The Time Traveler's Guide to Zootopia

Chapter 38: Internal Growth, External Decay

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All right, let's do this one last time.

My name is Chenry. I was never bitten by a radioactive spider...

"Ow!" I grunted in pain.

...but I did just get bitten by some hyperreactive animal.

"I'll be taking that," declared a small hooded criminal with a fluffy tail as he leaped over my back, snatching my satchel on the way down. "Catch you later, human!"

"Hey!" I shouted after him as he scurried beyond my reach, hopping over the edge of the restaurant balcony before sliding down a bamboo tree into the thick grove below.

This is the fourth time this week that he's done this—and he's not getting away with it.

"Excuse me," I said, handing a $20 bill to the cheetah waiter to cover my tab. "Keep the change."

Before he could respond, I took a deep breath and quickly exhaled, diving headfirst into the thick bamboo forest below. The pursuit had begun.

Welcome to the story of my life...

Speaking of which, that jump did not go as planned. I landed flat on my stomach with a loud thud, directly onto the metal roof of a moving train.

The hooded mammal chuckled from above. "Too predictable, as always."

I quickly aimed my tranquilizer pistol at him. "Freeze!"

He smiled behind his half-faced mask, taking a cautious step back on the moving train car. "Way ahead of you, pal."

Just then, as we entered Tundratown, the surrounding rainforest environment transformed into a full-on blizzard. The train was engulfed in a thick blanket of mist and snow. Like a ghost in the wind, the hooded mammal disappeared from view. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I felt a swift kick to the face, nearly knocking the wind out of me.

"Didn't see that coming, did you?" the hooded mammal taunted from behind.

Reacting instantly, I executed a sweep kick—probably pulling my hamstring in the process, but it was totally worth it. The little thief fell onto his back as I easily pinned his small body to the train roof. "Neither did you," I quipped.

"Aye, boss! Help me!" he called out desperately. "I've got him distracted! Quick! Now's your chance! Hit 'em' where it hurts!"

"Oh, no you don't," I turned around and aimed my pistol into the blizzard, scanning for any accomplices. But there was no one there. "Wait a minute..."

Without warning, as we entered a tunnel, a thick cluster of icicles struck my head repeatedly. "Argh!" The pain brought me to my knees.

"Oof! That's gonna leave a mark," the hooded mammal said as he backflipped away, landing on his feet. "Guess you didn't know that I work alone? You just fell for the oldest trick in the book!"

"Oh, yeah?" I scoffed, clenching the snow-covered roof of the train to form a snowball. "My turn."

The hooded mammal's eyes widened as I launched a barrage of snowballs at him. He nimbly dodged most, but one grazed his head.

"Hey, no fair!" he exclaimed, struggling to dodge. "You've got bigger paws than I do."

"Just give me my satchel," I demanded.

"Oh, you mean this?" he smirked from behind the mask, tightening his grip on my satchel. "You want it? Come and get it!"

As I readied another snowball, denser and more compact than before, determined to hit the target this time, the train emerged from the chilly tunnel into the scorching heat of Sahara Square. Instantly, the snowball in my hand melted away, leaving me empty-handed.