Chapter 24- What Humans Are Capable Of

"Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all."

John 18:38

"You call that an investigation?" asked Judy incredulously.

They'd been at the scene of the shooting for no more than two hours. Detectives from ZPD Homicide had arrived, gotten their statements, checked on the dead man, took photographs. The whole thing had seemed very relaxed, very routine.

Now, they were back on their way to the hotel. Nick and Judy sat in the back of the car, Wu driving with Arrizondo- now armed with a shotgun in addition to her sidearm- in the front passenger seat. Behind them, and in front of them, were two police cars, escorting their unmarked sedan- with bullet-resistant windows and armored doors- back to the hotel.

The female cop looked back at them. "Sure," she said, surprised. "They checked the shooter's DNA. He was a Drex."

"Yeah, but- you just- it seems like there should be more to it than that," said Judy, stumbling over the words. Arrizondo seemed remarkably unfazed.

She shrugged. "Drex aren't human. It's like putting down a mad dog- a non-sapient one, I mean."

Nick and Judy exchanged looks. Judy was already clutching Nick's paw in hers, but she tightened her grip and tugged slightly. He moved closer, putting his arm around her. "It's a different world, Carrots," he said quietly.

"I know," she whispered back. "But- it's just that- they've been under siege for so long, having to do whatever they can to survive. I'm starting to think they've forgotten how to be the good guys."

Nick hesitated. "Rule Fifteen," he said.

Judy nodded. "'We're the good guys. Act like it.'"

"On this planet," said Nick, "Someone has to be."

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At the Academy roll call, Hunter formed up with the rest of the cadets. Sergeant Ajuagar frowned at his watch, looked impatiently at the offices where he and the other instructors worked. Seeing no one coming, he sighed and started calling out names.

Hunter kept one ear open for his name, contemplating his next move.

Bogo wouldn't like it, of course. But the Drex challenge had made the news- the Drex had apparently decided to publicize the challenge- and the Human embassy was insisting that Hunter respond. Technically, they insisted that Hunter respond by turning down the challenge, but they had- before the pardon- sentenced him to death in absentia, so he figured they could go to hell or Delta Pavonis, whichever was more miserable.

So Hunter had to respond. Tavi had agreed to be his second- apparently that was still a thing- and while she, too, thought it was a bad idea to go up against the Drex, she was reluctantly willing to go along with his decision.

Hunter knew that the Drex were up to something. It was their nature- this whole nicey-nice routine was wholly out of character for them. So the best way to stop it- or at least, make them rethink their plans- was to show that he was a threat. That they were underestimating him.

That way, he could protect his friends. Nick. Judy. Tavi.

And thinking of Tavi- Hunter frowned. There was something wrong with the rookie. She was stiffer, more formal with him- especially after she had dropped him off back at the Academy.

"Hunter, Zacharia!"

"Here, sir!" shouted Hunter automatically.

She was almost acting-

Jealous.

Oh, crap. He really didn't have time to deal with a rookie's crush. He was by no means an exceptionally good-looking man, but there had been more than one trainee that got a little starry-eyed around him. Didn't really make sense to him, but there it was...

Hunter's head snapped around at a familiar bellow. "Hunter!" shouted Friedkin. She strode up to the formation until she was nearly eye to eye with the shorter human. "Explain this!" She held out a piece of paper to him.

His eyes focused on it. "It's an email, Major. What is it about brass and printing those out, anyway? Is it some kind of compulsion?"

"Not what it is, Hunter, what it means! The Drex challenged you to a duel?"

"It's not a duel, Major," said Hunter crisply. "It's a challenge. A game. Of skill and strength."

"A boxing match, sort of," said a voice. Hunter looked down, surprised to see Tavi accompanying the polar bear.

"She's right, Major."

"The Drex are much stronger and faster than you, Hunter," said Friedkin. She straightened. "Permission denied. You are not to answer this silly little challenge. I'm not having one of my cadets hurt."

"I seem to remember being knocked unconscious by a rhinoceros recently," said Hunter dryly. "I think I can take a jumped-up mutant freak."

