Chapter 12 – A Worthwhile Education
Later when Tailor heard what happened, he was speechless. Not about Jack standing up to the ram. He couldn't believe the bunny had traded his dessert for a kiss.
"Are you kidding me? I could have gotten out of bathroom cleaning duty for that. How could you have done something so stupid?"
Tailor had been on the other side of the room trading his food during the entire incident so had only heard about it later.
Jack simply grinned at him, "Some of us have different priorities."
Tailor just shook his head in disbelief and muttered to himself about mad bunnies. Jack noticed the lamb would glance at him with a grin from time to time the rest of the afternoon. He would smile and nod at her. Anytime Tailor would notice this exchange he would shake his head and stare down at his task and mutter. The badger thought the bunny had misguided priorities, but apparently his agile little bunny paws were quite adept at doing all the tasks and they ended up running out of items to work on because they had to wait on other groups to complete their work first. So they went outside for a break early. Tailor showed off his new coat and boots pointing out that Jack could have had those if he had not been stupid enough to trade his dessert for something so stupid. Jack slid on some knitted tubes on his feet and put on the old tiny jacket he had arrived with and went outside. While normally rabbits did not wear shoes, in the freezing snow it became very uncomfortable wearing bare feet, so they would wear covering when outside for any extended amount of time.
The two played outside for awhile building some snow mammals and a fort. Jack saw Bernard wandering around and threw a snowball near him to get his attention, and Bernard came over to see how he was doing. It was good talking to the old bear who got a good chuckle hearing Tailor complain how the bunny was trading desserts for such stupid things as a kiss.
Bernard grinned at the bunny, "I think Pip here just has a different idea what is important Tailor. Good on ya Pip. There are few things worth living for… Pip here just figured that out at an early age."
The badger just looked at the two of them muttering about crazy mammals with frozen brains.
They were joined a bit later by other groups of younger kids, and the group of them had a good time battling each other. Tailor and Jack already had a solid fort built and they easily recruited several other stronger kids who wanted to fight alongside the bunny that had defied Rowdy. Apparently the ram did not have many fans among the smaller kids. Jack had never been in a snowball fight before, but he learned quite quickly. His small size was actually a great asset as he was a very tiny target. Initially the other team tried to target him, but found he was nearly impossible to hit and then got quite abused by his teammates. Jack would hide behind the lower walls of the fort and leap into the air and sling frozen balls of death at his adversaries. By the time their opponents could respond, he was safely behind the walls of the fort. They finally gave up even trying to hit him so he just hid behind the legs of the bigger kids and fired at will hitting with amazing accuracy. The kids on his team started nicknaming him Bullseye as he became so accurate that he even started calling his shots so only they could hear him. When his shots would leave his paws and smack their targets in the head his whole team would just crack up laughing and yelling, "Bullseye strikes again!"
Jack had never felt so accepted or had so much fun before. I would have never thought I would feel most at home among a bunch of slaves. It was such a bizarre situation. Eventually the two teams called a truce and all formally met the new bunny and spent the rest of their time playing various games like one where the other kids made stairs with their bodies, and Jack and the other small kids hopped up and down the makeshift steps. Jack was thankful that he had taken the medications he had hidden in his pouch at lunch or he would have been in a great deal of pain. But he was having so much fun any discomfort he felt barely registered. He had so many new friends who all wanted to get to know him, that he forgot he was even on a secret mission. But there was nothing he could do towards that goal at the moment, so having fun with the other kids became his current mission objective. This is the kind of objective I could get used to. Eventually the play time was up and they were all called inside, but because Tailor and him had finished early, they had gotten a lot of extra playtime outside.
Jack happily worked the rest of the afternoon helping Tailor finish all their tasks. They ran out of things to do before dinner, so Tailor took out a book to read and Jack joined Baabs and helped her finish all her work. Initially the other kids looked quite surprised as he hopped up next to her. Her big grin was the only reward Jack needed. She showed him what she was working on, and he quickly started working with her. Jack showed her that it was faster if he did the first part and she did the last rather doing them individually. In just over an hour the two had finished every single item they could possibly do. Baabs happily put her numbers into the log book which would earn her extra rations and a dessert, and the two spent their remaining time sitting next to each other whispering, talking about their lives.
