"You have to learn the rules of the game, then you have to play better than anyone else." - Albert Einstein
2:32 P.M
Setting foot off of the monorail and back to where their vacation started, Nick and Judy entered the lobby of the Grand Central Station with high-hopes and even higher curiosities.
The two of them had received a call from chief Bogo via the likes of the fox's mobile device just a few short minutes earlier, and judging from his tone of voice, he seemed to have been quite anxious. They were some-what lucky to have caught his most recent call right when they boarded the train back at The Docks: The water-buffalo had left a slew of unanswered calls on Nick's phone throughout the ferry-ride back to the mainland. The fox was surprised that he didn't manage to catch a single one of them, but just ended up blaming it on the jarring and rocking of the boat as it made it's way across the sloshing waters of the Zootopia Sound, no doubt interfering with his phone's vibration.
Upon answering Bogo's most recent call, Nick's ears were at first met with a sort of surprised silence, as if the caller on the other line hadn't expected him to have answered. With a hoarse and reverberating grunt that must've been the chief clearing his throat, the water-buffalo instantaneously took to the conversation at hand; Bogo hurriedly explained to the fox that he needed him and Judy's immediate attention back at the ZPD Head-Quarters. Not very surprisingly, the water-buffalo didn't get around to actually explaining what he needed the two of them for in the first place, but the fox dared not question a direct order from the chief. The last time that he had, well, didn't bode well for him: Assigned to ticketing for a week. After ending the brief call and the conversation along with it, Nick turned to Judy with a coyish smirk across his russet-colored face.
"Looks like we're needed back at head-quarters, for whatever reason." He explained. "Chief buffalo-butt needs our assistance with something, apparently. He didn't say just what."
"New case, you think?" Judy replied with raised ears and wide ears.
"Perhaps... It would explain the vagueness, that's for sure."
"He's never called us directly to deal with a new case though, has he?" The rabbit added. "Maybe this one's more personal, assuming it even is a case."
They both quietly pondered the likes of their new situation until the tram doors slid open and the vessel came to a smooth halt. Nick and Judy stepped away from the monorail and ascended an escalator before being presented with the sight of a busy Grand Central Station, as any public landmark would be at noontime. Dozens of mammals ranging in size, shape, and color were going about their day in various ways, from relaxing in groups around the benches, to ordering food and drink from the many available services.
Careful with their footing as they passed through a crowd of mice and shrews, the fox and bunny exited the train station and set foot on the grounds of one of the city's most prominent parks before making their way in the direction of the ZPD Head-Quarters, which was located conveniently close to the site of their current strolling and bantering.
"Ah, it's good to be back home, ain't it?" Nick began as he whirled around and eyed the glittering sky-scrapers and colorful architecture that surrounded the both of them.
"Sure is, Slick... Though I must admit, I do miss the natural feeling that Pawaii gave off." Judy conceded.
"Natural feeling? Do explain, my dear."
"Well, I mean sure, it reminded me of the Rainforest-District..." The bunny quickly began. "But there was something more untouched and natural about Pawaii..."
"As in?" The fox inquired.
"As in it didn't feel constructed, or refined: It was near-completely wild, and didn't feel like it was built by mammals." Judy stated, pointing towards a metal palm-tree.
Nick pursed his lips and nodded in understanding. "Granted. Though, I wouldn't exactly say that that's a bad thing." He claimed with lopsided eyebrows and lips parted in a smile.
Eventually, their destination came into sight: The ZPD, with it's shining glass domes and orange concrete pillars, stood tall and erect in the nearest of distances, some one hundred yards or so away. The fox and bunny continued with their walk until the reached the very base of the building, and entered through the doors, with Nick politely opening and holding one for his mate, who thanked him with a warm and reassuring smile. Following her inside after she had entered, the fox let go of his hold on the glass door and set his gaze on to the comparatively towering form of Clawhauser, who as always, stood jovial and embracing behind the blue counter of the receptions desk and kiosk.
Waltzing over to the front desk, Nick leaned casually against the smooth counter-top while his mate inquired the carb-loaded cheetah of their previous summoning.
"Afternoon, Ben!" The bunny started in an effort to acquire Clawhauser's attention. "You didn't happen to forward a request from chief Bogo asking for our presence... Did you?"
"Oh, hey there officer Hopps!" The cheetah then turned to Nick and waggled his fingers. "Lookin' smart, Wilde! You two expecting chief, or something?"
"Yes, actually: We got a phone call from him earlier today asking for our help with something. Did he tell you about that? I mean, you're usually the one who does that stuff."
Clawhauser placed one of his spotted paws beneath his flabby chin, resting the weight of his head as he looked to the domed ceiling and thought over the fox's single question.
"Nope!" He simply stated.
"Nothin' at all?" Nick added curiously.
"Not a single shred!" The cheetah assured before waving his hands in the direction of the chief's office. "Well, you should probably get to it... It might be urgent! Go on then!"
Waving goodbye to Clawhauser as he shooed the two of them away, Nick and Judy then set out towards Bogo's office, their curiosities and interests even higher than before. As they made their way to their new destination, they both encountered and bid brief greetings to a multitude of other ZPD officers, including Mchorn, Fangmeyer, Grizzoli, and even officer Trunkaby nonetheless. Chatting for no more than a few seconds at a time as they paced through and around the crowds, the fox and bunny soon enough came across the entrance to the water-buffalo's office. Through the hazy glass window, they could see the shadowy out-line of the chief's lumbering form, along with the likes of a secondary shadow, of which the latter seemed to be conversing with, as both Nick and Judy respectively could hear two very distinct and different voices inside the office.
"Alright you, prepare yourself. Clawhauser just phoned me saying that they've finally arrived, so I want you to be on your best behavior, absolutely nothing out of line! Got it?"
"You underestimate me, chief!" Another voice responded in a genteel sort of tone. "Manners maketh mammal, as I've always said."
"Well you should say something else, you filthy hypocrite." Bogo growled.
"Oh, there's no need for such malignant criticism... I just hope that those two arrive here before my lavish amount of patience starts to falter."
There was something about that suave-sounding voice that made Judy feel a sense of nausea and discomfort: It sounded dreadfully familiar, and her conscious told her to back away from that office and run as far away as possible. She felt insecure and at risk, as if whoever was behind that door with chief Bogo had nothing but malicious intentions. Judy felt a pair of cold fingers trace themselves up the length of her spine, and a single face to match the voice appeared in her mind. She shook her head from side to side, mentally refuting that idea, as not only was it simply not possibly, but she truthfully didn't want to believe it.
