chapter 3
A few months had passed since Rocc's first confrontation with Boeuf, a moment that had dramatically changed his entire pigeon life. Rocc had soon after learned that Boeuf led the infamous pigeon gang, the Piges. His gang had a rivalry with another pigeon gang, the Prips, who were lead by a goose with the name of Rupert Gerald. He had spent much of the time after meeting Boeuf by his side, learning the inner workings of the Piges. After donating much of his life to the gang, Boeuf had even awarded Rocc with a position as one of his rightfoots. And, the Prips hadn't bothered him since their first encounter.
Rocc still didn't completely understand why Boeuf had taken Rocc under his wing. It wasn't as if Rocc was anything special. In fact, he was less than special. After being thrown out of his house at the age of one, Rocc had been taught that trusting people to be good was as good as laying down to die. His preliminary analysis had led him to the conclusion that Boeuf thought Rocc was vulnerable: easily manipulated and a powerful weapon.
Today was Rocc's initiation day. He was technically already an integral part of the gang, but many of the Piges refused to recognize him if he didn't go through the hazing process.
"You ready?" Princess asked, her feet pattering against the stone floor as she bound up to where he was walking.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Rocc replied evenly, struggling to keep his mind from slipping into the worry he had been avoiding all week. Princess was Boeuf's daughter: she had the softest feathers that shone purple and green in the gentle morning sun rays and she was completely badtailed, being Boeuf's daughter and all.
"You'll be fine," Princess consoled, her glittering feathers ruffling as she turned to face him. "You're practically a Pige already. This is all just a formality."
"I know," he admitted, his black eyes lighting up. "I'm just scared. That's all."
"I believe in you, Rocc," she told him, before she flapped her wings and landed two feet away. Rocc took that opportunity to enter the room that sealed his fate. He gulped as he entered, unsure of how this afternoon would turn out.
"There he is. The one-footed freak," a pigeon whispered, his squawks still filling the quiet air. Rocc could feel the tension rise as he approached the center of the room, where a pile of coke bottles had been positioned under an upside-down shoebox to form a makeshift throne. Boeuf sat atop it, his beak turned upwards in superiority.
When Rocc had first met Boeuf, he had been taken aback by the authority and the kindness Boeuf presented. After a few weeks, however, Rocc started to notice Boeuf's true self shining through his façade. He was a manipulative and cold-hearted pigeon who cared for nothing but himself. He pushed everyone aside when it came to usurping more power, including his only daughter. Rocc hated him now.
"Boeuf," he greeted, bowing his head down in submission.
"Rocc. I'm glad to see you could make it," Boeuf declared, more to the pigeons standing at the edge of the room than to Rocc himself. "Today, you will undergo the customary Pige gang initiation. If you are successful, you will become a Pige. If you are not... well..."
"You'll kill me brutally?" Rocc suggested.
"Exactly," Boeuf agreed, his squawks mimicking a chuckle. "I knew there was a reason I liked you."
"What does the initiation entail?" Rocc asked, not wanting to communicate with Boeuf much longer.
"It's a simple task," Boeuf informed, ceasing his sentence as if waiting for a dramatic pause. "Every Pige, to prove his or her worthiness to the gang's hunt, must successfully bring an entire churro back to our headquarters."
"He'll never make it. Not with one foot. You can't carry a churro with just one foot," another pigeon muttered bitterly.
"Is that it?" Rocc confirmed patiently, ignoring every pigeon's eyes on him.
"Bring it to me in twenty-four hours. If you are not here by then, you have failed. If you do not bring the entire churro, you have failed," Boeuf claimed, fluttering his wings as he jumped down to in front of where Rocc was standing.
"Don't tell anyone, but I do hope you succeed," Boeuf whispered, walking out of the room with his tail feather shaking.
