Chapter 16

"What?!" Caiaphas practically shouted into his cell-phone. "Are you serious?!" he paused to hear the reply of the jaguar. "This isn't good at all! Yeah… yeah… Okay… yes, I want you to hop on the next train to Zootropolis... Yes, you can have a private cabin for yourself. Yes, you can put it on my tab… alright… yeah sure… Goodbye."

He clicked the cell-phone off and put it in his pocket. He sighed, rubbed his forehead, and then went to the window of his chamber in the Zootropolis Temple, which overlooked the main courtyard. The courtyard was empty for now, but tomorrow was the start of the Passover season. This meant that the vendors would come and sell their… merchandise. Caiaphas didn't mind that a whole lot, as the temple wasn't being used for anything but worshipping. Plus, the vendors brought in a lot of the crowd, and crowds usually brought money, and sometimes they spent that money for donations in the temple. For that, he would let them sell their… merchandise.

"So, what was with the call?" asked Annas, who sat on a wooden perch.

"It was from one of our fellow teachers in Zootopia." Caiaphas replied. "Apparently, he witnessed the White Lion performing another miracle."

"Really? What happened?"

"He supposedly raised his friend from the dead." Caiaphas said sarcastically, waving his hands/paws in the air. "Said 'Lazarus! Come Forth!' and the sheep came crawling from the crypt covered in bandages, alive and well!"

"You know that could be a trick." said Annas, getting off his perch and sitting on a chair in the chamber.

"Do you think I'm an idiot?! Of course, it's a trick!" Caiaphas almost shouted in anger, throwing his arms up. "He probably had his friend fake his death, and then stayed in the crypt for a couple of days before he, supposedly, brought him back to life!" He then huffed angrily, placed his arms at his sides, took a breath, and then continued. "Tomorrow begins the Passover season. The vendors are going to come, and I bet my title as high priest that the White Lion is going to be coming, too."

"What do you think will be his reaction to the vendors selling their… merchandise?" asked Annas.

"I don't know, and that's what worries me." Caiaphas replied. "Considering how zealous this Jesus is for his father, I don't think he's going to be too keen on the temple being turned into a den of iniquity."

"It's only a building; It doesn't really matter." Annas replied to that, fluttering back onto his perch.

"Maybe not to us, but it probably matters to him." said Caiaphas, going to the window again.

A few days later, the multitudes that followed Jesus were camped on the outskirts of Zootropolis. One morning, everyone awoke to Jesus yelling out, "Rise and Shine! It's time to begin!"

Peter, who was sleeping beside James, John, and Judas, awoke first and asked, "Time to begin what?"

"The triumphant entry." the White Lion replied with a smile. "The time is now. Let's go!"

The white lion then went away from the four of his disciples, continuing to awaken his followers. The four disciples wondered what was going on among themselves.

"The time is now? What does he mean by that?" yawned James.

"Don't you see? The kingdom of heaven is coming now!" Judas replied excitedly.

"Right now?" asked John, rubbing his eyes. "This early in the morning?"

Andrew came up to the four disciples and said, "Hey fellas, we're going into Zootropolis. How about that?"

"Yeah, but ol' Judas here thinks the kingdom of heaven is coming." said Peter, directing his hand toward Judas.

"And it is! Why would the White Lion be this excited if it wasn't coming?" Judas spoke up.

"I don't think it's coming just yet, Judas. There's still a lot more to come." Andrew replied. "Besides, it'll be the same as last year; we'll go into town, do the Passover, and then leave. It's that easy."

"You're right, Andrew." Peter replied. "Let's get moving!" Then he, Andrew, John, and James went on their way, greeting their fellow disciples who had awakened. Judas, however, stayed to himself.

"The kingdom of heaven is coming, you idiot…" he growled, drawing a switchblade from his pocket. "One way or another."

The multitudes then made their way through the outskirts of Zootropolis, passing several small neighborhoods and being joined by those who saw the glory of the White Lion. Jesus lead the way, followed by his disciples, who were followed by Judy, Nick, Finnick, Stu, and Bonnie. Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Mary Magdalene followed also, with many other animals following suit.

