didn't reveal the thoughts behind them, but the faint grin lifting one corner of his mouth did: "Shall I hazard the reason for that refusal?" he asked, glancing first over at Paul and then back at him: "You took one of his two gammas and with everything else that is going on, he's hardly in a position to lose the other without putting his packs security at risk until he can find suitable replacements."

Impressed, Princess/Timmy smiled coyly, before waving his right hand in the air dismissively: "There is of course the little matter of also having just lost one of his beta's as well." Princess/Timmy declared as he rolled his eyes, sighing dramatically again, before glancing back at Max, batting his eyes while a look of feigned innocents subsumed his expressions.

Max sniffed the air in Paul's direction, a smile forming on his lips: "You shouldn't be so dismissive of your charms Princess, they aren't going as unnoticed as you might believe." Max concluded tapping his nose before a wicked grin spread across his face and he winked back at him: "Then again, he's not the only one feelin' it though, is he?"

There had been a time, not so long ago, that Max's inference would have brought a blush of embarrassment to his cheeks, but not today.

Shrugging his shoulders, Princess/Timmy dismissed his observation: "Maybe I should just try plan B instead." he speculated aloud.

"And plan B would be what exactly?" Max queried, knowing full well that if he really thought it was an option he would have already deployed its use.

Princess/Timmy just squared his shoulders, in a show of slight defiance, as if to bolster his own resolve. instead of possibly deploying a plan he was already certain would fail or at the very least damage the repartee he already had with Paul.

Still, he offered somewhat meekly to a quizzical Max: "If I can't persuade him, maybe Matt could..."

"Don't even think it!" Max interjected forcibly, cutting him off before he could complete his sentence.

For the first time in quite a while Princess/Timmy did blush, genuinely embarrassed he had even suggested it to Max in the first place.

"I don't know what the kid's limits are as of yet, but I doubt seriously he'd have time to work up to what you hope to achieve before an alpha like Paul caught on to what was happening."Max scolded him.

Princess/Timmy's shoulders drooped defeated: "I already knew it wasn't a good idea, but desperate times sometimes call for desperate measures and Momma already told Gavin we were running out of time."

Max softened his expression, knowing full well that a big part of Princess's concern was for his son Billy, who Aphrodite had revealed, that if Princess hadn't united Gemini before the first true test of his sons abilities, he would most assuredly die.

That sobering thought now stirred the beast within Max's gut, knowing full well that fate seldom left important things to the whims of chance and that at this very moment, he might be right in the center of a crossroads, whose divergent paths may lead to certain inescapable outcomes.

Max had spent the better part of the afternoon pondering what he should do about his oldest son and the oldest son of his gamma. He had read Elizabeth's report and knew that what Jason had already set into motion, based on that information, was probably his best course of action. But JD's response had triggered the protective side of his nature, especially for his youngest, who was himself, now a father.

For years Max had fought against the poison of lies his now-dead wife had supplanted into the youthful, trusting mind of his eldest son Michael and through Michael, was spread to Hank Bauers son Kent.

The two were always inseparable, even when apart they constantly kept in communication with one another, and when they became teenagers, Max was just as certain that friendship had crossed the line into something else. But Michael's ultimate failure at achieving the one goal he had been promised by his mother would happen, had driven the final wedge between them when Michael became certain Max had done something to deny him his birthright.

After his Heritage ceremony, there were no words Max could have spoken that would have undone the damage his wife's meddling had left in her wake. Her seeds of derision had taken hold deep in his young psyche and bore the dark fruit she had planted and had hoped to harvest for her own selfish ends.

He had hoped driving her out of their lives, after catching her taking samples of all three of their son's blood, would have afforded him time to ease Michael into accepting that his mother's words had been lies; that she had deceived him. But Max's words were always met with the doubtful skepticism Monaca had sewn in his son's head. From a boy Michael's age, mother was just another word for God to his inexperienced and trusting perceptions, and he had clung to her words and promises, wore them like a shroud of defiance whenever Max tried to correct the damage she had done.

