I hadn’t eaten anything all day, just filling up on water. I didn’t talk about my living conditions to Mr. Finch because like Seraculus, it's embarrassing to admit you can’t provide for yourself. I took my hands out of my pockets and prayed before every kill. I wished my mother would join me here to hunt, but she’s always busy with work. I crossed my legs, kept my palms separated as if I was holding a ball, and prepared for the oath. This represented a sphere of influence – our world.
“Forgive me the art of Dharma and all that we know. The Felis shall never take what it can’t give back. I apologize to the forest that gives me such a bountiful opportunity for the harvesting of flesh. I will not waste any part of the animal as all life is important,” I whispered to not scare the prey.
I slowly stood up, still hiding my presence through the branch leaves. The mother patted the top of the offspring’s head, staying close to one another. My hands trembled.
“I’m sorry... I’m so sorry,” I whispered to myself, “I need the food and money, forgive me.”
I threw the wooden knife perfectly. It cut the mother's throat open, and blood poured out. The offspring let out a moan of agony as the mother clutched the wound. I dove in and killed the offspring; this covered my clothes in blood. I did quick work to get out of the area by grabbing both bodies, stuffing them into a large leather sack. I barely fit both carcasses into the bag, then started walking back to the original location before sundown. There I saw Seraculus in the distance.
“Seraculus!” I shouted.
She ran fast clinging to a small basket filled with mushrooms and vegetables in one hand. Her other hand held a book labeled, ‘Edible and Non-Edible Plants.’
“Wow you got so much…” her face carrying a look of concern, “Salan, are you OK?”
“Yea, why?”
“You seem upset.”
“It’s nothing I’m just tired that’s all,” I wiped my blood-stained face on the side of my shirt. “Ya, it’s odd. I’ve never seen this animal before.”
Seraculus caught on that I didn’t want to talk about it.
“Let’s head back, Salan. It’s almost 8, so we only have an hour to prepare before your mother comes by,” said Seraculus.
We headed to the house, both of us moving quickly. Seraculus used the indoor stove while I worked outside. I skinned each animal, saving the pelt for gold coins, and placed them in a separate brown bag. Then I removed all the organs and put them in a bag as well; this will be meat for later. I removed the teeth for a necklace, and all the bones were kept for a soup broth. The skulls of each animal I kept as a reminder of what I’d done. It’s a custom among the Felis. I took the muscles, the main parts of the meat, and placed them in another bag.
I had to make two additional fire pits; this was the most meat I’d ever caught. Each fire pit would cook a separate part, one for soup, using the bones, one for cooking the organs, and one for the muscle. The pieces I didn’t use immediately were salted to preserve for later. The sun almost set, and there was blood all over my clothes. The backyard was splattered with blood as well. Seraculus came outside from chopping vegetables and mushrooms.
“You are covered in blood! Go change,” instructed Seraculus.
I looked down at my blood-covered clothes.
“It's fine; I’ll change later,” I responded.
“That’s disgusting! Go change!” Seraculus shouted.
“Alright fine,” I mumbled.
After washing myself with well water, I went inside to find my other pair of clothes. I only had two other pairs to choose from, so I put on my long brown pants made of leather, a worn out white shirt, and an animal tooth necklace. After getting dressed, I stared into the cracked washroom mirror. My hair hung below my shoulders. This was more traditional to the Felis, but the modern style was to cut it – mostly for factory reasons so that the hair wouldn’t get caught in machinery. To be honest, I was afraid to get a haircut because it seemed painful. The front door creaked open, and I rushed downstairs because I knew my mother was home.
3- Anger
“Never hide things from hardcore thinkers. They get more aggravated, more provoked by confusion than the most painful truths.”
― Criss Jami
My mother always had black circles under her eyes, but she stayed up to keep me company. She meant the world to me, so I hugged her immediately.
“Mom!” I blurted out.
“It’s good to be home Salan,” my mother hugged back.