She wanted to know about the last place he was at. He used his time at the orphanage and the slave pen at Sahara Square to mostly tell her the truth of what it was like for him living there. She was quite concerned about how difficult a time he had from bullies and other mean kids. He told her that was why kids like Rowdy didn't scare him. He told her he had seen ones many times worse. She told him that she and her brother were sold by their mother. She didn't know where her brother had been sent, but it was a different place. She thought he was in the other facility across the district. Her hope was that eventually she could get moved there or he could be moved to her location. Jack told her it must be nice to at least have a sibling. She thought it was quite unusual that a bunny had no brothers or sisters. He wanted to know what she thought about a mother that would sell her into slavery.
"I really don't know how to say Pip. I hated her for a long time at first. But I still miss her." She tried to explain.
Jack shook his head and honestly responded, "I couldn't imagine how I could forgive my parents if they had sold me. Baabs, if you could be returned to your Mom, would you want to be?"
The little lamb thought about this carefully and finally answered, "I… I don't know. If I could be returned to her with my brother and she wanted me… I guess I would like that."
Jack hoped he could make this happen. He would have to talk to his boss about such a strange situation. He hoped the fox would have a solution. Jack wasn't just talking to the adorable little lamb because it was fun. Once he got her talking she was a giant fountain of information. Apparently since she had been denied from talking to someone else for so long, now that she was freed she didn't want to stop talking, and Jack was quite happy to listen. She filled him in on every detail of how everything worked at the facility. She explained how they ate in two shifts with the younger kids eating first followed by the older. She explained that there were six sleeping areas separated by sex and age where they had all the beds together. Apparently they actually gave them real beds rather than a mat on the floor. Jack figured this did make sense as this was a permanent work area rather than temporary housing while they waited to be sold, so the kid's well-being was more important. He guessed they realized a well rested slave would do much better work.
"Can say a little bunny sneak in and visit a friend in the girls sleeping area at night?" Jack asked mischievously.
This got a giggle from the lamb, "Pip, you would get in so much trouble. If they caught you, they would put you in the locked rooms for a week."
He smiled at her, "It would be worth it."
He then looked at her seriously, "It would be nice to have a friend close by my first night here."
The lamb then looked concerned as she realized he was serious, "Hmmm I don't want you to get in trouble. But if you are really serious about it, I will try and switch beds with a friend of mine. She sleeps in a private corner. We'll have to trade one of our desserts we just earned with her though."
"That's fine, she can have mine. Maybe you will share yours." He responded with a grin.
Baabs then described the exact layout of all six sleeping areas and where the young girls sleeping room was located. Jack used a blank piece of paper and pen from the logbook to draw a map, and Baabs showed him where he would be and how to get to her room. Now he had a private place to call for support at night with a friend whom he could trust. Jack wasn't thinking about hanky panky with the little sheep. He was six after all. While it would be nice to sleep next to her, his mind was completely focused on the mission. He needed someone he could trust completely with him, and a private corner would be the ideal location especially if he had some certain midnight visitors of the extra tiny kind.
They then went to the dinner shift, and he enjoyed the extra rations earned for his work with Tailor and joined Baabs and her zebra and hippo friend. She left him briefly to talk to her friend in the sleeping quarters and Jack saw they had a brief discussion and the little antelope girl nodded her head and Baabs gave her the chocolate chips cookies they had gotten as a dessert bonus and half her bonus entree which was vegetable medley. When she came back she looked at Jack and nodded her head letting him know everything was set. While she was away Jack had slipped out medications from his pouch and took them with his meal. He needed to be in tip top shape for the evening's festivities.
He slid over his cookies and part of his extra entree to his little friend. She grinned at him and they worked on eating their dinner. The zebra girl looked disappointed for some reason and asked, "No kiss?"
Jack and Baabs looked at each other and laughed. She answered her friend named Trixy, "Trix, we thought we would take care of that in private this time."
Jack noticed Trixy seemed quite disheartened by this news but nodded her head. If Tailor wasn't so dim-witted about the joys of this kind of thing, he would have considered introducing him to the little zebra. Jack figured if he had stayed here longer, he would have found a nice match for her among his many new friends that might make her happy. It wasn't that he got a vibe that the little zebra had a thing for him. It seemed more she just liked the romantic idea of him and her friend.
