Origins

[Quick Fox]

the Cat* Zap
the Noted* ...break out...
the Number* 3018

He had fumbled with the idea for a while now, pondering it, thinking it through in every aspect that he could. Final descisions... Going through with it would be tough, if they didn't catch him when he was dodging them, and he actually made it out of this godforsaken place, he still had to survive out there.

His exhibit was right at the beginning, whether it was because the Uprights thought his kind was cute, or because they were playful and a nice introduction to the rest of the animals. His large ears swiveled, listening to different things. The Uprights, with their strange language and weird signs; they were always pointing and jumping. They were always annoying.

Maybe it was jealousy that made Zap feel this way. Because they were free to rome and watch him while he was stuck in the awful pen, never free to do anything. Or, maybe he was just pushed over the edge, tired of them coming and going, pointing and laughing. That was all his life consisted of: he was only alive to make them happy. A waste.. Those words came to mind.

"Hey Zap. Over here!" It was Jagg, a playful friend, but Zap didn't feel playful. He felt adventurous. Nevertheless, he trudged over to his unknowing best friend. "Jagg," he whispered, so the others wouldn't hear, "I think today's the day. You know, to get free."

Jagg's ears pricked, but as Zap spoke he frowned and rolled his eyes. "Zap you stupid furball," he hissed "You're not going on about this again, are you? It's futile, totally hopeless. If you don't understand after all that, it's not worth telling you. We're not wild. We're not meant to live in the wild. We were born here, and that's where we're meant to stay."

"But Jagg... that's not true. We're meant to be free, not penned up for the Uprights for our whole lives. And if you don't understand that, I don't even know why we're friends." He held his head high, large ears done swiveling, and padded away. If Jagg didn't understand, then it was useless talking to his family. If his best friend didn't want to be free like he did, he just had to find more friends.

Regardless, he could feel inside his that today was the day. The day to be free, and fly like a bird. And it would be marvelous. He heard some small animal, a mouse, nearly 20 feet away. Mice weren't supposed to get in, but they were a fine treat. Head low, he crept forward a bit before he jumped, a huge leap, and landed near the mouse. He spun around, and before it could get away, crushed and killed it.

Catching mice was frowned upon by the others. They were lazy, content to lie round instead of doing anything. They just accepted the handouts they got from the Feeders. But Zap wasn't like that, he despised that disgusting food they got. It was old tasting, almost sour. No one else minded it, but they had never tasted a fresh kill.

It had taken him forever to master the kill, with no one to teach him it was like a soldier without an instructor. He had practiced with every mouse he could find (in the warm months there were an abundance), and he had perfected his own technique. Not graceful, but efficient. He marveled at the way he could leap, far and high, and loved the feeling. The rush of the wind in his fur was an awing feeling to him, and he couldn't get enough.

After eating, he decided what he would do. He had eaten, not a very good meal, but it was all he was going to get. Because as as soon as the Feeder opened that door, he would have to run for freedom. He did have a chance to get water though, and padded over to the pond. He noted that it was getting cold out, trying to analyze all the information he might need.

He lapped up the water, as much as he could. He knew he would need it, because there was no telling what lay beyond the inclosure's boundaries. For the first time in a while, he looked down at his reflection. His fur was a light yellow tan in color, with dark black spots. His stomach was white, and he had a short ringed tail. He looked exactly like he should. Exactly like a serval.

A clanging noise brought him back to real life, and back to the plan. It was a Feeder, giving food to the exhibit next to theirs. Next, he would come here. He carried a large bucket of bad smelling meat, tossing it out. All Zap knew was that if he had a chance of getting out, it would have to be when the Feeder opened the gate.

Feelings were mixed, he didn't want to leave all he had ever known. But, a stronger feeling of need washed over him, and he knew what he had to do. He knew he had to escape. Heartbeats seemed to last forever, when finally the Feeder came over and opened the lock...

Zap charged out, slipping by the confused Feeder. He raced, dodging the Uprights. Many of them were screaming, herding the little ones away, yelling, waving around whatever they could get their greedy paws on. After about a minute of freedom, he heard shrieking alarms go off, and he could see Feeders come racing towards him. He had nowhere left to turn but... OUT!

