“W– what are you doing!”, I cough blood.
Suddenly, the chains fall free onto the muddy floor, but I’m held by unbelievably huge, muscular arms.
“Silence”, he whispers, “They’ll catch us if you make any noise.”
The stranger hugs me tight before running away; I cannot see properly for I have been tied up longer than anything in my life; though I lost track of time, the light quickly blinds me in a matter of what feels like minutes, and deafening noises of heavy vehicle tracks invade my unrecognizable surroundings.
Even if my senses are adrift, I will always find my way— unfortunate, however, the stench of blood floats on the atmosphere; rich and metallic— a smell that I am too familiar with.
I cry, “The gore… It’s sickening…”
The crocodile’s heart beat shoots fast.
“Crug, you insolent swine! Go to the battlefield like I ordered you to!”, Cruz’ orders echo from afar.
Crug rubs my eyes, helping me regain my sight. He pets my tiny little mane and leaves me behind, hidden besides a tall tree, whose roots rise of the ground with very good shade. I hide underneath it, then stare at the mud on my legs and arms. Ugh.
And so I dive myself into the mud, hoping that my adrenaline stink becomes less noticeable.
Ugly screams of agony shake the ground, mixed with thuds of dead bodies being shot with Chi lasers, metals clanging, blood splattering. I could not interfere. Neither could I help. I'm left to rot here, and if I leave, I will die! Oh Mount Cavora— I had a hunch that Cruz was indeed plotting something... And he did! Outside of the Crocodile's Swamp Hideout is a battlefield!
Underneath all of the noise, a firm voice passionately screams far away: "Give my nephew back to me, heinous criminal! You will never be king, speaking as the brother of one! You are nothing but—"
A heavy gunshot silences Lavertus.
"I will run over all of your lions! Crominus is no longer with us— I, the commander of this tribe's army, have become the Crocodile Tribe's only ruler!", other gunshots ensue, followed by painstaking roars of demise, "Your nephew keeps meddling in my business; I'll take care of him just like I did with those soldiers!"
Crocodile soldiers bellow in pain; I close my ears in reaction. My body shakes in fear, as sweat surges from my skin.
No... First the wolves, now the crocodiles... No... Cragger— Oh Cragger, I'm sorry, I hope you're alright...
Lavertus groans, "Crominus... Crun— They're at the Eagle Spire, and you pounced at the moment they left because of the Purple Moon! You coward!"
I shut my muzzle shortly after, as to not gasp. My heartbeat loses all rhythm and goes out of control. Tears cascade down, burning my eyes.
Everything around me becomes bleached of color in a sudden— these wooden walls that surround the Crocodile's Swamp Hideout curl into an oddly familiar shape, similar to the Coliseum; it's like I'm watching a Speedor Race from above, as the tiniest of ants spiral, until a crocodilian mount of dirt rises from the ground, holding a gun.
Its eyes shine bright, like amber.
"The wolves, Laval... They don't know it yet!", it screeches into a macabre laugh, "It's too late. Give up."
In a fraction of a second, the entire scenario dissolves, revealing Lennox in front of the hideout's now burnt down walls. He pulls me away from underneath the tree, and, while he runs to somewhere, my eyes begin to lose their senses.
"Laval! Oh, please...", Lavertus' voice is swallowed by the never-ending cries of misery, as I fall asleep within someone's grasp.
I start shoving my face onto the bed's pillow with strength— it becomes stained with warm tears and mucus. I cry, scream, muffling down my voice on the cushion.
"Why, why? I'm useless! Oh Mount Cavora— ever since that sinister wolf hurt me, everyone's lives have been falling apart. I tried all I could, but it always ends up unfolding into something terrible. Wolves are being killed everyday, and now we got crocodiles trying to take advantage of this for power!"
My tail, whipping sideways, hits something— then it gets grabbed and pulled around! Ouch! And so I turn around.
It was Furty who picked my tail; but as I stare at his body, I notice the stiffness of his bright orange fur; his tan raggedy clothes are covered in dirt and grass. The fox’s quaking in place, kneeling in front of my bed, clenching his hands as if begging.
“Please, Laval, hear me out!”, he whimpers, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, but please give me one chance!”
“W— what is it? How did you even get in here? Guar—“, I tried to scream, but he shut my muzzle shortly after.
Furty lets me go, then wipes the tears off his eyes. “I betrayed you, okay? I told them about your plan. They went after you. It was my fault! But it was at that moment where things escalated— I had to run away! But they found me and threatened to kill me if I…”
His cries start to become too loud, so I shut his muzzle for a second.
