Creatures of God

Into The Hands of the Canines

Atop the prairie hill at Anderson Science Center, a diplomat for the Human Protection Unit emerged. Wearing a plain, unassuming outfit, the tall, gangly man made his way down the campus perimeter, unarmed. The man had a long thin face with slit-like eyes and an oversized nose. As he walked, his stringy black hair swung at his shoulders, each step and stride emphasizing his size and length as if he walked on stilts; as if there were distances to be covered and obstacles to be climbed.

What is this? Who is this circus freak? Gevaudan thought. His ears perked forward as he watched the stick-of-a-human descend down the grassy knoll. The Wolf King smacked his lips. His stomach growled, and he reached for his belly. He is not more than a spare rib, the grey wolf thought. He smirked and bared his teeth. He imagined the texture and crunch, but then caught himself drooling. He swiped the corner of his mouth with his paw and shook his head.

Upon reaching the outer zone, the human diplomat stopped in front of an open field, looking at the empty space before him. Frowning, the thin human raised an eyebrow and spied the surrounding grove of trees. The area was quiet and still, devoid of the usual sounds of nature; no leaves or branches rustling, no animals chittering, no insects buzzing. The tall man furrowed his brow and held his nostrils high.

At once, a group of Canines came forward from out of the ground and behind the camouflage of trees to confront the tall man. Gevaudan the Grey Wolf emerged and rode to the forefront on his horse.

The human delegate swallowed. "Leader of the Canines, the human race requests peaceful coexistence. We respectfully ask for dialogue in this matter. What say you to this offer?"

The Canine contingent was quiet.

Gevaudan scoffed and scowled. He leaned forward on his steed, clutching the reins to his ride. "I say, 'To hell with the humans!' "

An enthusiastic cheer came from the soldiers standing behind their mongrel leader.

"What decent act of respect and good faith have humans ever given the Earth?" Gevaudan asked.

The human messenger began to sweat. He partially turned and peeked at the human encampment behind him, squinting. He returned his eyes for another attempt at engagement.

"I repeat, the human race requests... "

"You may request nothing!" the King roared. "You can stop with these silly formalities!"

"Have you no civility to partake in these types of proceedings?" the human harbinger challenged.

The Wolf King stifled a snarl. He glanced sideways and saw his henchmen ready to pounce at his word.

"Messenger boy with a big nose! Go tell your superiors that we are here in the matter of a monster that your species is hiding. We request that you release him into our custody."

"The 'monster' you call for is a foundling. Just a boy."

"Do not try to camouflage his true being," the King responded. "Humans have brought forth yet another pestilence that threatens the Earth."

"But, does this confrontation really concern him?"

"It has everything to do with him," Gevaudan replied.

The human messenger paused.

"You say the boy perverses your people," the skinny man continued, "but we have not found similar fault." He looked down at some of the smaller mongrels and flared his nostrils.

Gevaudan breathed harshly. "Do not debate this issue with me any longer! You only try to stall us from our objective!"

"We need evidence of wrongdoing."

Gevaudan's eyes bulged and became bloodshot.

"He is a foul-smelling danger, and you know it!" the Wolf King exploded. "Why else would you hide him from the rest of the world, except to exploit him against us and the other animals?"

"The boy has committed no transgression. Let me remind you, it was your group that attacked our medical center; a facility that provides service for all walks of life, including the Canines. The boy was only protecting himself and others. Although he is different, he is not a danger to you, and we are not a danger to you."

"That is debatable! Let us determine whether the boy is dangerous or not. Release him to us, and you may still have time to save your lives and stupid infirmary!"

"That is not acceptable!"

"Then you leave us no choice but to remove him ourselves!"

"We cannot allow that," the tall man replied.

"To what end?" Gevaudan asked. "What, are you seriously willing to go to war with us? Over what? A greenhorn?"

"We fight only to protect ourselves and our way of life."

"Is that right? And what exactly is your 'way of life?' "the King challenged. "To waste the planet's resources? To pollute the air and waters? To blow up the Earth with weapons of mass destruction? Your history precedes you!"

"We have not been a perfect species, we can admit that, but we are also not without remorse or change. Everyday we must live with our past. Thus, we apologize and attempt to make amends for all the wrongs we have done."

"Self-righteous lies!" the Mongrel King growled. His face was dark red, his upper lip twitching, and his teeth flashing.

The negotiator now faced the grey wolf specifically. "Your species, too, must learn not to destroy itself and others."

Gevaudan was silent, as he narrowed his eyes. He turned and stepped away, catching view of several members of his company. He gritted his teeth and stifled a growl. He pulled his jaw taut and turned back to face the human.

"You submit for peaceful coexistence, eh, Big Nose? What show of good faith have you? Release the boy to us as an assurance, and then we will discuss terms of a future peace between our two groups."

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"I will go."

High above on the campus plain, Alessandro stepped out of the human crowd.

"If it will save lives — both human and animal — I will voluntarily go into the hands of the Canines."

"No," Mimi whispered, as she watched nearby.

The members of the Human Protection Unit murmured.

"Tell the Grey Wolf King that I am on my way down the plain," Alessandro called out to the HP leaders.

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Meanwhile, back at the perimeter, the human negotiator's eyes widened upon hearing the startling news. He turned to the Canine King, "The boy is coming down the campus plain!"

Gevaudan began to salivate. "Your species has chosen wisely."

The Human Protection officers watched in cautious disbelief as the boy walked down the grassy knoll.

"Everyone on standby," Samuel called over his wristcom. "I've got a bad feeling about this," he muttered to himself.

Within a matter of minutes, a tandem of mongrel soldiers walked to the perimeter zone to collect the odd-smelling boy. Without so much as a struggle, they shackled Alessandro and escorted him away from the field.

Thereafter, Gevaudan the Grey Wolf spoke.

"I have given your request to cooperate and coexist great consideration. So long as humans live, there will never be peace in the world."

A shock of silence filled the air.

"Kill them!" Gevaudan ordered his army. "Kill every single last one of them!"