New chapter here guys! Hope your ready!

Our duo finally arrives! Only, there new home isn't what they were expecting.

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Welcome to Safe Haven!

...


"...Fear…"

"What exactly is it?

"What is fear?"

"I know…."

"...It is order."

"It is to be followed."

"It is to be obeyed."

"It is to be respected."

"...I control it…"

"I can release it…"

"Join me…"

"Join your family…"

"Join everyone… in the plain…"

"Experience fear…"

"Experience it with us…"

"...refuse?"

"Then… VANISH YOU VERMIN INSECTS!"

"DIE!"


"GAH!"

Cade yelled as he jumped forward in his seat. He panted heavily as he held his chest, his eyes darting around the empty plane.

...Wait, empty!?

He looked around and noticed that the plane was indeed empty. While he knew it was just him, he looked around to notice that his pet was gone and Snake was nowhere to be seen.

"H-hello?" He called out as he stood up. He stumbled a bit, grabbing a seat for support before getting his footing back. "Snake? You here?" He walked to the control room to see no one seated. "What the hell?" He muttered to himself before he looked back the aisles. "I must have slept in." He assumed as he walked back to his seat. But before he sat down, he looked out the window to see the sunlight shining in.

"Geez I overslept. It's morning… a full day just passed… and I'm supposed to report to my new job today…"

"OH FIND ME IN THE ALPS!" He screamed as he ran to the door. "I'm late! And I just arrived!" He pulled down the lever to the door and slowly opened it as the sunlight blinded him for a few seconds. "CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP CRA-!"

"SURPRISE!"

"...Wha?"

Cade felt both his eyes widen and his jaw drop at what he was currently seeing right in front of him. He couldn't believe it, but there they were!

There, surrounding the entrance of the plane, were animals and monsters! Serious, honest-to-god monsters and animals, varying different sizes, colors and species. And they were all smiling at him, as if they were expecting him

Then, to his surprise, one creature approached him. It had red fur, a long body and a top hat. It also had red slitted eyes and its ears were slightly teared. "Welcome to the ZOO Cade Daniels!" It greeted loudly in his face, deafening him slightly. It spoke with an obvious male voice.

He then slung his arm around Cade's shoulder with a smile as if they were friends. "Well - HA! Of course it isn't really a zoo!" He laughed, not noticing the weirded out look on the humans face. "Sorta ironic that I just called it that really! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" He laughed again, getting an awkward laugh from Cade.

"Huh, yeah. Kind of weird." He smiled nervously. He may have been nervous outside, but he was having a major panic attack on the inside! He was soon greeted by another creature who, to Cade's shock, looked like an oviraptor!

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance my boy." He greeted as he shook his hand. He had a green colored body and wore a monocle

"Um. Thank you... sir?" He said awkwardly as he shook back with a slight smile. Suddenly, he felt his left arm being yanked back by someone else. "WHOA, HEY!" He yelped as he turned to see a female creature. She certainly seemed the most 'human' around here. Besides the woman near the cheetah.

"He looks a lil' shaky if ya' ask me." She stated as she inspected him. She kind of resembled a lizard and she wore some sort of cowgirls outfit, mostly colored brown and black. He skin was grey and she had a tail sticking out and yellow eyes with red irises. "Then again, he looks a little strong too."

"Miss, please!" Cade begged as he pulled his arm back, rubbing it. That girl had a strong grip. He suddenly felt something pat his back and he turned to see a red fox with black tips on both his ears and tail and he wore a necklace with a blue pendant attached.

"Give the boy some space Carrie." He scolded with a friendly smile to the woman. "He just got off the plane after all." He spoke with a charming voice and he turned to Cade. "Good to see you Mr. Daniels." He said with a slight bow.

"Oh, uh." Cade scratched his head before he gave a respectful bow. "Um, thank you sir. It's nice to meet you… to?" He spoke with uncertainty. He then suddenly faced a creature who had black hair, green skin, green clothes and a green tail. His eyes were green and yet they seemed slightly grey, indicating that he was a little blind.

"Good evening!... or morning?... Day!" He greeted awkwardly as he leaned on the fox's head with a huge smile. The poor guy couldn't tell what time of the day it was? Cade instantly felt sorry for him.

