The following is the Intellectual Property of Willem Tobey (nom de plume). Usage outside of personal entertainment purposes will bring shame upon you and your family. This writing\story\novel, its characters, and the events portrayed within are purely fictitious. Any similarity to other writings\stories\novels, characters, and events is purely coincidental and unintentional.
WARNING: May contain coarse language, violence, gore, or sexual content. Reader discretion is advised.
Chapter 7. “Duality”
He pulled the SUV into the parking spot labeled for their apartment. He breathed in and leaned forward as he put the gear changer in “park” and turned the ignition off. He breathed out as he sank back against the seat. After fourteen hours of driving, they finally made it.
“It’s…” she started as she looked around with a disgusted look.
It was very well lit. Each stairwell had a light on both ends and the landing for each floor. The doors all had lights outside of them. The walkways were lit with solar lights. The parking lot had overheads on posts every fifth spot. The roof was still using shingles and the walls looked like painted concrete blocks. It wasn’t terrible.
The lawn, on the other hand, was littered with kids’ toys and other similar debris. There was a swing set and a sandbox to one side. A metal slide and a plastic side were next to the swing set. Behind that was a set of monkey bars attached to a wooden bridge that connected to a plastic twist slide. 
“It’s...great,” she said with mock enthusiasm after a look around. 
He wasn’t sure how long they’d have to stay here. He found out soon enough. She voiced her disapproval over all the other couples verbally and sometimes physically fighting during the day and at night. There were kids that were out all hours of the day. College kids were blaring music all weekend and up to two in the morning. Cops dispatched to break up the couples, noise complaints, or responding to gunshots at least twice a week. The only peace was between four and six in the morning.
He did his best to keep her happy. After seven months, he picked up a janitorial job at the university. Her trips back home were becoming costly. He’d burned through his scholarship money. He wasn’t feeling the love being reciprocated. He was hoping the move into the trailer would’ve helped. How wrong he was. 
He pulled in the driveway and parked beside the trailer. She just rolled her eyes with a disgusted sigh and grabbed her suitcase from the backseat. He felt his heart breaking. He had suspicions of infidelity on her part with a few rumors his best friend messaged him. 
He led them to the door and pulled out the keys. He opened the door and stepped aside so she could go in first.
“You’re not welcome here, bitch.”
Troy watched as a flash of blue light exploded on her chest and sent her flying to the ground. Her body slowly vanished. Troy looked into the trailer with wide eyes and his heart slamming in his chest.
On the other side of the door was a clearing in a forest. It was dark but he could see figures standing around a person sitting on a tree stump. He stepped through the door in a defensive posture. He couldn’t see their faces, but their outlines were of cosplayers. Anime, perhaps, with animal ears and tails or perhaps furries dressed in animal costumes. There was one that looked human.
“He’s here,” a feminine voice said.
“Yeah. Kinda got that being I just dismissed his cheating ex,” a male voice said condescendingly. 
“You don’t have to be an ass about it.”
“What do you expect out of a belligerent ape?” A child’s voice said.
“When’s the last time I kicked your ass?” The male asked threateningly.
“Oh, no. I’m so scared of the tough guy threatening a child,” the child said back mockingly.
“Seriously, Mykol!” A different female exclaimed exasperatedly.
“To your own son...in front of a guest no less.” The first female said with disgust.
“Alright! Alright!” Mykol cried in defeat. “For fuck’s sake,” he muttered.
A light began to stir in front of him. A fire lit up and crackled in a stone circle. It illuminated the area just enough to where every shadowy figure became visible. Sitting on the stump was a plain-looking human. He was flanked on either side by anthropomorphic creatures, a human, and an actual dog sat in front of him.
