Camp Bam Bam

Adam was lost in thought as he walked down the corridor of the Unit's base. He had almost died. He'd never been that scared before; all he could think about was his family. He knew they would survive without him, but he didn't want to leave them. He knew he could die at any time, and that had been okay before. That was what he was made for, but now he knew he wanted to live. It really made him wonder what the future would bring. He stopped dead as he remembered a movie that he had watched with Chang a few weeks before. A line ran through his mind right then. "Every man dies... but not every man truly lives." Adam figured out that that is exactly what he was doing now... living. He started moving again, now smiling.

Adam walked into the conference room, and grinned as he saw everyone sitting around the room. He swept his hand through his long jet black hair, and sighed. He couldn't have been happier had he tried. Even with the fact that he had almost died, and even with the deal he had to strike with the young Q... he was still really happy. No one had died. They lost not a single person attacking that base. Of course there were injuries, some almost as bad as his, but no one died.

He glanced around at the faces sitting at the long oak table that served as their major planning table, and saw most of them were looking at him with a bit of worry, so Adam grinned at them to let them know everything was okay. "Geez guys, don't worry so much. It wasn't that bad."

He knew that lying to them was wrong, but he also knew that only a select few would really know how bad it was.

Ronnie looked up with tears threatening to spill, the words he spoke barely could be heard. "We.. we thought you died."

Adam walked over to the nine-year-old boy, and rested his hands on the small boy's shoulders. Ronnie was small even for nine, but his heart was the size of planets. "Nah, my dear boy..." He switched into a very bad English accent. "...it was just a flesh wound!" The room erupted in laughter with Logan groaning about how he would never let Adam watch Monty Python again. That was the lighter mood he wanted right now, and he was going to keep it that way.

"Yes guys... the rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated... you're stuck with me. Now... let me hear it, how'd we do?" Adam looked at Chang first, because he wanted Chang's report first. He already knew most of what his brother would say, but he wanted to make sure everyone knew.

Chang couldn't resist a grin as he reached up and rubbed his forehead ridges. Ever since he got changed by Kahless, he'd had more trouble controlling his emotions; most of the time he didn't even try... they felt good. "We had seventeen with gunshot wounds, only two serious, and thirty nine other minor injuries.... we lost zero." Everyone grinned as Chang said that.

"You see, Adam... THAT is what we can do when we have time to plan something." Logan's broad grin said everything else that his comment didn't.

"Damn straight," Adam said, while gazing at the love of his life. Logan was still the most beautiful thing Adam had ever seen, and hoped that nothing would even happen to what they had. "Now... let's get the info on our new 'residents'."

Logan sighed, shuffled some papers, found the one he was looking for, then met Adam's steel-gray eyes with his own deep blue. "Well, there were a few more kids than we had originally thought. Before I get into that, though, I best explain the classification system we have come up with." When Logan looked up and saw Adam's confused expression, he continued, remembering Adam knew nothing about this.

"Well, see, we figured it would be good to classify the different types of Genesis kids, since there are so many different genetic modification levels. What we came up with was a system that generalizes the amount of change made to a person, and their natural ability level. Basically a system to tell us how far above the human norm someone is, due to the Genesis manipulation."

Adam nodded, looking around to make sure everyone was on the same page. Everyone was leaning forward, eager for this to come out. Everyone knew that they had a lot of kids here that were above the human norm, but now they had a way to tell just how far each one was.

"Okay.. this might be a bit confusing, so if I lose you, let me know," Logan said, looking around to make sure everyone was with him. "Okay, first off, many of the hybrid kids, we have no real way of telling how old they are. See, this new bunch has about half that were allowed to age normally, and the other half were genetically aged, just like the original Cats, and the wolves. 

"Wait a minute!" Adam broke in. "What do you mean the '"new bunch'."

That's when Logan realized that Adam didn't know about all the hybrids that they had found there. "Well... you know the building we couldn't get intel on? It was full of hybrids. Some growing normally, some force-aged."

Adam sat down with a thump. "How many are we talking about... and what kind?"

"I'll get to that in a second, Adam," Logan said, and Adam groaned... he had a feeling he wasn't going to like it. It's not that Adam had anything against the hybrids... Hell, he considered Khan to be one of his closest brothers. It was the fact that even though Adam was genetically enhanced, he could still go around without drawing attention to himself... the Hybrids couldn't.

"As I was saying, what we decided to do was assign an age to those that were genetically aged, based on their cellular development. See... Mom came up with the idea to look at the cells of the bones, and correlate that with what the age of a normal human would be with that cellular development." Logan paused for a moment to make sure everyone was with him. He saw that even Ronnie, the youngest non-augment there, was nodding his understanding.

"Okay, now that we have been able to establish the age of the person, we then can assign them a classification. It would be divided into two parts... a letter and a number. The letter would be what kind of genetic modification was used. Class A would be someone who was born normally, then changed. Class B would be someone who was engineered and then placed in vitro into a woman's uterus." Again he paused to make sure that everyone was with him. Ronnie looked a little lost till Janet leaned over and whispered something into his ear. Then the boy smiled and nodded.

"Finally," Logan went on, "there's the Class C. Those are the hybrids. Obviously they were engineered, and placed in an artificial womb for them to mature to 'birth.'"

Adam leaned forward, now clearly intrigued. "Okay... I get that part.. What's the number?"

"Well, the number is the harder part. See, every kid that was genetically engineered, Mom and Uncle Tony have done some testing too." Adam looked angry for a moment, and Logan quickly continued, "not like that, Adam, just seeing how much stronger, quicker, and how much faster they healed. Every single one of them agreed to the testing, and as for the healing, it only was tested when they got hurt in training or some other way."

Adam sighed, and looked looked guiltily over towards Janet. "Sorry mom, I know you'd never..."

Janet never batted an eye. "It's okay, baby... I know what you've been though, and can understand why you thought what you did. Don't worry about it." Janet may have said it, but Adam still felt bad for even thinking that Janet or Uncle Tony would ever purposefully hurt one of the kids.

Adam looked back over to Logan. "Sorry, Logan... go on."

Logan took a deep breath, then looked over his notes again. "What we did was average the three numbers... based on what would be normal for someone their age. Take Khan, for example. He is genetically fifteen years old. Obviously he is a Class C. Now compared to a normal fifteen-year-old boy, he is roughly seven times faster, eight times stronger, and heals about five times as fast. That would make his classification level a C-7. Understand?" Logan was pleased to see that there were nods from everyone around the room.

Adam grinned and could help but ask. "Okay.. where do I rate?"

Logan broke into a broad smile and laughed a bit. "Well... you're a Class A, since you were modified after birth, and your stats run like this. Eleven times stronger than a normal fourteen-year-old, nine times faster, and ten times healing. So far you have the lead, being an A-10."

Adam leaned back grinning; Juan couldn't help but chime in. "Hey.. I think it's rigged... of course Logan would think Adam's A-Class." Everyone broke up over that.

Logan chuckled and looked at Juan. "Well, Juan.. you know.. I wouldn't say anything. See you USED to be a B-6... but since you decided to go all Klingony on us.. well, now you're just a freak!" Juan just stuck his tongue out at Logan as he flexed his brow ridges.

"Did he just imply that our race were freaks?" Koth asked Korris as both boys were up and moving in a pincer movement to come at Logan from both sides.

"Yes, he did."

"Tickle attack til he pees?"

"Agreed! ATTACK!" Korris yelled as Logan found himself brought to the ground in a laughing, hysterical mess.

Once the laughter died down, Adam sat back in his chair, not really knowing if he wanted to ask his next question, but knowing he had to. "Okay, Logan... NOW can you get to the new kids?"

Logan just grinned and pulled out another piece of paper. "SURE!!!!" he laughed a little. "It's a good thing you're sitting down."

"Oh, just get it over with." Adam giggled nervously.

"WELL!" Logan started with a flurry, then got serious. "We got two thousand two hundred and sixty two Class A. Yes... every non-hybrid at that base was born normal."

Adam's jaw hit the floor. He knew there were a lot... but never thought that it was anywhere near that high. But Logan wasn't finished yet... nowhere near.

"There are also many hybrids. And this time, things are a bit different. See, there are more than just the cats and wolves... as well as this time they accelerated the aging of some, but not all. They wanted to see if there were any differences between those that were aged, and those that grew up normally." Logan paused because he knew Adam was too shocked to hear much more right now. He was too busy trying to wrap his mind around what Logan was telling him. Everyone else in the room knew most everything, if not the exact numbers.

When Logan thought Adam was ready, he continued. "The first two groups are special. They were actually created twenty-six years ago. When General Adams found out about them... he threatened to expose them unless the doctor came to work for him. Since Dr. Rosenthal thought of all those hybrids as his children... he had no choice but to work for Adams. Mom has already offered him a job here, which he has accepted."

"What did Dr. Rosenthal create that long ago?" Adam asked in wondered shock.

"Gorilla and Chimpanzee hybrids." Logan said, showing some awe in his voice. "Hell... they've already started working on the second generation. Right now there are forty-two gorillas and ninety-eight chimps." Adam sat back in a state of shock. The implications were mind boggling. Hell... Adam knew that the Cats could reproduce... look at Claire. But to see what appeared to be a thriving sub-species... he just couldn't wrap his head around it.

Before Logan could continue, however, there was a slight rumble from the air vent. It popped open and a small, three-and-a-half-foot high 'creature' fell out and onto Adam's lap.

It was naked, furry and had a western style hat on its head. He reached out, grabbed Adam's gold-plated pen, thrust it high in the air..."I GOT THE SHINY!!" was all that it said before it leapt down from the shocked Adam's lap and raced from the room.

"What the FUCKING hell was that?" Adam managed to say while most of the others cracked up laughing.

"That," Nathan managed between giggles, "was Dave. He's one of the new kids. He's insane."

