The Search for Voyd

Chapter 16

Back in Sticksville, Squeaker was sniffing out Avia's scent while Jennifer, Henry, Mrs. Lunatin, Ms. Ginger, and the old woman were following him. They went in different directions that Avia has been to, from the library to the streets. They continued following Squeaker everywhere he went when he picked up Avia's familiar scent. After exiting a street, they reached to an area where Squeaker began sniffing around while using his whiskers to detect where Avia went. "Yep. She's been here alright." He said. "I can feel her scent entering inside my sinuses. And according to my whiskers, they're tingling that she went this way. Come on." And so, the group followed Squeaker on the left side of the city. So far during their walk, there was no sign of Avia anywhere. Just plain emptiness with the only sounds being the cars driving on the road until they got quieter and quieter when they finally became silent due to the group continuously walking in the direction Squeaker was leading them to. It was like a ghost town. There was nothing going on around the area. Not one sound or music was even heard. Just solid silence in the air. The pure quietness and lack of activity around made Jennifer feel hesitant and uneasy. "Are you sure we're going in the right direction?" Jennifer asked Squeaker. He then replied, "I'm picking up everything I can. But this could take awhile, so you're just gonna have to be patient and trust me with this." "But we've gone almost everywhere already and so far, there is still no sign of Avia anywhere." Jennifer said. "We're following where she went." Squeaker said back. "So, just because I smell her scent doesn't mean we'll expect her to come up or pop out immediately. We just have to keep going until we actually do find her." "But what if something terrible has already happened to her? Even right before we find her? I'm not sure if I could take it that much longer!" Jennifer said, now in full worry. "Well, we're going to make sure that doesn't happen." Squeaker assured the mother cat. "Now, I can't be certain cause I'm not with her, so therefore, I don't know what she's doing or where she's at right now, but we're going to do everything we can to help y'all, so just work with us right now." Jennifer then went to Henry for some comfort. The father cat nudged her back and assured her that everything will be alright. However, like Squeaker, he also wasn't sure because he's not with Avia and doesn't know where she is or what she's doing. This made Jennifer more nervous, but all the cat parents could do right now was just trust in Squeaker and hope that their daughter is okay, wherever she is.

     The humans and cats continued their walk around where Avia had gone to until they finally reached towards a cathedral. It turned out to be the same one that Avia had been in with Kathleen and where she met Donatello in. Recognizing the familiar smell, Squeaker became alerted and ran towards the cathedral. He then meowed out to the others to come and follow him. "I believe that Squeaker is picking up your lost cat's scent." The old woman said to Mrs. Lunatin. "Inside that cathedral? That can't be possible. Pets aren't even allowed in cathedrals." The owner said. "Squeaker is not wrong. He indeed smells your cat." The old woman replied. "I would actually know if he's wrong because if he catches a cold, he would make a mistake. So, that's why I checked his temperature and tested his scent findings first this morning before we began our hunt, so that his sinuses and senses are functioning well when he has the chance to use them. Now let's go inside if we want to find your lost cat quicker." "But what about the cats?" Mrs. Lunatin asked. "I already said that pets aren't allowed in cathedrals and somebody might catch us with them and kick us out." "Oh, no need to worry about that." The old woman replied. "We'll make sure they're close enough to us so that we could hide them easily. Now let's go. Squeaker is waiting for us." The humans and cats then entered the cathedral, but did it quietly in order to not disturb people inside while they did their best to hide the cats to prevent people seeing them and kicking them out. They continued following Squeaker and where he was heading to while using his whiskers to scent out Avia. The group went into a dark hallway which led to another room. However, it was bright and fountains were everywhere. Some of them even had gargoyles spitting out water. It turned out to be the same room where Avia and Kathleen first met Donatello. The group then stopped at an area as Squeaker paused. "I think Squeaker might have got something." The old woman said. Squeaker turned around and said, "Not only do I smell your daughter, but I also smell....a dog." Jennifer gasped in horror. "A dog?!" She asked quietly in a full panicked tone. "Oh no..." Henry mumbled. The parents couldn't believe what was happening right now. Their daughter has teamed up with a cat's worst enemy. A dog. This now made them more worried about her and feared that she might be abducted by the canine. This even made Ms. Ginger feel uncomfortable and worried as well. "Avia had encountered a dog?! HERE?!" Jennifer asked again now in a quiet yell. "But...Dogs are a cat's worst enemy! Henry, our precious daughter has been kidnapped and abducted by a stray domestic canine!" Mrs. Lunatin and the old woman began noticing the cats panicking. "What's going on?" Mrs. Lunatin asked. "Squeaker, is everything all right?" The old woman asked her cat. Squeaker meowed at his owner and signaled her about what was happening so she could understand his alerts better. His owner's eyes widened as she exclaimed, "Oh, goodness!" "What? What is it?" Mrs. Lunatin asked. "Squeaker is saying that he smells a dog around here." The old woman replied. Mrs. Lunatin's eyes widened as well. "What?! A dog?! Do you think it got Avia?!" She asked again, now in worry. Jennifer was now hyperventilating next to Henry, who was doing everything he could to calm her down, but it was too hard since it was now a possibility that Avia was in danger because of her meeting a dog and teaming up with one. "I'm not sure." The old woman replied. "In fact, I'm not even sure if cats can smell emotions like what dogs do." "Well, I hope they do, because whenever I feel sad or sick, my cats would always understand how I feel. They would climb up on my bed and nudge on me in comfort." Mrs. Lunatin said. "And then after that, I would feel a little bit better. To me, there's something about cats that make you feel good inside whenever you feel down and they comfort you. It's like as if they're an animal with the power of healing." "Well, I've heard people say that a dog is a person's best friend." The old woman started. "But now that you've mentioned all of that, then that could make people around the world dig deeper on a cat's perspective and how they truly feel about you. So, it could also prove to them that cats feel for their owners too." "I totally agree." Mrs. Lunatin agreed. "People who say that cats have no emotions should think again, because what we experienced proves the opposite." "And you're absolutely right." The old woman agreed. "Now let's continue searching for your cat, shall we?" "Oh, yes. Let's do that." Mrs. Lunatin said. "Squeaker! Lead the way!" The old woman ordered her cat. Squeaker then continued to track down Avia's scent with his whiskers as the others followed him.