Perhaps he was just generalizing, but Troy thought he’d seen them all before. They were all bipedal animal creatures like the ones in the suits except for the two humans. He recognized a few of their species. The one female was a cheetah. Her little boy was a cheetah, though it was hard to tell with how sparse his fur was. There was a female deer sitting in a wheelchair. Two younger girls were on the other side of a female gazelle with black stripes along her muzzle and horns on her head. They looked like foxes but had raccoon markings. The one female he couldn’t put a finger on her species. Her scales seemed to shimmer and it was hard to see her sometimes. A male human with a sad look despite his colorful costume and face paint was on one side. There was a male husky or wolf on the other side.
The actual dog walked up to Troy wagging its tail. Its fur was a caramel color with varying shades of brown along its body. The front of its muzzle was black, its tongue was purple with black patches. Its chocolate eyes seemed to sparkle as it licked Troy’s hand. Troy reached over and petted it on the head with his free hand. It was hard not to smile at this one.
“Dana...you goose,” Mykol said and snapped his fingers.
The dog went over by the human on the stump and sat down while licking his hand. Mykol began to pet the dog and scratch behind her ears.
“Don’t mind her. She’s very friendly to those she likes. She was the only thing the original passed on to me. To the others, it was just…” Mykol trailed off, then went quiet.
“I don’t understand. Why are you all in my dream? I’ve never had a lucid dream before,” Troy said, then grabbed his chest in surprise.
“Don’t mind that. What’s important is you get to her safely.”
The smaller of the foxcoons walked over and pet the dog, then looked up at Mykol. “Daddy, can you save him?” She asked, soft-spoken, with concern.
She had to have been around ten years old. She had a black mask around her emerald eyes, red and gray fur, and a single ring around her tail. She could’ve passed for a red panda. The taller of the two - who looked to be about seventeen - patted the smaller one on the head. She had a single black patch around one of her blue and hazel eyes. The other eye seemed to be surrounded by a mix of the reddish-orange and dark gray fur. She had two rings around her tail.
“Of course he can,” she said, sounding optimistic.
Troy wondered about the relationship they had. They most definitely weren’t human. Unless that’s how they became anthropoid. Troy was so confused right now. 
The others watched as Mykol stood up and walked over towards Troy. They all acted like this was some form of cult or something. It was...unsettling. What was more unsettling was the fact that this human was growing fur. By the time he was close enough to spit on, Mykol looked like a dark gray wolf with strange eyes and wings growing out of his back. There was a calming, yet fierce vibe to those eyes.
“It’s okay. Someone’s…-ing.” 
Troy couldn’t understand him all of a sudden. Like his voice was cutting out.
“You...strong.”
His voice kept getting more and more distant even though he was so close.
******
Troy awoke to a throbbing in his head. He tried to reach it to “magically” rub it away, but found his hand was bound. Painfully, he pried open his eyes to find he was looking at the ceiling of the room. He looked to his left to find nothing but a wall. The same to the right. He pried his head against the neckband towards his feet to find more nothing except the door to the room. He was alone in the room once again. He felt the snug waste-expulsion-holes-intrusive briefs were back on. It seemed the bands were still constrictive, but softer than they were before. The table was surprisingly comfortable - like it was molded around his contours. He felt clean. He was a bit thirsty though.
As he lay there staring at the ceiling, he wondered why he was alive? Why was he, seemingly, pampered as a hostage? Even so, why was he also treated like cattle with the semen collection? He wondered where that disturbing and disgusting virtual reality simulation came from? Why was it playing in his head during the collection process? He wondered what that human-looking reptile and the anthropoids wanted?
Nothing was being answered. Just...questions. His head continued to pound as images of the events played in his head. The car. The light. The people around him when he woke up. Being carried to the room. Shark lady. The kissing. Her getting shot. The various creatures in suits. Their...faces. The simulation. Strange penises. All the feelings he felt. How...real and...carnal they felt. The despicable acts he was put through.
His mom and dad. Jackie. He cringed at those thoughts about as much as the bestial simulation. The Hammerjacks. Angel. The trailer. Beast porn. Those strange people in the dream. Jon. That night at the bar. Beast porn. The officer. The doctor. Waking up in the hospital. Beast breasts and vagi-...
