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His brother shrugged. "You only get married once."
"True." Anandur took a sip of his whiskey. "That's a good reason to make the most of the celebration, but I would have liked to join you guys tomorrow. If I showed up dressed like this, it would petrify the humans."
Bhathian shook his head with a grin. "Or make them die of laughter. Besides, the plan is for Kalugal to freeze them, so they will be petrified anyway."
Anandur feigned a pout. "That's no fun. What if you unfreeze them one at a time, after disarming them, of course, and then let them wrestle for their lives?"
"That's not a good idea," Arwel said. "We'd obviously win, and then we would have to put them in stasis because the Clan Mother doesn't allow us to execute them."
Anandur lifted his glass but then lowered it. "Actually, this one time, the Clan Mother has agreed to make an exception because of their monstrous cruelty, and she's not only allowing us to end them permanently but actively encouraging it. My problem is that death by venom is too merciful for monsters. I don't want them to die with a smile on their faces. I want them screaming in pain."
Anandur was glad to see nods all around. "Ripping their hearts out of their chests while they're frozen is better, but doing that while they are fighting for their lives and losing would be even more satisfying. I want them to experience the terror and pain they inflicted on those villagers."
The brutality of his words was not lost on his friends, but they all shared his view that the heinous acts committed by their enemies demanded justice.
Anandur cast a sidelong glance at the gods he had invited to his party and was glad to see similar expressions on their faces. He would have hated it if they'd started spouting nonsense about finding the good in people and giving them another chance. Or worse, trying to somehow justify their horrendous actions. It would have been lunacy, but reading news from the human world, he'd learned that there was no shortage of lunatics, either delusional or paid to spout things that no decent, intelligent person should ever accept or believe.
"Well, that was a fun topic for a bachelor party. Not." Kian chuckled. "I suggest that we forget about the mission until tomorrow and focus on celebrating the joyous occasion tonight." He stepped forward with a bottle of fine whiskey in one hand and a box of premium cigars in the other. "Time for a toast."
He poured whiskey into the line of fresh glasses on Okidu's tray and then waited for his butler to pass them around. "To love and the bliss of matrimony."
As glasses clinked and the sounds echoed around the room, Anandur downed the whiskey in one go, enjoying the smooth, fiery liquid warming his throat.
Kian flipped open the box. "Come and get your cigars, gentlemen and lady, but please light them up on the balcony and make sure that the doors are closed before you do."
Kri leaned over the box. "Which one do you recommend for a novice?"
"The Short Story," Kian said as he handed Kri a diminutive cigar. "They are very good despite their smaller size."
"Okay." She took the offered stick and headed out to the balcony.
After everyone was outside with a cigar in hand, Okidu made the rounds offering cutting services and lighting the cigars for them, and the pleasant smell of the sea breeze was replaced with the rich aroma of tobacco.
Anandur watched Kri puff on hers with surprising ease. Michael, the only one in their group who hadn't taken a cigar, shook his head at his mate. "I thought that you didn't like the smell of cigarettes."
"I don't, but cigars smell good."
Anandur caught Michael's eye and smiled. "Come on, Michael, light up. It's a tradition. You'd better get used to it. We do this at every bachelor party."
Michael grimaced but took the cigar Kian offered him. "You guys are a bad influence."
Anandur grinned. "You want to be a Guardian, right?"
Michael sneered. "I am a Guardian."
"Not yet, you're not. You are a Guardian in training. Light up."
"If I do, are you going to finally graduate me to full-fledged status?"
The kid was good, but he wasn't ready yet. "I wish I could, but you need more training."
"Fine." Michael handed the cigar to Okidu for cutting and lighting. "One more step on the journey toward full status." He took a puff and immediately started coughing.
"This is not a cigarette," Kian said. "Don't inhale. Just hold the smoke in your mouth and then release it."
As the cigars burned and the whiskey flowed, the mood in the room gradually shifted. The jokes resumed, laughter rang out, and stories were shared, each tale more embellished than the last, with Anandur's being the most outlandish of them all.
It was as if they were determined to squeeze every drop of joy out of the evening, because tomorrow, they would be busy killing monsters, which would be satisfying but add more taint to their souls.
