The Saga of Fishback the Cat - Chapter 18

Having escaped those who would do him harm, Fishback the (former) Cat followed his feline instincts for the path out of the Underworld. With eight lives remaining, his sense for the road to the living lands was keen, and he found it without much difficulty. It was long and dark and empty, the way death ought to be, lit only by those few souls as they descended from above for their final rest or rose up into the obscuring mists for the resurrection. Theirs was the easy method, quick and direct, but as one who must take the path multiple times, Fishback, like all cats, was forced to earn each rebirth.

As he took the Long Walk, the first thing that caught him was the darkness that lurked just beyond the path, calling out to his curiosity. He resisted, knowing the law of the road. Should he stray from the path, he would forfeit any remaining lives the cat had, and the temptations were many. Soon, the dark mists filled with noises. Skitters first that he wanted to pounce, the voices he wanted to answer, roars he wanted to flee from, but he was a bold cat and he had undergone a first death as though it were his last. He could brave a few noises. Then the loneliness settled in, and he longed so for companionship, which the voices promised. How long had he been on the road? Minutes? Years? He couldn't tell, except that he felt he had never gone so long without the sight of another. Still, the glowing potion that would return him to his feline form and give him mastery over his humans helped keep the dark at bay, and it gave him strength, reminding him of his purpose when the voices tried to tempt him from his path.

He would not be tempted so close to the end of his journey. He would overcome the voices. He would complete the Long Walk and he would be reborn a wiser and more benevolent cat.

Originally mailed to S. Gill of Ocean Springs, Mississippi