Treasure

by Megan Derr

  Kin bit back all the angry words he wanted to say and instead only bit out, "So we have to kill Taka or Kyo? I'm not doing it—not for you, not for the world, not for anyone."

  "He won't stay dead," Raiden replied. "Taka is to be the new Eye of the Storm, as I said. But the sacrifice must be made and the Eye restored to its proper form. That bauble around your neck is but a pale imitation." He stepped away, and said, "Now if you will excuse me, I must go try and explain all of this to Taka." He did not wait for their reply, simply walked off.

  "I still want to punch him again," Kin muttered and loosed one arm from around Kyo's waist to wrap it around his throat instead, squeezing lightly as he forced Kyo's head up and around to look at him. "Though first I think I will throttle you."

  Kyo laughed, but Kin did not miss the tremble in his voice.

  "Were you really going to kill yourself without saying a word to me?" Kin asked, still angry and hurt, but mostly scared to death. "Why would you do that to me? To Taka?"

  "I knew you'd stop me, and it has to be done," Kyo said.

  Kin could not bear the continued unsteadiness in his voice. Letting him go, he turned Kyo around and held him tightly, nuzzling against him and breathing in his scent, trembling himself when he thought about how close he had come to losing the man who had so quickly and unreasonably become the center of his world. "Koori, you promised to find the ultimate treasure with me. I cannot very well take the ultimate treasure home if it sacrifices itself here in the middle of gods forsaken nowhere. Literally gods forsaken, apparently. Have I mentioned that you have a beautiful throat and I would hate to mar it with bruises?"

  Just because he was a brat prince, Kyo leaned back and arched the aforementioned throat, and Kin could not resist sliding his fingers across it, curling them into the hair at his nape, and dragging Kyo close to ravage his mouth, licking the split in his lip, determined to leave Kyo too breathless to do anymore thinking. Clearly it was allowing Kyo room to think that had caused all of this. Kin had a sneaking suspicion it was a trait the brothers shared. Pulling back just far enough to speak, he muttered against Kyo's mouth, "I am going to tie you to my bed when we get home; I think that might actually keep you out of trouble."

  "I doubt it," Kyo said, "but you're welcome to try." He licked Kin's lips. "I've heard that sort of thing is fun."

  Kin groaned and kissed him again, desperate to banish the images in his head because the time and place were completely wrong for thoughts of Kyo bound with silk chord and helpless to do anything, but take whatever Kin did to him. "Brat."

  "So you keep saying," Kyo said, fingers slipping beneath his clothes, nails scraping in that way that drove Kin wild. He nipped Kin's jaw and stood up on his toes to nip his ear and murmur, "Fuck me, Captain."

  Kin hissed, and if he hadn't already been hard, that bold, husky demand would have done it. "Your brother thinks he's going to die, we have to kill him to restore gods or the world will end, and you want me to fuck you?"

  "I've spent the last several months thinking I would die alone on this rock with everyone hating my memory for one reason or another," Kyo said, burying his head in Kin's neck. "I thought three months on the Kumiko was the closest I would ever come to journeying with you. Now I know I'm going to live."

  Put that way, Kin understood. "Not here," he said, and with a last biting kiss, managed to pull away, taking Kyo's hand and leading him away from the vile temple remains. Knowing there was nothing suitable back the way he had come, he went in the opposite direction, climbing the stairs and stopping when he saw another set at the top. They looked as though they had weathered the years better—at least what steps he could see—as they seemed to vanish below the temple itself.

  Curiosity snagged, he took them, and only after he realized they went so far down the light vanished did he realize his error. But even as he turned around to suggest they go back, Kyo whispered softly, and then the stairwell filled with bright, blue-ish light. Kyo smiled at him. "Shall we? I don't think this is leading to us being naked, but I admit it's interesting."

  "There's plenty of time for me to fuck you, given the lengths to which Raiden will have to go to apologize," Kin replied and turned back around to lead the way down the rest of the stairs.

  They spilled into a room that, with the addition of more light from Kyo, proved to contain a small pool of some sort. "An offering pool, I think," Kyo said.

