Amy's directions were good enough. I exited the dark tunnels, leaving smells of must and salt behind me, and made my way down a small set of service passages. I was in a tiny maze barely wider than I was that led to electric panels, ventilation systems, and various utilities that kept Itokawa running.

I reached a hallway with another service passage on the adjoining side. I would be able to get a good look at the Port of Alloy security gates from there. I ran across and ducked inside the passage. I was close enough that I could just about make a run for it, but the big town square at the Port of Alloy had a mass of people, no doubt everyone who had intended to leave and was now stuck here due to the chase for the Fracker. Little seating areas littered the square, some even with trees (real trees).

I risked opening the comms.

kittyboy: "Status report."

I leaned back against the wall, sliding my way down away from the opening deeper into the passageway.

foxcutter: "We're here. We made it."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

kittyboy: "I'm close. I slipped away from the pack that was after me, but the port is super-congested. I think I can make a run for it, but I don't have a stun gun. People may die. I'm thinking of a plan."

foxcutter: "Scans show a thinner crowd at the south entrance. There's a 4C PreCheck line that you should be able to run through."

kittyboy: "Perfect! Remember, if I don't make it, take off. Get out of here. Contact @horus about our lead and do as he says."

I couldn't believe I was saying that, but as frustrated as I could get with @horus, he was the closest to these events after us.

astrowave: "Do you need me to come get you?"

Good old @astrowave, ever flowing with the Thunder Ops spirit.

kittyboy: "No, but thank you."

@foxcutter sent me a scan of the surrounding area from the ship's sensors. I pulled it up. More guards had been dispatched along the ports, but there were many points of entry and only so many guards to spare. On top of that, the pillow fight continued to rage on, causing damage in one of the more expensive parts of Itokawa. According to the news, the fight expanded out from Stellar Dreams to a small vegetable market nearby and a boutique cosmetics store, the contents of which had been shattered.

The Itokawan authorities would be responding to the pillow fight to keep their privileged residents happy. Sure, there were a lot of people here, but it was mostly civilians.

I saw a route appear on the map, @foxcutter's suggested path to the south checkpoint. Looked reasonable. I primed myself. If I could make it this far, I could absolutely bolt through there in time to get to The Pharaoh.

"Are you the Fracker?"

I jumped, startled. A man was standing next to me, farther back down the maintenance corridor.

"No," I lied. "This is ridiculous. All of Itokawa is after me. I need a way to show them I'm not the Fracker."

He nodded, coming closer. He wore blue workman's pants, a dark red shirt, and a gray hat with the emblem of Otter Chaos on it, a professional spaceball team in the Solar Spaceball Association. He looked harmless, a mechanic who followed the SSA. I was a huge SSA fan myself.

"You staying on world?" he asked.

I eyed him closely. He was carrying something.

"Don't think I can. I'll have to get to my ship and leave, if I can make it." He nodded again, but I could tell he was happy with my answer.

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

"Look, I know you've got a lot on your plate, but I need a favor."

Of course he did. Everyone wants something.

"I'm not really in a position to do anyone any favors. I just need to get out of here. Like now."

"It's an easy one," he insisted. He held his arms out, and presented me with a tiny little kitten. "I had a litter. Adopted all but this little guy."

The kitten was a gray tabby with yellow eyes. He was so tiny I could easily carry him securely in one hand. I had told my crew no kittens, but this one was melting my heart just at the sight of him. I wanted to hug him close and spin around, kiss him on the head, and ruffle his fur.

I held my hands out to gesture no. "I can't take a cat. Why is it so important to get rid of him? Can't you keep him or find someone else?"

Instead of accepting my response, he forced me to catch the cat, pushing it into my arms.

"I've a gambling debt at Circuit Cypher. If they stop by and find a cat, they'll take it and sell it. You know what happens to cats that they sell, right?"

I just looked at him blankly, as the kitten reached up and began licking my nose eagerly. I cringed and then accepted it, smelling his slightly gross kitty breath and feeling his rough tongue on the bottom of my nose.

