ZNNOfficial: Staying informed is more important than ever, and ZNN remains committed to our viewers. Thanks to the hard work of our tech department, we're happy to say the Morning Report will be broadcast at its usual time. We hope you join us.
"Good morning, Zootopia. I'm Fabienne Growley."
"And I'm Peter Moosebridge. This is the Morning Report."
"A reminder to all our viewers that due to the machinations of international terrorist Andrew Ross, this broadcast is confined to the Zootopian metropolitan area. All attempts to contact the wider world remain unsuccessful."
"This of course comes as part of the illegitimate martial law which has gripped Zootopia since yesterday morning, overseen by Tai Lung, a violent criminal and escaped convict. While the majority of the ZPD remain trapped underneath the city, due to a series of events which remain inexplicable, average citizens are finding life difficult under the supposedly benevolent reign of Ross."
"Hospitals have pledged to stay open in order to continue providing emergency care, but other public institutions such as schools and libraries, as well as private businesses, are facing a dilemma over whether to open. Uncertainty is still rife after yesterday's terrorist attack, and it is unclear when - or if - normal service can resume."
"For the moment, Tai Lung has been monitoring the populace, employing an army of hostile drones. Citizens have reported being violently harassed by these machines for minor infractions and, in many cases, for no clear reason at all. Here at ZNN, we urge you to remain in your homes unless your work is essential. Andrew Ross' inept invasion has endangered too many mammals."
"If you will forgive me for editorialising, I would like to say: if I find you, Mister Ross, I am going to break every bone in your body with my bare hands."
"Strong words from my co-host. Ones Andrew Ross should take to heart."
"I don't make idle threats, Peter."
"I know, Fabienne. We all do."
"I've come to make an announcement."
Tai Lung's voice echoed all over Zootopia. It echoed from the speakers set up at the steps of ZPD HQ. It echoed from every drone patrolling the eerily quiet city. And it echoed from public screens, such as the huge display which previously presented a pleasant if repetitive message of Gazelle welcoming newcomers at the central train station. With the streets deserted, these screens ironically reached far fewer than ZNN's defiant broadcast.
"We are not here to hurt you. We don't even mean to inconvenience you. This is merely an unfortunate detour on the way to something grander. The more you co-operate, the smoother this will go for everyone."
He grinned from every display in the city.
"You may not trust Andross very much at this moment. But what politician is better? Your precious Mayor Dreemurr, perhaps?"
He brandished a printout for the camera.
"This is information I was directly sent, thanks to a… colleague. You all remember the Phantasm incident, yes? When the criminal wretch Sly Cooper so unjustly kidnapped your-" His grin fought off a growl. "Your heroes, Nicholas Wilde and Judy Hopps? Such cowardice. Such moral depravity. Who would possibly partake in such things?"
His smile finally cracked, rage pouring out of his golden eyes.
"I'll tell you! Dreemurr, and her oh-so-perfect family! We have hard evidence, GPS data, indicating Cooper and his hostages spent almost an entire day at the Dreemurr residence. Funny how that never reached the public record, eh? Every other detail of the case was plastered everywhere, and yet Dreemurr never felt like volunteering this information. The implications are clear, my friends. This was aiding and abetting. Your beloved mayor and your detested thief were rubbing shoulders this whole time."
He managed to slide something more friendly back onto his face.
"So consider it, citizens. Consider the mayors your system has produced - the deceitful Lionheart, the hateful Bellwether, and now the two-faced Dreemurr - and ask yourselves if you can really abide this kind of leadership any longer. Andross intends to keep his promises, and he would be delighted to show you how he will handle dangerous criminals like Cooper. I'm told the execution would be livestreamed…"
Tai Lung cleared his throat.
"But one thing at a time. For now, Andross is offering generous monetary rewards to any citizen with pertinent information about Dreemurr's whereabouts… and I can tell you that turning in the fat little cheetah who calls himself a cop would be an excellent start. Consider this offer carefully. Make things easier for yourself, and your family, and your city. I'll be waiting."
