The Last Act of the Circus
Animals

Travis Washington, Sean Swain

LAST ACT o rwe.
CIRCUS ANIMALS

2005/2006
Contents

Book 1: The Pacing Panther

IRemember...

A Cage is a Cage is a Cage...

Book 2: The Animals Awaken

How Do You Move a Two-Ton Animal?
'm Not Afraid Anymore

‘The Lion’s Fate

‘That Black Bastard!

IDon’t Think You Can Beat It Out of Them

We're Our Own Leaders

Book 3: The Last Act

Welcome to the Greatest Traveling Show in the
World!

Balls! Balls! Balls!

Epilogue: The World of the Free

13

15

23

61

63

70

78

85

98

113

129

131

16

155
Writers’ Note 161
“Twitch” of Central Texas Anarchist Black Cross sent me a
sheaf of Sean Swain's writings, oh, in 2001 or so. I read through
them and thought, “Damn! This cat can write!” So, I threw them
together into a zine entitled The Sean Swain Reader. Since then,
we've collaborated on several writing projects for conferences,
his work, interviews, etc

1 didn’t know Travis until they sent me their rough draft
of The Last Act of the Circus Animals in 2005 or 2006. 1 didn’t
get to know him as well or meet with him, like Sean, but have
published other works by him, notably, “On the Imus Contro-
versy” This was a brilliant analysis of the brouhaha that the
racist ignoramus radio jock, Don Imus, embroiled himself in,
by calling a women's basketball team “a bunch of hos™

So, I read through Last Act and loved it, like any real per-
son would and thought, “hmmm... what should we do, here?"
1 wrote them back and said, “This is awesome, here’s what I
think we should do—double the size of it, complete it, and in the
meantime, I'll run this rough draft by some prisoner artists and
get their take on it to give this mutha some visuals, capeche?”

I hadn't written so much as a syllable for it, but felt per-
haps as proud to have been a part of a writing collaboration
as I've ever felt. The artists—the incomparable Kevin “Rashid”
Johnson, the fantastic Todd (Hyung-Rae) Tarselli and the tal-
ented Howard Stephens came through big time and I still have
several of the originals.

It was put together in three books—100 pages in all. George
Orwell once said that “the most dangerous thing in the world is
the fifty-paged pamphlet” So, here was double trouble! Since
Ifirst published it and started sending it out (and, mostly in)
it's been flying off the shelves (Sean has three) like hotcakes
It seems everyone has to have a copy up and down the pod
in every damn prison. Even the guards can’t wait to get their
claws onit, 5o the reprints have been unusually often. But then,
bread and water ain't so bad—if you can afford them!
Now, I don't want to ruin the thing by yapping about the
story, so I'm going to talk a little bit about what this book
is indicative of. I's a prisoner zine, in this case a marvelous
blending of talents by a Euro prisoner and an Afrikan prisoner,
housed in some dump in Ohio. I've collaborated with prisoners
going on twenty years now and have over 1,200 publications
(zines) overwhelmingly by, for, and with prisoners which I (in-
sanely) make freely available to them and anyone else with an
ounce of salt in them. Did I mention how adorable I think my
wife looks like in her greasy, tattered rags? She also loves hovel
life!

‘Thisis the samizdat press of Amerikkka, which Ilike to call
“the literature of revolt!” There's no 501 C-3 or any ties to some
bullshit agenda, political ideology, or other eggshell-walking
nonsense. Yeah, we three consider ourselves anarchists and
write like it, but we also realize others have important things
to say and write about, so I publish all that shit, too. I feel an-
archist thinking and writing can wear big boy pants and out-
think the commies or anybody else. I think it is important to
give people a genuine education and let them decide for them-
selves who to believe, who to like and what the hell they want
to consider themselves as. They're going to make up their own
‘minds anyway, right?

But, at least this way, they can have real alternatives to sift
through and go through their epiphanies. Besides, you don't
see any other types of people doing things this way, do you?
It's @nticopyright, meaning, we not only don't give a damn
if someone copies it without authorization (horrors!), but we
encourage it! Like I said, we are anarchists and hate capitalism
or any kind of coercive authority. Liberating ideas belong to
everybody and like air and water, should be free.

I'm a writer myself and I've always bristled when some-
body tried to edit my work for “publication” That's because
this meant watering down the intensity of my rants to shoe-
horn them into quasi mainstream acceptability. Screw that! So,

6
though I'm the editor of these things, Ilet folks have their say,
in their own words and in their own vernacular. T'll clean up
obvious mistakes, but I'm not going to toy with their intent!
Who am I (or anyone else) to say how a prisoner enslaved by
these monsters feels—other than themselves???

Ialso publish other stuff about the vile killing machine
known as foreign policy and all kinds of other things prisoners
need to know. Ninety five percent of them will eventually be
spilled out into the glare of this insane society, where they
will face endless hassles, discrimination, laws, and brain-dead
people—so they need to have as functioning a mind as possible

Most prisoners have long since blown off their public edu-
cation as irrelevant and oppressive. So, once they develop their
writing chops, it is uniquely understandable and to the point.
There is no mistaking what they are saying, unlike say, any
college (or high school) textbook. They are free to explode on
paper with their bic pen insert. Of course, even the “radicals”
want nothing to do with this sort of thing, although they may
well up with the courage to give it lip service. Sheesh!

Malcolm X said that the oppressed need to “discover their
humanity and then they'll move” It's why he became such a
powerful speaker and writer and why his work still rings true
today, like that of George Jackson and others. So, we're not
really worried about what people say, think, or do vis-a-vis
this explosive type of literature. We know that those who are
captives-whether in a prison or some miserable high school or
some mental hospital or as part of the military killing machine
or erapola workplace-can tell the difference between the real
deal and a bunch of bullshit!

See, we wanna “win the hearts and minds” of people by al-
lowing them to unleash their own humanity, so that they can
discover their own way to maximize their potential by tapping
into their own talents, pursuing their interests in the service to
humanity and to live a for-real life. That is our agenda. Yeah, I
know, how sinister can you get? But, it beats sticking people

7
into concentration camps, bludgeoning them in a sort of liter-
ary Phoenix Program, which is what the government feels is
appropriate.

Alright, I'm going to stop pestering you, so that you can
move onto the actual text of this thing. You'll probably want to
read it straight through, because in order to get to the Last Act
you should probably start with the first one.

Anyone can get my catalogs and zines. All you have to do
is request them.

South Chicago ABC Zine Distro

PO, Box 721

Homewood, IL 60430

Jeremy Hammond

You are holding a true revolutionary gem in your hands,
written by some down-as-fuck comrades who speak with au-
thenticity to the realities that we suffer behind bars

Not long after completing my first prison bid, I picked up
a copy of “Last Act of the Circus Animals” back when it was a
three-part photocopied zine distributed by South Chicago ABC.
T was so stunned by how aceurately this work of fiction cap-
tured the nuances of prison life and the dog-eat- dog capitalist
world that I made dozens of copies and sent it to everyone I
Knew who was still behind bars.

Ten years since its DIY publication, the situation has de-
teriorated: minimum wage can't pay the rent, mass surveil-
lance watches our every move, and militarized police literally
get away with murder. The so-called “World of the Free” in-
creasingly resembles the prison to the point that it would be
more accurate to call it “minimum security” or a “free range
prison”. Now headed by a oligarch fascist clown, the rich cir-
cus metaphors of “Last Act” have taken on new urgency and
relevance.

“Last Act” tells the story of circus animals who unite and
rebel against the Ringmaster in order to get to the “World of
the Free”. On one level, i’s a statement against animal cruelty:

8
that all life on Earth has been subjugated or exterminated for
the exclusive benefit of human civilization, and that the vicious
pr
story is about capitalist society: the pyramid-scheme caste sys-
tem in which ruling classes exploit and oppress us all, process-
ing our blood, sweat, and tears into profits, and throwing us
only enough crumbs to barely survive.

But most striking is its scathing criticism against mass
incarceration. Human beings are treated like animals, having
been kidnapped from the “World of the Free", warehoused in
cages and chains, forced to perform backflips and headstands,
and subjected to the control-freak reprogramming methods
of the Ringmaster. The Ringmaster maintains division and
competition among the animals using carrot-and-stick neg-
ative reinforcement and providing the largest cages and the
best food for his most obedient subjects. The Chimps believe
that they are more deserving of this privileged status because
they are smarter and the Ringmaster throws them a few extra
bananas for their loyalty. Surely everyone can recognize an
equivalent in their everyday lives, whether it s the asskisser
at work who sucks up to the boss, or the inmate snitch that
rats out other prisoners. Unfortunately, many accept their
subjugated status as if they brought it upon themselves, if
not because they have been psychologically broken by their
training and programming sessions then because of the threat
of violence and brutality, to the point where they can no
longer even imagine what life was like before the circus.

But the Black Panther, who paces his cage restlessly, does
not forget that he was born free, that there is a world outside of
the cireus before they were captured and imprisoned, and that
unless we reject their “backflips for bananas” capitalist pyra-
mid scheme, we will never be free. As much as it seems that
the animals depend on the Ringmaster for food and shelter, it
is in fact the Ringmaster who depends on the animals to per-
form tricks for his own survival. As the saying goes, “the bosses

tice of z00s and circuses must end. On another level, the

9
need us, we don't need the bosses”. The Panther breaks down
the strategy to the other animals: “If we do not obey, if we do
not perform, then there is no show. This means the Ringmas-
ter does not get his reward and he goes hungry. And soon, the
Circus dies” Tired of doing backflips for bananas, the animals
rebel, causing a crisis in which the Ringmaster uses escalating
violence and brutality in a failed attempt to force compliance
‘This angers the spectators who leave without paying, worries
the Keepers and Trainers who eventually turn on the Ringmas-
ter, and attracts the attention of the ASPCA who later pays the
Ringmaster a visit.

In “Last Act’, the ASPCA documents and exposes the harsh
conditions endured by the animals, leading to the Ringmas-
ter's downfall. However in our world of mass incarceration,
1o human rights equivalent would ever be allowed full reign
inside a prison, preferring that the realities of our conditions
be shielded from public srutiny. Even when such evidence
leaks through, such as the coverage from Mother Jones and The
Nation of the malicious medical neglect that led to the deaths
of dozens at private immigrant detention centers, the govern-
ment dismisses these cases as unfortunate solated incidents
and makes vague promises of reforms while the industry con-
tinues business as usual

‘The American Correctional Association (ACA) gives acered-
itation to prisons that seek the stamp of approval for humane
treatment of prisoners. As anyone who is incarcerated knows,
the ACA audits are planned months in advance so that the ad-
‘ministration can get their pet inmates to repaint the walls and
wax the floors in time. When the inspectors walk around dur-
ing mainline, the food being served is of a much higher quality
than usual. If they want to interview prisoners, the administra-
tion will already have a few loyal subjects lined up. In reality,
the ACA is a private boys club made up of many former prison
wardens who have each others’ back, and, in reality, it has no

10
legal standing or mechanism to punish prisons that aren’t up
to code.

‘The idea that prisoners can achieve justice through admin-
istrative grievances is as ridiculous as the idea that circus an-
imals can petition the Ringmaster to be freed. It is basically
a pressure release valve that redirects our righteous rage into
predetermined channels that ultimately lead nowhere-just an-
other one of their tricks to control us,

So what are the animals to do? As panthers, tigers, and li-
ons, certainly they could easily maul the Ringmaster to death~
a thought that has surely crossed the minds of everyone who
has ever had an ignorant asshole boss or been harassed by an
abusive prison guard. While individual acts of retaliatory vio-
lence would certainly be deserved, it is unlikely to shut down
the circus in its entirety: they have an armada of weapons on
site and the national guard on- call to stomp out the attackers
and quickly resume normal operations. As the panther points
out, it's more than the individual Ringmaster that is responsi-
ble for the world of cages, for even he is only a small cog in a big
machine; and with every mauled Ringmaster there is another
ready to step up and take his place.

For the purposes of this story the authors choose the path
of nonviolent resistance, but as written in their endnotes they

recognize that “violent revolutionary activities certainly lead
to successes in many, many situations and we are not person-
ally nor politically averse to the tactics of political violence”.
Certainly anybody familiar with Sean Swain's history knows
that his ideas about insurrection aren't limited to nonviolent
tactics-he is down to ride. No single strategy works in every
situation; so long as we haven't abolished prisons or ended an-
imal cruelty yet, it's best to keep all options open. In any case,
“Last Act” focuses on one set of tactics that has had established
successes both in the free world and in prisons alike-the strike.

‘The struggle prisoners face today is similar to the one of
the animals forced to perform tricks in the circus: the exploita-

1
tion of cheap inmate labor. Prisoners basically run the institu-
tion, everything from maintenance of plumbing and lighting,
to cooking and serving the food-all jobs that the administra
tion would have to hire additional COs for,if it weren't for obe-
dient inmates satisfied with the five bucks a month. Many pris-
oners produce everything from military camouflage to McDon-

ald's uniforms in factories that resemble sweatshops, where we
are not afforded fair labor rights, minimum wages, or health
and safety standards-all permitted because the 13th amend-
‘ment sanctions involuntary servitude for convicted criminals,

Fed up with these bogus conditions, prisoners around the
world are refusing to be compliant inmates and have resisted
through collective work strikes and hunger strikes. Though
the Supreme Court has ruled against our right to organize
as a union, this has not stopped thousands from joining
the recently formed IWW Incarcerated Worker Organizing
Committee. State prisons in Alabama, Texas, Georgia, and
elsewhere have had to stop factory production because of
work strikes. and California has had two major hunger strikes
that made national news and forced prison officials to make
concessions in regards to long-term solitary confinement
These struggles have resulted in some material gains in our
conditions-not something to be discounted-but we should
not sell ourselves short by compromising for minor reforms
in lieu of the greater goals. We want more than larger cages
or more bushels of bananas-we want freedom, an end to
imprisonment, for one and all! Though the character of the
ruling powers may fluctuate from the false hope of liberalism
to blatant right-wing fascism, they all support the prison
industrial complex, and will continue to do so until they are
stopped. The war continues-they may have shot Harambe,
but Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus closed up
shop. There is hope, comrades! No more backflips for bananas
‘The show must not go on.

12
Book 1: The Pacing
Panther
1

“Thinkers aren’t limited by what they know. They
can always increase what they know. They're lim-
ited by what puzzles them. Because there’s no way
10 become curious about something that doesn’t puz-
2le you”

~Daniel Quinn, My Ishmael

“When you control a man’s thinking, you do not
have to worry about his actions...”

~Carter G. Woodson

“Man’s true liberation, individual and collective, lies
in his emancipation from authority and from the be-
liefin it

~Emma Goldman
I Remember...

‘There was once a young black panther who had been cap-
tured in the wild and brought to the Circus where he was to
be trained to perform stunts. It was only under the most bru-
tal conditions that he would obey the Ringmaster's commands
but the Ringmaster reasoned that eventually he would come
around—just like the other animals

Now over time, the panther grew older and had indeed
learned quite a few tricks of the trade, but he had also learned
much about the Ringmaster and the Circus in general. Most
of the other animals at the Circus felt that the panther was
odd because he was uncannily quiet and distant. Moreover, he
constantly paced his cage! This confounded the other animals,
because whereas they would sometimes pace to stretch, this
panther never stopped pacing! So one evening, after the day’s
show was over and all the animals had been locked in their
cages, curiosity got the best of a Siberian tiger who was caged
across from the old panther.

“Hey panther!” the tiger growled, his voice like a bag of
gravel

‘The panther stopped in his tracks and looked through the
rusty bars in front of the cage at the bulky cat across the aisle
from him. He acknowledged the tiger

“What do you want tiger?” he asked, his shadow falling
across the clump of yellow straw in the corner of his cage.

“I'know you've been here for quite a while now and it's
really none of my business, but why do you constantly pace
that damned cage?” the tiger asked

15
‘The panther hesitated, his dark figure illuminated by the
dim track lighting suspended from the ceiling. His piercing
eyes glowed from the darkness as he answered:

“Because I remember”

“Well, what is it that you remember?” the tiger inquired
further.

“That T am Panther”

‘The tiger was puzzled by this response.

“What does that have to do with you pacing all the time?"
he asked.

“Ihave not forgotten” the panther replied.

“You have not forgotten what?”" the tiger questioned impa-
tiently.

“That T am Panther”

“But Mr. Panther, I till don’t understand why you can’t sit
down and relax.” the tiger said, taking his own advice and low-
ering himself down on his haunches

“Because I do not want to die. I will not let him kill me,” the
panther sternly replied, and resumed his walk.

“Who's trying to kill you, Mr. Panther?”

After a moment, the panther answered, “The same one
who s killing you! The same one who has killed many of you
already—the Ringmaster!

Now all of the other animals who were normally whooping
and hollering had fallen silent, for rarely did the old panther
speak. The tiger had become frustrated with the panther be-
cause he seemed to be talking in circles and not making sense
He knew that the old black cat had been there for a long time
and thought that perhaps he had gone mad. But the tiger was
not yet sure, so he continued:

“Mr. Panther, you say that you pace your cage because you
have not forgotten that you are panther and because you don't
want the Ringmaster to kill you. But surely you will not be
Killed for relaxing. Look at me! I'm sitting and I'm quite alive.
So what you have said doesn't make any sense™

16
“Yas. Mr. Panther a huge bull elephant interjected a couple
cages down from the tiger. He stood at the front of the cage, his
eyes fixed on the panther. ‘I too am puzzled by what you have
said”

At this point, many of the other animals joined in and
voiced their desire for the panther to explain himself. So the
panther slowly walked up to the front of his cage, thought for
2 moment, and said:

“Alright! T will tell you what I mean. Do you see that old
heap of a beast lying in the corner of his cage over there” asked
the panther, nodding in the direction of the cage between the
tiger and the elephant where an old mangy lion slept.

“Are you referring to the lion?” the tiger inquired.

“Well yas, at one time he was a lion,” said the panther. “Yas!
Years ago, when he first arrived here, he was a mighty lion. He
roared. He clawed and bit at his bars trying to get out. He gave
all of his Trainers hell every time he got the chance, resisted all
their attempts to train him, and would not do anything the ring-
‘master told him to do. But after a while the Ringmaster's pow-
exs of persuasion started to wear on the lion, for he had learned
that if he didn't obey the Ringmaster, he would be beaten and
thrown back in the cage. Moreover, he knew that if he did not
obey, he would not eat!

“So, slowly but surely, he began to give in to some of the
Ringmaster's demands. At first he would sit when instructed
to sit and reluctantly go where he was told to go. But at night,
back in his cage he would still claw and gnaw at the bars. And
when he tired of that, he would pace back and forth for hours at
a time. Occasionally, he would look over at me, our eyes would
Tock and I could see that he was still Lion.

“However, as time grew on, he started giving in to more of
the Master's demands until there came a time where he would
even jump through hoops and rings of fire for the Master. Even-
tually, he became the Master's favorite and one of the main
Circus attractions!”

17
Now all of the animals at the Circus aspired to become one
of the Ringmaster's favorites, for obtaining this status meant
‘more food; a roomier, more comfortable cage; more time out-
side the cage. Normally, these most prized positions were held
by the chimpanzees, because they were considered the most in-
telligent of all the animals. But occasionally, a member of one
of the ‘lower species would be allowed to ascend to one of the
top positions, so as to inspire a sense of hope in other members
of its species. The tiger was especially ambitious in this regard,
50 he interrupted the panther to pose a question:

“Wait a minute, Mr. Panther. You're saying that old ball of
fur over there was once the Master's favorite?”

“Yas?" the panther said. “He had become a great performer
and it seemed like he had won the Master's affection”

“So Mr. Panther” the tiger interjected. “Are you saying that
if1do everything Master tells me to do—sit when he tells me
to, and jump through rings of fire for him—he'll make me his
favorite like the lion was?"

“Perhaps he would? growled the panther.

“Well" the tiger said excitedly, “if that's all I have to do
then. "

“Isaid, ‘Perhaps’ tiger!” the panther interrupted.

“Depending on how well you behave. But even then there’s
no guarantee because you have a lot of competition. The Ring-
‘master likes it like that. The more competition, the better. Be-
sides, don't you want to know what happened to the lion?” he
asked.

“Yeah Tiger! Be quiet and let the panther finish!” one of the
chimps shrieked from his expansive cage in the front of the
range.

“Now, you know you wouldn't say that to me in my face!”
the tiger growled back. “So pull on back in that big ass cage up
there and shut the fuck up, punk bitch!"

18
“Oh! You want to growl and be big bad tiger now. But you
“Meow" like a motherfucka when the Master tell you to do
something” The chimp retorted.

‘The panther watched as a scene that had become oh so com-
mon back in the housing area began to unfold. Other animals
joined in on the fracas, and began arguing amongst one an-
other, their voices echoing off the aluminum windowless walls
of the housing area. But before it got too out of hand, the Ele-
phant interceded:

“Hold Up!” He trumpeted, drawing the attention of the an-
imals. “Are you all gonna let the panther finish speaking or
what?!”

‘The bickering amongst the animals trickled down to a few
grumbles

“Yeah!” one of the monkeys shrieked from the back of the
range. “What happened to the lion, Mr. Panther?"

After a moment, the steady hum of the huge industrial fan
high up on the wall at the back of the range ruled the night
‘The panther continued:

“Well, he died” the panther said, pausing for a moment to
et the gravity of what he'd said sink in. “Yas, the Ringmaster
Killed him. For awhile he was the star attraction. And during
that time he enjoyed the relative benefits that come with that
status—more food, the big cage, all that!

“But, as you can see, he paid a steep price. For I noticed
that, over time, his roar became less thunderous. And when he
would return to his cage at night, he no longer paced it. He had
stopped gnawing at the bars that confined him and the Lion
in his eyes grew dimmer and dimmer until there was no Lion
Ieft in them. Yet he jumped at every opportunity to please the
Master until one day he had grown too old to learn new tricks
or perform the old ones.

“And then the Ringmaster withdrew his favor. He threw
him back in that small cage and never let him perform again.
Yas! He locked him in that cage over there and left him to die—

19
again. And what you see curled up over there is what's left of
him”

“But what do you mean, Mr. Panther?” the elephant asked,
watching the rise and fall of the rib cage of the emaciated lion.
“The lion is alive. He just sleeps all the time”

“Mr. Elephant, I will answer your question” the panther
said, turning his head toward the elephant. “But first allow me
to ask you a few questions: Who are you? Where did you come
from and how long have you been here?”

“That's easy!” the elephant replied. “l am a Circus Elephant.
Thave spent my whole life here. This is my home.™

“Well, Mr. Elephant, what if I told you this is not true? What
i1 told you that you have not always been ‘Circus Elephant’
and that this is not your home?” the panther asked, staring into
the elephant’s eyes.

‘The elephant reared up on his hind legs and trumpeted, “I
would say that you are a liar! From as far back as I can remem-
ber [ have been a Circus Elephant. So are you questioning my
memory, Panther?” the elephant asked angrily.

“Oh no, Mr. Elephant.” the panther said calmly, shaking his
head. “I am simply saying that over the years, the Ringmaster
has managed to persuade you to forget.

“Now listen to me and please don't take offense to what
1 am about to say, because it is the truth. I remember when
they brought you here years ago. You woke me up at night on
several oceasions banging against that cage, trying to get out”

‘The panther turned his gaze toward the tiger. “And you, Mr.
Tiger—you came shortly after Mr. Elephant there. You used to
pace that cage incessantly, wanting to be free. Like me, the lion
over there, and many of the rest, you have not always been here.
You have not always been circus animals, forced to do silly lt-
e stunts in order to eat. You have not always lived in cages.
No! The Ringmaster brought you here from the free world, you
were once free!” he exclaimed.

2
Just then, the voice of a young orangutan who had been
born into the Circus rang out form down the row of cages at the
rear of the housing area, across from the monkeys. For years,
he'd occupied the smallest of all the cages

“Free? What does ‘free’ mean Mr. Panther?” he asked.

‘The panther pressed the right side of his head against the
bars, straining to see the orangutan as he spoke.

“Mr. Orangutan, has there ever been atime when the Master
tried to make you behave a certain way and you refused to?”

“Yas? the Orangutan replied. “That used to happen a lot
when I was younger”

“Do you remember how you felt at that time?”

“Yas. he answered.

“Well, that's what free feels like!” The panther said, turning
back toward the tiger.

“And Mr. Tiger has there ever been a time when the Ring-
master cracked you with that whip and you felt like mauling
him?”"

“Every time" the tiger growled.

“Well, that feeling is your desire to be free. And that's
just a glimpse of what Freedom really means!” The panther
exclaimed, considering each animal he could see from the
cage.

“There is a world where we are all free. A world where Tiger
is free to hunt; where Monkey is free to swing from tree to tree
and eat as many bananas as he wants. A world where Lion is
royalty; where Elephant does not have to stand on his hind legs
and wait for master to give him peanuts. There is a world where
Orangutan knows what it means to be Orangutan, where there
is nothing trying to stop him from being Orangutan.

“Yas! There is a world where no species of animal is consid-
ered better or more important than any other species; where
Tiger and his way of life is just as important as Chimp and his
way of life. And 1 lived in that world! And like most of you I
was taken out of that world and brought to this world of cages

21
To a world where the Mighty Lion, King of the Jungle, is forced
to relinquish his crown and reduced to a heap of meat. A world
where not only is Elephant prohibited from being Elephant, but
where he's made to forget that he is Elephant, and tells me he

“So, you all ask me why I pace? Itis because I do not like this
world. It is because this is not where I am supposed to be. It is
because I remember where I came from; because I remember that
Tam Panther, and Panther does not belong here. It is because
I remember the lion. And I remember that as long as he was
pacing, he too remembered that he was Lion. He remembered
the World of the Free and that memory kept him alive.

“You ask why I do not sit down and relax? It is because
1do not want to forget that I am Panther. It is because I do
not want to die like the lion did years ago. For the moment
he stopped clawing at the bars that held him captive, the mo-
ment he stopped pacing, was the moment that he forgot that he
was Lion. And in that instant, when he forgot that he was Lion,
he died!”

With that, the panther began pacing again.

2
Ringmaster spoke to them. When he finished he turned and
opened the cage door to step into the cage with the gorilla

“As soon as he opened the cage door, the gorilla changed.
His face became an ugly snarl and he lept across the length
of the cage toward the Ringmaster. He moved so swiftly that
the Keepers and Trainers could not react before the gorilla had
gripped the Ringmaster and was pounding him against the bars
of the cage. The Ringmaster was limp and bloody when the
gorilla threw him through the open door and out into the arena,
and the gorilla followed behind, emerging from the cage and
stomping upon the Ringmaster. He picked him up aga
again and slammed him to the floor.

“Iwas just as shocked at this outburst as everyone else be-
cause I had believed the gorilla had become one of the Obedi-
ent Ones. But I had been wrong. The gorilla had been biding
his time just like I was.

“I watched from the circular cage and there was nothing I
could do as the Trainers and Keepers all encircled the gorilla
while the crowd was screaming and running for the exits and
the clowns were scurrying for safety. The Trainers and Keepers
were shocking him with the hot sticks, and one Keeper tried to
grab the chain on the gorilla’s collar, but the gorilla grabbed
him instead. He slammed the Keeper to the ground and he did
not move:

“One of the Keepers ran away and I thought that he fled in
fear—but I was to learn otherwise

“When the Keeper returned, he was holding a long, metal
stick. He pointed it at the gorilla, who had grabbed one of the
Trainers to use him as a shield and prevent the others from
shocking him with the hot sticks. Still the Keeper with the
‘metal stick pointed it at the gorilla and fire came out of the end
of it. A loud explosion boomed and the stick somehow tore a
hole through both the Trainer and the gorilla” the panther de-
scribed.

5
“It tore a hole in them, the panther repeated. “And the go-
rilla bled from his stomach. He threw down the Trainer he had
been using as a shield and the Keeper with the metal stick made
the fire and explosion happen again and again, and each time,
pieces of the gorilla flew off, chunks of flesh and muscle. He
bled from the holes as if he had been bitten by teeth the size
of an elephant's tusks, and he was dying. In one desperate at-
tempt, he charge the Keeper with the metal stick and when it
‘made fire for the last time, the gorilla’s face flew away and he
landed in a bloody heap at the Keeper's feet.

“He was dead.” the panther said flatly. “But so was the Ring-
master”

Up until this point, the other animals had listened silently.
But when the panther mentioned the death of the Ringmaster,
they began to stir.

“The Ringmaster died?” the tiger asked incredulously.

“Is that what you said?"

“Yas? the panther answered. “This was not the Ringmaster
all of you know. That Ringmaster was a short, round creature
with no hair—a different creature than the one who s Ringmas-
ter now”

“So there is more than one Ringmaster?” the elephant
asked.

“That is what you must know” the panther said. “When the
gorilla killed the Ringmaster, I thought the Circus was finished
and that I would soon be set free. But that was clearly not the
case, as T am still here among you™

For a brief moment, the panther’s gaze fixed upon the tiger.

“We did not perform for a few days and the Circus was shut
down for that time. The good creatures were coming in and out
of the housing area and all the Trainers and Keepers smelled
of fear. But it was only a few days later that the door of the
housing area swung open and in strode the new Ringmaster in
his top hat and gloves and cape. It was the Ringmaster all of
you know, the one who beats us and whips us and makes us

6
perform. The new Ringmaster, the Keeper who had killed the
gorilla”

‘The elephant gasped.

“You mean this Ringmaster was once a Keeper?” the ele-
phant asked. “He was once one of the creatures in gray who
beat us and feed us and escort us to the Arena?”

“Yas? the panther confirmed. “This Ringmaster was once a
Keeper. And he killed the gorilla. So because of his ruthlessness,
the others recognized him as their leader and he became the
new Ringmaster”

‘The animals were stunned.

“So if we kill the Ringmaster, it will not do any good” the
tiger concluded despondently, sighing.

‘The panther shook his head.

“Ithink I see what you mean;” the elephant said. “If you kill
this Ringmaster, then one of the other Keepers will take his
place. And another and another. The Cireus can go on forever
or until they run out of creatures. We would have to kil every
Iast one of them”

“But what if all of us attack at the same time and take out
as many of them as we can?” the tiger asked insistently. I we
all attack together, they cannot kill every one of us and some
of us will get free”

“We can't” answered one of the monkeys. “We're never out
of our cages at the same time. They only let us out a few at a
time and keep the rest of us locked up”

“And that is why they do it that way piped in the chimp.

“Just in case you inferior animals get some funny ideas”

“Well, I've got some funny ideas, “the tiger growled.

