Judy ran from the car she had crouched behind while Nick and Doris had made their way to the store entrance. Beside her, Portillo kept pace and the foursome met up behind a line of shopping carts. The Andys' were close behind them in the staggered approach and acted as rearguard.
Nick was looking at the store-front intently, his ears twitching slightly as his eyes moved to take in the details. Judy squinted slightly, trying to spot anything out of place, but could find nothing.
"So, Nick, what's our plan?" she asked quietly.
"Well-" Nick said, but was interrupted.
"We strike now in case they've heard the ruckus; if we leave it any longer to they'll have time to mobilise and prepare their defences. I say we go in through the front and take the place aisle-by-aisle; they won't be expecting that." Danny Portillo said. The leopard looked, if anything, more alive and alert than he had since Judy and Nick had met him.
"Uh..." Nick said, his wits having failed him for a moment. "Danny, what exactly do you know about storming a building?"
Portillo grinned widely. "Oh, I wrote the book on it."
Judy watched as the corner of Nick's mouth twitched upwards. "Sure you did, big guy... Now-"
"Actually," one of the Andys' said, "he did write the book on it. 'Building Clearance and Tactical Raid Theories within the principle districts of Zootopia'."
Judy watched as Nick's smirk faltered and disappeared. Their eyes met and Judy saw the unasked question in his eyes... and felt her heart twist as she nodded as subtly as she could.
Nick slapped a paw over his eyes. "Just... just do what Danny said."
Judy laid a paw on Nick's head, between his ears, and patted gently before she ran over to her place in the line the officers formed against the brick wall next to the entrance of the store. She drew her pistols and bounced gently on the balls of her feet as she waited for Nick to give the go-ahead.
Nick sauntered up, his attitude firmly back in place and his pistols in their holsters, and walked past the gathered officers. His tail was swishing gently from side to side. "I just realised something; where is everyone? Today's Wednesday, so surely there should be a few mammals shopping... right? Well. If they are, then they're already inside and we don't have to go in guns-blazing. Even if every single one of Renner's employees is somehow affiliated, twenty bucks says they won't dare try anything in front of innocent witnesses and by the time we're in private, we'll have them outnumbered."
"Nick, that is literally the dumbest thing I have ever heard you say." Judy said.
Nick leaned down in front of her, nose-to-nose, and ruffled her head-fur. "You, my sweet little Officer Fluffball, are just jealous you didn't think of it first." Nick straightened up to his full height then winked at the group of armed police. "I think the phrase is 'I'm going in', and pretty soon you're going to be eating sweet, sweet humble pie, Carrots."
Nick lowered his nose almost to his chest and held his paws out pads-up at his sides in a gesture that practically dared Judy to tell him he was wrong. She gritted her teeth; he'd done the exact same thing when he mocked her on the first day she'd spoken to him. She watched his body, then his bushy tail, disappear through the door that swished open on automated runners with a soft 'bing-bong' of announcement.
The officers behind her shuffled awkwardly and Judy held up a paw to still them. She had her three digits raised wide, and tucked them down in a silent countdown. Three... two... one.
Nicholas Wilde exited the 'Somerfurred' supermart by a very different method to his entry; Judy also suspected it wasn't by his own volition he had flown through the air at a height somewhere around the level he could have comfortably passed over his own head, had he been standing there. The billowing cloud of broken glass that accompanied him in his travels likewise added to the theory.
Nick landed with a thud upon the ground in front of Judy and groaned. Judy rolled her eyes and opened her mouth, only for Nick to raise his arm and point at her without looking. "Don't even say anything, Carrots."
Judy tried her hardest to look innocent as Nick slowly clambered to his feet and brushed himself off. He shook his shoulders out and squared himself up, then took a step towards the door again. "You're going to follow Danny's plan and take the store as you go. I have the pleasure of dealing with the cart-wrangler."
Judy felt the blood drain from her face as all of the other officers cocked their heads or raised eyebrows in question.
The silent questions were answered when, in a second cascade of shattering glass, Michael the rabbit stomped outside of the store, grabbed Nick by the front of his shirt and hurled him back through the now-empty window frame. Judy waited a moment for Michael to stomp back inside and then followed, the other officers hot on her tail.
