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The Game v2.0 - Round 10

Shaun found time slowed down until it just seemed to come to a chilling stop. He could feel Ben's eyes on him, hiding from the second floor while he sensed Aiden's hesitation and David's worry. Every thump of his heart was like a thunderclap in his chest. Ashley's knocks drowned out even that and her shrill cry was the wail of a banshee trying to tear out his soul. Every fibre of his being wanted to leap through that door and apologise, say that they could be back together and to try and brush the breakup underneath the rug.

It was different breaking up with someone on the phone compared to confronting them head on and Shaun found himself retreating into his shell, whimpering like a pup.

But then... a few encouraging words rang in his mind.

'Take the time you have before the change comes to prepare yourself.'

Shaun took a deep breath. Blocking out all other noise, he just listened to his heartbeat. Just listened to the soft thump-thump of his own heart. In the silence, he heard more words...

'Sometimes, change is inevitable...'

He let out the breath he had been keeping and strode proudly forward. All the sounds and sensations came rushing at him like a tremendous wave trying to knock him down, trying to deter him from his path. Even Aiden's questioning cry of his name didn't give him pause.

Shaun pulled open the door and smiled brightly down at Ashley. Behind her was her red-hot convertible showing off her riches. Even the way she dressed despite the chilling weather showed just how she enjoyed the life of luxury. Her short, denim shorts and exposed midriff didn't were designed to entice, arouse and draw in unsuspecting men with her siren song.

"Well?" she demanded sharply.

"I'm sorry," Shaun replied calmly. "But like I said, I've been on your hook for far too long. It's time for me to find my own path. I'm done with you."

She shook her head, wagging a finger at him. Now everything about her just screamed desperation. "On no. No way. You are not going to dump me. I've spent too much time and effort on this! You are going to -"

"Ashley," Shaun interrupted. "Just let it go." He reached out to her, gripping her shoulder lightly. "We had fun for a while but if we had kept going on this path, we would've ended up somewhere where we'd both regret. Neither of us wants this."

Seizing his hand, Ashley took a step towards him, poking his chest with a sharp fingernail. "No! You listen to me, Shaun Chi! Unless you want me to go freely advertising to the world that you like to suck cock, you are not going to let this go! You have more to lose from this than I do, remember? What will the rest of your family think? What will Aiden think?"

"What do I think?" came the deep growl from behind him.

Shaun turned and broke into a grin as Aiden shuffled out, glaring down at Ashley with murder in his eyes.

Strangely, Ashley seemed to look even more at ease with his presence. "Aiden," she said in a sickly sweet tone that set instincts on edge. "What do you think about homosexuals?"

Through half-closed eyes, Aiden just shrugged and said, "They're great. Fuck, if they're sexy enough, I'll fuck one."

Ashley blinked multiple times in surprise. "What? But aren't you -?"

"Let me get something clear," Aiden said, interrupting her with a raised hand. "I'm fine with gays. Hell, I'm gay. I knew Shaun was gay before he knew it himself. So why don't you just fuck off and get the hell out of our lives?"

The sneer on her face was far from encouraging. "I knew it. You two are sleeping together." Neither of them had the time to interrupt as she reached for her phone. "Well what do you think of this then?"

She raised her phone towards them but all Shaun could see was the image of a monstrous koala bear with razor-sharp teeth, bloodied claws and rabid, red eyes. He wondered if that was meant to scare him but he just shook his head after staring at it after a minute.

"Um... What is this meant to be?" he asked. "It's just a koala..."

Ashley looked horrified and quickly spun the phone towards her. "That son-of-a... He... How...!?" She was so frustrated that she was barely spurting out any intelligent words. A suddenly calm came to her as she lowered her phone in defeat and regarded the two with an impassive stare. "I am clearly outmatched," she said, her voice obtaining a calm, menacing tone. "If it please you to know, I slept with Aiden. The day after you broke up with me, we slept together." She placed her had on her belly. "And I think I'm pregnant."

Both boys leapt back in horror, their eyes wide. Shaun had expected Ashley's face to peel open in a sinister smile for finally getting what she wanted but her face remained solemn, grim. Shaun turned his eyes towards Aiden, paralysed with fear. Her pleas for company suddenly didn't seem so desperate and manipulative anymore. Knowing David was just a few feet behind them, he could only imagine what the older man was going through.

Right after coming together with Aiden too...

Suddenly, Ashley's phone rang. Her eyes were pleading and she didn't pay attention to it as she hit the 'receive' button.

A familiar voice came out to greet her. "Ashley, this is your doctor. You are not pregnant."

At the sound of that voice, she instantly tried to switch off speaker phone but paused when she realised it was already off.

"You!" she snarled. "Why are you ruining my life!?"

"Perhaps because you are so driven to ruin the lives of others."

Shaun felt Aiden's hand on his shoulder and he was pulled back slightly.

"That's..." Aiden began.

"Yeah," whispered Shaun.

"I am not ruining lives! They -" Ashley countered.

"Your eyes are focused on the target that you fail to see the path of destruction that you have left in your wake. Collateral damage is still damage."

She opened her rosy lips to counter but what words she held drowned out in her throat. It took a few moments before she managed to speak again. "What do you want? Do you want me to undo what I did?"

"Apologise."

Her eyes widened and she clearly bristled. "I will do no such thing!"

The voice on the other end spoke and with it, Shaun's entire being shook with the compulsion to fall to his knees. It was like every letter, every syllable was struck using his very soul as the strings and his body was just the riding the waves of the sound.

"Apologise."

Then Ashley did something Shaun never though he'd see her do. She crushed her phone in one hand, shattering the plastic casing and glass screen. Sparks flew out from her grip and she tossed the phone away. With shaking fists, she turned towards Shaun and Aiden.

"I'm sorry, okay?" she snapped, clearly insincere.

"You know you did wrong. From the heart."

Ashley's eyes widened and she spun around to retrieve her phone. Both she and the boys paused when they caught sight of the young man leaned against Ashley's convertible, arms crossed against his chest and eyes hidden behind a pair of silver wraparound sunglasses. The frown on his face was clearly unimpressed. He held a megaphone in one hand.

"Jacob..." Shaun whispered, unsure if he should be pleased or horrified.

Shaking with fury, Ashley turned back towards Shaun and Aiden. She took a deep breath... and let it out slowly. Her features calmed and when she next opened her eyes, for the first time, Shaun saw sincerity in them. "Shaun... I'm sorry. Truth is, I never loved you even if you thought you loved me. I was just in for the prestige, the sex and the fun." She held herself, shivering slightly. "Most of my life, I've been cloistered, forced into perfection by my parents and never given the chance to experience true human emotion... To be free and out in the world like this... I just got drunk on it... I didn't want to let it go.