The door slid open - snapping him out of his trance. A tear of frustration, fear, separation, and disgust sprang from his blinking eye. It slid down his temple and continued along his bald head. 
Not that he was an expert at this point, but the footfalls sounded familiar. He didn’t really care who - rather, what - it was. It couldn’t have been a good thing they were here. What was it going to be this time? Are more hallucinogens going to fill the air? More false hope? Was it “milking” time again? Is it finally time to die? Even with the shark lady and her gentle touch being the exception, there couldn’t possibly be any reason to keep holding him. Was there? He was starting to miss her. She was the only bright spot in this dimly lit room. 
It was four ears. It walked over to Troy’s right. It appeared to slowly look over him from head to toe, then shook its head. It pressed the bottom of the mouthpiece and pulled it off. It placed the strange respirator down next to Troy on the table, then pressed the strange shape between its collarbones. It sounded like velcro lightly separating. It brought up both hands and began to lift the hood. It had brown fur similar to a camel with a black stripe down the middle of its neck. Troy saw its bottom teeth as it struggled to pull the hood around its longer muzzle. The top lip stretched to show...gum? 
It didn’t have top teeth? Troy was stumped.
As it pulled the hood back, it revealed white fur. A black patch on its muzzle that connected to stripes up to its eyes by two small strips near its nose. A black patch of...hair separated the ridged horns between its ears that sprang forward against the pull of the hood. They pointed out at a slight diagonal from its head. Dark chocolate eyes peered at Troy as it pulled the hood over its horns and folded it behind its head. His head?
He sighed as he looked over Troy again as he rubbed his forehead. He rubbed his right eye, then his left. He blinked his puffy, tired eyes. He licked his finger and drew a line down the front of the suit. He pulled the sides apart to reveal a black stripe that went to his collarbone, then split out to the sides. Just more sweat-matted brown fur otherwise. He pulled out one strong-looking, wiry arm followed by the other. 
He rubbed his head between those horns again. The hair, as it seemed, fell lazily between his eyes as he lifted his hand up, then the other into a stretch. He brought a hand down to scratch his chest, then leaned back as he brought his hands in and drove his elbows back to crack his back. He slumped forward in a huff. 
He placed a hand on Troy’s thigh. His hand felt strange. It felt like a cat’s paw with the pads and little jelly beans. His nails looked like a human’s but were very thick and dark black. Strands of fur that poked out from between the large palm pad and the finger pads tickled Troy’s skin.
Horns placed a bit more weight into Troy’s thigh as he bent his elbow and twisted his torso. His fingers felt a bit bony, but Troy was more interested in why he chose his thigh to assist in cracking his back further. A loud, deep, hollow-sounding “pop” followed. Troy felt him tremble and quietly cry something in his language. Troy assumed it was similar to when he cracked his back that well. “Ack!” Sounded about right. He breathed sharply twice and let an “Ahh” out with a look of content. He straightened his torso and placed his other hand on Troy’s thigh. His back cracked like popcorn and he hummed with more content - his eyes half shut and a slight smile reaching the corners of his mouth. He straightened up and sighed heavily while he stood for a moment with his eyes shut.
He opened his eyes and looked at Troy. He seemed to...smile. He looked a bit surprised when he realized his hand was still on Troy’s thigh. He looked at his hand and quickly removed it. He held his hand up in a half surrender while he pressed his lips together and glanced quickly over in Troy’s eyes.
Even if their overall tactics were inhumane, there seemed to be a form of empathy behind those eyes. The same as shark lady. Not all of them seemed cruel and were only following orders and fulfilling an agenda. 
Horns stepped back and walked to Troy’s feet and began pushing a cart to Troy’s side. His footfalls were quiet, yet fairly unique. It almost sounded like bubble packaging wrap being quickly wrung out like a washcloth underneath a pillow. He returned to Troy’s feet and picked up a chair. He placed the chair next to and a little behind the cart.