The bunny swiveled her head around slightly and locked eyes with Nick, who's face was scrunched up in an expression of confusion and curiosity. Swallowing hard, the fox knocked twice on the smooth wooden surface of the door before placing his right paw on the handle; Twisting it as he pressed his weight against the door and swung it open.
Quickly scanning the entirety of the room, Judy's amethyst eyes traced the form of chief Bogo as he sat at his desk, before gliding over to the opposing side, where a simple green and brown wooden chair was situated. Leaning nonchalantly against one of the chair's legs, a male rabbit stood with a saucer and a single cup of tea in his paw, the steam floating off and brushing against the tips of his long and erected ears. The rabbit's fur was a pristine and pearly-white color, with pure-black slashes painted across his cheeks and the back of his neck and ears. His lean body was covered with an oil-black suit and slacks that were both equally as dark as his myriad of fur-patches.
A single, tiny blue flower was pinned to the right side of his chest, complimenting the piercing turquoise color of his eyes, which stared directly into Judy's from across the room.
"Glad that you could join us, Alaina, or should I say, officer Judy Hopps?" Jack Savage nodded before gesturing to Nick. "Oh, and you too... What was your name again?"
Jack smirked, all the while calmly taking a deep and drawn-out sip from his cup of tea.
"YOU!" Nick shouted aloud before darting directly at the rabbit.
The fox swung his arm forward and plowed a single clenched fist directly into Jack's stomach, causing the rabbit to fold over like a chair, a spray of hot-tea spewing from between his lips and right into Nick's face. Staggering back and growling in anger and pain, the fox rubbed the scalding droplets of tea out of his eyes before stepping forward and socking Jack in the face, a loud and satisfying crunch accompanying the action, causing the male rabbit to flail backwards and topple to the floor. With his fangs bared and his claws extended, Nick pounced atop the writhing body of Jack and raised his arm, preparing to bring down his claws upon the rabbit's face.
Just as he was about to arc his claws downward, Judy grabbed him from behind and pulled him away, her eyes clenched shut so that she wouldn't have to look at his snarling face.
"No! Nick! Stop! Please!" She begged into his ears, effectively calming him down. "Don't do this, Nick... Don't do this. It's not worth it."
Nick squirmed in Judy's grasp until he managed to free himself, readjusting his tie and collar as he breathed in and out and glared at the form of Jack Savage, who was unsteadily pulling himself to his feet. He wiped away the blood from his lips and nose with the back of his wrist, all the while staring angrily at the fox who had attacked him.
"You reckless chomper!" Jack hissed before cracking his neck, clenching his fists, and stomping towards Nick in an effort to hit him back.
Fortunately, Bogo had hurriedly made his way to the opposing side of his desk and plucked the irate rabbit off of the ground, holding him in the air with one of his hooves.
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" The water-buffalo ordered, his voice effectively silencing every other mammal in the room. "There will be no fighting or arguing in my office!"
Jack writhed and squirmed, throwing his arms back and forth and kicking his long legs in Nick's direction. Eventually, he gave up and relaxed, dangling his arms, legs, and head as the chief glared at him. Breathing in through his nostrils, Bogo leaned down and set the rabbit back on the ground before backing away and eyeing the scene cautiously.
"Thank you. Now, officers Hopps and Wilde: I didn't bring you two here to start some skirmish in my office! You're here for a reason... An important reason, at that."
"And what would that be, huh?" The fox growled in frustration. "What could possibly be so ridiculous that it would involve him!" He said, jabbing a finger towards Jack Savage.
"I'll get to that, now can you please calm down, officer Wilde?! This is a formal and cooperative meeting that's just between us four! Compose yourself!"
"But why him? Why him?" He pointed at Jack again and again. "You know what he tried to do to her!"
Judy's ears fell to the back of her head, and she tried to avoid Jack's piercing gaze. She could hear the pain in Nick's voice and see it in his expression: It deeply saddened her.
"I completely understand, officer. I don't expect any of you to like this, but this is an important matter that needs to be dealt with... I fear for the safety of the public..."
"The public? What have they got to do with anything?" Nick questioned.
"It's more than just that! But yes... I fear that the sinister workings of a single and deadly mind are about to come to fruition... Workings that threaten the safety of many."
"Why don't you just send the other officers then? Why drag us into this, huh?" The fox retorted angrily.
"Because... You two are the best for the-" Bogo started as he sat back down in his chair, but was interrupted when Nick snorted audibly in disagreement.
"Oh come on, Chief, don't pull that crap on us! You've got plenty of other officers that are just fine to deal with whatever this nonsensical new case of yours is, this time!"
"No, you don't understand!" The chief assured, visibly trying to control his anger. "You and Hopps are not only my best options, but quite frankly, my only options!"
"And why is that? What makes us so special then, huh?"
"Because if you don't accept this, then you'll be putting yourselves in danger!" The water-buffalo yelled aloud, rising from his chair.
Silence enveloped the entire room for the count of ten.
"Danger? What sort of danger?" Judy found herself asking. "What's this really about, chief?"
The chief sighed heavily before lowering himself back down into his chair. He cupped his hooves to his muzzle and wiped away at his eyes. Nick noticed for the first time that there were purple-tinged bags of exhaustion forming beneath thee water-buffalo's hazel-colored eyes, which were blood-shot and grimy with crust. Bogo spoke out loud;
"I have reason to believe... That you two are in danger. And that the only way to ensure your safety, is by sending you against the very mammal that threatens it."
"And how would you do that, hm?" Nick inquired with raised eyebrows.
"Well, I suppose we'd start by sending you to city-hall, and then..." Bogo hesitated with a grunt. "Forget it. I can explain to you what needs to be done and why later on."
"Fine. But why does it involve him?" The fox asked, jutting his chin towards the male rabbit.
"He is here to help fill you in on the details. He's part of the problem, you see, and knows it better than most others."
"So then what now?" Nick concluded, his demeanor much more relaxed and calm than earlier, now that he had time to compose himself. Chief Bogo then explained;
"Now, you need to learn what you're going up against... Several days ago, I was visited by a rat, known as Grygorri Ratsputin. He heavily implied a threat towards me, and I have reason to believe that you two are involved, one way or another. I didn't arrest him. First, I need you both to find him and to try to question him about his motivations."