Michael's dilemma had been one that had played out before amongst those of the Heritage, it was why they kept the true nature of who and what they are away from their sons. It was why not revealing that nature until they were mature enough to handle the knowledge, had become one of their most stringent rules.

Not everyone shared that belief though. His mate Carl being one of them. It was just the night before, they had once again debated the issue, where he reasoned, that it was Monaca's lies about what Michael would become that had warped his perceptions, not the knowledge of what he was.

It wasn't the first time Carl had argued that those of the Heritage shouldn't be keeping the knowledge of their lycanthropy away from them but use the time instead to help them accept the inevitability of it.

Max frowned as he once again stared off into the distance and glowered toward his oldest son, sitting with his back to him, his head bowed and shoulders hunched as if he could feel the weight of his father's gaze and the judgment that came with it, laying heavily upon him.

It was Carl's final words on the topic last night that haunted him now, that if Michael, as well as all of his sons, had known who and what they were, right from the start and from his own lips to their ears, could have possibly preemptively negated any possible lies Monaca could have concocted later.

There was a part of him that wanted to believe Carl, but there was also the fact that no matter the debatable efficacy of Carl's suggestion, he couldn't help but feel his oldest son Michael would have still chaffed at the knowledge, that in a household full of alpha's, he was the only beta.

Pack hierarchies, without the perceptible corresponding hormonal exchange between Pack members, which served to assure one's placement and duties within that hierarchy and the natural acceptance it afforded, could not be measured in words that could be so easily expressed to a small child.

The underlying reality for Max was, that without that hormonal bond, most boys would rail against the idea that they were anything other than alpha and would probably drive themselves to ruin trying to prove that they were or could be and that despite Carl's belief to the contrary, Michael served as the quintessential embodiment of that outcome. It wasn't like Max hadn't tried to mitigate the damage Monaca had done by telling his oldest son he was a beta and that nothing he could do would change that.

It could be argued, Max reasoned, that in itself could have also served as a catalyst that sent Michael spiraling headlong into proving his father wrong, by spending his entire youth pushing himself to be the best at everything he set his mind to doing.

All his efforts proved nothing more than he was an exceptional beta, potentially one of the best Max had ever encountered. If only Michael had just chosen to accept it. There was no shame in the part one plays in their capacity within the hierarchy of Pack dynamics and had Monaca not poisoned Michael's mind, he had no doubt, with the kind of determination Michael exhibited, no matter how off the rails he had veered into, that he would be, at this very moment, proudly serving as a beta in some Pack.

"Ground control to Max..." Princess/Timmy's lilting voice rang mockingly in his ear, drawing him back into the moment: "I thought I lost you there for a minute."

"Don't you have a ceremony you should be preparing for Princess?" Max responded gruffly, even as the beast within him stirred a fiery flame of expectant exaltation within the pit of his solar plexus, as a needling of inspiration took form within the persistent machinations of his consciousness.

"Just waiting for Carl and Brock to get back, though I'm not so sure Matt isn't ready to bolt at any minute." Princess mused thoughtfully.

"Well, I can't help you with that..."Max shrugged: "But I may be able to offer some assistance with your other problem."

Princess/Timmy's eyes lit up as he practically beamed with jubilation back at Max.

Max held his hand up cautioning, halting Princess/Timmy from expounding on his excitement any further.

"No promises Princess, but why don't you go check on Matt while I give this some more thought."

Bristling with renewed enthusiasm, Princess /Timmy twirled around several times before darting off in the direction of the ceremonial grounds, where Max knew Matt and his boyfriend Blake worked out with the others.

At Princess/Timmy's exuberant departure, Max combed his fingers through his hair as he contemplated the depths of his resolve for what he was about to attempt.

Straightening his back and smoothing the wrinkles in his olive drab t-shirt, Max thought to himself, as he shuffled one foot after the other in the direction of Paul Lakatos: "No time like the present Max, you can do this!"