But Jack grinned at Trixy and let her know, "Don't worry Trixy. We won't leave you out. We're just trying to keep everything low-key right now. Understand?"
The little zebra brightened her mood as she understood. She seemed to like being part of the romantic conspiracy. The little hippo just looked at all three of them shaking her head. Apparently she was not impressed. But apparently Trixy got a bit of a thrill as Baabs fed Jack some of the cookies he had given her. They shared the cookies with both the zebra and hippo as well so everyone was quite pleased.
After dinner they went back to the work room. Apparently they had to finish their new projects before they could go to sleep. Jack and Tailor finished their work fairly quickly and Tailor waited reading his book while Jack helped Baabs finish her work so she could go back to the dormitory early as well. The three of them all headed back to the dormitory building with Tailor mumbling about how much extra work having a female friend was. Baabs and Jack laughed at him. Jack walked the little lamb to the door to her room and reluctantly released her hoof letting her go inside.
He followed Jack to the young boys dormitory and Tailor showed him where an empty bed was located. He fussed at Jack letting him know he could have traded his food for a prime bed location if he had been smart instead of messing with a stupid girl. Jack just nodded at the badger as it was not worth arguing with him. Tailor then showed him where they had some books and materials where he could learn simple math, history or reading. Apparently the only time you had to actually learn anything was in the evening after work. And if you were slow at doing your work you probably never had any time to learn anything or read before they turned the lights out.
Jack was hoping that Mini and Razer would find him, but he figured they wouldn't contact him before the lights were out anyway. But there was one thing he could do. Apparently they were given pencils and paper to work on educating themselves in their free time. So Jack took a math workbook and some paper and pencils and worked furiously in his bed. Tailor seemed to approve seeing his new partner working so hard at learning. However Jack was not doing math, but instead was sketching out diagrams of the entire facility and listing every detail of the information he had gathered throughout the day. He listed every boss, their locations, the numbers of kids in both locations, the locations of all the workers and their approximate numbers, the location of all the kids in the dormitories, and detailed scale maps of every inch of the facility he had toured like Felix had taught him. Jack spent over an hour putting down every tiny detail he thought could possibly help. He then folded up the several sheets of paper and stuffed it into his pouch which was hidden by the bed sheets.
All this preparation work would minimize the amount of talking he would need to do with his tiny friends which would be extremely important considering the circumstances. He pulled his knife out and checked the clock and saw that it was almost 9:45 PM and knew from Baabs that lights went out at 10 PM. Most of the room was full now and the kids were preparing for bed. Jack noticed they even had assigned toothbrushes and pajamas. Tailor showed Jack where to get his new toothbrush and clothes and how to mark them as his.
The lights went out and all the kids got in bed. Jack waited thirty minutes and got up and slipped out of bed and went to use the restroom and then returned stuffing his pillow where his body would have been located. He then silently opened the door and listened carefully to make sure no one was coming. He slowly closed the door and crept down the hall as quickly as he could, careful to make no sound. He reached up high on his tiptoes to open the handle to the girls room. Fortunately they had doors with handles fairly low for the younger kids, but even among the young kids he was quite small. Apparently no one at this facility broke any rules, so they allowed the slaves a great deal of freedom including keeping the sleeping quarters unlocked. He could have probably unlocked the door if it had been locked, but it was high up so it would have been difficult. He was thankful he didn't have to attempt this as his height was certainly a handicap when unlocking things out of his reach. It was so strange not seeing adults escorting all the slaves around watching them as they did every task. He guessed that those that broke rules were punished quite severely. He saw how much more efficient it was to have slaves self-regulating. They must save quite a lot on costs not having to employ adults to oversee every aspect of the kids' lives. He also didn't discount the possibility that other slaves would report on anyone breaking the rules. That was why he was keeping everything he was doing quiet from every other kid except the one special one he trusted.
He closed the door very gently so as not to make a sound and listened carefully. He then slipped around the other beds listening for any sounds that would indicate someone awake and alert. He adjusted his path depending on the sounds he heard and made it to the corner where he hoped his lovely friend was located. He listened carefully and could hear her breathing, but it was not the breath of someone asleep. Jack had very attuned hearing and knew just from the very faint sounds of her breath it was her. However he didn't want to startle her and have her shout out, so he lightly patted her bed until he heard the sound of her turning toward him. He lightly touched her hoof with his paw and gently held it. He couldn't see her expression, but hoped she was smiling. He lifted up the sheet and slid in next to her moving to the side against the wall lying on his side and covered them with the sheet and blanket so they were hidden underneath to help muffle their voices or the sounds from their affections. She turned to face him and he held her next to him and gently kissed her. They kissed for several minutes before she tried to muffle a giggle.