  Kin's brow rose at that. "Offering pools are usually smaller and deeper, aren't they? At least they were where I grew up, and in the couple of other temples I visited."

  "I'm sure as busy as this temple must have been, a larger pool was required," Kyo said, and he walked closer to it, kneeling at the edge. "You can still see where the prayer mats would have been, as people knelt and offered tokens in return for favors." He dipped his hands into the water and said softly, "Sacred Dragons of the Three Storms, lords of the wind and the sea, masters of chaos, hear my plea ... " He reached up and unfastened the necklace around his throat, removed the jewel set in it, and threw the pendant into the water. "Come back to us, Dragons, help to set right what has gone so wrong. I offer my most precious possession in return for your indulgence and thank you for listening to my plea."

  Standing gracefully, he turned and walked back to Kin. "I wonder if it will be a problem that there is apparently only one dragon remaining. There should be three, needs to be three. The gods of chaos and the gods of life are in threes. What will happen when we give the power back to the dragons, and Raiden is the only one to receive it?"

  Kin made a face. "It seems to me that Raiden has been planning this all along, the storming bastard. I hope Taka soaks his head and does not accept his apology or have anything at all to do with him for a very long time. It would serve Raiden right if Taka never forgave him."

  "They'd both be miserable, then," Kyo murmured. "Taka will forgive him; it's in his nature."

  "That is certainly true," Kin said. "He's much nicer than you."

  Kyo looked up at him, eyes narrowed. "If it is nice you want—"

  Kin cut him off with a kiss, chuckling into his mouth and biting playfully at Kyo's lips as he drew back. "I believe I've made it clear how much I prefer bratty."

  "Make it clearer," Kyo replied, and pushed up into another kiss, wrapping his arms so tightly around Kin's neck that he nearly felt strangled. He wrapped his own arms around Kyo's waist and kissed him ravenously back, claiming his mouth anew, grunting in dissatisfaction when Kyo pulled away and stepped out of reach. He was unable to do more than stare when Kyo began to strip.

  Free of the frustrating confines of the ship, able to move around as much as they liked, Kyo was lethally distracting. His sash dropped to the floor with a soft swish of fabric, quickly followed by the silk cords that held his robe closed. The robe gaped open, and the bands of the under-robe were also consigned to the floor. Kin stepped forward, sliding his hands into the open robes and running them along Kyo's smooth, soft, warm skin up his chest to push the robes off his shoulders. He bent to kiss one shoulder, breathing in Kyo's scent, imagining he could still smell himself there, their scents mingled. He nuzzled Kin's throat, and then turned his head and took a soft, but thorough kiss. "Beautiful," he whispered.

  "I'd rather look at you," Kyo said, kissing him softly. "You should remove your clothes so I can do it better."

  "Yes, highness." Kin stepped back to obey the order, though it was damned difficult to do, especially with his high boots—and with Kyo staring at him so intently. "This would go faster if you would look somewhere else."

  Kyo smirked. "Yes, Captain." He pointedly turned his back, and Kin rapidly finished undressing, and then stepped up behind him, cock pressing into the small of Kyo's back and making them both gasp. He bit down at the juncture of Kyo's throat and shoulder, making Kin shiver and press back harder against him. Pulling back slightly, Kin turned him around, sank to his knees and swallowed Kyo's cock. Nails sank into his shoulders and slid up into his hair, but Kin ignored t
he slight pain in favor of extracting more of the lovely noises Kyo made, the way his name sounded when Kyo's voice turned ragged.

  He pulled off before Kyo came, ignoring his scowling protests and laying Kyo down on top of his robes. "I had hoped to do this in a large, comfortable bed."

  "We'll have one of those when all of this is over. In the meantime, I simply hope you brought something to ease the way."

  "I did," Kin said quietly. "I'd hoped to find a secluded stretch of beach ..."

  Kyo closed his eyes, arching slightly, body shuddering as he obviously enjoyed the image put in his head. "That sounds marvelous, especially if there is swimming involved as well. I was sad I did not think I would get to go swimming with you."