"You look as nervous as a long tail cat in a room full of rockin' chairs" Barin Young taunted from the doorway of Jason's cabin, where Matt and Blake had spent the better part of an hour trying to bolster his confidence and suspend the last of Matt's disbelief in what he was told to expect in the culmination of this evenings proceedings.

"Don't pay him no mind." Blake's comforting voice assured him as he reached for Matt's hand and squeezed it reassuringly: "You look fine. Fit to meet a goddess."

Matt didn't know if what he said was true or not, and he still had his reservations about this whole "goddess" thing. But with Blake by his side, Matt felt he was more than ready to face anything, just so long as Blake was there with him.

Earlier, Danal and Princess had laid it all out for him. Told him exactly what to expect as far as the physicality of it all.

Danal had said, that he and Princess had decided to try something a little different from what had been done previously, as both Princess and Gavin had clasped the ancient silver medallion in their hand, which spurs the change that they both expected to happen. Proof of which, he had seen for himself with both Princess and Gavin flashing him their glowing irises.

Princess had told him, not long after they had arrived, about the other ways he could be affected. A slight increase in strength, agility, and endurance as well as a heightened sense of smell. He had also implied that there could be other side effects, perhaps unique to himself depending on placement within their new hierarchical scale.

Princess was an alpha. Not the same type alpha Jason or Max were, but an alpha nonetheless.

Gavin seemed less defined, with no one actually being able to determine exactly where his placement might fall. Brock had suggested, that since they weren't of the Heritage, maybe their hierarchical classification was scalable, depending on their own personal drive, ambition and dedication.

Either way, Matt couldn't possibly conceive of himself as an alpha. He knew instinctively he could never match that level of intensity and drive that Princess just seemed to exude naturally.

Gavin was smart and if anything, Matt was willing to believe that the experience had only served to help him focus that intelligence by supplying him with heightened senses he didn't possess before.

None of those things, in of themselves, bothered Matt. No, what persistently troubled him, was what he might expect having been modified by Dr. Ventrov's experiments.

Elizabeth Dunne, upon completing his physical evaluation had concluded Dr. Ventrov had indeed infused portions of Heritage DNA with his own, though it seemed limited to certain hormone and pheromone-producing glands.

Elizabeth had actually brought in a few volunteers for him to test his abilities on, all while under the watchful eyes of Max Donnelly, Danal and Jason Griffen and to some degree, Princess, who seemed less interested than the others, having explained later on, that he was more concerned with his human side than the other.

The truth was, he actually found himself preferring Princess's take to those of the others, all of whom, to one degree or another, viewed him rather suspiciously.

"They're just afraid that you'll somehow be able to make them fetch your slippers or role over and bark on command." Princess had mused loud enough for all those around them at the campsite to hear him clearly enough.

"I would never do anything like that, even if I could." Matt had assured him, and the others who had stopped long enough to take note of what he and Princess were discussing.

"But they don't know that." Princess had leaned in and whispered in his ear, adding: "Lets keep it that way for now, shall we?"

These memories and others coursed their way through Matt's mind as he, Blake, and Barin now made their way to the ceremonial grounds.

Matt had worried earlier about making his way down the cobblestone path in the dark, but he was relieved to note that one of the changes they had made during the week prior to this evening's event, was to install near ground-level lighting on either side of the path, which was just bright enough to illuminate his way but not enough to disturb the natural evening ambiance.

Not knowing exactly what to expect by way of attendance, he had once again been relieved to find only a handful of the people he had been interacting with since he got there.

Both Billy and Baxter were there, the latter being especially welcome, since other than Princess, Baxter was the one he was finding himself gravitating toward as far as friends go, which helped since he and Blake were now residing with him and Billy.

Brock and Atticus were also in attendance as well as Gavin, who seemed to be minus his usual companion Arliss Gundarson.

Jason sat up front with his mother, alongside both Max Donnelly and his mate Carl.

He could see them all rise as Barin guided them around the right side of the blazing bonfire located at the center of the semicircular amphitheater and up the steps to the dais, where both Danal and Princess stood side by side.