“I've got alot of them. And I want to sink my teeth into that
Ringmaster!”

“As do 17 the panther commiserated. “And the gorilla did as
well. But I want to get to the World of the Free and using my
claws and teeth isn't going to get me there. It didn't work for
the gorilla and it will not work for us.

a7
“If we encountered one of these creatures in the Land of the
Free, perhaps we would be able to tear him to pieces with claws
and teeth and tusks and fists. But not here. Not in the Circus
We cannot defeat him that way. In this situation violence is
futile. It is suicide. T learned this from the gorilla. Actually, he
saved my life. If not for him, I may have done the same thing,

“You sce, the Ringmaster is an idea. The Ringmaster is a
concept and you cannot kill it. It is not the creature nor is it
the clothes that he wears or the cane and whip he carries. The
Ringmaster is the idea of who gives orders, of who is in power.

“I think the gorilla believed that if he killed the Ringmas-
ter, there would be no one to give orders to the others and we
would all go free” the panther said. “But he did not know that
these creatures have devised a system that goes on and on and
never ends and that killing one creature won't do any good”

‘The panther studied the tiger for a moment.

“You must understand.” the panther continued. “The nature
of the Circus is violence. To lock us in cages and deprive us
of freedom is violence, whatever their reason for doing it. To
whip and poke us with hot sticks is violence, no matter their
reasons. Even when the Keepers are just standing there, they
are a threat—a threat of violence. They are a reminder of what
will happen if we forget our place and act upon any of those
funny ideas of freedom, and the Keepers will do whatever they
have to do. They will kil for the Ringmaster, might even die for
him, because their minds are in cages. They will kill you and
make an example of you so other animals will never act upon
those same funny ideas.

“No, the Ringmaster and those who obey him cannot be
defeated by violence. The Ringmaster and those who obey him
cannot be defeated by violence. The Ringmaster has perfected
violence, Mr. Tiger”

“The tiger, who had begun circling his cage impatiently, let
out a loud growl and said, “Well if we can't break out or bite
and claw our way out, then it seems to me that we can never

8
get to this Free World. So why the hell did you ever bring it up,
Panther? You talk about the cruelty of the Ringmaster, but you
are crueler than he is. Because now your talk of this World of
the Free has awakened in me a desire to be free, yet it appears
that this can never happen. I wish I would have never spoken
to you. I should have just left you to pace in that fucking cage!”

“No! No! Tiger, you are jumping to conclusions” the pan-
ther said. “I assure you that there is a way for us all to be free”

Suddenly, one of the monkeys began jumping up and down
and rattling his cage.

“Yas! Yas!" he shrieked excitedly” I think I've got it, Mr. Pan-
ther! Are you saying that if just stop obeying the Master I can
£0 to World of the Free?"

Hearing this, the old panther cracked a rare smile and said,
“No, Mr. Monkey. That's not what I'm saying. Unfortunately,
one monkey don't stop no show. One panther doesn't either
for that matter. If that were possible, I would have been gone!”

“But how do you know that Mr. Panther?” the monkey
asked.

“Yeah! How do you know that?” the tiger challenged, glar-
ing at the panther in frustration.

‘The panther met the tiger's stare.

“Iknow because I have seen these things fail” the panther
responded sternly.

“And I set out to determine why they failed”

“Let me give you a clue” the chimp interposed, his feet
crossed luxuriously in front of him as he sat on his perch on the
jungle gym, surrounded by discarded banana peels. “All your
little plots and schemes fail because this is the Circus and you
are Circus Animals. That's just the way it is. The Ringmaster is
the Ringmaster. So you can wrack your silly little brains about
how to take down a system that works— and works the right
way. And you can blather away about this Free World fantasy,
but when it comes down to it, when its all said and done, you
‘malcontents are going to grow old right here. Get used to it!”

19
“That remains to be seen.” the panther replied evenly, “But
if we grow old here, it will not be because fate has doomed us
No. And if we get to the World of the Free, it will not be because
we took the gorilla’s course of action and resorted to violence,
orbecause one of us refused to follow the Ringmaster's orders”

“Let me guess—you've seen that fail?” the chimp asked,
peeling another banana

“Yas? the panther answered.

“What? Are you gonna tell us another sad gorilla story?
Some gorilla stopped following orders?” the chimp provoked,
talking around a mouthful of banana.

“No. Not a gorilla” the panther replied. “It was a tiger”

“A tiger?” the tiger asked.

“Yas. A Bengal tiger. the panther answered.

‘The panther's eyes met the tiger's for a moment and did not
let go

“Ihad just arrived here” the panther began. “I was still in
the grips of the Long Sleep that happens when we get caught
and brought to the Circus. For those first few days or so, I was
mostly incoherent and would awaken long enough to get a
drink of water and go back to sleep, much like that lion over
there”

‘The panther made a passing nod in the lion’s direction.

“Idid not know where I was when I awakened in this cage”
the panther said. “And the other animals were oblivious to me,
as if I were invisible—and I didn't really care. I did not know
them and did not want to know them.

“At the time, I recall, there was a heated debate that I did not
understand between some of the other animals and the tiger
who was in the cage next to me.

“From what I gathered, the other animals were mad at this
tiger and were blaming him for causing them trouble and the
tiger, for his part, was calling the other animals cowards. But,
again, it did not concern me and I did not pay much attention.

50
“The tiger's cage, I saw, was bare. There were pieces of
food stuck to the bars and the water bowl was tipped over in
the aisle, surrounded by a splatter of food and feces that the
tiger had apparently flung onto the floor. Unlike all the other
animals—including me - the tiger had no food or water or
even straw to lie upon.

“Ialso noticed the tiger's condition. He walked with a limp
and he had large open gashes across his back and flank;” the
panther described. “And there were smears of blood on the
floor of the cage as if the tiger had been dragged. One of his
eyes was swollen shut™

‘The tiger across from the panther growled low in his chest
as he contemplated the scene.

“Ilay still in my cage even when I was not asleep and over
the course of the day, the other animals urged the tiger to con-
sider what was best for him and they told him he should stop
whatever it was that he was doing. The tiger however refused
to yield

“I only gathered bits and pieces of this strange debate in
the glimpses between the times when the Long Sleep would
overtake me”

‘The panther shifted his weight on his powerful legs. The
museles of his back rippled.

“Iawoke to the noise of the Keepers rattling the door to the
tiger's cage and I was immediately alarmed as it was creatures
like these who had managed to hunt me and capture me in the
‘World of the Free. So I remember being very alert

“One of the Keepers, the one who is now Ringmaster, stood
in front of the cage and he was covered in food. The tiger's food
and water containers were both laying out in the aisle again.

“So one of the Keepers stepped to the side of the cage and
slid a noose on a stick through the bars and got it around the
tiger's neck while the others unlocked the door to the cage and
charged the tiger with hot sticks and clubs and whips. They
tacked him and they were brutal. Even under such overwhelm-

51
ing odds, the tiger struggled against the creatures and all their
weapons.” the panther remembered, his voice growing quiet
and distant.

“Ididn’t understand what was happening” the panther said.
“And I remember that I crept back into the comner of the cage,
anticipating that these creatures would attack me in the same
way but they didn’t. When they finished with the tiger and he
was lying in the cage, bloody and broken, they wheeled the
cage from its place and down the aisle to

the garage doors, and they pushed the cage outside. With
that done, the Keepers left”

“Where did they take him? The orangutan asked timidly.

“The tiger was stll very much in a cage. They had just sim-
ply moved the cage. But I remember as they wheeled him out,
he turned his swollen face toward me and he said, ‘Don’t let
them get the Circus into you! That was all he said and he was
wheeled out”

“Like maybe he figured it out” the elephant interjected
thoughtfully. “Like maybe he saw how they kill us by taking
away what we really are and replacing it with Circus”

“Yas? the panther agreed with a nod. “Yas. But remember
that Thad not been out to get trained yet and did not know the
nature of the Circus. I didn't know what he was talking about
and this new world of cages was strange and foreign to me.

“So over the course of the next few days, I learned how the
routine went. I saw the other animals escorted to training and
to the arena for shows, and still the tiger had not returned. The
other animals advised me that if I just cooperated with the
strange creatures in uniforms and learned my tricks, I could
make it easy on myself and the Trainers would look upon me
with favor. It would get me recognition from the Ringmaster
and I could earn larger portions of food and more straw for my
bedding and more time out of my cage, training and perform-

ing

52
“And in the course of explaining things to me, they would
occasionally mention the tiger, sighing or saying something
disparaging about how he was a crazy fool. They said not to
follow in his footsteps, that he was just a troublemaker. But I
had been puzzled by what he'd said to me on his way out. Iwas
curious, and so I asked about the tiger”

Again the panther's eyes met those of the Siberian across
from him and the panther's eyes were flled with sadness.

“The animals all in turn shared that the tiger had started
spouting off funny ideas about bringing down the Circus and
defeating the Ringmaster. They laughed at the thought. After
all, who would want to destroy the Circus?” the panther asked
rhetorically.

“Not me;” offered the chimp, sitting comfortably upon his
jungle gym with his feet up.

‘The elephant snorted his distaste and somewhere up front,
a monkey screeched his displeasure.

“So according to their account, this crazy, wayward tiger
went out into the arena during the show and refused to per-
form.” the panther continued. “He would not take his position
and he would not perform tricks”

Some of the animals snickered as they imagined the scene.

“I'bet the Ringmaster was mad” the elephant chuckled.

“And the Keepers too” the panther added. “From what the
animals said, the Keepers had to carry and half-drag the tiger
back to the cage, where they beat him for his defiance. And that
was the reason the tiger had been in such terrible condition
when first saw him.

“But that wasn't all. According to the their account, in the
days before I arrived at the Circus, the Keepers took the tiger's
straw and his food and water and they would only bring him
enough food to keep him alive. But when the Keepers came
with meager portions of food, the tiger—far from broken by
hunger—would fling the food and water back at them.

53
“The animals thought the tiger was crazy. They didn’t un-
derstand why he was rebelling against the Ringmaster.

‘They saw the Ringmaster as their friend; The Circus was
their home. The training and performances were opportunities
to move up higher up in status and improve their lot. Nothing
the tiger said or did made sense to them.”

“Well, why would he stop eating?” the orangutan asked.
“Isn't that erazy?”

“Possibly? the panther permitted. “But I think it was some-
thing else. I suspect that he knew the Keepers were withhold-
ing food in order to break him and they were offering him only
starvation rations so that they could keep him alive. So perhaps
by rejecting the food, the tiger was demonstrating to the Keep-
ers and to the other animals that he was in control, that he
could not be broken by the absence of food or water or straw.

“As for whether the tiger was crazy or not, I cannot say.
But I have given his situation a great deal of thought over the
years and it occurs to me that if he did not eat, he risked the
possibility of harm and even death. This could be seen as one
form of self-murder.

“And yet, if he ate—what then? He would keep his body
alive and he would give the Ringmaster more time to break his
spirit and kill the tiger inside of him. And in a sense, isn't that
also a form of self-murder? So, whether the tiger considered
this or not, as a captive of this Circus, we are sometimes con-
fronted by a choice between a course of action that seems to
others to be self-murder, a course of action that may be neces-
sary to maintain our dignity and our integrity as Tiger or as
Elephant or as Orangutan. The alternative is to obey the Ring-
‘master and permit him to kill us in another way, and this too is
self-murder. So perhaps the tiger chose to risk harm and even
death to preserve the life of the tiger inside him that the Ring-
‘master intended to kill”

“So whatever happened to him?” The tiger asked. He swal-
lowed hard, as if bracing for bad news. “What happened? You

51
said he endured all that shit and they pushed his cage outside
and then—what? That was it? You never saw him again?”

“No, I saw him again” the panther answered gravely. ‘I saw
him a few days later. The Keepers pushed his cage back next
to mine. They had left him outside in the cold and the rains
had frozen during those cold nights and the tiger had had no
shelter at all from the elements. Only the bars of the cage. So
when they wheeled him back in, the tiger's fur was covered in
alayer of ice. As it began to melt, he shivered. He was so thin
that his ribs were showing and none of his wounds appeared
to be healing.

“All the animals became silent when the Keepers wheeled
the tiger in and left him there. In his absence, they had all com-
plained that his anties were foolish and had brought them grief
from the angered Keepers and Trainers, but when they saw his
condition..”

‘The panther's voice trailed off.

“Even after the tiger warmed up, he was coughing and
wheezing and had a hard time breathing. His wounds were
infected and he had no strength. The Keepers would bring food
but the tiger would not eat, not so much out of stubbornness,
Tsuspect, but simply because he had no appetite anymore.

“The other animals, anticipating the tiger's death, asked if
there was anything they could do for him. With his eyes glassy,
he would look up and in between coughing and hacking, he
would ask them to reject the Ringmaster and reject the Cireus
He did not ask for comforts or straw or food or water. He asked
them to reject the Circus.

“But his words were lost on us because no one understood
what he meant. Some of the other animals puzzled over this
and simply dismissed his words as part of his delirium. But
even though I did not understand, I remembered his words™

‘The panther cleared his throat.

“He died" the panther said. “He died, and before the good
creatures could examine him, the Keepers came in and put

55
straw and water in the cage and they put bandages over the
tiger's open wounds. They did this so the good creatures could
examine him, the Keepers came in and put straw and water in
the cage and they put bandages over the tigers open wounds.
‘They did this so the good creatures wouldn't know how they
Killed him. Before the good creatures came, the Trainers and
Ringmaster examined the rest of us and left large amounts of
food for us, and the smell of fear followed them everywhere.

“So you see, it is not possible for any one of us to stand up
to the Circus and bring it down. Each of us as individuals are
expendable to the Ringmaster and any resistance of this kind
will not get us to the World of the Free. If we resist alone, our
fate is the same as the tiger's and the gorilla’s. The tiger and
the gorilla both taught me this.

“AsThave learned about the Circus, as I've paced upon what
T've seen, T have often come back to the question—why was it
that they had to kill the tiger? Why was it necessary to kill
him? And it was when I finally answered that question that [
began to formulate a plan to get to the World of the Free” The
panther revealed, “you see, I realized a long time ago that my
fate is tied to yours. Yas, my friends. There s one way that all
of us have a chance of reaching the World of the Free”

“Well, what is it that we have to do?” the monkey asked
impatiently.

“We all have to have the desire to be free, we will all have
to free ourselves as individuals, and we will all have to work
together towards getting to the World of the Free.

“Yas! We will have to stop competing against one another.
‘There will be plenty of time for competition in the World of
the Free, but we cannot afford to it now. The enemy, however
divided and fictionalized they may seem, stand in unity when
it comes to keeping us in cages. So we must stand in unity as
well

“We will have to stop trying to win the Ringmaster's affec-
tion and we will have to stop viewing one another as obstacles

56
to that affection and realize that that affection doesn't really
exist

“We will have to understand that we all have a common
enemy and that it is he who snatched us and our mothers from
the World of the Free and threw us in cages. That it is he who
holds the keys to these cages and chooses not to turn them
because he does not want us to ever see that world again. We
will have to realize that it is he who tries to exchange small
amounts of the freedom that is our birthright-bigger cages-for
just alittle more of our souls. That it is he who withholds food,
one of our most basic needs, as a means of controlling us, as a
means of forcing us to obey him. That it is he who manipulates
us into competing against one another for the kibbles and bits
that are left over after he's gorged himself. That it is he who
Toves nothing more than to see us at odds with one another,
fighting for the scraps off his table; knowing that as long as we
are baring our teeth at one another, he won't have to worry
about us baring them at him.

“Yas! The first thing we all must do to have a chance at the
Free World is to see the Ringmaster for who he is. We must
see the Circus for what it is and know that it is not our home;
these cages are not our homes. And then, we must all have an
earnest desire to be free of this world. We must desire nothing
more than our personal and collective freedom and be willing
to do whatever it takes to make this desire a reality.

“So, my friends, Lask you—do you honestly have this desire?
Is there anything you wouldn't sacrifice in exchange for your
freedom?”

“Mr. Panther” the elephant said. “You have awakened a de-
sire in me to be free that I've never felt before. I can think of
nothing I wouldn't do—nothing I wouldn't be willing to sacri-
fice in order to be free. And I believe I speak for most of us
when I say—1 am ready to be free”

Just then, many of the animals began proclaiming their
agreement with the elephant

57
“Well then” the panther said. “You all now know that this
is not your home and the desire for freedom is burning within
you.So there’s really only one thing left for you to do”

“What is it?” one of the monkeys yelled.

“BE FREE!" the panther exclaimed. ‘I am not speaking of
being free of these cages, of these physical restraints. In order
to have a chance at getting to the World of the Free, each and
every one of you must become free within. You will have to free
your minds before you can free your bodies. For what purpose
does it serve to be physically unencumbered if your mind is
stillin a cage?

“Freedom is a decision, one that you must make for your-
selves. Each of you has the desire to be free. The chains that
have been binding your minds have been loosened. Now it is
up to you'to tear them away and throw them off of you. It's up
to you to simply make the decision to be free. The

tiger made that decision; the gorilla made that decision.
And although the course of action they took did not get them
to the World of the Free—they died free”

“Yas, Mr. Panther the Orangutan said, “It’s like when you
asked me earlier if I'd ever refused to do something the Master
told me to do because I didn’t want to. That's being free right?”

“Yas! That is exactly what it is, Mr. Orangutan. It's saying no
to those things you do not want to do and saying yas to those
things that you feel like doing. That's what being free is. And it
is precisely that kind of freedom of mind that can destroy this
world of cages and get us to the World of the Free. It is that
kind of freedom that each of you must claim, for my plan to
work. You will have to make the decision to be free, and you
will have to cling to your freedom come what may. Because
in this world, freedom comes with a price just like food does
Sacrifices will have to be made.

“Ihavea plan. And once we begin to put my plan in motion,
the Ringmaster's going to take every little thing that he feels
makes us comfortable. He is going to beat us, starve us, and

58
bring all other types of cruelties down upon us. Yas, we are
going to experience the full extent of his wrath, for he, like
us, will be fighting for his life. But we cannot break under any
of this. We will have to desire freedom more than straw to lie
down on; we will have to desire freedom more than food, more
than water, more than existence itself. Do you understand what
Tam saying?” the panther asked.

“Yas, I understand;” said the tiger who had begun pacing
again. “And I believe that 1 have already made that decision,
Mr. Panther. After all I've heard, after all I've learned today, I
could not possibly continue being Circus Tiger”

“Yeah me neither!” The monkey shrieked.

Just then, that familiar jingling sound began to penetrate
the room and increased in volume until the door to the hous-

ing area opened. The Keepers were coming through for another
captive count. This time, all of the animals remained standing
at the doors of the cages, their eyes locked on the Keepers as
they proceeded down the aisle past the chimps and the tiger,
past the lion and the elephants. Suddenly, when they came to
the cage that held the orangutan, there was a loud shriek fol-
Towed by an outburst from one of the Keepers.

“You son-of-a-bitch!” he shouted at the orangutan. “Did you
see what he just did, George? This bastard just threw shit on
me!” he screamed as the orangutan stood there, grinning from
ear to ear.

“Well, he's never done that before;” George said, cupping a
hand to his face and trying to stifle a laugh. “And he got you
pretty good too, Billl” George said, no longer able to contain
the burst of laughter.

“What the hell are you laughing about? It's not funny!” Bill
said, as they crossed over to the other row of cages on the
panther’s side and up the aisle toward the door they'd came
through.

But George wasn't the only one who had found this amus-
ing, for all of the animals were silently enjoying a laugh—even

59
the panther. After the Keepers had left, the tiger shouted down
to the orangutan:

“What was all that about, Orangutan?”

“Yeah, said the elephant, still smiling. “Why did you do
that?”

“Well, Mr. Panther said being free is doing what you feel
like doing, right Mr. Panther?” the orangutan asked, jumping
up and down at the front of his cage.

“Yas? the panther agreed. “It is”

“Well, I'd always wanted to do that he said. “So today, I
did it. And T must say it felt good! I'm really starting to like
this Free’ thing!” he said, still grinning,

For a while, the animals enjoyed a laugh. Then the tiger
broke in on a more serious note and asked:

“So Mr. Panther, what's the plan?”

‘The Panther looked around at the animals and said:

“AsTwas telling you earlier, I found out why the Ringmaster
brought us here. He brought us here so that he could live. But
in order for him to live, he had to kill us. However he did not
wish to kill us physically,for that would defeat his purpose. No,
he had to kil the Lion in us. He had to kill the Elephant and the
Tiger in us; the Panther in us. Because he knew that as long as
we were alive, we would not perform for him. And if we did not
perform for him, there could be no show. And without a show,
he would die. But unfortunately for him, he made a grave error.
Because whereas he thought you were dead, you were merely
sleeping. And now you have awakened”

With that said, the panther began relaying his plan.

60
Book 2: The Animals
Awaken
62

“To be awake is to be alive.”
~Henry David Thoreau, Walden

“Power concedes nothing without demand. It never
has and it never will”

~Frederick Douglas
“Liberty is the greatest menace to authority”

-Emma Goldman
How Do You Move a Two-Ton
Animal?

Dawn was fast approaching as the animals stood at the bars
ofthe cages and listened attentively to the plan the panther laid
out. After he'd finished and was satisfied that the animals un-
derstood the details of the strategy, he warned them again of
the cruelties that the Ringmaster would employ in response to
their actions. He warned of the food deprivation, beatings, and
torture that the Ringmaster would bring down upon them in an
effort to force them into submission. He warned that the Ring-
master might even try to separate them to break their collec-
tive resolve. But he assured them that their freedom depended
on them sticking to the plan and that by doing so, they could
‘minimize the suffering to which they'd be subjected. Finally he
said:

“Now I must tell you all that all of us may not make it to
the World of the Free. For what we are about to do is a direct
threat to the Ringmaster's existence and he is going to respond
accordingly. He is going to react in the same way that any of
us would react were we trapped in a corner by an enemy intent
onkilling us. He's going to utilize every possible weapon in his
arsenal in a desperate attempt to cling to his life. And yas, he

even resort to killing one or some of us. But we must re-
member that we all must die someday. However, we only have
to die once and it is our desire to die free. So we cannot give in
to fear. If we allow fear to control us, we will have already lost
our freedom as well as any chance we may have of reaching
the World of the Free. And we will have relegated ourselves to

63
the fate of dying over and over again in this world of cages. So
we must hold on to our freedom, even in the face of death”

After a moment’s pause, the panther began rapidly pacing
the width of the cage, looking out through the bars at the ani-
mals. “So are you with me?” he asked.

“Are you ready to bring the Ringmaster to his knees and
destroy the Circus?”

Night grudgingly gave in to day and the sun was creeping
up the horizon. Although the animals had not slept all night,
they were nevertheless wide awake in anticipation of the day’s
events when they heard keys in the door of the housing area
‘The time had come; the Ringmaster and the first-shift Keepers
were coming to make their morning rounds. The door opened
into the housing area and the animal smell that the Ringmaster
had become familiar with filled the air. The Ringmaster strode
into the housing area in gray pants tucked into black knee-high,
patent-leather boots, black cape fluttering behind him. He held
his black top hat in one spotless white-gloved hand and in this
other, his cane. His whip, almost concealed by his coattals, was
coiled and hanging from his hip. His hair was shiny and slicked
back, a pencil-thin mustache perched above pencil-thin lips.
His beady feral eyes surveyed the rows of cages. He noticed
it was unusually quiet this morning as he and the two Keep-
exs began walking the aisle and looking in on the animals. As
they walked by each cage, all of the animals, except the chimps,
were lying down and looking up at them.

When they came to the cage that housed the orangutan, the
Ringmaster asked, “What's this?” pointing with his cane to the
feces that had been flung through the bars the night before

“Oh! George told us that they had a lttle incident with this
one last night, Mr. Head” one of the Keepers responded.

He stood a step behind the Ringmaster, his hands behind
his back as he shifted from foot to foot nervously, his eyes on
the Ringmaster. His partner stood next to him.

61
“Well, clean this shit up and get these beasts out to the
Training area. Tom and Jack are waiting to go over the routines
with them for the big show this afternoon

With that, the Ringmaster turned and swept out through
the same door he had entered.

‘The two Keepers grumbled as they cleaned up the mess
‘made by the orangutan and then left momentarily, returning
with equipment to transfer the animals. The animals were tak-
ing out to the training area, where Trainers were waiting to
g over the same old boring, monotonous routine with them.
As usual, they baited them with food and rewarded them for
compliance. Afterward, the animals were led back to the cages,
where they waited for the show to begin.

‘The Arena lights crisscrossed the surface of the tent canvas

to the strains of the pipe organ through the sound system,

while the clowns entertained the spectators filing in. An

excited hum filled the Big Top as the peddlers moved
through the crowd with popcorn, cotton candy, and watered-
down beverages. The Ringmaster, his cape fluttering behind
him and his cane gripped in one gloved hand, trotted briskly
into the center ring with the spotlights burning down upon

him. The crowd welcomed him with applause and whistles.
He smiled widely and removed his top hat to bow low to the
cheering crowd. He stood and with a booming voice addressed
the audience:

“Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages. Welcome to the
Greatest Traveling Show in the World!”

‘The crowd gave him an enthusiastic response, excitement
‘moving like electricity upon the air.

“Without further delay.” he announced, “let the show be-
gin!”

In the midst of the crowd’s adoration, he turned and raised
his arms high as a signal for the elephants to be led to the ring.
One after another, the elephants came lumbering out to cen-
ter stage, their bodies dressed in gold tapestries with intricate

6
Byzantine designs and hanging tassels. On the back of the lead
elephant was one of the female performers; blonde hair flow-
ing about and bright lights reflecting off of her sequined body
suit. She smiled and waved enthusiastically as the elephants
plodded to the center ring and lined up shoulder to shoulder.
After them trailed the Trainers.

Once set, the Trainers got into position with whips and
prods and the Ringmaster raised his right hand, gripping the
cane, yelling, “Up!”

With this command, for years, the elephants had all imme-
diately stood upon their hind legs. But much to his surprise,
all the elephants slowly dropped and tumbled onto their sides
as if they had all been simultaneously shot. The blonde riding
the lead elephant tumbled from the creature’s back and found
herself landing rudely on her backside with a surprising and
indignant plop.

Immediately the crowd-—thinking this was a joke or a prank
laughed. They had no way of knowing this was not part of the
act.

‘The Ringmaster exchanged an inquisitive glance with the
Trainers who shrugged in perplexity, then checked the pretty
performer-who was stll sitting on the canvas floor, looking
up with a shocked expression on her face-before turning his
attention back to the elephants.

“Up!” he commanded again. “Up! Up!”™

‘The elephants did not budge.

A small chorus of boos rang out as some in the crowd got
impatient and started to stir at the inactivity.

‘With sweat beading upon his forehead, the Ringmaster nod-
ded at one of the Trainers who was holding an electric prod.
‘The Trainer stepped forward and applied the tip of the instru-
ment to the elephant closest to him, resulting in a loud electri-
cal snap. But the giant beast merely flopped its ears, remaining
prone, undaunted.

66
a younger lion” the chimp recalled. “But I didn’t believe you.
None of us chimps believed you™

‘The chimp stopped again, staring blankly into a bucket of
bananas. In that pause, one of the chimps who had remained in
the huddle stepped forward and stood next to the chimp who
had spoken. After a moment, two more stepped forward and
joined them, then three more—until all the chimps from the
huddle stood up at the bars. Only the two who had skulked
o the top of the jungle gym remained separated from the rest.
‘Those two sat with their backs to the others, snorting melodra-
matically, and tossing down banana peels, chewing their food
Toudly.

“We didn't believe you” the chimp repeated. “We didn’t be-
lieve the Ringmaster would kill the lion. We didn't believe he
could be so cold—that he could so easily dispose of the lion—
and replace him with a younger one. That is, until we seen it
with our own eyes. How could he do something like that if he
is truly our friend?”

“Yas, Mr. Chimp" the panther said. “Like I said before, the
Ringmaster's cruelty has no boundaries—he is a killer!”

‘The chimp bowed his head in thought before resuming “Mr.
Panther, we chimps have been made to feel special. We've got-
ten used to how the Circus operates, as well as our privileged
Status in it. We've seen these big cages, and the jungle gyms we
swing on, as freedom. And we've always seen the Ringmaster
as someone who truly cared about us.

“But I can’t help but to think about how you said the lion
was once the Ringmaster's favorite and how he used to occupy
this cage. So I have to ask myself, if the Ringmaster is capable
of doing what he did to the lion, then why wouldn't he do it to
one of us?”

“Exactly” the panther said, nodding

“Mr. Panther, the chimp said, “all this stuff you've been say-
ing about the Ringmaster—about the existence of this World of

8
the Free—we thought you were making it all up because you
were jealous and bitter about not being like us.

“But then, the Ringmaster showed us a side of himself that
we'd never seen before when he killed the lion—an animal who
used to be his favorite. He disposed of him as if he were a ba-
nana peel. And then, in comes this new lion claiming to be
from a whole different world—a world that we never thought
existed. Because the Ringmaster hid it from us, allowing us to
think that the Circus was all there is

“So you have been right all along. We have been deceived”
the chimp said angrily. “Us chimps have indeed been tricked by
the Ringmaster. We've been tricked into feeling free by looking
at the plight of all of you in comparison to our own. Because if
the World of the Free s real, that means that as long as we are
in the Circus, we are no more free than you

Once again, the chimp hung his head, shaking it side to side
in disbelief. The two chimpanzees on the jungle gym both cast
angry, disdainful glances back at their former comrades, shook
their heads and snorted in disbelief. They resumed their whis-
pering to one another. After a moment, the panther spoke.

“Yas, Mr. Chimp—I understand. Actually, I've always been
aware of your view on things. And I've understood why you
have held those views. I suspect that had I been in your sit-
uation, I may have seen things in a similar fashion. But Mr.
Chimp, 1 also knew that one day you would come to see the
Ringmaster—the Cireus—for what it is. That one day you would
see through the illusion. I was just hoping that, for your sake,
it wouldn't be too late.

“But now that you know—now that you have seen the true
nature of this place, I have only one question for you, Mr.
Chimp.”

“What's that?” the chimp asked.

‘The panther's eyes narrowed as he rose up on all fours, con-
sidering the chimp carefully before he spoke: “ What are we go-
ing to do about it?"

