Chapter 10

Dylan stood on the top floor of the casino, just outside a very exclusive nightclub in the heart of Melbourne. He was out celebrating Hax’s birthday, and started to feel lonely. In his 300 or so years of his life, he never really needed a girlfriend.  He felt the need for one was useless since they would never live as long as he would. All these thoughts changed when he met a stunning woman named Abby on the balcony he was standing on. The crimson streaks in her short black hair matched the crimson of her irises. Dylan knew they were just contact lenses, simple pieces of plastic for cosmetic enjoyment. They started to chat while watching the night sky fly around them.

‘So’ Dylan started ‘How long have you been in Melbourne for?’

‘Oh, I’m just here with my brother.’ Abby indicated to the 6’3 muscle man inside who was surrounded by girls. He wore a pair of military grade anti-flash wraparound sunglasses, even indoors.

‘So, he’s not your boyfriend?’ Dylan pretended to be drunk and “accidentally” let that slip out. One of the best things about humans is they always speak their mind when drunk. Abby started to giggle, and Dylan asked ‘What’s wrong?’

‘I wouldn’t sleep with that guy even if he wasn’t my brother.’ Abby replied ‘He’s a total tool, which makes all women want him more.’ She placed a hand on Dylan’s arm ‘Unlike you. You’re very sweet.’ Dylan couldn’t help it. He blushed redder than a ripe tomato.

‘So, do you like own everything in this state?’ Eve asked, sipping at her fruity colourful cocktail.

Alice laughed ‘No dear. We started off designing dresses, and opened the store near home. We became very happy with the stores progress, we decided that we needed somewhere for the lovely ladies who bought the dresses to show them off.’

‘I studied Architecture and Business design at school.’ Markov said ‘And I knew what I wanted the club to look like, but there was one problem. No matter how successful the dress store was, we didn’t have the start up capital to buy anything. We had to choose if we wanted to pay off a house, or buy the club.’

‘Oh no…’ Eve said.

‘Don’t worry’ Hax said. ‘That’s where I came in. Since I have lived the lives of 5 different men, I had some money stashed away. I loaned them the money about 6 years ago, and for one point in my life I owned a bar.’

‘So they payed you back?’ Eve said disappointed. ‘Aww, I want to own a bar.’

‘Yes. We paid old Haxathor back within the first year.’ Markov said.

‘I should have added to the contract “No referring to the party of Mr. Daemonia as Haxathor”’ Hax laughed.

‘Well, hopefully next time.’ Alice said, leaving her seat. ‘Would you like another refill guys?’

‘Of course.’ Hax said ‘Another single malt scotch.’

‘Umm… Are you going to be able to drive home?’ Eve asked.

‘Yes.’ Hax smiled, drunkenly.

‘Hax, if you stop teasing Eve, I will refrain from calling you Haxathor in public.’ Markov said.

Hax thought for a second, and said ‘Deal.’ He turned to Eve and said ‘Alcohol doesn’t affect us. I mean, by itself it doesn’t.’

‘What do you mean, “by itself”?’ Eve asked.

‘Intoxicated human’s blood. It’s like alcohol for gods.’

‘Do you….’ Eve started to get embarrassed ‘Do you want some of mine?’

Hax looked Eve in the eyes; he could see the determination in her eyes. ‘You really want to do that Eve?’

‘For you Hax,’ Eve said exposing the side of her neck ‘anything.’

Alice and Markov just sat there, their mouths agape. Hax leaned into Eve’s neck, slowly closing in on it. He brought his mouth up to her soft silky neck, and could smell her scent. His senses went wild, and he couldn’t hold back.

Eve closed her eyes, waiting for the sharp pain. She was afraid of what was going to happen, but wanted to do this for the man she loved. She was shocked when she felt a soft kiss on her neck. She opened her eyes, and looked at Hax.

‘I don’t need blood to know I feel good.’ Hax said. ‘Also, I could hear that you were scared.’

‘Hax,’ Alice chimed in ‘You don’t need to hear her heart beating to know she was afraid.’

Eve felt embarrassed. Hax looked at her and said ‘Eve, it wasn’t because you were afraid. It was because I was afraid.’

Everyone at the table was shocked. Hax never really showed his emotions, especially not fear.

‘No one at this table knows what I used to be.’

‘I do.’ Alice said.

‘Not first hand. Books didn’t come close to what I was. We used to kill for sport; we had the strength and agility to take what we wanted. We were monsters.’ Hax looked depressed again. He knew his words were the god awful truth. ‘And I’m afraid if I taste human blood again, I will become that same monster who used to eat people.’ Hax went silent after that. He didn’t know how Eve was going to take this. He turned to Eve to see her giving him a concerned look.

‘Ok.’ She said, looking away. ‘I have two things to say. One, with all this talk about blood drinking; Are you sure you are not a vampire, not a god?’

Hax looked at her face. Her look was still stern. ‘Yes Eve. I’m fairly sure I’m omnipotent. Vampires can’t do shit like I can.’

Eve giggled. She loved it when Hax talked tough. ‘Ok, now for the second part.’ She pulled in close to Hax’s face, and grabbed his left ear. ‘I didn’t fall in love with a monster, I fell in love with the man who opened up his heart and accepted me for who I am.’ And kissed him. ‘I think I want to go home now, honey.’

‘Awwww…’ Alice whined. ‘Really?’

Eve leaned over to Hax and whispered something into his ear. His eyes widened instantly.

‘I think it would be best to go home.’ He said, shooting a look to Markov.

‘But Hax?’ Alice said ‘We were supposed to celebrate your birthday.’

‘Alice.’ Markov said ‘Eve really seems tired. I think they need to go home now.’

‘Bro code?’ Alice shot looks between Hax and Markov.

‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’ Hax said, but neither one of the boys could hide the massive grins they had.

Dylan was having a blast outside. He couldn’t believe this girl was actually interested in him. Abby spoke about how she loves writing poetry, and reading stories. Dylan spoke to her about his love for technology and his favourite television shows. He wished this night would never end, and he got the feeling she did too.

‘I am really enjoying this time we had together.’ Dylan said, looking deeply into her eyes.

‘Why does it have to end?’ Abby said, twirling her hair seductively. ‘How about you come to my place for coffee?’

Before he could answer, he felt a hand grab his shoulder. He turned to see Seth standing next to him.

‘Now who is this lovely lady?’ he said.

Dylan sighed and said ‘Seth, this is Abby. Abby, this is my annoying fraternal twin Seth.’

‘Hello Seth.’ She said, out stretching her hand. ‘I was just offering Dylan a cup of coffee back at my place.’

‘That sounds like a wonderful idea for Dylan.’ Seth said smiling slyly, kissing her hand softly. His right index finger twitched slightly as he stood back up straight. ‘But our brother and his girlfriend need to head off home, and Dylan here is the only one who can drive the car.’

Dylan looked Seth in the eyes, knowing something was up. ‘Don’t tell me he had too much tequila.’ He said, shaking his head.

‘Aww, do you really have to go now?’ Abby said.

‘I’m sorry Abby.’ Dylan said ‘But I can’t let my brother drive home drunk, and Seth here isn’t licensed.’ He kissed her softly on the cheek. ‘Maybe I can meet you again under better circumstances.’

‘yeah, I’d like that.’ Abby said with a disappointed smile.

After saying their goodbyes and thanks to Alice and Markov for such a wonderful night, Eve and Hax sat in the front seats, while Dylan and Seth sat in the back. The minute they were in the car, Dylan punched Seth in the arm.

‘What the fuck was that for?’ Seth said.

‘Why did you just cock block me?’ Dylan said. ‘What the fuck did you do to her?’

‘I did a quick mind flash to see what you would be getting into.’

‘and?’

‘Worse than I could have predicted.’ Seth placed a hand on Dylan’s head for a few seconds. Dylan’s face went from anger to utter shock.

‘what the fuck…?!?’ Dylan said.

‘What’s going on back there?’ Hax said from the front seat.

‘Nothing. Just telling Dylan his new girl was a man.’ Seth said.

Dylan looked at Seth and said ‘Why didn’t you…’

‘Let them enjoy the rest of the night. We can tell him tomorrow.’ Seth replied.

Dylan nodded. He didn’t want to worry Hax on such a perfect night.

