It's been nearly four days since Nate went under to get his new arm attached. Despite the fact that we were in a hospital, surrounded by medical personnel and equipment, some of it which a team sent to scavenge the lower wings of the place had brought back still in pristine condition, I was still beside myself the entire time.

Every time someone new rushed into the operating room, my heart stopped. Each time I was told that it would be a few extra hours due to complications, I felt like I was losing him all over again. Despite being told it will be okay, part of me knew it wouldn't be, that something bad would happen to him, leaving me alone.

But I wasn't alone. Mark and Holly, Onion and Jasmine, they all stood by me, comforting me, holding me close, giving me a shoulder to cry on. No matter where I went, they stuck with me. Even the times I actually got some sleep, which wasn't much, I was never alone, and I was glad to have that. I didn't want to be alone.

During that time, Holly had kept herself busy trying to teach me to not be so reliant on B.A.T.S. when it came to combat. There was a place within the hospital that I was told was once the psychiatric ward, and after clearing out many of the beds and other furniture, it turned out to be a pretty good place to fire off a few rounds. Guess it was fitting where we were, because a few times I kinda lost it, firing madly into the targets Holly had set up. Apparently I still had some issues to work out.

I had tried to assist with the salvage team who was digging deeper into the facility looking for supplies and other useful items, but kept stopping every few minutes to check in on Onion to make sure Nate was doing okay. Mark suggested that I just stay back. I wanted to be helpful, but until Nate was awake again, I was afraid.

Nate's surgery only took two days to complete, but Doc said he needed a lot of bed rest, and still needed to be monitored to make sure his body didn't try to reject the implants. He was very groggy and a bit out of it I think because he kept giggling at the smallest things, and doing very un-Nate like things, such as trying to poke me all over my body, playing with my ears like they were some kind of children's toy, and once he even grabbed my tail, commenting how fluffy it was. I think any other time this would have been a bit annoying, but I was so happy to have him back again, that I didn't care what he did to me.

Except fall on me, which he did. Apparently the medication was affecting his motor functions, so when he tried to get out of bed, he lost control of his legs and fell right on top of me. Of course, like some sixth sense, Holly just so happened to walk right in while he was on top of me and just had to poke fun at the situation.

I didn't care. I had Nate back.

The next day was when Nate was finally able to actually leave his room, and when the medications wore off, he was back to his normal self. Well, almost. He was different. I could tell, and so could Mark and Holly. He seemed stronger. Not in a physical sense, although that new arm of his did allow him to lift things he could normally not, but his overall emotions and mental state just seemed stronger.

Things that normally made him nervous, such as me undressing in front of him, or Holly teasing us about sneaking off just so we could have some well needed alone time, didn't make him seem bashful or make him stutter. Instead, he just shrugged it off, and he actually managed to pull the rug out from under Holly.

"So Nate, it seems that you and 'livi have a bit of competition."

"What do you mean?" Nate sounded confused, and I wasn't sure where Holly was going with this.

"Well, you know how I keep joking about how quickly you two hit it off? I think Jasmine has you beat. Wouldn't be surprised if one day we run into an overly bashful giraffe, if you know what I mean."

"Well Holly, maybe WE just like to take it a little slower. Though… not as slow as you and Mark. I mean, what? Five years before you two were even holding paws?" Nate gave a little smirk towards Holly and Mark who were both sitting there, mouths wide open.

I admit, I wasn't expecting him to be so… forward like that.

"What have you done with my little brother?"

"I'm still here, I just feel… better."

"Well, maybe 'livi should get a robo-limb, to square away that head of hers."

"I will not be losing any body parts thank you very much." I turned to Nate and slowly dragged my paw down the length of the metallic arm. "Though it does give you a bit of a menacing look, you might even start to stand out as the bigger bad-ass. How's it feeling anyways?"

"Strangely normal. If I don't look at it, I can hardly tell it's not my original arm. Doc says that I'm out of danger of my body rejecting it, but Tuskgen wants to keep an eye on it, to make sure nothing goes wrong, but so far, so good."

"I'm glad. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to adapt to it or something."

"I'm not sure if I like it, but I wouldn't want to feel like I was useless, especially with it being my Pip-Boar arm gone. I may not use it as much as you, but I've come to rely on it at times."

"I have to ask. Why 'sacrifice'?"

He sighed and closed his eyes. "Just like you, I want to protect those I care about, but unlike you, I often felt I just… wasn't worth being protected. To save my brother, to save Holly. To save you. I would give my own life in return to make sure those closest to me lived."

"But you're not worthless. When you were hurt, when I didn't know whether you'd even wake up, I felt as if I lost my only driving force in life. If anything ever happened to you… "

I didn't even know I had started to cry until Nate leaned in and wiped my tears away. "These new feelings, they're strange, and foreign to me. It's going to take some time to get used to them, to figure out what they mean, but one thing is certain, you have shown me my true worth." He kissed me.

