Previously, on Two Worlds - Tensions have continued to rise between the Human-dominated Pangea and the animal-dominated Animalia. Nick Wilde and his partner, Fangeye, are returning to base after investigating a series of mysterious deaths that had taken place in Animalia's northern regions. Meanwhile, Ben, who had been captured upon assisting Judy in escaping Animalia, orchestrates a last-ditch attempt to break out of his confinement in Animalia's most esteemed prison. On the outside, Judy, now paired with Ben's team of operatives in Pangea, works to help him in whatever way they can.

"You know, I never did like that painting there."

The coyote glanced at the wall to see what the other guard was talking about. His eyes caught the painting, encased in a frame and protected by a layer of glass. It was old, or maybe it wasn't. Layers of cracked, dried paint coated the canvas. The scene depicted a kind of snow-capped mountain. There were several predators that stood along the peak. Below them, at the base of the mountain, hundreds of prey mammals were shown in a scramble to the top.

He turned to look at his partner again. His voice seemed to carry down the white, empty hallway. "What's wrong with it?"

"I don't know," the wolf murmured. He moved towards the painting and pointed at the mountain. "Something just feels off, y'know. Like, the message is great and all, but the paint itself looks weird. Kinda… I dunno - manufactured?"

The coyote moved closer to the painting to get a better look. His partner had a point - there was something off about the paint. "Huh, I think you're right. It doesn't look, uh, what's the word…"

"Genuine?"

"Yeah, that's it. 'Genuine'." the coyote repeated. "Huh. I never did notice-"

An echoing bang erupted in the hall. And again. And again. Blood spattered all around the pristine, immaculate white walls. The coyote watched as his partner was thrown to the ground, bleeding and lifeless. He swallowed. The coyote turned to face the source of the gunfire.

There was a Human walking down the hallway. He had a gun in his hand, aiming as he walked. Blood and grime caked the Human's face. "On the ground, now!"

The coyote was frozen, staring blankly at the gun trained on his head.

The Human stopped a few paces in front of him. His face was red and contorted with rage as he shouted. "Did you hear me, you fucking dumbass? Get your ass on the goddamn ground, right now!"

The coyote snapped back to the present. His eyes widened. Without thinking, his paw shot to his holster.

Ben squeezed the trigger. A shot rang out, and the coyote's head exploded into a flurry of blood and brain matter. Blood was thrown across the walls, leaving a streak of red across the painting and staining the walls. There was a thud as the coyote crumpled to the ground, blood still pouring from his head.

Ben let out a sharp breath. "Goddammit."

He ducked down to the slick, glossy floor. The clothes of the bear he had pummeled earlier were too large for him. These uniforms were probably a little too small, but they were still better than the orange jumpsuit he was currently wearing. He had to be fast. The gunshots were probably heard all around the prison.

Ben let the bear's gun he had taken earlier clatter to the floor. Still crouched, he quickly ripped the uniforms from the fallen guards. The dark blue fabric was stained and damp with blood. He swiftly threw the shirt over his shoulders and stepped through the pants. He picked up the gun of the coyote. It looked old-fashioned, like a revolver back in Pangea.

A heavy breath escaped his mouth. He stood up in the bloody hallway, weary and a handgun in one hand. He looked around for a second. The cafeteria wasn't too far down the hallway.

Before continuing down the hall, he paused for a moment. He leaned against the wall.

What if there was no one coming? A mission went wrong - Walker and Lee might have simply written the whole thing off. An agent died in enemy territory. It's sad, but it happens. Even if he somehow got out of this place, there'd be no one there to save him. He'd run for a bit, but Wolfram and his men would get him. They always did. And next time, they wouldn't be so merciful as to let him rot in prison or die with dignity. He'd be executed, or tortured, or worse…

Ben quickly blinked those thoughts away. Judy. He had sent Judy to Pangea. She must had made it - otherwise, that fox would have announced their discovery. Or he might not have…

"Quickly, down this hall!" came a voice. It sounded gruff and distant. Ben snapped around and dropped to the floor. Fifty feet away, the hallway ended and turned a corner, emptying into another one. That's where the voice must have come from.

