Chapter 1: Long Odds
"Come on, say it."
"No"
"Come on Carrots."
"No way Nick, it wasn't a fair bet."
The vulpine snorted, as he turned his gaze toward his partner. For the past hour, the pair had been cruising the streets of downtown Zootopia as they went about their patrol. It had been a quite night and for the past hour, a steady rain had fallen. Comfortably ensconced in their cruiser, they had avoided the worst of the weather. If it weren't for the all-encompassing boredom, it would have been a pleasant night.
Nick raised his eyebrows at the doe, as one ear flicked over his shoulder. Judy clenched her teeth and sucked in a breath.
"Fine. Laverne," she said through a grimace.
Nick smirked in his oh so frustrating way, and took a sip of his coffee. He nodded.
Pulling over to the side of the street, she turned to look at the vexing vulpine.
"Nick, what are you thinking," Judy hissed.
Nick adopted a shocked expression, putting a paw to his chest as if to say, "What me?"
Judy's ears fell behind her back as her head slumped into the steering wheel.
"I was just thinking that your middle name is just too cu..."
Judy cut him off by raising a warning finger, "Don't..."
Nick protested, "Hey, I didn't say anything about YOU being cute. I was just going to say that your middle NAME was cute."
Judy bumped her head against the wheel again.
"Dumb fox," she muttered under breath.
Nick snickered as he took another sip of his drink. He didn't plan on pushing his partner any more for the time being. Any good hustler could tell you that the important thing wasn't how often you could pull one over a mark, it was how much mileage you could get out of them. He chuckled again, unable to help himself, and said "Judith Laverne Hopps."
Judy sighed in frustration. In the one and a half years since the fox had become her partner, she had learned to deal with his constant teases and needling. In truth, she found those traits rather endearing, but tonight she couldn't stay engaged in their usual banter. The conversation they had earlier in the day as they headed into work was still troubling her. The boring patrol hadn't helped, as the rain and long periods of silence lent themselves a little too well towards the type of introspection she was trying to avoid. She found herself wishing for something to happen, just to let her work out some of her frustration.
As if on cue, their cruisers' radio chirped.
"Dispatch to cruiser 113, please respond"
Clawhauser's voice came like a ray of sunshine to the gloomy rabbit, as she leaned over to collect the remote speaker from the cruiser's console.
"Officer Hopps, what's the situation, over."
"We just received a report of a 10-91 over off Chestnut and Stork. Please respond."
Judy frowned, "Copy. Officers Hopps and Wilde en route."
She turned to her partner, whose ears had fallen all the way back on his head. He reached a hand up to scratch the spot behind his head between his ears, and swallowed.
"Uh carrots, isn't that what I think it is?"
Judy nodded, "Predator gone savage."
Nick swallowed again. Reaching back beneath the seat of their cruiser, he retrieved the elephant grade tranquilizer guns. Meanwhile Judy sped the Cruiser towards their destination, turning on the siren and light bar on top their cruiser. A predator gone savage, she thought, her anxiety making itself known as a fluttering in her chest, and ice in her bowels. To think that only a moment ago, she had been wishing for something exciting to happen. "Dumb Bunny," she muttered under her breath.
They reached the junction of Chestnut and Stork in less than five minutes. Nick had to give his partner credit where it was do. The bunny could drive. Tossing open the door, Nick slid down his seat to the ground. His partner did likewise on the opposite side of the cruiser, and together, they assessed the situation.
This section of town, called Old Zootopia by the cities' residents, had once been the very image of grace and sophistication. The architecture harkened back to an age of ostentatious displays of wealth, with stained glass windows and wrought iron balconies jutting out of the two story homes. Over the years, the wealthier element of the city had gone elsewhere to build their homes, and Old Zootopia fell into disrepair. Many mammals still called this part of town home, but its former grandeur was lost as the maintenance costs of the elaborate decorations far outstripped its resident's ability to pay. Now, Old Zootopia stood as a testament to times gone by.
