Savage Moon 03 - Brethren - 3. Chapter 3

We continued on our way out of town, blasting that song on repeat so that I could get used to singing it. I guess it was some kind of weird initiation for them or something. I didn't know how else to explain it. And they encouraged me to 'let go' every minute. I never really thought of myself as uptight, but the more I felt that sense of moral restriction uncoil itself, the more liberated I felt. It was like untying a knot in your stomach, and breathing freely at last. I loved it.

The madness continued through the square and further on into another part of the woods. We had to be at least an hour away from the campgrounds, and I think that might have been a part of Cyrus' plans for the day. To completely remove me from everything I knew, everything that might challenge his complete control over me, and force me to depend on his teachings to guide me home. Or perhaps....to keep me from ever going home again.

We traveled down a dusty old dirty road, coming up on a rather secluded spot of the area. Cyrus turned into the driveway of a nice little two story house. The building looked unkept and dirty, the grass hadn't been cut in over a year from the looks of it, and a few of the front windows had been broken out. The screen door was half hanging on its hinges, and the swingset in the front yard was rusted and falling apart. Even the mailbox had been smashed and left in pieces at the front of the driveway. And yet, the home didn't seem to lose any of that comfortable 'welcome' feel to it. Otherwise, it would have looked haunted from a distance.

Cyrus screeched to a halt in the front yard, the truck parked halfway up on the grass, and he turned off the engine. "Home sweet home." He said, and everybody jumped down from the back of the truck. Sebastian opened the door, and I watched as his lithe body stretched and twisted in front of me. His arms raised in the air, high enough to let his shirt raise up over his belt, and let me see the creamy smooth skin on his tight little stomach. He caught me looking, and simply smiled at me briefly before turning to go into the house. I hopped down to, walking with them as they led me in. Shank And Razor were the first to run up on the porch and reach the door, but simply stood to the side once they got there. As if to guard us as we all filed into the old place one by one. I was going to walk in behind Cyrus, but Scout gave me a nasty elbow to the side to knock me aside. He gave me an evil scowl, and then took his place at Cyrus' side. Geez, that kid has some real issues with me. You would have thought I was trying to take his boyfriend away or something. Thankfully, John Boy and Kristin were much nicer, and let me go in ahead of them.

The house wasn't neccessarily 'run down'...but you could tell that it wasn't the product of an adult's influence. It looked more like a dirty fraternity house than anything else. I looked over at the couch in the corner, and saw Kriegar laid out on it, sleeping peacefully with a snore that could call hogs from miles away. There was a half empty bottle of whiskey on the table in front of him with the label ripped off, and beneath him on the floor, was almost a 12 pack's worth of crushed empty beer cans. "He must have had one hell of a party by himself last night." I said.

"Last night?" Shank asked.

And Razor contnued with, "That's just from this morning."

Everyone split up, going to different corners of the room. I had to ask, "So....who lives here?"

"WE live here." Scout said with a growl. Talking down to me like I was stupid.

"Well, who OWNS it, then?"

Without a second thought, all of them at once said, "Cyrus...."

I looked around the room for a moment. The curtains were torn, the rug was stained, the paint was peeling. The furniture looked worn out and broken. The steps leading to the second floor looked as if they were ready to collapse any minute, and the railing was broken in many different places. "It's not much, but it's home." Cyrus said as he walked past me. I saw some movement out of the corner of my eye, and saw Sebastian pulling his shirt up over his head. My breath caught in my throat as his smooth hairless chest glided into view. It was lightly tanned, just like the rest of him, and just as gorgeous as I expected it to be. If not moreso. I thought he might be changing into something else, but he just sat down....topless, his thin arms and well defined chest sitting bare for all to see. My eyes locked onto him, and I could feel my pulse racing again. He literally made my mouth water, and I didn't even know if I LIKED him all that much! All I knew is...I'd suck the SKIN off of whatever he had between his legs, and never ask for a single kiss if I thought it'd ruin the moment.

"So you like our little home away from home, Wes?" Kristin asked with a smile.

"It's...it's nice."

"We think so." But her eyes were diverted downwards as a faint 'thumping' noise came up from under the floorboards. She stomped her foot hard on the floor and shouted, "Not until Cyrus says you can come out!" I gave her a strange look, and heard the thumping get worse. She sighed in aggravation. "Can't you two DO something about him?" She asked the twins, but they only shrugged their shoulders. "Sebastian?"

Sebastian laid his head back against the wall, his chin length hair gliding back to further relax him. "Not my call. Besides, Kriegar's the one watching him today. It's his turn." He said calmly.

Cyrus saw the confusion and growing tension in my eyes, and he walked over to put a hand on my shoulder with a grin. "Would you like to see what's in the basement, Wes?"

"Uh....actually..." I was getting ready to say no, but he cut me off.

"Good! Let's go see what's in the basement."

Scout spoke up. "You're gonna let him go?"

"Well we can't keep the poor boy tied up forever now, can we?" Cyrus answered, and with his hand sliding up to the back of my neck, he 'guided' me into their dirty, unkept, kitchen...and down the steps to the basement. I could hear the thump, thump, thump, of a chair being bounced back and forth on the floor. As we crept down the old wooden steps in a single file line, I could hear a muffled whimpering. A screaming. I really wanted to turn back. I REALLY didn't wanna know what was down there.

Then, Cyrus walked forward, and reached for a small chain to turn on the single light bulb hanging from the ceiling. There, in the center of the room, was a boy tied to a chair with as much rope as could fit on his slim body. His light brown eyes were huge, and his hair was neatly shaved on the sides, with a crop of bright blond curls at the top. A teen heartthrob type that might have been really cute except for the fact that he had duct tape wrapped around his mouth about 50 times and was tied down like some kind of serial killer. He shouted even more as he saw us enter the room, trying desperately to get his voice to pass through the tape. "How are we feeling today, Dex?" Cyrus asked.

"Mmph! MMMMPH!!!" He cried out.

