Author's Note: Hello Lads and Ladies

My mind is empty of words to say at the minute. You guys enjoy this read while I try to figure some stuff out about myself in my life. I've been trying to figure out who I am and it's not as easy as it may seem. Love all of you, leave a comment if you like it a lot and follow the story if you want to see more. See ya soon!

Edited by: SuperAverageFoxyboy, The Dude who likes Tanks
-Portal

Strightman adjusted his cap as he walked down towards one of the political discussion venues. Today was the day of the results of the first public voting in nearly thirty years.

The Beastars System had been implemented shortly after the great war, centuries in the past. A Beastars Candidate decided to apply for the position who in nearly all cases neatly replaced the older Sublime Beastar as the single ruling party.

The Sublime Beastar's priorities were then concentrated on the legislature and rule enforcement. They were present during all meetings concerning the country's defense militia, in-land security, and all other forms of law enforcement. And of course were they present and main deciders if laws were passed or not, although in this session they only held fifty percent of the decision power, a legislature council being present to make sure the ruling was unbiased.

Of course, these were once again charades, the Sublime Beastar cherry-picked the council members from a wide database.

There were five Beastars in total, two in the south, two in the north, and the state capitol position which was comparable to the position of President. The Borderland between the South and North position was the highest-ranking political position in Japan, having a deciding factor that was waged higher than the other Beastar positions by pure prestige alone. Anyone Beastar could apply to become a sublime Beastar, however, very few born outside of Edobutsu were accepted.

Louis was the first to challenge Yahya's ruling over his entire reign up to this point. And the people were shocked, shocked that a little youngling dared to say anything against the great government.

He was In full uniform, today's task being to make sure the results were read in an orderly fashion, many people lined and filled the streets awaiting the time of the announcement.

He saw same-species couples everywhere, some older and some younger. Their eyes were filled with both concern and anger. Strightman could only guess it was at Louis instead of at Yahya.

In many ways, he felt like a double agent. He was on the wrong side of the argument. He was fighting for the same state that had declared him a defiler of kin. And now they were doubling down.

Strightman stood shoulder to shoulder with the other officers, lining the political building as the office drones inside went ahead with their work, counting slips of paper, checking online forms, and putting the information into their database. The screens hanging off the glass walls of the plaza showed the relentless advertising of the news channels all showing the same graphic of the two bars going higher or lower.

Strightman asked himself if this is what his life had come to. Protect the very same people that despised him for loving another of the opposite genome. He watched with apathy the screens like everyone else, only every now and then some accidentally stepping a bit too close, being directed away by him and his colleagues.

The sunlight didn't do anything to hide a fact apparent to Strightman, it was two strokes before midnight. Although the sky was blue and the sunshine painted pathways yellow, the hearts and minds were pitch black. The people here would've been better off with flashlights than their political pins and chants of support for the great Sublime Beastar.

The graphics changed and Strightman knew they were close to the end. They updated in real-time every now and then but this time the pause was longer. He didn't dare to look at himself until it was done and so he waited in the pitch-black darkness of the midday sun.

It wasn't much longer than twenty minutes before he heard knocking against the glass behind him. The office drones had concluded the count and were ready for lockdown. They waited behind the glass panes to have a last line of safety in case the masses disliked their decision. Strightman left the line, locked the door, and returned. The streets got quiet as the news reporters had a cutaway to themselves. Their freshly combed and painted faces.

They did this for multiple reasons perhaps, maybe for one to remember their features when thinking of voting day. Some sort of fame that only held on for five minutes.

Good for them. Strightman thought and stared at the screen as the Panther lady concluded her little read of the lines of the teleprompter. It cut to the graphics again and this time Strightman looked.

Louis had managed less than twenty percent support. Yahya was the winner, enforcing his rule set to be rolled in by the end of next week. And although he thought himself prepared he now thought back to one specific memory that had grounds for joy a few weeks ago.

His wife was overjoyed, jumping into his arms, holding a little plastic strip with a plus sign on it.

