"There were things I wanted to tell her. But I knew they would hurt her. So I buried them, and let them hurt me."
Buried beneath a billion tons of rock and metal and time, there lies a place spoken of in hushed whispers of trepidation and wonder, a place few surface-dwellers have ever ventured to. The city of Zootopia and all it's territory may have 'out-of-the-way' places such as Bunny-Burrow, or even the rarely mentioned Outback-Island. But none top the elusiveness and mystery surrounding the likes of the Nocturnal-District. For all her bravery and courage, it was the very last place Judy Hopps would ever visit purposefully...
And for all his wit and cunning, it was the last place that Nick Wilde would ever return to.
8:00 P.M
The police cruiser glided its way down the slick road, the merciful precipitation raining down from the sky pattering upon the vehicle's windows.
Approximately half an hour ago, the two tiny officers had disembarked from the ZPD head-quarters and began their journey to their next place of business, the Nocturnal- district. They covered a lot of ground as the distance to their destination shrunk, but the endeavor so far had led Judy out farther from the city than she'd ever been before.
While the bunny manned the wheel, she encouraged the fox to look up information regarding the Nocturnal-District. She insisted that knowing more about the region might assist with their exploration and work. The fox pulled out their police commissioned laptop and began Zoogling facts about the aforementioned place of interest.
"Hmm... says here that the Nocturnal-District is Zootopia's largest mining location, and that most of the city's bugs are harvested in special farms there... Tasty."
Judy nodded approvingly.
"Interesting. So we can expect lots of rocks, and massive swarms of insects. Sound about right?" She inquired jokingly.
The russet fox smirked in response to her comment before closing his laptop and hiding it beneath his seat.
"You got that right, carrots. Dirt, bugs, and crime. My three favorite things." He grumbled while rolling his eyes.
"So aside from badgers like this bully that we're scouting out for -" She said pointing to the case-file on the dashboard. "- Any idea what kind of mammals we'll see down there?"
Nick slowly inhaled through his nostrils before replying.
"Uh, I'd say badgers, raccoon, moles, naked moles, groundhogs..." He listed each type of mammal knowingly, counting them off on his fingers as he listed them.
But after he tallied off the idea of groundhogs, he hesitated and cleared his throat almost anxiously before finishing;
"And bats."
Judy momentarily glanced at him before training her eyes back on the road. She noticed that he didn't have his laptop out anymore.
"You seem to know a lot the Nocturnal-District... You been there before?" The rabbit questioned curiously.
Nick shifted his weight in the seat uncomfortably.
"Once."
For the next few minutes, no communication issued between the two lovers, as Judy saw that Nick clearly didn't want to talk about his last visitation to the Nocturnal-District.
In the ensuing silence, the bunny wondered what could possibly make her stead-fast mate so... out of character... it usually wasn't like him to refrain from making small-talk, or starting some kind of conversation. She pondered about his aforementioned words, eventually delving back into Nick's list of mammals that they might encounter.
One species in particular caught her attention... she'd never heard of them before...
"Hey Nick," She asked attentively. "What are bats?"
The fox stared at his mate with raised eyebrows, rather taken back by her unexpected question.
"You really don't know what bats are?" He asked flatly.
"No, not really. I'm guessing they aren't the kind you use to hit base-balls with?" She joked.
The fox wheezed a slight laugh, putting his hands on his knees as he leaned over and lightly punched Judy on her shoulder.
"You don't know what bats are?" He asked again, chuckling all the while.
"Just answer the question, dummy."
"Alright, alright!" He breathed in deep, his eyes glazing over at nothing in particular. "Well... It's kinda hard to explain. Let's just say that you'll know one when you see one."
Not very satisfied with his answer, but deciding not to push the topic any further, she concluded their conversation with one final question...
"Wait... Did you say naked moles?" The bunny asked with a look of terror on her face.
"What?" The fox questioned briefly before a grin emerged on his muzzle. "Oh... Don't worry carrots, they're not really naked. They're just really ugly."
"Good... 'Cause I do not want another naturalist club experience!" She sighed.
The fox snickered to himself while he watched Judy blush; her long ears drooping down to the sides of her face to hide her scarlet-tinged fur.
"Hey carrots?" The fox asked after gathering his bearings. The bunny made a humming noise and looked over curiously.
"Remember that time for my birthday last year, when I made you go to the naturalist club with me?"
