They woke up in the middle of the day. The first question Rico asked Marlene was about the zookeepers. She informed them that not a human had been seen since the day before. Rico brooded over that for a while, heaving up fish for himself, Private, and Marlene for a late lunch. Marlene was a bit disgusted, not used to Rico's regurgitation like Private was. Marlene started to complain, and Rico turned on her with a vengeance.

"It's that or go hungry, Marlene!" he snarled.

Private was stunned by the change in attitude, and he wasn't the only one. Marlene went from disgusted to terrified. She backed up, the fish held limply in her trembling paws. Her hazel eyes were wide, and her tail wrapped around her legs as she cowered against the rock. Rico stared at her for a moment then went back to pacing. Private glanced at Rico then advised the otter to eat her fish. She didn't approach Rico again.

Rico went back over to their habitat to look for clues, and Private stayed with Marlene. The otter was nibbling on the fish halfheartedly, and as soon as Rico was away, she set aside the half-eaten carcass. Private frowned, nudging the mammal.

"You okay, Marlene?"

"Are you sure you're safe with him?" Marlene asked in a low voice, her eyes darting toward the penguins' destroyed habitat.

The question surprised Private, and he laughed a little. Marlene didn't even smile, her ears flat against her head.

"I'm serious, Private. There's no Skipper and Kowalski to keep him in line now."

"If this is about him yelling at you," Private said. "He's just worried about Skipper and Kowalski. He's a little short right now."

Marlene's face pinched, and she reached up a paw to play with her small ears. "It's not just that."

"What is it?"

"What…What if he accidentally hurts you, Private?" Marlene held up her paws as Private began to protest. "No, I mean it. Everybody here knows that Rico is crazy. He had a seizure two days ago, and he always has this look in his eyes. Like he's not all there…" She peered at the young penguin with frightened eyes.

Private stared for a moment then shook his head. "Rico would never hurt me, Marlene."

"How do you know?"

The penguin went silent, turning away to watch Rico hunt through the wreckage. Maurice was there with him again, talking to him. Marlene was waiting for an answer. But honestly, Private didn't know what to say to her. He just knew Rico wouldn't hurt him. Not on purpose. But she had said 'accident'…

"I trust him, Marlene," he finally said. "He's the only family I have left right now. I have to trust him."

Marlene shook her head, clearly unhappy, and she slunk back into her cave, leaving Private alone. The penguin climbed to the jutting rock and looked over at Rico and Maurice. What were they looking for? Would they really find anything? Would their nemesis truly leave a clue to their whereabouts?

Private knew very little about Blowhole. He wasn't authorized to know much, and he'd never wanted to break rank. But now, with Skipper and Kowalski gone, he realized just how big the hole in his knowledge was and just how bad it was for their mission. He did know a little more than before, but it wasn't a comfort. It was actually terrifying to know what Blowhole was capable of. The vision from Rico's memory swam up from his own thoughts, injecting another shot of horror into his psyche.

There was a strange noise, and Private looked up, startled back into the present. Rico waved at him, gesturing for him to come over. Private jumped into the water, diving deep before curving toward the surface and launching himself out of the habitat. Shaking the water from his frame, he slid over and jumped into their own pool, doing the same trick to pop up into the platform.

Looking closely, Private realized how lucky it was that their base wasn't underwater. The walls were just high enough to keep the water out if it was still. He had sloshed water over the floor, washing away the dust prints and thinning the blood that Rico had pointed out the day before. Private froze, thinking he'd ruined something, but Maurice nudged him.

"Did I mess it up?" he asked, his eyes locked on the ground.

"Nope," Maurice said, patting him then stepping forward. "We know as much as we can from that. It's going to rain later anyway."

Private raised his beak and sniffed, but he smelled nothing but the city. Looking down, he avoided Maurice's gaze and shrugged helplessly at Rico. Rico shrugged back then gestured for him to come forward.

"I need you to translate," he said gruffly. "I'm going to have a sore throat for days at this rate."

"I'll translate," Private promised. "What do you know?"

Rico straightened and gestured around. "What do you see?"

"A mess."

"No, Private. Look closely. What do you see?"

Private looked at the rubble, glancing up and shrugging. "I don't know."

Rico sighed, rolling his eyes then grabbed his flipper and guided him forward. Dipping down, he inhaled then looked at Private expectantly. Unsure of what he was looking for, he copied Rico, remembering that doing was how Rico taught him. He got a lungful of dust, and he sneezed, drawing back at the tickle in his nostrils. Snorting to clear his nose, he shook his head. After a moment, he leaned down and sniffed again, his brows drawing together. There was something there that he recognized…

"Gunpowder," he murmured. "Is that it? I smell gunpowder."