%0
“Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, welcome to
the Greatest Traveling Show in the World!” the Ringmaster
boomed confidently at the cheering crowd showering him
with adulation. The pipe organ blared and the spotlights
danced across the ring floor. Just like the day before, the
Ringmaster turned and raised both arms above his head
imperiously, a signal for the Keepers to send the elephants
into the arena

Just like the previous day, the elephants came out noseto-
tailin a lumbering trot, tapestries flowing, mottled by the flash-
ing, dancing lights while the spectators greeted them with ex-
citement. However, the pretty girl in her sequined garb on the
lead elephant did not smile quite as wide as she had the day be-
fore, nor wave with quite the same enthusiasm. She appeared
abit distracted, having just yesterday tumbled from the back
of the beast to land on her can.

‘The elephants lined up in the center ring, shoulder-to-
shoulder in front of the Ringmaster standing with his arms
high and wide. Then, as if sawed down by some invisible
chainsaw, the elephants hit the canvas like felled trees.

‘The pretty girl, more prepared this time, deftly slid from
her porch and landed on her feet, graceful and annoyed. She
placed an offended hand upon one hip and sneered at the ele-
phants while the unsuspecting audience chuckled at what they
believed to be part of the act. The girl’s eyes met the Ringmas-
ter's and she sighed.

Immediately, the Ringmaster pointed toward the Keeper at
the door and out tumbled the chimpanzees. As a contingency
plan, the Keepers had kept the chimps in the wings on stand-
by. They now ran and rolled and bounced out to the center
ring, adomed in maroon vests and pill-box hats, the gold tassels
swinging in rhythm to the pipe organ.

‘Those elephants can lay there all night long if they want,
the Ringmaster thought with a vicious smile. The chimps will
take up the slack.

91
As the chimpanzees took their positions, the Ringmaster
turned to the crowd and announced proudly:

“Ladies and gentlemen, Bumbles and the Banana gang!”

‘The audience laughed. And when the Ringmaster turned to
give the chimps their first command, he saw why the audience
had laughed. He froze. His mouth hung open. He blinked.

Of the ten chimps, eight of them were lying in a pile on the
canvas like tumbled bowling pins. The two loyal chimps who
remained upright, awaiting their command from the Ringmas-
ter, were fending off the grasping hands of the others trying to
pull them down. As he watched, despite their swats, they both
hit the floor with a shocked and indignant screech.

“Get up!” the Ringmaster barked. “Get up, get up!” He mo-
tioned with both hands, but the chimps simply stared at him,
unimpressed.

‘This can't be, the Ringmaster thought. The chimps were
loyal, had saved the day just the previous afternoon and he had
rewarded them with piles of bananas. More than they could eat
while the other animals starved with no food and water. What
could have happened?

Restive boos echoed through the big top and the Ringmas-
ter clenched his jaw and fists. He knew his only choice was to
shut it down—shut it down, give the crowd a refund, and fig-
ure out what the hell was going on with the animals...including
the chimpanzees. But he was pulled from these thoughts by a
growing chant from the crowd that had started as a whisper
but became a mantra, increasing in intensity:

WE want a SHOW.WE want a SHOW. We want a
SHOW.... WE want a SHOW.

Just then, all at once and without cue, the elephants rose
to their feet. Taken by surprise, the Trainers jumped back, in-
stinctively assuming a defensive posture, their prods extended
in front of them, watching the elephants closely. What if the
giant beasts decided to charge them or stomp them?

92
But the elephants merely stood and considered the Train-
ers ambivalently, as if waiting for some kind of direction. The
Trainers exchanged baffled glances and turned to the Ringmas-
ter, who appeared just as baffled as they were.

‘The elephants shifted their weight impatiently and, after a
moment, the Trainers slowly, cautiously approached them and
escorted the elephants off stage. The Ringmaster watched im-
potently as the Trainers escorted the elephants and the Keep-
exs fumbled to carry the chimpanzees from the ring. He wasleft
with a foreboding sense that something was very, very, wrong.

WE want a SHOW.WE want a SHOW. We want a
SHOW.

‘The Ringmaster mopped his brow and straightened his coat-
tails. Well, he thought. If it's a show they want, it's a show
they'll get.

He turned and strode quickly toward the circular cage,
pointing with his cane so the Keepers would know to release
the cats. He entered the cage and closed it behind him and,
when the gate at the back of the cage went up, he raised his
arms in anticipation of the tiger and panther running into
the arena—but nothing happened. Nothing. He simply stood
there alone in the cage with his arms over his head. The crowd
behind him seemed amused for a moment, then grumbled and
murmured.

Carl sprinted over to the cage, panting. He grabbed the bars
and told the Ringmaster: “We can't get the tiger and panther
out the cages, they just won't budge”

“What!” the Ringmaster screamed. “I don't care what you
have to do—use the prods on them if you have to—but get them
out here now!” he snarled.

Carl disappeared back the way he had come and eventually
the cats came trotting out. Relieved, the Ringmaster cracked
his whip and gave the command for the cats to jump up on
their stands. But just like the day before, the cats dropped to
the canvas, laid down, and wouldn't move.

93
“No!” the Ringmaster screamed bringing the whip down
across the cats. “I said get the fuck up!”

Both cats winced as the Ringmaster slung his whip again
and again, the tip of it tearing at the flesh of first the panther
and then the tiger, back and forth.

‘The Ringmaster simmered with rage and would not relent
with the whip, while the spectators’ chants grew in intensity
behind him.

With visible gashes on their backs, the tiger and panther re-
treated backward toward the rear of the cage, the tiger's back to
the exit gate, but the Ringmaster only stepped forward, knock-
ing a pedestal out of the way, shoving it to the side, his face
red with fury, his whip coming down mercilessly on both crea-
tures. When he saw one of the bewildered Trainers standing
next to the cage, the Ringmaster reached through the bars and
snatched the prod from his hand.

Without a word, he lunged forward and the tip of the prod
hit the tiger in the chest with a loud, electrical pop, sparks siz-
zling in the tiger's fur. The tiger growled angrily. Backed into
a corner, his eyes narrowed as he calculated the timing of the
Ringmaster's lunges. With one powerful paw, he could easily
push the hot stick to the side and pounce upon the Ringmaster,
the Free World be damned. The tiger crouched down, his mus-
cles tight as springs, angry eyes fixed upon the Ringmaster.

‘The panther watched the tiger's reaction intently, and he
could smell the rage. But as the Ringmaster thrust the prod at
the tiger again, the panther slipped in front of the tiger and was
rewarded with an electric jolt to his flank.

“The tiger, his plans for taking a bite out of the Ringmaster
obstructed, eyed the panther quizzically. The panther, for his
part, remained between the tiger and Ringmaster, breathing
hard.

‘The panther considered himself no physical match for the
tiger, but counted on the tiger's unwillingness to attack him,
which he'd have to do to get to the Ringmaster. The tiger licked

o1
the saliva dripping from his jowls and, after a tense moment,
his muscles uncoiled.

Up until now, the crowd had urged the Ringmaster to put
on a show, yelling their demands. But now, just as the day be-
fore, they protested the abuse, and food and beverage contain-
exs and other debris rained out of the stands. A beverage con-
tainer collided with the cage and exploded, sending soda and
ice shrapnel flying, knocking the top hat from the Ringmaster's
head. He blinked twice, confused.

‘The Trainers, lined up along the bars of the cage, screamed
at the Ringmaster to stop the abuse and pointed out toward the
audience. The Ringmaster turned and in just a brief glance he
saw that those spectators who were not hurling objects at him
were hurrying for the exits to demand a reckoning from the
ticket takers.

“Goddamnit!” The Ringmaster exclaimed. “They scream
that they want a show and when I do what I have to do to give
them what they want, they throw shit at me”

He took a deep breath to regain his composure and he heard
the gate slide up in the back of the cage. He caught just a
glimpse of the tiger's tail as the bigger cat disappeared through
the exit But he saw that the panther did not immediately follow
the tiger. Instead, he paced the width of the open exit, back and
forth, swily, like a pendulum, his eyes fixed upon the Ring-
master.

As the Ringmaster met the cat’s gaze he took a quick step
back. There was something very unsettling in the depths of the
panther’s piercing glare. Something disconcerting. The Ring-
‘master tightened his grip around the handle of the electric prod
as he thought back to all the times this stubborn beast had
looked him directly in the eyes.

None of the other animals did that. None of them. Just this

‘The Ringmaster's eyes narrowed to sits.

95
He's been sizing me up all this time, he thought. And now
this bastard is challenging me.

‘The panther stopped in his tracks, his eyes never faltering.
‘The corners of his mouth curled, almost imperceptibly at first,
and then a wide, feline grin spread across his furry face. And
before the Ringmaster could even get his mind around the sig-
nificance of this, the black cat disappeared into the darkness
beyond the exit, the gate slamming shut with a distinct, metal-
e clank

Did he just grin at me? The Ringmaster thought, his face
ashen.

Dazed and glassy eyed, he shook his head and turned to face
what remained of the diminishing angry crowd. They jeered
at him and threw trash. He pushed the cage door open and
stepped back out into the ring,

It was a nightmare.

‘The catealls from the crowd grew more distant as he with-
drew into the sanctuary of his thoughts

I can't believe what's happening, he thought. Yesterday
these bastards all laid down, except for the chimps. Now, today,
the chimps turned on me as well. No, these animals aren't sick.
It's something much more than that. There's something very
wrong here.

He grinned at me.

A popcorn container landed just in front of his feet, spilling
its contents across the Ringmaster's patent leather boots. He
Kicked lazily at the popcorn and then began to walk slowly
toward the performance exit

He had learned in his line of business that some animals are
highly intelligent, but something like this. .2

He recalled how precisely all of the animals had performed
each of their stunts just hours ago during the training sessions

‘These animals are organized, he thought. Organized.

%
‘They came out during the training and proved they knew
all the cues and commands just so I would have them come out
here during the performance in front of the crowd.

If it was one of two of them, that could be chalked up to a
simple stubbornness—like that crazy tiger a few years back, he
remembered. That could be easily dealt with. But all of these
animals were acting strangely. All of them were acting like that
tiger. All of them.

He grinned at me.

Abeverage container hit the Ringmaster on the side of the
head and splashed him with cold, wet stickiness. He brushed
the ice from his shoulder absently.

Two full days of losing money, he thought, and that’s not
the worst of it

He attempted to figure in the damage done to the Circus—
permanent damage—from the bad publicity that was sure to.

He stopped in his tracks.

“I'll be damned;” he muttered to himself, his hands balling
into fists, his mouth twisting into a snarl. In his mind every-
thing converged together. Oh yeah, he thought, they're orga-
nized alright. They're organized and I know which one of them
is behind all of this.

He grinned at me.

He stormed furiously toward the exit.
“That black bastard!”

97
I Don’t Think You Can Beat It
Out of Them

fe did it” one of the chimps shrieked. “We took down the
Circus! The Ringmaster gave up!”

“He didn't even call for us," one of the monkeys laughed,
hopping up and down excitedly at the front of his cage.

Even the clephant trumpeted in triumph as the animals
congratulated themselves. But in the midst of this, the tiger
brooded in the back of his cage, licking his wounds, angry and
bitter. He had withstood the earlier abuse but only because the
panther had intervened, had taken some of the blows directed
at him. The panther had prevented him from pouncing upon
the Ringmaster.

‘The panther, for his part, paced the cage. He did not cele-
brate with the other animals. He knew the tiger had nearly lost
control out there and he hoped that, by getting the Ringmas-
ter's attention the way he did when leaving the Arena, it would
work to draw the Ringmaster's fury toward himself and away
from the tiger.

It only took one slip, one moment of weakness, and that
would justify a brutal response from the Ringmaster against
all of them. Just one act of violence by the animals, and the
whole plan could fall apart.

‘The elephant watched the panther pace and grew curious
about his preoccupation.

“Mr. Panther; the elephant called. “Why aren't you celebrat-
ing? We did it! We defeated the Ringmaster! Your plan worked.
None of us performed-—the Circus is over!”

98
‘The panther stopped pacing and considered the other ani-
mals.

“This has surely dealt the Ringmaster a serious blow” the
panther agreed. “And with the unity and solidarity we forged
here today, we are certainly on the right path to the World of
the Free. But if you believe we have already won, that we have
already defeated the Ringmaster, then you have not been lis-
tening to me.

“The Ringmaster will do everything in his power to break us.
He will defend himself and the Circus with all the means at his
disposal. With all of his resources. You think he is finished? We
have endured some of his brutality—we have gone a short time
without food and water, without straw. We have endured a few
instances of violence. But if you think that is all the Ringmaster
has and now he is finished, I have bad news for all of you: He
hasn't even gotten started yet”

‘The panther paused, as he heard the footfalls and grunts
and an ominous rumbling noise that drew the scared eyes of
the animals toward the door of the housing area. The noises
grew louder.

“We're going to be tested” the panther said evenly. “And for
us to win, we have to desire our freedom more than anything
Anything!”

Just then, the housing area door crashed in under the
pounding water sprayed from a firehose. Both Keepers held
onto it tightly, smiling wide and mean. They pointed the hose
at the chimps and the punch from the cold, raging water flung
them to the back of their cage and pinned them to the bars.
‘They screeched in pain and fear, struggling against the torrent
of water. Bananas flew everywhere as the water tipped the
banana bucket and sent the fruit and bucket soaring

‘The Keepers slowly made their way down the range, turn-
ing the spray on the panther and knocking him from his fect.
He slipped and slid in the gathering puddles, crouching down
against the blast

9
Both Keepers laughed uproariously but could not be heard
over the rush of furious water. They stalked down the

aisle, swinging the hose back and forth to give all the ani-
mals a good pounding

‘They blasted the new lion who had just opened his glassy
eyes, and was rewarded with a punch to the face from the force
coming from the firehose. He quickly scrambled to the back of
his cage and coiled into a defensive position, his mane soaking
wet and his eyes suddenly alert. He snarled and roared in anger
and fear.

“You like throwing shit?” Carl mouthed these words to to
the orangutan then turned the hose on the orangutan who was
tumbled back from the bars like a newspaper blown by the
wind.

‘They briefly turned the hose upon the elephant, who simply
leaned into it, closing one eye and letting the spray bounce off
his considerable head. He dipped the end of his trunk into the
Iake puddling about his feet and blasted the Keepers, but to no
effect

‘The panther saw the Ringmaster, red-faced, eyes bulging,
march into the housing area through the open door. His boots
sloshed through the water. He carried a prod in one hand and
a brass key in the other. He soon had the panther's cage open.
‘The panther stood at the back of the cage, staring up into the
Ringmaster's eyes as if bracing himself for what he knew was
coming

“So it's you! the Ringmaster snarled. “You black son of a
bitch!”

He stepped into the cage, hooked the key back onto his belt,
and grabbed the whip that hung there. He swung it furiously,
stinging the panther across his back. The panther cringed.

“You don't fuck with me!”

He swung the whip around again and it slashed across

100
the panther’s face, just above his left eye, leaving a deep
gash. The big cat coiled into a knot of muscles and tendons,
growling in pain and anger.

Again, the Ringmaster brought the whip down on the pan-
ther, tearing at his flank; and again, across his back once more.
Each time, the panther braced himself and tried to move at the
Iast minute to deflect the blow from the tip of the whip, but he
felt the terrible sting nonetheless.

Then a barrage of water hit him and slammed him up
against the back of the cage, knocking the breath out of him.
‘The water rushed into his face, blinding him, and still the whip
came down, slicing him, the water at the bottom of his cage
turning pink with his blood. Just as suddenly, the stream of
water moved away and the panther was met with an electric
shock from the prod, the force of it enhanced because he stood
in the water. He felt the blast of electricity painfully through
his entire body and collapsed into the water at the bottom of
the cage

‘The Ringmaster turned and walked out of the cage, slam-
ming it shut on the motionless form of the panther, and sur-
veyed the scene, fully expecting the animals to be cowering in
the backs of their cages, paralyzed by fear. But to his amaze-
ment, he saw they were all still up in the front of their cages,
shrieking and growling and screeching and rattling the bars
As the pressurized force of the water from the hose hit them,
they faltered only momentarily, and then rushed back to the
front of the cage, furious and unshaken.

He turned to look back at the panther, still motionless.
Almost as an afterthought, he reached through the bars and
jammed the prod at the beast in the bottom of the cage. An
audible pop accompanied the surge of electricity and a small
plume of smoke rose from the animal’s fur

“That ought to teach your black ass!” the Ringmaster
taunted.

101
“Hey! That's enough!” Carl called over the din of the rush-
ing water. “Dick, that's enough! You're going to kill him!”

‘The Ringmaster turned upon the Keepers, his features dis-
torted by rage, his fists balled around the prod. ‘I decide when
it's enough!”

He stormed across to the cage of the Siberian tiger, his fury
not yet spent. The tiger snarled in the back of the cage as the
Ringmaster unlocked the door and stepped in, whip in hand,
giving the tiger a sizzling crack across the back. The tiger, un-
able to restrain himself, took an aggressive step forward. The
Ringmaster jabbed the prod with his other hand, forcing the
tiger back. He then hit the tiger with the whip again, rivulets
of blood rolling down the animal's flanks as he growled and
coiled like a spring, preparing to pounce.

‘The Ringmaster caught the tiger with the prod and sent
painful voltage surging through him. The tiger crept backward
‘The Ringmaster strode forward, jabbing with the prod again,
but the tiger's back was to the bars and he had nowhere to
retreat. As the Ringmaster thrust the prod forward yet again,
the tiger slapped it with one huge paw and the prod fell to the
cage floor. The Ringmaster’s eyes grew wide with fear as he
realized his complete helplessness. But from across the aisle
came a roar and the tiger's eyes fell upon the panther. He had
dragged himself to the front of the cage and his gaze was fixed
upon the tiger. He was growling low. The two cats stared at
one another for just a moment

“The tiger hesitated just long enough that the Keepers turned
the spray of water on him, blinding him, distracting him. The
Ringmaster turned and bolted from the cage,

leaving behind the prod and half the contents of his bladder.
With shaking hands, he closed the door behind him and slid
down 1o a seat in the puddles, panting hard.

‘The Keepers turned off the hose and rushed to help the Ring-
‘master to his feet. He was shaking, his eyes wide, his face pale
His wet clothing stuck to him

102
“Are you alright?” Carl asked

‘The Ringmaster didn't respond. Lost in his own thoughts,
he nervously wiped the water from his forehead.

“Dick? Are you alright?”

‘The Ringmaster looked up, blinked, and tried to regain his
feet, rising up from the water, clearing his throat.

“Don’t stop what you're doing he ordered. He pointed into
the cage of the growling tiger. “And get my prod out of there—
T'm not finished”

“You want us to—*

“Get my prod” the Ringmaster repeated rudely.

Carl looked at the tiger and then turned back to the Ring-
‘master. He shook his head. Sam shook his head too.

“Fuck that!” Sam exclaimed.

“What? What did you say?” the Ringmaster snarled, learn-
ing into Sam’s face. “I said, get that prod!”

“We heard what you said, Mr. Head Carl interjected. “But
there’s no way we're going into that cage right now with that
tiger. That would be crazy. Look at that mean bastard. He's just
looking to take somebody’s head off™

“Yeah” Sam agreed, clearing his throat. “There's something
really crazy happening with these animals right now and what-
ever itis, T don't think you can beat it out of them.”

“And with that shit in the arena for the last two days, aren't
you worried the animal lovers will be popping up?”

Carl asked. “The ASPCA. They come snooping around and
find that panther and this tiger fucked up like that..”

‘The Ringmaster’s eyes narrowed as he considered what
Carl had just said and his anger slowly turned into fear. In
venting his rage upon the animals, he had forgotten the
possible danger of others poking around in his business. And
if the ASPCA got wind of what happened—when they got
wind—they were sure to come knocking

‘The Ringmaster looked around him and saw all of the soak-
ing wet animals staring darkly from behind the bars at him. It

103
was silent except for the dripping water. The panther, bleeding
from open wounds, had gotten to his feet and he too watched
the Ringmaster.

‘They all had that knowing look that he had recognized in
the panther’s eyes earlier. He considered the ankle-deep water
in which he stood.

“Here’s what we do;" the Ringmaster said finally. “We're
gonna have bad business here for awhile—that flasco in the
arena pretty much guaranteed it. And we can't just up and
move. We don't have any scheduled performances anywhere
else for a week. We have to stay.

“Sofor now, we gotta break this thing up. We gotta end this
thing, whatever it is. And for starters, move those chimps to
smaller cages and take their food and water. If they want to
betray me, let them live like the other animals” He pointed at
the panther. “He's somehow at the bottom of this. He even got
to the chimps. So put him off by himself until I find out what
to do with him. We'll see how the other animals act when we
get them apart from him

“We can put him over in the empty range on the other side”
Carl suggested. The Ringmaster thought.

“No, that's no good” he concluded. “If the animal lovers
come, they Il look there and they'll see him. No. We gotta put
him someplace where they won't see him. Shove him out back
Out behind the dumpsters in that old freight car”™

Carl and Sam both nodded.

“But, I tell you what” the Ringmaster added. “You can take
some of those other animals over to the abandoned range. Di-
vide them up. And in the meantime, I'm going to see how many
of these bastards I can trade off. Replace them. Make these trou-
blemakers somebody else’s problem.

He looked around from cage to cage, and that's when he
noticed—

‘They all stared at him. Directly into his eyes. Just like the
panther

104
He clenched his jaw tightly against the anger and frustra-
tion and headed for the exit, his boots sloshing through the
water, his wet clothes dripping. His eyes fell upon the chim-
panzees as he reached the door. They stood up to the bars, their
fur drenched.

‘They too looked him in the eye.

“Little traitors” the Ringmaster spat. He waggled a finger at
them, sneering.

Suddenly, all at once, in a surprise attack, the chimps flung
bananas through the bars, pelting the Ringmaster and forcing
him to retreat, one hand in front of his face and put the other
in front of his groin as the wet bananas came flying from the
chimpanzees’ cage in a flurry.

“Bastards!” the Ringmaster cursed, his body battered by
hurled fruit. “You ungrateful bastards!™

He lunged for the door, flung it open, and ran from the hous-
ing area

Ashe exited, the barrage of fruit abated. In the tense silence
the two Keepers standing in the middle of the range, swallowed
hard and exchanged nervous glances

Water dripped. Not a sound came from the cages as the an-
imals stood frozen.

Carl scratched his head, his eyes darting to the animals star-
ing ominously back at them.

“I'm not liking this’ Carl offered.

“It's creepy. Sam agreed.

“Yeah, itis. But it's worse than creepy, and I'm talking about
the whole situation here. Not just the way these animals are
acting. Think about this: Too many people saw that scene out
there in the arena. And I swear, Sam, somebody’s gonna blow
the whistle”

Sam nodded.

“Yeah he agreed. “But we got nothin’ to worry about. We
didn't do nothin’ wrong. We only done what we was told™

105
“We shocked those elephants out there, we blasted all of
them with the hose and we took their food and water Carl
reminded tersely. That's somethin’™

“We was followin’ orders”

“Yeah, wel, tell that to the investigators. They can bring
charges for animal abuse and put you on trial, you know. And
the papers will make you out to be a monster and make the
judge throw the book at you. You tell them that you was just
followin’ orders”

Sam'’s expression grew dark

“And when they come and find that panther and that tiger
all beat to hell and back, do you think Dick intends to take the
fall for that? Do you think he's just goin’ to say, ‘Hey, I did that,
and spare us?”"

Sam thought about it. His features pinched together and he
shook his head.

“No? Sam answered.

Carl slapped his palms together

“You got that right’” he confirmed.

“Sowhat do we do?” Sam asked. “I need this job. I can’t quit.
How can I feed my family?"

Carl shook his head.

“I'm not saying anything like that” Carl replied. He took a
step closer and leaned in conspiratorially. “All I'm sayin’ is, we
both saw who really went gung-ho on those animals, right?”

“Right” Sam agreed. “Right. I got your back and you got

Carl smiled. Sam relaxed and smiled back

“Now.” Carl said, slapping his partner on the arm, “let’s get
this swept out and after our break we can get these animals
moved”

‘The elephant stared across the aisle into the battered pan-
ther's cage.

“How are you holding up over there, Panther?” he asked
hesitantly.

106
“I'll live” the panther cryptically replied, hobbling slowly
to the front of the cage.

‘The elephant turned and was about to inquire about the
tiger when suddenly, the lion in the next cage, still soaking
wet from the dousing he received with the fire hose, charged
from the back of his cage and flung himself at the front bars
He slid down into a dejected heap on the cage floor.

“Fuck!” he roared.

‘The panther called from across the aisle, “Mr. Lion! I know
how foreign all of this must seem to you. How strange. And I
Know you want to get back to the Savannah. But I assure you
that throwing yourself into the bars and digging at the floor
of your cage will do you no good. The last lion in that cage
attempted the same thing, and likely the lion before him”

‘The lion shook his head.

“Well, you've got me confused with a pussy cat if you think
I'm going to stick around here”

He dug with his claws and teeth at the floor of his cage.

‘The tiger stopped pacing and considered the lion for a mo-
ment

“Check it out, youngster the tiger said. “We've got some-
thing going on here”

‘The lion stopped digging at the floor of his cage, licked his
chops, and turned his attention to the tiger

“Here's how it goes."the tiger explained. “We live ina world
run by these strange creatures who make us perform for food.
If you don't do the tricks they want you to do, they don't feed
you. But they need us to put ona show so they can eat. So check,
if we all stop performing and refuse to go out there and obey,
then there is no show. There's no show and they re fucked. The
Circus is fucked”

“Fucked!"” screeched one of the monkeys.

“If we don't perform, then the Ringmaster and his Keepers
and Trainers—they don't get fed either. We become useless to

107
them and the Cireus collapses. And then we all go back to the
World of the Free”

‘The lion stared for a moment.

“Idon’t get it” he said finally.

“Well,it's like this the tiger started again. “We're not per—

“Yeah, yeah, I know that" the lion interrupted, “That’s not
what I don't get. What doesn't make sense to me is why any of
you ever performed on the first place”

‘The tiger looked past the lion and his eyes met the ele-
phant’s. Both of them sat for a moment. The animals had been
going along with the panther's plan for just a few days, it
had been just days ago that they had been Circus animals,
performing stunts for food—standing on their heads, jumping
through flaming hoops, performing backflips. But now, as the
animals all considered the lion's words, none of them could
recall why they had ever performed for the Circus.

‘The elephant cleared his throat.

“You know, it's like we're different animals now; he ob-
served. “Like I don't really remember who I was when I was
Circus Elephant. I can’t remember what I was thinking when [
stood on my head for peanuts”

“We've all come a long way. the panther remarked.

“Well, whatever you got going on here, I hope you can beat
these creatures because I just want to go home? the lion said,
studying the cage that held him

“So what's it like in the Savannah?” one of the chimps
asked.

As the lion studied the ceiling and roof of his cage, looking
for some way out, he answered, “Well, it's like this, sometimes
you're eating food, and sometimes you are food”

‘The chimp looked at the panther, puzzled.

“It's like this, Mr. Chimp? the panther said. “We all must
eat. And in the World of the Free, no one brings food to you
and puts it in a bowl. You must go get your food. All of us. It is

108
up to you to make sure you have enough to survive and if you
cannot find food to eat, you go hungry.

“And everything is food for something. With the freedom
to be Chimpanzee and Tiger comes the responsibility for your
own survival. All of us eat, and all of us are food for something
else”

‘The elephant noticed the tiger pacing again, angrily, his
eyes downast, brooding

“That's twice that I thought you were going to turn the Ring-
master into food,” the elephant observed.

“I'would have attacked him if not for the panther” the tiger
replied, still pacing. “I forgot everything. Lost my
cut out for this shit™

As he made a quick turn in the process of pacing, the tiger
nodded at the panther.

“Good lookin’ out” he said.

‘The panther returned the tiger's nod, stripes of bloody cuts
and welts down his face and flank.

“Don’t thank me, Tiger. the panther said evenly. “Instead,
keep tin mind to o the same for one of the others. Before this
is over, all of us will be tested and will have to rely upon one
another. It is only through mutual assistance and cooperation,
only through recognizing the success of each other as our own,
that we will survive and defeat the Circus”

“Well, I'm not gonna lie the tiger said, still pacing angrily.
“If you hadn’t been there, it was all bad for that bastard and his
whip. I might have messed it up for all of us, cause I was gonna
fuck his ass up!”

“That would have been bad" the panther agreed thought-
fully. “That would have played right into the Ringmaster's
hands. It would have given the Circus the excuse to engage in
the most extreme brutality and possibly even kill some of us.

“You must remember. Tiger, that this is not personal. The
Ringmaster, in one sense, is a victim of the Circus as well”

‘The tiger stopped pacing

cool. I'm not

109
“Did I hear you say that?” the tiger asked incredulously.

“Did you just say that evil bastard is a victim?"

“He killed the lion!” one of the chimps screamed.

“Yeah, and he killed my mom!” the orangutan piped in.

‘The panther nodded patiently.

“Iam in no way defending the Ringmaster” the panther
replied evenly. “I have no affection for him. He is a brutal
tyrant, a cruel and ruthless oppressor. 1 am only suggesting
that the Ringmaster himself is just as much a slave to the
Circus, a slave to the system that has made of him a brutal and
eruel despot.

“In fact, he is more of a slave than we are. He is a slave
to the audience that comes in and sits down in the stands and
demands a show. He must please it, and if he does not, he will
starve. He can eat only so long as he is useful in producing
what it s they want of him.

“He is also a slave to the Circus itself. He serves the Circus
and meets its demands of him. Out of desperation, out of need,
he has permitted the Circus to alter him, to warp him, to turn
him into what he is. The Circus has made him.

“And he is a slave to power. He is a slave to his top hat
and his gloves and his cape and his polished boots. He must do
what he does—he must do what he may not want to do, what
he does not choose to do, in order to keep those things, those
symbols of power. He must sell himself everyday, compromise
everyday, become something he does not want to be just to
‘maintain his authority over others—over us”

‘The panther paused, clearing his throat.

“So you see, everything he is, everything he's become, the
enslavements he has submitted to, is to maintain himself over
us, and now, with all he has sacrificed for the illusion that he
held power—we have stolen the illusion from him. He is pow-
exless. We have stolen his authority and we have

stolen his means of gaining food to eat. We have stolen his
Circus. So, as any hungry creature would do, he must fight in

110
turned, and untied the embroideries from the mammoth torsos
of the beasts they rode, and they gave the tapestries a good
heave. Those too floated down to the floor.

‘The crowd, confused, grew silent. None of this was funny
anymore.