Logan was trying to speak, but every time he saw Adam's shocked expression, as he stared at the door the little furry boy had just run through, Logan broke up again. Finally he was able to make himself say. "And that brings us to the Ferret Hybrids..." Everyone broke up again as Adam looked at Logan with a look of absolute shock.

"How... How many of them are there?" Adam asked in a quiet whisper.

Logan giggled again. "Oh.. only seventy-six... but thirty one of them are aging normally... they range from three to six."

"Oh sweet Jesus..." Was all Adam could get out.

Logan, who was still giggling continued. "But wait... there's more!"

"MORE?!?!"

"Yup... we got one hundred and eighteen more cats... fifty-nine of them between three and six. Twenty-eight badger hybrids... ten of them being three to seven... and my personal favorite... the six Wolverine Hybrids... only two of them are young."

"Wolverines..." Adam breathed, "I bet they're a cuddly bunch..."

"Oh, and two more Badgers with Joel – they're seven and aging normally. Albinos, poor things. Also, two ferrets went with him, one chimp and three cats. But one of the cats is being adopted by Brant and Matthew," Nathan added.

"And Sammy ended up with... how many kittens was it?" Koth giggled.

"God only knows," Nathan responded.

"Oh, yeah... and don't forget about the two Raccoons," Logan added.

"Oh, God...." Adam breathed as he sat back and closed his eyes, "...give me strength."

The room remained quiet for a moment to give Adam some time to collect himself. After a few minutes he opened his eyes and asked no one in particular, "How can they even lead normal lives? I'm sorry, but seeing the cats try and fail to fit in makes me hurt inside."

Nathan smiled over at him, "Joel's four have gotten around that problem."

"How?" Adam asked weakly. "Please, I really want to know."

"They act like they are aliens!" Nathan explained. "Adam, go take a look in Orlando; New York; London; etc. There are aliens all over the major cities. People don't bat an eyelid. They see something walking and talking like a human but obviously not, so they'll just assume they are from another world in Federation Space – Federation member or not, Earth gets many visitors from unaligned worlds. Don't worry for them. The VSO will brief them on how to act around normals, so they can just be themselves – naked or not. Do you know there are 16 races in the sector that don't wear clothes unless they absolutely HAVE to? Your G-Hybrids will fit in fine once they understand that."

Adam sat there for a second, letting his thoughts collect, then looked over to Logan. "Okay, I like it so far, but could I make a few additions?"

Logan nodded, got out a piece of paper, and got ready to make notes as Adam put his thoughts into words. "One thing that's missing is the intelligence augmentation. I was thinking that maybe we could use Star Fleet's IQ tests to use as a base test, and figure out how much more brain power we use."

"Well, that would take some time, but I see no problem with it," Logan said, while everyone else was nodding.

"Okay," Adam said while looking around at the group, "now the big question. What the hell are we going to do with all the new kids? I mean, if I added it up right, we're looking at about two thousand six hundred and thirty new kids! Where the hell are we going to put them?!"

Everyone looked at Adam with a weird look and he got the distinct impression he was missing something. Finally it was Ronnie who spoke up. "You mean you don't know about the other base?"

Adam looked around like he was lost. He saw that everyone else must have known what Ronnie was talking about, but he had no clue. He didn't like that feeling.

"When Levi fixed up this base, he must have figured we were gonna get a lot more kids, so he made another base. It's in this canyon as well, but on the west wall." Ronnie spoke, as he was typing something into the terminal at his seat. Suddenly the lights dimmed and the screen on the far wall lit up. When Adam looked, he saw it was a 3-D picture of their box canyon, complete with a scale so he could see exactly how big things were. It showed the canyon, just shy of a half mile wide, and just over one mile long. The only entrance to the canyon was in the south wall, where part of the wall was missing, right in the center. Adam could see the entrance to the base they were in now, exactly opposite the entrance, on the North wall.

The image also showed how the base was set up, looking like a pyramid with the top level being the ground level, and the other levels going down into the earth. Each level being bigger than the one on top.

Adam knew all this, but what he didn't know was what was on the west wall. There seemed to be yet another entrance to another base. Adam could tell just by the picture that the blast wall on that entrance was even thicker than the one they had on this base.

Adam looked hard at the picture, and then worked his own controls to start getting close looks at things. Ronnie was giving a running commentary on the base, based on what Adam was looking at.

"As you can see, the second base, which people have been calling Phantom Base, is set up much more like a military base than this one is. It has a larger opening to the canyon, as well as a retractable ceiling large enough to let even the MI-26s fly in." Adam whistled softly to himself, and with a nod told Ronnie to go on.

"The base itself cannot hold as many people as this base does, simply because the layout is somewhat different. There are more training areas, as well as indoor firing ranges. There are more pods, but they don't hold as many. I figure that the pods can each hold two squads. Each pod also has its own weapons storage locker..."

Adam just sat there in shock as Ronnie went on telling him all about the base that had been there for over a week, yet he never knew about it. When he was done, Adam looked at his 'son' with a grin.

"Damn, Ronnie... I knew we kept you around for something. Now I guess the only issue is getting it supplied." Adam laughed, but his grin faded when Ronnie just smiled at him.

"Already got that covered... old man." Everyone laughed as Ronnie leaned over and stage whispered to Alvin, "Boy, they really do get slower as they get older!"

Adam grinned, then looked at Ronnie. "What do you mean, you got that covered?"

"What I mean is just that. While you guys were off playing soldier, a whole bunch of us went through the new base getting everything ready. It really goes quick when you got about two thousand kids wanting to help. Not to mention we got about ten friends of Hulk Hogan here...."

Adam's jaw hit the floor, and Jack took that moment to jump in. "Adam, you remember when we talking to Sam when he first got here?" Adam nodded and Jack went on. "I tried to explain to you then that most of these kids would follow you into hell if needed. You didn't believe me then, but maybe you're starting to see it now. Those kids that helped today didn't do it because anyone asked. They saw Ronnie and a few others starting to do the work, and they just helped. It got around the base quick that new kids coming into the base needed a place to stay, and they all jumped in. When they heard you were leading the rescue attempt, they all said they wanted to help the guys that helped them." Jack knew by Adam's look that he would never believe he was the cause of it all, and that kind of modesty is what Jack loved the most about Adam.

Adam, being really uncomfortable with the way the conversation was going, changed the topic. "So where's Tommy? I thought he would be up here too."

Ronnie lost his smile, and looked over to Janet before responding. "Tommy's sick."

Adam's eyes flew to Janet, and was already halfway out of his chair before she could say anything. "Tommy's fine," she said, making Adam pause. "He's got the flu... but I'm keeping an eye on him. Right now he needs to rest."

Adam, only slightly less concerned, said, "You sure?"

Janet just smiled and nodded, making Adam sit back down. He took a moment, running his hand through his long hair. For a moment he thought that it might be time to get a haircut, but then he remembered how much Logan liked his long hair, which by now was more than halfway to his butt.

"Okay, so where are all the new kids now?" Adam asked, getting his thoughts back to the situation at hand.

Logan spoke up first. "Right now they are all hanging out in the canyon. Dave and his troop of cooks made a welcome feast for them. Most of the other kids are out there, getting to know their new new family members."

Khan spoke up next. "The hybrids were a bit concerned at first, thinking that the normal kids here wouldn't like them. That was, of course, until the teddy bear brigade got their hands on them." Adam looked blankly at Khan, and the oldest of the cats grinned at him, showing off his massive fangs. "Most of the kids under the age of seven have organized themselves into the teddy bear brigade. They've made it their job to welcome all the new kids, and especially any new hybrids that come. They got the idea from Camp Little Eagle, where the younger kids there have organized themselves into a group that helps out the new kids."

Adam just grinned and shook his head. He should have guessed that the little ones would have gotten involved. If he had to guess, he would probably say Kent was somehow in charge of that. "Okay, last thing I want to say before we go meet them is this. Khan, I am naming you commander of the hybrid forces. Make sure they get what they need, and if there are any problems, let me know."

Khan just nodded, and then the meeting broke up.

---

"So? What was your score, you Klingony-Humany-Genesisy funny person?" Riti asked Juan as he flapped alongside the boy.

Juan grinned at his friend. Inside the Tardis, the two boys had become close, due to their love of weapons and marksmanship. Competitions inevitably arose between them as to who was the best, and usually, Juan won – mainly as Riti had not got the mass to use ballistic firearms.

In the rescue, however, they had made a bet on, with their preferred equipment, who'd have the most kills.

"68 clean kills, and one maybe. He got hit by Rambo same time as me," Juan grinned as he buffed his nails on his chest.

"Really?" Riti said, sounding most impressed. "Now that isn't bad – for a Klingony-Humany-Genesisy funny person. I got 71."

Juan stopped dead and glowered. His 'Gimli' voice in full measure, he stated, "I'll have no be-winged freak outscoring me!!"

"Shouldn't that be 'Elven Prince', and wouldn't that be between you and Joel?" Riti teased playfully.

"Sadly, no," Juan said, falling completely serious. "Joel can't kill, so can't. He's so good, though, that a three way game on who'd 'fell' the most would be interesting..."

"Joel," Riti giggled as he flapped higher, "well, let's say that Joel has already beaten us. As of today, he's beaten over 9000 people."

"What?! There wasn't THAT many in the fucking base we just gang-banged!!" Juan screamed, while Riti flew a little higher.

"Hehe... no, he's beaten all of the UNIT and all of the VSO, hasn't he? We'd do anything for him, so... he's won! Nerr nerr!" Riti crowed out before flapping away faster than Juan could draw and let rip with his favorite gun...

---

Adam was walking around meeting all the new kids. Again he was thankful for his photographic memory, as without it he would never have remembered all their names. Finally they got to where the hybrids were hanging about, and for a second he was more than a little shocked. Hearing what they were did not prepare him for what they looked like.

