With Amy, her day of teaching at Little Hill was coming to a close. She looked around at her adorable students as they sang the alphabet to help learn it better, and she couldn't help but sing along with them. Soon, they were all done, laughing and giggling.

"Good job, everyone!" Amy said. "Now, before I go, it's time to give everyone their sweets!"

"And da gold star?" asked one of the children.

"Yep! Now, let's see..." Amy said, standing up and walking over her students. She wore dark green joggers, a red tank top, and white trainers, and carefully plodded her way around her kids before settling her hand on a small puppy. "Today, the gold star goes to Micky!"

"Yay!" the puppy said. His teacher handed him a gold star, and he put it next to his name on the board. "Dat's my first ever!"

"Congwats!" said another student, hugging the puppy.

Amy smiled at her students, and soon, the bell rang. She quickly went over to her desk to grab the bags of tasty treats and stood by the door that led out to the main halls, reminding the students to take one bag each.

"Dank yew, Miss Wose!" several of the children said. Some even gave her hugs before leaving.

As soon as they were all gone, she went back to grab her jacket and slipped it on before adding her purse to the mix. She quickly took out her phone and sighed when she saw no new messages except a reminder from Rosy to grab some milk. She had just locked up and was about to leave when she turned into a fellow teacher.

"Honey! It's good to see you," said Amy. Honey taught the kids a year above Amy's. Today, Honey wore a black t-shirt, a blue skirt, and dark brown high-heeled boots.

"Likewise," replied the cat. "I see that you're still doing well with your students."

"They're getting better every day," Amy smiled. "It's just nice to help them, really."

Honey smiled. "It's hard to believe that they'll be my students soon."

"We've got a few months," the pink hedgehog reminded. "I ain't giving them up that easily," she added with a grin.

"I thought not," Honey smiled. "And at least they'll know who I am, since I've had to take over classes of yours when you've been sick."

Amy nodded. "True. Thanks for that, by the way."

"Any time," Honey shrugged. "How are you feeling these days?"

"Better," Amy nodded. "The pills I'm taking are much better, and I'm not overdoing it. I'm sticking to my schedule with them."

Honey smiled. "You know, it's funny. Whenever someone needs pills for something, they usually go absolutely haywire when they can't get them. I've seen you run out a fair few times, and you've always been just fine."

"I still panicked a lot back then," Amy admitted. "Luckily, the pharmacy's close to the school, and I make it a rule to go and get some pills when I'm running out and not when I'm all out completely."

The yellow cat nodded. "That's a smart way to do it."

"Thanks."

"So, anything new going on in your life?"

Amy thought about it for a bit. "I had a date the other day."

"Oh? Was he cute?"

"Jesus, you're just like my sister," Amy giggled. "Yes. He was, and still is."

"Well, I hope that he has a job, at least," Honey said.

"It's hard to explain, but I'll tell you what I know," Amy spoke. "He was a cop at Green Hill, then some stupid jurisdiction rules that he and his team broke caused them to lose their jobs, and now they're freelancers."

"So, do they work for anyone?"

"Mostly whoever's willing to pay," Amy said. "I think that they're still operating out of Green Hill, but they're allowed to go to other cities to help them out too."

"That already sounds much better than being a regular cop," Honey chuckled. "You should bring him around for career day."

"How would he explain his career?" Amy smirked. "'Oh, first I was kind of a cop, but then I wasn't, and now I'm sort of still a cop, but not'. That just makes my head hurt."

"You said he was cute," Honey noted. "You almost make him sound dumb with that impression of him."

"It wasn't my intention," Amy giggled sheepishly. "It's just my interpretation of it. It'd help if I knew more."

"So, ask for more," Honey said.

"What?"

"Well, you like the guy, right?"

"Yes."

"And you said he was cute."

"More than cute," Amy said. "He's so... handsome. It's his eyes... they're so beautiful..."

"Well, that should answer your question for you, then," said Honey.

Amy shook her head. "Huh?"

"Ask him out again. Or wait and see if he asks you," Honey said. "I'd rather take the former. Being a freelancer seems like busy work..."