"You were threatened by a rat? Heh, kinda lopsided, if you ask me: What kind of rodent could possibly threaten someone like yourself?" The fox mused with a half-smirk.
"A very dangerous one, officer. I'll leave it to Mr. Savage here-" Bogo gestured towards Jack. "-To explain everything he knows about the rat, since he's met him in the past."
"Whoa whoa, now hold up!" Judy made a time-out symbol with her arms. "Did you catch this creep on camera?"
The water buffalo shook his head. "I'm afraid not. This office doesn't have any cameras. I prefer my working environment to be private, mind you." He claimed, sitting back.
"Ratsputin... I've heard that name before! Jack mentioned it the morning that we arrested him." The female bunny exclaimed.
Nick felt his fists curl up tightly and clench as he noticed the male rabbit in question stifle a very slight and humorous snort, as if he were in on some sort of stupid joke.
"Really now?" The fox grumbled, glaring at Jack. "Well then, how about we have this creep explain to us just exactly who this Ratsputin character is?"
Jack narrowed his eyes.
"Oh, you flatter me officer. "He said sarcastically. "But yes, I agree: If we're going to get anywhere with this, we might as well start from the beginning, eh?"
Jack smiled before clearing his throat audibly.
"Grygorri Ratsputin... That's a name that few hear. Very secretive. He's a shareholder in my own company, but is also the head of multiple major news outlets that you may or may not have heard of, such as ZNN. He takes advantage of his power in the media to blackmail, manipulate, and worm his way into all kinds of places... Allegedly. Whenever he threatens someone, he often uses his control over the papers to spread his black-brokered gossip across the city, that is, if the victim in question doesn't bow to his whims."
"So, he's a corrupted newspaper-dude who blackmails citizens?" The fox interrupted. "This guy's starting to sound like a real piece of work, huh?"
"Right you are. He's a ruthless media-magnet who holds the world's sins in the palm of his paw. He doesn't, and won't hesitate to use that knowledge to bring down anyone, anywhere, even in city-hall. Even here, in the ZPD. He may not be some psychopathic crime-lord that relies on brute-force like a very certain bat that some of us might be familiar with, but he's no less dangerous than any one of them. Also unlike them, Ratsputin doesn't kill: He ruins. Lives, careers, mammal's wills to live. He's quite dangerous."
"Holds the world's sins in the palm of his paw? Great, so he's a blackmailer, sure, but how does he even find out or get hold of all this information in the first place?" Nick asked.
"Like I said, he's wormed his way into all kinds of places over the years! The rat's got his fingers dipped into every type of pie from here on to Bunny-Burrow! He's got eyes and ears all across the city that gather information from the most prominent of mammals, including politicians, doctors, lawyers, and countless others. When it comes to your more Average-Joes, he's been known to threaten them and their families in exchange for knowledge and scandalous information. It's been assumed that he stores all of this gathered information on both hard and digital copies somewhere in his home for safe-keeping, where he can sift through it and learn all that he can to use against his victims... If you believe the rumors, at least."
"I guess that makes sense. It would explain how he knows so much. But where exactly do we feature in this? I still haven't heard anything about us being of any use in this."
"Well, chief Bogo wants you to go after the rat to question him, of course. Alongside this, he's been having some recent visitations down at city-hall, and you'll be the ones to investigate into that, to perhaps see if Ratsputin is up to anything shifty down there. The Chief is quite suspicious of him. Besides, Bogo thinks that you, Nick, are the only one who can actually manage to stand up to Ratsputin and his intellect: He's a fast thinker and talker, and it'll take someone who's equally as willful as him to do the job right."
"City-hall? What's this creep doing there that needs investigating?" The fox asked with raised eyebrows and pursed lips.
"The chief and I believe that Ratsputin is up to something down at city-hall... Something big, and something dangerous. Neither of us have any idea in the slightest on what that might be, but if one thing here is crystal clear, it's that any sort of meeting or agreement between Ratsputin and the mayor is nothing short of a bad omen for us all."
"So lemme get this straight..." Judy stated. "You think that the mayor herself is working with, or being threatened by Ratsputin?"
"Exactly, my dear. The evidence is clear as it is: The mayor doesn't hold private meetings with just anyone off of the streets, as I'm sure that you know. Most of her meetings are listed as a part of her public schedule, and there's absolutely nothing that contains Ratsputin's name! It's clear that he doesn't want to be seen, and wants to keep his conversation with the mayor hushed-up for whatever reason. He's no doubt up to something devious..."
"Okay, this is really interesting and all, but why are you telling us all of this, anyways? Aren't you all buddy-buddy with the rat?" Nick added.
At the notion of the fox's question, the male rabbit chuckled heartily before briefly glancing at chief Bogo and presenting him with a coyish sort of wink.
"Good question, friend! For starters, I am not Ratsputin's friend. He was merely a shareholder in my company, which is why the dear chief of police here wanted me to fill you in on him and his work. Also, I've been offered a reduced-sentence in jail for my accomplice-testimony here. The more information I give, the shorter my time behind bars!"
"WHAT?!" The fox found himself shouting. "That's ludicrous! You're insane, and you deserve to waste away in prison for the rest of your life! And I'm not your friend!"
"That's not all, actually! Alongside my oh-so generous accomplice-testimony, I'll also be lending my efforts to the likes of your investigation."
Jack Savage smiled wide, showing off his pristine and pearly-white teeth.
"You best start to consider me as a friend, officer Wilde... After all, I'll be right by your side every step of the way!"
"Uh, nuh-uh! Absolutely not!" Nick shook his head from side to side as if he couldn't believe it. He then turned towards the chief. "You want us to work with this scum-stain?!"
"I'm sorry, but we need his help. He's the only one we could find who knows Ratsputin personally, and his assistance could prove to be more than useful." Bogo replied softly.
"Useful? Does he even know how to handle his way around a fire-arm?" Judy cried out, pointing towards the male rabbit, who scoffed at her remark.
"Oh please... I know my way around a weapon, I assure you."
Furrowing her brow as her jaw dropped, Judy took to grinding her teeth together as she watched Jack take a few steps closer, closing the distance between the two of them.
"Don't you belittle me." He muttered, staring into her eyes.
