"Better three hours too soon than a minute too late." - William Shakespeare
3:00 P.M
Nick knew that it would only be a matter of time until they at last returned back to the ZPD Head-Quarters.
Their latest mission had been one of great suspicion and conspiracy: State-secrets, long forgotten sins, dirt brushed lazily under the rug, dusty skeletons in the old closet.
Every step of the way, something had been gnawing at the back of Nick's head. Something just didn't add up, no matter what way he looked at it, whether it be from this angle or that, from one or one thousand miles away. One prospect was too low, another too high, and when one finally seemed to even out, it flipped over and completely threw itself out of whack, along with all of the others as well.
It was only after they had learned about just what exactly the state-secrets were that everything had started to fall properly into place.
City-hall was hiding blue-prints for a weapon of disastrous potential: Shock collars, practically designed to drive emotion to utter extinction, at least in the likes of the predator race. That's what Grygorri Ratsputin has been after all of this time. It had been a miracle that the new mayor had been able to resist his corrupting influence for this long, but like all things, it would only be a matter of time until she too finally snapped, and gave the rat what he wanted most of all.
Ironically enough, it had been Grygorri Ratsputin's very own children that had revealed the information on the peculiar state-secrets to the trio of mammals bent on the safety of the city and its residence. The rat twins had claimed that the documentations themselves had been reviewed and looked over by the ZPD before being locked away from the world. Bellwether planned and designed it, Ratsputin funded it, and Jack Savage intended on mass producing them for the entirety of the predator population.
The source of blame was on everyone and everywhere.
But in the end, all of it pointed back towards one mammal, the one that had sent them on the entire mission in the first place: Chief Bogo himself.
Practically kicking down the door to the water-buffalo's office after a brief slew of introductory knocks, Nick roughly dragged Jack Savage inside, with Judy following behind shortly. The fox hadn't waited for the chief's permission to enter, so he was ready for the ensuing round of chiding that he knew would come with such an unofficial entrance.
"Officer Wilde, just what have I told you before about entering my office without permission?" Chief Bogo grumbled, raising himself up from his black-colored office chair.
"With all due respect, sir, we have some stuff that you might want to hear about." Nick retorted, his emerald eyes locking with Bogo's hazel ones.
The water-buffalo snorted audibly through his thick nostrils. He spoke aloud as he slowly seated himself once more;
"And what could be so important that it requires my utmost and immediate attention? You should have just made an appointment with Clawhauser back at receptions instead of barging right in here in the middle of the day, but I presume that you wouldn't really have done so if it wasn't for something with at least some shred of importance... I'm guessing that it has something to do with the internal-investigation case at city-hall that I just recently assigned to the three of you, no?"
"That's right, chief." The fox stated lowly. "We just got back from city-hall, and now we know exactly what we're dealing with."
Nick's previous statement caused the water-buffalo's eyes to widen in anticipation and shock before narrowing in apprehension and readiness.
"Do you now? And what exactly are we dealing with, officer Wilde?" He asked, his tone radiating as if to say choose your next words carefully.
"The three of us found out what Grygorri Ratsputin is after down at city-hall. Shock collars, huh? We also found out that, apparently, you knew about them the entire time: That, as a point of fact, it was you who gave the order to lock them away from the public, instead of letting them all know just what exactly Bellwether was planning from the beginning. That it was you who'd rather hide the truth and lie than show everyone what that despicable little sheep really had planned for the city, had planned for me!"
With that last word, Nick clamped his free paw around his throat and squeezed, emphasizing the barbarism and cruel, sadistic nature of the shock collars.
"You knew what we were going up against, and what it meant for the city!" The fox growled at Bogo, causing Judy to swallow nervously, sensing tension in the air.
"Officers, I only told you what you needed to know for the case." Bogo interjected calmly. "What those documents are was never a part of it."
"But you lied to us... Just like this little crook!" Nick snarled, pulling Jack forward. "You both lied right to our faces! And worst of all, you both knew that you were!"
"Officer Wilde, the pretenses of the case demanded that-"
"Cut the crap!" The fox shouted out loud.
"ENOUGH!" Chief Bogo thundered, effectively silencing the room. "I hope you know that I have every right in the world to fire you for misconduct and challenging authority!"
The whole room stayed silent as the water-buffalo continued, each mammal flinching as his harsh words fell upon their sensitive ears.
"Perhaps I should have told you two officers about the documents, but then again, I could have been charged with sedition against the city! It was agreed upon by the city-council that no one should ever know what was in those documents. So no, you didn't have to know what exactly you were handling: You were only supposed to know why you were handling it, which was to keep it safe from Grygorri Ratsputin, who poses a greater threat to this city than perhaps anything we've ever faced before!"
"Chief, we-" Judy started, but was near-instantly cut off.
"Quiet, Hopps! I don't care what you know or don't know!"
Judy visibly shrunk, her long and floppy ears flattening themselves against the back of her neck and shoulders in shame and submission.
"The only thing that I care about is this creep-" Bogo pointed to his white-board, where a picture of Ratsputin hung. "-Being stopped before he can cause any further damage!"
Eyeing the white-board, it was apparent that the chief must've been quite hard at work, as of late; Dozens of colorful yarn pieces were strung between various pictures, notes, and papers pinned against the wall, nearly every single one of them leading back to the photograph of the rat, which was positioned directly in the center of the entire mess.
Bogo continued carefully;
"I know what you're thinking, officer Wilde: You think that I'm only trying to save my own hide, by assimilating the evidence left over from the Night-Howler case of the shock-collars into the paws of the ZPD." He shook his head. "That's where you're wrong... Nearly every single thing that I do here has a purpose, but that is not one of them!"
