In Blood and Brotherhood

by everydayimtransforming

Temporarily all together until I get my tablet and fix it. Currently available to purchase from me. The Kratt brothers and the MacManus brothers have to find out who is folloeing them and why. MOVED TO MY MAIN ACCOUNT maxynepayne.

In Blood and Brotherhood

A Boondock Saints/Justice League/Wild Kratts crossover

Chapter One: The Cross

"Aww fuck, man,"

It was their last job of the day, and already Murphy was beginning to get pissed. "What the fuck is it now?" He growled.

"I can't find the fucking vent grate. Who da fuck designed this building?" Connor gripped his brown hair in frustration. Hitting his forehead with his gun, Murphy sat silently brooding. "Can't we just go back and bust the door in? Like fucking seriously Conn, we don't have to go all James Bond on this shit every fucking time,"

"Just give me a minute, Murph, I got this shit."

Connor felt around the ventilation shaft for the grate, unaware that the screws were coming loose and the bottom was caving from the weight and commotion. "Fucking hell, what the fuck? Where da fuck is it?"

"I'm gonna fucking leave if you don't find the grate in the next three seconds, mate. I'm not fucking around." Murphy stuck a finger in Connor's face, gun pointed down. Connor held up his hand as the shaft groaned. "Did you hear that?" He questioned.

"Hear what?" Murphy asked in return, sitting back. The ventilation shaft groaned again.

"That,"

They sat in silence for a moment, before Murphy let out a curse and they fell through the bottom of the vent.

They landed feet-first onto a coffee table in the middle of a hotel room. The meeting they were supposed to shoot up was about sex slave trade between two territories, and that's exactly what they had landed in. Before anyone could do anything, Connor and Murphy drew out their guns and began firing, turning in a circle as they did so. Blood and pieces of human redecorated the awful grey-coloured walls.

The one who called the meeting was the last to die. Connor pulled him out of his chair before Murphy shoved him to his knees. "And shepherds we shall be, for thee, my Lord, for thee. Power hath descended forth from thy hand, that our feet may swiftly carry out thy command. So we shall flow a river forth to thee, and teeming with souls shall it ever be. In Nomine Patri Et Fili," they cocked their guns, "Spiritus Sancti."

Ptt ptt went their guns as they fired. After they had laid the pennies onto the eyes of the damned and crossed their arms over their chests, they made their exit. "Well, that went better than expected," Connor told his brother as they walked toward the door. "Aye, I guess it did," Murphy agreed, taking out two cigarettes. Connor whipped out his lighter, as did Murph, and together they light them up. Suddenly, Connor came to a stop. "Shit, I forgot my-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence, for there was a loud banging on the door. "THIS IS THE POLICE! OPEN UP!" Came a bark from behind the door.

"Fuck!" Murphy snapped.

"We'll hafta go through the window," Connor said, tying a rope around his waist.

"Da fucking rope," Murphy threw his hands up.

"Fuck you! I'm gettin us the fuck outta here!"

"Shut the fuck up and give me my rope, you wop."

Tossing him the rope, Connor broke the window and secured the ends to the outside ledge by nailing them in with his and Murphy's knives. "WE'RE COMING IN IF YOU DON'T ANSWER!" Shouted the cop behind the door. Holding hands, the MacManus brothers said a quick prayer before jumping out of the window. Down they fell, until the rope ended. Darkness loomed above and below them as they hung in the night air. "'You and your stupid fucking rope'!" Connor imitated Murphy in a high-pitched voice.

"Shut your fucking hole," Murphy hit him as they both laughed. But then, a twang sound. Immediately, they fell dead silent. Up above, both of their ropes were breaking.

"Fuck,"

"Me,"

Snap went their ropes, and they fell the rest of the fifteen stories.

The Watchtower

Flash zipped around, pizza box in hand. He was on watch duty, again. Seriously, it was like nobody wanted him around. "Well, they can all kiss my perfect a-"

"INTRUDER. INTRUDER. INTRUDER." Went the alarm. Dropping his pizza, Flash ran to the computer and tapped some keys, checking as to which part of the tower was breached and resetting the alarm. "Medical bay?" He whispered under his breath as he read the screen. Frowning, he flashed through the tower to the medical bay. Opening the door, he found... nothing. "What the hell?" He grumbled. Alarm must be defective; why would it go off if no one was there to set if off? Shrugging, he turned to go, but then a blinding white light flashed, and up through the floor flew two figures. All he could do was stand and gawk as the light dissipated and the figures fell back down to the floor. They stood after catching their breath, but when they saw Flash they drew their guns. "Who the fuck are you?" Asked the dark-haired one on the left. Flash tried to zip off and hide, but the one on the right shot at the spot he tried to hide at. He then held up his hands in surrender. "F-Flash! Flash!" He answered.

"Where the fuck are we, 'Flash'? I hope you're smart enough to answer that!" Insulted the left one. Both had Irish accents, which was nice, but Flash wished they weren't being used when the owners had guns pointed at his head. "You mean you don't know?"

"If we fucking knew we wouldn't be fucking asking you, now would we, genius?!" The same one barked. Well, he had a point.

"Y-you're in the Watchtower of the Justice League, in space."

Now they seemed confused. "Da 'Justice League'?"

"What the fuck is that?"

"If you lower your guns, I can answer all your questions,"

They leaned in toward each other and exchanged whispers in a different language before agreeing, "You make one wrong move and we'll blow your fucking brains out, tights."

Flash waited until their guns were in their holsters before lowering his hands and zipping to them. "Take a seat, gentlemen. I got a feeling this'll be a long one,"

TWO HOURS OR SO LATER...

As soon as Batman Zeta'd into the Watchtower, he knew something was different. He sniffed the air and could smell gunsmoke. 'Flash,' he thought with widening eyes. Immediately, he ran to the computer and brought up all of the cameras. "Flash! Where are you?" He tried his communicator, but there was no reply. Even more frantic, he scanned through the cameras until he found Flash, tied up in the kitchen with bulletholes in the wall behind him. Growling, he ran to the kitchen with fisted hands. "FLASH!" He shouted, "FLASH!"

In the kitchen area, he skid to a stop at the scene before him; Flash was laughing, doubled over as he tried to form words, obviously in the midsts of some story. Across the kitchen from him were two men, also laughing, shoulder holsters empty save for one gun in each. The other gun they had in their hands, both still smoking from being fired. "... I-I tried to tell him, 'You got something right there!', but he-he wouldn't listen! He kept goin on and on, but no one was listening because of that bit of mustard he had on his lip!" Flash cried. This only made the three laugh harder.

"That's great, man. You shuh tell im about that one time at work with that broad we were trainin," the brown-haired one choked to his friend, arm on his shoulder and gun held lazily in his hand. "Aye! So, Murph and I were at work, right? In dis meat packin factory, and our boss comes up to us with this giant fucking broad-"

"-Looks like a fucking wrestla,"

"-Aye! And he tells us 'boys, you're gonna be trainin her today'. And I tought 'This shouldn't be hard', so we went to train her, you know, teach her all the basic shit. We gets to the meat hangin part of the job, and all I said was 'the rule of thumb is', and I guess she was some kinda feminist motherfucker, because she goes 'da rule of thumb? Back in the early 1900's, it was legal for a man to beat his wife, long as the stick was no wider than his thumb',"

"And Connor decides to fuck with her a little bit, since it was Saint Patty's day, so he says 'we can't do much damage with that now, can we? Perhaps it shoulda been a rule a wrist',"

"And she completely goes off! Sayin shit like 'I knew you pricks were gonna give me problems', so Murph tries to smooth it and says 'Come on, it's Saint Patty's day, all in good fun', but she's pissed! 'You know what, fuck you!' she tells him! And me too, when I triedta calm her down!"

"I dun remember what Connor did, but then she kicked him right in the nuts! So you know what I did?"

"What?" Flash asked, still giggling.

"I punched her out!" Connor and Murphy laughed simultaneously. The trio doubled over in loud laughter, Flash falling on all fours. It was a while before they calmed down, but when they did Batman saw his chance to break in. "Flash, do you mind telling me what's going on here?"

Immediately, the two friends pointed their guns at him. Flash vibrated through his bonds and held out his hands. "No guys, it's OK, he's with me!"

They lowered and holstered their guns, and Flash his hands. "Batman, these are my new friends, Connor and Murphy MacManus. Guys, this is Batman, my, uh, boss, or whatever."

Connor and Murphy waved. "Evenin,"

"Nice ta meet ya,"

Batman said nothing in reply. "Flash, a word,"

As Flash walked to Batman, he sent a look to Conn and Murph that read, "I'm in deep shit," which was sympathised by their expression of "We feel ya."

Batman punched the wall by Flash's head. "What the FUCK do you think you're doing?! Do you have any FUCKING idea as to how scared I was when I saw you on the monitor tied up with bulletholes all around you?!"

Flash stared up at him with a frown. "What?"

And that's when Batman smelled it. He pinched the bridge of his nose through his cowl, eyes shut with an expression that one has when trying to explain something to a complete moron. "Are you... drunk?"

"A little," Flash giggled.

Sighing in disappointment, Batman rubbed his temples. "Just... go to one of the rooms. I'll talk to them."

"Okayyy, Baman," Flash staggered off, running into a few walls as he went. Batman simply kept his composure as he walked up to the McManus brothers. "I hope you two are more decent,"

"We're Irish, mate,"

"We know how to hold our liqour."

THAT NIGHT...

Diana woke late that night for no apparent reason. She hadn't been dreaming, and she couldn't hear anything, so she assumed that her brain was done with sleep for now. However, as she lay listening, she heared very faint voices talking. She couldn't pinpoint where they were coming from from her room, so, she slipped into a dressing gown and walked quietly out of her room and down the hallway to her left. The voices grew louder, so she knew she was going in the right direction. For about six or so minutes she followed the sound of the voices until she reached the observation deck. There, she saw the two new guests standing in front of the second story window, looking out. Silently, she flew up to them, but stayed at a distance, across the way from them. From there, she could hear their conversation. "So what should we do, brother? Should we stay here?" Murphy (at least she thought it was Murphy) asked.

"I think we should; back in our world, we already got a followin doin what we do, so we should get dat goin here," Connor answered.

"Spread our black wings like angels of vengeance," Murphy began.

"So that our seed will grow and take root for others to follow," his brother finished.

Diana had never heard that saying before, but then again they were from a different universe. She listened intently as they started up again. "You know we dun belong here. The way we do things... it ain't like how they work,"

Connor put his arm around Murphy. "We'll only stay for a while until we get our shit together. Then we can ask em if we can leave,"

"Sounds like a plan."

"That's 'cause I always thinka tha plans; you dun do shit,"

"Fuck you, I do shit! I punched out that broad fer ya!"

"Ooohh, yea, I punched a chick in the face fer me brother, I'm so fucking strong!"

"You and I both know she was fucking huge."

"I'm Murphy and I punch broads, ladeedadeeda! Look at me!"

Murphy hit his brother, who was prancing around with his hands on his hips. When he did, Connor hit him back, and before long they were rolling on the floor in their underwear and undershirts, laughing and fighting. Diana scoffed with a smile; men. As she kept watching, she saw that now they were lying on their backs, side by side. "Conn?"

"Yah, Murph?"

"You love me, right?"

"The fuck? Where'd da fuck that come from?"

"Just fucking answer the question, you dip!"

"Aye, o' course."

"What would you do if I died?"

Now shit was starting to get serious; Diana wasn't sure if she should stay, but her body seemed to want to, as she stayed in her squated position. "Why the fucking deep shit?" Connor sounded upset.

"I dunno, I just... it just came up,"

"Well, it depends on how ya died. If you died from sickness, I would... I would probably go depressed and never talk to anyone. If you were murdered, I would kill anyone and everyone involved, and then go on a killing spree. I wouldn't talk ta anyone. But, if you died from old age, like I know you will, I would make sure you died when I did. Because we do everything together, right, brothuh?"

Murphy was silent for a moment. Diana wasn't sure what was happening, until she heard Murphy's voice. "Right... we do everytin together," It was cracked with emotion. She saw Connor turn on his side.

"What is it, Murph?"

Nothing for a while, just light crying. Something was happening, Diana knew it, but she couldn't see or hear anything. But then, she saw Connor lift his hand and smooth Murphy's hair down. And then Murphy spoke. "I... I got cancer, Conn."

"Oh my God," Diana whispered.

Connor froze. "Ya... ya what?"

"I got cancer. I got da call from the doc yesterday, I just... I just didn't know how to tell ya,"

Now it was Connor who sounded choked. "What kind?"

"Luekemia. Doc says et's in it's early stages."

Silence for a while. "Conn?"

"... Fucking fuck me! Why the fuck did it have to be you! FUCK!"

"Connor, fucking shut up, it's not... it's not, that bad,"

"Not that bad? Murph, it's fuckin CANCER!"

"Doc says I got a good chance'a livin; seventy percent, I think he said, specially since we caught it early. There's-a good chance da transfusion will work."

Connor rolled back onto his back and covered his face with his hands. Now it was Murphy who was on his side, staring down at his brother with sad eyes. "I wanna try tha transfusion."

Nothing; Connor didn't say anything for a while. "Connor?"

"Shut the fuck up for a sec, I'm figuring some shit out," A few moments passed, and then-"How's da transfusion work?"

"They take some-a your bone marrow or whatever and inject it into me, which replaces the infected marrow and helps kill the cancer. I think that's how et works... I read it online,"

More silence. "Alright... we shouldn't tell anyone, not yet, anyway. Not until we do the transfusion."

"Sounds like a plan,"

"That's 'cause I come up with all the plans, you dun do shit,"

The brothers laughed again. By now, Diana was crying; she needed to tell J'onn and the others, they would be able to help. She stood and flew off to do precisely that.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER TWO: THE OVERTURE

In Blood and Brotherhood

Chapter Two: The Overture

It was late in the afternoon before Connor and Murphy bothered to get out of bed; they had had a rough night, especially with Murphy's breaking the news about his cancer to Connor.

It was the latter who got up first. "Murph," he shook his brother, "Murph, fucking get up. We got shit to do."

Murphy wasn't too happy with the wake-up call. "Fuck you, I'm sleepin," He smacked his brother's hand away and cuddled into their shared bed further. Smiling a little, Connor petted his brother's hair before sliding out of bed. "Fine, sleep, then. You don't get any bacon,"

"You fuckin better bring me some, Connor. I ain't fuckin around,"

"Gotta get up first," Connor told him as he left the room.

"Motherfucker!" Murphy yelled. Connor heard something soft hit the door as he closed it.

In the kitchen, everyone was gathered around the table with coffee, which none of them had so much as sipped since pouring it. When Connor saw this, he stopped. "What's goin on?" He questioned.

J'onn sighed. "Take a seat, Connor. We have something to disscuss with you."

Connor sat with a questioning expression. Superman simply stared, looking sad. "We know about your brother, Connor; his luekemia. We're very sorry."

Connor started. "How the fuck did you know that?! Dat's none-a your fucking business!"

"I overheard you two talking last night. It woke me up," Diana explained. Still, Connor glared at the group. "What tha fuck d'ya want with us?"

