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Chapter VIII: Barely Exposed

"Next topic!"

Ben slammed his tray of food on the table, drawing all attention away from the various conversations on their usual table. The two cheerleaders who had been buzzing around Caleb and Lars gave the 'nerd' a foul stare.

"So, you think you two will be able to make it to my party for Crossover?" Erika Campbell, the head cheerleader asked while sitting in his lap with one arm around his neck. The confirmation of Caleb's orientation had already spread throughout the school after the dance and the knowledge that he was taken ensured the gesture meant nothing. The fact that Lars was sitting right next to him and paid little mind to it only confirmed that.

"Yeah, all the popular people will be there," answered Erika's shadow, Chantelle Kiko.

With those words, she directed a foul stare at Mary, Rhiannon and Ben. She did bat her eyes at Alex, though, who rolled his eyes at her. "You two should come."

The invitation was clearly an attempt for the seniors to boost their social standing. With the Fall Dance over, the next and last big event of the high school year was senior prom. That meant people were scrambling to be Prom King and Queen. With Caleb and Lars just being freshman but also currently the 'it' couple of the high school even a weekend and a day after the Fall Dance, being seen with them was a sure fire way to rocket one's social standing.

'McHale' they were called.

"We'll think about it," Lars replied with a smile, knowing full well he already had plans at the Hale household.

"Great!" Erika exclaimed, seizing a napkin from Rhiannon and writing down her phone number and address. She shoved it into the breast pocket of Caleb's letterman jacket, making sure to pat his pumped pecs and unwound herself from his body. "Give me a call!"

Then she was swaggering off, beaming and feeding off the stares and whispers she got.

"She's like a leech," Mary sneered.

Rhiannon was drumming her fingers on the table. "I'm halfway tempted to walk into the middle of her party and drop a bomb. She wants to be popular? She'll be on the headlines. And the obituaries. How's that for popular?"

Mary jabbed her fork into the back of Rhiannon's paw, making the Hound yelp and pull her paw away. "No bombings!"

"Christmas!" Ben exclaimed, jabbing a finger through the air before either of the girls could break into another all-out melee. "And New Years!"

Rhiannon gave the werewolf a tired stare and while rubbing her paw. "So you're going to celebrate the birth of a deity who descended onto Earth, who was purposefully ambiguous about his actions, even though he had the power for foresight. Top that off with the fact that he didn't even think to write down what he actually did so that people wouldn't spend thousands of years wondering what the hell he wanted them to do thus empowering religious powers to fuel their own agendas only to redact it all about three thousand years later?"

"No!" Ben snapped. "That's the old Christmas. December 25th. Only the new Christmas is a public holiday. When Jesus Christ came to Earth a second time as a wolf and went corporate. December 31st." He gave Rhia a slight frown and shrugged. "Technically it's January 1stbut the government has a quota on the number of public holidays it can have per year so they needed to make it December 31st to please the religious nuts and workers unions. And I thought you'd know this seeing as you're a... erm... you know..."

Rhiannon rolled her eyes at him. "Look, pantheons usually stay out of each other's hair. No one likes to interfere with each other's portfolio and the only reason why your Jesus came down as a wolf is to bridge the gap between fur and human both on a mortal and deity level. It was a peace offering."

Ben clapped his hands together and turned to the rest of the group. "Okay! So -"

"Don't you people get holidays for when he was zombified the first time?" Rhiannon asked.

"Easter?" Alex asked. He waved a hand absently at her while the other had some spaghetti speared on his fork. "Nah. We dumped that after JWC didn't like being remembered for being nailed to a cross. Coming back from the dead was cool with but not the rest. Plus after the whole Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse, people didn't like celebrating the fact that their saviour came back as a zombie for a while. Now we have Ascension in March."

Mary gave Rhiannon a smug smile. "Ascension, the week of public holidays when Earth celebrates the seven days we mere mortals managed to cross the cosmos and colonise various celestial bodies. Each day represents the ongoing population of the seven major colonies. The Moon Base, Mars City, Gateway City on Titan, Charon Base, the Alpha Centauri Colony, the portal city of Port Nova and lastly, Earth."

"I must be thinking of Italy who still celebrate Easter," Rhiannon said, a spark in her eyes. "Have you ever been to Italy, Mary? I know I have."

That silenced the empath-slash-mind reader.

"Anyway..." Ben said, slowly inching away from the two. He was pushing Alex aside in the process. "I was thinking that we could fly somewhere." From his pocket, he pulled out about a dozen brochures. "You know, just like our little weekend getaway to Canada."

"The one where we were attacked by Minos' goons?" Alex asked softly with his eyes half-closed.

"Trust me, this time we're not going somewhere remote and isolated." Ben lifted his hand to make that oath. "I was thinking either London, Rio de Janeiro, Sydney in Australia, Paris or if you're feeling adventurous, Costa de la Luna."

"Christmas on the Moon?" Alex asked, one eyebrow raised. "That just wouldn't feel like Christmas. I mean sure they have the artificial snow up there but I dunno... just won't feel like Christmas."

"That's why I wanna spend Christmas somewhere that isn't West Cali!" Ben exclaimed, bouncing his seat excitedly. "The only snow we really get is from the artificial weather devices!"

"So going to Rio or Sydney is an option?" Mary countered. "They don't get snow either."

"But they're major party places!" Ben ruffled through his brochures. He handed one to Mary and the other to Alex. "New Years at Rio is explosive and down at Sydney they have Christmas at Bondi Beach which apparently consists entirely of naked people walking around in the summer heat wearing nothing but Santa hats!"

Caleb took the pamphlet from Mary showing a holiday for Sydney. "That can't be real." Caleb paused for a few moments as his eyes scanned the paper before his eyebrows shot up. The images on the pamphlet were tasteful at least. "Oh wow... It is... There you go."

"Come ooooon!" Ben begged. "Who's with me?"

Rhiannon picked up one leaflet and raised her eyebrows at it. "I've always wanted to go the Paris."

"I never took you for a romantic," Mary said, clearly surprised.

"I'm not. I want to visit the nuclear silo beneath the reconstructed Eifel Tower. You know, the one that will play the French National anthem if and when they launch their arsenal? I want to walk in there with some _huge_speakers and blare their anthem just for shits and giggles."

Ben gave her a sceptical look. "O-kay... Anyone else have any ideas?"

"How about Scotland?" Lars supplied. "I know it isn't exactly known for being a big party place but it's where my family line was original from. Hell, if you want snow, why not go to Siberia where Caleb's family starts? That has a lot of snow, right?"

"Oh no!" Caleb responded, waving his paws and shaking his head vigorously. "You do not want to go to Siberia. You saw how big my family is here. Imagine how big they are over there. Wolves breed like... well... rabbits, I guess. The moment we step off the plane, we'll get swarmed by little Siberian Hales wanting to get a piece of the 'Americans'. Someplace else."

Alex set down his brochure. "Well this Christmas and New Year I'm going to spend with Mike. It'll be our first together so I'm going to be selfish and say I'm out."

Ben deflated. "Alright... well, what about the rest of you?"

"I'd be the first I'd really spend with Lars as by boyfriend," Caleb said with a sheepish grin. "But you know what? There is one, _really_cheesy thing I want to do now that I have a BF."

Lars lifted his eyebrows. "Really? What?"

Turning towards the hunky Doberman with a light blush on his cheeks, he said, "I want to kiss you on New Year, in New York as the soon as the ball drops."

Those bright, brown orbs widened and were accentuated by the startling smile Lars bore. "Christmas and New Years in New York..."

"Hmm..." Mary rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "The shopping there is still one of the best in the world and I've always wanted to see the Mirror City..."

"It'll have natural snow," Ben agreed. "It has the perfect Christmas spirit behind it and I hear that when all the lights are up across the city, the way they bounce off the walls of the Mirror City is simply amazing! They also put up a hell of a laser light show for the occasion! Oh! And the fireworks!" He was bouncing in his seat again. "Let's do it! I'll book us for a week! How's that sound?"

Though he normally spent the two major holidays with his family, Caleb was sure they would understand the idea of him and his friends flying off to New York City now colloquially known as the Mirror City for one week during the Christmas season. Naturally he'd have to promise to bring them back some expensive presents which also meant he'd have to save his money from work but he still had a sizeable nest egg from when he was being paid by the FBI. That and who knew what other contracts he'd get as Weapons Master.

They all agreed on the dates and the rooming arrangements. Mary and Ashton would be together, of course, just as Lars and Caleb would be in another room. Ben and Rhiannon had to decide whether or not they wanted to bunk together but that was for later consideration. Ben tried to coax Alex to coming along but Alex just laughed and politely declined.

Suddenly with something else to look forward to. The rest of the day was filled with thoughts of fantastic New York City during the Christmas season with his boyfriend around his arms. All throughout the day, it was all that occupied his mind. Even after football practice, his heart was pumping at the idea of being out of West California Island again. It left a strange taste in his muzzle that he was so thrilled to leave the island but he didn't give it much thought.

All those thoughts, however, vanished after his shower at the locker rooms. After getting his fur dried, he packed up his things and was heading out the door...

... when his father's big paw clapped his shoulder.

David Hale, dressed in non-assistant-coach clothing, guided him out of the locker rooms. In his other paw, he had Lars. His throat closed up, wondering if he was going to get 'the talk' from his dad now that he and Lars were official. His eyes boggled when they were guided out onto the parking lot and he saw the Hale family van.

"Uh... Dad, Ballistic..." he began.

"Leon's got it," David responded. "We're going to stop off at home first to get you two cleaned up before we head over."

His brain was still lacking oxygen since all his blood was still focused in his muscles so his cognitive functions were running a little slowly. "Erm... Head where?"

"GUYS magazine, remember?" David said. "We've got the meeting with the CEO today. I've been told there'll be an impromptu photoshoot and interview as well. They want this thing to go as a featured article."

Caleb jerked away from his father. "Wait. What!? I've never done an interview before! I haven't even had the media training yet!"

"You handled yourself well enough at the Oprah show. Besides, we'll be there. I still get the final say on what they get to print." David clapped his son's shoulders again. "Come on or we'll be late."

Caleb guessed the other reason his father had personally escorted Caleb back home was to prevent the young wolf from running off and going to the interview early. Though he mentally swore that he wouldn't do such a thing, he had to admit he didn't like the idea that his father had final say in what was printed. After hearing that, he probably would have run off to the interview early to get some things on print that wasn't heavily filtered.

