Excur

It had been a week since they were robbed, and Zain felt like he had still not caught up on his sleep.

That fateful night, they had to provide witness statements and file a police report; It wasn’t until the middle of the night that they were able to return home to sleep…and then they had to wake up early in order to work the next day.

Zain was at least grateful that they were able to get their stolen items back, but the effects could still be felt a week later. Brayden was in much worse shape, even now on the weekend, he was still sleepily dragging his feet places. Unfortunately for him, carefully filling up his whole schedule left little room for extra napping time, so he consequentially was tragically behind on his sleep.

A twitch and a muscle spasm overtook Zain as he laid on the couch. Adding to the misfortune of the week, the day after they were robbed, Zain was notified that his application for the construction company had been accepted, and he was expected to start immediately. So, two days after the incident, he had to start manual labor at a second job.

Grunt work entailed a lot of lifting and moving around, so his muscles were extremely sore now. Now that it was the weekend, he was just lying face down on the couch...dying...decaying...

Brayden had decided to sleep in that day, and finally, in the afternoon, he had awoken. Ambulating into the living room like a hungover decrepit old man, wrapped in a plush throw blanket, he sat across from Zain. Taking his time to open the frame of his glasses then gently placing them on his face, his sleepy roommate finally spoke hoarsely, “Have you eaten yet?”

“Only some cereal…sorry, I would have made something but my muscles aren’t in it today…”

“It's okay. I don’t really feel like cooking either…” Brayden rubbed his face, waking himself up a little more before he spoke again. “This week hasn’t been the best…we need a break...”

“Yeah, but I don’t think I want to get up right now, unless you want to get something to eat or something?” Doing something himself was out of the question, but even Zain was willing to get up for some take out. What was more, he got paid on a day by day basis, so he did have extra money to spend, even if it was not that much.

“Y’know? Yeah! We deserve a treat after this shitty week! I know a good spot in the nice part of town. We can eat out for once and not worry about stuff.” Brayden declared as he cast his blanket off to the side. Even though there was some confidence and boldness in his voice, the onesie he wore undercut the gallant facade.

And just like that, it was decided that the two would eat out that day. Sore muscles withstanding, Zain had somehow been able to get himself up again in order to change into something somewhat presentable. The fact that he only had three pairs of each garment was starting to bother Zain as he had to re-wear some things he had already worn that week. It made him feel a little cheap and gross, but what was he to do? Washing clothes cost money, so washing his clothes every few days was not feasible for him right now…

If he saw some cheap clothes while he was out, then hopefully he could get some, but seeing the prices during his first excursion, he wasn’t optimistic about it.

Now, what the two were going to eat was the main concern on his mind, but Brayden apparently had a place in mind.

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The two had been able to make it to the small restaurant (of course after descending down 10 flights of stairs and sitting through a few stops on the subway), which was a small hole-in-the-wall kind of establishment. It had a family restaurant vibe, with an older style compared to the other shops nearby. They sat in a booth in the center of the restaurant, with the store being bisected by a small pond filled with koi fish, a layer of glass serving as the floor over the water display. It looked like a Japanese fusion restaurant, with a busy bumble happening in the backroom as to-go orders were being filled.

What was cool was that every time an order was sent out, an animatronic fish would be sent out, each differing in size depending on the size of the order. They flew through the air, powered by different mana attributes; fire magic sustained the warmth of the meal, electricity powered the gears and circuits of the drones, water mana controlled the hydraulics, and wind propelled the fishes through the air.

Zain glanced at the menu, his translation stone blurring his vision somewhat. As expected, there were mainly fish dishes, but the more expensive dishes did offer alternative protein. And, of course, because he was poor as fuck, fish was what he was going to eat. Even though Brayden had offered to pay for his meal, owing him more than he already did didn’t sit right with Zain, so the cheaper meals were where his eyes stayed.

The table had a touch screen that enabled ordering and payment, and after a short waiting period, their food was delivered by a friendly carting robot. It whirred playfully as it distributed the meals, flashing generic customer service messages on its face. It gently hovered away once its duty had been fulfilled.

In front of Zain was a spicy ramen bowl filled with fish, crab, and shrimp; a mix between japanese and cajun boil, it tasted heavenly. Brayden went for a more traditional meal, having a Japanese tempura bowl which looked more aesthetically pleasing. The spectacled boy took some fresh garlic (at least what looked like garlic, it looked slightly off color) then crushed it into his bowl. After savoring a few bites, he breathed in deeply, as if his exhaustion had melted off.

“So, where do you want to go after this?” His complexion had improved considerably, and he actually seemed ready to go places.

Finishing chewing the piece of fish in his mouth, Zain swallowed, then answered, “To be honest, I think I need some more clothes. Wearing the same things is kind of….” Smelly, he was going to say, but he wasn’t gonna bring that to attention if he didn’t need to.