Matt was delighted to see that Danal was dressed casually instead of in, what Princess had described, as his voodoo witch doctor costume.

Princess, on the other hand, was regaled head to toe in stark white, right down to his matching sequined sneakers to the long, bilious white scarf, draped around his neck and shoulders.

"Welcome one and all." Princess declared as Matt and Blake came to a standstill just a few feet away from what appeared to be a long white table stretched end to end between two stone pylons.

"Salve fratres" Danal enunciated loudly beside Princess, causing all those in attendance to stand and respond simultaneously: "Salvete."

Blake had warned him that in Heritage ceremonies the common language to speak was Latin, which had given Matt yet another reason to worry, having little to no understanding of the language and fearing he wouldn't know what to do or when to do it if that held true for his own ceremony. But, Princess had assured him that it would be kept to a bare minimum during tonight's proceedings since they weren't of the Heritage.

The formal greeting aside, Danal stepped forward and indicated that it was time for Matt to take his place on the altar.

With Blake's help, Matt mounted the white table, which had been adorned in a velveteen-backed white fur that spanned the width and length of the table.

Once prone, Princess stepped forward carrying an ornate slender wooden box and held it out toward Danal, who opened the box's lid, revealing a shiny, but very old medallion.

It was then he noticed the tight leather gloves Danal was wearing as he reached down and gripped the chain connecting to the medallion and lifted it high in the air over his chest.

"Matt McCormick do you willfully submit to the judgment of Remus's silver?" Danal's voice boomed for all to hear.

Blake as well as Baxter and Billy, had told him the true story of Romulus and his brother Remus and how the silver breastplate of Remus's armor had been cursed by Aphrodite, which caused those of the Heritage to change into their bestial forms when they first touched it, at the age of eighteen.

They also explained how Princess had been the first of Remus's bloodline to ever come in contact with the cursed metal, as far as they knew, and the effect it had on him as a consequence.

It was still hard for him to conceive, that Princess, Gavin, and himself were direct descendants of a long-dead man who had helped forge the Roman empire.

"I do this of my own free will Green father" Matt responded as they had rehearsed earlier when both Danal and Princess ran through their agreed-upon ceremonial rites.

"Who stands to ward over you as you embark upon your journey?" Danal queried, his voice carrying throughout those attending.

"I do!" Blake declared boldly, giving Matt a reassuring wink before taking his place on the right side of his head.

"I do as well" Baxter Whitmore proclaimed as he climbed the steps to take his place on the left side of Matt's head.

Matt had not expect this, but was happy to see Baxter smiling down at him, even as Blake gently stroked his hair.

"Thanks" Matt whispered to him garnering another smile from Baxter: "What are friends for if they don't have your back?"

With no one else stepping forward, Danal had Blake and Baxter lift Matt's head as he lowered the medallion's chain around his neck until the worn but ornate shimmering circle of silver metal rested squarely over the center of his exposed chest.

As he lay there, pondering the weight of the medallion against his skin, each second that passed added to the doubts that had plagued him ever since Princess first brought up the topic of him sharing a lineage with that of a long-dead Remus, and just as he was about to sit up and put an end to this whole charade, Matt felt a massive surge of pure golden energy wash over him, pulling at something deep inside him, that Matt could only describe as his soul, for lack of a better term.

His first instinct was to fight it, but both Princess and Gavin had cautioned him not to resist, both describing it as he was now experiencing and advising that he just surrender to it and allow himself to be transported into that other plain of existence that bridged the gap between this world and another.

The overall effect felt much like the somewhat disorienting moments before drifting off to sleep while daydreaming, right before you jerk awake and for a few seconds, not realizing where you are; and that's what Matt did, except this time, he wasn't were he expected to be, back at the Ceremonial grounds, but instead, Matt found himself very much alert, sitting up and staring off, over an ornate marble railing, perched high above, overlooking the bluest ocean he had ever seen.