"Food," the man said. "I can't let this cat turn into food. I've been at the port all day finding people to take them off world."

That sounded reasonable.

"Thing is, what with the Fracker and all, they've practically shut down the ports. No one is going to get through 4C Customs with an undeclared animal."

I understood then what he was getting at. Lucky him that I showed up here. "Except me, of course. Since I have to break out somehow."

"Exactly," the man said. "I saw where the crowds were and took a shot." He pointed at his head. "And it worked. I've got good sense about me, no matter what anyone at Circuit Cypher says."

The man seemed like he was being hard on himself, or maybe he'd just been kicked down a lot from life on Itokawa. Meanwhile, the kitty continued licking my nose. I pulled him away, and he reached a tiny paw up and gently grabbed my nose, then reached his head forward, licking again, completely oblivious to anything other than his mission - to clean this person's nose.

This guy totally cheated in this negotiation, if you could call it that. There was no way I could let this kitten go now. He had claimed me. The cat distribution system is at work on Itokawa, I laughed to myself. I could give this man a small victory today.

One final test.

"What do you think the Otters need to do before the trade deadline?" I asked as casually as I could. I knew the SSA extremely well. Sure, he could pull up rosters, he could query for common responses to my question, but I'd know. True fans can read through the tabloids and bullshit popular opinions.

He thought about that one, almost too long, but he might only be a passive fan. I'd have to take that into consideration. "They should trade Bastida. I know he's a good defender, but he's too slow for their style."

Good, I thought to myself, nodding. That wasn't a popular opinion. Fans were polarized on Bastida, but the overwhelming majority loved him. They only looked at the stat lines and highlights, I thought. It should be obvious to anyone who actually watches the games that he hurts the Otters more than he helps them. But again, I have high observational skills that feed into my futurecasting.

"Fine," I said. "I'll take the cat."

I didn't have anywhere to put him. I'd have to carry him. I didn't like that, but I would manage. We would managed, kitty and I.

"You're coming with me, Buddy," I said, holding the cat out in front of my face and peering at his cute little eyes. He licked his nose, like he just had a good meal, but didn't fuss, content to let me hold him.

"That settles it then," I said. "What do I get out of it?"

The man laughed. "The cat."

I shrugged. That was fair. I didn't have time to negotiate a fee anyway.

That was when I started to feel numb. In fact, very numb. I wondered how long I had been losing the feeling in my legs. I held the kitten close, put my weight back against the wall in the narrow corridor, and slid down to sit on the dusty floor.

Panic mode activated.

Had I taken a dart or a whiff of stun gas? I tried to scan recent events. Nothing. Nothing made sense, except. What had the man done to me?

The cat! The cat was poisonous! How dare he!?!

I lowered the cat into my lap, sitting with my knees up in front of me, as the tingling hit my arms and fingertips. I would be completely immobilized soon. The kitty just snuggled up there, perfect happy and perfectly unaware. It wasn't his fault.

I messaged the crew while I still could.

kittyboy: "Get out of here."

And I promptly set it to do not disturb. That should do the trick.

Moments later, I was just passively watching what was going on around me, just me and my active brain, and my useless body.

The man chuckled, satisfactorily, and lifted his hand to his mouth. "I got him." He squatted, looking me in the face. He snapped his fingers in front of my eyes, annoyingly. "Yep. That's right."

He flicked my face below my left eye. Then he flicked it again below my right eye. Asshole.

"Yeah. Okay, will do. See you soon."

He stood up and studied me. "Works every time. I swear, every bounty hunter needs a stock of kittens. Just as useful as tracking beacons and high-end quantum sensory scanners if you ask me."

I added a new mission to my personal log.

Escape. Find this guy. Free all the cats. Kill this guy.

My mission log as a Vanquisher was getting longer and longer. I was mildly anxious about being able to complete all these quests. Where would I start?

That was a dumb question.

I'd start by escaping and getting the hell off Itokawa.