Before I start, I just want to say, thank you for all the views. I have 1000 views after only three weeks, 6 chapters and 33000 words. In comparison, my first story took a year, 17 chapters and 222000 words to reach that number of views. For that, I cannot thank you enough. It means a lot to me. Thank you so much for your time.
Though, I'm a little curious. What do you feel about the story so far? Doesn't have to be too in-depth or specific. Just, what do you feel?
With that out of the way, please enjoy.
Disclaimer:
The following is a fan-based fiction. Zootopia and its characters are owned by Disney. The songs I reference here belong to their respective artist as well.
(The song Friction by Mili begins to play)
Chesterization proudly presents
A Zootopia fanfiction
Wild times with Wilde
(Song ends)
Chapter 7: Koslov's plot
Nick entered the Winter Palace. He noticed there were a lot more polar bear securities this time around. The only prey Nick could see was the mountain goat receptionist. He got in a long line of predators, all waiting to receive their room keys. To Nick's surprise, this line was chipped away rather fast. All the predators just exchanged a sentence or two with the receptionist, took their keys and just left. In less than half an hour, Nick had the chance to talk with the receptionist again. She looked above his head; half closed one of her eyes in confusion. Nick cleared his throat, attracted her attention back to him. She said with typical receptionist smile. "Oh, pardon me, Mr. Wilde, yes?" Nick nodded. "Yes, no offense to you," She continued that smile, "but, you are not supposed to be here. Master Koslov is extremely busy at the moment. Business, as you can see is booming. "
With the traditional sly expression, he said, "Oh I know, I know. But I think he can spare a few minutes for me. Have you tried calling him, sweetheart?"
She jerked her head, commanded two polar bears to stand behind her. "We shall see." She picked up the landline phone. She pushed a button and waited for a few seconds. "Master Koslov, sorry to disturb you, but, Mr. Wilde is here" she glared at Nick, but still held tight to that smile, "and he would like to see you." She paused, listening to her boss's words. "Yes, understood, sir."
"Sooooo? What did Mister Big say?"
"Master Koslov will see you shortly."
She put a small sign her desk. The small piece of plastic reassured the predators that she would return shortly. Afterward, she led him to the basement, through the same hallway of doors and to Koslov meeting room. Once she opened the door, the mob boss had already seated. His hands form into a small pyramid. Stood beside him were still the same two bears. Koslov opened his arms and gave Nick a warm welcome. "Oh, Nick, it's good to see you again. I was starting to get worried." He stopped and looked above Nick's head for a moment. With his index finger pointed, he asked, "And what is going on with the hat?" He addressed the fake Russian sheepskin hat on Nick's head. If not for the fur, one would have mistaken it for a top hat, a comically tall one that was.
Nick flashed a smile, "Eh, it's kinda cold in Tundra Town this time of the year."
"Your head, your responsibility" Koslov shrugged, the welcome wore off and his voice returned to its normal thickness. "I didn't expect to see you here. Alex told me that you should be on your way out of the city. It's getting really messy out there, son. Doesn't look like it's going to get better. Well, for you at least."
"Thank you for your concern, but I'm here for a good reason."
Koslov cracked a smile, "Oh, are you thinking of taking my call to arms. Join the fight and taking back our freedom?" That line completely caught Nick off guard. The fox froze for a solid minute until Koslov snapped him out of his daze with, "Nick, do you need a rest, we do have rooms."
Snapped back to reality, "Eh no thank you. As for the, call to arm, no fighting for me." He showed Koslov his palms. He then chuckled, "Heh, never have thought you to be involved in, politic."
"Child, time is tough. Predators are in disarray and under attack. Eventually one of us NEEDS to get political." Koslov massaged the back of his neck. "But if the fight is not what interests you, then why are you here?"
"I'm here to clear my name." Koslov leaned back in his chair; his hand suggested Nick continue. "You might think it's farfetched but, last Saturday, there was this wolf that drugged me. Whatever that drug was, it made me, well, savage or so they say. After that, the whole "predators go savage" things started and here we are. All this was the work of that one wolf. I don't care if you believe me or not, but I got a feeling you are the only one that could help me."
Koslov smiled, "That's not farfetched at all, Nicholas. In fact, I believe you. Bring it in." He snapped his fingers and one his bears went to a back room. He continued, "Voynich, one of my "employees" found out about this wolf that appeared near the site of an attack. Sadly, the coward got away before Voynich could finish the job. But, he left this behind." The bear returned, with a long rifle in his hands. He then gave Nick a closer look at it.