As much as he wanted to deny it, Chief Bogo was right: Nick had sort of rushed in throwing blatant accusations at him. He kept himself silent as his boss continued.
"One of the more specific reasons why I didn't want you to know what you were dealing with was because I knew that you would be revolted by the idea of such a thing. That it might interfere with your mission. I admit, the shock-collars are a despicable mechanism, but don't think for one second that I am not against them! Understood, officers?"
Nothing but silence.
"Understood?!" Bogo repeated, this time much louder and with more intensity.
"Yes sir!" Nick and Judy both stated directly in unison, planting their paws above their heads in a stead-fast and respectful salute.
The water-buffalo shot a glare at Jack Savage, whose ears shot up the instant that he locked eyes with the irate chief of police.
"Uh, yes sir!" He stammered quickly, mimicking the same pose as the two other officers.
"Good. Now take this rabbit back to the cell-block!" The chief ordered, pointing at Jack. "Get him out of my office!"
"Sir, d-don't you want to hear the details about our case?" Judy piped up, earning the buffalo's attention effectively.
"I believe that I've heard enough for today." He claimed, glaring daggers at Nick. "Besides, Mayor Lyncoln just called: She informed me of tomorrow's meeting at city-hall."
"Oh, that's great!" The female bunny exclaimed. "Alright sir, we'll take care of Jack immediately."
"Dismissed!"
3:10 P.M , Cell-Block A
"Uh, no no no!" Jack stammered irritably, pushing against Nick from behind. "I'm not going back in there!"
"Can it, Savage! I'm not in the mood for this right now. You're going back to your cell whether you want to or not!" Nick growled, his teeth visibly bared in growing frustration.
"No! C-can't we just work through the night? I-I was under the impression that I wouldn't have t-to go back in there until we were f-finished! Right?"
"Yeah, well your little impression was wrong, Jack." Judy added. "Stop struggling, or we're going to have to use force."
The male rabbit snorted audibly, a cruel grin surfacing on his face, parting his lips as wide as they could go.
"Ha! Wouldn't be the first time you've heard those words before, huh Alaina?" He hissed mockingly. "I can think of a few others while I'm at it, you know!"
Judy gasped and took a step back, releasing her hold on the male rabbit, who continued his tirade with fervid bitterness and unrestrained words.
"Tell me if this one rings any bells for ya!" Jack snarled. "I trusted you, even when everyone else didn't! You could say that the very same statement works for my current-"
FLZSSCH!
"Ack?!"
THUD!
The sour, metallic smell of electricity lingered in the air, tiny tendrils of smoke billowing off of the spot where Nick's taser had found its mark, directly between the small of the male rabbit's back, where the prongs of the device had sunk into his sensitive flesh and delivered a static charge of over fifty thousand volts directly to his body, causing him to fall over and hit the ground hard, his erratically twitching body soon going limp just a few short seconds later.
"About time someone shut him up." Nick grumbled as he fastened the taser back to his utility belt and turned around to face his mate. "You alright there, fluff?"
Judy swallowed.
"You didn't have to do that, Nick." She simply stated, to which the fox snorted audibly and responded back carefully;
"Why not? He was resisting apprehension, not to mention the fact that he was practically spitting on us. He was asking for it, Whiskers. I'm sorry if you don't see it that way."
The female bunny sighed.
"Let's just throw him back in his cell, shall we?" She asked, her inquiry followed with a slight chortle. "It's starting to smell like fried rabbit in here."
9:00 P.M
Their efforts had been substantial, and their sacrifices had been quite generous, but in the end, there was no place like home.
Having to deal with the scrutiny and ignorance of Jack Savage for the past full day was one thing, but topping it all off with another six of paper-work? Forget about it!
After both the bunny and the fox had reported their recent findings to Bogo, and dropped off the male rabbit back to his cell for the night, the two of them were quite distraught to come face to face with the monstrous mountain of paper-work that had been erected atop their respective desks, ranging from old case-files to criminal documentations and public records. Nick especially never enjoyed the methodical experience of filing papers, or classifying evidence: He was a free-range fox, as he liked to consider himself as, and very much enjoyed being able to walk around, and do as he pleased, all the while getting paid for it! That was one of the main reasons why he enjoyed accepting the larger cases, as a matter of fact.
Dropping off Jack had been a welcoming moment of bliss followed by six hours of anxiety, but now, it was at last time to head home and relax.
Nick and Judy, after departing from the ZPD, immediately set out towards their apartment, where they both planned on instantaneously crashing: That much paperwork can take a lot out of you. Upon reaching their home, they both stripped themselves down before retreating to the warm folds of their own bed, sleep soon following peacefully.
As much as he wished that he could deny it, Nick Wilde was all too familiar with nightmares.
Ever since his father had left him that cold and fateful night all those years ago, his dreams throughout the following weeks had been nothing short of lucid. They weren't varied, new, diverse, or even very intricate: There was always the same concept, the same underlying meaning and purpose, and the same terrifying, nightmarish situation.
Nick would dream that he was falling.
A simple concept as it was. Falling somehow, somewhere, for some reason. Eventually, the dreams became too much, and the young fox sought for aid from his mother, who would tell him that most dreams, nightmares being no exception, had an underlying purpose behind them, one way or another. She told him that when he fell in his dreams, it was often symbolic of a real life situation of losing control; Being completely powerless as you plummet toward the ground, destined for an inevitable, painful, and fatal impact.
The nightmares had raged on for entire weeks on end, but soon enough, like all things good or bad, they too came to an end.
