ZOOTOPIA: RECKLESS ENDANGERMENT

Disclaimer: Obviously, I do not Zootopia, although some of the OC's in this work are derivative of characters from an original novel that I am working on, and hope to have published at some point. All right s to Zootopia belong to Disney, because, you know, legal stuff.

Author's note: Also, since it's never established exactly what kind of calendar system they have in the Zootopia universe, I'm going to use the International Fixed Calendar, because in this universe, animals don't share all of the same superstitions and religious beliefs that Humans have. Sure, the animals may believe in a god, but it's clearly not the same as the Abrahamic god worshiped by Christians, Jews, and Muslims, because, you know, humans and other primates never evolved in Zootopia. Also, I'm just guessing that the film takes place either before, during, or after the year in which it was released, either in 2015, 2016, or 2017. One of those three years, I'm guessing. This story takes place three years after the end of the film. Also, the continent/country of Reptaelia is basically Australia, but with a different name. It's... it's Australia. Also, the usage of the word 'people' in this story does not refer to humans, but instead refers to any sentient animals in general.

Also, I wrote this while listening to the soundtracks for the Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, and Gremlins films, by Michael Kamen (Lethal Weapon and Die Hard) and Jerry Goldsmith (Gremlins). These were all very influential on my writing and the development of the story.

UPDATE 05/18/2016: I have changed the year from 2019 to 2018, as the events of the movie took place in 2015.

UPDATE 07/02/2016: While the majority of Zootopia took place in 2015, the final scene, with Nick's graduation, must have taken place in 2016, and since Magnum Fur takes place in 2017, this means that I must once again update my story to take place three years after Nick's graduation, so now everything takes place in 2019 again.

Chapter 01: Visitor From Reptaelia

Date: Monday, May 9th, 2019

Near a boardwalk at the edge of Sygnalios, the capital city of Reptaelia, various sentient reptiles, avians, and mammals went about their business. While almost all mammals had evolved to become sentient at some point thousands of years prior, reptiles and birds had a much narrower selection of sentient species. Snakes, for instance, never evolved to have sentience, and most crocodilians remained unchanged. Tuataras, the last remaining extant species of their genus, had evolved sentience, as did certain types of lizards, with the most prominent ones being monitor lizards. Chameleons remained un-sentient, as did Gila Monsters and skinks. Gecko's had evolved to become sentient, and so did most iguana species. Most terrapins were also sentient.

While some continents, such as Pangeosia, the home of Zootopia, and Eurasia had varying populations of mostly mammals with some reptiles and birds, Reptaelia was mostly home to reptiles, with mammals being in the minority, despite having more sentient species than reptiles and birds. Insects and arachnids remained un-sentient, because something had to remain constant in the universe. Also unlike most other places on Earth, Reptaelia was home to large venomous spiders that liked to hide in people's toilets. For that alone, Reptaelia was often considered the most terrifying place to live on the planet by outsiders, and the continent's residents agreed.

Of course, unlike other locations of civilization, Reptaelia was also filled with nonsentient animals, such as Salt Water Crocodiles and various pythons, that enjoyed eating anyone dumb enough to enter a watering hole without performing a basic safety check. In most civilized places, the only nonsentient organisms were insects, arachnids, and fish. Indeed, in Reptaelia, everything was capable of killing you, and that included the sentient and civilized locals.

This evening, in fact, one such local was very close to having that happen to them. Near the start of the boardwalk, overlooking the beach, a white-throated monitor named Lawrence Albigul kept a clawed hand to his snout as he glanced around the corner of a shack and watched two dingoes and three large monitor lizards, Komodo immigrants no doubt, hold a frightened rabbit against a fence.

The dingoes were wearing leather jackets, while two of the Komodo dragons were wearing large dusters, and the third, and largest dragon, was wearing a black suit and tie. His tongue flicked about in the air near the rabbit's face before retreating into his mouth as he somehow managed a simultaneous smile and scowl at the brown-furred rabbit he was holding up against the fence.

