Chapter 62
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AN: Before we start, I think it'd be remiss to not talk about something. Over the weekend our fandom was rocked by the tragic news that the author Alps Sarsis, creator of the Guardian Blue series, passed away suddenly in his sleep. He left the world too soon, leaving a gap in our hearts and those who loved and relied on him in real life.
To say his work is influential was an understatement, on the various forums and discords there is a wide consensus that his saga is the greatest Zootopia fanfic series ever, period. And that's often putting it mildly. Indeed, when my friend Merc_Marten asked me to help arrange the art of the day post paying tribute to his own artistics works (myself being familiar with his stories), I felt a strange mix of both honour and inadequacy. Who was I, the doubting St Thomas of the discords who'd maintain that GB wasn't necessarily the perfect Zootwopia script as was, to be given this task?
In the end though, I will maintain this. Reading GB the first time was an absolute treat and joy that many have shared with, and I hope coming up many more will do so. Indeed, this whole series would not be what it is without Guardian Blue. The big four in my series (Nick, Skye, Jack, Judy) was inspired by Alps' saga, and much of Season 1 was built out of my differences in taste (mainly having Jack and Skye's relationship grow and develop on-screen, rather than off). Indeed, wonder why Jack is a theatre actor? In GB, he was in the movies. Wonder why Jack was a hybrid? Yup, my own take on his hybrid-ness in GB. Nick and Skye antagonistic at the start? Yup.
And when Zootwopia does come out? That Guardian Blue - Fire Triangle - When Instinct Falls concept idea I've talked about in my oneshots and drabbles may well be back on the table, entertaining a new generation of fans with takes on GB and hopefully inspiring many to check out the originals. (And don't worry, Alps knew about the idea and was happily along as he was credited).
Indeed, going forward, as well as reading and enjoying his works, I can think of no greater tribute for a creative such as him than for all of us to carry on the passing on of his ideas. Adapting, evolving, spinning off of them, keeping them alive in new stories and tales, as has been done throughout human history. Of course, all the while, dropping a little credit to the guy who started it all if you can, so his legacy can live on.
Alps: To the stories written, unwritten and yet to be written. In words, in lines and colours, and in your life amongst friends and family. We'll miss ya buddy.
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Nick began to speak only for Kozlov to run over him, his words coming out with easily enough authority to tell the fox that no dissenting comment, no rejection, no shred or scream of criticism would stop him. The fox closed his mouth. The bear carried on. "I saw him coming, I stepped back to truck, order them to turn around turret, order them to aim. One last volley, one last stab into demon's heart." He sighed.
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"AIM! AIM!" The bear roared, running up to the truck. The mammals on the turret were spinning the control wheels as fast as they could, the primed rockets coming down, swinging around to try and line up with the oncoming monster. Kozlov turned, tried to keep his eyes on it as the great shape came down low over the reservoir, its wake cast in the water and talons carving out spray as it bore down on them.
"Keep track," Jorin shouted, Kozlov turning to see him at one of the other trucks. Lining his eyes up with the oncoming beast, his heart slowed. Just a few seconds more and…
It pitched to the right, sweeping across the water faster than they could keep track, not for want of trying. It then pulled the other way fast, its body shifting.
"We take it with us," was all Kozlov could say, staying a paw. Looking at the shivering mammal on the gunner's seat, they nodded in understanding, the whimpering sheep still doing his best to keep track as the monster swept to the left and right faster than they could follow. Faster than they could hope to hit. "Wait…" He said, holding his paw up to stay the gunner.
He looked up, seeing Jorin doing the same.
"Wait…"
Their eyes met and, as the world slowed, the bear saw his friend bring his hoof up on one final salute.
"Wait…" Kozlov said, returning it before turning to see the beast almost on top of them. Pitching up, giant wings coming out, talons outstretched ready to rip them apart and… "NOW!"
The sheep, still spinning the wheel, reached for the firing button as a blast of air pushed him back. Pushed Kozlov back. The bear turned to see the monster beat its great silent wings out before his feet left the floor, the sky tumbling around them and the earthen bank of the cooling reservoir coming up to meet him. His head crashed into it hard as the scream of tumbling metal rang out, the world spinning, his comrades screaming, the wind beating again and again as he tried to bring out a paw to stop himself. Down onto his front he crashed, a sharp ache ringing around and up his jaw as the stars were cast down on the earth, growing and shrinking, growing and shrinking. The shrieking of metal came to an end and he glanced over, the rocket truck finishing its roll at the base of the bank, upside down and the gunner sheep managing to stand up by its side, an arm gone.
