Judy burst through the motel room's doorway and using her hefty bunny foot; she slammed the door closed behind her, her arms still full of the items she had stolen.
"Holy hell!" Came Sue's voice from a dark corner of the room as she stepped forward and lowered a pistol she had up and aimed; ready for the worst case scenario that Judy was in fact an intruder. "You said you were going to grab a couple of cans and that's it!" Sue shouted at the bunny as she approached angrily to relieve Judy from some of the items that were nearly falling from her arms. Walking over to a rickety couch and dropping the rest of the food she carries she rubbed her sore and bruised knuckles as she responded in little more than a whisper; "Things got complicated."
Sue who had started placing some of the frozen goods in the fridge, looked up at Judy and asked; "Tigers?"
"Tigers." Was all the bunny responded as she walked over to a bed that rested in the far left corner of the room. This motel they resided in was shabby, small and less than comforting. Judy loved the stuffiness of her own little apartment but this place was just depressing. Although she felt no place to complain; within twenty-four hours of their hospital escape all of Judy's and Sue's assets had been frozen. They spent the next twenty-four hours after that under constant pursuit by a force of mercenary tigers, after which losing their trail they came to rest here. Which meant for the first time in three days; Judy and Sue could rest.
Sitting on the edge of the bed Judy looked at Chief Bogo who lay resting; he had been unconscious the whole trip and Judy began to envy his rest as she fought every urge to collapse and sleep where she sat. The Chief's breathing seemed strained to the bunny, so she reached under the bed for a morphine shot. Two miles up the road from this somewhat secluded motel they had ditched the ambulance in a river and taken all the medical supplies they could think would help from it. Judy had waited in secret with the chief on his stretcher in a secreted brush on the side of the road; while Sue went ahead and sorted out the lodging before coming back to collect the two.
Feeling nothing under the bed Judy asked aloud in the dark of the shut out room, "Where's the morphine?"
"All out. Used up the last one soon after you left." Sue responded as she began to fry something on the stove and Judy's stomach knotted with hunger at the prospect of food.
The convenience store she had stolen from was three miles up the road from their motel and she had run like hell to get back as fast as she could, still witnessing the transition from evening to night. She wanted to rest but knew how essential every moment was right now. Using her small hands to push her ears back as though she were clearing hair from her face; Judy took a deep breath before stating, "We can't stay much longer, they're on to us again. I encountered two tigers at the store and was able to fight them off, but this means that more will follow and soon."
Sue walked over to Judy who still sat on the bed and handed her a bowl of fried vegetables with a fork resting in the mix. The bunny looked up at the lioness with absolute gratitude in the low light and began to devour the contents of the bowl. "So what now?" asked Sue while flopping onto the couch with her own bowl of food. "What's the plan?
Judy swallowed hard on a large mouthful of mixed vegetables. "We need rest, but we need to move. Now I'm thinking that because it's still early into the evening; You get two hours shut eye while I stay guard, then you do the same for me. After that we leave."
"Leave for where? With what vehicle? How in Zootopia's good fortune are we supposed to move the chief? We can't leave him. If the wrong people find him he is as good as dead on the spot." Sue responded, the sound of irritation at their predicament was more than evident in her voice.
"We take the motel owner's pick-up. And we are headed back into the heart of Zootopia. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner, but I have a friend who might be able to help us."
"Hopps…" The Lioness quickly chirped in, "You do know what you're doing, right? If we leave, it might mean the end for us. Heading back into Zootopia we face not only Mercenaries, but we face our own as well."
"I know." The bunny responded while getting up and placing her empty bowl in the sink, she could feel her stomach full and pressing against the fabric of her top. She'd never loved the feeling of being full more than she had right now. "But if we stay here it's also over. They may have been able to frame use for murder and kidnapping but I know how we can catch them."
"How?" Asked Sue as she slumped down into a lying position on the couch as she readied for her brief rest.
"Tell me… how do you feel about the local Mob Boss?" Was all the bunny asked.
The wind whipped through the fur on Judy's face as she stared out at the many wondrous building lights that emitted from the sky scrapers around her on this late night. The pickup she sat in the back of was riding through the city center of Zootopia and she was forced to smile at how the city never slept; still more than half as busy as it was during the day with animals from all walks of life still commuting. There was a sense of beauty about the city at night that she rarely got to appreciate; being more of an early morning bunny meant that she never really cared for much of the night life, although she could easily see the appeal.
