Chapter 145

Chapter 145
The Horned One
He coughed quite a bit of blood, so much so that he had to lean against his  kitchen door to hack.
Now I held a worry for this universe. Before my mate I did not care. I had whatever I wanted, except the connection I have with them… they are gifts from my most precious butterfly…. I’m not sure they could survive a reset, even with my intervention.
“But can you handle all this commotion?” I asked. I have children now… I hope he does not ask me to kill him.
“I’ll endure.” He said casually, while Arviel finally noticed I was here.
“Father, you look so sickly. Do you need better healing?” Asked Arviel. Time sat in his recliner chair while my mortals still snoozed peacefully.
However, Arveil and I hummed at the grizzly scene…  Father looked about ready to behead.
He has no magic that I know of, other than what we give him as an allowance…He is eternally mortal, but unlike Naztakar, the Timeless One… the Lord of Time cannot out-heal mishaps in the timeline.
“I do.” He took the tattered robes off his back. I could see every rib.
He looked like a living skeleton.
What is my heart doing? What is this feeling, and how do I stop it?
He raised us for millions of years, allowing us to develop unhindered, and in return… I do this to him. 
Dare I have mortal-ish feelings for him?
Strange.
“Why do you flagellate yourself so father?” I asked seriously.
He may not be my actual father, but I do care. Before the war me and Arviel were thick as molasses. I was the ebb, and he was the flow… and Humblon was the boat in the water coming along for the ride.
I would lie if I said I didn’t miss that, but back then father’s form was muscular.
“Because someone has to.” He said as he always has….
Before my time, the god eater Calaxious was said to have wondered his way to our quadrant. I have not seen the Great Silver Dragon, but he has not been killed. It is said that he has grown so large, that he is able to swallow universes our size… because it ate its own kin.
I speculate he’s asleep, waiting to awake and devour entire universes again after a certain number grow.
Odd that I even contemplate Infinity. I have nothing to do with the other places, only what I rule. And by … mostly cooperating, our realm is the largest that I know of, well in this Quadrant. I’ve never had a reason to leave.
Oddly enough, I have no memory of my making like I should. Though, I always speculated that it was because too much of whoever we were before was eaten. I know we three come from the same source, but we are not kin. Well I’m not. Yet Time did not have to take in crying godkin babes.
He raised us three like his sons.
I grew up in this house, on this planet…. And when I became a man, and I had to cleave his neck, I vowed that I would be the one to do it, because Arviel and Humblon hesitate.
Hesitation is its own cruelty. That he cannot just die is akin to butchering a beast, but taking more than one swing. I still remember that day. Arviel fucking missed and he was just twitching there, begging to fucking die.
“Because you like it.” I grinned. “I bet it gets you har-”
“Don’t. Finish That…. Ew.” Said Humblon appearing last, since he is the weakest of we three. One day we woke up, and the blue thread of brotherhood was attached to Arviel. It is why they are real brothers, and I hold no actual relation.
It is why I value my mate and children so greatly. They are my only actual blood…. Arviel would be too, at least by bond, if it was not him who betrayed me… All what he’d done up until that point was looked over.
Arviel regenerated some of Time’s ailments with his light, and I aided with flesh magic.
We earnestly do the work for our mate’s sakes now that we have such love, neither of us wish to be without.
“Thank you.” Time said quietly. “Son if you would, send them temporarily home. Their servant is about to clean their wing of their castle.” He motioned Tiffany and Zayde, my favorite paring. Zayde is from my High Priest Gulteer’s line, and Tiffany is the only daughter of Heidi.
One, I blessed with my serpent’s dainty form, and the other holds the raw strength of my bahimoth, essentially a draconic styled demon.
With a wave of my hand, they will hibernate at home now. The illusion of their sleeping in bed was never disturbed, so their end of the disturbance is fixed.
“That’s the last of the time warp, wasn’t it?” Asked Humblon.
“Yeah.” Me and Arviel said at the same time. I hate it when we do that, but we are in sync because of our anger.
\----The Lord of Time----
A few days passed after they healed my aches.
I was thankful that they finally left, and left me alone.
I had matters to attend to. I made so many invitations, and not enough food. If they come or not matters little; those who come can take the leftovers.
With Zayde being a bahimoth caster, and Tiffany gaining the form Ifreya, the black serpent Lulliba was gifted, I had them in stasis. They will remain so until after Xaxas’s whelps are born, but while company is on the way, it would be a little rude to have those two asleep on the couch.
With a wave of my hand, I sent the little mortals home temporarily. Zayde and Tiffany only offer a minor aid, but they shall sleep a while longer. The timeway tossed them almost a year into the past, and future, so abusing their magical beast forms fixes it.
And looking at the wrinkle in time is ….really making me want to get out of this body.
Why did I think that?
When have I ever wanted to go back? 
“We’re here.” Said Willow, still suspicious of me. I know her heart… She came to this one to be nice, but she will not come again.
She was taken aback by how small and simple this place was…. But they were suspicious. It was a good thing I’d already made the brownie squares and struggled setting up that swing.
All the little ones ran into the house, running straight for the bacon wrapped steak balls. The peach soda was homemade as well, since sweet little Humblon got me one of those pop machines. He is my good son, but I try not to praise him too much in front of Arviel especially.
They Both do Too much to try and show Humblon up when I do. That’s how I got the 20 acre forest I didn’t want and Didn’t ask for… or the foxes.
Like Thanks Zuviel, I want foxes to eat my chickens.
“Boys!” Yelled Samira.
“Sorry.” They all said at the same time.
“Nonsense. Let them have their fun.” I smiled. “Come have tea with me. Boys, after your snacks, could you go name all my animals?” I asked.
“Except the white Gorse.” Said Isabelle with a bittersweet smile. “Her name is Starshine, after my old pony.”
“And I will cherish her.” I smiled in return. I’m a little too old to actually enjoy riding, but most gorses are smart as a mortal. The only thing they can’t do is talk, but I think I’ll give her speech. It’ll be fun. Gorses are goat hooved and headed horses. They were made by Eskaal… Soon he shall see the folly of his hubris.
Now that tiffany and Zayde are gone, I will be alone.
Suspicious
… My train of thought is strange. I noticed it when Zuviel had his internal monologue… There have been several instances of it, and I will not allow meddling.
I’m too close to getting what I want for once: A Stable Universe. One where I can exist like this and be just a ‘silly old grandpa’, and nothing else.
Zuviel must be watching me again. I’ll have to be more careful. I don’t want those three to find out, because they’re going to overreact.