Chapter 19: Music Fright, Part 2

"Ooooh, no. Ooooh, mama..."

Poor Disco Bear was by himself and had no idea what was going on. Everything had happened so fast, and now after a great night of pulling the attention of countless ladies in the crowd, he was cowering under an overturned chair in the auditorium. He felt like he'd been there long enough and it was safe to go out.

"Mmmmph!"

What was that? He got up cautiously, fixed his afro, and searched for the location of the noise. It came from onstage. He was surprised to find Lumpy with his head stuck in the wall. Disco Bear strong armed him loose, turning frantic as he tried explaining the situation to Lumpy: the babes, his sexy vocals, the ugly thing in outdated clothes!

Lumpy didn't hear most of that, but got the picture on his own—literally. He spotted something small and square on the ground and picked it up; a photo. It was hard to tell but he began to recognize the features of his new friend that wasn't a girl moose. Disco Bear was pulling on his sleeve, trying to get him to move so they could get to safety.

Lumpy jerked his arm up so that the bear was hanging off the ground. "Is he here?" he demanded, holding the photo up. Disco Bear shook his head so hard his afro would've fallen off if it were fake.

Lumpy thought he made a connection then. Cuddles had mentioned a monster, so that must've been what had scared everyone off. If that were the case, he had to find his new friend before the monster got him!

He took off into the near-darkness, stumbling over chairs and discarded items. Disco Bear tried following him, but he wasn't in shape and the moose's longer legs got him out of there quick. By the time he'd made it to the foyer, Disco Bear was alone.

Annoyed, and heartbroken he couldn't finish his love songs for that night, he pulled out a cigar and lit it. He took a drag and exhaled somberly. He may as well stay there and wait for the others to come get him.

A little later…

"Hello! Hel-looooo!"

Lumpy crashed into a wall, shook off his daze, then turned and clotheslined over a fountain. He had been running around in the dark calling for his new friend and hoping he'd answer, but he only ended up drawing the wrong kind of attention. By the time he saw something rushing at him out of the dark, it was too late.

He was tackled backwards off his feet, rolling several times like a ball before someone roughly pinned his back to the wall. Lumpy saw fist swinging. He quickly jerked his head left-to-right and avoided a pair of mighty blows that demolished the wall behind him.

Splendid finally recognized Lumpy wasn't his target and stopped his attack. Even though the flying squirrel could see exceptionally well in the dark, he'd immediately mistaken Lumpy's tall frame for the monster's. Before Splendid could make a half-assed apology Lumpy snatched him up by the chest fur. "Have you seen him!?" the moose yelled, holding up the photo.

Splendid shrugged, darting his eyes innocently. He claimed he hadn't seen a Thing like that in his whole life. Lumpy groaned and carelessly tossed the squirrel over his shoulder before running off.

Oakie walked up to Disco Bear. "Hey…is it really true that only you can stop forest fires?" the human asked. The bear nonchalantly glanced over, then his eyes grew big as he looked up.

"Or no, wait," Oakie said thoughtfully. "Maybe it was me that could stop them."

With a scream Disco Bear jumped a mile, dropping his cigar. The human swiped him out of the air.

"Got you!" Oakie cried, squeezing him tight. "I can't believe it! You're real! You're warm! Can I pet you? You've got hair!? Can I pet your hair?!"

"NOOOOOOOO!" Disco Bear wailed, clawing to get away. It was like he was stuck in some demented bear trap.

A hallway over, Giggles stopped dead. She threw her hands over her mouth, horrified. Whatever was happening to Disco Bear had to have been nothing short of merciless, mind-crushing torture.

She gasped for air, glancing around, trying to figure out what to do. She couldn't just run—

No! Do something! Giggles thought ferociously. She steeled herself and rushed around the corner, too shocked to even scream. Disco Bear was being manhandled by that Thing. How dare it!

She took her bow off and undid it into a long length, then snatched the decorative stone from a nearby statue. She used her bow as a makeshift sling and hurtled the stone, fast and hard. That monster wouldn't know what hit it!

The stone clocked Disco Bear in the forehead and he slumped, unconscious. Giggles finally got a scream out.

"Hey!" Oakie noticed. "Hi, cutie! C'mere!"

As he dropped Disco Bear, Giggles screamed bloody murder and ran for her life.

"Idiot!"

"No, you're the idiot!"

As they bickered, Lifty and Shifty came to an intersection at the same time Flippy, Flaky, and Nutty did. The two raccoons jumped in surprise.

"Whaaaaat…?" Shifty groaned in annoyance, since the trio was eyeing them in suspicion. He folded his arms, claiming he hadn't stolen anything and then indicated that his brother was the one with the bag, not him.

Lifty hit him upside the head. "Idiot!"

"No, YOU ARE."

