“It’s so late, dude,” Shane said. “We got to get some rest. What’s yer hurry?”

“You don’t want to know. But it’s important. I’ll be back in an hour or two.” Kevin strapped on his belt. “I’ll need this, for sure.” He left without another word. He drove off in his Corvette.

“Weird,” Shane said. “Kev can be real, you know…”

“Secretive.” Justin smiled. “It’s an adult thing. I think it makes ‘em feel more adult.” Justin flexed his biceps for Shane. “Well. We’re all alone.” He made a side chest shot, crunching in his tiny waist and flaring out his striated, heaving pecs. “It’s hot in here...” Justin peeled the skin- tight satin slowly away, revealing his rocky, vein-dappled abs in four perfect rows, then his erect nipples and bulging chest. He unbuckled his muscle-belt and pulled off his leather pants.

“You’ve come a long way, dude.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you, Shane. I love you for what you’ve given me. And for who you are.”

Shane smiled. “Aw, dude, yer embarrassin me.” He unhooked his new belt and pulled his pants off. He touched Justin’s shoulder. “You know what I wanna do?”

“What?” Justin’s heart pounded.

“I just wanna flop down on the couch and watch some stupid TV. You up for that?” “Sure.”

When Kevin returned, at 3 AM, he found the two young muscle-gods asleep on the black leather sofa in his living room, dead to the world, and to the “Laverne & Shirley” re- run that blared from the TV before them. Kevin tiptoed past them into the kitchen, and stashed a swollen black plastic bag in a cabinet under the sink. He unbuckled his belt and hung it over a chair. Then he tiptoed back past the boys and went to bed.

Justin awoke in Shane’s strong arms. His head rested on Shane’s chest. Shane's skintight satin shirt was soft and smooth, and the warmth of his body comforted Justin. He reached down and felt Shane’s enormous morning hard-on. Justin kissed Shane’s cheek and touched the scruffy beard on his chin. “I love you, Shane,” he whispered. Shane was deep asleep, breathing through his thick parted lips. Justin carefully slid out of Shane’s embrace. He knelt on the floor before Shane’s massive cock. “Breakfast time,” he said to himself.

Justin got the head of Shane’s cock in his mouth, and stroked the long, veiny shaft with gentle hands. Shane groaned and stirred in his sleep. His cock got even harder. Justin’s own cock rose high and hard in his excitement. He caressed Shane’s god-cock with his softest, most sensitive touch. Then, he felt Shane’s balls empty themselves of his rich, sweet cum.

The first shot flew down Justin’s throat. He pumped Shane’s cock to milk it of every ounce of his powerful cum. Justin’s muscles bulged out with power. Shane came to and squinted. “What the fuck… dude, what’s… ohhhhh…” Shane laid back and enjoyed the rest of his orgasm.

“Good morning,” Justin said. His face was covered with shots of spunk.

“You know how t start a day off right, dude.” Shane’s attention shifted to the TV, which blared an infomercial. “We been here all night?”

“Uh huh. I slept in your arms.”

Shane smiled. “No wonder I felt so comfy.” He sat up. “Damn, I’m starvin. Let’s see what Kev has to eat.” They got off the couch. Shane stretched, flexing both biceps and arching his back. He entered the kitchen before Justin. Justin saw a blinding flash of light and a squeal of thunder. He entered to see Shane wearing Kevin’s belt. He flexed his guns again, but they were twice the size they’d been a minute before. “Shit, that feels hella good. This belt ain’t half as strong as mine, though.”

“What’s that?” Justin said. He pointed to the black bag under the table.

“You got me, dude.” Shane opened the refrigerator. His cock poked inside and touched something cold. Shane let out a surprised yelp and laughed. “I better pop this sucker off.” Shane unbuckled the belt and tossed it on the kitchen table.

Justin pulled the bag closer. It was loosely tied. He undid the simple knot. Inside the bag were bundles of $20 bills. “Wow. Look at this.” He handed a sheaf of bills to Shane.

“Damn. That’s a hella big stack of bills.”

“The bag is full of these bundles. They’re new bills.” Justin broke open a bundle and flipped through the stiff, fresh money.

“This is fuckin with my head. Well, hell,” Shane said. He peeled some bills off the open stack. “Breakfast is on Kev this morning. He can explain later.”

