Le Petit Prince [Val]

[Prospero]

LOUD.

That was all he knew. He had been taken from his place with the Air Force and been put through excruciating pain. He had seen the tattoos given to him and that had just about broken his will. Not to mention then getting put through the testing and anthro projects. It had been excruciating and he would be forever uncomfortable. His head now mostly that of his owl shift, feathers trailing down his upper back and chest, ending just in time for the tattoos to start. Prospero. They had called him Prospero. He knew the works of Shakespeare well, even with them being ridiculously old, the Bard was still holding his own. Still considered one of the best English writers and poets. He knew the implications of the name and it was terrible. He would never be rid of it. Even though he couldn't see it, himself, he knew it would be the first thing everyone else saw. It was far too uncomfortable to wear a shirt of any kind, due to the feathers, so his brand was out there for everyone to see. Prospero.

SO LOUD

Everything in him ached. His senses were going crazy, every breath brought thousands of scents into his head, so much that he couldn't decipher anything out. Every second he was acutely aware of every noise around him. The trickling water of what seemed to be a stream deafened him, and the sounds of the dome around him were crippling. He held his hands to his ears, but that barely muffled it. And to make matters worse, he was acutely aware of every vibration running through the ground. Everything was so overwhelming that he couldn't stand, but lying on the ground, every vibration was an earthquake rattling through his body. what had they done? He struggled to stand, his own scraping and footsteps against the concrete shook in his ears and body louder than anything else. Everything had gone terribly wrong, and none of it was his fault. He hadn't chosen to be a shifter--his parents had passed on those genes. He had embraced it, but it was never a choice.

He managed to stand after multiple tries, but it didn't last long. His entire body was shaking from sense overload. He fell to the ground again, but managed to sit himself up. He was shaking violently, crying. He had no idea where he was aside from inside the dome that was the Menagerie. He'd read up on it as discreetly as he could manage. He knew what kind-of people were here, he knew a basic structure had formed, but all of it just terrified him. He had no plan for this place. All he knew was the plan for not getting caught, and one day that he would be immune from random testing as the King. If only he had been able to hold out. But he hadn't calculated the people. Normally they were gracious and willing to keep such secrets. People were always wanting to know his secrets as the young Prince. He hadn't expected one like this to leak.

With all of his senses on extreme alert, he couldn't distinguish anything, which meant that he had no idea one of the security officers had accompanied him into the dome. The man had been instructed to make sure he'd been placed somewhere accessible. They wanted him to survive past the first days so the experiments could be carried out. The guard was just looking on, clearly terribly pleased by the fact this man was in such awful pain. He moved closer to the anthro, placing a hand on his feathery shoulder which caused the man to jump a few feet in the air and let out a screech that was most painful to his own ears. The officer just laughed. It was only after this that the anthro had a clear moment of hearing. He heard the man's booming voice, rattling in his brain, mocking him with every syllable before he vanished back to headquarters.

"GOOD LUCK SURVIVING THIS PLACE, MON PETIT PRINCE."