For the longest of times, Nick wasn't sure what the dreams truly meant for that point of his life. He was young, and naive: Abandoned by his father and subject to horrid bullying in the vile name of prejudice and racism. Perhaps his dreams really were analogous with his life at the time: Zero control, completely and utterly powerless to the winds of fate that carried him through his life, day after day, year after year.
One lifetime of pain and misery.
But after years of pushing the old and bitter thoughts of his past to the back of his mind, Nick at last realized that the reason behind his nightmares must have been because of his father's leaving, and everything that went along with it, including many of Nick's old hopes and dreams, long forgotten and buried in the ever-shifting sands of time itself.
Nick had had very few nightmares ever since.
But now, the instant that the fox's eyes closed for good, his subconscious was thrust into a world of darkness and terror.
He was falling, just like in his youth: The ground beneath his very feet had swallowed him up and spat him into an inky abyss. He was falling through a dark, rocky pit, with tendrils of shadow wrapping around his body and pulling him even deeper into the depths. Nick felt pressure building in his chest, and his vision blurred with a hazy sort of glare.
The walls of the cave melted, and he then landed upon his back onto a hard surface below him.
Nick felt a chilling shiver course its way up the length of his back-bone, causing him to sit up and clutch at his shoulders, his canine teeth chattering together rapidly.
Everything was cold... Colder than the deepest, iciest lake in Tundra-Town.
He looked around, eyeing his surroundings: Nothing. Just pitch blackness. Though within a few seconds time, the shadows melted away like receding tidal waves, revealing the interior of some long, dark hall-way. The wall-paper was a dark purple color, and was lined with intricate designs and patterns. Paintings of random materials hung from the walls, ranging from flowers to some sort of shadowy landscape: It looked familiar to the fox, almost.
The carpet that he sat upon was clean, but fettered and damaged with age. It was colored identically with the purple walls, but the boards beneath it were a perplexing mixture of black and brown, rowed together orderly and following down the length of the hall, which was as dark as could be. The fox steadily rose to his feet, standing on two legs as he clutched at his fore-head tenderly, rubbing at his sinuses and trying to quell the painful throbbing in his brain and the piercing ringing in his ears.
He blinked slowly, his emerald-colored eyes readjusting to the darkness around him. His mind cleared itself for the first time, and he was able to sense things clearly.
The first thing he noticed was the music.
Deep, rich, and reverberating chords echoed through the hall-way, bouncing around in his ear-drums and causing his fur to stand on end, erect with a tingling sense of pleasure and emotion: The music was enticingly beautiful, and caused the fox's eyes to roll up into his head, and his lips to curl into a slight smile. He sniffed the air deeply, breathing in straight through his quivering nostrils.
Wood, mildew, and some other peculiar smell... Almost like fresh mineral water: More of a taste than a scent.
Nick took a step forward, and slowly continued down the length of the hall-way, which only grew darker and more inky with each step closer to whatever lied at the very end.
All the while, the music continued peacefully. It wasn't anything like Nick had heard before: Deep, but gentle, piano-like, but much more powerful.
As he neared closer to the very end of the dark hall-way, which he could sense was growing closer with each passing step forward into the blackness, the tranquil music started to change quickly. At first, the song was sad, slow, and dreary: Like a long-forgotten dream being crushed, or something very precious and dear being lost, or destroyed entirely.
Now, the song was playing unpredictably: The notes were intense, fast and harsh, like anger personified. Beneath the melody, the lower notes were deep and horrific, like an erratic and energized heart-beat. Now that the song had picked up, Nick recognized the instrument behind the many notes: It was an organ, a very large keyboard instrument.
The fox begun to feel the floor-boards beneath his feet vibrate as he drew closer and closer to the end of the hall-way, which stood directly in front of him, looming tall and solid; A large pair of double doors, fashioned from some type of wood, but carved into with disturbing designs and imagery, including symbols shaped like claw marks and scratches.
But in the very middle of the door, the crowning symbol was undoubtedly the massive, crooked, and pointed slab fashioned into the terrifying shape of a bat.
Nick felt his heart race within the walls of his rib-cage, and his breath quickened in turn. He recognized this as Vladzotz's manor. It wasn't the first time that he had been here, after all. Without any form of previous action to effect, the large double-doors then swung open slowly and smoothly, revealing the interior of the proceeding room.
Looking inside carefully, Nick eyed the room in its entirety: Large and spacious, with the only true decoration being at the opposing side of the room, where a massive organ was fixed into the center of the wall; Its brass-colored pipes rising dozens of feet into the air, nearly reaching the very tip of the ceiling itself. The slits and openings near the middle and top of the many pipes blew out clouds of dust, indicating that the organ was quite old, much like the very house it resided in. The wood that lined the desk of the organ was carved very intricately, designed to look almost as if the instrument had wings stretching taut and reaching out from its left and right flanks.
In the very center of it all was the performer of the piece, a large bat looming over the organ keys, playing with a methodical sense of reverence and disposition.
Vladzotz's body swayed rhythmically to the reverberating sounds that emanated from the instrument he played upon. Glancing to the front of the organ, the fox took note of how the organ's case and desk was free of any music sheets or records, the only object resting upon its surface being one, single silver-coated amulet. The bat's eyes were completely closed shut, and judging from how passionate his notes were, and how his body swayed to the sound of the music, it was clear that he was very engrossed in his solo performance. The bass was so powerful that the entire room shook with each underlying note that was pressed beneath the bat's sharp and highly elongated talons.
Nick took a single step back in apprehension.
This is all just a dream... This is all just a dream...
As the fox's left foot came down on the floor-board behind him, it uttered a painfully obvious and surprisingly loud creaking noise. Nick cringed hard as he watched Vlad's hyper-sensitive ears twitch slightly in a subconscious response to the sudden and unwelcoming noise that the board had spawned, causing the bat to lose his expert composure.
