/Prologue

The time was five minutes past midnight and the late night shifts at the Zootopia Police Head Quarters were already fully underway. While most Officers stayed at the Headquarters to undertake numerous tasks, some were sent on redeye patrols, to protect and serve all those inside the city under the soft azure glow of the starry night sky. This night, like many others, had proven to be appallingly dull so far, which came as a surprise to the police force due to summer starting only two short weeks ago. There was a high chance that some young animal still struggling with his existence would attempt something unintelligent. Most of the time these activities were pranks and shenanigans that were more of a nuisance than anything malicious. Unfortunately, much more serious crimes were committed and warranted a more severe punishment.

The Chief of the Police Headquarters for Zootopia was a large black panther with bright yellow pupils that glistened in low lighting. Many co-workers called him Chief, but those who knew him the best called him by his first name, Onyx. On this night, Onyx found himself staring at his computer's monitor while random information and reports flooded in from around the city. A dazed look had settled itself upon his face, barely blinking in the dimly lit room. Slowly, methodically, he brought the metallic mug of hot coffee he had made only moments ago to his lips. Gingerly, he took a sip of its contents and placed it down upon his desk, right of his computer. “Only seven more hours, then I can go home and sleep this horribly long day off.” Thought Onyx to himself as his free paw moved to place itself on top of the keyboard next to him.

The world gave way to darkness before he finally awoke to find himself with his head lying upon his desk, his phone ringing in a frenzied panic. Now looking up the clock next to him, he had managed to fall asleep for three hours and would have enjoyed even more if someone wouldn’t have interrupted his nap. “I don’t get paid enough for this.” He thought to himself before grabbing onto the phone and quickly speaking into it. “I am very busy tonight so make it quick.” With hardly a pause, an officer on the other end of the line spoke, he seemed to be in a panicked state.

“My apologies Chief but we have a situation down here in the Rainforest district that I thought you would want to know about immediately. We were attacked by a full family of Panthers who were taking shelter inside of their home. Thankfully there were no casualties and the hostile Panthers were incapacitated but there were injuries on both sides. Here is the thing though, inside of their home it appeared as if they were planning for something much bigger than just ambushing three police cars. We have recovered a map of the Rainforest District, upon it are markers and the name of each target they were apparently hunting. They were not only hunting Prey, but also Predators that are known to reside in this ecosystem. I am worried that there may be more groups such as this one in the other Ecosystems. Besides the map, we also found an insignia that shows a viper wrapping around the symbol for Zootopia, sinking its fangs into it. I have been in the force with you for a long time Chief, but something about this whole situation makes me quite uncomfortable.”

The Chief remained silent for a moment as he pictured the insignia, the symbol sounded familiar, was it the same one he had seen many years ago when out on a high risk assignment. “Bring the Insignia to me, I need to make sure of something before we move against this new threat.” The officer on the other end of the line quickly yelled at those behind him, telling them that they were heading back to the Headquarters. If the insignias did match exactly, and it turned out this threat had returned once more, they were going to need all the help they could get.

A couple hours later, the officer that had been talking to Chief Onyx walked up to the chief's private room and entered slowly to find Onyx waiting patiently for him to arrive. “Do you have the item I have requested?” asked Onyx, arms crossed over his chest. The officer, who turned out to be a rather small Rhino placed the insignia that was inside of a plastic bag in front of the Chief, watching him closely. Slowly closing his eyes and placing his left paw over his face with a sigh, Onyx’s right paw dug into the wood upon his desk. “I want you to keep this under wraps for the moment while I contact Raven Squad, if anyone finds out about this besides you and your officers I will have all your heads mounted on redwood and hung from the wall behind me, am I clear?”

The Rhino raised an eyebrow but quickly regained himself, nodding quickly at the Chief's words. “Yes sir, I will personally see to it that nothing about this gets out in anyway.” The room fell silent as Onyx placed his hands on the desk in front of him gently as if they had just finished a friendly conversation. “I wish to be alone now, leave me so I can prepare for our next move.” Without saying a word, the Rhino nodded his head and started to leave.

“Oh and Jenkins, I would like that map you found as well before Raven gets their dirty paws all over it.” Said the Chief before the Rhino named Jenkins nodded his head and then left Onyx’s room, shutting the office door behind him firmly. “Here we are again Onyx, calling out those unstable national guard members to do what they do best, let’s just hope they behave this time around.” Thought the Chief to himself before he reached for his phone once more. After picking up the phone, he quickly contacted Mayor Mosley and explained the situation to him. There was much to be done, and quite a few precautions had to be made that would affect the city until the threat was handled with.

Five Hours Later…

The early morning sun filled the lands of Zootopia with loving warmth that spread across all districts as the clear blue sky slowly faded in to existence leaving the calm, cool night behind it. Heading along the monorail tracks that had departed from the Police Academy two hours ago, the sleek designed monorail train cars continued at a high speed of one hundred and fifty miles per hour, heading towards it’s destination, the Zootope district to drop off the new group of Cadets. They had been ordered to take the Blue Line monorail to Zootopia, it would drop them off as close as possible to the Police Headquarters and save everyone a headache. The police commissioner wasn’t going to go down the road of having Cadets get lost in the massive city only to have them show up a couple hours late, he had made sure that was never going to happen to him again.

Inside of the luxury monorail train cars, one would find comfortable seats that reclined with other accommodations, a dining car, and a fantastic view. It was a great way to travel, most preferred it over flying. At the front monorail train, was the car that had the best view of the trains surroundings due to the many large windows that covered it. This is where one certain Cadet found himself this early morning, sitting in his own comfortable seat, watching the world around him change from Ecosystem to Ecosystem in an impressive display. The young fox was ecstatic about the fact that today, along with his fellow Cadets, they would all become Elite Officers for Zootopia and her surrounding lands. His seat was leaning back part way though he was fully awake, taking in all of his surroundings. He had managed to sleep for a little while, though that did not last long due to anticipation of what was going to come next.

