Chapter 38 - Tales of a Fox

Edited by Democrasaurus Rex & Euphonemes

AN: Happy Birthday Zootopia! *blows into kazoo* Today marks the TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY of Zootopia coming out in theaters, and my two year old addiction to it. XD So I wanted to celebrate by updating my stories today for you all. I hope everyone also takes some time to remember the message of the film and how it impacted you. What you loved about it and how it has brought this community together. So lets all celebrate this amazing film, and here's to even more years for our community! :)

AAN: Here are some nautical terms that you'll need to know for this chapter. Also, warning, this chapter will be at the high limit of a T rating for violence. Seriously, this is what naval warfare is like so...yeah. Ye be warned.

Port: Left side of a ship facing forward

Starboard: Right side of the ship facing forward

Stern: Backside of the ship facing forward.

Bow: Front of the ship.

Aft: The backside of a ship.

AAAN: Also, there is a shoutout to an amazing story written by an amazing author in this chapter. So if you find it, let me know. ;)

It was nearing sunset by the time Ake'cheta halted their jog. The golden orb hung low over the horizon, tendrils of orange and red bathing the pine forest.

"Was wondering when we'd stop," Nick panted as he walked to a nearby log and collapsed upon it. "Calling it a night?"

The coyote shook his head. "No, we're building a shelter for tonight. Too many prying eyes searching for us now to continue."

Judy glanced at the path they'd taken. The forest had decreased heavily in volume. Instead of trees blocking the growth of shrubs underneath their thick canopy, there were more bushes than cedar trees. Thickets of rough and course shrubberies dotted the landscape, interspersed among mounds of boulders and craggy, rough-hewn rock faces. She didn't spy any place she could call a shelter for three mammals, even smaller ones of their sizes.

Until she looked up, and her muzzle widened in a grin.

"Perfect."

"I know you are," Nick chuckled, earning a frown from the rabbit. He held his paws up in surrender. "Sorry, too soon?"

"Yes," both Judy and Ake'cheta spoke at once. Nick's ears lowered as he went silent. Walking off the path, Judy climbed up a small rockslide, ambling quickly from rock to rock before clambering to the top, where a thin but manageable path lay.

Judy called down to the two canines below who were watching her curiously. "I think I found where we can shelter. There looks to be a small cave up here."

The two predators took a much more careful climb up to the bunny's roost, several rocks slipping under their weight. Once they reached the top, Judy guided them along the cliff edge, barely wide enough for a wolf, until they found a deep indentation in the rocks. Nick grinned.

"Clever bunny," he stated as he glanced around the ledge they were on. "Only two ways up here, the rockslide or this ledge." He peered further down the cliff side, satisfied by the long, thin path that snaked its way along the sandstone bluff. "Easy to protect and to see enemies approaching..." He slipped past Judy into the mouth of the cave, peering into the darkness using the petering light of the setting sun. "And with that curve, we would be hidden from view even if someone came up here and searched for us."

Judy nodded. "We'd just need to hide our scent trail leading up here." She pondered for a moment, then turned to Ake'cheta. "Spot anything on the way here that we could use for that?"

"Nothing on the way in, however, the winds should blow away most of our trail within an hour or two."

"Cedar branches," Nick exclaimed, snapping his fingers. "They won't completely cover our trail, but would cover it enough, and there are fallen limbs everywhere."

"I'll grab the cedar," Ake'cheta announced, and was gone just as quick down the ledge.

Leaving Nick and Judy...alone.

In the quiet of the growing night.

Alone.

Together.

In what both were realizing was a growing awkwardness.

"So…" both began at once.

"Hehe." Nick scratched at the back of his neck while Judy coughed into her paw.

"I'll set up the bedrolls if you'd like to grab some food from the packs?" Nick offered and at the rabbit's nod, they both went to work. Nick soon realized a newfound predicament. The tod couldn't help but look over his shoulder at Judy while she scrounged up food from her satchel. He looked back at the ground when her ears turned in his direction, followed quickly by the rest of her head.

How close should I lay the bedrolls?

It should have been a simple question, as neither mammal had issues with being in close proximity to the other.

At least before this afternoon…

With how small the natural cave was already, would it be awkward if he lay them side by side, or would Judy take that as too much too soon after the revelations of the day? But if I put them on the sides of the cave, would I don't want to be near her anymore? That I'd want to push her away?

Nick stood, mentally torturing himself as he attempted the singular task of laying down two bedrolls, at least until thumpthumpthump sounded behind him.