"I guess... I guess in some way I cherished you. You were the one I spent most of my time with and the other guys just didn't compare. There's something to be said of why I just kept going back to you in the end. Even now..." She laughed bitterly, rubbing her head as she said so. "... Despite being dumped, I still tracked you down just to get you back because you were that special... But I am sorry. I can never love you. I was just using you."

Her eyes went to Aiden, her eyes welling up in tears. "I am sorry for whatever pain I may have caused you, Aiden. It was not right of me. To be honest, I'm not even sure if I did it because I was getting back at Shaun or because I just really needed to get laid. All I know is that I put a lot of guilt on you. For that, I'm sorry."

Even if it was an apology that had to be coerced out of her, Shaun felt that it was genuine. She was still a bitch and all the heartache she put him through could never be healed by a simple apology. This, however, was a good start.

"Apology accepted," he said, spread out his arms wide.

She raised her own hands in defence and stepped back. "Sorry, no. I might get ideas. Besides..." She glanced over her shoulder at Jacob who had a very faint smile on his features. "... I don't think I'll be allowed to stay."

Shaun looked up at Jacob, puzzled but also feeling strangely defensive of Ashley. "Is he going to hurt you?"

"No. He won't. He's probably going to yell at me. Actually... He doesn't yell." She shook her head with a smile and as she looked at Jacob, there was a sense of admiration in her eyes. "I'll be fine." She glanced at Shaun and Aiden, smiling and nodding slightly. "Thanks, you two. It's been a blast."

Slowly, she approached Jacob and stood awkwardly in front of him, eyes cast down like a child who had just been reprimanded. Jacob inclined his head towards the car. She obeyed and jumped into the driver's seat, starting the engine. The mysterious waiter tipped an invisible hat towards Shaun and Aiden before jumping in himself.

He then lifted the megaphone to his lips and - right in Ashley's ear - said, "Drive."

She yelped and rubbed her assaulted ear. "Ouch. That hurt!"

"At least I wasn't yelling, right?" he countered, a wicked grin on his face.

As they drove off, Shaun had a shiver run down his spine.

Aiden felt that the most as he let out a loud sigh of relief. "Shit... That was all kinds of weird... Jacob..."

"Yeah... Jacob," Shaun echoed.

*****

The rest of the day passed without any more excitement.

Ben had grown a little stir crazy as the already enormous cabin seemed far too small for him and he went out into the forest with Shaun in tow. By the sounds of wolf howls every hour or so, they were enjoying themselves as well as exploring all the beauties of nature. Tony was up on the second floor occupying himself with his pride. Like the howls, the house grew noisy with constant creaking and the occasional, muffled whump.

With sex practically everywhere, Aiden decided to occupy his mind with something else and headed out to the rear of the cabin where the chopping log was. He began hefting the axe and bringing it down on the logs that were there since last summer. Hours seemed to pass by and by the time the last log was chopped, the sun was already starting to begin its descent below the horizon.

He brought the wood towards the bonfire area that he and his father used to enjoy when he was much younger. As he had practiced so many years before, he started the fire and began arranging the chairs around the flames. Not too far behind him, Shaun had returned from his trip into the woods smelling like wolf with Ben in tow, the two of them carrying a portable grill. David was behind them, carrying armfuls of meat that they had brought over from the city.

It didn't take long before the smell of barbequed and grilled meats attracted the pride and they left their den to join the rest of them at the fire. After a hearty meal of grilled pork, beef and sausages later, the group sat gathered around the bonfire, just enjoying the cool air and the clear skies. Storm clouds were still looming in the distance but for the moment, they could see the full night sky and all its starry glory.

Looking from face to face, Aiden couldn't help but wonder how this ragtag team of crazies had come together into such a close knit friendship. He snuggled up into David's muscular arms, sighing contently.

"It's crazy," Tony whispered softly, a gentle smile on his face as he stroked Xavier's mane. "Here we are, mostly transformed and I can't help that if not for some crazy circumstances, we would never have met... I mean, if I weren't Ben's roommate, we would never have met David. David has a connection with Shaun by being neighbours and from there, we met Aiden."

"I don't regret one moment," Ben said, nuzzling Shaun's neck tenderly. "I'm personally glad that we were brought together like this."

"That's the thing..." said the lion softly. "Who do you think brought us together? Is it that... 'Jacob' you spoke of?"

Aiden hadn't thought of it that way before. After seeing Jacob deal with Ashley, he couldn't help but detect a sense of... foresight in the mysterious waiter's actions. He looked from face to face and wondered why any entity - omniscient or not - would let people go through so much pain before finding happiness. Then, he resolved that he didn't care. He was happy now and he didn't want to lose that.

"Who cares, right?" asked David. "We're here, now." He held Aiden tightly against his chest. "It was a crazy ride but we're here. Now, it is just about going forward."

"Towards the goals we've set for ourselves," agreed Ben, nuzzling Shaun tenderly.

"With no restraints," added Shaun with a bright grin. He turned towards his mate, giving Ben a light kiss before saying, "we're free to choose our path and where we want to go."

Tony, however, didn't seem to share the strength from everyone else. "There is one thing holding us down." From out of nowhere, he retrieved the Game and set it in front of them. "We're still bound by this thing. We have to finish it."

Aiden found his hands clutch David's tightly. Again the looming question of what would happen when the Game ended loomed over his mind. Would all of this just vanish and they'd go back to the way things were with some vague recollection of what they had gone through? Would they just pass each other in the street, smile, nod and pretend none of it happened while wondering if anyone else remembered?

This path he had chosen with David was something he never wanted to let go of but at the same time, if the Game was going to continue to terrorise them with its threats of transformation... He wasn't sure he wanted that...

Begrudgingly, he agreed they had to finish the Game.

"Let's put it off for a little while," Shaun suggested with a faint smile. He peered into Ben's eyes. "I want this moment to last for as long as possible before something else comes along and changes it."

"Change is inevitable," agreed Ben. "But let's take the moments before it happens to reflect on what we want the change to be."

With those words, Ben and Shaun cuddled against one another and just watched fire flicker in and out. They seemed so content and in love. It was hard to imagine them being apart now.

David whispered in Aiden's ear and they quickly got up left the bonfire, heading to the rear of the house where they just sat down on one of the fallen logs and stared up at the stars. Their hands brushed against one another's, prompting them to squeeze hard as if they were both of afraid of letting go.

"I'm not going to be all sappy and tell you that no matter what happens, I'll find you," David said grimly. "I know you like that stuff. But you have believe that I'll try my hardest."

"I never did take you for the romantic type," Aiden laughed softly. "You know I actually have a stash of romance movies under my bed."

"I've got a stash of hard core guy-on-guy porn."