I had forgotten all about Mark and Holly being there until I heard Holly clearing her throat, exceptionally loud I might add.

"Yeah, maybe you two should just get a room."

"Maybe we should. What you think Nate?"

"I did notice my scent is fading a bit on you. Don't want someone coming and taking my bunny from me now do I?"

"Well then, I think we should go fix that."

I knew that our little exchange was simply trying to make Holly and Mark feel a bit uncomfortable, but despite the fact it was working, I actually did want to be that close with him again. The last time we shared the same bed was a few nights ago, and even then it didn't feel like the right time, but I think now it was.

I really didn't know how other females felt about it, but it wasn't really the sex that I enjoyed. Not saying that I didn't enjoy it, but rather, it's the intimacy, the feeling that we're not two mammals, but one in both body and mind. It was that feeling of unity that I enjoyed the most. It helped me feel real, it helped me feel alive.

It was also nice to have Nate in charge, and boy was he in charge that night.

Between the re-marking and the intimate night, along with passing out at some point, we remained in our room for the entire night, and I think a bit into the morning as well. No one had come to check up on us, or try to wake us, and I'm glad they didn't. The two of us just laid there, held in each other's arms. I had been awake for a bit, but Nate was still fast asleep, his tail wrapped around me tightly. I think even on the subconscious level, he didn't want to let me go again, and I felt the same way.

I was also getting hungry. I had eaten a bit when Nate finally woke up, but my appetite vanished again when he underwent surgery and for most of the time afterwards. Now that things were finally getting back to normal, my worries have diminished and my appetite was returning, acknowledged by the fact that my stomach was now growling louder than a lion.

It didn't help that I was now trapped under Nate's new arm. It wasn't overly heavy, but it was cumbersome, especially since he had to shut it down after he nearly knocked me out during our night of passion. I really hope he still didn't feel bad about it, I told him it was fine.

"Nate, are you awake?"

It never worked before, so why did I think it would work now? After waiting a few seconds to see if he was going to show any signs of waking, I had to resort to… other methods. A few flicks on his ears and then nose caused Nate to suddenly shift, his eyes slowly opening.

"Good morning sleepyhead. Sleep well?"

"Yeah." He was still very groggy.

"I'm glad, we all needed it, real sleep that is. Now, mind getting your paper-weight off of me? Kinda stuck here."

"Paper-weight?" It took him a good minute to figure out what I was saying, and when he did, his eyes shot wide open. "Oh! I'm sorry. Here." I heard a faint noise as his arm 'came-to-life' and he finally moved it off of me.

"Thanks. I'm ravenous, you hungry?"

"I could eat." He looked at my face before shrinking back, but still not as much has he had used to. "Sorry, again."

"It's okay Nate, it was an accident. It will heal. Now, let's get dressed and find us some food. Wonder if Bo has anything left over? I'm not looking forward to going back to those… Rations. I'm not even sure it should be classified as food."

We got dressed and started towards the mess hall. A quick stop at the restroom to clean up a bit, and then we arrived. It was empty and I checked the time on my Pip-Boar. It was a little after six in the morning. I was kind of shocked, expecting it to be sometime in the afternoon. Then again, I had no idea what time we even turned in last night.

Since no one was in the kitchen at this time, we scavenged what food we could, but unfortunately it wasn't much. There were a few pouches of carrot mash, along with some canned fish paste. Guess it will have to do. Nate grabbed a few things himself, and we went to sit down.

"Not sure if you'll like that Binky."

"What? This?" I held up the fish paste. "Why not?"

"Not the same as fresh, just saying."

"Eh, I'll risk it."

I don't know why, but I had really developed a taste for fish. Maybe it was my foxy DNA taking over, or maybe it was just because I really haven't had much variety in my meals most my life, but I really liked it. Unfortunately, Nate was right. Fresh is better. This stuff didn't taste like fish, I wasn't even sure it had any meat in it. It tasted like I was licking the bottom of someone's feet after they were walking through raw sewage. I spit it out and tossed the can against the wall.

"Told you. I don't even like that stuff."

"You could have warned me I was about to eat canned death!"

"Thought I did?"

"Bah."

The carrot mash wasn't much better, but at least it didn't make my taste buds want to commit suicide. I went back and grabbed a few more, hoping it would get that awful taste out of my mouth. We sat there, not saying much but not letting our gazes move away from each other. Sometimes the right company is all the conversation needed.

"'Livi! Nate! I can't believe you two are actually up before the rest of us."

"Morning Holly. Yeah, not really sure when we even fell asleep to be honest."

"Well I'm sure you two had plenty to… " She stopped and started to stare, he mouth hung open. She noticed. "NATE! What did you do to this poor girl? 'Livi, your eye, it's… "

"It was an accident, I swear!" Nate seemed a bit defensive about it.

