FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

A Quiet Farewell

"You're late, Quiet-in-the-Chamber." stated Scribe Ahmose, the venerable black-backed jackal, matter-of-factly as he caught the telltale sound of the young king cheetah doing his best to tiptoe into the lecture room almost 10 minutes late. The clickety-clack of short foot claws against the cool, beige sandstone floor. Without turning to face the tardy student, the canid continued to draw the remainder of a complicated-looking diagram in white chalk against the large, flat slate board before him. The tip-toeing became a hurried shuffle behind him as his prized (if not punctual) pupil practically launched himself into his seat.

"Since you are wise enough to not waste your time in class going over your own memorized knowledge of magic circles, perhaps you would do your classmates the pleasure of explaining this one?", asked Scribe Ahmose, taking one long sidestep to reveal the intricate drawing he'd just completed: a multitude of white glyphs and lines arranged in a perfect circle.

Quiet looked like he'd run a half-marathon, his barbed tongue lolling with only a small lack of decorum out of his mouth as his lungs seized enough air for him to respond. Quiet, or Quiet-in-the-Chamber to those who preferred a more formal interactions, was a slim cat as most cheetahs tend to be but with a slight lining of muscle from his subspecies of king cheetah. His spots became black smears running like wet ink down his back in three thick stripes, one coating part of his tail in beautiful ebony contrasted against his golden fur. Quiet was conservatively dressed in a full-length white toga with a loose, green scarf which identified him as an older student. In each ear was a small silver hoop.

"Th..that's an anti-magic circle, Scribe Ahmose. You...you can tell because it's dr-drawn in reverse. In addition, that particular circle repels..." the spotty cat squinted for a further moment at the board before recognizing one of his favorite sigils in all of magic. "...Transmutation."

Scribe Ahmose gave a small huff of acceptance, but only as a token of good will towards the know-it-all student. Every pupil he'd had who willfully chose to work part-time as a school librarian seemed to spend every moment of their free time cramming texts. At least Quiet was respectful about his knowledge, if not about his attendance. The elder allowed himself a small smile towards his star pupil.

"Very good, Quiet-in-the-Chamber. We can only hope to Thoth that you someday learn to read a schedule as well as this diagram." he retorted, before drawing himself back in the role of Scribe Ahmose.

After class, Quiet was free for the rest of the day. While most furs would go to study or play sports, the king cheetah sought the library. Not a mere room with a few dozen old scrolls, the college's namesake was granted by the impressively massive room housing several centuries of books, scrolls, tablets and other artifacts of the written word. It was for this vast chamber of knowledge that the school came to be officially known as The Illuminated Archives of Thoth, and to this day remained a free, public library for even people not enrolled in the more structured learning activities. As much of a bibliophile as he was today the feline sought not a tome but a tom, and soon found him hard at work reordering books onto a shelf that clients had returned.

"Hello, Edge." he said plainly, yet causing the other cat to almost jump out of his fur. Along-the-Water's-Edge, or Edge, was a tawny-furred caracal with large black-tufted ears and paws. Slightly smaller and more slight than Quiet, Edge was similarly dressed in a white toga with a green scarf. About his neck hung a brass key, which granted him access to the inner workings of the library for work purposes.

"Ah, Quiet!" the caracal half-yelled, half whispered as if he just forgot where he was; his ears perking up towards the other feline. "I didn't think you'd be done so soon. How was Scribe Ahmose today?"

"Charming as ever. He loves me, I think. Try not to be jealous."

"Hah, I'd have to be jealous of the whole school in that case. I might yet be, too," chuckled the smaller cat, not taking his eyes off of the tiny symbols stamped onto the base of each book used for categorization. "Have you come to bother me at work, again?"

"Well, I could just leave if y-" Quiet began to joke and turn around, only to find a large rock blocking his path out of the shelving aisle. The cheetah blinked once, then raised a suspicious brow.

"Edge."

"Yes, Quiet?"

"There's a boulder in the library."

Edge almost broke his steadfast performance with a grin, but kept it together. "That's strange. Must be one of those library rocks you hear about."

"Indeed. So, you wouldn't mind if I leaned against it?" asked Quiet, making even the most mundane statement sound threatening.

"By all means."