Strightman doubled over, his stomach violently rejecting the feelings he was going through. He turned around, running towards the glass wall. Before he even managed to grab his keys he emptied his stomach onto the sidewalk. He felt like going to the police station, grabbing the keys to the gun locker, and making his way to the state building.

Fathers all over the world did heinous things to keep their families safe, and Strightman thought that killing a political leader for destroying their child's life was in order with that sentiment.

He wiped his mouth with a tissue in his pocket and looked up, seeing the disgruntled faces of the office drones. They looked at him with disgust and other forms of disdain.

"You assholes should be happy I'm protecting you." Although the glass was thick enough to stop at least a few bullets, the faces turned to shock. Strightman wasn't sure what magic was causing this, but he couldn't care less. He returned to the line, his colleagues seemingly not noticing.

Strightman looked at the graphics again and realized in his delirium that his life was over.

"You are a perfect soldier." Yahya sat at his desk, Legosi sitting opposite of him. The sun shone through the tinted glass, showing just how much the black color swallowed light.

"I know I'm a wolf, but what do you need a soldier for?" Legosi asked the questions in a calm and monotone voice just like he had readied himself for this conversation. In many ways he felt like he was on stage, exchanging lines with an actor only spitting back his lines of the script.

"The planned changes in government ruling will be met with protests, and I need new recruits for something similar to a police force. Think of yourself as a government-trained official."

"Why would you name us soldiers then?" Yahya smiled ever so slightly at Legosi's question, and the wolf felt his hairs stand up on his arms.

"Because the military in many ways are officials of the state, just like the police. And I need good men to follow orders and do what they are told. You know money would be involved, a good payment, enough to pay for your apartment and your university fees with even a little extra along with benefits once you retire. You look like a wolf with a mate, why don't you buy some nice things for her. Some nice presents, a nice little date at a fancy restaurant... maybe even a ring?"

Legosi found it appalling how his first thought in response to his reasoning for recruitment sounded lifeless and dead. Riz's words had been fueled by rage, by tragedy, and by life. These words here were as dead as the tomb they were sitting in.

"But why me?"

"Dogs have an affinity for following orders and are especially disciplined, you were born for this type of work."

Calm and Clinical, unwieldy and corroded by pride. Legosi figured all politicians had to kill a part of themselves when they walked on stage, at least Politicians that lied as much as Yahya did. Legosi didn't like what part would come next, but it was necessary. He mustered enough control over himself, to let his tail wag, powered by the strict thought of Juno's face.

"Well I could really treat my mate you know... and rent isn't that cheap, when would I start?" Legosi tried his best to sound oblivious and naive, something that came naturally. He hated that he had to pretend to be an idiot, but he wouldn't want the horse to know just what he was thinking.

"Well here is all the information." Yahya stood up from his seat and walked over to Legosi's side. He laid the paper down by his side and watched over his shoulder.

"You'll be on company payroll this time next week. The Recruitment Bus will pick you up by the location specified on the document."

Legosi scanned the lines through with his reptile eyes, it read about as stale as a news report. Dumbed down on purpose so as to not upset the average Joe.

Yahya held out his hand and with as little hesitation he could muster he grabbed out and shook his hand. He looked at his face over his shoulder and thought he looked like a perfect shadow here in his tomb.

"Welcome to Project Cerberus Legosi. It's an honor to have a Beastar with aspirations to change the world." Legosi thought for a moment.

"What about Beastar Louis?"

Legosi could swear that he saw the slightest of changes in Yahya's demeanor. The underlying smirk disappeared from his face.

"Beastar Louis has convictions and grand ideas, but he doesn't put enough research behind his words. A young man with a good heart but he lacks precision in his execution."

The smile was gone now, his face now showing concern. Legosi thought that most likely rage was boiling beneath. Without question, he hid it extremely well.

"I guess I never thought about it that much..." He tried again to seem like the planless dreamer he had been for most of his teenage years.

"You'll do great work, Beastar Legosi, I'm sure of it." Yahya patted his shoulder imitating a father patting his son on the shoulder. He moved over to his side of the desk again and sat down, dismissively starting to study other documents.

