- Username: vivika
Cat Name: florencio (aka cio)
Gender: male
Rank: botanist
Clan: https://toyhou.se/viviane/characters/folder:2511351
Age: twenty three moons
Kitty trying out for: #2307
Prompt:
she was still stealing cheese.
tucked behind a fruit basket, the tiny chick plucked strands of molten cheese from the grilled sandwich. her wings flared out around her as if a hood of daffodils and sunshine, concealing her head and dark eyes from view.
“hey, gwen?” he ladled a splash of tomato soup into a small bowl, arching an eyebrow. “you realize that i can still see you even if you can’t see me right?”
she lowered her wings in a flash. a strand of cheese oozed at the top of her head, the grease staining her forehead. with a quick flutter of her wings, she hopped towards him, dark eyes wide and luminous. she chirped once, the melody high and sweet with all the innocence of a little bird who didn’t know she’d already been caught.
he snorted, gently clearing the cheese from her head. “uh huh. you definitely didn’t do anything. but luckily for you, the captain isn’t going to notice you ate a few strands. he seems… distracted.”
gwen hopped to the side bench and plucked a sprig of fresh basil from the chopping board. chest puffed, she tossed the herb into the soup with all the strength in her bones. it landed with a soft plop perfectly in the center.
“well, hopefully he likes basil.” with a warm smile, he offered her his shoulder as a perch. “come on, we’re going to cheer our good friend the captain up…”
whirrs and flashing lights hummed behind the set of the spacecraft’s double doors. the scratch of a pen, the buzz of conversation, the shutter of a camera clicking.
he groaned. “...brace for the paparazzi.”
✦✦✦
an invitation aboard the malachite’s first research expedition was an honor.
as the king’s lead botanist, he’d be a fool to turn down the opportunity to gather flora samples from azeryn’s rings. unfortunately, research specialists were not the only ones invited on this voyage.
blinding lights exploded left and right as media drones snapped pictures from all angles. he squinted, pushing past the crowd of media officials, shoving comm cards and microphones into his face. gwen curled up into the crook of his neck, shielding her eyes with her wings.
“...dr. florencio! tell us about mutant moss that scientists found off-shore. are the seeds truly airborne-”
“no comment.” his lips quirked into an apologetic smile as he moved into the hallway. “excuse me, i have to-”
“there’s a lot of turbulence on the spacecraft right now. do you think that’s an issue?
“i’m sorry. i’m not an engineer-”
“to what extent, do you think this first expedition is relevant to your research?”
“not now, please.” he sighed. “i have to see a friend and you’re-”
“is the spacecraft resistant to the rocks hitting the hull?
squeezing past the media official, he pressed his paw onto a panel. a sliver of light slid up and down his paw, before the console flashed green. a soft click confirmed the lock had been disengaged and he tugged on the doorknob.
“the engines seem to be acting up. do you theorize that’s an issue?”
his strained smile held as he slid through the open door. the media officials surged, pushing up against each other, but he shut the door with a sharp click. gwen latched it with a quiet huff.
her gaze met his, starry and twinkling with shared humor, and she gently smacked her head with her wing.
“told you we should’ve stayed home.” a soft churr leapt to his lips and he rubbed at the stubborn stain of cheese grease still on her head. “ ‘least we made it. come on, let’s see the captain.”
✦✦✦
the back of the captain’s chair greeted them first.
then, the full length window, stretching like a watercolored mural at the far end of the room. from here, the deep azure of the seven seas unfurled in full bloom. the colors undulated, shifting from a lagoon-like blue at the shores to an aquamarine at mid-sea to an obsidian hue at the horizon. a thread of gold rimmed the shoreline, running in an almost full circle around the kingdom. somewhere in the mid sea, fishing boats bobbed on the waters, their sails of white and gold and scarlet the only true sign of life from this far up. it stole his breath everytime.
a fit of turbulence rocked the ship and he swayed, clutching the steel skeletal railing. gwen squealed as he steadied himself, descending the last of the steps to the captain’s seat.
“... i swear if it’s another one of you media officials.” his friend turned from the consoles, a smile clenched between his teeth. his features softened, a small frown knotted between his brows. “wait, cio?”
“who else could’ve made it past your security team, thorne?” with a grin, he presented the tray of soup and grilled cheese, setting it down by his side. out of the corner of his eye, gwen tiptoed towards the sandwich, eyeing the hanging strand of cheese. “thought you could use some company and good cheer with all our… extra guests.”