"How did-" Amy stopped herself. "You saw me checking my phone..."

"I did."

"You don't think that it makes me a little..."

"What? Obsessive? Attached?"

"Those are just big words for stalker..." Amy pouted.

"There's no reason to worry," Honey said, putting a reassuring hand on the pink hedgehog's shoulder. "Like I said, just give him some time. Or call him. It's up to you."

Amy sighed. "Thanks, Honey."

"No problem, sugar," the yellow cat replied, smirking a bit. "Now, go on back home. I'll see you tomorrow."

Amy nodded, hugging her friend and fellow teacher before heading to the front to leave the building as Honey went to the back to get her car. Amy saw Honey as she walked out, and waved at her, earning a friendly honk in reply before continuing to the bus-stop.

In record timing, the bus had arrived. Amy paid her fare and went to take a seat on her own, which was easy to find since there weren't many on the bus today. She took over a window seat and pulled her phone from her pocket, dialling Sonic's number.

Back with Sonic and the others...

"All right, here we are!" said Knuckles, pulling up to the front parking lot of Green Hill Police Department. As soon as they left the car and Knuckles locked it up, Sonic felt his phone going off.

He picked it up, smiling as he saw Amy's number. "And who would this be?"

"It's me," the female hedgehog replied. "Amy. From the warehouse, then the jewellery store."

"Not ringing a bell," Sonic teased.

Amy giggled. "I teach kindergarten at Little Hill?"

"Ah, I think I remember," Sonic smirked. "Gorgeous, funny, and intelligent?"

"I was about to say the same about you," Amy flirted.

The blue hedgehog laughed. "It's good to hear from you. How have you been?"

"Not bad," Amy nodded. "Yourself?"

"Also, not bad," Sonic replied. "We got acquainted with our new living quarters this morning as freelancers. I'd like to take you on a tour around it. It's a cool place."

"If I can, just let me know," Amy said. "Unless it's a 'no girls allowed' deal."

"If that were the case, then Knuckles and his curves wouldn't be allowed," Sonic joked.

"Damn straight," the red echidna replied.

Amy laughed a bit. "You up to much?"

"We just reached Green Hill, and we're going to pop in to see if Rotor's got any news for us," Sonic answered. "Yourself?"

"I just finished my school day," Amy said. "It was a pretty good day. I love teaching the kids."

"I'd love to meet them," Sonic admitted. "Maybe I'll clear my schedule if there's a career day on the horizon."

"Ugh... you remind me of a fellow teacher," Amy blushed. "She was asking about you."

"Really?" Sonic asked, intrigued. "What'd you tell her?"

"That you're cute and we had a date."

"And that I'm the best kisser alive, right?"

"I didn't bring that up with her," the pink hedgehog admitted. "She might try and go after you, otherwise."

"So, no third wheel dates?" Sonic asked.

"I'm glad that you said that and not something else," Amy giggled.

Sonic chuckled. "So, are you up for another date?"

"That might be hard, given your more sporadic schedule nowadays," Amy noted.

"True, but the better part about it is that I can make up my own schedule," Sonic said.

"There's a lot of shit that goes on day to day, Sonic," the female hedgehog said. "Are you willing to give that up for a date with me?"

"You have to ask the tough questions, don't you?" the blue hedgehog smiled. "It'll be fine. The other three can take care of things if it comes to it. And besides, wherever we go, we have people from that force to help."

"Fair point," Amy chuckled. "So, when are you up for our date?"

"Maybe the middle of the week?" Sonic asked. "It's only Monday, and tomorrow could also be pretty busy."

"So could Wednesday," Amy laughed.

"True, but I like Wednesdays," Sonic shrugged. "And not just because they're also known as hump day."

"Dammit, you beat me to it," Amy said. "All right. Hump day it is. What time?"

"About between 12:00 and 1:00 pm? Like I said, anything could happen," Sonic shrugged, "but that's a good window for lunch. We could hit up Jade Mountain again."

"Ooh... their ribs are so good..." Amy smiled. "All right, it's a date."

"See you then," Sonic said. "And say hi to Rosy for me!"

"I will!"

