At last, Newton steps paw into the feline fantasy world... and boy isn't he excited

Newton’s Adventure

The night had been peaceful, Newton had to admit. Of course, a lot of that he could easily attribute to the stress of the day. As he stepped out of the small room he’d had for a nest, out to the village of mice, memories of being hung beneath the rolling car, running for his life, being dipped in burning sauce… all of that at least briefly fled his mind. His first, bleary, aimless steps into the day overcame him with a different flavour of memory, one that made his throat close up and a heat briefly touch his eyes.
The village, despite everything, gave a sudden, striking nostalgia of home. Maybe it was the scent, the lingering bitterness of grass, set against the clinging, clawing scent of earthy loam, delicately swamped with the slightly sweet aroma of roasting nuts. He swore distantly he could hear the fiery crackle as hard flesh was made soft and sumptuous. But maybe it was just the view he was greeted with. All it needed was, a set of roots towering like great walls, to be just like his first home… really, the only place he’d considered home. It was different to the mouse-built city he’d seen under the rule of the panther… this, wasn’t an attempt to mimic the cats. Certainly, there was a certain… pointless flair attributed to the game… but, the homes were cobbled together, strips of wood that were more often than not clearly not, designed to be laid atop one another, and in the gaps the sign of pegs, circular columns of woods binding everything together, or, in other buildings the wood strips had been given carved grooves to settle them together. It was, a world of parts, of bright mice making do with what they had, and finding ways to keep everything hanging together.
Above, a lone lightbulb mimicked the sun, discouraging Newton from looking closely enough to, see past the illusion, and though the angle of the distant walls gave them away, they were still painted a soft sky blue. If he, just let himself miss those small details, he could feel like he was home amid forest mice again.
The memories of the day before, of the cats he knew, were somewhere beyond the door to this closet… they didn’t linger as fresh as the senses of the new day. Could he live here? The thought was, surprising, and one Newton felt he’d need time to ponder.
As it happened, he didn’t have long till he was dragged back into what would be.
Scurrying paws on approach caught his attention, his eyes drifting to the younger buck, John who he greeted with a terse nod. Yes… the village it, was nice. He’d admit that. But he still had the game of the cats to endure.
“Morning, sleep well?” John asked as he came to a halt, pausing to stroke his whiskers with a forepaw as he caught his breath
“I did” Newton admitted, gesturing a paw down the trodden earth of the street “your village… it’s really quite nice”
“I like it” John replied with a wide grin. The younger mouse seeming to practically squirm with the compliment. Newton had to wonder if he’d ever been so… expressive of his every emotion
“So…” Newton murmured. Even though he saw no choice in it, still some deep urge to avoid the eventual danger lingered, but, better to know, he reasoned as he forced himself to hint towards the topic
“Right” John nodded quickly “So, today is one of the days the cats are, here just about all day, so, your game will be starting this morning. Excited?”
“Anything but” Newton grunted “are you really asking me if I’m excited to risk my life?”
“Kinda?” John frowned a bit “it’s got it’s dangers… but it’s still, you know, a game. I enjoy my turns”
“Then you’re mad” Newton concluded
“Maybe?” John shrugged with a gentler smile “Matthew’s told me, if I was a cat, I’d be into something they do called, extreme sports”
“I don’t care to know” Newton cut in “just tell me what I need to do, if you please”
“yeah sure” John noted, voice tightening an octave “Normally, you just, do whatever till the cats come… then see if they pick you. But since you know it’s your time, you should, probably not go too far? We can collect your things, bring them over to the front courtyard… you know, near the door. Might be best if Matthew has a little extra time before the others are ready to give you some more guidance, it being your first game and all”
Finding no reply worth drawing out the conversation, Newton simply shrugged, beckoned with a paw and followed as John led him away. Conceding he should eat something though. He managed on their way to acquire himself a piece of the roasted nuts that had so tempted him. A fine meal of roasted hazelnut, a chunk large as his paw and still warm to the touch. It did him a world of good, he couldn’t deny. A warm meal was a luxury.
Before long, Newton found himself in possession of… well, an outfit that seemed hardier than anything he’d ever worn… the clothing he’d taken before, had served the main point of protection… any hindrance to movement and it was gone. What he found himself holding, did seem to mostly just cover his chest, a thick layer of the leather of… something. For his legs… some sort of, circle of leather with strings. He’d been told, it would tie to his leg, and he had one for each.
Once John had escorted him to the place where he’d first arrived in their village, he begrudgingly held still while John helped him into the attire. It felt tight across his chest, though he had to admit, it didn’t feel like it would restrict his arms… and while the guards for his limbs were notably heavier than nothing, he could see them being useful against a swiping blow from something’s claws…
This close to the door, some of his tension returned. The village, it had the subtle sounds of mice. The click of small claws, the tiny squeaking exclamations, of joy or surprise or frustration. It was soothing, familiar and promised safety. This close to the door, if only slightly, he could hear cats. The considerably heavier if softened thump of their paws… the high, craggily pitch of their voices. His mind recognised cat… and readied his body to escape.
He didn’t need to wait long. The idyllic fantasy of the village escaped him as the blue sky tore along it’s edges… the door opening to reveal the rectangular portal to the next room, the room built to scale with the predators who called it home. The face that appeared through it, the feline slinking in was Matthew. The white fur of the cat’s chest on full display, edged with the darker greys that claimed most of his body.
