Some heists don't always go the way you plan them to.

Story commission for  Nova Raccoon who wanted Mr. Wolf from the upcoming film The Bad Guys inflating Zootopia's Nick Wilde. I really like Nick myself, so this was a fun one to do.

The Bad Guys © Universal
Zootopia © Disney

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A lone, black van sped down a poorly lit highway in the dead of night. In it sat only two occupants and a plethora of hi-tech equipment. “Remind me why we’re hitting this place?” Nick Wilde, a short, lean, orange fox asked from the passenger seat. His face was beyond skeptical.

“Told you before, the owner of this plant is paranoid as hell and has had some illicit dealings.” The driver replied. He was a tall, trim brown wolf with dark yellow eyes. He was only known by the codename used within his criminal gang: Mr. Wolf. “He doesn’t trust banks, so he’s got a ton of cash and jewels stored in his office. The plant in question was the Floaty Factory, quite a drive from the urban center of Zootopia. As the name implied, it was a balloon-manufacturing plant, as well as some other party supplies. It had even supplied some specialty balloons for parades.

“How much of a score could this actually be?” That question repeatedly ran through Nick’s head. He shrugged it off though; his partner wasn’t called the Big Bad Wolf for nothing. His gang’s info was usually on point. “After this heist, we don’t know each other.” Nick stated, trying to hide his skepticism.

“Fine by me. Offer’s still open, if you ever want to join the Bad Guys.” Wolf smirked. The pair was silent for the rest of the drive. They eventually arrived at the factory, parking their black van far enough away to not draw suspicion. Both men were dressed in black outfits, completely concealing everything except their eyes. Nick put a device in his ear. It may have looked like a normal earbud, but this one was rigged to the local police frequency. If there was any activity from the cops, he’d know as well.

The unlikely pair walked the rest of the way to the remote factory. It was nearly pitch black outside; the only light coming from a small security booth near the entrance of the parking lot. Nick and Wolf carefully approached, ready to take down the guard and swipe the keys. Luckily, they didn’t have to. “Zzzkktt…” Inside the booth was a rather heavy-set goat. Empty cans littered the floor. The entire booth smelled like alcohol. Nick looked at Wolf, who just shrugged in response. Not one to look a gift goat in the mouth, the fox reached in and swiped the guard’s keyring and a small pamphlet. They were given out to factory visitors and showed some of the company’s history; but more importantly, had a small map of the facility. With keys in hand, the two criminals made their way into the factory, making sure to not trigger any traps.

It was completely dark inside. Wolf led the way, using a small light and his superior night vision to guide. Nick was constantly looking around, his eyes and ears peeled for any hint of cameras or security. Other than the security goat out front, the entire place seemed deserted. No cameras, no microphones, no guards. The would-be thieves walked up to the administration section of the building without any resistance. “Y’know, I really would’ve expected someone as paranoid as the owner to have better security. Or ANY security, for that matter.” Nick said quietly, just in case.

“Knew a guy who worked here. Said the security teams get turned over on the regular. Something about not trusting one group for too long.” Wolf explained, his voice also hushed. “Hence why we had to do it tonight.” The two stealthed their way right up to the door labeled ‘President’s Office.’ It was all the way near the back of the factory, right by the actual production floor. Wolf pressed his ear against it. Complete silence. No one inside. Using the guard’s stolen keyring, the pair entered the office.

Much like the rest of the factory, it was pitch black inside. Using their flashlights, Nick and Wolf purveyed the room. Bookshelves and filing cabinets lined the walls. A lone, large desk sat near the back of the room, with an equally large chair behind it. Behind the desk was a full wall-length window that overlooked the actual production area of the factory. A door led to a staircase down there as well. There was no safe in sight immediately, so the two began searching.

“If I were a paranoid cook, where would I hide my cash…” Nick muttered while examining some bookshelves. Wolf looked over the president’s desk. Relying solely on intuition, the anthro reached under the desk and felt a few bumps. Buttons. He crawled underneath and shined the light on them.