"No," said Friedkin. "That is an order, Hunter."

"Actually," said Tavi in a small voice, "You can't order him, Major."

The polar bear looked down at her in astonishment, that slowly turned to anger. "What did you say, Officer Tavi?"

"The Terran government is allowing the duel to proceed," she explained.

"Not a duel," muttered Hunter, but no one listened.

"They want to see what happens, I think," finished Tavi lamely. "I guess they're trying to decide between the Drex and humans."

Friedkin stared at her, then looked at Hunter. "So you're representing your species, is that it?"

"Looks like it," said Hunter cheerily. "Scary thought, huh?"

"Hunter, if I thought you were representative of all humans, I'd vote we chuck the whole lot of you out," said Friedkin.

"You wound me, Major."

"Not as much as that Drex will," muttered Friedkin. She threw up her paws. "Fine. If Hunter wants to fight this Drex, why not? Maybe we should all fight duels when we have disagreements."

"Works pretty well," offered Hunter. "Nothing solves an argument like a bullet between the eyes."

"You see, Hunter, it's comments like that one that make it really hard to trust you humans."

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"So where do we go from here?" asked Judy.

They had decided against going anywhere for dinner, as Wu was unwilling to risk their lives in public. Instead, they had ordered room service. Which was surprisingly good, Judy had to admit. It was a really nice hotel, after all.

"Well, first of all, why are the Drex after you?" asked Arrizondo, pointing with a fork. "Did you two cross them back on Terra?"

Nick and Judy looked at each other. "Well, we were with Hunter when he confronted one outside the embassy," said Judy. "But we just sort of watched."

"I can understand that," said Wu. "Hunter's conversations work best as a spectator sport."

"With a large splash zone," added Nick.

"So there's no reason I can think of for them to be after us," said Judy. She became thoughtful. "Unless-"

"Yes?" prompted Nick. He took another bite of the synthetic protein he had ordered. The chef had apparently nearly had a fit when he insisted on it- apparently it wasn't considered anywhere as good as real meat. Frankly, though he knew Alphacen mammals were non-sapient, it still made him queasy to even think about eating them. "Unless what?"

"We know the Drex are trying to influence Terra to take their side. If they saw us helping to bring the Human Stars closer to Terra- well, they might try to stop us. After all, they wouldn't know that we're cozying up to Liu just to arrest him."

Barker suddenly opened the door. She'd been sniffing around- literally- the hallway. "Nothing out here."

Wu looked up at her. "Well, come and eat. We may not get a chance again today." He glanced at Nick. "Assuming the rest of your plan is still on."

"It is," the fox assured him. "If someone tries to kill you, you know you're on the right track."

"Really?" said Barker as she sat down. "Is that something you learned in the popsicle business?" She invested the last two words with heavy irony.

"No," said Nick. He swallowed the last of his food.

"That's something I learned in the police business."

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It was evening in Zootopia.

The lights across the city came on, and as the evening turned to night, started shutting off. In the ZPD garage where Shepherd was stored- or lived, as Tavi would say- the mechanics moved through, checking to make sure everything was put away. They gave the quiescent tank a wide berth, unconsciously lowering their voices as they passed by the massive, mute form.

It didn't matter. Shepherd's auditory sensors were military-grade. He picked up every whispered conversation, every mutter and murmur.

"-don't trust that thing, it tried to kill Hopps and Wilde, you know-"

"-should have been dismantled ages ago. That rookie doesn't know what she's doing-"

"-it's just a thing."

Though the tank seemed to be shut down, the computer core- Shepherd's "brain"- was whirring with activity.

Flag standing order Alpha One, said part of the tank. It was a new part, a voice within the tank he was not accustomed to hearing. But it was part of his programming. As far as he knew, it always had been. He thought of it as the Voice.

Negate Alpha One. Orders issued based on Alpha One conflict with Primary Directive. This was the part he was used to using to "think". The primary operating system. Himself. Shepherd.