When they arrived home, Leon wasn't far behind them. David told both Caleb and Lars to both take another shower - one with better soap and shampoo than the ones provided at the school - before getting ready to leave. David had planned a route for them with him driving Lars to the Facility to pick up Madman and then the three of them making their way to the _GUYS_building. Caleb would drive Ballistic to the opposite end of the city and get dressed there so that it wasn't apparent where the Outsider base was from.

As Lars and David headed into the house, Caleb waited around for Leon to park Ballistic.

"You've got one hell of a ride here, bro," Leon said as he removed his helmet.

"Earn enough cash and you might just get one yourself," Caleb countered with a smile. When his eldest brother didn't reply, Caleb frowned. "What's wrong?"

Leon took a deep breath and glanced towards the door to make sure their father couldn't hear. "I'm really been thinking about my place in the family. I mean Abby is getting married, dad is an established super who is spearheading Outsider relations, Lance is starting out at the Alliance and you're freakin' Weapons Master. Hell, even mom is working with the senator on some campaign. Me though... I'm just the dull, boneheaded college kid."

A smile slowly crawled onto Caleb's lips. "You think I wouldn't give anything to be normal like you?"

"Don't give me that bullshit." Leon growled softly at him. "It's been said, Cale, and it's cliché. Fact is, your life is pretty extraordinary and me... Well, I feel a little... a little..."

"Left out?" Caleb sighed softly. He glanced over his shoulder. The kitchen beyond the door was empty and it looked like everyone else had headed upstairs. Just to be safe, he shut the door. "What do you want, Leon?"

"Honestly?" his brother replied. "I want to be making a difference like you guys. Hell, even Abby is training to be a lawyer so she'd be making a difference."

"You're going to be a personal trainer. That'd change people's lives."

"But not the way any of you will." Leon's shoulders sagged heavily. "I dunno... I don't mind not having powers just... compared to the rest of you, being a personal trainer sounds... stupid."

Closing the gap between himself and his brother, Caleb gripped Leon's shoulder. "It's not stupid. If it's what you want to do, if it's your dream -"

"That's the thing. It isn't." Leon brushed his paws away. "I just thought it'd be the only thing viable for me because I played football, I love bodybuilding and I'd be famous if I went professional. But that just sounds selfish."

"So let me get this straight," he said, pointing at Leon, "you want to build your body, you love physical exertion and you're crazy about being the macho alpha wolf. But you also want to be selfless and help people."

"Yeah..."

"Then why not join the military?"

"Because I don't want to be shipped off to god knows where." Leon glanced over his shoulder at the street beyond. "My home is here in West Cali. I don't think I ever want to leave."

"Then become a police officer. Or a fire fighter or hell, even a paramedic if you want."

Leon's eyes lifted slightly. "Huh... I suppose I could..."

"If that doesn't work out, you could always go for a coaching job."

His eldest brother turned on him, growling softly. "No. Hell no. I am not going to go into the one job where athletes' hopes and dreams go to die."

Lifting his paws in surrender, Caleb said, "Okay! Okay! Just putting it out there." As he lowered his paws, Caleb gave his brother a wry smile. "You can make plenty of difference in the world, Leon. Even if you become a professional bodybuilder, you'd have thousands - maybe even millions - of people watching you. When you're famous, what you say could influence future generations."

"Speaking from experience there, little bro?"

Caleb snorted and rubbed the back of his neck. He made the mistake of turning his back to Leon as he said, "Yeah. Apparently I've got people clamouring to write my biography and charities begging me to make an appearance on their next event. Dad keeps telling me that what comes out of my muzzle could change the world if I'm not careful."

Leon's thick arm suddenly wrapped around neck, catching the smaller pup in a playful headlock. Caleb gagged as his big brother wrestled with him. "You mean apart from the normal bullshit that comes out of there? Or maybe it's most cum now that you're blowing Lars off?"

The smile on his brother's muzzle was still tainted with doubt but at least he was trying. Caleb wrenched himself free of Leon's grip and gave his brother a light punch on the chest, his fist bouncing off Leon's armour-like pecs. "Hey, don't knock it until you try it. Maybe if you suck my dick, you might get the superpowers you always wanted."

"There's a difference between worshiping superheroes and being one, you know," Leon responded, folding his arms and giving Caleb a smug look. "I don't have to deal with dad dragging my ass out at five o'clock every day. _Or_nearly getting killed every time some supervillain rears their ugly head."

"If you become a police officer, that second one might just be something you'd have to deal with."

Suddenly very pensive, Leon said, "True..."

His brother's mood was slipping back into depression so Caleb gave him another playful punch. "Come on. You've got plenty of time to think about what it is you want to do in life. And you've got the advantage of choosing where you want to go. With me, I'm stuck being an Outsider. It's who I am. What I choose for my 'normal' career has to revolve around that."

The truth of those words hit him hard. He was now Weapons Master, a role model for Outsiders, the face of Arsenal and quite possibly a celebrity. Being a full time hero like Shockstorm or Siren just did not appeal to him and he craved for some semblance of normalcy like his job at Hero Taco. But he couldn't deny his responsibility as Weapons Master. Whatever career he chose, it would have to be secondary to his position as a member of Arsenal.

Suddenly, he was starting to feel trapped and constrained.

Mostly because he also had no idea what he wanted to choose as his career.

"This is starting to get depressing," he admitted. "I'm going to go upstairs to get cleaned up so I can possibly pose naked for photographers."

Leon gave him an exasperated look. "It can't be that bad."

******

Caleb had this idea that all publications were somehow themed after their target audience and interest group. In his mind, fashion publications were filled with dramatic lighting, runway-like hallways and arrogant, shallow people eager to put down the people who failed to meet their standard of beauty. Sports publications would be packed to the brim by frat-boy like editors and writers who spent more time at the foosball table than at their computer. Information Technology media outlets would look like Elliot's room in the Facility.

When he rolled up to the GUYS building - and it was a whole building not just a floor on a building - he was surprised to find that it was very business-like. A broad, very Spartan lobby was filled with reporters from various other media outlets already clamouring over David, Madman and Lars. Thankfully, all their eyes were pointed to the three who were currently caught in what Caleb could only think of as a 'ring of death'. Caleb backed away from the scene, quickly scrambling back towards Ballistic which he had parked in the alley between the buildings.

There, he quickly seized his phone and dialled Hank's number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me. I'm just outside the building but looks like my dad and teammates have been ambushed."

"Oh right... The vultures... Sorry. Someone let it slip that we've got the interview today and they decided to pounce."

"I don't suppose you have some hero's entrance I could use, could you?"

"Well... Not so much..."

As it turns out, it was the fire exit. Hank came down to meet him and had security disable the alarms for the moment as he guided Caleb up two flights of stairs to the floor just above the atrium. The vulpine told him that someone was already trying to fetch David and the others. Keyword being 'trying'.

When asked how come one outlet had so many floors, Hank explained that GUYS_was the flagship 'e-mag' as he looked to call it and the name of the company but the twenty-five floors in the building each had their own 'specialty' publication. _GUYS sat at the tenth floor - originally the highest floor they had until they bought the rest of the building. Hotrod was for vehicle buffs and sat on the ninth floor while Swole_was for bodybuilders and fitness buffs. All were geared towards the homosexual audience, of course. The first floor where they exited was for _Frat Life, a gay e-mag for the fraternities - and recently sororities - out there who not only embraced the homosexual lifestyle but also tolerated it. Caleb briefly wondered if he should subscribe just to get an idea of what colleges he could possibly be interested in.

Stepping into the elevator, he noted the other names of the publications had been marked on each of the floors. Names like Cannon, Snapshot_and _Stardom were marked there. He was pleased to note that none of them were basically names for pornography sites or magazines. Though he did detect the sexual innuendo in each of them and it made him smile.

The top three floors, however, were marked with 'Studio'.

"What's up there?" he asked, pointing at the numbers.

"We used to have to do our photo shoots offsite with another company," Hank responded. "Now, we do it in house. You'll be going up there after the contract is agreed and the interview."

"Cool. Will you be interviewing me?"

Hank glanced away. "Nah. Someone more experienced will be taking over."

"Really? Who?"

"I... uh... I don't know, unfortunately. Probably someone who's interviewed celebrities before."

Deciding to change tact, Caleb said, "How's things with you by the way?"

"Better. Thanks for asking. I still have a job."

Frowning at the vulpine's evasiveness, Caleb pulled himself back from being too nosy. Hank was a good friend and an excellent media resource. Plus an amazing contact in GUYS magazine. Losing him would leave him vulnerable to the very same vultures that were ravaging his father, boyfriend and teammate as they rode the elevator to safety.

Thinking of his father sparked the urge of rebellion back in him and a small smile crossed his muzzle just as they reached the tenth floor.

"Hey Hank."

"Yeah?"

"What do you think of being my agent?"

Hank visibly balked just as the doors swung open with a soft ding. Caleb couldn't have timed it better as he left the fox stunned with the proposal.

GUYS magazine was just as Spartan as the atrium. The elevator lobby was possibly the only part of the floor that showed any sign that this was a gay male publication with the past three months' worth of covers being blown up and posted on the walls. Beyond an automatic, glass door, however, were desks lined side by side with only a few pieces of individuality showing beside the monitors and keyboards. Either the standard wireframe monitors had stickers, small figures were sitting on the table and maybe a few plush toys but nothing really that screamed 'gay male magazine'. The workers were all dressed up in casual business attire - collared shirts and jeans. None of them were walking around in thongs or shirtless as Caleb had come to expect. There weren't men strutting around in leather bondage equipment or dressed as stereotypical pornographic clothing like firemen, policemen or even marines. Even women populated the floor.

It was an office. This was a job.

"Are you serious?" Hank asked, reminding him of the bombshell he had just dropped. "I mean, I'd love to and I have some experience in the field but I'm sure there are better candidates out there. Besides, isn't your dad your agent?"

"Yeah well these days he spends more time as an agent than my dad and between that and superhero-ing, I'd like to have him back." Plus, he added mentally, it meant David wouldn't have as much control over what he said or what was published. "What do you say?"

Hank's features brightened. There was that excited fluff of red fox that he had seen that night after the first Gene Stealer attack. "I... Uh... I'd have to think about it but my first instinct is yes!"

