Nihility + Effervescence

In an ocean of reddish brown sand with the red hot sun beating down sits a man with lightning blue hair and beautiful golden tan. His hand gently caresses a sickeningly pale man with jet black hair that laid in his lap. Flowing from his lips was a sweet gentle tone filled with love and concern, though his voice was hushed. “Varago, my love, everything will be alright.”

With a sweet look in his eyes, Varago looked up with his golden black eyes, connecting his gaze to the man that was holding him close. “Impetus.” The name fell from his lips in a hushed whisper, pain could be heard in his voice.

Tears welled up in Impetus’ electric white-blue eyes as he stared down into his beloved’s eyes with tender love. He could see how weak Varago had become with the sun beating down on them both. If he could get Varago into some sort of shade, or shelter, he knew that his strength would begin to return rather quickly.

“Don’t fret. In a few hours we will have a bit of darkness or even shadows to work with.” The tears that had been welling up began to stream down his face. Impetus’ voice quivered as his heart was breaking. “Please, hand in there. Just a little while longer. Please, Varago. Please.” Gently he pushed some of Varago’s long hair behind his ear. “They shall pay for what they have done to you. They will pay. That I swear.”

A weak chuckle left Varago’s lips before he spoke. “My Impetus.” With a trembling hand, he gently touched Impetus’ face just for his hand to fall back down to his side. “Mortals… know not of what we are…. They allow fear to control… their every thought.” It was obvious to him that Impetus’ heart was breaking over his own state of being.

The two of them were ancient beings that had never left each others’ side without being removed by force. For centuries Impetus has taken it upon himself to ensure that Varago would be utterly safe. Safe from spreading the abyss too far and from being caught in too much light. The truth was, Varago was the embodiment of the abyss itself. Whereas Impetus was the embodiment of energy. This was due to their species. Both happened to be sunronians. Creatures that were created by a cosmic being and given domains. Varago’s domain was the abyss. Impetus’ was energy. Though their domains were vastly different, the duo were inseparable from one another, considering they were created as mates. They were loyal to each other to a fault. This particular even was no different; Impetus was not going to lose his mate.

Impetus dared not move an inch in hopes that Varago remain comfortable. Sand crept into his tight jeans, that he loved to wear, making it hard to sit still. However, he made sure that Varago’s head remained steady and in his lap. Casually running his fingers though Varago’s hair, Impetus looked up at the burning sky in hopes he could dry his tears. There was no lying that he was worried beyond what he normally felt. It wasn’t the fact that Varago was dying, he knew that he would return once his body was able to recover. It was the fact that Varago was in immense pain from being exposed by a tremendous amount of light. Though Varago could take on small amounts of light of any king the larger amounts, such as sunlight, was deadly.

On the other side of things, Varago was more concerned with how much Impetus was worrying about him. The more he worried and fretted over Varago, the more energy that would leave Impetus’ body. It was a known fact that Varago would be find after the sun went down, and that is even if he died. Trying to convince Impetus while being in such a weakened state was proving to be rather difficult.

The rays of the sun was beating down harder on the duo, even with Impetus desperately trying to provide shade with his body. Varago was more than happy to spend his last moments in the arms of the man he loved for as long as possible. It didn’t matter how much pain the sun was causing him in the long run; he was in the arms of his Impetus. This was not the first time Varago had passed away from the sun above, and he knew it would not be his last. Since his creation, this was something he was at peace with.

“Do not cry, my love. Darkness shall allow the abyss to rise again.” His voice sounded haggard as he spoke out. Little black wisps flowed from his fingertips to consume a tear that was falling from Impetus’ eye. “We are… eternal.” Varago’s eyes close as his breath left him with his last word, falling into silence.

Watching his beloved fade away had only made Impetus weep that much more. It wasn’t just sorrow that made his tears flow; it was pure rage as well. They had done nothing wrong that night. As he held Varago close he thought about how all Varago wanted was to take a walk near the town to see the mortals. Varago had always been fascinated by the way mortals lived, and Impetus went with him to make sure they remained in the woods. They hadn’t been on the planet for too long, which told them that the locals may be less than welcoming to newcomers. Impetus had hoped that staying on the outskirts would ensure Varago’s safety.