DRNG!
The fox felt his heart beat even more rapidly against his chest as he witnessed Vladzotz fumble on a peaking note; One of his talons hitting the wrong key, causing his rather tedious composure to completely evaporate, and for the music to completely stop. Painful, heart-throbbing silence filled the dark room to the very brim. Nick swallowed hard.
Vladzotz slowly swiveled his head to the side, one of his blood-red eyes glaring directly over his shoulder and right at Nick.
"You always were a stupid fox... You can hide your secrets, but will suffer in silence because of them." Vladzotz uttered, turning around and stepping away from the organ.
The bat lord looked just as menacing as he ever had before: Gleaming, massive fangs, large, fuzzy ears, leathery wings large enough to encircle Nick's entire body. He looked exactly as he had the night that he had tried to burn Nick alive, with a pure black vest and slacks, the only spot of color being a blood-red bow tie and trim along the edges.
However, this Vladzotz was free of any damages done by the ensuing fire: No missing eye, no hoarse and wretched voice, no horrid wheezing and no grisly scorch patches.
"Your actions will only bring you pain, Nicholas. Nothing more, and nothing less... Just pain." The bat continued softly.
"What's going on here? What is it that you want?" Nick questioned quickly.
"You are asking the wrong questions, fox..." Vladzotz took a few small steps forward. "What is it that you want from me?"
The fox stayed quietly, clearly confused as to the bat's verbal advances.
"You are not here to fear: You are here to conquer!" He roared, his large fangs glistening in the dim light. "Your pain has brought you here, and now you must learn!"
Vladzotz snarled and took a few small steps closer, causing Nick to stumble back in apprehension.
"Learn? What's there to learn from you? You're a monster!" The fox retorted, trying his hardest to maintain a strong eye-contact with the menacing bat.
"You have so much to learn in such little time... But the pain wrought by your own selfish acts can still be purged."
"Pain," Nick repeated, almost dreamily. "Why did you never feel... Pain?"
The fox meant every word with sincerity. For as long as he had known Vladzotz, the bat had shown little to no emotions other than anger and guilt. Nick thought that he must've been impervious to emotional pain, given the fact that he has proven himself to be quite callous, but the moment that took place between the two of them respectively in the depths and raging fires of the bat's ancient manor all those months ago suggested otherwise.
Still, no matter what Vladzotz truly felt or not, he certainly didn't seem to take a liking to Nick's previous statement.
"You always feel it, Nicholas..."
He growled broodingly and stretched out his massive, leathery wings, and beat them down hard a single time, lunging forward slightly and taking a few short feet to the air, gliding right towards Nick. The bat crashed into him, both mammals toppling over and falling to the ground, with Vladzotz landing atop and pinning Nick beneath his weight.
"But you don't have to fear it!"
Nick winced, blinking his eyes rapidly and in trepidation as beady droplets of saliva dripped down onto his face with each word that the bat hissed down to him from above.
"Why are you here?!" Vladzotz roared madly. "Why are you here?!"
Despite the fact that the fox continually told himself that this was all nothing more some lucid and deluded night-terror, he couldn't shake the racking amounts of fear that had begun to build up within him: It all felt so real. Vladzotz's metallic-scented breath, his defiant shouts and menacing expression... All of it felt so unbelievably real...
Looking into the bat's blood-red eyes as he throttled him around, Nick saw a literal flame searing behind his corneas: A burning fire of anger and pain raging within his mind.
The fox took to thinking over Vlad's consistent and confusing choice of words: Why was he here? Why did his dream bring him here to Vlad's manor, of all places?
Meanwhile, the burning fire behind the bat lord's eyes had only grown larger over time, and now, the entirety of both his eye sockets was aflame, with the burning glow pooling in the center, directly where his pupils would have been.
Brought here to learn... Brought here to conquer. You always feel pain, but you don't have to fear it...
Nick's emerald-colored eyes locked into the flaming pits that were burning into Vladzotz's face.
"I am not afraid of you!" The fox snarled, pushing back up against the bat and shifting his weight forward slightly.
"You're just a dream! If I can beat you, I can beat anything! Anyone!"
Vladzotz screeched horribly and stepped back, releasing his hold on Nick and allowing the fox to regain his footing and stand upright.
"You're just a dream!" He yelled once again.
With each word, Vladzotz shrunk smaller and smaller. Nick yelled those four words over and over again until the bat had melted away into nothing but a pool of shadow and a tiny flame, no bigger than the tip of a match-head. The fox collapsed onto his haunches, sitting down with a thud on the floor and sighing heavily. He felt tired... So tired...
He closed his eyes for a few brief seconds. When he opened them again, he was no longer in Vladzotz's manor.
Now, the fox was in a large and spacious clean office, with red-carpet beneath his feet, and rows of book-shelves against the walls. In the middle of the room, a set of couches surrounded a single table. Farther back, a decently-sized and black-colored office desk was positioned in front of a towering floor-to-ceiling window, with a brilliant view of the glowing moon across the horizon, the night sky dotted with hundreds of bright stars and other celestial bodies.
It only took him a moment to realize that he was now in Jack Savage's office.
"So, you beat the bat, overcame your fears, and now you're stuck with me. But unfortunately, I reckon that I'm the very least of your problems, Mister Wilde."
