Author's Note: Welcome to this 'story' about the new Disney film Zootopia (Or Zootropolis, as my country calls it, but I believe Zootopia is both a better name and a better pun) This one takes place roughly 5 months after the movie (But the characters will refer to it as the "Night Howler Incident") and it centres around Judy and Nick's (The main characters, in case you don't know, then again, how did you find this if you didn't know?) first police raid which (quite originally) goes spectacularly wrong, leaving our loveable cast in an unfortunate predicament with an ancient (and long lost, just for effect) species.
(Also, this specific chapter may not contain anything to even come close to getting an M rating, but later on I have some stuff planned that will definitely fit into that category)
But I've told you enough already, so let's get on with it! Enjoy!
Judy Hopps, a young police officer who happened to be the first rabbit officer, fidgeted awkwardly on the hard seat in the police van she and her colleges were riding in. As the vehicle made its way down Zootopia's various streets and avenues, she reflected on the briefing chief Bogo gave to everyone in the aptly named briefing room. It began with the chief entering the room, causing everyone to fall silent. He then listed off who would be patrolling where, and Judy immediately noticed the lack of both her and her partner in anti-crime Nick Wilde; her best friend who ironically happens to be a fox. Her suspicions were confirmed when he moved on to the special duties.
"Later today we'll be launching a raid on a small time gang who have hidden themselves in a disused subway tunnel. The gang consists of mostly ferrets and their leader is wolf, as far as we know." Chief Bogo said, glancing up occasionally to read the faces of his subordinates, especially with the mention of wolves.
"Since this one seems simple and routine enough, I'm assigning officers Hopps and Wilde to this one as well".
A hushed mutter rumbled it way though the assorted animals as they quietly questioned their chief's sanity. Judy nervously glanced around the room, while Nick lifted his head of his paw and at least pretended to look interested.
"U-us?" Judy stammered, partly due to excitement, and partly due to fear.
"Yes" He paused. "Look, I know this is out of the blue, but every officer in here has had to learn how to do a raid properly, and you have proven that you are on par with everyone one else, so I don't see why it's a problem".
Judy's mind raced to find the right words to respond.
"T-there's no problem! It was just… unexpected".
Next to her, Nick chuckled at both her obvious nervousness and, in his honest opinion, poor choice of words.
"Unexpected isn't the words I'd use, but it'll do" He said, his mouth manoeuvring itself into a smirk that was somehow both genuine and smug at the same. Judy only glared at him.
"Then we're all set. You all have your duties, let's do this. Dismissed".
Nick and Judy looked at each other, wondering what they had gotten into.
And that's how she ended up in a police van that was en route to an old, disused, unfinished and soon to be abandoned subway. In the van with her was the rest of the "team". It consisted of her, Nick, and three other officers whose names evaded her. They were a Monkey with the "Universal Key", a large, glorified battering ram, a Zebra with a shock baton and a Tiger who was the one who carried the majority of their handcuffs. (Editorial Note: I know monkeys (And primates in general) do not exist because in the actual film humans do not exist but… well… I'm not spoiling anything, but an explanation will be provided eventually ;) )
They were all dressed in typical riot gear, complete with a helmet fitted with a visor. Her helmet had been specially made to accommodate her large ears by the way of the addition of two holes on the top. Nick's helmet was similarly adjusted for his head, but instead of holes in the top, his sported an elongated top and front to compensate for his large snout. She sat in silence, reading the plans of the subway provided by Chief Bogo, attempting to memorize them in case she actually needed it. She then noticed something odd. There were tunnels that lead nowhere, subway tracks stopping randomly and suddenly starting again further down the line and rooms on the wrong side of the main hallway. She decided to voice her concerns to the de-facto leader of the group, who was the Tiger, whose name was Edward Pawston, but she knew everyone referred to him as Ed.
"Uh, Officer Pawston?" she said, turning her head in his direction, but failing to actually look up.
"What is it Hopps?" His stern voice fitting with his, albeit temporary, status.
She continued to stare at the plans, as if she was hoping they would magically reform to fit what she believed the subway should look like based on all the other ones she had seen during in her time in Zootopia.