“Oh yeah, there is a cheap place around here, but just don’t expect something of the highest quality.”

Of course, Zain was willing to settle for dollar store quality clothes right now, as long as it got him through the week.

The boys finished their meals rather quickly because of how hungry they had been, and soon they went to the store which was close by. Just a glance was all it took for Zain to discern which clothes were name brands and which were, well, store brands.

The cheaper clothes were further back into the store, with extremely generic outlines. Even though they were cheap, he only planned on buying three pairs of clothing. Strangely, the different colors all lined the wall, going upward too high for anyone to reach.

Nearby, was a small call button which had to be pressed for assistance. Once he pressed the button, a small drone came flying out of a hole in the wall. It tumbled out clumsily, beeping suggestively, as if questioning why it had been summoned.

Brayden then began to command it as if it was natural, “Please retrieve a size medium of the black u-neck t-shirt.”

The bot beeped understandingly, then bumbled upward, retrieving the designated shirt, then descending downward.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Thank you, you are excused.”

And like that, the robot beeped in acknowledgement, then rolled back into the wall. Strange, but also exciting - at least for Zain. Who knew there would be so many robots in the workforce? They completed such menial tasks, but Zain appreciated them at least.

The robot only had to be called a few more times before he had finished shopping. Once they checked out, his bank account was much more lacking, but it was worth it. He left the store feeling as if he had been productive for the day, and it wasn’t even the afternoon yet.

As they were leaving the store, Zain’s phone chimed, with a small exclamation point hovering over it for a second, before disappearing.

Brayden raised a brow, silently questioning him. In response, Zain took his phone out, and pulled the drop down notification bar.

“It’s my schedule for next week. Lemme just check.” Packed, as he expected. No pain, no gain as they would say, but seriously, couldn’t they go easy on him? Brayden, who had been looking over his shoulder, nodded knowingly, sharing in the pain silently.

He heaved a small sigh as he looked at his app, scrolling at his job page. When he scrolled further down, he looked at the passive job he had still not done. It was still open, and what was more, the reward amount had gone up 100 credits. Whoever had placed this reward really wanted their cat back.

His surprise was apparently written on his face, as Brayden cocked his head to the side. Zain just turned his phone to him, pointing at the job listing.

Returning pursed lips of surprise and intrigue, he looked at his own phone to confirm the information. As if weighing the option, he hummed and hawed for a second, before he turned back to Zain.

“We ARE in the area…”

Zain pulled up his mapping app, then compared the zoning codes. He raised his brows and lifted his arms in a shrug. “Fate?”

“It wouldn’t HURT if we stumbled upon it…”

They both looked at each other for a few seconds before they unanimously agreed; and just like that they decided to look for the cat.

They tried to take a logical approach at first, checking the streetways, looking near abandoned buildings, and on high walls, but they found nothing. Surprisingly, there weren’t that many cats or dogs to be seen.

“So we’re looking for an orange cat? Is it fluffy, or..?”

“It’s a servile cat, whatever that means…Is that a typo? I think they meant Serval Cat.”

“Maybe it's called something different here, as long as we find a cat that basically meets the description we’re probably gold. I mean not really, but there are so few cats here, I doubt there are more cats that meet that description…” Zain tried to explain when his eyes strayed. They passed a big pipe that led underground, underneath a bridge. In his days on earth, what he had known about stray cats was that they loved the sewer for some reason.

He pointed excitedly, tugging on Brayden’s shoulder as if he had figured the whole thing out. His friend looked unsure for a second, but concurred that it was plausible for the cat to be there.

They came closer to the huge opening, which was adorned with small lighting fixtures as it led further downward. They both called out, their voices echoing through the seemingly never ending tunnel.

“We have to go further in…” Exploring the sewers was not an ideal way to spend your day off, but damn it all, Zain would do it for 800 credits.

“It’s not that I don’t want 800 bucks, I’m just not sure that it’s safe….”

That was true, they had just been robbed a few days ago. Maybe going somewhere strange wasn’t the best idea…

Almost as if on cue, a white cat poked its head out from the corner of the tunnel, looking towards the two with its eyes reflecting slightly in the shadows. It hurriedly scurried off deeper into the sewers.

“DESTINeeee–” Zain whispered in a high pitched gremlin voice as he impulsively ventured forward with a crooked smile.

Brayden called from behind, but Zain continued to run in order to keep pace with the cat. Their footsteps echoed endlessly in the tunnels, accompanied by the roaring of falling water.

The sewers were not what he expected, looking more like a series of buildings built along a canal. They were overgrown with moss and lichen, but the carvings could be seen every so often, with them all being uniform and identical. Zain slowed his pace to observe a little more closely, and the cat in front of him likewise slowed its pace to a trot.

