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Toonium City - QC Planet

APQC-GP-05 Elemental Unity By Darrel James Vanwinkle (Ratseye/Pouchlaw) Re-Written on 06/01/2014

"Nexus Town is a strange place, Infernal," stated Captain Rabbit as he walked with the heroic Hell Hound, Captain Ace, and Arnie who was staying close to his best friend. "How much of your youth did you spend here?" In reply, Infernal said, "Not a lot, in truth. My pack were often involved in pack land disputes and after a complication during what should have been a common encounter, my mutant powers emerged and..." He shot a grin at the good rabbit. "...there wasn't enough T.P. in Hell after that." Everyone laughed when the Hell Hound said that.

Strange was an understatement for Nexus Town. All of the buildings were black while all of the edges of the buildings, including the doors and windows were outlined in magical purple or red neon ever flowing lines. It was like a head shop's psychedelic poster shop all over the place. True, there were plants, trees, and other colors to be had around the city, but overall, it felt as if they were walking through a black light poster's scenery. As they traveled down the street, however, various passers by would greet Infernal with smiles but the one who got the most attention was Arnie since it was rare to see a real human boy in Nexus Town.

After they had reached the ever popular Yuskay Groomers location, Arnie was given a professional examination and the sexy professional humanoid Hell Hounds were given the information about what had happened. Captain Rabbit had even brought a photo of Eagle Lord for the groomers to look at; front, side, top, and back views. The good captain then demonstrated the team transformation sequence so the pros could see how it worked in detail. After changing back into Captain Rabbit, he inquired as to how much re-empowering Arnie would cost.

"TEN THOUSAND CREDITS?!" he shouted, his ears rigidly twanged out from his head, his eyes wide, and his jaw dropped. He was panting hard after his outburst. "I don't have that kind of money!" He then looked at his dejected friend... "...but I know how to get it... I promised to help you get Eagle Lord back, old chum, and I won't renege on my word. And that means that I will have to ask Redears for a job. He did say all jobs he would get me were legal. I'll just ask him if he knows of a high profile job I can do to get the money."

Arnie immediately stopped him. "No! Please get the money some other way, Gerard. I don't trust that pirate. While it is true he hasn't attacked you after making that contract with him in Japanopolis, he had the agreement ready without thinking about it. You didn't have a lawyer present to examine the offer. He's up to something. I'm begging you; don't go to Redears."

"How badly do you want Eagle Lord back?" That question stopped Arnie cold. Ten thousand credits was more than Mr. Prince made in a year. But it was for a good cause: himself. He then closed his eyes with a tear beginning to leak down his face. "...very well, Gerard... do what you think you need to do. I'll wait here."

The rabbit hero knew to be cautious around Redears, but having Arnie lay the guilt trip on top of him at the same time wasn't making him feel any better about the situation. He had to get the money or Eagle Lord was never returning. "I'll return as soon as I can, Arnie. I am your friend no matter what happens." And then he turned to depart the shop.

After a well placed Infernal powered portal, Captain Rabbit arrived on the deck of Redear's pirate ship as it was being fired at by space mercenaries. "REDEARS! I NEED TEN THOUSAND CREDITS! I'LL GET THESE FOOLS OFF OF YOU IN EXCHANGE FOR THE MONEY!" From across the deck at the steering column, the red furred lapine pirate captain replied in a return shout, "IT'S A DEAL! GO GET THEM, CAPTAIN RABBIT!" And with a jump from the deck before more ship to ship firing could occur, the heroic rabbit flew directly at the mercenaries! Of course when they saw what was flying their way with a determined look on his muzzle, they tried to perform defensive maneuvers. Tried being the keyword.

Although this was the first time he had ever had to fight rogues solo, he was doing a good job. He had ruptured one ship, slammed two others directly into each other and the final ship was given a ship shaped enema from their own allies. Finally, Captain Rabbit grabbed the tail fin of the outer ship of the pile and spun around a few times like a spin cycle of a washing machine before releasing the load which sent it flying sideways into the darkness of space.

As he landed on the deck of the pirate ship, every crew mate was cheering and chanting his name. But he went directly to Redears who had Lonepaw standing with him. When he stopped, the pirate captain could see that the lapine hero's eyes were still pulsing in their non-human stance. "Hand over the money, Redears!" But as calm as ever, Redears met the stare and said, "Stand down, Captain Rabbit. My deal is with Gerard Prince; not Prince Willingham. Your eyes and voice are not his. Give control back to him or else I will call your sister myself."

Lonepaw added with a grin, "There is always time for chaos, Gerard. Don't let Alphonzo Tralfazworth win."

Captain Rabbit trembled and slowly collapsed down on his hands and knees as the hero grunted and moaned in mental agony until finally, he slowly lifted his head to look at the two lapine pirates. "...thanks... I don't know what happened... I've never lost control like that before." The captain reached forward and helped the rabbit to his feet. "The serum is reviving Prince Willingham inside your mind and body, matey. When I saw that you weren't in control just now, I had to challenge him and to get you back topside. My deal is with you, Gerard; not with Captain Rabbit. Heroes cannot accept money for good deeds; but you can. So why are you needing ten thousand credits all of a sudden?"

The now in control boy explained how his partner, Eagle Lord, had lost his powers and the Yuskay Groomer empowerment treatment had a whopping ten thousand credit price tag. Captain Redears politely listened to the whole story while Lonepaw regarded his love interest with a smile. Finally, the lapine pirate captain reached into one of his belt pouches and he produced what looked like a platinum movie ticket. "This is a Yuskay Groomers Platinum VIP Treatment ticket. One use only. It permits you and anyone with you to receive a VIP Extreme Works treatment in whatever way you and Arnie ask for. However, if you accept this from me, there is something special I want you to get the groomers to do for you. Those hounds are pros at their craft, matey. First, hand off the All-Stars to Timesheart Tiger and his friends and explain that you need out of the leadership position for a while. Then go to the groomers and show them this ticket. Ask them to get to work on Arnie and once he is out of the room and out of earshot, you ask the head groomer to split Prince Willingham aka Captain Rabbit out of your body and resurrect him to his own life. This will, of course, temporarily remove his powers from you. However, get the groomers to replace the void inside you with an all new lapine hero body, whatever colors you want, in the style and size of my crew mates. You will have three transformation sequences instead of two. You will go from Human to Crew Rabbit and standard crew outfit to Rabbit Lord with the costume design of your choice. The whole reason for doing it in this way will return full control over to you, Gerard. Otherwise Captain Rabbit will eventually usurp control away from you and your humanity would be crapped out in serum form like liquid shit."

The aspect of the rabbit prince taking over made him make a horrid twisted muzzle expression. But the captain continued to speak regardless. "Captain Rabbit's home world is a xenophobic place where only lapines are allowed on planet. Once he took control away from you, he would do whatever he could to return to his home planet. And I don't need to tell you that there is no yellow sun near their home world. If you went there right now, you would lose your powers on the planet and you would be stuck as him. So... will you accept this ticket?"

The Yuskay Groomers once receiving the Platinum VIP Treatment ticket were actually surprised to see it surface after all this time but they accepted it and began processing Arnie's empowerment request as instructed. Only when the best friend was no longer able to overhear what Gerard was to request did the young man speak to the head groomer about what had been explained to him by the lapine pirate captain. The head groomer got to work on the request immediately and found that extracting Prince Kelly Willingham was not an issue at all. Needless to say, the lapine hero from the distant rabbit world was upset that Gerard had made a deal with Redears at all and he voiced his distaste over the matter for all to hear.

"I had to get him to stop attacking my family and friends, Kelly!" the human boy exclaimed to the rabbit hero. "What non-combative way would you have handled my situation? And before you complain any further... I was a big fan of your comics back when I was younger. Making that deal with Redears which included legal jobs only was the only way I could get him to agree to leave my loved ones alone. I felt I had no other options open to me. He would have obliterated Atticus Georgia otherwise. Too many innocent lives. You are a hero; surely you can understand that. Your sister never bawled me out, once she learned about my deal with Redears."

"She is an idiot for not making you see how stupid that deal was," was the lapine prince's reply. "Oh sure, he will have you do a few legal jobs, at first... then you will find yourself in more and more questionable situations until you will have to ask yourself if you are still being a hero or not. He is a pirate, Gerard. He knows exactly what he is doing. I can't believe you are a prince like I am and so naive about these things."

To which Gerard replied, "It isn't my fault that I can see the good in people even when it looks like that they cannot be redeemed at all." He then released a sigh. "I guess I'll be the mature one and admit that I made a mistake. But they say to forgive is divine. Can you forgive me because I made a lapine mistake? Or are you too perfect for that?"

That received a silent moment as the lapine prince thought it over for a while. In the meantime, the head groomer worked with the human boy to fill the lapine vacancy with an all new lapine crew mate body with two distinct costumes; one was the pirate crew cloth and silk costume; the other was the all new Captain Rabbit armored and padded costume. Now the tattoo was only visible on the lapine form's arm rather than on the human's arm. That was just fine in Gerard's opinion since the lapine mistake should have been confined to the lapine anyway.

Prince Kelly chose to have the groomers assist him with an improvement of his own since he was now having an idea on what to do regarding Gerard's extreme situation and lack of experience in being an empowered lapine hero. In fact, it seemed that the best friend could also benefit in receiving this planned education as well. Therefore and even though the lapine prince was free of the human boy, his plan was to stick around as their trainer since he felt he could do them more good by staying than leaving, as... Royal Rabbit.

When the session was over, Infernal and Captain Ace greeted the three as they emerged from the groomers. "So... are we ready to head back topside, boys?" to which Gerard said with a smile, "Yes, but I think we should suit up first." He then shared a wink with Arnie and Kelly as they began their sequences. "Let's take it to the next level!"

