Hey everyone!
Quick author's note here, but I just have another quick music suggestion for anywhere in the chapter, really: Perfect for a villain-meeting scene like this!
Fawful's Evil Plan - Music
Yeah, that's it! Feel free to check it out, if you'd like. Now, without any further ado, let's jump into this, shall we?
Enjoy...
"Paranoia has a sharper taste if the danger is real." - Pat Conray
9:35 P.M
Knowledge is power.
Through knowledge, power can be obtained. Perhaps none knew this better than Grygorri Ratsputin himself: His work in extortion, threats, and blackmail over the years had taught him that knowledge, of all things, was perhaps the most valuable thing of all. Throughout his life, he had acquired a near-bottomless treasure trove of information on the city's most prominent and powerful figureheads, from public officials to ruthless crime-lords - A literal rat-stash of compromising information acquired through bribes, research, and blackmail.
But now, the rat's expansive collection was in the hands of the ZPD, whom were ecstatic at not only finally being able to rid the city of the blight that the rat had subjugated them to all those years, but also because of the information that they salvaged from his personal estate. Upon discovering Ratsputin's hidden vault, the ZPD officials at the scene immediately took to tagging, documenting, and assimilating the evidence into their very own archive. Thousands upon thousands of different items, objects, and ideas: It would take them entire months on end to sort through it all. Despite that, the payout was undoubtedly worth it: Criminals big and small would be brought to justice!
However, not everyone was so happy.
Although the ZPD had acquired a brand new trove of evidence to use against their enemies, and were quite pleased because of it, said enemies were anything but: Throughout the city of Zootopia, from Outback-Island to the Nocturnal-District, the various crime-lords of the city were all in varying states of panic and paranoia, understandably so, since their entire livelihoods were on the line now that the rat's private collection had at long last been finally exposed to the world. As long as the evidence was in the paws of the ZPD, nobody in the criminal underworld was safe, not even the bat lord Vladzotz Fangpyre, all the way down in the plumbless depths of the Nocturnal-District.
Due to his position of power over the Tundra-Town underworld, the arctic shrew Cristoforo Biggit, better known by his criminal alias of Mr. Big, was the first to recognize the potential, yet imminent threat of the ZPD and their brand new batch of toys. With his range of influence being closest to the rat's personal estate, it was only a matter of time before his men started returning to him with reports detailing the ZPD's involvement in the rat's death.
Mr. Big, being a longtime friend of the old rat, was quite taken aback upon hearing word of his death. The two rodents had been chess buddies for the longest of times, and had established a near weekly assignation over a simple game of chess, where the two would chat idly all the while tossing weathered chess-pieces around a black and white board. Over all the many years that the two of them had played against one another, Mr. Big had only ever won a single time. To this day, he still wasn't sure whether it had been purposeful on the rat's behalf or not, but regardless, it was certainly a surprise to him, at least.
Regardless, Ratsputin was now dead at last. Mr. Big himself figured that it would have happened sooner or later, given his age, but he never could have imagined that he would go out by his own hand; Driving his very own sword through his chest and ultimately ending his life. Must've been a very painful way to go. But in the end, Mr. Big could not dwell on the hopes and dreams of the past - There was work to do, and if he and his criminal associates were to survive the coming months as the ZPD pieced together the likes of their brand new evidence collection, then he would have to tread extra carefully, and take even more precautions.
And so, the arctic shrew called forth a meeting between himself and the very largest of criminal figureheads in the city, including all of the remaining crime-lords. Unfortunately, that meant that Shahaz 'The Stinger' Pholmok would have been unable to attend, due to his current imprisonment at the hands of Mr. Big's grandchild's godmother, Judy Hopps. Regardless, he still sent letters to all of the others, including the likes of his old friend-turned rival, Vladzotz Fangpyre, down in the Nocturnal-District. It was apparent to the old arctic shrew that every last bit of help would be needed, and that all of the remaining crime-lords would have to work together if they were to overcome this predicament.
The titular arctic shrew had not met with the bat lord fact-to-face in nearly half a decade, at this point: The bubbling guilt over the deaths of Vladzotz's old family had simply been too much, and Mr. Big found himself unable to face the bat lord, especially since he did not know that it was he who had originally ordered Castle Fangpyre to be burned down, making him, albeit indirectly, responsible for the deaths of his family, including the likes of his two children, one barely being more than a few weeks old at the time.
Nonetheless, Mr. Big had heard rumors - Rumors that Vladzotz had moved on with his life, and found love once again. If anything, that fact alone gave the arctic shrew some shred of hope: Hope that if his nocturnal-counterpart ever managed to place him as the cause behind his old family's death, that the bat lord would perhaps show mercy.
Meanwhile, the bat lord himself, however, had nothing on his mind but what lay ahead. Together, he and his mate, Lucy Sang, marched down the long hall-way that led to their designated conference room, where the two of them intended on partaking in the criminalistic meeting so as to reach a fitting conclusion towards the imminent threat of the ZPD itself. They both knew of the stakes that accompanied this particular meeting: Both respective vampire bats had only everything to gain from making an appearance, and so, when the male offered up the chance to that of his beloved mate, she was quite eager to accompany him, immediately making haste with their plans to show.
Now, at long last, the time was upon them. Both bats knew that all of the remaining crime lords, excluding that of poor Shahaz Pholmok, would be there to represent their respective lines of criminalistic business outings. Unfortunately for Lucy herself, that meant that Al Catpone was to be there as well, whom she had made an enemy of in the past over an unfortunate string of events that resulted in her walking away with a sizable portion of the jungle cat crime-lord's treasured drug profits.
Recognized the threat of such a reunion, Lucy's dear mate, Vladzotz Fangpyre, took to briefing her over the many risks, and explaining to her not to push any sensitive buttons;
"Don't forget that Alphonse Catpone will be there, my dear." The male bat stated as the two approached the end of the hall. "He'll more than likely bring up your theft, so-"
"So try not to drag on the topic, I get it, Vladdy, don't worry!" Lucy reassured him, interjecting his previous statement with her own. "We've been over this before. It'll be fine!"
"I certainly hope so. Knowing you, I have a sinking feeling that things might take a... Chaotic turn." Vlad mumbled, his tone more teasing than anything else.
"What, are you saying I'm not productive? I may like stirring up trouble as much as the next mammal, but I can handle myself in a big meeting, promise! Remember that time we finished meeting with those lunkhead bears from Big's mafia, and still had time to plan that bank heist in the Canal-District? Now that's productive!"
Vladzotz laughed along with his mate, the chortling of the two vampire bats filling the silence of the luxuriously decorated hallway. The male bat soon cleared his throat.
"On another topic, my dear, I must warn you to be careful regarding any, ah, wanton displays of affection in public, since no one here knows of our relationship yet."
"Hmph!" The female bat huffed. "You're no fun! But alright. Just don't be surprised if I give you a surprise kiss later, when you least expect it, just to mess with you!"
