Chapter 7

The next day, Alva was late waking up. They were also surprisingly subdued throughout breakfast, barely saying anything to Max as they picked at their food. In class, Max and Alva both stared at their vials of Focal for longer than they should've.

"I really don't want to do this today." Alva muttered.

Max nodded. "Yeah. It'll be fine though." He didn't feel convinced, and from Alva's expression, he could tell they weren't convinced either. Still, Max forced himself to down his vial, before laying back on the mat.

He awoke again to find himself staring up at not the dark canopy of the forest, but a low iron ceiling, dimly lit by a few thin rays of sunshine streaming in here and there from the walls. The cold, hard floor on his back felt not too dissimilar from iron as well. He felt a fresh pang of fear seeing that the nightmare had changed. There was no way to predict what would happen now, so he tentatively sat up, and the first thing he noticed was that he was completely nude, without even the most basic loincloth. He covered himself with his hands as best he could, even when he was certain that he was alone. There was nowhere for anyone to hide amid the empty space; the only 'furnishing' was a thin layer of straw in the center of the room. At a second glance, the room wasn't very big either; he thought he could walk from one side of the circular room to the other in only a few steps. The walls, too, were not solid walls. Instead, they were bars, with some kind of thick fabric draped over them, the source of light being the thin seams where two curtains met. He heard noise outside the room, but it seemed muffled by the thick curtains, to the point of being indecipherable.

Feeling all the more nervous that he was in a cage, He approached the seam and looked through it, blinking in the sunlight. Before he could get a good look, a figure blocked the light, sticking their face past the curtain and right at him. Startled, Max stepped back, to find the laughing mask staring back at him.

"Welcome. Are you ready for your big debut?"

Max did his best to cover himself with his hands. "My what?"

"Your big moment. The crowd's waiting to see you. They're gonna eat you up."

"Crowd?" Max said, terrified as he started to connect the dots about what was going to happen to him. "But I'm-wait!"

The Alius slipped away, letting the curtain fall back in its place. Max heard a sharp whistle, and some of the background noise faded away. "Welcome everyone, to the unveiling of the newest exhibit in my Stupendous Menagerie. I have a great many wonderful and terrible exhibits in my collection, though I'm afraid this one is a more somber affair, comparable to the plight of the Kaitlyn twins. You see, where the twins were the product of parents whom fate had decided to curse, this creature was made in the most deliberate fashion. Two people allowed their baser desires to override their responsibilities in keeping their race pure. The only natural result from such a nasty coupling is, of course, a creature that has a great many features that are wholly unnatural; that no creature should have, I daresay. I debated for some time whether I would even put this creature on exhibit; some would certainly find it too disturbing, and would look badly upon me for even keeping such a creature in my care. However, I decided that it was worth the possible distress to remind everyone why interbreeding is a terrible curse to place on one's children. I would advise that those of weak constitution or of young age avert their eyes. I give you, the offspring of a lowly Capran, and a highborn Draagen who defiled himself with her."

Max backed away from the Alius's voice until his back pressed against the cold metal bars of his cage, looking around wildly for an escape. But, he saw no possible means of escape, as it seemed the cage didn't even have a door. The curtain fell away, momentarily blinding Max from the bright sunlight. He heard the crowd make an astonished gasp, followed by the crowd's collective voice swelling in indignant disgust. When his eyes adjusted, he saw his Alius standing just in front and to the left of the cage, so Max could see the small crowd clearly. They were all staring directly at him. The friendliest look he saw in the bunch was that of deep pity; the Draagen amid the crowd stared at Max murderously. Some made sure to cover their children's eyes.

"A horrible creature like this is what hybrid parents should expect their children to look like." The Alius continued, once the crowd had quieted down somewhat. "Yes, it takes most after its mother, as is natural. But the influence of the father is plainly obvious. I would point out the tail, muzzle shape, and Draagen eyes as distinct from the Capran who mothered it. A more astute observer would note that while the Capran are known for their horns, the shape of this creature's horns is far more common on Draagen than on the humble Capran. There is one other thing. Though this creature may appear to be male, it is in fact, a manling."

There was another rush of dissent among the crowd.

"Even worse, it appears to be fertile, given that I have seen it lay eggs every few months. Now, don't worry." It said, talking over the crowd. "I will take great pains to ensure that its curse is not spread. While there's nothing to be done for the creature you see before you, you can prevent more of such abominations from being made. Responsible breeding is everyone's responsibility." It paused for a moment in somber silence. "Now, feel free to get a closer look at this creature. Don't be shy; though it might have a Draagen's teeth, it won't bite. It knows its place in the world." It said, looking over its shoulder to leer at Max with that horrifying mask.

There was a smattering of applause as the Alius stepped down and walked off, leaving Max alone with the crowd. The crowd seemed to hesitate at first, but when a young Draagen strode up the stairs to the stone platform Max's cage rested on, others quickly followed suit. The young Draagen stood opposite of Max, clutching the bars and staring at Max as others filed around the sides of the cage. "You're an ugly one up close." He said.

"Who would dare breed such a thing?" A matronly Kainer said off to Max's right. As they continued to file around the cage, he felt instinctively pushed to the cent so that he had the most distance between himself and the people who were staring at him.