"Nick!"
8:20 P.M
Soon after, the pair finally reached the outskirts of their destination, a road-way sign confirming the location of the Nocturnal-District's entrance as less than a quarter of a mile away. Within a few seconds, they reached a fork in the road, where they promptly turned to and continued down the path of the left direction. They then encountered a well-constructed cement-lain tunnel that descended deep into the core of the mountain. Atop the entrance of the tunnel, a large metal sign stood out with a pair of words;
Nocturnal-District.
Upon entering the tunnel, the slope of the road gradually steepened until they were at a near ten-degree angle. The weight of the car being pulled by the force of gravity accelerated their automobile to dangerous speeds, but the considerate and quick-thinking bunny ensured that the brakes held fast, slowing their descent into the unknown.
Soon enough, they reached the base of the tunnel. So what was it like down there?
Dark.
It took some time for their eyes to adjust to the blackness, especially Judy, whom didn't have the 'night-vision gene' that Nick so often bragged about.
But when her eyes finally did attune themselves to the new environment, she found herself staring at the likes of a completely alien world.
The Nocturnal district was one, massive cavern, with colossal stalagmites erupting from the dirt and rock ground, and stalactites clinging to the roof of the cavern, which itself was a good three hundred feet above their heads. One stalagmite larger than the rest even had a road swirling around its diameter that led to the very point at the top of the spike, where what looked like a light beacon had been planted. At first glance, the narrow and winding streets throughout the Nocturnal-District appeared to be decorated with large boulders on the perimeter, but after further inspection, the bunny realized that those boulders were, in fact, houses. Hundreds of houses ranging in size and shape dotted themselves around the cavern's wide open space, each home intricately cut from the same rock that embedded the ground beneath their feet, and high above their heads. There were also houses built into the stalagmites and cave walls. In the distance, Judy spotted several large factories, which were joined with what appeared to be some smaller warehouses. The thick smokestacks rising from the dull-grey buildings rose all the way to the top of the cavern roof, where they disappeared within the rock.
Smart... Releasing their smoke away from the inside of the cavern... The bunny thought to herself.
At that consideration, she remembered what Nick had said about the Nocturnal-District's mining facilities, and she soon found herself staring down at quarry-like compounds marked around the outskirts of the cavern, conveyor belts and other mining equipment strewn across the properties. Must've been a good way to harvest the gems up above.
Meanwhile, Nick was gazing greedily at one of the district's light sources: Glow-worms. Thousands, if not millions of the glowy-grubs were rooted to the cavern's roof, emitting a large amount of soothing blue light. Even though the ceiling was hundred of feet above them, the fox was able to make out the slimy strands of glowing goo that the worms pooped out: some of the strands were so long and thick that you could swing through them as easily as with the vines in the Rainforest-District.
Alongside the brilliant-blue luster that painted the cavern roof, clusters of humongous gems varying in size, shape, and color were sprouting from the ceiling: the light emitted from the glow-worms reflecting off the crystal shards and speckling the top of the cave with a miasma of kaleidoscope-esque colors.
In short, it was the most beautiful thing Judy had ever seen.
It was so stunning that it nearly brought tears to her eyes.
This whole time, she had imagined the Nocturnal-District as some filthy, crime-stricken ghetto. But apparently, there was much more to it beneath the surface. Quite literally.
During her youth back home in Bunny-Burrow, Judy would enjoy spending her evenings watching the sun-set and the stars that followed. She'd gaze at those countless bright dots in the sky, and spend hours trying to count them all, but never could. Staring up at the Nocturnal-District's cavern ceiling high above, she was overcome with that same sense of wonder and awe. That same appreciation for nature. This place was like an inverted sky: A place of wonder that you could not only see from afar, but touch, as well.
No wonder these cave-dwellers don't like the surface. It's so much cooler down here... She thought to herself.
She had so many thoughts swirling through her mind, but the only thing she could put to words was a single statement;
"Wow."
As they drove down through the narrow and winding streets of the Nocturnal-District, Judy took every second as an opportunity to sight-see. Nick had volunteered to drive, as Judy was so star-stricken with awe that she couldn't keep her hands on the steering wheel without shaking... fine by him.
It was nothing he hadn't seen before...
