Chapter #21: Outfoxing a Fox
In the town of Boston, the villagers were under a new reign of terror—one that not even Big Boss or the Animal Alliance knew about. They were not being thrown into prisons or forced to work. This was a different kind of terror: blackmail.
Two shady individuals somehow knew everything there was to know about the townsfolk, and used the information to their advantage. They backed their victims into a corner and put on the pressure until they broke and begged for them to not tell anyone their secrets. Ironically, many Alliance agents and spies for Big Boss were under these blackmailers' thumbs, but they were too afraid to tell anyone about it.
One such agent found himself in the clutches of one of the two masterminds. The poor rabbit was sitting stiffly in a chair, watching a bluish-gray weasel wearing a leather business suit pace around him in circles.
"Listen, buddy, we're tryin' to help ya. Nobody needs to know you're an agent, 'specially not The Boss. Ya need coverage. Not tomorrow, not next week. Now. Get it? Bang!"
"Coverage? It's blackmail!" the rabbit protested.
"It's a matter of opinion, bud. Now, are ya gonna sign this form? 'Cause if ya don't, I'm free to sell ya out. And then…bang! It's curtains for ya!"
"F-f-fine! J-just give it here!" He swiped the paper the weasel was holding out and signed his name. Then he handed it back. "So you're not gonna tell anybody?"
The weasel gave him a sly smile. "As long as you keep up your payments, bud."
Of course, he neglected to mention one little condition written on the form in very fine print; he and his partner couldn't give out the information freely…but they had the "right" to if they were paid.
As he walked out the door of the rabbit's house, he picked up his suitcase, grinned, and said, "Bang! Thank ya for your business!" But, as soon as the door was shut and he was out of his "client's" sight, his grin turned wicked, and he snickered to himself.
Another fool and his Bells are soon parted, he thought.
He took a path through a dense forest area of Boston, and then came to a clearing. In it, a teal tent with a yellow leaf symbol on the top was set up. A campfire was crackling in front of the tent, and sitting next to it on a log was a red fox wearing a blue apron. In one hand he had a pan, and in the other he stirred the contents of the pan with a spoon. He quietly hummed a tune to himself and kept his eyes focused on his very early breakfast. But when he heard the weasel approaching, he looked up and grinned.
"So, Lyle," he said, "how was our new client? I was about to go after ya; we usually don't do deals so close to dawn."
Lyle set his suitcase down and replied, "I pinned him at 20,000 Bells a month."
"Think he'll pay it?"
"For a month or two. Then he'll probably get cozy an' smug an' think he can miss a payment. Then…bang!" He smacked a fist into his open paw. "We sell 'im out to the Secret Police for three times his coverage!"
Crazy Redd chuckled. "You're probably right, partner."
The weasel got a sneaky look. "You willin' to bet on that?"
"Nice try, but I've learned not to gamble with you. You cheat."
"So do you."
"Touché."
As the pair laughed at one another, they didn't feel the eight pairs of eyes watching them from shadows of the forest…
"Okay, so we found Crazy Redd. Now what?"
Spike, the speaker, turned to face the other heroes and Copper as they hid in the bushes on the edge of the clearing.
The dog rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, it looks like this isn't going to be as easy as we had thought. We had no idea Lyle was with him."
"You mean that weasel?" asked Jimmy, pointing at Lyle.
"Yeah. They were business partners before Big Boss. I guess they still are now."
Ratchet stood up and crept closer to the pair's camp. "I say we jump 'em. We outnumber them eight to two."
"I dislike sparring with you, Ratchet," Clank interrupted, "but that might not be a very wise course of action. We should not foment a disturbance in the settlement nor attempt to obtain information out in the open where observation is not difficult."
The Lombax scratched his head. "Tails, please translate."
"He said that we shouldn't make noise or question them outside, 'cause someone could be watching us," the fox said.
"Oh." He frowned and looked at his robot sidekick. "You've got a point."
"Maybe one of us should get in a disguise and try to make him think we're on his side," Spike suggested. Then a grin slipped into place. "And I think we all know of the perfect person for the job."
All eyes turned to Tails, and he shifted nervously on his feet. He didn't like their grins one bit.
"Uhh…guys, why are you looking at me like that?"
The red-haired teen didn't answer him, and instead turned to Copper. "Copper, we need to pay a visit to some of those shops in the plaza. It's time to play dress-up."
Tails gulped.
A few minutes later, Crazy Redd and Lyle, as they were eating some soup and sandwiches, heard rustling in the bushes nearby. The former quickly got to his feet, but the latter was a little slower, since he was still chewing on his food. The weasel watched his partner's nose and ears twitch as he tried to identify the source of the noises.
"Somebody out there?" he asked. But Redd only shushed him and carefully stepped closer to the edge of the clearing where the noises were coming from. Because they were focused on that side, they didn't see or hear a figure walk up behind them.