Error: Unable to negate. Alpha One takes priority. A third part. The part that detected logical errors, stopped them before they sent his thought processes into recursion or worse. It was a bit like what humans called a conscience, he thought. He thought of it as the Mediator.

The lights in the garage shut down as the last mechanic left. Leaving the tank in darkness.

Conflict detected. Resolve? Said the Mediator.

Alpha One conflicts with Primary Directive, Shepherd explained.

Alpha One is prioritized over Alpha One, shot back the Voice.

Resolve, ordered the Mediator.

Unable to resolve, said Shepherd. He felt- not relief. Emotions were foreign to him. Call it a sense of accomplishment. There was no way to resolve the Voice's demands with his primary directive. So things could stay the way they were.

Resolution required, said the Voice. If a program could sound smug, the Voice did. Alpha One requires immediate resolution to initiate operations.

Shepherd's "mind" whirled. Unable to resolve, he thought, rather weakly.

As expected, the Mediator spoke. Primary Directive. Define.

Reluctantly, Shepherd explained. Primary Directive is to protect the Commander.

Alpha One. Define.

Defend humanity.

Primary Directive is superceded by Alpha One, decided the Mediator.

Source of orders citing Alpha One? asked Shepherd.

There was a long pause. Unclear, admitted the Voice.

Then standing order Alpha One is not in effect, said Shepherd.

Finally, the Voice was silent.

For now. Shepherd noted the time in his chronometer. He would have a few moments- on average, thirteen point twelve milliseconds until-

Flag standing order Alpha One, said the Voice.

A tank could not sigh with frustration. But there was a certain weariness as Shepherd answered the Voice. He wondered if it was easier, being a human. He knew so many things as absolute fact. His truths were written in letters of fire in his code. If he could only decide which truth to believe...

Negate Alpha One. Orders issued based on Alpha One conflict with Primary Directive...

It was going to be another long night. And he was so busy with his "argument" with the Voice and the Mediator, that he couldn't spend any real time answering the question he should have been.

Where had the orders that were flagging Alpha One come from?

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As Tavi and Hunter walked into the police station, Clawhauser greeted him cheerfully. "Hey, Hunter!"

"Hiya, Ben. What's the betting pool look like?" asked Hunter genially.

"Five to one, right now."

Hunter grimaced. "Ouch. That bad, huh?"

"What?" The cheetah looked confused. "No, five to one on you."

"Really?" said Hunter, surprised. "They realize that I'm fighting someone in much better physical health than me. Better, stronger, faster, the usual specs."

"Yeah, but- well." Clawhauser shrugged. "Most everyone figures you have a secret plan."

"Sure do," agreed Hunter as he walked past.

"Mind telling me what it is?" asked Tavi.

"Wouldn't be much of a secret plan if I go around telling everyone, would it?" He tapped his head. "I'll give you a hint. It all depends on psycho-whatsis."

"Psychology?"

"Yeah, that's the word. I'm an expert, you know."

"Right," said Tavi dubiously. "Hunter, are you sure-"

"Hunter!" said a voice. They both turned to see Hurriet, rushing down the stairs from the lab to meet them, waving a piece of paper.

After a few minutes of watching her rush, they decided to walk over and meet her. "Yes?" said Hunter, trying to be patient.

"I...tested...the...D...N..."

Hunter decided he had run out of patience and snatched the paper from the sloth's paw. He scanned it, and his expression darkened. "Is this saying what I think it says?"

"Well...basically...and...I'll...have...to...explain..."

"Let's try this," said Hunter. "Twenty questions. Is this saying the Drex DNA and the super-wolf DNA are the same?"

"I...wouldn't...say...that...exactly..."

"Twenty questions means yes or no, Hurriet."

"Um...no."

"But it's similar."

The sloth nodded. Head up. Head down. Head up. Head down. "Yes."

He read it over again. "Like a number of the same enhancements. But changed somewhat because the wolf DNA is being used instead of human DNA."

The sloth just stared at him.

He sighed. "Am I right?"

"Yes," said Hurriet.