His head had barely turned by the time Judy had snatched the two pads from his paws and in a flick of her wrists, rolled them out fully in the air and laid them down next to each other.

"Eheh...I was...I was going to do that."

A raised eyebrow and an amethyst glance filled with incredulity met his nervous green-eyed gaze. "Nick, could you really not know how to spread a bedroll?"

"I know how, just…" Nick let out a sigh as Judy folded her arms across her chest. "I didn't know how close you'd like them to be after...this morning."

Judy stifled a groan. "Nick, we buried that hatchet. I know I'll still be trying to understand everything you went through and why you did it, but, for what we're doing, we can't second guess ourselves. Stay focused."

Right...Nick thought, the corners of his lips turning to a frown. "Right…" he repeated aloud. "I'm focused. Sorry, Judy."

The bunny turned back to her pack as Nick went to his, trying to focus as she located her meager dinner for that night. Though as she grasped her food, her mind was elsewhere: her future with Nick, now that she knew his biggest secret.

Thankfully, until Ake'cheta arrived, the two mammals kept themselves busy with food, a meager helping of a timothy grass tortilla for Judy and a few pawfuls of legumes for Nick. Nick eyed the beans, sighing as he popped them into his muzzle, chewing the grainy meal quickly least he gag at the tasteless morsels. I should have stopped by Perks for some of their blueberry scones and carrot cake instead of sending Gonzalez to the storage room. Nick popped the rest of his meal into his mouth, wishing they'd transform into an assortment of treats from the popular cafe.

It wasn't long after that when Ake'cheta slipped into the cave and informed them that their scents should be neutralized now. Judy volunteered for the first watch of the night, an offer that Nick and Ake'cheta gratefully accepted. Their muscles remembered the hectic battle from earlier, and both canines looked forward to their rest.

The moment their heads hit their mats, they were out like the setting sun. Judy was grateful for the peace and calm. The alone time let her think, after all, and it wasn't long until her gaze was focused upon the fox sleeping mere feet from her, curled into a ball with his tail over his nose. She couldn't help but smile, feeling a sudden urge to brush back the rise of rumpled fur between his ears from his bolero.

So many things I still don't know about you ...

Her smile turned to a frown, before taking on a more mournful look. How did I forgive him so easily today...why did I forgive him so easily?

Her paw brushed the healing scars across her cheek. A memory flashed, like a whisper of a match struck before being snuffed out. She stole another glance at the sleeping tod. Is this all worth it?

Is he...worth it?

She had wanted to be furious with him earlier, and a part of her still wished she could exact her revenge against the red fox for how he misled her and played with her heart.

Judy shook her head. No...you know his feelings were true the entire time. There were no falsehoods there.

But what if there were? the silent, taunting voice mocked her.

"I mustn't think like that…" she scolded herself, pushing the annoying thought away. "He is my friend. Something more...still? Maybe?"

She let out a growl of disgust as she stood from the cave's entrance and paced back and forth, pulling at her ears in frustration. "What do I want from this…"

That's a very good question...an inner voice told her. Do you want the fox or not?

His name is Nick! Judy shouted internally only to let out a verbal groan and plunk her head against the sandstone wall. Her conscience snickered, as Judy repeatedly bonked her head against the smooth stone. "Do I want Nick...Do I want Nick...Do I want Nick…"

"What do you want to pick?"

Judy's ears bolted upright at the sleepy voice behind her. She stumbled over a stone near the entrance, barely catching a glimpse of the moonlight reflecting from two emerald eyes staring half-lidded towards her.

"Oh, nothing, nothing!" Judy sputtered loudly, before lowering her voice to a whisper. "Nothing. I just ah...wanted to know which, story. Yes, story to pick."

Even in the dim light she could easily see his raised eyebrow and look of bemusement. "Story? Does my little bonita want a bedtime story?"

"No! Yes! I…" Judy groaned at the chuckle coming from Nick. She heard him slide off the bed roll and saw a flicker of movement near his side.

"Judy, I think we need to talk."

Judy let out a huff. "We talked this morning."

"You clearly want to talk more."

"No I don't."

Yes, you do," Nick insisted.

"No. I don't," Judy replied.

Nick raised an eyebrow. "No?"

"No…?" Judy replied, confused.

With an irritated growl, the bunny stomped over towards the fox, sitting roughly on the ground before him, glaring at him.

"Alright," Nick began. "What has my bunny all riled up?"