He saw the opening, where he had watched the Uprights funnel in, and raced towards it. He could here popping behind him, and a loud yelling. A small thing bounced. An arrow. He knew it was meant for him, and with all his might, ran. Once he got out of the danmed enclosure, he looked around. Huge colorful things filled a lot, and a winding path that led out of it ran into a bigger patch, with more of the giant monsters. Frightened, he knew he couldn't go that way.

He searched around, but couldn't find a way out. Hearing the yelling Uprights again, he sprinted around the building. It lead to a huge forest, with odd looking trees, with high trunks and shriveled bark. He couldn't imagine that it'd be worse than the monsters, so he ran in. There were strange bushes, and large cracked rocks. All he could do was run, and run he did. It was all downhill, and as he went down the terrain became more and more rocky.

Downhill he continued, as far away as possible from that wretched place. He scented other cats, and heard mewling. He didn't know what to do, and jumped a bit, and winced. His paws stung from the rocks; as he had progressed down the terrain had become all rock with the occasional bush or tree. He hadn't seen anything to eat, and eve though he wasn't starving, he wished he had had the chance to eat.

The cats talking faded into the distance, and he looked up. The sky was looking dark, and he knew he had to take shelter. He had been traveling since morning when he escaped, and now he noticed how tired he was. His paws were sore, and his fur seemed heavy. When he breathed out, there was a puff of white. His eyes darted around, and he spotted a small cave. As he neared it, it looked smaller than he had thought.

He stood in front, feeling desperate for sleep, and squezed in. It was rough and rocky, and so unlike any place he had ever slept. He suddenly wished he was snuggled up is home cave, with all of his family and friends. Like Jagg. Jagg. He missed his friend, longed for his company on this frigid night.He wished he had invited him along, or at least said good bye.

His feelings were mixed, and he wished that he had someone to talk to, to try to sort things out. But, it was only him and the night. And the night held no solice. He sighed, and closed his eyes. If he was lucky, maybe he would have a restful sleep here. More likely, he would not. Confused and longing, he closed his eyes and fell into a restless sleep.

He opened his eyes, confused because he knew he was asleep. He felt great, his paws didn't hurt and he felt completely rested and full. Only when he shook his head thoug, did he notice that he had no idea where he was. It was dark and mysterious, almost like night clouds. He looked around, but there was nothing. Then he heard a voice.

It was soft and sweet, unfamiliar though. "Continue down the mountain and to a lake." said the voice. He looked down, and jumped back. Before him stood a small ginger tabby, with stars in her fur. He had no idea where she had come from. "You don't need to know who I am. Listen to me though, and you will survive." And like that, she faded back into the night. Zap was left confused, but he thought. He might as well listen to this dream cat. After all, he had no better ideas.

He awoke feeling rested. He came out of the cave, and stood facing the sun. He was ready to brave another day of journeying, and he remembered: he had to find the lake. The samll cat had told him to keep downhill, so he figured he would. Maybe taking advice from a dream cat was stupid, but he didn't have a better plan, so this was his new one.

He heard a noise, but not that of a mouse. That of a bird. He thought about food, and decided. If nothing else, he had to try and catch it. It was a little bit bigger than a mouse, perched in a leafless tree about ten feet from him. He crept to the base of the tree, and looked up, if he jumped with all his might, maybe he could get it.

He got ready, storing power. Then, when the time was right, he jumped. However, he failed to get high enough to catch the bird, and it flew away. All he was left with was a feather. Disappionted, he gotup. Nothing to do but go on. His stomach rumbled though, and he wished he could find food. He would have to continue on though, and just hope he found something along the way.

The sun passed overhead after a while of traveling, and Zap stopped. Not because he had tired so much that he could not go on, but because he had heard a noise. It was like a shriek, and it sliced through the air and rang in his ears. Then there was another, this time closer. Zap looked up, and saw a bird. It was coming towards him, and at first he thought it wasn't too big. Then, as it grew closer, it grew bigger.

This bird was much larger than the other one, and it had big talons. He didn't know why it was heading to him, but he grew a slight bit fearful. Then, he thought: food. It continued, gaining speed. He readied himself, and as soon as it was close, he pounced. It was viscious, and flailed all over. He held its wings down, looking at it. He didn't know what to do, its talons were scratching him and its beak was snapping ferociously.