"Um. Thank you very much." He thanked with a nod as they surrounded him, giving him either curious or friendly looks. He backed away as he held his hands up. "Um. I don't mean to be rude, but can you all step back a bit? I'm… I'm a little confused right now." He sighed as he leaned a hand on the side of the plane.

Everyone gave him a curious look, but they politely did so as they gave the human some space. The all gave each other questioning looks as the human calmed down. He seemed like he didn't know what was happening.

But… he did, didn't he?

The cheetah, meanwhile narrowed his eyes at the boy. Something was wrong.

Cade panted as he rubbed his head. "Okay, calm down. Calm down, man. It's just a dream… isn't it?" He asked himself. He then turned to the plane and punched it with his right fist, shocking the creatures.

"YYAAAGGGHHHH!" He yelled in pain as he held his fist. "Okay. Still feel pain. Not a dream." He hissed as he rubbed the reddening appendage. He turned back to the crowd and gave an awkward smile. "So… where am I?" He asked as he shook his hand.

Everyone looked at him confused before the fox spoke up. "You don't know why you're here?" He asked curiously.

Cade looked at him with a deadpanned look. "If I knew where I was, would I really say it was a dream and punch the side of a plane?" He stated as he continued to rub his fist. "Now, again I ask, where am I and-"

"YO! Could you all keep it down out there!" A rough voice called from the plane. "I just took a trip to the john and I would like to have done it in peace!"

Cade turned his head and he looked to the entrance. "Sorry!" He apologized with a smile before he suddenly grew confused "Wait, what?"

The woman in the cowgirl get up stood beside him. "Aren't you supposed to be the only one arriving?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

Cade turned to her. "Yeah. It was just me, the pilot and…" His eyes widened before he slowly turned his head back to the entrance. "...Oh no." He whispered to himself. He just got a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach and he hoped that he was wrong on his next guess on what it was.

Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be.

Just a few seconds later, he saw a small animal, or to be precise, an anthropomorphic animal walk out with orange pants and it was shirtless!

But the biggest shock was that he was a raccoon!

With BLUE fur!

And only one name came to Cade's mind.

"R-RICHARD!?" He exclaimed as he pointed a shaky finger at him.

The raccoon looked up at him with a raise eyebrow. "Yeah. That's me... Who are you?"

"Wha... Howasit...?" Cade mumbled as he felt his brain melt into mush. Was his pet and best friend... An ANTHRO!?

"Dude, what are you lookin at?" Richard asked annoyed before he noticed his hand... Paw. "Wha?" He mumbled as he looked down to see he was standing on his two back-paws! "Buh!?" He then looked to see he was wearing..

PANTS!

"DA HELL!?" He screamed and he looked to see the human looking at him his jaw dropped. "Wait... Cade!? That you!?" He pointed at him in shock as his fur stood up on ends!

Cade continued to mumble incoherently as he rubbed his head, his mind runny at maximum power! Then the cheetah leaned next to him asked a simple question to the two.

"Is there something wrong, sirs?" He asked politely.

That was the straw that broke the camels back.

"Ohmangonnafaint..." Cade mumbled before he collapsed on his knees and hit the ground with a thud. Richard followed suit by falling on his back with a thud himself.

'Sigh.' The cheetah sighed as the boy leaned on his tail and the woman carried the raccoon. This was unexpected.

It appears they had explain a lot of things to their guests when they woke up.


One hour later...

"Aaahhhggg." Cade groaned as he opened his eyes to see a dirty room. He saw a poster with the word 'smile' with a happy face on it. He then saw a man with blonde hair, a blue shirt and tie look at him with concern.

"You okay there, pal?" He asked with a little bit of worry.

"My mind felt like it was in a freaking rocking chair and my body felt like it was just hit by truck." He moaned as he sat up straight. "Other than that, I'm great." He smiled wearily at the man. "Where am I?"

"You're in the nurse's my friend!" The man answered politely as he walked around the table and pulled out a drawer.

"Oh thanks." Cade sighed as he rubbed his head. "You would not have believed what I have just been through today- what's that?" He asked quickly as the man pulled out a driller. Worry started to fill his body at the man's disturbing smile.

And he soon had good reason too!

