Sable

The temperature around them was dropping as the sun hung low in the sky, just barely touching with its light through the leaves in the trees. Sable shivered and wrapped her arms around herself; an act Akeem noticed.

"Are you cold?" he asked.

"Yes," Sable said. "But I'll be fine. Conor and I survived this before, I'm sure I can again."

Without another word, Akeem shrugged off the outer cloak he had on, that Sable had always assumed was his shirt. A tight, black wrap around his abdomen was all he had on underneath.

"Wait, you don't need to do that," Sable protested. He draped the cloak around her shoulders.

"Of course I do," Akeem said. "Hypothermia would not be a fun thing for you to die of. I would rather something like old age be the cause of your death."

"But you'll be cold," Sable pointed out.

"I'm immortal," he reminded her.

"Yes, but not immune to cold," Sable tried.

"I can survive anything," Akeem rolled his eyes.

"Fine, so you keep saying," Sable muttered.

Akeem smiled triumphantly and led the way again. Sable rolled her eyes that time and followed along. The cloak was heavy, and she did feel significantly warmer. She sighed and accepted the defeat, and then watched the small fog that was her breath with some amusement; it reminded her of being a child waiting for the school bus during winter.

What was life like, growing up for the people here? They seemed to have a mix of strange, off-in-the-distant-future technology, and technology so old she wondered how they got on when illness struck. It was definitely a strange mix to see- it reminded her of one of her favourite television shows.

"What really is the importance of my survival?" Sable asked then. She understood that she was the reincarnation of an important goddess, possibly the last one in existence, but she still didn't quite understand why she was so important.

Akeem stopped and turned to face her again. Sable stopped in front of him. There was a thoughtful look on his face- as if he was carefully considering what to tell her. He started walking again and Sable followed.

"Well, I believe one way of looking at it, it's simply a matter of keeping a bad man from becoming ultimately powerful," he said slowly. "The other thought is that it is quite possible that the very existence of our realms depends on your survival. I know it's hard to comprehend; it took me hundreds of years to fully understand. As I watched many other gods slowly devoured..."

"The weight of the universe, that was on the shoulders of the deceased god, gets set onto the shoulders of another existing god," he continued. "Inara was originally just the goddess of romances. It's why most everyone she comes into contact with instantly becomes smitten with her. She's always been seen as an object of desire..."

He took a deep breath and released it slowly. There was a long pause as he sought to recall anything else he needed to tell her. Sable was patient.

"You hold all of the powers and statuses of all those fallen gods," Akeem said. "All of that power being absorbed by one man, and for ill intentions..."

"I thought that the powers were completely absorbed by whoever devours the god?" Sable furrowed her eyebrows.

"Well, yes," Akeem nodded. "Most of the energy is absorbed by the one devouring. But the remainder is transferred to the next god- so the title will remain."

"Anyway," he sighed. "We have no idea what will become of us once the last god in existence dies. Perhaps you aren't necessary, truly, for our survival. But then again maybe you are. We don't want to risk that. And no matter what it is my duty to ensure your safety. I will not fail this time."

"What did happen last time?" Sable wondered.

Akeem hung his head in shame. He mumbled, "It was a sedative. Well, it was a poison meant meant to kill me, but it just put me into a deep sleep. I suppose that was all they needed to get me out of their way, or I would have been strong enough to take on every last one of them."

"So just like Conor you were caught off guard," Sable concluded.

"No, I- well, yes," Akeem admitted. "It wasn't my best moment. I- well, I hadn't expected the pretty girl to betray me. We were caught up in a moment that I thought she was feeling, too. She slipped the sedative into my wine."

"And distracted by a girl, no less," Sable raised her eyebrows.

"It's when you least expect it," Akeem said.

"Yes, that's why it's called being caught off guard," Sable said again. "Mistake or not, I want to go back for Conor. If your actions are redeemable, then so are his."

"I am your familiar, my actions are supposed to be redeemable," Akeem argued. "And he could be dead by now. It would be walking straight back into their hands. I cannot allow it."

"You said you're strong enough to handle all of them," Sable reminded him. Sable saw Akeem flush bright pink, watching his profile carefully.

"I meant- I suppose I over-exaggerated," he said quietly. "And I am only one man. I may be strong, but I cannot fight off that many men and guard you at the same time."

