Title: Chapter Two: A Father's Love

Series: Emesen’s Child

Author: Jennifer Lee

Email: jesca10@attbi.com

Web: http://home.attbi.com/~jesca10/ *Fictitious*

Disclaimer: All characters are the property of the author and are not to be reproduced without express consent.

Rating: PG

Summery: It is amazing what a father wouldn't do for his son...

Author’s Notes: Please email me if you want to put this or any of my stories on your website. I never say no, but I like knowing which sites are supporting my writing. Thanks!



Emesen’s Child 2: A Father’s Love
by Jennifer Lee


Ori Maine walked through his mansion as if on a mission. He walked through the lobby that led towards the back of the house, passing by servants as he went, but he didn’t give them a glance even though they scrambled to get out of his way.

He was a dangerous looking man and in this case a book could be judged by its cover for he was as dangerous as he looked. He was an imposing man with black hair and eyes so dark they looked black, although they were actually blue. His serious countenance lent itself to his dangerous look as his piercing eyes seemed to see everything and his hard mouth always looked to be drawn in a disapproving line across his face. His chin was square and hard and wisdom gathered through many thousands of years shown in his gleaming eyes.

No one really knew Ori’s real origins, or his real name and not many knew him to be immortal. He passed himself off as a normal person everywhere he went. Those who did know he was immortal only knew that he was old. Although he only appeared to be in his early fifties, it was impossible to attain his real age from looking at him.

Ori was someone who had worked hard through his life and expected the same from those around him. He was constantly pushing people to their limits, trying to get the best of everyone he was around. He didn’t accept failure and he was not a forgiving man. When things went wrong, he went to the source of the problem and he took care of it. But the same could be said about the reverse. When things started going in his favor, he was not one to sit back and just see what fate decided. He took hold of his own fate and he made things happen for him. That very philosophy was what was driving him as he walked through to the back of his mansion to walk towards the stables in search of his son, Darien.

Upon reaching the stables, he saw Darien, on the horizon, training with his horse. He would go from stand-still to a dead gallop as quickly as he could and then stop without notice. The exercise was to keep his horse, and him, sharp should he ever need to use his horse in battle. It was an old routine, but one Ori still found merit in. A warrior should always train to exceed his capabilities. Perfection was never attained to a true warrior. It pleased him that even though Darien was away from home going to college that when he returned he still took his training seriously.

Ori leaned against the stable and watched Darien. He smiled to himself as he realized he was watching his future. Darien was the pathway to an even more glorious future than his glorious past. He would see to that. He would let nothing stand in his way.

Ori had four children, but only Darien was actually his by blood. The other three children were picked up along the way.

Ori was certain he wouldn’t have a child of his own blood. For an immortal, having children was difficult. Immortal women could not have any children and for the men, a certain set of circumstances had to be met before a child could be conceived. Ori was sure this was to keep the powerful race a rare one.

First of all, finding a woman capable of having an immortal man’s child was difficult. During labor, which is almost always long and painful for the mother, immortals secrete an unexplainable toxic substance from their skin. When the baby is passed through the mother, the mother is infected by the toxins and dies. It looks very much like the mother has died because of the difficulties of the child’s birth. The toxin is wiped clean from the baby by nurses during cleaning, and they are all well protected by the barriers they wear during the childbirth. Not only does this end in certain tragedy for the mother, but oftentimes the child‘s health is put into jeopardy by the harsh delivery and they die.

Along with that difficulty, the woman who had the baby had to be in love. This was to ensure that she wasn’t forced or coerced into having a child. It also proved to make having a child harder. Not only would an immortal have to find a woman who could have his child, but also he would have to spend the time making her fall in love. This process could take years, and oftentimes was the reason behind a failed attempt at a child.

Happily, there was an exception, as there often is to rules. Some women, for whatever reason, are born with anti-toxins in their blood. The condition is rare, but one out of every six thousand woman were born with the anti-toxins. If an immortal man could find a woman with the anti-toxins and fall in love with her, a child could be born without the death of the mother or hardship to the child.

Lastly, the immortal could only have children during a certain period of time. After a certain age was reached, usually thirty-five mortal years, a child was unable to be born. This put most men on a stringent time restriction. If the man doesn’t discover his immortality before the age of thirty-five, then having children becomes impossible.

Ori was young and didn’t want the burden of a child. Plus he had neither the time or the patience for such rules. By the time he did decide he wanted a child, he was past the age of being able to have a child. Instead, he researched ways of getting around nature.

