Part VI: The Mission
[3rd person POV- The next morning]
[A/N] Sorry for the long delay. I got caught up in other things. I've also changed to formal paragraph format for easy printing. Enjoy!
===~*~===
Sarah's head rose slowly from the bushes, catching sight of the Museum's front door. The sun had just risen in the eastern horizon spraying the sky a rich pink color, deeper reds in the west. It was definitely bizarre looking thought Sarah as she eyed the atmosphere above her, the ominous red color bearing down on her. It was time to do this mission she mused. It was time to set things right in Brighton. Eunice and Mitzi have entrusted her with this duty to save the village from itself, now all she needed was the strength to go through with it. She came to Brighton because she was running away from home and now second thoughts crossed her mind. Perhaps life would have been simpler if she had stayed. There was no time to fathom the what if.
An owl with a large burlap sack caught her attention as he approached the large museum doors. Perhaps he was the curator. He reached into his vest pocket and produced a key, using it to open one of the doors. Before Sarah could blink twice, he had disappeared. She had to find a way in. Carefully she scanned over the area until she noticed a tall peach tree that hung over toward the roof of the building. That was it. That was her key in.
As she climbed up the trunk muttering to herself she remembered how much she had hated trees, the ache in her back quickly reminding her of her fall last night. But she wasn't going to let that deter her from what was at stake. She crawled across a branch, now high above the ground. It was the branch that hooked over to the roof giving a nice way point to where she wanted to go. She didn't quite know what she was going to do once she got on the roof though. As she leaned off the branch, the tip of her toe touching the roof, she made sure to keep her balance as not to fall. It would be a brutal fall and that would be that. No more Sarah, and certainly no more Brighton judging from its decay. Something had to change and she was going to change it.
She crawled across the roof toward a ventilation box. There was a metal grate covering the opening, just perfect for her size to get in. She yanked it off trying not to make too much noise. A bird passed over squawking at her. She looked up, the redness of the sky suddenly frightening her. Without much more thought she jumped in suddenly finding nothing below her. She held her breath not to scream as she slid down the nearly vertical shaft. Down and down it went, curving around like a snake as she banged through it. She suddenly felt dizzy, desperately scratching at the sides to stop herself. She finally hit the bottom a loud bang echoing through the entire shaft. She stayed silent for a moment not moving, trying to regain her senses. She hadn't realized it at first but there was light coming from somewhere. She was crouched on all fours, the vent was just large enough for her in this position. Where was this light coming from? Sarah continued to crawl toward the source, trying to find a way into the museum. The dull glow was coming from another vent grate. She looked down through it to see a green and white tiled floor of pure marble below her. It was definitely fancy so it was probably the museum's foyer. She pulled the grate off and gently placed it aside trying not to make any more noise. She had seen that owl had come in before; he was probably still somewhere in the small museum. Stealth would have to be her asset in this mission. She slipped out the vent and landed on the floor with the click of her shoes. Her simple dress was ruffled and dusty now as she patted it off. Quickly, Sarah realized how much in the open she was. She was standing right in front of a large clock, taking notice of the loud ticking sound it made. In response she quickly rushed over to a darker wing to the right.
Fish tanks were everywhere before her, the water bathing the area in a blue glow. This must be the aquarium wing. However the tanks were empty, not one fish to be seen. Even the larger tanks in the back were devoid of any marine life. How was she going to find this vault? If only Eunice or someone could help her, she didn't know where to go. Suddenly she started panicking, remembering the day before when that raccoon was shot through the chest. What if that happened to her, what if she became like him. She didn't have any money on her, but if they catch her, they'd still probably kill her. She felt vulnerable.
"Relax," came a voice. It startled her but she didn't scream, merely gasping for air as her spine went stiff. Another glow was added to the room, a softer white one becoming brighter. Eunice appeared in front of her, smiling gently. "Don't be afraid Sarah. You're almost there."