On the other side of the CBD, in a small two bedroom apartment, Abby sat at her small round kitchen table. The apartment wasn’t much to look at; a TV, a small couch, a few odds and ends. It didn’t seem like a place such a beautiful woman would live, but she felt at home there. Abby held in her right hand a crystal glass filled with a thick red liquid. In the background, the small TV was switched on, but nobody watching it. Abby could hear muffled crying as she sipped at her drink. Tully sat down across from her, knowing his dear sister was feeling down.

‘What has you down dear sister of mine?’ he asked, taking off his sunglasses to reveal his crimson irises.

‘I don’t get it Tully.’ She said, sipping at her drink. ‘I had that poor sap. I made him feel infatuation with me and flirted with him. He was supposed to come home with me.’

‘Then what happened?’

‘I don’t fucking know! I had him in my clutches, and then he changes his mind when he hears his brother was in trouble.’

‘Maybe his fraternal instincts are strong.’

‘But that was the weird thing. Before I was greeted by his brother he wanted me, and after he has to run. And I swear that the little fucker flinched when he touched me.’ Abby’s stomach growled.

Tully stood up from the table, walked around and picked Abby up by her arms. ‘Come big sister. Let’s get you to bed. We can worry about this tomorrow.’ He picked up the remote and turned off the TV.

‘You’re a good brother.’ Abby said, pushing open the bedroom door. Inside sat two pretty blonde girls from the club, tied up and gagged on the bed, their muffled cries still able to make it through the gags. ‘Care to share your dinner with me?’

Tully walked into the bedroom and looked at his prizes from the night. ‘Of course my sister dearest. What’s family for?’

He slowly shut the door, and horrific screaming could be heard coming from the inside as well as the sound of bones snapping.

The green Nissan pulled into the garage a little after 1 AM. Hax, Dylan and Seth all stepped out, while Eve stayed curled up in the front passenger seat asleep. Hax opened up her door, and carefully carried her inside the house. After saying goodnight to his brothers, Hax made his way into his room and placed Eve gently onto the bed before locking the door.

‘Did you have fun tonight, Eve?’ he asked.

‘Did you have fun squeezing my butt again?’ Eve yawned.

Hax made his way to the bed, lying down next to Eve. ‘It’s not my fault it’s so squishy.’

‘I shall call it Squishy and it shall be mine and it shall be my Squishy’ Eve said, attaching herself to Hax.

‘Before we get down to business,’ Hax said, stroking her hair softly ‘I want to talk to you about something I saw in your mind.’

Hax turned his head sharply. He raised a finger to his lips, as he moved his right arm off the bed. A long thin trail of smoke shot past the bed and out under the door.  Eve heard a loud thud as something hit the floor outside Hax’s bedroom.

‘What was that?’ she asked, very scared.

‘That, my dear, was the sound of a dropping Seth with a broken neck.’ Hax said with a smile.

‘You broke his neck?’ Hax nodded ‘Is he dead?’

‘If breaking that son of a bitch’s neck was going to kill him, he wouldn’t be alive.’ Hax placed his arm around her again. ‘He just likes to eaves drop. GO AWAY SETH!’

‘Spoil sport.’ Came Seth’s voice from outside, followed by a massive cracking sound.

‘Now where was I?’ Hax thought for a moment ‘Oh yes, you had a dream.’

‘Well duh? I always have dreams.’

‘This one stuck out. And your subconscious told me to go look at it, which means you wanted me to see it, even if it was just for a second.’

‘So, what was this dream?’

Hax looked her in the eyes, and said. ‘We were getting married.’

Eve was flabbergasted. She remembered the dream; it was one she had while away from Hax.

It started off with her standing in a dark room in front of a mirror, when a door opened up, and from it came a warm shining light. She remembered following it to a lovely garden filled with roses and tulips. At the centre of the garden were Hax, Dylan and Seth; All wearing suits, and rows and rows of people who had no faces but cheered as she entered.

Stupid subconscious, she thought. ‘Yeah…’ she managed to say.

‘Well, that’s why I have been acting weird lately.’

‘Are you saying you don’t want to be with me?’ Eve looked away from him

‘Eve,’ Hax turned her face towards his ‘I never want you to leave me. I have serious feelings for you.’

‘So, what is it then?’

‘Eve, I don’t know if, after we both pass away, I can continue another life without you. After the loss of Claire, Seth went on a rampage and only recently started to act normally. I have no idea how my life would go.’

Eve stopped Hax there, giving him a massive kiss. ‘Hax, if I only get to spend 60 years with you, I want us to enjoy those 60 years. And I want you to remember every happy moment we had, so you can see not only what we had, but proof that you can be human. Now let me give you a proper birthday gift.’

‘Eve, just having you here is the best gift ever.’

‘Then I am about to prove you wrong.’

Eve climbed over Hax, and switched off the light switch, flashing Hax a massive grin before the room went dark.

‘Squishy…’

Dylan knocked on the study door, waiting for Hax to open it. It was only 8 am but Hax was usually the first one up. If he’s not in the kitchen brewing a coffee, he would usually be in his study. Dylan heard something fall down the stairs inside the study, and was greeted by a half dressed Haxathor. Luckily it was his lower half dressed. But something was up with him this morning, Hax wore a massive smile on his face. It really scared Dylan, A LOT.

‘Good morning dear brother.’ Hax said with a cheerful tone. ‘What can I do for you on this beautiful Sunday morning?’

‘Umm… Seth and I wanted to…’ Dylan stared at his brother. ‘Why are you so cheerful this morning?’

Hax just kept his massive smile, not needing to say a word. Dylan’s eyes widened. ‘You didn’t…? YOU DID!!!’ Hax nodded his head. Dylan embraced his brother. ‘327 years for you to lose your V-Plates. Dad would be proud and disappointed.’

Footsteps could be heard from the staircase, this time it was the main set outside the study. Seth stomped down that last few steps, still rubbing his neck.

‘you’re an absolute asshole, Hax.’ Seth said. ‘I couldn’t sleep right.’

Hax shook his head. ‘You were eavesdropping. But since I’m in such a good mood, I will give you one free shot.’

Seth looked at Hax, unsure. ‘No smoke body?’ Hax nodded ‘Fine.’

Seth pulled his arm back, knowing he would never get an opportunity like this. He wanted to make the most of this. He wondered why Hax was in such a mood that he wouldn’t mind getting punched to the face, so Seth went for a little mind diving.

Dylan and Hax watched as Seth dropped his arm. ‘You and Eve….?’ Seth said, turning around. ‘Dammit, I can’t punch my brother after he just lost his virginity.’

Thanks Seth.’ Hax said ‘You are acting—‘

Seth spun on his toes, building up momentum as he did, and landed a full palm slap on Hax’s left cheek. Hax immediately felt the sharp burning pain on his face. ‘Doesn’t mean I can’t slap you so hard, your children turn up ugly.’ Seth said. ‘I knew you were expecting a punch.’

Hax, Dylan and Seth sat around the kitchen table. Dylan and Seth needed to talk to Hax about last night, and the time before Eve woke would be the best time.

‘So,’ Hax asked  ‘What’s the big emergency?’

Seth placed a hand on Hax’s forehead and said ‘Watch this.’

It was the same feeling he had every time Hax entered Seth’s mind. Hax stood there, in a landscape he didn’t recognise. An alley way in the city, horrible screaming could be heard, but it was too dark to see who or what was happening. These were someone’s memories. All the same, becoming clearer each memory he saw. A girl around their age with black and red hair, and a tall guy with a shaved head were killing people. But the last memory shocked Hax the most. It was a girl from all the memories, talking to Dylan. Hax realised it was from last night, but the memory was dubbed with commentary.

Thoughts going through her mind at the time, Hax thought.

‘This is so easy.’ The voice said, but it didn’t sound like a girl. It didn’t even sound human. Hax recognised this voice, but couldn’t put his finger on it. ‘You my dear are going to be a wonderful dinner for me and brother dearest.’

Hax forced himself out and back into the present. Only a single word could escape his lips.

‘Abhoth…’

‘What did you just say Hax?’ Dylan said.

‘It’s Abhoth!’ Hax screamed. ‘And if she is here, that means--’

‘Tulzscha…’ Seth said.

‘Hax, that’s impossible. There is no way they could have passed the barrier. It’s too strong.’ Dylan said.

‘Think about it Dylan.’ Hax said, reverting back to the old language. ‘She is an empath, she could have made you feel that way. She has a brother around, Abhoth never goes anywhere without Tulzscha. She called him “BROTHER DEAREST”!!! Who the fuck do we know who calls their brother that!?!’