"We were… well I won't go into details, but let's just say Nate found out the hard way that it's not as easy to control the arm when he's a bit… focused on something."

"It looks nasty, does it hurt?"

"Bit sore, but it'll heal. Don't worry about it. Grab some food and sit. I'd be a bit wary about the canned fish though… "

"Don't tell me you actually ate that? Nate, didn't you warn her about it?" I guess Mark was familiar with that stuff as well.

"I did, but she wouldn't listen."

We sat there, just talking the whole time we ate. Our conversations weren't focused on anything singular, we just talked, about everything. Some of it was mindless chatter, and a few times it involved current affairs, but we all were just happy to be in each other's company.

I heard a small noise and looked up to see Jasmine and Zack entering the mess hall. "Jasmine! Come, sit with us."

They both grabbed some food and joined us at the table. Jasmine had an odd, almost embarrassed look on her face as she sat down next to Holly. Zack sat adjacent to Jasmine and started to eat some green paste from a pouch. Food like that just didn't seem natural.

"I'm sorry if I've seemed a bit distant the past few days Jasmine. Just had a lot on my mind."

"It's okay, I understand."

"You okay? You seem a bit… I don't know, bashful almost?"

"I-It's… nothing… "

"She's just too embarrassed to let on that she and Zack had their own 'wild' night." Holly smirked as she said it, in her own teasing way.

Jasmine nearly tipped her chair backwards, but Zack jumped up and steadied her chair, preventing her from falling. "Now that's not a very nice thing to say Holly."

"Don't give me that, Mark and I heard you two. You're only one room down from us after all."

"You're taking it out of context!" Zack was being overly defensive about Holly's teasing. "Jay-Jay was complaining about a sore back, and being that hooves make for a good massaging medium, I was helping her to release the built up tension in her muscles."

"Oh, Marki has given me massages, but never that good. Jazzie isn't the quietest mammal when it comes to moans and groans. Have you heard her snore?"

"Holly! You knock that off. So what if they got a little action, after everything she's been through, I think she deserves that much."

I wasn't trying to add to the teasing, but I think I accidentally made things worse when I heard a loud noise and saw Jasmine passed out on the floor. I've never met a mammal who could faint at the drop of a hat light that. I gave Holly a look that caused her to instantly shut up and pretend to eat.

"Jay-Jay! You okay?" Zack pulled out a small item and placed it in front of her nose. I heard a small popping noise as Jasmine suddenly shot up, breathing a bit heavily.

"Holly, you apologize to her now." I made sure to give her a look that said I meant it.

"Sorry Jazzie. I just tend to go a little overboard sometimes it seems."

"Overboard? You have now made a giraffe faint. Twice." Mark punched Holly on the shoulder.

"I didn't mean it!"

"What is going on here people?!"

Stalker Logan was standing at the door, and from his position, I'm sure things looked a bit questionable. Zack finished helping Jasmine up and then saluted Logan, with her following suit once she realized that what Zack was doing.

"Sorry Logan, things got a little out of control thanks to a certain bunny." I glanced at Holly, and saw her return a crooked smile.

"Enough!" Ever since Logan had taken charge, he's seemed much more serious than he had been. I'm sure with the Chief missing that that fact was still his greatest concern and focus. "A team has just returned with some gear we salvaged from a nearby military outpost. Since most of the Guardians are currently busy with other missions, I ask that you help sort through it all. We need to take stock of everything."

"We'll do our best to help." I tried to mimic the salute that Zack gave, but must not have performed it right since Logan gave me a raised eyebrow as if asking me what I just did.

"Yes. Well, you have fifteen minutes to finish whatever it is you're doing and meet us at in the west wing, corridor B."

Logan left without another word. I saw Jasmine relax a bit, and surprisingly, I heard Zack sigh.

"Stalker Logan has been a bit tense these past few days. I think the pressure of trying to organize the Guardians is getting to him." Zack showed real concern in his words.

"I can imagine. Having dozens of soldiers suddenly needing leadership, it must be wearing him down."

"Jazzie, I'm sorry. I promise I'll try not to tease you if I can help it."

"I-It's okay… "

"No, it's not. I tend to find myself saying things I shouldn't." Holly seemed genuinely sorry for what she said.

"What's done is done, let's get to where Logan needs us before he tries to court marshal us."

We cleaned up the best we could and headed towards where Logan said to meet the newly returned team. This place was set up in a rather direct way. The west wing was actually in the westward direction, and there were signs pointing us towards corridor B. I had been expecting a small connecting hallway between two larger areas, but was surprised to see that corridor B was a massively large hallway. There were a few rooms connecting to them with a Defender in front of each room.

