"We have to get him out of there; he'll ruin everything," she thought aloud, "Why does he always have to think of everything?"

"What are they doing now, red one?" Doris asked impatiently. She needed to get Kowalski out of there before Blowhole arrived, which would be soon.

"Um…" The lobster watched the real-time footage of the ex-lieutenant being handcuffed and dragged without ceremony towards the door, making sure Doris didn't, "They're… ah… serving tea."

"We need to get them out of there. They had to have found out where my brother is. Kowalski should have broken by now." The lobster stiffened, Doris wasn't easily fooled.

"Well," the lobster changed the camera to one showing the outside of the HQ, "They're leaving…"

"Alright, send the teams in and well break him out." Doris ordered.

"Well, they're taking the target with them."

"Should have accounted for Skippers paranoia," Doris muttered, "Alright, we stay where we are. They might come back. We can't let them know I'm involved. Not until the last minute."


"Ah, Skippar," Hans greeted sarcastically, "my old frenenemy."

"If it isn't Hans the Puffin," Skipper matched his tone, "Last time I saw you, well, you turned a somewhat liveable cold war into an all-out Magauffium battle, bordering on possible Armageddon."

"I did?" Hans replied, his attempt to remain nonchalant disappearing, revealing the raw anger that bubbled beneath the surface, "I guess history is written by the winners."

"By the winners? Denmark's been trying to get me extradited for years!"

"You weren't chased out of your homeland by the very people you once thought of as brothers."

"Strange how history repeats itself." Kowalski muttered, having given up struggling against the cement pillar he was chained to long ago. The two birds spun around, glaring.

"This is personal." Hans stated.

"Keep out of it, Kowalski," Skipper finished, "Well, Hans, I didn't come all the way here to drag you back to a nice comfy jail cell in Denmark, but that's just going to be an added bonus. Now, where's Blowhole?"

"You really think I would tell you that?"

"No," Skipper launched himself at the puffin.

"Just like Denmark, Skipper," Hans dodged Skipper's punch, "You always have to attack first."

"And just like Denmark," Skipper growled, taking another swing at the puffin, "You won't shut up!" The punch caught Hans directly on his beak, sending him stumbling backwards several steps. Skipper attacked again, vicious and wild, punching the puffin back another few steps. Skipper continued attacking, his attacks becoming a pattern. A pattern, Hans could exploit. Suddenly, Skipper found his wing caught and twisted backwards, the puffin using his advantage to elbow the other penguin in the face.

"A' enough" Rico growled, regurgitating a rocket launcher. Rico lined the sight up with the unsuspecting enemy's head, and pulled the trigger. However, it would seem Hans wasn't so 'unsuspecting', diving out of the way, swinging skipper between him and the flying debris as a gigantic hole was knocked in the wall and floor. Suddenly, Skipper pulled himself forward, catching Hans off balance and plunging the two into the hole in the floor.


"Do you have all the zoo residents, red one?" Blowhole asked, standing in the centre of the zoo, just outside the penguin's empty habitat.

"Yes Dr, we've put them all in the lemur habitat." The lobster replied.

"Good." Blowhole answered, driving down the empty brick sidewalk and towards the aforesaid habitat.

The prisoners were seated, wings, paws, and hands on their head, surrounded on every side by lobsters. Most of the group looked terrified; their eyes firmly planted on the ground. Others looked more sullen at their capture, glancing at the lobsters surrounding them, though knowing it was futile to attempt to escape. Joey could take out six or seven of them in one punch, but not armed lobsters.

"Dis is absolutely ridiculous!" Julian shouted, marching about the area, ignoring the lobster's threats, "I am de king, and a king kneels before no one else!" Half the zoo winced with every word the lemur shouted, expecting that, at any second, he would become the late King Julian.

"If it isn't the double agent," Blowhole drove up to the habitat. Suddenly, Julian fell silent. Julian had tangled with the dolphin before, and though he wasn't particularly bright, he could tell from the cold demeanour and ruthless expression, this wasn't the same Blowhole he'd met before. Ringtail slowly sat down, imitating the position of the other animals, "If he moves, red ones," Blowhole ordered, "Do not hesitate to shoot him," Blowhole drove up to the front of the group of prisoners, the wheel of his Segway inches from the prisoner at the front. He then turned to the lobster next to him, "Have you prepared the penguin habitat?"

"Yes sir, modified as you requested." The lobster replied.

"Good. I'll start with the ones most likely to know where the penguins went; I'm less likely to waste time. Have you got the maguffium?"

"Yes sir."

"After we're done we'll destroy the place," Blowhole turned off in the direction of the penguin habitat, "There must be at least one person in here Skipper cares about."

"Why are you doing this?" Blowhole turned around, surprised by the unexpected voice.

"Why am I doing this?" Blowhole repeated blandly. The otter nodded, trying to keep it together under the Blowhole's glare. Marlene swallowed; hazarding a glance at the dolphin she had always thought was a figment of Private and Julian's imagination.

"Yes." Marlene answered, after no response was given to her nod. Blowhole looked down at her. Marlene's gaze returned to the grass.

"Skipper was responsible for the loss… of a very close friend, if you must know," Blowhole turned back towards the penguin habitat.

"We had nothing to do with that!" Marlene shouted, standing up. She wasn't going to sit there and be destroyed out of some psychotic dolphin's twisted revenge. She took one step after the dolphin, but stopped when she suddenly became aware of the fact that she was now the target of most of the lobster's weapons.

"Do you have a death wish, otter?" Blowhole asked, his steel eyes bored through her head. The otter fell silent. Blowhole's attention returned to the lobster acting as his assistant, "Bring her first. Her reaction proves she's obviously close to the target."