Anthrozoophobia

Chapter 1: A ‘Quick’ Detour - 1994

“Come on dude, seriously? Star Trek is exceptional on its depiction of interspecies harmony. The series is a platform for exploring complex philosophical and ethical questions. Exploring themes of diversity, diplomacy, morality, and the human condition whilst offering thought- provoking narratives that challenge viewers to think deeply about the future of humanity, keeping a level scientific grounding.”

Taylor paused to take a breath, “You have space care- bears that fought with sticks and stones and beat a tech heavy empire that is basically just a big anagram for Nazism.”

Jamie laughed at this attempted defence of what she deemed a subpar franchise. “Ohhh please, your lot love to use the ‘we seek out new life to establish peace throughout the universe which never works out, how many times did they have to run from sticky situations they caused with alien life? At least Star Wars showed the gritty side of what contact with other world's lifeforms could be like, plus Darth Vader’s ‘I am YOUR Father’ is so much better than ‘Engage’ or ‘Tea Earl Grey, Hot'.”

It was now Jamie’s turn to take a breath, “Also, scientific grounding, you have quite a few species that have ‘powers’ like the Jedi."

Taylor began gearing up for another round before Jamie spoke again. “Ohhh shit! Left!”

Jamie had looked up from the map and was pointing to the left hand turn rapidly approaching. Taylor jerked the steering wheel, the tyres of their Type 2 VW Transporter squealed against the tarmac. Their belongings shot across the back along with the rest of their kitchen and bedroom items. Jamie held on to the dashboard as the camper van lurched in a semi-circle, her stomach felt like it was also turning in circles.

Once Taylor had gotten the van back under control she looked back and groaned, cleaning up was going to be a pain. Hopefully nothing was too damaged, renting out this 1966 edition, had not been cheap.

“Give me a bit more time for turns please!” Taylor, cursed quietly, her heartrate going through the roof.

Jamie muttered a sorry and returned her gaze to the map. “The dirt road we need should be coming up just past that bridge.” The detour to Maplewood had been a spur of the moment decision. They were on their way to the National Photography awards in California, (Jamie’s submission was in Industrial Decay while Taylor’s piece was on Nature’s Reclaim of Infrastructure).

It was too late to submit again for the competition but Jamie had asked to make a detour to grab some extra portfolio snaps. Maplewood, Arizona had been a ghost town since 1987, the official story was that the local economy had dried up and everyone left town. The persistent theory doing the rounds on all the conspiracy sites was that the residents had petitioned the government to declare the town as unsafe following a run of mysterious deaths and after they were all relocated were made to sign NDAs.

“The Maplewood Harbor Expo Hall is about 5miles away now.” Jamie traced the line with her finger. “I would say 10 minutes maybe?”

“So why here then?” Taylor was intrigued as to why Jamie had decided upon this detour when there were other derelict sites on a more direct path to the awards.

Jamie began her tale “It was 1984 when the tragedy happened.”

Chapter 2: The First and Only Furry Fandom Con - 1984

Maplewood had spared no expense in transforming its expo hall into the perfect venue to host the inaugural Furry Fandom Convention. The spacious hall, typically used for trade shows and exhibitions, was adorned with vibrant banners featuring cartoonish animal characters and colourful paw prints, setting a playful and welcoming atmosphere for attendees.”

Upon entering the expo hall, guests were greeted by life-sized sculptures of anthropomorphic creatures, meticulously crafted by talented artists from the furry community. Inside the hall, rows of tables were set up to showcase merchandise, including art prints, comic books, plush toys, and handmade costumes.

The morning had initially gone well. Pictures were taken, costumes were judged and awarded and friendships were forged. There were so many people trying to enter the building that security had a hard time checking them all.

It was about 11am when the double doors of the Furry Fandom Con swung open with a creak, a group of five furries made of up two Dogs, two Cats and a Bear dressed in military attire and gear step into the brightly lit convention hall. Despite their comical appearance, their faces were split into wide, toothy grins that stretched unnaturally across their furry muzzles. Their eyes, though filled with an unsettling intensity, seem to sparkle with an otherworldly glee as they take in the sights and sounds of the bustling convention.

