"He's what?" Munkustrap paced the floor agitatedly, feeling dangerously near being pushed over the edge of all sanity.
"Become the new leader of the henchcats," Tantomile repeated, quite calmly. Well, someone had to remain calm.
"It seems," Coricopat took up where his sister left off, "they are convinced he is some sort of all-powerful magical being who will show them the secret to…immortality. Like us, they have some idea of the Heaviside Layer and new lives, but…a bit different."
"I thought…" Munkustrap shook his head. "I thought it was dad—the Leader they were after; I thought they were convinced he would show them this…path-to-immortality."
"They were," Tantomile nodded. "Vitie put them off by inventing a tale about an object called the…" She frowned in bewilderment. "Philosopher's Stone." She shot a quizzical look at Quaxo, beside her.
"It's a human legend," the tuxedo tom put in helpfully. "Some bloke called Nick Flannel. I…may have suggested the idea in Mack's mind. Well, I've got to help him out somehow, haven't I."
"And exactly how long until the henches find out he is no wizard, there is no such Stone, and they mutiny and kill him and attack the junkyard yet again?" Munkustrap realized how panicked he sounded, but couldn't help himself.
"They need never find out," said Coricopat, "if he can keep up the pretense long enough."
"Long enough for what?" Munkustrap asked, though he had the feeling he knew where this was all headed.
The twins nodded at Quaxo, who resumed, "Long enough for me to build up enough strength to transport them all elsewhere, the way I did Griddlebone. Well, I've had practice with one at a time, but an entire group…" He grinned shakily. "That's a bit more…problematic."
"You're proposing to…to 'magick' all the henchcats away? The old established ones as well as this newer superstitious lot?" Munkustrap eyed Quaxo keenly. True, the younger tom had certainly proved himself capable of more than any of the Jellicles could ever have imagined. But if 'moving' only two cats had put him out like a light—and then, even upon waking, it had taken several days for him to regain his ability to walk without help—how could he be expected to 'move' an entire gang? Even if he could…would he survive it?
"It is a risk," Coricopat acknowledged, sensing the silver tabby's thoughts.
"Corks, Munk," Quaxo gulped, both embarrassed and profoundly moved by Munkustrap's obvious concern for his wellbeing, "it's not as if I had a death wish! I'll not try it too soon, but it's not impossible. I know that. I've got to work at it, that's all." He gave what he hoped was a reassuring nod.
Munkustrap looked to Tantomile as if for confirmation or denial. "He has the potential," Tantomile agreed, "but it will take time."
"How much time?" Already it seemed his brother had spent half his life among the henches on one pretext or another; already Jellicles were beginning to question his loyalties. Munkustrap was utterly sick of it all.
"He's promised the henches to find them this Stone thing within a year's time," said Quaxo, "so I'm intending to be ready by then…"
"Why did he go and promise a thing like that?"
"To…to buy himself time, I expect. He couldn't get them to abandon their former plan without promising something."
"And…" Munkustrap gulped, looking round at all of them. "And when there is no such Stone?"
"I expect they'll attempt kitnapping Old Deuteronomy again—thinking it's been long enough that we've let our guard down. Only we won't," Quaxo added. "We'll be prepared."
"And MacVitie," Munkustrap insisted; "what happens to him in the meanwhile?"
"He carries on pretending to be Macavity and perhaps even intimidating some of the henchcats into leaving town of their own free will." Quaxo ducked his head at Munk's highly-skeptical expression. "Well, you never know."
"How can he possibly keep up this pretense when—unless there's something he's not told me, which is very likely—he doesn't actually have any such powers as the henchcats think?"
Quaxo pointed a paw at himself. "I give him a bit of a boost once in a while, of course!"
"While learning to move multiple objects at once? Quaxo, are you the Everlasting Cat?"
"Oh," Quaxo waved a paw carelessly, "a few simple parlor tricks to help Mack out will take hardly any energy at all. And don't forget, he's also got Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer there with him to…well, keep him company, keep him sane, keep an eye on things and report back here occasionally…"
Munkustrap sighed. "Somehow I don't find that the greatest comfort on earth just now."
