FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

**Reviewed and Corrected 11/01/2013**

Chapter Two

The journey to the Mistvale outpost took us the best part of a week, five days to be precise, it was a blissfully quick journey both of us being healthy young adult males we walked with a spring in our step, spurred on by adventure. We trekked cross country directly to the outpost, Faral's oddly accurate sense of direction leading us straight towards the outpost from Highbank, completely ignoring the presence of roads, paths, hills, all terrain actually, he seemed to abhor any form of order. Knowing the Plains very well I was able to point out water supplies and appropriate places to sleep out of sight, we both agreed that having a group of roaming marauders stumble upon us in the middle of the night would be most unwelcome. We camped under trees and talked little, making quick progress motivated by a conviction that travelling in winter in the North is not recommended, the capital remains unfrozen, yet places like Laketown often see extreme snow fall. The outpost upon on the edge of the black forest was dwarfed by the trees of Malendri, black trunked monsters of trees with deep green needles as leaves, standing before it at the top of a hill looking down on the outpost you could see thick wisps of mist rising from the trees and a dense fog at the forest floor which began at the edge of the forest, you could not see Aldri beyond it. A menacing sight, Malendri seemed dangerous, archaic, unwelcoming, it was clear to me now why travellers and traders were in fear of making the journey between Daram and Aldri. We courageously marched down to the outpost ignorant of any future troubles that might come our way in the following days, Faral having made his way through the forest along the road unmolested and perfectly safely about a month or so ago. He assured me we would do the same once again. The sun was just starting to dip below the horizon as we approached the outpost, a chill was starting to become noticeable in the air.

"So what road do we take to get to Aldri?" I asked as we walked gently towards the town.

"It's called the mist road, it is the only safe way through." Faral replied.

"Why is it so dangerous?" I inquired innocently. As you get closer to Malendri, the sky darkens and the air becomes chilled, it is said that the trees are so old that they suck the life out of those who come too close to sustain themselves, which is not actually true but it certainly felt that way as I got closer that day, my fur was stood on end all the way through it the following day as well.

"Zerah, you really are a hermit. Do not tell me you have not heard of the Malendri Crisis!" The dog sighed and continued. Mumbling, "I cannot believe you are this sheltered... Anyway you do know that the Forest is populated by wild tribes of Lynx?" I shook my head, never having felt so stupid in my life my life before.

"Two centuries ago the King of Aldri got tired of the lynx not accepting his rule, and sent an army to 'pacify' them, they would not let him chop down the trees to build war machines for the conquering of the northern towns and attacked any soldiers and workers which came to do so." He narrated.

"The army set up a camp in the heart of the forest now the site of the Malendri spire prison, and began searching for the Lynx's homes and villages, they could not find a single one and after their forces were foolishly spread out, every lynx in Malendri descended on the soldiers and slaughtered them until there were no more."

After the little snippet of history I was left inquisitive, "What happened next?" I asked.

"Thanks to the General's blunder in leaving his men exposed, a few days after sending his soldiers to Malendri the King received a visitor, a captured soldier bearing the head of his General, a very clear message, now anyone who wishes to travel through the forest is in danger of encountering a raiding party, the lynx sometimes get confused." Faral then carried on to mumble about stupid nobles and the army, leaving me wondering about what was going to happen to me inside that forest and whether or not I would actually make it to the other side.

"Faral, this does not sound safe, we could get killed, or worse captured and tortured", a clear nervous strain to my voice as I spoke.

"It will be fine, trading caravans pass through regularly, only the largest ones get attacked, if we join up with a smaller one we will be left alone, they seem to think the large groups are going to attack them or chop down the forest, don't worry we shall keep making good progress." He replied with a most annoying tone of calm calculation. Looking back he rarely got worried or seemed to show any apprehension or fear regarding anything he did or happened to us both, he would weigh up the options and take the best one without a moments thought, or for that matter any consideration.

"Fine but let us join up with the largest possible group, I'm a firm believer of safety in numbers"

"Or unity in death" He quickly replied casually destroying any courage I had just tried to muster. By this time we were on the approach to the first building of Mistvale, the sun was meekly hiding behind the clouds giving us a grey overcast, the small collection of ramshackle buildings and guard posts sitting in the mud like the homeless you see in the poor districts of Win Guden, uncared for and left alone. I wondered why it was so dilapidated considering the traffic that came through during our stay, then again after travelling through such a place as Malendri I would want to be out of its imposing shadow as quickly as possible.

"It looks welcoming" I whispered to Faral sarcastically as we both quickly walked through the outpost, a few ill looking furs staring at us, after a few moments a we heard a shout coming from our left.

"Good Sirs!" A shabby looking leopard ran over to us, dressed in a grimy apron sodden with alcohol and covered in stains, accented by a shirt which looked like it had been white once upon a time. "Will you be travelling through Malendri tomorrow?"