The question made Judy pause mid-thought as a retort died on her lips. All the confusion of the past few days was whirling like a tornado in her mind, tossing her thoughts here, there, and everywhere. She tried catching them as they flew by, only seeming to grasp them before they pulled away, leaving her mind in a haphazard state of disrepair.

Questions whipped by.

Why did she forgive him?

Why did he hide everything from her?

Does he still love her?

Does she still love him?

Who exactly is Nicholas de la Wilde?

"I don't know…" she finally murmured. "These past few days have been so confusing."

"Tell me about it," Nick huffed before looking down at Judy, his eyes glowing in the darkness. "Though I still must apologize for my behavior throughout all the time I've known you. It was the height of arrogance for myself to treat you how I did."

A scoff left the bunny's lips. "Must run in the family."

She felt him tense. It was barely a moment, a heartbeat, yet she had felt it. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me."

Nick waved off her concern. "It's alright. My father told me as much before we left."

"He did?" Judy asked, surprised. She'd only met the admiral a few times in the city during patrols, as well as the fateful meeting aboard his ship. Memories of that conversation iced her veins. I should have seen all this coming…

"He told me many things before we left, fearing it would be the last time we could talk. About my family, about him and I..."

"Wait...what?" Judy's head flicked up at that comment. "That sounds like he actually cares about you?"

It came out as more of a question than her intended surprise.

"More than either of us knew," Nick replied softly. "More than I ever imagined with what he gave up for me."

What he gave up? Judy thought as her heartbeat quickened. "What...else did he say?" Judy asked, placing a paw on his arm.

"Told me about my mother."

The cave fell silent. Judy watched Nick's reactions carefully as his head tilted forward, ears drooping. She knew from prior conversations his mother had passed when he was young. Sidling closer to the fox, she leaned against him. "Would you...like to talk about that?"

"A bit of a heavy conversation when you still need rest, mi amor," Nick said quietly. "I'd rather see you rested than learning about mi familia."

"Nick…" Her voice caught his attention like she hoped, almost as much as her paw on his arm. Please open up to me. Not like before when it came forced. I want to know the real you...

Nick withheld his gaze from her for but a moment. He knew what he'd see when he turned, as it had been a common sight these past few weeks.

A mammal who cared for him.

He finally relented and saw her, eyes wide and gaze penetrating...pleading...with him. Asking him for this one thing. If her nose began twitching then it would seal his fate; dooming him and sealing his sentencing and fate as quickly as a judge's gavel.

Twitchtwitchtwitch

He was doomed. His fate sealed as he stared down at the darling doe before him. Even the greatest maestros he'd seen in Califurnia couldn't have plucked his heartstrings better than Judy's peering gaze at that moment.

With a huff, he moved into a more comfortable position, his back against the cave wall as he examined Judy closely.

She frowned slightly. "I'm used to little sleep. Especially after chasing a certain rogue across the country night after night."

Nick winced. Okay...I guess I deserved that.

"Alright," he said, raising his paws in surrender while recalling the memories his father had told him before Nick left on this trek. A momentary gleam of fear flickered in his eyes at the memories. Of what his father had gone through. Of what his mother had gone through…

Isabella…

The fox coughed into his paw, blinking his eyes to fight back the tears of his long lost madre. "Alright. If you'd like to hear the tale my father told me, then that is what you'll hear."

Judy shuffled where she was, crossing her legs as she stared intensely towards Nick. He could only shake his head at the wry grin she had, like an eager kit at storytime.

"I guess I'll start with when my parents met. You see, my father once served on a magnificent ship, the Purrisima Concepciõn…"

John closed the spyglass, shaking his head at the site he'd seen as he heard the distinct clacking of hooves on the wooden deck. A calm voice disturbed his thoughts.

"What flag does she sail?"

"None sir," John replied. "She flies her own."

He knew the kudu behind him was grimacing. He'd been onboard long enough to know the captain's emotional response in most situations. The slight cracking of hooved knuckles from gripping his belt too tight. The rattle of the saber on his side as he twitched. All was second nature to Midshipmammal Wilde after serving aboard the Purrisima Concepciõn the past seven years, longer than most of the crew besides Lieutenant Antlerson and the surgeon, Benovol Artigerla. The latter, a tiger in his early 70's, was by far still his favorite warrant officer, as deft with a joke as he was with a scalpel.

No, when the Captain of the ship, Captain Pronk, cracked his hooves, he knew what followed.

