Chapter 50: The Queen’s Cat (2)
The large palace, cold and distant, only had a few moving mutants, making it dull for the tendrils.
"You can go anywhere except that building," said Mr. Pyramid, pointing to a magnificent domed structure in the garden as he walked. "That’s where the queen rests. We can’t disturb Her Majesty."
"Ah," Kestrel nodded, keeping the location of the building in mind. There was no need to remember it, as it was a noticeable structure, like a giant birdcage reaching up to the sky, but with more elaborate exterior decorations.
"Also, don’t get close to the door when I’m not with you," he warned Kestrel. "You’d get executed."
Kestrel asked, "What if I want to go out?"
"Why would you want to leave?" His single big eye blinked, showing an expression of confusion. He spoke softly, "Why would you want to leave now that you’re here? This place has everything, it’s a perfect paradise."
Kestrel’s tendrils started to discuss:
"I thought this place would be fun."
"But it is just like the Tower."
"Ah, I’ve lost my appetite for bread."
"Hurry up, let’s get the key and go."
"Look, guess who I found..."
Amid the murmuring, a few tendrils quietly slipped away.
Mr. Pyramid took Kestrel to a room.
The overly large room was empty, with clean, pure white walls on all sides except for the doors and windows. There were no pieces of furniture, only an overly luxurious silk cat bed at the center of the floor.
A small black cat was curled up in a corner of the room. The empty, plain room made her very nervous, and she puffed up its body when she saw someone come in.
To Kestrel’s surprise, that was a real, living cat. Not a mutant, not a mechanical creature, but a normal little cat from the ordinary world.
"Mr. Pyramid" stood in the doorway, holding up his chin with one hand, a look of worry in his eye. "Her Majesty really loves this little cat," he confessed. "But it seems to be very scared of us. Since she got here, she hasn’t been eating much."
Kestrel crouched down near the black cat, stretching out a finger. A group of tendrils eagerly slithered forward.
In a matter of moments, the black cat was being comfortably groomed by the skilled tendrils. The cat started to purr, rolling over to expose its soft, white belly to Kestrel.
Kestrel scratched the cat’s chin and picked it up.
"Wow, your skills are truly amazing," Mr. Pyramid said in genuine awe.
"Unsalted food, clean water, and a hiding place for the cat," Kestrel solemnly prescribed. "This room is too big, get a smaller one. Prepare some shelves for the kitten to climb, and a scratching post..."
Mr. Pyramid continued to nod, diligently noting down everything. He quickly left to make the necessary arrangements, leaving Kestrel alone with the cat.
Holding the purring kitten, Kestrel wandered aimlessly through the palace gardens.
No one disturbed her. Every metallic-headed mutant, upon seeing the cat in her hands, would stop in their tracks, showing a gentle smile.
"Ah, it’s Her Majesty’s cat."
"It finally settled down."
"That’s good; Her Majesty won’t be sad anymore."
They said such things as though the cat was the center of the universe. As for Kestrel’s identity, whether it was strange or if she was an intruding outsider, none of it mattered to them as long as she could calm the kitten down.
Now Kestrel started to wonder, where she could find the Backbone in such a vast palace.
Kestrel had asked Muros what the Backbone looked like.
Muros had a hard time describing it. "I don’t know how to explain it, but in essence, it’s huge, reaching up to the sky. You’ll know it when you see it."
Kestrel aimlessly wandered through the gem-filled gardens, looking for something gigantic that would be recognizable at a glance.
She didn’t see anything that was noticeably larger or more conspicuous.
Every now and then, she would encounter a "metalhead" leading a group of confused mutants somewhere. A small metalhead, hopping along with a square metal head, led a string of mutants past Kestrel.
Suddenly, the tendrils got excited, chattering and prodding Kestrel.
Looking up, Kestrel recognized a familiar face in the line of beings tied with ropes - it was Ren, who had arrived here before her.
She had no idea how Ren had managed to blend in. At that moment, he was covered in a bizarre skeleton, like a fishbone structure that had been abruptly stopped in its transformation - it was misshapen and bristled with protruding bones.
Despite the odd thing on his body, Kestrel’s keen eye immediately recognized him as human.
Yet, the "Square Metalhead" seemed to be blind, failing to distinguish him from the mutants.
The tendrils pointed and gestured excitedly towards their discovery.
"Look, it’s ’Little Fish’."
"What, Little Fish is here too?"
"I spotted him a long time ago."
"I was the first one to notice."
"I want to go over and touch him."
Kestrel gave Ren a quick wink as he passed her in the line of mutants, but he pretended as though he didn’t recognize her. He strolled by her with a blank look on his face. However, as he passed, he stealthily twisted his wrist, which was bound by rope, freeing his hand. He deftly slipped something into Kestrel’s hand, which was cradling the cat.
Kestrel was amazed by how swiftly he’d managed this feat. She’d never expected anyone to move with such ease and speed. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. As they crossed paths, Ren placed a cold, thin, round object into her hand.
By the time Kestrel had a chance to react and glance back at him, Ren’s wrist was once again secure within the rope. It was as if it had never been freed.
The tall and slender Ren turned his head, the ghastly fish skeleton protruding from his body, and gave her a fleeting glance. Then, he casually directed his gaze toward the enormous domed building at the center of the garden
Kestrel carefully felt the thin round object hidden in her hand. It seemed like a man-made sensor, the kind used for unlocking doors. It should be able to open a certain door. She thought to herself, "How did I not realize it? The tallest building in the whole courtyard is that one standing alone. If I’m looking for something that reaches the sky, it’s most likely in there."
The tendrils began to chatter amongst themselves excitedly:
"Do you think he’s hinting that we should look for the key in that building?"
"Maybe."
"Should we follow him and touch him to confirm his idea?"
"I’ll go too."
"I want to go as well."
"Don’t rush off, wait for me."