Shane and Justin got dressed in the living room, pulling on the clothes they’d stripped off the night before. “Bring yer belt, dude,” Shane said. “Just in case.” Shane strapped his new belt on, carefully hooking it to the first notch. His crotch bulged. “Don’t pull on it hard, or you won’t be able to get dressed.” Shane helped Justin ease the leather through the buckle and notch it. The buckle sparked a little, but didn’t go wild. “I know you wanna crank that thing bad, but we got all day to do that.”

Justin smiled. “Should we go back to Denny’s?”

Shane laughed. “No, I reckon they had enough of us for awhile. Let’s go to IHOP!”

“That place is so gross,” Justin said.

“Aw, come on.” Shane winked at Justin.

They sat in the International House of Pancakes, barely able to fit in the booth. The waitresses stared at them, as did the patrons, but no one had dared to take their order. Shane drummed his fingers impatiently on the worn formica booth.

Justin suddenly looked alarmed, and ducked down in the booth. “Fuck. It’s that asshole Rich Boyce. He’s got his posse with him.”

Shane looked right at Rich. Rich recognized him and nodded. “What you got to be afraid of? You can kick his ass into next week now.”

Justin smiled. “You’re right.”

“They’re leavin.”

Justin set his menu down. “I’ll be back in just a minute. If the waitress comes by, I want the Number Two special. Two orders of it.” Before Shane could say a word, Justin was out the door.

Shane watched from the window. Justin walked up to Rich and shoved him. Rich looked at him, checking out Justin’s new body, and he finally recognized his old cock-sucking slave. He pointed at Justin, made some wisecrack, and got everyone in his group laughing. Rich pushed his face up close to Justin’s and kept up the taunts. He made a mocking double-biceps pose, exposing his own arms as mere pipe- stems.

“Watch out, Rich,” Shane said to himself.

It was too late. Justin pulled his muscle-belt tight, stunning the boys with the show of thunder and lightning. He flexed his 35-inch guns, flaunting them in Rich’s shocked face. Then he lifted Rich over his head in one clean jerk, and hurled him across the parking lot. Rich landed face down in the asphalt.

Rich’s “posse” took off for parts unknown. Justin walked towards him, his chest puffed out. He stood over Rich’s cringing figure and flexed his guns again. Rich was in a fetal position, and held his arms up to protect himself. Justin picked Rich up by his shirt with one hand, spoke to him, and threw him back on the asphalt. Rich crawled away. Justin turned and came back in the restaurant.

“We’re even now,” Justin said.

“You’re hella sexy when you get tough. You know that?”

“I do now.” Justin flexed his massive bicep and smiled.

Shane had three pancake and sausage plates, plus two thick steaks and two pitchers of milk. Justin ate his two #2 Specials, plus a steak and an entire cherry pie. Their stomachs filled, they returned home to Kevin’s. Kevin was in the kitchen, making coffee and a protein shake. “Where you boys been?”

“Out. Hey, dude, where’d all the money come from?”

“Yeah,” Justin echoed. “You rob a bank or something?”

“Yes,” Kevin answered.

Shane laughed. “Seriously, dude.”

“Who’s kidding? I ripped an ATM machine out of a wall. Three of them. Cleaned ‘em out. We need the cash, and it’s there for the taking. If you’re strong enough.”

“Didn’t the cops show up?”

“Oh, yeah, they showed up. I kicked some blue asses. There should be a good article in this morning’s paper. Or maybe it’s on TV now.” Kevin poured himself a cup of coffee and sauntered into the living room. He turned on the TV and flipped channels until he caught a newscast:

“—supernaturally strong man is described as being between the ages of 25 and 30…”

“That’s flattering,” Kevin said with a smile.

“…dressed in black leather, he wore a bandanna, a large belt and combat boots. The source of his incredible strength remains unknown. He successfully fought off a group of ten armed policemen. He is suspected with the removal, by force, of three ATM machines in the central district.”

A police sketch of a goateed face flashed on the screen. It looked sort of like Kevin, if you squinted.

“Police are on the lookout for a large, freakishly muscular man resembling this drawing. There is a $10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.”

Kevin laughed. “Well, I guess I have to shave my beard off now!”

“Why’d you do it, dude?” Shane sat down beside Kevin on the couch.

“Because I’m fucking broke, dude. I’ve been spending my money like water, keeping you two in food and clothes. It was worth every penny, though.”

“Oh.”