Dylan shook his head. He didn’t want to believe it, but it was true. And he almost fell for it. He almost fell for the innocent girl act.

‘Does that mean all the deaths and missing persons around the city…?’ Seth said.

‘Yes.’ Hax said ‘that night a month ago, where we all felt the pain, that’s when they must have broken through.’

‘Do you think they know who we are yet?’ Dylan asked.

‘Well, ask Seth.’ Hax said, turning towards his shorter brother. ‘Did you somehow alert her?’

‘No. I was careful, just a quick flash. Not even an Outer God could have sensed my presence in there.’ Seth said.

‘Well, we have to start training now. If they want to fuck with our family, I want us to be prepared.’ Hax turned to Dylan ‘I need you to hook Eve up with a nano-mech body suit; just something to stop her from being hurt.’ Dylan nodded, and headed for his workshop outside. Hax then turned to Seth. ‘And I need you to teach Eve to fight with martial arts. Anything you have; just make sure if worse comes to worse, she can fight off someone.’

‘Do you think she is ready?’ Seth asked.

‘Seth, we saw what she could do when pressured. I just want her safe.’

‘But what if we accidentally trigger the recessive Inquisitor gene? We could be all fucked.’

‘As I said, if she becomes a problem I will deal with it.’

Hax walked away from the table, only to be grabbed by Seth on the shoulder.

‘Can you really do it Hax?’ Seth said.

‘If someone has to do it, I want it done without pain. I am the only one capable of it.’ Hax replied.

‘Well, what are you going to do?’

‘Martial arts will only be viable if she has no weapons. I am going to arm her with the only weapon that can be called useful. A Gilded Dagger.’

Eve lay in the large bed all alone. She was contempt with the previous night, and she knows Hax did too. The bedroom door unlocked and Hax walked inside, obviously stressed out a lot. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and was embraced by a sheet covered Eve. She kissed him on the cheek.

‘Good morning honey’ she said.

‘Good morning my wonder.’ He replied.

‘What’s wrong?’

Hax turned to Eve and said ‘I need you to get dressed and meet me down stairs in my study.’

‘You’re inviting me into your study? I feel honoured.’

‘Eve, I appreciate everything you have done last night,’ this made Eve feel like some sort of whore ‘but right now is not a time for jokes. We have a situation, and right now my main concern is your safety. Now please get dressed.’

Hax walked over to the brown rug opposite the bed, and lifted it up. Rather than being a floppy rug made of carpet, it was a stiff board of wood covering a set of stairs down to the study. He walked down the stairs as Eve got dressed.

Eve followed Hax down the stairs to find him waiting for her in one of his large chairs. He motioned for her to sit as he walked over to the large silver chest; the same one that caused their original break-up.

‘Do you remember what I said about Outer gods?’ he asked, placing the chest onto the coffee table in front of Eve. She nodded silently, her mind racing. ‘Cold blooded killers, ruthless. They are the real monsters of this world. They are lead by a creature called Azathoth, a bastard of a god who was banished. He created these hybrids out of his own flesh, and made them cold blooded killers. After Lovecraft’s death 80 years ago, the three of us created a barrier to prevent Azathoth sending any of them through.’

‘Yeah? But what does this have to do with the end of us all?’

‘The night I passed out, two of them broke through the barrier and entered our world.’ Hax opened the chest, and started to rifle through it. ‘They are known as Abhoth and Tulzscha, brother and sister and made from the worst part of Azathoth. Abhoth is an empath, so she can make you feel what she wants you to. She is a horrible thing, tortures people for the hell of it. She strikes fear into others, not by using her powers, but from the acts she has committed. Her brother, Tulzscha, is a shape shifter. No-one can remember his true form because he hates it so.’ Hax finally found what he needed, a small black box, around the size of a VHS tape.

‘So you think they will come after me?’ Eve was very afraid.

‘Most likely, but we won’t let you go out unprotected.’ Hax tried to comfort Eve, but he could sense her fear. ‘Dylan is designing a body suit that can withstand the force of a god. Seth will train you in different fighting styles for hand to hand combat. And I will teach you to use this.’

Hax handed Eve the small black box. It was made out of a deep black mahogany on the outside. She opened the box’s lid. The inside was made of a smooth red velvet, and held a very elegant item. It was a dagger, around 12 inches from tip to butt. It had a gold handle encrusted with jewels, and the blade was engraved with different symbols that Eve has never even seen before.

‘This is called a Gilded Dagger, and it’s the only thing that can kill me.’

Chapter 9

Hax, Dylan and Seth sat in the lounge room on their comfortable couch. All three were dressed in black sports jackets, and black dress pants. The only difference in their outfits was the ties they wore. Dylan had a beautiful sapphire silk tie; Seth chose a crimson silk tie, and Hax sported an amethyst tie.

‘Does Eve always take this long?’ Dylan asked, looking at his watch.

‘You can’t rush perfection.’ Hax said.

‘Says the man who is sleeping with her.’ Seth sniggered. Hax stuck two fingers in Seth’s nose and lifted him off the ground.

‘I promised mother and father that no human would kill you.’ He pulled him in close. ‘But I never said I wouldn’t.’

‘We’re sarry.’ Hax dropped Seth on the ground. ‘Geez, bit touchy over being a vir--’

Dylan shoved a pillow over Seth’s face before he could finish his sentence. Hax looked at them weirdly and walked towards the stairs.

‘If you guys are seriously this restless, I’ll go ask her to hurry up.’

When Hax was out of sight, Dylan dropped the pillow.

‘You really are trying to end your life so soon.’ Dylan hissed into Seth’s ear.

‘Well if Hax wasn’t holding on to this secret so tight, I wouldn’t have to.’ Seth replied.

‘Or maybe you can wait until he wants us to know.’

‘Secrets are not meant to be kept between brothers.’

‘You know, you’re right.’ Seth was shocked. He didn’t expect Dylan to believe that. ‘Maybe I should go tell Hax what you are trying to do.’

‘No!’ Seth looked at Dylan. ‘Fine, I’ll stop.’

Hax knocked on Eve’s bedroom door. When she opened it, Hax was stunned. She was wearing the black dress he had bought for her, but it looked like a completely new dress.

‘Like it?’ she asked. All he could do was nod his head, his mouth still agape. ‘Good answer.’

Eve rummaged through her large bag, searching for something, but after five minutes she looked disheartened.

‘What’s wrong?’ Hax asked.

‘I don’t have anything to wear with my outfit.’ She looked at him.

‘I’m not taking you shopping.’

Eve laughed, and shook her head. ‘No, I don’t need to buy something. I can just wear my plain gold chain.’ She pulled the chain from her bag.

Hax thought for a moment, and his eyes lit up. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the diamond he created earlier. He held it in his hands, cupping them, and his hands started to shake slightly. After a few seconds, he opened his hands to reveal a bright blue diamond. He then took the chain from Eve, and placed it in his hands and repeated the action. The outcome was a beautiful blue diamond pendant on a gold chain. Eve was shocked as Hax placed it in her hands.

‘You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?’ she said.

‘It matches your eyes. Have a closer look at the diamond.’ He replied.

Eve examined the diamond, and he eyes widened. The core of the diamond was liquid.

‘How did you do that?’

‘Oh, I am full of surprises.’ Hax gave Eve a cheeky smile. He wrapped the necklace around Eve’s delicate neck.

‘I’m never taking this off.’

‘Just keep it close. It takes a lot out of me to liquefy a mineral that hard.’ Hax looked at his watch. ‘I’m going to have a smoke, and then we can go.’

Eve smiled and nodded her head.

Hax sat outside, lighting his pipe. The backdoor opened and Dylan walked out.

‘How much longer?’ he asked.

‘Just need to finish this.’ Hax replied. ‘Fucking liquid diamonds are a cunt to do.’

Dylan chuckled. ‘Oh Haxathor…’

‘You didn’t see what I saw.’ Hax’s faced drooped, and he shuddered in fear. ‘And why is Seth trying to die early? He has been acting like a total bastard ever since we left Eve’s mind.’

‘Why do you think? You put a block on your mind. It’s like putting a cake in front of a child and saying “don’t eat it.”’

Hax shook his head. ‘He doesn’t want to know what I saw.’ He turned to Dylan. ‘Can you keep a secret?’

‘For you, sure.’

