(This little story of mine was originally made by me on AO3 and I decided to add it here too to reach a wider audience. This story updates there first then afterwards ill post here :) So be sure to check it out on AO3 if you have the time!)
You alre...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Sarah should have been on the track team considering just how much she's been running lately.
It certainly would have helped with her stamina, but frankly, she was never very athletic. Hence after a few minutes of running from this 'Cleaner' thing, she knew she would be a goner if they didn't get away from it soon. Her breathing shortened to the point her vision was tunneling and her legs were damn near gelatin, not to mention the horrible cramping in her gut due to the lack of food.
But she couldn't stop, if anything she went faster.
Hoggle fared even worse than she did. Several times now he tripped over his own stubby legs and she had to go back to help him back up. He wasn't a klutz, but it was like he wasn't even used to his own legs given how poorly he was using them.
"Come on, We gotta go faster!" She yelled, turning to look back at a shambling Hoggle.
She was seriously considering just picking him up, but considering her own dilapidating strength and his unknown weight, it would likely just slow them down even more (Not to mention piss him off immensely). They couldn't afford that.
The tunnels winded and curved senselessly ahead of them, Sarah couldn't even tell if they were going up to the surface or deeper into the earth.
Whatever the case, they had to keep going.
The maw of metal teeth seemed to destroy everything behind them, old brick and stone reduced to nothing but pebbles and dust in its wake. Sarah could only imagine what it would do to them, there'd likely be nothing left of them but a red paste if anything at all.
Before they knew it, nor were they ready for it, they came to an abrupt stop.
A large, cobwebbed gate took up the entire end of the tunnel before them. It was bolted, locked, and melded to the bricks around it. Making it impossible for Sarah to even stick her hand between the thick bars. They both pushed against it desperately, even harder when they realized how worn down and rickety its foundation was. It shook and wobbled violently with every push.
"First the Bog Prince, then the Cleaners!" Hoggle yelled, kicking at where the gate connected to the crumbling brick like a man possessed. "You sure got his attention!"
"Just shut up and keep pushing!"
"What is it about you that attracts so much danger? I swear, I won't let you take me down with you-"
"Save it!" She screamed, only turning briefly to see how far away the teeth were before turning back and slamming into the gate with her body. "Complain all you want if we make it out of this!"
Hoggle turned to look at the teeth as she pushed, by the expression on his face they only had moments left.
Sarah rammed the metal with her body again, ignoring the way her already bruised side screamed in agony. The gate groaned at the onslaught, pitching forward violently before-