Brayden was able to catch up, slightly panting after chasing Zain for a good minute. “What the hell, man. A little warning next time…”

“Ah, sorry. I thought the cat would lead us to the other one…” His brashness and impulsivity had caught Brayden off guard. It was a bad habit of his, but his gut had told him to follow the cat, so that is what he did.

His roommate sighed in defeat, but showed no sign of wanting to turn around. “We can see where the cat leads us. Luckily, the canals aren’t really dangerous in this area. But there are a lot of homeless that set up camps inward. As long as we avoid that area, we should be fine.”

“Why aren’t they in this area…Wait, why are there houses here in the first place?”

“This is where the Jengus and merfolk lived when the city was first established. But city redevelopment and gentrification led to it being abandoned. It is not safe for most people to live in since it floods quite often, that’s probably why this particular area is abandoned.” He looked at the waterway, observing for a few seconds before he resumed his explanation, “The water is pretty low today, so I don’t think we have to worry, but like I said, it’s not the safest place.”

The cat jogged forward, turning in random directions, honing in on a mysterious destination. The tunnels went slightly uphill, with some more holes leading to the outside, dotting the trail as it continued on.

Finally, the cat came to an open enclosure, with a small pond in its center. Mushrooms, moss, and vines were overgrown on the walls, and different creatures collected all around, like a small ecosystem. The cat joined a small circle of cats that lounged nearby, splayed around, lazily collecting near some lamps that heated the area. One cat in particular stood out from the rest, with a much taller physique and peculiar patterning on its orange pelt. The pattern almost appeared to be like strange tattoo markings, which distinguished it as a finer breed from all of the other cats.

“Dundundun-dun-da-dun- mission complete. “ Zain smiled from the corner, hiding himself so as to not disrupt the picturesque display.

“Not until we catch it…”

“Oh…Maybe if we ask nicely and give it pets. Wouldn’t hurt to try.” And without hesitation, Zain began to tiptoe forward, despite Brayden’s slightly hushed protests.

A few of the cats scattered, some lingered cautiously, and fewer hissed angrily. It was as if they were a gang that did not like someone intruding on their territory. Zain persisted however, as he walked to the center where the cat sat.

It was grooming itself when it looked at him, giving him a heedful gaze.

“It’s okay, I’m not trying to hurt you.” He lowered himself to one knee, carefully reaching one hand in order to allow the cat to approach him first.

The cat sniffed the air around him, its eyes dilating as he spoke in a calming tone. It inched forward, still vigilant, but it’s guard slightly lowering.

“That’s right. You want to go back home don’t you?” He cooed, trying to entice the cat.

Within a second, the cat’s eyes narrowed into thin slits; it hissed angrily then it ran away.

“SHIT!” Zain ran after it, trying not to lose sight of it.

It zipped down the tunnels, trying to lose him at each turn. Somehow, he could keep pace, but he wasn’t holding out hope that it would be for too long.

The cat turned into a spacious room that was split by a rushing river of water. The force of the water created some rumbling within the concrete they stood on and powerful water was all that could be heard.

He and the cat stared at one another, the hackles on its neck stood up as he glowered at Zain.

“Damn it kitty don’t you wanna go home!?” Zain yelled at it in frustration, but the cat stood its ground.

A hand grabbed his shoulder, which prompted Zain to turn his head. He was met with Brayden’s face, giving him a reproachful look. “DUDE. WHAT. THE. HELL.”

Oh yeah...crap...I ran off again.

Zain had forgotten about Brayden again, and now his friend was rightfully mad at him. He turned and dipped his head apologetically.

“Sorry…” And that was all he could really say. To be honest, he wasn’t thinking at all when he had followed the cat, so Brayden had every right to be pissed.

Brayden groaned, then rubbed his forehead in slight frustration. “Let's go back, I don’t think that cat is going to let you touch it. Plus, we don’t have anything to capture it in so we’ll just take it as an L. At least we know that it’s in the sewers.”

Zain nodded in defeat, shoulders slumped as he couldn’t argue with that.

An abhorrent roar tore through the sound of the torrential rushing water, the ground seemed to quiver and quake at the presence of an unknown monstrosity.

The flow of water disrupted as a foreign entity entered its presence; A deep, reptile slithered through the massive waterway, obstructing it enough to cause water to splatter and splash all around. It screamed a petrifying screech, shaking the walls and ground as it descended into the flowing river. Gnarled teeth displayed its killing intent, rigid platings of the scutes of its back indicated its intimidating presence within the water, and its slit pupils honed in on the pair of boys marked its prey.

“Shit…” They both gasped in unison.