Two Meets Ten
Justin lead them through a labyrinth of turns and security doors, as well as a few armed guards in the same black suits and no nonsense expressions, at least until Justin grinned at them, most returning the grin or at least giving a polite and silent nod.
Judy inundated Justin with quick fire questions, her natural curiosity pouring forth, especially since the entire situation made her a little nervous. Once she had warmed up to Justin a bit, however, her tiny mouth ran constantly. Far from being annoyed, Justin found her refreshingly engaging. He slipped into the role of tour guide, showing some of the sights along the way to their destination, answering as they walked.
"Why are there so many armed guards when you have so much surveillance." She asked as the small group passed yet another small black dome she'd deduced was a camera.
"Well, we are a security firm. This all helps," gesturing toward the camera, "but we still keep guards at random posts in case anyone breaks through the system." Justin replied, still leading away.
"Hmm, ok. Who is Heather?" the bunny quickly countered, hoping to catch the badger off guard, her eyes lowered slyly. Nick kept quiet, but listened and tried to keep track of where in the complex they were.
"She is the head of tech. Though she is more than just a computer nerd. Far from it. She does many things for Mr. Card and George both. If George is Mr. Card's right hand, she is the left for them both. No one is more trusted or well received. Except maybe me." Justin had a thoughtful look on his face as he pulled to a stop in front of yet another door. "In here is the gym. If you ever need Casey, chances are high he is in here." A quick glance through a side window revealed several pieces of exercise equipment from treadmills to ellipticals, to a monstrosity of pulleys and weights. Since the firm was paramilitary, the hardware didn't seem out of place at all, the rear wall bristling with various sized barbells, ranging from five to ninety pounds.
While peering through the door, Judy continued her interrogation. "Have you ever met Mr. Card? Is he even real?" She held her breath a little with the last one, hoping her mostly innocent questions would lure the badger into an unconscious slip of the tongue.
Justin, however, glanced at her with the smile she'd seen a few times already, asking one of those prohibited questions. She sighed and looked away, thinking he would be silent as death, when he cleared his throat. She chanced a glance at him, when he gave a slight nod. "Yes, Judy, I have met Mr. Card on many occasions. He is real and well connected. We don't talk about him, everyone keeps their thoughts of him to themselves. This firm is well compensated, and are granted many liberties because of him. He has my respect."
"But what species is he, Justin?" Nick interjected. He'd been silent since they left the apartment.
That earned him the silent smile from their tour guide, as they continued walking, taking another turn. Their journey finally ended before more questions could be asked, at a seemingly random door of many down a hallway. The sound of distorted and quieted bass leaked from behind the closed door they stood in front of. Pressing his paw against a similar screen as on the apartment, Justin gained entrance to the musical door. Entering a cold, dark room, the trio was greeted by multiple screens and various displays, being attended by a pair of mammals as a wave of obnoxiously loud electronic music splashed over them. The closest one to the door turned to the intruders and invading light, quickly quieting the pounding bass of a tropical house tune, muting the synthesized melody mid song. Justin reached for the light switch, the motion drawing a fear induced, "NOOOOO!" from the mammals, followed by twin screams of agony as the light bathed the room in luminescents. The two small mammals instantly recoiled, contorting in their chairs, twisting and bunching their Pawaiin shirts, an appropriate attire for the choice in music. Two tails of striped black and dark gray twitched together in distress.
A pair of thick glasses regarded them, not even able to hide the scowl across the deep gray fur and black face mask of the raccoon. "Justin, you bastard. That was terrible. Why in God's green earth did you decide that was necessary?" The look of absolute hatred stuck to the muzzle of the small mammal, the look comical in conjunction to the burnt orange light hearted shirt depicting palm trees he wore.
This was followed by an equally foul tempered "Yeah, ass hole." from the other raccoon, in a light blue affair, this one with surf boards and umbrella drinks. They both were rubbing their eyes almost compulsively. The first one removed the odd looking glasses to ease the eye rub.
