HAUNT DAWGZ STORIES

THE CAT'S EYE

A tear meandered down the front of five year old Kendall's face as she entered the kitchen. "Mommy...what happened to all the kitties? How come they're all gone?"

"Well sweetie, all the cats on earth vanished. It was very odd, but three days ago they all just vanished. That's why Lucy isn't here anymore, sweetie. They're all gone."

Three days earlier...

The boxer dog sprinted behind its prey, saliva dripping from a barking mouth as it closed the gap with each stride. The orange tabby cat raced through the alley, heart pounding, eyes scanning, searching for the route to safety. The much larger beast barked, frothy saliva flew from his lips. The block wall was only sixty feet ahead at the dead end of the alley. The scared cat ran to a corner, and turned. As the dog kept charging, the cat leaped over the canines head, and ran back the other direction. Another dog approached from the other end of the alley, running head-on towards the cat. The cat turned, only to find the boxer closing in. The cat leaped to the side wall of the alley to a trash can. The can's lid wobbled then fell off, causing the cat to fall back to the ground. The cat was surrounded.

The cat ran to another trash can on the opposite side of the alley, jumped on top, and sprung itself to the top of the block wall. Before it leaped to the safety of the other side, the cat looked at the dogs as they barked her way. She thought, "Stupid canines! We should be on the same team."

The tabby sauntered as he walked on the grass on the other side of the wall. "Get off my lawn!" shouted a man from his driveway." The tabby looked his way. "Boy, does it really matter if a cat strolls across his lawn?" The man reached down and picked up a rock from his planter, and through it at the cat. "Are you kidding me?" the cat thought as he scurried down the street. The tabby jumped a fence into a backyard. The cat walked up to the glass sliding door of a house. "There you are, Lucy!" said Kendall as she slid the glass door open. Happily, Lucy ran inside.

A spotted bengal cat walked that night, exploring the trash cans of a bowling alley across town. The approaching footsteps caused the beautiful cat to look up. "Get out of here, you cat!" The feline jumped off the trash can and felt something strike him in the side, then saw the empty beer bottle roll away, making a high pitched sound as the glass rolled on the asphalt. It was more difficult to run with a new bruised rib injury, but the cat had no choice. "Why can't these humans just let us live?" The bottle thrower grinned as he watched the cat flee. An obese man with about ten days of beard growth, his brownish teeth were barely visible even on this moonlit night. "Ha!...You stupid cat! I hope that hurt!" The cat slowed its pace and continued down the alley. "Wow, that one did hurt...and my paw still hurts from a couple of days ago. What's with these humans abusing animals? Enough!"

The bengal moved slowly and jumped into the broken window of a dirty, abandoned compact car, complete with the paint peeling, and all windows smashed out. "Ah, back at headquarters," thought the bengal. "It's time." The bengal reached under the seat and batted a red box to the front floorboard. The box was small, about the size of a smaller cell phone, with a black button on top. The cat sighed. "It's time." The cat winced in pain as he leaned forward, using bodyweight to help his paw push the button.

A high pitched voice spoke through the box. "So, you pushed the button, Bengal. You think now is the right time?"

"Yes, King Loki, we're getting hurt and killed everyday. These humans even have what they call high kill shelters where we lose thousands every month."

"Doesn't sound like much of a shelter. So you think after ten-thousand years of us playing the role of domestic cats, our study on earth is over?"

"Yes, my King. We have plenty of data, and now we have to save what is left of us."