Nick landed a bit more gracefully this time and slid slightly across the tiled floor of the store. Once halted, he jumped to his feet and raised both paws in a classic boxer's stance. He spared a quick glance as Michael approached, the bunny somehow seeming as large as one of Mr Big's Polar Bear bodyguards despite only just being a little taller than Nick himself, and was pleased to see Judy lead the armed officers through the doors and deeper into the store. Nick grinned. "Hey, Michael! Great seeing you again, buddy. Listen, I can't help but feel like we've gotten off on the wrong foot... I mean, sometimes friends just say 'hi' to each other by hurling each other through a plate glass window, right?"
He flinched back as Michael's right paw thundered through the space Nick's muzzle had just occupied. The bunny growled.
Nick's grin became a little more strained. "Okay; not friends. Got it. Uh..." Nick glanced around nervously. "So, hey, listen Michael, I just... I just want to know, before we get into this. Is this really, really what you want to do? I mean, I'm a pretty easy-going fox..."
Michael stopped his advance upon Nick. The bunny narrowed his eyes at Nick and slowly raised a paw to point at the black eyes that adorned his face and the slightly swollen ear that Nick hadn't really noticed. "Judy." the bunny said quietly.
Nick winced a little in sympathy and took a tentative step forward as he turned on the charm. "I know, big guy; she plays rough sometimes. But we can have a nice chat with her, see if she'll apologise. Wouldn't you prefer to do that instead of beating on me?"
Michael tilted his head slightly and looked like he was thinking the proposition over. Nick made his smile even more friendly. It's working!
"Narp."
Nick's grin disappeared just as Michael back-pawed him across the face and sent him sprawling. The fox growled to himself and shook his head in an attempt to restore his equilibrium. His ears were ringing from the blow. Nick pushed himself up as Michael stomped closer, cracked his neck with a sharp tilt of his head, and let his fur bristle. "Okay... You wanna play rough? Say 'hello' to my little friends." Nick said, then flexed his paws so his claws unsheathed. Michael grinned and charged. Nick, a split second behind him but just as eager, did likewise.
Judy jogged along with her pistols outstretched in front of her and she tracked them across every angle as she anticipated the attack she knew was coming.
Around her, the Bushel Fields officers moved up and checked their corners and sight-lines as professionally as any well-drilled team could possibly have been expected to. The aisles were seemingly deserted but the group moved as one. Andy Cartwright, wielding a shotgun that matched the one carried by Andy Wainwright, reached the end of the chiller aisle and sidled up against a display rack stacked with jars of sauce. The other officers lined up behind him, Judy taking her own spot as third in line.
Andy Cartwright leaned out of cover slightly, casting a careful glance towards the nearby doors that led to the back rooms and Renner's office. The route ahead took them past the delicatessen counter, a large array of artistically-chopped and prepared vegetables and sliced, raw fish...
Currently with two wolves behind it who were brandishing knives. Knives that were almost identical to the large one spinning end over end and coming straight for his face.
Judy flinched as the foremost Andy fell back from around the corner with a scream as the glass jars beside his face shattered and a heavy-bladed knife clattered to the tiled floor. Wainwright screamed Andy's name and ran out of the aisle blindly, then levelled his shotgun at the deli counter and fired off four shots.
"It's alright, Andy." Cartwright said loudly over the roars of the shotgun, "It's just bolognese!"
Wainwright fell back into cover as another knife, tossed over-arm, flipped towards him. Judy breathed a sigh of relief, then took her turn at attempting to suppress the wolves.
Judy hoped Nick was having more luck.
Nick was bleeding from his nose, his tie had been ripped free and his shirt was torn in three places. Michael's left eye was almost completely swollen shut, blood dribbled freely from the corner of his mouth, and his uniform shirt was in tatters from the multiple claw-marks that ran in parallel down it. Both panted heavily as they came together again; Nick ducked a swipe from Michael's left paw and jumped. He landed on Michael's back and quickly wrapped his arms around Michael's neck in a poor attempt at a sleeper-hold. Michael responded to the attack by throwing himself backwards and crushing Nick into a shelf full of cereal boxes, then bent at the waist and charged forwards at a shelf full of jams and preserves.