"We wanna help, jeez, calm your balls," Flash rolled his eyes. Now Connor was angry; he jabbed a finger at them, standing from his seat. "You motherfuckers ain't touchin a fuckin air on his head!"

"Jesus, Connor, don't you want your brother to live?" Green Lantern frowned.

"Of course I want him to live you fuckin dip, he's my fuckin other half," Connor sneered. None of the members were sure what that meant, but J'onn did. "I understand that you are very protective of your twin, Connor, but you must allow us to help. We can guarantee that your brother will live if you just let us help."

Being that J'onn was the calm one, and that he knew what to say, Connor was more understanding of what he was saying, and let out a sigh. Dropping his head, he agreed, "Alright... yuh can help my brother,"

But then, he lifted his eyes to the team, and stared pure black hatred into their souls. "But if anything goes wrong, if my brother so much as gets a cold,I will kill all of you."

And with that, he left the table and prepared breakfast for himself and his brother. Hawkgirl sat in shock. "Hooh-lee shit this guy means business."

"Yeah, no fucking shit. We'll need to be careful with this one, J'onn. No mistakes," Superman said to his Martian friend. J'onn nodded.

THE NEXT DAY...

"Alright, are you ready, Murphy?" Superman asked as he flipped a couple more switches on his machine. "Aye. Let's fucking do this bitch," Murphy answered.

"Lord's fucking name," Connor said.

"Hail Mary 'n Father of Christ," he and Murphy said simultaneously as they crossed themselves. "Remember, I'll be right fuckin ere if ya need me, alright? Holdin your hand," he held his brother's left hand. Murphy squeezed it. "Love ya, brother,"

"Aye, damn right. I love ya, too."

Connor was all decked out in his scrubs, as were Superman and J'onn. Batman stood in the back, just watching. "Here comes the sedatives..." Superman injected the sedatives into Murphy's arm, and he slowly went under. His grip on Connor's hand didn't loosen, however. "Now, we just need to combine J'onn's blood marrow with yours, Connor, and my cure... there it goes. This should work."

The loading circle spun and spun, until there was a ping! and the screen popped up. Sure enough, the cure worked. "Great! Now we just have to inject it into Murphy, and we'll be done." Superman and J'onn flipped Murphy onto his stomach so they could inject the cure into his infected marrow. "Now we wait a few days until we can check if it worked."

For days, Connor stayed by Murphy's side, throughout all of the tests and scans and bloodwork. Being that they were twins, Connor could feel his pain and his exhaustion, and he didn't like it. When it was too much, he would whip out his pistols and shoot everyone out of the room. Not at them, of course, but by them so they would get the idea. A fortnight passed; Murphy was getting better. The luekemia grew smaller and smaller until, almost a week after that, it was gone.

Superman took out another needle, full of some strange, bi-coloured liquid. He shook it, and they swirled together. "This should keep the luekemia from coming back. If it does, just come back to us and we'll take care of it, alright?" He told Connor. Seeing that he was genuinely concerned for them, Connor nodded. "Aye. Thanks fer helpin us,"

"Of course; anytime."

And with that, Superman injected the liquid into Murphy's bone marrow. As he pulled the needle back out, Superman said, "He'll be under for a few hours; the serum has to soak in and spread in order to work. We'll keep him in here for another day or two, and then you guys can be on your way if you'd like."

With another nod, Connor helped him lay Murph back onto his back, and then held his hand while Superman put everything away before leaving the bay.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER THREE: THE STARTING

In Blood and Brotherhood

Chapter Three: The Starting

"Holy shit, man; this place is totally different," Murphy breathed as he and Connor walked through South Boston in their Saints gear. "Whatdya expect, Murph? This es a different universe," Connor replied.

"HELP! HELP M-" A voice crying out was cut off. Connor and Murphy whipped out their twin pistols and made their way toward the sound to their right. "Shut up or I will fuckin slit your throat!" A voice hissed. A girl could be heard crying lightly. Rrrrip! went someone's clothes. Connor and Murphy's faces hardened as they cocked their guns. They went down an alley to the end, where they found a man in dark clothes standing over a young crying girl in ripped clothing. They pressed their iron to the back of his noodle and sneered, "Get on your knees, you sick motherfucker,"

The man did just that, but not before trying to knife them. This was easily countered by shooting him in the hand, which also made him more compliant. Soon they had him on his knees and began their prayer, "And shepherds we shall be, for thee, my Lord, for thee. Power hath descended forth from thy hand, that our feet may swiftly carry out thy command. So we shall flow a river forth to thee, and teeming with souls shall it ever be. In Nomine Patri Et Fili," they cracked their necks, "Spritus Sancti." Splatter went his blood onto the girl he had tried to rape as they fired. Connor laid him out onto his back and finished the ritual, while Murphy calmed the girl down. "Shh, it's OK now. What's your name, my dear?"

The girl continued to cry. "M-Megan,"

"Well, Megan, what're you doin out dis time-a night?"

"I needed to run to the store and get medicine for my brother, he-he's sick,"

Turning to Connor, Murphy questioned in Irish, "Ar mhaith leat a shiúlann ina teach?" "Should we walk her home?"

Connor nodded. "Aye, sure,"

Helping her to her feet, Murphy and Connor walked her to the store she was headed to so she could pick up her medicine, Connor putting his coat around her shoulders, and then they walked her home. At her house, Connor took his coat back, and Murphy handed her her bag of medicine. "Now, don't go walkin around at night again, alright? We can't save yuh all da time," Murphy told her.

Megan smiled a little. "Ok,"

The two brothers smiled and took their leave, disappearing into the darkness.

At their crappy flat the next morning, Murphy woke to a beeping sound coming from his pants. Connor pushed his shoulder and mumbled tiredly, "Turn it off, Murph,"

Murphy rolled over to his clothes and dug around in his pants for the source, which was a small device with a screen that had Batman's face on it. He pressed a button labeled "answer", and the picture blinked out once, and then projected up Batman's figure. "Connor and Murphy; we need you at the Hall of Justice. You can find a Zeta tube at this location," the screen projected an address, which Murphy wrote down. "Come at once. Batman out." His figure dissolved back into the device, which turned off.

"Da fuck he want?" Connor asked, sitting up.

"He needs us at the Hall of Justice or some shit," Murphy told him, standing.

At the address, Murphy and Connor walked down the alley to the end, where they found a boy with red hair dressed in a yellow-and-red suit. "Hey, you must be them! I'm Kid Flash, Flash's nephew. Has he told you about me? I bet he has. He told me about you! First thing he talked about when he got home. He went on and on, telling us all your stories and how you got here into this universe. What's your universe like? Does it have superheroes in it? You guys are kinda like superheroes, except you don't have powers. Do you have powers? He didn't say. Are you guys twins? 'Cause Uncle Flash told me you guys were brothers. He also told me you were Irish. Can you speak Irish? Well, of course you can, you're Irish. Can I see your gun? I bet it's-"

"Fucking shut up, kid! Why the fuck are we in an alley?" Murphy asked, frustrated. Kid Flash smacked his forehead with his hand.

"Right. He told me you guys swear a bunch. And that you don't like rambling. I ramble a lot. Sorry. It's the Flash way. We also eat a lot, and are late a lot. Ok, I'm gonna shut up now and Zeta us to the Hall of Justice." He pressed a button under a dumpster, and it opened to reveal a large circle with a swirling blue colour in it. He input where they were going in a panel, and then stepped through. Connor and Murphy looked at each other before following suit. They kept walking and soon found themselves inside a large hall with all of the Justice League members-and a few younger ones they didn't know-waiting for them. "Ok, you got us out here at fucking eight in da mornin, what the fuck dya want?" Connor asked irritably. J'onn and a young girl stepped forward with Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. Batman spoke first. "Do you remember the girl you helped last night?"

Conn and Murph nodded. "Aye,"

"Do you remember her name?" Wonder Woman asked.

"Yea, it was... Megan, I think," Murphy answered.

Superman motioned to J'onn and his young girl. "J'onn will tell you the importance of that life you saved."

J'onn put his other hand on the young girl's right shoulder. "The young woman you saved was my niece, M'gann. She was in her human form and, as she said, on her way to pick up medicine. But, it was not for her brother; it was for a young orphan she was taking care of until he found a home. Without that medicine, he would have died."

"Connor and Murphy MacManus, you saved two lives the night you helped M'gann. And for that, we offer you membership into the Justice League." Superman held out two communicators with matching earpieces, and i.d cards that read "Justice League Membership".

The twins looked at each other in surprise, and then at the leaders. "You sure you wanna ride this train, man? I mean we ain't really superhero material." Connor said.

"Aye, we don do it like you do, know what I'm sayin?" Murphy added.

"And sides, we got our mission already."

"Destroy all that which is evil,"

"So that which is good may flourish,"

They held up their respective hands with tattoos and said, "Veritas,"

"Aequitas,"

"Justice,"

"Truth,"

Superman turned to Batman and J'onn with dipped eyebrows. Using their mental link via J'onn, Superman thought, "Are we making a mistake?"

"I do not believe so; I have read their minds. They are chosen to do what they say they do," J'onn cut in.

Batman remained emotionless. "I agree with J'onn." And then, to the twins, "Do you accept our offer?"

"Stoit li eto delat'?" "Should we do it?" Murphy whispered to Connor in Russian. Connor replied in French, "Ça serait bien d'avoir quelques amis puissants autour au cas où nous recevons trop profond," "It'll be nice to have some strong friends around in case we get in too deep,"

Black Canary was taking notes on how many languages they spoke; right now, they were at four. The brothers turned to them and said simultaneously, "We'll do it,"

A flicker of a smile passed over Batman's face. "Congratulations. Your training starts tomorrow."

"Training? What the fuck fer?" Murphy questioned.

"We need you in top physical condition for our new team; the Night Saints,"

"The fuck're da Night Saints?" Connor scoffed.

"A new team that does exactly what you do best: destroy all of which that is evil, so that which is good may flourish." Superman explained.

"We'll take care of our villains,"

"And you take care of yours,"

"The mafia," Black Canary listed.

"The murderers," Wonder Woman added.

"The rapists,"

"Child molesters."

"Kidnappers."

"Thieves."

Connor squinted his eyes. "And you're sure you wanna ride dis train?"

The leaders of the league nodded. "Yes."

He and Murphy took their and communicators. "We'll be ere tomorra,"

Just as they said, Connor and Murphy were at the Hall of Justice for their training; along with other heroes who were there for their training. They were young, probably teenagers. Two of them they knew; Kid Flash and M'gann. The latter walked up to Murphy. "Hi," she greeted. Murphy turned to her.

"Ahh, M'gann, how yah doin, love? Not goin outside after dark again, I hope,"

She blushed a little at being called "love" and shook her head. "No, I'm not. I learned my lesson the first time,"

"Good on yah, then." He turned back to Connor and began talking to him in Spanish. M'gann made a rosary exactly like his and played with it as she walked back to her group. Kid Flash saw and crossed his arms as Black Canary walked in and greeted, "Good morning, everyone. Today is the first day of your training. Hope you're ready for lots of cuts and bruises, because that's the real world."

She brought up the monitor and set a timer for two hours. "Today we'll be working on flexibility and defense. Who wants to go first?"

Kid Flash jumped around. "Me! Me! I wanna go first!" He cried.

As he walked past Murphy, he bumped him hard with his shoulder and glared. Murphy didn't notice, but Connor did.

When he made it to Black Canary, she began demonstrating using him how to stretch to make their limbs bend further and how to use their opponent's weight to make them fall, things of that sort. When it was Connor's turn, he used the techniques she taught them perfectly. She frowned as he took her down for the third time. "How did you learn that so quickly?" Asked she as he helped her up. "I dunno, actually. We've always been like that," Connor explained.

"Learnin shit so quickly." Murphy emphasized.

Canary nodded in an "Ok" way; she added that to the list of abilities the twins had. A half hour later, training was over, and Black Canary told them to hit the showers.

It was nighttime in Boston, and inside the gross flat of the MacManus brothers Connor was lying restless beside his twin, crying silently; he didn't want to admit it, but he missed his universe. Even though there was nothing for them back there, he still missed it. Not only that, but he was scared for Murphy: What if his luekemia came back? What if the cure didn't work the second time? So many what if's bounced around in his brain that he began to whack his head with his hand until it went numb. When it did, he had a vision: darkness, but then a bright light. A figure stood in it, and with da's voice it said, "When I raise my flashing sword, and my hand takes hold in judgement, I will take vengeance upon my enemies and I shall repay those who have hazed me. Oh Lord, raise me to thy right hand and count me among thy saints. And whosoever shed man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God made He man. Destroy all that which is evil. So that which is good may flourish. While the wicked stand confounded, call me with thy saints surrounded. And I shall count thee amoung my favoured sheep. And you shall have the protection of all the angels in heaven. Never shall innocent blood be shed. Yet the blood of the wicked shall flow like a river. The three shall spread their blackened wings and be the vengeful striking hammer of God. Never lose hope. Veritas et Aequitas."

He woke with a start, sweating and panting, as did Murphy. Turning to Murphy, he said, "Never lose hope,"

Murph said in reply, "Veritas et Aequitas."

Smiling, they pressed their hands with tattoos palm-to-palm.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER FOUR: THE RECKONING

In Blood and Brotherhood

Chapter Four: The Reckoning

"In Nomine Patri Et Fili," they cocked their guns, "Spiritus Sancti." Blood splattered on the carpet of the damned, and Connor and Murphy laid him on his back and placed pennies over his eyes. They went around and did the same to the other three before packing up and leaving. "Mission complete. Over," Connor and Murphy said into their earpieces. "Let's get somethin' to drink, I need a beer," Murphy told Connor as he pulled his earpiece out of his ear. "You fucking said it," Connor did likewise, and they hopped into their car, driving to the nearest 7-11 to get some alcohol. There, they grabbed a couple six packs, browsing through the snack section while they were on their way up to the register. Whilst browsing, a man in a ski mask bearing a gun came into the store and went up to the cashier. "Gimme all your fucking money!" He ordered, shoving the gun in the man's face. Shaking, the cashier stumbled to open the register. "Ey!" Connor shouted, cocking his own gun. Murphy did, as well. The robber turned to them. "The fuck you want?"

"I suggest you leave now before this gets ugly,"

The man cocked his gun and pointed it at Connor. "Piss off, cocksucker. I fucking need this money,"

"Look, we're trying to be civil about this. Dun make it hard," Murphy motioned with his gun for the cashier to leave, making sure the robber didn't notice. "Listen you Irish FUCKS! Back the fuck up or I WILL shoot!"

The brothers stood their ground. "Fraid we can't do that,"

It all happened in slow motion; Murphy shot at the man just as Connor jumped at him. The robber shot Connor as he was shot and fell to the ground. "NOOO!" Murphy screamed as Connor dropped to the linoleum. He fell and crawled to his twin as tears began to fall. The pain they shared was excruciating; Murphy knew he needed to act fast. "Conn! Connor, stay with me. Stay with me, brother,"

Connor coughed up blood, hands covered in it from his wound. But then, he saw it. "Murph... Murph, do you see that?" He asked, eyes to the ceiling. Crying, Murphy looked up, but saw nothing. Same as with da... "Aye, I see it, Connor. Et's beautiful."

