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Chapter V: So... Come here often?

The door opened with a faint hiss into Shark Tamer's lab. The genius extraordinaire of the Gene Stealers lifted his large conical nose into the air and sniffed. A soft chuckled escaped him, a grin crossing his face to show off his rows upon rows of sharp teeth.

"How did your visit go?"

Gnoll swaggered up to the scientist, running a paw through his fiery, red hair and mane. "Didn't get very far unfortunately. His receptionist wouldn't let me see him without an appointment. I set up one for Monday afternoon." Despite these words, Gnoll wiped the side of his muzzle of a distinct, white slime. He regarded it on his finger for a moment before licking it up.

"Then whose genetic material did you just lap up?"

"Not entirely sure. It might've been his bodyguard or maybe that guy I cornered at the back of the Museum of Education."

"What were you doing there?"

"It was on my way here. Plus, that bodyguard kicked me to the curb the moment he got off so I needed my rocks off. Sticking my cock in that interns muzzle was fun. I prefer a cock in my muzzle but when you got to get off, you got to get off."

Shark Tamer snickered and rifled through some files on the big display in front of him. "How are your powers coming along?"

"We talking the offensive powers or transformative?"

Shark grinned. "Why not start with the fun part?"

Gnoll let out a burst of hyena laughter. "As well as you can expect, doc. It's growing. I only need to laugh in a guy's ear a couple of times and they're mine. Fuck, just yesterday I blew off this guy at the Iron Arms Steel Factory. Didn't even have to wait a day until he started to transform."

That was what Shark Tamer wanted to hear. "Good, good. And their level of conscious control?"

"Pretty fan-fucking-tastic for the first guy. He was really in touch with his inner beast. But every 'generation' of victims just gets dumber and dumber, more like the first batch. I mean, the first guy he transformed was pretty much in control but still wild. The guys that he transformed were downright idiots just thinking with their dicks.

"There is a reason for that." Shark Tamer ran his webbed hands over the screen. "As with supers, your powers, your ability to transform others grows with experience and use. You cannot expect newly transformed men to immediately know how to transform another without them losing themselves to the beast inside. However, I am truly impressed that some semblance of control and experience was transferred. You used the technique I asked you to try?"

"Yeah, doc. Nice and slow. Little breaks in between to let it settle in."

"Good. Good. I will begin testing that technique out on our captured subjects and isolate the factor that grants control. With luck, we can replicate it and impart control fully without having to wait so long."

Gnoll laughed. "That'd be killer, doc." He leaned forward, his muzzle hovering over the holographic keypads. "So how's the second generation coming along?"

Shark clapped his hands together. "Your efforts have certainly made a contribution. Already, Spider Queen and Dragon Knight are taking your findings of sexual gratification through transformation to heart. They are creating intelligent, thinking thralls. Not just mindless clones but unique creatures that have their own personalities, their own goals but our basic programming embedded into their minds. As we have just discussed, varying lengths of transformation yields different levels of control."

Gnoll frowned. "I always thought that you guys knew this? Wasn't it like Spider Queen transformed people suddenly because she implanted her 'eggs' in her victims and just ordered them to burst whenever she wanted? Dragon Knight was the slowest. He just kind of lulled people with temptation. Wendigo is the middle guy."

Shark shook his head. "We never added the basic instinct of the need to mate or the desire for sexual release into the equation." He tapped the side of his head. "That carnal desire does not fully rest in the conscious mind but also partially in the subconscious. We are breaking the barriers between these two states of mind. A reason why the release for our... subjects becomes somewhat euphoric and a drug. They experience everything as their conscious and subconscious merge, instinct and thought become one."

The scientist leaned back in his seat, only able to do so lightly due to his fin. "With the subconscious and the conscious mind merged, a subject is able to use their body's full potential. Heightened speed and senses, supernatural strength, accelerated healing and many more."

"Baseline super."

Shark grinned. "Yes. Baseline super."

"Doesn't answer my question on the second gen, doc."

Again, Shark Tamer chuckled. "I am still in the process of analysing the data. I did note that your latest exploit, that Lewis Sanchez was on the verge of transcendence. He was already gaining incredibly control over his body. If we can identify, isolate and replicate the process, then we can declare the second generation ready."

Gnoll snickered. "Are there plans for a third and fourth?"

"Of course!" Shark laughed. "The third merely puts us on par with our enemies. What we need is to surpass them!"

"An army of our guys would be able to take them all."

Shark waved a finger at him. "Ah-ha. Where we may have the numbers they will have the experience. That is something we simply cannot discount and something that will define the third generation from the fourth." He turned back towards his screens. "Besides, we have the matter of these Outsiders that keep interfering with our operations. Did you get a look at them on your last outing?"

Gnoll frowned and shook his head. "No. My bloody kids were in the way. You sure we can't mind control them like you guys were originally doing?"

"My dear boy, no. Chimera's vision explicitly dictates that everyone retain their individuality. It took us time to get to this stage but we still have a long way to go." Shark Tamer lifted tablet and handed it to Gnoll. "On your next escapade, try this technique. I want you start making _lieutenants_not just sergeants and powerful grunts."

Gnoll raised an eyebrow as he read the screen before letting out another laugh. "I like it."

"Glad you approve. I have listed another target for you by the way."

The hyena sifted through the pages and grinned. "Aww doc, you shouldn't have."

"We are family, Gnoll. I take care of my family."

*****

Brrrrring! Brrrrring!

Caleb cracked his eyes open. He flicked his ears back when his alarm clock went off again. He reached over his shoulder and tore it clean out of its socket and threw it across the room. It collided with his closet door, the resulting crash making Lance snort and stir. Caleb wrapped his arm around his brother, nuzzling Lance's exposed neck tenderly.

"It's a Saturday," he murmured softly.

Lance mumbled something before shuffling his tight, bubble butt back into Caleb's groin. It was still sticky from last night's escapades. Caleb remembered it all too well. The pizza Lance had brought lay forgotten on the floor amidst his football uniform and Lance's clothes. There was five minutes of passionate kissing, a few half-assed questions and followed by a full-ass pounding. There was a bit more foreplay before then but Caleb didn't really remember it.

What he did remember was entering his brother's virgin ass, feeling so good about it and letting his instincts fully take over. When the night was over and they had both spilled their seed, they collapsed into bed, spooning against one another with Caleb's knot just pushing against Lance's ass. He had been sure last night not to tie with his brother.

This morning, though... he wondered if the night of passionate lovemaking had made things better or worse. He had sought some sort of... achievement from the previous night and did making love to his brother count? Hadn't he sought break things off with Lance? Now had he just sealed the deal? What of his feelings for Lars?

"Mmmmm..." Lance hummed softly, turning his head slightly and licking Caleb's nose. "I love you, bro."

Caleb smiled and it felt genuine. "Love you too, Lance." It was not a lie. He loved his brother. In that way though... he was still unsure just as he was unsure about his feelings towards Lars. But he had Lance. He didn't have Lars.

And to him... having his brother was better than having nothing at all.

Lance blinked a couple of times. "What time is it...?"

Caleb frowned. "I set my clock for seven."

"Shit!"

Lance was suddenly bolting out of the bed, leaping over Caleb with surprising nimbleness for his mass. "Leon will be up soon... Um... Where are my clothes!?" He snatched them from the floor. "I'm going to take a shower. Pretend I got up before him. You... Uh... You make sure no one smells you or sees you before I'm done. I'll knock and tell you it's clear."

Caleb realised that his relationship with his brother was still fairly taboo. His family would skin them both alive if they found out. He nodded numbly. Lance crossed the distance to the door then froze. The big brother then turned again and pressing his muzzle right into Caleb's. The younger brother moaned softly as he opened his muzzle, drawing Lance's tongue into his muzzle. Lance pulled away before they got too serious.

"I'll be back, okay?" Lance said, winking at him.

Caleb grinned. "Looking forward to it."

Then Lance was gone, sneaking off into the bathroom. Caleb sighed and leaned back into his bed, crossing his arms behind his head and sighing softly. Last night had been amazing. Having Lance's amazing, muscular body beneath him, hugging his brother after they had both cum and the feeling of love that had passed between them... It was nothing he could have described.

Clink.

He straightened, flicking his ears towards his window. As he turned, he saw Mary in her room next door. She was pulling up what looked like a tomato soup can attached to a string. Frowning, Caleb stood up, opened his window and watched as Mary dragged the makeshift telephone back up the side of her house and threw it again towards him.

This time, he caught it and pressed it to his ear.

"Mary...?"

"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" she cried. "I thought you were in love with Lars!?"

Caleb frowned. "I said I was falling in love with Lars. I love my brother. And while we're talking, what's with the string and cans?"

"I could hear your thoughts all last night before you did the nasty with Lance! I've been trying to call you but you never picked up! I tried calling you again this morning but once again, you were thinking with your cock and not your head!"

Caleb glanced into his room. His phone lay buried beneath his football uniform, muffled and forgotten.

"Well... It's none of your business!"

"Caleb -"

He dropped the can and slammed his window shut, shutting the blinds to seal the end of the conversation. He meant every word he had said. Lance was a great guy... well, recently. The more Caleb thought about it, the more hesitation he saw in his older brother's actions and, in a way, he appreciated that more than if Lance actually had stopped Leon. As he sat down on his sweaty, sticky bed, he found himself longing for Lance's embrace. No sex, just to hold him lovingly. That was something he had.

Sighing, he went over to where his phone lay. There were dozens of text messages and missed calls from Mary. Most of them ran along the lines of 'big mistake' and 'one night stand' or 'bad night'. He could see how she would think that he was just having a bad night and needed some comforting. It would've been so easy to just tell Lance that he was feeling miserable, needed to have someone next to him and that it meant nothing. He was sure Lance hadn't expected it either judging by his reaction last night.

But... while he was inside his brother last night... it felt more than just a one night stand.

As he rifled through the messages, he came across some from Lars. He sighed softly at the concern in them and shook his head. His decision was made. Even if it wasn't what he had set himself on earlier yesterday, it was the one he was on now and going back on it would just make things infinitely more complicated.

Then there was a message from someone he tagged as 'Alex'.

"Oh! Alex!" he exclaimed.

The message read, 'Hey, sorry about the coach's decision not to put you in the second half of the game. Understand if you're not up for the Museum tomorrow. Reschedule?'

He quickly typed a reply. 'Yeah. Sorry. How's Sunday for you? Same time?'

He sent the message and slumped back into his bed. The second surprise of the day came when his phone jostled. Alex had already sent a message back. Why was he up so early on a Saturday?

'Sounds good. See you there! Good game BTW. When you were on the field, that is, Halestorm.'