When he wasn’t researching or questing to find the necessary information he craved, he was a student of terror. In his youthfulness, he sought to be feared by many and set out to accomplish that. Having learn how to fight, many different ways. He constantly trained to hone his abilities. His technique became flawless and his execution, precise. He used natural disasters and medical tragedies to cover the trail he was making at first. The great plague was a great help to him. It was around that time that he found the name Reaper to be his alter identity. To him it was humorous and presenting himself to his victims as death incarnate enabled him to extract terrible fear from those he killed. It also allowed him to start making a name for himself. Having another identity to take the blame, he no longer worried about leaving a trail.

Having the right identity was a step in the right direction, but it wasn’t all he needed to be an effective Reaper. He needed a weapon as well as great powers, those still left of this world, and some that were otherworldly. One item that he cherished was a sword he named Fang. When drawn, Fang’s roar was mightier than a dragon, freezing it’s victim in their path. Many times men and women dropped dead from the fright of Fang before Ori was even able to weld it against them. Either way, it didn’t matter to him. Dead was dead.

He was evil, but he didn’t kill indiscriminately. There was rhyme and reason to the things he did. Although a lot of his kills were in defense of himself and for insults that were delivered to him, some of his victims were extremely wealthy and powerful people who needed to be relieved of their fortunes.

At first, Ori’s attitude was that of a loner. He didn’t need anyone or anything to complete him. Once he was interested in having a child though, he quickly saw the necessity for allies. There were two who were the most influential in Ori’s life.

While making a pass through Asia, Ori met up with a man who called himself simply Khan. The man was uncivilized by Ori’s standards, and he inadvertently insulted Ori in a chance meeting. Inadvertently or not, Ori called him out to fight.

The battle was fierce and lasted many hours. Throughout the fight, the attitudes of both the men changed. Neither expected the other to last as long as they were. Soon it became less about killing the other and more about winning. The fight was close and at times each thought they nearly had the other, but finally it came to a finish when Khan buried his dagger into Ori. Stunned, they stared at each other, eye to eye for many moments before Ori realized he had just lost his first fight, and Khan realized this man was an immortal, like him.

The two men started to feel a great deal of respect for the other. Khan didn’t kill immortals, and Ori had never been bested before. Instead of seeking a personal vendetta against the man, he rather found he liked him, uncivilized or not. Ori got used to his broken, guttural English, and he liked the idea of having a companion. Especially one as notorious as Khan.

Khan, in his early days, was called Genghis Khan and he was the historical ravager of Asia, leading Mongolia to great military heights. When he realized he was immortal and would live forever he looked around at the life he had. He realized he could live forever and make the whole world his, but he suddenly found that the idea didn’t appeal to him. It wasn’t that he wanted to settle down and stop his nomadic life, but rather he didn’t see the point in going on conquering. He was immortal. He knew he had little to fear from most mortal wounds and he had the foresight to see that it would become difficult for him to be able to relate to his warriors in a way that was never a problem before. He quickly saw the inherent problem with an immortal letting himself get into a place of power and how easy it would be for him to abuse such power. With a heavy heart for the many friends and his beloved people that he was leaving behind, he feigned his death.

He still traveled and was nomadic as he ever was. But without the great army with him, he was able to travel to many new places a lot faster and with little notice. Through the years he saw new cultures and lifestyles he had never dreamed of come to light and come to pass. Out of a feeling of nostalgia, Khan often visited Asia, checking its progress and silently looking in on the family that still thrived. He took great interest in the careers of his son and grandsons that followed him.

Ori knew that he could learn a lot from Khan, so he traveled with him and they each benefited from the knowledge of the other. Both of them found a certain measure of comfort in having a companion that was immortal. Ori tried to learn as much as he could about Khan’s philosophy and fighting style while Khan listened for hours as Ori told him stories of other great warriors. Khan turned out to be a valuable friend to Ori and was part of the reason Ori was able to find a solution to a long time problem. Having a child.

Khan was not content after he had traveled all of the known world. He needed new places to discover. Befriending powerful people, he was taught the ability of multi-dimensional travel. In his travels, he had found a very small world that was in its beginnings of evolution. The dimension was named Emesen. It became a favorite place of his as he traveled, and he spent a lot of time there, even bringing his grandson Khubilai there when his immortality was discovered.

Khan took Ori to Emesen, introducing him to the untapped world. Ori, first and foremost a capitalist at heart, immediately started to plan the conquest of this planet. When Khan discovered Ori’s intensions he intervened. Khan intended the realm to be a home for his grandson, if he ever became great enough to take it, and out of respect for Khan, Ori agreed to leave it alone.