There were two objects on the cart. One looked like a patio brick and the other looked like a tablet similar to the one he used in the university lab or like Dr. Price used. He grabbed his tail and sat in the chair with a heavy sigh. He let his tail fall to the side of the padded chair, then stretched his arms out as he cracked his knuckles. 
If Troy wasn’t sure this was all real at this point, it was starting to sink in now. These were indeed humanoid animals, reptiles, and marine life. They had partially human skeletons. Fingers, toes, torsos, arms, and bipedal stances. Other parts were still animalistic: Heads, epidermises, legs, and reproductive organs. Though the marine life had plantigrade legs, the reptiles and animals had digitigrade legs. Teeth, claws, and other minor features were also still present. But they had speech, technology, and other cultural things that pointed towards being similar to his.
Weren’t they superior to him - being half-breeds like this? The technology seemed to be far advanced. Tables and bodysuits made of a pliable, seemingly metallic alloy that could mold to the thoughts and desires with a touch. But what was with licking the finger first? The floors could consume wastes and debris and even fix the suits they wore. Drugs that make him hallucinate and pass out along with having devices that invoke a surrealistic virtual reality. Those strange breathing apparatuses, too. Even this material that surrounded his pelvis area and invaded his waste excretion orifices. Lastly, those guns that fired rounds of solid balls of electrical energy. Those were terrifying.
With them being so advanced, what could they possibly need him for? With his semen? Why in the lowest layer of hell was he still living, breathing, and being treated well...for a lack of a better word?
Really, when he thought about it, he expected torture, malnourishment, and mechanical sodomy. Even a brain scan or implants. So far, the worst he’s had to endure was the lack of freedom to move around, the gastrointestinal cleanse, the hallucinogenic drug, mating with them in virtual reality for semen collection, and the cuts, bruises, and blood loss from struggling. Even then, when he looked at his wrists, he couldn’t see any signs that he cut or bruised them. He hasn’t gone hungry and was even given water. 
Maybe this was all still in the precautionary stages. There is a language barrier. He started to think that he was misinterpreting things as them having the intent of evil. Maybe he still had a chance to be set free if he obliged them with good behavior.
“But, then why did the shark lady attack her own kind?” He thought. He shook his head. “No. I’ll do it. I’ll play the game and just wait this out.”
Horns rocked his head to the left, then the right as his neck popped and cracked. He looked at the cart and picked up the tablet. He pressed on the screen and the screen eerily lit up his face. He held the device in his right hand and tapped the screen with his left. A menu popped up. Literally popped up out of the screen. Horns pressed on a selection and the glow turned red. He stood and moved next to Troy. He held his hand over Troy’s face, then pressed his first two fingers to Troy’s missing eyebrows. He pressed down and dragged his fingers to cover Troy’s eyes. Troy waited for a moment as he held his fingers over his closed eyes. Troy opened his eyes when Horns lifted his fingers, but then closed them when Horns looked at him with a stern look.
It sounded like a small motor started up. It was similar to the whine of a computer starting up. Troy’s eyelids glowed with the red light and a warm feeling sank into his skin. The light slowly moved out of his eyelids. His neck felt warm, then his chest. This continued as the feeling traveled all the way to his right foot. He felt the warmth on his left hip, then it traveled to his left foot. This process repeated over each shoulder down to his fingers. 
Troy opened his eyes again when he heard Horns sit down in the chair again. Horns placed the tablet on the table and stretched with a huge yawn. He huffed out a breath as he slumped into the chair - his eyes glazed over and a bit watery. He rubbed his face with his palms and drew in a slow breath. He slapped his hands down on his thighs as he huffed the breath out. 
Troy continued to watch as his eyelids began to slowly fall. His head nodded further and further down to his chest as if his nose were climbing down an invisible staircase. After the sixth “stair”, he opened his eyes and sat up when the device made a sound. He looked over at the image that displayed on the screen. Troy couldn’t quite make out the image. Horns picked up the device and tapped the screen a few times. He placed the device down in his lap and reached over to the cart. He grabbed something like a metal cord bracelet from the drawer and closed it, then began to unravel it. Horns plugged one end into the tablet and stood. He brought the device over, stood next to the table, then held the other end of the cord by Troy’s arm. The cord wrapped around his arm near the elbow, then something that unmistakably felt like a needle stabbed Troy’s skin. Horns looked at Troy’s pained expression before quickly looking away. 
