Did he just say? No, it can't be. It simply can't! He's a fictional character from a book series hundreds of years old! If he was a ghoul, then maybe I could buy it, but he looks just as young as us. The book covers never depicted his image, but it described him well enough. The grayish fur could have been on any rabbit, but those markings, those were not typical patterns.

"Umm, can I help you?"

I didn't realize that I had gotten so close to him. I was analyzing the details of his face, trying to find some kind of flaw. "Oh, um, sorry, it's just that…"

"You can't really be the Jack Savage… can you?" Mark sounded both surprised and skeptical.

"In the flesh. Now if you chaps aren't my backup, then this is simply too dangerous a place for some innocent bystanders."

"Innocent? Look pal, I ain't no 'innocent' rabbit. If you need help, I'm more than happy to lend it, it's just that… are you familiar with… Savage Seas?"

"Savage seas? Well I have had a few rough tumbles on the ocean before. Why?" I could tell by his reaction that he really had no idea.

"It's just… oh forget it. Who are you being attacked by?"

"Those devious ne'er-do-wells, the Bristle-Back Boys. This building may look like a bookstore, but in reality it houses the Zootopian Financial Reserves' largest stock of gold bullion. Nearly three billion dollars worth of gold sits three hundred feet beneath our feet. The Bristle-Back Boys were planning on taking it for themselves, and only I, the Ministry's top agent, stands between them and their goal."

Bristle-Back Boys? I thought I knew of all the major raider gangs out here. If he was under attack, why haven't I heard any gun fire yet? My Pip-Boar wasn't picking up anything either, but there seemed to be a minor interference in the signal. I went to question him further but then Mark grabbed my shoulder, along with my attention.

"Olivia? A word please? We'll be right back Mr. Savage."

"Be careful, this is a battlefield you know."

Mark and Nate led me back to the alleyway we first came into. "There's something fishy going on here. The Bristle-Back Boys, they were in the fourth book, and this is the exact event that kicked off the whole…"

I quickly placed my paws over Mark's mouth to quiet him. "No. Spoilers! I still haven't read past book three, remember?" I then removed my paws from his muzzle.

"Oh, right, but as I was saying, if this is straight out of the book, minus our interference of course, then that confirms my suspicion that he's not who he seems he is. I've read J.B. Flemink's biography enough times to know that Jack Savage was never a real mammal. He was an amalgamation of multiple mammals that he knew in his youth. There's no way this guy is the real deal when he never existed to begin with."

"Wow, you really like the books, don't you?"

"I like to read anything really, but yeah, they're some of my favorite ones."

"What should we do? You say he's not real, but here we have a rabbit that looks, talks, and acts like the real deal. I highly doubt some random rabbit took the time to dress up as him and pretend to act out a scene from a book, especially with such gumption. There has to be something more to this."

"I agree. You don't think he's under some hallucinogen, do you?"

"Not sure Mark. Either of you feeling odd or seeing things you shouldn't be?"

"Nope." Mark and Nate responded identically, although their responses seemed quick to say. Were they also remembering that facility where we thought… where I thought… NO! I will not subjugate myself to those memories.

"You okay Olivia?"

"I'm fine Nate. Just… thinking."

"Um… I did find something kinda… odd."

"Yeah? What is it?"

Nate moved closer to me and held up his Pip-Boar. On its screen were two lines. One was arcing up and down across different frequency levels, while the other one looked more like the heart rate of someone who took in way too much caffeine. The two lines intersected at points, but never lasted too long.

"There's an odd signal nearby. Short range, low frequency."

"Some kind of radio transmission?" Mark was trying to look at it, but from the sound of his voice he had no idea what it meant. To be honest, I was a bit puzzled by its meaning as well. I may love Nate, but there are times that I'm a bit jealous of his much more advanced technical knowledge.

"You think you can sort it out Nate?"

"Probably… I mean, yes, yes I can. Just give me some time."

"Okay, while you work on that, I wanna speak to Mr. 'Savage' for a bit."

"Yeah, I'm a bit curious as well. You should stay back here bro, keep an eye on us."

"But…"

"It's okay Nate. We're going to be less than two hundred feet from you, I have my gun, and your brother is here. There's obviously no one firing back at us, so I don't think we're in any real danger here. Trust me, we'll be fine."

