Chapter Notes:
Umm just a heads up, this one has blood in it so be advised. And I also put the part where they are knocked into the pit in the chapter because I didn't actually like how it picked up after the last one.
Well I didn't want to keep everyone waiting too long for this one, so without further delay;
Enjoy!-
The Hunt:
After the ram had knocked Judy and Nick down into a pit display he picked up the case and brought it over to his boss where she opened it up to make sure the gun was intact and there. But when Bellwether opened the case she saw blue oozing out of the back of the gun and a sense of rage that she harbored only grew. It had taken weeks to finally get that serum dart and now it was destroyed, carefully she picked up the gun and using the tips of her finger she opened the compartment to find something both strange and amusing. In the place where the darts were held there was two blueberries sitting there, and a third that had gotten stuck in between the frame and the compartment.
When Nick has picked them up and switched them out for the serum before rushing frantically to close it he hadn't looked the gun over before putting it back in the case. If he did he would have noticed the blueberry juice that dripped from the gap between the slide and the gun, but he didn't notice the oversight in his plan and now he had to pay for it.
The wicked sheep took out the remaining berries and pieces of what was once a berry before reaching into her pocket and pulling out the small bag containing the blue and red balls. If anything good had come from the call at the prison it was that it came just in time, because if it came a moment later she would have given the toxic serum to Lionheart as a gumball; but she didn't, and now instead she was loading it into the gun with a sinister look in her eyes.
"Well you should've just stayed on the carrot farm hu?" Bellwether suggested to the returned cop in her innocent and deserving voice. "It really is too bad. I, I did like you." The evil mammal said hinting at the near future; the near end.
Nick was looking on shocked, he had hoped that the case would have fallen with them, but instead there it was in the sheep's hooved fingers. But Judy was ready for this, she had it planned out after Nick had shown her the impromptu plan and she subtly pressed the record button on the carrot pen she had in her pocket from Nick. "What are you going to do? Kill me?!" the rabbit accused, that tretorous idea make the red fox next to her worry for her life.
Bellwether laughed lightly at the idea as if it was a silly joke, as if it and everything it meant were nothing. "No, of course not." She said with a smile on her innocent face, before she dropped it revealing her unstable and twisted persona she had been hiding. "He is." She growled as pulled out the gun and shot Nick on the neck with the blue projectile.
The bite of the impact it had on his neck made him jump back from the sting. The blue of the splatter stood out in high contrast compared to the orangish red color that was his fur, but that blue color was not soothing, in fact it was burning; he was burning. "No! Oh Nick." Judy said trying to play up the role for her friend's plan. But it seemed like his pain was more than real, his whimpering and writhing were painful just to watch, 'that blueberry must have hurt.' She thought to herself sorry that he had gotten shot in the soft spot of the neck.
PAIN! PAIN! PAIN! KILL! KILL! KILL! The familiar call of the survival instincts was not calling out to him this time, instead the burning from his neck was creeping into his mind ripping apart his sanity. 'No I….pro-mised…..I wou-ld…protect…her' Nick tried to think to himself with what little consciousness he had left. He could feel his mind slipping away giving into the burning that was taking over his body and mind, giving into the whirlwind of aggression, hate, and destruction that was tearing him apart. "Ju-dy. Ru-n." he tried to warn her through the excruciating feeling that was taking his breath away and making him cringe in pain, but his voice was so broken and low it wasn't heard. He could feel his claws and teeth aching in pain as he scraped them on the floor and grinded them together trying desperately to dull the pain.
"Hello police? There's a savage fox in the natural history museum. Officer Hopps is down. Please hurry." Bellwether cried desperately into her phone before hanging up and giggling a bit at the believable act before slipping the phone back into her pocket.
Judy looked from the sheep to her friend who she thought was huffing in false pain just like she thought she was in false danger. "No, Nick. Don't do this. Fight it." She said encouraging him along with their act. She saw the red and brown strands of fur on his neck begin to raise and heard the dangerous growling sound coming from him. danger! Her survival instincts screamed at her to get away, but to her is was all part of his greatest hustle.
Nick bit through the pain that was eating through him, he held onto his sanity just enough to turn to face her and warn his dear friend to get away and run for her life, but even then it was like scooping water with a fork. When he turned to face her the pain both mentally and physically was unbearable causing tears to drip down his furry cheeks as he tried to beg her to run, but that was as far as he could hold onto his sanity "Ju-dy.." he choked out.