Quiet laughed and pushed his paw palm against the invading rock. As he thought, his paw passed right through the boulder as if it were not even there. Which it wasn't, of course. Edge was an illusionist, and had been practicing the art of hadiheka. Literally understood as 'quiet magic', Edge had been illicitly training himself to mask the telltale signs of spellcasting: reducing elaborate gestures to minor twitches and spoken words to mere thoughts. When one wants to get away with things in a magic school, one must be creative and resourceful.

The king cheetah nodded his respect to his classmate. "Impressive. Your work has really paid off."

"I haven't the faintest idea of what you're talking about. I am merely an honest student of Illusion at The Illuminated Archives of Thoth, just now reminded that your parchment on ancient lithographics is late by almost a week." responded Edge, impressive even himself at his commitment to remaining so disciplined around the object of his adoration. "I'll be done soon, and then maybe we could go t- AH!" he gasped, garnering an angry "SHHHHHH!" from a couple of shelves over. "Y...you have plans for us I take it?" panted Edge, flexing his ass in the spotty paw that had so abruptly grabbed it. Such an act of sexual forwardness was uncommon even in their permissible times, and certainly not allowed in the greatest library in the known world.

Quiet grinned and slid his paw around to the front of Edge's toga, pressing him against the neatly-filed collection of lost dynasties from between 800 and 1,999 years ago. "I was thinking..." he purred, gently grazing his sharp teeth along the nape of the light brown-fur's neck, "...that maybe we'd head down to the bathhouse soon for some relaxation?" His paw merely rested over Edge's crotch, and the cheetah could already feel a hard, familiar shape begin to rapidly fill against his fingers through the fabric.

"I...I'm almost done, actually so if you want to wait and read while I finish up?" whispered the horny cat, lust accenting every word as he subconsciously pushed against the spotted kitty with whom he had shared a bed with in one way or another (preferably another) since his mid-teens. Fraternization between students, and even students and teachers, was technically forbidden. However, like most things that were technically forbidden there was always the caveat that someone had to be bothered enough to make a fuss over it. At The Archives, where knowledge and learning was championed above all else the priorities were simple; if one is getting (or in some cases providing) an education, one's proclivities with other consenting parties may be overlooked. Praise Thoth.

"Meet me in the lobby when you're done," Quiet offered, kissing the caracal's cheek before silently padding out of the aisle and leaving his lover with a very obvious tent.

"Min curse it all," Edge said to himself jokingly as he went back to filing texts in an effort to distract himself from past or future lusts.

---

Quiet-in-the-Chamber and Along-the-Water's-Edge held paws as they entered the bath. It was relatively late, with only a few occupants remaining in the water (none of which, true to form, were bathing for hygiene purposes). Although not explicitly stated, the public bath was occupied almost exclusively by adults after a certain hour to pursue more lurid activities than communal washing. Quiet and Edge smiled at one of the nude bath servants, a species of desert mouse, as they were hurriedly traversing across the boundaries of the large venue with a bundle of fresh towels. The pair waved briefly to a couple of muzzles that they recognized before situating themselves in their own corner of the pool. They sat at the edge of the bath, their feet dipping into the warm water that awaited them.

Edge was about ready to push himself into the water for a swim when he was stopped by Quiet. "You know, I think we should do that...new activity we've been trying lately," suggested the king cheetah with a mischievous grin over his face.

Edge blushed slightly at the notion, yet already had turned to better face his partner. "Well...I suppose this would be a better place to do it than most, seeing as there's a very easy way to wash off." The caracal finished rotating, sitting at the tiled edge of the public pool as he began to get busy with his chestnut-colored paws; one scritching the white chestfur of his mate and the other reaching down to fondle his sheath. "You had plenty of water and fruit, I hope?"

Smelling the excitement coming off of the caracal, Quiet returned the groping in kind and went one step further by pressing his maw softly against that of his feline lover. The two cats began to purr almost instantly, their lips parting enough to allow space for their tongue to dance between them. Both were all-too ready to begin their main event at the baths, but were more than happy to start with a warmup.

As usual, it was the caracal who went first. His bladder, which he'd been dutifully filling with clear water throughout the day, was finally released against Quiet's skilled paw. Edge's urine trickled at first but soon became a small fountain, wetting the cheetah's paw then arcing over onto his chest. His piss was mild in scent and almost completely clear, yet the act of sharing his fluids with his partner was an intensely hot experience for them both.

