Groom Wars

58. War (2)

Cadmus held his sword in a loose grip and spun it around his finger. He smiled and practiced jabbing, jabbing, spinning, and swirling. He had missed fighting, missed the rush he got from it. While he was surprised by Leandro's attack, it reminded him of a time when life was less boring. Less monotone. Cadmus parried, blocked, his feet sweeping across the ground in a practiced manner. He didn't expect an attack that night. They had waited for months at Steven and Leandro's request. They had collected swords and weights for months, and nothing had happened. But tonight would be the night, Leandro had said so with certainty.

Cadmus remembered when he had shown up to walk Adriel to his bath; the boy's eyes had been red and puffy. When their roommates asked Adriel if he had cried and if anything was wrong, he had said it was just allergies. Cadmus doubted it. He didn't remember ever seeing Adriel cry.

Adriel had looked at Cadmus' face, frowned at the bruises and swollen eye, then asked, "What were you thinking?"

Cadmus hadn't been thinking at all. He had let his body move as it wished during the fight with Leandro.

Now, Cadmus paused, listening to the sound of running water. There was something else. The door squeaked as it opened. Footsteps, multiple pairs, but they weren't one or two, a group. And they weren't moving nonchalantly. No, they were making an effort to quiet their steps and whisper. Soft laughter accompanied them.

Cadmus rapped his knuckle on the door twice, giving Adriel the sign that someone had come and prepared to meet them. Perhaps, he should have waited to confirm the intruders' identities before alerting Adriel, but they would have seen him as soon as he poked his head out of the stall.

Someone said, "Did you hear a knock?"

"Came from over there, didn't it?"

"Dude, I haven't fucked anyone in a while. Think Columbia will mind if we go first?"

They laughed as if raping someone, abusing them, tormenting them was a joke.

Cadmus kicked the tip of his sword, feeling it bounce in his hand, then, taking a calming breath, went out to meet them.

He saw the four men. One was tall and dark-skinned with a buzz cut; a second was ruddy and chubby with stubble along his jaw. The third was tall and lithe with blonde hair, bangs falling over his eyes, non-too attractive. And the fourth was short with curly black hair and freckled skin. Ex-Dryad members.

Rabindra, the curly-haired boy, asked. "Are you guarding her highness tonight?"

They laughed.

Cadmus simply pointed the blade at Robindra. "Go back to Columbia's side, or I will hurt you."

Robindra said, "Dude, we don't have to fight. We just want Leandro's precious wife. We're going to give Adriel the present he likes so much." The boy's penis strained against his jeans.

Silence. If they took one more step, Cadmus would charge. But right now, he would let them talk, buy Adriel time to change, and prepare himself.

Robindra's smile faded. He said, "I'll fix him good. By the time we're done with him, Adriel won't want to look at another dick again."

Cadmus watched them, his body still, weight evenly distributed between two feet, sword raised.

Robindra said, "Be honest, Adriel looks like a woman sometimes, doesn't he? I bet he won't feel all that different. You want to try him out, don't you?" He took another step, crossing the imaginary line Cadmus had drawn on the ground.

Cadmus dashed forward, confident and sure. The dark-skinned one, Nial, drew something from his pocket. A knife. The rest took out blades as well. Robindra smiled. "Come on, Cadwick, step side, or we might rape you too. You don't want to be humiliated like that, do you?"

"My name is Cadmus, and that's all I have to say to you."

The chubby guy, Batu, told Cadmus, "Your wooden sword versus our knives—who do you think will win?" Projectiles flew over Cadmus' shoulder. Shampoo bottles. Mouthwash. Conditioner. Anything Adriel could find, he used. The intruders, busy dodging objects, were now an easy target for Cadmus. He dashed forward and did a 540 kick, twisting his hips to aid the power of the move as he swung his legs around and nailed Nial's nose. He landed smoothly and faced Robindra, who had recovered from Adriel's surprise attack.

Robindra jabbed, but Cadmus spun, whirling before the blade could reach, so he fell inside the outstretched arm. He hammered the boy's wrist with the sword's handle. Pain crossed Robindra's face. As Nial charged, Cadmus grabbed Robindra and swung him. Nial's blade stabbed his comrade's back. Robindra's knife fell from his finger as the boy toppled to the ground. Nial watched the blood soak his friend's grey shirt, his eyes quivering in shock. "Fucking hell," he muttered, backing away as if he saw a ghost and ran out the door.

Adriel pulled up aside Cadmus, his wooden sword raised after running out of objects to toss. His various apparatus lay scattered on the tiles. Some spilled after landing; blue liquid and gels coated the floor. Adriel had rushed to meet the enemy; his wet hair clung to his forehead. Water had soaked parts of his shirt. His breathing was raspy, shallow as his chest heaved.

Robindra groaned as he got to his feet, his face ashen.

Cadmus attacked Robindra's wrist, sending the recovered blade flying. Holding Cadmus' shoulder, Adriel jumped, and his foot collided with Batu's head, snapping it back. Adriel ducked as a tan boy with messy brown hair lunged at him. The blow lanced Adriel's shoulder, drawing blood. Cadmus, switching his sword to his left, used his fist to nail Robindra's chin with an uppercut that made the boy clench his teeth and threw him off his feet. Cadmus felt Adriel duck behind him. The tan boy, Sid, lunged at Cadmus, who grabbed his wrist and pulled him down before kicking his chin.

Sid fell to the ground, blood slipping down his lips after biting his tongue.

Batu took advantage of Cadmus' preoccupation with Sid and attempted to stab him. Again, Adriel's hand found Cadmus' shoulder, and his legs darted forward before his right foot hit Batu's nose. This time, twin streams of blood rushed from the boy's nostrils and stained his freckled skin. "Fucking fag," Batu muttered, preparing to launch at Adriel; Adriel ducked behind Cadmus again. Cadmus pressed his sword to Batu's fleshy throat. "Stop."

Sid and Robindra were picking themselves off the floor. Cadmus looked from one to the other, then said in a low voice, "Leave before I break each and every one of your bones." He nodded at Robindra. "No one knows if that's fatal or not. Get him to the hospital. If he bleeds to death, it's on you."

The men quieted. Robindra's face had taken on a deathly pallor. He took quick, panicky breaths and might soon go into shock. The three boys glanced at Cadmus, then grudgingly set their jaws, slunk towards the door, and slipped outside.

"Will you hide behind me for much longer, Juliet?"

Adriel appeared at Cadmus' side.

Adriel crossed his arm over his chest stubbornly. "My specialty, dear Romeo, is surprise attacks."

Grateful that he had managed to keep the boy safe, something overtook Cadmus, and he ruffled Adriel's wet hair fondly, then, blushing, looked away and said, "We should hide to surprise more if they come."

Adriel chuckled. "I suppose I owe Leandro an apology for treating him like he was overreacting all this time." A wave of emotions passed Adriel's face, but the one that Adriel wore the longest was longing. He missed Leandro.

Cadmus' fingers clenched and unclenched as he realized Adriel would never look at him like that. As he hid his disappointment, all he could say was, "Let's hide."

Adriel nodded, and the two ducked into separate changing stalls to wait for the next set of attackers.

***