Caramon looked down. The black cat, sitting on its hind legs, was batting at the ball.
“Hello,” Caramon said, bending over to pick up the cat.
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Majeue
The feline bounded sideways, ears and tail twitching. The warrior shrugged his shoulders and sat down on the bench, shutting his eyes against the morning glare. The cat brushed up against his legs.
“All right, I’ll pet you,” he said, leaning down.
The cat turned and walked away, craning its head back to regard the fighter with reflecting eyes. Caramon shook his head. “What a strange animal.”
Raistlin seemed to wake from a dream. He stared at the cat intently.
“Isn’t that the same cat who came with us last night, the one you had on your shoulder?”
“I guess so. It’s the only black cat I’ve seen in town.”
Raistlin watched it. “He wanted us to follow.”
“How can you tell?”
The cat dashed off, then dashed up to Caramon again. The warrior took a step after it and it ran off again.
“Let’s see where it takes us,” said Raistlin.
The cat raced ahead of them about twenty feet, heading around the park to the western portion of the city. Just when it seemed that they would lose the animal, it stopped, waiting for them, sitting on the ground patiently. When the twins were within arm’s reach, the cat darted off again, moving in the same direction.
“Where do you think he’s leading us?” Caramon asked.
“If I knew that, we wouldn’t be following it!” Raistlin snapped .
The brothers went up street after street, until even the mage became lost in the flow of alleys, avenues, and paths. Every time the twins came within a few feet of the black cat, it would dart off, staying always ahead, always within sight. It never uttered a sound, but gazed back with eyes that held the sunlight as brilliantly as the
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blue orb on Raistlin’s staff.
Caramon craned his head back, staring into the sky as he walked. “It’s almost noon,” he said. “I hope we arrive at wherever we’re going soon.”
“I think we must be getting closer,” Raistlin said. “The animal has increased its speed.”
“Do you recognize this part of the city?”
“No. I take it you don’t either.”
Caramon shook his head. They were on a boulevard surrounded by buildings, shops, and houses that looked abandoned or unused. Trash filled several alleys that cut through the blocks like great wounds, darkened and dirty. Even the white stones of the city appeared gray, worn, and old.
“This is very odd.” Raistlin pulled his cowl back, staring at the black windows.
“Yeah. This place feels dead.” Caramon spoke softly, uneasily, though it seemed there was no one around.
“A part of the city that died and was never buried. Look, our friend has evidently found what it wanted us to see.”
The black cat was scratching at a sewer cover near the sidewalk on the right. The twins walked warily up to the feline. It did not run away as it had before, but continued scratching, voicing a harsh “meow!”
“It wants us to go down there,” Raistlin realized. Pointing with a long, thin finger, he commanded, “Lift the grating, Caramon.”
The warrior glanced at his brother. “Into a sewer? Are you sure, Raist?”
The cat screeched loudly.
“Do as I say!” Raistlin hissed.
The huge warrior bent down, grasping the metal cover with both hands, and began to lift, his muscles straining. His face turned red with effort, and his expression distorted into one of concentration and exertion. After a
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Bnotr/ens Majene
few moments, the plate grated and he dragged it aside.
The cat stared at the brothers intently, cocking its head sideways, flicking its eyes toward the street and back up at them. Without warning, the animal leaped down into the hole, disappearing in the darkness.
Caramon wiped sweat from his forehead. He stared down into the impenetrable hole. It was like looking into the Abyss. He fancied he could feel icy talons reach out, grasping to drag him down to the realm of death. He shuddered, standing back.
“Do we really have to go down there?”