"I don't know where to go!" she whispered anxiously toward the ghost.
Eunice nodded calmly. She was relaxed, tranquil as though she knew everything was going to fine. Everything did not feel fine to Sarah thought. The ghost drifted over to the wall in the back. "Come closer Sarah." The girl complied and paced over to the wall, still keeping some distance from the ghost. Her presence still made her uncomfortable even if she was forced to trust her. "What do you see?" Sarah strained her eyes. There was a lever, small, almost unnoticeable. It was the same color as the stone wall and nearly impossible to distinguish. The glow from Eunice however made it easier to make out. "Pull it," the ghost commanded.
Sarah complied and gave the blue lever a yank. A door sized portion of the wall suddenly came to life, pushing back slowly with a rumble. Sarah's eyes widened as Eunice grinned. The portion then slid open behind the rest of the wall. A sudden yellow glow filled Sarah's eyes. The gold light reflected and shimmered around the large fish tanks creating a dazzling sight. The room before Sarah was filled with thousands upon thousands of bells, the currency of their land. The small coins were made of pure gold. Sarah looked back toward Eunice, but the ghost was gone. Her eyes glanced back to the room. There was a large steel vault in the center surrounded by piles of gold coins. Some of these are probably mine Sarah mused. She scooped a handful and placed them in her dress pocket. She skipped over to the vault as the door behind her groaned closed. At first she almost went hysterical, but quickly noticed a lever on the inside to open the door. She relaxed and returned her attention to the vault. She remembered back to when Mitzi had told her the combination was 4, 4, 4. The number was still echoing through her mind. There were three gold knobs on the steel door with the numbers 1 through 9 etched in beautiful cursive on them. Three arrows pointed at the top. She figured she had to match up the numbers to the arrows.
Quickly she cranked the first knob til the number read four. That wasn't so hard she thought. She felt more relieved turning the other knob til the number 4 matched the arrow. She heard a click. The lock must have been opening up a little, only one number to go. She suddenly heard a rumble. The click wasn't for the vault, it was for the room's door! She turned around seeing the hidden door was suddenly moving back. Someone was coming in! Frantically she looked around, she needed somewhere to hide. She saw several tall cabinets that reached up to the ceiling, probably filled with more riches. She pulled open one of its doors and noticed it was a closet for fancy gowns and suits. She crowded in and pulled the door closed suddenly hearing the room's door click to a rest in its open position.
A cheery whistle greeted her ears along with footsteps as she tried to breathe quietly. The panic was setting now, like a slow ooze that starts at the top of your head and seeps down your body. She was shaking now as she peeked through the crack in the cabinet door seeing the owl look around. A smile was etched across his beak.
"Oh Blather's you are truly something else," he said in a happy tone. Sarah's eyes widened even more as she put a hand over her mouth. This was the Blather's Eunice and Mitzi told her about, the Blather's that was the epicenter to the calamity. She sunk back into the gowns and suits that were on coat hangers feeling her legs grow weak. Suddenly the bird went very quiet, too quiet. She peeked through the crack in the door to see. He was looking at the vault scanning over the knobs. Two of the numbers were on 4. Oh no! She could hear her mind screaming. He moved his beak close to the knobs suddenly his tongue peeked out and he gave one a lick. His eyes narrowed and he licked again. He could taste the oddity in the gold, the hand that had turned it before. He stood up straight and looked around fervently. Sarah who was still holding her breath tried to stay as still as possible. She looked out the crack with terrified eyes. The owl produced a revolver from his vest holding it with an angry hand. He sniffed the air with an open beak carefully looking around. He made one step, his boot clicking loudly. He made a shorter sniff and his eyes locked on the cabinet. Sarah's eyes widened as her hand covered her mouth trying to hold in her fear but it was crawling all over her body, tingling through her insides.