“Aha… and you’re right here” The cat observed, crouching closer to the village. Maybe it was meant to be a good thing… but Newton couldn’t see it that way. All he knew was the sharp, feline features were getting closer… and distinctly warm air was billowing his way, damp and unpleasant, edged with a scent he didn’t know “eager?” Matthew asked
“Resigned” Newton responded, automatically tensing as the cat’s paw rose into view from the surrounding edging of grass, like a startled snake ready to strike… and strike it did. Newton felt the thick fingers scoop behind and under him, sweeping him off his feet to roll down onto the palm. His head swum with the sudden sensation of rising as the cat took him away from the village. Back onto a paw… Newton could barely find words for how being here made his skin crawl… perched on the living platform. How many murine ghosts haunted the bloodstream that pulsed below…?
All comforts of the village were gone in an instant. The view around far more cat height as Matthew backed out of the closet into their gaming room. His other paw rising to block Newton’s view “can’t have you seeing the board now can we…” Matthew chimed in. A pleased excitement that made Newton shiver.
A few steps, a few bounces of the paw and Newton felt the vertigo again, the paw sweeping down to, he had to assume the table. When the other paw lifted away he found himself seeing… well, something not unlike the village… buildings, not at all unlike those in the village stood around in one direction… beyond them, blocked by some sort of, tall panel of wood. The other direction offered only, the void. A sheer cliff of table edge leading to death courtesy of the floor. The carpet below… Newton had no confidence that would save a mouse. Worst case scenario it would spare his life if he fell… so he could die slowly.
A thumb pressed to his back, Matthew nudging him off the paw before lifting it away. The cat’s legs bunching for the moment Matthew could see them… then the cat’s chest and head had lowered down to be on his level again
“Welcome to the game board” Matthew announced with a smile “If you’re confused about anything, just look up to me. I’ll explain. I’m running this game, so I’ll be talking a lot. Just, listen to what I say, and get into the theme, alright? If you want to respond to something, either… well, do it, or call up to me if it’s something you can’t, physically do” the cat glanced around Newton “so, for example… if you want to look for a certain sort of shop in town… ask to. This is, you know, just a representative of a town… but the tavern there is fully decked out, feel free to head in” at that point, Matthew pointed a finger to, the only building that looked large enough to realistically be a home…
Newton spared the cat a look, before moving to the doorway, easing himself inside… to, his surprise in some regards, there was a mouse inside. At the far end, behind a long block of wood was a lone mouse. The remaining space taken with, what he supposed were meant to be seating and tables. With little else to do, he sat himself and decided to wait.
Before long, he heard the remaining cats outside, approaching, then moving away. And one by one, more mice entered… dressed, well, he supposed in a way that was meant to protect them. The first was another buck, this one… Newton had to stare at the mouse’s attire… it, gleamed. A layer of metal encased the mouse’s body, covering not all of the fur, but a lot of it… it looked painfully hot. In the paws, was a rectangle of wood, which presumably had handles on the back, considering how the mouse was managing to carry it.
Something in the mouse’s gait, and the fact he was smiling, immediately reminded Newton of John.
“Hello there, you’re, the new arrival… Newton, yes?” the new mouse queried, to which Newton gave a gesture between a shrug and a nod.
“Well, nice to meet you, my name is Arden” the mouse extended a gloved paw, which Newton considered for a moment before reaching to grasp… he had to remind himself, he had no interest in the game sure but… there were fellow mice in the same boat as he was… sort of.
As he was meeting Arden, he noted in the corner of his eye, two more mice entering. Does both, one who was wearing something similar to himself, the other some needlessly flowy fabric. Still, the second doe had a weapon he was slightly envious of. A long stick seemingly slightly clubbed at the end. Far closer to the sort of makeshift weapons he’d ever picked up in a moment of desperation… part of him felt he’d be more comfortable with that than the heavy piece of metal at his hip.
Arden followed his gaze “oh, they’ve got Rachel with us. That’s a good sign”
“And who’s that” Newton mused
“Oh, the ranger” Arden gestured again, the word meaning very little to Newton. He sighed, assuming he’d figure it out later “and the other doe?”
“Uh… want to say Liz… never been here with her before”
Outside, Newton could make out… some sort of feline conversation, but he dismissed it, more interested in these mice he’d be surviving with.
As the does got closer, the one dressed akin to him stepped closer faster, offering her paw with a smile that, spoke to him more than that of Arden. It was tight, even apologetic as she put on a braver face.
“Morning, you’ll be Matthew’s new rescue. Stick with me, you’ll get through this fine. Just relax and let your instincts work, ok? You can trust them here, it’s all about surviving”
“You’re, Rachel?” Newton guessed, and got a quick nod in return
“Sure am, this is Liz” she gestured to the doe beside her “an aside, since you’re new to this… keep Liz safe, understand? She’s a mage class, if the going gets tough, she’s your best friend, but they’re not allowed to wear armour… only, well”
The doe, seemingly called Liz, made a low, frustrated noise “it would make mages overpowered; I’m told… if we could get all the protection of warriors and still have powers…”
“Powers?” Newton mused
“She can demand the cats to intervene” Rachel explained “in game, she’s casting elemental magic, but… you know, magic doesn’t exist… so, divine intervention” Rachel clicked her tongue “Liz is Aaron’s pick, so lets all try to be sure we linger on whatever side of encounters he’s sitting at, ok? It might only be half a second… but half a second between his paw coming down to enact magic and not, can be the difference between too late or not”
Newton felt his features grimacing a bit as he glanced to Liz. His mind drifted back to, what he’d heard the day before… about the cats’ role as… gods in the game world, what they asked of mice. If he recalled, the one female and this Aaron cat were the ones who had mice… be intimate for their favour “So you… with the cat…?” he murmured
He saw Liz’s features go blank for a moment, before a redness touched her ears “I, wait I…” she sputtered. Rachel quickly put a paw between Newton and Liz “uh, no… no. Liz is part of Jason’s followers, like me” she explained “but if you’re not officially part of his church, any cat can pick you if they want”
“Oh” Newton murmured… honestly, a bit relieved “well… why didn’t he pick one of his own mice? Isn’t that meant to give them benefits?”