"Yes, why? What do you want?" I said as we both stopped in front of the male innkeeper.

"You look like you have had a tiring journey, I have two rooms available for the night, and a convoy is travelling in the morning you should ask if you can tag along tomorrow."

" I don't think that will be-" I began to say.

"We'll take those two rooms good man." Faral interrupted stepping forward," We shall see you inside, get us two Drinks will you?" The leopard hurried off seeing to Faral's demands shortly I asked him," So why are we staying here now?"

"Didn't you listen to anything I told you before! We cannot and will not travel through that forest by ourselves, that is just asking for a death wish." The outburst was quite unexpected, now that I know the short tempered dog a little better I realise that he meant nothing by it, he would frequently rage at little things that crossed our paths, almost like a small coiled up spring was slowly being compressed until it sprang loose, that small rage left me quizzical.

"I didn't realise", I said feeling slightly stupid and hard done to.

"Humph...well come on, my paws are aching" He walked off towards the inn, I closely followed feeling the bad mood stomping onwards in front of me. I made a mental note, Faral is grumpy when tired. This inn was a sorry sight compared to the well looked after Fabled Eagle, It smelt damp, probably a symptom of the forest no more than a hundred metres away, mud hugged the floor about the entrance, the fire was the only brightness inside the establishment, I could tell I would soon regret staying here, and I did, it makes me shudder thinking about it as I write about the place.

"Hello again! Here are two drinks, The finest Ale I can serve, I'll show you to your rooms later." Faral and I took two seats near the fire as the drink was put before us.

"Thanks my friend" I said nodding, Faral immediately took a sip of the ale, and grimaced as he swallowed, the Innkeeper had left and so did not notice his wide eyed look of surprise and disgust, to which I laughed.

"This is awful, its watery!" he whispered leaning over, "Come on you have to try it!"

I shook my head and exclaimed "No, I'm not going anywhere near it after that face!" We both kept whispering as Faral shoved the mug towards me.

"Yes! You must or you'll offend the grimy leopard", It was true I would, my conscience willed me to, I raised my mug and took a large gulp of the stuff, I immediately gagged, it was bad, really bad, the liquid left a horrible after taste in my mouth.

"Oh gods that's awful" I said wiping my muzzle diligently as Faral laughed at my distaste.

"What will the rooms be like if this is the ale" he replied as I groaned in reply to his comment.

"Lets not think about that now, should we go and introduce ourselves to the travellers over there and ask if we can join them tomorrow?" I said using a nod to indicate the large group of tired looking furs in the corner sat at a long table, the group was eating a meal, consisting of an odd looking and unfamiliar meat, it looked like Carek only smaller, and some vegetables, the way they were picking at the food showed that the innkeeper was an awful cook as well.

"Hmmm yes maybe we should" Faral said turning around on his chair to look at the group.

"Shall we?" he asked.

"Yes, lets go over, it would be good to introduce ourselves and break they ice if they are happy to have us." Faral sighed and stood up, followed by myself.

"Your good at this people stuff aren't you Zerah, you seem to know exactly what to say."

"I have to be, a bard must be able to tell a good story." Faral grinned and waved his hand to tell me to go first. I approached the group and introduced us both.

"Hello there friends! My name is Zerah and this is Faral and we are simple travellers on our way to Arben. The innkeeper tells me that you are setting off through Malendri tomorrow and we were wondering if we could travel with you as a group, the forest is too treacherous to go it alone, as you must know" I addressed them with my best performing voice, hoping to instil an air of comfort and safety. The group looked at each other and a consensus was formed with a few nods. A sturdy looking bull stood and began to speak, he was very tall and imposing, sporting a thick muscular frame.

"We would be happy to have you come with us, If you pull your weight, help with guard duties and other such tasks. You are indeed right in saying the road would be too dangerous for you as you are, and our group is not too large to attract attention. Come sit with us, My name is Duloren a Fabric merchant returning to Aldri from Sipak." He said, his arms slightly raised in welcome. Faral and I sat at the edge of one of the corners near Duloren, pulling up our two chairs from the table where we were previously sat. The bull Duloren also sat and continued to speak. "Tell us about yourselves." The eyes around the table were fixed on us both, the group each told us why they were travelling, three antelopes were moving to Aldri to start a new life, a mother and father, clearly the parents of the male buck between them who was messing with the candle wax at the base of the candles on the table, there was four wolves, two parents and their cubs, who said they were returning to aldri from travelling to Daram to meet some relatives in Sipak and three others, all three male, a Rhino, a Ferret and a Horse, judging by their appearance, mucky and well muscled like Duloren, they were workers and guards, employed by the Bull.

