It took a moment for Stone's eyes to readjust to her surroundings.
How long had she been unconscious? How had she even become unconscious? She groaned and tried to stand, only to find she was pinned down by something. She could hear the blaring sirens, the alarms, the screams of whom she only could assume were her friends, all around her like a cascading waterfall of noise. Stone sighed and tried once again to move, only to, once again, fail at doing so. Suddenly she heard voices, THEIR voices, and realized if she didn't get out of there she'd be hurt, or worse. She heard a door open and she glanced in THEIR direction, watching two of THEM, in full body suits, enter the room. THEY stopped over a scared, injured rabbit sitting near a table, and watched as THEY pulled a small gun and shot them in the head. Then THEY did this to another one. And another. And so on and so forth. Realizing if she didn't get out now, she wouldn't be getting out at all, Stone tried again and again to get up, only to find that she couldn't move. She could hear THEIR boots approaching, and she sighed. At least she'd told Nickle what to do, and at least she'd said goodbye. This had always been a possibility, she knew, this plan had always had a high risk factor to it. She just...didn't expect it to end so unceremoniously, and then, without warning, THEY began to scream. Stone turned and looked as a large creature snapped at THEM, tearing at their faces until they were sure THEY were dead, and then quickly came to her side. Stone looked up, her eyes watery from the smoke, but she knew. "Thank god for you," Stone said. "God has nothing to do with it," Minerva replied, "Let's go." *** The sounds had become overwhelming to Mipsy, who'd found solace in hiding between a cabinet and a wall, where nobody could see her. This was all her fault. She was the map, she was supposed to lead them to safety, and now...now look at her, cowering here while her friends all died horrible around her. She shut her eyes and thought about Paw Paw, thought about the Hollow, thought about the life she'd never get to have. What could've possessed her to be so gullible as to believe Gerry would actually get her out of here alive? He rarely got anyone out of anywhere alive, she felt. She heard footpads on the floor nearby, and recoiled in fear. Somebody was coming closer, a guard dog perhaps? She didn't know what to do, she didn't want to do anything. She just wanted all of this to end. And then, without warning, a voice. "Mipsy?" it asked in a hushed voice. "Kevin?" she responded, as a small little mouse face peeked in through the crevice and smiled at her; Mipsy grinned, "Salt!" "Sweetheart, Kevin's in the room, we need to get the rest of the rabbits and get out of here," Salt said, "Which means we need you. You're the only way around this place, especially now in the chaos." "I'm scared. It loud, bright, too warm, much too warm. So much scream," Mipsy said, beginning to cower again, until Kevin stuck his head through. "Mipsy," he said, "Mipsy, I know you're scared, I'm scared too, but you haven't seen what I've seen. I need you Mipsy. You wanna be the hero? Now's the time. Please. Let's do what we came here to do and finish this once and for all. We'll circle back, collect everyone, lead them all to the vents and get the hell outta dodge." "...you promise nothing hurt me?" Mipsy asked and Kevin nodded. "I promise nothing will hurt you," he replied. This seemed to be enough to finally coax Mipsy out of the spot she was crunched between, and bring her into the fire lit room they were standing in. Kevin smiled at her and together they turned and headed onwards. Mipsy couldn't believe all the horror that surrounded them as they traveled through empty rooms; screams as far as the ear could hear, fire as far as the eye could, and both seemed impossible to avoid no matter what direction you went. The whole thing made her incredibly uneasy. She hadn't expected things to go down like this, then again, Gerry hadn't either. "Where everyone else?" Mipsy asked. "No idea," Kevin said, "Gerry was back in the hall, but I haven't seen anyone else in ages." This did not give her confidence. *** Stone and Minerva peered around a corner and waited, waited until they saw nobody else coming, then headed across the hall into another room. Once inside, Minerva pushed a few chairs together with her head up against the door, creating a weak barricade. It wouldn't hold but it at least gave them peace of mind for a moment. Stone finally exhaled and coughed, feeling the smoke inside her lungs. Minerva shook herself, blood splattering onto the ground around her. "What in gods name happened to you? Where's Dice?" Stone asked. "Dice got out," Minerva said, "She's waiting at the exit of the vents. I'm only still in here to defend anyone else from being hurt, but I...I couldn't risk losing her. I already lost my pups. I couldn't lose Dice too. You're lucky I came along when I did, you were about to be put down. How'd you end up in there?" "I don't really remember. I remember the explosion, I remember Gerry and Paul taking off somewhere, and then we...we were headed to the holding area when everything sort of blew up. Suddenly there was fire and screaming and rabbits being plucked left and right. I have...I have no idea where Mipsy is..." Stone said, realizing