As they began to quarrel again Lifty set the bag down and something slipped out. Nutty gasped. It was one of his mallets. To their shock, a silvery instrument tumbled out next, followed by a little woodwind; Giggles' mellophone and Flaky's clarinet.

"A-hem!" Flaky cut in sharply, getting the twins' attentions, "Did you steal our instruments?!"

The brothers grinned at each other. Lifty kicked the bag. Before the three knew it, Toothy's entire drum set was tumbling out on the floor in front of them.

Lifty and Shifty shared a laugh, proud of their dexterity and unmatched skill, then realized they were outnumbered 3-to-2 and had very angry opponents.

"Oh-ho, you wanna rumble?" Shifty demanded, clenching his fists as he and his brother took battle stances. With a scowl Nutty pulled out his Candy Pistol; Flippy cracked his knuckles.

"AAAIIIIEEEE!"

The five of them jumped out of their fur. That had been Giggles screaming.

Unbeknownst to them, they weren't the only ones to hear her. In just a few moments Cuddles came dashing into view. When he caught sight of his friends (and the crooks) he took several large bounds, plopping down before them.

"Go to the practice area! The entrance to the attic is there!" Cuddles zipped behind his friends, giving them a thump in the back each. "Go—go—go!" he cried. Lifty and Shifty quickly packed up and followed the trio.

Meanwhile, Cuddles had already run off again, following Giggles' panicked voice around a corner.

"OOF!"

He crashed into her and they collapsed to the floor, stunned. The Thing rushed up on them, stopping to point at the rabbit. "You again!" it cried. "You must be my spirit animal!"

Cuddles scooped Giggles up, revved his legs, and put on a burst of speed. If he had been half a second slower the Thing would've had them both. But Cuddles knew he could outrun it again. And he did, leaving the monster yelling and crying about the unfairness of life behind them.

Giggles threw up her hands joyfully. "Thank you!" she cried, planting a big kiss on Cuddles' cheek.

The attic was getting quite full. Sniffles and Toothy let in the group of five and soon after that Splendid had returned, carrying a conscious but traumatized Disco Bear. They didn't have to wait long for Cuddles and Giggles to arrive.

Sniffles wasn't sure where the venue security guards had gone, but he assumed they'd rushed off to alert the authorities. He gathered his musician-friend group together in a hug, pleased. It looked like everyone was together again.

Flippy perked, hit with a realization. Lumpy wasn't there. He ducked out of the group hug and made his way towards the attic hatch.

"Hey, wait!" Cuddles was the next to catch onto the problem and hopped after him wondering if he wanted someone to come along, but Flippy shook his head. When he was about to open the hatch Sniffles suddenly grabbed him saying, "But—"

He backed off, holding his hands up upon seeing Flippy's harsh stare. Without another hitch the bear dropped down into the room they'd used for practice. As soon as he stepped out in the hall his fur stood on end and he shuddered violently. He scratched at his tingling palms, trying to keep his breathing steady. He had to focus.

Flippy bent over and put his nose to the ground. He knew what all of his friends generally smelled like, so that was how he was going to track Lumpy down—by scent. It was the best way since he didn't have good visuals and needed to move quickly. After a moment (and after a habitual, but useless glance around to see if anyone was watching) he allowed himself to drop down onto all fours and began moving at a trot, just like a bloodhound tracking a scent.

In general, walking on all fours was not an ordinary social practice. It was one of those things animals only did when they were on their lonesome (rarely, even then), or around one or two very trusted individuals. Some species of animals were more instinctively tempted to walk on all fours than others.

In the military, those animal types had to have specific training to completely smother the 'walking on fours' instinct, especially in situations where units may've felt threatened; abandoning bipedalism could've led to missions being compromised and most weapons were designed to be used while standing upright.

Flippy was unintentionally thinking in a lower gear than usual and his military training had fallen off to the wayside. He moved without a thought in his mind, solely listening to the information his nose and ears gave him. Something about that Thing had frazzled him into feeling strange, fearful. It was an unfamiliar creature, but for some reason he felt like he had to be afraid of it for reasons he didn't know.

Just from the way it smelled, he knew that it was not an animal. Its scent wasn't disgusting, it was just creepy, foreign, and unexplainable; was that what Fear itself smelled like?

The Thing's scent was also very potent and overpowered many other smells. Since it'd been running around the entire building like a manic, tracking anyone else's scent would be like finding a needle in a haystack at this point.

Flippy regretted it a little that he didn't have anyone else come with him, but he'd rather have the rest of his friends somewhere safe just in case something happened. At his core he wanted to run back and join them, but he knew how to push through his fears when he had a duty to fulfill. He wouldn't abandon Lumpy. Not again.

He thought back to that time where he and a few others had been on a rocket trying to fly off a deserted island. Sure, they'd desperately needed to escape, but there could've been other ways to do that other than tossing Lumpy out of the cockpit…right?