He smiled at that. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad day after all. Lance knocked twice on his door before poking his head in and telling him it was his turn. Caleb nodded, grabbing some clothes and strode into the bathroom. Abby poked her head out of her bedroom to do whatever it is she did before taking her shower and spying him nude, she screamed and dove back into her room.

"God Caleb! You're such a dork!"

"Grow up, Abby!" he yelled back, entering the bathroom and slamming it shut. Nudity amongst furs wasn't so taboo than it was with humans. It was perfectly acceptable especially during summer for furs to walk around naked if a heatwave hit them. There were people who were squeamish but thanks to progressive laws, it was perfectly allowed. When human rights activists came up to the courts, claiming it was racist, the court just came back with the reply 'if you want, _you_can walk around naked then it wouldn't be racist.' Funny thing was, that ruling was handed down by a human judge.

Still, people were still squeamish. Abby especially since she grew up around three boys.

Caleb took his shower, careful to clean off the droplets of dried cum that had stuck to his belly fur. He was glad to have white belly fur as it hid the evidence of the previous night's escapades very well. After some shampoo and conditioner, he went into the fur dryer, brushed himself down and was feeling much better. His muscles were still sore from the previous night and his ribs still hurt. His bandages had come off during his passionate love making with Lance and though he was feeling it now, he was still glad he had done it. A hot shower helped as well.

He returned to his room, fully dressed and wondering what he should do for the rest of the day. With his appointment with Alex dismissed, Mary right next door and the entire family in the house, he had no idea what he should do. Staying in his room, secretly making love to Lance sounded _incredibly_risky and he was sure Lance was smarter than that. Maybe they could both go out at separate times and meet up secretly somewhere else?

His answer came when he plucked his phone for ideas and noticed another message sandwiched between Mary's flood of pleas for him to stop making sweet, sweet love to his brother.

It was from Bren.

'Elliot wants to talk. 9 AM tomorrow. It's urgent.'

Uh-oh.

It looked like his calendar was just occupied. He headed downstairs -

"Claws!"

"Sorry mom!" he cried, bolting down to the garage. "I'm in a rush."

Lance and his father poked their heads out of the kitchen in time for him to reach the garage door.

"Cale? Where are you going?" Lance asked.

"Lars called. Sounds bummed about yesterday. Going to be a good boyfriend." He realised he had just lied to his father and his current love interest about a boyfriend. The lie was getting extremely convoluted. Maybe he should pull Lance into the fray like Mary had. Well... maybe after he had fucked the guy three or four more times.

He jumped onto Ballistic and rode out onto the street as his mother was shouting to him about breakfast. Halfway down the street, he was joined by Mary in her convertible.

"That was some really horrible imagery there. You're doing that on purpose," she accused over his helmet communicator

"You deserve it for spying on my thoughts all day," he answered with a smirk.

"Yes. You just worried your lover-slash-brother. Your parents are getting suspicious and what are you thinking!? Lars and Ben have tactical value. Lance doesn't! Not when he can transform into a sex-crazed hyena by listening to those nut jobs laugh!"

"Mary..." he said, rolling his eyes.

She fell silent for a good minute. Then she sighed. "You sneaky bastard."

"You focus all on what's in the head, you know," he laughed. "You focus all your attention on the juicy stuff that you forget it's the little things that count!"

From his side mirrors, he could see her shake her head. "Where did you invite him to brunch while I was busy being disgusted by the horrible mental imagery you were sending my way? You're getting really good at multitasking."

"One paw on my phone and my head sending incredibly graphic scenes of hot incestuous sex your way. And if you must know, some place casual. Terry's Diner."

"A good place to start your unholy relationship."

"You love it. I bet you got off pretending you were the poor, innocent princess trapped in her room while listening to the two, hot, muscular knights come to rescue her who were once rivals dismiss their noble quest to making passionate love to one another, tearing off their armour and pressing their throbbing cocks against -"

"Can I consider it scary that you know me so well and yet aren't an empath?"

They both laughed softly at that, cementing their friendship even more.

"I'll support you whatever choice you make, Caleb. I still think you're going to open up hell with this choice but what's done is done. To be perfectly honest, I think you're just trying to convince yourself this is the right thing to do because you've invested in it. I know you. You hate backing down on things because it complicates things. Just yesterday, you were convinced you were in love with Lars because it would be easier to invest in the lie and make it truth than go on where the charade.

"Really, I don't know if you really want this or are just fooling yourself. I can just see what you feel and Caleb...?"

"Yeah?" he responded

"You are one of the most honest people I know. You lie here and there but where it counts, you're honest. And when you tell yourself you're in love, it's what you truly believe." She paused. "I have your back no matter what you choose. Naturally, expect to be teased, tormented and tortured about this for the next decade or so."

"I wouldn't expect anything less."

They rode into the highly established section of West California Island, the eastern front and where the majority of the city had been built over the decades. Near the central business district, far enough to still be noticeable but not so out in the busy areas of the city to constantly have bystanders crossing its front was the FBI's agency. They both rode past it and into a parking lot two blocks away. There, they took their assigned parking spaces on the second floor and headed straight to the stairs.

Having travelled the path so many times before, they headed down the stairs to the very bottom floor where they entered a supply closet filled with brooms, cleaning supplies and some musty rags. Caleb squeezed through it all and reached behind a bottle of detergent to press a secret panel. The rear wall shuddered and then began to slide aside, taking with it the static cleaning supplies that were glued to the shelves. Beyond, a well-lit tunnel led them directly to the FBI's agency building.

It was a long walk but it would seem so much longer to those trying to invade the facility without proper authorisation. Two blocks worth of traps and security measures would be an instant death trap to all who wasn't a super.

Once they reached the end of the tunnel, Caleb pressed a paw against a paw-print scanner. It beeped and another panel sprang open next to it, holding out a swab. He sighed heavily and plucked it off the offered metal claw.

"This is so demeaning..." he muttered.

"Five types of scanners," Mary answered with a shrug. "Glad I didn't get the scent swab this time around."

As an added security measure, the door into the Facility required one of five types of identification; either a retinal scan, a hair sample, a blood sample, voice recognition or a scent swab. It was randomised every time so intruders would be left guessing which one they would have to match. For humans like Mary, it was always difficult to get a scent swab especially if she was wearing perfume. For furs, it was easier but it involved Caleb removing his pants and gently swiping the swab just beneath his tail.

One done, he handed the swab back to the mechanical claw.

The words 'Caleb Hale' flashed across the screen and he stepped aside for Mary to do her test. She had to give a blood sample. The doors swung open for them a moment later and they stepped into the vast expanse of the Facility.

As the only operating Outsiders in the West California Island area, they were given a relatively small Facility. The atrium was simple, showing the emblem of the FBI on the floor of the circular room with three small tunnels leading into three different sections. One led to what was known as the Armoury where Caleb's weapons were being stored. Another led to a training facility with a virtual reality simulator and the third was just for Elliot.

Bren emerged from Elliot's room, looking serious as ever. "Good. You're both here. Come on. Elliot has news."

News. Not 'good news' or 'bad news'. Just news.

Caleb followed their handler down the left most chamber. Short tunnel led them into an extremely broad, cluttered square room filled to the ceiling with the latest in quantum computers. Pillars of shimmering light with dancing numbers and letters lined the walls with consoles littered with packets of junk food, half-drunk cans of soda, porn magazines and a few action figures lay strewn about. The floor had a pile of Legos made to look like some fantastic representation of a mystical realm and then a little further down, there was what looked like a game board for some super-realistic DnD match. Dozens of trading cards lay strewn about as well.

At the far end of the room, sitting in front of the biggest monitor of them all, tapping his pudgy, cheesy fingers on the keyboard was Elliot Tanner, self-proclaimed supergenius. The orca spun around in his swivel chair, rubbing his fingers over his exposed belly that stuck out from underneath his tight, black shirt with the words 'I Fail at Life. Good thing I have 2 More' written over his manboobs.

"Well if it isn't the muscle head and Martial Arts Barbie!" the orca exclaimed, his brown eyes shining with mirth. "How'd the football game go yesterday, muscles?"

Caleb growled, baring his fangs. Elliot was great when it came to analysing and predicting enemy tactics but he was a jackass. He was smart and he knew it. He was the 'tutor' that helped both Mary and Caleb catch up with their school work but was so arrogant about it the two just worked extra hard at school to avoid having to take any of his sessions. The fact that he didn't wear any pants and his massive, foot-long flaccid cock constantly hung out between his pudgy legs only added to the disgust of the two.

"Leave him alone, Elliot," Mary warned. "Bren said you had something for us?"

"Hang on, Barbie. I want to keep teasing Ken." He grinned broadly at Caleb. "I heard you got walloped by those huge-cocked hyenas. How's it feel having such a puny dick compared to those fuckers?" For emphasis, he ran a paw down his own cock.

Caleb's left eye twitched and he lifted a paw. Elliot didn't flinch. "I wonder... what would these quantum computers turn into if I used my powers on them."

That was when the orca froze. "You wouldn't dare! My baby is _way_above your pay grade!"

"You forget, asshole. I'm indispensable. I have unique powers. These things and all the porn you've got stashed in them can be replaced."

"Fine! Fine!" Elliot snarled, spinning back around. Caleb winced when he heard the orca's dick thwap against those fat legs. "Leave them alone. They never hurt anyone." He sighed heavily and beckoned the three over. "I've been intercepting the little spy bots that the Gene Stealers have been using to spy on you guys and, much to my dismay, they don't have a single base of operations. They've got _dozens_across the city alone and signals are even going out as far as New York!"

"That's the other side of the country..." Mary murmured.

"Look on the brains on Barbie. You're more than boobs after all." Elliot tapped away at his keyboard, revealing a map of the world. "Thing is, there are signals being sent out every month or so to these four other locations." From the map, four different lines stretched out from West California. One landed on the east coast of Australia, another in the middle of the UK, a third somewhere on the southern tip of Africa and the fourth was in the middle of the ocean. "I've jammed them all, trying to keep them blind but I have _no_idea where they're going to. I know the general area and the city but the location just keeps moving."

"Where?" Bren asked.

"Sydney Australia," Elliot listed. "London UK, Johannesburg South Africa and... somewhere in the middle of the Pacific Ocean almost near the Marianas Trench."

Bren let out a soft, thoughtful noise. "What else?"

Elliot began typing again. "Lately as in within this week and when those hyenas started showing up, the number of signals to West California have increased. I've found that a lot of them are falling within this general area." The image on the screen shifted to show an immense, skyscraper. The letters 'RIC' were emblazoned on the side in red.

"That's the Reacher Investing Corporation building," Mary said. "They're one of the biggest investing companies in West California. I heard they've expanding to the rest of the US and started going overseas too."

