The fluorescent lighting beat down against Ben's skin. The lamp hummed overhead, flickering for a moment every few seconds. The sensation was strange – it reminded him of the old subways under the cities back home. He never liked taking those. The walls would be crumbling and ugly and the entire place would be a chore to even look at. He preferred to take the roads – even a packed freeway during rush hour was more tolerable than a cold, crowded, and smelly trip on the subway lines.

Except now he wasn't standing in a subway – he was standing in a prison. He was alone in the hallway. He could barely make out the sounds of yelling and laughter from the cafeteria. He was far from them, at least far enough as to not rouse the suspicion of the guards.

There was a number engraved in the metal door, "SUB4." It stood for sub-level four, presumably. Ben quickly glanced back down the hallway again. Still no one. There was a security camera in the far end of the hall, but it hung low and dead. He was in the clear.

Slowly, he turned the handle and pressed his shoulder against the door, pushing it open. It was heavier than he imagined it would be – he doubted that even most of the predators could do anything against that weight. He felt cold air strike him as the space between the door and the wall widened. Finally, the door was open completely.

It led to nothing but blackness. There seemed to be some kind of spiraled stairwell, but walking down something like that could be tricky without light.

Ben hesitated for a moment. He had nothing to go on. All the predator in the cell had mentioned was how he would find answers here – nothing on what or who could be down there.

His throat was tight. He decided to step inside. He turned around, softly and silently shutting the metal door behind him. Now there was nothing but darkness. He felt for the back of the door before turning towards the rest of the stairwell. He groped around for a moment, probing for some kind of handrail. His hand finally found one. It was lower than he would have liked – probably designed for some other mammal – and cold.

Everything around him was cold. The hairs on his arms were raised and he could feel it in his chest.

With one hand on the rail and another on the concrete wall to his side, he let them guide him down the spiral stairwell. He was careful, making sure each foot had a defined place to be planted. The cold began to lessen the further he descended – three, five, eight flights of stairs. The grated metal of the stairs echoed with each step he took. He continued his descent. The darkness began to give way to light – a warm, yellow kind of light one would typically associate with old street lights or distant campfires.

He continued down the final flight of stairs when he came upon the opening to another room. He was finally able to see – a strong, murky, yellow light shone around the room. He paused at the base of the stairs and squinted, taking the room in.

The room was wide, but made to seem small. It was divided into what appeared to be several medical and science labs, like an old medical ward. Wheeled cots lay scattered around the glossy floor of the room, between tables and the small stations that lined the walls. The floor seemed to be empty.

He let out a slight breath. He thought aloud, "Well, this is it."

Drops of water repeatedly fell from an opening in the ceiling. The tile beneath him was cracked and disheveled – he could feel the shifting of the remaining fragments beneath his feet. Banners and divisors were draped around cots and chairs. They were torn and bloodied. The stains were old – whatever happened here happened a long time ago.

Ben walked towards a table. There were papers and tattered x-rays strewn about. He felt around the underside of the table until he landed on a switch. He flicked the knob. It hummed for a moment as the tabletop began to light up. The x-rays became clearly visible.

It was of a mammal. He wasn't sure as to what kind it was – only the bright bones and the faint organs were visible. There were two separate sheets, one a little different than the other. The first x-ray appeared relatively normal – he could make out the skeleton and the rest of the major organs. He looked at it for a second before switching to the second sheet.

It was different. There were no lungs, there was no stomach. The intestines were linked directly to the throat. Complete and total mutilation.

A chill ran down his spine. He pushed the papers away and looked around the room again. This wasn't just a science lab – this was a torture chamber. He began to notice the deep, red stains that dotted the floor. They were everywhere.

A crash rang through the room. Ben snapped around, his fists curled. It sounded as though a metal tray had fallen to the hard flooring. So many air vents seemed to stem from here – the whole prison probably heard the noise. He needed evidence, and he had to be quick. He quickly grabbed the x-rays and continued combing through the room.

He stopped at a cot. The fabric was old and caked with dried blood. Ben reached down, digging his fingers under the fabric. He pulled, ripping the sheet from the cot.

