"Unbelievable, not a single shot of ME!" Vanity exclaimed loudly to the two couch occupants.
As per usual, no one seemed to care for his 'plight' as he continued to rave aloud in front of the television.
"How could they miss that fat-head of yours?" Gay added wearing a dull expression while leaning on an armrest.
The Panda paced around the device angrily, seemingly dismissing his comment.
"I should have some recognition around here. I'm an Icon."
"Former Icon."
Vanity glowered at the remark with a sour expression, his eye visibly twitching as Gay gave a mirth-filled smile at the panda's displeasure.
Prozac couldn't help but give a half-smile, it slowly faded, however, with perked ears the sound of clattering from behind causing him to furrow his brow.
I really hope that wasn't what I think it is…
"I'm sure they managed to get some footage of you." He added candidly, ignoring his instincts.
Vanity rolled his eyes discouraged. "How can I flourish amongst the commonwealth if I don't get enough screen time?" He asked rhetorically.
"Preaching to the choir…" Gay remarked as he shifted his gaze behind him. The yellow bear's eyes narrowed as he stared at the cave entrance knowingly. "At least you were decent on camera." He stated bluntly as he glared at the blue-furred, bawdy bear leaning against the wall.
Lech had been absently rubbing his head as he heard his reproach. However, the disapproval hadn't bothered him. In fact, it was exactly the opposite. He smirked smugly, opening his mouth to reply…
"Shit!" His eyes widened.
Crash!
He frantically ducked away as blue shards cascaded down from where his head used to be, aimlessly falling to the ground at his feet.
Gay glanced at the empty table beside the couch dismissively shaking his head, rising from the couch and walked toward the kitchen and the nearest occupant, Cara. She waved to him casually, narrowing her vibrant green eyes dourly.
"Sorry."
"It's fine, dear,' He replied quickly grabbing the broom and dustpan.
He walked over the mess made by the pink-furred bear. "Someone's being a diva." He emphasized bluntly, garnering attention from the bear in question.
"Come off it." Sara bitterly replied with an ardent glare. She marched toward Lech with daggers in her eyes.
Prozac glanced at the shattered remains from the couch with a frownbefore begrudgingly hopping off the couch and heading to the disturbance across the room.
"Try that again and I'll chop your hand off." She stated with a scowl, jabbing the tip of her claw into Lech's chest.
He grinned lecherously. "Hey, I didn't expect her to react like that."
Cara frowned at the memory, her emotions had gotten the better of her at the time of his unwantedattention.
"Mindless Deviant." Sara curtly replied.
"Lech…" Prozac stated, stepping between the two. "How-"
"How many times will it take to get the hint?" Vanity jeered from the couch, resting his elbows on the armrest.
"You're only showing us how inept your manhood is. Or was it inert, I fail to tell the difference at times." He narrowed his eyes.
There was a deathly silence..
Prozac glanced to his right: Sara had an amused smirk, her pale blue eyes narrowed smugly as he heard a small snicker from behind. He swept over to Cara as she placed her paw in front of her mouth, a vain attempt to hide her amusement. A soft smile formed from his lips as he glanced at the bear—a loud familiar snort from his left accompanied by a notorious cracking noise drew his attention—Again, his smile faded quickly as he furrowed his eyes knowingly and quickly blocked the Lecherous Bear's path to the Panda on the couch as another foreign conversation faded from his ear at the entrance.
Lech snarled outwardly with clenched fists, trying get around him with no avail.
Vanity, seeing this, stuck his tongue out mockingly.
"Cheeky little-"
"You need to learn some restraint." Prozac scolded.
He peered over his shoulder sternly toward the couch. As expected, Vanity looked away without remorse.
Clearly, he wasn't the only one needing a lesson in discretion. He turned to Sara with a hard look. It slowly softened as soon he saw Cara already talking her down.
"I'm fine, it was...Surprising is all." He watched her rub her lower back, seeing a small twinge of pain on her face. He looked away sheepishly as she caught his gaze.
"Still…" She sounded distressed, shifting her gaze to Lech with visible disdain. A paw rested on her shoulder.
Cara gave her a blithely smile, retracting her paw from her shoulder and placing it on her hip. "Please find something less likely to dismember him." She asked jokingly.
"I'll consider it." She smirked amusedly.
He smiled warmly, then turned to Lech without a hint of his previous emotion. "Keep your hands to yourself. Are we clear?" He stated formally with a stone-faced look.
Lech rose his paws apprehensively accompanied by an eye roll. "Fine, fine." He blurted out.
Prozac leered sternly, gesturing his fingers to his face. Then, pointed both accusingly at him before turning back to the couch.
"Hey…" He heard a low, somber sounding voice.
He paused, the voice sounded foreign to his ears. Glancing down, he found it's source a slightly stout, gray mouse.
"You sound like crap," Lech said bluntly.
Prozac narrowed his eyes at his choice of words.
"Ahem." The Mouse coughed softly.
Prozac peered down as a pair of beady dark-blue eyes stared up at him. "Yes, Mike?"
"Could you do me a favor?" He rubbed his eyes, staring away briefly.
"You're already staying here, freeload—Owww!" A shrill voice shrieked out abruptly.
He glanced back at the couch, he felt his brow tighten at the sight of the two.
Vanity stroked his ear with an annoyed expression as Lech smugly smirked.
"Child abuser." He silently spat out.
"Arrogant turd." He replied aloud.
What did I just say? He sighed openly, as he brought his attention back to the mouse.
The mammal openly pulled at his whiskers, looking up with an inquisitive look.
"Could…Could you check Evil's room for me—Please." He asked.
He paused, it wasn't an odd request, but he felt unsure. He nodded respectively, heading toward the cavern entrance as the mouse waited at the door. The unruly chatter from the living room dampened as he strolled through the cave. On his way, he stopped briefly, Gimp was escorting the normally carefree red bear to the restroom. Tanked was sporting a pea-green hue while clutching his head.
He furrowed his brow knowingly, passing the two.
Not a moment later, he reached his destination and slowly, he cracked open the door and let his eyes wander. Dark bits of plastic laid around a small make-shift bed; A small pile of a white, grainy substance rested on the left side of the room laying on the floor. And, near a workbench, a pile of mechanical parts was dumped on the ground at the furthest end of the room.