Her amethyst eyes saw the tears streaming from her green eyes, but then she froze in fear. Those were not Nick's eyes; the once light emerald eyes minutes ago that were filled with happiness were gone, and in their place were dangerous dilated eyes of a killer. Those sharp green eyes pierced through her own mind freezing her with fear.
RUN!
Judy's survival instincts screamed out inside of her taking control both her frightened mind and fear filled body. Without her doing or meaning to she kicked at the mammal in front of her and felt the sole of her long feet conect against the side of its muzzle. As the fox reared back in pain from the kick she began to hop away on her good leg trying desperately to get anywhere safer.
The fox that was once Nick was withering in pain thrashing about on the floor. He was growling dangerously as he dragged his face side to side across the hard floor digging his claws into it next to him, he would snap his head up in attention at a sound coming from somewhere near before thrashing it side to side along with the rest of his body. His red toned fur was standing on end prickling against his shirt and the irritating feeling was driving up his madness and aggression, and to put an end to the pins and needles feeling all over he bit into the cloth near his arm tearing the fabric off of himself ribbon by shredded ribbon.
At the top of the pit the female sheep was laughing in happiness and yelling hysterically, "I'm going to turn every predator savage starting with that fox!" Above the pit Bellwether was watching gleefully. She had never seen one of the targets going savage before and the sight itself was a rush for the sheep. Seeing something losing itself to the burning aggression inside their head, seeing something becoming so thoughtless and dangerous, it all brought chills to her; and she loved it. By shooting the fox whose name she didn't even care to know her plan would go through, because when police arrive they would find nothing recognizable left of the pestering bunny after being mauled by the savage fox.
But as she watched everything unfold the feral mammal was still only thrashing about violently rather than attacking violently. "Doug, why isn't he killing her?" she asked to sheep next to her disguised himself as a police officer and joined her at the museum entrance like she ordered.
Doug himself was confused, the transition never took this long even with the larger mammals. "I-I don't know. Maybe it's the new serum taking effect." He said confused and unsure hoping that the answer would please his boss. While she growled in impatience she made no move to snap at him as she kept watching.
Nick nearly completely shirtless was tearing apart the ribbons of cloth that had managed to stay wrapped around his torso scattering fibers and pieces all around him, but then he froze as a sharp scent filled his nose; the scent of fresh blood with the sound of a hurt animal.
Judy was hiding behind a rock watching from a distance as the fox she once knew was going insane, the sounds of him growling and snarling as he ripped at his green shirt were frightening and as she tried to hide lower her injured leg scraped against part of the rock. Even through the soaked cloth bandaging her leg the sharp pain of the rock scraping against it felt like it opened the wound ever so slightly causing her to whimper. But when she saw Nick focus his killer eyes on her she backed and bumped into a stuffed deer causing it to fall on top of her leg making her yelp.
Nick's hearing having caught the undeniable sound of a hurt animal saw the small rabbit toppled over by another mammal and jumped at it. The shirtless fox tumbled into an open area of the pit near the edge and began biting at the deer's muzzle and clawing its sides. Judy watched only feet away as the savage fox tore off the first limb on the doll and ripping it to shreds, followed by the second and third, then finally the fourth.
She began backing away in fear that in minutes he would become bored of the imitation mammal that he would become interested in the fear and panic coming from her. Inching away from the fox she never took her eyes off of him as he ripped apart the rest of the bambi turning it into a flurry of cotton stuffing and felt that rained around was absolutely horrified to see him snapping and ripping at the felt skin already in pieces lying about the floor circling him
From up above where the wooly mammals watching it just looked like the fox was toying with the rabbit, and Bellwether didn't have time to toy right now. While Judy was inching away from Nick they were going from one end of the pit to the other under where the wicked sheep was standing. "Doug why is he still not killing her?" she hissed at the sheep in blue next to her having lost her patience.
"I-I don't know." He stammered at the sudden outburst and rage he felt emanating from the small and hostile sheep he followed.
Bellwether had enough of this 'I don't know' nonsense, "WELL THEN YOU KILL HER!" she yelled with a deep scowl on her face as he shrill voice screamed out. Without any other warning or indication she grabbed him by the sleeve of his uniform and threw him down into the exhibit below.