It's why he wasn't surprised by the very next words out of Captain Pronk's mouth.

"Wilde! Break out the sand."

"Aye sir!"

He ran down the steps to the quarterdeck, making sure to skip the third step down, crossing his heart, remembering the mammal who had passed there while a shudder ran down his spine. He'd survived every battle he had been in...somehow. He recognized the marks and grooves from the last conflict when they fought the Bearussian battleship, Sv Evstafii, commanded by the equally frightening Gregory Ursadov.

The bear had decided that his 100 guns were inferior to raw, brute muscle, and decided on a boarding action immediately.

It was a slaughter on both sides.

John had barely escaped with his life after he ran across the Bearussian commander by accident while sneaking between larger mammals to hunt down enemies heading below deck after the massive bear and his soldiers had boarded the Concepciõn. The massive kodiak had grinned maliciously as he finished pulling his saber out of John's friend, a young ram and fellow midshipmammal. John watched the life drain from his friend's eyes, half his side sliced open and staining bright white wool a dark crimson.

Completely stunned at the savagery, John could do nothing but watch as the bear brandished his pistol and strode towards him, filleting a beaver dragoon before placing the point of his pistol against John's forehead, and fired point blank at the fox's skull.

John was lucky that Captain Antlerson decided that cannons were a better weapon than sinew and steel.

A full broadside from the Concepciõn blasted apart the Bearussian naval vessel, annihilating half the enemy ship in the process. A risky move with the ships side by side, but one that saved John's life.

The explosions rocked both ships, shifting the pistol enough that when the gun crackled to life, billowing smoke and powder, the round tore through his collar, rather than his skull.

John shook his head at the memories of that day, rallying his thoughts to the present. They may have won that battle, but the cost was 438 of their own sailors.

All that information flew through the young tod's mind as he reached the quarterdeck. Observing several sailors and dragoons looking over the rails at the incoming ship, hooves and paws over their eyes to shield them from the sun setting behind the incoming ship that was approaching fast.

"Orson! Manuela! Carasel!"

The antelope, lynx and bobcat turned and saluted, their promptness making the tod grin. Many of the crew such as the three before him were new to the ocean, this their honeymoon cruise with the ship. Yet their discipline was admirable. They would make fine seamammals. Maybe someday when he commanded his own ship, he would seek them out.

"Orlop deck and storage room now."

"Breaking out the sand, Midshipmammal Wilde?" Carasel purred.

Wilde nodded, slightly annoyed at the cat's enthusiasm for what the fox knew was to come. "You get to see your first action today."

The four mammals were soon joined by four more as John rallied sailors to his cause, including two rhinos he still didn't know the names of, only knowing they were twins, a lion and the ship's boatswain, a tiger named Dante.

They finished their task efficiently, John, the two rhinos and Dante bringing the sand up to the poop deck and quarterdeck while the rest spread sand across the two lower gun decks. As the last of the sand was spread, the first shots of cannon fire sounded from the Concepciõn's front cannons, soon followed by the bellowing retort from the opposing ship.

It was only then, as John went to rejoin the captain, that he gained a good look at their enemy.

"Why does it always have to be bears..." he grumbled as he took the elephant-sized stairs as fast as he could to the quarterdeck, again skipping that third step. The black flag of a bear standing on the skulls of two lions was all he needed to see as he neared the captain.

Black Bart, the most feared pirate on the seven seas, was their enemy today.

"We're in for a rough patch."

John nodded at Captain Antlerson's assessment as the front guns launched another salvo.

"I think the mammals are ready, sir," John replied.

"Nobody is ever prepared," Antlerson said calmly as he watched the pirate ship approach. "Master Enrique has the gunners prepared?"

John nodded again. "Ready to fire at your command, sir."

A few more shots came, most splashes to the front or the side of the navy vessel. One did connect with the forecastle, sending splinters and shavings into several dragoons setting up to fire upon the enemy ship. The cries of pain and screams filled the air for a split second, jolting several newer crew members on the deck below.

"Here they come!"

The cry was anonymous, coming from below, and it brought a hush upon all those who breathed aboard the vessel. He even caught a glimpse of the goat priest, counting his rosary beads while muttering unheard prayers over the sailors. The only sound breaking the silence was the creaking of the hull and the dashing of waves. The universe itself was holding its breath for one fateful moment, as over a thousand mammals prepared for death.

The two ships pulled alongside each other. The baited breath released...and hell was loosed upon the earth once more.