"Great. So wanna come with me to my interview?"

Hank led them to a conference room where the Editor and Chief of _GUYS_and the creative director met them. When Hank was asked to leave, Caleb insisted he stayed and neither the barrel chested snow leopard in the suit or the female cougar could say anything about it. Caleb was given the contract to peruse while David and the others were brought up.

Though not being an expert in any of the jargon, he understood that the contract was for a year. It basically requested that for the next twelve months - and twelve issues - he be present for an interview and a photo shoot starting immediately. The contents of the shoot was entirely up to the creative director, the female whose name was Matilda Banner, to come up with but Caleb always had the say of whether or not to participate. In short, he had a say in what _GUYS_published. Though in a later part of the contract, there was a part giving his agent the power to speak for him _and_final say in what was published. There was an 'explicit content' clause saying that upon the agent or Caleb's approval, _GUYS_could publish nude pictures of him if they so desired.

"Can we make a little change to the contract?" he asked.

The Matilda and the Editor and Chief, Bradford - though he insisted on being called Brad - exchanged glances. There was something in that look that Caleb suspected had to do with the preconception that all celebrities were divas.

"Sure thing," Brad said, offering him a professional smile with little to no feeling behind it.

"I'd just like to make sure that while my agent has the power to speak for me, I still get final say over him. If what he says contradicts what I want, it's what I want that matters."

Brad frowned. "That wasn't in the contract?"

"I... Uh..." Caleb flicked through the twenty pages offered to him. "I don't remember seeing it..."

"Of course! Of course! I'll arrange it straight away!" Brad seemed hesitant as he brought up the wireframe console from where he sat, reaching across the table and pulling a thin, metal frame up from the table vaguely the size of a panel. With a wave of his paw, the face of the console became filled with images and a holographic keyboard appeared in front of him. After a few adjustments, he hit the 'print' button and the printer in the corner of the conference room quickly produced the renewed contract.

Caleb gave it another look over just as his dad, Madman and Lars stepped in.

"Ah!" Brad exclaimed, rising to his feet. "Feral Steel! A pleasure to finally make your acquaintance." He strode over to David and shook his paw. "And Madman! Everyone's favourite bad boy!" He had to use both paws to shake Madman's forearm as the hyena's paw would've crushed him. For Lars he went back to a quick shake. "And great to see you, Flare Blue."

"The pleasure is ours," Feral Steel replied curtly. "I had a look at the contract you sent over. There are a few adjustments I'd like to make namely around pay and photo shoot dates."

"Funny you should mention that," Brad said, bearing a brave smile. "Weapons Master was just making his own adjustments."

David popped his jaw. "Well, I'm sure they were along the same lines as what I had in mind. Let's review."

Caleb held his breath as the contracts were given to each of the people in the room and Brad reviewed it with them page by page. His dad made some critical changes that he had never thought of. For instance, due dates for the finalised photo shoot concepts would always be the first of the month and the actual shoot should occur no later than the second weekend. GUYS published on the first of every month so by the time the last e-mag was sent, they would already be preparing for the next one. The reason given was that there was no assurances that Gene Stealers or a supervillain won't attack during that time. They couldn't afford delays. David managed to negotiate their pay up and it surprised Caleb that the 7k pay was charged per day and not per shoot. When advised that the shoot and interview could take up to five days, he tried to keep himself from collapsing in shock.

That Lars was given a contract already meant that he had effectively signed up for the same thing.

David didn't even make any mention of the fact that the supers who signed the contract had ultimate say in what was published.

"Okay," said Feral Steel. "Sounds good. Are we agreed?"

Everyone nodded and pens were handed out as they signed the contracts.

"Excellent!" Brad exclaimed, leaping to his feet. "Now, I know we're lacking on daylight but I was hoping that we could have a preliminary shoot this evening. We can save the interview for later. I'd just like our lead photographer to get a 'feel' of how you react to the camera. All paid, of course."

"Of course," Feral Steel said. He turned to the others for confirmation. "Guys?"

For some reason, Caleb felt the need for approval was a jab at him for making the change in the contract and he felt a little guilty about it though mostly empowered. "I'm up for it."

"I didn't walk into a gay magazine not to strip down naked," grunted Madman. "Lead the way, fluffy."

Brad chuckled softly, relief emanated from his suddenly relaxed shoulders. Caleb hadn't noticed how tense he was until he got out of his seat and guided them out of the conference room. By then, the floor was mostly abandoned with the employees having gone home. Hank still hovered by Caleb's shoulders looking like he was mulling things over. Amongst the giants that were the members of Arsenal, the little vulpine almost vanished into collection of bodies as they crammed themselves into the elevator.

Caleb remained silent the entire way, only briefly considering the idea that he would be posing in front of a camera for a publication. The school newspaper had taken plenty of candid shots of him during training as the rising 'Halestorm' and there were a few times when he was asked to pose for the cameras at school. After the past few incidents, he thought he had enough experience to translate it onto a professional photo shoot.

He was excited for more reasons than the fact that he was going to effectively earn seven grand per day but also because there was some part of him that felt like he had won over his dad's controlling antics. This was something he had forced David to compromise on and it felt good to wiggle free and have some freedom. He also remembered his job with Gabe and made a mental note to check up on them. While he knew his dad meant well, it was satisfying to be free.

The elevator dinged and swung open.

Caleb's eyebrows rose as he stepped onto an outdoor baseball field complete with cool, summer breeze and the smell of grass in the air. The stands were naturally empty and the only people on the set were various men and women dressed in black, wandering around doing the bidding of a tall, lanky, golden Labrador with a very large camera in his paws.

"So this is one of those hologram decks, huh?" he asked.

The Labrador's ears perked and he immediately spun around to face them, bright brown eyes blazing. "Zis iz not just o'n of those 'ologram decks, you ignorant simpleton! Zis..." The Lab lifted his paws as if he were praising the heavens. "... iz my canvas!"

Brad coughed loudly. "Jacques. Mind your manners. This is Weapons Master. Of Arsenal."

The canine lowered his paws, clearly not looking impressed. "Ah kno' oo he iz." His eyes roved the three members he was meant to immortalise onto digital photographs and snorted. "Of ah-ll of zem, 'e iz ze _least_photogenic."

Caleb flinched and tried not to growl. He never considered himself ugly. It was with a bit of pride that he considered himself at least on par with swimwear models for big canines. Being a wolf meant that he was genetically geared towards the bigger spectrum of furs and his family had a history of developing big, husky men coming from Siberia. Did his muscles make him disproportional?

"You'll have to excuse Jacques," Brad said, turning to the team apologetically. "He is a brilliant photographer. Our best. But he tends to speak his mind."

"'ow am I supposed to make 'im look amazing when every man zat looks upon 'im will see azother man!?" Jacques exclaimed. He stormed over to Lars and seized him up. The Lab was actually quite tall, taller than Caleb's own seven and a half feet and Lar's seven foot seven, probably pushing eight. "'oo will need work." Jacques snapped his fingers. "Get 'im to make up! Now!"

Suddenly, there was a swarm of those black clad assistants storming towards Lars and yanking him away.

Jacques then turned to Madman and wrinkled his nose, pulling back from him. "And 'oo smell like oo've bathed in zemen!"

"If only," growled Madman. "Though not impossible." He groped his enormous bulge, bigger than Jacques' head. "Ah I can produce more cum than you have blood in your scrawny stick of a body, little pup."

"Please," Jacques said, waving him away. "Ah need none of your vulgarity." Again, he was snapping his fingers. "Get 'im a bath! Ah want 'im smelling like a real man."

The Labrador then folded his twig like arms and turned. David was hovering in front of him, eyes narrowed beneath his face mask and a snarl on his features.

"Ah zuppose 'oo object to mah methods?"

"Damn straight I do!" David growled. "Where do you get off calling my son non-photogenic and treating my team like that!?"

The Labrador turned away from him. "Please. Wizout me, oo will all be but faces in za crowd."

Brad grimaced loudly and shook his head.

"We're getting another photographer," David growled at the snow leopard. "This asshole isn't worth the aggravation."

"No one 'ill be able zoo capture your team az ah will," Jacques proclaimed, turning his back absently.

Unwilling to be brushed off so easily, Caleb finally spoke up. "So what exactly is it about me that makes me the 'least photogenic', Frenchy?"

Brad visibly flinched and even Matilda began to back away. Jacques slowly turned towards Caleb, his eyes afire.

"Ah am not French. Ah am Canadian."

"Oh. So the fake French then." Caleb countered with a smirk. "You know Canada was made a US state a long time ago and no one speaks with that fake-ass accent up there anymore. Right?"

Jacques' lips curled into a snarl... that ended with a strange, throaty laugh. "Your face may change but it iz ze fire within zat will shine through." The Labrador lifted his chin, seemingly appraising Caleb for a second time. "Ah can work with zat. MAKEUP!"

With no actual way to determine what Caleb looked like thanks to his uniform, the best 'makeup' Caleb could get was a quick brushing of his fur, some application of something that made sure it had more sheen and then he was handed a comb to make sure his brown hair was as he liked it. Keeping it in what he liked to think as a 'tidy disarray', he had his uniform brushed down to make sure it got the dirt of the road off him before being ushered onto the set.

Matilda explained to them that the direction they were taking for this 'test shoot' was to recreate that first time that the Gnoll strain was introduced - and subsequently wiped from the public's memory. Thus the baseball stadium. Caleb still remembered that day. He had been so shocked when so many people fell prey to the Gnoll strain so quickly. Previously Gene Stealers usually infected one candidate, maybe three at most. But Gnoll broke that pattern. A whole construction yard's worth of workers and some civilians fell prey to the laughing transformation.

Since Lars had the most experience with the media, he volunteered to go first. The hunky Doberman in his Flare Blue outfit strutted onto the realistic, field. Matter rearrangement with solid light technology recreated the baseball field perfectly. Though only a small segment was actually 'active' and if anyone stepped past the boundaries, they would emerge into the grey of the surrounding studio filled with lights, fans and seats, when within the field, it was like truly being at the scene at that time. Wind, warmth and the smells had to be generated manually, however.

Lars took up position at home plate where he casually leaned against the metal fence behind the plate that would prevent balls from hitting the crowd. He spread his arms wide, showing off the spectacular 'v' shape of his torso. One leg was bent and angled to the right a little to show off the curves his bunched muscles made and the bulge in on his crotch.

