FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Alice grumbled as she got dressed before the sun was up. Today was going to be very, very long. They only had two hundred miles to go, but with an average speed of less than twenty... She was glad Samantha was up and making breakfast for them already.

"Hopefully today will go smoothly." Samantha said and handed Alice a strong cup of coffee.

"Jim and I are only concerned about one tight turn and a river crossing." Alice took a drink and pulled her hair back in a pony tail. A quick breakfast and they headed off to the truck.

It was still dark when they got to the truck and vault for the meeting. Which included dozens of police officers and an army of utility workers. Jim had started the truck and trailer to get both engines warmed up. It looked like a party out here with all the strobe lights and amber beacons. The route had been planned out months ago, so the few towns they would go through were prepared to have the main drag closed.

Nodrog, Sherman and Samantha found the process interesting and did not realize the magnitude of work it took to pull this thing off. It was a logistical nightmare, with all the different departments involved. Jim would either be walking or just sitting on the rear of the trailer for the entire trip. Nodrog and Sherman were riding in the back of a pickup truck with Randy. Samantha and the other security riding in a truck at the back.

Alice buckled up and put both transmissions in first. With the sun's rays just starting to lighten the sky, Alice got the mammoth load moving. The mirrors were completely useless, She could see the leading edge of the vault and nothing else. Alice had to count on Kenny, Jim and the other spotters.

The truck twisted with every gear change. Gears sixth, eleventh, and sixteenth requiring her to let go of the steering wheel and shift both transmissions at the same time. If she screwed up everyone would know, because she would have to come to a complete stop and start back out in the lowest gear again. A very embarrassing and exhausting position to be in.

After thirty minutes and a few hundred gear changes already, they came to the first major obstacle. A ninety degree left hand turn in the middle of town. Randy hopped out of the truck to help Alice get within inches of the buildings and utility poles. The utility companies had ran ahead and pulled wires and lines up and out of the way. Along with removing a few traffic lights.

"Cut a little more left Alice... That's good keep rollin'." Randy said as Alice eased the bumper past an old brick building. With maybe enough room he could have put his hand between the truck and the wall.

"How are we looking Kenny?" Jim asked as he watched the back end of the trailer.

"Alice stop." Kenny said and the vault just stopped. "Jim, crab the whole thing your way."

Jim manipulated controls to get the wheels along the whole trailer to turn. The trailer could turn every wheel, put power to every wheel or raise and lower the load. However, it could only do one function at a time, and none of them close to quickly. Navigating the tightest corner took thirty minutes alone. Once everything was straight Jim hopped back on the trailer.

Now clear of town, Alice drove down the middle of the two lane highway at a break neck pace of fifteen miles an hour. The vault was three feet wider on each side then the trailer it road on. Which was why the road had been closed early in the morning. The low steady growl of the truck increased as they started up a gradual incline. Forcing Alice to downshift, skipping a gear entirely.

"You're doin' fine Alice." Randy said as they rolled along.

"I think they made us come along so we would be bored too." Sherman said. Thankful it was now day and the strobe lights from all the vehicles were not so bright with the sun fully up. The 'oversized load' banner on the front of the truck was retarded. No shit was it oversized, it took up the whole damn road Sherman thought.

"Oh come on, I feel so much safer with you two around." Randy teased.

"I cannot see how stuff like this is enjoyable." Nodrog said as Alice downshifted a dozen or so times so they could make another turn.

"It's enjoyable because we don't do it all the time. I really like the challenge, and I bet my cousin does too. But I really like just rollin' by myself all over the country." Randy said and looked back. Two hundred miles per hour or ten miles per hour with one point six million pounds behind her, Alice had the same cute little expression the whole time.

Now on an eight lane highway they could move a little quicker. Jim had a fall harness on and clipped to the trailer as they reached the top speed of the day, thirty. Which given the mass involved it was a impressive feat, and mostly likely looked it. Jim glanced up at a news chopper that showed up to film the move.