Connor reached up with a bloody, shaking hand, and then died. Murphy just sat, tears pouring out of his eyes; it felt as if a part of himself had gone. But then he began to scream. "NOOOOOOO! NOOOOOOO! CONNOR! NOOOOO!"

Standing in one swift motion, he cocked his gun and began to shoot the robber over and over while screaming, until the body was swiss cheese and his throat was raw. Sobbing, he dropped to his knees, hands covering his face.

He couldn't bear to part with his brother; at least, not yet. Murphy laid beside his twin's slightly warm body. Eyes staring at nothing, he felt... empty. Tears streamed down and soaked his brother's shirt, which Murphy was unaware of; in fact, he wasn't aware of anything. All he could do was lie there, motionless, as time ticked by. Holding the limp, cold hand, he somehow managed to fall asleep.

Light; that was all Connor could see. There were voices, too, but they were all speaking at once so he couldn't understand what they were saying. Something touched his cheek, and he soon realized it was the hand from the figure before him. It said, "It's not your time, my child... go now." Electricity shocked through him, and he woke with a jump into the darkness of his and Murphy's flat. Confused as to how he got there from the 7-11, he felt a hand in his and turned to find a tearstained Murphy lying beside him. Aching, he shook him awake. "Murph. Murphy, brother, wake up." He called.

Whimpering, the other twin blearily opened his eyes, but when he saw Connor alive he shot up. "WHAT THE FUCK CONNOR?" He cried. Connor nodded.

"Aye. How da fuck did we get here?"

Murphy just sat in tears. Realizing he took things too fast, Connor held out his arms and wrapped his twin in a hug. Tightly Murphy held him, joy tears slipping down his face. "How...?"

"I dunno; a voice told me it wasn't mah time yet, and I woke up ere," Frowning, he asked, "Did you carry me up here?"

"Aye."

Pulling back, Connor stroked his brother's cheek, Murphy still holding his hand. "Good to be back,"

"Good to have yah back,"

After a second or two of silence, Murphy tackled him, both of them laughing.

Later that day-for Connor had come back from the dead around two in the morning-the door to their flat opened to reveal five teenagers, headed by M'gann. Connor and Murphy were asleep, Murph lying almost on top of Conn, Conn with his arm around him. They were shirtless and in their boxers, as it was summer and they didn't have air conditioning. M'gann, preppy as ever, knocked on the wall. "Hello! Murphy! Connor! Wake up!" She cried. Grumbling, Murphy lifted his head tiredly and replied, "... the fuck?"

Connor held his brother tighter as he stirred. "Murph, who da fuck is it? Tell 'em to shut the fuck up,"

Hung over from the beer he'd drank the night before, Murphy unsteadily sat up, hitting his twin awake. "What the hell are you doing ere?"

It was a kid with red hair wearing a red-and-black outfit and a bow with arrows who answered. "Batman sent us to take you out, show you around or some shit,"

Connor sat up. "Did it have to be so fucking early in the mornin?"

"It is after noon," an African-American with white hair told him.

Standing, Murphy walked up to them and slammed the door in their faces. A slightly short, black haired one wearing sunglasses mumbled, "Aren't they a ray-a sunshine,"

M'gann remained optimistic. "This'll be fun! I know it!"

"You only like it because Murphy is comin along," Kid Flash sneered, raising his pitch when he said "Murphy"; his arms were still crossed as they'd been during training. A tall teen in the back with black hair and shirt noticed his jealous attitude and scoffed, as did the also tall red head with the bow.

They waited out in the hall for about ten minutes, before the MacManus brothers opened their door and joined them; they were wearing black turtlenecks with the sleeves pushed up, identical black sunglasses, their rosarys, slightly ripped jeans with identical belts, and identical boots. They took out their lighters and lit their cigarettes in one motion. "Where we goin, then?" Connor asked, breathing out a cloud of smoke through his nose. M'gann smiled despite the smell. "I thought we could have lunch first! Who's hungry?"

"I'm fucking starvin," Murphy replied.

"Aye, me too," Connor nodded.

The rest of the team mumbled in agreement.

Doing a little hop, M'gann chirped, "OK! So lunch first. Where should we eat?"

"Somewhere that'll get rid of my hangover, my head hurts like a bitch,"

"You fucking said it; I come back from the dead only to be greeted by this motherfucker,"

"So Subway, then!" Interrupted the short one.

"Is it just me, Roy, or does M'gann have a serious thing for Murphy?" The one with sunglasses whispered to the red head in the booth beside him. Swallowing his food, Roy whispered back, "I noticed that when we were in training,"

The African-American cut in from across the booth, "I do not believe Wally or M'gann would appreciate us taking about this,"

"Why would Wally not like it, Kaldur? We're not talking about him," asked sunglasses.

"Robin, have you not noticed his jealous attitude when M'gann talks of Murphy?"

Robin looked at Wally-Kid Flash-glaring at Murphy, who was sitting across from M'gann (who was blabbing to him) in the booth next to them. He whispered, "Ooooohhhh."

"Even I noticed it," The other black haired teen added, who was sitting in the booth behind them.

"Yeah, even Connor noticed it," Roy stuck his thumb in the direction of the booth behind him, meaning the teen sitting there.

However, Murphy didn't seem the least bit interested in M'gann; he was listening to her and nodding his head, but he was focused on the side conversation he was having with his brother, in a language that sounded like Italian. Leaning back, but eyes still on the brothers, Robin questioned, "Hey guys, did you notice that those two are always speaking to each other in different languages?"

Kaldur, Connor and Roy turned to them and nodded, "You're right,"

"Why do you think that is?"

"Perhaps they prefer privacy," Kaldur suggested.

The conversation Connor and Murphy were having was about Wally and M'gann; Connor had started it when M'gann began talking to his twin, and they were indeed speaking in Italian:

"Avete notato Kid Flash comporta in modo strano intorno a te?" "Have you noticed Kid Flash acting weird around you?" Connor asked.

"No, non proprio. Perché?" "No, not really. Why?" Murphy questioned after answering. "Lo vidi nudge che quando eravamo in formazione, dopo M'gann parlato con voi." "I saw him nudge you when we were in training, after M'gann had talked to you."

"Davvero? Non ho notato." "Really? I didn't notice."

"Penso che forse è geloso," "I think maybe he's jealous,"

"Di lei? Gross," "Of her? Gross,"

"No, di te, idiota! A lui piace lei!" "No, of you, you idiot! He likes her!"

"Ottimo, un cazzo di triangolo amoroso, merda; questo è esattamente quello che mi serve." "Great, a fucking love triangle, shit; this is exactly what I need,"

"... Ti piace?" "... Do you like her?"

Murphy gave him a "what the fuck?" look. "Se mi piace di lei? Che cazzo di domanda è? Certo che no!" "Do I like her? What the fuck kind of question is that? Of course not!"

Connor laughed as Murphy pushed him. "Mi dispiace, ma dovro 'divertimento con questo," "I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have fun with this,"

"Stronzo." "Asshole." Murphy laughed with him, ending the conversation.

"I wish we knew what they were saying," Robin said disappointedly.

"Yeah," "Yes" "Sure," Agreed two out of three of his boothmates, and Connor from behind him.

It was late when Connor, Murphy, and the teammates made it to M'gann's house; she wanted to have a sleepover, as a "bonding exercise", but, of course, everyone knew the real reason she wanted them over: Murphy. Wally stayed only to keep an eye on them, and by them he meant M'gann and Murphy. Connor stayed to poke fun at his twin, and everyone else stayed because they had nothing better to do.

Things wound down very quickly, as everyone was tired and M'gann didn't really have anything fun, or what qualified as "fun" for teenagers and the two adults. Everyone was soon off in dreamland, except for Murphy, who had just finished using the bathroom. So it was a slight scare for him when he opened the bathroom door and rounded the corner to find M'gann standing there in short pajama shorts and a cami. "Fuck... M'gann, you scared me, shit," he whispered.

She held her hands in front of her. "Sorry,"

Raising an eyebrow, he looked her up and down with a questioning expression. "What es it, then?"

Lowering her head and her hands to her side, she began, "Nothing, I just..." Slowly, she placed her hands on his bare chest and stood on her toes, eyes half closed. "I just wanted to thank you for saving me."

Murphy lightly grabbed her wrists and pushed her arms down. "Yuh dun hafta thank me, M'gann, me an Connor were just-"

She pressed herself against him, pushing him into the wall, her cami riding up a little and her right leg up and wrapped around his hip. "It's OK, I want to thank you."

More forcefully this time, Murphy grabbed her wrists and pushed her off of his torso. "M'gann, I'm tellin ya not ta do this,"

Using her telekinisis, M'gann pressed his arms to the wall before pressing herself against him once more. "You'll like it, trust me,"

Murphy tried to push her off with his feet, but she just used her telekinisis to hold them to the wall. "Aww, shit." He cussed.

The hallway light flicked on. "What the fuck?" A voice exclaimed. M'gann turned toward the entry to the hallway, Murphy dropping back to the floor.

Who turned the light on and exclaimed was, who else, Wally, or Kid Flash. "What the fuck are you doing?" He almost shouted at Murphy.

"I didn't fucking do shit; your crazy broad here came onto me when I was leavin from taking a piss!" Murphy exclaimed, jabbing a finger at M'gann. Wally turned to his crush, seemingly hurt. "Is that true?"

She held her hands in front of her. "I just wanted to thank him for helping me,"

Angry, Murphy grumbled, "Aye, some thanks, yuh almost turned me into a child molester." He stalked away, joining his brother on the living room floor as Wally turned off the light and went past M'gann to the bathroom. Connor smirked, "Rough night, brothuh?"

"You shut yer hole." Murph punched his arm before resting his hand on his waist, his twin chuckling.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER FIVE: THE CATALYST

In Blood and Brotherhoood

Chapter Five: The Catalyst

"Whoever these people are, they need to be stopped! I don't care, what their reason is for doing this; a muderer is a murderer-"

"-media has dubbed them 'the Saints of the Boondocks-"

"I, personally, am glad that someone is stepping up to these monsters. My daughter was attacked last night by muggers, and they messed her face up! They are doing what the police can not and will not do-" flick. Batman turned the screen off. "We anticipated that the Night Saints would receive mixed media. I have checked the evidence that they have on you guys, and they are close to getting too close to you, which is why I have elected to move you two to my Batcave in Gotham,"

Before the twins could protest, Batman continued, "I know that Boston is your home, but if you want to keep doing this you will have to relocate until we can throw them off of your scent. And if you're concerned about your apartment, don't be, I'll have one of the League members look after it while you two are gone."

"Why can't you just throw them off now?" Connor asked.

"It's not that easy, Connor; we have to strategically place and remove evidence, falsify and verify witnesses, misplace statements, things of that kind. We can't do that all at once, it will look suspicious. Things like this take time, you have to understand."

Silent, the brothers thought about it. "How long will it take?" They asked at the same time. Batman thought about it for a moment before answering, "By how close they are, I'm guessing perhaps a month, maybe a month and a half. And that's if we work fast."

Connor and Murphy murmured to each other in German. Turning to Batman, Murphy nodded, "Aye, we'll do it,"

"I'll send someone for your things, you two can't go back there now. Come with me, I'll Zeta you to my hideout."

As this was happening, Robin and Wally were watching and discussing. "Batman must really want them to keep doing this if he's willing to risk his secret identity in order to keep them safe." Wally told Robin. The teen nodded as Batman and the twins were Zeta'd to the Batcave. "Yeah,"

Where the brothers slept was a corner of the Batcave with a bed, access to a bathroom with a shower and a bell pull to signal Alfred. The loyal butler took on his new duties in stride, never asking questions unless the subject was brought into conversation. From what Bruce had told him, they were twin brothers from a different universe who had somehow managed to get there by falling off of a building. They were employed as the "Night Saints" by the League, and were only there temporarily until their scent could be removed from the nose of the police. Alfred merely nodded and said that he would serve them as best he could.

The first night of their stay was... different, to say the least; for obvious reasons, they weren't allowed upstairs or anywhere near the tech, and they weren't allowed to leave without telling Bruce or Alfred about it. Since they were accustomed to the privacy of their flat, having to dress inside the bathroom and not walk around naked was a big step for them, especially since Batman went down there often to work and Alfred had a weak heart (and also hearing of Alfred seeing two grown men naked would not go over well with Bruce). Eating such extravagant food was also something Connor and Murphy would have to get used to; Chinese food, the crap from gas stations and midnight grocery stores had been the norm for them for many years, so food of this kind was new. They weren't complaining, however; roof over their heads, food to eat and a place to shower was all they needed.

A fortnight into their stay, Connor got up from bed to use the bathroom, at about three in the morning. Murphy was still asleep, but in his sleep he could feel his twin leave the bed. A few minutes later, Connor left the bathroom, but on his way back he saw someone in the cave with them, crouched in a corner. None of their features were visible, as it was dark, but their eyes... they were glowing. Unafraid, Connor took out his gun. "Ey! What're you doin ere?" He asked them. Motionless, the figure simply stared. Creeping closer, Connor yelled again, "I said, what da fuck are you doin here?"

Still nothing. Now he was getting a little frightened. Dashing to the bell pull, he yanked it rapidly, eyes never leaving the figure in the corner. Few minutes later, Alfred, accompanied by Bruce in a fabric cowl and dressing gown, came down the elevator. "What is it, Master Connor?" Alfred questioned. "Them there in the corner!" Connor cried, pointing with his gun. The figure in question was still there. "I'll check it out," Bruce told him. Carefully, he made his way toward it. However, before he could get there, the figure jumped, flipped, and disappeared down a tube that led to one of the many outlets of the Batcave. Bruce ran after them, but by then the figure had already gone. "Goddammit," he whispered.

"What the fuck was that all about?" Connor grumbled, putting his gun away and smoothing his brother's hair down to keep him sleeping. "I dunno... I'll check the security in the morning," Bruce placed his hand on Alfred's back and led him back to the elevator. "Let us know if anything happens. Goodnight."

"Night," Connor nodded. When the elevator had gone, he laid back beside his twin on the outside of the bed. He didn't sleep at all that night.

Morning came, and sure enough Bruce was down there checking the security. "I didn't find any problems in the security, or anything on the cameras... it was like he just appeared in the cave," he told Connor, who was standing beside him at the computer. "Well that doesn't make any fucking sense," Growled Connor, motioning sharply to the monitor.

"I'll set up more cameras in the corners and have them record in my room. And don't worry, they won't show you guys, I know about your privacy and all that."

"Aye,"

Two nights later, it happened again, except Murphy was the object of harassment; he had woken to the feeling of being watched, and when he opened his eyes, there was a dark figure standing by the bed, glowing eyes fixed on him. It terrified him so badly he let out a sharp cry of fear, rousing his brother with a start, and causing the figure to flip and jump away. "What? What es it, brother?" Connor cried, holding Murphy in his arms. "There was someone fucking watching me! Just standin there like some weird motherfucker!" Murphy explained in a slightly shaky tone.