"Now," the largest of the dragons asked, "Where is my money, Flannigan?" "I, I told you, I'll h-have it b-by Wednesday. Th-that was the deal!" Flannigan replied. "Tch, tch, tch. Last Wednesday, Flannigan. Last Wednesday. I've given you four extra days to give me my money, without interest, I might add." "P-Please, Komo, I just need a little more time!" Flannigan begged. "You should have said that last Wednesday, Flanny. Instead, you run around half the continent, leading us on a wild chase, and you make us think that you're trying to leave or something without saying goodbye," Komo stated.

"I-I was just trying to get more money for you," Flannigan lied. He had, indeed, been trying to get out of the country, but nearly every place that he ran to either had a waiting list or had no available transports at the time that he had arrived, and Komo Domo had been hot on his trail after he had failed to show up at the designated meeting place the previous week. "I gave money to you to borrow, and I have given you at least three extensions on the deadline, yet I see no money. Flannigan, you're a terrible liar," Komo said.

"P-Please, just one more chance!" Flannigan begged, sweat pouring down his fur and tears streaming down his eyes. Komo closed his eyes and appeared to enter a state of deep thought for a minute, before he opened them and stared into Flannigan's eyes with a cold and merciless gaze. "How about... no," Komo said with a nasty grin as he curled his lips to reveal his teeth. Flannigan gasped as Komo slowly moved his mouth forward, opening his jaws to let the rabbit see the rows upon rows of sharp teeth heading towards him.

"Please, Komo! Please, no!" Flannigan begged. "Too late," one of the dingoes said with a wicked grin. The other dingo, a female, chuckled. "Please, somebody help! Somebody, please he-aacck!" Flannigan cried as Komo's mouth bit down on his neck. Flannigan gasped as Komo held his jaws on tight a for a full sixty seconds before he gently removed his mouth and took away only a small amount of flesh.

"Flannigan, do you know that we Komodo Dragons are venomous? I'll bet you didn't know that, did you? Not many people do. Most people like to assume that we simply have poor hygiene, but the fact is that we are indeed venomous," Komo said with a grin as he let go of the rabbit and let him fall down and slump against the fence. Flannigan looked up at Komo before touching his neck with his right paw, lifting it away to reveal the blood. "H-How... v-venomous?" Flannigan asked him fearfully. "Not as much as a wild viper, but enough to incapacitate you and kill you if left untreated. At the very least, with your small size, you'll soon begin experiencing paralysis. And with how much I just gave you, it'll start taking effect very soon," Komo said with a smile.

"You won't feel much, at first," Komo grinned. "At... first?" Flannigan asked. "Oh yes. We aren't going to wait for my venom to work its way through your entire body before we finish you, so I'll give you an option. Do you want to bite the bullet or wait for us to eat you?" Komo asked. Over by the shack, Lawrence's eyes widened. Consumption of sentient prey by sentient predators was considered to be a barbaric and heinous crime in every part of the world, especially if the prey was consumed while still conscious or even remotely alive at all.

"Now, come on, Flanny. It isn't that hard to choose. Instant death or painful suffering?" Komo asked with a chuckle. "P-Please, isn't there another way?" Flannigan asked him. "No," Komo said sternly before he pulled a small derringer out of his pocket and handed it to Flannigan.

"Here," Komo said before setting it down in front of the rabbit. "Go on. Take it," Komo said as Flannigan struggled to move his arms and grabbed the small pistol. Flannigan tried to raise the gun, but his arms soon fell limp. "I-I can't! Please, I can't lift it!" Flannigan cried. "Aw, hear that? He can't bite the bullet," Komo said as he narrowed his eyes at Flannigan.

"What a shame," the male dingo said with a smile. "Well, fellas, time to eat," Komo said. The other two dragons walked over and knelt down in front of the rabbit, opening their mouths as Komo picked up Flannigan and began eating first. Soon, Flannigan's cries of horror pierced the night sky, and Lawrence Albigul had to will himself to stay in place lest he alert the feasting monitors to his presence. He glanced over at the dock and then to back of the fence behind him before he saw a small hole, just large enough for him to crawl through. He glanced back over at the grisly murder scene, Flannigan's cries having stopped.