"Now, if I cut this tape off of your mouth....are you gonna behave?" The boy shouted and began kicking and rocking back in the chair violently. "HEY!" Cyrus yelled, and he calmed down instantly. "I'm not gonna untie you unless you behave. Understood?" The boy nodded his head, and Cyrus stepped back while the twins walked over to 'unwrap' him. I didn't know what to make of ANY of this. I should have high tailed it out of there a long time ago. But I was stuck. I felt like they would rush me and pin me to the ground if I tried to make a move now. The whole thing in the center of town was funny...but THIS??? I wasn't ever sure I knew what this WAS!

Finally, Razor had gotten to the last bit of tape on his mouth and ripped it off. The boy shouted. "OWWW!!! Do you guys have ANY idea how long I've been down here?!?! DO YOU?!?! I'm dirty! I'm STARVING! I'm....completely SOBER!!! I can't even THINK straight right now!" I found myself confused again, and began to wonder if this was some kind of...'game' between them. As soon as Shank untied the remaining ropes holding him down, he SPRUNG out of the chair, ran passed me and the others, and charged upstairs!

"What the hell was THAT about?" I asked. But only seconds later, the boy came running BACK down the stairs with the half empty bottle of whisky that Kriegar had on the table. The teen took off the cap, threw it over his shoulder, and turned up the bottle to guzzle down all he could before nearly gagging n the stuff.

With a huff, he began talking a mile a minute with this nagging gaggle of words and phrases that were hard to follow at the speed he was going. "How could you guys leave me down here for this long while you go out and have fun and go partying and forget about poor old Dex sitting here in the basement with no alcohol, huh? And today? Today, today, today...you leave me with Kriegar? Kriegar?!?! That-that-that...DRUNK! You leave me here with HIM? I could have starved to death while he was sleeping! I could have fell back and hit my head, broke an arm, choked on my own tongue! After all I do for you guys, you leave me here all by myself, you should be ashamed....HEY! This kid is new! Who are you? My name is Dexter! Hi!" The greeting came so fast and so 'off topic' that I didn't know he was speaking to me until he held out his hand for me to shake it.

"Um...hey. I'm Wesley.."

"WESLEY! Good! GREAT! Welcome to the family! I'm Dexter...but you already know that cause I just TOLD ya a few seconds ago. You'd have to be a moron for me to have to tell you again. Right? Right! Good, glad to meet ya." He said, and turned back to the others. "You guys could LEARN something from this kid. You don't see HIM tying up his friends and leaving them to rot in a basement. Do ya?" Then he turned to me and whispered. "Hey...you don't have any friends tied up in a basement somewhere, do ya?"

"Um...no. Can't say that I do."

"YOU SEE? No tied up friends in the basement! Take notes you guys. Seriously. You've got problems. Tying me up like that, you should feel really BAD about yourselves." He took another swig of the liquor. "How long have I been down here? Two weeks? Three?"

"A day and a half." John Boy answered.

"A day and a half??? Well....a day and a half, three weeks, from Christmas to Christmas...it's all the same damn thing! Where's Sebastian, anyway?"

"He's upstairs relaxing." Kristin said.

"Oh well, you can disturb him when he's relaxing, he doesn't like that. Not at all. He'll get mad. Nice meeting you Wesley, you're a good guy, really." He took his bottle and stormed up the steps again, mumbling all the way. "Leave ME down here like a sack of garbage, I'll show you. Maybe I'll just run away, that's what I'll do. I'll run away. Bunch of bullies...."

I turned to Cyrus and said, "THAT was...'interesting'."

"Dexter is a little bit 'wound up' right now. But he'll calm down in a few days. He's been a bit restless lately as you can see." Cyrus told me.

"Should I even ASK why you guys had him down here tied to a chair for a day and a half?"

John Boy replied, "Dex can be a bit hyperactive sometimes during this particular phase of the moon. It keeps that boy is on a constant sugar rush until i egins to wane again. Not to mention, of course, that he's already a little bit...um..."

"...Crazy." The twins answered. "Dexter was on a bit of a punishment for some wild antics in town a few days ago. Even in chaos there has to be some level of discipline." Cyrus added. "But I think he's learned his lesson. Besides, the pack just isn't the same without him."

"So you guys are a 'pack' now, huh?" I grinned.

He didn't answer at first, just smiled warmly and put his hand firmly back on my shoulder. Then he said, "Aren't we all?" and gave me a friendly pat. "Come on, let's go back upstairs." And without another word mentioned, everyone followed. They were still a pretty WEIRD group of kids, but I think I was beginning to understand them a bit better. I don't know HOW or WHY...I just was. Maybe I should have MY head examined too.

We went back upstairs and I saw Dex sitting on top of the television, with one foot up for some reason. He had knocked the antenna down to the floor, and was already finishing off the last few gurgles of his bottle of whiskey. Jesus, that was fast! His stomach must be doing sommersaults right now. Kriegar was still sound asleep, and Sebastian was standing in front of the window, looking out into the yard. His pants were hanging low on him, his boxers a full inch and a half above the waist. The fine silken hairs on his arms and chest were almost invisible except for the shine from the morning sunlight. It made me wonder if I should just give him ONE more chance to be...'mine'.

"There's more liquor in the cabinet, and more beer in the fridge, if you want some." John Boy took off his sunglasses, and stared at me with those bright mirrored contacts of his. I swear, those things were macabre. Staring into them and seeing myself...it gave me the creeps.

"No thanks. I told you...I don't drink."

"It won't last." He giggled, and walked over to the couch without bumping into a single piece of furniture, or stumbling over a single step. Most times...I doubt that John Boy is blind at all. Hell, he gets around this place better than I do.

