Cheshire rode on Rocket’s back, arms dangling in front of the raccoon. He rested his chin on Rocket’s shoulder so as he had a view of what’s ahead of them and he told the raccoon where to go in gentle whispers.

“Left,” Cheshire said when the path split into two separating directions. “Past the boulder,” he instructed again when they came across a landmark. Again and again. Rocket followed obediently, letting the cat guide him through the canyon. Although they’ve walked for hours, the figure of the castle was nowhere in sight. It was probably past midnight—later when Rocket began to feel impatient.

“Are you sure we’re going in the right direction?” Rocket looked over the cat. He felt Cheshire’s breath blow against the fur on his neck and his breathing seemed irregular. “Hey smug-face, did you hear me?” Rocket jutted him up.

Cheshire was awoken from his light nap and responded to Rocket immediately, “Yes, yes, you’ll be out here by morning.”

“That’s not what I asked,” Rocket rolled his eyes, “But thanks for the estimation. Good to know that when daybreak arrives, I’ll be back out there.”

“Aye…” Cheshire replied, “and I too would be free.”

“That’s great then,” Rocket remarked, “You know with your ability, you’d make a fine thief. That is, if you’re a bit on the bad side. Where do you plan to reside?”

“Somewhere…”

“You’d have to be more specific than that,” Rocket snorted, “Actually I couldn’t care less where you go but you know, just in case I ever need a favor from you. At least tell me where in the galaxy I would most likely find you.”

“If I know where I would go, I’d tell you.”

Rocket didn’t understand. The sentence was too vague for him. “That’s the lousiest thing I’ve ever heard. You can’t simply just travel the galaxy without knowing where you’re headed. That’s called getting lost and dying later on.”

“If given a chance, I would like to visit Terra for the last time before I go.”

“Go where?” Rocket was really confused but the feline didn’t seem to have the intention of enlightening him.

“Could you drop me for a second?” Cheshire didn’t even wait for Rocket to bend down before he jumped off the raccoon’s back. It was as if his request was simply for courtesy. He went to the side of the path and leaned against a giant stone, panting. “Could you wait for me here?” each word seemed to be difficulty for the cat to say. He panted much more than just seconds ago and his eyes were narrowing to slits.

“Why, where are you going?” Rocket asked, “Can’t I come with you?”

Weakly, Cheshire nodded to disagree. “It’ll be fast. I promise you when the first ray of the sun lights the sky, you’ll be riding home inside your ship.”

“No forget about that. Where are you going?” Rocket was surprised himself at what he was saying. He didn’t care about the cat. He wasn’t supposed to yet here he is, all curious as to where the cat was going.

“It doesn’t matter,” Cheshire gasped and bent his knees, ready to jump. Before he could push off the ground, he felt a hand lock tight against his forearm.

“You are not leaving me here wondering where the hell you might be,” Rocket pulled Cheshire closer to him. The cat was easily pulled off balance but Rocket caught him inside his arms. Cheshire was trembling. Rocket felt it when the cat landed in his arms.

“I’m serious, Rocket,” Cheshire squirmed out of Rocket’s grip, “You knowing where I am won’t contribute to your escape much less affect it.”

“Here’s a rule about me,” Rocket began, “If you’re hiding something, I don’t care. If you’re hiding it from me, however, I’ll get it out. Now tell me,” Rocket pulled Cheshire’s face close to him, “Where are you going that’s so confidential, I mustn’t know about it?”

Cheshire evaded eye contact with the raccoon albeit it was difficult given they were so close. As the seconds went by, he ran out of options. He escaped Rocket by evaporating and materializing a few feet away from him. He jumped in the air and floated away, determined to reach the top of the cliff.

“Don’t make me shoot you,” Rocket warned, “Get down here.”

Cheshire paid him no mind and kept on ascending.

Rocket aimed his bazooka but before he could even shoot a projectile, the cat was descending rapidly into the chasm.

“Cheshire!” Rocket yelled. He dropped his bazooka and went down on all fours, running as fast as he could to try and catch the falling cat. He was running straight towards the chasm but his eyes were too focused on timing the right jump to catch Cheshire. By the last steps of the earth, Rocket didn’t think about whether he’d survive the fall. He jumped towards Cheshire and embraced the unconscious cat. He positioned Cheshire so as the cat would be above him and he fell first, breaking the water.

They descend deep into the water before floating back up and getting carried by the mild current. Rocket simply swam to the riverside and pulled Cheshire by the collar of his suit.

He gasped for air, looking at the crazy feline he just rescued. Where could he be going that he didn’t want Rocket to know?