Thankfully, the lights inside of the monorail train car flashed, a voice came over the speakers of the train telling them to remain seated until the train had come to a complete stop at the monorail station. “Finally, a three hour ride and we are here.” The young fox thought to himself, pushing a button on the side of his chair and moving it back to its upright position. When the train did finally come to a stop, all of the Cadets seemed to rush off of the train and found themselves ushered to a number of buses that waited for them. Some of the Cadets sighed, looking as if they wanted to get the day over with, others still had kept their excitement and positive attitude alive. Ten minutes, that is all it took for them to arrive at the Police Headquarters. Once more, they all found themselves quickly leaving their means of transportation though now instead of civilians waiting for them, merely one officer stood in front of them. The large, intimidating black Panther was none other than Onyx himself, eyeing all of the new officers that would be joining his department shortly.

“Form a neat and orderly line in front of me immediately, keep your mouths shut and remain at attention until I approve your application and we are done talking. Am I clear Cadets or shall we do this the hard way?” There was silence, followed by a “Yes Sir!” Onyx nodded his head in approval, “Very well, first in line, step forward and present your application for review.” The group of Cadets did exactly that, the first in line was Lance, how he had ended up first was beyond him but getting this over with was in his best interest. “Lance, Marble Fox, Male, blah blah blah I do not care…” he flipped the application onto its back and read the rest of the information to himself. “Alright, I am assigning you to Joseph, also known as Squad 66 for the last part of your training, go stand next to the armored vehicle, he is the tiger with black and white stripes you see standing next to it.” With a salute, Lance did as he was told, quickly making his over to Joseph who motioned for him to sit shotgun in the armored vehicle. “Next in line, step forward, quickly!”

Ralph awoke promptly to the sound of a buzzing alarm in his ear. A clock on a distant wall read 0200. Despite his nocturnal tendencies, the early-bird schedule had become almost natural after his time in the academy. Today, however, was quite different. Today, he would become more than a cadet. His eyes shone brightly at the thought, his stomach full of butterflies. Sitting alone in his bunk, Ralph's heart beat nervously in his chest. He took a deep breath to calm himself. Today, he thought, I can make a difference.

The Blue Line monorail departed from the academy around an hour later. Ralph took one last fleeting glance at the place he had called home for quite some time. As he entered the monorail, all his nervousness had left him. He confidently bounded up the steps into Blue Line, happy and hopeful. Immediately upon entry, he noticed the sharp contrast of the monorail with the Police Academy. Whereas the building was purely for functionality, the other had an air of luxury about it. He chose a seat next to a window, eager to view the regions he would protect as a full-fledged member of the ZPD. After completing his application, Ralph spent most of the time on the monorail observing. The beauty offered by each individual ecosystem was as awe-inspiring as everyone said it was. Ralph took this as encouragement to do the best job he could, to protect and serve all that he would see today and more.

After three hours of blissful enjoyment, the Blue Line monorail gently came to a stop. Lights and a sound over the PA simultaneously indicated their arrival. Ralph again glanced out to see the motion of Zootope. Far away he could see buildings taller than he ever had before. Ralph exited the monorail as quickly as possible, eager to observe more of the city on the way to the ZPD. He and the other cadets were separated into smaller groups, loaded on buses, and driven the short ten minutes from the station to headquarters.

Ralph exited the bus, immediately noticing the sole officer waiting several feet from the last step. Onyx, the panther was called, started just as the last cadet emerged from the buses. After finishing, the cadets responded "Yes sir!" in unison. The cadets stood single file, awaiting review from the chief. Ralph stood towards the front of the line. He noticed that he was of a height with most of those around him. After a short wait, it was his turn. He handed his application carefully to the chief. After a quite short review, Chief Onyx assigned him to Squad 66. Ralph saluted, then turned and headed over to his assigned squad. There he saw an armored vehicle, which he entered and awaited departure.

The morning sun's rays reflected upon the window of the ursine man, some of the light hitting him in the face, which made him crinkle his face reflexively and turn to the other side of his bed, facing the wall. His rest however was cut short when he woke to the constant shaking of his pillow. The bear groaned, trying to determine what was under his soft, plush pillow and why was it vibrating of all things? Using one of his paws to rub his face and the other to reach out to the object, he was surprised to see that the item was in fact his phone and the reason for it's vibration was to wake him up! With squinted eyes, the bear tried to look at the time on his phone only to regret it as he realized that today was that day. With sudden vigor, the ursine man quickly got out of his bed, not even making an effort to care about the mess he had just made. With as fast as his paws could he approached his kitchen and quickly searched the cabinets for a bowl and some cereal, while he could've easily made his own breakfast what was one to do during a rush hour? Getting the milk out of the fridge and pouring inside the bowl, the bear tried to eat and chew as fast as he could, his excitement and anxiety getting the best of him. Without even cleaning the table Zach quickly put the bowl in his sink and didn't even turn on the water. He shrugged to himself, saying that he would just clean the place up later. How later "later" would be was beyond anyone's imagination.

After making sure he was done prepping himself to make a good impression (Even brushing his teeth and fangs thrice for good measure), the bear looked once at his settlement, thinking and saying to himself, "I should REALLY clean this place up soon." before closing the door behind him, giddy for the adventures that await him. All of the cadets were ordered to to take the Blue Line monorail and upon entering the train, the ursine scoured for a good seat, it didn't matter whether or not it was a window one, just as long as he fit. Once he settled down, he took a good look at his surroundings, in the next few hours of his live, he's going to be working with the folks around him, and everyone sure was different. Big or small, it really didn't matter it all, what was really important was the fact that these animals are going to be his allies now.

Half of the time he spent in the monorail was thinking about how his new life was going to be, the other was being both excited and really, really nervous about the entire thing. The bear kept on thinking that he wouldn't be up to the standards of the ZPD or he'd probably be fired within the first week, he shook his head, trying to block out all the negative thoughts from his brain and just stay positive, after all, this was for his father, and mother too. The ursine had lost track of time and was surprised that within the time he spent thinking of improbable scenarios that would happen to him today, they were already at their destination. When he exited the monorail everything felt hot all of a sudden, the humidity of the area certainly was different than in Tundratown, Zach could almost swear he was sweating profusely underneath all of his thick fur. Suddenly, the idea of staying inside the monorail wouldn't be such a bad idea. But it seems their amazing adventures inside transportation vehicles wasn't done yet, now it was buses. Well, there was no use complaining so inside the bear went, his mixed emotions of excitement and fear getting the best of him.

