BEASTARS - Night of the Lepus

Zen

I'm going to give a content warning, you guys. 

TORTURE AND HOLOCAUST REFERENCES AHEAD!!

If you don't feel comfortable reading it, I won't be offended. If you're fine with it, enjoy the read.

   Tanya began regaining consciousness after a few minutes. She had a minor concussion, but it could've been a lot worse had she not been wearing a helmet. She woke up to see three figures standing over her. Tanya realized her helmet had been removed. A lop-eared rabbit, a saddle-billed stork, and a red deer. The red deer caught her attention first, as she recognized her former Cherryton classmate. "Louis?" the raccoon said weakly. Tanya felt the ground she lay upon, realizing it was grass. She had been carried out of harm's way. Louis knelt down. Tanya slowly sat up and supported herself with her hands.

   "Tanya? What happened?" he asked softly. Tanya's eyes went wide with horror as she remembered. She grabbed Louis' wrist with both hands and pulled him closer. "Louis!! They've got Mizuchi!! And her mom and dad!! I don't...I....I don't know what they're gonna....do...and...." Tanya stuttered before putting a hand over her mouth. She remembered Riley. "OH GOD!! RILEY!! THEY KILLED RILEY!!" Tanya cried, tears filling her eyes. Noc's eyes went wide. "Who did?" he asked, kneeling by her side. "Rabbits! But they were...they were....." Tanya tried to explain. "Robots?" Noc asked, disappointed. Kyuu knelt as well. "Tanya, listen. We're gonna get them back. Okay? We promise. Now, do you know where they were headed?" she asked softly. Tanya shook her head slowly, wiping the mucus from her nostrils. "I don't know. But there's a sick fuck who wanted to 'save' them." Tanya quoted with her fingers. Louis looked at Noc and then at Kyuu. 

   "RECRUITMENT!!" he exclaimed as he ran to Noc's parked car. Louis came rushing back with his phone to his ear. "What is it!?" Noc asked. "Mizuchi and her family are harlequin rabbits, an endangered species. If Zen can't covert them to his cause, he'll kill them!" Louis panicked. "Zen!? You know who did this!?" A stunned Tanya tried to stand up, but Kyuu stopped her. "Tanya, no! You just slammed into a van!" she protested. 

   "Sameer! You were right! Zen is kidnapping endangered herbivore species!!" Louis exclaimed. "Dear god! What confirmed it!?" Sameer asked. Louis looked off down the road, where the van sped off. "A classmate." he answered.

THE WAREHOUSE....

   Mizuchi woke up to a freezing temperature. The putrid scent of blood filled her nostrils. She opened her eyes and saw nothing. The harlequin rabbit was blindfolded. She didn't know where she was, but she realized that she was tied to an armrest chair. "Mom!? Dad!?" she yelled weakly. The tranquilizer had a side effect similar to that of alcohol. "Mizuchi? Sweetie, where are you!?" said the familiar voice of her mother Sakai. "I don't know." Mizuchi whimpered. "I'm scared." she added. "Mervis?!" Sakai called out. "I'm here. I don't feel so good." Mervis answered. 

   "Who's there?" said an unfamiliar voice. "Umm....who are you?" Sakai asked. "My name is Wu. I'm a kakapo." the voice answered. "And I'm his wife, Jen." said a female voice. "Okay. Do either of you know what the fuck's going on here!?" Mervis asked hastily. "No! We can't see! We're tied up! I'm assuming you guys are, too?" Wu answered. "Obviously!" Sakai yelled. "Who's doing this!??" she exclaimed. Mizuchi began sobbing as the memory of Riley's murder came back. 

   Suddenly, her blindfold was pulled from her face. There was a single light, high above her. She looked around and saw her parents on either side of her, also with their blindfolds removed. A white rabbit walked behind a row of 12 chairs (including hers), removing the blindfolds of other animals who were bound. Mizuchi noticed the kakapos Wu and Jen from earlier, but continued to watch the rabbit. There was a family of three Scimitar oryxes, a pair of black rhinos bound with chains, and a pair of saolas. They began regaining consciousness as well, all of them panicking as to what was happening. Mizuchi's heart began to race faster as six well-dressed white rabbits emerged from the darkness. One of them held up a remote and clicked it. A bright flash of light illuminated from behind the bound animals and a projector screen was revealed in front of them. It was about 20 feet from their seated positions. Was this some kind of sick, twisted movie theater?