In an immaculate office in the heart of Fort Meadowland, Base Commander Mansa Bogo was feeling the weight of the crown on his boss.
This was the last thing the cape buffalo had expected when Administrator Hornbull called for this meeting on short notice. Zootopian Prospect did not have its own security taskforce, so the task of finding and catching whoever was screwing with the R&D Department had fallen on his shoulders. As a result of this, Bogo had expected extra pressure to catch the saboteur, now that they had upped the ante from sabotage to murder, but not this. He'd certainly not expected some scientist from the Company to be sitting in the seat opposite his desk, beside the rhino who ran the rest of the colony.
Dr. Sharla Ewetani was as tall as her chair and coated in wool the color of dark chocolate, a black sheep in the sense that in a family of high-ranking execs, she was the first to become a scientist. Her straight-backed, eager posture suggested someone who had a lot to gain from her presence here, and Bogo didn't yet know why.
"An expedition?"
"That is correct, Colonel." Hornbull looked very happy as he began to explain. "Dr. Ewetani is leading an expedition about seventy miles from here and she wanted to make sure you were informed. You see, the Company has-"
"Excuse me, I can speak for myself." Ewetani looked up at the rhino as she lightly chastised him. Looking at the unassuming ewe, Bogo wondered how often she had been talked over in the past. He knew a mammal who had been just like that, right here in Zootopian Prospect, but it hadn't taken him long to find his voice.
"Is that right?" Bogo couldn't remember the last time a meeting with the Administrator had genuinely intrigued him. "What sort of expedition?"
"I'll be more than happy to explain it to you, Commander Bogo, so long as you give your word that the information will be kept within this office."
"You have my word, Dr. Ewetani." Bogo assured her.
Ewetani smiled as she placed a laptop computer on the desk and switched it on, displaying an ancient map of a desert-like landscape on a large white screen.
Powerpoint. Last thing I need.
"What is that?" Bogo asked, bracing himself for imminent boredom.
"This is what we believe this land to have looked like way before Zootopian Prospect or even large size animals came into existence." Ewetani tapped the screen with a pen designed to resemble a corncob. "They believe that a very, very long time ago, thousands of years in fact, this area didn't have a lake, or even a forest for that matter. Back then, glaciers carved deep pits as they moved, and then when they melted, they filled the pits and became lakes, much like how it went down on Earth."
"And you're conducting this expedition to prove your theories, is that correct?" Bogo asked.
"Partly." Ewetani said. She dragged her chair over to the screen and stood on it so she could point higher. "I can't go into details for confidential reasons, but we have recently uncovered evidence that there may be archeological remnants to be found in Lake Kitticaca, which is the area we will be exploring. Remnants that have, until now, been undiscovered."
Bogo raised an eyebrow. The surveyors had scanned every inch of the planet's surface and found no evidence of an advanced civilization. What could Weyland Ewetani have discovered to challenge that? "How do you plan to get to the bottom of the lake? I know the lake you're talking out. It's almost two miles straight down to the deepest point. Practically freshwater ocean."
"We have small submersibles for that. Completely non-polluting, I assure you."
"Good." The Administrator said.
Bogo stroked his broad chin. "What exactly are you hoping to find down there?"
"That's strictly need-to-know." Ewetani said apologetically. "At least until we're ready to make our findings public. For now, you just need to know what we're doing and that what we're doing is completely lawful."
"She's right. They have permits, contracts, everything they need to make what they're doing legal." Hornbull said. "But there is the small matter of our mystery saboteur."
"You think they'll try to screw with your expedition?" Bogo asked.
Ewetani nodded. "Administrator Hornbull told me about that engineer. I've been assured that you're doing everything you can to find the culprit."
"I've requested a portable crime lab to analyze the crime scene, which has been sealed off since we found the body. It'll be here within a day."
He wouldn't mention the distress signal until he knew the status of the crew and its cargo.
"Perfect!" Ewetani said cheerfully. A little too cheerfully, perhaps. Bogo was glad that he wouldn't be seeing much of her. He didn't like being left in the dark like this, but he didn't like having company reps interfering with his business either.