He quickly moved over to the bodies of the other guards. With the amount of blood on his uniform and face, he almost seemed to blend in with the mass of bodies and death, at least from a distance. He set his arms and gun atop the body of the coyote, training his aim on the far end of the hallway. He held his breath.

Within seconds, footsteps reverberated around the enclosed hall. They grew louder and louder with each passing beat of his heart.

The incoming guards finally turned the corner, revealing themselves. They didn't seem to notice him. There were three of them - a panther, a white fox, and a lion. They rushed towards the bodies - towards him.

Ben closed one eye as the guards approached. A chunk of metal and a trail of smoke exploded from the barrel of the handgun as he pulled the trigger. The gun had kick - more than the other one he had taken.

BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM - Click Click

He stopped firing when he ran out of ammunition. With time, the smoke began to clear. There were three bodies at the other end of the hall, sprawled out and bleeding onto the tiled floor.

That makes six for today.

Ben slowly stood to his feet, his skin and clothes dripping with the blood of others. He didn't have much more time. Soon, he'd have to face dozens, if not hundreds of guards - and there was no way he could shoot his way through that.

He swallowed before continuing down the hall, towards the cafeteria.

It was dark out still. Thick, dark clouds blanketed the sky in all directions, blocking the sun. The window wipers streaked back and forth across the glass. The rubber wiped the water away, only for drops of rain and flakes of snow to replenish the void. It seemed like an endless cycle, back and forth, back and forth.

Nick's eyes felt heavy. He stared blankly at the road in front of him, twisting and unfolding forever.

He glanced at Fangeye. He was sitting beside him in the SUV. He was staring out the side window at the forest, watching it rush by. His fur was matted, still wet from the snow. His yellow eyes seemed glassy and distant. Nick swallowed before speaking, taking his eyes off the road for a moment. "Anything wrong?"

Fangeye swallowed. He paused before speaking. "That guy, back in the cabin. We just left him. He's gonna die in there."

Nick's eyes returned to the road. "Yeah, he is."

His partner shook his head. "I don't know. Just doesn't feel right."

Nick nodded. "We couldn't have saved him. Once we get out and away from these mountains, we'll contact HQ and tell them what happened."

"Yeah."

A strict silence enveloped the SUV again. The only sounds were the quiet rumble of the engine and the monotonous, repetitive beating of the window wipers. As time passed, the rain gradually began to turn into snow. A blanket of white haze enveloped the countryside. The road ahead became obscured, the SUV's headlights were barely able to pierce through the intense fog.

Nick handed his radio to Fangeye. "Try to contact base, see if they can get our signal."

Fangeye put the radio to his snout. "This is Unit 7, checking in. Can anyone copy, over?"

No response.

He clicked the radio again. "Again, this is Unit 7. Can anyone copy, over?"

No response. Fangeye shook his head. "We're still too far out. Fifteen, maybe twenty more miles and we should be good."

Nick tightened his grip on the steering wheel. The roads were becoming slippery. Even the chains couldn't prevent the tires from sliding slightly to the side. The window wipers continued to beat from side to side, side to side - it was almost tranquilizing.

A low, guttural rumble suddenly washed over the forest. It sounded deep and distant, almost like a faraway explosion. The ground began to quake beneath the vehicle, shaking some snow out of the trees nearby. Nick fought to keep the steering wheel straight and let his foot off the gas.

Fangeye looked at Nick. "Did you feel that?"

"Yeah, I did." Nick replied, guiding the car to the side of the road. "Sounded like an explosion - I dunno how far…"

Fangeye clicked the radio again. "This is Unit 7. Can anyone copy? I repeat, can anyone copy?"

Boom…

Another rumble shot through the ground. The trees swayed and the car seemed to shake. Falling pine needles clattered against the surface of the windshield. Fangeye shot a look at Nick. "What the hell is going on?"