"I've been going over the plans for the subway the gang is hiding in, and I just realised that this one looks really off" She said as she looked up from the plans, only to see the entire team gathered around the mixture of maps and plans spread across her lap and the area around her, partially drowning Nick in paper.
They all stared at her in confusion, until Nick shifted under the mountain of maps that were precariously stacked against him; cause one to topple onto the floor of the van. Ed proceeded to bend over and pick up the piece of paper, unfolding it to reveal the standard layout of a Zootopian subway. He glanced at the floor plan of the subway they were on their way too, then back to the plan in his paws before repeating the first glance again. He then silently placed his plan next to Judy's, a look of realisation spreading across his face as he did so.
That was when Judy got her first good look at the striking differences between a "regular" subway, and their "irregular" one. There were some similarities, such as both had a main corridor leading to the platform, and that's where they ended. While some of the rooms had been on one side on the standard plan, the reverse was true for the other one.
"Damn… that was some good spotting there Hopps" one of the officers remarked. She thought it was the monkey, but she couldn't know for sure. Nick chuckled to himself. "They can never make it easy, can they?"
Judy rolled her eyes, but kept her head facing the plan in her lap. "Depends on how big you definition of easy is" was her retort. "My definition of easy is about as big as the Chief's definition of routine" Nick shot back with a sly smile. She would have punched his arm if there wasn't a pile of plans in the way. The other officers, however, were thoroughly enjoying it, some of the more wealthy ones back at the ZPD Headquarters would even place bets on who would back down first, with those who repeatedly betted in favour of Nick soon finding themselves with a large sum of money missing from their bank accounts. It was one of the many running gags in the station.
The "sweet little bunny rabbit" could be very intimidating when she wanted to, which Nick and a number of other unfortunates had learned the hard way.
She glared at him in a threating, but somehow adorable way that only she could pull off, which only served to widen Nick's grin.
The rest of the ride was mostly silent, except for the occasional quip going to and fro between Nick and Judy, which only ceased when the van pulled to a halt outside of the cordoned-off subway entrance in the "downtown" area of Zootopia. Despite the unprofessional banter that almost constantly shot between them, the unconventional pair (or more specifically Judy) knew what situations called for an air of seriousness to be enforced, and they both knew this was one of them. The whole team quickly manoeuvred down the steps and into the relative darkness of the once empty tunnels, their equipment clanking and making all sorts of other obnoxious noises the whole time.
As they slowly advanced down the darkened tunnel passages, an eerie silence filled Judy's large and sensitive ears. Normally, she'd be hearing things from miles away, but here, in the tunnels, there was nothing.
And it was really getting to her.
She thought she'd be able to hear something other than the group's footsteps, but she had a hard time distinguishing those from her own rapid heartbeat. She didn't know if it was the quiet or the dark that was getting to her more, but she had a strange feeling, a mix of anticipation and dread.
Despite the fact that they could've easily taken the much wider, much more practical main hallway, the group decided that one of the side maintenance hatches
It wasn't long before Nick spoke up. "Ugh, these tunnels seem to go on forever!" He exclaimed, fake hysteria completely engulfing his words, purely for the dramatic effect. As if on cue, Ed, who was leading from the front, held up his paw in universally accepted 'stop' gesture, which everyone complied with. Or more accurately, Ed stopped and everyone else walked into him.
After regaining her balance, Judy moved her head up to ask him why he stopped, but quickly aborted the movement as her eyes saw what was at the end of the tunnel.
Light.
She instantly knew that they had found the group. I mean, who leaves lights on in an abandoned subway tunnel? was her line of reasoning, and it was sufficient to put her into her full on cop mode.
She pulled out her trusty tranq-gun which, due her borderline OCD-ness when comes to keeping things prepared and in working order, already had a dart in it. (Editorial Note: I'm simply assuming here that the ZPD doesn't use "real" guns. My explanation for this is that because in this little story they have been outlawed and, for the most part, forgotten as dusty relics in museums) She glanced behind her, seeing the rest of the team drawing their respective weapons, excluding the monkey who had the wonderful task of carrying the Universal Key. Nick had mentioned to her that he felt sorry for anyone who had to carry it.
