Petpet Adventures: Entombed - Part Two

     She saw two pets start to follow, and her heart began to race. Lithiarre glared at her. "What just happened?" he asked.

     "Nothing," Kintyre protested. "We were getting ready to sleep – and you actually were sleeping – and Quaz scented them coming."

     Lithiarre grunted, pretending he didn't believe her. But he was still running just as fast as her. Kintyre threw a glance over her shoulder and saw two Kougras, one black and one white, emerging from the ruins of the collapsed hut. And they weren't looking too happy about it either.

     To make matters worse, the rain was still falling in torrents, churning the ground into a muddy mess that sucked at her paws as she run. Why did it always have to be raining when something bad was happening? It was almost as if the weather knew what was going on in the lives of the living, and changed just to annoy them.

     Quaz was looking back also, in no danger of stumbling or tripping through lack of limbs. His eyes were narrowed against the water pelting into his face.

     "I recognise those two," he said loudly, trying to be heard over the rumble of ominous thunder. "I saw them the other day, trying to get into the Tomb. They failed miserably, of course."

     "Did they see you?" Kintyre asked as she ran.

     "Yes. And they chased me away with flaming sticks. So you can probably understand why I don't think much of them right now."

     "So they just attacked you? Without any reason at all?" Kintyre questioned.

     "Other than being pets, no reason at all," Quaz replied.

     "You two should probably pay more attention to running, because those two are catching up." Lithiarre's voice interrupted their conversation.

     Kintyre looked back and saw the Kougras giving chase, having just spotted them. She didn't stop to think why, but if she had she would have agreed with Quaz that they were pets and they couldn't help it.

     Lithiarre was starting to lag behind, and Quaz noticed, jerking his head to the right. Kintyre immediately changed direction, desperate not be caught by the Kougras pursuing them. They ended up in some thick, low-growing plants that blanketed the ground.

     Kintyre felt the rain ease off her soaked pelt, and stopped, breathing heavily, her breath sending clouds of steam into the air. She heard a rustle and Lithiarre was up beside her, letting his legs buckle so that he could lie on the ground. He lay there, and his eyes began to close almost at once.

     Quaz snaked around him and raised the equivalent of an eyebrow at Kintyre.

     "Typical," he commented. "And we may just have to start running again."

     Kintyre opened her mouth to reply in turn, but then there was hoarse shouting and loud thumping as the pets caught up and began to lumber – in the typical, ungraceful pet fashion – around searching for them.

     She ducked down, trying to keep as low to the ground as possible. The large lump that was Lithiarre sleeping lay where it was, and she rolled her eyes. Quaz was glaring at where the loudest crashes were coming from, eyes glinting in the dull light. He snapped his head around and flicked his tongue in and out again, tasting the air.

     At the same moment Kintyre heard the crunch of breaking leaves and spun around to face what she thought was the Kougras. But instead of seeing pets, she saw another petpet coming warily towards her, shielding its eyes with an orange and green striped paw.

     Kintyre almost relaxed, recognising the short stripes and tuft of hair that belonged to a Taigar. At least it wasn't a Kougra. The Taigar flicked its tail curiously.

     "Them pets are looking for you," it commented in an unmistakably female voice. "And they ain't happy either. Something about a fallen house."

     "It wasn't our fault," came a mumbled voice, and saw Lithiarre sitting up, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. He saw Kintyre's questioning glance and shrugged. "I can't sleep through all the excitement."

     Kintyre snorted and turned to the Taigar, who was looking bemused. "Just ignore him. I'm Kintyre and this is Quaz. That one over there is Lithiarre, but he's not usually conscious." She gestured with her paw, and Lithiarre looked affronted, but didn't say anything as the Taigar spoke.

     "I'm Chandre," she said. "Great to meet you."

     "So our reason for hiding should seem pretty obvious. But why are you enjoying the great shelter of these bushes?" The rain hadn't left much calmness in the Antwerph, and her sarcastic streak was kicking in.

     Chandre retreated further into the bushes, trying to get further away from the searching pets. "I was lost," she said. "Because I don't remember how I got here. I just woke up one day and I was under the ground in some random cages with some other petpets. And every so often a pet would come by and pluck one of us out. Don't know why, but I'm thinking it was some sort of a shop and there was always a few pets nearby. That's how I know a bit of their dialect. They have the strangest way of speaking."

     "I've seen the shop," Quaz commented. "But I've never been close to it. It reeks of pets."

     "So you used to be wild like us?" Kintyre asked.

     Chandre nodded. "And proud of it. Don't like pets at all."

     "So now you could help us give them the slip?" Lithiarre asked, interrupting their conversation. He had been watching while they talked, and now even Kintyre could scent the pets coming, crushing the innocent plants under heavy paws. Chandre balanced on the tips of her paws, ready for flight.

     "Of course. I'm not going to try climbing out of that place again. My claws already hurt badly enough."