At that, Lucy swung her waist over and hip-checked Vladzotz, causing him to slightly stumble as her shapely pelvis softly collided with his own. The bat lord smiled and snorted good-naturedly through his nostrils as he tightened his bat-shaped bowtie. His mate always had been one for displays of affection. Yet despite her outwardly playful personality, her heart belonged to Vladzotz, and that was something that the both of them truly relished. Their relationship had grown exponentially within the past year - It was almost hard to imagine that before, they were enemies vying for dominance, and now, they were partners-in-crime, and mates that practically shared the same home.
"Well, as fun as that sounds, I'm afraid we'll have to save it for another time, my dear." Vladzotz said. "We're almost there."
Vladzotz stifled a slight chuckle, but as he refocused his gaze down the space in front of him, his single, blood-red eye locked onto the likes of a tall wooden door, just mere feet in front of them both. From inside, the sensitive ears of the two vampire bats could detect a wide range of gruff voices and other noises.
"We're here." Vladzotz decreed.
"Alright, let's do this!" Lucy exclaimed excitedly, her green eyes widening with excitement.
From there, the two vampire bats pushed against the comparatively large door together, causing it to swing open and reveal the interior of the conference room. The room was spacious, with wide swathes of tiled floor, and a few small tables piled high with food shoved over into the sides of the room, where stacks of padded chairs flanked in towering columns. Milling around the empty space, mingling, arm-wrestling, and playing various card games, dozens of different mammals filled the room, with criminals of all shapes and sizes intent on participating in the meeting. Mobsters from the Rainforest-Outfit, the Tundra-Town Mafia, the Nocturnal-Mob, and a number of others were all present.
At the far back of the room, a large, semi-circular rotunda overlooked the city of Zootopia, with the floor-to-ceiling windows displaying the city canopy in all its colorful night-time glory. Sitting at the table, which to them both was quite well-proportioned, two large predatory mammals, a jaguar and a polar-bear, sat talking quietly to themselves. Vladzotz recognized the latter as Kozlov, Mr. Big's personal body-guard and second in command of the Tundra-Town mafia. Looking even closer, the bat lord could see the arctic-shrew, Mr. Big, as he sat within his tiny chair, boxed in between Kozlov's meaty white paws. As for the jaguar, it didn't take a genius to deduce whom exactly he was.
"There's Al Catpone." Vlad warned, pointing towards the large jungle cat crime-lord. "Just follow my lead, and try not to make yourself too much of a target in his eyes."
Unlike the last time that they had converged, in which the jaguar had been wearing earthen colors, this time, Vlad noticed that Catpone wore all black, save for his hat.
"So that's the big guy himself, huh? Yeah, I think I recognize the face... What's his gig again?" The female vampire bat asked curiously.
"Alphonse has nearly fifty percent of the drug market under his control. It's quite remarkable, I admit, but not something that he takes very lightly."
"If he has so much power in the drug market, then why is he so upset over me swiping a few thousand dollars? Must be butter and egg money for him." Lucy grumbled.
Vladzotz exhaled heavily through his nostrils before responding;
"Like I said, Alphonse takes his drug trade very seriously. Why wouldn't he? He alone may control nearly half of the drug market, but that's just about all that he does, really: His range of income is practically exclusive to that particular field. He has nothing to fall back on! It makes sense that he would be so distraught over such a loss."
"Eh, I guess so... Ooh, looks like they have some punch over there at the beverage table!" Lucy suddenly exclaimed with glee. "Gonna have to go and try some later on, no?"
"Agreed." Vlad added. "I still prefer blood, though." He muttered.
Together, the two vampire bats approached the table on the far side of the room, their smaller bodies having to squeeze past a few unsuspecting mobsters, that was, before the crowd took notice of Vladzotz, and parted before him like a curtain, giving he and Lucy all the room they needed to reach the high table. Lucy was impressed by the sheer authority that Vlad, alongside all of these other crime-lords, carried with them. They seemed to emit an aura of oppression and dominance over their minions. Lucy loved it - Being here with her mate was a true treat. She had always considered herself fairly well connected in the criminal underworld, thanks to her freelance work as a thief and espionage expert, but being able to witness the sheer authority and influence of the crime-lords themselves made her truly realize just how powerful they really were.
Some hidden faces amongst the crowd uttered varying words of thought as the two of them passed by, and then, a loud voice greeted;
"And there he is!"
Al's booming voice rang out from the other side of the room as he stood from his seat and raised his arms up, smiling all the while.
"Vladzotz, you made it, bo! I've been waiting all-"
The jovial jaguar suddenly trailed off as his eyes locked onto the drastically smaller form of Lucy Sang, standing right beside Vladzotz. She simply smiled at the crime lord of the Rainforest-District as his expression turned stony cold, and his thick, meaty fists clenched tightly into rigid balls, his anger seemingly rising by the second.
Catpone's sharp teeth sliced clean through his cigar, cutting the stick of tobacco in half, with one portion falling onto the surface of the table, while the other was instantly spat out to the jaguar's left. Al raised his paw and smashed a clenched fist against the table, crushing the smoldering cigar half beneath his meaty fist and causing the table to rattle from the force of his exertion, effectively deafening the entire room.
"YOU!" Al roared, jabbing his pointer finger towards Lucy, fumes of black smoke billowing from his maw as he heaved frustrated breaths.
The female bat swiftly eyed him up and down, her left eyebrow raised as she deftly uttered her coming words;
"Sorry, and you are...?"
Al Catpone stifled a low, primal-sounding growl, the silence of the room only amplifying his already sinister snarling.
"Pretentious little twist... You DARE show your face here! I should kill you where you stand!"
"Whoa whoa whoa, mister muscle-head!" Lucy crooned teasingly. "You tryin' to scare me? Please. I don't even know who you are!"
"Don't you play the victim here! You know who I am!" The irate jaguar shouted back angrily, his claws digging into the smooth wooden surface of the table.
"And that would be...?"
"Alphonse Catpone! Learn it like you love it!"
Lucy laughed aloud, her chortles only broken when she finally spoke out, her talons planted firmly on the sides of her hips;
"Sorry sweetie, doesn't ring a bell... I only remember things I find important, anyways."
The jaguar growled lowly, his yellow-ish fangs clenched together as tight as his fists.
"I would've thought you'd remember how you pinched my drug profits back then! Thas' my expertise! You owe me either ten grand in compensation, or your head!"
As Al Catpone finalized that last statement, he rather forcefully jabbed a switch-blade into the wooden surface of the table, planting the tiny dagger the exact moment that he spat his last word. Lucy herself didn't seem very phased at his hissing threats, though her large ears did twitch in dismay as the jaguar brought the blade down onto the table.
"Oh, just get over it, you big kitten." Lucy rebuked with a distasteful scoff. "I didn't bother coming here just to waste my time on mammals like you."
Throughout their verbal smack-down, the surrounding crowd of onlooking mammals had gradually begun to rile up in anticipation, with choking laughs of amusement, and lowly snarls of disapproval resonated amongst the irritated masses. Vladzotz himself could tell that tension was clouting in the air around them all, but in the end, he didn't blame a single one of them: They were all anxious, agitated, and scared. For a good reason, too: As long as the ZPD had Ratsputin's archive, none of them were safe. Not a single one.
