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Episode 2: Rockslide

"A pious man is grouped amongst the other pious and not remembered. A sinner is singled out and remembered for all eternity."

Jeffrey Matthews Arnold

From a Speech given at Atlas

Disease is one thing but when Jacob looked at the dejected features of all the people surrounding him, he knew that the real disease had struck not in the bodies of these infected.

They've given themselves over to the disease...

"You're wrong there," Spectre murmured darkly, circling Jacob's head lazily. The Animus' eyes were constantly roving the rows upon rows of sick and ailing people. "They've surrendered their bodies to the disease. Their hearts belong to Belford."

Jacob left the cathedral and glanced over his shoulder. The massive, stone doors of the place of worship was built directly into the mountain itself. Architects must have had a ball carving the cathedral itself out of the mountain. The transition was seamless. Almost like the walls of the cathedral melted into the mountain side.

If not for the wailing screams of the people inside, Jacob would have taken more time to appreciate the beauty of the building.

"Jacob..." Leo murmured softly. "Are we not going to help those who are suffering?"

Jacob waved his paw over his shoulder. "Jo and Tayl have got it." He turned his gaze towards the Emerald Crown, regarding the green right wrapped tightly around the peak of the mountain. "But they're just prolonging the inevitable. Just like what Belford said, all they do is rip off the flesh but come next year, those they 'cured' just get infected again."

Leo wrapped his big, muscular arms around Jacob and nuzzled him tenderly. Jacob felt a chill run up his spine and there was nothing more he wanted to do than to turn towards Leo and tackle the huge Tribal down to the ground and take him there and then. However, he was aware of his proximity to the cathedral and no doubt someone like Belford had some pretty strict reservations about sexuality.

"What shall we do?" the big Tribal asked.

Something told Jacob that Leo already had something in mind. While it was tempting, Jacob didn't like the idea of being in the middle of a MODD-controlled town where everyone knew who he was. Back in Pollenburn, he had Gale as a meat shield that could protect him from oncoming fire. However, here in Graesham, he got the impression that given the chance, Rex would throw him to the Unsealed.

Not that he wouldn't do exactly the same thing...

I just have to make sure I throw him in first...

"If we're going to start helping these people short of killing them," he replied, jerking his chin towards the Emerald Crown, "we've got to go to the biggest source of info around here."

Leo's tail began wagging excitedly. Despite being eighteen years of age, he began bouncing excitedly on the balls of his feet like an excited pup. "Did you want me to sneak inside their base and cause a distraction so that you might extract the information?"

"I was," Jacob admitted with a narrowed stare. "Until you brought it up... Now I have to think of something else..."

_"Why, exactly?"_Spectre asked, giving him the same narrowed stare.

Because he's supposed to be appalled and horrified that I'd use him as a distraction!

It's no fun when they're willing!

Spectre slowly began to grin and he poked Jacob's nose with a paw. "Or_you're actually worried about him and don't want him to get hurt so you_ dismissed_that possibility because you actually_ really_care about him."_

He glared at Spectre and swatted him away.

Don't go putting words in my muzzle.

The winged wolf rolled his eyes and landed on Jacob's head, peering over Jacob's forehead. "Why can't you just admit you love_Leo?"_

Because I don't!

"Why don't you tell him that?"

...

Jacob flattened his ears.

Because I can't...

Those same strong arms wrapped around him and he felt his heart start to race as Leo nuzzled him.

"Are you alright, Jacob?"

Some part of him wanted to brush Leo away from him and tell him to stop being so clingy. The rest of him yearned for his mate's - that word again - touch. It made him feel safe... warm... And he felt like he could lean on Leo and the big Tribal would always be there to support him. In the shattered existence which was his life, Leo was the only constant.

He didn't want to let go of that.

"Just thinking," he answered gruffly but he did not brush Leo away.

"Reaper!"

Both of them spun around and Leo immediately let go of him, assuming a defensive position. The sudden absence and chilling touch Jacob got after being deprived of Leo's embrace was a little depressing.

Rex ran up to them, waving as he left the cathedral grounds.

With a light paw, Jacob eased Leo to relax by gently pressing his shoulder. However, that didn't keep him from being ready to attack should Rex prove to be hostile.

The Elemental Lord of Star looked winded as he stopped in front of them, panting softly. "Give... Give me a second..." he gasped, clutching his chest area.

Wow... For an Elemental Lord, this guy gets exhausted really easily...

"Don't underestimate him, Jake,"_Spectre warned. _"He is still_an Elemental Lord."_

Jacob folded his arms across his chest and waited until Rex managed to form coherent words.

Noted, he thought back to Spectre.

"Where..." Rex gasped loudly. "Where are you going?"

"Turn around and bend over. You'll find out."

Rex just looked puzzled and shrugged. He actually spun around and bent down, his tail halfway up to lifting up and presenting himself to Jacob and Leo. For the briefest of instances, Jacob inclined his head to the side and was rather amazed at how well defined the Star Lord's ass was even through the thick armour he wore. Even Leo had his ears perked.

The thought wasn't long lasting as Jacob marvelled at how... gullible Rex really was. Fooling him was actually quite fun.

"I don't get it," Rex admitted.

Some part of Jacob was tempted to just grab Rex's thighs and thrust his groin into the Star Lord's ass right in the view of countless onlookers. Some bystanders were already a little shocked and more than a few were giggling.

Not worth it...

"Forget it," he muttered, turning around. "You somehow managed to suck the fun out of that trip."

Rex looked royally annoyed and straightened. "Would it kill you to be nice for once?"

Fwash!

Rex froze, his paws in the air. His eyes were crossed as he stared at the point of Radiance poking his nose.

"I would consider it public service if I killed you here and now," Jacob answered darkly. "That's 'nice', right?"

Spectre landed on Radiance's blade. "Why are you being unnecessarily hostile? I mean, this guy is trying to help_you. Why are you trying to turn down his help?"_

Because if there's anything Gale taught me, it's never to trust MODD.

"Look," Rex said evenly. "I'm not sure what MODD or anyone else did to you but I am not them. You have to trust me if we're going to make this work." The Star Lord gently pressed a finger against Radiance and tried to push it away. Jacob didn't relent and Rex winced as his finger was cut slightly. "I just want to make Mortaelis a better place. A place where..."

He paused for a second. Looking into his eyes, Jacob already knew what Rex was going to say.

He lowered Radiance. "You can't change the world on the idea of just 'making it better'," he murmured. "Gale wanted to 'make the world better' and look what happened to him. Even MODD has this twisted idea that everything they do will 'make the world better'.

"You want my trust? Get a better ideal."

A stroke of inspiration hit him. "In fact..." Jacob began, turning around and grinning at Rex. "Why don't you start with taking Leo here" - he planted a paw on Leo's firm shoulder, unable to help himself to a little squeeze - "and show him around Graesham."

"What will that do?" Rex asked, shaking his head.

Yes... what indeed...?

"Tayl and Jo are busy helping those guys back there" - he nodded back towards the cathedral - "from being stoned to death. Kerry is probably helping out and Max is no doubt trying to suck up to that self-styled priest."

Though I'll bet Max will have some pretty handy information later on when that bastard goes postal on us.

The most religious guy always_turns into some nutjob later, spouting religious anecdotes while he murders little children._

Spectre sniggered as he wrapped himself around Jacob's neck again. "Wouldn't that mean Gabriel will go nuts?"

Maybe...

"I need someone to get the lay of the land," he finished, clapping Leo's shoulder once more. "Leo used to hunt for his tribe."

Rex's eyes narrowed. "Don't you trust that I'll be able to tell you where to go when you need it?"

Jacob shrugged dismissively. "I dunno. Do you trust me not to leave you for dead at the next possible opportunity?"

...

"Good point." Rex held out his paw towards Leo. "So, pleasure to meet you, Leo!"

Leo bent down and sniffed Rex's paw.

Chuckling to himself, Jacob left the two to get acquainted. The area around the cathedral seemed to be the densest in the slum-like landscape. Suffering Mortaelians were clamouring over spaces to get into the cathedral itself, encouraging them to build their ragtag homes around the monolithic church. The beauty of the church ended at the pristine, green garden.

Like passing through a mirror into a reversed world, the instant Jacob stepped over the last marble tile of the garden and into the rest of Graesham, he was hit by the sights, smells and sensations of a world built entirely around suffering. He stepped over men and women who were lying on the ground in sleeping bags - some where just potato sacks - , trying to shut their eyes against the pain from their bodies. Houses built out of discarded pieces of tin roofing and even partially stained mattresses littered his vision.

A cold hand seized his ankle.

He didn't even give it a second thought and kicked himself free.

Jacob pulled his hood over his features, shoved his paws into his pockets and strode through the swarm of sufferers around him.

"That's not very nice..."_Spectre scolded. _"That girl was just in pain..."

What did she want me to do about it? Miraculously cure her?

The winged wolf whimpered, casting his gaze back at the individual who was now cringing not only from her half-petrified body but also the bloody gash Jacob had given her. "Maybe...Some people just need hope to go living on..."

Sucks to be them, then.

Spectre growled and launched himself from Jacob's shoulder, hovering in front of him angrily. "Look, you were like them not too long ago. You were an empty shell with nothing to live for. Then you met your friends and they gave you hope. You met Gale and he gave you a goal."

I can't give them something I don't have, Spectre,_he answered darkly. _False hope is worse than no hope.

"Why do you say that?"

Do you have any_idea how creepy it is when people die smiling?_

Spectre shuddered, ducking his head and flattening his ears. "Point taken."

Getting into the Emerald Crown would be a task on its own. Getting in undetected was suicide.

As fate would have it, a military truck came rolling in a few minutes later. Several ANVIL troops poured out of the truck and began calling out names. Those who were called looked excited and relieved as they quickly said their goodbyes to those in their company and hurried to board the truck.

Must be taking them to a facility where they can be treated...

Opportunity had struck and Jacob quickly scrambled beneath the truck and clung onto the underside of the vehicle. He waited patiently as the driver jumped back into the vehicle and drove off with a fresh batch of the infected. Thankfully, the truck had sufficiently high clearance so he wasn't constantly eating dust.

Part of him wondered how much of the dust around Graesham was actually fragments of those people who had become completely fossilised.

After a long hour of gripping onto for his dear life, the truck finally came to a halt. Jacob dropped down from the underside -

... and the truck abruptly drove off.

Uh-oh...

About twenty MODD troops were posted around him, their guns levelled and with his forehead right in their sights.

_"Not your brightest idea,"_Spectre murmured.

Shut up.

Rocky Groundwater stepped out from behind the crowd and crossed his arms. "For future reference, Reaper, there are cameras on the underside of all MODD vehicles to prevent such a sloppy attempt at infiltration."

Damn...

The Elemental Lord of Earth seized his shoulder and pulled him to his feet. Rocky appraised him and didn't take pains to hide his obvious disappointment.

"I honestly expected the 'notorious' Jacob Reaper to be more intimidating and 'evil looking'," the ursine said. "Maybe a scar or two. Red eyes. Devil horns." Rocky made a gesture to imitate horns. "To be honest, you look like some cartoon fanatic that's going to a convention and all dressed up for a cosplay event."

That sounded like an insult... but...

"What the hell is 'cosplay'?"

For some reason, Jacob heard the sound of shattering glass. He glanced to his left to see Spectre lying on his back, legs in the air like he had died and with his eyes replaced by big, cartoonish X's.

Rocky raised one eyebrow very slowly. "What rock have you been living under?"

"Do I get extra points if I say, 'yours'?"

There was slight twitch in Rocky's expression. He wasn't sure if he was amused or annoyed. All his hopes rested with the latter. He wanted to see how far he could 'corrupt' the Saint of the Earth.

"Costume Play is a form of performance art," Rocky answered evenly. "People dress up as their favourite Valenese character and basically act out scenes from the mangie or aniga series that they represent."

Jacob frowned a little. "'Mah-n-gee-eh'? 'Ah-ni-gah'?"

A third and unexpected reaction crossed Rocky's expression.

Shock.

"Dear god!" she cried. "You've never read a mangie or seen an aniga!?"

Shrugging but feeling like he was somewhat left out or being treated like a dunce, Jacob said, "How much would you buy it if I said I was just pulling your leg and I know exactly what a manga or anime is?"

