Neon Gods

Chapter Four

As Lyon walked down the trail, he sighed in frustration. He kicked a rock every other step, and the sunburn on his already red face steadily grew worse. His eyes burned with angry and hurt tears, and his lips quivered as he struggled to suppress his sobs. This was Lyon's usual hiking weekend. If he got a weekend off, he spent it hiking. This typically happened once a month. Now, Lyon needed it more than ever. He had experienced more stress than usual at his job.
The restaurant was understaffed, so all of the employees hours were extended, and their pay turned to minimum wage.
Most often, Lyon would go in to work at noon and not leave until after it closed. He also took his breakup pretty badly. Lyon and his partner were together for two and a half years, so when Nicolao ended their relationship a week ago with little explanation, Lyon genuinely didn't know why. All he got from Nicco was that the relationship wasn't going anywhere anymore,
and that he should try to move on. Three days later, Nico had cleared all of his bags from the condo and blocked Lyon's number. As the sun continued to beat down on Lyon's exhausted body, he stopped and sat on a rock. The tears that had pooled in his eyes spilled down his cheeks in streams. Through his blurred vision, he searched for his water. Once he found it, he sat quietly, with his bag clutched to his chest, and sobbed quietly.
Twenty minutes later, Lyon was no longer crying, but his eyes were swollen and his nose red. He slid his bag back on to his shoulder, and continued along the trail. A half hour later, he saw something on the trail next to a rock. He realized it was a black duffel bag once he was a few feet closer, and then he saw the man whom sat a couple feet away from it. "Sir?" Lyon called out. His voice was hoarse from crying, and slightly raspy.
He cleared his throat, and tried again, "sir. Excuse me sir?"Not any better than his first attempt, but he had the man's attention now. "Are you alright? What are you doing?" The man nodded, "I am fine. I am waiting for help."
The man's voice was calm, but naturally sounded commanding. "Waiting for what?" Lyon drew closer, and sat on a rock a few feet from the man. "Waiting for a mortal. Are you it?"

Lyon frowned, "a mortal? What do you mean?" "Yes. A mortal. A person of this realm. We must go with the mortal that shows us kindness or interest." "What do you mean by realm?" Lyon inquired"Earth."

Hesitantly, Lyon nodded."So... What are you waiting for exactly?"
"Help. Someone to stop to give food or water. Or even talk to me." The man grinned after his last statement. "So. Do you want me to help then?" "Sure. Although you didn't really do anything to make you have to help me. Thanks for the offer."
Well, shit. Wonderful. Lyon inwardly sighed and reached for the last sealed bottle of water in his bag. "Here. I suppose you're going to want this then." The man nodded and took it. He then drank half of it in one go. They stood, and Lyon pointed to the duffel by the rock,"that yours?"
The man smiled and picked it up. "Yes. You would do well not to touch it." "Okay," Lyon didn't know what the reason for this request was, but he didn't want to find out either. As they started walking again, Lyon asked the man what his name was. "You may call me Aydin. What may I call you?" "My name is Lyon."
Aydin smiled, "it is nice to meet you Lyon." As they continued the 30 minute walk back to the car, Aydin continued to ask about the different things around them. "But why does it have those?"Aydin wanted to know about the thorns on the cacti around them. "I believe they are a sort of self defense. They are meant to stop animals from eating them and their fruit."
Aydin nodded in understanding, "so they are like swords for the plant then?" Lyon couldn't help chuckling slightly, "Yes. I suppose so. It definitely feels like one, when it's stuck in your foot." By this point, the two had made it to Lyon's car. As Aydin walked ahead of Lyon, he noticed the strong definition of muscles under his shirt, and he had to stop himself before his eyes could sweep any lower. Oh great. When Nico said move on, I don't think that was what he meant. Lyon thought as he turned his gaze away.
Aydin stopped at the car, placed the duffel on the hood, and started going through it. "Aydin," Lyon called once he'd no longer ogled the muscles in his arms, and watched the muscles in his shoulders and neck flex with his movements. "Aydin. What are you doing?" Aydin turned, and Lyon had to blink and look up so he wouldn't get caught as he stared. "I am checking my inventory." "Inventory of what?" Lyon asked.
He walked closer, standing next to Aydin and he could see what was in his bag. Sheathed swords, and rows of daggers lined the inside of the bag, several ammunition cartridges, and pistols were spread across the trunk, and there was so much more. Lyon looked slightly horrified as he gazed at the contents of the bag, which were now haphazardly spread out on his car. "Aydin? Why do you have a bag full of death machines?" Aydin smiled at Lyon, "because. I need them so i may destroy my enemy." Lyon's eyes widened in shock and terror at the answer, as he grew pale. "Okay. Whom do you consider an enemy then?" Lyon's voice trembled with barely disguised fear.
"Anyone who is trying to harm myself and now you by proxy, is considered an enemy."
Lyon gave a shaky smile. Aydin's intentions were sweet he supposed, even if they were a bit misguided. "Okay. Just please put them away before someone sees, then we'll have a lot of enemies called the police."
Aydin smiled at Lyon and did as he asked. Great! He's nice to look at, but just a bit unnerving. Once all of the "Death Machines" were put away, the two men got into the car, and Lyon made his way back home.