Alice was glad for the break in changing gears. And for the police escort, because there was no sudden stops even going this slow. Today's fuel economy was measured in gallons per hour. They had burned through almost a hundred gallons and just reached the quarter mark of the trip. They had the two right lanes to themselves with the police keeping anyone from getting to close as they chugged along. This was the longest mileage wise of the trip.

Alice reached up and let the locomotive horns blast as they rolled past a bridge crowded with on lookers, many of whom had pumped their fist in the air to get her to do just that. She smiled since it had caught Sherman and Randy off guard. With the little extra momentum she did not have to change gears as frequently for a while. The highway was mostly level which also helped.

"Next turn is in four miles." Randy said as he relayed what the pilot car driver told him. They had made good time the last three hours.

Alice reached over and turned on the engine brakes. The large engine growled loudly once she let off the throttle completely. It took four miles to get up to thirty, so they would need that much to slow down. A light pressure on the throttle turned the engine brakes off. Which was long enough to match the RPM with the next lower gear. There were a few low bridges further in the city, forcing them to turn off and go through the city outskirts.

Alice stretched after getting out of the truck, six hours and a half hours, and they were half way. A large vacant lot gave them a place to stop and refuel the truck and trailer. "I am starving." Alice said as she walked to the rear of the trailer.

"You and me both." Jim said and set the big heavy remote box down. He signed for the fuel the two small tanker trucks had brought to them. It was just easier to bring the fuel to the equipment than the other way around.

"Good thing I have lunch." Samantha said after the truck she was riding in pulled up. Besides marking lunch, the half way point also meant their police and utility escorts would change. Necessitating another meeting, which filled in the time waiting for a few hundred gallons of diesel fuel to be pumped.

With the lunch break over they crawled out once more. Crawling being the key term since they had considerable less room in the suburbs and more over head obstructions. It meant Alice was up and down shifting almost constantly. Racing at two hundred miles an hour was easier than crawling the colossal truck and trailer.

The shortest distance to travel took the longest amount of time; and brought the second major hurdle. The actual road bridge would not hold half the load's weight, so they made a dirt bypass over the river. Which was just wide enough for the trailer, forcing them to creep along at a snail's pace. Unless you asked Nodrog, he figure a snail would have made better time.

All the other escort vehicles stayed on the paved road, Kenny and Jim each walking along side the trailer. Randy walking backwards ahead of Alice once more. They had two more places they had to bypass because of the weight involved. Just not this lengthy or high, the river was ten feet below the temporary road.

The city was essentially one giant obstacle. The DOT had to fill dips in the road to keep all of the wheels in contact with the ground and keep the load as level as possible. The trailer could only do so much to keep the load level itself. The sun was touching the horizon as Alice pulled the park brake valve and slumped back in the seat.

"That was a work out... Come back here, stupid hard hat..." Alice grumbled as she tried to reach the plastic brain bucket. She put it on before climbing out of the truck so the safety officers wouldn't yell at her. Cause lord knows a thin plastic shell would save her if the million plus pound vault fell on her.

Nodrog, Sherman and Jim were talking with the police that would stand guard over the equipment for the evening. The four trucks and two specialty trailers were well into the eight figure range.

"Your truck looks kind of small next to mine." Alice yawned.

Randy just shook his head. "Keep telling yourself that."

"I just hope we get the same good luck on our three week trek." Chuck said.

"That would be nice. I think it is time to call it a night." Randy said and stretched. It had been a long day.

"Are you going to carry your cousin at least?" Chuck asked and nodded in Alice's direction.

Randy chuckled, Alice had fallen asleep leaning against the fuel tank of the big truck. He flagged Nodrog over when the dragon and wolf were walking by.

"What's up?" Nodrog asked.

"Our star driver is out cold." Randy said and pointed at Alice.

"Isn't that cute." Jim teased. And pulled out his phone to take a picture to send to Jenny.

"Considering she had to row the damn thing for twelve hours..." Kenny said and made a gear changing motion.

"Quit being asses and one of you carry her over to the van so we can head back to camp." Samantha grumbled

"Yes ma'am." Nodrog said and picked Alice up. She was so tired she didn't make a sound. She quietly snored the three hours back to camp and didn't stir when Nodrog carried her into the RV and laid her down.