After a good ten minute drive to the Police Headquarters, Zach exited the bus with awe in his face, he...No, they, were standing right front of the Police Headquarters itself! Right now he could just scream and die happy, but that would be inappropriate with the large, intimidating panther greeting all of them. As he explained the basics, the bear could hear his heart pounding fast, with his enthusiasm getting the best of him, when they all shouted "Yes Sir!", he did so with vigor and zeal. Right now everyone was in one big line waiting for their applications to be approved and when his turn came, he eagerly handed in his form with a huge smile on his face. Even though it looked like the panther was simply skimming through it, the bear was nonetheless scared at the prospect at the thought of him reading it, it was as if he felt like he didn't meet quality standards at all. With that done, he was assigned to Squad 66 and with a hop in his step, entered the vehicle.

It was already past midnight, Damascus was in his bedroom he most likely the only still currently awake at his families home, knowing tomorrow was the beginning, starting off as a fresh cadet going onto the Blue Line monorail going through Zootopia, all the way to police headquarters. His nerves were worse than they had ever been. The insurmountable task of going to sleep and getting a good rest before he went off to his brand new job, knowing that everything he had been working for came down to his application being accepted, nothing could be any harder at this moment. The lights in his room were already off, but he could see just perfectly fine in the dark anyway, laying on his bed unable to close his eyes tossing a rubber ball against the wall he was facing, bouncing back right into his paw. So he could repeat the process, throwing the ball again following the sudden buzzing of his phone that was right beside his bed, because it was his alarm. Making him stop immediately looking curiously at the phone and picking it up, hearing a personalized chime meaning that she must of messaged him, the rubber ball landing on his bare chest, and subsequently rolled off the bed onto the ground. Damascus checked with a slight smile to see what she sent him.


Damascus let out an short exhale, not even surprised that she nailed exactly what he was up too. She always seemingly able to read his mind. But those words which he read in her voice was pretty effective in calming him down. As he was able to set the phone down and no longer feeling anxious believing everything would be alright. Closing his eyes and quickly fell asleep.


Damascus was able to stay attentive and not look like he was sweating bullets, sitting properly in his seat waiting patiently on The Blue Line monorail as the hours were passing by as the train continued to approach ever closer to their destination. Occasionally looking outside the window behind him, seeing the bright sunny day, looking at all the scenery they were speeding through. The feeling was somewhat surreal, he would finally have the required job to make her strict parents to lighten up and she that he was a perfect choice for their daughter, plus the ecstatic look on Aurora's face when he mentioned that he wanted to become a officer like she was. The simplest thoughts that his girlfriend was waiting for him at the station made him able to put on pretty wide smile though that morning he called her to ask queries like how the captain and the other officers were like and her response was. Well...you'll find out soon enough. Which didn't exactly help, but he figured how bad could they really be?

Promptly interrupted by the train suddenly coming to a complete stop, realizing they had finally arrived. Though only to be all separated into smaller groups, as Damascus went into one of the buses heading straight to the headquarters. He left the bus quickly outstretching his arms some, glad he was finally not riding on something. The captain's orders almost took him by surprise, his ears shooting upwards. “Yes sir.” Damascus exclaimed, standing up as straight as possible and going into the line. Being around the middle of the line, rubbing the back of his neck some, being excited while waiting for his turn. Seeing how blase he was towards reading the applications, but keeping himself quiet while keeping his paws to his sides. Trying to ignore the other individual in front of him nervously swishing their poofy tail back and forth, constantly brushing up against him. Stepping forward every time someone else left the line. Damascus handed the chief the application with a smile. Awaiting further instructions, hearing that he was assigned to Squad 66, as he nodded his head and starting making his way towards his Squad seeing most of them were already inside an armored vehicle. Damascus got himself inside taking the nearest available seat sitting next to a brown bear, and strapping up to get ready to depart once more, just hoping that today would be a pleasant one.

Art got up early that morning, so he could try to be the first to get on the blue line monorail. He wasn't, he got up a bit late and was still adjusting his uniform on the train for about an hour. The hours seemed to fly by on the monorail, Art became absorbed in the brilliance of each and every ecosystem. He felt a small bubble in his stomach as he passed through Tundratown. Homesickness. His eyes shifted to the ground, and he huffed. He despised his memories of his childhood, but couldn't help loving Tundratown, his hometown. He closed his eyes and placed his hands on his chest. "Police work starts today." He murmured. Though he was exited, he was also a very nervous. He was afraid he was going to screw up, big time.

The monorail train sprung to a halt, and he opened an eye. This was his stop. He pushed himself up, off his seat, and he shuffled to his bus. He recognised some of the people from training, some of them were new to him. 'Yeah, not as good as the train.' He thought. 'Nowhere near as good as the train. Maybe I should travel by blue line monorail? No, that's crazy Art!' He was a bit off balance when he got off the bus, and all of his excitement was soon quenched as he saw the headquarters of the ZPD. Just anxiety remained. He was insanely afraid of screwing up on his first day. He stood in line with the others, yelled "Yes sir!" When neccesary, and handed in his application form, trying to pretend he was as cool as a cucumber in a freezer. He nodded dutifully as he was assigned to Squad 66, making his way to the armoured vehicle. The rest of the squad were already there, so he sat down next to a raccoon. 'Gosh, we look like a real motley crew don't we?' He thought. 'This should be real fun. Yeah, real fun.'