"Thank you sublime, Beastar Yahya..." With a casual wave, he stood there waiting to leave, Yahya's smile wishing him away was as fake as the plastic models in the windows of fashion boutiques.

Legosi left the office breathing a sigh of relief taking his warm suit jacket off. He left the state building a little later. On the way back he took a few pictures with admirers and then took the train back home.

The smell of food permeated the apartment. He closed the door behind himself and was delighted to smell noodle soup. Juno was placing the dishes on the table, her tail wagging when she turned her head to greet him.

"Hey." Her arms went around his shoulders, her muzzle connecting to his. They hugged during the kiss for a moment and then separated.

Legosi immediately started disrobing, grabbing the coat hangers from the closet.

"So how did it go, is Yahya none the wiser?"

"I play an idiot quite well if you believe it or not." The comment made her giggle, bringing a smile to his face as he grabbed more comfortable clothing from his section in the wardrobe. There was a tiny section of the coat hangers holding two suits and a jacket, one black suit for formal wear, one blue from the dinner at Tokugawa's mansion, and his jacket for winter. The rest of the coat hangers were mostly dresses, skirts, or jackets worn by Juno. The whole closet smelled of her.

"Well, you're my idiot." Juno's hands grabbed around his sides, squeezing herself against his back. Legosi stopped and softly held her hands around his bare stomach. She placed a kiss on the back of his neck, making him nearly jump as it tickled him.

"Not f-fair..."

"Don't complain, you know you like it." Juno retorted, laughing while going over to the dinner table. Legosi slipped into a shirt and soft pants and then sat down on the floor at the table.

They both ate dinner in relative silence, talking about their days as they so often did. It was only when they had finished that Legosi thought more clearly about the ramifications of this plan.

"By this time next week, I'll be a military recruit..." Legosi sighed as he looked out of the window. Juno moved closer to his side.

"You're worried right?"

"Of course I am. Ever tried being a spy?" Juno began to smile.

"No, but I can't imagine it's a bad thing being mated to one." Legosi smiled, his arms going around her, pulling her closer to himself. Side by side, cheek to cheek.

"I don't want to put anyone in danger."

"You're going on this mission. This itself is to make sure people don't get hurt." Juno hugged him closer.

He paused for a bit, just holding her close. He breathed in, feeling his mind return to the rose bushes of the dreamlike night by the fountain where he had met her.

"I'm just scared... If I get hurt It would break your heart, and if you'd get hurt I..."

Without them noticing the hug got tighter, Juno softly whispering to aid his nerves.

"Which group of teenagers managed to save a rabbit from the grasp of a carnivorous mafia."

"... I don't-"

"say it." Her tone remained firm even when he whined.

"... We did."

Juno loosened the hug to look at him.

"You always downplay just how good you are. You're a good wolf, a good man, a good mate. A great friend who even when met by the most ignorant and idiotic stubbornness didn't ever lose determination... Why don't you ever see that."

Legosi smiled. The corners of his mouth twitched and quivered slightly as if he wanted to cry.

"I don't know." His smile stabilized while his voice was unwavering, untouched by sadness.

"Then come here." Her hands held his face, her lips meeting his, and both softly and silently falling victim to each other's charms as they sunk to bed.

"Moody!" Tokugawa hugged his friend, his fingertips touching the back of the muscular Hyena.

"You sounded like you were in trouble, and mob men help each other out don't they?" They concluded the hug, both sharing a friendly glance. Tokugawa looked beside the large Hyena to see two more members of the congregation.

"Harlan, it's a pleasure to see you again." He shook the American bulldog's hand, the slightly smaller yet still bulky Dog in his leather jacket half-smiling for a moment.

"Nothing would've kept me away from attending sir." The bulldog tipped his hat. Tokugawa concluded the handshake and moved on to the last member of the group.

"Jiga, that you found time surprises me." The peacock's unusually tailored suit allowed his back feathers to finish the suit.

"My colleagues deserve the little free time I have." His tone was arrogant like always, the red suit hugging his form.

