Journeyman Cat

by Virginia Ripple

Taking a deep breath, he pushed the button. It swung open to reveal a small child strapped from head to foot to a straight back wooden chair like the one Lowrance had sat in during their tour. The little girl’s hair straggled beneath the contraption strapped to her small head. The thing’s claws held the child’s eyes open wide, forcing her to stare straight ahead into a floating, moving image.

  The gray tom wrenched his eyes away from the girl to stare at the image floating a tail-length above the open end of the wooden box. Horrific scenes of bloody battles and gruesome murders played out in the air. Every victim was human. The beasts attacking the humans wore human faces, as well, but their sizes were disproportionate. The hair stood up in a ridge along the tom’s back. He’d seen pictures of these battles and knew the attackers looked nothing like the ones in the images.

  He looked back at the child, her little mouth open in a silent scream. He padded toward her, then stood on his hind legs. Stretching, he patted the child’s cheek with a soft paw. Heated rage flowed through his body as his paw came away wet. Every fiber of his being screamed to rip the metal wires from the barrel of saltwater and tear the straps from the little girl’s body, yet he knew he couldn’t.

  Dutifully he turned away and went to the box on the pedestal and peered through the little holes at the device inside. He recognized it as the same contraption he and his partner had used to look at the journal entries and maps at the OKG. The biggest difference was the size of the device. It was twice the size of the one in the filing room. It’s charging barrel was likely ten times the size of the little container used for the smaller device as well. Tobias looked back at the terrified little girl, wondering how long she’d been there and how much longer she would remain. A lump the size of a human fist lodged itself in his throat. He prayed to the One as he walked out the door away from the temple school’s little victim.

  Lowrance was thankful for the few regular exercises he’d done before coming to the temple. At least he’d been somewhat ready for the grueling duties the overseer set him to. Carrying the watering buckets had been the worst, so far, though falling asleep while holding Adam’s ladder now weighed heavy on his mind. If the boy hadn’t broken his arm, would he still be alive?

  Today he’d been assigned to the crew hauling baskets of angel’s trumpets to the side door leading to the herb room, which was on the other side of the school. There was no straight path there. The overseers didn’t let garden puppets, as he was beginning to think of them, carry their loads through the school, which would have been the quickest route. No, they ordered them to go to the end of the gardens, outside the protective bubble, around the outside of the school, past the temple and back around to the side door of the school. The entire distance was cordoned off by the New Life buildings on one side and the forest on the other.

  The freckle faced boy lugged another basket of flowers down the path, his mind pondering the meaning behind Adam’s death. Unless the kid had contracted an incurable infection, Lowrance couldn’t think of any logical reason he should be dead. A broken arm wasn’t something one died from anymore, infected or otherwise. And it wasn’t like the temple didn’t have a hospital wing with enough herbal remedies to fight off just about any infection. Toby had told him that. So what happened?

  With his mind on Adam, Lowrance didn’t notice the clump of matted weeds until he tripped over them, scattering his basket full of flowers. He got up, testing everything before moving. If a broken bone got you killed, he wondered what spraining an ankle would net him. Thankfully nothing was strained, sprained or otherwise in need of Mother Hazel’s not-so-tender care. However, the breeze had carried a number of flowers into the forest.

  For a moment, Lowrance considered leaving them, then thought better of it. For all he knew each blossom was tagged. Unlikely, perhaps, but he did know that each basket was weighed before leaving the gardens and after arriving at the side door. He dragged his basket forward as he crawled around picking up the yellow flowers.

  A movement caught his attention from the corner of his eye. He ducked behind the weeds. He’d crawled a good several feet into the woods. They’d been warned about a wild pack of dogs roaming the area. Was that what he’d seen? Voices echoed back to him. Wild dogs didn’t talk. Cautiously he peeked through the weeds toward where he saw the movement. Two cats were disappearing into a large mound of earth. Lowrance checked for movement anywhere around him. If cats were going into a tunnel, he planned to follow them.