The fox squinted his eyes. He had a fair share of action movies to know what that thing was. "A sniper rifle?"
Koslov nodded and told the bear to put the gun back. "Yes, but it's the ammunition that worries me. I cannot show it to you. It's for your own good."
"What is its ammunition?"
"A curious blue chemical contained in dissolve crystal darts. On the market, they are extremely expensive."
Nick gave Koslov a blank stare, "The wolf shot me with a small syringe, that contained a blue chemical."
"Looks like you have your answer. But, hear me out, does any of that even matter?" Koslov stood up, prompted Nick to look up at him. "I'll tell you something, No, it does not. Whoever frames you and us predators has no personal vendetta. Instead, they want the city to fear us and shun us, even more. They want to corner us. If we just sit around and try to "make peace" with them, eventually, they will trample on us." He punched the table, smashed it into three pieces. One of them dropped to the ice lake down below. "And they will take us all down one by one. So, let all forget about who framing you, but instead, make them regret framing you." Koslov squeezed his hand into fists, popping the knuckles as he did so. "This city wants monsters, they will have just that. They ask for it. We shall prove to them that predators are not the one who supposed be scared. One predator is stronger than a dozen of prey, imagine if we all band together." Koslov reached out his hand. "So, having listened to me, have you changed your mind?"
"Ehhhhhh, no sir,I don't think I'm fitted for fighting. I would just slow you down." Nick jumped down from the chair.
"Don't worry, I know some position that would fit you just right. A tank doesn't fight with just its artillery alone. That's why we need a crew to operate it. You can still join the fight, but don't have to take part in battles." Koslov walked around the ice lake, slowly. Claws emerged from his reached out hands.
"Well, eh, yeah, I still, have, to respectfully decline that. I think Alex would help you just fine." Nick moved backward, head for the doorway. Koslov's minion blocked the way.
Koslov reached his head up and laughed. "Hahahaha, I would let that happen, if you have not brought her in here." He looked straight at Nick. "Grab them." The bear picked Nick up by the neck and pulled the hat off, with Judy still hiding inside. Judy's legs were constantly thrashing around, trying to escape. Nick could hear she struggling to breathe with the collection of fake fur covered her upper body.
"Judy!" Nick cried out, almost begging.
"We predators have noses for a reason you know. Just because you don't use it, that doesn't mean we don't."
Nick was about to say "Let her go!" but knowing Koslov, those words would just bounce off him. Instead, he reached his hand down, starting to open the waist belt of his trench coat.
Koslov turned to Judy, who was still squirming. "Remove the hat. I want to see her face as frostbite takes her legs, inch by inch." Koslov said, before heading back for his seat. The polar bear minion turned Judy upside down and forcefully shook the hat off. The sudden shifts of movement made her sick; it also stopped her from thrashing in the bear's hand. Koslov continued when Judy's eyes regain their focus. "Judy Hopps, the pestilence that started it all. I am shocked at how you drag him with you. What's the matter, Nick? Is no vixen good enough for you? Bring them to the lake!" The bear knew his boss too well. He knew that Koslov prefers taking his time with the kill. The boss told him that it make death more, intimate. Followed Koslov's preference to the T, the bear walked slowly toward the ice lake. "Nick. I am so disappointed. I was hoping that you would turn her in willingly. It would have been such a glorious moment for you. Self-discovery, break away from the shackle that they created." Koslov shrugged. "Oh well, times like this, you either with us or against us. You've made your choice so" he snapped his fingers, "dispose of them, starting with her."
Nick quickly opened his trench coat. His hand reached into the hidden compartment that held Alex's gift. The sound of tear fabric came as Nick pulled out Alex's makeshift shock baton. He cranked the nub to maximum and jabbed the tip to the polar bear's wrist. The sudden shock tightened his grip on their neck for a millisecond. However, when the bear fell backward, his grip on them was released. Nick got up and tried to help Judy, but she had already up and running toward the exit. With Koslov other hench mammal coming toward him, Nick followed Judy.
At the lobby, the receptionist was still busy with the line of predators that kept on coming. She stopped when she felt a hurry breeze ran pass her. She looked up and saw Nick and Judy heading toward the exit. Koslov's voice telling all the staff to, "get them!" was spread through the radios. The securities in the lobby approached both almost instantly. The two skillfully evaded the capture attempts like a pair of seasoned figure skaters. With the commotion that was happening, the line in front of the receptionist soon scattered. All the predators then ducked down on the floor the moment the receptionist stood on her desk. In her hand was a Tommy gun with a round clip loaded with tranquiller darts. She open fired at Nick and Judy. Fortunately for the duo, the receptionist's sprayed shots missed them and exclusively hit the polar bears instead. Hearing gunshots, the other securities and even some predators on the floor pulled out their tranquilizers and start pumping darts. Unlike bullets, darts had extremely limited range. Because of that, Nick and Judy jumped through the entrance before any of the darts could get them.