"You had to say 'trust me' didn't you? Great. Maybe this time we'll find out that Mr. Savage here is really some cannibalistic rabbit drawing us into a state of comfort just to have a nice dinner." Mark didn't see it, but I noticed it immediately. While I knew he was being sarcastic, I don't think Nate did. His expression turned downward as he started to sink into a state of worry.

I put my paw on Mark's arm to stop him from speaking as I pointed my head towards Nate. As soon as he saw his brother, I think he realized the mistake he made.

"I was just joking Nate! Nothing is going to happen to us. It's just that whenever she says…"

"Stop Mark, just stop." I grabbed Nate's head and made him look at me. The worry in his face still remained. "Nate, sweetie, look at me okay? Nothing will happen to us, alright? Your brother was just kidding." I gave him a small kiss. I really needed to teach that boy the meaning of sarcasm. Maybe I should just stop saying 'trust me' as well. Mark's right. My record with using those words isn't very good.

"I-If you k-know you will b-be fine…"

"Yes. I promise. Now dig deep into that signal. I want you to impress me."

"Y-yes!"

Mark and I headed back towards where Jack was, and Mark suggested that we stay low like before, to at least keep up the illusion. I was convinced this wasn't a trap. I don't know how or why, but I just knew. Mark still seemed a bit skeptical with the whole thing. I was really hoping that signal could help shed some light on the picture. My luck it'll either be nothing, or we'll activate some kind of beacon to alert all the wasteland to where I was.

Jack had shot off two rounds by the time we had gotten to him. I tried peaking over the trash bin to get a better look but he just yanked me down.

"You trying to get yourself shot?!"

"I just… tell me Mr. Savage, why haven't these Bristle-Backs tried to get closer?"

"These buggers are simply the advance party. They've probably already reported their findings and are simply awaiting the rest of their organization."

"How long has this attack been going on?" I guess Mark wanted in on the questioning too.

"Nearly two days. That's why I had hoped you were the chaps the Ministry was sending. Haven't gotten a lick of sleep since arriving."

"Maybe you can get some shut eye while we keep a look out?" I was hoping to buy as much time for Nate as possible.

"No can do love. An agent never sleeps until his mission is complete. Plus I really haven't felt that tired."

Well shit. So much for that idea. I looked towards the alley. I really hope Nate was close to getting done. I worry about that fox sometimes, especially when he's alone. He's in no danger, but I don't think he thinks the same about me. Despite feeling no ill will from Jack, and there not actually being any sign of aggressors nearby he should be fine, but I could tell by the look on his face he wasn't. We really need to just have a time where we just open up to each other. To just sit down and let everything flow. I just wonder if there ever will be a good time.

"Okay Jack, can you humor me for a moment? Take a look, right now, and tell me how many of these Bristle-Back Boys there are."

"Twelve. There was twelve when they arrived, and there are still twelve."

"Please, just… maybe some of them left? Could you check again? If not I might just have to poke my head right…" I started to pear over the obstacle, purposely leaving my ears erect.

Jack grabbed my shoulder and thrust me back down to the ground. "Stupid rabbit! We're in the middle of a firefight! You need to relax your ears before doing a foolish thing like that or else you're likely to get them blown off." He sighed. "Fine. I'll look. But I doubt they left. They are a foolish lot."

He folded his ears down the back of his head and gave me a subtle look that probably implied 'see? This is how you do it'. If this really was Jack Savage, he's a much bigger douche in real life. Still, I love the books. They bring a bit of mystery to an already action packed story. Jack just barely had his head over the dumpster before he shot right back down.

"Bloody hell! That was a close one. You see that? That's why you don't just go poking your head into oncoming fire."

"But…" there were no bullets, no sound of gunshot. What the fuck was going on here? I checked my scanner, still no additional dots. I was beginning to think he was either drugged out his gourd, or simply crazy. I leaned over to Mark and started to whisper. "Keep an eye on him. I'm gonna go check on Nate."

"Good idea. The fur on the back of my neck is really starting to bother me for some reason. I don't like it at all."

I slowly moved towards Nate. Despite there not being any danger, I felt it better to keep up the ruse until we knew what was going on. Nate was busy with his Pip-Boar when I reached him.

"Any luck?"

"I… it's very odd. Whatever it is, it's a very strong sustained signal. But it's local, as in within a few hundred feet kinda local. It drops off almost instantly about fifty feet away from this building. I think… I think it's coming from inside."