The Elemental Lord pressed a paw against his forehead theatrically. "It's mangie and aniga!" Rocky shook his head and seized Jacob's paw. "Come on, I'm taking you to a private screening of Starboy and then a few episodes of Zetaman."

Jacob tried to pull back but he found himself getting dragged along. Rocky - despite being smaller than him - was surprisingly strong. He even tried pressed his foot against Rocky's back for extra leverage but didn't even get anywhere.

What the hell is he made of!? Rock!?

Spectre recovered from his comatose state and said -

Don't answer that.

The Animus pouted and curled around his neck.

At the very least, Jacob gained entrance into the Emerald Crown. He was pulled by Rocky into a massive tunnel that bit deep into the mountain. Countless guards were posted everywhere and people from the city were jumping off buses. They were all piling together to a large line that was slowly being filtered through what appeared to be a series of metal detectors. The cavernous atrium had a perfectly sculpted, smooth wall several hundred metres above them. Artificial lighting mixed in with several skylights to illuminate the otherwise dark cavern.

"What are those?" he asked, pointing at the metal frames. One of the citizens stepped into the frame and a metallic arm emerged with a syringe. The syringe extracted a bit of blood and the machine beeped, flashing red. The falcon behind the operating table wearing a biohazard suit nodded and waved the citizen through.

"Bioscanners," Rocky answered simply. "We've got to make sure people who come here are actually suffering from the Fossilisation Plague and not actually just trying to get a free meal or sympathy. Speaking of which..."

He pushed Jacob towards one of the free scanners, effectively cutting to the front of the line. "We've got to get you scanned too."

"I don't suppose you could just pull up my criminal records and go with that, can you?"

Rocky shook his head and pushed him towards the cube-shaped, metal frame. "We've got to make sure. We don't know how the Plague spreads so this is a precaution."

"And if I'm infected," he asked with a very faint degree of worry.

Rocky paused for a good, long thirty-seconds. "We'll go from there if that's the case."

Great...

Maybe I should go around kissing people randomly to see if they'll get infected...

A particularly evil image crossed his mind of himself kissing Gabriel and them proceeding to rape the ram. The image was topped off with him cumming into the ram with his cock turning to stone and thus revealing to the overly-zealous altar server that he was now, effectively, infected with the plague too.

Now that's a 'rock hard cock'.

"Lame."

No one asked you.

Jacob stepped into the device. With his regenerative abilities, he never really had to go to the doctor especially since anaesthetics had an adverse effect on him. He wasn't used to being medically examined... The only other time he had been examined was when he was being held captive against his will for seven long years and experimented on.

Holding his breath, he told himself over and over again that it was going to be okay and that he didn't have the plague.

A loud, metallic whining sound made his heart race. A large, robotic arm stretched out from the frame with a syringe attached. He waited patiently - if slightly apprehensively - as the needle pressed itself against his left shoulder and drew some blood from him. It was little more than a pinprick. Next to nothing compared to what else he had suffered.

And yet... his heart was pumping at a thousand beats per second and his head was filled with so much blood he was sure it was going to explode. His claws were digging into his palms so hard that he drew blood, dripping small droplets onto the bioscanner.

"Alright," the operator behind the machine announced. "He's clean."

Forcing his legs to move, Jacob stepped off the metal platform to meet Rocky who had his eyebrows cocked again.

"Now don't tell me the big bad wolf is afraid of needles," the bear taunted.

"No..." he muttered.

Someone screamed behind him and...

­Wham!

... landed flat on his back on the platform.

"Fresh blood is slippery," Jacob said, regaining his composure, and grinning slightly at the guy as MODD troops tried to get the moose back to his feet. "Ironic that that guy slipped on blood that is cleaner than his."

Spectre snorted. "You were so_scared."_

Probably but he_doesn't know that._

The look on Rocky's face was nothing short of disproval. "You know, I'm starting to think watching some cartoons with you isn't such a good idea after all..."

"Awww," he pouted, "but then I won't get any inspiration for the mass destruction and suffering I'll cause. After all, nothing's more violent than cartoons, right?"

The Saint of the Earth rolled his eyes and started heading deeper into the Emerald Crown. "Just... Come on... Maybe seeing other people get hurt will stop you from hurting others."

"Somehow, I get this eerie feeling that I'll still manage to turn watching cartoons into a way to deprive someone of their life... or at least make them bleed."

"Is there one moment in your life when you don't think about killing people?" Rocky growled. They stepped into a large freight elevator populated by other MODD soldiers, all heavily armed and all with their features hidden behind black masks.

Jacob was tempted to say, 'Yeah, when they're dead and I'm bathing in their blood' but as the elevator doors drew to a close, a particularly evil thought crossed his mind.

_"Don't,"_Spectre warned.

Too late.

"Yeah," he answered with a smug smirk. "When I'm shoving my twelve-inch cock up my boyfriend's ass."

...

The elevator suddenly became deathly quiet.

Even in a small, enclosed space with about twenty heavily armed MODD soldiers and an Elemental Lord, Jacob had a grin crawling onto his face. At almost the same time, he and Rocky turned to one another, exchanging completely opposite expressions. Jacob's was full of sadistic mirth and cruel pleasure while Rocky's was filled with terror, fear and this look that made him look like he was about to be eaten.

"Guess the Fossilisation Plague isn't the only disease going around, huh?" Jacob aside, waggling his eyebrows mockingly. "Better hope you don't catch my 'gay germs'."

Spectre swept in front of his face. "Jacob... I swear, if you do what I think you're going to do..."

Too late.

Without warning, he seized Rocky's head and -

SMACK!

...

... he kissed the metal floor.

"You're such a sick bastard," Rocky Groundwater growled, baring his fangs. "Bad enough that we've got the Plague to deal with now you're going to cast the fear of homosexuality into the fray? Just what did you hope to achieve!?"

Jacob tasted blood and propped himself up slightly. He wiped his jaw, rubbing blood into his black fur and feeling the wound against his cheek already closing up.

"That," he answered, pointing behind Rocky.

The Elemental Lord of Earth turned around...

... to find all his troops pressed up against the wall of the moving elevator... as far as they can be from Jacob.

The Saint of the Earth shot a venomous glare at Jacob before turning towards his troops. "Division is the crux of any plague, any disease," he began in a proud, strong voice. "What does an infection do but force us to isolate our peers and our loved ones in the hopes that ourselves will not be infected? Even now, your brothers and sisters are carting the dead out into the Grey Grounds Cemetery to be a distant memorial to those that have died!"

Rocky pointed an accusing finger at Jacob. "You cannot let his crass attempt at dividing us through something as petty as sexual orientation to succeed! He probably isn't even really gay!"

"I can prove it if you wanted," Jacob offered.

SMACK!

_"Shut up, you!"_Spectre growled, pulling back the newspaper he had in his paws... which really weren't meant for gripping anything...

Rocky ignored him and continued with his speech. "The point is, we have bigger and worse things to worry about. This Plague is killing us, slowly but surely. But there is hope. We can fight this. We can win. But we cannot win against it if we stand divided. A lone man cannot stand the power of this Plague alone. Not even Father Belford can cure the ailing alone. He needs Gabriel by his side."

There were affirmative nods from all the MODD troops.

"Now will you stand with me!?" Rocky shouted, thrusting a fist into the air.

The elevator shook with the loud roars of the MODD troops.

Jacob just felt sick to his stomach.

Fate once again intervened as the doors to the elevator sprang open. Jacob rose to his feet -

WHAM!

... and was knocked back down by a burly soldier. Several other soldiers passed him, giving him a good, swift kick to the back. Some even spat at him.

The assaults ended when one soldier stomped on his paw, breaking a few fingers.

He didn't give them the satisfaction to hear him cry out in pain.

Rocky stepped over to him and loomed above him with his eyes narrowed and filled with disgust. Jacob stood and dusted himself off, cracking his fingers back into position with a slight wince.

"Nice try," the Saint of the Earth growled. He shoved past Jacob, bumping shoulders.

Jacob followed still with a slight smirk on his face. "Didn't think you were that religious, referencing that priest like that."

Rocky stopped and spun around, jabbing a finger at Jacob's chest. "This isn't only about religion, Jacob. You're just stereotyping all religion to be bigoted, conservative and narrow-minded. In truth, you're being bigoted to those of us who prefer to have a faith!"

The Saint of the Earth -

WHAM!

... slammed his fist into Jacob's gut, causing the latter to gasp and double over in pain.

"Oooh... That's gotta_hurt..."_ Spectre winced.

"Everyone has the right to believe in what they want, Reaper," Rocky growled. "They can live their lives as they see fit. Those people who force their opinions on others, religious or not, are just as bad as those who murder for the fun of it. And for future reference, not all of those who believe in a deity are scared of 'gay germs'."

Jacob coughed a little, blood spurting out from his muzzle. "I'm finding it hard to believe that" - he coughed a bit more - "you'd learn that from some parable-pansy and still work for a heartless corporation like MODD."

Rocky snorted. "You're just seeing things how you want to see them, Jacob. You're just listening to the stereotypes of others and their opinions and just basing your own opinion around those. You're not looking at things through your own eyes."

A spark of anger ignited in Jacob's mind. He straightened, looming over Rocky. "You think I'm just copying others? MODD killed my dad and did who knows what with my mom. They brainwashed me into thinking I killed countless people to cover their tracks! They captured me and experimented on me to get my power!

"Tell me that I'm wrong when I say MODD is the biggest plague this world has ever seen!"

Rocky stood his ground. "You're wrong."

Crack!

Jacob was taken aback by the words of Rocky's conviction.

"MODD has its flaws. It isn't a perfect diamond. It still has flecks of coal, still cracked here and there but so long as we keep working on it, we will succeed.

"There will be people out there who will try to lead you astray. People who will try to use the pull off 'religion' or 'corporate responsibility' to make you do things that you would rather not do or that you know are wrong." Rocky scoffed as he turned and headed away from the elevator and Jacob. "A wise man once told me that 'Religion divides but faith is divine'. He never said 'faith in a god' or 'faith in a deity'. Just faith."

For some reason, those words truck home...

"Faith, huh?" he murmured, hurrying after the Saint of the Earth.

"Even the highest ranked priest is still a mortal," Rocky said. "Anyone who claims 'they speak for a god' are either up themselves or just deluded. Remember, even the 'prophets' could only give their information second-hand. Something is bound to get lost in translation."

That is true...

"So why do you wear that thing if you're not religious?" Jacob asked, pointing at the holy symbol around Rocky's neck. He had a slight limp from his injuries but as the seconds ticked by, it was going away, the wound healing up quite quickly.

"I never said I wasn't," Rocky answered, fingering the golden symbol around her neck. It was shaped like three leaves arranged in a triangle. "I take the values of the Church of the Holy Mountain but I don't take their dogmas. I don't believe that some amazing deity of the earth did some crazy things and moulded mortals from the clay in the earth. But, I do believe that if you are fair and just to your fellow mortal, you will be rewarded in this life or the next."

Huh... I guess that's a pretty nice philosophy to live by...

"Besides," Rocky said, waving his paws absently, "with all the religions miraculously popping up here and there, it's impossible to tell what is truth or what is a lie anymore.Everyone claims to have roots to some distant past deity or something. That, or they branch off a popular religion because they don't agree with some doctrines.

"I say, just be good and if any god is watching, it'll reward you not because you believed in him but that you treated your fellow mortal right despite not believing in him and not being bribed with an everlasting virgin..."

Jacob couldn't help but laugh at that one. "I remember that! Didn't they use that as some motivation for this crazy protest against MODD where everyone ended up getting shot and -" He caught himself and folded his ears. "Sorry... No anti-MODD stuff around you."

Rocky chuckled and pushed open a large, green door gilded with gold. "It's alright. Like I said, MODD is still a rough diamond. It needs people to make it perfect."

"That's going to take a while, let me tell you." Jacob found a smile on his face and couldn't believe he was actually taking a liking to Rocky... despite being slapped, humiliated and then punched...

Dear god... I'm a sadomasochist... I associate with people who hurt me...

"Does that mean you love Balthazar Palmers?"

Jacob shuddered.

"Are you alright?" Rocky asked, holding open the door.

"Slap me and I think I'll feel better."

The ursine's expression turned to a mix of confusion and worry. "What?"