Lawrence gulped and lunged for the hole, grunting in pain as part of the fence scraped his arms while he clawed his way to the other side. He got up and began running on all fours through the underbrush, not bothering to look back and see if anyone had noticed him. Unfortunately, the two dingoes had seen him.

"Uh, boss," Zack Bandit, the male dingo, said with a raised paw. "What?" Komo asked as he took a bite out of Flannigan's left leg, holding it in one clawed hand. His subordinates were finishing off the rest of the rabbit's carcass. "I think we may have been seen by an interloper," Zack said. "Pred or prey?" Komo asked the dingo. "Reptile, I think," Bandit replied. "All reptiles are predators of sorts," Komo said. "I think it was a lizard, maybe a monitor of some kind," Bandit said.

"Follow them, and find out how much they saw. Keep them quiet," Komo said. "Of course," Bandit said with a grin. "Let's go, Maulia," Bandit said to the female dingo. "I love the thrill of the hunt," Maulia Barbaros said. "Me too," Bandit agreed.

Date: Monday, May 23rd, 2019

In Savanna Central, a police cruiser sat parked near a restaurant. Inside the cruiser, a gray female rabbit scanned the streets, watching for any lawbreakers. Sitting next to her, a male red fox leaned back in his seat with a pair of shades over his eyes. "Hey, Carrots," he said. The rabbit made no reply. "Carrots?" he asked again. Still no reply.

"Are you still mad at me?" he asked her. The rabbit briefly turned her head to glare at him before returning her attention to the empty street. "Look, I said I was sorry," the fox, one Nicholas Piberius Wilde, said earnestly. "I really am," he said. "Uh huh," his partner, one Judy Hopps, said with seeming uninterest. "Carrots... Judy, please. I didn't think that Bogo would get so upset over a harmless little prank like that," Nick said. Last Friday, he had placed a whoopee cushion on Chief Bogo's chair as a prank. As a result, after Bogo found out who did it, he and Judy had been assigned parking duty for a full week.

"I thought you would have known better after three years of working with him," Judy said. "Come on, it's not like that was the first time anyone had placed a whoopee cushion on his office chair," Nick said. "Nick, it isn't so much that you did that, as it was the day you did it. Last Friday was the anniversary of the day his first wife died. If you'd done it a day or two earlier, maybe he wouldn't have reacted quite so harshly," Judy replied while turning to look at her partner.

"Sorry. I didn't know," Nick said. "You didn't know? How could you not know?" Judy asked him. "Um... quite easily. I don't exactly go around asking people about their married life, Carrots. Hell, I didn't even know that he was married until his wife brought their son into the department to see him a few weeks back. Come on, how am I supposed to know that he was married twice!?" Nick asked her.

"Well... you could always ask," Judy suggested. "Ask? Carrots, I don't think that Bogo will willingly divulge information about his marriage to someone just because they ask him, especially not an officer who is frequently on his shit list," Nick replied. "You aren't on his crap list," Judy said. "Yes, I am, Carrots," Nick retorted.

"No, you aren't," Jud insisted. "Well, if you're so sure, why don't you go ask Chief Bogo if I'm not on the list?" Nick asked her. Judy narrowed her eyes at him. "Okay, maybe we can ask Clawhauser. He seems to know pretty much everything about everyone working in the station," Nick said.

"He didn't know that Lisker was in charge of a ring of vigilante cops until the day they were exposed," Judy said. "Oh yeah, I remember that," Nick said with a frown. "Four cops dead, two arrested, and one in a hospital before it was all over," he said bitterly.

"Yeah," Judy said, remembering how many of their fellow officers had treated Nick after he'd been framed by Lisker's group for the assault of Officer Furrero and the murder of Sergeant Hooper. "Yeah, and then I was promoted to Chief overnight and given the biggest bonus that you ever did see," Nick added sarcastically. "Of course, which is why you still take orders from Bogo," Judy said with a smirk.