"This is our makeshift armory. It's located within the most protected area of the hospital." Logan was already there, directing mammals to put crates and duffel bags in certain areas. "Holly, I want you to inspect all the weapons that the team brought, make sure they're in working order, and if they aren't, scrap what parts you can from 'em and throw the rest into a pile. Tuskgen will be assisting you with that."

"Ooh, yes please!" The mention of weapons made Holly's eyes grow large.

"Mark, you and Doc will be sorting through any of the supplies. Medicine, food, and other things will need to be checked to make sure they're still good, and sorted out for transport to their respective areas."

"Yes sir." Mark seemed much better at the whole salute thing than I was.

"Nate, Olivia, we managed to find a crate of unused Mark I Pip-Boars. I need you two to make sure they're functional and able to be adapted with our tech."

Nate's eyes went wide, just as Holly's did.

"Mark I?" I had never heard a Pip-Boar called anything else but that.

"The original ones. Ours are Mark III, the most advanced ones put into production. The Mark I didn't even have a touch-screen, rather dials and nobs that controlled all its aspects. It had limited functionality as well."

Nate and I moved over to the crates Logan pointed to while he continued to give orders to the rest. I opened it and pulled out the Pip-Boar. The screen was much smaller than mine, yet it looked as if it was the right size for a rabbit. I sent a message to Onion letting him know that I'll be removing my Pip-Boar for a moment. Once he acknowledged it, I popped the clasp and removed it. I took the Mark I and placed it on my wrist. It was a tad loose, but otherwise it fit. Then I remembered something. Turning over my Pip-Boar I looked for the serial number.

"Nate, does anything look odd about this? Tuskgen was telling me something about my Pip-Boar not being designed for a rabbit."

"Huh? Let me take a look." He took it from my paws and looked closely at it. His eyes brightened a bit as he looked towards me, a bit of confusion in his eyes. "100502365-FX? That can't be right."

"What does that mean?"

"Every Pip-Boar is designed for a specific species, even these earlier ones. Look at the one you're wearing."

I took the old model off and looked for its serial number. It was in the same place, but was much shorter. "22158-RB. So?"

"RB, that means it's designed for a rabbit."

"Wait, so does that mean… "

"Yours was originally designed for a fox."

First I find out I had fox DNA in me, and now I find out I was wearing a Pip-Boar designed for a fox? I never once cared about my ancestry, but every time I find out something new like this, I felt more and more inclined to know more. Was it just a sheer coincidence that my device was meant for a fox, or was someone trying to tell me something?

"Yeah, I can see it now. Someone had altered the casing to allow it to fit a smaller arm. I don't know why I never noticed it before."

"Ugh. It's starting to feel like I was born into the wrong species. Maybe I was actually meant to be a fox."

"I don't care what you are Binky, that doesn't change who you are."

"Yeah, but… "

I was interrupted by an explosion and a scream. I jumped up and slapped my Pip-Boar on my arm as I scanned the area. Then I saw it. A fading green glow along with smoke, and Holly lying on the ground. Nate and I rushed over, but Mark and Doc were there first.

"Holly! What happened?!" Mark was the first to say anything.

"I… " Holly started to cough as she tried to sit up. "I was trying to dismantle a plasma rifle but failed to notice the crack in the power core's housing. It just blew up in my face."

"No cuts or internal bleeding. Minor radiation poisoning. Your body is in shock. You'll be fine." Doc seemed very calm about it.

"Well I sure as hell don't feel fine."

"You're lucky none of the shrapnel from the gun it you. Here are some meds for the radiation, but you'll need to let your body flush it out naturally, otherwise you might have lingering effects from the medication."

"Great."

"You need to be careful fluff, I almost had a heart attack!" Mark grabbed Holly and started to hug her.

"Not my fault that thing was a piece of junk."

"Mark, you take Holly and go with Doc to get cleaned up. Tuskgen will continue to sort the weapons." Logan seemed un phased by what happened.

"Gee, thanks for the concern Logan."

"If you're well enough for sarcasm, then maybe I should put you back to work?"

"Oh, I think I feel a headache coming on."

"Crybaby. Yeah, we're moving." Mark grabbed Holly and helped her up. She didn't seem too stable so he let her lean on his shoulder as they went towards to where Doc had his area set up.

Nate and I went back to the Pip-Boars, knowing that she would be safe with Mark and Doc. Logan was right about one thing, if she was still able to be sarcastic, then she was fine. Just probably a little shaken up.

"Not the first time that happened."

"What you mean Nate?"

"She may call me a singe eared doof when I make some mistakes, but she's had worse happen to her, although it usually is due to faulty gear. Once she had a shock grenade go off near her. She was fine but all her fur was poofed out and standing on end for hours. Mark kept threatening to use her as a duster."

I chuckled a bit, trying to picture that. "Glad she's okay."

