E - Abnormals. Monsters, parasites, cannibals, failures of evolution. These are the names given to the most feared beings in the world. Abnormals look like everyone else, except for when they lose complete control over themselves. One day you might be a normal looking bear, the next you are an animalistic nightmare driven by sheer hunger. They hide alongside normal people, feeding off their emotions. But when their food becomes not enough, they result to eating them. But to truly understand Abnormals, you first have to understand the Rift.
Everything seems to come back to the Rift, one way or another. It all began in late November of 2053, when an object entered Earth’s atmosphere containing foreign matter. It fell to the ocean floor, creating a huge rift along the sea bed. That or it happened to land in an already existing crevasse, scholars are still unsure. Regardless, that was how the Rift came to be. A deep sea canyon filled to the brim with an exotic organic substance. People tried to extract that substance, but they were faced with difficulty. Whatever was down there acted with a sense of self-preservation, attacking anything that approached. Eventually, people were able to extract the “miracle matter” from it’s depths. Upon examination, the substance seemed to act strangely when it came in contact with organic matter. It was if it consumed it, but still kept it alive. It seemed to work similar to a virus, using host cells to perform the functions required for living. But it gave benefits in exchange for using these cells. It would protect the host from external threats like disease, it would repair broken tissue, it even rectified abnormalities within the genome. If it was injected into a person, they would live longer and better. Live expectancies went up to a hundred and fifty years, disease was a thing of the past, practically every physical or genetic ailment humanity was facing was gone. Suddenly everyone had the stuff in their DNA, but that was only the beginning. People tried to use the Miracle Matter to restore lifeforms long gone from this world. As humanity expanded across the globe, they had wiped nearly all species of animals. Using DNA from mammalian, avian, reptilian, and a little amphibian and a couple from the long lost Selachimorpha clade. At first, the experiments worked. The animals were walking, or in some cases flying, crawling, or swimming, and they acted like the species they once were. But something went wrong and the animals burst. The matter that had reformed them sunk into a nearby water supply, spreading throughout the city. They had managed to find and disinfect the water, but not before a few thousand people drank that water. They were all checked for anything wrong, but the people were fine. And so were their children, but not their grandchildren. Two generations after the incident, people were born bearing animal qualities. Before long, anthropomorphic animals were everywhere. Now this is where we leave biology and go into sociology. All the animals were gone, except for the anthros. And people didn’t take well to that. Soon, anthros were rounded up on the streets, sent to enforcement camps, or sold into slavery. Yes, slavery was back. Some law was passed saying that although these animals can walk and talk, they were still animals. At first it was punishment, then it was business, then it was the latest trend. Suddenly, everyone had a pet anthro. And they were still being born, some camps became breeding centers. Children were sold as pets to humans, to be used however they wanted. Sure, there were people who marched against it. But it didn’t matter before long. Because it soon became apparent that the anthros had outnumbered the humans. Uprisings broke out into full on wars. Governments fell, big businesses were toppled, countries were remade. The fighting did stop, in 2167. The remaining humans were given territories to live out their lives, but always knowing that they had lost. Humans became the new low class citizens. They lived in poor housing conditions, were forced into manual labor just to survive, and now they were the ones in cages. Pets were still a thing, although surprising no one wanted the giant insects and fish that appeared when no one paid attention. Humans, alongside other anthros, were sometimes sold into ownership if they pissed off the wrong people. Dogs, cats, and other anthros descended from domestic animals became common breeds, bred and raised in captivity. But now ownership is facing hassle. Some countries have even outlawed it. So at least the world is becoming slightly better. And then, everything changed, when the Abnormals attacked. They appeared out of nowhere. People who were filled with this extra hunger. To feed off the thoughts and emotions that made us human, and to feast upon their flesh for the secrets held within. I once heard a very good description for between anthros and Abnormals once. “Anthros are animals that became people. Abnormals are anthros who’ve forgotten the human in them.” True to this, Abnormals have the ability to change their bodies to become more animal-like and more monstrous. This is the “Feral Form.” One day, regular deer. Next day, large, angry, bloodthirsty deer. Sometimes they can even become something else, like setting their fur on fire, or disassembling into electrons and reassembling moments later. But the one thing they have in common, they are all anthros. There has never been a human Abnormal.