The tension between the two rabbits felt hot enough to melt ice. The fox glared at the water-buffalo, who stared back with disappointed eyes. Nick spoke aloud;
"That's it. We're done here! I'm sorry chief, but you'll have to find someone else to do your dirty work. Here we are, just back fresh from our vacation, and you try to throw us right into this new and completely absurd case? No disrespect intended sir, but you're as insane as Jack Savage if you think that we'd ever possibly work with him!"
Nick approached Judy before lightly pulling her away from Jack, and standing between them.
"I'm sorry to say it, but we choose to deny your case, chief." The fox claimed. "You can go ahead and throw Mr. Savage here back into his jail cell... Where he belongs."
And at that, Nick opened the door and exited the room alongside his mate, whose choose not to utter a single word.
The fox made sure to slam the door on his way out.
8:04 P.M
After abandoning the ZPD Head-Quarters, the fox and bunny both promptly made their way back to their apartment, where they could at last be at peace.
Upon arriving, the both of them settled down for some time within the warm, soft folds of their bed. Buried in blankets for nearly six hours, they awoke to the soothing sound of rain as it pattered softly against the nearby glass window to their bedroom. Feeling much better than earlier, Nick and Judy slowly gathered their bearings and recomposed themselves as they gradually awoke from their extra-long nap before meeting in the living room, both intent on the discussion of dinner and the coming night of activities.
"So, got any plans, slick?" The bunny found herself asking the fox, who shrugged nonchalantly in response.
"I think I got one worth considering: Whatcha think on the both of us headin' to Tundra-Town, and gettin' some grub and a few drinks at Honey's tavern?" He replied easily.
"Sounds good to me!" Judy claimed jovially. "I'd love to try one of those Vanilla-Vodka-Floats that that walrus, Ivar, was drinking the last time we saw him! Sounds good."
"Hmm... Speaking of Ivar, I wonder if he's at Honey's right now... Huh."
"Oh, right! Yeah! If he is, we should tell him all about our vacation! He'd like that." The bunny stated with a smile.
"Good plan, Carrots. We should also be sure to thank him for introducing us to captain unicorn, of course."
"You're such a jerk, you know that, don't you?"
"What, and you're only just gettin' that now?" The fox teased with a half-lidded smirk, effectively causing the bunny to roll her eyes. "Well, let's get going, shall we?"
8:34 P.m
The monorail ride to Tundra-Town had been smooth and beautiful, as always.
In the distance, the colorful ribbons of the Aurora-Borealis stringed and flowed across the length of the sky, lightening the otherwise darkened district of Tundra-Town with a colorful and prismatic glow of purple, blue, green, and yellow. The train plowed through packs of snow that had blanketed across the length of the tracks, and soon enough, the fox and bunny found themselves stepping out and entering the Tundra-Town Station, with it's gorgeous architecture and icicle drenched structures, each building completed with caps of glowing stars, or pointed and sloping roof-tops that jutted up straight towards the dark and expansive sky-line.
Immediately setting off towards the direction of Honey's tavern, Nick and Judy eventually came to sight with the small brick-building, positioned directly next to the frosted-over park where Judy had first entered in that fighting cost some time ago. After all they'd been through since then, that single and particular memory felt like a million years old.
Pushing against the smaller-sized door that was specially designed for mammals of comparatively tinier sizes, the two of them promptly stepped inside and dusted off their snow-cakes clothes before making their way towards the bar-counter, where they both spotted Honey chatting with a number of different mammals who sat and stood against the wooden surface of the counter-top, ranging from polar-bears to teeny-tiny arctic shrews and mice.
Scanning the cozy environment of the the tavern's interior, the bunny happened to steal a brief glance at their old friend, Ivar the walrus, who lounged in one of the larger sized booths situated near the back of the room. Mug in hand, he conversed rather loudly and boisterously with another mammal whom sat opposite to him. The walrus's accomplice was equally as large and just as booming, with his deep and watery voice reverberating audibly across the room, which itself was packed with all sorts of other customers. The mammal in question had sleek-looking and navy-blue skin, with not a single trace of fur dotted anywhere across his flesh. He adorned a blue trench-coat and corresponding cargo pants, and in one of his flippery hands, he held a bone-white pipe, of which that he brought up to his face and breathed in through quite often enough.
Though, just like last time that she had seen him, the mammal's most crowning and defining feature was without a doubt his massive, six-foot long horn, jutting out and spiraling straight from the narwhal's face until it ended in a sharp and pointed tip.
"Nick, look! It's Ivar and Haddock!" Judy pointed out to the fox, who looked over in their general direction whilst nodding to himself. "We should go and talk to them!"
"Maybe later... I wanna stop and bid a lovely good evening to my favorite badger, first. Hey Honey!" Nick called out, knocking on the wooden counter-top of the bar.
The badger looked over and locked eyes with Nick, who shot her with a single imaginary finger gun, all the while donning his custom and favored half-lidded smirk.
"Nickster! Welcome back, you!" Honey cried out, opening her arms in a gesture of greetings. "It's great to see you again!"
"We've only been gone four days, you know... It ain't like we've been to the moon and back, or anything like that."
"Right right, I know... I'm just happy to see you!" The badger claimed with a crooked smile. "Tell me, you two enjoy your little vacation, huh?"
"Oh, it was an absolute blast!" Judy responded, her fingers tapping against the counter-top. "We did all kinds of fun stuff, like surfing, dancing, and even paragliding!"
"I almost died." Nick claimed. "My parachute had a hole in it!"
"It was no bigger than a shrew, you dumb fox." The bunny retorted with a sly smile.
"Was not!"
"Whatever you say, sweet-heart." Judy stated before turning back towards Honey. "Think we can get some drinks? I'm pretty thirsty, actually."
"Don't forget about hungry... We're hungry too." The fox added.
"Well, I'll be glad to fix you both up somethin' or another! Anythin' on your mind tonight, in particular?"
"Got any bug sandwiches? I'm really in the mood for one of those bad boys. Oh, and we'll both take a Vanilla-Vodka-Float as well. You want anything to eat, carrots?"
"Actually, I'm not feeling very hungry, as of now... I'm still up for that Vanilla-Vodka-Float, though!" Judy admitted.
"Alright, comin' right up! You two can go ahead and take a seat right anywhere you'd like!"
Thanking Honey before excusing themselves from the bar, Nick and Judy promptly took off in the direction of the far back, where Ivar and Haddock were both still chatting loudly. As they approached the table, they noticed another mammal that had been out of sight from her previous perspective due to the narwhal's hulking form. Tucked into the back of the booth, a middle-aged male seal was listening intently to the walrus and narwhal's conversation, and occasionally threw in a lone comment of his own accord.