While visiting Emesen, Ori came across a woman with entrancing beauty. The closest thing Ori knew he would ever feel to love started to course through him. She was very captivating. Her skin was coal black and her hair and eyes followed suit. Her brilliant white eyes shined out to him, making his curiosity soar. He asked Khan about the strange woman but Khan told him only that she was trouble and that he should stay away from her.

Never one to take advice, even if freely offered, he pursued the woman. She was intrigued by this human who sought her out. She spotted something special in the way he didn’t fear her, and she knew it had to be because he didn’t know who she really was.

Oldest of the dark skinned ones, she was seen as a demoness deity to the people. The magics she possessed made her very dangerous and thrilled Ori. He craved her. He wanted nothing more than to possess her, but he had no idea what he was getting into. She was not one to be possessed, but she was very intrigued by this man. She made him her lover and spent time teaching him the art of torture. He knew death so well, but the element she added to his technique made him more dangerous than ever.

It was she that Ori found he was able to have a child with. When she became pregnant she decided to have the baby, a decision she had seldom conceded to before. Ori was both excited and a little saddened by this news. He knew that having the baby would mean the end of their relationship. In the many months that they had been entangled, Ori had learned much from her and precious little about her. But he knew their relationship was limited, and he only hoped he didn’t have to fight her for the child that she would bare. He knew he would though, if she forced him too.

What he didn’t know was that during the long reign of the demoness, she had had very little contact with people. Lonely for bodily pleasures, she took delight in the months she spent with Ori. She too expected for the affair to end, though, and wanted to give him some parting gifts.

The first gift was that of the child, Darien. The baby was born with his father’s looks, but his mother’s coal black eyes. Secondly, she bestowed upon him powers that helped to define what Reaper was to become. It also allowed for Reaper one day to be passed onto her child.

In the years after they parted, he thought of her often with fondness. Every time he used a torture technique that was taught to him by her, he thought of her. But in all the time he spent with her, he recalled with great humor that he had never even once gotten her name. When he asked Khan about that, he replied that some things were too evil to name. Even saying her name could provoke great evils. It didn’t matter; Ori liked the mystery that still surrounded her.

Soon after the baby’s birth, Ori took Darien back to Earth. Khan followed but went his separate way while Ori set up a ranch in Oregon, having a large mansion built for him and his son, Darien. He gave the child to a governess to take care of until his son was of an appropriate age. Until then he had worked hard to pool his wealth together to create the very successful corporation, Maine Industries.

As he was building up his legacy, he was also building up his family. Ori always intended for Darien to inherit his name and reputation of Reaper when he was old enough, but he didn’t want to burden the child with having to earn his own living. He decided that another child would help take that burden from Darien. Already having is heir, he had no need for another natural child and adoption was so much easier for a man of his influence and wealth.

He kept his eyes open for the perfect child to take over his business.

It wasn’t hard to find an abandoned child. Kim was his first attempt at finding a child to carry on his family business. She was the same age as his son, and he hoped to raise them together, one the business side of the family, and the other the muscle of the family. It was while she was growing up that Ori knew she would not be his business heir. Kim was too soft to take on the necessary hardships a good businessperson would take. She was naive and even though Ori tried to teach her that not every person was a good one, she never quite grasped the important lessons.

Even though she was no longer a serious candidate to take over his business, Ori did not abandon her. She seemed to see something in him that few tried to see. She saw him as a person, even when he tried to keep her from doing so. Although he always felt like his children respected and feared him and even though he felt they were loyal to him, it was Kim who he thought he felt love from. It was an emotion he was uncomfortable with, and he consistently pushed Kim away, until he had finally pushed hard enough and she left.

While in Georgia, on a business trip, Ori found a child that so resembled him it was uncanny. Reaper made short work of the family, not allowing anything to stand in the way of acquiring the child he sought. Not only did he expand his beloved Maine Industries but he expanded his family on that very lucrative business trip.

Robert was five years old when he was brought home. His young mind was erased of memory of his family and new memories were put in place. He was immediately put to work learning everything he possibly could. Ori knew that a child’s mind was like a sponge; it soaked up information at an alarming rate. Robert was a willing student.

It was quickly established to Robert that he was expendable. Darien was a Maine by blood, but Robert knew he’d have to earn his place in the family. He worked very hard to try to validate his father’s decision to bring him into this family. His childhood fantasy was to finally prove to his father that he could be better than Darien, and he strove to great lengths to impress Ori. But Ori never seemed impressed with the child. Even when he did great things, Ori always showed him how he could have done better, wanting the child to never stop expanding on perfection. Ori always told him, “A Maine’s greatest enemy is contentment. When you reach success you don’t stop. You keep going until you have reached your maximum capability. Anything less is not a success, but an absolute failure.”

