It was a cool day when the letter fell through the mail slot. The sun was low, rising early in the morning. Gale snored loudly while Faust raised his head, alerted by the noise. Faust stood up and stretched his front paws out. As his claws retracted the sheet slid slightly off Gale, who pulled it back over himself while grumbling.
“Noooo, you’re just not my type… I don’t like dwarves,” Gale mumbled in his sleep as Faust nimbly maneuvered off the bed. His feline shape coasted slowly down the hall of the small apartment. A pungent scent wafted from the thin white letter. Faust made his way over to it and sniffed inquisitively at it. He nuzzled at its side and flipped it over.
The letter had a picture on the side that Faust looked at. There were castles and parks, waterslides and restaurants. And to each of the attractions, cats were walking with their masters. Faust’s eyes lit up as he scanned the picture, its message clear. Faust bit the side of the envelope and took it with him as he galloped back down the hall to his sleeping friend. Faust jumped from the threshold of the room to the bed and dropped the letter on Gale’s chest, moving fluidly around, sitting at his side. Faust looked at him expectantly. Faust nudged at Gales shoulder with his nose. Gale groaned and shifted to the other side. Faust sniffed at Gale nervously.
“Dammit, gimme five more minutes…” Gale swatted at Faust trying to get the cat to give up. After being slapped a couple of times Faust staggered and looked offended. Giving up hopes of a subtle solution, Faust edged a little farther from Gale. He dropped close to the bed, and shifted his lower body from side to side, preparing to pounce. Gale turned back over and Faust made his move.
Down in the streets of Radasanth the people of the city began their days: the mail carriers making their rounds, the cabbies making their first pick-ups of the day, and the horse-drawn carriages making their early rounds delivering produce. But not a single living creature could continue with their business as an unsettling and stomach churning scream came from the first apartment on the street, everyone looking up in unison.
“What? I’m awake! What was so important you had to maul me?!” Gale yelled rolling off the bed onto the floor. Faust moved over to the edge of the bed giving Gale a head cocked look of satisfaction. He motioned to the letter still attached to Gale’s chest. Peeling the letter off and opening it Gale stared at Faust with a quiet contempt made progressively louder with the multiple curses he muttered under his breath.
Greetings esteemed friends!
You are cordially invited to join the many others like you at our exclusive society.
We are aware of your unique tastes and preferences and can promise they will all be met!
There is no other place like ours and no promise as binding as this:
you will unreservedly and completely fulfill all your deepest desires and cravings here.
So come, join your kindred spirits, and cavort in the vivacious and voluptuous nature of all we have to offer!
Pussy Land awaits!
This letter is your all expense paid pass to a land of dream and merriment.
All humans accompanying their feline hosts will be taken care of at the day care.
Gale’s eyes grew wide as he read. I TOTALLY deserve this! Gale thought to himself as he read. He read as far as “all expense paid,” and was running out the door, with Faust at his heels. The two of them ran to the nearest docks. A large elegant cruise ship was waiting for anyone with a letter of admission. Gilded with gold and painted a regal purple, the ship screamed rich and powerful. Even the sails shined in the sun, their silk fabric lined with gold. There was not an aspect of the ship that lacked a noble flare. Gale handed his rolled up letter to the man at the entrance ramp. He walked up gleaming with a childlike excitement and wonder. Faust walked ahead of him inspecting the whole ship. Enthralled with their new environments the drifters took full advantage of the lavish delicacies that surrounded them. They let themselves be pampered as the ship sailed calmly to their destination. To Gale, it was a land of pleasure and lust. To Faust, it was a utopia of fun, food and excitement.
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The ship made port on an island to the far east of Corone. The island was small, but well endowed with natural beauty. A beautiful golden beach greeted the visitors as they made their way from the cruise ship. Little life boats, four people on each, unloaded the passengers. No one could see past the tall oaken trees except to see a couple of large mountains on the far side of the island.
The crew waited at the beach with the passengers until a guide appeared at the threshold of the forest. The man stood tall with thin dark hair slicked back perfectly. He wore a collared shirt under a vest and suit jacket and although he seemed to traverse the island frequently, his appearance did not show it – his clothing remained immaculate. He had very little muscle to speak of, leaving his entire form thin and skeletal. His clothing hugged his form tightly while his expression remained blank and emotionless. He waited for everyone to gather in front of him, no one saying much.
“Right this way,” he said with a somber and calm voice.
Gale did not talk to the other passengers; he was too busy fantasizing about all that awaited him. Faust moved quickly and deliberately, making sure to keep ahead of everyone. His tail wagged briskly with each step.
As they walked further into the forest, Gale started to pay a little more attention to the people around him and noticed men and women of various ages. There appeared to be nothing that they had in common. They walked until it seemed like they were just walking to the middle of nowhere.