"And don't forget to give her a cleavage hug from Tails!" Knuckles added, earning him a swat on his shoulder from the fox.

Amy giggled one last time. "All right, see you on Wednesday." She then hung up.

So did Sonic, chuckling at his echidna friend. "You couldn't help it, could you?"

"Nope," Knuckles said.

"I think that he could," Tails replied, "but he just chose not to."

"I sure hope that Cosmo isn't the jealous type," Knuckles carried on. "Then again, she is green..."

"One more word, and I'll put my foot up your echidnads," Tails jokingly threatened.

"You know that I'm kidding, dude," the red echidna said. "I know that you've got a thing for Cosmo, and she's got one for you."

"You think so?" the yellow fox asked.

"Are you kidding? The way that you two look at and talk to each other is like an awkward teenage romance." Knuckles smiled. "It's honestly kinda cute."

Sonic smiled. "The big fella's right," he admitted. "Now, let's get inside."

The others agreed and entered through the doors. They waved to the front desk before making their turn for the forensics lab, seeing Rotor in his lab coat, light brown cargo pants, a blue t-shirt, and black flat shoes. He was crouched over a table of some sort, but from his angle, they couldn't see what it was that he was working on.

"Ah, there you all are," the walrus said, turning around and smiling at them. "How are you enjoying your new position as freelancers?"

"It's been pretty cool so far," Sonic admitted. "I mean, there's a slight lack of free time, but the best part is that we can make up our own time if we so please."

"True," Rotor said. "Have you gone to see Avery yet?"

"Nope," Tails replied. "Do we need to?"

"Well, it's nothing mission based, but I'm sure that he misses you."

"Aw," Knuckles smiled.

"So, what can I do you guys for?" Rotor asked.

"We have a couple of things to ask of you," Sonic said. "We need to know if you have any new information on Fokus. And we might need you to take some blood samples from us."

"The first one I understand," Rotor began, "but why the second thing?"

"We got into a fight earlier," Shadow said. "I kind of... I don't know how to say it. It was like I moved super quickly from one space to another."

"And I flew ten feet into the air," added Tails. "My tails spun around when one of the bad guys tried to sneak attack me."

"Is that even scientifically possible?" Rotor asked.

"It is if it happened," Knuckles replied. "And, trust us, it happened. We saw it."

The walrus nodded. "Well, I'll see what I can do. Just take off any jackets you might be wearing and roll up any sleeves should you need to."

The four nodded and did as they were instructed, with Tails getting up onto the table first, waiting patiently. Rotor grabbed the right kind of needle, thankful that he didn't need to use the full setup with tubes and syringes.

"It's amazing to think how much medical science has increased along with everything else," Rotor said, moving close to Tails.

"How do you mean?" Knuckles asked.

"Basically, a long time ago, there would have been tubes to help with the extraction of the blood," said the yellow fox.

"Right you are," Rotor smiled. "But thanks to how things are nowadays, all that's required is one needle." He pressed it against the fox's arm as he continued. "What happens is the needle breaks through the skin and reaches the vein or artery, as is the norm. When that needle reaches its destination, it injects what it needs to. Now, normally I would need a syringe and various other apparatus to take blood or some other liquid from someone, but not with these things."

"What do they do?" Sonic asked.

"Watch and learn," Rotor grinned.

The others watched as the walrus pressed the plunger all the way in. "See, what happens is when the needle is pushed in, it creates a small suction tube on the inside of the person's bloodstream, the person in this case being Tails. I won't need much, so this isn't going to take long..." He then pulled the plunger of the needle, the blood of Tails filling it up as he pulled. It was up to about a fifth and he smiled at Tails. "There. All done!"

The yellow fox nodded, looking at his arm. "Huh. It's not bleeding as badly as I thought."

"That's because these needles are special for another reason," the doctor grinned. "The needles themselves are coated in that medicinal paste that was used to patch you guys up after your accident, so when the injection or extraction is finished, the damage isn't as bad. I could have taken as much blood as would be required to fill the needle, and you'd still be fine after it."

"That's pretty awesome, I won't lie," Sonic smiled. "My turn next."