'It won't last'...I wonder what he meant by that. I thought it an odd comment, but Cyrus didn't let me concentrate for very long. He plopped down hard into one of the arm chairs and hit a few buttons on the stereo system. Again...the volume was up as loud as it could possibly go, and it startled the HELL out of me when it started blasting a hard rock version of 'All About The Benjamins' loud enough to shake paintings off the wall. How I was supposed to TALK to anybody in that room without shouting at the top of my lungs is a complete mystery to me. No one seemed to care though. In fact, even though it was barely past eleven in the morning...it looked like the party was just beginning.

Kriegar hadn't budged an inch, even with the blast of music. But seemed to get some 'life' back in him when Kristin walked over, sat on his lap, and opened a cold beer under his nose. "Come on bitch, get up! We got company!" She yelled. Then handed him the beer. "Enjoy your breakfast, hon."

The music was causing my whole body to tremble, and I winced from the noise. It seemed to get louder by the second, and when I looked over at Cyrus...he was grinning at me. A cold stare in his eyes, observing my every reaction, absorbing my every restriction. The rest of the group was practically banging their heads to the beat, and didn't seem to need much provocation at all to begin partying away like there was no tomorrow. No supervision, no complaining neighbors, no law, no regrets, no rules of any kind. And the same reckless abandon that exploded throughout the room from the dancing and hollering teenagers...was shown in the still gaze and devilish grin on Cyrus' face. Our eyes locked onto each other, and he stared me down. It was like he was trying to capture my attention completely and not pay attention to the music at all. He was pulling me into his world...kicking and screaming...allowing the madness of it all to slowly drench me with its sickness.

The instant 'party' raged on around us, with the exception of Sebastian, who didn't seem to care one way or the other. I saw Scout enter the room, dragging a small metal tub behind him. The tub was full of ice, the ice was full of beer, Jaegermeister, and vodka. They weren't fooling around here. They actually expected to get wasted this soon in the day.

"Isn't it a bit EARLY for this???" I shouted, hoping they'd hear me over the banging music.

"Not at all!" Kristin shouted back, and everybody helped themselves to a drink of choice. Scout included. "You should JOIN us kiddo!" She added, and tossed her hair back and forth in time with the rock guitars. Kriegar had already chugged his first beer down into his gullet, and let out a loud belch before crushing the can and tossing it over his shoulder. He smoothed out his bushy sideburns and sprung up from the couch to grab three more from the ice, and take them back to the couch with him. Scout brought Cyrus a bottle of vodka and opened it for him...then sitting in his lap, his small blond body looking more comfortable than ever all cuddled up under his nose. It was the first time since I had first laid eyes on him that he actually resembled a little boy of 11. Any other time, he seemed more like an angry midget than a preteen kid.

"WOOOO!!!! YES!!!!" I heard Dex scream, and he jumped to his feet on the television, stomping on it with his feet!

"Not on the tv, Dex." Sebastian said quietly, but still loud enough for me to hear it.

Then, with a huge LEAP, Dex jumped from the tv all the way over to the dining room table nearby. He nearly slid off of the side, but caught himself and hopped up to his feet again and continued stomping harder than ever. Another shout came from Kristin who was now bouncing around on the couch. Shank and Razor were nodding their heads, but didn't really get too wild with it all. They sat back, a mirror reflection of each other. One twin was leaned back with his right leg up, and the other was on the other side of the room...leaned back with his left leg up. They didn't care. They didn't seem to care about ANYTHING outside of having fun. And while I thought it was cool at first, I thought this was a bit much for me. It felt...I dunno...dangerous. Geez...I don't DARE say that outloud for fear of sounding like my father.

"Yeah! Yeah! YEAH! YEAH! YEAAAHHHHHHH!!!!" Dexter screamed behind me, and I jumped at it. He was REALLY going nuts on top of that table! His little blond curls were flopping all over the place, and the way he was banging his head and spinning in circles, I was SURE that he was going to fling himself off of that tabletop any second! I looked back over at Cyrus to see if I should be worried about him...but he was taking a heavy swig of his vodka, then taking the bottle from his lips and tilting it up for Scout as he tried to guzzle down just as much as his 'leader' did. It dribbled out of the sides of his tiny little mouth anyway though. And that's when I saw Cyrus giggle at his attempts to keep up. Then...he put the bottle on top of the vibrating speaker next to him, used his fingertips to wipe the excess liquor from the youngster's chin and lips...and then he leaned forward to kiss him FULL ON THE MOUTH! Not just any kiss, not a brotherly kiss, or even a kiss reserved for the best of companions. But a heavy breathing, lustful, attack of a liplock with full tongue that made my jaw drop to the fucking FLOOR! I couldn't believe what I was seeing! Cyrus cradled the boy in his arms as their lips mashed against each other, his one hand rubbing him savagely all over his thighs, crotch, and ass. Scout was loving every second of it, and held Cyrus' head in both hands, holding on tightly as their tongues screwed one another in the most seductive ways. It was the most shocking thing I think I had seen from them so far.

Looking around the room, no one seemed to notice. no one seemed to care. In fact, Kristin seemed to be running her own hands under her shirt in a sensual frenzy of her own. Was it the vibrations? Was it the mood? Were they just doing it to completely desensitize me to every taboo in their wicked repretoire? I don't know...but whatever it was, it was flooding me all at once, and I was lost again. Not knowing what to do, not knowing where to look, unable to comprehend the entire scene all at once. It was a freaky experience, and I began to feel out of place as far as the 'young and wild' aspect of the morning was concerned.

"AAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!" Dex shouted even louder than before, practically ripping his own hair out now! SERIOUSLY out of control as he got totally lost in the music! He took the empty bottle of whiskey in his hand, and without thinking, he viciously FLUNG it across the room as hard as he could! The glass hit the wall with an impact that caused it to EXPLODE into a million pieces and shower down on to Cyrus and Scout, interrupting their passionate coupling.

"DEX!!!!" Cyrus shouted! "Tone it DOWN!!!"

"Sorry, Cy!" He said, and went back to rocking out ike he was before!