The landlord would charge us more than the usual, due to Abomination fees. Having an Abomination lowers the land value of that area, so they charge higher prices every week for compensation. My mother always wore a maid outfit for work; she cleaned up mansions for a living. She wore bone earrings, a tooth necklace, and bone wrist bracelets. It was a typical custom among Felis to have bone jewelry. Many people found it primitive, quite hypocritical as they didn’t mind fur coats. She had unwavering glowing yellow eyes that could stare through people. However, my eyes were bright green. Her skin was dark brown, while I was a lighter shade. We both had same long black hair that went past our shoulders. My mom tilted her head up and smiled.
“Is this your girlfriend?” asked my mother.
We stopped hugging, and I spun around to see Seraculus smiling.
“Mom!”
“Salan you’re growing up so fast.”
“Mom! She’s a friend,” I repeated.
“OK, OK. I’ll stop teasing.”
Seraculus giggled at what Mom said. I let out a sigh, already knowing that my mom would be like that with a girl around. She always embarrasses me.
“Seraculus, this is my mother, Aja. And mom this is my friend, Seraculus. She’s in my morning class,” I introduced.
“Nice to meet you, Aja,” said Seraculus, shaking my mother’s hand.
Pridefully I said, “We prepared dinner.”
“What’s on the menu today? I’m starving,” my mother rubbed her belly.
We followed my mother as she walked into the kitchen.
“I got sweet yellow mushrooms, natural herbs for spices, and some berries. Can you double check? I’m a bit nervous if they’re edible. I come from the Black Forest, so I just followed the plant book you had,” said Seraculus.
“I’ll be sure to double check, but I’m sure you did an excellent job,” reassured my mother.
“I didn’t do that much. Salan got a bunch of meat from two kangaroo-looking creatures. They were pretty big,” said Seraculus.
Aja’s face changed from happy to concerned. She grabbed me by the shoulders and glared at me.
“Did anyone see you?”
“No, why?” I asked curiously.
“Show the pelts to me, now,” my mother ordered.
I led her outside and opened the leather bag. She knelt and sighed as she examined the pelts. Then, she turned around and faced me. My mother’s glare was so sharp it could crack stone.
“Never kill this creature again! It’s endangered, and the fine is 500 gold coins. I noticed one of them was smaller. An offspring is 700 Salan. It’s known as a Macrovinae,” stated my mother.
“I…I didn’t know. I’m sorry Mom,” I said.
I was disappointed. I thought this was my best hunt. My mother stuffed the pelts back into the brown bag and tied it with the rope.
“We can at least eat the meat. If there are leftovers, we’ll sell it and say it’s deer meat,”
“OK but what about the pelts?” I asked.
“It’s best we throw them away.”
“You and I both know we can’t do that, mom,” I argued.
“We’ll discuss this later Salan,” she said sternly as she looked over at Seraculus. Seraculus turned her eyes away. With the tension building, my mother broke the silence.
“Let’s eat before this meal gets cold.”
We set up chairs around the fire and ate so much soup, vegetables, and meat that our bellies couldn’t fit anymore. The sweet mushrooms and
spices tasted incredible. I can see why the Macrovinae species are endangered. Their meat was delicious.
“We have a lot of meat leftover. Do you want to take some home to your parents Seraculus?” asked my mother.
“That’s OK. I don’t need to,” Seraculus said, avoiding eye contact.
My mom handed her a small bag of meat before she could argue. “I don’t need your pity, Seraculus. Please take this as a token of spending time with my son and I.”
Seraculus glanced at me for confirmation, so I nodded. She smiled and accepted the gift.
My mother leaned closer to Seraculus, “I forgot to ask; do your parents know you're here Seraculus?”
“I don’t see them very often as they are used to working night shifts on weekdays. It’s a common as Minyades are nocturnal. My mother is Human, so she makes sure to fix me breakfast, then goes back to sleep. They are going to wake up soon since it’s 9:30.”