‘The Ringmaster stood paralyzed, his eyes narrowed to slits,
his fists balled into knots, his face burning red with fury. He
stared at the clothing the animals had worn for years, perform-
ing the same stunts and tricks night after night, day after day,
never a hitch. Now the clothing and decoration lay upon the
floor along with obscene piles of elephant shit. The restless
crowd began voicing displeasure.

“What the hell is this?" somebody yelled.

“Yeah! Where's the show? We came to see a show! eried
out another voice.

‘The orangutan and chimps took their seats on the

elephants’ expansive backs and the large animals all made
wide, lumbering turns, facing away from the Ringmaster and
the crowd.

“WE want a SHOW. WE want a SHOW...” the chant began.

At that moment, the elephants began kicking with their
hind legs, sending the large piles of dung flying into the air
much of it coming down on the Ringmaster, who swung his
cane wildly and attempted to duck the barrage of animal poop.
One hand held defensively in front of his face, he brushed away
a clump of it that had stuck to the leg of his white pants, and
his efforts only smeared it into the fabric.

‘The crowd roared with laughter at the Ringmaster's ex-
pense. They found the fiasco quite entertaining, unti, that is,
the elephants turned a degree further and began kicking at the
dung again, this time sending chunks of it out into the crowd.

‘The laughter died immediately and the grumbling crowd
grew tense, many of the spectators standing and waving fists
and screaming at the animals, at the Ringmaster, at the Circus
‘They had come for entertainment, to see the spectacle and, in-

133
stead, they were rewarded with stupid beasts kicking shit into
their popcorn. They were insulted, enraged, offended.

‘The elephants slowly turned toward the exit and plodded
over to the tapestries. They wiped their feet upon the ornate
designs that had once hung upon their backs, the symbols of
the Circus’ ownership of them. They smeared dung upon the
vibrant gold and reds;

‘The incensed audience responded with boos and obscenities
and fists waving as the elephants sauntered away, nose to tail,
back the way they had come, the primates upon their backs
smiling and waving goodbye to the crowd-smiling happily and
waving grandly.

‘The Ringmaster threw his shit-stained hat to the canvas
floor, the string of profanity he uttered drowned out by the
sereams of the crowd. He stood there in the spotlight staring
at the elephant dung in heaps and the clothing discarded like
trash,

Itwas impossible. He had separated them from that damned
panther. He had divided them. He had turned off the air and had
taken their food and water and straw. He had deprived them
of sleep. He had beaten them randomly. He had tortured them
with the food in front of their cages. He had employed just
about every trick in the book to get these bastards to act right

His shoulders slumped. He shook his head, sighing. He
turned and faced the crowd, bracing himself for the inevitable
flurry of food and trash and beverages to come hurling from
the stands. With chunks of elephant dung adorning the canvas
all around him, he smiled the best smile that he could muster
and he announced to the crowd that the remainder of the
show was canceled.

“The dirty sons of bitches flung shit on me, he thought. He
closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the slushies began to
fly

Al the animals were laughing. Even the oppressive heat
could not dampen their spirits as they sat up in the fronts of

134
their cages to hear the account the chimpanzee, the orangutan,
and the elephant shared with them. “And the look on his face”
the chimp related, smiling wide, eyes sparkling. “He froze for
a moment and his beady little eyes got big and it was like he
was thinking, ‘They just kicked the shit at me ™

‘The animals roared with laughter again. The monkey rolled
onto his back holding his stomach.

“But wait! Some of it stuck to him;" added the elephant.
“And then when he tried to brush it away, he smeared it all

Another wave of laughter burst from the animals.

“Hold on, hold on” urged the orangutan, hopping and grin-
ning and holding the front bars of his cage. “Tell ‘em how you
Kicked it into the crowd and they all had shit in their food”

“Shit in their food!” sereeched the monkey, and they all bel-
lowed with laughter

Just then, the housing unit door crashed open and the Ring-
‘master stalked in, his shoulders hunched, his fists clenched, his
eyes narrow. A splotch of smeared elephant dung stained one
leg of his pants. His bloodshot eyes darted from cage to cage
Behind him cowered the two Keepers.

‘The Ringmaster recalled that just by walking through the
door he used to command respect and all the noise would cease.
As soon as he stepped into the room, the animals would go
silent. Not a peep. None of them would make eye contact. They
had feared him-—as they should.

Helooked around now and saw all the animals cackling and
howling, looking him directly in the eyes. If he didn’t know
better, he would swear they were laughing at him.

He turned toward the chimps, toward one of the little
traitors—ungrateful bastards—and he saw, to his amazement,
the little son of a bitch wore a cheesy grin and was waving at
him just as he had waved to the crowd on the Arena.

“You think this is fuckin’ funny.” the Ringmaster snarled.

135
He kicked angrily at the bars of the chimp's cage but that
only heightened the intensity of the animals' screeching and
howling.

‘The chimp continued waving and grinning, absolutely un-
afraid in his mockery. In fact, the Ringmaster's impotent cage
Kicking only seemed to embolden the chimp to smile wider and
wave with more enthusiasm.

How did this happen?, the Ringmaster asked himsel.

He shook his head, unbelieving. He turned from the chimp
and walked down to the cages of the tiger and lion—the new
animals. They sat calmly in the midst of all the insanity, with
only an occasional growl. Now, they eyed him with curiosity
as he stood in front of them.

“We'll begin their training immediately” the Ringmaster an-
nounced over his shoulder to the Keepers. “We can get started
with these two. And the rest of the animals we're getting in will
come around in no time. I already called Safari Joe. He should
be calling me back shortly”

“What will he do with them?” Sam asked, curiously.

‘The Ringmaster shrugged

“What the hell do I care? Just get them ready to go. All of
“em but these two!” he said, nodding toward the cats

With his hands laced behind his back, he watched as the
two animals got to their feet and approached the front of their
cages, sniffing the air. The lion and tiger stood at the bars, ex-
changed a glance, and then gazed directly into the eyes of the
Ringmaster

“Goddamnit!” the Ringmaster screamed.

“What's the matter?” Carl asked, taking a cautious step to-
ward the Ringmaster.

“I thought you said these two were alright.” said the Ring-
master, pointing at the two cats.

“Well, they have been—what do you mean?” asked Carl

“Well look at ‘em” the Ringmaster screamed, stll pointing.
“Look at their eyes! These bastards have poisoned them too!”

136
Carl stepped up and took a closer look, first at the tiger,
then the lion, and the hair on the back of his neck stood up.
Sure enough, the two cats had that same weird, knowing look
in their eyes

“Yeah Dick” he said, taking a step back from the cages.
“You're right”

Both cats continued to stare into the Ringmaster's eyes.
‘Then, all at once, they flipped their food dishes into the bars,
sending morsels of food flying out onto the range, and all over
the Ringmaster.

Bewildered, the Ringmaster took a step back from the cages,
brushing the debris from his clothes. The animals erupted in
howls and screeching, and this time the two cats joined the
chorus.

“They got to these two_” the Ringmaster muttered. “They all
gotta go! All of them! Every last one of them!”

Sam scratched his head.

“What about the panther?”

“Especially the panther!” the Ringmaster replied.

‘The Ringmaster's phone chirped loudly and he pulled it
from his jacket pocket, holding it up to his ear. He shoved a
finger in his other ear to block out the noise. There was a pause.

“Yeah, Joe?" The Ringmaster responded into the phone.

“No, no. Change that. Add two more. All of them gotta go.
Yeah. Well, the sooner th better...Okay...Okay...See you then”

He hung up with a flip of his thumb and shoved the phone
back in his jacket.

“Get them ready.” the Ringmaster ordered the Keepers. “Joe
will be here within the hour. Have these sumbitches on the
loading dock when he gets here”

‘The Keepers nodded and marched briskly to the garage
door, more than happy to begin the process of ridding
themselves of these troublesome animals

Sam crouched down, grabbed the handle and slid the door
up on its tracking. Bright sunlight poured into the building,

137
blinding Sam and Carl for a moment. A slight breeze moved
the otherwise stale air

‘The Ringmaster turned around right where he stood, scowl-
ing at all the animals.

It started as just a slight ripple, darkness moving in dark-
ness, barely visible, black on black until the panther opened
his eyes. The eyes glowed from the midst of the darkness and
he raised his head from the floor of the cage. He panted short,
quick breaths that pulled in hot air and pushed it back out.
‘There had been a noise that had disturbed the delirium, the
half-dream brought on by the terrible heat

His ears moved, pivoting toward the sound. It was the ani-
mals. He could hear them making a ruckus and knew they had
not given up their resistance to the Ringmaster. He could imag-
ine how they looked, standing up to the bars, defiant, unbroken.
Free

He was about to lower his head again when he caught the
scent of something—something almost familiar, and his nostrils
worked quickly, sniffing at the air, trying to recall... Then it
came back to him. He remembered. When the animals had been
sick all those years ago, he had smelled that particular scent.

No, it won't be long now, the panther thought, resting his
head on the floor of the cage. It won't be long now.

‘The Keepers had just opened the garage door when one of
the Trainers burst into the housing area, his eyes wide, large
circles of sweat soaking through the pits of his khaki shirt. “The
ASPCA!” he yelled.

He ran up to the Ringmaster, pointing back toward the
Arena

“You gotta come quick” He urged. “The ASPCA just came
into the Arena and Jack s out there stalling them. They asked
for you. You gotta hurry”

“Okay? the Ringmaster said calmly, pointing at the Trainer.
“Help Sam and Carl get food and water back in these cages.

138
‘We gotta make it look good. And turn the fans back on. When
you're done, do the same thing on the other range. Got it?"

‘The Trainer nodded. The Ringmaster sighed and strode to
the door as fast as his legs would carry him.

“Fuckin’ animal lovers” he muttered.

‘The Ringmaster squinted, his eyes unaccustomed to the
darkness. In the Arena, the lights were off. The stands stood
empty, and only a small huddle of three people conversed in
the center ring. Jack was flanked by a shaggy-haired guy in
jeans and glasses on one side, and a young woman in a light
pants suit on the other side. The three of them stood amid the
debris and dung all over the Arena floor.

In his rush to get to these interlopers, the Ringmaster
Kicked and waded his way through cardboard popcorn con-
tainers and slushies and sodas without even glancing down.
The animal lovers turned to greet him and they weren't
smiling. The woman held a clipboard to her chest.

‘The Ringmaster smiled wide and friendly extending his
gloved hand, first to the guy in jeans.

“Hey, I'm the Ringmaster here” he said, still smiling.

“Hello, I'm Dave, replied the guy in jeans, grasping the
Ringmaster's hand before pulling away, a sour expression on
his face

‘The Ringmaster's smile vanished. His mouth hung open.

Dave wiped his palm on his leg,

“What's all over your gloves? He asked annoyed.

‘The Ringmaster gasped, holding his hands out in front of
him. He remembered he had wiped at the elephant shit

“Oh, uh, we had a—*

‘The woman’s face wrinkled and she grabbed her nose.

“Oh, God.” she said. “That smell”

Blood rushed to the Ringmaster's face as he stood there hu-
miliated, smelling of elephant turd and looking like a fool

“My apologies.” he said, smiling nervously as he held his
hands out before him. “We had a lttle incident earlier and—*

139
“We heard the woman interrupted, glancing at the clip-
board.

She stepped to the side, gingerly, carefully, trying to keep
her pearl-white pumps from landing in the ltter and elephant
dung

“We've gotten some calls that the animals here at your cir-
cus have been behaving...oddly,” she said.

‘The Ringmaster nodded, his face still frozen with the same
smile.

“Yas, well, nothing we can't handle” the Ringmaster
responded as warmly as possible. “You know how these things
go. But it's certainly nothing to concern you folks—"

“And abuse” the woman said directly, her eyes locking on
the Ringmaster's

“We've received several reports of abuse, Mr. Head. People
calling over the last several days.”

“Abuse?” the Ringmaster asked, shaking his head and look-
ing as shocked as he could. “There's no abuse here, I assure
you

“Well,if you don’t mind, we'd like to be the judge of that”
Dave prompted, fumbling the camera hanging from a strap
around his neck. “If you'll just let us see for ourselves, we'll
be out of your way in no time, Mr. Head”

‘The Ringmaster grinned back in an effort to hid his con-
tempt.

“Right this way.”

The two ASPCA representatives followed the Ringmaster,
stepping carefully until they reached the exit door of the Arena.
He led them down the hallway toward the door to the housing
area, and the closer they got, the louder the noise grew from
the other side of the door.

Fuck, the Ringmaster thought. These animals are still at it

“You know how animals sometimes get a little moody when
the summer heat gets bad.” the Ringmaster offered.

Neither of the ASPCA representatives responded.

140
Howls and screeches and trumpeting punctuated with the
rattle of cages reverberated into the hallway. The Ringmaster
wiped away the sweat from his forehead, grabbed the door
knob, and opened the door. He poked his head inside

‘The food that the Keepers had returned to the cages was
now littered on the floor and walls. The water had been
dumped, creating a mess everywhere. All the animals howled
and screeched, the primates rattling the cage doors. One
monkey grinned at the Ringmaster while urinating, the stream
of liquid waste arching out from between the bars to splatter
into the mess on the floor.

In that instant, the Ringmaster could imagine the reaction
of these two busy-bodies if he let them walk into a full-scale
riot situation with primates pissing all over the place. He could
imagine the conclusions they'd draw.

He quickly slammed the door shut and turned to face the
two animals lovers

“I'm sorry, but we have a situation in there and I can't let
you go in” the ringmaster asserted.

Dave thrust his shoulders back and pointed accusingly at
the Ringmaster.

“Look here, Head. We have a right to—"

“I'm in charge of this Circus; the Ringmaster replied, step-
ping forward. “And I'm responsible for the safety of everyone.
‘That includes you. And I'm telling you the situation isn't safe
We'll have to go to the other range™

The Ringmaster adjusted his jacket and nodded at the
Trainer.

“Get that situation under control in there” he ordered.
“We'll be back”

‘The Trainer nodded, then scratched his head, perplexed as
to what he was supposed to do to remedy the situation.

‘The Ringmaster guided the two ASPCA representatives
with his gloved hand, getting them away from the door
and down the corridor to the other range. But even as the

141
noise from the housing area behind them began to fade with
distance, similar noise echoed down the hallway from in front
of them. It grew louder as they approached the door to the
other range.

‘The Ringmaster stood before the steel door and took a deep
breath. He could hear the rattling of cages and the screeching
and trumpeting of the animals on the other side of the door. He
opened it just a crack and it suddenly burst open, Carl and Sam
tumbling from the housing area, panting and covered in food.

Startled, the two ASPCA representatives jumped away
from them.

‘The Ringmaster was stunned. “What the—*

He looked into the housing area and saw the chimps and
monkeys with handfuls of food, flinging it toward the open
door. Food covered the walls and floor. The elephants took
turns running headfirst into the bars, rocking the c
aloud and incessant clamor. “Fuck!”

He slammed the door shut and leaned his back against it

“Mr. Head—* the woman began.

“No?" the Ringmaster said, cutting her off. “No. You're not
going in there”

“Mr. Head, we're—

“I'm sorry. But I'm going to have to ask you to leave” the
Ringmaster said tersely. “You'll have to come back at another
time”

Both of the representatives blinked, confused.

“You know we'll be back” Dave threatened. We'll be back
and this time we'll have a warrant from the Federal Wildlife
Organization and we'll have the local authorities with us and
the media:

“Do what you gotta do” the Ringmaster snarled. “You're not
going in there. Now leave”

‘The two of them stomped away in a huff and the Ringmaster
followed them as far as the Arena and watched them leave.

He could only hope Safari Joe arrived before they returned.

es with

142
‘The animals’ cages stood side by side upon the loading dock,
neatly lined up along the outside wall of the housing area. For
many of the animals, it was the first time they had felt direct
sunlight in a long time. One graffiti-covered freight car, seem-
ingly abandoned, squatted in the lot on fla tires, abutting the
loading dock. Its shadow pooled directly underneath it and its
back doors were latched.

‘The chimps, monkeys, and elephants who had been moved
to the other range quickly reacquainted themselves with the
others and the animals shared stories of their resistance. Some
of the animals paced nervously in their cages despite the with-
ering heat, pacing to allay fears over their unknown future.

A gentle breeze moved across the parking lot and the ele-
phant, lion and tiger~their cages lined up next to one another-
each closed their eyes and tilted their faces toward the sunlight

‘The monkey, surveying the world around him, pointed out
into the parking lot, a stretch of asphalt with shimmering heat
rising from its surface,

“Is that part of the World of the Free?” he asked. “The Sa-
vannah?"

‘The lion chuckled.

“That's part of this world of cages. the lion answered.

“The Savannah is like—it's..it's..soft” He grunted, frus-
trated. “It's soft like the straw that we had in our cages. Only
all the ground is like that. Not hard like this place™

“All soft?” the monkey asked. “That sounds nice

“Yep” the lion replied. “You can sleep anywhere. Just pull
up a nice big piece of the world and stretch out”

He closed his eyes for a brief moment and remembered his
world, his mate, his cubs.

“Ihope we're on our way.” he whispered softly.

“Where's the panther?” the chimp piped up.

“Yeah the orangutan agreed. “Why do they got us all out
here except the panther?”

143
“Ihope they haven't sent him off to another Circus or some-
thing” the elephant added. He shook his head despondently.
“He's the only one not out here”

“Free the panther!” yelled one of the monkeys, rattling the
bars of his cage. “Fuck the Cireus!”

‘That sparked the other monkeys, who joined in the chorus,
screeching and rattling the bars of their cages. The chimps and
orangutan joined them.

At the mention of the panther, the tiger tilted his nose to the
air in an effort to pick up the panther's scent and again relay
to the others a report on the panthers status. But as soon as
his nostrils began working at the air, he opened his eyes with
astart and faced the lion in the next cage.

‘The lion, in response to the bewildered look on the tiger's
face, shook his head sadly, shaggy mane blowing in the breeze.

‘The tiger rose to his feet and quickly closed the ground be-
tween himself and the lion’s cage. He leaned up against the
bars that separated the two of them. Up and down the line, the
primates were continuing their chant

“Free the panther! Free the panther..”

‘The tiger whispered low to the lion, “Should we tell the oth-
ers?”

‘The lion thought for just a moment. He considered their
situation,

“Hey! Hey!" the elephant trumpeted. “Cut the noise!

“The tiger and lion can smell the panther, remember?”

‘The noise abated and the animals waited. The elephant nod-
ded at the tiger.

“Do you smell him?” the elephant asked, hopefully.

‘The animals stared at the tiger.

“Well, yeah; the tiger replied, his eyes nervously darting
from the lion to the other animals and back to the lion.

“Is he alright?” asked the chimp”

“Is he close by?" asked the monkey.

144
‘The tiger stammered, “Well..uh—"

“He's very close the lion intervened, confidently.

“Very close. His scent is strong”

‘The monkeys, excited at the good news, erupted again:

“Free the panther! Free the panther!..

‘The lion’s eyes met the tiger's and something passed be-
tween the two of them that the other animals did not notice.
‘The lion again shook his head.

‘The breeze blew stronger and both animals closed their eyes
and tilted their faces to the sun. Neither of them betrayed their

deep sadness.

145
Balls! Balls! Balls!

The Ringmaster paced slowly. One scuffed, dirty boot
Kicked a popcorn box. The next kicked a crumpled soda cup.
He stepped in elephant shit. He didn’t care.

His eyes, now accustomed to the darkness, looked out into
the empty stands, the rows and rows of empty seats where the
spectators normally sat. His world.

He sighed. His feet kicked through the debris. Where did it
all go wrong?, he asked himself. What could I have done?

He reached the rim of the center ring, pivoted smoothly,
and strolled slowly back in the other direction, one small, small
figure in the giant expanse of the Arena.

He shook his head.

“Ididn’t do anything differently than I've always done it
he muttered to himself. I didn't do anything different”

He had known from the beginning that something like this
could happen. Like all Ringmasters, he had taken pains to pre-
vent it—the training, the process, the programming, the rigid
controls, the reinforcement schemes. The same tactics had al-
ways worked. He hadn't done anything different.

‘And yet everything had changed—the animals, the specta-
tors, the Keepers and Trainers, all of them had changed. None
of them had acted this way before. They've changed.

T've changed, he thought. I don't feel the same. Like I've
lost something. Control? Power? As if they look at me and I'm
somehow...smaller.

He sighed again.

146
“But I didn’t do anything any different he repeated, staring
out at the empty stands as if the answer might present itself to
him.

It was that goddamned panther, he thought, his face
twisting in an angry knot at the thought of the black cat. But
it wasn't just the panther; even after the panther had been
removed, the other animals continued to act out. Even the
chimps...And the new animals, the lion and tiger, they didn’t
start acting out until after the removal of the panther.

And how do you explain the chimps and elephants in the
12 That was long after the panther had been exiled to the
freight car

“They shit on my canvas” the Ringmaster mumbled.

“And then the bastards kicked it on me™

Helooked down at his shit-stained clothes and clenched his
jaw.

How could I have authority and control one day but not the
next?

He stopped in his tracks.

How?

He shook his head. He had not done anything different than
he had always done it so he could only conclude that this could
have happened at any time, on any day, over the course of all
these years. It could have happened any day. But it hadn't. It
hadn't happened, and he had kept employing all the measures
he believed would prevent it all the measures that seemed to
work, that kept the Circus going. Or so he thought. And each
day, each month, each year that went by without disruption,
that gnawing fear that it could happen, that it might happen,
receded further and further until he had forgotten to be afraid.
He had forgotten that it could happen.

And then it happened.

“They shit on my canvas™

His cell phone chirped in his jacket pocket.

lasta

147
“Greatest Traveling Show!” the Ringmaster greeted with the
phone to his cheek. He listened for a moment, his features
pinching together and his mouth drawing into an angry sneer.
“Now you listen here..”

He waited as the caller spoke. He fumed. His fists balled.

“You goddamn reporters got the fuckin’ animals lovers
crawling all over me and you've cost me a fortune” he growled
into the phone. “So yeah, I got a comment for you: I'm going
to sue your asses! How's that for a comment?"

He held the phone contemptuously, directly in front of his
face

“Balls! Balls! Balls!” he screamed into it. Then, with all his
might, he flung the tiny phone up toward the stands. It sailed
for quite a distance before crashing into one of the seats and
breaking into pieces

‘The Ringmaster slapped the palms of his shit-stained gloves
together, satisfied with a job well-done.

“Shove that onto your front page”’

‘The voice came from behind him.

“Hey, Dick™

‘The Ringmaster spun. He hadn't realized anyone was there.

“Maybe this is a bad time suggested one of the Trainers,
standing with his hands folded in front of his belt buckle. About
him were the Keepers and the other Trainers, all standing close
together, a small formation of two ranks.

“Shouldn't you be getting the animals ready?” the Ringmas-
ter asked them, his eyes narrowing

“We got them all out on the back dock” Carl spoke up.

“All but the panther. He's stll in the freight car”

“Good? the Ringmaster replied. “Load him last” He eyed
Carl hard. “You got that?” Carl nodded.

“Good” the Ringmaster repeated.

“So Dick” the Trainer continued, shifting from one foot to
the other. “We were all wondering.. How'd it go with the AS-
PCA?

148
‘The Ringmaster studied them for just a moment before he
spoke.

“The ASPCA?" The Ringmaster retorted, his eyes and lips
narrowing down to hard, straight lines. “The ASPCA?"

He eyed each of them.

“Oh;" he said, clapping once. He smiled knowingly. ‘I get it
That's what this is about™

He nodded. His nostrils flared as he stared at the workers.

“You all think you smell blood in the water the Ringmaster
proposed. “That's how it is. You think maybe ol' Dick's gone
Soft, huh?”

He took one step forward.

“Like I'm not in control or something” he sneered. “Well,
Tet me tell you something. I'm still very much in control”

His eyes darted over each of them. They all took a subtle
step back. The Trainer who had done all the speaking put his
hands up in front of himself apologetically. He swallowed hard.

“You see the fuckin’ animals fling shit on me and you see the
fuckin’ mall rats in the goddamned stands throw their fuckin’
slushies on me and you see the news reporters and the ASPCA
Kicking me in the fuckin’ pants and now you are getting up the
balls to confront me.” e said, jabbing himself in the chest with
an index finger. “You fuckin’ cowards he pointed. “With your
little fuckin’ squirrel balls, and you whisper about me in the
goddamn break-room?"

“Dick, it's not like that—"

“Don’t you ‘Dick’ me!” The Ringmaster screamed. “And
don't you ever forget who signs your paychecks. I do! I dot”
He jabbed the index finger into his chest again. “And as long
as I'am the one who puts food on your tables, then I am the
one who worries about fuckin’ animals lovers. And don’t you
ever forget that I'm in charge. I'm in charge”

He stood, simmering, his face red and contorted with rage
as he panted. None of the Circus workers moved. None of them
spoke.

149
Somewhere close by growled the low grumble of diesel en-
gines and the hissing exhale of brakes. The Ringmaster blinked
and then recalled that Safari Joe was expected.

“The trucks” he said, distracted. “The trucks are here”

‘The Keepers and Trainers turned, relieved at the chance to
get away from the Ringmaster. They headed for the back dock

“Wait” he said. He rubbed his temples with both hands, clos-
ing his eyes to get his thoughts together. “You need to load
the animals from the back dock into the empty truck that Joe
brought before you unload the new animals. Joe already knows
‘We don't want these animals to have any contact at all with the

‘The Trainers and Keepers, ashen face and wide-eyed, all
nodded, turned, and hurried away toward the back dock. The
Ringmaster eyed them suspiciously as they scurried off.

“Don’t you forget who I am.” he mumbled at their backs. ‘I
am the Ringmaster”

‘The two trucks that Joe and his partner had backed in next
to the abandoned freight car were still running, the smell of
diesel permeating the air. Neither of the drivers got out of the
cabs of the trucks but left the Trainers and Keepers to do their
work, loading the cages from the dock onto the back of the
empty truck. As the two Trainers loaded the last cage of chimps
onto the back of the truck, Sam and Carl approached the doors
of the abandoned freight car.

“Don’t close that yet” Carl yelled over the grumble of the
diesel engines.

‘The Trainers stood poised to close the back doors and latch
them. They looked at Carl and Sam curiously.

Sam pointed at the abandoned freight car and said, “We still
have to load—"

Suddenly, the truck’s hom blew, loud and frantic. The man
on the loading dock stopped and turned toward the noise. The
Ringmaster stepped out from the housing area, confused.

“What's going on here?” he asked

150
“The animal lovers are here!” Joe yelled from the cab of the
truck. He pointed out the window of his cab, toward the middle
of the lot where a minivan and a squad car had just pulled to a
halt

Everyone on the loading dock squinted and shielded their
eyes to make out the figures of the two ASPCA representa-
tives who'd visited earlier, along with a policeman who had
just stepped from the squad car.

“We gotta go; Joe yelled

Both trucks slipped into gear and the drivers revved the
engines.

Sam and Carl, sensing that the two vehicles were going to
pull off, quickly unlatched the door of the abandoned freight
car and swung the doors open wide.

“We better hurry?” Sam called to Carl

‘The trucks began to inch away from the dock

“Too late” Carl replied.

Instantly, the Ringmaster leapt down from the loading dock
and ran up alongside the truck. He grabbed the chrome handle
next to the door and jumped up on the running board.

“Wait! Wait!” the Ringmaster yelled. “You gotta let me un-
load the replacement animals! How will I explain all the miss-
ing animals?”

“I'm sorry” Joe replied, his long hair tangled by the wind
coming in the truck window. He chewed on the end of a fat
cigar. ‘I can't have these fuckers looking into my business,
Dick. You know that. I can't afford it. We'll be back after
they're gone. Give me a call”

‘The truck was picking up speed

“You can't do this to me!” the Ringmaster screamed.

“Sorry Dick”

Joe's shove sent sent the Ringmaster tumbling from the run-
ningboard and rolling onto the pavement with a hard grunt. He
got to his feet amidst a cloud of dust and diesel fumes, holes in

151
the elbows and knees of his costume. He waved an angry fist
at the departing trucks

“Fuck!” he screamed.

His top hat rolled crookedly across the pavement and he
Kicked it. It landed in front of the small throng of people com-
ing towards him, led by the two animal lovers and the police
officer. Behind them was a young lady in a skirt and jacket, car-
rying a microphone, and a guy with a camera resting upon his
shoulder

‘The camera man didn't see the hat and stepped on it as he
trotted to keep up with the others

The woman with the clipboard smiled smugly as they
reached the Ringmaster. The police officer removed his reflec-
tive sunglasses with a flourish and extended a piece of paper
at him

“This is your copy, Mr. Head;" the officer announced. “It’s
an official warrant”

‘The Ringmaster snatched the warrant rudely, balled it, and
threw it out into the lot

“We told you we'd be back? said Dave.

‘The Ringmaster fumed, the mop of his oily hair hanging
down into his face.

He watched them with contempt as they ascended the steps
to the loading dock. The guy with the camera on his shoulder
made a slow circle and as the camera pointed at the Trainers
and the Keepers, they shifted nervously, putting their hands to
their faces.

Carl and Sam exchanged a nervous glance, standing next to
the open doors of the abandoned freight car. Carl had his hands
inhis pockets. Sweat rolled down his forehead and cheeks.

He looks guilty, the Ringmaster thought. This stupid bas-
tard looks like he's gotten caught doing something

‘The Ringmaster's eyes fell to the swinging open door of the
freight car. Then back to Carl. Had they loaded the panther?

152
Carl's eyes met the Ringmaster’s for just a brief moment
and Carl looked away. A chill went down the Ringmaster's
spine. These dumb fucks had forgotten to get rid of the god-
damned panther.

Dave approached Carl and Sam at the doorway of the aban-
doned freight car

“We just looked around in there” he said, pointing at the
housing area. “All of the animals are gone. You realize that if
there was any abuse, you guys could be charged with obstruct-
ing justice if you just helped get rid of the evidence, don't you?"

Sam and Carl exchanged another nervous glance.

“Don’t tell them shit!” the Ringmaster bellowed from the
parking lot.

As quickly as his legs would carry him, he raced up to the
loading dock and over to the doorway of the abandoned freight
car, just as Dave disappeared inside.

“Don’t say a goddamned thing” the Ringmaster sneered,
grabbing Carl by the front of his shirt. He reached over and
grabbed Sam’s shirt also. “Keep your fuckin’ mouths shut!”

Flash. Flash. Flash. The sudden white light from the flash-
bulb illuminated the darkness inside the freight car, and the
Ringmaster squinted and strained to see. With cach flash, in
just a brief instant, the Ringmaster could see the lines of the
bars of a cage and an immobile form, a dark form, laying in-
side the cage.