"Nevermind."

Slightly perturbed, Rocky nodded towards the room beyond the door. "Come on, this is the theatre room."

Jacob's left foot twitched slightly as the last of the muscles regenerated fully. "You're still willing to watch cartoons with me even after I challenged your religion, tried to kiss you and basically sowed dissent and doubt into your troops?"

"You did no such thing," Rocky answered with a shake of his head.

A cynical snort escaped him. "Then you're just being naive. There is a reason why our ears are pumped with blood and it isn't just to make them work. Whatever we hear through these big radar dishes" - he pointed at his big, triangular ears - "goes straight here." He pointed at his chest, just over his heart. "We hear with our ears but we listen with our hearts.

"Even if you try to block out some sound, stop someone from speaking or silence a voice, your heart will still listen even if you don't hear anything."

The smile on Rocky's muzzle gave him a sense of impending doom. "Then I guess that means there's hope for you yet, isn't there?"

"Ooooh!"_Spectre jeered. _"Bet you didn't see that_coming, did you?"_

Shut up.

"Come on," Rocky said, nodding towards the room beyond. "Cartoons!"

Unable to fight the grin growing on his muzzle, Jacob stepped through the door. At first, all he saw was utter blackness...

... then Rocky switched on the TV.

His entire vision was filled with a mess of grainy static. He took a step back in awe at the cinema-sized television screen planted on the wall in front of him. In fact, it wasn't planted on a wall... it was the wall!

"Is that a TV or a landing pad!?" he exclaimed.

"It was either I get this or one of those fancy holographic projectors that immerses you into the world of the show you're watching," Rocky answered, rifling through what looked like a Universal Video Disc collection.

"Why pick something so... archaic?" Jacob asked, glancing back at the enormous screen and poking it with a finger. He had never actually seen a television before. He'd heard about them but when holographic technology became commonplace, all televisions were discarded.

Why watch something on a flat screen when you could have your entire surroundings become the world of that piece of entertainment?

There were horror stories of holographic projections coming to life and actually injuring people or of videogame players literally slicing into one another. None of it was true, however. Though, there were just as many stories of the dead stars of the television era stealing the souls of the audience as they craved to be remembered through the archaic devices.

"Because Aniga is all about dramatic camera angles and conveniently placed objects that hide the private parts of characters in compromising positions. So, prepare to be amazed!" Rocky exclaimed with a big grin on his face, picking up a UVD box set with the words Starboy on the side. "Aniga at its finest!"

"I'll take your word for it," Jacob answered, parking his rear on a long, green couch that sat a suitable distance away from the screen. His entire vision was filled with the screen but he was positioned in such a way that he didn't have to move his head to see any of the edges.

"You eat popcorn?" Rocky shouted from what appeared to be a kitchenette off to the side of the horizontally wide room.

"I'll eat anything. Except eggplant."

He could feel Rocky's gaze on him despite not having the Elemental Lord in his gaze. "What? Why not?"

"Because it's one of the most confused plants in the world. Is it an egg or is it a plant?"

"It's a vegetable," Rocky said.

"Actually, it's a fruit."

Rocky poked his head out of the kitchenette. "What? No it isn't."

"Yes it is," Jacob replied bluntly. "Same reason why tomatoes are fruits."

"It's used in vegetarian dishes so it's a vegetable." The Elemental Lord sat down next to him with a big bowl of popcorn in his paws. "If it's any comfort, I don't like crabs." He bent his fingers and wiggled them a little. "They're like the spiders of the sea! I hate spiders!"

For the briefest second, Jacob considered depositing a live crab into Rocky's pants and watching what the creature will pinch... but he quickly dismissed that. Rocky was a pretty nice guy... and an Elemental Lord. He didn't want to piss off someone who managed to send him to the ground bleeding with a slap.

The gargantuan TV sprang to life and Jacob was assaulted with a wide variety of colours and slightly disproportionate cartoon characters. Most of them had huge heads, enormous eyes and rather small mouths. Not to mention their hair looked like they needed about a gallon of hair gel. He found it amusing that even after getting wet, the hair of characters just seemed to spring back to its original shape.

_Starboy_was a story about a young man who was on a journey to catch a falling star. Apparently, the tyrannical king of the time had decided that to find a true heir to his throne, he would rip out the heart of his only daughter and turn it into a star. Every year, within the span of a month, that star would make a journey across the planet and land at a random location. Whomsoever managed to catch the star would earn the right to become the next king.

The young man was a simple blacksmith's son who had big aspirations. He made his own weapon, Starender, and journeyed across the planet, chasing the star. He met many rivals and made many friends... but along the way also made many promises.

His mantra was 'I will be the greatest king ever'.

His definition of a 'great king' changed from episode to episode.

Despite himself, Jacob was leaning forward and watching the show, completely captivated. He saw himself in the journey of the protagonist... With each passing episode, the young man grew away from a naive sapling whose mind was filled with the idea that a 'king' was simply someone that ruled, had countless servants, an inexhaustible amount of money and could do whatever he wanted.

By episode 10, his idea of a 'great king' was someone who was kind, just and who protected his people, poor, rich and all those caught in between.

I wonder... Will I end up like that...?

_"One can only hope,"_Spectre chuckled, munching on an imaginary hotdog.

"Oops!" Rocky exclaimed, pawing at the empty bowl. "All out of popcorn! Let's pause it here!"

Jacob took the bowl from him. "Here, let me."

The Saint of the Earth looked surprised and about to say something but instead, he just smiled. "The popcorn is in the top shelf."

Jacob returned a moment later with a fresh bowl of popcorn and sat back down. "On with the show!"

Knock-knock.

Both of them turned around.

The door creaked open slowly and a brown muzzle poked inside, sniffing the air.

"Do I smell popcorn?" Rex asked, stepping into the theatre room. His eyes sparkled when he saw the screen. "Awesome! You're watching Starboy!" He bolted over and vaulted over the couch, landing right between Jacob and Rocky. "What episode are you up to? Did you find out that Fen is actually -"

"Sssssh!" Rocky snapped, clamping a hand over Rex's muzzle. "This is Jake's first time watching it."

Jacob instantly went rigid, his blood freezing in his veins and a barrage of memories threatening to jam themselves into his brain while unwanted emotions were trying to force themselves out of his heart. For a second, he only saw blackness... interrupted by flashes of gunfire, spurts of blood and his father's dying words.

"Jacob?"

"You okay there, man?"

His retinas connected with his brain once more and he registered that both Rex and Rocky were giving him concerned looks.

"Y - Yeah," he stammered, shaking his head. "Just... Just don't call me... 'Jake'...

The smirk crawling on Rex's face was less than encouraging. "Oh? Why not? Does it annoy you?"

Rocky gripped Rex's shoulder and pulled the Star Lord back. "Rex... No."

Suddenly, Jacob was very grateful for Rocky's presence.

"Fine," Rex sighed, rolling his eyes. "Hand me some popcorn."

It was Jacob's turn to smirk. "Sure."

WHAM!

"Jacob!" Rocky exclaimed.

Popcorn scattered everywhere. Rex gave Jacob a baleful stare as the last of the snack rolled off the bowl on his head and into the crevasses of his armour.

Jacob kept his smirk firmly planted on his muzzle as he challenged Rex with a stare. He got an eerie feeling Rex would try to call him 'Jake' but he knew Rocky would be there to stop him. Despite his irrational - and he knew it was irrational - rivalry with Rex, he felt somewhat more... at terms with Rocky.

"Sucks to be you," Rex said with a shrug. The Star Lord turned away and towards the screen, much to Jacob's confusion. "Now I get all the popcorn."

...

D'oh...

_"You want some of mine?"_Spectre offered.

Part of him wondered what would happen if he ate some of his Animus' imaginary popcorn...

... wow... I don't know what's crazier... the fact that I'm actually considering it or that I my Animus is trying to feed me...

"Someone_has to take care of you."_

Deprived of his popcorn, Jacob just leaned against the couch and watched the rest of Starboy, captivated by the storyline. He watched the protagonist - whose real name was not revealed and was merely called 'Black' for the soot that he had from being a blacksmith - develop into a strong individual that was really quite heroic. The fight scenes were quite incredible too...

_"Cosmic Lance!"_Black shouted.

"Huh... I guess everyone in MODD must be an aniga fan..." he murmured softly.

"What makes you say that?" Rocky asked, peering over Rex who was munching on the popcorn. The Star Lord even reached down into his crotch to fish out a handful of kernels.

Eeew...

_"Bet you'd love to see that 'seed' all buttered up, huh?"_Spectre sniggered.

Shut up.

"Everyone I know in MODD tends to shout out their attacks," Jacob answered with a shrug. "I mean, if I remember correctly, all you ExIT Commanders have your own 'signature moves'. What? Do people catalogue your abilities or something?"

Rocky threw back his head and laughed heartily. "I forgot about that..."

Rex swatted at them with a loud 'Sssh' but they both ignored it.

"It's something trained into us from MODD," Rocky answered with a shrug. "I guess it increases marketability if the guys everyone looks up to or are the face of the company has some catchphrase that they shout out every time they do so something spectacular.

"Sssssh!"

Again, Rex remained ignored.

"I suppose that makes sense..." Jacob murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. It was certainly an interesting prospect. He remembered seeing 'Gale Winthrop' trading cards being sold on the train on his way to Graesham with the others. "What's your signature move?"

Grinning at him, Rocky tapped the side of his nose and said, "You're not getting my secrets out of me that easily, Reaper. The only way you're going to see my signature moves is if you fight alongside me."

That made him raise an eyebrow. "And why don't I just fight you instead?"

"Because we both know I'll make you my bitch."

Those words hit him like... well... a bitch slap. Something that... crude coming from Rocky...

Heh... I think I like him.

"I hope you've got the stones to back up those words," Jacob said with a challenging smirks."

"Anytime, anyplace, Reaper."

Rex suddenly went rigid. The popcorn bowl - which he was still wearing on his head rolled off and Jacob caught it before it shattered on the ground.

"Time...?" the Star Lord murmured. He grabbed the remote from Rocky and pressed a button. The time displayed on the screen. It was almost twelve noon. "Holy shit! I'm late!"

Jacob exchanged glances with Rocky and both turned to Rex as the wolf leapt to his feet and scrambled towards the door.

"Late for what?" Rocky asked.

"Coffee with Kerry Rawson!" Rex replied hastily. The instant those words came spilling out, however, he realised he just made a terrible mistake.

An evil grin crossed Jacob's muzzle. "Wow... It'd be such a shame if you were late for your date."

"It's not a date," Rex growled, baring his fangs and with his ears pressed against his skull. "It's just coffee..."

"Yeah but first impressions are everything right? Don't think you'll get to second base if you stood her up on coffee. You won't even make it onto the field."

"You wouldn't dare."

Jacob's grin grew broader. "Every second you spend yammering with me means less time with her, you know."

Rex panicked. "I -"

"You should -"

He never got to finish.

Rocky placed a paw on Jacob shoulder, pulling him back. "Go get her, Rex."

The timber wolf grinned broadly and nodded. "Thanks, Rocky!"

Rex Nebula bolted out of the theatre room and Jacob rolled his eyes at Rocky.

"Come on. Couldn't you at least let me have a little more fun with him?"

Rocky stood up and rummaged through one of the many shelves stacked with UVDs. "Who says we won't?" He turned back towards Jacob with a video camera in his paws.

A grin returned to Jacob's muzzle. "You're just as evil as I am! If you're religious, you're the goddamn devil! Where can I sign up?"

"Watch it, Reaper," the ursine said playfully with a wink. "Now let's finish this episode first and then we'll chase after him. Give him a good ten minutes to think he's safe."

I really_like him._

Spectre groaned and flopped down around Jacob's shoulders. "Just what I need... Two of you..."

It was a pity that they had to leave after the episode. They were left on a cliffhanger as Black faced off against his rival, Fen. They had reached the Princess Comet - as the falling star was called - and they were there first. They had journeyed together for a long time, being eternal rivals but also good friends. But when it came to who would become King... only one of them could rise to the challenge.

The episode ended with a big explosion as they unleashed their greatest attacks against one another.

Jacob really wanted to see how the story ended but the thought of causing mischief towards Rex was even more tempting.

That... and I never got to ask what he did with Leo...

