The next morning, the sound of both their phones going off was what stirred them from their slumber. Over the course of the night, the two had re-positioned themselves so that they were both laying down, snuggled up next to each other.
"Mmmm, what time is it?" Nick asked as Judy lazily reached for her phone. Which was buzzing like crazy on her night stand. She gasped at the notifications on her phone, quickly blinking the sleep out of her eyes.
"11 missed calls?! Cheese and crackers. I thought it was our day off."
"Pretty sure it is, who was calling so much?" Nick asked as he sat up, looking at his phone as well.
"Chief Bogo." She told him as she called their boss back.
"Yeah he called me a bunch too, what do you think is going on?"
Judy shrugged as her call was answered.
"Hopps, thank goodness. I know it's your day off but I need all hands on deck. You and Wilde need to get to the station ASAP."
"What's going on Chief?" Judy asked as police cruisers raced by their apartment, sirens blaring.
"Turn on the news." Bogo told her before hanging up.
"Nick, pull up the news." Judy said, opening her closet to get her uniform.
"On it." He said, grabbing her laptop and opening it up. He turned towards the wall so that she could get dressed. The local news website was broadcasting, and quickly opened up the video.
"For those of you just joining us, we can now confirm that the shooting at the Center of Biological Sciences on Lionheart University has resulted in seven casualties. One of them being Richard Wade. A scientist who had just announced that the results found in the infamous Wade Study were fabricated. Before he could elaborate, an individual entered the lecture hall and gunned down Wade, two ZPD officers and as well as a camera operator Tillo Auer and news reporter Awotwi Arendse. Both of whom…I'm sorry."
The news anchor paused, collecting herself while her colleague placed a comforting hoof on her back.
"Both of whom will be sorely missed…Police are asking citizens to keep an eye out for the shooters. Who are to be considered armed and dangerous. If you see the shooter, call 911 immediately. Do not attempt to confront or approach him. We know this photo is not the best quality but it is all we have at the moment."
"Nick, what's does he look like?" Judy asked.
Her partner was silent.
"Nick?"
He looked up at her, his eyes wide with shock.
"Judy…it's my brother."
…
The briefing room was chaos, officers phoning home to either inform their loved ones of their status or calling other officers trying to figure out where they were. Others debating about the motivation behind the shooting. All those conversations ended when Bogo entered the room, flanked by a Tiger in a charcoal grey suit with a red tie.
"Alright everyone listen up. I know you're all chomping at the bit to go after this guy, but before we get started with that we have some things to discuss with our friend here. He has the floor and thus your undivided attention. Is that clear?"
The officers nodded and Bogo looked to the tiger.
"Go ahead."
"Thank you Chief." He said before addressing the room.
"Ladies and gentleman, my name is Gyles Audley from the Center of Zoological Intelligence, Section 5. The Domestic Branch. What I am about to share with you does not leave this room. If any information that is gained through this briefing is leaked, I will find out who it was and prosecute you for treason."
There were a few murmurs in the otherwise silent room.
"CZI-6, the international branch, fears that this more than a random shooting. They fear that this could be a prelude to something much larger. They could be wrong. We could catch the shooter tonight and this could all just be a very bad day. That being said, there is reason to believe that this was not a random shooting. This may have been an assassination. There are radicalized groups that drew strength from the Wade Study's findings. He threatened to take that power away overnight, and so he was silenced. Killed by a mammal no less. I'm sure by day's end there will be at least 100 conspiracy videos on MooTube explain how this was all a mammalian conspiracy to further the reptilian genocide."
Gyles took a deep breath while Judy and Nick exchanged worried looks.
"If this is the case, you need to be vigilant. As the symbol of law and order, you will be targeted. Your families will be targeted. You cannot waver in the face of this threat. The city will draw strength from your strength and your courage. Stand fast, stand firm and stand together. That is all."
Gyles stepped aside as Bogo took the floor.
"Alright everyone listen up, these are your assignments.
"Chief!" Nick asked, raising his hand to draw attention to himself.
"Yes Officer Wilde."
"I know the suspect. Jason Wilde, few inches shorter than me. Always has a toothpick in his mouth. On a day like today he'd be wearing a blue track sweater. He has multiple hide outs in every district of the city. Usually abandoned building close to subway entrances. So if he needs to get across town fast he can. I doubt he is in his apartment, but if he is its down by the water in Savannah Central. If somebody gets me a map, I can get start marking these places up."