Glancing about, Onyx narrowed his eyes and mentally took note of each Cadet, which squad they were currently part of, and their associated application. Now pacing back and forth between the four squads with a heavy step, the Chief crossed his arms over his chest and spoke in a loud, insensitive voice. “You are not officers yet, so do not think you are not in danger of still failing. Do exactly what your squad leader says to the exact letter, do not deviate from the course and you will do fine, hopefully.” Without saying another word, Onyx turned his back and walked into the Police Headquarters, letting the door close behind him. There was a moment of silence from everyone as they let what Onyx had just said slowly sink in. The sounds of heavy diesel engines powering on roared through the area, three other armored vehicles painted in Police digital camouflage drove past Squad 66’s armored vehicle. Each armored vehicle pulled off and went in a separate way from the other, most likely heading to a different Ecosystem.

Squad 66 was the last to pull out, they seemed to be heading for the city center, instead of an Ecosystem like the others. “First thing is first, the vehicle we are inside of is called a Lenco BearCat, which stands for Ballistic Engineered Armored Response Counter Attack Truck. There are quite a few variants of this vehicle which mostly the military gets to see and use. If we want, we can mount a weapon on top of it, there are slots for side port weapons and its top speed is one hundred miles per hour or one hundred and sixty kilometers per hour, depending on where you grew up.” The tiger named Joseph reached with his right paw towards the dashboard and grabbed onto his MP3 player, readjusting it so he could see its screen clearly without any glare. After placing it where it should have been in the first place, he scrolled through a massive list of songs until he found the one he was looking for.


(Music he is playing in the BearCat.)

“That is what I was looking for, no offense Cadets but I need some music when riding around with the new recruits, long story I rather not get into. Keep an eye out for anything suspicious, not that we are going to see anything of the sort, I hope.” Joseph kept his eyes on the road and would remain silent while they drove through the busiest part of the city. The rock music filled the BearCat as they kept driving, passing species of all types and sizes. Much to Lance’s surprise, they attracted very little attention besides a couple civilians that turned to look in their direction then went on with their day. It felt as if the sight of a heavily armored police vehicle driving through the city was nothing new for its occupants to see. He had been in such a trance of thought that he had failed to notice the female fox sit down and buckle herself in right beside him. At first, he remained silent, sitting up straight in his seat with his arms crossed over his chest.

Everyone in his squad was a different species, everyone but the female fox that sat next to him. Instead of saying hello directly to her, he decided to introduce himself to everyone in the squad. Putting on his silver glazed aviator glasses, he quickly broke the silence. “Hello everyone, my name is Lance Arion, you can call me Lance, and I am looking forward to working with all of you and making new friendships.” Lance felt his heart race in his chest, making his breaths come and go faster than usual. A couple moments later, the BearCats police radio came to life, none other than Onyx who spoke in his same, cold tone of voice. “Joseph, we have had a situation with squad 36, I am calling back all Cadets to the Headquarters. Raven Squad has arrived and they will be taking care of the situation at hand. How copy, over?” Joseph, took a very sharp turn to the left which made Lance grab onto his seat belt straps to keep himself from bumping into someone either on his left or on his right.

“Sorry Cadets, change of plans, seems like things are moving faster than we had anticipated. A word of advice, since you are new here and do not understand how things work, don’t ask too many questions and stay away from Raven squad, they are special operation soldiers from the military. Absolutely irresponsible and gun happy, I have seen them flip a helicopter in midair while above a heavily occupied city square. The helicopter was also fully armed and carrying a wounded VIP. Somehow they managed to land the helicopter at its designated location with the rear rotor broken off. The VIP was secured and the mission was passed with flying colors. As impressive as it was, they are very reckless, do not get involved with them or the chief will be extremely upset.” It did not take long for them to return to the Headquarters, all but one of the BearCats were there.

“Hey, weren’t there four Bearcats? Only three have shown up here, including ours.” Joseph was quick to respond, “There was an incident, we have Raven squad on the move to take care of it and bring them back, nothing to worry your heads about, now get out of my Bearcat and wait for me inside of the Headquarters.” The tiger left the Bearcat and quickly made his way into the Headquarters, not waiting for anyone else to leave the vehicle. “What’s his rush? Come on, let’s move.” Unlatching his seatbelt, he stood up and opened the large doors on the back of the vehicle. “I think we should hustle it and do what our squad leader says.” Lance glanced around at his squad mates, his eyes falling upon the female fox. Quickly, he broke eye contact with her and looked in the direction of the Police Headquarters.

A new dawn.

A fresh shirt. Navy blue pants. Newly shined boots.

Lee straightened the baker boy hat he always wore and tapped its brim. A small smirk graced his light, silver spattered face.

With a single bag packed for the extended stay at the ZPD academy, the graced wolf known as Lee Christmas nodded to himself in the mirror and left his apartment.

Not a few hours later and he stood in line as Chief Onyx, a particularly menacing black panther, handed them their allocations. He and several other cadets were tagged to the large orange tiger called Joseph. Quickly they were introduced to their vehicle, a Bearcat as it were, a heavily armoured assault vehicle, and off they went. Scenic tour of Zootopia by the boys in blue, as his customers were wont to refer to them as. Not really paying attention to anyone, Lee rested his chin on a paw and stared out the window slats, hat low over his face.

Then the radio burst to life. The cadets were to return to ZPD HQ? Something about an emergency? Raven squad? Lee didn't understand much of the police jargon the tiger spouted, but he understood a serious situation when he saw one. As the vehicle screeched to a stop, he followed the marble fox out and idly chewed on a toothpick. He looked back at the truck and shrugged, opting instead to stick close to the lithe white fox.

"Name's Christmas, and I'd listen to the fox, chaps."

Art felt quiet confined in the BearCat, it was tight in there, his only comfort was another wolf in there. He looked nice enough. His eyes darted around the BearCat, and he quickly made mental notes of each other Cadet in the squad. The boss' nervousness about being in a BearCat with new cadets and no music seemed a bit weird. All of the group seemed a bit weird to Art. They were mainly predators, so that was good. It would inspire a bit more fear in the public than, say, a bunny or sheep cop. How could they make a difference in life? How could you have your voice heard if you were that small? You couldn't. I was just impossible, so a team composed mainly predators was good.