"The table is over there gentlemen." Tokugawa lead the little posse forward to their table. A cozy little corner in the luxurious basement room that they had named their meeting point.

The inn halfway up the road to the peak of Mount Edo had been a gathering point for travelers and vagabonds for centuries. People had met here prior to the great war, sitting around the fire and exchanging stories of their travels. And nowadays there sat mob bosses around a table eating illegally acquired meat while drinking smuggled European Alcohol and smoking Cuban Cigars while talking about the problems of their trade.

When the group had settled at the table they all looked at the Cougar who today was dressed in a light blue suit. He smiled, extending his arms beside himself, open palms at his guests.

"You must excuse me but I am a creature of habit, before business would any of you like a meal?"

The group ordered meals for the round, talking not a word of business. He never knew if the others realized but Tokugawa only presented food before news in order to appease the minds. It had been a habit by Kuragari and would therefore be his son's preferred way of dealing with things for his entire professional career. As much as mob bosses could call their work a career.

They talked about Grace, Moody's daughter, and how her husband had died a few days prior in a work accident. A sad affair that was more than hard on Moody's family, sadness apparent even in his gruff demeanor.

Tokugawa retrospectively regretted eating the meals first today, the mood dropping into a sullen sadness that left them to choke on depressive ideas. Such is life Tokugawa thought to himself and his own weird relationship with death. Whenever he thought about the concept of mortality the crystal clear image in his mind was the one of the luxurious gravestone hiding away his father's remains beneath mounds of earth.

Then he thought of the doctor's chair, the light buzzing in his head, and then a head-splitting migraine that lasted for three days. The last image that went through his mind was when the storm had passed and he sat down to dinner, pain-free. His food tasted bland and when he tried to smell it he found out that he couldn't smell meat anymore. The highest of ironies of his life was that although he loved sharing food with his guests, he himself no longer held enjoyment in the process of eating.

Ever since then in his instinct-free life, Kuragari's shadow peered down on every facet of life. Even when he laid down with Cosmo and felt the strongest love for any woman he had ever felt Kuragari was the one to peer down from his throne and chuckle as his young son found his feelings of the instinctual kind had been dulled.

Life without instinct was a thing that turned the brightest and most colorful day into a matte and dull painting. Even the highest of highs were slightly muted as the hormone flow of adrenaline and Endorphins had been limited and in some cases even completely deactivated.

All in line to make sure he would never lash out the way that a real carnivore could.

There sat Tokugawa, catching himself drifting off into the land of daydreaming while actively talking to someone else. It was his superpower, his feelings had died so that his mind could take forever lasting control of things.

"But let's talk about why we're here after all." Moody changed the subject, calling to the mind the very reason they had even met, and just as easy as the daydream had come just as easy did it pass.

"Yahya's becoming a problem, and I want to know how this council is standing on the idea of ending the cease-fire with the government." Tokugawa's words left the table silent for a little, members exchanging worried looks.

"You suicidal?" Moody asked with a raised eyebrow. Jiga's feathers moved in excited patterns.

"I have numerous deals with cops and government officials just to keep my production lines safe, are you willing to gamble the entire Black market away?"

"If the rules by Yahya persist he's going to be taking over the black markets. First, he goes for hybrids, and then he goes for us. You know the stories, we've all seen it countless times. He succeeds once and then he grows cocky and wants more. More control, more power, and more cash. If I don't do anything against him then he'll pick us off one by one."

They all looked at Tokugawa now, expressions of both perplexed shock and others questioning their colleague's insanity.

"And to clarify. I would be the first one to take the fall, you would have plenty of reaction time, even more so now that you know it's coming." The cougar's eyes darted towards Harlan scoffing.

"You're kidding me? You call us all in just to tell us in our faces that you made up your mind?"

"Yes." Tokugawa looked coldly at the court before him. In his mind, a spark flew through the neuron clusters of his brain. A sliver of parasitic and highly contagious pride.

"Tokugawa think about what you are doing. You're threatening the lead of our country! You know how many lives you're going to destroy by doing this."

