(Three years later)

Epimethieus stared at the pair, his cruel eyes shot through the pair. Both of them looked horrified, both of them shifty as if they had something to hide as Epimethieus read their faces and Lilith attempted to crack the wall around their thoughts and feelings. Their minds kept hers out, kept her from reading them like books. They were not interested in letting their thoughts out, airing their dirty laundry so to speak. They both looked at each other as Epimethieus's large finger pointed directly at Chronos. "You never mentioned your... wife... she is... being difficult. It has been three solid years since we have been back and she still seems to not believe you are gone"

"I can deal with her, if you wish?" Deimos offered, flashing his fangs.

"No, do not dare touch her!" Chronos yelled. He pushed Deimos, pinning him against a wall. Deimos laughed, pushing him off. "You know, that would be cute if I was into you"

"Get lost!" Chronos snapped.

"Boys, please. That is enough. Chronos will go and do what he needs to, Deimos, you shall stay out his way, is that understood?"

"Whatever"

Chronos walked into the streets, thanks to his new appearance, different skin tone, eye colour... even his hair looked darker, black as night, he did not look as he did, not how anyone would remember him but that was the good thing... that was the good part, the only way he could see Jason and his wife. Even if he did not like Phoebe, she was still his wife and he still loved her. She was the one he loved, the wife he loved the day he married her up until the day she'd die or maybe throughout his immortal life, maybe he would carry her forever... never letting her die.

He hurried through the streets expecting things to have changed but really there was little change. His son was older, no doubt a young man now, hopefully with a wife of his own... hopefully happy, free. He wanted the best for his child, all the things he should have had, a life of his own... money in his pocket, enough money to buy the home not just rent it, enough to pay for taxes and food, enough to afford to live a good life, a life of luxury that his father never had in his. What was going to happen to his son? Chronos could only guess and hope, hope that after three years he was no longer dependant on his mother but merely on himself.

He hid quickly as he watched Phoebe. Jason hurried out after her and walked her back inside; she was in floods of tears. He could not help it; he wanted to go to her, to look after her. He hid opposite, just watching her, hearing her cry even as she was behind for walls. It took everything to stop him knocking on their door and announcing that he was still alive in his own way. Life had given him immortality, broken all the rules so he could stay with them forever. What was it like to be so close to your family and yet so far away? Painful to say the least for he knew they were there, he knew they were close and yet he could do nothing about it, nothing but watch them grow older and older, watch his wife and his son age slowly, becoming older and frail, becoming wrinkled with age as they face their inevitable end while he stayed young and beautiful forever.

Hints of regret flowed through his mind as Lilith reached out to him. She touched him on the shoulder very gently. "It is this part, this part is the most painful... saying goodbye without saying it"

"How can I say it?" he asked gently, tears rolling down his cheeks even as he tried to hide them.

"I do not know, I only know that this is the most painful part, I have experienced this... the loss, leaving family and friends behind"

"Can I go back to them or go back on this... do I have to be this?" he asked tearfully. She hugged him gently, her comforting hands around him. "I wanted the same thing, to go back but there is no going back, if you go back to them you would have to explain to them about everything because you cannot undo what has been done, I am so sorry"

"Why did I accept this then? I could be happy... with them!" Chronos yelled as he ran off. He was faster than Lilith, not interested in waiting around for her either; he just wanted to feel life... to feel his life again, to be human again. He believed there had to be a way to end it, end the curse... the blessing that became a curse after just three years. Constantly hiding, feeding and running, always running and never staying in the same place twice. This was the nightmare that became his life, the nightmare that plagued it, twisted him around and around, plunging the knife in deeper and deeper until he bled.

It was only going to get worse as time moved on and he was stuck with it, stuck with time, in time... he would forever feel the pressure of time, as if he was strangled by time, the knots tightening, the rope tightening around his neck as he struggled to feel anything like hope or dreams. Was this now his life? Was this the way his life would be? Forever struggling to find the balance, the line between human and immortal, never aging, never scarring but permanently scarred with the reality of loss, the loss of his son, Jason. Jason had years left in him, he was a good, healthy and strong young man who deserved to be happy but Phoebe, she looked older, as if grief had forced her to age, as she mourned it forced her years of youth to vanish. When he looked at her he saw someone else, as if her youth had disappeared into the night cruelly, leaving nothing but sadness in its wake for she was not a patch on what she once was, what she once looked like. She looked ill, almost as if she was a zombie, as if her heart was broken.