Jacques ate it up.

"Yes! Yes!" The Labrador was clicking away with his camera, flashes going off as he took Lars from every angle. "Zat iz perfect! Your face! Your face! Give me fierce! Like oo are going to ze battle!"

Watching his boyfriend made Caleb want to immortalise Lars in his own way and dearly wished he had brought his sketch pad.

On command, Lars leapt up on the fencing, suspended in the air by his claws and upper body strength alone. His face twisted into a convincing snarl and Jacques immediately moved beneath him, taking pictures while lying on the ground.

"Give 'im a bat! A bat!"

A baseball bat was handed to Lars and he slung it over his shoulder. Taking a typical model pose, he had the bat across his shoulders while his paws were hanging from it. He angled it a little to the right so that it wasn't perfectly straight and made a show of walking forward along the lines of the field. Jacques was dancing around him, taking pictures of his front, sides and ass shamelessly.

"He's a natural," Hank commented, a touch of a smile on his muzzle. Caleb hadn't noticed that Brad had left and only Matilda remained, overseeing the shoot and watching the photos that came in from Jacque's camera on her big screen.

"He's had experience dealing with the media," Caleb responded. "I imagine he's had plenty of training to make sure every side is his good side."

"It's the confidence." Hank gave Caleb a wry smile. "No matter what you look like, if you're confident, it'll show on camera. Doubt and it'll come out if not in your body language and then in your eyes."

Giving the journalist a smile, he said, "That sounds like you're talking from experience."

"I know a good photo from a bad one." Hank shrugged absently as Madman made his way onto the 'stage' with his own baseball bat. "You've got to find the right picture for the story you're telling. There's no use talking about how this downtrodden underdog is struggling through life if you're dressing him up like he was born with a fifty carat diamond up his ass."

"Point..."

Jacques was shouting praises again, bringing Caleb's attention back to the photo shoot.

The young wolf's eyes boggled as Madman took the shoot in a different direction from Lars' controlled but still sexually suggestive professionalism. The focus of the stage had been shifted the bleachers, allowing the massive hyena to stand on them. With barely any shame, Madman sat with his broad, tree-trunk legs spread and the baseball bat he had acquired sitting right between his legs suggestively. When he moved on from that position, he leaned back with one leg on the bleachers, another firmly on the ground and his broad, muscular back arched. Once again, the baseball bat was between his legs.

Jacques was silent through it all. Caleb took it as the photographer just being polite.

"Jesus Wolf Christ..." Hank sighed, shaking his head. "That's... That's just embarrassing..."

When Madman began licking the bat, Caleb just had to turn away. "What is he thinking...?"

"I don't know but that's the sort of thing you don't want to see..." Hank shook his head. "Yes we're a gay male focused e-mag but that sort of behaviour and imagery is not something we want to be portraying to the public. I'm sure Arsenal won't benefit from that either."

"It might get us some attention... but not the right kind..." He gave those words some thought. "Then again, every group needs a bad boy right?"

"I suppose..."

Madman's shoot ended a lot sooner than Lars and suddenly Caleb found it was his turn. He stepped up onto the field while Madman asked a props guy if he could keep the bat. It was a little disconcerting that his pictures were to be taken at the pitcher's mound. There were no props for him to play with nor any environmental objects he could use. Worry started to fill his veins. On the field, he could only see Jacques and the rest of the empty baseball field. He couldn't tell what Matilda was saying at her console, what his dad was whispering to her or what Hank thought behind the limits of the illusion.

He swallowed hard.

"Zhow me your inner fire," Jacques said.

Caleb instinctively folded his arms, an instinctive reaction to protecting himself. Jacques began taking pictures and with every little flash, Caleb felt more and more frozen in place like he was slowly turning to stone. He urged his muscles to move. His weight shifted to his right and the most he could manage was to rearrange his features to wipe off the fear pursing his lips and making him look passive.

He knew things were going badly even as Jacques took more and more pictures of him.

His nerves began to get the best of him and he began shaking in fear. These pictures would be plastered all over the island, hell maybe even the whole world! He had to give them more than just the stoic, cross-armed wolf. But the more he tried, the more his arms seemed to tighten together in a knot. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he imagined he must've looked like a petulant, stubborn child.

Fear paralysed him. He could almost see himself standing there like a statue, unable to move. The bizarre thoughts almost made him think of an out of body experience those paranormal articles usually spewed at him.

"Out of body experience..." he murmured softly. Those four words triggered a series of thoughts that combined into one tremendously explosive concoction. The creation boiled and bubbled beneath the surface, coiling and waiting for the trigger that would send it through his veins and finally moving his muscles.

Caleb closed his eyes... took a deep breath... and counted to ten.

He opened his eyes. And unfolded his arms. He heard Jacques sigh.

"Give me five minutes," he said and quickly bolted off the set. The crew watched him go. They had all crowded around the limits of the field, watching as the indomitable Weapons Master was frozen in place by Jacques and his camera.

Caleb ignored them all and even brushed off his father's concerns as he quickly entered the elevator and went back down to the first floor. Taking the emergency exit, entered the alleyway where Ballistic remained parked. Quickly, he slammed the panel to retrieve Funny Bone and wrapped it around his shoulders. With the piece of armour securely around his shoulders, the urge to transform and shift became volcanic, ready to erupt from him at a second's notice.

He turned around and stormed back up the emergency exit, each step bringing forth the familiar hyena shape. A soft groan left his lips as his feet surged in his shoes. For the briefest of moments, he felt his toes pushing the limits of his footwear but the magic that made the leather quickly adjusted themselves to fit the size of his engorged feet. By the time he had reached the first floor elevator, he was pacing impatiently as the change rippled up his calves, pushing them past their average size and adding a few more inches to his height. As the elevator dinged and allowed him entrance, his thighs had ballooned out and he was forced to walk with a slight gait as his cock and balls filled with new length and girth. The familiar arousal that came with the change began to make him pant in heat and he felt his cock rising in his pants. The heat was only somewhat cooled by the presence of precum dripping down his length and soaking into his pants.

After passing the tenth floor, his torso had ballooned out, making every breath loud and heavy. He was flexing his fingers, closing and opening them into fists as each arm lengthened, more and more muscle building with every floor he passed. At the fifteenth, he closed his eyes as his skull reshaped itself, losing the long, angular lupine muzzle and becoming a shortened, square muzzle with a powerful bite. He allowed himself a soft hyena laugh and a little grope before focusing himself back on the task at hand.

Once again, the elevator dinged and he was freed.

The crew all stared at the enormous hyena that stepped out of the elevator and stormed past them. Caleb seized a water bottle from a nearby crew member, now towering over the man at his nine foot plus height. Jacques stared, jaw open as Caleb's hunched form stepped back onto the field.

"Take two!" Caleb shouted, lifting two fingers over his shoulder. Taking position on the pitcher's mound, he took a quick drink from the water bottle just to cool himself off. Jacques followed him and was about to lift his camera to take another picture. Another idea hit Caleb and the wolf-turned-hyena turned on his side, lifted his muzzle into the air and raised the big, muscular arm holding the water bottle. Slowly, he poured the bottle all over his head, keeping his muzzle only slightly open and his eyes closed.

There was only a two second delay before Jacques began taking shots like a maniac, bolting around Caleb like a bee circling a nice, plump flower. When the last droplet of water fell out of the bottle, Caleb shook his head, sprinkling water everywhere, each droplet catching the light perfectly. Jacques never stopped taking pictures.

"Bat!" Caleb demanded.

A bat was handed to him by a stagehand.

Almost without thinking, large, white bones began springing out of the ground on his command. These bones weren't just large spikes either. They rearranged themselves perfectly to become one, massive structure; a throne. Caleb sat on the spiky chair, clutching the bat like it was his weapon of choice. Two ethereal hyenas sprang up from beside him, one sitting at attention to his right while the other sat at his feet diligently.

Jacques' eyes were wide as he took pictures of 'the king of the field'.

Caleb lifted one leg against the armrest, showing off his bulge and drawing inspiration from Madman. At the same time, he kept the baseball bat slung over his shoulder, making sure it was still in the shot to remind the audience where he was.

When he grew tired of the King of Bones idea, he let the bones shrink back into nothingness while summoning larger, bigger bones that almost blocked out the light coming from the 'sun' above them. He stood side on beside the towering monoliths, bat over his shoulder and staring solemnly forward with several hyenas beside him.

"Wind!" Jacques shouted. "Give 'im wind!"

There was suddenly a small gale whipping against him, causing the spotted, fur cape of Funny Bone to flutter behind him. Jacques took pictures of him from his sides, allowing Caleb to move the bat from over his shoulder to partially embedded into the ground and then again holding it in a reverse grip. To add more drama, Caleb summoned a piece of bone in front of him that he could set his foot on and lean forward. This allowed Jacques to move in front of him and take picture of head on. Staring directly at the camera, Caleb gave his best serious smile while keeping his eyes intense like he was telling the people of West California Island to trust him and the Gene Stealers that he was coming for them.

"Madman! Flare Blue! Get over here!" Caleb shouted. "You too dad!"

The rest of Arsenal slowly made their way cautiously onto the field. A piece of bone suddenly erupted from behind Lars, picking up the Doberman by slipping between his thick legs and lifting him into the air. Lars let out a soft 'whoa' as he was raised into the air just above and behind Caleb. Madman, taking the hint, climbed up onto another growth of bones. He even broke off one piece so he could hold it as a club. David moved directly behind Caleb, placing a proud paw on his son's shoulder while Caleb once again stared intently at the camera.

Jacques took a few steps back, jaw dropped at the scene.

"Ze light! I mean, ze sun! Move it to za left! Za left!" He was waving wildly as the sun began moving to the left, adding more dynamic shadows and lighting to the scene. "Weapons Master! I need Flare Blue a little lower. Just a little bit!" He held a thumb and forefinger apart. Caleb gently commanded the bone that Lars was crouching on like a predator a little. "Yes! Yes! Zat's it! Now ze one wiz Madman! More to ze left. Closer to you. Yes!"

Jacques stood back, eyes wide. "Zat iz our cover!"