The shaking mammal stumbled forward, running off, Kozlov willed him on and on, to safety, to the rest of his comrades. And then a great talon descended onto him and he was gone.
His eyes closed as the earth shook and, looking up, Kozlov saw the great hulking mass of gleaming metal above him. The bronze like metal body, same as the little talisman, was dusted a sicky blue by the spilling out heart of the reactor across the water. But the shapes, the figures, the detail of the great demon creature were overpowered by the cold glowing furnaces of his eyes.
It stared down at him, kneeling in the mud, paws over his head. Its head tilted, and Kozlov almost got the sense that it was smiling. "I thought your nation abolished faith. Didn't it?"
And then there was a scream from the side, Kozlov jerking to his feet and looking over as Jorin unleashed a machine gun on the creature. The muzzle flashed and the bullets sparked and echoed off the metal chest of the beast, until they stopped, Jorin's screaming fading.
Like a battleships turret, Sizogo Orla rotated its head slowly, mechanically, casting its spotlight on the now wilting Jorin. "Are you done?"
The wild ass pulled the magazine out, throwing it to the floor and grabbing a second one, throwing it up into the gun but missing. He pulled it down and tried to fit it in, failing. Out, in, out, in, it clinked and jiggled about, the equid yelling as he tried to fit it in before throwing the gun to the ground and falling, slowly, to his knees, hooves out and tears in his eyes. "Tell us then," he said, trembling. "What are you… Who are you… WHY!? Before you finish us," he said. "Give us that. Give him that…" He looked over at Kozlov. "Let him know what his brother died for…"
For a second or two the night was silent before Sizogo Orla spoke, its voice now almost neutral, but with a back echo of anger and contempt. "Why would I give nuisances like you what you want?"
"Don't you want to say anything?" Kozlov said, shakily getting to his feet. "Before you kill us?"
He wilted back as the monster's head rotated around again, the great bear shrinking in its burning gaze.
"Who said anything about killing you?" It said. "Why would I, when I can let your tortured soul inflict far more pain on you over the rest of your meagre existence than I ever could over one dying night?"
"W-w-wha… -at…?" Kozlov stuttered, as the creature peered down at him.
"You creatures have weaknesses. Empathy, a desire for justice, which I can and will turn against you. You will watch as mammals die in agony. You will watch as innocents are turned into villains. You will watch as your nation takes the fall to its pride from the script I deliver it and it will follow to a fault. You will watch as your insignificant nation and your insignificant ideals are humiliated and destroyed. And you will watch that, the talisman around your neck, to remind you of your failings every day and every night. As you follow my instructions for the rest of your puny, insignificant, pointless lives. And seeing as your nuisances are no longer amusing, I won't tolerate them anymore. You will do as you are told. After all…" it said, as it spread its great wings, catching the blue glow in them as the giant metal bird, the great demon, contradiction, impossibility… Began stepping forward to take off again, a dark rolling thick as tar laugh roiling out of the beast. "How many more times do you think I can do that?"
And with that he ran up the embankment, pushing his wings back, and took off. Kozlov and Jorin and the few other survivors shielded themselves from the gale of wind before looking out as the monster was lost to the black night, flying away silently until it was gone.
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"After that," Kozlov sighed. "I thought I should stay in town, help, somehow, to atone for disaster I had caused. Of course Sizogo Orla's warning rang in head. How many more reactors to rip open? How many dams to break? How many planes to tear out of sky? So, silently, in disgrace, we get back to Bearlin. I chose to put necklace on me and then… And then I hear him. Speak to me. I see what he see even. And I follow instruction. I go back to Duga Two site, close to him. He does not care if we track him or not, what can we ever do? But he sees we are not plotting anything. Jorin? He stay in west, he does best to atone there for catastrophe he brought on innocents. He is smartest mammal I know, yet I hear he slave to help build replacement town for evacuated mammals. On the rail line, to the north east, to house workers for three remaining reactors. After foxes who work in electricity industry, they call it Slavulpych. Eventually, he gets little house there… Living amongst those whose lives he tore apart, paying respect at monument to those who truly saved the world."