Tokugawa laid his hands on the table, one hand cradling the other.

"This is business and so I shall treat it like a business even though I've given my life blood to cultivate it. I know the devil in black, I know Yahya. I know that he will not stop at just hybrids, once Edobutsu has taken to the changes, by force or by submission, he will target us. He walked over me enough for a lifetime. At this point, I'm surprised that I'm not on Government payroll yet...

What I need are weapons and comrades who follow my ideas and my plans. And if Yahya goes to war, we shall answer with our fury. For the safety of our business. I think it's safe to say that our meat is the one thing keeping carnivores from completely losing their minds."

"I don't know if you're quoting your grandfather or if someone spiked your tea, but how the hell do you expect this to work?" Moody rebutted.

"With blood. Like it always does."

This time the room fell silent again, the members of the assorted mob court falling into a deep thought-filled silence. Tokugawa again was once again in the lead position, Kuragari smiling from his throne in a dead empire. His convictions pumping in his son's chest.

"When we entered this business we knew it would take sweat grime and blood, we knew then and we still entered. We knew that this is worth fighting for because our family knew just as much as the Horn Conglomerate or the Bovine Consulate knew they were dealing with the black market. And what did they do in their infinite wisdom in their high chairs? They slashed the back of their hands and dropped their share of blood into the pot knowing full well it was going to cost lives to keep the machine running at full throttle...

Just because one lousy Sublime Beastar forgets his place doesn't mean we get to forget too. If you want to hide away... take your share and leave like cowards, then fair... But get out of my way. The only blood I want to shed is guilty blood, not one of friends."

The court once again fell into the deep thoughts of restless sleepers.

"Ah screw it... I damn right hope you're ready for the shit show you're setting the stage for." Moody extended his hand and Tokugawa shook it with enthusiasm. Harlan and Jiga exchanged looks.

"I'm not even from this country, why do I have to choose?"

"Because you took over. And no one gets away scot-free from responsibility."

The bulldog looked between the group's members and extended his hand with hesitation. Tokugawa shook it knowing full well that Harlan would do anything in favor of avoiding this whole matter completely.

"Do you want me to cut you loose?"

"What?" Fear spread on the dog's face.

"Do you want me to cut you loose when you leave this room?" Cold eyes stared at the terrified dog. Suddenly anger overshadowed the fear, yet it was still clear to see.

"Who the fuck do you think you are, threatening me." Harlan grabbed for his gun when he found a strong hand on his arm grabbing for his weapon, his other hand still held tightly by Tokugawa's. Moody stared at Harlan in disappointment.

"You signed your name in the books, you took over, and reaped the rewards. Don't think you don't have to pay your dues..." Moody's voice was enough to end the last little inkling of hope that Harlan could free himself from this. His arm relaxed and moody released his grip, Tokugawa doing the same.

"If you kill yourself we'll send your dear old mother in Kansas your head," Tokugawa spoke a cold word and everyone knew he meant it.

The eyes of the hyena and the Cougar went to the usually arrogant bird sitting between them. Jiga nearly disappeared into his seat, wanting as far away from the situation as he could. He extended a shaking head and Tokugawa gingerly grabbed it.

"Wings can be clipped you know..."

"I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm aware..."

"Good." Tokugawa addressed the table and exchanged a thankful look with Moody. He knew he could trust that Hyena whenever he was in need.

"Our names are on the books. If any of you strike any deals with law enforcement the others can and will leak everything. We've gotten too comfortable with our winnings, we've forgotten how to fight. I hope this won't be our fatal flaw."

Jiga and Harlan shuffled out of the room, both reduced to paranoid messes. It left the two oldest members in the room. Tokugawa's and Moody's families were equals when it came to historical foothold. Both their families were around during the industrial revolution and both their families had deep roots in the samurai and military nobility of pre-modern japan.

"You sure about this, Toku?" Moody was unsure. Tokugawa looked back with cold focus.

"Do you trust me?"

