The dogmen had surrounded the tree on all sides now, and Junaki was at the base of the tree.
“Filthy cat!” one Dogman growled. “How dare you encroach on our land, eh?” The dogman then proceeded to swing his sword at Junaki. Junaki squatted down. The sword struck the trunk of the tree, sinking deep into it, so sharp it was.
Enough, I thought. How dare he attack Junaki like that? And how dare he call her a filthy cat when she was a princess?
I leapt from the top of the tree. My sword was pointed downwards as I descended. When I landed my sword pierced through the neck of the dogman who had attacked Junaki and was trying to remove the sword stuck to the tree. He died instantly, his health becoming zero.
It was the first time I had actually killed someone in my new life. I was shaken and dazed, even as more of the dogmen came to get me. Junaki thankfully was not as dazed as me. She grabbed my arms and pulled me up the tree. Some of the dogmen began to climb the tree as we watched from the very top. But their bodies were not built for climbing unlike us. Their hands and legs were like humans and they lacked sharp claws that we possessed. Their progress was very slow.
The nearest tree to which we could jump was a good dozen metres away from us. Leaping to it was wrought with risks. But once we reached the tree it would be easier to move to other trees as there were many trees growing on the other side of the particular three. But if we failed and landed on the ground, the dogmen would surely kill us. There would simply be no escape at all.
“We can’t stay here forever,” Junaki said to me.
I nodded.
“Then let’s move.”
I decided to take the first leap. I put all the energy into my legs, and using them like springs I took off in the direction of the nearest tree. It came closer and closer.
I extended my arms wide and caught one of the stronger branches of the tree. For a moment I thought that I would lose the hold. But I was able to maintain it despite my fears.
Next I beckoned to Junaki. The dogmen meanwhile were observing us. The few who had climbed halfway up the previous tree were now ascending, perhaps realising our plans. Junaki leapt. She came closer and closer. But I knew that she was not going to make it and I stretched out my paws which were magically transformed to those of a human. I had a déjàvu feeling as I recalled the memory fragment. My heart began to sink.
I grabbed her hand. And I didn’t let go. She cried out as I myself lost balance and was able to fall. But with some luck I was able to regain it.
I nearly wept at that moment. I had almost thought I would lose her like I had lost my friend in my last life. From there on it became much easier. Even with the low stamina we were able to move fast from one tree to another as they were closer to one another. And shortly afterwards we had left the dogmen nearly half a kilometre away. But we still kept moving because we wanted to maintain as much distance from the filthy beings as possible.
Chapter 11
After a while we saw the dogmen returning to their village in the lower lands, carrying their torches in a disappointed manner. I felt sad for the dogman I had slain. He probably had a family of his own. Perhaps he had a son, a wife, a daughter or a mother waiting for him back home. Junaki saw me brooding and she patted my shoulder.
“What’s up with you?” she said.
“I was just thinking about the dogman I killed,” I said.
“If you didn’t kill him, he would have killed me,” she said in a manner like ‘are you on his side or on my side?’ “Don’t let the guilt get into you.”
I nodded. I was on her side. I had killed to protect a… friend. Junaki was my friend, after all.
“You are my friend, right?” I just asked.
She raised a brow. The stars were twinkling over our heads, and in the darkness the insects were singing.
She shrugged.
“I guess we are… friends,” she said with some hesitation. A message appeared in my vision.
Congratulations!
Your relationship with Junaki has improved!
You are now friends!
So… While I was happy for the notification, I guessed it was only at that moment that Junaki had inwardly accepted me as her friend. But then, I hadn’t thought of her much as a friend either up till then. I reckoned she had just thought of me as a helpful fellow cat or something.
***
It took us a good five days to return to the place where we had left Ferrima. We got lost on our way a couple of times, travelling a couple of kilometres in wrong directions in both the cases, until we were able to get back on the right track again.
Ferrima had turned to stone till her neck. She cried with joy when she saw us.
“We have brought your stone,” I told her brightly.
“Thank you,” she cried. “I thought you two abandoned on me. I am so glad you brought the stone. I hope the thief wasn’t very hard to deal with?”
I exchanged glances with Junaki and the two of us chuckled, while Ferrima looked at us uneasily.
“Yes, it was very easy to deal with him,” I told her, “But the important thing is we have brought the magic stone, yet why haven’t you become normal already?”
Plus I hadn’t received the quest complete notification either. I couldn’t wait to get the rewards of the quest after all the hard work.
“Because the stone hasn’t been returned to the wizard,” Ferrima replied. “I know you have probably taken a lot of hardships to get the stone from the thief but you would also have to take the stone to the wizard.”
That explained things.
“Okay, how far does he live from here?”
“About ten kilometres to the north.”
“Wait a minute, we’d also have to take you with us, right?” Junaki said. “What if we get lost half way?”
“It’ll be good if you can. But I can’t see any way you could carry me without it being a back breaking chore.”
“I think I know of a way,” I said, remembering my bag.