"We should have a movie marathon. Alternating movies. I call dibs on going first."

David rolled his eyes, letting out a soft laugh. "You just want to have sex after."

"Can you blame me?" He held onto David's hand tighter. "But in all seriousness... I don't know what'll happen when we hit the Game's end. It looks like we're almost there. I want to remember these moments. It's been one hell of a trip."

"With great company," added David, leaning forward and lightly kissing Aiden's cheek. "If our paths diverge..."

"I hope one day, they cross again," finished Aiden, leaning in to kiss David.

*****

Tony retreated back into the cabin. The feral growls of Ben and Shaun stirred his own cock and from the muffled moans his sensitive ears picked up from the rear of the house, he guessed Aiden and David were at it as well. He held the Game in his paws, taking one step at a time as he headed to the second floor. Behind him, Stephen, Eli and Xavier brought up the rear. A quick glance over his shoulder and he saw some semblance of life in their eyes but they still seemed hollow to him.

A heavy sigh escaped him when he heard the loud bark from the bonfire area. That love that Ben and Shaun had... He could never replicate that with any of his 'lovers'. Even Xavier had blind adoration for him. There was no personality there. He couldn't just create a person with a single wish. It took experience and a lifetime of growth.

Yes, he was no longer alone but he swore he would no longer meddle with anyone's lives and he considered his pride as people. Altering their minds... it just didn't seem right anymore.

He paused in front of his room, his paw hovering in front of the doorknob. Never the religious person, he found his eyes gravitating towards the ceiling. Almost his prayer, he begged, "Help me."

When no answer came, he wasn't sure why he was so disappointed. He sighed again, almost wishing for any of his pride to come over and comfort him. The absence of a comforting paw became chillingly apparent to him and he just pushed open the door.

He stopped when he saw a strange man standing in the middle of the room, rubbing his chin thoughtfully and silver wraparound glasses over his eyes.

"Who are you?" he growled.

"Huh?" the man asked, raising one eyebrow. "Oh hey. I'm Jacob. I'm sure the others would have mentioned me."

They had and Tony wondered if he was looking into the face of God... or at least the creator of the Game. "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for my koala," answered Jacob cryptically. He scratched the back of his head, a look of puzzlement on his face. "I was here earlier today and I am sure I had him. He might have wandered off."

"You brought a koala into the US? Isn't that dangerous?"

"Even more so since he's rabid." Jacob shrugged and sat down on Tony's bed. "Oh well. I'm sure he'll turn up. I'll just go to wherever the screams are. Oh and by the way, if for some reason your society falls prey to an Apocalypse brought on by a militant army of quickly reproducing, gun-toting, rabid koalas, I didn't do it."

Tony shut the door, not even realising he had closed it on his pride. "You're insane, aren't you?"

"You have to be to be what I am."

"And what exactly are you?" he asked cautiously.

Jacob offered him an enigmatic smile. "Let's just call me a passing traveller with some helpful advice."

"So you're not the omnipotent entity that governs this world? You're not our creator?" Tony realised he had a unique opportunity here. "Does God really exist?"

Jacob's smile grew broader. "I once heard that being a god is hard. But the best gods are those that, when they do something, their believers aren't sure they did anything at all. I think the fact that I am here, standing right in front of you, is testament to that."

Tony wasn't sure what to take from that. "I'm not going to get a straight answer, am I?"

"I doubt 'straight' would suit you anyway."

That made him laugh a moment. "Okay... So why are you here?"

"Obligatory visit," answered Jacob, patting his knees and leaping to his feet with a swing of his arms. "I've spoken to everyone who has played the Game except you. I thought I ought to offer you my guidance since I've helped everyone else. It's only fair."

"I feel so special," Tony muttered sarcastically.

"Now don't be like that." Jacob walked over to Tony and guided him towards the bed, forcing him to sit down. He then turned towards the window, crossing his arms. "I think out of all the people who have played the Game, you are closest to truly being divine. If you think about it, you've messed with people's past, their thoughts and even tried creating people of your own. What has that taught you about the nature of gods?"

Tony laughed bitterly and set the Game down. "It's fucking hard."

"Exactly. I will be honest, of all the divine entities I've met, most of them start out trying to meddle with people's lives but near the end, as their population grows and their universe expands, they just find it too hard and fall back. They watch and occasionally, they will interfere but most of the time, they watch."

"Isn't that laziness?"

"Not when you consider the implications," Jacob answered, raising a finger. "If you interfere with someone's life with the power to alter their very nature, what is the point of creating people with emotions and thoughts when you are just making them your dolls? A god's greatest gift is free will."

Tony glanced at the door where he had left his pride behind. "So you're saying... That if I just kept messing with people, they'd just be my puppets?"

"More or less. Sometimes, it takes a while for people to realise that but in the end, it's all about choice; the capacity to have it and the ability to grant it."

In that moment, Tony realised exactly what his pride was missing. "They don't have free will... They can't make their own choices!" He leapt up to his feet and reached for the Game but froze just as his fingers brushed its lid.

"You're learning," Jacob said, clearly pleased.

Tony sat back down, frowning deeply. "If... If I can't grant them that power... Then how will I make them real people...?"

"The moment you stop trying to give people free will is the moment they'll get it."

His eyes fell on the Game and he pulled his hand away. "What if they don't love me...? What if I'm left alone?"

The strange entity laughed softly. "I've heard that so many times it just gets funny." He turned towards the lion with a smile. "Do you think you will cease to exist because your creations don't think about you? Do you think you'll die alone?" He strode over to Tony, resting a hand on the lion's shoulder. "It is a sad, sad thing when a god decides to live through his creations. You cannot create love, Anthony. If you want to find that special someone, find them, don't make them. You can give them a shell, a foundation but if they so choose, they will find their way to you."

Tony wrung his paws together, gazing at the door. Suddenly it felt like he was in that weird dating board game where his prom date was waiting on the other side of that door. He shook his head with a chuckle and looked towards Jacob.

"Thanks... Since I've got you here, can I ask you some philosophical questions?"

"Shoot."

"Who is God?"

"Does it matter?"

"To some people, it does."

"Does it matter to you?"

Tony looked at the Game then back at the door where his pride rested. "I guess not... Okay... How about... What lies after death?"

"Just another road you have to travel. Might be easier, might be harder. Just like any path you take, your actions then and your choices in the future will decide just how rough or smooth it is."

He frowned again, realising he wasn't going to get a straight answer. So, he decided to ask something he knew he'd get a solid explanation on. "What is the Game?"

There, the entity chuckled and rested a hand on the wooden board. "It is a misguided attempt of two of my colleagues. One just wanted sex and the other wanted to spread chaos and anarchy. Joined together, they hoped to cause mischief across the world while screwing everything caught within the seductive grip of the Game."