"Why are you running from them if you want to get close to them?" Lilith asked inside his head, her voice whispering in it, echoing inside it.

"Get out of my head!" Chronos yelled as he punched a wall, his fist punched through it at a lightning speed, leaving no mark on his hands as if it had not even cut them.

"Normal, everyday items, even swords do not touch us, do not harm any of us. We can never be cut by marble or metal, never be stabbed or speared; the item shall just break before it touches us. The only thing that can kill us is our own stupidity. If you go against the witches, they will kill you, believe me" Lilith explained as she walked by him, walked behind him, her footsteps soft in the sand.

"You sound as if you know something about it"

"My father was a fool; he tried to become more powerful, something more than a wizard, something stronger. He killed witch after witch for their powers only he managed to curse himself, kill himself and bring himself back to life. The price that came from that power was what you see today. The light burns him, turns its back on him, the gods are disgusted with him for his choices and have since punished him. Hecate, goddess of witchcraft promised he would never be able to make another after he made me, cursed forever to remain as two only that night, the night of the total eclipse, Hecate was blinded, her powers weaker and he managed to make you both. That night you became like him, only difference between us and him is he has ultimate power, we do not"

"What will happen if we get it? How do we get it? I need to know so I can avoid it! I do not want to be like him, to lose everything to age... to their age, to time... time is and can be a nightmare for us and soon, my son will look older than me. Tell me of a way to reverse this, I need to know a way, anything you know or any path I can take... please, Lilith, as your brother, I am begging you"

"There is no way to undo this, to undo what has been done. I have tried and there was nothing, not a thing I could do, believe me I want undo this, I have lived long enough throughout history, seen and felt its pain and I admit, I am tired... so tired of it all. Do you know what it is like to be tired of life and yet still be alive? Do you know what it is like to starve to death, desperate for just a taste of blood and yet know you will never know the peace that death brings? I do because I have seen it, felt it and tasted it. I have tasted humanity at its strongest and weakest and I am tired of life, of living day in day out, nursing our father and yet watching him plan to make another and another... where will it end? When will it end? I see no ending in sight, no chance of an ending in sight"

"So I die, simple?"

"No... you do not understand, you cannot die, believe me!"

"Why cannot I not die when I am not actually living, I am not living just surviving so tell me why, why can I not?!"

"Because this is our life now, a life without our friends and family, just each other, our own family and even though I wish I could help you, I cannot help you end it, either your life or our curse, it is impossible, I am sorry but it is just impossible"

"I want to be free again, if I knew what this meant I would never have gone for it" Chronos admitted, his eyes filled with tears. He wiped his tears. "The cost is too much, more than I can bear"

Lilith touched his shoulder as she left him there. Chronos had never felt more alive, away from his friends and family, away from those who loved and cared so much about but... loss, his loss that had not yet even come to pass still ripped him up, broke him down and patched him up only to smash him to pieces again. Loss and pain were the two things he would feel, he was guaranteed to feel as the years ticked and death came for his son. There was but one other option, to make him one of them and to force him to feel as his father did but what sort of a father could do that to his own son? What kind of father could waltz back into his son's life and make him nothing but a monster? He just could not do it, not to his own son, not his innocent son.

Chronos stood for a little while, watching the sun set, the waves on the water crashing the rocks. This is where many wives were made widows, many men lost to endless and countless wars. He had fought in two of them, one as a royal, another as a blacksmith merely trying to hide himself and his precious secret whilst trying to make ends meet. The king was unaware of his survival until the day of selection, the best way to tame him was to blind him, curse his hideous sight so he would never be able to harm Chronos or Jason, so he would never be able to control them. A deal struck sent him to war instead of his son, a decision he never once found the heart or soul to regret his decision, to fight for his son and for his freedom, it was not unreasonable for a father to die for his children.