“What? You getting all high and mighty with me? Fuck them. They’re just regular people. They’re weaklings. If they caught us, what could they do? Everything they own is ours for the taking.” Kevin paused to swallow some coffee. “Not that I want anything else they have. The government can always print up more money. The banks are insured. Nobody’s going to lose out on this deal.”

“How much did you get?” Justin asked.

“Looked like about 200 grand. Enough to keep us going for months. If we run out, I know where to get more.” Kevin laughed. Shane seemed to think it was really funny, too. The mood lightened in the house. Kevin finished his coffee, then butt-fucked Shane and Justin, who then fucked for Kevin’s entertainment.

The three killed time until their appointment, eating, playing Monopoly, watching TV, and getting in a few more rounds of you-know-what. Shane was cockier than ever, especially during Monopoly, but Kevin could tell he was a little nervous about meeting the person behind this severe, calculating voice.

Shane and Justin played with their new belts all day long. Their horseplay, including six swordfights in a row, and made a big mess of Kevin’s living room. The couch was knocked over, Kevin’s shelf of trophies barely escaped destruction, and a Persian rug was ruined forever by massive shots of spunk.

“You two are like animals!” Kevin righted the fallen sofa. “I can’t believe this bad shit.”

“We’re sorry… Dad,” Justin said with a smirk.

“Fucking smart-ass,” Kevin muttered.

“Yeah, Dad,” Shane chimed in. “We’ve been real bad.” “Yes, you have,” Kevin said with irritation.

“Maybe you should give us some discipline, Dad,” Justin said, pouring on the smart-ass tone.

“If you can catch us,” Shane said.

“No, don’t.” Kevin stopped Shane with one hand, and Justin with the other. “You’ll destroy the whole fucking house. Come on. Let’s sit down and talk about tonight.”

“Aw…” Shane and Justin reluctantly flopped on the couch. Shane’s weight made the springs groan.

“When we go there, no matter what happens, you two keep quiet. Let me do the talking. We don’t know what these people want from us. I have no idea. They’ve given us this power for some fucking reason we don’t know about. It might be good, and it might be bad. If things get weird, we’ll have a word. You know, a signal. When I say that word, pull your belts tight and follow me.”

“What’s the word?” Justin said.

“I know,” Shane said. “IHOP!”

Kevin grinned. “What’s that?”

The boys broke up with laughter.

“Oh my god. What have you done?”

Justin told the story of his revenge on Rich Boyce. He laughed so hard he cried.

“You shoulda seen it, dude. It was some excellent shit! That dude turned tail and crawled away!” Shane smiled and put his arm around Justin’s shoulder.

“I wonder if they’ll have another story on the news,” Kevin said.

The 6:00 news featured a story about a super-powered teenager who had assaulted a local high-school boy. Rich had not divulged Justin’s name. (He knew what might happen if he did.) Another bad drawing, one that didn’t remotely look like Justin, appeared. The report noted that the teen had a large leather belt around his waist, and that sparks of light came from the belt. Officials did not know the source of the teenager’s incredible strength. One public official commented about this epidemic of “amplified criminality.” Justin watched the broadcast with great pride.

The drive out to the country took forever. The directions took them well off the freeways and main roads, through dark, winding roads that took them in and out of black, damp woods. “This is like ‘Snow White,’” Kevin said.

“Is that the one with the ole witch and the apples?” Shane asked.

“Uh huh.”

“I use to watch that one all the time on video. Hey, Kev. What if these dudes try an mess with us? What do we do?”

“Just… just be courteous. Answer their questions. If there’s any openings, I’ll ask them some questions, too.”

Justin joined the discussion. “What if they want to make us do something really shitty… like kill somebody? What if they’re, like, Nazis or something?”

“Well…” Kevin thought this one out. If the men turned out to be real scum, should they give them back the belts and leave? Or should they go along with them, and try to turn the tables on them? “I don’t know. We’ll just have to play it as it happens. I don’t want to hurt anybody myself, unless it’s someone who really fucking deserves it. And even then… I’m not a violent guy. Immoral, yes, but I’m no killer.”

“What was it like when you kicked Rich’s ass today?” Shane said to Justin.

“I dunno… it felt really good when I did it, but now I feel kinda stupid about it. I mean, we kind of blew our cover.”

“We all have,” Kevin said, “but what do they expect? How could anyone keep this much strength and muscle a secret? They can’t think we’re just going to live our lives like nothing happened…”

“Hey, was that the turn?” Shane pointed at a boarded-up gas station, illuminated by a single arc light.