"Could you see his face?"

"No! He was all black with fuckin glowin eyes!"

Cussing, Connor yanked the bell pull a few times, still comforting his brother by smoothing his hair down, holding him close, and whispering to him in reassuring tones.

It was a short while before Alfred and Bruce came down the elevator. "I have her on tape. I already contacted J'onn about it." Bruce told them. Murphy groaned. "Son of a bitch... it's M'gann, esn't it? Goddammit."

Frowning behind his cowl, Bruce questioned, "How did you know?"

"She's got a thing for 'im."

"I thought we'd figured dis shit out at her house,"

"Well, apparently not," Bruce checked his phone, and then looked back up at the twins. "What happened between you two that you thought your problem resolved?"

Murph sat up, his brother's arm still around his waist. "She made a move on me, and I rejected her. But then she used some weird shit and pinned me to the wall without usin er ands! Red Head Kid cut in and he thought it was me, but I told him what happened and he got all sad because his 'crush' didn't want it from him. I thought she'd understood when I told er that doin that made me a child molester, and I was even angry about it, too! I guess she still didn't get it,"

"Or she doesn't take rejection well," Connor smirked. Grumbling in agreement, Murph nodded. With a sigh, Bruce finished, "J'onn and I are going to have a talk with M'gann in the morning. Meanwhile, try and get some sleep. Especially you, Connor."

"Aye, will do." Connor replied for both Macmanus brothers. Whifsh went the elevator as it went up, carrying its two passengers up to the second floor. The twins cuddled together and closed their eyes, Connor sleeping better than he'd had in weeks.

It was forenoon, and still the brothers hadn't heard from Bruce. Murphy, especially, was anxious as to the news of the meeting with M'gann, and he showed it by the drumming of his fingers on his twin's bare stomach as they lay on the bed, Murph on his side. "Calm down, brothuh, he'll be ere soon," Connor reassured him, playing with his new League-issued mobile phone. "I can't, Conn; you dunno what it's like dealing with a broad like M'gann," replied Murphy, who had switched to moving his hand back in forth in a small spot on the aforementioned stomach. Rolling his eyes as he slid his mobile under their pillow, Connor turned his head to his brother, hands now behind his head. Grin upon his face, he smirked at him, "Don't I now?"

"What's that 'sposed tah mean?" Frowned the maybe younger brother.

"Do tell Murphy, what is it like with M'gann?"

An obvious joke was implied in Connor's actions and request, but as he hadn't been in confidence with Murphy on recent events, the butt of the joke figured it couldn't hurt to disclose said events to him. "She tried to get me to have sex with her or somethin when she jumped me in the hallway of er house. She was all, 'I wanna thank you for savin me' and 'you'll like it, I promise' and shit. Fuckin scary broad, too, using whatever power she had to hold me to the wall without usin her ands; I thought she was gonna rape me, dat's what er expression was."

At first, Connor had found his brother's narrative amusing, but at the mention of rape, and that M'gann had looked like she would do it in order to obtain Murphy's affections, the smile dropped from his face in an instant. "We gotta tell Batman about this," he said bluntly.

"I dun see why we hafta; not until the meetin's done, anyway." Murphy frowned.

"I'm tellin him now."

Out came the new mobile phone, and Connor made his first call on it, explaining the situation. "Thank you for telling me this, Connor; I will bring it into our discussion presently." Batman told him in the monotonous, unemotional tone in which he always spoke. Connor nodded. "Aye, no problem."

"Goodbye." Click.

Frowning, Connor mumbled, "Bye,"

"What'd he say?"

"Not much. He sounded busy,"

"Mmm."

Whifsh went the elevator, signaling that someone was coming down. They hadn't rung Alfred, and Batman was gone, so they didn't know who it could've been. On alert, they took out their guns and pointed them at the elevator doors, which opened to reveal-"Woah, guys, it's just me, Robin. Came to say hi." Robin held his hands up in surrender. Connor and Murphy lowered their guns.

They stayed talking about anything and everything until the day was over, and it was Robin's bedtime. "Sorry guys; school day tomorrow."

He took his leave to the elevator and up. Brothers MacManus hadn't really been in the conversation; all day and still no word from Batman? "Do you think dey're alright?" Murphy asked his twin as they settled down for the night.

"O' course, man. Dun worry about it." Connor reassured him. And with that, they fell asleep.

It started that night. The change. At first, like most twins, it was just shared pain. And then, less likely, shared dreams. But now, now, it was... more.

Now it was shared thoughts.

Murphy noticed it first. He was lying beside his twin late at night, sleeping, when his dreamless slumber was interrupted by thoughts that weren't his own. 'I really need to stop thinkin' so much. One-a these days my brain's gonna give up on me.'

That thought was what woke him up. Turning about in the bed, he stared at his brother, but he appeared to be asleep. 'Poor Murphy... he really es freaked about that M'gann broad. I'm gonna do somethin' special for him, help him get his mind offa it.'

This made him smile. Even though he was weirded out by the fact that he could hear Connor's thoughts, it was nice to know his brother cared. 'Typical Conn, hasta be all extravagant and shit.'

Connor was the one who heard that, and when he did he opened his eyes, expression one of confusion. "Didya say somethin', brothuh?" He asked.

Shock was evident on both of their faces when Murphy thought and Connor heard, 'Jesus, Mary, and Joseph he can hear my thoughts.'

"Didya just say... but your mouth didn't..." Connor mumbled, hand reaching up and running through his hair in confusion. Doing the same, Murphy replied, "We can... hear, each other's thoughts,"

Looking into the other's eyes, they both thought, 'Ho-'

'-lee'

'Shit.'

All night they stayed up, seeing if there were limits to their new power, if they could block thoughts so the other couldn't hear it, and in general just having fun guessing numbers and colours, things of that nature. It turned out that there was no limit; they could hear the other's thoughts, share memories, and even delve into the other's mind and look at everything there. They could also go into this zen-like state, where their sub-conscious selves could talk and walk around in this black, neverending room. It also turned out that they couldn't block thoughts or memories; everything was out in the open for the other to listen to, look at, and share. It didn't bother them, however; being that they were brothers and twins, nothing was held back: no secrets, no lies. They were completely in sync.

When Batman came down later that day to check on them and do some work, he was surprised to see that they weren't talking like they usually were. Figuring that they had a fight or something, he went about his business at the computer, which was uploading the audio recording of his and the League leaders' conversation with M'gann to his hardrive. "Aren'tcha gonna tell us about M'gann?"

Batman turned in his chair to find Connor and Murphy standing in front of him, arms crossed, weight shifted, and head cocked a little to the side in the exact same fashion. "I'm uploading the recording now to my hardrive. I was going to have you listen to it." Bruce answered.

"You-"

"-recorded it?" Connor finished Murphy's sentence. Okay, now he was getting a little weirded out. Expression one of mild confusion, he nodded. "Yes, it helps me better document any problems within the League. It should be done now, you can listen to it if you'd like,"

"We'd like!" They said simultaneously.

Hitting play, Bruce pushed himself off to the side to allow the brothers their privacy.

The audio recording ran thusly:

(Screech of a chair on the floor) "Alright, M'gann, tell us what you did," Superman said.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't done anything." M'gann replied calmly.

"We know that you tried to make Murphy have sex with you, and that he rejected your advances. We would like your side of the story," J'onn told her.

"We have Murphy's and Kid Flash's witness statements. There's no getting out of this." Batman explained in a gruff tone.

Silence, and then J'onn said: "Do not try to read their minds, M'gann. I have set up a mental block on all of them."

A mumbled word from M'gann.

"Sweetie, I know you like Murphy. All we need is the story from your point of view. Please don't make us use harsher methods." Wonder Woman pleaded.

Silence, and then a sigh. "Alright, I'll tell you. But don't tell Murphy!"

"We won't," Lied Batman.

(A screech of a chair) "Ok, well, you all know Murphy and his brother saved me from that guy in the alley, and that they walked me to the store and home. They were both very nice to me, especially Murphy. He told me not to go walking around at night, because they couldn't save me all the time, and he had such a comforting smile that I felt so... safe. Anyway, I couldn't stop thinking about him all night, I just had to tell someone, so I told Uncle J'onn, and he told you. When they Zeta'd into the Hall of Justice, this feeling of... something, I can't describe it, rushed through me at the sight of him... Murphy, that is. And when he remembered my name..." (She sighed in infatuation) "I never thought he'd remember.

"The next time I saw him was in training. That's when he called me 'love'," (A giggle) "that only confirmed, for me, that he liked me back. I made a rosary like his and held it. I even sleep with it at night, shh, heehee."

(The screech of a chair, like she'd jumped)

"But oh my gosh, when I saw him fight with Black Canary," (A hard sigh) "The most amazing thing I've ever seen in my entire life. He is just so good, wow. I'm getting shivers just thinking about it.

"When you asked me to hang out with them FOR A WHOLE DAY, and do whatever I wanted, I almost died I was so happy! I went home and planned everything out; lunch, the park, the aquarium, walking around sightseeing, the subway, dinner, and then a sleepover, heehee. At the sleepover, everything was quiet, and then everyone went to sleep. Except Murphy, he was in the bathroom. That's when I thought 'Hellooo, Megan! Now's your chance to make a move on him! He's waiting for you!' So that's what I did. When he came out of the bathroom, I did it then. Of course, he tried to say no, but I knew he wanted to. Had to use a little force, but I had him; that is, until Wally walked in. He was jealous, I could tell. But then, Murphy says, 'I didn't fucking do shit; your crazy broad here came onto me while I was leaving from taking a piss!' I didn't understand until Wally asks, 'Is that true?' and I replied, 'I just wanted to thank him', because I did! But then, he says, 'Yea, some thanks, yuh almost turned me into a child molester'. This confused me. A child molester? All I wanted to do was thank him in a way I knew he'd like. He still likes me, I know it. I can wait, though."

In the Batcave, Murphy rubbed his face with his hands, Connor putting his arm around him.

"Is there anything else?" Superman asked.

"No," M'gann answered.

"What about your visits to the Batcave? I have you on tape watching Connor and Murphy while they sleep." Batman told her.

(There was a frown in her voice) "Batcave? I don't understand. What's that?"

Silence.

"She's telling the truth. She does not know." J'onn said.

(A phone rang)

"Excuse me a moment." Batman said. (A chair screeched, and then a door opened)

(There was silence for a minute or so before the door opened and the chair screeched again)

"That was Connor. He told me that Murphy had told him that when you were holding him to the wall with your telekinisis, he felt that you would rape him in order to earn his affections. Is this true?"

"Rape him? I hardly think I need to rape him in order to earn his affections. He loves me."

Again, Murphy shivered in disgust. 'Something is seriously wrong with dat broad.'

'Aye.'

"Is there anything else you need? Because I want to make cookies to have with lunch." M'gann said.

"J'onn," Wonder Woman said in a 'you know what to do' tone.

(The door opened, and then the recording ended)

Murphy turned to Batman. "What happened?"

"What was that at the end?"

Batman stood from his chair, which he then pushed back to his desk. "Psychiatric counseling. J'onn helped her to realize that her actions were inappropriate, and that her state-of-mind was not correct." The Dark Knight explained.

Brothers MacManus frowned.

"I dun think dat's-" Murphy began.

"-a right thing ta do. Messin' with her mind against her will-" Connor continued.

"- es not morally right,"

Batman shook his head. "J'onn hardly messed with anything. All he did was help her understand that her obsession with you was unhealthy, and that you don't like her, at least in the way she thinks."

"I still dun-"

"-like it."

At this, Batman stepped closer to them and crossed his arms. "What is this with you guys completing each other's sentences? And the silence when I first came down here and during the video? What was that?"

"We can read each other's thoughts," Murphy told him.

"We can do all of this cool stuff with our minds-" Connor began.

"-like have conversations in our heads-" Murphy continued.

"-and share memories. Things of dat nature."

"When did this happen?" The confused and surprised Bat questioned.

"Last night,"

"Murphy discovered it first."

That went onto Batman's mental list of powers the brothers possessed; compliments of Black Canary. "Well, there's still the problem of who it is that keeps coming down here and watching you two. And since they appear to be wearing disguises, it could be anybody."

"Aye,"

"We'll keep an eye out."

With that, Batman left, putting his computer to sleep before doing so.

When he was gone, Connor asked, "Who d'ya think et is?"

Sighing, Murphy answered, "I don't even know."

NEXT UP: CHAPTER SIX: THE BRIGHT

In Blood and Brotherhood

Chapter Six: The Bright

Murphy bit down hard on the bandana Connor held in his mouth, while using his other hand to caterize the bullet wound on his twin's side. It hurt like a MOFO, and he wasn't afraid to show it. When it was over, Connor wrapped it up with a bandage before taking Murphy's spot on the work table Batman used to tinker with his tech. The bullet wound on his shoulder wasn't deep, but it still needed to be burned. Murphy was the one to do that. "Here it comes, brothuh. Don't cry, now," he tried to joke.

"Fuck dat," Connor took a couple deep breaths before biting down on the bandana. "Doof hit!"

Grimacing as he braced himself for the pain, Murphy pressed the hot iron to his twin's wound, gasping momentarily at the intense burning sensation. When it was caterized, he took the iron off and doubled over, hands on his knees as he took in deep breaths. "Holy fuck that hurts."

Connor nodded, holding that spot on his shoulder. Murphy walked to the bathroom and placed the iron on the sink counter before turning back and wrapping Connor's shoulder up with a bandage. "Jesus, dat hurt. We gotta get some armor or somethin, 'cause I can't stand burnin' dat shit closed."

"Aye,"

Thinking as he put the first aid kit away, Murphy said aloud, "Maybe Bat-"

"-man could help?" Connor finished.

Murphy smiled at his twin finishing his sentence.

"Aye, we should ask im," Connor smiled, as well. Sitting back beside him, Murph put his arm around him and leaned his head on his shoulder. Connor rested his head on his, eyes closed.

Their chance to ask Batman about the armor came when he went down to research something on his computer. As he was doing so, the twins came up behind him. "Batman, we gotta-"

"-ask ya somethin,"

It was Murphy who spoke first.

Not turning from his position at the computer, Bruce replied, "What is it?"

"Do ya think ya could provide us with some armor?"

"Jus somethin light to protect us well enough,"

"We're gettin tired of caterizin' our wounds,"

"Aye,"

At the request, Bruce turned around from the computer. "You want armor?"

"Just somethin basic,"

After a moment of thought, he told them, "I'll see what I can do; I'll get back to you guys tomorrow, alright?"

"Aye."

"Aye."

He finished with his research-it was on poison from a plant-and left back upstairs. The brothers went back to bed, sitting as if they were meditating; they were in the Zone, hanging out and talking. Neither one of them saw the dark figure enter the room, until they heard it knock lightly against Batman's computer module. When that happened, they whipped out their guns, prepared to fire. "Who da fuck're you?" Murphy asked angrily.

"And just what da fuck're you doin ere?" Connor continued.

Silent, almost brooding, the figure crept closer. It hadn't gotten far when it spoke. "I am the angel of mercy," it said in a dark, layered tone, "and I come to free you."

