Snapping out of her daze, Sikah brushed the silver trinkets she had coveted just moments before off the small table as though they were now just a pile of clutter and tipped the table on its side. the lid of the table was connected to the base by a hinge which was released as the table was thrown off level causing it to fold flush against the base and as the table was further pushed towards the ground the area around the bottom of the table followed it, revealing a small hole, without further prompting Markius slid into the opening pulling Sikah with him who still held the table which quickly fell back into it original place as she slipped in side, both now concealed beneath the floor. The fit was tight but they dared not move, as, not a moment too soon, the unmistakable sound of the small hideaway's door splintering to pieces broke the silence.
Sikah stared at Markius in the dark, even her acute sight in the dimmest of lights could only pick up the vague outline of his face and the flash of his eyes as they caught the small amount of light filtering through the floorboards but she knew his face as well as she knew her own and could almost see the deep worry lines that would be marring his brow. Internally sighing, Sikah sent her hearing out into the room above trying to figure out where the intruders were and how many there were.
There seemed to be six in total, how they managed to fit into the small space was beyond her, two of the party were simply having fun smashing up the place, she filed their voices away for later tracking and pay back, no one messed with her stuff. Just then the one she took to be the leader found the scatted silver ware. Sikah tensed and felt Markius' arms tighten around her as the men moved closer to their hiding spot shouting to each other, though in the crowded space there was no need. "Looks like we got the right place Lads, spread out and keep looking, that filthy beastie could still be lurkin' around."
There was nothing Sikah and Markius could do but wait them out, it seemed like they had been hiding in that hole forever, there was a heart stopping moment when they heard the table above them snap and give way, either luck was with them or something else, that had caused the table to break in the opposite direction to the hinge preventing the trap door from springing open and exposing them to certain death. A slow burning rage was building in Sikah as she heard everything she called home trampled on and broken and then just when it seemed there was nothing left to break..."Alright lads that's enough fun, lets torch this place and be done with it."
Sikah could only hold on tighter to Markius as they heard the whooshing of the flames as they eagerly began devouring the remnants of her home. Soon smoke starting filling up their tiny space and they knew they could not wait any longer. Pushing open the trap door was harder than expected, several of the roof supports had begun toppling over with one almost barring their escape. Finally they crawled out of the hole but there was no time to stop, there was very little air left in the room and thick smoke made visibility impossible. trusting in her own knowledge of her home, Sikah curled her tail around one of Markius' wrists and starting crawling to one of the back walls, earlier in the summer she had noticed a few of the boards were coming loose but had never the time to fix it, now it would seem to be their only means of escape. Pushing out the boards Sikah sucked in a grateful breathe of air and quickly made room for Markius as his huge frame was causing him to flag quickly. With no more time than to regain some much needed air, the pair quickly moved away from the wreckage that had been a home not moments before.
Tears welled in Sikah's eyes as she watched the final bits of her home fall apart. Angrily she swiped at the evidence and turned to face Markius only to find him still flat on the ground where she had dragged him before. "Markius?" Sikah asked uncertainly, fear tingling down her spine causing her tail to twitch nervously when he failed to respond. "Oh, no.... Markius!!!!"
Part 3
Comments