Adventure in Korbat Cave

      The glowing Korbat tour guide gestured dramatically towards the entrance to the cave.

      Nyami the Zafara nudged her little sister. "Are you sure you're up to this? You won't get too scared like last time?"

      The little red Zafara stamped her foot and said reproachfully, "I did not get too scared at Terror Mountain!! I just really had to go to the bathroom was all."

      Nyami rolled her eyes and took her little sister's hand. The tour guide continued: "I'll be your tour guide, Nancy. As you can see, I was specially painted to glow for my job. It's pretty dark in the cave, but the light coming from my fur is just enough for us to see and to not disturb the creatures that live in the cave.

      "I must warn you before we enter; there are wide holes and niches that could harm you. We ask that you kindly stay close to me so that you can watch your feet and not fall. Thank you!"

      The group immediately huddled around the Korbat. She smiled revealing rows of pointed teeth and said in a calm voice, "We are now about to enter the cave."

      Nyami felt her sister's grip on her hand tighten and she smiled down at her reassuringly. "Don't worry Zabi! You can hold my hand the entire time."

      Zabi grinned and looked ahead. The group moved as one towards the mouth of the dark cave.

      "It's like we're being swallowed by a…by a giant Skeith or something!" Zabi remarked rather loudly, causing heads to turn and a family of Skeith to glare at her.

      "Sorry," Nyami murmured to the Skeith family, who nodded understandingly when they noticed how small she was.

      As they walked on, the light grew fainter. Although Nancy's glow was bright enough for them to see, Nyami gripped her little sister's hand, just to make sure she wouldn't fall or anything.

      "Ooh, here we are, at Karren Corner." Nancy gestured toward the ceiling, giving off enough light for them all to see a large group of the green bat-like Petpets hanging, some sleeping and some nursing young, while others stared at the group angrily.

      Nancy looked around and then said, "Karren originally come from Meridell. But these," she pointed to the Karren once more, "came here of their own accord. Their large ears help them hunt and fly, because their eyesight is poor. They can hear for miles around! Why, I bet they heard us half an hour ago."

      Nyami pointed at the Petpets. "Want one of those, Zabi? Maybe for Christmas or your birthday?"

      Zabi made a face. "No! Never."

      Nyami ruffled her sister's hair and walked with the group, who was now heading to the right.

      "Now I must ask you to please be extremely quiet during this part of the tour. We are heading in Barbat territory. They are very territorial and will not like us intruding on our home, so I ask you all not to make any sudden movements or loud noises," Nancy warned quietly, causing the group to strain their ears to hear what she was saying.

      Nyami looked at her sister and gave her the 'Shh' signal. Zabi nodded.

      They trod quietly. A few rocks crumbled beneath their feet, but these were such minute sounds no one seemed to pay them any attention.

      Silently, Nancy put a finger to her lips and pointed upwards.

      A large horde of Barbats were grouped on the ceiling. Most were sleeping. None were staring at their visitors.

      Nyami gazed in awe as one of the Barbats ruffled its wings and the others followed suit, a ripple of movement on the dark ceiling. It seemed that the others followed what the Barbat did, for it moved over about an inch and the others did too, a mass of squawking wings.

      Nyami felt something move across her toes-something hairy-but paid no attention to it. She was too caught up in the beauty of the movement of the Petpets.

      Suddenly, Zabi's voice pierced through the dark, "Eeek!! A Spyder!"

      Instantaneously, all of the Barbats flew straight at the source of the sound-Zabi. Grabbing her hand, Nyami ran with her sister the opposite way, thrusting her hand out at the biting and clawing Barbats.

      "Nyami!" Zabi screamed.

      "I'm here!" she replied, gripping her sister's hand tighter. She felt fewer claws and bites and realized the Barbats must be going away. She dropped her hand at her side and stopped.

      Zabi howled out. Nyami suddenly felt herself being pulled by her little sister. She never remembered her sister being so strong.