"Evenin' fellas." Nick began once he reached the base of the booth, effectively causing all three of the marine-based mammals to look down at him with mixed expressions.
"Nikolai!" Ivar cried, slamming his meaty fists atop the table in excitement.
"Boyo!" Haddock grumbled a little bit too loudly, a stream of smog spouting from his blow-hole all the while.
"Sorry, who?" The seal added, his brow raised as he stared down the fox in question.
"The name's Nick Wilde, nice to meet ya, chap." The fox said as he gave a brief salute to the seal, whose expression morphed from confusion to that of aggression.
"Wait a minute, I-I know you! You're t-that con-artist fox who sold me those venomous sea-urchins! YOU COST ME MY DREAM, YOU JERK!"
The seal growled audibly before trying to clamber across the top of the table and get to Nick, who slightly backed away from the scene in apprehension. Thankfully, John Haddock held the irate seal down before he could get very far, and being as big as he was, easily shoved him back into the groove of his seat in the back corner of the booth.
"Belay that, Yuri!" The narwhal ordered gruffly. "There be no sense in startin' any scuffles here... It's in the past, so just let it go!"
"Huh. That's the second time that someone has tried to murder me today."
Haddock coughed harshly before turning towards Nick and Judy, looking down at them from his comparatively towering height.
"Do excuse him, a' course... He's had a lil' too much to drink tonight. Besides, ye aren't exactly the most savory sort of mammal, Mr. Wilde, so his actions be of no surprise."
"Right, no need to bring it up, captain." Nick turned and gestured toward the seal. "So you're Yuri, huh? Yeah, I think I recognize the face... Just a little bit, at least..."
"Thas' right! I'm the bloke who fell for your conniving trick! And you're the bloke who owes me a new restaurant!"
Yuri once again tried getting up from his seat, but Haddock shoved him back down as easily as he had the first time.
"So, what brings you back to seediest bar in Tundra-Town, comrades?" Ivar questioned, pointing to the fox and bunny. "You must have returned from vacation, I presume."
"Yeah, we just got back this morning, actually." Judy answered with a warm smile.
"Did you enjoy it?" Ivar added quickly.
"We sure did! Though compared to this place, Pawaii was so much warmer... Tundra-Town makes me want to head back! My tail is freezing off!"
"You just need more meat on your bones!" The walrus claimed. "You don't eat enough, little bunny. Ivar is worried about you."
"I eat just fine, thank you very much!" Judy retorted, crossing her arms across her chest and throwing her hip out to the side.
"Maybe a little too much sometimes, honestly." The fox joked.
"Nick!"
The bunny reached over and bopped him upside the head before rolling her eyes and turning back towards their flippery-friends.
"But yeah, it's good to see you all again, it really is. Mind if we join you three?"
"Of course not!" Ivar stated boldly and with vigor.
"Knock yerself out." Haddock agreed flatly, not really leaning to one option or the other.
"Yes..." Yuri grumbled broodingly.
Nodding to herself, Judy lept up into Ivar's seat before gesturing at Nick to join her.
"So, I noticed that you got yourself a new pipe there, captain." The fox started, pointing towards the narwhal's smoking utensil.
"Aye... It's a keeper, as long as it doesn't get snapped in half." Haddock emphasized, glaring directly at Nick, whom simply shrugged in response.
"Oh, are we still goin' on about this? That was ages ago, and besides, you got yourself a brand new one! We cool?"
"I suppose we are... I suppose we are."
There was a brief period of awkward silence, but it was quickly (and thankfully) broken by the gleeful voice of Honey, who stepped up to the booth and handed out the previously ordered food and drink to the likes of Nick and Judy, both of whom reached out to obtain their newfound beverages. As the badger set down the mugs, she said aloud;
"Here ya are, Nicky! One Crispy-Cricket-Sandwich, and two Vanilla-Vodka-Floats! Enjoy!"
Honey then strolled off back to her station at the bar, but not before giving a single wink to the crowd of mammals crammed in the booth. the fox and bunny alike instantaneously dove into their beverages, with Nick choosing to save his precious sandwich for later. As they drank the sweet and chilling liquid, Ivar took the time to voice his thoughts.
"Ooo, that drink is Ivar's favorite!"
The narwhal scoffed a grunt.
"Everythin' here is yer favorite."
"Ivar disagrees! He despises the tomato-salad!" The walrus thundered. "Ivar can't live off of cutsie-little rabbit food... He is warrior and champion!"
His hazy yellow eyes darted back and forth between Judy and Nick.
"Eh, no offense, little bunny." He concluded with a sheepish smile.
"None taken! Just... Be sure to remember what I told you last time about using the word cute around us bunnies." Judy reminded the walrus, who nodded in understanding.
"That's right: Calling other mammal species names is degrading and disrespectful." The fox joked.
"Comin' from the fox who keeps callin' me unicorn." Haddock grumbled, clearly not noticing Nick's sarcasm. "Don't be a bloody hypocrite, boyo."
"No need to blame the fox for being a hypocrite, Johnny." Yuri piped up. "I read from a newspaper article about chompers like him that it's hardwired into their biology!"
"Woah there, little bit uncalled for, don't ya think?" Nick muttered quickly.
"Yeah, that's not very nice!" Judy added. "You should apologize!"
"Apologize? Why should I? It's a known fact! And besides, if anyone here needs to apologize, it's him! To me!" Yuri retorted angrily.
"I've already said, I'm no longer the fox that you remember me as!" Nick reassured the seal. "And what do you mean by known fact? That's complete and utter hog-wash!"
"Why would the papers lie? It's obvious that foxes are shifty - You're living proof of it! Don't tell me you aren't. Oh, and you may think that you're all righteous just because you're a police officer, sure, but I'll always remember you as the crook that cost me my career! You need to be thrown in jail for all of the horrible things that you've done!"
The seal's sudden and peculiar choice of words made Nick's mind flash back to the moment earlier that day when he had first seen Jack Savage. He had looked so calm and collected, so suave and sophisticated, despite all the horrible things that he had done, including financial fraudulence, and even the attempted assault of Nick's wife, Judy.
That momentary thought, topped off by all of the fox's growing anger and distaste, pooled out of his conscious and into the form of frustrated words;
"No, you know what? You're right! Maybe I should go to jail! Heck, I think I'll go there right now, actually!"