"Willis said you needed a checkup!" He stated madly, his face contorting into a look of insanity as he grabbed a unicorn doll. "Willis is very smart you know!" He declared as he revved up the drill.

'Oh my god! I just entered Outlast!' Cade screamed within his mind! He quickly leapt off the table and ran for the door. "You'll never take my fingers!" He screamed as he opened the door...

To face the cheetah from before.

"Are you feeling better Mr. Daniels?" He asked with a lazy gaze while leaning forward to face Cade.

The human's eye twitched. "No... I gonna have a mini freak out now." He stated before he walked slowly to the wall of the room.

Then screamed.

"AAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Cade stopped screaming as he felt his throat burn up. He coughed as he banged his chest and turned back to the cheetah.

"Are you finished?" He asked politely.

"Yeah." He panted as he straightened up. "I'm good. I'm good now." He reassured as scratched his head in embarrassment.

"Very well. Now, that you have calmed down, are ready to answer a few questions?" The cheetah asked calmly.

"Yeah. I am, just so long as you answer mine. Deal?" He asked as he held his hand out.

"Very well." The cheetah agreed and he shook the humans hand with his paw. As soon as he stopped, he gestured for the human to go first.

"Okay. Question number one: What's going on around here?" He asked as he looked around to see a few empty halls with only lockers occupying. It was like some sort of school.

"That will be easy to answer if you answer this one: were you not informed about this position?" He asked with a raised eyebrow in confusion.

"No, sorry. Question number two: What was I supposed to be informed about?" Cade asked with his arms outstretched as he gestured to the halls in exclamation.

"You were truly not informed about this place before being sent here?" The cheetah repeated with a shocked look on his face. He seemed to be honestly surprised.

Cade shook his head. "No. I really haven't been told very much about this place. They just told me about a vacant position here and I took it." He replied with honesty before he looked around again. "Speaking of which, where am I?"

The cheetah leaned back in surprise before he looked away with a little bit of worry. This was going to be hard to explain. "Follow me sir." He requested as he walked away.

Cade looked back over his shoulder and and winced when he noticed the man was asleep and hugging the doll. He felt that it was in his best interest to follow the cheetah.

And he did.

As he walked beside the cheetah, he looked around to see the walls were given a relay green color, along with the lockers. A few lights lit the way, giving him a little comfort.

"Hm. Nice place." He complimented quietly.

"Thank you." The cheetah responded with a slight smile. The two continued their way until they reached a brown door. The cheetah opened it with his tail before he walked in, Cade following him. "Have a seat, sir."

Cade complied and sat down in the armchair. He quickly noticed the desk next to him and he saw some kind of squid creature with a cup of tea and in a suit. It slurped as it passed one to Cade, who politely declined. "No thanks." He said nervously as the squid put the cup down.

"No need to fear. This is Principal Winston." The cheetah introduced with a smile. "He is quite harmless." He reassured the human, who in turn nodded with a smile.

Oh! Okay." Cade said as he looked at the principal who offered him the cup again. He smiled and took it with a thankful nod. He turned back to the cheetah and a smile as he took a sip. "Continue."

The cheetah nodded, thankful that the human was taking this well before he frowned. "Well Mr. Cade Daniels. I have some news for you." He began and he placed his front legs on the desk. "My name is Zechariah and I regret to inform you that there seems to have been some sort of mistake with the company that employed you. You were hired to be a Guidance Counselor, correct?" He asked.

"Yes, I was. But they never told what or where I was being sent to." Cade explained.

"Well, all humans employed or chosen to be sent here are given very strict details about this world, and it is their choice to be transferred." He explained before he narrowed his eyes. "Whoever sent you, did an incredibly dishonest thing. For once here, you cannot return to the outside world you once knew."

Cade felt his heart sank as he listened to Zechariah explain his situation. Was he serious? He couldn't return home? He may not have had many friends back home and no more family, but it was still a huge hit to him.

Then, he felt something stir in the back of his mind. "Wait, there's no way of going back? No exit, not return pass or anything like that?" He asked suspiciously as he leaned forward.

Zechariah raised an eyebrow at the boy's question. He seemed to be very specific about it. "There are none i'm afraid." He said firmly.

Cade leaned back as he narrowed his eyes in thought. If that was true, then why did that man give him that strange ticket? Was it some sort of joke?