The two quickly reached the bottom of the stair and commandeered a snowmobile from a lion. Nick immediately got the thing started and both made their way out of Tundra Town. Koslov and the rest of the securities were still chasing after them; shooting darts as they went. The shots still miss. "Does anyone of you good for nothing know how to aim?" Koslov screamed, before calling someone on his two-way radio and screamed at him instead. "Voynich!" From the top of Koslov's Winter Palace, someone kicked the rooftop door open. On his back was a sniper rifle, the same model that the savage culprit had used. Voynich quickly went to a corner of a rooftop laid down his gun and took aim. "In position, sir."
"There is a fox and rabbit escaping, stop them."
"Yes, sir."
Far away at the snowmobile, Nick turned his head. "Are they still after us, Carrot?"
Judy turned around, seeing the group had stood still. "No, I think we are good." She said with her voice slightly altered by her quick and dry breaths.
"Sorry for dragging you into this. That's was a bad idea on my part."
"Apology accepted. At least we got some clues" She stood up and pointed left. "I know a shortcut to Rainforest district, that way. Urg" her hand dropped and clung to Nick's shoulder.
His ears reacted at the sudden touch, "Eh, Carrot? Are you trying to be cute?" He paused, no answer. "Carrot? Can you hear me?" Her hand started slipping from his shoulder. Nick quickly caught and held it in place. He could feel her weight lying on his back.
Back at the Winter Palace, Koslov shouted into the radio. "They are still getting away!"
Voynich answered, "The rabbit interfered with my shot, sir."
"Then fire again."
"I have, sir, but they are out of range."
"Are you being serious with me right now?"
"Sir, I am always serious."
Koslov crushed the two-way radio into crumbs and turned to the mountain goat. "Natasha, get me Alexander on the phone, and get me another radio."
Around 5 PM at the Rainforest District
Nick was carrying Judy on his shoulder. Usually, this sort of arrangement would raise ten million red flags; but with everyone afraid of going out after the whole "savage attacks", the streets were not that crowded. Some mammals did ask questions, but Nick just shrugged it off as "helping a drunken friend get home." Nick reached an abandoned building. A quaint wooden home, which planks were infested by lumps of termite colonies. He walked around the yard and found a trapdoor. He knocked on it three times, paused for a beat and knocked on it twice. Soon, the sound of a latch opening up was heard.
The trapdoor opened slightly, Finnick's eyes appeared in the gap. "Nick, my man! Long time no sees." He swung the door opened and jumped out. His excitement quickly died out when he saw Judy on Nick's shoulder. "Why is there a bunny with you? Wait, is that Hopps?"
Nick shook his head, "No time to explain. Let me in."
Both then climbed down a long ladder that led to Honey's very own bunker (her parents just called it a sett). This was her family real home. Her father had delay cleaning up the old house from above multiple times and eventually it was all too late for him to do anything about it. The bunker had a few bedrooms, and guest rooms, one kitchen and a huge living space at the center of its all, enough space and conveniences for the gang to stay for a long time. Before, Finnick hated to admit that like to crash here from time to time. However, since his home was a van, Honey's bunker did not have to try hard to exceed his standards. Clawhauser had a home from above, but recently his neighborhood had become a riot hot spot, so he decided to take refuge here. The fact that no one had disturbed them for more than a week, proven that he had made the right choice. Mentioned of the devil, the leopard was sitting in the living space, watching some reruns on TV. He was about to say hello to Nick in his regular cheerful voice, but seeing Judy on Nick's shoulder, Clawhauser just left the couch and turn off the TV. Nick gently laid Judy down on the couch. Clawhauser just found himself a chair and sat down. Hearing the gate being opened, Honey left her room and entered the living space.
Finnick grabbed a can of beer from the fridge and sat on the rug "Okay, can you please explain to me, why is she here?"
He sat on the floor; his legs exhausted from all the running. "She is going to help me solve the case."
Finnick said, "Solve what?"
The fox answered, "The salvage attacks. Someone drugs predators and turn them savage. We're gonna find out who."
