-Dead!-
Training in what some call a specialist position means that everyone will have a different story on how they went through the process.
Some would tell tales of how they had it the hardest, how they had to train in the rain in the middle of a blizzard on top of a mountain they had to climb up every day while dragging 100 pounds of equipment.
Then there are the ones who complain the whole time how their teacher was out to get them and every day was a kind of struggle.
If one were to ask Nick he would have probably said "It was a blast."
*Boom*
The mammals in BDUs standing at the edge of the field almost toppled over from the shockwave of the explosion they just witnessed.
Judy gritted her teeth and winced as her ears began to ring, her protective ear gear doing little to help thanks to her strong hearing.
"And that was just a pound," Skye yelled loudly as she removed her own protective ear coverings.
The snow-white vixen took a few steps forward and then turned to the trainees who all looked at the fox with respect.
"The bad news is that won't kill you instantly," Skye continued with her pep talk, a serious look coming over the muzzle.
"It won't, isn't that good?" Ember asked as she tilted her head, the painted dog looking at the small crater that was still smoking at the edge of the training range.
"I said instantly, I didn't say you would survive," Skye said with a sigh. "By the time a medic will get to you the chances of survival are low, and that's if they believe there aren't secondary devices. You may bleed out before anyone can get to you."
The new class of recruits was now in their second week of training.
Much to everyone's surprise, they had yet to meet an actual formal trainer when it came to the K9 operation group.
Every day they showed up at "The Playground" only to be told that no one would be coming or that management had forgotten to get anyone scheduled.
This didn't mean Judy, Nick, Ember, and Ace were left out though.
Ty had taken on the challenge without breaking a stride.
The old wolf who while retired from K9 obviously still knew his stuff and did his best to challenge the recruits as they continued to not only meet the wolf's standards but in most cases exceed them.
Each day it was some new type of unorthodox training that Judy had to admit she would have never thought of before.
There was the blindfold test in which the handlers and detectors would trade off running an obstacle course, one of them would be blindfolded and depend on instruction from their partner. This was meant to strengthen their bond but also to understand how each part of the team communicated.
While Nick liked to joke, his casual nature and way of talking kept Judy perfectly balanced on a beam that was a few feet off the ground.
Judy meanwhile gave rather descriptive directions as she guided Nick over a tire run part of the course, using precise orders that Nick seemed to oddly follow with ease.
The fox and bunny duo hadn't been the only ones excelling.
Ember and Ace seemed to be advancing just as quickly with their training, the painted dog and wolf worked well together and their bond was strengthening rather quickly.
It wasn't until the second week that Ty had managed to convince the higher-ups for some level of assistance.
Proper uniforms had been ordered and a rush on the new team's vehicles had been made.
That is where the boss's support had ended and where others had stepped up.
Ty had managed to convince Judy and Nick to reach out to their friends at the ZBI for help.
While the bosses thought this would have been a long shot it had paid off when Skye had shown up in her specialized transport truck filled to the brim with demo explosives and training aids.
Judy and Skye had immediately hit it off, the vixen sharing a sense of humor similar to Nick's though it was a little more….morbid.
When the snow white fox had arrived and began to unload the truck with boxes covered in warning labels someone had asked what would happen if Skye dropped a case.
"Well the drop wouldn't be the bad part, but let's just say if someone rear-ended me on the highway it wouldn't be my problem…I would just be a pile of dust, now city works would have a hell of a time rebuilding that block that's for sure."
Judy soon realized though that this was a common sense of humor shared among the explosive detection and disposal world.
While the ZPD joked on occasion they never breached the topic of death so casually, not like the K-9 unit that's for sure.
There was a clause each of them signed when they took the position though and it stated that they were free to back out at any time with no judgment or penalty.
After all, they were being trained to find explosives so no one would blame them.
The thought of what they were looking for had never really crossed the trainee's minds, that was until today.
"Alright now, who wants to see what Z4 can do?" Skye asked excitedly as she skipped back to her vehicle and opened another specialized crate.
