The Brotherhood of Guardians is copyright to Archie Comics.


"Oh come now Sojourner, it wasn't that bad," Thunderhawk said with a slight chuckle. His son Sojourner had been complaining about being tied to the roof of the car since they had reached the campsite.

"Easy for you to say, Father," Sojourner said, slightly pouting. "Do you have any idea how frightening it is to approach tunnels when one is tied on one's back to the roof of a car? One's depth perception isn't that great from that position."

Thunderhawk resisted the urge to laugh, knowing it would further injure his son's already damaged pride. "There was plenty of room. I don't think you should have worried."

"But did we have to pass through so many tunnels?" Sojourner whined.

"Blame your grandfather for that," Thunderhawk said, as he finished setting up his tent. "He insisted that Athair drive through as many as possible."

"How nice of him," Sojourner said acidly.

"Well, you did ask that question again after Spectre told us not to," Thunderhawk replied. "Besides, at least you're not in Locke's boots right now."

"This is true," Sojourner admitted, casting a glace at Locke, who was nervously finishing up his own tent. The younger echidna kept glancing worriedly at Spectre, waiting for the older one to lash out at him any second.

The fact that he didn't do so the second they reached their destination surprised Locke. He had a fleeting moment of hope that maybe Spectre had forgiven him but he knew his temperamental grandfather too well to know that such a thing just didn't happen. Spectre insisted that they set up camp before it became too dark to see and everyone quickly got to work. Sabre had to drag Locke out of the car; he had wanted to hide inside the vehicle. Spectre stared at Locke while he gathered his equipment and began setting up camp and Locke nervously went about his work, watching his grandfather like a hawk, waiting to run for his life at a moment's notice.

Nothing happened. Spectre eventually took his eyes off of Locke to work on his own tent and Locke was sure Spectre was plotting something insidious. Sabre kept giving his son reassuring smiles but nothing could calm Locke's nerves, not so long as he knew Spectre was out to get him.

"Come on now, you'll never sleep comfortably if you don't get your tent to stay up properly," Sabre said gently. He had finished his tent and had come over to help Locke with his.

"I kind of have other things on my mind father," Locke said nervously.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine," Sabre reassured him.

"How do you suppose that father?"

"We have Athair here."

"That doesn't help," Locke replied, casting a glance over in Athair's direction. He shook his head at the sight of Athair's set up. His tent was lopsided with plants thrown about all over it, including a bird's nest on the top.

"Look at it this way Locke," Sabre said. "If nothing else, Athair will anger Spectre enough to take his attention away from you. Just give it time. Athair will get on Spectre's nerves soon enough."

"Why can't he do so now?" Locke said with a sigh.

"Locke, come here." That was Spectre's voice. Locke turned to look at his grandfather who was now standing near the camp fire.

"Go on Locke," Sabre said. He gave Locke a slight nudge. "The longer you put this off, the worse it'll be."

Locke nodded before standing up. He walked a few steps forward but stayed a fair distance away from the campfire. He wanted to have enough space for a good head start if he needed to run.

"Closer, Locke," Spectre said. His voice didn't carry any hint of malice but that didn't mean a thing when it came to Spectre. "I can't speak with you if you insist on standing so far away."

Locke gulped and walked around the campfire to face his grandfather. "Yes, Grandfather?" He asked, trying his best not to sound as scared as he felt.

"I want you to explain something to me my dear grandchild," Spectre said as he casually put his right arm around Locke's shoulders, bringing the younger male closer to him. Locke had to fight the urge to bolt in that very instant. "Why did you feel the need to pretend you were being kidnapped?"

Locke wanted to say it was rather obvious but he figured a more diplomatic response would work better in his favor. "I..." Locke began, trying to figure out how exactly he wanted to explain himself. "I was kind of hoping I could get of coming on this trip." Locke cast his eyes downward, shuffling his foot in the dirt.

"Go on," Spectre prodded. "Explain to me how you felt that was going to work out for you."

"Well, I figured that a Good Samaritan would come to my rescue and I could return home to Haven."