[Valeria Kazakov]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 500px; height:520px; background:url(http://i1312.photobucket.com/albums/t538/evkav/Menagerie%20-%20Valeria/2full2copy_zps530a61b5.png) no-repeat;] The morning breeze was starting to fade into the midday heat that was so familiar to the young woman. Of course, she had only just found herself back in the large dome. For the past few weeks she had once again been poked and prodded and put through all kinds of torture. The Keepers’ cruelty seemed to only grow with the years that passed by. They were more horrible than ever as they dragged her away from her Outrider shift, sedating her and putting her in one of their cages. Valeria knew there had been no point in trying to escape. She would never make it. They were too smart, too strong, and too prepared for anything that she could plan in her few moments of consciousness before she was forced through another test. She thought the screams were hers but, then again, there were so many in those testing rooms that it could have been anyone. Uncertainty was as common as air. The anthropomorph had woken up by the riverbed a few hours prior, and she had started to head in the direction of the tunnels that led back up to the streets. However, she knew she would have to rest first, for the upper level streets were dangerous and anyone could be lurking. In her condition Val was unsure that she would be able to protect herself against anyone. Her eyes had reduced the world to a mere blur as she sat down against the vast concrete wall. Pulling her shoes off, she tied the laces together tightly and threw them around her neck. Leaning back against the wall, the Russian placed each of her hands, palm down, on the ground beside her. Every now and then her ocelot ears would swivel, picking up the trickling of the water as it moved over the riverbed. It was just before midday when she felt the ground ripple beneath her. Eyes snapping open, the world sharpened into focus, before her left eye completely failed and she lost sight on that side. Regardless, Valeria let her ears move towards the sound. She heard a screech so loud that she winced in pain, her sensitive ears picking up the sound with too much ease. There was another cry, this time it was in English. The familiar voice of a Keeper caused a violent reaction within Valeria. Pulling herself off the ground she hissed loudly, her teeth bared. If she had still been able to shift, she would have found herself in the form of a swift ocelot, racing towards the scene. Instead Valeria merely ran towards the source of the sound, her human legs carrying her quickly, but her mind telling her that the Keeper would be long gone. Their microchips meant they could travel to and from the dome as frequently as they liked, provided they land in certain areas. One of them was near the riverbed, conveniently close her to position. The Keeper would have vanished though, but Val could sense that he had not come alone. The screech had been made by something, or someone, and Valeria was intent on discovering who it was. They were most likely new to the Menagerie, and Val understood that newcomers needed all the help they could get. The first thing the anthro noticed as she reached the Keeper entry point, was the creature that stood before her. Slowing down, Val approached the man with caution. He was clearly an anthropomorph like herself, his face changed to hold similarities of a bird. Val took in the feathers that adorned his face, and the beak that had taken away his mouth. She also noticed his eyes, much like hers, replaced with those of his shift. He would be perpetually caught in this awkward state of between – not human and not animal. Stranger still was his lack of shirt, and the tattoo that traced his muscled chest. Prospero. Valeria thought to herself. A Shakespearean character? Val couldn’t remember if she had it right. It had been a long time since she had last studied the English writer, and her memory needed to remove such useless information to make way for survival strategies. “It’s okay,” she murmured, trying to remain as soft as she could. She wondered if he would be able to understand her through her accent. “I can help you. Ya ne prichinyu tebe vreda.” Valeria moved slowly towards ‘Prospero’ her hands stretched out, in front of her. Ears pricked up, she listened to the rate of his breathing, monitoring any signs of aggression. Her bare soles against the ground picked up the slight movements of the figure before her, even if he didn’t think he had moved at all. “Just stay calm,” she said. As she placed her hands against his shoulders, the strangest thing occurred. She felt a sort of calmness flow through her finger tips, her mind willing the man before her to remain calm, but at the same time she did not understand what she was doing. She felt what she thought was static electricity move between them, her thoughts turning to those of peace, subconsciously forcing them upon ‘Prospero.’ Sucking in a breath, Val took a step back, pulling her hands away from him. “I’m sorry… I… I don’t know what that was…” Worry tainted her eyes, and she watched the man before her carefully. If he attacked her, she would lose a fight against his strength. If he ran, he would surely die on his own. And Val wouldn’t be able to make it back to safety without help. The only chance for the pair would be to head to Nakoma camp together. Valeria just hoped the other anthro would agree with such a plan, or at least stick around long enough to hear her out. Translations: Ya ne prichinyu tebe vreda. I won't hurt you.

[Prospero]

He was so overwhelmed by what was around him, that he barely noticed the change in vibrations as the other anthro came bounding toward him. He was shaking so much that nothing was even coming through to him. Jarvis had dosed him with such high levels of each of the enhanced senses that it would take time to even process what was going on around him. It was only when the vibrations were monstrous and the girl was basically upon him that he noticed someone else was there. He couldn't do anything about it, everything was so crippling that he couldn't even move to defend himself. Thinking that this might be his last moment alive was both comforting and terrifying at the same time. He would have been thankful for death at that point. It meant that all this overload would stop. On the other hand, his fear of death took the control and he shook a bit more violently than he had before and managed to scoot his way back from whomever had approached. His head was turning back and forth trying to place where she was. His eyes, still trying to see despite the fact they never would be able to again.