"So, want some music?" Nick asked as he reached to turn on the radio. "Sure, but use your phone. I'd rather not get written up for not hearing anything on our channel," Judy requested. Nick nodded his head and plugged his phone into the speaker system. "Aaaaannnd... here's one I haven't heard in a while," Nick said before pressing play.

"Hot town, summer in the city! Back of my neck getting dirt and gritty," sang a male voice. Judy's ears rose. "Nick... what is this?" She asked him. "Been down, isn't it a pity? Doesn't seem to be a shadow in the city!" "Music," was Nick's simple reply. "Uh-huh," Judy said as she listened to the song. Truth be told, she was more of a modern pop fan.

"All around, people looking half dead, walking on the sidewalk, hotter than a match heeaadd!" "Um, so, Judy..." Nick began. Judy turned to look at him. "Yes?" she asked him. "Running night, it's a different world. Go on out and find a girl! Come on, come on and dance all night! Come on, come on it'll be all right." "Would you... like to, maybe, go to that new... Chinese place that opened up two months ago in Tundra Town?" Nick asked her with only the slightest hint of nervousness in his voice.

"Um... sure," Judy replied. "Cool," Nick said, slightly nervous. "Cool down, meeting in the city, dressin' so fine and lookin' so pretty! Cool cat lookin' for a kitty! Gonna look in every corner of the city!" "Oh, are you paying?" Judy asked him. "Um, of course," Nick replied.

"This is dispatch. We have a report of suspicious activity and or persons near Central Station. Requesting available units to investigate, over," Clawhauser said over the radio. "Roger, this is Unit Seven-Alpha-Eight-Nine, heading there now to investigate," Nick said as he grabbed the radio and responded. "Affirmative, Seven-Alpha-Eight Nine, over."

"Well, let's get going," he said as Judy put started the engine and pulled out of their parking spot to drive the cruiser toward Central Station. "Um, Carrots? You missed the turn on Fourth street," Nick pointed out to her. "Cheese and crackers!" Judy exclaimed. "Oh, Carrots, you really need to learn how to swear properly," Nick said with a smile. "Can it, Nick," Judy said with a grin as she took a left turn and made her way towards Central Station.

One More Missed Turn and Three Minutes Searching For a Proper Parking Spot Later...

Judy and Nick walked into the station, looking around at everyone going about their business as usual. "Do you... see any suspicious activity here?" Nick asked Judy as he glanced around the station, looking at the various animals that were talking with one another and just walking around. "No, nothing yet. Let's go the security desk and ask about who placed the call," Judy suggested. "Good idea," Nick said as he scanned the station.

They approached one of the security desks and looked at the old, gray-furred wolf who was sitting behind it and reading a magazine. "Um, hello," Judy said. "Hi," the wolf said, keeping his eyes on his magazine. "Um, we received a report about a suspicious person or activity a little bit ago. Could you tell us who called it in?" Judy asked.

"It was that old goat over there," the wolf said, pointing at an old female goat and her two sheep friends, sitting on a bench, staring frightfully out at the various commuters arriving at the station and wandering the various snack stands. Again, the wolf had kept his eyes on his magazine the whole time. "I'll go speak to her," Judy said as she walked towards the goat and sheep.

"So, anything that you've seen yourself?" Nick asked the wolf. "I caught some kids smoking grass over by the bathrooms, but that's not really suspicious," the wolf said. Nick raised an eyebrow. "I also caught a jaguar who'd flashed a giraffe earlier, but aside from that, nothing unusual or suspicious has happened today," the wolf said as he flipped a page in his magazine.

Nick took a closer look at the magazine that the older male was reading. "Hey, is that PlayMale?" Nick asked him. "Sure is," the wolf replied with a grin. Nick glanced over at Judy before returning his attention to the wolf. "So, which month, and who's the centerfold?" Nick asked him. "April, and look for yourself," the wolf said as he flipped the magazine around, keeping a digit on the page he'd been reading while showing Nick that month's naked female, who was a very beautiful snow leopard.