"I know you're in here, whoever you are. I give you the count of three to show yourself," he announced heavily. He took a step toward the cabinet still pointing the revolver at it. He was following her scent. "One." Sarah tried not to move, her body was as stiff as a mannequin. "Two," he cocked the revolver, now close enough to the cabinet to reach for the door. "Three." Sarah's shaking hand rose and tapped open the door. It slowly creaked open as she stood there with tears and fear etched all over her face. Blather's eyes met hers and he broke a smile.
"Oh you stupid...stupid...girl." He shook his head still grinning. He still had the revolver raised at her face. "Move...now." She tried to move her legs but they felt like putty. Suddenly he grabbed her arm and yanked her out. She fell to the floor with a short cry. "Get up!" he commanded. She rose to a standing position.
"You've made a fatal mistake Sarah." Her eyes widened. "Yes," he nodded slowly. "I know your name, no surprises there."
"None of this belongs to you," she said sounding stupid and unconfident. He kept his finger on the trigger.
"No I think you're very wrong Sarah. I just have one question before I kill you." He stayed silent and glanced around. "What exactly were you looking for? This room is filled with riches. You could have taken as much as you could and left, but instead you went for the vault."
She shook her head. "Someone has to expose you."
"The records..."he added softly. The owl nodded. "I see..." He paced around for a moment still keeping the gun toward her. He picked up a few gold coins that were in a pile by the vault and let them drip from his fingers. "I don't know who your sources are or how you know the combination, but..." He paused and suddenly smiled. "That doesn't matter anymore. I'm sorry Sarah. You have failed." He pulled the trigger, the blast of the gun chamber exploded and the shot rang out. Her eyes clenched shut.
There was silence now, an odd silence. Sarah opened her eyes finding a bullet frozen in the air, inches from her face. Blather's smile faded to a look of shock as he held his smoking gun. Eunice was standing between them her glowing white hand raised toward the bullet but not quite touching it as though she were holding it with some ethereal power.
"No..." Blather's gasped.
"Oh yes," Eunice growled not looking at him, her eyes still locked on the bullet. Sarah stood there frozen her jaw quivering open just from the utter realization of seeing a bullet petrified in the air.
Mitzi appeared, suddenly flying toward the shell-shocked owl, "Sarah! Get the records!" Her spirit barreled into Blather's knocking him over while passing through him. Sarah composed herself and ran toward the safe moving out of the bullet's way. Eunice relaxed and the bullet sped into the wall with a loud ping. Blathers leaped up but the ghostly sheep swung around and shoved him back as Mitzi grabbed his revolver and tossed it away. Sarah yanked the third knob to 4 and the lock clicked open. She pulled the thick metal door open seeing stacks of papers. She grabbed them and made a dash for the room's entrance pulling open the lever. The wall rumbled as it pushed back and slid open. She looked back and saw Blather's passed out but Eunice and Mitzi were gone. She didn't think twice as she ran out into the aquarium room, then the foyer, then out the front doors at last. It was already noon, the town clock ringing out its chime accordingly. An arrow whizzed past her head stabbing into the tree next to her. She looked around to see where it came from, suddenly seeing a canine police officer with a bow in his hand. He was growling and started loading another arrow. Sarah gasped and began running through the forest as fast as she could. She heard an owl's chirpy voice coming from behind her in the distance crying, "Stop her! Don't let her get away!"
She gritted her teeth and ran, she kept running not stopping. She ran past the apple orchard, over a bridge by the waterfall, just running and running. She was trying to make it to the post office. She looked to her right as she ran. A bear with a rifle was aiming at her from a field as she ran across his sight. He pulled the trigger, and a bullet whizzed past her head. She kept running, an arrow flew past her again hitting the ground in front of her. She leapt into the air, her feet leaving the ground as she flew over the arrow. Her shoes met the grass again and she continued on as fast as she could. She entered a dense area of trees and foliage again still scampering to save herself. They were chasing her, the rustle of leaves resounding from behind her. She came to an opening in the trees with a cobblestone path that led to a building. A green sign with the words 'Post Office' adorned the wooden edifice. She caught her breath and rushed toward the door, throwing it open and leaping in. A click echoed through her ears as she felt the barrel of a gun press against her forehead. She looked up, her eyes catching the gleam of white feathers.