He paused. If he wanted a weapon, he would need to find something heavy. His eyes darted around the dark room for a moment. He finally landed on a loose brick, slightly sticking out of the wall. He rushed over the wall and wrapped his hand around the edges of the brick. He let out a grunt as he pulled. He tore the brick from the wall, releasing a small cloud of dust.

Ben walked and opened the sheet. He placed the brick in the center and tied the sheet, forming a kind of bludegon. If he could swing it hard enough the impact alone should be enough to incapacitate or outright kill the victim.

Folding the x-rays was more difficult than he had imagined. The material seemed to want to straighten out whenever it had the chance. He quickly stuffed the folded x-rays into his pockets and looked around once more.

There was a framed photograph at one of the stations – he hadn't noticed it before. He moved in closer. There was a hyena, standing upright and smiling. Younger hyenas – presumably his children – surrounded his legs. They were hugging and smiling with him. They were somewhere in the woods – white, snow-capped mountains could be seen in the background.

His gaze shifted towards an ID card on the desk. There was an image of the same hyena, dressed in formal labwear. He worked as the lead scientist here - the hyena was a family-man and a mutilator.

Ben closed his eyes. He tried not to think about it. That always seemed to hurt his head.

He opened his eyes and looked around again. This was a laboratory. Yes. Scientists conducted experiments here. Yes. These experiments often included the torture and mutilation of mammals. Sure. But why? There had to be some kind of point in these experiments, and there had to be a reason why the lab looked so old and vacant.

He looked around again, pilfering through the papers on the desk. There had to be something he was missing. X-rays, charts, graphs - he threw all them aside. There had to be some kind of report.

His hands flew threw the drawers and folders. Nothing. There was absolutely nothing here.

In a fit of rage, he grabbed one corner of the desk. With a sudden surge of strength, he managed to flip the desk over. The crashing of the metal against the worn tile reverberated around the room. Pencils clattered to the floor and papers fluttered to the ground all around him.

"Fuck!" he shouted. This was pointless. There was nothing here.

He let out a breath. Sweat beaded his face. He wiped across his skin with his hand. He hadn't realized how hot it had become in the lab. Wasn't it just cold not too long ago?

Ben looked around the floor for a final time. His eyes landed on a sheet of paper. There were several paragraphs and clear lines - like a proper lab report. He crouched down and picked up the paper. Half of it was wet - part of it had landed in a puddle. His eyes scanned the paper.

"FINAL REPORT - DRAFT"

He breathed a slight sigh of relief. This was exactly what he needed. He stood back to his feet and began folding the paper when he heard it. It was a kind of humming sound - it seemed to come from everywhere. He circled around the room for a moment. The humming was the loudest in the corner of the room. He walked over to the corner and probed the area.

It was too dark to tell for certain, but there looked to be a vent embedded in the ceiling. Water dripped from between the bars. Heated air was pumped out of the vent and into the room.

Someone had control to the power and the air in the room. He had to get out of here as soon as possible.

Ben grabbed his makeshift weapon and started towards the door. He was within only a few feet of the doorframe when he heard sounds from the stairwell outside. It was hard to hear over the humming of the heater, but he could barely make out the sounds of footsteps against the metal rungs of stairs. They seemed to be distant. He had time to formulate a plan.

His breathing spiked. He quickly looked around. Perhaps he could hide under one of the cots?

The footsteps from outside were growing louder. Whatever mammal was approaching him was heavy, larger than a fox or a wolf. He frantically continued to look around.

He came upon another sheet of hospital bedding on the floor in the corner of the room. He quickly laid the bedding flat on the floor before lying down in it. He covered himself in the sheet and let it fall around him. He let his breathing calm as he began to listen.

The footsteps grew louder until they came to a sudden stop. Ben held his breath.

There was some jingling and clattering at the door. There was a click. Ben heard the metal groan as the guard pushed the door open.

The thudding of footsteps echoed around the room. The guard seemed to be pointing a flashlight around. Ben flinched slightly as the light briefly shone through the fabric of the sheet. The light danced around for a moment before he heard a click. "This is Urso, I don't see anything, over."

There was static. Whoever was on the other end finally responded. "Something must've been causing that noise. Are you sure?"

There was another click. The guard spoke again. "One hundred percent, boss. I repeat, there's nothing here, over"

The static returned. The other voice, presumably the security chief, responded again. "Alright. Well, come on back then. We need you in the cafeteria."