Hax leaned in and said ‘This thing human’s call “fear”, it worries me. Three centuries and I fear this small human.’

‘What are you afraid of?’

‘Killing her, living her life out and me continuing. Reverting back to it and doing something terrible.’

‘Hax,’ Dylan picked his brother up by the shoulders ‘You have grown more in a month of knowing this girl than three hundred years of fighting. And there is nothing in this world that could make her leave again. She knows what you are, and she still wants to be there for you.’

Hax smiled, and they both walked back inside. Seth was still sitting in the lounge room waiting.

A voice came from upstairs. ‘You boys ready?’

As Eve slowly walked down the stairs, all three brothers mouths dropped is shock.

Hax already saw Eve only minutes before, but he was still shocked at the beauty that stood before him. Seth and Dylan on the other hand never thought of Eve as a curvaceous goddess, only as a sister.

‘Eve, I--’ Seth began, only to be interrupted by Eve.

‘Choose your words carefully.’

‘Eve, seeing you in that dress brings back memories of Claire.’ Seth said ‘Memories of how happy she made me feel, and I know you will make Hax feel just as happy.  I mean this in the best way possible; you look stunning and I am glad to call you my friend and someday, my sister.

Eve began to blush.

‘Just when I began to think you were just a sleaze, you had to go and be an honest to god sweetheart who has emotions. I hate you, you know that?’ she said with a smile.

She turned to Dylan to see he was looking depressed.

‘What’s wrong?’ she asked.

‘Oh,’ his face changed to a smile. ‘Seth stole words right out of my mouth. Anything I say now will not compare to the poetry he created.’ Dylan began to laugh a bit ‘But I mean this with all my heart, you are stunning.’

Eve turned to Hax last, and said ‘And what do you have to say for yourself?’

‘Your arse looks exceptionally fine tonight.’ Hax said with a straight face.

‘You’re damn right it does.’ She replied. ‘Let’s get going.’

As they drove in the car; Hax driving, Eve in the front seat, and Dylan and Seth in the back, they listened to the night time radio. It was Eve that broke the silence after 15 minutes.

‘So, I was wondering…’ she started to feel embarrassed ‘Am I the only other person you told? I mean, apart from Claire and Lovecraft.’

‘Umm…’ Hax thought for a moment ‘Yes?’ he sounded unsure of himself.

‘Hax, don’t lie to the girl. She has to know.’ Dylan chimed in.

‘Fine. You remember Alice and Markov?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Well they were the first people I personally told.’

Eve was shocked ‘Seriously, they didn’t show signs.’

‘Well they have known about me for over 10 years now.’

‘How did you meet them?’

Hax chuckled ‘It was 1987, and I was visiting Russia. And at this time, it was the Soviet Union, and was in the middle of a cold war with America. I had watched the war from afar, and saw how many lives were affected by it. So one day I was strolling through Serov, in western Russia, close to Kazakhstan, and I heard something. I heard a child crying inside a small shack about a mile away, so I decided to investigate. Inside the small shack was a child, about the age of 8 or so, huddled in the corner. The walls were covered in blood and bullet holes. It was a massacre in there, and for some reason, this small boy had decided to find shelter here.’ Hax face dropped

‘But then I noticed it. The boy was huddled next to two dead bodies, his mother and father. He had survived a bloody execution by the KGB. I couldn’t leave this boy like this in the cold. At the time, my Russian was a little rusty, but I did my best. His name was Markov Skarpin, and he was frightened. I told the boy to close his eyes, and I would take him somewhere safe. I scooped the boy up in my arms, and ran as fast as I could to an abandoned hospital. I didn’t even care if he knew what I was; I was more concerned about his well being. I fixed up his scratches, and I did the only thing I could. I stole a plane from a military base, and flew this young boy to the only place I knew it was safe, Australia. I told him I was always going to be there for him, but he had to stay in foster care for a while.’

‘You left Markov alone in foster care?’ Eve’s eyes welling up with tears.

‘Please don’t cry. You just did your make up.’ Hax smiled ‘And yes, but also no. I was true to my word. I explained to the orphanage that I needed them to care of him, but I would pay for all his expenses. They were confused, but money spoke big in those days. I kept in touch with him as well. On his 13^th birthday, I cornered him in an alley. I was hoping not to scare him, and I realise the alley was a bad choice of settings. Kid pissed his pants at first, until he saw my eyes again. He remembered me as the man who saved his life all those years ago. I told him I was sorry I had to leave, but I was always there when he needed me. He remembered I wasn’t human, and he thought I was the coolest.’

‘So, when did he meet Alice?’ Eve asked.

‘Oh it was in halfway through high school. He called me up and screamed at me on the phone about how he needed dire help. I thought he was getting killed at the moment, so when I found him, and he was okay, I was ready to throttle him. He said he fell in love with a little nerdy girl who transferred that year. I asked him what he liked about her, and expected to hear “her ass, her tits”, hell “her hands” wouldn’t have shocked me, but Markov said he fell in love with her one green eye and one blue eye. I told him to be a gentleman towards her, and hope she likes you back.’

‘Or invite her back to your house and tell her you’re a fucking god!’ Eve said with a smile.

‘shush, the best part.’ Seth said.

‘One day, I went to visit him and he was covered in bruises. I was furious, I wanted to kill those who hurt him, but he stopped me. He told me what happened. He was walking home, when he noticed she was being bullied by these three thugs. Markov stepped in, and told them to stop. When he didn’t back down, they beat him up, and he took those punches. He knew if he passed out from the pain, something might happen to this girl. He put the pain behind him until the thugs lost interest. I still wanted to kick some ass, but then he told me the best thing. He walked the young girl home, and she kissed him on the cheek as thanks. Markov had found love. He stayed her friend until they entered their final year of high school. He finally had the courage to ask her out, and he asked her right after exams.’

‘How do you know all this stuff?’ Eve asked

‘I might have been sitting on the roof watching.’ Hax grinned ‘She slapped him in the face, and I was almost about to leave. She looked him in the eyes and said “It took you 3 fucking years to ask me out. You could have asked me out the day you had your arse handed to you!” and he almost dropped dead. I liked this girl, she was tough. They dated for a while, and were married 2 years ago.’

‘What happened when he told her about you?’

‘Well, that’s where it gets difficult. After all this mess, she said “So, is the creepy guy on the roof with you?” Hell, I was shocked she even noticed me. Humans don’t notice the things not staring them in the face. She told him she already knew. For some reason, a man sitting on the roof of their school eating popcorn and watching them was fairly strange at the time.’

‘You were eating popcorn?’ Eve gave him a look that said “what the fuck?”

‘I was hungry. So yeah, she did her research and I turned up a lot in history. Didn’t do a very good job of hiding. But she didn’t care about what I was, she said I was cool if I was looking after him. It was strange for Markov to find Alice. If I didn’t feel sorry for that little boy 20 years ago, they would have never had met.’

Eve smiled at Hax, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

‘What was that for?’ Hax was confused.

‘You may be strange, but you’re my strange’ She replied. ‘Don’t ever change.’

After an hour of driving, they found themselves in the heart of the CBD. Eve was amazed. She had never really noticed all the pretty lights in the city.

‘How long till we get to this place?’ Eve asked.

‘You see that big building by the water?’ Hax said, pointing out the window. Eve saw a very tall magnificent building on the water front.

‘Yeah?’

‘That’s the casino. And at the very top is the club we are going to.’

‘Wow…’ Eve was amazed. ‘Such an extravagant building and I get to go inside.’

‘Eve, if you don’t stop talking that way, I might have to break up with you.’

She shook her head and said ‘No you won’t. I know too much.’

‘I…. I could….’ Hax was stumped. He knew he had more than enough strength to snap her neck—

He shook his head. No, you would never do that! He thought to himself.

They pulled the car up to the front of the casino, and a valet driver parked it for them. They walked inside the golden doors of the very tall building, and it was a superb sight to behold. The sounds of slot machines ringing, roulette tables spinning and people chattering away could be heard over the generic background music. The inside of the casino was very extravagant to say the least. It was decorated in golden leaves and marble statues, and looked like very high class establishment. Security roamed the area, talking into their wrist-mounted radios, looking like secret service for presidential protection.

The small group made their way to an elevator at the side of the casino floor. Hax pressed the top button labelled “49”, and the elevator roared to life. Bad elevator music was pumped through the speakers.

‘Seriously?’ Dylan said ‘This place makes millions per year, and they can’t pump in better music?’

