Antok

Antok stood up and hesitantly followed Will.

The hallways were grand, the windows tall and he could see a winter wonderland outside. Will must have seen his face because he commented. 

“Dad decided to settle in a winter biome because it’s the only place humans and others won’t bother us. Turns out lots of ppl hate the cold”

“Hmmm this house looks bigger than the king's black castle back in Maryland” Antok commented.

“I know, It's a pretty big house. Kind of needed though when you have a huge boar hybrid and 2 winged men in here. We need all the space to stretch or even fly.”

Antok nodded.

The hallway they were in was decorated with family portraits, Antok stopped at one of them. 

It was Phill sitting on a grassy field with a little Tactzo sitting on his lap. Will is sitting beside them holding a little baby with golden hair.

“Ah yes, one of many family portraits, Dad, me Tactzo and Tom-“

“I knew Tom was your brother but getting the final confirmation made me realize....My uncle…..is almost the same age as me…. that's weird” 

He smiled “Yeah, what’s sad about all this is I feel a little bit responsible for the destruction of Maryland if I hadn’t suggested that city to him he would never have gone there and made the connections he did”

Antok blurred out “What?" 

Should he be mad at Will since....all of this is his fault?

Will just laughed and slapped his back, “Well there is nothing we can do now, that city is gone” 

The fact that he said it so casually irked him. He didn't know if he should hate him or not but he was just so exhausted from feeling anger, hate and sadness from watching all those people die. He watched Ms. Jefferson die and he was just so drained of emotions that his only response to Will's comment was a simple nod.

Antok continued walking his eyes analyzing each portrait and he stopped once again.

It was this cute close-up picture of an adorable chubby baby Tactzo being held by a hybrid boar woman and Phill, who barely reached her shoulder.

He sighed “It’s just so weird….here we are staring at an adorable baby and who would have thought he’d grow up to be the bloodthirsty evil man that he is”

Will chuckled and slightly leaned over him in a hushed voice, “You know if you get to know him……you will find out that he isn’t as evil as you think”

Antok looked at him, “With the carnage that I’ve seen so far it’s….I don’t think you or he could convince me that he is any good. Tell me why he turned out the way he is” 

“Betrayal…..that man has been betrayed the most out of anyone I’ve ever known.”

With a pause, Will continued.

“Before he became who he is, he was full of light willing to help anyone. He is still like that but much more guarded. Tell me what do you know of Boar Hybrids?”

“They like Gold a lot, they are known to pillage, Rob and kill others for fun. They are not to be trusted or met with” Antok listed off.

“Well because of those labels every friend he ever made ended up betraying him because they assumed he would someday do the things people accuse him of or assume of him. After constant betrayal what do you think happened?” Will asked.

Antok stayed quiet.

“He began to finally accept those labels. If people desperately wanted to see him as a villain then Tactzo said

 “Fine I’ll show you how bad of a villain I can be” 

You see Tactzo never just kills people just for the fun of it. He always has retaliated when people have attacked him first”

“B-but tactzo attacked Maryland for no reason first! That’s the whole reason we wanted to capture him and kill him in the first place!” 

Will smiled and placed his hands in his pockets.

“Who do you think founded the city of Maryland?” Will asked.

“Well, it was founded by the King's ancestors..”

“Yes and no, despite the constant betrayal Tactzo still sometimes tries to make friends. Long ago. Tactzo became friends with a goat hybrid and he wanted to start from scratch again. Build a city where humans and hybrids could live together with no discrimination. That was a time when hybrids were largely discriminated against. Most importantly build a city that saw him as a hero for once and not a villain. He with his hybrid Goat friend built that city and made it prosper. But over time the human and hybrid habitants of the city began to worry of Tactzo. He could build a whole new city but he still couldn’t run away from the assumptions and rumours that surrounded him. In the end, his hybrid friend caved and betrayed Tactzo by satisfying the worries of the population by sentencing him to a public execution…..he escaped of course and he told the whole city that those who do not wish to die to leave within a weak because he would be back for blood”

Will took time to clear his throat before he continued.

