Page 23 of Deliverance
“Good.”
“Thank you, god Eloy, you are very merciful.”
Eloy only nodded, then led Mateo out to the car where Simeon was waiting to drive them back to Eloy’s temple. They both climbed into the backseat and Simeon turned to greet Mateo.
“I finally meet the remarkable human I have heard so much about,” he said.
Mateo bowed, as he had been used to Eloy, intimate with him even, but Simeon was another god. The god of wind, the one responsible for that cool, refreshing breeze he had been enjoying. He gave him the same respect as he’d given to Odessa.
“Awww, I would not have expected you to be so humbled,” Simeon joked.
Eloy cracked a laugh. “Oh, believe me, he is not.”
Mateo looked at Eloy, then rolled his eyes. “I am not… but I have never been in your presence. I am simply paying my respect.”
“No need to show such subservience to him. Simeon is the most human of all the gods and has always shunned such devotions. He is also the one who helped me find my way. The both of you made me better,” Eloy said, then lifted Mateo’s chin so he could kiss those lips he’d been fantasizing about, even when he had to fuck Kijani.
“Ah, let me get you two back home. I am guessing you have a lot of time to make up for,” Simeon said, then he turned around, started the engine, and pulled out onto the road.
Some time had passed while the two gods made small talk with the one human in hopes to get to know one another better. He was now asking them all of the questions that had been on his mind. “Now that you have created an improved world, does that mean you will be leaving?” Mateo asked either god with a bit of sadness in his voice.
Eloy smiled. “Not for some time. No need to worry, Mateo.”
“The new commandments are still in the beginning phase,” Simeon added.
“But after that?” Mateo asked.
Eloy grabbed his hand, kissing the back of it. “I am not going anywhere, Mateo.”
Mateo stared at Eloy for a few seconds before he felt overcome with not only joy, but every emotion he’d been holding inside. He leaned in and kissed Eloy and when he pulled back, a single tear rolled down his cheek. Eloy reached over, wiping it away with his thumb.
“Why do you cry?” he asked.
“Because I am happy, happier than I ever thought I’d be. Happier than maybe I have any right to be,” Mateo said.
Eloy smiled. “I know that feeling well these days.”
Simeon darted a glance at the two males in the backseat and smiled. This was what he wanted for himself and for his fellow gods. Unfortunately, he had never found true love, not with a human or with one of the other gods. But he didn’t feel envious of what Eloy and Mateo now shared. Whether or not the words were ever spoken, it was there nonetheless. The three continued to talk to pass the time away, then eventually, Mateo drifted off to sleep.
“I should learn how to drive,” Eloy noted as he watched Simeon steer the automobile with seemingly effortless skill.
“You really should, it is exhilarating.” Simeon turned down the road that lead to Eloy’s temple.
“You are welcome to stay, my friend, after such a long journey. Even gods need rest,” Eloy said.
“And I shall, I was planning on inviting myself if you did not. All of this driving is not only exhilarating, but also exhausting,” Simeon said, then gasped as he slammed on the brakes.
The car jolted to a stop, the force of the motion jarred Mateo out of his peaceful sleep in Eloy’s arms. “What is wrong?” Mateo asked as he looked at the two gods who were staring forward. He then turned to see what they were looking at and saw the god, Kijani, standing before them, blocking the road to Eloy’s temple.
“Let me deal with this,” Eloy said, then unraveled his arms from Mateo and exited the car. He approached Kijani, stopping a few feet from him. “Why are you here?”
“I will not allow you to make the foolish mistake of falling for a human, one who will die in but a handful of years. Nor will I allow you to condemn us to a mortal’s lifetime because of your weakness for these humans,” Kijani stated.
“Go home, Kijani, you will not stop me from living my life with Mateo,” Eloy said, standing his ground.
“I did not want to do this, Eloy, but you leave me no other choice,” Kijani said, then he raised his right hand and made a fist. Just then, the ground began to tremble violently and a deep crack formed between them that raced toward the car Simeon and Mateo were still sitting in.
“No!” Eloy screamed as he saw the ground open up and begin to swallow the car, but not completely as a powerful gust of wind lifted the car several feet in the air, spinning it a few yards away from the hole that almost consumed them. The car landed hard, bouncing as the windows shattered, two tires flattened, and the frame buckled in certain places. Both Mateo and Simeon quickly climbed out. Mateo was bleeding from a fresh wound on his forehead, but ultimately was all right.