That smooth, suave-sounding voice was one that Nick knew all too well. With his paws clenched tightly into a pair of double fists, Nick whirled around to the sight of the couch rotunda, where Jack Savage calmly lounged atop one of the sofas, his feet kicked up onto the small, glass coffee table in front of him. This dream version of Jack Savage was dressed much more professionally than the one that Nick had been working alongside the past 24 hours or so, complete with a shining black tuxedo and slacks, and a single blue flower pinned to the left side of his breast, complimenting the piercing turquoise coloring of his eyes, which shined with an amused sort of light. In his right paw he held a small glass of scotch, filled to the very top with the sweet and amber-colored liquid.
"Come on now, Nicholas... Sit. I won't bite, I promise." The striped rabbit stated peacefully. "We have much to discuss."
"What's going on, Jack?" Nick questioned, his teeth bared together in frustration. "Why is this happening?"
Jack Savage lolled his head slightly, his eyes fixated on Nick with a coyish and confident sort of expression. He spoke aloud;
"I thought that you would have figured that out given how easily you managed to conquer Vladzotz, especially considering all the trouble that he's caused you throughout your miserable life. Never before have I met a more unfortunate or tormented soul than yourself. You are life's figurative punching bag: Beaten down every other day."
The male rabbit chuckled lowly to himself as he brought his glass of scotch to his lips, slowly sipping before swallowing and continuing his explanation.
"Despite all that, she's very fond of you, you know." He muttered.
"W-who?" Nick inquired, his head tilted slightly to the side.
"Judith. Laverne. Hopps." Jack replied slowly. "Such a bright and shining soul, that one is. It's a miracle that someone as rotten as you hasn't driven her off, as of yet."
"What... What are you getting at?"
Jack Savage smiled wide before closing his eyes; Caressing one of his ears with his free hand as if relishing some sort of feeling or sense.
"She yelled your name. Again, and again. It was music to my ears." He murmured almost dreamily.
Nick's heart skipped a beat: He was talking about the moment that he had tried to attack Judy.
Growling, the fox ran forward and lunged at the male rabbit, tackling him off of the couch and onto the ground, with Jack's scotch drink spilling across the red-colored carpet.
"Oh, now that's more like it!" Jack cackled gleefully. "Show me what those claws can do!"
"You're pathetic!" Nick yelled, socking the male rabbit across the face a single time, a satisfying crunching noise accompanying the action.
"Finally... It took you long enough." Jack hissed.
Nick faltered, and his eyes widened: The rabbit's words were not his own. His mouth moved, but his voice was all of a sudden far deeper, and much more piercing and harsh.
He recognized the voice, and backed off, stumbling away from Jack upon hearing it speak aloud once more, this time much stronger;
"You're all puppets to me." The voice of Grygorri Ratsputin echoed, resonating throughout the office, which began to fall apart and disintegrate into blackened ash. "Pawns!"
The scene of Jack Savage's pristine and spacious office vanished, and then, Nick found himself kneeling on the white-tiled floor of a clean and tidy bathroom; The very same that he had encountered Ratsputin in just the other day, where the filthy rat had knocked him aside and humiliated the fox wholeheartedly and without mercy or hesitation.
"You especially, Nicholas." Ratsputin mocked, stepping out from one of the stalls and slamming the door behind him.
The fox shook his head. All of this was coming at him too fast. He needed some time to recover.
"This isn't r-real. You aren't real." Nick muttered to himself, pointing at the rat. "This is all just some messed-up dream."
"You poor thing. Your mind seems to be falling apart, doesn't it?" The rat taunted. "Much like the two of us, there is a contrast of power between you and your own thoughts."
"What d-do you mean?"
"You say that too often!" Ratsputin growled loudly. "Use that head of yours and think!" He commanded. "WHY ARE YOU HERE?!"
Each of the rat's words sunk into Nick's mind like water to a sponge; Absorbed and taken into consideration in the fullest.
This was more than just some nightmare: It was a mental journey of realization, all in an attempt to make him realize the source of his personal problems.
"I'm here... To learn what's broken." The fox muttered, his voice impossibly soft. "Me."
Ratsputin's lips slowly pulled apart in a disturbing smile, revealing his pointed and beady teeth. He spoke out loud;
"That's right. You need to realize that the source of all this inside pain is not because of me, Jack, or even Vladzotz. It's because of you and you alone."
"I-I understand now."
"Of course you do, of course you do." Ratsputin mused. "Shatter the source of your ailments, Nicholas. Break the cycle, and at last make yourself at ease."
He leaned forward, so close that his nose nearly brushed against Nick's.
"Stop hiding. Stop lying. Stop denying. Obliterate the bastions that you have erected, and from there, you will heal."
The entire world turned dark and terrifyingly inky once again, and the fox felt a dizzying pulling sensation in his head, gut, and upper-body region, his stomach muscles crunching tightly as he shot bolt upright in his very own and very real bed, his panting breaths heavy and his russet-colored fur beaded with tiny drops of cold and chilling perspiration.
The nightmare was over.
His erratic stirring had awoken Judy, whom with ears and eye-lids drooped in exhaustion, swiveled her head around her shoulders to glance at the fox that had disturbed her.
"N-Nick? What's wrong?" She asked sluggishly, all the while stealing a brief glance at the nearby alarm clock. "It's midnight... Is everything alright?"
"Yeah, heh..." The fox chuckled dryly. "I-I was just... I..." His facade grin melted away. "I had a dream..."
"A dream?" The bunny repeated.
"Bad dream..." Nick corrected lowly.
"So, a nightmare?" Judy pressed, wiping away at her eyes and turning towards her husband.
"Yeah... A nightmare..."
"Do you remember any more than that?"
The fox nodded slowly.
"What was it about?"