Silence in the room that had been a courtroom today. A day where judgment had passed to find the accused guilty of breaking the law, the sacred law of crooks and liars.

Moody held eye contact for a while, his form not moving a bit while the inner workings behind his eyes showed the tremendous odds against them that he was calculating.

"I think you'll either save us or leads us to a quick death... I hope it's the former."

"It'll be a fight worth fighting."

Moody smiled at Tokugawa and looked around himself.

"Years of work... I hope to Rex they're not for nothing." With his parting words, Moody left the room, leaving Tokugawa behind. The cougar in question looked around and took a moment of pause.

When he left the room he was sure he could hear Kuragari laughing from his mighty throne, his ruling having survived the court. His legacy had been carved into marble and set in stone.

The car bumped over bare dirt under the wheel, the van's insides shaking from left to right as the driver and his passenger concentrated on the task at hand. It was a half an hour's drive from the city's outskirts to make it to the radio tower out west, there was one in the east and another in the north.

"Jammer B in position, waiting for call back, over." The radio crackled to life.

"Jammer A still on the road, a minute till destination, over." the next voice crackled as the passenger grabbed the radio from its hold.

"Jammer C on the road, five minutes till destination, over." He sat down the radio back in its hold and concentrated on the road.

The van bumped out of the tree line up the mountain range that surrounded Edobutsu. They drove over the country road and stopped right before the Radio Tower.

"Reached the destination, setting up Jammer C now, over." The passenger spoke on the radio. They opened their doors and left their vehicle, walking around to the double doors of the storage space of the van.

"Copy that," came from their radio as they grabbed the toolboxes.

They walked over to the gate surrounding the base of the tower. The passenger grabbed the bolt cutters, holding the black shears onto the metal chain holding the door closed. With two precise and strong hand movements, the chains hung around the thin metal chain link. He moved his hand out and pushed the chains aside, the door opening in a smooth swing.

The driver walked forwards, carrying the Jammer in the communications backpack. They both entered the area and walked forward to the base of the tower, the first black box.

The passenger readied the bolt cutters, cutting the lock with a swift hand movement. The driver got to work looking through the wiring, readying the small black box he had to wire into the construct.

The passenger took a step back, looking at the skies. The sky was gray, with dark clouds looming over the mountain range as thunder was surely soon to follow. An orange color caught his vision as the setting sun set over the ocean, reflecting light in a ray over the waves.

"Hey" The driver tapped his shoulder, motioning upwards.

The passenger nodded, beginning to climb the ladder, his tools strapped to the tool-belt of his blue overall. They climbed the ladder to the middle platform of the tower, repeating the process of the passenger destroying the lock and the driver working on the Jammer module.

"Jammer A in position waiting for call back, over."

"Jammer B in position, copy." The passenger grabbed for his radio.

"One more till Jammer C is armed, over."

"Copy that"

"Copy that."

The passenger once again watched the horizon until the driver gave him the signal and they ascended to the final platform. This time their high-precision choreography was done in less than thirty seconds. The passenger grabbed his radio

"Jammer C Armed and Ready, Hallelujah."

"Copy that, returning to HQ."

"Copy, Returning to HQ"

The passenger lowered himself, his legs hanging over the platform as a breeze picked up, looking at the orange orb above the sea.

"You ever feel like you're seeing the end of an era?" Ace asked, his jackal eyes looking at his reptilian friend.

"No." He joined Ace at the edge of the platform, grabbing two beers from the backpack, giving him one. Ace sighed wistfully.

"That's right, you don't feel anything." Ace looked at the sky, his friend chuckling as he lightly shoved his shoulder.

"You're being sentimental."

"Don't you in your infinite stoic facade think this might be the right time to be just that?"

Yoshi looked ready to say his reply but then looked at the sky and decided to say nothing. The two thought for a while, looking at the skies and the infinite possibility of failure in their task.

"To tomorrow." Yoshi held out his can of beer to Ace.

"To Omnivora." Ace and Yoshi cheered their beverages and together watched the setting sun. Two hybrids sharing one moment of peace before the life they knew would go up in flames.