Chapter 3: Mutation.
Zareb sprinted through the front door of his home. His home was comprised of several huts made out of wood and animal skins. "Venus!" Zareb called out. The fluffy furred cub scampered out from underneath the table. He did not have much time. Zareb bent down to all fours and looked straight into her eyes. "Venus, you must leave now. Please. You can't stay here. Run! Run and never look back", he said in animal speak. He could sense that Shere Khan was not far off.
Venus looked confused, unsure of what she should do. "Go!" Zareb said, but she still didn't leave. Zareb didn't want to do this, but he had no other choice. Zareb growled menacingly and looked as though he was about to strike Venus. Terrified, Venus ran out the door, never looking back. Zareb sighed in relief. Now all he had to deal with was Shere Khan.
*****
The sun lay in the middle of the sky, which caused the shadows to disappear. Heat waves rose from the ground. Determined, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello and Leonardo all walk onwards. Their destination unknown. None of them knew that the next few minutes would change their life forever.
"We're gunna die ya no", Raphael says morbidly, finally breaking the silence. "Won way or anot'er", he added. The other three wished to rebut Raphael's comment, but they all knew it was true. They were still too young to hunt for themselves. Soon they would die from either starvation or from being eaten by a larger predator. Ironically this was the main reason why the cubs didn't escape from Shere Khan's mansion earlier: they needed protection. Now the cubs were truly on their own, with no one in the world to help them.
The group walked on to a wide, rocky dirt road. There the group stopped to figure out which direction they where going to head towards now. The sun beat down on their small furry bodies.
"I sez we go t'at way", Raphael finally announced while pointing south. Leonardo disagreed.
"It's danegerus t'at way. Too many 'ills. We s'ould go West", Leonardo suggested as an alternative. He should of known that Raphael was too stubborn to accept his way of thinking. A simplistic argument abruptly began.
"Sowth"
"West"
"Sowth"
"West"
"SOWTH!"
"WEST!"
Raphael's anger finally got the better of him. "SOWTH!" Raphael dived and tackled Leonardo. Donatello tried to get the furious Raph off his brother. Michelangelo stood frozen in his spot. He looked at what was down the road.
"Umm… guys… Wats t'at?" The fighting ceased. All eyes were on the approaching vehicle. None of them moved. Time seemed to stand still. Before the cubs realised that the oncoming truck was dangerous, it was already too late.
The truck skidded but it doesn't stop in time. The truck's load came around to the side, which caused the truck to go into a roll. The cubs tried their best to avoid the truck's contents, but they weren't quick enough. A barrel flew through the air and landed in front of Donatello's escape route. The orange chemicals inside the barrel, spurted out and on to Donatello. He squealed.
A barrel broke when it rolled over Michelangelo, squirting the same orange chemical. Another two barrels broke near Leonardo and Raphael. An eternity passed before the cheetahs found the strength to get away from the crash site. The driver lay stunned, still in the driver's compartment.
*****
Venus made her way amongst the shrubbery, head low to the ground. She was a few hours traveling time behind the boys. The boy's scent was strangely familiar to her, which was why she was following it. Within the next few minutes, Venus came across the truck's crash site. Of course, it didn't look like a crash site anymore. The barrels had been cleared, the truck had been moved and the driver had been seen to. Venus watched a vulture that circled above. Without looking where she was walking, Venus accidentally stumbled down a small slope along side the dirt road, and slammed into a hidden barren that was lying in the shrub. Small orange particles filtered through the air and landed on Venus.
"What's this? What's happening? Who is that?"
A shadowy figure towered above the cowering cheetah cub.