"And where do you come into the picture?"

"I'm putting a stop to it."

"Why? I mean, apart from the chaos and anarchy thing, why would you care?"

Jacob chuckled and patted Tony's head comfortingly. "For the very same reason that your pride is devoid of life. The Game robbed its players of choice."

Before Tony could ask another question, a strange thunk came from the closet. The strange man turned towards the nearby closet and raised an eyebrow. "Huh... Koala in the closet. Who would have thought?" He flashed a grin at Tony and patted the lion's shoulder. "Well, it's time for me to wrap things up. Enjoy the rest of your evening."

"Wait!" Tony cried, leaping to his feet just as Jacob reached the closet doors. "What will happen at the end of the Game? Will we keep our powers and our forms?"

There, Jacob just flashed him a knowing smile. "Like I said. It's just another road you have to travel."

The mysterious man with the sunglasses opened the closet doors and stepped through, shutting it behind him. Tony immediately rushed to where he stood and swung it open. Of course there wasn't anyone there. He wasn't sure why he expected otherwise.

Shaking slightly, he moved towards the bedroom door. When he pulled it open, he found all three members of his pride looking up at him worriedly. At first, he was disappointed that they shared the same expression but then... he realised they were worried about him. It was an expression of emotion that he hadn't programmed into them.

"He's right..." he whispered. "The moment I stop trying to give them free will is the moment they get it..." He beamed brightly and hugged the members of his pride lovingly. He could sense their confusion and more than ever, he knew he loved them.

A tear rolled down his cheek at this realisation and he nearly broke into a full-on crying wreck when Steven asked, "Hey... What's wrong?"

He shook his head, murmuring, "Nothing. Everything is perfect." He pulled away and beamed brightly. "Come on, let's play the Game. Go fetch Ben and the others."

Steven still looked a little worried as he said, "Alright... Let's go guys."

They all parted with Xavier giving him a faint smile as they left.

Tony went back into his room and set the Game on the floor, smiling contently. He wiped the tears away from his eyes and turned towards the ceiling. Then, thinking better of it, he turned towards his closet and said, "Thank you."

A moment later, the other players entered, smelling of sweat and sex. They sat around the Game, his pride resting beside him. Tony opened the Game, observing just how close each of them were now to their respective finishes.

With a big smile, he turned towards the others and said, "Ready?"

Ben held Shaun's hand in his. "Yeah."

Aiden nodded as he hugged David. "Definitely."

Tony reached down and plucked the die from the Game. It was an odd sensation to have only his face vibrate and undergo the rapid twitching that was his transformation. As always, he got horny from the sensation of having his face pushed out to form his square, feline muzzle. His fangs came in felt like that moment when he was just overcoming a tooth ache and he could finally chew again. A soft mewl escaped him and he found comfort in the arms of his pride, their warm, furry bodies brushing up against him.

It surprised him that he had actually managed to hold onto the dice. He wasn't sure if he missed the sensation of getting aroused as his bestial self emerged from his human frame. But when each of his pride members instantly began caressing the thick growth of fur on his chest that led down to a treasure trail over his rapidly rising cock, he decided he didn't care. He passed the dice over to Ben who moaned softly as his veins began pulsating past his flesh.

Tony occupied himself with his pride and not too far away, Ben gave the dice over to Shaun. The wolf doubled over, moaning loudly with a rising howl building in his throat as every muscle in his body was pumped full of strength and mass. Shaun shuddered and his cock spewed out gallons of cum that eagerly spread all over his body, encasing him in the cocoon everyone had grown accustomed to. Before thecum hardened, he tossed the dice over to David. David's hands began to throb and he opened his hand, the dice on his palm. Aiden bent down and kissed it, his eyes rolled into the back of his head as his entire naked body began throbbing just like David's only the curves of his muscles began to smoothen out and thick veins as big as his fingers began crawling over his flesh.

Ben crashed to the ground on his paws and knees, the muscles on his body surging outwards until his arms were as thick as tree trunks and his thighs were twice as large. His spine was forced to compensate, stretching outwards as his legs and arms did the same, making him more in proportion to the rest of his body. He arched his back, letting out a deafening howl as his gargantuan cock sprang forth and slapped against the mountains of pecs that he wore so well.

His howl was echoed by the roar of a tiger-taur emerging from his cocoon. Shaun kicked off the last fragments of his cocoon, cocks bouncing eagerly as he turned his feline body towards his mate. With Ben already bent over, Shaun eagerly mounted him, resting his forelegs on Ben's massive shoulders with his front cock rubbing against the back of the wolf's head. His rear cock entered the wolf smoothly, a key to the right lock. The beast began rutting without delay, grunting and growling in pleasure.

On the other side of the room, the floor shook as an enormous man-sized cock slammed to the ground, twitching and spewing precum all over the floorboards. David, his equine form throbbing out of his frame, eagerly hugged the massive cock. As his spine lengthened and he grew to tower over everyone else in the room, he nestled that cock against his chest, almost making it seem like it was his. David let out a loud whinny as the gargantuan balls of Aiden's own cock-cocoon cradled his multiple cocks. The noises the equine made were soon drowned out with a soft gurgling as his cock tongue emerged from his muzzle, dripping precum all over the cock he cradled.

On some unknown inspiration, David bent down and pushed his rock-hard cock-tongue through the slit of the enormous member he held tightly to his chest. The entire penis suddenly shuddered and let out a flood's worth of cum, splattering the equine's face with sticky, man juices. Still, David held on despite the torrent, a smile on his muzzle. The cock he held deflated with every squirt of cum and the loose pieces of skin began to deflate, wrapping around the figure of a muscled bull. Slowly, David peeled the excess flesh off Aiden, revealing them to be caught in a loving kiss, connected by lips and cock-tongue. Aiden wiggled out of the bag of flesh, his tentacles wrapping around David's form, curling around his many cocks and one even pushing itself deep into David's ass.

Tony found his eyes torn away from his friends as Xavier suddenly occupied his vision, eyes filled with love and the spark of life. He smiled, cupped his lion's chin and pulled them together in a tight kiss. He felt rough paws lift up his legs and he knew Steven was eager to assert his dominance. He would allow it... this time. Feeling the lion's cock in him filled with a sense of pride and joy. For the first time, he actually felt fulfilled like he had done something right. When he felt warm lips around his cock, he didn't need to open his eyes to know that it was Eli. His paws reached out and cupped the balls of Xavier and Eli, relishing their warmth in his fingers.

The combination of Xavier's tender kisses, Steven's rough ploughing and Eli's practiced licks sent him over the edge. He let out a deafening roar. His cock spewed fresh ropes of cum into Eli's waiting lips. Steven's cock jerked inside of him and felt his insides filled with warm spunk. His fingers grew sticky with more the cum from his other two pride members. He broke the kiss from Xavier and smiled warmly at his pride.