  "Well, now we no longer have to worry," Kin replied, and he pulled away long enough to find the oil he had tucked into his sash before everything had gone so wrong. Returning to Kyo, Kin spread his legs and settled between them, running one hand along Kyo's thigh and stroking his cock briefly before teasing over his balls and finally slipping behind them. Kyo arched up into the touch, spreading his legs even wider, and Kin could not help but lean down to take another kiss. "You really are too beautiful. It's no wonder you are allowed to be such a brat."

  He rolled his eyes while Kyo just laughed. The laughter cut off, turned into a startled breath, and then became a moan, as Kin pushed one slick finger inside him. He wanted nothing as badly as he wanted to sink his cock into Kyo and fuck him senseless, but he wasn't going to be that impatient and crude the first time. Maybe the third. Definitely when they had the time and luxury for silk cords.

  Banishing the distracting images, he focused on preparing Kyo, watching his eyes, using his free hand to continued touching and teasing him, stroking his cock, until he was able to take three fingers and was left breathless and writhing with need. Kin thought if he died right then, staring at Kin lost in passion and hungry for him, he would die the happiest man to ever live.

  Removing his fingers, he pulled Kyo's legs up and positioned his cock, and then slowly pushed inside. Kyo gasped, but Kin went slowly, kissing and teasing and touching all the while until he was fully inside and they were both trembling with need. Kyo's nails were biting into his shoulders again, but Kin had no desire to complain. He bent to take another kiss.

  "I know I have no experience at this, but I am fairly certain there should be movement," Kyo said against his mouth.

  Kin laughed. "I love you." Bracing himself, he pulled slightly out and thrust back in, rocking his hips and going as deep as he could, hot with satisfaction when he found the spot he was looking for. He kept his thrusts slow at first, but rapidly increased his pace, spurred on by the nails that raked down his back, the breathless demands and pleas that filled the temple until the entire place echoed with their mingled cries of release.

  When Kin had regained his breath, he gingerly pulled out of Kyo and settle down next to him, dragging him close and kissing him hard.

  Kyo traced his lips with one finger and curled into him. "I love you, too," he said softly. "I always have, all the years I've watched you."

  "Next time, do less watching and more approaching," Kin muttered, deciding that was a fight to pick another day. They had much more complicated problems to face at present. "When do you suppose they'll be back? When are we supposed to do—whatever it is we are doing?"

  "I don't know, anymore," Kyo said, and he slowly sat up. Standing, he walked to the offering pool and slipped into it.

  Kin quirked one brow at him, and propped his head on his elbows, enjoying the view. "I am the least religious person in four countries, or very nearly, and even I am a bit taken aback that you are using an offering pool to take a bath."

  Kyo's laughter echoed through the room. "There are no gods to be offended, and it's not as though the temple is still in use. Given I am to help restore the gods, I think I am permitted the liberty."

  "There is that." Kin stood up and joined him, grimacing at the coolness of the water. But then he had a wet Kyo plastered against him and forgot about everything else. "Good day, priest. I hope you are finding the winds to your favor."

  "They certainly seem to be," Kyo murmured and moved away again, quickly rinsing off, splashing Kin when he'd finished. "We should go see if Raiden and Taka have returned."

  Kin sighed and nodded, climbing out of the water. He did not dress immediately, though he shivered when the cool air washed over his wet skin. "My crew will be wondering where in the oceans we all went. Then again, by this point, they must be taking all of our eccentricities as normal." He sighed again.

  Laughing, Kyo picked up his robes and began to pull them on, the under-robe sticking slightly to his still-damp skin. "At least that means they have the sense to stay on the beach and not come looking for trouble. Help me with my sash."

  "How am I supposed to help?" Kin groused. "I know nothing of your fancy, too-much-free–time, royal knots."

  Kyo rolled his eyes. "So make it a basic one; stop being a guppy."