  He crab crawled toward the opening, stopping every little bit to listen for movement other than his own or the breeze. When he got to the mound, he approached it from behind. He lowered himself to his belly and used his arms to drag himself the rest of the distance to the opening. The boy buried his face in the soft moss beside the opening, listening for anyone about to come out of the mound. There was a low moan, but nothing that sounded like voices getting closer. A moment more of waiting and then he peered around the corner.

  From a distance, the opening had seemed larger than it was. It was wide enough for a small child, but not for him. The boy pounded a fist on the ground. If he tried to follow them, he’d get stuck. He wished his partner was here. Together they might be able to figure out where this tunnel went and what these cats were using it for, but Father Hanif had made sure that wasn’t going to happen.

  He had no idea how he was going to tell Tobias what he’d found. He ground his teeth in frustration, then decided the best he could do was remember the location for later. He belly crawled back to his basket, then picked it up. He headed back to the pathway, memorizing whatever landmarks he could make out. Besides the mound, there were some large boulders nearby, sandstone and quartz from the look of them. In the distance was a stand of enormous nut-bearing trees. As he exited the forest, he noted he was standing near the temple proper. Further on he knew he’d pass the beginning of the old cemetery.

  “What are you doing?” snarled a voice to his left.

  Lowrance jumped and turned. He should have known the overseer would come looking for him when he didn’t show up as expected, or, rather, looking for his basket of flowers.

  “I tripped and some of the flowers blew into the woods. I went to get them.”

  “Noble, but stupid. Those dogs could have ripped you apart, you know,” the yellow tom said with a sneer. He lashed his tail and hissed. “Move along, human. There’s still a lot of daylight left and those blooms won’t carry themselves.”

  Lowrance wanted to grab the feline and fling him as hard as he could. Instead he bit down on his tongue and lowered his eyes. He tasted the metallic flavor in his mouth as he walked onward, the yellow tom following like a sulfurous shadow.

  “We were so pleased when Councilman Damon sent Us the invitation to this meeting with Our Lord,” Hanif said to the sleek silver tabby’s back.

  Her fur twitched, but she said nothing. The brown tom followed along in silence, excitement pricking at his skin. Although he contacted the Lord through the miracle of the mirror when necessary, the black cat seldom requested a meeting face-to-face.

  The two cats walked down the long hallway filled with ancient tapestries to a large mahogany door. The tabby she-cat scratched a rhythm across the polished wood. A moment later it opened, revealing a miniature throne room. Hanif warred with himself over staring at the statuettes and framed paintings or pacing regally to the cat-sized throne flanked with two large pots overflowing with angel’s trumpet vines. Decorum prevailed.

  “Your Lordship, I present the head temple cat of your New Life Temple and School,” said the she-cat, bowing to the large black feline on the throne.

  “Thank you, Natsumi.”

  The silver tabby turned to leave. Hanif caught movement from the corner of his eye and turned to see two large Russian blue cats moving to block the door. Father Hanif shivered at their menacing looks and turned back to his Lord. The black beast’s tail twitched.
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  “Natsumi, a word please.”

  The she-cat sat facing him, her sleek features hard and cold. The temple cat felt like he had his paws in blocks of ice, though he felt the sweat oozing between his toes. He couldn’t take his gaze off the Lord’s piercing green glare.

  “It has come to my attention that you have been overstepping your orders. This is unacceptable.”

  “When have I done such things?”

  “Did you or did you not take it upon yourself to kill the queen named Adele?”

  “I was only finishing what you began six years ago, my lord.”

  The she-cat’s tail lashed once and stilled. Hanif held his breath. Surely the Lord would strike her down for such impertinence. He looked up at the great black tom, noting his eyes had narrowed.

  “And you know for certain that this was my intention?”

  “You did send the poison to her.”

