Chapter IV

One early morning, Ziggy saw a beast covered in blood taking a life! It was the second time he saw blood in his life! The first was when life came to be, and the second, now, when life ceased! His father, seeing what he had just witnessed, approached him and explained that there were many different animals sharing the same space, “but only barbarians need to take a life to survive!” he claimed. “Every zebra is unique, but our strength is in appearing the same, hiding in plain sight; that is our first line of defense!” he explained. Ziggy was listening and nodding, trying to look like he was just processing the information he was given, but inside, he was terrified because the world he knew had just become a battlefield!

His father continued, “Our stripes confuse the enemy my son, they don’t look the same to us, but to them, we are identical!” he explained. “You see, when a predator can’t identify his prey in the herd, he can’t chase it, tire it, or catch it! When one can’t identify a target, everyone becomes the target! When everyone is the target, there is no target! The herd protects you, and in return, you protect it!” he revealed. “Why are these animals so cruel?” Ziggy asked after a while. His father didn’t know the answer to this question, so he made up a suitable answer and finally said: “Because they can, they just are; that’s what being different does!” Since that moment, Ziggy has grown increasingly anxious about the unknown. He was constantly looking over his shoulder. He finally understood why they took turns sleeping — one always had to keep a watch! 

One day, Ziggy saw a beautiful zebra in the distance with slightly different stripes, so he asked his father: “Why do these zebras look different than us?” Once again, his father didn’t know the answer. He was struggling to find a response that would satisfy his son. He couldn’t say he didn’t know! His son needed guidance and reassurance. “It’s so we know who is ours and who is not!”

His father went on to explain that other species of zebras didn’t live in big herds, and some, like the royal zebras, didn’t have any family structures at all! Siblings had different fathers, and there was no one to protect the young, just a group of single mothers with loose morals roaming the plains. He continued by clarifying that their kind grew stronger every year because of their robust family and social ties. He then went on to showcase the differences between their species. He pointed at the zebras with thinner stripes, white bellies, and big ears. “These are the royal zebras, son, but don’t let that fool you; they are no royalty!” he said. He explained that, unlike other zebra species, royal zebras did not form permanent herds or family harems led by a father stallion. The only strong social relationship they had was between females and their foals. Next, he pointed at a zebra jumping off a rock with a brown patch above its nose and a white belly with a single stripe underneath from neck to tail. “That is the mountain zebra!” They form family harems like us, but they don’t have the herd to protect them, which makes them weak and vulnerable.”  

His father looked at his confused son and decided to wrap up his speech in a more simple way: “Anyway, son, that’s how you know they are not with us, so stay away from them as much as you can!”