The cats were easy enough to handle, as he had seen cat hybrids before. What he wasn't prepared for was the little ones. He knew from Logan that they ranged in age from three to seven years old, but he didn't think they would look so small, or so damned cute. He managed to spot Kent, who was directing a bunch of different games for all the little ones.

Adam could clearly see not only normal human kids, but also cats, ferrets, chimps, gorillas, and even a few that had to be badger kids in the group, all playing together without a care in the world. He heard Khan laugh beside him, "play, bringing kids together since the beginning of time."

Adam could only nod his agreement. Then he saw some of the older hybrid kids. The ferrets, with their reddish fur, only about a half an inch thick, but covering their entire bodies. Very thin, with short but wiry arms and legs, and long thin torsos. None of them were wearing clothes, but almost every one of them were wearing a hat of some sort.

Gorillas, who could easily give Khan a run for his money on sheer size. All of them, except for the youngest ones, were at least six foot tall, had huge arms, and even bigger chests. They were, for want of a better term, massive.

Chimps, who were smaller, and seemed to be exceptionally graceful. They were all wearing coveralls that must have been designed for them specifically. Their arms and legs were long, with long fingers on their hands, and long, almost finger-like toes on their feet. Their coveralls were lined with pockets, and Adam could see many of them holding tools of some sort.

Then he saw the badgers. They were short but incredibly powerful looking creatures, with very slight muzzles, and big, impressive looking teeth. They were all wearing military fatigues, obviously specially modified to handle their short, powerful frames.

Adam thought he was prepared for anything by that point, but then he saw the wolverines. The two tallest only stood about four and a half feet tall, but were probably wider than they were tall. Adam could swear they had muscles on top of muscles, and just looking at their faces, he knew that they were a bad-tempered bunch.

Adam figured out who Logan had told them was the commander of the hybrids at the base, so Adam worked his way over to the largest of the wolverines. He still couldn't believe what it was that the doctors of the lab had named the wolverine leader.

"Logan?" Adam asked as he stepped up to the almost five-foot-tall wolverine hybrid.

He looked up at Adam and asked in a gruff deep voice, "Yeah?"

"I'm Commander Casey, Commander of the operational forces within Camp Bam Bam." The kid looked him up and down, not looking impressed at all.

"Okay, what can I do for you?" and then, almost as if an afterthought, he added a "sir." at the end.

Adam was not sure what to do at this point, but pressed on anyways. "I wanted to introduce myself, and to introduce you to the commander of the hybrid forces. This is Amur Khan, and he'll be your direct CO," Adam said, while indicating Khan standing beside him.

"What: you want me to obey this pussy?" Logan the wolverine asked incredulously, jerking his thumb at Khan.

"Are you challenging me?" Amur Khan said, looking at Logan with a snarl on his face, not liking the look he was seeing.

"I ain't going to follow a pussy. We′s take care of ours selves," he said without even looking at Khan.

"Don't call me a pussy," Khan growled under his breath.

Logan started to say more, but never got it out of his mouth. Suddenly he flew across the area as Khan's furry fist connected with the side of his head.

This was met by many sounds of startlement, and some loud cat calls from the various hybrids that Adam had just met.

"Fiiiiight!!!!"

"He's at it again."

"Aw jeez. He never learns."

"Damn... He picked a big one this time."

"How many does this make?"

Most of the chimps and gorillas were just making noises of disapproval and shaking their heads. A female chimp was clucking and wringing her hands. She clearly disproved of the young wolverine's behavior more than most. Professor Don, one of the oldest chimps, turned to his mate and chuckled.

"I don't think he will ever learn, honey. It's just not in his nature."

"I know, dear, but you've read the profile on Khan I don't think LoLo knows what he's getting into," Professor Mary said.

"Honey... I don't think Khan understands what he′s getting into, either," Professor Don said with a smirk on his face.

Juan was excited as he sized up the two opponents. He used his sub-vocal to speak with Daileass. "Daileass, you are already broadcasting this, right?"

"Of course, Juanita. Just who do you think you're talking to?"

"Oh ha. ha. Like I haven't heard that one a million times. Let the usual people know that I am giving 1.5 to 1 odds in favor of Khan."

"Are you sure, partner? I mean, this is Khan we're talking about, Juan."

"You haven't seen just how stubborn these wolverines are, trust me. Khan is going to win, but he is going to have a tough time of it."

"If you say so, Juan. You seem to be right about this sort of thing more than you are wrong. ...Oh damn! I just checked the file on the Logan guy. He is one tough customer. He has a slight defect, though. Once he starts a fight, it is very hard to get him to stop. He just kinda gives in to his wolverine instinct."

Juan smiled at the comment. He already knew this. He had memorized all the files on the new kids before they had even taken the base. The chipmunks were very good at what they did. They had gotten every piece of information that was on every system networked in the base. The only places they had not gotten were the closed lab systems, but they had even managed a few of those. Given enough time, Juan was certain they could have gotten everything somehow.

 

Logan for his part was literally snarling like a wild beast. He was on all fours and circling Khan, who was calmly standing still with his arms at his side. He wasn't twitching a muscle.

Adam for his part was of two minds. On one hand, he felt that they had enough fighting to do without fighting each other. On the other hand, he could see that Khan needed to establish the chain of command and earn the respect of the wolverines, as well as that of the other hybrids. Besides, he thought to himself with a grin, he liked a good fight now and then. Then there was also the small matter of the sizable bet he had just placed with Daileass on Khan to win.

Logan broke off Adam's chain of thought as he charged Khan on all fours. The wolverine launched himself at the neck of his opponent.

Khan for his part read the move, and was moving out of the way almost before Logan left the ground. He hammered his fist into the back of Logan's head. Khan fully expected this to put the wolverine down for good. He hadn't held back at all.

Logan slammed into the ground with enough force to leave a mark. It didn't slow him down for a moment. He simply changed his direction of attack and went for Khan's legs.

Khan was not expecting this, and his eyes widened in surprise as Logan latched onto his leg and began to bite over and over.

Khan let out a tremendous roar as he grabbed Logan by the scruff of his neck. He spun around and hurled Logan across the feasting area and into a table that had been occupied only moments before by several of the ferrets, trying to get a better look at the fight. Khan had rushed after Logan just as soon as he had sent him flying. Before Logan had righted himself, Khan began to pummel him. Blow after blow rained down on the young wolverine's body, but it seemed to have little effect. To be more precise, it seemed to only enrage Logan further.

Logan rolled and came to his feet. He snarled and made some other unintelligible sounds as he raked his claws back and forth. He began to bob and weave almost like a drunk person. Khan, not one to underestimate an opponent, was surprised by Logan's flexibility and speed. It was hard to imagine the wolverines as graceful, but that is what Khan was witnessing. Even though Logan was almost as wide as he was tall, he could move with speed, grace, and ferocity.

Bartholomew Rollins III, or "Runt" as he was known to his friends, winced as he watched Logan rake Khan with his claws. He had only spent some time with Khan while training in the Tardis, but he knew that his feelings for the huge tiger boy were genuine. Every time he looked at him, his stomach did flip-flops and he lost the ability to speak. But he knew that there was no way that Khan would look at someone as small and scrawny as him. Almost fifteen years old, and most people thought he was ten. There was no way that someone as awesome as Khan would look twice at a "runt."

Khan was busy meeting the onslaught from his smaller opponent. Khan was kicking to block him which was creating problems of balance and speed. The size difference was working in Logan's favor, but Khan was not one to be beaten easily. He dropped to one knee and began pivoting on it and alternating from one to the other. This allowed him to counter much more effectively with his own claws.

"Get him, Amur!" Runt bellowed at the top of his lungs.

Juan was busily conversing with Daileass as they managed the betting on the fight. Juan was very impressed with the wolverine. He had known they were tough, but Logan was showing an impressive amount of fighting ability. Juan decided it was time to reel the suckers in, and he instructed Daileass to now only accept bets with Khan favored at 1.25 to 1 odds. Juan knew that the greedy ones were waiting for better odds, and that he could sucker them with this move.

Quick as lightning, Khan seized Logan by the scruff of his neck. He leaped to his feet. Then he began to spin like one of those discus throwers in the Olympics. He sent Logan sailing. The wolverine's trajectory caused the crowd to scatter. Logan went right through a tent. It wrapped itself around his body as he rolled to a stop. The crowd ran in terror as Logan started growling and ripped his way through the fabric of the tent.

"Oh LoLo. Why won't you ever learn?" Professor Mary said as she wrung her hands. Professor Don put an arm around his worried wife and held her close. He didn't say anything because it had all been said before. His mind went back to the first time they had met "LoLo." It was a scene not too unlike the one they were watching right now.

Begin Flashback

Professor Don was working on a compound to make stronger body armor for the fighting forces. He could hear an argument among some of the new kids that were down the hall from him. The sounds of their fight was coming through the vents clearly. His wife looked at him with that look he was helpless to defy.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Mary? I know you want to go see what you can do." She smiled at her husband. They were some of the oldest chimps, and they had taken on as much of a parent role as they could for many of younger hybrids. It was something that Professor Mary took very seriously. Of course Professor Don felt the same way, he just tried to hide it a bit. A survival tactic picked up from being stuck around General Adams and his bunch of crazies. His wife, on the other hand, couldn't help but wear her heart on her sleeve. It had been what brought them together before General Adams had changed everything.

Don felt the hole in his heart as he remembered when things had changed and they had been taken. Father had been working for General Adams for several years now. Things had begun to change slowly at first, but then more and more they found themselves subject to armed guards and questionable "requests." It had become obvious that General Adams was not what he said.

Their son, Ben, not old enough to know any better, had tried to resist being caged when the soldiers had come to forcibly relocate them to an unused maximum security army base. The soldiers had used cattle prods on him before beating him to death as a lesson. You did not resist or we kill you, was the message. It was only the intervention of Father that had kept things from getting worse. He had put a stop to the soldiers brutal techniques and convinced us to "cooperate." We learned a hard lesson that day.

