Goddess of Karnak 2
When Adrian woke up the next morning, he could not bring himself to change out of his frumpy night clothes or scrounge his empty kitchen for breakfast. Instead, he dragged himself back to the armchair in front of the cold fireplace and picked up the journal that lay there. No matter how hard he tried, Adrian still could not wrap his mind around the whole thing; his genetically modified lynx had been recreated into a human courtesy of Dr. Manhattan and was now living on a planet a galaxy away, leading a new human race. He would have never believed it had he not come across this book. Even then, Adrian questioned its credibility, but seeing the side notes by Rorschach and Dr. Manhattan eliminated all doubt. Bubastis had truly written this. He felt her presence in her words and even in her handwriting, which he had never seen before. What did his precious Bubastis look like now? More importantly, what did she think of him now?
Adrian continued reading from where he left off the night before.
People all around called him Ozymandias, Adrian Veidt, or just Adrian, but to me he'll always be my Daddy…
I had fallen asleep in his arms, and a few hours later I opened my eyes to find myself curled up in a little bed. My initial response was to whip my head around and take survey of my new surroundings. The walls were not white but a light shade of lavender. All sorts of things occupied the room, the names of which I learned over time; water bowl, scratching post, snack bowl, litter box. In the middle of the room was a fuzzy purple rug. But what really struck me was the golden chest situated in one corner of the room. I found myself crawling tentatively towards it, curious about this sparkly container. Peeking over the side of the chest, I beheld a sea of toys waiting to be used, with everything from stuffed animals and bouncy balls to miniature vehicles and hand puppets. One object in particular intrigued me: a box with a side handle that rested on top of the pile. I flattened my ears, and with one of my paws I batted at the box and knocked it off its perch. With a loud crash, it clattered to the floor. The impact caused the top of the box to spring open, and I could see a scary looking thing in a weird hat jumping out at me. My legs carried me away rapidly from the toy chest, not slowing as I looked behind to make sure the box didn't follow me. But when I turned back around to see where I was going, I was met by a lavender wall. The collision knocked me backwards, causing me to fall flat on my back. The dull pain in my head was amplified by having been startled, and I let out a loud, anguished cry.
Then a hand stroked my fur. I looked up and saw that it was the same person I last saw before falling asleep. He picked me up once again and held me close, allowing his face to rub against mine. "It's alright, girl," he cooed, "Daddy is here." So that's who this male human was: Daddy. I nuzzled his cheek and licked it, since I couldn't think of any other way to show him my satisfaction. Daddy giggled and touched his lips to the top of my head. It seemed he was happy now too.
Daddy had set aside this special room for me next to his with a door that connected them. It took me a few days to get used to my new environment. I got to meet three new people who looked completely different from Daddy. He told me it was because they were "Korean". Since I couldn't ask for their names, I decided to give them my own. There was Cookie, who served the meals; Tidy, the one who kept the place clean; and Nanny, the only female around and the one who Daddy said would take care of me when he went on something called a "business trip". I had no idea what "business" was, but it kept Daddy away a little more than half of the time.
Whenever he was gone, I would usually find something to keep myself occupied. Sometimes I played with my toys, other times I roamed around the house (but was it really a house? Daddy always referred to it as "Karnak"). There were a few times that I got a little bored. But then Nanny showed me the vivarium after Daddy left for his third business trip. It was the most wonderful thing I had ever seen. Compared to the metal and stone inside, this place was teeming with life and color, and there were so many colors! Nanny led me around, naming each plant, identifying every creature, and sometimes telling me stories about a place called Korea. She would change her voice at times, speaking like Daddy at one moment, then like Cookie and Tidy the next. (Uncle Walter suggested that I learned English and Korean at the same time.) Either way, I listened attentively and tried my best to understand everything she said. However, a little something deep down told me not to get too attached to Nanny. I can see why now; there would be much more pain in my heart otherwise.
After coming back from his fourth business trip, this one lasting a long three weeks, Daddy was lounging in his chair that faced hundreds of television screens. I sat beside him, still becoming accustomed to having so many bright boxes shine at once. Each one showed something different; this one had a lady talking with a stream of words slipping underneath her, that one had a man with puffy hair using a paintbrush to make a tree on a white background, and yet another one had machines zooming around a loop with people riding inside them. Unable to take it all in at once, my eyes settled on one screen with a man and a woman talking to each other. They sat close to each other on a couch and held hands. The man suddenly moved towards the woman and gave her a kiss. But this was not like the sort of kiss Daddy gave me, on top of my head. The two had their lips connected and their arms around each other. It was a very curious sight. Then, over the soft commotion coming from the screens, Daddy spoke.
"Bubastis, how would you like to go on a trip with me?" Daddy looked down at me and scratched my ear in a tender way. "I know you've never been on a plane before, or outside of Karnak for that matter, but I think you'll have fun. You'll be able to see New York City and come with me to work. We'll have Dan and Jon visit; maybe even Laurie will stop by. Who knows, we might even have time to walk around and go to a few stores. What do you say, girl?"
He didn't really expect an answer, but I would have said yes anyhow if I could. I looked up at Daddy and tried to copy the human smile on his face with my feline mouth. Were you able to tell when I was smiling, Daddy?
…Were you able to tell when I was smiling, Daddy? At this point, Adrian felt the sudden urge to pass through that door again, the one that led into Bubastis' room and into the memories he shared with her. He carried the book with him as he walked towards the door, keeping his place with one of his fingers. But just as he reached for the doorknob, a small, folded up piece of paper fell from between the pages. Adrian picked it up and found Rorschach's distinct handwriting scribbled on it.
Do not enter Bubastis' room until done with reading. Said she wanted you to wait. Don't know why, but Jon says you have no choice but to stay out. --Walter
Ozymandias had no idea how he should feel. For several seconds, he stared at the piece of paper, clutched it tighter in his grasp. Crumpling the note, he decided to be infuriated. What right did that out-of-date vigilante have to keep him, the powerful Veidt, from his own pet's room? Adrian had to stop himself at that thought. Pet? he mused, I find it hard to see Bubastis as just an animal anymore. Actually, I don't think I ever considered her my "pet" in the first place. And even if I did, now there's this… Impossible though it seemed, nobody other than Bubastis could have recorded the events described in the journal.
No longer did Adrian's heart yearn for that joyful, lavender room. He felt renewed determination to learn Bubastis' story. It was the least he could do to honor her memory. Turning away from the door, Ozymandias realized that Dr. Manhattan had been right, as usual.