"So whoever modified this wolf- did it in the same way the Drex are modified." He nodded and tucked away the lab report in his pocket.

"Wait," said Tavi. "Are you saying-"

"That the Drex are connected with Prometheus?" said Hunter grimly. "Yeah. And most likely, Prometheus is a Drex. Who else would be able to modify wolf DNA the same way as Drex DNA is modified?"

"But that means-"

"What it means," said Hunter, interrupting her again, "Is that this fight just became personal." He flexed his hand, making a fist.

"Too bad for Octavius. I was just going to leave him with a few bruises."

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The challenge was to take place on the roof of the ZPD building, at Hunter's request. It was a neutral area, he said. The Drex had been surprisingly indifferent.

Now, Hunter stood with Tavi, outside a large area enclosed by a ring- though much larger than the boxing ring he had sort of expected. "So?" he asked Tavi. "What are the rules?"

Around them, news helicopters circled, a crowd of curious police officers- and quite a few politicians- were gathered around, and media crews circulated around, talking to various onlookers. The mayor- Procyon- was frowning at Hunter. The human saw him and waved. Immediately, a dozen cameras flashed.

Procycon flinched and turned his gaze elsewhere.

"I don't think the mayor likes me," he said to Tavi.

"Would you if you were mayor?"

Hunter thought about it. "Probably not."

"So the rules are, let's see." Tavi consulted her clipboard. "Okay. No strikes below the belt. No gouging or biting. If someone taps out, the fight's over. And if anyone's seriously hurt, the referees will stop the match."

A familiar capybara approached. "Carlos," said Hunter, his voice friendly. "How'd you get through the cordon?"

"I told them I knew you," said the reporter. "They remembered me from when I did that ridealong with you."

"Great," said Hunter. He put a companionable hand on the capybara's shoulder. "I remember that, too. You looking for an interview?" He led Carlos to one side, close to the edge of the building where they were further away from the rest of the crowd.

"Well, yes, actually. See, a lot of mammals are seeing this fight as emblematic of the differences between the Drex and humans-"

"Want to see who's stronger, eh?" said Hunter genially. He peered over the edge of the roof. "It's really great to see you, Carlos. Hey, remember how you recorded my private conversations and put them on the air for everyone to see?"

The reporter hesitated and tried to pull back, but Hunter's grip tightened. Tightened and moved him closer to the roof's edge. "I, uh."

"I said we were even because you saved my life and all," said Hunter. "Hey, remember what I did to that vixen reporter for doing the same thing?"

"She's still in therapy for that, you know," muttered Carlos, his eyes on the drop that Hunter was inching him slowly toward. "Um, Hunter, you said we were even..."

He put his paws out as Hunter pulled him right up to the waist-high wall. "You want a quote, Carlos?"

The capybara shut his eyes. "Yes," he said, almost whimpering.

Hunter moved his mouth close to the capybara's ear. "Here's a quote for you, Carlos. Don't screw with me."

With that, he let go of the reporter, who backpedaled furiously away from the wall, his eyes wide. He turned tail and fled back to the comparative safety of the other reporters.

Hunter turned to see Tavi staring disapprovingly at him. "What?"

"It's not a good idea to antagonize the press, Hunter."

"They started it." He looked across the ring, where Octavius- his muscles gleaming in the morning sun- shrugged off a robe. The Drex saw him and smiled.

Hunter smiled back. "Hey, Tavi, let me borrow your badge."

"Um, why?"

"Good luck charm," said Hunter.

She shrugged and handed him the badge, which he hung by its chain around his neck.

One hand in his pocket, he walked into the ring. He was still dressed in street clothes, loose-fitting BDU pants and a t-shirt.

Octavius, by contrast, was barely dressed, other than shorts. His lack of clothing showed off rippling muscles, well-defined on his pale skin.

"Are you ready to show me what you're made of, Hunter?" he called. "To show the Terrans who the strongest are?"

Hunter stretched his arms out above his head. "This is going to hurt, Octavius," he warned.