She then whispered, "I feel so naughty, but it is nice having you here with me."
He kissed her and whispered back, "It sure beats being alone in a roomful of guys."
She giggled at that.
Jack then rubbed the little lamb all over. Her wool was so soft and fluffy. She seemed to think his fur felt quite nice as she did the same to him. She seemed to especially enjoy rubbing his fluffy little tail while he kissed her.
After they had fun for awhile touching each other and kissing, Jack decided he needed to prepare her in advance if his friends found him. It was unavoidable and he couldn't have her yelling and waking up anyone. He would have liked having a lot more time with her, but he was a secret agent on a critical mission and such fun would have to wait.
He sighed and whispered to her, "Baabs… I need to tell you something."
She giggled and rolled on top of him playing with his ears, "What?"
He played with the curls on her head, "I have some friends coming to meet me tonight. Really tiny friends. So please don't panic when they show up."
She giggled at him, "You're so funny."
He whispered to her sternly, "I'm serious. I wish I could just enjoy my time with you, but I have an important job."
She then stopped and whispered back, "You… what are you talking about?"
He slid the knife out of his pouch and pushed the light on under the sheets showing it was just after 11 PM.
She gasped and he put his paws over her mouth. She asked shocked, "How'd you get that?"
He kissed her and whispered back, "My friends and I are here to get you out."
"Out? Out of where?" She whispered confused.
"This place… the slave place." He answered her.
"Just me? How can you do that? We would be killed." She began to shake nervously.
Jack hugged her petting her head, "No doll, all of you. Everyone… your brother as well."
"Pip, what are you talking about?" She asked.
He kissed her again, "Can you just trust I care about you and won't let any harm come to you?"
He turned the light on again so he could look into her eyes so she could see he was very earnest in what he was saying. She finally nodded her head.
He then turned the light out and whispered, "I don't know when they are coming. Hopefully soon or we are going to be in trouble. I just wanted you to be ready when they arrive, okay?"
He could feel her nod her head. They both were silent as he listened carefully for any small sign of life, but heard nothing. He decided that the tension was going to eat himself and the little lamb up if they just stood still listening like this, so he stuck both of his ears out from under the blanket and began to quietly enjoy kissing her and rubbing her. When she tried to speak he shushed her and kept his ears listening carefully while enjoying her company. Jack figured he could multitask to take his mind off the life and death mission looming over them.
They kept this up for quite awhile, and the lamb started getting adventurous rubbing him under his pajama shirt and had begun rubbing him accidentally or otherwise in a place he had never been rubbed before by a girl or well anyone when he heard a tiny noise.
"Jack… Jack… you there?"
Jack cursed his damn luck. He sighed, but the mission came first. Such is the life of a secret agent. He regretfully gently grabbed her hooves and whispered, "They're here."
She stopped her rubbing and tried to speak and he put his paw over her mouth.
He stuck his head out of the sheet and whispered as softly as he could, "Mini… you there?"
About a minute later he heard tiny barely perceptible paws and then felt something tiny crawling on the bed. He lifted up the sheet and blanket and felt tiny paws and a small furry body climb over him. He lit up the clock just long enough to see it was 11:45 PM and a small mouse looking very anxiously at Jack and his lady friend.
"It's okay Mini… she is a friend. She knew you were coming." Jack whispered to his tiny ally.
The little lamb stared at the mouse as if he was an apparition finally whispering, "Pip… I… I thought you were kidding."
Jack grinned at her, "No dollface I would never kid about rescuing your lovely self. Mini, I have already got an entire map of the place and every detail possible I could gather."
Jack slid the sheets of paper from his pouch and unfolded them showing them to the mouse by the light of the little light in his knife.
Mini seemed quite impressed, "This is perfect. Sorry it took so long to find you. We've been crawling around in the vents for awhile. They didn't connect to the other room you were in so we had to go the long way around to the find the one coming here. And then it took Razer awhile to make me a hole. You seem to be doing quite a lot better than the last time I saw you."
