Heyo, Mark again with another post that's not my main story. Kinda wanted to branch out into a little more first person type deal. Feels easier to write in a sense, but I probably won't stick with it much. This is just a concept chapter for now to keep my creative juices flowing. Hope you enjoy.
My father was a pureblooded German Shepherd. I was thirteen when he came in from work early one day. I should have known something was wrong. He was always a very orderly man, but that day he dropped his jacket and briefcase on the floor the moment he walked in. I didn't even get to greet him before he wrapped me up in a hug. He embraced me harder than he ever had before. While we were close, he sometimes struggled to show his affection, but I didn't really mind.
Him squeezing me though, that haunts me to this day.
When he finally stood tall he grabbed me by the shoulders. He never cried, just felt over my face and took in my features. His fingers were cold, like he was already dead.
"I'm sorry Troy." He said. "I failed you."
Before I could even attempt to question what he failed me in, he walked over to our apartment's balcony, hopped the rail, and fell twenty-seven stories onto a herbivore's sedan.
See, my father had worked 18 years for an energy company and ascended the ranks to some middle management job. Earlier that day, the company had imploded and thousands of workers had lost their jobs without a single penny of pension being paid out. My father had reinvested most of his savings into that company, leaving us completely destitute when he came home that afternoon.
The day he was buried next to my mother I promised that I would never end up like he would. I would find success by any means necessary, rules be damned.
I fished out a stick of gum from my jacket, split it apart, and tossed a half to Rocko as we waited. The stocky Rottweiler-mutt snapped it up in his maw. He gave a grateful nod.
"Hmmm… peanut butter. Best flavor they've ever made." He gnashed in a fashion that most would have found annoying, but one I had become accustomed to over the years.
Rocko has been the closest thing I've ever had to a brother. When I moved in with my uncle I lost pretty much all contact with my friends from secondary school. It was quite the adjustment to say the least. The highrise I'd grown up in, while not the be-all end-all of apartments, was still leagues ahead of the cheap room my father's brother lived in. To say it was much more than four walls and a roof would have been generous. The building it was attached to was often in the shadow of the Cherryton Bridge, not the safest place as I soon learned.
At night the old hound would go out drinking, leaving me to my devices. One day I left soon after he did, my curiosity forcing me out of isolation. As I wandered the streets, I came across a group of mean looking, high-school age cats that were lazing about in an alleyway. They called me over as I passed and I feigned ignorance, trying to mind my own business. They soon stirred from their place and I bolted with little success. They were far faster and soon swarmed me, dragging me back to beat me to their heart's content. After what felt like an eternity, one of the cats screeched in pain. Through my already swelling eyes, I could see something had latched it's jaws onto the cat's leg. That's when I first met Rocko, tearing into the calf of some poor feline. While I will never forget the gesture, it didn't stop the other cats from pulling him off and giving him a thrashing to match mine.
The pummeling only stopped when the blaring of police sirens a few streets over got too close for the group's comfort. When I could finally muster the strength to crawl over to the Rocko, I helped him to sit up and lean against the wall. To my shock and slight horror, he started laughing.
I watched his bloodied fangs chatter for the first time. "Cats sure are full of flavor. Too bad they taste like ASS!" He laughed even harder and I couldn't help but follow along, despite the pain it brought to my forming bruises.
From then on we were quite inseparable, and here I stand with him now, listening to his incessant chewing. Across the street, there was a little convenience store run by an old Emu that we watched closely. The flickering streetlights above were barely enough to outline our figures. We shivered in the cold darkness of the Winter night. Snow was slowly starting to build on our fur, but we didn't bother to move from our spots.
"Where the hell is he?" Rocko questioned. "He should have been here by now."
I rubbed my hands together to keep the blood flowing. "Be patient. He'll come when the time is right."
"He better, I'm freezing my bloody tail off for this."
A sashige coated Shiba Inu pulled up in a medium carnivore sized truck, one that I'd never seen before. Hikata. Like us, Hikata is a result of the sections of the city that few dare to venture. He was an escort in the Back Alley Market throughout his teens, not too far from where I'd moved to. I was seventeen and had been out on my own for about a year, working as an apprentice to a butcher. Rocko bounced for a club and we pooled our money together for a place that wasn't much better than my uncle's, but at the very least it was ours.