“Let’s see, trapdoor, security, open factory roof hatch…” He read aloud. “A ha! Vault!” He pushed the button excitedly. A loud rumble came from one of the bookcases. Nick jumped back as it turned to the side, leading to another passageway. After exchanging excited glances, the pair followed it down. A large black safe lay waiting. But it was locked via password, which they didn’t have. But they did have the next best thing: A crowbar. With a herculean effort, Wolf and Nick pried the door open. Stacks of bills poured out, and Wolf was practically drooling at the sight. Nick was slightly less enthused, mostly due to a staticy sound in his ear.

“Zootopia PD. We’ve got word of a break in at the Floaty Factory, 10 Maplecrest Ave. in the suburb of Hillsworth. Any available units, please respond.”

“Roger, dispatch. This is unity J-21. ETA of 30 minutes.”

“Understood. They have security posted by the front entrance, so those perps won’t have anywhere to go.”

“Well, we’re gonna have company soon.” Nick shook his head, relaying the police report to Wolf. “Think there’s an emergency exit on the production floor?”

“There’s gotta be.” Wolf and Nick, both holding large sacks of cash, made their way from the President’s office to the factory level. Tons of large, high-quality machines littered the place; everything was turned off for the night. This was seemingly the one room that had flood lights, letting them see much better than with their flashlights.

“Tch, no emergency exit? This place is just one OSHA violation after another.” Nick scoffed. “Now how do we get out of here?”

Wolf looked around, trying to think of something. They couldn’t go the way they came. “Hmm… the roof… but how do we reach it…?” He mumbled to himself. Wolf looked around for a ladder or something tall enough to reach. Alas, he found nothing of the sort. All he could find were some spare helium canisters. “Wait…” Wolf closed his eyes tightly; the gears in his head began turning. His eyes opened with a flash of inspiration.

“I’ve got an idea so crazy that it just might work.” Before Nick could clarify, Wolf bolted up the stairs back to the office. He checked under the desk again, and this time, pressed the Factory Roof Hatch button. Back on the production floor, the roof of the building slowly folded in on itself, giving way to a dark, cloudy night sky. After running back down the stairs, Wolf grabbed a large metal cylinder from the factory floor.

“So, what? Got a ladder? Or a grappling hook?” Nick replied, his voice rife with snark. Wolf didn’t reply. Instead, he grabbed the fox’s black mask and tore it off. “Wait, what the hell are you doi–mmph?” Nick’s question was interrupted by the conniving wolf shoving a long, rubber tube into his mouth. Wolf immediately tied a length of rope around the fox’s muzzle, trapping said hose inside.

“You’re just gonna have to trust me on this.” Wolf said smoothly and turned a nozzle on the metal cylinder. A loud squeak echoed through the factory. “No ladder, not enough rope to climb up. But what if we had a big enough balloon to float out of here?” Nick was still confused, but quickly noticed a loud hissing sound. Like air moving through a hose. The fox suddenly felt a wave of pressure; his cheeks puffed outwards as the air in the tank flowed into his mouth. With the rope keeping his mouth shut, all Nick could do was swallow. A small mound formed in his mid-section, though it was hard to see in the dark suit and poorly lit factory.

Nick’s eyes went wide as he watched the bump form. His belly was slowly starting to bloat outwards. He tried to yank the rope off his muzzle or spit out the hose. Wolf growled and grabbed the fox’s paws. “I told you, we need a balloon to get out of here. So thanks for volunteering.” Nick winced as the pressure continued to mount. His formerly flat belly now stuck out a few inches, but it didn’t sound like Wolf would let it stop any time soon.

The hissing of air rang in the fox’s ears. His stomach continued to stretch and fill. Nick’s belly was really showing now, rising out six inches from his middle. It looked like he had eaten way too much food, but felt much tighter than that. He carefully poked the swelling mound, as if to make sure it was real. It was, and it was tight. Like an inflated balloon. Wolf watched bemused; this may not have been part of the plan, but it was certainly entertaining. Some small rips and tears could be heard over the hissing air tank. Nick’s outfit may have been good at concealing his identity, but it was certainly not made to accompany his stature. The black top slowly rose up atop his blimping belly, revealing the tan, fuzzy orb. Tiny rips and tears came from the fabric of his outfit as it tried to conceal his form.

