Hercules: (Not) My kind of Hero {Complete}

Chapter κα

Human realm: Pack House

Gabe didn't know whether to be impressed or not as Herc had single-handedly destroyed what had been left of the First Alpha. Still, that lightning though, that kind of freaked him out. And what was more pressing was where did it go? After Herc had fried the goop that was slowly but surely devouring an unconscious Nate, it disappeared without a trace and Herc fainted. Something that worried him as Nate woke up a few hours ago, feeling hungry and as if he was hit by a sledgehammer. He also smelled faintly of alcohol, as if it had been rubbed on his skin a while ago. What was even stranger was the tale he told of Nate being ambushed but he had seen Akira in the cell where he was held for a short amount of time before they blindfolded him and dragged him to the crumbling place of worship and chained him to a section of a wall that seemed undamaged but smelled distinctly of rotting flesh, dust and bones.

So here he was now, lying next to an unconscious Herc, silently praying that he will wake up soon. The only sign of Herc being alive is the quiet frown on his face as Gabe stroked his face or his hair. "Come on Herc, wake up already. It's boring without you around." Gabe mutters softly, curling his massive form around Herc.

"Is he gonna wake up soon?" The soft childish voice woke Gabe from a dreamless sleep. One he has been having since Herc fell unconscious. Nate's sad face peeps over the other end of the bed, eyes trained on Herc. "I miss him." Gabe could imagine the dropping ears and curled-up tail. "I miss the stories he used to tell and our training together." He turned sad eyes on Gabe "Did you find Akira? Please tell me you found him?"

That was another weird thing, although they had searched high and low, there was no scent or sign of Akira in the cells, crumbling place of worship, or even the immediate surrounding forest area. There wasn't even a trace of him anywhere one would expect to find a trace, no matter how faint. Like Akira's house, his office, or the main room where the whole Pack gathers for celebrations. Like he vanished off the face of the earth. "No, sadly we found no trace of him anywhere when we got to you." Getting up on his elbows, Gabe grabbed Nate by the scruff of his neck and tucked him in between himself and Herc. Hoping against hope that their combined scent would wake Herc up from his slumber. Calling it anything else would sound like it was a definite thing that Herc would never wake up. It's odd, Gabe thought to himself as he dozed off again, that I want to keep the things I never wanted before.

I never wanted a family of my own, they will only stab you in the back. Like Nate's parents, and Herc's for that matter. I don't know much about his human mother but his father can be definitely a scary bastard.

Days continued to come and go and there is still no change in Herc's condition. It irked Gabe that there wasn't anything in the few written-down stories from the First Alpha's reign and there was nothing in the chronicles of the Gods either. Since the God Hypnos had helped them before, Gabe appealed to him but had no luck. Either Hypnos did not think him to be worthy of help or that Herc's life means nothing.

"That is not true Wolf pup." Snarling, Gabe turned on his heel to come face to face with Hypnos. This time he looks like a flawless, well-groomed celebrity. His dark hair matches his dark eyes which look sharp and wide awake. His lightly tanned skin showed no blemishes or tan lines. As for his age, he could be anywhere between eighteen and fifty. He has that ageless grace that one would associate with the Gods. "My young cousin's life is important to you and Pack but also to me." With those words, Hypnos sidesteps Gabe and walks the few steps to the bed where Herc still lies sleeping, with a frown and a sheen of sweat on his forehead. It eases as soon as Hypnos touches his forehead, the frown disappears and he lets out a sigh. "My young cousin's body has slowed down functions to heal. It is a deep sleep of healing, he will wake up soon. He is through the worst of it. Though some ambrosia will not be amiss."