Horns licked his finger and thumb, then slid it along the cord as he pulled the tablet away. The cord began to stretch until he could place the tablet onto the cart. He returned to the chair as he groaned and rubbed his eyes with the sides of his fingers. Again he yawned and placed his hands on his thighs as he exhaled. He picked up the tablet and studied it for a moment. He tapped and slid his finger onto the screen a few times before licking his finger and pressing it to the back of the device. He reached his hand over as a stand grew out of the back of the tablet and set the propped device onto the cart. 
Horns yawned hard this time. His head looked to be on the verge of splitting in half. His tongue reached far out of his mouth, then curled near the middle as it drew back in with his breath. His head shook and his jaw trembled as he exhaled the yawn out loudly. His eyes barely opened with tears soaking the lower lids of his eyes. He mumbled something as he wiped the moisture away. 
Troy wondered why exactly he was concerning himself with watching this beast. Whether he was alive or not, he was still a captive. He cursed his stupid human curiosity. Or perhaps he just had a sick feeling of wanting to know what was going to come next. Perchance it was just the desire to look in the eyes of the one to cause his death so they remember his face in their nightmares when they rest their head at night.
Troy looked back at the ceiling. Something seemed to be placed on the table. He tried not to pay it any attention. His peripheral picked up the horns and ears. The damnable things kept catching his eyes. He held firm even as they disappeared - even with something crashing onto the cart and something else brushing his arm. Something covered his hand. Troy tried desperately to disregard the existence of this feeling. Perhaps it was temporary and would just go away. 
After a few minutes, there was a groaning “mmm” sound followed by slow breathing. This went on for a while. It eventually changed to the breathing with a few soft whines when there was an exhale. Troy couldn’t take it anymore. He looked over and saw Horns fast asleep. One of his ears was along Troy’s arm and his hair was on Troy’s hand with a horn across the wrist band. 
Troy thought it strange that the creature would dare to sleep this close to Troy’s hand. It must not have been that concerned about Troy becoming violent and hurting or killing him. Troy’s hand trembled. There was no logical reasoning behind such a daring move. Troy could easily touch most of his head if he wanted to. If he turned his wrist enough, he could probably grab Horns’ ear. Unless there was something on that device that branded Troy as some sort of pacifist?
Troy slid his hand as far as he could to the left to clear the hair from his hand without disturbing Horns. He definitely didn’t want to wake him up now. Troy’s hand began to quake with the thought of grabbing that ear and wrenching on it as hard as he could. The fucking thing would either have to break Troy’s wrist or uproot his own ear from his skull before Troy would ever let go!
A red light flickered from the screen to Troy’s right. Troy strained his neck, head, and eyes to try to make out what exactly was on the screen. He could make out a wire-frame of a body. A red blob flickered in the chest area and there was a black, flickering mark over the neck area. Figures that popped out of the screen constantly changed. He assumed those were vitals like blood pressure, oxygen levels in the blood, and his pulse. He assumed other figures depicted levels of certain vitamins or minerals in the blood since there were so many other figures.
Troy looked down at the bracelet, then along the long ear against his arm. He looked back over at the screen. He deduced that the bracelet was monitoring everything and transferring the data to the tablet. He figured he should calm down just in case some alarm went off with an accelerated heart rate or increased blood pressure. He’d be done for if this device could detect any signs of hostility. There was the possibility that this device could summon more of the creatures. Those creatures may not be as empathetic as the caretakers. He knew that this one hadn’t necessarily done anything that harmed him in any way. 