Remembering the event caused Impetus to clench the lifeless body of Varago in his arms for dear life as he wept, the unforgiving sun showing no signs of going down anytime soon. It had been a simple incident. Varago and Impetus had seen a little child playing near the edge of the woods. Per usual, Varago had them shielded with the darkness from his abyss abilities, but that could not shield the glow of his inhuman eyes. The child had seen his eyes as well as the electrifying eyes of Impetus. At first the child saw the dark golden glow of Varago’s dark eyes, then she saw what she had thought to be balls of lightning floating in the dark.

A startled scream left the child’s lips, which made Varago act fast. He had hoped that making the darkness rescind back into him to show that the two of them were only men would have helped ease the child’s fear. Granted, he could not rescind it all as his abilities of the abyss were harder to completely control in darker areas. Unfortunately his inhuman appearance alone caused her to scream more, alerting others from the town and it was too late for Impetus to get Varago out of there with his own abilities.

Each adult was well armed, quickly coming to the child’s aid. Without knowing what they were about discover, a spotlight was moved to illuminate what made the child scream in the first place. As the spotlight hit Impetus and Varago, it affected each of them in different ways. Impetus was able to gain some energy from the light, though he did not care that he was gaining anything from it. Impetus cared more about the fact that the spotlight was making Varago weaker. He also began to feel heavier from the weight of the light beating on him. Gently Impetus took Varago into his arms, holding him tightly. Before he could move a single inch, the humans surrounded them. Trying as hard as he could, the men forced the two a part, which only made Impetus more concerned for his beloved. He began to struggle against the men but made sure not to harm them with his inhuman strength. The goal was not to show humans that they are monsters in the slightest.

Three men in total bound Varago’s weak body in rope, making sure to keep him in the light. It was obvious to them that he would be less of an issue to them if they kept the spotlight beating down on his weakened frame. Four men were trying to restrain the fighting Impetus. Panic was rising inside his very being. As he fought to get to Varago, Impetus screamed out four words. “YOU ARE KILLING HIM!” Concern, anguish, fear, and love could be heard and felt from his voice.

Walking in with her dark brown hair tied back in a pony tail, a young looking woman made her way to Impetus, who found himself pinned to the ground by the men. “Are we killing that creature? It made a child cry. It is inhuman. However, I would prefer to have a conversation before anyone dies. Come with me.” Alice waved her hand in a manner that commanded respect, if that was possible.

For a single moment there was hesitation as Impetus looked over to Varago, seeing him begin to struggle to breathe beneath the harsh spotlight. In that moment Impetus stopped fighting and was taken to a room where Alice met with him about thirty minutes later.

“Hello. I am Alice, the one in charge of this little city. You and your… monster are scary my people.” Alice was not very tall compared to Impetus. With a stature of about five feet she stood looking at Impetus as she had him bound in a chair.

Before Alice could utter another word, he let his words spill out. “Where is he?!” Impetus was quick to shout at Alice, his only concern being Varago.

Letting out a sigh, Alice looks him up and down. “Why don’t you tell me about yourself and that monster. Then perhaps I will let you know how he is doing. You have to realize that I am simply looking out for my own people.” She could see the hesitating in his eyes. “I promise you that you and yours will be safe if you tell me what you two are and what your intentions are. Fair?” The look on her face was hard to read. If Impetus had the domain of some sort of emotion he would have been able to figure her out in a heart beat. However, he did not. Alice’s foot began to tap on the ground with impatience.

“Fine. As long as he is going to be okay. Having the spotlight on him is beyond harmful.” Impetus let out a soft sigh.

“We could tell.” Alice looked at him as if to tell him to continue. Her eyes sparkled the brightest green as she crossed her arms, glaring at him.