"Guess I should get her undressed and under the covers. Thanks for carrying her in for me." Jenny said sleepily. She was in her pjs already and was only sitting up to make sure Alice got to bed. She had made the background on her phone the picture Jim sent her. Alice was just too cute not to.

It was the first morning some of them did not have to get up early for. Jenny managed to keep her excitement in check as Stacy rubbed suntan lotion on her. They were up at normal time to head out to finish preparing the smaller of the vaults. She was wearing her bikini under her shorts and a light button on shirt. Happy to be getting a little tan while working. Today and yesterday were the hottest yet.

Roslyn was on laundry duty for the day, so the other ladies did not have to worry about it during their off hours. She also would be running to town to pick up a few things and cleaning the RV. They all tried to keep it clean but since she had a little more free time, she volunteered. Mainly for something to do besides be a gopher... as in go for this and go for that.

Alice stretched as someone knocked at her and Jenny's door. "I'm up."

"Just makin' sure. Jim said he would be back in forty to pick you up." Roslyn said.

Nodrog got the feeling they were a little perturbed by his lack of sleeping and not showing any signs of being tired from the long day. They piled into vehicles for the ride back out to the second staging area. They had to shift the vault over to the other trailer, and Alice had to drive the mammoth truck back.

Randy and Chuck had stayed at a motel within walking distance. Smoke was also with them as everyone showed up. Their three trucks and the special trailer they were pulling or pushing was more than double the length of the rig Alice had driven up. But theirs had to be since they were confined to existing roads. It was too large to even attempt to pull up the tight road leading to the main staging area.

Nodrog and Sherman were once more wondering why they needed to be here with all the police. Unless it was just to show other people they did have to do boring routine stuff just like everyone. And minus the girl watching they were mainly doing, they were bored. A few of the utility workers and police officers looked good in their respective uniforms.

Granted it was a pleasant change of pace to see a great deal of work being done without using thousands of slaves to do the work. After all the world he was used to, did not have the benefits of internal combustion engines and hydraulics. Today the vault was being lifted by six enormous bottle jacks and three I beams. They would lift the vault off the trailer and then push it along the I beams it hung from over the other trailer.

It was another lengthy and tedious process. Alice pulled out from under the vault so they could make a few trailer adjustments before they headed out. They took several sections out of the middle, cutting its length by a third. With the center section loaded they headed back.

Which was much quicker since they could just jump on the eight lane highway. Alice smiled cheerfully as she mashed the throttle down on 1200 horse power, running up to sixty five mph. Over Built didn't even notice the counter weight or trailer weight empty. Skipping the first fifteen gears was also nice.

The four foot tall tires' giant lugs howled along with the roar coming from the twin ten inch diameter exhaust stacks. Alice had her left arm out the window and was chewing bubble gum as they rolled along.

She found the puzzlement on people's faces amusing, since they were most likely expecting a big fat dude driving the truck and not a cute female mouse. Empty they did not have to stop for fuel since the truck held enough to travel a long way with little or no load. Every little kid that passed had their faces pressed against the window to see the mammoth truck and trailer.

The one thing the truck really needed, was air con... that much motor and horse power ran hot. Even with a radiator the size of Texas sitting behind the bumper, it was warm. Opening the sliding window in the back helped a little. She was thankful her safety toed boots were like the shoes she wore racing and kept her feet from cooking. Today was worse than yesterday. Alice was sure she stunk to high heaven after the two stints in the truck with no shower. She blasted the locomotive horns once more and kept her foot in it the whole trip back.

"That is much better." Alice groaned as she sunk into the water tank they had filled with ice over the weekend. It was all melted, and thanks to the shade they had set up camp in the water was nice and cool. The quiet was also enjoyable since Samantha and Roslyn let her just unwind.

"What are you doing?" Katie asked as she walked over to the RV. Jenny, Stacy and the other two girls were with her.

Alice stretched her leg out of the water and wiggled her toes. "Cooling off."

They just now noticed all of her clothes were in a pile next to the tank. Including her under garments. Causing most to be embarrassed and Jenny to nearly squeal with glee.