“I guess” Rachel shrugged “let’s just say… it’s likely the pervert of a cat wants to, convert Liz to his church… if I’m being generous… because the cats seem to gain more, points dependant on the total number of mice who are officially worshippers o their god… but if I’m being more direct, that pervert cat is trying to turn the head of every doe. I swear he wants to introduce every last one of us to his oversized groin…”
Newton glanced to Rachel. He had the distinct feeling there was something quite, personal in those remarks, but didn’t have any intention or urge to pry “Ok… and that Jason, he likes, poetry or something?”
“God of the arts is the official title of his god character” Rachel noted “most mice with any, artistic hobby take to his church… frankly because… well, if he likes something you make, he’ll give you a title when he can… and as a rule, any mouse he’s made part of his church… never get asked to play” she smiled faintly “it’s a sweet gig. He cares more about protecting any mouse he sees value in than the gameplay… but it also means he frequently picks mice at seeming random with little care if they make it or not… not that, fortunately, the cats really have much say in whether you survive or not. That’s up to you”
“I’ve no intention of dying to some cat game” Newton noted
“Great” Rachel smiled his way gently
Newton glanced to Arden… which meant he was the pick of the Raina cat. He honestly didn’t want to know.
Light poured down quite suddenly, filling Newton’s mind with memories of passing shadows from above. Though it was no swooping bird, the roof of the building instead was simply, lifted away, revealing the huddled features of, the cats.
With little else to look at, Newton stared up, into the faces of the predators playing with them. The eyes narrowing, little twitches at the furred jaws, as whiskers were angled forward. Their instincts recognised mice the same way his did cats… it was unsettling. He felt like he was a candy in a jar just waiting for tempted claws to sweep in.
A paw, white and grey loomed into view, a long pencil grasped between two fingers and lowered into the room with them. Newton had only a few moments to observe the thick, angular column before it was bumping at his chest.
“Ok” Matthew murmured from above “you go sit on the other side Newton, everyone else, whatever pleases you”
Newton pushed at the offending pencil, glaring at the cat above, with little to no effect as far as he could tell. Still, what choice did he have but to comply? He wandered from the other mice to sit himself, folding his arms to his chest. It felt wrong… the leathery layer in the way. He couldn’t wait to be rid of it.
The sound of the cat above clearing his throat echoed through the shadowy room, not that Newton could see the cats very well from his new location. One good part of being over here in his opinion. The invading pencil rising away in turn. Newton knew the name for the object, though mice didn’t have such things. As he understood it was a convenient tool for writing, when they couldn’t find a pen.
“Our brave adventurers arrived at the little village of Oakwood, summoned by a request made at the guild, to investigate a series of disappearances in the local woodland…”
“Would that be, MacGuffin woods?” one of the other feline voices chipped in. An air of mirth taking over the conversation above
“Oh yeah… last time I used Oakwood, that’s what we called it wasn’t it… because Jason wanted to rename the, uh…”
“Sword of light or something stupid” another voice added
“Right… the MacGuffin of MacGuffin, hidden deep in MacGuffin woods”
The laughter of the cats rumbled like thunder above, the joke lost on Newton. He assumed it was something to do with the game they obsessed over
“Anyway” Matt murmured, with a snicker of a sound “yes, several villagers have disappeared recently in the MacGuffin woods… and a team of three bold adventuring mice have been sent forth to investigate, put the village’s minds at rest, and if there is something dark to these disappearances, to put an end to it”
Newton saw Matthew crouch lower, peering in at an angle to fix his eyes on the lone mouse “to aid in their quest, the villagers kindly offered the services of a local ranger, a wildling recluse who knows the woods better than anyone they’d meet… who, just might become a member of the guild, should his skills pass the test”
“Why wouldn’t they just send one of the adventurers who was here before” A voice that, Newton was starting to think was Jason’s, piped in “and where was he the last time?”
Matt glanced up “it’s a big wood, different part of the woods… and he only stumbled into town recently, till then he was wild… raised by feral mice, poor thing”
Newton grunted; his mood not helped by the sly smirk Matthew aimed down at him “you can join the others now Newton”
He slid out of the seat and approached the group, rolling a shoulder as he found them looking at him… this whole thing was embarrassing and ridiculous… “Is there a reason we can’t just, jump over your holes and avoid whatever thing you want to kill us and get it over with…”
“Hey… no metagaming” Matt jokingly chided from above “you’re a woodland savvy mouse warrior now”
Arden’s metal weighted paw suddenly thumped to Newton’s back, startling him rigid “Wonderful to have you are part of our merry band, my good fellow. Have you a name we should address you by?”