Worry hit him...

What if... What if Rex killed Leo and buried him in some ditch...!?

What... What if Rex injected Leo with the Fossilisation Plague and now my mate is nothing more than a statue being carted towards the Grey Ground Cemetery!?

... What if... What if Rex had Leo captured and my mate is on his way to Balthazar!?

His heart suddenly tightened.

Worse... What if they had sex!?

_"You sure have your priorities straight..."_Spectre muttered.

With a new sense of urgency, Jacob hurried to the door, following Rocky. Strangely, instead of heading towards the elevator that they used to come to the theatre room, Rocky headed in the opposite direction towards another room.

"Where are we going?" Jacob asked, trying to keep a degree of calm. "Isn't the exit the other way?"

Rocky grinned over his shoulder. "I just need a bit of equipment to make sure we're not seen or heard."

They entered another elevator that took them even further up the mountain. Jacob watched the numbers fly by on the lift's display, sending them well past 100. Along the way, Rocky explained that the Emerald Crown was divided into a total of 183 floors and 50 sub-basements. The naming conventions was a little weird too. The 'ground floor' was actually located on the level that the original base stood before the then-Elemental-Lord-of-Earth's daughter shattered the base. So the 'basements' were actually above ground level. The floors above the ground floor were all artificially created.

"Basements 50 to 25 are living quarters for the civilians and are reinforced to be like a bomb shelter if needed," Rocky explained. "From 24 upwards, it's the military barracks. The remaining floors above the ground floor are research and development bases."

"You've got over a hundred and fifty floors just for research?"

"This Plague has hit us for over ten years." Rocky's expression turned grim. "We need all the space and manpower we can handle."

"Wanna hear my solution to solving this Plague crisis?" he offered but there was no grin or smile on his face.

"I am not going to kill everyone."

At floor 183, the lift stopped and the doors opened.

The smell of metal and sweat hit him hard. He coughed a little, covering his muzzle with a fist as he gazed through the hazy smoke that clung to chamber beyond. The cavernous cavity seemed natural in a sense that the space was made through the forces of nature. The rocky walls were uneven and bare unlike the decorated, panelled walls of the rest of the facility. Metal scaffolding was erected in certain areas but they all looked like they were from separate projects, most half-finished or just barely started.

The floor was littered with tools and an array of raw materials. He spied a canister that contained some sickly, yellowish gas that was simply labelled 'nerve gas'. And it was just lying on the floor!

"Please tell me we didn't just walk into our doom," he said.

"Trust me," Rocky reassured him, "you're better off in Bill's paws than anyone else's."

"Who?"

"Bill!" Rocky shouted into the seemingly empty cavern. His voice echoed across the chamber. "Bill! You here!"

"Where else would I be?"

Jacob jumped and instantly flung around, summoning Radiance and Requiem at a reflex. He instantly had both blades crossed and pressing against the throat of a near six foot brown timber wolf whose green eyes didn't show a sign of fear or surprise. Instead, the wolf merely lifted a single eyebrow.

"Matter Transport Devices?" the wolf asked in an analytical tone. "Huh... If I remember correctly, that was a technology that was being developed by MODD several years ago until a rogue SWORD member stole the specs and all traces of the technology."

Growling, Jacob slowly pulled his swords away but didn't dismiss them. "Yeah... Albert was that guy."

"Hmmm... How is Albert these days?" the wolf asked, turning away and heading towards one of the bits of the piles of junk. Jacob was surprised to find that the 'junk' was actually a rag-tag assembly of machinery that became a functioning computer.

"He's... good," Jacob murmured softly. He leaned towards Rocky. "Who is this guy?"

"If you're going to ask for my identity, you should ask it to my face instead of whispering behind my back," the wolf announced over his shoulder.

A spark of irritation hit Jacob and he envisioned blasting the wolf to smithereens.

Seems that every wolf I encounter apart from Leo gets on my nerves...

_"I think someone's getting into the 'alpha male' role,"_Spectre sniggered.

You be quiet.

"Jacob," Rocky said, stepping between the two to prevent some sort of explosive exchange of words... and other things. "This is Bill Williamson. He's one of the engineers who helped design the Emerald Crown. He's one of MODD's top engineers and weapon designers."

"Oh great. So I get to blame you for all the people who die under MODD's care."

Bill straightened but didn't turn around. "Don't blame the guy who built the machine. The man who invented dynamite intended it to merely clear out mine sites of debris never to be used in war."

"Yeah but the point of designing a weapon is to use it against someone."

The brown wolf turned towards another work station. "Or to defend those that need aid. I build my weapons to defend not to attack."

"Bill was the one who designed my shield," Rocky supplied, indicating the tower shield that he still carried.

"Ah yes..." Bill marvelled. "Guardian's Stand. A great piece of work. Did you need it repaired?"

Smiling, Rocky shook his head and said, "No, Bill. I'm here to get some gear. Observation gear to be more precise."

The engineer gave Rocky a critical look. "Why? You already have the Cloak of the Forest. You can hide yourself from sight easily."

Jacob was mentally taking notes. Something told him that he had to keep note of Rocky's abilities. Whether it was because he was fighting against the Saint of the Earth or with him, Jacob had to know what the Elemental Lord was capable of. The last thing he wanted was to trip over an invisible bear.

"Unless you're hoping to also equip this primitive who is currently holding such out-of-date tech," Bill nodded towards Jacob, causing the latter to go rigid and growl.

"Actually, yes," Rocky answered cautiously.

"So what about my tech is 'out-of-date'?" Jacob snarled, stepping past Rocky and looming over the unperturbed Bill Williamson.

The smaller wolf picked up the sunglasses that were hanging from Jacob's coat pocket. "For one thing, this RIC is at least ten models behind. Not to mention it's probably out of sync with the network that it's database is hopelessly outdated. By guess is that you get multiple USs?"

"Huh?"

Bill sighed and turned his muzzle away. "Myron! Can you grab me the latest non-contact RIC model? Can you also get me that comms unit we designed like a pair of headphones?"

A short, brown otter wearing a pair of denim overalls poked his head from around the corner of some more scaffolding and grinned broadly. "Sure, Bill! Give me a second!"

Quick as a flash, the otter was gone.

"And who the hell was that?"

"Myron, my assistant," Bill answered, examining the sunglasses in his paws. "Well... More like my colleague really. I specialise more in the design and Myron is more geared towards the actually labour. He sees things I do not and our efforts complement each other."

Looking at the mess all around him and the half-finished projects, Jacob couldn't help but scoff. "You don't seem to be doing so well if you haven't even finished anything."

Bill gave him a critical look and handed him his sunglasses again. "When you have an idea, there is no use letting inspiration slip by you and setting it aside. Inspiration is a bitch. The best you can do is to make it your bitch."

...

Huh... I like that saying...

I kind of see bit of Rocky in this kid.

Bill's frame was athletic but he wasn't overly muscular or scrawny either. Beneath the plain, workman's denim overalls he wore, he did look to be equipped for working with machines instead of out in the battlefield. Hard to think that he could have been responsible for more deaths than even the greatest of psychopaths or Elemental Lords.

Myron the otter returned a few moments later with two items. The first was a pair of silver, wrap-around sunglasses just like Jacob's except they didn't have a visible frame. Bill handed them to Jacob and the latter was a little surprised when the sunglasses lost their silvery tint and became clear.

"These non-descript RICs can alter their tint according to the light in the area," Bill said. "That way, you don't have to constantly reach for it when in battle and it can activate at a moment's notice. Tinting controls and the rest of the new functionality can be found in the manual."

"Where's the manual?"

Bill grinned devilishly at him. "In the sunglasses."

Great...

Next, Bill handed him a pair of headphones with a replacement media player. "These are carefully redesigned communicators. They can uplink with your RIC so you can easily scan through your contacts and call whomever you want. Better yet, they provide ample protection against the sonic attacks of the Unsealed and can play your favourite music. If uplinked to your RIC, they can also play movies."

Jacob was rather impressed as he took the white headphones. There was a retractable microphone attached to the left earphone. He rested it around his neck. "Thanks... I guess... But... you should probably know that I'm -"

"Jacob Reaper," Bill Williamson said, turning away and rummaging through a large pile of junk. "I know. The whole base is talking about you. Oddly enough, I trust you more with my devices than I trust any of MODD."

"You do?" he asked, inclining his head to the side.

"Yes." Bill straightened with what looked like a big, portable radar dish. "With you, I know you'll kill people with them somehow. With MODD... Who knows? Not knowing is the worst."

"Gee... Thanks," Jacob muttered bitterly.

"You're welcome." After handing the radar dish to Rocky, Bill regarded Jacob with an appraising look. "Hmmm... mythril v5 clothing... Impressive. If you ever see Albert again, tell him I still want my specs back."

Alarm bells began ringing in Jacob's head.

Al stole the blueprints for my gloves from Bill...?

Why is he helping me then...?

"I don't think he bears you any grudges, Jake," Spectre said calmly as Bill and Myron returned to work. Bill turned around coldly and disappeared into the mess while Myron gave Jacob a cheery wave before bouncing after Bill. "I don't think he hates Albert either. Probably thinks that having that sort of technology with you is better than having it with MODD."

If he distrusts MODD so much, why would he still work for them?

"I don't know the answer to that, Jake. Maybe you should ask him next time."

The two engineers left, giving both Jacob and Rocky their cues to depart as well.

Jacob fingered the glasses on his eyes and wondered what new 'features' Bill had added to this 'latest model'... not to mention what an 'RIC' or 'US' was.

As if on some unspoken command, a display flashed before his eyes. Words flashed before his eyes.

Bill Williamson: Test. Test. Reaper, do you copy?

"Uh... Yes?"

Rocky gave him a puzzled look. "Huh?"

"Bill is talking to me through the glasses, I think..."

Bill Williamson: I am. Unfortunately, the design of these RICs are still in its early stages. There is no way to communicate with me except through vocal speech. Without your communicator, it would only be a one-way communication feed.

Jacob cock his eyebrows slightly. "Great... So I get to have you chatting away in my head and I can't talk back unless I want to look crazy."

"No offense, but you've already got that down," Rocky stated.

"Jake,"_Spectre added evenly, _"you already are crazy."

Bill Williamson: You could always take the glasses off.

He winced bitterly.

Great... now I have three_voices of reason telling me how much I suck..._

Bill Williamson: From this interface, I can communicate directly to you and provide you with any information directly from the MODD databases including the latest Unsealed data, schematics for structures, maps and even the latest news feeds should you require them. I have an automated system here that can help in case I am offline. This is assuming that I can get a secure connection to you, that is.

That actually seemed quite handy... Having the vast MODD database at his fingertips was too good to be true...

"What's the catch?"

Bill Williamson: Simple. I want to know more. There is a lot about this world that I don't know and I want to fill it with as much knowledge as I can. When in battle, equip your RIC when possible. There is a record function that will record the battle not to mention any conversations you may have if your communicator is not obstructed.

"Am I the first to be one of your little 'data miners'?" Jacob growled bitterly.

Bill Williamson: Yes. You'd be surprised how few people are willing to help collect knowledge for the betterment of all existence.

"Fine," Jacob murmured, shaking his head. "Just tell me one thing... What does 'RIC' or 'US' stand for?"

Bill Williamson: Retinal Information Centre or RIC is the glasses you hold now. 'US' is a colloquial term MODD uses to describe 'Unknown Species'. This is in reference to any Unsealed they haven't encountered yet.

"Great. Thanks." He took off the glasses and pocketed them. His eyes flicked to Rocky who looked quite amused. "What?"

"Do you have any idea how amusing it is watching you grumble and mutter to yourself like that?" the ursine asked.

"Would it be more amusing than if we were to crash Rex's date?"

Rocky's grin was all the answer he needed.

*****

In some ways, the sight was miserably sad.

Kerry was blissfully sipping her coffee and devouring a salad while Rex was trying to put 'the moves' on her. He wasn't very subtle about it either. The silvery-haired wolf was leaning forward expectantly with a rather charming grin on his face with one arm against the table in such a way that it was possible to see his muscles flexing.

Of course, in his armour it was practically a futile effort...

... that, and with the crisis Graehsam was currently in, the best 'coffee place' they could go to was a poorly constructed 'hole in the ground' that served slush coloured brown. The food looked good, however.