It was in that moment that the realization about what mortals could be like hit Impetus. He had heard horror stories from others of his species, but he never fully believed them. “My name is Impetus, and the man you are harming is Varago. We meant no harm. Simply went for a walk in the forest. We were curious and ventured too close to your city.”

“Meant no harm. I see.” She began to pace back and forth in the room. Suddenly she stopped to look at Impetus. “No last name? Just Impetus?”

“I am unaware of what a last name is, Alice. With that being said. That would have to be a no considering the context here.” Looking back down at his hands, he briefly thought about using his abilities to end Alice; to get his mate to safety. Slowly he gazes back to her, to speak once more. “We are simply travelers having come here for a time. We have walked in those woods many times before tonight.”

Things began to click in Alice’s mind. “Travelers? Where do you come from? Be honest or it will be worse for that monster you hold so dear.” Her threats were not taken lightly by him in the slightest, which caused a smile to creep on her smug face.

“Mortal, you do not know anything of what we are and perhaps that is for the best. We come from nowhere and everywhere. I realize this is vague, but it is honest.” He saw the confused look on her face as she continued on, hoping to shed some light on the matter. “We were created by a cosmic entity and her beloved servant. Together they created several of our kind. This cosmic entity loved mortals. Loved their beauty. She desired nothing more than to create many sunronians that would help the mortals in their lives. To make them easier. Granted, some of us may look like monsters, but that usually is not the case at all. Even in the darkness there is always a bit of light.”

After they spoke for awhile more, Alice was finally satisfied with Impetus’ answer, decided that it was time to reunite the duo and make sure they were escorted out of the city. She lead Impetus, still bound, to a rusty pickup truck. The men grabbed up Impetus and helped him into the truck bed. There Impetus saw Varago laying in the bed of the truck. Tears fell as Impetus looked at his beloved Varago. He could tell that Varago was weak as the spotlight was still on him. Above the city, the sun started to come rise.

Without thinking too much, Impetus broke the rope that had tied his hands and grabbed Varago into his arms. At first the men who were in the truck bed with them were about to attack. However, Alice stopped them. Her plan had gone accordingly; to eliminate the threat. Alice refused to take a chance on anyone that had unknown power. Varago and Impetus had just that in their hands. She couldn’t risk anyone harming her citizens. She didn’t like to act cruel, but sometimes she had to take the extra lengths to ensure that they would be protected always.

“Take them into the desert. That should take care of the dangerous one. Shoot the other.” Alice had leaned in the driver’s window, making sure the duo in back could not hear her.

It took over an hour for them to make it to their destination. The moment they arrive, the men in the back grabbed Varago and Impetus, tossing both out of the truck and into the sand. As Impetus quickly grabbed up his darling Varago as the truck sped off back to the city. In that moment Impetus remembered what he had heard from the others of their species about humans, and how they tended to have violence tendencies. He didn’t want to believe it. After the betrayal of Alice, he knew those rumors to be truth.

Snapping back to his reality. Back to the sorrow filled truth that his beloved laid deceased in his arms, he was at a loss of what to do besides cry and scream in the sorrow he felt. He wanted nothing more than for night to fall in hopes that Varago would revive instantly, even though he knew that it could take hours to centuries for him to return. For the moment Impetus cried out to Nocturna for her to change the day into night to start the process sooner. The sooner his beloved comes back, the sooner Impetus can feel whole again. However, there was more to it. Impetus wanted to make sure his beloved was going to be alright while he goes to the city. He refused to allow Alice and her people to get away with hurting his love.

“Impetus, you know this would not be something he would want you to do.” A female voice echoed into the emptiness of the desert as the sky grew dark. “I give you the darkness of night for Varago’s sake. Do not seek revenge on the mortals, Impetus. He would not want that. He will not want you to go down that route.” Her presence lingered yet her voice turned back into silence.