Being the optimistic, naive, and dough-brained little dumb bunny that she was, Nick could clearly tell that Judy was so enraptured in the sights and unexpected natural beauty of the Nocturnal-District that she didn't bother considering the reason why they were here in the first place: The Nocturnal-District has some notorious criminal-activity statistics. Hidden behind all the glamour and the glow-worm goo was a crime-infested melting pot of all things malicious.
He would know, after all.
As he drove them toward their stake-out coordinates, the fox kept sparing nervous glances behind the police cruiser that they rode within, and even above them: Looking up and into the light mist that clung to the cavern ceiling high above their heads, hoping that nothing, that no one was following them.
Nick wondered if he was still down here... Wondered if that terrible beast of a mammal was still hungering for his spilt blood.
Anxiously, he spared one final glance to the rocky dome above him before focusing his attention to the likes of his mate, who was bouncing in her seat and staring in awe at all the pretty colors. He realized that Judy had that same naive mindset on her first visit to the city of Zootopia: Completely oblivious and denying of anything ill or altogether unpleasant behind the pretty sights around her. He remembered blue-screening Judy by telling her off for being stupid, even referring to her as a 'naive little hick.' That, of course was back when he had no thoughts or feelings for the titular bunny whatsoever. Now, he couldn't exactly see himself going off on her as harsh as that. But still...
This fluff-butt needs another wake-up-call... He thought to himself rather bitterly. At least she's enjoying herself, I suppose.
And enjoying herself she most certainlywas. With her face pressed up against the passenger window, Judy was trying to take in all that she could see. Though it was very dark, especially compared to the likes of the Zootopian mainland and its other districts, the luminescent worms and shiny crystals provided an ample amount of visage for even her to see quite well. She also noticed even stranger sources of light: Weird looking plants bloomed in the inky blackness, blossoming buds that glowed with soft light.
Thunk
The car lurched downwards and back up momentarily. Another pot-hole, by the looks of it. The scenery may have been easy on the eyes, but the road was hard on the back!
The path that their police cruiser drove on was paved with cobble-stone, and rather old, apparently. Damp, moss-like fuzz grew out from the cracks in the road.
And of course, no ancient, terribly-preserved road was complete without its own potholes!
As the car tottered along the road, Nick occasionally glanced out one of the windows to catch sights at the residents of the Nocturnal-District. Sure enough, badgers, moles, gophers, and raccoon folk milled about their day (or was it night? Thinking about it gave Nick a headache). It looked like pretty normal urban life for the most part, but some of the Nocturnal-District's unique cultural aspects were noticeable: Like the withered old star-nosed mole that was churning a tub of glow-worm glop into a thick sludge, or the raccoon street-vendor on the corner of the sidewalk selling hand-cut gem shards shaped like random objects, like butterflies or fish. It seemed a thriving, neat old place.
Eventually, they reached the coordinates for their stake-out; It was right next to the house that had placed the prowler-call about that mysterious badger.
They strategically positioned their car in a secluded area, yet in such a manner that they would get full-range view of anyone that walked past them.
Once they got settled in, Nick put their predicament to words: "And now, we wait."
And wait they did. For roughly an hour and a half, there was nothing.
The two tiny officers passed the time with idle talk and conversation, ranging from all topics small and large, but all the while keeping their eyes peeled for suspicious activity.
Nick may have enjoyed stake-outs for the most part, but even he had to admit that they got boring at times.
After some more time had passed, a flicker of movement caught his eye. The fox leaned against the dashboard and squinted his eyes while looking out the window.
"Hey, officer toot-toot," He said while nudging Judy's shoulder. "Shady badger at two-O'-clock."
The bunny's long ears shot up in anticipation as she quickly looked outside at the source of Nick's comment. Sure enough, a large portly badger, attired in an identical velvet suit and tie to the one in the photo was lumbering past some 20 yards away: completely oblivious to the fact that he was being watched. The bunny grasped the radio and thumbed down the receiver button.
"Dispatch, this is officer Hopps and Wile, the assigned suspect is in our sights. Permission to apprehend?" She finished before releasing the button.
Meanwhile, Nick quickly checked the time before slipping his mobile-device into one of the compartments on his utility belt, instead of his pocket like he usually did.
After a few short seconds of static, the device hummed with life as a response was transmitted to the waiting officers.
"Permission granted, officers." Clawhauser's voice responded excitedly. "Dispatch recommends proceeding with apprehension on foot. Go get 'em, cuties!"