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Gerard struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his hair stand on end and goosebumps ripple over his skin, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power as on the next position of the disc the form of a handsome and muscular rabbit man came into view to take the place of the former human. His pirate crew costume appeared in a flash to cover his body. Then he exclaimed, "Lapine Armor Sequence!" His hero armor then appeared in flashes up and down his lapine body, followed by his gloves and boots, and finally his clear safety visor which appeared over his eyes. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Captain Rabbit!"

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Arnie struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his hair stand on end and goosebumps ripple over his skin, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power as on the next position of the disc the form of a handsome and muscular eagle man came into view to take the place of the former human. His militia like costume appeared in a flash to cover his body. Then he exclaimed, "Eagle Armor Sequence!" His hero armor then appeared in flashes up and down his eagle body and around his wings, followed by his gloves and boots, and finally his clear safety visor which appeared over his eyes. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Eagle Lord!"

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Kelly struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his fur stand on end, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power in a perfect three sixty and as he came back into view, he was wearing the noble armored ensemble of his home world. It was a crystal like three piece suit of armor, with gauntlets and plated boots, and a partial helm which allowed his ears to protrude freely and his eyes and muzzle to be seen clearly. He then leaped off of the disc, making some impressive lapine martial arts moves of his own as he landed in full view for all to see. "Royal Rabbit! Prince of the Lapines!"

Close ups rapidly flew over parts of the three as the view pulled back in a revealing sweep as they shouted, "All-Stars! For Justice!"

Kelly smiled at the others as he shook both Gerard's and Arnie's hands. "I have chosen to join your team and help you boys in both training and hero education since you are rather green in the field of dealing with space threats. And you are right, Gerard... even though your deal wasn't a good one to make, if I had been in the same position... I would have done the same thing. Therefore, like it or not... you boys are stuck with me. I just hope my sister understands this whole fiasco."

Arnie smiled at the thought of having the WWII version of Captain Rabbit on the team. "Welcome aboard, Prince Kelly. It will be an awesome learning experience to have you with us."

"I think we can forgo the Prince part of my name while I am with you," he said with a smile. "However... I do need to get a nice garden started behind your house because all work and no carrots makes Kelly Willingham a cranky bunny." He winked with a grin.

Everyone laughed and then Infernal escorted the heroes back through the portal to QC Planet where more adventures were more than likely to be awaiting them.

The following Saturday afternoon, Gerard had gone out to meet with Jack Roo while Arnie was off on another outing with his Union Judge friend Ezrel. Just that morning, the All-Stars had met as a group at the Powers Testing Labs in Meta-Star City where they got the official registration done for Captain Rabbit, Eagle Lord, and Royal Rabbit. Commander Rabbit was overjoyed to have her brother back and it showed; the two lapines had chosen to go back to the farm to spend the afternoon catching up on past events.

The human teenager arrived at the basketball court in question where the over active marsupial was hopping to and fro with a basketball, keeping in shape and taking advantage of his outdoor air time hoop shots. When the kangaroo saw Gerard arriving, he stopped under the basket where he caught the basketball and shot a sly grin at the boy. "'ey Gerard! Nice to see yas! As promised, yas get to meet my friend... a real nice horsy named Lighty! Lighty? This is Gerard Prince! And like widdershins!" He winked as he brought the boy and horse together.

Personally, Gerard thought Jack sounded as if he was high on coffee, but the boy shook the blushing horse's hoof with a smile. "Nice to meet you, Lighty. So you're the one who's sweet on Jack, huh?" He winked with a small chuckle. "'ey! Ah told yas; we're just friends! Mates in passing only! But Ah'm everyone's friend; yas know that!" He spun the basketball on one finger with a grin. "If yas don't be'ave, Ah'll collect on that favor right 'ere instead of later in private!" The kangaroo giggled again liking the idea of holding such a thing over the boy's head. Collecting on a debt could be fun. Just ask Oslo. The young stallion lifted his head and finally said, "Um, nice to meet you, too, Gerard. And no, Jack just likes to pull everyone's leg." To which Gerard couldn't help but to throw in, "...straight into his pouch. Right, Lighty?" The horse briskly nodded his head, which made the kangaroo blush at that point. "Now blokes! If yer gonna be like that, Ah'll 'ave to drag yer butts over to Oslo's Gym where the studs are pumping iron today!"

"No more coffee for you, Jack," commented Lighty with a laugh, obviously thinking the same thing Gerard had been thinking moments earlier. "The caffeine is making you talk funny." The nice boomer grinned back. "'ey! Ah always talk funny! It's an Aussieland trait!" He winked back with a hippity-hoppity smile. "So, Gerard... where's yer partner in crime today?" The boy replied, "Arnie is off with his Union friend, Ezrel. The mousy has Saturdays off. I don't know what they do behind closed doors, but we can dream, you know..." He winked as well.

All three of them laughed at the suggestion. Then Jack said, "Come on, blokes. Ah'll treat us all to some milkshakes over at Champion Pony's Malt Shop. Ol' Dalis is there right now with Timesy and a friend of the big bloke's. Yas might like the fox in question, although 'e is a might older. That's never stopped a cutie like yas, eh Gerard?" The boy blushed darkly.

Entering the malt shop, there was quite a bit of business going on, but Dalis waved at Jack and soon the three arrivals were seated at the panthagoyle son's table with their milkshakes. Dalis and Timesheart had a black system operations type of fox seated between them who was wearing what looked like a special agent outfit with the appropriate gear. Dalis remarked in passing, "Gerard... this is Tyler McCloud; one of my friends in the UEC; he prefers to be called Covert Fox." He lowered his voice at that point. "He is interested in the All-Stars."

After shaking the fox's hand, the boy gave the vulpine a knowing look as he replied, "That group simply hangs out at our house, but I am sure... the leader... wouldn't mind Covert teaming up with us from time to time." Covert nodded his muzzle in an almost unseen manner and noted that the boy had not released his hand when he spoke which tipped off the fox to the whole 'secret identity' hint that was being implied. "Then I will have to come over tonight and talk to the leader," he said with a wink as he released the boy's hand.

Gerard was liking this fox already despite his out of school age and educated demeanor. Having another friend with experience to train with could make the All-Stars even more successful in their adventures. Then he said, "Where is Miyuki this afternoon, Dalis?" "Oh you know how the queen of the occult is on a Saturday," he replied with a chuckle. "She is looking for more magic books to add to her collection." He lowered his voice again. "We need to have an All-Stars meeting tonight, Gerard. Make sure the captain and the lord are available." The boy was glad that they were able to get Arnie re-empowered now since it would have been embarrassing to have Eagle Lord missing during the meeting.

Out at the Toonium City Municipal Golf Course, the city council were gathered for a friendly golfing tournament. Leon had convinced his council friends to play without Toon Physics and he would reward the winner with some personal time. Oh how upset Simba would be later if he ever heard about this! Because the lion had gone overboard in his personal quest to have the man for himself, he was now missing out on this more than obvious event which would have given him the man all too himself.

Mickey Mouse was partnered up with Yogi Bear; Robin Hood was partnered up with Bugs Bunny; Scooby-Doo was partnered up with Wendy; and Daffy Duck and Casper were both partnered up with Leon Prince. Four teams playing each hole one at a time. The cartoon duck quietly asked the human male, "So... just why did we opt to play last, Leon? I'm just sort of curious, that's all." The human council member quietly replied, "So we could keep an eye on the others" then he mouthed 'to make sure they don't cheat' then he resumed his normal quiet explanation. "to see how they play." He winked at the duck with a grin. Daffy made an odd face as if to break the fourth wall at the unseen audience. "That sort of makes sense."

Bugs quietly commented to Robin, "How are things with Marian these days, doc?" The cartoon fox was lining up his putt as he replied, "She and Cluck are raising our son and daughter, Robert and Mary Ann. It is the quiet life, although Marian does have that Internet at home business she is running. So overall, we can't complain. How are things between you and Lola... or are the rumors true regarding you and the duck?" The rabbit was chewing on his carrot when the mention of the duck came out and he choked on his carrot for a moment. "Geez, doc! Are you trying to kill me? Daffy and I are just friends!"

At another fairway, Yogi was handing Mickey an iron club as he asked, "...and how is Minnie doing these days? Is she still smarter than the average mouse?" The famous mouse stood at the ball and was taking careful aim. "She actually accused me of having cabin boy fun with Donald and Goofy a few days ago when we boys were out for bowling night." He took a swing at the golf ball and hit it which sent the ball down the fairway into the distance. "Daisy would never let Donald do anything like that and Goofy is barely smart enough to even know what a cabin boy is, let alone be one. You are up, Yogi. And how are things with Cindy and Boo-Boo?" Yogi was now lining up his own shot as he replied, "Cindy only accuses me of over eating, which I sadly have to admit is a problem for me. Boo-Boo is helping Ranger Smith run the park these days, the traitor." He then hit the ball sending it down the fairway and into the trees. "Aw, sh-" The mouse cut him off by saying, "It looks like you landed in the rough, Yogi."

"So you are still the bachelor, eh Scooby?" asked Wendy as the Great Dane putted his ball slowly across the green and into the hole. "I just haven't found that right mate to give my heart to. What about you, Wendy? Are you and Richie or Casper or anyone else dating or what is going on in the Enchanted Forest?" Wendy was taking her putt now. "Gloria Glad took up with Freckles Fenwick after a short fling with Reginald "Reggie" Van Dough Jr. Richie had dated Mayda Munny for a very short time before she hooked up with Pee-Wee Friendly and he... um... Richie teamed up with Hot Stuff recently in some sort of investment opportunity and I have been dating Jackie Jokers." She then putted her ball into the hole.

