Prologue: One year ago
======================

"No! Please!" the cat cried out as she threw herself against walls that were
barricaded to prevent her escape. "Not this time! I need my kittens! They need
to suckle. They will die if they don't!"

She scratched at the walls with a wide eyed craze, her long black tail swishing
erratically through the air as she screeched her protest.

"How long are we going to have to listen to this?" asked a voice outside her
enclosure. "I've half a mind to put her out of her misery."

A second voice chimed in, sounding rather disgusted. "Nevermind that" said a
feline voice. "How many kits were there? Did she birth a black one this time?"

"Actually… " said the first voice in response. "There are two."

"Two? Honestly? Good… the king will be most pleased. I'll take those two. You
know what to do with the rest."

"Aww, Sasha, do I have too? It stinks down there!" the first voice said with an
unmistakable whine.

"Just do it," Sasha said with a sigh, "You know I can't stand the sight of it."

With that she turned and hurried off, leaving the sound of mewling kittens
quickly behind her.

****************

Rufus was a large orange tom with black stripes. He was known to strut proudly
through the city, his tail held high in the air like a great orange banner
proclaiming his entrance. The people of Celest, they had their princes and
princesses, but amongst the cats where it really mattered he was king.

He kept his council within the Deepstone Memorial Bathhouse. Long ago the
building was constructed around a large oak tree which, in time, had proven to
hide an intricate network of nooks and crannies fit to house even the most
royal of felines. Amongst one of the higher branches was where he was dozing
with a soft white and grey tabby when he was rudely interrupted.

"M'lorrd!" cried Jengo, a stark black cat barely out of kittenhood. He
struggled to climb upwards, tangling his tail amongst the closely knit branches
as he gazed at Rufus with wide-eyed panic. "T-The rats! M'lord! Th-the-they-"

"THEY WHAT!" Rufus snarled as he climbed to his feet, his own tail waving
erratically as he bared his teeth in anger.

Jengo finally pulled himself up onto the large branch and lowered his head
before his king, his shoulders slumping and his tail quivering with fear.
"Forgive m-me m-my lord." Jengo said trying to keep a whimper from his voice.
"but... the rats, they are growing bolder as their numbers grow! My littermate
Jenna had one of her own newborn kittens stolen from her while it was suckling
at her teat!"

Rufus widened his eyes as he stepped forwards. "You mean to tell me Jengo that
your littermate allowed a stinking rat to take one of her kittens?"

"What is it?" said a soft voice behind the king. Sasha, a beautiful long-haired
white and grey tabby stretched elegantly as she rose quietly to her feet to
stand next to Rufus.

"Nothing m'love." he said in a softened voice as he briefly lowered his head
and pressed his muzzle lightly between her ears. "Just the mewlings of a scared
kitten; shall I send him away with a torn ear m'love?"

She emitted a soft purr as she inclined her head to meet his muzzle with her
own. "No dear," she laughed. "Let us just get back to our nap." She turned her
head to cast a wry look at Jengo. "Even a kitten would know it is sacrilege to
interrupt a napping cat."

The king rumbled a laugh, as he nuzzled her neck. He quickly turned to Jengo,
the warmth quickly leaving his eyes. "You heard my love." Suddenly Rufus surged
forwards, hissing as his claws stopped only a few inches from Jengo's face.

Jengo cried out in surprise and threw himself backwards, causing him to lose
his footing. He cried out in fear as he tumbled downwards, bouncing off the
branches and landing into the pool below. The cat king's laughter followed him
all the way down.

****************

Jenna paced nervously over the fresh grave, her ears flattened tight across her
skull as she mewled in frustration. Suddenly his scent was on the wind. He had
returned!

She turned to meet her littermate, bounding towards his scent as he came into
view. He walked slowly towards her, his fur dripping with each step.

"Jengo!" she said. "Are you ready? The vermin is waiting -- Why are you all
wet?"

"Rufus is not coming." he said quietly as he walked past her and jumped
silently onto the new gravestone.

She stared up at her littermate, her black fur shining in the moonlight. "What
do you mean, he isn't coming?" She said, sitting back on her haunches. "Rufus
needs to be lure-"

"I know, Jenna!" Jengo hissed. "But he cannot be bothered."