"And what do you think you're doing?" came the female voice. It was the post-master, a white pelican standing before her. A revolver not unlike Blather's adorned her hand. Her aggressive demeanor contrasted the innocent white bow on her pink dress. Sarah froze still clenching the stack of papers tightly in her hands holding them to her chest protectively.
"Give me those," she added carefully. Sarah stayed frozen. "GIVE them to me NOW!" she shouted making the girl twitch and stir. She slowly handed her the papers. Another pelican appeared, a male. He had a mail bag slung around his shoulder. She handed him the papers, while still keeping the gun pressed against Sarah's forehead. "Pete, get these to Luton as fast as you can."
Sarah's face twisted in confusion. "You're...helping me?"
"Of course I am," the pelican stated matter-of-factly.
The door behind them blew open and a bear with a rifle came in howling. The pelican swung her aim toward him and opened fired, emptying six bullets from her revolver. Her face stayed calm as Vladimir groaned and fell to his knees.
"Mitzi says hi," she added. She turned toward the stunned girl in front of her while reloading her gun. "Sarah you don't have much time. A train leaves in 2 minutes. You have to be on that train." She swung the chamber closed and cocked the gun.
"How does everyone know my name?!" Sarah cried in shock.
The pelican peeked through the half open door. "I'll cover you. C'mon..." she paused and looked back at the girl. "If you were wondering, I'm Pelly."
The post office door flew open again smacking Copper in the face. Pelly stormed out and fired a shot at his leg causing the canine to collapse to the ground. The pelican grabbed Sarah and threw her to the side as a torrent of arrows hailed from the trees and stabbed into the wooden building around her. The girl cried and rolled over across the grass as Pelly rushed toward her and pulled her off the ground. Blathers appeared with a revolver across the river and started unloading rounds of bullets as Mabel rushed across the bridge with an axe rapidly approaching. Sarah screamed as Pelly yanked her away, the axe barely whizzing past her head and stabbing into the tree trunk beside her. The train blared loudly, the station was right there. Sarah was too dismayed to even move as Pelly dragged her through the station's arch.
"C'mon!" shouted a monkey close by.
"We're here Porter! Take the girl!" She shoved Sarah toward him and unloaded more rounds of bullets over the platform balcony keeping several villagers at bay. Blathers held his revolver with two hands, carefully aiming from a distance.
Sarah shook her head slightly ducking as shouts of villagers could be heard. "I don't know why you've done it, but thank you for helping me."
"I want change just as much as you do Sarah," Pelly stated, aiming her gun at a rabid looking cat with a shovel. Suddenly a puff of white feathers flew from Pelly's back. Sarah screamed as Porter pulled her back. "No! Pelly!" The pelican fell to her knees clenching her chest where she had been shot. Blathers smiled from across the river, congratulating himself on his good aim.
"Let's go! There's no time!" Porter shouted. The train started moving as the monkey threw Sarah in. The doors shut as bullets bounced off them, even an arrow or two. Sarah held herself as she lay sprawled on the floor of the passenger compartment. It was over. She had gotten away. The train clicked across the tracks quickening its speed and soon enough she couldn't see the village anymore from the windows. Another monkey, the train's conductor, entered the compartment and kneeled beside the girl. "It's going to be alright. We're heading to Luton. They'll know about all of this by the time we get there." Sarah nodded and wiped her tears away. She looked down and noticed there was blood sprayed on floral print dress, even a few feathers. She hadn't even noticed it until now. Sarah didn't do anything though, merely sitting on the floor thinking about all that had happened. They'll get paid their deaths in the end Sarah promised, especially Blathers...
===~*~===
[A/N] I'll try to get this story done soon enough with no more monthly delays. Thanks for reading.