Saturday evening brought forth the aforementioned All-Stars team meeting at Gerard's new house. Dalis had Covert there standing just off center near a wall where he would be able to monitor how things went and pick up on anything those in the meeting might have missed. Aside from them, the others gathered were Captain Rabbit, Eagle Lord, Royal Rabbit, Commander Rabbit, Epona the Rainbow Guardian, Admiral Whitehorn of the Galactic Patrol, First Mate Lonepaw of the Lapine Pirates, Deck Gunner Tailshot of the Lapine Pirates, Timesheart Tiger, Miyuki Tsukino, Arthur Lupin, Lighty, and Princess Stormy from Rainbowland who had come with a request of her own.

"You have the floor, Dalis," stated the lapine leader of the All-Stars. "What important note did you need to bring up at our meeting tonight?"

The dark furred panthagoyle teenager stood up and walked over to the podium and turned to face his friends. "The very first night when Timesy, Miyuki, and I met Captain Rabbit and Eagle Lord, the three of us had been out solving a mystery and were actually on our way back to our clubhouse which my dad, the original Panthagoyle from the New World Mutants, had purchased for our use in Toonium City. Yes, the brownstone building right next door to Champion's Malt Shop; well within view of the school. Anyway, we had always been lacking the fourth member to be able to register our mystery solving group, which is ironically the same name that Captain Rabbit was choosing to call his hero team, the All-Stars... that is until earlier today. Arthur Lupin had approached Timesheart and offered his membership into the mystery solving team, thus bringing us up to the necessary magic number allowing us to register our group, which we did earlier today. Because the team name of simply 'The All-Stars' is already registered to Captain Rabbit and Eagle Lord, we chose to add a word to our group which made our version of the group... 'The Terryville All-Stars'. As of today, my friends... the mystery solving group will now be parting company with the hero team. We mystery solvers have no interest in becoming heroes like the good captain here; we like solving mysteries."

Dalis then looked directly at Captain Rabbit. "This is not to say that the heroes cannot employ us from time to time to help solve a mystery. This is also not to say that we cannot continue to be friends. We simply wish to separate the two groups so as to not cause confusion with the public. Legally, it takes only three heroes to register a team; it takes four members to register a mystery solving group. Until Arthur joined us, we simply stayed with you guys. But we do not want to be heroes, Captain Rabbit. Even with our departure, your team is not crumbling. Simply judging from those gathered, I surmise that there are others who will want to join your team." And he stepped away from the podium to return to his seat.

Refreshments were then served and following that, Royal Rabbit had announced that those wanting to join the hero team should report to the training gym where the rabbit and the eagle had a workout session to get started; the mystery solvers were to stay upstairs in the public part of the house.

Ace the Bathound awaited the heroes in the gym where he and Krypto the Superdog were on hand to help Royal Rabbit get the program started. This had been one of Ace's properties so he knew the best on how everything worked throughout the building. Commander Rabbit, Epona, and Whitehorn met briefly with the rabbit prince before departing via transporter beam. Lonepaw and Tailshot arrived after the alien heroes had departed and they both proceeded to sign up into the official hero roster.

Captain Rabbit whispered to Eagle Lord, "Sure is getting to be a lot of rabbits on this team." To which his partner replied in kind, "Just don't start multiplying and we will do fine."

Although there had been many at the meeting, no one else joined the heroes in the gym. Not even Covert Fox who had told Dalis that he was interested in the All-Stars. But perhaps that was just it... he was interested in the mystery solving aspect of the team; not the heroes portion. The membership of the mystery solving roster of the Terryville All-Stars nearly doubled that night. The number of the heroes actually lost a member count by one. Although he didn't let it bother him, Captain Rabbit was a little disappointed in the whole affair.

The next morning, Gerard met with Arnie, Kelly, Lonepaw, and Tailshot during breakfast. They were the only ones in the house. "I actually expected a larger interest in the heroes part of the team," he said as he poured himself a glass of orange juice. "Four rabbits and one eagle... no offense to anyone, but I really thought we would be a little more popular than this." He replaced the cap on the jug of orange juice as he sipped on his drink slowly.

Arnie smiled gently as he patted his best friend on the shoulder. "Ace and Krypto said that they would be back later today. I know you had hoped to have more interest what with the large number of people who were at the meeting last night, but in truth... they were there to join the mystery solvers. Less danger and better fame to gain. As heroes, our line of work is more dangerous and therefore we cannot just let anyone slip and fall into the stuff we would be involved in."

"He is right," stated the ship gunner lapine as he cut his maple syrup coated pancakes with his fork and table knife. "Before joining Redears' crew, I had always dreamed of being in a hero team. So when Lonepaw learned that there would be an open membership sign-up last night, I got permission from the captain to come join you guys. While it is true that I am more a gadgeteer like Ace, I can do a lot of important things for the team."

Kelly smiled at the others. "Having a gadgeteer around is a good idea, Gerard. While he is not in love with anyone on the team, his skills should be retained. Plus, as he said... he has always wanted to join a team of heroes. Let him stay."

That was when Lonepaw pulled out a letter and slid it across the table to his human boyfriend. "The last time we were on Earth a few days ago, someone you know asked me to hand deliver this letter to you, Gerard. When I had mentioned your name as I was talking to one of the other crew members just outside the warehouse, this nice young man asked me give you this."

Taking the envelope slowly, he opened it up and pulled out the letter within. Slowly Gerard began to read the letter out loud. "Hey Gerard. Ever since you and Arnie moved out of Atticus, the excitement just hasn't been the same as it usually is. So, when I finish school here in Atticus, you and Arnie will get a surprise... that is if you both have room for a new roommate from now on. I convinced mom and dad to let me come live with you guys. However, it won't be just me, guys; I have a new horse who is my responsibility. His name is Cometfire and he is one awesome horse. He has a red flame mark on his forehead and he has a fiery red, yellow, and orange mane and tail. He is otherwise white. So if you have room up there for me, we'll be arriving next Saturday around noon. I still have a week of school to deal with but I know you guys won't let me down. Your friend, Deryl St. James."

Arnie laughed as he grinned nearly ear to ear. "That's great news! And we have a barn for the horse and extra rooms for Deryl as well! Just having another of our friends around is sure to make things exciting around here! And to think the others parted the team just before getting to meet our friend!"

The next morning on recommendation from Dalis, Gerard and Arnie rode their bikes across town to the Faded Heights estate belonging to the Pink Panther. The two probably could have just flown the distance using their hero powers but the boys had to be careful so Mr. Prince didn't find out since he was the only parent who still didn't know their secret. When they arrived at the pastel pink estate, it was like a step back in time as they noticed that the colors of this particular region looked faded and almost two-tone. "This is the Pink Panther's domain, Arnie. I sure hope he's home and will see us. Dalis said we should talk to him today since we have the week off."

The two boys arrived at the front gates and Arnie pushed the button on the intercom. A smooth talking soft feline voice replied on the other end. "Who is it?" "Gerard Prince and Arnie Domingo, sir. Dalis Hailey said we should have an audience with Mr. Pink Panther today. Is he in?" The voice replied, "He is having breakfast, at the moment. One moment while I let you both inside." And with that, there came a buzzing sound as the front gates slowly opened.

Gerard said curiously, "I sure hope we're not disturbing him." To which Arnie replied, "He's one of the classics, Gerard. Dalis said he was really nice." They rode their bikes through the open gates and up the driveway. As they pedaled up the driveway, the gates slowly closed behind them. Inside the estate, literally everything was some shade of pink. Even the sky looked like a pale shade of pink here. The boys were glad that their own colors were enough to keep them from getting pink-eye. They soon parked their bikes near the front door and rapped the doorknocker three times before stepping back and waiting to be admitted inside. As the door opened, standing before them was an toon pink lion man. "So you are Gerard Prince and Arnie Domingo. Follow me, boys. My employer rarely ever gets any normal visitors especially of the sort as real boys like the two of you. This is a special treat for him as it is for me. I am Leonardo Lion, Mr. Pink's personal butler and chauffeur; the dining hall is this way." And he led them through the mansion's inner corridors.

When they arrived in the dining hall, Gerard and Arnie got to see what life was like in the Pink Panther's residence. What they saw making the most noise in the dining hall were the panther's sons. Of course, the bedlam talking ceased when they saw the boys standing there. Leonardo exclaimed, "Sir? Gerard Prince and Arnie Domingo to see you... on behalf of Dalis Hailey." The lion man then whispered to the boys, "Mind your manners and please show that you have more manners than his sons." And with that, the butler departed the chamber.

The Pink Panther pulled out his wallet and handed each of his sons twenty dollars each. "Pinky, Panky... why don't the two of you head down to the arcade and spend the day with your other friends there. I am sure Mr. Prince and Mr. Domingo are here on business and it would surely bore you senseless." Pinky's and Panky's eyes rolled in their heads, as each showed dollar signs instead of pupils, then they both headed out of the dining hall and were heard leaving the mansion. Gerard smiled as he said, "It may not be all that boring, sir. You see, I was referred to you by Scott Rat and I was told that if I wanted to know more about being a toon that I should come and see you. When I mentioned this trip to Dalis, he suggested that Arnie and I both come talk to you during the teacher's meetings since we had the time. Of course, Arnie also came to ask if you would hire him part time this summer."

Standing up, the classic toon panther invited the boys to follow him out of the dining hall and through the mansion where upon they arrived within the study where the walls were adorned with diplomas from multiple colleges and universities from far and wide. There in, the Pink Panther lit up a cigarette and took a few light puffs on it. "Nasty habit. Never get started, boys. Object lesson." They both replied, "Of course, sir." Mr. Pink then sat down at his desk and leaned back as he studied the two boys. "So you were referred to me... I must say, this is an honor. Most people forget about us classics. But I do own the local Ink and Paint Club." He paused for a short moment before continuing. "So you want to know more about being a toon." Both boys nodded their heads as Gerard replied, "We have been learning to use the Toon Hole and the Infinite Item Sack but Scott Rat told me that you could help me understand what being a toon was all about. And Arnie was hoping you needed a part time helper either around the estate or at the club."