He rolled his eyes slightly when Lance introduced himself. When the BearCat turned around, Art glanced at Lance and joked, "What's with the glasses, solider. It's day time isn't it? The name's Wulfstan. Art Wulfstan. Word to the wise, never EVER call me Arthur, you cool with that? Nice." He cooly nodded to the team and turned to the window. He decided he wouldn't play nice with the team if he didn't trust them. It was perfect howling weather outside, and he started getting urges to howl. He just about managed to restrain himself, his ears twitched as a result. Very embarrassing. It didn't take long to get to Headquartes, and he unstated himself and walked over to Lance and the other wolf. "I'm with those guys. An orders an order."

The moment Zach entered the vehicle he began to take it all in, this is it, he's really doing it! His father would be so proud of him right now, and he could only hope his mother was the same. In the vehicle, he took note of the others that were in his squad, let's see...There's two foxes, two wolves, a raccoon, a panther, a puma, and a bear. Quite the mixed bowl they had here, mostly consists of predators though, he was a bit disappointed, looking forward to seeing the little guys stand up what with the recent events having transpired about that fox and that rabbit, but he shrugged about it and thought to himself that beggars couldn't be choosers. The little trip was going along smoothly, with their tiger driver explaining the very vehicle they were riding right now, intently, the bear listened. It sounded like a toy that was supposed to be accompanied by action figures to be honest, but undeniably cool when you thought about it. He blasted out some music that was, frankly, not the bear's jam. Still, it was pretty solid, just not something he'd listen to during a rainy day.

The inside of the vehicle was quiet for a moment, save for the music resounding throughout the car. Suddenly, the ice was broken when a fox introduced himself as Lance, the wolf made a little quip about his sunglasses, making the bear snicker lightly. The chap was named Art Wulfstan, warning the others to never refer to him as "Arthur", the ursine scratched behind his back and could only wonder why. Now probably wasn't the best time to ask however, who knows what it'd lead to. Since two of them were going to do it, what was stopping Zach from introducing himself as well? First impressions are always a good way to make friends, but just when he was going to speak up, the radio suddenly came to life, postponing introductions for now. Something about the Raven Squad? The vehicle made a sharp turn and Zach tried to hold on to something to avoid any casualties.

When Joseph explained to them that their little field trip had to be cancelled, the bear was filled with disappointment, to which he could only sigh at. The feline gave them more exposition about the Raven squad and quite frankly, they seemed like the type of people the bear would hang around with, but the mentions of the gun part and helicopter, while cool, was definitely life-threatening and he could agree that maybe staying away from them would be for the best. It wasn't long before all of them had to get out of the vehicle, earnestly, he followed all of them outside.

Damascus sat in the armored vehicle as it continued to drive. He was keeping quiet most of the ride there. With some of his nerves returning, causing him to shift in seat some, his back was slightly aching from all the sitting he had been doing today. Looking down at the ground at his feet, trying to pay attention to all the sounds around him, since he couldn't really see too well outside, not that it really mattered either way. Though the incredibly loud music that was turned on, drowning out any attempt to focus. Which he found kind of obnoxious, but remaining silent. He wouldn't chastise his superior after all, his girlfriend would probably kill him. Growing a little restless, sitting close to so many strangers for so long. Damascus preferred being alone in most situations, being surrounded by people he didn't know was a particular experience he never really enjoyed. But he simultaneously realized this was his Squad. So he'd probably be spending a consider amount of time with them. Plus his girlfriend would more than likely get on his case, if he acted unfriendly towards his fellow colleges. So after one the cadets, a wolf, introduced himself saying his full name and greeted the rest of them. Damascus looked upward trying to smile politely. “You can all call me Damien.” He responded doing his best to not make it sound like a demand. Knowing if anyone called him by his actual name he'd probably do something he would later regret and the last thing he wanted to do was get himself into trouble on his first day.

Damascus looked down and just waited for them to arrive. To him the faster they could get out of here, the better. Not paying attention to his surroundings very well, as he instead was thinking of what he would say to his girlfriend. Trying to think a good joke to make her laugh, hearing some more voices chattering. But didn't really listen what others where saying, not purposefully, he was simply letting himself get too easily distracted. Which as soon as he felt the vehicle no longer moving, he looked up to suddenly notice officers were already leaving outside. With the doors in the back of the vehicle wide open, cursing inaudibly under his breath and quickly unstrapping himself. Damascus followed their exit, hopping out and heading to police headquarters. Seeing how massive the building was, deciding it would be best to just behave like he didn't miss a single thing. Though judging by how fast they must have been going, seeing how far away some of the others were. He had a feeling something serious was taking place, picking up his pace to avoid being left behind and since he was a generally fast runner, he caught up pretty quickly to the rest of them.

Ralph watched as the ZPD was blocked from sight by surrounding buildings as the "BEARCAT" began driving. Joseph, Squad 66's leader, ran through the basic info on the vehicle while maneuvering down the streets skillfully. As large and heavy as the BEARCAT was, Ralph wondered just how hard that feat was. The thought was soon forgotten, as once again his eyes transfixed on the passing scenery as his XO continued with the spiel on the armored truck's capabilities. Of course, by that point, Ralph's attention was once again transfixed on the passing scenery.

As Ralph had predicted, the ZPD lay in the busiest part of downtown, acting as a central hub along with other governmental buildings and the like. The size alone was daunting. The largest buildings in the ghetto Ralph came from were dwarfed by the smallest of the construction he saw as the BEARCAT rumbled on down the streets. As Ralph thought contemplating size, he realized that most of his fellow squad members dwarfed him as well. Perhaps the only qualifications to that were the two foxes, who were approximately Ralph's own height. Though perhaps worrisome to others, Ralph felt there was little significance in this. As it happened, Ralph had spent most of his time in the Academy besting cadets bigger than him, since often they offered the only real challenge. Still, it was safe to assume that at least a few of his squad-mates would immediately doubt his capabilities based solely on size. Let them, then, he thought. There would be another time for proving himself.

He surveyed his team one last time -a pair of tigers, a pair of foxes, a bear, wolf, panther, puma, and himself. Of everyone in the BEARCAT, Ralph was the only possible candidate for 'prey'. Again, he took this observation as his first challenge as a member of the ZPD. If they all had the common 'scavenger' misconception of him, he would be the one to show them otherwise. A modest start to changing the world, Ralph thought, but not meaningless.