Nick pursed his lips and furrowed his brow broodingly: He knew exactly what it was about, and the potential that it had to make things sour between him and his wife. Ever since his child-hood, the fox had done his best to ensure that the world didn't know what he was truly thinking behind his facade of confidence. However, not too long after meeting Judy Hopps herself, she began to work her way into him; Changing his beliefs, ideals, perspective, perception, and way of thinking, above all else.
However, ever since he had been sized up and horridly blue-screened by Grygorri Ratsputin, his old ways had started to return to him once again.
It could be said that he didn't want anyone to see that the rat had gotten to him, and quite effectively at that. The fox had kept what happened to him in that bathroom quiet every step of the way because he secretly hoped that he could deal with the situation on his own, all by himself, without any help from anyone else, no matter what.
Yet despite all that he had attempted to hide from the world, hide from Judy, it was apparent that nothing could prevent his wife from eventually finding out in the end.
"Carrots, I-I got somthin' I need to tell ya..." The fox admitted, sighing disappointingly. "You probably aren't gonna like it very much, but I think it's still best that you know."
"Does it have to do with what the nightmare was about?" Judy questioned with raised eye-brows, to which the fox nodded in confirmation. "What is it, Nick?"
The fox exhaled slowly through his nostrils.
"I haven't exactly been very open with you, as of late, whiskers. Back at the city-hall... Something happened that I-I should have told you about."
Without saying anything, the female bunny inched a bit closer, her demeanor now completely wide awake and focused on the fox before her, whom spoke aloud;
"When I was, in the bath-room... I met with Ratsputin. He... He almost killed me, fluff."
"What?" Judy asked breathily.
"He didn't hurt me, hee just... Ugh." The fox sighed. "It was my fault... I harassed and provoked him, and he pulled out a sword-"
"A sword?!" The female bunny interrupted once again.
"Yeah. His cane isn't really a cane. It's just a sword in disguise... Heh... We should probably tell that to Bogo tomorrow, eh?"
"No kidding." Judy mumbled. "But what happened after that, Nick?"
"Ratsputin could have killed me. He was so close, too... But he didn't. He said that the only reason I was still alive was because he saw me as useful to him."
"How so?"
"I dunno. Probably just a bluff, but if I had to guess, it would have something to do with black-mail... I think he's planning something with us, carrots."
"But Nick, why didn't you tell me this earlier?" The female bunny interjected. "Why keep all this to yourself?"
The fox sighed.
"That's a good question." He grumbled.
"Level with me here, slick. I won't tease you, I promise. I just want to know, that's all."
"Right, I know, I know." The fox breathed in with his eyes closed. "It's just... I-I didn't want you to see that something actually got to me... Ratsputin."
He clenched his fists, but exhaled and relaxed, shaking his head back and forth.
"That rat needs to be stopped... He's a threat to us all as long as he's out there. The dream was about him, Jack, Vladzotz: Everyone that has ever troubled us. They were all angry at me, more or less, yet at the same time, I think that they were all trying to help me in their own, twisted way. I-I saw Vladzotz in Castle Fangpyre, Jack Savage in his office, and Ratsputin in the same bathroom that he and I duked it out in yesterday afternoon. It was pretty weird, But I think I learned something important from it."
"And what would that be?" Judy asked simply.
"That you can't hide your emotions from everyone. I'm so sorry that I didn't tell you earlier, Carrots... I did a dumb-fox thing, didn't I?"
The female bunny snickered and lightly punched the fox in the arm.
"C'mon, slick: It's not like you did anything illegal, right? I still think that you should have come through with what happened, but it doesn't matter anyways."
"You're not mad at me?"
"Of course not! You made an honest mistake, and you're trying to correct it. I see no reason to be upset at all."
"Okay, good." He chuckled. "I'm glad that you ain't cross with me, Carrots."
"You ain't off the hook just yet though, Slick!" She retorted with a coyish sort of smirk. "Tomorrow, we'll get back to work with nothin' to hide, alright?"
"Nothin' to hide!" The fox repeated.
"Good. We're a team, Nick. Don't forget that." She sniffed lightly. "I-I remember when we first came back here after locking up Jack Savage."
"Kinda hard to forget." He mumbled in response.
"Yeah. But that's not important: What is important is that you helped me in my time of need. You've always been there for me, and I'm more than happy to return the favor."
A smile crept its way across the fox's muzzle.
"I appreciate that, Fluff." He wrapped one of his arms around her shoulders. "More than a dumb-bunny like you could ever understand."
"Oh, ha ha. Let's just go back to bed, alright? We got a long day ahead of us in the morning, I'm sure."
"Right on that." Nick agreed, releasing his hold on the female bunny and flopping back into the mound of pillows behind him. "I'm pretty tired, anyways."
Judy curled up closer against him, and sleep came to them both sooner than expected. Yet no dreams followed: Only the careful beating of their hearts, and the steady breathing of their lungs, chests rising and falling up and down in near unison, their minds swimming in peaceful slumber for the coming hours of the darkened evening.
11:37 P.M , 35 hours ago...
The sweet crunching sound of the snow beneath the rat's feet was music to his ears.
Nothing soothed him more than the sounds of nature itself. Grygorri Ratsputin enjoyed few things as much as the senses he could detect, whether it be smell, taste, or sound. However, nothing seemed to come quite as close as the sound of ice being crushed beneath the toes, and the chilling feeling that radiates up the ankle afterwards.
Grygorri Ratsputin's favored district was undoubtedly Tundra-Town, with its ice-caked forests, sleet-drenched fields, and crystal blue water. It was one of the primary reasons why he situated his state of residence within the borders of the cold district, that and the secluded region of the mountains to the east, where his personal estate was located.