"Lunch is ready. The drinks are in the big cooler, I moved them this mornin'." Roslyn said.

"Aren't you going to eat something?" Samantha asked as she helped Roslyn bring out lunch.

"Yeah." Alice said and stood up. A smile crossed her face as with the exception of Jenny, they all looked away.

"No fair! I thought you were naked." Jenny pouted.

"I think she had all of us fooled." Stacy said, a little relieved Alice had on a bikini.

"Jenny is the exhibitionist, not me." Alice said and reached for a towel they also had not seen. She dried off quickly, pulled on a pair of shorts and a T shirt before joining them at the picnic table.

They teased Stacy a little as she got up to answer her phone. They all knew it was Randy, given how quickly she jumped up to answer it. The blushing was also a good clue. He was just calling to talk to her before they got under way. It would be at least two months before she would get to see him again.

Alice helped Roslyn with the last few things of the day as the others got back to work after lunch. She even let Roslyn drive the two door SUV to town to pick up some things, her arms still felt like rubber from a billion gear changes.

"I really have a hankering for something sweet and spicy." Roslyn said as they stood in the grocery store.

"Well Jenny keeps offering." Alice said without even thinking about it.

"Not quite what I had in mind..." Roslyn shook her head.

"Like... some Hawaiian?" Alice asked and picked up a pineapple.

"Yeah, that sounds good." Roslyn said.

Stacy sniffed the air as they walked back to camp for dinner. "If it was not for all the swimming, I would be fat before this trip is over."

"That is no joke." Gail said as she walked over to see what the otter was grilling them tonight. She wondered if Roslyn knew how to cook without the use of a grill and a great deal of flame.

Not that it mattered because everything she cooked was wonderful. Gail and Alice were grateful Roslyn, Jenny and Katie volunteered to do more of the meal preparation. Given how bad Alice and Gail were at cooking, everyone was happy to let them skip their turn cooking.

Roslyn gave Sherman and Nodrog a little whistle and with a rather sultry smile beckoned them over with her finger. She was still standing by the grill. "Can I entice the two of you with some treats?"

"Please do... if I have to eat another precooked hockey puck hamburger I will kill someone." Sherman pleaded.

"Sherman is lying, the hockey puck would taste better." Nodrog eyed Roslyn more than the food on the grill.

Roslyn rolled two of her skewered Hawaiian styled kabobs out of the fire and gave one each to Nodrog and Sherman. All of the ladies laughed hysterically as the two monsters bowed down to the 'goddess of the grill' as they called her.

Sherman was so happy he could have cried. Nodrog was thrilled to have meat he could actually identify by flavor instead of by what it was called. Alice had kept making sun tea as fast as everyone was drinking it. Which was also a nice change from the slightly flavored water they were getting. Sherman had at one point told Nodrog to sneak into the mess hall and put double the amount of coffee grounds in the coffee maker. Only one person complained about normal strength coffee.

Aside from the food, they did not have it that bad. Despite what they told the women. The only problem they had was a few drunks on a fishing boat ignoring the security boats about trespassing. Funny how quickly a person sobers up looking down the barrel of a twelve gauge...

The following morning Stacy was a little sad. This would be her last dive of the trip. The conditions were great the entire time and the other divers made her feel like she had always been a part of their team. She smiled as one of the little sharks came back around to visit them. They would be hooking the cables to the lifting eyes they welded to the smaller of the two big vaults.

They swam a short distance away after hooking the cables. With the all clear they watched the starting to collect coral metal cube slowly raise up to the surface. After the vault was above water, they headed to the surface themselves. Stacy took hold of Jenny's hand to help pull herself up onto the platform.

Stacy sat down so Jenny could disconnect the helmet from her dry suit. Jenny was just in her shorts and bikini top. And Stacy found herself eyeing the kitten a little more then usual.

"This was an enjoyable project." Gail said as she changed behind a curtain.

"A pity it was not longer." Rod said as he sat with a water bottle in hand.

Jim tossed a line to one of the boats, to give them a tow back to shore instead of just a lift. "All of you did a good job. Even our newest recruit surpassed expectations."