  The black tom sighed and shook his head, his eyes widening again like a father looking upon an errant child. Father Hanif let out the breath he was holding. He couldn’t imagine a more fitting scene for the Wayward Son from the Book of Lucien to be played out. His whiskers splayed as he continued to watch the black tom who flowed to the floor and stepped closer to the she-cat.

  “Excellent deduction, but flawed,” he said, his eyes narrowing again. “You see, I knew her chosen human would find the solution long before I would need to intervene. I made assurances of his success.”

  The silver tabby blinked. Hanif saw the strain in her muscles as she held herself in place. His heart beat faster, his breathing shallow as it dawned on him this was no Book play. The black tom eased forward, his lips close to the silver cat’s ear. Father Hanif couldn’t hear what the beast whispered, but when he pulled back, the she-cat’s eyes were wide and her mouth gaped. The tom nodded.

  “So, you see, you have brought this fate upon yourself. I cannot have an unruly murderer in my ranks.”

  The black beast nodded toward the blue Russians. Master Natsumi screeched as the toms grabbed her by the scruff and tail. Her mad attempts to dislodge them only served to tear her skin as they dragged her from the throne room. The mahogany door closed behind them with a deafening thud. Hanif sat quietly, afraid to catch his Lord’s attention with the slightest shift of paws. The black tom rose and leaped to his throne, curling into the shape of a C with his paw outstretched, his gaze fixed on the door.

  “I understand you have accepted a new student and a new staff member into the school.”

  “Yes, my Lord,” the brown tabby said, bowing deeply.

  “Has the student succumbed to the enhanced curriculum?”

  The temple cat looked up at his master. “Not yet, my Lord.”

  “And has the staff member committed himself to the full instruction of the school’s students?”

  “He has not taken the vows yet, my Lord.”

  The beast’s piercing green gaze swiveled toward him. He felt pinned to the floor like a mouse beneath a hawk’s glare. He licked his lips, trying to get the numb appendages to obey.

  “We have separated them, my Lord. I’m certain they will both follow Your path soon.”

  The tom stared at him unblinking. “They won’t.”

  “Lord?”

  “One of them revealed himself to me through a gift I gave to you, a gift I charged you to keep others from using.” The black tom’s voice was a rumble of accusation that made Hanif shrink upon himself. “You have allowed serpents with hearts hardened by un-Truths into your House, Hanif. They will tear your ministry asunder before they will bend their hearts before your tutelage.”

  “I have failed you,” Father Hanif wailed, his whiskers clamping together and his ears flattening.

  The black tom’s tail twitched.

  “Not entirely. It is better to keep your enemy closer than your most beloved. However, know this: you have been shown mercy this day. If not for my benevolence you would share the she-cat’s fate.”

  The beast flowed from his throne and paced toward the door, pausing as it swung open to glance back at the brown tabby.

  “You may share it still.”

  Chapter 9

  Toby waited until he was sure the Brother was sound asleep before slipping out for the second night in a row. He had to talk to Lorn about what he’d discovered. He repeated the same stealthy movements as the night before, this time going in the opposite direction toward his old room. The gray tom looked down both hallways before unlocking and opening the door.

  The room was dark and quiet. He slipped between the door frame and open door. A lump on the cot showed Lorn’s sleeping form. Toby nudged the door closed. He hated to leave the door unlocked, but there was no help for it unless he wanted to use magic.

  “Lorn,” he hissed.

  There was no response. Toby didn’t dare speak louder for fear one of the overseers would happen by at that moment. He padded to the cot and leaped onto the large brown lump, sinking in to his ears. The tom scrambled backward, out of the suffocating grip of the blanket covered pillow. He stared wide-eyed at the misshapen lump. Where was his partner? He hadn’t been admitted to the hospital wing. Had they taken him somewhere else? But why?