Quickly, confused, he turned it over. Well, uhm.... and he thought. What do you do to a mouse? Snap its neck. His paws on the bird's wings, he bent over and closed his teeth around the bird's neck. It squaked, but Zap held on. He couldn't try to break its neck, but he could suffocate it. It flailed for a long time, but Zap held his ground, and after a while it went limp. He opened his mouth, spitting out a few feathers.

Yes, he thought. He swelled with pride and happiness, and without pausing for anything else, took a bite. It was delicious; juicy and warm, and even better than a mouse. Best of all - he had caught it himself, without any help. And so, for a while, he feasted.

He had rested for a while, and was now ready to go. He was full, and felt somewhat renewed. He knew not what lay ahead, only that there was a lake, and some cat wanted him to go to it. It was beyond him why, but he just continued on.

He kept at a fast pace, ignoring the falling rocks and his sore pads. He knew he could not rest every time his feet hurt, or he would never get to the lake. The rock was cracked, in there were places where he had to leap over some gaps. It wasn't that bad, but a little scary. A little scary, knowing that if you fell, you would die.

He was no longer full nor hungry by the time it was dark. He saw the stars in the sky, and they reminded him of the cat with the stars in her coat. He didn't know why he was thinking of her, because she wasn't real. Maybe I'm just lonely, he thought to himself. He was, but his was just a little bit different. Well, maybe a little bit different. Just like the night before, he crept into a cave. This one was an actual cave, big and roomy. It smelled of some animal, but the smell was muted by what seemed like blood. He figured some animal must have caught something and dragged it in. Then, he fell asleep.

He had no strange dreams, he only dreamed about his old home and his friends and family. He missed them, but that life was vague and fuzzy. He like this better, traveling where he wanted to, making his own life. Back there, he only did the same thing over and over again. And he was free of those awful jumpy Uprights. They would bother him no more.

He woke up when he heard growling. He had heard it before, at the enclosure. It was deep, and he looked up. It stood on two legs, and immediatly panic shot through his features. This was not one of the small black animals that lived at the enclosure. It had the same build, but it was bigger, shaggier, and brown.

It came toward him, on two feet and towering over him. Zap's first reaction was to move back, but he backed into a wall. The thing was still coming to him, and it had big curved caws, and looked mad. He knew he couldn't let it kill him though. He stopped backing up, and lunged. It was a weird lunge, with litlle power. He barely scratched the thing, but it roared and came at him. He could barely think, and before he knew it he felt a sharp pain.

The thing scratched his side, not too hard, but he yelped. He knew that if he didn't get out, he would die. All instincts took over, and he ducked under the shaggy brown animal and fled. He flew down, racing as fast as he could manage. He forgot about all of the pain, all he could think about was getting away. He kept like this for a long time, kept running even when he thought that it was gone.

It took a while for him to settle himself; stop his lungs from sucking in so much air, and stop the panic. Only then was he able to check himself oevr. He snuck into another cave, smaller this time. He smelled the air thouroughly until he was satisfied that there would be no attacks, and lay down. The wounds were not deep nor long, and he realized that he had gotton off lucky. Try that twice, he'd probably be dead.

He licked the blood from his coat, and licked his pads. He had stopped bleeding now, but there was no way he would get back to sleep.

He crept out of the cave as soon as he saw hint of the sun. He was weary, hungry, and tired. He felt droopy and cold, and began to walk. He scaled his way down slowly and carefully, without much energy. He perked up though, when he heard a mouse. He felt more lucky, more hopeful. If he caught the mouse, he might be able to really get going.

He snuck up to it and pounced. His paws felt big and heavy, and weighed him down. Still, he hit the mark. He broke it's neck quickly, and ate the mouse without hesitation. Warmth spread though him, and he felt better. He continued down, at a faster pace now. Hopeful too.


He was almost ready to just give in and stop traveling for a while when he scented something. He identified it quickly though. It was foliage. He had traveled for four days, enduring everything. But, he looked up and his heart soared. A lake. He did not know how or why that mystical dream cat had lead him there, but he was just relived to feel grass under his paws.

He could already hear some rustling, and decided he would stop here. He just wanted to get closer to the lake before he stopped to eat. He was only tired, and crept into a small openign in some brush. It was protected, and hard to se. And warm. Warmer than those caves, anyways. He fell into a dep, tranquil sleep. It was nice, knowing that he wouldn't have toworry about death.