Her words were an intense change from the Keeper's shouting that it almost got tangled in with all the other sounds. Despite her softness, it was still a shout to his ears, but it was not deafening. He could make out some of her words. She did not seem to want to hurt him, but in fact wanted to help. Without seeing, he couldn't be sure if this was just a trap or not, but he had no other options at this point. He wondered if focusing on just her would make any difference in all the things he was feeling. Concentrating very hard, he found the sounds of most things at least getting a little softer. The finest of the vibrations did not quake so hard. He, himself, was still shaking quite a lot, but it was progress and he realized it. He jumped almost to his feet at her touch. It was gentle, but unexpected. He let himself stand, her hand raising with him.

It was only a moment later that he felt a bit of a shock and her hands were taken away from his shoulders. With the shock, he felt his body stop shaking as if something had switched on in his brain. It was a snap of a change. He hadn't calmed down completely, but the shaking having stopped was a big step. He was confused, but thankful, and very sure that he hadn't done it on his own. It was pure instinct that made him reach out blindly for her hand again, his head shaking no to her apology. She had done something to temporarily kill the shaking. Maybe something else would happen with a longer touch. His rational brain was gone and his mind was mostly functioning on survival mode, and something that made his feel better and ease pain was something he wanted to keep.

"No." He whispered, still groping outward for her hands, his body positioned ever so slightly at the wrong angle to her. His own words were loudest of all and he winced at the sound of even the whisper. He started to cry again, this time partially from the pain, but partially from frustration at his lack of sight because he could not find her again and he couldn't help but think that he had imagined her somehow. With everything that had happened to him of the last few weeks, a few hallucinations, even without being able to see them were not something he would find surprising.

"Help me." He said almost inaudibly, breaking down once more at the though of no real help being around.

[Valeria Kazakov]

Keeping a slight distance between her and the other anthropomorph, Valeria watched him with extreme caution. He was scared; that was evident enough, but she couldn’t work out how to help him with that. He reached for her hands but she did not respond, instead she simply waited to see if he would speak or move towards her. Everyone had to be treated as a threat, and Valeria had already broken that rule by reaching out to the stranger first. Val wondered how long he had been tested on by the Keepers. She herself had been an experiment for nearly a year before finally being released. She knew how painful it was. The cages, the needles and the pain. It was like something straight out of a horror movie and Val wished she never had to live it again. The man was angled slightly too far left and at that moment Valeria let out a small gasp. Looking him dead in the eyes, she noticed the bird-like quality of them, similar to her own ocelot eyes. “You’re blind,” she murmured, taking a step towards him again. Just as she did so, he began to cry out once more. Pausing, Val held her hands in front of herself, partly to shield her if he struck out. Her left eye was beginning to fail again but she could see almost perfectly out of her right eye and that was all she needed. The anthro edged forwards slowly, treading softly along the ground. Her ears continued to swivel, trying to make sure there was no one else nearby. That would be just her luck; some other beast turning up to terrorize them. Valeria’s sensitive ears just caught the words he whispered before breaking down again. Her face held an expression of sympathy as she swiftly closed the gap between them. “It’s okay. I’m going to help you. Ya ne uveren, kak, no ya eto sdelayu.” Valeria hoped he didn’t understand Russian, because she was certain her last words wouldn’t encourage him in the slightest. She kept her voice soft, slowly realising what power the Keepers had given him. At least I can help him with that, she thought to herself, thankful not for the first time that she had been given such a gift as hearing. Valeria took his hands into her own, raising them up so that their hands were in between them. She entwined their fingers, as though in some kind of joint prayer. Val hoped that the strange texture of her furred hand would not worry the man as it had others. Closing her eyes, Val tried to concentrate. She had no clue what it was she had done before to calm him down, but she knew she needed to do it again. Taking a few deep breaths, she focused on sending her own calm feelings towards the man. Imagining a sort of river that ran down through her heart along her hands and into his, she pushed peace towards him. Valeria had no idea if it would work or not. She didn’t even know what to call such a strange power; a power that influenced the emotions of others. The anthro made a mental note to ask one of the other Nakoma when, or if, she got back home. After a few moments Val felt the air around them begin to still, and she opened her eyes. Conscious of his enhanced hearing, she kept her voice to a soft whisper. “I’m Valeria, and I want to help you.” Her thick Russian accent coated the words, but she was hopeful that he would be able to understand what she was saying. “I know you are blind, and I think you have enhanced hearing. Can you tell me anything else you’ve noticed? Do you know where you are?” Val also wondered if he knew what he looked like. Did the Keepers take his sight before or after they trapped him in his half form? At least she could see occasionally; although she doubted that was a good thing. Keeping their hands locked, Val tried to keep him calm whilst waiting for his answers, not wanting him to flee into possible danger. At least for now, she would make him her responsibility. Translations: Ya ne uveren, kak, no ya eto sdelayu. = I'm not sure how, but I will. OOC: Didn't want to study so here you go. Sorry for lameness but exams drain all life from me...