A parental scowl came to his face as he shut the door behind him.
He peered at the occupants. A purple-furred bear, and a brown-furred raccoon respectively. Nerd stood over the raccoon as it sat clearly focused on its work.
But, as he walked toward them…
Chunk, Tink!
"Nghh!" He covered his maw letting out a pained gasp.
He felt an acute pain beneath his foot, as sharp as a needle. With clenched teeth, he lifted his foot to reveal the source of his pain: a screwdriver. Lovingly left at his feet.
Nerd turned his attention to the door, then, lightly tapped Jimmy and gestured behind him.
Jimmy peered over his shoulder with a dull expression, his eyes suddenly lit up. He leaped from his chair and darted toward the tool, lovingly cradling it in his arms. He looked up at Prozac curiously as he peered at him.
"What's with the glum look?" He asked innocently.
"He always looks like that," Nerd added.
Prozac furrowed his brow ignoring his claim. "Did you wake them up?" He asked resting his foot down prudently. He looked around the room inquisitively for any trace of its other occupants.
Jimmy paused, scratching his head. "No, I haven't seen em'."
His eyes widened worried, he didn't want to hear that.
Nerd cupped his chin pensively. "The photographers left and the Zoo's closed, maybe we should start to look for them."
"Good idea," Prozac said as he headed to the door with Nerd following suit.
As they left, the raccoon stared at the door, then to his work desk inquisitively. A pair of small grey devices with antennae attached to them laid on it along with a tattered black box pried open with wires hanging out of it. He drew his screwdriver out with a prideful smirk suddenly tinkering with the devices with renewed vigor.
The bears silently walked back through the cavern accompanied by the unpleasant sounds of plopping water echoing loudly from the bathroom. As they entered the living room Prozac immediately noticed Mike waiting at the doorway as they arrived, Lech stood beside him.
"He ain't here, is he?" Mike stated frankly in a low tone.
Prozac shook his head dismissively.
The mouse sighed openly, closing his eyes. Then, without a word, marched past the two between their feet silently.
"He...found that outside." Gay warily remarked from the kitchen.
Lech gave Prozac a yellow piece of cloth, a bandana. On closer inspection, he noticed the cloth had a jagged cut. "Evil's scent is faint on it,' He said with a scowl. "and the area is suspiciously clean." He stated briefly looking outside.
"Figures-" Sara stated dully as she rested her back on the cave wall.
"What was that?" Lech stated at the remark, glaring back angrily at her.
Sara smirked in response.
Her sister stood beside her with a discouraged look, causing her to sigh aloud. "Never mind." She curtly replied.
"What should we do?" Cara stated to Prozac with a worried look.
He rubbed his chin pensively. "We'll fan out and search-"
"Wait."
Prozac furrowed his brow at Lech. "Is there a problem?"
"We need a source of communication between each group." Lech narrowed his brow as he stared at Nerd.
"Uhhh..." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly as all eyes laid him.
"The phone…Can't make calls." He gave a half-baked smile.
He knew how stupid that sounded, but it was the truth. A phone bill would be the least of his worries.
"Really?" Sara asked nonchalantly, her brow raised dubiously.
The bawdy bear marched toward the purple one stopping right in front of him as he glared down, Nerd scowled in response undeterred.
"Nice going, Numb Nuts. You stole a phone that doesn't work!" Lech sarcastically exclaimed.
"Hey, I'm no thief! I found that phone!"
"So What? That glorified paperweight-"
The Teal bear promptly stepped in between the two. "We need to focus, maybe I could convince the birds to act as our eyes and ears." Prozac paused looking up pensively.
"All I need to do is call in a favour or two…" He narrowed his eyes. He realized an immediate flaw to his plan: time. Something they could have very little of.
"Or…" A mild voice stated from the doorway.
Prozac stepped aside and peered back to see the small raccoon carrying two black devices in his paw.
"You could use these." Jimmy stated with a smile.
Lech tilted his head curiously staring at the raccoon's black paws before getting an excited look on his face. They were crudely made walkie-talkies resting in his hands.
Nerd squinted inquisitively at the devices. "I thought they weren't done yet?" he asked.
Jimmy tilted his head playfully. "Actually-"
"Now we're talking!" Lech abruptly grabbed the device from his paw with a manic grin.
The Raccoon stared anxiously as he started to fiddle with it.
"Careful! They're sensitive."
"Relax, I'm c-" With a loud snap, he broke the grey antenna.
His eyes shifted anxiously from left to right before he abruptly lobbed the device into Prozac hands, then crossed his arms.
"Clumsy Oaf," Gay stated from the kitchen emptying his dustpan into the trash.
"The word you're looking for is negligent." Nerd quickly remarked with a pleased smile.
Lech glowered at them both spitefully.
"It's fine, I'll fix it," Jimmy remarked without malice.
He gave the undamaged one to Prozac and carefully grabbed the other. His brown eyes narrowed inquisitively at the bent antenna and smirked as he walked back into the cavern.
"Okay, the teams are-"
"Oh, almost forgot."
They all glanced back at Jimmy poking his head out of the corridor.
"You see that button at the front?" He asked inquisitively pointing at the device.
Prozac stared at the small red button below the plastic display. It looked familiar, he couldn't place his finger on it…
"Press that to signal me when you need to talk."
"Why's that?" He asked.
"I have to manually create a signal. Using the zoo's frequency came with some…complications." He stated with wide, grimly eyes.
Prozac gave a worried look.
"Anyways, I'll patch you through while your out. So, just give me a minute or two to redirect you." He reiterated.
"Wait," Vanity stated as he lurched onto the couch armrest, staring at the group. "Is this mandatory?"
"Um, no?" He replied dubiously.
The Panda yawned loudly and hopped off the couch. "Then, I'm getting my beauty sleep." He slowly walked toward the cavern.
Lech waved dismissively as the small panda left. "Whatever, that turd would only slow my team down."
Prozac furrowed his brow as Gay walked from the kitchen toward Lech with a snide smirk.
"He'd probably wouldn't even see much to begin with." Gay joked.