“Fuck!” he sereamed.

Dave emerged from the freight car, sweat pouring down

his ashen face. He waved to the cameraman and the re-
porter.

“Come quick! You gotta get this!”

His eyes locked with the Ringmaster's.

“Somebody’s gonna pay for this’” he promised.

‘The Ringmaster's mind raced. Who could he blame?

His gaze fell upon Carl and Sam and the two men wilted
under his scrutiny. They had been pretty damned good workers,

153
and it was a shame they would have to go down like this, the
Ringmaster thought. But they had been responsible for the care
of the animals.

He smiled.

Almost as if they had heard his thoughts, both Carl and Sam
looked directly at him. Carl reached into his shirt pocket with
one hand and pulled out a small tape recorder.

“What the—*

“This tells the whole story.” Carl announced and handed the
recorder to the guy in jeans. “Well both be willing to give you
a statement™

Behind them, the camera man and the news reporter rushed
into the abandoned freight car to document the story. And
that's when it occurred to the Ringmaster that nobody was call-
inga veterinarian. Nobody was in a rush to bring food or water
to the panther.

He knew right then that the circus was finished. And so was
he

150
Epilogue: The World of the
Free

During the night, after the sudden burst of rain, a mist had
settled in low to the ground, while in the moonlight where
it meandered across the open expanses-large swaths of sun-
baked earth where nothing grew. In the grassy areas, the mist
moved around the stalks of weeds and blades of grass, serving
sometimes as additional cover for the lfe that lived there, con-
cealed. Where the grasslands met the denser growth of the jun-
gle, the mist glowed against the darkness of the triplecanopy
refuge that shut out even the moonlight

Asthe sun rose and the rays of light stretched long shadows
across the surface of things, a light breeze caressed the gently
swaying long grasses, emerald and yellow, and the light and
the breeze melted away much of the moisture from the night
before. All the world inhaled deeply, vibrant with life at the
birthpangs of the new day.

Everything was alive.

In the tall grasses, a hyena, lean and missing patches of fur,
crept quietly, slowly, his movements and scent concealed by
the swaying grass and the breeze. But before he could pounce
upon his prey, one of the blackbirds that he had intended to
devour sensed him and took flight suddenly, provoking all of
the others to follow. The flock of them took quickly to the i,
flapping frantically, a loud rush of wings, escaping the teeth
and claws of the desperate hyena.

‘They rose up over the grasses and trees, the plush, thick jun-
gle passing below them, their shadows speckling the canopy

155
below until they found a place to glide in and rest for a mo-
ment

Below them, perched in the branches of one of the taller
trees, a chimpanzee chewed a mouthful of banana, silently con-
templating how the jungle floor lightened, slowly, with the ris-
ing of the sun, and eventually to a light gray.

He took another bite.

Not far away, a cluster of monkeys scurried up through the
branches of the trees in a panic, shrieking, and the chimpanzee
tensed. His senses were alive.

From the comer of his eye, he glimpsed something move
below him in the underbrush.

‘The chimp discarded the banana and clambered quickly up
further into the tree.

Suddenly, from the underbrush he saw the head and shaggy
mane of a lion emerge, then his powerful front legs and his
torso as he moved quietly, searching for food.

‘The big cat glanced up in the direction of the chimpanzee.

“How's it going there, Mr. Chimp?” the lion asked.

‘The chimp exhaled in relief.

“You can't be sneaking up on me like that” he replied.

“You made me drop my banana”

“Ahh, relax. There's plenty more bananas where that came
from” the lion assured him good-naturedly.

From across the canopy, the monkeys who had fearfully
scurried up in the tree earlier swung through the branches to
getabit closer to the action.

“Lots of bananas!” screeched one of the monkeys. “Lots!
Lots!”

“Hey, monkey the lion greeted from his location in the un-
derbrush. “I see all of you have settled in quite nicely”

“Yeah! We're lovin’ it” the monkey exclaimed.

“No backflips, no tricks, no nonsense;” the chimp said.

“No big cages and little cages. No cages at all. No perform-
ing for food. There's food everywhere™

156
“Just reach out and bite somethin't” the monkey screeched,
grinning.

He took his own advice and plucked a ripe mango from the
tree he occupied and sank his teeth into it, squirting juice into
the air.

From not too far away came the rumbling noise of an en-
gine, atruck rolling across the Savannah, kicking up dust in its
wake. All the animals grew still,listening to it pass.

‘The chimp sighed.

“What the fuck is wrong with them?” the chimp asked,
frowning. “You got all this free food, free food everywhere
Everything’s free: water, food, sunlight, air” He motioned at
those things with his hands as he spoke.

“And us. We're free. Everything’s free. So why do they gotta
fuck it up? Why can't they be free? These fuckin’ weirdos gotta
Tock up food and toss everybody and themselves into cages.
Perform tricks for food. What the fuck?”

“Fuckin' weirdos!” yelled the monkey around a mouthful of
mango.

‘The lion shrugged.

“You're the one who thought these creatures were so smart”
the lion reminded the chimp with a grin. “You thought they
were special and they knew what they were doing, remember?”

‘The chimp shook his head.

“Idon’t know what I was thinking." he admitted. ‘Back then
Ididn't know any better. I didn’t know there was anything else
but cages and tricks for food. But now I know.

“Every day, I gotta stay on guard and I gotta watch my ass
to make sure I don't get snatched up for lunch. But I tell you
what—I think I'd rather have a whole pack of ravenous hyenas
chew me to bits before getting caught by those crazy bastards
with their world of cages and their tricks-for-food scheme”

‘The lion nodded.

157
‘There was a pause as each of them thought back to their
struggle to get from one world to the other, their long journey
to freedom.

“Say, lion. Have you seen the panther?” the chimp asked.

‘The lion’s features hardened for just a moment. He took in
a breath, remembering that last day in the world of the cages
when he and the tiger had smelled the panther

‘The lion shifted uncomfortably on his feet

He remembered how the panther had smelled, that familiar
odor of the caribou that the lion had hunted and caught, or the
smell of a wildebeest after the hyenas had feasted on it

‘The lion exhaled.

“Have you seen him?” the lion asked the chimp, evasively.

‘The chimp thought

“Well, I thought I caught a glimpse of him one night" the
chimp replied. “But T can't be sure. It was just some movement
and then he was gone in the shadows. I could have sworn it
was him”

He shook his head.

“I'saw the orangutan” he continued. *1 had heard the pan-
ther might be over in that area of the watering hole, but I saw
the orangutan and he said that he’s over at the watering hold
all the time and he hadn't seen the panther”

‘The chimp paused there. He considered the lion.

“What do you make of that?" the chimp asked. °I thought
‘maybe because the panther didn’t get loaded up with

all the rest of us that maybe they sent him off to another
cireus or a zoo. But you hear about others who say they have
seen the panther here or there”

‘The lion nodded. He dropped his gaze and looked away.

‘The chimp considered the lion for 2 moment, one hand ab-
sently stroking the whiskers on his chin.

“Do you think...” the chimp began, his eyes squinting down
tightly. “Do you think that maybe they killed him?"

158
‘The lion shifted on his feet again, recalling that smell. He
had known what that had meant. The tiger had known too.

“What do you think?” the chimp pressed.

‘The lion looked up and saw the monkey and the chimp lean-
ing forward on their branches, waiting for his answer.

He licked his chops and took a deep breath and said simply:

“The panther lives™

Foramoment, the primates searched his face, probing with
their eyes, gauging his sincerity and confidence. Then they re-
laxed satisfied, apparently with his answer.

“The panther lives!” the monkey screeched.

‘The lion rose to his feet and sniffed at the air for any hint
of his next meal

“Say, lion” the chimp called out. “You remember that
Siberian tiger? The one that almost took a bite out of the
Ringmaster?”

“Yeah the lion answered. “They moved him right after 1
got there, didn't they? Shipped him off to another circus or
something?"

“Right.” the chimp confirmed. “What do you think ever be-
came of him? Do you think he ever got away from the World
of Cages?”

‘The lion pondered that for a moment, and then shook his
head.

“I don’t know he said sadly. “I really don’t know."

‘Thousands of miles away, the early morning sunlight fell
upon a tent of red and yellow and blue stripes, a small flag flut-
tering in the breeze from its center post. Its stands were empty,
the arena dark. In the metal, rectangular building abutting the
tent, two slope-shouldered men in gray uniforms and black
boots stalked between two rows of cages, the captive animals
illuminated by the dimly-glowing track lighting hung from the
ceiling. With each cage they passed, they grabbed the bars of
the doors with one calloused hand and gave them a good tug,
the metal rattle echoing off the windowless walls

159
Having counted and secured all the cages, they walked from
the building letting the door slam shut behind them.

As they awakened the animals began their daily routine,
their ritual. They ate from the food dishes in their cages, the
food provided to them by their captors in exchange for their
performances.

Unenthralled by the morning ritual, a Siberian tiger, intim-
idatingly large, paced continually in his cage, quickly, angrily.
His muscles rippled with each step, his eyes aglow with a kind
of silent rage, a ferocity, an intensity. A welter of long scars
erisscrossed his back and flanks, a map where his thick fur did
not grow.

Again and again he reached the bars, turned and stalked to
the other corner of the cage, turning, pacing, turning.

Across from him,
leaves while he considered the tiger. Rumors had circulated
about this cat ever since he'd arrived. The story had it that he
had been a trouble maker somewhere, or maybe a head case.
He didn't talk, didn't socialize. He never relaxed. He paced
and paced—he was always pacing

Curiosity got the better of the young elephant, so he swal-
lowed the mouthful of leaves and called across the aisle:

“Hey tiger!”

‘The tiger raised his angry eyes and met the elephant’s

He kept pacing

“Why is it you're always pacing that cage?” the elephant
asked.

“The tiger stopped in his tracks, his shadow pooled under
him. With a voice heavy as a bag of gravel and dirty rocks, he
answered:

young elephant lazily chewed some

“Because I remember...

160
Writers’ Note

We have to clear up a few things. Knowing that our read-
exs will probably use their heads for something other than hat
racks, we know you have come to one or two forks in the road
during the course of reading this story where something maybe
didn't seem fully explained; that maybe we passed over some-
thing here or there; that we engaged in a bit of shady razzle-
dazzle to get beyond a glitch in the writing of this story.

Ifit seems like that, it's because, well, we did.

We intended that this story would serve as an analogy on
several levels. Of course, we have the surface level of things,
a general criticism of a culture in which anthropocentric hu-
man being believe that everything but humankind is expend-
able, that the world was put here primarily for us-to use and
abuse the way we see fit—and that it's perfectly all right to
yank creatures from the wild and get them to behave contrary
to their nature just for our entertainment. So, on this level, the
animals represent animals

But consciously, we wanted the circus animals’ liberation
struggle to parallel that of prisoners against the despotic State
and also that of workers against the oppressive system of
global capital.

In the metaphor of animals-as-prisoners, the Keepers are
symbolic of the guards and other low-level security personnel;
the Trainers fit the role of teachers and administrators who
‘maintain the system of so-called “programming” and “school-
ing’ and “rehabilitation”; the Ringmaster represents the war-
dens and prison directors who exercise authority under the il-
lusion that they hold power;

161
and, the Spectators are the political constituency whipped
into a frenzy by the Ringmaster—the State and its politicians
who then opportunistically react to that fabricated frenzy by
placating the people with their tough-on-crime scams. Crime
control as entertainment

A symbiotic relationship exists between the people, tricked
and deluded, and the State, corrupt and inept.

With the animals-as-exploited worker, the Keepers parallel
those reactionary forces within the proletariat who serve their
own oppressor (the Ringmaster), to maintain control over the
oppressed. They are the Keepers of State- imposed law and or-
der, the protectors of the status quo~ from low-level security
forces all the way up to the military.

“The Trainers fill the role of those who mis-educate and mold
the minds of the masses—the teachers, the preachers, the me-
dia, and so on. They perpetuate the pathological, anthropocen-
tric ideas upon which rest capitalism, the State, and the Circus.

Ringmaster Dick Head clearly personifies the ruling elite,
the bourgeoisie, those who most benefit from the exploitation
of the workers.

Finally, the Spectators are the consumers, a crosssection of
all the players in society, the engine of the capitalist paradigm,
without which capitalism and the State would not exist. In this
way, what the panther says about the Ringmaster being a vic-
tim of this order of things truly applies to us all, so long as we
accept the legitimacy of any of the components of hierarchy or
exploitation that are at the basis of our cultural worldview.

Inboth of our intended metaphors, the representation of dif-
ferent levels of hierarchy are fairly self-evident. The Ringmas-
ter is both the State, the warden, the prison director, as well
as the capitalist, the bourgeoisie, the global corporate sweat-
shop manager. Also in both, the division among the animals—
best exemplified by the status of the chimps above the other
animals—is an artificial one manufactured by the Ringmaster
in order to divide and conquer the animals as a class.

162
‘The prisoner can identify with the circus animals, as can
the worker who must punch the clock and sell lsbor to make a
living, performing tricks for food. The story is universal in this

However, to maintain this universality, we had to limit the
animals” resistance to only methods that would be effective
bothiin a labor setting and in a prison setting. It is for this rea-
son alone, that the animals have confined themselves to strictly
nonviolent tactics in their effort to get to the World of the Free.

Early onin our planning of this story, we came to a dilemma.
‘We recognized that while violent means would certainly prove
effective in settings outside of prison, the intensity of repres-
sive potential, the availability of manpower and technologies
on the part of the State to suppress violence, and (most impor-
tantly) the State’s ability to cut off communication of resist-
ing prisoners to outside sympathizers (and thus vilify prisoner
resistance), are three factors that doom a violent resistance
‘movement within prison. So, in order for our story to remain
true to both scenarios—inside and outside prison—we had to
confine the animals’ resistance to the tactics universal to both
situations—nonviolence.

We recognize that the methods of nonviolence appeal to
adherents who practice nonviolence exclusively and strictly,
as a matter of principle of morality or spirituality—those like
Mohandas Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Some pro-
ponents of nonviolent direct action, such as Dr. Gene Sharp,
author of The Politics of Nonviolent Action, Volumes 1-3 argue
rather persuasively that creative and unconventional tactics
of nonviolence pose the most effective and efficient methods
for waging war, particularly against an oppressive State. Peter
Ackerman and Jack Duvall's A Force More Powerful, detailing
the multitude of successful nonviolent revolutions of the twen-
tieth century seems to buttress that position.

In our case, we are avid supporters of nonviolent direct ac
tion when and so long as such methods are practical and ef-

163
fective. However, we also recognize that violent revolutionary
activities has certainly lead to success in many, many situa-
tions and we are not personally nor politically adverse to the
tactics of political violence. While there are great and inspira-
tional souls who believe in the path of exclusive nonviolence
on moral grounds, we ain’t them.

Objectively, we recognize the effectiveness of modern
guerrilla warfare and the foco strategy as a primary and essen-
tial component to a successful liberation struggle against the
forces of global capital and its economic and political organs
everywhere. To this end, Mao Tse Tung’s Military Witings,
Robert Taber's The War of the Flea, Ermesto “Che” Guevara's
Guerrilla Warfare, Frantz Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth,
and George Jackson's Blood in my Eye serve as instruction in
politics through the bullet and the bomb. Groups such as the
Symbionese Liberation Army, the Weathermen and Weather
Underground, and the Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion de
Nacional (EZLN~the Zapatistas) provide historical lessons to
this end.

S0 our exclusion of violent resistance from Last Act should
not be construed as a rejection, on our part, of violent direct ac-
tion. We only exclude reference to i, again, for better or worse,
for the maintenance of a more universally applicable message.

Beyond the question of the means of struggle, anthropo-
‘morphism, attributing human characteristics to animals (and,
in this case, using animals to represent a class of people), posed
problems for us as well. In many ways the circus animals in
their cages, viewed by their captors as commodities to be used,
served our analogies quite well. But two glitches arose.

‘The first, and probably the least obvious to the casual reader,
is the difference between interspecies and intraspecies compe-
tition and the implications that this difference has on our story.
In simple terms, the problem is this: The animals represent peo-
ple. People are of the same species. The animals in this story
are not.

164
In the Free World, one group of liberated humans would
not be the natural predator of another group of humans and
eat them. Yet, some of the animals in this story, particularly
the cats, would not have any qualms about eating some of the
others.

Considering this, when the animals in the story set aside
all differences and work together to defeat a common enemy,
they do so behaving as if they are human~—as if they are en-
gaged in intraspecies cooperation. This s, admittedly, a glitch
in the story’s continuity, one for which there is no easy solu-
tion. Our response, for the sake of maintaining the analogy of
the animals to humans, was to ambiguously take a wide berth
around this glitch.

We bring up this point for the intellectual and academic
purists so that everyone will know we are more hypocrites
than idiots. We recognize that, in the World of the Free, humans
who have cooperated to destroy oppressive systems would con-
tinue cooperation as the method for defending their new state
of freedom, whereas some of the animals of various species in
our story would see the animals of other species not as allies
but as lunch.

In our own defense, we hope the reader will note that while
we portray a friendly conversation between a lion and primates
in the World of the Free, the primates stll have the good sense
not to climb down out of the tree.

Further, for clarification, it should be noted that the ani-
mal groupings used in this story should not be interpreted to
represent our endorsement of ethnic separations, or any con-
cept of racial superiority/inferiority of one segment of human
population over/under another. However, we do recognize that
racism has played and continues to play an integral role in this
oppressive and stratified culture.

‘Therefore, we felt it important to symbolize the particular
and specific circumstances under which many of the descen-
dants of slavery still exist in the US. today.

165
Through the character of the orangutan, his position on
the range (occupying the smallest of all cages—all the way at
the back of the range) reflects somewhat the status of the ma
jority of African Americans in the US. Moreover, his inabil-
ity to remember the World of the Free due to his mother be-
ing snatched from the Free World and him subsequently being
born into the circus is analogous to Afficans being uprooted
from the Motherland, sold into slavery, and forcibly severed
from their cultures and roots, as well as the effects that this
cultural genocide has wreaked upon their descendants here in
Amerika. And, for further clarification, the way in which the
orangutan has been portrayed in this story (naive, sheltered,
and possibly even timid) is not reflective of African Americans
but more reflects the effects that cultural genocide and the re-
pression of slavery have upon any population, and has been
more than adequately offset, we think, by the character of the
Black Panther.

Far more relevant to a proper understanding of the charac-
ters in this story are their experiences of economic class and
their assigned role in stratified society. These experiences de-
fine, more than anything, an individual's (and population’s) re-
Iationship to power and authority and to the processes of op-
pression, repression, and control.

Inthe USS,, as the result of the capitalist oppressor's use of
slavery for accumulation of mega-profit, the concepts of class
and race have been inextricably intertwined in many ways. For
the descendants of slavery, it becomes difficult to tell, at times,
where class warfare ends and racism begins, and vice versa
We are of the view that if the oppressed unite and topple the
fascist system of capital and its hierarchic structures, the elim-
ination of class and authority would also, as an indirect result,
eliminate racism as well (or at least kick a fat dent in its active
implementation).

In light of our views, we certainly want to dispel any pos-
sible interpretation that our story is an analogy in support of

166
an agenda to keep the black man down, or, alternately; to kill
whitey. We do not want to kill the Ringmaster because he's
white. We want to kill him because he hoards the wealth and
abuses the power.

S0, in this regard, we are all equally culpable in keeping the
Circus going, maintaining the system of inequity upon which
the Ringmasters of the world thrive, and we do so because
we do not know that we have an alternative. We do not even
question whether slavery to an unsustainable system of mis-
ery and suffering should require an alternative since we have
all bought into the incredible lie that being a circus animal and
performing tricks for food is freedom.

As a general maxim, you're only as free as your food.

A second difficulty posed by our use of anthropomorphism
revolves around our liberated class getting to the World of the
Free. This caused another glitch

If prisoners resist the warden and refuse to work as slaves
and they defeat the system, they have no problem getting to
the World of the Free. The World of the Free is all around them,
right where they are. When the oppressive system crumbles,
they are inthe World of the Free. The same goes for the workers
struggling against the fascist system of global capital. When we
all refuse to flip the burgers or pump the gas or pick the cotton,
the whole rotten deal goes to hell in a proverbial hand basket.
Everyone is free. The World of the Free is made manifest in the
here and now. No one needs to get a plane or ticket to Portugal
or Bombay in order to reach the World of the Free.

In the words of Abbie Hoffman, “The ground you're stand-
ing on is liberated territory. Defend it”

But it isn't so casy for the animals in our story. Once they
collapse the circus and effectively subvert the authority of their
nemesis, Ringmaster Dick Head, we cannot permit elephants
and tigers and chimpanzees to go strolling down the side of
the freeway. Because we used circus animals to represent the
revolutionary class, we had to have a place for them to go—

167
‘The World of the Free. And that meant creating a mechanism
for transporting them there. In the story, that mechanism is
Safari Joe, the nefarious trafficker in beasts captured from the
wild. Safari Joe is a convenient device for the transition of our
characters from the World of Cages to the World of the Free.

In real life, with people engaged in resisting, a liberated peo-
ple are their own Safari Joes and we do not need to go any
where. In real life, it is the oppressors, like President Fulgencio
Batistas, who head out of town, quickly packing suitcases full
of cash and hitching flights to Miami to escape the Fidel Cas-
tros rushing into Havana with their guerrilla forces.

In practical terms, then, the fascists would need a Safari Joe
to assist them in getting the hell out of Dodge. We, the liberat-
ing forces, the guerrillas, the people, wouldn't go anywhere.

‘We hope this explanation remedies any misinterpretations.
We have written this afterword to clarify these points, not to
advocate the overthrow of governments or the system of inter-
national capital through any means necessary, nor have we at-
tempted to direct the reader to those resources that would bene-
fit them in such an endeavor. Advocating the violent overthrow
of the government is explicitly illegal and we are, if nothing
else (as indicated by our current residence in prison), clearly
respectful to law and authority.

All power to the people. Anything else is theft

Freedom,

Sean Swain and Travis Washington Toledo Correctional In-
stitution

March 1, 2007

About the Writers

Sean Swain has been held captive since 1991 for the
self-defense killing of a court official's nephew who broke into
Sean’s home and threatened to kill him. He was subjected to a
trial and re-trial in Exie County, Ohio in which the polygraph
he passed was never admitted into evidence.

168
He has renounced his high school diploma, college degree,
and his honorable discharge from the US. military. His
writings include Maldoon; Kicking the Darkness: The Collected
Prison Writings of Sean Swain (soon available from the Cincin-
nati Books 4 Prisoners Crew); Bomb Threat: The Revolutionary
Politics of Liberation; Shotgun to Your Face: The People in Control
are Your Enemies, and The Sean Swain Sampler, all available
from the South Chicago ABC Zine Distro.

If he survives captivity, Sean intends to seck asylum in
Brazil, Argentina, Cuba Venezuela, Bolivia or the Zapatista-
controlled areas of Southern Mexico where he can write
freely and continue the struggle against oppressive forces of
international capital. His next eligible release date from the
fascist police state’s control complex is November 2011. Direct
correspondence to: Sean Swain A243-205 PO. Box 80033
Toledo, Ohio 43608

Travis Washington has survived 17 years in Ohio concen-
tration camps for various political acts rejecting the legitimacy
of the State—what they call crimes. Three of those years
Travis struggled to maintain his sanity at a Supermax facility,
allegedly reserved for the most dangerous prisoners, where he
saw all too clearly the true face of the oppressive State. He is
a self-educated revolutionary writer. Although Last Act is his
first full-length novel, he has written several short stories and
is currently compiling a collection of parables.

He is scheduled for release in June, 2007. His address is to
be determined and will be listed when available.

Get Connected:

Beyond Civilization/P.O. Box 66627/Houston, TX
772666627

Boston ABC/P.0. Box 230182/Boston, MA 02123

Chicago ABC/P.0. Box 1544/Chicago, IL 60690

Houston ABC/P.0. Box 667614/Houston, TX 772667614

Kansas Mutual Aid/P.O. Box 442438/Lawrence, KS 66044

169
Burning River ABC/P.O. Box 602543/Cleveland, OH
44102 Cleveland ABC/P.O. Box 602732/Cleveland, OH 44102
Women's ABC/441 SE. 37th Ave/Portland, OR 97214

Liberation Projects/838 E. High St. #115/Lexington, KY
40502

Cincinnati Books 4 Prisoners Crew/P.0. Box 19065/ Cincin-
nati, OH 45219

Jacksonville ABCE/PO. Box 350392/Jacksonville, FL
322350302

Los Angeles ABCE/P.0. Box 11223/ Whittier, CA 90603 New
Jersey ABCF/P.O. Box 8532/Paterson, NJ 07508 Philadelphia
ABCF/PO. Box 42129/Philadelphia, PA 19101 Rising Sun
Publications/PO. Box 4362/Allentown, PA 18105 SOUTH
CHICAGO ABC ZINE DISTRO/P.0. BOX 721/ HOMEWOOD,
IL 60430

Recommended Reading;

Ishmael, Daniel Quinn

My Ishmael, Daniel Quinn

The ABC of Anarchism, Alexander Berkman

Steal this Book, Abbie Hoffman

Revolutionary Suicide, Huey P. Newton

On Civil Disobedience, Henry David Thoreau

Animal Farm, George Orwell

Travis' Acknowledgments

First of all, I would like to thank my family—Mom for her
beautiful spirit, and Dad for his strength, courage, intelligence,
and talent; I thank my brother James who was like a second
father to me growing up; my sister Nonie who was there for
me at the lowest point in my life, and last but not least, my
little brother Dee, Brubbles to the end—Yee! (Smile).

Finally, I would also like to thank Mr. Daniel Quinn whose
Ishmael truly changed my view on the world we live in and in-
spired me to write this book. Ulery, Cathy L. Bennett, Treeva
L. Frames, Marvin Wade, Bruce Sharp, Gary L. Knauer, James
N. Peterson, Karen A. Bork, Eleanor S. Yung- hans, Ronald L.

170
Rickenbaugh, Adele M. Hoffman, and Nora J. Caruso for be-
ing lackeys of the fascist police state’s machine; Judge Ann
B. Maschari and Prosecutor Kevin J. Baxter, the Sixth District
Court, and federal Judge John W. Potter for the lessons in injus-
tice; the Department of Corrections for the lessons in injustice;
the Department of Corrections for the lessons in violence; the
Corrections Institution Inspection Committee for lessons in ap-
athy; and the US. Army for all of its extensive training.

Antists for the original pamphlets: Todd (Hyung-Roe)
Tarselli Kevin “Rashid" Johnson Howard Stephens

1
‘The Anarchist Library
Anti-Copyright

‘Travis Washington, Sean Swain
‘The Last Act of the Circus Animals
2005/2006
OCR'D and formatted via PDF from Little Black Cart

theanarchistlibrary.org
order to protect his means of gaining food. He must fight in
order to protect his life—his life in slavery to this system.” the
panther explained.

“So, I keep that in mind when he hits me, when he engages
in violence and brutality the panther said. “T understand on
an objective level that the violence he directs at me is no more
than an indication of the intensity of his fear. And the closer
we et to the Free World, the greater the threat we pose to his
survival, the more afraid he will become and the more ruthless
his reaction will be to us. So ultimately, we gauge the probabil-
ity of our success by the intensity of the Ringmaster's rage”

‘The elephant shook his head.

“That may be so, Panther” the elephant conceded. “But I tell
you what—I thought the Ringmaster was going to kill you”

“Well, M. Elephant, the truth is, we're all going to die” the
panther replied.

None of the animals moved or spoke. The panther took a
deep breath.

“Yas, we're all going to die. Every single one of us. The ques-
tion is not whether we will die—that is already decided. The
question is how.

“As T have said, the Ringmaster—the Circus has already
been killing us. And in the end, if he has his way, he will
murder us just like he murdered the lion;” the panther said. He
turned to the elephant, “And your mother, Mr. Elephant” and
he gazed down the range toward the orangutan, “And your
mother, too, Mr. Orangutan.

“Remember the tiger who refused to perform—the Ringmas-
ter left him in the cold and he died. Or the gorilla who killed
the previous Ringmaster—this Ringmaster put holes into him
and killed him too.

“We must be prepared” the panther urged, surveying the
faces of his friends. “We must face the possibility of death-the
inevitability of it in life. We must welcome it, wherever and
however it greets us.

1
“IF1 should die, if the Ringmaster kills me—and he very well
may kill me—then I die having known freedom

“Me too answered one of the chimps.

‘The other animals agreed solemly.

“You realize, Mr. Chimp, that the Ringmaster will focus his
wrath upon you chimpanzees because he will feel particularly
betrayed. He will remove you from those roomy cages, and it
may be awhile before you get water and food again.” the pan-
ther cautioned.

“That's alright” the chimp assured with a rueful grin. “I
didn’t much care for the scenery, and I wouldn't trade my free-
dom for a few bananas”

‘The panther smiled.

“How did the tiger say it?” the chimp asked. Then, in a
husky voice he mimicked:

“We're not cowards...”

He offered a wide, toothy grin.

‘The animals laughed, all but the tiger. He stopped pacing
and glared at the chimp for a moment before his icy counte-
nance melted away and he smiled as well.

12
‘We’re Our Own Leaders

Sam and Carl came into the housing area to find all the an-
imals staring at them. They exchanged a nervous glance.

“Look, Sam, all I'm saying is those Trainers think they know
everything. They think they're better than us or something
Like we're dumb and they're more important than we are” Carl
explained as the two men walked down the aisle between the
row of cages. “So be careful. You can't believe everything you
hear”

“Yeah, I know," Sam replied. “But it aint like that. They
wasn't talkin to me. They was talkin' to each other and I was
just listenin’™

‘The Keepers stopped at the back door, bent down, and lifted
it. With a loud rumble, it slid up on the tracks above them, light
and summer heat from the back loading dock pouring into the
animals’ living area, particles of dust swimming out in the open

Sam turned with his hands in his pockets.

“Iwas in the break room. I bought me a sammich and a soda
from the vending machines and one of the Trainers were at the
table—Jack-and he joked with me, you know, saying that if the
Circus goes broke, well, we might just have to tip over the ma-
chines and eat for free or somethin’. An’ the other Trainer, he
said to Jack that the Circus ain’t gonna go broke. That this is
all temporary. But Jack said he talked to one of the girls off the
tightrope and she had been outside Mr. Head's office and heard
him on the phone. She said he was screamin’ at some newspa-
per guy for a story he wrote that had the ASPCA bustin’ his
balls and all, and that he was thinking about suing the paper”

13
“Uh-huh”

“So the tightrope girl said Mr. Head called some other
Circuses and he couldn’t get rid of none of the animals but
this tiger” Sam said, pointing up the range at the tiger's cage.
“Turns out, the other Circuses have heard that we got problems
here and how the animals is actin’ funny and don't none of
them places want anything to do with ‘em. They started back
up the range, side by side.

