Walking away from the mangled body of Nickel was the last thing Ink wanted to do. He was full of impotent rage and the Hare had been the only outlet available. Not that the nasty little bastard didn't deserve every last inch of it.
But now, Ink needed to find his captain and lover. Priest was out there somewhere, injured or worse. Nickel seemed to think he had managed to kill the captain. Ink wasn't so sure. Priest was tough. He'd come close to death more than once but always managed to slip through its grasp. This would be no different. It couldn't. Not now that Ink was ready to stop being a fucking idiot.
He wasn't able to use any of his magic to find Priest. They didn't have the Innehavre connection and the Mark Ink had put on him to track the damned fool wasn't responding. That meant it was damaged or Priest was dead. There was only one of those options Ink was OK with.
Going out the same way that the escaping no-furs had taken, Ink was surprised to find the
"I can barely believe what I'm seeing, but yes, I see it."Bright was barely able to channel Doll's magick. It was made of so many warring energies. His Hare body - the most adept at aura work because he was a Bunny-type Hare - was glowing with pain as well as one... two... three... No, even more vastly different auric signatures. The question Doll had asked about the vision the no-fur was clearly seeing was an easy one to answer, not that Bright understood exactly what he was seeing.The form was huge and made of cosmic power but to the small yellow Hare, it had no discerniblefeature that made it one species or another.Was it coming from the Black-fur currently holding a swirling cage of chains and void at his command? No, this being was here for someone else. Bright would have scratched his ear in frustration but he had to settle for twitching it wildly because he dared not take his paws from Priest. He could feel the healing still trying to escape his
Stumbling across the deck of the largest ship, Jinx's senses were completely overwhelmed. He wasn't entirely sure which direction he was moving in.Between the new powers rolling around inside of him and the wild burst of Underworld aura, he was practically blind and deaf. And his nose was all but useless with all the burning boats, Demon carcasses, and dozens of unfamiliar Hares and toms. Even his connection to Lexi was hard to focus on.The only direction Jinx had that felt reliable at all was moving against the wave of Underworld Hex energy. That had to be Hades and if he could get to Hades, he could find the others. The no-furs were likely to be with him. Maybe Liam as well. Jinx was hoping Lexi was with the no-furs since he'd disappeared with them in the first place.Nearly tripping over a large Grey-fur laying in the middle of the deck, Jinx found himself in the middle of a clusterfuck. One he was almost certain was the fault of his best friend Hades. Of c
Nickel lay where Ink had left him to die. The fierce Hare was fairly certain the Marker had achieved his goal. Though he was no stranger to wounds or scars, his attacker had been more precise in his violence than most.Ink had known exactly where to rip and render flesh. Though his bites and slashes had seemed to come from the randomness of rage, the Marker had in fact destroyed most of Nickel's self-made sigils that gave him power and protection as he quietly mixed Hare Marker magick with what he learned from the pale Orangelo's work.The grizzled Grey-furred Hare had no way to call the healing power within the intricate pattern he'd created and he did not have anaturalaffinity with it.What did all the observation and espionage add up to now if he didn't get up and join his true "Captain" in the fight? Nickel had never been loyal to Priest. He was Agent's eyes and ears for this particular operation. His loyalty would always belong to his Master, th
The water was ice cold as it closed around Agent's broken body.He wasn't sinking as quickly as he thought he would. Or maybe it was just that moment before death when everything slowed down. He could feel his last conscious thoughts surfacing before the water filled his lungs. They were pleasant recollections of his youth spent under the care of Hares and much more horrible ones from when he had been an abused toy for the toms who ran the breeding ship he was born on.And yet, all of that faded as his mind settled on the tom he'd only known for... what? How long was it that he had known King?In this life, it had been a matter of days. But his heart said it had been a lifetime. And the part of him that was still Tricksy the Orangelo who'd become the Trickster god of Chaos, that part agreed they had been together since the beginning. King had been Tricksy's mate, his Innehavre,before they stepped out of their mortal lives and became avatars of cosmic power
Tarsi, in his butterfly form, surveyed what he could of the very messy situation before landing on Jinx's shoulder. Teaching a baby god did give him a little wiggle room. He could interfere within reason. The Fate knew how little Jinx knew and how ill-equipped he was for this.He also knew in his heart Jinx was ready to face his destiny if it meant saving his dearest ones."New God of Chaos, what you are intending to do is very delicate and will require you to fully engage your godsight. If you are ready to do so,I will show you the way.""That sounds better than me just winging it," Jinx said, his gratitude obvious in his voice. "Because I don't think there's enough luck left in this entire armada for what I'm about to attempt.""Yes, it isn't luck you need to work with right now but the skill set you already have that will be of greatest use. You have so much power and it will take centuries to understand it all. But as your sponsor, I also have t