[Prospero]

It seemed like ages from when he broke down to the moment Valeria finally took his hands. Everything was painful and he was scared and vulnerable--the part of it all that he hated the most. Vulnerability was always the king-to-be's worst fear. He had been raised to know how to have the upper hand in any situation, that is his comfort zone. Take away his vision, the most critical thing for Benedict's ability to read situations, and very little will ever feel right again. As Val spoke to him and offered her help, Ben calmed down slightly but his head shifted around in bird-like motions, trying to locate her, trying to see. He felt his head turn almost 180 and shuddered as it snapped back to center. He had seen what they did, he knew what he was, but it would take time to get used to owl movements feeling like they were happening to his human body.

When he felt her fingers intertwine with his own, he relaxed a little almost just at the thought of the feeling from before returning. It was a needed and welcome calming sensation; everything around him seemed to slow. The noises were still loud, but less deafening, the shaking of the ground mostly reduced to tremors, and suddenly he could smell everything. He recognized the smell of the water, but a much stronger one he could not place, most likely though, he rationalized, it was probably from the woman holding his hands. A woman who's hands he was now aware of. They were not human, not completely anyway. The thought made him pull his hands back slightly, but not enough to be freed, and it was only a temporary panic. He quickly understood that she was like him; if he could just pull the information from his research back, Anthromorphs. They were both Anthromorphs. The thought that he hadn't lost his own past knowledge was intensely comforting as Ben stood there seemingly surrounded by blackness and the soft voice of this woman with soft hands.

He heard her speak, softer than before, though he figured she was still speaking at the same volume as before. "Valeria" He repeated back to her, softly, once she had finished. He focused on her questions, having something to focus on was helping him stay calm on his own. Enhanced Hearing. Yes, that sounded right. Why else did even his quietest whispers seem like booming yells. He moved his head side to side very slightly, very bird-like, taking in the sounds with the mindset of acting as an owl. He had better hearing with his shift and some comprehension of how to handle it. Everything was still loud, much louder than it had ever been before, but he understood. He had an idea of how to cope. He kept moving his head, this time honing in on the sound of Val's heart beating as he would when trying to find prey from the skies. On the focus, this noise drowned out everything else and he felt himself falling into that predator/prey mindset for a half second before shaking his head, in a more human manner, to rid himself of the thought. All the noises came back at once, but he felt better knowing he had a way to fix it with time.

Moving onto the next question, anything else you've noticed, yes. Many, many things. That would be lengthy and he thought he recalled the last bit being shorter to answer. Do you know where you are? Yes, that he knew. Well, mostly. "I am in the dome, the..." It took a moment to rack his brain for the word, "the Menagerie." He trailed off a bit. Apart from that, he had no idea where he was except there was water nearby. He didn't know the territories well enough and that reminder worried him. He'd need that information, if only to stay safe and not wander unwelcome into, say, Carna territory. He decided not to dwell on that, it was time to answer her first question. Have you noticed anything else?


"It's so loud." He started, without much thought. Of course she knew that, she'd already commented on that. Ben took a few seconds to go step by step. "I... I can feel everything. The ground....the ground is shaking...everything." His words came slow and soft. He hoped she would hear him. He hadn't connected that she had heard his pitifully quiet Help Me, so she likely had some of the same senses he did. "Smells....I can smell so...so many things....muddled...muddled up...everywhere...shaking....trails.........noises." His speech was broken and very slow and slightly incoherent the more he focused on everything. As he trailed off, he gave himself a bit of a jerk, a reminder to focus on just one thing. He was a Prince, the Prince of England. He had to be more composed than this, he knew better, but it was just so hard. Everything, a sense overload, and it was certainly wearing on him.