Jacob could smell the sizzling steak from where he was sitting. The delicate blend of salt, pepper and what smelled like sweet sauce of some sort heavy with onions made his stomach rumble in anticipation.

"Why does he constantly wear that hunk of metal?" Jacob asked softly. The rather large menu carved on a slab or rock conveniently managed to hide his features. Apparently, to gain the 'authentic Graesham cuisine', everything was 'rock themed'. Thus, the menus were made out of rock.

Rocky who ran her paw down the surface of the menu giggled as Rex switched to leaning onto his other arm. "It's sort of something Rex doesn't like to talk about a lot."

"Is he horribly disfigured under all that armour?" Jacob snickered. "I bet he's got a third nipple." He frowned as he ran a claw under one particular menu item. "What's a 'Steel-Gut Burger'?"

"Actually," Rocky said, lowering his voice slightly, "when Rex was being trained early on, the trainers wanted him to use his Seal to its fullest extent. You know, go all Seal Armour. He did that... but when he realised the rest of the Elemental Lords were watching... I guess he got nervous. His synch-rate actually went down."

Jacob looked up from the menu, staring at Rocky in surprise. "Synch-rates can fluctuate"

"Normally, no," the ursine answered with a shrug. "Generally, Synch-rates below 50% are the ones that are dangerously unstable and those fluctuate. Some can go down to 0% and others can push past 100% but that usually results in the birth of an Unsealed. But with Rex..."

Rocky cast a worried glance over his shoulder at Rex who had reached over and clasped Kerry's hand. The doe was blissfully playing along but it was clear she wasn't interested. There was just something in her almost patronising smile that told Jacob she was just too nice to dump Rex on the spot.

I wonder if I should put Rex out of his misery...

... It would save Kerry grief later on...

... but then again, watching him pull out all the stops and fail epically is worth every second of Kerry's discomfort.

"Some friend you are,"_Spectre grumbled. For some reason, he had a stone menu as well. _"Hey, can you order me the Quartz Salad?"

"Go on," Jacob urged Rocky, completely ignoring his Animus.

"Rex's synch-rate is just like any Elemental Lord, 100%. But unlike us, his falls occasionally. Sometimes, in the middle of battle, he'll actually lose his powers. Some people say that he really is like a star. He twinkles but he doesn't shine..." Rocky shook his head sadly and regarded the menu again. "Rex's armour is something MODD provided him. It is almost as strong as actual Seal Armour but it will never fail him."

It's starting to sound like Rex really is the weakest of the Elemental Lords...

I wonder if having him around is such a good idea...

"You know... This is awfully depressing," the Saint of the Earth said, regarding Rex's latest attempt to woo Kerry. The Star Lord looked like he was trying to tell a joke and laughing a little too loudly to encourage a response from Kerry. The doe just smiled and chuckled politely. "I don't think interrupting him right now will do any more damage..."

"Maybe..." Jacob answered, setting down his menu and pulling up his headphone.

The ursine then reached for a phone in his pocket and flipped it open. "Hey, Bill. Can you do me a favour? Can you grab the cell phone number of one Kerry Rawson? She's a runaway daughter of a hated, manipulative aristocrat."

"If she's a runaway," Jacob began, "how do you -?"

He was silenced by a raised finger from Rocky. The ursine suddenly grinned as Kerry jumped in surprise and reached for her pocket. She seemed to apologise to Rex as she pulled the phone to her ears, a look caught between relief and bewilderment on her face.

Even from the distance between them, Jacob could make out Kerry giving the generic 'Hello?'

Rocky grinned broadly, a hint of mischief in his grass-green eyes. "If you're having the time of your life and actually enjoying Rex's bad jokes and lack of charm, then say in a very agitated and exasperated voice, 'No thank you, I'm not looking to upgrade my plan.'"

There was a pause for about a second or two.

Kerry didn't say a word.

With his grin growing broader, Rocky said, "Otherwise, sound really surprised when you say, 'He did what?' Make it really loud too so everyone can hear."

"He did what!?" Kerry exclaimed, sitting up straight with a look of shock on her eyes. Rex looked equally as surprised but failed to see Kerry's eyes slowly roving the masses of onlookers who had stopped eating to look at her.

"Now say, 'An orphanage' in a questioning tone," Rocky continued calmly.

"An orphanage!?" Kerry shouted, her voice rising to hysteria. She was putting on a very convincing act. "What about the children!?"

"Nice touch," the ursine chuckled. "Now say 'I'll be right there' and then tell Rex that Jacob Reaper is running away towards the borders of Graesham and you'll look after the kids while he catches the fugitive."

Jacob grunted his disproval.

Did it have to be me?

"Who else is going to burn down an orphanage for no apparent reason?"

Point taken...

... maybe I should burn down an orphanage just to make the lie more convincing...?

"No!"

Kerry repeated the words to Rex. Both of them were immediately on their feet.

"We're six tables to your left," Rocky sniggered. "Circle around the block and then come back. We'll order for you? Salad?"

The doe nodded. She and Rex were immediately away, bolting away from the run-down cafe. A waitress approached Jacob and Rocky a few moments later and the two made their orders - a Groundwater Special for Rocky - on the house -, a Steel-Gut Burger for Jacob - who had to pay - and a Forest Pine Salad for Kerry.

At almost the same time they finished ordering, Kerry returned and took up a spare seat between them.

"Thank you," she said simply, smiling at Rocky.

Jacob snorted. "That bad, huh?"

"Rex is a very nice person but he is not my type." It was clear from her body language that she was using as much euphemisms as she could.

Eye contact was practically negligible save for the instances when she accidentally locked gazes with Jacob or Rocky and it was at those points that she would look as frightened as if she were about to be bowled over by a runaway eighteen wheeler. Her hands remained hidden beneath the dirty table cloth though it was clear she was fidgeting.

"I understand," Rocky chuckled, patting Kerry's shoulder consolingly. "Rex tries to compensate a lot. He's looked down upon by not only the rest of the Elemental Lords but also the public. There are people out there that make fan fictions about becoming the next Elemental Lord and Rex is always the one that gets beaten first."

"I just don't have the heart to tell him I'm not interested in him..." Kerry sighed.

Huh... I guess she and I are sort of in the same boat...

I mean, it's like Leo is my Rex...

A particularly evil thought crossed Jacob's mind. "Hey, Rocky... Do you have Rex's number on your phone?"

"Of course..." the Saint replied, his eyes narrowed. "Why...?"

"Does it have a camera?"

"What modern phone doesn't?"

"May I borrow it?" he asked sweetly.

"I'm tempted not to let you..." Rocky answered softly. "But I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt here, Jacob." He handed Jacob the phone. "Don't make me regret this."

Taking the phone with a grin, Jacob turned to Kerry with a big smile on his face. "How badly do you want to break up with Rex?"

"We were never an item," Kerry answered sternly and a little sadly. "But I don't want to lead him on either... I'd do anything to keep his heart from breaking too badly..."

"Okay."

SMECK!

Kerry's eyes boggled and even Spectre looked like he had been shot out of the air and dropped to the ground, legs twitching. Rocky gave a cry of shock and shot to his feet.

With his lips firmly planted on Kerry's, Jacob quickly angled Rocky's phone - camera side towards him - at them and took a picture. The instant he heard that click-click of the phone taking the photo, he straightened, leaving Kerry frozen and stunned. If she was made out of stone, she could've passed as one of those statues in the Grey Grounds Graveyard.

"And... sent!" Jacob exclaimed triumphantly.

That knocked her out of her shock. "Sent?" The eyes of Kerry and Rocky practically popped out of their heads.

"You didn't..." Rocky murmured.

"Just did!" Jacob answered proudly, handing Rocky back the phone. "Shouldn't be long now before -"

BOOM!

Not too far in the distance, a small plume of smoke rose.

"That must be him now," Jacob observed with a smirk.

Rocky's phone rang... and the ursine quickly picked it up.

Jacob only heard 'Unsealed' and he was quickly on his feet. He was bolting towards the source of the explosion before either Rocky or Kerry were out of their seats. He cut through the crowd as they screamed and scrambled away from the Unsealed that were pouring into the city.

How the hell_did Unsealed get into this place when it's_ crawling_with MODD troops!?_

_"Maybe because you pissed off Rex, he accidentally summoned them,"_Spectre growled.

Thunk!

An imaginary spear of realisation hit his heart...

Unsealed were created in either one of three ways. The first were the 'Puritan' Unsealed that were created from people who abused Seals too much or had their Synch-rates too low and were absorbed by their Seals. Apparently, they were quite rare. Then there were the 'Tainted' Unsealed which were artificially produced from existing Seals by MODD by forcibly extracting a Seal from a host.

The last were the Scion Unsealed.

Scions were born from the raw emotions of Seal Bearers who were strong enough to produce them.

Elemental Lords were capable of producing Scion Unsealed.

I'm starting to think pissing off Elemental Lords isn't such a good idea.

"Whatever gave you that_idea?"_

The Unsealed known as Pebbles came swarming in towards him, their top-like forms cutting through the crowds and sending blood everywhere. Growling at the wanton death around him, Jacob summoned his blades and launched himself into the fray.

He impaled a Pebble onto Radiance and threw it into a group that was harassing a girl that had fallen over. Bright swords of solid light formed around him and zoomed outwards, slashing the Unsealed. A clear path was made for the civilians who grabbed their loved ones and hurried them away from the battlefield.

SWISH!

"Argh!" he cried, staggering forward. A Pebble shot by him, trails of his blood dripping form its blade-like limbs as it spun away.

"So it's like that, huh?" he snarled, gripping his left shoulder. The wound was quickly healing. Ten blades of light appeared around him in a tight circle. With an ear-splitting roar, he surged forward into the horde of Pebbles. The blades spin around him, mirroring the Pebble's attacks. The Unsealed screamed and shattered into bursts of green light as he zoomed through them.

WHACK!

He staggered as a huge green rat the size of his arm slammed into his chest and bit down on his neck. Jacob cursed, dropped Requiem and tossed the rat away. The rodent-shaped Unsealed darted in between two buildings, vanishing out of sight.

The hell was -

WHACK!

Pain exploded out of his left calf as another of the rats bolted past him, taking a chunk of his leg with it.

Crap... They're fast -

WHACK!

Another landed on him with enough force to knock him to the ground.

WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!

Dozens of the rat-like Unsealed piled on him, scrambling to dig their large teeth into his flesh.

"Jacob!" Spectre cried.

FWASH!

A blast of icy wind suddenly passed over the Unsealed. The green rats turned an icy blue. A cold, sapphire spear stabbed through them, shattering them to pieces and knocking their remnants away from Jacob.

Kerry stood in front of him, armed with her two spears - Ice Age and Comet.

Jacob tried to stand up but a pair of paws pressed down on his chest.

Rocky Groundwater knelt beside him. "Stay still."

"But I -"

"Shut up."

He shut up.

Gentle, green light poured out of Rocky's palms and caressed Jacob's wounds gently. His regeneration plus the healing abilities of Rocky patched up his injuries in the blink of an eye.

"Sediments," Rocky muttered, seizing his paw and lifting him to his feet. "Those Unsealed are nasty. They're fast and in packs, they deal a lot of damage. But alone and they're cowards."

"I'll keep that in mind," Jacob grunted, rolling his shoulders. He snatched up Requiem and stood beside Kerry. The Unsealed circled them. The Sediments were nowhere to be seen but there were certainly a lot of Pebbles. He felt Rocky pressed his back against his. "Let's get this over with. I still haven't had lunch."

Sensing their intentions, the Unsealed surged forward, closing the bladed circle around them.

BOOM!

Spires of rock surged out from the ground, encircling them like a spiked crown from the earth. The Unsealed were speared on the spikes and barred from their path. Jacob sensed Rocky move and both he and Kerry ducked as the Elemental Lord of Earth spun around, sweeping his paws out in a wide circle. The rocky spikes shattered, hovering in the air ominously.

Rocky clicked his fingers.

WHOOSH!

The shards swept outwards in a broad ring, peppering the Unsealed like a barrage of earthen bullets.

Now!

In perfect synchronisation, Jacob and Kerry stormed towards the momentarily stunned Unsealed.