Nick pulled back hard and tried to shift his weight, which caused Michael to stand a little higher and abort his headlong rush into the small jars. Nick swiped one of the small pots up and brought it down hard onto Michael's skull.
The giant rabbit didn't really seem to notice.
Judy kept up a steady rate of fire, her volleys added to those of the other officers to try and suppress the two butcher-wolves. It was an almost complete stand-off at this point, knives and sharp implements being launched over the plexiglass sneeze-guard by the wolves keeping the officers at bay while the bullets and buckshot kept the wolves ducked in cover. Something needed to change in order to tip the balance, or this was going to come down to nothing but simple logistics.
Judy had the bad feeling that the wolves had more knives behind their counter than the police officers with her had ammunition.
Michael managed to grasp a pawfull of Nick's shirt and pulled. Nick, still holding on as best he could, managed to do nothing to prevent himself being thrown from his perch atop Michael's shoulders and landed with a pain-filled yelp in the next aisle over by the frozen vegetables and ready-meals. Nick scrabbled to his feet as Michael took the long way around and, in a plan born of desperation, charged at the giant rabbit one final time. Michael swung for him once again and Nick ducked, still running at full speed, and attempted to do something he had only seen Judy manage before; he ran, took two steps up the front fascia of the chiller unit behind Michael, and jumped.
Nick grabbed Michael's head with both forepaws and held on tight. His body weight carried him like a pendulum and the odd angle of his grab caused Michael to start spinning.
The large bunny, off-balance, fought against momentum but couldn't gain enough purchase to stop the involuntary movement. Nick held on tighter as Michael staggered slightly, gravity slowly eking out the victory, cocked his back legs on the small of Michael's back and pushed. Michael overbalanced fully and he made a final mistake; he tried to gain additional purchase on the tiled floor by using the stubby, blunted claws attached to his toes.
Michael's claws skittered over the floor and he toppled backwards. Nick let go as the giant bunny fell and landed heavily on the tiled floor; the back of Michael's knees struck the low rim of an open chest freezer full of frozen vegetables and he fell in. His head struck the opposite side of the freezer and the bunny passed out immediately.
Nick groaned as he pushed himself to his feet and staggered slightly as he tried to balance properly. He leant heavily on the side of the freezer that Michael now occupied and panted for breath. The sounds of gunfire and clanging steel could be heard from a few aisles over, but Nick knew he had something to finish before he could join his partner in taking down whatever resistance was being offered, and then Renner.
Nick plucked his aviators from a pouch on his belt and settled them on his muzzle. He blinked hard then fixed Michael with a cocky look and a smirk. "Cool off. No! No, even better. 'Ice playing with you. No, how about; Chill out, Michael. Yeah... 'Chill out Michael'. Heh."
Nick, still slightly off-kilter, began his walk towards the sounds of gunfire.
Nick ran back and skidded to a halt beside Michael's unconscious body. "Freeze!" he said, then laughed. "Ahh, I crack me up. Sorry, big guy; Doctor Nick is prescribing you a brand new fashion accessory. I am not playing ring-a-rosy with you again."
Nick took a pair of pawcuffs from his belt and clicked them shut around Michael's wrists, then took a few zip ties and looped them through a few parts of the chest freezer's frame, a shelf unit and the pawcuffs. He doubled, then tripled them. "There we go; perfect. Well, Michael, I gotta shoot, but remember... Stay frosty!"
Nick pulled his pistols from their holsters and strutted away with a huge, toothy grin on his face.
Judy kept up her steadily-slowing rate of fire against the wolves as she tried to conserve ammunition. Her ears perked slightly as she heard the familiar sound of Nick's claws clacking against the tiles as he ran towards her and chuckled as he dropped to his knees and skidded to a halt beside her. "Hey, Carrots. Miss me?" he said with a grin and winked at her over his sunglasses.
"I've pined for you since you we parted so unexpectedly." Judy said in a deadpan monotone, despite the smile on her face. "How's Michael?"
Nick's grin became mischievous. "I left him in a freezer."
Judy groaned. "You said 'cool off', didn't you?"