Rotor nodded, grabbing a fresh needle and injecting it into Sonic's arm. "So, have you had any experiences with your own powers?"

The blue hedgehog shook his head. "No. I mean, this morning whilst I was waiting for the others, I did a few laps around my house, but I didn't feel any different."

Rotor chuckled as he injected the needle. "It sounds like you're trying to pick your own power."

Sonic shrugged with his unoccupied arm. "Maybe I'll find out when we start training tomorrow." He then sighed. "I don't know. I guess that speed's always been my thing."

"Considering that you beat the track record at Green Hill Academy, I'm not surprised," Rotor said as he finished. "All right, who's next?"

Shadow stepped up to the plate this time as Rotor got another fresh needle, speaking to the black and red hedgehog. "So... teleportation."

"You know anything about it?" Shadow asked.

"It's a rarely experimented with thing," Rotor admitted as he pushed the needle in. "I know that some police forces have tried using similar cloaking technologies, and have succeeded. Teleportation was always more risky, though." He thought for a moment. "It seems odd to think that something that risky could be put into an implant."

"Well, Espio's got invisibility, and he seems fine," Sonic said.

"True, but Espio was a success story," Rotor pointed out. "He was a willing subject, and the doctors got lucky with him. Granted, he had more going for him with the police department helping out too. But it was a slapdash effort for you guys."

"Well, my father does help with the creation of the implants at our shop," said Tails. "Maybe he had a part in it?"

"That's possible," Rotor shrugged as he pulled the needle from Shadow's arm. "Still, your testing might be the most risky. Teleportation will take quite some time to get control of."

"I'll be okay," Shadow nodded. "Thank you."

"All right, that leaves the big guy," Rotor smiled.

Knuckles shrugged. "I've got the biggest arms here," he smirked as he hopped onto the table.

"Yes, yes, I'm sure that your other half is very pleased with that," Rotor rolled his eyes as he injected the last needle into the red echidna's arm.

"She sure didn't fall in love with him for his personality," Sonic joked.

"If I could use both middle fingers right now, I would," Knuckles grinned.

Rotor laughed as well. "So, what about your powers?"

"The other day when we were in the upper half of Green Hill, the police car that we were in got sabotaged," Knuckles said. "We got out, and I was the only one to hit the car. I punched it, and that punch knocked it back a bit. I chalked it up to a mixture of the anger and adrenaline, but now that I'm thinking back about it, it could have been something more."

"Perhaps your size translates into strength," Rotor said as he finished up. "But we can't be fully sure until I take a look at your samples."

Knuckles nodded. "Thanks," he said, hopping off the table.

"All right, now for the other thing," Sonic said.

"Ah, yes! The other, Fokus-related thing," Rotor smiled. "Well, I've been doing some research on it. I think that I might have found a tie with what the suggestibility part of it is."

"What would that be?" Tails asked.

"A drug called hyoscine, otherwise called scopolamine or, to use its street name, the devil's breath," the walrus said, heading over to his computer wall and typing on the keyboard. "See, devil's breath is a powdery substance that doesn't have any taste or smell to it, so you can spray it into someone's face and they wouldn't feel a thing."

"Except that it's being put into Fokus, along with the skin thing..." Sonic shuddered.

"Yes, the krokodil," Rotor added, bringing up a picture of a filthy looking needle. "I'm still unsure what effects it has when mixed with Fokus, but for now, I can only chalk it up as similar to regular krokodil."

"All we have is the different effects it has depending on if someone has an implant or not," Sonic pointed out.

"True," Rotor nodded. "As you saw the other day, if the person doesn't have an implant, then the effects are much more similar to krokodil. But after getting one, it's more internal damage than external."

"More mental than physical..." Tails said. "There's got to be something beyond just krokodil and devil's breath, right?"

Rotor shrugged. "That's what I'm hoping to find out. And it'd be unfair to say that Fokus switches between effects based on whether or not someone has an implant, as both the drugs that we know of that are inside of it are still highly effective."

The yellow fox nodded. "Maybe traditional heroin?"

