I looked frantically at Alan and Gunther. Tell her no! Don't let her cut me up! It'll kill me, and something else will come out beyond your control. Please hear me!

Although his rugged appearance, a buff frame and thick beard, made most people find him intimidating, Gunther was, at heart, a gentle soul. And now, his tough exterior cracked; his expression crumbled, and his eyes filled with tears.

Alan nodded. “Alright,” she said firmly, though there was just a hint of apprehensiveness. “Whatever it takes to save him.”

It was too much for Gunther. He left the dome for a lone walk with his own thoughts. Meanwhile, as Dr. Starkey and Alan grappled with the imposter Page, struggling to pull him from the cage, I flew down and floated back to Lee and the rats who'd been intensely watching the entire scene.

“You have to do something now!” I shouted.

Lee didn't hesitate. With an excited bark, he swiped his paw across the shelf, knocking bottles and jars to the floor with a loud crash. Glass shattered as he and the rats toppled the entire shelf, sending it crashing down.

Dr. Starkey whipped around, eyes wide, mouth agape in shock and confusion.

“Oh, no! No!” she screamed.

She looked frantically left and right, trying to track Lee as he raced around the room, running in circles and knocking over shelves, vases, and chairs.

“There he is!” Alan exclaimed, spotting the white-and-brown blur zipping from one corner to the next. She quickly shoved the imposter Page back into the cage, then joined the vet in catching the dog.

But the cage door wasn’t locked. It creaked open, and the creature stepped out. My breath caught painfully in my throat, leaving me paralyzed, gripped by terror.

I couldn't recognize myself anymore. The wraith possessing my body had twisted me beyond recognition. My reddish-brown fur, once as welcoming as a hearth’s glow, was now dull, slick with grime. My almond-shaped eyes, which once gleamed with flecks of gold, had become deep black voids. Soulless, endless darkness.

The creature leapt from the table, landing heavily on the floor. Flynn spun the lasso with a fierce focus, his eyes locked on the imposter Page. With a swift throw, he looped the lasso over its neck, then dashed to its side, using the cord to hoist himself onto its back. It reared and bucked again, arching its back, but soon its energy waned, and it collapsed onto its side in exhaustion.

Marlow rushed forward and tossed the Soul Cleanser into its open mouth. Rusty then looped a second lasso around its jaws, pulling tight to keep its mouth closed, forcing the creature to swallow the hairball while Flynn eased his lasso’s grip.

Then, something started churning violently within the creature. I could see a frantic movement shifting under its skin. The imposter Page rose shakily, its limbs spasming. Flynn leapt off its back and scrambled out of its path. Its head jerked back, mouth yawning wide in a violent gag, as something clawed its way up its throat. With a sickening, wet splat, the oily wraith finally burst from its mouth, slithering onto the floor like an eel. My body collapsed onto the floor, now an empty vessel.

“Page, go! Now!” Flynn’s shouts cut through the madness—shelves toppling, glass shattering, the wraith’s shrill screeches, Lee’s frantic barking, and Alan and Dr. Starkey’s desperate screams.

The sand timer reappeared before me. Its grains were pouring through the narrow neck, slipping away like the moments of my life. I broke into a sprint, the sound of the shouts and laughter of Joe and Sam ringing in my ears, their footsteps gaining ground, just as I remembered them running across the ship’s deck.

*****

“Ha! I won!” Joe exclaimed triumphantly, crossing the finish line they'd marked with forest green chalk, while Anne stood nearby as the judge—though I could tell her mind was elsewhere, her gaze lost in the distant stretch of blue water.

“No, it was Page who won,” Sam panted, pausing to catch his breath against the rail.

Joe stuck out his tongue. “Page’s a cat. That doesn’t count.”

Sam turned to Anne. “You’re the judge! Tell us who won.”

Anne shot them both an exasperated glance. “I say no one won! Now, will you both shut up about this stupid race?”

“You weren’t even watching! You don’t know who won,” Sam snapped.

Joe marched over to the sand timer. He picked it up, and grinning, waved it in the air. “I guess we’ll have to race again!”

I spun around, tail high, and meowed in pure delight. Before the sand timer even settled on the floor, flipped by Joe’s hand, I was already pacing around the deck, my paws, light and quick like lightning.

***

Suddenly, I was airborne, soaring through the air before plunging back into my own body. Light seared my eyes as I struggled to open them, and a sharp breath filled my lungs as I gasped for air. I was alive again, as though I'd been reborn.