At that moment, the XO finished talking, reached for an mp3 lying close by, and proceeded to bless the journey with a Thorogood classic. At least his taste in music is decent, thought the raccoon as his head began to nod to the beat ever so slightly. The BEARCAT continued through the streets, passing all manner of citizens hustling through their daily routines. Ralph had never seen such diversity in all his life. The novelty of the whole situation made him grin inwardly. Ralph noticed that any nervousness he had felt previously had transformed into happiness. In the midst of this, the fox in the front seat of the truck introduced himself as Lance, which was followed by a few other introductions. Ralph figured he might as well chime in. "I'm Ralph. Look forward to working with you all." he said simply, loudly enough for everyone to hear over the music.

Ralph leaned back, wondering where his first assignment would be, as the CO came in over the radio. Ralph's ears perked quizzically. Apparently he wouldn't learn his designated assignment until later. A full recall to the station? He knew then that something must be wrong. Ralph pressed away from the door as the BEARCAT swerved sharply to keep himself from flying one way or another. Joseph mentioned something about Raven Squad, the supposed special unit of the ZPD. Landing without a tail rotor? Ralph thought. Sounds...impossible.

The ride back to the ZPD was quicker than the first trip, indicating Joseph's haste to get back. Must've been something big. Ralph hoped he was wrong, but the missing BEARCAT at the station probably meant otherwise. After exiting the vehicle, Ralph walked with the others to the ZPD, eager to finally enter the building.

Taking a step into the Police Headquarters, Lance glanced down at the large plaque that had been placed into the white and black marble floor beneath his feet. A torrent of cold air from came from the air conditioning vent on the ceiling above them, rustling part of his fur before the door shut behind him, promptly turning it off. The interior of the Zootopia Police Headquarters was even more impressive than the pictures he had seen of it, no expenses were spared when it had been created. Glancing down at the large bronze plaque beneath his feet, he noticed there were in fact words written upon it. “Ever vigilant, the Zootopia Police Headquarters has its officers working day and night to ensure the safety and quality of life for the populous of the city. Our motto is to protect and serve.” Lance read the words to his squad. He had seen the motto back at the academy, on a large wall written in bold black letters that were quite difficult to miss. "You all saw that motto back at the Academy, right? I knew they were going to have it plastered somewhere inside of the Headquarters here."

The floor of the Police Headquarters was extremely active, officers went their own way, carrying out their daily tasks and assignments, doing their job with impressive efficiency and expertise. It took a moment for Lance to locate their squad leader who was leaning next to a large spiral staircase that lead to the second story. As soon as Joseph saw his squad, he motioned for them to join him and started to walk up the stairs. “Chief Onyx has called a briefing for all of us inside of the conference room, I rather not keep him waiting.” Lance did his best to keep us with the fast paced tiger as he sprinted up the stairs and then walked down the hallway to his left. “I was...er we...were wondering, when will we finish outlast part of training? It seems we managed to….” Joseph glared down at Lance, quickly shutting him up. The fox could take a hint, so he kept his mouth shut and followed quietly until finally arriving at the large conference room.

Walking inside, Lance noticed that all but the missing squad and his own were sitting in comfortable chairs, waiting for the Chief to show up. Picking out a seat for himself, Lance quickly sat down and crossed his arms over his chest. Everyone inside of the room was talking to their squad mates to discuss what had just happened. Though, when Chief Onyx walked in, the room fell silent and waited for him to speak. Walking over to the podium, Onyx coughed lightly and looked around the room before speaking. “As all of you now know, we had a situation while all of you were in route to receive your final part of training. We had squad 36 fall prey to an ambush set up by who we assume is Raddik and his forces. We have a number of possible locations as to where the squad is being held hostage and we need officers to investigate the two locations as soon as possible."

"Raven Squad will be leaving soon to investigate location A, but we need another squad of officers to investigate location B. Unfortunately, most of the force is currently preoccupied with another serious situation. So here is where we currently stand, I need a squad to volunteer to go to location B and do a very thorough search for the hostages with extreme caution. Do we have any volunteers or do I have to pick a squad myself?” There was silence before Lance raised his hand, “Sir, I volunteer Squad 66 to take part in this mission alongside Raven Squad.” Chief Onyx smirked with a nod of his head, “Very well Cadet, pull this off and your whole squad will have more to brag and boast about then being a fully-fledged officer of Zootopia. Joseph will show you down to the armory where your gear will be waiting, the rest of you have the day off.” Lance looked around at the rest of his squad while in the back of his mind he worried quite a bit about how they were going to pull this off.

As if on note, Joseph did not move from his seat yet, but merely told them where they were to go and what they were to pick up while at the armory. “First floor, first hall to the right, there’s a sign that says armory, you would have to be a deaf, dumb, and blind pig to miss it. Once you are there, Kayli should have everything you need. Nothing lethal, I am the only one that can carry something like that. You are getting a full set of SWAT gear with Kevlar and bulletproof plating inserts, a Taser rifle, a Taser pistol, tear gas frags, flash bangs, pepper spray, a medical kit, and utility kit that is designed for situations like this. Once you have all of the equipment, meet me back outside at our Bearcat. The more time you waste, our chances of finding anything go down. Tundratown is not the best place to be at night as well.”

Lance stood up and quickly left the room, not making any eye contact with his squad, worried that they were going to end up incredibly upset with him for volunteering all of them for the mission. The fox did as he was told, swiftly and to the letter, though something in the back of his mind told him to ask for slightly better gear from Kayli. When he arrived at the Armory, he was given all of his equipment but leaned slightly against the counter looking the female puma in her violet eyes. “I would like to request a powerful scope for my rifle, iron sights are alright but scouting the area with no range finders or anything of the sort will put us at a disadvantage in this delicate situation.” Kayli stared at him with a blank look upon her face before laughing, “How about I give you all ACOG scopes with a two to five times magnification rate? Better that you all have the optics then just one person.” Kayli would vanish for a moment without waiting for a response then would return with the scopes for each member of squad 66. After Lance thanked Kayli for her kindness many times, he quickly made his way out to the Bearcat.