‘just wait until we get to the club. It will better.’ Seth said.

The elevator hit the 49^th floor, and the doors opened. It was a very deserted floor, just one doorway at the opposite end of the hallway. It was the entrance to the nightclub, brightly colour lights and loud music escaped the door. A very large bouncer stood in the entrance, looking very stern. As they walked towards the club, Eve recognised the bouncer.

‘Bubba?’

It was the same security guard from the dress store she visited a month ago, the same store owned by Hax’s friends Alice and Markov. The security guard immediate recognised his boss’s work, and stiffened up.

‘Are you going to be a problem tonight, big boy?’ Eve said with a smirk smile. ‘Or does my boyfriend have to break you like last time?’

‘Name?’ he said, his expression not changing.

‘Hax Daemonia.’ Hax said ‘And guests.’

The security guard checked his clipboard, flipping a few pages. And his hands started to shake.

‘I…I…I am sorry sir, but your name doesn’t seem to be on the list.’

Hax looked at him, his eyes staring down the bouncer, and shook his head.

‘Those fucking assholes.’ Everyone looked at him in shock.

‘What is it Hax? What’s the problem?’ Eve was worried. She acted like she wanted to hurt the guard, but she didn’t mean it. She saw Hax smirk, which confused her.

‘Check the name “Haxathor”.’ The bouncer did so, and stepped aside.

‘Right away sir. They are waiting for you in the back’

They all walked inside, Eve still confused. No one knew about his name, she thought. They made their ways to the back of the club, to a very small enclosed booth. Two people sat their already, waiting.

‘HAXATHOR, you made it.’ Called a voice from one of the people.

Alice and Markov stood up from their seats and greeted their guests. Alice wore a very sexy emerald dress, with matching earrings; while Markov was dressed is a very fine Italian suit.

‘You are bastards for doing that.’ Hax said with a smile.

‘Oh look at this dear.’ Markov said. ‘Haxathor is smiling at us.’

‘Hax, you know we jest.’ Alice said, kissing Hax on the cheek. ‘come, sit. We shall enjoy tonight.’

They all sat in on the couches in the back of the club. Alice called to one waitress and ordered a round of drinks for everyone.

‘So Eve,’ Alice said, turning towards her. ‘How have you been since we last spoke? I heard you and Haxxy over here are an item now.’

Eve blushed. ‘Yeah. He says he trusts me. Still hasn’t said the L word yet.’

‘Well that’s Hax for you.’ Markov said. ‘In all the time I have known him, he has never really shown true feelings.’

‘How did you and Hax meet?’ Eve asked.

Not even missing a beat, Markov smiled and said ‘We had just rolled into town, and the car broke down. I tried to find a tow truck, but I didn’t know this place well. Then this guy in a green wagon turned up. He checked my engine, and fixes the problem instantly. He refused payment, saying it was nothing. We offered to at least make him dinner, which he accepted.’

Eve smiled. She could tell this was a practiced speech. ‘And at which point did you find Hax sitting on the roof of a school, eating popcorn?’

Alice and Markov were shocked. ‘What do you mean?’ Alice asked. ‘Where did you hear that?’

Eve smiled evilly. Alice looked at Hax. He had the same evil grin on his face.

‘Oh Haxathor…’ tears welled up in Alice’s eyes. She hugged Eve tightly.

‘So you finally told her about your secret life.’ Markov said, punching Hax in the arm.

‘Technically, humanism is my secret life.’ Hax replied.

Dylan and Seth had made their way from the booth at the back to mingle with other patrons of the club. It was fairly crowded in the club, even though it was so exclusive. Loud music pumped out of the eight 1.5 metre high speakers situated around the club, and an up and coming band was playing one of their better songs from an album they would most likely try to sell to drunk partiers after the night has ended.

Seth turned to Dylan and screamed ‘I’m going to get us some beer. You stay here.’

Dylan gave him the sign for ok. Even with their super hearing, all noise was drowned out by the music. Dylan glanced back at Eve.

When’s it going to be my time? He thought to himself.

‘So,’ said Alice. ‘What exactly has Haxathor told you?’

‘He’s old. He is a chronic smoker.’ Eve said. ‘He used to eat…’ she cleared her throat.

Markov nodded ‘Yes that freaked me out too. How many times has he threatened to kill you?’

Eve looked worried. ‘Umm… once.’

‘Oh he must really love you.’ Markov chuckled. ‘Did he tell you about how we really met?’

‘He cornered you in an alleyway, and you pissed your pants.’

Markov looked at Hax with a shocked look. ‘He grabbed me by the throat and told me if I told anyone about him, he would turn me inside out. That’s why I pissed my pants.’

‘He dropped me head first off the house. If it wasn’t for my last words, I would have died.’

Alice smacked Hax. ‘That’s a bad god. Very bad god.’

‘She stabbed me.’ Hax whined.

‘Oh grow up!’ Alice said. ‘You can regenerate. You almost killed her.’

Hax looked depressed. He knew what Alice said was right. He felt an arm on his shoulder.

‘I don’t dwell on the past.’ Eve said, kissing Hax on the lips softly. ‘He trusts me enough to tell me everything. He is my potato.’

Alice and Hax were shocked. Markov just nodded his head. ‘Yes, cos potato is vodka.’

‘No. A potato is a symbol of love for me. It is tough, it never really dies. If you leave it, it grows and it is versatile.’ Eve said ‘He is my potato.’

‘Eve.’ Hax kissed her forehead ‘you are 100% absolutely bat-shit crazy. Don’t ever change.’

Alice smacked Markov over the head. ‘Why can’t you be like that?’

‘Alice,’ Markov held her hand in his, and stared deeply into her eyes.  ‘Your beauty stunned me for 3 years. From the moment I saw you, I knew I could never love another woman. If you were not able to love me the same way, I was contempt with being your friend for life. You are not only my wife, but my best friend and my inspiration to continue on with my life. You give me something to fight for everyday.’

Alice’s eyes welled up with tears. She burst out crying as Markov pulled her close.

‘Chert vozʹmi Markova. Pochemu ty tak zamechatelʹno?’ she said through her tears.

‘Ya prosto povezlo, chto prosypatʹsya ryadom s toboĭ.’ He replied.

Eve looked at Hax, still fairly confused. He pointed to Alice and whispered ‘Damn it Markov. Why must you be so wonderful?’ and then pointed to Markov ‘I am just lucky to wake next to you.’

Eve smiled. She loved how Alice and Markov had a loving relationship after over 10 years.

Dylan stood outside on the club’s terrace. He didn’t want to tell Hax or Seth, but he was feeling lonely. He hated going out just to see couples doing their thing. It just made him feel worse about himself. In his three centuries of life, he never felt lonely and after seeing Eve all dressed up and looking wonderful, it went straight out the window.

‘Fucking couples….’ He muttered under his breath, taking a swig of beer.

‘You see it too huh?’ came a voice next to him. Dylan turned to see a very attractive woman in a black and red dress. She looked to be in her early 20’s and stood about 5’8 with short black hair with bright red streaks through it. What stood out the most was her eyes. They were a beautiful shade of crimson.

‘Yeah. If it wasn’t my brother’s birthday, I wouldn’t be out here tonight.’ Dylan said with a smirk.

‘Aww, well if it wasn’t for his birthday, I would have never met such a handsome young man.’

‘Well, you aren’t that bad yourself.’ Dylan said with a smile. ‘I’m Dylan.’ He kissed her hand softly.

She blushed and said ‘Hello Dylan. My name is Abby.’

Storyboard from Chapter 2

Sorry this took so long guys. Haven't had any good luck with my computer.

Chapter 8

After a few minutes of Eve crying in Hax’s arms, they both headed inside to find Dylan and Seth hiding on the edge of the couch. They looked like children waiting for Santa to walk in. Hax motioned for them to sit down at the table. Eve did the same, and Hax made them both some coffee.

‘Ok, first things first.’ Dylan said. ‘Please don’t leave us again. We were all worried.’

Eve blushed. She was glad to be home, but hesitant to stay.

Seth raised a hand. ‘Can I ask something before we get started? What does this picture mean?’ he pulled a sheet of paper out of his pocket. On it was a picture of a girl sitting on a demon’s chest, with “LCDSS-TIH-9” written on it. ‘Dylan and I couldn’t figure it out.’