Justin entered, waving a paw toward the suffering pair, that returned the motion with beady black eyes boring into him with waves of disgust. "These two are the Folsick twins. No one can tell them apart, so don't bother. They help with computer algorithms and maintain electronic security. They are foul mouthed creatures with little respect for anyone but their boss, Heather." His explanation was received with mute surprise, since every other mammal they'd met treated Justin with tremendous respect. His eyes never left the twins as he continued, "I need you two little greasy fingered Trash Pandas to get these two into the security system, set for level three clearance." The look of shock on Judy's muzzle at how casually Justin had tossed the grave insult was only deepened when the raccoon pair's response was a quick moment of stunned silence, followed by hysterical laughter. The howls from the twins continued, including the pounding of fists on the desk and culminated in open weeping.
"He called us fuckin' Trash Pandas, dude!" one of them managed to wheeze out between laughs.
"Don't forget greasy fingers! That's harsh. Not as harsh as bandit face or ugly burnt squirrel's neanderthal cousin, but fucking harsh nonetheless." the other breathed raggedly.
As the show dragged on, Justin muttered to the surprised officers a bit of an explanation. "George told them that if they want to be rude or snarky, they better be able to take it, or he'd string them up by their tails and let Casey use them for sparring practice. Since they can't seem to control their tourettes, they have learned to find humor in even a deadly insult. It's now almost a game, a kinda fun distraction for a boring day of screen watching." He was quiet enough not to bother the laughing twins, waiting patiently for their episode to subside. "They are the best at what they do, and experts usually have some odd quirks. On a practical note, this level of clearance will give you access to everything you are cleared for at this time. So you won't go anywhere you aren't supposed to." Justin explained with a quick glance and grin. As the laughing fit more akin to hyenas than racoons finally quieted, both tech experts were rubbing their eyes only to clear the tears they had worked themselves to.
"The boss had told us before she left for her meeting. We already have everything set, we just need the normal, bro." The orange clad raccoon stated, his surfer west coast nuance apparent in his more moderated voice. He never returned the thick glasses to his muzzle.
"Ok Nick, Judy. If you please?" Justin gestured toward the raccoon twins, both with a device akin to a small scanner in paw. "These are for your pawprints, so you can access any door equipped with such. And one hair as well, from anywhere. This is for the biometrics, in the off chance you need medical assistance, or for other more limited access areas requiring more clearance. They also have an adapter for your phones, placed in the sim card slot, should give you access to our personal cell towers in the city." The scans were completed, and a pair of 'Ouch'es came from the officers as a hair was plucked from their arms. They handed over their personal cell phones with unreadable expressions. The two racoons smiled and turned back to the computer screens, fingers dazzling across customized keyboards, pulling symbols similar to the ones on George's phone Judy had caught a glance at. The symbols flashed so quickly, neither bunny nor fox could keep up. Justin laughed at the confused looks they had. "I told you guys they are the best. I don't even bother keeping up, I just ask and get what I need, and leave the technobabble to them." With a friendly shake of his head, Justin looked at the twins, who had completed whatever they were doing and handed back the officers phones. "Are they in?"
The light blue wearing raccoon responded, "Of course they're in, Justin. Oh, the biometrics will take a few more minutes, but that will be in place well before you could need it. Maybe ten more minutes, and they'll be in the system as much as you." He glanced more closely at the well dressed badger, "Why you more dressed up than usual, were you out with the boss's boss? Or did you have a round of golf to attend to as the caddy?" He asked casually while handing back the phones.
Justin's eyebrow shot up, a quizzical look splashed across his muzzle. "If you didn't know I had Big Blue out for a spin, you better turn in your clearance now, you Squirrel's Neanderthal cousin." This snide comment was delivered quietly, adding a sinister twist to the insult. The twins found the twist to be comical, giving a rash of laughs. Justin continued after they quieted, "You know I was, and why. Let's try and make a better impression on our guests. And keep that damn house music down. You know if George hears it, he'll tear out all the speakers and leave you two keyboard jockeys with nothing but your phone speaker. And I like to listen to my tunes too, so knock it off, you burnt squirrel painted faced little pricks." The two mortified officers watched the HR nightmare unfold before them, having no clue what to do or say when Justin politely lead them out, being followed by the twins raucous laughter. As the door shut, Nick was positive one of them fell off his chair.