Pink Panther pondered the statement thoughtfully. "I must warn you, Gerard... knowing the physics of a toon and being a toon is a borderline balancing act. If you step too far, you could wake up as a toon entirely. As for working for me, Arnie... I could use some help around the club. The estate has all the helpers it needs. But the club has openings that someone like you could fulfill. As for pay, if you did a good job for me, money is no object. But something tells me that you boys are interested in more than just money, unlike my sons. You saw how their eyes reacted to receiving money." He winked with a smile. The boys had to chuckle at that.

Then Gerard asked, "What is the first thing we should know about being a toon, Mr. Pink?" The classic toon feline turned and pulled a book off of the shelf behind him and he opened it, thumbing through its pages until he found the section he was looking for. When he found the sought after location, he rotated the book so that both boys could see the open page, the picture, and all of the information there in. "I want you boys to read this section entirely. When you are finished, we will continue our discussion." Picking up the book carefully and sitting down on a plush ottoman couch, they began to read over the indicated section slowly while paying attention to the descriptions and details. The section was about a local mineral substance which was called Toonium. Yes, the same as the name of the mega city.

After reading the section about Toonium, the boys and Mr. Pink exited the mansion where they boarded Mr. Pink's personal limousine which drove the them out of town and up to one of many old mines which were owned by Albert Atticus but operated by Mr. Pink himself. "This is one of the many Toonium mines where we get our raw Toonium from. In it's raw format, it looks like shiny silver putty or clay. It's malleable and almost powdery feeling. But don't be fooled by that! Handling the stuff too much can irreversibly begin your changes into a toon, like most of the rest of the people who live on Q.C. Planet. The stuff is mined and shipped into the refinery station, where it's heated and liquefied into a soupy, though sticky, mixture. At this point, the paints and inks are added to various vats of Toonium and this is what gives cartoons and anime their unique colors. At the Ink and Paint Club, I personally use this stuff to grant changes to customers seeking an improvement to their personal existences."

Arnie was very impressed by this information. "Who all works out here, Mr. Pink?" The toon panther replied, "I have a good crew of toons and anime stars who are currently in hiatus. People who were pleased to have paying jobs. Tom and Jerry. Heckle and Jeckle. Herman the Mouse. Fritz the Cat. Peter Potamus. Inuyasha is one of the foremen out here... just to name a few. And Dalis Hailey oversees them all on most occasions as the UEC operations officer on site. I believe he is overseeing one of the other mines today." Gerard was very interested in all of this. The school had never even mentioned any of what the Pink Panther was telling them. "How much does Toonium go for, roughly?" The Pink Panther smiled as he replied, "It's like gold to a toon, Gerard. It can be very expensive to the right parties. But overall on the average... it goes for $532.75 per fistful. That is just an average based on current prices but you get the idea. Toonium is a necessary staple in an animated person's life."

Gerard then asked, "If a normal person was accidentally exposed to Toonium and got toonefied... could he be restored to normal?" Mr. Pink frowned at the thought as he patted both boys on their shoulders. "I am so glad you asked that question. If such a situation were to happen, it is possible to restore the victim but only if the victim received immediate treatment."

Mr. Pink continued, "The longer the victim stays a toon, the harder it would be to restore them afterward. Therefore, encounters with Toonium must be handled with the utmost care and caution. I am not sure what your parents would do if you got stuck in a toon body." Arnie thought about it for a moment before asking, "Has it ever happened before?" The toon panther nodded his head. "Yes. A criminal once came to Q.C. Planet and his plan was to steal the Toonium and sell it on the black market in the outside world. However, he fell into one of the station mixing vats and by the time he was fished out of the vat, he'd been completely changed into a cartoon centaur. After that, he sorta lost his mind and was locked up in the Insanitarium's Recovery Clinic, which is run by Doctor Yakko Warner. To my knowledge... he is still a guest there."

The Pink Panther opened the door of the limousine and together with both boys, they got out of the car. "Come on and we will get some safety gear from the foreman's office. Then we will head down into the mine for a monitored tour." Inside the Toonium mine itself, the Pink Panther and the boys rode along in a motorized, seated mining cart while Mr. Pink explained further information to the two. "Generally, unless you're working here, it is best preferred that no one actually enter the mine. People have gotten lost in this place. A few have never been seen again. So you can imagine why we take security so seriously."

Gerard and Arnie paid attention to Mr. Pink's words as they casually looked around the mine during the ride. Occasionally, they would see toons and anime stars in hiatus wearing mining gear and hard hats. As the mining cart came to a bend in the tracks, Arnie saw two toons knee deep in a pool of near-liquid Toonium. "Mr. Pink? What are they doing over there?" The Pink Panther stopped the cart and replied, "I am so glad you noticed; they are preparing the Toonium for shipment to the factory. They are wisely wearing full body suits to protect themselves from the Toonium's changing properties. The Toonium must be stirred properly to remove the bubbles. Then, it is siphoned through an air tight hose into the transport tanker." The mining trip then continued deeper into the mine until they reached a new side tunnel which made Mr. Pink stop and get out of the cart to examine it. "This is unusual," he said as he activated his cell phone and called up one of the foremen. "This is Mr. Pink. I have discovered an unauthorized tunnel in mining sector 14, sub-level four."

The foreman's voice that returned over the CB Radio was one that the boys knew of from TV. Gopher (from Winnie the Pooh fame) replied, "Unauthorized tunnel, you say? Gee willikers. I'm on my way, sonny." Arnie smiled as he heard the voice. "That was Gopher; he's pretty cool." Mr. Pink smiled in return. "I am pleased that you recognize people by their voices. You will do well at the Ink and Paint Club." Then he turned his focus back to the new tunnel. "This is a breach of security. I hope it's not trouble." Gerard was gazing down the new tunnel himself. "What lies in that general direction, Mr. Pink?" The Pink Panther pulled out a map of the mines and the surface terrain. "We are here and the tunnel is running in that direction" he runs a finger along the map. "Seems like it goes toward the Hillbilly Bears' property. Ah, here comes Gopher."

Gopher and a few of the toons under his work force arrived on the scene and they began examining the new tunnel. "Jiminy Cricket, sonny! This tunnel wasn't here this morning! But we'll get to the bottom of it! Yessiree!" And they got to work securing the new tunnel. With the toons handling the emergency discovery, the Pink Panther escorted the boys via the mine cart back out of the mine where they returned the gear to the foreman's office and once again got into the awaiting limousine.

The next stop on the outing was the Pink Panther's Toonium Distillery back in Toonium City, the place where the raw Toonium was refined and converted into Toonium paints. Mr. Pink led the boys in through the worker's entrance and they were soon touring the action center of the factory itself. "This place is awesome, Mr. Pink!" exclaimed Gerard. Arnie then commented, "I love it, too!" The toon panther chuckled. "I am glad you like it, boys. Maybe someday when you are both older, either of you can work here. Now follow me and I will show you around."

The three walked all over the factory together until one of the factory toons approached the Pink Panther and said, "Phone call for you in the main office, Mr. Pink." The Pink Panther turned to the boys. "This shouldn't take too long; it is probably word from the mine about that new tunnel. I shouldn't be too long." And he and the employee departed, leaving Gerard and Arnie standing there in a corridor with two large doors with the slogan, "Employees Only" written on them.

After ten minutes, one of the two doors opened and a cartoon mouse poked his head out into the corridor, and said, "Would you boys mind helping me out for a moment? We have an emergency in here. Come quick." The boys both blinked his eyes at the mouse as they obeyed and hurried through the door. Just inside the chamber as the doors slid closed behind them, they saw an empty Toonium vat with a declining chute and at the bottom of vat with its right back leg caught in a drainage hole was an anime hellish looking hound trying desperately to free himself with his front paws. "If I can't get my leg free in the next ten minutes, I'm gonna be swimming in Toonium."

"Let's take it to the next level!" Gerard and Arnie shared a wink at each other as they began their sequences.

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Gerard struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his hair stand on end and goosebumps ripple over his skin, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power as on the next position of the disc the form of a handsome and muscular rabbit man came into view to take the place of the former human. His pirate crew costume appeared in a flash to cover his body. Then he exclaimed, "Lapine Armor Sequence!" His hero armor then appeared in flashes up and down his lapine body, followed by his gloves and boots, and finally his clear safety visor which appeared over his eyes. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Captain Rabbit!"

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Arnie struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his hair stand on end and goosebumps ripple over his skin, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power as on the next position of the disc the form of a handsome and muscular eagle man came into view to take the place of the former human. His militia like costume appeared in a flash to cover his body. Then he exclaimed, "Eagle Armor Sequence!" His hero armor then appeared in flashes up and down his eagle body and around his wings, followed by his gloves and boots, and finally his clear safety visor which appeared over his eyes. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Eagle Lord!"

Flying into action, Captain Rabbit and Eagle Lord landed on either side of the hellhound where they crouched down and worked to free the canine's leg from the drain. "All-Stars to the rescue, friend. I'm Eagle Lord and he's Captain Rabbit. Now let's get you freed of this drain." They firmly gave the hound's leg a tug, however the his leg was wedged into the drain good. He was glad to see heroes coming to his rescue though.

"I'm called Lord Saberfang, Lord Arden's courier hound trainer for Arden's Pizza. I mistakenly teleported and crash landed into this empty Toonium vat. The mouse who went for help told me that this vat is unused every other day which is lucky for me, otherwise I'd be changed into something weird." The two heroes continued tugging on Saberfang's leg, feeling it move ever so slightly. "A nice guy like you shouldn't be changed into weird things, your lordship," replied the heroic lapine as he continued to work on freeing the canine. "You are lucky we were in the area," stated Eagle Lord. "We almost got it... almost..." They tugged once more and Saberfang's leg and foot was freed with a wet sucking gloppy sound from the drain. To show his appreciation, he excitedly gave both heroes a hug and a lick on the muzzle and beak. "Free pizzas the next time we meet, guys. The word of Lord Saberfang is golden. I'll make sure Mr. Arden hears how you saved me."