Nick stood up and jumped down from his side of the booth, landing concisely on his padded feet before walking off towards the exit. Looking frantically between Ivar, John, Yuri, Honey, and her husband himself, Judy mumbled in worry as she too lept off of the booth and ran after Nick, soon catching up to him and grabbing tenderly at his left paw.
"Nick, where are you going?" She inquired, concern lacing the roots of her words.
"I'm just going for a short walk... I'll be back in a little bit, so just stay here, Whiskers."
His reassurance effectively caused the bunny to slow down and halt in her tracks, staring at Nick as he exited the tavern before making her way back towards the booth.
9:27 P.M
The dark recesses of night were, and always had been, Nick's favorite time of day.
Back when he had lived on the streets, he had spent many a lonely nights walking quietly by himself through the various parks throughout the city, staring at the stars and pacing alone with his vivid and picturesque thoughts. He'd think back upon many different things, including his day, his mood, and his role in life. He didn't consider himself a philosopher, but he sure liked to imagine himself as one whenever he walked along the winding paths of whatever park he was exploring that night.
Now was no different.
Exiting right out of the warmth of Honey's tavern, the fox stepped out and into the frigid cold of the night. Huddling his arms even closer against his sides, Nick noticed that the snow-fall had lessened, and now only a few drizzling snow-flakes fluttered down in small-sized flurries of individual white specks. After leaving behind the tavern, he made his way straight, directly into the property of the very same park that Judy had participated in that boxing match with Ivar some four days past. He smiled, thinking to himself.
That day had been memorable as it was, but now, Nick felt miserable and unwanted.
Perhaps he should have known better to reject against Judy's comforting reassurance, but in all honesty, he really just wanted to be left alone: He didn't want any of those other mammals, including his own wife, to see that something had effectively gotten to him. Yuri's tasteless accusations were insulting as they were, but what really took the cake was the brief remembrance of the way that Jack Savage had both looked and acted back at chief Bogo's office in the ZPD Head-Quarters.
Nick grit his teeth together and clenched his fists as he growled beneath his breath: He wanted to hurt that rabbit.. Badly...
He continued walking for some time, each step that he took taking him even deeper into the snow-caked depths of the park, where fuzzy conifer and pine trees sprouted thick and tall right up from beneath the snow-covered ground. Eyeing their towering majesty, Nick sighed longingly to himself and closed his eyes, taking in a deep and relaxing breath.
"Ah, hello there, good sir." A not-so pleasant sounding voice called out from the fox's left. "What brings you out at this near-deathly hour of night, might I inquire of you?"
Bracing himself for the sight of a mugger, Nick slowly turned toward the direction of the croaky, knife-like voice, and instead found himself staring down a large rat, sitting on the opposing side of a public-park stone table. The rat had a long and angular muzzle, with a pair of twin snaggle-teeth protruding from symmetrical sides on his lower jaw, which itself was lined with a prickly beard, and his chin crowned with a curled goatee. His eyes were pure-black, like most rodents, but they seemed to reflect a cold, and chilling sense of calculation and intelligence, as if he were silently judging the fox who stood in front of him, scanning him over and analyzing everything that he could gather.
His outfit seemed quite old-fashioned and out of the ordinary, consisting of a long and billowing black cape positioned over a sturdy court-suit, which itself was intricately lined with golden-colored cog and gear-like designs inlaid in the very fabric itself. A lengthy black cane leaned delicately against the side of the table, directly next to the rat's left foot. The pink flesh that made up his long tail was bare of any sort of fur, and it swung slowly from left to right, lightly stroking against the concrete pavement beneath him.
Strangest of all, from the top of his head and the back of his neck, an absolute mess of hair sprouted up, clumps of it gathering together to form spikes that lined themselves down the length of his hair, the tip of which very nearly reached the base of his tail. Overall, the rat looked roughly the same size as Judy, but was still far smaller than Nick.
The fox sighed, recognizing this mammal as no mugger. He was too old and small to be of any physical threat to him. Yet still, there was something suspiscious about him...
"Um, I'm just going on a stroll, that's all." Nick replied truthfully. "I just wanted to get some air... What about you?"
"Well, I come here at this exact time nearly every night, as a matter of fact. I enjoy the freshness of the night-sky, the solitude that lingers in the air, oh, can't you just feel it?"
"I-I guess... So, you just come here and sit in the park all by yourself?" The fox asked with a single brow raised in apprehension and distrust.
"No, not exactly. You see, I certainly do come here and sit by myself, but whenever there's a random passerby, I often ask them a single, yet simple question." The rat claimed.
"And that would be...?"
"Tell me, Nicholas Wilde... Do you like chess?"
That last statement caught the fox off-guard, and he briefly coughed from choking on his own saliva.
"Wait, how do you know me?" He asked hastily.
The rat chuckled at the notion of the fox's question, but simply waved it off with his right paw as if it didn't matter.
"No need to fuss over that! A mammal of my age knows many things... Besides, you're Zootopia's first fox police officer! That counts for something."
"Yeah, I guess you're right... But who are you?"
"Oh, just an interested party." The rat replied with a crooked grin. "My identity is irrelevant, really, but I believe that you still haven't answered my question, Nicholas."
"Chess, you mean? Er, well, I've played it before, but I can't say that I'm very fond of it... Or very good at it either..."
"How exciting! I simply must ask of you to join me! I adore a good game of chess!" The rat claimed jovially. "Here, come, come! I welcome the amusement!"
Looking back in the direction that he had came from, Nick shrugged to himself, reasoning that a single game of chess couldn't hurt. He walked over to the table and sat down on the opposing side of the rat, who had pulled out a clean and simple wooden chess-board, of which the two of them promptly assembled in the proper fashion before starting. All the while, he was wary that this might have been some sort of set-up; with the real mugger popping out and sticking a knife in his back as his attention was focused on the old rat and his game. Yet still, there was no surprise attack: No mugger jumping out from behind, and no trickery or cons. Just one old rat and a chessboard.
"Here now, you can be the white pieces, and I'll play as the black pieces!" He offered. "White may own the first move of the game, but I just love being black! Being bad!"
The rat sputtered into a series of wheezing chuckles as he rubbed his hands together and stared greedily at the chess-board. After some time, he must've noticed the fox's sense of discomfort and confusion; His finger tracing the edge of the board and his eyes locked onto the varying pieces as if he were wondering what their purposes were.