Elliot wagged his finger at her. "More. Did you know that Ambiance Logistics Incorporated was acquired by RIC a few months ago?"

"So?" Caleb asked.

The orca let out a disgusted grunt. "All muscle and no brains. Do you even read the news?"

"Do you? All I see around here is porn."

"Straight porn. I heard that wasn't your thing."

Caleb stepped forward, fangs bared but Mary pressed a hand against his chest and pushed him back.

"Ambiance Logistics Incorporated owns the Iron Arms Steel Factory," she said. "That's the factory we saved last night."

"I wouldn't say 'saved'," Elliot said turning back to his screen. "But yeah, Barbie is right. Iron Arms was also responsible for suppling materials to the baseball stadium that you guys 'saved'. Seeing a connection yet?"

Caleb scowled. "You think they're targeting RIC?"

"It's still a theory. They seem to be working their way up the ranks. If they strike at Ambiance then we'll know for sure but right now, it's conjecture. But I thought you'd be all interested in this." He hit a button on his keyboard. The screen displayed a brain. "I took Barbie's 'feelings' about the hyenas and did some research. It turns out that there's a key difference between you Outsiders and Supers."

A part of the brain was highlighted. "Outsiders have these powers that defy logic. Supers have them as well but supers have greater strength, speed, endurance, regeneration, enhanced sense and whatever else as a baseline. Outsiders don't. Some researchers have speculated that it's because supers have the rest of their brain unlocked, their subconscious." A large majority of the brain was highlighted next. "This lets them maximise every part of their body, they can get the most out of the food they eat, see things we can't see, remember things others would forget, develop muscles and strength more than usual and basically be more badass than you rejects."

Another growl from Caleb but Elliot ignored it.

"Those hyenas though, it looked like they had this very same baseline or were at least on the way to developing them. Especially that big guy, Sachez. When Barbie described what she sensed with her powers in them, I got suspicious." Elliot tapped his console thoughtfully. "They weren't completely supers. No powers. The baseline abilities are also below what most supers have. They're slower, regenerate a little slower and in terms of muscle mass versus strength, from what I've observed, they're also slightly weaker.

"The thing is, we've seen people with powers but not the baseline super stuff, that's Outsiders. But not the other way around. We've never had people with baseline supers but no powers." Elliot leaned back in his seat, staring at the screen thoughtfully. "So that begs the question... is someone trying to make supers?"

"The Gene Stealers?" Caleb asked.

"Maybe." Elliot frowned at the console again. "It's not their usual MO. These guys are fully aware and not just extensions of the other Gene Stealer's will in a different body. Plus, we know of five Gene Stealers. It's possible that Chimera is a hyena but somehow, I doubt it." He leaned in his chair again, drumming his fingers against his forearm. "I still don't know a lot about these hyenas. Sanchez isn't forthcoming with any information and just keeps laughing, trying to turn anyone that will hear his voice. The others from the first attack are little more than animals but in their moments of lucidity I have been able to get information about a hyena that turned the first guy, Brodie Mancini."

Caleb frowned and flicked his ears towards the orca. "Wait... You talked to these guys and didn't get turned? How?"

"They're being kept in Bal-Mordain, dumbass," Elliot said, rolling his eyes and mentioning the big island prison not far from the coast of West California Island.

Like the main island, it was an artificial landmass and only accessible via heavy secured underwater tunnel leading from a similarly secured port on the southern face of the island. It named after Hector Bal and Patricia Mordain, two supervillains turned good guys and spearheaded the capture of many notorious criminals. Its sheer walls and high-end security systems kept some of the west coast's most powerful villains in suspended animation. The more minor criminals were just imprisoned.

"I know that," Caleb snarled. "But why aren't you sprouting fur, laughing at stupid shit and losing all that fat that keeps you pinned to that goddamn chair?"

Elliot shot him a foul stare. "Because, muscles, I have this." He held up what looked like a pair of noise cancelling headphones with antennae stretching out of each of the cups. "Something I cooked up. It nullifies the transformative signals the hyenas' laughs give off. You can still hear them but you won't transform."

"How will we know it works if we can still hear them laugh?"

"You won't. You're an Outsider. Your powers nullify theirs. For average guys like me, we won't know until we grow to eight feet tall, sprout grotesque muscles and start fucking instead of living in a nice, virtual world where I can go out with Lindsey Jolie without opposition." He waved the headphones absently through the air. "I've already given these to the guards at Bal-Mordain."

Caleb was not about to give Elliot any kudos so he remained silent despite being impressed.

"Elliot is working on a less personalised device that will allow us to nullify the effects of the noise in a large area," Bren said. "In the meantime, for any attacks, make sure there are as few citizens around as possible. We don't want more of them and we certainly don't want an epidemic."

Mary had a thoughtful frown on her face. "I've noticed that all of these hyenas are male... Why aren't there any females?"

"There are," answered Elliot. "You just haven't seen them. Guards in Bal-Mordain were transformed before I gave them these headphones. Women were infected. They had the sense of mind to lock themselves up before it fully took over." He stuck out his tongue and shook his head. "Female hyenas are gross. They have dicks."

"They do...?" Caleb asked, puzzled.

"It's technically called a 'pseudo-penis'," Bren answered. "It -"

"I don't want to know!"

Elliot flashed him a sinister grin. "Aww, what's wrong muscles? I thought you liked cock."

He growled and stepped forward threateningly. "By the time I'm done with you, you'll wish you had one!"

Bren stepped in between them, holding up his paws. "That's enough, you two." He turned to Elliot first. "Stop antagonising Caleb. You have work to do." Then he turned to the wolf. "And you, cool it. I know you're pissed about yesterday but you did the right thing. We prevented more people from turning into those monsters."

"I guess..." Caleb muttered, shuffling from one foot to the other.

"Now that that is settled..." The tiger turned to Mary. "I need a full report on what you sensed from those hyenas. It may be hard to describe, but I need you to try."

Caleb raised a paw. "What about me?"

"You're free for the day. I'll call you if something comes up."

Mixed feeling churned in his chest. Part of him felt a little useless as Elliot worked away on his device and Mary gave her report leaving him with nothing to contribute. However, at the same time, he effectively given a free pass to meet up with Lance. That thought alone eased any discomfort he may have had.

Tail wagging, he bid farewell to the others, headed back out of the Facility, jumped on Ballistic and was zooming back to his suburb near the small shopping centre that he had frequented in his preteen years. Shopping malls much bigger than the Westrise Shopping Centre littered West California Island but it was the one closest to where he lived and where his mother constantly shopped for groceries and supplies. It was also where he hung out after school before he hit high school. He and Mary used to have 'slurpie competitions' in the food court - first one to give in to a brain freeze lost. Amongst the shops was Terry's Diner, a super-retro themed family diner taking designs from the 1960's where milkshakes were served in abundance.

He parked Ballistic and saw the family van sitting in the parking lot of the Diner. Lance was already sitting in a booth when he entered. Both their tails were wagging by the time he sat down opposite to his brother.

"I was starting to think you weren't coming," Lance admitted.

"Stand up a handsome guy like you?" Caleb responded, idly picking up the menu. "Never."

He wasn't really reading the menu. He still knew it off by heart. From the corner of his eye, he saw Lance smile wistfully.

"So... Come here often?"

"It's were I take first dates."

Lance balked. "Th - This is a date? I - I mean, out in the open? In broad daylight? Cale -"

"Dude," Caleb laughed softly. "Chill. It's not a date."

His older brother sighed softly and gave him a wry smile. "Oh... Okay. Good. I guess... I wasn't exactly sure how we were going to go about this... I mean, I don't think there are very many references we can look into." He rubbed the back of his head nervously, a light blush touching his cheeks and showing through the white on his cheek ruffs.

"How about we just go with it?" Caleb asked. "We're still getting to know each other all over again. So why don't we just play it cool and take it easy?"

Lance laughed softly and set down his menu. "I got to say, you're taking this really well. I thought you'd be freaking out about this sort of thing."

"To be honest? The whole of last week I have been freaking out about it. I hate it when things get complex and I can barely think when things get complicated. But this..." He pointed between himself and Lance. "This is nice and simple."

"I really wouldn't say 'simple'."

He shrugged absently. "A lot simpler than hiding the fact that I'm gay, wondering whether or not to go through with this and -" He stopped himself before adding 'being a secret agent'. "And other junk."

"You mean like pretending you're Lars' boyfriend while really with me?"

"Surprisingly, yes." He smiled and Lance smiled back. "So, whatcha want for brunch? My treat."

"I'm not going to be the girl of this relationship, am I?"

"You were a bottom last night."

Lance swiped at him and he ducked, making them both laugh. They both placed their orders. Being wolves, they both ordered two mains. For Caleb, it was the lean beef burger with a side of fries and the fish and chips. Lance got a steak with mashed potatoes and a meaty burrito with spicy curly fries. To drink...

"I'll have the chocolate milkshake," the said in unison. They exchanged glances, smirked at one another and let the waitress dart away for their order.

"Out of curiosity, Cale," Lance said, "how much does your job pay? In the past few months, you can afford motorcycle lessons and buy a custom motorcycle."

"Enough," he responded. "I'm still living under mom's roof so it's basically free rent, right?" He tilted his head to the side. "What about you? How's your job going?"

Lance worked as a stacker for a local warehouse while Leon worked at the gym. Neither job paid particularly well especially when coupled with their freshman college studies. It did great for their bodies though.

"Terrible," Lance admitted. "I mean, I don't mind manual labour but I _seriously_have to get up at unholy hours of the morning just to get to that place. I have to wake mom and dad to give me a ride and then there's school afterwards..." He shook his head. "I need another job."

Caleb wondered if there were any openings in the FBI but then Lance would start asking how he could get such high connections. "I could always drive you."

"I don't think Ballistic can carry both of us."

"I carried Lars once and she's pretty damn durable. Besides, I think I prefer you waking me up than my alarm clock."

Lance snickered and was about to say something when someone else interrupted them.

"Cale!? Lance!?"

They both turned as a big Doberman came over to them, holding a milkshake of his own, strawberry from the smell of it.

"Lars!?" Caleb exclaimed, his fur fluffing out. "Wh - What are you doing here!?"

Lars finished his noisy sip before answering. "It's a Saturday. Can't a guy go out and get a drink?"

"Of strawberry milkshake?" Lance asked, raising an eyebrow. "Don't jocks these days sneak beer when they can? You're big, you can probably pass off as twenty-one. I know I did."

Caleb made a sour face. "Lars isn't allowed to get drunk. Not after last time." He realised his mistake in opening that conversation as Lars sat right down beside him and gave him a light punch.