The polar bear gave a huff before looking back. "Over years following, I see through Sizogo's eyes. I see him meet mammals across globe, run criminal enterprises, even form gang of five." His gaze hardened as he looked at the older of the two pandas in the back. "I see him meet you, warlord. I see him lend you supplies, advice, do to your government what he do to mine, to carve out safe space for you to run your tyranny in the mountains." He huffed and shrugged. "Why?"
"Because…" the panda began, only to get cut off.
"Not you," he said. "Him. Why? I could see him work with one mammal, maybe… A front. But he have plenty, all to track down one great enemy. One mammal he despise above all. And in that time, things happen. I see my nation, like plane Sizogo shot down, dive and struggle, mortally wounded before it tear apart. And then, year after? I see him, I see his gang, I see you," the bear growled. "Take flight to small house in country, where small family reside. He want me to see it. He want me to see you break in, to see you all arrive for fight that he could easily handle by his own. What can poor lady raccoon do to stop herself from being crushed by giant talon, every bone snapping, while raccoon man screams watching, all as he tries to fight four on one. And what can he do as beast turns on him, saying he has waited eternity to fix scales, to enact revenge, to destroy ultimate nemesis? You all watched on as Sizogo crushed life out of him, great beast whispering to him about how raccoon thought he would never see victim again, before throwing him to wall! Dead!"
Kozlov shook his head, trying to dry some tears. "You know, I realise then that house had kit. At least one. I see toys, I see other stuff, I see…" He grit his teeth. "I curl up in fear when I saw it, thinking little mammal would be next. But instead? I see nothing. Sometimes I think that little boy got out. Sometimes I fear one of you kill him. Sometimes…" He paused, wiping his face with his paws. "I wonder if Sizogo left detail out as torture for me. It is his style, no? Let question keep me awake at night. But… years later. After going years without seeing anything, or then seeing aircraft get torn from skies and wolf pirate beg for life, I…" He turned, his gaze fixing on Carmelita. "I see you."
She nodded.
"I see you in chamber, raccoon boy, barely adult, banging on glass cylinder you are trapped in before gagging and collapsing as he choke. Poison gas. I think it just more fallen heroes, until…" A smile grew on his face. "I see him battle you two over burning lake. I see raccoon in air, launching rockets and dodging electric missiles shot at him. And of course, rockets do nothing. Except…" He looked down at the shock pistol by Carmelita's side, the vixen nodding.
"Hitting him didn't cause damage, but it opened holes in his armour."
"And into them great raccoon pour missiles. I see great beast crash into lake of fire before rising up again, launch energy rings at raccoon hero. He thread needle, over and over, and together you bring him down onto ruins of his dark machines. And there, coming in through burning arena, through threat of collapsing from heat and falling onto burning rock, or grabbed by abominations created by monster, or be hit by last missiles from grounded demon… He came in through last security system and I saw him…" The bear broke off, breath in, breath out, paw wipe on his face, quivering smile growing. "I see through Sizogo's own eyes raccoon kit smash in face of monster. Of demon. To do what I, Jorin, who knows how many could not. To kill him. To end it. To avenge everyone."
He looked at Carmelita and, making sure the road was safe, leant in and gave her a hug. "For Rustim sake. Thank you. Thank you. For that time. And for final time too."
…
"Final time?"
Nick, jaw hanging open, froze, looking down at Judy.
The bear glanced back at her too. "Da…" He said. "In that time after, I make move to Zootopia. Many bear from far east go, I feel my mission done I can join them. Make new life for myself. But… Qualifications only in certain areas," he snorted. "Find job with Bigs. One day, rise to near top. But early on, talisman now on necklace, I collapse. I see through eyes of dead. I see Sizogo, only distorted, weak… Fly through sky, two heroes once more bringing creature down. This time over city. I see Eiffel Tower as missiles alone break wings and bring monster down. As more heroes go inside mechanic beast and kill its heart." He shrugged. "I guess foolish mammal thought they could put pieces back together again. Jump start like car!"
