Your Life In An Anthro's World

Oh, my head,” you grunt as you sit up. Looking around, you find yourself in what looks to be New York City. You immediately begin to wonder how you got there, but as you observe your surroundings, it quickly becomes clear that this isn’t the NYC you know. The inhabitants of the city aren’t human—they’re humanoid animals.

They walk upright, have five fingers and five toes (you notice this because some of them aren’t wearing shoes), but their bodies are covered in fur, each matching the animal they resemble. What worries you most are the sharp claws some of them are displaying.

As you process these observations, another disturbing realization dawns on you: none of them are moving. They’re all standing still, staring directly at you.

The crowd begins murmuring in hushed tones. The most common questions you hear are, “A human?” and “Where’d it come from?”

You’re filled with unease, unsure what to do. Eventually, a tall female wolf in a police uniform pushes through the crowd, followed by several other officers, all wearing uniforms emblazoned with “POLICE” in bold letters. The wolf, clearly in charge, approaches you with a mixture of astonishment and caution.

As she draws nearer, you realize just how massive she is—standing somewhere between ten and nine feet tall, while most of the other creatures in the crowd are around six or seven feet tall. A few come close to her size, but not many.

“I wonder what she wants,” you think as she kneels to your level, bringing herself eye to eye with you.

“Can you understand me?” she asks, her voice calm but firm.

“Y-yes... I can understand you,” you stammer, still reeling from the strange situation, though you’re doing your best to keep it together.

“Remarkable,” the wolf gasps, clearly amazed.

“What’s remarkable?” you ask, genuinely confused.

“You,” she replies. “You speak perfect English, despite being a completely different species!” She seems excited, but quickly remembers she’s in a public setting and on duty. While she knows this is a historic moment for her world, she composes herself and continues professionally, “I have to take you into custody now.”

Your heart skips a beat. “Custody?” you ask, staring up at her, “Why?”

Sensing your fear, the wolf softens her tone, “It’s not that you’ve done anything wrong. I’m just concerned some of the less civilized or more questionable citizens here might take advantage of you, given that you’re defenseless and disoriented.”

You nod slowly, still confused. “I see...”

“Good.” She gives a gentle smile and stands back up to her full height. From your perspective, you barely reach past her stomach. As you glance around the crowd, you notice that even though Luna is one of the taller anthros, most of the others still dwarf you.

“We haven’t been formally introduced,” she continues. “I’m Captain Luna Barker, but you can call me Luna.”

“Nice to officially meet you, Luna,” you reply. “I’m—”

Before you can finish, a new voice cuts through the air. “—A very interesting specimen.”

The crowd and officers part as a sleek, black limousine pulls up. The back door opens, and stepping out is a massive nine-tailed fox. She’s even taller than Luna by a couple of feet, radiating an air of cold authority. Her golden eyes are partially hidden behind frameless, oval-shaped glasses with a faint purple tint. She’s dressed in a sharp purple business suit, her foot paws visible beneath the tailored slacks. Underneath the blazer, she wears a crisp white shirt and a purple tie, her brunette hair falling just to her shoulders. Behind her, nine regal tails sway with calm, controlled grace, creating an aura both elegant and unsettling.

Her voice is smooth, yet carries an undeniable power. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Silvia Deluma, and I own everything in this city and the region around it... including you,” she declares with a toothy smile. She lowers her head slightly, looking down at you through her glasses, and extends her hand, palm up.

“And you are?”

“Kiba Lockheart, the human who’s **not** your property,” you respond defiantly, crossing your arms over your chest.

Silvia let out a low, amused chuckle, crossing her own arms. “Defiant little thing, aren’t you?” She adjusted her glasses and stepped closer, her golden eyes narrowing as she looked you over, sizing you up like prey. “That’s fine. You’ll learn your place soon enough.”

She reached down, cupping your jaw and cheeks in her paw, tilting your face from side to side as though inspecting a rare specimen. Her paw was so large that it nearly encompassed your entire face. Despite this, you jerk your head away and back up. “Respect is earned. I don’t just give it to people like you.”

A low growl rumbled in Deluma’s throat as her eyes flashed with irritation. She took a step forward, fists clenched, but before she could advance further, Luna intervened, stepping between you and the mayor. “I was just about to take him to the station,” Luna explained, her voice calm but firm. “Until we can figure out his situation. While he’s there, we can get to know him and—”

“—The station?” Deluma interrupted, an eyebrow raised in disbelief. “Get to know him? Captain, he’s a **human**, not some lost child. He should be sent to a lab for analysis and study!”

