Past Lives

The guys still wore their customary linen shirts, and Paul his linen trousers, leather vest and even his high boots. Lukas had told him they would be too hot, but Paul didn't have any other shoes, and of course he could buy suitable shoes as soon as the boots became uncomfortable.

Lukas had ditched his shoes before he went through the portal, but had kept his trousers a little longer, he had gotten used to them, he said. But now they seemed to have magically disappeared from his body and he remembered his beloved friends clearly, no detachment in sight, on the contrary, he sported an impressive erection, and projected a growing need to become active.

First, his hand exploring Melissa's thighs made its move, inserting a few fingers into her moist and throbbing opening, causing her to moan and start unbuttoning some shirts. Then, with a little careful manoeuvring, and some nimble action of its slender fingers, Lukas' other hand unbuttoned Paul's trousers and took his solid erection in a firm grip.

His mouth, with the dented lip and the cute, innocent expression totally restored, found Paul's as well, leaving Melissa's tongue free to find something more solid to pay attention to. Lukas soon felt where her attention had gone, and his kissing and touching intensified until he could no longer control his need to thrust. Despite their fervour, now totally unleashed, they managed to lose the rest of their clothes and rearrange their situations to accommodate Lukas' need for some action.

A few minutes saw him thrusting happily, hands now checking out Melissa's breasts, whilst Paul was distractedly contemplating how he had never expected to be watching his lover making the girl of his dreams shudder with ecstasy, whilst being given that same feeling by her mouth enveloping his penis, feeling her tongue explore every inch of its smooth head, causing him the same exquisite feeling, her one hand playing gently with his testicles, making him mad with lust, and eager to get something in his mouth as well.

But he soon forgot every rational thought as his ecstasy started to rise too high, forcing him to remove himself from her mouth, and kiss her fervently instead, not wanting this to end already, needing some time to compose himself again.

Now he wanted to lie between Melissa's legs and use his tongue to make her shudder with pleasure, and from the corner of his eye he could see his time was near, for Lukas was now in the throes of a climax coming up. Lukas did not wilt like cut grass after one climax, which irritated Paul sometimes, but on the other hand, it was nice to see him in such a moment of ultimate bliss, and at this moment it was stunning to watch him, for his already incredible stamina and speed seemed to to have been increased until he practically blurred to Paul's vision.

The effect on Melissa was apparent, her bliss had been rising steadily, and he had felt her get a high already when she still had him in her mouth, but now her expression rose to total surrender, and she physically shook at her release.

It was a little difficult to witness, for Lukas was clearly the master of loving, and Paul always felt barely competent compared to his superbly skilled friend.

Melissa steadily denied that making love to Lukas was better, but how could that be, anyone could see that Lukas beat him on every score. The distinction with which Lukas had always treated Paul had always made him feel a little less inadequate, but ever since his steady rise to godhood Lukas' reverence had made Paul very uncomfortable, and now Lukas had his beloved shaking in bliss right in front of him.

At the moment of his release, Lukas had felt nothing but triumph, his love confirmed, his body still able to feel ordinary lust, his speed increased to inhuman heights. But as soon as the high left him, he felt doubt and inadequacy that was clearly not his own. Paul.

Witnessing Lukas making love to the woman he loved beyond all reason had always been difficult for Paul, and watching the master of love improved with godhood had not improved that. Melissa had never managed to explain to Paul how making love was not a race, how making love to Paul was different and just as good, his patience, his steadiness, his undying devotion to her alone. Lukas understood perfectly, but the man who needed to, didn't.

There was only one solution, love. Paul needed to feel the love Melissa felt for him, and the immeasurable love Lukas felt for him. Lukas wished so dearly that Paul would allow him to make him shudder with release, but that would never be. Or would it?

Melissa could not pick up Paul's feelings as Lukas had, but of course she knew something was up as soon as Paul had quit kissing her and watched Lukas perform. He seemed to enjoy the sight at first, but then she had lost sight of him and now he was despondent. It was a mistake to make love together, they should have waited, but the last times had been so good, everything had worked out so well together. Of course Lukas had been very needy then, and now he was incredibly self-assured, and his speed was inhuman. Paul must be feeling unable to compete with a god, except, making love was not a competition, and not about speed. That was just something Lukas enjoyed doing.

