J.H. White's Puss in Boots: Book I

Chapter Eight

The Obelisk of Night, One Hundred and Fifty-Five Years Prior to Present Day

A tall figure emerged from the shadows. He came forward and stood in front of his three creations; the Tulpas. He was none other than The Great Mage Sino, the legendary founder of San Lorenzo and the most powerful wizard of all time. He stroked his beard and struck his staff firmly on the ground twice.

"Rise," he said in a powerful tone. The Tulpas, who had been on their knees in his presence, got to their feet. "My Tulpas, I now give you the gift of free will and cast you out into the universe to live normal lives." He walked over to the two known as White and Green. "You two shall live on Earth, protecting the town I have created." He then turned to Orange. "You will occupy the Realm of Shades, protecting the town from the Netherworld and giving help to those who seek it."

He drew his great staff. "Farewell, my children. Let it be known that you were created for a purpose, and one day you will all aid in preventing the world's demise." The Tulpas bowed their heads in unison, and The Great Mage cast a spell that propelled them deep into the cosmos.

Orange landed in a monotone alternate reality where she assumed the look of her monotone-colored sister (albeit her eyes of pure blackness), while Green and White landed on Earth, where their memories were immediately wiped and replaced with new identities; Cleevil, a young goblin, and Dulcinea, San Lorenzo's only cat and the head of the town's orphanage.

****

The universe was finally at peace. The Bloodwolf had been forever vanquished, Earth had been saved from annihilation, and Puss and Dulcinea were living a carefree life together. Surprisingly, Puss hadn't proposed to her yet, but was planning to that very day. Fate, however, had other ideas.

It was a truly gorgeous day, there was no denying that. The sun shone brightly, and a slight breeze whistled through the flowery meadow that the two found themselves in. This is perfect, Puss thought to himself. He had already gotten the ring, which he was currently hiding under his hat.

"Puss, isn't this beautiful?" Dulcinea gushed. Puss nodded.

"Indeed. At last, a place with no thieves." They had just finished driving the Calavera Oscura out of Deià, and it had been a mostly tiring day. Puss was trying not to act suspicious, making casual small talk to shield his surprise for her. Dulcinea's paw left his, and she said, "I'm going to go wash up a bit by the river."

"Okay." She left, and Puss pulled out the ring, holding it to the sunlight. It glimmered magnificently. He could barely wait to ask his lovely flame to become his mate forever.

Dulcinea kneeled down by the river, splashing the cool water on her face. She sighed in relief, and further admired the landscape Puss had brought her to. Suddenly, she felt the barrel of a gun being shoved into the side of her head. She saw three thieves, all armed.

"Let me go!" she protested. The head thief's response was to slap her across the face.

"Quiet," he said, in an accent that sounded more German than Spanish. "Money. Now."

Dulcinea struggled but couldn't escape the man's grasp. "I don't have anything."

"Boys," the thief called to his comrades. "Ten seconds. You shoot her." He began the countdown.

"10."

"9."

"8."

"7."

"6."

"5."

"4."

"3."

"2."

Dulcinea shut her eyes and fearful tears came. She knew this was the end. She would never share a kiss with Puss again.

"1."

"STOP!" Puss shouted, leaping down the hill and brandishing his sword at the thieves. "You get your hands off her." The head thief turned the gun away from Dulcinea and shoved it in between Puss' eyes.

"You," he said menacingly. "Money. Now."

"She goes free first," Puss seethed.

"Do you think I'm playing around, stupid gato?" he laughed, almost hysterically, as if he was mentally unstable. He pointed his gun at Dulcinea, and before Puss could stop him, one of her ears was gone. Blood trickled down the side of her face.

"Puss," she whimpered through sobs. "Give him the money." Puss wept for her; he couldn't stand to see her in pain.

"Okay, okay," he said solemnly. He reached inside his boot and handed the little sack of coins to the thief. The bandit opened the bag and grimaced.

"You have more."

Puss sputtered in dismay. "That's it, I swear!"

"LIAR!" the thief shouted. He brought a sickening punch to the side of Puss' face, and he went flying. "And, little gato, if you take one more step, I will personally blow your girlfriend into oblivion."

Puss rubbed his aching head for a moment, just a moment, and then got back up, running at the thief with his sword. There was no consideration in what he was about to attempt, only fury. "I'LL KILL YOU!" Time froze for a split second. Puss saw the thief raise the gun and pull the trigger. He hadn't been bluffing.

The gunshot echoed for miles.

"NO!" Puss wailed. He threw himself on Dulcinea's dead body and kissed her, kissed her over and over, hoping it would somehow bring her back. Puss heard laughter.

"Look at this!" the main thief mocked. "Oh, how adorable. She's dead, gato! Never coming back!" The Puss in Boots who spared the lives of the wicked, the Puss who had mercy all of a sudden died. His rage was the only part remaining.

He wanted revenge. Wiping the tears away from his eyes, he let out a fierce battle cry and threw his sword at such a velocity that it speared the head thief's abdomen all the way through the other side.

"You...you killed our leader!" one of the remaining thieves shouted angrily.

"Yes, and now I'm going to kill you as well." He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, preparing for battle. "This is for Dulcinea."

He lunged forward and got to work savagely taking them out, hacking off body parts like he was chopping wood.

Meanwhile, Dulcinea's spirit left her body. It was invisible, but she could see everything going on. She looked down and saw her own corpse, which was a frightening sight by any means. She was afraid; she didn't even know what was going on.

Out of nowhere, Sino appeared to comfort her. "Do not be scared, little one. You have merely left the mortal world and passed on into The Spirit Realm."

"Sino, I don't want this. I want to be back with Puss."

"Well, this is somewhat possible. I will make you a new body to inhabit and you can return to the mortals. But you cannot go back to Puss. He has witnessed your death, and therefore if he sees you alive, it will break the reality. I apologize, but if you disobey these orders I will have no choice but to kill him where he stands. This is how morality operates."

Dulcinea cried a bit, but then nodded in understanding. She had to move on.

"I will transport you back to San Lorenzo in your new body. Their memories of you were not erased when I cleared their minds of Puss. They will remember."

"Will I remember Puss?" Dulcinea asked.

"Yes. Now, you go."