Bogo pulled down the large map of the city over the chalkboard and tossed a marker to Nick.
"Go to work Officer Wilde." He told him.
"Officer Hopps, when he's done you two are to escort Mr. Audley back to his headquarters. Then I want you investigating Jason's apartment. If you turn up nothing, then you are to search the rest of the Savannah Central hideouts. Assuming you haven't found anything after that, you are to report to me for your next assignment."
"Understood." Judy replied.
…
The day's searches were fruitless. Jason's apartment had been picked clean. His old hideouts hadn't been used in years. He even handed Jason's phone number over to Bogo but it proved to be untraceable. It was highly probable he had used a burner phone. As the sun set over the shaken city, the officers of the ZPD were recalled from the field. They were to be switched out with a group of well rested officers that would search all through the night and to be switched out again come morning. Rather than return home, Judy and Nick were summoned to the CZI-5 headquarters at the Oasis Hotel in the heart of Sahara Square. Apparently Mr. Audley wanted a word.
The last place you'd expect for an intelligence agency's headquarters to be was in the 'mechanical room' of the city's most popular hotel. The space wasn't very large. A single elevator allowed access to the inner sanctum of CZI-5. Large glass panels acted as walls, carving out offices for the science staff as well as the organization's senior members. The floors and wall were bare concrete with only decoration being the polished silver emblem of the agency, which had Zootopia's coat of arms over the top of a spade. The coat of arms itself depicted a shield split into fourths. An elephant in one with a lion in the other, each animal diagonal to each other. This was to show the unification between predator and prey. The other two symbols were a fragment of a wreath and a scale to symbolize truth and justice respectively. This emblem sat right outside of Audley's office, where he sat at his desk waiting for Judy and Nick. Behind him was a darkened window that gave the head of the agency a panoramic view of Sahara Square with Downtown in the distance.
"You wanted to see us sir?" Judy asked as she and Nick walked in.
"Yes Officer, I was taking a look at your file. Well both of your files. Specifically, the Nighthowler case. It's quite impressive that an officer fresh out of the academy and a con man were able to crack a case that the ZPD's best detectives had been working on for weeks. Your performance demonstrates an aptitude for solving difficult problems."
"It sounds to me like you are going to try and recruit us." Nick muttered.
"I am; you see my superiors are afraid that Mr. Wilde will attempt to the country. If he leaves we lose the home field advantage and we also loose the ability to consult you on his behavior."
Audley stood up and turned his back to the officers.
"You'll be of far greater use to us than you will be to Chief Bogo. His jurisdiction, and thus yours, has limits. Our jurisdiction stretches as far as we are willing to reach. If you join us in this investigation, we may just be able to apprehend Jason before he hurts anyone else."
"A pair of cops being turned into spies, that's a pretty big leap." Judy said, looking to Nick nervously.
Audley turned back around to face them.
"I know it sounds daunting, but it would only be a temporary assignment and you two have proven yourselves as a very effective pair out in the field. Once Jason is apprehended you would return to your normal lives. If we move fast and use our heads, I doubt it'll take more than a week."
"You don't have to do this Judy. All they really need is me. He's my brother after all." Nick told her.
"Oh no, you're my partner. Wherever you go, I go. If you want to do this, then I'm going with you." She said, putting her hands on her hips.
Nick sighed, looking at the floor in contemplation. Did he really want to drag her into this? What if things didn't end with Jason like Audley had warned them back at the station. What if getting involved just puts a bigger target on their backs?
Finally, he looked to his partner. She gave him a reassuring grin, her sparking violet eyes almost alluding to the world of mystique and danger they were about to enter. There was something else too, but he couldn't place it.
"Ready to make the world a better place?" She asked.
Nick nodded and Audley clapped his hands together.
"Splendid, then let me be the first to say welcome aboard!"
He walked over to each of them and shook their paws.
They were no longer Officer Hopps and Officer Wilde of Zootopia Police Department. They were Agent Hopps and Agent Wilde of the Center of Zoological Intelligence, Section Five.
…
A.N-That's chapter two for you! Initially I was going to publish this next Friday, but I wanted to give the opening a bit more momentum. Hope you enjoyed everyone, have a good one!
Until next time,
Sky signing off!