******

It was called The Dragon's Menagerie by the rest of the Gene Stealers. Just as Shark Tamer had his Think Tank, Wendigo had his Feeding Grounds and Chimera had his Geneheart, Dragon Knight's private sanctuary was known as The Dragon's Menagerie. Spider Queen compared it to her own home known as The Nest and couldn't stand the sense of blindness the lack of webbing provided. Her Nest was simply covered in webbing but it was so thin, so fine and so impossible to detect that only the most sensitive could detect them.

But the Menagerie... it was something else entirely. There was order to it. Countless caves specifically built for Dragon Knight's purposes had been created, made of thick, black stone that Shark Tamer had created for them that hid them from divination and most magical scrying. Conventional searching mechanisms and some superpowers could still detect them but those that drew close enough were likely to already be doomed or caught in Spider Queen's webs.

Most of the inhabitants of the Menagerie were just that, people who had wandered too close to their base of operations, had been caught and survived Shark Tamer's experiments. Of course, there were other special cases.

Just like Zigzag-Zapper.

Spider Queen licked her lips as she glided across the main hall of the Menagerie in her silken robe. One would never be able to tell there were caves hidden in the walls as Dragon Knight made sure only he could enter their confines thanks to his ability to create portals out of nowhere. But one room was _always_open and sat at the end of the long hall of the Menagerie.

This was Dragon Knight's Tent where the 'noblest' of the Gene Stealers worked on his current project.

Spider Queen moved to the thick, black curtains that led into the comfort of the tent. She pulled back the gilded curtain ever so slightly and peered into the space beyond. Thousands of cushions lay on the ground around a bubbling, enormous Jacuzzi. There was a banquet of scrumptious foods resting on the far end of the circular area big enough to fit entire planes. A massage table complete with accompanying oils sat opposite to the banquet table. An enormous television displayed the latest news in full three dimensions. Lying on the soft, plush, velvety carpet in front of the television, soaked to the bone in his own semen and - what Spider Queen suspected - was some draconic seed, was Zachariah Zulkowski... still an enormous, overly muscular raccoon. It seemed that control was slowly returning to the supervillain as his size had shrunk somewhat and he no longer looked like he needed a forklift to lift his genitals.

A smile touched her lips. The media had moved on from the attack from Jet Heller on the Reacher building. Many speculated on what the Gene Stealers' agenda was and some had already linked that _Reacher_had related assets in the previous strains. None of them came even remotely close to the truth, however.

Spider Queen pushed the broad curtains aside with a flurry, sweeping towards the raccoon. When Zapper did not react, she wondered if the lug fell asleep in front of the television.

"I could hear you breathe," grunted the former villain.

"There goes my dramatic entrance," she sighed loudly. She set herself on the bed of cushions alongside Zapper. Close enough to be heard without yelling but far enough to be away from his massive arms. "Those fools. They have no idea what we're up do."

"Do you?" snarled the raccoon. "From what I hear, Chimera likes keeping you all in the dark."

A giggle escaped her and she lifted her delicate fingers to cover her pale lips. "Oh that's cute. You honestly believe that drivel? Lesser Gene Stealers like you are kept in the dark. The four of us know what he plans. Why would we ally ourselves with him otherwise?"

Zapper lifted his arm and gave it one, big flex. The enormous bicep twice as big as a man's head bulged with veins thick enough to put most power lines to shame. "All this power? The ability to leave behind your Outsider origins and become true supers like me?" He flashed her a grin. "Face it. I'm what you want to become."

Spider Queen sighed softly, giving Zapper a pitying smile and shaking her head. "Oh you poor, deluded fool. You honestly think that you're important? You're a reject. Even one little nick_and your regeneration starts going wild and you become a bloated, disgusting mass of semen and muscle with less intelligence than a feral rabbit in heat." She waved a hand in his direction dismissively, turning her head away from him just so that he knew that he was beneath her and her interest was waning. "No matter what Dragon Knight tells you, you are not important. There is only _one reason why he dots on you and the others in this... zoo."

She waved another hand around her, gesturing at the Menagerie as a whole. "Do you know who Dragon Knight was before he became the Black Dragon?" There was no response from Zapper and she took that as a means to continue. Though she left him waiting for an entire minute just to irk him. "Dragon Knight was a petty thief. He broke into homes, stole things and left. He wasn't very good at it either. But when he developed his powers to create portals, he started to dream big. He made a string of robberies in his home town. Then he hit the big city and then came his biggest mistake ever."

A laugh escaped her as she run one of her sharp nails across the silky fabric of the cushions. "He ran into a guard while he was trying to rob a bank. He panicked and killed the man. He had never killed before then and he broke down. Capturing him was easy after that and he was sentenced to death."

Zapper frowned at him. "Death? Capital punishment has been outlawed in the States since about four hundred years ago. The world three hundred."

Spider Queen gave the raccoon a smile. "Indeed." She flexed her fingers, absently admiring her nails. "Chimera saved him before he could be injected with a lethal cocktail. Broke him out and gave him the Dragon Strain. We know Chimera can give you a different form and baseline superpowers. He can't grant you superpowers but he can give you the building blocks to it. Even without Shark Tamer, he was able to make all of us."

"And still you doubt him."

Those words made her chuckle. "I do not doubt. I know what I want. But sometimes, you must know why." Her eyes turned towards Zapper, a cruel smile on her lips. "So don't you want to know why, Zachariah? Why did Dragon Knight save you from that facility? Why has he been showering 'love' and 'affection' on you all this time? Why are you so special compared to the hundreds of other souls within this facility all baying for his attention?"

Zapper's lips pursed and that was all the prompting Spider Queen needed. Slowly and soundlessly, she rose to her feet, looming over him just by a foot or so. Even sitting down, Zigzag-Zapper was still about six feet tall.

"You aren't special. Like the others, you're a reject that he takes pity on. He knows what it's like to be downtrodden and the only reason he is showering you with all of this..." She swept her arms to indicate the Tent. "... is because of some bizarre moral obligation he has." Cupping one hand around her ear, she said, "Do you hear the others baying for him? They have all_fallen in love with _the Dragon Knight. When the true Dragon Knight is done with you, he will lock you up in one of his cells, trapped in your delusion that he is in love with you while he completely converts some poor soul to become his Thrall and uses that fake to occupy you and keep you in your perpetual, primal bliss. He does not love you. He doesn't even care about you. The only thing he wants is to alleviate some baseless guilt he feels over 'ruining your life'." She covered the last three words with air quotes.

Zapper snarled and rose, his enormous thighs wider than her waist rubbing against one another. "I do not love him. Don't make that mistake. I am just biding my time. Learning from what he can teach so that I can bust out of here and -"

"Get revenge against Feral Steel?"

"And Weapons Master," snarled the raccoon.

Smiling broadly, Spider Queen stepped aside and revealed a device that she had been hiding within the folds of her dress. "Then let me offer you that way out." She tossed the device at the ground. The small, glass orb immediately shattered. A shimmering, blue portal appeared in front of them, big enough to allow the titanic Zapper to fit through.

"Did you know that when an Original is first created, it actually takes a little bit of time before they become infectious?" Spider Queen asked, a cruel smile on her lips. "I'm sure enough time has now passed to allow you to create your own little army."

"How do I make lieutenants?" Zapper growled, slowly approaching the portal.

"I do not know. Maybe Chimera does but you will never reach him." She grew pensive for a moment, recalling how easily Chimera had controlled a raging Wendigo. "Everyone has their own methods of transformation. It is hard to tell what yours will be but experiment. Learn. Gnoll created lieutenants by applying small doses of his laughter over time. Minos did so by creating personalised imagery. Ursa does so by expanding the time between when the virus is injected to when he activates it. You..." She sized him up and shrugged. "I can only guess."

Zapper snorted. "Whatever. I'll figure it out."

Smiling broadly, Spider Queen gave Zigzag-Zapper an exaggerated wave. "Good luck."

******

It was nine thirty by the time the photo shoot had finished. Jacques looked incredibly frazzled by the end of it, his dyed, blonde hair frizzy and unkempt. The Canadian had practically shoved Matilda out of the way as he examined the photographs he had taken, constantly pointing out the ones he wanted for the features and covers. He even threatened to quit if they chose something else.

Somehow, the cover photo that they had chosen gave Caleb the impression that he really was becoming the 'front man' of Arsenal. He didn't mind. Being the star receiver of the West California High Raptors meant he got a lot of attention and being on the front cover of a magazine stroked his ego nicely. He was practically strutting back towards Ballistic once the night drew to a close.

"That was some pretty inspired work, you know," Lars said with a broad grin. "Honestly, I thought you were going to be stiff and unresponsive through the whole thing. I was going to jump on set and kiss you to make you loosen up."

Admittedly, that would have made for an interesting shot as well. "Damn. And here I am all hyena."

Lars pushed up against him, running his paws across Caleb's thick forearms and coarse, tan, spotted fur. "Not that I mind. I love you. No matter what shape you take."

He gently pushed Lars away with a snort. "Now you're just being cheesy."

"Hey, you suggested kissing when the ball drops at New Years! I figure that's worth at least ten cheesy lines."

"Fine." Caleb pointed at his boyfriend with a mocking snarl that was quickly turning into a grin. "But now you only get..."

A bright, red light with the intensity of the sun suddenly bathed them both. Turning towards the source, Caleb saw an enormous, disc of red light appearing high above the city, relatively close to the Elemental Tower.

"... nine..."

"Is that...?" Lars began, squinting against the light. "Is that a portal?"

One way portals coloured blue for entrances and red for exits. Two-way portals were always green. As an exit, something was expected to come out of the disc of red light. Whatever it was, however, must've fallen from the immense height where the portal hovered because just a second later, the gateway began to close. Within seconds of its appearance, the mysterious anomaly was gone.

Caleb exchanged glances with Lars, both boys sharing the same confused stares.

Then the first peel of thunder rippled through. Deep within the city, bolts of bright, golden lightning shot high into the sky. The peace of the night was broken. Sirens began wailing. Caleb's phone began playing 'Waiting for You'.

Neither of them hesitated as Caleb leapt onto Ballistic, his massive weight as a hyena causing the vehicle to groan softly. He kicked up the ignition and switched on Weapons Mode. A second later, Weapons Master and Flare Blue were zooming out of an alleyway in the middle of the CBD and towards the Elemental Tower.