"Kitten?!" The jaguar continued with a snarl. "I am the crime-lord of the Rainforest-District! Who are you to challenge my authority?!"
"This ain't the rainforest, sweetheart... Here, you're just another ally-cat with a stick up his tail."
Vladzotz clenched his jaws together, his large fangs grinding against one another as anger began to build within his being. Here, Lucy was openly defying his one and only request: To stay humble, quiet, and at ease. She was purposefully stoking the flames for her own personal amusement, forgetting that the meeting was potentially a matter of life and death for every mammal in the room, herself included. He couldn't blame her though - Past her teasing and outspoken facade, there was a being just looking for something to hold on to. She, along with everyone else, was under a great deal of stress, and for that, Vladzotz thoroughly understood her plight for attention from the crowd.
"I'll see you dead, vermin!" Al roared, pulling his knife from the table and beginning to make his way towards Lucy, who raised her talons defensively and hissed.
However, Vlad was also angry at Al Catpone: His friend, business partner, and financial associate. Yet at the same time, he had allowed himself to fall utterly short of his usual peaceful attitude, instead favoring petty insults and unproductive squabbling, amounting to nothing but lost potential and soured attitudes. But, past all of that, nothing drew Vlad's anger to more heights than the fact that Catpone was so blatantly accusing his mate of such absurd prospects, that by no means belonged in their current situation. Little did Al Catpone, or anyone else seem to know, but Vladzotz cared deeply for Lucy. It was time for a line to be drawn into the sand.
The bat lord quickly ran between Al and Lucy, positioning himself directly in front of his mate. "ENOUGH!" He roared, spreading his wings and dividing the two mammals.
Milliseconds after shouting aloud to the room, Vlad found himself listening to nothingness - Silence had completely enveloped the crowd, with their attention now turned solely to himself. Straightening himself out, yet keeping his leathery wings spread wide for intimidation, the bat lord angrily snarled his coming words;
"How far have we fallen to have resulted to such ridiculous antics?!" He loudly asked of the crowd. "The lack of delicacy makes my stomach churn with disgust!"
Vladzotz beat down his powerful wings, leaping slightly into the air before flapping over to the nearby tabletop, where everyone would be able to easily see and hear him.
"You all should know better, especially now, with our livelihoods on the line! You would think that such a catalyst would draw us closer, but instead, I am disappointed to see that it only seems to have accomplished the opposite. Today, we are gathered for progress and efficiency, not for petty debating and name-calling! There are far more important things at stake here than whatever absurd grievances you burden within your hearts! If only for this evening, set aside your grudges and disagreements, for the sake of order and development! This is no begging cry - This is a demand! You all may be under great pressure, but it is no excuse to argue like children!"
The bat lord spread his leathery wings once more, making sure to display all of the healed wounds on his wings to the crowd.
"I know that I did not go through hell and back just to see my criminal empire crumble because of one slimy little rodent's death! Compose yourselves!"
At that, Vladzotz folded up his wings, and took in the sight of his speech's effects. All around, the crowd of mammals was murmuring amongst themselves in agreement, many shuffling in discomfort as the truth dawned on them, and humiliation grew from it within their beings. Al Catpone refused to meet eyes with the bat lord, perhaps out of realization that he had been in the wrong to so blatantly initiate the previous verbal feud. Yet, Vladzotz cared not for any of them, and so, he turned his attention to the one soul that he truly did: Some ten feet away, Lucy Sang stood with her arms drooping at her sides, staring right back at Vladzotz, her expression laced with humility and deep thought.
Sulking over with a sigh, the female bat then promptly made her way up to the table, flapping atop one of the seats and joining Vladzotz, all the while making sure to stay as far away from the fuming jaguar as possible. Touching down on the comparatively large seat of the chair, Lucy sheepishly smiled at her mate, who sternly stared her down.
"You shouldn't have fanned those flames, Lucy. You of all people should know what's at stake here." Vladzotz chided.
"He started it and you know it." She stated with a slight smile. Even Vladzotz couldn't maintain his anger for long, after that. "I'm sorry about that." She apologized.
"I can tell that your words are genuine, so I accept your apology, my dear." He said, rubbing her shoulder. "It's alright. Now, we should focus on the-"
"Mister Fangpyre!" A booming male voice called out, catching the attention of the two vampire bats.
Both Vlad and Lucy turned towards the source, being Al Catpone himself, whom had reseated himself upon his side of the table, on the opposing end of the two vampire bats. It took a moment for the bat lord to realize that while he and Lucy had been converging, the crowd had simmered down and prepared itself to begin the meeting. Hushing themselves properly, Vlad and his mate, along with the rest of the room, fixated their attention upon the towering jungle cat, whom snorted aloud through his nostrils.
"Vladzotz is right. As much as it pains me to admit it, it's high time that we set aside our differences and-"
Knock knock knock!
The jungle cat trailed off as a slew of knocks pierced the air, interrupting his previous statement. Turning towards the source of the noises, the mass of the crowd locked their gaze upon the nearby door to the connecting hall-way as it swung open, revealing a whole new slew of guests, with some half-dozen or so medium-sized mammals, with the largest exception being a rather bulky-looking male kangaroo positioned at the back of the posse. What caught the attention of most of the present crowd wasn't just the new mammal's sudden introduction, but just how strange many of them looked: Including the kangaroo, four other beings set foot inside the room.
There was a medium-sized, sand-colored canine with black ears, eyes, and lips, easily identifiable as a dingo. Standing next to it, a smaller, portly looking rodent creature known as a wombat stood trying to make himself seem intimidating amongst his considerably taller friends. Beside that, a peculiar mound of fur with a beaver's tail and a wide bill twirled a small razor around in its webbed fingers - A platypus.
However, it was undoubtedly the mammal at the very front of the group that drew the most attention from the onlooking crowd, despite being the smallest amongst his accompaniment. It was easily identifiable as a male, due to it's considerably bulky frame, but at the same time, the mammal was short and rather squat, with a little bit of a hunchback, even. The leading creature was dressed in a beige safari-suit and shorts, like a tour guide on one of his homeland's national parks. Beneath the various articles of clothing, jet-black fur, save for a single brightly contrasting stripe of white that could be seen peeking out from beneath his collar, sprouted from the mammal's body.
Despite being the smallest in the group, the lead mammal looked ominously more deadly, like an explosive device that might go off at any second. No one there could blame themselves for thinking that way, for of all the marsupials and mammals in existence, none were more infamous for their hair-trigger temper than the tasmanian-devils.
"G'day, everyone." The tasmanian-devil called out to the crowd. "Sorry I'm late to this pozzy... The bloody speed-boat was havin' some engine problems."
Lucy's ears twitched at the sound of the devil's voice. His tone was surprisingly deep for his size, and dripped with a dulcet Outbacker accent.
"Iluka Rombahe." Mr. Big muttered aloud, his voice filling the silence of the room. "You bless us with your presence. I was beginning to fear your absence was permanent."