"But... I gave the vermin my kitten!" She said with her eyes widened in
disbelief. "I heard my poor baby cry as they ripped him apart!"

Jengo kept his back to her, his posture mirroring hers as he raised a foreleg
to calmly lick his paw.

"Hush Jenna, you'll have more kittens. You don't have the means to feed another
mouth right now anyway."

She huffed softly as she turned away to leap upwards upon a nearby granite
headstone.

"You shame me brother," she said, quietly trying her best to retain her
dignity. "My kitten was more than a mouth to feed; he was the only one in the
litter to survive-"

Jengo snorted. "It has always been that way with our line, sister. Only one
survives the litter, and that one is always black."

"Both of us survived!" Jenna replied quickly. "You are as superstitious as
those two-leggers who shun our dark fur, thinking us cursed."

"WE ARE CURSED!" spat Jengo as he glared at her with his sparkling emerald
eyes. With a wave of his tail he quickly looked away, his forced calm returning
as he brought his attention back to his paw. "Both of us survived because you
and I are one and the same. There is no telling us apart. You survived because
you look like me."

Jenna winced and eyed her littermate carefully. "And... what if it is you that
looks like me?"

Jengo shook his head and rose to all fours, ignoring his sister with a flick of
his tail.

"I'm going out to meet the vermin," he said as he jumped off the headstone and
walked past her. "We need to discuss other plans."

"I'll not be giving them any more of my kittens!" she spat after him.

"Then you should pray that you have no more kittens then, my sister, for I
believe they like the taste of your offspring," he said, whispering to himself
as he continued on, pretending not to hear her.

****************

Under the cover of nightfall he walked the city streets, his ebon fur allowing
him to be one with the shadows. He crept quietly, his ears swiveling constantly
as he stayed in tune with his surroundings. Obviously he wasn't in tune enough
as suddenly he was knocked onto his side. He stifled a yowl of surprise with a
hiss of irritation as he lashed out at the pile of mangy fur on top of him.

"Glimke!" Jengo whispered harshly as he struggled beneath the large mass of
fur, while deep blood red eyes stared down at him.

"Where King...?" The furball hissed back at him unmoving, his eyes unblinking.

Jengo narrowed his eyes and flattened his ears across his head as he looked up
at Glimke angrily. Glimke wasn't fooled, however; he saw the way Jengo's maw
quivered, saw his tail inching ever so slowly between his legs. The ball of fur
laughed and placed a dirty claw to Jengo's neck.

"I kill you cat like I kill king." Glimke's maw widened with that, and a soft
chuckle escaped him.

Jengo swallowed nervously and shook his head. "Wait!" he cried as his bowels
turned to water. "I'll bring you the king! Our plan didn't work, I told you it
wouldn't work, the king doesn't care if my sister's kittens live or die!"

Glimke shook his head. "Too late for little kitten." he said as he grinned,
smacking his lips hungrily. "Your sister should give us more gifts."

Suddenly the shadows began to move as more immense rats emerged from their
hiding place. Jengo's tail swayed slowly along the ground as he mewled softly
in fear. The rodents surrounded him; each one stood larger than any cat save
the king. Some of them appeared deformed, having two tails, or an extra set of
legs. One of the rats was even segmented like a worm, with over a hundred legs.
Each of the monstrosities glared down at him silently with their sparkling red
eyes.

"Y-you... all of you are tainted," said Jengo, his breath catching in his
throat. "M-my line is also tainted! Don't kill me! You are my brethren!" he
cried, unable to mask the fear in his protest.

Not too far away, a tired voice yawned mockingly. "Really, Jengo... get with
the times. The rats have been tainted for years and so has your bastard line."

Jengo twisted his body, still pinned beneath the bulk of the huge rat on top of
him. His ears swiveled to the source of that unmistakable voice.

"Rufus!" Jengo cried. "You must help me! Look how bold the rats have grown!
Attacking a cat within the night!"