He snorted. "They were moron for thinking they could tame such evil. They were moron for thinking it would be strong as was at prime. I guess shielding did not work, though as battle went on, as zombie skeleton broken down, I feel Sizogo's true energy return in through heart. To take back what is his, before those heroes snuff it out. And on that day, I realise…" He held up the little item in his paw. "I realise that foolish mammals that know about Sizogo would always try and claim monsters power. The talisman is connected in some way. So I carry on and guard it. And only hope that others out in world are hidden or guarded too. Otherwise…"
"He could return," Carmelita said. "I know. That's what they're there for."
All eyes turned to her.
She looked back at Kozlov.
"You were right in that the final time was someone putting the remaining body parts together, trying to claim its power for herself…" A snarl grew on her muzzle. "It was my own treacherous assistant, Nayla…" She almost spat the last word before looking at him, smiling. "Though in a way, she did the world a favour so big, you could call her a hero too."
"-What?" Kozlov asked, as Carm gave him a glance before returning her gaze to the road.
"We didn't know about those things until far later. You call them talismans… You could call them phylacteries. Horcrux is our favourite word amongst those in the know at Interpol… The purpose was simple. An essence of him, outside of his main body, hidden away. A backup. So that if something would happen, he could…"
"-Return," the bear whispered. "But we took out his cultists, he…"
"He planned it so that they could regrow him without mammal interference," she said. "Indeed, I think your cultists were the last who served him. Have you ever heard of Bolvangar?"
The bear blinked for a second, head tilting, before a voice picked up from behind them. Looking back, seeing the two panda bears listening on intently, the fox almost waiting to find a time to cut in and call it all nonsense, and the bunny, paw up. "I have," she said. "It's a site up in the Kingdom of Svalbard. One of my kithood friends is an astronomer. She did some work with the High Latitude telescope they built there."
"Indeed," Carmelita said. "The site was chosen and ceded by King Iorek Byrnison himself. Though not without warning. The name translates to fields of evil, the bears in all their armour stay away from it. Some construction crews began working there, only to find something… Ever since that day at Krakarov, Interpol keeps a very close finger on this kind of pulse, so I went in to investigate. If necessary, cover things up." She let out a sigh. "We found a temple complex. Tunnels in the rock. And in the centre, one of those horcrux's, only it had started growing."
"Growing?"
She nodded. "Uneven, angular, some parts far more fully formed than others. But it had frozen, hadn't grown for years." And then a smile grew and she let out a short sharp bark of a laugh. "He was following his plan all along when Nayla restarted his old body. So what did he do, he tried to take control of that. Only, whoopsie, that was destroyed. Much of his power, put back into it, was taken out. And he was left without enough energy to finish the job! If it weren't for Neyla's betrayal, he would have regrown and dug himself out, instead…"
"He's dead!" Po yelled out, fist up into the air.
"Not quite," came a voice from his side. The Panda King looked over at Kozlov. "He did not have enough energy to rebuild body, but his mind… Soul… Still out there, stuck in limbo, is it not so?"
"Da," Kozlov said. "I still get phantom dreams. Memories. Visions. The ghost, trapped in there.
"Which I chose to try and reach out to. Communicate with."
"-Why?" The panda and Kozlov turned down to Nick, the fox staring up, arms folded in front of him. "Presuming this crazy dumb story about evil eagle Sizogo Orla or whatever is true, I'll suspend my disbelief at this craziness for just a teensy tiny bit. But after all that, WHY THE CUSS WOULD YOU TALK TO HIM!" He threw his paws out, then looked forward. "And why wouldn't you just arrest this panda guy seeing as he confessed to…"
"Mammals change," Kozlov roared, looking at the Panda King. "When the raccoon deemed him redeemable, I deem him that too. Even if communicating still… Stupid."
The older panda nodded, looking down at the fox. "I was monster once," he said. "I was humbled. I grew good, over time. But all that time I saw him… I was curious. Where did he come from? Who create him? What was source of vendetta against Cooper Clan? What they do against him so long ago." He paused, looking at Kozlov. "Even aside from scientific and philosophical curiosity… You say yourself, he feel like long time ago Cooper clan attack him, break him in some way. Lost in the eons, but it did happen. What could it be? I sense pain, hurt, buried far, far beneath layers of hate." He let out a sigh. "A mammal with every right to view me as monster found it in him to look past that, to reach the good within. I feel, philosophically, that I at least have duty to try the same."