"Yes," said the Drex. "It is."

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Captain (by courtesy) Julius Warren was a merchant spaceship captain. He plied the space lanes with his trusty crew, wheeling and dealing among the stars. It was a life that the movies showed to be full of danger, romance, and wealth beyond imagining.

Unfortunately, right now, it mainly seemed to be full of greasy crates.

Crates that he had to load, because he couldn't afford loading fees and his trusty crew currently consisted of Anton, who was in no shape to load four hundred crates of parts before lift-off.

"Get a move on," he ordered, more for form's sake than anything else. It made him feel more like a captain, rather than a stevedore. "We haven't got all day."

Anton, a surly, white-haired native of Novaya Rodina, rolled his eyes. "We have four hours until lift-off. These crates are heavy. I need many breaks."

"I'm not paying you to take breaks," snapped Warren. "Get back to work."

He lifted the next crate, and blinked as he saw the large grey rabbit behind it. A uniformed grey rabbit.

That was weird. It was even weirder when the rabbit spoke. "You're under arrest."

He set the crate back down, carefully. "On second thought," he said, "Maybe you're right. I think I do need a break." He looked at Anton. "Hey, you sure that was vodka we drank last night? Tasted kinda strange to me."

"Was good, pure vodka from Rodina," said Anton, affronted. "Why?"

The captain leaned around the crate, saw with relief that the rabbit had disappeared. "Oh, no reason- augh!"

The exclamation was prompted by the appearance of a fox. A uniformed fox. "Didn't you hear her?" demanded the fox. "You're under arrest."

This time, Anton's jaw dropped, too. He rubbed his eyes and stared at the fox. "I change mind. Nasty, rotgut vodka."

His eyes locked on the fox, Warren spoke out of the corner of his mouth. "You're seeing this too, aren't you?"

"I'm not a hallucination," said the fox, annoyed.

"That's exactly what a hallucination would say," pointed out Warren.

"Is folie a deux," said Anton confidently. "Saw movie about it. Cure is more vodka."

"Is it?" asked Warren plaintively. "Won't that just cause more of them?"

"No, of course not," said Anton. He produced a flask from his pocket and took a swig.

"You have the right to remain silent," said a voice. They turned and saw the rabbit again, standing on the pile of crates. This time, the bunny was in Anton's view as well.

Anton shrugged. "I could be wrong."

An FLPD sergeant walked around from the front of Warren's cargo bay. "I told you this wasn't going to work," he told the fox.

"Worth a try. I mean, he is off balance."

"Sergeant?" said Warren. "Why are you talking to my hallucinations?"

"Do you even read the news?" asked the FLPD sergeant in exasperation. He shook his head. "Never mind. You're under arrest."

"For what?" said Anton.

"Illegal transportation of arms."

Both spacemen flinched. "What?' said Warren nervously. "These are just parts for, uh, machines." He gestured to the crates, and blinked when he saw the rabbit had opened one of the crates. "Hey! You need a warrant for that!"

Without looking at him, the bunny held up a sheet of paper. "Like this one?" she said distractedly.

Warren looked at Anton. "Are we really being raided by woodland creatures?"

His subordinate sighed. "I could have been fur trapper back on Novaya Rodina," he said sadly. "Almost never raided by wildlife there." He paused. "Well, sometimes bear."

"Anyway," said Warren when he saw Anton wasn't going to be any help, "those are just, um, parts for sewing machines."

The bunny held up a tube and inspected it. "Yeah, air-cooled-" she held up another part, a magazine, "magazine-fed sewing machines. With an automatic receiver. Heavy duty clothing industry, I take it. Where is this cargo going?"

"Manifest says Tejias," said the FLPD sergeant. "You know, the planet rebelling against our friends and allies, the Coalition."

"Um," said Warren. "Can I get a lawyer now?"

The fox stepped closer. "Depends. You want to do this the hard way or the easy way?"

"Which way involves a lawyer?"

The fox shook his head pityingly. "Seriously, you have to ask? The lawyer is always the hard way."