"And I suppose you were going to just leave the rest of us stewing in a prison cell for your kidnapping?" Spectre looked at Locke coolly, his voice betraying no rage. It was making Locke extremely uncomfortable. He wished his grandfather would remove his arm.

"No, of course not! I was going to... I mean that... I would have gotten you out," Locke said, thinking of how ridiculous he sounded with passing second. "I didn't think about that part in all honesty Grandfather," Locke admitted a couple seconds later, feeling thoroughly embarrassed.

"That is obvious," Spectre replied and Locke cringed.

The rest of the guys were watching tensely, waiting for Spectre to explode any minute. The fact that he didn't blow up in Locke's face from the start was an unusual approach for Spectre and it had them on edge as well. Athair was the exception; he was still decorating his tent and humming songs to himself.

"Come on Grandfather Spectre," Locke said, almost begging. "So it wasn't the most intelligent of schemes but I'm sure later on we'll look back on this and laugh."

"We will, will we?" Spectre replied, raising an eyebrow. He removed his arm and turned to face his grandson.

"I know I will," Locke replied. He smiled hopefully at his grandfather.

"Well," Spectre said. He rocked back and forth on his heels, looking as though he was giving Locke's words some thought. "I know I'll be laughing about this." Spectre reached his hands out quickly. "Come here you little..." He seized Locke by the throat and proceeded to strangle the young male.

"Ack," was all Locke could manage as Spectre began shaking him back and forth.

Sabre, Thunderhawk, and Sojourner all jumped into action. Sabre grabbed his son and tried his hardest to pull Locke away from Spectre while Thunderhawk and Sojourner each grabbed one of Spectre's arms in an attempt to get the older male to release his grip.

"He didn't mean any harm Grandfather Spectre," Sabre insisted. He was relieved to see that Spectre's grip wasn't tight enough to kill Locke. Despite that, Locke was likely to have an ugly bruise to show for Spectre's fury later.

"Really, Father," Thunderhawk grunted as he tugged on Spectre's right arm. "This isn't necessary. I do believe threat of punishment at your hands was enough to frighten Locke. I'm sure he regrets his actions and has learned his lesson accordingly."

"Jeez, he's got a hell of a grip for an old man," Sojourner said, struggling with Spectre's other arm. Spectre shot Sojourner a look from the corner of his eyes before returning their focus to Locke.

"Please Spectre," Sabre begged, as he continued to pull at Spectre's hands. "I thought this was all about bonding with one another."

"We are bonding," Spectre growled. "I'm showing him my choke hold."

"See, he's not... that mad," Locke said, his voice wavering from the way Spectre was shaking him. "He just... told... a joke." Spectre responded by shaking him a little harder.

The next five minutes were just pure chaos. Spectre continued throttling Locke while Thunderhawk, Sojourner, and Sabre did their best to pry Locke free from Spectre's hands with pleas and protests flying in every which direction. Everyone was so preoccupied with the current commotion that no one had noticed that Athair was flying around them, watching the whole scene. He'd fly around a little before stopping to watch and listen and then he'd shake his head and start the whole routine over again. After another few minutes Athair decided it was time for him to interfere.

"Please calm down Grandfather," Athair said.

He took Spectre in his arms and proceeded to cradle him. Spectre was caught so off guard by this action that the second he was picked up he released Locke, who fell backwards into his father's arms. Thunderhawk and Sojourner released their hold on Spectre the second Athair floated in and proceeded to watch in astonishment as Athair rocked Spectre back and forth in his arms. Locke watched dumbfounded, completely forgetting about his sore throat, which Sabre inspected for damage before turning his attention to the scene before him. Spectre remained still in Athair's arms, completely flabbergasted by what was happening that his brain hadn't quite registered it yet.

"Can you feel the love tonight," Athair sung. That was all it took to bring Spectre back down to Mobius.

"Put me down you psycho!" Spectre screamed as he began to struggle in Athair arms.
Eventually Athair couldn't maintain his hold and he dropped Spectre on to the ground with a resounding thud. The other males continued to watch, all at a loss for words.