The tasmanian-devil smiled wide, his pink lips pulling back to reveal a set of sturdy white teeth.
"The Outback may be far off, but that didn't stop me from haulin' tail here to the Big Smoke as soon as I got your letter. I ain't riskin' nothin' to Precinct Five!"
"Well, as happy as we are that you could make it," Al Catpone added irritably. "You should probably find a seat here at the table. We're just about to start the meeting."
"Ace then, lads!" Iluka exclaimed, his tawny-colored eyes wide and bright with anticipation.
Shortly followed by his accompanying henchmen, the tasmanian-devil soon found himself a seat at the table, positioning himself directly between Mr. Big and the two vampire bats. Lucy eyed him over curiously. Now that he was far closer, she was able to make out the little details of Iluka's person: The coarse-looking, spiky black fur on the back of his head and neck was braided with strands of multi-colored wooden beads, each one painted over with meticulous line-art designs.
Alongside that, the female bat also noticed that the tasmanian-devil's thick claws were carved with traditional marsupial line-art; the kind that only the descendants of the ancient tribes on Outback-Island could acquire. Smooth dotted lines wrapped around his many claws, each one whittled with intricate precision and delicacy. Farther up the length of his arms, wrapped around his thick biceps, archaic cultural cloths clung to his suit. Staring down the patterns in the fabric, Lucy could see more marsupial line-art, alongside what looked to be some ancient weave designs of various animals and other objects, including the sun, moon, and a few little white dots for stars around the edges.
It was clear to Lucy that Iluka himself was quite the culturally attuned sort of mammal. She wondered if he had marsupial-tribe blood in him.
Staring around the room, the female bat eyed over the four crime-lords, including her Vladdy. She couldn't even imagine the great power and influence they all must have had.
"Hey Vladdy..." The female bat started, nudging at her mate's shoulder. "So, you have your loans, espionage, and extortion, Mr. Big has his deals and his crooked limo service, and Al has his drugs... But what's the tazzy's gig?"
The bat lord pursed his lips, thinking over his female counterpart's previous question before stating aloud, his coming words rather soft so as not to disturb the ongoing meeting;
"Iluka's work is rather... Unique, least to say. His seat of power over Outback-Island gives him some special advantages that the rest of us crime-lords don't have."
"Like what?" Lucy inquired curiously.
"Drugs, for one thing. Outback-Island isn't a part of the mainland, and because of that, certain plants grow exclusive to the island, including drugs, like pituri, and cannabis, both of which can only be found there, deep in the Outback desert. Al Catpone may control nearly half of the entire drug trade in Zootopia, but Iluka has Outback-Island squared off."
"So what, he just does drug-related business too, like Spots over there?" The female bat whispered lowly while pointing to Al, to which Vladzotz shook his head from side to side.
"Not quite, my dear. Alongside his region-specific drug market, Iluka also collects artifacts, mostly old relics leftover from the ancient marsupial tribes that once ruled the Outback before it was colonized. They left behind vast swathes of land deep in the Outback, and within, entire truckloads of rare items and artifacts ripe for the taking. A single artifact could sell for many thousands of dollars, being a very rare and unique material - They are only found on Outback-Island, after all. Iluka's made big money in the crime business over the years by acquiring these near-priceless artifacts, usually through theft, and selling them to his own accord on the black market, always to the highest bidder."
"Highest bidder?" Lucy blinked a single time. "Oh, right... Museums, or anyone just wanting to buy one, huh?"
Vladzotz nodded his head in confirmation, voicing his next words even softer, as he noticed Mr. Big giving him the stink eye for not paying attention to the conversation;
"Despite being a crooked treasure hunter, he's considered a renowned archaeologist by almost all of the museums in the city. Iluka is a direct descendant of some old marsupial tribe chief, you see, and he takes his ancestry very seriously: He doesn't even see himself as stealing the artifacts, but instead as reacquiring them, as if they are his birthright."
"Mister Fangpyre, Miss Sang..." Mr. Big called out loudly, startling both bats. "If you would please stop whispering, we might be able to concentrate on the matter at hand, here!"
"Second that, bo." Al Catpone added lowly. "We need all ears fo' this."
Al glanced down at the smoldering ruin of his cigar, growling lowly before turning slightly to his right. "Butt me!" He ordered to the likes of a nearby ocelot, whom frantically patted down his torso, eventually pulling out a brand new cigar before handing it to his boss. Placing the thick tobacco stick between his rather sharp-looking teeth, Al Catpone lighted it with a shiny silver lighter that he pulled from his pocket. The jaguar inhaled a deep breath through his maw, his eyes closed in shut in leisure. He then exhaled through his nostrils, the thick stream of smog clouting the clean air around his large head and vine-wrapped fedora. With a lowly grumble, Al initiated the meeting with five simple words;
"So then... Shall we begin?"
The crowd of mammals shuffled around in anticipation, and a few brief chuckles echoed around the near-silent room. A great and rather powerful sense of tension filled the air around them: Each and every individual mammal in the room knew the stakes, and what was in store for them all if they didn't reach some sort of solution to their problem. Knowing that Mr. Big himself was the one who called for the meeting in the first place, nearly all the eyes in the room were on him and him alone, waiting with baited breath for him to do something. The arctic shrew sighed broodingly before leaning forward in his tiny chair, readjusting his weight as he addressed the crowd, and the entirety of the room;
"My dear friends, we are gathered here not for trivial squabbling, but for progress. As you know, the ZPD has recently acquired a large surge of new intelligence, all gathered from the personal extortion archive of Grygorri Ratsputin, may he rest in peace. I cannot emphasize just how disastrous this could be for us all."
Mr. Big let that last statement sink in for a few brief seconds. He soon cleared his throat with an audible little grunt before resuming;
"Exploiting this new intelligence to their advantage, they have already begun to make arrests as early as yesterday morning. It is only a matter of time until they turn their attention towards us. To maintain our respective businesses and financial ties, we need to establish a fit solution, and soon... Because the stakes, have never been higher."
"A solution, then." Iluka Rombahe added, effectively earning the attention of the crowd. "Does anyone have any ace ideas?"
"We must destroy this archive... Keep us all safe from ZPD." Kozlov suggested.
"Obviously!" A small female margay standing beside Al Catpone piped up in a considerably squeaky voice. "The question is how... How do we destroy all of the evidence?"
Silence enveloped the room. It was clear that the ideas were running a little bit short, least to say. Soon enough, Al Catpone gestured to the margay while grumbling aloud;
"Margaret is right: The evidence needs to be completely destroyed, since stealing it back would be impossible."
"Agreed." Vladzotz interjected. "We need to cut our losses and focus on minimizing damage, for now. Best way to do that would be to eliminate what the officials have on us all."
"I'm sensin' a lotta agreement, but no solutions!" The female margay hissed once again.
Another moment of uncomfortable silence, of which was only broken when the bat lord growled through clenched teeth before voicing his thoughts;
"Fire. We'll burn it... All of it. It's the only way to ensure that every last bit of evidence is completely destroyed."