A few seconds of watching and feeling the caracal pee on him prompted Quiet's body to respond in kind, soaking his brown lover's paw and lower body in his equally-hydrated liquid. The kiss between the two males never broke, and even intensified as each male did his best to angle the flaccid cock of the other over his own body to satisfy their uncommon (but most definitely not unheard of) urge to mark each other as mates. Halting his stream on purpose, Quiet leaned back from the kiss and his partner's genitals and allowed himself to be showered in the golden spray from the caracal's member, his still-ready bladder the only thing preventing the cheetah from becoming fully hard. He panted with slowly-building desire as his fellow mage and lover bathed him in his piss. Quiet casually turned his head to notice another servant, a cape hound, watching with his mouth agape and staring before he found himself and made his swift exit; it was too late for the cheetah to have not noticed the dog's sheath swelling at the sight, but he let it go. They wouldn't be here if they didn't enjoy an audience, after all.

When Edge was done it was Quiet's turn to finish, the king cheetah gently lowering the caracal onto his back on the tiled floor and straddled over him. His own white chest and belly fur still matted with fresh pee the yellow, spotted feline was only too happy to respond similarly over his mate. Pulling his sheath back fully he resumed urination, the near-tasteless jet of yellowish water splashing over Edge's torso, stomach and groin; the cheetah even paid special attention to Edge's rapidly-rising cock, the emerging member bouncing against the potent piss spray as it stood up vertically away from his body. Feeling his tank reaching empty, Quiet's purring increased in severity as he trained his dwindling arc up over his mate's neck and muzzle and watched gleefully as the caracal opened his maw to consume the remainder of his partner's pee. It was only slightly bitter, due to their planning ahead of time to ensure that they kept themselves hydrated: a task not necessarily simple considering the usual heat of the day. As little as it was the caracal drank happily, purring and licking his lips once he was done ingesting his lover's liquid.

While Edge was finishing up he found his cheetah lover on top of him, a mischievous grin across his muzzle and a firm grip on his shoulder. Before Edge could react the spotty cat planted a dainty yet amorously-charged kiss onto his lips, purring powerfully as he pressed himself securely against the chestnut-furred feline's chest. Suddenly, Quiet rolled over the rim of the pool and into the water, taking the caracal with him and sending them both into the warmed water with a splash.

Giggling, Edge splashed his mate in the pool. "Quiet! What's all this ab-" he began, before being silenced by a slender and spotted finger.

"Shh, love. Let's enjoy our swim," encouraged the king cheetah, pushing off of the bank with his footpaws and gliding through the warmed water as if he were more otter than cat. Edge sped off in pursuit of his partner, eager to enjoy the bath and any future events that may occur; his tail dragging behind him in the warm pool.

---

After a good 45-min session, Quiet swam up into the shallow end of the pool where Edge reclined, his wet fur outlining his smooth muscles through his tawny pelt. The spotty cat slid his paws over the arms of the caracal as he floated close, pressing his hot body against that of the other male. Purring up a storm, the cheetah moved his mouth towards the caracal's muzzle and plant a smooch upon him full of heated desire. Edge closed his eyes and kissed back, bracing himself against the wall of the bath and wrapping his arms around the dominant Quiet. Not wanting to linger too long there, the spotted feline broke off and began alternately licking and nipping at the sensitive neck flesh along the side of his lover's throat to indicate clearly his intentions tonight.

"Is this what you want..?" growled Quiet lustfully as he breathed steamy vapor against his partner's neck, his paw wandering beneath the water's surface to gently rub at the slightly smaller cat's perineum "Want me to take you here, in the pool where others can see that you belong to me?"

The caracal whimpered and moaned softly as the digit rubbed against his prostate from the outside, the cat's short tail already instinctively rising in preparation for mating. "By the Gods, Quiet...take me..." he replied, mewing into the nipping and petting he was receiving. Edge leaned back into the rubbing, his wet and clean kitty paws surfacing and showing off his glistening toe beans. Although the bath had mostly cleared out by this point, there were still a couple of lingering late-night bathers who had started to direct their attention toward the young cat couple with varying levels of feigned disinterest.

