Kowalski had spent the rest of the day briefing the lobster teams and coming up with short notice plans for them all. The pool was now off limits to anyone who wasn't himself of Doris. Not even maintenance checks were to be made. Just as long as the pool was blocked off to the world outside, it was satisfactory.

Doris refused to leave the lair from that point onwards, not that Kowalski complained or thought it was a bad idea. It could even keep Francis as calm and quiet as a sea monster could get if he had a link to his previous life.

The exhaustion started to get to Kowalski as he sat on the train, heading back to the Central Park Zoo. The sun was setting and the orange rays of the sun shone through the glass windows and warmed Kowalski nicely. Sleep beckoned him but he could not give in. He still had a heck of a time waiting for him at his stop and depending on how Skipper was going to react would determine whether Kowalski stayed at the zoo for the night or caught a late train back to the lair again.

The zoo was quiet at this time in the early evening. Not a peep came from the HQ either. That meant things were probably going alright for the other penguins. No important missions, no wars to fight against and no villains attacking. Probably because word that Skipper's mortal enemy was down had gotten around.

He hopped down the ladder to the fish bowl hatch and looked around. Yep, things were very normal. Private was at the TV, Rico was braiding his doll's hair, it looked like she had a new wig, and Skipper was standing by a cardboard box with a few assorted mission files in his flippers.

"Good to see you back, lieutenant," Skipper said without raising his head. "I was beginning to think you'd abandoned us."

Kowalski put his flippers up in defence and shook his head wildly.

"No! Of course not, Sir. I've not had a chance to come back before now and relay information."

Skipper smiled, released the mission files and plopped himself down at the table and beckoned Kowalski over.

"Alright, lay it on me. Give me the complete once over."

Kowalski walked over to the table, his little feet dragging slightly as he was just too tired to lift them very high of the ground, and sat down opposite Skipper. Private followed and sat next to Kowalski, smiling brightly at the return of their tall friend and waited for Kowalski to start the story.

"Well, Sir. Thing's haven't quite gone to plan..."

Skipper gave a look of interest. Though Kowalski new Skipper was waiting for the information that meant he could dispose of Blowhole once and for all.

"The beginning was perhaps the best scientific week I have ever had. We made leaps and bounds creating the cure and we did it faster than I could ever imagine."

Private shuffled closer.

"Did the cure work?"

Kowalski hung his head and slowly shook it.

"It's not finished. We didn't get a chance to."

Skipper slapped his flippers on the table, shooting up from his seat.

"So he turned? Lost his mind? He's a monster?"

Skipper was almost excited. Smiling wildly as he bombarded Kowalski with questions. Questions that tugged on Kowalski's conscience and hurt him deeply inside.

"What does he look like? Have you made sure to secure him in a safe place? Or have you killed him already?"

Kowalski grimaced and shook his head at Skipper. If the flat headed penguin could just calm down then Kowalski could answer his questions and still be able to breathe through his muffled cries.

"Sir, things didn't go to plan. For us or for him during the development of the virus. He's not completely lost."

Skipper cocked a brow and slowly sank back into his seat.

"Escalate."

"I found him this morning... in his room. The transformation is complete. Physically and mentally but he still retains memory. Vague memory. He recognizes me and Doris and not once did he lift a claw to hurt us."

Skipper giggled like a school girl high on pop rocks and rubbed his flippers together excitedly.

"He has claws?"

Kowalski sighed and let his flippers drop to his sides.

"He's essentially a sea serpent. Long body with powerful front and back legs designed for swimming and clawing at prey. He has spines running up his body, which I do wonder if they have some poisonous purpose, but I won't dare try and touch them to find out. Sharp teeth, narrowed vision, keen sense of smell."

Skipper chuckled once again.

"He sounds awesome. I've got to pick the right weapon for this."

Kowalski shot his eyes open and shook his head violently.

"No!"

All 3 penguins stared back in awe as Kowalski so passionately rose from his seat.

"I can still save him! He retains memory. I can bring him forward."

Skipper rose again and rounded the table to Kowalski, where he stood in his face, chest's bumping.

"I broke protocol so you could save him before things got too bad. He's a monster now, Kowalski. You bring his mind back from the gutter and he'll kill us all! He's turned himself into an apex predator!"

Kowalski physically stopped himself raising his flippers and instead pushed Skipper back with his body.

"He won't! I know him! He wants to change!"

"Kowalski, this doesn't just affect you. What do you think my higher ups will do to me when they find out I let you do this? To the rest of the team? We're all traitors. Think of someone else for once!"

"What if this was a human? Or one of us? You wouldn't kill Private if he caught the virus, you'd have me fix him!"

"Private isn't an enemy."

"Neither is Blowhole! He wants my help. He wants to change."

Skipper shook his head, he had been completely betrayed and mentally beaten. He had suffered weeks of worry for Kowalski. How the cure was going, how his situation was in Blowhole's lair. Skipper knew the soldier was flawed, which was why he was below Skipper. But Skipper wasn't flawed. Not in the slightest.

"See, that's where your demise is rooted. You care too much. Your heart could quite possibly be as big as Private's. You need to let him go. You still have Doris."

Kowalski balled his flippers into fists. Rage blinded him completely as he struggled to keep himself together. He was passionate when it came to what he believed in. Skipper just didn't understand. He didn't want to understand because complex feelings and emotions would short circuit his stupid penguin brain.

"No, Skipper. I don't care too much, you care too little. You have no merciful thoughts in your primitive brain and that's where your defeat lies."

Private and Rico had backed into the corner of the room just like the last time Skipper and Kowalski had had an argument. They cowered and just waited for it to be over.

"You will stand down, you will allow me to do what I need to do and you will not say one more word about it."

Kowalski closed his eyes one last time before his body shook in enraged spasms before he opened his wild eyes, reeled back and hooked Skipper right between the eyes. Skipper was caught completely off guard and staggered back, seeing nothing but stars and flashing white light. He groaned as he toppled over and braced himself on his knees.

Rico gasped and took an angry step forward before Private grabbed his flipper and pulled him back knowing Skipper could take care of himself.

Kowalski stared down at Skipper as the penguin climbed back to his feet and shrugged the punch off like it was nothing but a petty annoyance.

"Your demise," Skipper whispered.

He then, suddenly, threw a hook right back where Kowalski had landed on him but Kowalski saw it coming and ducked with a roll putting several feet between the penguins. Skipper roared as he threw himself forward, fist clenched and went for a strike right to Kowalski's naval which landed and knocked the air out of Kowalski's lungs. A sweep kick to his legs had him plummet to the ground as Skipper regained footing, grabbing Kowalski's right flipper and forcing it behind his back as his foot cracked down on his skull. Kowalski didn't dare move, laying on the floor, feeling the burning strain in his twisted flipper and his pounding head below Skipper's foot.

"Your problem, Kowalski," Skipper said as he panted his breath back. "Is that you love all the wrong things."

Kowalski lay silent and still, gently sucking in air as Skipper forced his foot down harder. Perhaps Skipper was right, his compassion could be his downfall one day, if he survived Skipper's wrath. But he was sure that as long as his heart kept beating, he would fight for what he believed was right and the ache in his heart that he felt for Francis would never stop tearing him apart until he fixed everything. But all he could do was let a sorrowful tear slip from his eye and trail to the cold floor below.