He looked round to the large buck, the daggers of his eyes proving ineffective against the plate mail “my name is Newton…”
“A fine name” Arden boomed “I am Arden, initiate of the church of goddess Raina, here is Liz, a rare enchantress, you’ll find her skills impressive to behold and… uh” his declaration lost steam as he seemed to realise Rachel wasn’t with them anymore, instead she’d wandered to the other mouse in the room.
Newton found himself glancing after her… she had seemed the most, reasonable of the mice… his take on Arden wasn’t improving.
“Tavern keeper” Rachel spoke, with a certain, forceful enunciation he’d noticed Arden using… he was starting to realise that was for the benefit of the looming beasts above “We hail from the guild of Muringard. I’m given to understand there have been some troubles here?”
As Newton watched, the mouse who had been, standing there silently for so long finally spoke “Oh, I’ve heard my share of the woes. Good for business, in the way a mouse never hopes to see, if you know what I mean… Can’t say I can fill you in on the details though, you’d be better finding the tanner and his wife. Haven’t lost anyone themselves, but, well… the tanner’s wife has an ear for the talk of others”
Newton clicked his tongue as Rachel wandered back to them. She paused, when she noticed his look “oh, he’s an NPC” she gestured to the mouse she had been speaking with “there are a lot of mice in the village who take that role. The cats fetch them before a game, either give them lines to memorise… or give them information for us to find, and tell them how hard to make it for us to get that info”
“Part of the game” Newton concluded with a shrug. He glanced to Arden… he couldn’t avoid the question now “you said, initiate of her church… so you, can call on help?”
“Ah, not yet” Arden offered a sheepish smile “I have yet to know the lucid visions of the goddess that come to her closest followers, and the unique skills that come with it. But, one day I’m hopeful”
Newton’s nose twitched. Looking forward to being used as a… he didn’t even want to think about it. Surely nothing was worth that.
“We’re not going to learn anything more here” Rachel chipped in “I believe him when he said he doesn’t know anything… better we go find the doe he hinted us towards” she considered the group “tell you what, I’ll go ask around, track her down…” her left paw patted the plate on Arden’s chest “you, see if you can track down anyone who wasn’t mentioned to us.. and..” her eyes flicked to Newton “you and Liz, well… I don’t think we’ll need much else for this mission, seems pretty simple. It’s not ruins so… traps should be minimal. Still, see if you can get us some supplies, hmm? Good length of rope would be great. A creative mouse can talk their way around a whole lot of problems if they have rope”
“Sure” Newton murmured, glancing to Liz as the other two hurried from the door. She shrugged at him, and followed them out
“I guess we’re the newest two, you know?” Liz noted as they stepped from the tavern. There were more mice out here now, Newton noticed… mostly, one per mock building, and a few wandering around “Anyway” she added “I think she’s right about the rope… personally I always like to see if we can get some garlic…”
“Why?” Newton pressed idly as he looked around, if mostly up. He could see all four cats clearly now. Looming like furry mountains all around. Watching them.
“My first adventure, they had this vampire event thing… we actually lost a mouse to it. So… now I always like to have some garlic”
“I don’t understand” Newton glanced to Liz with a faint frown… what was a vampire…? What did it have to do with, roots?
“Nevermind, I just want to have some, I’ll feel better” she shrugged, gesturing across the way “see that building, it normally indicates a farm… it’s not obvious. But the mouse there might represent a farmer”
“I’ll just follow you” Newton sighed, pawing along his left whiskers. He felt out of his depth already. This whole thing made no sense to him, and frankly, he wasn’t sure he wanted it to. All the same he followed after Liz, watching the other mice. Rachel was darting around fairly fast, that was promising. While, as he watched, Arden looked to the cats to address them
“Is there a shrine to Raina in this village?”
Matthew smirked down to them “it’s mostly a god of bounty town. The goddess of kinky doesn’t… ow” the cat above notably flinched as Raina nudged her elbow into him
All the same, Matthew was only smirking wider “sorry, the goddess of lust and passion…”
Arden seemed to think for a moment “If there are hot blooded mice in this village, it is impossible that there is not, somewhere, a place to call upon that ravishing, irresistible goddess”
A thrumming purr echoed down over them, Raina grinning down to them, before glancing to Matthew “well?”
Though he made a point of rolling his eyes, Matthew’s arm moved, and soon the clunk of dice echoed through the village “Well, what do you know, I guess you’re in luck” the pale paw rose into view, and with, little to no fear, Arden was, scooped up and gone from view, lifted away
“What is happening to him?” Newton asked
“Oh, don’t worry” Liz muttered “if we want to go somewhere they haven’t laid out, or talk to someone they haven’t created, it’s common the mouse in question just gets, plucked up. They’ll be doing a little separate adventure with him for a bit”
Certainly, Newton couldn’t see much of Matthew now, just the ears poking high… seemingly crouched lower. Voices were distant and inaudible beyond murmuring.
With an interest born of pure boredom, Newton watched Liz do, what she felt she had to… chatting with this NPC mouse, who introduced himself as Greg. After a while, Matthew reached back where they were and deposited Arden. Though they seemed to find no mouse who would give them rope. Eventually Rachel beckoned them together again.
“Ok, progress?” Rachel asked of them.
