mindcracklove | Hiking and Love - Ascension to Power Series chapter 2

Thank you for the good response for chapter one.
I was kind of debating releasing this one, as it doesn't really progress the story too much, but I think it works. Nebtho relationship backstory. No need to read it if you don't approve.
Enjoy the read!

Etho glanced up from the icy road he was watching for potholes that the horse might injure itself on. The snow-covered mountains he saw were as spectacular as they were when he was a child.

“Etho?” a voice came from behind him, quietly, but said in a comforting tone of voice that came from his favorite person.

“How are they Nebris? Still asleep I take from the lack of an occasional thump back to sleep,” Etho said, turning to face his companion.

“Yeah. But I wanted to see how you’re doing. Tired? Cold? A bit alone?” Nebris asked as he slid onto the wooden seat at the head of the carriage, scooting close to Etho’s body.

“Not now that you’re here,” Etho whispered into Nebris’ ear, making him giggle slightly at the feeling of his breath on him.

“Mmm…” Nebris sighed contentedly. “You remember when we developed our relationship like this?”

“Yeah,” Etho said, staring first at the snowy mountain range, then into Nebris’ deep violet pupils. He stared into them, letting his memories of the past suck him into his young adult life.

Etho woke up in his comfortably warm room in the village he grew up in. He yawned widely and got himself all prepared for this special day, dressing in his best clothing, a light gray tuxedo underneath a sweatshirt and blue jeans. He finished tying the bow underneath his hoodie just as his mother walked in to check on him.

“Already awake, Etho?” she said in a voice smooth and silky. “This is a special day for you though, isn’t it?” Yes, he thought. It was. But his parents only thought that he was going on a hiking trip with his best friend. In reality, he had set up a nice spot for he and Nebris to spend a quiet night looking at the stars off of an overhang on the highest mountain in the area. He would finally tell Nebris how he felt about him.

“Well, just come down for breakfast, and then head out for your friends’. He’s probably just as anxious as you are,” his mother said, leading him down to the main floor of their home to the dining room table. He wolfed down his breakfast of warm oatmeal and dried fruit from some village down the mountain where there was fertile soil. He grabbed his boots and put them on, and rushed out of the house at a sprint to get to Nebris’ as fast as possible.

Nebris felt like he was having an anxiety attack. How would he be able to tell Etho how he really felt? What if Etho didn’t feel the same way? Would they still be friends if he didn’t accept his feelings? The questions raced though his mind every few seconds as he paced in front of the door, waiting for Etho. He had on his nicest black button down shirt and dress pants on under his jacket and leather pants. He even polished his boots to a point where they shined like a smooth black lake whenever he looked at them. He had a bag with some hiking gear in it, but in a separate pocket, he had a bouquet for Etho with the brightest flowers he could find. He hoped he thought of everything. He went over what he would say in his mind for the thousandth time, literally. And when there was a knock on the door, Nebris almost had a heart attack he felt so wound up. He tried not to get to the door so quickly that it would seem like he was waiting by the door (which is what he was doing), but not slow enough that Etho would get irritated. He grabbed the door handle, took a deep breath, and opened the door to reveal the man of his dreams. His grey, almost silver hair was spiked up in the way that Nebris liked it best, and Etho held the same maniacal grin that he always did, but this time it seemed almost hesitant.

“Are you ready?” Etho asked, his voice just a little higher than usual.

“Of course,” he said, trying not to let his voice get too high either.

“Let’s go then. I found the perfect spot to pro-“ Etho cut off as he realized what he almost said. “Sorry. I meant the perfect spot to stargaze.” Etho began to blush a bright, fiery red and Nebris grinned widely at his friend. He knew Etho disliked showing emotion in public, so he found it comforting to see his friend a bit more relaxed in a way than he usually was.

The duo hiked up a wide path to a plateau about three quarters of the way up to Etho’s stargazing overhang. Nebris felt like he was going to let his plan slip off of his tongue the closer he got to their destination, and Etho felt a similar feeling of worry, so the climb was mostly silent. When the two reached the top, Nebris followed Etho through a multitude of pine branches in a beautiful clearing in the trees. It was on the edge of a cliff, so they could see the whole mountain range in front of them. Nebris found himself gaping at the sight. Etho came over to him and said, “I need to go and get something in the woods. I left a blanket under some trees so that we didn’t have to lie on the pine needles. Perfect, Nebris thought. Now I can get ready for him.