"I have powers of my own to protect myself with," Sable said. "I'll get the chance to use them this time, and I can order you to take me back."

He turned sharply, catching her arm in his hand. The intensity of his gaze sent a shiver down her spine.

"You will not," he warned. Sable swallowed hard. "It is unwise. As I have said before if he is living and as strong as he claims to be, he will return to us, I assure you. But do not make me take you back on a suicide mission."

"Okay," Sable said quietly. He released her arm and continued on walking. Sable had to pick up the pace to follow him then. "But we can't go back to Lucca's castle, the safety of it has been compromised."

"The safety of most of this land has been compromised," Akeem muttered. "Finnian has been poisoning the minds of the folk slowly over the years. Making them believe that he can become the one true god. Ha... A demon becoming a god."

Sable failed to see the humour in that, but she did recognize the laugh as forced. She chewed her lip in thought.

"Where will we go then?" Sable asked.

"Back to my homeland," Akeem said. "It is a sacred village, not easy to find, and should be untouched by Finnian's poisonous words."

"How can you be so sure?" Sable asked. She fidgeted with her hands.

"My people are raised from birth, trained so that if the occasion arises, we are ready to become the familiar of a god," he said. "It is our sacred right, though the god is the one that chooses their familiars. Sometimes one is chosen from outside the village."

"How come Inara only chose to have one familiar?" Sable inquired. It was a question probably better suited for the goddess herself, and she felt she may have already asked the question, but she though maybe Akeem had more insight. But the question pretty much answered itself.

"She trusted me," Akeem explained. "Just as you should trust in me. Admittedly, I was reluctant in my first years after becoming her familiar. I hadn't understood fully that she really was a goddess. I had thought that it was all a myth, that my village- my people- were all crazy."

He paused, sucked in a deep breath and released it slowly, and then continued, "And then it happened: I became her familiar. I made several attempts on my life; that was when I discovered I could not die."

The weight of the information was heavier than Sable could have ever imagined. Akeem was silent after that. She hoped that he at least felt a little lighter, after admitting such a past. The silence didn't last long.

"She was one of the first gods to come into existence," he whispered, startling Sable. "Love. A very necessary part of life. I fell in love with her before I became her familiar. And it wasn't just an infatuation due to what she was. I remember never wanting to leave her side, wanting to start a family with her, when she graced my village with her presence."

"That was when she asked me if I wanted to become her familiar," he sighed. "She knew that I would be faithful until the end I had hoped to never see. Somehow I knew she would never truly be mine, that she would be with another and eventually disappear, but I accepted it."

Sable allowed for the second silence that followed after that. An unrequited love... Did he feel it still? She remembered about Lucca and their betrothal.

There was a question weighing on her mind after that, but she knew it would be a painful topic. It was better to wait- to give him some time before asking about more of his painful past. Maybe she would even ask Lucca instead, as painful as it would be even for him too, if she ever saw him again. Her trust in him had never been strong, despite feeling a magnetic pull.

So she focused on something else. There was something on Akeem's arm, something dark. Was he hurt? She looked closer, and saw that it was a tattoo, not a wound.

The tattoo was of a large serpent biting its own tail; signifying eternity and the circle of life. Inside the circle of the serpent was another, smaller serpent. This one was free; it was not devouring its own tail.

Sable reached out to touch it, and Akeem flinched out of surprise.

"Sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to startle you. I was just curious. You can get tattoos here in this realm too?"

Akeem glanced between her and the symbol on his arm, and said, "It's not a tattoo."

As he gave no further explanation, Sable prodded, "Well, what is it, then?"

"It's the mark of the familiar," he answered. "You can regard it as a tattoo if you like, but it's more of a brand- a scar. They put it on me when I accepted the duty."

"Oh," was her only response.

"It's a part of what binds me to you," Akeem said.

"What about the kiss from before?" Sable asked. There was a smirk on his face that she could see even from the side.

"I wish I could tell you that it was just me being silly," he said, with a hint of laughter in his voice. "But it is the final seal of the contract. Want to seal it again?" He looked over at her.

"No," Sable said. She ducked away from him. He saw that she wasn't smiling and all humour fell from him.

"Forgive me, my lady," he said. "It was just a joke. I meant no harm by it."

"No harm done," Sable allowed. "You're forgiven."

They walked in silence once more; Sable with the hope of Conor returning, and Akeem with whatever thought was consuming him.