"What happened last time?" Lance asked, a smile evolving on his muzzle.

"I got wasted," came the Doberman's dismissive reply. "What are you guys doing here?"

Realising that this topic could potentially drive off his teammate - and former crush - Caleb said, "You're not getting away that easily, bud." He turned to Lance, a big grin on his face. "Lars has four stages of wasted. The first is 'Professor Lars'."

Caleb retold the event when, after a few light beers, Lars began uttering philosophical junk about superheroes, the nature of the world and general life only to be interrupted by occasional hiccups.

"You serious?" Lance asked.

"He's exaggerating," said Lars, his ears folded back.

Caleb held his thumb and forefinger an inch apart. "Just a little. But then there's 'Lesbian Lars'."

The Doberman's eyes widened and he seized the wolf's arm tightly. "We said we'd never talk about that again!"

"Then leave," Caleb hissed softly. He saw the challenging stare in Lars' eyes and detected a spark of something there that led him to immediately suspect a certain telepathic girl had something to do with the Doberman's presence. He really should've known better to divulge his date plans to Mary.

"What's Lesbian Lars?" Lance asked.

Caleb turned back to his brother. "It's when he finds a bra or anything close to resembling a bra, stuffs it to make it look like boobs and then tries to make out with the nearest girl while pretending to be a girl."

Lars growled loudly. "Har-har. Fun times were had by all. Now why don't we -"

"What's the third and fourth?" Lance asked, laughing heartily.

Caleb just grinned, eyeing Lars to watch for the Doberman's departure. "Super Lars and then Comrade Lars."

Lance folded his arms securely, sealing the Doberman's fate. "Oh I _got_to hear this."

Then Lars began to speak. "As far as I can remember, I get all superhero at one point, wrapped a blanket around my neck and ran around the place pretending I'm Superman. Can we please leave it at that?"

He was on the verge of leaving.

"No," said, Caleb. "Tell him about your last stage, comrade."

"Hell no."

"Fine. I'll show him." Caleb took out his phone just as Lars' eyes boggled.

"You said you deleted that!"

"From my phone but memory discs aren't phones." Caleb flicked to the video named 'Comrade Lars'. Lars tried to sweep it from him but he tossed it quickly to Lance.

'Lars, put on your pants!' came a cry from the phone.

'Pants are for the weak, comrades!'

Lance's eyes boggled and his jaw dropped, splitting into a broad grin. Caleb had seen that video multiple times. As tempting as it was to upload it into the internet, he valued Lars' friendship too much. Ultimately, that was something he didn't want to risk even if it was a profession of a high school crush.

'What the hell man! At least use a fork!'

'Cutlery is for the capitalist dogs!'

A string of pseudo-Russian sayings followed and then loud, munching noises.

"Holy crap!" Lance laughed. "You ate that whole frickin' chicken!"

"It was boneless..." Lars murmured, blushing deeply beneath his fur. "I think..." He flashed an angry look at Caleb. "You're going to pay for this."

Before Caleb could respond, another voice interrupted them.

"Lars? Caleb?" Ben approached, holding his own milkshake. He noticed Lance, eyebrows rising. "Lance?"

Lance grinned and held up Caleb's phone. "Hey Ben. You seen this?"

Ben's features brightened from his confusion. "Oh yeah! Comrade Lars! That was a fun weekend. Have you seen Professor Lars and Lesbian Lars?"

"There are videos?"

"It the thirty-first century. Of course there's videos."

Lars let out a wail of despair and slammed his forehead into the table. The sounds of him making a horrible female impression filled the booth amidst the laughter of the other three young men.

"Where'd he get the monocle!?" Lance laughed.

"He broke a beer bottle and pretended it was a monocle," Ben giggled.

As they played the video of Lars pretending to be super intelligent on Ben's phone, Caleb pulled back his own device and quickly sent off a text.

'You're enjoying this, aren't you?'

Strangely, Mary responded with, 'What? Caleb, I'm several kilometres away. Whatever it is you're doing, I can't enjoy it.'

He turned to Ben and Lars and frowned. The fact that they had been in the same Diner, drinking milkshakes and just happened to come in at relatively the same time made him wonder.

'So you had nothing to do with getting Lars and Ben to intercept me and Lance?'

Mary took a moment to respond, probably hurrying to her car so that she could get to the Diner as quick as possible to read their thoughts and laugh. 'No but stay put. Have you pulled out Super Lars yet? Did you show Lance that video of Lars with his underwear over his pants?'

Caleb shook his head and tucked his phone away. Lars was whimpering louder when the waitress came over with their food. Ben showed her Lesbian Lars and she laughed so hard she spat out her chewing gum and it landed dangerously close to Lance's steak. She still said she'd get a new one but couldn't stop sniggering as she walked away, trying to keep her composure.

Sensing his friend's distress, Caleb wrapped an arm around Lars' shoulder and patted it absently.

"I hate you so much right now," Lars muttered.

"You give me as much shit when I do something stupid." He punched the Doberman lightly. "It's what makes us such good friends."

He got no response but a faint smile.

They were friends.

And just friends.

*****

The club was called 'Goodnight Moon' and instead of following the cliché of showing a wolf howling or a full moon as a sign, it showed two very round buttocks that were also conveniently shaped like two male symbols. It wasn't the gay club in West California but it was one frequented by a particular patron.

Plus it had its own version of 'open mic night'.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen!" shouted the gruff announcer. "Now for our weekly open mic night, please welcome to the stage: Gnoll!"

The hyena smirked as he stepped onto the stage to the yowls, howls and roars of approval from the horny patrons. The music started and he teased them all, flexing his impressive arms for them all to see. With one big paw, he gripped the silver dance pole positioned at the centre of the stage and shook his ass, swinging his tail from side to side. That really got the crowd going. Red, white and blue bills were thrown at him almost making it look like he was doing a strip tease in the middle of an Independence Day parade.

He grinned at that and fought down the urge to laugh. As hot as it would be to turn each and every guy in this establishment into a horny, sexy hyena, he wouldn't be able to control them all. They'd be just like the first batch - the construction workers - and they were impossible to reign in. Besides, his target couldn't be reduced to just a mindless, bucking crazy hyena. He needed him to be sane.

Gnoll spun back around to face the crowd and ripped off the fishnet shirt he wore, tossing it to the crowd where a group of furs tore at it, some even with their teeth. He flexed his muscles for them again, doing a double bicep curl and making a show of bouncing his firm, lean pecs. That drove people wild and he saw more than a few of the naked furs sprout an erection.

He had them all.

It would be so easy to turn them.

But he didn't. If he turned them, he'd bring the Elemental Alliance down upon them and he couldn't risk that. The Gene Stealers had to work in secret because while their powers were great, their armies were weak.

With a triumphant cry, he tore his tight, black short right off his muscular hips. The bright red jockstrap beneath bounced freely with his semi-erect cock. The music increased in tempo as he swung the discarded piece of clothing over his head like a cowboy getting ready to throw his lasso. More bills were thrown his way and there was even one brave and very horny rabbit that jumped on the stage. Gnoll leaned down, wrapped his torn pants around the rabbit's muzzle, and hidden from the view of the others, he gave the guy a long, sloppy kiss. The guy dove right into the contact. Gnoll gave him ten seconds of heaven before pulling away, leaving the guy with a torn pair of pants hanging from his muzzle.

Gnoll pressed a bare paw against the guy's forehead and gently pushing him back into the crowd. Dozens of other guys caught him and one stole the shorts. Grinning, Gnoll pressed himself against the dance pole, slipping his legs around it and making sure his bulge was very visible to everyone as he slid up and down its length. He pressed his long tongue against the silver length, sliding back up with a slow, lusty look out into the crowd.

Just to finish off his little show, he leapt up onto the pole, suspended a foot off the ground. He hung there just by his legs, twisting himself until he was perfectly parallel to the ground and flexing his strong, upper body muscles. A shower of glitter exploded from hidden compartments on the stage, clinging to the curves of his perfectly cut abs and accentuating them even more. He reached over to the pole, gripping it tightly with his paws. With uncanny flexibility, he uncurled his legs from the pole and swung himself around it, using just the strength in his arms. Then, he curled his legs backwards, touching his forehead with his toes all while still suspended in midair by the pole alone.

The howls of the crowd grew to near orgasm and he was sure several of the guys just creamed themselves from the display. He lowered himself from the pole as the music ended, bowing to crowd and striding down side ramp with tail wagging. Dozens of guys came swarming in around him. A few tried to hit him up but he just shook his head and indicated that he was tired. More than a few slipped bills into his jockstrap and one - a coyote - stepped in front of him, a hundred dollars in his muzzle and eyebrows waggling. Gnoll smirked and gave the guy's crotch a squeeze just for being so bold but he didn't take the bills.

He sat down in an empty booth, wiped his brow and waited. It took ten minutes of waiting and pretending to be playing with his phone before Eric Mancini slipped into the seat opposite to him.

"Look," the young human said, "after that show, I'm sure you've got hundreds of guys trying to get you into bed but I just wanted to say that you were _fucking_hot up there and I know you'll never think twice about looking at a guy like me but I just wanted you to know that for the next week or so, you're going to be my wet dream."

Gnoll smirked and looked up from his phone after hitting the 'send' button. "What? Just a week? I'll have to try harder next time."

Eric gulped loudly. The next guy on the stage was making the crowd just as wild - a big bull that was busting out of his fur but Gnoll could still hear Eric's nervous little tick.

"There's going to be a next time?"

"I make a tidy profit from this thing," Gnoll replied, fishing out a slew of very patriotic bills and setting them on the table. "I figure there's about two hundred bucks in this pile alone and that's only what's from the front. Might try hitting this place up again next week. It was fun."

"You certainly made it look fun." Eric was only nineteen years of age and attended a public school somewhere in the north-eastern suburbs, not exactly the richest places but comfortable and well-established. He was scrawny and fairly short, five foot seven and at only 150 pounds. Like his father, he had dark hair but still had to lose the baby fat that was clinging to his cheeks. No signs of a beard were on his face. It made him look cute, innocent.

Gnoll flicked a rounded ear at him. "So, what's your name?"

"Eric. Eric Mancini. And yours?"

"Gnoll."

"Come on," replied Eric, grinning. "That's just your stage name. Can I at least get a real name for when I jack off?"

He was honest. "Con. Just call me Con."

"Okay Con." The young man gave him a cocky smile that was constantly wavering. "Now that we know each other better, think you want to come over my place for a drink?"

Gnoll let out his typical hyena laugh filled with the subliminal commands that was built to transform those who heard it into hot, hyper-masculine hyenas. He pulled back on the commands though. With all the noise around him, only Eric would be able to hear it and even then, only subtly. It would only be enough to get him interested in hyenas - at least more so than usual.