He didn't notice that the other couples had collapsed into their own pools of cum, sighing contently and about to drift into slumber. It was tempting to slide into blissful sleep but he knew that this would be their last round of the Game. Wasn't sure how he knew. Maybe it was Jacob's ominous words about stopping the Game or the fact that he came to visit Tony last.

Tony straightened, gently pushing the members of his pride back as he crawled over to Aiden and poked the tentacled bull lightly. Aiden let out a grumble and stared daggers at him. Tony picked up the dice and handed them to the bull.

"Fine," Aiden sighed. He straightened and rolled the dice. "Hey everyone, come on! Let's get this show on the road!"

Shaun, who had pulled out at the last minute before cumming all over Ben's back, grumbled softly and dismounted from Ben. Both of them were simply enormous and it was a wonder how they both moved. The two of them took up half the room with their sheer bulk and when Shaun crouched down, the floorboards creaked noisily beneath him. Ben rolled onto his back, a thunderous whump filling the bedroom as he lay across the pool of cum he had produced.

Aiden tossed the dice and watched his d6 stride forward 6 spaced onto a yellow tile. His d20 landed securely on an 11. He reached down towards the yellow card and read, "Do not action tile effect. Target: Self."

Shaun breathed a sigh of relief as Aiden's Avatar strode forward a massive eleven spaces onto a black tile. Tony found himself letting out a breath he had been holding. He wasn't sure what would have happened had they jumped straight into a black tile event. However, as he quickly looked at the rest of the board, he realised that red and blue tiles were starting to become scarce. Even the rare green tiles were completely gone. Only yellow, black and the mysterious white tiles remained in abundance.

With his turn next, Tony picked up the dice and let them roll. His Avatar jumped forward four spaces with the rest of his pride, landing on yet another yellow tile. His d20 fell on a seventeen. As he picked up the yellow card, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching them. He glanced over his shoulder at the open closet.

"Something wrong, Tony?"

He snapped his attention towards Eli, surprised that the young lion had spoken and shown concern. That just filled him with joy, though and he shook his head. "No. Everything's fine." He picked up the yellow card and read it, "Action Effect. Reroll for effect. Target: All."

He blinked a couple of times and watched his Avatar jump forward a single space onto the closest blue tile. He picked up the d20, took a deep breath... and let it roll. No one in the room seemed concerned about what effect a blue tile would bring anymore. His second roll of the d20 fell on a 13 which translated to 'Double Animal Instincts'.

For a moment, Tony's eyes stung and he grunted, covering his eyes as he blinked away the tears. When he next opened them, he could truly smell the world around him. One look at Xavier and he could see the bright, green, slitted eyes he now wore. His pride smiled at him and he pulled Xavier to him, gently leaning down towards the youngest lion's neck and licking his nape tenderly. Ben cuddled up next to Shaun, nuzzling him and even daring a sniff of the tiger-taur's but. Shaun grinned brightly, his tail wagging in excitement. David let out a loud snort and held Aiden tightly against him. A quick squeeze of Aiden's nipples and the massive bull let out a long moan that sounded suspiciously like a 'moo'.

The dice was quickly handed to the next player - David. The equine let it roll to the ground. His Avatar galloped five spaces forward onto the first white tile of the Game. Everyone glanced looked for a white card but when none were found, Ben clicked his fingers.

"Right... White tiles are meant to remove the last transformation you underwent."

David shrugged. "I don't feel any different."

"Probably a good thing then," answered Shaun, taking up the dice for his turn. He let it roll and Tony watched his Avatar stride forward three more spaces. Shaun's path was absolutely littered with white tiles, the most of anyone else's. He fell on one and again, the consequences seemed minimal.

Shrugging, Shaun handed the dice to Aiden. His best friend threw the dice next while his path was dominated by yellow tiles. It was no surprise that he too fell on a yellow tile with his d20 falling on a 12.

"Triple effect," Aiden said, after picking up the coloured card. "Target: Next and previous player. Do not action tile effects."

The next player was Tony and the previous player was Shaun.

Both their Avatars marched forward three spaces.

Suddenly, their finishes became very close and the end of the Game became a startling reality.

Tony picked up his dice and looked at the path before him. Only a few blue tiles remained with white tiles dotting the area. Only a single black tile presented itself. He counted the transformations he had undergone and realised that out of everyone, he had really undergone the least amount of changes. Realising this, his eyes went to his pride and wondered if he would lose them.

Quietly, he let the dice fall from his paws and held his breath when he fell on a white tile. His sense of smell immediately became more dulled. He missed the crisp, forest scent of Xavier, the dominating, leathery smell of Steven and the sexy, cum-soaked aroma of Eli that just screamed 'Fuck me'.

The dice were taken from him and he watched as Ben took his turn.

Ben's hulking Avatar marched forward four spaces onto one of the very flew red tiles left in the Game. With his d20 on an eight, someone was in for some extreme muscle growth. "Single effect. Target: Previous player."

Tony was knocked from his reverie as he realised that meant him. "Oooooh... shit..." he moaned as his entire body began twitching violently. His cock instantly sprang from its sheath as every muscle in his body felt like someone had attached electrodes to it and sent a powerful current through them. Whereas most muscles would have been fried, his eagerly drank in all the excess energy and grew. His tin, golden fur hugged every curve on his body as his six-pack quickly evolved into eight and his thighs rubbed against one another. His pecs strained against his chest, dramatically shrinking the area his thick, brown chest fur covered as they grew bigger and bigger. A deepening growl rippled from his expanding throat. A vein popped up against his bicep, splitting into smaller ones as its crossed his forearms.

Tony let out a soft yowl when the shaking stopped and became aware of the wetness on his cut, eight-pack. His cock was out again and dripping copious amounts of cum into the valleys of his stomach.

"I think you needed that," Ben laughed, handing the dice over to David. "It was getting a little hard to tell you apart from the rest of your pride."

"Huh... I guess so," Tony murmured.

David threw his dice and watched it bounce onto the Game. His dice fell on another yellow tile with his d20 falling on a 9. Just when everyone thought his Avatar would move forward another three spaces, the equine said, "Minus three from effect roll. Reroll for effect. Target: Self."

A 6 on yellow demanded David's Avatar jump to the nearest red tile. That was four spaces ahead.

Taking up the d20 once more, David let loose and watched it land on a 5.

Everyone instantly took a step back, even Aiden, as the equine kicked out his legs and let out a rising moan that quickly devolved into a loud nicker. David's entire body stretched, legs lengthening and torso rising closer and closer to the roof. Already past ten feet before the transformation, he towered over everyone else at an enormous twelve feet tall. His legs stretched almost entirely from one end of the room to the other and his torso alone almost dwarfed Tony.