As his face smacked into the floor he let out a yell, that cry of pain was heard by the fox; but due to Judy's uncontrollable fear of the red mammal in front of her she didn't even register the sound behind her. But what she did register was the predator snapping his head in her direction and she could almost feel his lust for her blood as he dropped the shreds of brown cloth from his dangerous jaws. Then her fear shot thru the roof as he began prowling straight for her.
Behind her the sheep that had just fallen in was glaring at his boss, but when she glared back with her army green eyes showing just how unstable her sanity really was he looked away and focused on the turned back of the rabbit. Quietly he began tiptoeing towards her as he drew his baton ready to deal a lethal blow and leave her for the savage predator, the same one that was out of his sight because the bright flood lights shining in his direction partially blinding him as he got closer to Judy.
DANGER! RUN! RUN! Judy's instincts were screaming so loudly in her mind that she was frozen in place, she couldn't move a muscle and she couldn't even think. Savage Nick was closing in on her and she couldn't move and she could barely breath; and even then it was uneven and weak. The screaming inside her head was defending her own ears to the point she couldn't hear the fox in front of her, nor the sheep behind her getting ready to swing.
The look in Bellwether army green eyes was a frightening sight in their own right, she had gone absolutely mad. The twisted grin on her face as she watched Judy being trapped without even knowing. If Doug didn't kill her then Nick would, and if Nick killed her he would then turn to kill her minion as well; he was easily replaceable to her plans to rule the city, and one insignificant pawn wasn't going to cost her the game.
Nick was crawling dangerously low to the ground as he approached Judy, while she couldn't hear it coming from his dangerous and threatening snarl was an even more dangerous growl. He began opening his clenched jaw as he grew near with. His fur was standing on end making him seem larger than he was, and his tail was flicking violently behind him as he stepped closer; his claws leaving scratch marks as he lifted them up off the solid floor. With death so close to Judy, her survival instincts slipped away, there was no escaping now even if she could run.
As she gained back her own mind she felt no fear as she looked into the fox's green eyes, she felt no sadness in what was going to come, she felt no regret for things that never did come, she just felt nothing. "Oh Nick." She said as tears dripped from her face spilling emotions she could no longer feel.
That is the last thing that Judy did before Nick lunged toward her causing her to flinch, bringing her arms up to defend herself as a jerk-reaction to the fox. His sharp hunting teeth sinking into cloth and flesh spilling blood along with a blood curtling scream into the air.
Chief Bogo was leading nearly ten squad cars to the natural history museum, the brigade of black and white vehicles had their sirens blaring as they sped through the city. One sharp turn after the next they went through the streets heading all the way from the precinct headquarters to the closed down building, but that's when dispatch radioed in. "All units be advised, a savage fox has been sighted attacking officer Hopps in the natural history museum, officer Hopps is down. I repeat; all units be advised, a savage fox has been sighted attacking officer Hopps in the natural history museum, officer Hopps is down." The voice came through over the radio.
"Who called that in?" the chief shouted into his radio to contact the dispatch. "That building has been closed for weeks, no one is supposed to be in there."
"The voice matched that of Mayor Bellwether's sir." The officer on the other end of the radio responded.
'Bellwether? Bellwether is with Judy? But why would she be there?-' the large officer asked himself before it clicked inside his mind what was going on in his city. The danger had been right under his nose the whole time and he was too blind to see it, what a fool he had been.
As they arrived to the museum he and all the cars following fast behind him screeched and skidded to a halt and the officers all exited their cars grabbing their tranquilizer guns all rushing up behind their commanding officer. "Listen up everyone officer Hopps is in trouble, the suspects are Mayor Bellwether and any rams and sheeps with her. There is a savage reporting inside so watch your back and each others." He commanded before rushing into the door throwing it open, and rushing in with his officers in tow.
As they stepped inside there were no lights on and the only lights were coming from outside; and the dark shadows were making them cautious as they moved through the building before they heard a blood curdling scream come from the back half of the building. Without any concern for personal safety they rushed down the main hall searching with the light on their guns as they ran around the piles of artworks and scaffolding.
The savage fox bit down with all the force he could while flying through the air feeling his teeth dig into skin and muscle. The screaming of pain hurt his ears as they were so close to the source. As he started thrashing his head and tearing the arm that was brought up to defend themselves a sharp pain in the side of his head forced him to yelp in pain and release the blood stained arm. With blood dripping from over his eye he growled dangerously and warningly as he backed up and arched his back to make himself bigger as he watched the mammal withering in pain on the floor.
