How could it be that his greatest dream was also his worst nightmare?

He had often fallen asleep with visions of waking up in the presence of his old teammates. The past six years would just be a bad dream, chased away by the presence of his friends.

But when he awoke, he knew that it could never come to pass. Reality was persistent. To see his friends, to be in contact with them, would put them at risk. Bam never wanted that. Still, he could not ignore the ache in his heart, the yearning for what could not be, whenever he thought of his precious friends. This suffocating, dangerous life that FUG had forced upon him only deepened his desire for a life with his friends. Even thinking of them, of a certain blue-haired genius and a head-strong reptilian, filled him with such longing and despair.

So how was it that the sight of Mr. Khun filled him with such terror?

Khun looked the same. Maybe a little taller and broader around the shoulders, but the calculating blue eyes were all...so very Khun-like.

If Bam had not been so terrified for the life of his friend, he would have smiled.

The shock nearly left him deaf to the words being spoken by the FUG agents, his vision tunneling until all he saw was Khun. Yearning pierced through his heart. He wanted to go back, back to the place of warmth and security; not this endless facade and fear.

He heard Xiaxia's threats, and his heart plummeted when he knew that this encounter with Khun might be his last.

If you don't stay still, everyone here will die.

Khun will die.

So he had played along. He became FUG's god, threatening and violent to his enemies.

But Khun was not his enemy.

He even threatened Khun's life and expressed his desire to kill him.

His desire was to return to him, to his friends.

Only he chose not to kill him. Not now. Killing Khun would be meaningless. Khun was meaningless.

But he wasn't meaningless.

Threatening Khun made him feel sick. It was almost with great relief when Khun called him out for displaying such a horrible bad guy act.

He couldn't help but smile because Khun saw through everything. Khun saw through him.

But that smile turned into an expression of horror when the explosions started.

He was running. A scream tore through his throat. "Aguero!"

It did not matter if he did or did not kill Khun himself. FUG wanted his best friend dead.

He ran with such speed, his eyes fixated on that brilliant blue hair, sapphire eyes wide with shock. Bam made that his target point, running forward with desperation.

He slammed into Khun, wrapping his arms around his friend right as the crumbling structure of the Hand of Arlene came crashing down.

The boulders atop his shoulders crushed down on him, but the body in his arms was soft and so light, weightless compared to the building he was carrying on his back. His shinsu barrier was only able to protect him from so much. As the burden increased, Bam fell to his knees, sheltering Khun.

When the rumbling ceased and the foundation stilled, Bam risked moving. Boulders shifted and he forced himself to rise up. But the pressure of the stone prevented him from moving unless he used his arms to strengthen the shinsu. But Khun was still in his arms, unmoving, and Bam refused to let him go.

He was found anyway. FUG's agents frantically shifted through the rubble, desperate to find their god. Anger stirred in his heart when he saw them, his golden eyes bright with the promise of vengeance. He crawled out of the hole himself, refusing any further help. He held Khun close, preventing them from ever laying a single filthy hand on his friend.

They knew that their assasination attempt on Khun failed. Even now, they were looking at him with greedy, hungry eyes. Bam's grip on his friend tightened. His gaze was fixated on Khun. The blood on his forehead contrasted with his pale skin, blending with his blue hair.

He remained unresponsive.

Bam trembled. "Aguero."

His gaze snapped to the gathering FUG members, his glare thunderous. "Pray that he lives," hate, a foreign concept to him laced with his words, "or you all die."

God help them all. For the god of FUG will turn into a demon if his light was extinguished.

xXx

This will be a series of one-shots featuring 'what-ifs.' What if Khun had met Bam before Rachel? What if Bam met Khun before the incident at the Hand of Arelene? There were so many possibilities to explore and I decided to cram them all into a series of one-shots. Suggestions are welcome, but I do not make any promises.