We spent the next hour going through the Pip-Boars. Most of them didn't work, either due to cracked screens, or missing parts. Seems that the older models weren't nearly as resilient as the newer ones. There were thirty of them, but we managed to only find six that were in working order.

Nate suggested to Logan that we keep the other ones as parts, that maybe he'd be able to use them for other projects. Logan agreed but said to keep them in Tuskgen's lab, and out of the way of the other areas. We were just about to start transporting them to her lab when an Agent ran up to Logan.

"Stalker Logan, sir."

"Report, Agent Cairne."

"We just received a communication from the Agents at Precinct One. They located Chief Lazlo."

Logan's eyes started to show excitement over the news, but just as quickly as it arrived, it faded. "Is the team alive?"

"We don't know sir. We think so. There's a very faint and intermittent signal coming from the Chief's radio. It's not strong enough to contact him, but we did trace it to a door within the subbasement of the Precinct. It's unguarded as well."

"And?"

"We can't get in. The door is electronically and physically sealed. Agent Tass was able to bypass the first few layers of encryption, but she ran into an issue. She can't bypass the last layer, and what's worse is it's attached to a failsafe device. She says that if they get it wrong even once, internal termite charges will cause the metal to fuse and permanently seal the door."

"Tell her to stand by. I'll be sending a team of Defenders to make sure they can work uninterrupted. Nate, Olivia. This sounds like your specialty. Come with me."

We followed Logan and the Agent towards where he had set up the main command center. There were computers scattered, each of them stationed by Agents. A tiger was also on the radio, sending communications between the different Guardian teams.

Agent Cairne pushed aside an armadillo and started to type on the terminal. "We have a live link with the team. Patching you through now."

"This is Stalker Logan, report Agent Tass."

"As you can see Sir, we have a bit of an issue trying to hack this. Every time we think we're close, we get a warning and have to shut it down before we get locked out for good. We have our best technicians with us, but it isn't doing squat to help. Sir."

"Any ideas you two?"

"Hmm, not very good at trying to hack something I can't even connect to." I got an idea. "Agent Tass. Is there any way to send some kind of link to the computer to where I'm at?"

"Well, technically it's possible, but we would need to… "

"Do it Agent." I could tell that Logan was giving an order, not simply asking her.

"Yes Sir." After a few minutes, one of the monitors switched from a map of where the team was, to a terminal screen. "You receiving it?"

"Yes, thank you. Nate, help me look this over."

We sat there trying to figure it out. It was still harder doing this remotely, having to direct Agent Tass to perform certain functions. This was a visual link, not direct access so she had to do all the work as we watched. Every time Nate or I asked her to try something, a warning message flashed on the screen informing about an imminent system lock down. Without actually being there, I didn't think it was possible to hack it.

"How long would it take to get there Logan?"

"A few hours."

"Hmm." I sat there pondering. Sure, being there might help, but minus finding some back door, this was a very tricky problem to solve. I was used to having multiple attempts, but now every time I told her to do something, I risked locking us all out, and with the safety of Lazlo in our paws, that wasn't a risk I was willing to take. Then I noticed something.

"Agent Tass, see that small indentation to your left?"

She moved her finger towards it. "This?"

"Yeah, push the button."

"Excuse me? Sir, I don't think… "

Logan gave me a long hard look. "Do what she says."

"Yes Sir."

The screen filled with words. Most of it wasn't important, so I skimmed through it. It was a Zootopia Police Department access menu. There was an error at the bottom that said: Badge Identification Needed. Badge Identification? What did that…

"Agent Tass, press the button again, but when the main screen comes on, quickly access the system BIOS."

Logan confirmed the order and I saw the same splash screen again, but this, rather than being replaced by the same legal mumbo jumbo, letters and numbers scrolled across the screen until it came to a stop at some archaic terminal screen.

"I don't know how this helps, there are no back doors here, we already tried it."

"Hush. Access the personnel menu."

She obeyed as the screen filled with information. I didn't know exactly what I was looking for, but part of me had a hunch, and I've come to learn that my hunches, at least when it comes to stuff like this, are usually correct. The screen showed all the employees to the ZPD by Precinct. I asked her to filter out to show only Precinct One officers.

Every officer was lead by a number that began with P1, followed by a letter and three numbers. This was very familiar to me. Then I saw what I was looking for. I knew it wasn't a coincidence.

"Agent, access personnel file for badge number P1-A113."

She obeyed and on the screen popped up the image of a fox in a uniform. He didn't look like Mark or Nate, he looked much older, yet not old enough to look unattractive. His name was Nicholas Piberius Wilde. It showed age, height, weight, everything that I really didn't care about. Still, there was something familiar about him.