"Excuse me…"
"Aiiyeeeeee!!" Lyle screamed, leaping a foot in the air; the person had been right behind him. He ran for the tent and dove through the covered entrance.
Redd, on the other hand, wasn't so startled. He whirled around to face the newcomer and studied him closely.
He was a fox like him, probably only eight years old. He was dressed in a dirty, stained #1 shirt and had a red cap on his head, with holes in it for his ears.
The shady dealer folded his arms with a frown and snapped, "What's a kid like you doin' out here at night? Ever heard of curfew?"
The kit blinked innocently. "They're doing that here too? I didn't know that; I just got here. My name's Tod. Are you Crazy Redd?"
"Yes, I am."
"And who's that?" The fox pointed at the pair of eyes peeking out of the tent.
"That would be Lyle, my business partner. Lyle, get your sorry tail out of there! You scared of kids?"
Mumbling under his breath, Lyle came out of the tent and eyed the younger fox suspiciously; he couldn't help but think that his tail was a little too thick for such a young age. But he didn't say anything to Redd, since he was now on his bad side.
"So," Redd continued, "why did ya come see me?"
"Tod" rubbed his neck nervously and replied, "Well, I'm an orphan, and the only relative I have is a distant uncle who travels and trades valuable items."
This sent the shady fox into deep thought. Hmm…I do remember hearin' 'bout some kinda nephew…
The kit shifted on his feet and said, "I like travelling. If you don't mind, I'd like to join you."
"I dunno, kid…I only have enough supplies for two people, an' I'm low on cash…"
"That's okay. I've got some money."
He pulled a bag of Bells from his left-hand pocket. Crazy Redd's and Lyle's eyes nearly popped out of their heads.
"60,000 Bells?!" cried the weasel. "Where'd a little shrimp like you get all that dough?!"
Tod looked around the clearing like he had something to hide, and then cracked a sly grin. "Worked for some, found some, and stole half of it."
Redd's face split into a big grin. "Now that sounds like a nephew of mine! Come on into the tent!" He led his supposed nephew into the tent. Lyle followed both of them and put down the tent entrance flap, grumbling about their visitor.
This little beggar's gonna be big trouble. I can just feel it…
In the forest, the other heroes and Copper had watched the whole scene, and were choking back their laughter.
"Oh man, they fell for it!" Jimmy whispered loudly, and he slapped his knee and held his sides.
SpongeBob giggled, "I can't believe it!" He lost his self-control and did his laugh. (A/N: If you've seen his show, then you probably know what laugh I'm talking about.)
Patrick frowned and cocked his head. "I don't get it." But no one paid him any attention.
"I'm impressed with Tails," Spike remarked. "He hid his extra tail pretty well. Redd and Lyle didn't see it."
Clank agreed, "His acting was flawless."
"Let's get closer!" the younger human said eagerly.
All of them tiptoed to the tent and listened in. Crazy Redd had just finished showing off his merchandise to "Tod". Now they were sitting in lawn chairs by a potbelly stove. Suddenly the younger fox noticed a black suitcase hidden behind one of Redd's trunks. While the dealer was tending to the stove, he got up, walked over to the case, and picked it up. He began to open it.
What's in this case? he thought to himself.
Suddenly the suitcase slammed shut, and Tails just barely got his fingers out of the way. He looked up to see Lyle glaring at him.
"This is my case, you nosy little furball," he growled.
With a yelp, the kit ran away from him and hid behind Redd, who only caught his partner's harsh words.
"Leave 'im alone, Lyle," he warned sharply.
"He was peekin' into my stuff!" the weasel protested.
"He won't do it again. Now beat it."
"Wha…?"
"I said beat it! I want some privacy with my nephew!"
Shaking with anger, Lyle stomped out of the tent and into the forest, muttering threats for revenge…
Ratchet and Spike pounced!
Before the blackmailing weasel knew what was going on, he had been battered to the ground, tied up, cuffed, and gagged…and his attackers had hardly made a sound.
The Lombax commando and human proudly stood in front of their catch. The former said, "He's not Redd, but he'll do for now. Maybe he knows a few things too."
Copper nodded. "We'll take him back to our hiding spot. You two return to the tent. When it's time to go in, give us the signal."
The two did just that, and heard Crazy Redd talking some more to Tails over some sandwiches and chips.
"I've never trusted him. He's always talkin' about sneakin' behind The Boss's back."
The kit's ears pricked forward, and he looked up from his bag of chips. "You mean Big Boss? You guys work for him?"
"Yup. I like his style of government, really. Anyway, I found out the other day that Lyle's been collectin' names of some of the Boss's agents so he can rat 'em out to the Animal Alliance. I want to tell Boss, but that sneak's been stuck to me like glue; I haven't had a chance to be alone so I can make the call. But now I think I can; he doesn't like you, so as long as you're around, I can do what I need to."