After the nice hellhound departed, the two heroes powered down to their human forms and quickly returned to the corridor where they had been originally waiting on the Pink Panther to complete his office business. Fortunately, the toon panther returned only moments after the two emerged from the chamber and then the three of them completed the tour of the factory before heading over to a nearby restaurant for a meal.

The Pink Panther said, "What do you think of my holdings, boys?" Gerard replied, "You have some great places and workers who care about what goes on." Arnie added, "We're going to see the Ink and Paint Club next, aren't we?" Mr. Pink nodded his head. "That's right. It is where you will be working part time this summer, Arnie. I know you will like it. You will get to meet all manner of toons every Friday night. That is the busiest night, of course. Many people show up for the Grand Wish Show at 8 P.M." Gerard ate some of his food before asking, "What is the Grand Wish Show?" The toon panther sipped on his drink with a smile. "I knew you'd ask what that was. Everyone in Terryville knows about it. The Grand Wish Show is where we get to recreate a toon however they want to be recreated. And if they don't like the results, they can return the next Friday night for a new cartoon makeover. We call it a wish because it is literally what the toon is wishing for." Arnie arched one eye as he asked, "Just toons?" Mr. Pink replied, "If I get your meaning, it is possible... though it is not something I would openly suggest because unlike with toons, a human such as yourself, Arnie, once changed you would not be able to change back to normal. You would be stuck as a toon."

Arnie nodded his head. "I was just asking so I would know. Just in case of accidents involving someone other than me. Unless you'd prefer I'd be just plain goofy." Mr. Pink grinned with a chuckle. "You don't look nor talk nothing like Mr. Goofy." He winked at the boy. Gerard laughed at the Pink Panther's humor. "You are really nice, Mr. Pink." The Pink Panther smiled back. "I wish my sons thought I was really nice." Arnie replied, "Anytime you need someone to tell you how nice you are, come and see me."

The three finished up their lunch, then after Mr. Pink picked up the tab, they went out and got into the pink limousine once again and drove through Terryville on an uneventful ride. Gerard found himself rubbing on one of the Pink Panther's legs for which the classic didn't seem to mind at all. Leonardo Lion drove them around the outskirts of town to the rear entrance of the Ink and Paint Club and into a quickly closing parking garage. When the car came to a stop, the boys were helped out by the pink lion who led them into a side office. Leonardo helped Arnie into the changing room for employees where a club uniform was awaiting him to put on. "While Mr. Pink is preparing the club for your tour, I have been asked to help you into your work clothes, Arnie. Although most toons, as I am sure you are aware by now, go without clothes." Arnie nodded his head. "We've already noticed; even in school most students called us the most overdressed students at AniSapien," he replied, as Arnie was getting out of his normal clothing and with the lion's help, into the club uniform which wasn't pink. It was a Burgundy Red instead with Gold lace. "You do make this uniform look good," said Leonardo. "Now, let us go out and join Mr. Pink at the stage."

Out in the club itself, the Pink Panther was up on the main stage wearing a black tuxedo coat and he appeared to be doing an inventory of his Toonium Paints. Leonardo cleared his throat and the Pink Panther glanced over at Arnie with a soft smile. "You do make that uniform look good," he said. "How does it feel on you?" The boy replied, "In all due honesty, Mr. Pink... it actually itches, just a little. Like someone with shedding fur wore if just before me." "That is entirely possible," remarked the Mr. Pink. "If you wouldn't mind, Gerard, it appears that I need some Beige Tan Toonium Paint. You will find a storage room in the back. Do be careful back there. Leonardo? Could you go out to the limo and bring in my briefcase please?"

Gerard smiled and headed back to the storage room of the Ink and Paint club. It was dark in that back area even with the light on. Apparently, the storage rooms only had one purpose: mixing and preparing Toonium Paints. It even smelled like paint in there. He soon located a door labeled with a sign that read, BEIGE TAN TOONIUM PAINT. Gerard was about to open that door when something about the sign made him stop and look at it again. That is when he noticed that the N's in the words of the sign were written backwards. And he knew that Mr. Pink was a college graduate with degrees in script writing and literature. He certainly wouldn't have misquoted a sign such as this. That made the young man very suspicious, as he stepped away from the door and to one side as he turned the door knob and flung the door open from the safety of where he stood.

Several open containers of Beige Tan Toonium Paint spilled out crashing to the floor in the storage room! And Leonardo was the first to arrive upon hearing the ruckus. "Are you okay?" Gerard panted from where he stood. "Someone set up a trap in here and it about got me, Leonardo. If I hadn't been suspicious, I would be coated in Toonium Paint. Someone's trying hard to get me changed into a toon." Leonardo helped Gerard out of the storage room and to the bathroom to calm himself down.

When the outing ended and Mr. Pink had drove the boys back to his mansion, the toon panther said to the two, "As much as I would like to hire you, Arnie, Gerard's near accident makes it too dangerous for you to be working there currently. Allow me to investigate who might have done that and if I deem it safe, then you could be hired by the start of Summer." The boys collected their bikes and proceeded to depart the estate and ride back toward the home neighborhood in Spoonersville since the Prince household was closer and they still needed to pick up some of their belongings there since they had their own house finally.

"Tell me again why we are going to talk to your parents," Arnie inquired as they parked their bikes out front of the house and proceeded toward the front door. Gerard quietly replied to his friend, "One, my mom already knows because we had to tell her. And now we need to get dad in the loop. Remember when Mr. Luthor told us that he thought dad might be in some sort of danger? We need to get dad in the loop before that sick lion king returns to turn dad into a personal butt toy."

Once they had entered the house, they went upstairs and packed up the remaining gear they still needed to transfer to their new house. It would take a couple of hours but when they finally completed their task, they carried their gear downstairs and set it next to the living room coffee table. Gerard then informed his mother that he and Arnie needed to have a conversation with her and dad during dinner and before the boys headed back to their house. According to Gerard, the talks to come were very important and it was about time to let Leon know what had been really going on as well. It was also promised to reveal all of the rest of the chaos before the last week of school occurred and Summer vacation could begin. Rianne was glad that the big night was finally coming to pass. Knowing the truth would help calm Mr. Prince's mind.

That night in the Prince household just after dinner ended, Gerard and Arnie prepared to break the wall of secrets for the parental units. "Mom, Dad?" started Gerard slowly. "Maybe I am imagining it, but... aside from Simba's incessant stupidity before he was sent off to Dr. Warner, has anything strange been happening to or near you guys in the past few weeks? And what I mean by strange is... have there been any close call accidents between you and toons?" Leon thought about it before replying carefully. "City council meetings are always strange and weird, son. Nothing directly has happened to me. What about you, honey?" Mr. Prince knew better than to describe his days on council. Rianne glanced over the top of her romance novel at the others with a smile. "Aside from our car getting shrunk to the size of a mouse, ghosts flying through the walls of the house, and the usual zaniness that I see every day... no, nothing unusual happens around here." And how Mrs. Prince could keep a straight face while talking about her day was beyond the boys entirely. Leon asked, "What have you noticed, son?"

Gerard took a deep breath and then he slowly released it. "You are probably going to ground me for life and make me move back home when I tell you everything I've done and noticed... but that is your right; if it keeps me safe, then maybe I need to be grounded." Rianne put her book down. "This should be good." She was glad the moment was finally upon them. Although even she would be surprised when her son and his friend revealed everything. Gerard stood up with Arnie as they turned to face the Prince adults fully. "I told a white lie the evening of the first day of school as you know now because I had Wilwick explain things to you after the island outing and losing my clothes. I met Lord Lampwick the Donkey on the island that first day and his donkey friend who enthusiastically pounced me was actually Wilwick as he admitted to you. He had just finished bathing and saw a cute boy walk into their clubhouse, and he jumped on me knocking me into the crap on the floor. While he was on top of me, the water from his bath is what did the rest of the job on messing up my clothes. Lord Lampwick sponsors the Candle Lighter's Choir; not Fenmire Rat. And there is more, if you're ready to hear it..."

Leon nodded his head. "We were glad you got the donkey to help you explain his part in the accident. Please continue, son." Gerard nodded his head once. "That Saturday... the public service work was, as Wilwick and I told you, on Lord Lampwick's Pleasure Island exactly as you were told. We went out there to repair and clean up the old broken down carnival. We all worked until noon. But then, Wilwick invited me over to his place for lunch and I got separated from him in the real carnival where I... I lost my clothes on one of the rides. I got doped up on Pleasure Island Chocolate and one of the other donkey boys is the one who straightened me out and gave me toon clothes to come home in. Let me back up for a moment and explain what being doped up on Chocolate means... I had the ears and tail of a donkey. One of the Island Lords is the one who restored me in exchange for my promise to return to work for he and his Lord friends sometime this Summer. So you see, you could have gotten me back as a part donkey boy." Leon closed his eyes and shook his head.

Continuing, Gerard said, "The donkey boy who straightened me out gave me a Toon Hole and taught me how to use it. After you grounded me... and this is probably why you're going to ground me again... I used the Toon Hole to escape from my room and had a different adventure on Q.C. Planet for each evening of the week. I made a lot of friends, and... I was in some weird situations... like the milking machine... that one actually hurt. Oslo Otter convinced me to get a tattoo that Saturday night and it was there that I had an encounter with someone who is after something valuable I accidentally ended up with back on Earth. Arnie and I, by way of this special serum which is what went into my mouth at the softball field that one day, ended up with super powers thanks to the lapine heroine from the 1940s, Commander Rabbit. And now, Arnie and I will show you what we mean by powers."

