FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

I woke to the pleasant sensation of Jes trailing a paw along my chest, the vixen making a cute little chirp when I stirred. "Morning sleepy, Must have been an interesting night. Don't exactly remember getting naked and I'm fairly certain that's something I'd remember."

I chuckled just a bit before yawning and sitting up, realization sinking in a few moments later. "Oh crap, Jes! Are you alright, how do you feel?" Looking over her in the light, I noticed just a little singe on her arm fur but other wise she seemed fine, though nude.

"I'm fine, why? Whats going on?" She asked with a tilt to her head.

I quietly recalled what I could remember. From where we gathered apples in that make shift camp to the run east, finally the lightning strike and our night together. "I was afraid you'd freeze, I'm sorry, I meant no harm, just trying to keep you warm."

She settled lightly in my lap and pressed a soft kiss to my lips. "Well thank you for saving my life, but I feel fine, just a little sore. So why don't we get dressed and eat something." She wiggled just a bit in my lap, "Besides, I'm distracting you again I noticed"

"Yeah, it happens when we wake up. Thanks for pointing that out, pun not intended. Now off of me silly fox and we'll get going." I eased her up to her feet followed by myself, retrieved our clothing and spent a few awkward moments dressing in front of her. We cleared out the brush and branches used for shelter during the night and then ate the last of our stock of apples from the day before.

I felt my tokens hidden in my tunic and felt both air and water. They were no longer so disturbed but felt confused and agitated. The sky lightened and things seemed to be on the mend. Air still nagged at me a touch, something was still wrong.

Jeseia donned the pack this time and we left the forest, again heading east to find the river before dipping north into the woods once more and finding the clearing before noon. Granh was waiting for us, and seemed to have not slept at all the night before.

"You felt it too then, I thought you might be close by with how violent all the elements were last night. If you're here then you passed the first two elements training. Good, now its my turn to teach you the next two. If you've come this far this quickly, then you need no rest. Leave your gear here, both of you. Follow me."

Jeseia whined just a little but left her pack there, following the wolf clan member deep into the woods with ease, myself having to fight through the vegetation for each step. Even as we drew near his camp I could not see any sign of his people until suddenly two large wolf clan stepped in front of me. They separated me from Jeseia and Granh, growling most deeply in their throats. "Your path ends here, man, your kind knows only dishonor and cowardice, and have no right to travel here. We'd have you dead if Granh hadn't requested that your life be in his hands" The taller one growled to me.

"Iergon, let him pass. He's proven enough courage to me to be allowed through. And if he survives the next two days. He'll prove enough to pass through here without challenge. Now, let him pass." Granh stood tall, glaring at the wolfen in front of me. Slowly, Iergon stepped aside and I was allow to pass through the camp and catch up to Jes and Granh.

"Thank you Granh, I didn't realize how much I'm hated here." I nodded softly to him as we followed deeper into the woods.

"Don't thank me, I'm not here for you. You need to earn your right. So far, you've proven enough to me that you should be allowed to prove yourself to others. We're almost there."

We came upon a circular clearing in the center of the woods, boulders lined in a perfect circle enclosing a small sandy center. He motioned me to the center, Jes tried to follow close behind but he held her back. "Now you learn about the earth. You'll need this before you can go further"

I crawled over one of the stones and settled amongst them, the feeling was claustrophobic immediately. I was surrounded by stones each heavy enough to kill me three times over with room to spare. He sat on one to growl down to me.

"Earth is stable, Earth is strength. Earth endures, Earth remains. Earth does not move, Air flies, water flows. Earth remains. This is what you must learn."

I closed my eyes, tuning out air and water as they tried to commune with me. I needed to focus on something that didn't tell me it was there. I needed to focus on that which didn't move. Ever try to see something that refused to move so you could see it? Not easy. Gradually the air about me seemed to go away and there was just stillness. Then I noticed, it's not the something I'm looking for, it's the stillness itself. There, I could feel each stone around me. Unmoving, solid, patient. That was earth. It seemed unconcerned, stoic even. I could feel a tremendous strength there though, like the flanks of a stallion, power in the rawest form.