“If that's the case, then I wonder how he pawned off this
tiger” Carl wondered out loud.

“Probly because they're getting’ a Siberian for a Bengal”
Sam surmised. “That's not a bad deal”

“Guess not.” Carl agreed.

Both men stopped in front of the tiger's cage and considered
him for a moment. Sam knelt down and pulled the stoppers
from behind the wheels and the two men carefully pulled the
cage out into the aisle. The wheels squeaked.

“So that's it, huh?” Carl asked. “That was all you heard?”

‘The two men pushed the tiger toward the open garage door.

“No, the Trainers also said somethin’ about a guy named
Safari Joe] Sam said.

“Safari Joe?” Carl asked, eyeing Sam skepticaly.

“Yeah, ever heard of ‘em?”

“Yeah, that's bad news” Carl observed with a deep sigh

“Why?" asked Sam.

“Well, that means Dick is thinking about trading off these
animals to get new animals, wild ones straight from the jungle.
That's what Safari Joe does. He captures wild animals. And if
that's what Dick has in mind, then we'll be going awhile with-
out putting on a show while these new animals get trained”
Carl said. “And that means no money coming in” Carl glared
at the tiger in the cage he was pushing. “These fuckers have
caused a whole lot of grief;” he said. “Maybe once we get them
all separated and all, we'll get them performing again” Sam of-

114
fered. “They can't go without food forever. They're gonna have
to perform. Right?"

‘They shoved the cage onto the back dock with a loud rattle
and the animals listened as the noise of the Keepers grew more
distant.

“I wonder where they're taking the tiger?” the elephant
asked.

“I think we did it"” one of the monkeys shrieked, jumping
up and down at the front of the cage. °I think we're on the way
to the World of the Free!”

Many of the other animals erupted excitedly except for the
panther, whose eyes remained on the open back door.

‘The new lion, seeing the concentration on the panther’s
face, called from across the aisle:

“What's goin’ on?”

‘The panther shook his head.

Just then, the Keepers came back, pushing a cage that
rattled up the aisle. The animals grew quiet as they watched
a tiger—a new tiger, a Bengal tiger—wheeled into the space
where their friend had just been.

‘The Keepers put the blocks under the wheels of the cage
and headed back out to the dock. The panther watched as the
Keepers engaged in conversation with two other creatures who
were standing just outside of the garage door.

‘The panther turned his attention to the new tiger.

“Where you from?” he asked.

But the tiger was in no mood.

“What's it to you?” he growled.

“They just took out a friend of ours—another tiger the pan-
ther explained. “We believe he was headed to the World of the
Free”

‘The tiger snickered.

“I'saw your friend. But where he's going. I wouldn't call it
the World of the Free”

“The Savannah?” the lion asked.

115
‘The tiger shook his head and rolled his eyes.
“Savannah? What the fuck is a Savannah?” he asked,
looking from the lion to the panther. “Look, I seen that other

tiger, but I can assure you that he wasn't going to no Free

Savannah or whatever you wanna call it. The creatures who

brought me here took him back with them to the other Circus”

“Other circus?” the elephant asked. His eyes narrowed.
“What are you talking about, tiger? There is no other circus”

“The hell there isn't” the tiger snorted. “In fact, this is the
fourth one that I've been to. And I'm tired of them shuffling
me around”

‘The elephant looked from the tiger to the panther. All the
animals looked to the panther

“What's he talking about panther?” the elephant asked. He
watched the black cat pacing in his cage. “What's this deal
about other circuses? Did you know about this?”

‘The panther's mind raced. He could not believe that he had
just heard. Other cireuses? If what this tiger was saying was
true then this was much bigger than he had originally thought.
‘There was no telling how many circuses were out there. He
thought about his friend, the tiger, who had just been shipped
off, presumably to another one of these caged worlds. Then a
very unsettling thought occurred to him: What if he and the
other animals were doomed to share the tiger's fate as well?

“What does this mean, panther?” the elephant persisted.

Up in the front cages, the chimps bickered hotly.

“I don’t know” the panther admitted, shaking his head. He
stood up at the front bars of his cage, looking out as the other
animals fell silent.

“I don't know what this means. I devised this plan on the
idea that the World of the Free was just beyond the door” He
nodded toward the open garage door where the Keepers had
just pushed his friend. “I did not know about the existence of
other circuses”

116
‘The chimps again exploded into pandemonium as the two
factions argued forcefully over this new development. The
monkeys shricked nervously and many of the reasonable
Voices were drowned in the maelstrom.

After a moment, it ebbed and the elephant addressed the
panther.

“What if it's true?” the elephant asked. ‘I mean, if there are
other circuses.”

“Why would I lie about it, fat boy?” the new tiger inter-
jected.

“~then the Ringmaster can split us up and divide us among
the other circuses and bring in more Obedient Ones. More Cir-
cus Animals™

‘The panther had thought of that. If these creatures had ex-
panded into every corner of the Free World, then they had
turned everything into a giant Circus, making everyone a per-
former for food

“Mr. Elephant, I don't know how far and wide these crea-
tures have spread their system.” the panther said. “And we have
1o way to know how many circuses exist. But I do know this
‘The Ringmaster smelled of fear—he is afraid. So no matter what
happens, if they divide and split us apart, I'm going to continue
to struggle to get to the World of the Free. I'm going to finish
what we have started here”

His eyes moved from one face to the next

“We began with a belief there was one Circus, one Ringmas-
ter to defeat” he reminded them. “But even if there isn't, what
then? What if there are a hundred circuses and a hundred Ring-
masters? The nature of those circuses is the same as this one.

“So, can you go back to being Circus animals? Go back to
jumping through hoops? Standing on your heads for peanuts?
Performing back-flips?”

None of the animals lowered their gazes.

17
“We can never give up, never give in. Wherever they take
us” the panther said. “If we can destroy one circus, then we can
destroy a hundred. Or a thousand. Or a million.

“The Ringmaster can starve us to death, but he cannot
starve us back into obedience™

No sooner than the panther had spoken, the Keepers re-
turned, walking down the aisle to the panther's cage. They
stopped directly before him. One stood with a a hand in one
pocket as he spoke to his partner and he leaned casually against
the bars until he looked over his shoulder and saw the pan-
ther's intense eyes fixed on him. He stepped back from the
cage with a start. The other Keeper knelt down and removed
the blocks from the wheels of the panther's cage.

Al the animals stood at the front of their cages, watching
intently. When the Keepers grabbed the bars of the cage and
tugged roughly, the cage jerked from its position and, up the
range, one of the chimps sereeched angrily, rattling the door of
his cage.

“Where are they taking the panther?”

“Leave him alone!” the orangutan bellowed.

‘The Keepers cast a nervous glance over their shoulders in
the direction of the animals’ shrieking and screeching,

‘The panther stood on all fours, his eyes fixed firmly upon
the Keepers. He stood calm and resolute as the two men pulled
the cage into the middle of the center aisle. The noise

from the cages surrounding them grew more intense as the
‘monkeys and the orangutan began to rattle their doors.

One of the Keepers swallowed hard and surveyed the situa-
tion, his eyes wide with fear while the other yelled something
unheard above the din of the banging and clanging, and he
pointed toward the open garage door.

‘They put their backs into the job, shoving the cage forward,
and the elephant crashed headlong into the front bars of his
own cage, rocking it forward. It seemed to tilt precariously for
justa moment before it crashed back down, bouncing the other

18
cages off the floorboards. The two new cats, the lion and the
tiger, both growled at the Keepers as they passed hurriedly,
afraid.

‘The panther stood in the cage silently as the Keepers pushed
him closer and closer to the back door of the housing area and
to an unknown future. The panther savored the last view he
had of the animals—all of them in protest, in resistance, every
door rattling, every voice raised.

The Keepers heaved and the cage rolled out onto the
loading dock. They hurried from the housing area, turned, and
slammed the garage door shut on the bedlam the animals had
created. And yet, for a long moment after the door had closed,
the animals continued their protest in anger and frustration.
Little by little, the rattling settled into silence and the animals
stood, each one alone to his own thoughts.

“Fuck!” shrieked one of the monkeys.

‘The elephant, still breathing hard, shifted his weight from
foot to foot. The orangutan, his face pressed between the bars
in his grip, stared up the range to where the panther's pres-
ence had always been. The orangutan’s eyes narrowed, his lip
curling into a sneer.

The Keepers returned, walking swiftly into the housing
area, their eyes darting from cage to cage, and they stopped
in front of the chimpanzees' cages and quickly, seemingly at
random, pushed a cage of chimps down the range and out the
side exit leading into the Arena. A cascade of noise followed
them.

Over the course of the grinding afternoon, they became less
distracted by the animals’ protests, thinking only of moving
some of the monkeys and elephants over to the empty range.

By the end of their shift, they had transferred nearly half of
the animals and had placed the chimps into the smaller cages—
no casy task with the chimpanzees laying down limp. Before
they left for the day, they passed on the instructions that the
Ringmaster had left for the next shift

119
“Where'd they take the panther?” the orangutan called out.

“Did they take him off to one of the other circuses?” asked
the chimp.

“What if they took him off to kill him like they did the lion?"
asked the monkey.

“Idon’t think so." the chimp replied to the monkey. “When
they took the lion out they took him out of his cage with the
muzzle and all, and took him out the front door, remember?”

“Yeah, but they could still kill him," the orangutan coun-
tered. “And how would we know about it?”

“It might be that they carted his ass off to the z00 the tiger
offered.

‘The other animals stared at him quizzically.

“The 007" the chimp asked.

“Yeah" the tiger answered, sitting down at the front of his
cage. “I got myself sent there once. Actin’ a fool and

they sent me off. It's fucked up. You don’t have to perform
or anything, you just kinda sit around most of the time. But it's
not cool They don't feed you worth a shit. And it's all about
control. All the troublemakers get sent there, the malcontents
‘The ones they can't control or get to perform in the Circus
And—*

Just e, the lion, who had been sniffing at the ai, ried to
interrupt. “Wait a minute, 1

“~it's all about population control, man;” the tiger contin-
ued. “That's what it is. They don’t want you breeding if you
think for yourself. So I had to fake it and go along with the
program to get up outta there. If the panther's headed for that
place—*

“Listen!” the lion roared, frustrated. “I'm trying to tell you
all something if you'd let me. They didn't take the panther of
to no cireus or zoo. And they didn't kill him either”

“How do you know?" asked the orangutan, excitedly.

120
“I can still smell him_ the lion replied. °I can smell him, so
he's gotta be around here somewhere. Can't you smell him,
Tiger?”

“The tiger put his nose up into the air and took a deep breath.

“Yeah he answered, nodding, “Yeah, he's still here. And the
other animals are even closer. I can smell them too

“So what are we gonna do?” the chimp asked.

‘The animals all stared at one another, waiting for someone
to speak up.

“Come on" urged the chimp impatiently. “What are we
gonna do?”

‘The elephant shifted his weight, foot to foot.

“We all know what we've got to o he said resolutely. His
bi ears flapped at the air. “We do what we've been doing. We
resist. We refuse to perform under any conditions. We reject
the Ringmaster's bribes of food and water and stra—"*

“But there's other circuses.” the chimp interrupted. “There’s
other circuses and there’s the z00, and the panther didn't know
about that. He put the plan together and didn’t know. He just
found out abo—"

“It doesn’t matter; interjected the elephant.

“Sure it does.” the chimp countered.

“No, It doesn't” the elephant said more forcefully.

“How can you—"

“What's the difference?” the elephant asked angrily.

“What difference can this make? So what if there are other
circuses? And what if they ship us off to these other circuses or
o the z00? What are we supposed to do, go back to being Cir-
cus Chimp and Circus Elephant?” He looked from the chimp to
the orangutan. “Circus orangutan? Are you gonna do backflips
for bananas?”

‘The elephant paused while he looked around at the animals.

“Well, I know what I'm gonna do” he finally said. “Every
time they take me out of here, 'm squatting on their asses. Ev-

121
ery damned time! I know the panther's not gonna give in and
I'm not either”

‘The orangutan sighed.

“Mr. Elephant, I'm not siding with the chimp or anything”
he began. “But I'm awful thirsty. And my stomach hurts. I could
use some food and water. But I know the Ringmaster is a mur-
derer and I can't go back to the way things were. Yet and still
the panther isn't here. How are we gonna keep going without
him? How will we know what to do?”

‘The elephant shook his head and let out a heavy sigh.

“What o you think the panther would think of all this?"
He admonished

“What would he think? ‘I'm thirsty” ‘We won't know what
to do’ What would he think of that?"

‘The orangutan’s chin sank against his chest

“We know what to do, Mr. Orangutan” the elephant contin-
ued. “We know exactly what to do. The panther showed us. He
showed us how to be. All we have to do is be like him. He's not
here and we are, 5o now we all have to be what he was”

‘The elephant's eyes met the orangutan’s.

“Don’t you see? This is what the Ringmaster wanted. That's
why he did this. The Ringmaster believed the panther was in
charge, that he was behind all of this—the panther and the
Siberian. That's why he moved them first; he wants to divide
the rest of us so we will forget what we know and we'll cave-in
and give up.

“Don’t all of you get it? That's what the Ringmaster wants!”

‘The orangutan sat staring at his hands for a moment. A few
of the chimps huddled together and whispered while the chimp
at the bars eyed them with suspicion. Both the tiger and the
young lion sat quietly, listening thoughtfully to the exchange.

“You're right, Mr. Elephant” the chimp agreed. “We're all
acting like the panther was in charge or somethin'”

“He was” the orangutan mumbled.

‘The chimp looked around at the other animals.

122
“The panther was the one who told us himself that the
Ringmaster doesn’t own us” the chimp reminded. “The Circus
doesn’t own us. We own ourselves. And if we own ourselves,
if we really own ourselves, then we don't need the

panther. We don't need him or anybody to lead us or be our
courage. We're our own leaders. Each one of us

‘The elephant and orangutan nodded in agreement, as did
the lion and the tiger.

“We're our own leaders!” the monkey screeched.

“Now, the only problem is, what if the other animals decide
to give in and perform?” the chimp posed. “What if the Ring-
master breaks them and they give in, and they accept food and
start performing again?”

‘The elephant shook his head slowly.

“No?" he said with certainty. *I know the other elephants
won't perform. I'm certain of that”

“Neither will the monkeys” added the monkey, staring at
the ceiling of his cage, lying with his hands behind his head.

“But the chimps performed before the orangutan remem-
bered. “They performed but we stuck with the plan”

“That's right;”the elephant affirmed. “So just because some
of the other animals might break, we can still stick with the
plan. A handful of the other animals giving in won't stop us
from taking down the Circus”

Al the animals agreed.

“We're gonna get through this;” the elephant assured them
all. “We're gonna get through this and if they take us to the
Arena for training, we'll find some way to get a message over
o the others and let them know that we're not giving up”

“They might be wondering about us right now." the
orangutan offered. “They might be having the same conversa-
tion, wondering what we're going to do”

“We can hope that they are] the elephant said. “And we
need to let them know we're sticking to this. We need to let

123
them know that the panther is still alive and we still intend to
take down the Circus”

As soon as the Ringmaster stepped through the door he
stalked over to the remaining chimps’ cage and raked his cane
across the bars, the incessant noise echoing and ringing off the
metal walls.

“Wake up, you little shits!” he bellowed rudely, his voice
hoarse and cracking. His hair, normally slicked back neatly,
now hung oily and limp upon his forehead. He sneered, his
bloodshot eyes ablaze.

“Wake up!” the Ringmaster shouted, smacking the bars
once more for good measure.

‘The Keepers standing behind him shifted nervously from
foot to foot. Sweat stood out on their glistening foreheads. The
chimps stirred, but none moved to get up. All of the animals
remained prostrate, pinned down by the sweltering heat. This
brought a sadistic smile to the Ringmaster's unshaven face as
he rubbed his bristled jaw with one stain- gloved hand.

“How long ago did they shut off the ventilation?” the Ring-
master asked.

“Second shift yesterday” Carl answered. “Just like you or-
dered”

‘The Ringmaster nodded.

“IUl be a hundred and fifty degrees in here by lunch he
mused. He turned and considered the empty space where the
stubborn panther had been. His smile widened

“IUl be even hotter for him in that freight car” the Ring-
master observed.

Carl cleared his throat.

“We moved him yesterday.” he reported. “He's been there
since. No food or water. Just like you ordered”

“The door to the freight car is closed, right?”

“Yeah. Just like you said”

‘The Ringmaster nodded.

124
“It's gotta be a sauna in there” he said. “Itl either break
him or killem”

He turned and met the eyes of Carl and Sam. Both of them
looked down and avoided his gaze. A single drop of sweat
rolled down the Ringmaster’s temple and down his cheek. It
dropped onto the velvet of his shoulder, stained with the color
of the grape slushy that had struck him during the previous
show.

“The other animals you moved...?”

“Yeah Carl answered. “We moved them to the other range.
‘The empty one. We moved chimps, monkeys, elephants. No wa-
ter. No food”

‘The Ringmaster nodded his approval

“And the ventilation?"

“We shut that off over there too, just like you said” Carl
replied. “Third shift said they went through both areas last
night every couple hours or so, just like you wanted them to,
turning on the lights and rattling the doors on the cages. The
animals couldn't have gotten much sleep”

‘The Ringmaster smiled.

“No training today he said, lacing his hands behind his
back as he strolled up and down the aisle, looking in on the
animals plastered to the cage floors.

“No training. And [ want you to bring in food, bring in piles
of it. Bring it in, along with tubs of water”

The Ringmaster stopped his stroll, pivoted, and turned
smoothly to face the two Keepers.

“And then I want you to leave it sitting right here the Ring-
master finished, pointing down directly at the floor. ‘I want
you to put all of it here on the floor where these ingrates can
smell it and see it and imagine what it would be like to taste
it

Carl and Sam nodded.

125
‘The Ringmaster stopped in front of the cage of the new tiger.
He lay on the floor, his flank rising and falling in rapid thythm
in the oppressive heat,

“This one is smaller than the other one we traded off" he
observed.

“We haven't had any problem out of him” Carl offered.

‘The Ringmaster noted that the food and water containers
remained in the cage.

“Ithink we'll get along just fine” the Ringmaster said to the
tiger

He took a couple steps and stopped in front of the young
Tion’s cage.

“What about this one?" the Ringmaster asked, hands still
laced thoughtfully behind his back.

“Just the usual” Carl replied. “Digging, clawin’ at the bars.
But no trouble, really”

‘The Ringmaster nodded.

“That's to be expected he said. He noticed that the lion too
had food and water containers still in his cage.

‘The Ringmaster stared into the lion's cage. Their resistance
must be fading, he thought. The two new animals still had food
and water. They remained unaffected, unpersuaded perhaps.
‘Without the panther, everything was falling apart and the ani-
‘mals would soon all come around.

‘The Ringmaster smiled to himselfas he slid one gloved hand
over his brow, mopping up the beads of sweat that had formed
there.

“Hard to stand up to anything in heat like this” he mused
with a chuckle.

Carl and Sam shifted from foot to foot, the pit stains in their
gray uniform shirts expanding by the minute

“I think we'll probably have a decent show tonight” the
Ringmaster predicted once again wiping his brow.

“They'll certainly be anxious to perform just to get out of
this hot box for awhile™

126
He saw the skepticism emerge on the Keeper's faces. He
waggled a finger at them.

“Mark my words™

He strolled to the door, opened it, and turned.

“We'll start with the elephants and chimps. he decided. “I
suspect our friends the chimpanzees will redeem themselves
‘They ve had it much too good. Been spoiled. They'll be longing
for bananas and roomy cages and air conditioning”

He smiled. Carl and Sam smiled back, but not very convine-
ingly.

‘The Ringmaster clapped his dingy gloves together and
turned and left

After he was sure the Ringmaster was gone, Carl reached
into his shirt pocket and pulled out the small recorder he had
concealed there. He hit the “stop” button with his thumb and
handed it to Sam.

“You can never be too careful” Carl observed witha sly grin.

Sam looked at the recorder in his hand and grinned back.

‘The two Keepers left out and soon returned with buckets
of food and tubs of water that they placed down along the
aisle, just outside the animal's cages as the Ringmaster had in-
structed. Both men smiled as, after a moment, one by one, the
animals dragged themselves up to the bars, following the scent
of the fresh food.

“Dick might be right about us having a decent show
tonight” Carl said as the Keepers made their way up toward
the front exit

“Yeah, look at ‘em Sam said, stopping in front of the
chimps’ cage. “They do look pretty desperate”

‘The chimps looked up from the enticing food outside of
their doors and into the Keepers' smiling faces. The chimps
sneered.

“Yeah, come on. We've still got to take care of the other
range” Carl said, leading the way out of the housing area

127
Once they'd left, the orangutan cried out from the front of
his cage, “The dirty bastards! They did that just to tease us. To
torture us!®

“Yeah! And did you see them smiling and laughing? They
think this is funny!” The chimp snarled, staring down at the
food.

“Well, T'l tell you what? the elephant trumpeted. “Since
they think it's so funny, the next time they take us out there,
we'll give them something to laugh about. We'll give them all
something to laugh about!”

128
Book 3: The Last Act
130

I believe, and everybody must grant, that no Gov-
ernment can exist for a single moment without the
cooperation of the people, willing or forced, and if
the peaple suddenly withdravw their cooperation in
every detail, the Government will come to a stand
sill

~Mohandas Gandhi

Power feeds on its spoils, and dies when its victims
refuse to be despoiled. They can't persuade it to
death; they can’t vote it to death; they can’t shoot it
10 death; but they can always starve it to death

~Benjamin Tucker

The day after the revolution no one should have
the power or the economic wherewithal to exploit the
labor of another... ~Luigi Fabbri
Welcome to the Greatest
Traveling Show in the World!

Hours later, the Ringmaster trotted out to center ring in his
adulation.

He turned and lifted his arms, signaling the Keepers. Out
came the elephants, all in line, nose to tail, lumbering outto
the center ring. Each elephant had a primate upon its back,
chimpanzees dressed in maroon jackets and hats, the yellow
tassels bouncing with each of the elephants’ plodding steps.
‘The orangutan rode upon the elephant in the middle of the
formation, sitting just behind the elephant’s expansive head.
‘The colorful embroideries draped across the elephants’ backs
flapped and waved, speckled by the lighting that erisscrossed
the center ring

‘The crowd clapped and cheered at the sight of the animals,
but the Ringmaster noticed that something was already wrong
According to the act, the primates were supposed to perform
backflips on the backs of the elephants, smiling and waving to
the crowd. Instead, they sat somber and business-like, stone-
faced, seemingly oblivious to the crowd.

‘The Ringmaster lowered his arms but before he could give
the cue to perform the frst stunt, the elephants all rose up to-
gether onto their hind legs. They stayed that way, maintaining
that pose as the flashbulbs from the crowd popped. The pri-
mates disappeared from view behind the massive heads of the
elephants. The Ringmaster stood puzzled. This was not part of
the act

131
And yet, the spectators clapped and cheered, unaware that
all of this was not part of the prearranged performance. The
pipe organ continued to play. The spotlights continued to
dance.

‘Then the laughter began. It started off just a scattered few
chuckles but it spread contagiously throughout the entire
crowd. The Ringmaster didn’t understand until he saw out
of the comer of his eye-Something was falling. He saw
the shadow of something behind the elephants, something
down around their legs, falling, and the Ringmaster gasped,
mortified

‘The elephants were standing upon their hind legs and re-
lieving themselves in tandem, large clumps of elephant dung
falling to the canvas in smelly, steaming piles.

‘The Trainers, standing in a circle around the animals, each
backed away, holding their noses and making faces. As the
laughter cascaded through the audience, someone here or there
punctuated the comic moment with loud explosive fart sounds
that echoed throughout the Big Top. Some of the people in the
first few rows caught a good whiff of the dung before everyone
else and they stood, offended, holding their nose.

What the fuck?, the Ringmaster thought. They're shitting
on my canvas

Having finished their business, the elephants lowered
themselves onto all fours, the chimps and orangutan visible to
the crowd once again. The organ music continued its happy
melody as the primates sat with their circus clothing held in
their hands. None of them wore a stitch of it. Without any
fanfare, they extended their arms and simultaneously dropped
their vestments to the Arena floor. A couple of the pillbox hats
fluttered down and landed in the elephant dung as the chimps
and orangutan stared directly into the Ringmaster's bloodshot
eyes.

Having divested themselves of their Circus trappings, the
primates hopped forward onto the necks of the elephants,

132
‘The Ringmaster nodded again and caught the eyes of the
other Trainer who also stepped forward. Both Trainers applied
a shock to the animal and this time the elephant flinched at
the increased voltage, trumpeting its displeasure. Catcalls and
yells emanated from the audience and one voice cried out for
the Trainers to end their cruelty.

‘The Ringmaster, sweating profusely, removed his top hat
and mopped his face as he squinted out into the darkness of the
surrounding people, nervously trying to smile his reassurance.

A paper cup of flavored ice drink landed a few feet from
him and its contents cascaded across his patent-leather boots.

“Stop abusing those elephants, you bastards!” someone
shouted.

Suddenly aware of the audience’s displeasure, the Ringmas-
ter marched over to the Trainers and gave one of

them a hard shove, pointing with his cane towards the
erowd.

“What the fuck are you trying to do?” he snarled. “Get the
animal rights people crawling up my ass?”

“But you said—"

“Fuck what I said the Ringmaster growled. “Do you know
how many of these assholes have cell phones? All we need is
for one of them to call the local paper of the fuckin’ animal
Tovers and tell them we're zapping innocent animals out here
in the ring and we're cooked. Get these animals out of here.
Now!"

‘The two Trainers looked at one another perplexed.

“Is there a problem?” the Ringmaster challenged.

“Yeah one of the Trainers replied. “How do you move a
two-ton animal?”

“I don't care how you do it—just do it!” the Ringmaster
yelled, stalking away toward the crowd. He raised both
hands expansively and displayed his best plastic, toothy
smile—despite the occasional debris raining down out of the
stands

67
“Ladies and gentlemen! Ladies and gentlemen! We're hav-
ing a few minor difficulties with the elephants, but just wait
until you get a load of the cleverest troupe of performing pri-
mates in the World!™

He turned and nodded at the Trainer poised at the doorway
between the arena and the housing area.

After a moment several monkeys, dressed in embroidered
vests and little derby hats, seurried out onto the stage, followed
by an orangutan. But before the Ringmaster could even get a
command out of his mouth, the primates dropped to the ground
and lay down, just like the elephants had.

“What the fuck!” the Ringmaster exclaimed.

Popcorn containers and cups of pop and slushy poured
down from the hostile crowd and the Ringmaster could see
the shadows of a few people moving toward the exits. He
considered his situation. The elephants still had not moved
and now the primates were laying down.

“Get them out of here!” the Ringmaster barked.

‘The Trainers, who had been standing around the elephants
scratching their heads, scurried over to pick up the monkeys
But the animals remained as loose as rag dols, lopping in the
y half-carried and half-
dragged the animals, arousing a whole new round of protest

Trainers’ hands. The Trainers frantic:

from the audience.

To appease the crowd, the Ringmaster quickly entered a big
circular cage where an obstacle course had been set up for the
bi cats. With his whip in hand, he gave the signal for the cats
to be let into the cage. A door slid up at the back of the enclo-
sure and the panther and the tiger trotted out into the ring

Desperate to give the audience their money's worth, the
Ringmaster wasted no time. He cracked his whip and gave the
command for the cats to go to their stands. But the cats just
stood there for a moment, looking up at him. Then slowly, they
lowered themselves down onto their haunches.

68
“Nof No! Not” the Ringmaster screamed. He cracked his
whip again and came across the backs of the cats. The cats
flinched at the pain from the blow but held their position. Frus-
trated, the Ringmaster brought the whip down on them again,
this time with more force. The cats began crawling further back
into the cage, cringing at each blow the Ringmaster delivered.
But despite the pain he inflicted with the whip, the cats would
not obey.

“Fuck!” The Ringmaster screamed, red-faced—his whip limp
at this side. “Get these animals back in their cages! Open the
gate! Open the gate!”

‘The gate slid up and the tiger and the panther quickly
slipped from the performance cage. The Ringmaster looked
out to the audience as more and more made their way to the
exits, most demanding refunds from the ticket collectors on
their way out

‘The Ringmaster stepped from the circular cage, pushing
open the door hard enough that its hinges rattled, as he sig-
naled for Carl. The crowd was still making its exodus to the
parking lot when Carl trotted over. The Ringmaster grabbed
himby the front of his shirt and, speaking through his clenched
jaw, ordered him to get the chimps out there.

“We can count on them; he said. “Get them and hurry”

‘The Ringmaster stood there looking out at the emptying
arena. He could not believe what was happening.

When the pipe organ began playing and the lights danced
and the chimps in their maroon pill-box hats and vests spilled
out into the arena, running and flipping and jumping about
and the Ringmaster sighed and smiled his wide, toothy smile
in relief. He raised his arms and faced the remainder of the
erowd.

“Ladies and gentlemen, for your entertainment; he an-
nounced grandly with flourish, “Bumbles and the Banana
Gang!"

6
I’'m Not Afraid Anymore

Back in the housing area, the Keepers had just finished
putting the animals back in their cages when the Ringmaster
came storming in.

“What the fuck is wrong with them?” he screamed at the
Keepers as he walked from cage to cage looking in on the ani-
mals. Most were lying down, only the elephants stood, but all
faced the front of their cages, looking out onto the range.

“I don't know?” Carl replied. “But do you think they could
be sick or something, Dick?”

‘The Ringmaster pondered this for a minute, his fingers
laced thoughtfully behind his back as he walked between
the rows of cages. It was possible they were sick, he thought.
He remembered years ago when a bunch of his animals had
fallen ill with food poisoning. It had been a disaster. He had
had to call in the veterinarians, who in turn had brought in
those bastards from the American Society for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals, the fucking ASPCA.

The Ringmaster passed the elephant on his left, sizing
him up and down with his eyes. He noticed that the elephant
avoided his gaze.

