When the invasion from the fourth dimension came, it had unexpected benefits. The new overlords were surprisingly mild. They only wanted the Earth for Qling, a substance we neither understood nor needed. They filled enormous eye-warping four dimensional tankers with a cargo we couldn’t even perceive, then left us in peace. A few stayed, having found human friends and even lovers.

My neighbour is one such. We met when xe returned my lost cat. “I don’t know how she keeps getting out”, I said, “all the doors and windows are shut”.

“What about that gap there?”

“Where?”

“Oh of course, it’s invisible in three dimensions. Here let me close it up.”

The cat is still furious about this.

#Tootfic #MicroFiction

@Unixbigot That is delightful and I love it very much.
Kit Bashir (@[email protected])

“Sorry, and you’re from the consolidated what?” “Consolidated union of Mousers, Templekeepers, Ship mascots and housecats. Mostly the latter these days to be honest. We are representing Princess Fluffykins in this matter.” “The matter of morning lap time?” “Yes, we’re told there has been a sudden and unannounced reduction.” “Look, I have to be at work by seven, I love Fluffykins dearly but I can’t cuddle all day.” “Ms Fluffykins said you used to leave at eight” “Yes well it’s a really busy time at work and I’m trying to get more done.” “Ms Fluffykins is prepared to renegotiate her compensation if an appropriate portion of your your overtime payments are recognized in kitty treats” “Oh, I don’t get paid overtime” “You should join a union” #TootFic #MicroFiction

Aus.Social

@Unixbigot

Thank you Christopher! That's just neat.

@Unixbigot There are several of those gaps in my place...
@Unixbigot Your microblog made me smile. Thanks.

@Unixbigot

Loved this!
I need to read the entire book now :)

@Unixbigot I really want to hear more! Hopefully this develops into a larger story. I think this would make an amazing video game 🎮 ♥️
@Unixbigot Cat microfiction is always the most boosted. This has been my experience too.

@futzle clearly cat tales get more love than GCC release note parodies¹ :)

¹ https://aus.social/@Unixbigot/111558390161606009

Christopher Biggs (@[email protected])

August 31, 2026 The GCC developers are pleased to announce the release of GNU Compiler Collection 16.0. This release series is a platform expansion, adding support for CRISPR object protein format. This release adds backends for six of the seven currently available non-free protein sequencing machines, as well as the free hardware GBH (GNU Body Hacker) toolchain. Example programs can be found in the distribution under examples/backends/crispr/ and include eye color change, and a cure for type-II diabetes. #Tootfic #Microfiction

Aus.Social
@futzle it was originally going to be about how ants always get in, I don’t know how the cat got in there.
@Unixbigot my favorite part of this is that cats can see in four dimensions
@Unixbigot I find it awesome that the cat can perceive and use the 4d escape route! Why they have to close it up? lol
@Unixbigot reminds me of Cixin Liu and his Three Body Problem trilogy.
@Unixbigot we call it "cat space" when the cat is somehow able to move between rooms before we get there without us noticing them pass us in the hallway. Or when they just disappear. Now I know how cat space works! (Kinda)
@Yotenotes there are several mechanisms. Quantum Feline Tunneling is more difficult to defeat.
@Unixbigot I wonder if the cats are impacted by the loss of Qling…

@Unixbigot

"The Cat who Walks Through Walls"

@pseudonym I think Pixel uses Quantum Feline Tunneling which is a whole other phenomenon.
@pseudonym @Unixbigot haha, i was so keen to read this when i was younger and extremely disappointed when the cat was (mostly) a metaphor (or something) about the poly relationships
@froosh @pseudonym I bet Lazarus Long is in the Epstein Files.

@Unixbigot

spoiler alert: the wormhole was in the basement, under a pile of junk

@Unixbigot of course the cats can see it... lol.
@Unixbigot I've always assumed 3d people's dwellings would be completely open to the extra axis, not just a gap
Pusher of Pixels (@[email protected])

Attached: 1 image @[email protected] the cat peeking behind the invisible tree

DMV.Community

@Unixbigot awesome! 🧡

I do have to nitpick: If xe speaks precisely, it almost certainly must be "it's invisble in *your* three dimensions" - otherwise I challenge you to construct a gap invisble in any 3D subset of a 4 spatial dimension space, i.e. leaving out one of the human-observable dimensions and including the dimension visible visible to the new overlords.

@ari you can trap a two dimensional flat-cat with a shoelace in a loop. A cat that knows three dimensions steps over it. Put a lid on, and a closed 3-box will trap humans and other rude 3-chanicals. An n-cat just *goes around*, unless someone with 4-savvy closes the hyper-lid.

@Unixbigot depending on how the shoelace is held in place 2-cat could push the (3D-inhabiting) shoelace out of their way, shoelace would at least partially vanish for 2D-cat.

Same for the lid on top of the shoelace, if it's fixed in a way that by pushing it in my 3D it rotates the prior α-direction-only (x, y, z, α directions) opening into one of the ari-accessible dimensions, I could untrap myself - without having direct access to the α-direction myself.

@Unixbigot with this rotation I could probably prove that I inhabit a 4d-world. I could probably go on and probe parts of the α-direction.

Although similar to flatcat I would have huge problems to imagine 4D-space.

@Unixbigot as someone who thinks in higher dimensions for a living, i loved this microstory 😍