"Was there any doubt?" Jenny teased as she put away equipment.

"Not in my mind. I look forward to working with Stacy again." Rod said.

Chapter.

They packed up the diving equipment while Alice and Jim spent a second day crawling along at a snail's pace. Jenny came out to join the others after she cleaned up the dinner dishes. The cool breeze blowing in from the bay making the evening pleasant. They talked a little about nearly every topic women discussed when men were not around and probably some when they are.

Jenny and Roslyn sat outside longer. Jenny waiting for Alice and Roslyn was just not tired. Samantha and Alice made it back by eight pm instead of the two in the morning like last time. None of them had to get up early since it was the weekend once more.

Sherman ran out of the tower to look for Nodrog, he did not have good news. Sherman spotted him out in the open and yelled his name as he ran over to Nodrog. The meeting out east had been going perfectly, until this morning when two aliens and a monster showed up and took Mianth. Sherman did not get to Nodrog before something came out of the sky and slammed into the metal dragon.

"Nodrog!" Sherman yelled and pulled out his pistol as the smoke cleared. Which was simply training reflexes, he doubted it would do any good. Standing where Nodrog was, was a dragon anthro, but there was something off about her.

"This does not concern you mutt." The female said in an odd chorus. Sherman heard three distinctive female voices. She had four wings, and her eyes blazed like two small suns.

"Actually it does if you attacked the Velopians." Sherman said. Her presence was a little like Nodrog's quad winged form, but not nearly as over whelming. He heard commotion over by the RV Samantha and... Jenny were staying at. He dared not look or the female dragon would attack him.

"We did not, since we were given the chance to fight our brother..." The female chorus said and glanced back to the hole they had pounded Nodrog into.

Sherman hoped Samantha and Roslyn could handle their problem, a little longer. "Shouldn't you at least introduce yourself, since you appear to know who I am?"

The female laughed. "We have but one name now. The Scorching one Syralth"

Sherman smiled. "Well if you will excuse me, I have something to do while you and your brother get reacquainted."

Syralth laughed as Sherman bolted and headed for the girl's RV as fast as he could sprint. Roslyn and Samantha were holding off the intruders, for now. The otter could kick some ass, even if it was alien and did not have a literal ass.

Of course Syralth beat Sherman to the group since she could teleport and he could not.

"What is the hold up? Take the slave and leave already." Syralth's odd chorus of three unnerving everyone, but Roslyn.

"I got a better idea, why don't you four piss off and leave." Roslyn fired two rounds at the floating four winged woman. Which only made the dragon anthro madder than hell, but Roslyn was just trying to buy time. Sherman grabbed her tail and pulled as hard as he could, which kept her from being hit.

Sherman managed to pull Syralth out of the air and slammed her into the ground hard enough to crack the concrete. Much like Roslyn's bullets it only made her madder. Sherman coughed blood as her shin made contact with his gut, the kick sending him into the side of the RV. His eyes glowed as he quickly got up and ran straight at her, his punch knocking her back a few feet.

"Impale..." Jenny heard Nodrog growl and the cyborg alien that had a hold of her was struck by an iron lance.

"Teleport now!" Syralth yelled just as a sharp pain pierced her lower back. She screamed in pain as Nodrog dug his fingers into her flesh and wrapped them around her spine. She lost all feeling in her lower body, still he was too late, they captured his slave and the old bitch who shot her.

"You're too..." Syralth was choked off as Nodrog grabbed her neck with his free hand.

"You have two choices. Tell me where they are, and I might let you go. Or I will drain your blood, rape your mind and find out anyways." Nodrog growled in her ear, emphasizing his point by crushing her spine further.

Syralth was as surprised, as Nodrog when someone knocked him several feet away. Now that he did not have a hold of her, she could start healing. She smiled as the stone giant yelled at the dragon. It was a fleeting victory as she was impaled by an iron lance.

"Just to make sure you do not go anywhere." Sherman snarled.

Dallarth, Perenth, and two other monsters showed up. All of whom accused the others of taking someone dear to them. Except for Nodrog, who's enemy was still present, thanks to Sherman nailing her to the ground.

