FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The loud crash of thunder brought me back to the waking world as Darrius curled tighter against me. Relin whimpered softly in her rest and her tail draped over her head in an attempt to block out the noise.

I saw Silver standing outside our small shelter and I carefully got up to join her in the soft drizzle. I brought my wings around myself to shelter the tiny fox in my arms against the cold breeze that accompanied the light rain. I stood next to my love and she leaned against me, looking softly down upon the small fox in my arms. She ran her hand over his soft head fur and down his back, causing him to shiver in delight.

I smiled, feeling the shiver through my fur as well. Silver put her arms around me and rested her head on my shoulder as she glanced down at our young friend. She stretched over me and stroked his ears. 'Isn't he cute? So little...'

I planted a kiss on her cheek. 'He is an adorable creature.'

Another bolt of lightning split the sky and the resulting thunderclap brought Darrius into wakefulness. He sat bolt upright and shuddered slightly with the remnants of his dreams still clinging to him. He looked up at Silver and me, his hands pulling his milky white cloak tighter around his small frame and his mouth curving into a smile. He rubbed his head against me and I felt his mind reach out to mine. 'Good morning Drake. Good morning Silver.'

Silver scratched his ears again. 'Good morning Darrius. How are you feeling this morning?'

He attempted to curl up tighter in my fur. 'Cold. A little bit tired still, but I can't sleep in storms.'

Silver took him from my arms into her own. 'Oh, that's too bad. Then she looked over at me' and giggled. Darrius followed her gaze and joined her laughter.

I looked down at myself and saw the red shirt that I had on was in tatters from all that I had been through since I put it on. I grimaced and tore the rest of the shredded garment from my body, revealing my silky black fur. I immediately felt the cold rain and suggested we find shelter in the trees, since Lock and Relin were still asleep.

I sat next to Silver underneath a large pine tree and Darrius lay across us both. He stretched, yawning and extending his arms out above his head. Silver rubbed his belly and he giggled. He rested his head on my chest and grinned. 'Well Darrius, you're certainly happy this morning,' I noted.

He continued grinning. 'I feel so amazing around you two.' He looked up at me. 'Thanks for staying with me Drake. It means a lot.'

I patted his head. 'You're a good kid Dar. I'm glad that I met you.' I laughed as I remembered how that meeting occurred. 'Though the circumstances weren't exactly the most ideal.'

He laughed as well and closed his eyes. I wrapped an arm around him and the other around Silver, pulling them closer to me. Darrius had a goofy grin plastered on his face as I felt his mind drift in and out of sleep. Silver leaned against my shoulder and soon, she too was dozing peacefully.

I surrounded the three of us with my wings and fell into a restful blackness as well.

When I awoke, the first thing that I noticed was that it was still raining. I glimpsed Locke standing on the shoreline, eyes closed and whispering to himself. He opened his eyes, glanced out across the lake, and turned back to the dragons. I caught his eye and motioned him over with a flick of my tail.

His expression did not change when he saw the three of us, but I saw the smile in his eyes. 'Mornin' Drake. What's up?'

'I don't mean to seem nosy, but when you saw Relin you took on a distant feel to both Silver and myself. I know that she reminds you of Dera, but that isn't all there is to it, is it?'

He sighed and shook his head. 'No it's not. It started when I saw Darrius first, for I used to travel with a small wolf much like these two young ones. He is a bit older, but not even a smidge taller; maybe even shorter. His name was Sypher, but he was such a little pyro that I sometimes called him Blaze. He was like a younger brother to me after I had lost my family...' He trailed off and his eyes began to water slightly. He wiped the tears from his face and continued. 'Sypher was abandoned in a large city at a very young age, so he didn't trust anybody. He always acted like the world was out to get him. I felt bad for the kid so I stayed around him, protecting him from others who wanted to hurt him; trying not to let him see me. I was a bit shy back then. He noticed despite my efforts to conceal it and confronted me. He was very confused about why I was helping him, worried that I might be trying to trick him. I denied that, but he wasn't totally convinced. He decided to stick with me and find out for himself what I was up to. He took a liking to me and he joined me in my travels. We overcame everything together. But when we were passing through this area a few months ago, he was taken. A group of people dressed in black ambushed us while we were eating. I managed to fend off the ones attacking me, but was injured enough to prevent me from saving him as well. I have searched for the ones who took him, but to no avail.'

By the time his narrative was over, both Silver and Darrius were awake and casting worried glances at Locke as he grieved his lost friend.

Silver had been listening to him long enough to hear about the attack and she tightened her grip on my arm. "Drake, do you think those might have been the guys that got us?"

I stared at her in admiration. "You're a genius Silvie! I betcha they are. But how are we going to find the lab again? We got lost last time."

She smiled. "Why not ask Atty to show us the way back? She seems to know her way around the forests quite well. I'm sure she would be able to take us there."

Locke looked from Silver, to me, and then to Darrius, who was as lost as him. "Who's Atty? I've been all over these blasted mountains and I've never met anyone called Atty."

It was my turn to be confused. "She must not have believed you to be a threat. Either that, or she wasn't ever around you when you were in her neck of the woods."

"We should still pay her a visit sometime soon. If anyone could take us there, it would be her," Silver added.

I held Darrius in my arms as I stood up. "Well, if Sypher is being held there, we don't have a moment to lose. We gotta get him out of there. Who knows what they might do to him." I helped Silver to her feet and asked her, "Do you think you could stay behind and protect Relin while Locke, Darrius, and I go?"

She gazed into my eyes, worry and trepidation burned into her features. She responded slowly. "I will take care of her, but promise me this. None of you will return to me injured or broken." She pulled me into a hug and kissed me on the cheek. She repeated this with both Locke and Darrius; the small fox's ears flattening against his head as she kissed him.

Locke wrapped his wings into a cloak again and responded confidently. "We will return with Sypher at our side, no matter what." He gave a shallow bow to her and walked over to the dragons.

I hugged my love again and followed Locke.

Relin was still sleeping soundly when we found her, huddled against Wolfe's foreleg with her tail lying atop her head. Locke gently shook her and she sat up quickly, eyes wide in shock until she saw the fox wolf crouched in front of her. She smiled and yawned, stretching her arms out as she stood. Locke put a hand on her shoulder and she met his unwavering gaze. "Relin, I have to go away for a little bit, but I'm leaving you with my sister, okay?" She nodded and Locke smiled back at her. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon." She started to sob and he wrapped her up in an affectionate embrace, comforting her before his departure.

While he calmed the sobbing vixen, I filled Star in on the plan. 'What do you think?'

'I think that it is foolhardy and unintelligent to deliberately place yourselves in harm's way. However, I agree that we cannot leave an innocent in those creatures' grasp. I do believe though, that Locke needs a weapon. I'd suggest letting him use my Fang Blade; his fighting style is more suited to a shorter blade than yours.'

'Whatever you say...' Locke placed Relin in his twin's arms and got onto Star, eager to rescue his friend. I climbed up behind him and let Darrius get comfortable before Star launched into the air, beating her wings as the shoreline dropped out from under us.

After only a short time in the air, I glimpsed a flash of movement in between the treetops below us. Star glanced down and commented, 'It seems that our plans did not go unheard. That's Attinda following us now!'