"I can feel it, but, it doesn't flow. You can't guide it, it's just there." I spoke up to Granh.

"No you can not, Earth is unmoving. You must move it, but you must move it where it will go. Not where it doesn't."

I felt a soft tugging below me, deep in the soil. The sand, it moves like water. That was the thing I was missing. Sand is earth, earth doesn't move. The the sand does, you can not move the whole, but you can move the parts. That was the missing part. I relaxed and spent many hours just feeling the stone.

I gradually became aware of Jes and Granh as they moved about the circle of stones, I drew a small amount of the earth element and felt renewed. My strength restored, "I think I'm done Granh, I can hear it and it hears me."

"This isn't like air and water. They give you a blessing. You must earn respect from the earth element. Move the stones to the edges of the circle. Then, You may have earned respect from the earth."

"Wait! I didn't have to do that! All I had to do was get out of the stones, same as the other man that came through here." Jeseia complained quietly.

"You didn't, you already had respect. Mathael was too weak to survive the next trial. I want to make sure this one is strong enough. Move the stones Tanthis of man" Granh moved behind a boulder and with a grunt pushed it in against me, closing me into the circle even more tightly.

I figured arguing the facts that he could lift a wagon of goods while I can barely lift a bale of hay wouldn't go far. I drew again on the stillness of earth into myself, I pressed my hands to the stones and pushed as hard as I could. Nothing, they didn't move an inch. Just like on the mountain climb, I tried to do what felt right and it failed.

"Mages pull, we guide" I muttered softly, before trying again.

Earth doesn't move, but earth can be moved I thought. With that I again turned to the stones around me, feeling them each in turn. They're just large sand, and sand can be moved. With that I pressed a single hand to the stone Granh had pushed in against me. Drawing on strength again I held the stone, this time I used that strength to reach into the stone and guide the stillness to move. To let grains of sand be parted. The stone groaned slightly before I found it moving as I pushed. The stones weight was there, it just, wanted to move like rolling down a hill. "There, I moved your rock. What do I need to do now?" I asked to Granh who seemed to be smiling until my gaze met his, then the growl again returned to his features.

"Move them all, we need them cleared for the next trial."

Jeseia nodded in approval before settling atop the stone I'd just moved, leaving me to push each to the edges of the clearing until the center was about ten feet wide at any spot with my small sandy patch in the middle. By the time I was done, I could feel the strength leaving me. My task was done, and the earth wanted to return to remaining still. A sharp cracking noise caught my attention, beneath my palm as I drew my hand away the stone had cracked sharply, leaving a small stone jutting slightly from its surface. I tentatively picked at the pebble before it came free, there I could feel the strength of the stones around me once more. This was my reward for proving myself strong enough to move stone, a token to commune with this most stubborn element.

"Good. You may rest here for the night." He glared just a little at Jes, "Enjoy your company. It may be your last on this earth. The next trial begins at noon tomorrow. It won't take long, and either you'll pass or die." With that warming thought, he turned to leave us.

"Jes, You both keep mentioning this next test, what's so hard about it?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you. Part of the test is discovering it for yourself. I'm sorry, just, forget about it for now. Help me get set up for bed."

I sighed quietly and moved out off of the dirt to a grassy spot just outside the circle, gathering some wood for a small fire. She seemed very quiet, concerned in her own way. Jes came over after a moment and started the fire, sitting next to me. She started to whine just a little, it's kind of cute really.

"Come here silly fox, don't worry. I've done fine so far." I faked a smile for her benefit before drawing her in close to me, half dragging the vixen into my lap for a hug. She in turn nosed lightly against my neck and hugged tight to my frame.

We sat there, just holding each other until the sun had faded and the stars came out. It was a beautiful night. We slept there near the fire in each others arms, neither of us speaking a word of what the next day would bring.