[3rd person POV- The next morning]
[A/N] Sorry for the long delay. I got caught up in other things. I've also changed to formal paragraph format for easy printing. Enjoy!
===~*~===
Sarah's head rose slowly from the bushes, catching sight of the Museum's front door. The sun had just risen in the eastern horizon spraying the sky a rich pink color, deeper reds in the west. It was definitely bizarre looking thought Sarah as she eyed the atmosphere above her, the ominous red color bearing down on her. It was time to do this mission she mused. It was time to set things right in Brighton. Eunice and Mitzi have entrusted her with this duty to save the village from itself, now all she needed was the strength to go through with it. She came to Brighton because she was running away from home and now second thoughts crossed her mind. Perhaps life would have been simpler if she had stayed. There was no time to fathom the what if.
An owl with a large burlap sack caught her attention as he approached the large museum doors. Perhaps he was the curator. He reached into his vest pocket and produced a key, using it to open one of the doors. Before Sarah could blink twice, he had disappeared. She had to find a way in. Carefully she scanned over the area until she noticed a tall peach tree that hung over toward the roof of the building. That was it. That was her key in.
As she climbed up the trunk muttering to herself she remembered how much she had hated trees, the ache in her back quickly reminding her of her fall last night. But she wasn't going to let that deter her from what was at stake. She crawled across a branch, now high above the ground. It was the branch that hooked over to the roof giving a nice way point to where she wanted to go. She didn't quite know what she was going to do once she got on the roof though. As she leaned off the branch, the tip of her toe touching the roof, she made sure to keep her balance as not to fall. It would be a brutal fall and that would be that. No more Sarah, and certainly no more Brighton judging from its decay. Something had to change and she was going to change it.
She crawled across the roof toward a ventilation box. There was a metal grate covering the opening, just perfect for her size to get in. She yanked it off trying not to make too much noise. A bird passed over squawking at her. She looked up, the redness of the sky suddenly frightening her. Without much more thought she jumped in suddenly finding nothing below her. She held her breath not to scream as she slid down the nearly vertical shaft. Down and down it went, curving around like a snake as she banged through it. She suddenly felt dizzy, desperately scratching at the sides to stop herself. She finally hit the bottom a loud bang echoing through the entire shaft. She stayed silent for a moment not moving, trying to regain her senses. She hadn't realized it at first but there was light coming from somewhere. She was crouched on all fours, the vent was just large enough for her in this position. Where was this light coming from? Sarah continued to crawl toward the source, trying to find a way into the museum. The dull glow was coming from another vent grate. She looked down through it to see a green and white tiled floor of pure marble below her. It was definitely fancy so it was probably the museum's foyer. She pulled the grate off and gently placed it aside trying not to make any more noise. She had seen that owl had come in before; he was probably still somewhere in the small museum. Stealth would have to be her asset in this mission. She slipped out the vent and landed on the floor with the click of her shoes. Her simple dress was ruffled and dusty now as she patted it off. Quickly, Sarah realized how much in the open she was. She was standing right in front of a large clock, taking notice of the loud ticking sound it made. In response she quickly rushed over to a darker wing to the right.
Fish tanks were everywhere before her, the water bathing the area in a blue glow. This must be the aquarium wing. However the tanks were empty, not one fish to be seen. Even the larger tanks in the back were devoid of any marine life. How was she going to find this vault? If only Eunice or someone could help her, she didn't know where to go. Suddenly she started panicking, remembering the day before when that raccoon was shot through the chest. What if that happened to her, what if she became like him. She didn't have any money on her, but if they catch her, they'd still probably kill her. She felt vulnerable.
"Relax," came a voice. It startled her but she didn't scream, merely gasping for air as her spine went stiff. Another glow was added to the room, a softer white one becoming brighter. Eunice appeared in front of her, smiling gently. "Don't be afraid Sarah. You're almost there."
"I don't know where to go!" she whispered anxiously toward the ghost.
