The Temple of Zarr & The Two-Legged Ones

A strange world of elite cats and human servitude

The Temple of Zarr & The Two-Legged Ones 

A man wakes on the stone floor, realizing he's chained to the brick wall behind him, as he lifts his shackled arms. Lamps light the room he's been contained in, and he can see down a long hallway. The hallway is empty, but he can hear faint cries or moaning, bouncing off the stone walls. The man tries to stand on his two legs, the chains clunk and scrape against the wall, loudly. A large shadow appears down the hallway, approaching from down the hall. Some kind of creature, stepping closer and closer. Pointy ears, a thick tail, and claws. A white cat, turns the corner of the hallway, with dark, black eyes.  

It is not as large as the shadow depicted; in fact, the cat is quite small. "Hello, pale one," it greets humorously. The man cannot understand what the cat had said, only a muffled "merr" or "mow". Confused, the man tries to break free from his chains, the cat quietly turns the corner, out of sight, letting out a high-pitched yelp, "Merroww!"  

"He is awake!" the cat calls, echoing down the hall. He begins to hear footsteps and sees shadows of two-legged beings, not much different than himself. The white feline turns the corner once again, this time with two bald men, dressed in nothing but cloth and robes. The men do not speak, and they do not dare stare into the cat's black, flame wreathed orbs; only looking straight ahead. The cat approaches the man, examining him, "Take him away." the two men, approach him, but he remembers something. He recognizes one of the men, he has blue eyes, his chin, and jaw blockier than most. His name is Erik, or at least it was. Now Erik looks at him as if he'd never had a name. Nothing but a blank slate.  

Erik begins to unlock the chains, and the man tries to stand up and step forward. Suddenly Erik jumps ahead, stopping him from moving one step farther, "Wilson no!" he shouts. The cat hisses at Erik, and he jumps back, standing straight once again. Wilson, Wilson, Wilson. The man thinks to himself over and over. He remembers his name. Wilson. The cat glares into Erik's eyes, uncurling it's back, standing straight to speak, "You cannot speak in the Temple of Zarr." Wilson can still only hear the cat mutter, "Maaroorow ma". Somehow Erik can understand this creature, he cowers in front of it, begging on his knees. "No! Please!" he pleads. 

"You shall be punished," the cat decrees. The other man quickly turns, almost snapping to his senses, restraining Erik, and taking him out of the room. Erik pleads for his life, but it does not change a thought in the little cat's mind. He vanishes around the corner, just as two more men appear. They grab Wilson, escorting him down the hall, following close behind the cat. More lanterns and vast stone structures are illuminated. Small circular carvings in the rocks and dozens of scratch marks on the corners of walls. All that can be heard from Erik now is faint his faint screaming, "What happened to him?" Wilson mutters to himself, not expecting either of the men to answer. The cat comes to a sudden halt, as does Wilson and the men. The cat turns around and says, "He spoke against the god." Once again, he could only hear the cat speaking gibberish, but what Wilson could hear was a voice in his head. As if the cat were talking to him through another channel. Wilson freezes, as he dares to ask one more question. "What is to happen to me now?" 

"You have been chosen, pale one, you have little to worry about," the cat says. Wilson shakes his head, lost in confusion. "Chosen for what?" he asks. The cat turns back around, facing forward, "The pale one will relight the sun with a soul." Wilson's heart drops, and he begins to tremble. The cat takes him outside, and he looks behind him, gazing at the structure he was in. A huge temple, large quadrants of the temple are still under construction by mobs of the human slaves, tamed to endless servitude. Larger cats, tigers, sabers, and lions, all patrol around the temple in packs, picking out random men and women, pulling them from their huddled groups, hitting them around in circles like a ball in a game. All awhile, the groups of slaves work harder to construct the leviathan structure. Wilson is taken to the top of a hill, where many different cats are arranged together. Siberian cats, more lions, tigers, and groups small cats. All different colors, some larger than others, and families of cubs, and kittens. The cat leads him to the top of a hill, where a blood-stained, stone slab lay atop the small staircase. 

"Lie down," the cat commands. Wilson obeys, laying on the cold slab. He feels the blood, still moist on his back as he stares into the sky. His veins run cold, as Erik appears through the crowds of animals, led by two red-painted jaguars. Erik's face, painted in red as well, and eyes empty; rid of any soul the once thrived. The crowd begins to roar, as the white cat climbs up to the slab, stepping on the stairs. Wilson feels numb and starts to shake fearfully. The crowded families of cats go quiet, to listen to the cat, as it prepares to speak. "A soul for the temple of Zarr!" the cat preaches to the crowd. "We give this soul; may it light the sun for another day!"  

The sun begins to set, the sky grows dark, only faintly lit by the strange ceremonial torches around the gathering of cats. The white cat slides open a compartment in the stone slab, inside a knife, already dripping with blood. Erik picks it up, to Wilson's surprise. 

"No! Erik please!" Wilson pleads, but Erik does not react, not even a flinch. The cat steps down from the pedestal, commanding Erik to sacrifice the soul. "Sacrifice! Sacrifice!" the cat begins to chant. The crowd starts to shout as well, as Erik lifts the knife higher and higher until it is finally let down into Wilson's chest. Blood drips down the side of his body as he struggles to speak. A sick feeling overtakes him, and he is thrown into darkness as the sun sets beneath the world.

Author's Note

I've uploaded this before, but I must've deleted it??? Maybe because I wanted to fix it, but either way this is an updated copy. I'm sure I'll go over it again soon, so, let me know what you think!

Reviews

[Rana]

Such nearness to perfection, this is the kind of writing that goes into the box of classics, the theme of sacrificing to relight the sun, the cat masters and human slavery- these are attractive ideas. This line was really good- "Now Erik looks at him as if he'd never had a name. ", gets the point across in a remarkable creative way, and the part where the protagonist understands the cat speak as if through another channel, that is really good- makes sense, neat design. two notes, in " The cat leads me to the top of a hill, where a blood-stained, stone slab lay atop the small staircase. " typo- "..leads (him).." and in "The other man takes Erik, taking him out of the room. " suggest- "the other man (grabs) Erik, taking him out of the room". That's all. Good stuff, keep writing.

[Joey K]

Thank you! I know for a fact you've read this before, but thanks for taking the time to send me a review. And I'm gonna read over it again, I see the typo and I like your suggestion. I might make that scene a little more dramatic.

[Rana]

Yay! sounds like a good idea, follow your heart :)

[Lea Sheryn]

Very imaginative. I enjoyed reading this one.