Cradling his lover's head in his lap, Ink had no idea what was going on around him. All he was focused on was Priest and willing him to breathe. Every intake of air was a torment for him. The attempted healing had closed the wound in his chest, but Ink feared it had not finished the work inside Priest's body. Or maybe it was something else. Something more spiritual. Having grown up in the Orangelo way of life, Ink had been filled with stories about toms who were perfectly healthy in body but their spirits ached to leave their lives. Priest had not seemed like one of those toms to him, but Ink did not know about his life before they met. Neither of them talked of where they came from, their traumas, or anything too deeply serious from their pasts. There could be a million reasons why Priest would prefer to die that Ink had no knowledge of. So maybe it was selfish of Ink to lean over Priest, begging him to stay. Maybe he was the worst kind of selfish jerk to not want to let go of his
The voice that summoned Spitfire's attention felt like icy fingers sliding across his bare neck before creeping lower to brush against his seeding pocket in the most unpleasant of ways."I think you will serve me well. Yes, a fine vessel you will be."Amid everything else happening around him, molestery voices weren't exactly at the top of Spitfire's list of concerns. First and foremost were his bondmates. All three of them.He was still worried sick over Guru and where his big dumb tom had gotten to. Their tenuous connection was not completed and Spitfire could only sense it because of their shared connections to Hades and Doll. Especially Doll. At least one of the kits his no-fur lover carried was Guru's, creating a strong bond that Spitfire could feel.His own litter of kits had at least one of Guru's as well, but their incomplete Innehavre bond was making sensing the Blond-fur very hard. All that Spitfire could tell was Guru was far away. Very far away.He was going to have to for
Lexi was having trouble keeping track of everything happening. He watched in awe as Jinx, glowing with the god aura they quested for his Topsider to find, healed the pirates' Captain and sent Doll and Hades into some form of divine protection.Jinx had been beautiful as he did it. Lexi swore he saw black and white ethereal butterflies all around him. He'd tried not to think about how such a lowly Demon as himself could possibly still be of value to Jinx.After all, the Orangelo hadn't exactly come running for him when he'd made eye contact and, yes, there were important things he had to do. But still, Lexi felt a little shut out.Turning to Cook and Liam - who were having the celebratory reunion he had pictured himself having with Jinx - he spoke up gently, not sure they would appreciate the disruption. "Shouldn't we find a way to get all of them to safety?"Coming up from where he had been sucking fiercely on Liam's face, Cook nodded. "I already thought of that. They're coming home w
Epilogue - Part 2Shadwell Sebastien Woolsey, also known as Hades, stomped in out of the rain, shaking it off his fur before he went any further into the house than the entry hall.He could hear the commotion in the main room. It was the kind of overwhelming noise only two bunnies, one large Northern Forest tom, a cosmic entity, and ten kits could make. It was the sound of a happy home, one that Hades had never dared to dream he could have. After his own rough upbringing with a sire who was embarrassed to be a Black-fur and an anonymous no-fur father, Hades had long since put aside any thoughts of being a sire himself.But his mates had changed all of that and helped him to realize he wasn't afraid of being a sire. He was just afraid of being his sire. Hades didn't feel shame about his fur color nor that of any of his many, many kits. He didn't think he was capable of feeling this much love. Though, he was grateful to Ink who had given both of the omega bunnies anti-pregnancy Marks. T
Epilogue - Part 1Guru hadn't been back to the Mousetrap since its renovations or since his kits with Spitfire were born. With all the little ones around and a very grumpy ginger-furred bunny to deal with, he'd barely left the mansion where himself, Spitfire, Doll, and Hades now resided.There was definitely a touch of Chaos everywhere he looked. A few booths sat at a slightly less than 45 degree angle and had straps like a carnival ride. No doubt when the bar was open those were full first from the novelty of it. Then there was the tricked-out pie case. Guru salivated a little, having heard from his mate Hades all about the supposedly world-famous pies.Jinx didn't have time to make them anymore so he'd begun to teach his brother Ink. Today appeared to be one of those sessions as Jinx was snatching a knife away from his paler brother and grousing about the proper way to cut certain fruits.The big Blonde tom put a paw around the other bunny in his life, his sweet Doll. Who looked esp
Everything was quiet for the first time in what felt like a lifetime.Spitfire sat down where he was, in the middle of the rubble left from fighting so many automa-toms and Agent's Hares. This part of Atlas City was wrecked. He wondered what it looked like outside of the battle barrier they had erected. Was Guru's mansion still okay? Did they still have a home?A ripple of auric energy told him Cosmo was on his way, having secured the collapsing bridge. Good, that was good. He needed to bond with his avatar mate to recover his god aura properly. But for now, since the battle was done, Spitfire was going back inside to see Doll and the kits. He needed to check on them. Something about this silence didn't feel... natural.Cosmo's voice in his mind assured Spitfire that it was not. Time had been frozen by a god and until it restarted, only the deities would be able to function.Spitfire wondered how long it would be before he knew how to do that. It was a pretty cool trick.He stood, stre