Eunice nodded calmly. She was relaxed, tranquil as though she knew everything was going to fine. Everything did not feel fine to Sarah thought. The ghost drifted over to the wall in the back. "Come closer Sarah." The girl complied and paced over to the wall, still keeping some distance from the ghost. Her presence still made her uncomfortable even if she was forced to trust her. "What do you see?" Sarah strained her eyes. There was a lever, small, almost unnoticeable. It was the same color as the stone wall and nearly impossible to distinguish. The glow from Eunice however made it easier to make out. "Pull it," the ghost commanded.
Sarah complied and gave the blue lever a yank. A door sized portion of the wall suddenly came to life, pushing back slowly with a rumble. Sarah's eyes widened as Eunice grinned. The portion then slid open behind the rest of the wall. A sudden yellow glow filled Sarah's eyes. The gold light reflected and shimmered around the large fish tanks creating a dazzling sight. The room before Sarah was filled with thousands upon thousands of bells, the currency of their land. The small coins were made of pure gold. Sarah looked back toward Eunice, but the ghost was gone. Her eyes glanced back to the room. There was a large steel vault in the center surrounded by piles of gold coins. Some of these are probably mine Sarah mused. She scooped a handful and placed them in her dress pocket. She skipped over to the vault as the door behind her groaned closed. At first she almost went hysterical, but quickly noticed a lever on the inside to open the door. She relaxed and returned her attention to the vault. She remembered back to when Mitzi had told her the combination was 4, 4, 4. The number was still echoing through her mind. There were three gold knobs on the steel door with the numbers 1 through 9 etched in beautiful cursive on them. Three arrows pointed at the top. She figured she had to match up the numbers to the arrows.
Quickly she cranked the first knob til the number read four. That wasn't so hard she thought. She felt more relieved turning the other knob til the number 4 matched the arrow. She heard a click. The lock must have been opening up a little, only one number to go. She suddenly heard a rumble. The click wasn't for the vault, it was for the room's door! She turned around seeing the hidden door was suddenly moving back. Someone was coming in! Frantically she looked around, she needed somewhere to hide. She saw several tall cabinets that reached up to the ceiling, probably filled with more riches. She pulled open one of its doors and noticed it was a closet for fancy gowns and suits. She crowded in and pulled the door closed suddenly hearing the room's door click to a rest in its open position.
A cheery whistle greeted her ears along with footsteps as she tried to breathe quietly. The panic was setting now, like a slow ooze that starts at the top of your head and seeps down your body. She was shaking now as she peeked through the crack in the cabinet door seeing the owl look around. A smile was etched across his beak.
"Oh Blather's you are truly something else," he said in a happy tone. Sarah's eyes widened even more as she put a hand over her mouth. This was the Blather's Eunice and Mitzi told her about, the Blather's that was the epicenter to the calamity. She sunk back into the gowns and suits that were on coat hangers feeling her legs grow weak. Suddenly the bird went very quiet, too quiet. She peeked through the crack in the door to see. He was looking at the vault scanning over the knobs. Two of the numbers were on 4. Oh no! She could hear her mind screaming. He moved his beak close to the knobs suddenly his tongue peeked out and he gave one a lick. His eyes narrowed and he licked again. He could taste the oddity in the gold, the hand that had turned it before. He stood up straight and looked around fervently. Sarah who was still holding her breath tried to stay as still as possible. She looked out the crack with terrified eyes. The owl produced a revolver from his vest holding it with an angry hand. He sniffed the air with an open beak carefully looking around. He made one step, his boot clicking loudly. He made a shorter sniff and his eyes locked on the cabinet. Sarah's eyes widened as her hand covered her mouth trying to hold in her fear but it was crawling all over her body, tingling through her insides.