"As you wish," grinned the king cheetah as he hoisted Edge's lower body completely out of the bath and draped his soft-furred tawny legs over his spotted shoulders, running his palms through the silky pelt. In this position, the caracal's most sensitive parts were up close against Quiet's muzzle; the suspended feline's tapered, soft-spined cock laying flat against his stomach and releasing a slow and steady flow of precum into his bellyfur. Quiet's nose bumped gently into his lover's sac before sliding his warm and wet tongue over the fluffy orbs, the tip of his tongue gently teasing the sensitive spot behind the other male's balls as he did so. Almost immediately he felt the caracal quiver in pleasure against his mouth, and purred to intensify the sensation in his sac. Not wanting to waste too much time there however, the dominant cheetah nuzzled his maw up under the short brown tail of the other feline and slipped his tongue inside Edge's cleft to lick his tailhole; the cheetah's whiskers flattening against the tight mounds of the caracal's ass.

"Quiet..." whispered Water as he was lifted helplessly up by the stronger, larger cat and felt an all-too-familiar tongue caress wet and hot over his entrance. He found the soft barbs along the cheetah's tongue teasing and delightful, making him squirm as his lover started to push the moist organ up inside of his warm body. The submissive brown kitty let out a lustful mewl as his affectionate top shoved his tongue as far up his tailhole as possible, his skilled mouth loosening up the sprawling feline. Subconsciously his paws and footpaws flexed at his extremities, the claws extending and retracting; the paws digging gently into the tiled floor, the raised peets clenching and relaxing on either side of the spotty cat's shoulders. Maintaining just enough wherewithal to not completely lose himself in the blissful sensation of his rimming, the panting caracal muttered a few tuneful words under his breath accompanied by an apparently-lazy flick of his left paw. The effect wasn't clear to an onlooker, but when his hungry feline lover suddenly began to lap more and more eagerly at his taint he knew the incantation has worked; few could resist the taste of sweet honey.

If Quiet-in-the-Chamber wasn't already aroused enough, the lurid meowing and spasming sent his hormones into overdrive. He redoubled his efforts against the delectable rump of Along-the-Water's-Edge, voraciously eating him out like his last meal was placed deep inside the subby cat wrapped around his face as he appreciated the illusionist's minor olfactory glamor over his own ass. His turgid, spiny cheetah cock was fully out by this point, a respectable size at just over six inches; black and throbbing firmly beneath the surface of the pool. At this point any interested anthros had stopped pretending that they were not engaged in the spectacle and gave the couple their full attention, each with at least one paw containing a penis of some description.

In his pleasurable haze, Edge was able to recall that they were going to need something a little more efficient than saliva no matter how liberally it was applied. "Qu...Quiet, we can't use the oil in here..." he moaned softly, hoping that this fact wouldn't dissuade the strong cheetah from rutting him in the bath. He knew, of course, that his lover was capable enough in the Art to perform some small feat of spellcraft himself, just as he had done with his illusions.

Finally coming up from his partner's well-worked tailhole, Quiet simply winked at his squirming, submissive kitty. "Leave that to me", he purred, gently lowering the caracal's legs back into the pool. Raising a single paw, the spotty cat wiggled his fingers in precise movements and whispered some syllables in a low and somewhat melodious voice. As his spell was nearing completion, he slipped the gesturing paw under the water and slid it up between Edge's buttocks and under his short, tawny tail. Quiet felt his digits becoming slick and warmed, the water touching his paw and anything within a few inches of it becoming slicker and more viscous in his touch. More importantly, this new altered liquid did not move with the natural ebb and flow caused by their movements. As fast as he could the king cheetah moved his magicked paw over his engorged ebony rod to transform the water on that as well, if for no other reason than to not waste the energy.

Happy that they were both sufficiently pent-up and lubricated, Quiet stood tall in the pool once more so that the shallow portion came up to just below his waist and took Edge's legs once more, raising them up over his shoulders to reveal his own hardness and beautiful-looking ass angled perfectly against his firm erection; the pointed, pre-soaked tip teasing the caracal's hole gently.

"Ready for me, Edge?" breathed Quiet, knowing full well the rhetorical nature of the question.

"Mm, don't make me wait any longer...or our audience," responded the brown-furred feline, impatiently and feebly trying to impale himself on the cheetah's malehood.