"Sure, why not?"

Eric's eyes brightened. "Really?" He coughed. "I mean... Cool." He lowered his voice to ridiculous proportions on the last word and Gnoll had to fight another laugh. This kid was cute.

"Yeah. Lead the way, Mr. Mancini."

More than a few disappointed stares were thrown their way as Gnoll let himself get led out of the club by the scrawny kid who wasn't of legal drinking age. By the look Eric shot the bouncer, Gnoll guessed he was pointing out how he had gotten the hot hyena and the big - slightly tubby - equine was forced to guard the door.

At least they didn't public transport. Eric had a rustic sky-blue pickup truck that was built still with the very old hydrogen engines built to use an isotope of hydrogen for power. Hydrogen fuel was expensive these days compared to the cheaper, longer-lasting, environmentally friendly tinium_engines. Still, when Eric jumped in and pushed open the door for Gnoll, there was a feeling of... _cosiness about it. Gnoll could smell the pride of the father, the joy of a mother and the excitement of the child in the truck.

Though he was sure the father would smell very differently these days.

"So Eric," Gnoll began as Eric began to drive. "Got any family?"

The smile of excitement on Eric's face faded. "A mom but... she hasn't been herself lately... not since my dad died in that accident at Newport."

"Oh... you mean the construction incident? I'm sorry."

He wasn't, really. He knew that Brodie Mancini was currently being kept in Bal-Mordain as the government attempted to make a cure. It would be hard to cure the unwilling but, as he had discovered, changing the unwilling had the same consequences. He had inflicted the transformation to a victim who didn't have time to enjoy its pleasures. While most of Brodie Mancini enjoyed the new form, there was still a fragment of him that was fighting. That was not the case with Lewis Sanchez who embraced the change because it had been slow and his mind was given a chance to embrace the change.

"Don't be."

"Do we have to worry about walking in on your mother?"

"No. I got a place of my own."

Gnoll frowned and stared at the kid. "How old are you?" he asked despite knowing the answer.

"Nineteen. But I've got a steady job and a good place to stay. Don't worry! You won't be heading to some sleazy motel or anything! I swear!"

"You're nineteen and can afford your own place? You must just be in your sophomore year in high school."

Eric lowered his gaze. "My dad just died... I dunno. I just need some time..."

Trying to keep his smugness in check, Gnoll said, "And you're spending it on a one night stand in a gay bar. What would your dear old mother say about that?"

The kid's knuckled whitened as he gripped the steering wheel. "Look, you wanna get off or not?"

Gnoll let out another laugh, this time with only Eric there, the message was heard loud and clear. Eric would want him bad and bit by bit, his DNA would start changing. Without prolonged exposure, it would just be reverted back it was the memories that it implanted, that desire to be a hyena, that lust to be big, muscular and covered in fur and the propensity to laugh. That would all stick.

"Tell you what..." Gnoll pulled out a bill and plucked a pen from the dashboard. He wrote one of the many numbers he used and set it on the dashboard. Stop the truck. Drop me off here."

The truck ground to a halt and Gnoll opened the door to Eric's protests of, "What!? But -"

"You're going through some stuff and not thinking straight," Gnoll answered with false kindness. "When you've sorted things out, call me."

"But -"

Gnoll jumped out of the truck, still in only a red jockstrap. "I want to have fun, kid. But you just lost your dad. I'm not going to be some guy's painkiller. I'm more than that. Later."

He shut the door and strode down the relatively empty streets. Behind him, he could hear Eric slamming his fists into the steering wheel before breaking down into some heavy sobs. This was far too easy yet so much fun.

As he rounded a corner, though, he stopped when two police men, a German Shepherd and a lion looked up and spotted him. They both frowned, took out their stun batons and approached, growling.

"Well, well, well," said the Shepherd. "What do we have here?"

"Looks like got ourselves a mite of prostitution," answered the lion.

Gnoll licked his lips. He still had to get off tonight. "So sorry officers." He gripped his jockstrap and -

Rrrrrip!

Both men stared at his exposed package in shock.

"Better?"

*****

Sunday morning saw Caleb waking up alone on his bed. Both he and Lance had decided to minimise their sexcapades to a few times in the week when no one else was in the house to prevent arousing suspicion. After all, Lance _did_normally sleep in the same room as Leon and if anyone woke up without him there or saw him emerging from Caleb's room, they'd grow suspicious.

Though he already missed his brother, Caleb had a full schedule ahead of him. After hitting the gym with Lars early in the morning - after breakfast, showering and his morning jack-off session- he drove to the city to the Museum of Education in anticipation of getting some information for his project with Alex.

He realised this would be the first time he'd face one of his classmates after a loss. He had only joined the football team this year and with all the hype of his performance, he was afraid about what others would say. Would they blame him for not being on the field? Surely rumours have spread already that he had actually bailed on the team with Lars for some reason.

When noon rolled around, his phone rang.

"Hey, where are you?" he asked, standing in front of the Museum's broad open garden.

"Something came up on my end," Alex said apologetically. "Can we reschedule?"

Caleb was about to say something in response when he saw two familiar figures heading into the museum. Two of his classmates. He quickly ducked behind one of the bronze statues depicting a human holding a book for fear of them throwing their tablets at him for the loss on Friday. "Um... Sure..." He let out a soft 'eep' when he saw another pair coming from another direction. He turned his back to them and walked away casually.

"Hey, I was just thinking," he began. "You know how Mr. Kantor just _loves_all things education?"

"Yeah?"

"Well... What do you say we do something else? I think half the class is here to do exactly the same topic."

"Really? Shit... Okay... Um... Got any other ideas?"

"Of the top of my head? No."

Alex let out a soft humming noise. Then, he said, "Hey, how about Bal-Mordain?"

Caleb frowned. "The prison? Well... I suppose no one else would be doing that and it was built around the founding of West California Island... But we're meant to visit the site. How are we going to do that?"

"Eh, we'll just get some stock photos and stuff. If anything, we'll go to the transfer facility. That isn't so closely guarded."

That was true... but Caleb thought he could do better. "Tell you what, why don't we schedule the trip for some time this week? We'll meet up after school."

"Sure! Sounds like fun! See ya tomorrow!"

"Laters." Caleb hung up and then immediately dialled Bren's number. When the other side picked up, he said, "Bren, I need a favour. Can you get me a guided tour of Bal-Mordain."

There was a pause on the other end. "Please tell me you're not serious."

"Look, it's for a class project -"

"Class project versus international security... Hmmm... I'm going to have to go with international security on this, Cale."

Caleb growled at the phone. "Hey, you needed me to save your ass and you cost me a football game. You owe me."

"Cale -"

"Bren, come on! Please?"

The tiger sighed on the other end. "I'll see what I can come up with. I can't promise anything but I'll try."

He grinned brightly. "Thanks Bren. You're a champ."

With that set up, Caleb suddenly found himself with nothing to do for the rest of the day. He was tempted to ask Lance if he wanted to go out again but he knew his brother had his own class projects to undertake. Besides, Leon was at home right now sulking about his girlfriend. If Lance was going out, he'd probably tag along as well.

He tried calling Lars.

"Hey dude, school trip was cancelled. You wanna hang out?"

"Dude! You know I can't! I'm studying!"

That was Lars' code word for 'training to be a superhero'. Apparently being a super was high maintenance. He had to hit a different kind of gym at the Elemental Tower and took classes on international politics, supervillain powers and interdimensional travel. It made Caleb glad to be just an Outsider.

"Right, right. Sorry. Have fun."

Lars hung up immediately and he tried Mary next.

"Sorry Caleb. I'm currently busy kicking your father's ass in karate."

He held out his phone at arm's length, frowning. "What? How are you doing that and talking on the phone at the same time?"

"Very easily actually. With one hand. And a foot."

Mary was indeed very frightening in that respect and he hung up after requesting that she not beat up his dad too much. She made no promises. Caleb rifled through his contacts but most of them were from the football team and he had no interest in getting poked and prodded on why he hadn't come to the field in the second half of Friday's game.

Of course, there was one other person he could try...

"Hey Ben."

"Caleb. Wassup?"

"My project work with Alex was cancelled." He paused for a brief second, seriously considering what he was going to ask next. "Wanna hang out?"

"Sure. You know where I live, right?"

Actually... he didn't. He had never been to Ben's house. The werewolf had never invited him over. Any parties they had were either at Caleb's, Mary's or Lars' homes.

"Actually... No."

"Oh. Right. It's at 17 Belmont Avenue, Ferrywing. See you then!"

Caleb stared at his phone in surprise. Ferrywing? That was... that wasn't right... He was about to call Ben back when he realised that apart from being a _massive_nerd and a werewolf, he really didn't know that much about Ben. They only became friends because of a class project one time and Ben had latched onto him since then with ulterior motives.

He jumped onto Ballistic and rode halfway across the island, having to make a 45 minute ride from the CBD to the north-western fridge of West California Island. There, the industrial face and steel-glass jungle gave way to lush, green avenues, crisp, clean air and flowery bushes. Houses turned from one lot single or double storey homes to fit a single family into enormous, three or four-lot mansions that could go up to three floors. The further and further he got, using the map on his phone, the homes just got bigger and bigger.

Finally, he came to 17 Belmont Avenue.

"Holy shit..."

Ben's home was enormous complete with black, metal gates with a wolf motif. Red brick walls encompassed the huge property that stood on an artificial hill. A sweeping driveway that cut through gardens littered with statues, fountains and even a gazebo led to a light, tan three storey mansion that looked like it could house thousands of people.

Caleb texted Ben.

'Hey, I'm outside. Um... How do I get in?'

He decided he'd wait ten minutes and if Ben didn't answer, he'd just turn around in case some security personnel think that he was scoping out the place to rob.

Ben texted back only a second later.

'Hang on. I'm letting you in.'

The iron gates slid open. Caleb thought about just pushing Ballistic up the hill when he realised it was a very long way up, about half a kilometre. He was forced to ride and along the way, he saw several gardeners and members of staff maintaining the grounds. There was even a hedge maze!

Ben was loaded!

Once he reached the front of the mansion, he parked Ballistic at the foot of the large, steps and bounded up to the big, double doors. Again, the doorhandles were shaped like snarling wolves. Slowly, he lifted his paw to knock -

When the door sprang open and Ben was suddenly there. Caleb almost didn't recognise him. The little guy had his normally unruly, red-brown hair carefully styled and instead of the scruffy shirts he wore that referenced videogames, he was actually dressed in a neat, pressed, collared shirt and some casual, black pants.

"Hey! Glad you could make it! Come in!"