The recruits all chuckled at how eager the vixen seemed to be as she toyed around with such volatile materials.
As Skye busied herself with preparing another demo Judy took a moment to rub the base of her ears, the ringing only now just subsiding.
"How are you holding up Carrots?" Nick asked as he looked down at his partner.
Judy sighed before glancing up, her heart skipping a beat at the sight of Nick in his new uniform.
Gone was the old ZPD blue patrol uniform, the fox was now dressed in the standard K-9 BDUs.
The fox however had still managed to make the uniform look casual, the long sleeves rolled up and showing off the russet fur of his form arms.
"Let's just say I hope we never find anything," The doe chuckled before a shadow came over her.
The doe's ears twitched and she turned to see Ty towering above her.
"Shhhhh," The wolf said quickly in a hushed tone. "We do not tempt the responder gods with that."
The bunny winced and gave their training an apologetic look, "Sorry Ty."
The wolf simply smirked before strolling towards Skye and her vehicle.
"So you don't just mess up on public speeches, interesting," Nick teased which earned him an annoyed slap on the stomach from Judy before the two shared a laugh.
Besides having an odd sense of humor the K-9 unit also seemed to have its own types of superstitions.
Most responders did mind you.
Some would believe that saying the "q word" would bring the wrath of the responder gods as back-to-back calls would suddenly fill the airwaves.
There was also the belief that one never mentioned what time they actually got off, if someone said they got off "exactly at 1600 hours" then you better believe a call for help would come in at 1559 which would then extend the shift by 4 hours.
The K-9 unit however had its own separate beliefs, one of which was never to guess about a call out loud, or imply they would never find something.
To say "everything will be fine" would surely jinx a team and that would lead them to a dangerous situation.
There was even a rumor that one team said over the radio "This is probably nothing" on their way to a call only to be caught in an explosion and well…
"Alright! All set!" Skye announced as she finished what she had been working on. "Who volunteers to take a walk with me?"
The recruits all turned to face the field and exchanged nervous looks.
Well everyone except Judy.
The doe stepped forward eagerly and raised a paw which was met with a smile by Skye who held up a small black case towards the doe.
"Let's go, Hopps," The vixen said as Judy scurried forward and used both paws to heft up the small black case.
The recruits had to help Skye walk the explosives down the field and were supposed to take turns escorting the vixen.
While Ty said it was s safety procedure as no device could actually be completed on the field until it was placed in a safe position Skye said it was so she could gossip with her new friends as she set up the "boom box".
The bunny and vixen strolled down the training range, several small craters were spread across the dirt field, showing where previous demos had been done.
"So enjoying the training?" Skye asked as she casually swung the small pouch in her own paws.
Judy beamed and nodded, holding the black case close to her chest.
"It's a lot to learn, thanks again for coming out and helping Skye, it's been-"
"If you say blast like Nick did when we walked I am gonna throw you in a hole," Skye teased which made Judy giggle.
"Sorry, he can be pretty bad sometimes," Judy admitted.
"Yeah, but not bad to look at that's for sure," Skye said with a sly smile.
Judy paused for just a moment, a pang of jealousy caused her stomach to knot.
She gave Skye a concerned look before smiling, doing her best to hide her jealousy before something odd happened.
"Ah ha!" The vixen declared as she stopped and pointed at the bunny. "You do like him!"
"Skye! Shut up!" Judy barked and began to wave her paw about, causing the black case to slip before the doe readjusted herself to get a better hold on it.
"Oh my gosh, I knew it. I was telling Jack the way you two look at each other," Skye continued to gush as the two began to stroll down the field once more.
Judy looked over her shoulder and was grateful that the other canines were busy chatting amongst themselves. Nick was standing by Ember, the two sharing a laugh as they watched a video on the painted dog's phone.
"Oh this is too good, and the little pet names too, how long have you two been dating?" Skye asked, her words coming out so quickly it felt like one long word.
"We aren't," Judy grumbled as the two continued down the training range.
"Ah…one of those situations.."