Finnick said, "Nick, are you crazy. Everything is going to hell. Now is the time for us to leave, not doing detective work."
Clawhauser commented, "I know it sounds cool and all, but just no. We need to be safe first." He said so rather shyly as if he fooled himself into thinking that way.
"See, even Clawhauser gets it." Finnick cracked open his can of beer and drank some of it. "I don't know about you, but ever since I was born, I wanted to leave this place. Now with the kid presented us a way out on a golden platter, you want to stay behind and play cops. Nick, you have gone savage, not stupid."
Honey said, "I don't know if you have noticed, but this place was rigged against us. From the very start, they have been stepping on us and now it's just getting worse. I'm not sticking my nose around here."
With his hand pointed toward the bunker's exit, Nick said, "Fine, then go, I'm not stopping any of you. You don't have to wait for me. I want to stay and that's it."
That line paused the gang for a few seconds until Finnick said. "For what, Nick? We can't just let you behind. We can't just let one of us essentially live in a hell hole."
Nick said, "So you are saying we just run away?"
Finnick finished his can, "Yes, obviously."
Nick pointed at him, "That's the exact reason why things are getting worse. For years, preys had been living in fear of us and we are living in fear of them, but no one ever explains why. Nobody from our side stands up and tells the truth, while nobody from their side tries to listen. And now, someone is spreading lies about us and instead of trying to correct it, you run away." Finnick looked away. "I know the truth and I'm not afraid to expose it." He pointed at Judy, who was still sleeping soundly, "She, on the other hand, is willing to listen. A prey and an officer no less is listening and helping me find more evidence. Are you suggesting that I just throw that one in a million years opportunity away?"
Clawhauser stood up and said, "I'll stay too."
Finnick slapped himself in the forehead, "Oh, not you too."
Clawhauser snapped, "Finnick, are you just going to leave all those months of joy and hard work at Wild times go down the drain?"
Finnick spat, "We talked about this, and you agreed."
"Well excuse me for changing my mind. Back then, I thought the savage attacks truly came from predators not wearing their collars. But now, if what Nick says it's true, then someone else is responsible." The leopard's eyes start damping up. "Can't you see? Someone took Wild Times away from us. They took the only meaningful job I had, then used it as, some kind of ploy. I'm not going to let that happen."
"Clawhauser" that was all Nick could say.
Clawhauser held back the stinging feeling in his eyes. He then delivered the next line like a battle cry. "I'll stay; you two can leave if you want it so bad."
Finnick punched the floor. "Argh, you jackasses." He took a deep breath, "fine, I'll stay. Not because of all that sappy crap. I have worn that stupid nurse outfit for six months. Leaving the bastard that made all that effort turn to naught with an intact face is, unacceptable."
Honey shrugged, "If we do nothing, they would win anyway so, what the hell, right? At least we'll give it a shot."
Nick smiled. He did not know what else to say but, "Thank you. And trust me, with your help, we are gonna crack this case real soon."
Honey caressed her chin, said, "Speaking of which, what do you have so far?"
And thus they spent some time discussing what Nick have known about the case. A simple recap of what had happened to him, really. During the recap, random casual questions did slip through the gaps. Nevertheless, that was expected when a group of friend exchanged any kind of conversation. After Nick had finished recapping, Judy turned and rolled on the couch. She began to wake up. Her first action when she opened her eyes was scratching her forearms. The surface of her skin felt hot. She sprang up and started scratching all over. That caught the gang's attention. They went quiet for a moment. Judy said while she gently clawing her ears. "Why is my skin so itchy?"
Saw how Judy's face showing sign of swelling up, Honey said, "Don't scratch it, you're making it worse." Judy tried to do as suggested, but it was not long before she started scratching again. The badger headed for a nearby medicine cabinet and took out a pill bottle. She filled up a glass of water and gave both to Judy. "I think you may have some allergic reaction to the tranquilizer. Here, take one of these, it should help." Honey turned to Nick. "How big was the dart Nick?"
Nick said, "Small, even smaller than the claw on my pinky."
"Yeah, you should be fine, fluff butt. Long range darts usually don't pack big doses."
Usually, she would protest against such name-calling, but at this position, Judy just accepted the offer and said, "Thanks" after gulping down the pill.
Nick turned to Judy, eyes showed concern. He said, "Are you okay now, Carrot?" Judy nodded when she felt the heat on her skin had subsided.
