Aldric leaned back lazily in the air with visible irritation.
The floating crate of alcohol drifted beside him while the control deck settled back into an uneasy quiet.
The black cat immediately placed both paws against the bottle now resting in Draven's hand.
"Meow."
Possessive.
Demanding.
Draven glanced at it briefly.
"You are not drinking this."
The cat blinked once.
Then slowly pushed its face against the bottle anyway.
Aldric watched the scene with narrowed eyes before finally speaking again.
"…You should probably keep an eye on that thing."
Kaelira looked between them curiously.
"The cat?"
"Yes, the damn cat."
Aldric pointed lazily toward the black creature currently trying to claim ownership over his alcohol.
The cat ignored him completely.
Aldric's crimson gaze narrowed further.
"At first, I thought it was coincidence."
A pause.
"But?" Kaelira prompted.
His eyes flicked toward Draven.
"That little bastard only stops moving when you speak. That's because it belongs to you, I get it."
Silence.
Kaelira blinked.
The cultist quietly observed from the side of the room while holding the wrapped artifact closer against herself.
Even the pilot on the floor cracked one eye open again.
Aldric continued staring at the cat.
"It doesn't react normally though. It looks normal."
The cat slowly turned its head toward him.
Still resting comfortably against Draven's shoulder.
Aldric's expression flattened.
"See? That right there."
The cat blinked once.
Then deliberately pressed closer against Draven's neck.
"…Yeah," Kaelira admitted quietly.
"That's actually a little strange."
Aldric scoffed.
"I thought it was just some stupid cat, but it's not like I'd expect a normal cat to come out of an egg."
A pause.
"But now I'm wondering why the hell it looks like that. Apart from it being weird, there isn't really anything else."
The room grew quieter again.
Draven finally spoke.
Calm.
Flat.
Cold enough to cut through the room instantly.
"Let me make this very clear."
Everyone's attention shifted toward him.
Draven's hand rested calmly against the control interface while blue mana sigils rotated slowly around the pilot seat.
The black cat remained curled loosely against his shoulder.
Then Draven spoke again.
"Don't touch it."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Even Aldric paused slightly at the tone.
Not anger.
Not irritation.
Something sharper.
A warning.
Aldric stared at him for several long seconds before speaking slowly.
"…That serious?"
Draven's eyes remained on the control displays ahead of him.
"Yes."
Another long pause followed.
Then Aldric frowned faintly.
"…Now I'm even more curious."
His crimson gaze shifted toward the cat again.
"I genuinely thought it was just a weird creature."
The cat stared back at him without fear.
Aldric narrowed his eyes.
"So why exactly are you protecting it like that?"
The room remained completely still.
Then—
Draven answered quietly.
"Because it's mine."
Silence.
Kaelira blinked.
The cultist looked mildly startled.
Even the pilot on the floor slowly opened both eyes at that response.
Aldric stared at Draven for several seconds.
Then suddenly barked out a dry laugh.
"…That's it?"
"You're threatening me over a cat because it belongs to you?"
Draven glanced at him calmly.
He did not answer.
Another silence settled over the control deck.
Aldric's laughter faded into it, swallowed by the steady hum of the fortress.
Draven did not react.
His eyes remained on the rotating navigation arrays drifting around the control chair while streams of blue mana flowed steadily beneath his fingers.
The black cat rested comfortably against his shoulder, watching everyone.
Waiting.
Aldric studied him for another moment before scoffing softly.
Then he took another drink from the bottle.
This time—
he said nothing else.
No mocking remark.
No challenge.
No sarcasm.
Just quiet drinking while floating lazily near the side of the room.
Kaelira noticed immediately.
Which only made her more curious.
Her ears twitched faintly as she stared at the cat resting against Draven's shoulder.
Then at Draven himself.
Then back at the cat.
Several seconds passed before she finally spoke carefully.
"…Master?"
Draven's gaze remained on the controls.
Kaelira hesitated briefly.
"He said it came from an egg."
Silence.
The black cat lazily blinked at her.
Kaelira pointed immediately.
"That already sounds insane, by the way."
Aldric snorted faintly into his drink.
Kaelira ignored him.
"But…"
Her golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"…what exactly is it?"
The room quieted again.
Even the cultist looked toward Draven now.
The pilot remained on the floor.
Mostly unconscious.
Probably.
Aldric finally broke the silence first, clicking his tongue as Kaelira's question lingered in the air.
"...You damn idiot," he muttered, eyes half-lidded as he took another drink. "What does it look like to you?"
Kaelira blinked, glancing down at the black cat curled against Draven's shoulder.
"…It looks like a cat," she said slowly, as if the answer was obvious but still somehow incomplete.
Aldric let out a sharp, humorless laugh.
"Then why the hell are you asking such a stupid question when it's right in front of you?"
Kaelira's ears twitched. She straightened slightly, irritation flickering across her face.
"Because it came out of an egg," she shot back immediately. "I've never seen or even heard of a cat coming out of an egg."
Her gaze shifted briefly toward Draven.
"He said it himself. That's not normal."
Aldric paused mid-drink.
Then slowly lowered the bottle.
"…Now you know," he said flatly.
Kaelira frowned.
"That doesn't explain anything."
"It explains enough," Aldric replied, waving a hand lazily. "It's a cat. It meows. It sit. It drinks my alcohol when it feels like it. End of story."
Kaelira's expression tightened.
"That's not an explanation."
Aldric's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Brat. I'm telling you to stop making it complicated."
Kaelira opened her mouth again, but he cut her off immediately.
"Look here kid," Aldric said, voice sharpening just a little, "you can see it's a cat. I see it's a cat. Everyone can see it's a cat."
He gestured vaguely toward the unconscious man.
"So shut up and stop asking useless questions."
A brief silence settled over the control deck.
Kaelira's jaw tightened, but she didn't immediately respond this time.
The black cat, still perched against Draven's shoulder, slowly turned its head toward Aldric.
It blinked once.
Then—
"Meow."
Soft.
Perfectly calm.
Almost insulting in its simplicity.
Aldric stared at it for a moment.
Then took another drink like he had already decided this was no longer worth his energy.