Judy sighed before glancing over her shoulder and then back at Skye.
"He doesn't want to risk our friendship," Judy admitted.
This was the first time she had spoken to anyone besides Nick about the relationship and where things stood, it felt almost therapeutic.
"I can respect that," Skye said with a pensive smirk. "I mean I still think it's stupid but can respect it."
"I do too, respect it I mean, he means so much to me and I would hate to force him, besides it would just get in the way of training..."
The two reached a spot that Skye deemed optimal for the next demo and the vixen took a knee as Judy placed the black case on the ground.
Skye placed the makeshift device she had constructed down before popping open the small black case. Inside were several small disks that were contained in special foam cutouts. Skye plucked one of the disks and then stuck it to the device before them.
The vixen turned to Judy and gave a thumbs-up before closing the case and standing up.
"So how did you even get into this line of work anyways?" Judy asked as they strolled back towards the others.
"You kitting me? I get to blow stuff up legally and get paid to do it? Wouldn't you jump at the opportunity?"
"No, I mean…well.." Judy looked the vixen up and down before Skye understood.
"How a fox like me ended up in a place like this?"
Judy gave Skye a bashful and smiled as the two continued down the range.
"Well unlike the ZPD the ZBI has been hiring mammals of all species for ages, Of course, they kind of kept that under wraps, very hush hush."
Judy smirked before speaking, "Maybe I should have gone federal instead."
The bunny had to admit this news was a little annoying, for the longest time she had thought that the ZPD was like other agencies when in fact they were just stubborn.
"Oh trust me the instant you get tired of this I know the bosses would scoop you up. I mean the bunny that solved the missing mammal case? You better believe the director still gives the senior agents crud about being outsmarted by a beat cop, no offense."
The doe and vixen reached the edge of the field, Skye continuing to her truck where she retrieved a small remote from a locked box in the back of her vehicle.
She then strolled over to the group of canines who began to put their ear protection on once more.
Skye paused for a moment as she stared at Judy and then glanced at Ty.
The vixen put a digit to her lips, signaling for Ty to remain quiet before looking back at Judy and holding out the remote control.
Judy's eyes went wide, none of the others had been allowed to even touch the remote but now it looked like the bunny was in for a special treat.
The doe glanced over at Nick who gave her a wink and then at Ember and Ace who feigned jealousy but then gave thumbs up nonetheless.
Judy quickly scooped up the remote and turned back to the field.
"Remember the safety protocol," Skye said as she put her ear protection in.
"Oh yeah because we are totally not breaking it right now," Ty laughed as he did the same.
Judy ensured her own ear protection was secured before she straightened up.
"Fire in the hole! Fire in the hole! Fire in the hole!"
Judy turned a key on the remote and then flipped a switch which-
*BOOM*
After Skye had turned the practice range into something that looked like the surface of the moon, the vixen busied herself with securing her explosives as the K9 teams strolled across the field.
Once they were in the center Ty explained how they weren't just getting paid to watch Skye rapidly dig holes. They were also being exposed to detonated explosive odor.
"Wouldn't it be a little late in the game if we were smelling all this?" Ace asked as he scanned the ground.
"In some cases yes but sometimes bomb makers will test their explosives, exposing themselves and their fur to a residue. So knowing these smells will help you identify mammals who have been exposed to explosive material," Ty explained.
"Would it helped if one of us rolled around in the dirt so we know what a bunny smells like covered in residue?" Nick asked with a raised paw which was quickly lowered thanks to a playful jab in the ribs by Judy.
Ty roared with laughter before grinning at Nick, "No, but think it would help if you got an extra close whiff."
"Oh gosh…" Nick groaned followed by Ace who glared at the fox.
"Detectors get low!" Ty barked.
Ace gave Nick a shove before he strolled to one of the craters and then got on all fours.
Nick grumbled as he did the same.
Judy had to admit that it was rather amusing how often Nick's sly comments would actually get him in trouble for once.