Robert did many things to try to gain the approval of his father, but nothing he did ever seemed to be enough. He grew up watching Darien live a carefree life of acceptance while Robert strove for every ounce of attention he could pull from Ori. Impressing his father was the most important goal in his life as he grew up and was something he would continue to strive for his whole life, with little results.

The second alley that Ori had that had become important to his life was another immortal, Alexander the Great. Although the two were neighbors for a good many years, it was less of a friendship than Ori had with Khan, and more of a working agreement. Alexander had with him a child the same age as Darien. The two had become friends quickly, and were inseparable through most of their childhood. The fathers had their reservations about their sons’ friendship, but they did not interfere. Instead, they made an agreement that they would not harm the other’s son.

Ori felt he had nothing to fear from this younger immortal, but he still wasn’t willing to take that kind of chance with his son. He didn’t want one of the world’s greatest warriors to be an enemy of his young child. Besides, Ori was well aware of what this man’s accomplishments were. Anything that could rub off onto Darien would be a good thing.

When the children started growing up and using their powers against each other in childish tiffs, Alexander and Ori knew something had to be done. One child could disintegrate the other without even meaning too. Each parent tried to do some private instruction to help their children cope with their changing powers. But Ori took it a step further and called on his old friend Khan to aide him.

Khan agreed to train both Darien and Carl, although it was kept a secret from the boys that Carl too was being trained. When Alexander left his twelve year old son to fend for himself, Ori offered small kindnesses to his son’s friend by anonymously leaving discarded wood on the property for maintenance of the rickety house, gave him clothes that he claimed he was going to throw away anyway, and always made sure Carl was fed. He didn’t understand Alexander’s treatment of the boy, but he didn’t want to interfere with the lessons he was sure he was being taught.

Another addition to Ori’s family came while he was in New York. A young girl child approached him for money while he was taking a walk around the town. Usually he waved off beggars, not believing in handouts, but to children he felt differently. The pale girl looked like she hadn’t seen the sun since she was born, and her stringy and dirty black hair hung in an unruly mess around her shoulders. Her deep brown eyes told him that the street had made her wiser than her ten years. He took her out to eat with him, having an unexplainable fondness for the girl. In kind she offered herself to him for the food and he realized with some distaste that she was not only homeless but a child prostitute. He had little difficulty in making this young girl apart of his family, bringing her home to Oregon to live with him. She was calling herself Michelle, and he let her keep the name, giving her only Maine to attach to it. She was fiercely loyal to Ori for taking her off the streets and unquestioningly followed his ever directive.

Michelle didn’t feel like Darien was her main threat. She understood, like Robert did, that Darien would always be the favored child, and that she would have to earn her place. She was the youngest of the three, two years younger than Darien’s twelve years, but she knew she could measure up to the stringent qualities and responsibilities of being a Maine. She took the challenge head on. She didn’t see Kim as a threat either. Kim seemed to sweet and innocent to be much competition. She was more the mother figure of the pack than she was a sister and threat to Michelle. She did, however, view Robert as a threat. Robert was adopted like her, and she knew that even though she could never climb higher than Darien, she could climb higher than this boy.

Ori was impressed with his little daughter and was amused by her apparent competition with Robert. He allowed her to study business as well, giving her the knowledge she needed, and Robert another incentive to work harder.

Watching Darien ride in on his horse, Demon, made Ori’s mind snap to the present as he waited for his son to dismount and approach. Darien, now a man of twenty-four, was home during his summer vacation. He loved Mount River Valley, and visited it as often as he could.

When he spotted his father waiting by the stables, he quickly dismounted and handed the reigns to his Arabian monster to a stable man. His large strides took him to his father.

“Father. Is everything ok?”

“You need to go to Florida,” Ori announced and then turned and started walking to the house. Darien followed obediently, waiting until they were seated in Ori’s study before asking why.

“I’ve been watching your brother. I knew he was up to something.” Ori smiled a bit as his dark eyes pierced Darien’s. Darien didn’t look away. He wasn’t uncomfortable with the familiar stare.

“What is dear Robert up to now?” he drawled. His slightly southern dialect was something Ori taught both his sons. It never rubbed off on Michelle, though, and only slightly on Kim.

“He fancies a girl you know.”

Darien’s eyebrows rose in question. Ori tossed a file that sat on his desk toward Darien. It landed in front of him and Darien opened it, smiling at the picture.