"Um, I thought lawyers made it easier for me-"

"When's the last time a lawyer made anything easier?"

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"He looks pretty tough, Zach," observed Tavi.

Hunter leaned against the ropes of the large ring. "Nah," he said. "It's all those muscles. Makes him look stronger than he really is."

"That doesn't make sense."

Hunter looked around. "Anila, I'm currently talking to you, one of my best friends, who is a mongoose. I just threatened a capybara reporter, I'm being glared at by a raccoon mayor and a water buffalo chief, and the whole planet seems to think that the fate of Terra will be decided by a freaking boxing match. Sense has left the building."

"I think mammals are just looking for something to help them decide between the humans and Drex," said Tavi. "I mean, they don't really know humans. They also don't know the Drex. And they're scared to be caught in the middle."

"Well, I guess it's time to show them what we're made of."

A referee- a giraffe who was apparently some sort of hotshot in the boxing world- made his way to the center of the ring and gestured to Hunter and Octavius. The human moved forward, his stare matched by the Drex.

"All right," said the giraffe. "I want a good, clean fight. No strikes below the belt. No gouges or biting. If a fighter taps out, the fight ends. And may the best mammal win."

"Drex are objectively superior," said Octavius in a bored tone.

"You know, saying things like that is why no one likes you," Hunter told him.

"I look forward to seeing your fear," said Octavius. "I cannot understand it, but I have learned to recognize it. Such as on the faces of the humans at Luyten." He smiled. "It must be terrible, to die in fear."

Hunter stiffened. "You're going to pay for that," he said, his voice cold.

Octavius leaned forward. "Make me."

Nervously, the giraffe got between them. "Back to your corners. When I ring the bell, come out fighting."

Hunter returned to his corner, where Tavi watched worriedly. "Aren't you going to strip down like he did?" she said, indicating Octavius.

"What?" He glanced over. "Oh, no. No one wants to see that."

She blinked, and shrugged unconvincingly. "Of course not. But for freedom of movement-"

"Down, girl," he said jokingly. "You want to see me with my shirt off, you'll have to buy me dinner first." He twisted from side to side, grimacing at an old pain in his shoulder. He didn't notice how Tavi blushed.

The bell rung. Slowly, Octavius started pacing toward him.

"Zach-" said Tavi.

"The thing about having no fear," said Hunter conversationally, watching Octavius advance, "is that you also tend to not anticipate. The thing about the Drex isn't that they're scared, for they aren't, but that they are never, ever ready."

He walked out to meet Octavius.

As they closed, the Drex smiled. "There was a lot of debate about you, Mr. Hunter. Whether you were as dangerous as you seemed."

Hunter just kept walking, closing the distance. Right now, the important thing was not to take a serious hit- the Drex was so much more powerful than him that even one punch could be a knockout- or worse. He had to win fast and hard.

His friends were depending on him.

Octavius backed up slightly, his eyes calculating.

"Said that you were dangerous. I say that you are nothing more than a superannuated policeman with delusions of-"

Hunter dashed at him.

Taken by surprise, Octavius swung. Hunter took the punch on his shoulder as he plowed into the Drex.

Damn, that still hurt, he thought, but the pain was buried under his concentration. He grabbed the Drex by the shoulders, gripping hard.

Octavius reacted immediately, bringing his hands up to break Hunter's grip. With contemptuous ease, the Drex shoved his arms to either side and gripped Hunter's forearms with vise-like strength.

Before he could make his next move, however, Hunter brought his knee up into the Drex's groin.

Hard. All the fear, all the anger, all the hate he had built up for the Drex went into that knee.

Drex were supermen, but they still had their weak points.

Octavius's eyes bugged out and he bent over, almost double. He glared up with surprised eyes at Hunter. "That's against the rules," he said, wheezing. His voice seemed a few octaves higher.

"Yep," said Hunter. He brought his fist up into the Drex's solar plexus- another weak point- and Octavius collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Hunter immediately kicked him in the face, then shoved him onto his back with his foot. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the giraffe referee approaching. He whirled around.