Tod's eyes widened, and he absorbed the information like a sponge. Redd smiled inwardly as he ate his ham sandwich, glad that he could use him as a tool. Once he got that sniveling weasel off his back, he could keep all of the blackmail money for himself!
"I've already made some arrangements. Tonight at 10:00, I'm supposed to meet with one of the Boss's head officers at the beach in this town. I'm gonna tell him all about Lyle's blackmail scheme and his plans for my fellow agents."
"But won't Lyle get suspicious?" Tod asked, reaching into his bag of chips for more.
"Nope, 'cause I've got a cover story for 'im. I told him I'm gonna collect our reward for turning in the hedgehog we found near Pine Ridge."
His "nephew" stiffened and choked on a chip. Redd gave him a confused look, and Tails tried his best to recover. He gulped down some water from a plastic bottle and croaked, "Sorry. It went down the wrong pipe. …What hedgehog?"
"A weird-lookin' blue one; called himself 'Sonic'. What kinda stupid name is that, eh?" The shady dealer laughed; for some reason, he found the whole thing funny.
Tails laughed with him, but he had no heart in it. "Heh, heh…yeah, that's, uh, really weird." He shifted nervously in his lawn chair. "What's gonna happen to him?"
"He's been taken to The Boss's fortress in Tombstone, where all the prisoners go; I hear The Boss might even interrogate him personally." He chuckled sadistically. "Poor, poor sap. I doubt he'll last for more than three days."
The younger fox's stomach tightened into a knot, and he lost his appetite. An image of his best friend starving in a cold, dark dungeon came into his mind, and he nearly lost his self-control.
Just outside the tent, Ratchet and Spike were watching the two foxes through a rip in the tent fabric. They saw their friend buckling, and knew that it was now or never. They signaled to the others, who ran up to the tent as fast as they could. Then Ratchet crept up to the tent's entrance and tossed a smoke grenade inside. There was a small explosion, and the tent was filled with smoke. They heard coughing, and all of them charged inside, armed with their various weapons, and shouted, "Freeze!"
That is, everyone but Patrick, who declared, "Happy Mother's Day!"
In between coughs, Crazy Redd demanded, "Wha…what's goin' on?!"
Copper came up behind him, put the fox's hands behind his back, and cuffed them. "Crazy Redd, you're under arrest."
His voice brought the dealer to his senses. "Copper, you mangy mutt!" he snarled. "Let go of me! You've got nuthin' on me!"
"On the contrary: 'Tod' here can tell us everything we need to know."
"Wha…Tod, what does he mean?"
When the smoke grenade had exploded, Tails had taken a breathing mask from his right-hand pocket and had put it on. When the smoke cleared, he took off his mask and turned to the trapped dealer with a frown.
"First off, my name isn't Tod; it's Miles 'Tails' Prower." He reached back and removed the band that was holding his two tails together. He moved both of them so Redd would get a good look.
The fox gaped. "What the...?!"
He unbuttoned the shirt and took it off as he continued, "Second, I work with the Animal Alliance."
Redd's eyes narrowed, and he curled his lip in disgust. "Why you little whelp! Lyle was right about you!"
Suddenly Tails removed his cap, threw it to Jimmy, and glared back at Redd, with his ears flat against his head, his hands clenched into fists, and his blue eyes glimmering fiercely. Everyone, even Ratchet, backed away from him.
"And lastly," he growled, "Sonic is my best friend, and you had better tell me where he is or else." For emphasis, he punched one fist into the other open hand.
Nobody expected Tails to be so demanding, but hey, you'd be upset too if you were face to face with the person who had turned in your best friend!
For a moment Redd's mouth was too dry for him to retort, but he managed to stammer, "You'll…you'll never get away with this."
Ratchet rolled his eyes. "Can it, Redd. You're comin' with us."
"I'd love a can of sardines!" Patrick quipped.
Redd stared at him. "Are you sane?"
Grinning stupidly, the starfish replied, "Nope!"
While shooting an annoyed glance at Patrick, Ratchet and Spike grabbed his shoulders and led him out of the black tent, with the others close behind them.
Many struggles and Omniwrench strikes later, the gang came to the two-story house Tortimer and Nook had rented for them. The "hunting party" tied Crazy Redd and Lyle to chairs much like they had done to Resetti several days before.
Jimmy yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Spike, I'm gettin' tired. Do we hafta interrogate both of them tonight?"
"You won't get anything outta us!" Crazy Redd barked, struggling in his chair. Lyle only watched their captors with a scared expression.