Upon hearing Vladzotz bring up the idea of arson, Mr. Big glanced away and looked down in discomfort, one of his tiny paws scratching at the back of his neck all the while. The bat lord took note of the sudden gesture, and although he viewed as peculiar, if not a bit suspicious, he didn't dwell on it for very long at all. Meanwhile, the tasmanian-devil crime-lord chuckled as he drummed his carved talons upon the smooth wooden surface of the table, the slight pitter-pattering of each point of contact causing the sensitive ears of the vampire bats to twitch in minor annoyance.
"Alrighty then, arson it is." Iluka finalized with a single nod of his large head. "But how can we possibly hope to torch it all? The archive is in the very heart of Precinct One!"
"Indeed. That is a question we must answer." Mr. Big said.
"But one that you don't have an answer to, I take it?"
The arctic shrew raised his little paw up to retort, but ultimately trailed off in disappointment, causing the tasmanian-devil to snort through his nostrils in amusement.
"As I thought." He taunted.
"Kozlov isn't seeing you offering any either." The polar-bear behind Mr. Big grumbled lowly.
"Look who's talkin'!"
"Hold your tongues, the both of you! Save we have them cut out!" Vladzotz yelled from across the table. "Bickering won't resolve anything!"
Sighing, the bat lord then leaned back in his too-large seat, offing some of his weight upon the back of the chair. Looking around the thick of the crowd, the expressions of those present was all Vlad needed to see to know that alongside a slight degree of tension, disappointment was in the air as well - Mammals were here expecting answers to their problems, yet instead, no one could go more than a few minutes without throwing insults in a useless attempt to offload stress.
The bat lord glanced to his mate, standing atop the same chair that he was. He eyed her small, limber body shape, and took note of the bodysuit that clung tightly to her lithe frame: Perfect for sneaking in and out without a single ruffle of sound. Yes, the male bat recalled all too well how he and his female counterpart had first met, over a year ago, at this point in time, with the latter of the two breaking into the former's home and ultimately leading him on a wild goose-chase throughout the depths of the Nocturnal-District. Vladzotz narrowed his single, blood-red eye in deep thought, a new idea suddenly presenting itself, causing him to perk up and address the room with fervid confidence;
"I believe I might have a potential solution, actually."
"Do enlighten us, Mister Fangpyre." The arctic-shrew crime-lord proclaimed, readjusting his weight in his tiny little chair.
The bat lord licked at his lips in anticipation, shifting his weight on his two clawed feet before leaping up onto the tabletop, where he voiced his thoughts out loud;
"I propose, like we discussed, an arson attempt. As mentioned earlier, burning all of the evidence would be the absolute best way to ensure our overall safety and security."
"Quit the earbashing and get to the point, Fangpyre!" Iluka growled impatiently. Vladoztz just scoffed at the marsupial, ignoring him before gesturing to Lucy.
"My dear friend and associate, Lucy Sang, is quite experienced in the, ah... Surreptitious arts, least to say. She is a highly seasoned sleuth, and harbors great combat skills."
"Aw, you flatter me, Vladdy!" The female bat claimed bashfully, with her male counterpart taking note of what looked like a slight blush upon her face.
Clearing his throat, he promptly continued;
"As I was saying, I propose that we have Lucy enter the ZPD Head-Quarters, Precinct One, where she will set fire to the archive, destroying all of the evidence that the officials have on us. I reckon that using the air-ducts within the building itself, she'll easily be able to slip in unannounced, move about in secret, and flee without a single trace to leave."
After finalizing his previous statement, the bat lord analyzed the expressions of the various mammals around the room as his idea sunk in, and started to click to them all.
"That is good idea!" One nearby polar-bear stated from behind Kozlov.
"Yeah, I could see that working!" A lupine member of the Rainforest-Outfit proclaimed with glee.
"Don't see why not." The grizzled platypus beside Iluka muttered lowly.
For a brief moment, the bat lord reasoned that he had won over the council with his idea, that was, until Al Catpone slammed his fist onto the table in seeming disagreement.
"Nuh-uh, no way!" The jungle-cat crime-lord announced. "I ain't puttin' my faith in that twist, and I sure as hell ain't trustin' her with what the ZPD has on me!"
"And why is that?" Mr. Big questioned curiously.
"For all I know, she'll burn everything 'cept what they got on the Rainforest-Outfit, leavin' me an' my boys out to dry!"
"Oh, by all means, give me some ideas." Lucy mused, baring her fangs in a smile, effectively causing Al Catpone to grit his jaw in frustration.
"You see what I'm talkin' about?!" He shouted angrily.
"Bite me!" The female bat spat back.
"Hold on now, I think that this is the ace idea that we've been lookin' for!" Iluka Rombahe spoke out in the two vampire bat's defense.
"Thank you!" Lucy exclaimed in relief.
"I second that. It's a good concept." Mr. Big added in that droning voice of his. "But to be fair, we need to ensure that we're all on the same side, here."
Vladzotz nodded his head in agreement as he uttered his coming words;
"Yes, that's right. Lucy, my dear, we need you to promise us that you will perform according to everyone's best wishes, regardless of favor nor judgement. Can you do this?"
"Hmm." The female bat mused, crossing her arms as she pursed her lips. "Fine then. I'll comply. For you, Vladdy, I'll do what needs to be done."
The bat lord smiled wide, his razor sharp fangs displayed from behind his lips as he straightened himself out and stated aloud to the crowd;
"Excellent! Once this meeting of ours is properly dealt with, Lucy and I will immediately begin making preparations for the mission, and all that comes after."
"Now how can we trust you both, especially her, with a mission this crucial?" Catpone jabbed a talon tip at Lucy. "How can we know if you're even capable of handlin' it?"
Upon hearing the jungle cat's latest accusation, Lucy Sang rolled her eyes in annoyance before leaning forward and retorting against Catpone's comment;
"Hey now, Vladdy and I have a business partnership, Al, so we're used to working together. We're a very productive pair, actually."
"Oi mate, pass the liquor, will ya?" Iluka requested, waggling one of his whittled claws towards the rum bottle on the far side of the table. "I'm as dry as Big's sense of humor."
Growling lowly beneath his breath, Kozlov reached out with one of his meaty paws before sliding the bottle over to Iluka, who intercepted it. Smiling, the tasmanian-devil brought the glass to his lips, drinking deep before exhaling heavily.
"You know, all jokes aside, I think we should get back on topic." He offered.
"Agreed." Al grumbled, furrowing his thick brow in frustration.
"Good on that, then... Should bring us to our next topic, yes?"
"Which would be?" Mr. Big inquired.
"Is it not obvious? Sheesh, I'm surrounded by the biggest drongos in the city... What needs to be done to prepare the bat sheila for the mission, of course!"
"Bat sheila?" Lucy repeated with a raised eyebrow and her paws planted upon her hips. "Never been called that one before."
"Drongo?" Kozlov mumbled in confusion.