Etho got out of his hoodie and jeans and grabbed the blanket from under some pines. He also got out a lantern, a box filled with some of Nebris’ favorite things: a golden short sword, for his love of stories about knights in shining armor, and helm of iron, that was also padded on the inside, and a small bangle of silver. Etho had spent his last year’s money on this occasion and knew he couldn’t waste it like he had other times.

In the clearing Nebris also changed into his proposal clothes. He got out the bouquet for Etho and a small box that contained some high quality kunai knives and some sharp needles that could inject someone with a liquid if put inside. He had had them made for the occasion, to give Etho something of his to keep close at his side at all times.

After about ten minutes, Etho returned to the clearing to see… no one. What? He wondered. Where did Nebris go off? Just then, he heard a rustling in the bushes. And Nebris appeared. Etho gazed at him and took a moment to go over his beauty. His well defined chest, and his amazing violet eyes that drew his attention any time he saw Nebris. Nebris saw Etho when he came out as well. He saw his favorite man dressed in a way that must have made him feel uncomfortable, but had done so anyway. His eyes met with Etho’s and they just stood for a few moments before Etho said to him, “Uhh… well. I… I wanted to tell you…” He said, tripping over his words and blushing as red as the brightest rose in Nebris’ bouquet. Etho took a breath then let his feelings flow out after keeping them in for so long.

“I love you Nebris!” he exclaimed, his words echoing out into the night. Nebris stood there, in pure joy for a moment as he realized that Etho loved him. Him! He broke out into the widest grin he had ever done and went up a picked Etho up in his arms and drew his lips onto Etho’s. They embraced in a way that was so right to both of them. They broke apart after a minute, and Nebris felt wrong not having Etho’s lips on his own.

“I love you too, Etho!” he yelled out. “I have for so long, but I was so worried that you would reject me!”

“I thought the same,” Etho said, continuing to blush brightly. Nebris pushed his gifts into Etho’s hands.

“Here. I wanted to give you a gift to show you how much you mean to me.” Etho took the bouquet from Nebris and looked up at him with a look of pure content in his eyes. Then, he gently opened the lid of the box and saw the assortment of weapons in there. Etho’s face lit up like a kid in a candy store, and Nebris swore it looked like Etho was going to explode from the look on his face.

“They’re amazing Nebris!” he exclaimed. “Where did you get these?”

“A blacksmith down on the plains. He engraved something on them for me too. Look,” Nebris said, turning one of the knives in Etho’s hands over to reveal bright red lettering that said, ‘Keep on in the moonlight, my little ninja’ and a signature and swirly letters saying, ‘Nebris.’

“They’re… I don’t know what to say,” Etho said. He then handed his gifts to Nebris.

“What? You got me something, too Etho?” Nebris asked, as he began to lift the lid of the large box. His gaze fell on the sword first, and he let out a gasp.

“It… Etho!” he yelled out. “It’s beautiful!”

“Check the other things too, my amazing, cheaty Nebris.”

“Hmph… I don’t cheat, I just mold the rules to my liking,” he said before reaching for the helm that had caught his attention. He lifted in up and Etho helped him get it on. It fit perfectly. As if sensing the question Nebris was about to ask, Etho said, “I took one of your hats and had a tailor fit the helm to your head. Then I put an enchantment on it to allow it to keep growing with you.”

“It’s wonderful. I take it there’s more from the look on your face. What’s next?”
Nebris asked, lightly kissing Etho on the cheek for good measure before the real event started. Etho opened up a small container in the corner of the box and Nebris pulled out the silver bangle. He gasped at the sight of it. It was etched with swirling runes of power and Nebris felt the power flowing outward from a single band of violet crystal along the middle of the bangle. Nebris stood dumbfounded at the beauty of Etho’s gifts and thought that his gifts couldn’t even compare to them. He laid down his gifts and turned away for a moment, shoulders shaking, as he was trying to keep himself from sobbing loudly in Etho’s presence. The gifts were all wonderful, he thought. So I have to make Etho enjoy this night as much as I can to help make up for that. He then whirled around to face Etho, picked him up, went over to the blanket Etho had put down and the two enjoyed the rest of their night together, free of any worry or potential heartbreak. They were truly and madly in love.

