Chapter List
Chapter Nine
Another hour had passed and still we hadn�t found the others. It was getting dark and the last rays of sunshine cast dark shadows upon the ground and trees. The forest seemed dead, no noise at all. It was an eerie silence. None of us spoke; an unknown fear that if any of us made a noise something would choose to silence us forever was inside of us. The child had fallen asleep in Damien�s arms about half an hour ago.
Terrance tapped my shoulder lightly and pointed to the left. There was a glow of a fire in the direction he pointed. We looked at each other, silently debating whether or not to check it out. We exchanged nods and started off in that direction. As we got closer we could smell the scent of something being cooked. I couldn�t place what it was exactly. We went closer and something didn�t feel right. As we got closer to the fire there were no sounds of speaking anywhere. The silence was like a thick fog over the entire area.
Then in an instant the silence was broken by a loud yell. We froze in our tracks but that only lasted a moment. In a second leaves lifted up around us and the ground beneath us moved and lifted us up. It was no longer firm and we toppled over each other as we were hoisted off of the ground. I tried to regain balance but it was useless. A net! My mind yelled to me. You�re caught in a bloody net! It was true. As people below us came out with torches I could see the rope of the net. It was hard to get a clear view of the capturers below us, every time I looked Terrance or Damien would kick me in the side of the face as they tried to get free.
�Quite squirmin� you couple o� baboons!� I yelled at them. It didn�t matter. They weren�t listening to me.
�What is your business here?� asked a voice from beneath us. Damon and Terrance finally stopped kicking and moving to look down at the speaker. It was an animal, a cougar to be more specific. Damien looked away from the cougar back at the child who was now crying.
�Damien, will you shut that kid up?� Terrance growled. Damien frowned at him and tried to quiet the child.
�Damien?� my ears perked up at the sound of a familiar voice. I looked back down at the group and saw Charlie cutting through the crowd. I smiled down at him.
�Charlie! Well if you ain�t a sight f� sore eyes!� I called out. Charlie looked up at me.
�Renard! Terrance! Damien! You three actually made it! I knew you would!� Charlie yelled out happily, his tail wagging from side to side excitedly. The cougar turned to Charlie.
�You know these three?� Charlie nodded.
�Yeah! They�re the ones that helped the lot of us escape!� He told the cougar.
We were soon let down from the net and we met up with the entire group. We were greeted with cheers, hugs, and pats on the back. I felt like a real hero and I assumed Damien and Terrance felt the same way. We sat around a fire and were given fresh bowls of stew. The three of us ate like we had never eaten before. The food was delicious compared to what we were used to back at the farm. It was a wonderful stew made from turnips, carrots, and potatoes. As we ate we were asked many questions by everybody we knew and even ones we didn�t. I looked around the camp and saw what must have been about one hundred animals all together. They ranged from what must have been six to sixty years old. I turned to look at Charlie who was sitting to the right of me.
�So, did everyone make it �ere alright?� I asked him. Charlie looked up from his stew and nodded to me.
�Aye, we all made it, Renard.� He told me.
�Charlie was the one who found the group of animals that we�re with now.� Said Jewell, cutting in. �They call themselves the AFAS.� Terrance looked up from his stew at her.
�The �Afass�? What kind of thing is that?� he asked her. Damien quietly chuckled to himself.
�It�s AFAS, melon-head.� Said the cougar as she walked up. Terrance frowned and went back to eating.
�AFAS stands for Animals Fighting Against Slavery. We�re a group of freed animals that fight against human authority.� Explained the cougar. I nodded to her.
�Well, were grateful tha� y� were in the area.� She nodded to me.
�Damien? Who�s that?� Jewell asked Damien, pointing to the child in his arms that he was feeding some of his stew to. Damien looked up at her and smiled.
�This li�l guy was abandoned in some bushes not too far back. We found �im and I�ve been carrying �im with me.� Jewell smiled at Damien.
�Aw, that�s so cute.� She said. He chuckled lightly.
�Nah, it�s just the right thing.� Damien said, looking back at the small child. The raccoon yawned then leaned against Damien�s chest and closed its eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep. Jewell smiled and reached over and softly stroked its head. I watched the child sleep and thought to myself. �E�s so innocent. Even with all o� the problems going around� this child doesn�t �ave a care in the world. Hopefully, this child won�t �ave to go through wha� I did� I smiled then went back to eating my stew.
Later that night I walked away from the crowd, wanting a relief from the questions. I walked to a field and sat down on the soft green grass. It was slightly damp from a rain that had passed through earlier that day. I leaned back, holding myself up on my arms. I stared at the starry sky. I always used to look out from the holes in the roof of the barracks and stare at the sky but now it was different. Now I was free. Now I saw the stars for the first time not as an animal that would miss them as the cruel day ahead grew nearer. But now as an animal that would look forward to the day of freedom ahead knowing I would see them the next night. It was a wonderful feeling.
A breeze blew by slowly, cooling the area. The remaining leaves in the trees danced this way and that on the branches. They bowed up and down slowly as the wind died down, ending their dance for the moment. The wind whistled across the long grass of the field, creating a pleasant noise. As the wind passed by and left, the ballet of leaves and the orchestra of the grass ended nature�s play.
�Renard?� came a voice from behind me. My ears perked up and I turned my head to look at Fea. Fea was a fourteen-year-old vixen I had met earlier. She also had orange fur with white running down her muzzle and neck. But where the white tip is on my tail she had a dark colored tip on hers. She was very nice but she seemed to have a natural curiosity. Common trait with us foxes but hers seemed greater. She had followed me around for about an hour earlier, asking me millions of questions like �Why were you at the farm?� and �Did you really trap those guards in that room?� and even questions like �What�s your favorite color?� or even a weird question, �How many teeth do you have?� I know she meant no harm with her questions, but part of me wanted to clamp her muzzle shut at one point.
I smiled at her.
�Why, hello Fea. �Ow may I �elp you?� I asked her. She walked up and sat herself down next to me.
�Oh, I was just wanted to talk to you. Maybe ask you a few questions.� She told me. I chuckled to myself, not surprised.
�Sure, why not? Wha� would you want t� know?� I asked. She smiled at me then thought.
�About your life at the farm. How did you ever deal with that?� She asked me, perking her ears up to hear my answer. I thought the question over in my mind for a few seconds.
�Well, I tried not t� think abou� it a lot.� I told her. She nodded slightly.
�How long were you there for?�
�Thirteen years.�
�Really? Wow. That�s a long time.� I nodded to her.
�Aye, that it is.� She thought for a moment then looked back at me.
�Where were your parents sent?� She asked. My ears went back and I looked down at the ground. She watched me for a while, trying to figure me out.
�Renard?� she said to me, trying to get my attention.
�My parents were killed when I was still a pup�� I told her. Her ears went back and she looked at me sadly.
�Oh, I�m sorry.� She said to me. I nodded slightly then sighed. She reached over and rubbed my shoulder lightly. I glanced at her and smiled slightly. She patted my shoulder then stood up and walked back towards the crowd. I lay back on the ground and stared up at the stars. I watched them shine bright in the sky, pushing back the thought of my parents. I closed my eyes and lay my head back on the cool grass. Even with the thought of my parents in my mind I was still happy. I was free.