"Wow..." David muttered, rubbing the back of his head. "This is going to make getting around difficult."

"I don't mind," Aiden chuckled, taking up the dice and handing them to Shaun. "Hell, this might give me an excuse to 'ride' you."

"Slut," David laughed.

Shaun grinned and let the dice roll. His Avatar strode forward two spaces onto another white tile. He blinked a couple of times and his eyes lost their feline glow. When he looked at Ben, the wolf just smiled and kissed him lovingly.

Aiden swiped the dice next, holding it in his paws. "This round seems kind of tame, huh?" he asked. "Not much craziness happening."

"We're coming to the end," answered Tony. "It's almost over." Again, he was unsure how he felt about that.

Aiden's Avatar marched proudly forward for three spaces onto a red tile. His d20 landed on an 5. When he picked up his card, he raised an eyebrow. "This is new... Reroll two more times. Choose a target for each effect."

His eyes went up around the room. "So I guess... I get to roll three more times and give three people different transformations, huh?"

Tony glanced over at the closet, wondering if Jacob had heard Aiden's observation and altered the chances of the bull's roll. Remembering Jacob's spiel about free will, he realised that was not what the entity wanted.

"So... Who wants to get some extra 'height'?" Aiden asked, glancing around the room.

"Any more on me and I'll burst through the roof," David said, holding up his hoofed hands. "Choose someone else."

"I'm good the way I am," Shaun said.

"Me too," added Ben.

All eyes then went to Tony who gulped loudly.

"I'd like to be taller."

Tony was startled to find Steven raising his paw. "Choose me."

Free will... it was a funny thing.

"Is that okay with you, Tony?" asked Aiden.

"Not my choice, I guess..." Tony answered, still bewildered.

"Okay... Well... Steven, you get to be taller."

The second eldest of the pride suddenly toppled against Tony, his entire body twitching as a lewd, pleasured smile crossed his muzzle. His cock was instantly in hard as the entire length of his body grew. Tony found it surreal to be holding a member of his pride - someone who had come out of his seed multiple times - grow in his paws. Steven bit his lower lip and let out a loud roar as he hot spunk came streaming out of his cock.

Fascinated, Tony poked at the cum splattered on the young lion's chest. Curiosity got the better of him and he licked the salty substance, unable to keep himself from wondering if it tasted different to his own.

"Next victim," Aiden said, shaking the dice in his paws and letting it go.

An 8.

Muscle growth.

"Oooh! Me! Me!" Eli exclaimed. "Me next!"

"Alright..." Aiden replied, just as worried as everyone else.

Eli fell back into Tony's arms as well, laying atop a semi-comatose Steven as his body began to shudder and rock violently as well. Every muscle in his body ballooned out, growing even larger than Tony's. The alpha male of the pride watched in awe as his submissive pride member grew to be the biggest of the pride in terms of muscle. He couldn't help but run his paws over the chiselled abs and thick pecs, tracing the line of veins that originated from Eli's shoulders and ran down his arm.

"Wow..." he whispered softly.

"Gettoffme!" Steven shouted, pushing Eli off even as the younger lion came all over his, muscular chest.

"Last roll," Aiden said, picking up the d20 and letting it loose. It fell on a 2. "Well... I don't see why you should be left out. You okay with this, Xavier?"

The youngest pride member nodded and just gazed at his cock with a mixture of embarrassment and fascination. Tony could only watch as his loving lion's cock sprang from its sheath and stretched out to the length of his forearm, bouncing proudly up against Xavier's firm pecs. The young lion let out a soft whimper as a hot, stream of cum came pouring out of the tip of his prickly rocket.

Smiling, Tony reached down and gripped the foot-long monster, making Xavier shudder and give him an awkward smile.

Before he could say anything more, he found the dice in his paws.

"Your turn," Aiden said.

Tony took the dice with a mixture of reverence and fear. His eyes then turned towards the board and saw the blanket of white tiles that came ahead of him. One look at the rest of his pride, and he feared what would happen if they lost their personalities, if they lost their free will and just became his 'slaves' again.

There was little time to think as Steven suddenly crashed into Eli, trying to pin the much more muscular lion beneath him. Eli growled playfully and gripped Steven in a bear hug, rolling across the room.

"Hey!" David exclaimed. "Break it up!"

All eyes were on the two lions and away from Tony. The lion's eyes went to his paws, where the dice lay and where the fate of not only himself but his pride remained. He did a few quick calculations and slammed the dice into the ground lightly.

"Hey! Stop it!" he demanded.

Steven looked up, blushing lightly as he shoved a giggling Eli into the ground. "He started it."

"Well -"

"You're moving!" Shaun exclaimed, pointing at Tony's Avatar as he strode forward six spaces onto a yellow space.

With the d20 on a 9, Tony gave both Eli and Steven a foul look and a warning wag of his finger before he picked up his yellow card. "Triple effect. Action tile effect. Reroll for effect. Target: Player after the next."

A nine on a yellow card was advancement of three spaces. Triple that was nine spaces.

And the player after the next was David.

David's Avatar strode forward nine spaces onto a black tile.

"Eep!"

The world suddenly grew dark.

Tony held his breath, disappointed that the Game had not ended and fearful of what the future would bring. The loud thump of a spotlight coming to life broke the darkness. Tony suddenly found himself standing in the middle of what appeared to be a boxing ring beside his Pride. In another corner stood Shaun and Aiden and in the third was Ben and his father, David.

From the forth... came striding a figure.

"Jacob!?" everyone exclaimed.

"Hiya!" the mysterious figure greeted cheerfully with a bright grin. When he came to stand at the centre of the ring, he raised a hand and a microphone suspended on a wire came from the darkness above them.

"You're the one behind the Game!?" Shaun exclaimed.

"You're the one doing this to us!?" Aiden demanded, snorting loudly.

"Little old me?" answered Jacob, gripping the microphone. "Heavens no. I'm just commandeering it. I've got one of the masterminds sitting in the naughty corner and the other is still being a prick and won't come out." He shrugged absently. "So I figured, I'd see what all the fuss was about. So here I am!" He cleared his throat theatrically and held the microphone to his lips.

"The game is: Tag Team Fighting!" he boomed. "Each player will be paired up with another. In the case of Player Anthony and his pride, you get to choose whom you will fight alongside. The remaining two will fight beside one another. All four teams will then engage in a free-for-all. Please keep things civil. No need to tear each other to shreds. Just pin a person down for ten seconds or throw them out of the ring. Last team standing is declared the winner. Are we clear on the rules?"

"What's the rules on kicking people in the nuts?" Aiden asked, raising his paw.