The two shared a laugh.
"I heard that you clods!" He exclaimed loudly from the caverns.
Prozac sighed openly placing his paw over his forehead in frustration. His back tightened instinctively as a paw rested comfortingly on his shoulder. With a bare expression, he stared at Nerd curiously.
"I'll stay here in case they show up." He stated hopefully.
Prozac exhaled softly, relaxed. Subsequently, he caught Sara sauntering toward the vacant couch, slumping onto it. An audible sigh came from Cara as she followed her, gesturing for a break with both paws.
Sara rested her back on the couch lazily while staring at the television. But her view was soon blocked by a pair of green eyes. She furrowed her brow at her sister's gaze, folding her arms.
"What?"
"The least we can do is help out."
"We both barely know our way around here."
"Even so, we could at least do something." Cara pleaded, folding her arms.
"Well, I'm going to watch Desperate Housewives."
"It's a re-run," Gay stated bluntly.
She inwardly sighed, rolling her eyes and rested her chin on her paw. Her eyes dully rose up to Violet bear standing over her with a annoyed expression on her face.
"Ugly crying won't get me to help."
Cara narrowed her eyes, frowning at her remark.
"Besides, whatever they're wrapped up in isn't my problem."
"But-" A paw rested on her shoulder. Cara glanced at Prozac dolefully before he nodded his head.
"It's her decision." He said solemnly.
She gave her sister a quick, evocative glance before nodding.
"Alright, Lech and Death are with me. Gay, Cara, and Gimp-"
"Seriously?!"
With cocked brow, he leered at Lech.
"Why can't I lead a team?" He asked bluntly.
Prozac blinked blankly before turning to Gay. "We'll check the forest. You search around the Zoo."
The blue bear glowered as Nerd snickered softly.
"Room for one more?" A voice stated from below.
Prozac glanced down to see the mouse wearing a small brown hat, scraps of cloth wrapped around his arms tightly, and strangely enough a grey rod with a sharp end almost as tall as him.
The yellow-furred bear's eyes widened. "Hey! That's my sowing needle!" He exclaimed while pointing at him clearly annoyed.
"Sorry. I'm borrowing it." He remarked bluntly with a solemn look.
Gay folded his arms in a huff.
"I might have a hunch on where they both might be, mind if I lead?"
"Sure. I'll go wake Death up." Prozac nodded before turning back to the cavern entrance leaving the rest to wait in the living room.
The room grew quiet, dull for the current couch potato. Sara fidgeted in her seat quickly trying to alleviate the boredom.
"Where is it?"
Her eyes darted around the couch as she searched for the device, she rose up and started to squeeze her paw into the folds of the couch desperately.
"Maybe. We can find it later…" Cara stated with an annoyed look.
Sara obstinately continued to rummage through the couch, throwing a pillow haphazardly at Cara as she ducked under it sporting an annoyed look.
"Gahh! Where's the remote?!" She loudly exclaimed.
"It isn't up your ass like last time?"
Sara remained silent, but not before giving Lech a scowl.
"Hey, I'm not-" His remark was cut short, a newly airborne cushion made sure of that, as it collided with his snout. He held it briefly and glanced at the culprit, Cara. She gave him a deathly glare.
A chill went down his spine. He absently stared at the doorway. His brow narrowed at the thought of having to wait any longer, in spite of his impatience he noticed something amiss. Particularly, someone had caught his eye. They had been staring blankly at the couch, eyes fixated on something as they stood there with an unreadable expression.
"Shouldn't you be fixing that?" Lech announced with a suspicious tone and a raised brow.
The group glanced at the Raccoon oddly as he hung at the edge of the door.
It took a moment for him to process his remark, shaking his head abruptly.
"Right. Sorry." Jimmy replied.
And with that, he skulked away into the cavern.
"Weirdo." Lech blurted out.
"You should talk," Gay remarked.
"Shut it, Fruitcake."
Their eyes darted angrily to each other, another squabble began.
Sara shortly hopped off the couch, bending down and peering under it. A pair of grey bunnies greeted her as she coughed briefly from the dust. She rose up only to feel a sharp chill down her spine, a feeling she knew all too well. Fed up, she left the living room, hearing a familiar sigh from her sister amongst the spatting duo.
During her trek, she found herself blankly staring at the walls as her footsteps echoed within the confines of the cavern. Each, taking up ambient noise as she strode along. The sound swept about softly as she trod past each bedroom. She stopped abruptly as another pair of footsteps approached her. She waited calmly as they grew louder.
Prozac and Death emerged from a corridor. The former gave an odd look as she walked toward them.
"Where's the extra remote?" She asked abruptly.
His odd expression disappeared immediately.
"Storage closet, around the corner. "
"Thanks." She replied walking past them.
She abruptly turned the corner, silently creeping to the edge of the wall. Lying in wait till their footsteps trailed off...A familiar sweeping noise came closer. With narrowed brow, she watched the animal make their way into the area. He looked around with a dubious look, expecting something. He stared at the closet inquisitively as he slowly approached it. She crept toward the small mammal, slowly lurching toward him and clasped his shoulder. He almost let out a scream as he felt a clawed paw on his shoulder spun him around abruptly.
"Alright. Spill, you've been following me around like a lost puppy. It's starting to get creepy." Sara curtly stated.
Jimmy stood face-to-face with the bear. "I, uhhhh..." He trailed on looking away from her blank stare.
"Shouldn't you be fixing that thing?" She pointed to the device in his paw.
He smiled awkwardly, grinning from ear to ear.
She cocked her brow dubiously with an ambivalent look.
Sara shoved him aside and opened the closet. As she stepped forward she brushed against something, it sloshed about. A quick glance revealed a few cleaning supplies scattered about on the ground awkwardly at her feet. Her eyes narrowed sharply, muttering grumpily as she glanced to her right toward a small shelf with two nearly identical remotes laying on it, she reached for the nearest one…
"Wait! Those don't-"
"Look, Tommy…" She peered back at the raccoon remote in hand.
"It's Jimmy." He corrected with a frown.
"Uh-huh. I'll ignore your creepy behaviour if you leave. Right now." She waved her paw dismissively.