Eve chuckled, and Hax smiled. He pulled a CD case out of his pocket and passed it to him. ‘LCD Sound system, This is happening, Song 9, “Home”.’ Hax said ‘It was a message from Eve that she knew I would get. Such a wonderful indie kid.’

‘So, down to the business at hand.’ Hax said; his face stern again. ‘Do you know what we are?’

Eve shrugged. ‘Vampires? Time lords?’

‘1. Stop assuming I'm a fucking vampire. I don’t sparkle.’ Hax said.

‘But wouldn’t it be cool to be time lords. Or to meet one.’ Seth said ‘two delicious hearts…’ he licked his lips. This made Eve scared again. She scrunched her hands into fists.

‘Seth! You are scaring her!’ Dylan said. Eve’s eyes widened. Dylan realised what had just happened, and he knew he was in trouble. They all watched Eve intently, waiting for something.

‘What?’ Eve said. ‘I’m the one who should be shocked. What the fuck was that?’

‘Eve?’ Hax grabbed her hands. ‘Does your head…hurt or anything?’

‘No…?’ she was really worried now. Her hands shook. ‘Am I going to die?’

‘No. No you won’t.’ Hax let out a sigh. ‘Ok, back to the matter. We are not human’

‘Well duh? What are you then?’

‘Gods…’ Hax looked away.

‘GODS?!?’ Eve almost feel out of her seat. ‘Like deities of religions?’

‘Just…Just one religion.’ Seth said. Eve looked at all three of them. Nervous as all hell, she thought.

‘We are Elder Gods.’ Dylan said.

‘As in H.P. Lovecraft?’ Eve said, not even shocked.

‘Well… longer than that.’ Hax said.

‘How old are you guys?’

‘327 years old.’

‘And how long does a god live for?’

‘Our Elder bodies are eternal, but our human bodies only live 80 years.’

‘So, you’re kind of like a paedophile?’ Eve said with a cheeky smile.

‘That would imply that we did a sexual act.’

‘Well you were asleep at the time…’ Seth, Dylan and Eve all chuckled. ‘But does that mean-?’

‘Yes. I knew granny for a while. I was Steven, but I knew I couldn’t hold onto that body forever. She was a great friend from the day I met her. I always had dinner with George and her on Sundays.’

‘Who else did you know?’

‘Umm, George Washington, Winston Churchill, Houdini, Poe, Lovecraft.’

‘I kind of guessed Lovecraft.’

‘He was a good man. He needed help writing, so we all pitched in and told him about our lives. He was a really good man.’

‘How did he die?’ All three of the brothers’ face’s dropped.

‘Eve, elder god’s were always fair in life. But there was a balance needed; “The Outer Gods”.’

‘Are they like you?’

‘Yes, but they don’t play fair. They have been known to kill for fun. They killed Howard before we could stop them.’ Dylan said.

‘I’ll be back.’ Hax said. There was a sudden rush of wind, and the sound of a door slamming, and Hax was right back to where he stood moments ago. In his hands he held some photos. He passed one to Eve. She recognised it immediately. It was the one that looked like a family portrait. Hax, Dylan and Seth, the twins and young lady.

‘Was this your family?’ Eve asked, looking at Hax with sad eyes.

He pointed to the twins. ‘That’s Nicole and Nikita. They were our younger twin sisters. They were so sweet, you would have loved them. Always playing games. Not once did they lose control on their anger.’

‘Who is that?’ Eve said, pointing to the young lady.

‘Seth?’ Hax said, looking at him. Seth sighed deeply.

‘That was Claire. We were in love in the late 1880’s. She didn’t care who I was, she only saw me as the love of her life.’

‘Did she know?’

‘Yes. She was the first human to find out about us. As I said, she didn’t care. She took it better than you did.’ Eve looked down is disappointment. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean it that way.’

‘What happened to them?’ Eve asked Hax.

‘There were people in this world that couldn’t differ us from Outer Gods. They were called “Inquisitors”. Specially trained and gifted for killing us. They used weapons engraved with markings. It made it harder for us to heal wounds, and if kept in contact, could stop us from transforming.’

‘So what do you really look like?’

Hax froze ‘Eve, all the things in Lovecraft’s books about humans going insane when they see us. That’s true. Unless someone is prepared to see our form, they will go insane and die. The same goes for the old language.’

‘That’s what you were speaking before?’ Eve said, Hax nodded. ‘But I didn’t die. Couldn’t that be a sign?’

‘We don’t know.’ Hax looked at the clock. ‘It’s late. Time to go to bed.’

‘Wait! Just one more thing?’ Eve activated puppy dog eyes ‘Since I can’t see your real forms, can you tell me what you are?’

‘Fiiiine.’ Hax said, very annoyed. ‘I am called Hexar, the unknown one. I am made of smoke.’

‘I’m Di-Hydra. A two headed sapphire hydra.’ Said Dylan.

‘ I’m Sebek. Like the Egyptian god, Sobek.’ Said Seth.

‘And I am Eve. I’m a very small, cute human.’ Eve said with a laugh.

‘More like annoying.’ Seth said in old language. Eve smacked him over the head. ‘What the fuck was that for? You don’t even know what I said.’

‘You would have said it in English if it were good.’ Eve said with a smug smile.

‘Bed, now!’ Hax said, leaving the table.

Eve looked at Hax, and then whispered something to Dylan. Hax shook it off and headed off to bed. Eve tackled him on the stairs.

‘Would you please not break my back?’

‘You’ll live. I want to tell you something.’ She helped Hax up and they both walked up stairs.

She leaned in close and said ‘I am in loving you’

Hax chuckled. ‘Did Dylan teach you that? Thank you, but its “nynt” not “nynta”. I love you too.’

‘Did you just call her fat, Hax?’ Seth said walking up the stairs. Eve spun around, and connected a right hook to Seth’s jaw. He fell down the stairs to the bottom.

‘Dylan taught me some words.’ She turned to Hax and said ‘Do you? Or were you just correcting me?’

‘Can’t I mean both?’ Hax said, unlocking his door. ‘You can sleep in your room again.’

Eve looked at Hax with sad eyes. ‘Please can I stay with you?’

‘Give me a minute.’ Hax walked into his room, and locked the door.

‘Oh you suck.’ Eve pouted, and slumped against his door. Dylan and Seth walked up stairs arguing about what Dylan did.

‘You have to tell her now she knows.’ Dylan said. Seth looked scared.

‘But… but what if she gets pissed off again?’ he said.

‘Accept your punishment, be a man.’

‘Tell me what?’ Eve asked. Seth sat across from Eve and looked her in the eye.

‘The night you first stayed here, I kind of tried to…’ Seth looked away, but was smacked by Dylan. ‘Strangle you…’

Eve pursed her lips for a second, and then grabbed Seth by his hair. ‘Do you want forgiveness, or just a clear conscious?’

‘I wanted you to know. If you need to kill me, you can.’

Eve pulled him close to her ‘And yet you could go all croc and kill me? What’s your angle?’

‘I tried to kill you, someone I call…called friend at some point. It hurts too much as it is.’

She stared at him for a second, and kissed him on the cheek. ‘ Do it again, and I remove your manhood.’ She threw Seth to the ground again. ‘And yes, I’m your friend still.’

‘Also, Hax and Dylan would kill me if I killed you.’

‘That’s it! Dylan, Grab him. I’ll cut his junk.’ Dylan did as he was told, and Seth screamed.

Hax unlocked his door, and poked his head outside. ‘Eve, rules apply still.’

‘He tried to kill me.’

‘Oh ok then. Come inside when you’re done.’ Eve punched Seth in the chest, and walked in Hax’s bedroom.

She was shocked. His usual single bed was now a queen sized bed.

‘How did you do this?’ she said in shock. Hax was already tucked into bed.

‘I can recreate matter.’ Hax said, rolling over in bed. ‘Sleep. More questions tomorrow.’

Eve slide into bed, and smiled. She was home again.

Hax woke in the morning with a massive pressure on his chest. It was still dark out, and he couldn’t see anything. He mind began to race.

Was last night just a dream? Was this weight on his chest is heart aching for Eve to return?

He tried to check if he was still in his regular bed. His left hand fumbled around in the dark to find the edge of his bed. His hand landed on something soft, a pillow? He thought. He gave it a small squeeze, testing its material. It didn’t feel like any pillow he thought he owned.

‘Having fun?’ said a sleepy voice.

Hax froze. He slowly lifted his hand of Eve’s perfect behind. Did I just think it was perfect?

