Destin's Hold

Chapter 3-1

Chapter Three

Destin grinned when he saw Kali in a dress. This had to be a first since she was about… two years old! The brief glare she gave him showed she was well aware of his amused appraisal. He bent over and picked up Ami in his arms. She was wearing a pair of pink tights and a white dress.

“Doesn’t your mom look beautiful, Ami?” Destin asked. There was definitely a radiance about Kali that he had never seen before. “She’s as beautiful as your grandma was.”

“You don’t look so bad yourself, Destin,” Kali murmured, reaching for Ami. “I wish you could stay longer.”

Destin studied Kali’s glowing face. He had missed her. Deep down, he knew he had done the right thing when he made the deal with Razor to take Kali away from Earth. She had almost died too many times. When he discovered she was pregnant, he was especially thankful he made the choices he had. Life had not been easy over the last two years. Yes, fighting for the city was pretty much over, but there were still issues with a few renegade gangs.

“I need to return. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done. Maybe one day it will be different and you can come back to Earth for a visit, see all the changes,” Destin replied.

Kali’s gaze moved to the open vee of his dark green dress shirt. “Where’s your medallion?” she asked with a frown. “You never go anywhere without it.”

Destin’s lips tightened. “I misplaced it. I’ll look for it when we get back,” he said, turning when Razor came into the room.

“How is Saber doing today?” Destin asked.

“Cursing us all,” Razor replied with a grin. “I never realized how much fun a bachelor party could be.”

“What did you guys do last night?” Kali asked, setting Ami down when she started to wiggle.

“Destin showed us how to walk on walls,” Razor chuckled. “It is easier if you have not had too much to drink.”

Kali scowled and shook her head. “You’re lucky none of you broke a leg. Speaking of which, how did Saber do it with his leg?” she asked with concern.

“He did fine. It was a chance for him to test out the new brace that Taylor developed. It worked very well. I can understand why you love doing this ‘Parkour’,” Razor said, wrapping his arms around Kali. “But, it also showed me how difficult and dangerous it is.”

Kali leaned back and grinned at him. “And that is where you stop this conversation if your next sentence is going to begin with ‘I don’t want you to…’” she teased.

“I think we should do it together from now on,” Razor muttered, glancing at Destin with a rueful look. “Has she always been this stubborn?”

Destin chuckled and shook his head. “If you haven’t figured that out yet, I’m not going to say anything. It will just get me into hot water with her, too,” he quipped. “I think it is time to go. Ami, do you want a ride on Uncle Destin’s shoulders?”

“Up!” Ami cried in delight, raising her arms. “Horsey!”

“One horsey ride coming up,” Destin laughed, picking Ami up and settling her on his shoulders. He winced when she kicked him with her heels. “Ouch! She’s going to be like you, Kali. Always kicking the sh….”

“Watch your language; she’s like a parrot right now,” Kali muttered under her breath after elbowing Destin in the side.

“I can see where that might be a problem,” Destin agreed. “Last one in the transport gets to feed the monsters.”

“Monsters! I wants a monster,” Ami giggled, fluffing up Destin’s hair.

Razor and Kali laughed at the pained expression on Destin’s face. Destin held onto Ami’s legs, making sure he ducked when he went through the doorways, though each was at least twelve feet high, so there was no actual need to, and romped out to the transport. He swung her down and placed her in the childseat in the back, then strapped her in and climbed in next to her. Razor held the door open for Kali before he walked around to climb into the pilot’s seat.

Within minutes, they were lifting off from the ground. The clear bubble on the transport gave them excellent visibility all around. Once again, Destin felt excitement grow inside him at the possibilities for not just Chicago, but Earth. If more humans could see and experience what he had by traveling here, they would have such a different perspective – well, most of them would. The groups of people trying to keep them in the dark ages were dwindling each year, but he knew some people would always cling to the past.

“It is unbelievable how far advanced in technology the Trivators are compared to humans,” Destin murmured, staring out the window.

“It will be wonderful to do this on Earth,” Kali replied. “Perhaps this is a chance for humans to start over and do it right this time.”

Destin grunted. He didn’t want to burst any bubbles today. Dreams and reality were two entirely different things. He knew better than most that it took all kinds of people to make up a world, and in almost twenty-eight years, he had seen the dark side more often than he had seen the light. The murder of their mother by a gang member just for a few lousy dollars and a chance for promotion within the gang had left him and Kali orphans at a young age.

He couldn’t suppress the bittersweet thought of how different he and Kali had turned out from their mother. He clasped his hands together when he thought of the blood he carried on them. He had demons he needed to put to rest, and rebuilding Chicago into a modern, safe haven was one way he hoped to do it.

“What?” he asked, realizing that Kali had said something to him.

“I said maybe you’ll meet someone here and you’ll want to stay,” Kali teased, glancing at him over her shoulder.

“I already have. Her name is Ami,” Destin retorted, reaching over and tickling Ami when she turned to grin at him.

It wasn’t the image of Ami that came to mind, though; it was a woman with long white hair, pale blue skin, and fire in her eyes. A flash of need swept through him and he closed his eyes. It had definitely been too long since he’d been with a woman. He would have to do something about that when he returned home.

“We’re here,” Razor said. “What is this ceremony called again?”

“A wedding,” Kali replied, eagerly glancing out the window at the long garland of white flowers along the fence.

Razor gazed at Kali with an almost fearful look. “Are you going to want one of these?” he asked, returning his attention to landing the transport.

“No,” Kali whispered. “I’m happy attending them, but I wouldn’t want to have one.”

“Thank you, Goddess,” Razor muttered, shutting down the transport and opening the doors.