"Lifting that is like trying to bench-press with broken arms" were the words he'd chosen, which had made her giggle despite her general aversion to morbid jokes and comparisons.
Ed then lifted all five of his fingers and, after a quick glance backwards to make sure everyone was paying attention, moved his thumb into his palm, leaving four standing.
A countdown Judy thought, as she inhaled deeply in a vain attempt to calm her growing nervousness
Another finger slipped out of view.
Three
Nick had already drawn his tranq-gun, but had to fumble around in his pocket to find the dart he had placed in there in case he forgot to load his gun. Which was almost every time he used it, much to Judy's annoyance.
Two
Judy's ears began to pick up voices. There were about five separate voices, with one booming over the rest. That must be the wolf. It sounded reasonable, so her mind accepted it.
One
Nick leant over, ready to make a mad dash for the literal light at the end of the tunnel. He smiled to himself. No need to be making jokes on the job! No matter how funny they are!
Zero
The whole team sprang forward in unison, taking the gang completely by surprise. They were gathered around a large table, some with chairs, and other on their feet.
"ZPD! Put your paws in the air and back away from the table!" Judy yelled, her time of police training never failing to help her. They spread out from the entrance, tranqs levelled and batons raised.
Two of the animals who were on their feet immediately threw their paws up and took a few steps back. One of the ones sitting down was so shocked that he fell off his chair, and the last two stood up, throwing their chairs aside, charged the officers.
One of them was the wolf.
They were both instantly tranquilized.
Ed stepped over the animals that had their fuzzy backs against the wall and cuffed both of them, while Nick did the same for the one on the floor, who had knocked himself out.
It was over far quicker than Judy had anticipated, and she was almost disappointed, she didn't even get to do anything.
Well, not yet, anyways.
After cuffing all of the gang members, Ed turned to face Judy and Nick, who were standing near the main entrance talking about random things.
"Hopps, Wilde" They both turned to face him.
"I need you two to go check that side passage over there" He pointed to a dark tunnel off to the side.
Nick looked genuinely annoyed for a moment, before his usual demeanour reasserted itself and he sighed.
"Yeah, we'll do it, right Carrots?"
"Yes!" Judy exclaimed, excited that she actually got to do something other stand around and attempt to look intimidating.
And so they set off down the side tunnel, flashlights in paw and confidence in mind. They walked in silence for a few minutes, even passing through a thick metal door that had been left slightly ajar. It didn't take long for Judy to slowly start pulling ahead of Nick, until she suddenly stopped, causing Nick to run into her back.
He grunted before speaking: "Jeez Carrots, why'd you stop so suddenly?"
She didn't seem to acknowledge him; instead she continued to walk down the tunnel, towards the doorway Nick had failed to notice before. However, he did notice a red light on the ceiling. The more he looked at it, the more of it he could see. And he then realised that the light was coming from a small box on the ceiling.
Then, as Judy passed under it, the light switched from red to green, and a low whine filled his ears. That's when he realised what it was. But before he could say anything, the small box exploded throwing him backwards. In the small window of time before the ceiling collapsed, he saw Judy be thrown forwards and roll to her feet as if she expected it.
The last thing he saw of her was her large, violet eyes looking at him with fear.
As the bomb went off, Judy was hurled off her small feet and into the room she had been approaching. She instinctively rolled to her feet and looked back down the tunnel. She saw Nick, lying on his back, but looking at her. She seriously considered sprinting over to him when the ceiling came crashing down, trapping her in a dark room.
It wasn't pitch black but instead a small caged light sat in the centre of the ceiling, casting an ominous red hue throughout the room. She noticed that there was a thick layer of dust coating everything. She turned around and took a few steps forwards before her foot fell on something smooth but cold, as she put pressure on that foot whatever had been under it was pushed out from under her, causing her to slip over and flat on her behind.
Her eyes scanned the room, looking for the object, and found it rather quickly due to its reflective surface. She stood up, walked over to it, and picked it up. As she looked at it, her mind slowly figured out what it was.
A bullet casing? But ballistic weapons have been outlawed for decades!