Rufus inclined his head and laughed loudly, his tail curling around his form as
he sat back on his haunches. "You fool traitor! You were just organizing to
kill me!" Rufus said with a laugh. "Who do you think has made them this way? Do
you think that your littermate's kit was the first of your line's tainted flesh
to be fed to the rats?" He laughed once more as he flashed his teeth. "These
rats will do anything for a taste of your line's flesh, but they serve me."

"B-but… Rufus.. you ally with the tainted!" Jengo spat in disbelief. "I was
just trying to warn you!"

Rufus rolled his eyes. "Hush coward, I knew of your plan all along; the only
reason Glimke and his horde here went along with it was because I wanted to
know what you were up to."

Rufus padded towards Jengo, looking down at him with a feral grin.
"It is the flesh of your line that has made the rats this way; the two-leggers
are right to shun you. They know you for what you really are," Rufus said,
hissing softly as he stood within the ring of tainted rats. "Why do you think
only one survives of the litter?"

Jengo shook his head, his eyes wide as saucers as his form trembled. "No... my
family..." he said astounded.

"All fed to the rats," the king said with a laugh. "To make my army stronger."
Rufus turned his head, turning his attention upon Glimke. "Where is his
littermate?" he asked. "It's time to end this game and house her in the
breeding stocks. The mother has finally died and after we kill this one," he
said, indicating Jengo, "she'll be the only one of her line left."

Glimke finally took his eyes away from Jengo, allowing them to rest warily on
the king. "The black cats weak of taint." he said speaking slowly. "The line no
more strong."

Rufus nodded his head. "I feared that," he said thoughtfully as he licked his
paw. "We could always do experiments. From watching the strange two-leggers
I've found that taint does make one adaptable... what if we were to mate her
with one of your rodents?"

Before Glimke could reply Jengo yowled, a surge of power taking him as he
finally found himself able to squirm out from under Glimke. He bounded quickly,
jumping over the ring of rats that reacted much too slowly to catch him.

Jengo raced down the street, his maw frothing in fear as he ran recklessly,
upsetting flowerpots and any other obstacles that stood in his way. He heard
the pursuit, nothing more than the rustling of shadows but he heard it. His
eyes widened as he imagined it was all around him but still he pressed forward
running to his sister to warn her to escape.

It felt to him as if he had been running for hours, but truthfully it had only
been a matter of minutes. He no longer heard the rustling, but he wasn't
fooled; they knew where he was going. He just had to get there first.

Finally he reached his home. He bounded up on a one of the headstones and
called out to her, his feline voice echoing amongst the mausoleums of the
graveyard. When she didn't appear he called again and again. "She has to be
here," he thought.

Finally she appeared, stretching and glaring at him as she emerged from behind
a gravestone.

"What is it-"

"We must go now!" he screamed at her. "They are coming!"

She huffed softly. "They may be coming, but they are coming for you. I will
claim I took no part in this."

Jengo stared at her with wide eyes. Slowly they narrowed as he nodded. "Fine
Jenna..." he said and he jumped down from the headstone. "Tell them I ran in
the other direction then... at least give me that."

Jenna shrugged as she turned her back to him, allowing him once more to
disappear into the night.

In a few moments they were upon her. She stood to meet them unafraid, a smile
gracing her feline features. "Looking for my-"

"Kill him now!" Glimke cried out, his eyes sparking with rage, his anger
enflamed from having to bring the chase this far. The mutated rats surrounded
her as she cried out in protest but in their anger they did not hear as they
tore her limb from limb, eating ravenously at her flesh in hopes for the taste
of taint that was promised in her line. Her protest died in her throat as her
life's blood pooled upon the ground below her.

****************

When it was finally finished and the rats had left, each one with Jenna's blood
on their maw, Jengo reappeared. He walked slowly to the remains of his torn
sister and nuzzled her head with his maw. He sighed softly against her fur. "No
more taint kittens for the rats… I am the last. The king shall have trouble
controlling his army now." He turned his thoughts back to his sister as he
exhaled softly mewling against her cold body.

"I'm sorry, sister." he said with a soft whisper. "You were meant to die
because you looked like me."

He gave what was left of her blood-matted head a soft lick before he arose to
his feet and turned sharply, darting off into the shadows.