I heard the crinkling of another can, and saw that Kriegar had already chugged down all three cans of beer! He had JUST woken up for God sakes! I saw him turn green for a second, his chest heaving a few times....I was scared to watch. But then he just let out another loud burp, and pounded his chest with his fist. "False alarm." He said with a gentle slur. And he got up to grab three MORE! Ok...that was it. I think I've gotten myself into something a bit 'out of my league'. Cyrus and Scout had taken a break in their kiss, both of them hard as rocks and displaying their erections proudly without covering up at all. I took the opportunity to walk closer to our ringleader, hoping to find a quick, but polite, way out of this. But I noticed that the twins kept their eyes locked fiercely every step of the way. And as I got within five feet of Cyrus, they both put their legs down and leaned forward. They were still wearing that evil smirk on their faces, but their green eyes shot me a subtle warning through their dark crimson red hair. They were ready to strike if they had to.

"Hey Cyrus?" I yelled as I got within speaking range. Scout immediately gave me a frown, and hugged Cyrus tighter around his neck. 'Claiming' him before I could get close enough to touch him. "I think...I think, maybe I should be going now!"

"WHAT?" He shouted back.

"I SAID...I think I should be leaving now!"

"WHY???"

I guess I shouldn't have expected it to be that easy to leave. "I've been gone for hours now! I never showed up at camp! They'll be worried about me!"

"So what? Let them worry!" He said, and gave Scout another lover's kiss on the side of his neck.

He wasn't listening. He NEVER listened to what I was telling him. "Cyrus! Seriously! I should be going! Really! They probably think I'm missing or something!"

"SO?!?!" He shrugged. Scout leaned forward and began sticking his tongue in Cyrus' ear, moving it around in small gyrations, and Cyrus closed his eyes for a moment to enjoy it. But after a few moments, he opened them again, and saw that I really wasn't enjoying myself anymore. Not the way he wanted me to. So he peeled himself away from Scout for a second and looked into my eyes. Then he reached over and hit the off button on the stereo. The music came to an abrupt halt, and it took a few beats for everyone else in the room to stop moving to the music. They all looked at me, as though I had somehow come in and set fire to their Garden of Eden. Cyrus sat their silently for a long pause, allowing the awkwardness and uncomfortable vibe of the moment to sink in before speaking again. "How about we go out on an excursion, my friend. What do you say?" He grinned, and Scout slid off of his lap to his feet. His pouty lips frowned up at me as he walked past with a small tent poking out in front of him unsatisfied.

"Look...I'm sorry, ok? It's been fun. Really. I just...I should be getting back now. I'm gonna be in enough trouble as it is after ditching my duties today."

"Is that why you wanna go back, Wesley? To face your punishment for having fun?" Cyrus asked with a grin. "No...not yet. FIRST...you come out with us for a little 'field trip' so you can relax. THEN...we'll think about taking you home. Deal?" He said, and before I could answer, he told everybody, "Grab your stuff folks. We're going out."

Great. NOW what was I getting myself into?

Did I have a choice? I doubt it. Despite his attempts to make me feel totally free in my actions...Cyrus' word was basically law when it came to just about everything. There was no denying his will, even if you wanted to. It's strange how a predicament like that can be both restricting...and comforting....at the same time. "After this...you promise to take me back home?" I asked.

"Hmmmm...." Cyrus said with a pause. "...Nope. 'Fraid not." And he got up to grab me by the hand and lead me outside to the truck again. "C'mon! Don't look so worried! We're having 'fun', right? And FUN....is all about letting go. Your words." He giggled. I was almost sorry for ever saying it. But Cyrus' orders were never to be questioned. His friendly smile and persuasive words were only another form of subtle intimidation, keeping me glued to whatever path he wanted me to follow by distracting me from all other forms of free thought. He could change the subject of any conversation on a dime, he could stare a burning hole straight through you if you dared to look back at him, and he could easily derail your train of thought with no more than a sly and silent grin and a tilt of his head. It was more than peer pressure...it was more like mind control. And all he needed to do was tap into your own temptations to do it.

"Mount up everybody! We're going to the cliff!" Cyrus shouted, and everyone jumped onboard. With Kriegar and Dex joining us in the back this time. I was hesitant to come along, but they dragged me in with their energetic antics. They pulled me onto the back of the truck by my arms, and I had to sit down quick as the music began pumping and Cyrus took off at top speed again. The wheels digging deeply into the dirt and kicking up a huge cloud of dust behind us. Once again, we were off. And I was just tailgaiting in whatever delinquent activities they were rushing to get into next.

We were driving faster than ever around the winding roads, the wind whipping through my hair as everyone else sat back and bobbed their heads to the music as though this was all...normal for them. John Boy leaned over to speak softly in my ear. "Relax, Wes. There's no 'trouble' out here. We're free to do what we want to do. Trust me on this."

"I'm not trying to be...antisocial or anything, I just....this is all making me a bit uncomfortable, ok?"

"No..." John Boy smiled. "...You holding back is making you uncomfortable. We TOLD you...give in to the feeling. All that guilt, and fear, and doubt...worrying about missing camp and whatever consequences might be waiting for you at home...get rid of it. Cleanse yourself of all that garbage and SMILE. There's good music playing, you're surrounded by friends, and you've got a free ride to whatever adventure you feel like having today. ENJOY it! Live in the now."

"Sighhhh.....you guys are gonna get me in SO much trouble."

"Yes. Yes we are." He giggled, his 13 year old boyish face glowing with pride. "You can thank us for it later." And with that said, he leaned back and we barreled down the old road at 75 miles an hour.