“Sandy Blaire.”

“Yes. My informants tell me he’s very interested in her. She is his new conquest. Naturally I took an interest in her as well. Not just anyone is fit to be with a Maine.”

Darien nodded his agreement.

“She has the anti-toxins, Darien.”

Darien’s eyes widened a little. He knew very well what that meant. His mind reeled with thoughts. What about Christie? What was he going to do?

“She has just broken up with her long time boyfriend. The jerk cheated on her with her best friend. Smells like Robert to me. In any case, you need to take this opportunity. Go to Florida, tonight, move near to her and pursue her.”

Darien looked at his father for a moment, choosing his words wisely.

“Father, I’m in love with Christie Stockwell.”

Ori narrowed his eyes. Darien didn’t usually disobey him. He leaned forward in his chair, placing his elbows on his desk and folding his hands together.

“Darien, you have until your thirty-fifth birthday to have a child. If you act soon, you could possibly surpass me and have more. Especially with a woman with the anti-toxins in her blood. You are twenty-four now. You’ll be twenty-five before the year is up. That means you have ten years to do this. That might seem like a long time to you, but believe me, it is a blink of the eye. Go to this girl and pursue her, before it becomes too late for you to have an heir.”

Darien swallowed, holding his head up high. He didn’t want to disobey his father, but he had been in love with Christie for a few years now, and he wasn’t sure he could even fall in love with another. Christie didn’t have the anti-toxins, he knew. Ori had her tested when Darien started dating her. She grew up in the valley and was a longtime friend of Darien’s. When he started dating her, Ori reminded him that she did not have the anti-toxins. He warned Darien against falling for this girl, but Darien couldn’t help it.

“I love Christie. I want to marry her.”

Ori’s facial expression remained the same for many moments. Darien started to feel a little uncomfortable now. He had never argued with his father like this before and it never took Ori repeating himself more than twice to scare Darien into compliance. Ori contemplated killing this child and starting anew, but he knew that would be impossible. He had too much invested in this child. He wasn’t perfect, by any means, but he was nearing the point.

Slowly he swallowed and laid his hands down on the desk. Darien watched him warily.

“Darien, do you dare to defy me?” His voice didn’t rise, but instead it seemed to deepen. “Because I promise you, on this you do not want to do that. You go to that girl. Do whatever it takes, but you make her fall in love with you, and you fall in love with her. If I find that you’re doing any different than that, you will regret that decision. Your actions will decide for you if you want your girlfriend to survive.”

Darien bristled at the threat. He was torn between fear and respect for his father and love for Christie. He looked at Ori, holding his gaze, but Ori could see the uncertainty in his son’s eyes.

“Darien. If what you have with Christie is true love, it will last. After you finish with Sandy you’ll have the rest of your life to be with Christie. All we want from Sandy is the child or children she could give you. That’s what’s important. You have to sacrifice to get that child, and you need a child to carry on your name. You need a son to carry on the Maine lineage. I am not going to leave that to Robert. He isn’t really one of us. Only you can do this. Do this.”

Darien closed his eyes and looked down, nodding. When he looked back up at his father, Ori knew Darien had taken an important step towards becoming more like Reaper. Although Darien now wore the costume and carried Fang, he didn’t have the killer instinct Ori had when he was Reaper. Ori knew that one day Darien would be as great a Reaper as Ori ever was.

Darien took out his cell phone and pressed a few numbers. His eyes locked with his father as he waited for the phone call to go through. Ori sat back in his chair, his muscles again relaxed as he watched his son obey him.

“Christie? This is Darien.” Pause. “Not good, listen. Things aren’t really working out for me. You have your life and I have mine. I need more. I need to move on.” Darien listened to her response.

Ori smiled in pride at his son. His grandchild was as good as his. When the baby was born, provided he had gotten all the use out of Sandy he could get, he intended to take the child and train it himself.

“No, that won’t help. You’re not listening to me, Christie. I don’t want you anymore. I found someone else. You just live your life and I’ll live mine. I don’t want to be enemies, but I want a clean break.” His eyes slightly narrowed, not really in anger but more in pain for what he was doing to Christie. He could hear the evidence of tears, but he knew this was for the best. Besides, he knew his father was right. He could always pick up things where they left off after he took care of having children. He wanted a child very much, and this just enabled him to have one without hurting Christie.

When he hung up the cell phone he still hadn’t taken his eyes off of his father. He put the phone in his pocket and folded his hands on his lap.

“I’ll leave tonight.”



To Be Continued...