Mary had felt the need to help out any of the youngsters she came across ever since. She didn't care if they were human enhanced or hybrid. She didn't care if they were chimp, cat, or badger. She tried to give as many of them as she could the mother they were lacking. She dropped the work she loved and became a behavioral researcher in order to be able to perform "experiments" with groups of the hybrid children.

What she was in reality doing was setting up programs that trained the kids with good social skills. She had eventually been able to work it out so that she had access to almost all the kids in the base. Most of the education programs were run by her, and she had been able to put a stop to the majority of excessively brutal methods that some of General Adams' staff seemed to prefer. Some things were still beyond her control, but she had done a very good job. It helped that a lot of the staff was more to her line of thinking than the extremes. She had built some very good relationships with some of the human research staff. A select few were even helping with the resistance that the chimps and gorillas had started.

So off she had gone to see what the noise was all about. I clicked the monitor to view what was happening in the other room and found a rather strange scene. There were several of the new wolverine hybrids. They were standing behind a young male who was demolishing the room. He would not let anyone near the others.

His eyes were little more than slits and he was snarling. Drool was flying from his mouth. He had the scientists all cornered. No amount of pleading from the scientists had any effect on the enraged wolverine boy. Professor Don chuckled to himself. He had warned that the wolverine experiments were not going to get the results that the scientists expected. He had warned them that a wolverine hybrid would probably have some severe temperament issues.

He chuckled as the wolverine kid literally ripped the lead scientist's lab coat into ribbons. I guess I will have to review my own theories. His temperament is worse than I expected. He slapped his thigh and laughed out loud when the wolverine kid snapped randomly in the air. That's just wonderful. I hope those damn eggheads the General brought in will listen to those of us with experience now.

"Go get 'em, little guy!" Professor Don exclaimed out loud as the enraged little wolverine charged the scientist that tried to subdue him with a stun stick. The scientists were all screaming like little girls. Prof. Don was rolling on the floor laughing uncontrollably. Then Mary entered the room.

"What on earth is going on in here!"

Everyone stopped and looked at Mary. She was eyeing the scientists with what looked like a mix of skepticism and disapproval. The scientists wilted under her gaze. Professor Don never ceased to be amazed at how well his wife could manage the scientific personnel on the base.

Logan growled and cursed as he rounded on the intruder. What he saw stunned him. The motherly face of Professor Mary smiled kindly at him. She looked down at the tablet in her hand and then at the wolverine boy.

"Ah you must be LoLo?" she said as she gazed into the youngster's eyes with the look of a mother. "Give the doctor his clothes back and come with me. That includes the rest of you too," she said, gesturing to the other kids in the room, as she eyed the doctors, daring them to contradict her.

Logan blinked his eyes in disbelief. Had she just called him LoLo? Then a strange thing occurred. He found, to his great surprise, himself answering her politely.

 

"Yes, Ma'am." was his subdued response. His stomach was all topsy turvy. He felt slightly embarrassed. He knew for sure that he had never felt quite like this before.

End Flashback

---

His eyes had narrowed to slits and drool was beginning to drip down his muzzle. His head was making strange twisting motions as he bit at the air. He was making some sort of twisted cross between a growl and cursing. He went down on all fours and began to scratch at the ground with his claws. He started to circle Khan, his body making a peculiar rocking motion.

Runt put his hand over his mouth and made a gasping sound as he tried to master the emotions swirling in his head. He wanted nothing more than to run over and take on the wolverine himself. He knew that it was not a possibility, because in terms of strength and fighting ability, the young wolverine had much deeper resources to call on.

Juan for his part was loving this. Logan was putting up just the type of fight Juan was expecting. He was counting on it looking like a close fight. It would drive the betting up.

Logan started stalking Khan. He was bobbing and weaving all over the place, looking for an opening in Khan's stance. He was not finding one. The large tiger had been trained by one of Takamura's students, and had eventually surpassed his teacher. His fights with Chang had made him improve by leaps and bounds since that time. He was a warrior in every sense of the word, but so was Logan. Logan was as single-minded as they came. Once he latched onto a target, he never backed down or off.

Khan for his part was looking at the wolverine with something akin to wonder, but bordering on horrified fascination. He had heard the term "foaming at the mouth," but had never expected to see it. He especially had never expected to see it in an opponent. Khan crouched low. He knew that he couldn't let the wolverine get leverage on him. He was very strong and fast.

Suddenly Logan moved in on Khan, who shot into the air. Logan was not fooled and he veered to one side, then launched himself at Khan. He was met by a flurry of kicks and punches from the tiger boy. As he landed on the ground, Khan landed on him with a knee in his side. He proceeded to pound on Logan with his fists, but it was hard for him to keep Logan pinned. Lots of comments and gasps could be heard from the crowd.

A rather large gorilla could be heard above everyone else though. "Damnit, Logan! Why do you have to be so hard headed? Look at how much you are making Mamma Mary worry about you. Won't you ever learn?!?"

The wolverine seemed to shrug the assault off as he twisted out from under Khan. He was focused solely on his fight. Nothing was reaching him at this point. Pure instinct. Logan came at Khan slicing him with his razor sharp claws. Khan met the onslaught with his own attack. Both were bleeding now. Suddenly Khan changed tactics. He stepped back, drawing Logan forward, then quickly sidestepped and seized him by his neck. He quickly hurled the wolverine into the wall of the canyon, which sent spectators scrambling.

The resounding crack as Logan slammed head first into the wall brought silence to the area. Everyone was convinced that the young wolverine had to be seriously injured, if not dead, from the impact. Khan however knew that he might have only stunned the kid for a moment. His pounding on the wolverine had let him know just how tough this kid was. He knew that it was going to take more than that to put Logan down.

Runt almost could not contain himself. He actually took several steps toward Khan before he checked himself. Sure, Khan had been kind to him in the past. They had even talked a bit while training in the Tardis, but that did not mean that he was interested in a "runt."

Logan leaped up and landed on all fours. He found himself in front of a folding style chair. He growled at it as he charged, seizing the offending chair in his mouth. He then began thrashing it around, crumpling the chair before ripping it apart with his claws. Those close enough could hear a steady stream of profanity/growling coming from the wolverine. If it wasn't for the fact Logan looked totally deranged and ready to turn on anyone in his way, it would be funny.

This time Khan didn't wait for Logan to attack. He came at the wolverine with deadly speed and power. He leveled kicks and punches with devastating accuracy. The wolverine wasn't able to counter-attack, because as soon as he would position himself for an attack, Khan would do a flip over him and attack from a different angle. Logan for his part was running on pure instinct now. He was literally chewing rocks and dirt.

Khan couldn't believe what he was seeing. It was as if something had short circuited in Logan's brain. Logan suddenly back-pedaled toward one of the tents. It was not something that Khan expected, as Logan had been very straightforward in his fighting so far, but it didn't take Khan long to react. He closed in quickly, relying on his speed and longer stride to allow him to get between Logan and whatever he was after.

Khan soon realized that he had made a mistake. Logan had anticipated the move. This time, as Khan passed over the wolverine, he found himself on the receiving end of a bite to his shoulder from the foaming furry fury that Logan had become. Logan tried to adjust to get a better grip, and found himself sailing into the tent in front of them, pulling it up from the ground before he slammed into the canyon wall for a second time.

Khan followed the wolverine to the wall. He grabbed the tent that was wrapped around Logan like a sack and quickly hurled him into the air. Leaping upward, he delivered several kicks before grabbing the tent and hurling Logan back to the ground. On the way down, the enraged wolverine shredded the tent and did a neat roll before charging back at Khan.

Khan threw a kick, and to his horror found his calf being chewed on by a snarling wolverine. Luckily for Khan, Logan had not found purchase, and it only took a few good shakes and a shot to the head with a fist to dislodge the kid. Khan was staring at Logan like he had lost his mind, which in reality was not too far from the truth.

The two combatants were circling each other, both letting out small growling noises. Khan crouched low and began to move on all fours. He sized up his opponent slowly, watching his movements and taking measure of his body. He was strong. He would never make the mistake of underestimating this kid's strength again.

Khan moved. It was a blur to most of the observers. It took Logan by surprise. The speed was unexpected. Khan attacked without mercy. He rained kicks and punches down on Logan and began to drive the snarling mass of fury back. The blows were taking their toll on Logan. His body was beginning to betray him.

Then it happened. Logan's jaws clamped onto Khan's forearm when he executed an open palm strike at Logan's chest. Khan for his part let out a startled primal roar. He immediately grabbed the wolverine's jaws with his free paw and tried to pry Logan's jaws open. They wouldn't budge. Khan's eyes grew wider and wider as he began trying to use a foot to pry Logan off.

He began raining hammer blows on Logan's skull, and still the wolverine wouldn't let go. His blows began to become more desperate. Khan was beginning to think that Logan was going to rip his arm off. He pushed Logan's chin to the ground and tried to pry the kid's mouth open, but it wouldn't budge.

Khan began to panic at this point. He had never before been subjected to this type of single-mindedness. It was scary in ways that Khan had never imagined. Khan was beginning to make noises like a house cat in heat as he tried in vain to pry the mouth off of his arm.

Runt was holding a hand to his face. He couldn't stand to see the person he cared for most, even if he couldn't admit his feelings, being hurt. He was in turmoil inside as he tried to encourage Khan.

"Don't give in, Khan. You are the best!"

Despite Khan being totally freaked out, something registered for him. He let out a roar of defiance. He started slamming Logan on the ground in an effort to dislodge him. He began to bounce up and down as he tried to dislodge the wolverine. Strange noises, very out of place for the leader of the G-Cats, began spewing forth. It was reminiscent of the sounds a tom cat might make during a fight in an alleyway.

Juan was beginning to giggle at the sounds that were coming out of Khan's mouth. He couldn't help himself. He was going to make a ton of money on this fight. Suddenly he was whirled around and a fist connected with his face. He fell back on his ass and let out a startled gasp. Runt had taken exception to Juan laughing at Khan. Juan was on his feet in an instant.

