"I still remember the first time I saw you fly..."
Jonathan sat with his son on the porch of their domicile admiring the electro-magnetically charged sunsets that had become so common in New Portland. They lived on the coastline near the area that used to be called Maine in a small but secluded house about a mile or two away from the chaos of the city.
Jonathan was a fisherman, and had been for his entire life. It was a dangerous occupation being that after the war many of the individuals who were the product of transgenic mutation (especially those who had been cross-bred with sea creatures or reptiles) had moved into the vastness of the oceans to live out their lives far from persecution by some of the more racist pure humans. Jonathan and his now ex wife were pure humans but Jonathan didn't fall under the class of racist with good reason, his son Icarus was a Trans.
It had been a long and arduous road for Jonathan to cross knowing that his wife had been unfaithful, and he lived with that pain everyday. He was ecstatic at first news of his wife's pregnancy 18 years ago. There were many couples who tried their entire lives to bring a new life into this world and were none too successful due to the high levels of radiation still permeating the atmosphere after the war. There were daily treatments to combat radiation sickness, but sterility was a side effect that some could not avoid. Jonathan's heart sank into his stomach when his eyes first gazed upon "his" child. Aside from his lightly feathered calves and of course the silvery-grey wings' attached at his shoulder blades Icarus was indistinguishable from any other pure human. No matter to Jonathan, any and all mutation was an indicator of his wife's infidelity. She had slept with a homo-raptor named Gryphon while they were vacationing near the ruins of the Grand Canyon. Jonathan's ex-wife Andrea had run off years ago. Falling victim to her inability to deal with the fact that her son was a Trans she left him with the difficult task of raising their son on his own.
Icarus, now eighteen, loved his father with every fiber of his being. He realized the nature of his conception when he was old enough to be told the history of races like his, but he always admired his father's ability to look past their obvious physical differences and love him for who he was. His father was there to hold him up when he first began training his wings for flight. He was there at the cliffs when Icarus took his first flight on his own at 16. He was there when he caught his first fish out on the open water. They were truly father and son, not in physique, but in spirit.
Jonathan could hear the angry mob draw near as he reminisced with Icarus at their home. He knew what they were coming for, and he had expected it every day for the past 18 years now. He was a fool for carrying a picture of Icarus in his wallet, and an even bigger fool for leaving on the bar at the pub where his boat docked. His heart ached with sorrow and regret for not taking Icarus away from this place and for not having the strength of character to leave the bustling city for a more tolerant city state in the mid-west. Jonathan had decided long ago that hiding Icarus in their home would be the best course of action, lest he become a victim of the dominant racist society of pure humans that now permeated New Portland. Life for Icarus would consist of books, learning, and late night walks to the cliffs so he could take flight without worry of being discovered. Jonathan knew that Icarus had to be prepared, had to be groomed for a sentient life on his own, for one day he would be discovered.
They knew that this day would come; they knew that they wouldn't be able to keep this a secret forever. Jonathans' only hope was that he gave his son the tools he needed to leave this place forever and survive on his own.
"It's time son, be strong now." Jonathan spoke as he placed his hand firmly on Icarus's shoulder.
"What about you?" Icarus said. His eyes tearing with worry for his father.
Jonathan knew his fate, and knew that should his son stay, he would share it.
"I'll be fine, I work with these folks and I can talk to them, I'll straighten things out for me, but now you must leave. I know its hard son but remember, you can't come back to this place, not ever, do you understand me? I love you please you must go now before they get any closer!" Jonathan wrapped his son in his arms and held him close one last time before he pushed him away.
"I remember dad, I love you." Icarus leapt into the air and began his flight.
As he watched his son fly away over the coastline through the hailstorm of bullets and shouting Jonathan couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and confidence in the fact that his son was going to be free. As the first bullets began to hit his chest Jonathan caught one last glimpse of Icarus' winged silhouette on the horizon and he knew that his son was now truly free.
"I still remember the first time I saw you fly..."
rating: 5
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