Rocko first met Hikata when the Shiba started working at his club. While Rocko never hired his services (that I know of), the two talked during their down times and eventually struck up a friendship. One night Hikata refused a client and was taken out back by his manager. Rocko wound up following the two outside to witness Hikata's punishment. Needless to say, he didn't wait for an explanation before handling the situation. Rocko quit on the spot and Hikata moved in with us.
Despite me being the sole consistent breadwinner, Hikata proved himself to be the resourceful type in a not quite legal fashion. Sticky fingers and a silver tongue made quick work of most pawn shop owners willing to pay cash without asking too many questions. He's also the best car thief I know personally, hence the truck that was most certainly not his.
He stopped just as he was about to pass by the store, lining up the back of the vehicle with the front door of the building. The lights of the truck flickered twice before going black.
"Show time Troy." The Rottweiler laughed.
The two of us reached into our coats and put on black masks. We jogged across the street before Rocko reached into the truck bed. There he pulled out a steel cable and latched it to the ball hitch.
"Sixty seconds." I said flatly, trying to get into the right mindset.
Rocko threw the free end of the cable over his shoulder. He pulled out a short crowbar from his hefty jacket. "Fifty tops. We'll be gone before he can even call."
I lifted up my jacket to my waistband and pulled out my pistol. It was a rather meager weapon, but it was hard to come across any quality firearms around here. Part of me feared to pull the trigger, not because I cared about what happened to my target, but because the piece could very well explode in my hand.
I ripped open the door and aimed directly at the emu. "Hands where I can see them old man! No sudden movements. We are not after your cash."
The old man complied and took a step back from the counter. He appeared to be scared, but he did not shake. This was probably not his first time.
While I kept the cashier true, Rocko quickly popped off the face of the atm with his crowbar, exposing the internals. The machine itself was bolted to the floor, but once he got past the externals they could pull the storage box out with enough force. That's where the truck came in. With a click, the cable's carabiner was secured.
Rocko took a few steps back, looked over his shoulder, and gave Hikata the thumbs up. The truck's engine revved and took off in a quick jolt down the street. Slack from the cable disappeared and the storage box flew out of its housing. It smashed against the glass, ripping out one of the double front doors.
"Come on Troy, let's go!" The rottweiler turned around with a smile that I could see through his mask. He was completely oblivious to the massive mistake he had just made. I could hardly believe it when I heard it, but there was no going back now. There was no way I was going to jail for something as idiotic as a name slip.
I readjusted my grip on the pistol and stared down the sights with a renewed coldness. The emu realized the situation a moment after I did, and though the words had yet escaped his lips, his eyes were already pleading. I pulled the trigger before I could convince myself not to. The bullet struck true through the neck, and the bird was dead.
I jerked my head around toward the entrance, trying to refocus on the task at hand. Rocko was still in a state of shock. He didn't move. I quickly corrected him with a strong shove in the back.
"Throw the box in the back and sit up front." I ordered.
He did as asked and a metal clacking rang out from the bed of the truck. I soon followed the box in and gave two beats on the truck's roof. Hikata was soon off down the road, and the icy wind climbed up the back of my neck.
Being able to take in a few solid breaths, my mind finally began processing what I had just done. I just took another creature's life. He had never done a thing to wrong me. He was not responsible for the series of events that led me into his establishment. He followed my directions and never said a word. He might have never told police a thing, but it was still too big of a risk to take.
I looked down at the gun. My finger was still on the trigger. It was like rigor mortis had set in, and my muscles had clamped up. It took me a while to even consider placing in my waistband again. I then tugged at the top of my mask before choosing to leave it on. We may have gotten away, but we weren't safe yet.
Peering to the side, I tried to gauge just where we were by the dim streets we rushed past. The combination of my adrenaline addled mind and the down hill speed made it difficult for me to judge our distance from the parking garage, where our transfer car waited. We would throw the box in the car's trunk, torch this piece of shit, and be on our way.