Troy began to fight an internal struggle. There was an obvious strong argument against violence - especially with him still being immobilized. Even if he somehow befriended this one, there was no guarantee for either of their safety when they shot their own. Besides, when he got free, what then? What if he swayed Horns into freeing him as the shark lady did? But what exactly did that get her beside a hole in her back? Troy did kiss her back. He looked over at the sleeping Horns to wonder if he’d have to kiss him, too. Sure he’d do anything to get free. Pretending to care for one of these creatures was just another small price to pay for freedom...as long as there was no intercourse. 
The shark was one thing. Though, he’d never actually seen her reproductive organs. But, if they were like those in the simulation, it wouldn’t be so bad. Despite the actions of “Troy” in that simulation, he really had no desire to be with another man - beast or not. Being a beast alone made it less desirable than just being a man. Not that they had to become lovers. Friendship is just as powerful.
Troy looked at the slumbering beast. He felt his mind wander towards the “bargaining” spectrum. “Could I do it though? Maybe not so much if they were a male, but...could I...love...one of these...things? Are they really that different from humans?”
That settled it. Troy clenched his left hand into a fist. He spread the fingers in his right hand, then relaxed them. His left hand began to shake. He sighed as he looked back up to the ceiling and relaxed his mind and body. Troy looked over and slowly began to move his hand closer to Horns’ head. His hand trembled. He relaxed again and took a few deep breaths. He looked over again and began to move his hand. His hand brushed against a few strands of Horns’ hair. The ends seemed to be dry. The closer his hands got to the scalp, the damper it felt - perhaps with sweat. The creature did look overworked and it did smell of sweat and wet animal when the suit opened up. 
He didn’t think that animals sweat, but perhaps they did and the suits they wore weren’t very breathable. They did seem to have emotions similar to a human’s. Passion, love, remorse, and “fight or flight” responses. They had technology and militarization - possibly some form of hierarchy based on how Cane was treated when he walked into the room. Just how much did they have in common?
Troy used his fingers to smooth - perhaps “pet” was the proper term - the hair around Horns’ ear and horns. His hand reached up to the other ear and lightly touched the backside of it. He watched the creature’s face to see if that roused him. Troy turned his wrist and began to lightly scratch behind the ear. Horns exhaled a higher-pitched moan or hum as his ear flickered. Troy braved a chance to grab the ear. It was furry and soft like a dog’s ear, but a little thicker. Troy stroked the ear as far as he could a few times and Horns let out a few more whines seemingly out of content. Troy let his hand move over the white, inner strands of fur. Horns groaned in protest as his ear slapped against Troy’s hand. Horns let out a long groan as he lifted his head off his arms and readjusted his head a few times before finally settling in and calming down. Troy figured he shouldn’t do that too many times.
Troy moved his hand back down and gently scratched behind the ear again. Horns exhaled with a light, content moan until there was a clicking noise and he breathed in again. Troy assumed the clicking sound was from the tongue snapping off the hard palate or his soft palate snapping open to allow him to breathe again after exhaling so much. 
It made Troy wonder how something that looked so peaceful as it slept could willingly be involved in the abduction, detention, and experiments done on him. Perhaps they were oppressed by some tyrannical leader that demanded the invasion, abduction, and, perhaps, destruction of other planets. Talk like “genocide” hasn’t been on Troy’s planet for at least a hundred years. Even so, the most common militarized forces like armies and police were there for protection. These things had weapons and intentions meant for more than hunting and safety. 
As Troy stroked his hand along Horns’ head and ears, he listened to the calm, deep breathing pattern Horns was in while sleeping heavily. It was soothing. It reminded him of when Jackie slept with him after they got married. Between the sound and the feeling of the soft fur Troy felt while moving his hand, he felt at ease. Troy closed his eyes and cleared his mind. He just listened. In this moment, he didn’t feel like a prisoner. He didn’t feel captive. He didn’t feel afraid. He was...calm.
