The Neko's Tail (Book 2 of Astara)

Scholar Aegle

Elias lay silently next to Artemis, his mind working through the day’s events. It was late night time, but he wasn’t tired, not any more than he usually was.

Artemis’ house was a mess, and slowly Elias realized he needed to clean it. It made sense; why else would Artemis steal him away from his planet and drag him through the universe?

A nagging voice in the back of his head insisted Elias had it wrong, but he ignored it. Carefully climbing out of the small bed, the neko crept out of the room, his eyes easily piercing the night gloom. He found a broom tucked away in a closet and set about sweeping the dust off the floor.

As he swept, Elias began to feel better. He knew how to do this. The motions of moving a broom were the same whether he was on one planet or another. He moved from room to room, sweeping the dirt into large piles that he left out of the way. He would ask Artemis where he should put them later.

There was a room Artemis had pushed him past earlier, telling him he shouldn’t go in there. Elias wasn’t sure why, but he figured now would be a good time to explore, while the tiger slept.

The door opened soundlessly, revealing a winding staircase leading below the house. No light shone beyond the first three steps, and Elias hesitated. His hand felt along the inner wall, where the button that controlled lights always seemed to be kept. He found it after a moment’s search and closed his eyes before flipping the lights on.

Light bled through his eyelids and the neko winced. He waited a few moments until the light was more bearable after the darkness of the house. His eyes opened and the neko took a cautious step, beginning his descent below the house.

It was a long walk, taking him nearly five minutes to reach the bottom of the stairs. At one point the spiral straightened, and Elias got the sense he wasn’t below the house any more, more to the side. The air steadily became damper and cooler, and again Elias hesitated.

He shrugged; he had come too far now to not see what was at the end of the stairs. Everything was deathly silent as he reached the bottom, standing on the last stair. The neko peered into the large room beyond him, goosebumps crawling up his skin as he realised the floor wasn’t there.

Waves lapped gently across the ground, the light on the ceiling of the room doing little to drive away the darkness of the water surrounding the room.

“Elias?”

The neko yelped, nearly falling into the water as he spun on the step.

“Whoa, easy there…”

Artemis gripped Elias’ arm, holding the cat firmly until he regained his balance.

“What are you doing down here?”

Elias flinched at the tiger’s words and Artemis frowned.

“You’re okay,” he said gently. “I didn’t want you down here because of the water. Ask next time, okay?”

Elias nodded quickly and they began walking back upstairs.

 

Artemis dumped the pile of dirt into the recycler, setting the broom back in the closet. Elias sat at the table in the kitchen, watching the tiger work.