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Beast rise: future plans

Roger looked under the bathroom’s sink for anything that could be of use. A pile of bottles and junk with labels the rabbit couldn’t read anymore since his transformation. With a sigh, the rabbit lifted each bottle and container and try to guess how much was left in there. He was despite to find something the pack would use in this house, even if all the other rooms have been more or less a bust. They thought going into a suburban neighborhood would lead to some supplies, but almost every house they checked was a bust. In the end, all Roger could find was a few bars of soap, which while good was less then he hoped for. The rabbit looked out the window and saw the orange tint of a setting sun. “guess, today was a bust after all,” Roger said while slowly pushing himself off the floor.

While moving through the empty house, Roger can only be unnerved by the silence. Who knows how long the humans holed up in here before leaving, or if they left right as the changes started to happen. Beyond photos and furniture, the rabbit knew very little about this family. All he could gather from pics was that the family lived in the house for awhile. Roger had to wonder what they all felt as they fled from there house. Were they safe in some complex somewhere with other humans? Were they captured and changed into Beasts, now wondering the wilds surviving like everyone else? Or have they escaped beyond the seas by now? Roger could only wonder about it, along with any other human out there. In a way, the whole world feels quieter now.

Roger went out the back door of the house and saw Quin kneel down. The chipmunk was held a ball of dirt in his hand, twisting and turning as he examined all sides of it. The backyard was riddled with holes Quin dug in his search for something Roger didn’t really understand. Quin had done it in the yards of every house the two had checked all day. In a moment, Quin’s face scrunched up as he toss the dirt away, “useless,” he muttered. The chipmunk turned his head and see Roger behind him, “ah, you found anything?”

“Not much. Some rags and some soap. No food, water, books, or even batteries. This house is just as empty as the others.”

Quin sighed as he pinched and pulled out his cheek, which Roger learned was something he does if he’s frustrated. “I guess that means today was a bust then.”

“Seems like it. The whole neighbor might have been picked clean by the time we got here.”

Quin just sighed, “Heres hoping the others had better luck in there searches. Anyway. the sun is coming down, we need to head back now before it gets too dark.” Quin picked up his shovel and the two head off.

The walk through the neighborhood was quiet. Quin wasn’t much of a talker in comparison to the rest of the pack, which made Roger all the more anxious to have something fill in the silence. The only time the rabbit hear the chipmunk speak is when there is business to discuss. “Quin, be straight with me, why have you been digging hole in yards while searching for supplies?”

“I was just checking the soil.”

“Why?”

“Well to see if we can grow anything in it. Our supplies won’t last forever. By now, most food with either be taken or have rotted to the point its no longer safe to eat. Eventually, we will run out of food entirely.”

The thought alone made Roger’s stomach drop. Food was already getting harder to find. They had to go father each trip to scavenge for there needs and they are slowly coming back with less stuff. The packs food might last awhile with planning, but what then?

Seeing the worry show on Roger’s face, Quin continued, “I am hoping if we find a place with good soil around here so we can move. So far is hasn’t been great if I am being honest, but isn’t not impossible to improve the quality.”

“Do you know how to do that sort of thing?”

“Yeah, I went to college for this stuff. It’ll take some time and effort, but we will be able to grow our own stuff eventually. Don’t worry, Finn and I won’t let the pack starve.”

Roger breathed a bit easier. The rabbit didn’t know what he would do if he was left all alone out here. Were it not for Finn and Quin, Roger didn’t think the pack would be able to last as long as they have. Roger froze as he heard something. The rabbit’s ear twitched and turned to his right, trying to pick up the sound.

Quin saw the Roger stopped and did so in turn. “What-”

“Shh,” Roger hushed. A benefit of his new Beast form was that his hearing was much sharper, being able to pick up sound farther away than others. The rabbit heard the sound of something large moving, but it wasn’t footsteps, but of air moving and tires turning. “A car,” he muttered.

“Huh, where?”

“On the other street beyond the houses,” the rabbit strained his ears, focused on the sound, trying to pick up anything else. “I think they are turning on the street ahead. I think they are heading towards us.”

“Shit,” Quin grabbed Roger by the wrist and pulled him from the road to the side of the house. The two ducked behind some large bushes and waited.

A few seconds later a car drove up the road. Quin was able to look inside the car as it passed and was shocked by what he saw. Inside of the car were a few humans, all of them males. The car passed the two Beasts without slowing down, meaning the humans didn’t notice them. But before the two relaxed, the car stopped in front of a house the Beasts searched earlier in the day. Reluctantly, Quin peeked around the bush to see what they were doing.

One of the humans stepped out of the car and examined the holes that filled the lawn. He looked a far bit old with the brown beard that covered his neck and Grey clothing he was wearing. Quin can recognize the outfit as something hunter’s wore. But what drew the Beast’s attention was the rifle he was carrying.

The sight of the rifle filled Quin with fear. The rifle alone told Quin enough about the humans in the car, and why they need to get out of here. The chipmunk’s saw the gate of a fenced off area opened along the bushes they were hiding from. It was probably be the best shot of making it out of here without getting spotted, “Roger, follow me.”