“He returned and decimated that place, but he left quite a few people alive. All wounded, of course, lots of the living were left without limbs just to make their living existence difficult. He killed his friend and everyone in his family but of course, he left one of his children alive. He was a baby and I’m sure that’s where the lineage of your King's ancestors continued. He wanted people to know what he did so I’m guessing when they re-built Maryland they’ve been itching for revenge on Tactzo throughout the generations.”

He finished the story with a shrug and Antok was in shock. Was all he knew about the great villain Tactzo wrong? Antok shook his head, That still didn't wash Tactzo's many sins he carried. The innocent women and children he killed without thought. Even if the actions of few affect the majority that still doesn't mean you should be just as bad as them and kill those who are defenceless.

“So like I said Tactzo never kills just because he always has a reason” Will finished. 

“H-how do you know this to be the truth?”

“He told me all about it through letters often and our dad often visited the city. Why do you think he had a home there? He wouldn’t just have a home built in a city where he knows people hate him and make it obvious that it’s his. Besides didn’t you realize how ancient that home looked? It’s one of the only homes that survived the initial destruction of Maryland.”

Antok’s head was blank. His mouth kept opening and closing, if all this was true then he didn't know what to feel…

If he joins this family, Tom, Billy and any of his friends from the IN  that survived will see him as a traitor and who knows if they will believe the context of how this whole thing started in the first place. It’s already been so many generations no one remembers. And because no one remembers will Antok really accept Will’s story and believe it? He guessed he’d have to figure out if he would trust this explanation or not. 

“Hmm is this Phil’s first wife?” Antok asked now pointing at the woman beside philza in the picture.

“First wife? That’s our mom!”

Antok turned to him surprised “But you and Tom….look so different. I thought there was no way you guys share the same mom”

Will smirked “Our mother can shapeshift, when Phill met her and had Tactzo, she was in this form. Also, our mother is Lady Death." Will pointed at the portrait of the boar hybrid woman, "When she had us two she was in her original form which she looks more…human? But really she’s not”

Antok blinks confused. "The deity?"

“Long story, now come on there is more to see” They both started to walk again.

And that’s when he saw a portrait of a pale woman with black long hair and black eyes and purple irises. He could see how Will looked more like her just that he got his dad's blue eyes.

“Wait is that also her?” Antok pointed.

Will nodded but continued walking and Antok couldn’t stay by the picture to admire it more.

They walked into a large library. Which had Antok gasping loudly. 

“This is our library, through those grand doors there is our potion room but we got a lot of those around. To the right we got fiction, non fiction, science, math, medicine and on our left we got Family history, geography, arts-“

“Wait family history?” Antok interrupted and ran towards that shelf.

He could see the names of Philza, tactzo, Will and Tom. Phil had the most books under his name”

“We live for years and despite our great memories we won’t remember everything, we write books to remember our past. Of course, Father has the most because he’s so old and Taczo somewhat started but after the constant betrayals, he stopped writing. Tom is too lazy to write and I….haven’t been in enough adventures to write anything important. Haven’t met someone worthy enough to try to remember to forever”

Antok ran his fingers through the books in awe. 

“Who knows if we get along well I’ll write about you and make sure your name is immortalized in my memories…” 

Antok smiled and nodded. He didn’t know what to say to that but…if he couldn’t get a father out of Will then he’ll have to settle to the next best thing. 

Having his friendship. (That is...if Antok was ready for that)

Antok pulled out the first book on Tactzos' shelf.

He was surprised to see a child’s handwriting. “Tactzo age 7, year *****,  Today we went flying with Dad. He carried me on his back like always but I think I’m getting too heavy now-“

Antok read it out loud. and he snickered at the spelling mistakes and doodles on the paper. 

This….could help in finding out more about them. 

“And none of you will mind if I read this?” Antok asked.

Will shook his head “We made it very clear that the books placed here were here because they are okay to be read by anyone, anything too important has been moved from here”

Antok looked at the first book under Wills's name. He wanted to read it but he stopped himself…..he rather find out more about his father by talking to him. 

Tactzo on the other hand….. He wanted to Analyze everything about him. Since he was the one he was least sure about.