Although the sick animals had gotten over the food poison-
ing in just a few days, the ASPCA quacks had suggested that
the animals be allowed at least ten days before returning to
the Arena. Ten days! The shows had to be canceled for almost
two weeks and this had cost him thousands of dollars

Not He wasn't trying to go through that again.

He was already in the red with the bill collectors and
couldn't afford to lose any more money on doctors. Besides,

70
in fifteen years he had never seen sick animals behave in this

He passed the tiger and looked into the cage and while the
tiger considered him, it did not raise its eyes to his face

‘The more he thought about it, the more it seemed like these
animals were just being plain stubborn!

He turned his head to the right and gazed in upon the pan-
ther. Immediately, he noticed the panther staring directly back
at him, right into his eyes. The Ringmaster hesitated as he re-
turned the panther's stare. There had always been something
disturbing about the way this animal looked at him; there was
a certain stubbornness in his eyes that never quite went away.
And speaking of stubborn, this animal had been worse than
the rest. When he had first arrived, he had taken the longest
to adapt, and to this day, he was the only one who still looked
him in the eyes

Stubborn. Yas. Sometimes animals got stubborn and you
had to show them who was boss. He blinked and turned back
toward the Keepers.

“No, Sam. T don't think they're sick at all” the Ringmaster
said. “I think they've just had it too good here lately and have
grown too comfortable. So take all of the straw and water out
of their cages and don't feed them. Maybe tomorrow they'll be
‘motivated to get with the program”

“If not for the chimpanzees, we would have had no show at
all?” Carl observed.

“That would have been terrible”

“They sure earned those large cages today” the Ringmaster
agreed. “In fact, you ought to give them a reward. Give them
all the extra bananas”

‘The Ringmaster considered the chimps for amoment, one of
them pressed urgently against the bars, squawking and point-
ing at the panther across the aisle.

But the Ringmaster, caught up in his own thoughts, re-
‘mained oblivious to the chimpanzee and his intended message.

7
He patted the chimp upon the head magnanimously and
pointed in a circle with his cane toward all the other animals.

“All these bastards cost us a lot of money today” he sneered.

With that, he stalked away.

Sam and Carl were also oblivious to the excited chimp point-
ing through the bars. They had eyes only for the Ringmaster.

After he'd left out, Sam said: “He really is a dick. Did you
hear what he said? ‘These bastards just cost s lot of money'~
as if we share in the benefits when business is booming”

“Yeah, and you already know who's really gonna feel the
pinch when shit goes bad—shit always rolls down hill” Carl
said

“Itell you, it just ain't fair” said Sam. “But what's a man to
do? We got to eat, ya know..”

“Yep. Money don’t grow on trees” Carl agreed.

‘The two men used a long-handled sickle to pull the straw
from the monkey cage. Neither man was eager to enter any of
the cages after what they had witnessed earlier.

Carl bent down and grabbed the water container and be-
gan to dump out the water when a loud crash disturbed him,
followed by another and another. Both men watched as food
and water and some of the containers flew out from all but the
chimps’ cages and out onto the floor of the aisle, spilling every-
where in an incredible mess. Then the straw came out in giant
clouds, fluttering down into the water and puddles of food and
debris.

“Holy shit! They justthey just threw everything out on the
range” Sam observed, when he stopped gaping.

“Ain't that some shit?” Carl asked rhetorically, looking
around at the mess the animals had made

Not a sound came from the cages.

‘The Keepers cleaned up as quickly as they could and left the
housing area. As the next shift of Keepers arrived, Sam and Carl
relayed with wide eyes the bizarre behavior of the animals and
what had transpired in the Arena. Finally, they passed along

72
the Ringmaster’s instructions that none of the animals, except
for the chimps, were to be given food or water. With that, Sam
and Carl gathered their belongings and headed out. They felt
they had paid more then their dues to the Circus for one day.

“So what happened after we left?” the orangutan asked.

Most of the animals stood at the front of the cages, waiting
for the elephant to finish the story. The chimps in their larger
cages ignored the happenings of the other animals. The tiger
paced angrily in his cage

‘The elephant answered, “Well, you saw when you were out
there how the creatures in the stands got angry and many of
them left. And how the Ringmaster—*

“He was scared!” one of the monkeys screeched. ‘I smelled
it! He was scared!”

‘The other animals agreed, their voices converging in an ex-
citing murmur.

‘The tiger stopped pacing for just a moment

“Keep it down,” he admonished. “Let the elephant finish”

He resumed his pacing, as the elephant, shifting his weight
from foot to foot, continued:

“Yas, well, the chimpanzees came out and performed” He
cast a quick glance up the range in the direction of the chimps.
“And the stands were pretty empty by then. But once they
started to perform, I saw very few of those creatures leaving
So there were some who stayed to the end, but they were
throwing things after a long time watching the same old thing.
And they smelled pretty damned mad. So I guess, if the chimps
hadn't gone out there, the plan would have worked”

‘The tiger snorted and glared with disdain toward the cages
of the chimpanzees.

“If it weren't for them, the whole crowd would have left”
the tiger growled. “And the Ringmaster would be finished. I
got whipped and burned and beat to get to the Free World, and
those cowards kept the Circus going”

‘The other animals began to grumble as well

73
“Not so fast” the panther intervened. “Mr. Tiger, don't think
the Circus will fall overnight. It won't. Even if we had the coop-
eration of the chimpanzees, it would take more than one day.
We have to have patience if we want to prevail. As T have said,
success will require us to be vigilant”

“You're a dreamer, Panther the chimp piped up. “If it were
easy as you say it s, if all we have to do is stop performing,
don't you think the Circus would have been taken down along
time ago?"

‘The panther smiled one of his rare smiles.

“Well, if you remember, I told you that the tiger I met when
Ifirst arrived here did this” the panther replied. “So it certainly
isn't a new concept. But if you mean the plan to get all of us
to stop performing, then I have to ask you—who is it that you
think would have come up with such a plan if not us?"

‘The chimp shrugged.

“Us chimps” the chimp answered. “We would have thought
of it. We're the smartest”

“You?" the panther asked, amused. “You would have
thought of this plan, to take down the Circus? You, in your
wide, spacious cages, with your buckets of bananas and your
illusions of being free? You, who believe the Ringmaster likes
you and cares for you—you would have come up with a plan
to gather the disgruntled animals together and bite the hand
that feeds you?"

‘The chimp’s eyes narrowed,

“Yeah, well,Ibet you could go for one of these bananas now,
panther” the chimp teased. “No food, no water...how long has
itbeen?”

“Not long enough” the panther answered. “I'm not free yet.
Iwouldn't trade my freedom for a bucket of bananas™

‘The chimp scoffed and rolled his eyes

It's a hopeless cause” he said. “You might be able to endure
all this, but do you really think the other animals can stick to
it? No food, no water? Just wait and see™

7
“We're not cowards the tiger called up the range. “Cow-
ards sit up in that big-ass cage with bananas, doing tricks for
their enemy and keeping the rest of us from getting to the
World of the Free”

‘The other animals agreed and the tension heightened.

“You said this is hopeless?” the panther asked.

“Yeah, panther the chimp replied. “Hopeless. It will never
amount to anything”

“Now, you believe the Ringmaster is smarter than you and
that you are smarter than the rest of us, is that right?”

‘The chimp nodded, “Yeah. That's why he’s in charge. He's
the smartest. And we're his favorites because we're smarter
than the rest of you. Yeah™

“So if this is hopeless and you know it then the
Ringmaster—he's smarter than you—he'd know it's hope-
Iess too the panther concluded. “In fact, he'd know it's
hopeless before you would, wouldn't he?”

“That's right;" the chimp answered smugly.

‘The panther nodded.

“So Mr. Chimp, how do you explain the smell of fear that
was coming off the Ringmaster?” the panther asked.

‘The chimp stared out from between the bars. The other
chimps, sitting back behind him, looked at one another,
exchanging a confused glance.

“What do you mean?” the chimp asked nervously.

“I'mean this: I could smell fear coming off the Ringmaster”
the panther said. He turned to the tiger, “Didn’t you smell it?”

“Yeah, I smelled it the tiger chuckled. “He was reeking of
fear”

“I smelled it too!” The orangutan offered, hopping up and
down in the front of his cage

“He was scared!” one of the monkeys chimed. “Scared shit-
less!”

“Didn’t you smell t?” the panther asked the chimp. “Didn’t
you smell fear, Mr. Chimp? And if the Ringmaster is the

75
smartest and he's afraid, then what does that say? It would
seem that he's not so convinced that this plan is as hopeless as
you say—and if our plan scares him so badly, that seems like
added assurance that we may be on to something

“Even the Keepers were afraid. You smelled it when they
were putting you back in the cages. Why are they all afraid?
What do you make of that, Mr. Chimp?”

‘The chimp pondered this for a moment and then scurried
over to the jungle gym and hopped up, hanging by one arm.
He dangled there and none of the animals spoke for a long
‘moment

‘The panther’s eyes took in the reactions of the other ani-
mals as they all sat up a litle straighter or smiled with a bit
more confidence.

“Well, I suspect the Ringmaster is afraid because he feels
threatened. Because he knows that his livelihood is dependent
upon us performing” the panther revealed.

“He's scared shitless!” one of the monkeys screeched.

The chimpanzee said nothing. He swung from the jungle
gym and turned his back to the other animals.

“This just might work, Mr. Panther” the elephant said.

“Well, he put a helluva beating on us earlier” the tiger said,
pacing with his head down. “I don't know if I can take much
more of that laying down”

“But you must, tiger!” the panther exclaimed, giving the
tiger a stern look before turning to address all the animals. “We
all must be willing to stand up under whatever he brings down
upon us. And we must continue to control ourselves and re-
frain from giving in to instinctive impulse to retaliate—for vio-
Tence will ruin the plan”

“Soit's gonna get worse then, isn't t?” the orangutan asked.

“Yas? the panther answered. “You must remember that if
we do not obey, if we do not perform, there is no show. That
means the Ringmaster does not get his rewards and he goes
hungry. And soon, the Circus dies™

76
“Yeah, I get it Mr. Panther. But how did you figure all this
out?” the elephant asked. “How did you get to see that if we all
did what the tiger did, we could destroy the Circus?”

‘The panther nodded thoughtfully.

“Remember I told you that I pondered the question: Why
did they have to kill the tiger? Well, what I came to understand
was this—they didn't kill the tiger because he was bad or crazy.
No. They killed him because he was aware! He knew. And that
‘made him a threat. The tiger was right, and they couldn’tlet the
rest of us recognize that he was right or, over time, he might
have convinced us to be like him. No—they couldn't allow that.

“See, the tiger was dangerous because he could, through his
actions, open the eyes of the rest of us and we would see that
we don't belong to the Circus; we belong to ourselves. And if
we joined him and stopped obeying the Ringmaster, the Ring-
‘master would lose the illusion of power. I say ‘illusion’ because
the Ringmaster does not really have power. He only appears to
have it as long as we go along

“But with the tiger, we could recognize that the Ringmas-
ter's power was an illusion. And that is dangerous because
once we stop believing in the illusion, they cannot control us
anymore. We are then in control. We have power, and what's
more, we know we have power. And we cease to be afraid”

‘The other animals nodded solemnly.

“I'm not afraid anymore” the elephant offered.

“Yeah the orangutan called from down the range.

“Fuck a back flip! And fuck the Ringmaster!”

‘The monkeys squealed with delight and even the panther
smiled

“Now, we should get some sleep.” the panther suggested.

“We have a big day tomorrow”

77
The Lion’s Fate

‘The next day, the animals were still sleeping when the Ring-
master and the Keepers came in and began raking their sticks
across the bars of the cages and sereaming for them to get up.
‘The animals grudgingly rose to their feet and the Ringmaster
instructed the Sam and Carl to take the animals out to the train-
ing area so he and the Trainers could go over the commands
with them again.

“We can't have a recurrence of that fiasco that went down
yesterday he said.

Once in the training area, they went over all the cues and
commands with the animals, rewarding them with

morsels of food for their obedience. The Ringmaster
watched as the animals carried out every command they
were given, running through the routines with the utmost
efficiency.

“See, I knew all they needed was a little negative reinforce-
ment”the Ringmaster said to the Keepers, referring to the re-
strictions of food, water, and straw that he'd imposed the night
before. “That always seems to do the trick”

Finally satisfied, the Ringmaster ended the training session
and walked with Sam and Carl as they took the animals back
inside. Sam and Carl rattled the doors of the cages, making sure
they were securely closed upon the animal captives.

“Don’t put any water or straw back in the cages until af-
ter the show” the Ringmaster ordered. “But listen, I got a call
from the animal lovers earlier this morning concerning that in-
cident out in the arena yesterday. I covered your guys' asses,
and there’s nothing to worry about™

78
Carl and Sam exchanged an incredulous look at this assur-
“Solook;” the Ringmaster continued. “They wanted to meet
with me today. However, I told them we would be busy with
shows all week. The idea is to stall until we roll on to the next
town. But they may come snooping around here soon, so be
ready to return the straw and water at a moment’s notice™

‘The two Keepers nodded in understanding and the Ringmas-
ter turned toward the exit. As he passed the cage of the panther,
the Ringmaster noticed how the black cat, standing just behind
the bars, watched him intensely, a perfect statue except for his
eyes, which followed the Ringmaster's movements.

‘The panther and Ringmaster locked gazes for moment

‘The Ringmaster again had the strangest feeling from this
creature, the only one to look directly into his eyes. The Ring-
‘master nodded almost imperceptibly, and then looked away.

‘The panther continued to watch the Ringmaster, unafraid,
as the Ringmaster pointed with his cane toward the lion and,
almost as an afterthought, gave the Keepers one last instruc-
tion, then swept out of the door with the Keepers hot on his
trail,

Alittle while later, the panther watched as the Keepers re-
turned carrying equipment that the panther recognized— the
stick with the noose on the end, the muzzle, and the hot stick.
He recalled immediately that all these instruments were nor-
mally used whenever an animal was being brought to the Cir-

Following the Keepers were the two Trainers with their
hands in their khaki pockets. This also aroused the panther's
curiosity, because the Trainers hardly ever entered the housing
area. It was the job of the Keepers to ready the animals and es-
cort them either to training or to the arena. The Trainers took
custody only in the performance areas.

‘The other animals noticed as well, as the Keepers and Train-
exs stopped in front of the lion's cage. One of the Keepers fum-

79
bled with keys and after a moment twisted one large, brass key
in the lock. The cage door swung open with a rusty yawn.

“The lion stirred at the sound and opened his eyes. He slowly
lifted his head and looked around at the open door. Then, as if
uninterested, he yawned and returned to his former posture,
resting his head down on his paws.

‘The Keepers smiled and spoke to the lion in soothing tones
as one of the Trainers gave him a verbal cue to sit up.

“The lion lazily raised himself up onto his haunches, his
serawny shoulders slumped.

“You smell that?” the tiger asked. He sniffed the air, his eyes
narrow slits as he studied the action in the cage next to him. ‘I
don'tlike it 1 don’t like it one bit™

‘The panther said nothing, but an ominous feeling had swept
over him. His features hardened.

“What's goin’ on?” one of the chimps called down from up
the range

As a safety precaution, one Keeper outside the cage slipped
the noose around the lion's neck from between the bars. One of
the Trainers stood with the prod ready, as the Keeper standing
inthe doorway of the cage with the muzzle entered slowly. The
Tion stared at him ambivalently.

“Don’t let them do it the tiger growled low.

“Don’t let them the elephant urged. “It can’t be good, Mr.
Lion”

Now all the animals were up to the front of their cages,
aware that something was happening with the lion. Stll he sat
harmless and glassy-eyed, seemingly oblivious to his compatri-
ots' admonitions. When the Keeper finally got the muzzle on
snugly, he took a leash from off of his belt and hooked it to
the collar on the muzzle. With that firmly in place, one of the
Trainers gave the command for the lion to stand. Once again,
the lion obeyed and rose to his feet and the Keeper slowly be-
gan to walk toward the door of the cage, holding tightly to the
leash, his eyes on the beast at all times.

80
‘The Keepers spoke in soothing tones as the lion stepped
down out of the cage for the first time in what seemed like
ages, his legs wobbly under him. As he stepped into the aisle,
he looked about, peering from behind his shaggy muzzle. The
other animals stared back at him gravely.

Each of the Trainers gave the lion a pat on his emaciated
flanks, sighed, and then the retinue escorted the lion up be-
tween the rows of cages toward the exit. As the lion passed
each of the cages, the animals looked on in silence, contem-
plating his fate. The lion never so much as made eye contact
with any of the other animals. He simply walked with his head
slumped between his shoulders, passing quietly through the
doorway. The door slammed shut behind him.

In his wake, there was silence for a long moment.

“That's it, isn't it?" the tiger asked. “We'll never see him
again. He's gone™

‘The panther looked over at the tiger and shook his head
sadly.

“Where are they taking him?" one of the chimps asked.
“That lion hasn'tleft his cage since I've been here”

“They're going to kill him.” the tiger replied, barely able to
control his rage.

“They're taking him off to die”

‘The tiger began pacing rapidly, angrily.

“But why would they do that?” the orangutan asked, his
voice resonating with fear. “Is it because of what we did?”

‘The animals looked to the panther for the answer. They
needed to know if they had set in motio the machinery of death
that had just claimed their comrade

‘The panther shook his head.

“No? he answered. “No, I do not believe they killed the lion
because of our resistance. The lion did not resist; he was willing
to perform, in fact.

81
“They may have killed him now in order to disrupt our
morale, but I assure you that they were going to kill the lion
anyway’

“But why?" the orangutan asked

“Because he had become expendable” the panther an-
swered

“What do you mean?” one of the chimps asked.

“I'mean he is no longer useful to them—to the Circus” the
panther replied.

“Remember why we are here. We are here to do tricks and
perform for food. If we don't, we aren't contributing to the Cir-
cus and so we don't eat. And the Ringmaster and the Keepers—
their job is to make sure we perform and put on a show. If we
don't, they don't eat. So, we are only valuable so long as we
perform, so long as we jump through hoops. If we get injured
or old and can no longer perform, we are no longer useful to
them. We become expendable.

“That's when they decide it is in their interests to take us
away to die and replace us with another animal, a Circus ani-
mal. One who can and will perform and produce food for the
Ringmaster, the Keepers, and the Trainers.

“Thingis, we all grow older everyday. the panther said. “We
all get closer to the day when we become expendable to the
Circus. And the lion isn't the first of us that the Ringmaster
has sent away to die like this. He has—*

“I don't believe this” one of the chimps interrupted. He
stood at the front of the cage, his hands gripping the bars
tightly. His mouth twisted into an angry sneer. “You're trying
to make the Ringmaster out o be a monster. That's all you're
doing”

‘The panther shook his head.

“No? he replied evenly. “It happened before. I've seen it. It
was the fate of the other animals before the lion, it is the lion's
fate, and it will be our fate someday if we do not get to the
world of the—"

82
“He wouldn't do that!” the chimp blurted, rattling the bars
in his cage door.

‘The panther's eyes hardened.

“Where are the older animals/” the panther asked. He stood
up at the front bars, challenging. “Where are they? Where are
the older chimps and monkeys and elephants and orangutans
and tigers and panthers and lions? Where are the ones too old
to perform, to earn their food? Where are they? What is their
fate?”

‘The chimp nervously rubbed his head in the silence. His
eyes darted from the face of one animal to the next. He gave
no answer and there was a long pause as the other animals
considered what they had just heard.

“Iwas young when I came back to the cage after training to
find my mother was gone” the elephant spoke softly, his eyes
distant, staring out into the aisle. The elephant spoke softly, his
eyes distant, staring out into the aisle. ‘I waited for her to come
back and then I just got used to her not being there anymore
But I never considered..”

‘The panther nodded.

“You said the Ringmaster made sure my mom had me;" the
orangutan observed. “And he needed me to replace her”

“Yas? the panther said gently.

“Hekilled my mom just like he’s killing the lion, didn't he?”
the orangutan asked.

‘The panther nodded.

“Yas

“The Ringmaster is a killer” the orangutan said in a voice
heavy with pain and loss,

“If we do not get out of here and get to the Land of the
Free, we will all share the lion's fate someday.” the panther con-
cluded. His jaw tightened as he sat perfectly still fixed upon
the cage across from him. For a long time, none of the animals
spoke in response but joined the panther in his silent remem-

8
brance, staring at the open cage and its door hung ajar, and
empty hole where the lion’s life had been.

81
That Black Bastard!

Carl Kicked the stopper from the wheels under the lion’s
old cage, and pulled it out of the row and into the aisle.

“Give me a hand.” he called to Sam, standing by the open
back door.

Up the range, the chimps drew into a huddle, whispering
amongst themselves in hushed tones, one of them pointing
vaguely down the range as he spoke. Then another gestured an-
grily and screeched loud enough that the other animals could
hear.

Sam trotted up the aisle and tugged while Carl pushed the
empty cage, the door still hanging open and wagging as the
cage weaved and squeaked down the range and out the back
door to the loading dock.

Al the animals waited for a long moment

“What's up with this, Panther?” the tiger whispered loudly.

‘The panther shook his head. “I don't know?” he said.

Another cage came up the aisle, Carl and Sam pushing it
from behind, sweat standing out on their foreheads. Unlike the
other cage, this one was closed. Lying inside, curled up on a
pile of straw in a corner, was a sleeping animal.

‘The Keepers navigated it into the space where the lion's
cage had been, put the stoppers under the wheels, and headed
out of the housing area, the door slamming shut behind them.

One of the chimps broke the huddle and scurried up to the
bars of the cage to see what had just happened. He gazed down
the range and then whispered something to the other chim-
panzees.

8
The elephant and tiger both looked down at the sleeping
form in the cage between them.

“Alion” the tiger mumbled.

“See!” called the chimp from up the range. “They just took
him out and brought him back”

“It isn't the same lion the tiger growled. “This one is
younger. Much younger. And he smells funny”

‘The young lion exhaled deeply, the sounds of his snoring
rising and falling with his rhythmic breathing,

“The Long Sleep.”the elephant observed.

“Probably came from the World of the Free” the tiger
opined. Then, his powerful growl reverberated up the range at
the chimps: “You fools still wanna do backflips for your enemy
for bananas? You cowards and traitors are—"

“Hold up, Tiger the panther interrupted. “Look™

‘The tiger followed the panther’s gaze into the new lion's
cage. The young lion had stirred, his snore abruptly ending as
he slowly lifted his head. He opened his glassy eyes and blinked
several times as if he could not register what he was seeing. He
shook his shaggy mane and licked his chops.

“What's up new kid?” the tiger queried, his anger evaporat-
ing at the sight of the awakened lion.

‘The lion’s foggy eyes blinked at the tiger but he did not
answer. Slowly, as if underwater, he staggered to his feet. He
swayed drunkenly, and as he took a few steps toward his water
container, his legs wobbled under him.

He lapped up some water and then raised his gaze to the
panther in the cage across from him.

“Lion” the panther greeted.

‘The lion shook his mane again.

“Where am I? He roared.

“This is the Circus.” the panther answered.

“Circus?” asked the lion. “What the fuck is that?”

6
‘The panther cast a glance up toward the chimps, hoping
they had perceived the significance of what the lion had just
said.

“The Circus is this world we are now in" the panther an-
swered patiently. “Where did you come from?”

‘The lion yawned wide and slow, and then swiped his tongue
over his jowls.

“The Savannah” He said finally.

“The Savannah?”" the panther asked, sneaking yet another
glance at the chimps. “What is The Savannah?”

“The Savannah is my home;” the lion replied sternly.

“Well, what's it like there?” the panther asked. “Are there
other animals back at your home like Tigers and Chimps and—

“And Monkeys?” one of the monkeys shricked

“Of course, Ijust chased one of those little bastards up a tree
the other day. But what's up with all the stupid questions?” he
added, looking around at the animals in his view. “You are all
acting weird as fuck!”

“Please excuse us, Mr. Lion” the panther said, “But it's been
along time since some of us were in your world, and many of
us have never been there

“Come on—you can't be serious” The lion replied

“Yas—unfortunately I am. If you don't mind me asking,

how did you get here, Mr. Lion?” The panther queried.

‘The lion licked his jowls, lowering his head as he attempted
to recall.

“Well, Iwas in the tall grass sniffing for food” the lion began.
‘The panther watched the chimps as the lion spoke. The chimp
glanced between the lion and the panther and back again. He
nervously rubbed his head with the palm of one hand.

“Iwas hunting—think it was caribou” The lion narrowed his
eyes as he struggled to remember. “It was only me this time—
my mate, she was with the newborns. So I was alone and I
remember smelling something odd just before I flt this sharp

87
pain in my side and everything got all._fuzzy... just like it is
now” He blinked, his eyes glassy. “Look—I'm tired. Gotta get
some sleep..” he said, yawning once again and wobbling back
to the pile of straw.

“Well, we'll talk later, youngster the tiger replied. “Go
ahead and get some sleep”

After a moment, the lion was fast asleep again. The tiger
looked over at the panther.

“When that shit wears off, and he comes around, we'll have
tolet him know what's up?” the tiger proposed. “Share the plan”

‘The panther nodded his head in agreement, but his atten-
tion was focused up the range on the chimps, who had once
again formed a huddle back away from the front of the cage.
‘They whispered furiously, one slicing hand cutting through
the air, followed by fingers pointing. One of them screeched
angrily. Suddenly, two of the chimps broke from the huddle
and jumped atop the jungle gym, turning their backs on the
other chimps. The huddle stood together for a moment. Silent.
‘Thinking. Then without a word, one of the chimps scurried up
to the front of the cage. He sighed deeply, shifting from foot to
foot.

“Hey, Mr. Panther!” he finally called.

“Yas, Mr. Chimp?" The panther replied.

“Well, we've been doing some thinking. We've been consid-
ering some of the things you've been saying” the chimp admit-
ted. He paused to carefully consider his words. He sighed. “Yes-
terday I could smell fear on the Ringmaster. All of us could. The
Keepers too. And I never smelled it like that before. Also, we all
saw that by the time we came out to perform, the stands were
nearly empty and the creatures who remained were throwing
things at the Ringmaster”

Al the animals listened.

“Then today, when they led away the lion, you mentioned
that he was going to be killed and he would be replaced by

88
A Cage is a Cage is a Cage...

After the Panther had finished speaking silence prevailed,
for all the animals were contemplating what he had said. More-
over, they were thinking about the World of the Free he had de-
scribed. Some began to remember. After a while, the elephant
broke the silence:

“Yas, Mr. Panther. think I do understand what you mean
now. And the more I heard you speak about being free, the
more I started to remember. Yas, some time long ago I recall
walking around with my mother and many other elephants in
this World of the Free you speak of. We used to walk for miles
and there were no bars there holding us back. We used to go
to the big water place and splash around. Oh! And there were
hundreds of trees where the monkeys and chimps lived”

“Yas! Yas!” one of the monkeys shrieked from down the
range. “I remember the trees—and all the bananas!”

“Well I'm sorry, but I do not remember any such place” the
orangutan interrupted, hanging his head despondently.

‘The panther came back to the front of the cage, looked down
at the orangutan sympathetically, and said:

“No, Mr. Orangutan. You do not remember, because you
cannot remember what you never forgot. You were born here.
S0 although Orangutan runs in your blood, you never had the
chance to truly be Orangutan. The Ringmaster snatched your
mother from the World of the Free years and years ago and
forced her to perform for him until she grew old and died, in a
cage. But he made sure that she had you to take her place”

2
“Ido not understand this, Mr. Panther” the Orangutan said
sadly. “Why did the Master bring my mother here and treat her
that way? How could he be so cruel?”

“The Ringmaster is ruthless!” the panther exclaimed.

“He has to be. And he’s been trying to kill most of us since
he brought us here. But he tried to kill you before you were
evenborn, for he never allowed you to be Orangutan. He never
allowed you to know the World of the Free. And just like you
were born in a cage, you, like the rest of us, will die in a cage
ifhe has his way”

Ever since the panther had spoken about the World of the
Free, the chimps had fallen silent. For, although they found
many attractive things about this world the Panther had de-
scribed, they felt that they had lived quite well here at the Cir-
cus, compared to the other animals, and weren't that eager to
relinquish their privileged status. But finally one of them broke
the silence.

“Hold up, Mr. Panther” one of the chimps interjected from
his perch up in one of the big cages near the entrance.

“I don’t remember any such place either” the chimp contin-
ued. “And you say that the Ringmaster is so mean and cruel.
But I don't see it that way”

“Well that comes as no big surprise. said the elephant.

“Yeah, you ain't the one he's crackin’ with that whip every
day, bitch!” the tiger growled.

‘The Panther, sensing that the animals were about to erupt
again, quickly interceded:

“Okay Mr. Chimp—how do you see it?” he asked, looking
up the range at the chimp swinging from the jungle gym in his
cage.

“Well, the Ringmaster has never been cruel to me. He's al-
ways provided me with the things I need to survive. And I be-
lieve that as long as I'm here, I will always have what I need to
be free to swing around as much as [ want to" the chimp said.

2
“Mr. Chimp, T know you pride yourself on being pretty in-
telligent” the panther said. “So let me ask you a question— do
you know what happiness is?"

“Yeah, T think I know what it means”

“Well then are you happy, Mr. Chimp?”

‘The chimp scratched his head with his free hand and con-
sidered the question for a moment.

“Idon’t know he finally replied.

“Alright. Well let me ask you this—do you feel free?” the
panther asked.

After a moment, the chimp replied, “Well, 1 don't feel as free
as the Ringmaster is, but I'm freer than you are”

“Oh~—S0 you think that because you get to eat a little more
than the rest of us and because you get out a lttle more often
than we do that you're alttle more free—is that it?” the panther
asked.

“Yeah! Plus, T have a bigger cage than the rest of you. The
Ringmaster likes me!” the chimp said excitedly.

‘The panther bowed his head and shook it side to side in
sadness before proceeding,

“Let me explain something to you, Mr. Chimp. It may be
true that your cage is a little roomier than the rest of ours.
But, contrary to what you may believe, the Ringmaster has not
placed you in that big cage because he likes you. No— those
big cages are there for one reason and one reason only.”

“Yeah! They're reserved for the best animals—for us
Chimps!”

“No, my friend. That's not what they are there for. They are
merely a control tool. They are just one of the many tools the
Ringmaster uses to maintain control, Mr. Chimp.

“You see, he puts you up in the big cage and gives you all
the extra things that we don't get in exchange for your obedi-
ence, implying that as long as you faithfully obey him, you will
remain his favorite. In this way, he sets you apart from the rest

2
of us, making you feel special, thereby securing your loyalty.
That is how he uses the big cage to control its inhabitant.