The radio clicked again. "Understood. Heading back now, over."

Ben's chest pounded with pain. The floor seemed to shake with each step the guard took towards the door. "Fuckin' waste of time…", he muttered.

It was time. Ben drew in a deep, sharp breath. In a single motion, he exploded out from under the sheet. Some deep, primal roar shattered the silence in the room. He lunged towards the guard, now revealed to be a bear, his arms wide.

The bear had little time to react. Ben collided with the hulking mammal, knocking the two of them to the cracked floor. The bear roared as he rolled around, effectively crushing the Human under him.

"Fuck!" Ben shouted, his voice muffled by the weight of the bear pressed against him. He blindly groped around the floor. Struggling to breath, his hand finally landed on a piece of shattered tile. It had a sharp tip. He grabbed the tile and plunged it into bear's side. Hot, thick blood quickly let from the fresh wound. The bear let out another guttural howl in pain.

The bear flopped off of Ben, clutching his side where he had been stabbed. Ben lie on the ground for a moment, recovering his breath. He quickly shot to his feet and darted towards the door. The bear bellowed again, trying to stand to his feet.

Ben reached down and grabbed the makeshift bludgeon he had devised earlier. He gripped the tied sheets and lifted it up. He turned to the bear.

He was sitting against the wall. With a powerful bellow, he managed to pluck the tile shard from his side. There was a brief spurt of blood from the wound. His eyes finally shifted to Ben. "You!"

Ben watched as the bear reached to his holster. His eyes widened. He stumbled over to the guard, his makeshift bludgeon in hand. "Fuck you!"

He lifted the weapon high above his head. The bears eyes seemed to follow it. In one, powerful motion, Ben swung down. The brick within the sheets struck the bear on his forehead, splitting it open. His entire body flinched. Ben swung again, letting the momentum of the brick carry itself through the air. The brick struck the bear's jaw, snapping it to the side and tearing crushing most of his snout.

He swung again, and again, and again. Thin threads of blood coated the walls and the ceiling. Blood dripped from his weapon, which was now on the verge of being torn apart. The bear's lifeless body sat there, his head crushed and beat-in and his legs twitching.

Ben looked up at the ceiling. His breaths were short, but deep. The bludgeon slid from his grasp and hit the floor with a thud.

He felt something warm on his face. He brushed his cheek with his hand and looked down at his palm. There was blood. It wasn't his.

He back up and leaned against the wall. His chest ached. The bear had probably broken a rib or two. He didn't have time to feel. He had to keep moving.


Judy sat alone at her desk by the window. Most of the workers had gone out to get dinner, or something like that. She couldn't quite remember. It was night now. The city lit up as the day gave way to the darkness. Small buildings and tall skyscrapers lit up the nighttime skyline. From a distance, the busy city streets seemed to flow and ebb with light. In Zootopia, much of the city went dark at night. Here, the bustle never seemed to end.

The lights seemed to end past a certain point, giving way to the blackness of the sea. It was an infinite abyss from here, stretching on endlessly into the dark. Her home was beyond it. Her family was beyond it. Ben was beyond it. Just a week ago, things were different. Things were normal.

Now, she felt as if she were on the moon.

"We've been there, you know." A voice said. "The moon."

Judy felt her heart jump. The voice had startled her. She turned around, revealing Harper. The Human girl was a few steps behind her. She must have been watching her for a while. Harper was staring up at the sky through the window, as if she were in some kind of trance. Judy swallowed before nodding. "It reminds me of home. You know, my parents' home out in the Burrows. You don't get to see it much in the city."

Harper shook her head and looked down at her feet. She adjusted her glasses. "I'm sorry, my ogling at the moon and all. Do you need any help with anything?"

Judy paused. "Actually, I do." She spun around in her chair to face the computer. Harper could sense her brain working.

Judy clicked around on the desktop monitor. As a whole, the operating system wasn't all that different from what she used back in Zootopia. Harper had showed her around most of the small things that she had been unfamiliar with earlier. Judy pulled up a map. It showed the two continents - Zootopia's Animalia and the Humans' Pangea. Combined, they were shaped like a pair of lungs, where a thin bridge of mountainous land held them together in the north.

