“Hey, kid. Wake up,” said the voice.
Cherry felt something shoving him around and groggily awoke. There was a loud continuous noise that sounded as if it roared and whooshed around him.
“Hey, are you alright, kid?”
Cherry came to his senses and climbed onto his feet. “Wh-where am I?”
The dirty man hobbled in front of Cherry and held his arms outs. “Welcome to Grove Sewers, kid!” Gears grinded around them and metal clanked when a wall of water parted. A foggy mist rose in front of them, and a blaring light cut through the air.
Cherry shielded his eyes with his hands and looked out over a balcony. A metal sky filled the space overhead as steamy pipes wove around the area like wild vines. Clean and murky water gushed out of every vent and hordes of people gathered around the clumps of stalls and crates. It was as if they had fallen into a weird underground dome with metal walls and foul damp smells.
The man smiled his toothless grin. “What do you think? Pretty nice, huh?”
Cherry wanted to pinch his nose, but he didn’t want to be rude. He gave a nod. “It’s uh—different.” He looked around and saw people bartering at stalls and little kids wandering around. “Is this beneath the town?”
“Mhm, that’s right. We live right under the same sky as you.” The man held out his hand. “The name’s Dirty Moe.”
Cherry was taken aback; he didn’t want to shake Moe’s hand, but he couldn’t bring himself to say no.
“Just call me Moe.” He grabbed Cherry’s trembling hand and wildly shook it. “Come, come, let me show you around.”
“Why? I want to go home.” Cherry stepped back; the putrid smells were getting to him. He didn’t want to follow Moe and quickly looked for an exit.
Moe put his finger on his lips and shushed Cherry. “Calm yourself and follow me.” He grabbed ahold of Cherry and pulled him through the mist. “This is a place for misfits and people down on their luck.” They ran along a winding path of stairs made of metal grates and narrow pipes for rails. “You country bumpkins forget that we live down here. If it wasn’t for us, the sewage and electrical systems would back up and ruin everything topside.”
“You mean you actively live down here?”
“Well duh—it’s you people who put us here. Ya’ll said we were too weird and unfit to live in the town.”
“That’s awful.”
“It’s not that bad. The old mayor made us a deal, we take care of your trash and live here problem free.” Moe shrugged it off with a laugh. “Besides, we get experience more than you.”
“Why would you say that?” Cherry pulled away from Moe and looked him over. “You look a little dirty—but not enough to be kept down here. Why let them do that?”
Moe stepped beneath a bright lamp and rubbed the dirt from his face. His skin had a sickly green tint and his hair looked like the threads of a mop. He reached for his hair and popped it off like a suction cup, revealing a deep blotchy scar along his head and back. “We can’t all be as pretty as you.”
Cherry stumbled backwards out of disgust. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing and felt confused. “H-how did this happen?” He felt bad for his reaction and couldn’t bring himself to look at Moe. He quickly realized the others down here looked just as sickly.
Moe shrugged. “Things just happened over time.” He walked around pointing at different people. “We got sick, and they shoved us down here.”
“I...I can’t believe they’d treat you like that.” Cherry held onto his tail and brushed it; it comforted him like a blanket. “What about medicine or doctors? Can’t someone help you?”
“I wish it were that easy, but ya’ll don’t have the kind of doctors we need. I’m afraid there’s no quick fix to our problems.”
Cherry shook his head in disbelief. “Here I thought I was the only weird one.”
Moe burst into laughter and dropped his hair. “You?! You think you’re the odd one?” He rolled around on the floor laughing, and Cherry hid behind his tail. “You’re one of the beautiful people!” Moe jumped up and dashed around Cherry, pointing out his features. “You’re young, you’re fit, you’ve got a beautiful color about you, and you can throw a ball like a canon!”
“I wish I felt as good as you make me sound. It’s not easy being the only wolf.”
“Pfft! You really are a bumpkin! The people topside have you brainwashed, child. You’ve got to get out more. Down here, the sewers will open your eyes.” Moe grabbed Cherry by the arm and pulled him onto a crate. They leapt across rickety boxes and across gaps of water. “You people in the village live in a bubble. You’re kept in the dark about the secrets of the larger world.” Moe yanked Cherry onto a moving raft that floated along the water.
“Wait a minute, Moe. I want to know more.” Cherry clung onto the post in the middle.