A soft warm breeze gently caressed the exposed flesh of his arms, neck, and face as Matt slowly pivoted around, only to be confronted and dismayed at the huge, greco roman structures looming far into the sky above, up the side of a tall mountain, whose top was obscured and hidden by white billowy clouds.

Gavin had tried to explain the grandeur of Olympus to him; for that, Matt realized, must be where he was right now. But it had been, just as he said, beyond true description in either scale or splendor.

"Talia would crap her pants if she saw this!" Matt thought out loud as he shifted his weight from the marble dais he had been lying on, sliding over the side until his feet touched the marble floor.

As he made a few twists and turns, trying to adjust his reeling senses, Matt began to discern the faint sound of a forlorn melody, that sounded like it was being played on some sort of harp or similar style instrument. Either way, it gave him something to focus on, since he found the tune, oddly haunting and familiar.

As he pondered and searched his distracted brain, he shuffled his feet cautiously toward the source of the song.

Princess/Timmy had said that Aphrodite seemed to have a fondness for Britney Spears and while he was no expert on her complete repertoire, the tune being played, though familiar, didn't sound like anything he had ever heard Britney sing.

Matt soon found himself standing underneath a large ornate arch that opened into a grand room containing some equally grand furnishings; most notably, the bilious flowing, gossamer-like white drapes, that moved and swayed with the rhythm of the air currents wafting into the room on the far left side, from a long wrap around balcony, that stretched around one side and to the back columned wall.

It was from somewhere in here, obscured by the drapes, that the familiar song was being played.

"Is somebody in here?' Matt queried hesitantly, his voice sounding small and fragile compared to the enormity of his surroundings, but the tune carried on, unabated as Matt dubiously moved toward it's source.

As Matt drew nearer, a certain refrain in the melody stuck out to him, and like a light bulb going off over his head, he instantly recalled where he had heard the tune before. It was back in Kansas, that night at Coach Myers house. Though now absent the compelling voice that urged him to utter the word submit, the melody was definitely the same, and called out to him, as it had that very night, and just as his hand was about to brush away one of the silken, sheer drapes, the melody stopped as a large hand shot out and snatched his left arm by the wrist with a firm iron-like grip.

"How fortuitous daughter/son, that Aphrodite is detained elsewhere..." a deep booming voice full of bile and disdain precluded the massive shape of a ruggedly handsome muscular giant, that towered over Matt as he stepped from behind the curtains, still tightly squeezing his already aching wrist.

"Let me go!" Matt stammered, finally finding a modicum of courage as he attempted to extricate his arm from the brooding hulk of a man's grasp.

The behemoth only laughed. It was a snarky, insidious forced sound, devoid of compassion and empathy, which ended by him abruptly tugging Matt closer and twisting his wrist even more painfully.

Matt was in a near panic as the pain in his wrist increased to the point that he was sure that at any moment the bones would begin to splinter and break.

Frantically, Matt began to twist and tug, pounding his free fist against his tormentor's chest as he summoned the only true defense he felt he had; the power Dr. Ventrov had infused him with.

With every ounce of strength remaining to him, Matt began to hurl his pheromone-laden commands at the being, seeking to amplify it with verbal commands, just as he had back at Coach Myers house.

"Release me asshole!" Matt practically screeched, fortifying his command with wave after wave of hormonal compulsion and for a moment the constriction around his wrist lessened, right before the giant, eight-foot-tall Goliath lips parted into a hauntingly cruel snarling sneer: "I am Ares the God of war child, it will take far more than mere parlor tricks to subdue me."

Ares began to laugh heartily as his grip around Matt's wrist redoubled, causing Matt to drop to his knees in sheer agony, all pretense of overpowering Ares with his abilities evaporating as he nearly passed out in pain.

It was in this moment, somewhere caught between consciousness and fainting, that Matt became aware of the presence of two others, each still holding one of his hands as he yet lay prone on a wooden table back at the ceremonial grounds.