Doug was just about to swing the wooden club down on the back of Judy's small head when at that split second the outline of a fox jumped through the blinding light with his sharp teeth aimed for his face. With no time to think he reacted by swinging his arms in front of him, but unfortunately for him one of those arms landed right in between the sharp teeth causing them to clamp down onto his limb. He screamed in sheer pain as teeth dug deeper into his arm as he tried to pull it out before swinging the club at the top of the foxes head connecting with it forcing the crazed mammal to let go and causing himself to stumble back.
When Judy saw Nick lounge toward her she flinched bringing up her arms over her face and closing her eyes, but what she felt was something soft smack against her small frame and not a second later horrible scream came from behind her scaring the little breath she had out of her body. She fell over onto her back and quickly rolled over onto her arms to see the savage fox attached to the arm of the sheep that made to serum, dressed as an officer. He was screaming in pain as the predator thrashed about and the only thing he could do was swing the black stick hitting it against the head of the fox.
Then after yelping in pain the fox backed away from the now harmful threat never taking his eyes off of it as he hunched himself into a threatening pose. Judy could feel the fur from his body brush against the back of her ears and shirt as she suddenly found herself under the fox, but as she waited to be attacked herself; that bite never came. Instead the fox above her stayed where he was watching the sheep intently growling increasingly more dangerous as Doug made eye contact with him and got to his feet. The fox that was once Nick had his shoulders pressed up together as he prepared to strike. Without warning the fox jumped from where he was and dug all four clawed paws in the thick wool of the sheep who was becoming more of a threat with every second.
Lucky for Doug his thick wool was somehow managing to keep the lethal claws away from his skin as the fox attacked him, but then he could hear his shirt and wool being torn apart as he tried to get the beast off of him; that same beast was trying to kill him.
Judy heard another yelp from the clawed mammal as he jumped away from the sheep leaving chunks off wool missing and a few new bit marks on his arms; the red staining more of his wool as they dripped. The fox had his chest pressed over Judy once again and his arms out to her sides still ready to pounce, and no sooner than he saw the sheep sway did he do just that.
The grey rabbit couldn't take her eyes away as the fox attacked the struggling mammal. The sound of growing, ripping, and screaming was to much for her to shut out as her eyes grew wide in horror, but what became even more horrifying was the decrease in screams and struggle from the criminal mammal as the fox kept up his third attack. "Nick stop!" she yelled without thinking causing the red fox to snap his attention towards her; his fur now stained a different shade of red.
He shook his head side to side a few times as he glanced at her before loud shouts he couldn't understand and the unmistakable sound of large hooves and paws grew louder. With the crazed look in his savage eyes still there he quickly made his way to the small rabbit and opened his mouth revealing red stained fangs.
Judy was horrified at first, and when she felt those sharp teeth against the back of her neck she froze. But they didn't bite down, instead the gently pressed against the extra furry skin and suddenly she was lifted off of the ground as the fox lifted her by the scruff of the neck and looked around for somewhere safe to protect her. In only a few seconds the red fox saw a small hole in the rocks big enough for the both of them, after putting her safely in the cove he curled his tail and body around her hiding her from sight.
Mayor Bellwether was speechless, while seeing the savage fox attack and kill her minion was not shocking or disturbing to her, what had left her speechless was the bunny still living and breathing in the pit with the savage mammal. Not only that; but the feral creature had picked up the rabbit by the scruff and was now currently over her protectively.
She was beginning to lose her own sanity as months of planning crumbled away until the sound of shouting and stomping came through the rooms entryway. She quickly threw the dart gun into the pit and shouted "Police down there!" she yelled in her high pitched voice as she switched back to her meek persona and pointed into the pit.
"Arrest her!" Chief Bogo yelled to an officer beside him as he pointed at the sheep, but as soon as he gave the command she went wide eyed in shock and ran. Chasing after her was officer Wolfred and McHorn, she never stood a chance at getting away for the trained officers as the wolf tackled her to the floor; this was his payback for making him wear this prison over his face. "Hopps!" the chief yelled as he and all the other officers prey and predator looked down into the pit to see the red soaked body of a sheep.
