."You sure do love helping do you?" Mae said. "Oh of course it's my specialty to help out!" Annabeth exclaimed. After talking for awhile Mae was starting to warm up to Annabeth despite her creepy appearance. From time to time Annabeth got clumsy as they walked. She'd trip and fall but Mae would help her up. Also she scratches her neck vigorously like she had fleas. Mae would check up on her and Annabeth would say she's fine. That's another problem Mae happened to notice the constant neck scratching. Once they arrived at Annabeth's room. Mae completely forgot she was even walking there. "You gonna be fine?" Mae called out from the door. "Yep don't mind me!" Annabeth said.
Mae finally had found her idea and bounded off to catch up with Oden and his partner Arrow for their mission. Mae thought more about Annabeth. Like she had to care for her. She was clumsy and possibly had fleas. Mae promised herself she'd check up on her often during their walk.
"Got myself a delicious haul am I right bobo?" Casimir chuckled. The mute small mouse reddish-brown fur with white underparts nodded and smiled brightly. The two rodents were walking through a dark sewer hall with a dirty river flowing softly. Casimir carried the bagel recipe in his bag and carried a half piece of the ultimate bagel in his hand taking a bite out of the snack.
"These aren't too bad might go back for another." His voice was incoherent and rumbled as he chewed. Bobo stopped and sniffed the air. He tugged on Casimir's fur trying to alert him someone was coming. "Yes bobo something wrong?" Bobo pointed behind him hearing a small sound of pawsteps. Casimir quickly dropped his bagel and held his guard down putting his hand in his bag for his knife. He swayed his hand through the bag realizing that he had left his weapon.
"You think the boss is going to give us a reward for this?" Oden asked his companion Arrow. Oden was a skinny grey rat with a bandage hiding his left missing eye. "Shut up he might hear us." Arrow snapped. Arrow was a darker grey than Oden his fur had several battle scars and a small puffy tuft of fur on his head. They were walking to Casimir's scent following his trail sniffing the air carrying thick ropes. Behind them Mae snuck quietly.
Arrow could smell another scent but from the kingdom. It was not Oden's nor Casimir's. "Do you smell that." Arrow pumped. "Smell what?" Oden stopped for Arrow. Mae suspected that they could smell her and shivered recoiling back a little bit. "It's in the way of the criminal's scent." Arrow sniffed the air vigorously. "Who's there!" A voice called from upon the darkness. "Oden!" Oden called back. Arrow grabbed him by the chest and slapped Oden then shushed him. "You're not supposed to tell him you idiot!" Arrow hissed.
"Oden who is this Oden?" The voice replied. The figure was becoming more conhearent. It was Casimir. "We got em." Arrow smirked coming closer to Casimir. "I have teeth and I ain't afraid to use em!" Casimir snarled. "You're under arrest!" Oden stood up on his hind quarters and did finger guns. "You idiot we are capturing him!" Arrow said tripping Oden so he could fall. Mae giggled very loudly at the sight of the two fighting. Getting Arrow's attention.
"What are you laughing at." Arrow said stood his chest against Casimir's holding him down. "I didn't laugh at you at all big nose." Casimir said then immediately held his mouth and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "But yuck do you ever wash yourself!?" Arrow sniffed himself and died inside but he held in his disgust. He picked up Casimir but his scruff angrily and signaled Oden that it was time to go. Oden nodded and picked up bobo. They attempted wrapping the ropes around bobo and Casimir.
"Put me down!" Casimir struggled by twisting and turning. Arrow quickly pulled the rope from his paws and tied it around Casimir's neck. "Hold still!" Oden instructed. "Bobo bite!" Casimir choked. Bobo nodded and sunk his teeth into Oden's paw causing small amounts of blood to trickle from it. Oden screeched and threw bobo sliding close by the river. "NO!" Casimir yowled tugging at the ropes. Bobo hung on to the edge of the river climbing back up and running for his life away from it. He looked back at his struggling friend.
"Go find safety!" Casimir yelled out. Bobo nodded and ran away into the darkness. Arrow tugged onto Casimir when he finally gave up. "Hey we didn't get the little-" Oden spoke but was interrupted. "We don't need that one." Arrow growled. Mae hid between a crack in the wall watching them head back home. She sighed and followed them back. "He must know the way to the surface I just know it." Mae whispered to herself. Mae padded closer to Casimir who was silent and had a grumpy facial expression. "Pssst." Mae murmured. Casimir eyed Mae then looked ahead.
"Go away before they catch you too." Casimir whispered to her not making eye contact. "They wouldn't dare to touch me I am the princess of solarlandia." Mae replied quietly. "Solar what?" Casimir muttered turning to her raising an eyebrow.