Mini's chuckle almost got Jack to laugh as he whispered back, "Yes, the company and the accommodations are much better this time around. Is everything still scheduled for the right time?"
Mini shook his head, "No… because of the delay getting to you, we are pushing everything back a half hour. I need to get all this to HQ immediately so they can adjust all their plans. They will need the additional time to adjust for everything you have here. So make the call one thirty instead, okay?"
Jack whispered back, "You have info on the other location? We think Baabs' brother is there."
Mini answered, "We scouted the location, and from your map it seems to have a similar layout. From your details we can make some assumptions of what is located where there. I have to get going. You just remain here until our guys come for you okay? We need to know exactly where you are located, so stay put."
Jack nodded and Mini saluted him and stuffed the map and information into his backpack and disappeared off the bed.
Jack listened extremely focused as he heard barely perceptible paws scrambling up what he was assuming was another dental floss rope to the venting. He could barely make out some faint metallic sounds and then there was nothing.
He kept his paw on Baabs mouth until he was sure his tiny allies were clear, and then gently kissed her whispering mischievously, "Now where were we?"
"How could you be thinking about that?" She whispered to him incredulously.
Jack lit up the clock in his knife showing the time at 11:55 PM and then whispered, "Sweetheart, we have over ninety minutes to kill. Can you think of a better way to spend our time?" He grinned at her in the pale light and gently put her shocked hooves back where they had been rubbing just before Mini had shown up. She looked at the grin on his face and finally shook her head and began rubbing him.
Jack decided that this was the best way he could ever think to pass time waiting for something to start. He helped rid the little lamb of her pesky pajamas as well as his own and decided it was time he got an early lesson in sex education. Both Jack and Baabs apparently had no clue about this subject, but they had quite an enjoyable distracting ninety minutes exploring it as thoroughly as you could on six year old bodies. Jack had heard older kids at The Warehouse talk about playing doctor, but no one had any interest in a tiny bunny there. But Jack finally had an amazing lovely partner willing to let him work on obtaining his medical degree, and he was not wasting a minute. Before he knew it, his time was up. Jack noted to himself that if he ever needed a good way to stay awake until the wee hours, this was certainly the most effective.
A couple of minutes before 1:30 AM Jack slid his communicator out and folded the outer blanket covering them into thirds so that the triple thick blanket covered their heads and mouths. He told Baabs exactly what he was doing and she turned the light of his knife on while he set the communicator. Jack found having a confidant on a mission, especially one so lovely and willing as his little lamb, sure made things easier and much more enjoyable. He got everything set right and turned the device on as soon as the clock showed 1:30 AM.
Jack whispered into the microphone, "Gray Wonder looking for a taxi."
He listened for a minute and then repeated the message.
Then the silky voice of his instructor finally answered, "Papa here. How do you stand Gray Wonder?"
Jack answered whispering back, "In a roomful of young lovelies with an extra special friend."
There was a chuckle from the other end and then, "Sounds like you might want to stay there awhile. We got your letter. It was quite helpful. We have your pickup location. Hang tight until we come get you. It may take awhile to get to you. Understand?"
Jack responded whispering back, "Got it. How long until I check on the taxi?"
The voice on the other end informed him, "Fifteen minutes. Good luck Gray Wonder. Stay safe."
With that Jack heard the voice on the other end click off and Jack turned the communicator off and tucked it back into his pouch.
His little lamb friend whispered in a curious voice, "Gray Wonder? Pip… who… who are you?"
The little bunny turned his little light on the knife on and gave her a serious look whispering in his normal accent, "The name is Savage… Jack Savage love."
The lamb giggled at that and whispered back, "I knew you weren't any ordinary bunny or slave. I don't make special friends with just any guy you know." She grinned at him teasingly.
He kissed her and whispered back in his accent, "And I don't just chat up anyone either love. I guess we need to get dressed. Can't have them coming in here and finding us both starkers with your fanny out and my twigs and berries hanging in the breeze."
She giggled at this and whispered, "Jack can you talk to me like before? I can't understand what you are talking about. I think I know what you are saying, but I couldn't really find your whatever you called them too well."
She flashed the light down in the bunnies private area to emphasize the fact that Jack's berries were hidden and his twig was mostly hiding as well.