The waves smacked the rocks as Chronos watched the people passing by. He could not help himself; he could not fight his urge to kill, to feed and to kill. He grabbed an innocent man, a fisherman he'd guessed, judging from the stench of fish. The man's tearful eyes struck his heart like lightning yet he could not let go.

He could feel himself shaking; feel himself shaking as he tried to steady his hand. The man could not live; he had seen Chronos's face, his dead and hungry eyes. Chronos mercifully bit down into his neck, his blood dribbling down his ragged clothes as Chronos attempted to block out thoughts and feelings and suck the blood of his victim without letting his human emotions break him down. He finished him relatively quickly, not wanting to see the shamefulness of crime; he threw the body, lifeless and cold, bloodless and stiff into the water, allowing the waves to take him.

"So... elegantly disposed, like rubbish but what on earth was the need for all that emotion?" Deimos asked teasingly as he stood as bold as brass.

"What do you want Deimos?" Chronos asked in an aggressive tone.

"Rude, nice to see you too brother and if you really must know, I was close, in the brothel... lovely girl, very tasty... shame about the location but still I can ignore that if you can somehow ignore the disgusting stench of fish"

"What is this about, Deimos?"

"Again with the rudeness, I told you, I was close by"

"You never truly go though, do you? You are like an illness, a disease; you latch yourself onto a body and refuse to budge"

"Now, now, do not be so jealous, there are plenty of victims out there"

"Go drown with the body, I do not need you"

"Oh someone is in a horrible mood, is it because you saw the wife? Yes, I did try to warn you away"

"Have you got nowhere else to be right now? Is there nowhere else you can inflict your pain and suffering?"

"Well there is but it would not have quite the same effect. Not to worry, I will just hang here with my brother for a little while, watching the sun come up and people gasping and gawking at it... oh wait, I am sorry, only you do that. A sunrise is a sunrise, no matter how many times you stare at it, when you have seen one, you have seen them all but sunset? Now that changes every single time, it reminds me its feeding time"

"You are one sick bastard!"

"Agreed but then again, someone has to be or life would be so very boring. Enjoy your sunrise, I will try not to mess it up for you and a little piece of advice, before you go stalking your son, change your clothes, you wreak of fish guts"

"Deimos, what do you want from me?"

"I want us to be brothers but you need to feed properly, give up your stupid humanity" Deimos ordered. He pointed Deimos to a pretty girl. "Feed and get rid of the fish smell"

"Shut up, Deimos and leave me alone"

"Embrace who you are and what you are. Do not just be boring and attack because you cannot help it, hunt your prey and drink from your prey"

"I am not like you, I am not as sick as you"

"That comment would sting, if I cared... but I do not so... too bad"

Chronos turned his back on the young rich thing Deimos pointed out. He forced himself to turn away from temptation and ignore the very hunger that controlled him, that slivered through his body like snakes. His hunger boiled the blood inside him, the fisherman barely enough to sustain his month without as much as a drop of human blood within him. Did he deny the existence of his hunger? No but he felt it, felt the need to feed, to take life and feel life flowing through him. It was another reason, excuse as to why he could not approach his son, why he had to avoid him, no matter what the cost, avoidance was best in that situation just in case he harmed him. Spilling a drop of blood would cause his death and to play a part in his son's death would kill him, killing his own son would tear him to pieces and devour him. He did not want to hurt him, either of them. His wife and son deserved better, deserved a better life and three years apart almost killed him inside, knowing it had been three years since he had seen his son, spoke to him... it killed him inside and twisted the knife around slowly, burning them. Deimos did not understand, probably thought Chronos was odd but Deimos had no family, no wife or child that he left behind. Jason was part of Chronos, a line that was now stained with blood and endless pain thanks to immortality. How long was it going to be before Chronos lost Jason? How long before Jason became Chronos's chronological age? How long before he met his end along with his mother and the empty grave that was his father's? Too soon, far too soon and yet Chronos lacked the will to damn and curse him, his blood flowing through him that was Epimethieus's blood too, the curse within him there for all to see, all to feel and know of but where was it all going to finally end? When was it going to stop hurting him, tearing at him?