Lukas sat down on Paul's lap, both still naked, Lukas' fervour spent for now, Paul's drained by a troubled mind. Putting his arms around Paul, feeling the muscles only years of forging could build, smelling his masculine scent enhanced by making love and by the Greek summer heat, Lukas felt his lust already stirring again.

He begged for a kiss, and got a surprisingly generous one from Paul, accompanied by a feeling of hopeless love. That gave him confidence and made him smile broadly, and a broad smile on Lukas' face was always enough to melt even the hardest heart.

'You still love me,' Lukas said huskily, 'that is good, for I want to make love to you too. Love is not a competition, Paul. It just is.' Talking clearly didn't help, it only made the hopeless feeling worse. Lukas now started to really feel it, detachment out of the window, smile gone: 'Paul, take care, you're making me sad, and you know there is a penance for making a god cry.'

Humour did help, for Paul's face cleared instantly, and he said with a genuine smile: 'I'm sorry Lukas, I suddenly felt so inadequate, and now I've totally spoiled the mood. Tell me what the penance is, and I'll pay for my crime to both of you.'

'You're not inadequate, and your penance to Melissa is, to prove it by making her shudder in total ecstasy. And your penance to me, is to subject yourself to my love,' Lukas brought this with a very solemn face, which cleared the mood even more.

Paul now hugged Lukas tightly, put him off his lap and bowed down before him, saying: 'I defer to your wisdom, master.' Of course this made Lukas all shy again, making him irresistible, and Paul moved over to kiss him, but Lukas said: 'Better get to it, your woman is waiting.'

Which she was, and as Paul kneeled between her legs, stroking her curves, kissing her, holding her breasts, Melissa said: 'It has always been you I wanted, Paul, and it will always be you. Lukas knows it, I know it, why won't you believe it?'

'I do believe it, beloved,' Paul said with feeling, 'don't mind me, I was just awestruck for a moment. It has passed,' and then he resolutely spread her legs, kissed her coppery pubic curls then gently moved them to the side, and dug in greedily, licking her where she reacted the strongest until her whole body trembled with ardour and rising bliss.

Of course the taste and soft flesh of his beloved under his tongue caused his own ardour to rise again, and he was relishing the confidence Melissa's obvious enjoyment of his ministrations gave him, when he felt a very gentle touch on his own inner thigh.

It was slightly disturbing, but also rather enticing, and he subjected himself to the feeling, wondering what would be next. But the hand did nothing Paul wasn't comfortable with, it stroked his butt-cheeks, running very briefly through the cleft between them, then handled his testicles very tenderly, stroking the soft skin, causing him to shiver as delightedly as Melissa was under his tongue.

When she froze momentarily in release, the hand on his most sensitive parts moved to his penis, taking it in a firm hold, guiding it into a warm and moist mouth, and as he felt a tongue caress the most sensitive parts he saw flashes before his eyes, ardour exploding inside him. Trying to concentrate on Melissa, keeping her in a state of constant bliss, helped to keep his own excitement down enough to really enjoy the feeling, usually it excited him so much he had to break off to last a little longer.

But of course this was the master of love at work again, and he knew exactly how to make a man last as long as he wanted him to. In fact, he was so good at it that Paul was still gasping for breath when Melissa laughed at him and told him she'd had enough, there was nothing left in her. Then she watched Lukas at his best, any time her beloved husband approached a climax, he shifted his attentions to another intensely sensitive part of Paul's body, his testicles, the place right behind them, another very sensitive place that no other person but Paul himself had ever touched before, he subjected himself to being stroked and licked everywhere the master wanted to, and when at long last Lukas allowed him to finally come to a blinding climax, he was totally speechless and filled up to the brim with pure love. Literally. He had never contained so much magical energy before in his life, but then, he'd never been loved by a god either.

Feeling totally drained of lust himself, he could see that Lukas had worked up quite a bit of ardour again, and though Melissa had been sated with one kind of loving, he knew that once her heat was up, it wasn't as easily drained as that, so he assured the two of them: 'I'm good, indulge yourself, the master of love has proven his point, he is the best, but that doesn't mean the rest of us are inadequate. I'd like to see you in action once more, filled with your love, Lukas.'