"Free us?"

"From fucking what?" Neither brother lowered their guns.

"From this," it stopped in front of them, poking their shoulders, "pain; you're worthless, fleshy bodies cause far too much of it. I come to rid you of them."

"By doing-"

"-what?"

Its horrible, glowing eyes flashed. "You have to destroy in order to build."

Neither brother responded; they merely looked at each other, scoffed, and then turned back. "I dun-"

"-fucking think so,"

They fired on it, the bullets both tearing through it and burning its flesh. Before they even fired their sixth bullet the thing was already a burning pile of meat on the floor. Murph and Conn touched their rosarys to it, which burned the flesh. "A demon," Conn said.

"Aye," Murph responded. Beginning their prayer, they stood and held hands over it, eyes closed.

When they opened, the demon had disintegrated into a small mound of ash on the concrete floor. "Think we should tell Batman?" Mumbled Connor.

"I don't see why we should; it's not his problem." Murphy answered, scattering the dust around with his foot.

Gasping, covered in sweat, Connor woke with a start. Where was he? Where was Murphy? Frantic, he looked around, finding that he was in the Batcave in bed, with Murphy lying peacefully sleeping at his side. Sighing in relief, he placed his face in his hands and swung his legs over the side of the bed before standing. In the bathroom, he splashed himself with water, used the john, washed his hands and then left. His stomach growled, and he felt like some Chinese food, so, he used his new mobile phone to order some. Fifteen minutes later, Alfred came down with his food. "If you don't mind my asking, Master Connor, why are you up at this hour?" Alfred asked him.

Connor broke the stuck chopsticks into two. "Just a nightmare, Alfred. And I had da munchies,"

Alfred nodded before turning and leaving. Connor didn't watch him go; he took out the lo mein, rice with sweet and spicy chicken, and fortune cookies from the bag. He had gotten two of everything: one of each for him, and the other for his brother.

He had just begun to eat when Murphy mumbled, "What's dat smell?"

Connor froze with his chopsticks halfway to his mouth, eyes now on his twin. "... Chinese food."

"You'd better have fuckin gotten me some," Murphy rolled over out of bed and to the work table where Connor was eating.

"Aye, o' course," Munched Connor, sliding Murphy's food and his chopsticks over to him. Murphy breathed in deeply and sighed, "Fuckin lo mein, hell yeah."

Smiling, Connor nudged him with his shoulder. "New you'd like it."

Batman found them the next morning, sleeping on the table with the food cartons, chopsticks and bags scattered over it. Connor had his arm around Murphy, both of their heads resting on each other's outstretched arms. He let out a silent chuckle in spite of himself and strode over to call them up. Leaning against the table on his butt, he shook the two awake; gently, of course. "Hey," he called, "I have something for you two."

Connor grumbled irritably. "Da fuck d'ya want?"

"Aye, what da hell?" Murphy emphasised, holding onto the hand that was over his shoulders, which was his brother's.

Bruce remained straight-faced, standing up. "I have that armor you asked for. Hope you guys like it."

Now excited, Brothers MacManus followed the billionaire to his gadget center, where he had two suits covered in Kevlar plating. "They may not seem like much, but this Kevlar can take a bullet from a shotgun, and the fabric is knife-resistant. Not as tough as my suit, but as tough as your missions require. Now," he went over to a mannequin, which had on a turtleneck shirt, a black jacket and a pair of jeans. "It is light enough to be worn under your regular clothes, and pretty breathable, as well. However, even though it doesn't have a lot of restrictability, it can get uncomfortable, so I suggest that you don't wear it for more than three or four hours at a time."

The twins nodded, and Bruce moved on to a table with a few smallish gadgets.

"Now, these are some things to better help you in case you get into a pinch with the police, or are caught by surprise."

Picking up a round one with handles on the top and bottom, he pushed a button on the side and the top popped up, revealing a cylinder one-and-a-half-inches thick. "This is a better version of a grappling hook, and twice as strong. Just hold out the part with the hole toward where you want it to shoot at, press the button on the right handle, and you're off."

Bruce put it down and took up two five-and-a-half-inch long cylinders about thumb-thick. "Mini smoke bombs," he waved his right hand, "mini flash bombs." He waved his left hand. "For the love of God do not get these mixed up. Paint the top of the lids a different colour if you have to, but do not get these mixed up. Those flash bombs are lethal at close distance."

Down went the mini bombs and up went a very small gun. "Tranq darts, ten in a mag. Puts out the victim for half an hour. Very handy."

He was now on the last two, a small mouth piece device and a pair of black sunglasses. "This helps you to breathe underwater and through all kinds of gases. I have one on my belt and it's really helpful." He put down the mouth piece. "Lastly, these sunglasses: not only sunglasses, but they're also goggles for swimming and binoculars, have thermal and night vision, and heightens your hearing so you can hear into rooms and cars, the like. They're also pretty cool-looking."

Putting them down, he turned to Connor and Murphy.

"So, what do you think?"

They were silent, both holding their chins thoughtfully.

"I like it." Connor stated.

"Aye, me, too." Murphy agreed.

Bruce's lip twitched upward like a smile. "I'll get you two belts to hold them. In the meantime, try on those suits, and then report to the Watchtower for mission briefing."

"This is the big one, you guys; Lex Luthor. A big problem for both the League and common folk alike. Murder, blackmail, extortion, theft, manipulation, and attempted murder. There's probably a rape or two in there somewhere, even. Be careful with this one, he's a master manipulator and an incredibly smart man. I'll give you further instructions once Robin Zeta's you two there. Good luck." Batman waved his hand over the screens and they disappeared, as did Connor and Murphy as they walked toward Robin by the Zeta portal. "Why would he wants us to kill this guy Lex Luthor? Isn't he one-a their problems?" Murphy whispered to Connor, who was adjusting his Kevlar suit beneath his turtleneck. Not looking up from his shirt, Connor answered: "Maybe they can't put him in jail. Too much money, perhaps."

"Aye."

This was when Connor happened to look up with a frown. "Where are all of the other league leaders? Aren't they s'pposta be ere when he briefs us?"

Murphy frowned, as well. "Ya right, what da hell?"

"Yuh think Batman's tryna hide dis mission from the others?"

"Maybe, but what da fuck fer?"

"He's one-a deir guys, ain't he?"

"Aye; thas probably why."

Murphy lit a cigarette just as Connor did. "We might as well just kill im; evil man, dead man."

"You fucking said it, brothuh."

NEXT UP: CHAPTER SEVEN: THE BURNING.

In Blood and Brotherhood

Chapter Seven: The Burning

So killing Lex Luthor was a whole hell of a lot easier than Batman had made it sound.

Connor and Murphy snuck in through the basement of LexCorp, crept through the hallways to the elevator, where they killed the guards and went up to Lex's office. No alarms had been raised, but the brothers knew that with a man such as Luthor running this building, it was only a matter of time, so they had to act quickly.

"We'll surprise im with da flashes first, and then we tie im up before killing anyone else in da room." Connor whispered to Murphy outside of Lex's office door. Murphy nodded. Holding up a hand, Connor counted and mouthed to three on his fingers, before they kicked in the door and threw flash bombs into the room of surprised employees and the head honcho himself. Murphy went to said honcho and tied him up, but not before killing his assisstant. Meanwhile, Connor was mowing down the disoriented office workers, and some guy in a metal hockeymask with blond hair.

When the dust had settled, Lex Luthor's office was redecorated blood red, and had a smoking pile of robot parts in the corner that used to be his assisstant Mercy. He looked at the two brothers and chuckled; he knew he was fucked, but he needed to know something first. "Did Batman send you to kill me?" He asked.

'Don't tell him shit, Murph. He's manipulatin' us.'

'Aye.'

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Connor sneered, and began the prayer.

"And shepherds we shall be, for thee, my Lord, for thee. Power hath descended forth from thy hand, that our feet may swiftly carry out thy commamd. So we shall flow a river forth to thee, and teeming with souls shall it ever be. In nomine patri et fili," they cocked their guns at the same time, "spiritus sancti."

BLAM! A single, echoing shot rang out, and Lex Luthor fell forward, dead. "Well, that was way easier than I thought," Murphy commented.

"Aye. Batman made it sound like we was gonna have an epic gunfight or somethin," Connor slid his gun back into its holster.

"Aye, he did."

'Self-destruct-in ten-seconds.' A robotic voice said. The twins frowned and looked toward Mercy. A red light flashed.

"Jesus fucking Christ."

"We better bail."

Taking out their grappling hooks, they broke the big window, shot out a couple lines, and zipped off just before Mercy exploded, taking the entire top half of the building with her.

Flying into the roof access door on the roof of the next building, the brothers MacManus cartwheeled down the stairs and slammed into the wall of the landing, unconscious.

Flash of white light and cries of shock awoke the two, groaning, but for for the most part unharmed. "Son of goddamn bitch," Murphy moaned as he sat up and stretched his back. Doing likewise, Connor put his arm around him and stood them both up.

"Uhm, excuse me," a male voice interjected. Immediately the twin pistols came out and pointed at the sound... which was a young man with spiky brown hair and a slightly older and taller man with shaggy blond hair. They were beaten up and confused, and now frightened, since Conn and Murph had their gratuitous violences pointed at their heads. Hands up, they asked, "Can you tell us where we are?"

Intrigued, Murphy lowered his guns, as did Connor. "You can't remember?" Murphy questioned.

The blond shook his head. "We were falling from a plane, but when we hit the ground, we ended up here."

Now the twins were a little excited. "Did you have the Justice League where you come from?"

"'Where we come from'? What?" The younger asked.

"Answer the question!"

"No!"

"How about the "Saints of Boondock", or some shit like that?"

"No."

With a grin at each other, Connor and Murphy pressed their fingers to their ears and said: "Mission complete. And Batman..." They looked at the two confused men. "We got two more."

AN HOUR LATER...

"Well, their story checks out. They are from a different universe, and according to their memories they had been at the losing end of a battle with their arch-enemies. Their crew is dead, and their planet lost. Even if we could send them back, there'd be nothing to go back to; they're better off here." Superman informed the League leaders and the brothers.

"Do they have any powers?" Aquaman asked.

"Just some tech and what they call their 'Creature Power Suits'; they can basically turn into any animal and grow or shrink to that animal's size, and they have that animal's abilities. It's actually some very advanced stuff."

"I'd like to get Connor and Murphy in there to see what else they can shake out of them." Batman told him.

Superman winced. "I don't think that's a good idea. They're pretty shaken up over their loss, and they're very beaten up. We should wait a day or two to allow them to adjust."

"I'll take them back to the Batcave. Having two brothers who have also been through what their going through might help them to loosen up a bit."

Connor and Murphy weren't listening; they were transfixed on the two brothers sitting in the interrogation room of the Hall of Justice, arms about each other and heads resting the other's.

'Dey're like us,' Murphy thought.

'Aye.' Connor agreed, draping his arm around his bro's shoulders. Even before Batman told them their names, they knew what they were; "Chris," Connor whispered. The brown-haired man lifted his head.

"Martin," Murphy whispered, and the blond one lifted his head.

"Spread our blackened wings like angels of vengeance," Brothers MacManus began.

"So that our seeds will take root for others to follow." Brothers Kratt finished.

The four smiled.

LATER THAT NIGHT...

Martin Kratt heard something small and metallic falling to the floor of the Batcave. Frowning, he opened his eyes and subconsciously held his younger brother Chris tighter. Chris mumbled something incoherent, but did not wake. Martin lifted his head and looked about the darkness for what made the noise. At first, he couldn't see anything, but as his eyes adjusted he made out a figure darker than the blackness around it moving about the other side of the room. He stared in fright, and then cried out when it turned around and revealed its hateful, glowing eyes.

This cry caused Murphy to fall out of bed while simultaneously grabbing his guns, making the figure disappear. "Oi! What is it?" He asked, pointing them blindly. Martin shushed him and quietly got out of bed, striding over to him. "I saw someone in here. It was... right... there?" He pointed at where the figure had been, by Batman's holding cells, but it was gone. "But it was right there!"

"Son of a bitch," Murphy groaned, placing his face on his guns. "Not this again."

"Wait, what do you mean 'not this again'? This has happened before?"

"Aye, but we thought we'd got the guy."

"Well, apparently not."

Murphy put his guns away and rang Alfred. When the trusty butler came downstairs, Murphy asked him for a couple of beers, which he cocked an eyebrow at, but didn't question.

"Here you are, sir, the beers you asked for."

"Ah, thanks, Alfred."

"You're welcome, sir."

Once Alfred had gone, Murphy gave Martin a beer, and then cracked the top of his own. Sighing, Martin chugged it.

"Ey," the brunette called, wiping his mouth with his hand, "what kinda guy like you don't have any tattoos?"

The blond looked down at his chest. "What d'ya mean?"

"As much as yuh and yuh brothuh like animals, ya don't ave any tattoos of em."

Frowning, Martin stuck out his bottom lip. "I guess I never thought of it. Does it hurt?"

"Eh, not really, if you don't mind being stung by a hundred bees."

Martin raised his eyebrows in a this-ain't-my-first-rodeo-son kind of way. Laughing, Murphy stood up and tossed back the rest of his beer. "Lemme get my kit."

"Well, that wasn't that bad,"

Chris admired the last tattoo on Connor had inked into his skin; Martin's initials in script on his lower bicep and upper forearm, with the period between the letters a pawprint. Connor sat back and looked him over. "Ya look fuckin badass man." He complimented. Lowering his head, Chris scratched the back of his neck and blushed. "Thanks."

"No problem," Connor messed with the younger man's hair as he picked up his and Murphy's tattoo kit to put it away.

Chris's tattoos consisted of a pawprint on fire on the left side of his chest. The fire was blue and green, a compliment of his and Martin's favorite colors. Next, there was a tribal snake twisting about on his upper right arm, ending on the lower part of his right pec. The last tattoo was Martin's initials in script, which Connor had just finished. Taking a look at himself in the mirror, Chris flexed, turned this way and that, before finally agreeing that yes, he did look pretty badass.

Martin was going to be very impressed. Or freaked out. Either reaction was fine.

"Chris! Chris! Check me out!" Martin's child-like excited voice cried. Chris turned around to find-"Bro, you have the same tattoos as me." Martin stated.

Chris nodded. "Connor did them for me. Do you like 'em?"

Leaning in close, Martin examined the ink meticulously before straightening with a smile. "Yeah. He did a good job."

"Thanks," Connor thanked, placing his right hand on his brother's right hip, making the twin push him away with a laugh, only to do the same thing to him.

At this time, it was about three or four o'clock in the morning. Neither set of brothers could sleep, so Murphy suggested: "Why don't we all go out and have a drink, maybe go for a walk? It's not like we can do anything down ere,"

"There's always spin-the-bottle," Martin joked, holding up his hands, "just a suggestion."

The four laughed. "I can use a couple shots," Chris agreed.

"Aye, les go, then," Connor clapped him on the back.