Kerry thrust her spears forward in tandem. A blade of ice a hundred metres long rushed out from the tip of her spears, cutting a broad path through the Unsealed. Jacob launched himself onto the spear of ice and skated across its length. An array of light blades appeared, flanking him. As he sailed down the icy path, the blades sliced at Unsealed mercilessly.

At the end of the spear, he leapt into the air, somersaulted and brought his blades crashing down.

BOOM!

A titanic sonic shockwave blasted out from the impact, blasting the Unsealed back and shattering Kerry's icy blade into a thousand pieces. The light blades shot out and impaled several Unsealed onto the walls of the ragged buildings.

On some unspoken command, Kerry jumped into the midst of the icy shards. The shards all reformed around her, collecting around her back. The multitude of shards and their asymmetrical shape were perfect to form the glorious, icy wings that spread out at fifty-metres on either side of Kerry.

The doe spread her arms wide -

WHOOOSH!

... shattering her wings into miniscule, diamond-like dust that washed over the battlefield, freezing her surroundings. Once crude, rusted, metal shanties were suddenly covered in an icy glaze and the barren, ragged earth upset by the passing of countless feet and paws was slick with a thin covering of frost.

The Pebbles were suddenly moving so sluggishly.

A Sediment slipped on the ice and slid out into the open, right in front of Jacob.

The giant rat stared up at Jacob with wide, red eyes.

Swish!

He stabbed it.

"Jacob!"

SWISH!

He froze.

The passing of a blade across his back was unmistakable...

... he was just waiting for the pain to come...

"Saved your life."

Rex Nebula...

Jacob spun around to find the armoured wolf smirking at him with that star-shaped sword of his.

"Uh... You're not mad?" he asked.

The Star Lord rolled his eyes - he seemed to like doing that - and spun around, slicing another Unsealed deftly. He spun his sword in his paws expertly, the blade almost turning into a metal whirlwind. "I may not like you, Jacob, but I'm not about to get mad for no reason."

He hasn't seen the picture yet...

That meant two things...

First... These Unsealed were unlikely to have come from him... so something else let them through the black gates of Graesham...

... second...

I have got_to delete that photo before it gets to him!_

The last thing he needed was for his imaginary scenario to come true. Having Rex blow a gasket and summon horrible Unsealed that could destroy all of Graesham was not a pleasant thought.

"I don't suppose you had anything to do with letting all these Unsealed in here, did you?" Rex asked over his shoulder.

Jacob spun around and sliced two Unsealed deftly. "Hey, I'm maybe crazy, evil and sadistic but I am not suicidal."

A soft ringing met his ears as they fought back-to-back. "Oh hey," Rex said, easily pulling out his phone while fighting with his other hand. "I just got a photo from Rocky..." He flashed Jacob a grin. "Is it of you crying at the ending of Starboy?"

Eep...

_"Quick! Distract him!"_Spectre cried.

"What did you end up doing with Leo anyway?" Jacob asked quickly.

Rex flicked his ears towards him. "Oh... Uh..." He blushed suddenly and forgot all about his phone as they quickly traded places, slicing their respective opponents easily. "We came to the source of the Shade River running through the city. He kept saying something about it being a 'perfect place' or something and he... ahem..."

The Star Lord glanced over his shoulder at Jacob. "Can I ask you a personal question, Jacob?"

"Is this really the time?" Jacob growled as he sliced through a Sediment but almost lost his footing on the icy plane.

Damn... this ice is working against us...

The Pebbles had lost the initial sluggishness they had gained from Kerry's earlier attack and with them being airborne, they are unaffected by the ice.

"Just one question..." Rex insisted.

"Make it quick."

Jacob spun to his left just as Rex spun to his right. Jacob slashed low with Requiem. A sonic blade sliced across the icy ground, shattering the icy field around them. He levelled Radiance at the icy films. A single blast of light erupted from his blade and struck one of the shards. The light fragmented against the diamond-like plates, sending thousands of beams in various directions. Those beams shattered against other panels.

Zap! Zap! Zap!

A lattice of light surrounded them, momentarily locking both Jacob and Rex in near-complete whiteness.

"Jacob... Are you gay?"

The light faded at that instant.

For some reason he couldn't explain, that question seemed to freeze Jacob's heart.

It took him a whole second to reply.

"Yes. Yes I am."

"And Leo...?"

Jacob straightened. "One question," he reminded.

BOOM!

The earth shook.

A gargantuan Unsealed landed about five hundred metres away from them. The creature appeared like an enormous, perfectly round boulder. Some green vines criss-crossed its surface while two, angular, red eyes blazed across its surface.

BOOM!

Six hundred metres behind them a second Unsealed landed.

"Crap...Gravels..." Rex muttered. "Don't let it get gain momentum! If it gets too fast, it becomes unstoppable!"

"What...?"

The Unsealed began rolling towards them.

"Fire at it!" Rex shouted, gathering a ball of bright, blue flames in his free paw and hurling it at the Unsealed. The flames exploded against the creature's rocky surface, causing a small crater but nothing more.

Jacob levelled Radiance and fired. His lasers did even less damage against the Unsealed...

The Gravel was picking up speed... and as it did so, their attacks just started bouncing off the massive rock's surface!

He heard loud, booms from behind him.

Wait a second...

...and remembered the second Gravel!

He threw a glance over his shoulder.

Holy -

"Get down!" Jacob shouted, dismissing his blades and tackling Rex to the ground.

BOOM! CRASH!

Jacob covered his head from the gravel that peppered the back of his head and his back. Gritting his teeth, he shut his eyes and focused on his breathing, listening to Rex's rapid heartbeat to make sure the Elemental Lord didn't suddenly die of a heart attack.

A loud groaning filled his ears followed by the tell-tale noise of rocks rubbing against one another.

He straightened and spun towards the Gravels...

The two Unsealed had collided with one another but they began to slowly peel away from one another... starting their second charge!

I could make a joke about how there are two round 'stones' rubbing against one another right now...

... but I won't.

One of the Gravels began rolling towards them.

Ten seconds to impact.

Rex had his eyes shut and was completely knocked out.

Nine seconds...

Crap...

Eight.... Seven....

Jacob glanced back towards the charging Gravel. Desperation ruled him and he quickly threw his blades at it. Both Radiance and Requiem bounced off the surface of the boulder-like Unsealed harmlessly.

Six...

Crap!

Five...!

"Summon me!"_Spectre demanded. _"I can take this thing!"

Four seconds to impact. Summoning Spectre would take too long!

Three... two...!

Wait!

Jacob threw his paws forward. A tall, angled barricade of light appeared in front of him, just mere inches away from his palms.

WHAM!

The Gravel hit it hard but it quickly began rolling to his right... where the barricade was angled.

Yes!

He lengthened the barrier, guiding the accelerating Gravel away from himself and Rex. The Unsealed rolled away charging towards the far distance. Remembering Rocky and Kerry, he spun to where he last saw them. Rocky seemed to have a similar idea and was guiding the Gravel away from him and Kerry using a ramp of rock.

They locked gazes.

Let's end this.

The Elemental Lord of Earth seemed to read his thoughts.

He turned back towards the Gravel that had attacked him. It quickly changed course, bowling over several houses on its way. It picked up speed, kicking up dust as it rolled towards him at frightening speeds.

With a slight smirk, he summoned a wall of light beneath the Gravel, extending its reach to become a ramp. The spherical Unsealed blindly followed the ramp, zooming over Jacob.

BOOOM!

Rocky guided the other Gravel towards him -

WHAM!

The two Unsealed slammed into each other in midair.

"Now!" Rocky shouted, launching himself to where the two collided. Jacob acted on instinct followed suit.

BOOM!

A titanic spear of rock erupted from the ground, spearing the two Gravels and sending them rocketing into the air.

BOOM!

Encasing the first spear was a pillar of bluish, crystal-like ice that encased both Unsealed in a block of ice while sending them even further into the air.

Jacob reached into his well of strength and as he reached the base of Kerry's pillar. He unleashed a thunderous uppercut with his fists.

WHOOSH!

A brilliant, ornately designed blade of light shot upwards and shattered frozen finger of rock, hurling the Unsealed well above even the Emerald Crown!

Jacob leapt onto the enormous sword of light and charged up its length at his top speed.

The Gravels began to fall -

WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!

Shards of rock and ice came swarming in around the Unsealed.

Rocky shot past Jacob's field of vision, striking one of the falling shards of rock and ice. Kerry zoomed by him, knocking another shard at the Unsealed. She landed on the light sword and launched off to strike another shard.

WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!

The shards turned the Gravels into pincushions pressed against one another, the spear-like fragments embedding themselves into the hard surface of the boulder-like Unsealed. Jacob let out a mighty roar as he launched off the tip of the sword and seized the two Unsealed in his paws.

"Just die!" he cried.

He hurled the Unsealed straight down with all his might.

They -

BOOOM!

... slammed into the titanic sword of light, filling his entire vision with brilliant, blinding light.

Jacob unleashed a sonic blast straight down to ease his landing well before the light faded. When his feet touched the ground, he was still slightly dazed and he was seeing stars before his eyes.

It took him a moment that he wasn't suffering from mild optical damage.

The powers of Light, Earth and Ice combined created an almost surreal rain of diamond-like particles that fragmented the light in beautiful and breathtaking ways. A double-rainbow curved high above them as the individual fragments twinkled in the midday light.

Amazed, Jacob lifted a paw and caught one of the fragments on his paw.

It was a small, sparkling diamond-like shard... The crystal had a tiny, glowing core like Ice had been turned into a never-melting state and trapped pure Light in its confines.

Wow...

"It's just like the endings of Starboy."

Rocky placed a paw on his shoulder, looking onto his paw as more of the crystals landed on his palm. Kerry stood on the other side, peering at his palm.

"How did that series end?" Jacob asked.

The Elemental Lord smirked at him and tapped the side of his ursine muzzle. "You're just going to have to find out for yourself. What do you say we make tonight our movie night? Same time next week?"

"Who says I'll be here for a week?"

Rocky just gave him a look caught between confidence and sadness. With the Plague rampaging across Graesham, chances were, he'd be here either until the Plague died down for the year or he was turned into stone... in which case he would be here forever.

They heard shuffling behind them and they all turned to find Rex abruptly sitting up.

"Huh? What I miss?"

"Does he get knocked out easily?" Jacob asked, chortling. Kerry went over to the Star Lord to offer her aid but seeing the way Rex was playing up his injuries, he began to suspect the act of being knocked out or dazed was just that... an act.

"You don't suppose...?" Rocky began, obviously suspecting the same thing.

"I'm not sure," Jacob answered with a shrug. "All I know is that I don't think a photograph will do it anymore."

The Saint of the Earth chuckled and shook his head. "What do you suggest we do to break them up?"

"Apart from killing one or the other?" he offered. "Nothing. I am not getting in between two people and their love or lack thereof."

Huh... That reminds me...

Leo...

"Speaking of which," he said, pocketing the shards on his paw. "I've got a boyfriend I need to talk to."

"Don't stay out too late," Rocky said with a wink. "I'll give you and your friends access to living quarters in the Emerald Crown. You'll still have to get checked for the Plague though."

Urgh... Needles...

*****

The source of the Shade River was a rather large waterfall. Silver Falls poured onto a rather large lake that eventually funnelled into the river that wended its way through Graesham. Pristine, clean waters poured out of the mountain, filled with rich minerals from deep within the mountain. Just like the crystals that Jacob had caught a few hours ago, the waters were almost crystal-like in appearance.

The glade where the lake sat was an odd patch of greenery amidst a rather desolate landscape which was Graesham. A secret emerald in a batch of coal. Tall forest trees held up a thick canopy that shielded the grass from harsh weather and housed several animals that could not be seen elsewhere in the vicinity of Graesham.

Feral deer and even some feral wolves ducked in and out of the bushes as Jacob strode along the river banks. He saw a fire up ahead and could already smell Leo in the air. Conviction was in his heart and he knew what he had to do...

When he emerged into the glade where Leo sat, gently roasting a wild boar, his heart skipped a beat. The brief instant when Leo wasn't looking at him, he seriously considered turning around and just leaving.

I can't do this...

"Yes you can,"_Spectre urged, nudging his back lightly. _"You know what your feelings are. You have to go through with this. It isn't fair to him if you keep up this pretence."

I hate it when you're right...