Jesus, who was ahead of the crowd, called Simon and Bartholomew to the front while they walked. Bartholomew was a large, gray skinned rhino with blue eyes. He wore a white, long-sleeved dress shirt and blue jeans with a belt.

"You wanted us, Jesus?" Bartholomew asked.

"Yes." Jesus replied. "I want you two to run into the neighborhood we're about to pass. There you will find a gas station with an old car there that hasn't been used in a while. I want you to bring it to me. And if the mechanic asks about this, tell him that White Lion has need of the car, and he will let you have it."

Simon and Bartholomew nodded in agreement after receiving their instructions. They then ran ahead of the crowd and entered the district they were about to pass.

The two disciples then came to the gas station, which was rundown and out of the way. The went into the mechanic's garage and found the old car; it was an old convertible sportscar with faded red paint and no roof. Simon got in it while Bartholomew went and found the keys. He threw it to Simon and he started up the car, which started with a loud whinnying noise like a horse.

The mechanic heard the car starting and came out of his office to see two strange animals starting it up. The mechanic was an old donkey, with brown-greyish fur and grey eyes. He wore mechanic coveralls that were covered with grease stains and a red baseball cap. He was wiping his hands with a rag, which he discarded while he ran over to the car.

"Hey, hey, hey!" the mechanic yelled, getting in front of the car. "What you think you're doing?"

"The White Lion has need of this car." Simon replied, remembering what Jesus had told him to say.

"Really?" asked the mechanic. "Okay, you can have it. But, uh… before you go, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure. What do you need?" asked Bartholomew.

"Can you let me come along with you? I heard a lot about the White Lion, and I want to see him for myself."

"Sure! Hop in!" Simon replied.

The mechanic jumped into the car with Simon and then Bartholomew climbed in with them. They then drove out of the garage and headed out of the neighborhood.

Bartholomew, Simon, and the Mechanic drove down the street until they got to the crowd following Jesus. Then they stopped the car, and the three of them got out. Simon and Bartholomew joined the crowd while the Mechanic bowed down in front of Jesus.

"Welcome." said the White Lion.

"My King and my Lord…" the Mechanic replied. "If it honors you, may I be allowed to drive you to the city of Zootropolis?"

"You have my permission."

The Mechanic stood up with a smile, and then he and Jesus went to the car. They both climbed in, with Jesus in the front passenger seat and the Mechanic in the driver's seat. The Mechanic then started the car and began driving at walking pace, being followed by the crowd of people.

Meanwhile, in the city of Zootropolis, Mayor Pontius Pilate was sitting in his office, waiting for the new chief of police to come. Since the new chief had come in while he was gone, Pilate wanted to meet him and be sure that he had the right qualifications for his job. Of course, the new chief had handled the religious uprising very well, but he still he had to be sure.

Pilate arose from his seat and headed to a file cabinet, which contained the files on all his personnel. He was a large, muscular brown bear with blue eyes, and he wore were an expensive looking black suit and tie.

He opened the file cabinet and pulled out the file on the new chief. He then closed the cabinet, went back to his desk, sat down, and put the file on the desk. Suddenly, a beeping came over the intercom on his desk.

"Mr. Pilate, sir, Chief Wolfenstein is here to see you." A female voice came over on the intercom.

Pilate pressed the button on the intercom and said in his deep voice, "Send him in."

A few seconds after he said that, the new chief of police came into his office. Chief Samuel Wolfenstein was a muscular wolf, and he was larger than any of the other wolves on his squad. He had black fur, grey eyes, and a dark red scar over his left eye; He had received that scar after battling with a certain hyena a long time ago. He wore black solider armor over a dark grey shirt and dark grey pants, but he wore no helmet.

"Chief Wolfenstein, I presume." said Pilate.

"Yes sir." Wolfenstein replied as he stood at attention.

"Good." Pilate then opened the file on his desk and began reading it. "You have quite the record here, Wolfenstein; You used to be a criminal before you became an officer."