"Let's take it to the next level!" Gerard and Arnie shared a wink at each other as they began their sequences.

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Gerard struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his hair stand on end and goosebumps ripple over his skin, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power as on the next position of the disc the form of a handsome and muscular rabbit man came into view to take the place of the former human. His pirate crew costume appeared in a flash to cover his body. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Captain Rabbit!"

"Empowered Legacy! Activate!" Arnie struck his pose and felt the energy rush cascading up his body from his waist to his head. Then as he felt his hair stand on end and goosebumps ripple over his skin, a circle of power and a conic pyramid of energy illuminated his body brightly. The circular disc he stood on in front of the pyramid of conic energy then revolved around behind the pillar of power as on the next position of the disc the form of a handsome and muscular eagle man came into view to take the place of the former human. His militia like costume appeared in a flash to cover his body. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Eagle Lord!"

At that point, Captain Rabbit rolled up his crew shirt sleeve and showed his parents the colorful pirate crew marking. "That is the tattoo of Captain Redear's space pirate crew. Oslo was paying to get me a tattoo that night and when I encountered Redears, I was forced into making a truce deal with him so he wouldn't attack my friends and family anymore in exchange for my doing legal jobs for him whenever he asked. To date, however... he hasn't asked me to do a thing for him. On Sunday night, however, Arnie and I encountered Lex Luthor and when he found out that you, dad, were on the Terryville City Council, he got a very weird look on his face and said that you might be in danger. He said he was going to check some things out to be sure." Leon and Rianne were both truly amazed with the transformations. Even though Mrs. Prince had been told about the heroes, until that night, this was the first time she had gotten to see the transformation. Mr. Prince then said, "I assume Lex would like to talk to me?" The lapine hero shrugged his shoulders and replied, "He didn't say it was necessary but I would feel better if you talked to him as soon as possible."

Rianne nodded her head. "Yes, Oslo is one of your more trustworthy friends, Gerard... I mean Captain Rabbit. And yes, he told Leon and I that he was bisexual; we do know. But have you and he..." she paused before continuing. "...done anything?" Captain Rabbit made a shocked face at the question but then he blushed. "How come everyone asks me that whenever they find out that Oslo and I are friends? No, the toon otter and I haven't 'done' anything. He's nice but he's never asked to do it. However... as Gerard, I did entertain First Mate Lonepaw of Redear's crew one night behind the house and down the hill. I was trying to prove to him that we trusted him and were trying to help him go straight instead of being a pirate. And as Eagle Lord can tell you, he was disgusted that I took it that far. I didn't mean to but... for some reason the rabbit was just... fun."

Eagle Lord unfolded his wings in obvious distaste before folding them up again. "Oslo and I both witnessed the act. And I did not enjoy the show." Leon then stated, "Son... because you were honest with us, we are not going to ground you again. You earned the right to live on your own provided that you continued to school at AniSapien. That was our deal. In fact, I am going to give you a lot more freedom. We know you have several friends who would never let anything bad happen to you if they could help you to avoid it." Captain Rabbit was a little surprised at this. "I could be lying my ass off, dad. You believe me?" He allowed one ear to droop cutely over his face. Leon grinned in return as he stood up and moved the lapine ear to one side. "If you were and this IS Q.C. Planet, then your ass would be lying on the floor." He winked. "Of course I believe you, Captain Rabbit. You would never make up a story this bizarre unless it was true. And coming clean, while a hard thing to do, actually cleanses you."

Tuesday morning after breakfast, Gerard and his team were once again in the training gym under the guidance of Ace the Bathound while Covert Fox watched them from one corner. Even though the toon fox hadn't been seen in a few days, he was once again back and clearly monitoring their progress. Perhaps more strangely was the fact that it appeared that Ace had another instructor which was an anthro horse of a different color as well as a small class of his MYTHS students up in the control booth with him. MYTHS stood for Maverick Youths of Tomorrow Heroes School. Ace appeared to not only be orchestrating the training from the control booth but also seemed to be conducting a class at the same time. Captain Rabbit didn't mind Ace bringing in hero students to watch his almost non-existent team train; what was really on his name was the team's hero name. Oh sure, as Gerard he had coined the name when he and Arnie made their first transformation on Earth. But since Dalis' little mystery solving group was using the same name, it was clearly time to think of a new super group name.

During one break in the training session, Captain Rabbit brought Eagle Lord, Royal Rabbit, Lonepaw, and Tailshot over to a private pow-wow table although not so private that Covert Fox couldn't also overhear their discussion if he chose to participate. "Listen up, guys... even though Eagle and I originally coined the All-Stars team name back on Earth, since Dalis' group is using the same name, I think we need to come up with a different team name. It would show maturity by not operating within the shadow of the Terryville All-Stars and it would prevent public confusion to the utmost. If any of you guys have a suggestion, please don't hesitate to bring the idea to the table."

Tailshot scratched on one of his long ears before he said, "I have two suggestions... The Guardians or simply call ourselves Showcase. That's my two cents." Eagle Lord thought about the two suggestions from the lapine pirate; the second sounding more appealing to him for some reason. "I like the title Showcase. It's simple and easy to remember. But if you want something flashy, just remember that a lot of the good group names are already taken. I don't think any team has ever called themselves Showcase." Royal Rabbit nodded his head slowly. "Showcase is a pretty good name. Better than a bunch of rabbits calling their team The Warriors since it implies we are all part of the same warren." Lonepaw smiled at the leader kindly. "I will accept whatever you want to call it, hon. Whether you want to call it Showcase, Laundry, or even Pile of Shit... you are the leader." He winked with a smile.

The good captain smiled as he shook hands with each team member. Then they all got up from the table and they followed Captain Rabbit over to a letter board where it had formerly had the team name of The All-Stars in block letters for all to see. Exchanging the letters on the board, the old name was taken down and the new name was put up for all to see. From the control booth, Ace watched the leader put up the official new team name on the board. Showcase. It was simple; easy to remember; and workable.

Captain Rabbit nodded at his teammates as he stood out front in the center of the gym and shouted, "Showcase... Showdown!" He paused but only briefly. "Captain Rabbit!" His avian partner then stepped up beside him and shouted, "Eagle Lord!" Then the two lapine pirates stepped up on either side of the two main heroes. "Lonepaw!" "Tailshot!" And then the final rabbit stepped up on one side as the fox chose to finally leave his corner and join the line up himself. "Royal Rabbit!" "Covert Fox!" All six then struck their pose in the center of the gym and thus was born the new hero team of Toonium City. "Showcase!" exclaimed all six heroes as they placed their hands into a circle. And from out of seemingly nowhere... Lighty placed his hoof on to the circle of hands. "Lightstrike! Sorry I'm late, Captain. May I still join?" With a grin, he glanced up toward the control booth briefly where he noticed that the instructor horse was no longer there. Then to Lighty he replied, "Better late than never. Just remember that this is the hero team. You can work with Dalis' mystery team if you still wish to. But we are heroes and it is to this end we must strive to uphold the brotherhood of honor and life. Do we swear fealty to this oath of honor?"

As one, those gathered nodded their heads and said, "We do." Captain Rabbit then said, "As the powers are our witness, knights we may not be in life, but our honor is our armor and our oath is our sword. Together we are the shield and together we are Showcase." Then they broke the circle as they resumed their training session once again.

Ace slyly grinned as he recorded Captain Rabbit's oath as he thought, This will come in handy later. Then aloud to his students, he said, "As you have heard, Captain Rabbit and his friends have performed an important event today; they have renamed their team officially and have taken a team oath which showcases their dedication to their membership. Perhaps one day, the rest of you may be a part of a fine group of heroes like this one. If there are any questions, now is the time to ask."

When the lunch hour arrived, the heroes headed for the elevator and rode it up to the ground floor level where they proceeded to the kitchen. It was while they were inside the elevator that the Captain and the Eagle powered down into their casual wear while still being in their animal forms. Gerard smiled as he noticed that Lighty had disappeared once again and apparently so had Covert Fox. "Secret identities... you gotta love 'em." He giggled as he led the others into the kitchen to prepare a meal for the five of them.

Lonepaw hugged Gerard Rabbit gently. "At least we don't have to make enough food for a horse." And of course everyone laughed at the joke. Gerard remarked, "MYTHS has professional chefs to do their cooking for the students there. But I still want to enjoy my high school years."

But before Gerard could get the refrigerator open, Lord Saberfang was in the room setting out four vegetarian pizzas and one meat lovers pizza on the dining table. "Told you I wouldn't forget." He was grinning, of course. "Took me some time to find where you guys had your base. I finally had to ask an information devil mouse. They certainly know their business. Lord Arden wishes to convey his thanks to you for freeing me from that vat the other day, Captain Rabbit. Therefore, free pizza whenever you ask. When you want the best, go with Arden's."

Tailshot smirked as he said, "Vegetarian Pizzas shows consideration, Lord Saberfang, but for future references... alien lapines CAN eat meat. Lonepaw and I do it often." The hellhound regarded the rabbit with a grin. "I will make sure Lord Arden learns of your statement, Tailshot. He assumed that four rabbits would want veggies."

Arnie Eagle giggled, well, as best he could with a beak. "Glad you made sure I got the meat lovers pizza, handsome. Eagles need our meat and sauces." Lord Saberfang grinned back at him. "Just be glad it isn't secret ingredient, eagle boy. Otherwise, you would be begging me to mount you." He winked before he disappeared once again.

At that moment, Covert Fox took a slice of the meat covered pizza. "Sure was nice of that hound to bring us some free pizzas. Now I won't have to go buy one with my sparse supply of money. Not. I'm actually rich, guys. My brother is often sending me money." He bit into the pizza slice and savored the flavor. "Too bad Lighty is missing this."

