MouseHeart

Prologue

Some Time Ago
In the tunnels beneath Brooklyn, New York

The young rat prince knew he was taking a monumental risk. He knew that his father, the emperor, would be livid should he ever learn that he had ventured out into the Great Beyond.

But he did not care. The morning began with the usual pomp and circumstance: a formal breakfast with His Majesty the Emperor Titus, in which the emperor, Zucker's father, ignored both Zucker and Zucker's mother, the beautiful empress Conselyea.

After the silent meal the young prince accompanied Titus to a meeting of his royal advisors, and then they went directly to the armory, where his father, with a critical eye, watched him at fencing practice.

The prince was, as always, lithe and lethal. His instructor was pleased and complimentary, but Titus could not be bothered to praise his son's talent.

After fencing Zucker was ushered off to the schoolroom.

Ordinarily he would have complained, but today he didn't mind. This was the crux of his plan to escape.

As expected, the prince's elderly tutor only managed to drone on for about three minutes before the old rat dozed off into a deep sleep.

This gave the prince the opportunity he needed. He quickly changed out of his elegant vest and breeches and slipped into a shirt made of coarse fabric, which he'd borrowed from one of the servants the day before and hid in the corner of the schoolroom. Then he grabbed his rapier and tiptoed out of the classroom, through the royal apartments, and out of Atlantia.

He kept his head low so as not to be recognized as he dartes through the market square to the main gate; with a little luck he'd be able to sweet-talk whichever cat was guarding the gate that morning into letting him through.

Make that alot of luck.

He stopped short at the sight of a young feral he'd never seen before. The big orange beast looked as though he'd recently been in a fight... and lost. His gashes were crusting over to scabs, and there was a festering wound on his tail that looked like a bite mark.

The unfamiliar guard hissed. "What do you want?"

"My father sent me to roam the tunnels and scavenge for wares to sell at market," Zucker lied.

The cat smirked. "What if I decide not to let you out?"

"I think that's a bad idea," Zucker said, his hand instinctively moving to the handle of his sword.

"You're new. Who are you?"

The cat answered with a cocky toss of his head. "The name's Cyclone. I was named after the rollercoaster at Coney Island. 'Cause I'm fast and scary."

"Never heard of Coney Island," the prince shot back, matching Cyclone's attitude.

"You tunnel rats don't know nothin,'" scoffed Cyclone. "I used to live upland, but my humans had a problem with me clawing stuff"

"Like their furniture?"

"Like their legs. And arms, and the occasional cheek and forehead." Cyclone laughed.