A tinny roar ripped through the night air, as the rain continued to fall. Both cops swiveled to get their bearings, and Judy pointed, her sense of hearing being better suited to navigating towards the bouncing echoes still reverberating in the air. The pair set off, tranquilizers at the ready.
Judy took point, and gestured for her partner to keep quiet, and cover her back. In truth, such gestures were hardly necessary. Over the years, they had learned to anticipate each other's moves, and Nick fell into his role as support, his greater height allowing him a clear line of sight over his more diminutive partner. There was another roar, as well as the sound of scrapping talons on sheet metal, which left a buzzing in Judy's sensitive ears. The sound had come from an alley between two sets of old houses, their paint peeling from the brick in fat strips. Pressing her form against the crumbling porch of a nearby house, she lowered her ears and gasped at the scene in front of her.
The creature, for it could not be confused for a mammal, was crouched over the prostrate form of some kind of white furred mammal. Instead of fur, the creature was covered in some kind of black carapace. Its front arms ending in wickedly sharp looking hooks. The creature was using those hooks to maul the poor mammal under it, dripping spittle from a maw ringed in sharp fangs. Once again, the creature bellowed out its roar, the alien sound sending a shiver of pure terror down Judy's spine. Judy heard the sharp intake of breath from Nick as he too saw the creature, and they locked eyes.
"What… what the hell is that," Nick whispered, his eyes wide, ears lying flat on his skull.
"I don't know," Judy shot back, "But we have a duty to serve and protect."
Nick nodded, blew out a breath, and shouldered the tranquilizer. Judy did likewise, and took aim. Judy had always been a good shot. Living on a farm, she had learned to shoot at the tender age of 5 years. Her father teaching her the basics, bracing the weapon, letting out her breathe, and easing the trigger back. Her shot was good, the dart from her rifle snapping directly into the creature's side. Unfortunately, the dart, failing to penetrate the creature's thick carapace, bounced into a nearby wall, and fell harmlessly to the ground. The creature snapped its attention up to the two officers, and roared.
Nick took that moment to fire his own shot. Though he too struck the target, his dart had no more effect on the nightmare before them than his partners. He barely had time to register the miss before the beast charged the two cops. Realizing that their paltry cover would not offer much protection from such a large and powerful creature, both officers turned to flee from the oncoming behemoth. The porch barley slowed the creature as it simply barreled through the cracked concrete, spraying the two with fragments of shattered stone. The pair made it back to Chestnut before the creature caught up to them. With a crouch on its six spider like legs, the creature leapt for the officers, as they dove out of the way.
Judy dropped her elephant tranquiller, and pulled down her shoulder remote. She keyed the device and hoped Clawhauser wasn't screwing around like the last time she and her partner were being chased by a savage predator. "Clawhauser, we need backup. There is a massive… thing tearing up Old Zootopia. Tranquilizers are ineffective, we are engaging with deadly force," and then she added, "One civilian is wounded or dead."
Clawhausers voice came back a moment later, much to Judy's relief, "Ok. Hold on tight Hopps, the cavalry is on its way."
After dodging to the side, Nick noted that the creature had managed to tear large chunks of asphalt out of the street. Dropping the tranquilizer, he reached for his service pistol, and began firing into the beast. The rounds impacted on the creature's side, with small puffs of green ichor. While his pistol seemed to be having more of an impact than the tranquilizer darts, Nick doubted it would make much of a difference to the beast in from of him.
"So. Uhh, I know you're pretty upset about this. But…"
Nick didn't get to finish his sentence. The creature swiped out a hooked claw, and Nick barely managed to avoid losing an arm. Instead, the last three inches of his pistol's barrel fell, clanking heavily on the asphalt.
"Hopps," Nick squealed, as the eyes of the creature fell on him.
Something slammed into the creatures head, causing it to turn its head and hiss. Nick heard the loud bangs of another service pistol as Judy began firing at the creature. It opened its jaws, and crouched down for another leap. Time seemed to slow for the fox, as he saw clearly what the beast had in mind. He knew that Judy's pistol would no more stop it than his, and throwing caution to the wind, Nick crouched on all fours, and bounded forward.