"O... Okay..." Caleb wasn't sure if he should wipe his feet first or take off his shoes as there was no welcome mat but he followed Ben's lead into the broad atrium of the mansion. Immediately in front of him were about six other people, each of them looking refined and classy but there was a dangerous edge to their chiselled, beautiful features. They lounged in the atrium on large, comfortable couches. There was a snack platter between them and they were watching what appeared to be two of their members playing chess.

"Family!" Ben exclaimed, wrapping a hand around Caleb's shoulder and pushing him forward. "This is the wolf I've been telling you about, Caleb Hale!"

The eyes of the six people turned towards him and he suddenly felt like a deer caught in the headlights of a speeding eighteen wheeler. He wanted to run but just couldn't.

"The Outsider," rumbled one of the biggest men there. He was human, just like Ben, and huge. Almost as big as Lance in terms of muscle per inch of height. "I can see why you were interested in him, Benjamin."

There was a lion there too whose thick, red mane had been braided back into a ponytail. "He is a big one." He sniffed the air. "And sexually active too. That's good."

Caleb leaned towards Ben. "Are they are... werewolves?"

"We can hear you perfectly, son," rumbled the big man, rising up to his feet and crossing the distance between them with a strong, regal bearing. "And yes, we are all werewolves. I am Samson Connors." He held out his large meaty hand. Caleb was able to hold the guy's hand easily but for any normal human, it would have encompassed and perhaps even crushed their hands. "I am sure you have questions."

"Just one right now," Caleb admitted. He pointed at the lion and then to the female weasel who clung to him. "How are they werewolves?"

Samson Connors chuckled softly as he let go of Caleb's paw. "Very easily. They turn into big wolves just like the rest of us. Werewolves are not just restricted to humans and wolves like yourself, you know."

"Huh... Would never have guessed." He glanced at the gathered crowd and then back to Ben who just grinned brightly.

"Are you hungry?" asked a tall, lithe woman. "Lunch should be ready soon."

"It isn't human flesh or hearts, is it?"

That brought a laugh from the rest of the group, even Ben.

"Heavens no," she said. "Just a casual fare of gourmet sandwiches. Werewolves have not eaten raw flesh in centuries. Well... at least not members of the Alpha Pack. Those Bloodfangs though..." She stuck out her tongue and shook her head in disgust.

"Martha," reprimanded Samson. "We have a guest." He smiled warmly towards Caleb. "Come, Caleb, let us retire to the patio outside. I'm sure you a fit young lad such as yourself enjoys the sun more than the stuffy interior."

"Um... Yessir." He suddenly knew what it felt like to be Arthur - Abby's otter boyfriend - visiting the Hale household during a meal.

The entire 'family' headed out to the rear of the home, passing several personalised portraits of each of the members. He noted that there were nine members in total that he could identify. Ben was seen mostly standing next to Samson and Martha, smiling softly. Through a large pair of white doors, they stepped out onto the 'patio' which was about fifty metres wide and made entirely out of protected marble. Several seats were set out for them and already he could smell the scent of expensive foods like caviar, goose liver and prime cut beef.

Beyond the patio was a tennis court and a swimming pool. Two members of the Alpha Pack were playing tennis. Martha called them over and quickly introduced Caleb to them. One was a feline - a tabby from all appearances - and the other was another human. Neither looked enormous like the pictures of the Alpha Pack usually portrayed.

As they sat down for lunch, Caleb made sure to seat himself right beside Ben. The rest of the Pack had taken to sniffing him and commenting on his sexual activity. A lot of them mentioned that he would fit right in with the rest of the family as the 'tenth member'.

"Tell me something," he began towards Ben as he scooped three whole veal slider sandwiches onto his plate. "Are you all... related?"

"Nah, of course not," Ben said, only taking a garden salad sandwich for himself. "We're all from different parts of the US but we're all Alphas that have decided to band together to make a stronger pack. We're equals here."

"Huh... Okay. Do you have your own... 'Packs', I guess? You know, weaker werewolves underneath you?"

Ben bobbed his head from side to side as he munched on his sandwich contently. Caleb took a bite out of his and had to admit, the meat was cooked to perfection. He half-expected everyone on the table to tear through the sandwiches like the Hales would but they ate it all quite delicately and politely. Martha was even using cutlery to cut into hers.

After swallowing, Ben said, "Not really. See, we're sort of the Alphas of Alphas. To become a member of the Alpha Pack, you must be invited. But even after you're invited and turned into a werewolf, you have to conquer at least three other Packs."

"Um... Conquer...?"

"Yeah. Basically, fuck them to submission."

Martha coughed politely. "Benjamin, language."

Ben raised a hand in apology. "Sorry. Let's say... prove your dominance."

Caleb flicked both ears towards his friend. "So you...?"

"Five Packs, yeah. All here in West California or the mainland California. Everyone else is somewhere in the US or in South America. A few overseas."

"Wow... So if I were to..."

Ben nodded. "You would have to find an unclaimed Pack, find their Alpha and dominate them."

Yikes.

"Excuse if this sounds really blunt of me..." he began. "But for a group of people who makes a habit of 'proving their dominance', you guys seem really... classy. And considering how many times you say you screw others..."

Ben waved a hand absently through the air. "It's no secret that when night falls and dinner is over we have an orgy or two but that just because... well... We're horny."

"Ben," warned Martha.

"Sorry. But we're more than just our hormones, you know. We participate in charities, we go to galas and balls and we act like normal, rich people."

Except that you guys participate in criminal activity here and there."

Ben snickered. "Oh yeah. Sometimes, investors don't necessarily want to go your way so you have to convince them in... other ways. Nothing like a show from the Alpha Pack to really give them a scare, ya know?"

"So you're sort of... white collar criminals."

"Sort of. If we want to make an unprecedented withdrawal from a bank, we will. Doesn't have to be our bank per se but you know, money is money."

Caleb shook his head and wondered what Bren or the FBI would say if they knew he could securely identify the members of the Alpha Pack let alone where they lived. Then again, he felt it was a great honour to be invited here. Plus, Ben was his friend, Blood Wolf or no. Betraying that trust would hurt him more than it would hurt Ben.

After lunch, Ben invited him to a game of tennis. Having never played, Caleb had to learn pretty fast but they both swore not to use any superpowers. He noticed the rest of the Alphas were watching him keenly as he played. Even without powers, though, Ben was fast and had a mean backhand. He beat Caleb fairly easily who could hit the ball but couldn't manage his strength very well and ended up sending balls far out of bounds.

After they were done, a maid brought them a jug of lemon juice as another pair of Alpha Pack members walked by to take the court. One gave Caleb's right butt cheek a firm squeeze, the cougar letting out an approving purr before heading off.

"Umm..."

"They like you," Ben said, gesturing towards the building. "Hey, wanna go inside and watch some TV?"

Eager to be somewhat away from the hungry eyes of the rest of the Pack, he said. "Sure." They retired inside the mansion and once they were inside, Caleb said, "Two questions... Do the people serving you know...?"

"Tributes," Ben said dismissively. "The Alpha Pack has a member of its subordinate packs come and serve them. And yes, they're all werewolves."

"Oh... and that cougar -"

"They really want you to join the Pack, Caleb."

He stopped in his tracks as Ben was heading up the stairs. "Why?"

Ben shrugged absently. "Because of your superpowers. Because you're fit, strong and most of all, because you're loyal, honest and noble. The Alpha Pack sticks together and values that kind of traits. Though you may even lie to yourself here and there, you forge your lie into truth one way or another. You make your own path. You are an individual but at the same time, part of a powerful collective. That is the Alpha Pack."

"Uh-huh... Despite the fact that they cause all sorts of shit around the States for their own gain."

"We believe in survival of the fittest, Caleb. The strong rule the weak and the powerful take what they want." Ben turned to him, eyes dangerously narrowed. "If I wanted, I could force every blood vessel in your body to rupture, causing massive internal bleeding until I force you to swear fealty to us."

"And if I wanted, I just touch the floor and I could turn this entire mansion into who knows what."

There, Ben's lips turned upwards in a faint smile. "True and that's why we never turn the unwilling. We want them to be loyal to the Alpha Pack not just servants."

"You seemed fairly ready to turn Lars and I on my birthday."

Ben's smile turned apologetic. "I misjudged. I didn't think Lars was Firebrand. Or maybe I didn't want to believe it." As he turned away, Caleb saw something in his stance... regret.

"Lars isn't the only one that doesn't want this thing between you to continue, is he?"

Ben sighed heavily and ran a hand across the polished, wooden banister of the stairs. He regarded his features in the wood. "Firebrand was a hated enemy of the Alpha Pack. He was a member of the Elemental Alliance. But when he and I met, it was... special. Perhaps it was the forbidden romance between a villain and a hero or just the fact he looked sexy in that spandex outfit, I don't know. I wanted to turn him and he wanted to turn as well."

The werewolf then snarled, his hands curling into balls. "But then when I revealed myself to him, he showed his true colours. He's nothing but a coward. He may act tough and brave but in reality, he is just a scared kid who hides behind his powers and enjoys the prestige it brings. Where it really counts, he doesn't have a lick of bravery."

"What do you mean? He fought beside us against the hyenas! He didn't even think twice about it! Hell, he accompanied me in his football uniform to the baseball stadium!"

"Only because you were there," Ben responded. "When it comes to his_choices, something _he has to do, he just goes right back into his comfort zone. He can't make the plunge and will only do so if and when there are people there to catch him."

"What's wrong with wanting people to be there to help you if you fall? When I got my powers, I -"

Ben shook his head and held up a hand. "I heard from Mary what you did when you got your powers, Caleb. You tried to figure it out on your own and for a whole day, you tried to protect those around you from your unpredictable abilities. Lars wouldn't have considered that. He would've just run away."

"How can you be so sure?"

Ben looked about to say something then shut his mouth. "It's for him to tell you and if he were truly brave, he would've done so by now. Are you coming up or not?"

Caleb considered the offer. He shook his head. "You know what? It's getting late. Thanks for the meal and thanks for sharing. You don't have to worry about me telling anyone about you guys. You're still a friend and I wouldn't want you to lose your family."

As he turned, Ben shouted after him. "Another thing that separates you from Lars. He adheres to law and order because he thinks it'll protect him. You're like us, Caleb. You make your own laws and follow those of others when it suits you. Like it or not, you belong here."

Caleb stopped at the foot of the stairs. Was he really that different from the Alpha Pack. He worked with the government so that was one thing but really, it was a super-secret branch of the FBI. What they did couldn't be considered immoral but it wasn't public either.

"You're wrong there, Ben," he responded, glancing over his shoulder. "Where you take advantage of the weak, I_protect them_."