"You love your son, I get that" Deimos stated.

"How would you know love? You do not know love or honour; you only know hate and hatred. It is all you feel"

"No, not all I feel. I was married once, had a small family... lost them"

"What happened?"

"You can run from the past, you can shut it up and ignore it, pretend all you like, tell yourself every day that it was a lie or a bad dream and that you will wake up and it will have gone but... it never truly leaves you, just silently creeps up on you. I found that out the hard way"

"What happened to them?"

"I ran for too long and the past caught up with me, became my future"

"And now what are you doing? For three years you left, you barely said a word, caught up every month or so but why? What is going on with you?"

Deimos smiled a little bit, his crookedly evil smile shone through, past the delicate one he tried to pretend existed. "I was taking care of business, evening the score"

"You killed them?"

"Not all of them, I am saving the best until last. There is only one reason why I would come back here, my family's murderers are gone but the hand that ordered them is still very much alive, he is my next target"

"Who is he?"

"A mutual enemy, so on this one I suggest you stick by my side... Your Majesty, unless you want me to tell the world, I do not mind, I would love to see the king himself burning to death, pay back for my wife and child"

"How long have you known?"

"Since I saw your branding, next stupid question?"

"Why did you keep quiet?"

"Because if father knows, he will use it to gain influence in Greece, I however quite like staying in the shadows, remaining in the darkness. He is the one who requires wealth and power, not I"

"So what do you desire?"

"Revenge, all I desire is to taste the blood of my enemies, the rest is pointless. If we show off, gain too much power and influence, have a king who never ages and never dies, there will be a whole new collection of enemies for us to fend off, not to mention the witches who will no doubt be making and selling enchanted weapons that could easily kill us both where we stand. I am a lot of things, a thief and an assassin included but never have I taken a life without reason and never have I attempted to"

"So what happens once your enemies are dead? What will you do then? You have immortality, a lifetime, several to kill those who went against you"

"Once the king is dead, I hope your son sits on his throne, if he is anything like his father, I know he will not be ruthless, he might put right some of the wrong in Greece"

"Father will not accept that" Chronos warned.

"Do I look like I give a damn? Father and his curse are useful, for now but once they prove otherwise, I am out of here and walking into the shadows to continue my business, being a vampire and an assassin works for me, I do not know nor care why but it just does. Maybe it is because I can spend as long as I need to, hunting down my contracts... maybe I will be like the arachnid, waiting and hiding until my enemies think they are safe, when their guard is down and they are done being afraid, then I will show them what fear is, they will understand what fear is as I end their life"

Chronos looked out at the water, the water splashed violently onto the rocks, crashing on them. "I do not know what I will do if father lets me go. I think perhaps I may sail the seas for a little while, see what life shall have in store for me"

"Do not think father cares about us, as soon as we become more powerful, he will get rid of us, kill us all for our gifts, that is the price of power, always looking over your shoulder"

"What shall I do then, kill him? Is that what you did to your own?"

"You want to talk about fathers, little prince? Fine, allow me. I was nine when I was taken from my mother's arms when she died, after that I spent my last coin looking for my father and all I found was a big fat chunk of nothing, I was alone without parents so I became a thief to survive and I was good at it, so good it became my profession until I was offered the chance to put my skills to the test, not just be a thief but an assassin, another thing I was good at until I was arrested by the bastard who is next on my long, bloody list, the last one who's blood we should both want to taste"

"I will not because I cannot let the past rule me. I entered an agreement and that agreement must be kept, the bargain struck... I will not lose Jason to my revenge or thirst for it"

"You may have found a way to let go of your past, to forgive and forget, to bury it under a rock and leave it be but I have not, not yet at least... my wife and child will be avenged, I will taste his blood and then I can let go, until then there will be no closure"

"You let revenge rule you, brother; it will be your undoing!"

"That king was my undoing, his hand was my undoing. When he killed my wife and my child, he unlocked the box that was the killer; he unlocked it and spread its contents. If he does not like it, he should not make killers, bend men back so far they break and become monsters"

"Is that what you think will happen to me? Do you really think I will become like you?"

