Beauty and His Beast [MxM] (UNEDITED)

Ares POV

"Why can't I come with? Daddy says I'm a strong warrior. The strongest of all." Eros asked, his little green eyes welling with tears as he held the sleeve on my battle gear.

I turned and looked at Aven who looked at Eros, as if he too didn't know what to reply to him. I smiled and ruffled his hair slightly, pinching his cheek as I pulled him against my chest in a tight hug.

"Of course you are. But Daddy and I are both going and we need someone to be the king here while we're gone." I said and watched a smile spread across his face, his white tusks gleaming in the sun light.

"I can do that! I'll be king while you're gone" he said with a bright smile that gave me all the strength I needed to do what I needed to do.

"Good. Now be a good king until we get back okay." I asked and smiled at him once more before I kissed the top of his head, stepping aside and watched as he ran to Aevn who picked him and squeezed the life out of him before he set him down and looked at me.

"Ready?" He asked as he held out his hand towards me. I nodded and took his hand, lacing our fingers for a brief moment before I climbed onto my white horse while he, his black one.

I let out a breath as we rode through the portal, feeling all sorts of different emotions pass over me when we reached the end of it.

I looked around at the land I had left all those years, a strange and eerie feeling of nostalgia overcoming me as I looked ahead at the vast forest that surrounded the land between mountains. I turned my head and looked at our army that had emerged from the portal, all dressed and geared, ready for battle. I placed my helmet on my head, throwing my braid behind my back as I gripped the reigns of my horse and advanced forward.

I felt Aven ride his midnight black horse close to my right side while our messenger rode on my left. We rode until we reached the middle of the land. A land void of any life forms, which seemed as though they knew what was going to happen and sought shelter from it.

I held my horse back as I stopped and looked ahead. Seeing their army gathered and lined up in formations to form an arrow head, with the leader of their army right in the front. Seated above his horse, gripping the reins tightly as he stared back at me.

Fortis.

I felt my breath get caught in my throat at seeing him again after so many years, standing before me in the flesh. His glowing green eyes staring back at me through his helmet. His silky black hair tightly braided and flowing down his shoulder.

He nodded at his messenger who rode towards us, the sounds of a galloping horse filling the empty land as he advanced toward us, stopping in front of me before he lifted his helmet and locked his gaze with mine. His black orbs glaring at me.

"Kronar." I greeted as he glared at me before he scoffed.

"Some nerve you have coming back here." He replied before he raked me with a glare that told me was most definitely disgusted at being in my close proximity.

"Our king has proposed the soldiers rest for the night. Drinking and eating to their fill before the fight tomorrow. For it will most definitely be their last." He added.

"Your king?" I asked as I looked past him, wide eyed at those bright glowing green orbs staring back at me.

"Very well." Aven replied, causing me break my stare and look at Kronar who hadn't stopped his glaring at me before he turned and rode back to Fortis, relaying our message.

I watched as Fortis nodded before he looked back at me for a few seconds more before he turned his horse and rode away with his soldiers following suit.

Aven turned around and instructed our soldiers that we would be camping the night and would resume our fighting tomorrow. The bowed in obedience and got to work erecting tents around the area, some starting fires to prepare food while others joked around with each other.

"Hard to imagine that tomorrow will be filled with blood and gore" Aven said from his spot behind me where he had been standing while he watched me oversee our soldiers.

I nodded as I heard him walk towards me, wrapping his arms around my waist and resting his chin against my shoulder.

"Are you okay with this, given the circumstances?" He asked a causing me turn around and face him.

"I suppose it hasn't fully dawned on me yet." I replied as I shrugged and raised my hand to tuck a lock of his black hair behind his ear.

"I must say. Eros has his eyes." Aven said as he smiled down at me before he leaned towards me and pressed a kiss against my lips.

"He does" I replied as I wrapped my arms around his waist and leaned my head against his chest, closing my eyes for a brief second.

I watched as the soldiers laughed with one another, as if they were completely oblivious to the fact that a war would soon take place.

A war that would mark the end of an entire species.

I let out a sigh as I retired to bed, pulling open the entrance of our tent and finding Aven laying on his back, his forearm draped across his eyes as he breathed silently. I walked towards him and slowly laid down next to him, laying my head against his chest as I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep.

I must have laid there for what felt like hours, trying to get even a moment of sleep. Even as the laughter and ruckus of the soldiers long died out and they too retired to bed, did I still lie awake and look at the roof of our tent turning from side to side.

Unable to take it any longer I sat up and grabbed my coat, draping it over me as I walked out of the tent. The smell of an extinguished fire filling the air along with various smells of different alcohols. Each and everyone asleep in the dead of night.

I pulled on my boots as I pulled my cape over my head and slowly walked ahead. I tried to remain as quiet as possible, not wanting to wake anyone, and walked towards the forest.

The sounds of the night owls hooting on the branches above, the howls of wolves and barks of foxes filled the silent forest as I made my way through it. Knowing my way around it even after all these years.

I walked until I reached the river, bending down as I looked at myself in the reflection. I pushed my cape back as I reached into the water and splashed water on my face, shivering slightly as the cool water rolled down my neck. I shook my hands out, drying them off the water as I stood up, looking at the night sky above me.

"What do you want?"