"Well, that's kind of a given," said the walrus with a shrug. "I'm trying to figure out what it is that makes it work. There's got to be another element added to it, but it's finding out what that's the issue."

"You'll figure it out," said Sonic.

"Let's hope so," Rotor said. "I'll let you guys know if I come up with anything, in regards to the Fokus or your blood samples."

"Thanks," the blue hedgehog smiled. "Take care."

"You too," Rotor said.

The others also thanked the forensic scientist before leaving the room. They all stepped out to the main floor, their heads turning when they saw Mina and Cosmo wave them over from the front desk.

"Ah, hey there, you two," Sonic smiled. "How have you been?"

"Not bad," Cosmo replied. "How's your new job treating you?"

"Pretty well," Knuckles said. "We've been doing some pretty good work today."

"We heard," Mina smiled. "We heard about your job up in Star Light with those car thieves."

"Yeah..." Tails sadly said. "Hopefully, we can get a new car for that couple who had theirs taken."

"I'm sure that Avery will sort something out," Cosmo said happily.

"So, what are you guys up to next?" asked Mina.

"We were thinking of heading back to our base," said Knuckles. "Why? Got anything for us?"

"That's not really our forte," Cosmo smiled. "But I was wondering if I could steal Tails from you for a bit?"

"What for?" Sonic asked. "Is he in any trouble?"

"Nope," said Mina, starting to explain. "Lunch is coming up, and I already have plans with Ash."

"Jade Mountain?" asked Sonic.

"Pretty much," Mina nodded. "But we're going on our own because we don't like making Cosmo feel like the odd one out all the time."

"That sounds fair," Sonic smiled. "So, is the plan to take Tails out to Jade Mountain with you?"

"Actually... I was wondering if Tails would like to have lunch with me in my dorm," the plant girl admitted.

The yellow fox blushed a bit before nodding. "I'd love to." He then paused for a moment. "Do you have anything at the moment?"

"Actually, I've got some food that just needs a good microwaving," Cosmo giggled. "Do you eat curry?"

Tails chuckled. "I do." He smiled as he relaxed. "When should we do this?"

"I'm free now," said Cosmo, checking her watch. "It's actually about lunch now, so... shall we?"

"I'd love to," Tails chuckled, turning to the others. "You guys can survive for a little bit without me, can't you?"

"I dunno," Sonic shrugged. "We'd need someone fluffy and cute to make up for the lack of Tails. But the fluffiest thing that we have is Shadow's chest."

The black and red hedgehog shrugged. "Sorry to disappoint you."

The blue hedgehog laughed and turned to Tails, sharing a fist-bump with him. "We'll see you later, dude."

"Remember, if anything goes down, just call me," the yellow fox said.

"We will!" Knuckles said as they all left, heading for the red echidna's car.

Sonic chuckled as they all climbed in, taking the shotgun seat. "All right, it's back to base we go."

"Think we can get some training in when we get back?" Knuckles asked.

"I'm too tired for training," said Sonic. "It's been a long enough day as it is, and even with it being lunch, it's still pretty late for it."

"Then how about getting some food of our own and taking a break?" Shadow suggested.

"I could get behind that," Sonic said.

"To the base!" Knuckles smiled, pulling out of the lot.

As they were about to head off, Tails waved goodbye to his friends, smiling as Sonic turned and waved back before showing the peace sign. Knuckles and Shadow also waved back before the red echidna stepped on the gas, making his way back to the base.

"So, now that they're gone," smiled Cosmo, "ready to go and get our lunch?"

"Lead the way, ma'am," Tails smiled.

The plant girl smiled, turning to the stairs. As they were about to make their way there, they caught Ash coming down them. "Hey, guys," he smiled. "Where are you off to?"

"They're going to have lunch in Cosmo's room," Mina giggled.

"Aw... that's so cute!" Ash teased.

"Eh, shut it," Tails smiled. "Have fun at the Jade Mountain."

"We will," the male yellow mongoose smiled, turning to his girlfriend. "Shall we?"

"We shall," she smiled back, hooking her arm with his, turning back to Cosmo and Tails. "See you later!"