It was the towering Bear at the centre that drew the most attention. Its intimidating size and fierce appearance, was complimented a grin that seems almost too wide for its maw, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth that glint menacingly in the fluorescent light.

As they moved through the convention hall, their eyes seemed to lock onto each attendee with an unnerving intensity. The quintet split up, the Dogs and Cats headed to the doors of the room and stood by them. The Bear made its way to the middle of the con. It lifted a megaphone hanging around its neck and addressed the con.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we gather here today amidst this gathering of grotesque aberrations, this mockery of nature that you dare call a convention. You parade around in your absurd costumes, disguising yourselves as something you could never hope to be. You flaunt your twisted desires and perverted fantasies as if they were something to be proud of.”

The con attendees have all stopped at this point and are now looking towards The Bear. The gruff male voice spoke again.

“But I see through your charade. I see the sickness that festers within each one of you. You think you can escape the judgment of the divine by hiding behind these false identities. But there is no hiding from the truth.”

The attendees start murmuring amongst themselves, looks of anger, confusion and concern from ones who were not in costumes.

“You are all abominations in the eyes of God. You defile His creation with your blasphemous displays. And for that, you must be cleansed of your sins, purged of your impurities, lest you infect others with your foul contagion.” The Dogs and Cats chained the doors shut.

Panic started rippling through the crowd. Sounds come from the other side of the doors as security try to open them. Shouts of 'call the police' could be heard.

“But fear not, for I am here to deliver the divine justice that you so rightfully deserve. I am the instrument of God's wrath, the avenging angel sent to rid this world of your filth.” The Dogs and Cats brought out machine guns that they had hidden in their costumes underneath the fur. The attendees try to move away from the weapons. Fear ripping through them. The weapons were loaded and readied as The Bear finished his speech.

“So, tremble, you wretched creatures, for your time is at an end. The reign of the furries is over, and in its place shall rise a clean world order, one free from the taint of your depravity.'

Machine Gun bullets ripped into the crowd. Screams filled the air, people scrambled under tables in an attempt to shield themselves. Blood-soaked fur sprayed across the surfaces of the room. The security team had started shooting through the doors and when they spotted the chains, attacking the doors with emergency fire axes. Once sufficient holes had been made, they began shooting into the room towards the assailants.

Many of the attendees were caught in the crossfire. Machine gun fire ripped into their backs as handgun bullets punctured their fronts.

Internal organs popped, blood poured out of entrance and exit wounds.

The S.W.A.T. team arrived shortly after the massacre began and blew the doors off the hinges. As they stormed into the hall, The Dogs were the first to fall. The Cats followed, they managed to take down two officers before they were killed but The Bear refused to go down. Standing among spilled brains, bloodstains, and viscera, he focused his fire on the police and security, seemingly unfazed by the bullets that bit into his flesh. Finally, his weapon clicked, no ammo left. He dropped the machine gun and stood with his hands outstretched as the police moved in shouting to lay down on the floor and place his hands behind his back.

Instead, he addressed them. “Like fuck I will you badge wearing cunts” he reached his hands behind him and the S.W.A.T. team opened fire, bullets ripped through the Bear’s body. As he hit the floor, he breathed in a few last raspy breaths and died.

Chapter 3: No Key? No Problem!

“The doors were closed and then the whole town left 3 years later.” Jamie sighed as she finished. Taylor wasn’t sure what to say, she had not expected that kind of a story. “It’s up here on the right.” Jamie’s voice brought her back and she pulled the car up near to the steps, parked and turned off the car. The Expo Hall was imposing even in its derelict state. “So, I'm guessing we're going in there then?” Taylor’s question was met with a soft grunt from Jamie as she got out, grabbing her rucksack as she went.

As Jamie stood by the bonnet of the car, Taylor noticed her saying something along the lines of ‘...here…back…this time…long fucking years.’ Taylor started suspecting that this ‘detour’ was not a random decision. She left the car. “You've been here before?”