Luna blinked, visibly taken aback. “With all due respect, Mayor Deluma, he’s a living, sentient being! He has rights. And he’s just a **boy**! We can’t just lock him up to poke and prod him.”

Deluma sighed, pinching the bridge of her snout. “Captain Barker, I understand your point, but I remind you: he’s **human**. Humans are supposed to be **mythical**. This is a unique opportunity to study him, and the best place for that is a lab. As for his rights... well, as far as I’m concerned, only anthros have rights in this world.”

Luna’s fists clenched at her sides as she growled softly. Deluma leveled her gaze at her. “Now, I want him taken into custody and delivered to **SD Labs** within the hour.”

“I’m sorry, Mayor,” Luna replied, her voice low but resolute. “I can’t do that. This is a police matter, and I cannot comply with your request.”

Relief washed over you. Luna seemed to be your only ally in this world, and the idea of being sent to some lab was terrifying. You silently prayed she would protect you.

Deluma’s tails flared behind her, and she stepped right up to Luna, her snout almost touching the wolf’s. “You don’t have a choice, Captain,” she hissed. “As I said before, I own this city and everything around it. That includes the police force. So, you either follow my orders, or you can hand over your badge, find another job, and I’ll have someone else do it.”

You held your breath, watching the intense standoff between the two towering anthros, hoping beyond hope that Luna would hold her ground.

Luna opened her mouth, but then closed it, sighing heavily. “Let the record show that I **strongly** disagree with your demands,” she said quietly, her voice filled with bitterness as she glared at Deluma.

“Noted,” Deluma said dismissively with a flick of her hand. “Now, get on with it.” She turned to leave.

Panic surged within you. You glanced around, realizing that all the exits were blocked by tall Doberman and German Shepherd anthros. You suddenly felt trapped.

Luna knelt down in front of you again, her face softening. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, “but this is the only way I can help you for now.” She gently slipped a pair of handcuffs around your wrists, though they weren’t locked. You looked up at her, confused. “When the time comes, **run**. Find somewhere to hide. I’ll find you.”

“Where am I supposed to go?” you asked in a hushed voice.

Luna smiled warmly. “You’ll figure it out. Humans are clever and adaptable, even if you’re not as strong as us. I can see it in you—you won’t give up easily.” She turned to one of the Doberman officers and signaled her over. The Doberman, a head shorter than Luna but still towering over you, nodded at whatever Luna whispered in her ear.

“I understand, Captain,” the Doberman said, approaching you. She grabbed your arm gently but firmly, leading you toward a waiting prison van. You pulled back, resisting her grip. She glanced down at you with a small smile. “Do you really think you can fight against me, human?”

“I’ll never know unless I try,” you shot back, growling. “Besides, you don’t scare me.”

Her smile faded into a stern expression. “That attitude might get you killed,” she warned.

“I’m not **ready** to die,” you said, surprising her, “but I’m not afraid to die either. I won’t live my life by anyone else’s terms. I’ll live it **my** way, even if that leads me to a bitter end.”

The Doberman paused, clearly taken aback. Then, she chuckled. “No wonder Captain Luna likes you. Such spirit... I hope we meet again.” She kept walking you toward the van, but just before you reached it, she shoved you forward while removing the cuffs from your wrists.

You spun around, shocked, as the Doberman grinned. “Now’s the time to run,” she said. “And remember the word **mercy** the next time we meet... Kiba Lockheart.”

Before you could ask what she meant, she called out loudly, “The human’s escaped! I need backup!”

Several German Shepherd officers sprang into action as she winked at you.

You nodded back in thanks and sprinted down the street, your heart pounding as the anthros gave chase. “I won’t outrun them on open ground,” you thought as you spotted a narrow alleyway. Without hesitation, you darted into it, your mind racing for a way out.

A fire escape caught your eye, and you leapt for it, grabbing onto the bars and climbing up, your breath coming in short gasps.

“He’s on the fire escape!” one of the officers shouted from behind.

You reached the top, slamming a maintenance grate shut behind you and using your belt to tie it down, buying yourself precious seconds. “That should hold them... for a minute,” you muttered before taking off across the rooftop. The moonlight was your only guide as you ran.

Leaping over a gap between two buildings, you rolled as you landed on the next roof, wincing from the impact. “Can’t stop now,” you thought, panting as you pushed forward.

Then, you heard the metallic **snap** and **clang** behind you. The officers had broken through the grate, and they were on your trail once more. You glanced over your shoulder, but in your distraction, you tripped over the edge of a skylight and fell.

Crashing through the glass, you tumbled into a grocery store below, landing hard on a shelf, which collapsed under your weight. You lay on the floor, surrounded by broken glass and scattered goods, staring up at the hole you’d fallen through.