She had only seen these in one of the Zootopian museum's many sections on ancient species.
As she thought this, her eyes began to well up, as she began to realise what had happened.
"I'm never going to see my family again… or Clawhauster… or… or… Nick" she thought to herself. And with the mention of her partner, she broke down into sobs as she pressed her back to the nearby wall and slid down on to the cold floor.
Come to think of it, everything in here is a little cold in here her subconscious told her, but she was too busy crying to pay attention. She lifted her visor to put her paws to her eyes and cry more.
"I'm going to die in here!" She cried out to no-one.
Oh come on! Her subconscious yelled at her. You're Judy Hopps, the first ever rabbit officer and the one who brought down one of the biggest conspiracies the city has ever known on your first week on the job! Stop thinking like that!
"Th-that's right!" Her mind whimpered back, feeling a little better about herself.
Alright! Now, take a good long breath in and out. It'll calm you down faster.
Despite her starting to think she was going crazy, she did it anyway.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Rinse and repeat.
When she opened her eyes, however, she noticed something odd about her breath.
"I can see it… why can I see it?" Her mind raced, trying to figure it out.
Maybe because it's cold? Like I told you earlier?
She rolled her eyes. Her subconscious was starting to sound like Nick. She looked around for the source of the cold, and her eyes fell on a doorway leading off into God knows where. She stood up, wiped her eyes, pushed her visor back down into place and walked over to the doorway.
As she looked down the tunnel, she saw something at the other end.
Light… well… that seems promising.
She ignored her subconscious and stepped into the relative darkness, the red hue only lighting the way for a little while as she advanced further down the tunnel. She grabbed her flashlight and turned it on, allowing her to see things perfectly. It was this 'perfect lighting' that allowed her to notice something about the walls. They weren't smoothed off like normal Zootopian walls were. No, these were the kind of rough, poor quality walls she expected from a drunk construction worker.
It wasn't long before she reached the end of the tunnel, and the sight before her was stunning. There were strange cylinders lining the walls, five on each side and all at an angle. They all had what looked like a small, primitive looking computer next to them, but they were too high for her too see properly. The fronts of the cylinders also had a large 'door' on a hinge that was facing upwards and outwards.
All except for one.
This one's door was closed and, by the looks of it, frozen over. As she approached, a light came on from the small computer by the side, with something red flashing across it. She looked around, and saw a box that she promptly shoved in front of the computer so she could see the screen. There was no keyboard, so she assumed it was touch-screen.
After clearing the dust off the screen, she could see that there was a box covering most of the screen, with a small box in the bottom left-paw corner. It had what looked like a heartbeat monitor on it, which displayed the usual heartbeat of something alive. The rest of the screen was filled with a box that had a red flashing message on it.
It read:
WARNING:
Critical power loss.
Activate emergency hatch release?
It then displayed two boxes at the bottom, one green with 'yes' and the other being red with 'no'. She didn't want to have to deal with anything attacking her so she pressed 'no', and the first vanished only to be replaced by another.
This one read.
WARNING:
Cryogenic Pod No.7 is still in use.
Not engaging hatch release will ensure current occupant's death.
Are you sure?
That really tugged on her heart-strings. She didn't want to kill an innocent mammal. She went back on her decision and pressed 'no', then 'yes' on the original.
The screen displayed:
Affirmative.
Engaging hatch release….
As the door opened, she got a good look at what was inside. Whatever it was, it was tall. At least three times her height. It wore tan coloured overalls, with bits of black body armour covering the feet, lower legs, chest, arms, shoulders, the back of it's paws and it's head. It's helmet was almost identical to hers, it even had a visor, but she could tell, despite the frost that coated it, that it was golden.
Her mind suddenly came to a startling realisation. The height, the body shape, even the fingers, all matched some of the bones of a creature she had seen in Zootopia's museum.
They matched one of the only animals to ever obtain the classification of 'Super Predator'.
One of the only ones that is widely believed to have dominated the planet for thousands of years.
One of the only ones that scientists have said that if they were still around, Zootopia would be destroyed.
It was Human.
And it was alive.