Jamie turned to look at her. “Huh, no.” She took off towards the building without seeing if Taylor was following. As Taylor watched her head up the stairs, she wondered why Jamie was lying. She followed her up the stairs to the doors. They looked locked, weathered signs warned against trespassers, although it would be hard to be caught trespassing in a ghost town.

Taylor tried the doors; they were locked. “Not getting in this way.” She took a step back as Jamie launched herself forward and kicked the door, her foot smashing through mouldy panels.

“Jamie! What are you doing?”

“What? The doors are locked so I made an entrance” Jamie’s indifference was hard to miss.

“So? Doors are locked, we find another way. We don't force our way in!” Taylor now knew that Jamie had a reason for being here. “This clearly isn’t about getting some b-roll photos is it? What’s going on Jamie?”

Jamie sighed once more. “So, I missed out one little bit…I was here in 1984 when the massacre took place.”

Taylor once again could not find anything to say for a few seconds. “How did you survive?

“I hid under my parent’s bodies, police found me, foster homes, etc.” Jamie noticed Taylor’s stunned expression but ignored it. “Therapist suggested I come back to ‘exorcise the demons’ so here we are. Shall we?” Jamie pointed to the door and walked through. It was a few minutes until Taylor followed, still processing Jamie’s confession.

Chapter 4: Bullet Shells and Broken Dreams

The hall stank of stale air and decay. As she walked through the smashed doors, flashbacks to 1984 went through Jamie’s mind. As she looked, she realised nothing had changed, everything was still in the same chaotic mess it had been in when the massacre was happening. The blood covered fur-suits were still lying in the places where they had fallen.

The bodies had been removed, but the profiles were still visible where they had been etched into the floor. Stains from the blood looked as fresh as the day it was spilt and had soaked into the wooden boards. Bullet casings were everywhere.

“Whoa” Taylor’s voice interrupted nesting birds who scattered away through broken skylights. The hall was dark despite it being noon. As Jamie looked around, she felt a shiver run down her spine. The air was heavy with the echoes of past events lingering like trapped ghosts. Despite her best efforts to steel herself against the rising tide of memories, they flooded her mind like a tsunami.

A faint sound rings out in the distance. “Hey, do you hear that?” Jamie looked towards a corridor ahead of them. As Jamie trained her torchlight to the broken door in front of the corridor, a flashback to one of the Dogs, standing by it raced through her mind. There it was faintly. The sound of a dog barking somewhere behind the door. “Can you hear that dog?”

Taylor had moved to the corridor, she shook her head, “I can’t hear anything.” From Jamie’s left came the hiss of a Cat, Jamie turned, another dark corridor, another flashback, a growl from her right, another dark corridor, another flashback, the smell of gunpowder, a screech from her left, gunshots ringing out, death laying all around her, blood rivers pouring out of mangled bodies. She looked around for Taylor who had walked into the dark corridor and had turned back to look at Jamie.

“Taylor” Jamie never finished her sentence before the red eyes in the darkness cut her off.

Eyes, too big to be a human but the perfect size for a furry. Jamie screamed at Taylor to run but the warning was too late. Taylor was pulled sharply into the darkness, her screams echoing throughout the hall until they were silenced abruptly.

“I knew you were still here! I looked you up after the police declared you all dead at the scene. The Order of Divine Fire, hardcore cultists with a desire to purge the world of abominations.” Jamie could hear the growls and hisses in the darkness. “Fucking brainwashed fruitcakes all under the command of one Reverend Ezekiel Thornwood aka The Bear of God.”

The roar from the darkened corridor told her she had hit the right nerve. “3 years I spent looking into you, the rituals, the sacrifices, the dark magic you practised. I knew you had succeeded. The last piece of the puzzle was the run of deaths that occurred to security guards who had to watch this place. Flesh ripped apart; skulls popped. The coroner’s reports all fitted the profile of being attacked by a wild animal such as a Bear.”