Samantha fired her pistol into the air, which did get the groups attention. "I think if you want answers you need to be asking her."

"Ask all you want. We will not talk and in any case their plan has been successful." Syralth said in her eerie chorus.

"I thought it odd that Morgor would take Mianth..." Dallarth said.

"Indeed, it seems we have all been played the fools." Morgor said. He was the giant Minotaur that had tried to get Nodrog to side with the other typhoons.

Five typhoons turned their collective attention to Syralth, who suddenly was not so aloof. The mortals quickly retreated, Stacy telling the others what happened and to keep some distance. Samantha had to pick up a sobbing and screaming Alice before she could flee with the rest of them.

"You claim to be my sister, but for a Halfling to hold you down... I think you are lying. Sorry Sherman, but if she was my equal..." Nodrog said.

"Don't worry about it. Her trick of heating up the bar might be working if I was not wearing gloves." Sherman chuckled, the glow still in his eyes. He had thought ahead and put on the gloves they kept by the grill before he grabbed the iron lance. Sherman already partly burnt his hands once grabbing her tail, thankfully burns healed quickly.

"Listen to our voices if you do not believe, brother." Syralth said.

"It most likely is a trick. I would swear you took the flower maiden, Nodrog." The stone giant said.

"I would swear Dallarth took my son." Morgor said and crossed his arms.

Dallarth cursed in draconic. "Now I see it was a trick. Someone went to a great deal of trouble to pull this off."

"But why? Nothing good would come from the five of you fighting each other." Perenth said and glared at Syralth as she laughed.

Sherman leaned on the lance harder cutting off her laugh. "Unless they are trying to get the council to rein you in more. Put a shorter leash on you so to speak."

"There are those that dislike the freedom we have." Beatrice said. She had accompanied Morgor and the stone giant. Jenny would have drooled over her seven foot plus Amazon build. She had dark hair and a well muscled bronze figure. Her true form was actually a sleek and beautiful tiger, larger than the grizzly bears of this world.

While Sherman and Perenth tried to help five of the most powerful creatures in existence. Mianth was trying to help some of the weakest. She had taken on her true form, and swam, or was she flying, through a pink and purple hued nothing. Somehow they had caste them out of the universe and into the void.

Mianth heard them calling out to anyone, and was slowing finding them. She only wanted to curl up and weep, but the others were even weaker than her. Morgor's son was the first. Roslyn and Jenny were second, Beatrice's daughter third and Evelyn the flower maiden last.

"Where are we?" Jenny asked as all but Evelyn rode on Mianth's back.

Evelyn looked nervously around and flew close to the water dragon. Her dragon fly like wings easily keeping up with Mianth's swimming. "I think they caste us into the void."

"That can't be." Beatrice's daughter, Dagger said. She was taller than Roslyn, and had a firm build like her mother.

"If we are in the void, where are you going so quickly Mianth?" Faurl, Morgor's son asked.

Mianth glanced back at them. "Can you not feel it? Can you not smell it? The growing sense of despair, torment and the stench of death."

"I just thought it was just me." Roslyn said and sniffed the air. "I cannot smell anything yet.

Jenny looked around. "Omega Nightmare sleeps in the void..."

"We should be heading away from that beast. Not towards it." Evelyn shivered at the thought. He voice was like Henrietta's, enchanting and a little musical.

"Mianth is right, we need to find the nightmare. If we wake it up, Nodrog will know where to find us." Dagger said.

"And those that took us, well suffer for it." Faurl said.

"I still don't like it." Evelyn said and chased after Mianth.

They swam or flew in silence as Mianth made the straightest path she could manage to find the nightmare of nightmares. The dread and despair grew as did the smell, they had to be going the right way.

Jenny glanced at her watch for the seventh or eighth time. It still had power and the little dots in the middle were flashing, but the time had not changed. Roslyn's analog watch had also mostly stopped. The second hand ticked forward, than backward. Their cell phones had shut themselves off with no signal of any kind.

