File type: Text File (.txt) [Download]
-----------------------------------------
Shifting of sands blew with the hot desert wind. Standing atop the deep dunes, an anthro mouse shaded himself with his ears while removing the sand goggles. “I knew it was real! I just knew it!” Scampering while laughing, his black dessert garbs flowed freely while his turban started to unravel. His white fur ruffled while his long tail bounced with glee. In the distance, his target came into view, a long-lost temple, unlike the well-known pyramids, this crypt was long lost and in the middle of nowhere in one of the world’s largest deserts!
        Sun setting, the mouse laughed to himself as he looked at the old ruins, “I was sent to find the secrets of this land, this lost nation, and now I have proof!” Pulling out his phone, he began filming the walls, the Egyptian pictures of winged creatures, snakes, and people telling a story. The mouse frowned once he realized the massive scratch marks breaking up the symbols. “Come on now, time to have that passion kick in… even if that is a bit concerning.” Looking around, the sun’s light sank quickly, dark shadows dancing all around. “Remember Vix, stay strong, stay determined!” Vix spoke to himself as he steeled his wits and pushed deeper into the lost ruins.
        Large buildings crumbled with the wind, and mighty spiders and nocturnal creatures came to life as the moon rose above. Cellphone out and light shining, Vix moved through the empty buildings, “Dammit, third empty building so far, where are all the artifacts!”
        Behind the intruder, a pair of yellow eyes narrowed, watching the unwelcomed guest dig around in a place long since abandoned. Claws clicking against stone, the creature climbed on the rocks and stone, sneaking about while anger festered.
        It took Vix four more hours, a handful of more empty houses, and tiredly setting up camp in the last house, its roof falling off while the doors and walls were half sunk in the sand, “An entire temple and colony, yet not one artifact! How am I supposed to find the artifact!”
        A cold snarl called from the doorway, making the mouse jump to his feet, trembling with fear a low, cold growl called, “You dare enter my kingdom, desecrate my temple, and look for a forbidden item! All of which were hidden and kept under my command and you think you deserve such graces!” Breaking through the weak stone walls, a lighting sphinx stood towering above Vix. Its body and head seemed to belong to a tiger, with the legs of a lion, and a long slender cheetah tail. Its spots ran up its entire back while its wings stretched and grew, showing off their clean yellow feathers. Her glare deepened as she stepped forward, “You seem to know about my long-lost people, you should then know how a Sphinx works! Riddle one!” She commanded while Vix stared in disbelief.
        Vix stood up, back pressed against a wall as he stammered, “W-w-wait, I didn’t mean to”
        The sphinx snarled louder and stepped forward, pressing her mighty form against his small stature. The creature stood to be roughly 15 feet tall and its form demanded the attention of anyone nearby, “What has four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three at night!”
        Vix stopped and took a deep breath before doing what everyone does in this kind of trivia life-or-death situation. Looking down, he immediately pulled out his phone and began searching on Google, “What has four legs in the afternoon-”
        “Morning you ungrateful rodent!” the sphinx shouted as she cocked her head to the side, “What are you scheming rodent?”
        Vix looked up and smirked, “It’s a human isn’t it?”
        “I-” The feline snarled and scratched the sand, “Yes it is, next!”
        Vix looked down at his phone and grinned, it was going to be a breeze!
        “The poor have it, the rich need it. You die if you eat it. What is it?” the sphinx grinned, “If you miss even one riddle, I will enjoy devouring you, slow and painfully!” Vix sighed and again, began searching the internet, “Wait, what cursed box are you doing!”  
        Vix smiled greatly and looked up at her, “The answer is nothing.”
        “No, it's money! It’s… it’s nothing. You’re cheating!” She snarled and swiped at Vix as he stepped back, “Last question. No magic boxes allowed!”
        Vix nodded and slid his phone away, losing ground to the beast quickly, “Ok, ok, go ahead.”
        Sitting up to present once more, the sphinx began, “There are two doors before you, two guards watch and await your questions, one may only say lies, one may only say the truth.” Smirking, the sphinx lowered her head and stared into Vix’s eyes, “How do you know which door to take, when one door leads to heaven, the other hell. Tell me that one fresh meat!”
        Vix sat up and cleared his throat before smirking, “So first, I kill one guard! Then ask the other, is he dead?”
        The sphinx spat with disgust as she snarled, “No, no, no! That isn’t part of the riddle and you know it!”
        Vix smirked and shrugged, “You said how would I figure it out, I told you a way didn’t I?”
        The Sphinx began scratching the ground with rage as she shook herself, “You can’t kill a guard, how do you figure out which door to take!”
Vix cleared his throat, stood up straight, and spoke with confidence, now enjoying the large cat’s antics, “I go up to each door and listen for fire crackling!”
If looks could kill, the Sphinx hissed and began wrecking the nearby wall down, “No you can’t hear anything through the door!”  
“Ok, then I go back the way I came and move on with life!”
“You’re stuck there! You can’t leave! You can’t hear fire! You can’t kill a guard! You can only talk to the guards!” Seething, the Sphinx grunted.
Vix took a seat and sighed, “Well, first I’ll ask, was it raining today?”
Eye twitching, the sphinx growled, “Wh-why? Why would you waste a question on that? You’re wrong!”
Vix smirked, “If you know the weather for the day, you know which one is lying. So yes, that would be a fair question!”
Claws open, the walls begin to fall as the feline smashes the entire building, the raging creature cursing Vix’s name and his very being. As the rubble settled, she panted before looking at Vix, “Forget it, you’re my prey and you lose!” Pouncing on Vix, trapping him under her claws, she laughed happily while licking her tiger lips. Vix’s heart raced but he tried his best to remain calm, “The real answer to your question is this. I’ll ask one guard the following: What will the other guard tell me is the door to heaven?” Grinning, the mouse looked smugly at the feline as she uncupped her claws and glared at the mouse, “Then repeat the process to the other guard and leave out the door both guards don’t point to!”
The feline snarled before suddenly scooping the mouse up and forcing him in her maw. Trying to bite down, Vix balled up, panting for air as his heart raced. The feeling tossed her head back and gulped him down angrily as she panted, “There smart ass, you play with a tiger, you get fangs! Now stay there and think about how rude you are!”
        Vix slid into the slimy flesh chamber with a splash and sighed, more annoyed than worried, “But I answered correctly didn’t I?”
        The sphinx took a moment to think and rolled her eyes as she returned to her ruined perch, “You won’t perish in there for a long while, now hush up before I change my mind on such sentiment!” Curling up, she hugged her tail and fell asleep, anger still plaguing her dreams.
        Vix sighed, got comfortable in the soft folds, and closed his eyes, “I found the city and bested a beast, not bad for six years of research. My job isn’t done, still have to find the secret nuggets of the land, but it’s a pretty good start!” With that, he put his phone into a plastic bag in his pocket, sealed it shut, and closed his eyes, nerves firing as he tried to calm himself and fall asleep.