A World of Feathers and Fur - Prologue
#1 of A World of Feathers and Fur
Sorry for such a short prologue :/ The other chapters will be longer, I promise.
It happened in an instant.
"Quarantine Number 2-90, All clear." "All clear, you may proceed."
The air has grown stiff and the floor gone cold. I could hear the deep breathing of the men beside me as they led me down the long endless corridor. I could see it in their eyes. I could sense it in their skin. They may have been stoic and emotionless that night, but one thing I know for a fact. They were afraid. Afraid of a half-breed, as of myself. Afraid of what might come of them. And, most of all, what might become of the world they used to keep in order.
"Quarantine Number 2-90, please state your status to proceed." "This is Unit HOUND 10-9, with fresh specimen, warranted to be placed under quarantine by United States Law."
The cold air rushed through my fur, breezing into the abyss of the outside world that would be no longer for me. I stood there, paws trembling, waiting patiently in hope that I would one day be freed from the curse set upon me. I look back now, and realize something I could not grasp back then. What a foolish, selfish desire.
"Unit HOUND 10-9, you're clear to enter."
The doors opened as the men led me inside. I could hear the other prisoners, each more innocent than the last. They begged and pleaded to be rid of the pain. Not just of the prison, but of the internal pain of being different. Of being something abnormal. Something non-human. The cries for liberation did nothing to the guards. They did nothing but wonder. After all, it would only be a matter of time before they were the ones begging and pleading to be rid of the pain themselves. One could only remain human in this new world for so long without the beast catching up to them.
A cell door opened and I was forced inside. Everything I had ever known, be it my family, my life, or my world, was immediately locked away. I reached for the bars with my paws. The human race always had a tendency to humiliate and discriminate those who were different. They were always afraid of those who were different. Those who were not the same. Here, they were afraid of us. The beasts, the half-breeds, the furries.
They were afraid of the inevitable.