"FIRE!"

"FIRE!"

The roar was deafening. Smoke and fire leapt like dragon tongues as cannons from both ships roared their defiance towards one another. Their call, the siren's song of death, was soon joined by a mixture of screams and musket shot as the Concepciõn took the full force of the broadside on its port side. The air was filled with cracks as wooden beams gave way under the assault, splinters tearing through the air and mammal alike.

An explosion near the helm shattered wood and mammal, the badger next to John letting out a gurgled cry. The fox turned to see the predator clawing at a spear of wood through his gut, paws trembling around the beam as thick as his arm. The mammal slumped over, his body barely hitting the deck before he was gone.

"Dragoons, fire!"

Above the cacophony of the battle, the sounds of musketry bellowed into the air as the marines aboard returned fire. The whizz of bullets zipping sounded in John's ears as he stood near the helm, ready to relay any orders Antlerson had to the crew.

"Turn the ship to starboard and re-engage," the captain called out as he placed a calming hoof onto the shaking shoulder of the jaguar piloting the ship. "Ready the starboard guns."

John leaned between the railings and yelled below, doing his best to ignore the bloody remains and cries of the damned below him. "Ready the starboard guns!"

The command was passed along, and John quelled his roiling stomach as the ship turned hard to starboard, its rear guns belching their angry cries, like hornets assaulting those who invaded their nest.

John knew it would take several minutes for the two ships to re-engage, the air calming as the two vessels sailed past one another, the dance of death almost forgotten in the stillness that followed, occasionally interrupted by a cannonade.

"Check on the gun decks while we come about, Midshipmammal Wilde."

"Aye, sir!"

With the agility he was known for aboard the ship, John dashed to the lower decks as the ship turned into the waves, reaching the first gun deck within seconds.

The bile that had settled in his stomach revived again, relieving itself onto the sandy, blood soaked floorboards.

The remains of the main gun deck were death and chaos. Bodies were shoved out of the way as mammals scrambled to ready the starboard guns. Massive holes lined the port side, some large enough to where he'd easily be able to walk through without even his ears touching top or bottom.

He searched quickly amidst the chaos, jumping back as an elephant rolled a rhino off his slumped position over a cannon, the device itself a twisted pile of iron and the mammal's remains. His stomach lurched again at the scent of death in the air as he skipped over a puddle of congealed blood and sand that had formed a slurry on the now slickening decks. His sensitive noise twitched as he pulled a small pawkerchief from his pocket, stuffing the ends into his nostrils, imitating what many other predators had already done on the lower decks.

After a minute of searching, he'd finally found the master-at-arms: a grizzled polar bear and a veteran of many a battle. He was easy to find, shouting orders to the gun crews, tossing sand with his one good arm while his empty right sleeve tossed at his side.

"Captain sent me to find you, sir," John yelled above the din of mammals shouting orders or crying out in pain.

"Tell him that if he thinks we're doing two more broadsides like the last then he's as dumb as he is terrible with the ladies at court." The bear grimaced as he shouted down at the fox. "Forty dead, unknown wounded but we still have enough mammals for another round. After that, we'll have to cut guns on our broadsides. His aim is true, the devil."

"I'll let him know!" With a quick salute, John was off once more.

The return trip was quicker this time around, with more sand being poured across the deck as the two ships closed upon one another.

"What's the damage?" the captain asked immediately upon John's arrival.

"Forty gone, sir. One more broadside before a boarding action would be appropriate."

Antlerson nodded before turning to his helmsmammal. "Suavez, turn us twenty degrees to starboard. Bring us in close."

"Sir?" the lion asked, the nervousness at going through another broadside apparent in his tone.

"Do it."

"Aye, sir." The lion pulled on the wheel, the ship lurching in that direction moments later.

"Steady us out," was the command as they were within several hundred yards of the enemy ship, the front cannons now sounding their battle cries against the ocean and sky.

"Ready the shot!"

"Ready the shot!" came the call from the line to the inner hull of the ship.

John couldn't help swallowing back the fear he felt rising in his chest as the ships drew closer.

Three hundred meters….

Two hundred meters…

The sound of the grapeshot being fired from the fore cannons rent the air with puffs of smoke and cries of death from the other ship.

One hundred meters…

Fifty…

John watched his captain take in a deep breath, the fox's whole frame going rigid the two ships came abreast, a mere twenty meters between them. So close he could hear the snarls from the mammals aboard the pirate vessel. The sounds befouled the air as Antlerson bellowed...

