Infection

It was a somewhat peaceful day in the suburbs just on the edge of the Meadowlands District. With the children in school, the neighbourhood was quiet as the leaves were beginning to turn colour. A middle-aged wolf stared at the tree in his front yard with a slight haze over his vision. Basking in his living room, he didn't even notice the two ZPD officers that had just barged in.
"Sir, you are under arrest for possession and distribution of illicit substances," the bunny officer declared as she marched into his field of view.
The wolf lolled his head to the side and made a lazy grin.
"You're cute…" He answered with half-lidded eyes.
Judy wasn't amused by the comment and sounded her discontent.
"He's baked, Carrots," her fox partner concluded. "Just cuff him so we can search the place."
She agreed with Nick, the wolf's eyes were bloodshot from whatever it was that he was on and he didn't seem all that concerned about being busted. A quick cuffing and guidance to the patrol car was all it took to have the house emptied and ready for a preliminary search.

"So after we're done with this, wanna watch a movie at my place?" Nick offered as he was searching through the kitchen cupboards.
"Sounds nice," Judy replied from the bedroom. "What do you have in mind?"
"I was thinking 'Night of the Living Dead'."
"Ugh, Nick!" The bunny resounded in disgust. "Why on earth would you want to watch that old movie?"
"I'll have you know that it's a classic," he defended. "As to why? Because Halloween is just around the corner, and I'm in the mood for some horror flicks."
"October just began," Judy stated as she entered the kitchen. "We've still got an entire month before Halloween."
"That didn't stop the coffee shops from rolling out the pumpkin spice starting in September," the fox deadpanned.
"Whatever," she said as she rolled her eyes. "I've come up with nothing on my end, what about you?"
"Nada," Nick replied as he closed the last of the drawers. "My best guess would be in the basement, though."

Judy opened the door, revealing a staircase that led into darkness. No light-switch was found near the doorway, so she and her partner assumed that the control was downstairs. The steps creaked under her weight, as light as she was, betraying the age of the building. The air became more humid as the two descended into the basement, and the humming of machinery could be heard below.
"Hah, I knew it," Nick chuckled as they continued downward. "It's just like in the movies, the labs are always-"
With a loud snap the steps under his feet gave way, causing the fox to fall through. Judy whirled around at the commotion to find a glaring hole where her partner used to be.
"Nick!" She cried as she stepped closer to the hole. "Are you o-"
The remaining steps buckled and she fell in as well.

Her landing was softened by her partner, who groaned in discomfort. Dust and debris covered them both as she regained her wits.
"Sorry Nick," Judy apologized as she got off of him and helped him up. "Are you okay?"
The fox coughed amidst the dust that had become airborne.
"I could be better," he managed to reply. "More importantly, how are we getting out of this?"
The bunny shone her flashlight at her surroundings; they were in a small cupboard that was tucked underneath the staircase, shelves lined the walls with what looked like pots of dirt and a closed door led, presumably, into the main room of the basement. Looking up, the hole that they fell through stood a fair distance overhead.
"Even if I stand on your shoulders, I don't think I'll be able to grab the edge," Judy thought out loud.
"Which leaves the door," Nick finished.
She carefully tested the handle, and with a soft click the door opened.
"Just so you know, I was kind of hoping on having to break the door down," the fox commented as he left the cupboard.
"And risk having the whole building fall on us?" The bunny joked as she followed.
"Har har, Carrots," he retorted. "Now if you don't mind, I'm opening up a window for some fresh air."
While Nick made due on his commitment, Judy found the light switch. Flipping on the lights, the two officers were met with the elaborate setup that made up the laboratory.