She felt the pickup go over a large bump and had to quickly grab a hold of the stretcher that lay with her in the back to keep it from moving around too much. Fearing for the chief's comfort as she could see his face grimacing in the night light's illumination as his rest became more and more troubled. She tapped the back window of the vehicle to signal to Sue to drive more carefully. They had a fairly short distance to go, but this last stretch through the hustle and bustle of an entire city looking for them would be the hardest part, they just had to keep their heads low and travel carefully.
The pick-up came to a stop down a dark alleyway and Judy hopped deftly out of the back, the vehicle was easy to claim from the sleeping badger that lay resting in the reception of the motel, Judy felt bad for taking his vehicle but they really did need it more than the badger did. She reflected only for a moment at how the last few days events had completely skewed her morals and she wasn't sure whether to be proud or disgusted at her ability to adapt to these situations life threw at her.
Sue wound down her window as Judy came to stand by it. "Wait here." The bunny commanded before walking forward, the front lights of the pickup cast a huge shadow of the bunny ahead of herself. Causing Judy to think how appropriate it was, and how it matched this ginormous dark void within herself.
Sue was agitated, she did not like this plan one bit and having no prior association with the Zootopian Mob left her with little belief that the innocent little bunny even knew what she was doing, but Judy had kept all three of them safe thus far, and that trust had to continue if Sue wanted to see herself and the chief out of this mess.
Judy kept on walking forward until she found herself staring at a wire fence. Raising a clenched hand she beat the fence methodically and to a rhythm, 6 beats in rapid succession followed by two with a greater gab between them.
From the dark beyond the fence Judy saw two sets of glowing eyes approach, and they were high above her own. Being short this was not uncommon for the bunny, but as the light from the pickup fell upon the animals she let out a mental sigh of relief as her predictions were true and two Polar bears stood before her on just the other side of the fence.
"Who are you and what do you want?" Stated one of the bears gruffly, making no effort to hide his displeasure at being interrupted from whatever task he had been previously busy with.
Judy pulled back her hood and stood at an angle so that the light would catch on her face just enough so the bears could see who she was. "Ah! Officer Hopps!" The polar bear continued with a sudden change in tone, now bordering on the humoured side. He went on, "How wonderful it is to see you, Mr. Big has been expecting you for a couple of days now. But we understand the delay given your… Circumstances." And with that last word the two polar bears began to chuckle deeply. Judy strained to ignore the insult at her difficult situation.
"May we enter?" She asked cold and bitterly.
The polar bears nodded with grunts as they returned to their somber mods and seriousness. Both gripped the fence and began to slide it as it was actually a secret gate that had been disguised as a fence to those who wouldn't know any better. Judy indicated that Sue could drive forward and slowly follow the bunny as she began a long walk through a secret entrance to Mr. Big's property.
Judy sat on the opposite side of Mr Big's large, vintage oak desk. This had been the fifth time she had found herself sitting here and it never got any easier, whether she was there on good or bad terms with the Mob Boss. The intimidation of his entrance; each time the same as the first was never lost on her as the Polar bears filled the room before bringing out Mr Big and setting him on the desk.
She waited patiently for him to slowly raise his hand for her to kiss his ring in respect. Being a bunny that constantly lived life as fast as she could, she had learnt a thing or two about patience in the last year, although ever since waking up in hospital, she had to fight the urge not to speed things along during her every waking moment.
"Judy, how good it is to see you again!" Started the small shrew who's stature constantly demanded the respect of those around him. "I was expecting you sooner, but I now see the full extent of your unfortunate predicament. Although…" He let his words trail off for a moment as his large and bushy eyebrows began to furrow. "You come into my home with two opposing forces close on your heels, you bring one of the animals responsible for countless hours of 'underground' work lost and even more money pulled out of my trade."
Judy waited for a second to make sure he was finished before she began her response, the last thing she wanted to do was disrespect her last powerful ally. "Please accept my apology Mr Big, but he was not safe in the hospital, you know just as well as I; how Chief Bogo has kept the city safe from invaders, murderers and undesirables for years, for the most part he has tried to keep your trade out of his path except in the instances where it was unavoidable.
Mr Big seemed to sigh loudly as he thought on her words. Judy had begun to develop a twitch in her right leg and it was driving her crazy, in her mind this was taking far longer than it needed to.
"Very well." The shrew eventually stated, sounding only slightly pained at the acceptance which is what Judy was hoping for, there was still more she needed to ask of him. "The Chief can stay, and he will be tended to by our private practitioners. Your lioness friend will be tended to as well."