*****

Officer Michael Swayne was never one to look at another guy and think 'wow he's got a hot body' or 'shit I want to stick my cock in his ass' but last night, he had caught a barely dressed hyena walking down the street of one of the seedier places in West California Island and all that changed. The guy was built, had a cocky swagger in his step and had these hypnotising, yellow eyes; almost golden really. When he and his partner, Jeff Borchev had attempted to arrest the guy for indecent exposure, he just tore off the jockstrap he had been wearing and offered to give them a blowjob.

At first, Swayne just wanted to pull the guy in but Jeff shrugged, said 'sure' and then the two of them went into a dark alley. Swayne tried to dissuade his older partner but Borchev just told him they were in the 'shithole' of West Cali. Crime was everywhere. What was getting a blowjob? Swayne couldn't abide by the act but he also couldn't turn in his partner.

So he had stormed around the block a couple of times hoping that by the time he came back, Borchev had finished. It took him ten minutes to circle the block. When he returned, Borchev was fully undressed, pinching his own nipples and moaning loud enough to wake the bum that was sleeping nearby. Swayne did another lap and this time, when he came back, he couldn't help the erection he got when that kid hyena winked at him invitingly while his ass was being pounded against the wall by Borchev.

Then that hyena laughed and Swayne was sold. He shoved his dick right down that hyena's muzzle. It felt so _fucking_good when he came.

Now, a day later, he couldn't think of anything but that hyena. He guy's cocky smirk, the way he just tore that jockstrap off and those rippling muscles beneath that short, brown fur...

The German Shepherd growled loudly to himself as he ruffled his hair, peering angrily at his reflection in his bathroom. He lived in a one bedroom apartment on the southern suburbs of the island; nice place, family friendly. It was a nice day out. In the middle of summer but not too hot oddly enough. But in his apartment it felt stifling.

He glanced back out of his bathroom into his bedroom. Ever since last night, he had torn down all the pictures of hot canine supermodels that he had plastered all over the walls. He was so angry at himself for letting himself sell out his dignity like that. But more. He had never been so aroused than when that hyena had taken his cock.

With a snarl, the German Shepherd pulled a white tank top over his muscular frame and stormed out of his apartment. He went barepaw out into the streets, heading straight for the subway where he bought a one way ticket to the red light district of the island. By the time he got there, it was sundown and the world took a whole different look.

He stepped out of the subway into the smell of cigarettes, sex and cheap liqueur. West California Island was just like any other place in the world. It had its pristine, polished places and then it had its seedy underbelly.

Swayne just walked into the latter in nothing but a pair of cutoff denim jeans and a white tank top. More than a few women eyed him curiously and one even dared to saunter up to him and run her hand across his firm pecs. He growled at her and stormed away.

Whatever hope he had of finding the hyena in that same alleyway was instantly dashed when he arrived and found nothing there but the sleeping bum asking for change. He threw the guy a dollar and decided to do some laps around the block if only to cool his head and maybe, in anything-can-happen world of the thirty-first century, the hyena will miraculously materialise out of nowhere. After one lap, still no hyena and just that same bum that asked for change. After two, still nothing and another dollar given to the homeless guy. He spent twelve dollars before deciding to widen his search from just one block to two.

Then three.

Then four.

And after the fifth, he realised he was going crazy.

But, as he was just coming up to the gay nightclub known as 'Goodnight Moon', he spotted a hyena with fiery red hair wearing a white jacket with neon pink stripes and ridiculously short shorts and nothing else moving into the bar. His heart skipped a beat and he immediately bolted into the club. The bodyguard there tried to stop him but Swayne instantly spun and made the guy swallow his own nose.

The smell of sex, testosterone and cum assaulted his sensitive nose. He shook his head and tried to remember the scent of that hyena. It was spicy, exotic but in no way effeminate. The scent of sweat, the gym and protein exuded from the guy but that made up for more than half of the population of this place.

Despite that, it was not hard to spot the hyena. The announcer introduced him as 'Gnoll' and he began stepping up to the stage to the wild cheers of the crowd. Swayne used his bulk to push through the crowd and immediately seize the hyena's paw before he was fully on the stage.

Gnoll turned to him, golden eyes filled with confusion.

"I need to talk to you!" Swayne shouted over the crowd.

Gnoll frowned at him before hiking a thumb over his shoulder at the crowd. "Can this wait!? I'm about to make about two hundred bucks in three and a half minutes!"

Swayne reached for his wallet and fished out all his cash, about a hundred bucks, and stuffed it into Gnoll's paw. "You'll get the rest after we've talked!"

The hyena regarded the bright blue bills then shrugged. He waved at the announcer who - much to the disappointment of the crowd - said Gnoll would not be taking the stage tonight. The hyena made for one of the booths but Swayne seized his paw roughly and dragged him away from the crowd, away from prying ears. He was about to head through the front door when the bouncer burst in, nose bleeding and growling. He made a U turn and burst out of the back entrance to the club.

Swayne then slammed the hyena against a nearby wall in the silence of the night. Gnoll didn't even let out a yip of pain, staring at him challengingly and with that cocky smirk on his muzzle.

"You're that officer I blew off yesterday, aren't you?" Gnoll said, one eyebrow raised. "Come to beat up the fag?"

"Shut up!" Swayne snapped, fangs bared. "What you did yesterday... It wasn't fucking right!" He balled his paws into fist, even going so far as to lift his right to strike the hyena. "I bet you get your rocks off knowing that you seduced two officers of the law to sticking their cocks in a fag like you!"

Gnoll snorted and tilted his head to the side, his lip curling back into a sneer. "You bastards are all the same. Hypocrites, the lot of you. You think that just because you hold a badge and wear a goddamn uniform that you can do whatever the fuck you want. Do whoever the fuck you want. We live in 'enlightened age' where no one with a half a brain bats an eye if you sleep with a guy or a girl or a girl who used to be a guy or a guy who wants to be a girl. But people like you still freak out when they stop being such bigoted assholes and first century furs!"

"I'm not a hypocrite!"

"Yeah?" challenged Gnoll, rising up to his full height though he barely reached Swayne's chin. "I can see it in your eyes. You want to fucking hit me. You want to shove your dick up my ass, tear it open until it's ripe and bloody and leave me on the street with your cum and piss all over my muzzle so I'll remember that I'm beneath you! Well go ahead, tough guy! Show me who's the boss! Make me beg for it! Show this cocksucker the error of his unholy ways by making him -"

SMACK!

For the first time in their entire encounter, Gnoll showed a flash of fear. He tried to pull away from Swayne but the German Shepherd had him in a tight hold. The hyena's let out a muffled cry before that quickly turned into a moan and a gasp of pleasure. Swayne closed his eyes, just letting himself melt into the moment as his went diving for Gnoll's tonsils and loudly suckled at the hyena's lips with his own. His strong paws held Gnoll against him tightly, one paw around the hyena's arm and the other wrapped around the base of Gnoll's neck, twisting his head into the perfect position for their passionate, lip locking.

Swayne pulled away, panting loudly and heavily.

Gnoll was left grasping for him, his paws gripping the German Shepherd's shirt. "That'll show me..." he whispered softly. His stunning, golden eyes lifted to Swayne, confused. "I... I don't understand..."

"I really don't either," Swayne responded, a deep frown on his muzzle. "But... I... I've still got the other hundred I promised you in my apartment... if you wanted to come over?"

The hyena inched away, his paws gearing to push him away. "There aren't a group of your cop buddies there waiting to fuck me until I'm bleeding from both ends is there?"

Swayne frowned. "What kind of fucked up life did you have growing up to think anyone would do that to you?"

Gnoll's lips twisted upwards slightly. "The kind of life that makes turning strong, painfully straight guys like you worth it."

The German Shepherd leaned forward again, pressing his nose against Gnoll's very lightly. "Last night, I face fucked a guy just for winking at me funny. As far as I'm concerned, I'm a crooked cop." He let out a soft moan as Gnoll gripped his rising package.

"Yeah... I can tell..."

*****

Caleb returned home to the sounds of the television still on. That was strange as it was well into the evening and past dinner time. He had spent the rest of the day with Mary next door after she had apparently given his dad a sound beating. She only sported a few cuts and bruises but enjoyed telling him how his dad's left hook was pitifully weak.

He spent a good long while describing Ben's lifestyle and his family before asking her if it would be 'right' to expose the Alpha Pack to the FBI.

"Well, I guess the question is how much more you value Ben as a friend than as a criminal," she responded. "Sure, his family robs banks and done some pretty dastardly things but really, what have they done to affect your life apart from inviting you into their circle and giving you your little nerdgasms."

Caleb did remember meeting Ben for the first time during a science project just before he started growing all the muscle and height that made him the star receiver. They had spent a lot of time over at Caleb's place, having DnD nights, playing video games and generally pigging out on junk food.

"You think Ben exposed himself to me because when I joined the football team, I started spending more time with Lars than him?"

Mary shook her head. "No. He's not that deep. He just wants to fuck, Caleb. He wants to fuck you bad."

That left him conflicted but having Mary as a sounding board helped him somewhat. When he asked her about Lars' cowardice she rolled her eyes and told him that Ben's view of 'bravery' was throwing yourself headlong into danger without a moment of caution. Lars was just being smart. Then, when he asked her about something that Ben was about to say about Lars, that 'something' Lars should've had the courage to tell him, she fell silent and said it didn't matter now.

That was his queue to leave but he suspected - even feared - it was something to do with him.

Thus, upon returning home, he was surprised to find the family van was gone and only Lance sat in front of the TV, leaning forward with a frown on his face.

"Hey," Caleb greeted, seating himself beside his brother.

The Omniview Television was designed to give fully fledged three-dimensional, crisp imagery from wherever someone sat in the room. Regardless of where Caleb sat even if he was pinned to the ceiling upside down, he'd still see the image right-side up with perfect clarity. It sprayed a bright image in front of the couch in a perfect cube-shape. Currently displayed was what appeared to be members of the Elemental Alliance just wrapping up after apprehending Allusion, a criminal super with the power to create illusions and a major drug lord in West California Island.

"Where is everyone?" he asked.

"Dad went out to cover the Allusion attack," Lance said, nodding towards the television. "Apparently the local newspaper couldn't get someone out there fast enough so they offered him a quick contract to cover it. Abby is spending the night with Arthur and Leon is on the prowl again because mom had to go to the senator's office to get a statement ready on the recent attack."

"Superhero fever," Caleb chuckled. "No parents so all the kids are out." He flicked an ear at Lance. "Why aren't you out with Leon?"

Lance flicked a paw and the television switched off. He leaned back, arms across the back of the couch. "I was waiting for you to get home."

