Arc 2- The Approaching Storm: Part 4- Pursuit
The last of the tranquilized predators lay safely restrained. Blissfully unconscious and handcuffed, secured in nets and with elastic bands around their jaws, the darted predators awaited pick-up by energency services.
Nick and Judy were breathing sighs of relief as the chaos finally died down.
"Well, Carrots, looks like the club just got cleaned," Nick said as he observed the afflicted mammals.
At that moment, a slow, deliberate clap echoed through the quieting streets of Mystic Spring Oasis. The sound was mocking, taunting—measured with the kind of smug confidence only one mammal could exude.
Nick turned, his ears flicking at the noise. Judy spun around as well, her paws already reaching for her tranquilizer gun.
Standing on a small outcrop of stone at the edge of the garden, silhouetted against the dimming sunset, was her—Dawn Bellwether. Arms folded, and a smirk painted across her woolly face.
"Bravo, officers" Bellwether said, her voice dripping with faux sweetness. "You did a super job taking down those savage predators. Perfect, even." She paused, then quivered with eager anticipation, "Of course, these were just the old pellets—nothing fancy yet. Just wait until clouds of Nighthowler gas start filling the streets!"
"Bellwether!" Judy growled, already taking a step forward, her entire body coiled like a spring. "You're going right back to prison where you belong!"
"Oh, Judy," Bellwether laughed softly, as if she found Judy's threat adorable. "You might want to save your energy. Because soon? Soon, the Nighthowler gas will be ready. And when that happens, nothing in this city will ever be the same."
Before Judy could reply, Bellwether jumped off of the outcrop and landed on the ground where, inexplicably, a motorcycle sat idling as if it had been waiting for her. The irony of the bizarre convenience caught the officers off-guard as Bellwether climbed onto the bike and took off.
"Nick! She's headed east! Get back to the cruiser and try to cut her off!" Judy shouted as she took off running after Bellwether
Nick was already moving toward the cruiser. "On it! Keep those eyes on her, Fluff!"
Judy's heart pounded as her legs carried her after Bellwether, channeling her species' natural speed to keep the motorcycle in ner sight. She knew she couldn't catch up to it on foot, but she could at least see where it was headed.
As Judy rounded a corner, she spotted a raccoon parking a sleek black motorcycle near the curb. Without hesitation, Judy skidded to a stop in front of him.
"ZPD!" she flashed her badge, panting. "I need this bike to capture a criminal—official police business!"
The raccoon blinked at her, wide-eyed. "Uh, sure! Yeah! Take it! Go!" He practically tossed the keys at her, the badge enough to quell any objections.
Judy jumped onto the motorcycle, revved the engine, and shot forward like a rocket.
The chase blasted through the streets of Zootopia like a storm. Bellwether's small figure hunched over the handlebars of her motorcycle as she weaved recklessly through traffic, horns blaring in her wake. Judy gritted her teeth, her ears flattened by the rushing wind as she pursued Bellwether, her focus razor-sharp. The motor roared beneath her, the vibrations rattling her paws as she pushed the bike to its limit. Her heightened rabbit reflexes and focus, both hypertrained by her time at the police academy, allowed her to move swiftly while avoiding the cars and pedestrians.
They tore through downtown—between taxi cabs, under construction scaffolding, and narrowly avoiding busses. At one point, Bellwether shot right in front of a speeding express bus as it crossed the intersection. Judy bit her lip, held back as the bus passed, and then zoomed behind it.
Bellwether pulled an impossibly sharp turn down a narrow alley, skimming so close to the walls that sparks flew from her tires. Judy followed without hesitation, the bike wobbling but holding steady as she mirrored Bellwether's path.
Ahead, Bellwether shot out the other end of the alley and through an intersection as the light turned red, cars screeching to a halt to avoid her. Judy saw her chance and twisted the throttle hard, taking advantage of the stopped cars.
"This is crazy. Where did she learn to drive like this? How? When?" Judy muttered to herself, adrenaline pumping through her veins.
The chase carried them into the outskirts of a panda neighborhood—bamboo trees and cozy lantern-lit shops whizzing past in a blur. Bellwether suddenly braked hard and turned sharply. Judy yanked her handlebars, braking just in time to avoid overshooting.
Bellwether's motorcycle slid sideways, and she dismounted and yetit crash into a produce stand. The sheep leaped onto a nearby rickshaw cart operated by a now terrified panda. She whipped out a small Nighthowler pellet gun, pointing it at him.
"Drive!" Bellwether shouted, her voice cracking with command. The panda, wide-eyed and shaking, grabbed the handlebars of the rickshaw and started pedaling as fast as his legs could carry him.
"Seriously? A rickshaw?" Judy huffed, revving her motorcycle again and speeding after them. With one paw on the throttle, she grabbed her radio with the other.
"Nick!" she called. "She's heading west through Panda Park! Be at the intersection on Blossom Street in two minutes—cut her off!"
"You got it, Carrots," Nick's voice crackled back. "I'll be there."
Judy smirked grimly, her confidence returning.
Eyes fixed on Bellwether's rickshaw as it bounced down the street, Judy zoomed off after it. It was downhhill, the panda was very big with longer strides, and fear was spurring him to move fast. At this rate, Judy couldn't close the gap without being reckless. Worse still, if Judy did manage to gain on them, Bellwether could simply shoot the panda and escape during the ensuing chaos.
Luckily, Judy spotted the long bamboo poles growing along the street up ahead. She grinned. Perfect.
Grabbing the pole in one quick motion as she sped past, Judy locked her focus on Bellwether's cart. At the last possible second, she gunned the throttle, then skidded the bike to a screeching stop. With all her strength, she jammed the bamboo pole into the ground right when the bike stopped, and vaulted high into the air.
Time seemed to slow.
Judy sailed over the street, the wind whistling in her ears. Below her, Bellwether's eyes widened in shock as she realized what was happening.
Judy landed hard on the front part of the rickshaw, the impact shaking the entire cart. The panda yelped, the sudden jolt sending Bellwether rocketing upward—her momentum flinging her into the air with a panicked bleat.
Across the intersection, Nick was parked with the cruiser's rear door open, a casual grin on his face as he watched Bellwether hurtle toward him. "Well, this worked out nicely."
Bellwether flailed through the air, wool puffing wildly, before landing with a thud right into the back seats. Nick grabbed her in one smooth motion, slapping a pair of cuffs around her hooves and snatching the Nighthowler gun from her.
"Gotcha," he quipped, grinning. "Mind keeping your hooves inside the vehicle at all times?"
Judy jogged up, panting slightly but grinning ear to ear. "Perfect timing, Slick."
"Like clockwork, Carrots," Nick replied smugly as Bellwether glared daggers at them both.
Judy glared back at Bellwether and said, "I hope this time you'll have the sense to stay in prison and take your punishment like an adult."
Judy slammed the door, and the two officers climbed into the cruiser. As they drove off, Judy leaned back in her seat, and said, "I did not expect to go on a highspeed motorcycle chase today."
"Another win for the good guys," Nick said cheerfully, steering the cruiser through the quieting streets, "Not to mention something to inspire the writers of the next Fast and Furryous sequel."
But in the backseat, Bellwether leaned back in her seat as well, a satisfied smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth in spite of the cuffs she was wearing. She didn't say a word, but her silence carried weight—a promise that the chaos wasn't over. Not by a long shot.