I rolled over, taking a knee to stabilize myself as I tried to glance through the back window of the truck. Hikata and Rocko were discussing something, Hikata practically staring through Rocko. Looking past the cab, I saw the frosted road ahead. Crossing over a hill to a straight away, I closed my eyes for a brief moment. The old emu's dire visage and the moments that followed forced my eyes open again. That's when the shadow of a creature appeared in the middle of the road. I frantically beat on the roof of the cab to get Hikata's attention. His head shot forward, and he jerked the wheel, first to the right then the left. The top heavy vehicle rolled, dumping me and the money out onto the cold asphalt. While I tumbled to a stop, the truck continued until it took out a power pole, plunging the street into darkness.
I laid there, watching as the wires sparked out over the mangled heap of metal. They were probably dead, if not, dying, but I could not force myself to move. My thoughts moved faster than logic, and part of me believed we deserved this. That thing in the road was our judgement.
"Are you bastards dead?" It questioned from a distance.
I took a light, quiet, sniff to hopefully make out what the thing was past the snow on my face. Nothing hurt, but I could smell myself bleeding. There was obviously the scent of canine, but there was something else in the air. I finally caught it once its footsteps became audible.
"Well, I'm going to make sure you are."
An equestrian.
My fight or flight response finally kicked in and I rolled to my side, pulling the weapon from my waistband. I fired three times at the outline and it stopped walking towards me. At first I thought the horse had just absorbed the bullets, sending a paranormal chill down my spine. The creature was strangely beautiful, its flawless mane fluttering behind their head. My eyes finally settled into their night vision, and I could make out three growing blotches of darkness from their dress shirt.
As if just now noticing it themself, they looked down at their chest. Their brow furrowed and they tentatively touched one of the spots. They appeared confused, like they were unable to comprehend what was happening. Their gaze fell upon me again as they finally dropped to their knees and tipped to the side, finally coming down to my level. Blood now leaked between their teeth. They breathed something to me, something that not even my predator ears could pick up, but I could see and feel the hate in their expression.
I stayed silent, holding my breath. Watching. Listening. Waiting. Sights of the pistol still set on the beast. Even when the rising and falling of his chest stopped, it took a cough coming from the truck to break my trance.
The sounds of struggling were deeper, obviously Rocko. I propped myself up to get to my feet, but stumbled as my left leg failed me. The issue soon became apparent as I spotted a piece of jagged metal protruding from my calf. I knew better than to pull it out now, I'd have to deal with it later.
The vehicle was held aloft by the newly bisected power pole. It was listing with the driver's side facing the ground. Limping my way to the wreckage, I tugged on the crimped driver's side door and was met with stiff resistance. I could see that Hikata was slumped over the steering wheel, blood seeping from a gash in his head. Behind him, Rocko was stirring, no major wounds apparent.
"Rocko. Come on, wake up, we got to go!" I said to the dog, still fruitlessly pulling on the door. I couldn't muster the strength or leverage to open it.
Rocko finally shook his head, slowly recovering from the crash's impact. He took a moment to scan around and catch up with his surroundings. Once he put it all together, he lifted his legs out and slid them underneath Hikata's chest.
"Get back!" He said.
I barely got out of the way before he kicked out and busted the door's jam. From there I pulled out the unconscious Shiba, putting all of our weight on my right leg. Rocko soon followed out and took up Hikata from me. Placing him on his shoulder, a panicked face set in as a noise blared a few streets over.
"Sirens! What are we gonna do man? There's no way we can get to the garage." He said.
I caught the flashing colors over the tops of the buildings and pointed to an alleyway in the opposite direction. "That way!"
Hobbling through the dark I made my way through, pushing against the left wall for support. About halfway down I spotted a beasthole.
"Open it up. We can lose them in the sewers." I said.
Before pulling out his crowbar Rocko leaned Hikata against the wall. Wedging the short end's tip into the metal, he scraped the cover out of place. I then sat and scooched myself to the rebar rungs of the built-in ladder. As I climbed down, I could see the rottweiler taking off his jacket and tying his arm sleeve to the Shiba's small chest.
"I'll lower him down to you once you're ready." He whispered.
I nodded and would have taken the time to be surprised by his quick thinking were we not in our current situation. It was probably the smartest thing he'd done all night.
I was not even halfway down before the putrid smell of all types of animal waste hit my canine nose. Not being able to hold it back, I just puked over my shoulder as I continued down. I was glad no one was around to see just how ridiculous I looked.