Iluka snickered. "Case in point!" He said with a smile, ultimately causing Vladzotz to snarl out loud;
"Enough of this farce! Your ridiculous vernacular has no place here, Iluka. Just say what needs to be said!"
"Sooks, the lot of you..." The tasmanian-devil grumbled. "Fine then." He spread his paws and calmly stated; "What needs to be done to prepare Miss Sang for her mission?"
"That's what I'm hoping we could cover now, though if need be, Lucy and I will resolve the matter on our own time." The bat lord claimed. Snorting, Al Catpone spoke aloud;
"Right then... So if we're gon' have the archive torched, she'll need to have somethin' wit' her to ignite a strong flame, preferably somethin' more effective than a lighter."
"Grenade!" Kozlov bellowed, causing some members amongst the crowd to audibly murmur in seeming approval.
"That could work." Mr. Big added. "It would have to be one strong enough to start a fire, though... Perhaps an incendiary?"
"Might take more than one, ya know..." Iluka muttered broodingly.
"Look how small she is, you think she'd be able to carry any more than three at a time, huh?" The jaguar crime-lord spat back.
"Molotov!" Kozlov called out once again, his rather booming voice startling Mr. Big in his tiny chair.
"No, that's barmy... Trying to balance one of those things without leakin' it everywhere would be impossible." The tasmanian-devil claimed. "Besides, if she drops it, she dies."
"Well aren't you just a shiny ray of glow-worm bioluminescence!" Vladzotz hissed, clearly not wanting to imagine her being burned alive.
"Semtex!"
"SHUT UP!" The crowd shouted unanimously.
11:20 P.M
Business is as business is.
For the hours proceeding the council's decision to use Lucy Sang as their arsonist, the attendees of the meeting spent their remaining time together plotting out the finer, more intricate details of their overall plan. Soon enough, however, the meeting itself was adjourned, and those that stayed behind simply chose to mingle and relax, some few enjoying themselves at the beverage table, sampling the variety of diverse foods and drinks that were presented, ranging from deep bowls of dressing-drenched salad to fried bugs.
The female bat herself couldn't deny that she was rather excited about the coming mission, and the potential fun that it held. To be a part of something so big, so important, and so risky was a feeling that she lived for. Besides, she was already more than willing to partake in such an endeavor if only to assist the likes of her dear mate, Vladzotz.
Lucy was about to head over and speak with him, but as she stepped forward, she was held back by a strong tug on her left arm, someone gripping her rather lightly, but strong enough to restrict her movement. Swiveling her head over her shoulder, she locked eyes onto the larger body of the tasmanian-devil crime-lord, Iluka Rombahe, standing directly behind her with one of his meaty paws clenched around her forearm. Scowling, the female bat pulled against him, but her smaller body was no match against his weight.
"You better have a good reason for touching me, tazzy." She spat, baring her needle-like fangs as a warning.
"Oh, I promise you, I do." Iluka claimed with a toothy, flickering smile. "Follow me."
Releasing his hold on Lucy's arm, the tasmanian-devil turned tail and slowly paced over to the corner of the room, but not before beckoning Lucy forward with one of his whittled claws, urging her to follow. With her wrist free from the crime-lord's grip, the female bat frowned and rubbed tenderly at the spot that he had been holding her, all the while approaching him from the behind, watching him with a eyes narrowed in distrust, as if he might suddenly try jump up and spook her, or something like that.
Once the two mammals reached the very corner of the room, Iluka turned around and faced the female bat before saying aloud;
"Listen and listen closely, bat, I don't have much time left here in the Sahara - I have business to attend to in the Deciduous-District, so let's make this quick, yes?"
"Alright, I'm listening... Spit it out, then, tazzy." Lucy insisted rather impatiently as she crossed her arms across her chest in a gesture of distrust.
The tasmanian-devil crime-lord smiled wide, his pink lips pulling back and revealing a set of formidable chompers.
"Beaut! 'Kay then, I'm askin' you to do a job for me... I heard from Vladzotz about how you're the kinda mammal that other mammals hire to steal things. I've got a job - Not a very big one, but very important to me nonetheless. When you go and sneak into the ZPD archive on your little mission, I simply request that you retrieve a single item from the rat's pillaged stash for me: A sword, disguised as an old cane. Ratsputin used it as a walking stick, but it has some deadly potential. You can burn everything else, though: I care not for what is destroyed, so long as the saber is safely recovered. So, does that suit your fancy?"
As Iluka spoke, Lucy noticed how he positioned his meaty paws on the sides of his belt, causing the folds of his safari-suit to slightly pull back like curtains, and ultimately reveal what looked to be a colorful painted boomerang, and a single, curled whip fastened to the side of his waistline. She thought of his choice of weapons as rather peculiar, but the female bat didn't dwell on the thought for very long, for as the tasmanian-devil concluded his previous statement, Lucy realized that he was still expecting an answer from her.
"You'd want me to risk the entire mission just to bring you back some overgrown cane-shank?" She questioned with raised eyebrows. "Seems kinda silly to me."
"I would. It's one of the prerogatives of being an inner-district crime-lord! I can be as petty and absurd as I want to! Besides, I have good faith in you, bat."
"Keep your absurdness to yourself, tazzy. Why would I want to risk the mission and waste my time trying to swipe that thing? I mean, what's in it for me, anyways?"
"Ah, I'm glad that you asked." Iluka claimed with a wide grin. "I'm a very resourceful sort of mammal, you know... I practically own the archaeological world."
"Get to the point." Lucy hissed quickly, causing her devilish counterpart to snarl beneath his breath.
"The point is, I can acquire some rather expensive and valuable artifacts for you, in repayment for your efforts... Gemstones, coins, tablets, clo-"
"Thanks, but no thanks." The female bat interrupted. "I'm not interested in any dusty old knick-knacks."
"Are you sure? I have quite a diverse selection of-"
"I said no, tazzy." She repeated, this time more sternly so that he got the message.
"Fine. What about plain cash?" Iluka offered as he spread his palms in a gesture of compliance, his tone buzzing with annoyance.
"That's more reasonable, but I don't come cheap, you know..." She glanced to Vladzotz. Well, except for you, she thought to herself, blushing slightly.
At the thought of her her mate, a sudden idea popped into her head, causing her large ears to perk upwards in realization, and her expression to briefly morph into that of surprise. Usually, she would have accepted the standard offer of money for a job like this, big or small, but when dealing with big-wigs like Iluka, Al, Vlad, or any of those other criminal figureheads, favors were the more accommodating and useful bargaining tool. Maybe she didn't know when, why, or even just what she would ask of the tasmanian-devil crime-lord when the time came, but having an ally as powerful and as influential as him would be quite a massive accomplishment for her likeness.
"So then, name your price, bat." The tasmanian-devil requested, clearly irritated by this point, all the while drumming his whittled claws rather impatiently against his belt.
"Actually, I changed my mind..." Lucy claimed with a slight shrug. "Money won't do, either!"
"Crikey, lass! What'll it take?!" Iluka suddenly shrieked, his meaty fingers clenching tightly into rigid fists.