“Shit.” Kevin brought the Camaro to a halt, soared in reverse, and turned just before the old building. They went onto a rutted gravel road that made the whole car jostle, even with the half-ton of human cargo inside. “And we drive this for two miles?”

“We’re payin for these belts right here,” Shane said.

The gravel road finally ended at a wrought iron fence. The fence was chained. A red rusted padlock as large as Shane’s hand girded the chain. In the near distance, beyond a grove of trees, stood a tall square building. It looked like a castle, with high windows and tall iron doors.

“Well, this is great,” Kevin said. “Shane, would you do the honors?”

“Sure.” Shane tugged at the great gate, which wouldn’t quite give. “I know what to do.” Shane pulled his belt tight and immediately had enough strength to break the chains. He accidentally bent one of the fence doors as he opened it. “Oops… shit.”

“Justin, tighten your belt. Be prepared.” Kevin pulled himself two new notches of power. Justin gained three notches. He flexed his 40-inch guns with pride. “Everyone ready?”

They walked past the trees and approached the imposing structure. Shane pounded on the iron doors, which were nine feet tall. The crackly voice responded, to Shane’s surprise, from a loudspeaker over his head. “Come in… if you can open the doors.”

“No prob.” Shane tugged at the large iron rings on the doors, but they wouldn’t budge. “I need another notch.” Shane pulled his belt even tighter, holding the tug to fill his arms with power and size. He flexed his 65-inch biceps. “This oughta do it!” The doors budged slightly, but still didn’t give. “One more!” Shane yanked on his belt again. His pecs flared up to his nose. Shane tugged on the door once more. It slightly moved. “Shit. Hey, dudes, help me out!”

Kevin grabbed the rings and pulled. Together, they were able to scoot the creaking, stubborn doors a few inches more. “Fuck,” Kevin said, “this is crazy! Juice up some more.” Shane and Kevin pulled their belts again. Justin joined in, tugging his belt six notches.

“Let me try,” Justin said. He pulled his belt tight with one hand, and yanked one of the doors open with the other. The door flew open. “That’s how you do it,” he said.

“Well, we learned something new, didn’t we?” Kevin said. “Might as well stay this way. I’m sure they’ll like it.”

The three massive muscle-gods walked down a gloomy hallway that led to a large sitting room. This room was elegantly furnished with 18th century antiques, and had the muted look of a museum. One wall of the room was devoted to a large plain mirror. Above it was another loudspeaker. “Ah, gentlemen! This is indeed my great honor… to see you in person, for the first time!”

The main lights in the room dimmed, with only a row of harsh spotlights shining above the three. In the lower light, they could see figures behind the glass, which was a one-way mirror. “My name… well, you need not burden yourself with that as of yet. You may call me Doctor Z. I am the man who made you what you are today! It’s a thrill to see the fruits of my many long years of labor…” The shadowy figure gestured to two rows of seated figures behind him. “These gentlemen are my young acolytes. They are here merely to witness. I shall do all the talking.” The voice breathed hard into his microphone, which made Justin laugh. “Well, I’m sure you must be just bursting with questions! Please address any issues you may…”

Kevin spoke. “What’s the purpose of our coming here?”

“Well,” Doctor Z replied, “we had to meet sooner or later. I hope it wasn’t inconvenient, your coming all the way out here…”

“No. You might want to get that road paved sometime…”

“I agree. But its present state keeps the curious far away. As does the gate, which I see I shall have to replace now.”

“Well… why us? Why did you give us this power?”

“Don’t you like having it?”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“Oh… I understand. You’re wondering what the catch is. Am I correct?”

Kevin nodded.

“You’re right to wonder if there is a catch. After all, none of us gets something for nothing in this world.” The voice cleared its throat. “Yes. I suppose you should know of my plans..."

"Gentlemen, I am a man of some considerable wealth, having enjoyed a long career in the field of nuclear physics. I was among the group of scientists who perfected the atomic bomb. I consider the belts you are wearing to be my greatest achievement… the most sophisticated harnessing of atomic radiation ever devised. To tell you more might only worry you, but I assure you… these belts are completely safe. They are now, at any rate…”

The voice paused. “What was I… yes! With my wealth, I have not only funded the research and manufacture of these belts, but I have purchased a large island in the South Pacific. It is quite a paradise. I want to establish a community of young Adonises, such as yourselves… young men of supernatural muscle size and power. In this community, everyone will be free to live exactly as they like. Everyone will be like you. And I shall be your supervisor. In time, we shall embark on some plans that may change the entire world for the better. That is, if the authorities don’t try to fight us. They may not understand the virtues of my plans very easily. But with men such as yourselves to support me, I’m sure that no one could fail to grasp the logic of my advances and research.”