The roar that replied to Jamie was closer now. She could hear heavy footprints getting closer. Jamie pulled the rucksack off her back and walked backwards a few paces before placing it on the floor. She took another few steps backwards and waited.

Out of the darkness, they appeared, 10 pairs of large burning red eyes. The once vibrant and menacing fur suits had deteriorated into decrepit remnants of their former selves. The fur, once plush and vibrant, now hung in tattered shreds, matted, and discoloured from years of neglect. The once fearsome masks, adorned with sharp teeth and piercing eyes, now sagged, and warped, their features distorted by the ravages of time. Frayed seams and gaping holes marred the fabric of the suits, exposing the skeletal frames. Dried blood clung to the bullet holes.

Jamie’s mind filled with flashbacks. The Hall filled with ghosts of victims, some crying, some screaming, others stared with vacant eyes. The flashbacks stopped; her parents were kneeling before her. The shooters behind them in a semi-circle, the Bear in the centre, his large hands resting on the top of her parent’s heads. Jamie pleaded with them, to spare her parents.

The Bear roared and squeezed his hands. Her parents grip his paws tightly as their skulls are crushed, blood cascades down their faces as claws puncture flesh. The shooters bayed in unison as the Bear put the final squeeze onto her parent’s heads, popping them into a bloody pulp of flesh and bone.

The Bear relished in the knowledge that Jamie was relieving the death of her parents, he could taste her anguish in the air.

“Your parents are waiting for you in HELL, where abominations are damned!” Jamie saw the Bear move towards her; his paw reached to grip her arm. Jamie reached into her pocket and pulled out a small rectangular item. She held it up and shuffled backwards.

“Stay right there Yogi Bear!” She shook the item, “Yea, this little device here, makes that” Jamie points to her rucksack. “Go boom!” The Bear growled. “Now Zeki, can I call you that? The Bear’s maw opened; rows of teeth grinded together. “Bring Taylor here before my finger gets itchy.”

The Bear looked behind him to the rucksack and then snapped his head around to Jamie, he started forward with a jolt, Jamie jumped backwards and pressed a button on the detonator, the rucksack emitted a beeping sound. The shooters looked at the rucksack. “Now unless you want it going off completely…bring me Taylor NOW!”

The Bear glanced back at Jamie and then growled at one of the Dogs who slunk into the darkness. It was only a few moments but for Jamie and the shooters, time slowed to a painful grind. Finally, the Dog returned with Taylor.

“Come on Taylor, its alright, they won’t hurt you.” She limped towards her, panicked breath escaping her as she cowed her head in fear. As she reached the Bear, he growled, huge teeth glinting underneath tattered fur, threads hanging like exposed muscle. He made sure to growl in Taylor’s ear, relishing the fear he was inflicting. Taylor kept her head down as she moved past the twisted imitation of a bear. She reached out for Jamie’s hand as the Bear moved quickly behind her and bit down on her skull.

As the Bear’s teeth bit down onto Taylor’s head, the crunch from bone as metal mesh cracked it open like an egg, Taylor’s right eye rolled back as her eyelid starting flickering rapidly, blood trickled down her head like yolk. The Bear’s eyes burned a dark red, the other shooters began grunting in excitement. Jamie looked at Taylor, she knew her friend was gone, the Bear had punctured her brain, any movement or sounds now were pure autopilot of a brain going into shutdown.

The Bear clenched his jaws together, Taylor’s left eye now rolling back to join the right one as her body slumped to her knees, the wet slopping noise as bits of brain hit the floor. Jamie looked on through teary eyes, the Bear hadn’t moved but in his jaws was the rest of Taylor’s skull, being held up like a perverse trophy. If this had been a real Bear and Taylor a hunter, it would fit the ‘Hunter becomes the Hunted’ perfectly, Except Taylor had been innocent and The Bear was the evil spirit of a long dead lunatic killer and Jamie was the reason, Taylor was now dead.