By now, the evening was moving in, and it would be hard to find anyone or anything without the light of day. Their squad leader was already in the Bearcat, waiting for them. “Evening Squad leader, I am ready to go and I would like to apologize about volunteering all of us for this, I am not sure what I was thinking, I just kind of...yeah.” Said Lance as he took a seat and buckled himself in. The sound of another engine could be heard coming from nearby, it was growing louder and louder before a black Ghosthawk Helicopter flew over the Bearcat, creating an amazing amount of noise then vanished into the distance. “That was Raven squad leaving to head to their destination, we need to leave immediately. Also don't worry about volunteering us, I think it's a great way to show the Chief, the other squads and Raven that we can all get things done. That is my personal opinion though, the others could be quite upset at you.” He shrugged lightly then placed his paws upon the steering wheel.

Entering the building, the ursine instantly began to poke his nose into everything he can find. Like he was a kid inside a candy store after being told he could buy anything he wanted, the inside wasn't really what he expected when his father described it to him, but then again he was still little at the time and things change fast with the modern day. The plaque certainly caught his attention and if he had his phone right now, what he wouldn't do just to get a picture of it, sure it was something that probably wasn't even photogenic but hey, memories. When Lance read it aloud to them, Zach couldn't put his finger on it, but it just gave him a feeling...He couldn't find the words to describe said feeling but it was something good.

Even with all the new recruits pouring in from the recent turn of events, the police were ever vigilant, working as hard as ever both inside and out the station, and while the bear could spend the rest of his day exploring the building, he would much rather not get in trouble for now and followed the fox upstairs, and soon, the conference room. As soon as they were in, he grabbed the nearest seat, but hopefully one that was not far away from his squad. The room became dead silent as soon as the chief entered, and a speech was followed. Something about an ambush and this Raddik person. Whoever he/she/they were, they certainly didn't sound like a nice person, that much is sure. Out of the blue Lance suddenly decided it upon himself to volunteer their group, internally Zach could just be heard shouting "WHAT?!".

He swore that he could just hear the whispers around the room and all the judgemental stares they were receiving, what a first day. The ursine sighed, trying to calm down from the sudden shock of things, trying hard not to complain and be jealous about the others who were having the day off, nosiree. Oh well, beggars can't be choosers, at least they'd get to experience the action up-front. Joseph began to explain the ins-and-outs of their next move, which was inventory at the armory. The equipment certainly wasn't anything special, but everyone has to start somewhere, right? Zach had heard from somewhere that the chances of solving a case drastically decreases after the first forty-eight hours, so there was no time for mucking about.

The bear rushed towards the armory, just as Lance had gone out. And when he went to gather his things he wondered why the scopes were different than the ones Joseph said, shrugging to himself that questioning that would be better left for another time. Hastily he moved out to the BEARCAT, eager to start the mission, even if he was-admittedly-scared for a good number of reasons. He made himself comfortable inside and looked at Lance. Seeing as how he hadn't had the chance to introduce himself properly previously, now might be the chance to do so. Calling out his name and extending a friendly paw, he shook the back of his head and introduced himself to the fox in the friendliest way he could manage.

"That's a ballsy move you made there and I have to give you props for that."

He said flashing a smile at the fox.

Following suit behind the rest of his squad, Ralph walked casually into HQ, trying not to show how impressed he was with its size. Everywhere he looked he saw commotion, constant and purposed. Everyone inside seemed to act with at least a small part of the drive that Ralph felt himself. Then Ralph remembered why he was there. The hurry displayed in the mannerisms of his fellow officers did much to remind him of the dire situation that someone must be in. Though distracted by pondering what the situation could be, Ralph noticed several features prominent within the ZPD. Perhaps the most eye-catching of all was the bronze plaque inlaid into the floor near the entrance, consumed in large part by the motto of the law enforcement.

Ralph followed his squad members, led by Joseph, into a conference room of sorts, where most of the new cadets sat in wait. Ralph immediately noticed the emptiness of a substantial number of chairs and figured what the chief would say before it was said. Who is Raddik? Ralph thought to himself as the chief addressed them. He figured some sort of crime boss, but asking would have to wait. Chief Onyx wanted a volunteer squad to investigate a specific location where 36 could be held hostage. The chief's request seemed strange to offer to fresh-of-the-bus cadets, but Ralph supposed it could be a great opportunity. At that moment, the fox in front of him raised a paw. “Sir, I volunteer Squad 66 to take part in this mission alongside Raven Squad.” Ralph was somewhat impressed by the fox's straightforwardness, but it didn't surprise him too much. After all, he was about to do the same thing. Great minds, I suppose, Ralph thought as Chief Onyx dismissed them. Squad 66 was to exit the conference room and head for the armory. Ralph quickly got up and followed Joseph's instructions.

As it turned out, the armory was as impressive as the rest of the ZPD was. Ralph figured that the weaponry held here was top-notch, more reliable than the black market arms they could potentially encounter today. He put on the kevlar protective gear given to him, holstered his pistol on his hip, and began inspecting the rifle. No live rounds, he thought as he pulled the magazine from the carbon fiber stock. Inside were large cylindrical capacitors, with three prongs sticking out of the end of each. Ralph estimated that each round could probably down a small lion. He replaced the magazine, sliding the bolt back as he did almost simultaneously. He let it go, listening to the well-oiled machine push a round into the chamber. As he did, the armorer handed him a scope, which he promptly mounted onto his rifle. The dial on top indicated that the lightup crosshairs were off, but Ralph checked to be sure.

The sun had begun its descent as Ralph walked back outside to the BEARCAT. As he neared, he saw that Lance, Joseph, and the bear had already made it there. Ralph shouldered his rifle and nonchalantly walked over to them. As he did, he heard the bear introduce himself as Zach. "Yish, for sure. Just means we get all the fun to ourselves." Ralph said with approval as he strapped in. The opportunity to begin his career came as a little bit of a surprise. But, after all, what better challenge than to be thrown into danger on his first day?