…

Nick ran through his mental checklist for the third time that evening. He had the movie ready to go, the snacks were all set, and there was a good selection of drinks chilled in the fridge. All that was left was for Judy to show up with the pizza. It was like every other movie night that they planned together; so why was he feeling so flustered about this one?
The fox was about to check everything again when a knock rapped at his door. He rushed over and yanked the door open just as Judy made to knock for a second time. The bunny stood there, arm outstretched, stunned by the sudden appearance of her friend. Despite the smile Nick tried to give her, he was panting as if he had just run a marathon.
"Are you okay Nick?" She asked in concern.
"Why wouldn't I be?" He replied while regaining his composure. "Now are you going to stand there all night, or are you coming in?"
Judy gave him a smile and pushed the pizza box she was carrying into his paws. Picking up her overnight bag, she walked into the apartment while Nick took a peek at the pizza. It was a half-and-half between his favourite and hers; she knew him too well.
"So what are we watching?" The bunny asked as she jumped onto the couch.
"I thought I already told you. I've got 'Night of the Living Dead' all set up," he told her as he set the pizza down and sat by her side.

The two watched the dated horror movie with enthusiasm, chuckling at the poor acting and obvious visual effects. The pizza and snacks disappeared as the movie went on, and drowsiness started to settle in. As the credits finished their run and the TV went black, the fox and the bunny were sound asleep, the latter wrapped in the former's warm tail.

...

Judy woke up with her stomach angrily demanding for food. She instinctively tried to reach for the carrot chips, only to flop onto the carpet with the empty bowl flipping onto her head. Being a little more awake than a moment ago, she remembered how there was nothing left of the snacks from the night before. Not wanting to wake the still passed out fox, Judy made her way to the kitchen, hoping to find something to eat. The bunny opened the fridge, but was met with horrible smell of rotten vegetables and sour milk.
Had she not already had an empty stomach, Judy would've heaved right there. She closed the appliance as fast as possible and sighed in relief as the smell disappeared. Still hungry, the bunny scoured the rest of the kitchen for something edible, but it looked as if everything that could perish had. The bread had mold, the apples had flies, the cereal had become stale and the oatmeal had worms. The only item that seemed to have survived was a lone jar of peanut butter. So with a spoon in one paw and the jar in the other, Judy grumpily made her way back to the couch where Nick was still sleeping. She was going to have a serious talk with him when he woke up, after she had her fill of peanut butter.

With the jar half-empty, Judy set it down on the coffee table and leaned back into the couch. She still felt drowsy, but resented the idea of going back to sleep. And with her friend still knocked out, she fished out her phone to try and pass the time. She was more than surprised to find that over half-a-dozen messages had been left for her, even more so when she found out that they were all from her boss. Expecting the worst, she played the last message that Bogo left:
"Hopps! I don't know what's taking you and Wilde, but you two need to get down here, pronto!"
Judy was a bit confused as to why she and Nick had to be there, but from the chief's tone she could tell it was serious. The bunny took another look at the time when the message was made and almost freaked when she saw that it was over three hours old.
"Nick! Nick, wake up! We gotta go!" Judy said in a panic as she tried shaking him awake.
The fox groaned in discomfort from her antics.
"Carrots? What? What's going on?" He mumbled, half-awake.
"Bogo called and said that we both have to get to the precinct as soon as possible," the bunny explained as she tried to pull him off of the couch.
"What for? We're off-duty today," Nick replied, pulling his arm out of her grasp.
"I don't know, but it sounded important."
He groaned at the implication and brought himself upright, his fur out of place from having slept awkwardly.
"Fine. We'll go," he sighed. "Can I at least have a shower, though?"
"No time, his message was three hours ago!" The bunny answered as she rushed out the door.
"Oh, for the love of-"