His eyes were glowing, but then he just looked at Runt, not too much bigger than himself, looking at him with a stunned expression of disbelief. Juan's eyes softened and then he got a wicked look in them.

"Ah, so that's how it is, huh?" He made a kissy face at Runt. The color drained from Runt's face and his eyes began to tear up.

;Hey now. Don't worry. I think it's great! You and the big pussy are perfect for each other! Juan projected into the boy's head.

This was too much for Runt to handle. He took off, pushing through the crowd until he found a spot he could hide in, but still watch. Juan shook his head. 'I don't know how, but those two need to get together,' he thought to himself with a grin.

Khan for his part was beyond freaked. He was flopping around like a fish out of water. Logan was slamming repeatedly on the ground. Khan leaped into the air and brought Logan crashing through one of the tables that moments before had been full of spectators. It shattered into splinters.

Khan began making more guttural cat sounds. All the cat hybrids laid their ears back and made shocked faces at the large tiger kid. It was obvious that the noises were not considered polite by the cats.

Soon the crowd was scattering again as Khan flopped around and twisted, trying to shake the wolverine off his forearm. Chairs, tents, sound equipment all went flying as Khan became more and more desperate. The destruction was becoming more and more pronounced when Khan suddenly heard a voice inside his head.

Stand down, soldier. Logan has been unconscious since the first blow you landed after he bit you. Khan whirled around and looked straight at Adam, who was struggling to keep a command face on, but was slowly losing to his giggles. I deadened the nerves in your arm, so just sit there and let us get him off.

Khan looked down and noticed that Logan's breathing was deep and steady, and that he was not moving. He calmed down slightly, but only slightly. Get this fucking psycho off me! He literally bellowed at Adam through the telepathic link that Adam had with all the Unit members.

Most of the crowd still shied away from where Khan was sitting, panting, with a very unconscious Logan still attached to his arm. No one noticed the very small 'Runt' run away from the carnage. As much as he wanted to be by Khan's side, he knew it wasn't his place. He hoped sometime it would be, but knew he never would be with someone like Khan. Chang, Adam, Logan, and Nathan moved up to try and help the rather freaked out tiger.

Nathan shook his head as he looked at Logan and Khan's arm. "I don't know if I can pry his jaw open without breaking it. Even with my telekinetics, I think the jaw will break before I can pry it open enough to get your arm out, Khan."

"THEN BREAK THE DAMNED THING!" Khan said, still struggling to keep his calm. It was very disconcerting for Khan to look down and see the huge maw of the wolverine boy still attached to his arm.

"MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" a voice said from the crowd area that was slowly moving in on the small group in the middle. Professor Don came pushing his way through the crowd and then moved to where Khan was sitting. Right behind him were two of the larger gorillas, as well as Mary, who everyone called Mama Mary.

"Here... let me," Don said as he bent over and pressed on a spot just under Logan's jaw, and everyone there saw his jaw slacken. Don then stepped back and nodded to the two gorillas with him. They reached down, one grabbing the upper jaw, and the other grabbing the lower. On the count of three, they started to pull apart Logan's jaw.

Since both were shirtless, everyone could see the corded muscles bulging with the strain, but bit by bit, the young wolverine's jaw moved apart. The sounds coming from the area, and watching as Logan's fangs were pulled out of Khan's destroyed forearm, made more then one squeamish spectator run for the trees.

Finally though, Khan was able to pull his arm gently out of Logan's maw, and immediately, Chang and a few of his medics went to work on both boys, none of them laughing simply because of the look on Khan's face.

At one point, Logan woke up, and looked up at Khan. With a feral smile on his beaten and battered face, he slurred, "Not bad... for a kitty." At which point he promptly passed out again.

Adam was standing there with an arm over Logan's, his lover's, shoulder, watching as Janet got the two hybrid boys ready for transport to the medical wing. When she was done with that, she turned to Professor Don. "How did you know how to do that?"

Professor Don wrapped a long arm around his wife Mary, and smiled sadly at the assembled crowd. "This is not the first time that young Logan has lost control of his faculties. Thankfully he did not lose total control of himself."

Adam's jaw dropped. "You mean he can get worse?"

With a tired sigh, Don looked out over the canyon. "Unfortunately, yes. You see, the Wolverine Hybrids are much more volatile than the doctors were prepared for. Had they listened to me though... oh, well, there is no point in that now. See, I warned the military doctors that making a wolverine hybrid would have very negative effects. They did not believe me, until one time they saw Logan lose total control. Scientifically, I have given their behavior three different classifications. The first one is their normal selves. Although rather ill-tempered, they can be reasoned with, and if they respect someone, they can even follow orders rather well. The second, I have classified as enraged. In this state, they are exclusively single-minded, and will attack their target without concern to life or limb. They will back off if they are in danger of getting killed, or they see life-threatening danger to someone else... but the trick there is getting them to see that."

He paused for a second to gather his thoughts, and being extremely dramatic, he was waiting till everyone was leaning forward a bit. "The third stage, I have named 'the blood frenzy.' In this state, they care about nothing other than destroying what they are after. It doesn't matter what it is, they will destroy it. They can't tell friend from foe, or make out really anything other then what they are after. If someone or something gets in their way, the hybrid in question WILL go through that obstacle."

Almost everyone had wide eyes at that pronouncement. Silence reined until Adam asked, "What happened that one time Logan lost control?"

"Well, my young commander... It happened shortly after General Adams rotated his own personal guard into the base. These were big brutes who were totally loyal only to General Adams. Anyways, they decided that the wolverines needed to be moved to a different barracks. So in the middle of the night, they came in with tear gas and cattle prods, hoping to surprise the sleeping group, and be able to move them easier."

A few of the wolverines that were hanging around started to chuckle, as well as a few of the other hybrids nearby. Even Don smiled a bit as he thought back to that night. "See, thanks to the ferrets and some of the chimps, we had our own surveillance throughout most of the base, so some of us were able to watch as this happened. When they attacked, Logan went into full protective mode. See, since he's the oldest, and largest, he sees it as his job to protect the others. Which he does very well. When they stormed into the room, which was already filled with gas, they found out something they would have known, had they read my reports... the wolverines are not affected by tear gas."

That got a few laughs out of everyone, including Adam, who filed that piece of information away for later. "So when they came in, they were expecting to find a small group of hybrid kids choking and in hysterics. What they found was one really pissed off Logan. When they attacked him, he attacked back."

"We were all filled with mirth as we realized they had not done any of their homework. Again, had they read my reports, they would have known that cattle prods and stun sticks work great... if you're trying to piss the Wolverines off, but will not work if you're trying to subdue them. Three of the soldiers tried to use their sticks on Logan at the same time. Only one of them lived long enough to see the error of their ways. But only barely."

Twenty soldiers went in there to move them; five minutes later, none of them walked out. However, by the time I got there, Logan was unconscious. See, one of the last guys tried again to use the stun stick. Logan bit the thing in two. Unfortunately for Logan, when he did that, the electrical charge in it locked his jaw shut, and continued to deliver its charge, right into his mouth. I had to wait for about five minutes for the battery in it to die, before I could dislodge it from Logan's mouth. That's where I learned the trick to unlock his jaw."

Janet looked absolutely horrified, while Adam had that feral look in his eyes that all the Genesis kids seemed to have from time to time. "Good for him" was all he said. That was, however, enough to make Janet turn and lock her gaze on him.

"You know, Adam, I do not think it is a good idea to have these 'little' fights among the family. It serves no real purpose." Janet stood there with her hands on her hips, daring Adam to contradict.

He was about to, but Don beat him to it. "With all due respect, Doctor Hayes, the fighting serves a vital purpose to the entire group."

She turned towards Don with a look of horror on her face. "What... how could that possible be?"

Before Don could respond, Mary actually stepped forward and reached up to put both her long arms on Janet's shoulders. "Doctor Hayes. I know how hard it is to do this, as I consider many of these kids to be my children. But there are times when you must take the hat of mother off, and put your Doctor's hat on. I know you are one of the most brilliant geneticists alive today, so you will know what I am talking about. But before I say it, let me ask you a few questions."

Janet took a deep breath, and then nodded. "Among the Hybrids, what percent of their DNA is animal? I know you would have to look it up, but I am asking you to guess."

"Well I would have to guess somewhere between sixty and sixty-five percent," Janet answered, after thinking about it for a few seconds.

"Very good. It actually averages out to be around sixty-two percent. Now, in the non-hybrid, augmented children, how much Animal DNA would you think is in them," Mary asked.

"Actually I do not need to guess. It averages out to be roughly thirty-one percent," Janet said, now seeing where Mary was going with this. "But I still don't think they need to resort to violence to solve their problems."

"Actually, Mom, we do." This, surprisingly, came from Logan, her son. "I know it's hard for you to understand, but since we've been here, I have been doing a lot of research in sociology, as well as the study of animals in the wild. In order for the Genesis group to function properly, they needed to set up their own society. Part of that is influenced heavily by the behavior of animals, mainly predators. In every society of predators, it is always the strongest who lead. In the wild, most animals live in social groups: packs, flocks, or what ever you want to call them. I think of them as family groups. They are usually a very structured society too. While young, they would learn everything about the social system of their group. They would slowly find their place in the group's dominance hierarchy. Dominance, leadership, obeying others are all understood within the group. Each group has a leader who is dominant over everyone else in the group. This leader is usually called the Alpha. This is the member who makes the rules and has to be obeyed. The U.N.I.T. members' social interactions are more complex than that, but that instinct is still there, and it is necessary for it to be followed if things are going to work. THAT is why Khan had to assert his dominance over Logan, and why Adam has to project strength at every moment. If he didn't, someone might challenge him for leadership. Now obviously, the animal instincts are somewhat softened by the human DNA, but in some cases all that really means is that some of them are extremely intelligent predators."