Nick paused for a moment to think. He nodded. "Let's get out of the car, see if we get better reception."

Fangeye nodded in agreement and the two simultaneously popped the side doors open. A gust of cold air whipped across Nick's fur. The snow had stopped. He glanced around their surroundings as he closed the door behind him. It was difficult to see anything clearly, even as the fog began to dissipate. There was a small hill on the other side of the street. He gestured towards Fangeye, and the two started towards the hill.

His boots sank into the inches of snow. It was thick and crunchy. His hind legs struggled against the substance, but they trudged on up the hill.

By the time they reached the top of the hill, his partner was almost entirely out of breath. Nick put his hand out. "The radio."

Fangeye panted, handing him the device. "Yeah. You try."

Nick clicked the button and put the radio to his face. "This is Unit 7, returning to base from up North. Can anyone copy? Over."

No response.

"Is anyone in need of assistance? Over."

No response.

Nick shook his head. "Fuck."

The snow began to fall again. The wind howled. The air ruffled his fur. Even from the hill, the world seemed empty. Black trees dotted the rugged landscape, and sheer mountains climbed into the sky, but the world still seemed empty. It was a strange sensation.

Nick was about to turn around when he heard something. It was faint and distant.

"Help!" came the voice, between the wind and snow. It sounded feminine. "Help me!"

Nick peered into the distance. The road was caked with snow. There was a figure coming down the road. It appeared to be limping.

It left a trail of red behind it.

Nick quickly started down the mountain. He and Fangeye sprinted towards the figure. Their boots crunched and kicked up the snow that blanketed the road. His partner stopped suddenly in the snow. Nick did the same. He walked up to Fangeye, still eying the figure. "Why'd you stop?"

"I think it's a capybara."

Nick shook his head. "So what? We need to know what happened."

Fangeye seemed to hesitate for a moment. He nodded. "Alright."

The two started towards the figure again. As the grew closer, Nick too began to make out the figure of a capybara.

"Help, please!" came the voice again. It was definitely a woman.

The two slowed as they approached the capybara. Fangeye stopped and drew his gun. The capybara moved faster towards them. She was dressed in a kind of jumpsuit. "Help!"

Nick stopped at the capybara. "What happened?"

"I don't, I don't k-"

"What the hell happened?" Nick shouted, quickly pointing his handgun at her. She fell backwards into the snow before slowly sitting back up.

She stood still, staring up at him from the snow. Her fur ruffled in the cold wind. Her snout quivered and shook in the frigid air. Nick lost his breath for a moment. His eyes moved down towards her legs, sprawled out on the ground. A chunk of her leg was missing entirely - blood poured from the open wound.

She swallowed. There was a kind of weakness in her voice. "Please."

"What happened?" Nick interrogated. His voice was calmer now. "What did this?"

The capybara glanced at Fangeye before looking back at him. "I was being transported. I don't know where. There was an explosion. I just - I just ran."

Nick paused for a moment, taking the information. He looked back at her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet. "You're coming with us."

Fangeye seemed confused. "What are you doing?"

"She's no good to us dead…" Nick responded, helping the capybara walk.

"No! What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Fangeye roared as he walked up to the two of them, his gun still trained on her.

"Hey, back off!" Nick shouted back. "We'll get her to base, have our guys question her, and move on! What's so hard to understand."

"Don't take another step, Wilde." Fangeye said under his breath.

"Well, what are you gonna do? Shoot me?" Nick asked.

A silence settled on the snowy road. Neither of the two said a word. Fangeye glared at him. His stare was painful, but Nick persisted.

"We're leaving." Nick said. "That's final."

Fangeyes swallowed. He looked at the capybara and back at Nick. "Fine. We'll bring her back." he said. He moved closer to Nick. "But don't think _ isn't gonna hear about this."

Blood spatter clung to his clothes and skin. Ben walked down the hallway, a handgun in each hand. He walked with power and determination. He blocked the sheer, immaculate whiteness of walls in his head - his eyes were trained solely on the door he walked towards. That door grew closer and closer.