A large television screen clicked on. “What I have to show you may greatly upset you, but I’m sure you’ll agree it was a necessity.” The word PLAY appeared on-screen, along with some streaky lines. “Just a moment,” the voice of Doctor Z said. The tape fast-forwarded into footage of a funeral. “Oh, wait… I’ll back it up.”

“That’s Mom!” Shane said, as the footage reversed to its start. “What the fuck?” In the scene, Shane’s parents, dressed in black, stood beside a minister who read from his book. Shane’s mother was in tears, and his father tried to look stoic, but was deeply hurt. “What is this shit?”

“This,” the voice said, “is your funeral. It happened today. The service was beautiful. You would have been proud of what your loved ones had to say about you.” The video continued, the camera panning to a display of photographs and items from Shane’s short life. Shane recognized some of his buddies from Palmdale. They all looked sad, and some of the girls he knew wept into their hands.

Then the camera panned to the coffin, which was closed. “Who’s in that thing?” Shane asked.

“A boy who met an unfortunate end. He was a bodybuilder… a victim of a hit-and-run accident. He bears a more than passing resemblance to you, and his features were distorted in the accident. Not even your mother could tell the difference.”

Tears poured down Shane’s face. “Why… why did you do this?”

“Well,” Doctor Z said, matter-of-factly, “for all intents and purposes, your old life is over. Could you continue at high school as you are now? How could you explain your muscle growth to your friends and parents? How could you live you old, mortal life any longer? I realize your emotions are upset right now, but someday soon you’ll thank me.”

“You fucker!” Shane shouted. His voice reverberated in the room.

“You just need some time to calm down. You, Justin, are to be the victim of a homicide. You have run away from home and are to be picked up by a serial killer. Your mangled body will be found, decapitated, in a freeway rest stop area, in about three days. The killer will eventually be apprehended by the authorities, when he ceases to be of assistance to my cause.”

Justin didn’t cry, but his face turned white. “I can’t believe this,” he said in a whisper.

“As I said, it’s for your own good. It’s the price you have to pay for becoming a muscle-god. Mr. Thorson, I am sparing your life, on the grounds that you are too deeply rooted… you have a long credit history, you are a homeowner, et cetera, et cetera. If you wish to stage your own death, that is your choice. As the guardian of these two boygods, I think it’s best that your basic life remain intact.”

“Thanks… I think,” Kevin said. Shane held onto Kevin and cried.

“Please,” Doctor Z said. “You may cry later. I need your full concentration right now. There is the matter of what to do with one of your schoolmates… a boy named Richard Boyce. I believe he had an encounter with Mr. Craig earlier today… one that was noticed by the press and police.”

“Yeah,” Justin said, “I collected an old debt.”

“And collected it rather forcefully, according to the news. You were well within your rights as a muscle-god to take justice into your own hands. But a problem remains… This boy spotted Mr. Hardin on the day of his funeral. Something must be done about this before the boy has a chance to talk! I suggest that you and Mr. Craig call on this boy tonight. If necessary, you must detain him with force. Bring him here. Perhaps he will be your first recruit.”

“No way!” Justin said with disgust. “Not after what he did to me.”

“Perhaps he could be your servant… or your slave. Surely he would value his own life that much. He must fear you deeply after today’s incident.”

Justin smiled. “Yes.”

“Mr. Hardin,” Doctor Z said, “my sincere condolences. I know this has upset you. Please understand that this is all part of my master plan, and that every great man must face the impossible if he is to conquer the impossible. That is all.” The lights in the room dimmed to black. When they rose again, the faint image of Doctor Z and his associates were gone. The three muscle gods saw only their own reflections in the mirror.

“Shane, are you OK?” Kevin said.

“Shit, I don’t know. I think so.”

“That was a big shock. But we should have known this would happen.”

“Yeah. I guess it makes sense. But I feel so fuckin bad about my folks…”

“We’re your family now, Shane.”

“That’s right,” Justin said. “We belong together now.”

Shane looked at them and smiled. His eyes were still red from crying. “That’s true.” Shane sniffled. “Well, we better go visit Rich. I bet he’ll freak out.” •