The one he noticed most, at first, was Blake's, whose gentile, but tight grip, infused him with concern that radiated from his palm to Matt's and almost brought a whimper from Matt's throat, as he wondered if his spirit or whatever it was, that had been transported to Olympus, died there, would he also die back in the real world? Instinctively, he somehow knew, that the body could not exist without the spirit.

Matt didn't know if Blake could sense what he was feeling, that he feared for his own life, the one he might never get to share with Blake, as they had both dared to imagine after all was said and done.

This alone pained Matt more than anything else and it nearly caused him to give up hope when a second sensation surged warmly through his left hand, the one Ares now held captive and threatened to shatter at any second.

But the warmth didn't come from the pressure of constriction building up due to his capture's grasp. No, this was a silvery glow of soothing grayish tendrils that began to seep into his muscles and tendons, and spread upward, past his wrist and up his forearm, through his shoulders and neck, and straight into his brain.

Matt clung to that silvery warmth as it seeped steadily into him, building and compounding in intensity as it did so, and slowly, almost imperceptibly, a comforting and familiar presence began to suffuse him.

Softly at first, Baxter's voice reached out to him, steadying and fortifying him until the fear of unconsciousness faded and drew Matt back to his current predicament.

His panic was gone now, replaced by Baxter's presence in his mind: "Focus Matt, channel what I'm sending you into the palm of your hand and hold it there..." He urged calmly.

Matt could almost picture Baxter's reassuring smile beaming down at him, as he sought to guide and comfort him simultaneously.

Neither Princess nor Gavin had said anything about being able to communicate between this place and the real world, leaving Matt to believe that this must be somehow unique, even for the others.

Matt was someone who never looked a gift horse in the mouth and he did exactly what Baxter instructed him to do and focused all his will into pushing and holding back the trickle of energy flowing between their bond and focusing it into the palm of his hand.

Unfortunately, or as fate would have it, Ares seemed to sense something was now different, which caused him to pull Matt closer as his searing brown eyes tried to pierce right into his skull: "What new trickery is this daughter/son, does the White wolf seek to console you in your final moments?"

Matt didn't answer, but he could feel the beads of sweat, from his intense concentration, begin to slide down the sides of his face as Baxter's will seemed to subsume his own for an instant as Matt used everything he had to hold back the swelling damn of energy pulsating in his left hand.

With a resolute confidence Matt could only ever dream of achieving, Baxter spoke through him to Ares, peering up at him from underneath his scowling brow: "The world is outgrowing its use for beings who call themselves gods, but even among your own pantheon, you were always considered to be a pathetic loser!"

Instantly, upon concluding his menacing message, Baxter shouted out in Matt's mind: "NOW Matt, let 'em have it!"

Lurching forward, Matt's captured hand thrust against Ares's rib-cage and was proceeded by a voluminous expulsion of a silvery, blinding bolt of crackling energy, that discharged and smoldered the flesh under Matt's hand, so violently, it sent Ares hurling backward until he came to a resounding thud against one of the massive stone columns behind him.

Matt stood there, frozen to the spot, staring in disbelief at his own, still extended hand, as Ares collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Sounding exhausted, Baxter could only manage one more word to Matt before the link between them severed: "RUN!"

Without hesitation, Matt pivoted and darted in the opposite direction, mustering the last reserves of his adrenaline-fueled excitement, to put as much distance as he could between himself and Ares, who even now stirred to an upright position.

Matt glowered over his shoulder anxiously, as a low snarling growl issued from somewhere deep in Ares gut, right before he launched himself in Matt's direction.

Distracted as a new panic began to well up inside him, Matt barely noticed in time the presence of someone else, now barring his escape.

Almost sliding to a halt and barely avoiding crashing into them, Matt suddenly found himself face to face with possibly the most beautiful being he had ever seen before.

"Has my pet been misbehaving daughter/son?" came the titular query, in a voice that hovered somewhere between masculine and feminine.

Instantly Matt deduced who it was, by both Gavin's and Princess's descriptions.

"Aphrodite?" was all he seemed to manage, with Ares still barreling toward their location, with a seething, fiery blaze smoldering behind his enraged eyes.