Arkas wondered why Nebris was out there for so long, so he lifted the curtain that separated the back from the front of the carriage. He then saw Nebris at the reigns, and Etho pressed tightly up against him, mouth turned up into a small, devious looking smile that he and Nerbis got when they thought of something they were going to do or had done together. He saw the couple, which recently became closer and closer due to missions where their skills worked well together, so they were assigned the same ones. He watched a Nebris took a hand and gave Etho a hug as he shivered slightly. Etho then snuggled closer to Nebris, and sighed contentedly. Arkas looked away from the lovers for a moment and looked at the road and how close they were to the fortress.

“Nebris,” Arkas said quietly as to let Etho get some rest. When he said it, Nebris whirled around, not expecting the voice. He then sighed in relief when he saw Akas’ form in the doorway.

“Oh… hey Arkas. What’s up?” Nebris asked once he calmed his heart rate from the scare Arkas had put him through.

“We’re almost there. You want me to rouse the guys in back?”

“No. They’ll all the energy they have when they have to confront the boss. He’ll give them a beating for sure. Our troops are powerful, so they might not even make it past the first round of them,” Nebris said, giving Arkas a knowing wink. After all, Arkas was the leader of the first battalion of troops. After Arkas went back inside for a few minutes of shut-eye before they had to get on with the. When they finally got to the gates of the icy iron fortress they now called home.

“Open up, Zisteau,” Nebris called out to the guard.

“Finally found another one, Nebris?” the guard named Zisteau called back to him.

“C’mon. We got someone yesterday too. No need to say ‘finally’ in that sentence.”

“Sure,” Zisteau replied. “Well, get in here. Get your boyfriend out of the cold,” Zisteau called, with the most obviously joking tone he could muster. Everyone knew not to mess with the couple. Having to deal with an angry ninja and an angry conjurer was bad news, and that was partially why the two advanced so quickly to the rank of council members. Their combination attacks were devastating even to the most hardened of knights.

“Thanks. Enjoy the hours of cold out here, pig man!” Nebris retaliated eyes flashing, even though he knew Zisteau hadn’t meant anything by his words. He looked up at the gates, and then motioned the horse on through them. He then woke Etho up with a gentle kiss on the cheek and whispering to him, “Time to get up little ninja.” Etho came to and returned Nebris’ kiss with one of his own. They then went to the back and Etho opened the doors of the carriage. Nebris went in, and he and Arkas returned with one prisoner over their shoulders. Etho then used his card key to open a door into the prisoners’ cells.

Hey, Pause!” Etho yelled out to one of the prisoners in the room. Pause looked over for a moment and saw only Etho and turned away again.

“We found two of your friends. Keep them company, okay?” Pause then whirled back around and stood up violently. Then Arkas and Nebris came in, and Pause looked like he was going to fall apart then and there.

“Beef…” he said in a quiet voice. “Guude… I never wanted you guys involved with this.” But, his luck just wasn’t holding lately, and Etho heard him.

“Well, then just don’t defy us and your friends wouldn’t have been in this situation. Beef groaned in pain, but Arkas hit him again. Pause winced and then went over to his cell bars, and rattled them back and forth as if to break through the iron.

“No! Don’t hurt him, you damn monster!” he yelled out at Arkas. Arkas only snarled in return, but then hit Beef again with a grin on his face. Beef cried out in pain, and then Etho opened his cell door. Pause tried to rush out and attack Arkas, but Etho held one of his blades, one of Nebris’ blades, to Pause’s throat saying, “Don’t do that. You can’t injure yourself now. Beef’s here. Someone has to care for him.” He resisted for a moment more, and then sat down in the shadowed area of his cell again. Arkas threw Beef into Pause’s cell and told him, “I hope you like your friend unable to awaken for a few days. ‘Cause that’s how he’s going to be.” Pause flashed a look of death at Arkas, and then turned his attention back to Beef. Nebris then opened the cell next to Pause and Beef’s and threw Guude in. The three captors then left, locking the door behind them with a loud banging sound. Pause treated Beef for a day until he seemed mostly uninjured, at least not permanently. Then he fell into a troubled sleep.