Once I was down I looked back up to receive Hikata's body. The sound of the sirens were getting louder, the noise echoing throughout the sewer's passageways. Hikata now down safely, Rocko got into the hole just as quick as he could. The sound of him dragging the cover overtop of us was the last I heard from the topside before he clambered down.
Not even with my night vision could I see anything in the pitch-black tunnel. I pulled out my phone and used the screen as a flashlight. Crusted blotches of dark green and brown coated the walls. I tried not to think about what exactly it was as I pointed the light forward. Rocko immediately came to Hikata's side and draped him over his shoulder.
"What now?" He asked.
I looked at the sickening sludge and saw it moving slowly in one direction.
"We'll follow the flow until it hits a treatment plant. There we can get out." I said, already hobbling in parallel with the stream.
Rocko followed behind closely, matching each of my shortened footsteps. After about ten minutes of limping my adrenaline was running thin. My mind finally began registering the pain in my calf, but I kept a persistent pace. The echoes of scraping metal caught up with us along with the mumbling commotion of voices. They were on our trail and would catch up to us in no time. We made one last turn and were stopped by an iron fence with a locked chain wrapped around the opening. Beyond that were a set of stairs that led up to moonlight and the sound of rushing water. Freedom.
Before I could suggest anything, I felt the weight of Hikata get transferred onto me.
"I got this." Was all Rocko said as he pulled out his crowbar and lodged it into the lock. With a mighty effort he broke the shackle from the pad and swung open the entrance. "Get through, I can slow them down."
I dragged my leg and Hikata's deadweight through. Once across, Rocko tied the chain around the fence opening again and used the crowbar in place of the lock.
"That'll buy us some time. Let's go." He took up the burden once more and rushed up the steps ahead of me. I put my weight on a railing as I one-legged hopped up each step. By the time we reached the surface my entire right leg was on fire, and the powerful crashing of water was deafening. I followed Rocko through the concrete walled labyrinth of the facility. Just as he rounded another wall he stopped, turned, and flattened himself against it. Chunks of the far wall exploded from their previous implantment as bullets peppered it. I could now see the red and blue lights dance along the tiny craters. Two things became abundantly clear. We'd been cut off, and they weren't taking us alive.
"You have to go back! Find another way!" I yelled through the cacophony of noise. My gaze turned to my leaking leg. There was no way I was outrunning anything at this point. "I'll hold them off!"
I gave him a pat on the back to get him moving. He was hesitant, but went back. Once he was gone, I took up his position, curled my gun around the corner, and blind fired another trio of rounds. In response, a hailstorm of suppressing fire coated the concrete and I had to shield my eyes from the particles. I fell back and pursued Rocko who was already climbing back up the stairs from the sewer. His right arm hung by his side, blood pouring from his shoulder. The sewers were blocked too. The only way now was further through the facility.
We weaved through the joint, following the quickest routes we could find to put distance between us and the police. We reached a yellow painted steel catwalk that connected two of the buildings. A blinding white light illuminated our position from above, followed by the snaps and pings of bullets that landed around us. We rushed as quickly as we could through the next building, pressing on through corridors that seemed to go on forever. New shots rang out from behind us and I returned fire with a wild spray of the last bullets in my magazine. I threw the gun to the side and hobbled behind Rocko.
The Rott broke through a set of double doors and stopped in the middle of a square outcropping. Beyond the edge was at least a 5 story dropoff into the ocean where the processed water was being deposited. The wind had picked up and sleet stung my fur as we looked for somewhere else to run to, but it was too late. Three shaky beams of light found us and several guns opened up.
Out of options, Rocko ran to the edge with Hikata. He flattened the Shiba's back to his chest, wrapped his arms under his shoulders, and jumped. I quickly followed, angling myself to the side as to hopefully not land on the two. My body slowed as it passed through one of the depositing streams and finally crashed into the water. The cold bit into my bones as the current continued to push me down, or at least what I thought was down. I had lost all orientation as the waves tossed me around like a ragdoll. The helicopter lights occasionally refracted through the surface, highlighting a jagged shape that I was quickly approaching. A moment later my head slammed against the object and the world went black.