Clawhauser knotted his hand together. His head tilted slightly. "Awww, you two are giving each other nicknames; that's adorable." The gang, now with Judy looked at him. None of them looked amused. Clawhauser cleared his throat, "Sorry, back to the ploy, sorry."
Finnick had finished another beer, "Glad that you could finally join us, officer Hopps. We were just finished discussing the details."
"Um, I don't want to be rude, but, what did I miss?"
Nick told her. "Judy, em, these are my friends." The gang waved at her, "they helped me with Wild Times and now they are going to help us with the case."
Judy's eyes shifting around, she said, "Oooooooh kay, that's nice. Thank you."
Finnick wiped his mouth, "Don't get any idea; we're doing this for Nick." He tossed the empty can into a nearby box. The cardboard spoke the sound of banging metal. "Anyhow, does any of you have any idea what the hell is going on? Because I'm lost after Nick's prison escape, I think the alcohol was responsible."
Like a dog upon hearing a dog whistle, Honey's face lit up. "I think I have some idea."
Finnick pointed at the badger. "No, no, no. Now is not the time for your conspiracy theories, Honey."
Judy said, "No, go ahead, I want to hear it."
Finnick said, "Aw great, now I'm gonna need another beer." And he did just that.
Honey shook off that comment and said, "Okay, hear me out, so what if Koslov is the one behind all this?" The gang and Judy looked at each other. No one seemed to have to gut to say, "That's impossible" to Honey because, in the backs of their heads, it did sound like a possibility. "Think about it. He just happened to visit Wild Times one day before the attack, he just happened to come across the culprit's weapon but not the culprit himself. The guy who drugged Nick was a wolf. Who has access to all the predator gang members in this city? Koslov. And Judy got snipped from a nearly mile away."
Nick tried to recall his memory, "I don't think that was a mile away. But we did get pretty far."
Honey said, "Bah, who care? Koslov has a sniper, who could hit a moving bunny on a snowmobile. He could drug any predator that he wants, at any distance."
Clawhauser threw in his thoughts, "But that doesn't at up, what about the collars? How did he" The leopard's face went numb when he realized, "O M Goodness, that's why he needs Alex."
Judy said, her arms crossed, "Still, why would he want that, though? Why would he hurt his own kind? Because of this whole Savage attack, preys are more, let say cautious around predators."
Finnick in his half-drunken stage, said, "Bull crap, cautious, more like hostile. I can't even use the public bathroom because the chance of being ambush is too fricking high."
Nick said, "He did not hesitate to hurt me. It's safe to assume that he would do so for other predators, whom he is not interested in."
Honey continued, "Yeah, and on the net, animals spread a rumor that he has been preparing a revolt for years now. He probably has been seeing predators as the oppressed. I bet there are many predators who would think the same but don't have to gut to rise up and fight. In a nutshell, the city itself is sitting on top of a lake of gasoline. All Koslov need is a spark for it to catch fire. This whole savage attack is the breaking point, the spark that he needed. Once the predators have no choice but to fight, what else do you expect to happen? He claimed himself to the leader of the fight, right?"
Nick said, "That's a strong possibility. But"
Honey interrupted him, "Now with Alex go all nuts for the cause, Koslov can have an army of collar-free predators, ready to fight at their full strength."
"The mock collar! What if he already has such an army?" Judy screamed in her head.
On a roll, Honey continued, "I just realized something, what if Koslov's version of full strength, is the chemical that turns predators savage."
Judy stopped her, "Too many uncertainties, it is best not to theorize further without any proper leads."
Honey pointed up, somewhere, "Just think about it, it makes sense."
Nick then stood up, "Yeah. It's great, but, I think we should take a break for now. It's getting late. We'll continue this, tomorrow."
Finnick stood up and wobbled around a bit. "Yeah, tomorrow I'll hit the street, seeing if anything else is up. Get more info on this. Don't expect me to come home."
Clawhauser said, "I'll help too. I'll get back to my old place and see."
"Well, that's what the Internet is for, I'll fish something out, eventually. I still think Koslov did it"
Nick said with a smile, "Good, everyone has a plan. That's great. I'll think I'll go out for some fresh air, it's getting really stuffy in here." He quickly climbed out of the bunker and wandered around the Rainforest District.
Later, at night, Judy found Nick near the district's artificial waterfall. He was leaning on a rail, his head rested on his left fist. He looked at the river down below then looked up at the waning moon. His face suggested that he was contemplating.
"Nick, what's wrong." Judy's voice touched the back of his head.
He turned around, "What? Nothing, I'm okay."
