Disclaimer: I do not own anything that has to deal with Black Cat, unless I actually own a black cat, then that disproves that whole statement, but still… ah never mind.

Warning: This story contains sex between two men, aka yaoi. If you're not into that, then this is not the story for you. There will also be violence, cursing, etc. You've been warned.

Prologue: Shifting Tides

By: Asura Mori

Train winced as he felt the bullet enter his arm, but otherwise showed no emotion. He turned to regard his partner, who was bleeding heavily from his shoulder and was very pale in the face. Sven had lost a lot of blood, which Train was painfully aware of. "T-Train… you-" Hearing his partner, the brunette turned to regard him, before bending down to examine the wounded man.

Placing a hand under his chin, he stared at his partner very seriously, trying very hard not to laugh and ruin his little joke. Sven looked at him worriedly, wondering what his partner was thinking about. "What?" he finally started panicking when the brunette said nothing, "What is it?!"

A small chuckle escaped the other sweeper as he turned away from his partner, scratching the top of his unruly hair. "Totally not what I was expecting. I expected you to hold your own for a little while." He snickered as Sven let out a grunt of surprise, "I guess you've gotten kind of rusty, huh?"

"Hey, whose fault is it that I got dragged into this?"

Sven let out a small gasp then, only then noticing the red splotch on Train's sleeve and the shivers that ran through the brunette's spine. "Um… Train, you're…" Train turned to regard the older man, seeing the guilt and concern in his eyes. Knowing that Sven would only worry if he told the truth, he acted surprised and worried himself. "What? What are you looking at?"

The older sweeper was about to answer when both he and Train saw Creed rise out of their corner of their eyes. A dark bruise was forming on the other man's cheek where Train had punched him and a vein pulsed dangerously in his forehead. "Train, do you understand what just happened to you?" Creed demanded, blood trickling down the side of his mouth, "That shot… that shot was no ordinary bullet. That was a delivery system for a nanotechnology called 'Lucifer.' That bullet triggered a transformation that moment it entered your skin."

"Yeah, I heard you…" Train muttered in response as he looked down at his bleeding arm, "Something about a beast, right?" Feeling like Train wasn't getting the picture, Creed raised his voice as if that would get his point across. "Once begun, the process cannot be stopped! Your genes are being reconfigured as we speak!" he yelled, getting frustrated by Train's lack of emotion. Train stared at the other man for a minute, which only made Creed even angrier, then smirked.

"Hmph. If you couldn't handle any possible outcome… you never should have pulled the trigger."

Creed flinched back, almost as if he had been hit. Sirens rang in the distance as the cops slowly pulled up to the church. Echidna turned slowly, taking in their current predicament. Just as she was about to ask Creed if he wanted her to act, the silver-haired man whispered, "Yes. Echidna… Open a gate."

Startled, Echidna asked, "You sure? What about the Black Cat?!" Train also waited for Creed's response, his face carefully composed. If it came down to it, he would fight. He refused to be taken by the Apostles of the Stars. "Forget him." Creed finally answered, his voice breaking as he looked away from the brunette, "Let's go."

"Whatever's going to happen to him…" Creed continued as he walked down the aisle away from Train, "I don't need to see it. I trust he'll survive. He's earned my respect for his strength and resourcefulness." He turned to look at the brunette at this point, hesitating slightly upon entering the portal. Train met his gaze evenly, waiting for the other man to say what he wanted to say. Creed opened his mouth once, before closing it again.

"He will survive." He whispered, stepping into the portal, his gaze never leaving Train's as they parted yet again. Golden eyes stayed locked onto the place where Creed had last been standing, his body trembling with exertion. "Creed…"

To be continued…