  "I'm not a guppy," Kin muttered, but obediently retrieved the wide, heavy sash and awkwardly bound it around Kyo's waist. "We are, as I have previously pointed out, in the middle of nowhere. Must you dress so ... princely?"

  Shrugging, flicking his hair from his face with a practiced jerk of his head, Kyo replied, "I was not going to die as anyone but myself."

  "Stop reminding me that you were mere moments from killing yourself, or I am going to spend several days annoyed with you," Kin said, refusing to be mollified when Kyo kissed him long and slow and sweet. "Brat," he muttered. "Never do something so stupid again, and if you must, discuss it first. Promise."

  "I promise," Kyo said softly. Pulling away, he led the way out of the offering chamber and back up to the temple proper. When they returned to the open area where they had been before it was still empty. "I guess they are still reconciling. I wonder how it will all happen ... "

  For one moment, Kin almost asked how Kyo had planned to do it—but realized he did not actually want to know because the image would torture him forever. "You have a morbid turn of mind."

  Kyo smiled, crooked and a touch bitter. "It cannot really be helped when you wonder why your parents are so cold to you your entire life only to learn it's because they regard you as nothing but an offering to be slaughtered at the right moment."

  Making a rough noise, Kin yanked him close and just held him. "If I could, I would kill them all, and slowly."

  "No point," Kyo said, breath warm against his neck. "We are going to take away their magic—that will hurt them more, in the end."

  Kin grunted, not at all mollified, but willing to let it go. "When do you suppose they will finally show up again?"

  "Patience," Kyo murmured. "How would you feel if someone you loved told you that you needed to die to put him back in power?"

  "Raiden is the smoothest talker I know," Kin replied sourly, wanting to punch him all over again. "How could he be so tactless?"

  He could feel Kyo smile against him and wondered how in the seas he had gone so long without holding and touching him. For the rest of his life—and that thought froze him cold. His life. He was a merman. He would live, if not forever, then for centuries if he did not manage to get himself killed. Kyo had no such lifespan. Kin squelched the emotions that rose up, shoved them down, and furiously ignored them. He would hold Kyo close for as long as Kyo lived, and then wait patiently for him to be reborn so he could do it all over again.

  "I think under the circumstances," Kyo said in reply to his question, "that it's understandable he lost his merchant charm. I do not know what I would say after waiting nine hundred years for a chance to set things right. I cannot even comprehend all that Raiden must have endured, but it makes me wonder all over again what we will do with only one of the three dragons still alive."

  Kin frowned. "Half the gods have been reborn in mortal reincarnations, or so people claim. Surely the others must be around."

  "No," Raiden said, making them
jump and whip around. He looked exhausted, rumpled, and not at all happy. Taka stood behind him, looking equally miserable and resigned. Kin almost felt sorry for Raiden that they were clearly far from reconciled. "My brothers are dead. When I say they gave their lives—" his voice faltered, and he stopped to clear his throat. "They gave up everything, their very souls, their very essence. It was all the power they had left to use alongside the small threads of chaos that still answered their call. All that remains—" He broke off again, and then continued haltingly, "All that remains of them are the last vestiges and memories that came to me when they died. I cannot bring my brothers back; nothing remains to recreate them."

  Behind him, Taka's expression fractured, and he took half a step before stopping himself, hesitating, and finally falling back again. It hurt to watch them, and Kin could feel any remaining anger bleed away. Kyo was right: Raiden had endured much, whatever his role in the matter. Kin hoped he was able to repair the rift between him and Taka.

  "So what do you intend to do?" Kyo asked. "Perhaps I am mistaken, but one dragon cannot—"

  "You're correct," Raiden interrupted. "One dragon, one god, alone cannot control chaos. It requires three to hold chaos, to control the wind and the sea. I cannot bring my brothers back. I can, however, create new ones. That was the other reason the ceremony must be done this way: it is the only thing sufficiently powerful enough to summon the raw chaos I need to make two new gods. But I also need vessels."

  Kin frowned. "Vessels? Like Pozhar?"

  "Similar," Raiden replied quietly. "I need two people of suitable strength and spirit to become new gods."