Humans. That’s a word that can send chills down the spine of a full-grown tiger. Nature has never been so erroneous as to create such a destructive monster beyond animal comprehension. Each scar hidden beneath my slick, black fur stands evidence as to why this primate species has to be controlled. The memories are painful, and I do not wish to recollect upon it. So I suggest my idea to exterminate the human race for the sake of us all. Yet, this noble cause has been rejected not once, but three times by Chief Theojar. The cowardly puma fears that doing so will cause conflict between humans and anthropomorphic animals, but I say why not destroy mankind once and for all to prevent this type of catastrophe for future generations? But of course, I don’t need approval from an asocial cat; I am self sufficient enough to have attracted an abundance of followers. This leadership ability, I believe, is an inherited ability among wolves. Thanks to my bloodline, I am already strong enough to launch a successful attack on Getruton, the prosperous capital city of the Northwestern humans.

     One is a fool to underestimate my power. I may be a young female critter, but I’ve got the mind of an ingenious inventor well ahead of my time. What I now stand before is a five-meter long robotic bird with the wingspan of twelve meters, gleaming in the busy, glorious room of my machinery building. Stirrups on the back of the aircraft can support up to two riders. With the help of my loyal followers, more than a hundred of these vehicles have been built for our scheduled attack. Soon, I will have my revenge.

     “Vorelix, it’s about time for a break.”

     I glance down at my digital watch to verify the time before nodding at the worker, Wala the fossa, who spoke. “Alrighto. BREAK EVERYONE!”

     I feel reluctant to leave my workplace. There is nothing more enjoyable than to admire one’s own creations. As the row of fluorescent lights go out one by one in consecutive order, I give one last glimpse at the rows of majestic metal birds joining the leaving laborers.

     I follow the group of animals into a grand cylindrical glass elevator. The familiar fragrance of lemons immediately reaches me after entering the crystal room. After the double sliding doors close behind us, the elevator ascends upwards at an incredible speed. My hideout is a highly complex system of underground chambers. From the side facing the doors, a passenger can witness each level of the white complex filled with busy machines and workers.

     “Wow, what a day!” a gazelle named Boxes who stands next to me breaks the awkward silence.

     Wala pips up, “Anyone going to visit good ol’ Greyclaw for a drink?”

     “Nah, I’m going to take a breather in the forest.” I reply.

     “I wanna go to Greyclaw’s! I’m thirsty.” That’s Lesun right there. He’s a seven-year-old orphaned fox that I adopted. The little fur ball looks up to me, and that’s all that matters right now.

     “Have you finished your programming lessons yet?” I ask the kid.

     “All done! I made a game of a walking roast chicken!”

     I raise my eyebrow, “Really. That’s some wild imagination there.” I don’t really mean it, but the truth can hurt.

     The elevator doors open at its grand lobby. A large chandelier with twelve dragons surrounding the middle decorates its topmost. Several jade columns extend their way up to the ceiling, and at the corners of the room are two tunnels leading to other sectors.

     “Yeah! I made you riding on it too!”

     Everyone bursts out laughing. The lemon fragrance fades as I step out of the elevator into the main room.

     “You guys have fun then! I’ll see ya’ll later today.”

Lesun runs up to me. “When are you coming back Vorelix?”

     “Fifteen minutes.”

     “Come on, Lesun!” Wala shouts.

     “Coming!”

     I hear the kid’s footsteps fading behind me as I turn to make my way towards a flight of stairs. Unlike the rest of the underground complex, this stairway is a shabby piece of wooden structure. After making my way to the top of the staircase, I turn the second nob on my digital watch to open its main door leading to the outside. It takes me a few seconds to adjust to the bright sunlight before I place my hind paws down on the forest floor. The fresh smell of trees and the cool breeze are all traits characteristic of the woods.

My lair is an extremely concealed region, for the entrance is disguised as a redwood tree. The opening leading into the hideout is fixed directly into the side of the plant’s truck. I twist my watch’s nob again and the door shuts behind me. The texture of the door matches the tree bark perfectly, betraying nothing.  

     I walk down the narrow path I take every single day deeper into the woods for leavings as such. The reason for these trips is due to the fact that I’ve developed an essential need for cigarettes every once in a while. I will be the first to admit that addictions are difficult to stop. I’ve gone a week without touching one cigarette, and that was the longest I’ve been able to resist my cravings.

     I pause at my old spot next to an old oak tree and pull out a pack from my black leather trench pocket. That was when something I’ve not expected happened: an arrow flies directly towards my head! I duck, my packet flying out of my forepaw, and luckily I reacted on time, for the arrow then whirls pass me and plants it self directly into the oak behind me with a thunk.

     I feel my heart rise to my throat. The fur on my pelt stands up. All my senses are on alert. No human will bring a bow to a fight these days. It must be Chief Theojar’s warriors, here to stop my mission. I quickly suppress my panic. Long-ranged weapons are less effective in the woods, which means that to lure the hidden enemy into a close-ranged combat, I must make myself a difficult target using the help of the trees.

     More arrows zoom toward me. I burst into a run towards a dense area of the forest. Thunk, thunk thunk. They missed! The trees around me blur pass. My heart pounds. I make a quick mental note that if I continue in a straight path, it will be easy for the archers to target me. Hence I quickly maneuver left. Thunk, thunk. More arrows miss! The new route, which is now before me, seems less dense. Blast that decision! I make a wide circle around the plants back towards my previous destination.

