Chapter 8
The Pink Space Cat
Jake was asleep when the crater formed.
He didn't wake up from the impact.
He woke up from the silence.
No wind.
No night insects.
No distant city hum.
Just—
Stillness.
His eyes opened slowly.
"…That's not normal."
From the guest room across the hall, Kara's voice came quietly:
"I felt that too."
He sat up.
"Explosion?"
"Small."
"Define small."
"Not city-threatening."
"Farm-threatening?"
A pause.
"…Possibly."
Jake sighed.
"Of course."
The Crater
They found it in the north field.
Again.
Jake stared at the smoking indentation in the soil.
"…I just fixed irrigation."
At the center of the crater sat something small.
Round.
Pink.
With oversized blue eyes.
And a tiny tail that swayed lazily behind it.
It blinked.
Looked up at them.
Opened its mouth.
"Mew."
Jake froze.
"…That's not a regular cat."
Kara tilted her head.
"No."
The creature hovered gently upward.
Not flapping.
Not jumping.
Just… floating.
Jake pointed.
"See. That. That's disqualifying."
The pink creature drifted closer.
Its gaze locked onto Jake.
It made a small curious sound.
"Mew?"
Jake looked behind himself.
"Why is it looking at me like that?"
Kara crossed her arms.
"It likes you."
"That's not comforting."
The creature zipped forward suddenly—
Jake flinched.
But instead of attacking—
It bonked gently into his forehead.
There was a flash.
A soft warmth.
And—
A mental image.
Stars.
Void.
Travel.
Searching.
Then—
Him.
Standing in the mansion foyer.
Light radiating faintly from his chest.
The vision faded.
Jake staggered back.
"…Okay."
Kara stepped forward immediately.
"What did you see?"
"It… wasn't hostile."
The pink creature hovered upside down now.
Watching him.
Tail swaying.
"Mew."
Jake narrowed his eyes.
"You're not here to destroy Earth, right?"
The creature blinked slowly.
Tilted its head.
Then—
It teleported.
Reappeared on his shoulder.
Jake screamed.
Kara blinked.
"That was fast."
The creature settled against his neck.
Warm.
Soft.
Unreasonably adorable.
"Mew."
Jake stood very still.
"…It's purring in my brain."
"Yes."
"That's not normal."
"Correct."
He carefully lifted it off his shoulder.
It floated in front of his face.
Blue eyes unblinking.
It reached out with tiny paws and touched his nose.
A small psychic ripple passed between them.
Another flash—
A word.
Guardian.
Then—
Home.
Jake's breath caught slightly.
"…You think this is home?"
The creature spun happily midair.
"Mew!"
Kara studied it carefully.
"It's not aggressive."
"No, it's invasive."
"It's affectionate."
"It invaded my thoughts."
"That's mild for this city."
Fair.
Jake sighed.
"At least it's not a dog named Courage."
The creature made a curious sound.
Then—
It transformed.
Just slightly.
Its body shimmered—
Momentarily elongating.
Growing sleeker.
Eyes sharper.
Something ancient flickered beneath the cute exterior.
For half a second—
It did not look harmless.
Jake stiffened.
Kara's posture changed almost imperceptibly.
Then—
The creature shrank back to adorable size.
Blinking innocently.
"Mew."
Jake stared.
"…You are absolutely hiding something."
The cat teleported again—
Reappearing in his arms like it had always belonged there.
He instinctively caught it.
It curled up immediately.
Tail wrapping around his wrist.
Warm.
Comfortable.
Trusting.
Kara watched closely.
"It chose you."
"That's not reassuring."
"It didn't choose me."
"That's extremely reassuring."
He looked down at the pink bundle now purring contentedly.
"…What do we even call you?"
The creature's ears twitched.
Its eyes glowed faintly.
In his mind—
A simple word formed.
Mew.
Jake blinked.
"You're not creative."
"Mew."
"Fair."
Agent of Adorable Chaos
As they walked back toward the mansion, Mew teleported intermittently.
From Jake's arms.
To Kara's shoulder.
To the roof.
To midair.
To directly inside the house through the door without opening it.
Jake stopped.
"It just phased through solid wood."
"Yes."
"I don't like that."
"You have investors who summon ravens."
"…Fair."
Inside the foyer, Mew floated upward.
Paused near the staircase.
And then—
A soft chime echoed through the mansion.
Upstairs—
A door unlocked.
Jake and Kara both looked up.
Jake exhaled slowly.
"…It triggered something."
Kara nodded.
"Yes."
Mew floated down again and bonked his forehead lightly.
"Mew."
"You're not subtle."
The creature nuzzled his cheek.
Warm.
Content.
Jake sighed.
"…Okay."
He adjusted his hold slightly.
"If you're staying, you don't destroy the crops."
"Mew."
"No opening portals."
"Mew."
"No summoning elder beings."
The creature blinked innocently.
Kara coughed softly.
"I don't think it agreed to that one."
Jake narrowed his eyes at the floating cat.
"You are an agent of adorable chaos."
Mew spun happily in midair.
Outside—
The tall grass bent gently toward the house.
Inside—
The unlocked room upstairs hummed faintly.
Jake looked at Kara.
"So."
"Yes?"
"We have a psychic space cat."
"Yes."
"It likes me."
"Yes."
"It might be ancient."
"Yes."
"And it just unlocked something in my house."
"Yes."
He exhaled slowly.
"…At least it isn't a dog named Courage."
Mew purred louder.
And somewhere deep in the mansion—
Something ancient purred back.
End of Chapter 8.