  An icy chill crawled up his spine and grabbed the scruff of his neck. Was their cover blown? He whipped his gaze around the room, expecting to see feline eyes shining back at him from every possible hiding place. The room remained dark. Perhaps they were waiting for him to leave. Waiting for him in his room. He’d been sure the Brother was snoring away when he left. What if the cat had been acting? What if the guards had mentioned his inspection last night to Hanif?

  His mind turned in a spiral, considering an overwhelming number of possibilities, including contraptions built to watch them from a distance. Each new idea seemed even more plausible than the last until he felt a whisper of fur across his mind. In an instant his thoughts stilled.

  His ears picked up the sound of movement outside the door. Toby considered who it could be and came up with one answer: the same individual who had stolen his partner away. Whoever his captor was, he was going to get a hide full of claws and fangs before the gray tom went down. He leaped down and slunk across the room, positioning himself for a flying leap at his attacker.

  The door opened and a large human backed into the room, closing the door quietly behind himself. Toby paused, wondering why they’d send a human to fetch him. The human turned around and the tom saw the freckle faced boy. Relief flooded him.

  “Where have you been?” he hissed.

  Lorn jumped, slamming against the closed door. The tom flattened his ears and scrunched his eyes, knowing that the sound would carry down the hall.

  “Toby?”

  The boy’s wide eyes searched the darkened room. The gray cat would have laughed if he weren’t so concerned that someone had heard the boy ricochet off the door. He focused his attention beyond the door. From the hall came the thumping of running paws. He twitched his tail, sending the bolt sliding home, and scurried under the cot behind a set of dirty clothes.

  “In bed — now!”

  The boy took two flying steps across the room and tumbled into the cot, yanking the blanket over himself just as the door burst open. Lorn sat up, rubbing his eyes as if he’d been asleep.

  “Wush happening?” he asked.

  The gray tom’s whiskers splayed in amusement. His partner had missed his calling as an actor. Of course, over their years at the academy, he’d had plenty of practice pretending sleep.

  “We heard a noise,” said a feline voice Toby recognized as one of the isolation chamber guards. “Thought someone was trying to es—”

  “—fell out of bed,” interrupted another voice.

  It was the guard’s brother. The gray tom wondered what they were doing so far away from their posts. He was
sure the noise hadn’t carried down three flights of stairs. He heard Lorn yawn and stretch.

  “Sorry. Sleep walking. Ran into the door.”

  “Sleep walking?” asked the first guard, an edge to his voice.

  “Happens sometimes when I’m overtired.”

  “You alright, though?” asked the second guard.

  Toby heard the boy shift and assumed he’d nodded. The guards’ paw steps moved back toward the open door.

  “Get back to sleep,” growled the first guard, pausing at the door.

  The cot shifted again as Lorn laid down. The door closed and the bolt slid home. Neither of them said anything, waiting to be sure the guards had left. A couple minutes later, Toby heard soft paw steps moving away from the door. He relaxed and crawled out of his hiding spot, taking a deep breath of fresh air.

  “Out of curiosity, do your clothes ever get washed? They smell like they could stand up and walk out the door by themselves.”

  “I haven’t gotten new work clothes since I ripped a piece off my shirt to take care of those scratches you gave me.”

  The gray tom’s eyes widened. No wonder Lorn’s clothes stank. He wondered if they treated all the humans in the school the same. His mind flashed on the little girl in the isolation chamber. Her clothes had been filthy, too.

  “So, they’re punishing you, then?”

  “I suppose so. I’ve been doing everything I can to stay under the radar, though it hasn’t been easy.”

  “Make sure you do, ‘cause I think I just found out what happens to those who step out of line.”

  “You made it to the isolation chambers?”

  “Yeah and it isn’t pretty. Basically they’re forcing the students to wear a contraption that keeps their eyes open while they watch a series of horrible floating pictures.”

  “So they’re using the same magitizing device as in the file room.”

  “Yeah. And my guess is that this puppet drug makes them more susceptible to the suggestions they’re watching.”