"Jacob!" Leo exclaimed brightly, leaping to his feet. "You are just in time!"

"Just in time for what?" he asked innocently.

"For the feast!" the Tribal exclaimed, taking his paw and pulling him towards the fire. "In my Tribe, after it becomes official that two males are mated, they undergo a ritual to symbolise their union! The two families generally throw a feast to last seven days but as we do not have the time or the resources, I considered it better if we just have a private... erm..." The big wolf inclined his head to the side. "I believe your people call it a 'holy-day'?"

"A holiday?" Jacob asked.

Leo's expression brightened. "Yes! That is exactly it!" The big, brown wolf was bouncing on his feet again. "So, I prepared you a very special meal!" He gestured at the roasting boar. "Just the way my people would have prepared it! I have also prepared all that is necessary for the ritual!"

Jacob's heart plummeted.

This just got a whole_lot harder..._

"Ritual...?"

"Yes," Leo answered, still blissfully cheery. "The Ritual of Male Mateship! In the eyes of my ancestors, we will officially be mated to one another!"

Jacob winced.

Leo's grin faded. "Is something wrong, Jacob?"

I have to do this...

He pulled his paws free of Leo's. "I'm sorry, Leo... I can't do this..."

The instant Leo's heart broke was one Jacob would remember for the rest of his life...

"... you cannot do what...?" he asked, his eyes going big and wide just like a dejected puppy.

"I can't be your mate... It isn't right."

Leo's ears drooped. "Oh... I see... You have found a more acceptable male...?"

Jacob shook his head. "No... It's not that..."

"Then... Then I am not acceptable... My seed is not potent enough for you..." The Tribal looked like he was fighting back tears. "I am sorry to have disappointed you... I hope my imperfect essence has not corrupted your pure and perfect form."

He really didn't understand what most of that meant...

"No, Leo," he said, growling slightly. "It isn't that... It's just..." He shook his head and made a slicing gesture with his right hand. "Look... The thing is, the way you feel about me isn't the way I feel about you. You idolise me. You think I'm like your god or something and that you who will grow better from devouring me seed."

Leo looked even more crushed than before. "Then I am beyond improvement...? I have reached the limit of my potential?"

"No!" Jacob shouted, snarling fiercely. "Let me finish, damnit!"

The Tribal backed down, whimpering softly.

Jacob couldn't stay mad... "Leo..." he whispered softly, reaching over to take Leo's paws in his. "I don't feel the same way about you as you do about me... I haven't been treating you right... I've been treating you like some pup that is following me around out of some blinded adoration and I've been using that to my advantage.

"I can't go on leading you on like that. Not anymore. Whenever we 'bonded', for me, it was just sex. Nothing emotionally was brought up... At least... that's what I thought..." He smiled up at Leo very slightly. "Then I realised that_worrying_ about not having feelings for you was a feeling..."

After speaking with Rocky about treating all fellow mortals with good faith and listening to Kerry's words about misleading Rex...

Leo... I don't love you...

"That's why..." he began softly, falling down on one knee. And reaching into his pocket with one paw. He pulled out a golden ring on which was mounted that same crystal with trapped light he had obtained from the battle with the Unsealed. "... I'm asking you formally, Leonardo Custer... Will you promise to marry me?"

... but I'm certainly willing to learn.

Jacob's heart stopped.

Spectre was leaning forward in anticipation.

Leo stared at him with wide eyes...

... then he inclined his head to the side...

"What is a 'marry'?"

...

Damn... There goes my dramatic scene...

He sighed and got back up. "It's the Rillotian way of asking you to be my mate," he answered. "Not in some Alpha-Beta sort of relationship. As equals." He pulled out a matching ring to the one he had offered Leo. "See these rings? They symbolise equality between you and me. Not to mention an eternity with one another. Two circles, see? They have no end... And when you put them side by side..." He pressed the rings against one another. "The infinity symbol, see?"

Leo's eyes brightened. "I see! A symbol of eternal love!" Then his jaw dropped. "But... Wait... you are asking me to be your mate...? But... But I am not worthy! You are so much stronger! You are an Alpha! You have shared your power with me but even I can only be a flawed vessel of your true essence! My seed will be impure!"

Jacob shook his head.

Geez... he almost makes sex sound so... 'chemical'...

"No... No I'm not. Leo... From this point on, we're equals, got that? I don't want to lead. I want to walk side by side. You asked me to be your mate... but as of this point, I want you to be mine as well."

Leo shook his head in confusion. "But... But I do not understand... You... You want me to become Alpha alongside you? No pack has two Alphas! It is just never done! Even when there are two males, only one is ever the Alpha!"

"Well," Jacob answered with a slight smirk. "You're not in Oxis anymore, Leo. What do you say we start our own pack here? Different rules, different traditions...?"

At the mention of that, Leo's confusion faded and he broke into a big grin. "Will there be females for breeding?"

Uh...

He glanced at Spectre who had this 'Don't look at me' look on his face.

"What do you think?" he asked.

Leo frowned a little and shook his head. "I much prefer males. While we do need them to breed, unfortunately, I cannot imagine making the strongest pack in the world with mighty warriors if we have them slowing us down. Perhaps we can merely recruit and judge males from other packs if they wish to join so that we can feed them our seed and they can become much stronger and part of our elite!"

...

"Jake..."_Spectre began slowly. _"I think you just asked a sexist, elitist with a penchant for world domination to marry you."

I know... A sexist, gay_elitist..._

For some reason, Jacob had this eerie vision of himself and Leo ruling the world with an army of exclusively males who 'fed' each other their semen to make each other stronger. He also imagined said males constantly begging them for his and Leo's seed since theirs was the 'best' of all the others.

And it turned him on...

Not only was it goddamn sexy but it was also quite diabolical.

Nothing says 'I love you' better than conquering the world

"We're going to have to work on your view on women," Jacob said with a slight wince. "Trust me, I get this eerie feeling that despite my badass record, Jo can still kick my ass." He smiled a little. "So... What do you say? Will you promise to marry me?"

Leo had tears in his eyes. "You... You are the best mate anyone could hope for!" the Tribal cried. He threw his huge, muscular arms around Jacob, holding him tightly and wrapping their lips together in a tight, loving kiss.

Jacob gasped and got a lungful of Leo's breath. His heart skipped a beat and kick-started anew, beating with raw emotion that he had never felt before... Suddenly, all that build up, all those emotions towards Leo that he repressed, came pouring out in a titanic explosion that filled his blood with molten heat.

He wasn't sure if he loved Leo... He wasn't sure what 'love' was... Every definition of the word was always associated with pain and suffering... loss and heartbreak. But what he had with Leo was something else...

Was it love...?

Maybe...

But it was a different kind of love to what he knew. It was one he was confident would last and not lead him to having his heart crushed and left bleeding on the sidewalk.

He pushed against Leo, trying to press his muzzle deeper into his mate but Leo quickly pulled away, a big grin on his face.

"So I must wear this, correct?" Leo asked, taking the ring from Jacob's paws. "It is very pretty. I have never seen a jewel like it and I wonder where you found the time to craft such a magnificent piece of jewellery."

"Let's just say that it takes less than three hours to get here from Graesham," Jacob chuckled. "But don't get me wrong," he said, suddenly very serious. "This is not an actual marriage. It's just a promise to be married. An 'engagement'. I don't know when the actual ceremony will be or if we'll even follow through with it... All I know is that I want you by my side, Leo.

"I just want you to hold off calling me your 'mate' until we know each other a lot better. Got that?"

Leo looked a little unsure but nodded very slowly. "Perhaps we can still proceed with the Mating Ritual though?"

Jacob folded his arms and frowned a little. "Uh... Wouldn't that just break what I just suggested?"

Leo blushed a little. "Well... I suppose because it isn't a real ritual, it does not truly count. Perhaps it can be practice for the real ritual?"

He smiled at that. "Sure. Sounds great. But at the real ritual I demand one thing."

The big Tribal looked confused and inclined his head to the side letting out a little 'urf' of confusion.

"Raspberry sorbet," Jacob stated with finality. "That is a must."

"What is that?"

Jacob couldn't help it. His tail was wagging excitedly at the thought of his favourite dessert. "It's basically raspberry extract pureed and frozen."

Leo's smile grew broader. "Is it your favourite food?"

Nodding, Jacob leaned up to Leo's ear and gave it a playful nip. "Get it for me and I'll be sure to 'reward' you."

The big Tribal's tail was wagging in tandem with his as the wrapped their arms around each other. Despite having just felt those hard, steel-corded muscles about two days ago, Jacob felt like it had been an eternity since he held Leo in such a fashion. It filled him with that longing of never letting go of his mate...

... and this time, he didn't fight it.

This is how I feel... I care very much about Leo... I don't know if I love him...

... but I want_to love him._

Leo slowly guided him towards the fire nuzzling him gently. "Will you perform the ritual with me, Jacob?"

Jacob intertwined his paws with Leo's, pressing their palms together tightly. "Sure... Hope it doesn't take too long, though. I've got 'plans' for you." He gave Leo a devilish wink which the Tribal responded with a big grin.

They sat down opposite to one another. A clay bowl sat in front of them, filled with some sort of reddish liquid. Jacob suspected it was the blood of the boar.

Jacob sniffed at the bowl and was surprised to find a rather sweet scent coming from the concoction. "So what does this ritual -"

He never got to finish.

Leo quickly stripped off his leather jacket and shorts, neatly folding them on the side with his massive, bright red, ten-inch cock at full mast and already dripping with precum. The Tribal squatted down in front of him and began running his massive paws over his lupine meat, grunting softly with his tail wagging fiercely.

"Leo...?" Jacob squeaked, unable to peel his eyes away from Leo's shaft.

His mate glanced at him and grinned. "Oh... I am sorry, Jacob..." - he grunted loudly as a large drop of precum slid out of the tip of his cock - "You must... Urgh... ejaculate into the bowl..."

Jacob went rigid. "Wait... What!?"

"It is... Urf... Part of the ritual..."

Some ritual... Why wasn't I born into their tribe...?

Jacob gingerly stripped off his cloak and set it aside. His eyes were constantly planted onto Leo's cock and occasionally switching to his mate's gentle features. He couldn't stop looking at the ring that Leo wore...

He glanced at the matching ring he still held in his paw and slipped it on.

Part of him expected some sort of super-special sound effect like a large, metal door slamming shut.

Not even Spectre made a spectacle about him suddenly being 'engaged'.

A sliver of doubt hit him again...

... Did I really make the right choice...?

It's so early in our relationship and I've already asked him to marry me...

"It's a promise to be together, Jacob,"_Spectre said gently. _"He was expecting something that you could not rightly deliver even though you may have wanted to with all your might. You are merely postponing the inevitable. It was a step back for him... but a step forward for both of you."

He was satisfied with that and pulled off his pants, depositing them with his coat and squatting down opposite to Leo. Watching Leo rub his cock gave rise to his own shaft and as his jet-black cock began to stir in his sheath, he teased it a little and gave Leo a suggestive smirk. His mate glanced up and their eyes met in an electric flurry.

Grinning, Jacob leaned back and spread his legs wide so that Leo had ample view of his cock and balls. The big Tribal began panting and stroking his own cock rapidly. Jacob felt his arousal rising, heat pulsing out of his cock as his twelve-inch black canine cock rose out of his sheath and dripped precum onto his paws.

Gripping his member caused a shudder all over his body and he squeezed his meaty member.

Leo filled his vision and Jacob's mind was filled with strange, new thoughts... Suddenly, marriage didn't seem like such a bad idea and all worries about a failing relationship vanished as he imagined himself and Leo living together happily away from MODD... in total and utter freedom...

He and Leo were living together in the jungles of Oxis... in a modern house overseeing the vast jungles from a mountain ledge. They stood paw in paw, watching the jungles sway in the cool breeze and they turned to one another... lips meeting...

Jacob blinked and realised he was only partially dreaming.

Their lips were meeting!

His eyes rolled back into his head, moaning as he wrapped his free paw around Leo's thick, muscular back and pulling the big Tribal to himself. Their hot bodies pressed against one another and even with his shirt barring their bodies from rubbing against one another, he could still feel the bigger wolf's heartbeat against his.