The four had more than a "couple shots"; it was like Connor and Murphy were trying to turn them into purebred Irishmen in one night. Not the smartest idea for a youngin' such as Chris. Being only twenty-six and not having had much drinking experience, all of the alcohol he'd chugged down, came right back up in a matter of minutes. Out walking in the park, Chris doubled over a trashcan by a bench, exuming the poison from his abdomen. Martin smoothed his hair down and rubbed his back, like he used to when they were kids. He smiled slightly at the memory. "Aye, it's alright, Chris-" Connor began.

"-not everyone can hold deir liquor for dat long. You're a-" Murphy continued.

"-strong one." Connor finished.

"I don't-bleargh!-feel strong." Chris retched. Martin continued to rub his back and ruffle his hair soothingly, now whispering soft things to him. After a while, his stomach calmed, and he could stand up straight. With a nod to Connor's questions if he was alright, they started walking again.

It was a cool Boston summer night; the sky was so clear that one could pick out many of the constellations. That was what Martin was doing now. The Big Dipper, Orion's Belt, the Little Dipper; just to name a few. He was about to pick out another one when a car screeched, and then there was a huge crash. The four turned toward the sound to find a gigantic semi trucking gasoline tipped over and busted open with three cars on fire rammed into it. "We gotta help those people!" Murphy cried, pointing to the couple stuck in one of the cars.

"On it!" Chris and Martin said simultaneously. They touched their hands to their chest, and, with a glow of green and blue, changed into Chris and Martin in bird suits. "You guys run point and get the people you can! We'll deal with the truck and other cars!"

"Aye!"

"Aye!"

Rushed, Connor and Murphy split up to get the couple and a teenager out of two of the cars. Chris and Martin split to swoop up and then back down to talon snatch the truck driver and his hitchhiking passenger out of the truck and a man in a suit out of his car. Once they all had everyone clear, they ran off the spectators just as the gasoline trucker caught fire and exploded. Scorching heat raked across Chris' back and he screamed, unaware that his shirt (he had powered down) was on fire and burning his back. Murphy did, though, and immediately threw him into the stream of a busted fire hydrant.

The burns weren't too bad, but they still needed to be treated, which Connor and Murphy figured could be done at the Batcave, after the crash victims were taken to the hospital.

Aloe vera took care of Chris' and Murphy's burns, while peroxide and a gauze pad took care of the gash across Martin's left arm. Connor only had a couple scrapes and a bruise or two. Overall, they were fine, if only tired. By the time six o'clock rolled around, they were fast asleep on blankets and pillows scattered across the floor.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER EIGHT: THE BLUFF

In Blood and Brotherhood

Chapter Eight: The Bluff

Alfred stepped out of the elevator in the Batcave, bearing a cart with four dishes of lunch on it. He frowned at seeing no one in bed, but, as he pushed the cart along, a leg came into view, and then another. Pretty soon, he saw bodies entangled in blankets with pillows about them and chuckled airily. So much like boys.

Chris was burrito-wrapped with Murphy, the younger with his cheek pressed to the crook of the elder's neck. Connor and Martin were wrapped similarly, except Connor had his arms around Martin, Martin facing him, positioned a little lower down to the brunet's neck. Leaving the cart, Alfred turned and walked to the elevator with a sad grin. If only Bruce had time for such friends...

Sighing, he pressed the 'up' button, and the doors whooshed closed.

About a half hour later, Murphy awoke to the feeling of radiating heat on his bare skin. Frowning, he tiredly opened his eyes, and felt soft hair on his jaw and neck. This made him lower his head to find Chris sleeping against him, mouth slightly open with a light snore escaping it. Out cold. Murphy smiled a little and tried to wake him up. "Hey," he whispered softly, shaking him lightly by the shoulder, "Ey, wake up, Chrissy."

Chris smiled a little in his sleep and stretched, his cocoa brown eyes fluttering open, the long lashes brushing his pink cheeks. His shaggy brown hair, which was not done-up, fell into his face as he lifted his head. When he saw Murphy and how close they were, his cheeks flared red and he looked away. "Ahh... this is kinda awkward." He mumbled.

Murphy laughed and fidgeted in the tight blanket. "Believe me, I've been in worse."

The two laughed, Chris rather nervously. Finally finding an opening in the burrito, Murphy pushed, kicked, and rolled out of the blanket, winding up on his back on the cold concrete floor. "Thas better," he commented with a sigh of relief. Chris sat up and flusteredly covered his bare torso with the blanket, face still red as a tomato and not making eye contact with Murphy, or even looking at him, for that matter. Murphy notices this and chuckles, "C'mon, Chrissy, it's not like it happened on purpose. We was sleepin'."

Flittering his eyes to him and then away, Chris nodded and laughed airily: "Yeah, I guess."

Standing, Murphy walked to the cart and lifted one of the lids. "Ah, Alfred, chicken sandwiches."

He picked up two of the plates and went back to Chris, setting them both in front of him before going back to the cart and grabbing two of the four cans of beer. Back with Chris, he plopped down on his butt and tossed him a can. "Thanks," Chris mumured as he pulled the blanket tighter about him.

"Welcome."

Murphy cracked the top of his beer and chugged half of it in one fell swoop. He then took up his chicken sandwich and began chomping while simultaneously eating the fries. The younger, on the other hand, merely picked at his food, cutting his fries into little bits and taking apart his sandwich.

"Alright, what's eatin' ya? Yuh dedn't act like this yesterday," Murphy noticed, seeing the state his friend was in.

Chris set his fork down and shrugged. "I'm just not hungry, is all." Still he wouldn't look at the elder brunet; he just, looked down, holding the blanket close. Squinting his eyes, Murphy tried to read his mind.

And he did.

'God, I am so awkward. I feel thirteen again. Thanks Murphy, for being sooo friendly."

Oh man; he couldn't help it. He laughed loudly and deeply at Chris' internal scolding until he couldn't breathe. Chris stared at him like he'd just entered the Twilight Zone. "Uh, are you OK?" He questioned.

"Aye, aye... es just..." The Irishman tried to explain, but he was laughing far to much to get anything out, so he waited until he could control his own movements. When that occured, Murphy placed a hand on the younger's shoulder and said, "You don't have to awkward, Chrissy. I like ya just the way ya is."

Chris stared at him, startled. "How did you...?"

"I can read your mind, apparently. I though et was just Conn, but I guess you and ya brothuh, too."

With furrowed brows, Chris lowered his head to his food and slowly began to eat it. Murphy simply smirked and ate his chicken sandwich, eyes flittering up to the young man every now and then.

Martin and Connor woke an hour later, while Chris and Murphy were out buying clothes for the younger and his brother.

When Martin woke up, he felt arms encircling his body, slow breaths moving his hair, and the smell of Irish Springs body wash. He tried to move his arms, but they were trapped against something warm and fleshy.

He soon realized that it was Connor's bare chest.

Lifting his head, he saw Connor's slumbering face and smiled a little, albeit a bit awkwardly; strange how they ended up like this, when he distinctly remembered lying beside Chris. Ah well; people move in their sleep. No big deal.

Wriggling about, he slipped out of the tortilla and stretched his arms high above his head, the dim lights turning his hard, bare body a tanner shade than it already was. Compliments of the many sunny places he and his brother had visited on their creature adventures. "Mornin', Marty," a tired Irish-accented voice greeted. Martin lowered his arms and his head, smiling at Connor blearily opening his eyes and flopping onto his back with a grin. "Good morning," Martin strode over to him and crossed his arms, still with a smile. Yawning, Connor put a hand out to get help up, which Martin took and pulled him up. "Thanks," he thanked, putting his hands behind his head and stretching, his muscles flexing.

"No problem," Martin replied as he turned and went up to the cart of food. Two of the plates were empty, but two weren't. He picked up the lid of one of them and announced, "Chicken sandwiches. You hungry?"

"Not really. I think dat alcohol from last night really did it for me."

"I hear ya,"

Connor strutted to the bathroom and entered. Martin heard the shower turn on, but when he turned around Connor was there by the cot he and his brother shared, naked. He blushed furiously and whipped his head back around, now suddenly feeling very awkward. "Aye, Martin," Connor called. Martin refused to turn around.

"Yeah?"

"'Ave you seen me pants? I can't seem to find 'em."

Shifting his weight from leg to leg nervously, the flustered blond picked up a pair on the ground that looked to be the brunet's size-how in world would he know what looked to be Connor's size? The thought only made him flush harder-and quickly tossed them to him, eyes locked on the wall behind him. Connor smirked as he caught the jeans mid-air. "Thankya,"

"N-no problem, goshfuckingdammit," Martin sweared under his breath at his voice waivering and stuttering. Laughing airily, the Irishman set his pants on the bed and returned to the bathroom. He didn't close the door.

Chris and Murphy returned from their little shopping spree-compliments of Wayne Industries-around three, bearing gifts of clothes, food, and alcohol. Chris didn't touch the latter; after that morning's little escapade, he didn't need another stomachache. "Well, lookie ere! Dey're up!" Murphy cried, throwing his hands up full of bags. Connor tossed his mobile over his shoulder as he stood up from the bed and walked to him. "Murph!"

"Evenin', Sleepin' Beauty," Murph hugged his bro tight and gave him a brotherly kiss in the crook of his shoulder. Connor picked him up and twirled him around, laughter resonating from the both of them. At the MacManus twins' displays of affection, Chris and Martin turned to each other and said together: "I had the most awkward situation with-"

"-Connor."

"-Murphy."

They frowned. "You-"

"-too?"

Silence, and then they both said, "Yeah."

'Should I tell him?' They heard each other think. Now shock.

"Martin?"

"Chris?"

The twins looked at them in realization. "Oh-"

"-Jesus."

Chris and Martin turned to them in shock and fear. "We can hear... each other's thoughts?"

NEXT UP: CHAPTER NINE: THE WONDER

In Blood and Brotherhood

A Wild Kratts/Justice League/The Boondock Saints crossover

Chapter Nine: The Wonder

Stay empty, stay empty, stay empty. Chris needed his mind to stay empty. Ever since earlier that morning with he and his brother finding out they could hear each other's thoughts, he has been sitting against the back wall of the Batcave, drawing blanks.

But he could still hear Martin being worried about him.

'I hope Chris is OK,'

'Why is he so upset?'

'I wish he would just come back over here.'

'Chris, I know you can hear me. Please come back.'

'Chris!'

When Martin shouted his name, he winced; he didn't like it when his brother was mad or worried about him, but this was unavoidable. The invasion of privacy, the racing thoughts that were and weren't his, the feeling of inertia he would get whenever he moved, all of it was too much.

It hurt.

He kept telling himself that he would be fine, that he would get used to it, or that it would go away, but whenever that happened he would get a hot painful headrush and sway on his feet.

It hurt so much.

Another thought came in and he cried out in pain.

'Chris, are you alright? It feels like you're in pain.'

"Please... stop... thinking..." Chris whimpered shakily, gripping his hair.

"Chris, are yuh alright?"

Connor's voice broke the pain-induced haze in his mind, and he lifted his head weakly. "Help..." was all he managed to say before he fell sideways to the ground.

Superman walked out of the medical bay with a glum look on his face. Martin, Connor, and Murphy were all resting against the wall opposite the bay doors in the exact same fashion, arms crossed over their chests and heads down in impatience. When they heard the doors open, they lifted their heads and straightened, eyes wide in anticipation. "How is he?" The three asked.

Superman stopped at their synchronization, frowned, but then shook his head clear. "It's pretty bad, guys; the shock of his new power was too much for his body, and now..." Running a hand over his hair, Clark prepared himself for what he had to say next. "He has a brain tumor."

Martin staggered backwards into the wall. "Wha... what?" Connor and Murphy could feel his shock, as he could feel theirs.

Clark nodded sadly. "I'm sorry."

Something broke in Martin's face and he slowly shrank to his knees in utter denial. "But... he... I mean... he can't..."

Connor felt his heart twist into a knot; he knew how he felt. Just like with Murph. Dropping down to Martin's level, Connor put his arm around him and held him close. "Hey, man, I know how ya feel."

"How...? How could you possibly know how I feel?" Martin's tone was shaky, sad, and angry. Tears ran down his face that he was unaware of. "Murphy had cancer when he first got ere, but Superman cured him." Connor answered. This made Martin look up in hope at the red-and-blue-clad hero. "Can you? Can you cure him?"

"Well, I've been working on a serum-"

"Then give it to him!"

"-but I haven't tested it yet. I'm not sure it'll work."

He stumbled hand-over-knee to Superman's feet. "Please," he begged, big blue eyes pleading, "please. You have to help him. He's the only family I have left."

Clark stared down at him in sadness. He knew exactly how he felt; his family was gone, except for Supergirl and Superboy, his only relatives. And one of them was cloned. With a sigh, he pulled Martin to his feet. "I'll try. But you have to give me some time to test it. Just a few animal trials, and if they work, I'll give it to your brother."

Martin cried and hugged him, repeating over and over: "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou."

He then jumped at Connor and Murphy in a hug, and they hugged him back, before walking into the medical bay to tell Chris the good news. Superman rubbed his face in exasperation; time to tell Batman.

Bruce, J'onn, and Clark were at Clark's Fortress of Solitude, trying to get the stupid serum to not kill every cell in the body of the animals they were testing it on. It was hard work. "Are you sure the M-strain shouldn't be merged with the Y? The acids would mix well." Clark asked Bruce, who was hunched over a microscope. "Try it and see. Maybe my calculations were wrong." He told him.

Clark tapped a few keys on his computer and merged the two M and Y-strain simulations together.

They worked.

"It worked. Bruce, J'onn it worked! They merged!" Clark cried. Bruce and J'onn came over to the computer, Bruce, upon seeing the merged strains, put it into the injection simulator. It didn't kill the other cells. Bruce showed no emotion, but he was excited. Clark could tell. "J'onn, mix the strains and add the serum. This is our last chance."

The Martian did as requested and added the mixture to a syringe. With the other two surrounding him, he dropped the proper ration into a petri dish that contained a portion of a rabbit's brain tumor, and some of his brain. They waited, J'onn staring into the eyepiece of the microscope. After a while, he sighed. "It worked. The cancer is dead, and the brain is fine."

Clark shouted "YES!" and high-fived Bruce-mindful not to break his wrist-who had held up his hand in expectation of receiving said high-five. "Come on, let's get this serum to Chris."

The procedure was fairly simple; unlike with Murphy, Chris was awake for his. All Superman had to do was inject the liquid into his jugular vein. Then they waited. For a fortnight they waited. CAT scan after CAT scan, the cancer slowly became smaller and smaller, more of it dying each day. At the end of the two weeks, Chris was a healthy human being. "I'm glad the cure worked, Chris, but it could still come back, so this will keep it from doing so." Superman held up a strange, tri-coloured liquid. "What is that?" Martin asked with a protective frown.

"Cancer anti-bodies. If the cancer tries to come back, they'll kill it. It's the same thing I used on Murphy for his luekemia, except for this type of cancer." He answered as he shook the syringe. Pressing a hand to Chris' neck, Clark injected the needle deep into the brunet's neck, the liquid seeping away until it was completely gone. As he took the needle out, he told him and the twins: "He'll need to rest for a day in order for the anti-bodies to get completely through his system. After that, you can go if you'd like. Oh, and Connor and Murphy, Batman needs you in the main hall."