[Valeria Kazakov]

As he jerked back slightly, Valeria frowned and loosened her grip. Evidently he had realised the hand locked in his was a different texture to his own. Whilst that wasn’t the worst reaction she’d ever caused with her appearance, it still shocked her for another anthromorph to respond with surprise. Regardless, Valeria kept her hand loosely connected with his in order to keep the other anthro calm. Though she was losing some of her focus, she hoped he was still feeling the effects of whatever ability she now had. The silence that filled the pair was not uncomfortable, though Valeria began to worry the anthromorph was in some kind of state of shock. She had seen it happen before to other new anthromorphs and some had never really recovered. Hopefully she could help this one. She would try at least. It was rare for her to feel safe in a stranger’s presence but for some reason this stranger did not seem to be a threat to her. Then again, there were some who were good at deceit. Val supposed she ought to give the man the benefit of the doubt though. The man repeated her name and Valeria nodded, though quickly noticed he couldn’t see that. “Mmm,” she murmured in response, making sure to keep her voice softer than usual. She let her own hearing tune into the sound of her voice in order to understand what he would be hearing as someone not in control of the power. Through keeping her focus on what she was saying, Valeria was able to keep her voice at a good volume, aware of the man’s current sensitivity. Whilst her vision had faded out a little more, she could still hear the ‘swoosh’ of air as the bird head swivelled around. She assumed he was trying to work out what he could hear around him or perhaps figure out any of his other new abilities. Generally anthromorphs had one or two enhanced senses after their transformation. Some may call this a gift, others a curse. Val had no real opinion. She had no reliable vision so the hearing and touch helped. Agility was useful to since she had a strange habit of being chased by nasty Carna while on watch. Once again Valeria nodded out of habit. “Good, good,” she replied, glad that he was at least aware of his general situation. Anyone alive knew the dome was not the place you wanted to be. At least if he knew he was in there he would understand the danger he was in and he would be able to act accordingly. However, he’d already failed the first real test since he trusted Valeria enough to get close. She knew she’d have to prepare him a little better for the terrors known as CarnaRing. He mentioned the hearing again and Valeria assumed that was probably his strongest sense. She too had that problem when she was Keeper-dropped into the menagerie. It had sucked for a long time until someone had finally taught her how to hone in on a few sounds and keep the background noise out. After months of training her ears finally tuned out the unnecessary noise without a proper thought. Hopefully she would be able to get the bird-man to the same point as herself one day. Val’s mouth twisted into a smile as he mentioned the ground shaking. She too was aware of the annoyance that ability provided. Still, she knew how to deal with it. The smells he mentioned where a different story. Scent was not something she had herself though she figured all the senses required the same sort of control. If not there was certainly someone else in Nakoma that could help with that particular ability. She was going to need to find someone to teach her about her new skill too. Gradually her to-do list was getting rather large. “Okay,” she started, once again keeping her voice at a volume that would be easy on his mind. “I think you have enhance hearing and scent, as well as an ability we call touch. It allows you to feel vibrations around you, keeps you safe from enemies and will help since you cannot use your eyes.” Pausing, she realised she had not been paying attention to her own bare feet on the ground. She had let her guard down. Thankfully, she picked up nothing, though she let her feet continue to pick up the soft movements in the earth as she spoke to the man. The last thing they needed were enemies sneaking up on them. “You are in the menagerie, in the Nakoma territory. You are lucky to have been put here,” her accent clouded some of the words though she hoped he could understand enough of it. “Nakoma are a group of anthromorphs, just like you. We keep each other safe. I can take you there to protect you. There are others who can help you with your skills. They helped me.” Her voice broke slightly on the last sentence as the memory filled her mind. Ptah had found her that fateful day, about to be killed by Carna. Since then she had survived and thrived within Nakoma, learning to use her skills and defend herself. Nakoma was this man’s best chance at survival. It was then that she realised she was missing the most vital piece of information about the anthromorph. Smiling, she looked into his bird-like eyes with her own ocelot ones, her vision becoming clear just long enough for her to see their beauty. “What is your name?” Val asked, just as the world went black once again, her eyes failing her for the millionth time that day. ooc | Legend sorry for the mega wait!