Then again, that was how they'd been written. Brainwashed. Those circumstances had been contrived. High tensions or no, shit had escalated way too quickly.

"Ha-choo!"

He sneezed over a dropped cigar in the foyer, and then paused at the entrance to the auditorium before cautiously slinking in. He climbed over object after object, careful about where he put his feet and using the isles' dim lights as a guide.

The stage's backlights were on but very dim. Flippy stood upright, staring hard for any movement. All it took was for him to recall when he'd seen that Thing rushing towards them from backstage and he slouched, clutching his chest. His heart was raring up again, and his instincts…

DANGER. DANGER. DANGER.

His instincts were going wild. He had to fight the urge to run harder than ever before. He heaved out thick, heavy breaths and sweat rolled down his face. The cloud of tension in his head was building up, ready to explode.

No!

Flippy slapped the sides of his head several times. He couldn't lose it now.

In fact he hadn't lost it in at least a week, ever since he and the Book had made their deal. Was that the longest he'd gone without flipping out? He felt like it was but couldn't be sure. Now, he was thinking that his violent personality was thrashing to get out after being restrained for so long.

Come on…

Keep…going…

…need to wait to get home…

…put… Blooey somewhere safe…

…lock myself in the basement…

…then maybe I can—let him out—

He crept up onstage, shuddering in fright, and froze. His ears were strained painfully hard and his nostrils were twitching feverishly. He didn't detect anything else around, so…he should have been safe.

Flippy slowly stalked to where Lumpy had been standing. The moose normally smelled like a mix of gristly meat, wood shavings, and Swiss cheese. He didn't get lucky. Between the Thing having been there and the chaotic stampede from earlier, he still couldn't pick up Lumpy's scent.

Oh, no…I need to find him, fast!

Not just for Lumpy's safety, but also because Flippy was really starting to get hungry. He was in full swing of his 'fall-winter munchies', and should've been home by now making something to eat. As he wandered the stage searching for any possible scent trails, he began daydreaming about what he wanted to make for dinner.

Tuna casserole would've been a great choice, but he didn't have spinach and he always liked spinach in his casseroles. Pizza? No, he'd had that the night before and wanted something new.

Lasagna was good, maybe! He hadn't made his cheesy beef lasagna in awhile.

Then for desert, what? A pie? Cookies?

Flippy heard a noise and jumped like a spooked cat, then realized it came from his middle. "Oh," he sighed. It was a good thing he wasn't undercover or else his stomach would've gotten him busted. He had to stop thinking about food, or at least focus in the present.

He wrinkled his nose in slight discontent. Right, there was that Thing's smell…there was that gritty, grimy back-alley odor Lifty and Shifty carried…Disco Bear's hairspray, and…his eyelids drooped a little.

Whatever perfume Flaky had put on smelled a lot like honey. He briefly got distracted and paced the spot where she'd been standing. After the Thing's scent, hers was easily the second strongest.

It was a little odd. He'd never known her to wear perfume, and it really seemed like she'd doused herself in it…

His belly started to grumble again. Then, right when he was in a hazy daydream, someone grabbed him by the shoulders. Flippy was yanked off his feet and crushed tight against something much bigger than him.

The Thing patted Flippy's head. "Oh, what? No afro. But you're still bear-shaped," it said. "Sounds like you need a few pic-a-nic baskets, little guy."

Flippy heard or felt nothing; his whole body was turning numb, and his mind was about to collapse into static. He actually embraced the change—maybe his other side could take care of this Thing and they could all go home.

Oakie never saw the blow coming.

"YOWCH!"

There was a flash of pain and then he could smell the blood trickling out of his nose. Of all of the injuries he'd gotten that night, that blow felt different and struck a visceral feeling within him. For the first time he had a moment of clarity.

What was he doing, tormenting these animals?

Whoa…whoa, whoa! It's like…enlightenment, Oakie realized, trying not to gag over his own blood. What was I doing? I—I just sort of snapped, like something had gotten into me! What happened?!

Wait, where's…

By process of elimination he realized that the little bear-thing he was holding had hit him somehow and fled. A bad feeling crept up on Oakie. He peered around in the dark, afraid.

"U-U-Uh…little…fella? Where are you?"

He was tackled in his already aching back, slamming down hard to his front and hitting his head on the stage floor. His glasses broke in two from the impact.

There was a bout of deep, dark laughter. Oakie suddenly felt like he couldn't breathe.

"I—I…" he gasped. "S-Sorry about—"

He was roughly kicked in the side once, twice, and with the third, rolled over onto his back. His assailant dropped onto his torso, snatched the collar of his shirt, and pulled him upright. Oakie had no chance of seeing who was attacking him.

Schliiiiink.