“Man, this helium is putting in work!” Wolf placed a paw on Nick’s bloating belly. It felt extremely tight and full, yet also like there was still a ton of room to grow. Nick was growing more flustered the bigger he grew. Even if this was critical to their escape, it was no less embarrassing. Especially not with how much Wolf seemed to like it. As his belly neared a foot round, Nick heard another announcement from the police scanner.

“En route to Floaty Factory. ETA, 20 minutes.”

“Twuny mins.” Nick mumbled through the hose and bloated cheeks.

“Crap, we need to pick up the pace.” Wolf shook his head, then smirked. “Wonder if you’re enjoying this as much as I am.” The hissing sound grew much louder as the airflow increased. Nick stumbled as more helium forced its way down his throat. His tan belly immediately ballooned out another half a foot in size. Despite the size increase, it didn’t feel heavy at all. It actually felt rather light; like a balloon filled with helium. But that wasn’t the concerning factor at the moment. Nick suddenly began to feel a lot more pressure around his pants. His butt, more specifically. The fox’s eyes went wide as he peered over his shoulder. Somehow, his ass was also starting to blow up. It was much easier to see than his belly at first because the two ballooning, orange cheeks had already started to pull the waistband down. His rear was nearly flat before, but now it looked like a pair of orange basketballs stuck to his backside. Nick knew it made no sense as to why his butt was blowing up, but he really wasn’t too concerned about the specifics at this point.

“Wasn’t expecting this, but hey. Whatever works.” Wolf squeezed Nick’s ballooned booty, much to his chagrin. Sssshhhrriiiipppp! The tattered remains of his clothes fell listlessly to the ground. “Can’t leave this evidence.” Wolf gathered the fox’s torn clothes and threw them into one of the bags of cash. Nick’s belly stuck out three feet, like a gigantic, tan beach ball. And his but was keeping pace, with each cheek a foot large inside his underwear. As much as he wanted this strange scenario to be over, Nick couldn’t deny that blowing up like this felt good. His puffy cheeks turned a deep red, embarrassed at the thought he was actually enjoying it. “Looks like the balloon is enjoying themselves, huh? Maybe I’ll try this after we dodge the cops.” Wolf pressed his hand into the fox’s bloated gut. Nick’s arms and legs started to inflate, forcing them out to his sides. The massive quantity of helium inside made them stiff and practically impossible to move. His chest started to puff out due to the helium. It was smaller than his belly, but it made it look much smoother. Even his back began to push outwards, giving his body a much more rounded shape, though his belly and butt were still quite prominent.

The round fox balloon was already four feet round in diameter, but it still wasn’t enough. Wolf cranked the nozzle again, letting even more helium flow. Nick blushed as he gulped everything down. His round body blew up faster than before, quickly swelling to six feet large. Bigger than any exercise ball he’d ever seen. As he swelled into an ever expanding fox balloon, Nick noticed something missing. The ground. He couldn’t feel it beneath his feet anymore. Nick tried to look down at Wolf for some help, but really had to look down. He was floating. The only thing tethering him to the ground was the helium canister and Wolf. But, Nick feared, they wouldn’t be tethering him for much longer. After all, he was still blowing up.

Nearly 8 feet round, and Nick felt himself rising higher. “There we go!” Wolf cheered as he held onto the rope that tied the fox’s muzzle shut. The enormous, round fox balloon rose high into the sky, passing through the large gap in the roof. Upon clearing the roof, Wolf turned off the helium tank. Nick, now nothing but a 10-foot large and round fox blimp, was completely stuck. His arms and legs had been engulfed by his swollen form, not that he could have used them anyway.

In the distance, the pair of thieves could see some flashing lights headed towards the factory. Fortunately, a strong gust of wind blew the zeppelin-sized fox out towards the rural fields away from their heist location.

“Man, what an escape!” Wolf sighed and hoisted himself up onto the fox’s blimped back. Nick just mumbled something incomprehensible, his muzzle still bound by the rope. Seeing this, Wolf took the hose out of his still-tied mouth “Tell you what we’ll do now. I’ll untie this rope, and you’ll let the helium out SLOWLY.” Wolf explained. “Once you’re no longer a blimp, we’ll go grab the van and divy up the loot. And my offer is still open. How’d you like to be one of the Bad Guys?”