"When do you expect to start?" He asked.
"Tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?" Bogo repeated, feeling a short rush of anger. "And I'm only learning about this now?"
Hornbull held a hand up. "That's my fault, Commander. With all the paperwork I've had to work with lately that I've only just now been able to make the time to discuss this with you. I hope this isn't too short notice."
"Not at all." Bogo managed to keep his response from dripping of sarcasm.
"That's good." Ewetani maintained her cheerful tone. "We'll speak again once the operation gets underway."
With a pleasant goodbye, she and Hornbull left the office.
Bogo stared at the door after it was closed behind them. He could imagine why Hornbull was so happy about this. Being the administrative head of the first colonized planet to present undeniable evidence of advanced alien life could do wonders for his career. Dr. Ewetani, on the other hoof, he couldn't put a finger on. She was young, energetic and had that 'don't ask' mentality that suggested that she was doing something she knew she probably shouldn't. She hadn't even stated what field she worked in. But she was from the Company, she was part of the family that founded half the Company, and that meant doing what the hell she told him to do. For now, at least, he would keep his nose out.
He was diverted from his suspicious thoughts by the beep of his intercom. The cape buffalo grumbled, rubbed the back of his thick neck, and hoped that he was about to receive good news. "Major Higgins."
"Sir, we've just received word back from the Avellanos. They've reached the Vidar. The crew is unharmed and onboard."
Bogo exhaled in relief. He'd been woken up in the middle of Rhamnusia's long night when the Vidar had sent out that distress signal and worry over the fate of the crew had kept him up ever since. "What of the cargo?"
"Also undamaged. The android will complete the rest of the journey once repairs of complete."
"Good. Report to me and the Administrator immediately when the crew in planet-side. That will be all, for now."
"Sir, the Vidar's Mother system also sent some data about the UFO that damaged the ship."
Bogo paused, almost taking his finger off the button. "And?"
"The trajectory of the object suggests that it had entered our atmosphere somewhere beyond our sensors' range."
That was about twenty clicks beyond the borders of the colony. No-one had reported any fireballs in the sky. The sensors had reported no impact tremors. Whatever the object was, it could be anywhere on the planet. Bogo took a few seconds to decide what to do about this. "I'll talk to the Administrator, but for now, I want this kept under wraps. It could just be a meteorite, but I don't want any colonists going out and making a soup's sandwich out of this whole thing."
"Will do, sir."
"Anything else, Major?"
Higgins informed him that there was nothing else, and with that, Bogo was left alone with nothing but his thoughts and an administrative clusterfuck to work through. The shipment of weapon parts had been delayed yet again. Someone was causing trouble for R&D. A towing vehicle was stuck in orbit with a damaged life support system. An engineer had been murdered, and there were few alibis to work with. And now the Company was here and up to their usual cloak-and-dagger mischief. Sometimes it just wasn't worth getting out of the barracks.
That is, if Bogo was still living in the barracks.
Bogo looked at his computer, and the document he'd been working on when Hornbull had interrupted with his short-notice meeting. It was yet another email politely demanding to know when the weapon part shipment was coming. It was only half done, since Bogo was having a hard time trying to keep the language from appearing too aggressive.
Maybe aggression was the problem. A strong word, perhaps, but that was probably it. He'd stop by the shooting range before heading home.
Bogo intertwined his fingers behind his head and looked again at the email. Did he even need to write another email?
"Screw it." He muttered. He was going to the shooting range right now. He switched off the computer, let his direct subordinate know what he was doing, and left the office. The pulse rifle was his best bet, or maybe something with more kick, like the smart gun. It had been a while since he'd unloaded one of those on a target…
The lion, Gunnery Sergeant Ryan King, turned his pulse rifle to the ceiling and relaxed.
"Lower your weapons. Their profiles match."