"Okay," Nick said. "Now let me pull up my disbelief again and call BULL MOTHER-CUSSIN' MURANA WOLFORD IS THE DARK FLAME WOLFING CUSS ON ALL OF THIS!" His paws were up against his head as he glared at the Panda King, Carmelita, Kozlov. "Evil robo monster bird caused Chernobyl!" He began giving a bunch of short sharp claps. "Brilliant!"
"-Nick…"
"Nice one! Oh, and all sorts of other stuff…"
"-Nick, please…"
"-And it just so happened to spare you, and leave you with a little trinket, and Carmelita here and her lost raccoon partner just so happened to do what an entire nation…"
"-Nick, they're telling the truth," Judy shouted, the fox pushing on.
"-Couldn't do. Nah, this is one fancy pants tall…"
"I SAW IT TOO!"
…
Nick, frozen, turned to Judy. "What!?"
Quietly, she repeated what she'd just said. "I saw it too Nick. When I had that thing on, I saw visions, I saw…"
Blinking, an unsure expression on his face, he shook his head. "What?" he almost whispered. "When? Why didn't you tell…"
"Because I rationalised them," she said, head going into her paws. "Remember when Kozlov gave me that thing to keep safe? Right after that raid, taking down Kazar, when he tried to burn his nighthowlers and we had to charge in, in case the smoke drifting into the Rainforest District could trigger savagery?"
He nodded his head slowly.
"I… Back at home, remembering where Kris was staying… I had this horrible image of a savage Kris trying to get to safety or something, banging against a glass wall. Scrabbling, trying to get in before falling. Ash on the other side helpless… Except, it wasn't really Ash and Kris, was it?" She turned, looking up to Carmelita. "That time… That Kozlov saw… -Sly Cooper, wasn't it, get gassed? You in a chamber. That was that image. It's just I didn't know who those mammals were so my brain filled in the blanks."
Carmelita nodded. "It was early in my career chasing Cooper. A new young thieving gang, that we soon learned came from a family with a legendary thieving pedigree going back generations. The next member now starting the rounds and following in his forebears pawsteps. I was sent to chase after him, starting back when I'd be putting him in a youth jail if I caught him. Alas, we could not tell where he would turn up, so I resorted to researching his past, his family's past, learning about it to try and predict his future." Her face grimaced.
"After the slaughter of his family, local authorities just thought it was a home invasion, not something bigger. So they did not report anything. By the time Interpol heard anything about it, he was a few years shy of ageing out of the system and those who knew about the Cooper's thought the dynasty was done." A slight growl came out of her muzzle. "We should have acted then, we should have acted right after the attack. Take him in, deprogram him, and…" She let out a sigh. "Either way, I learnt the details of who had attacked that night, where they were based… At least for four members. The fifth? We just had rumours, names, a conspiracy, gleaned from the darkest depths of the underworld. One mammal, one sentient reptile, bird, a gang, organisation? We did not know. And then, one day, Cooper broke into my office and went after my files. Took them out. I chased him. I did not know who he would go after first, in most cases I would arrive late, to clean up after he had cleaned up. Until, finally, we got to the final unknown member."
She looked over at Kozlov. "We had found some equipment at previous bases supplied by him, which we cross referenced and found some details on. There was only one place they could come from. The Krakarov volcano. The Cooper gang had the same idea, but this place being so remote and them limited to land and sea transport gave me the advantage. I got there first, I planned to investigate the fifth member and catch Cooper when he came." A frown grew across her muzzle. "Turned out I was the one to be captured. Used as bait in that trap. And after Cooper's hacker saved our lives we called a truce, working together to do what had to be done."
Judy nodded. "There were other images I saw too," she said. "You said this monster said it was hurt by the Cooper family, right?"
Kozlov snorted. "So it claims."
"I remember… I remember a raccoon…" she said, scratching her chin. "At Jack's performance." And then she paused, turning up to Nick, holding his paw as his furs stood on end. "I saw what Sizogo did that night too. I've just realised it. That date night before Kris was arrested. On the skytram, over the glade, seeing a blue spotlight casting up. I… I saw what looked like snow for a second, but it was ash. And… Hatchikoshima…" She looked down. "I didn't know why I said that, I just had a feeling…"
Nick just looked back, holding her paws, before turning to Kozlov, teeth bared. "You know I now get to hate you for putting her at such risk? Making her carry that thing…"
"-Nick?"