"Do you want to get kicked in the nuts?" countered the stranger.

"No..."

"Then no kicking people in the balls. Oh and while we're on the subject of genitals, please no rape or excessive use of semen. This stage is going to be used by the local primary school's rendition of 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves'. I do not have to want to explain why the leading female role is as 'white as snow'."

Tony couldn't help but grin at that comment.

"So, player Anthony, who will you be playing beside?"

Tony glanced from face to face. Eli seemed the most plausible choice. He was strong, buff and combined with their two builds, they could stand their ground. But that would probably be all they could do. Ben was the biggest of them all and trying to go toe to toe against him especially with his muscle-growth inducing cum would be suicide. Xavier, while sexy, was too shy to be useful in a fight.

So that left him with the aggressive one.

"I choose Steven."

"Excellent then. Xavier, Eli, please go to the unoccupied corner."

The two named lions made their way to the corner without another word though Xavier did cast a worried glance at Tony.

"Now that we're ready to begin... Is everyone ready?"

All teams gave their confirmation.

"Oh wait!" Jacob exclaimed, clicking his fingers. "I almost forgot!" He laughed softly to himself. "You're going to be merged with your fellow teammate! Enjoy the fight!"

Before Tony could ask what that meant, he collided forcefully with an equally stunned Steven. The pain of their collision struck his body hard and he felt himself start to bruise. Strangely, that pain quickly evolved into a soothing comfort. The fear in his heart quickly doubled, his heart racing wildly. For every thump, he felt an echoing ka-thump. It didn't take him to realise he was feeling Steven's heartbeat as well...

... a real, genuine heartbeat...

Steven was not just some doll... he was truly alive!

"Of course I'm alive," Steven grunted, his left arm draping over Tony's shoulder. "Why would you think... fuck... otherwise...? Shit... Of fuck, man... What is this...? Urgh!"

Tony couldn't deny that the immense sensation was like nothing he had every felt. His entire body felt like it was melting into hot liquid. Those boiling fluids quickly attached itself to Steven's equally hot body but the combination of their two bodies somehow cooled one another, leaving nothing but this amazing pleasure of arousal. He felt their bodies truly start to bind against one another, flesh knitting together, muscle and sinew joining together into a single entity. He felt every muscle in his body grow stronger and stronger with the doubled muscle mass of the two lions.

As their flesh merged, he could hear Steven's thoughts. Deep emotions and questions flirted around the lion's mind. That spark of free will and flared up into a full blown wildfire. In its raging flames, Tony could see complex colours, shadows and shapes. This was not the empty husk that he had introduced into the world to fill his loneliness. This was a person.

The arm draped over his shoulder could no longer move and melted into his flesh. At the same time, he curled his right arm around Steven's waist, slowly losing control of it but instead feeling the sensation of Steven's right arm growing with muscle and strength. He looked up at his taller pride-mate and watched the glazed, lusty gaze of the lion as he flexed his right arm, tongue hanging out as he licked the growing muscle lovingly.

Tony moaned softly, his head slowly migrating upwards, crawling over the bridge that Steven's arm made until his head sat right next to Steven's. He looked down and watched his torso vanish into Steven's, adding immense mass. Strangely, the thick, brown chest fur crawled over Steven's muscular chest. Tony instinctively curled his legs around Steven's much longer ones. His muscle and bones fused with the taller lion's, their thighs growing bigger and bigger to support the titanic upper torso they both sported.

Tony began panting wildly when he felt their cocks and balls brush against one another. A soft groan escaped them both as their ball sacs touched and the sensitive flesh began to merge together. Their balls jostled together in a single container before they met their counterparts and joined as one, jostling and eager to erupt with cum. He gazed down at their cocks as they pressed against one another, the bright, pink flesh knitting together and doubling their pleasure. He found their paws migrating towards their cock and a gentle kissing touching his cheek. He turned towards Steven, their lips meeting together in a passionate, loving kiss.

A thunderous roar from the opposite side of the right made them both briefly glance over at Ben and David. Ben threw his head back, letting out another roar as David's head nestled beside his head, cock-tongue out and dripping profusely with the remnants of his ejaculation, long enough to brush against the floor even from where they stood at their massive nine foot height. Strangely, only two leg-long canine cocks rested at their groin. Ben's roar quickly began a gurgling mess as he drooped forward, an enormous canine cock burst from his jaw like bright, red rocket, spewing cum everywhere. From their back rose four arms, heavily muscled, covered in brown fur and with David's hoofed fingertips. The combined beast was mostly Ben with his thick, muscled torso being the dominating presence.

The hyper hybrid of wolf and horse fell to their knees, unable to fully collapse on their back as their titanic cocks would crush them. They could only gasp and gurgle as cum continued to spew out of them in harder, more powerful blasts that threw them into a stupor.

"Aiden! Stop it!"

"That's not me man! It's you!"

Their eyes went over to where a hybrid of Aiden and Shaun lay on the ground, tangled in a mess of tentacles. It looked like Aiden made the majority of their lower body, becoming a huge, muscular quadruped bull with legs so thick that they rivalled Ben/David's. Their three cocks hung between his rear legs while their fur pattern had the colouration of a tiger's but was short like a bull's. Shaun's thick, upper torso rose above Aiden, complete with arms and four tentacles rising from his back. It seemed they were having a bit of coordination issues as their limbs jerked left, right and centre with no pattern to them.

"Huh..." Jacob said. "Maybe I didn't think this through. What do you say we just call Tony/Steven as winners by default? We -"

"Aren't out of the game yet!"

Tony glanced over to the ring where Eli and Xavier stood... only... there was a single lion there. And this guy was huge. He stood proudly, grinning from ear to ear with a massive sixteen inch, flaccid cock hanging between his tree trunk legs. His mane was fully developed and the only thing that set him apart from other lions was that one eye was blue and the other was green.

"Shit... They merged completely!" exclaimed Steven. "Why didn't we merge like that?"

"Maybe because you're always trying to rape me?" offered Tony.

"I don't try to rape you! Your ass is wide open! What do you expect me to do!?"

"Ask!"

A thunderous roar ripped through the air and the merged lions trusted their instincts, leaping away in time before the massive Eli/Xavier smashed into the ground where they had been standing. Somehow, despite having opposite mindsets, the duo managed to keep their legs coordinated and ducked behind the cock and muscle mountain which was Ben/David.

Through the gurgling, Tony could hear a conversation.

"Dad... you're in fucking love! It's not all about sex! Stop being so... fuck... aroused...!"

"I'm... I'm not the one with fantasies about fucking my dad..."

"I... Okay, so maybe I may have wanted you open up to me more... I just wish you were honest at the start..."

"Ben... I'm sorry... I just... I just needed to figure things out for myself too..."