	M - I don’t know how much longer I can handle this. It’s been three days and he still won’t talk to me. After I took him to get registered at town hall as my pet, thank god he wasn’t in the system, he hasn’t spoken a single word to me outside of “Yes Master.” He’s kept his promise about cooking and cleaning, but he doesn’t respond when I thank him. I feel like I should say something, but what? “You might be thinking too hard about this.” “I’m freaking out man.” “So you’re having trouble connecting, is that really so bad?” “How am I supposed to live with a man for an entire year when I barely know anything about him?” “Speaking of, did you ask him about the thing?” I can tell Alex is anxious about this, he’s always been easily spooked about Abnormals. “Yes, I asked him. But he didn’t reply.” “That says enough, doesn’t it? His silence is an admission.” “Maybe, I don’t know. I’ve checked forums and junk on how to spot one, even got a book from the library. But he doesn’t show any signs.” “Like what, turning into a huge ape and eating the corpse of some stranger?” “It’s said to look for behavioural cues and whatnot. Like, bipolar and ADHD like habits, emotional dependency and shit like that. It says that social distancing is when things are supposed to take a turn for the worse. But he doesn’t do anything. He’s just…there. I don’t even know if I can describe what I’m feeling, just that I’m going crazy.” “Look, I’d love to help you man. But until I know he won’t kill us, I’m staying the fuck away from your place.” I would have replied with something sarcastic, but I was too stressed to care.
	E - It’s been roughly a week now. I haven’t interacted with the panther much. I know his name, Mason, but I won’t call him that. Knowing him will make all of this complicated. I just need to fulfil my role and I’ll be out of here in a year. I will say, he’s definitely different from other owners. He doesn’t ask me to do anything, doesn’t force anything out of me, he even left the remote for the shock collar out on the table. If this were any other owner, I’d have left by now. But I can’t exactly do that now that I’m registered in the system. Even if I escape, I’d be identified and brought back. Although, given our situation, I doubt he’d be eager to call the police on me if I happened to disappear one night. But, something seems to be holding me back. A weird feeling in me. I have an idea of what it is, but I’m hoping I’m wrong. But I don’t have to think about that today. Today, I have the house to myself. The panther is out with the fox, so I’ll be alone for a while. I’m mainly using this to explore the house while I’m cleaning it, not that there’s anything noteworthy. The panther doesn’t have anything of interest. Most of his things came with the house. But there are a couple shelves of personal belongings. A couple of decorations, some photos of friends and family, and a bunch of books. They all seem to be novels of some kind. But they’re all pretty boring, most of them don’t even have pictures. This one seems to have some, what’s its name? “THE…KNIGHT…AND…THE…WITCH.” Oh, this story.
	M - “Well that won’t work.” “Why not?” “Alex, he won’t talk to me.” “I don’t know what to tell ya dude. Sometimes, you just need to be the one to break the ice.” C’mon brain, think of a convincing excuse. “Welp, we’re at your place. Tell me if it works out.” Like he said, we are in fact at my new house. It really was a nice house from this perspective. A homage to old japanese architecture and one of the few privately owned spaces in the city to contain any form of greenery. I was really lucky to find a - “Go in the house and stop avoiding your problems.” “Why are you still here?” I end my house appreciation and try, dreading the empty interactions to come. The house is clean, as usual. I walk through the rooms and try to locate my…do I even call him my pet? Guest, no. Friend, noo. Roomate, maybe? My contemplation of our relationship dynamics was interrupted when I found him. He was reading one of my, wait…No, he’s staring at the cover of a book. Does he like it, should I ask him about it? “You like that book?” WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU? “I’ve never read it before.” Wait, did he actually respond to me? “You can read it if you want.” GOOD GOD, COULD YOU BE MORE CONDESCENDING? Do I now decide what he does and doesn’t read? “No, I have chores.” “What? O-Okay. Have fun…with…that.” That was a success, I think. Wait, the house is already spotless. Why doesn’t he just take a break and…Holy shit, he can’t read.
	E - I regret looking at that book. Ever since that incident, he has continuously tried to connect with me. He’s remained respectful of my no-questions rule, but he’s attempting to manipulate any loopholes. He won’t ask about my past, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to know me with his inscencent questions. What’s your favorite color, what food do you like, how can you clean the ceiling, we don’t have any ladders, etc. I don’t know why, but his learning of my illiteracy has increased his desire for connection. If that wasn’t something dangerous for me, I might have answered a few of his questions out of pity. Today, we are walking back from the store. I don’t see why he insists on walking when he has a vehicle. As someone who isn’t forbidden by the law from operating or owning a vehicle, he doesn’t seem to appreciate his privilege. The only benefactory aspect of these walks is the chance to see more of the city. It has tall buildings and many roads, but that isn’t my focus. I find it strange how many owners there are. You can see anthros of all shapes and sizes, followed by one wearing the oh too familiar collar. Some walk and two legs, but always behind their owner. Some are forced to crawl on all four, even in public. Some are even amputated, so they don’t even have a chance. I see all kinds of pets. Pets born into the system, people forced into ownership, some have mental conditioning to make them obey, others are motivated out of fear. It makes me reflect and admit to myself, even though I was forced into this, I’m lucky to have an owner like…Mason. He hasn’t forced anything and he’s respected my requests. The only thing he wants, to know the person he forced into this situation. Why, that’s beyond me. I guess I’m just different. I prefer silence over the noise of other people. Silence is nice. It doesn’t hurt you, it doesn’t force anything out of you. And it only goes away if…if you make the decision. God, when did I become so philosophical? And why hasn’t my owner spoken in the last five min…Shit, where did he go?