The twins arrived in the main hall and found Batman waiting for them. "What es it, Batman? Is-"

"-somethin' wrong?"

Batman shook his head as they came to a stop in front of him. "We drove the police's attention from you two. You can go back to your flat." He told them. The brothers fist-pumped and high-fived, crying out, "Alright!"

"However, the Kratt brothers need a place to stay, as well. You two must provide one."

"Aye, dere are plenty-"

"-of empty flats where we live. Dey-"

"-can take one-a them."

A twitch of a smile pulled at the corner of Batman's mouth. "Good to hear. Report to the training bridge. You are overdue for your practice."

"Aye."

"Aye."

After training, the brothers were walking back through the main hall when they saw a screen up with the news on it. Curious, they went around to the front and saw them, as well as the Kratts, on the news about the car crash from two weeks ago. Their descriptions were circulating and a request going out for their names and any information so they could be rewarded. "Is a good thing we live in an Irish neighborhood," Connor said to Murphy.

"Aye," Murphy nodded as he gave him a cigarette.

THE NEXT DAY...

Chris and Martin were shown into their new flat by the MacManus bros, their flat right by theirs. It looked the exact same, and it had a door connecting the two flats together, which was nice. "We already gotya a sofa," Connor told them with pride.

"And a bed. And a couple towels." Murphy smiled.

"Thanks, guys." Martin and Chris thanked simultaneously.

"Aye, es no problem."

"Let us know if ya need anythin',"

"We're ere ta help."

"Aye."

"Thanks-" Martin began.

"-we will." Chris finished.

The first night they stayed in their apartment, someone broke in. But, they didn't take anything.

Chris noticed him first. He awoke that night because of the heavy rain and claps of thunder, which he was used to since they had been in the Amazon at the time of the... battle. Where everyone had died and the world was destroyed. This thought tore his heart and he let fall a couple tears.

At first, he thought the figure was just a blurred shadow from his watery eyes, but as he rubbed them and looked again, the shadow was a definite prominent figure. And a lot closer than before. He started and sat up, wincing at his brother turning restlessly beside him. "What are you doing here?" He asked in a loud whisper.

The figure said nothing. It just... stood there, staring with its glowing, white eyes. "Hey! Didn't you hear me?"

Nothing. Chris decided to go up to it, slightly scared but not cowardly. However, just as he was about to get up out of bed, it backflipped into the dark shadows by the door that led to the john. At this, he jumped up and ran after it. "Hey, you! Get back-"

But it was gone by the time he made it. He opened the door to the toilet, but there was nothing. "Chris...? What is it?" Martin questioned sleepily from their shared mattress, now turned on his back and staring blindly into the black of their flat. Chris frowned and replied: "Someone was in here."

This made Martin sit up, less asleep. "Did you see who it was?"

"No, they disappeared when they saw me try to get up after them."

Chris shuffled back to bed and plopped down beside his brother, who put an arm around him and covered him with their blanket with the other. "Well, at least they didn't take anything."

"Like there's anything to take!"

Chris and Martin laughed, Martin holding his baby brother closer. After their laughter had died down, Chris cuddled in to the blond and closed his eyes. "I love you, Martin."

"I love you too, Chris." He replied, resting his head on his and also closing his eyes.

He would have to tell Murphy about it later that morning.

"Just stop, alright? Fucking stop."

Martin's hand stopped about half an inch from around the knob of the door that led to the MacManus' flat. Judging from Connor's angry tone, it was a bad time to intrude. "I'm sorry, Conn! I am! But... I can't deal with dis right now." Came Murphy's saddened tone. An uncomfortable silence settled, which was broken only by a single sob. Footsteps creaked across the floor, and Martin had to put his ear to the door to hear what was said next. "Jesus Christ, Murph... I'm sorry..."

Murphy's voice was shaky and choked with emotion. "You were dead... I just didn't know what... what ta do... JESUS I JUST CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YA CONNOR!"

A tear trolled itself out of Martin's eye and down his pink cheek. He was extremely confused, but also very touched; this hit home with him.

"Jeez, Murph... tell our business to da neighbors..."

"I don't fucking care! I don't... shit..."

More sobbing, but it was muffled, like it was coming through fabric or an enclosed space. Murphy must be in Connor's arms. "Brothuh, look at me. C'mon, let me see dos beautiful blue eyes... Dere they are."

Martin pressed his ear closer.

"I'm not leavin' yuh, Murph. I would never leave ya."

The other twin just cried.

"Lemme get dat tear; yuh shouldn't cry, Murph, it ruins ya eyes."

"Shut up,"

Martin thought it was a laugh he heard, but he couldn't be sure.

"We're gonna grow old tagether, remember? Everythin together, Murphy. I promise."

A sniffle, but manly. "You promise?"

"O' course! I would never lie to ya."

"Fuck yeah ya won't, yuh wop."

Now it was definitely a laugh he heard. Figuring it was now or never, Martin grabbed the knob and turned it, giving the door a shove with his shoulder when it stuck a bit on its hinges. The door opened the rest of the way to reveal Connor embracing Murphy, whose eyes were pink and puffy. They both had on matching grey robes and boxers, which Martin didn't need to see. "Uh, hi, yeah, I just need to tell Murphy something, but since you're both here I might as well tell ya both; someone broke into our flat last night."

"Was et da same guy from before?" Murphy asked, standing from his brother's grip, Connor's left hand still on his hip.

"What doya mean 'from before'? Et's happened to them too?" Connor questioned.

"Aye. Was it Chris that saw it dis time?" That last part Murphy directed at Martin. The blond nodded. "He just 'evaporated through the wall', is what he said. I can't blame him, that's exactly what I saw before."

"We fuckin need ta do somethin' about dis, Conn. This fucking guy is pissin me off."

"Ya fuckin A right we do." Connor thought a moment, and then his blue eyes lit up. "We set a trap for im. Next time he comes, da motion sensors-"

"What motion sensors?"

"Don't cut me off! The motion sensors'll pick him up, and then bright lights shine on im, giving him nowhere ta run, and then a net drops on him!"

Murph and Marty stared at him. "Didya get dat out of a movie?" The twin asked with a scrutinizing gaze.

"... Yes. And it worked perfectly!"

"Aw fuck."

"Well, it's worth a shot. Maybe if he knows we fight back, he'll leave." Martin shrugged.

Connor clapped him on the shoulder. "That's the fucking spirit! Let's get ta work!"

As Martin was walking back to his shared room to tell Chris, he shook his head and chuckled; these freaking guys.

NIGHTTIME...

They caught the intruder in the twins' room at about eleven that night. When they saw who it was, Connor punched him in the face. Not a single fuck was given that he was only fourteen. "ROBIN YOU SICK FUCK!"

"DO YUH HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU'VE FUCKIN DONE TO CHRIS?!" Murphy yelled at him with one hand jabbed in Robin's bleeding face and the other around Chris. The young brunet's cheeks flushed that Murphy had stood up for him. Usually Martin did that-and there it was, with his older brother backhanding the costumed creep hard across the face. "You FUCKING little cunt. How dare you do this to us, after what the brothers did for Batman. We TRUSTED you, you bitch!"

"Martin no!" Chris held his brother back from lunging at the teen, who recoiled at the sight of death in the blond's baby blue eyes. "I'm so-sorry! It's not mu-muh fault! Batman made me!" Robin cried.

The four froze. "What da fuck didya say?" Connor questioned.

"When you two first got there, to the manor, Batman told me that I had to watch you, as part of my training. I was suspicious, if course, but I didn't want to disobey him! You have to believe me! It's not my fault!" Robin cried, covering his face.

"He's telling the truth," Chris mumbled.

"How dya know?" Murphy asked with a frown.

"I dunno... it just, came to me." The brunet shrugged in confusion.

"But why the fuck would Batman wantta watch us? I mean, he offered to have us in his house." Connor questioned the other three and Robin, who Chris helped up. "He only told me that it was for training. He wouldn't discuss it beyond that." The young teen rubbed his sore jaw and cheek. "Sorry." Martin apologized.

"Aye." Connor added.

"It's alright, I understand." Robin told them, cracking his neck.

"What I don't understand is why Batman is avin' Rob ere watch us. I mean what the fuck?" Murphy ran a hand over his head.

"You guys wanna find out?"

The four turned to Robin. He was smirking. "I got access to his computer."

"Let's fucking go." Chris' eye gleamed.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER TEN: THE BROKEN

In Blood and Brotherhood

A Wild Kratts/Justice League/The Boondock Saints crossover

Chapter Ten: The Broken

After Robin had disarmed the security system, Connor, Murphy, Chris, and Martin slipped through the opening to the Batcave in an alley just down the street from Wayne Enterprises. Once they were all in, Robin rengaged the outside system and set the cameras on loop feed. Precautionary measures. "Okay, I need to shut off the log for who enters the computer, and then we can get started." Robin told the brothers. He tapped a few keys on the keyboard, and the screen showed a window that read: "Log Disengaged. Continue?"

He hit "continue", and a password box appeared. Robin put in the code and hit enter. "You know his password?" Martin asked the youngster.

Robin smirked. "It's 'password1234'. He thought it would be less obvious."

The five had a good laugh before Robin began to scan the files for anything strange. For about ten minutes he didn't find anything, but then Connor stopped him. "Wait! Go back a bit. No, before dat. There! Doesn't that look like the sunglasses he gave us?"

On-screen, the blueprints for the sunglasses that Bruce had given the MacManus brothers was laid out, and one of the add-ons was a programming chip that scanned their brains through their eyes and made them more susceptible to brainwashing. Robin had pulled up the blueprint for it, and that was what they read. "Son of a bitch." Murphy murmured.

"The motherfucker was trying to brainwash us!" Connor cried with anger etched into his countenance and in his tone.

"There's more." Martin took over for Robin and went to a folder marked "Kratts". Inside, he found two separate Word files; one for himself, and one for Chris. He selected Chris first. "Insert brainwashing chip into serum" was the first step.

"Oh my fucking-" Martin fisted his hands so hard Chris heard his knuckles pop. He slide his arm around him. Sending the cursor to the back button, Martin selected his file. "Use younger brother to brainwash elder."

"This is wrong. This is so wrong." Whispered Murphy with shock and anger in his voice.

"Hulloah, what's this?" Robin whispered aloud to himself. Obviously he'd been reading too much Sherlock Holmes. The password-protected folder in question was marked "LoSBWP". A hacking cable plugged into the USB of the computer took care of the password, and converted the file from its zipped format into one they could view. When the youngster double-clicked it, it came up in two different languages, thankfully ones the MacManus brothers knew. "Robin... it says that Batman... was programmed in the League of Shadows." Reported Connor, making Robin whip toward him, mask eyes wide. "SAY THAT AGAIN."

"Dis guy, Rahs Al Gul, programmed Batman to... to... brainwash us four to help them cleanse cities."

"But how? Batman was trained in the League of Shadows... ten years ago!"

"Thas what it said." Murphy nodded.

Something broke in Robin's face, and it began to sag. "All this time... it's been a lie..."

"I don't think so; it says the program es only activated by a code word."

"What is it?"

"Doesn't say."

"Uh oh, guys," The four turned to Chris. "We have company!"

Turning to where Chris was looking-by the gadget table near Batman's suits and belts-they say a training bot walking toward them, along with-"M'gann?" Robin said, shocked. Her countenance was screwed with agony and confusion. "Help me." She whimpered, just as her eyes glowed and her hands lifted in the air, making them do so, as well. "Not this fucking broad again!" Murphy growled as he was shooken in the air.

"I don't think she's controlling her actions. Look, she's crying-gahh!" Robin was thrown against the wall with a cry of pain and a hard whack against the rock wall.

"Rob!" Connor yelled, but when he tried to get to him he was tossed up to the stalagmites on the ceiling; hard. Murphy writhed in Connor's pain, and Chris', as well, when he tried to activate his suit and was given a hard thwak with a pipe to the stomach and dropped to the ground. "Eat this, BITCH!" Martin activated his suit to spider powers and shot a web into her face. She cried out and began to pull at it, releasing her hold on them momentarily. Suddenly, Murphy thought of a movie he'd seen once with Martians in it, and how they were afraid of fire, so he took out his lighter just as M'gann had pried the webbing off of her face and held them back up, which made the lighter slip out of his hands. "Rob! ROB!" Martin yelled as he felt hands grab his throat. Nothing; Robin wasn't moving, possibly not even breathing. Murph felt himself begin to hyperventilate and something work its way up from inside him. "LET US GOOOO!" As he screamed this, fire shot out of his mouth and his eyes flared green, white, and orange. The fire engulfed M'gann and she wailed bloody murder. When it dissipated, she was smoking and unconscious, and the three fell to the floor. "How the fuck didya do that?!" Connor cried once he'd satten up.

"I-I... I dunno!"

"LOOK OUT!"

Chris lept in front of the robot that had shot lasers at his three friends. "CHRIS NOOO!" Martin pounced at his younger brother, the other two watching in horror as they were overcome by the lazer from the 'bot. There was a green-and-blue flash of light, an explosion, two male screams, and then nothing. The robot was gone. And the Kratt brothers... they were... glowing. Chris glowed green while Martin glowed blue, not only their tattoos but their eyes as well. "Jesus fucking Christ." Connor breathed, Murphy wiping the blood from his cheek with his thumb.

"We need to get out of here." Chris told them while the glow tonned down. Struggling, they picked up M'gann-not before tying her up-and Robin before the Kratts turned into peregrine falcons and flew them out of the Batcave.

LATER, OUTSIDE ROY'S FLAT...

When the Kratt bros landed with the MacManus', Robin, and M'gann, they pulled off their shirts and stared down at their chests in horror. "Oh, my God!" Martin shouted, his and Chris' heads lifting to the other brothers'. Connor and Murphy gawked. "Madre de dios." They gasped.

Chris and Martin's power suit activator had melded with their bodies. It was a part of their flaming paw print tattoo. "What the fuck?!" They groaned in disbelief with hands clawed in the "Why?" motion.

"We don't have... time for that now," Robin told them as he came to.

"Rob! Ya're alright!" The eldest(?) twin set him on his feet. Robin rubbed his sore head. "Of course," he rolled his eyes, albeit painfully, "I've taken harder knocks than that." Rolling his shoulders and neck, the acrobatist turned on the communicator in his ear and pressed a button on it after seeing whose flat they were outside of. "Roy."

"Ugh... what?"

"We have a situation with Batman and M'gann. Buzz us in."

"Couldn't you have just hacked in?"

"Just get decent!"

There was a growl, and then the buzzer sounded. With Robin carrying M'gann, they all went up to Roy's flat and waited for him to open the door. When he did, he didn't look very friendly, but seeing their bruised and battered state-and the unconscious and burned one of M'gann-he opened the door wider and ushered them inside. "What the hell happened to you guys?" He asked while setting a cloth-wrapped ice pack on Miss Martian's forehead.

"We found out why M'gann was acting the way she was. And why Batman had me watch the bros."

"That was you?"