she might be responsible for her possible death, "...oh god, I should have known this wouldn't work." "It isn't over yet," Minerva replied, "We can still get out. We just have to meet up with the group and head to the vents." "I don't even know where the holding area IS, not without Mipsy, she's the map!" Stone said. "Luckily for you, then, I'm an expert tracker," Minerva replied, sticking her nose in the air and sniffing. "...whose blood is on you?" Stone finally asked, her voice wavering. "Some of mine, mostly a guard dogs," Minerva said, licking her paws, "Plus some of THEIR blood, when I ripped THEIR faces off to save you. It might take weeks before I get all this blood off my fur, but if I got all this blood by saving others, then I suppose to trade off is worth it." Suddenly a slam against the door, making Stone jump in surprise and Minerva quickly picked her up by the scruff of her neck and pulled her under a desk as two scientists entered the room, quickly locking the door behind them. THEY panted, just catching THEIR breaths for a moment, until one finally spoke. "This is ridiculous!" he said, "The whole goddamned place is going up in flames! What do we do?" "I'm voting with leave," the other said, "And kill as many of these fucking rabbits as you can on the way out. I knew all along they were getting smarter, I knew this would likely be a possibility. I just didn't expect it to be so coordinated. We have nobody to blame but ourselves for this. We brought this upon ourselves for the horrors we conducted upon them." "They're animals, Rob, that's ridiculous to think." "You think animals can't feel pain? Regret? Remorse? Terror? Bullshit Stanley, you and I both know full well these are not just animals anymore. We made them into what they are today, and now we're paying the price for it." Stone tapped Minerva on the paw and pointed at an open vent in the wall. Minerva nodded and, Stone still in her jaw, began to slink under other furniture through the darkness and head towards the vent. As the two men argued, Stone held her breath, terrified that even the slightest change in air pressure from exhaling would alert them to their presence. They reached the vent, and Minerva set Stone down, nudging her into the vent with the tip of her cold nose. She was only a little ways in when she heard the shot, and heard Minerva cry in pain, then force her way into the vent behind her. Minerva shoved Stone further with her snout until they were around a bend, out of line of sight, and she could assess the situation. "Are you okay?" Stone asked. "It's just in my back right haunch, I'll be fine, but it burns like hell," Minerva said, "Goddamn these bastards." "We need to..." Stone started, before her ears perked up, "I can hear them, I can hear Mipsy! Come on!" And with that, they headed towards the sound of salvation. *** Gerry and Number Two were finally back on track, heading towards the containment area, dodging hellfire and violence all around them. As they got further and further into the lab, thankfully, things seemed to have died down a bit, and they didn't need to be as overly cautious. Most of the mayhem was taking place in the early halls, and not deeper in the holding rooms. Number Two pushed a door open with his paw and let Gerry enter, then followed him in. The room was pitch black, and Number Two struggled to get up on a few boxes, until he finally managed to reach the desk and flip the light switch. The overhead lights illuminated the room, filled with birds, all kinds of birds. "...holy hell," Number Two said, "THEY didn't just bring in new rabbits, THEY brought in new everything." "We have to let them out," Gerry said, climbing up and beginning to unlatch the cages, Number Two nodding, right behind him following the same procedure. The more birds they let out, the emptier the room became, as they soared through the doors or pulled the windows open with their talons and squeezing through that way. Once the birds were all gone, Gerry stopped and took a long, deep breath. "You okay, champ?" Number Two asked, and Gerry nodded. "I'm as okay as I can be, I suppose," he said, "...Richardson is dead, because of me." "Not because of you, for you, there's a difference. He gave up his life to save yours, and frankly, given what he did to us before, it was a rather noble thing to do," Number Two said, "None of what is happening is your fault, Gerry. THEY prepared somewhat, THEY figured we'd come back. We should've known that, we just...didn't, I guess. Or didn't think it'd be this severe, at least. But nothing that's happening is happening because of you." "No, see, that's not fair. In order to be a hero, I have to be a villain. I can't just take the wins, I have to suffer the losses as well. A hero isn't just purely good. They make mistakes, the fuck up, they cause deaths. Richardson died because of me. I brought him here, he's leaving behind his entire Sister Rabbits because of my actions. I have to take responsibility for that. To only take the success is unfair. I have to own up to the failures. That's the thing Dodger never did. That's what makes me better than him. I don't think I'm infallible." Number Two smiled. "All I've ever wanted to hear was you think you were better than that dirty little rat," Number Two said, "Thank you for giving me at least that before this