Hmm. I couldn't make any sense of it, but somehow I got the feeling that this mysterious signal and Jack were related. I started to wonder if it was a Corpse Engine, but he moved too fluidly for it, plus Mr. Big's bear didn't move its mouth when he spoke, and he definitely isn't a robot. Synthetic robotics like that are just a figment of science fiction. I already eliminated the possibility it was a hologram, and I highly doubt we were hallucinating. What's the chance that we'd all have the same hallucination?

"It sounds like the signal might be originating from inside. We really should take a…"

I heard gunshots, as in more than one. That can't be good. Jack's gun wasn't nearly as loud as Mark's, but I can't mistake that hand cannon's sound. Were there really enemies? Why didn't I see any gunshots or detect any hostiles? I really hope there isn't some sort of chemical again, I do NOT want to relive that again. Any of it.

"O-Olivia?"

"Something's going on. I gotta check it out. Stay here and keep working on the signal. I'll be…" Nate grabbed my arm. His face was filled with fear, fear for me.

"I-I will… I n-need to come with you…"

"Nate. I need you to do this. There's something going on here, something that I don't like and if it's some kind of trap, and this poor mammal is caught in it, I need to make sure that we can free him and that no one will ever be caught in it again."

"B-but…"

"No buts. You… I never wanted to admit this, but you are better suited for this job. I used to think I was the smartest thing out there, the best mechanic, the best programmer, but I didn't even know a thing about my own Pip-Boar. You, you're so much smarter than I ever thought I could be. Call it awe, or call it jealousy, but I think you surpass me in this. Yeah, I could get it done, but I highly doubt it would have been at the level you could. So please, figure this out for me?"

I could tell he was still nervous, but I saw a small smile creep up on his face. It was subtle enough that someone else would probably not have even noticed, but I did. Sure, I may have sugar coated it a bit, but it was true. I was actually a bit jealous at what he could do. Being the best in the Burrow did not equate to being the best in the world it seems. One of these days I want him to build a robot like Onion, just to see what it's like to watch a genius at work from the outside.

"Y-you really mean that?"

"Every word. That's part of the reason why I think we make a good team. You and me? I don't think anything is out of our capabilities."

"I-I… promise me y-you will be safe."

I gave him a kiss. "I promise."

I think he was still reluctant to let me leave, but he wasn't physically holding me back anymore. I gave him a smile before heading back to see what the commotion was. When I had left them, it was only Jack firing pot shots off into the distance, but now I saw Mark adding to the actions. I moved up next to him just as he dropped down from firing a few rounds.

"What the fuck is going on here?"

"Ghouls, the savage kind. I think all this noise Jack is setting off attracted them. He says he sees no such thing. I think this guy is just deranged."

"I have Nate working on figuring out what's wrong." I popped my head up read quick. Four, five… "six of them."

"I could have told you that!"

"Just making sure you're not delusional. We still don't know what's affecting Jack."

"You got a plan, or you just going to make it up as you go along like usual?"

"Geeze, you sound just like Onion. Yes, I have a plan, or at least I had one. Wasn't expecting real hostiles. Let's just say my new plan is just like Swiss cheese."

"What?"

I looked at Mark and simply smiled. "It's full of holes. Follow me."

The ghouls were currently in the same area that Jack was firing into. For some reason he couldn't see them just as we couldn't see these Bristle-Back Boys. If we were going to be able to keep Jack safe while Nate figured things out, we needed to make sure that those ghouls didn't reach him.

The dumpster was next to a dilapidated fence, but only the wood near it had fallen apart. The rest of it divided the area between us and the ghouls, providing ample cover as long as we kept low to the ground. Jack tried to say something but I just ignored him. He was of no help to us right now in his current state. I just needed to find… bingo.

"Wait here."

"What are you…"

I grabbed a large wooden crate. It seemed sturdy enough, so I dragged it over to the part of the fence that connected the next building. We were now about a hundred feet away from Jack. The fence was low enough for the tops of my ears along with a small portion of Mark's head to stick out from, but not high enough to get a good shot. I made sure my gun was loaded and hopped onto the crate.