Judy's pistol snapped open as the last round was fired. Before she had time to reload, the creature leapt toward her again, impossibly fast. If not for the fact that something had collided with the beast in mid- flight, and her own instinctive step backwards, it would have crushed her beneath its weight. That something turned out to Nick, who was precariously holding on to the back of the creature.
"Carrots," the vulpine yelled, "Do something!"
Judy saw that Nick wouldn't be able to continue his desperation fueled ride for long. While she was sure the ZPD would be responding in as quick a timeframe as possible, they wouldn't arrive before Nick was smeared into the concrete. She had to do something, but what could she do? Her only weapons were infective, and the only tools at her disposal were her flashlight, radio, and … that.
Nick lost track of his partner as he tried to stay on top the rampaging creature. While he was able to avoid the hooked claws directly, the creature continued to buffet him with jabs from its many legs as it tried to buck him off its rain slicked back. With no better idea than to hang on, Nick gritted his teeth, and hoped his partner had an idea.
Judy sprinted to the cruiser, and placed the keys in the ignition. The cruiser's enormous engine roared to life, and she pushed the gas pedal all the way to the floor as she slammed the clutch into gear. The car lurched forward, directly towards the creature.
Nick heard the engine gunning, and turned in time to see smoke pouring off its back tires. Realizing Judy's plan, he yelled as he let the creature buck him off, just as the cruiser slammed into it. Nick hit the ground with a gasp of pain as his shoulder collided with the wet asphalt. He turned and saw the creature punch its hooks into the hood of the cruiser, killing the engine. However, the momentum of the cruiser continued to push the creature, until it impacted a low stone fence in front on a moss covered building. There was a wet crunch as the creature was smashed between the fence and the cruiser, and both came to a bone jarring halt. Nick let out a little noise from the back of his throat, as he dashed to the side of the cruiser. Peering inside, he saw Judy dazed, with her airbag deployed. She shook her head, smiling at Nick and said, "Hello officer, what seems to be the trouble?"
Nick laughed nervously, and shook his head at Judy. He checked her over, making certain she had no serious injuries. While he was looking her over, Nick noticed the smell of gasoline and motor oil coming from beneath the crushed engine block of the cruiser. Deciding she wasn't sporting a broken neck, Nick helped her out of the cruiser and onto her feet.
"What the hell was that thing," he asked, looking towards the crashed vehicle.
Judy winced as she placed her weight on her right foot, and shook her head. Nick went to her side, wrapping his arm around her waist in order to help her move.
"I don't know."
"Smart thinking with the cruiser."
Judy winced again, but not because of the pain this time. She wasn't looking forward to explaining to the chief why she intentionally wrecked their cruiser. Hopped up on endorphins as she was, even she wasn't loopy enough to look forward to that conversation. Judy looked up to Nick to explain as much, but stopped when she heard the unmistakable sound of screeching metal and shattering glass as their cruiser was flipped on to its roof.
"Oh sweet fluffy Lord," Judy swore.
The creature stood, its foremost legs crushed to a green and black goo by the cruiser. It roared in menace as it pushed the wrecked cruiser out of its way as if it weighed nor more than bushel of carrots.
"You cannot be serious," Nick said, as he tugged on his ear with is one free paw. Looking down at his partner, he realized there was no escape for them. Judy was too hurt to run, and he would rather die with her, than leave her behind. He laughed a bitter laugh as he saw her come to a similar conclusion. Their only hope lay in him delaying until the ZPD's reinforcements arrived. Giving his partner one more squeeze, Nick turned to face the creature as it started lumbering towards them. Reaching down, he plucked up one of the dropped tranquilizers, intending to use it as a club.
"Sir, I am gonna have to ask you to put your hands behind your head," Nick drawled. He gripped the impromptu club by the barrel, and readied himself for a fight.
Judy began shakily to load her tranquilizer dart pistol. Although she had lost her service pistol in the car crash, and the weapon wasn't nearly powerful enough to harm such a large creature, she refused to be helpless prey. Apparently she had broken her left arm when the cruiser hit the wall, only noticing it now that she was moving it around. She bit back a scream of pain, as she forced the broken limb to do her bidding. Slowly, she started to feed the magazine into the pistol, right when the creature charged.
