Excerpt

The whole party was tipsy and just as clearly from the Arcturus system. Still fresh from the transport tram. Frisky's sniffer caught a whiff of Arcturan stardust on them, anyway. The cruise was a big event for them. Girls' week out or whatever. They appeared to be headed to the pool to soak up artificial UV and fiddle with frivolous festivities.

He laughed at his alliteration.

"Fiddle with frivolous festivities," he mumbled. "That's good!"

"What's that you say, little kitty?" the girl said.

"Cut it with the condescension, all right? I'm nowhere near a little kitty."

"Oh. So sorry." The passenger giggled and took another sip of her cocktail.

Ignoring the young woman, Frisky, his tail now at full mast and swaying with perfect majesty, continued at a comfortable stroll down the warm, comfortably designed walk-tube that ran between the pool ring and the general-purpose entertainment deck.

The thoroughly undignified feline belch that came with the beginnings of a good hairball drew glances, but he found he didn't care.

"Meow Tais for the win," Frisky said confidently.

As if there was any other way.

Though he would never have admitted it to the boys, Frisky was feeling more than a little tipsy from the Meow Tais. He kind of liked the sensation, though. It was something like gliding, he supposed. Much better than zero-g because, to Frisky, zero-g barked hairballs.

Being just the slightest bit inebriated was fun, though!

He toggled his connection to the ship's recorders.

"Marvel," he said with a feline hiccup. The ship responded. "Make a note on my record. Have more Meow Tais."

Command accepted and annotated with time and position. Your blood-alcohol ratio is registering at increased levels. Please remember to force fluids.

With a hard flip of his tail, Frisky snapped off the communication stream.

"Don't tell me what to do."

He dodged feet and legs on his way through the tube.

The pool was a popular post-launch destination, and the collision he'd had served to back things up until the flow of passengers corrected itself.

Suddenly another leg appeared between Frisky and his destination.

He sat back and stared up at the impediment.

The owner of the leg turned out to be a striking creature, with skin that was a deep, iridescent green, and facial features that were sharp and angular. Their eyes were large and multifaceted, glinting with excitement that was beyond Frisky's ability to comprehend. No one should be that happy.

"Never fear, little human," the owner of the offending leg said as they leaned over to pet Frisky. "I am Arcturian. From your Boötes constellation. I meant no harm."

"Don't call me human," Frisky growled. "I'm a cat! And I've got your Boötes right here!" Frisky punctuated the threat with a stretching of his front claw and a snap of his tail, the combination of which made him wobble again.

"Oh, so sorry," the Arcturian straightened and said with a laugh. "I'll see you at the show!" they said as if there would be no reason to be on the ship if not for All-Knowing's presence.

Alone again, Frisky padded further down the hallway, focusing on avoiding the damned legs, wheels, and anti-gravity carts that whipsawed this way and that.

"Doesn't anybody watch where I'm going!" he complained to a sweeper bot that almost caught his paw in its maw. The device beeped and swept up a bit of lint that had wafted into a corner.

Frisky turned into a quiet corridor and reached out to connect to Marvel's computer. The sweeper bot would not be happy after being rung up on charges of insubordination and failing to respond to a cat.

Frisky generally avoided talking to Marvel, though, because he found it to be droll and more than a bit full of themselves.

There could be only one Cat in Charge, and the spacecraft seemed to think that was always themselves.

"Access provided," the ship's too-sweet tone came to him after the protocols exchanged. "How may I help you?"

Frisky blinked. He was drawing a blank. It had something to do with … "Errrrgghh. I dun't 'member," he said. Even in direct connection, it felt like his voice was slurring. "But at least you got the righ' question."

"If you can't remember, then please do have a good day."

"No, wait! Don't run off yet."

"All right. Access provided, how may I help you?"

He glanced at the Arcturans who were still in view and flashed on his conversation with the boys. "What's with this All-Bear guy," he said with a put-upon yawn.

He hiccupped again.

"You mean, the Altair guy? As in Altair the All-Knowing?"

"Right. That's what I said."

The machine paused and the voices around them rose in Frisky's presence.

"Are you acceptable?" the machine responded.

"You're asking if I'm all right?"

"I am."

"You're asking a cat if he's all right?"

The urge to scratch something rose inside, but his only choice was to dig his claws into some of the sweet flesh striding past down the corridor. That wouldn't go down well.

"I am."

"I'm amazeballs," he replied with tart bitterness. "Are you acceptable?"

"You seem a bit inebriated."

Frisky puffed up his fur. "I'm fhh … I'm fine. So, what's with the All-Bear guy?"

"Altair, you mean?"

"Whatever." Frisky waved his tail. "Who the hell is he and why's he getting more attention than a cat?"

The computer obliged by pushing a holographic display of the magician into Frisky's mind. Altair was a tall, lanky creature with a long, thin nose and piercing blue eyes. He wore a black cloak and a wide-brimmed hat, and his fingers were adorned with glittering rings.

"Trippy," Frisky replied.

Just wait.

Altair's cloak swirled in a dizzying pattern then, and his rings glittered with such a scintillating rainbow that Frisky had trouble focusing on it.

He blinked at his confusion, then surprised himself by giggling. A moment later, though, Frisky eyes narrowed. "So, he sparkles? Whooo cares?"

"His tricks are astounding," Marvel replied. "He makes things disappear, makes them levitate, and even change form. And that's before his mind-reading and self-help banter kicks in."

"Sounds like a showoff."

"His events are always sold out. Audiences rave about him."

Frisky snorted. "Freaky," he said. An idea began to form. "Having a few more foot stompers at my show couldn't hurt, and these rubes need some real entertainment. If he's all that, maybe I can steal his limelight."

Marvel flashed inquisitiveness. "How do you plan on doing that?"

Frisky licked his paw thoughtfully. "I'll think of something. Maybe I can knock over one of his props. That always gets a laugh."

The computer sighed. "You know, Frisky, there are other ways to get attention besides causing chaos."

Frisky rolled his eyes. "Where's the fun in that?"

The computer did not respond.