"Time does not exist here, minuets, hours... days. That is the other reason to hurry." Mianth really did not want to be here and it was taking everything she had to keep a calm demeanor for the others.

"I do not understand why the Iron Dragon's slave is here. He took me from Derrain." Evelyn said.

"He wouldn't do that." Jenny snapped back.

"Beatrice came for me." Faurl said.

"And your father for I." Mianth said.

Roslyn thought about it. "Nodrog's sister took us..."

"Derrain kidnapped me." Dagger mulled over their situation.

"So all of us were taken by someone else. The only thing that would do is cause them to go after each other. I get the feeling I was not supposed to be here." Roslyn said.

"What makes you so special?" Faurl grumbled.

Roslyn chuckled. "I'm the only one who is not special. All of you are very close to the typhoon you know. I just got caught trying to keep Jenny safe."

"Would the council do something like this? I know they can be harsh, but holding us prisoners and casting us out into the void..." Faurl grumbled. No wonder his father disliked them so.

"The council is afraid of Nodrog and Dallarth, I do not know the other three, but the two I do know have very explosive tempers. They will level cities to find us." Mianth said.

"I cannot say about the stone giant Derrain, but I know my mother and Faurl's father would not hesitate to lay waste to anything to find us." Dagger said.

"All the more reason to find omega, to keep them from rash action." Jenny said.

"Even as short tempered and hot headed as they are. Whoever did this would know they would figure out, it was a trick." Evelyn said.

"And most likely go after the council." Mianth grumbled.

The crowd in the large meeting room murmured as Nodrog and Dallarth shoved past the Hunters standing guard after nearly knocking the solid doors off their hinges. The two dragons in their true form as their anger had grown so much they simply could not maintain their false forms. Their anger so great, their power leaked off of them like oppressive heat.

Lilith and Michaela were shocked that the three typhoons that attacked them were with Nodrog. It was substantually clear the five were not in good moods, their rage fueled anger was over powering.

"Order! Order! You five have no right to be here!" The dragon on the council yelled. Most of the council had retreated behind him as the two elemental dragons only snarled and hissed.

"Where are they?" Morgor roared.

The crowd and the council had gone silent. "Where are who?" The bear asked.

"My son." "My daughter." "The flower maiden." "Mianth." "My love." They each said in turn.

"Someone has taken those dear to us, and hidden them so that even our magic bonds cannot find them. I would suggest if you know anything, speak quickly!" Dallarth roared in anger.

Now the crowd was in a panic as was the council. The typhoons thought the council had crossed them and the crowd wanted nothing more than to leave. Perenth and Sherman had stayed behind, they had other people to take care of. And they did not want to be in the typhoons' way. Of course the typhoons had promised not to just resort to violence... No matter how tempting it was.

Michaela walked out onto the floor between the two groups. "I know you are upset. Please take a breath and explain what exactly has transpired. Even I, think the council foolish at times, but even they are not that daft."

Lilith could not believe her ears, or her eyes. Why would her mentor help those that had attacked them? The two dragons she understood, but the other three? As the five explained what had happened it was clear why they thought it had to be other monsters. For Nodrog to not be able to find Jenny would take powerful magic.

Syralth in the end, did not simply know who put her up to the task. She was the only one who did not make an escape. With Nodrog, Dallarth and Beatrice taking their true forms, she never would. Because the three ate her alive. Sherman could still hear her screaming chorus echoing in his ears.

Sherman watched as they loaded up equipment on one of the cargo planes. He took Samantha off the security schedule, so she could take care of Alice. He felt bad because, he had failed. But to see the look of loss on the five most powerful creatures alive, that was the final nail in the coffin. For them to be handed such a crushing blow, it was unfathomable.

Samantha had gotten the monsters thinking and the look of loss on their faces was painful. For the first time, they did not know what to do. Sherman and Perenth had given them a direction to start looking in. Sherman did not know if it was the right one, or the right thing to do setting them loose on the council. Still, the little evidence he had, suggested they were the culprits.

He and Perenth had spoken to Marko and Sharn. To tell the two of them that Nodrog and Dallarth where gone, was harder than losing Mianth and Jenny in the first place. Both men held some sway over the two dragons and with no control over them now... Sherman didn't want to think about it. He had seen the Iron Dragon angry before, but nothing like this.