I scrolled through the information and found out that all members of Precinct One were reissued new badges that had a small chip in them to allow them access to a special Burrow being build underneath the precinct. Fucking Burrows. No, wait. Apparently it wasn't contracted by Burrow-Tec, but rather a special partnership between a Chief Bogo and SwineCo. That made me feel a bit better, but was still a bit anxious about visiting anything remotely like a Burrow. Still, Lazlo needed our help.

I still wasn't sure why that name seemed so familiar. I never heard of a Nicholas Wilde before. From his files he was a rather accomplished officer. Both he and his partner, one Judy Hopps, were one of the best teams that Precinct One had. Between the two of them, they solved more cases then nearly the entire force combined. That was a really remarkable feat. I tried to dig further and saw some more documents, but his name was abbreviated to N.W.

Wait… Nicholas Wilde… N.W. No, it can't just be a coincidence. Then it hit me. The badge. "I know who can help us!"

"Who?"

"Logan, can you send a Tac-Lifter to pick someone up?"

"Yes, but who?"

"A friend of mine. A mister North West."

Fallout: Zootopia After Show

Featuring:

'Stripes in the Morning'

(Hey there folks! Max here and I just wanted to add before we get into today's show a little bit of our editing process and some of the silly fun we have. So below is Stripes in character leaving a note to my less than friendly self on what to do with the doc. I of course COMPLETELY ignore this note and go on about it anyway. Buuut after some careful thought I figured it'd be funny to keep the note in, completely unedited. SO without further ado, enjoy our madness!)

Okay Maxy boy, since I am unable to properly speak due to my current condition, yet the motor skills in my hooves still seem in tact, I am going to give you some questions that I want you to ask our interviewee, and after hearing the playback of that one After Show where you kept rudely cutting off the radio, I have chosen to give you this letter right after we go live, so please, stick to the script.

So, first things first. You gotta open up by saying 'What's up Doc?', I mean, sure he ain't a rabbit, but you can't pass that up. Then I think should be to ask him why everyone calls him Doc. I mean, why not Doctor Hedgeworth, or Doctor Jedediah, or just Doctor? Doc seems rather informal for a mammal who tends to show just as much emotion as Stalker Logan. On that, please inquire as to why he is always so emotionless. He doesn't have to tell us his life's story, I doubt very much we'd have time for that, but at least some generalizations.

Next thing is, how did he get his place as the Guardian's lead doctor? Was he trained as a medical mammal before hand, or did most of that training come post? Did he get placed into his role out of pure skill and necessity, or did he have to claw his way up the ladder, so to speak, to get to where he is now?

Feel free to ask any of your own questions here and there Max, I am just giving you some generalized questions to ask. Ask him why there are so very few medical mammals within the Guardians. I mean, if they often have to get assistance from Mark who isn't even one of them, that goes to say they are very understaffed.

Now, make sure you ask these next few questions, but also make sure to sound sympathetic. I don't want another show cut short due to miscommunication. Okay, so ask him what was his most proud moment in the Guardians, and what was his worst? If he shows negative emotions, try to get him to answer to the best of his ability, but please don't get us kicked out of here. I can barely feel my leg as it is. If the mood is okay, ask him what was the most gruesome thing he has seen in his line of work.

Time for the questions that everyone gets ask. What is his opinion on Olivia and company, especially since he has personally tended Olivia's wounds more times than I have hooves. This is where I want you to really dig deep, but not too deep. Remember that I can't feel my leg. Now my arm is getting tingly. Why am I writing this? Why did I write that?

Now I want you to cool him down a bit with a few more light questions. How far does his medical abilities travel? In other words, if he was out in the field with a group of Guardians and he comes across injured raiders, would he expend his supplies to help them, when they more than likely will go back to doing evil, or will he just ignore them and let the wasteland consume them?

Okay, now that wasn't a light one, but it just popped into my head. Promise him these next ones will be. How does he like it with the Guardians? Does he feel that they are doing a good job? What about the current civil war going on? Has he treated any pretty giraffes other than Jasmine? Does he know if they are single? How would he best describe his relationship with the other Guardians? Any friends or much-more-than-friends?

Finally, unless you have more questions of your own, end with this, if he could turn his life around and be anything else, another rank in the Guardians, or even leave to start his own life somewhere, would he take it, or does he feel content where he is now? I think the pain meds are kicking in because everything is getting a bit foggy. Wake me when it's over, and bring me some extra strength coffee, none of that instant crap the Guardians drink.

[Max]

"Right… So… I've got a letter here from Stripes. I've read it over and decided to utterly disregard it. Seriously Stripes, you think I don't know how to do my job? I'm here to talk to mammals, not butt into their daily lives. Which is why we request an interview Stripes. Not show up out of the blue and hope for the best. Anyhow ladies and Gentlemammals. I was lucky enough to find the doctor who patched me up, and did an amazing job with it might I add, and was able to ask him if he'd be ever so kind as to sit down with me and have a friendly chat at his convenience. Please sir, feel free to introduce yourself."