“Well,” Arden began “I wanted to find out if the disappearances were couples… in case it was just, you know, pairs running off. No luck there”
“Good to know” Rachel mused “I had to jump through a couple hoops, but I found who I needed. Village gossip told me there’s been three disappearances. All folk who go into that stretch of woods regularly. I imagine we probably needed that info to narrow down the search”
“Was there really any chance it isn’t… you know, a big mouse eating monster?” Newton muttered
“Actually yeah” Rachel mused “Don’t get me wrong… almost always these things end with a big fight, unless we can be pretty darn shrewd… but, it’s possible that fight, and what’s going on here had nothing to do with the disappearances… it could have been eloping mice… then we’d wander the woods fruitlessly, come back and realise there was a dark cult summoning a demon or something…and wasting time would mean we couldn’t interrupt it, meaning they pit us against something a lot more dangerous than they planned… or worse, several somethings”
“Ok, ok… you’re the experts here” Newton conceded
“I wasn’t able to get rope” Liz murmured, before looking skyward, raising her voice “Apparently there’s been an infestation of rope eating weevils, Personally I think they should call them MacGuffin weevils!”
A sly chuckle echoed from above “Duly noted, but they’ve already got a name”
“Yeah, plot weevils” A different cat snickered
“Anyway” Rachel noted “best we get going. You never know when time will be of the essence”
A shadow above drew Newton’s focus in a tense instant, and indeed it was the descending paw of a cat, but not aiming for them. Instead, near the back of, the two-dimensional village, a panel was lifted. The path they were supposed to take, he assumed. The other, more experienced mice seemed to confirm his thought.
Still, he couldn’t help but stare up for a long moment. He could see all four of the cats, their heads, and most of the shoulder, leaning in to watch. Their lips moving in, whistling whispers he couldn’t quite make out. The gods of this game world… well, the title might as well fit right now. His fate was in their paws. It was a decidedly uncomfortable feeling.

“Our intrepid heroes advanced cautiously, yet with a lingering, overwhelming urgency in their hearts, on their quest to find the source of the village’s disappearances” the feline voice crooned from on high as Newton moved with the other mice through a fake forest. He could see to the left and right, a little distance away, were walls made of the same panels the cats used to keep them in place. These ones with a woodland motif. Around them, were… trees. Or he assumed they were meant to be. Wide circles to denote trunks, raised above head level. The whole place still felt exposed to him though, it lacked the canopy, and the cloaking plant life. But, he noticed, the ground was really dirt… he assumed it was a tray similar to the one the village in the closet was built on.
“Having gathered what knowledge they could from the townsfolk, their trail led them to a particular stretch of woodland where all the missing mice could be tied to” Matthew continued from above
Newton shrugged finally to his assessment of his surroundings, before sparing a look to his, fellow mice. It struck him, more than one was looking his way… why? An idea trickled to him. He looked to the cats above “Hey… so, I’m supposed to know these woods… Can I use that?”
“Maybe” Matthew spoke down, eyes focussing onto him. The grin on that whiskery muzzle put Newton’s fur on end “For now we’ll say you helped the party find the right place in this, trackless forest. Otherwise, you’ll need to ask more specific questions…”
“Hey, I found something” A call from the Rachel mouse drew Newton back to the game world. Obligingly he scurried to where the other mice were gathering. He could tell one thing for a start. There was a small bag strewn on the ground. If he focussed, he could see some little claw marks in the dirt. A mouse. Idly his eyes followed where they went as Rachel rummaged in the bag, drawing out a few objects. The scent of thyme was, suddenly strong.
“Ok, Herbs… a list of herbs” Rachel noted, turning her head, before pointing in the direction of the tracks “and see there, something glinting… sickle I think. So, safe to say this might have belonged to the missing herbalist?”
“I mean, you never know, but seems sensible” Arden reflected
“You know this better than me, are we being tricked?” Newton muttered
Rachel glanced to him for a moment “do try to stay in character… but do I smell a trap, no…”
“We follow the tracks then?” Newton pressed
The rest of the mice followed his view for a moment “if you can make them out confidently” Rachel answered “something I guess I never mentioned. Most of our, skills, we need to get a qualification to have them on our sheet… it’s not a very complicated one though. You can either actually look for tracks, or have the dice rolled to see if you follow them correctly. The dice is random, with… a weighting for your presumed skill. As a new mouse… if you can actually do something, do it yourself, don’t ask for the dice”
Newton nodded to himself “you know what, that’s fine with me. I’d rather trust myself than the cats” he exhaled as he crouched low, considering the ground. Mice, were light… the tracks weren’t well defined… but he considered the angle where they disappeared, and could just about make out something further on… “I feel confident enough… this way” he murmured
With the rest of the group at his back, Newton followed the trail, brow furrowed… it wasn’t like he had other hints, disturbed plants or the like. The mouse who had gone this way, he got the feeling they’d been stepping deliberately hard… not that he minded that. All the same, after a while, as they neared the wall of the forest region, he, finally had to stop, looking around himself “I don’t see the next tracks” he concluded
“Right” Rachel noted “well, we’ve got a decision now… do we try to go this way, or the opposite way? They were running from something, right?”
“If we had the tracks of whatever they were running from, it would be simpler” Liz added in “but wouldn’t you know, they’re not here...”
Rachel clicked her tongue “well… we’ve got a lead. If we can find where these tracks are supposed to go, we should either find one of the missing mice… or, some larger tracks, right?”
“I guess?” Newton muttered, looking skyward. Matthew was leaning in, and smirking “So I ask you to roll dice now?”
“You want to do a perception check to follow the tracks?” Matthew asked with, an ever-present little smile, before easing away. Distantly, Newton heard a pair of clunks. The cat leaned in again “gave you a little bonus for getting this close, but you didn’t need it. Nice pass…” his paw lowered in closer, grasping at a near panel, and pulling it up, opening a route.
