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Description
'There's a madness in us all.'

****

~Genesis Adam 203997~

Adam was sleeping soundly in his cage when Godpheus finished his new enclosure. He was propped up against the thick bars with Eve curled up in his lap, warming his trembling body. His dreams were always the same- the start of his life. Only a thin line separated them from reality.
There was a familiar creaking noise, and Adam's eyes snapped open. He knew the sound off by heart now; the opening of the cage door. He found himself feeling disoriented at first, given the change of scenery. Godpheus had moved the cage to the opposite side of the room now, amongst his science equipment. As Adam rubbed his eyes and yawned, he noticed that he was sitting beside a pile of unwashed test tubes in a sink.

His master's hand edged into the cage like a cat ready to pounce and his fingers gripped the hem of his shirt tightly. Adam was yanked away from his mate with a jolt that sent nausea through his empty stomach. Eve was tossed to the other side of the cage only to land in a heap amongst their sawdust bedding. As her companion was pulled away, she sat up slowly in the corner, her eyes lolling around from sleep.

Godpheus lifted Adam out into the open room. He blinked as the overhead fluorescent lights stung his eyes. Godpheus let him hand in his grasp for a brief moment before he placed the human on his desk beside his LCom. Adam stood there, swaying a little on his skinny legs. Godpheus took a sip from the coffee in his opposite hand and sighed as he sat down into his desk chair. Adam bowed his head with his hands at his sides. His eyelids drooped, as hard as he tried to keep them open.
"Are you excited, Adam?" God asked with a smile. The man seemed overjoyed. He must've been having a good day. Adam thought to himself before he answered the question.

"About what, Master Godpheus?" He replied with a question of his own. His head spun. Godpheus smiled widely and gestured to a metal/glass contraption on the far bench that resembled an expensive looking fish tank. Adam's stomach flipped at the thought of living in that but he held back his disgust and nodded to his owner. "Thank you." He said softly, head bowed.

"Would you like to see inside?" Godpheus asked in his usual authority-filled voice. Adam exhaled lightly, careful not to let him see his unhappiness.

"Ok." He mumbled without looking up. Godpheus, without hesitation, reached out to pluck the human off the desk by the shirt collar. Adam felt the eerie sensation of being suspended hundreds of stories high in mid-air but fought back his fear and maintained his trademark calm expression. He let his limbs hand limply in the air as the Laquanian carried him to the new cage or as he'd said before birthday present. His insides twisted as he was lowered into the contraption and he swallowed.

Godpheus placed him at the base of the cage, which was, like before, sawdust. Unlike his old enclosure, the walls of this cage were thick glass, framed with gleaming metal. Only a fraction bigger than his and Eve's old one, the cage was more like a display cabinet than a pet's 'home'. He hated it instantly but tried not to let his anguished face show as he paced around the fish tank. There was a fresh dish of clean water and food in the corner, not that they beckoned him. Adam sighed and sat down, back against the glass.

"I'll go get Eve." Godpheus told him from above. But Adam wasn't listening. All he could feel was sadness. Somehow he knew. He just knew that this wasn't how it was supposed to be. Humans weren't meant to be kept as pets. It wasn't a feeling he could go off, but an instinct. Well, at least he had fresh water in this cage. Adam let his eyes shut gently as he tried to dream of a world where he could run free and not be contained by the bars, or now, glass of a pet's cage.

He pictured the world outside the boundaries of the science lab, a world he'd never seen with his own eyes.

Soon, he was asleep.

****

~Colton~

"Would you like to meet my friend's pet human?" Ben asked, as he and Colton finished their apple crumble. Colton paused for a moment to wipe his face with the sleeve of his shirt before nodding. Truthfully, he didn't mind what his owner did to him, as long as he could have more 'real food' soon. The crumble was like a drug to him now, a magnet threatening to madden his already clueless mind. He shouldn't have given me that. He kept telling himself. I'm going to start seeing things.

"I'd like that." Colton managed a small smile up at his owner. Ben returned the grin, his eyes gleaming.

"First, I should introduce you to my parents." He said, more to himself than Colton. "Want to ride on my shoulder?"

Colton shot him a puzzled look as he calculated what this 'shoulder' was. It was embarrassing, having to physically sort through your mind to find the information you are looking for. "I don't mind." He answered, head bowed.

"OK then." Ben said. He reached out to Colton slowly and carefully. Colton himself knew what was coming and stood up to make the grabbing easier for his owner. But instead of wrapping his fingers around Colton's thin waist, he scooped the human up in his cupped hand gently, which startled him. Why is he so... nice? Colton thought as he was lifted up to fall onto the Laquanian's shoulder. He let his legs hand over the edge of the bigger boy's shoulder and gripped his shirt collar with both hands.