The transmission cut off.
One mammal, at least, had been watching. Pausing in an empty square, he blinked up at the screens above. They had instantly gone as black as his spiked denim jacket.
"I told you it would be garbage."
His partner - in a matching outfit, a jacket and pants that said 'wasteland' but a soft scarf that murmured 'snuggly' - gave him a look.
"We're burning daylight. Let's go."
"Yeah," said Gary. "You're right."
They fell into step, quietly entering a deserted mall.
"This is all so weird," said Gary, voice soft. "Announcements on the public screens, robots in the sky… it really feels like a movie."
"And no-one around."
"I mean, don't get me wrong! I'm glad we're finally getting use out of these cool desert-bandit outfits!"
Larry smiled. "Yeah. Thanks for suggesting it. This is fun."
Gary blushed, savouring the compliment for a second before continuing. "But still. Seeing the bad guy make a big speech about catching the mayor and live-streaming executions is… yeesh."
"I get it. Let's just stay focused. We still need groceries. If we find a mom-and-pop shop still open, we're supporting it."
"Definitely!"
"But if all we find are abandoned megastores…"
Larry swung the net-gun on his back into his hands.
"Well. We still need groceries."
"That was really cool," breathed Gary.
"Thanks, sweetheart."
They crept together through the silent mall. Shop after shop shut down. Gary kept his eyes open, his ears up, his nose ready. But Larry spoke again.
"I wonder how much cash they're offering for the mayor…"
Gary looked over. "You aren't-"
"I'm not," said Larry immediately. "I'm honestly just wondering. But we're far from the only Zootopians who are… not very financially stable. They might get some interest."
"Nah," said Gary.
Larry, as he often did, merely prompted more with a raised eyebrow.
"There's two things here, as far as I see it," said Gary. "First off - Mayor Dreemurr is a nice lady. She's been doing an okay job. The last couple mayors have all been… bad, so the bar is low, and she's well over it. Like, heck. She's such an improvement over Smellwether, even if that thing about being friends with Sly Cooper is true-"
"Which it is," Larry reminded him. "We were there."
"Oh yeah. But most people weren't, and I don't think they're going to believe anything that snow leopard says." He smiled. It wasn't as innocent as he usually looked. "Which brings me to my next, more important point."
"That being?"
"Spite. Everyone in the city hates these guys. People are staying home right now, because there's still a chance it'll all be over by tomorrow. But the longer this goes on? The more Andross is going to find out how much well-deserved spite a city can generate."
Larry chuckled. "Well. I dunno about joining any protests." He rested a hand on Gary's shoulder. "Unless you're there, that is."
Gary melted into a warmer smile. Slowly, he leaned in, and Larry leaned in match him-
and then awkwardly leaned back out when Gary thrust his nose in the air, eyes wide, sniffing.
He led Larry into a huge supermarket dominating half a floor of the mall - it had been shuttered, but someone had knocked a hole in the perimeter to get inside. They crept in together. Larry had caught the scent too, and it led them to the electronics section.
It was a honey badger.
She was huffing and muttering to herself as she loaded up on some equipment. She was bristling with rage and muscle, and the baseball bat strapped to her back gave them pause. But she was clearly distracted.
"Opportunity of a lifetime to obtain some equipment, and no-one to help me! Nicky's one thing. Off fighting ghosts or whatever. Probably wouldn't do it anyway because he's still pretending to be a cop. But Finn?!" She dipped her voice, already husky, to be much lower. "'Sorry, Honey, would love to loot and pillage like old times, but the bossman needs me'. For what?! You work at a museum! There a lot of school field trips going on right now?!"
The wolves fell back, crouching behind untouched shelves.
"Does she seem familiar?" murmured Gary.
Larry blinked, then shrugged.
"I swear I've seen her somewhere…"
"Never mind that." Larry stole another glance at her. "I don't think she should engage her."
"Because she'll beat us up?"
"Because there's nothing to gain from a fight." He sighed, ears back. "And yeah. She might just beat us up."
