Just Another Lullaby

Chapter 10: Plans discovered

The pups were blinded by the immediate bright lights that revealed itself from behind the once closed door. Their eyes were forced to a squint. Fortunately for them, their eyes soon adjusted to the lighting. Behind the door was a long, narrow hallway with bright lights and dull white walls. It looked to be one of those iconic laboratories you'd see in movies, typically in the horror genre. The lights illuminated the room they stood in. Besides the absence of lighting, it wasn't much of a difference to the area before them; only it had a steep staircase leading to the seemingly only exit/entryway.

Chase and Skye gave each other a quick, unsettled glance before forcing their eyes back towards the eerie hallway. Chase took a cautioned step past the doorframe, keeping quiet. Skye eyed the young shepherd as he bravely began into the unknown territory. A faint wave of panic rushed through the young Cockapoo. She hurried up to her friend, not wanting to be alone in such a place. Slowly, they made their way through the corridor, carefully eyeing their surroundings. They passed closed doors and open hallways. It all looked the same. How did people even navigate this lab?

Skye quietly whimpered, "Chase, I'm not sure this is a good idea."

Chase frowned. "Trust me, Skye, I don't want to do this either, but we have to." He gave the agitated pup a soft glance, "This may be our only shot at finding these guys responsible, and if we're lucky, their plans too."

"What if things go wrong," She questioned, worry clear in her voice. "We're relying on only blind luck here."

"Then we hope that luck is on our side right now." He pressed on, prompting a quiet whine from the smaller pup.

They made their way up to a corner of a hallway that branched out in the shape of a "T". Before the pups made their way to the edge, sudden footsteps were heard. The pups froze. The clanking of the shoes gradually grew louder. Chase was able to pinpoint it coming from the branch on their left. Quickly, he looked around the area, hoping to find somewhere where both he and his partner could hide.

"Here!" He heard Skye say in a loud, hushed voice. She pointed at a door slightly creaked open not far from where they stood. He nodded, showing her that he both acknowledged and approved. They hastily made their way over to the door. Chase quietly made his way into the room after Skye. Once in, he carefully closed the door, making sure to make as little noise as possible. They held their breath and listened. They awaited the sounds of the footsteps. Once the footsteps were cleared, they both simultaneously gave a sigh of relief.

"Did you hear something?" They froze once more. A voice, from this very room. Skye gave Chase a look that clearly said 'I told you so'. From their hiding spot behind a wall, they could hear the conversation commence.

"Hahaha. Turf, you're always hearing something." Said a new voice.

"Heh. I agree, Jeff. Turf, you've always been a little paranoid since I hired you. Maybe you should lay off the coffee." Said another. Presumingly the boss.

"I'm not paranoid!" Turf defended.

"Dude," Said Jeff, sounding as if he's holding back a laugh. "You're always complaining about hearing something. The last dozen times you checked there was never anything to worry about. What makes this time any different?"

They could hear a sigh. "I guess you're right." Now it was Chase's turn to give Skye the 'I told you so' look.

"Good, now that we're all paying attention here." Said the boss, sounding sterner than the last time he spoke. "We need to figure out how we're going to rule this out. Adventure Bay still has the Airanee stone. We've already threatened them, we have blown up their pathetic little town, we got rid of their only source of survival, yet they still keep my precious little gem away from us!" He nearly shouted, sounding nothing short of irritated.