Nick was able to turn aside the first blow of the creatures left hook, but only by turning the point of the attack into the ground. The hook bit deep into the asphalt, and the fox stepped into the creature's reach. It clearly hadn't expected him to engage so deeply, and it over extended its next attack, narrowly missing Nick's bushy tail. Nick brought the tranquilizer down in an over-head blow, driving the creatures head to the ground. He whooped in victory, but was too late to notice the creatures' left hook as it pulled it free of the asphalt.
Judy screamed as she saw the back of the creatures left hook connect with her partner, launching him with blistering speed into the short stone wall she was crouching behind. Hustling as best she could over the short wall, Judy crouched down by her partner. Blood was dripping out of Nick's nose, and there was a large bloody spot starting to matt the fur between his ears. He was breathing however, and she thought he would hold. Turning to face the oncoming creature, she leveled her pistol shakily at the lumbering hulk.
"Oh no you don't," said a male voice Judy had not heard before. Turning her head slightly, so as to keep the creature in her vision, she saw that the sides of her building and the one across the alley from her were reflecting a brilliant white glow, as if from one of the flashlights commonly carried by the ZPD on night patrol. Then, without warning, a violent arc of electricity struck the side of the creature, flinging it back on top of the ruined cruiser in a violent boom.
From out of the alley stepped the mammal she had seen being mauled by the beast earlier. She now saw that he was a fox, though shorter than Nick, and entirely white. Despite the savage thrashing he had been the recipient of, it appeared that he was not harmed in the least. Dressed in jeans and t-shirt, he was otherwise unremarkable, except that his fur seemed to be faintly incandescent. In one paw, the vulpine carried a stick, made of carved wood. In the other, he held some sort of crystal on the end of a leather thong. She saw that light was shining out of the crystal in a steady, but powerful glow. The creature started to stagger its way back up, hissing and drooling from its toothy maw. The white vulpine gestured towards the creature, as light began to glow softly from his fur.
"Lucendi," the fox yelled as another arc of electricity leapt from the length of wood he held upraised, and slammed into the creature, followed by the crack of thunder. Judy shut her eyes, and tried her best to cover her unconscious partner as she saw the electricity arcing into the pool of gasoline, now covering a large section of the street immediately surrounding their crushed vehicle. The heat wave that blossomed as electricity met fuel caused a sudden pain along Judy's exposed skin. Feeling as if she had gotten a sun burn across her entire body, she turned once more to the scene in front of her.
Their cruiser, as well as a good part of the street around it, was on fire. The creature had somehow disappeared, but the white vulpine was still where he had been a moment before, now wearing startled expression, mouth slightly agape.
"Ok. That wasn't my fault," the vulpine whined. He turned to look towards the two officers, his ears dropping much as Nicks did when he was embarrassed. Judy aimed her pistol at the vulpine, and said with as much authority as she could muster, "Freeze."
The white furred fox looked from her to the pistol in her hands, and back again. Dropping the long piece of wood into the crook of his shoulder and held up his hands. Looking her directly in the eyes, he clapped his hands. Every light on the street suddenly went out, leaving the street in near total darkness, save for the soft flickering of flame. Apparently, the vulpine intended to escape under cover of darkness, as Judy heard him start to sneak off back down the alley from which he had come. Of course the vulpine hadn't counted on Judy's superior hearing, and with a grimace, Judy fired her tranquilizer dart into the fleeing fox's backside. Turning to stare back at her incredulously, the fox raised his eyebrows as if to say "Really," before he collapsed unconscious to the ground.
Judy turned back to her partner, now that the immediate threat had been resolved, and started tending to his wounds. It was harder than she had expected, with her leg and arm, but she managed to stop the bleeding, and ensure to herself that we wasn't in any fatal danger. Sighing, she slumped back against the wall waiting, as she finally heard the reassuring sound of approaching sirens.