"But-"
"But what?" Her gaze shifted to the raccoon as she narrowed her eyes, shutting the door abruptly.
"It's gonna be real difficult to use a remote with no buttons. Heh, heh..."
Sara squinted dubiously at him before looking at the remote, he hadn't lied. It was a barren piece of plastic. She, again, opened the door and replaced it with the other one, and shut the door.
"Oh, they both have no batteries. These things run four AA's each." He smiled happily pointing at his invention.
Her eye twitched, opening the door…
"Nope. We ran out of those too."
A sour scowl graced her lips, she furrowed her brow. "Did you just come here to antagonize me?!"
He sighed, his tail wavering sheepishly.
"Whatever you do, make sure you don't regret it…I…I…I'm not forcing you to do this but-"
Clunk!
She slammed the door, suddenly startling the raccoon as his eyes widened. With a loud exhale she began to walk away.
Jimmy watched her closely, his throat felt dry, his teeth clenched pre-emptively and his toes curled. His entire body was conspiring to burke his speech…
"So…h-how often do you eat at night?" He croaked out, seemingly reluctant.
She stopped, not bothering to turn around.
"I only ask 'cause your scent is familiar is all. M-moldy, old…And uh, a bit soapy." He surmised.
"Excuse me?" She turned around gave a glare, he rose his paws up apologetically.
"What're are you-"
"Look, I'm not going to extort you or push you around. That's not me. I just…wanted to know: if you knew what happened yesterday?"
Sara gave a hard, unreadable expression but remained silent as she stared at him.
"Do you?" He looked up to her with pleading, tawny eyes. She retained her silence.
"If it were me, I'd want to be…t-to do something, anything! Because…you never know…Sometimes you wished you'd do something sooner…Done things differently."
"No,' She sighed openly. "I don't know where they could be…Sorry, Jimmy."
His ears flattened as he gave a doleful look…With an empty nod, he clutched the device he was holding to his chest.
"Ok…" He gave her an almost complacent look before slowly walking past her. His exit accompanied by a low swishing sound of his tail fading from earshot slowly.
She narrowed her brow, leaning on the closet door with glazed eyes. She honed in on the corridor. A low growl escaping her lips.
...
A strong cool breeze traveled through the zoo grounds. Falling leaves bristled in the wind, littering the stone brick path below. Amongst the whistling foliage laid small green shrubs each twitching to and fro on a grassy knoll. Oddly enough, one shrub, in particular, seemed to be moving quite erratically, loudly yawning aloud.
"Clem, quit being lazy and focus."
"I am, we just saw her right? Why'd you stop me?" He added with a yawn.
The other animal shook its head. "Wasn't her."
"You sure?"
"She's short with tan fur and usually wears a red bow. He was specific about the details."
"Eh, they all look the same to me…" Clem replied smacking his lips openly.
A shared silence crept over the two as both gave each other a knowing look.
"A walking meat-rack!" They chimed in unison. The two animals wildly cachinnated with glee.
Grrrrgle.
The only sound louder than their combined laughter were their stomachs.
"I say we shoulda jumped him when he had the chance. Y'know, use him for leverage."
The other animal shook its head. "We have to get her stealthily. The King wanted her out of the picture so she won't blab about the plan. Plus, her brother won't have the stones to rat us out once we have her."
"Yeah…but it would be so much easier to grab em' one by one."
The other animal sighed dismissively. "Stick to plan. Y'know how much of a stickler the boss can be. Besides, you want to end up like Rufus?"
Clem visibly winced at the memory. "Poor schmuck. Couldn't eat for a week after she was done with him."
"Yea, I'd rather not get my jaw broken thanks to you." He looked away absently. The animal's snout twitched, its eyes narrowed darkly as it lowered its head to the ground.
"I…I just…It's always the waiting that gets me."
A low snarl from his cohort cut him off. The other animal gestured for him to come closer. He decided to defer his response for now as a monkey wearing a red bow began to walk by them, loudly conversing on her phone.
"I already told you having the radio instead of a jukebox is cost-effective in the long run." She paused placing her hands on her hips.
"I don't care if the thing adds ambience it costs an arm and a leg to maintain the damn thing."
The animals both gave each other a meaningful look solemnly nodding to each other.
"Yea, yea. Whatever." She hung up the phone.
The predators watched as she casually strolled along the path toward a shady bench. She hobbled onto it, awkwardly shuffling about till she got comfortable. Her short legs dangled idly from the bench. The Monkey clasped her phone in her paws tapping away at the keys with an aggravated expression, softening briefly as she sighed. She placed her phone on the ground and laid back on the bench closing her eyes.
An opportunity had presented itself…
The two predators emerged from the bush darting toward the lone animal. As they quickened their pace, a familiar sensation began to flourish. A sudden warmth spread from their heads to their toes; breathes became ragged and loud, their hunger vanished and replaced by a vigorous force. They lived for this feeling, it was second nature to them. But the other animal consciously slowed its pace, falling behind his cohort. The intoxicating sensation dampened as he started to closely examine their prey. She continued to lay there, her hands behind her head. Unmoved by the zealous charge. His brow narrowed, he began to stop underneath the shadow cast by the tree.
Something's funny...
A heavy thud broke him out his quandary. He glanced at the source of the sound: a large book left beside the now unconscious animal. He squinted inquisitively, then quickly directed his vision above at the tree.
A wire?
He shook his head dismissively upon further inspection. It was a rope, three strands left flayed apart and a pair of purple irises staring down at him.
"It worked, I owe her one."
THWACK!
The blow was sharp. He had no time to react to the voice behind him.
Everything around him faded away.
...
Moments later.
"D—d — —u h— —e to u—e her a— bait?!" A high-pitched voice berated.
He let out an audible groan as he fought off a dull pain.
"There wa— n— oth— —w— — I'm sorry." A soft, husky sounding voice stated firmly.
A set of muddled, unfamiliar voices caught his attention accompanied by a tinge of pain at the back of his head. It was a struggle to open his eyes. He groaned aloud.
"We'll finish this later." The male said.
"We won't it had to be done. Quit your bitching." Another female voice stated.