Jack grinned at her and whispered in his undercover voice, "Sorry love, they are kind of hidden on young bunnies until we get older. Doesn't mean they don't like you a lot. Maybe if you try licking it with your lovely tongue it might make an appearance."
The bunny shocked the little lamb as she whispered aghast, "Jack… that is… that is so bad. But… I do want to see it. But I thought you said we had to get dressed."
Jack assured her whispering, "We have plenty of time before they get to us. See if you can find it before they get here."
The curious little lamb held the little light and decided to see if licking it would show her more than just the tip. Apparently her efforts were rewarded, and after a few minutes she informed the bunny that he did have something there worth exploring. It was just very shy. Jack insisted she thoroughly explore if there was anything more to find while he relaxed and told himself this was the part of being a secret agent he could definitely get used to. By the time he heard someone coming through the door, she told him she found all she could, tiny though it may be. He let her know he quite appreciated her effort. The two of them made a mad scramble to find their pajamas and put them on when they heard voices in the room.
Suddenly the blanket and sheet were pulled off them and a voice above them said, "Found him."
Jack covered the little lamb with his body as he hadn't finished getting her shirt on. Jack's little fluffy bare rear was sticking up and Jack yelled, "Just a moment gents."
Apparently it took the mercenary a moment to realize what he was looking at and then covered them with the sheet and laughed, "It seems our little agent is all grown up."
A mad scramble went on and finally the two of them got fully dressed and Jack slipped the knife back into his pouch and removed the sheet.
He smiled at the fox mercenary that he knew from his last mission as Jasper and hopped off the bed and took the hoof of the little lamb and helped her out of the bed. He then told the fox, "Jasper, this lovely here is my special friend Baabs."
The fox grinned at him and informed the bunny, "Yes yes… now can we get a move on? We have a mission to complete."
There was chaos as the mercenaries in black connected all the sleepy confused young girls using adjustable cuffs and a long cable so they were all connected together. Once they were all connected, with the exception of Jack and Baabs, they instructed them to follow the leader out into the hall. Jack and Baabs let all the kids know that everything was fine and that they were being taken to a safe location. The girls all looked at them sleepily, but nodded that they understood and followed the leader down the hall with several armed mercenaries in front and behind. Jack noted that they had all the other dormitory doors secured with guards while they moved this first group outside. Jack, Baabs and Jasper followed behind the armed guards in front and moved out the front of the building where they saw large SUVs with special snow tires parked in front of the building.
Jasper was on the communications line with Felix and handed the communicator to Jack who let him know he was okay and they were loading the first group of kids into the vehicles. Just as he was describing the situation to his boss, Jack's powerful hearing pickup up a growl and then a voice he recognized. The voice was very angry and was not supposed to be there. Jack then informed his boss, "Felix, there is a bloody important matter I need to get sorted. Will contact you in a bit."
He then looked at Baabs and told her, "Love, will be with you later. Go with this group. I'll be along soon."
She nodded her head and got into the van and Jack grabbed Jasper's paw and pulled him toward the sound he heard. The bunny hopped like mad and the fox had a hard time keeping up as he rounded the side of one of the buildings to find three mercenaries in black standing before a large angry bear. The mercenaries were armed with a large tranquilizer gun aimed at the bear. The bear already had several darts sticking out of his fur. Jack rounded the corner and yelled, "Stop!"
The three mercenaries looked slightly startled at the bunny's appearance, but they knew who he was and stepped back from the bear. Jack hopped in front of them and he looked up at the bear and yelled, "Bernard… it's me."
The angry bear looked hurt and very disoriented, but upon hearing the voice of the bunny, he looked down at tiny gray figure in confusion, "Pip? Pip that you? Run Pip… before they grab ya!"
Jack shocked the mercenaries as he leaped into the air into the arms of the shocked bear who held the bunny protectively growling at the mercenaries.
Jack then looked up at his friend, "Bernie… they are not here to hurt me. They are my friends. They are here to rescue me."
The angry bear looked at the bunny in confusion and then asked him, "Pip… what are ya talking about?"
The bunny patted the bear's arm, "They are helping to rescue all the kids here. You weren't supposed to be here tonight. Why are you here?"
The bear began to calm down slightly as he answered the bunny, "One of the other'n were sick. They had me stay ta take his shift."