“Following the experienced tracker, the heroes traced the trail of mouse prints to a small path into the hills, where the solid stone robs them of any chance of trailing their potential victim. All the same, it seems clear there is one, obvious route to take, to go another way would require the right equipment, and more than likely a mouse with some experience”
Once the cat finished speaking, Rachel addressed the group “well, I doubt we can take anything but the path… but if we are chasing an herbalist, they probably took that route too… nice and simple”
Curious despite himself, Newton peered through the removed panel… there was, a tighter corridor of a route, the walls taking a rockier depiction. It did seem to rise, before a turn blocked his view
“So, we go down here?” He probed
“Just watch your step” Liz warned him gently “mountain passes can be… treacherous”
“Exactly” Rachel confirmed “and natural hazards can’t be stopped as easily as a tripwire…” she looked to Newton for a moment “mind going first? If there’s something to see and we have dice rolled to notice it, you’ll get bonuses if you’re up front. Your, skillset is probably better suited, in short”
“Aren’t we, similar?” Newton gestured across her
“Similar class, but my archery is military, not ranger” she rubbed at her ear “suffice it to say, you’re the mouse who has the nature survival skills… it will do the group good if you’re first”
Newton rolled a whisker between his fingers… the idea wasn’t the least bit tempting “fine…”. Though begrudgingly, Newton went first down the path the cats had opened for them. In the corners of his view, he noticed the cats above had grown more, excited. Not promising. Still, he reminded himself that, game or not, he had survived the world. He trusted his reflexes, more than those of these mice who had largely lived inside their whole lives, playing this feline game.
The path rose higher, even, level with the top of the walls for a time, giving the mice a view down on the board. Newton could make out the village scene, and the woodland section, and somewhere further down the table another woodland section. Notably, open in the middle. He suspected that was no coincidence. From here, he also had a better view of the cats… no longer, looming head he had to look up for… their upper bodies on better display now, surrounding him.
It was impossible not to stare at them, the gigantic looming beings. He was reminded of the panther… who had, been larger, toned, and unshrouded by even basic clothing, not that the cats around were especially heavily dressed. It was common enough amid the cats, with their fur and all, to wear, minimal, modest clothing when not in formal settings. He’d seen enough of that lingering in their homes. But these cats did draw him back to, the mice who all but worshipped that panther. Granted the term god had seemed more an honorary title than something literal, and here it was part of their game… yet still the term lingered heavily. It bothered him. Maybe, he supposed, because he could, honestly believe some mice could see these looming titans as gods, if they didn’t know better.
The disappearance of the floor was sudden. Newton’s mind freezing in its line of thought as he felt, no support under his forepaws, where there had been a solid surface before. The harsh creak of metal on metal, a hinge he hadn’t been able to see, doing its purpose. A panel of the high platform they had been walking along, falling away from his touch.
Only instinct prevented him falling down with it, his paws flailed in the air where he had been stepping down, limbs flailing in the fight with gravity. He bent at his core, finding, the edge of his ledge to support himself with a paw, bracing against the momentum he’d given himself in his advance, resisting the fall of the trap he had triggered.
Below, was nothing that looked too dangerous… the panel was at an angle, a slope to, a net. But what it represented… he kept the image of those hungry cats’ firm in his mind as he tensed himself. Relief flooding his system, something deeper than conscious thought concurring he wasn’t going to fall.
The ground quaked, just for an instant. A thud that perked his ears, and a resulting tremor through the table shook the fragile balance Newton had found. His claws were losing their purchase. Eyes wide, he could only stare into the fall that he, just couldn’t keep himself from, paws grasping for something to support himself with, in a futile attempt to halt himself.
Pain arced up his tail, the grasp of a paw, then another, then a flicker of agony at the base as his momentum came to a sharp halt. Stiff as a board, he looked to, the slope he had been destined for, trying not to relax, not yet… even as he felt the paws pulling, swinging his balance back to the safer ledge
“Close one” a voice behind him muttered “gotta be more careful…”
Newton’s legs crumpled beneath him as he was pulled into true safety, flopping to his rear, just to be closer to the solid ground. A glance up showed him Arden… his, feelings for that mouse much improved.
“Thanks” he finally muttered once he recovered enough calm to speak. He had to admit… Arden, was strong, and seemingly had, better reflexes than he’d have assumed of these, confined mice… he guessed, they had a different form of challenge, but it posed, a lot of the same needs, to grow, to be quick.
Still, the wheels were turning. There was one easy conclusion that sprang to mind. The whole table had shaken… one of the cats was behind it. His accusing eyes turned up, around the surrounding cats, finding all but one, were looking to Jason. The dark cat for his part was looking down, a scratching, scribbling sound of a pencil in the quiet.
“Dude” Matthew muttered from above “Not cool…”
Jason glanced up, around the other cats “what? It was a good play. I had the intervention to spend, would have worked if Raina’s mouse hadn’t grabbed him”
“I’m not questioning the legality of the play, but it’s his first game… we don’t go after first timer mice” Matthew chided, scratching at his chin with the end of his pencil “it’s not fair”
Jason stared at him for a moment, before shrugging “right… it’s fairer to use my points to try and get the mice who we’ve already got attachments to… it didn’t work anyway, I’m out of points for the month, so, can we drop it and play the game?”