With no further speech Quiet took his cock in his paw by the base and inserted himself into Edge, groaning quietly as he felt the familiar heat once again envelop his prick. He found that it was easier to enter his partner every time; the cheetah managed to push himself almost halfway on the first thrust before Edge gave him a curt nod, their signal that he should wait for just a moment. Once that moment passed the golden and black-marked feline withdrew himself slowly from the illusionist's ass, the small spines along his cock dragging gently against the caracal's anal walls which brought out a low-voiced moan from the bottom. When he had all but fully removed himself from the hungry brown kitty, the cheetah pushed in again with a little more force; the magically-altered water and saliva providing him with much-needed assistance in taking Edge at the pool.

Edge groaned lustfully and arched his back as he felt inch after hot inch of his mate slide inside of him; despite his lover's name Edge had never been quiet during intercourse. Some of it was put on to add to the exhibitionist aspect of their lovemaking, but even in semi-private it was hard for the caracal to keep the noise down when his cheetah mated with him. He felt the thick, familiar fullness inside of him; the soft barbs and perfect curve firmly sliding along prostate as he was penetrated. Edge's mewling and moaning was certainly welcomed by the few other patrons of the bath, their rapid and desperate pawwing making the sensation all the more intense for the felines. This position was the best for them both, they had found: Edge hoisted onto his back with his legs high allowed Quiet to enter him as easily and as deep as he could go, and in only a few moments he felt that affirming push that tops do to confirm that they really can't stuff anymore of themselves into their partner.

Quiet grunted almost inaudibly as he bottomed out inside of the caracal's rump, the short tail tuft teasing his creamy sac as he fully hilted inside his mate's snug heat. He felt the eyes of half a dozen furs on him, watching with lurid interest as he got settled into a practiced rhythm that make them both feel amazing. Quiet himself didn't feel strongly about fucking in public, but he knew that Edge loved it and watching the caracal getting off got Quiet off, too. He wouldn't admit it openly, but watching the effect he had on his partner definitely made him a confident and determined lover. Holding Edge's legs against his chest he thrust back and forth, his near-inaudible panting belying the intense pleasure gripping every firm inch of his engorged phallus as it plunged in practiced motions deep inside of his handsome cat. The physical gratification surging through his member and churning about inside his balls encouraged occasional spurts of precum into his caracal, making their rigorous yet tender moment all the more satisfying for them both. Water began to splash around them both, disturbed by their mating.

Edge had to adjust himself to prevent sliding off into the pool completely, yet was still able to wrap his digits around his own similarly-long erection and begin earnestly pawwing himself. He knew that his lover wouldn't last much longer when he went silent like this; the caracal recognized that Quiet got that way when he was focusing entirely on the sensations through his body and intending to enjoy himself. Edge on the other paw couldn't keep quiet, moaning out in rapturous ecstasy as he was pounded in just the right place beneath his stubby tail, struggling to catch a full breath as the sheer intensity forced moan after moan out of him with each hilt inside his ass; his lover's soft barbs rippling sensually throughout his inner walls. The caracal's tumescence drooled substantial amounts of fluid over his fingers, which he gathered up in his paw and utilized as an extra source of lubricant to aid his masturbation.

"Quiet, yes! Rut me harder!" he begged as his own sac began to tighten up against his body in preparation for his release. He took one more look at the distant furs, a couple of whom had moved away and a couple of whom had escalated to more intimate forms of intercourse; apparently they had been inspired by the sordid activity occurring nearby. Edge cried out in joyous abandon as his cock throbbed in his paw, shooting over his own chest and chin with several powerful spurts of hot caracal cum. Just before his afterglow began he felt his own body tighten involuntarily around his cheetah's needy member, looking with adoration over his partner as he watched the spotted feline grunt and close up against his backside before uttering a single, halted gasp. From a distance it probably didn't seem like much of a finish, but the tawny fur could feel his top trembling against him with his barbed member pulsing with wet orgasmic heat. Edge smiled since he knew that it has been good for Quiet too; the quieter his orgasm, was the more he usually enjoyed it due to simply losing himself in the sensation.

Still aware of himself, Quiet gently lowered his lover into the pool and caught him around the waist to hold him while at the same time slowly pulling his softening maleness from Edge's rump (getting a passing grope over his right buttock as he did so). He sniffed Edge, and gave him a single cleansing lick over his chin. The two males cuddled in their post-orgasmic bliss, for now forgetting that they were still very much in a public place and that others were either getting ready to leave or settling in for their own night of passion.

"You hit your chin again," purred Quiet after several long moments of embracing his partner.

