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“MRRAWWOOLLL”

Maomao howled out as my fingers just scarcely brushed up against his sides. He shot up almost 5 feet up in the air, fur standing up from end to end. His ridged body maintaining a statuesque pose in mid-air. He landed on his four paws and stayed there, fur on end, shivering from fright. Kai tried to stifle a giggle at the cute kitty that seemed to be spooked out of his mind, as much as most pet owners do when their pet does something out of the ordinary.

Indeed, this situation was out of the ordinary.

So far, Kai and Maomao found a strange cave that was giving off a foreboding aura. Not like any regular cave which you could see a few feet in and tends to lead to a dead-end in the back. This cave was the quintessential cave that was dreary, containing some hanging stalagmites slowly dripping water, a gloom in the shadows that looked darker than black.

My instincts were clawing at my insides, screaming don’t go in but I was just so damn curious. Again, my rational mind calmly told me to grab the kitty and save it for another day, or better yet, never.

Kai’s attempt at grabbing Maomao was by far a failure.

Maomao, spooked out of his mind, ended up zooming into the cave, unaware that the danger he once felt was caused by his owner.

“Shit” Kai hissed, leaning into the cave to catch a glimpse of her furry feline friend that ran like the dickens, fading into the darkness.

“Looks like it’s now a double rescue mission”, Kai muttered to herself as she mustered up the courage to slowly enter the dark terrain.

The backpack was gently placed on the ground and the bounty that was foraged earlier that day was gently organized in the main compartment of the pack. A flashlight and a dangerously looking sharp sickle were fished out and held in each hand. The glint of the cold steel provided a sense of security as the pack was zipped and shouldered back on haphazardly, sans clips.

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“Whelp, here goes nothing. Maomao you stoooopid son-of-a-cat get your smelly ass back here” Kai shouted into the cave, only to hear the echo mockingly shouting back at her.

Kai sighed and breathed out a lungful of indignation and soon started the crouched journey into the dank cave.

*

Each step was brutal. Not just the position that was humiliating in having to almost crabwalk through the tunnel, but the loose rocks under the footing assisted in multiple attempts at stumbling along the path. It was like a trial run of ninja warrior that was watched last night, but increasingly painful due to the duration and position that was held to safely clear the tunnel while minding the spikes from above. The sickle was useless at this point due to the interior being made completely made of rocks. Kai had no idea where Maomao went however she was sure he went forward since that was the only direction that was available for the two. She only had to mind the periodic puddles of stale stagnant water that accumulated over the years. At the beginning of the cave, she did manage to find a few creature skeletons however there wasn’t a lot to be concerned of, just the basic critter that was either feed for a bigger creature or crawled in on its own. So far, Kai did not find any form of life that may have threatened her along the way except for a few bats, which minded its own business.

Kai’s breathing started to become labored.

“This isn’t what I signed up for”, she signed as she continued downwards within the difficult path. It became apparent that this cat really did run for its life, as the furry buddy was nowhere to be seen yet.

Kai didn’t have a watch, which would have been useful if she had more money to get one. She pulled out her phone to check the time and saw that she still could manage to make it back before nightfall if she could simply grab the ungrateful cat in an hour.

Sweat poured down Kai's face and soaked her tank top. She felt the wet material stick against her skin uncomfortably while the straps irritated her skin and left a minor feeling of abrasion. She wanted to be home, cooking up a storm, picturing how she sould sautee the fresh wild vegetables she picked a few hours ago. Her mouth started to salivate and she couldn't help but feel a heightened feeling of hunger wash over her.

“grrararwwwoolll.”

"..."