“But make sure when you read this book it doesn’t come out of the house, it will teleport back the shelf if you do leave with it”

“H-how are you able to do that??”

“Secret!” Will said.

They ended up walking to the kitchen which was connected to the dining room. It surprised Antok because usually, kitchens are separate from the dining room meanwhile this kitchen only had an island to separate the two.

Then they walked to the garden.

His eyes widen. 

It was massive.

Tall ceilings, with different types of trees. There was one in the center back that reached to the ceiling, towering above all the other trees. It looked to be some type of jungle tree. There was grass, flowers, a fountain and a few birds and butterflies.

Will pointed at the tallest tree, “Dad made this for Mom but also for us. When I first started learning to fly, Dad threw me out from that jungle tree” Antok chuckled at that. 

He threw himself to the grass and began to roll around. Perhaps it was his fox hybrid tendencies but the grass simply looked too good to not roll around in.

“This is beautiful! I wouldn’t want to ever leave”

Will smirked “Neither do I, It’s why I don’t travel much”

“We also have a farm if you walk through these doors”

Antok followed his finger and saw that through the windows he could see another tall greenhouse structure connected to this garden.

Antok began to realize that the technology and information this family had could really help bring society forward. The things in this large home- which really was more of a large castle- looked so much more advanced than anything Maryland City had. Even the Black Castle looked crude and plain compared to this beauty. Like Antok could simply imagine how much advanced knowledge they must have in their science and medicine textbooks in their library and he hasn't even checked those out yet!...that is if was even able to.....Antok's reading level is really poor due to not having a proper education.

“This place…. The potions, The architecture, the machinery, the library….is better than any city out there! You guys really could change everything!”

Will smiled “But we don’t because the world out there isn’t ready for us. Tactzo already tried it and he failed”

Antok frowned “B-but what if your dad does it? Or you? People would be more receptive to you two since bird hybrids are seen as more desirable”

Will crossed his arms “No because if they weren’t able to accept my brother then they are no good. It just speaks of their character. My father and I think the same and besides I am not up to creating a new society. What I do want is the laaaadiessss”

Antok was thrown off that is not how he expected Will to end his sentence. “w-what?”

“Listen I said I don’t travel much but when I do I get around. Tell me you have a girl you are interested in?”

Antok stuttered “I-I I….I haven’t really gotten the chance”

“I know you just got here but come on! We got to have some fun!”

“What-“

Will Grabbed him by his arms and began to flap his wings.

“Wait! I don’t have winter clothes!”

“Aw man, come with me you can take some of our old clothes. On second thought, I think you should take a shower first before getting the clothes” Will placed him back down.

Antok was able to take a shower and by the end of it felt the cleanest he’s ever been in a long time. Even the fragrance of the shampoo felt expensive. He put a robe on which had a crest symbol on it. A heart with black wings.

“What does this mean?” Antok said as he stepped out of the shower. 

“It’s our family symbol, we all have it engraved somewhere on our clothes, armour or weapons.” Will turned around and pointed at his back.

The section of his back which is below his neck and above his wings, right in the Center there was the symbol on his jacket.

Now that he remembered correctly, Phil had a heart symbol pin on his chest.

And Tom had the symbol stitched on the side of his books where his ankles are.

“Does Tactzo have one?”

Will nodded “He engraves it on all his weapons”

The very same weapons that killed thousands.

Antok swallowed hard and shivered. He didn’t know how much he’d like the wear the symbol but….

He tried to not think about it.

Antok followed Will and they went to this large closet with lots of racks.

“Wow, it’s like you have a whole market inventory in here”

“Well, when you live as long as we do you end up collecting a lot. We don’t tend to throw out good clothes”

“May I?” Antok asked.

“Yeah go ahead knock yourself out”

All his life Antok had lived in poverty and to be able to pick such fine clothes was something he never thought he’d be able to do.

He felt like a kid in a candy shop and his brain tried to block all the harsh feelings he had about this family and all the trauma he'll have from seeing all those people die back in Maryland. The calming ignorance is all he wanted.

He just wanted to forget.........

                                                   ..........for now.