There was a sign above it - "CAFETERIA" in black, blocky text. This would be his last stand - his last plea.

Alarms blared and flashed red in a dizzying cacophony of light and sound, periodically casting the hall in a even, dismal red light.

He stopped at the door. He paused.

Ben glanced at the hall behind him. Bodies dotted the glossy floor, sprawled out and lifeless. There were dozens of them. Was it worth it? What idea is worth that cost in lives?

A soldier shouldn't think.

He drew in a deep, shaky breath. With a heave, he kicked through the heavy, metal door, weapons at the ready.

His mind went blank. The cafeteria was somewhat circular, with two distinct floors that wrapped around the main area like rings. The lights were dimmed slightly in here as well. Close to two dozen predator prisoners of all races and sizes - wolves, foxes, lions cheetahs, jaguars - were standing along the walls. Six guards, all armed with assault rifles, watched their prisoners and the door. Four on the first floor, two on the upper floor. The rest were probably close by.

Time seemed to move in slow motion as he burst through the door. All of the guards' heads snapped in his direction. Even some of the prisoners turned to try and look at him.

His arms flew up to his face, his eyes locked on his targets.

Boom, boom.

The recoil shot through his arms as bullets exploded from the barrels of the guns. Hot chunks of metal tore through the bodies of the prison guards, sending blood flying all over the room. Ben quickly moved on to his next set of targets.

Boom, boom, boom.

They dropped to the floor as well. He shifted again.

Boom, boom, boom, click.

Trails of smoke wafted around him. Screams and shouts echoed. Small, metal casings let out a little ring as the fell to the floor. They were dead. They were all dead. A dead silence hung over the room. The alarms continued to flash overhead, washing the room again and again with that hard, red glow.

Ben felt like collapsing and letting himself rest. Simply being able to close his eyes and feel something against his back - the whole idea sounded tempting. But it was impossible, and he knew that.

The stunned stares from the onlookers had begun to reshape into suspicion. Dozens of predators - Animalia's most dangerous - now glared at him with that predatory eye. The ones with him on the ground floor began to slowly move closer - bears, foxes, panthers and tigers alike. Those on the upper floors watched with feverous intent, wrapping their arms around the rails and peering down from the walkways.

Ben felt his heart began to race as they continued to move closer. He had to get them on his side - somehow…

He raised his arms up, in a clear display of nonviolence. He let the handguns fall from his hands, clattering to the tile floor. He stepped back slightly. Their approach slowed.

"I need your help."

The words bounced around the walls of the prison. A plethora of expressions arose from the inmates - curiosity, hatred, skepticality - at once, every soul in the jungle of concrete decided their stance.

"Leave us, you fucking animal!" came a shout from his left. "Begone, Human scum!" came from his right. Ben remained still - his face yet unmoving.

His voice was more clear this time. "Things are getting rough out there. I can bet you, at this very moment, there's a couple hundred police units swirling around outside, just waiting for their orders. Come morning, this prison will be nothing but piles of rubble. If you want to live, you're gonna have to help me."

Thunder clapped and waves roared as the ship swayed back and forth. Rain pounded against the slick, dark tarmac. Judy stood directly in the middle of the flight deck, looking over the edge of the aircraft carrier. The white water foamed and thrashed as powerful propellers spun on the underside of the ship. A brief flash of light in the distance caught her eye. Lightning struck the ocean, illuminating the surrounding water for a short moment.

Behind her, hundreds of flight crew members and sailors darted across the flight deck. A cacophony of sounds emanated from the tarmac - indistinct yelling, whirring propellers, beeping vehicles and whining engines. A week ago, she'd be floored by the sight. Now, she had no option but to tune it all out.

An insertion - that's what Walker had called it. No ship could reach Ben in time. The group had deduced that a pair of long-range stealth helicopters, Seahawks, could muster enough distance to deliver them within an immediate distance of the prison where Ben was being held.