It had been another night of tranquil strolling around the chilly land that surrounded his property; The rat was quite fond of late night walks, especially since it had been a near daily ritual between him and his now deceased wife, whom enjoyed the night-time atmosphere just as much, if not even more so than Grygorri Ratsputin himself.
But now, he was home: Seconds after closing the front door behind him as he reentered his house, the rat detected the slight pitter-patter noise of paw-pads and claws on hard smooth wood. Turning around in the direction of the oncoming sound, Ratsputin locked eyes with his personal butler, a middle-aged, snow-white ermine named Alexander.
"Sir! We're so glad that you're back!" The ermine cried.
"Ah, why thank you, Alexander." Grygorri stated calmly. "Has our esteemed guest arrived yet?"
"Yes sir! I believe that he's in the living room, still awaiting your salient appearance, sir."
"Excellent! Please, do prepare the two of us some tea, while we chat." Ratsputin asked politely, causing the ermine to nod hastily before scampering off toward the kitchen.
Nodding in approval, the rat himself removed his outer cloak and sturdy court-suit, hanging the both of them upon a nearby rack, hoping that one of his care-takers would attend to their needs. Now dressed in his plain, black-colored vest, he set out in the direction of the living room, where he intended on meeting with his esteemed guest.
Adjusting his cravat neck-tie as he quickly paced down one of the hall-ways in his home, the rat couldn't help but think about how his guest was probably not very fond of tea. Snickering to himself, Ratsputin simply adored intentionally provoking others just to see their corresponding reactions: Knowing how other mammals functioned and reacted to certain things could prove incredibly useful, especially in his particular field of work in news and black-mail itself. He cleared his throat audibly in an attempt to quell his rather persistent chortles, and then stepped into the living room where he intended on meeting his guest, all the while trying not to think about the many possible outcomes...
Regardless, he tried not to get too immersed in his own private thoughts: There was important business to be done, and advantages to be wrought this very evening.
Entering his living room, Grygorri glanced around the lavish and cozy decor in search of his guest, whom he didn't see anywhere near the fire-place, which itself was flanked by two padded chairs, complete with a single, small coffee table directly between them. The room itself was very dark, with the only light source being the pitiful fire from the hearth.
The rat irritably pulled out his golden pocket watch, intent on checking the current time of day.
11:40 P.M
Directly on time (Almost), in the exact coordinates of the rendezvous point, Ratsputin's very own home, no less, yet still no apparent sign of the bat thus far.
"Vlad! Are you there?" The rat hollered aloud to the seemingly empty room. "Where are you?"
"You are late." A low, yet sensuous sounding voice spoke out from the shadows.
Movement in the very corner of Ratsputin's left eye caused the rat to face his guest, who had apparently been hanging from the ceiling the entire time, his form cloaked in the shadows of the room. Unlatching himself from the roof and dropping surprisingly elegantly to the floor-boards below, Vladzotz recomposed himself as he straightened out.
Eyeing him quickly up and down, the rat took note of the bat's new wardrobe change, his current outfit equipped with the likes of a smooth, articulate vest positioned over a sleeveless white button-up and black slacks, much like what Ratsputin himself was wearing, the only difference being the blood-red trim and bat-shaped bow-tie that wrapped itself around Vladzotz's furry nape.
Compared with how the bat had looked the last time the rat had crossed paths with him, it was apparent that his previous injuries had healed quite substantially, with his fur reclaiming the burn marks that had been singed into his flesh, and his hoarse voice having smoothed itself out over time. His fangs were still as wicked and massive as ever, gleaming menacingly in the dim light that was being emitted from the nearby fireplace. Vladzotz looked near identical to how he had before the accident, the only truly noticeable exception being the likes of his missing eye, which was nothing more than a pit of scar tissue and fur. It drew more attention to his one good eye; Red as blood.
"Your voice is sounding much better, and your burns have healed remarkably well! Though, that eye of yours... Heh... A dear shame that can't be replaced."
"You had better have a very good reason for calling me out here, this evening." Vladzotz growled. "I cannot just be summoned like some mongrel pup!"
"Apparently you can, since you're here now." Ratsputin retorted with a disappointed sort of frown, his head tilting slightly to the side as he seated himself upon a nearby chair.
The bat snarled, causing his razor sharp incisors to reveal themselves from behind his slimy black lips.
"What is it that you want, rat? I've been far too busy to deal with matters as pestilent and demanding as yourself!"
"But you wouldn't have come here if those were your real thoughts, no? I admit: Sahara-Square Sundries was a complete and utter failure. I blame the bloody rabbit. But you and I have not yet severed our terms of agreement! If you didn't know that, you wouldn't have bothered coming. You're still curious to see what I have in mind, aren't you?"
Vladzotz didn't answer, leaving room for Ratsputin to continue his previous explanation;
"As much as I loathe to admit it, I need your assistance."
From the shadows, Vladzotz stifled a slight and dry sort of laugh.
"You need my help? That's a first."
"No matter the needs behind it, I assure you that my cause is justified and well worth your time, though it does require one single action on your part, Mr. Fangpyre."
"Of course. And might I ask just what exactly you would want of me?" The bat questioned, causing the rat to smile wide.
"Simple enough, my friend. I believe that you are familiar with the name, Nicholas Wilde, no?" He asked as he crossed one leg over the other.
The bat stayed silent to the count of five before speaking aloud;
"You know the answer to that already, Grygorri. Skip the undesirables and just tell me what's going on."
"Alrighty then." The rat muttered quickly. "To be blunt, I need your family locket so that I can use it as a tool of leverage against that foxy friend of ours."
"What?! You dare demand consent for the use of my prized possession as some bargaining chip?!"