Ty had been rather creative when it came to his punishments which Judy thoroughly enjoyed.
This was also good practice though, exposing the detectors to the different odors at various levels helped them understand what they were sniffing for.
"Do we need to know what odors they are sniffing?" Ember asked as she glanced from Ace to Ty.
"Later, for now, we are just doing mass exposure. In fairness, you won't need to identify the odor by a specific explosive in the field. We just care that you find the damn things."
Judy smirked before glancing back at Nick, her cheeks warming as she stared at her partner's floofy tail.
Nick had been busy smelling the residue in the crater when he tensed up.
Judy's ears immediately went up as she stared at her partner.
The fox slowly stood up before turning to look at the others, a burnt pinecone in his paws.
"How in the world did that even get there?" Ember asked as she suddenly looked around for a tree that would have held the pinecone.
There was none.
After a week of getting to know their odors and team dynamics, it was time for the serious stuff.
Well, at least as serious as things could get with someone like Nick around.
The fox always seemed to find a way to wiggle in a little humor into even the most serious of moments.
That however was about to change…
The teams had been moved into scenarios, each pair would be responsible for clearing a series of rooms, looking for training aids that had been hidden in various furnished rooms.
Apparently, the rooms themselves were used by teams like TUSK or ERT during their own training which meant they were designed to look like many of the rooms they would respond to.
There were bedrooms, living rooms, office spaces, and even a garage setting where several cars were spread around a dimly lit parking area.
The training was easy enough, each team would move through the rooms, searching all the corners, containers, bookshelves, and anywhere else a device may be hidden.
While they had done great on the training field Ember and Ace were having trouble with searching rooms. On occasion, Ember would overlook a spot or Ace would have trouble detecting an odor in hard-to-reach spots.
"Remember you will be responding on the bad guy's turf sometimes, they will have time to plant traps and devices," Ty shouted for all to hear as Ace looked at the floor in embarrassment, having just missed a device that Ty had hidden in the ceiling atop a tile.
Nick and Judy however were excelling at rooms.
The two smaller mammals seemed to complement one another during their runs, both of them keeping a keen eye out for anything out of the ordinary.
Nick's history as a con mammal had come in handy during these scenarios. The fox seemed very verse in where the best place to hide things was and would normally pinpoint odors with ease.
The problem that Judy had learned a long time ago though was sometimes Nick's mouth would write checks his and Judy's tails would have to cash.
"Nice try old timer," Nick said as he strolled away from a hiding spot, having just found another training aid. "Can see why you're retired."
Judy put her paws on her hips and gave Nick a look which made the fox shrug but give the bunny a confident wink.
While the bunny was tempted to reprimand her partner he had just found another training aid, in fact, he had been able to find most of them with relative ease so his confidence was well earned.
The thing is in the K-9 world, confidence could get you killed…
The trainees were dismissed for lunch which they all enjoyed together.
Nick and Ace seemed to hit it off rather well but not nearly as much as Ember and Judy. The two females normally skipped ahead of their partners whenever they arrived at one of the local restaurants for lunch.
There would be gossip, snacking, and the occasional groan-inducing joke from Nick.
Today they had lunch at a sandwich shop where Nick got into an argument with Judy about how sandwiches would taste better on a stick.
They had offered to pick up something for lunch but the wolf said he would pass especially since he had a feeling by the end of the day no one would be wanting to buy him anything.
The cryptic answer from the old canine had Judy a little on edge during lunch but Nick had managed to calm the doe down with his normal charismatic demeanor.
When the group returned from their meal, full and happy from the delicious sandwiches, they were met by Ty who explained how they would be running more rooms.
"Just wanting me to ace more scenarios?" Nick asked with a wiggle of the brow.
Ty was about to speak before Judy stepped in, Nick's confidence rubbing off on the doe and getting the best of her.
"We got this Ty," The bunny said as she gave him a pat on the arm before joining her friend.
The old wolf closed his mouth and gave a shrug, deciding to just fold his arms and nod at the door that led into the series of rooms they had been using for training.
