Rogue Adventures - A Tale from Neverbeen Universe

37

Together they exited through the portal to Thisside. Gene held Raphael's hand tightly and smiled. He was so relieved this issue had been resolved and his lover was still his lover and back to his old self again. The thought of losing Raphael had hurt so much as if three quarters of his heart had been ripped out, and it made him realize how much the Daemon really meant to him. And his heart was whole again as he understood that Raphael felt the same, so much so that he had wanted to destroy a whole world lest he couldn't be with Gene.

Gene chuckled quietly. His Daemon was really weird sometimes, but he could understand why he did as he did. But the most important thing was the reason why he acted the way he did: his deep feelings for Gene. Never had Gene been so sure of them, and never had Gene felt so happy despite the fact that the world had almost had to have ended to realize that.

But all was well now.

They were together again and they set about embarking on a new adventure. Though Gene didn't know why Rhaleigh had to accompany them. He still didn't trust the Daemon, but he couldn't deny the fact that he had helped them escape, and that he had played a big role in the fight against Raphael. So what to make of that? Gene didn't know. But he supposed he couldn't complain as this seemingly was one unchangeable condition to freeing Raphael and being together.

And he might be a good asset in the battle against this Kaye person as Raphael said he didn't know if he was able to fight. Gene understood, it had something to do with Raphael's seals and that he couldn't use any of his powers at the moment. Raphael had compared his current state to a 'human with wings', and he didn't seem too happy about that. Gene felt for him. So ultimately Rhaleigh's presence was somewhat welcome after all.

Still Gene would have liked to spend some quality time with Raphael. Alone. But he supposed that wasn't possible right now. He also had to promise Rhagkal that he took care of Raphael as best he could. Yet Rhagkal had ordered Rhaleigh to come along and help them; to keep an eye on them, Gene translated.

Anyway, Gene would make do with the privacy of their tent once they rested; it wasn't much different from the time when they had traveled with Thanatos, Phobos and Ayumu. He could very well enjoy just being with Raphael and adventuring together.

As the three of them didn't know where Kaye had gone, their search was more of a wild goose chase. But Gene didn't mind. In the meantime he got to see more of this fantastical world and he was with Raphael. That was all he needed, that was all that counted. And Rhaleigh's presence or whoever else might join them would butter no parsnips.

"Where do we start our search?"

Raphael shrugged. "I don't know. Let's just start where we've seen her last and try to lure her out. Maybe I can pretend to be her ally," he suggested and Gene nodded. As long as Raphael wasn't really her ally Gene was fine with that. He certainly didn't want a repetition of yesterday's trouble. Not only because of the emotional rollercoaster, but because of the fear for everybody's lives. Raphael surely had been a most tremendous opponent, and Gene was pretty amazed at his lover's capabilities. While he had somehow known the Daemon was a quite mighty creature, Gene was still surprised how much power his lover really possessed.

Yet maybe all of this had changed as Raphael claimed to not be able to access his powers any longer. Or he still was as mighty as ever but only couldn't use his strength due to the seals. Gene wasn't sure, but it was not that important. Raphael had still his fighting skills, he could still fly and cook and if all else failed there was still Rhaleigh to teleport them and use his wicked magic. But Gene would rather he didn't do that. Who knew if they might end up in a different time again? Gene didn't put that past Rhaleigh after kidnapping him once. The Daemon certainly was even more mischievous than his lover. Maybe that trait also ran in the family, but who knew?

Be that as it might, their adventure certainly was far from being over, and somehow — despite his fear of Kaye and the destruction of Neverbeen Universe — Gene was looking forward to continuing to explore this wondrous world which Raphael inhabited. Maybe they would experience even more exciting adventures on the way. Besides, it was a nice feeling which filled Gene with pride that responsibility was placed upon his shoulders. Someone trusted him to take care of reckless and self-sufficient Raphael, and also trusted him to somehow save the world? Well, he certainly didn't want to disappoint this trust.

But for now he was just happy to be with Raphael once again. As long as it stayed that way he didn't care where the future might take him.

Hopefully to another adventure...