Spectre shook his head, trying to get his bearings straight before turning up his head to glare at Athair. "What was that for?"

"You're all stressed out and need to relax," Athair said soothingly, even though he knew it would take several hours for Spectre to mellow out. "I can sing you a song. Give you some cake perhaps? Maybe a massage?"

"I don't think so," Spectre replied. His pride couldn't take much more of this kind of abuse.

"Well, I have some marshmallows and chocolate, and graham crackers and we can all sit around the fire and tell ghost stories and eat yummy treats!" Athair floated around, handing everyone sticks with which they could roast their marshmallows on. Spectre flopped back onto the ground and he was beginning to seriously wonder about this camping idea.

"Why don't you take it easy for a while Locke," Sabre said, helping his son to his feet. Spectre growled at hearing Locke's name. He wasn't through with him yet.

"Locke," Spectre said as he sat up. Locke looked at him, his hands immediately going to his throat. Spectre merely pointed towards a tree and simply said, "Go." Locke looked at him incredulously, not sure if he completely understood what his grandfather meant. He looked in the direction Spectre was pointing and saw a large tree with very little foliage on it.

"I'm not sure I understand grandfather," Locke said, turning his head towards Spectre, confusion reflecting on his features.

"Get up there, now," Spectre said and he pointed again at the tree for emphasis.

"But-" Locke began.

"Now!" Spectre demanded. Locke dashed to the tree and began climbing as quickly as his limbs would allow. "And stay up there! You're not to come down for the entire night!"

Sabre gasped in shock. "But Grandfather, don't you think you're being unreasonable?"

"No, I'm teaching him a lesson. No dinner, no treats, and he can sleep in the tree for the night." Spectre stood up and grinned, pleased with his little punishment.

"But what if he falls?" Sabre asked, concerned for his son's well-being.

"He'll just have to make sure he's on a secure branch," Spectre replied. "Now, will someone start making dinner? I'm starving."

"It was a scary kind of house, with cobwebs, and broken windows, and dusty furniture. It was really dark too, with only candles here and there to light their path."


Athair continued on and on and on. The rest of the Brotherhood sat around the fire, all near comatose from Athair's style of storytelling. Dinner was bad enough. No one was a very skilled cook and given the time Athair spent with the Ancient Walkers and the Forgotten Tribe, he knew more about the outdoors life then the rest of the Brotherhood had collectively forgotten. Unfortunately, Athair's manner of doing things was always set on insane mode and as a result he himself never knew what he was doing half the time. Bad enough that he used lighter fluid to get the fire started, but he constantly improvised when it came to ingredients, and to top it off he burned everything to charcoal.

Now they sat around the campfire with Athair doing his best to tell a ghost story. Spectre sighed, trying his best to stay awake. If nothing else, Athair's manner of storytelling would make a great cure for insomnia. Unfortunately, Athair had a bad habit of shouting out at any given time and he startled everyone awake so many times it was miracle no one had keeled over from a heart attack yet.

"Boo!" Athair shouted from behind Sabre, who jumped several feet into the air. "Gotcha! Gotcha!" Athair shouted, giggling wildly as he danced in place, obviously pleased with himself.

"Is this trip over yet?" Sabre asked when he made contact with the ground again.

"Not for another week and six days son!" Athair said happily. "Now, someone else tell a
story."

"Very well," Thunderhawk said, looking unhappy like he always did. "Let me tell you about a horrible murder." Athair sat before Thunderhawk in quiet awe. "The horrible gruesome murder of an echidna who never knew when to shut up."

Sojourner raised an eyebrow and Spectre watched with mild amusement. It would be interesting to see if Thunderhawk could turn his little story into reality. Athair sat quietly in front of Thunderhawk, waiting for more, seemingly unaware of the fact that his grandfather was talking about him.

Sabre shook his head and looked up in to the tree where Spectre had banished Locke for the night. Locke was lying on his stomach on a large branch, an arm and a leg on either side of it, seemingly dead to the world. He looked absolutely pathetic. Despite that, Sabre found himself envying his son. He may have had to stay in a tree but at least he didn't have to put up with this madness. Maybe a high branch far away from his insane father would be a good thing. He could learn to live like a bird for a couple weeks. While Thunderhawk kept Athair distracted with his tale of grisly murder, Sabre decided to approach Spectre.