"I don't exactly remember what some of these pieces do, or how they work." He admitted to the rat, who simply nodded in understanding.
"Well, I'll be glad to explain it to you. That right there... Is the pawn!"
The rat pointed to a row of tiny white pieces at the front of Nick's territory.
"They are rather insignificant as they are, admittedly, but can be used quite effectively by the clever mammal."
He then pointed out to a pair of castle-shaped pieces on corresponding sides of the fox's back row.
"Those are rooks, or more commonly known as castles. They move in a straight path in all directions, with the exception of diagonal, of course. And speaking of diagonal..."
Nick's ratty opponent then singled out another pair of white-colored pieces from his side of the board, these ones located two spaces down from the rooks.
"These are bishops! They can only move diagonally."
He smiled and then pointed towards the horse-headed pieces. "Those are knights, but can only move in L-shaped patterns."
"And then there's the king and the queen, yeah, I think I got it now... Thanks." Nick quickly spoke aloud, causing the rat to silence himself before smirking.
"Excellent! So are you at last ready to play, Nicholas?" He stated, to which the fox nodded in confirmation. "Are you sure? Chess is a thinking game, after all. It can be quite-"
"I think that I'm ready... Thank you." The fox repeated again.
The rat squinted his beady-black eyes in what almost looked like a sort of glare, but it quickly vanished before being replaced by a smug and triumphant smirk.
"Good, then. Since you seem to be inexperienced with the game, I'll go easy on you at first. Sound alright to you?"
"That's fine by me, yeah, and... Um, where are all of your pawns?" Nick found himself asking, his sense of curiosity getting the better of him.
"To be fair, I'll only use half my pieces." The rat gestured to his side of the board, which was completely bare of pawns; only containing the main pieces. "Is that not generous?"
"Oh yeah, that's great! Heh, this will be too easy!"
"Overconfidence is a flimsy shield, Nicholas. Now, I believe you were about to make your first move?"
"Right, sorry. And... There!" The fox said proudly, crossing his arms after having moved one of his horse pieces to the front lines of the battle. "That should do it!"
For the next five minutes or so, the two of them quietly took to playing their game of chess. Despite his initial sense of confidence, and the fact that he had twice as many pieces as his opponent, the rat continued to eat away at the foundation of the fox's territory, slowly but surely taking one piece after another. For the longest of times, Nick hadn't managed to capture a single on of the rat's black-colored pieces, but he eventually beat out one of his bishops, and even one of his rooks, as well. Slowly but surely.
However, his brief comeback wasn't to last: Time and time again, Nick lost piece after piece until all that he had left was a pair of pawns, a rook, and his king and queen.
After spending a considerably decent amount of time thinking over his past and potential future moves, the rat cleared his throat audibly and tapped his finger against his wrist.
"Stalling can be considered cheating, you know. Make your move."
"I'm not stalling, I'm thinking! You said that chess was a thinking game!" Nick grumbled loudly. "How're you beating me so easily, anyways?"
"Well, I did memorize all your previous moves, so that's probably quite a large supporting factor, wouldn't you agree?" The rat said casually.
"Wait, what? You memorized my moves? What are the chances of that?!"
"Apparently higher than you think." Ratsputin chuckled dryly. "Also, what you're planning with that knight piece of yours won't work, by the way."
"So you saw through that too, huh?" The fox mumbled flatly.
"Oh, never you mind, Nicholas. And it's not chance, it's chess: One move, one survivor." The rat leaned close, whispering almost threateningly; "Now make yours."
The fox swallowed hard, and looked down at his remaining pieces. Raising his paw and hovering over his king for a few brief seconds, he eventually decided to shift it to the side so that it wouldn't be in the direct path of one of his opponent's rooks, which was positioned dangerously close to Nick's side of the board, just a few spaces away from his king.
"So, all pretenses aside, why are you really here?" The rat suddenly asked Nick the exact second that he had repositioned his single, black-colored bishop.
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, don't give me that! You're not really here just to take some stroll in the middle of the night, obviously. You came here to escape something, I reckon..." He mused.
"How could you tell?"
"Let's just say that I'm rather good at reading other mammals. You're too nervous... Too antsy, and bitter-minded to be enjoying a walk, especially at this time of hour."
"Meaning...?" Nick asked. He didn't trust this rat, and didn't like how he was asking so many questions. Still, he had a feeling that this conversation was just getting started.
"You're not here to enjoy the evening, you're here to escape your problems. Am-I-wrong?" The rat hypothesized in an almost mocking tone of voice.
The fox swallowed hard: He was right. Nick didn't come all the way out here just to get some fresh air, but in reality, to get get away from his problems. To distance himself from what got to him, as he did so often in the past. It made him feel rather shameful and regretful, but he certainly didn't want to deal with that seal and his blatant accusations. So, he did what he thought was logical, and distanced himself from what was bothering him. Now, he was in the middle of nowhere playing chess with a complete stranger.
"No, you're right... You're right. There was this seal at a restaurant... He was getting real accusatory with me, so I just decided to go on a walk to let off some steam."
"Ah, as I thought." The rat inhaled through his nostrils. "I would ask you about your problems, but frankly, I care more about the sources behind them."
"I don't understand."
"Heh, you should have that on a T-shirt. What I mean, is that I've been expecting you, Nicholas... Not here in the park, obviously, but expecting you nonetheless."
"I still don't understand."
"And there's the back of the T-shirt!" The rat wheezed a series of chuckles before continuing. "I've wanted to talk to you for some time, simply to explain to you a few things."
"And what is that you want to explain to me, huh?" Nick questioned, moving one of his rooks and capturing the rat's last remaining bishop. "The floor is yours."
A smile spread it's way across the rat's muzzle, parting his lips and displaying his beady, pointed rows of teeth.
"For starters, I'd like to point out the fact that I'm a rather... Persuasive, mammal... I've been known to, ah, apply pressure to other mammal's pressure points."
"Wait... Wait a second. You're that one guy! T-the blackmailer! Ratsputin!"
"That's Mister Ratsputin to you!" The rat hissed. "Yes, hello. Nice to meet you. Now that we've gotten the formalities out of the way, may I continue?"
Nick stayed silent, thinking over the situation. All the while, Ratsputin placed one of his knight pieces forward and captured Nick's white-colored queen. The rat grinned;
"That's what I thought. Onto the topic at hand: I've just recently been notified by an associate of mine that chief Bogo had followed through with my prediction, in that he would send his prized-possessions, you and your wife, out trying to chase me down and bring me in for questioning. Thus, I have been expecting your arrival, as I mentioned. "
"How did you know that we were coming?"