She pointed at the far edge of the eastern Animalia coastline, where Ben's prison was located. She looked up at Harper. "Ben's there, right? Think about it. No matter which direction you guys want to go, it's over a thousand mile trip to your country. The only way I see you guys having a shot is with some kind of boat or ship, and even the closest one is a week away."

Harper swallowed and looked over the map for a second. She let out a little breath. "Walker didn't want me to tell you, but since you're here, I'm gonna say it anyways."

She pointed at the ocean, just a little off the coast near Ben's prison. "We have a ship there. It's a secret one. Their visual detectors and cameras can't find it. But if they get close, or we get close, they can ping the hell out of us with their radar. We just can't move it close enough to the prison. Walker said he has a plan, but I don't know it."

Judy let out a huff. "It'd be nice of him to let us know these things."

Harper smirked slightly. "Don't let that bother you. He's always been that kind of way. He's closed and cold at first, but once you get to know him, he's a pretty cool guy."

There was a commotion at the other end of the room. Harper's mouth was left a little open. "Speaking of which..."

The rest of the team burst into the room through the glass door, laughing and talking. They were carrying small, paper bags. Judy didn't recognize them. Harper went to talk with the group. Judy simply sat and stared.

"So, how was this trip?" Harper asked. She smiled slightly. "You said it'd be productive."

"Yeah, I have a plan." Walker replied. His voice suddenly became low. "We'll meet over dinner in a few minutes. I'll announce everything there."

Harper nodded. She turned and looked at Judy. She winked. Judy wasn't quite sure as to what she meant.

Her focus shifted to Roy. He was the lead strategist, or something like that. He mostly seemed to keep to himself. He took a seat at the desk across from her own and leaned back in his swivel chair. It creaked as it leaned back, and he let out a sigh of relief. He seemed to notice that she had been watching him. He swallowed before speaking. His voice was gruff. "Why are you doing all of this?"

Judy shook her head, confused. "I don't understand."

"I mean, ugh." Roy started. "You never even knew Ben. You met him just a few days ago. Why do you care what happens to him?"

She paused for a moment. The chatter continued around the room. "He saved my life, and he sure as didn't know who I was. Now, I'm going to save his."

Roy stared at her for a second before nodding. Judy watched as he silently turned back towards his desk. She leaned back in her chair. She noticed Mary-Anne looking at her from across the room. The young woman quickly made her way towards Judy. She was smiling and her hair bounced as she walked. She stooped down a little as she approached Judy's desk.

"Are you hungry? Is there anything you want to eat?" she asked.

Judy shook her head. "No, I'm, uh, I'm-"

She grimaced. There was a pain somewhere in her stomach. She smiled weakly. "Actually, yeah. What can I have?"

Mary-Anne quickly perked up. She dug into her paper bag. "Um, not much actually. I don't think you'd be down with burgers, and bunnies can't have fries…"

"What's a burger?" Judy asked.

The woman quickly breathed in. "Yeah, that's not something you need to know right no-"

"Tell me." Judy interrupted. Her voice was firm.

"Um…" Mary-Anne murmured. "Yeah, it's lik-"

"Conference room, now!" Walker shouted from across the floor. "It's late enough as it is, and we need to get moving. Come on - hustle!"

The office quickly grew silent. Judy watched as everyone shuffled towards the conference room. She hopped off her chair and followed suit. Most people filed into their respective chairs, some begrudgingly. Harper walked along the walls, powering on the various fixed screens and monitors. Judy settled into her seat. It must have been raised slightly to accomodate for her smaller size.

Everyone else sat down. Walker reached under the table and pressed something. The table flashed to life. It whirred as it booted quickly. A blue, satellite image of the continents appeared - Animalia and Pangea - stretched across the table. Judy lightly brushed her paw across the smooth, glass top of the table. It seemed so unreal, like something from science fiction. She swallowed as she retracted her paw.

Lee suddenly stood up, holding a tablet. Judy looked at her. Lee's hair was short and black, sort of wrapping around the top of her head. Her voice was firm and commanding, in a strange kind of way. She began. "Alright, here's the situation."