"That's where they're taking you my father supposedly got a prophecy and you are the one." Mae whispered. "No I don't have time for fairy princess stories I have to escape home!" Casimir breathed. "Where?" Mae wondered. "Up there in the city." Casimir pointed his paw up to the roof as he walked.
"The surface?" Mae gasped. "Well yeah I guess you could call it that." Casimir replied. "Can you take me there?" Mae smiled at him with admiration. Arrow jumped down a hole into Solarlandia pulling Casimir down before he could say his answer. Mae quickly held onto Casimir's tail so Oden couldn't see her. Then she ran behind Oden to hide herself. The gang all walked down to the castle.
Mae crept by Casimir once more. "I'm Mae by the way." "Epic and I'm Casimir." He grumbled. "Can you take me there still?" Mae repeated. "No they might think I'm a kidnapper I'm a thief not a kidnapper big difference." He growled softly. "Come on!" Mae said nudging Casimir. He flinched then shook his head. "What's it like anyways?" Mae asked. "It's free you can go anywhere you please and no one ain't stopping you." Mae looked at him in awe imagining her running through great fields and the sky is blue instead of grey. "Alright now no more questions." Casimir ordered. Mae nodded in response.
Casimir looked around the town. There were rats staring at him from all over the place. Some not paying close attention to their own work. He could hear whispers and murmurs about him from young pups and dames. "So you guys built all this?" Casimir asked. "Oh yeah it happened a long time ago when the infamous incident happened it's apart our history and a thank you to Mansi." Mae smiles. "Man who?" "Mansi the great rat god!" That's when Casimir bursted out laughing. "A Great rat god hah very funny Mae!" "It's not funny he's real and he sent a prophecy to us." Mae hissed.
"You and your little princess mind must be in the clouds there is no god." Casimir nudged her playfully. Mae just rolled her eyes and shoved him back. "There is you just haven't seen what he can do yet." "Yeah right." Casimir said. "Shut up you don't have anything to do in your life your a thief after all." Mae said. Casimir shot her a glare. "I've been doing this since day one buddy don't test me I have a-." Casimir was interrupted by Mae holding a familiar knife. "Dagger? I suppose you were looking for it." Mae snickered. "How did you find it." Casimir said snatching it from her paws. "You left it when you stole that bagel recipe for Viggo I found it on the way to sneak." Mae replied.
"Oh so that's the fat pig's name I thought it would be Humphrey or something." Casimir chuckled. Mae gave an awkward smile and giggled. Casimir put his dagger back in his bag and walked some more. Now they were where houses were. Pups were playing around and the parents did their laundry it was all such a good stable society.The walk to the castle was quite long so Casimir tried to think of what to say to Mae so he wouldn't be bored. "Mind if you tell me about the so called incident lead you to make this mess of a kingdom." "I'm not sure my dad hasn't told me" Mae replied.
"Why is your dad so all over the place." Casimir commented. "First he doesn't tell you the kingdom's creation now he leads you up here to the city to get you killed." "Well I came out on my own he never lets anyone up on the surface and I've never seen it before so I'm determined to see what it's like." She smiled confidently. "First things first the humans are major jerks." Casimir chuckled. "What are humans?" "You don't know what those tall almost hairless creatures the drive monstrous vehicles?" Mae shook her head no. "If you are gonna go to the city it's best to avoid them they have a lust for killing things." "Also they do these strange dances." He wiggled his arms around to replicate one
Mae didn't like how the humans sounded. The thought of it made her shiver. But the dance part made Mae do a crooked smile. "Okay got it." Casimir hung his head in sadness. "Are you alright?" Mae cooed. "No I'm fine just a bad memory." Casimir frowned. Mae pat his back trying to comfort him. "Hey at least we made it!" Casimir looked up to see the incredible tall castle. "Whoa." He said in amazement.
The castle was bold on the blue beyond. It stood there as if conjured from the storybook of a child. It was perfect. Casimir imagined unicorns in the courtyard, because if those towers could exist, why not? Every stone was even and square, as if those who built were set on perfection, as if they really loved what they made. They were walls made to protect a community, to echo with laughter and be the shelter they needed for millennia to come.
"Oh hey Lady Mae!" Oden turned around to see the princess who was behind them. Mae gave Oden a wave and a false smile she couldn't believe she couldn't have been seen and snuck perfectly. "You know you could be a great thief with that stealth." Casimir commented. "Oh really? Not that I want to be one.." Mae stammered. "Yeah right." Casimir chuckled nudging her softly. Mae giggled as they heading inside the castle's corridor.