Justin had quiet companions following him to the main employee lounge. His thoughts roiled with various possibilities. And a few hints of fear. Luckily his time with George and his team had built a natural block to suppress the scent, a part of training they all underwent in the military…
"Where are we headed now Justin?" Judy asked quietly, the memory of the laughing raccoons still fresh in her mind. Nick stole a glance at his phone, relieved to see it have bars for service, but more than a little bothered that the location option was stuck in disable mode.
The normal smile returning to his muzzle, Justin looked at the small bouncing bunny he was leading. "Why, the main event, of course. We are going to the 'Wolf's Lair' so you two can meet the Ten."
Nick and Judy exchanged glances behind Justin's back, neither knowing what he was talking about. After returning his phone to his pocket, Nick reached out his paw, offering it to his small partner. She smiled and took the offered paw. In under a minute, they reached their apparent destination. Their guide lead them to an odd double door down a larger corridor with the words 'Alpha Squad' etched in the privacy glass atop, one word on each door. This one had no security access, easily opened and was unguarded. Inside was a large room, about the same size as the officer's briefing room. They were meet with the same modern and sleek furniture, set like an upscale lawyer's waiting area, complete with a coffee table and couches. The sitting area, like their apartment, was decorated with a professional eye to be chic and modern, no detail too small or unnoticed. The walls were painted deep dark forest green, almost black, with brushed nickel light fixtures. A small kitchen was tucked in a corner, with various appliances and coffee pots, all stainless, one of which was filling the expanse with the aroma of fresh brewed java, which both officers eagerly inhaled. The cabinets were a dark mahogany with black furniture to offset the granite counter top.
Ten mammals were inside the area, most in fresh suits, but some in the same slate gray workout suits the fox and rabbit wore. Spotting a familiar pair of felines from earlier in the day just coming from the small kitchen, Justin made for them directly. The lion had a large topped clear cup with a beige milky substance inside, while the panther held an average sized steaming coffee cup. Judy noticed immediately that every mammal in the room was a predator, her ears straight up and aware. Nick noticed as well, his tail twitched once before he unconsciously placed himself closer to Judy. They followed Justin to the small kitchen area, listening to one loud group gathered at a large flat screen attached to the wall showing what looked like a boxing match between a bear and moose.
"Justin! What kept you? The fight already started!" The broad shouldered lion practically roared at them. Spying the trailing officers behind the badger, Casey's huge muzzle broke into a friendly and toothy grin. "I see you brought us a little fresh meat. Ha! Was wondering when you'd bring them down. Name's Casey. Casey Rondlick." Judy looked up to see the largest lion's paw she'd ever seen. Her paw was barely big enough to fit around a digit, yet his shake was firm and warm. The power in that shake was impressive, yet he was tightly controlled, applying only the hint of locked up power obvious in his massive form. Releasing her paw, the lion turned to the fox, offering the same smile and huge paw.
In reaching to complete the shake, Nick flashed his own easy smile, and lazily quipped, "Does Margery have to custom make your gloves too? Cause geez those are some mits ya got there, Casey." Giving a quick shake while Casey wore a slightly puzzled expression, Nick quickly hopped under the massive paw, and held it up with both his paws mockingly, his oration never stopping. "I mean, look at this thing Carrots, you could shade yourself completely if you ever went to the beach with him. And no one would dare take your perfect spot either." Nick turned under the paw to look at his partner, and offered a quick wink, which Judy couldn't resist, breaking into a quick giggling fit. Casey, still puzzled, flushed a bit after realizing he'd been on the bad end of a joke, started chuckling, slowly building up to a full, booming laugh, drawing the attention of the entire room. Justin glanced around, a bit of panic in his face, giving quick hand signals to stand clear and not look. In a split second, everyone was back to their previous engagements. This quick work went unnoticed by a distracted bunny, but not by the vigilant fox. Casey wandered to a nearby couch, still laughing, though quieter, and more subtle. The black panther beside the badger looked stunned, like he'd been sucker punched in the gut. As Judy attempted to recover, Nick looked around at the mammals nearest him and asked Justin quietly, "What gives? You look like you've seen a ghost or something." A touch of concern was in his voice, his smile not so large.