A good twenty minutes had passed before anyone said anything else. I was actually beginning to think I could get away with all of this. Something inside me just said 'fuck it', and I considered myself a prisoner of war as far as this whole fiasco was concerned. 'I might as well make the best of it,' I told myself. 'It's not my fault,' I told myself. 'I can't leave now,' I told myself. The excuses got easier, the rationalizations of my situation were blurring until they faded away entirely. And I smiled as I watched Kriegar climb up onto the roof of the truck and wave his hands back and forth in front of the windshield. I should have been TERRIFIED...but I wasn't. Not even when Cyrus slammed on the brakes playfully, nearly tossing him onto the hood. There was a slight moment of fear that he would go soaring onto the road in front of us, but when he caught a hold and I saw Cyrus, Scout, Kristin, and Sebastian laughing outloud at him...I joined in. That little moment of fear gave me a rush, and I almost wanted to have him do it again. And as we heard Marilyn Manson's 'Dope Show' come blasting out of the speakers...a song I could NEVER listen to around MY parents...I found myself singing it out just as loud as the rest of them. Speeding down an old road, screaming Manson lyrics with a group of degenerates. A week ago, how could I have predicted this. I could feel Cyrus watching me in the rearview mirror...

...And I could tell that he was proud.

About ten minutes further into our drive to the middle of nowhere, I noticed Dex fiddling with a Crucifix that he wore hanging from a bracelet on his wrist. It was attached with a string, it seemed, and it made me wonder if maybe he was one of the last boys Cyrus decided to snatch away from Bible camp before I came along. The second he saw me looking at him...Dex came to sit next to me. Or, more appropiately, he stood up and the centrifugal force of a sharp turn nearly tossed him into my lap. And he leaned really close to me, sniffing my hair for some odd reason. "What are you doing?" I asked.

"You smell different." He said with a straight face. I looked over at the others, who shrugged their shoulders in response. "You didn't smell like this when you were at the house."

"Um....is that a bad thing?"

"Depends on you. Are you having fun?"

"Hehehe...yeah. I think I am."

"I can tell. Yep, I can tell. Your smell is totally different than it was before. Totally. Far out, dude." He smiled. Why the hell was Dex so damn INSANE? "I like this smell!" He said, and threw his arm around me as he gave me a long wet LICK on the side of my neck! My reflexes made me cringe instantly, and I pushed him back! The very absurdity of this boy made me giggle out of pure bewilderment at what the heck he was thinking.

"Can you NOT lick me, please? Hehehe!" I laughed.

"You're cute. I like you." He said. "I like him." Dex scooted closer to me, our legs and shoulders touching. "They treat me like I'm crazy, you know? But I'm NOT crazy! Don't you believe it!" He said, feeling himself get hyper again and having to calm down. "It's not me. It's the moon. Lunar schedule says it's gonna be full tonight, you know? Did ya know? Do you keep charts? I do. I've got three calendars and a rolodexy type thigamajig! Yep!"

"Dex...are you ok?" I asked as 'politely' as possible.

"Oh yes, I'm fine. VERY fine. Yep. It's the OTHER moon you gotta watch out for. The other one. The NEW moon. Not good to be around Dex then. Not good at all. Nope." He said. "But NOW is cool!" He smiled. "You're so damn CUTE! Can I smell you again? I LIKE him! He's kick ass!" He told the others in the back of the truck. "You guys didn't screw him yet, did you? I wanna keep him. Can I have him?"

"Um...what?" I asked, a confusion swallowing up what he said and causing me to wonder whether I had heard him right or not.

Just then, Kriegar smacked Dex in the back of the head, and one of the twins kicked him in the leg to shut him up. Evidently his lack of impulse control had gotten to say more than he was supposed to. And the back of the truck fell silent for a moment. But Dex wasn't quiet for very long. He turned back to me with a grin after wincing from his brief attack, and took my hand in his. "You're nice. I like you. He's cool. You guys treat him good." Looking around, the mood between the others in the back had changed, and everything fell silent. I knew at that moment that they had 'plans' for me. Plans that I wouldn't be able to scape from even if I wanted to. I didn't know if that scared me...or excited me.

The ride continued until we got to some small park like area overlooking a pretty big cliff. Almost as big as the one at Rainbow's End, with nothing but trees at the bottom. A long slanted downhill drop. Cyrus screeched the tires to a halt, and Kriegar jumped over the side before we even stopped rolling. Cyrus put the truck in park and left the music pumping as he got out. Meanwhile, I had Dex glued to my arm with his eyes closed and a big psychotic smile on his pretty young face as he pressed it against my shoulder. "Dex?" I said, shaking him a bit and trying to pry my arm loose from his two handed grip. "Dex? I think we're here now."

"Mmmmm...I like your smell. You're a nice virgin boy. I'm gonna call you Goo Goo."

"My name is Wesley."

"And you know what, Goo Goo...OH!!! We're here!!!" He shouted in my ear, and without another word, he popped up and flung himself over the side of the truck so fast that he lost his foothold and fell to the ground below. Not that it stopped him for long. He simply rolled to his feet, dirt still covering his side and back, and ran off to join some of the others at the edge of the cliff. Leaving me there by myself as though he had completely forgotten what he was talking about. DAMN he was a strange one! And that's saying an awful lot considering the company he keeps.

I lowered myself from the back of the truck, and started walking towards the cliff with the others. It was then that Sebastian walked up beside me, looking at me with some kind of...I don't know...'connection', for the first time since our kiss in the woods the other night. "You seem much happier." He said.

"I...I am." He still left me breathless. I wanted to begin kissing him again right then and there.

Then, he very calmly, very plainly, said, "You're going to wanna stay here with us for good. I can tell. You don't have much further to go."

"It's tempting, but I think I'll pass." I grinned.

"No...even if you went back, it wouldn't be the same." He turned to lightly run his fingers through my hair, and all the air rushed out of my body at once. "You'll be one of us by the end of the day. Don't fight it."

"I doubt I'd fit in with you wackos."

"Cyrus thinks you fit just fine. He's been searching for you. If you think he's just going to let you go, you're wrong." Sebastian raised an eyebrow, and then he left my side to join his comrades. I stopped in my tracks for a second, and saw each and every ne of them, sitting in almost the exact same order as they were that night over Rainbow's End. A weird sense of deja vu swept over me, and I wondered if something like that could possibly be a coincidence.