An enormous pillar of golden lightning shot from deep within the forest of concrete and glass, piercing the night sky. Another similar bolt shot right through a nearby building more like a blade of pure electricity than wild lightning. Ten floors worth of skyscraper were severed from the rest of the building at an angle, causing the large slabs to start sliding down towards the ground.

"Holy shit!" Caleb shouted.

The portion of skyscraper was halted in its descent by a nimbus of ethereal, blue light.

"Don't worry. Hocus has got it," Lars responded. "Whoever this guy is must be insane to be attacking so close to the Tower."

Already the streets were starting to get clogged with civilians clamouring in panic away from the devastation occurring around them. The air simply sizzled with electricity. Caleb's communicator began spouting static at him as he drew closer and closer to the epicentre of the destruction. Another blade of lightning sliced through a building. The roar of concrete, glass and whatever else was contained within the building collapsing under its own weight overcame the shots of static that snapped at his ears.

A blast of golden lightning shot overhead, just barely missing Lars. The Doberman gave him a thumbs up to indicate he was fine.

A drop of water landed on Caleb's visor, making him briefly glance at the sky. Dark thunderheads gathered around the source of the crackling lightning. Rain fell. Natural lightning began snapping between the clouds, crackling but still dulled by the booms and crashes it the bigger, more violent golden counterparts.

Joining the pitter-patter of rain and the roar of thunder were the cries of hundreds of crows. They flocked around the battlefield, circling the source of the mayhem. Bolts of lightning peeled through their ranks and he could dozens of them falling to the ground as charred corpses. Like a slowly tightening noose, the crows began closing in until the air was rife with them and the beating of their wings blocked even the rain.

"Shockstorm," Caleb whispered to himself, watching the bolts of lightning between the clouds. The droplets of rain pooled on the road but didn't stay there for long. The moment they hit the ground, they shot towards the battlefield. "Siren." He switched on the Time-Space Fold Engine, bypassing the crowds that had started to stop and stare at the amazing display of various powers. "Hocus and I think Nightingale... That's four of the more powerful supers in the Alliance. Two founders... What the hell could be keeping them at bay?"

The air began to sizzle and crackle. Caleb's danger senses began to scream at him and he accelerated. He took a sharp turn at an intersection with Lars just above him. Directly in front of them dozens of cars had been overturned. All streetlamps and sources of light had been blown apart leaving the street in near darkness save for the throbbing, pulsating golden light down the street. That very same light seemed to suddenly shrink and fade.

"Did they win...?" Caleb asked.

BOOM!

An enormous wall of electrical energies erupted from down the street; surges of lightning so tightly compacted that they formed a single field of undulating, electrical energies. The wall advanced, crashing down the street. Windows shattered just half a second before the lightning crossed. Upturned cars erupted the moment it passed adding flames and smoke to the chaos. Somehow, the force of the wall could even pick up pieces of debris and carry it down the street.

Caleb didn't get a second the scream...

... not that he needed to.

An uprooted streetlamp passed right through his ethereal frame, disappearing into to mayhem behind him. Like passing from one world to another, Caleb found himself suddenly in a hellish landscape of fire, cracked earth and desolated buildings.

"Lars..." he whispered. He spun Ballistic around. "Blue! Flare Blue!"

A soft cough came from his communicator. "I'm fine... Ducked inside a building... Shit, who the hell is this guy?"

Caleb took one second to sigh in relief. "I'll find out. You coming?"

"Give me a second. Not all of us have the benefit of five minutes of complete invulnerability."

"Speaking of which..." Caleb switched off the Time-Space Fold Engine and turned back towards the battlefield. He advanced slowly, wary of another wave of electricity. Other people had thought along the same vein as Lars and ducked between the buildings or hid within the shattered structures to avoid the lightning. They were slowly emerging, peering with fear at the golden light that emanated from the centre of the battlefield.

Caleb stopped Ballistic.

"Oh shit..."

A large crater took up the middle of the street, smoking and freshly made. On the rims, sprawled with his robes scorched to pure blackness was Hocus. The owl was unconscious with Nightingale standing above him. The conscious avian had his left arm hanging loosely while the other barely held a thin, silvery katana. All the feathers had been burned off his injured arm, leaving only charred, black and pink flesh. Just beside them, Siren lay in Shockstorm's arms, barely conscious and her eyes wide.

The source of the mayhem...

A truck sized raccoon with golden stripes and lightning crackling all over his body.

Zigzag-Zapper.

The supervillain was hovering over several civilians that he had captured, stroking his enormous erection over one of the men. The bright, pink, veiny erection was as big as a tree trunk both length wise and width wise but Zapper held it easily in one paw capable of crushing a man's head.

"Awww fuuuuck," groaned Zapper. His balls tightened. A thick stream of cum shot from the tip of his cock and splattered all over the civilians he had captured. The force of the blast was enough to knock the five men back a few feet. Zapper shook his head with a snort and stared at the men who were coughing and spluttering as they wiped the white gunk off their faces. "Come on, damnit! Change already!"

"Change...?" Caleb whispered softly, removing his helmet.

Zapper's triangular ears perked and his bright, yellow eyes turned towards Caleb. Spreading his thick arms, the raccoon grinned broadly. "Ah! The man of the hour! Weapons Master!"

The supers of the Elemental Alliance turned, worry in their eyes.

"What... are you doing here, wannabe?" Siren sneered. "This is no place for Outsiders."

Caleb ignored her and stepped off Ballistic. His hulking form easily pushed past the smaller Shockstorm who cradled his wife with more affection that he had ever shown Lars. Shockstorm gave Caleb a frown and said, "Be careful."

Standing at the lip of the crater, Caleb balled his fists and refrained from attacking. "I thought you were locked away."

"You should know," Zapper laughed. "Nothing can keep a good supervillain down!"

Caleb scoffed at that. "A good supervillain. Right." He lifted his paws into a fighting position, ominous walls of white bone rising behind him. "I beat you once. I can beat you again."

A loud laugh left the raccoon and the sounds even reached Caleb, Zapper was suddenly in front of the young wolf-turned-hyena, lightning crackling all over his body. "I know your tricks. I'm not going to fall for them again. And besides... I have back up."

Caleb glanced at the civilians who were still covered in the racoon's cum but starting to crawl away. "To me, it looks like you're all alone."

Zapper turned towards the retreating men. The moment his eyes were turned away from Caleb, the Outsider pounced. He threw a powerful punch. Though nowhere near as strong as a super, with his added mass from being a hyena, it was enough to knock the wind out of Zapper's lungs. Add to that the huge surge of white bone that formed a fist and smashed the raccoon's nose and the villain was hurled all the way across to the other side of the crater.

The raccoon snarled at him, blood dripping from his nostrils. His eyes grew more feral as his rapid regeneration healed the wound and began overcompensating. Already engorged muscles ballooned out. Shoulders the size of bowling balls surged against strained flesh, pushing pulsating veins to bursting point. When Zapper rose, he was pushing eleven feet tall.

"Dirty trick." The raccoon growled. "But I've been training. I'll beat you before you can hit me again." Lightning encased his body. "And if there's one thing I know about you heroes: it's that the civilians come first!"

It took a second for Caleb to realise what Zapper meant. "No!"

Nightingale was suddenly moving and the black shadow swept towards the five civilians that were just making their way to the crater. The avian could only put himself between Zapper and the men before the bolt of lightning collided with his body. Nightingale let out a cry of agony as thousands of volts coursed through his body. His entire body began emitting acrid smoke as he fell to his knees, barely keeping himself from passing out.

"Don't you just wish you were that fast?" laughed Zapper.

"Don't you just wish you were fireproof!?"

The cry heralded a rain of fire. Zigzag-Zapper snarled as the blasts of flame collided with his body, forcing more and more of his overbearing regeneration to pump more and more mass into his muscles. His thighs creaked loudly as they grew, forcing him to stand with them apart. Zapper let out an unnatural, feral roar. Lightning coalesced around him, forming a tight sphere around his body. He gave another shout and the sphere rapidly expanded. Lars' bolts of flame were brushed aside by the sphere before it dissipated.

"Not gonna lose!" Zapper roared.

"You lost then and you will lose now!"

Fifteen foot long poles of metal descended from the sky spearing the ground just inches away from Zapper's bare feet. The raccoon let out a loud yelp and danced backwards as the spears chased him back to the lip of the crater. The sudden change in terrain caused him to trip backwards and fall flat on his broad back. More of the spears pierced his paws, pinning him to the ground.

Hovering above Caleb, David and Lars crossed their arms, glaring at the supervillain.

Zapper's growth intensified and the sheer power of his muscles broke the rods pinning him to the ground. Just one flesh of his arms and his paws snapped the metal bars. He rose, barely capable of speech. The raccoon threw his head back and let out a vicious roar. Golden light emanated from deep within his throat, lightning dancing between his fangs. He threw his head forward, letting out a loud roar.

Caleb leapt away from the concentrated beam of lightning that cut through the air. He recognised it as the same beam that had sliced the buildings and caused so much devastation.

He glanced back towards Ballistic and wondered if he could use _Crude Claw_to douse Zapper in oil and get Lars to burn him. It was a cruel way to dispatch the raccoon but with the potential for destruction the villain had, he didn't want to risk any more people getting hurt. One look at the barely conscious Nightingale confirmed his fears.

He rose -

Just as Zapper flung his paws towards the civilians. A bolt of lightning struck the closest man square on the back, hurling the poor civilian into the others.

"No!"

"So much for being heroes!" laughed the villain.

Now he really wanted to douse the guy in oil and set him ablaze. Caleb growled... but his growl was met by another's.

"Oh shit! Oh shit! What's happening to him!?"

The man that had been hit was convulsing. Teeth gnashed tightly and his body twitching, the victim stood, throwing his head back while his eyes were firmly shut. Bolts of golden electricity danced all over his body, stimulating the muscles into consuming every ounce of fat in his body and converting them into raw mass. Thick, grey fur spread across his arms rapidly, shooting into his shirt. Those very same bolts wrapped around his arms, ballooning them to the size of watermelons.

The man lurched forward with the sudden weight. His back took that as a cue to embrace the changes. Electricity erupted all over his spine, lengthening every vertebrae and added a few extra feet to his height. The remnants of his shirt peeled away to reveal a coat of thick, grey fur. The seat of his pants exploded in a flurry of lightning and the shredded ribbons of his jeans. A thick, furry tail marked with golden zigzags lashed out behind him accompanied by a firm, muscular butt.