‘I know you are awake, I can hear your heart beating faster.’

‘So, you’re using my chest as a pillow?’ he responded.

‘It’s more comfy, all flabby and such.’

‘Well, I know for a fact your heartbeat went very fast when I touched your arse.’

‘You could hear that?’ Eve said, her voice a flutter.

‘Oh there it goes again. I believe you are flustered miss… what is your last name?’

‘How about “Daemonia”?’ Eve said, hold Hax tightly.

‘No. You need your own name. What is it?’

‘Phoenix. My name is Eve Phoenix.’

‘Cute.’

‘What’s the plan for today?’

‘Well, breakfast. Then you can ask me some stuff. Then lunch.’ Hax said, climbing over Eve. After dinner, we are going out for my birthday.’ A pillow hit the back of his head.

‘You didn’t tell your girlfriend it was your birthday?’

‘Who says you were still my girlfriend at the time? It was a month ago, and if I remember we went out for dinner.’

‘THAT was your birthday?’ Eve said, sitting up in bed. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’

‘Didn’t think you’d care.’ Hax flickered and his clothes changed. ‘And I wanted to make you feel a bit better. Seth knew you felt  at unease.’

‘How?’ Eve stood, draped in the blanket.

‘Get dressed, and come down stairs. I’ll make some coffee for us.’

Fifteen minutes later, Eve made her way down stairs. Hax was already sitting at the table, Dylan and Seth had also joined him. On the table sat coffee, which Eve dived at.

‘Jesus Christ!’ Dylan cried. ‘Eve, calm the fuck down. It’s coffee, not life.’

‘Coffee is life.’ Eve growled. ‘So what’s with the family meeting?’

‘We wanted to talk about what we can do. As I showed you last night, I can re-arrange matter.’ Hax said.

‘What does that mean exactly?’ Eve asked.

Hax pulled a piece of coal out of his pocket, and placed it on the table. He cupped both hands over it. His skin darkened, and his hands shook.  He lifted he hands to reveal a perfect diamond. Eve was shocked.

‘Yeah. Pretty cool huh?’ he said.

‘Eve, think of a number between 1 and one billion.’ Seth said.

‘Ok, umm-’

’32,482,844.’ Eve was shocked.

‘Seth can read people’s minds, and sometimes influence them.’ Hax said

‘But, that means he can see me in my dreams’ Seth face erupted in an evil grin.

‘No, the bedrooms are lined with lead. He can’t see shit.’ Dylan said.

‘What can you do Dylan?’

‘Techno-path.’ Eve looked confused ‘I can reprogram technology with my mind. The shed out the back is my work station.’

‘Awesome!’ Eve was ecstatic. ‘So, none of you can do these things apart from you?’

‘Yes, but we can still do some fun things.’ Hax said, with a smile. ‘ Speed, Strength, Heightened senses.’

‘But we have limits. Since we no longer eat *ahem* humans…We have to consume different things to remain in a human form.’ Said Seth.

‘What kind of things?’

‘Dylan absorbs water. Seth must eat protein.’ Hax said ‘And I smoke.’

‘Sounds more like nervous habits.’ Eve said ‘But if you are gods, how come I can still hurt you?’

‘It looks like you hurt us, but we aren’t as vulnerable.’ Hax said. ‘Dylan, get the stuff ready. I want to show Eve our power.’

Dylan slipped on a pair of silver boots, and walked over to the fridge. He grabbed a large water bottle, and quickly drank it. All of them then walked outside and Dylan limbered up.

‘What’s going on?’ Eve said, looking confused.

‘This is going to be fun. Just watch.’ Seth said.

‘Ready.’ Hax said.

‘Hold on. I want to make this count.’ Dylan punched Hax square in the face. ‘FREAK!!’

Hax looked at him. Dylan had just broken his nose, and called him a freak. He smirked.

‘Oh, I am going to make this hurt.’ Hax said.

He reached his arm back, and punched Dylan square in the chest. But Dylan didn’t stay standing for long. He flew through the air, a good 500 metres. Eve was shocked. She couldn’t believe that Hax had this strength.

‘Hax here is very fast. His punches can defy physics, especially when he gets angry.’

‘But what about Dylan?’ Eve asked

‘Just watch the blip.’

They watched the blip, and sure enough, it stop mid-fall. And then shot back towards the house in a straight line. When he came back into sight, Dylan’s silver boots had flames coming out of them.

‘Rocket boots. A bitch on fuel, but fun to use.’ Dylan said, landing in the backyard. Hax walked up to Dylan, and patted him on the back.

‘You still punch like a little girl.’ Hax said with a laugh.

Dylan pulled a knife out of his belt, and was aiming for Hax’s back. Eve could only watch as Hax’s was oblivious to the fact he was about to be hit. She was about to scream, but was muffled by Seth.

‘Shh…’ he whispered ‘Just watch.’

Eve watched, almost brought to tears. Hax was about to be stabbed by his own brother, and no one was going to stop him. Dylan brought his arm down with the knife. It pierced Hax’s right lung and protruded the other side, but it didn’t stop there. Dylan’s hand also passed through Hax’s body, along with his right arm. Hax smiled, as he grabbed Dylan’s arm from the front of his chest.

‘Oh crap…’ was all Dylan could manage to whimper out before his began screaming for dear life. Hax’s smoke body was crushing Dylan’s arm.

‘ You should know better.’ Hax said. ‘Say “Azathoth”.’

‘No…’ Dylan heard his arm breaking under the force of Hax’s body. ‘NEVER!’

‘You sure?’ another bone snapped in Dylan’s arm.

‘F-F-FINE! AZATHOTH! AZATHOTH!’

Dylan’s arm slipped back through Hax’s body, and he clutched it to his chest. Hax laughed in triumph, but felt a hand on his shoulder. Seth looked him in the eye, and motioned to a sobbing Eve. She was curled up in a ball by the oak tree that sat in the backyard. Hax sat down next to her and sighed.

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you like that.’ Hax said. ‘Dylan got caught up.’

‘Why do I still fear this?’ Eve said in between sobs. ‘Why am I still afraid of you dying?’

‘Fear is a good thing. Without it, I wouldn’t know how much you cared.’ Hax leaned over and kissed Eve.

‘But you all have powers to fight. I have nothing. I don’t want to rely on you to save me.’ Something in Eve’s mind flashed. ‘Hax, something happened while I was away.’

‘If you cheated on me, I don’t want to know.’ He said with a smirk. Eve smacked him hard.

‘I’m serious. One night, I was attacked and I blacked out. When I came to, my assailants were all knocked out. I think I might have done that.’

‘Well there is a way to find out.’ Hax said, standing up and lifting Eve to her feet. ‘We go see Seth.

Eve and Hax both walked inside. Dylan and Seth stood in the kitchen waiting for them. Dylan looked sadly at Eve.

‘Now it’s your turn to be wrong.’ Seth said.

‘Eve.’ Dylan said. ‘I’m sorry for scaring you. I didn’t mean to. I just got carried away.’

Eve walked up to Dylan, and gave him a hug. ‘It’s alright. Apology accepted.’

‘What the fuck?’ Seth said, ‘Why does he get off so lightly?’

‘Oh, I’m sorry.’ Eve said ‘When did Dylan grope me, or stare at my tits?’ Eve grabbed Seth’s shirt and pulled him close ‘When did he ever try to KILL me?’

Seth’s face went red. He mumbled something that sounded like “sorry”.

‘Seth, we need your help recovering some memories.’ Hax said.

Seth looked at Hax and said ‘You want to look into Eve’s mind and find something.’ He looked at Eve ‘Why should I?’

‘If you help me, I will forgive all your actions and never bring them up again.’ Eve said.

‘Okay.’ Seth said ‘Everyone sit down. This is going to take some time, so I want a ham.’

‘What is he going to do?’ Eve asked Hax.

‘Seth can transfer his conscious mind into someone’s subconscious mind, and navigate it. In extreme cases, he can also take us.’

‘So he will be able to access my mind, and see everything?’ Eve looked anxious.

‘No, your subconscious is still the most powerful thing in there.’ Hax said, kissing her forehead. ‘You can decide what we can and cannot see.’

‘Alright, enough chat. Time to start.’ Seth said. He placed his right hand on Eve’s head. ‘Hax, Dylan; give me your hands, and we will be her mind soon.’