"Come on, sit next to me." Cyrus said, patting the ground next to him. I saw Scout give me an evil look, but with a pout, he moved over to leave me a space. I hesitated again, but not for long. Unlike the last time, I took my first few steps towards him, and joined him on the edge of the abyss. I didn't know it at the time, but I was giving up what was left of the good obedient boy inside of me that afternoon. That day...I really DID become one of them. I just didn't know it yet.

A few hours passed, with everyone laughing and joking around. Dex and Kriegar climbed a few trees, The twins wrestled for a little bit here and there...Sebastian leaned up against a tree and read a few pages from a small novel that he had brought with him. It was probably the most 'tame' thing I had seen them do all day. But as I sat and watched them gallop around and have a blast, I noticed that Cyrus hardly took his eyes off of me for more than a few seconds at a time. I almost expected him to be taking notes on my progress or something the way he observed my every move. Finally, he came to join me for a moment alone on the edge of the cliff, the both of us sitting down with our legs hanging over the side. "So, Wesley...."

"Yeah?"

Cyrus smiled wide at me. "What did you do with the last hour of your life?"

"Hehehehe!" I broke out into a fit of snickers and giggles, thinking back to the house, and rolling through the center of town, ditching camp, having my neck licked by some cute young blond that looked like a young Justin Timberlake, and nearly being thrown several times fro the back of a speeding truck. "Don't ask." I said.

"Good! You don't need to answer, just remember." He patted me proudly on the back and grinned. "You're finally learning to be free. You're finally beginning to let go." He told me. "You've still got a ways to go yet, but at least you're not putting up as much of a fight as you did before."

"Yea, well you DID 'kidnap' me afterall!"

"No I didn't. We told you to join us and you caved in. Free will all the way, my friend." Cyrus put his arm over my shoulder, and looked out over the cliff with me. "Tell me...now that you're sitting here with me, with US, do you really feel all that bad about missing some boring camp activities this morning?"

"Yes!" I giggled. "None of this changes the fact that I did a really lousy thing to those kids today. And my father will completely disown me if I don't show myself soon."

"Pure fantasy." He seemed to shrug it off as though it had no meaning at all in his world. "You found a private piece of yourself through us today, and that's all that matters. You worry about what your dad thinks, and what the campers will think, and blah blah blah. What about YOU? Huh? When do you get to take care of yourself for a change?"

"Life just doesn't work like that dude..."

"Why not? Hmm? Can you tell me why?" He waited, but didn't get an answer. "You feel guilty because you're supposed to. I can understand that. It's human. And it's hard to break that programming sometimes. But you're letting your soul atrophy in this strangled life that you're living. You knew you wanted to come with us the second you saw us at Rainbow's End. So why didn't you? Why think about it? Why give yourself time to think, time to fear, time to doubt? Just do it and be HAPPY. The consequences REALLY aren't all that bad when you think about it." I shook my head, still trying to figure out what he wanted from me. "Mankind is trying sooo hard to not be animals. But we ARE animals, plain and simple. Just another creature on this planet running around eating, sleeping, procreating, and building habitats for ourselves just like every other animal out there. Hell, they probably PITY mankind."

"Hehehe, why would you say that?" I asked.

"Because...look at us. We let our so called 'intellect' and higher learning get in the way of what we really feel. All we DO is use civilization as an excuse to deny our own emotions and suffocate our wants and needs. If we did what our bodies and animal instincts TOLD us to do...we'd probably leave the nest at age 12, be sexually activated at 14, have children with multiple females by 18, and live happy until we all retired to Florida." He laughed, getting a chuckle from me.

"I don't think I've ever thought about it that way before."

"EXACTLY! You're not supposed to. You're supposed to hide it and push it away and suppress it and sweep it under the rug or into the closet where nobody else has to see it. Why do you think sex scares so many people, Wes? Because it's HONEST! It's an honest, primal, expression of what we are...animals. There's no hiding in sex. Not if you do it right." He said with a wink. "Sex takes away man's ability to 'pretend' that he's above his emotions. His inner feelings. How long do you think it'll take to arouse somebody if you rub up against them for long enough and offer yourself to them? Hmm? I'm willing to bet that there isn't a single 'upstanding citizen' out there that wouldn't give you a good shag if you offered blatantly enough."

"So you're saying that sex is unavoidable?"

"I'm saying sexual desire is unavoidable. You can fight it, you can deny it, you can put it in a box and try to keep it in the closet all you want. But when that opportunity comes around for you to get a choice piece of ass...all that wanton lust is gonna come running STRAIGHT back to the surface. Why fight it? Pretending you don't want it is like trying to tell yourself you're not hungry when you're starving. It's just stupid."

"Well....maybe, but...we can't just all run around screwing like jackrabbits and doing whatever we want because we feel like it."

"Yes, Wesley. We can. That's precisely my point. And the second you realize that, that's the second that the whole idea of these little games society likes to play on our minds begins to melt away. You are a lot more free than is 'comfortable' to believe, my friend." I gave him a look. "Sound crazy?" He asked. "You see that truck over there? I'd walk over there with a brick and break out every single window on that truck if I had the urge to do so right now. And I wouldn't think twice about it. What's more...I could get everybody here to help me do it in half the time."

"But....why would you do that?"

"Why NOT? It's MY world, I don't give a fuck, I can do what I want to do. So can you." He said with a little shove. "You have emotions for a REASON, Wes. Emotions dictate action. That's what they're for. But you're constantly suffocating them. WHY? If you suddenly feel like turning into a whirlwind and trashing the room around you, then DO it. Who's to stop you? Do it just to see what it 'feels' like and don't apologize for it. LIVE for the experience. That's what I've been trying to tell you from day one."

"You're crazy, you know that?"