"Well, hot damn," Nick said under his breath. "Yep," the wolf said before turning the magazine around and resuming his reading. "Quite a pose she had, eh?" the wolf asked him. "Oh... definitely," Nick replied, his pants beginning to feel tight. "Um, I'm gonna... go over there," Nick said as he walked towards Judy, who was talking to the goat and her friends.

"And I could see his beady eyes as he stalked around, no doubt looking for something to steal. Dingoes; they're as bad as foxes," the female goat said. "Uh-huh," Judy said flatly, keeping her distaste for the goat's bigotry in check. "I thought this place was supposed to be safe, but if they let one of them 'down under' folk run around in here, we're gonna have trouble, just you watch," the old goat said. "You said it, Betty," one of the sheep said.

"Anything else you noticed about him?" Judy asked. "Um... no, not really," the old goat replied thoughtfully. "Well, thank you for your time. We'll be sure to keep a look out," Judy said as she looked down at her notepad. Nick leaned over her shoulder and looked down at it in surprise. At the top of the page were some notes, but the rest of the paper was filled with a doodle of a snack machine having a battle with another snack machine, with rabbit ears coming out of both machine's top surfaces.

Impressive, Nick thought to himself. Judy grabbed him by a cuff and led him away from the goat and sheep. "So, the suspicious person is a living snack machine?" he asked her. "No, he's a dingo," Judy said. "A dingo?" Nick asked. "Yeah," Judy replied as they walked near a restroom.

"Huh. You know, I've seen a lot of different species living here in Zootopia, but I don't think I've ever met a dingo in person," Nick said. "Really?" Judy asked him. "Really. I've met coyotes and wombats and even a Komodo Dragon, but never a dingo," Nick said as they walked past a restroom.

The duo spent the next thirty minutes checking out the station before leaving, having found no sign of a dingo or anyone else of interest, aside from an intoxicated hamster who had been trying to use a soda cup as a toilet. After re-entering the cruiser and buckling their seat-belts, Nick and Judy reported that they were heading back to the station. They had at least another hour or so left in their shift, which would give them enough time to finish their paperwork and daily reports.

After arriving at the station, Judy and Nick waved over at Clawhauser. "Hey guys, you're just in time. Bogo was about to have me call you back to the station," the overweight cheetah said to them. "What did we do this time?" Nick asked him, causing Judy to elbow him. "I mean, what did I do this time?" Nick asked. Judy rolled her eyes.

"Actually, he wouldn't really say, just that he wants the two of you to meet him over at his office. Whittaker and Chaney got called in too," Clawhauser said. "Okay, that's new," Nick said as he and Judy made their way into the rest of the station, heading for Bogo's office on the next floor up. After entering the office, the duo saw Whittaker, a seasoned tiger, and Chaney, a wolf.

"Hopps, Wilde; I was just about to call for you. Have a seat," Bogo said. "Sir, whatever happened, it wasn't my fault," Nick said. "Wilde, you aren't in trouble... yet. Now, please pay attention. For the next two weeks, I'm having the four of you watch over a person of interest in alternating shifts," Bogo explained.

"Person of interest?" Judy asked him. "Yes. A reptile of interest, to be more precise. He's a monitor lizard named Lawrence Albigul, and he is a key witness for an investigation into a crime boss in Reptaelia," Bogo said. "Reptaelia? Chief, why isn't this guy being watched by the police over there then?" Nick asked him. "Because the case involves several witnesses, and Mr. Albigul has already made his way to Zootopia, along with his security detail. The four of you will be helping them keep him alive until it is time for him to return to Reptaelia for the trial," Bogo said.

"Okay, but why is he being brought here?" Nick asked. "Because, Officer Wilde, Mr. Albigul is the only witness who isn't dead. All of the other witnesses have either died or gone missing in the past month, and they were all under police custody back in Reptaelia. Mr. Albigul is the only one left, and it was decided that keeping him an ocean away from the animals he's testifying against would be the best option," Bogo explained.