While confident, Nick and Judy still ran things as they had been trained.
Nick would check door seams before nodding to Judy and opening the door, glancing inside before stepping in to double-check the room.
Judy was always just a step behind Nick, occasionally stepping to the side so the fox could do a quick check or tapping her partner on the leg to get his attention to perform a sweep of something.
By the time they had finished the 3rd room the duo had still not found anything, this wasn't exactly strange as Ty would sometimes wait till the last set of rooms to hide something if he had hidden anything at all.
When Nick sniffed the air he gave the faintest wag of a tail as he took in an additional breath.
Judy raised her ears up, her expert hearing trying to see if she could pick anything up.
Oddly enough there was something, an odd shuffling noise from the other room.
Nick peered through the doorway and froze before proceeding inside.
Judy was right behind her fox when she noticed two things.
First Nick had taken a step to the side, his over-the-shoulder glance directed right at Judy.
Second….they weren't alone in the room.
Delta was standing on a desk that was right next to the doorway, a disappointed look on his muzzle as he glanced at Nick.
His brown eyes however fell on Judy as he raised his paw up.
Both Nick and Judy gave the painted dog a confused look as he made his paws into the shape of a gun, aiming it at Judy before saying a single word.
"Bang…"
Nick and Judy stood side by side in the room they had been "killed in".
Ty paced in front of the two, looking rather annoyed as he did his best to collect himself.
"You walked right into the room Wilde…"
"He is an old-" The fox began before being cut off by Ty who stepped right up to the fox, towering over the smaller canine.
"I told you to be ready for anything! When you go in it's just you and your partner! Trust no one else! You smelt the threat! You saw he was there! You didn't call him out and instead proceed into the room so your partner could get killed!"
Judy winced at the last part as she saw Nick's ears fall flat on his head.
"That's what can happen, Wilde! She could have been killed if this was live!"
"This is just training," Nick began which caused Ty to get a fire in his eyes.
"You treat training like you would out there hotshot! If you want to act like top dog then we will treat you like one!"
Nick was about to speak but a small gray paw grabbing his own black one silenced him.
The fox looked down at Judy and sighed before falling silent.
After a second or two Ty finally spoke.
"You two are dismissed for now, I need to run Ace and Ember again and then we will have another set of odors for you two."
Nick let out a sigh and trudged forward before Ty put a paw on his shoulder.
"Forgetting something?" The wolf growled.
Nick raised his brow before Delta finally spoke up, the painted dog having been standing in a corner of the room watching the chew-out session.
"Ty…. come on…they don't-"
"He will learn," Ty growled at the painted dog. "He will remember this day for the rest of his career and be a better K-9 for it."
"So what if he was cocky-?"
Ty turned to look at Delta who put his paws up in defense.
"Wh..what are you two talking about?" Judy asked, her ears raised up slightly.
"We have a tradition when you mess up like this," Ty said coldly as he looked at Judy, the slightest flash of sadness in his eyes. "As a reminder to never let it happen in the field."
Nick looked at Ty and raised a brow as the wolf stared down at the smaller predator.
"Your partner is dead," Ty began. "But she will not be left behind."
Outside of the training building, Ember was showing Ace her phone, a silly video playing that made the older wolf roll his eyes.
"I will never understand your generation," He grumbled before his ears flicked.
Ember detected something as well, her own circular ears twitching as she put her phone away.
The painted dog could tell it was probably Nick, judging from the size of the footsteps.
"So top dog, you two find-"
Ember fell silent as she put a paw to her muzzle.
Nick slowly trudged out of the training building, Judy slumped in his arms as he carried her.
The doe had her eyes closed, resisting the urge to let out a tear or two, she knew she had to be strong.
Nick on the other paw had a solemn look on his muzzle as he carried the limp bunny in his arms.
Ty came strolling out shortly after Nick and Judy, walking calmly up to the others.
"I want you two to remember this sight and use it for your own benefit, from now on if you fail the survivor if any has to carry out their fallen partner."