"Thank you so much Mr Big it really…" Judy began before she saw him raise a hand for her to stop, and he himself again began to speak.
"We need to talk about you now Judy Hopps, formerly Officer Hopps."
His sentence stung as though she had just been thrown into a burning flame, and she bit hard on her lower lip to prevent herself from coming up with some stupid quip.
Mr Big went on, "Killing doctors is one thing, but wildly attacking animals as though you were savage is an entirely different matter."
Judy was shocked at what she heard, "Fair enough to know about the doctor; whom I actually did not shoot and kill, please, no disrespect intended but the footage is a lie. But how could you know about the other attack?"
"It's your latest viral sensation Judy, a disturbing attack. Yes their intentions were probably bad for you, but the security footage tells a different tale. Someone high up in the city is really unhappy with your right now little bunny."
"Please, let me explain everything." Judy began but was cut off again by Mr Big's raised hand.
"You don't need to explain anything Judy, I know exactly what's going on." The shrew crossed his legs in his tiny chair and rested his hands on his lap before continuing on his all too detailed rant of what had happened to Judy. "I know about Laurence, and how he used you and Nick. I know about the new Night Howler project and what it's intent was and I most certainly know about X and how under that hood you secret a mark of branding that you just don't have the mental will power to remove."
Judy absently placed a hand on her hood where her ear was laid back and she lightly grabbed the ring on her ear as she stared in absolute shock at Mr Big.
"The monster broke you Judy, and I am sorry to hear that. But you need to be strong now, because one way or another you need to deal with what I am about to tell you next."
The bewildered bunny nodded slowly in acceptance with a vacant stare.
"I was offered in on the Night Howler Project by Laurence, I've been in their financial circle for quite a few years now. And dealt mainly with the jaguar, I cared not for X and distanced myself from him as much as possible, he had a crazed sense about him and I knew immediately it would be bad for business. So I stayed far away from that."
He went silent for a moment before finally adding, "Then there is the situation with Nick."
Judy was battling to wrap her head around all of this but suddenly it all became obsolete at the mention of the fox. "What about Nick?" She asked, almost shouting in curiosity.
Mr Big ignored the outburst and went on to answer her question. "There is so much going on in this city that you still don't know about my dear, and Nick's life before you is one of them. The fact that he has not told you the full extent of his past says enough. And I believe that now more than ever, you need to know what is happening around you so you may combat it."
The tiny shrew leaned forward in his chair; an immediate sign that what he was about to tell Judy was pivotal knowledge that wasn't known to many.
"Years before Nick disgraced my family with that repulsive gift…" Mr Big seemed to shudder for a moment before continuing, "I knew him as only a foot soldier to a mercenary army with a very interesting past. You see, I do not believe that X or Nick died in that warehouse fire, I believe that both of them are alive and they are together. After all, that's what brothers do. They stick together."
Judy felt faint at the revelation, "Nick and X share a blood relation?" She asked in absolute awe.
"Worse than that." Continued Mr Big, "X is in part; Nick. The fox part of him that is. I'd know; I was one of the patrons who paid well to see if the experiment would work. Nick and another; a cheetah they all called 'Pacer' were chosen, more by force than option, to give samples for the experiment. I will skip all the scientific parts but know this, that from Nick and this cheetah, X was born. X was grown in a lab, in a test tube and under constant supervision."
Judy could not believe what she was hearing, "Why had Nick never told me this?" she asked herself more than Mr Big, but he answered none the less.
"Would you have told Nick if it were you sharing blood with X? Have you ever met the monster Judy?" Mr Big asked sarcastically, the bunny nodded in agreement and Mr Big continued, "That was twelve years ago, almost to the day; that Nick, Pacer and X had been put out in the field together to fight in Laurence's army. They fought hard and worked fantastically as a team; X at that time was 'normal' by our standards and was a perfect link between the cheetah and fox he fought with. Until on a foreign land, getting paid to fight a foreign war; the three of them were captured. All three were lined up in front of the enemy general and Pacer was killed on the spot. It was at that moment that something changed in X, from what reports tell. He became darker and brooding, as though he had lost half of his soul in the process. Nick and X were then beat in rapid repetition for days with almost no break, the enemies took special preference in beating X 'the freak' or 'the abomination' as I heard they liked to call him. And Nick hated it; he hated seeing someone he had come to value as his brother being treated in such a way. X was so depressed he honestly couldn't care at that point what anyone did to him, until Nick had to make the choice that sparked everything that has led to where we are today."