Having read the files himself, Private Nicholas Wilde had already known that. He'd recognized sourchop Rochewool and brawny Cudson as soon as the hatch had opened and noticed that they both looked like they'd had a very bad hypersleep. Flash Flash-Hundred-Yard-Dash was unaccounted for, currently in another part of the ship conducting repairs. That was a shame; Nick had hoped to see his old artificial buddy in person before they were both planetside, but it wasn't safe to stay on a ship with a dwindling air supply. As for CSI Hopps (or CST, Nick didn't really see the difference), he'd known her name and face even before reading her file.
"Sorry 'bout that. You wouldn't have been the first pirates to pose as the crew." King explained to the captain of the stricken Vidar.
Jean shrugged like it was no big deal. Wow, talk about jaded. "Thanks for getting here so quick. We would have used the shuttle, but…"
"The Company wouldn't like you abandoning their multi-million-dollar portable crime lab, I know." Nick said. "Don't worry, we'll make sure nothing happens to the oval office."
The CSI, Judy Hopps, frowned. "'Oval office?'"
Nick smirked. "I saw it during our approach. Don't tell me it doesn't look like a giant aspirin."
Hopps's frown deepened and turned down to the flamethrower in his paws. She doesn't really think I'm planning to turn her into a rabbit roast and serve her with thyme, does she? Nah, there's no fear in her eyes.
King told Nick to knock it off and escort the crew and their minimal luggage onto the Avellanos for a medical checkup.
In the ship's medbay, Hospital Corpsman Marvin Krumpanski examined the crew one by one, and it didn't take long for the stocky rhino to give all three mammals a clean bill of health. Once he was cleared, Rochewool had asked to see the captain about being returned to the Vidar to help Flash land the ship. Captain, AKA Colonel Samuel Mane, was a maned wolf with fur colored brass like a rifle shell, and a major chip on his shoulder when it came to megafauna that questioned him purely on his size. After cordially accepting Rochewool's request to see him in the medbay, he explained that once the crew was planetside, their safety would be the responsibility of the Administrator in charge of the colony, and Colonel Bogo, the cape buffalo in charge of Fort Meadowland. It would be up to one of them to authorize that action. Neither Rochewool nor Hopps had liked that, but there was nothing they could do until they spoke with the two leaders. Cudson didn't complain at all, just glad to be off the Vidarbefore he suffocated.
With the matter of the Vidar's cargo settled, the discussion turned to the crew itself. "The best course of action is for the Avellanos to stay here to protect the cargo. A dropship has been prepped for the three of you to be transported to ZV-73, where you and Cudson will be given temporary quarters until the synthetic finishes repairs."
"What about Hopps?" Cudson asked, pointing out the bunny's omission.
"She will be escorted to Fort Meadowland to meet with the Base Commander. She is his top priority."
It perked Hopps's ears when she heard that, like she wasn't used to being treated as a VIM.
Mane turned his head sharply to Nick. "Wilde, escort them to the hangar bay. The dropship should be ready by now."
Nick saluted. Mane was one of the few mammals to which he never did it sarcastically. "Already on our way, sir."
During the short walk to the hangar bay, Nick mentally took stock of his civilian charges, as he'd done long before being drafted into the corps. Rafe Cudson seemed like an okay guy, if prone to griping. He didn't like danger, plain and simple. He couldn't blame Jean Rochewool for worrying so much about how this cockup would affect him. If some company pencil pusher had stolen Nick's keycard and broke into the MU-TH-UR chamber, triggering a legal shitstorm and almost costing him his flight license, he would be paranoid from then on, too.
As for Judith (Judy) Hopps, more reading may be in order. The first time she'd laid eyes on him, she'd been surprised, almost shocked even. Who wouldn't be, seeing a shifty fox dressed like a marine and carrying a deadly weapon? But once the shock had passed, her demeanor toward him had turned curious. Even now he could feel her eyes on him as they walked through the last corridor to the bay. When she wasn't looking at him, she was looking at everything within the Avellanos with unmistakable awe. The ship wasn't anything special to look at, designed to be pratical rather than pretty. It was uglier than most vessels out there, but Hopps took it all in like she was wandering around the Aphrodite Art Museum.