“I agree, sleeping at night was hard for me as well. I remember when I moved here with my parents from the small country Sharok. It’s north of here, but they have heavy border patrol. They have a massive wall to stop immigration there. I remember that it had big furry-like trees, full of warm vibrant colors. It’s too bad it’s gone now,” recalled my mother.
I turned to Seraculus, “Sharok was a home for the Felis but now belongs to the Cyclops, which split into Faslow during the end of the Great War.”
“Why did you move, Aja?” asked Seraculus.
“Sometimes you have to make sacrifices to earn money even if you don’t want to. Back before the Great War, when the Felis had rights, we did very well. My father was a teacher, and my mother was a nurse.”
Seraculus pursed her lips, “What happened to them?”
“We were put into camps during the war. They used us for manual labor. Our land was taken over, and our people were put into small prisons. I was not auctioned off to an owner as some others were. So, I was not labeled a slave unlike the other Felis in this country. If I were a slave, Salan would share my rights. That’s assuming he wasn’t an Abundan. You got to be careful if you’re a free Felis. It’s not uncommon for people to kidnap Felis and sell them back into slavery.”
“I am sorry I asked,” replied Seraculus.
“It’s the unfortunate part of life, death. No need to be sorry,” my mother shrugged off the apology.
My mother looked at my face and patted me on the head. She suddenly got a mischievous smile. One that I’ve come to slightly fear.
“Hey Seraculus?” asked my mom, “Have you ever seen how adorable Salan gets when you scratch his head?”
She began to scratch my head. Why does she do this to me now? My face went bright red. My tucked in tail involuntarily flicked back and forth.
“Mom!” I exclaimed. She kept scratching, and I let out a purring noise. My head was a red lollipop at this point.
“I’m going inside!” I stood up. I wanted to bury myself in a hole. Seraculus was clutching her sides laughing so much she fell out of her chair.
“I’m just messing around Salan.”
“People aren’t going to take me seriously if you do that!” I shouted.
Her smile grew more sinister, “Really? I bet you’d be OK if Seraculus did that for you,” she mocked.
“Mom! You’re embarrassing!”
Seraculus was laughing so hard that she couldn’t make any coherent sounds – just wheezing noises.
“Stop I’m about to die of laughter, Aja,” cried Seraculus.
We heard creaking sounds confirming that someone was walking up the steps on our porch. A knock on the door followed.
My mother stood up, “That must be the landlord. I’ll go talk to him.”
The sun went down, but my natural night vision kicked in. The Felis are never blind. After my mom went inside, I decided to talk to Seraculus as she regained her breath from laughing.
Turning around, I faced Seraculus, “How’s your vision in the dark?” I asked.
“Minyades use echolocation most of the time, but we see as well as a Human.”
“Aren’t bats supposed to be blind?” I asked.
“That’s not true. They see almost as well as Humans but rely more on hearing,” she paused for a moment looking at me, “Come sit back down.”
I moved to where she was. There was an empty chair beside her. As soon as I sat down, Seraculus started scratching my head.
“Wait, what are you doing?” I asked.
“Don’t you trust me?”
“It’s embarrassing. I’m a guy; I shouldn’t be doing that kind of stuff.”
She leaned closer, “Don’t ever be embarrassed by what you are, Salan. You enjoyed it, right?”
“Well yeah, but...” I drifted off.
She started scratching my head. It feels fantastic when someone else does it. Guys are supposed to be tough. Seraculus kept scratching, and I started purring again. My face flushed red. Why the hell did my mom do this to me? I had enough.
“I told you to stop being embarrassed, didn’t I? We’re friends so you should trust me,” giggled Seraculus.
Her eyes pierced into mine as if we could read each other’s thoughts. I calmly sat there and let her scratch my head. She had a way to calm me down. It was a moment between two friends.
Seraculus raised an eyebrow, “Why do you like this so much?”