"I know you're in here, whoever you are. I give you the count of three to show yourself," he announced heavily. He took a step toward the cabinet still pointing the revolver at it. He was following her scent. "One." Sarah tried not to move, her body was as stiff as a mannequin. "Two," he cocked the revolver, now close enough to the cabinet to reach for the door. "Three." Sarah's shaking hand rose and tapped open the door. It slowly creaked open as she stood there with tears and fear etched all over her face. Blather's eyes met hers and he broke a smile.
"Oh you stupid...stupid...girl." He shook his head still grinning. He still had the revolver raised at her face. "Move...now." She tried to move her legs but they felt like putty. Suddenly he grabbed her arm and yanked her out. She fell to the floor with a short cry. "Get up!" he commanded. She rose to a standing position.
"You've made a fatal mistake Sarah." Her eyes widened. "Yes," he nodded slowly. "I know your name, no surprises there."
"None of this belongs to you," she said sounding stupid and unconfident. He kept his finger on the trigger.
"No I think you're very wrong Sarah. I just have one question before I kill you." He stayed silent and glanced around. "What exactly were you looking for? This room is filled with riches. You could have taken as much as you could and left, but instead you went for the vault."
She shook her head. "Someone has to expose you."
"The records..."he added softly. The owl nodded. "I see..." He paced around for a moment still keeping the gun toward her. He picked up a few gold coins that were in a pile by the vault and let them drip from his fingers. "I don't know who your sources are or how you know the combination, but..." He paused and suddenly smiled. "That doesn't matter anymore. I'm sorry Sarah. You have failed." He pulled the trigger, the blast of the gun chamber exploded and the shot rang out. Her eyes clenched shut.
There was silence now, an odd silence. Sarah opened her eyes finding a bullet frozen in the air, inches from her face. Blather's smile faded to a look of shock as he held his smoking gun. Eunice was standing between them her glowing white hand raised toward the bullet but not quite touching it as though she were holding it with some ethereal power.
"No..." Blather's gasped.
"Oh yes," Eunice growled not looking at him, her eyes still locked on the bullet. Sarah stood there frozen her jaw quivering open just from the utter realization of seeing a bullet petrified in the air.
Mitzi appeared, suddenly flying toward the shell-shocked owl, "Sarah! Get the records!" Her spirit barreled into Blather's knocking him over while passing through him. Sarah composed herself and ran toward the safe moving out of the bullet's way. Eunice relaxed and the bullet sped into the wall with a loud ping. Blathers leaped up but the ghostly sheep swung around and shoved him back as Mitzi grabbed his revolver and tossed it away. Sarah yanked the third knob to 4 and the lock clicked open. She pulled the thick metal door open seeing stacks of papers. She grabbed them and made a dash for the room's entrance pulling open the lever. The wall rumbled as it pushed back and slid open. She looked back and saw Blather's passed out but Eunice and Mitzi were gone. She didn't think twice as she ran out into the aquarium room, then the foyer, then out the front doors at last. It was already noon, the town clock ringing out its chime accordingly. An arrow whizzed past her head stabbing into the tree next to her. She looked around to see where it came from, suddenly seeing a canine police officer with a bow in his hand. He was growling and started loading another arrow. Sarah gasped and began running through the forest as fast as she could. She heard an owl's chirpy voice coming from behind her in the distance crying, "Stop her! Don't let her get away!"
She gritted her teeth and ran, she kept running not stopping. She ran past the apple orchard, over a bridge by the waterfall, just running and running. She was trying to make it to the post office. She looked to her right as she ran. A bear with a rifle was aiming at her from a field as she ran across his sight. He pulled the trigger, and a bullet whizzed past her head. She kept running, an arrow flew past her again hitting the ground in front of her. She leapt into the air, her feet leaving the ground as she flew over the arrow. Her shoes met the grass again and she continued on as fast as she could. She entered a dense area of trees and foliage again still scampering to save herself. They were chasing her, the rustle of leaves resounding from behind her. She came to an opening in the trees with a cobblestone path that led to a building. A green sign with the words 'Post Office' adorned the wooden edifice. She caught her breath and rushed toward the door, throwing it open and leaping in. A click echoed through her ears as she felt the barrel of a gun press against her forehead. She looked up, her eyes catching the gleam of white feathers.