Gently pressing his lips against Varago’s forehead he laid a lovingly kiss. Tears softly feel from Impetus’ eyes as he looked up at the now darkened sky. “Nocturna, if this had happened with Alectron. If they had harmed him, I know you would do anything to avenge him.” Slowly he stood up as he placed Varago to the side, making sure to give extra tender love and care as he laid him to the side. “They will pay for what they have done. Alice will pay for her betrayal.” Before Nocturna could think about objecting, Impetus’ eyes seemed to look electrified. “Watch over him while I am gone.” With that, he disappeared as if he were lightening itself.

In the city where truck had finally made it back to, Alice was holding a small meeting with the city’s citizens about the recent events. None of them had a clue what was coming to them that day. The little girl who was at the start of the situation was sitting on her mother’s lap near the front of the conference hall. There were several people in the seats, yet the hall was not completely full of every person that was in strange city.

“We all knew weird things have happened within those woods. Children should now be kept in doors until further notice.” Alice gave a smile smile to the little girl as a guard interrupted the meeting suddenly. Looking rather annoyed, she turned to the guard. “What is it, Isaac?” Her voice was pushed through her teeth as she forced a smile on her rather annoyed looking face.

Murmurs began to erupt in the conference hall as Alive stared at Isaac for a moment in disbelief as the murmurs grew louder. She didn't waste anytime, in leaving the conference hall to go see if what he was claiming was in fact true. After all, the sun was supposed to be high in the sky until later.

Sure enough, the moment she walked outside there was no sun high in the sky, but she did see something moving at lightening fast speed. The creature coming towards her had blue eyes that looked like lightening bolts. Looking more at her surroundings Alice saw her guards laid out on the ground as she was quickly snatched up off the by her neck.

For Impetus the guards, even though they were well armed, were nothing more than child's play as the energy within in swelled deep inside him. This kept him going as he felt that he had no other reason to go on as of that moment. Leaning to her ear, he whispered in a dark broken tone, “he saw you as scared children. He did nothing but try to show he wasn’t a threat to you all. Yet all you did was make him suffer. Because of you, he is dead!”

Struggling to breathe, Alive managed to mutter out a small sentence. “I… had to protect… the city.” Part of Impetus wanted to understand, yet all he could do was think about the loss he had just endured. Without warning he walked back into the woods, Alice still struggling in his grasp.

Knowing Impetus’ state of mind and the anger he held in his broken heart, Nocturna focused all her energy on Varago’s resurrection by pouring the energy of the night into his lifeless body. At first it seemed to do little to nothing as all. However, after about thirty minutes of pouring everything she had into Varago’s body there were signs of life. The sound of breathing could be heard from him once more as his eyes began to flutter open to greet the night sky. All around him darkness grew more dense as he became stronger; it was his abyss. Slowly he began to look around, specifically looking for his beloved Impetus. Nocturna didn’t have to tell him what was going on as he felt it in his very soul. His darling Impetus had gone off to seek revenge for his latest demise. A revenge that was in his name and that was something Varago did not want in the slightest. He turned to take off for the city that had destroyed him, which is when he saw a faint bolt of lightening coming from where the woods met the desert.

“Varago, I do apologize. Your resurrection had to be rushed because of what Impetus is doing now. I know his heart aches, but you and I both know that this isn’t right.” Nocturna’s voice could be heard once more in the night air. There was a faint vision of her outline in the sky itself, however, it was only a silhouette.

For a single moment Varago gazed up at the silhouette of Nocturna, nodding in respect to her with thanks in his voice as tears fell from his dark eyes. “Thank you, Nocturna. My apologies for you having to be involved in the first place. He means well, even though misguided.” His voice fell silent as he began to move towards the lightening bolts he had seen.

It did not take long for Varago to come up on Impetus’ location. Impetus could be seen sending surges of pure energy through Alice’s body as she screamed in agony. His energy was that of unrestrained electricity surging through a human’s body. Seeing this sight Varago left the abyss, which allowed him to travel faster in the darkness. In that moment as he was close enough, Varago saw that Impetus was seconds away from killing Alice.