“You… were involved with Cruz?”
“Yes! I thought he was some… crazy, overenthusiastic croc, but he’s actually doing it! His plan… He told me that if I snitched, he’d kill me. I don’t want to go back. I am the last of my kind— and I am done for!”, he cries on my bedsheet.
“You sneaky— Argh! Guards!”
Furty grabs my cold hands in despair; his dry paw pads uncomfortably itch my skin. He moans in fear. “No! If your guards catch me, they’ll kick me out! Don’t you understand?”
He looks at me with very, very wet eyes. It is a life or death situation for him— it must feel horrible to be the last fox, with his impending doom right behind the door. I don’t want to be responsible for anyone’s death… No… He put my life at risk, but I would never want to do the same…
“I need refuge. Please.”
I sigh, hiding the pain of my voice, “Look… I’ll try to save you, Furtivo. But you will have to promise me two things!”
His ears raise.
“First, you’ll have to tell my dad everything you know, spoke and heard about this; and you will never, under any circumstance, meddle yourself in crime! I will call the guards and you’ll be imprisoned— then, you’ll soon be interrogated by my dad and kept behind bars for your own safety.”
Before the fox could do anything, Longtooth gently opens the door, catching him on sight; to my surprise, I'm able to get out of bed and walk to the bodyguard. He looks at me with a worried expression, but he's understanding of Furty's presence; the lion pets Furty's orange fur and wipes away his tears. Of course, it was only a matter of time for that cunning youngling to be arrested. He better explain everything he knows about Cruz and the wolves... If he wants to be forgiven by those around him...
The leaders from each and every tribe of Chima have reunited to discuss about the reoccurring issues of the Purple Moon. Not only that, but—
"The commander-in-chief of your tribe has attempted to overthrow your ruling", Dad speaks with an assertive tone of voice that echoes within the lion temple, "Explain yourself, Crominus."
I tug on my father's leather skirt, afraid. Cragger... I am so afraid for you...
"Your Majesty, I went to visit the Eagle Spire with my wife and children— we had important matters to solve with the Eagles, right, Crunket?"
She, queen of the crocodiles, remains silent, without budging any of the pale green scales of her lips. Her moist pink dress flows stiff as she pinches it in inquietude.
He continues, "The wolves began to advance into our territory each Purple Moon. Their power is... Uncontrollable. The walls protecting the Crocodile's Swamp Hideout might not be enough. I had to consult Ewald for help— his tribe has the technology, after all."
Ewald picks on dead skin of his talons. "Exactly that, Your Majesty! But we're at a tough place right now. As I've said before, we have almost nothing about the Purple Moon. My daughter found extremely crucial clues, though they're not enough..."
Dad sighs, tapping the index finger on his arm. Those words don't seem to convince him of anything...
"You're drifting away from the point, Crominus. The captain you chose was not a trustworthy one; he kidnapped and tortured my son multiple times! I can't imagine how you weren't able to crack down on this sooner."
The crocodile king tries to speak, but his words are run over by those of my father, who gives Furty his turn to speak. Lagravis' menacing stare pieces through the poor teenager, whose face has become expressionless with dread. He laughs a bit, shaking.
"Ah, Lagravis— I mean, Your Majesty... It is of—"
Dad roars, "Do not play with me! Be honest and direct or face a father's wrath!"
Furtivo audibly gulps, "Yikes! Sorry— I first saw Cruz at the swamp... He was gnarling at Crawley— you know the one, who shot a bullet during the Speedor Race— about kicking Crominus out of power. His tirade was so absurd that I had to butt in... I swear to Mount Cavora, I didn't know he had that much power!
His breath runs short with saliva dripping from his muzzle down to his tan raggedy clothes.
"He kind of hired me as his personal spy... But it was only at the moment where he began to manipulate the wolves that a red flag rose, especially with whatever happened after the Speedor Race. I couldn't back away as he had threatened my life when I did so."
I hide behind Lagravis' back, holding myself from tears. All of this can't be a ruse, the Chi moved along the Purple Moon, how could that crocodile even control such a raw item of nature?
"Furtivo, are you implying that the wolf attacks against my son have a correlation with Cruz' actions?"
"Yes, sir."
"Argh!", Lagravis screams as he hits the hilts of his throne, "I should have summoned the wolf elders. Was Wakz right all along? Is Wilhurt on the loose?"
"I... am afraid so, almighty king of the lions."