***

Rocket created a fire some distance away from the river. He gathered twigs and pulled out desert shrubs to provide tinder for the flames. He rolled a giant rock near the fire and took off his suit to dry and avoid hypothermia.

He placed the unconscious cat near the flames so as he would have an equal share of warmth but the heat wasn’t able to reach past his wet clothing. Rocket went over to Cheshire and unzipped his wet jumpsuit when he noticed the water dropping from over-absorption looked crimson in color.

Rocket hurriedly took off Cheshire’s suit and traced the source of the blood from an opened stitch on his back. What surprised him more was the familiarity of what seemed to be technology he’s seen before. He had a cybernetics skeleton but much more complex than Rocket’s ever seen. He couldn’t mistake the technology as from Halfworld. At that point, Rocket began to question the origin of his companion.

There were three radiators bulging out of Cheshire’s flesh—two in place of each scapula and one just above the tail. Thin plastic tubes ran in and out of the radiators, transporting fluids and blood. In place of the spine was the opened wound. Rocket simply pulled the plastic thread and ran it through where it was sewn. He knotted it securely so as it wouldn’t open again and proceeded to examine the unconscious cat.

He couldn’t get over what he saw. He promised himself he wouldn’t get too involved with the planet but now he wanted to throw himself to the cat asking information. When he saw the cat’s structure, one thing came into his mind—Halfworld.

He knew the pattern the creators made in modifying them. He knew just how their skeletons were torn, repositioned, subtracted and replaced with metallic parts so as a quadrupedal being could become bipedal. How could he have not noticed that the cat had prosthetic hands!

“But no one in Halfworld could float and evaporate,” Rocket brushed the back of his hand against Cheshire’s cheek. “Or look this creepy with a smile.” He started having doubts again. Rocket examined the cat, looking at his metallic clavicle—since felines didn’t have any—down to the most familiar detail. He was experimented twice, Rocket thought. The bulging radiators weren’t Halfworld technology anymore. And the smile… it wasn’t natural, no.

He took the opportunity in understanding what the cat really was but nothing he could really confirm unless Cheshire answers his questions later on. He cupped the cat’s face and pressed his fingers on the muscles around the mouth, on the cheek and he found what he was looking for somewhere near the jaw.

There was something implanted inside responsible for the smile. He opened Cheshire’s mouth and using his claw, he followed the shape of that smile. The answer lied inside. There were hinges he could only guess was connected somewhere near the jaw that stretched the muscle so as he would appear smiling.

Whoever did this was a monster.

***

Cheshire’s promise was broken when he woke up in the morning, bare and weak. He came back to consciousness with a hypnic jerk, as if his soul departed from the body and was pulled back in. He sat up first and realized that he was naked and his clothes seem to be out of sight. He rubbed the sleep off his eyes and saw the raccoon by the river, staring wistfully into the current.

He floated to get up and vaporized his body, leaving but a floating head to approach the focused raccoon.

“Top of the morning, good sir,” Cheshire greeted, “It seems as though as my garment is out of possession.”

“You said when the first ray of the sun lights the sky, I’d be riding my ship back home,” Rocket said dryly, not taking his eyes off the river.

“Forgive me… I—”

“Never mind that though,” Rocket turned his head to Cheshire. “Who are you?”

The question was enough to make Cheshire frown if he could. He evaded answering that question but he could only avoid it for so long. After a while, he answered, “I am supposed to be–”

“I don’t give a damn who you’re supposed to be,” Rocket interjected. Rage was in his eyes and Cheshire didn’t understand where all the anger was coming from. “Just tell me who you are.”

“Have you answered that question yourself?” Cheshire returned. He was mellow as he was sorrowful even if his smile was so deceiving. “Who are you,” Cheshire quoted, “You call yourself Rocket as I call myself Cheshire but who are we?”

Rocket swallowed. Something inside him was hurting.

Cheshire materialized his body, showing Rocket how much he was perverted with metals and wires; how he was took apart and reformed to stand on two legs, to have hands that could be able to hold and yet maintain retractable claws hiding inside him.

“I’ve seen it all,” Rocket tore his eyes away from Cheshire. “But why hide something like this from me? You and I are the same.”

Cheshire placed a hand on his elbow. “I didn’t want to remind you of a past you want to forget… we want to forget.”

“That’s not how it is, you idiot,” Rocket gritted his teeth, “It sucks being alone… knowing there’s someone like me…” Rocket breathed, “Fills a gap…”

“It does, doesn’t it?” Cheshire just now realized that that was what he felt when he first saw Rocket. A void inside him was filled.

Rocket walked over to Cheshire so close they almost touched. He brushed his hand against the feline’s cheek until he was reaching in for his touch. It was when he began to purr that he snapped out from the pleasurable trance and distanced away from Rocket.