Hax and Dylan did as they were told, and Seth started to hum. They all saw a bright flash of light, and all three landed in a large hallway.

Dylan, Hax and Seth all looked around them for a second. The large hallway was filled with doors, ranging from simple wooden ones, to ones made out of steel.

‘Eve.’ Seth called out. ‘Eve!’

Eve immediately appeared in front of them.

‘Hello brothers Daemonia. Welcome to the mind of Miss Eve phoenix.’

‘Wow. Eve’s subconscious is really weird.’ Dylan said.

‘Do you mind if we look around?’ Hax asked Eve’s subconscious.

‘It is allowed.’ Eve said. ‘Each door is embedded with a scanner. If you are allowed by Miss Eve to enter, you will be permitted to enter. If not, the door will not open.’

‘Ok. Thank you.’ Hax said.

‘Wait, Haxathor Daemonia.’ She walked up to Hax. ‘There are things in this mind that may help you understand why Miss Eve is where she is today. Please do not allow this to change the feelings you have for the Miss.’ Hax nodded.  ‘Also, the last door on the left.’ Eve pointed down the hall. ‘That is something that only you may see.’

Eve dissolved instantly. Dylan and Seth had already left looking for the door. Hax ran to catch up to them, to find them standing around a small computer.

‘It’s a catalogue of her memories.’ Dylan said.

He typed in the date Eve gave her, and suddenly a door fell from the sky in front of them. Hax pressed the button on the wooden door. A green light was emitted by a small crystal, and washed over everyone. The door then opened, and they stepped inside.

They witnessed the day in question, Eve trying to sleep in the bus station, how she was attacked, and then how she blacked out. It was like watching a movie, but Dylan and Seth couldn’t help but to see Hax shaking all over. The visions didn’t stop there. The saw Eve wake up, and fight back against the attackers. It was like Eve was a different person. Hax stormed out of the room, followed by Dylan and Seth.

‘I almost lost her.’ Hax screamed. He punched a steel door. ‘All because I kept secrets from her.’

‘Hax, you can’t beat yourself up.’ Seth said. ‘It’s obvious that Eve has the potential to fight. She is strong, and cunning. I am proud to call her my sister-in-law.’

‘Let’s go home now.’ Dylan said.

‘Wait.’ Hax said. ‘I need to see one last thing before we leave.’

Hax walked down the hall to the door Eve pointed out. It was different to all the doors. It was large and pink. This scared Hax, but he powered on ahead. He placed a hand on the door, and it scanned him. The door swung open, and Hax walked inside.

Dylan and Seth waited out the front of the door for what felt like forever. Finally Hax exited; his face devoid of colour.

‘What did you see?’ Seth said.

‘Home please.’ Hax whimpered.

‘But Hax--’ Dylan said.

‘Home!’ Hax screamed.

There was another flash of lights and they were back at the dinner table, Eve staring at them. For Eve it felt like only a few minutes passed, but to Hax, Dylan and Seth, it felt like hours.

‘Well, what did you see?’ Eve asked.

‘You’re mind is weird.’ Hax said. Eve gave him a surly look.

‘Hey Hax. I need to get something out of your car. Where are your keys?’ Seth said.

‘Hanging on the hook in the garage.’

Seth pulled Dylan out to the garage with him. Hax and Eve were finally alone.

‘Eve, I didn’t mean what I said in a bad way.’ Hax said. ‘Every human’s mind is weird. I was just saying your subconscious acted like a business woman.’

‘Well, what does yours look like?’ Eve asked.

‘I don’t know. No-one can dictate what their subconscious looks like. It is just a window into your mind.’

‘You are pretty smart for someone who can’t read minds.’

‘If you live as long as I have, you learn to recognise when humans make mistakes.’

‘And gods don’t make mistakes?’ Eve gave Hax a look that screamed “BULLSHIT”.

‘Only once or twice, but humans make the same mistakes again and again.’

‘Well please, enlighten me with your wisdom.’

Hax thought for a moment and looked at Eve.

‘Humans run their lives like mc Escher paintings.’
‘Is he that new DJ down at Risk?’ He looked at her with a mixture of shock and rage. She started to laugh, which seemed to infuriate him more.
‘I’m joking Hax, I know who mc Escher is. But what do you mean our lives are run like it? As in we are running around in circles or we don’t know where we are going.’
‘A good point, but more the fact you live life running so fast you don’t see you are going uphill, which makes life harder. But if you sat back and looked at it you'd see that there is an easy way-’
‘the downhill path?’
‘Yes, and it all leads to the same point. You just need to see life at a different angle.’
‘but why are you telling me this?’
‘I know I can trust you.’
‘Aww that so sweet.’
‘That and I know you won’t live as long as me in this fragile body.’
Her face went from school girl crush to utter horror. Hax smiled. And not just a slight grin, this was a massive grimace that led into a maniacal laugh. Eve wanted to storm off, but she knew that she couldn’t blame Hax for telling her the truth.
‘Don’t laugh please.’ She asked.
‘Why?’ He replied. ‘Did I scare you?’ His face seemed distraught, like he actually felt bad. Eve’s thought was interrupted by a loud crash and someone yelling.

While Hax and Eve spoke, Dylan and Seth rummaged through the garage.

‘What did you drag me in here for?’ Dylan asked annoyed.

‘Hax is acting weird again.’ Seth replied. ‘Why won’t he tell us what he saw?’

‘Have you tried looking in his mind?’

‘No good. Somehow he has locked it tighter than my powers can reach. Whatever it was, Hax doesn’t want to tell us.’

‘Maybe you should, I don’t know?’ Dylan found the keys. ‘Give up and wait for him to tell us?’

Dylan threw the keys to Seth. He grabbed them midflight and his face lit up.

‘Or maybe I piss him off so much, He loses control and I can hack Hax.’

Dylan did not like the look on Seth’s face, but before he could stop him, Seth made his move.

 Hax and eve rushed outside to find Dylan and Seth standing around the car which, somehow, was wrapped around the oak tree in the backyard.
‘What the fuck did you guys do?!’ Hax screamed. ‘What have I told you about touching my car?!?’ Eve noticed his hands were trembling, shifting shapes, almost growing longer.
‘Hax, what’s the problem? We know you can fix it, I just wanted a drive.’ Seth said.
‘That’s not the fucking point,’ he bellowed, ‘I don’t touch your shit! Don’t touch mine!’

Before Seth could get another word in on the matter, Dylan had grabbed him.

‘Sorry Hax,’ he said, ‘do you want some help fixing it?’
‘No! No, don’t worry. I got it.’ He turned to eve. ‘Do me a favour, and close your eyes. You don’t want to see this.’
Eve did as she was told. There was a large amount of metal groans and a whole lot of popping sounds, it intrigued eve to the point she peeked open her right eye to have a look.
‘Gasp…’ she whispered
 Hax’s right arm was billowing out smoke, right into the car’s engine bay.  Eve closed her eye again before Hax could notice.

‘Okay, you can open your eyes again.’ He said.

Eve saw the car was fixed completely, looking more like new than before. Hax looked at his watch.

‘Come on. Let’s get ready to go out for drinks tonight.’

‘Oh yeah. I never gave you a birthday gift.’ Eve said.

‘Eve, you don’t need to give me a gift.’ Hax said.

‘Are you sure?’ Eve said in a sultry voice. She gave Hax a pose that looked like something out of a gentleman’s magazine.

Hax gave her one look, his left eye twitching, and fainted. He awoke to find Eve lying next to him.

‘Eve, what are you doing?’

‘You looked lonely on the ground, so I decided to join you. Did I break your brain?’

Hax went red, to which Eve laughed at.

‘Stupid emotions…’ Hax muttered.

‘Aw, don’t be like that. Let’s go get ready.’

‘Well, you would have to get off me to do that.’

Eve thought for a second. ‘Or you could carry me inside?’ she said with a smile.

Hax face erupted in an evil grin. ‘Or YOU could carry me?’

‘What?’ Eve said. ‘You like twice my size. How can I carry you?’

‘Just try.’

Eve stood up, and bent down again. She placed her arms under Hax’s body, and wondered what was going to happen. She breathed in and out slowly, and in one movement, she lifted Hax off the ground. He was lighter than she thought he would be. As light as air, She thought.

‘Smoke-body, remember?’ Hax said.

‘You know, you’re supposed to carry me through the threshold.’

‘Silence slave. Homeward bound!’

Eve chuckled as she carried Hax inside.