Matthew grunted, looking back to the mice “anyway… our intrepid ranger, more familiar with woodland paths, narrowly avoids a lethal rockslide… triggered by an unfortunately timed earthquake… but once the tremors calmed down, the party was faced with a new problem, the path they meant to take, has lost a lot of itself to the rocks below”
Rachel stepped closer, peering across the gap, clicking her tongue “well… I could make that jump… I think most of us could…” she looked back “Arden… no way you’ll make it in armour, no offence”
“No, you’re right” Arden agreed with a sigh “If you helped me out of it, I could make the jump, pretty sure… but then I’d not have armour”
“If only we had some rope” Liz said pointedly, looking up
“Gee, that sure would be useful…” Matthew’s voice, laced with mirth as it slipped past his smirk answered her
“We could toss the pieces across” Rachel considered “but that would take time… time fate might punish us for”
Newton remained on his backside, idly listening, though with nothing to add. Certainly, he was confident he could jump the gap as well. A quick look around revealed, little to nothing to solve their problem
“Hey Liz, got a spell than could help?” Rachel asked of the robed mouse
“Yeah…” Liz muttered “but I can only use it once, it’s an ice wall. I’d rather not”
“Compromise” Arden mused “We’ll toss my shield across… but I’ll leave the armour. We don’t use her ability, and… we’ll move faster”
Their solution concluded, the other mice set about it, though Newton felt he’d be better letting them do it. Rachel sprang across the gap first, and he followed as she received the shield. Ahead, he could see the path sloped down quickly to the other forest area. Once all were across, they made their way down. Newton, noticing he was treading, lighter, more tentatively. This was a new sort of stress… he’d known traps, but never like this. Normally, a trap was a foreign object, not really that hard to spot if one was observant… but if the very ground could fall from beneath him… that was a different beast.
The second forest themed area had a dirt floor as well, Newton turning his focus on it… there was a noticeable footprint, a deep one.
“We’re on the right track then” Rachel noted when he pointed it out “keep your senses alert… let’s just say my, warrior experience gives me a bad feeling about this region”
“Sure, Warrior spirit” Matthew chimed in from above
Newton idly looked across the ground for more indications of a mouse before, his eyes found something else. More on reflex than anything, his arms shot out, blocking the mice behind “wait…”
“See something?” Rachel murmured “this is a time when you could be asking the cats to roll, by the way… but if you’re pretty sure what we’re facing”
Newton eyed the mark in the dirt… it wasn’t that deep, not orchestrated he didn’t think. It was a print not so unlike his own… five, long clawed digits, one which looked… a bit like a rudimentary thumb, unlike his own which was more developed in the speaking mice… the main difference, was the size, and depth of the print… he swore whatever made it must weigh a solid pound…
“rat” Newton muttered “there’s a rat”
Above, one of the feline faces moved away, while Matthew smiled down to them “very quick…”
“Positions” Rachel commanded, grasping Newton and tugging him back “ok, stay behind Arden, let it get distracted, then use your sword, ok? Don’t let it grab you”
“I’ve dealt with rats” Newton grunted
“But you’ve never fought one right?”
“Right…” Newton conceded, feeling to is hip, pulling the blade free… it looked a lot blunter than he wanted…
“The rat they have is a nasty piece of work… you’d swear it was a carnivore not an omnivore… but it’s not that larger than us, and we’re armed… just don’t get exposed, you’ll be fine”
Newton nodded along, conceding on this, she surely had the knowledge.
Soon Arden was in front of him, not moments before the fourth looming shadow returned, and a cage descended into the open space ahead of them. A latch was pulled, the cloaked cage tilted.. a skittering of claws filling the space before the rat slid out, landing down, looking around. It was a hulking brown furred thing. It put Newton on edge just to look at it… he’d had more run ins with rats than he liked to remember. Normally it wasn’t too bad, they were an ornery breed, but in his experience they didn’t tend to go after a mouse unless they were pretty hungry, or the mouse seemed, weakened… the focus of this one’s eyes on them, it, seemed a bit different to a wild rat.
Once it noticed them, it charged. Newton felt, his body freeze, staring at the bounding, dashing bolt of fur. Was it coming for him… everything in him screamed, stay still, be unseen. His vision of the rat was blocked suddenly, Arden stepping between them. He saw, the muzzle crest high, over the edge of the mouse’s shield… saw pink digits and razor claws grasp to the edges of the offending blockage.
“Ice wall!” Liz screamed from the side, the rat retreating as fast as it had come, as a ginger furred paw descended in close, thumping, palm towards the mice, where the rat had been.
He felt Arden pat his shoulder hard, pointing towards the cat’s wrist “that way, loop around, quickly now”
With a nod, Newton obeyed, it was the easiest thing to do when he felt so, frazzled. He ran down the line of the cat’s paw and leapt behind one of the fake trees before it rose away.
Above was a hubbub of chatter, numbers and commands, murmured between the cats. On the ground… he could see Arden advancing into the open space, the rat’s eyes locked on the mouse… he couldn’t see the others, presumably they were doing much the same as he was.
The animal lunged for Arden again, and no sooner than it did, he saw Rachel appearing from a tee behind it, bow drawn. Something, small launched from it into the rat’s backside. A furious screech from the giant rodent, lithe body turning in mere instants, while Rachel was already ducking back out of sight.