She stood beside him, her height made it more challenging to lean on the rail. "C'mon Nick, your ears are drooping, what's wrong?"
He exhaled and got back to looking down, "Starting to ask myself if I can deal with this, Judy. All these things start piling up and nothing seems to make sense."
"Yeah, I can see that. This is not how I usually spend my Sunday."
He chuckled briefly, "Nice try Judy, but, yeah, things just go out of whack. I just want to create a park so that predators can be free and be wild. But instead, what I got are me in jail, the city going nuts, you on my tail, Koslov trying to kill me, and you, the kid is working with him, this whole conspiracy that was going on." He sighed. "And now I have dragged my friends in this as well. Starting to see why they wanted to leave." He chuckled, humorously, "Everything is going to hell and I am the starting point of it. I don't know what to do. I made a big talk convinced my friend that the truth shall fix all this, but, now I don't know if I should or could continue chasing it. I don't think I'm strong enough to back up my words. I may not look like it, but I'm really scared."
Judy slowly scooched closer to him, "It's okay, Nick, it's okay. Someone taught me that in cases like this, you should breathe, slow down and think it through." She tried to touch him, but he moved away. She stopped moving toward him, and said, "I'm with you on this one and so are they. And trust me, it confuses me just as much. But we will see it through, all of us. We are all here to help you clear your name. I promise. I'll do my best to help you along the way."
His hands left the rail, "Yeah, thanks, Judy."
"No prob, that's what friends do, right?" she said with a smile.
He nodded. "Uh huh, let's get back to the bunker."
A black panther walking nearby was about to experience something, different. It all started with his collar suddenly turned off. The device then fell from his neck and dropped to the ground. He panicked, kneeled down and tried to pick it up. Once his hand touched it, he felt a sting on his neck. A needle pierced his skin. Whatever it was started injected screaming to his head. He resisted it, trying to stand up and get somewhere safe. Another sting came. After two hits, the chemical made the predator shook his head violently. The panther got on all four and flashed his teeth. His growl got Nick and Judy to look back.
Judy said, "What is that?" her hand reached for something on her belt.
"Oh no," Nick said, seeing the small glimmering vials stuck on the panther. "Judy, run!"
The two ran along the long rail, prompted the savage predator to do the same. The panther made a screeching sound as his claws dragged across the pavement. Judy pulled out a Taser gun and squeezed the trigger out of reflex. The panther evaded the two probes launched at him, making the shot do nothing more but slowing him down, temporarily. Judy let out a grunt before discarding the weapon. She then focused on running, once again got ahead of Nick. The three of them now headed up the waterfall. The panther suddenly pounced a few times, got himself in front of Judy. He cut off her attempted to turn right and get back to the bunker. Nick pulled her toward the other direction, heading closer to the waterfall. The panther soon cornered them to a platform above the waterfall. A cable car was supposed to be there and pick them up. Nick was counting on that. However, Judy and Nick's luck had run out, it seemed. The two of them slowly approached the edge. "Stay behind me, Judy," Nick said and pulled out Alex's shock baton. He charged it up and waved it in front of the panther. "Look pal, a guy taught me fencing. Don't make me practice it on you." The battery of the Taser guns ran out and cut off the sparks. "Aw, cheeses and crackers," he remarked. Judy looked down at the water. A wild thought rang in her head. With short breath in between, "Okay, Judy, I have a plan, I'll keep him busy, while you run and get some help, quick."
"I have a better idea" she grabbed his hand and pulled him as she leaned backward.
"Whatttt?" he yelped as gravity took control.
At midway, her hand slipped away from him, both were then separated. Nick crashed into the stream down below. The water slapped on the box on his collar. The sudden impact caused the anti-removal function to activate, making the thing let off a powerful discharge. With him in the water, the electric shock was infinitely worse. The stinging sensation burned across his body, despite the coolness of the water. He screamed but did not make a sound, just opening a floodgate for the water to go into his lungs. Afterward, like flickering lights in horror movies, he slipped in and out of consciousness. The only thing he could hear before everything went black was a soul-shattering scream of his name.
Author note:
Thank you so much for reading. If you enjoyed what you have just read and wished to see more, please follow or leave a review. They would give me the motivation to write more for everyone. All feedbacks will be appreciated. If you find anything lacking or flawed in my story (grammar, word use, etc.), please tell me in the reviews as well. I shall do my best to update these chapters sooner and make them more polished. This is one of my first stories so please forgive possible mistakes in the future and help me fix them.
Thanks again and have a pleasant day.