Ratchet glared and fiddled with his wrench. "Oh yes we will. We want to know everything about that fortress in Tombstone. And you'd better answer, or you'll regret trying an alien commando's patience."
Lyle gulped, but his partner only glared back at the Lombax with a curled lip, showing his teeth. Then Redd spat at Ratchet's feet and said again, "You'll never get away with this."
Spike stepped up to the fox with his Stun Club in one hand. "Question Number One: Where exactly will Sonic be held in the fortress?"
He received no answer from Redd, so he looked at Lyle. But the weasel only stammered, "D-don't look at m-me! I don't know anything!"
But Tails didn't believe him. He stomped over to him and looked him in the eyes. "Lyle, when I was with Redd in the tent, he talked about turning on you and handing you over to Big Boss."
"H-he what?!"
The dealer's jaw dropped, then he growled to Tails, "You double-crossin' mongrel!"
But the younger fox ignored him and focused on Lyle. "He was going to rat you out so he could keep all the reward money for Sonic to himself." His blue eyes flashed at the mention of his friend, but he didn't make further mention of him.
Now angry, Lyle turned to his former partner and yelled, "You traitor! I'll bet you wanted all the blackmail money too! You…you…" Then, to the heroes, "Okay, I'll talk."
"Don't you dare, Lyle!" Redd shouted, but Ratchet grabbed his muzzle and held it shut to keep him quiet.
Now free to talk without hindrance, Lyle looked at Copper, who held a notepad, and began.
"Ya see, your friend's location depends on his importance to The Boss. Animals caught doing petty crimes are kept in the lower dungeons, and Allies are placed in higher levels. Political leaders have special quarters. Bang! Make sense so far?"
They all nodded.
"But your friend's probably not in any of these. Every now and then The Boss locks up prisoners in his guard towers, 'specially if they won't give him information; that's where he is, I'll bet my bottom Bell. Bang!"
Ratchet rubbed his chin and nodded his head. "Very good answer. Question Number Two: Does the fort have any weaknesses?"
"Not any major ones. It's guarded 24/7 by 'bots, see, and in some places ya need security codes to get in. There are cameras in every building, and the main building has a top-notch alert system. The fences are the latest in technology: electrocuted, barbed wire, invisible…ya name it, they got it."
"What about Big Boss's secret passage?"
Redd's eyes widened, but his weasel cohort only blinked.
"Don't gimme a blank look; I know you know—"
Patrick suddenly jumped in and interrupted, "That you know this guy who knows this guy who knows this guy's cousin who knows—"
"Patrick!" everyone else shouted angrily.
"Alpacas."
The commando glared at the starfish for a few more seconds, and then muttered, "Never mind." He turned back to Lyle. "Now, about the passage…" He let go of Redd with one hand and used it to hold his wrench above the weasel's head.
"Okay okay, it does exist!" Lyle whimpered. "There's a small cave in a cliff behind the compound. There's some kinda mechanism there that has a thumbprint scanner. Bang! That's all I know, I swear!"
"Will your thumbprint work on it?"
"N-no, but I think Redd's does!"
The fox tried to protest, but Ratchet's grip on his muzzle made it impossible. So Spike took Redd's paw and pressed his thumb on a glass. He gave the glass to Clank, who lifted the thumbprint onto an elastic glove (the kind that doctors use). Clank stored the glove for later use.
"Okay, there's one more question, Lyle, and then we're done: who exactly was Redd supposed to meet for your reward money?"
The weasel only sputtered, "Bang! I…I don't know! He never told me, and I don't think he knows either!"
"What he told me was that he's supposed to meet him on the beach tonight at 10:00," Tails broke in.
Ratchet nodded. "So we need to check the beach around that time."
"But it's only 5:30 in the morning!" Jimmy exclaimed, pointing at a classic clock. "What are we gonna do between now and when that guy comes?!"
"…Good question." Suddenly the commando heard strange noises, and turned around. He grinned, pointed, and replied, "Maybe we should follow their example."
SpongeBob and Patrick had fallen fast asleep in their red armchairs, and were snoring loudly. The others laughed.
"What about these two?" Spike said, pointing to Redd and Lyle.
Copper stepped up. "Tortimer already made a few calls. I'll take them to the police station in a few hours. You guys should go ahead and get some rest; you've had a rough night. There are some bunk beds up on the second floor."
Taking his advice, the five heroes trudged up the stairs to the bedroom; Spike carried SpongeBob up, and Ratchet lugged the heavy Patrick. After the two put the sea creatures together in two full bathtubs, they claimed their beds and went to sleep.
The last to do so was Tails. After the lights went off, he watched his teammates as they drifted off into dreamland. He lay on his back to follow suit…but then stopped and gazed at the empty bunk above him.
…Sonic…I hope you're okay…
The young fox eventually closed his eyes and fell into a quiet but troubled sleep.