And he thought that sounded like a knife. A very, very large knife.

"Oh no, oh no no wait, pleas—"

He was slashed suddenly and violently, all the way from his shoulder down to his navel.

"Haw haw haw!" Flipqy laughed. Just to get his new toy to scream and writhe more he stabbed it repeatedly, not letting the tip of the blade sink past a quarter of an inch through its skin. It was kind of like riding a bucking horse, but ten times more hilarious.

A splash of blood hit him in the face and he licked it off, rolling the taste around in his mouth. This Thing had a repulsive scent, but its blood tasted rich and full. He would have more of it. Flipqy raised the knife over his head and let a stream of blood trickle in—his eyes widened, and his dark pupils pooled deeply. It was wonderful. The taste was intoxicating.

As Flipqy let his guard down Oakie took his chance and swung a fist wildly, connecting with the little bear's chin and knocking him away. Weak and terrified, Oakie patted around for his glasses. He was sure he could hear the bear licking his blood off the knife and felt like vomiting.

No, no, he didn't need his glasses! He needed his his Creep-Away Spray. Oakie furiously searched his pockets and in his panic, passed over it twice. Distantly he heard the knife clatter to the floor.

Without warning the bear pounced on him again, sinking two rows of sharp fangs into Oakie's arm. The human flailed crazily but Flipqy clung tight.

"ARGGGH!" Oakie fell awkwardly on his side and something in his pocket shifted. With another agonized groan he pulled the spray out and gassed his attacker right in the face. Within moments the pressure on his arm released.

Flipqy backed away, sneezing, trying to hack his lungs out. Then…

Thmp. The bear hit the stage, unconscious.

Oakie was already crying, but now it was with relief instead of just utter pain. He cradled himself, trying to find and stifle the worst of his injuries. It seemed like forever before he heard a familiar voice calling to him from the entrance to the auditorium.

"B-Big guy, help me, please!" he sobbed. "Something attacked me, I don't know what it was, it was so little and vicious!"

In the near-darkness Lumpy adamantly charged through every obstacle to get to that stage. He carefully supported Oakie and looked around shiftily, narrowing his eyes. "We need to get out of here before the monster shows up…" he muttered.

"It already did!"

Oakie had learned his lesson, though—he was never hugging anyone without their consent again. Not even little teddy bears.

"Unnghh…"

Flippy could see flashing lights through his closed eyelids. He sat up, confused and lightheaded from the weird scent in his nostrils. He licked his lips, startled. The taste in his mouth was wonderful, but…he patted himself down and started breathing shallowly. Yes, it was blood. It felt like his tuxedo was soaked in it.

And there was more blood on the stage. Dazed, Flippy followed his nose to a thick patch of it and, after a short pause, began lapping it up. It was so good. He felt like he could drink several gallons of it at once and still want more.

The auditorium doors were thrown open fully and the flashing red-and-blue lights spilled in, though not enough to reach where Flippy was onstage. The Mole was stood at the entrance, waving a few figures over. He seemed to be showing law enforcement in.

Flippy spotted his knife and swiped it up, staying low in the darkness as he crept backstage. His mouth was tingling.

That blood was too alien, in a good way—so he immediately knew it must've belonged to the Thing. He had to wonder how it got away, alive presumably. At least, with the police there, his friends should have been perfectly fine. But he wouldn't stick around looking like he was the perfect suspect in a murder investigation.

There was an enormous crowd in front of the music venue, and a good portion of it consisted of a media circus. He snuck out the back unnoticed.

The moon was smothered by clouds. Flippy avoided every single light source he could, swiftly darting home under the cover of darkness. The neighborhood was quiet. Either a very small percentage of animals had gone to sleep for the night or they were out getting into the music venue's drama.

To his great relief and surprise Lumpy was home, outside hanging up a few miscellaneous items on a clothesline. Flippy ducked low to avoid being seen and slipped into his house.

"Oooh," he uttered upon looking down, biting his knuckles. That was more blood than he thought, and no amount of washing would get it all out. He shrugged his clothes off until the only things he was wearing were his dog tags and then ran to grab a plastic bag. He almost tripped over Blooey as the puppy waddled out of the room, yawning.

He quickly tossed his bloody clothes in the trash. As he finished tying up the bag he stopped and thought. He hadn't committed any crime, right? Why was he so nervous? And where was that Thing now?

Blooey was trying to tear open the bag. Flippy wordlessly but gently reprimanded him before tossing the bag in the garage; he'd personally go throw it in the city dump tomorrow before the sun rose. Honestly, he was fighting the urge to dig the clothes out himself. He could've. No one was watching.

His stomach was aching for something. Flippy inhaled sharply, massaging his temples.

In the end, he calmly headed into the kitchen. He'd make his lasagna first and then think about other matters later.