"She's crazy jacked. Wowsers."
"So let's just-"
A huge crash echoed through the mall.
"What! Whoisit?!" The badger was moving in an instant, thundering further into the supermarket. The two wolves stayed low, watching her go.
"Should we follow?" said Gary.
"Absolutely not."
He paused. "…Can we anyway?"
Larry sighed. "Okay," he said. "But let's be quiet."
They crept in Honey's wake. Loud as she was, she was no fool. She slowed to a silent stop and took cover behind a shelf of canned food - the partners did the same, two shelves back, amid the mildly distracting aromas of the dessert section. They all had a good view of what caused the noise.
There was a lion in a shopping cart.
He lay there, his limbs in casts and awkwardly poking out of the cart at different angles. His neck had no support, so the glare he was levelling at the ceiling was probably intended for the wiry lioness kneeling amid shattered glass and hissing bubbles. What had previously been a carefully stacked display of expensive champagne died a fizzy death under her.
"For the last time," said Scar, "take me to a hospital."
"Never! I can't entrust your care to some mere doctor." Zira kept scanning the ruins of the display. "I'm the only one who should be looking after you!"
"Demonstrably untrue."
"I got you out of that horrible prison-"
"Despite my firm and repeated disavowal of your actions."
"And soon… Aha!" She stuck a paw into the shattered glass, and it triumphantly emerged with an unbroken bottle. "Soon, we will be enjoying the most romantic night of our lives!"
"It's eight in the morning," said Scar, "I barely remember you, and I want to go to a hospital."
"Love is the greatest hospital of all!"
Gary and Larry shared an extremely dubious look. This detour had not been worthwhile.
They were about to disengage - it seemed they all were, judging from how Zira tucked the bottle under Scar's armpit and Honey silently shook her head - when a fresh voice rang out.
"Well, well, well, Banzai… What have we got here?"
They saw Scar instantly tense, those green eyes going wide.
"Hmm, I dunno, Shenzi," came another. "What do you think, Ed?"
Low, uneven laughter bubbled through the shelves. And three hyenas, with outfits and weapons rivalling the wolves', stepped into view.
"Oh," said Scar. He tried a grin. The fact it was upside-down made it even weaker. "Hello…"
"'Oh hello' yourself, you arrogant jerk!" Shenzi had a chain. She was swinging it. "Didn't expect to run into you of all people. We were on our way to mess up Cherryton - y'know, that bougie high school with the drama club?"
"Yeah!" said Banzai. "We're gonna bully some theatre kids!"
"But this? This is way better."
Gary and Larry shared a glance, but before they could communicate anything, Zira stepped forward. "You! What do you want with Scar?"
There was a brief pause as the hyenas realized her question had been entirely genuine. "We're, uh," said Shenzi, "we're gonna hurt him. Real bad. Was that not clear?"
Their hidden audience barely processed the motion. One moment, Zira was standing there, projecting herself between Scar and the hyenas - the next, she was doing the same, but now had a large kitchen knife in each paw. "If you even look at Scar I will stab you to death with my knives. I dare you to do it. I want you to do it."
Behind her, his grimace grew. "Stop talking…"
"Yeah! Shut your mouth!" Banzai brandished his crowbar, as Ed produced a crooked lead pipe. "You think you can stop us? It's three against one."
"Bah!" spat Zira. "Three hyenas, versus one superior lion!"
There was an immediate chorus of protest from the hyenas, which was echoed silently by the wolves and Honey. "Woah, hey!" said Shenzi, the clearest voice. "You can't just say stuff like that any more! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
"There's nothing wrong with me!" declared Zira. "But you? You seem to have a few extra holes in your fac-!"
Honey stepped out from cover and threw a can of beans at Zira's head.
It was slightly off-target, hitting her shoulder instead, but the surprise of the impact was enough to shake her. "What!" She whirled around. "Who dares to-?!"
She barely caught sight of Honey before the three hyenas jumped her.