"Precisely. Can I have it?"
"No!" Vladzotz roared.
"You're not making this easy on me, are you?"
"I refuse. Why would you need it anyways? You have dozens of other things to use against him!"
"Yes, that is correct, but your precious locket could prove to be much more useful than anything else as a foot-hold against that wretched vulpine! With it, I can ruin him!"
The bat was silent for some time, his gaze seemingly out of focus as he stared off into the distance. Sighing heavily, the bat reached into the inner pocket of his vest, which was positioned directly over his beating heart. Tugging on a beaded chain, Vladzotz carefully pulled out the silver-coated amulet, and dangled it hypnotically in front of him.
"You will return it, whether your latest plan works or not."
Surprisingly, Vladzotz tossed it directly towards the rat, who caught it in his right paw without flinching. He then spoke out loud;
"Thank you. And don't worry, I'll return it in a few days time, I promise. You have the word of Ratsputin."
"Not a scratch."
"Not a scratch!" The rat repeated jovially. "But just on the matter, don't you know that it's unhealthy to create emotional bonds with inanimate objects?"
"That locket frame is over three hundred years old, and the picture within is the only one in existence. To me, it is priceless." The bat muttered deeply, coughing a single time.
Grygorri simply smirked as he wrung the amulet in between his fingers, carefully examining the metal coating that surrounded the picture.
"I must say, for being over three centuries old, this frame is in pristine condition! What's your secret?"
"The Fangpyre family has passed the frame down for generations upon generations. It is an ancient relic of our family history. Bathed in blood, to slow visible aging."
"Ah, so that must be another reason why you care about it so much then."
"Good evening, master Ratsputin and company!" A shrill voice squeaked from the other side of the room.
Turning towards the source of the noise, both the bat and rat alike locked eyes with a snow-white ermine, holding a silver tray of tea and biscuits in his paws. Pacing over timidly towards the center of the room, he placed the platter on the tiny coffee table between the bat and the rat before bowing a single time towards Ratsputin and exiting the room.
Staring down at the frothy brown liquid, Vladzotz sniffed in through his nostrils, his leaf-shaped nose scrunching up in distaste.
"What is this?" He asked.
"It is tea time, Mr. Fangpyre!" Ratsputin stated cheerfully, holding up his tea-cup with his pinky finger raised in a genteel sort of mannerism.
"Tea time?"
"Tea time is fun-time!" The rat snickered at Vladzotz's confused expression.
"Hmm... It isn't what I personally prefer..." The bat claimed. "But I'll accept." He rumbled, plucking the glass between his sizable talons and bringing it to his lips.
"So, what else is new, Mr. Fangpyre?" The rat mused wily. "I heard that you've been throwing your lot in with that other bat, as of late. How's that going for you, hmm?"
"It's a business association, and nothing more." Vladzotz snarled, his single, blood-red eye narrowing in contempt as he took a sip from his tea-cup.
"Oh, is that right? Ha! I can smell her all over you!" Ratsputin winked coyly, a smirk growing across his muzzle all the while. "You two must be getting along quite nicely..."
"Enough of this useless defamation!" The bat lord growled loudly. "You need not know anything of that sort, Ratsputin."
"No need to be so bitter-minded, Vladzotz! I was just asking an honest question, after all."
"How did you know?" Vlad asked. "How could you tell that I..." The bat trailed off into silence as Ratsputin smiled wide, showing off his pointy teeth.
"Well, I noticed that you started delving back into your criminalistic ways after you recovered from your injuries and took to the underworld once again! You truly are an elusive sort, Vladzotz! I applaud you on that one, in the very least. But yes, alongside that, I've figured that some sort of catalyst or motivation would be behind it... Something, or in this case, someone, to help motivate you back into your usual doings. I know that this isn't the first time you two have met, but after that, ah... Incident of yours, with the fire, I wasn't surprised that you didn't come into contact with one another for some time, making it quite obvious when you two resumed where you left off."
"Yes... Hmm. You are good." The bat coughed a single time. "So what about this plan of yours? What is it that you intend on doing with the documents at city-hall?"
Somehow, Ratsputin smiled even wider.
"Oh, have I got a story for you!"
Hey everyone!
Woo, we had a nice and lengthy chapter this time 'round, didn't we? It may have been a really finger-numbing for myself, but it is all worth it to deliver to all of you! That being said, do feel free to leave a review detailing your thoughts on all of the recent events: I'd adore knowing what you think of Jack's actions, Bogo's reasoning, Nick's nightmare, Judy's reassurance, and Ratsputin's meeting with Vladzotz! And of course, I alwaysappreciate new favorites and follows, certainly!
Regardless, I thank you all so very much for reading this latest chapter of ours, and I certainly hope that you enjoyed it as much as I did! :D
That being said, let's jump right into the latest announcements!
For starters, I'd just like to quickly mention that I have received yet another generous piece of fan-art, this most recent one detailing the scene where Nick confronted Jack in chapter 60, Gambit, and told him off for being ignorant and rude. Definitely one of my own personal favorite scenes in the whole story, so if you'd like to take a gander at the art piece, you can find it on my Tumblr account, which is labeled identically as my fanfiction account: upplet.You'll also find some cool new art of Vladzotz, among other characters. Feel free to check it out!
That's all for now, my friends! Do stay tuned for chapter 62, comin' your way soon, as always! :)
'Till next time...
Peace!
PS: You'll also be learning about the aforementioned "other" bat that Ratsputin was referring to in the next chapter. I'd love to know your thoughts on it in the form of a review, if you read it, which I do highly recommend, as it's one of my favorite chapters! Stay tuned, and do enjoy yourself, all the same!