"Making her…"
"-It's okay Nick," she said.
"NO!" He said, turning to her, then back forward. "You tricked her into being bait. You tricked her into being at risk. Because that's why you fled, wasn't it? You feared mammals were after this thing, so you went back out to your friend to try and work on your own version of that Shock pistol. So if it happened again, you had the weapon you knew could help bring him down. -That's why you gave those plans to Skye, wasn't it? And others. But you were scared that mammals were watching you, so you secretly gave that haunted necklace to Judy so that if someone bombed your plane or something they wouldn't get it."
He looked back and shrugged, nodding. "Da."
Nick blinked a few times. "That's it? Da!"
He nodded. "Da."
"You…" Nick began, getting up and growling.
"Officer Wilde," Carmelita cut in, the todd snapping his head to her. "Please…"
"-Don't think I'm not angry at you too. Why didn't you tell us this? Why…"
"Because the more mammals know, the more dangerous it is," she yelled. "Imagine if this was all common knowledge. We are seeing what happens when one mammal, Rattigan, knows and tries to chase it. Imagine the world's governments, imagine every crook, every General. Do you know how many other Horcrux's are out there? We don't," she said, pointing at herself. "It's the same with paranormal activity. It's the same with time travel! We have to keep these things under wraps or we would face a whole new arms race!"
"Para…" Nick blinked. "-TIME TRAVEL!?"
Carmelita closed her eyes, breathing out. "Sí," she said. "That whole affair cost me my partner. BUT, before you say anything, just ask yourself this? Imagine if mammals like Dawn Bellwether knew that technology like that existed, huh? Imagine the damage they could do. Imagine what terrorists would be like if they learnt that there really is some form of life after death!"
"Imagine going back in time to warn Sizogo Orla what would come his way," Kozlov said.
"Sí," Carmelita agreed. "Sly and I got so incredibly lucky when we took him down… We didn't even realise it. But if one of those talismans regrows him… He'd be able to redesign himself so the shocks had no effect. I'm sure of it. Which is why this is so important, we must not let him come back, we must not let mammals like Rattigan play with these things. THOSE are the stakes we are playing with. And I am sorry that you two had to get involved in this. I am sorry that all of you got involved."
"I mean…" Po began to say. "I am scared. This is also really cool. And you don't think I will be there to help, as much as we can."
"Gracias," Carm said, "and maybe you will be more useful than we can imagine…" She looked over at the Panda King. "I don't know if Bentley ever told you… But we saw him, during our travels back… Sitting on the edge of where we were operating. Observing. Waiting…"
Kozlov turned to look at her. "Do you know why he wait so long to enact revenge against raccoon family? He had power to wipe out nations, to rule as god. For however long, but…"
"No," Carm said, shaking her head. "For all his talk of revenge, of hatred, against the Cooper line he didn't need to lift a talon to wipe them out. Just fly overhead and blast them like an assault helicopter. Or fly in and split them apart across the continents, or just burn their precious book and be done. But for thousands of years he watched, he waited, until on Sly's eight birthday he flew in and slaughtered Conner and Maya. With you…" She looked back at the Panda King, "and the three others as… I guess just witnesses. We can never trust him, but maybe we can learn from him. Or about him. Who or what created him… Or turned him into what he is now? Who knows, it might make all the difference."
"Da," Kozlov said, pausing. "Is what I have done… Are the mammals who died… Was it worth it? Was it enough to make difference?"
"If it weren't for you," she said, glancing up at the bear. "If it weren't for Jorin. I wouldn't be here today. And if you meet those you hurt again, in some way, I hope that I can be there. To let them know it all wasn't worthless."
Eyes squinting, the bear just took a breath in and out. His paw came up, pinching the corners of his eyes. "That… I could not ask to hear anything more. Anything better," he said, releasing his grip and lying back. He looked up at the canopy starting to rise up above, the trees and the mammals living in there. A faint smile grew across his muzzle.