And of course that was enough consent for Lukas, who was dying to try out his new muscles once more. He invited Melissa into his arms, then draped her legs over his shoulders, as he had done before when other ways of stimulating her had been exhausted. Then he slowly, tantalizingly entered her, seeing her eyes widen as she felt him approach that one place inside her that he had touched just once before.

When he had reached it, he thrust slowly and deeply a few times, already sending flashes of pure bliss through her, and then he started to speed up, more and more, until he had reached his former max, leaving Melissa gasping with pleasure until she climaxed with a little cry. And before that cry had died down, he went all out, lower body blurring again to Paul's mortal eyes, Lukas' face still cute as he laughed merrily, enjoying himself hugely with his newly found physical enhancement.

Then the laughing stopped, and Lukas became intense, as his own ardour reached that point in which it took over his being, driving him to go on and on until he climaxed in a series of spasms, and collapsed right on top of Melissa, who received him with indulgence and intense love.

She wanted Paul in her arms too, and he joined her with eagerness, feeling her warm, luscious body against him, and Lukas' hot, heaving shape on top of him, totally spent of course, too breathless to laugh but smiling his delicious broad smile.

Chapter 2

'Your new status has been well and truly initiated, master Lykos,' a voice sounded from across the room. Totally without shame, Lukas sprang up, naked, still breathing heavily, ran to the owner of the voice and jumped him, crying: 'Ophius!'

Not totally without shame, but too sated and lazy to care, Paul and Melissa looked up to see Lukas in the arms of a middle aged man, with rough curls and beautifully curved horns, who was wearing a shirt and not much else. They were hugging, and the large man had tears in his eyes.

He said something to Lukas in a very emotional voice, and Lukas replied: 'Yes, I'm fine. No, father is right, we don't know who did it, but it all turned out for the best. I'll tell you all later. So you noticed? It just happened, the moment I set foot on the ground here. Let me introduce you to my saviours and best friends.'

The other man laughed heartily and said something cheeky, Melissa was sure, and Lukas' answer proved that: 'Yes, and lovers, Ophius. But not just any lovers.' He beckoned them urgently, but Melissa was too much a Victorian to greet a total stranger who had caught her having sex with two men, without at least one layer of clothing between them.

So she picked up her dress and put it on, tied the sash, and then went towards the two men. Paul donned his trousers and did the same.

Lukas said something in his beautiful Greek, and when she heard: 'This is Melissa Kenwick, a beautiful lady from a totally different world, who saved my life,' she curtsied and said a simple greeting in her best Greek, which was still awful.

And of course Paul did speak Greek, so when Lukas said: 'And this is Paul Kenwick, Melissa's

husband, who taught me to craft metal and not a little about magic, when my Gift first awoke,' she heard him reply: 'Pleased to meet you, Ophius.'

Lukas now added: 'This is Ophius, who has been the keeper of my father's villa for as long as I can remember.'

Hearing Melissa's atrocious Greek, Paul realized she would understand what Lukas and himself said, but not a sentence anyone else spoke, and he regretted that he didn't know the spell that enabled a person to understand a foreign language, the one Hermes had used to talk English.

Of course they could ask Hermes to put that simple spell on her, it would make things a lot easier for Melissa if she could communicate freely with the people around her. But could they trust Hermes to put just the one spell on the woman he had desired, wouldn't he use the opportunity to add another one, to seduce her to his own ends?

Actually, that would have to be her own choice. Hermes could probably put any spell he wanted on any of them at any time, he was a powerful god on this world and they had only come here because they had information that he could be trusted. So Melissa would probably decide to trust him and let him put the spell on her, what else could she do, they were at his mercy anyway.

Paul put on his shirt and his boots as well as his trousers, and shouldered his backpack, as Ophius said: 'Your father is out for the day, Lykos, but he will be back tonight. He was going to fetch you tomorrow, but apparently time moves more quickly where you live.

