FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Kera recognizes the arena—it's the home of another tree hollow the Flowers often use, but it has been transformed into a dirty, clumpy mess by a large, hulking creature seemingly made entirely out of the soil itself. It wraps its arms around some figure, huddled over it, keeping the struggling creature down in its grasp. Kera can't see it clearly yet, but a stinging scent comes wafting up from the wrestling match in between the two of them, making her happy she can't see whatever manner of monster that must be underneath.

And beyond the battle, with her back to the dead tree hollow, eyes wide and body trembling, is Gimmegee. Her gaze snaps over towards the feline, and she screams. “Kera… Run!"

The beast underneath the earth creature shifts, and from that movement, Kera finally locks eyes with it.

Yellow eyes. It has yellow eyes that glow like the fiery pit itself. Horns protrude from its skull, curling up and poking into the earthen creature on top of it. It's mouth opens wide and it shows off a razor field of teeth

It's nude, with a slight body with small breasts and even freckles over her skin. Her arms and legs end in sick, charred, and armored claws. Underneath the demonic additions to this creature's form, Kerra recognizes her, or the girl she had once been. She had seen this girl before, back when the Lily Nymph had collected the poor, pathetic waif.

“Kera," the demon growls, her voice triple layered, a scared little girl, an angry growl, and a sultry woman. “So nice to see you again…!"

Suddenly, dark energy surrounds the girl, creating an aura of power that engulfs the earth creature in the halo of darkness before chunks of rock and soil breaks apart into tiny particles, showering both Kera and Gimmegee.

Suddenly, the girl is upon Kera, her naked body pressed up against Kera's cloistered form. A clawed finger strokes up and down along the feline's body as she stares up at her with narrowed eyes and a slight smile. “This is your fate," she says, her growl more like a purr. “Just like you told me. Remember, Kera? If I didn't get my demon under control? It feels so good, Kera… you should join me."

Kera's lip quivers. The warmth, the acceptance, it's all the same as before. She closes her eyes though, pushing the demon away, her claws digging into flesh.

The demon stumbles back, tears in her flesh where the claws dug in, black ichor seeping out from it. She stands hunched over, chuckling low. “Your claws cut deep. You want to hurt me. You want me to experience pain, or do you wish to give it?" She tilts her head up, her pupils just tiny slits now, her head tilted in manic glee. “Let's see, then, shall we? Let's give each other such beautiful pain!"

The demon leaps forward, spinning around, a spade-tipped tail slashing at Kera. But the feline hops back, the slash only tearing at her habit. The feline grabs the appendage and yanks it back, throwing the demon down into the ground. She then hisses, leaping down toward her.

But the demon rolls out of the way, getting onto her knees, licking her lips with an elongated tongue. “That's right. Remember who you really are. Remember the thrill!" She follows this up by pouncing on the feline, pinning her down into the loose earth, her claws wrapping around Kera's throat, screaming a horrendous cacophony of a dying horse and a child experiencing true fear.

Kera's eyes roll back. Maybe this is what she deserves after what she did to this girl?

The earth around them shifts and stirs, and from behind the demon, the earth creature rises once again. It reaches out with a giant hand and grabs the demon by the head, tearing her from Kera.

The demon thrashes around, clawing at the earth creature, trying to break free, but it envelopes her once more, this time wrapping its whole body around her and crashing into the earth, until there is just a quivering pile of dirt.

Kera stares at the mound as more and more dirt rises up from the ground around them, piling more and more of itself on top of the demon.

“What are you doing!?" Gimmegee shouts, peeking out from around the mound. “Move! Now!"

Kera picks herself up and scoops the gnome, running away from the scene of the fight as quick as she can. “You have a lot of explaining to do!" Kera says. “First thing is where in the blazing inferno is Tik Tik's book!"

“Tik… the kobold? That earth monster IS her book."

“What!?"

“It's a long story."

“What about the rest of Tik Tik's friends. They took that girl with them in their caravan."

“I have no idea what happened to them!" Gimmegee yelps. “As far as I know, that demon could have torn all of them apart."

Kera stops and lifts the gnome from under her arms, staring her in the eyes. “We can't tell Tik Tik about this. You understand? We can't tell anyone about this."

“Oh, why, because you're the one who brought that girl to the Lover? Imagine if she went like that back when we-"

Kera growls. “No more of that. We need to get back."

Tik Tik groans, rubbing her head after her dizzying spill. But she quickly sits up and spins around, whimpering when she cannot see her new friend. She picks one of the directions and bounds off there, passing through deep foliage. What matter of creature had Kera spotted? Tik Tik hears nothing, except-yes, up ahead, a struggle, and flowing water?

Thunder rolls overhead as droplets of rain fall through branches and onto Tik Tik's snout. The background of the stormy forest sets the stage for a bizarre encounter in front of her. There, standing atop a broken down carriage on a dirt path, is a strange creature. An insect, standing on two legs. Its form is only slightly taller than Tik Tik's, and its body encased in a bright blue shell. Two antenna stick out from the top of its head, flowing and flapping in the windy storm, and its long spindly arms end in tiny three-clawed hands. Large compound eyes stare downwards as its mandibles clack as a toothy mouth grins confidently towards the origin of the damp smell Tik Tik had encountered.

