Submission (#3712) Approved

“Do you hear that?” Dino Boots’ gentle voice parts the stillness of the night. The unlikely crew was trekking their ways back to town to turn in their bounty when nighttime suddenly befell them. Knowing firsthand the dangers of traversing the woods, especially at night, they found a relatively comfortable mouth of a cave and hunkered down there.
“No,” the grouchy head of The Gentlemen, known on his own as Sir Surly, grumbles rancorously in response. He and his bodymates are used to a high-class Strange Realm lifestyle, and the notion of having to sleep outdoors is no doubt unamusing to him.

“There’s buzzing in the distance. Sounds like bugs!” Dino Boots is trying to pinpoint the origin with no luck. Nimbus decides to lend a set of eyes and sits up. He juts his head out of the mouth of the cave, but doesn’t see anything. The dark is black as ink. “Your hearing is much better than mine, Mr. Boots. Let’s see if the light has anything to tell us.”

The weathercat reaches for the lantern. It was shut to keep its light trapped inside while the trio was attempting to sleep. He gives it a twist, and the upper half slides away to reveal a glass enclosure. Nestled within is a small fallen star letting off a generous glow. Nimbus holds it out towards the dark woods to illuminate the unseen.

“...Nothing. Do you still hear anything?”

Dino Boots turns his ear to the wilderness. “Nimbus, it’s getting loude–”

Before he can finish, an enormous flock of what can only be described as oversized fireflies erupts from the brush and descends upon the trio. They swarm the explorers like bees as they flail about. The Gentlemen’s shouting in unison isn’t even loud enough to overtake the feverish buzzing of the crowding cometflies.
Nimbus swings the lantern in his paw, trying to batter the bugs with it. The handle slips from his grasp and he hears the glass shatter. The flies suddenly yield as they begin to pack around the fallen star as it tumbles out of its confines. Nimbus sits up, wild-eyed as he tries to figure out what in the Three Realms is happening.

“They’re cometflies! They want the starbit!”

However, as soon as he can diagnose the problem the cometflies take their leave just as swiftly. They carry the unshackled fallen star up into the air and disappear in the woods, far out of sight.

Dazed and lost for words, the three of them simply look at each other.

Sir Surly breaks the silence. “There’s a bounty out for those little beasts too, isn’t there?” He lifts his paw and pulls an insectoid wing from the mouth of Dr. Dunderhead, who’s head is still spinning from the confusion. Surly grins deviously as he waggles it. “It’s a good thing we have proof that we defeated a whole flock of them, right gentlemen?”