Troy snapped out of his trance when Horns moved. Troy moved his hand and curled it in towards his body. There was a moan followed by Horns clearing his throat. Troy heard a massive yawn and the chair shifted. Troy glanced over through slit eyes and watched as Horns stood and stretched his arms out to the side. He groaned as he closed his eyes and flexed his arms in. Troy watched as the suit bulged against the biceps. This was not a creature he wanted to get into an arm-wrestling match with. 
Horns had his eyes squeezed shut as he rocked up onto the tips of his toes. His chest was puffed out and his stomach pushed out, then caved as Horns breathed in. His hips pressed forward as he yawned again. Something caught Troy’s eye when he noticed the suit sliding slowly down Horns’ hips. He felt like he’d seen something similar before. Horns rocked back off his toes as his suit fell down and caught on his outer thighs. Troy’s eyes widened and he quickly looked away. 
There was no doubt about it now. This was most definitely a male. Troy squeezed his eyes shut, but couldn’t remove the image. Below his ribs was white fur. Along that white fur was a dark green, scaled stake. That stake was pressing out from a small bump in the scales. Below that was a pouch containing a set of oblong objects. Horns wasn’t as well endowed as the buck in the simulation, but they indeed both suffered from “morning wood”.
Troy heard Horns slap his hands against his thighs. Troy rocked his head a bit and parted his eyelids slowly. Horns sleepily looked at Troy with his head and shoulders drooped forward. He cocked his head to his left and looked confused. Troy rocked his head a few times as he tried to keep his eyes up. Horns raised an eyebrow as he scratched his stomach. His hand bumped against the tip of the scaly stake. Horns looked down with wide eyes, then yelled something and quickly pulled his suit back up as he turned away from Troy. 
It seemed that they also wore the strange briefs that they placed on Troy. It also seemed to form to every bump and contour - even allowing for an extension when certain parts “awaken”. 
Troy couldn’t pry his eyes away from this car wreck. He could see Horns fumbling with the suit. The suit fell down past his rump. Horns had a tuft of black fur that ran from the base of his hair down his spine. Just above his rump was a black patch of fur that widened, then narrowed to the top of his glutes. A thin, black tail went over the “briefs” and covered the crack between the dark green globes. 
Troy realized he was staring. He quickly looked away and tried to convince himself that he was looking at the muscles moving beneath the fur, but he couldn’t get the images of that butt or the genitalia out of his head. He could feel his face warming with a blush with what just happened. It was hard not to think about it from a medical standpoint. The briefs didn’t seem to constrict or pinch areas like cotton briefs did. It truly looked like a second skin. Even with all the added information, he still wasn’t sure what exactly Horns was. He decided to just place him in the “antelope” category.
It seemed every creature was very physically fit. Troy didn’t eat terrible food all the time and work kept him moving, lifting, and too busy to be lazy. He felt he was in pretty good condition compared to when he started university. It just seemed like these creatures were in the gym more than he ever was. Troy’s planet had all sorts of shapes and sizes. These creators had different shapes and sizes, but that was due to the species they represented. Other than that, if they weren’t bred to be this muscular, they were all very well endowed. 
Troy mentally kicked himself for that poor phrasing. He mentally kicked himself for his medical curiosity. Given the situation, it was very inappropriate. Despite the strangeness of other creatures’ genitalia, it was not the time for curiosity. It seemed like he was gaining a form of empathy for these creatures. Perhaps he needed to squash that. He hoped he didn’t have to return to that simulation. He hoped he didn’t have to see those strange people with that lycanthrope. He hoped someone was coming to save him.
Troy heard footsteps. He looked over and watched as Horns walked towards the door while shoving his arms in the sleeves. He snugged the fingers, then pulled the hood over his horns. He growled as he forced the hood on with one hand as he held the breathing apparatus. The suit didn’t tear. Horns licked a finger and touched the hood. It began to take the shape of his head like plastic wrap heating up. He pulled the rest of the hood down and opened the door, then stepped out. Horns looked both ways, then turned to the left.
After a moment, the door closed. Troy was alone once again. He decided to use this time to purge those thoughts of empathy. There was no use in getting in good with these creatures. In his current position, what did he have to gain?