Justin swallowed before answering, and addressed the panther first. "Asher, would you please get me a bottled water from the fridge?"
The panther gave a quick head shake, and answered in a quiet voice, "Sure thing Justin."
As he was walking away, Justin motioned Nick closer, and quietly whispered once the fox was closer. "I've never seen anyone survive making fun of his oversized paws. He has abnormally large paws, and is actually sensitive about it. Once a smart ass made fun of him for it, we had to use a tranquilizer just to calm him enough to see what was left of the guy. I thought you were a dead fox for sure." Nick's eyes widened at the tale, while his ears dropped to his skull, his tail fluffing from the thought of one massive hit from the overdeveloped lion would probably prove fatal for him. He could only gulp as the bile threatened to come up. "Please for the love of God don't do that again. I nearly had a heart attack."
Before Nick could speak, the panther came back with the bottle of water, and Judy recovered from her laughing fit. Justin took the offered bottle and handed it to the now shaken fox. "Thanks Asher." He received a polite nod in response.
Judy's smile was short lived once she spied her distraught partner. Ever protective, she looked from Nick to Justin, her expression alone demanding an explanation.
"I'll explain later, Judy. Let's get you both introduced to the some of the group." Justin said diplomatically. "The panther here is Asher, a good and solid mammal." Asher gave a nod of acknowledgment. "He was one of the tails for the old Duesenberg from the station." Asher gave a slight feline smile, and departed to join the large lion on the couch, sitting and murmuring a few words that the still grinning lion nodded to.
Justin turned, and motioned for the officers to follow into the small kitchen area, where the coffee smell was positively intoxicating. Seeing the twin reactions of desire, Justin grinned, efficiently gathering cups, filling both with the dark brown liquid. "Any extras?" he inquired politely.
"Cream and two sugars for me." Judy said.
"Black for me, thanks." Nick said simply, still obviously shaken.
As he handed the fox his cup and finished adding the extras for the rabbit, Justin quietly spoke while the rest of the room was engrossed in the fight on the TV. "Ok you two. I'm the only one in this room that knows why you are here. This is Alpha squad, my team. They are good mammals, but George thinks the fewer that know about what we are up to, the better. And I agree for op sec,"this was followed by a grimace. "Sorry, old military jargon. Operational security. Remember, you are both posing as potential recruits, so you would have a reason to be here and not be suspicious." Turning to the purple eyed bunny, he continued. "Judy, we were thinking you would do well as intel. You are perfect for espionage. And no one expects a female, let alone a bunny. And an attractive one at that." He smiled as Judy's ears flared red and Nick's eyes went flat. "Hey, its an observation, not a come on." Justin held his paws in a placating manner to Nick. "And you, Nick, are here to deal with contacts. Your natural charm and silver tongue would be an asset to the company in dealing with diplomats and skittish information handlers. Your past experience as a con man would let you do well in this field." Nick gave a questioning look, which made Justin smile a bit more broadly. "Yes Nick, we knew about your cons years ago, we just figured your contact content wasn't as extensive. An error we might have paid for with the Night howler incident." His glace now taking in both the mammals in front of him, Justin continued, "About that, most your celebrity has fallen, which is good for us. If anyone asks, you haven't decided if police work is what you want, since you felt marginalized on the force. You two got all that?" Getting responding nods and coffee sips, Justin nodded as well.
"Ok then. Shall I introduce you to the team half the cities underworld is afraid of?" Justin's grin was both full of fierce pride and encouragement.