"Later," Cosmo waved. She then turned to Tails and kissed his cheek. "Let's get some grub, cutie."

Tails blushed a bit before speaking. "I should forewarn you, I don't have any mints on me this time because this is really rather impromptu. Fun, but impromptu."

"I might have some around," Cosmo smiled. "I liked kissing you the last time, so."

"I liked it too," Tails replied. "Um, kissing you, I mean."

Cosmo giggled, and the two made their way up the stairs to the third floor, heading for Cosmo's room. She used her ID card to enter, and they both went in, heading for the kitchen. Tails took a seat whilst Cosmo got the curries set up, turning to the yellow fox as she set the timer and pushed the start button.

"So, what happened today?" she smiled.

Back at Westopolis...

Nack and his henchmen had just reached the front entrance to Beau's place. Unlike Manuel and Lara, Beau didn't seem too focused on making his setting look as fancy. He did make it look cleaner, but didn't go for the grandiose appeal.

"Looks like he didn't put much thought into it," said the driver.

Nack shrugged as he looked out of his window. "Beau was never one for theatrics. He might be young, but he's easily the most ambitious. He's done well for himself, I feel."

"He's probably the guy that I trust the least," said the other henchman.

"Which is why I do trust him," Nack replied. "You two haven't known him for as long as I have. As I mentioned, he's young. And he's probably got the best sense of humour. But he knows where he stands and what his place is. He knows how much he owes me, and he knows how severe the ramifications are if he doesn't follow suit like the other two." He then took a breath. "Shall we go and say hi?"

"Well, we made it this far," said the driving henchman, exiting the car with the others.

They all made their way to the entrance. Unlike an the extravagance of Lara's brother or the scope of Manuel's warehouse, Beau had settled on a small, abandoned factory that once produced toys.

Nack rang the doorbell, and soon, the snake answered. "Hey there, man. Glad you could make it."

"May we come in?" the purple weasel asked.

"If I said no, I'd probably be dead by now," Beau smiled, stepping aside.

Nack and his two henchmen entered, looking around the factory. Whilst it was small, there was still room enough for all of Beau's employees. Since it was abandoned, none of the machinery worked, which proved beneficial for Beau as he and his men could use what were once conveyor belts as chemistry tables.

"Glad to see your men at work," Nack smiled.

"I did what you told me to do," the snake said, leading the three to the upstairs portion of the factory. "I got rid of my old workers and bought some better ones. I was tired of losing what I was pushing out."

"Did you ever find out who did it?" Nack asked.

"It was a little group of them, about four or five," Beau shrugged. "I didn't bother going after them. There's a good chance that their addictions will kill them before I do."

"True," Nack nodded. "Say, did you ever get around to making any Fokus?"

"No," Beau shook his head, entering his office. "I asked my men, just like you said. Nobody knows jack shit about it. We don't know what's in it, and we barely even know what it does."

The weasel nodded as he and his men followed behind. "I know that you've been busy. I get that." He then reached into his pocket. "So, I'm here to give you the ingredients."

Before Beau could ask what said ingredients were, Nack pulled out a white looking powder, and then two needles; one of which had a golden brown substance, and the other one containing a brown, sludge-like liquid.

"Devil's breath, crank, and krokodil..." Beau said, looking them over and chuckling. "That's what was missing! I knew that the influence part of the drug had to come from somewhere..."

"And that's not all," Nack replied. "What you think is heroin? That's speedball, my friend."

"Crank and coke mixed together..." Beau then laughed. "That explains why some users still seem normal. It doesn't get you too high or too low; it keeps you at that midway point." He looked over the substances. "So, that's it then? That's how Fokus is made?"

"There is one other thing," Nack smiled. "Each one of those drugs has been enhanced by a little something called DiPT. Whilst DiPT normally has more auditory effects on people, I myself worked on this new version to not just have that, but have the desired effect on people both with or without implants."

"What's the difference in the effects?"

"The krokodil works better against those without implants," Nack said. "Obviously, the speedball keeps the same high for both parties, same with the devil's breath. But it's the DiPT that's a key factor." He smiled. "See, it does have the normal effects of DiPT with the auditory stuff, but when mixed with the devil's breath it's a little bit different. It has a bigger influence on the user, and a person will fall under the effects of the devil's breath, causing them to listen to others, whilst the DiPT will kick in a bit later, making them completely ignorant to anything else they're told."