Don, Mary, and Janet all looked at Logan in awe. Sometimes it was easy to forget that Logan was brilliant. Everyone knew he was a computer wiz, but it went much further than that. He had a truly brilliant and unique mind. "Exactly right, my boy. I couldn't have said it better myself," Don said.

Logan grinned and shocked everyone with his next comment. "I am thinking of using that as my Doctoral Thesis in sociology at Harvard."

It was quiet for a few moments until Juan came over. "Hey, Mom... here's your winnings!" he said, and handed her a large stack of bills. Juan was totally oblivious to her face going red with embarrassment, as he made his way over to Don and handed him a stack as well. "And here's yours, Professor. Nice doing business with you." With that he skipped away as Mary slapped Don upside the head.

---

Alvin was loving it... he finally got to win money from Juan, instead of having to give it to him. He knew Amur would win, but he was also able to instantaneously access and review all the files on Logan. He knew it would be a BIG fight, and he wasn't disappointed. Logan's performance had won him just over twenty five hundred dollars.

Not that the three 'chipmunks' actually needed any money. The boy's liquid assets topped six digits, and their holdings topped seven. Unknown to anyone other than Logan was that their latest acquisition was a large amusement park that was about to go out of business. The Chipmunks bought it, and up until now had currently dumped a little over one million dollars to upgrade it. Their corporation... CMK Holdings... had been rather busy lately. The only reason Logan knew about it was the fact that he was linked to the Chipmunks. If not for that, then he would have no clue... they didn't tell anyone about it.

"Hey Juan... I gotta go for a bit," Koth said as he walked up next to his lover. Alvin didn't want to listen in, but some things he couldn't let go... this was one of them.

"What's up?" Juan asked, and suddenly Alvin couldn't hear anything, Either Koth was speaking very softly, or telepathically. However, the next thing Alvin saw was a very pissed off looking Juan, as he and Koth transported out. Alvin was worried about his brother, but he knew Juan well enough to know that if he needed or wanted help, he would have asked. Juan might be psycho, but he wasn't stupid.

---

Adam was sitting on one of the cliffs overlooking the open canyon. Logan was sitting in front of him, his back pressed up against Adam's chest, and Adam's arms were wrapped around him. They were looking out over the assembled mass of kids that were, for all intents and purposes, Adam's. They were his family, and he was their big brother. For the most part that was true; even the older ones looked at Adam like an older brother. They were not talking while they were sitting there; both of them were lost in their own thoughts.

It took Logan, Janet, and Joe to finally make Adam realize that he was not just their military commander any longer, he was their leader. At first Adam didn't understand what the difference was, but then Logan said something so simple, yet so very profound. 'They don't follow you because they have to... they follow you because they love you.'

Once again, Adam's mind drifted back to a movie that Logan made him watch. Adam was starting to feel like perhaps he was the main character in that movie. He led an army of his countryman to freedom. His army didn't follow him because he made them. They followed him because they believed in him and, in turn, he believed in them. Adam learned much by watching that movie, but the biggest thing he learned was about 'real' leadership.

Right now, though, all Adam was really worried about was holding his lover tight, and watching his family become one. He couldn't help but let a small feral grin out when he thought about the fight between the wolverine, Logan, and Adam's best friend, Amur Khan. It had been supremely brutal... a violence that is not often seen... especially not in the more 'civilized' areas. But here... with his family around, it had stirred something deep within all of them. That primal part that was deep within all the Genesis kids. Something that not many would understand unless they were a part of it. The Genesis project had made them all killers, nothing more, nothing less. They were made, not just to kill their enemy, but to totally annihilate them. The Genesis project made them Killers, but the love shown by many around them made them so much more.

Logan understood what drove their blood lusts. But he also taught Adam how to control it when needed. That is what Adam loved so much about Logan. He never tried to change Adam from what he was, but to help him learn to control the baser instincts within himself. Adam was definitely not the most violent of his family, but those that really knew him knew what would happen if he lost control.

Now add in the fact that he was an 'N-Gen,' and Adam became just that much more deadly. Adam thought with an evil chuckle that he actually had to thank General Adams for one thing, though. Even though Adam hated the General for what he had done, if it hadn't been for all the evil and stupidity that the General had perpetrated, Adam would not have the family he had... and that was the single most important thing to Adam... his family.

'Adam...' A voice said in his head, and from the stiffening that Logan did, obviously he heard it too. But what really shocked Adam was the fact that it was Daileass. Adam had no clue that Daileass could speak telepathically, but... well he could.

"What's up, Daile?" Adam asked, still having the habit of saying things out loud when he only had to think them.

'Sorry to break up the cuddle moment, but I thought you should look into something,' Daileass said; he was obviously nervous about something.

"What's going on?" Adam was thoroughly confused by this point.

'Well... I guess the best thing I can do is show you. This is about two miles to the east/northeast of your current location.' Adam closed his eyes, as a picture came into his mind.

He immediately jumped to his feet, Logan doing the same thing. Adam took Logan's hand and spoke urgently. 'I need you to go get some supplies, and your youngest brothers. I don't want to be too intimidating right now, and bringing anyone else would be."

 

Logan simply nodded, turned and ran off. Adam ran off in the other direction... within a hundred feet, Adam reached his full speed. He would be there in less the five minutes.

---

"What the hell have you two been doing?"

 

Khan looked up to see Joel Short walking up to him with two of the ferret boys and his large Sehlat bear behind him. "Getting to know each other," Khan grunted sourly, nodding at Logan at his side.

Logan nodded and also grunted, "As well as the tables, chairs, canyon walls, bushes..."

 

"Tents, dirt, rocks..." Khan added even more sourly. "And cacti," he added, rubbing his sore butt.

"He fights well," Logan grudgingly admitted.

Joel rolled his eyes as one the ferret boys tutted at Logan. Joel grinned, "Why did you fight?"

"'Cos that's what we do," Logan grunted.

Khan rolled his own eyes, then winced, due to his black eye. "He didn't want to accept my authority over the Hybrid Forces, so I had a 'discussion' with him about it."

Joel sighed before moving over and opening Khan's ever-present robe. Khan raised an eyebrow at the boy, but soon started purring once Joel had settled himself to hug Khan, chest to chest. Joel reached up and started scratching Khan's ears, then under his chin, then he leaned back and rubbed Khan's chest.

"Cats," Logan muttered, while shaking his head as he watched.

Joel muttered, "You'll be better, soon."

The strange little Vulcan's Armour glimmered, and Khan gasped. All of his injuries had vanished. Normally, such wounds would have taken a couple of days to go away.

Joel smiled and got off of Khan's lap before closing Khan's robes. He then went and sat on the already naked wolverine's lap, and started to give Logan's shoulders a good massage and rub. If Logan could have purred, he would have. "Get better," Joel said again. And again, the Armour glimmered for a second, and healed Logan as well.

Joel finally stood up and then added, "You know something, Khan?"

"What?" Khan asked.

"Next time you need something from Logan, just ask me," Joel giggled.

"Why?"

"Cos he owes me a life debt!" Joel smiled.

Khan looked at Joel for a moment. Then he looked at the wolverine at his side, who grinned toothily at him, "He's right, I do."

Khan then looked back at the innocently grinning Joel, "You mean you could have just ORDERED him to follow me?!"

"Uh huh, but I didn't know you were gonna go tell him you were his boss, right away, and I wasn't here... anyways, the look on your face is more fun!" Joel hooted before scampering away giggling, with the ferrets and Sehlat running fast behind him.

Khan looked at Logan again. The wolverine was still grinning at him.

"That's it: I'm going for a walk," Khan said in complete disgust as he got up and wandered away, swearing under his breath.

Logan grinned more, stood up, and ran to catch up with Joel.

---

Joe sat in his wheelchair watching as the new arrivals mixed with the 'old timers' in the base. The bonfire filled the air with a slight smoky, heady smell, and Adam and the gang were as chilled out as he'd ever seen them. This last week had thrown more their way than Joe had ever expected, but if you were to ask him if he'd wish things were different, he would tell you no. Life must go on, and no one should second guess fate.

At that profound thought, Joe's eyes fell on a boy dressed in silvery armor standing with Logan the Wolverine, and on a large armored bear with two small furry ferret boys on its back. He had watched as Joel Short hugged both Logan and Amur Khan, and he had wondered at the sudden healing both had received.

As he sat there, just staring at Joel, he replayed all that he had seen that day over and over in his head. Three boys had nearly died in the rescue. Yet they were now alive and well and completely whole. All down to Joel.

Joe pondered that. Miracles were not something he would be quick to attribute these 'healings' to, but as a renowned detective from the early 20th Century had once said, 'When you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.'

Joe nodded as he thought. He had no other explanation other than a miracle. Yet that raised more questions. How was it that a wounded, hurting alien child had the ability to heal with a simple touch?

"Why's you lookin' at our daddy like that?"

Joe blinked, then focused his eyes before him. The two little ferrets were standing right at his knees watching him, with their arms around each other's shoulders. "Pardon?" Joe asked as he felt himself smiling.

"Why's you lookin' at our daddy?" the one on the left asked again. "Yous been staring and staring. You wantin' cuddles from 'im? He gives nice cuddles!"

Joe chuckled, "I know. I've had a few from him. What're your names?"

"I'm Jules, and this is Verne," Jules said as he ruffled his twin's fur on the top of his head.

Verne grinned, "And who's you?"

"I'm Joe, Adam Casey's father," Joe answered with an easy smile. "Your daddy calls me Uncle, so you can too if you want."

"Okay, Uncle Joe! You didn't answer Verne's question, though," Jules giggled. "Why were you staring at our daddy?"

"I was just thinking," Joe answered as he reached and pulled both boys onto his lap.

"What about?" Joel asked as he came to a stop at his side.

Joe started then grinned, "You've been learning your sneaking very well, Joel."