	M - I think I’m being mugged. That is, I’m assuming that I was pulled into an alleyway by some strange men because they wanted to mug me. “Alright boys, I’ve got him. Check his pockets.”  Yup, being mugged. By three hyenas, who’d expect that? Oh, that is my crotch. “Wait man, he doesn’t have anything.” “WHAT?” “Yeah, I was just walking my pet. Can I go-” *punched in face* Oh god, that one hurt. “God dammit. You idiots got the wrong one!” “What are you talking about, we got the panther who walks by 101st every Tuesday.” “Tuesday?” “Yeah, boss said the rich panther walks by-” Wow, that was a nice punch. “He said it was Wednesday. You said this was the guy who walks by at Tuesday you fucking idiot!” “Look, I have to go so could you leave me out of-” “SHUT UP!” *punched in face* Ow, fuck! “What do we do now?” “I don’t know, we were supposed to rob and leave.” “Yeah, but that was before it turned out we got the wrong guy!” “Which was your fault Ron!” “No it was your fault John!” “Can you please quit your squabbling and let me go?” “How about you shut up before I shoot you?” That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! That is a gun! “Are you insane? We kill him and the police will be after us!” “Then what are we supposed to do John?” “Shut the fuck up Sean!” God, why are they fighting? “Maybe we could have some fun with him?” “God dammit, can you for once keep it in your pants Sean?” “Make me John!” I tried moving slightly away from the arguing trio of hyenas, thankful for their arguing. Carefully, I make my way to the exit. Slowly, so as not to attract their *clinking of can being stepped on* SHIT! “Where are you going? You know what, I think I’ve decided what to do with this guy.”
	E - Where could he be? Where could he be? Where could he be? Where could he be? It’s only been like, what, fifteen minutes? Where could he be…wait, I hear something. I follow the sounds down the alleyway and find…Oh crap. I found him, alright. Having the shit beaten out of him by three hyenas. Dammit, how do I get him out of this? “Should I get him out of this?” A thought spreads through my mind. If I leave him here, I could make it out of this city by nightfall and I can make it back to that mountain in about three days. I could finally be free. But should I really let him die for this? But if I save him, then would that make…it form? I can’t have that, not now. My freedom, or his life. Which do I choose? ………Dammit.
	M - Is this how I’m supposed to die? Beaten into a pulp by three indecisive hyena muggers and eventually shot in the head when they decided to put me out of my misery? I feel that is being a bit dramatic, but I’m currently being beaten to death so shut up. And you know the worst part. Him. I’ve left him alone, meaning he’s a pet without an owner. Either he’s put back in the system, or he’s returned to whoever he ran away from. Or maybe he runs away. Runs away to the top of a frigid mountain just to kill himself. And I don’t know anything about him. Nothing, not even his name. I’d like to at least know that, just so I could apologize for screwing up his life. And now the pain doesn’t even bother me. It all feels numb. I think I was dropped on the ground or something. I can barely keep my eyes open. But I look up, and I see they’re faces. They’re smiling, having let out all their stress by using me as their punching bag. Welp, guess this…is…it…What? I see…something…a wolf…what is…am I…being saved? Is he…carrying…me…now?
	E - Dammit, they put up a fight. I’m glad there were no security cameras. Made transforming a whole lot easier. God, why do my guts hurt? Is this like some muscle spasm from not using that form in a while? How? I have no muscles? And why is he so heavy? Sigh, at least those guys won’t be bothering us anytime soon. That is, if they wake up. I might have let loose near the end, but they deserved it. So now I’m stuck as a wolf and trying to get us to a hospital. I would have called an ambulance, but this idiot forgets to bring his phone with him all the time. “You don’t always have to have your phone with you” my ass. But maybe a hospital wouldn’t work. They might discover me if I stay there too much. Nevermind, lugging his body a mile back home it is. After an hour or so, we eventually made it home. I can’t believe we weren’t arrested on our way here. I’m now dragging this mother up the stairs and into the house and into his room. I lay him down on the floor and go to the bathroom for medical supplies. Damn, no painkillers and nothing especially good for cleaning wounds. Welp, might have to improvise. Thankfully, he’s asleep.
