Join bad guys
As you pace even deeper into the darkness, you begin to make out a shadowy figure in the distance, you begin to pick up a musky smell, and once again, the anxiety began to take over your body. You notice the heavy-set figure’s swaying haunches as he padded on quietly, a few hundred meters ahead of you. Unbeknownst to him, your onyx fur camouflaged you very well in the dim lighting of the caverns.
You stand back to watch the figure open up a slit of light in the tunnel, the bright lights looked almost completely white against the almost completely lightless corridors. The illuminating light casted brightly saturated colors against the individual’s rusty reddish fur. In an instant your memory brought you back to a few nights ago, seeing the same individual. Enraged you decided to run full force towards the closing door, in order to catch up with the culprit. The sounds of your paws against the smooth moist rocks filled your ears as you bounded your way even closer to the closing door.
You stuck out your front paw to catch the door, just before it becomes ajar, the bright light almost blinded you as its rays were forced through what little space was allowed. Before fully opening the door you took a moment to listen, breathe, and collect yourself. With one ear against the door, no other sounds can be heard from the outside, which made you feel a bit more secure.
Stepping out of the darkness, you give a moment for your eyes to adjust, unbeknownst to you, the old man had already realized you were following him. Almost immediately after you fully emerge, you find yourself stuck under a heavy weighted net, pinning you down to the ground in an unknown area. Not long after, your eyes begin to adjust as you realize you’ve just exited some secret passage leading out of the tunnels, and just behind a row of bushes near an exterior kingdom wall. Though the area is unfamiliar to you, your mind struggled to comprehend how you could have made it so far from the palace itself.
The much larger old taur stood over you, arms crossed, and brows furrowed in an angry scowl. A few moments of silence pass, as you both stare each other down, clearly recognizing each other from the other night.
“What are you doing?” he said with his gruff tone of voice. His deep pitch sent shivers down your spine as he opened his mouth to continue. “Clearly you have to have known something.” your eyes widened, as the correlation began to add up. “Why else were you such a nuisance just before the plan?” you continue to let him talk, getting as much information out of him as possible. “See, I told them that you’d always be an issue, you're a smart kid, I like you.” You watch his expression melt away into distress. “We just don’t know what to do with you anymore.. Got your father, next your mother and sibling. But you… I don’t know.”
In an instant everything began to come together to you, realizing that this hare was trying to usurp your entire kingdom, only using the queen as a pawn for their plan.
“You don’t know what to do with me…?” you had said, trying your best to not give him any more information than needed.
“Like, in our kingdom we don’t usually kill women…” you thought to yourself about what he could mean by that. Of course it’s a relief that you will most definitely survive this situation, though you’re still nervous about what could potentially be in store for you if otherwise. “But you seem more useful than any average jane.” your eyes widen, as your mind races to try getting you out of this situation. “I mean you figured this all out on your own I bet, you’re just a bit… late I suppose.” the memory of your falling kingdom began to fill your mind.
He was right, you were too late, there was no chance of salvaging your old life. You took a moment to sadly ponder what’s next for you. In this moment you can either buckle down and accept the fact that things will never be the same, ride out the massive wave of destruction, or roll over and let the world push you along whatever path you may just so happen to flow down. Overall, you’re unsure if your mental strength will wane, or if it will be the only thing to push you through to the next phase of your life. What will you decide?
Written by Driftingdragon on 16 March 2020