“Huh?”

“Just follow me, quietly,” staying as low to the ground as possible, the two Beasts managed to slip past the gate into the backyard. After closing the gate, Quin looked at the rabbit, “Roger, we are going to have to run.”

“Huh, but why?”

“I saw one of them come out with a gun and there is a chance the other have some as well. There no telling what they will do if they find us, so we have to leave now.”

The two Beasts left the area in a hurry, jumping over fences and avoiding the roads as much as possible. Roger wanted to say something, but the panic he heard in Quin’s voice stopped him. Something was wrong. Roger never saw Quin act like this before. He wanted to ask questions, but the chipmunk shushed him every time Roger spoke.

The trip back felt longer then ever. Quin refused to approch the road and insisted on climbing fences and backyards. Every sound the Beasts heard caused Quin to drag Roger into hiding with him for a few soconds before continuing. Even when the light sank below the horizons, Quin seemed hesitant to use the flashlights. It was only when the based was within sight that the chipmunk relaxed.

The base the pack was using was a restaurant surrounded but two apartment buildings. The pack found the place when they arrived in the city and turned it into a home with working electricity and gas. The apartments builds had some water and places where they Beasts are able to clean themselves and for privacy. The two Beasts entered the restaurant, being a bit blinded by the lights. The inside was a mess, with tables, mattresses, and the random stuff the Pack found while scavenging. The mess was organized a bit with books, tools, and electronics having there own corner in the restaurant as well as a mattress with them.

Carlos, a white mouse Beast, noticed the two step into the restaurant. He immediately set aside his crocheting project and walked up to the pair. The mouse waved at the two before making signs with his hands, “Hows was scavenging?”

“Bad,” Quin responded with his own hand, “I need to see Finn, where is he?”

Carlos paused, “Pool,” he signed.

“Good,” Quin pushed his stuff to Roger’s hands, “Sorry, but do you mind putting the stuff away, I need to speak to Finn.” Before Roger could even respond, Quin was out the door.

Carlos started to sign at Roger.

“Sorry, you know I am not good with Sign Language.”

Carlos pointed to his mouth and slowly mouthed, “what happened?”

“We didn’t find much,” Roger said slowly, making sure to make the words clear on his lips, “but he seemed scared when we saw some humans.”

“Humans? Were they violent?”

“I don’t think so, but Quin saw one of them with a gun and it scared him.”

At the mention of the word ‘gun’, Carlos’ face darkened. “Danger,” he muttered.

“Huh?”

“Danger, we are in danger,” Carlos shouted awkwardly.

“Huh? Why? Is something wrong?”

“Danger, danger, danger,” Carlos repeated as he walked away from the rabbit.

Raidou, a rat, poked his head above the dividing wall, “Roger are you telling the truth?”

“Huh? Yeah, Why is Carlos panicking?”

Raidou got out of the booth he was using as a work bench, “cause a human with a gun is dangerous, even worse when there are multiple. Fuck,” the rat pinched the space between the eyes, “we really need find a new spot, and quick.”

“Hold on a minute, whats the rush? Sure there are humans around but it doesn’t mean we have to get so worked up about it.”

“Roger, we are worked up cause there are humans around, expectantly ones with guns. Why are you,” Raidou stopped, “Wait, do you not know?”

“Know what?”

“Yeah, that answers that,” He sighed. “Okay so you know how Beasts can transform humans into Beasts?”

“Yeah, I know. I don’t know how but-”

“Well humans know that. Its not really a secret. However, some humans really, really hate the idea of becoming Beasts, to the point where they are not afraid to hurt or even kill us. If a human knows we are in the area and have a gun, they may even hunt us down to make sure we don’t cause problems down the line.”

“What?” Roger yelled, “but that’s crazy. Why would they-”

“Cause they are scared, Roger. They are scared of us. They are scared of becoming us. They do not want to be Beasts. They want to stay human. To them, we might as well be giant horny musky zombies.”

Raidou’s words hit Roger like a punch to a gut. Even back when Roger himself was human, he felt fear to the idea of being a Beast. A normal human would never stand a chance in a fight with a Beast. That was why Roger hid away for so long. Hiding from every noise, learning to live without light when the sun falls. For Roger, those days were over. But to the remaining humans, those days would continue onward. Living in fear for when the Beasts will come for them.

The door to the restaurant opened with Finn and Quin stepping inside. “ah perfect,” Finn said looking at Roger and Raidou, “I am about to call a meeting. Get the others, it’s important.”

In seconds, the pack of six gathered together. Finn and Quin stood in front of the other four members of the pack. Finn cleared his throat, “Alright I’ll keep it brief. Quin and Roger saw some humans today, one of them carrying a gun. We cannot rule out the others with them were also armed as well or the possibilites that things might turn violent should we meet.”

“Cause of that,” Quin chimed in, “Finn and I think it is best that we prepare to move out and get out of the city as soon as we are able.”