Sherman glanced back at his clip board as Stacy and Samantha walked Alice onto the plane. He couldn't look Alice in the eye. Some super solder he was, he should be out looking for Jenny. Not standing around doing nothing. He glanced up at the bright blue sky, which seemed to mock him. "No matter how strong and fast I become, it is never enough..."

Mianth had to stop and rest, she had been going as fast as she could for as long as she could. She was not sleepy, but her muscles were sore. They had no way to know how far they had gone, or how far they had to go. If they were still going in the right direction, the things she was basing her course on had not changed in... She didn't know how long. Mianth was just not strong enough to carry them all after Evelyn had flown as far as she could. Granted, traveling in the void was not easy. It took a concentrated effort to move in nothing.

Roslyn floated a little ways up. Just enough to get a little more personal space. Jenny and Evelyn were massaging Mianth's sore back and tail muscles. Dagger and Faurl tried to figure out who was behind it all. She was completely... Lost, for the lack of a better term. To her it seemed like they were stuck in a sphere, and the pink and purple fog was just on the other side. They could see clearly for an unknown distance, in every direction. "So are blue ghosts with gold bracelets and lanterns good or bad?"

Mianth twisted out of Jenny and Evelyn's hands so she could look in the same direction as Roslyn. "Void walkers. We have to move, now!"

"To late." Evelyn said as a pair appeared from another direction.

"I don't suppose you can tell us where we can find a giant metal monster?" Roslyn asked off handedly. They were surrounded, well horizontally from her perspective. They had made a circle around them.

The Void walkers had stopped a short distance away, maybe two yards or so. Jenny grabbed Mianth's wrist. "No wait!"

Mianth was a little worried, the nothing was already affecting Jenny. "Wait? I, I have to protect you."

Jenny pointed to her collar. "I can hear them. They did not come to fight us, they came to help."

"So... they can take us to Nodrog's other form?" Roslyn asked. The shadowed expressions seems to indicate they were friendly. She watched as one seemed to speak and gesture with his hands. They had no legs, so why did they call them 'walkers'? Details she could ask about later, best not be rude to anyone that might help them.

They watched as Jenny talked with the lead Void Walker. None of them could actually hear anything that was being said. It was clear they were speaking, but on a very different plane.

Faurl crossed his arms. "What have you found out?"

"Well, some good news, some bad news and some worse news." Jenny said after turning to address them. "The good news, we are going the right way."

"What is the bad news?" Dagger asked. The kitten's slave status had been a larger benefit then she had first thought. She had thought the humans would be dead weight.

"We have been here a full week... And have not made any note worthy distance in that time." Jenny sighed. Her next point was the hardest to say. "Unless they find us or we accept the Void Walkers' help, we will never reach Nodrog's other form."

Mianth covered her face and cried. It was more then she could take, and she was ashamed to be crying in front of them. She was the oldest, and being a dragon supposedly the strongest...

Roslyn put her arms around Mianth, well as best she could with the dragon in her true form. "Don't cry, you got us farther than we would have on our own."

Evelyn also tried to comfort the little water dragon. Dagger and Faurl, were at a little bit of a loss on that end. "Why do they want to help us?" Faurl asked.

"Because we do not belong here. The six of us, have solid form and shape, our presence is actually harming the void." Jenny said.

"What about the nightmare? Is he not solid?" Dagger asked.

"He is solid, but his solid form can and does change. That is besides the point." Jenny said.

"What is the point then slave?" Faurl growled.

"The point is, we have been missing a week. And they want us gone as much as we want to be gone. Who knows how much damage five typhoons could do looking for us in a week." Jenny said firmly.

"It will not be just the typhoons. I have seen the admiration the Velopians have for Mianth. They will demand to help look for her. Faurl and Dagger have family that will also look feverishly for them. I do not know your ties to the Stone Giant, but I am sure he has friends. Even Nodrog will have help looking for us, I am sure Sherman will insist on it." Roslyn said.