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Speaker 1: Hello friends, and welcome to sleep Tight Stories. If you

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Speaker 1: haven't already, be sure to subscribe to sleep Tight Stories

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Speaker 1: on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. Also,

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Speaker 1: if you have a moment, please consider leaving a review.

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Speaker 1: Your review might help introduce others to our podcast. Thank you.

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Speaker 1: Remember last time, Susan and Tucker were taken by Kai

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Speaker 1: and the Rats and then pushed into the lake. Tucker

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Speaker 1: couldn't swim, and Susan did everything she could to help

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Speaker 1: him as they race towards a waterfall. Susan finally managed

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Speaker 1: to get Tucker to the rocks on the side, but

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Speaker 1: she couldn't hang on any longer and finally let go.

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Speaker 1: This episode, Tucker wants to leap in the water to

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Speaker 1: go after Susan, but he is grabbed from behind by Vinnie.

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Speaker 1: Tucker is very angry with Vinnie, but realizes that Vinnie

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Speaker 1: is not alone. Vinnie brings him back to the moment

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Speaker 1: and they discuss what has happened with Kai and the Rats.

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Speaker 1: Cat City chapter sixteen, Tucker would have leaped into the

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Speaker 1: water after her strong pause grabbed him from behind and

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Speaker 1: held him. He was forced to watch his Susan float

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Speaker 1: away into the blackness as he struggled to be free.

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Speaker 1: Let me go, she's gone talk, Vinnie's deep voice said,

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Speaker 1: I'm sorry, I can't let you go too. Tucker continued

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Speaker 1: to struggle for a moment before spinning around to face

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Speaker 1: Vinny and found he wasn't alone. A handful of guards

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Speaker 1: stood behind him, most of whom Tucker recognized as Vinnie's favorites.

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Speaker 1: None of them would meet his eyes, and most had

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Speaker 1: dragging tails in sympathy. Tucker, however, was furious. We could

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Speaker 1: have saved her, He yelled at his friend. If all

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Speaker 1: of us had grabbed her, he would have dragged us

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Speaker 1: under with her. Vinnie said, you know that we could

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Speaker 1: have used magic. Tucker's heart broke as he returned to

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Speaker 1: stare out over where Susan vanished. I could have, he whispered,

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Speaker 1: Why didn't I, he berated himself. I could have saved her, Tucker.

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Speaker 1: Vinny smacked him with one paw. Pull yourself together. Tucker

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Speaker 1: wanted to hit Vinnie back, yell at him some more.

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Speaker 1: He needed to throw himself back into the water and

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Speaker 1: go after Susan, but he did neither of those things. Instead,

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Speaker 1: he hung his head and cried. He felt Vinnie close

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Speaker 1: to him, the sweep of his friend's tongue as the

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Speaker 1: huge cat tried to comfort him and dry him off.

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Speaker 1: I'm so, say, Finny said, but we have work to do, Tucker.

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Speaker 1: The rats are coming. Remember what happened with Kai. Tucker

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Speaker 1: shook his head, unable to speak. Susan was gone. That

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Speaker 1: was all that mattered, Tuck. Finny tried again. We have

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Speaker 1: to get to the gate. Julian could be there by now.

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Speaker 1: The sound of Julian's name brought a sudden fury to Tucker.

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Speaker 1: His head shot up and his ears flattened, his whole

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Speaker 1: body flooding with rage. Julian, he said, and Kai both traitors.

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Speaker 1: The cats hissed among themselves, but Tucker wasn't listening. He

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Speaker 1: didn't care if they believed him or not. So Susan

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Speaker 1: was gone, at least he could have revenge. There is

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Speaker 1: a tunnel, Tucker said, in the labyrinth near Kai's house.

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Speaker 1: It is a magic tunnel that goes to the surface.

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Speaker 1: Kai is using it to let the rats in, so

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Speaker 1: we'll be surrounded Tucker. Vinnie was horrified. We won't stand

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Speaker 1: a chance get to the tunnel. He stood and shook himself,

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Speaker 1: linging water on Vinnie and the watching guards seal it off.