Gale continued to look around until he had realized that he had never looked past their waists. There they were, dozens of cats: all of them different colors and sizes, all kinds of different breeds. Some of them looked more like strange mutants, others like bizarre aliens, but all of them feline in nature. Before the realization could sink in, he saw an opening in the brush.
No… he thought to himself as he picked up his pace, passing by Faust and the guide leading the group. No no no no no no no! He thought as he turned his walk into a run.
“Sir, please stay with the group.” The guide said instructing Gale as he ran by, but he was not listening.
As Gale approached the opening the light coming from it seemed to get brighter and brighter. He passed the threshold and what he saw he almost could not comprehend. There stood statues of cats, in the most regal and pompous positions.
Humans walked around in ridiculous outfits and served various delicacies, from a succulent steak, to a well cooked chicken; just about any kind of food could be found. There were all kinds of different rides and attractions throughout the park. At the entrance stood a big black gate ordained with many intricate and ornate designs. Most were of cats exuding dominance over humans.
Gale stood motionless as more of the group caught up to him. The people were filed in to the left while the cats moved on ahead and were allowed into the park.
“No… It’s not fair…” Gale whispered softly. His eyes began to tear up as his fantasies went up in flames before his eyes.
“Sir, if you act out like that again we will have you removed.” The lone guide said sternly as he walked slowly past Gale, whose mouth was open and eyes were wide with despair.
Gale could do nothing but watch as the humans were carted off into a small grey facility. Faust stood at the front of the line waiting for the gates to open. When he realized Gale was not there, he looked around nervously and moved left and right. He finally saw Gale standing at the forest line and recognized the expression.
Gale focused at last, to meet Faust’s gaze. The two looked at each other, understanding everything without any need for words (Not that Faust could talk anyway).
I knew you wouldn’t leave me buddy, for all your tough love, you really are my best friend, Gale thought as he looked compassionately at Faust and smiled.
The gate swung open and in less than a second Faust was gone. Gale stood there with a stupid grin and a dead look in his eyes. For a moment he could not move, but only a moment. As soon as he could, he ran full speed at the now swung open gate.
Before he could get to the gate he was stopped by three Kitten Guards. He looked down at them, no bigger than his feet, and smiled. The one in the middle was orange, with white stripes going down its whole body. Its tail was a little shorter than the others’ and one ear stuck out from under the hat. The kitten on its left was black, with white paws and a white tip on its tail. The one on right was grey, with little black spots all over.
“Meow?” the kitten in the middle cried as it stepped forward. The kittens wore little guard hats that were a little too big. They had black rubber boots that hugged their little kitty paws.
“Aww,” he said, tilting his head to the side “how cu~” he was interrupted.
The adorable three kittens started to growl. They slowly began to change shape, their cute kitty features replaced with vicious bloodthirsty qualities shared by demons. Their fur singed off quickly as they grew in size. Their snouts grew longer and wider, their teeth grew three times in length. Their bones made awful cracking sounds as they detached and re-attached. The muscles of the three cats grew in size exponentially. They retained their original hue and little guard hats: but Gale stood before three ferocious and deadly beasts that growled and hissed, expectantly.
Gale shuddered as the orange one bent down and hissed inches from his face. He could feel the fiery breath of the demon cat and it burned. The other two moved in around him, as he began to shake.
Faust climbed into a small car at the front of a roller-coaster. The safety harness made its slow decent making a dull mechanical click at every stage. It fastened slowly around Faust who waited in sweet anticipation. The harness clicked into place, securely locking Faust into his seat.
Faust let out an endearing Meow as the roller-coaster car slowly began to move. From his seat, though he paid no attention, the big black entrance gate could be seen. And as other cats moved past that spot, they all took notice of three large demon cats brutally beating a human – who screamed in an indescribable agony.
“I warned you,” the guide said, back at the facility for humans as Gale was thrown in. Bleeding and beaten, Gale crawled to a chair, and dragged himself into it.
“I’m gonna kill that damn cat…” Gale uttered as he slipped into a pain and blood-loss induced coma. When he awoke he was served a revolting grey gruel, like the other humans. He looked at it, and then to the food the servers carried in the park. But before he could speak the grey demon cat bent down and hissed. He cringed at the foul breath, taking the gruel and stuffing as much of it in his mouth as he could.
“Delicious!” he mumbled with a full mouth, spraying some of the gruel out. The cat cringed in disgust and lumbered off.
Faust sat in the first seat of the roller-coaster. As each twist and turn went by, his heart leaped for joy. He made his way from ride to ride, always first, and always with the closest thing to a smile a cat could make. He spent the whole day eating and drinking, indulging in the very finest of kitty luxuries. He was on top of the world, a king among kitty kings.