Judy frowned disapprovingly and sighed as she promptly hung up the radio and glanced at Nick.
Thankfully, he wasn't wearing his shades, as that would've made him look like a complete jerk in a place like this.
"Alright slick, let's do this."
He sighed before (much to Judy's dismay) whipping out his favorite pair of shades and placing them atop his muzzle.
"Fine by me. Guess you could say I'm... Diggin' for a little justice, eh?"
And with that, the two officers dispatched themselves from their police cruiser and began following their suspect.
They followed the badger from the point where they lost spotted him, and quickly managed to catch up to him. They were slowly but steadily (and silently) pacing behind him from a short distance away. If the badger knew, he didn't show it. He then turned around a street corner, and that's when both officers nodded to each-other: they would jump him as soon as they rounded that corner.
They pressed their backs against the wall. Nick gave Judy a three second countdown with his fingers.
3... 2... 1...
With their paws gripped to their tasers, they reared the corner and just about shouted, 'Freeze!'
But they were met with the likes of an empty sidewalk.
Nothing.
"W-where'd he go? Where'd the badger go? He was right here just a few seconds ago!" Judy hissed through grit teeth.
"Ah... Whiskers?" Nick asked, snapping his fingers for her attention.
"What is it?"
"Look what you're standing on, dumb bunny."
The bunny slowly lowered her line of sight to her toes, which rested atop the lid of a sewer-grate.
"Oh... guess we know where our shady badger went." She refastened her taser against her utility-belt and bent down to pick up the man-hole. A heartbeat after the tips of her fingers made contact with the thick-iron cylinder, she saw Nick's eyes glance up and his face scrunch up in shock as his paws flew to the taser on the left side of his belt.
"Carrots, look out!"
She only had enough time to turn her head upwards and spot the source of Nick's cries before it literally came crashing down on her. A large raccoon; cloaked in a billowing scarlet trench-coat, grinning maniacally with crooked teeth and beady eyes, crashed into her, effectively slamming her head into the sewer-grate and knocking her out cold.
After watching the raccoon jump from the roof and slam his mate's head into the solid metal sewer-grate, Nick was just about ready to pull out his paw-cuffs and strangle the creep with them for hurting Judy, when a large body grabbed him from behind and clamped his muzzle shut tight, causing the sun-glasses on his head to slip off and patter to the ground. Judging from the massive size and strength of the thing, Nick assumed it must've been a badger. The large claws and almost scaly wrists were a rather blatant giveaway, though. Aside from the claws that gripped his face painfully, the only part of the badger he could see were the cuffs of his suit: A deep red color, like spilt blood.
Nick diverted his attention back to the raccoon, who had turned around and was now facing Nick.
The raccoon was dressed in a similar pallet; with wine-like shades of red and a trim of clean black on his long over-coat, which draped low, scraping at the base of his ankles. Beneath his trench-coat he wore an identically colored button-up vest of admittedly considerate formality. The raccoon was smaller than average for his species, but definitely no bigger than Nick. That didn't stop the mammal from grinning like he owned the place though: His maniacal smile was adorned with rows of rigid, crooked teeth. A few all were black, and some spots were empty gum, clearly having lost the teeth that once held root there. The fur on the very top of his head stuck up in spikes at various angles and lengths, shining with what looked like some sort of grease. Nick just hoped that it wasn't glow-worm residue, though, because that would've been too far, even for him.
The coon cleared his throat and swallowed, then reached into one of the pockets in his trench-coat and pulled out a silver hip-flask. He took a quick swig before splashing the remainder of the liquid onto Judy's face. She twitched momentarily, but otherwise held no reaction.
"Yup." The coon spoke with a satisfied undertone. His voice was surprisingly deep; like Finnick's, but gravelly, and even more unfriendly. "She's out cold. Did a good job, eh?"
He snickered before proceeding to mess with Judy's unconscious form, this time nudging her head with his clawed foot. Nick's muffled growls over the coon's actions caught his attention.
"Now-now, don' be like that, fox!" He pursed his lips. "Yer lucky that I'm more forgiving than most o' my other associates."
The raccoon gave Nick another one of his dirt-eating grins. He continued;
"Just consida' yerself lucky that the boss himself didn't flap down here and let things unfold his way. Eh heh heh... Now that would have been messy!"