The Predator's vision began to adjust to his new environment. Confusion was the best state to describe his position. Everything looked inverted. He narrowed his brow, realizing his perception was impaired. He was held precariously by a rope around his waist. Quickly becoming aware of the situation at hand. The tides had turned.
A groggy yawn came from behind him. He felt the animal shifting around carelessly before abruptly stopping. He assumed his cohort had realized their situation. A sudden jolt rocked him from side to side, shaking them around. Short and loud breathes, rang in his ear.
"Cut that out!"
He felt his cohort's back stiffen, immediately followed by a relieved sigh.
"Damn it! You just had to run in?" He scowled openly.
His friend shook his head. "You did too, genius." He snarled.
"Still-"
"Oi! Twiddledee and Twiddledumb. Shut yer traps."
He turned to the harsh sounding voice, on the left was a female monkey holding a wooden bat resting on her shoulder. It didn't take long for her to notice his fixed gaze, she smirked smugly with half-closed eyes. A shiver went down his spine.
"Can we not taunt our would-be kidnappers?"
To the captive's right was a gold-furred monkey. It tapped its feet with a cautious look.
"Please, they're not coming down for a long while…" She rose her brow dubiously. "Unless you didn't tie the knot properly."
The gold-furred monkey rolled its eyes. "Give me some credit, Sug."
The female monkey squinted angrily. "Don't press me, S.P."
The gold-furred monkey smirked knowingly in response.
The two began to squabble, tossing out jibes at each other. All while one of the captive animals had started to pull himself slowly toward the rope binding both of them together. Inching closer to its waist with its maw.
"One of them is trying to get loose." A husky voice stated.
The predator's ears jutted up suddenly. He glanced down below the tree at the tall, slender mongoose with tawny-yellow fur. It hadn't stopped staring at them. He narrowed his eyes immediately as her purple eyes stared back at him. He recognized them from before.
"It's not like they're going to use their h- oh." She glanced up at the one in question. "Good work, Tal."
The Mongoose shook her head dismissively as the monkey continued.
"Honestly, I'm surprised. Usually, we can smell you idiots coming well in advance…I guess showering was made mandatory."
A snarl came one of the captive animals.
"All this trouble for them, Sugar? You made it sound direr…" Tali crossed her arms, cocking her head dubiously at the tree.
The female Monkey scowled at the gesture, furrowing her brow as she clenched her hand into a fist. "Fu-"
"When there's smoke there's fire," The male quickly interjected. "I know your new here but they're nothing but trouble. Believe me."
Sugar shot him an annoyed leer as she curled her lip into a pout.
He tapped his wrist purposefully and shook his head.
She took one deep breath before nodding affirmingly, casually rolling around her bat as she walked toward the dangling predators.
"As I was saying, these guys aren't known for their restraint.' She pointed her bat to the animal's cheek playfully prodding it briefly before quickly jerking the bat away as it lunged forward snapping its jaw.
She turned to the Mongoose. 'I'd rather not have any wandering cubs get mangled by these idiots."
Tali smiled softly and nodded. Prompting, the simian to look away.
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She leered at the ground. "Don't get too mushy. Remember you have a job to do."
"Where is the trial being held exactly? You weren't entirely clear in your message."
Her question was met with a quizzical expression from both simians.
"As much as I admire your moxie." Her tone grew sour. 'Your best bet is crashing the book club in the park."
"It seems more apt to reason with them then to go on a detour."
Spice shook his head dismissively as he crossed his arms. "You're dead wrong. I doubt anyone there would listen to reason after all the crap he's pulled."
She sighed cupping her chin. "Fair po-"
"I'm mean, Christ! He's vivified so much hate I'm surprised he hasn't gotten the tar beaten out of him the moment he steps out of his home."
Tali begrudgingly nodded.
"And don't even get me started on his escapades around us. I've never been more conscious about walking around alone. One prick on your ass and BAM, you wake up dazed and confused." He shuddered.
"I admit that sounds-"
"And you can wake up God knows where…" He continued to rant as the Mongoose squinted quizzically at Spice before slowly peering to his sister, she gave her a weary look.
"Have you ever been darted?" Tali asked dryly as she tilted her head to the side.
"No, but-"
"Then count yourself lucky." Sugar injected with an annoyed tone.
"Still though!" He exclaimed louder with pleading hands and wide eyes.
Sugar shook her head dismissively rubbing her temple. And he tells me we don't have time for this…
"Has anyone ever told you how grating your voice is?" Another voice chimed in from above.
The group glanced up at the predators.
"Got enough air coming out of that thing?" He mocked.
Spice held his snout, narrowing his eyes as he gave an annoyed sneer.
The predator squinted dubiously as he heard his partner fervently sniff the air. "What is wrong with you?"
"He smells so...That guy on the left…" He began to mumble to himself.
"Oh…Oh ho ho, my God! Ha ha ha!" Clem let out a bray of laughter before prompting his partner as he gave an odd look.
"Remember those cubs we used to chase before we were moved out of our exhibit? The skinny and chunky ones?"
It took a minute for him to piece together the information. "H-holy shit!" He snorted aloud, his eyes widened.
"Man, you're different. I liked how you were before." Clem stated honestly.
"Yea, what happened? Did they put ya on a diet!" The other mocked.
They both laughed aloud, shaking each other back and forth in the tree.
Tali rolled her eyes, glancing over to both simians. Spice's shoulders were slouched, as usual, his eyes narrowed sharply as he stared upward. But, something seemed amiss. His tail had lowered to the ground, and one of his legs twitched briefly. However, his sister wasn't as withdrawn. Her cheek twitched, and her grip tightened on her bat. Slowly, making her way toward the captives with a grim look.
Tali immediately crossed paths with her, placing her hand on her shoulder. "I doubt you have time for this."
Sugar didn't even bother to look at her. "Right." She rolled her eyes. "As much as I want to see our lovable Gray sociopath get what he deserves…What Leonard has in store for him isn't wholesome."
"Well isn't that cryptic."
"Get used to it. Just tell his wife about the trial in the Rhino exhibit." She turned around, gesturing her brother to follow her, she watched him absently stare at the captives. He quickly gave them a vulgar gesture before walking ahead of her. She shrugged openly, following him.