"Shit... I love you dad...!"

A heavy sigh and Tony tore away from the two, bolting towards where Aiden/Shaun lay, struggling against one another. El'Xavier gave chase, grinning from ear to ear. As they rounded the bull-tiger, they also heard the two arguing.

"You always wanted to fuck me!?" Aiden exclaimed.

"I was curious! I just thought you would want to experiment!"

"I really wish you'd asked! Shit..." Aiden laughed softly.

"We still can... I mean, I don't think Ben would mind..." Shaun suddenly straightened and turned towards Benvid. "Hey Ben, if I suggested having a four-way with you, me, Aiden and your dad, what would you say?"

Ben could barely hold back a gurgle but he actually raised a paw and gave them the thumbs up. Then, the wolf went right back to stroking the cocks that sprang from his body.

Aiden grinned and laughed. "So what? We're on big happy family now?"

"If you think about it..."

Tony and Steven's instincts kicked in one more time and they quickly raced towards another corner. A loud thump made them both freeze as El'Xavier landed in front of them, grinning from ear to ear with a predatory gleam in their eyes. For a moment, Tony let Steven drive as he perked his ears to the conversations of the other two teams around him.

Ben and David were talking through their guttural grunts of pleasure. The words 'I'm proud of you' were thrown around a lot. He let his eyes wander to the two and somehow, they managed to rein in their hormones, their cock-tongue retreating into their muzzles. Ben admitted he was far from angry after the debacle of David's first round where the equine had purposefully attempted to lose for a change at a moment of bliss. He was grateful, in fact, and proud of his father that David had found someone to love. Likewise, David was proud of his son for finding a path and driving forward with more passion than anything else he had done in his life.

As Steven carried their joined bodies under El'Xavier's lunge and over to the edge of the ring, he heard 'Shaiden' confessing that for a long time, they both had the hots for one another even if it was only in secret. This experience on made their friendship stronger. Even though they had their eyes set elsewhere, their hearts belonging to others, they would remain friends and that would never change.

Slowly, a realisation came to Tony and his eyes travelled across the ring to where Jacob sat on the ropes around the ring, swinging his legs in a child-like manner. The stranger had this knowing smile on his face. When one eyebrow rose, Tony realised exactly what this experience was truly meant to be.

"Hey Steven..."

"Not now," Steven growled, muscles tensing. "I'm trying to keep us alive."

"I know... And thanks for that. I know things are going to be tough between us in the future. Hell, I'm not even sure if by the end of this, you'll exist. But I want you know... I want you to know that I love you, man. I love each member of our pride."

He knew Steven could sense his reservation, his fears. The pride came from the Game and if they finished the Game, would it just take them back? Steven was afraid as well and from the shaking of his paws, it was clear he was going to try and find some way to make it back even if the unholy power of the Game tried to hold onto them with all the might of Hell. That comforted him and he gave Steven a firm nod.

"Thanks."

Steven gave him a puzzled look. "What for?"

"Just being."

The loud roar turned their attention back towards the charging El'Xavier. They both shared the same thought and as the massive, overconfident lion came rushing at them, the ducked at the last moment. El'Xavier hurtled over them and Stevony launched themselves upwards, gripping their rival's waist and pushing upwards with all their might. El'Xavier let out a horrified cry as they were thrown out of the ring and out of the round.

Applause cut through the stunned silence that followed.

"Congratulations!" Jacob exclaimed, beaming brightly. "You win!"

*****

Tony expected to find himself wake up to the morning with each of his companions mostly transformed. However, he just blinked once and the ring was suddenly gone. He stood in his designated bedroom with each of the other players tangled with one another but still fully transformed.

"Huh?" he began, scratching the back of his head. He also expected to find a card designating his newfound power but instead, he just found the Game board still open.

"Isn't this the part where the Game tells us it's going to take a rest and to come back in a day?" Aiden asked, untangling himself from Shaun, his tentacles finally obeying him. Everyone was back to normal, unfused. Xavier and Eli laughed between themselves and got up from the ground, rising to stand beside Tony and Steven.

It took a moment for Tony to realise he was holding Steven's paw tightly. He thought about letting go and from the slight twitch in Steven's grip, he could tell the taller lion was thinking the same. Instead, they just held other tighter and shared a quiet smile.

"I think the Game is over," Tony said softly. "Jacob said the Game was depriving us of choice and I think he didn't want it to continue. So he put an end to it." He looked at his furry chest and across the room to the mirror. His feline features stared back at him. "I guess we're stuck like this..."

Ben exchanged glances with Shaun and offered his mate a weary smile. "Game over..."

"Game over," agreed the tiger-taur.

Boom!

The entire house shook.

Tony's hackles rose and he felt fear grip his chest. For a brief moment, he glanced over at the closet, hoping to see a pair of silver shades that would comfort him. Only darkness met him.

Something was wrong.

Boom!

All the lights suddenly flickered out, plunging them in absolute darkness. A chilling wind blew in from somewhere even though they were securely indoors and with all doors and windows shut.

"Rule 1: Once you start the Game, you must finish the Game."

The voice sounded familiar and conjured fear even after they had heard it so many times before.

"I know that voice..." David said, his eyes widening. "It's the voice of the male announcer... and... and I think I met him on the street the other day!"

"Rule 2: The goal of the Game is to reach your Finish. Every player has a Finish that is set specifically for them."

BOOM!

The voice grew louder and all the players huddled away from the bedroom door. Ben and Shaun were at the forefront, their hackles raised and fangs bared. Steven stood protectively over Tony, his eyes narrowed. They heard the creak of the front door and that voice rose up the stairwell, flying into their ears and freeze their very souls.

"Rule 3: Players can join at any time."

KA-BOOM!

The voice sounded like it was coming right from the top of the steps. They could hear thunderous footfalls coming towards them. Each one set Tony's teeth on edge and kicked in his flight-or-fight response in favour of flight. Rain began pelting the house outside as another storm consumed them.

"Rule 4: Cheating will be heavily penalised."

BOOM!

The sound shook the entire room and Tony found himself huddling against Steven for warmth and protection. Lightning flashed somewhere in the distance, followed closely by its resulting thunder. Even that seemed dulled compared to the booming that came from just a few inches beyond the door. When the world was alight once more by the flash of lightning, Tony could see the shadow a figure cast from the tiny crack beneath the door.

"Rule 5: Beware of X."

BOOM!

The door flew off its hinges and splintered into tiny shards. Fragments of wood scattered at their feet. Tony found his breath caught in his throat as he spied the dark figure standing at the doorway, draped in a trench coat and with one, glowing, red eye peering through a consuming hood.

"I am X," the figure boomed, raising a single finger towards the group. "And I have come for the cheater."

All eyes turned...

Turned towards Tony.