“My love! Please stop this now!” It was Varago’s hope that he was not too late to stop the madness that Impetus had unleashed.

The moment Impetus heard Varago’s voice, he dropped Alice to the ground as her body twitched from the shocking experience. Tears were streaming down his face as he turned to see Varago walking towards him and Alice’s body. “Varago? Is that you?” He turned his back to Alice, unable to see that she was weakly moving to grab a knife from the inside of her boot. Even though she was in a weakened state, she was determined to end the threats to her city.

Violence was one of the main things Varago detested, he also detested killing. However, he was not going to allow someone to harm those he cared about. Seeing Alice moving to harm his darling Impetus, Varago stretched out his abyss, consuming her instantly. Within moments Impetus embraced his beloved Varago with tears of pure happiness in his eyes. He felt complete with Varago in his arms once more. He could tell that Varago felt the same.

“It’s okay now, Impetus. It’s okay. Nocturna assisted in making sure that I returned quicker. You know that revenge is never needed. I will always return. It may not be as soon as you desire it to be, but I will always return to you, my darling love.” His voice was shaken from worry, but love could be felt through out. Tenderly he kissed Impetus, holding his face ever so gently. The love felt between the two was so pure and beautiful.

Wanting nothing more to keep the kiss going, Impetus deepened the kiss for a little while longer until they had to pull away from each other. With the kiss broken, he looked into Varago’s golden black eyes with remorse. “You killed that mortal woman for me. You protected me.” Part of him felt sorrow for what Varago did to protect him. Perhaps that is the main part of the remorse he had felt. The other part of him was happy that he had someone like Varago to protect him when it mattered most.

A warm smile crept onto Varago’s handsome face. “My love, you were in danger and I will not allow any harm to come to you. No matter how wrong you are, you will be safe. We need to explain what transpired here before the other mortals come looking for her.” Though the smile on his face never wavered, Impetus knew that Varago was upset with the fact that he just killed Alice. To him mortal lives were to be protected, which is why he detested violence and murder.

“They’ll attempt to kill us again, Varago. I believe they viewed her as their leader. They will want justice for what I did. I am so sorry that I caused you so much trouble. If I hadn’t you would not have to upset yourself with such things.” Tears streamed down his face as he clung to Varago. “How can you ever forgive me?!” His voice turned into sobs.

Varago simply smiled as he held Impetus in his arms. There was no anger, sorrow, or any negativity coming from him or being showed by him. There was nothing negative coming from Varago towards Impetus. All there was, was the feeling of unconditional love for Impetus. “They fear what lies within the night and what they cannot understand. They fight among each other as well as fight with us. They believe the light shall save them from what lies in the abyss.” He could feel that Impetus grew more concerned. “I shall not kill anyone as long as they do not try to harm either of us. I wish to remain here a while longer. That cottage you found is our home for now and I do not wish to lose it. We shall make a safe haven for those the mortals deem to be monsters. For those that they misunderstand. We shall show them that we are not the monsters. That perhaps those who are shouting monster are truly the vile ones.” Once more, Varago kissed Impetus tenderly.

“What a wonderful idea, my love. I will help as always. I love you.” With that, Impetus and Varago traveled back to the city in order to let the humans there know what became of Alice.

As much as Impetus wanted to avoid speaking to city folk, Varago insisted. Varago provided the body of Alice from his abyss, in which her city folk found that she was in fact deceased. Varago declared that he and Impetus would provide a safe haven for those that were declared monsters, or looked down upon for nothing that they personally did. The city’s new leader wanted to keep the peace, so they decided to agree to the declaration from Varago.

Seasons changed as Varago and Impetus’ plan was thrown into action. Over the years they provided protection, creating a small town around their cottage deep in the woods. A place that was safe from judgment. Though it was not perfect, the duo managed to provide safety, justice, and a fair system in which everyone could live a full life in peace. As the town grew, they would expand further into the woods. However, there would be issues with the expansion. That is a story for another time.