"So… Private First-Class Wilde, was it?" She asked, surprising Nick by speaking to him directly.
"Just Private." Nick glanced at her with a smile to be polite. The glimpse of her face showed large purple eyes wide with genuine interest.
"A flamethrower's an odd choice for boarding a small towing vessel, isn't it?"
"Scare factor, in case you really were pirates in disguise." Nick said immediately. "Most animals retreat from fire, don't they?"
"What other weapons can you use? The M41E? The recoil from M41A would be too strong for you, wouldn't it?"
Nick wondered what she was going with this. "Yeah, I can use an M41E if the ammo isn't too powerful. I can also use an M4 pistol. Why do you ask?"
"Just… curious."
"Right, and I'm just plain ugly."
Nick reached the door and pressed the button to open it. The door slid open and exposed the small group to the loud, boisterous chatter of the 3nd Battalion Beta Team members who would be joining them on their return to Fort Meadowland. Ryan King, Corporal Ethan Wolford, Private First-Class Karl Trunkaby and Private First-Class Matilda Fangmeyer sat on crates near the docked UD-4 Utility Dropship.
"About fricking time, Wilde!" The tigress pulled herself off the crate with a dangling chain as she jeered. "What, d'ya need Johnson to fetch a schematic?"
"D'ya need me to fetch a wordlist, Fangmeyer?" Nick grinned back at her. "'Cause I'd benefit more from a map."
"We'll be ready to go once Johnson finishes loading up." Wolford, the Avellanos'sdropship pilot, jerked his thumb at the yellow powerloader, piloted by Johnson the lion, slowly stomping its way along the room with a crate in its forked clutches.
"We're not going on that, are we?" Cudson pointed incredulously at the other dropship.
Nick shook his head and gestured to the UD-7 Dropship that would be their ride back to the planet. "Nah, the Express Elevator to Hell is for combat drops only. We'll be taking the cab instead. Still a bit of a drop at the start, but overall a much smoother ride."
"Darnit."
He just managed to hear the disappointed curse under Hopps's breath and sharply snorted in laughter. Okay, now he was starting to like her.
When Johnson was done, the group strode single file up the ramp into the UD-7, a ship that vaguely resembled a steel brick, while Wolford and Johnson went to take their place in the cockpit. He could feel the dread emanating from Rochewool and Cudson as they took their places in the row of uncomfortable metal seats that lined the claustrophobic interior of the ship. Yep, the corps were all substance over style. No comfy plastic white A decks on this boat.
Nick empathized with the pair when the safety harness lowered over their bodies, pinning them to their seats. Though the sudden drop no longer bothered him, the experience was no different from how he imagined being trapped in a free-falling elevator felt like. The only difference between a dropship and an elevator was that you knew what was coming.
Hopps took the seat directly across from Nick, the bottom bar of the harness the only thing holding her tiny body in place. The fox thought about telling her about what had happened on Rhamnusia during her journey, but he didn't imagine that Bogo or Mane would like that. Besides, there were better ways of making conversation with her.
Wolford's voice cut through the cabin as the door rose and shut. "Prelaunch auto-cycle engaged." Cudson winced, drawing the silent amusement of his marine cohorts as they all felt the dropship being carried across the bay. When it stopped, Nick knew they were directly above the hangar doors. Hopps looked both excited and terrified. "Primary couples released. Hit the internals."
There was a slight jolt before the dropship was lowered through the inner door into the wide shaft. Cudson was already clinging to his harness for dear life.
Wolford checked with King that everyone was secured. By now the exterior doors would be open. In a matter of seconds, the UD-7 would plummet out the belly of the Avellanos.
"Stand by to initiate release sequencer. Stand by, ten seconds…"
"Fuck, I hate this." Cudson had screwed his eyes shut.
Rochewool just tightened his hooves around the bars of his harness and waited.
"On my mark. Five… four…"
"Scared, Carrots?" Nick asked.
"Heck no." Judy lied through her buck teeth.
"… two… one… Mark."