     "I know the way around here like the back of my pa..." Here Quaz paused and looked perplexed. "My tail. Darn those well-used expressions! I don't have any paws!"

     "I know my way too," said Chandre. "I've been wandering around this accursed place for days, but every time I try to get through the mist, I just lose my way."

     "I know the way through," Quaz said conversationally.

     "Can we get a move on?" Lithiarre growled.

     "Sorry," said Quaz, and slithered out of sight.

     Kintyre followed him, unaware that the crashing had stopped. When she looked up again, she saw the white Kougra standing above her with a gloating look on its face. It reached out a rain-bedraggled paw to catch her, but Lithiarre, showing remarkable speed for his species, knocked it out of the way easily and shoved Kintyre forward. "Keep moving!" he roared.

     Kintyre skidded to a halt, spraying up mud onto Quaz' glittering scales, and turned to look. Then with a loud hiss she launched herself at the shadow Kougra about to knock Lithiarre off his feet, slashing with her long claws. They were blunt from digging in the dirt, but they were sufficient to create a yowl of pain.

     "On second thought, maybe we should stay together," Lithiarre said as he dived away from both pets.

     Kintyre trailed him, seeing Chandre's sleek form up ahead. Even further than the Taigar was a dark shape, looming out of the rain. Cold stone reared to the sky, as the Tomb began to get closer.

     But there was no way to turn back, Kintyre realised as she heard the footfalls of pets behind them. They were being chased and cornered. With a burst of speed she managed to reach Quaz' side, knowing that they couldn't run much further without the longer legs of the Kougras catching up.

     The Quetzal gave her a panicked look. "We have to go into the Tomb," he yelled above the storm.

     "What?" Kintyre managed to gasp, jaws agape. "We can't go in there. Haven't you heard the stories?"

     Quaz gave her a look that mirrored her own. "Of course I've heard the stories!"

     "Then why do you still want us to go there?"

     "Because there's no other way. Quickly! Follow me!"

     Kintyre found her paws following him, even though the rest of her didn't want to. She supposed that it was also the Kougras breathing down her neck. Lithiarre swerved to follow her, his eyes widening as he realised where they were headed.

     "Are you crazy?" he bellowed.

     "Nope. But Quaz is," Kintyre replied, prodding him on. "Don't argue. I'm pretty sure he knows what he's doing."

     Lithiarre glared mutinously at the Quetzal. "Where's Chandre?" he asked.

     "Here," the Taigar answered, bounding past them on swift paws, not even looking tired. "I gave the pets a little present."

     Kintyre spared a glance behind her to see the Kougras tripping over a vine hidden in the mud underpaw.

     "Serves them right," she muttered.

     Just then Quaz spoke frantically. "I can't find it!"

     "Find what?" Kintyre asked as they raced steadily closer to the hulking stone pyramid.

     "The entrance. But I know it's here somewhere."

     He was slowing down, and Kintyre stopped sprinting and began jogging beside him. Lithiarre looked relieved, but Chandre was squinting through the rain.

     "I can see something over there," she yelled.

     Quaz glanced at it, his gaze sharpening. "That's it. Quickly! Head for it and get inside."

     Kintyre upped her pace again and loped towards the tiny gap in the unforgiving stone. She managed to squeeze through, shortly followed by Quaz and Lithiarre, who grunted as he forced his broad shoulders into the gap. Chandre leapt through the tiny space without a moment's hesitation, and Kintyre was impressed.

     "Nice," she said.

     The Taigar grinned. "Got lots of practise trying to avoid pets."

     Kintyre gazed around in awe, shocked that she was in the Tomb, a place where all the Natives knew never to come to. She edged nervously closer to Lithiarre, away from the puddles left by water trickling down the stone and dripping to the floor. Her paws felt cold against the almost slimy feel of the stone under them, and all she could smell was a musty, stale smell that made her wrinkle up her nose in disgust.

     "Do you think the pet will find the door?" Lithiarre asked, and Kintyre turned to see that they had entered through a stone door that had opened a tiny sliver, but not the full way. And it didn't like it would open fully anytime soon, because the ground around it was caked with mud.

     "Hopefully not," Quaz said, shivering. "I don't want to stay here any longer than necessary.

     Just then something heavy collided with the door, and Kintyre saw the black fur of the shadow Kougra as it tried to prise it open, but it wouldn't budge. The white Kougra came over and leant against the door, and almost immediately the mud caking its base squelched away and it began to slowly shut.

     Beside Kintyre, Chandre stiffened. She ducked out of the shadows where she had been hiding, and spoke urgently.

     "We need to get out of here," she hissed. "Before it closes."

     Lithiarre raced forward, just as a loud groaning came from the door as if it was under some enormous pressure. But the Slogmok was too late, because the door began moving, slowly at first, then faster as more mud around its base was forced aside and left it free to swing silently shut. Kintyre stared aghast as it closed with an echoing boom. They were entombed.

To be continued...