Gerard Rabbit laughed. "So just where did Lightstrike go, Fox?"

"I think he had to switch back into his assistant instructor form and go join Ace for a MYTHS dinner," replied the toon fox as he ate some more of his pizza slice.

Late Wednesday morning, the sound of The SUM's gong was heard echoing across the campus accompanied by Tigra's voice shouting, "Let's hit it, girls! Lupa is facing off against some of those Fuji University brats!" Most of the college had turned out for this one since no one at The SUM liked F.U. anyway. "There's always time for chaos!" And this was followed by an opposing interloping student being thrown through the air and into a crowd of her peers. Unlike the regular schools throughout Q.C. Planet, the colleges had classes as usual.

"Surely we can take one human girl, guys!" shouted one of the Fuji students with a growl. "We're animated toons, for Pete's sake!" And that was when a larger group of thugs arrived to back up the F.U. brats. It wasn't looking too good for Lupa since it seemed that the other college was pulling out the stops for this rumble.

And then from the sidelines, a martial arts strike caught one of the opposing brats off guard and sent them flying with a backwards airplane spin into a collection of trash cans. Standing at Lupa's side was her usual arch nemesis, Rex Tralfazworth... except he wasn't focused on her for a change; he was looking at the opposing team. "What are you doing here, Rex?" He replied to the fighting Prince lady, "Just making things more fair, Lupa. And no, I am not trying to earn your hand in marriage. I don't have a motorcycle yet so until I do, my sister said that I should be nice and helpful to you. And don't bother looking for the Red Queen; she's in a city council meeting she can't get out of. So until reinforcements arrive, I'm all you got. Besides, I never taught you every martial art I know. Not even Master Splinter wouldn't give away all of his secrets."

Lupa was now thinking, Sneaky rats! But it is to be expected from rats! Then aloud she said, "Spike has a class this hour. Otherwise he would be here helping me." Rex nodded his head. "I know; I checked his schedule earlier. I was hoping I could talk to him when I heard about this fight you were in. And fights take precedence over truce talks. Especially where the Prince females are involved." The female human grinned as she struck another Fuji student quite hard. "My mom is famous for Simba-lizing people with her rolling pin. 14 hours is what I heard she did to Simba. I never knew she could do that to a toon."

And that was when a white rabbit from Montropolis arrived on the scene as he landed directly between Lupa and Rex, also facing the opposing team. It was that digital martial arts star known as King Kazma. The Fuji University students and thugs were now showing some cowardice before the lapine arrival. The two humans they didn't mind fighting; but this was King Kazma. In Japanese, he said, "/Master Splinter said that weird things happened in Wonderland and now I get to see first paw just how weird they can get./" But in English, he said, "Humans are not on the mat, hoodlums! Begone or feel the wrath of Kazma!"

"Master Splinter sent him," remarked Lupa who did know enough Japanese to have understood what the rabbit had said. "He's on our side, Rex." The human male then said unexpectedly, "Say Lupa... would you like me better if I didn't have this disgusting last name? Space Ace contacted me yesterday and told me that Astro hated his real name and my family had that name in our last name. I never knew that Tralfaz was Astro's real name. I guess I should have watched more cartoons when I was younger." The fighting human female replied as she did a head stand and jump over the white lapine fighter into a thug, "You mean you are seriously going to try to improve your public image and stop being a jerk? Did the world end or something?"

"Worlds don't end on my watch!" And the Red Queen leaped into the fray literally flooring one of the thugs. "How dare you have a fight while I was in a council meeting! You KNOW how much I love fights on my turf!" Lupa couldn't help but to say, "It isn't my fault that Fate got you stuck in a council meeting. But nice to have you here! Rex is going to stop being a jerk." The Red Queen arched an eye. "No way! No wonder you were wondering if the world was coming to an end." The human male smiled. "I know it sounds too good to be true, but Space Ace was very convincing. Plus, I have to make an effort on behalf of Astro."

King Kazma then slammed a thug as he chose to join the conversation. "Since you are not going to be Tralfazworth anymore, are you going to call yourself Rex Astroworth instead?" "I'm not sure," replied Rex as he was now back to back with the rabbit. "I don't think I want to make Astro face-paw anymore than he likely already has been. I was told that my current name meant Lucky King of the Elven Steel Farm, but I'm not sure what to rename myself since that last name is so distasteful. Rex means King." The lapine fighter stated, "My name means King of the Guardian Children. Short surnames are like honorifics; the longer they are, the nastier the taste for others."

The Red Queen was fighting along side Lupa-Vega now. "Man, I can't believe it... your nemesis really sounds like he wants to make a fresh start." The Prince girl replied as she slammed two thugs together. "I know and that is what makes me suspicious. I've never known Rex to do anything for free. Or perhaps I just haven't got to see an... ugh... sincere Rex."

Then the fight came to an abrupt end when the one and only Batman stepped out of a building and walked through the middle of the fight which made everyone literally stop. No one wanted to accidentally strike the dark knight while he was in the area. When he reached his Bat Cycle, he turned to look back at those in pose and said, "Go home or I will send Robbie to visit you... All. Night. Long. He hasn't gotten to tell his life story to a bunch of students yet." He then put on his motorcycle helmet, started up the bike, and he sped out of the area.

Everything was dead silent while both sides waited for the other to make a move. The threat of Robbie had been spoken. Finally, the Fuji students and thugs withdrew without a word, almost slinking away from the scene as if the zone now held a curse. The Red Queen shouted, "And don't come back!" She then turned to look at the others. "What? I'm the mayor!" Lupa eyed Rex and King Kazma who were talking to each other at the moment, before she turned and grabbed the Red Queen's hand. "Come on... I'll buy you lunch."

At a campus side cafe, Lupa and the Red Queen had placed their orders before settling down to talk. "I recently got word from the home region that my mom can somehow bean a toon and keep them out for up to 14 hours. Now I know toons are very resilient to theatrical strikes and I can't figure out how my mom can even do this to a toon at all."

"Do you have any classes tomorrow, Lupa?" asked the Red Queen as she studied the human girl. "Luckily, no," the human female replied. "What do you have in mind, your majesty?" The noble anime character nodded her head. "Tomorrow I will take you over to the Meta-Star City Empowered Examination Labs and have Dr. Hank McCoy run a battery of tests on you. Your mother's ability might run in the family and it could also help to explain your uncanny fighting abilities. No one else on campus can do what you do, Lupa."

"Sounds like tomorrow I get to find out if I have any weird powers," Lupa said with a smile as their food and drinks arrived. "I just hope Rex doesn't get hurt trying to turn over a new leaf. All this talk of his wanting to improve his public image and stop being a jerk has me very worried." The Red Queen smirked. "First you despised him; now you're worried about him."

"I know," she replied as she picked up her fork and knife. "It seems to be another Prince family trait."

Thursday morning, the Red Queen, King Kazma, Rex and Lupa all arrived at the Meta-Star City Empowered Examination Labs where Dr. Hank McCoy and Professor X got the battery of tests started on the Prince female in regards to the information provided by the king and the queen. Rex had come along for support and because he had agreed to get assistance from the white lapine martial artist. Lupa was standing in an examination apparatus where various scans and lights were shining upon her.

"Say X," started Lupa as she began to feel funny from the silver blue lights that were illuminating her face. "I'm starting to feel kinda weird in here." The blue-furred Beast replied, "Try to hold on a while longer, Ms. Prince. Your brother was in here earlier this week with his friend and because of that visit, we are choosing to be thorough with your scans."

"Gerard was in here? What fo-" but before she could get the rest of the question out of her mouth, a startling metamorphosis began to occur as she screamed from the feeling of an internal pain being activated by the silver blue lights all around her. While the professionals kept a watch on the monitor gauges, the others watched Lupa slowly transform.

The human female screamed as the hairs on the back of her neck pricked up and her long hair began to rise behind her as if arcane powers were present. Her body became enveloped in a silvery glow as she felt the changes rippling throughout her changing form. Her feet slowly changed into large wolven paws and her legs shifted to digitigrade wolf-like legs which supported her transforming form. She felt her tail bone tingling as her wolven tail slowly grew outward snaking down and forming with a full coat of tail fur. The changes continued up through her torso as she became more fit than before, growing in size to accommodate her furry body. The shifting continued down her arms as she developed muscles and strength greater than she had as a human. Her hands became paw-like with very sharp claws and her head slightly inflated as her ears slowly became pointed as they shifted to the top of her head and became wolf ears. Then, as her wolf fur began to cover her entire body, her defined wolven muzzle pushed outward from her former human face and her eyes turned into glowing yellow orbs with a pinpoint of light blue light. She then howled ominously as her entire mind and body seemed to snap as she became a werewolf like Q.C. had never seen before.

That was when McCoy and Xavier noticed that the bindings on the scanning apparatus were straining from Lupa's newly gained strength as she struggled to free herself, Hulk-style, from the examination chamber. "I am going to seal the testing chamber and then release her from the scanning chamber!" exclaimed the blue-furred Beast as he activated the safety protocols involved in protecting someone within the testing chamber. Then the seams of the scanning booth failed as the new werewolf burst out into the testing chamber.

Rex quietly remarked, "Um, Xavier...? I hate to say this, but she just changed into a werewolf form that I've seen before. Her mother has a photo album which had strange Halloween like pictures in its pages. A few of the pages have real life pictures of werewolves of both male and female stature. I asked about the pictures one time while I dated Lupa and her mother said that they were simply complicated costumes and animatronic robots. I never asked about it again. But now Lupa just changed into one of them. I think Mrs. Prince lied about the photos." Professor X glanced aside at the former boyfriend, then back at Hank as he said, "Call Lord Albert, McCoy! We need him for this!"