Nick's smile grew wider and showed off every single one of his teeth. "Eeyup."
"Exactly how many puns did you reel off at him?"
"Including the obligatory 'cool off'? Five."
Judy dropped back into cover as her pistols ran dry and began to reload. "You are incorrigable."
"Why thank you, Fluff. Have you cracked out any good one-liners?"
Judy shook her head then paused and began to giggle. "Actually, I did. You missed it... it was last night; Michael attacked me in my room at the hotel and I shouted 'Give peace a chance' then smashed my Spathiphyllum Cochlearispathum over his head."
Nick raised an eyebrow in question, then the other joined it as the sound of one of the Andys' laughing hysterically came from the gunline.
"Uh... why is that funny?" Nick asked.
The laughing Andy, covered in some lumpy red goop, glanced back at Nick with a wide grin. "That plant's called a Peace Lily, Wilde!"
"How the hell do you know that?"
"My dad sells apples." the tomato-spattered Andy replied.
"And raspberries." chimed in the other.
Nick nodded to himself. "I suppose that's at least a start, Carrots. What's the situation here, anyway?"
Portillo ducked back into cover to reload. "Two puppies and a truckload of cutlery!"
"If anyone's got any ideas, now's the time!" Doris said as she stood up and took Portillo's place. "I'm nearly out."
"Judy, did you try howling?" Nick asked.
"Yes. They told me I suck."
Nick risked a glance around the corner at the counter the wolves were cowering behind. Two wolves, lots of cutlery, and a sturdy-looking deli counter in front of them that was solidly-
Not attached directly to the floor. Nick looked around and spotted exactly what he needed at the end of their aisle. "Hey Danny, come with me. The rest of you, keep those wolves ducking then fall back by fire and manoeuvre to our position."
Judy followed Nick's gaze and raised an eyebrow. "Surely, you can not be serious right now."
"I'm as serious as a cart-attack, Carrots." Nick said, which earned a groan from Judy. He grabbed Portillo's shirt sleeve and began running towards a row of shopping carts, then paused and turned back. "And don't call me Shirley!"
The sound of Nick's maniacal cackle joined the staccato reports of the police officers' firearms.
The wolves behind the counter laid in wait; the gunfire had stopped a few moments ago which meant either the police laying siege to their deli had given up or ran out of ammunition. They both held knives ready, prepared to toss them as they had most of their other sharps in the last few minutes. It was all for the greater good.
An odd noise made the pair's ears stand to attention. They rose as one to look over the edge of their counter-top, through the clear sneeze-guard, and froze. The officers had used batons and pawcuffs to assemble a crude battering ram out of a set of shopping carts, and were currently charging at full speed down the aisle directly towards them, howling and whooping as they came.
The pantheress in the group was riding the carts, her feet resting on the little built-in wine bottle racks, and opened fire with an automatic rifle. The wolves ducked down for cover and whined in fear. Before they could move, the cart-ram crashed into the wheeled chiller counter they were hiding behind and trapped them beneath it.
The officers cheered and slapped each others' shoulders at the triumph. Nick slumped slightly and put his paws on his knees to try and catch his breath. The group froze, however, as a high-pitched scream started nearby and grew louder.
The gazelle shop assistant ran around the corner, a box-cutter drawn and the blade extended to it's full length. She sprinted as fast as she could at Nick, her scream unwavering. Judy pulled a pistol and pulled the trigger; the hammer struck an empty chamber and her eyes widened in horror. There wasn't any time.
Doris Early grabbed a nearby can of soup and threw it hard. The small can smashed into the gazelle's muzzle with impressive force, enough to make the shop assistant's legs fly out from under her and fall to the ground as her forward momentum was countered. The screaming stopped, overtaken by a low moan of pain.
The other officers were silent for a moment, until clean-Andy spoke up. "Nice one, Doris."
The pantheress turned back to him and winked. "Nothin' like a bit of fem-on-fem!" she said and started to giggle.
Judy put her face in her paws. "Nick; your bad habits are spreading."
Nick smiled past the panted breaths he was taking. "I was... occupied. Someone... had to."
"Well isn't that just super." Judy said, then froze. "Oh no."