ended." "Hah, no problem," Gerry said, "Thanks for making me believe it." They got up and, side by side, the partners they'd always been, continued on their way to free the rabbits. *** Stone wasn't sure how much further Mipsy would be, as sound echoed throughout the vents, meaning she could be near or far, depending. This aggrevated her, she didn't have the time to waste just crawling through air ducts all night. Before long the smoke would encompass the entire compound, choking everyone to death, and the fires would burn whoever was left inside. She needed to get out of here, and fast. Suddenly she stopped, Minerva stopping behind her, her ears up. "What is it?" Minerva asked, and Stone waited, her voice hushed. "...I don't know, it sounds like...wings," she said. Without warning, the vent grate beside them burst open and a dozen tiny birds fluttered in, feathers flying everywhere, scaring both Minerva and Stone half to death. After a moment the birds were gone, and Stone shook her head in annoyance. "This is bullshit," she said, Minerva chuckling. "Stone?" a voice asked, and when they glanced toward the end of the vent, they spotted Number Six. "Six!" Stone said, "What are you...how did you-" "I figured there might be some stragglers left in the vent, so I stayed behind to find them. Guide them out of here. I know where the containment room is, I know were we're going," Six said, "I'm sure that's where Mipsy is headed, I could hear her voice." "Yeah, us too, we were following it," Stone said, "We should keep moving, the smoke is getting thick. I'm afraid we won't be able to breath pretty soon if we stick around much longer." The three of them continued crawling through the vent, their ears on high alert for the sound of Mipsy's voice drawing ever nearer. As they went in silence, Stone thought about her life. How it had all changed since the Collective had come to her Hollow. How, somehow, despite all odds, this other group of rabbits had escaped and found her, the one Special Seven THEY had released willingly into the wilds. She'd taken them in, she'd helped them kill their enemies, and in turn, they'd given her a bigger family than she could've ever dreamed of. Things had turned out quite alright for Stone, in fact. At least up until this point, when she found herself crawling through a burning smoke infested air vent. The irony of being in an air vent, yet being unable to breath properly, was indeed not lost on her. "You know," Six said, "I used to think the whole idea of being part of a 'special' group was ridiculous, but now I see it more as a noble effort, to take the most horrible of experiments so those below you don't have to be subjected to them themselves. If I could take anything back, it would be to put myself in place of everyone who got hurt by something in this lab." "You can't live in the past, especially not right now, because if you do, you might not have a future," Stone said, "You're right, all I want to do is protect those who couldn't protect themselves, who didn't deserve to have these horrible things happen to them, but really there's no way to go back and fix that. We just have to live with what's happened and try and do better every day." They finally came to a vent and could see, through the slots, Mipsy and Kevin standing side by side, speaking to the rabbits in the cages. Six tapped on the vent, and Salt scurried up, unscrewing the front end and letting them into the room. At the sight of Minerva, all the rabbits in the cages tensed up, somewhat understandably, but Kevin immediately reassured them. "There's no reason to be frightened, I know she's tall and covered in blood, but I can attest that she is our friend," he said, "She's here to protect us and get us all out of here. Salt here is going to open up each and every one of your cages and then you will follow Mipsy, single file line, to the exit we've prepared. Once outside you will hurriedly approach the treeline, and wait there for the rest of us. Is that clear and understood?" The rabbits all murmured in agreement. Having a fox on their side seemed to help keep them in check. Stone was, admittedly, impressed with Kevins leadership. She'd seen him be somewhat of a leader before, but now he was really putting his efforts on front display, and she liked what she saw. She could finally understand what it was Gerry had seen in him, and of course, what Number Four had fallen in love with. Kevin turned to face the others as Salt did her duty and Mipsy led them all into a line. "Nice of you to join us," he said, jokingly, making Stone, Minerva and Six chuckle. "It wasn't easy, trust me," Stone said, "Nearly died a few times over just trying to reach this place." "Yeah, you're not the only one," Kevin said. "Where's Gerald?" Six asked, and Kevin shook his head. "Last I saw of him, he was in a hallway, facing down a guard dog," Kevin said, "He told me to get everyone out. I have no idea if he's still alive. Haven't seen Number Two either." "Yeah we got separated fairly early on," Minerva said, "And when I rescued him from a dog, perhaps the same dog Gerald found himself faced with, I lost Paul even more. I can only hope he's okay." "I'm sure if they're alive, they're together, and if they're together, they'll be fine," Stone said, "Those two make a great whole rabbit when working with their two broken