[Doc]

"I thought I was done with you, is there something else troubling you? I'm a bit busy tending to your friend here."

[Max]

"I apologize Doctor, but you seem a bit haggard at the moment, when was the last time you took a break?"

[Doc]

Doc Sighs "Yes, well Stalker Logan has asked, well ordered me to take a break today. I guess I can entertain you for a moment. But make it quick."

[Max]

"Right then, onto our first question. What drove you into the medical field? I'm certain there's a bit of a story there and of course you don't have to share any details you'd be uncomfortable with. I respect your rights to privacy as I respect anyone's. So if at any time you feel uncomfortable please let me know and we'll just move on.

[Doc]

"It's rather simple really. My parents were traders. Not the most successful ones mind you, but they did enough to keep their heads above water, so to speak. While my parents never told me I was a burden to them, I could feel it. I tried to do my best to help out as I grew up, helping my father prep his wares for sale, aiding my mother in mending what ever ragged clothing we found to make it worth selling.

"One day we ran across some traders who had been attacked by raiders. Now, we thought they were dead and my parents were going to scavenge their goods. Now, don't take that the wrong way. They were good mammals, but you need to do what you can to survive. So I was helping my father sort through everything when we realized that one of the traders was alive, but very injured.

"One of the things I did to make myself useful to my parents was go over any medical books we happened to find. After my father's own brush with raiders, I wanted to make sure I could keep them healthy, figuring that I would be able to contribute to our little family in some way. I had never really put any of my knowledge into use until then, but when I went to perform triage on that trader, I felt my paws move so deftly, the knowledge of what I needed to do flowed so clearly, I felt like I was being possessed by some pre-war medical savant. Now before you say anything, I don't believe in that supernatural mumbo-jumbo, I'm just stating how it felt at the time.

"Helping that trader felt so… natural, and I enjoyed every moment of it. Truth be told, it wasn't the fact that the trader got to live another day, it was the action, the process of it that I enjoyed. Please don't take that out of context, I work to save lives, I just enjoy the actual act of it. They can thank me, they can pay me, but at the end of the day it comes down to life and death. If they live, I know I did everything I could. If they died, I would mourn them in my own way, but I will also seek to better myself to prevent that situation from happening again."

[Max]

"Now sir, I know you've been one of the longest serving members of the Guardians after Chief Lazlo and I just want to ask, what is it that keeps you going here? I know this has to be a difficult and often times painstaking job. What keeps you so motivated to help your brothers and sisters in arms?"

[Doc]

"As I said before, I want to make sure that I can do everything I can to make sure another mammal lives. However, I also owe Chief Lazlo my gratitude.

"This isn't common knowledge among the Guardians. Not that I don't want to share this, it's just that no one ever asks. Yes, I have been the primary medical officer for the Guardians for a very long time. Chief Lazlo was actually the one who brought me on. You see, my parents joined a small trader community up in the Medowlands called The Galleria. It was in the ruins of a large shopping mall that had been rebuilt into a trade hub. Not many mammals realize this, but many of the fresh food that finds its way into the Wasteland comes from The Galleria. No one knows how they manage it, they keep it a tight secret. Probably why they have such a large military force present there.

"To most mammals, this would be paradise, and to my parents it was, especially since they have a very strict application to become a resident. My parents and I were accepted to it, and I lent my services as a doctor, much more experienced by that time, to The Galleria. However, since no one was dumb enough to attack that place, there were very few issues and little to do for a doctor. It got boring fast. So like any young mammal with delusions of grandeur, I left. My parents were sad to see me leave, but I think deep down they knew I wasn't happy there.

"I traveled the Wasteland trying to find a home for myself, but there is a stigma it seems about youth and experience, especially when it comes to medicine. It was very hard to find my place, so I resorted to be a traveling doctor, following trade routes and offering my services. Then I ran into Chief Lazlo and a small scouting party. They had just had a run in with a group of Grey Quills, back when they were actually a threat, and most of them, including the Chief, was injured. I will be honest, seeing such levels of damage actually thrilled me a bit because I finally had a challenge. Their own field medic had been killed in the battle, so I lent my paw to help and they didn't refuse. I had expended my entire supply, along with most of their own emergency supplies, but I managed to save all of them. The Chief, who had only been in his position for less than a year, was so grateful, he offered me a place in the Guardians. Ever since then I felt at home, and even during major conflicts when I am up to my neck in work, I never regretted it. Every day there is a new challenge and as long as I am challenged, as long as I am making a difference, I will continue to do my job and teach others who show the same passion that I do."

[Max]

"Well I'm very glad to hear that sir, and I'm quite proud to say I support your endeavors. Is there anything you'd like to say to those listening in while we have the time? I know there are a lot of traders who tune into our station and if there's anything you're ever looking for I'm sure they can find it."