Nick was smirking again. "Soup-er, Hopps! Looks like I'm rubbing off on-Ow!"
The pineapple that had just interrupted Nick had been thrown by one of the other store assistants and was swiftly joined by tomatoes, fruits and produce that was long past sell-by date. Judy dodged a mango and ducked underneath a kiwi. "Danny, can you and the others handle this? We've got an appointment with the Manager."
Danny Portillo warded off an unhealthy-looking bunch of carrots and smiled widely at her. "You've got it, Judy!" he said, then turned and charged at the attackers with the other officers hot on his heels.
Nick's foot crashed into the door to Simon Renner's office and the fragile wood splinted as the lock burst free. Judy ran in before him with both pistols drawn and ready and he followed a moment behind; the room was empty. Nick noticed the window was slightly ajar and he crossed the room in a few short steps. He looked out and felt Hopps jump up beside him, the two of them able to share the view of Renner as he ran from the store and climbed into one of the Bushel Fields police cruisers. The car's tyres screeched as it pulled away and Nick's eyes narrowed. "We need to get down there, Carrots."
Judy pointed below the window. "Dumpster?"
Nick grinned. "Dumpster." He pushed the window open wider and clambered up onto the sill. "We'll head them off in town... I don't have a cruiser, though, so we'll have to be quick. Hey Carrots; I think I'm falling for you." he said, then jumped. Judy rolled her eyes, then leapt through the window in a single bound.
Judy was extremely thankful that she had left Lyle and Saxon to corral the wounded townsfolk of Bushel Fields; Tusker's cruiser roared through the central square with reckless abandon as he tried to evade her and Nick. She ran and fired her pistols, Nick doing likewise, and she growled in frustration as it seemed like the Chief and Renner would escape.
Then she saw it. It was beautiful; a gift from the gods themselves... or at least, a gift from Snarlof and Fangmeyer who were stood next to it and were watching the unfolding gunfight-slash-car-chase with wide eyes. 'It' was a modern Zootopia Precinct One cruiser, with fuel injection, bull bars and a set of all-terrain tyres that were almost as big as she was. Judy ran straight for it, the open window practically an invitation wrapped in a little purple bow for her. She jumped and, in one smooth arc, passed through the open window of the large inner city police cruiser. Nick joined her a second later, the keys in his paw somehow; she snatched them from him, hit the ignition and, after buckling up for safety, slammed her feet down in a practised and quick left-right that sent the engine roaring and the tyres squealing. She peeled out of the square with a loud whoop of joy as Nick flicked the switch that made the lights spin and the siren wail.
Snarlof hadn't moved since the shooting began. Neither had Fangmeyer. Whatever they had expected when Bogo sent them out this way, it hadn't been this. The polar bear didn't say a word as he reached slowly into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. Fangmeyer noticed the movement and turned to face him.
"Snarlof... What... I mean- just... what?"
Snarlof raised a huge paw and held up his index digit in a 'wait' gesture. His claw tapped a single speed-dial on the screen of his phone and he held it up to his ear.
"Chief; Snarlof here. Me and Fangmeyer were just robbed... Yeah... Yeah... Hopps and Wilde. Oh, it's not that bad... couple of bullet holes and such. Think I saw a pair of officers dragging bodies around just before we pulled up, but it's kinda quiet now... Nice, actually. Picturesque. Has this really nice rustic feel, y'know? ...Hang on, I'll ask."
Snarlof turned to Fangmeyer. "Hey, Tim, how many wagons d'you think we'll need?"
Fangmeyer's mouth worked for a moment like he was trying to chew a toffee, then he gave up and simply spread his arms as wide as he could.
Snarlof nodded. "Yeah, so, Fangmeyer thinks we need all of 'em. Yeah... Uh-huh... Okay. Thanks, Chief."
The polar bear took the phone from next to his head and clicked the screen again, then slipped it into his pocket. He looked to Fangmeyer and gave the shell-shocked wolf a wry grin. "So, Bogo already mobilised everyone about four hours ago. He told us to sit tight and guard the area... and there's apparently a bar here."
Fangmeyer nodded. "Sounds... sounds great, Karl. Let's just go. I'm too old for this."