The Jackals of Sakhmet - Kasha's Plot: Part Two

      But I did not expect the one called Lycos to keep such a brilliant plan quiet. All she wanted was pay, and because she did not get it, she turned on me. Pets like her are so predictable. It pleases me to say, however, that thanks to Niger I can commence my plan at once.

      Soon, things will go my way…

     * * *

          Sakhmet City-

      "You know," Lee whispered to Cole as he edged ever so slightly to the alley the Aisha had been dragged into. "You could get in a lot of trouble, poking your nose where it shouldn't be…"

      Cole waved a paw at the Ixi, shushing her as he poked his head into the alley.

      "She's right, Cole," Omar agreed, tugging lightly at his friend's white robes. Cole ignored the two, still skimming the darkness for the slightest movement. Nothing could be heard in the alley.

      It was silent. Silent was not a good sign, especially in the city of Sakhmet, seeing as it was known for its busy, noisy streets. No, something was definitely going on, and Cole had to find out.

      "You two go see what that man was up to," he whispered to Omar and Lee. They gave him a disbelieving look.

      "C'mon guys! Aren't you the least bit curious?" Lee shrugged, her arms crossed, but Omar nodded, staring at Cole with an eager glint in his eyes.

      "Then do this one thing for me and check out that building," Cole whispered, pointing to the building Niger, the sly Cybunny, had entered. Cole and Omar stared at Lee, waiting for her to agree, and then finally, with an annoyed expression across her face, Lee nodded.

      "Great!" Cole said.

      "Yeah," agreed Omar.

      "Whatever," Lee sighed. "But remember the kind of danger we could be putting ourselves in…"

      "We're in danger of being caught by guards everyday," Cole shrugged, taking a step into the alley.

      "This shouldn't be any different…"

      Without another word to the young Ixi and Cybunny, Cole disappeared into the shadows of the alley. Omar and Lee lingered for a moment, listening intently to his footsteps.

      "C'mon." Omar finally said to Lee, nodding his head in the direction of the building in which Niger had disappeared into. Lee nodded, and then she and Omar quietly, slipped past the beaded curtains, unseen.

      "Whoa…"

      Lee and Omar gazed around in awe. The first thing they saw was a large room filled with shelves. Nothing but shelves that brushed the very tip-top of the ceiling.

      "You'd need a ladder to reach the top of these," Omar whispered, staring at the items on the shelf nearest him. Lee shivered as she preceded to yet another beaded curtain on the far right of the room. The room was dimly lit by small pink candles along the sides of the room, making it difficult to see, but Lee could make out what the sign above the curtain said.

      The sign read STORAGE. Lee wondered what they, whoever was in charge of this building, could be storing. She barely had any more time to ponder this, for Omar's voice called to her quietly.

      "What?" Lee asked, walking up behind Omar. She tilted her head in fascination as Omar held up a small, silver, heart-shaped locket.

      "All the shelves have these lined up on them," he explained, pointing along the rest of the shelf.

      "Why are they labeled?" he added, squinting at the bottom of the shelf. Lee bent down to examine it closer, discovering many labels placed under each locket. Each label had strange markings on them.

      "I don't know," Lee sighed, placing a locket around her neck. She looked down at it, then at Omar, giving him a toothy grin.

      "They sure do look valuable, don't they?" she smirked mischievously.

      "Maybe that man, the one Cole was talking about," Omar suggested, placing a locket around his own neck as well. "Maybe he's selling them. Or smuggling them, if he had to pet-nap an Aisha…"

      Lee shook her head.

      "Why would someone want to smuggle lockets?" she asked, folding her arms like she usually did. She had a thoughtful look across her face. Omar shrugged at her remark and turned to try on more lockets. The two took a moment to admire each other, but were interrupted by footsteps, and the voices of two fully-grown pets.

      "Did you hear something, Niger?" a cold, sneering, female voice asked, growing closer and louder from the other room.

      "No," answered another, this one belonging to a male. "No, I didn't."

      "I did, from that room…"

      Lee and Omar exchanged nervous glances as they heard the footsteps grow louder and closer still.

      "Quick, hide!" Lee whispered fiercely, tugging on Omar's robes and pulling him behind the closest shelf.

     * * *

      You have not forgotten our brave little Wocky-friend, have you reader? Forgotten about how Cole ventured deep into the eerie shadows of the alley? Well if you have, then let me refresh your memory, dear reader. Cole had never experienced such darkness as the alleys. He trudged through the dirt and muck of the alley.

      The drip-drip-dripping of the water upon the roof-top annoyed him, and the drag-drag-dragging of his own feet tired him. Deeper and deeper still, Cole ventured through the alley, wondering how something that was meant to be short ended up so long. Moments later, Cole thought he could hear a groaning, the sound of one groaning when trying to break free of something.

      That had to be the Aisha he saw being dragged away. Forgetting completely about his tired feet, and the dripping of the roof-top's excess water, Cole ran forward, trying to find the source of the groaning.

      "Hello?" he asked uncertainly when he was faced by a tall, brick wall. The wall was consumed by shadows, but Cole could have sworn he saw some movement near the left of it.

      "Hello?"

      "Who's there?" a second voice rang out. It made him jump back. Cole never knew someone could sound so frightened.

      "I-I'm here to help you," Cole whispered. There was a short silence which made Cole shift uncomfortably. This time, Cole knew he saw something, or actually someone, move about on his left. Ever so slowly, he crept over to the shadowed figure that came into view as he edged closer.

      "Who are you," the voice said, even more frightened. Cole did not answer. Instead, he knelt next to the figure, which turned out to be the ambushed Aisha, and looked into her eyes. He looked into her sad, cold, frightened eyes. For once in Cole's street urchin life, he actually was worried about an adult.

      "I'm not here to hurt you, you know?" he said quietly, starting to untie the Aisha's bonds. "I'm here to help you…"

      "Thank you, but you don't understand there is great danger afoot!" she said hurriedly, rubbing her wrists once she was free.

      "What danger?"

      She merely shook her head.

      "I cannot explain it all right now… I cannot even do anything to stop it by now… unless…"

      Cole couldn't understand a word the woman spoke. He eyed her with concern. Was she, perhaps, off her rocker? Could this woman actually be crazy, and was ambushed for her "special needs"?

      "Wait," she suddenly said, staring at Cole with big, brown eyes. "You can help! You can help me! I can't do it because I'm stuck here, but you!"

      The Aisha reached for Cole's sleeve, making him jump. She pulled him close to her and whispered into his ear, "Tell Scarab 'Lycos said it's in her staff'." Of course Cole had no idea what she was talking about. Why did she speak such nonsense? Perhaps she was off her rocker.

      "Come on, let's get you out of here," he said, pulling her up to her feet. They were both yanked back by such a force, that Cole was completely winded by it. Rubbing his side, he looked up and, for the first time, noticed a chain tied around Lycos's foot. The chain was connected to the brick wall.

      Lycos shook her head.

      "As I have said, young Wocky, I cannot leave this alley. Kasha has made it so I am trapped within this darkness until her evil plot has been commenced. But you! You can give Scarab my message. Go! Go tell him before it's too late!"

      Once more shaking his head, Cole ran out of the alley, frightened by how strange this Aisha was acting. Who was this Scarab? Who was this Kasha? What staff? What was in the staff? So many questions Cole had, but they were left unanswered. And if there's one thing none of us like, dear reader, it's unanswered questions…

To be continued...