"If you so wish," she said, looking up. "You can carry on this fight with us. You and Jorin, the information you gathered, what you saw… For those of us at Interpol, it would be indispensable."
"A wise mammal gave me words of good advice," he said, looking down. "That I do not have to keep on fight, to make it all worth it… But to teach, to share what I have learnt. To help the world of tomorrow that way. That sounds… Good. Da. Good. So mammals like Rattigan can be brought down before they betray the sacrifice of those who came before. Maybe even we can find and destroy all these talismans, bury Sizogo Orla forever."
"Who knows," Carm said, her ears going back. "How many more of them are there? Or other things he has left…" There was a pause before she turned back to Nick and Judy. "It is why I came to this city in the first place. We didn't know Rattigan was after this kind of stuff, he was just a cover, albeit one I hoped to see to the end. I came to Zootopia as we had learnt that an unusual item had been found in the city. Not one of these Talismans, something… I don't know what its purpose is. But it was built using the same kind of materials. His technology. Thankfully, it is in safe paws at the moment, awaiting transport back to Interpol headquarters for secure storage. I've even arranged for some powerful allies to come in and help provide any extra protection it might need. All while we have learnt what Rattigan is really after. Another terrible stroke of luck, I suppose." She let out a sigh. "At first, I hoped that little clerical investigation was all there would be to do with this. Keep all you mammals out of this, bag a bad guy. Easy, no fuss given. But it seems life is messy."
…
"Is it some owl shaped Sarcophagus?"
Carm looked back at Nick. "Huh?"
"-The thing you originally came here to secure. It's an odd owl styled fake sarcophagus, isn't it?"
The vixen blinked. "How did you…?"
"Foxy intuition," he said, before his paws came up to his face, wiping down his eyes. "Okay then… This is our reality now. Cuss…"
A light tipper-tatter began to hit the car, Carmelita flicking up the windscreen wipers as they began pushing through the rainforest district. "When we get back to the Precinct I'll inform Interpol. Get all of you signed up and briefed on all we know. Even though, I hope, we've come out ahead here."
Nick nodded. "Let's see. Let's see how the convoy mission goes." He paused, looking down as Judy's ears went up.
"Sí," Carmleita said. "Sí."
There was a long pause before Nick looked up at Kozlov. "So… Is Sizorgo Orla telling you anything right now?"
"Nyet," Kozlov waved off, pausing. "Though I guess it would be Sizogo Sova now."
As he did so a loud roar cut passed the car, a wolf on a chopper bike racing past. Carmelita hissed, swerving and slamming her paw on the wheel. "¡Gamberro!"
"That would be…" Judy began, as the blaring horn cut her off. "-Something owl, wouldn't it?"
"Da," he said, pausing. "Wait, did we not tell him?"
"Tell.." Carm blinked, pausing as she looked at him and back at Nick. All as another two biker wolves roared passed. The fox looked back, Carmelita blinking. "No, we must have missed him. Judy, tell him."
"Yes," the bunny said, freezing as she looked at Nick.
All as the fox looked back. "What?"
"Okay," she began, "please don't get mad…"
All as Carm turned to Kozlov and spoke. "And his name isn't Sizogo Orla or Sova…"
All as another pair of wolves on bikes raced passed, Nick turning back to face Judy. "Wait, I know. Carm's contacts got the Lang family as an escort, right?"
"You know his real name, right?" the polar bear asked Carmelita, suddenly looking on, entranced.
"N-no," Judy said to Nick in the back, an ear semaphoring down in confusion.
"Well I mean they're here, there's their Alpha," he replied, ears askew as a massive chopper bike rumbled up next to them, a white wolf in heavy feminine styled biker gear rolling up beside them, a pink bandanna covering her muzzle as she waved a paw in salute.
"Yes. It's not Sizogo Orla, or The Thunderbird," Carm said, not noticing the conversation in the back. "-or Keehar, Sovonochi, Izulu…"
"That's not…" Judy carried on.
"Then what is…" the fox began.
"His real name," Carmelita said, all ears turning for a second on her. "Is Clockwerk." And then she caught something out the corner of her vision and her eyes widened as the white wolf pulled down his bandanna to reveal a very male face, the strap of an eyepatch pulled across it. He pulled up a shotgun, and let loose a barrel right into their tire.