Beau smiled, then paused. "Doesn't DiPT last for two weeks?"

"Like he said, it's a new version," said one of the henchmen. "It lasts for only a day or so. That's usually more than enough time to do what they're told with the devil's breath."

"Okay, what about the speedball?" asked Beau. "I know it has the same effects for both parties, but what else does it mean?"

"It's a good way to keep a user complacent," said Nack. "Since it's a middling high, the effects aren't too serious, and it can help them to listen enough before the DiPT fully takes over."

"And that's how it gets the name..." Beau smiled. "You give them the order, then the DiPT drowns out everything else, and they only do that one thing." He laughed. "That's pretty genius!"

"It is," Nack smiled. "And you, my friend, are going to make it for me."

The python looked over the assortment of drugs. "I mean, I'm not saying no, but I'll need to be shown how."

"Just once, right?" Nack said.

"Just once," Beau nodded. "I do have a quick question."

"Shoot."

"Well, how does the liquid inside get its colour?" asked Beau.

Nack replied by reaching into his back pocket, grabbing a small bag filled with pills. He opened the bag and then held out one hand whilst using his other to empty several pills from the bag into his open hand. He then shows them to Beau.

"They're bright blue in colour..." the snake said.

"Indeed they are," Nack replied. "Not only is this form of DiPT the most dominant drug, considering that it's already a part of all the others, it also needs to be crushed up into the needle as well."

"Yeah... the pill versions are not easy to come by," Beau agreed. "All right, show me how it's done."

The purple weasel smiled before pulling a group of empty needles from his pocket, along with a spoon, a lighter, some more DiPT, a needle already full of krokodil, and small pouches of speedball and devil's breath.

"All right, now that we've got all of the ingredients in a row," Nack smiled, "let's begin."

He started by placing a little bit of the krokodil on the spoon, before adding a little bit of speedball. Beau held the lighter whilst Nack hovered the spoon over the heat to get it to the right temperature, melting the drugs into liquid. He then repeated the process as he added in devil's breath and crushed up a pill of DiPT, running them over the heat and waiting as it all bubbled up. When it did, he quickly grabbed the empty needle and pressed the prick of it against the substance on the spoon, pulling the plunger to extract it. For added effect, he swirled the needle around a bit to get the mixture looking right, smiling in satisfaction as he did.

"And there you have it," Nack said. "One needle full of Fokus, and it's all yours."

"I ain't trying it," Beau chuckled. "But I have a guy who wants to give it a shot." He then walked past Nack and out to the staircase, looking over his workers and smiling as he spotted a jaguar with yellow fur and dark grey spots, wearing a dark blue tank top, baggy brown shorts, and red trainers. "Hey, you!"

The jaguar stopped what he was working on and looked up. "Yes, boss?"

"I've got something to show you, and everyone else," Beau smiled. "You just stay where you are."

Nack chuckled as he watched Beau grab the newly created Fokus and walk out of his office and down the stairs, making his way to the jaguar. Not wanting to waste any time, the snake presented the needle.

"Do you know what this is?" he asked.

The jaguar looked over it. "It looks like heroin on acid."

"Not quite," Beau said. "It's Fokus."

The jaguar grinned. "So, we have a way of making it now?" he asked, hopefully.

"Well, this was just now made with the help of our benefactor in Nack," the python reminded. "In fact, he whipped this one up himself. And I want to see if it works."

The jaguar looked a bit hesitant. "Are you sure about this?"

"Only one way to find out," Beau said. "May I?"

The big cat nodded. "May as well."

Beau smiled and carefully pushed the needle against the jaguar's left arm, pushing it in to break the skin before injecting the substance of Fokus. A few seconds passed before Beau pulled the needle out, leaving about two thirds in there.

"How do you feel?" he asked.

"Like... like I'm trying so many new things at once..." the jaguar smiled. "Heroin, coke, crack... hell, even beer and weed..."