As she strode toward her destination her footsteps grew heavier with each step, she paused, leering over her shoulder.
"Well?"
The Mongoose hadn't moved an inch. She stood there glaring openly at her.
"You've got a long way to go from here, get a move on."
"…"
"Fine…"
Sugar walked over to her, prompting Tali to lean into her as she whispered into her ear. She quickly retracted from her with a stern expression. "That sounds…Depraved."
Sugar nodded unfazed. "Big time, sister. He's been planning that one for a while."
"Why don't you come-"
"Because I'm getting the hell out of dodge before anyone else tries to jump me. Hunkering down till this shit boils over. Give it a week or two…" She growled discouraged.
"Just don't get yourself off'd on the way there. I need you later."
"Annnd there's the last shred of decency I expected from you."
The simian didn't reply. Instead, she walked away. Slowly catching up to her brother, leaving the mongoose on her own. She glanced up at the tree with a narrowed brow as the captive predators hanged idly.
"Well? Go on. We'll be here, minding our own business."
"We won't be causing trouble were just hangin-Ow!" Clem yelped in pain.
The other animal spat at the ground to remove the bitter taste from his mouth.
"Stop trying to be cute." He stated dryly.
The predator shifted back to the animal below, unfazed by their antics.
"Anyone ever told you it's rude to stare?" He asked mockingly.
She rose paw threateningly brandishing her claws. "If you ever harm any of the cubs in my care, pray those legs will be fast enough to outrun me..." Tali stated firmly.
A mocking chortle came from one of them as she tilted her head with a dry expression.
"Keep laughing…" She stated smirking openly in a calm tone. She slowly began to walk away from the captives, light-some steps fading away from their ear. Moments later, both let out a relieved sigh.
"Even the small ones are scary…" Clem stated.
"Surprisingly." He glanced up at the rope. "Now that little Miss Psycho-Ferret is gone..." He pulled himself up to the rope opening his maw, his cohort's eyes widened.
"Hold on-"
He couldn't even finish his sentence. With a quick snap and a thud, the two loudly plummeted to the stone path below.
"Uhh, I think I landed on my tail…" The other animal grumbled.
A low groan came below prompting a bewildered look before his eyes narrowed sharply. He leaped up on all fours. "Hey…How many am I holding up?" He held out his paw.
The animal shook his head and glanced at his paw, squinting dubiously as his eyes shifted from left to right. "Eight? No, four, definitely four." Clem answered groggily.
The predator narrowed his eyes and lowered his paw. "You're fine."
He rose up slowly as his headache began to subside. "Alright, let's grab that yellow weasel and-"
The other predator shook his head and pointed in the opposite direction. "She's irrelevant."
Clem tilted his head dubiously. "But she's gonna rat us out!" He pleaded.
The animal squinted darkly, "Weren't you paying attention? She's new, I doubt anyone there will believe her."
Clem rolled his head from side to side skeptically. "I guess that makes sense…"
"We'll settle the score eventually. Just you wait, for now...Stick to the plan."
...
"Excuse me, have you seen-"
A small aggregation of animals walked past the yellow bear with little concern as they stomped around him. The bear quickly moved from side-to-side around the traffic, however, undeterred by the group he blocked one of them. It gave a garish look, scrunching its snout.
"Sorry, but have you-"
"I'm busy, bowtie." The Warthog skirted around him hastily, its tail brushing against his face abruptly. Fortunately, he was accosted by another. Flinching briefly at the masked bear as he pulled out a piece of paper. He tapped the center of it prompting the animal to stare.
"What the hell am I looking at? It looks like a toddler drew this."
Gimp squinted darkly.
"Have you seen them?" Gay asked.
He squinted inquisitively at the drawing, snorting loudly. "…Can't say I have. Can I go now?"
The bears both nodded, stepping out of its way as it trotted past them.
Gay discouragingly shook his head. "Rude..."
Gimp nodded in agreement his brow narrowing suspiciously. He let the feeling pass, instead, inspecting his friend's face: A fixed smile coupled with hopeful eyes as he glanced longingly at the brick path where the group of animals came from.
"Alright, after this we'll call them. See if they have anything." Gay remarked, he gestured forward to an exhibit with a crude depiction of a bipedal animal on a sign.
Gimp took the initiative and walked ahead stopping at the railing as he dropped his first-aid kit at his feet. He knelt down with open palms as he felt the weight of the animal's frame on his paws.
"Sorry…" He heard as his shoulder bent under the bear's heel. He nodded patiently as the weight faded from his back, he rose and turned to an open paw. He pulled himself onto the rail carefully, slowly anchoring himself onto it as he leaned onto the edge of the wall. Peering over the rails, a few brown specks moved around the grassy plains of the exhibit.
"Hello!" He watched Gay wave wildly to draw their attention, none of the animals below responded. Some even turned away from the sound of his voice. The masked-bear furrowed his brow.
"Have you seen two bears running around?"
…
"Maybe, one of them?… Preferably, the one that isn't a pain in my rear?" He muttered.
His masked companion gave him a glare.
Gay let out an audible sigh, reaching for something below his feet and with a loud huff. He chucked a stone toward a nearby tree. As it grazed the tree and landed, the stone made a loud cracking sound. The Wolves stirred for a moment, starring in the direction of the stone. Then, toward the wall.
Gay clasped his hands together and smiled warmly
"Sorry to intrude but were looking for our missing friends…"
The animals continued to stare at them blankly, one, in particular, gesturing toward the cave. Gimp watched as they nodded silently before one of them walked toward the cave.
"Not very talkative are they?"
"…"
Gay coughed awkwardly, looking away absently from his silent companion.
"Right…"
The masked-bear let its eyes wander the grounds curiously. A few of the inhabitants lingered about; some laid beneath trees, another shook its body to remove the dirt from its fur, a large group of them shuffled into the cave with a few cubs following shortly after. But there was an exception. One, in particular, staring back at them, persistently peering in his direction.
Gimp weakly waved giving a short smile, it stood there unflinching with heavy eyes. He shuddered inwardly, averting its gaze.
"That's a bit unsettling..." Gay noted furrowing his brow.
Gimp nodded silently, peering behind him at his first-aid kit on the ground.