"And what do you think you're doing?" came the female voice. It was the post-master, a white pelican standing before her. A revolver not unlike Blather's adorned her hand. Her aggressive demeanor contrasted the innocent white bow on her pink dress. Sarah froze still clenching the stack of papers tightly in her hands holding them to her chest protectively.
"Give me those," she added carefully. Sarah stayed frozen. "GIVE them to me NOW!" she shouted making the girl twitch and stir. She slowly handed her the papers. Another pelican appeared, a male. He had a mail bag slung around his shoulder. She handed him the papers, while still keeping the gun pressed against Sarah's forehead. "Pete, get these to Luton as fast as you can."
Sarah's face twisted in confusion. "You're...helping me?"
"Of course I am," the pelican stated matter-of-factly.
The door behind them blew open and a bear with a rifle came in howling. The pelican swung her aim toward him and opened fired, emptying six bullets from her revolver. Her face stayed calm as Vladimir groaned and fell to his knees.
"Mitzi says hi," she added. She turned toward the stunned girl in front of her while reloading her gun. "Sarah you don't have much time. A train leaves in 2 minutes. You have to be on that train." She swung the chamber closed and cocked the gun.
"How does everyone know my name?!" Sarah cried in shock.
The pelican peeked through the half open door. "I'll cover you. C'mon..." she paused and looked back at the girl. "If you were wondering, I'm Pelly."
The post office door flew open again smacking Copper in the face. Pelly stormed out and fired a shot at his leg causing the canine to collapse to the ground. The pelican grabbed Sarah and threw her to the side as a torrent of arrows hailed from the trees and stabbed into the wooden building around her. The girl cried and rolled over across the grass as Pelly rushed toward her and pulled her off the ground. Blathers appeared with a revolver across the river and started unloading rounds of bullets as Mabel rushed across the bridge with an axe rapidly approaching. Sarah screamed as Pelly yanked her away, the axe barely whizzing past her head and stabbing into the tree trunk beside her. The train blared loudly, the station was right there. Sarah was too dismayed to even move as Pelly dragged her through the station's arch.
"C'mon!" shouted a monkey close by.
"We're here Porter! Take the girl!" She shoved Sarah toward him and unloaded more rounds of bullets over the platform balcony keeping several villagers at bay. Blathers held his revolver with two hands, carefully aiming from a distance.
Sarah shook her head slightly ducking as shouts of villagers could be heard. "I don't know why you've done it, but thank you for helping me."
"I want change just as much as you do Sarah," Pelly stated, aiming her gun at a rabid looking cat with a shovel. Suddenly a puff of white feathers flew from Pelly's back. Sarah screamed as Porter pulled her back. "No! Pelly!" The pelican fell to her knees clenching her chest where she had been shot. Blathers smiled from across the river, congratulating himself on his good aim.
"Let's go! There's no time!" Porter shouted. The train started moving as the monkey threw Sarah in. The doors shut as bullets bounced off them, even an arrow or two. Sarah held herself as she lay sprawled on the floor of the passenger compartment. It was over. She had gotten away. The train clicked across the tracks quickening its speed and soon enough she couldn't see the village anymore from the windows. Another monkey, the train's conductor, entered the compartment and kneeled beside the girl. "It's going to be alright. We're heading to Luton. They'll know about all of this by the time we get there." Sarah nodded and wiped her tears away. She looked down and noticed there was blood sprayed on floral print dress, even a few feathers. She hadn't even noticed it until now. Sarah didn't do anything though, merely sitting on the floor thinking about all that had happened. They'll get paid their deaths in the end Sarah promised, especially Blathers...
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[A/N] I'll try to get this story done soon enough with no more monthly delays. Thanks for reading.
