Chapter 16
Gazelle could not believe it. As soon as she had full access to Bellwether's system, the plans were laid out in her lap. According to her findings, there was a control panel inside the party room of the cavern. (She managed to pull out a map.) That control panel was the source of the chaos.
But it can't be that simple... What about that blue gun of hers? Bogo wasn't savage after the attacks, and Benny turned savage individually. So...
She winced as a body collided with the aircraft. That was going to leave a mark. Bogo was seriously outnumbered. Gazelle wanted to help, but her side was still healing and Bogo told her to stay inside and glean information.
She had gleaned information all right. Still, she knew she was missing something huge. Then, it hit her.
Gazelle had to address something else first.
xxx
"Who is this?" Charlotte demanded angrily. "And how do you know my son and daughter-in-law? And my grandson?"
"Take that, old timer!" A guard yelled at Bogo outside the aircraft. Gazelle sighed deeply.
"My name is Gazelle. I am a Kingzoo agent, like your son and daughter-in-law, and I'm calling on their behalf -"
"My babies! Are they hurt? What's going on?"
"They're fine, Ms. Wilde." I hope. "I need you to promise that you'll stay calm and listen to my instructions. You have to trust me when I say that Nick and Judy told me to tell you this. If you don't listen to me, your grandson could get hurt." Or killed.
She heard the vixen hold back a whimper before responding. "Fine. Fine. What do I have to do?"
Gazelle examined her input for a second before instructing Charlotte. "Ma'am, have you recently consumed Dawn's Blues blueberries?"
Charlotte oddly felt compelled to ask something strange. "How recently?"
"According to what I've found, and this will remain classified between you and me, got it?"
"Got it." Charlotte knew how these agents operated.
Gazelle pulled up a list of animals and their reaction times to the fruit. "According to what I've found, the average fox can react savagely when he or she has eaten at least one blueberry in the past thirty-six hours."
"Sa-Savagely?"
"Yes, Mrs. Wilde. Therefore, I am begging you to lock your grandson in the bathroom and throw away the key. Has he eaten some blueberries?"
"Well, yes, but -"
"Then make sure he wears protective gear." Gazelle opened up another page and gaped. "And Mrs. Wilde? Please hurry. You only have ten minutes."
xxx
The rams eyed each other questionably as they heard growling and scraping coming from a doorway. The leader pointed to the doorway and nodded, silently ordering them to approach and attack. Some rookies looked nervous, but they all quietly began to creep closer to the doorway. The leader raised his blue gun, ready to strike.
"AHHHHHH!" Judy latched on to the leading ram, making him drop his gun. "Help me! Help me!" Blue liquid and black blood oozed from her nape. "Please, help! My husband bit me! I- I thought they were normal berries, but he's gone mad!"
"THE BLUES!" The ram tried to pry her off of him, but he could not shake her off. "They're going savage! Run for your lives!"
Nick, his lips dripping with blueberry juice, leapt gracefully from his spot in the doorway and growled threateningly at the shivering rams. Some cowardly rookies already fled the scene, but most of the rams froze with apprehension and fear. They had never dealt with savage animals before. When Belllwether hired them, they did not believe they had to deal and interact with savagery, only initiate it.
"Bernie!" One ram yelped as the fox began to pounce and drool on him. "Let's call Bellwether's handlers! They work with these crazies!"
"We don't have time!" The leader, Bernie, yelled back. "Let's just shoot 'em! They don't - ARGH!" Judy snarled and bit the ram's neck, drawing blood.
The others agreed and began shooting at Nick, but Nick effectively dodged some and seemed unaffected by others.
"Shit! Is savagery like a superpower now or some crazy shit?!"
Bernie shook Judy off of him and whistled at the others. "Let's just go! Tell her guns won't work on 'em!"
"But, Bernie, she'll kill us!"
Bernie looked worriedly at his team. They all were worried, but they did not have another choice. "She'll just have to take our word for - OW!" Judy bit him again. He shot at her, but she was just as agile and unaffected as Nick.
Bernie trembled as Nick and Judy began to approach them. "Scram, you idiots!" They all fled. No ram looked back. If one did, he or she might have seen Judy and Nick watch them and then run back to their spots at the doorway.
Once there, Judy wiped the juice and fake blood off of her neck, and Nick licked his lips clean and took out some more blueberries.
"Want some?" Judy grinned and helped herself.
"Sly fox."
"What? Bogo said to wear bullet-proof vests, didn't he? And he also let us take whatever. The fruit was my idea, true, but hey." He playfully shoved his wife and popped a blueberry into his mouth. "We're in this together, with all our crazy ideas, and your carrot-scented lotion."
"Even though I'm a dumb bunny?"
"You're not a dumb bunny. You're my dumb bunny."