"No way..." Caleb gawked.

The victim threw his head back, letting out a roar. Eyes open, the man's human features stretched and reshaped themselves into the typical masked appearance of a racoon. The man huffed loudly, his new shape erasing the last vestiges of his humanity. With the loss of his pants, his wild, fourteen inch cock throbbed between his legs, every bolt of electricity that jumped from his body stimulating it.

"Looks like I found my infection method," laughed Zapper. "Shocking, isn't it?"

Before Caleb could say anything, Zapper was hurling bolts at the remaining civilians. David and Lars were suddenly there, throwing themselves in the way of the bolts and taking the attacks. Shockstorm gently lowered his wife onto the ground and attempted to aid, using his own powers to send the bolts flying. But behind them, the newly transformed raccoon pounced on the fleeing civilians, the lightning emanating from his body striking them and starting the transformation.

"This is bad!" Caleb exclaimed. He drew on Funny Bone's powers -

Then felt a sharp, jabbing pain across his shoulders like hot needles being jabbed into his flesh. He collapsed onto his knees, clutching his armoured arms. Funny Bone shook against him. The weapon was losing its integrity. Even persistent weapons would eventually collapse into nothingness if he wasn't careful. They regenerated slowly over the course of a day but he had just used Funny Bone for the photo shoot and now in battle...

He needed to get to Ballistic.

He tried to rise but the pain in his felt like someone had applied a spiked weight into his shoulders. The pain came from Funny Bone itself. He wanted to tear it off but his arms were paralysed with agony.

"What's wrong there, puppy?" came Zapper's laugh. The raccoon's shadow loomed over him. "Not so tough against a full blown Original and a super, are ya?" Zapper's huge paw seized Caleb's collar and lifted him easily off the ground. The now fourteen foot titan grinned maniacally. "Do you know one of my favourite moves when I was a supervillain."

The raccoon lifted his gargantuan paw. Thick fingers wrapped completely around Caleb's head, engulfing it from muzzle to the back of his head. Between the gapes of those fingers, Caleb could see his father, Lars and Shockstorm fighting back to back against the five electrified raccoons Zapper had produced. Each victim was eight feet tall, brimming with muscles and from the looks of their pulsating cocks, extremely horny.

"I would grab the poor saps' head just like this," Zapper said. "And electrify them. It's just like the electric chair of old. Except I get to hold them while they scream, their limbs convulse and their flesh burns right beneath my paws."

"NO!" David shouted. A spear of metal erupted from the ground beside Zapper, making for his arm. The raccoon deftly jumped to the right and smashed the metal bar with one arm.

Caleb was swung through the air, held up high for David to see.

"I'll enjoy making you watch your son fry beneath my paws, Feral Steel."

Caleb, eyes wide in horror, reached out his father and Lars. The two canines couldn't make it past the raccoons. Lars just barely got one paw out before one of the coons slammed its jaws around it and he was forced back.

"Say goodnight, Weapons Master."

Thud.

A black paw fell on Zapper's vascular forearms.

"It is not yet his time to die."

All eyes, even the newly made raccoons, turned to the tall, jet-black wolf with the glowing, ethereal wings erupting from his back.

Arcturus... the Hound of Death.

"Who the fuck are you!?" Zapper growled. "You know what? Fuck it! Get out of my way!" Zapper threw a punch - only for Arcturus to lift one paw. Despite the wolf's paw being about five time smaller than Zapper's fist, the raccoon's punch stopped upon contact with the Hound's paw.

Zapper's eyes widened in horror.

"I am Arcturus. I am the Hound of Death. I am also the acting Hound of Destruction." Arcturus opened his eyes, completely white with power. "My Lord God Shin-Lazar has decreed that it is not yet this wolf's time to die."

Zapper's lips peeled back. "I was never a religious man! So you can go and fuck yourself!" He took a step back... and suddenly sunk down about a foot. The stunned raccoon glanced towards his right leg... where a blue portal opened.

"I never considered myself religious either," came the deep, resonating voice. "But when a demigod tells you to back off it is wise to do as they say."

Caleb somehow managed to turn his head ever so slightly to look at the new speaker. His eyes boggled at the sight of the big, black pure dragon dressed in similarly black armour. Dragon Knight stood there whether as a Thrall or as the Original. But it was Dragon Knight. The pure dragon spread his enormous, webbed wings dwarfing his impressive seven foot nine height with their mighty twenty foot wingspan in total. His ivory horns that jutted just behind his pointed ears and from the back of his jaw were the only break in his pure black appearance. Except perhaps his piercing, green eyes.

"I beat you," Arcturus said with a smile.

Dragon Knight shrugged, folding his wings. "Supers like to consider themselves like gods. But in comparison, they are little more than that. Imagine what I must be."

Caleb glanced from Arcturus and the Gene Stealer... He tried to say something but Zapper still held his muzzle.

"We do not know one another," Arcturus replied, eyes still on Dragon Knight. "In most ways, he is still an enemy. He clouds my vision of the future. However, while I cannot see him, I can see where he will be because of the destruction he will cause." He gave Caleb a smile. "One of the many advantages of having the portfolios of both Death and Destruction."

"Huh?" Caleb murmured.

"Now is not the time for that," said the Hound, waving a paw absently. He turned to Zapper, eyes half-closed with expectation. "Last chance, Zachariah. Release him. Now."

"You hold no power over me," growled Zapper.

Arcturus laughed. He actually sounded truly amused. "I do not need power over you. I just need to overpower you." The Hound glanced back towards Dragon Knight. "And between the two of us, that will be a simple task."

Dragon Knight rolled his shoulder ominously. Again, he spread his wings. "First one to make him squeal wins."

"Define 'squeal'," Arcturus replied. "Does it sound like this!?"

Zapper suddenly let out a high-pitched cry that sounded a lot like a balloon deflating. He finally let go of Caleb who dropped onto the ground with a loud whump. Zapper reached for his balls where one of Arcturus' paws was sunk deep into it, seizing it in his god-powered, vice-like grip.

"Not what I had in mind," Dragon Knight responded. "Honestly, I thought it would be more something along these lines." The Gene Stealer waved his clawed hand absently. The portal that had Zapper's thick calf stuck in it abruptly closed. The fourteen foot raccoon let out a loud wail as he staggered away, clutching the bloody stump of his leg. Though the flesh already began to knit together and reform the leg and his body continued to grow, his cry was both deafening and horrifying.

The Hound of Death let out an understanding noise. "Ah. Now I understand." Arcturus launched himself at Zapper, seizing the villain's good leg. They both became a blur of black and grey, barely visible as they travelled up the side of a ruined building. Zapper let out a scream as he was dangled by his leg upside down on the edge of the dilapidated structure.

"I'll survive this!" shouted the supervillain.

Arcturus said something that made the raccoon's masked face lose its snarl and turn in horror at the ground. The concrete ripped open but instead of the plumping and earth beneath what was revealed was a horrific array of teeth and a gaping maw of nothingness accompanied by lashing, black tentacles eager for the raccoon.

Zapper let out a strange broken scream; every second he let out a hiccup between his cry. That cry grew consisted when Arcturus dropped him. The supervillain turned Gene Stealer screamed and flailed. He just squeezed his eyes shut when a blue portal appeared beneath him and he slipped through, leaving the monstrous maw empty before it quickly closed up. Zapper dropped beside Dragon Knight still screaming.

"Close," conceded the draconic Gene Stealer. "However he wasn't completely terrified. I heard him taking breaths in between."

On his glowing wings, Arcturus slowly lowered himself on the opposite side of the horrified Zapper. Like hot needles being jabbed into his flesh. "Such a shame. I get another turn."

The intelligence in the raccoon's eyes were slowly giving way to the primal beast inside as more and more muscle built. Instincts took over. Fight or flight. And it was in favour of flight. Zapper had curled his long tail around himself, arms over his face and quivering. ""

"Now that would just not be fair," Dragon Knight countered. "It's my turn. You'll tell me if this sounds like the perfect mix of abject terror, uncontrollable bowel movements and hysteria."

"So we were trying to make him defecate himself?" Arcturus asked, arms folded.

Dragon Knight raised his thumb and forefinger to be in inch apart. "Just a little bit."

On cue, a portal appeared under the frightened raccoon. Another red portal quickly appeared about fifty storeys above them and Zapper fell through with a scream. Arcturus lifted one eyebrow, challenging the simplicity of the threat. When another portal appeared beneath Zapper, a blue one, the Hound of Death began to smile a little. Zapper fell through the blue and emerged from the red again, fifty storeys off the ground. Suddenly caught in an infinite loop, Zapper could only flail and scream. The villain's instincts sent bolts of lightning crashing in all directions, threatening those around him.

Dragon Knight had a remedy for that, however. Just as his prey was falling out of the red portal, it closed and it reopened as a green. It only took a second before an enormous torrent of water exploded out of the green portal and chased down Zapper right into the awaiting blue portal just a few inches from the ground. The green instantly closed just as Zapper fell through and a red one took its place. Gallons of water was suddenly caught in the same infinite loop as the raccoon. The raccoon trust to use his electricity to free himself just on pure instinct. Bolts of golden lightning danced all over the endless waterfall of water, electrocuting everything within it - including Zigzag Zapper.

"Impressive," Arcturus said. "Sadly, I cannot hear him scream."

"Ah but the beauty of fear is also in the notes unsung," Dragon Knight answered, brushing his chin thoughtfully. "After all, there is no more satisfying terror than when a man is so frightened that they cannot even muster the will to scream."

"Point taken." Arcturus stepped forward and waved his paws absently. The flow of water suddenly veered away from its set path, carrying Zapper gently to the ground. Coughing up water and grateful for the air, Zapper clamoured desperately away from the two. The flood of water suddenly closed in around him. A soft whimper left the villain's muzzle. Tendrils of water reached out from the ring of water. Like a massive, grey boulder, Zapper curled into a ball, shying away from the advancing tendrils. When a hand formed from the water, Zapper shut his eyes.

The hand gently began caressing the back of Zapper's head... and the raccoon prised his eyes open. Connected to the hand was an arm... and that arm reshaped itself into the visage of a human woman. Every ounce of water took on the visage of this very same female. She looked almost angelic as she hovered there, one hand gently cupping Zapper's chin and pulling him from his fear.