…

In stark contrast to the day before, the skies of Zootopia were clouded and grey. On any other day this wouldn't have mattered to the duo as they ran through the streets to the precinct, but for some odd reason this tiny detail put them on edge. They remarked as well how empty the city felt to them; while they had been running for close to five minutes, they had yet to actually encounter another mammal on their way.
"Hey Carrots, do you get the feeling that something's off?" Nick managed to ask between breaths.
Judy didn't reply, but she agreed with Nick's assumption. Something was off about all of this. First Bogo's frantic message, and now the deserted streets of Zootopia.
The two finally made it to the subway station where a train was seemingly waiting for their arrival. Not a sound was heard except for the hurried steps of the fox and bunny. As they stepped inside, the doors closed shut and the vehicle lurched forward towards their destination.
Finally able to rest, Nick and Judy sat down to catch their breath. Looking down the train car, Judy took notice of the first mammal they had seen all day. A lone wildebeest stood holding onto one of the hanging handles, staring out the window as the lights of the tunnel rushed past. Judy nudged her friend and pointed to the solitary mammal, a fact that sent shivers up the fox's spine. Wildebeest traveled in herds, so why was this one all alone?
As if sensing their stares, the single wildebeest turned to look at the two, a sort of emptiness in his eyes. With a slowness to his step, he started walking towards his observers, and with each step a horrible odour started to tickle at their noses. As the wildebeest grew closer, Judy's heart began to race for a reason she couldn't understand. They weren't threatening in the least, so why was she feeling so afraid? When the wildebeest was close enough that it could reach out and touch her, it turned and walked out the open door of the car, as if it didn't even care for the fox or the bunny.
Judy sat there, stunned at what happened and only noticed after a moment that she had unconsciously huddled up against Nick in her fear. She looked around outside the car and noticed that they weren't moving anymore.
"I think this is our stop," she meekly said to her friend.
He nodded and led the way out of the car, her paw in his.

…

It felt uneasy walking into the precinct, only to be greeted by silence. Even on its most calm days, there was still some chatter in the background. But today was a completely different situation. The only sound that could be discerned was the low hum of the lights overhead.
At the front desk where a usually cheery Clawhauser would greet them, only a bowl of half-finished Lucky Chomps stood next to a box of the cereal. Nick resisted the urge of grabbing the bowl and scarfing its contents only because the entire display was creeping him out of his fur. The cheetah never left a bowl unfinished, so to see one on his desk without the fur ball in sight was a sign that there was something very wrong.
"Let's get to Bogo's office," Judy offered, enticing a quick nod from the fox.
As they made their way up the stairs, Nick could've sworn he heard skittering down the hall. But he kept his thoughts to himself; as Judy never said a word despite having better hearing than him. The fox followed her into the chief's office, and his unease lessened when he noticed that Bogo was in his chair behind his desk, just like any other day.
"Chief? You wanted to see us?" Judy asked as she walked up to his desk.
The hulking form of the buffalo didn't respond, he merely got up from his seat and slowly walked around his desk towards the bunny, the poor lighting of the room shrouded his face in darkness as he walked.
"Carrots, I've got a bad feeling about this," Nick whispered to his partner.
"Nick, not now," she hissed with a glare in his direction.
But the fox's intuition struck home as the chief called them out:
"Hopps… Wilde…" He rasped, sending chills up the duo's spines.
As they shifted their gaze to the towering figure of their boss, they slowly realized how gaunt the chief looked, how is posture stood crooked and how his eyes stared black and empty at the two. The small mammals slowly backed away as the figure that was Bogo made staggered steps towards them. Judy held herself close to Nick, her nose twitching in fear while the fox frantically reached out for the doorknob with a racing heart, clutching only air as they inched ever closer. When his paw felt the cold grasp of steel, he pulled the door open and dragged her with him out of the office, running down the hallway with no sense of where he was taking them.
"HOPPS!... WILDE!..."
They ran faster down the poorly lit hallways of the precinct, trying to get away from whatever it was that was following them. Nick checked a door every so often for a place to hide, but they were all locked. When they eventually found themselves in a dead-end, Nick begged for the door to open.
His paw slipped on the handle from the cold sweat that had collected, his breathing bordered on hyperventilation. As the sounds of a stampede started to roar behind him, his nerves started to tense up. His paw now dry he tried again at the handle; as it gave way and he pulled Judy inside with him.

Nick and Judy held their breaths in the janitor closet, the dull roar of many bodies shuffling around just beyond the door. They waited for what seemed like an eternity before the noise subsided, but they still held each other for what little comfort it made.
"What's going on?" Judy cried into her friend's fur. "Why is this happening?"
The fox couldn't answer, for as quick witted and as sly as he was, he had no answer for whatever it was that was happening outside. He simply held her closer, making them as small as possible.