If you will all follow me, I will show you to your rooms, and then master Lykos can show you the house. After that, I will serve your lunch on the terrace.'

And to Paul he said: 'Young master, no need to carry your luggage yourselves, if you tell me which pack belongs to whom, I'll take care it is brought to your room.'

So Paul put the pack down again, translated what Ophius had said literally to Melissa and took her hand, then followed Ophius out of the cellar, Lukas chatting with his old friend, and Melissa putting an arm around Paul and looking up at him in wonder. She stroked his face tenderly and said: 'He is right, you do look young again. And stunningly handsome. I love you so much, Paul, you do know that, don't you?'

She looked so heartbreakingly sweet and beautiful, her hair worn loose, the little horses running around and around her white throat, where they had been ever since she accepted them as his gift, the simple loose gown setting off her generous figure even better than the most intricate of her Victorian dresses. He guessed most Greek women would be small and dark and slim, with huge dark eyes, but he was sure none of them would be able to match his tall, luscious white skinned lady with her wealth of copper hair and her intelligent grey eyes.

He stopped for a moment to kiss her with all the intensity of his love for her, and when they couldn't see Lukas or Ophius anymore, they broke off the kiss and ran after them, still holding hands, giggling like children.

The villa was beautiful, though smaller than Melissa had expected from a god's home. After they had been shown their chambers, a nice sized room with a white-washed wooden floor and a large double bed for Paul and herself, and a similar room with a slightly smaller bed for Lukas, Lukas showed them the house.

There were several more chambers like theirs all lined up beside one another. Three walls of each chamber were blind, the back one undoubtedly hewn out of the natural rock of the cliff this villa was built on, the others built out of smooth limestone blocks with little fossils embedded in some of them. Of course in Melissa, the engineer awoke: 'How do your people get these limestone blocks so smooth, Lukas, do you know?'

Turning to face her, Lukas answered: 'I guess they did it with magic, nearly everyone here has some magic, the craftspeople too. Though I think they cannot just take the power like you do, whatever they don't generate by themselves, they have to ask their god for.'

That sounded weird to Melissa, but they would undoubtedly discuss that further later, since they intended to study magic here.

The fourth wall of each chamber had a door and a window looking towards a long gallery that ran the entire length of the villa. And the gallery itself had a magnificent view over the terrace, which ended where the cliff dropped off, and beyond that what must be the Mediterranean sea, as far as the eye could see, and as blue as the London sky on a cloudless day. It was stunningly beautiful.

But it was also the exact villa and terrace that Melissa remembered from her lively dreams.

It took her a few minutes to recover from that realization, until her logical mind had deduced that those elves could have picked Hermes' mind for the memory of this place as easily as they had rifled through everyone else's private thoughts.

Then she managed to give her attention to the house again, as they walked the gallery to its one end, a dead end with another view of the bluest of seas. Then they changed direction and found that this side of the gallery led back to the main part of the villa. There was a door ending up in a hall, and in that hall were several doors, one of which went down to the cellar where they had come from.

And one to a separate privy and communal bathing chamber, with a large pool, standing empty, and several smaller tubs, also empty. The design was beautiful, mosaic everywhere, even the tubs were tiled depressions rather than metal affairs. There was no boiler in sight, but of course it might be hidden. Lukas answered their unspoken thoughts: 'It all works with magic. I'll show you after lunch, or maybe tomorrow.'

Back in the hall, there was yet another door, which led into the kitchen, but that was the domain of Ophius, for he took his job seriously and told them their every wish was his command. The dishes he was preparing looked heavenly.

Retiring to the terrace they sat in the comfortable chairs, enjoying the view over the sea, as Lukas explained that this was not Hermes' main home, but merely the place where he had kept his one wife, Lukas' mother, and where Lukas had grown up, always in the company of his mother, and regularly in that of his father, who had lived with them a lot of his time, often out to do his duty to the gods, but coming home to his favourite wife almost every night.

After she had died unexpectedly when Lukas was twenty, Hermes had instantly stopped coming, had dropped all contact with his son, who had lived there for one more year, alone with the staff, totally dependent on them at first because the mosaic was the only easy entrance and it needed a Gift to operate, however slight.