It was immediate chaos. The hyenas were vicious, but Zira was tougher than her ridiculous demeanour implied. Scar could only lie there and watch as she roared and thrashed, successfully hurling Ed into a heavy shelf even as Shenzi and Banzai tore into her.
Honey charged in with her baseball bat and an absolutely terrifying laugh. Gary instinctively went to follow, but felt a firm paw on his shoulder.
"Don't," hissed Larry.
"But-!"
"We have no stake in this situation." Larry's voice stayed calm. Low and steady despite the screaming. "And seeing her swing that bat around has jogged my memory. We do know that badger. We tried to raid her junkyard when we were with Mister O'Donnell."
"Oh. Oh, you're right! Thanks, that was killing me."
"What's gonna kill you," said Larry, over the sound of Zira using Banzai as a shield against Honey's bat, "is her, if she spots us. We're going. Now."
"You," said Gary, as a flung bottle of champagne sped past his head, "have a point."
They pulled back, quietly putting distance between themselves and the ongoing brawl. Gary shook his head.
"Jeez. What a mess. At least that's the first time we've seen people clawing at each other since this all began."
"Those hyenas are out for Scar's blood," said Larry. "People who want to fight are going to, with or without the ZPD around. Still, if I were them, I'd be a little more cautious about the-"
They turned a corner, and then scrabbled back behind the shelf in perfect synchrony as a dozen drones blew past.
In an instant, the sounds of battle changed. There were twelve new combatants, with hard armour and sharp claws and absolutely no interest in who had started the fight. People were staying indoors for good reason. These things' idea of 'keeping the peace' was anything but peaceful.
Larry steeled himself. "Gary…"
Gary looked back at him with those soft, brown eyes. Pleading.
Larry took a slow breath, and released it. "…Alright."
They charged.
Their time with Lionheart's Night Howler operation, the height of what could charitably be called their 'careers', still informed their every movement. A wolf can only match a large, feral jaguar with training. Equipment. Steady nerves. And above all else, at least one other wolf.
The duo flowed like water. A drone was swiping at Honey and Gary shot it point-blank with his net cannon, and Larry covered him as he quickly reloaded. He fired at the one shrieking at Shenzi, and by then Gary was prepared again, firing a fresh net as Larry reloaded.
They fired three nets each, in perfect rhythm, and six drones hit the supermarket floor. There was no way the nets were physically strong enough to contain them, but their rudimentary programming seemed to struggle with the problem, leaving them clunkily juddering under the nets.
"Effective!" said Gary.
"Too effective," said Larry. "Ration the rest, we might need them later."
"Yeah!"
"Yo, hold up!" Shenzi glared. "Who are you?!"
"Who cares!" Honey cracked her bat into a drone's face. "I dunno who any of y'all are!"
The remaining drones fought with mechanical rage, entirely unconcerned that their numbers had been halved in seconds. One lunged at Zira and she grappled with it for a moment before, impressively, burying a knife in its head. The drone sparked and shrieked and went limp. Unfortunately for Zira, she couldn't pry the knife back out.
She flicked her remaining knife from her left hand to her right. "Who else w-"
Another drone tackled her to the ground.
Scar watched the chaos unfold from his shopping cart. Honey was battering one drone; the two wolves were unsuccessfully trying to taser another. Zira growled and thrashed under a third, while a fourth was menacing Shenzi and Banzai. Was that all of them?
His answer came in the form of a long shadow. Scar looked up. The drone loomed over him.
He was immobile. All four of his limbs were clearly broken. He was the only mammal here who was unarmed and unresisting. And, true to form, the drone shrieked at him and prepared a fatal strike.
Scar merely sighed. "Well, it's about time."
Those deadly claws gleamed, coming straight for his head-
and never arrived. Someone shouldered the drone out of the way. Scar found himself staring up at Ed.
"You… What?"
Of all the expressions that fought to claim Scar's face, the one that bubbled to the surface was, somehow, a timid smile.
"Ed, my dear friend… after everything that happened between us, you'd really…?"
Ed planted both paws on the cart's handles.