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Speaker 1: Get more fighters, do whatever you have to, but stop

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Speaker 1: those rats. What are you going to do? Vinnie called

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Speaker 1: after him as Tucker spun and ran off. Get Julian,

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Speaker 1: he yelled back. The butterscotch tabby ran for all he

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Speaker 1: was worth. Tucker stretched out his muscles, bounding in great

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Speaker 1: leaps as fast as he could. It wasn't often he

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Speaker 1: ran with such abandon and in the past enjoyed it

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Speaker 1: very much. There was a freedom to running flat out,

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Speaker 1: feeling his paws barely brushed the rock below, the rush

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Speaker 1: of wind through his fur. But that day he had

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Speaker 1: no interest in joy or pleasure. All he wanted to

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Speaker 1: do was to get to Julian and make him pay,

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Speaker 1: and so Tucker ran. Light was constant in Cat City,

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Speaker 1: unlike the world above. The soft glow mimicking sunlight never wavered,

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Speaker 1: never changed at all, And yet the cats had fallen

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Speaker 1: into a natural waking and sleeping rhythm based on their

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Speaker 1: species need more sleep than humans. Julian was well prepared

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Speaker 1: to take advantage of that fact. The timing couldn't have

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Speaker 1: been more perfect, he thought, as he trotted his way

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Speaker 1: outwardly calm, inwardly excited toward the gate and the guards

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Speaker 1: who watched it. Julian shifted his neck, adjusting the strap

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Speaker 1: around his neck. He could hear the soft slashing of

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Speaker 1: milk in the steel container he carried. Just having it

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Speaker 1: with him made him very, very happy. Julian slowed near

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Speaker 1: the gatehouse, nodding to the two guards on watch. Normally,

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Speaker 1: during the three waking cycles, there were four guards on duty. However,

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Speaker 1: during the four sleeping cycles, the guard count went down

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Speaker 1: to two. After all, really expected anyone to try to

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Speaker 1: get out. The gate wasn't designed to keep the cats in,

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Speaker 1: but to protect the city from outside intruders, which makes

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Speaker 1: this all the easier, Julian thought. Lads, he said to

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Speaker 1: the two burly guards Captain. They nodded to him. Silly fools,

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Speaker 1: Julian thought, while he continued to smile at them. How

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Speaker 1: are things any movement? One of the cats snorted and

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Speaker 1: ran a paw over his nose. Not a peep, sir,

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Speaker 1: the guard said, so much for the rats, eh. He

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Speaker 1: nudged his partner, who laughed too. Julian joined them, warm

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Speaker 1: and happy inside, I brought you a bit of a treat,

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Speaker 1: he told them, slipping his head out from under the strap.

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Speaker 1: Thought the hard working cats protecting our city could use

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Speaker 1: a pick me up. I guess I made a mistake,

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Speaker 1: though he pretended to be disappointed, looking around wrong cycle.

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Speaker 1: Thought there were four of you. Julian could see the

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Speaker 1: guards starting to drool as they recognized the canister. Just us, sir,

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Speaker 1: the first one said. Then I guess you boys get

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Speaker 1: twice as much. He winked at them as he pawed

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Speaker 1: the top of the canister open. One of the guards

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Speaker 1: trotted into the guardhouse and came back out carrying a saucer.

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Speaker 1: The pair hovered as Julian poured the entire contents of

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Speaker 1: the canister onto the saucer and sat back on his haunches.

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Speaker 1: Help yourself, he said, as the two dove in. It

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Speaker 1: didn't take long for the pair to polish off the milk.

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Speaker 1: The two guards collapsed. Look long enough, Julian muttered, Rising

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Speaker 1: and stretching his long, lean body, he stepped over both

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Speaker 1: of them, heartlifting. As he neared the gate, all his dreams,

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Speaker 1: all his hopes and desires were about to come true.

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Speaker 1: He already had plans to not only double cross the rats,

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Speaker 1: and their disgusting king. But Ki as well, the old Counselor,

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Speaker 1: was only two lives away from the end. After all,

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Speaker 1: it wouldn't take much to ease him along to his

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Speaker 1: own rainbow, leaving Julian as the leader of Cat City.

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Speaker 1: The thought greatly appealed to him, and so his grand

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Speaker 1: plan all made. Julian went to the gate at Cat

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Speaker 1: City and let the rats in. Susan watched as Vinnie

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Speaker 1: held Tucker back and knew at least her friend was safe.

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Speaker 1: Weak and freezing, she realized, knowing she simply didn't have

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Speaker 1: the strength to fight the water any longer, and hoping

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Speaker 1: a chance might come up to save herself. Farther along,

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Speaker 1: Who am I kidding? She thought, I'm headed for a

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Speaker 1: waterfall in an underground river. She tried to be brave,

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Speaker 1: but she was pretty sure no amount of swimming lessons

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Speaker 1: would help her survive what she was about to face.

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Speaker 1: She spun in the water, letting it carry her, ending

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Speaker 1: up facing forward. She could see now the lip of

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Speaker 1: the waterfall getting closer, and tried to make a plan.

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Speaker 1: But now that she could actually see it, she panicked.