"Any reason in particular?" Caleb asked slyly.

"I thought you may be hungry."

The younger brother reached over and gripped Lance's awaiting package. His brother was already very hard. "How about some hot dogs?"

Lance rolled his eyes. "I was expecting that but that doesn't make it sound less corny."

"I've never had hot dogs with corn before. I suppose they're both phallic shaped so they could work."

Letting out a laugh, Lance reached over and hugged his brother tightly. "I love you bro but that is just terrible." He held Caleb out at arm's length. "I'm going to have to break up with you."

For a second, Caleb's heart skipped a beat and then he noticed the playful twinkle in Lance's eyes. "So... Break-up sex?"

"Is there anything better?"

He grinned broadly. "The realisation that after coitus we can't live without one another and then we have another round only this time it's make-up sex."

Lance scooped Caleb up off the couch with his big strong arms. "I like it." He took one step and then staggered. "Shit... This would've been a lot easier if you were less of a stud."

"Yeah then you wouldn't have kissed me," Caleb replied, sliding off Lance's arms. He swaggered up to the steps, letting his claws purposefully click against the wooden floorboards. His ears - and even Lance's - perked up in anticipation of their mothers shrill cry of 'Claws!'. When none come, he grinned and ascended the steps, swishing his tail back and forth tauntingly.

They retreated into his room where Lance shut the door. The moment there was that magical click, Caleb pounced on his brother, slamming the bigger wolf hard against the door and plunging his tongue deep into his brother's muzzle. Lance moaned loudly, his paws scrambling across Caleb's firm, muscular back, running his claws gently through the short fur and sending tingles from where they pressed against the muscles pressing up against the fur.

Caleb threw himself fully into his brother, instincts and passion taking over fully. All thoughts of Lars, his brief infatuation, the flicker of doubt, Mary's words or the judgement of the world just faded away as he pressed his body up against his brother's huge muscular frame. They both staggered across the room, awkwardly trying to remove articles of clothing as they manoeuvred themselves towards his bed.

His pants were thrown halfway across the room, landing on his dresser while Lance's shorts flopped against the window. Both of them pulled away briefly from their passionate kissing to take in the fresh wave of musk filled with their arousal and desire. They stared at one another, powerful chests heaving. Without saying a word, they tore off their own shirts. Caleb was wearing a singlet beneath his shirt and for a moment, his vision was blocked a little longer than Lance's as he pulled it over his head.

Lance's massive paws rested on his flanks and he shivered at the touch. That shiver turned his abdominals into rock-hard muscle ready for Lance's long, flat tongue to brush up against belly button and slowly trace lines through the valleys of his muscles. When he was once again free to take in his brother's scent, he found Lance eagerly nuzzling his crotch, tongue lapping across his bulging, red briefs.

Lance whimpered softly and his pressed his nose against where Caleb's balls were being constrained, taking a deep whiff of them. Caleb eagerly appeased his brother, rolling off his underwear and letting his throbbing maleness lightly thwap his brother's muzzle. Lance just grinned and ran his tongue across the underside of Caleb's cock, making the younger brother shiver in delight. Slowly, Caleb gripped the back of Lance's head and angled his cock just into his brother's muzzle.

There was a moment of calculation in Lance's eyes but then the wolf took all of his brother's hard member into his muzzle, the throbbing, pointed cock pressing up against the back of his throat. Globules of hot precum dripped down Lance's throat and he cherished every moment when he slowly pulled back from Caleb's thick crotch fur, milking more and more of the delicate ambrosia that caused his tastebuds to dance.

Caleb panted softly and began to shuffle towards his bed. He pulled Lance with him until he sat down, letting his brother's head rest on his lap. Every moment that Lance dove in and out was a moment of pure ecstasy. Hot bolts of pure pleasure rippled through Caleb, making him moan with ever long suck Lance made and then whimper as his brother drew back in.

His bare paws curled in pleasure before they brushed up against something thick and muscular that was slowly vibrating. He traced the meaty appendage, making out the large bulging bicep that led to massive, meaty forearms that were perfectly cut through the thin fur. The little trip ended in a meaty paw gripping a dripping wet cock. Caleb gripped the tip of his brother's cock in between his big toe and the next one over, making Lance moan loudly and for a ripple of pleasure to visible run down his spine. Caleb grinned and brought his other foot close against the pulsating member. Between his two feet, he pressed Lance's wolfhood and slowly began to draw long, rhythmic laps back and forth along its length. Every lap grew easier and easier with copious amounts of precum soaking his feet.

"Fuck," Lance gasped, squeezing hard on Caleb's cock. "I fuckin' need this in me..."

"Then get up here," Caleb growled. He pulled his all-to-willing brother onto the bed. They pressed their young, muscular bodied against one another, every muscle firm as if they had just gone through a rigorous workout. The touch of their two cocks against one another and with his brother's massive thighs wrapped around his own made Caleb feel warm, protected and loved.

He nuzzled Lance's neck lovingly before gently turning him over, pushing him down against the bed. Lance willingly lifted his ass into the air, curling his tail back to present his hole to a panting Caleb. Quivering in anticipation, Caleb angled his cock at the bright, pink pucker before him.

The moment the tip of his oozing cock pressed against the tight hole was electric. He was drawn unavoidably in and he pushed half his cock into Lance before his brother squeezed down, pushing him back out again slightly.

"Ooh yeah..." Lance moaned softly. "Fuck... Deeper bro... I need you in deeper..."

"You got it," Caleb panted.

He pushed further, Lance's hot insides wrapping around his sensitive, twitching member. Again, Lance squeezed down, pushing him out slightly. Caleb growled at being denied claiming his brother and pushed again. Lance let out a long, pleasured moan, arching his back with a look of pure ecstasy on his face.

Smiling through his panting, Caleb pushed himself as far as he could go, his knot barring further progress. His balls bounced lightly against Lance's, making him giggle. He slowly angled his body until his pecs pressed up against Lance's back. One arm draped around his brother's own muscular torso, he pulled Lance back up until their muzzled could curl around the furry mass of sweat, muscles and brotherly love and meet each other once more.

Their tongues danced back and forth just like Caleb's hips, slow at first but quickly picking up the pace as they found their rhythm. Loud, wet, fapping noises filled the room. Lance's passion mounted as his claws dug into Caleb's ass, his strong paws pushing the younger wolf deeper and deeper into himself. For a second, Lance hesitated when the rim of Caleb's knot began to push the limits of his ass. Even Caleb took a moment to break their kiss and look into his brother's eyes.

"No one will be home for a few hours..." Lance murmured softly.

They weren't in the missionary position and if Caleb tied with his brother... there were expectations there...

"Fuck it," he muttered and drove himself further, making Lance arch his back and let out a cry of ecstasy.

"Fuck yeeeees! Come on, bro! Do it! Tie me! Fuck!"

Caleb growled, the dominator in his brain kicking into overdrive as he pushed Lance down onto bed, holding up his brother's ass with a grip on his hips and pulling it back against his cock just as he continued to spear Lance with his own wild thrusts.

"Yeah! Oh yeah! Just like that bro! Awwww yeah...!"

Caleb could feel Lance's ass wrapping around more and more of his knot. It was like a warm blanket slowly encompassing more and more of his wolfhood. It left those parts already captured feeling warm, loved and connected with something special and those part exposed to the warm, summer air earning for that completeness.

With a final cry, Caleb pushed the last few inches of himself into his brother. A loud pop hit both their ears as the last inches separating their unification was absorbed. He panted for a second before the lust took over and he began grinding himself in his brother, flexing his cock and making Lance moan and whimper in pure pleasure.

"Cale... Fuck... Oh Cale... Grab my cock... Shit... I want you to finish me off..."

Caleb reached over his brother's waist and groped for that throbbing piece of meat. The moment he did, he became aware at just how much precum was dripping off the huge, slick member. It was like holding onto a heated metal pole dripped in soap. It was hard to grip but he found purchase and squeezed hard, running his paws up and down its pulsating length.

"Awwww fuuuuuuck!" Lance cried, arching his back. "Oooh! Ah-ah-ah-aaaaaaaah!"

Lance's body was hit by shockwaves of pleasure so strong that he actually threw his entire back, nearly knocking Caleb over. His arms flew out to his sides as his cock erupted in a huge blast of cum. Large splatters of cum shot all over Caleb's headboard. Lance's cock burst for a second time, shooting another barrage right at the wall beyond the bed.

"Ooooooh..." Lance moaned. "Ah!"

A third shot came out, hitting the pillows and before trailing off into a seemingly continuous stream of stick, white, wolf seed that left a few globules on Caleb's paws.

Smiling softly, Caleb pulled the large droplets of Lance's cum on his paws up to his muzzle and licked it up. It was salty and covered in his brother's musk but he liked it. To his utter surprise, Lance turned his head back, their lips meeting once more and with their tongues brushing against one another. That little ball of cum exchanged owners for a few moments before it slid down Caleb's throat, feeling warm and tingling a little.

Lance smiled at him through half-closed eyes. "Your turn."

"Nah," Caleb said, feeling exhausted already. "I -"

Before he could finish, Lance threw him onto the bed, his back and head landing on the wet puddles of cum Lance had made. His brother, suddenly very away, sat on his cock, sending waves of ecstasy shattering across his consciousness. Lance, panting ground his ass down on Caleb's cock, rocking back and forth wildly and pulling on Caleb's knot with such passion that Caleb was almost knocked unconscious with the stimulation.

When Lance squeezed down on his cock, his mind just exploded.

Caleb arched his back and let out his loudest, most triumphant howl. Cum shot right out of his cock in tremendous waves of release. It felt like Lance was _squeezing_it out of him and he was unable to do anything to stop it - nor did he want to. Hot seed poured out of him and then began to seep down Lance's legs as the larger wolf could not take any more. It dribbled down Caleb's cock, soaking into his white fur. As his howl died down, his body took the rest of the shock, sending him into pleasurable twitches and muscular ticks.

He couldn't help the smile on his muzzle.

Slowly, he felt Lance slide in beside him, forcing him to twist to his left and lie on that side. He instinctively offered his arm for Lance to rest on and his other arm wrapped around his brother's form, holding him tight. Gently, he ran a finger through Lance's firm abs, untouched by the stick evidence of their lovemaking.

They were both left panting, unable to speak save for the soft humming they gave off as they nuzzled each other.

Caleb closed his eyes, finding himself slowly sliding into sleep.

The world was filled with werewolves, supervillains, superheroes and madmen capable of turning others into crazy hyenas. Friends were enemies with friends, secrets were everywhere and the future was uncertain.

But in all the uncertainty, he knew one thing for sure.

He loved his brother.