"Oh, it's simple, really. Not only do I have eyes and ears everywhere, but all that it takes is a few willing participants: I can bribe them, or threaten them... Whichever works."
"Sure, pal. Whatever. But that still doesn't answer my question."
"Well, a magician never reveals his secrets, does he now? Also, it's your move." Grygorri replied, gesturing at the chess-board.
Nick slid his last remaining rook forward, and grimaced when the rat used his next move to capture the aforementioned piece.
"How are you so good? It just doesn't make any sense." The fox murmured as he pushed his king one space forward.
With his comment capturing the attention of the rat, Nick eyed him as he leaned back on his side of the table, groaning in seeming boredom and disappointment as he lolled his head.
"Why can't mammals just think? It frustrates me, living in a world of imbeciles. Nobody truly takes the time to just... Think. You're all so boring... So predictable."
He sighed, but then perked up and breathed in slightly, a minuscule and amused smirk emerging upon his muzzle.
"Yet so fun to... Play with." Ratsputin leaned forward and moved his queen piece, positioning it directly in the path of Nick's king. "Check."
The fox blinked a single time, staring down at the board and all of it's pieces, and realized in that moment that Ratsputin had planned out his attack with incredible efficiency and strategy; Ratsputin's oil-colored pieces had completely surrounded Nick's king, which stood alone and backed into a corner, with no help coming, and no way of escape.
"That still doesn't answer my question." Nick added, trying to addle his mind away from the way that Ratsputin acted out his tactics. "You're being too vague."
The rat sighed deeply once again before his expression hardened, turning into that of disgust, or disappointment.
"I simply know how mammals think. I know how mammals think I think... That's why I always win. I can see it all like a map inside my head. Everyone's so stupid, even you."
Ratsputin slid his queen forward and captured Nick's king, effectively ending their game.
"Checkmate." He said with a smirk.
"I'm not stupid. I lived on the streets of the city for almost twenty years, and I've had to use my wits to-"
"You know, I thought you'd be different... I really did. You have a lot going for you: Wit, intelligence, charm, charisma. You are right on your assessment of having pride in the abilities that have kept you alive, but in the end, it turns out that you're just another ordinary, boring mammal. An insignificant, expendable pawn in a game of higher power."
"And what does that make you?" Nick retorted, his fists balling up in growing frustration.
"Take a guess." The rat replied simply, tapping the pointed crown of his black-colored king piece.
"You really are a filthy rat, aren't you?"
"Coming from you, that's a compliment, really. Take a look in a mirror, and you'll see the face of a marionette: Strings attached to your limbs. You are an object. I own you."
"You do not own me!"
"Think what you want, but you'll never be anything more than a mere puppet, in my eyes. Do you know why?" Grygorri stood up slowly from his side of the table.
"Enlighten me." The fox demanded.
"It's because knowing is owning. I know things about you, Nicholas... Very private and sensitive things. Things that could tear your world apart." He claimed menacingly.
"Oh really? Cuz to me, you're sounding like a lot of bark and no bite. You really think you can tear my world apart?" the fox asked with finger quotes on those last four words.
Ratsputin simply shook his head and tutted beneath his breath. He then answered;
"Quite. And because I know everything about you... I own you. To point; I know what you did to the old Castle Fangpyre... It'd be a shame if the ZPD were to find out."
"What?! H-How do you-?"
"How do I know? Ha!" The rat chuckled. "That information is just simply too scandalous to keep all to yourself, Nicholas!"
The rat allowed himself a lazy smile. He continued;
"Information, yes, that is also in my possession. And to answer your question; Mister Fangpyre has filled me in on your past charade at his manor. He really doesn't like you."
"I-I didn't know that there was anyone else in that house!" Nick exclaimed. "Those are the facts!"
"Facts are for history books... I work in news. I have the information, and therefore I have you."
"This is blackmail!"
"No. This is more... Ownership. Yes. You'll do as I say, or else you can kiss everything you know and love goodbye." Ratsputin claimed, picking up his cane as he stood up.
The fox swallowed hard. "What is it that you want from me?" He asked slowly and steadily.
"Easy enough as it is: Stay out of my way, or else. I know that the chief plans on sending you to city-hall to investigate my associations with the mayor."
Ratsputin walked over to Nick and looked him dead in the eye, even despite his rather diminutive height impeding his efforts at intimidation.
"So stay out of it. Go off on another vacation, or something. You deserve it, I'm sure... Too much time spent running errands on behalf of others."
With a contented sigh, the rat then packed up his chessboard before tucking it under his arm. All the while, he stated;
"Well, I believe that I've managed to get my point across, so I suppose I'll be off for now."
"That's it? Y-You're just going to leave after all of that?" Nick questioned.
"That's right. Just remember what I said: Do not meddle again in my affairs, or those of my children. You have been warned, and I will not repeat myself if it happens again."
The fox watched the rat as he left the scene of the game; Strolling down in the path opposing the way that Nick had first came. Blinking periodically, Nick made his way back to the tavern, eventually reentering it's cozy interior and meeting up with his mate, whom he found asleep in the upstairs attic. She had awoken upon hearing his entrance, and took to questioning him about his experience outside. Though throughout the entire conversation, the fox said only one thing that truly caught the bunny off guard.
"Carrots... We need Jack Savage's help."
Hey Everyone!
Oh wow, this new chapter packed quite a punch, didn't it? The long awaited reemergence of Ratsputin has finally arrived, along with a whole new of information, dialogue, and mysterious new questions! I certainly hope that you lot will stick with me to through out this exciting new arc!
That being said, the usual comes as always: Do be sure to favorite and follow if you haven't already... We're so close to 1000 followers! :D
Be sure to tell me whatcha think of this latest chapter, of course! I'd adore a nice and lengthy review detailing your favored moments and thoughts! :)
Also, as a point of fact, I've actually began brainstorming ideas for the sixth arc, but that's still quite a ways away. From what I've devised so far, the coming 6th arc will be much more casual and laid-back, with all the crime-related prospects brushed away for the journey. But like I said, don't worry about it yet :)
In the meantime, you can expect to learn more about Ratsputin and his plan soon enough. That's all for now, though, my friends. Stay tuned!
'Till next time...
Peace!