"Very good," Rico praised. "What else?"

A burst of joy filled Private at the praise, so he leaned down and inhaled slower. There was a metallic tang in the air that coated his tongue. He snorted again.

"Blood."

"Yep. But that's not normal blood," Maurice said, crossing his arms.

"Rico said he smelled a drug yesterday," Private recalled.

"That's the sour smell in the blood. Sniff again. Pick it out," Rico ordered.

Another long smell and Private could detect a medical smell. It reminded him of the vet's office, and he nodded, leaning down closer, eyeing the patch. It was untouched by the water from his entrance. Something shiny caught his eye, and he turned from the blood to see a shimmering white substance lying under the crumbling roof. He shouldered it aside to find a picture.

Tilting his head, he studied the symbols. They were painted in something crumbling. The thing stirred in his breast again, but this time it was almost docile, though still primal. It told him to sniff it, so he did. It had a sharp scent that chilled his nose.

"Cold," he murmured. "It's cold."

Maurice shared a look with Rico, a smirk quirking his lips. Rico crossed his flippers and nodded, the corner of his beak lifting ever-so-slightly. Private was doing better than they had expected.

"And the blood's a part of it," Private muttered, stepping back to take in the whole scene. "Is it a language?" he asked, turning to face the other two.

Rico slapped him hard on the back, pride gleaming from his eyes. "Very good!" he praised.

"Rico says the symbols are Antarctican in origin," Maurice said.

"They are?" Private asked, perking up. "What do they mean?"

"He didn't say. It's hard for him to speak English apparently. Not surprising considering his wound," Maurice said. "That's why you're here."

Rico leaned down and traced the swirls that decorated the top of the picture. "This indicates the windswept plains of the ice goddess," he said. Private stared then translated for Maurice, who nodded.

"Okay. Where are they?"

"Antarctica."

Maurice growled in his throat, a short, irritated noise. "Obviously."

Rico pointed at the ragged triangles. "These peaks are on the other side of the plains." He scanned down to the waves, where the splatter of blood stood out against the concrete. "This is a symbol for leopard seal territory. The blood indicates a sacrifice."

"Sacrifice?" Private squeaked.

"It's not been done. It's a threat," Rico replied. "There's a time cap. Right here," he pointed at four circles with lines drawn between them. "They're to be thrown to the leopard seals in four months' time. Unless we can defeat Blowhole."

Private translated then stared at the symbols. Maurice licked his paw and drew it over his ear, which flicked back into place. His expression was thoughtful as he studied the symbols.

"So he's that kind of animal," the lemur finally said.

"What?" Private asked as Rico nodded.

Maurice hummed, wrapping an arm around Private's shoulders. "He's the kind of animal, the kind of predator, who likes to play with his food before eating it."

"He's going to eat them?!" Private demanded, looking ill.

"No," Rico said. "But Maurice is right. Blowhole is going to toy with Skipper and Kowalski while we struggle to find them and save them."

"But the plains, isn't that where they are?" Private asked.

Rico shook his head, his face grim. "No. The plains sweep across most of Antarctica. They might be near the peaks in a cave system, but that doesn't help us either. The peaks of Manuwa are miles and miles long. The plains of Icza are even bigger. He didn't narrow it down very much. We're going to need those four months."

Private stared at Rico, his heart sinking. "What do we do?"

Rico turned to look over the ruins of their habitat. "We've got to go to Antarctica." He paused, his blue eyes darkening as his jaw clenched. "I've got to go home and bring you with me. It's their only chance."

Private stood there in the rubble that was their home. He had lived most of his life in that small base. He had laughed with his family, gone on missions, both silly and serious, and had grown from a chick to a young penguin in these four walls. He had learned to be a soldier from Skipper and a strategist from Kowalski in that base, in their home. But now, they were gone, captured by the same maniac who had ordered his parents to be killed.

Looking up at Rico, Private said the same thing that he'd said to Skipper and Kowalski outside of the vet's office only two nights ago. "I can't lose anybody else."

Rico searched Private's solemn blue eyes, set with pain and determination. He placed his flipper on the boy's shoulder, softening his expression enough for Private to see it.

"We won't," he promised. Straightening, he looked at Maurice, nodding once. "You. Know. What. Do," he croaked.

Maurice nodded. "Won't be easy, but I'll get them in shape. You're heading to Antarctica soon?"

Rico took a deep breath. "Tonight." Switching to his native tongue, he slapped Private on the back. "We need to stock up on supplies. Help me find anything viable. Then we head for the stores of food to fill up on fish reserves."

Private nodded, and Maurice headed off for his own habitat while the two penguins began to sort through the remains of their home.