I could now see the entire field unobstructed. The six ghouls were still closing in on where Jack was. I had eight rounds in my chamber. Let's just hope this works. I took aim and fired at one of them. Not only did I miss, but I forgot one crucial thing. My gun was silenced. Fuck. I was hoping that I could draw their attention to get them closer. B.A.T.S. was a wonder, but it was still limited to my own range.

"Mark, hand me your gun."

"What? But I…"

"NOW!"

He hesitated giving me the gun. Was he afraid I was going to hurt it or something? It was a bit heavier than I imagined it would be once I finally got my paws on it. Still, a gun is a gun, right? I needed to draw them this way, and the noise that this thing makes sure will do the trick. I took aim, and fired. Fuck did that thing have a kick to it! Not only did it cause me to lose my balance, but I also fell back, landing ass first on the ground. It's always the ass or the face.

"You okay Olivia?"

"What the hell kind of gun is that?!"

"It's a beauty, isn't it? Why did you need it anyways?"

I got up, readjusted the crate and got on top of it again to see that my plan had worked. "To get their attention. Six undead bastards heading this way."

"Technically they're not undead, they're very much alive, just highly mutated."

"Zombie, mutant, if it can't hold a conversation they need to die."

"A bit aggressive towards them aren't you?"

"Did I tell you how I fell into a pit of them?"

"Yes."

"Well, what about the ones I met after leaving my Burrow?"

"You blew them up."

"I'm sure I didn't tell you about the ones that nearly killed me but I ended up using their skulls for soup bowls."

"Yeah you… wait, what?"

"Gotcha. Now, I just need them to get a little… where's my gun?"

"You dropped it when you fell. Here."

"Thanks. Okay. A little closer… just a… little… more… perfect. Pip-Boar, kill."

Chemicals in, gun out. Six ghouls, seven bullets. Maybe I should have replaced that missing round, but I should be fine. I took aim at the closest one. Head-shot. Numbers two and three met with equal fates. Four I missed. I was being a bit cocky. Three ghouls, three bullets. Have to make them count. I got four in the chest, but it was still enough to drop him. I took my time with five, and managed to get a head-shot just as the chemicals wore off. Six I would have to rely on my own skill, one that I've been severely lacking in due to this device. I aimed and fired, but as I fired a loud crack went off in my ear.

"Fuck! What the hell did you do that for Mark?!"

"You were hesitating. I had a shot so I took it. I figured B.A.T.S. wore off by now. I told you I didn't like that thing. They say it doesn't have any side-effects, but in truth it does."

There was ringing in my ear, but I still managed to hear Mark's words, albeit a bit fuzzy. "What's that?"

"Lack of training. I've read how some mammals spend their whole lives under the effects of B.A.T.S., how they were crack-shots, but once it wore off, they couldn't hit the side of a barn."

"Yeah, I've kinda noticed that. Still, you could've at least warned me! My ear is still ringing."

"Sorry, next time I'll… Jack? Something's wrong."

I looked over to where Jack was and saw him holding his head, appearing to be in agony. We bolted over to where he was.

"Jack! What's wrong?"

"I… it hurts. It… hurts." His voice was… different. Before he sounded very sophisticated, very gentle-mammaly. Now? His refined speech had vanished, replaced with a much rougher tone.

"What hurts? What's happening?"

"I… I don't…" He suddenly stopped holding his head and stood up, as if nothing happened. He pointed his gun right at us. The pattern in his voice returned. "Oh-ho! Trying to sneak up on me, are you? You scoundrels will rue the day you messed with this Agent of the Ministry!" He pulled the trigger. He was close enough to kill us in a single shot. The sound of the gun fired as I winced, expecting pain. When nothing happened I feared the worse and took a look at Mark. He was unharmed as well.

"I shot you! Why are you still standing?" He fired again, and again, but to no effect. It's like he was shooting blanks.

"Good question. Now if you don't mind…" I jumped in and knocked the gun out of his hand, better safe than sorry, and grabbed him by the arms. It was easy in his confused state. "Now, tell us, why did you try to shoot us Jack?"

"You vicious Bristle-Back Boys will never get my secrets!"

Bristle-Back Boys? Why did he think… Before I could question him further, I felt his entire body start to convulse, causing me to let him go. He held his head again, dropping to his knees.

"The… the pain! It… won't… w-where am I? I… I had an interview… I… did I get the part?"