"Thank you!" Joel giggled.

*Huff*

"You too, I-Cheya," Joe laughed as a wet nose touched the back of his neck. Then he looked closely at Joel. "Where have you put your armour and sword? You had them on a moment ago."

"I sent them away," Joel shrugged.

Joe blinked.

 

Joel giggled, "Here, I'll show you. Sa'ren! Fo-Wein Sa'ren!" he said loudly. Firmly.

The air around Joel became liquid, and suddenly he was dressed in his armour. On his back appeared his sword, also through a liquid effect.

"Wow," Joe whispered.

Joel grinned through his helm and face-guard and did a small twirl on the spot. Joe reached out quickly to stop him, "How is that sword staying on your back? There's no scabbard! And it's... it's in PIECES, Joel... what?!"

"It's the Sa'ren," Joel answered. "I don't know how it stays there, nor how it stays in one piece, but it told me it would take care of the details."

"It... it told you?" Joe asked weakly.

"Yup," Joel giggled as he moved closer to hug himself to Joe's side. As he remained there, held close, he asked, "How long til you're strong enough to walk again?"

"Not long," Joe answered as the two ferrets on his lap hopped down to go hunting for food (or Shinys), "but I'll never be quite the same."

"I hope you get all the way better," Joel whispered as he snuggled closer to Joe's side.

As he did so, Joe noticed a slight glimmer from the boy's armour – a glimmer he'd seen twice already when Joel had hugged Amur Khan and Logan.

Then, Joel pulled back, "I gotta go, Uncle Joe. I have food with my family, now."

"Good bye, sweetheart," Joe said softly, as Joel and his bear ran off to catch the two ferrets.

Once Joel was out of hearing, Joe lifted his leg and wiggled his foot. Then he smiled.

He felt normal.

---

Runt had been in hiding since just after Amur Khan had won his fight. Everyone must have noticed his reaction. They must have. Even Amur. So, he went for a walk to hide further up the canyon for a while. The very idea that such a runt as he would fancy such an amazing guy like Amur... it was laughable, wasn't it?

He had found a sheltered place where no one could see him, and just sat there; staring morosely out across the canyon, thinking. 'Brooding' came closer, but he wouldn't admit it.

He had even lost track of how much time had passed, and it was only when the light started to dim as the sun rode low in the heavens, did he drag his mind back from its wanderings. What helped was the crunching sound caused by soft feet on the loose stones and shale on the path leading to where he was hidden. Runt looked up and saw a huge shadow round the bend and head in his direction. Now who could this be?

'Oh, no!' he thought with rising panic. It was Amur Khan himself... and he looked rather put out.

'FUCK! Juan must have told him! Oh nooooo! He's going to... to laugh and... oh GOD! Why me?!' Runt thought in panic. Then Runt noticed that Amur wasn't limping, wasn't injured in any way. He couldn't heal that fast, that much Runt knew well.

He watched carefully as Khan came closer. It didn't seem like the large tiger was here to find him. Maybe he needed to think as well? Runt didn't know, but he hoped that Khan would simply walk by. He just didn't want to...

"Oh, it's you. You okay, Runt?" Amur asked as his sensitive nose picked up Runt's scent in the early evening air. "What are you doing up here?"

Runt tried for some levity, hoping to throw off Amur from finding out the real reason. "I could ask you the same thing," he half grinned. Then he turned his eyes back to the far side of the canyon and said softly, "Just thinking."

Amur half smiled as well. "It's a good place for it. Peaceful," he said just as softly. Then he pointed at the space next to where Runt was siting. "Do you think I could sit here and think with you?" he asked.

Runt felt his heart rate skyrocket. Amur wanted to sit with him? To be with him? That he had even notice him was a miracle as far as Runt was concerned, but the idea that Khan would care enough about such a tiny speck as he to sit and think with him? Runt's mind swam.

He did, however, nod slowly and whisper, "Sure."

Amur Khan sat slowly, keeping half an eye on the little angel now shaking lightly at his side. Something had changed in Runt's scent, and Khan could easily tell what it was. Runt was attracted to him – and was rapidly getting turned on, judging by the pheromones. Khan was not surprised. Many of the teens here did in his presence; male and female alike. He was, after all, a well built tom - and his rank and personal history made him a target often for those who fancied trying their luck getting him into a bed.

Khan had never done so, however. For one, the teen boys had little chance as Khan considered himself straight, and two, the girls just wanted a conquest. Khan wanted love. Just like his twin brother had been, Khan was a romantic. And he was a virgin, which was hard to maintain when he could smell others' lust and sex everywhere so easily. He at times envied his twin's luck at finding love.

But it wasn't hard for Khan with Runt, for with this small kid there didn't seem to be the added scent of a male in search for a wild time. Runt was instead nervous; scared. Yet the smell of desire started to build anyway. Khan decided to simply ignore it and just try talking to the small, sweet teen by his side. In all the time in the Tardis, Runt and he had said very few words, even though they had been around each other a lot. In fact, every 'morning' in there, Khan brought Runt a large coffee made just how Runt liked it – and every evening, it was Runt who brought over a special bit of meat for Amur to enjoy with his meal.

At the time, Amur just thought he was building camaraderie. Now, at this moment, Amur realized that he had not done that for ANY of the others in there - and no one had done that with him either.

He liked Runt, he decided in that moment. He'd made a very good friend.

"I heard you shouting your support earlier," Khan said softly, breaking the silence. "Thank you. I needed it."

"No sweat," Runt whispered nervously. "You'd have won anyway. You're awesome," he added bravely, sneaking a look at Amur.

The tiger was staring out over the canyon as well, and didn't seem to react at first. Then Runt saw a subtle shift in the fur on Amur's face.

"Umm... did I make you blush?" he asked curiously before he could help himself.

Amur's eyes darted to him for a second before looking back over the valley. Then he nodded. "You can tell? Not many can."

"Uh, well... it's nothing. I just... uh... well..." Runt hedged, for if he said that he'd spent days in the Tardis studying Amur's every movement, the large cat would probably laugh at him and leave him alone. He didn't want that.

A large paw patted him lightly on the back, so he just smiled, sighed and looked back out over the canyon. Amur was just too good to be true, Runt thought. He didn't even want a full explanation.

Not that Amur had needed it, for the scents coming from Runt were a dead givaway. The boy must have been watching him for some time, now. Amur smiled softly as he rested his paw on Runt's back, and he felt Runt relax too. Why was he feeling so strange due to this simple contact with another boy? Khan had no idea, but he just flowed with it. It felt - right.

"How'd you heal up so fast? You were leaking red stuff like a busted out dam, earlier," Runt asked a few minutes later as he relaxed back against Khan's arm.

Khan's voice was puzzled as he replied, "I'm not entirely sure, but Joel came over from Orlando and hugged both me and Logan. Then we healed. It was most strange."

"He's a strange little boy, but I love him," Runt giggled. "I'll have to make him his favorite cookie as a thank you," he added without thinking.

Amur managed to not react, but the idea that he meant this much to Runt was shocking. This was definitely not about sex or lust, he decided. That worried him.

"He's thirteen, not a little boy. He might be upset if you call him that," Amur said as he tried to think on what to do about this situation he was getting into.

"Really? He looks nine. No one ever said..." Runt said curiously. Then he sighed, "Was his mom a crackhead too?"

"No," Amur said softly. "He was starved and a slave all his life. There's more, but that's for him to say."

"I understand. Just like you guys not asking about my past. I like that, makes me feel real safe here," Runt whispered as he reached to pull Amur's arm from behind him so as to wrap it around himself. He was feeling cold, and he did it without thinking.

Amur was getting more and more worried, but something inside just seemed so right. He pulled Runt closer to himself and to his body heat.

"Do you have a boyfriend? Or a girlfriend?" Runt blurted out, then clapped his hands to his mouth in shock. Why had he asked that?

Amur chuckled softly at Runt's reaction. "No. I don't have a partner. Still looking, but finding some girl crazy enough for me is difficult," he said in jest.

"You're straight?" Runt's sad question came. Runt felt his heart sink suddenly inside of himself.

"As far as I know, yeah. Both are nice to look at, and boys seem very fun, but girls make me a little hot under the fur more often; so yeah, I think I'm straight," Amur said easily.

Runt twisted to look at him properly. He was still being held by Amur's strong arm, and he felt very warm suddenly. "You think boys are fun and nice looking, though? Doesn't that mean you're... well, a little more bi than straight?"

Amur thought about it, then shrugged, "I really don't know. I want love, Runt, not a quick tumble under the bed sheets. My twin brother was the same, and he was so lucky to find Claire."

"Your twin? Oh, Kuan Ti? I've heard about him. I'm so sorry, Amur," Runt said tenderly. "I know how it feels to lose someone you love. I lost my dad and my stepmother a few years ago, and then my grandfather. I lost everyone I loved, and thanks to some bastards stealing all our family's money, I ended up on the streets... I'm sorry," he finished.

Amur purred at him for a second or so, then said, "Don't be. He died to save others. It's how I would want to go out. And he's still with me, as I'm sure your family is still with you and watching over you. I'm sure of it."

"I wonder what they think of me," Runt said quietly as his eyes went far away.

Amur remained silent for a short while, then said, "They probably want you to grow up fine and strong, to love and laugh in your life, to fight for what you believe in, and to find someone to share your life with."

"I think I already have," Runt said quickly, his mind still far away. Then his face paled and his eyes locked with Amur's. "Oh fuck! No, no, no! Sorry," he whimpered as he tried to pull away.

Khan wouldn't let him. "I know you like me," he said simply. "I can smell it."

"Fuck fuck fuck!" Runt wept. "I didn't want to tell you this way... didn't want to say at all! What chance do I have? Did I have? None... fuck!"

"Why would you think that?" Amur asked, his own heartbeat now beginning to race. He was finally working out what he had been feeling for a long time in the Tardis, now. He liked Runt too. And that was the scariest thing of all.