halves." Once all the rabbits were out of their cages and lined up, Kevin approached Mipsy's side and elbowed her, making her smile. He nodded at her. She was, just like him, a leader. Her disability didn't stop her, it didn't even slow her down, if anything her disability made her all the more powerful, and she was beginning to finally revel in it. She shouted at the rabbit to follow them, and away the group went. The walk back to the exit, thanks to Mipsy, was fairly easy. She was their map, after all. Single filed, the newly released rabbits began pouring out of the exit through the vent into the side of the lab where the Collective had entered, and Lorna took note. She swept down from her tree branch and soared quickly over to her bundle of sticks, clutched one in her talons and then headed for the fire. She caught both ends and then circled, waiting for the last of the rabbits to come out. Staying there in midflight, the wind beneath her wings, she couldn't believe the sight she saw. An ocean of white and brown and black and grey fur beneath her; her beak curved somewhat up, grinning, shaking her head. They'd actually done it. Against all odds, they'd done it. And then a shot rang out in the night, and she felt a piercing pain through her left wing. She dropped the stick, and cried out in pain, diving into the thicketed forest below. She landed in the dirt and mud, and looked at her wing. Someone from atop the lab had shot her. THEY were sniping anything that tried to leave. That's when something caught her eye...the sight of fire on the ground. The stick she'd dropped had ignited the dry grass they'd laid around the lab far too early, and was spreading quickly. Soon all the rabbits would be trapped in a ring of burning death with bullets hailing down upon them. Lorna grimaced, pecked into her wing and pulled the bullet out with her beak, spitting it onto the ground beside her. "I've had enough of this," she said, then, even with all the pain shooting through her wing, took flight once more, heading toward the lab. She circled overhead, and cawed, trying to grab the snipers attention, and draw their fire away from the rabbits on the ground. In the vents, Kevins ears perked up. He knew that shrill cry. Something had gone wrong. He'd heard the shot, and he knew from personal experience in the woods with the hunters it was a gun, but he didn't know what had happened. Now he was worried. As the last of the rabbits hurried through the hole, Kevin looked at Minerva, who was licking her hip where the bullet had entered. "You need to get out," Kevin said, "I'll wait for them as long as I can, but you need to get out now and get back to your mate. You've done more than enough here." Minerva nodded, and headed through the hole. Six followed next, and all that was left was Mipsy and Stone. Kevin looked at Mipsy, but she backed up and shook her head. "I no leave until you leave," she said, "I refuse!" "Mipsy-" "No! You my friend, we stay together!" "...Mipsy, come on, don't do this, THEY could blow these vents up any second now, you have to get out, Paw Paw is waiting for you. Don't die on my account, alright? Go home. Be with Paw Paw. Please..." Kevin begged, but she wouldn't budge. "Oh fuck this," Stone said, turning heel and racing down the vent, disappearing from sight. As she came out of the vents and into a room, she slid across the floor and found a staircase, which she quickly ascended, heading upwards towards the roof. She could hear where the gunshots were coming from, and she knew she needed to do something. The door to the roof was propped open, and she dove out onto the roof, jamming her teeth into the mans ankle. He screamed and kicked at her, his boot connecting with her face and skidding her across the rooftop until she hit a wall. He then picked his rifle back up, stood up and approached her. He cocked it as she looked up at him, and he aimed. After all this, she'd be shot in the head anyway. Well, if nothing else, she bought the escapees some time. But he didn't fire, instead he began to scream. When she opened her eyes, she saw Lorna was scratching at his face and pecking at him. He'd dropped the rifle on the ground, trying instead to wave her away. Stone sat and watched, in sheer terror, unsure of what to do, or if there was anything she even could do. The man reached down and grabbed a small knife on his hip, pulled it off and lunged for Lorna's side. Stone raced at him and jumped up on a small box he'd left there with ammo, then leapt up onto the slightly raised wall of the roof and, just as he lunged again for Lorna, Stone leapt onto his face, screaming and clawing at him. The mans knife barely grazed Lorna, only cutting her mildly near her leg, and she backed away, watching him flail at Stone as she dug her teeth into his nose. Lorna felt time slow down, as she watched the man jam his knife into Stones side repeatedly, but Stone just shut her eyes, and ignored the pain. The man stumbled over his ammo box and toppled over the side of the wall, falling to his death, Stone still attached to his face, along for the ride. As they headed for the ground, Stones life flashed before her eyes. Her brief time in the lab, her sanctioned release into the wild, her efforts at starting the Hollow, her friendship with Nickle, the arrival of the Collective, and everything else. She