Interview? Part? What was he talking about? Mark's look told me that he was just as confused. I tried to ask Jack about it but he just grabbed his head and started to scream. Moments later, he went silent. His body collapsed to the ground, motionless.

"Jack!" I rushed over to his body, but Mark was there before me. He looked him over, but his face showed nothing but bad news.

"He's… dead."

"How? Why? What the fuck just happened?!"

"I don't…" Mark was interrupted by my Pip-Boar's communication channel being opened.

"O-Olivia? Y-you… you n-need to c-come inside." He was… was he crying?

"Nate? Where are you?"

"The b-building. Please, c-come here."

I looked at Mark, but he showed concern. We left Jack's body as we rushed around to the front of the building where the entrance was. The door was ajar so we pushed it open and went in. There were books, or the damaged remnants of books, scattered everywhere. A small desk had a computer on it, but there was no sign of Nate.

"Nate, where are you?"

"B-basement. T-to the left."

I looked towards the left side of the room and saw a small staircase leading down. From the looks of it, nothing larger than a wolf would be able to fit here. This part of town must not cater to the larger species, everything we've seen was wolf size or smaller. There was dust everywhere, but in them were two sets of paw prints, prints that belonged to Nate.

As we reached the bottom, I saw what looked like a small stage set up. There were posters and mannequins all featuring the visage of Jack Savage. Chairs were neatly arranged before the stage. Off to the left were two doors, and to the right was a single door that was open. Light was pouring from the opened door. I was the first in there and saw Nate, sitting on the floor, crying.

"Nate. What's wrong? What happened? Jack just suddenly…"

"Died… I-I… I killed h-him… I-I didn't mean t-to… I d-didn't want to…"

I knelt by Nate, placing my paw on his shoulder. "What do you mean you killed him?"

"I-I… I was s-searching for t-the signal w-when I f-found the source. I-it was some k-kind of c-control program… I… I didn't w-want to… I…"

I didn't understand what he was talking about, but he sounded devastated. I grabbed him and held him against me, his face pressing into my chest. "You didn't kill him, he just… died."

"Actually, he did."

Wait, what? "What do you mean Mark?"

Mark was hovering over a nearby terminal. "Well, he didn't kill him, but… I think Nate saved him. Here, listen to this."

A recording started to play.

"Interview ten. Mr. Harold Hoppinsworth. Good evening Harold, how are you today?"

A second voice started playing, one that sounded an awful lot like Jack was sounding right before he…

"I'm doing good. Real good. You don't know what an honor it is to be called in for this interview. Jack Savage is a hero to me."

"He's a hero to all of us. Now, it says here that you don't have any prior knowledge with acting, am I correct in understanding that?"

"Yes. But I'm a fast learner! I… I actually was a bit confused that you called me back. The application form asked if I had ever taken prior acting lessons. I didn't want to lie, but I also didn't think it was going to help me either."

"Actually Mr. Hoppinsworth, you are exactly what we're looking for. You see, actors are a dime a dozen these days. Unfortunately, they're incredibly hard to work with. Tell me. If you were to get the part of Jack Savage, how would you respond?"

"I'd be ecstatic! I told you he's my hero, right? There's nothing more in the world I would give to get this opportunity. Heck, I'd do it for free if asked… oh gosh darn it. I… I wasn't trying to… this is a paying gig, right?"

"Don't worry Mr. Hoppinsworth. We pay. Sure it ain't the celebrity level pay grade, but it still pays very well. You won't have to worry about that. Now, you're perfect material for this. We just need to check your compatibility first. Right this way."

"The message ends here, but there are documents. Apparently this place used some kind of machine that allowed a mammal, such as our 'Jack' here to be 'programmed' how to act." Mark was reading it in a very troublesome tone.

"Programmed? A mammal isn't just some computer."

"It seems that it was temporary, that the user was only supposed to be under its effects while performing. This machine, it… he's been kept alive for two-hundred and thirty-three years."

"Two-hundred and thirty-three years?! Are you telling me that he's been thinking he's Jack Savage for that long?"

"It's been playing the same chapter over and over. He… the computer was measuring his vitals. He… no this can't be right. According to this he's been dead for two-hundred and three of those years… His body was being kept alive by the machine, when Nate shut it down… he just… died."

"But he sounded conscious for a moment!"