     Besides the pounding of my heart and my own paws hitting the dirt beneath me, the footsteps of others approaching join in. My muscles tense in anticipation of a fight. I can see myself drawing my pistol in my mind when the idiots appear.

     The first leaps out at me in a blur from behind a tree. I pull out my pistol in one swift motion and switch the safety off. Bang! The first, now that I register it as a leopard, falls. I was right! These are Chief Theojar’s warriors. I whip around to face three new attackers. Although I feel slightly shaky, I manage to flash a confident evil grin at them to throw them off psychologically.

     Before I can pull my trigger, something forceful knocks me to the ground from behind.

     “Blast!” I hiss as I attempt to scramble to my feet, only to feel someone’s foot stepping down on my back, pinning me down on the soggy earth. This is where I give in to my terror and let it have total run over my being. All I can hear is the rapid pounding of my heart. A knot rises to my throat as well as my stomach. More anthropomorphic animals surround my helpless form, as the mountain on my back will not move. This is the end.

     “Pass me the broad sabre.” I can hear the guttural voice of my captor. An image of my severed body flashes before my eyes. Footsteps approach, and at the corner of my vision I witness a raccoon passing a cutlass to the unknown someone. I must resist. I strain to suppress my horror once again. If I must stall, then I must stall.

     “You guys don’t do bad for yourselves.” I force a self-assured laugh. “But if I must die for a noble cause, so be it.”

     “Noble?”

     I have caught their attention.

     “The critter’s a nutcase.”

     “That’s certainly not true.” I respond in a lighthearted manner, “It’s the most logical to get rid of the human species to prevent their destruction. I’m doing this for the good of anthros. Why shouldn’t it be supported?”

     “Humans are a large powerful race,” the guttural voice responds, “we can endanger ourselves.”

     “What’s going on here?” this is a soothing female voice. I look up to see my captors shift their attention towards its source. Thank goodness, a stranger has stumbled upon our struggle!

     “This isn’t any of your business,” my invisible imprisoner growls.

     Light footsteps head our direction. A human figure in a blue dress steps into my peripheral vision. Despite how much I hate these primates, if this one manages to save me I swear not to hurt her. However, I refuse to believe such an impossible thing will ever happen. Being the victim of this situation, all I can do is wait and see. As if to challenge my mental statement, she speaks again: “It may not be, but I hate fights. Let her go.”

     I can’t believe it. Am I going to survive this?

     “What’s your problem?”

     Suddenly the weight on me lifts. The animals appear terrified as they fix their attention on the spot above me. I pick myself up from the damp earth, ignoring the sticky feeling of matted fur sticking to my abdomen. I follow the gaze of the crowd to see a Komodo dragon dangling in the air by moving vines. What I’m witnessing, I dare to say, is sorcery itself.

     “Let me go!” the giant reptile hollers.

     The female primate flicks her hand. Vines shoot out of the ground, coiling themselves around each of my attackers. They scream and struggle to no avail as I quickly scan the earth for my pistol. The human makes her way towards me.

     “Are you alright?” she is approaching my flight zone. Then, I spot my gun among the grasses. I pick the weapon up swiftly and face her casually with the firearm dangling by my side. I cannot be sure if she is a friend or foe, just yet.

     “Of course I am,” I respond charmingly, “that was amazing, the way you handled those scumbags. What are you?”

     She stops just outside my personal space. I shouldn’t have let her this close to me, but perhaps it’s something I must tolerate. I gaze into her azure eyes with confidence. She is a beautiful young creature with tan skin and long, flowing blonde hair. Her smile is gentle. She reaches her hand out for a shake. “I’m Sophia, a guardian of peace.”

     Somehow I know that a human wouldn’t save me, but a magical guardian seems just as unlikely. In spite of my surprise, I am a master at keeping my cool. It’s time for my acting skills to come into play. I hesitate and eye her mischievously. “You sure your hands are clean?”

     She doesn’t respond, but instead giggles and seizes my paw into the greeting ritual. “And you are?”

     “I’m Vorelix, a handsome inventor.”

     “H-handsome?” she giggles some more.

     I flash her a quizzical expression, “Is there an issue with that?”

     “I’m sorry, it’s just that you’re an animal. I cannot tell.”

     “Ah, I see the problem.”

     “I’m really sorry.”

     “Oh no no, you’re fine.” This is where a sinister plan hatches in my mind. If I can get my paws on a sample of Sophia’s skin cells, and then transform them into somatic cells using the most recent technology, I may be able to clone a duplicate of her to study the behavior of magic. With this understanding, I can strengthen my military might. “It’s me who have to thank you for saving me. By any chance you have time to stay at my house for dinner? That’s the least I can do.”

     I see her innocent eyes sparkle. “Aww, you are so sweet. I’ll love to!”

     “Great! Follow this critter’s lead.” I gesture to myself. Under the watchful eyes of the captured attackers, I head towards a random direction away from the location of my hideout. My plan is to maneuver back towards home after I’m completely out of their sight. Sophia follows me at my side with the obedience of a quadruped dog to its owner. Before I disappear from the scene of the fight, I aim my gun at the Komodo dragon for a last word.

     “Hey idiot! Wait until I come back to skin you alive,” I chuckle. I turn back to find a horrified Sophia staring at me as if I just transformed into a hideous monster. “I was just joking.”

     “Oh.” She looks down at her feet. “Sorry.”

     “Don’t fret about it. Let us march onwards.”