Beau smiled. "All right, I want you to do something for me."

"What is it?"

"I want you to pass on this recipe to the others. If need be, give them some focus and repeat my instructions to them, and so on," Beau said before then listing the ingredients and the process of making Fokus.

"Understood," the jaguar nodded.

The other workers stopped what they were doing as they watched, and all smiled at what they witnessed. Beau smiled back and then looked up to Nack, shrugging at him. The snake waited at the bottom of the stairs for the purple weasel and his henchmen to come down.

"So, what'd you think?" Beau asked.

"You still have your flair for the dramatic, I see," Nack chuckled, reaching his hand out. "You did a good job, my friend."

Beau nodded and shook Nack's hand. "Thank you. To think... with this knowledge of Fokus and how it works, we could push that more. Maybe we'll win the west side before anyone else gets theirs," he suggested.

"Don't push your luck," Nack said. "The north is all mine."

"Oh?" Beau wondered as their hands broke away. "And what are you doing to make sure of that?"

"Keeping you, Lara, and Manuel employed," Nack said. "Turns out that helping other criminals out is good for your own business."

"Maybe I should try it sometime," Beau smiled, then snapping his fingers. "Shit. I should probably make some more Fokus myself. I forgot to tell my men where to get the ingredients..."

"Do you know where to get them?" asked Nack.

"I know that the ingredients for krokodil are around the west side area," said Beau. "I'm lucky there, at least. Speedball is just heroin and cocaine, so that won't be hard to come by. DiPT will be difficult to obtain, but at least it's more common than devil's breath."

"It is indeed," Nack replied. "When I found it, there wasn't much left going around. But you can get it for medicinal reasons. Plus, it's a nightshade plant, so it can be fairly common."

"Let's just hope that our pharmacies and doctors are as fucked up as our law enforcement," said Beau. "Thanks for the info. It's a huge help."

"You're quite welcome. Anything to help," Nack smiled. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've a date to prepare for tonight."

"Lara?" Beau asked. "I'm pretty sure that she doesn't do dates."

"She's a mature, respectable, classy woman who just so happens to run a brothel," Nack shrugged. "She's as capable of dating as you are at your own craft, and as Manuel is with guns and fighting."

"Fair point," Beau said. "All right, you go on and prepare for your date."

"I will. And remember to keep up the good work."

Beau nodded and waved goodbye as Nack and his henchmen left. They made their way towards their car, with Nack's two men getting into the front whilst the purple weasel himself got into the back.

"So, do you guys trust him a bit better now?" Nack asked.

"We're sorry for doubting you," said one of the henchmen.

"And so you should be," Nack said, his tone remaining calm. "A drug addict he may be, but he knows what he's doing. And thanks to me, he now knows even more."

"I'm just worried about him knowing too much," said the other guard.

"In this business, everyone has to know everything," Nack said. "I haven't withheld a thing from any of those three, and I know that they're not keeping any secrets from me. They know what happens if they do, and I only think that it's fair to extend that same courtesy to them."

"Sorry, sir," said the guard.

Nack smiled. "No need to be sorry. It was just a little misunderstanding."

The guards nodded before the one driving spoke. "Where to?"

"Back home," Nack said. "It's going to be nighttime soon, and as I mentioned, I've a date to prepare for."

"Any requests?" asked the other henchman.

"No," Nack said simply. "I'd like a nice, peaceful drive for a change."

The driver nodded, starting the car and beginning the drive back to the prison. Nack looked out of his window, smiling over Westopolis as it passed in his vision, seeing dilapidated houses and streets, people committing acts of violence, sex, drugs, and any combination of the three, and he saw how much they seemed to be enjoying it.

'Even if this city isn't fully dignified,' he thought to himself, 'at least it isn't boring.'

And that's it for another chapter. I hope that you all liked it, and that the debut of Fokus in full was satisfying for you. Also, quick note about the drugs used to make it; they're all real, and they're all extremely dangerous. So, please, don't try any of them. Especially krokodil. That shit's just nasty. Anyway, I'll see you all next time for another chapter. Take care, and stay tuned.