"Oh, Nick." She smiled sweetly at him. "I'll fix this. We'll fix this. The lotion... I know it will work!"
Suddenly, the steel door they pressed their bodies against began to tremble. Someone on the other side banged on the door and began yelling obscenities.
"I know you're out there, Bellwether! You better let me out! I've had enough of your blueberry pie and mashed potatoes!"
"Who's that?" Judy mouthed to Nick, who just shrugged. Nick opened the door's slot, revealing the two pretty grey eyes of a deer dressed in a plain, unflattering white dress.
"Oh, thank goodness!" The deer sighed, smiling. "Animals from the outside! Can you help me?"
Judy's jaw dropped as she got a good look at the deer. "Trixie Single? The singer? Is that you?"
Trixie sighed again, quite dramatically, and flipped her platinum blonde hair. "Yes, sweetie. It's me, imprisoned here in prison garbs because of that evil sheep and her pet brute!"
Nick leaned closer to the slot and grinned charmingly at the doe. "Well, don't worry, sweetheart! Because we're here to save the world."
"That's right." Judy glared at Nick and put a protective arm around his waist. "Nice to meet you. We're Mr. and Mrs. Wilde. And we're kind in the middle of something so -"
"You know..." Nick kept grinning at the singer. "Judy and I've never kissed a celebrity before."
Trixie grinned mischievously and giggled. "If you two are saving the world, I'll give you much more than that."
"Wow." Nick nudged Judy playfully, who turned bright red. "Isn't she a motivator?"
"We're leaving." Judy smiled sweetly at Trixie. "Nice meeting you. We'll help you soon." She jumped, grabbed Nick's ear, and dragged him away.
"Carrots - Ow! - Relax! - Ow! - It's not like - Ow! - She would do it!"
The rabbit just glanced at him incredulously, and he paused in shock. He was genuinely fooled. "Oh, really? She would?"
"She's the most promiscuous celebrity, Nick! And you call me naive..."
"Oh, honey! I'm so sorry I'm not as unhealthily obsessed with singers as you are!"
"That's okay. When we get home, you can take notes."
xxx
"The cowards fled," Slayer announced. Bellwether glanced at her watch.
"The agents?"
"Our security." Bellwether snarled and banged her hooves against the panel.
"Well... No matter. In a few minutes, the apocalypse will begin."
xxx
"Judy! Nick! You have to hurry! Bellwether's control panel will soon initiate the primal instincts of any animal that currently ate the particular blueberries."
"How many animals are we looking at here?" Nick asked Gazelle.
"Billions. Make sure her hooves stay off that panel! You two haven't eaten any, have you?"
"No." Judy suddenly stopped running. "Wait... Gazelle, what about Benny? A gunshot turned him savage -"
"Judy, that's it! I knew it was too good to be true!" The duo heard Gazelle type furiously. "I'll get more info on her blue gun. You two just stop her before she wreaks havoc."
"We're on it." They ran for and slid into the party room, only to find no party guests.
Nick raised his gun and glanced at Judy, who looked around the room bemusedly. "Where'd everyone go? What happened here?" The steamers were torn down. The bar was littered with broken glass and spilled drinks. Music blared hauntingly.
"I can answer that for you, fox." They looked up. Bellwether stood on the dais with her hooves on the panel. "But first, kitty wants to play with you."
Nick cocked his head."Kitty?" He leaned closer to Judy to whisper. "Crap, we forgot about her cat..."
Judy gripped her gun. "Ho, ho! I wouldn't do that, my dear!" She pressed a button on the panel, and a trap door opened underneath their feet. They scrambled off of it as smoke engulfed them. Then, they heard a familiar, sonorous voice.
"Rabbit and fox." Slayer revealed himself, towering over them. "So many fond memories I've had of your kind." He unsheathed his bloody claws. "But all good things must end. Only the strongest will survive."
"Not quite." Bellwether took out her blue gun. "The wittiest, actually." Before Slayer could pounce on them, Bellwether shot him in the shoulder, juice spilling all over the shoulder and his upper back. He grimaced and howled in pain. Judy and Nick scrambled away and watched his body hit the floor. He convulsed and twitched madly. They could see his eyes dilating and his mouth foaming.
"After you two left," Bellwether began, "Slayer and I decided to put our beloved family to the test. After all, we had to prove the worth of our members. And..." She chuckled a little. "One test before the grand finale wouldn't hurt."
"Lady, you're sick!" Nick yelped as Slayer began to approach them on all fours. Froth still coated his lips and chin. Judy and Nick would have laughed if they were not so terrified for their lives.
"And..." Slayer twitched. He was holding on to his last bits of sanity. "You will be... fox..."
"Slayer? Kill them like you did the others."
"As... you... wish..." He pounced, heading straight for Judy.