"It's… the body is controlled by electricity. Small sparks keep our muscles moving, and our brain thinking. Without those sparks, the body is nothing more than a paper weight. The computer was simply keeping the sparks going. He… he would have never been able to live without the machine, and he was just stuck in the same nightmare over and over, for all of eternity."

"I-I… K-killed h-him…"

That poor rabbit. Stuck re-living the same thing over and over? I wonder if he even had any idea of what was going on, or if he genuinely thought he was the Jack Savage. "Nate. You didn't kill him. From what Mark said, he died a long time ago. He was just… suffering, even if he didn't realize it. What you did? You gave him the peace he needed. You saved him."

"I-I… but I…"

"Shh. You're a good guy, you really are. I don't know if this Hoppinsworth was conscious of what was going on at all, but think of this. He died a very long time ago. His brain? It was being fed by the computer, he was nothing more than a robot at this point. Sure he was still flesh and blood, but that's not what makes you alive. Your brain, your heart, those are what define your ability to live, and he lost them a very long time ago. You simply put an end to his eternal suffering. He's… I bet he would thank you if he could. I really do."

"You… y-you're not mad at m-me?"

"For saving someone? No, how could I be?" I held him tighter as I gave him a kiss. Then something sharp started to poke me in the chest. "What is that?"

I moved back a little to see him holding something. It looked like… a book?

"It's… I-I found it n-near the c-computer. I t-think it's the…"

I took it from his paws and gave it a look over. The cover had no art on it, just two words: Savage Ends. It was the seventh book, never before seen, until now. I opened the book. The pages were a bit faded with time, but it was still intact.

"We should give him a proper burial."

I kept Nate close to me, doing my best to comfort him. Mark and I decided not to tell him how the rabbit seemed to be his old self for a moment before dying. It took so much to convince him that 'Jack' was nothing more than a dead puppet. If he even had the remotest idea that he was still alive? I didn't want to see Nate like that, and I knew Mark didn't either.

The other side of the fence where Harold Hoppinsworth had thought he was Jack Savage holding back a group of Bristle-Back Boys, was an old playground. The play equipment was either broken or parts of it had been pilfered, but the ground wasn't paved. With a bit of ingenuity we crafted makeshift shovels and dug a grave deep enough to place Harold's body in. Mark crossed the arms and I heard him say a short prayer before we filled in the grave.

Mark had reluctantly suggested burying the book with Harold, thinking that it would be the best way to honor someone who got to live in the shoes of their hero, but it was Nate who suggested otherwise. He said that it would be more honorable to share the book, to make sure that people remember the hero he sought so hard to be, so we decided to keep it. I told them that Onion should be able to read it and create a digital file from it, then maybe we could share it with the world. There has to be other Jack Savage fans out there.

Once we were finished we collected our stuff and left. We got what we came here for, but we never expected what a simple book would cost. I made sure to destroy the machine before leaving entirely. If this could control someone like that, in the wrong paws it could be a devastating weapon. There was one thing I noticed however, one thing that I was glad they didn't, and that I would never tell them. Written on the back side of the main computer's case was a word that I was very familiar with, one that drew up anger and hatred for what that word represents.

Burrow-Tec.

Our trip back was uneventful. I had managed to calm Nate enough so that he was no longer stuttering. He stayed as close as he could the entire time, but I didn't blame him. I was sure that deep inside he was still blaming himself for Harold's death. I needed to get his mind off of it. I pulled him ahead, out of earshot of Mark.

"You're still thinking about him, aren't you?"

"Yeah. I just… there had to have been some way to save him. Perhaps if I…"

"Look sweetie. You need to stop dwelling on it. Even if there was a way to save him, his brain was long gone. Even with a program like Onion's, he would have never been Harold Hoppinsworth, nor would he have ever been Jack Savage. He would just be a rotting corpse with a computer for a brain. What you did saved him. Jack Savage might have been his hero, but for one moment, you were his real hero. So don't keep remembering him as someone who died, remember him as someone you saved."

"I-I… I will try. For you."

"And you know what a hero deserves? A reward. You know that gift from Holly? The one she supposedly didn't mean to buy?"

"Y-yeah?"

"Well, once we get home, how about I show it to you? A little bit of relaxation might be worth it after today. What you say?"