She began to slowly pace around the room, reading off of her tablet. "Ben is alive. We don't have reliable inside sources, but our data interceptions and satellite readings tell us a good deal about what's going on in there. We've also confirmed that he's at Redwater Penitentiary, which we already suspected."

Judy watched. The satellite image on the table zoomed into the Black Site in question. It was located along the east coast of the continent, less than a mile from the ocean. It was a relatively small complex, consisting of just a couple of buildings.

Walker looked over at Judy. "You ever heard anything about that place?"

All eyes were suddenly on Judy. She looked down and swallowed. "Um, mostly rumors. I wasn't even sure it existed. Apparently, Leader Wolfr-, I mean the government, only sends predators there."

Roy leaned back in his chair. "Interesting. It makes sense, sending a Human there. They can't let prey, even the interned, see a Human. Their constructed worldview would fall apart instantly. Wolfram can't let that happen."

"Something else to note, we're gonna have to work against time." Lee said. She glanced back at her tablet. The blue glow lit her face. "Redwater is primarily a processing center. Most inmates that go in are often shipped off to some other prison. Our intercepts suggests they plan to move him to Cliffside by the end of the week."

"Once he gets to Cliffside, he's done." Harper said, looking at Judy. She shook her head. "No way for us in or out. The place is a practically a concrete hole. Nothing gets in or out."

There was an uncomfortable silence in the room. Everybody's minds worked, pondering the situation.

Mary-Anne glanced at Walker. "Do you think Ben's pulling a Code 8?"

Walker looked pensive. Judy looked at him. "What's a Code 8?"

"Code 8…" Roy started. He sounded as if he were reading off some textbook clause. "If a field agent is somehow detained or incarcerated in any way, they may stage a revolt against their captors."

"A prison riot." Lee finished. "It sounds stupid, but it's worked. He's had the training."

"But then, what?" Judy said. "Even if he does manage to escape, what options does he have? Your ships are too far and we sure can't get there in time. He'll have no way off the continent."

There was a brief silence. It was immensely quiet. Judy could hear the subtle whirring of the table. She shot a look at Walker. He seemed to be deep in thought. "You don't have a plan?"

Walker swallowed. "I did, initiate a plan. The Director asked me to."

"And you didn't tell me?" Lee asked, clearly frustrated.

"No, I didn't." Walker said. He sounded solemn. He looked up at her, staring into her eyes. "Take us to the ridge, east of the Burrows."

Lee let out a sigh. She swiped her finger around the tablet. The table responded accordingly, zooming in on the Crescent Hills. Judy remembered them quite fondly. Her family would go out there during vacations. They ran along the entire east coast of Animalia. The hills were green and rolling - seeming to continue endlessly into that muddy, gray sky. Those were simpler times.

Walker pointed to a river that ran between the ridges. "This land here is basically a swamp - there's a lot of toxic pollutants down there. We also have a six-man team there, following the river. They're armed - they're trained. We think the Animalians know something's going on down there. Our guys should reach the penitentiary by sundown tomorrow."

"So, Ben has help." Roy summarized.

Judy looked at Walker. "You're sure this team can get him out?"

"Well, Ben's going to have to plunge the prison in chaos first." Roy answered. "But our guys down there - you won't believe what they can do. The six of them alone can take an entire compound in minutes. Hell, they've alread-"

"Roy." Harper interrupted. Her voice was stern and her face was hard. "That's enough."

Roy locked eyes with her before sinking a little back into his chair. He looked back at Judy. "You get the idea."

Walker started talking again. He pointed at the ocean. "We have a ship out there - a naval carrier. It's got enough firepower to level a city. However, there's a problem - it shows up bright as day on Wolfram's radars. If we get within a few dozen miles of the coast, they can spot us and sink the ship. Our current plan is to use these…"

Lee tapped somewhere on her tablet. A three-dimensional model of a helicopter appeared on the table. Judy noted the hard angles and design.

"Stealth helicopters." Lee continued. "They're relatively small, they're fast, and they're agile. The radars won't see them. They don't have much firepower, though. When Ben gets out with the deployed team, these will be waiting to pick them up and take them to the ship. From there, the ship follows a course back to the mainland."

Everyone sat still for a second, absorbing. Judy was astounded. They had planned and thought through every step.

Walker let out a slight sigh. "So, any questions?"