"Grandfather," Sabre said as he sat next Spectre. "I wish to speak with you."

Spectre sighed. "We're not ending this trip early so don't even ask. Don't even beg."

"Actually Grandfather, I came to thank you for taking me on this trip." Spectre looked at Sabre as though he had just told him he had a third eye.

"Come again," Spectre replied. His grandson had to be up to something to say such a thing.

"This little trip as forced me to think about many things. Myself. My son. My duties. Things I never gave very serious consideration before."

"Sabre, we've only been on this trip for one day."

"I know, and I've had so much time to reflect."

"Get to the point Sabre."

"I realize now that I have failed in so many areas as a father," Sabre said as he stood up. He was speaking loudly now and had even caught the attention of his father and grandfathers. "If I had raised Locke properly, he would never have pulled that stunt in the car on the way here. He doesn't always show proper respect to you or the rest of the Brotherhood and that too is a result of my faulty parenting skills."

"Sabre, I don't think..." Spectre started, not sure why Sabre decided to go off on this tangent at this particular time.

"No, don't think!" Sabre exclaimed, cutting Spectre off. He began gesturing wildly, hamming his performance up for all it was worth. "I know now that I must atone for my mistakes. I demand you punish me. I too should spend the night in a tree. In fact, I should remain in one for the whole trip."

Spectre blinked stupidly at his grandchild for a couple seconds. He hadn't expected any of that. Once the initial shock wore off, Spectre was able to see through Sabre's little game. Send me to stay in a tree so I don't have to deal with Athair's insanity or participate in any of this, is that what you're thinking Sabre? Spectre gave his grandson a very suspicious look but Sabre managed to keep a straight face. He actually looked very serious. Nice try but it's not happening. Before Spectre could tell Sabre to give it up, Thunderhawk spoke up, having now caught on to what Sabre was trying to do.

"He's right, his parenting skills suck. However, mine are worse. Just look at my son. To this day I still don't know what I did wrong!" Sojourner shot his father a filthy look. He had a feeling Thunderhawk was not being completely dishonest. The lavender echidna either didn't notice or pretended not to as he continued on. "I know he whines horribly and I have done nothing to prevent it. I feel like such a failure. But what hurts me the most is how I must have failed you as a son. I should be grateful for all you have done for me and yet all I have ever done is complain." Spectre buried his face in his hands. He was actually beginning to wish Athair would start another one of his stories. "I demand to spend the vacation in a tree as punishment."

Spectre rolled his eyes. He was not only about ready to put his sons in a tree but he was going to pull the top back and slingshot all of them to the other end of the forest. The idea was sounding better by the second but before he could threaten them with it, Sojourner had to open his mouth.

"I know I'm a failure," Sojourner said. "I know I whine. I know I spend more time downloading porn with the surveillance system than working." Spectre stopped short at that. Sojourner always denied such a thing even when he was finally caught in the act. "But please remember that I didn't have the greatest father figure growing up." Thunderhawk snorted. "Even so, I could have improved in so many ways. I must be the one to spend the vacation in a tree. I should be punished."

"Keep in mind that I haven't done anything useful lately," Thunderhawk said.

"I never got Locke to go out more often. It's my fault he works to avoid his pain instead of facing his problems," Sabre said, obviously trying to one up Thunderhawk.

"Just look at my grandson!" Sojourner said, pointing to Athair who was now floating upside-down in the air.

"He's my grandson too!" Thunderhawk added.

"He's my father!" Sabre said as if it was some kind of crime.

"Enough!" Spectre screamed, feeling his blood pressure rise. "I know what you three are up to and it isn't going to work. If you think you can get out of this, you've got another thing coming."

"Very well then," Sabre said firmly. "We shall inflict punishment upon ourselves."

