tales from the skyline: a short story anthology

𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐞 (𝟑) - 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭'𝐬 𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬

See, they'll say things about Daedalus when it's all said and done. He knows this. He knows that his story won't probably be the best one.

But there's one thing he knows they won't say, one thing that has never been said.

Daedalus was a man who would do anything for his family.

And this child in front of him was not his family.

Don't get him wrong, the child was definitely like family to him, and especially to Icarus. But this was not Icarus' brother, no matter what he said. I mean, was he there for most of his "brother's" life? No? was he ever officially adopted? Hmm, what's that? Yeah, also no. So Icarus can say a lot of things... of late, he could say a lot of hurtful things... but Daedalus knew that he was Icarus' family, not this short, blonde, warmongering child in front of him.

No matter how many times Icarus had tried to tell him otherwise.

Surely Icarus hadn't actually disowned him once he moved to the clouds. Surely this had to be the work of someone else, of someone on the surface with powers and the like. Because yes, he'll admit he wasn't exactly in the right, but come on! Daedalus' own parents hadn't been there when he was locked in that bloody labyrinth with that godawful minotaur until he had to fashion his own way out, and hey, he turned out fine!

So he just couldn't understand why Icarus wanted to side with, well, powerless people. People on the surface, people who just couldn't protect him like Daedalus could.

He was there against his own will, Daedalus was sure of it. But finally, in death, they could be a family again. Just Icarus, and Daedalus, and maybe even this child if his son absolutely insisted. But whatever the outcome turned out to be, Deadalus would be with his son. And there would be no hoodlums, no wrongun's, and no two-timing thieves coming between them being a happy family again.

"Hey, Die-dalus! What'cha doing? I don't know where we are, and you said we're going to see Icarus, so which way do I go?"

Shocked back into reality, he watches the child in front of him bounce up and down on the spot, seemingly way too happy for someone who's just died. He stands in front of the old ship port, huge boats and small dinghys alike scattering the shore, wrecked and sprayed with seafoam and the blood of the old sailors.

Unfortunately, he can't leave this kid behind. Icarus would be too mad at him.

"Yeah, yeah, kid. Just gotta hop in one of these little boats and sail out to where Icarus flew up. We can probably find him there."

The kid – Tommy, I'm sure his name was – looks at me, confused.

"But, Die-dalus, why would Icarus be in the middle of the ocean? Why didn't he come and look for me?"

Shut up, kid, he thinks.

"Oh, no reason, just... uhm... he couldn't find you! Yeah, that's it, Icarus couldn't find you, so he went to the place that he knew we'd look first!"

Tommy still looks skeptical, eyeing Daedalus as if he's the one that killed Icarus, before speaking again.

"You're not going to like... hurt Icarus, are you? 'Cuz that's not very fair to him, hes doing his very best, and I really really don't want him to cry again."

Cry? I knew these guys were wrongun's! Twisting my son's emotions, feeding him lies about me... probably some form of mind control!

"No, no, Tom, I'm not going to hurt my son-"

"Not your son. He disowned you."

"I am not going to hurt my son. I am going to save him, if you must know."