A neglected housecat runs away from his family and is tempted by the alluring world of the ferals, who steal from the human society that cared for him.
🏆AWARDS
1st Place - The Future Banned Writer Awards 2023, Fantasy (Score: 58/60)
1st Place - Th...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Akhi sat alone on his bed, drinking milk from a restocked cooler, thanks to the Legion's hamster servants. He had gone through a quart, already. The previous night kept replaying in his head. Marching back had been a long and lonely trip.
Baldwin and the other surviving rats had barely said a word to him. The only acknowledgement of Akhi at all was when Baldwin noticed the poster taped to the telephone pole. It was of Akhi and a smiling Noah hugging in the comfort of their home. The giant rat had climbed up the pole to tear it down and neatly folded it before putting it in a minion's satchel. Then Baldwin and the other rats looked at Akhi with spiteful eyes and walked away.
Akhi overheard the giant rodent discussing how angry Roman would be for the disappointment of the failed mission and how he hoped the Mejay wouldn't take it out on the Legion.
Halima, at least, had patted him on the back as she helped lift up the grate to let the team back into the sewers.
I can't do anything right, he thought. He took a heavy sniff from his porcelain catnip dish. Despite it being the morning, Akhi couldn't sleep.
His pupils began to dilate. He imagined a banging sound coming from the door. Closing his eyes, he began to enjoy the familiar euphoria that the catnip always brought him.
This will help me to sleep, he smiled to himself.
Bang, Bang, Bang!
Akhi grew frustrated as he realized the knocking on his door was real.
"Hold on, I'm coming," he yelled.
It was Halima. She was sitting on her haunches with a satchel tied behind her back and her metal bracers fastened around her front legs.
"What took you so long?" She pushed herself into his room.
The catnip was already starting to have a disorienting effect on Akhi and he found it difficult to answer.
Halima glanced at the half empty porcelain dish on Akhi's bed and the empty quart of milk resting on his nightstand. "Fishtails, Cagney. You need to cut this out." She opened his cooler and scoffed at the number of bottles he had hidden away. She grabbed as many bottles as she could hold and walked over to the sink before pouring the content down the drain.
Thanks to the calming effects of the catnip, Akhi barely reacted. He closed the door before sitting back down on the bed, silently watching his friend pour the rest of his milk down the drain.
After she finished throwing the empty bottles in the trash she sat down next to him and looked straight ahead at the glass case. "I meant Akhi. Not Cagney." He could tell there was frustration behind her forced smile.
Whether it was the catnip or the reappearance of his conscience, he decided to be honest with his only remaining friend.
"I'm sorry I lied to you about my name," he started.