Silently, Christmas followed the rest of the cadets into the building. He idly noted that yes, ZPD HQ was indeed as fantastic looking as he'd imagined it, and the butterflies in his tummy were indeed real. You'd barely notice it past his cool exterior, but he was nervous. For them to be called into HQ so soon was definitely a sign of something bad. It felt like his days as a limo driver, getting a rushing client from Sahara Square to the Rainforest district in a hurry.

He sat down just behind Lance the Sierra fox as the rest of the cadets took their seats around them. Not soon after, the Chief was out and droning through his briefing. Fairly simple; an ambush, and a lack of manpower. Lee was contemplating suggesting one of the teams on standby go when Lance raised his paw and suggested the cadets.

Wait.

"Oh you've gotta be kidding, mate."

Lee pressed his face into his paws, hiding his disdained muttering as Chief Onyx accepted their squad as go squad. Within moments they were up and moving again, this time to the ZPD armoury. Their kit was summarily distributed to them by the female panther armourer, but as the rest left to suit up, Lee lingered.

Thoughts from his academy training called to him. And there was something missing in this kit.

He turned and went back to the armoury counter, where the cat gave him an eye.

"And what would you like? A kiss goodbye?"

"Nah babe. I'd rather an extendable baton...if you carry those."

---

With vest on and kit slung, Lee moved outside, where he saw some of the cadets already waiting, including Lance. A bear stood nearby, along with a raccoon. The bear introduced himself in short order; the big guy was Zach. Stripes didn't join in, so Lee decided to continue the "train", hefting his rifle gently to retest its weight.

"It's Lee. Just Lee."

Inside the Police Headquarters, in the middle where most of the officers currently were talking among themselves, or working hard behind their desk or in Aurora's specific case in the lunch break room with two other officers playing some cards while some music was playing on a radio behind her, albeit not very loudly being prepared in case a situation would arise, just interrupting the dead silence throughout the room. Aurora was sitting leisurely in one of the metal folding chairs looking at her hand and at the two officers, one being an otter, the other being a bulldog. She carefully examined them both, simply sitting there across the table. With blank expressions on their faces, seemingly trying to hide their true feelings. She pondered her options briefly, glimpsing at the group of cards laid face up in a horizontal line, then back at the cards she was holding in her paws. While the other officers waited with anticipation, the bulldog clearing his throat and the otter rubbing the back of his neck. Reluctantly reaching her paw toward the poker chips on the table and pushed them forward in the middle against the rest of the stack. She smiled brightly afterward, feeling confident in her decision.

“I call.” Aurora answered, vocalizing so softly she could hardly be understood by the two only several feet away from her. While gently placing her cards upwards, revealing her hand. “Flush.” She added as the others both groaned a little as they both showed their hands with looks of disappointment. “Only had three of a kind.” The otter stated. “Damn, had a straight, I thought I would had won this time.” The bulldog replied. “Nice hand.” They both acknowledged as they smile. As she smiled back happily, surprised feeling her leg vibrate as she reached in her pocket suddenly seeming very excited for a moment. Looking to see what she hoped it was, only to let out a small sigh. Both of them looked at her as she knew they had the same question on their minds. “Sorry about that guys, just got really happy thinking my boyfriend had finally arrived and letting me know. He's supposed to be coming to the Headquarters today.” She explained sitting up from her seat, aimlessly walking around the room not entirely sure why she was doing it either.

“So your excited? I certainly would be ecstatic if my wife was even slightly interested in anything I had to do,” The bulldog replied sounding mildly envious slowly getting upward. “I suppose I have paperwork to complete.” The bulldog mumbled leaving the room. As the otter continued to relax in his chair. “He's the one with the father that...never mind.” The otter begun to ask before Aurora gave him the kind of pleading look that screams, please never mention that aloud. As Aurora just nodded some in response. “But Damien is nothing like his father, I'm sure he'll be one of the best officers around. He's one the sharpest men I've ever met.” She swiftly replies with cheerful tone. “Hopefully everything is going alright for him.” She thought in her head, telling herself despite her feeling a little anxious. She believed the words she spoke. Damien was smart enough to handle himself, she had nothing to worry about.

---

Meanwhile Damascus very quickly ran straight into his first obstacle to his first day as a Cadet. No, it wasn't the front door to the Headquarters that he spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to open the incorrect way. Making a mental note of that in his head, trying to remain calm and not trying to show how he stupid he felt at the moment. He had never been nervous like this before, it was a rather bothersome how it didn't seem that his brain wanted to cooperate with him today, one of the most important of his life. Figuring it was just his bad luck, but he was growing frustrated with himself and he only just started. An inconvenience was an understatement, really not wanting to screw up especially in front of his superiors or other officers. Walking through the building following some of the others in his squad. He stood there quietly with the rest of them in the conference room, intently listening hearing about the serious sounding ambush. Hearing the name Raddik, immediately wondering who that was though by the sound of things, no one pleasant. Despite being surprised when a fox from his squad had just volunteered everyone to dive into the likely to be dangerous situation. Oddly, his nerves weren't phasing him in the slightest, in fact he smiled some. This was why he joined the force, to make a difference and stop criminals. He was ready and quite eager to begin.

Heading to the armory, stepping inside and admiring just how expansive it was it was a little unsettling just seeing how much firepower they had stored inside the room as he quickly started to put on the kevlar gear that was being given out, carefully picking up one of the high caliber rifle's like it was some kind of fragile object making sure it was fully loaded, also grabbing a side firearm while everyone else was grabbing their stuff. Observing others in his squad able to tell how much more comfortable they were with the weapons, not feeling inferior, he did score perfectly well in his accuracy tests. Just bewildered that he was already likely to use his weapon and get into some kind of firefight on his very first day. Damascus left back outside approaching the same armored vehicle, seeing most of his squad already there. He stepped inside and sitting back in the seat, hearing another squad member introduce themselves. Just hoping they weren't in over their heads accepting this in the first place.