The ten of swords was not a magick to use lightly. Jinx had never actually cast that card before. He had been warned, repeatedly, that there were cards in the deck he was given that took as much as they gave. The pinnacle of the swords suit was one of those cards.Clutching his bleeding paw against his chest, Jinx drew one long breath after another. Everything smelled awful, the air was so thick with blood that he could taste it. He was certain that there was screaming all around him, but he couldn't hear it over the roar in his ears.He'd finally managed to end this stupid battle. He was the undisputed God of Chaos now. Jinx could feel it in his bones, right down in his soul. The power was flowing out of Agent's body as quickly as the blood that was pooling under both their paws."The kits..." Jinx's enemy was croaking out a few last words. "Are they safe?"Jinx's eyes followed Agent's weak attempt to reach out. There was a wavering shield, made up of th
Liar.The word kept echoing in Agent's head and in the air around him. The Demon was lying to him. They were made of lies and deceit, after all. There was no way King had pined for him for all those years. Tricksy had made a huge mistake when he'd tried to create the Innehavre bond. He'd killed a young no-fur, but it wasn't just any no-fur. He'd killed the oldest of his and King's litter. Stripped his soul bare and left the tom who loved him to take the blame.King had to know what happened to their kit. Both of them kept an eye on the three no-furs who were theirs. They couldn't help it. They were parents, after all. They worried.But throwing himself into the reincarnation cycle was the only way to make sure that the Innehavre bonds continued. Tricksy needed to sacrifice time and his own connection to King to the ancient powers that gave him his powers as the God of Chaos. Those beings, older than any god who now walked the earth, had changed who he was. Made him the God of Chaos an
*****Author Note - be warned, this chapter has the loss of a newborn in it ********If Priest so much as suggested movement, Doll growled at him and threaten his life. Ink seemed to be less in a hurry to take the small bundle from his arms.The no-fur cooed and cuddled the tiny, tiny form. "Hush, my kit. It will be alright. Your Daddy is right here and I'm not going to let anyone hurt you."In his head, Doll knew the smallest of his kits was gone. In his heart, he couldn't part with the sweet grey and white striped tom kit. He heard him release one small, strangled cry before Ink started swearing and Priest turned to try to revive the poor little dear before handing him to Ink and not turning around presumably so Doll didn't see his tears.Ink had said words... Sorry and hold him... Doll didn't really hear them all over the roaring in his head as he was handed the still kit.He kissed the babe's forehead, his tears unchecked. "I'm sorry, little one. I didn't get to let you grow. I tho
Lexi was enraged. At his clever attackers and at himself. He had headed straight back to the bar when he caught a glimpse of tufted ears and the skin of a no-fur neck.Deciding rather than join the fight against the automa-toms, he would capture and defeat the one controlling them, the Demon began to stalk Agent. As he'd gotten closer, the image of Agent began to fade away.A bolt of what had to be Chaos magick slammed into him, sending Lexi flipping end over end. When he'd started to push himself off the ground, Lexi was in his least powerful form, that of a green tom.Having no idea what auric power his tom form had as it wasn't a glamour any more, Lexi could barely summon any energy to mold and was no match for a trio of Tawny-furs that had thrown some kind of aura-draining net over him.Now he struggled to escape the net while the Tawnys had just fucked off.Muttering to himself, Lexi considered what the trap had meant. "Does Agent think I'm so easily beaten? No, he's like super s
Hades found himself alone with Doll again and he wasn't sure what to do. He was holding his hand, muttering encouragement, but that felt like nothing.Spitfire had experience with this stuff and Guru was able to ease Doll's nerves with his singing. Ink and Priest, though they were practically strangers, were doing more for Doll than he could manage. Maybe he should join Jinx and Spitfire outside. He was good at fighting. But that meant leaving Doll and Hades wasn't sure he was ready."Look at them, pretty baby," Hades whispered, nodding his head towards the line of bins where their kits were bundled up and mewling, an occasional wail comingfrom one of them. "It's hard to believe that this is really happening.""I can't wait to hold each one in my arms." Doll let his head fall back on the soft blanket. "Or see all of you cuddle them. Although I will be glad to rest, I still feel there's a somebody or two in there. But they seem quiet for now." His no-fur's
Arriving after three of the kits had been born, Spitfire took a moment to check on them before he grabbed Doll's hand and leaned close to talk to him."Look at how good you're doing, sweetheart. Three of our kits are already in the world." Spitfire stroked Doll's sweaty hair. "I know, this is awful. It feels like it will never end, but you are nearly done."The new Black Devil turned to look at Ink, who was acting as the birthing doctor. "How many more are there? He is nearly done, right?""There's at least one more. But without an ultrasound, I can't say for sure." Ink replied, already coaxing out a fourth kit."Little one so big." Doll sounded exhausted. He leaned his head against Spitfire. "But he looks just like Guru, my beloved. Only completely White-fur and with my copper eyes. He's gonna be trouble. This one is kicking a lot but much smaller.""They're all going to be trouble, I think." Spitfire nuzzled the side of Doll's face. The thundering sounds of battle from outside were