“However, he not only uses that big cage to control you,
but he uses it to control the rest of us as well. Because he also
implies to the rest of us that if we are faithful and obedient, we
could be next in line to take your place, knowing full well that
most of us will never see the inside of one of those big cages. By
setting you apart from the rest of us and showering you with
all the comforts of the Circus, he creates competition between
all of us, thus securing dissension among us. And that is how
he uses the big cage to control us™

“Wait a minute, Panther!” the Chimp called out. “Now Iun-
derstand that you all are not happy with your situation down
there. But the fact of the matter is, this is how things should
be—how it has always been. For as far back as I can remember
we have always been divided, the best from the rest. We are
Chimps. We are the best! Therefore, we deserve to live better
than the rest of you. And as long as we continue to obey Mas-
ter, we will always reap the benefits of being his favorites and
we'll never have to worry about any of you taking our place”

Once again, the panther shook his head in sadness.

“First of all, Mr. Chimp, like I said before; most of us

will never see the inside of one of those cages. And frankly,
T'm not that interested in the scenery. But this is not the point.
‘The fact is, the Ringmaster has tricked many animals into be-
lieving that he really favors them—weren't you listening earlier
when I spoke about what happened to the lion?”

“Yeah, but what does the lion have to do with any of this?"
asked the chimp, confused.

Well, who do you think was in that cage before you?” The
panther asked, pausing to let this question settle on the chimp
before continuing

“Me. Chimp, T know that all this is a litle difficult for you
to swallow, but before you can ever be free, you must first rec-
ognize that you are not free. Think about it—can you eat when-

2
ever you feel like it? Can you leave and go wherever you want
to go or do whatever you want to do when you want to do it?"

Nor

“No, you can't. So use those brains, Mr. Chimp. There is no
such thing as partial or relative freedom. You are in a cage. And
true freedom is not measured by how much bigger your cage
is than mine. A cage is a cage is a cage. And so long as you are
in one, you are no freer than any of the rest of us

“And this is exactly why you are not happy. Because how
could you ever be truly happy if you're not free? That's impos-
sible for any of us” the panther said, turning to face the rest of
the animals in his view. “As long as we live in cages and have
to submit our will to another, we can never be happy. But this
does not have to be! We do not have to humbly accept this fate.
‘The World of the Free—the world where we belong~—is stll out
there!”

‘The chimp hung silently by one arm, contemplating what
the panther had said. Just then, a distinct jingling began per-
‘meating the housing area, one that all the animals had come to
recognize. The Keepers were coming! So all the animals went
back to doing what they normally did. The panther watched as
the two Keepers in their grey uniforms made their way down
the aisle that separated the rows of cages, their black boots
clunking along the cement door as they walked. They stopped
at each cage for 2 moment, looked in, grabbed the steel bars
of the doors and gave them a shake with their calloused hands
before going on to the next one.

For a long time the panther had not understood these crea-
tures’ purpose here at the Circus, or why they carried out this
routine. Their function had seemed to be different than that of
the Trainers, who were always trying to teach the animals to
behave in weird ways. But over the years he had come to under-
stand that these differences were superficial. Because just like
the Trainers, they were here to insure that he was in a cage,
to make sure he wasn't free. But, ironically, he had also come

27
to know that, just like the Trainers, they were not free either.
‘They worked for the Ringmaster and so they lived in a cage as
well; they just couldn't see the bars.

When the two keepers finally made their way to the pan-
ther, he looked at them and for a second their eyes met. Then,
just as soon as they had come, they had gone. The panther
watched them as they left out and shook his head.

After the animals saw that the Keepers had departed, the
chimp spoke:

“Panther, I don’t know what to make of this crap you've
been talking about—all this World of the Free shit! T've never
heard of such a place, and I'm sure that if such a place actually
existed, we chimps would have known about it well before any
of you. So, as far as I'm concerned, this big cage is about as free
as it gets. And the Ringmaster put us chimps up here simply
because we are the best”

“Youstill don't get it, do you Mr. Chimp?” the panther asked,
exasperated. “The Ringmaster would never tell you about the
World of the Free. That would defeat his purpose. He doesn't
favor you! Can't you see that you are no better off than the rest
of us. Because just like us, you have to obey and perform for
the Ringmaster before he lets you eat, or lets you out for that
daily walk. He cares no more about you than the rest of us, Mr.
Chimp. And if you don't believe it, stop performing for him—or
grow t0o old to perform—and I guarantee you that he will do
to you what he's done to that lion over there”

‘That's monkey shit! And I don't believe a word of it the
Chimp shrieked.

“Well Mr. Panther” the elephant said, I don't know about
them, but hearing you speak of this Free World has sparked my
memory of it as well as my desire to return there”

“Me too!” one of the monkeys shrieked. “But where exactly
is this world?”

“Yeah, and how the fuck do we get there?” the tiger asked.

28
“The World of the Free is anywhere there are no bars hold-
ing you back, no cages, anywhere there is no Ringmaster. And
in order to go to The World of the Free you will first have to
have the desire to be free;” the panther said.

“As for you, Mr. Chimp. It's a shame that you cannot see
the Ringmaster for what he really is. But I assure you that one
day you will hope sooner than later. Because then and only
then will you have a chance at becoming free. And like I said,
i the desire to be free isn't in us, we all run the risk of dying
many slow, painful deaths like the lion”

“Shee~it! They can do whatever they want. But Lain't tryin"
to go out like that!” the tiger exclaimed. No longer relaxing, he
stood up at the front of his cage. “I'm trying to get a bite of that
Free World you've been screamin’ about!”

Most of the animals agreed and stressed that they wanted
to be free as well

“Well, let me explain to you what I have come to learn about
the Circus” began the panther. “As you all know, I have been
here for a long time. When I first got here, I would not obey
any of the Ringmaster's commands. So he would keep me in
this cage and starve me to the brink of death. He would feed me
just enough to keep me alive. Then after a few days, he would
bring me out of the cage and offer me more food in exchange
for my obedience. If this did not work, he would beat me, throw
me back into the cage and repeat the process all over again.

“Anyway, while pacing in this cage, I would see other ani-
‘mals being calmly led out by the Trainers to parts of the Circus
that I had never seen. And after a while, they would all come
back just as calmly as they had left. These animals— the Obe-
dient Ones—had been here awhile and several of them had at-
tempted to persuade me to just get with the program and obey
the Ringmaster. But I had already vowed to myself that I would
never be like them. However, the more I watched them go out,
the more curious I became as to where they went when they
were gone for those long periods of time; for I thought that if

2
I could get out there I could maybe find an opportunity to es-
cape. But, Tknew that T would never get the chance if I did not
give in to some of the Ringmaster's wishes. So I began to com-
ply. Thad to go through that dumb training school and learn
all that nonsense the Trainers forced on me. Then finally one
day, Iwas taken out there— to the Arena.

“Once out there I quickly realized that I could not escape. I
had just been taken out of one cage and placed in a bigger one,
where I was to jump through hoops and do stupid little stunts
like the Obedient Ones. This angered me. The realization that
there was no way for me to escape frustrated and angered me to
the point where I began to consider doing something extreme,
but T had to restrain myself, for I quickly saw the futilty in that
course of action.

“So there I was, very disappointed at my predicament. Yet
Tknew that if I were to have any chance of getting out of this
madness, I would have to keep going out to the Arena. And
soon I realized that my efforts had not been in vain, because the
‘more I went out there, the more I learned about the Ringmaster;
the more I learned about the Circus

“Yas! While the lion was enjoying his fifteen minutes of
fame, and while all the other animals were competing for their
place in the spotlight, I was learning. I noticed that every time
T came out there, there were many creatures that

looked like the Ringmaster filing into the arena”

“You mean the spectators?” the elephant asked.

“Yeah, the spectators” the panther answered. “And as they
came in, they all gave the Ringmaster something before taking
a seat. Once they were seated and the show had begun,

I noted that after each performance, the observers would
cheer and urge the Ringmaster for more. Then I noticed sev-
eral of these same creatures, who worked for the Ringmaster,
walking up and down the aisles carrying food. Occasionally,
one would give some of this food to one of the observers. But
once again, there was an exchange.

30
“This baffled me for awhile and I did not immediately un-
derstand the meaning of these transactions. So I paced on it

“Then one day, some of the animals began to fall ll This
sickness quickly spread to all of us and for a time we could
not perform. At first, the Ringmaster was constantly back here
with the Trainers, and the bad smell that he normally gave off
had increased to levels I had never smelled before. He was fu-
rious! He began beating us and ordering the Trainers to beat
us to try and force us out to the Arena. When we did not go
he took all of the water and straw out of the cages and would
not feed us. This didn't bother us much because we slept most
of the day due to the sickness. But when the Ringmaster saw
that we were indeed sick, his odor changed. He was giving off
another smell now, one that I recognized as fear

“At fist I thought that he just might actually be genuinely
concerned for us. But it wasn't long before I realized that that
was far from the truth. After a day or so of the sickness, many
other creatures that resembled the Ringmaster began coming
through the housing area. They were sticking sharp things into
my body, and even though these things stung, I did ot feel
threatened by these creatures. They gave off a different, more
pleasant smell. And 1 had the distinct impression that they were
here to help us, to take the sickness away. In fact, they seemed
to care about us. Soon I realized that I had been right, because
after a few days we all began to get well. But I had noticed
something else. These creatures had a powerful effect on the
Ringmaster. For immediately before these creatures showed up,
he and the Trainers had returned all the straw and water to
the cages. And while they were here, his disposition changed
toward us. He was not his usual violent self. In fact, he was
quite humble. But he did not care for them and could not wait
for them to leave. Once again, I smelled fear; the Ringmaster
was afraid of them for some reason”

“Fear?” the elephant asked. “What was he afraid of?"

31
“Well, I never completely understood why he was afraid of
these creatures. I just knew that they scared him and that his
beh

ior toward us was much different while

they were here. But I had figured out why he had been
afraid when he'd found out that we were sick. This experience
had allowed me to piece together a very important part of the
puzzle. Because before the sickness, I had been pacing on the
‘meaning behind all of the exchanges I'd seen out in the Arena
Thad also wondered what motivated the Keepers and Trainers
to acquiesce to the Ringmaster, and moreover, what compelled
the Ringmaster himself to be so cruel

“Now it was all beginning to come together for me. I re-
membered how the Ringmaster withheld food from me when
1didn’t obey; how he made all the animals pay with our obedi-
ence. I remembered how the observers out in the Arena had
given something to the workers in exchange for food. This
“something’ that they had traded for food had a value, for it
was the same ‘something” that they had given the Ringmaster
for a seat in the Area. I recognized this as payment of some
Kind. Yas! As crazy as it was, they were paying for food! And
they were motivated to pay for food by the same urge that mo-
tivated me to obey—Hunter! They had to pay to eat. And if they
did not pay they did not eat. There was a pattern:

Food for payment;

Payment for food;

No payment, No Food!

“Yas! Food was the common denominator. Hunger tied it all
together. I had made the connection! That just like the animals,
the Keepers and the Trainers had to obey the Ringmaster and
Keep us from being free so that they could eat. Moreover, Inow
understood the Ringmaster's fear when he'd learned that the
animals had fallen ill. He was afraid because, while the specta-
tors out in the Arena paid the Ringmaster, they were not really
coming to see him. No! They were coming to see us, and they
were paying the Ringmaster to put on a show. But if we could

32
not perform, there could be no show. And that's why he was
afraid. He was afraid because if he did not put on a show—HE
WOULD NOT EAT!"

Once again, the old panther paused to allow the significance
of what he'd said settle on the animals’ minds. He paced for a
‘moment and took this opportunity to quench his thirst. Upon
returning to the front of the cage, he was gratified to see that
most of the animals were no longer lying down in the cages.
Some had begun pacing and others were standing up near the
bars. But all were silently reflecting on what the panther had
said. Then the tiger, who had begun pacing, broke the silence

“Mr. Panther, since I've been here, I've always known that
if 1 wanted to eat, I would have to perform. But I never would
have thought that the Keepers, the Trainers, and even the Ring-
master himself have to pay for food. It always seemed to me
that they had all the food. But if what you're saying is true,
then none of them are free either. Because, just like us, they
have to pay for food as well. This is unbelievable!™

“I could hardly believe it myself, Mr. Tiger the panther said.
“But it's true. And it seems that these creatures like living in
cages and paying for food. They like it so much that they've
based a whole system on it. And this truly is odd because in
the world that I came from, food was free.

“But this revelation allowed me to see deeper into the work-
ings of the Circus. It helped me to understand the

Ringmaster a lot better and I now knew why he had
brought me here—why he had brought all of the animals here.
He brought us here to kil us so that he could live.

“But I had found his weakness and knew that he could be
destroyed. However, I also knew that it would not suffice to
just destroy him. No, the whole Circus would have to be taken
down. And I knew how it could be done. I would have to relay
my feelings to the other animals. I would have to warn them of
the Ringmaster's intentions. I would have to show them that
there is a way for them to live and that they did not have to

33
exist in cages anymore. I would have to show them that they
could be free.

“This I reasoned would not be difficult to do, for I felt that
surely all animals desired to be free. But I soon came to see
that T had underestimated the task that was before me, and to
realize that I had gravely misjudged this bunch. T had underes-
timated the power that the Ringmaster wielded over them. For
1o matter how many times I told them about the World of the
Free, no matter how many times 1 told them that the Ringmas-
ter was trying to kill them, and despite the fact that I showed
them exactly how he was trying to kil them, they were not
willing to listen to reason.

“It wasn't long before I understood why. They were too
busy competing against one another for the Ringmaster's af-
fection; too busy competing for the scraps, for more food and
bigger cages. They desired nothing more. Yas, at that point, I
reasoned that despite what I had told them, if they had been
starving and had all been placed in one big cage with the Ring-
master, that they would have fought, killed, and feasted on one
another without even the thought of tasting his flesh ever cross-
ing their feeble minds. And after filling their bellies, I could
even imagine them lying at the feet of their Master, secking a
seratch on the belly for a job well done.

“So no! They did not want to destroy the Ringmaster. They
did not want to destroy the Circus because they had come to
love their Master, and had come to believe that the Circus was
their home. I was talking to the living dead—the Ringmaster
had already killed them!”

‘The panther paused for a moment and looked around at all
the animals before continuing

“Somy friends, I have been pacing this cage ever since, hop-
ing that one day 1 would get the chance to convince a group of
you'to live before the Ringmaster kills you™

31
A moment passed as the animals considered the panther’s
words. Just then, one of the chimps seated up on the jungle
gym pealing back a banana called out to the panther.

“Panther, you keep saying the Ringmaster is a killer. That
he kills the Chimp in us, the Elephant in us—*

“The Monkey in us? the monkey offered.

“Yeah, yeah~the Monkey in us” the chimp conceded. “But
this makes no sense to me. If he's killing us as you say, then
how is he doing it? How is it that he kills us?"

“Ah, yas”" the panther replied, smiling widely as he peered
up the range at the chimp. “It comes down to that question,
does it not? How does the Ringmaster kill us? Because that is
what we need to know, isn't it, Mr. Chimp?

“Ihave explained how the Ringmaster keeps us divided and
competing and believing he is our friend and how he controls
us through these and other manipulations. But how does he get
us to go along with his tricks? How does he fool us into partic-
ipating in this Circus and becoming our own worst enemies?
How does he trick us into giving away our power and going
along with the illusions?”

‘The panther turned, his eyes meeting those of the animals
in his range of vision.

“If you recall, I told you that I went to the Arena and sub-
mitted to the Trainers so I could find some way to escape. And
Ttold you that while Mr. Lion was seeking his fifteen minutes
of fame, I was learning about the nature of the ircus the pan-
ther recounted. “Well I learned was the Ringmaster's method
ofkilling us—of killing the Tiger and Chimp and Monkey in us.
And T found that it all begins with the training”

“Training?” the chimp asked. “What do you mean?”

‘The panther paused for a moment and considered how to
proceed.

“Mr. Chimp, who taught you how to eat a banana?” The
panther asked. “Who was your teacher, your trainer?”

35
‘The chimp, swinging from one arm, was caught in the mid-
dle of chewing a mouthful of banana and he swallowed hard
before he answered:

“Nobody™

“Nobody?” the panther queried. “But that is odd. Certainly,
Tjust saw you eat a banana, didn’t "

‘The chimp, still swinging replied absently. “T've always
Known how to eat bananas”

“Alright” the panther submitted, amused. “But suppose I
told you that when you were just a baby chimp, you watched
your mom and dad and you saw them pick bananas and feed
you one and it tasted good. So you watched and learned how
they did it and you imitated them and started picking your own.
Do you think that sounds right?”

‘The chimp thought

“Yeah, well, some of my earliest memories are of my mom
and dad feeding me" the chimp admitted. “And if they were
feeding me, I have to think maybe I didn’t know how to do it
myself”

Just then, the tiger pressed up against the bars of his cage.

“You're losing me Panther,” he blurted. “What are we talk-
ing about here? Bananas? Fuck bananas! I want to know how
the Ringmaster kills us and what we can do about it”

“Patience, Mr. Tiger” the panther replied. “And please stay
with me. I don't want to lose you. In fact, maybe you can help.
Who was your trainer when you learned how to use your claws
and powerful legs to shred and pounce?”

“Trainer? I didn't need a trainer” the tiger scoffed. “I got
hungry, [saw a rabbit. Case closed”

“But certainly you had to have a trainer” the panther
prompted.

“I didn't need no fucking trainer” the tiger retorted, an-
noyed. “Who needs a trainer to teach him when he's hungry?"

‘The panther turned to the elephant.

36
“Who was the trainer who taught you to use your size and
weight to scare away predators, or use your trunk to get the
leaves from the high trees?” he asked.

“Iwatched my mom and dad and then I did it” the elephant
answered simply.

“Do any of you see what I'm getting at?” the panther asked.
He looked cage to cage, animal to animal

“There are no Trainers in the World of the Free” he ex-
plained. “They do not exist. They are not needed. We all learn
everything that we need to know in order to survive, to live as
we are, to be what we are-and to be free. Free!

“As you said, Mr. Tiger, no one needs to be trained to know
that they are hungry. This is true. And just like no one needs
to be trained to know that they are hungry or thirsty or hot
or cold or in danger, Tiger doesn't need to be trained to know
that he is Tiger”

“We learn all we need to know on our own” the elephant
offered. “We watch our parents and we do what they do and we
Know how to be what we are. And that's all we really need”

“Yas" the panther agreed. “And that is universal. It's the
same for all of us. We all learn what we need to know without
Trainers. In the World of the Free, there are no Trainers”

“So maybe this is better” the orangutan said. He sat up
near the front of the bars, playing with a piece of straw on
the floor of his cage. “Maybe we're better off here in the Circus
because we have Trainers here and we get to learn stuff that
we wouldn't learn in the World of the Free. T can do backflips!
Inever would have learned backflips in the World of the Free”

‘There was a tense pause.

“Did he just say that?" the tiger asked incredulously. “Did
he? Cuz I can't even—what the hell is you thinking Orangutan?
Don't you see this lump of fur over here that used to be a lion?
Do you think ending up like that, dying in a cage, is better
than the World of the Free?" The tiger snorted. “Who gives a
shit about a back flip in the Land of the Free? Fuck a back flip!”

37
“No, wait a minute” the chimp called out. “The orangutan is
right! The Trainers have taught us chimps many tricks—they re
even teaching us sign language so that we can communicate
better and be more like them and Master one day!”

“Sign language?” the tiger growled incredulously. “Who
gives a fuck about sign language? Fuck sign language too!”

“Yeah, well how do you like this sign language?” the chimp
screamed, sliding his long, lanky arm through the bars, his
furry middle finger extended upward.

“Wait a minute! That's it! That's it!" the elephant trum-
peted excitedly, jumping up and down in his cage and causing
tremors that bounced the cages of the other animals off the
floor boards. “That's it! That's the point! I get it! I get it!”

Al the other animals became silent

“It's like this, Mr. Panther” the elephant began proudly. “As
you pointed out, we all learn what we need to know on our
own. There are no Trainers in the World of the Free. We just
are who we are. We do what comes natural—what makes sense.
‘We are Elephant and Orangutan and Chimp and so on, but then
we come here to the Circus and they have Trainers. And the
reason they need to have Trainers is because they are teaching
us to do things that we don't need to know how to do, teaching
us to do things that don't come natural to us. The Cireus has to
get s to do tricks that Elephants and Tigers and Monkeys and
Lions don't do in the World of the Free.

“And Mr. Orangutan, Tiger is right. Who gives a shit about
a back flip? In the World of the Free, orangutans don't dance
to amuse others. And chimps have no use for sign language.
Don't you see? We are trained to do what they want us to do
for them. To benefit them.”

“Yas? the panther agreed. “We know how to be Tiger and
Orangutan and Chimp. No one has to show us. We know
how—Perfectly. They must train us to make us less Tiger, less
Orangutan, and less Chimp. They un-learn us who we are
and they make us something we are not. They take away the

38
Tiger and the Orangutan, and the Chimp in us and replace it
with Cireus Tiger, Circus Orangutan, and Circus Chimp. They
make you something useful to the Circus”

“And we forget who we are the elephant added “We forget,
justlike I forgot. And we come to think the Cireus is the world
and that it is our home and that it always has been”

“And it starts with our training” the panther continued.

“By training us, the Ringmaster gets in our minds and alters
us and gets us to perform tricks and become something he can
use. He yells, Jump!; so we jump. He yells, ‘Roll over!; and we
roll over”

“Soit's when we jump and roll over that we become unfree”
the Tiger observed.

“No, Mr. Tiger the panther gently admonished. “No, we
become un-free the moment we believe the Ringmaster and
his Trainers have any right to train us in the first place. When
we recognize the Ringmaster as having power and authority
over us; when we accept our place and settle for anything less
than freedom, that's when we become Circus animals. That's
when we become un-free.

“And if you remember, that's the first thing our training
does to distort us. It teaches us our place. We learn first and
foremost that the Trainers and the Ringmaster give all the or-
ders and our role is to obey them. We learn that we are the
students and they are the teachers. They convince us that they
have knowledge and power that we don't have knowledge and
power. And that makes them somehow superior to us. We give
away being bosses of ourselves and we are tricked into recog-
nizing them as the bosses of us”

‘The panther searched the faces of the animals he could see,
‘making sure they understood the gravity of what he had said

“They convince us they have power and force us to recog-
nize itby whipping us and beating us and taking away our food.
‘They tell us, ‘Get with the program, or you don't eat. They con-
trol us through fear and pain. And once we recognize them

39
as being in control, once we submit and throw away our free-
dom, they reward us with food and straw and large cages and
50 on. But we must bow to the Ringmaster. We must bow to
the Circus and become less than what we are and throw away
our freedom in exchange for their rewards. And once you rec-
ognize someone else as having power over you and authority,
you are no longer free”

‘The sleeping form of the lion stirred and slowly the lion
staggered to his feet as if burdened by a great weight on his
back. He slunk to his water dish and lapped up its contents hun-
grily, unaware of all of the eyes fixed upon him. He turned and
headed back to the warm comfort of his straw when his eyes
met the panther's. The panther nodded at the lion in acknowl-
edgment and then looked away. The tiger offered the lion some
encouragement.

“Hang in there, Mr. Lion" he said sadly.

“Yeah!” one of the monkeys shrieked from up the range.
“We're trying to get to the World of the Free!”

‘The lion looked around momentarily, his eyes glassy, not
seeming to register what had been said to him, and he lowered
himself down on his straw and was soon snoring away, oblivi-
ous to the world around him.

‘The panther looked over at the tiger and asked, “Now do
you see what I mean when I say the lion is dead?”

‘The tiger looked over at the sleeping form of the lion. “Yas"
he acknowledged sadly. “He's not a lion anymore”

After a moment, the panther continued.

“Ilearned a great deal about this Circus. Trainers only exist
in the Circus. There are none in the World of the Free.

And Trainers always serve a Ringmaster—Always! Trainers
exist so that the Ringmaster can control those who get trained,
5o the Ringmaster can control them and make them serve his
wishes. So wherever there are Trainers, there are poor crea-
tures like this lion here who believe the Trainers are his friends,
who believe he is being taught tricks for his own good”

10
‘The panther cast a quick glance up the range at the chimps
before continuing

“Then when the Ringmaster decides we have outlived our
usefulness, he casts us back into a cage and lets us rot”

“Yeah the elephant agreed. “And then we end up like that”
he concluded, staring down at the lion who had fallen asleep
again.

“Yeah, and then we're fucked!” the tiger added.

“Fucked!” the monkey shrieked.

All eyes remained on the sleeping form of the lion. A quiet
rage built inside that housing area

‘The tiger cleared his throat

“Last week, the Trainers taught me how to jump through a
flaming hoop.” the tiger shared in a voice low and thoughtful.
“And at first it didn't feel right. I don't like fire and didn’t want
to be near it. But they had me jump again and again and they
whipped me ifI didn't jump. When did, they gave me food and,
through their actions, I could tell that they were happy with
me. It was like I was earning their... their..” His voice trailed
off as he searched for the right word. .. their affection maybe?
‘Their love? And I wanted to please them. I thought I was doing
good, that I was earning something important—just like the
orangutan’s backflips. It was like I thought they were teaching
me how to be better Tiger. That they were teaching me because
they care about Tiger”

He stopped, his eyes distant in thought and he swallowed
hard.

“But they don't care about Tiger! he said finally. “They
don't. They just want me to jump through hoops so I will be
useful to them”

‘The tiger snarled angrily and began circling his cage quickly
and silently, as if stalking something unseen.

“These dirty bastards he growled. “All this time I was doing
tricks for them. I should have been taking big chunks out of
their soft asses!”

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Suddenly, the elephant crashed headlong into the bars with
all his weight, rocking the entire row of cages. He took a step
back and did it again, trumpeting furiously as his massive head
collided with the steel bars

“I've been standing on my head for peanuts!” he raged, em-
bittered by the betrayal. “I've been standing on my head for
peanuts!”

He crashed into the bars again and again, chanting his
‘mantra until he finally exhausted himself and he stood panting,
his eyes hard and furious as leaned against the unbreakable
cage. He spoke in his normal voice, calm but resolute: “I've
been standing on my head for peanuts”

“Yas! We have all been performing tricks for food” the pan-
ther pointed out. “The clowns perform for food. The Trainers
and Keepers obey the Ringmaster and do as they are told or
they do not eat. The Ringmaster pleases the crowd or he does
not eat. As I have said, it is a whole system based on working
for food. It is a system that these two-legged creatures have
devised and even the Ringmaster is ultimately a slave to it

“These creatures seem to enjoy recognizing another as hav-
ing power over them. They seem to enjoy living in cages. They
like livinglives without freedom, working for food, and accept-
ing training that works as a cage on the mind”

“A cage is a cage is a cage” screeched the monkey.

“Yas? the panther agreed. “And as long as you are in one,
you are not free”

One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show.

“Mr. Panther, | understand everything you have said. And
1 do want to be free. But I still don't see how we can get to
this Free World. Are you suggesting that we break out of these
cages?” the elephant asked

“No, Mr. Elephant. I am not suggesting that. Besides, that
would be an impossible feat for even you”

12
“Well, T have an idea;” the tiger claimed. “The next time The
Master takes us out, we can all attack him! I have no problem
taking a bite out of his ass! Are y'all with me?” he asked.

‘The animals erupted in pandemonium, agreeing that they
were down for the coup. Only the chimps kept silent

“Settle down, Settle down!” the panther yelled and waited
for the noise to die down. “Now I know how all of you feel right
now. And yas! There has been many times where I've felt like
laying teeth to the Ringmaster. But trust me when I tell you
that teeth and claw may earn you a moment's satisfaction, but
it will not get you to the Free World that I speak of. The Ring-
‘master has much greater weapons than the whip at his disposal,
weapons that are far more deadly than teeth and claw”

“Well then, I'll ust stomp his ass into the ground!” The ele-
phant bellowed, shifting his weight from foot to foot, the floor
boards of his cage quaking

“Yeah, that'll hold him,” one of the monkeys shrieked.

“Have you ever heard of an Elephant gun, Mr. Elephant?”
the panther asked.

“No? replied the elephant, stopping suddenly.

“Well,if you try that, you will certainly be introduced to
one for the first time—and the last. No! Violence will not win
you your freedom, for the Ringmaster mastered violence a long
time ago”

‘The panther sighed heavily.

“Sometimes it is to our fortune that we can learn from
other's experiences. If you remember, I told you earlier that
once I started going out to the Arena and realized there was
1o way to escape, I considered violence”

Yas” the elephant said. “You said you thought about doing
something extreme until you saw that it was futile”

“Yas? the panther concurred. Once again he sighed and con-
sidered his words.

“Ihad just finished my training and had started going out to
the Arena when they brought in a gorilla who was unconscious

13
and they threw him in a cage down the range there across from
where Mr. Orangutan is now the panther began, his eyes stung
with memory and pain. “When the gorilla awakened, he began
demanding to know where he was. When the animals told him
he was in the Circus, he did not know the meaning of that and
he insisted that he did not belong here. He pulled on the bars of
the cage that held him captive, the noise rumbling through the
floor boards of our cages. He pounded his chest and his growls
and snarls of anger echoed down the range.

“I could understand his rage. But some of the other animals
were annoyed by his behavior and only cared that the gorilla
was disrupting their sleep. So they shared with the gorilla what
the routine was, that the Ringmaster gave the orders and the
Trainers would train the animals but that the gorilla would not
get to go out to train until he calmed down. And once he was
calm, he would be allowed to perform and things would be bet-
ter for him. They told him that he would get better food and
he may even earn a larger cage and other conveniences, but I
remember that the gorilla’s questions to the other animals did
not center around luxuries and amenities, but centered instead
around the Ringmaster.

“So overnight, the gorilla’s behavior changed. And I'was dis-
appointed because I had felt that I had found a kindred spirit.
But alas! He became unusually obedient. So unusually obedi-
ent, in fact, that he completed his training in no time. He was
a model of perfect behavior to such a degree that it convinced
the Trainers that the gorilla had been pacified and was ready
to perform for the Circus

‘The panther took a deep breath, his dark features seeming
to grow darker

“I was in the circular cage when they brought him out for
the first time in front of the crowds. He wore a chain and collar
and some of the Trainers stood by with the hot sticks as he
emerged into the large cage in the center ring. The crowd was
loud, making those noises they make with their hands as the

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