The Bad Guys in Blood Moon

Sneaking In

Once she made it all the way back up, Webs found the entire restaurant staff unconscious, gagged, and tied up.

“Webs, over here!" Wolf whispered, hiding under a table with Snake and Shark.

“Where's Piranha?" she asked. To answer her question, the Chef fell flat on his back behind her and Piranha smacked him in the face with a chair, knocking him out. “I see those “Iron Bun" workout videos are paying off."

“You know it, babe," he said, flexing his glutes. “Wait, where's Gabi?"

“Well, uh, how do I say this?" Webs stammered, and finally answered, “Your kind, sweet, beautiful wife... may or may not have been eaten by a giant monster."

“WHAT?!"

“She might still be alive!" Webs added, attempting to calm him down.

“I'm coming, Hermosa!" Piranha shouted, attempting to jump down the chute, only for Wolf to grab him by the shirt at the last minute.

“Before we lose our heads, we should probably get out of here before these guys wake up," he suggested.

“So, there's a monster underground?" Snake asked Webs as the Bad Guys headed outside. “You sure it wasn't a sewer gator?"

“I don't even know what it was!" Webs admitted. “It looked like a bunch of animals mixed into one. Like some freakish science project! And given the depth, I'd say it's under the actual sewer system."

“How do we get down there?" Shark wondered.

“Wolf, use those claws and start digging!" Piranha ordered frantically.

“Through pavement and cement?" Wolf said in disapproval. “We need to sneak into the Flock's hideout through either the sewer system or a secret entrance."

“Where are we going to find a secret entrance?" Snake asked.

“I can't believe I'm saying this, but maybe we should go with Piranha's plan," Webs replied. “Not the digging thing. I mean finding someone wearing a badge and questioning them. Like that guy over there."

The Bad Guys suddenly noticed an elderly raccoon standing on a street corner, wearing the same badge as the chameleon. His yellow eyes had a seemingly shifty look in them.

“Hey, it's my old boss!" Snake realized as the crosswalk light turned green. “I bet he can help us."

Without further instructions, Piranha snuck into a trashcan. Once Snake's boss was close enough, Piranha pulled him into the can and everyone on the sidewalk noticed trash flying out of the can. After about thirty seconds, Piranha crawled out of the can and rejoined the group.

“He said there's a vacant building around the corner with an elevator inside and to take it all the way down to the Gatekeeper," he told his friends, who stared at him in shock. “What?"

“I meant, he's a nice guy!" Snake explained. “He probably would've just showed us the way in if I asked him to!"

“Oh!" Piranha gasped in realization, then shrugged in indifference. “Eh. Oh, well. Now, let's go find my wife."

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“Here's the building, but where's the elevator?" Shark wondered as Snake picked the lock with his fang.

“I don't know, the room looks empty," Wolf replied. Unfortunately, all the walls appeared to be blank. The only decoration in sight was a cute poster of a baby bird in a nest that read “Home Tweet Home!"

“I'll tell you guys this much," Piranha said. “When I find whoever made this creature that tried to eat my Gabi... they're dead!"

In a fit of rage, Piranha threw a paintbrush in the direction of the poster and Webs suddenly noticed a loose piece of tape on the corner. Almost as if it had been pulled off numerous times before.

“Hey, guys?" she said, crawling up the wall and taking the poster down. Behind it was a big red button with a picture of an owl's face. Snake slithered up and pushed the button, opening up a wall that revealed the large elevator.

“Nice work, gang," Wolf said. Once the five of them were in, Shark pushed the down button and the elevator lowered them deep underground.

“If this Mother Minerva is a bird, why would she make her hideout underground instead of somewhere close to the sky?" Piranha asked.

“Too conspicuous," Wolf explained. “She and the rest of the Flock would stand out like a sore thumb. The real question is, why did she choose such a heavily populated area?"

“Unless that thing had something to do with it," Webs mumbled as the elevator door opened to reveal a giant bull sitting at a desk at the end of a hallway.

“ID, please," he said in a deep, smooth voice.

“Well, if you insist," Shark replied, pulling out his Ultraman Fan Club membership card. Glaring at him, the bull pushed an intercom button.

“Mother, we have strangers out here," he alerted.

“Mother is preoccupied, Janus. But I'll be happy to take a message."

“Very well, Ismene," Janus replied. “We have five outsiders out here."

“Are any of them Oppressors?"

“No," he answered. “They're a wolf, a snake, a tarantula, a shark, and a piranha."

“No... They couldn't be..."

“Should I kill them?" Janus asked.

“No, let them in. Mother always says every animal is welcome in the Flock."

“Fine," he replied, opening the door up for them. “When Mother Minerva calls for you, she will give you five proper identification and, if you prove yourselves worthy, your true names."

“But I like my name," Snake said as they went inside. The five of them gaped in shock as they witnessed what was right before their eyes. Below them was an underground system that resembled an urban neighborhood, where animals of different sizes, shapes, and species lived peacefully.

“Praise the Hatchling, for he will open our wings," several feminine voices said in a trance like tone on several megaphones placed throughout the sewer. “Praise the Mother, for she will light the path. Praise the Flock, for we shall fight the Oppressors together."

“What in the world?" Wolf muttered as the phrase was repeated.

“Say, Snake, you never told us," Piranha said. “What exactly is your real name?"

Snake smiled. “Well, my fellow scaly friend, I am pleased to tell you the name my parents gave me is..."

TO BE CONTINUED