…

"So are we just going to stay here forever?"
Judy's question hung in the stuffy closet air for a dull moment.
"I don't know, Fluff," Nick woefully answered. "We don't know how safe or unsafe it is out there."
The bunny sighed and hung her head. They had little hope of help for themselves, even if her phone had managed a signal from the small closet, was there even someone to call help for? She stifled a tear at what the thought implied.
"But if it's all the same to you," the fox stated as he got up. "I'm going to try and find something to eat."
At this, Judy immediately jumped up and blocked his way to the door.
"Are you crazy?" She gasped with gleaming eyes. "There's something dangerous out there and you want to go find food?"
He simply gave her a look of disappointment.
"Look Carrots, I'm starving and there's nothing edible in this damn closet. So I'm going out there and hopefully someone left something in the breakroom fridge before all of this happened!"
Her thoughts raced as she tried to figure out how far they were from there, but she couldn't piece it together. They had rushed away from Bogo's office in fear of what was out there; she had hardly paid attention to where they ended up. A paw on her shoulder pulled her out of her thoughts; she looked up at Nick who was sporting a grin of confidence.
"Don't worry, I won't be long."
He pushed past her and made his way out the door, carefully closing it behind him. She merely stayed there in the closet, helpless and alone. She fell to her knees in defeat. Of all the things she had prepared herself for, this was not one of them.

As Judy cradled herself on the closet floor, a ruckus outside caught her attention. Her thoughts went straight to Nick, fighting for his life from whatever creature was outside. Fearing for her friend, the bunny threw caution to the wind and barged out of the closet.
She followed the sounds of brawling down the hallways until she found the source. A mass of bodies dressed in torn police uniforms were gathered at a junction, she could discern groans and snarls coming from it but chief among the noises was Nick's wild cries as he threw punches at the throng.
"Nick!" Judy cried out as she threw herself into the fight.
"Carrots?" The fox replied in disbelief at the sound of her voice.
But this brief moment caught him unaware and a punch from a ghastly paw sent him reeling. No sooner had his balance become shaken was he piled upon by countless bodies, the fox disappeared as the bunny cried his name in desperation. She fought off the many creatures that surrounded her for as long as she could, but it was a hopeless fight. It didn't take long for weariness to settle in and her movements slowed because of it. A sickly paw grabbed her arm as she missed a punch and another grabbed at her leg. They pulled her into the sour odour that hung around the creatures as she tried to wriggle free. A moist hoof grabbed at her throat before a sharp pain bit into her neck. Judy felt her limbs go slack as darkness enveloped her vision.

…

Judy woke to the sounds of beeping at her side. As she blinked the sleep away from her eyes, she found herself in a hospital bed, hooked up to an IV drip. As the bunny look around the room she immediately took notice of the large buffalo sitting in the corner.
"Good morning, Hopps," Bogo greeted with his usual stern look. "Feeling better?"
She had no idea what to say, she simply opened and closed her mouth without a sound, her mind a jumble of questions at what had happened.
The chief got up from his seat and paced over to her side.
"Do you remember the drug lab that you and Wilde searched the other day?" He asked.
Judy nodded, recalling the beakers and pipes that had many liquids flowing through them.
"Do you remember the cupboard that you and Wilde fell into on your way down into the basement?"
She nodded again; the dirty air inside there was hard to forget.
"The forensics team had that cupboard analyzed and found that our wolf was growing a slow-acting psychotropic fungus in there," the chief explained. "He was then using his setup to concentrate the spores so that the effects were more immediate."
Bogo looked intently at Judy.
"Do you follow what I'm getting at Hopps?"
She bit her lip at the implication.
"You and Wilde were unknowingly exposed to those spores; your uniforms were completely covered in them. And it's no doubt that you two inhaled a good quantity of them as well. You were both delirious when you walked into the precinct. And we only managed to restrain you two after you had successfully knocked out a quarter of the staff."
The bunny shrank as he said it. She felt ashamed at the thought of hurting her co-workers through the haze a hallucination. She expected the chief to scold her for her actions, but she was met with a comforting hoof on her shoulder.
"And I wouldn't expect any less from Zootopia's finest."
She looked up to find the same stern look that he always had, now sporting a proud grin.
"Just don't make a habit out of it," he concluded.
She smiled and gave him a salute.
"I won't let you down, sir."

AN: And so, the festivities commence! I hope you enjoyed Nick and Judy's little "trip".