King Kazma stroked the fur on his chin. "If Lupa-Vega is a natural werewolf, then does that mean that her brother is one also?" Hank replied, "I don't think he is. The powers Gerard displayed while he was here would make even you interested in him, Kazma. He had a transformation power into a hero like rabbit who stands like yourself. His friend can change into a heroic eagle form. They were forming a hero team somewhere in Toonium City according to what they were telling us the other day."

The Red Queen then said, "We need to get Lupa back in her right mind, Xavier. She is enrolled at The SUM and she has a class on Friday. Any chance of helping her regain her mind?" Before Professor X could reply, Rex went to the door of the testing chamber and let himself inside to face off against Lupa. "What is he doing?! He will be torn apart!"

Inside the chamber, the young man steeled himself up as he faced the female werewolf before him. "Lupa... I know you are in there. Is this how you want Spike to see you? You have to remember, Lupa... you are dating Spike. You work for Throttle at his motorcycle museum. Even Master Splinter agreed to teach you Ninjutsu. I know you don't like me, Lupa, but if you won't calm down for Spike... what of Gerard? Your brother... he wouldn't be happy if his big sister lost out to a strange power that she couldn't control. Please, Lupa; remember."

The female werewolf bared down on Rex and just when it looked as if she was going to strike him, Rex mentioned Gerard... and she stopped in her tracks. "Grr... Gerrr... ard..." And then it appeared that the feminine wolf beast was struggling to resume control of her body. Rex saw that mentioning her brother had a reaction so he pushed forward with this information. "Gerard would want to see his sister smile, Lupa. He still needs you despite what might be going on in his life. Don't let this werewolf win, Lupa. Think about Gerard... and always remember, Lupe... there's always time for chaos. But not if this wolf is stealing all of your fun. Only Lupa-Vega can make life fun for Gerard."

Then there came an audible snap which echoed all over the testing chamber.

And the werewolf fell forward into Rex's arms which pulled them both to the floor with a loud thump. "Rrr... rex... thannnks..." The former boyfriend was glad he could help Lupa pull through but her new body was HEAVY. "Anytime, Lupe... now could someone help get Lupa off of me, please? Her human body was easy to hold up but this wolf version of her is heavy."

King Kazma and the Red Queen entered the chamber where they helped the two up and out to a medical recovery station. While the Wonderland mayor and Professor X examined Lupa to make sure she was truly back in her right mind, the white lapine martial artist and the blue furred Beast made sure Rex wasn't injured when the werewolf fell on him.

"You showed real courage earlier, Rex," said Kazma as he sat before the boy. "But that was a foolish chance. Fortunately... you managed to say the right thing to bring her sanity back. She could have torn you apart. Perhaps you are not as lost as everyone thinks you are. Perhaps more it is possible for me to assist you in your public improvement." The young man smiled as he gripped the rabbit's hand. "I accept your offer, master. And you are right... that was really stupid of me to do. But... I wanted to do something important for Lupa."

Lord Albert Atticus, the black furred cat lord who was the founder of Q.C. Planet then arrived and briefly checked on Rex's condition since the young man faced off against the werewolf. Then he proceeded into the room where Lupa was resting and he examined her with his magical powers. "It is good that you people called me, Xavier. Her werewolf powers are part of a hereditary lineage stemming from a secret organization of werewolves on Earth who call themselves High Command. They believe that humans exist to serve them but they allow them to exist because the nicer ones are useful to their cause. One of their ambassadors has diplomatic immunity here on Q.C. Planet to deal with rogue werewolves who choose to commit crimes here on our animated project world. Fortunately for you, restoring Lupa's sanity prevents our having to call in the Wolf With No Name."

After breakfast on Saturday morning, the team was gathered in the training gym for a hard core work out. Krypto and Overcat had joined them and were going to pretend to be the bad guys during the activity. "Just remember, Showcase..." started Overcat. "We will be talking villain speak and we won't be playing fair. Ace will stop the simulation if someone gets hurt." Ace was once again in the control booth on his ever alert status. "Krypto and Overcat are pros," stated Ace who had on his cape and cowl. "Don't get cocky when facing them."

The normally white dog of steel was wearing a black crook's mask over his eyes and he was grinning extra nastily. Overcat was wearing his old villain costume from his days back in the old Underdog Show from the sixties. "Time to take out the garbage, Klepto!" To which Krypto replied, "Whatever you say, Undercat! Maybe we can have some rabbit stew!"

Gerard Rabbit and Arnie Eagle both irked at these words; they both knew how heavy hitting the two pros could and would be, and they were rightfully worried.

"Let's take it to the next level!" Gerard and Arnie shared a wink at each other as they began their sequences.

Gerard exclaimed, "Lapine Armor Sequence!" His hero armor then appeared in flashes up and down his lapine body, followed by his gloves and boots, and finally his clear safety visor which appeared over his eyes. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Captain Rabbit!"

Arnie exclaimed, "Eagle Armor Sequence!" His hero armor then appeared in flashes up and down his eagle body and around his wings, followed by his gloves and boots, and finally his clear safety visor which appeared over his eyes. He then leaped off of the disc in a mighty aerial flip as he landed in full view where he made a flurry of martial arts moves before striking his final pose for all to see. "Eagle Lord!"

"Let's take them, Showcase!" And what followed was not the best of training sessions. Several times, Ace would face-paw himself when the new heroes would perform some futile action.

That afternoon, Gerard was laying on a padded table in Oslo's home aching all over. The toon otter smiled as he rubbed his hands over the boy's back. "Hold still, Gerard. I'll work this cream in and help get all of those aches and pains out of your body." Gerard winced a bit at the otter's touch. "This last training session was so brutal that I decided to come to a professional to help me find relief." Oslo nodded his head as he worked. "I know; some people forget that unlike the others, you are still a human boy under the rabbit. To change the subject, I heard that you and Arnie told your parents the truth about your adventures and they gave you cart blanch to do whatever you guys wanted. I was suspicious when I first heard about it. I mean, your parents... they must have changed a lot between the time that they grounded you and just a few days ago. I assume you have more plans now that you're free?"

Gerard nodded his head. "Actually yes. There are a few mysteries still that I want to personally track down. And I still need to go back to Pleasure Island to pay off my debt to the Lord and his friends for the help they gave me, which means that I am going to get to see Wilwick again." Oslo giggled. "Mr. Pounce-a-lot." The young male sighed. "yeah. But he didn't trick me into becoming a donkey that one time. He wanted to change me but he didn't. I still owe some play time to him because I promised."

Oslo giggled again. "I am sure you'll get all your promises taken care of. You're a good friend." Gerard turned to look at Oslo. "Mom and dad wanted to know if I had let you... do me... yet. Every time anyone hears that you and I are friends, I always hear that question." The toon otter just smiled. "I would never do that to you, Gerard, unless you give me permission. And it has to be your idea or it won't happen; you are my friend." The boy laid still on the padded table. "You're okay, Oslo. That's why I trust you to work out my aches and pains."

By the following Sunday afternoon, Gerard and Arnie were riding their bikes through town when they saw Leonardo the pink lion... Mr. Pink's butler. And better, Leonardo was waving the boys over to him. Arnie rode his bike over and smiled at the lion, shaking his paw. "We haven't seen you in a week, Leonardo. How is our favorite lion today?" Leonardo smiled upon hearing that he their favorite. Better him than Simba, would say Gerard's father. "I have some good news for you, Arnie. Mr. Pink found out who tried to clobber Gerard with Toonium."

Gerard arched an eye. "Really? Who was it?" The pink lion replied, "His own sons... Pinky and Panky. They were afraid that you were going to replace them as Mr. Pink's son because they overheard you boys tell Mr. Pink that if he ever wanted to hear how great he was, to come see Arnie. They were hiding near the restaurant when you both had that conversation. Afterward, they ran over to the Ink and Paint Club and set up that trap to get one of you tooned in an accident. When they found out that you were only there for a temporary part time job and Arnie wasn't going to get it, they felt guilty and came clean, telling Mr. Pink what they had done. They're both really sorry. So, if you're still interested, Mr. Pink would like to see you working the door next Friday night, Arnie. What do you say?"

Arnie was overjoyed to be able to get the part time summer job for Mr. Pink. He hugged Leonardo and gave him a kiss on his pink muzzle. "I'd love to, Leonardo. Thank you for telling me. You have really made my day. Is there anything we can do for you?" The pink lion smiled back returning the hug to the boy. "I could use a back rub this afternoon... I have heard that humans have expert fingers. Would you please do that for me?" Arnie nodded his head. "You bet, Leonardo. How does three o'clock sound?" "It sounds like a date; I will come by your house at three o'clock. See you then, Arnie." And Leonardo then drove Mr. Pink's limo on down the street. Gerard chuckled as he shot a wink at Arnie who just blushed. "Getting chummy with the lion, eh homey?" The boys rode their bikes back home to prepare for the lion's back rub.

Late that night, Gerard was in his pajamas lying on his bed writing in his journal.

Journal Entry: Day 16 / Month 06 / Year 201X; Sunday...

Honesty is the best policy. We finally told my parents the truth and instead of grounding me for eternity, they gave me all the freedom I wanted to do whatever I liked with my time. Oslo said that my parent's attitude about all of this seemed pretty fishy and it's not the first time someone has said something of that nature. Mr. Luthor said it when I met him a few weeks ago. Turns out that Pinky and Panky were the ones who tried to douse me with Toonium. Am I ever glad that they came clean and told their dad the truth. Arnie now has his part time job with Mr. Pink at the Ink and Paint Club. Not to mention, he had Leonardo Lion literally moaning in bed... Minds out of the gutter, you pervs... not like that.

Gerard then put his journal away and turned off the light to get some sleep.

End of Episode Five

Stay tuned for the next episode, Donkey Jobs and Party Packs