Risky? Highly. The crew had no uniform opinion on her joining them. Roy resisted the idea most ardently. Lee was quieter, but she shared a similar opinion. Mary-Anne and Walker had come to the decision that her past time in Animalia would be advantageous - like a guide of sorts.

According to Walker, there was also a small, six-man team in the process of infiltrating her country. They would be at the prison within hours.

Droplets pattered against her rain jacket. The carrier swayed a little to the side again. Judy felt her heart jump before quickly regaining her footing. Her legs felt weak and unsteady. She longed for dry land.

She wasn't ready. She'd known this for some time, but only now was this fear really starting to rear its ugly head in. She couldn't help jumping to conclusions. That's just how her mind operated. Any number of things could go wrong and jeopardize not only the mission, but Ben's life and her own.

Judy snapped out of her thoughts when she felt a shadow pass over her. She looked up.

Lee. She was in similar attire - albeit much larger. Water covered her face and her exposed, black hair was drenched. She flashed a little smile at her from above. "How's it goin'?"

"Not bad," Judy said, trying to sound cheerful. She failed miserably, and Lee could sense that. Judy watched out of the corner of her eye as Lee turned to a sitting position on the edge of the runway. Her legs dangled above the roaring engines and spitting water below. A chill rushed over Judy's body.

There was silence for a moment. Judy watched Lee more closely. She had a hard look on her face as she stared out at the open, stormy sea. She almost seemed lost in it. Judy decided to speak up.

"Do you think we'll find him?"

It was a stupid question. Of course, there was no way of Lee being able to know for certain. For some reason, she felt the need to ask it anyway.

Lee was quiet for a period. Judy could practically see the gears working in her head. She finally responded, "Have you ever heard of the Snow Wars?"

Judy shook her head. Lee let out a little chuckle. "Of course you wouldn't. Your government probably has that information locked tight somewhere, probably being prepped to burn. I understand it. We didn't let much leak on our side either. We - Humans - try to look as rational as we can. It's how we separate ourselves from the animals… at least, that's how we see it. No offense, right?"

Judy shook her head again. "None taken."

"At our cores, we're the same." Lee continued. "We're all reactive creatures. If word got out of long, drawn-out battles during the dead of night at the DMZ, the whole public would be pushing for war. We're advanced, sure, but we can't take on a continent that's our equal in many aspects. So, we kept hush about the things."

"'Snow Wars' - such a lame name. I'm sure some generals on this ship, probably under both our asses, love the term. They weren't even battles - they were slow skirmishes. A patrol gets shot at on one side, reinforcements arrive… whole thing turns into these rolling gunfights."

Lee paused for a moment. She was still staring off. "Ben and I - we were investigating this tunnel some patrols had found. We got a squad with us and went in."

She shook her head before letting out a shaky breath. "It was a trap. We should have known. The whole place was rigged to blow. Four tons of TNT leveled the tunnel, taking half of the mountain with it. The rest of the squad was wiped out instantly. The way the rock fell, it created this tiny enclosure. You couldn't even stand up in there."

Judy watched as Lee quickly lifted the edge of her jacket, revealing a sliver of her skin. There was a long scar. She let the jacket drop. "After everything came down, I was pinned down by a boulder. I couldn't get out from under it. Ben got me out from under. I was effectively paralyzed. We had no food, no water, no radio. I firmly believed that we would die in there."

"But Ben," Lee continued, smiling. "He wouldn't have any of it. He broke his gun in half and literally began digging. It took days - the rock had collapsed twice - but he finally found a way out. He dragged me, kicking and screaming, out into the snow and hauled me all the way to base."

She grew quiet again. "He should've won a medal for that, but y'know, secrecy and all that. Sometimes, when he puts himself in these situations, a part of me can't help but think that he's still trying."

There was silence between them for a time. Lee finally turned to look at Judy. "Listen, the point is - Ben's a hardy guy. He's going to be okay."