He had to do it… Newton grit his teeth, tightening his grasp on the sword with his right paw. Blade facing away from him, he leapt from behind the tree, on all four paws, running for the bushy rear of the rat, stumbling up onto his legs as he got closer, both paws onto the grip of his weapon as he swung it. It sunk through the fur, and he felt the recoil as it thumped to something hard. A spasming twitch ran the leg of the rat, its whole body turning, thigh batting Newton aside and back. He looked up, to see the pointed muzzle, its eyes on him now… it would kill him, that was what those eyes said to him… it would lunge, bite through his neck and kill him.
“Eyes on me, rat!”
Newton’s view was filled with Arden’s tail again, the mouse thrusting himself between Newton and the rat… it’s muzzle that had been on the descent, being smacked by a swing of his shield.
It backed away a step, before a flinch and glance of its head told Newton it was being shot at again.
Quite, suddenly a pair of black paws dropped in, scooping under the rat’s middle, pinning it firmly as it gave an indignant thrash, and was lifted away, leaving, the panic with a sudden, stop.
“Technical kill” Matthew called from above “with yet another expertly placed arrow, the wily longbowmouse strikes something vital, and fells the mighty beast that besieged her beleaguered companions… and so, the mystery of the disappearances, it brought to a sudden end… tracing the beast to it’s den however… the adventurers would find, they may already have been too late”
Matthew smiled wryly down to them “for, while the den lays empty… it shows sign of nesting… fortunately it’s brood seem to have scattered far away, but they return home with the knowledge that this isn’t the last such beast that may call the vast woodlands home…”
“It’s over?” Newton mumbled
“Yep” Arden rolled his shoulders, offering Newton a paw “liked your move, gutsy, got a real good hit on it. Might want to be careful though… particularly with the lithe, fast ones… they can turn on you in a heartbeat”
“I noticed” Newton slipped the blade away, rubbing a paw to his whiskers… so just like that, it was over? Already he could see, paws descending from on high, gathering their respective mice. It wasn’t long till, a white and grey paw was settled, pads up, before him.
With, little else to do, Newton stepped onto Matthew’s paw, and was soon struck by the sensation of being lifted, right up before the cat’s grinning face
“Not too shabby for your first outing, couple close calls… sorry about Jason”
“He tried to kill me” Newton muttered
“Mmm, hmm” Matthew agreed “all part of the game, but hey, that Arden is a pretty diligent mouse”
Newton grunted “they’re good mice…”
“They really are” Matthew sighed with a little smile “anyway, did you like what I did there? The little prints were meant to be young rats going to and from their nest, see?”
Newton shook his head “I, nearly died. Twice, at least”
“Experience counts for a lot” Matthew mused “I was, ready to try and intervene, I have points… your cat is your friend, you know? Even if the others might try to get you killed if they see a chance to use their perks”
“Friend” Newton grunted “you know that John back in the village, he talks to you, about you like you’re his friend… but I don’t see you submitting the other cats over there to a death gauntlet”
Matthew’s other paw rose to scratch near the base of his whiskers “I, get what you’re saying, though, firstly, we have a choice you don’t. Come on, you risked your life every day as a wild mouse, right? We don’t live in the same world, I’m a cat… you’re a mouse. We’re giving you a better lot in life than you’d have wild, and not to be blunt… I’ve never claimed we’re your saviours… we have a contract of a sort with the village. Instead of risking their lives foraging, they risk their lives playing our game. They get guaranteed rewards for their effort and risk and get to be picky about what they get too, we, get to enjoy our game. It’s win-win” The cat sighed “I get you want to win more… but yeah, that village… it exists because we, allow it, mice like John live safely there without fear of losing it because we allow it… and we allow it, because we have an arrangement”
Newton grunted, folding his arms “you kinda admit yourself, you’re no, friend of ours”
“Yeah, fine” Matthew shrugged “see us as employers if you want to. But why do we need to be assholes to you mice while we do it? You get the worse end of the deal, I get that, we’re not risking our lives… but, again, we have that choice in life… you don’t” he noted, bluntly, considering Newton “I mean, yesterday you were being served to my boss for lunch, right? This isn’t better?” he chuckled with a faint shake of his head “I get it… you’re taking the risks pretty hard, we’re friendly, so why don’t we treat you like friends? I’m afraid, while I do really like you mice, you’re still, mice. I’d love to eat you” his tongue flickered his whiskers “but I won’t, because I’m a cat of my word. If you don’t like the deal, as I said… you’ve had your game, you can leave if you like, and we’ll never meet again. You can run off and, get caught in somebody’s trap, and get eaten in, I dunno, a couple weeks? Or you can live here, and survive, so many times longer, with nice mice, in a safe home, with the trade off being our game. It’s just an option, take it, or leave it”
Newton bit back the reply that came to mind… he certainly did intend to leave it… but, he did need supplies. The village could be a good source “I’m not going to stay here” Newton muttered “whether I leave now, or stock up for the trip is something I’m deciding”
Matthew’s head tilted slightly in his view “well, alright then. I’ll gladly have you as a mouse in my roster for as long as you deign to stay” a low, long sigh escaped the cat “I know, there’s a lot about this you wish was better, but it’s still not a bad deal for you. Sincerely, I’d love it if you stayed”
Newton grunted, and was aware, the cat was moving again, to take him back to the village f he had to guess. The thing was, he felt the cat was sincere… if he looked at all of this as just, an arrangement, it made a certain practical sense… but, it put him on edge… the cats being so friendly to what they still saw as a meal in waiting… but, what he couldn’t figure out was, were they doing something wrong… or, did he just wish they would act differently… so they’d be easier to hate for it.