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Speaker 1: By the time she reached the edge, all she could

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Speaker 1: think of to do was hold her breath, and over

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Speaker 1: she went. Susan fell and fell, surrounded by water, still

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Speaker 1: holding her breath, but not sure how long she would

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Speaker 1: be able to. Before she knew it, and frankly before

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Speaker 1: she expected it, she hit water and went under. Susan

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Speaker 1: let herself sink before swimming for the surface. Using the

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Speaker 1: very last of her strength she saved for just this

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Speaker 1: moment to make it to the top. She gasped for air,

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Speaker 1: feeling herself floating more gently out of the circle of

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Speaker 1: frothing water at the bottom of the waterfall. She looked back,

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Speaker 1: seeing the jagged black rocks at the bottom, and breathed

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Speaker 1: a huge, shaky sigh, knowing how very lucky she was

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Speaker 1: she missed them. Susan was able to make it to

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Speaker 1: shore in the gentler current, and pulling herself out just

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Speaker 1: far enough she knew the current couldn't pull her back in.

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Speaker 1: She collapsed, trying not to cry, not from sadness but

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Speaker 1: from relief and happiness. She made it where exactly there

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Speaker 1: was She had no idea, but at least she was

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Speaker 1: safely out of the water. Susan took a few minutes

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Speaker 1: to get her breath back before Sitting up, She looked

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Speaker 1: around for an exit and finally spotted one just behind her,

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Speaker 1: a tunnel leading away. She got all turned around with

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Speaker 1: the rats and then the river, but couldn't see another exit.

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Speaker 1: It will either go somewhere or nowhere, Susan told herself,

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Speaker 1: just to hear her own voice, and anywhere is better

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Speaker 1: than just sitting here. She pulled herself up on her feet,

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Speaker 1: immediately missing her boots and coat. She looked around briefly,

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Speaker 1: thinking maybe they would have washed ashore, but no luck.

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Speaker 1: Hope Dad won't be mad. Susan thought she had to

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Speaker 1: find Tucker. Not only was he going to need her,

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Speaker 1: but he was the only one who wanted to help

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Speaker 1: her get home. Besides, she thought, I should have warned

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Speaker 1: him before we ever went into the tunnel. This is

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Speaker 1: my fault and so cold and weak. But determined to

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Speaker 1: help her friend, Susan left the cavern, hoping the tunnel

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Speaker 1: she found took her in the right direction. Almost immediately

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Speaker 1: she was lost. The tunnel branched very quickly into three others.

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Speaker 1: The one she guessed at became two others, and the

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Speaker 1: third became four others. Now completely turned around, she despaired

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Speaker 1: at finding anything, let alone ever seeing the surface again.

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Speaker 1: Stupid labyrinth, she thought. Susan was about to turn around

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Speaker 1: when she heard a noise up ahead. Sneaking as quietly

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Speaker 1: as she could, she reached an intersection and peered around

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Speaker 1: the corner. As luck would have it, she saw rats.

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Speaker 1: Hundreds of rats. They, however, didn't see her. Susan ducked back,

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Speaker 1: breathing hard. She found the enemy. Would they could they

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Speaker 1: lead her to her friend? She took another quick look.

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Speaker 1: The rats seemed to be waiting, and not patiently. They

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Speaker 1: chattered and squealed at each other, pushing and shoving, even

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Speaker 1: hopping over each other and knocking each other over. Susan

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Speaker 1: never understood why her mother was afraid of rats, they

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Speaker 1: were so small. But looking at that mass, moving like

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Speaker 1: a living carpet of brown fur, she got it. Susan

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Speaker 1: slipped back again, shuddering and resting against the wall. To think.

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Speaker 1: They must be waiting for the signal to attack, she thought.

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Speaker 1: And with that thought, she had an idea, a crazy,

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Speaker 1: dangerous idea. What if it could lead them away? She wondered?

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Speaker 1: Would that give any more time to see you? The tunnels?

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Speaker 1: Susan held her breath and closed her eyes as she

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Speaker 1: realized what she was thinking. She was actually planning to

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Speaker 1: put herself directly in harm's way. She who was afraid

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Speaker 1: of Halloween, who hated scary stories because she could never sleep.

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Speaker 1: After Susan opened her eyes, decision made. Tucker did his

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Speaker 1: best for her. The least she could do was try.

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Speaker 1: Susan looked back around the corner. The rats were even

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Speaker 1: more visibly restless, squabbling amongst themselves in their squeaky voices.

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Speaker 1: It wouldn't take much, Susan thought, just a little suggestion.

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Speaker 1: She did the bravest thing she had ever done and

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Speaker 1: stepped out into the corridor to face the rats. Hundreds

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Speaker 1: of eyes turned to her. The entire group rose. She

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Speaker 1: took a deep breath and waved a little hi. She said,

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Speaker 1: I'm looking for the rat king, and then she turned

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Speaker 1: and ran. Good night, sleep tight,