"Ed?"
He pushed. And ran.
"Ed! No no no no-!"
Shenzi managed to trip the drone she was fighting, smashing its head into the hard metal shelves. The sound of echoing laughter caught her attention, and she and Banzai noticed what Ed was doing. "Great idea! Wait up!" They ran after him.
With a mighty roar, Zira dislodged her own drone, burying her second knife into its eye. She, too, realized what was happening. "No! He's mine, do you hear me? Mine!"
Scar and Ed trundled away at speed, disappearing around a corner. And then Shenzi and Banzai were gone, and so was Zira, and it was just Gary, Larry and Honey smashing the remaining drones.
Gary glanced to his partner. "Should we-?"
"No."
"Yeah, good call."
"Heads up!" Larry's ear flicked, and he turned in time to catch what Honey had tossed to him. Banzai's crowbar, abandoned on the floor. "You might have better luck with this!" she yelled.
"Uh, thanks!"
He turned back, just in time to see a drone was charging at him - and to see Gary wrap his arms around its neck and slam it straight into the floor. Larry seized his chance, working the crowbar into the seams on its head. With a sudden clatter, its face-plate came loose, exposing an ugly tangle of wires and lights.
"Oh. Gross." With his other hand, Larry stabbed his taser into exposed wiring. The drone went dead.
"Nice one!" Gary rolled off it, back on his feet and ready for more. "Let's clear the rest out!"
They did. Honey hit hard, and the wolves quickly learned how to incorporate her into their own rhythms. Before long, they had managed to disable the last drones without the sound of battle attracting more.
"Hoo…!" Honey planted her bat against the ground, learning against it leisurely. "That was some nice work, boys. Appreciate the assist."
"No problem!" smiled Gary. "Happy to do it."
Larry just grunted.
The two of them methodically dealt with the drones trapped under nets. They would be an immediate threat if they got loose, so Larry crowbarred them and Gary tasered them, and within a minute every drone was still.
Honey gave them both a smile. "I ain't done out here, actually. You feel like sticking with me for a bit? You help me with my thing, I'll help you with yours…"
They shared a look. Gary had steered their actions plenty already, so he let Larry answer. "That makes a certain amount of sense, but no. It's smarter to avoid the patrols in the first place. That's easier to do in smaller groups."
"Awh, really?" Honey's smile didn't waver. "Y'all don't think you owe me one after what you did?"
They both tensed, ears tall and eyes wide. And she burst out laughing.
"Hah! Relax, boys. We all gotta survive capitalism. I won't hold it against you." She spun her bat around. Playfully. "If you lend me a paw."
Another shared look. Another silent conversation. And Larry sighed. "This is turning into quite the grocery run… Okay, fine. We can spare a couple minutes."
"Great! I get first dibs on stuff - tryna improve my podcasting setup and believe me that junk is expensive - but you can grab whatever you want, too!"
"Hooray!" said Gary. "Let's get a proper microphone. That's a good investment."
"Gary, you can't call it an 'investment' if you steal it…"
She led them back to her cart, casually chatting about her plans to cover her tracks if and when the ZPD ever resumed control of the city. But she went quiet again - they all did - as they closed in.
There was a voice coming from her cart.
"Uh, hello?"
They closed the distance silently - but relaxed again. The supermarket was still empty. The voice was coming from a radio Honey had pilfered.
"Can anyone hear this? …Yeah, Max, the little light is green, so it should be, uh…"
"Huh," said Honey. "I just grabbed that 'cause it looked retro. Had no idea it was on. Or it'd, uh… work."
"Phones and internet are still patchy at best," noted Larry. "Stands to reason someone would set up older networks."
"If you can hear this… we need your help. Just for a little while. Just for today. I know everybody's really scared right now - believe me, um, I am too! But… we have a plan. We're almost ready. And we just need a few more bodies to make it happen. Uh, p… please, Zootopia. If you're out there."
Gary stood there for a moment. Watching the radio with his brown eyes. Thoughtful.
Then he reached out and answered it.