The Dimensional Menagerie
Yomi Yuki was done. Absolutely done.
She dumped the broom—which was still sweeping on its own—into the corner and glared at the Shopkeeper. "I quit. Effective immediately. Cosmic hamster, exploding puppies, galaxy kittens—no thanks. I want my life back."
The Shopkeeper didn't look up from their tea. "Shift ends when it ends."
"Yeah? Well, so does my sanity." Yomi stomped toward the front door, Astri trotting at her heels. "Come on, cat. We're breaking out."
She shoved the door open—
—and froze.
No familiar street. No ugly brick buildings or buzzing traffic lights. Instead, before her stretched an impossible expanse: bridges of broken stone floating over rivers of molten light, shards of shattered worlds drifting like glass, stars bleeding colors she didn't have names for.
Yomi staggered back. "Oh no. Nope. No one said anything about… this."
Astri padded past her onto the threshold, perfectly calm, tail flicking like she owned the void. Galaxies spun in her eyes, brighter than ever.
Yomi grabbed the doorframe, breathing fast. "This isn't quitting. This is—this is suicide."
Behind her, the Shopkeeper's voice was maddeningly casual. "The Emporium exists where it must. You'll get used to it."
"Used to it?!" Yomi spun around, ready to scream. But the Shopkeeper was already gone, melted into the shadows like they hadn't been there at all.
Something shifted in the void.
A ripple passed over the broken bridges. Out of the cracks slithered a shape—half-shadow, half-nightmare, with too many eyes opening and closing across its skin. It tilted its head, sniffing, and fixed every eye on Yomi.
Her knees went weak. "I… I didn't sign up for this—"
The thing lunged.
Yomi stumbled backward, almost slipping off the floating stone. She threw up her arms uselessly.
Astri leapt from her shoulder, fur blazing with starlight. The kitten hissed, tail snapping like a whip. Galaxies flared—light bent—
and the shadow-beast recoiled, screeching as it dissolved into smoke.
Yomi collapsed onto the stone, heart pounding out of her chest. Astri padded back to her, calm as if she hadn't just saved her from becoming void-chow, and headbutted her knee.
Yomi swallowed hard. "You—you shouldn't even exist. And yet you're my only reason I'm not paste right now."
Astri purred, galaxies spinning brighter.
Yomi hugged her close, voice low. "…If you're trying to tell me I've got something to do with all this, don't. I'm not a chosen one. I'm just stuck."
But deep down, a tiny, traitorous spark whispered otherwise.
When she finally stepped back through the door, the neon sign above flickered again. A crack ran across the glass tubing, thin but sharp, pulsing faintly as though something on the outside was pressing against it.
Yomi froze, chills running down her spine.
Someone—or something—was watching the Emporium.