"We're ALL crazy, Wes. The whole damn world is crazy. But it's a much more psychotic practice to hide that insanity than it is to discover it and harness that energy to get what you want out of life. Don't ya think?" I only raised an eyebrow, and he cut himself short. "It's ok. Just keep that concept in the back of your mind for later. You'll need it." He smiled, and then took his arm from around my shoulder to spend a few silent moments looking back out into the woods below us again. The silence was far from being uncomfortable, but the questions he raised in me broke down barrier after barrier. And soon it was hard to figure out whether my will was getting stronger or weaker. Or where my duties should lie at this point.

But after the silence went on for a few minutes, I thought of something, "Can I ask you a question, Cyrus?"

"Of course."

"Everybody keeps telling me that you were...searching for me. Exactly...why is that?"

His grin tilted slightly as he looked out over the cliff in front of him. "You think too much."

"Yeah, I know. But I wanna know. I mean...what's so special about me?"

He paused, and then turned to look me in the eye. "You know when you're on a roller coaster...and you take that very first dip as it drops you for the first time?" He said. "You hold on, and you shout, and you feel this rush of adrenaline pulse through you. For that short amount of time, your life is greater than it had ever been. It's alive, it's exhilirating, it's a combination of every emotion you've ever had at once, surging through you at the speed of light. It brings the world directly to you in full BLINDING color. There's nothing else like it."

"Okaaaaayyy...." I said, hoping there was more to this so he could actually answer my question.

"Make no mistake...it's actual 'fear' that you're feeling as it whips you around. Terror, loss of control, confusion. BUT...the difference is that you somehow 'convert' that fear into fun! You take whatever negative energy it gives you, and you just try to hold on while your body gives you the adrenaline rush of a lietime." He told me. "All fear and doubt can be handled the same way, once you embrace it. You just have to be able to recognize it." I watched as his face got more serious for a moment. "But there's only so many people allowed on the ride at once. Everybody else sits back and WATCHES it from the ground. They may smile, they might even get a little thrill out of watching it go back and forth, its passengers screaming and laughing together. But they never quite get the full effect. Because they're just a LITTLE too scared to jump on with the rest of us." Cyrus picked up a small rock and tossed over the edge, letting it fall down below us. "I see you on the edge, Wesley. You're waiting at the top of that very first dip, but you just refuse to dive in with the rest of us. You WANT it, you just don't think you're ready for it. Seeing that potential in somebody is a miraculous thing." He said. "Consider this my way of giving you a little push."

"Oh really?" I replied. "And what about the other two kids that were with you? Did you give them a push two?"

His head turned again, impressed that I even knew about them. "Two kids?"

"I hear that you had some other friends in your little mob here. A boy and a girl. Last year."

"Ahhh...Jonah and Simone. Yes...they did spend some time with us here. They were brother and sister. They were a very special pair, yes they were."

"So what happened?"

He looked down over the cliff, and his smile regained some of that wicked 'serial killer' appeal to it that seemed to come so easily to him. "We had some fun. Then....they decided they didn't want to be a part of our little game anymore. It's a shame really. I liked them."

"Did they...move away or something?"

"They met up with an unfortunate...accident shortly after they departed our company." He looked back at me with no shame or sorrow whatsoever. "There are some pretty wild animals in these woods at night. You have to be careful." I might have been able to piece more of this tale together had I the opportunity. But once again, Cyrus knew what buttons to push to jerk my focus away from what I was thinking. "So...you're gay, huh? How's that working for you?"

I think I turned completely white before blushing a deep shade of red. He laughed out loud at my reaction, knowing that he had definitely touched a nerve. "Jesus, dude..." I mumbled.

"Hahaha...it's alright, Wes. Geez, you're SO uptight. Didn't I tell you that you didn't have to worry about that? I already know." He said. "We ALL know." He put a hand on the top of my head and forced me to look him in the eye. "It's ok. Do you understand? It's ok."

They say that coming out to somebody is like a huge weight lifted off of your shoulders. I wouldn't know, considering that I never had the guts to tell ANYBODY. But a 'lifted weight' is exactly what it felt like at that very moment. As though my whole chest deflated and then refilled itself with a fresh new air that I could never breathe before. The sensation was so sudden that it nearly made my eyes water. "Um....Uh....."

"Wes...it's ok. Seriously. You can say it if you want to. Scream it out over the cliff if you want to. There's nobody out here but us. It's a block, a barricade. Get rid of it." I felt my chest heaving, almost on the verge of shedding tears that I didn't understand. "You are who you are. Who you are emotionally, mentally, spiritually...it's no different from who you are physically. You can no more change your sexuality or your view of the world or your own personal philosophy than you can your height, or your weight, or the color of your eyes. Sure you can put on platform shoes, or suck in your belly, or wear contacts....but you can't keep that up forever. Sooner or later, when you're all alone in your room with nothing but your thoughts to keep you company, the truth is going to show itself. So embrace it." He said. "Go on...tell me about it. I'm curious."

"I'm sorry." I sniffled with a smile. "I just...I never really talked about this with anybody before. You're actually...the first person to ever know about me. I didn't think I'd ever say anything to anybody about how I feel. Ever."

"Well...now's your chance."

"Well...NOW I don't know what to say." I chuckled.

Cyrus let a silence fall between us, but without breaking his stare, he asked, "Were you aroused when you saw Scout French kiss me in the arm chair today?"

"Whoah...you certainly don't 'build up' to big questions, do you?" I blushed.