Although she had initially intended on teasing him even further, the tasmanian-devil's sudden outburst had momentarily fazed Lucy: In that brief second of anger, Iluka's ears and lips had suddenly flushed red with blood, turning them an almost dark-red color, and admittedly surprising the female bat. When he had practically shouted just moments earlier, his muscular jaws had opened to nearly an eighty degree angle, showing off teeth almost as large as Lucy's entire head, and a blood-red throat quivering with the force of his words. His outburst had attracted the attention of a number of other criminals throughout the room, but it only took a few seconds until the event was shrugged off.
Recomposing herself as Iluka heaved in panting breaths of frustration, Lucy made herself a mental note not to press this guy's buttons too much in the future, as it was clear that his temper lived up the stereotype of his overall species: She'd heard plenty of news stories about tazzy's completely mauling anyone that set them off a tad bit too much.
"Whoa there, easy does it, tazzy." She reassured him, spreading her wings in a gesture of peace. "Cash may be outta the picture, but I still think we can reach an agreement!"
Exhaling heavily one final time, Iluka straightened himself out before running his thick claws through the fur on his head, and stating aloud;
"You wish to negotiate? Good... Explain, then."
Lucy smiled slightly as she placed her paws upon her hips, all the while explaining her idea to the tasmanian-devil crime-lord with intentful words;
"Well, instead of money, I was thinking that you and I could exchange a favor, of sorts. I'll get the sword for you, and you, quite literally, will return the favor when I ask for it."
The tasmanian-devil rumbled lowly from within his throat, soon reaching up and stroking his chin with one of his paws, clearly thinking over the terms of the female bat's offer.
"Hrum... This favor of yours, what is it, precisely?" He asked, to which Lucy simply shrugged.
"Not sure. I don't know when I'll call it, or why, or even over what, really. Hell, for all I know, I might never even call it... Time will tell."
"I am no fan of being left waiting in the dark... But I accept your offer: We have a deal."
Reaching out with one of his paws, Iluka offered up a formal hand-shake, to which Lucy accepted, despite the size difference.
"If you succeed in your mission, you are to notify me immediately." Iluka ordered calmly. "You can ask Vladzotz for further details."
"Alright, sounds good to me. Pleasure doing business with you, tazzy."
"One last thing: It is of the utmost importance that you do not scratch the blade... Understood?" The tasmanian-devil stated.
"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya."
Meanwhile, on the complete and opposite side of the room, Al Catpone approached his friend Vladzotz, whom was casually leaning against a nearby wall, silently eyeing the fervid commotion around the room. The jaguar's comparatively hulking frame vastly dwarfed that of the male vampire bat's, but if it bothered him, he certainly didn't seem to show it.
"Can I help you?" Vlad muttered lowly, sneering distastefully at the comparatively towering jaguar, whom visibly frowned upon detecting the bat lord's previous statement.
"Aw, don't be like that, bo. Cheer up!"
The crime-lord of the Rainforest-District grinned wide and held up his new cigar in a gesture of approval, hoping for his batty friend to display at least some shred of pleasantry. Despite the jovial mindset of his associate, Vladzotz simply continued to glare at him, his single red eye narrowed in hostility and disapproval, every bit of which was directed toward the jaguar standing beside him. Sensing that his attempt at peace had failed miserably, Al Catpone sighed and then visibly straightened himself out before uttering aloud;
"Look, bo, I'm sorry that I got in a lander earlier. I was just... Well, I was angry. Wouldn't you be angry too if you met a sleazy perp that stole from you face-to-face, huh?"
"I suppose I would, but that doesn't excuse it. You're reckless accusations nearly dissolved the meeting!" Vlad growled, jabbing a clawtip at the jungle cat crime-lord.
Al Catpone furrowed his brow and pursed his lips before bringing a paw to his face and stroking roughly at his jawline, as if he were thinking something over. Meanwhile, Vladzotz continued to glare at him, awaiting his oncoming response. Although the bat lord had worded his previous statement as near-exclusive to that of the meeting itself serving as the factor at hand, personally, Vladzotz was more so ticked off at the fact that his jaguar associate had so degradingly thrown accusations at his mate, whom unbeknownst to those at the meeting, he cared for a great deal.
After a few more brief seconds of pondering, Al simply shrugged his sturdy shoulders and spoke out loud;
"Granted. In the end, I guess it won't hurt to fo'give her, though."
"Forgive her, you say?" Vlad mused in response.
"Yeah, forgive. Grudges ain't good for the soul, ya know?"
"No need to lecture me about it."
"Heh heh... Right, I recall."
Silence enveloped the two crime-lords for roughly a minute, with neither individual uttering a single word. However, in due time, Catpone found himself asking aloud;
"Hm. I know this may seem rather up front, ya know, but I just gotta ask: Are you and that bat moll ova' there-" He pointed to Lucy. "-Somethin' special?"
Vladzotz bit back a curse. "Something special?" He repeated carefully, as if the words left a bitter taste behind as they left his mouth.
"Ya know. You goin' out wit' her?" Al mused, his cocky expression effectively causing Vladzotz to mentally panic.
Guano-eating, flower-picking ally cat... He cursed within his mind.
Growling beneath his breath, Vladzotz extended his bony wings before flapping up to Catpone's eye-level.
"And just what exactly makes you flaunt such a preposterous assumption?!" He hissed quietly.
Throughout his developing relationship with Lucy Sang, both her and Vladzotz himself had done their best to keep said relationship a secret from others in the criminal underworld, for security reasons. However, it soon became clear that they could only visit one another, work together, and be seen in close proximity (All the while being of the same species) for so long before mammals started to get suspicious.
"I dunno," Al claimed, still smirking knowingly. "Just a feeling."
Well, seemed like the cat was out of the bag, at that point.
Vladzotz sighed in defeat, his single red eye closing shut. "Yes. Lucy is... She is my mate." He finally managed through clenched teeth.
Upon hearing Vlad's concluding statement, Al Catpone breathed in a wheezy breath before bursting out with a loud, deep laugh, his frame shaking so much that the bat lord had to disengage from the jaguar's vicinity, immediately fluttering down and landing hard on the floor. Al wiped at one of his eyes with his index finger.
"Gettin' dizzy with a dame now, are ya? My mammal!" He chuckled lowly. "Don't surprise me all that much, though, considerin' how you both smell."
"What?" Vladzotz hissed. "Is it that noticeable?" The bat lord asked, his ears drooping with embarrassment.
"It is to any schlep with a decent sense o' smell, I'll tell ya that much."
Al craned his neck around, soon locking his gaze onto Lucy as she chatted with Iluka Rombahe in the corner of the room. The jaguar chuckled lowly to himself before reaching down to Vlad's comparatively tiny form and lightly patting the bat lord on the top of his head.
"Don't be ashamed! You struck a real looker, bo, I gotta say! I'm proud o' ya."
Vladzotz simply glared distastefully at his larger associate. The vampire bat's single red eye was narrowed in hostility, and he then opened his fanged maw, no doubt prepared to retort back to the jaguar, but he immediately trailed off upon hearing a string of words that caused both mammals to seize up.