This was a new experience, for Colton. The institute masters had grabbed and squeezed him, sure, but never... letting him ride on their shoulders. It was like he was seeing the world from the normal scale. The Laquanian scale.

Ben led him through another hallway and down a flight of stairs to a closed wooden door. He brought his closed fist to the wood and knocked gently.

"Hey mum? Dad?" He called out. His amplified voice startled Colton and he jolted a little from his seat on his owner's shoulder. The was a distinct sound of heels clicking against tiles and the door was pulled open to reveal the woman from the pet shop... Ben's Mum? She was accompanied by a tallish brown haired man, probably Ben's father. Their eyes weren't trained on him just yet but on their son, but Colton knew they'd see him soon. Everyone did.

"What is it honey? How's your... ohh..." There they go. Colton thought dryly to himself as the giantess of his owner's mother inspected him for the second time that day.

"This is Colton." Ben said in a child-like voice. He beamed proudly. The smile that had previously been worn by Ben's father vanished. His eyes narrowed, focussed directly on Colton like twin beams of opaque headlights.

"What is that doing in this house?" He snapped incredulously, turning to his wife. "You didn't tell me you were getting my son a human!" Colton bit his lip and found himself shaking despite the heat radiating off Ben's body that felt like a warm blanket. Ben's own smile had faded into nothing now and he was standing still as a statue, head down.

"David, Ben is fifteen tomorrow. I told him he could choose his own pet as an early present so that they could get to know each other for when we go camping this weekend. You know he's always wanted a human." His mother said firmly back. David looked defeated but Colton could feel his cold glare sending a chill down his spine.

"It's not allowed out of its cage while we're camping, Benjamin." He said icily to his son. Ben opened his mouth to protest but David shushed him with a wave of his hand. Ben's mother looked apologetic as she stood beside him. Colton managed a small smile as she turned to look at him again. But he was smiling through his teeth. Inside, he was scared out of his mind. Ben's father, for some unknown reason, didn't like humans. Colton wasn't in any position to pry at the topic, but it was made clear from his speech. If he was going to stay with Ben and his family, he'd have to get used to what he'd originally thought would be his life: being treated like a pet.

It wouldn't take long to adjust. At least someone knew his place in society.

This cruel, screwed up society.

Description
'There's a madness in us all.'

****

~Genesis Adam 203997~

Adam was sleeping soundly in his cage when Godpheus finished his new enclosure. He was propped up against the thick bars with Eve curled up in his lap, warming his trembling body. His dreams were always the same- the start of his life. Only a thin line separated them from reality.
There was a familiar creaking noise, and Adam's eyes snapped open. He knew the sound off by heart now; the opening of the cage door. He found himself feeling disoriented at first, given the change of scenery. Godpheus had moved the cage to the opposite side of the room now, amongst his science equipment. As Adam rubbed his eyes and yawned, he noticed that he was sitting beside a pile of unwashed test tubes in a sink.

His master's hand edged into the cage like a cat ready to pounce and his fingers gripped the hem of his shirt tightly. Adam was yanked away from his mate with a jolt that sent nausea through his empty stomach. Eve was tossed to the other side of the cage only to land in a heap amongst their sawdust bedding. As her companion was pulled away, she sat up slowly in the corner, her eyes lolling around from sleep.

Godpheus lifted Adam out into the open room. He blinked as the overhead fluorescent lights stung his eyes. Godpheus let him hand in his grasp for a brief moment before he placed the human on his desk beside his LCom. Adam stood there, swaying a little on his skinny legs. Godpheus took a sip from the coffee in his opposite hand and sighed as he sat down into his desk chair. Adam bowed his head with his hands at his sides. His eyelids drooped, as hard as he tried to keep them open.
"Are you excited, Adam?" God asked with a smile. The man seemed overjoyed. He must've been having a good day. Adam thought to himself before he answered the question.

"About what, Master Godpheus?" He replied with a question of his own. His head spun. Godpheus smiled widely and gestured to a metal/glass contraption on the far bench that resembled an expensive looking fish tank. Adam's stomach flipped at the thought of living in that but he held back his disgust and nodded to his owner. "Thank you." He said softly, head bowed.

"Would you like to see inside?" Godpheus asked in his usual authority-filled voice. Adam exhaled lightly, careful not to let him see his unhappiness.

"Ok." He mumbled without looking up. Godpheus, without hesitation, reached out to pluck the human off the desk by the shirt collar. Adam felt the eerie sensation of being suspended hundreds of stories high in mid-air but fought back his fear and maintained his trademark calm expression. He let his limbs hand limply in the air as the Laquanian carried him to the new cage or as he'd said before birthday present. His insides twisted as he was lowered into the contraption and he swallowed.