	M - “Uhh…my head. Wait…what?” “Don’t move, trying to fix your bandages.” “Is that you…uh…” Crap, this is awkward. “Yes, it’s me. I’m surprised you're awake, you took quite a beating.” Beating…WAIT! “What happened to those guys.” “Don’t worry, they won’t bother us. Now hold still.” I wince in pain as he tightens my bandages. “How long have I been out?” “Roughly an hour.” “And you did all this?” “Correct.” “Oh, thanks.” “Sure.” I try to find something to say, but nothing comes out. “Do you need anything? I brought out some water and some books in case you get bored.” Like he said, there was a stack of books and a glass of water. But what I found interesting was that the top book was “The Knight and the Witch.” “Do you like this book?” He stares at it for a minute, almost longingly. “I can’t say. It was my mother’s favorite book as a child, but I never got the chance to read it.” “Same. My mother read this to me every night. She loved books like these, ones that say things about the world.” “What does it say?” “Would you like me to read it to you?” Oh crap, that was totally insensitive. I look at his face, but it doesn’t show any signs of agitation. “If it pleases you. I suppose it would help pass the time while I tend to you.” I smile, feeling a warm feeling in my chest. I begin to recite the story as he adjusts my bandages and applies a weird lotion to by fur. The basic plot is that there’s this knight. Now, this knight was sent to a village to go defeat an evil witch on top of a mountain. The witch is someone who fought in this human vs witch war and specializes in cursemaking. So the knight travels up the mountain and he meets this woman. Now this is where most versions say that the knight fell instantly in love, but the version my mother told me otherwise. So the knight goes up to speak with this strange woman and asks for directions to the witch’s cottage. But he steps on a patch of plants that she was gathering herbs from, which upset her greatly. She acts really upset, saying that the knight must now help her gather more herbs. Oddly enough, the knight agrees. After collecting more herbs she eventually points him in the direction of the witch. So when he finally makes his way up to the cottage, who else should be there but the woman he met not too long ago. Turns out she was the witch, much to the surprise of the knight. She says that she knows why he was sent and that she won’t do any harm towards the knight, because he did this one nice thing for her. But, he will be cursed if he does kill her. The knight then decides not to fight the witch, much to her surprise. He only asks that he come visit again. So the knight goes down the mountain, tells the villagers that everything is taken care of, and proceeds to climb the mountain tomorrow with a basket of herbs. The witch invites the knight in for tea, and makes him do some chores or something. He asks why she creates trouble in the village, and she says that she did nothing and it was just the villagers’ superstitions. He goes back down and repeats the process over the next few days. Over time, the two of them begin to bond and the witch tells more and more about herself. Apparently her magic works kind of like karma, she can make bad luck happen for every bad thing people do. But sometimes that would kill the person afflicted by the curse, so she only used it to fight in the war. She had been taught by her teacher that the humans who were killing innocent witches were evil and that they should die. But her magic allowed her to see the bad deeds of people, and she began to realize that doing bad things doesn’t necessarily make you evil. And when she looked at her teacher, she saw that they were someone who has taken the lives of many innocent humans. Her worldview shattered, she accidentally cursed and killed her teacher. So that’s why she lives away from everyone and why she let’s the village say all these awful things. The knight tries to convince her that she isn’t as terrible and that the villagers could accept her if she opened up to them, but she still felt like she had to stay in repence. Eventually, the village found out about the knight’s visits and that the witch was still alive. And they were not happy with that. They threatened the knight to kill the witch, saying that he was a disgrace to the kingdom. But he wouldn’t step aside, no matter what they said. So they eventually got their pitchforks and torches and went to the witch’s cottage. The witch was so scared that she almost struck all the village with the curse that killed her teacher, but the knight took the blow for it. The witch, horrified that she cursed the knight, knelt be his side and wepted. She cried apology after apology. To the innocents she killed, to the witches she betrayed, to the teacher she lost, to the villagers she frightened. But she also apologizes to the knight, for never giving herself a chance to forgive herself. It was then that her tears or some other magical junk happened and the knight was healed. It turns out, the witch had cursed herself. She couldn’t forgive her actions and she let that harm herself and the people around her. The knight was able to convince the villagers of the good in the witch, and she eventually moved into the village as their healer. And she also married the knight in some versions. But either way, happy