"Does such a thing even have the brains to speak? Bet it's too stupid." The Draagen said.

"I can speak." Max said quietly, trying not to look at any of the staring eyes.

"Oh, look at that, it's learned how to mimic speech." The Draagen said to the Draagen next to him. "Say 'I want a cookie.'"

Max wanted to run, but there was nowhere safe from the eyes all around. Feeling overwhelmed, he fell to his knees, curling up on the ground and covering his face with his arms, trying to pretend that the crowd looking at him didn't exist.

"Come on, get up! I didn't come here to see you sleep."

Max felt the whole cage vibrate as someone slammed a heavy object into the bars, rattling his skull from how loud the sound was. Still, he curled up tighter, squeezing his eyes shut as much as he could.

"Get up already you lazy thing!"

The clanging, coupled with the sounds of outrage from the crowd, hurt Max's ears. He put his arms over his head, squishing his large ears and trying to drown out the jeering, but failing. He fought down tears, failing to keep them at bay as well.

He yelped in surprise when he felt something prod his flank. He uncovered his eyes to find that same Draagen reaching through the bars with a stout stick.

"There we go, get up!"

He continued to prod at Max, forcing him to back away out of the Draagen's reach. No sooner had Max gotten away from the Draagen than he felt a sharp tug on the end of his long tail. He swiveled around to find a Kainer boy, holding the end of Max's tail with malicious glee. Max grabbed his tail, and gave it a quick tug, thankfully pulling it out of the child's hands without any injury to himself. He wrapped his tail around his body and curled up on the ground again, ignoring the prodding which quickly resumed. When it prodded his head, Max covered his head with his arms, sobbing loudly into his chest.

The first thing Max was aware of outside his despair was the roar of the people surrounding his cage fading away, to be replaced with the softer sounds of the training room. He lay on his cot, not daring to open his eyes yet, though he tried hard to remain quiet as he continued to sob. After a minute or two of being sure that he was well and truly out of the dream, he sat up slowly, rubbing the tears from his eyes as he felt a hand slip off of his shoulder. He looked over to find Alva was already awake, sitting up and giving Max a pitying gaze. "Was it especially rough this time?"

Max sniffed, staring at the floor. "Yeah." He said, his voice thick.

Neither of them moved for a few moments, Max endeavoring to keep his emotions under control. When he felt confident he could keep himself from bursting into tears again, he stood up slowly. Alva mirrored the motion, beginning their strange routine of stretches. Max looked in their direction, but barely saw them as he tried to process what he'd just experienced.

Alva sighed with relief as they finished the routine. "Ah, the feeling never gets old. Shall we?"

Max nodded, following Alva to the dining hall. He didn't fail to notice that they were watching him closer than they had in the past.

Sitting down at their end of the table, Alva said, in a voice designed to not carry, "Are you okay, Max?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just a rough session." He said automatically, helping himself to whatever happened to be sitting in front of him.

"Really? Mine was the same as last time, what changed in yours?"

Max filled his mouth with a piece of black bread, to give him time to answer. "I was put in a cage naked, like an animal on display."

"Oh." They said, looking down at their food. "That doesn't sound good."

Max sighed, rubbing his eyes. "It wasn't."

They were silent for the remainder of dinner, Max thankful that Alva was choosing to simply let him be. Back in the house, he immediately headed off to his bedroom. "I'm off to bed. 'Night, Alva."

"So soon? Don't you want to play a few games of bridge before bed, at least? I'm sure that would make you feel better." Alva's tone was level, but Max couldn't help but feel like they were pleading with him.

He didn't have it in him to stay up, though. He just wanted to sleep and forget what had happened. "Sorry, I'm too tired. I'll see you in the morning."

"Oh. Sleep well." Alva said, watching Max as he slipped into his room. He got undressed quickly, climbing into bed and eager to find sleep. But, his mind replayed the events of the day in the darkness of his room, keeping him from sleep, but slowly Max felt his eyes droop until he fell into a decent slumber.

He awoke again to the pitch black of his room, the dream he was having already fading to nothing. Feeling the need to relieve himself, he begrudgingly climbed out of bed, intending to head outside. He was surprised, though, to find Alva still awake, sitting in a lounge chair with their head propped on their arm. Their eyes drooped, but were clearly open as they stared at the fire, which was now just coals. Their eyes went to Max, and they sat up straight, as if they were caught in a guilty act.

"Oh, uh, hello, Max."

"Hi. You're still up?"

"Oh, yes. I was just about to head to bed. I was just enjoying a cup of tea to help me sleep." They said, Max only just now noticing the cup in their hand and the teapot sitting on the table.

"Ok." Max said, his sleepy brain accepting the statement without issue. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Sleep well."

Max went outside and relieved himself. When he came back in, he found that Alva was gone, presumably to their bed. Now somewhat more awake, he thought it odd that they would be up so late, given that they both would need to be awake early in the morning. He thought it made sense now why they were usually so reluctant to wake up, if they were always awake so late in the night. Still, there was nothing he could do about it, so he went back to bed and tried not to think about what he might experience the next day.