Sabre raced to the tree, followed quickly by his two fathers, and proceeded to climb to the top. Locke, who had been lying on his branch in a daze for the past couple hours took notice of the sudden commotion around him.

"Father?" Locke asked, completely confused as he saw his father climb past him.

"We have decided that we too need punishment Locke," Sabre said, as he climbed higher into the tree.

"I think I should sit in the coldest spot," Sojourner said as he climbed past Locke.

Locke watched, dumbstruck, as his fathers climbed higher. Either Athair drugged those marshmallows or his stories have a far more horrific affect on one's ability to think than I had originally thought. He was knocked out of his thoughts, and almost the tree, as Athair came racing past him.

"Wait for me! I've been bad too!" Athair cried out as he floated to the top.

"No, you've been good," Sojourner insisted. "You can stay down there."

"Yes, please Father. There's no need to punish yourself," Sabre said.

"But I'm a failure too! Spending time with the Ancient Walkers and visiting other places, never once fulfilling my role as Guardian of Angel Island!"

"We forgive you, really," Thunderhawk said, panic obvious in his voice. Escaping Athair was proving to be more difficult than any of them had thought.

Spectre watched the commotion from the ground. This whole day was turning out to be wilder than anything that ever happened in Haven during the course of a month. Then again, from what he gleamed from reading some of those journal entries he made his sons keep, that could be a real stretch. Still, Spectre thought with an evil grin as he watched the arguing in the top branches; why not entertain my original idea? Spectre used his telekinetic power to grab the very top of the tree and bend it down towards him, taking care not to break the plant in the process. Every male on the tree yelped in surprise and hung on for dear life as the tree was turned upside-down, them along with it.

"You know," Spectre began, smiling in a manner that made everyone extremely nervous. "It's nice to hear you all admit to your own faults. Really, it is. It takes such strength to admit one's shortcomings."

"Oh yes Grandfather," Athair piped in. "And think of how well we'll all bond over this. We can provide each other with love and support as we help one another to better ourselves." Everyone looked at Athair like he was crazy save for Spectre, who decided to play off of it.

"Exactly," Spectre replied. He acted like he was so proud of his sons. "I see now that this was a brilliant idea. Not only do all of you finally come clean but you will willingly accept punishment for any and all actions as well. Such a display of responsibility almostmakes me want to cry." The four males eyed Spectre suspiciously; this was not how the Spectre they knew behaved and warning bells rang in their minds.

"So we don't have endure any more of this trip?" Sojourner asked.

"Actually," Spectre said his smile widening. "Seeing as how you all want to be punished for your mistakes, I will be happy to oblige you."

Before anyone could protest, Spectre released his hold over the tree, causing it to snap back into position, sending all five echidnas flying into the distance. Spectre smiled to himself. That felt good. He leaned against the tree, listening to their screams fade into the distance. Even Athair's resounding "Wheeee!" was music to his ears. Maybe next time they'll think twice before they Saran wrap my toilet seat again.


A couple hours passed before everyone found their way back to camp. None of them seemed any worse for wear. Spectre was sure they used their powers to float to the ground safely but that didn't matter to him. Just flinging them into the far end of thewoods was good enough for him. Athair floated to the ground with his sons and fathers around him. Since Athair was their best chance to find their way back quickly they must have allowed him to bring them back even though leaving oneself in Athair's hands was a risky undertaking.

"That was fun!" Athair exclaimed, now flying in circles around the campfire. "Let's do that again!"

Spectre glanced up at Athair in disbelief for a couple seconds before shaking his head and switching to ignore mode. He focused his attention on the others, who were all staring at him, looking very unhappy.

"Don't look at me like that," Spectre said calmly. "You all had that coming."

"Thank you so much Grandfather," Sojourner spat.

"We love you too," Sabre said icily.

"Glad to hear it," Spectre replied. "Now go to bed. We have plenty of vacation left to spread the love." Sojourner made a gagging noise and Thunderhawk quickly elbowed him to the side.

"What are we doing tomorrow?" Locke asked.

"Fishing!" Athair shouted, waving fishing poles in the air.

Everyone, including Spectre, groaned.