They'd found the warehouse quickly, the dock kept excellent records and there was only one building not full of some kind of cargo.
Greg watched Ryan fidget and shift and prayed like hell that nothing would happen to him, because even without an acknowledgment of the bond Ryan was Archie's mate and it would kill him if Ryan was hurt.
The SWAT teams began fanning out around the exits and the CSI's pulled out their guns, waiting for the signal.
The hand chopped down and SWAT busted the boor down and they stormed in followed closely by the CSI's.
In the large open space of the warehouse all eyes turned towards them and the NYPD stared at the number of growling werewolves in the room. One by one, they all blurred and shifted.
Greg tensed up between Nick and Ryan, eyes bleeding into yellow as he stepped forward, putting himself between the werewolves, Sheldon and Ryan.
Ryan watched as Greg's body shifted into a large russet wolf who stood growling between him and the other weres.
A grey wolf snarled and threw itself at Greg who was bowled over from his place in front of them. Ryan trained his gun on them as they rolled but swore as they kept moving.
Nick let out a snarl of his own as he watched Greg tumble end over end across the room. He moved fluidly, keeping his gun out and trained on the other werewolves, and took up Greg's place between Ryan, Sheldon and the other werewolves.
An animalistic cry of pain, then a growling snarl, made Nick flick his eyes back over his shoulder at Greg. The large russet stood panting, blood on his muzzle, over the prone, unconscious body of the grey.
He took a couple of steps towards his packmate, but Greg flicked his tail at him, letting him know he was okay. A startled yell made Nick's head swing back around, he hissed and took a couple of running steps back as he saw a scarred white wolf make a run for the door, lunging at Sheldon and Ryan. Sheldon fired his weapon, eyes wide as he tried to empty the clip into the wolf.
He only managed two rounds. The werewolf let out a howl of pain even as it kept running launching itself into the air and crashing into the dark-skinned man. Sheldon was airborne for a few moments, long enough to realize it, before he slammed into the warehouse wall and his world went hazy for a few seconds.
He slid down the wall until he came to rest on the floor. He stayed there, struggling to force air back into his lungs, the wind very successfully having been knocked out of him.
Nick had been frozen even as Greg shifted but as he watched Sheldon thrown off his feet the wolf stirred inside him and he snarled, eyes bleeding yellow and his body changed. He dropped to all fours and lunged at the werewolf still making its way to the door.
Ryan stood exposed as Sheldon tried to pick himself off the floor and Nick snarled at the other werewolf.
He froze as yellow eyes caught his own and a brown wolf began to stalk towards him, he lifted his gun but paused as SWAT officers darted behind it, he wasn't sure he wouldn't miss.
It moved closer and Ryan squinted down the barrel, desperately searching for a clear shot. It was moving slowly, knowing it could outrun him, Ryan's stomach clenched, it was hunting him.
Ryan's eyes darted around, searching for help and finding none, the wolf was only a few metres away now and its lips were pulled back in a snarl baring sharp teeth.
Then Ryan felt an animalistic fear and rage swell up inside him as his inner wolf snarled back and for the first time since he was turned Ryan let go of his control. Ryan felt his body shift and he dropped to the floor, the world turning to shades of grey.
The brown wolf snarled at the grey-streaked one as Ryan adjusted to his new body. Ryan shifted on his paws as he readied himself for the brown's lunge.
The brown wolf shifted and Ryan called himself an idiot for ever getting into this and braced himself. Then a black shape appeared behind it and the were's muscles lost their strength as they spasmed from the taser fire. After a few moments his outline lost its clarity and his body shifted back to human as he collapsed unconscious.
Ryan huffed a sigh of relief and forgetting his shape he moved towards the SWAT officer and in the moment the needles pierced him from behind he cursed himself. As Ryan's muscles jerked and his form shifted he saw Flack turn and the recognition flare on his face before the blackness crept into his vision and he fell into unconsciousness.
Flack almost screamed as he watched the grey-brown wolf fade into the slim new CSI. He raised his voice above the melee.