Without thinking the large cape buffalo jumped into the pit. "Chief don't move!" he heard Judy yell out warning him from somewhere. He looked around to see her hidden under an artificial rock cave in the side of the wall, and slowing going from being curled around her to crutched above her staring him down was a red fox with green eye, and blood drips coming off his muzzle. The fox was had a open cut above the eye causing blood to trail down his face mixing with the rest already there and it shifted his weight from paw to the other making his shoulders role visibly behind his lowered head.
The predator was growling louder as the eye contact was kept, as the challenge to power was being made, he was getting more enraged by the large mammal out to hurt the rabbit, but there were too many that were all behind the first waiting for something, and if he attacked the one in front of him the rest would attack the grey bunny beneath him. "Don't look him in the eye!" Judy warned as it clicked what was happening and warned her chief.
Without thinking the horned mammal turned his head down so he could still see the two but so that the fox couldn't see his red eyes. But at the same time the sound of all the officers aiming their tranq guns at the fox was heard. "No don't shoot!" the small bunny shouted from under the fox that was protecting her. "Please don't shoot!" she screamed not wanting Nick to die, not wanting him to be remembered as a savage monster.
"CEASE FIRE!" Bogo yelled snapping his head to the officers above him. The sudden shout startled the red fox as he crouched lower over the rabbit covering her with his body and warning the others to stay away. His predatory green eyes shifted from each mammal challenging them to come closer to him; and who ever did would be in for a deadly fight, nobody was going to touch the rabbit below him as long as he was there.
Judy could feel not only the fur, but now also the chest of the fox pressed against her back as he leaned down lower over her growling at her commanding officer the damp fur touching against her own fur reminded the grey rabbit of all the blood that was covering the fox above her. "Chief Bogo you have to get out of here while you can. We figured it out and mayor Bellwether was targeting predators with a serum, she was the one making them go savage." Judy tried explaining quickly to the blue mammal despite the dangerous situation they were in.
At the explanation all the predatory animals up above the pit turned to the mentioned sheep growling dangerously at her as they removed their muzzles and dropped them to the floor. The clanks of the black metal frames echoed throughout the room,.
"But we tried to get away but then we got hit into here and she shot Nick." She continued with part of the story as the pain in her leg began to come back with the adrenaline of the situation beginning to fade away leaving her exhausted and in pain.
Chief Bogo was listening carefully looking back at the mayor and to Judy before looking over at the sheep at the warning snarl from what used to be Nick. And just before he could ask about the corpse there with them Judy hit the play button on the carrot pen she had pulled from her pocket, it had played the entire scene from when they were pushed into the pit up until she stopped the recording after Bellwether threw the lamb to the slaughter.
"I don't know why he didn't attack me first but you need to leave before he attacks you." She told him as the sound of ambulances approached and the stretcher could be hear rolling through the building rushing to where one of the officers was calling for them, and just outside news vans were rolling onto the property after hearing all the police cruisers racing through the city.
"No. We have to get you out of here Hopps. I do not leave officers behind." He said while he raised his gun at the fox. It wasn't meant to kill but with a dos this big there was a strong chance that it would, but he needed the savage mammal to be unconscious before anything worse happened.
The small rabbit tried to get out from under Nick to stop her chief from shooting him but as she did do the fox jumped back onto her and was stuck in the side with the needled dart. He snarled at the buffalo for the stinging pain, but in a few seconds the pain dulled into warm numbness, and then that numbness into nothing. His dangerous snarl across his muzzle fell and his growl faded away. Eyelids slowly fell over green eyes and the fox staggered side to side with his arms shaking under him trying to support his now unsteady weight as he kept staggering and swaying. With a last effort he tried to shake the unstoppable feeling from himself by shaking his head side to side before it slowed to a stop as he collapsed on top of Judy pinning her beneath the dead weight of his body.
Author's Notes:
Okay that chapter came out pretty quick! I really didn't want to let all the tension to fade away from the last one so I tried to get this one ready really quick. Now I felt I had a lot of problems with the scene when the police arrived because I really couldn't get a good understanding on that part or how some of them would react, but like I want to know what everyone thought about the chapter but that part especially. So let me know what you all thought about it.
The next chapter might be a little slower just because Instincts had a double update and now I haven't updated Tales in a while, but this is not the end of this fic.
Thank you all for reading along and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!-