"Did you like what you saw?" He asked. "Did you like watching the twins penetrate your friend Kyla from both sides on the beach?" How did he even KNOW about that? Then he whispered, "Did you like the feel of Sebastian's body being pressed so tightly to your own?" It's hard to explain, but Cyrus' voice changed somehow at that moment. Became somewhat hypnotic, almost surreal. My whole body tingled as his words entered me with a passion that was difficult to describe. "How much do you want from us, Wesley? Take it. It's yours. That and anything else you could possibly ever want or need. It's yours at the snap of a finger for as long as you decide to stay with us." He then turned to look over his shoulder at Sebastian, reading the book. "Emotions dictate action, right?" Sebastian was looking SO damn sexy, sitting on the ground, leaning against that tree with one leg up. "Sebastian....come." Cyrus beckoned him, and he put the book down at his side, walking over to join us. He kneeled down next to Cyrus, and I watched as Cyrus raised his hand to run his fingers through Sebastians long flowing hair. "You see, Wesley? You can have it. Any time you want it." And with that, he pulled gently at the back of Sebastian's head and lowered him down for a long passionate kiss on the lips. Between a small heartbreak and a sudden arousal from watching those two go at it, my body was thrown into a confusing set of emotions that I wasn't prepared for. Their lips grinded against one another, tongues twisting, breathing getting heavy, and I felt myself harden instantly. I couldn't take my eyes off of them. I was flushed, erect, drawn to them like a moth to the flame. And just as I felt myself leaning forward for a closer look, they stopped.

It was then that Cyrus smiled at me, and with a nod of his head, directed Sebastian to crawl over him to get to me. He had such a sensual look in his chocolate brown eyes, and his intimidating beauty overtook me all at once as he crawled closer and covered my mouth with his own. I didn't even have time to close my eyes as the make out session began. My whole world exploded into sparks and stars, my body fueled by an electric rush that raised my temperature to dangerous levels. Sebastian was kissing me...AGAIN! But with even more power than last time. I gasped, I moaned, I whimpered in his embrace. And I was so lost that I couldn't tell up from down, left from right. My entire sense of placement in the universe depended solely on Sebastian, and his connection to me through our intimate kiss.

Cyrus chuckled at my surprise, and watched us make out like mad. I didn't even CARE that he was watching. Or anybody else for that matter. I gave in. ALL the way! One hundred and fifty percent of everything I knew to be real. "Hehehe, NOW you're living, Wes. Take it. Take it as far as you want to go. There are NO boundaries this time. NO limitations. The world is ours for the taking." I kept kissing him as he leaned me back to the ground, and I felt his feather light weight press down on my chest as he wiggled his way on top of me. I was so breathless that I thought I would pass out at any minute. But his kiss gave me the energy to stay awake. "Go Further, Wes. Touch him. I know you want to. Take him. He's yours. Do what you want with him. He'll bend ANY way you tell him to." Cyrus said, taking a hold of my wrist and guiding it downward to rest on Sebastians pert ass cheeks down below. I instinctively pulled his slim hips closer to me, and could feel his incredibly hard length poking into me. He was very well endowed indeed. I gripped his ass cheeks hard through his jeans, squeezing the globes as tightly as I could, wishing his pants were off so that I could feel the warm smooth skin underneath. So I could run my fingers through the heated cleft of his tight young buns, so I could find that one special place and feel him shiver as I opened it with a single wet push of my finger.

I felt my orgasm already approaching, nearing its final destination, rushing towards the surface as quickly as possible. My head was spinning so fast that I felt like I was falling, even while laying on solid ground. And then....the kiss was broken. Sebastian looked down at me, and ran his fingers through my hair a few times, but said nothing. I looked over at Cyrus, and he had this knowing smirk on his face. Knowing that he had fulfilled my every fantasy with this trip. Knowing that he had collapsed the foundation on everything that made me the responsible growing boy that I was trying so hard to be. Knowing that he was rapidly gaining control of me through my desire to break free. And when all was said and done...he knew he had found his special treasure buried deep within me.

"I believe he's getting the point." Sebastian said with a smirk. I craned my neck up to kiss him a few more times on the cheek and his neck. I was sooooo close. Just...finish me off....please? Oh man...this is fucking amazing! But Sebastian simply rolled off of me, and adjusted himself in front.

"Wait...wait...wha..." I said, left 'stranded' AGAIN by the boy I wanted more than anything at that moment.

"Patience, Wesley. Patience." Cyrus grinned, and then he reached his hand out to the tent in my pants, 'adjusting' it for me while I shivered from his expert touch. "I think it's time we went back to the house. Don't you?" He asked.

I nodded desperately. ANYTHING to get back into Sebastian's arms! ANYTHING! "Uh huh..." I responded with a dreamy nod, and we all got to our feet.

"Gentlemen...and lady...I believe we are going back home."

That was all Cyrus had to say before the rest dropped what they were doing and headed back towards the truck. Except this time, Shank and Razor sat at either side of me on the floor. When Dexter came to cuddle up next to me again, they pushed him away. Rather harshly, I might add. "HEY! That's MY spot!" He pouted.

"Take another seat, Dex." They said, and with a pout, he sat off to the side. Mumbling to himself.

"He's MY Goo Goo...stupid twins. Stupid truck. There's not enough room back here for everybody, you know? Somebody could fall. Get hurt. Get killed. Or....get HURT! Damn twins. I spit on you both. I want somebody. I'll get my own nice boy. I will. I'm gonna runaway. You'll see. I need beer."

I would have paid Dex some attention, but I wouldn't have understood a word anyway. Besides, once I became aware of Shank and Razor's hands silently gliding over my skin...it was all I could concentrate on. It was my instinct to protest, or to gasp, or to move away from them. SOMETHING that would keep anyone from seeing me enjoy it so much. But I didn't. Not this time. I simply leaned my head back, and closed my eyes for a brief moment. Their hand movements were all that I had to connect me to reality at that moment. I never knew where their fingertips would land, or where their tender paths would lead. But not being able to control where they touched me seemed to excite me more. Slowly, methodically, the twins started rubbing up and down my thighs. Then I felt a hand go under my shirt to rub my stomach and chest. Then...from the other side, I felt a grope at my crotch, and it made me release a timid little 'yelp' in response. They paid my response no attention at all. They never asked for permission to touch me, or looked to see if I was reacting negatively to their advancements. I doubt they cared one way or the other. And ad they both leaned forward to lick at either side of my neck...my whole body released its every tension, and I knew at that moment that I'd do anything they asked me to to get them to keep going. Anything.