"Look." Robin brought up the translated files he had copied from Batman's computer. "Batman was programmed in the League of Shadows to brainwash the four of them. We don't know how, since that was years ago, but he was. And he did the same thing to M'gann, too, so she could get Murphy implanted, and then from Murphy to Connor. And with Chris, he put the chip in his cancer serum, so he could also implant Martin."

"But, why did he never do anything before? Activation word?"

"Yeah, but we don't know what it is. It doesn't say anything about it."

"What about M'gann? Does it say anything about her?"

"We didn't get the chance to check, but... here we are." Robin brought up a file marked "M'gann". They glared at it. "Doctor Fate. Doctor Fate and Lex Luthor did this?"

"Esn't Doctor Fate a League member?" Murphy questioned.

"Yeah. But... why would he work with Lex Luthor and Rahs Al Gul? What does he gain?"

"We need to find out what their end game is. I'll get ready. Call the team together, we're gonna pay a little visit to the Doctor."

AT DOCTOR FATE'S PLACE...

"I can't believe Doctor Fate would double-cross the League like that. And with one of their biggest threats!" Kid Flash ranted.

"That's why we're here, KF; to find out why." Robin said quietly.

Brothers MacManus weren't listening; they were dazed. They felt strange, the kind of strange that one felt when something big was about to go down.

Something big about to go down inside of them.

Brothers Kratt felt it, too. It scared them, but they knew it was important, the life-saving kind of important.

They reached the study and came to a halt at the sight of Doctor Fate holding Batman up in a magical chokehold. Their newest teammate, Artemis, aimed her bow and arrow, as did Roy (Red Arrow), who technically wasn't their teammate anymore, but wanted to help. "Let him go!" Artemis ordered.

"I do not think that you are in a position to give orders, Artemis." Doctor Fate stated monotonously.

"And why's that?" Kid Flash asked.

Suddenly, they were in the air, held together.

"M'gann!" Superboy cried, struggling against the invisible restraints. M'gann was crying again, her expression pained. "Help me. I can't fight it." She whispered.

"Fight it! You can-agghh!" Aqualad was cut off by a hand tightening around his throat. "Put them in the holding cell for now, M'gann. The four brothers will be dealt with once I have contacted Rahs Al Gul of our success." Doctor Fate instructed her. She did so.

"Fuck you Doctor Fate! Fuck you!" Chris spit angrily.

"You'll thank the League of Shadows when we're done."

Fate entered a passcode into his laptop. "The world will soon thank us."

HOURS LATER...

Connor tapped his foot against the ground repeptitively. "I can't stop movin, Murph. I don't know what's goin on with me."

Murph nodded. "I know, me, too."

The other two brothers stared at them, as did the team. "Oh my God they're glowing." Martin stated.

The twins frowned and looked at them, but then jerked outward with eyes and mouths wide. "And shepherds we shall be, for thee, my Lord, for thee."

Everyone stared at them in blatant shock, confusion, and strange excitement. "What. Is going. On?" Artemis whispered.

"I don't-" Kid Flash was about to reply when the brothers began to float up toward the ceiling and glowed white, orange, and green pulsatively. Brighter and brighter they went, until a flash of light burned the eight teammates' corneas and blinded them momentarily. When they could see again, what their brains told them they were seeing, they didn't believe.

Connor and Murphy MacManus were angels.

Irish green, orange, and white angels.

Their eyes glowed those colors with wisps of mist coming out of them, their auras were those three colors, and their wings were beautiful opaque swirls of Irish flag glory. And their tattoos... they rivaled the setting sun. It was amazing. When they spoke, the Kratt brothers' hearts seized; their voices... it was layered, the layers deeper and prominent, but also quieter and whispered. "Stay behind us while we break out." They told their teammates. Kratts and Young Justice dumbly did as they requested, just in time for the angelic MacManus' to breathe fire at the door. They led the group of escapees back to the empty study, where Murphy said: "Aequitas." and Connor answered: "Veritas." Pressing their tattooed hands palm-to-palm, the bright light flashed again, and they were back to normal. "Crazy," Superboy commented.

"Let's kick ass!" Kid Flash uttered as a battle cry. The team and the brothers all took stations; Connor and Martin on the right of the entrance, Chris and Murphy on the left, Artemis in the front right corner of the room up in the rafters, Red Arrow opposite, KF beneath him, Aqualad and Superboy in the back left and right corners, and Robin above the door on the center support beam. They waited quietly for Doctor Fate to return.

Not even an hour later, he returned, Batman in tow. "Everything is in order now; once the four brothers are brainwashed, we will turn them loose and bring Gotham to its knees. Every major city on the planet will feel the pain of loss as Gotham burns to the ground, and then... and then it will be their turn."

"That's what dis es for? To bring down Gotham?" Connor hissed.

"We woulda fuckin' done that without dis crazy fuck's help." Murphy added to Chris. Holding his finger to his lips to show silence, Murph nodded at Red Arrow to get Batman out of the way. Red Arrow did so with a knock-out gas arrow. It hit Batman's face and expelled the gas straight up his nose, and when he staggered backward and fell to the ground, Doctor Fate turned around with a magical shield ready. "How did you escape? Where is M'gann?" He demanded.

"Probably buried under flaming rubble." Chris began.

"We can always go back n get er." Murphy finished.

Doctor Fate changed his shield into a sword and slashed at them. Robin flipped up and backwards, throwing an explosive at Fate's helmet as he turned about in the air toward him. It landed and exploded, Fate's cry the last thing they heard before the blast knocked them all back. However, what they received instead of a dehelmeted Doctor Fate was M'gann scrunching them together and throwing them up and down to the ceiling and the floor. "You cannot stop me, fools. The League of Shadows is already on their way here to complete the process. You have accomplished nothing my escaping." Fate gasped as he stood back up.

"Fuck!" Superboy growled as M'gann's telekinetic grip tightened.

"Somebody must do something or all of us will die!" Aqualad hissed.

Nobody noticed that Chris was hyperventilating, his eyes dilating into beastly slits. "Nobody move," he grumbled in an animalistic growl. Martin turned to him strangely. "Chris...?"

"Chris" didn't answer; he was changing, the new animal DNA in his blood scanning through until it came to one Chris was intimately familiar with: the Tasmanian devil. With a roar, he morphed into an anthropomorphic devil and wrenched free, jumping up to the flying Martian, who let out a cry of fear before she was tackled to the ground and knocked unconscious. Standing, his red-brown eyes searched the room, and when they happened upon Martin he leapt over to him and helped him up. "Thanks, Chris," his brother thanked a little shakily. He received a growl in response, and a rubbing of his brunet brother's forehead against his own. He laughed and pushed him away playfully. "Guys, we ain't done yet!" Kid Flash announced, pointing to Doctor Fate, who was standing back up and pushing M'gann's limp body off of him. "You... have accomplished nothing..." he wheezed. Once fully up, he used his magic to pick Batman up and bring him back to the waking world. "Aequitas et Veritas!" Fate said to him. Batman straightened and said, "Enter command."

"Destroy the young ones. Take the four brothers back to their holding cell."

"Command accepted."

Connor and Murphy stared in shock. "His command code is aequitas et veritas?" Murphy mumbled. They then looked at each other and grinned. Up went their hands, and they pressed them palm-to-palm. It glowed, and spread to the rest of their body. Their eyes lit up, and when they did their wings formed. Robin and the team plus Martin and Chris took that as their sign to attack, so they did, Chris roaring loud enough to break glass. Batman leapt up and over the first three teammates, kicking them in the back and planting a hardening goop bomb onto one; Artemis, who couldn't break out. Red Arrow tried to help her, but Batman roundhouse-kicked him across the face, sending him sprawling into a bookshelf while KF and Superboy attacked the Dark Knight from both sides-speed punches in the front, powerful kicks and chekeholds in the back. The Bat flipped Superboy over his front and onto KF, just in time for Aqualad to swallow him up in a water funnel and spit him out flying to the ceiling after Robin tossed an explosive into it, where he cracked his cowl against a rafter and fell to the ground, spent. To keep him down, Connor and Murphy spewed bats from their joined hands, which formed a ring around him. Fate shot a magical beam at Murphy, knocking him out of the air with a cry. Chris jumped up and grabbed him, using his claws to slide down the wall to the linoleum below. Doctor Fate tried not to seem irked. "No matter! Batman was useless to me, anyway. Rahs Al Gul is already here, and you can't stop him!"

"Maybe not," Tazzy Chris growled, setting Murphy down with his claws and teeth gleaming, "but we can stop you." He leapt at him as he roared, Fate putting up a shield just as Chris was already up, over, and behind him, and as Doctor Fate turned around, fangs ripped out his throat and off his helmet at the same time. He fell to the floor, eyes rolled into his head and neck spewing blood. Chris barred his bloody canines and rumbled low in his throat. Transforming back, he took long strides over to Murph, who he helped up. "Are you alright? I didn't hurt you, did I?" The brunet asked.

"No, I'm fine." Murphy shook his head and changed back into his regular self, putting a hand on the younger man's forearm. "Thanks."

A flush crept onto Chris' cheeks. "You're welcome."

Robin was helping up Red Arrow when Artemis reported: "I contacted the League about Rahs Al Gul. They got him. They want to see us at the Hall A. S. A. P."

Martin changed into an elephant and broke the goop after Aqualad had weakened it with water, setting the archer free. Once everyone was checked out for anything serious, they picked up the two unconscious unwilling enemies plus Doctor Fate and headed to the closest Zeta tube.

NEXT UP: CHAPTER ELEVEN: THE EPILOGUE

In Blood and Brotherhood

A Wild Kratts/Justice League/The Boondock Saints crossover

Chapter Eleven: The Epilogue

The Kratt brothers received membership into the Justice League after helping to defeat Doctor Fate and the League of Shadows, and they, along with the twins and Young Justice, received medals of Valor for their heroism and going above and beyond the call of duty all on their own. J'onn removed the program from Batman and M'gann's heads, as well as the chip from Chris' bloodstream.

Thanks to them, they finally had motive to put away the LoS. As for Fate, well... thanks to Chris, he wouldn't be bothering anyone anymore. Chris still felt sorry about that; he hadn't meant to go that far. It just... took over.

No one felt bad.

About four days later, the four moved into their new flat. It was very large and spacious, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The Kratts took one room, the MacManus' took the other, while the third was for training.

The kitchen was gigantic. Martin finally had all of the space he needed to cook and bake. Connor liked it, as well.

As for Chris, he loved the beautiful flower garden on the roof of the building, which he could access easily without climbing up too many flights of stairs. He and Murphy would just sit up there and talk-or Chris would talk and Murphy would listen, rather-or watch the birds, stargaze, many different things. Just as the kitchen became Martin and Connor's place, the garden became his and Murph's place. It was great.

They went on missions together. They went out to the cinema. They went out to dinner, stayed in for dinner(often-Martin and Connor were amazing chefs), listened to music, had sleepovers, late-night philosophical discussions, pulled pranks on the other League members, played hooky on missions, played hooky at work, read books to each other("Dante's Inferno" was a favorite), baked cupcakes and other sweets, helped out the neighbors, and were pretty much by each other's side 24/7.

It never bothered either one of them a bit.

One night, about a month later, Chris woke up to "the urge"; his Tasmanian side wanted to come out. He'd been supressing it for a while now, but tonight it was different. He wouldn't be able to stop it this time. As quickly as he could, he ran out of the flat and up to the roof, where he crumpled to his knees and tried with all his might to make it go away. "I won't let you control me, I won't let you control me, I won't let you control me, I won't let you control me." He chanted over and over to himself. Oh God it was too late...

"Chris?"

Chris growled as he turned around and slashed at whoever spoke.

It was Murphy. And he was holding his face, bleeding.

Gasping, he stumbled to him and tried to check the wound; not that deep, at least, that's what he thought, but oh my gosh there was so much blood. "Oh my God, Murph, I'm so sorry, I-I just... it wasn't me!"

Murphy pulled his hand from his face and nodded. "I know, Chrissy, et's all-all right... I just need a rag..."

"Right! Right."

Chris fumbled about for a rag until he found a relatively clean one and held it to Murphy's face, sadness clouding his brown eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." he kept whispering.

A painful but genuine smile lit up the twin's face. "It's fine, Chris, really. I'm fine."

"NO YOU'RE NOT!" Chris shouted, surprising even himself. "You're not fine. Not as long as I'm here."

Tears slipped down the younger's face, his countenance hiding in the crook of his left arm. "It's all my fault..."

Murphy slid the hand not holding the rag around Chris and held him close, letting him cry into his bare chest. "Et's fine, Chris... it's alright... I'm here..."

The sun came up a while later, shedding light on two figures; one sleeping in the other's arms, the second pale and slightly shaking, holding a blood-crusted rag to their face.

TWO MONTHS LATER...

The gash Murphy sustained scarred beautifully. Every time Chris saw it, he apologized, regardless of how many times Murph told him that it made him look really fucking badass. Connor agreed.

Martin, however, knew that it tearing his baby bro up inside. One night, he caught Chris in the kitchen and figured now was as good a time as any to talk with him. "Hey," he put an arm around his bro's shoulders, and when said bro turned, Martin caught a flash of red in his eyes. It was gone just as fast as it had come. "Hi." Chris greeted with a strained smile.

"Let's take a walk." Martin pulled him along to the front door.

They walked around south Boston, visiting their old flat before turning around and heading back. "I know you wanna talk about Murphy's scar." Chris whispered out of the blue.

Martin knew he couldn't avoid it any longer, so he nodded, "Yeah, I do."

Sighing, he stopped walking and turned Chris toward him. "Chris, you've gotta stop moping around because of something that happened, a month ago or something."

"Two months, three-and-a-half weeks, one day, eight hours, and forty-three seconds." Chris mumbled, head down. Martin stared at him with sad shock and slight anger. It upset him that he was angry, but Chris just would not let it go. "Chris. Stop. Come on, can't you just accept the fact that Murphy is not angry with you? He's fine with what happened! In fact, he loves the scar! So does Connor! And me..." Martin hugged him tight, savoring the bit of body heat that was transfered that dimmed the bitter Boston night. "I love you, Chris. Tazzy and all." When he pulled back, he stared into those big brown doe eyes. "We all do."

At first, Chris just stared up at him, lips a tight line. But then, his bottom lip began to quiver and tears welled up in his eyes, and he hugged his big brother so hard that they both almost fell over. "I love you too, bro!"

"Aww, isn't that sweet?"

Martin made the "for real?" expression at the two twin Irishmen, who were coming out the front of the flat building. Chris blushed and stayed close to his brother's side. "Come on in, guys, I made hot cider." Connor waved them in. "Don't want yuh freezin' ya nuts off."

Martin scoffed with a smile. "Like you give a damn about my nuts."

To this, Connor responded with a kick to his butt as he walked past him into the building. While they were fighting and laughing, Murphy slipped his arm through Chris' and escorted him into the building, much to Chris' flusterment. "Ya alright now, Chrissy?" He asked, turning his face toward him. When he did, the young brunet caught sight of some of the scar, earning a pang of guilt. It quickly dissipated, though. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."

Murphy's dazzling smile lit up his face as they joined their brothers in the elevator. "I'm glad."

FIN.