"Is something wrong sir?" Zechariah asked with concern as he leaned forward.

"Huh? Oh, nothing." Cade responded immediately. He then grew a curious look on his face as he sat up straight. "So basically, I'm now stuck here in this world with talking animals?" He asked before he held his hands up. "No offence." He said quickly.

"None taken and I'm afraid so." Zechariah responded with regret before adding. "Also, this is an interspecies society. There are many different creatures. Not just 'animals.'

Cade raised an eyebrow before he smiled. "Really? Like hybrids? Centaurs and vampires?" He asked.

Zechariah nodded. "Yes."

"Mermaids, demons, ghosts, zombies and shapeshifters?" Cade prodded as his smile grew bigger and bigger.

"Yes."

"ALIENS!?" Cade nearly shouted in excitement as he leaned forward.

"Aliens do not exist Mr. Daniels." Zechariah responded with a little humor in his voice.

"Damnit!" The human cursed as he sat back down, his mood a little sullen. He suddenly brightened up and he looked around the room. "By the way, where am I right now?" He asked.

"This is the Zoo-Phoenix Academy. This is where you were employed so we brought you here." Zechariah informed as he leaned forward on his chair and smiled. "Would you like a tour?" He asked politely.

Cade turned and nodded with a smile. "Sure thing."

Zechariah smiled at his enthusiasm before he raised an eyebrow. "You seem to be taking this remarkably well. I would have thought you be more fearful of your surroundings." He pointed out.

Cade leaned back and folded his arms. "You know, I would probably scream in fear because of all of this, but I have watched so many movies, games and Anime. So I'm pretty much okay with this." He said offhandedly.

Zechariah chuckled in amusement before he brought his tail close to his mouth and spoke in some sort of device. "Jackie. Can you come to my office please." He requested politely.

"Absolutely!" A females voice responded with joy.

"Whose Jackie?" Cade asked with a raised eyebrow.

'Slam!'

"Hey, Hey, HEY!" A voice sung throughout the office. Cade turned and saw a woman with tanned skin, blue hair with green and yellow tips on her bangs. She wore a blue dress with yellow rims and yellow high-heeled shoes. She also seemed to radiate a very cheerful demeanour.

She ran up to Cade and shook his hand. "Well hello, hello! I'm Jackie! Drama instructor." She introduced with a wide smile. "So you are the new guy everyone's talking about? What's your name?"

Cade stepped back with a smile of his own. This woman's attitude seemed to have infected him a bit. "Cade. Cade Daniels." He introduced.

"Oh! So your Cade!?" She gasped with a smile. "Your friend has told me quite a bit about you!"

"My friend?" Cade repeated.

"She means me."

Cade looked to the door and his eyes widened. "Richard?!" He exclaimed once again as he saw the raccoon walk in.

"Yep! Same fur, same name, different look." The raccoon replied as he stood next to his owner. "Don't ask me how I got like this because I don't know either." He informed as he looked at his body.

"Whoa. So it wasn't a dream." Cade muttered with awe before he smiled. "I have to say, you look pretty good. Quite the eye-catcher for a few ladies if you tried." He joked.

"Hey, I've always been chick-magnet!" Richard smirked as he shrugged. "You've just never seen me do my moves on them."

"Ha! Really?" Cade laughed as he gave him a noogie. "Ah man! It's good that you're safe man!"

"Yeah. Jackies been helping me with all this crazy stuff! Told me everything too." Richard gestured the woman who smiled at the acknowledgment.

"Excuse me." Zechariah interrupted. "Sorry for ruling your reunion, but we must get back to the matter at hand." He reminded them before he turned to the woman. "These two are in need of a tour Jackie."

"Not another word Zech! I got this!" She waved a hand before she slung her arms around the two. "Come on boys! Tour starts now!" She announced with joy.

Cade and Richard just let out small helps as the woman grabbed them and dragged them out of the office and into their new jobs and their first steps to their new lives.

What had they just gotten themselves into?


...

Well, I hope you all enjoyed that!

Next chapter, Cade and Richard are given a tour of the Academy and they meet a group of students whom they'll grow attached to.

As always, remember to read and review please!

This is Wielder of the Blue Flames, signing off!