"I can hear you two from here!"
Slowly turning towards the feminine voice, both Vlad and Al simply smiled nervously upon locking sight with Lucy Sang, whom stood across the room, waggling her clawed fingertips at the two of them. Vlad felt his face flush in embarrassment, but soon warm up with a slight blush as he witnessed his mate wink at him before turning back to Iluka. He noticed that she still kept one of her large ears swiveled in their direction, likely to listen in on their own conversation.
Rubbing at the back of his neck, Al chuckled nervously before turning his attention back down to Vlad, standing down near his ankles. The jaguar smiled, his expression almost that of pride or sympathy, and then knelt down to Vlad's height.
"Hey now, bo, don't be lettin' anyone tell you that what you got ain't a good thing, 'cause it is. I can tell. You seem a whole lot happier, what with her in the picture now. And something tells me you return the favor to her."
"I won't argue against that." Vlad agreed with a slight smile tugging at the edge of his muzzle.
"I'm happy for you. You've moved on - Found love once again." Catpone secured his fedora with a slight jerking twist. "Don't let go of it."
Nodding in agreement, the bat lord watched as Al straightened himself out and stood up, his towering height making Vlad feel quite small in comparison.
"I can tell she loves you too. You'll make a good couple. Perhaps even husband and wife one day. However, you best keep that moll of yours under control, Vlad. Business is business, and I won't be so forgivin' if she interferes with it again."
"Not to worry, my friend." Vladzotz claimed. "I'll make sure that she doesn't meddle in places that she shouldn't." He chuckled. "To the best of my abilities."
"Good." The jaguar finalized as he tilted his hat in a gesture of farewell. "Keep in touch, then. Keep in touch."
And at that, Al Catpone lumbered off from Vlad, toward the beverage table. Vladzotz smiled, a low chuckle escaping his maw as he lightly shook his head from side to side, his mind at ease. Suddenly, he felt a slight tapping upon his right shoulder from behind, causing him to turn around in search of the perpetrator, but failing to see any sign of them. Frowning in disappointment, he readjusted his head to the front, only for his single red eye to widen in surprise as it focused in on the face of his mate, Lucy, standing just a few inches from him.
As Vlad stepped back with surprise, Lucy only had just enough time to lean out and peck him on his leaf-shaped nose.
"Caught me off guard with that one, Sang." Vladzotz muttered as he recomposed himself, his nose twitching in lingering response to his mate's sudden smooch.
"What can I say?" She replied easily, spreading her wings. "You always gotta stay on guard!"
"Yes, of course, but do be careful with the public displays of affection, my dear. Many here still do not know of our relationship with one another."
"Oh come on, Vladdy, I can kiss you if I want to. And to be fair, I did warn you that I'd kiss you earlier, remember? Besides, if I heard your conversation with Spots correctly, I'd assume that the cat's already out of the bag, huh?"
Vladzotz winced. He had forgotten how Lucy had been listening in on his conversation with Al Catpone earlier.
"Yes, I suppose you're right." He muttered. "But still, I'd prefer we kept all this under wraps as best we can."
"Spots might blab," Lucy said, jabbing a thumbclaw in Al's direction. "But who cares what anyone thinks?"
"Indeed. Perhaps we should discuss it with him... Invite him over to the safehouse for dinner, sometime."
"Or as dinner." Lucy added, her tongue tracing over her fangs as if imagining the jaguar's thick neck caught between her teeth.
The male bat laughed darkly before clearing his throat audibly. "So... Do you really think that you'll be able to handle the mission? The arson attempt?" He questioned his mate.
"Yeah, shouldn't be too bad." Lucy claimed nonchalantly. "It'll only be problematic trying to get that sword out safe." She finalized with a brief glance towards Iluka.
"Sword? You mean Ratsputin's cane?" Vlad questioned, to which his female counterpart nodded in confirmation. "What on earth would you need that for?"
"Not me..." The female bat corrected, jabbing a finger in the general direction of the tasmanian-devil that she had conversed with. "Illy Roomba, or whatever his name is."
"Ah, Iluka Rombahe. Figures. That mammal goes after anything with so much as a shine to it. What does he want the blade for?"
"Beats me." Lucy muttered with a slight shrug. "He didn't say."
"Hmm. Knowing him, it's probably nothing more than some new knick-knack he's chasing after. Did he promise you anything for your efforts?"
"He offered cash, of course, but I turned it down. When you're working with big fishes like him, I've found that it's sometimes best to trade in favors instead of money."
Vladzotz smiled slyly at his mate. "Sounds like you know what you want." He stated with a toothy grin.
"You could say that, but honestly, I dunno. I guess we'll see, assuming I can manage to find and swipe that stupid sword."
"Might be difficult carrying that thing back through the ducts." The male bat added, to which his mate simply shrugged.
"Perhaps." Lucy muttered before grinning. "Not gonna stop me from trying, though!"
"Your confidence does you well. With the meeting now adjourned, though, I think it'd be best if we were to return to the safehouse soon, wouldn't you agree?"
"Yeah, sure, why not? I'd rather hang out with you than any of these dumb lackeys, anyways." Lucy claimed, gesturing to the crowd of mobsters and other criminals.
From there, the female bat wrapped her arm around Vlad's back, and in turn, the male positioned his own opposing wing upon the side of Lucy's hip. Together, they casually strolled out of the conference room. Eyeing the couple as they left, Iluka Rombahe snorted through his nostrils.
Bloody harpy better keep her end of the deal. He thought to himself. If that sword gets torched along will all the other evidence, she'll see just what makes us tazzies so devilish.
Hey everyone!
I certainly hope that you enjoyed this latest chapter, as always. Do feel free to leave a review explaining your thoughts, if you'd like, and to favorite and/or follow the story as well: Every single one counts, and I would be very grateful.
That being said, I'd absolutely love to know what you guys think of Iluka Rombahe, and all of the sangpyre stuff that we get in this latest chapter of ours!
Alrighty, moving on then! A number of people have brought to my attention the idea of hypothesizing who would provide voices for the various characters that appear in this story, if only to provide readers with a better idea of what the varying characters sound like. I think it's a neat idea and have taken the time to come up with a number of sources that I think would match well with their corresponding characters...
Ivar Obdenberg: Nikolai Belinsky (CoD)
John Haddock: Captain Hector Barbossa (PotC)
Vladzotz Fangpyre: Christopher Lee / Charles Dance / Jason Douglas
Lucy Sang: Juri Han (SF)
Al Catpone: Robert Costanzo
Shahaz 'The Stinger' Pholmok: Ron Perlman
Grygorri Ratsputin: Jeremy Irons
Iluka Rombahe: Jai Courtney
Anyhow, that's pretty much all I got for you lot as of now, really. Do be sure to stay tuned for the inevitable release of chapter 73, comin' your way soon! :D
'Till next time...
Peace!
PS: A multitude of new fan-art pieces have just recently been uploaded onto my Tumblr and DeviantArt accounts. Feel free to check them out, if you want!