The pack mutters to themselves with the news. “But where would we go?” Roger asked, “is there even a need to leave the city entirely?”

“If they were on foot, we probably wouldn’t need to. But since they have a car, it just means that they can travel farther from the base, which means it would only be a matter of time before they might reach us. We have no idea where there base is, so staying in the city would probobly raise our chances of meeting them.”

“As for location, Quin and I decide that we might take our chances with the farm.” Finn said.

“The farm?” Raidou asked.

“Yeah, Quin’s family farm.” Finn answered, “it was where I met Quin, not long after leaving my first pack. I think its time to go back and settle the land there as our home. Should be out of the way enough that we won’t have to worry about humans coming after us. Quin and I had plans of going to the farm at some point in the future, but now I feel like it was our best time to go there.”

The pack seemed to felt a bit of relief, most of them smiling at the news. Roger raised his hand, “well, if you had plans to go there, why stay in the city and not there already.”

“well, its bit complicated.”

“First,” Quin said, “there was very little supplies left in the town near the farm. There wasn’t really a point to staying there. Second, we really didn’t start thinking about growing food ourselves until after we already left.”

“By the time we decided to go back, fall was almost over and winter was coming. We couldn’t really grow stuff in the winter, so we planned to hunker down somewhere for the winter and go back in the spring. There was also my...pregnancy.” Finn placed a hand on his stomach, now flat after no longer carrying an egg that didn’t held any child. The sadness showed on his face for only a brief moment before continuing, “I won’t lie, once we go to the farm, things would get rough, which is why I think we need to spend the next few days preparing for the trip. Raidou, is the truck ready?”

“Mostly,” Raidou said, “we should be able to drive it without issues at least. But we will need a trailer to carry everything.”

“That’s fine. For now we will use the car to scavenge, go to areas we couldn’t get to before, and bring back other supplies besides food. From now on, we scavenge together. No one will go out or stay behind by themselves. Does everyone agree?”

The pack members looked at one another. None of the members spoke out against the suggestions. The entire Pack agreed it was in there best to stick together.

“Good, seems we all agree.” Finn said, “once we have some dinner, I want you all to go straight to bed. We are going to be busy the next few days, so we will going to bed early from now on. Alright, meeting adjured.” the ferret turned to the bunny, “Roger, can I speak to you outside for a second?”

“Huh? Sure I guess.” Roger walked outside with Finn.

As the two stepped outside, the cold night air felt like needles to the two Beasts, even with there fur and clothes Carlos made for them. The world around them was dark and quiet. With no power going to the other buildings, the darkness was a thick curtain over the world. One of the few sources of light in the darkness was the moon and the million of stars that lit up the sky.

Roger and Finn rounded the corner of the restaurant. Whatever Finn wanted to talk about, they would have some privacy here. “so what did you want to talk about,” Roger asked.

“I wanted to check on your memory. You’re the one who lived here most of your life, so we might be relying on your memory tomorrow to scavenge or whatever you have left.”

Roger paused, “honestly, its not that great. Ever since you told me about the memory thing when becoming a Beast, been trying to figure out what memories I have and which I don’t.”

“Can I ask what they are?”

Roger leaned on the wall. “Hmmm. My childhood is very vague. I know bits about my family but I don’t know what happened to them. I know I didn’t really think about them when I was self isolating, but I can’t remember why.”

“Anything else?”

“Honestly not sure. I have a bunch of memories, but I can’t make heads or tails of them,” Roger grumbled. “I don’t remember who’s who in my memories and I don’t remember where places are either. Everything feels just, hazy I guess.”

Finn didn’t respond at first, just leaned against the wall besides Roger, “Do you regret it? Being a Beast I mean. Letting me change you a month ago.”

“What brought this up?”

“Just answer the question.”

Roger though for a moment. “It true was hard at first, losing a bunch of my memories when I turned. But with the memories I do have, I started to think I am better off without them. I feel happier now. No longer having some sort of cloud hanging over my head.” The bunny point up to the stars, “for example, when I was a human, I didn’t really have bother looking at the night sky when all the lights got shut off. But now, I can’t seem to get enough of it. Sure there are struggles, but I at least I have a family now to go with them together.”

“I see.” Finn looked up at the night sky, remembering the first time he saw all the stars after leaving his first pack. The feeling the ferret felt was indescribable, like he was just noticing how wonderful the world around him is. Now he had his own pack to care for and he was going to protect them with all he has. The ferret pushed himself off the wall, “anyway, we should head back inside, I wasn’t kidding about the early start.”

“In a minute,” Roger answered, “I want to stare at the stars a bit more.”

“Alright, but not too long you hear.” The ferret turned his back to the bunny and walked back inside.

As he looked at the stars, Roger’s mind wondered back to the humans. Even though things might be tense now, maybe someday things will be different. Maybe Humans and Beasts can coexist someday, no longer looking at the other with fear. Then they can work on rebuilding society again. It might be a long road, probably might even happen generations later, but someday, they might coexist again.