"Cos I'm a runt, Amur!" Runt sobbed. "I'm small and tiny! I'm nearly fourteen, for Christ's sake! Look at me! I'm a freak!"

"And I'm not? Look at me; I'm two-thirds tiger by my genes. So as to being a freak, let me be the judge of that," Amur smiled. "Attention, soldier!" he barked.

Runt jumped up and snapped to attention before Khan.

"At ease," Khan said, and Runt did so.

Khan then reached out from his seated position and felt down both Runt's arms. "Nice and strong. A little thin, maybe, but nicely proportioned," he said approvingly. Then he turned Runt slightly and patted down his chest, stomach and back. "Good muscle tone, a slight pot belly which means you're a healthy teen in a growth spurt," he added. Then he turned Runt back to face him and proceeded to pat down Runt's legs.

Runt's face showed a mixture of curiosity, amusement and embarrassment. The third expression gained the mastery, for the teen he'd been silently watching since he had come to Camp Bam Bam was touching almost every part of his body; and his body was reacting. Noticeably so.

"Good strong legs, although a little thin, but that will change in time," Amur finished as he looked back up into Runt's now deeply blushing face. "And finally, you react properly too," he added as he made a very light, playful swipe at the lump that had formed at the front of Runt's combat pants. Runt moaned at the contact without meaning to, making Amur chuckle, "As I said, you react right. I think you're just right, Runt."

Runt's mind was going a mile a minute in about fifty different directions. He didn't have the words nor the ability to express himself, for his embarrassment was too great. Yet it was mixed with a strange calmness that seemed all the more beautiful with the shy embarrassment. Eventually he managed to squeak out something. "But I'm so small... who my age would ever look at me as anything other than a kid brother?" he asked, but his eyes were plainly saying that it was Khan he was hoping would look at him as something 'more'.

"Everyone has that fear, Runt," Amur said gently.

"Not you," Runt shook his head as he sat down in front of Khan.

"Yes, me. I've got the opposite fear than you. I'm huge, I'm scary, and I could easily hurt someone if I... if I ever became intimate with them," Khan said quietly. "And all us G-cats … all the hybrids, I suppose … have had to deal with the same feeling you have, of being freaks, not normal."

Runt blinked and his heart did a strange flip in his chest. "You're a virgin?" he blurted, his face lighting up with something Khan thought was hope.

Khan blushed again and nodded.

"Me too!" Runt smiled.

Khan's brow furrowed. "Sorry to ask this, but didn't you say you were on the streets?"

Runt nodded seriously, but his smile never left his face, "Yeah, but I stole stuff and begged to survive. My dad always said to me that sex should be something special, not belittled with one night stands. And my grandfather said that sex with someone who means the world to you is the best feeling ever - it's real love that makes sex change into 'making love'. I was lucky, though. Near the end I was about to start selling myself just to live, but you guys said you were taking in anyone in need of help. I thought 'What the hell?' and signed up." He grinned at Amur, "I'm glad I did. I met you."

Amur blushed again. "You really like me, then. I can smell so much from you, but depth of feeling is something I can't sense as well."

"Yeah... sorry. I won't try anything with you, Khan. What could I do anyway if you didn't want it?" Runt asked with a giggle. "After seeing you pulverize that wolverine, I'd be mince if I tried to molest you!"

Khan chuckled and nodded.

"I still remember each and every cup of coffee you brought me," Runt said happily. "In the Tardis, your good morning coffee was the thing that got me through each day. I had to search high and low for something nice to give you in return. What made me so happy was that you still took what I found, even if loads of others must have given you thank you gifts too. You're just a good friend for doing that," he finished with a slight tear rolling down his face.

"You were the only one who got those mugs of coffee, Runt," Amur smiled.

"What?! Really? But... why?" Runt asked in shock.

Amur smiled more, "I've only just worked it out... I think I really like you too. I just thought I was being kind to a kid that needed it at first, but then I felt more at peace each time I gave you something. Then just now, as I first sat with you, I realized that I lo... I like you too," Amur finished, quickly catching himself from blurting out what his mind still couldn't fully accept, but what his heart must have already done.

Runt did not fail to catch it, however. His heart nearly exploded inside. "I love you," he whispered before sniffing back a tear. "You're strong and great and wonderful. How can I not love you."

Amur nearly burst into tears. He was frightened and nervous all at once. Nervous as he was so new to relationships, and frightened as he could so easily hurt this tiny teen without meaning to. And he never wanted to hurt Runt. Not ever.

Runt's face grew tender at first as he allowed Amur to regain some control. Then a hint of mischievousness grew in his eyes. "So... how big is 'big', Amur?"

"Huh?" Amur asked as he wiped at his slightly leaking eyes.

Runt's eyes drifted down Khan's body to below his waist. "Well..." Runt giggled.

The tiger blushed again, but then sighed. "Big, Runt... which is going to be difficult as I could hurt you so much," he said softly.

Runt smiled. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours," he giggled.

Amur snorted, "It's not like I'd be embarrassed to show you. Here," he added as he undid his robe and lifted it off of himself. Now just in his fur, with knives and guns strapped to him in various places, Amur sat there with his legs stretched out to either side of the now kneeling Runt.

Runt was getting hot under the collar, and his 'tent' was still on display to the world - meaning Khan. Then Runt's eyes grew curious, "Uh, Amur? You said you were... big... but where is it? I see your balls, but your dick looks about two inches long..."

Amur chuckled. "I'm feline. We have retractables... you have collapsibles."

"Oh? So it's inside you?" Runt asked as he reached out without thinking. An inch before he made contact with Khan's privates, he froze and nervously looked up into Khan's amber eyes.

Khan just nodded and took Runt's hand with his large fore-paw and brought it into contact. "You are now the first one not family to touch me here," he said seriously, his voice filled with more than a little nervousness.

Runt gulped and nodded, then looked down and watched as Khan made his not quite excited 'little Khan' appear. It didn't remain unexcited for long, especially not when a curious Runt was exploring.

Soon, Runt's hands were moving up and over every inch of Khan's fur covered body. With wonder in his eyes, he examined and felt as much of this wonderful, gentle person before him as he could.

Then, Khan's paws reached and started pulling off Runt's clothes gently. Runt barely noticed until he was just as nude as Khan. He was blushing slightly, but then so was Khan.

"You're amazing," Khan whispered hoarsely as he took in all of Runt's angelic looking body before him.

Runt smiled joyfully, then he giggled, "And you're purrrrrfect!"

Groaning at the bad pun, Amur pulled Runt up so that they were chest to chest, then laid down on his back. His tail he used to reach up and around to wrap lightly over Runt's waist. Runt rested his chin on his hands which were folded just below Khan's neck and looked down into the tiger's eyes. "This is nice. Your fur touching me all over," he whispered dreamily. He murmured softly, "You don't know how long I've dreamed of this..."

Amur started purring.

"Amur. I need to know. You think you're straight... if we... if we do 'do' it, and be together... would you ever leave me if a nice looking girl came by?" Runt asked nervously, his eyes filling with momentary doubt.

Khan brushed those doubts away with one simple sentence. "I will mate for life."

Runt wiggled up Khan's body a little more, then gently brought his lips into contact with Khan's. It took a while for both boys to work out what went where with a human kissing a hybrid tiger, but they eventually found a happy medium. Runt had to giggle when Khan alternated 'tiger-style' french kissing for full on Cat kisses to his face and neck.

"So glad you don't have sand paper on that tongue," Runt giggled as they took a short break from making out. "Otherwise you'd never go south with it, I'd tell you that right now!"

Amur smirked, "Oh, so that's what you're after then, huh?"

Runt blushed red instantly and he tried to respond but no words came.

"Fruedian slip, I think," Amur chuckled as he made to roll over and place Runt on his back. However, while he was comfortable on the rocky ground, Runt wouldn't be. "Shall we go back to my apartment?" he asked his new boyfriend.

Runt, his face still flaming, shook his head. "It's nice here... unless you're uncomfortable on the ground, though?" he answered and asked all at once.

"I'm fine, but I want to treat you to a cat-bath, and you'll get stones in your butt here."

Gravel crunched and both boys looked over to see the largest wolf they had ever seen in their lives standing a foot from them. He was shining brighter than the moon overhead, and was as white as snow. Yet silver was there as well.

'Turn your heads, younglings, and see the den I have made for you, came a voice that went past their minds and right to their hearts.

Runt saw it first... a cave that had not been there seconds before. Inside was a roaring fire to ward off the night's chill, and all over the floor were furs and pelts of animals.

'I name you One. You are Together. You shall remain. This is your den. Only you shall ever see it. It shall remain as long as love shall. Which is 'til the ending of the Earth, the strange creature sent again.

Both boys turned back towards the Wolf in shock, but it was no longer there... well, almost. A pair of amber, glowing eyes remained.

Join as One. This night, none shall disturb you. Strength of Arms and Strength of Hearts. Be blessed, Children of the Earth.

Then the eyes vanished.

Amur didn't know what just happened, but he didn't care either. He was up on his paws a second later and quickly carried his soon-to-be-lover into the nice, warm 'den'.

"Bath time," he whispered to Runt softly as he laid the boy down on the furs, then settled down next to him to begin...

 

Editor's Notes:

Cynaira's Notes:

Wow, my first notes.  I asked Roland, "What do I say? I won't be as poetic, or do the story as much justice as all these wonderful authors and editors will."  From his response I got this:  So here goes nothing.  Something!  There, I wrote it.  OK. now to be serious. To see the distinct groups starting to bond and form a family unit, fights for dominance and all, is always touching.  The little ones and the Teddy Bear Brigade was wonderful to read about, and new romance in the air. We got more questions that we will patiently be awaiting answers for though.  We will soon be finding out who the boys went to rescue.  Great chapter, in-depth explanations, healing and bonding, and more suspense.  What more could we ask for?