“Fuck you asshole!” Jamie muttered and reached behind her back and took hold of the Taurus TX22 handgun she had stashed away in her jeans after she had gotten out of the van, she pulled it out and rapidly fired off 4 shots into the Bear, the muzzle flash blinded Jamie in the darkness of the hall. She turned and ran for the entrance, quickly blinking her eyes to get rid of the spots, behind her, she heard the Bear roar and the sound of feet starting to run. She held up the detonator and clicked the red button to initiate the explosion. The shockwave rippled through the hall, knocking Jamie off her feet and through the rotten door exploding it into pieces.

Jamie hit the concrete stairs hard, she bounced off them, felt a few ribs break, a concussion for sure. She came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs. It took a few moments for the ringing in her ears to stop and her eyes to refocus. Then the pain kicked in, she groaned as various bones, bruises and cuts started to sting.

The roars of pain brought her focus back, she slowly got to her feet, she could see the flames eating away at the rotten interior of the building. She hobbled up a few of the steps until she could see clearly. There they were, the 4 shooters burning away. The fur-suits acting as perfect kindle for the fire. The heat from the fire was becoming more intense by the second,

Jamie had to shield her eyes against the furnace. Through her fingers she could see the Cats and Dogs fall to their knees, the fur had been burnt away leaving only a metal skeleton behind. One by one they hit the floor where they were engulfed by the fire.

“Enjoy hell motherfuckers” Jamie laughed. Her laughter was cut short. She hadn’t seen The Bear fall down. “Ohhh shit.” Was all Jamie could say as she watched The Bear walking towards her through the flames. His fur was on fire, the metallic frame underneath was glowing red from the heat. Some parts had already started to melt and yet still he stood. As the Bear roared, it was an unearthly mix of pain and anger, his eyes met Jamie’s and for a second, they stood each taking the other in before The Bear took off on a direct line to her. Jamie gripped the gun harder, thanking God, she had managed to keep hold of it, she aimed the trigger and was for the second time knocked of her feet by an explosion from inside the hall, left behind gas tanks that had caught on fire finally erupting under the heat. Jamie slammed into the front of the car, her vision blurring as her head cracked into the metal bonnet. The Bear was knocked forward, it slammed into the wall by the entrance and crumpled into a pile on the floor, the last traces of fur burning away leaving only a charred skeleton behind.

“Say hi to your friends asshole.” Jamie touched the back of her head, wincing at the pain. That was concussion number 2. She took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. “I got them Mum and Dad.” Jamie looked towards the Bear’s corpse, only to see it was gone. “What, no…” She looked forward straight into the eyes of the Bear coming right for her. Jamie screamed and raised the TX22, she closed her eyes and unloaded the clip. She waited for Death to take her but was only greeted by a whisper.

“Ja..mi…” It was Taylor’s voice. Jamie opened her eyes and looked forward.

“Ohhh no…” Jamie’s voice cracked. Taylor was kneeling in front of her, bullet holes riddled her body, blood flowers spreading across her t-shirt. “But...The Bear killed you? He cracked your skull open...?” Taylor slumped forward, Jamie caught her and cradled her. Already she could see that Taylor’s colour was fading. “I am so sorry I brought you here, I had to end their hold over this place. The fire will burn this place down soon and any trace of them will go too.”

Taylor tried to speak but her words were broken. “W…Wh…Who, are yo…you..tal…king…bout? We..’r..e.. oonly one…her..ere…” Taylor, took in a sharp breath, her body convulsing before her head slumped into Jamie’s lap. Jamie didn’t say anything, she was lost in her mind. The events of the last 30 minutes flashed into her mind.

The two of them arriving and entering, the empty hall, Taylor walking into the dark corridor. This was the same but then the different events happened. Taylor hadn’t been dragged into the darkness; the shooters hadn’t returned to life in decrepit fur-suits. She had been screaming and pleading with open air. Taylor re-appearing out of the corridor, asking her what was wrong. Detonating the rucksack bomb and being launched out of the hall, Taylor being launched out of the building with the second explosion…then the final gut punch, unloading the remainder of the clip into Taylor’s body as she tried to help her and died in her arms, the question why burnt into her eyes as they turned lifeless.

Jamie looked into the sky and screamed.

The End