Fallocaust (Fallocaust, #1)

by Quil Carter

“Any canned meat?” I asked, hoping for anything that wasn’t Aras rat. The man nodded and pointed towards a row of Dek’ko cans. The labels were dark blue and the letters white. Various cartoons of what was inside the can graced every label. I could see chicken, rat, bosen, fois ras, and Dek’ko’s special brand called Good Boy. It didn’t take a stretch of the imagination to know what was inside that can. It was a bit crude, since it was frowned upon out in the greywastes to eat arian, but the president of Dek’ko, a chimera named Apollo, had proclaimed that all Good Boy meat was from men that died of natural causes or were convicts. That was a good enough explanation for me. Arian tasted so much better than rat.

“I have a lot of thoughts, mostly dark,” I replied. “The less you talk out loud, the more you talk in your head.”

Reno picked up a sour key and started to chew on it. I watched as his eyes began to close as the pills kicked in. “You know, everyone thinks life is so horrible now. But would we be able to do shit loads of drugs and eat candy all day back before the Fallocaust? I think not.”

There was something humbling about being reminded that the flesh you ate every day tasted the same as the flesh that rested underneath your skin.

“I could make you my cicaro, my pet, but I want you to be my boyfriend instead.”

This was the fucking greywastes, not a Disney movie. People got raped, people got hit, and people got eaten. He should deal with it.

The nervousness in his eyes had no justification in my mind but I still didn’t wish him to suffer over something I knew he wasn’t old enough to control. Jealousy was an emotion for women and teenagers. He would grow out of it, or perhaps I would prove my loyalty to him in time.

I wedged myself in between the bathtub and the toilet and started to wail. I felt my mind go to mush and my fight or flight instincts kick in. Though for me there was a third option: make myself as small as possible and cry.

He let out a huff, but I felt his chin on my head. “I’ll cuddle you, Mr. Massey, but I won’t like it.”

Luca wasn’t a chimera like the rest of the family, nor was he a pet like Jade. He was a tall, lanky boy with feathery gold hair. He always wore a headband adorned with cat ears and had been born and raised into servitude. Luca didn’t often speak, but not by choice. It was the nature of a sengil. Sengils were pretty, obedient, and loyal. Luca was Jade’s maidservant, though that term always made the corner of Jade’s mouth turn.

“Sometimes, I pretend I am a dinosaur,” Perish whispered. He was beside me, also staring forward. I looked at him and blinked in confusion. Before I could ask him what he was on, he continued. “When I feel too much, I say… velociraptors don’t feel anything, it’s impossible for them to be scared.” He looked at me, his blue eyes the colour of ice but as warm as fire. They brightened as he gave me an encouraging smile.

Perish. I love him so much.