“stars above, don’t remind me.” thorne lifted his brows, nodding once towards the tray. “you sure that’s for me? your bird seems to have claimed it already.”
gwen’s head jerked back, the strand of cheese still between her beak.
thorne chuckled, waving a paw. “no matter, i’m not hungry anyways. i ate earlier. help yourself.”
with a bright chirrup, gwen pecked at the rest of the sandwich, snapping off chunks of bread and cheese to dunk in the steaming soup. silver curls of steam wafted filling the room with the aroma of tomatoes, and the steady hum of the engines thrummed beneath him.
“you haven’t left the bridge since we launched.” he chose his words carefully, eyeing the shuffle of his friend’s paws, the shiver of his whiskers. “and you’ve been… distracted even before that.”
“really? i must’ve been really caught up with things, huh?” thorne scribbled something onto a sheet of paper, a false high laugh hitching his breath. “maybe i’ll have that soup afterall…”
thorne slid over the sheet of paper.
they're listening in. audio device implanted under my chair.
“you should try the tomato soup━made it myself.” meeting thorne’s gaze, he nodded once and slid the paper back to him. his lips parted to mouth the words: are you okay?
“if it’s as good as you say, i’ll need you to write it down on this.”
the paper returned, this time folded in half.
we should never have launched. the hull is not built to withstand these conditions━
a clang reverberated through the ship. the paper slid from his paws, soup sloshed creating a scarlet pool on the tray, electricity surged on the consoles. a whistling pop erupted as white hot sparks exploded from the steel framework above him. a bar came loose and wires hissed, sizzling with crackling energy.
he could only stare, pulse seizing as the first steel bar came loose, swinging towards him.
✦✦✦
darkness descended, a blanket of deafening silence.
someone was screaming, shouting, shaking him. smoke created a raspy edge to their voice, but their words seemed oddly slurred. he placed a paw to his forehead, wincing as a throbbing sensation radiated through him from the touch. the ringing in his ears broke just as someone yanked him to his paws.
“cio? cio. florencio.” the captain. thorne. his friend. “can you hear me? we need to evacuate now. i’ve initiated the escape pods, come on.”
he followed, leaning heavily against thorne. a haze flooded the hallway and a strange heat emanated from farther down. a mechanic threw a wrench at a sprinkler and frigid pinpricks of water rained down. he shivered against the cold.
the ship shuddered again. pawsteps thundered down the halls, felines gathered at the escape pods as flight officials counted them off, sending them into each one. his gaze caught on a window. a large meteorite speared the belly of the ship and smoke poured out of the opening, the plume thickening by each passing second. the speakers crackled and the ship’s automated voice garbled out a warning.
>> 𝐁𝐀𝐘 𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐙𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐓𝐄
“in we go.” thorne’s voice was as steady as the undulating ocean waves. there was a reason he was chosen for the malachite’s opening expedition. so calm, so steady, so unmoved. the captain buckled him in, flashing a half smile. grease stained his forehead and up close, he smelt faintly of grilled cheese.
>> 𝐁𝐀𝐘 𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐙𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝟑𝟎 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐒
thorne turned to rest of the passengers, fixing them a steady look. the captain counted them off, referring to a panel at the side of the pod, checking off the list of names. “hold on folks. we’ll be out and back home in a moment.”
home.
his head throbbed, pounding. he should never have agreed to come. he should’ve stayed home. stayed home and cooked tomato soup and grilled cheese. stayed home with…
the pod doors sealed shut.
>> 𝐁𝐀𝐘 𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐙𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝟏𝟓 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐒
“gwen!” he unbuckled himself, racing to the pod doors. “wait, open these doors! open these-”
a set of warm curls wrapped him in an embrace, crushing him, forcing him to turn around. a paleness crept upon thorne’s cheeks, washing him in a ghostly glow. “cio, i’m sorry. i can’t-”
“gwen is in there!” he ripped himself away from thorne, searching his face. “please, you have to open the doors. we have to get her. we can’t leave her there. the bay it’s-”
>> 𝐁𝐀𝐘 𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐙𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝟑, 𝟐, 𝟏…
the pod ejected, breaking away from the ship.
out of the pod’s window, the main bridge loomed with its full length window. the steel skeleton stairs gleamed, rounding down to the captain’s chair. and below the captain’s chair sat a little tray. a tray with a bowl of now cold tomato soup and a half-eaten, half-pecked slice of grilled cheese sandwich.
gwen plucked off a strand of cheese oozing from the side of the sandwich. as the pod’s shadow fell over her, she hopped closer to the window, pressing her tiny feet against the glass.
cheese hung from her beak, grease still stained her forehead, dark eyes still starry and luminous.
even as the ship erupted in flames, as smoke engulfed the bridge, as the pod drifted farther and farther
…… and farther
…….......……. away.
