A little thing I did for a very good friend of mine. I recently got her addicted to Zoo Tycoon 2 – Ultimate Collection, and she said "If I'm gonna play this, you're gonna write it."

So, being the loyal and trustworthy friend, I did! Eh… I nearly killed her in the process, but I like the way it turned out. I'll tell you this: This one-shot was most likely floating around in my documents for weeks on end before I post it. Hey, I could have been talking to you guys a year ago in this, and it would have been posted yesterday! (Something like that).

I'll admit that I'm ever-so-slightly ashamed of this. Zoo Tycoon was a game I played when I was a kid, and it has forever remained as the "game I used to spend time on when I was 5" sort of thing. But I was ashamed of my Minecraft stories at first, too.

But the thing I like about this type of game that it has no real character; you can make them up! So the way I view Zoo Tycoon is this:

Nobody really knew how the new zoo suddenly sprung up from the ground. In the middle of a city, no less. It was like magic: One second there was an empty park, old and dying, and then the next, an entire zoo!

Nobody saw any builders. Nobody noticed how the fences and tanks and pens sprouted from the ground. It was just… there. Reporters from all over the nation flocked to see this magical zoo, but when they got there it seemed like just a normal zoo. Nothing special about it.

But then the different animals started coming in. New enclosures were made—ones with electric fences and heavy bars. The first Tyrannosaurus Rex stomped around the zoo in the middle of December. Then a herd of velociraptors suddenly grew into the enclosure next to the Rex, which society had dubbed 'Abog' (which suitingly meant sudden), and the people dropped the subject. Why question it? They might as well enjoy the ex-extinct dinosaur while they could.

This was big to the news stations, though. And for the zoo's popularity. More reporters flooded the pathways of the zoo, just to catch a glimpse of the dinosaur.

But there was one thing that was off about the place. Nobody noticed it, not even the greed-driven reporters.

There wasn't a single staff working at the zoo.

All the stone and brick paths were in perfect condition. Every table and bench was polished into a shine. Every trashcan empty. Every enclosure well-cared for and perfect for the animal inhabitants inside. It was so clean that it was creepy.

Most people would miss tiny little details like this. To the naked eye, the zoo was just well-cared for. Nothing special.

But it didn't take long for the people to start wondering. And when humans wondered, it almost always leads to disaster…

[…]

It floated above the zoo, soaring on the currents of the winds.

It had no name. It had no identity. It didn't even have a gender.

All It knew was that It cared for the zoo because It had brought the park to life.

When It had found the abandoned place, It had smiled. Here was a new playground—a new sandbox that It could build Its castle in. At first, It had started out small. It had built the outside perimeter, enchanting the fence so nothing inside could get out except for the soon-to-be guests. And then It started making the enclosures, molding the fences and barriers to Its liking.

And then It had set down on the ground inside an enclosure, making the plants and trees spring up around it. It had waved a hand, and the biome had sunk into a different land. Grass became sand and dirt. Rock became water. With a flick of Its wrist, piles of raw meat stacked up from the ground. Then a few green lizards started to hop around Its feet, running to the corners of the exhibit.

It had looked around, then smiled again and moved onto another cage.

And now It floated, invisible, above Its beloved T-Rex. It would never forget how the people's eyes had bugged out of their heads at the sight of him. "Hey, boy."

The predator gave a low moan that sounded like a lion's purr, tilting his head up towards the sky. Abog roared, one of his hands twitching as if he were waving.

It smiled, setting down on the ground. It ran an invisible hand along the half-grown Rex. "My, you've grown."

Its voice came in a whisper, distorted and bubbling as if under water. "It's so easy to lose track of time when I'm taking care of everybody."

The dinosaur roared again, kneeling down in front of It to look It in the eyes. The cosmos inside Its eyes glittered, pale skin around the orbs crinkling as It smiled again. "I've been thinking of a different name for you. The one that the humans gave you is stupid. 'Sudden'. Honestly, what were they thinking?"

Abog growled, hissing a sigh with flared nostrils. It smiled at him, then kicked off the ground. "I must be going; the lions are almost out of food."

Abog groaned, standing back up and lumbering over to the shallow pond in the middle of the exhibit. It smiled and darted over to the lions. One of the females was pregnant, and the male lion stood proudly above his mate as It landed in the enclosure. "Hello, kitties. Where's your food dish? I think I may have forgotten."

One of the lionesses yawned, swiveling her head towards an empty carcass. It quickly added the raw beef from thin air, then jumped into the wind and shot over to the shark enclosure. It sat there on the rim of the tank, swishing Its feet in the water.

One of the great whites turned and swam towards the zoo's creator, bumping her nose against its foot. It smiled and patted the rough skin, then noticed something about the other great shark. It frowned and dove into the water, swimming towards the bigger male. He was swimming slowly, as if every pump of his tale was chained down with an anchor.

"Oh, big boy… You're old and tired and sick. Don't worry about your mate and child. They'll be safe with me," It crooned, running Its hands over the shark's snout. Slowly, the great white slowed and came to a rest in the water. The female and her grown child swam in circles, tense with worry and sorrow.

The old one's dark eyes seemed to bore into Its own, star-filled gaze. And slowly, a white film fogged the gaze. And It cried, holding the shark's head close. One of Its children was dead. It sniffed, dissipating the body. It glanced around, staring out at the wide-eyed guests. Was it Its imagination, or were they staring directly at It instead of the spot where the old shark had been?

It blinked and frowned, tears bubbling up into the water in tiny pockets of air. It sniffed again, shooting back into the sky.

It didn't notice how the guests' gazes followed It up into the sky.

. . . Looking back on this, I can only smack myself upside the head... Anyways, I hope you enjoyed(?) This will just be fiddled with in my spare time, when I'm feeling too stupid to do anything else.