"I usually do when you have me on my back...after a fashion. Besides, it looked good for the others didn't it? Getting to see what you do to me," chuckled Edge, tracing a claw through the cheetah's milky-white chestfur.

Everyone else had left the bath by now, save for the servants cleaning the floors and recovering used (in some cases very used) towels left by the afternoon's occupants. Night had fallen, and a warm summer night sky had settled in above them with clear stars twinkling in the gloom. It felt as if the Gods themselves were watching over them. The good ones, at least.

Edge sighed a long side and cuddled closer to his king cheetah, his next words heavy as lead in his throat. "You leave tomorrow, don't you? For Khemet," he stated. He hoped that saying it so matter-of-factly would prevent any tears from forming. Edge was wrong.

Ever outwardly stoic, Quiet blinked once in shocked before gently huffing against the caracal's shoulder, rubbing his backfur underwater. "How long have you known?"

"For the past couple of months, ever since you began that field of ancient language study. All students are required to complete their own work out in the world, and you'd been asking the merchants and soldiers about it ever since you started. It was the packed luggage that really sealed it for me." replied Edge, choking back the sorrow that he'd been damming up since Spring. Cracks were appearing however, and he pressed his muzzle into Quiet's shoulder and began to softly sob at the prospect of losing his love.

"I wanted to tell you, but I could never find the time. I knew it would hang over you, and I wanted our last moments before my journey started to be as pleasant as possible," said Quiet, staring over the carcal into nothingness. It was as if all the torches had gone dimmer, and the hieroglyphs across the walls had lost their meanings and were now just old and random drawings across the limestone. "Edge, I...I'm sorry. I wanted this night, our last for a while, to be special and-"

Quiet was cut off by the sudden jerk of the smaller feline's head shooting up and almost cracking him in the jaw. "Our last for a while?" he repeated back, an echo of hope.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's only for a few months. I'm coming back, of course. I need to turn in my research. Also..." he took ahold of Edge's paw and rubbed the back of it fondly "...I'd want to come back to you, Edge. I love you."

For the first time in his life it was Edge who was lost for words. He ingested the king cheetah's words, his own muzzle reflecting his partner's natural tear marks as he considered the possibilities...and the future. Quiet's return, his own graduation, setting up a home together in the city...

Wiping his eyes with his paw the brown kitty stared straight at Quiet with his huge, auburn eyes. "I'll pray for you, Quiet. Do the best you can, and come back to me. I'll be waiting for you." he said, this time managing to hold back the new wave of emotion behinds his eyes. Only just.

"I promise." promised Quiet, licking the top of Edge's head once. "Let's go to bed, shall we?" he offered. At a nod, the pair rose out of the cooling water and went about drying and redressing.

---EPILOGUE---

Neither cat said more than a few, necessary words the next morning. Having already gotten used to leaving loved ones before for school they knew that long goodbyes would be both pointless and painful. They did, however, trade gifts to remember each other by. It was sudden, but heartfelt. Edge gave Quiet a beautiful gem that changed colors depending on the mood of the holder. When it changed paws, the lavender hue of heartfelt sorrow barely altered in hue. Quiet, on the other paw, had something much odder in mind. He produced from a hiding place in his dorm a book that even Edge had never seen. A black, gnarled tome with a twisted cover and spine that weighed at least 10 pounds. Most curiously, the book was sealed in a solid and locked glass box which Quiet explained was magically secured.

"What...what is this?" asked the caracal, more out of benign curiosity that suspicion.

"Family heirloom." responded the cheetah. "I need you to look after it, until I get back. Don't let anyone know you have it and definitely don't try to read it, alright? I know this is unfair to ask, but you must promise me on our lives that you will keep it secret." he stated, staring into Edge's eyes with a look of...anger?

No, not anger, Edge would later realize. It's fear.

"I promise," promised Edge.

Soon, they were outside. Quiet had paid a merchant to take him along to Khemet, a small town neighboring a large ruin that brought treasure hunters and scholars alike. They said their final farewells, and all too soon Quiet was gone; disappeared beyond the dunes of the beautiful and ruthless desert. Edge watched until he was completely out of sight, until the emptiness of the space beside him was as vacant as the bed he would occupy tonight.

"I promise," Edge whispered to himself as he gazed into the vast sandy expanse, sighing once. It was going to be a long few months, but he knew it would be worth it. For Quiet, the caracal would do anything.

Anything at all.