"Can we try something else?" A smokey voice asked aloud.
The bears both glanced toward the cave entrance as another voice responded, it was a stocky-looking Wolf with curved ears accompanied by a Jackal with a black-tipped tail. The latter animal was of average size but dwarfed in comparison to the larger wolf.
"Not now…" The Wolf Leader peered back wistfully narrowing his eyes at the Jackal. He shook his head dismissively with a sigh.
"It's clear you're not well versed. It's expected. But you're eager, that's a start."
"It's better than doing nothing…I owe you that much."
"Damn, right!" He exclaimed loudly with a haughty grin.
The Jackal rose his brow at him with a quizzical look as he tilted his head.
The Leader coughed forcefully and waved his paw. "But we can talk later."
Again, his eyes laid on him, he watched the animal staring back at him with edgy eyes. He held back a sigh."Okay, what can you do?"
The Jackal shuffled his head, biting his cheek anxiously. "Fight…Steal…"
The Wolf covered his mouth with his paw. "So, what you're telling me is: half of us could do what you can…"
The Jackal's eyes narrowed, then looked away sheepishly.
"Look…You're over thinking this. Just relax, alright."
"I…"
"Sleep it off, or something.' He glanced up at the bears on the wall.
"Now…Can I help you?"
"Have you seen these two?" Gay asked pointing to his partner's picture.
The Leader squinted dryly. "Do you think I can see that from down here?"
The bear narrowed his brow sheepishly. "Riiiight. We're looking for our friends. Both are roughly the same size, black, and grey respectively. One's got shifty, devious red eyes. And the other, laid-back and attentive yellow eyes..."
The Leader tilted his head quizzically. "When did they go missing?" He asked.
"Today, we assume…"
"That's a shame…We haven't seen them. In fact, none of us have left the exhibit-"
"Actually-"
The Leader abruptly turned to the Jackal, looking down with an annoyed look and gritted teeth. "Clyde, shut…"
"Ohhh! Have you seen anything?" Gay exclaimed.
Clyde winced at the animal's cheerful tone, he paused, lamely digging his paw into the ground.
"No. But maybe Mike..." He watched the bear's ears droop. "What?"
"It's nothing…"
He looked away visibly frustrated. "Sorry…"
"It's fine."
"Hey maybe-" Clyde turned to the Leader blatantly gesturing to the duo.
The Wolf stared at him blankly before looking back at the visitors. "I think it's time to head back inside."
"Seriously?"
"It's gonna rain. I don't want the smell of wetus stinking up the den." The Wolf gestured the pack over to him.
"One of us could-"
"Clyde…Don't get involved. They can handle their own problems." He watched the Jackal's eyes drift from himself to the visitors.
"If you want to a catch cold, then be my guest. That'll be another sickly dog we have to take care off,"
"Alright, alright, I'm going." He growled lowly, brushing past him.
"What about V-"
"Later…" He muttered loudly as he glared at the Jackal.
The bears shared an odd look as the Wolf stared back at them.
"Good luck, maybe ask the birds for the whereabouts of your missing kin." He added.
"Thanks for the insight…" He watched the group slowly flood back into the den. "Like we haven't tried that already…" He muttered.
He carefully dropped down the rail, his partner, slowly following suit as he picked up his kit.
"Alright….Oh."
Gimp watched him stare openly ahead, prompting him to join him as well. Two other bears closed the distance between them, one smiling brightly while the other had a peevish frown. The males shortly closed the gap.
"Did Madge see anything?" He asked.
Cara shook her head. "She said, she'll keep an ear out for any chatter."
"What about the wolves?" She asked.
He gave a knowing look, curling his lip. "They didn't seem eager to lend a hand."
Gimp nodded in agreement, furrowing his brow.
"Fantastic…Now what?" Sara stated clutching the Walkie-talkie in her hand.
The yellow bear's brow knitted as he crossed his arms. Sara scowled at his gesture.
"Look, I'm not in the mood to argue right now. It was difficult to go to her without causing a scene. Cut me some..."
He let out a deep sigh. "No. You're right. I'm not in the best spirits either."
"We called the others. They just reached the forest." Cara quickly added.
"So, we give them ten, fifteen minutes?"
He felt something wet drop on his nose, squinting dubiously as another fell on to his head. A low rumbling was heard from overhead. Clouds formed above as the rain came trickling down. Then, a loud cracking noise as water flushed down from the sky, the downpour abruptly soaking his head.
"There!" Cara stated.
She pointed ahead toward a thicket with a small tree standing over a large map. With a low curse, the pink-coloured bear darted toward the tree as she clutched the device to her chest. The group followed shortly, rushing for shelter from the heavy rain.
"Ugh, this won't do…" Gay stated, haplessly combing through his hair.
Gimp covered his mouth, letting out a small chortle. Much to the chagrin of his partner as he tried to fix his hair.
"I guess we wait till it dies down…" Cara's eyes wandered to her sister, she nodded silently.
"Uh huh."
"You ok?' Cara asked. 'You're more…Perturbed than usual,"
"To be fair, her most prominent emotion is grouchiness." He shrugged nonchalantly as he shook his paws.
"This is bothering me, that's all." She said holding the bridge of her nose.
The yellow bear rose his brow, resting his hand on his hip. "Honey, I'm bothered when I see plaid and stripes. The word you're looking for is concerned."
"I'm fine…" She felt a hand rest on her shoulder, her eyes shifted to the masked bear with a warm expression on his face. His eyes carried a hint of concern as he tilted his head worriedly. She growled inwardly, and with knitted brow abruptly pulled away from his touch, slapping his hand away.
The yellow bear shook his head. "Typical,"
"Oh don't you start." Sara shot back as she scowled.
"Guys…"
"All he did was try to comfort you, and you just brush him off." He folded his arms.
"Yeah, I don't need it." She remarked.
"Guys…"
"Can you stop being so stuck up?"
"Can it!" She rose her fist threateningly.
"Calm down!" Cara yelled abruptly.
They both stared at her briefly, she held a stern face but showed pleading eyes. It quelled their quarrel, for the moment.
"Is something on your mind?" Cara asked genuinely, clasping her hands together.