"So, who's he expected to testify against?" Judy asked. "A crime boss named Komo Domo. He's a Komodo Dragon who lives in Reptaelia, and so far authorities haven't been able to touch him thanks to legal loopholes, very good lawyers, and lack of sufficient evidence to actually charge him. Mr. Albigul's witness testimony is therefore of vital importance," Bogo said.

"So, when does he arrive in Zootopia?" Nick asked. "He's already here. Look behind you," Bogo said, motioning for everyone to do so. All four animals turned around and saw a white-throated monitor lizard wearing khaki pants, an A-Shirt and an Acapulco shirt over top over in the corner of the room. He hesitantly raised his right hand and waved. "Hi," he said with a nervous smile.

Sitting around Lawrence Albigul were four animals from the Sygnalian Police and Witness Protection. A sharply dressed dingo, a goana, and two kangaroos. Nick raised a hand and waved at the lizard. "Hi," he said with a nod. "So, eight police officers to protect one animal?" Nick asked out loud.

"Tonight, Whittaker and Chaney will be helping the SPD keep Mr. Albigul safe at a safe-house. The location will be given to you on small slips of paper, and is not to be spoken of outside of this office or the station. Is that understood?" Bogo asked. "SPD?" Nick asked. "The Sygnalian Police Department," the goana said. "Ah," Nick said in understanding.

"Any questions?" Bogo asked. "Yeah, if Whittaker and Chaney are watching this guy tonight, does this mean that Hopps and I will be watching him tomorrow?" Nick asked. "Yes, Wilde, it does," Bogo replied. "Okay. Do we need any special equipment or do we just use our standard gear?" Nick asked. "You'll be carrying some defenses with you in your patrol car, which you will use to patrol a small area around the safe-house. A route will be given to you so that you can drive without straying too far while also remaining inconspicuous," Bogo said.

"Oh. Cool," Nick said. "Anything else?" Bogo asked. Everyone shook their heads. "Good. Dismissed," Bogo said.

In a hotel room in Sahara Square, two dingoes began unpacking their suitcases. "So, any idea where he might be?" Zack Bandit asked his partner, Maulia Barbaros. "Probably at the ZPD HQ. That's where I would go," she replied. "What about our contacts? Are they all set up for tomorrow?" Bandit asked her. "I called them while you were in the bathroom at Central Station. They'll be ready, but we have to head into the rain forest district to meet them," Maulia explained. "Sounds good," Bandit said before he walked over to the window of the hotel room.

He looked out at the expansive casino and resorts that littered the region. "Maybe we should take a day to ourselves before completing the mission. What do you think, my dear?" Bandit asked Maulia. She smirked before chuckling. "As long as we kill Albigul before the end of next week, we should be okay," she said. Bandit nodded his head in agreement. "Does Komo know we'll be taking that long?" Bandit asked her with a smirk. She returned the smirk. "Who cares?" "Touche," Bandit said before tackling her to the floor. At some point, one of them managed to place a DO NOT DISTURB sign on the front of the hotel room door, preventing anyone from interrupting them.

By evening, both partners were well sated, and they both looked out at the night sky of the Sahara Square. "Just look at that. So much fun to have, and so little time," Bandit said dreamily as he twirled a hunting knife in one of his paws. "Yep," Maulia said as she got off the bed and opened a suitcase, revealing a hidden compartment inside of it. She brought out a disassembled sword and began reassembling it. "And tomorrow is when it really begins."

Preview of Next Chapter

Nick craned his head over his shoulder as Judy drove the cruiser. "So, Mr. Albigul, just what exactly did you witness?" Nick asked the reptile. Lawrence looked at him nervously before sighing. "I... I witnessed a murder. One that Komo Domo committed himself," Albigul said. Nick could hear Judy gasp quietly. "Well, don't worry, pal. You're safe here with us," Nick said. "Only if Komo doesn't know that I've already left Reptaelia," Albigul said. "And what are the chances of that?" Nick asked, just before a bright light flashed and the cruiser shuddered as it flipped over from the force of the explosion.