ANIMAL EYES

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ANIMAL EYES I

THREE MOONLIT CRITTERS

Borislav the Raccoon: [A filthy rascal, covered in his own greases]  “Would ye do it again, Ruthy?”

Dumitru the Raccoon: [The prepubescent, constantly convulsing with joy] “Ye! Ye I bet she would! Look ‘at ‘er! She’s already thinkin’ about it!”

Vrutha: “Shut up.”

Borislav the Raccoon: “Ye done right by us, Ruthy. Ye done bloody right by us.”

Dumtitru the Raccoon: “Ye did! Ye did!”


[The trio absorbed the moonlight in silence from then on, sharing between them a bottle of Tiefer Tail - A Miph-Enterprise approved concoction that would nullify the silence then shared (Vrutha had been saving this bottle for the "right" time, which was apparently now). When the first ray of sun returned, there was no sign that their congregation had even convened. Had it even convened?]

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ANIMAL EYES II

MILKED

Adeline the Cow: [One curvaceous woman] "You shouldn't be here Vrutha, they are going to milk you."

Valentin the Bull: [Do you see those muscles?] "They will milk you dry, little one. No one is your friend, down there."

Vrutha: [Smoking on that poppy again] "How...do we know who to trust?"

Valentin the Bull: " You don't trust anyone, unless you're trying to get yourself milked."

Adeline the Cow: "Oh honey... you're not made to be milked... It's not too late to get out of there."

Vrutha: "...I can always talk to you guys....right?"

[There was no response to the question, only the gentle come down of a high that was chased - greeted by the everlasting low...]

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ANIMAL EYES III

BACK-FENCE TALK

The Gossiping Goats: [The Hoard. The Hivemind. So much for free thinkers...What ever happened to independent thought?]

"Where'd you get them clothes, Vrutha?"

The Gossiping Goats: "Where'd you get them sharp claws, Vrutha?"

Vrutha: [How'd she get here? The bottle must be empty again.] "Maybe I'm not alone anymore. ... stop asking questions."

The Gossiping Goats: "Who are you with?"
The Gossiping Goats: "You have friends now?"
The Gossiping Goats: "Tell us their names?"
The Gossiping Goats: "Tell us?"

Vrutha: "Hell. No. I'm not telling you anything... Where are we anyway.."

The Gossiping Goats: "Tell us."
The Gossiping Goats: "Tell us the names!"
The Gossiping Goats: "Names!"

Vrutha: "....Do I look like a rat to you?"

The Gossiping Goats: [A guttural chanting, the "civil discourse" evolving into primal cries of necessity]  "names. Names. NAmes. NAMes. NAMEs. NAMES. NAAAMES. NAAAAAAMES. NAAAAAAAAAAMES! NAAAAAAAAAAMES! NAAAAAAAAAAMES! NAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMES!"

[Each scream a sobering bludgeoning blow, bringing forth the reality of an atrocious hangover that made death seem quite appealing. The realm of mutual conversation had departed, for there can be no reasoning with the unreasonable.]

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ANIMAL EYES IV

DEVIATED SEPTUM

Vrutha: [There she was again, back in the damn jungle. How the hell does she keep finding herself here? Like the first fly to a fresh pile of steaming feces (you know the kind). A true explorer, going where no twist has ever gone, or should go. This time, it was different though. Maybe she didn't want to be here? Perhaps it was that immaculate cocktail of red-tears, opium, brandy, and that white powder. What the hell was it called again? Anyway. Her nose is going to need a break after this bender. Maybe now, she'll finally come to her senses.]


The Crocodilian Court: " Those little bones of yours, must crunch soooooo nicely... But you smell like you've already been eaten, and you don't have any meat."

Vrutha: [Her nose is running, I wonder why.] "Get lost, I ain't for supper. I'm hungry too."

The Crocodilian Court: "Your stink will never go away. Where ever you have come from, it is rotten. If you went missing, would anyone care to notice?"

 Vrutha: [She looked upon an amateur tattoo on her wrist, perhaps she had forgotten it was there.] "Nah, they wouldn't. Everyone's always in between commin' and goin'. Ain't it just a matter of time before we all go missin'? "

The Crocodilian Court: "We can smell your lies, little Ruth. You don't belong here, you are not like the others here. Leave this place, before the meat gets slurped off of your bones."

[She couldn't even fool herself anymore, there were people looking out for her now. Just as she was doing for them all this time. She reached for the bag of reds, but of course, all of it had already found it's way thoroughly through her nose. This was turning out to be a bad trip, these guys were not helping the vibe. They weren't saying anything she didn't already know, kinda like she was just putting words in their mouth, and imagining it.. Someone has to say it, though. She'd better get back, before the shakes kick in.]

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ANIMAL EYES V

APOTHECARIUM ADDENDUM

Vrutha: [Deep within the depths of the drain, an indescribable rotten stench was birthed from a monument of decay. If a sewer and a swamp had a love child, and abandoned it like a caliban - that might come close to an apt description, but even that might not do it justice. The untippable empire the caliban had created finally allowed to wither into oblivion, such as all life eventually does. Transmuting the "natural resources" of the sewer into an unnatural biome has it's pros and cons, but everything must come to its inevitable conclusion. Such is the balance of nature, the cycle would be defied no longer.]


The Sewer Prince, Romulus: [Vrutha's wet pet rat, freeloading since birth] "Lil' Ruthie packin' up her bags, finally tired of makin' everybody else rich, eh? If no one ain't know no better, they'd be thinkin you was runnin' this whole sewer. "

Vrutha: [Igniting a rolled leaf of a bird-of-paradise plant, rolled tightly with a special curated blend of the finest poppy the core had to offer.] "Pfft, just doin' business, like every other runt down here. Paid Knives his cut, ain't got shanked or nothin'."

The Sewer Prince, Romulus: "If there ain't some tea-drunk topper tryin' to twist a knife in you, maybe you ain't doin' it right."

 Vrutha: [Taking a long puff of the poppy blend, exhaling through her nose with a contemplative thought, followed by a squint.] "Keep runnin' your mouth and I'll cash you in, I ain't above rattin' for a fang or two. Did what I had to do to survive."

The Sewer Prince, Romulus: "Thinkin' you made a lot more survive down here than just yourself, Ruth. Don't sell yourself short."

 Vrutha: [Pulling out a thick bag of her favorite substance - Red Tears, fresh from Bluebeard's rock. Everyone knows that Reds are the perfect accelerant for a poppy buzz. Vosk got her hooked on it, back when Akadus was on top.] "You want me to brag about it or somethin'? You just statin' the obvious. Everyone got what they needed, if that ain't the case - woulda' packed up a long time ago."

The Sewer Prince, Romulus: "Those tears are the only tears you need. You done well, Ruth. Think its time you treat yourself, for once. This sewer ain't doin' you justice no more. Thinkin' its time you let Devora run this place, she's always been the best worker you got. Pull up these roots, and free yourself. Thats what Savrasa was tryin' to tell you to do from the start, you just ain't listen. "

 Vrutha: " Wouldn't change nothin', The Bottom is The Top, we ain't done yet."

[She proceeded to indulge in the Red Tears, one final time - at least here anyway, this definitely wasn't the last time she would be enjoying some Reds. That occurrence wouldn't happen for a long time, that would be the day she died. After countless months and seasons, unspeakable amounts of coin passing through the sewer, it was a change of season. The chains were finally broken by her own accord. The hallucination manifests a deep memory, one from a simpler time. The corner of the drain formerly known as The Apothecarium would not exist without the two shown in the Red Tears vision, and she was grateful for them.]

[The Red Tears Hallucination]