Below the bug swirls a whirlpool. It surrounds the carriage, turning the ground it rests upon into sticky mud. Tik Tik pauses as she sees the scene before her, not quite sure what to make of the whole ordeal.

The bug looks up, its eyes catching onto Tik Tik's. It buzzes with a guttural voice as its mandibles click and its antennate twitch. “What are you doing here!? I told everyone to leave!"

The water shoots up from the pool into a dart of pressure heading straight towards Tik Tik. The bug leaps from its perch, kicking downward and colliding with the shot. The pressure of the water sends it flying forward, rolling on the ground in front of Tik Tik's feet. Groaning, the bug turns its head towards her. “W… wait… you weren't with the others. Where did you come fro-"

“Look out!" Tik Tik shouts, stepping forward and holding her hand out. A shield of energy forms in front of them as waters shoots out form the pool in heavy quantities, splashing all around it, but forming a pool at Tik Tik's feet.

It takes on a semisolid form, standing as tall as a human. All hints of dirt and mud slide down off of it as it flushes the waters of its form, leaving only a clear figure standing before them. Tik Tik grits her teeth at the sight of this faceless creature and says. “Explain… quick!"

The bug hops beside her, putting up its hands in a defensive stance. “That's some sort of water spirit. It took me by surprise when I was…" he pauses, thinking of the words to say “Minding my own business. It attacked a broken caravan of travelers heading off to the Baroness's place, and I promised to hold it off for them. I've been at this awhile, so I'm a little tired."

The creature taps at the forcefield in front of it a moment, curious at its properties.

“Name's Cynwrig, by the way. Adventurer and hero, especially for damsels in distress."

Tik Tik nods. “Tik Tik. Wizard. Lost her spellbook."

'Oh, you're Tik Tik?" he asks. “Well, then, my favor continues. Lower the shield."

“W… what!?"

“Just do it!"

Tik Tik swipes her hands downward, and Cynwrig opens up his back shell, showing off his clear wings. He flies forward, jabbing his fists forward with a series of battle cries, his strikes hitting the water over and over.

The water creature stumbles back from his barrage, and Tik Tik thinks about the spells she has left to help Cynwrig out. Every spell she planned was specifically for the Lily Nymph. If she had her book, she'd most certainly have something to face against this water creature. Right now, though, she's nothing but a kobold.

The thunder rumbles again, announcing the coming rain. It pours downwards, and Cynwrig finds himself falling closer to the ground, yet continuing his barrage. As the rain continues, it ripples on the water creature's body, and the steps it takes back become fewer and fewer.

Tik Tik gasps and shouts. “Cynwrig! It's getting stronger!"

Cynwrig looks over his shoulder, his attacks not abating, but the water creature does not back up anymore, and Cynwrig soon bumps right into it. That's when the water splashes down onto him, becoming a sphere of liquid surrounding the bug's body.

Cynwrig's mandibles clack in his distress, and his appendages scurry around in an attempt to free himself from the clutches of the creature's grasp.

Tik Tik grips her horns and watches in dismay as this gentlebug hero is engulfed. She looks around for any sort of help, but finds none in the rain. So much water all over the place, she's never been in a storm this bad before, only heard the pouring sounds that come up from above, barraging the tunnels of her home, sending floodwaters down like a mighty river through the trap-laden corridors.

Wait… flooding? Could that be it? Tik Tik closes her eyes, claps her hands together, and concentrates.

Tendrils summoned from the beyond rise up, scooping the dirt around the water creature. Rainwater begins to fill up the moat Tik Tik makes, but also the water creature slips back,falling into the makeshift well.

Cynwrig reaches up, grabbing onto a branch and gasps for air in the torrential downpour as the water creature drains down into the tunnels.

The quick summer storm stops as the water being drains down into the now muddy pit, and the beetle boy climbs himself over the edge, trying to shake off the residual water off of him. It's from that leftover liquid that the being reforms itself, wrapping its now small arms and legs around the beetle. He gasps, clawing, but his small fingers splash right through the liquid body. Water trails up to his face, covering the lower half in a drowning hold. He struggles, kicking, squirming, but to no avail.

Tik Tik hops on top of him, her desperate form crashing into the watery creature's. She opens her mouth wide, unleashing a battle screech before chomping down onto the liquid creature, taking in a nice chunk of its fluid form.

She gulps down a large gulp of water and swallows, turning to the bug and shouting “Drink!"

Listening to her, he begins to swallow, bit by bit, the water creature. It shudders and tries to pull away, crawling along the ground away from Tik Tik before the little kobold is able to spring into action, scooping her hands over the thing's body, shoving handfuls of water into her mouth and throat. Soon enough, there's only so much left of the creature that it squeaks and disappears into the porous earth, leaving the kobold and the bug alone and satisfied.

Sputtering, the beetle boy flicks the water off of his wings, grimacing and scooting away from where it lands, fearing the creation of new elementals in the wake. He looks over the edge to the drain that Tik Tik created. He nods and stands himself up and extends a hand to her. “Thank you very much, Tik Tik. That was some grade-A teamwork."