"It was a long time ago, sir." Wolfenstein replied without flinching. "I fell into a bad crowd, but was then captured and put into rehabilitation."

"I see, and you soon rose in the ranks until you were voted Chief of Police."

"Just last week, sir."

"Good…" Pilate then flipped through the pages of his file. "Excellent medical history, great work in the field, several accommodations; I can see why you were elected the Chief of Police. The last chief of police here couldn't move for anything."

"Yes sir."

Pilate then closed the file and got up from his seat. He looked out the window of his office at the crowds of people who had come to celebrate the Passover. He then turned to Wolfenstein and asked, "You understand what season this is, right?"

"Yes sir; it's the Passover." replied Wolfenstein.

"And you understand what the Passover is?"

"Yes sir. It's a tradition where the Jews celebrate and remember how God freed them from Egypt a long time ago."

"Do you put much stock into faith, Wolfenstein?"

"Not that much, sir. I'm more a realist; I don't believe in fairytales."

"I wouldn't say that in front of the crowd, Wolfenstein." Pilate spoke as he sat down at his desk. "They're pretty serious about their religion. You should know that first-hand, right?"

"Yes sir. You are referring to the religious uprising we had while you were gone." Wolfenstein replied.

"Yes, and how did that turned out?"

"We put a stop to it, sir. However, over fifty were killed on that day."

"And the leaders of the uprising?"

"Barabbas and Penance?" asked Wolfenstein. "They were captured, sir. They are awaiting execution as we speak."

"And what do you have in mind for their execution, Wolfenstein?"

"We plan on lethal injection to be their execution, sir."

"No…" said Pilate.

"Sir?"

"It's too quick; shows the people that they can have a quick and painless death if they mess with me. I want to make an example of them; I want their deaths to be long and drawn out… Tell me, what do you know about… crucifixion?"

"Sir, that's a very primal and excruciatingly painful way to kill somebody." Wolfenstein replied, sounding a small bit worried. "I mean, nobody's used crucifixion to kill for a long time."

"Well, it's time we started using it again." said Pilate. "It'll put fear into those who turn against me. It'll show them that I mean business… That's my order to you; Instead of lethal injection, have it as crucifixion. You got it?"

"Yes sir." replied Wolfenstein, saluting.

"Good. Also, post a few guards around the temple; I don't want any trouble during the Passover. Not that the crowds would do something like that, but safety is always a priority. Got that, too?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. You have your orders, now leave."

Wolfenstein did another salute and walked out of the office. Pilate placed his head on his desk, enjoying the peace and quiet for a brief few seconds, but then Caiaphas busted into the room to speak with him.

"Pilate! Mayor Pilate!" Caiaphas yelled, panicked.

"What do you want now, Caiaphas?" Pilate groaned, pulling himself back up.

"That White Lion is coming to Zootropolis! A ton of people are following him! There's going to be a riot!"

"Will you calm down? There isn't going to be a riot; I ordered a few guards to be posted around the temple. They'll keep anything from happening."

"Oh." Caiaphas replied, now calm. "Alright, I'll be leaving now."

Caiaphas was about to leave when Pilate sighed and said, "I swear, Caiaphas, you've been a thorn in my side ever since I was elected as Mayor. Just remember, you're not in power here; I am!"

Caiaphas left the office, slamming the door behind him, and walked past the receptionist's desk. "He may be mayor over the city, but I rule what goes on under his nose…" he said to himself.

"You want me to tell him you said that?" asked the receptionist, as she typed away on a keyboard. She was a cheetah who wore black reading glasses, a purple dress and a black blazer.

Caiaphas stopped and turned to the receptionist. "You be quiet, or you'll end up in a bad place." He growled before heading to the elevator.

The receptionist watched him get into the elevator, shrugged, and then went back to her typing.

Author's Notes: I hope you all haven't forgotten about me! Sorry I haven't posted a new chapter in a while, but I've been busy. I'm going to be graduating in 3 weeks, and boy am I excited! Keep on reading and reviewing, my loyal fans!

As always,

Heroboy005