Mr Big stopped for a moment to take a sip of whiskey that had been handed in a tiny glass to him from one of the polar bears and a larger glass with the same whiskey had been handed to Judy. He knew it was a lot for the bunny to take in and was not surprised to see her down the glass' contents as though it were water.
"Two weeks into their capture; Nick received a message from Laurence through an inside source, that he would get to leave provided he did one task, whatever the enemy forces asked of him. When Nick asked about X's freedom, the fox was left in the dark as to what would happen there, and it was only later that he found out why. Laurence had brought Nick his freedom, at the cost of X's. You see, to Laurence, it was simple, they could just grow another X in the lab again, a better one this time around. So in exchange for Nick, X would have to stay and serve in the enemy's army. But not before they made Nick torture X. They made him pelt X, whip him, beat him, treat him as though he were savage, the final act of torture was when they tied X down, poured gasoline over him and gave Nick the matches. Nick didn't want to do it, he really didn't but he knew that if he didn't do this then he had beaten X for nothing. And then Nick did it. He set his own flesh and blood; a part of himself, on fire. They say that X never begged during the beating, just constantly cried out again and again; 'Why?'."
"I… I can't believe it." stated Judy; holding out a shaky hand for a refill as one of the bears who held a bottle obliged. "Nick would never do…" She let her words trail off as she remembered X showing her his scars.
"Nicholas was young, and he wanted to live. I would have probably done the same in his situation. Had he been an older animal, maybe he would have chosen differently. When our lives are threatened, it brings out the worst in us." Responded Mr Big, trying to add some resolution to the horrors he had just described.
That last phrase by Mr Big resonated deep within Judy as she remembered X showing her how she looked after he had almost suffocated her.
"Nick spent the next 7 years working his way up the ranks of Laurence's army. Working off the debt for his escape from captivity, and never forgetting X and what he had done to his half-brother. Then the day came where just like you saw X; Nick sat at the head table with Laurence and the others, and he was ready to ask his favour. I was still heavily involved in Laurence's operations at this time; his ideas then were still good for business. I remember Nick looking deeply into Laurence's eyes, and begging that the high ranking fox himself could lead an operation to go and retrieve X, if he were still alive after those seven long years. Laurence was resilient at first, but saw determination in his trusted companion's eyes and allowed it. Nick led a squad of thirty back into enemy territory, the war still continuing more so then, than it had before. And he found X, or rather he found what was left of him…"
Mr Big was interrupted by a loud crashing sound and immediately; four polar bears that had been standing in each corner of the room had crowded around the desk, ready to protect their boss.
"It would seem we have unwelcome visitors. Your paths was well hidden Judy Hopps, but not well enough." Mr Big stated while getting a distant look as he thought now on many other things. He would need to finish the tale later. "Tell me Judy." He began to speak again, "How badly do you want to see Nick again?" And with that, one of the bears shoved a rifle into her arms, and she stared at Mr Big with certainty. Her head was cloudy from the alcohol, but she had only one task on her mind. Stopping whomever was intruding. Mr Big had not finished telling Nick's tale yet. And she knew that the tale she was living out right now, she had to make sure was far from over.
A VERY BIG THANKS TO:
DANNY-171984
ZENITH88
DIRTKID123
JAREL KORTAN
AND I BE FOXY THE PIRATE
YOUR FEEDBACK IS ALWAYS DEEPLY APPRECIATED AS IT LETS ME KNOW IF I'M DOING ANYTHING CLOSE TO HALFWAY DECENT OR IF I NEED TO RETHINK CERTAIN PLOT POINTS.
AND THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS FAVOURITED, FOLLOWED AND LEFT FEEDBACK PREVIOUSLY, IT'S AMAZING TO SEE HOW FAR THIS TALE HAS COME AND IT'S REALLY COOL TO THINK THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE ENJOYING IT. YOU ALL HAVE THE POWER TO SHAPE THE WAY THIS STORY GOES AND MORE OFTEN THAN YOU KNOW; YOU DO. I ADAPT THIS STORY CONSTANTLY TO YOUR NEEDS AND WANTS BECAUSE AFTER ALL, THIS ISN'T MY STORY, ITS OUR STORY.
SIDE NOTE: Can I get three cheers for back story!? {HIP HIP HOORAY!} Can I get three 'boos' for lack of action? {BOO BOO HOO!} Fear not people, the next chapter will be a good and healthy mix of both.
Until then? Keep it classy!
Un4gottenSOUL