      She turned and looked to find her sister screaming as she fell down the hole. The huge hole had come out of nowhere in the darkness; they had seen it with the light from Nancy before.

      "Don't let me go!" Zabi screeched, tears evident in her voice.

      "I won't!!" Nyami yelled back, letting herself be pulled down the hole.

      Together they fell through the darkness, Zabi screaming and sobbing and Nyami lost for words. They were doomed.

      They stopped falling abruptly. Nyami checked herself for broken bones, and then her sister.

      "No." Zabi answered, "No, I'm fine."

      Nyami breathed hard, panting in and out like a Lupe who had just run in a competition. Zabi silently sobbed beside her; Nyami could feel her sister's tears as she hugged her tightly.

      "It's ok," she whispered soothingly, stroking her hair, "We'll be alright."

      Zabi stopped crying and looked up at her sister warmly. "You'd make a great mom."

      Nyami smiled stood up. She held her hand out for her sister to grab, but instead her sister started crying again.

      "I-It was my f-fault. I w-was the one who s-screamed and made the B-Barbats angry." She sobbed into her sister's skirt.

      "No, no. It wasn't our fault," she replied soothingly. "Anyone would scream if they felt a Spyder."

      Zabi sniffed and looked up. "How are we going to get out?"

      Nyami shrugged, but realizing that it was too dark for her sister to see, she replied, "I don't know."

      Zabi stood up and hugged her sister tightly. Nyami hugged her back, her eyes scanning the darkness for any way they could get out of the hole.

      "Hey…what's that?" Zabi pointed to a corner of the wall. Nyami stepped closer to it and realized it was a small tunnel.

      "I don't know," Nyami said. She fell to all fours and tried to squeeze through. "It's too small for me."

      Zabi picked up a large rock and pounded the edges of the tunnel with it. The dirt tumbled onto the ground and made the tunnel entrance bigger.

      "Look, it's so much wider on the inside." Nyami pointed to the tunnel and fit through with ease. "Come on Zabi, wait for me to get all the way in and then follow me."

      She crawled through the tunnel, and heard her sister grunt with effort as she entered too.

      "Careful; it goes uphill here," Nyami warned her sister. Going uphill in a tight tunnel while dirt kept falling in your hair and eyes was a hard task, but if it meant getting out of the cave, they were happy to do so.

      It seemed as though they had been crawling through the tunnel for an hour, if more than that. Nyami was tired, as she was sure her sister was. She kept plowing through anyway.

      "Zabi! I see an opening ahead!"

      Crawling even faster at the thought of getting out of the dreaded tunnel, Nyami was soon out of the tunnel. She waited for her sister, who immediately stood up and dusted herself off.

      "Where are we now?" Zabi asked her sister. Nyami looked around; dirt, dirt, and more dirt. But then- a faint glow off in the distance.

      "Zabi! Look it's our guide!"

      Zabi shrieked with joy and together they ran headlong towards the source of the light-instead, they found a glowing orb.

      "Oh no," Zabi whispered, "Oh no, oh no, oh no…"

      Nyami peered into the orb curiously. She gasped in amazement-there was their guide and the group!! It seemed they were so close that she could just reach out and touch them…

      "Zabi, look at this."

      Zabi stared into the orb. She touched the orb and gasped suddenly as her hand was sucked into the orb.

      "Nyami! Do you think…?"

      Nyami nodded. "It's worth a shot."

      Together, they put the orb on the ground and stepped into it. They were hurled into the orb, everything was spinning, Nyami thought she was going to be sick…

      They stopped.

      "Well there you are! We've been looking for you all over!"

      The two sisters turned and saw Nancy and the group running towards them.

      "Yeah," panted Nyami, "Yeah. Sorry about that…"

      Zabi and Nyami looked at each other, then stood up and joined the group. Everything was going to be okay now.

      So long as a Spyder didn't wander over a young Neopet's toes…

The End