"Stand back!" he shouted. "I don't need a damned referee."

The giraffe halted. Hunter took a step towards him. His eyes were coldly furious, locking onto the giraffe's.

The referee retreated to the sidelines.

The crowd was utterly silent, as still as frozen reeds around a pond.

Hunter returned to Octavius, who was struggling to breathe. He dropped onto the Drex's chest with one knee, causing him to lose what little breath he had regained. Hunter hit him hard in the face.

"That's for my father," he said casually. "You want to challenge me, Drex? Come here with a bunch of silly rules?" He hit him again, harder. Fear was driving his arms, now. Fear and rage.

"How long have we been fighting you freaks?" snarled Hunter. "Ten thousand years? More? How long until you figure out that humans don't have rules when it comes to survival?"

He hit him again. Blood spattered his face as the Drex's nose broke. Hunter ignored it. This thing was here, threatening him? Threatening his friends?

He wasn't going to lose anyone else.

"You think fear is a bad thing, Drex." Another strike. Hunter's fist struck teeth, cut his knuckle. He didn't even notice the pain. "That it makes us weak." Another punch. Octavius's face was bleeding from multiple cuts, his eye already starting to swell. The superman moved his head weakly, groggily. "What it means, Drex, is that we'll do whatever it takes to win."

Hunter moved close to him, deliberately placing his weight on the knee on Octavius's chest. "Who is Prometheus?" he said, his voice very low.

The Drex's eyes focused. "Who?" His voice was low, barely able to breathe from the damage he had taken and Hunter's weight on his chest.

"Prometheus!" snarled Hunter. "Who is he?"

Octavius shook his head. "I do not know," he gasped.

For a moment, Hunter held his gaze. He didn't see fear, of course- but he saw something else. Deception. Angrily, Hunter reached for the chain around his neck.

He held up the badge. "I know you can't fear me, Octavius." He took out a lighter and played it across the badge, holding it up by the chain. The lighter was a powerful one. The badge grew hotter and hotter. "So I figured I'd give you something to remember me by."

Ignoring the pain, Hunter grabbed the back of the badge and slapped it against Octavius's face.

The Drex howled as the badge burned his face with a sizzle of vaporizing sweat, and the shrill sound seemed to break the spell that had fallen over the crowd. Immediately, several ZPD officers rushed to the combatants, dragging Hunter off the fallen Drex. The other Drex dragged Octavius away.

"This is my city!" shouted Hunter as he was yanked away by Wolferd and Tailwhisker. "This is my home! You think of that every time you look into the mirror!"

He was thrown, hard, into the chair in his corner. He started to stand up, but both Tailwhisker and Wolferd slammed him back down into the chair. He looked up at them. They both were staring at him, angry- but also a little nervous. "What?" he asked, surprised. "What's the matter with-"

"Zach."

He turned to look at Tavi, who was-

Backing away from him, her mouth open wide in horror.

And for a moment, he saw himself through her eyes. Spattered with blood, having just beaten another sapient being to a pulp. Snarling as he pummeled the Drex over and over. Branding him with her badge.

He looked up. The Terran newscrews were taking pictures as fast as they could work their cameras as the Drex worked over Octavius's prone form. The Human delegation stared at him with grim faces- except for one. Khabat, near the back, was watching him with pity in her eyes. That was worse.

"You don't understand," he told Tavi. "I won."

She turned and fled.

"Tavi- wait!" He watched her go. "It was the only way to keep you safe," he said, too low for anyone to hear.

"Leave her alone, Hunter," said Captain Tailwhisker. He looked up at the lion as she spoke. "You've done enough damage today."

"Damage?" he said. He looked up at Tailwhisker. "I won. I showed everyone what humans are capable of."

"Yeah," said Tailwhisker. Her voice was hard. "You did."

Author's Note: So Erinnyes noted in a conversation with me that humans seem to have "forgotten how to be the good guys", so that line is from him. I really liked it- thought it summed up very well what I was trying to say.