Lifting Ferrima and then putting her into my bag was the hard part. She was heavy being mostly of stone, and stars appeared in my vision when I lifted her with Junaki’s help. But once that was done I could easily wear my bag. It could carry things without them being heavy at all. I only let Ferrima’s head to be out so that she could give us directions.
Chapter 12
It took about a good five hours and the sun was setting by the time we reached the dwelling of the wizard.
What a house his was!
It was a giant, hollow tree basically.
“He did some charms on the seed of the tree before he planted it,” Ferrima explained, “which allowed the tree to become so big.”
I noted that the wizard lived in complete wilderness. There were no other houses nearby, not even tree houses like that of the wizard. He probably knew a good deal of magic, but I could see why the thief even with his limited brains had been able to steal the stone from the wizard. Living alone was not always a great idea.
I knocked at the door.
“Who’s it?” the voice of an old cat said. The voice seemed to be omnipresent and came from all directions instead from inside the house tree.
“It’s me, Ferrima. I have brought your stone,” Ferrima said.
“Ah, please come in!” the old voice said with much excitement. “I am in the room at the very top, sleeping under a few layers of blankets. I am shivering with the cold. The stone will bring much relief.”
The door opened on its own. There were steps carved into the wood that led upstairs. I heard Junaki gasp in awe at the tree house. It looked quite neat. There were even paintings on the wall. Mostly they were of an aged cat with very long whiskers that flowed all the way down to his stomach and he wore a high pointed hat. I reckoned it was the wizard. The other paintings belonged to cats that had striking resemblance with the wizard and I guessed they were his relatives.
Climbing the steps we finally reached the very top room in which the wiza
rd was sleeping. An eye peeked out from under a pile of blankets.
“Please place the stone on my bed,” the wizard said.
I did so.
And the next moment, a strange aura appeared around the bed. And the next thing we knew was that the wizard had thrown away the sheets of blankets and he was dancing in front of us like a crazy old cat. Though he still looked quite frail and he was more bones than meat, he looked energetic.
“Thank you! Thank you!” he cried.
A notification appeared in my vision.
Quest Completed!
You brought the wizard’s stone back to him!
You receive 5000 gold!
You receive the spell ‘Air Arrows’! To use this spell simply point at anyone and say ‘shoot’ to stun them. Note: To use this spell you would also need to use the spell ‘Human Hands’ simultaneously.
“Argh! Hey let me out!” Ferrima said, as she wriggled in my bag.
“Wait a minute,” I said. Ferrima wanted to come out instantly and that wasn’t quite possible. I placed the bag on the floor and let her out. The part of her body that had earlier turned to stone had now turned to flesh again. “I am free from the spell!” she cried with much enthusiasm much like the wizard.
And the next moment, she was sobbing.
“I am sorry, Tombur,” she said to the wizard, whose name apparently was Tombur, “but I sinned. I didn’t try to fulfil the promise that I made you. What is worse was that I was thinking of selling the compass that you gave me.” She said this with her shoulders hunched and her eyes not meeting that of the wizard.
“It’s okay,” the wizard said in a kind and understanding voice. “It wouldn’t have been easy to take the stone from the thief anyway. I am never going to help a dogman again. The fellow broke his leg not far from my house and I found him screaming in pain. I took pity on him and brought him to my home where he recovered thanks to my healing herbs and spells. And then one day he disappeared, and he took my stone with me. I was sick, but the worse thing was that I was heartbroken. I had given him help and in return he stole my stone,” a tear rolled down the face of the wizard as he said this. He wiped it and continued, “As for the stone curse, it was accidental. I wouldn’t want to turn you into stone even if you cheated me. I never mean any harm to anyone.”
“These two are the ones who really brought back your stone,” Ferrima said gesturing at me and Junaki with a smile.
“I thank you both from the bottom of my heart,” Tombur said, clasping his aged hands in thanks. “It must have not been easy going into a dogmen village. Is there any way that I can help you?”
Tombur was a wizard, I thought, so was there any possibility he would be able to help me regain my memory?
“Um, I am in my second life in this world,” I said, “Could you help me regain my memory? I have retained only one percent of it. I would really want to know who or what I was in my previous life in this world.”
The wizard scratched his chin, gazing up at the roof in thought.
“I don’t know if such a thing is possible, since even my capabilities are limited,” he said finally, “but…,” he raised a slightly hopeful brow, “could you stay in my home for the night? I would search my records. Perhaps I will be able to find something that would help you regain your memory.” He smiled a bright expectant smile.
I shook my head. It was what I would have done in my previous life. Or it was what I thought I would have done anyway. I glanced at Junaki.
“Junaki must travel to her uncle’s kingdom in the north,” I said, though inside me my heart sank since I did want the wizard to find something that could potentially bring my memory back in full. “And I must accompany her.”
A notification appeared in my vision.
Your relationship with Junaki has improved!
Junaki now feels more affectionate towards you than she felt previously.
I stole a glance at Junaki. She was looking at me with big eyes.
“Oh, that’s a pity,” the wizard said, his expectant smile falling. “But I do believe I might have something to help regain your memory. You see, my own memory has gotten dusty over the times and I have forgotten or only vaguely remember most of the books and other things that are available in my collection.”