"Is she-" Ember began.
"A bruised ego but other than that she and Wilde will be alright," Ty said softly. "It may seem cruel now but every team has had to do this before, you two will most likely experience it as well but it is important to remember these feelings as they will keep you sharp and focused."
As the other two prepared for their run Nick carried Judy back to their squad car, opening the passenger side door with practiced ease.
Oddly enough this wasn't the first time the fox had to carry the bunny, especially after the doe had gotten into a few drinks.
Judy remained silent, unsure what she should say or do as she was set down in the passenger seat.
As Nick stood up Judy turned, her eyes shimmering as she figured out what to say.
Part of her wanted to chew the fox out for his smug behavior which had probably angered Ty into this, another part wanted to comfort him and remind him that she was ok, and then there was the part of her that wondered if this was all her-
It happened so quickly that Judy let out a surprised gasp.
Nick leaned down and immediately wrapped the bunny in his arms, holding her close as he buried his face into the side of her head.
Judy's ears immediately shot up in surprise but after a second they lowered before falling limping onto the fox's arms.
She closed her eyes as she wrapped her small arms around Nick, holding him close as she gently nuzzled into him.
"I'm sorry Carrots," Nick finally managed to whisper before pulling away slightly, his bright green eyes looking into hers.
"Its ok Slick," Judy said as she did something she had only done a pawful of times before.
She reached up and placed a small gray paw on Nick's cheek, gently rubbing his fur as she gave him a tender smile.
"But you are totally buying me lunch for the next week," The bunny whispered which caused Nick to roll his eyes and stand up.
"Really Carrots?"
"Least you can do," Judy said as she wiggled her nose.
Nick sighed as he looked down at the bunny who beamed back up at her partner.
"I didn't like that you know…" Nick sighed as he glanced back at the training building and then back at Judy.
"Sometimes we mess up and-"
"No not that," Nick said firmly. "Carrots you know more than anybody I can mess up… but to mess up so bad that you could…be…well…"
Judy felt her heart skip a beat as she put two and two together. What Nick said next though made the doe nearly jump out of her seat.
"I can't lose you Carrots," Nick said softly, looking at Judy with some hesitation. "I just…I couldn't go on if-"
"Hey," Judy said as she reached out and scooped up her partner's paw. "I am still here and always will be Nick. We had a bad day today but tomorrow we come back and rock it."
"I hope so…" Nick said with a sigh before continuing. "Because I am getting tired of carrying our team both figuratively and literally."
Inside the training rooms, Ember suddenly held up her paw and gave Ace a quick signal that caused the wolf to freeze.
Ty raised a brow in confusion as he looked at the younger canine.
"What's up, kid?" Ace asked as Ember's ears turned in the direction of the door.
"I just thought I heard someone shout out in pain."
After a second or two the others managed to pick up the faint sound of a commotion outside.
"Ah! Carrots easy! You are supposed to be dead remember! Ack! Ow, that's my hustling arm!"
Ty gave out a chuckle as he closed his eyes, enjoying the mental images of Nick getting put in his place by his small bunny partner.
"Hmm….guess someone should help him," Ace began before turning to the next door and sniffing the seems. "Not me though, I don't have a death wish… also why is Delta sitting in the next room?"
Hey all!
Wow, it has been a bit right? So I am sorry that I haven't been more active but been through so many life changes and events, as I am sure you all have been as well.
For those of you who don't know I am back in school getting my MBA while also working full time so my schedule gets very busy very quickly. However, I won't lie...I lost my drive for this story for a little bit. I tried to get typing again on it only to hit a wall every time. I think though with this chapter I have conquered that block and will hopefully be releasing more content soon.
In the meantime, I still have lots of silly stories out there like The 10-7 and Fireflies. Also on the archive site I have Trisha+ just starting so let's hope that snowballs into some silly fun for us all.
For those of you still messaging me know this I really appreciate it even if I don't get back to you. If any of you are on the ZNN discord don't hesitate to give me a shout :D
Till next time
-Blue