“Want me to do the same?” I asked.
She ran her fingers through her hair, “OK.”
On reflex, her ears twitched when I scratched them. Her face blushed this time.
“Hey Seraculus, your face is red,” I mocked.
We didn’t notice that my mom came back, her arms were crossed. How long was she standing there?
“Salan I can’t afford any more mouths to feed.”
“What are you talking about? Is someone else coming to live with us?”
“Sometimes you're as bright as a spotlight, but the next moment as dull as a butter knife,” mocked my mom.
Seraculus laughed out a single word, “Adorable.”
“I swear if you keep calling me adorable, I’m sleeping in the forest,” I complained.
“I have some bad news, Salan. The landlord is asking for more money, so I’ll have to work more as a maid.”
I repositioned myself in the chair, “What if we sold the hide and said it was deer?”
“Absolutely not! It’s too risky. The hide needs to be together to earn a profit. The buyer will know right away,” my mother said.
“What if we made it into a piece of clothing and said…” I argued.
“I said no Salan!” shouted my mom.
“But I never see you!”
“It’s OK Salan. You’re still a kid. I am the parent. It’s my job.”
“What about dad? Why is he never here? Doesn’t he care?”
“Don’t talk about him that way, Salan.”
“Why do you defend him?!” I screamed.
My mother's eyes watered, she walked up to my chair to hug me. “Because he gave me you,” she whispered.
We didn’t say anything for a while. My mother stopped hugging me.
Seraculus stood up, “I should get going.”
Mom and I led Seraculus to the front of the house.
“Thanks for having me,” Seraculus walked away waving.
“Salan, where are your manners? Walk this girl home. You know this neighborhood,” barked my mom.
“It's not really necessary.”
“In this neighborhood people are desperate. They’d rob you,” argued my mom.
My mother wasn’t joking. You must learn to watch your back here. I caught up with Seraculus and stayed close to her. We began to walk down the cracked cobblestone, passing the local market. This was where people warmed themselves up, lighting fires in metal barrels. We passed by some factories that were still lit up, Haibaowing smoke into the air. Housing was even cheaper near factories. That’s why it was so close to mine. Factories here never slept; they
were always awake. People worked like dogs here just to live to see tomorrow.
“Where do you live by the way?” I asked.
“Oh me? I live about 30 minutes away from here. It’s a long walk. You can turn back if you want to.”
“You know I can’t do that,” kicking aside some pebbles as I walked. Suddenly, a homeless person came out of the alley.
The man yelled, “Boooooo!”
Seraculus jumped up and hid behind me. As the silhouette figure walked toward us, a dim street light illuminated the old man’s face. I knew him. I recognized he was a Hymer due to his skin turning from black to red.
“I see you're just as nutty as ever Haiba,” I smirked.
“Haha, if it isn’t my favorite Abomination,” Haiba chuckled.
When we hugged, he reeked of booze, and regret. He had a shambled brown coat with holes in it. The look fit well with fingerless gloves. His beard had started to sprout a few white hairs.
“Lay off the bottle, will ya?” I protested.
“The bottle is the only thing…” he paused, putting his hand over his mouth with one hand, holding the bottle in the other. “The only thing keeping me sane.”
This man had cheered me up back when kids were beating up at school. Initially, he was part of the Red Skins gang but retired due to old age. The gang worked as black market dealers. The gang members were usually related by blood and only fought the Blue Skins to get more customers.
“You know you can’t be changing your skin color like that here Haiba. What if an officer saw you? Or a Blue Skins?” I argued.
“Blue Skins don’t hang,” he hiccupped, “hang ‘round here no more. And besides that, the gang I used to belong to may have murdered, but they were the closest thing I had to a family.” He paused to retake a swig of his bottle. “And a cop ‘round here won’t give ya a ticket if they know you’re too broke.” He looked up to see Seraculus at my side.
Untold Deception Page 4