He then slipped his flask back into one of the deep pockets of his trench-coat and shuffled around the other pockets for another item, this time pulling out a thick roll of duct-tape. He taped Judy's mouth shut, and after a brief struggle, managed to wrap Nick's muzzle tight as well. The fox tried to call out for help, but he was quickly overpowered.
"There! Much better, doncha' think, Nicky boy?" The coon inquired smugly, his smile only growing larger and more crooked as the fox's eyes widened in shock.
"Yeah, thas' right. We know who you are, boy. We know what you like," He said with an undertone of flamboyancy while gesturing at the unconscious form of Judy.
"And we also know someone who wants you dead." He barked a laugh. "Not including us, of course."
The raccoon then reached down to the cement sidewalk and plucked Nick's pair of shades off the ground. He wiped away the dust before placing them on his own muzzle.
"Hmm... I like these!" He stated. "Mind if I keep 'em? Heh. Of course you do."
He then frowned before looking over and behind Nick, directing his next words at whoever had the fox locked in a near death-grip.
"C'mon Russ! Ol' Fang-face still wants his money-shots. He said to bring 'em back to the manor by nine. We best get movin' along."
The coon shuffled backwards and picked up Judy, heaving her over his shoulders and carrying her off.
Nick felt bass-like vibrations against his back as the (what he assumed to be a-) badger hummed something to himself.
"C'MON RUSS!" The coon's voice shouted once more.
Nick felt the badger's hum transform into a slight growl, but the creature obeyed the coon's demand, lumbering forward with Nick still cradled (crushed) in his arms.
Well... Guess I know who wears the pants in the family... The fox thought to himself.
"Oh, we better make sure that they don't ah... See or hear things, huh Sprock?" The badger asked his raccoon accomplice.
Nick wasn't too sure what he meant, but the raccoon stopped in his tracks and suddenly dropped Judy like a sack of potatoes onto the cold hard ground. The sight of Judy's head hitting the concrete again made Nick's heart burn with pain and his eyes tinge red with anger. He knew that someone wanted him, but hurting Judy like this was wrong.
"Good thinkin' Russ." The raccoon, who apparently went by Sprock, agreed.
He then pulled out what looked like a lighter at first glance, but with a flick of his wrist, a four centimeter blade unsheathed itself from the hilt of a pocket knife.
Nick's eyes widened. He thought that Sprock was going to slit Judy's throat. Instead, he sliced the cord on her uniform that connected to her personal radio. He then strutted up to Nick and did the same thing: They were completely cut off from outside contact. Save for the single well-hidden mobile device, of course. But Nick didn't think about that right now: He was too scared. Scared of what was to come for both Judy and himself. The raccoon's deep, gravelly voice eventually severed his train of thought again.
"Hear things... Check." He glanced at Judy, and then back to Nick. "Time to make sure they don't see things. Do yer thing, Russy-boy!"
As soon as Sprock's words reached the badger's ears, Nick felt a tightening pressure around his neck. Startled at first, it took him but a moment to realize that Russ was choking him: Trying to make him go unconscious like Judy by cutting off the oxygen to his brain. His vision started to blur, and he heard the coon chuckle smugly to himself.
"Thas' right. Sleep well, sweet fox."
And that was the last thing he heard before slipping unconscious.
But the last thing he saw...
The shadow of an object passed over the grinning face of Sprock: The large and terrifying silhouette of something flying overhead.
The world faded into blackness, and he could only hope that death was not to follow.
Hey Everyone!
Hope you enjoyed the latest chapter of When Instinct Falls! I'm not gonna bother saying that I enjoyed writing it, because let's be honest here: I enjoy writing every chapter! And reading you guys' reviews and comments on it just as much, if not even more! :D
That being said, do feel free to drop a review, favorite or to even follow my work here... all of it is much appreciated!
I can't wait to show you guys the next chapter: I've been anticipating this particular chapters release more then any other yet! Its got big things coming, including the introduction of the teased 'boss' creature. This walking nightmare of a mammal will soon be revealed! Stay tuned for what's coming! :D
One last thing before I bid you adieu, I must ask: How do you guys think I did on capturing the personalities of Russ and Sprock? I tried to cast them in the light of 'intimidating yet slightly bumbling henchmen who banter with each other'... If that makes any sense. You won't be seeing them for long, though. Whaddya think of them so far?
That's all for now, folks!
As always,
Peace!