"Y-you d-don't have t-to do it i-if you d-don't want t-to…" His face and ears were starting to turn red, and his stuttering wasn't from fear or sadness anymore, but from bashfulness and probably a bit of embarrassment.

"For you, I'll do anything to make you happy." I gave him a kiss but was interrupted by my Pip-Boar. It was a message from Blanche. I stopped and let Mark get close enough to hear before answering it.

"Blanche? Everything okay?"

"'Bout time you answered! Drake and I are heading back to the bunker, we've got BIG news."

"What is it?"

"Big activity going on at the Legionary HQ. They're being attacked, and you won't believe by who."

"Who?"

"Those ass-twats the Red-Necks. Those fuckers are trying to burn their HQ down! I don't know what those Legionary fuckers did to piss them off, but they're swarming that place."

Red-Necks? Now that was very interesting. The wheels inside my head were spinning already. I had to make use of this information, and I think I had the perfect idea how. "Blanche, you and Drake meet us back at the bunker. We'll be there in about two hours. Fill Holly and North in on what's going on. I have an idea."

"You better not be thinking about throwing yourself into the fray, or you'll be the biggest ass-twat I know Olivia Springs!"

"Don't worry Blanche, I have a plan. Trust me."

Fallout: Zootopia After Show

Featuring:

'Stripes in the Morning'

[Stripes]

"Good morning Zootopian wasteland! This is Stripes with Stripes in the Morning! Today we have a very… interesting episode. There is a delay on a special guest, and for the life of me I couldn't seem to catch up with anyone for an interview with everything that's going on, and then I thought about it, you know the one person that's always here for an interview? Me! Well, not exactly me, at least not this me, but my other me."

[Max]

"What the hell are you blathering on about? You finally lost it, haven't you?"

[Stripes]

"Me? Never. It's really quite simple. There are two Cider Stripes in the world."

[Max]

"Two? I can barely handle one of you!"

[Stripes]

"Ahem. As I was saying, there are two versions of Stripes. There's me, the lovable zebra reporter, , and then there's the story's author, Cider Stripes, who is nowhere near as socially advanced as I am. He's the brain behind the writing, and I'm it's voice."

[Max]

"And you're both idiots."

[Stripes]

"Now, to avoid confusion, my guest will simply be known as 'Author'."

[Author]

"My name isn't Arthur."

[Stripes]

"I said Author, not Arthur. If there are any psychologists out there, I'm not insane, so don't judge us."

[Max]

"I'm no psychologist, but I sure as hell am judging you right now."

[Stripes]

"Anyways… onto the show. So, Author, while many of our audience may have already known, tell me, where did the stories inspiration come from?"

[Author]

"Well, I'm an avid Fallout fan. Before any of you say anything, yes, I have played the first and second ones, even tactics… I just never beat them… anyways, I have always wanted to come up with my own story on it, but never really had the inspiration, at least not from the games. My real inspiration came from a little story called Fallout: Equestria, by kkat. I read it, I loved it, and I tried to make my own additions to the world they created, but I always fell short. When the movie Zootopia came out, I saw it, I loved it, but I still didn't think of the idea, and I had long since given up adding to the FoE world. Then, I saw a picture of Nick and Judy dressed up as characters from Fallout 4, and it hit me, it hit me so hard that I couldn't think of anything other than that. I spent the next two months creating ideas, background, integrating both the movie and the story together while throwing elements from the games into it. After a while I had a bunch of chapters written, and then I started to post them for the world to see."

[Stripes]

"And everyone calls me out for my fourth wall breaking, you see where I get it from folks? Now, what was your initial thought about how it would be received?"

[Author]

"Honestly? I was very nervous. I used to write a ton when I was a kid, but never really shared any of my stories, and the few I posted later on in life never really had anyone show interest in. Now, I will tell you one thing. I didn't start writing this story for the sake of wanting a Fallout story. Sure, that was one of the reasons, but I have a bunch of ideas for an original story that I would like to get published, but I wasn't sure how my writing would be received, and I wasn't even sure if I wanted to do it in first or third person. Since I normally wrote in third person, I decided to give first a try with this.

