"Papa, look! He's coming out of the cave."
Guru wasn't a big drinker so when he had a hangover it was pretty bad. What he felt now was a hangover times ten. His whole body ached and he felt heavy and slow. The blond tom wasn't even sure what was real. All he knew was he wanted to leave the cold, cramped, and damp space and get some sun.
He paused a few feet out of the cave, his confusion growing. All around him were gawking creatures. They weren't toms. If anything they looked like the mythical Hares from the storybooks he used to read. He couldn't hear what all of them were saying but he could make out the few who were standing closest.
He started to stand up but a whip came out of nowhere and stung the back of his legs. "None of that now. Filthy toms stay on all fours."
Too unsure and too tired to battle the large, uniformed mythological Hare right now, Guru sat on his haunches. He put his paws on his ears. What was that noise? The tapping made his head
Even though he was tightly bound to the Marking chair and paralyzed with several different spells, Agent was still intimidating. Ink had turned the chair so he could no longer feel the no-fur's eyes on his back as he worked on making the ink required for the Marking Priest wanted.If having Agent glare at him wasn't enough, Ink was wrestling with his own doubts about this whole idea Priest had for Marking Agent for the draining ritual. It felt too dangerous. Like there was a power in the strange little no-fur they were not ready for. After all, Agent was in control of a small empire of toms and no-furs alike and had made some alliances with the Hares that Ink barely understood.Ink was growing tired of this game Priest was playing. Only it wasn't a game. The large Grey-furred feline was deadly serious about his use of the unfortunate no-furs who fell into his care. He really meant well. Draining the no-furs of their magick made them useless and unappealing to toms, but the Hares still
Things had been quiet for a while now. Lexi had been moved to a more common no-fur cage which had been terrifying at first. The thought of what might happen if his body shifted of its own accord to a larger demon or Hare form was enough to keep himawake no matter how badly he wanted to rest.Thankfully the Mark the not-so-awful Marker, Ink, had made was holding. There were no more painful, tumultuous shifts.Lexi missed his demon form, the one that felt powerful and natural. The no-fur body seemed so frail and his understanding of Doll and Spitfire had become one of deep appreciation for the strength they possessed to live so boldly in such a complicated, constantly endangered body. For one thing, he wondered how they dealt with the constant cold he felt inside and out. Even Ink's gift of a blanket did nothing to keep his bizarre flat teeth from chattering together.If he still possessed magic, Lexi didn't know enough to use it. Did he need a tom to do so?
The sounds were absolutely deafening. Screams of Demonsfalling into the salt water, something they were not prepared for. The roaring of flames that followed the echoes of the helicopter exploding as it hit the deck of a huge metal ship. Other sounds, other creatures screaming.Hades couldn't make out the specifics, not with his ears still ringing from the initial explosion.At least the Hellgate had closed behind him. He hadn't been sure of his control of the hex magicks as they were spat out of the Underworld shortcut into the middle of the gods-forsaken ocean. At least there was a boat to catch their fall. Like the other two toms in the helicopter, Hades had jumped out as soon as he thought he could safely land on the deck of the ship. But that had separated him from both Jinx and Liam.There hadn't been time for a real plan in the few scant seconds between when Hades had come out of his trance to when it became obvious they were not going to regain con
Liam landed with a thud and certainly not on his feet after the incident on the helicopter. He'd been in enough street scrapes and gotten his ass kicked to know how to take a fall without too much damage. He rolled over and bounced up to his paws very quickly.He hardly had time to get his bearings before he had to duck and run from the talons of an eager Demon. It wasn't the most fantastic move but Liam found a tarp-covered supply bin to hide under. He hated hiding. The sleek White-fur much preferred facing confrontation head on,but the kind he usually faced required brains, not brawn. Still, maybe brains were all that were required right now. He'd know as soon as he surveyed the environment and assessed the dangers.The first thing he needed to know was if he could retrieve his weapon. A quick peek showed it must have been lost in the fall. It was nowhere to be seen. Okay, that sucked. But he still had the single one-shot in his vest but that was hardly going t
Priest had returned to his cabin and taken something to help with sleep. He needed to be at his best and most accurate magically if he was going preside over draining Agent of his auric magick. So the first loud explosion he mistook for being part of his dreams. It took the second much louder, boat-shaking one to startle him awake.His first thought as he gathered up his weapons was to get to Ink. This had Agent all over it. Maybe he should have fought harder with his Orangelo lover to stay and observe the Marking. But they'd already had a brutal argument about Priest's plan and motivations. He didn't want to argue with the tom he loved anymore today. Why Ink couldn't see the logic of taking Agent down, the pirate Captain just didn't understand. Priest hoped things could be smoothed out after the ritual and the risk that came with it.But what if Agent was the wild card Ink feared he would be? More powerful than they thought. Lying in wait to strike. Then Priest had made a grave error
It would be easier if everything hurt. This numbness was not conducive to summoning his powers.Agent wanted to snarl in frustration, but his face was still paralyzed by the spells the damned traitors had put on him. Even now that he was left alone after Ink had run out of the room, presumably to check on the source of those explosions, Agent was helpless. He wanted to snarl and bite Priest when he opened the door, calling for Ink. All he could do was glare out of his frozen face. The damn tom barely spared a glance for him before he took off again.But Agent had learned two very important things while he was stuck here.Firstly, there was the bond between Ink and Priest. He had been aware that they were fucking. Hardly an uncommon arrangement on a ship like this one. But the Captain's concern for his Marker went beyond his concern for his ship. He'd come looking for Ink before going topside to find out what was going on. That was going to prove to be valuable information in the futur
The entire world was fire and smoke. He'd been the last tom to jump from the helicopter, hoping to direct it away from the ship and the possibility of hurting their bond mates. However, there was little Jinx could do. The copter was wrecked from its trip through the Underworld portal and Demons that had tried to eat them. The best he could do was point it vaguely at the far end of the ship and hope it didn't blow up anything or anyone important.Waiting that long had put Jinx far too close to the explosion when the copter hit the deck. He could smell burnt fur as he ducked and rolled behind the only cover he could find. The pile of rope was barely big enough to cover him and was on fire within seconds.Scrambling away, Jinx couldn't stop the string of swears that fell out of his mouth. This was fucking ridiculous.He made it about three feet from his failure of a hiding spot and ran face-first into a Demon. Not some big cuddly sex muffin like his Lexi. This was a drooling, angry ball
Hades couldn't help but wonder if he'd lost his damned mind after the events of the last few weeks.Why the hell had he jumped in the fucking ocean after that annoying bastard Liam? And now that he had managed to grab on to Liam, how the hell was he going to get the both of them out of the water and into the boat? Hades could swim, just enough to not die, but while dragging another tom after him? He was going to end up drowning and being trapped forever on the bottom of the ocean with Liam. He wanted to tap into his magick but water made that difficult normally and salt water made it next to impossible.But it seemed that some divine force was going to take pity on them. A bubble of energy slowly and carefully formed around the sinking toms. It took forever to start moving them, guiding them upwards. There must have been some kind of other enchantment or inherent "please don't die" property in the bubble because the burning that had started in Hades's chest eased. He couldn't breathe
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