Jack turned to the mercenaries, "Bernie's my friend. He won't be a bother. He'll come quietly. Right Bernie?"
The bear looked down at the bunny still a bit confused and then nodded his head.
The bear then followed the mercenaries who were keeping a close eye on the bear, and they headed to the vans. Jack noticed they had a long line of adults restrained and sitting on the ground being carefully watched. Jack stopped and pointed to a warthog and asked the bear, "Bernie, that's Candrid?"
The bear nodded and the mercenaries pulled the scowling warthog up and carted him away into one of the vans Jack knew they used for interrogations.
Jack then asked the mercenaries, "Have you located any polar bears?"
They nodded and pointed to three large polar bears very well restrained and watched by a rhino mercenary.
Jack looked up at Bernard and asked him, "Bernie, which one is Jax?"
Bernard whispered to the bunny, "Don't rightly know Pip. Never seen him before."
Jack then told the mercenaries, "Shine a light in their eyes and see if one of them doesn't work right."
A tiger mercenary followed the bunny's suggestion shining a flashlight in each of the polar bears eyes and found one that seemed to have one dead eye.
Jack informed the tiger, "That must be Jax, the main boss."
The rhino not so gently helped the large polar bear to his feet, and the tiger and two other mercenaries led the growling polar bear to the interrogation van.
The mercenaries then loaded all the remaining captured adults into two other large SUVs. These vehicles and the one with the young girls and his special friend Baabs were driven out of the complex. Jack asked Bernard to help them escort all the remaining kids out of the building. He convinced Bernard to help let the other kids know everything was okay and to come without any fuss to prevent any of them from getting hurt.
"Bernard, I will make sure nothing bad happens to you okay?" The little bunny told the bear.
The confused bear saw how everyone seemed to listen to and defer to the bunny for some reason and believed him. The bear was witnessing the formerly beaten down and defeated bunny sound like a very confident and important boss. While the bear was confused, he knew his little friend was certainly no ordinary bunny and something very special indeed. It didn't hurt that they gave the bunny strange communications devices which he used to communicate to whoever was running this whole massive operation. Jack and Bernard then helped gather all the other kids and lead them out to waiting vans. Having Bernard and Jack help escort them out made the rest of the operation run very smooth and efficiently. Quickly they had all the kids packed in vans and driven out of the complex. Jack stayed with Bernard and helped answer the questions of the mercenaries as to where everything was located as the mammals in black made sweeps of each building. Jack convinced the bear to tell the mercenaries any places where employees may be hiding and also the location where they kept any kids that were being punished. They found Rowdy and two other older kids in the locked cells. The ram was quite surprised to find the little bunny directing operations, and even more surprised when Jack told him he was being rescued. The former bully and tormentor was quite thankful to the little bunny, and seemed quite appreciative when Jack assured him he would be safe and he was there to rescue every kid, the ram included.
Once they were sure the facility was clear and they had collected every scrap of documentation from the bosses offices, Jack, Bernard and the remaining mercenaries got into the final vehicles and headed to the waiting ships at the docks. Once they were aboard, Jack didn't want to leave his frightened friend, but they finally convinced him that the bear needed to be processed and separated, but assured him nothing would happen to him and he would be placed with those considered non-combatants. Jack assured his friend he would check on him when they got back and make sure he was okay.
Jack received a report from the team at the other facility south of Sleet St. and found out they had rescued 182 kids and had captured fourteen adults. Jack looked down the manifests and found the one he was looking for and had a very surprised young ram pulled from the group of kids. He led the ram to meet a special young lamb he also had pulled out of the main group and placed into a private room.
"Jack!" The excited young lamb exclaimed with a big smile as soon as she saw the bunny hop into the room.
"Hiya love, I have a surprise for you." The young bunny told her with a grin.
The lamb got a curious look on her face which turned into shock and then she began to run until she slammed into and hugged her surprised missing brother. The three of them all had quite an unusual reunion as Baabs introduced her brother to her special friend and rescuer. Jack told them he would talk to his boss about the possibility of returning them to their mother. But he warned them that his boss would never return them if he thought anything like what happened to them would ever happen again. They both nodded that they understood that the chances of their return were tenuous and dependent on these unlikely conditions. Jack got a wonderful feeling seeing the estranged siblings reunited. He found moments like these made all his work and sacrifices truly worthwhile.