"If you want to survive, you have no choice but to, in this life only the strong survive, the weak are the ones who fall to their deaths and spit out their own vile blood. What would you rather do? Would you rather live or die, fight or flee?"

Chronos merely ignored his question, ignored his statement. There was a big difference between staying strong and being a monster and Chronos was no monster, he would not allow himself to be a monster. He had struggled for far too long, struggled to fight himself and the urge to kill, sometimes it was so strong he could no longer fight it, sometimes he had to fight it and had to struggle through and sometimes he wanted to let it all go, let it all break free so he could feed, he could kill without thought or feeling. When he was alive, he felt his freedom, even if he was dying slowly, even if he did not know what life was offering him, it did not matter. Life had granted him a second chance, had helped him throughout his life and made him something he never thought was possible only to have his heart ripped out and taken away, his son taken from him by the life he was granted but no longer wanted. It was a contract he never knew the full terms and conditions of, a contract that had no end in sight.

He understood why Deimos chose it, for his revenge but revenge did not boil in Chronos's blood; he was not filled with hatred or anger, just sorrow. Three years without his son and then he saw the pair of them struggling while he was unable to help them, to reach out and touch them as he was stuck behind a sheet of unbreakable glass, hammering on it to reach out to them but not even scratches surfaced on it. He hammered away but was inaudible as they walked past him, still struggling away, the look on their faces forever haunting the pair of them as they struggled to understand, to understand why Chronos had to die. Was this his eternity? Was this what he was going to face forever? Losing his family and friends for all eternity, not knowing if he could even make his own, make Jason or any other into an immortal, losing his humanity as part of the deal so he would forget about what he was and just become an immortal monster, forever hiding in the darkness.

Deimos's gifts were born from the need to kill, kill those who hurt him and took away those he loved. What was he going to do once he was done? What was he going to do when the struggle was over and their blood taken? What was he going to do when there was no one left to take revenge on, die or live? What was going to happen to him? Was he still going to carry out his promise and avenge their deaths? Was he going to keep killing and killing until he felt he no longer needed to? Was he finally going to stop and realise their deaths, although tragic would only bring more blood if avenged? Where did it end, did he even see an end to all the bloodshed and hatred? Did he want any of it to end or to merely continue, spiralling dangerously out of control until finally there was nothing left to avenge, all the blood had been taken. What would he then do? Where would he then go? What would be his next goal and where would it all end?

All Chronos could look at was the coldness of the sea, the wind that played with his mind and his hair. He could smell it in the air, the stench of blood filling the night's air, the stench of his kind feasting, draining their victims dry very slowly. What was the point of it all? All there was going to be was a world filled with endless seas of blood and bodies until no one, not even one person was left alive to tell the tale. A whole population wiped out by four vampires, one who seemed to require and seek out power, grabbing it from every corner he could find it in. Was that then to be Chronos's fate? To love and to lose himself in love only to lose the one he loved or to have a son only to lose him to illness or age or conflict?

"He looks so lost when he feeds, like a farmer having to send his favourite lamb to slaughter. What to do with him?" Epimethieus asked, wondering as he crouched down silently on a rooftop, peering down at Chronos.

"I do not know but his gifts are growing, father" Lilith whispered as she sat by his side.

"How do you know that?"

"He detected me; neither of them has ever detected me before, father"

"Perhaps he knows you are there because he knows you, Lilith"

"Or perhaps his gifts grow faster than Deimos's"

Chronos hurried away, down the street. He looked at his old home; the place that he left that was calling him back. Perhaps it was love or guilt that was singing to him, commanding him to return but he had to ignore it, avoid it, he could not under any circumstances give in to it, allow it to control him. If Epimethieus saw him with his son, it could put his son in danger, give him ideas that Chronos did not want. The idea of his son living forever, facing the same things as his father killed him, tore him apart. How could he expect his son to live with that, to want to live with that forever? To feed off of people, people he knew and loved, to forever hear the heart beating in the background, calling them like a mother calls her child for dinner. He did not want that for himself anymore let alone his only son... let alone Jason.