ending. “My god, that was the corniest ending.” “What? I thought it was sweet.” “She just forgives herself and what, everything gets better?” “It’s a metaphor, it means that holding onto things like that hurts people and not just yourself.” “So she kills dozens of people and now everythings okay?” “It's a fairytale, what do you want?” I will say, despite the sass and sarcastic commentary, he did seem to enjoy the story. “Welp, it's night time. I will head to bed and you should get some rest.” “WAIT!” He turns, looking confused. I didn’t mean to say it so loudly, but I need to say it. “I…I can’t do this anymore.” “What?” “This! This silence, this distance between us. We’ve lived with each other for over a week and I know only two things about you, jack and shit. I know you don’t want anything to do with me, but I can’t live with someone who I don’t know that they won’t kill me in the middle of the night and run off so they can kill themself!” I feel out of breath, but also relieved at having gotten that off of my chest. I look to him, half expecting him just to leave. “Five questions.” “Excuse me?” “You get five questions, nothing else. And I get to avoid any question if I choose.” “Only if I still get five questions answered in the end even if you skip one.” “Deal.” Okay, we’re finally doing this. The first one is a no-brainer. “What is your name?” “Elias.” “Elias…what?” “Just Elias.” Okay, now the next one. I don’t really think I should ask this one, but I don’t have a choice. “Are you…an Abnormal?” I see him tense. “Avoid, next ques-” “No, this one is non-negotiable.” I wait for a response, fearing that I may have taken it too far. “In all intents and purposes.” “What?” “Let’s just say yes for now.” “O-okay.” I feel that I should be more afraid, but I kind of already knew the answer. “Where are you from.” “I’m from a mainly human populated fishing town on the other continent called Gwept.” I think I’ve heard that name before, but I can’t recall it. But he seems to know what I’m thinking and continues. “You probably have heard of the Gwept Fire, in which an Abnormal became Feral and set the town ablaze with its pyrokinetic abilities. And no, I’m not that Abnormal.” Okay, so that seems to answer…nothing. “How did you get here?” “After the Fire, my family wanted a change of scenery. But we became separated on the boat and I lived on the streets for a year or so. I never found them, but I was taken in by a kindly old raccoon shopkeeper.” “Really?” “I’ll be nice and not count that as your last question. But yes, he let me stay with him. He gave me food and bed and in return, I helped out at the shop and whenever he needed a break.” I was about to ask, but his face told me not to waste it. Also, his tone gave it away. “I stayed with him when I was twelve or thirteen, until three years ago when my living conditions changed.” Oh, that’s when he got sold. “Final question.” Okay, what to ask. How do your powers work? Do you/and are you eating my emotions. Have you ever killed anybody? “Why did you save me today?” My mouth spoke before my brain caught up with it, but I probably would have chosen that anyways. He looked at me with a face of complete apathy, but it seemed to convey surprise none the less. “What do you mean?” “That wolf, the one who saved me, that was you. You also helped me get home and put on bandages. You could have let them kill me and you would have been free. So why let the one obstacle to your freedom live?” He seemed like he wanted to answer, but also that he was contemplating that himself. “Yes, I could have let you die. But I’m in the system, so they would have found me out if I was alone. This brand has a substance that can be recognized on camera even if it's hidden under clothing. I’d be placed back into the system, and I doubt whoever bought me would have been sympathetic to my cause. So in layman's terms, you are a more effective means to an end. Now, it’s time for me-” “Tell me the real reason.” “Pardon?” “You most certainly would have found a way past the brand. Why did you save me when you didn’t have to?” I see the anger building up in his face. “You didn’t deserve it.” “What?” “You are by far the most…considerate of caretakers I’ve had in my life. You never forced me to do anything and you respect the request I made. The only thing that you do force me to do is live. And while I find that misguided, I can’t hate you for it. Basically, you are a better person than I am and you don’t deserve to die at the hands of muggers. Goodnight.” “Good-Goodnight.” He leaves the room, and I’m left alone to contemplate what I’ve just heard. There’s no way in hell that he didn’t hide some facts, but at least I have something. And now, I can at least give Alex an answer.
	E - I know why I saved him, but I don’t want to admit it. “It” prevented me from leaving, “It” made me risk myself and try to save him. The Bond. Just when I thought I was free of it, he showed up and made everything worse. Now, I’m trapped. Now, I can’t ever leave. Even when the year comes around, I will remain here unable to leave. Stuck, as his pet, his prisoner, only to be discarded and passed along to whomever next wants a new toy. “I hate you, so much.” I don’t know if I’m saying this to myself, Mason, him, or every other person who failed me. But just saying it makes my stomach feel tight.