'Do not fear daughter/son, for even now Ares reaches the end of his tether ."

Aphrodite had no longer made the proclamation when Ares's forward momentum suddenly ceased, with such rigidity, that it looked like it could have nearly snapped his neck.

It was then that Matt noticed the delicate golden chain wrapped around his neck, which branched out like a leash and secured him to a large, load-barring central pillar.

"Pay him no mind my dear, it seems you have gifts I was unaware of, to have left your mark upon the flesh of even a lesser god-like Ares," Aphrodite noted, a faint smile slightly forming at the corners of the entity's mouth.

Matt follow Aphrodite's gaze, which had zeroed in on a hand-shaped, black mark burnt into the skin covering the right side of Ares's rib cage.

"There are not many who could inflict such damage on an immortal, did your sister/brother aid you somehow?" Aphrodite asked quizzically.

Matt was a little confused and even more so as the Goddess looked around, scanning the area as if expecting to find some hidden companion.

Haltingly, Matt reassured the Goddess: "I'm here alone Ma'am, as far as I know."

The full weight of Aphrodite's gaze fell upon Matt as if drilling right through him, before stepping back away from him with a stern dower look of both concern and annoyance.

'You are not accompanied by your sister/brother, your opposite though same?" The entity grilled him as if put off by the absence of this other they spoke of.

The confusion must have read on his face, as Aphrodite clarified further: "I do not speak of the sister/brother by birth that you have, but the broken one, who you desired for so long though concealed their true nature from you until recently when they could resist you no longer."

Aphrodite said this as if he would have some clue as to whom it was they were talking about.

Nevertheless, Matt scoured his brain for an answer, dismissing everyone he could think of.

Aphrodite said it wasn't his biological brother and Matt remembered that Princess had told him, those of the Heritage could not travel here, only someone descended from the line of Remus and Matt couldn't think of anyone, with the possible exception of Hunter, who might fit the bill.

But Hunter hadn't desired him prior to Matt influencing him, nor did he seem that particularly broken now that he and his brother Brian seemed to have become glued at the hip.

Of all the people he could think of, who weren't of the Heritage, but he had desired for a long time was...

"Do you mean James Hatcher?" Matt asked incredulously, realizing that was the only possible person Aphrodite could have possibly meant, though, with one problem.... Hatch wasn't gay, he hated gay guys.

Aphrodite's gaze softened momentarily as they brought a hand up to caress Matt's cheek as he struggled with the significance of Aphrodite's words.

"Are you saying Hatch is gay and I was supposed to bring him with me?" Matt bristled, as his mind raced to grapple with the ridiculousness of that entire scenario.

Aphrodite's faint smile broadened: "Who else could compel our daughter/son to accompany you here?"

Matt was about to posit a litany of reasons why he couldn't do that when Aphrodite suddenly grabbed his upper arm and began tugging him toward the direction of his entry point.

"You must leave immediately, time grows short and it is imperative you and your sister/brother return before the setting of the next full moon!"

Aphrodite's words and voice sounded urgent and Matt wanted to do nothing more than to ask the myriad of questions that not only he had, but those that Princess and the others had spent days drilling into him to ask. But the Goddess was having none of it, practically giving him the bum rush back to his starting point.

"Heed me daughter/son, you must abide by my wishes, for the fate of your kind rest in the balance."

Aphrodite's eyes began to glow and Matt felt himself drifting back into the silvery void that separated this world from his own.

"We must heal your sister/brother, so that they may break Zeus's curse and thus preserve the future legacy of all mankind."

Aphrodite's voice began to fade as Matt's body was pulled deeper into the void, but he was sure the last thing the Goddess said was: "Impress upon Princess not to tarry, for the sire of the White Wolf has prepared the path forward!"

As Matt felt himself pulled back across the void and into the familiarity of his own body, one troubled thought echoed in his mind: "Of all the people in this world to choose from, to save all mankind, why did it have to be James fucking Hatcher?"