[Doc]

"Keep trying. It's at those times when all seems lost that you find yourself the strongest. You can't imagine how many fledgling medical staff I have who quit the moment a patient dies. Yes, it is hard to see all of your work not do a thing, but it is impossible to save everyone. I know that may sound cruel, but its the truth. I never enjoy seeing a mammal die, but I always do everything I can to prevent that, even if it seems like it is simply a waste of time and resources. You never know what you can do until you try."

[Max]

"A very noble thought and a wonderful statement to make to those hoping to enter into your field sir. So it seems that a number of the mammals that have passed through your ward recently have been repeat customers, and not all of them belong to the Guardians. I got to spend some time with one of them just the other day and I'm pleased to see how well he's recovered just after losing an arm like he did. I… I hope you don't see many cases like that though. It just… Seems like such a terrible waste."

[Doc]

"I see you're talking about Miss Springs and her friends. Yes, losing a body part, even if it is something as simple as an ear or a finger, is bad and can have devastating mental and physical implications on them. So many Guardians have lost a body part and in turn lost their will to fight, to work, or even to live. I hope that's not the case with Mister Valiant, but I have a feeling that he's much stronger than even he thinks he is.

"Miss Springs, on the other paw, is an interesting mammal. I have treated her so many times that most of my colleagues think she is a time bomb waiting to go off and that it's a waste of Guardian time and supplies to continuously save her from the brink of death. I don't agree with them. It's not just because I have taken an oath to do everything within my power to save all mammals, no matter who they are, but she also interests me a bit. I have never seen a mammal take so many beatings, get pushed within inches of her life, and yet find the strength to rebound back stronger than she was before. Do I think she is suicidal at times? Yes, without a doubt, but it is her resilience that I admire. I don't think there is a single Guardian here that would able or even willing to go through what she has and still want to continue where they left off."

[Max]

"Now, I've noticed that you have a rather… Small staff compared to some settlements in the wasteland and this is absolutely no criticism, they've been wonderful to us and I couldn't be more thankful for the time and treatment you've provided, but… How hard has it been to recruit for you? I know it can't be easy to find other mammals with medical training and I want to help any way I can so please. If there's anything I can do… "

[Doc]

"It's partially my fault I'm afraid. You see, I am very… picky when it comes to who I add to my staff. I don't care how good you are at your job, if you cannot see things to the end, you have no place here. There is no such thing as impossibility when it comes to saving a life. Improbable? Yes, I deal in improbabilities on a daily basis, but never impossible. When I find someone with skill, I take them on and train them to an extent. When I think they are ready, I give them the ultimate test. Have you heard of Memory Lane?"

[Max]

"I-I… Yes. I think that's all I wanna say about that… Just… Yeah."

[Doc]

"Well you see, a while back the Guardians salvaged a similar device to the one that they use over at Memory Lane and Tuskgen was able to re-purpose it for me.

"A long time ago, a few years after I joined the Guardians, one of the Defenders came across a Red-Neck who we think was using some experimental flamer fuel. It burned so hot and so fast that it actually melted and fused the Defender's armor to his body. Shards of metal were embedded in most of his vital organs, and to most he would have been unable to be saved. I was not one of them. We rushed him back to the base and I started to work on him. I will spare you the details, but suffice it to say, I performed the impossible. He lived. He had lost both legs and an arm, but he was happy to be alive. He was even able to return to duty a few years later after we re-purposed an old Exo-Armor to allow him to move and feel like a complete mammal again.

"That was the hardest thing I have ever done, and to most other doctors, it was an impossible task, but I did it so I knew it wasn't. That was my test. I used the machine to have the would be doctor to relive the entire thing up until it was a success. My test was simple. After seeing that I asked if it was possible for him to have survived after that. If they say it is impossible, they fail, no matter how skilled they may have proven to be. If they show even the smallest flicker of possibility, they pass and I let them join the Guardian medical team. Now, I do not have final say over the matter, but Chief Lazlo knows me so well that the failures typically get assigned to combat medic and are trained in combat skills. I admit, when they say it's impossible and I show them that he lived and was happy, it pleases me to see their reactions of disbelief. Like I said, nothing is ever truly impossible."

[Max]

"Thank you again for coming on Doctor. It was a pleasure to meet you and I'm thankful for your time. I know it couldn't have been easy to step away right now. And again, I'll do everything I can to help you and the rest of the Guardians. So folks, there you have it. A little bit of wisdom from a very humble mammal. Now I know Stripes wrote a bunch of questions down, but that's just it folks. You can't just pry into their lives. Every mammal deserves a measure of privacy and I respect that above all else. As always, if there's a mammal you wanna hear about, or there's something you wanna know about the wasteland. Don't hesitate to write in and let us know! We'll do our best to be your voice and we'll do it right or not at all. This is Max Redbridge signing off for now."