Wide-eyed and awed, Cheshire pulled his tail in front of him to cover whatever part his thin tail could conceal. Rocket stared with a neutral gaze until Cheshire vaporized his body, leaving a floating head in his wake.

“I’d like my clothes back please,” Cheshire said.

“There’s nothing you could hide that I haven’t seen already,” Rocket chuckled.

“I thought I was the pervert,” Cheshire meowed, “It’s not fair you get to see my entirety whilst I haven’t seen yours. I demand you disrobe immediately.”

“You could have seen me too if you weren’t asleep last night,” Rocket folded his arms, “Or if you woke up before me.”

“Just hand me my clothes, please.”

“It’s over by that rock, across where you slept. I dried it by the fire,” Rocket pointed.

The floating head went back to where he first woke up and traced his suit across it. He materialized and hid out of view from the raccoon before spreading open his folded garment. One foot, he slipped inside and as he was about to slip the other, someone tapped him on the back.

Startled, he almost tripped on his own suit when he turned to see Rocket just behind him.

“I still haven’t asked you about those,” Rocket said. He was referring to the radiators on Cheshire’s back running with plastic tubes carrying fluids.

“Allow me to clothe myself first,” Cheshire hissed, “God that is so rude.”

Rocket folded his hands in front of him and kept watch. “Go on. Put your clothes on.”

“Do you mind if you turn around?”

“Yes,” Rocket answered shortly, “I told you before, there’s nothing you could hide that I haven’t seen already.” Cheshire didn’t move. They were in for a staring contest. Eventually, Rocket turned, letting out a deep sigh, “Just hurry up.”

Cheshire slipped back inside his suit as fast as he could, zipping the one-piece clothing on the front. He endeavored to reach for the zipper on his back but he failed to pull it up time and time again.

“Are you done?” Rocket asked.

“Almost,” Cheshire replied, “Just have to close the zipper on the back.”

Rocket turned and walked over to Cheshire, “Who designed your suit anyway?” he asked, “Why put a zipper where you can’t reach?”

“It’s for easy access whenever I need stabilizing.”

Rocket raised a brow as he pulled the zipper up, “You’re unstable?”

Cheshire began, “These radiators on my back are what allow me to float and evaporate.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Rocket interjected, “I don’t know any technology that could alter the form of matter according to will.”

“With proper materials, a technology such as this one is very possible,” Cheshire jumped to the air to demonstrate. “You’re not in your universe, Rocket,” Cheshire reminded, “There are infinite Earths in the infinite universes and this place is teeming with humans having irregular DNA. They call them mutants.”

“Mutants?” Rocket repeated like it was the most absurd thing ever.

“My scientist found a human that could float and evaporate to his will so she kidnapped him and took his DNA. She tortured us both until the human died. Ali—” Cheshire paused, almost blurting out the name of his scientist. He corrected himself, “My scientist couldn’t care less if he was alive or not. She just needed his body. She performed experiments in creating these radiators now on my back running with that human’s fluids.”

“You mentioned that you needed stabilizing,” Rocket remembered, “Why?”

“These radiators are imperfect,” Cheshire answered, “My scientist wanted to recreate them but I no longer wanted to undergo torture.” Cheshire took a rock and placed it on his palm. With his hand, the rock was able to evaporate and materialize once again. “I have a small radius of influence,” Cheshire explained, “It could be just a body-fit influence or a meter radius, depending on my will and because of that, I am able to vaporize things with me. However…”

“You’re unstable,” Rocket guessed, “And sometimes the radius of influence gets out of hand.”

“Almost,” Cheshire said, “If I get too unstable, I’ll vanish completely, vaporizing everything around me.” He chuckled and added, “Nothing can block it not even the strongest material. Everything made of matter will evaporate.”

Rocket swallowed. He was afraid, no doubt. And he hasn’t felt this strong a sensation before since he witnessed the power of an infinity stone. He no longer looked at Cheshire like he was some fellow from Halfworld. Rocket saw him as a weapon—a very dangerous one.

Cheshire saw the fear in Rocket’s eyes. He landed on the ground and reassured the terrified raccoon, “I’ve just been stabilized. You have nothing to fear as long as you’re with me.”

“You can’t say that when you’re a ticking bomb!” Rocket yelled.

“I am not a bomb,” Cheshire lied. At least he wasn’t a time-bomb like Rocket guessed.

“Well never mind that,” Rocket flailed his hands, “When do you think you’ll destabilize?”

“About a few moons,” Cheshire replied dryly, “You’re long gone by then.” He turned his back and walked to the river. “We won’t be able to move safely during day,” he said, “Why don’t we head in town for a drink? We both need it.”