“We’ll stay here for the night,” Junaki suddenly spoke up.
I looked towards her, gaping. Had she really said that?
“Are you sure?” I asked her. I then realised that she was blushing for some reasons.
“Yes, I am sure,” she replied. “I am not sure if I am really in a hurry to go to my uncle’s kingdom anyway.”
I realised that my eyes were filling up. Despite the two of us being already late on our journey to her uncle’s kingdom, she was ready to lose some more time so that I could regain my memory. I felt a rush of gratitude for her, and the next moment, I was hugging her.
“Thank you Junaki,” I said. She placed a hand on my back. “We are friends aren’t we?”
I broke apart from her.
“If you nice people are staying,” Tombur said, his bright smile having returned, “then I can prepare a good dinner for you. Just wait, my culinary skills are of a very high level!”
“I’ll help you too,” Ferrima said.
***
Chapter 13
Tombur was a fast cook, and in less than an hour he and Ferrima together created a wide array of dishes, that he served in a giant table that was in the underground room of the house tree. It was a delicious meal. The best I had had in this life. I reckoned it would even out place any great meals that I had had in my previous life. By the time we finished, my stomach was quite full and my little tummy bulged out significantly. I couldn’t help it and let out a loud burp. The other three laughed.
“It was a great meal,” I said, massaging my stomach. “Thanks!”
“My pleasure,” Tombur said. He clapped his hands and the next moment all the utensils disappeared from the table and appeared on the shelves of the kitchen.
“That’s impressive,” Junaki said.
“Well, being a wizard does have it’s advantages,” Tombur said. “Though there are a few disadvantages and limitations as well.”
After the meal, Ferrima, Junaki and I went to the very top of the tree house and sat on a branch to relax, as Tombur busied himself with searching his records to find a way I could regain my memory. The stars were shining and a cool breeze blew. I recalled the other nights that we had spent atop trees to escape the dogmen. I wondered if the other cat whom I hadn’t been able to save in my memory fragment had been a close person to me. I crossed my finger and prayed I would find out everything about my former life soon.
“Wait a minute,” Ferrima said brightly, “I think we can have a little past time.”
She climbed down from the branch and went inside the house.
“Tombur,” she said aloud, “can I borrow you Forseeing Stone?”
“Sure you can!” Tombur’s voice replied from all around us.
I heard some rummaging and after a minute, Ferrima climbed back up to the branch from the house. In her hands was an orb.
“What is that?” I asked.
“It’s the Forseeing Stone,” she replied with a smile. “You can see the future with it. Or at least a few fragments of the future. Usually they don’t make any direct sense, but all of what the stone shows becomes true eventually. The last time Tombur allowed me to take a look at the stone a couple of months ago I saw that there was darkness all around me and I was struggling to get out of it. I realise now that the stone was predicting me being inside Kitty’s bag. Here, look at your future.” Ferrima handed the stone to Junaki.
“Do I just look into it?” Junaki asked.
“Yes, look into it and say, ‘I wish the future to unfold’.”
“I wish the future to unfold,” Junaki said.
The orb began to glow and Junaki gasped. I could see cloudy shapes inside the orb, and soon the clouds parted and
the three of us saw a blurred image that consisted of two cats holding each other’s paws.
“What did it mean?” Junaki said. She blushed slightly and she seemed to already know what it meant. The image had disappeared now and the orb had stopped glowing.
“It can mean anything,” Ferrima said, “but you will probably remember what the orb showed when the thing actually happens to you.”
“Let me have a look,” I said as I took the orb from Junaki. I wondered if I met people in the future whom I had known in my past life then would I see them in the orb?
“I wish the future to unfold,” I said.
The orb grew bright again and the clouds formed inside it. Once they parted, I could make out the blurry shape of a human inside the orb. The face of the human was unclear… but I strangely felt like I had seen him before. The human was also bound by what looked like magic ropes. I stressed my memory. The human had grown a lot of beard and thus it made it more difficult for me to realise who it was. Where had I seen him?
The clouds came back again. It was with a rather troubled mind that I handed the orb back to Ferrima. Her cheerful smile had disappeared looking at my face.
“Did you see something bad?” Ferrima asked.
“I don’t know,” I said, “I think I have seen the human somewhere… perhaps in my previous life.”
Ferrima placed a consoling hand on my shoulder.
“Do not worry,” she said, “eventually you would see him in your real life.”
Those words comforted and helped me feel like a huge burden had been removed from my shoulders. There was no point stressing my mind too much. My eyes would eventually see the man in the orb. I hoped I would be able to free him from the ropes that bound him.
Ferrima led us to the bedroom. She let us sleep on different beds. Tombur was still busy searching his records. I wondered why he couldn’t just find what he was looking for just by uttering a magic spell, like he had done with the utensils earlier. I reckoned, sinking into my soft pillow and enjoying the fluffy feel of the bed, that even wizards had their own limitations. Most of the spells came with one limitation or the other, and there was always the mana level that you needed to watch. My stomach was full and the bed was soft and soon I drifted away into a blissful world of sleep.
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