"Initially I didn't get many hits, and despite all the effort I put into its background, I thought about stopping. Then I started to get positive feedback. People said they were actually enjoying my writing. Now, something you should know about me is this, while it might seem vain, or stupid, if people don't show any interest in my work, I tend to abandon it. It's almost as if the fact someone likes my stuff, is the only reason I keep going. Sure, I also am keeping it up for myself, wanting to know where it will go, and have been very happy with how it has turned out so far to a point that even if everyone stops reading it, I will still finish it, just for my own sake. Plus, I'm sure there are people out there who want to read it, but prefer reading it all at once."

[Stripes]

"What about Max? How did he start playing his part in it?"

[Author]

"Well, one day I receive a comment about my story about someone having ideas of their own they wanted to talk to me about. I admit, I was very hesitant, and almost brushed him off with an apology about how I didn't want someone else's influence. Boy am I glad I didn't do that. Between him becoming my primary editor, and the inclusion of his characters, I feel this story has become so much more than it ever could have been."

[Stripes]

"That brings me to another question. Did you anticipate this to be such an epic tale in terms of length?"

[Author]

"No, not really. I expected it to be maybe a few dozen chapters, and without Max's additions, it probably would have been. I have SO many ideas, half of which are not even going to make it into the story. I don't want to rush it, nor do I want to limit myself. When I created the story, I thought of the beginning, and the ending, along with a few events between, and am slowly linking them all together. When an event feels like it should happen, it will happen."

[Stripes]

"What about Olivia Springs? Why a rabbit main character, and why a female?"

[Author]

"The rabbit was the easy part. Since the movie's main character was a rabbit, I decided it would help people flow into it better. Gender was assigned later, although I'm sure part of me did it simply due to Judy Hopps being female as well. When I create a character, unless I have a set gender, I will pick the species, and start to design their personality. Eventually I start to think to myself 'He will', or 'she would' and that's when I settle on a gender."

[Stripes]

"What about her relationship with Nate Valiant?"

[Author]

"When I started, I didn't even know if she would get into a relationship, and I didn't even know what her sexual preference would be. At the time, it wasn't really a focal point and figured what ever happened, would happen. Sure, I had thought about her and Blanche together, but that just turned into a friendship, and at one point I thought about her and Mayor Swift, but when Nate was introduced, that changed. They weren't going to be in a relationship at first, though that didn't stop Max from constantly shipping the two of them jokingly. Eventually it just started to flow, and despite how quick it moved, it just felt… natural. I'm not one for simply injecting a relationship for the heck of it, I feel that makes them feel fake, and forced. I take my time and just let it flow and whatever happens, happens.

[Stripes]

"How much influence does Max have in the story?"

[Author]

"When it comes to his characters? A lot. I'm constantly spamming his email with questions like 'Would Nate do this?' and 'Would Holly do that?'. I do all the actual writing, and when it comes down to it, I make all the final decisions, but his suggestions and recommendations usually make it into the story, especially at times when I'm stumped."

[Stripes]

"How much time do you spend working on this story?"

[Author]

"Way too much. I work an eight hour day nearly every day, yet I manage to do anywhere from six to ten hours of writing each day on top of that. I'm at the point where if I'm not writing, I'm thinking about it. Even when I had to take a break due to my brain getting burned, I was constantly coming up with ideas for when I started back up. Makes me wonder what will happen when this story is finally over with."

[Stripes]

"Let's just hope that doesn't put me out of a job. How does 'The Adventures of a Wasteland Reporter' sound? No? Worth a shot. Got one last question for you, how would you feel about others expanding upon your work?"

[Author]

"Not only would I love to read it, but I also encourage it. This might seem a bit egotistical of me, of course interviewing myself is up there too, but I always wondered if anyone would. The best part of the FoE universe is the fact that the one story created an entire universe. Some of the spin offs were just as good, if not better than the original. Once this story started to gain momentum, I started to imagine others creating their own worlds, along with other artists creating drawing of their own interpretations of people and places. Now, I'm not telling, or even asking the readers to draw or write anything involving my little universe I created, but I would LOVE to see or read anything about it. IF anyone does happen to, throw a link on the comment/review sections of the applicable sites."

[Stripes]

"Well that's all we have today folks. I know this episode was a bit of a mind trip, and I'm sure many of you will groan at the fact that I just interviewed myself, but I've been seeing many people asking about my creative intentions, so I figured, why not? I mean, what's the worst that will happen, people will skip the After Show? It's the story that's the most important. This little broadcast is simply a way to delve deeper into the world, and have a little fun along the way. So, until next time, take care everyone!"