Each beat pumped him with a budding feeling... Love... And it forced more and more strength into his arousal. Jacob twisted his head to the side, sliding his tongue deep into Leo's muzzle and brushing it against Leo's. Their tongues slid against one another, their breaths short and feverish. His paw slipped away from his own cock and curled around Leo's.

His mate grunted and gripped Jacob's cock, causing the latter to gasp and pull away. Leo buried his muzzle into Jacob's neck, growling and nuzzling him tenderly. Jacob was thrusting into Leo's groin as he squeezing at that thick piece of lupine meat. Their precum spilled against one another and the pressure rapidly building deep in Jacob's groin.

"Urgh... Oh jeez... Leo... I'm close..." he grunted.

Leo whimpered softly. "I... I am too... Jacob... I love you so much..." Leo's free paw slid up Jacob's belly -

Oh no...

... and ran through his abs...

Something just licked in Jacob.

He suddenly blacked out.

WHAM!

Jacob pounced Leo, punning the bigger wolf to the ground and ravaging the wolf's muzzle with his own. His mind went completely blank and was reduced to a primal state filled with sex and lust. He shamelessly humped Leo's groin, rubbing his cock against Leo's, moaning and groaning all the way.

His senses were filled with Leo's scent and even in the haze of the puppy-like state... he realised something...

Through his crippling weakness to belly-rubs... Leo was still there... He could see Leo... Even if he couldn't move his body - not that he wanted to as he clung onto Leo like a puppy - he could still see Leo clearly... Even when Taylor had turned him into a slavering, sex puppy, he only saw darkness...

... but now...

Just Leo...

He gave out a joyous mini-howl at the realisation and rolled onto his back, tongue hanging from the side of his muzzle, his cock fully erect and a big goofy grin across his muzzle. Leo slid on top of him, running his paws against Jacob's belly, over the rock-hard six-pack and the large pecs. Leo bent down and kissed each of Jacob's nipples affectionately, making Jacob emit loud groans.

His cock yearned for release...

He whimpered.

Leo picked up one of the nearby bowls and placed it right under Jacob's cock. The big Tribal seized Jacob's cock in both paws and began pumping the enormous slab of meat ferociously. Jacob grunted and his senses slowly started returning... only to be replaced by unstoppable lust.

"Urgh... Oh god... Leo... Rugh!"

He twitched, claws digging into the grass. Leo's strokes became faster... and faster... picking up speed with every passing second. His eyes were filled with an intense hunger and he was licking his lips in anticipation.

Jacob emitted a rising moan, arching his back as the pressure built... and built... and built until -!

SPLAT!

"AAAAAARGH!"

Cum exploded out of his cum and splattered across his chest, most of it landing in the bowl. Some splattered across his muzzle and he quickly licked it off until -

SPLAT!

"Oooooh... Urf..."

A second wave of cum shot out of him and spilled into the bowl.

His consciousness blurred and he could only see hazy images. He tried to fight it... Tried to keep awake... He kept telling himself that he wanted to keep going with this ritual... He was learning so much about himself... He was learning that... Well... That there was something in Leo that he never knew about...

He wanted to know more...

Leo was so strong even in his blinding sexual haze... He wanted to get over that weakness... but more...

... he wanted Leo.

Warm lips pressed against his own and he blinked as Leo's slips glided over his muzzle, cleaning up the cum all over his face. Slowly, he kissed back, their noses pressed against one another. Leo pulled back and smiled loving at him.

Jacob thought he smiled back... but he wasn't sure... The sensation was odd... because there was a new emotion behind it... Love?

Slowly, he sat up, slightly dizzy from the orgasm. He noted there were flecks of semen on Leo's stomach and he guessed that his mate - he cringed slightly - had also orgasmed. He regretted having missed it. When he looked at the bowl however, he saw that it was much fuller than before... and the red concoction looked a little lighter...

"What now...?" he murmured softly and sleepily.

It occurred to him that he had actually fallen asleep for a brief instant there.

"Now..." Leo began seductively. He reached over and gripped the edges of Jacob's shirt, slowly pulling it over his head.

Jacob let him. He knew that if it were anyone else - even Taylor - he would have stopped them... but he trusted Leo...

Yeah... I think that's that emotion... Trust...

I trust him more than anyone else...

"It's a good start," Spectre said with a big smile. "Maybe one day, you'll be able to tell him 'I love you'."

One day... he agreed with a soft smile.

Leo discarded his shirt and then sat back with the bowl in his paws. "This is a mixture of some berries used in the ritual and our combined semen," the Tribal said softly. "Amongst my people, it is tradition that we take this and paint one another in our family's style..."

"I don't have a 'family style..." Jacob murmured softly.

"I know..." Leo sighed softly. "I suppose we can stop here seeing as to fulfil the ritual would be to truly profess our love and become -"

Jacob stopped him as he dipped two fingers into the mixture and then pressed them against Leo's lips. The Tribal's eyes went wide as he painted an eight pointed star on Leo's right shoulder and drew a trail onto Leo's arm. Then, he drew a circle around Leo's thick, plump pecs just above his heart. Just for fun, he painted a bit of Leo's cock - which was still partially erect - and sheath too.

He sat back and admired his work.

The body paint made from their cum seemed to just make Leo all the more sexy.

The Tribal dipped two fingers into the mixture and regarded him questioningly. "May I?"

"I'm yours," Jacob said, spread his arms wide.

He meant that in more ways than one.

Leo reached over and drew several figures across his body, particularly around his chest, shoulders and face. Some went on his legs as well. The gentle touch of his mate -shudder - against his chest was something he truly craved. Though it was hard to paint the thick, golden chest fur that he had on his chest that was shaped like a heart that led to a treasure trail into his crotchfur, Leo managed it.

Some part of him wondered if Leo's ancestors were looking down upon them and shaking their heads in disgust.

Then... when he looked at Leo as his mate - shudder again - finished... he realised he didn't care.

"Now what?" Jacob asked.

"Now..." Leo said gingerly, holding up the bowl. "We each drink some of the remaining mixture. But... this is the point of no return, Jacob. After this, we cannot stop... We will be truly mated... at least in my culture."

Jacob regarded the bowl... gripped it...

... and then gently pushed it down.

"Yeah... I know you love me, Leo... But I need to learn to love you too," he said gently. "Don't get me wrong... I'm getting there. If there's anyone I want to love... It's you. But I've just been without love or heck, even friends for so long that just a few days after meeting you isn't soon enough to form a true commitment."

He set the bowl down and patted Leo's paws. "Just give it some time, okay?"

Leo smiled and nodded at him with a gentle smile on his face. "I am always willing to wait for a perfect male such as yourself."

Chuckling, Jacob slinked over to sit beside Leo and hugged his boyfriend...

That seemed a more fitting word... Not mate yet... Boyfriend.

"I'm far from perfect... But you know what'd help make me perfect?"

Leo gave him a questioning look again. That classical look of canine confusion. "What?"

"Some of your seed."

"Whu -?"

Before Leo could even finish, Jacob tackled Leo to the ground, diving for his crotch and wrapping his muzzle around Leo's semi-erect cock. His boyfriend let out a startled yelp that quickly turned to a gasp as Jacob finally got to taste his lover's salty cock. Blood instantly pumped into Leo's cock and it hardened in his muzzle, pressing against his tongue and shoving itself down his throat.

He choked momentarily but held on stubbornly and curled his tongue around that thick, red cock, squeezing the salty juices out as much as he can. Leo's scent filled his nostrils; that beautiful, earthy scent mixed with the muskiness of sex and manly odour encouraged all his hormones to work in overdrive.

Closing his eyes, Jacob ran his paws all over Leo's body, scouring for every sweet, thick muscle, every strand of soft, brown fur and every trace of his lover's glorious semen. He found Leo's thighs and squeezed at them. He felt Leo shudder underneath him and he quickly pulled back from his boyfriend's cock and kissed the tip of that massive member. Leo instantly tensed, his thighs hardened to steel-like strength and his cock spurting a blast of precum into his face.

Leo tried to pull himself away but Jacob immediately rolled on top of his boyfriend, pinning him completely to the ground. He pushed all his weight down onto Leo's chest, gripping Leo's wide shoulders with his chest and keeping his lover practically immobilised with his weight and lust. Grinning maniacally, Jacob dove back into his mate's cock, bobbing up and down and relishing the taste of his lover's cock

He suddenly understood why Leo loved cum so much!

Even the small hints he got from Leo's first orgasm was something he could definitely get used to!

Something warm and slick brushed against his balls.

He gasped and pulled away as he felt Leo's lips close in around the tip of his cock. His entire body suddenly went weak and he pressed himself against Leo's cock, rubbing that glorious member against his muzzle. He felt Leo suckle on his cock, causing him to moan and his balls to start churning once again, ready for a second launch.

Leo's paws expertly massaged his ass, kneading the muscle and sending waves of sensations into him that drove him wild.

Jacob closed his lips around Leo's cock against, burying his muzzle into Leo's crotchfur and taking in all that earthy scent. He took the Tribal's massive balls in one of his paws, rolling them in his palm. Leo thrust into his throat, shooting precum directly down his throat. He gagged but didn't pull out completely. He pushed back to gain more ground.

Then Leo thrust again and he pulled back...

He pushed forward...

Leo trust...

...he pulled back...

... and pushed back down...

He quickly began working himself into a rhythm... Leo thrusting and him bobbing up and down while thrusting his own hips deep into Leo's throat. Their pace quickened with each passing second and he could feel and taste Leo's precum getting thicker and thicker.

A thick, bulbous knot began forming against the base of Leo's cock and he could feel his own knot start to form. Jacob pressed his paws against that large, vein-crossed bulb. He got a loud groan of pleasure from his boyfriend and he grinned to himself as he played with both Leo's balls and that knot.

He took a breath and his mind was filled with nothing more than the need for release.

He could feel Leo's need... and his own mirrored it...

Their pace quickened... thrusting into each other with rapidly increasing urgency.

He moaned, ferocious shudders running all over his body as he desperately tried to hold onto his orgasms. The feeling of near-release was like the suspenseful build up to the climax. He wanted the sensation to last forever... to have Leo's cock in his muzzle and to have his cock in Leo's muzzle... A perfect symbol of their relationship...

... equality...

Oh god... Leo...

Leo...

LEO!

Something snapped...

WHOOOSH!

Jacob's entire body tensed as his cock was jerked with violent spasms. What felt like ten orgasms in rapid succession blasted out of him as he howled in joy. His howl was drowned in a sea of cum as Leo orgasmed at that moment as well. That ten-inch cock shot a titanic load deep into Jacob's throat.

Jacob's consciousness hazed over as he greedily drunk Leo's semen... suckling on that cock and milking it for all it was worth. He was unused to socking cock and a lot of it spilled out from the sides of his muzzle but he didn't care as he drank as much of the glorious, warm, salty seed as he could. He barely noticed Leo expertly drinking his cum as he was focused on Leo's cock...

Leo's cock...

... his boyfriend's cock...

His heart inflated at that thought...

Boyfriend...

When he felt Leo's flood finally ebbing, he pulled away and -

Splat...

... got a face full of cum as Leo squeezed that last of his seed out.

Chuckling, he bent over and kissed Leo's beautiful member and slowly positioned himself so that he was nose to nose with his lover. Leo looked both dazed and in complete bliss. Their noses pressed against one another. Jacob slipped his muzzle against Leo's, the cum on his face sticking their cheeks together as his thick, golden chest fur rubbed against Leo's chest.

He angled his muzzle towards Leo's ears and smiled gently...

"Leo... I love you..."

He felt Leo tense...

... it was probably something shocking...

He just had a whole spiel a few minutes ago about how he wasn't ready to love... that he didn't know what love was...

... but... something just snapped in him...

... he loved Leo...

They would still take it slow... He loved Leo... and he didn't want to lose that to brash decisions and furious lovemaking... He didn't want to lose Leo like all the other people he loved and lost...

I'm going to protect Leo... I love him too much to let anything happen to him...

"Oh shit..."

...

What...? I don't think Leo even knows_what 'shit' means..._

Jacob looked at Leo who looked just as puzzled as he was.

At the same time, they realised that the other hadn't been the one to speak those two words...

They turned...

... and found Rex Nebula...

... leaning against a tree...

... twelve-inch bright pink cock in one paw...

...

... and a fresh pool of cum at his feet...