Sara shook her head. "It's nothing…"
"Leave her," Gay said, rolling his eyes. "Clearly, she can handle whatever's 'bothering' her."
Cara shot him a disappointed look while Sara muttered something under her breath.
Gay narrowed his brow. "Come again? Couldn't hear you, I don't speak mutter." He brought his hand up mockingly.
Sara aimed a cold leer at the yellow bear and without missing a beat:
"I already knew."
...
"Excuse me?" Gay sourly remarked.
"Loud enough for you?" She rudely replied.
She watched his eyes narrow, expecting a cutting remark in return. He bit his lip sucked in the dry air and shook his head. Averting his gaze, she scowled looking away.
As her eyes drifted, she diverted her gaze from her sister. But, her crestfallen look and twinging eyes were enough to make her grimace.
Lastly, she noticed the Masked-bear's eyes remained still, focused on her as he remained eerily quiet. Drifting down, she watched his fingers fidget as he held his kit.
She inhaled briefly and shut her eyes.
…
"How long?" Gay asked.
"Yesterday night, both of them were kidnapped outside the cave."
She turned to Gay with an annoyed look as she held her finger up apprehensively.
"Even if I wanted to. I doubt I could have done anything to help," She sulked backward onto the tree, folding her arms together.
"Do you know where they are?...No." She said, rolling her eyes.
"Who they are?...No!" She gritted her teeth.
"Why? No!" She finally threw her hands up in frustration.
"If that's how you feel then why-' He paused, "Oh...Now, it's your problem." Gay scowled as Cara turned to him.
"H-hold on-"
"My problem is I can't help in the slightest bit." Sara barked out.
"Whatever…Bastards had it coming anyway."
"You don't mean that…" Cara said clutching her chest.
Her sister slowly turned to her with a bitter stare. She turned away as she heard a familiar sniffling. Cara's low, muffled cries made her clutch her arm tightly.
"So, that's it then…" Gay sounded dejected for a moment, looking at the ground.
...
"No…"
Sara recoiled, briefly taken aback. She watched her sister wipe her eyes, then shake her head.
"We could bawl on about how you could have told us sooner. Or, we could continue to help...Our family." Cara concluded with a warm, determined smile.
"I hate to muddle your rousing speech, but we still don't know anything…" Gay stated.
The group turned to Sara as she leered dully. "I already told you, I don't know anything!"
"You could have of peaked…" Cara suggested.
"No, I couldn't! If I had peaked, I would've been snatched up too."
The group stared at her cautiously, Gay nodding silently.
Cara rolled her wrist, "Still…"
"Were you listening?!" Sara exclaimed annoyed, her shoulders rose.
Gay rose he paws up. "Alright. Tone it down. We're all getting tense." He said slowly.
Sara slowly leaned down the tree, rubbing the bridge of her snout as she closed her eyes. She listened to the heavy pitter-patter of the rain as it made a sustained rhythm on the ground below. She exhaled lightly.
Couldn't smell them…Barely hear them…But mostly male voices…Maybe…
Clop, Clop, Splash, Clop.
She clutched her head and growled inwardly.
Gay gave a low snicker as Gimp shook his head. The source of the noise came from two Gorilla's pushing a cart with a large old television on top.
"Come on, get a move on." The mammal persisted.
"Don't rush me."
"It's raining and he's already pissed. I'm not going to be one on his shit-list for getting this wet."
"We could have grabbed the tarp…" He replied.
"I didn't think we needed it."
"Clearly."
"Look. Don't. Just push faster."
"And hit a rock? Nope, Nuh-uh. That's a death sentence."
"God, he's gonna have our heads."
"As long as he doesn't tell, Ma…"
"You dumbass…"
The voices grew distant, their loud steps, quickly becoming faint as one of them continued to mutter aloud. Causing the other, to loudly protest their gripes. The cycle continued until they couldn't be heard from afar.
…
"So, ideas?" Gay asked.
She opened her eyes, resting her head on her paw as she stared at the group. "Maybe the abominable ass-hats?" Sara stated dryly as she furrowed her brow.
"Doubt it. We'd have heard about it by now. The polars aren't subtle."
"Do you know anyone else with a grudge-"
The yellow bear rose his finger apprehensively to Cara. "I'm going to stop you right there. We're making a narrow list, not a census."
"Well, we need something to go on!" She exclaimed.
"Maybe the Otters took him for a sacrifice?" He suggested to her half-heartedly. Her green eyes dimmed dully as she frowned openly.
"A dumb thought, I know." He shrugged.
"Hey..." Sara chimed in, staring down the brick path. "Who were the guys that just past by?"
"I've seen them before, can't place it though." Cara scratched the back of her head.
Gay tapped his lip reflectively, then abruptly snapped his fingers. "The park. Remember?" He stated. "As far as I know, hired help from the 'king' why?"
"I recognize them."
"From the park?" He stayed dryly.
"No, Last night. They had a similar conversation."
"You sure?"
She clutched her paw into a fist and gave him a determined glare. "I'm positive. Where are they going?"
"That's…the rhino exhibit?"
"Yup," Cara pointed to the map, she tilted her head curiously. "I wonder if they have brochures?"
Gimp narrowed his brow giving her an odd look.
"Still, why there?" Gay asked.
"It's secluded and pretty quiet right now. Perfect location to keep someone hidden." Cara surmised.
The yellow bear nodded agreement.
"This is the best lead we've got so far." He reached out with open-handed gesture to the pink-furred bear. "Can I-"
Sara shoved the device into his hand.
"Here, the idiot'll be on the line. I'd rather not speak to him."
"Ditto, but it can't be helped."
He leisurely rolled his shoulders for a moment before tapping a button on the device, causing it to emit a low buzzing noise. He brought the device to his mouth as the others waited, one of them wearing a content, beaming smile.
"Good job," Cara remarked, leaning forward with her arms crossed.
"Thanks?"
"Since you're on a roll can you guess what I'm thinking right now?" She rose her brow inquisitively, studying her sister's face.
Sara's brow narrowed dubiously.
"Apologize?"
A jubilant smirk formed from her lips and a coy smile came from Sara in response.
"I'll consider it."
Her mirth faded as she narrowed her brow at her sister annoyingly.