"Don't attack the weres unless they attack you, some of them are our people!" The watched the SWAT officers responsible for Ryan flinch and move over to him, helping him out of the fray with guilty consciences now that he was friend and not foe.
Greg rolled back to his feet as his latest challenger sprawled against the wall. Seeing no immediate dangers he turned his head searching for the others. Sheldon was using what looked like a taser to put down one of the last weres. Nick, Greg's eyes locked on him, Nick was still attacking the wolf that had thrown Sheldon.
Greg ate up the distance as he watched the white wolf fall again and Nick slash at its flank before forcing it back onto its feet. Greg slid to a stop and growled at Nick, who to Greg's shock just snarled back and turned back to his prey.
Greg swore internally and glanced around for help. Then a thought struck him and he glanced from Sheldon to Nick.
With a last look at Nick, Greg twisted and started towards Sheldon, shifting as he went. Sheldon looked startled as he stopped in front of him, panting.
Greg grabbed onto Sheldon's arm and started pulling him towards Nick. Sheldon hesitated and Greg broke out frustrated.
"Look, I need you to talk to him... I've tried... I've never seen him like this before... he only did it because you were hurt... please just try…"
Sheldon stared at him startled for a moment before Greg pulled on his arm again and then he was running.
They stopped just beyond the fight and Sheldon opened his mouth before shutting it again and looking at Greg.
"What should I say to him?" His eyes narrowed. "Why is he doing this because of me?"
Greg avoided his eyes, really not wanting to answer that question and saw Nick pause in his attack, "Keep talking, Sheldon."
"And say what, huh?" Sheldon asked, starting to get frustrated, "You tell me he's doing this because of me. He could be hurt! Do something!"
Greg's eyes flicked back to Sheldon for a split second, then back to Nick. Nick stopped his attack completely, allowing the white wolf to slide to the floor, wounded and unconscious. But he remained in his wolf form, bloodied and panting. Sheldon kept on talking, oblivious and obviously angry when Greg didn't move.
"Why, Greg? He's not normally a violent person, is he? You said yourself you've never seen him like that," Sheldon continued as Greg shook his head, "So, why? Why would he attack another werewolf purely and simply because I…" his eyes widened and his tone changed, "…because I was hurt. Me."
Greg opened his mouth to answer, then shivered lightly as the residual power of a shifting washed over him. He turned, looking over at Nick, who had slid back into his human form and was sitting cross-legged on the warehouse floor, panting harshly, head bowed. Greg turned back to Sheldon, eyes calm, before wandering over to check on Ryan.
"Ask him yourself," he threw over his shoulder.
Sheldon hesitated for a moment. Then, slowly, he reached out a hand to Nick, crouching down as he did so. In the background, Sheldon could hear Flack's voice booming out through the warehouse, the SWAT team leader's voice acting in counterpoint.
"Hey! Can I get some hush over here?"
"Blue Team! Shut the fuck up and listen to the detective!"
Sheldon gently eased himself down next to Nick. He placed his hand on the Texan's knee. Nick's breathing had almost slowed back to normal, but at that one comforting touch, it hitched in his throat. Sheldon could still hear Flack and the SWAT leader in the background.
"Now, I'm sure you'll all agree, that any injuries our perps sustained here were the result of self-defence. And that any fighting our people had to do, whatever form they may have taken, was done to either protect themselves or their team. Okay?"
"Couldn't have put it better myself, detective. You heard him, boys, pack up your shit and move out."
SWAT moved out first, taking the handcuffed perps with them. They were followed by a heavily guarded gurney carrying the still-unconscious werewolf the SWAT officers had hit with their tazers. Greg accompanied the second gurney, carrying Ryan, feeling a sense of impending doom, knowing that he would have to be the one that told Archie his mate had been hurt.
Greg climbed into the ambulance with Ryan, he'd tell Archie…later. He patted down Ryan's hair, he'd stay with Ryan for a while.
