Centaurian Ch. 08

Elias tipped it back and the instant it touched his tongue, he began chugging it. He couldn't believe the taste and planned to drink a lot more before he even finished downing the first glass. "That was delicious!" He held the glass vertical, and it began to fill from the bottom with Ambrosia. Within moments he felt it, and it grew in intensity, he told Ronan, "I think I'm starting to feel you!" He began to drink more.

"It's likely to grow stronger."

Hephaestus said, "I thought no one could manifest Ambrosia."

"Ronan is the exception," said Emma.

They watched as Elias guzzled one glass after another of the golden liquid, and his body absorbed it immediately like every cell had become an energy sponge. The more he drank, the more his body changed. His muscles grew, his body hair came in, the configuration looking just like Ronan's. He had the same reddish-brown hair color as Chiron. A chest full of curls began appearing, and a much thicker pelt of hair—almost fur-like—filled in from his iliac furrow downward, and like Ronan, it covered his buttocks, but he had no pubic hair and none on his genitals.

Unlike Liam, Elias never seemed to look bloated and full. He just grew bigger with every glass. He downed three glasses, five, eight, but by the time he reached ten, he had to stop, leaving the goblet mostly full. Hephaestus reached for it, Elias handed it to him, and the blacksmith began chugging as much as he could.

"Wow," said Elias to Ronan, "my being close to you is so distracting!"

"I think we'll grow accustomed to it over time. I thought when I gave Liam and William a spark like yours to protect them and make them invulnerable, I would feel them the way I feel you, but I don't. It's just your singular presence out in the world. They're not my son, I guess that's the difference."

Elias gestured to his body. "So, how big am I?

"You look about the size of a professional gymnast ready for the Olympics," said Ronan, "but how do you feel?"

"Incredible. And I'm still growing; I can feel it. I'm glad I removed the suit. Sadly, I have a closet at home full of expensive and unwearable Armani."

"Which would you rather have," asked Ronan, "this or the suits?"

"No contest, this. Absolutely, THIS." He bent over and put his hands on his knees as he stood there. "Well, I see no hooves coming in, so I think I might have dodged that bullet, but my body hair is strange, and look at this thing!" He lifted his cock from his newly muscled thighs. "It's gained a couple of inches. So, overall, how do I look?"

"You look like a handsome, very fit half-centaur," said Emma. "I'd fuck you."

Elias's brows rose. "You're my cousin, and I'm not from the backwoods of Appalachia!"

They all laughed.

"Boy, are you in for a shock when you learn more about the gods," she said.

"After Felix Raposo, I'm not sure I'm much interested in women, at least for now. I am probably bisexual though."

"Most of the gods are just sexual," said Hephaestus.

Ronan stood next to him. "You're an inch or so taller, but you've yet to reach demigod proportions. We'll keep working on it." He held his hand out to Hephaestus who almost finished off his fourth glass of Ambrosia. "Glass..."

Hephaestus handed it to him. "That's the strongest, best-tasting Ambrosia I've ever had."

"That's because it's fresh." From a line of embering, the glass and its remnants burned away to Ronan's hand. He then placed the hand on Elias's shoulder where he manifested the current Centaurian uniform for Elias to wear and manifested his own shirt with CENTAURIAN across his chest, and above it, he placed the symbol identical in size and shape to the tattoo on his back.

Elias adjusted his cock in his pants and tapped the blank space on his own chest. "What about something for right here?"

"What would you like?"

"I don't know," he said. "Aren't sons usually named by their fathers? Why don't you name me?"

"Alright," he said and thought about it for a moment. He realized he used the perfect name for him earlier. He held his finger before his son's chest and said, "I dub thee, my son, Colt Stallion." He laid his finger on the cloth and a line of embering stitched COLT upon it in a navy-colored thread, below which he had placed a half-sized Centaurian symbol. "If you're wondering, that's my symbol. On Earth, everyone, everywhere who has ever known you as Elias Adrianus has now only ever known you as Colt Stallion, and even your IDs are changed.

He stood there open-mouthed. "I'm blown away you can do that so easily." He hugged Ronan. "Thank you."

Ronan pulled back and put his arm around him. "I need to catch Emma and you up on what's happened. I froze Zeus in time on Olympus. As I said before, he's done something, but I don't know what. It may have to do with Liam. Emma, had you seen anything unusual before you came here?"

"Liam had gone to the cabin you shared, I kissed William goodbye before I went in search of Colt, and nothing seemed any different when I left."

"Okay," Ronan turned to Colt. "If you have anything to bring, you should get it. We need to get to the ship and look around."

As Colt retrieved his smartphone, wallet, and passport, tucking them into the waistband of his pants, Hephaestus manifested a uniform like Ronan's with HEPHAESTUS across his chest with an anvil and hammer symbol above it.

"Very nice," said Ronan.

"I'll get used to it."

"I'm ready when you are," said Colt.

Once Ronan restarted time, he took his son's hand. As they formed a line and stepped forward a few paces, the office they stood in rapidly blended into the hallway of the ship just outside the cabins, and as they completed the teleportation, the office faded away.

"That sure beats air travel," said Colt.

They checked the cabins, and both lay empty.

"This is a big ship," said Ronan. "Let's get to the bridge and page him from there." He raced up the staircase two steps at a time, the others on his heels.

They reached the bridge and found William there in his Centaurian uniform with the crew.

"Ronan!" said the captain. "William tells me that you restored the ship. Thank you."

"You're welcome, captain. This is Hephaestus and this is my son, Colt. Has either of you seen Liam? Have there been any strange occurrences apart from the ship's renewal and the fact that I moved us to Genoa?"

"I'm glad you asked," said William. "I have looked for Liam, and I can't seem to find him. I just paged him a minute ago. I've heard nothing so far."

"Nothing else has occurred that we've noticed," said the captain.

"I've stopped time twice since I left and little actual time has passed from then until now. He should be here."

"It's as we feared," said Emma, "Zeus has done something with him."

Ronan could feel the anger swell inside him, and he knew he would need help. "Emma, William, Hephaestus, Colt, I need you to come with me. We're going to Olympus to confront Zeus."

William asked, "What could we do to help against Zeus?"

He looked them in their faces. "I need you there because your presence will stop me from doing something stupid that I'll regret."