The final week is here! The Bunny Apocalypse is coming this Sunday! On Easter! Are you ready? 20 writers are being gracious enough to prepare you for this catastrophe. Chapter 14 will make you scratch your ears and chew on your paws, I know. (Read how it started here.)
Please welcome our 14th author, Colleen Albert, (aka @colleenmalbert). Colleen is a stay at home mom and YA urban fantasy writer who secretly loves when her kids are in school so she can work on her novel without guilt. In her spare time, she edits other amazing writers' novels as The Grammar Babe. She's a closet Ruzzle addict and finds it no coincidence that she was born on All Saints' Day.
Photo by Frank McMains
EASTER BUNNY APOCALYPSE
Chapter 14 by Colleen Albert
Dusk had set in, and the cool night's air sent shivers down Easter's spine. As he watched the owls take off, loaded with his top assets, he briefly questioned whether he was doing the right thing. The hostile takeover of small towns and neighborhoods had been a great start. The International Underground Animal Network had done a magnificent job coming to his aid. All with the promise that, soon, they would be human-free and get back the land that was rightfully theirs.
Easter sighed. That's if we don't destroy it ourselves first. He was saddened by the poisonous fumes and catnip he'd been forced to unleash. Damn those feral cats! And he was still mourning the loss of a top general, even while celebrating his success. He accepted that these were simply the triumphs and heartbreaks of war that were his to bear as a leader. A savior, even.
As he watched the last tail feather disappear from view, he knew that what he'd just set in motion could never be undone. But Easter was ready to assume that responsibility. Soon, he would rule the animal kingdom, and with no people to get in his way, the entire Earth!
* * * * *
"Are all of our assets in place and ready to execute? Over."
"Yes, Sergeant Major Gorse, my team's in place and we're ready on your command. Over," Kit said briskly.
She scanned the grounds, in awe of its expanse from her aerial view. She took a deep breath. She was the best in the field and had been trained for this since the day she could hop. But she never saw her career taking her here—to the human's White House—on such a dangerous mission. Still, her elite cross-species team could handle this. And she had an ace in her back pocket: Ekaterina.
Ekaterina descended from a long line of hearty Russian soldiers, sharpshooters, and vodka drinkers. As the weasel queen's daughter and the grand-daughter of Wiska—the infamous sniper master who'd taken down Nazis during World War II—there was no one more qualified.
"Ekaterina, do you have the target in sight? Over," Kit said.
"Yah. Over."
Kit knew it was as good as she'd get. Once Ekaterina had her target marked, it was all business. Kit pet the warm, brown feathers on her owl's back, then leaned over and called out, "Take me down. It's show time!"
* * * * *
The humans never saw it was coming, so they had no counter attack in place. No cameras could've picked up the furry little creatures that descended on the White House in the inky-black darkness of night. Bunnies were lowered on harness wires from owls' backs, landing gently on the rooftop with soft thumps. They hopped quickly around and over security cameras, slid on furry cottontails down the slick, metal ventilation shafts, and rappelled down sooty flues.
Kit's ground troop fanned out over the South Lawn where hundreds of untouched Easter eggs lay on the lush, green lawn. If it hadn't rained on Easter morning, preventing the 135th White House Easter Egg Roll, none of this would've been necessary. The poison-laced candy and explosive Easter eggs they'd carefully hidden would've done the job. Instead, they were now on the most dangerous mission since the great Bunny Insurgence.
Kit gave the signal—three foot thumps and a nose twitch—and set the final wheels in motion. She couldn't see Ekaterina, but that was the point. No sound was heard. Not a cricket or cicada wing stirred. A soft, lulling static filled the radio's airwaves as Kit listened through her bunny headset. Then, the words she had been waiting for came.
"Operation POTUS, success," came Ekaterina's thick, raspy voice. "Over."
Kit released the breath she'd been holding and her bunny paws began to shake.
"The first family is down," Fluffy confirmed from within the White House. "Over."
Tears fell down Kit's soft, furry cheeks.
"All guards and internal personnel are down. We've also secured the perimeter and razed the garden. It's safe to enter," said Lieutenant Whiskers through the earpiece. "Over."
Kit collapsed on the roof with her paws stretched out in front of her. They'd done it. They'd actually done it! Her back leg thumped lightly as exhilaration coursed through her. She knew that her father and Easter would both be so proud of her work here.
She switched channels to her private line with Gorse. "Father, do you copy?"
"Speak briefly, Kit. This line may not be safe."
"Yes, sir. Operation POTUS was a success. The White House is in our control. Over."
She heard pride and relief in his voice. "You've done a fine job, Kit. Gather your soldiers and head back to the warren. We need to debrief Easter and initiate stage two."
"Stage two, sir?" Kit asked.
"Operation Egg-Nuke. I'm recommending you as my second-in-command for the mission. Good work here, Kitten," he added softly. "Now retreat.
The praise and fear that mingled inside were the last things Kit felt as a single bullet from a distant sniper rifle tore silently through the night air, finding its fatal mark dead center in her little bunny heart.
P.S.: This is the 14th Chapter of EASTER BUNNY APOCALYPSE. Here are other Chapters: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, and Chapter 13. Of course, if we all survive, Chapter 15 will be published tomorrow.