Moe stomped his foot down and guided the raft like riding a surfboard. The water quickly turned into rapids and sloshed them around at every turn. “There’s plenty of people like you out in the world wolf-boy!” He waved his arms around like a bird and leaned against the turns. The raft dove down a dip in the pipes and roaring waters fell around them. “No one can throw a ball like you—must be divine or something.”
“What are you saying?!” Cherry cried out for help when the water splashed him in the face. It clung to him like smelly sludge and made him retch. He felt sick to his stomach and couldn’t tell if it was the raft rocking back and forth or the smells. He closed his eyes tight and held on to the post, hoping it’d all be over soon. The waters grew rougher, and the raft tussled like it was going to capsize.
Soon after, the raft crashed into a wall of pipes and broke apart. Steel clobbered Cherry over the head as he skidded across the sticky ground. When he came to his senses, he jumped to his feet and felt the brunt of his bruises. His bushy tail was covered in green gunk, and he felt disgusted because it was like trying to pry gum out of his fur.
Moe’s insane laugh echoed around the dim street, and Cherry realized he was alone. He called out to Moe but could not see through the thick mist. He cowered in fear, Moe was nowhere to be found, and he didn’t know what to do. His ears twitched with every drop of water or tacky foot that shuffled across the sticky metal floors. Dark silhouettes appeared in the mist when Cherry drew close, they were the other residences like Moe. Sickly individuals with green skin, a dirty disposition, and raggedy clothes dotted the street. Some were trying to barter with knives and force, while others begged for charity to merchants. Cherry nervously crept through the mist, hoping he wouldn’t disrupt them.
A cheering crowd erupted through the street and startled Cherry with a jolt. His ears twitched towards the noise. He hastily squeezed between the makeshift buildings and stalls that were made of planks and rusty pipes. The tight walls scratched his skin and clung onto his tail like a bad comb. He cringed in pain and pulled himself through the tight path until he popped out into a crowd. People were gathered around a circular pit where a bright light rained down in the center. He hoped someone could help him get back home, but his eyes widened with joy when he saw what was in the pit. Cherry clung onto the rails and hung over the edge as the crowd cheered.
Down in the pit was a large baseball diamond filled with players and loaded bases. Cherry’s heart pounded with excitement, he had never saw anyone who wasn’t human. Some of the players looked like an animalistic human, like Cherry, but others looked as though they were made of all kinds of different materials. There were organic creatures that looked as if they were made of gelatin, ice, molten rock, or had many tentacles and scales. Others looked as if they were made of computer or machine parts, with cameras for heads. Cherry smiled widely and felt a flutter in his chest when the batter approached.
A burly woman composed of an icy form came up to bat. She twisted her ball cap around picked up a baseball bat. She bent her knees and got into position. Cherry clung tightly onto the rails when the pitcher readied his throw. The ball ignited into a flame and split into two as it hurdled towards the batter. She ground her stance firmly in the dirt and her bat started to freeze. In one loud clink, the two fiery balls were knocked out of the pit and caused the bat to shatter. A misty puff exploded across the field, and the batter’s team scored a homerun.
Cherry jumped up and down with amazement, he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “No way! I wanna do that!”
“It’s awesome, aint it?” a cat-girl asked. She waved and hollered with a sign in her hands.
“How do I do that?” Cherry asked. The girld didn’t hear him, but he wasn’t worried. He felt a spark in his heart. He didn’t know how it was happening, but it was exhilarating. He felt as if he could be someone if he could join a team like that and learn their tricks. “This is so cool!”
“Hey, it’s not cool! You’re stepping on me!” came a voice.
“Sorry!” Cherry jumped back and bumped into someone behind him. They hissed and shoved him forward. The mist from the pit had crept up into the crowd and he couldn’t see between the forest of feet and legs crowding his sight.
“Watch it, you big lug!” said the voice.
“Sorry, I don’t see you!”
An announcer cheered and sirens went off, for the winning team. The crowd cheered and roared; it was like they were stirring up a sweaty stench. Cherry didn’t care, he wanted to see what was going on down below and leaned climbed onto the other side of the rails. The crowd crashed around like waves and bumped Cherry off the rails. Before he could catch himself, a jelly blob stretched out his arm and coated him in ooze. It was so cold and slippery when he latched onto the edge, he lost his grip and fell.
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