"Mother..." the raccoon whispered. "... Mommy. Parent. Safe."

The woman nodded... smiling brightly...

Then her face twisted, growing angular and with fangs erupting from between her lips. Her nails grew sharp and though they were made of water, they still raked across Zapper's flesh and made him scream in terror. The raccoon backpedalled away from the horrifying woman that grew to about his size with dozens of clawed arms jutting from her serpentine length, all reaching for him. A forked tongue lashed out between her lips as her hollow eyes glowed red.

Dragon Knight applauded, giving a nod of approval. "Playing with his psyche. I hadn't thought of that. He barely made a sound."

"Hope is what gives mortals a voice," answered the Hound. "Take away hope and they will fall silent."

"Silence... Hmmm..." Dragon Knight smiled. "You have given me some inspiration." The dragon folded his arms behind his back. "This will win me our little competition. Will you honour your agreement?"

Arcturus just gave a little nod.

Smiling, Dragon Knight said, "Perhaps we have been approaching this all wrong. Silence is the key. But perhaps the greatest terror, as you so expertly put it, is one spawned from hopelessness. And where is there little to no hope... than space?"

A portal opened right beneath Zapper but this was unlike any other portal Caleb had ever seen. Though ringed by the same blue energies of other portals, the location beyond was clearly visible through the other side. Truly stable portals were a rarity and required a lot of energy to maintain. He didn't get a moment to consider the extent of Dragon Knight's power to create such a portal before he saw the emptiness of outer space beyond the portal. The vacuum suddenly began greedily sucking everything around it into the emptiness of space. Zapper let out a scream but was abruptly cut short, silenced, by the roar of all the air rushing into portal. The raccoon had enough sense to seize the edges of the portal, just _barely_keeping himself from falling through even though most of his body was already subjected into the world beyond.

Caleb dug his claws into the ground and held onto a piece of upturned concrete as debris flew straight into the portal. Thick metal bands wrapped around his arms and waist, keeping him in place. He glanced over to his father who had likewise bound the others. The cowering raccoons were barely keeping their own footing before David used the moment of distraction to bind them down as well.

Arcturus, unaffected by the laws of physics, merely sighed and shook his head. "You win." He strode over to Zapper, reached through the portal and yanked Zapper by his neck back through the portal with no effort. The portal closed instantly and he dropped the cowering, pale and horrified raccoon on the ground.

"I'm glad you see things my way," Dragon Knight responded, striding towards Zapper. "Now we'll be on our way." A blue portal appeared behind him -

"Wait!" Shockstorm shouted. He, like the others, were pinned to the ground by David's metal bands. As the metal began to shrink away, the Doberman staggered to his feet. "That asshole destroyed a good part of the city _and_injured hundreds of people! Are you just going to let him get away with that freak!?"

Arcturus shrugged. "It was our agreement."

"Fuck your agreement!"

Caleb had never seen such animation from Lars' father before and it frightened him a little.

Shockstorm marched over to Arcturus, jabbing a finger at the slimmer wolf. "You're a fucking demigod! It's your duty to keep these bastards from getting away! If you're not going to stop them, then I will!" As he turned, Arcturus seized his shoulder.

"My duty is the preservation of the cycle of life and death. Just as I stopped Zachariah from killing Weapons Master because such an act would lead to more deaths, I must now stop you in preventing them from leaving for that _too_will lead to more deaths."

"Unhand me!"

Big, shimmering spears of blue light erupted from the ground around Shockstorm. Glowing manacles of the same light wrapped around the Doberman's wrists and ankles, preventing him from moving.

"I am the Hound of Death and Destruction," Arcturus intoned, his voice growing deeper and more ominous. "Stopping them from leaving with bring about more destruction than you could ever hope to repair."

"What the fuck are you talking about!?"

Dragon Knight snorted loudly. Portals appeared beneath Zapper and the raccoons, all of them slowly vanishing into their folds. "Chimera and the others may not care about Zigzag-Zapper but I do. I am important to their plans, however. Without me, they are incredibly hampered. If I were to be captured, they would raise hell and raze heaven to get to me. And you can rest assured that I would not go down so easily." The Gene Stealer's eyes narrowed. "After all, I doubt even your prowess as a super could see you survive when you are dumped into the centre of the sun."

Shockstorm growled and pulled back, his muzzle wrinkled in disgust.

Dragon Knight nodded towards Arcturus. "Thank you. For the warning and your assistance."

The Hound nodded. "Should circumstances see us allied once more, I look forward to another friendly competition. Outside that, expect no mercy."

The Gene Stealer smiled and entered his portal, disappearing into its embrace before it too winked out.

Arcturus released Shockstorm from his powers and took a step back from the super. "I will now allow the media to swarm this place. Tell them whatever story you wish. None of them know of what has occurred here. There are few witnesses. Have a good evening."

******

The media was left rather unsatisfied as no one - not the Elemental Alliance and certainly not the members of Arsenal - were forthcoming with the events that had transpired. When Arcturus departed, time just seemed to restart. Caleb heard the sirens again, the media choppers came flying in and Lance along with other members of the Alliance joined in the ended battle. Madman came in as well.

When Hocus regained consciousness, he mentioned that time seemed to have distorted. David speculated that Arcturus had somehow kept them all in some sort of stasis bubble, allowing them to fight and act normally while to everyone else barely a minute had passed. That explained how Madman - who was right behind David - hadn't arrived during the length of the entire battle.

Caleb shuddered at the level of power Arcturus truly possessed.

Bren ended up having to pick them up as Caleb still had the terrible numbing pain across his shoulders. The tiger brought in a big enough van to allow himself, Madman and David to step inside. Lars took Ballistic back to the Facility while Bren drove around a bit just to throw off anyone with any bugs and spies.

"Caleb, what happened?" David asked, rubbing his hyena son's shoulders. "One minute you were fine then the next you could barely move."

"I must be reaching Funny Bone's limit," Caleb grumbled softly. "Used it all day during the photo shoot and then in battle... Can barely move my arms."

"Is it getting better?" Madman asked, looking genuinely concerned. Then he said something that broke his air of concern. "Need me to cum on you?"

David shot him a foul stare while saying, "Can you change back?"

"Don't think I have the strength for it right now," Caleb admitted. "Just need to rest." He groaned softly as he leaned against the walls of the van. "Dad... Zapper... Dragon Knight."

David nodded gravely and he exchanged glances with Madman who likewise shared his concerned look.

"I know son. It means that the Gene Stealers can change supers. They just choose not to."

"But why send Zapper?" Madman asked. "Arcturus said that Dragon Knight was pissed... did someone send him ahead of schedule or something...?"

Caleb regarded his transformed paws, still shaking slightly from the pain. "And what about the bear strain...?"

******

"What the hell was that!?"

Shark Tamer drummed his fingers on the console for just a few more seconds, leaving Ursa to wait a little. Spider Queen had been giddy the entire time since Dragon Knight returned. She absolutely enjoyed watching the former thief rage. That Zigzag Zapper now had several other raccoons to keep him company and was now nearly comatose with fear didn't help with the Knight's mood. Still, she was excited and Shark Tamer couldn't help but feel the same sense of excitement.

Slowly, the geneticist turned around, grinning as Gabriel Ramos stormed into his lab using one of the many portable portals that he had invented. It was used specifically to bring the field agents of the Gene Stealers to one of the four main locations they had as their base of operations. None of them were ever granted access to Chimera's Geneheart unless accompanied by one of the prime four.

"You mean that?" Spider Queen asked, gesturing at the screens. Shockstorm was giving a statement about the events, being his usual superhero self and downplaying the damage while inflating his own meagre achievements. "It's progress."

"Progress!?" Gabe roared, shaking his big, furry fist. "You could've had my sons killed! They were still at the hospital!"

"Oh were they?" Spider Queen loved theatrics and batted her eyes at Gabe. "My mistake."

"My ass!" snapped Gabe. "That was intentional! I told you, I've done what you asked. You gave me formula to fix my sons! Our partnership is over!"

Shark Tamer butted in before Spider Queen could continue to antagonise Ursa. "How are your sons, by the way? Still taking one pill per day?"

"They're fine," snarled Gabe. "And if you so much as get within a ten block radius of them, I'll..."

"You'll what?" taunted Spider Queen. "Your powers as an Outsider aren't really as devastating as say... Gnoll's or even Minos'. What is it that you can do anyway?" She let out a laugh while flicking her fingers at him. "Oh that's right. You have the power to make your food _extra_delicious."

"Now, now," Shark Tamer began, easing the two titans. "It's more complex than that. Ursa has the ability to enhance an object's properties. He could make steel indestructible or acid so powerful that it could eat through anything. That he uses it to enhance the taste of his food to divine levels is none of our business."

Spider Queen let out a loud sigh and rolled her eyes. "Sounds a lot like what Weapons Master does except his is more pathetic. You don't create weapons of mass destruction. You just enhance what makes something that thing." Her eyes narrowed while a cruel smile crossed her features. "How is dear old Caleb Hale by the way? I heard he's invited you over to Crossover."

Ursa's fists clenched. "If you think I'm going to do you any favours by turning his family -"

Rising from his seat, Shark Tamer waved Gabriel down. "Now, now. As you said, our partnership is over. We thank you for your assistance in bringing down the Reacher Corporation and testing the Gen 3 strains. It is much appreciated. I feel that we have actually gotten the greater half of that deal. So I'll tell you what..."

Reaching into the pocket of his lab coat, he took out a little vial filled with a sickly, brown liquid. "Here is the Original Serum for the Ursa Strain. Use it however you will. Give it to Caleb Hale to cure those people that have fallen prey to your actions. Keep it. Perhaps use it to strengthen your sons even more. Oh wait!" Shark Tamer clicked his fingers and reached back into his pocket. "You have two sons. So here."

He held out two vials.

"They are yours to keep, my friend. Thank you for your cooperation."

Ursa took the vial, regarding them warily. "What's the catch?"

"No catch," Shark Tame responded as he turned back towards his monitors. He purposefully waited for Ursa to turn before he said, "Although... Since we are no longer working together... I suggest you find a way off West California Island. You are no enemy, Gabriel. But neither are you an ally."

He flashed the panda a big, toothy smile.

"You might get caught in the way of progress."