thought about Gerry, about Paul, about all the other rabbits she'd been lucky to have known. She smiled. She had done what she'd set out to do in more ways than one. Save a life. She didn't even feel it when they hit the ground. Lorna landed on the side of the wall and looked down, tears rolling down her face as she cried into the night. After a few moments, she looked out across the vast scope of the land between the lab and the treeline, and she did what Stone would've done. She picked herself right back up, she ignored her pain, and she went back to work. *** Kevin and Mipsy waited as long as they could, neither one speaking a word. They didn't know where Stone had gone, they didn't even know she was dead. All they knew was that they were waiting on two rabbits now, Gerry and Paul, and that they didn't have much time left to wait. Kevin sighed as he looked at his robotic foot and pawed at it momentarily. "I've survived so much," Kevin said quietly, "...the fact I'm still alive is remarkable, considering the horrible things I've been a part of. But, all those horrible things paled when compared to the happiness knowing Ellen brought me. That's why I need you to promise me, Mipsy, that if it comes down to the wire, you will leave. You will leave and you will go home to Paw Paw. Don't let her become as broken as me. Love is worth surviving for." Mipsy sighed and nodded, "Okay Kevin," she said, "I promise, I go home if it get too long. Thank you for caring. Thank you for being my friend, and believing in me. You know I'm not stupid." "You're not stupid, Mipsy," Kevin said, "And anyone who says you are are the stupid ones, I guarantee that. You alone have helped us accomplish more than we ever did on our own. You're remarkable, and I'm glad someone else, like Paw Paw, sees that in you, enough to love you. Don't turn your back on that kind of love." Just then Gerry and Paul came scooting around the corner. "Where the hell have you two been!?" Kevin shouted. "It's a long story, we gotta go!" Gerry shouted, "This place is burning to the ground! I presume you got the rabbits out?" "Yeah, I did my job," Kevin said sternly. "Hey," Number Two said, "Now is not the time. Belittle one another later, right now let's survive." The four of them headed out the vent, surprised at the blinding fire raging all around them that had now even caught some of the treeline on fire as well. Kevin had told the new rabbits to run north if they needed to, so he wasn't worried about losing them, but his main goal right now was to get Mipsy back to the Hollow, or wherever they were. To get her out of here alive, no matter what the cost. Number Two pointed up in the sky at Lorna, who was struggling to fly, still dropping burning sticks to the ground to obscure any of THEIR views as THEY too tried to scramble for an exit. Kevin grabbed Mipsys paw and turned her to look him in the eye. "Do you trust me?" he asked. "Why?" "Do you trust me?" he repeated, and she nodded; he continued, "Shut your eyes, and hold on. I'm getting you out of here." Kevin pulled her onto his back, and then ran headfirst through the fire, leaving Gerry and Number Two speechless. They looked at one another as the circle of flames began closing in, and they felt trapped. Number Two finally didn't have a plan, and he felt sick. He looked at Gerry and Gerry looked at him. They didn't need to say it, their eyes said enough. Suddenly, they heard a voice behind them, and were shocked to see Crisp and Melvin standing there. "It's really hard to walk when you're attached like this," Crisp said, "But we're here." "Oh my god," Number Two said, "How did you-" "Jasmine," Melvin said, "Jasmine wandered into our area and helped us out. Now we're going to do the same for you. We're going to lay down on the flames and you're going to walk out over us. We...we didn't stay, and we should have. Let us do this for you." "You guys have a group to lead," Crisp said. Crisp and Melvin waddled, best they could, to the edge of the fire and collapsed onto it, feeling it burn them from underneath. Number Two and Gerry were quick, heading over their back fast and stopping on the other side to look back at them. "Thanks guys," Gerry said, "I'll tell your story." "Of course you will," Crisp said, "It's the same as yours." Gerry smiled and, with Number Two, headed for the now blazing treeline. Crisp held Melvins paw and the two of them rolled off the fire, burned to a singe on their underside, but happy they managed to make up for their mistake. As they lay there, the fire burning bright all around them, soon to completely overtake their body, the lab burning brightly behind them, they looked up at the night sky. Crisp sighed. "I'm glad that, if I have to die attached to someone, it's you," she said. "Right back at you." "The stars are beautiful," Crisp said weakly. "There's no stars out, and even if there were you couldn't see them through the smoke," Melvin replied. "There's so many stars, you just have to shut your eyes," Crisp said, and Melvin did just that. She was right. He saw the stars. And they were indeed beautiful.
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The Rabbit Collective follows a group of lab rabbits struggling with their purpose, and hopeful eventual escape. Archives
October 2020
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