"FIRE!"

The roar of the cannons was even more intense than the first broadside. The very air seemed to be split in twain by the sound. Barely a moment passed before the other ship replied, and the world around them exploded into splinters and fire.

John whimpered as the ship rocked from the explosions recoiling through it. From the screams of his comrades being ripped apart below decks.

From the bowels of hell seemingly unleashed upon mammalkind.

A large crack and groan split the air. John tore his gaze away from the bloodshed on the deck below, gazing at the pirate ship itself. Its center mast snapped, heaving towards the Concepciõn with a loud groan and splintering beams. The enemy ship shuddered and heaved to its side as the mast came crashing towards the Spanish ship.

"Prepare for impact!" came the cry from below.

"Get down!"

John felt himself shoved to the deck, two hooves wrapping around him as the mast crashed onto the quarterdeck, catching on their own mizzenmast. It halted a moment, before tearing through the sails and rigging, crashing down upon the deck in a tangle of fabric and rope.

The beams behind John buckled and splintered, the cries of his fellow mammals' screams piercing the air before going silent, crushed under oaken timbers.

"Get up," the kudu snarled, hauling the fox to his paws. "This is going to be a bloodbath now…"

The sound of sabers being drawn came from around him, interrupting the crackle of muskets and the bellowing of cannons.

"Continue firing and get this mast off us!" the antelope shouted below, a scene of carnage greeting him. His crew was rushing across the deck with axes. John watched as a large tiger ran towards them, only for the mammal to be blasted sideways across the deck, peppered by grapeshot and painting the deck a crimson hue in his wake. Several more mammals rushed up towards them as the marines lined the rails, forming firing lines.

"What can I do?" John asked calmly, despite his inner fears running rampant.

"Make sure the guns below keep firing!"

"Aye, sir!" John scampered off, slipping across the deck, his paws stained by the blood and sand coating the deck, turning the once pristine wood into a cesspit of gore and mud. He turned toward the stairs towards the inners of the ship, only to barely suppress a retch at the sight.

There would be no more prayers for their ship.

The goat priest from before lay prostrate in the doorway, collapsed beams blocking the path and preventing John from seeing the rest of his shredded body.

Fore stairwell it is…

John turned, scampering upon the deck as bullets whizzed past him. A grunt of pain to his right had him rolling across the deck, coating himself in the grime and filth. He barely avoided a boar marine falling backwards, desperately clutching a hole in his neck.

John had no time to mourn the mammal and pushed onwards. The cannons beneath him sounded as he reached the door, and his curiosity couldn't be contained. John paused in the doorway, watching as the third broadside ripped apart the enemy ship from bow to stern. Plumes of smoke billowed into the sky as wreckage began to fall around him. The ship across from them shuddered as an explosion wracked its sleek frame, destroying the aft end of the ship in a magnificent explosion as the magazine detonated.

John saw mammals rushing across the deck as more of the ship began to be devoured by licking flames, its hull crashing into the ocean in a tremendous splash of foam and spray. The sea seemed to boil as the once proud pirate ship began to list towards its stern and port sides, pirates tossing themselves overboard and into the ocean as the ship heaved and groaned.

Yet not all of the pirates accepted the dying gasps of their ship.

One final burst of cannon fire shot from the listing ship, its final breaths urging revenge upon the victor. John had no time to respond as the volley tore into the Concepciõn. A loud shudder sounded beneath him, deafening in its impact and breadth as the cannonballs struck.

He stumbled back, falling into the railing of the ship as the whole deck in front of him shot upwards in a massive pillar of flames, mammals and decking.

"Oh no…" John managed to gasp, before the whole world exploded.

AN: I hope you found the story shout out, and if you did, go read their stories and review as they are an amazing author. (Thank you ScaraMedn for suggesting the shout out)

Also, I have a question for everyone. I have two ways I can write the next chapter and I love both equally so I come to you to ask about which to follow...

Route A: Continue with John's story of meeting his wife (would take one more chapter) before switching back to Nick telling the story and showing what happened to them. This would extend the story a few weeks while I write this chapter.

Route B: Start up the next chapter to Nick's point of view in telling the story to Judy (with a big of annoyed rabbit and snarky fox) and head straight back into the main story.

So, please let me know what you guys would like to see in the next chapter! I'm fine with either, just don't know how long you'd like for me to stay with John and his wife when I also have Judy and Nick. XD