The Caged Sphinx

The golden bird alighted upon the recluse’s walking stick, its beautiful plumage - mostly gold but with colorful glass intermixed - flowing all the way to the dirt and rocks below. The scent from the trees reminded the recluse of her. Even the ever-starry sky above.

He wondered where she was, now.

“You cannot still be melancholy?” It asked in his mistress’s voice. The recluse stopped his daydreaming under the full blanket of space and adjusted his attention to the delicate automaton. It cocked its mechanical head as he stopped his climb.

The recluse looked at the toy-companion wearily. “I am not melancholy, Phoenicia. I... I feel alive.”

Phoenicia tilted her head and gave the recluse a mischievous look.

“Some tourists - wealthy ones - are on their way up the path. Do be pleasant, won’t you?”

The recluse smirked and nodded, but instead of flying away, Phoenicia smirked herself - although it was hard for him to tell, given the small size of her plumed head.

“Are you upset that you cannot find the third clue?”

“No,” the recluse said, calm and collected.

“Because the riddle of the Cat’s Paw is meant to take a long time. You are supposed to be enjoying it.”

“I am enjoying it, not as much as some other things, but I am enjoying the challenge.” 

Are you my bird? Or am I her’s, in this gilded cage?

From up the dirt path, the recluse could hear the crunch of pebbles under designer footwear, accompanied by the giggles of young people talking amongst themselves. 

“Do you wish to be left alone?” The beautiful bird asked. “Or do you want visitors?”

The recluse sighed. “It is alright, Phoenicia. I can entertain guests.”

The bird nodded and flew up to a branch, then glided down across the valley. The recluse stopped alongside a large rock on the path, taking a sip from his canteen as they approached.

Three females: all different species, all sporting khaki shorts and large backpacks.

“Whoa!” The camel-headed Hasoon youth said, pointing at the human in the monk garb. “It’s him! It’s that guy!”

The recluse - a middle-aged man with long blonde beard and hair - was clothed in a seemingly simple set of silk shirt and pants in muted shades of saffron and maroon, his eyes closed in deep meditation as he sat cross-legged by the side of the path. His serene expression suggested a lifetime of experience and knowledge, and the aura of calm that surrounds him is palpable. Despite his simple attire, there is an undeniable air of dignity and wisdom about him.

“Neat!” Said the Gishtavin that was with them, snapping a pic with her vidtablet. Her bat-like wings spread nearly as wide as her smile.

The recluse opened one eye, and then the other. Little flecks of purple within his eyes glinted in the dim starlight. It had been a long time since he had seen anyone.

The human woman in the group stepped forward. “Are... are you the Sphinx?”

The recluse thought about it for a second. “If you would like to refer to me as that, sure.”

“That’s not his real name, dummy!” The bat-like Gishtavin said with a giggle and a gentle elbow to the human’s arm.

“I know it isn’t, Berina! This is more fun!”

“Mr. Sphinx,” the Hasoon asked, trying to think of a question to ask him. “What is this place?”

“My dear,” the recluse began, “this is a travelling nature reserve, on loan from Gastropoda.”

“Haseera, we only get three questions!” The human squealed, stamping her foot and crossing her arms, annoyed.

“Lena, I know! Mr. Sphinx, I meant, what is this place... really?”

The recluse looked at his walking stick, rubbing his thumb over the jewel set upon its head. “It is a cage.”

The three females looked at each other and released an excited, “Ooooohh!”

Berina’s long bat-like ears stood at attention as she wrote the answer down in a black-and-blue journal.

“That’s two,” the recluse said.

“The first one didn’t count!” The three declared in unison. 

“—And neither did the one about your name!” Berina added, pouting.

The recluse, charmed, relented.

“Heh, all right my friends. One.”

The three hikers - who had bought their tickets almost an entire cycle ago due to the wait times - gleefully put their heads together.

“Perhaps we could ask him his true name?”

Berina looked it up. “The message boards said he responded with ‘Theodore,’ so let’s not waste that one.”

“I do not have all day, ladies,” the recluse said, sighing.

Berina gasped, her wings fluttering slightly. “Wait... how about we ask him who is keeping him here?”

Haseera brought the other two into a hushed discussion. “The boards said that if there isn’t a single answer to the question - or if there is none - that he can terminate the visit!”

The Sphinx cleared his throat. “Ladies, I—”

“If this is a cage, who is keeping you here?” Berina blurted out.

The recluse scratched his beard. The three young females gathered around him. He looked away. The answer was complicated. Was she keeping him here, or was he himself? Could he escape, or would he be chased through the galaxy forever if he did?? What would ‘escape’ even mean now?

His wet eyes told the tale for them. They began to deflate before he gave his response.

“One... one question left.”

Berina blinked: Two breakthroughs in one visit. She had never heard of him responding that way before. She broke out her journal and began writing hurriedly.

Second question, ‘If this is a cage, who is keeping you here?’ No response at all... and yet we are able to continue questioning him.

This time, Leena brought them in. “Maybe he likes the poetic kind of questions?”

Leena posed her question to her longtime friends. Haseera sighed. 

“If only Tina could’ve come! But they don’t allow Altheatans...” Haseera guessed why that empathic species was not allowed, but still - frustrating.

Leena’s friends quickly agreed that her question was good enough, and so the human walked toward the recluse, formulating the phrasing of the question in her head.

“Mr. Sphinx, i-if no one is keeping you here... why do you stay?”

A good question, he thought. Was it because he wanted to solve the riddle? To stay safe? Because she doesn’t want him to see something? Because he was tired? Because it was his duty? Because he hadn’t tried hard enough to escape? Because he wanted to prove that he trusted her?

...Because he loves her?

He sighed and shook his head. “I am sorry, my friends, but you have asked your three questions. I can follow if you wish, but I cannot answer any more questions about myself or the secret history of this place.”

“Aaawww!” The three said in unison, sighing.

Haseera approached, blushing under her thin cheekfur. “We would be honored if you would join us on our little trek, sir,” she said politely.

“And do your friends agree?”

Their disappointment receded.

“Oh, yes, Mr. Sphinx,” Leena said.

“Very well,” the recluse replied. “For an hour or so. I would be delighted to show you some of the more interesting flora and fauna of The Cat’s Paw.”

The girls all ‘oohed’ again.