Strangely enough, what initially brought me back to the land of the living wasn't the bright lights that pierced my eyelids, but the mouth watering smell of a perfectly seared steak. I was lying back on a very soft mattress, covered by silk sheets. The only reason I knew what they felt like was because I had them as a child. They were comforting and terrifying at the same time.
I forced my eyes open and couldn't make out a thing with the grainy filter that coated everything. After a good rub and a few blinks I could finally figure out that I was in an ornate bedroom, connected to an EKG whose faint beats finally registered in my ears. With that, my whole body reconnected with my mind and several alerts were going off. My tongue felt like sandpaper against the roof of my mouth, my stomach called out for the delicious meal my nose had told it about, and a dull pain resonated through my head. I reached up to it tentatively to feel a thick series of bandages wrapping it up, slightly covering my ears.
Turning to the EKG, I saw a cup of water and weakly snatched it up to satisfy my thirst. Looking past the monitor, a large set of windows displayed the expanse of the city that lay beneath the Cherryton Bridge. This meant the room was at least 4 or 5 stories tall, still plenty tall enough to look over the slums of the Back Alley.
Wait, what buildings were this tall in the Back Alley Market?
The door to my room opened and in stepped a lengthy, beautifully tan, female vixen with a plate of steak. A shocked expression appeared for a moment before a sweet smile took its place.
"Glad to see you're finally awake darling. You're friends will be happy to see you're alright. I was just coming in to eat with you."
I tried desperately to collect my thoughts and search my memories for my arrival here, but nothing came of it. All I knew was that this was the Inarigumi Headquarters and that Rocko and Hikata were still somehow alive.
"I-" I struggled to get out my first words that came out of my mouth because of the mucus buildup in my throat. It was becoming more and more evident that I had been out for some time.
"Shhh… don't push yourself. Just take it easy and don't worry about a thing. You and your friends are going to be well taken care of."
Disregarding her request, I moved to speak once more, but was interrupted by another one of my stomach's crys.
"Oh you poor thing. You must be starving. Here, let me feed you."
Under any other circumstances I would have objected to the action, but considering I had neither the strength or willpower I laid back and watched as she cut a piece of meat off for me. She then pierced it with a fork and held it before my maw. I opened up and let the juicy morsel slide off onto my tongue.
It was the best meat I'd ever eaten before in my life, but that could have just been the hunger talking. Still, I involuntarily hummed with delight and my tail swished underneath the covers.
"I'll take it that you really like it."
I nodded, still chewing.
"Good. Ten says I use too much seasoning, but between me and you I think she just doesn't have a proper palate."
She giggled and I let out a sharp exhale from my nose before swallowing. She quickly readied another bit and deposited it in my mouth. There was a little pause as she continued examining me.
"So how was it like?" Her words cut through the air.
I cocked my head, unsure of the question as I began to swallow.
"Killing the Black Devil."
The piece caught in my throat from shock and I had to force the piece down. My BPM on the machine rose, and my hands grew clammy as the reality of my actions finally hit me. The Fox didn't notice my uneasiness, seemingly infatuated with my feats more than the dog that had done them.
"You were smart to make your move in the dark. He probably couldn't see you clearly, giving you the edge. Though, seeing how minor your crime was in the big scheme of things, I doubt you all were setting out to assassinate the Sublime Beastar. It is, nonetheless..." She leaned over me, setting the plate to the side. There was a hunger in her eyes, and she wasn't looking at the steak. "...impressive."
Having cleared the blockage and freed my voice, I spoke. "Y-you know about that?"
She redoubled her smile at my ignorance. "Oh, of course. Everyone knows about The Heroes of The Back Alley Market and their daring escape."
"Heroes?" I must have looked like a kid echoing her word. In my current state, it was all too easy for her to continue to prod at me.
"Oh yes, and all heroes should be rewarded…" The Vixen drew even closer, making my heart beat out of my chest, as seen by the EKG's constant peaks. "But…" She held herself over me for a moment before pulling back, her encroachment coming to an end. "We'll celebrate when you've recovered. For now, get some rest. Ten will want to have a chat soon I'm sure." She stood and made her way out of the room before I could say anything else.
I laid back, staring at the ceiling. To say that I was in too deep would have been an understatement. The Inarigumi had saved my friends and I, and they would no doubt want us to repay them for their kindness.