Godpheus placed him at the base of the cage, which was, like before, sawdust. Unlike his old enclosure, the walls of this cage were thick glass, framed with gleaming metal. Only a fraction bigger than his and Eve's old one, the cage was more like a display cabinet than a pet's 'home'. He hated it instantly but tried not to let his anguished face show as he paced around the fish tank. There was a fresh dish of clean water and food in the corner, not that they beckoned him. Adam sighed and sat down, back against the glass.

"I'll go get Eve." Godpheus told him from above. But Adam wasn't listening. All he could feel was sadness. Somehow he knew. He just knew that this wasn't how it was supposed to be. Humans weren't meant to be kept as pets. It wasn't a feeling he could go off, but an instinct. Well, at least he had fresh water in this cage. Adam let his eyes shut gently as he tried to dream of a world where he could run free and not be contained by the bars, or now, glass of a pet's cage.

He pictured the world outside the boundaries of the science lab, a world he'd never seen with his own eyes.

Soon, he was asleep.

****

~Colton~

"Would you like to meet my friend's pet human?" Ben asked, as he and Colton finished their apple crumble. Colton paused for a moment to wipe his face with the sleeve of his shirt before nodding. Truthfully, he didn't mind what his owner did to him, as long as he could have more 'real food' soon. The crumble was like a drug to him now, a magnet threatening to madden his already clueless mind. He shouldn't have given me that. He kept telling himself. I'm going to start seeing things.

"I'd like that." Colton managed a small smile up at his owner. Ben returned the grin, his eyes gleaming.

"First, I should introduce you to my parents." He said, more to himself than Colton. "Want to ride on my shoulder?"

Colton shot him a puzzled look as he calculated what this 'shoulder' was. It was embarrassing, having to physically sort through your mind to find the information you are looking for. "I don't mind." He answered, head bowed.

"OK then." Ben said. He reached out to Colton slowly and carefully. Colton himself knew what was coming and stood up to make the grabbing easier for his owner. But instead of wrapping his fingers around Colton's thin waist, he scooped the human up in his cupped hand gently, which startled him. Why is he so... nice? Colton thought as he was lifted up to fall onto the Laquanian's shoulder. He let his legs hand over the edge of the bigger boy's shoulder and gripped his shirt collar with both hands.

This was a new experience, for Colton. The institute masters had grabbed and squeezed him, sure, but never... letting him ride on their shoulders. It was like he was seeing the world from the normal scale. The Laquanian scale.

Ben led him through another hallway and down a flight of stairs to a closed wooden door. He brought his closed fist to the wood and knocked gently.

"Hey mum? Dad?" He called out. His amplified voice startled Colton and he jolted a little from his seat on his owner's shoulder. The was a distinct sound of heels clicking against tiles and the door was pulled open to reveal the woman from the pet shop... Ben's Mum? She was accompanied by a tallish brown haired man, probably Ben's father. Their eyes weren't trained on him just yet but on their son, but Colton knew they'd see him soon. Everyone did.

"What is it honey? How's your... ohh..." There they go. Colton thought dryly to himself as the giantess of his owner's mother inspected him for the second time that day.

"This is Colton." Ben said in a child-like voice. He beamed proudly. The smile that had previously been worn by Ben's father vanished. His eyes narrowed, focussed directly on Colton like twin beams of opaque headlights.

"What is that doing in this house?" He snapped incredulously, turning to his wife. "You didn't tell me you were getting my son a human!" Colton bit his lip and found himself shaking despite the heat radiating off Ben's body that felt like a warm blanket. Ben's own smile had faded into nothing now and he was standing still as a statue, head down.

"David, Ben is fifteen tomorrow. I told him he could choose his own pet as an early present so that they could get to know each other for when we go camping this weekend. You know he's always wanted a human." His mother said firmly back. David looked defeated but Colton could feel his cold glare sending a chill down his spine.

"It's not allowed out of its cage while we're camping, Benjamin." He said icily to his son. Ben opened his mouth to protest but David shushed him with a wave of his hand. Ben's mother looked apologetic as she stood beside him. Colton managed a small smile as she turned to look at him again. But he was smiling through his teeth. Inside, he was scared out of his mind. Ben's father, for some unknown reason, didn't like humans. Colton wasn't in any position to pry at the topic, but it was made clear from his speech. If he was going to stay with Ben and his family, he'd have to get used to what he'd originally thought would be his life: being treated like a pet.

It wouldn't take long to adjust. At least someone knew his place in society.

This cruel, screwed up society.