"I am Zerah, the Bard of Daram as some of you may know" It became a habit to introduce myself like that and the three antelopes did know my reputation being locals. "And this is Faral a friend of mine." The antelope male spoke first "Ah Duloren we have picked up a mighty fine companion in Zerah here, this is the most famous Bard in Daram, renowned for his songs and lute, I am Ogondo, this is my wife Zalen, and my son Mikaki." The others raised their eyebrows and looked much more welcoming, in turn introducing themselves, I will try and recall them all, there was; Carius the male wolf, Lucea his mate, Luchea the daughter and Sal the young pup, Warren the ferret, Armand the Lion and Claude the Horse.

"You can earn your place by playing for us Zerah!" Duloren cheerfully stated.

I smiled warmly "Of course but not tonight I beg you, I am tired from the road" I asked, not being in to mood to perform.

"We'll be in for a treat I can tell you, some of my relatives had heard you perform before, and they gave good reviews." Zalen said as Duloren nodded in agreement. Faral regarded me with a displeased stare throughout the conversation clearly wishing for us to be taking a much quieter and covert journey.

"What about you Faral?" The Duloren asked.

The dog looked across at the Bull and cheerfully replied to my surprise, "As you already know my name is Faral, Faral Quin, I'm a simple traveller, exploring the world and documenting my findings, a sort of Encyclopaedia of Gündir and its inhabitants is what my finished work will be, commissioned to me by an old scholar in Arben." I completely ignored the response which I knew to be a lie, it seemed my companion was a good lier, and wished to keep our trip a secret as well, understandable however as it kept our trips true nature in the dark, stifling any interest from whoever we met along the way. Faral's fake background got a few mumbles, clearly the idea seemed odd, what was also strange was the change in his personality, usually quiet and unexcitable, now he was quite the opposite, when I quizzed him about it later he replied, "It's better to create an elaborate story, strangers believe an interesting story more than a common one." I took his word for it, I realise that no that he made me go first so he would have tie to form his lie and gauge the crowd, cunning little dog.

"Sounds like a very interesting endeavour Faral" Duloren mused, it was clear by now that he was the voice of this little band of travellers, which was only natural considering his stature.

"It can be tedious at times, but also dangerous, I'll be happy to guard at night to pull my weight."

"Then it is settled. Well, my friends it seems we have acquired two worthwhile companions for our journey to Aldri, now I bid you all goodnight." Duloren stood and made for the staircase at the back of the room, the rest of us murmured goodnights, soon to follow were the two families, the wolves and antelopes, the three workers also left, however they went outside, informing myself and Faral that they were to guard the caravan in shifts.

Left at the table by ourselves I sat back in my chair and picked at a leg of the meat, it was called chicken, and this piece was left untouched in the centre of the table realising just then that I was a bit peckish, Faral on the other hand lit his pipe again with the same strong smelling golden flower leaf. I was still puzzled about Faral's story, not its content but the fact that I had no inkling as to what the Dalmatian actually was, Faral had not so far in our partnership told or even hinted at what it was he did previous to his finding of the scroll, his past was a mystery to me. This realisation left me with a burning desire to know.

"Faral, What are you?" I questioned breaking the silence, the dog looked at me through a cloud of smoke and said with a hint of sarcasm.

"I'm a dog Zerah, you have noticed my species haven't you?" He replied with a small grin on his face.

"No, I meant, before you found this scroll what did you do? Were you a merchant, blacksmith or something else, I don't know what people in Aldri do for a living." The grin disappeared, replaced with a frown which wasn't directed me or anything in fact. Had I asked too personal a question? The dog took a long draw on his pipe and replied in a quiet yet calm voice. " Zerah, my past is my own, all that needs to be known is that it will not affect our journey and goal. I can tell this response unsettles you, but it is not because it is sinister or dark, but because all that matters is what I want to achieve and the results of my actions. Maybe I'll tell you someday, or not, but it does not matter."

"I am sorry if I over stepped a boundary, I was just curious."

"Curiosity killed the cat Zerah...see you in the morning" He winked and left me at the table. Odd very odd, he was a very private person, maybe I was overstepping a boundary, do people from Aldri conceal their past and thoughts more so than us Daram folk I thought? People in Daram will happily tell you anything you wish to know about them, they rarely have anything to hide. It wasn't long before I followed the mysterious dog upstairs.

Fog, something I had never experienced but heard of, covered the landscape like a thick blanket only it was not warm and comforting in the slightest, concealing my view as I looked out of my rooms window, the dark shadows of Malendri's trees could be seen through it however, imposing as ever. Dressed and sufficiently cleaned I met Faral downstairs, both of us ready to go. "We are all ready, Duloren and the rest are just checking the wagons before we set off." Faral said he seemed cheery this morning.

"Let's be off then." I replied, taking the first step towards the door, Faral to my right, as we stepped out through the door another party of three furs jostled for entrance, I got through the door just in time, avoiding being bumped into, unlike Faral who was flung towards me as I turned to have the smaller dog hit me in the chest and clung to me, his paws hitting my back to prevent himself falling in the wet mud at our feet.

"Oi! Watch where your going mutt!" A large and angry faced cheetah shouted, Faral turned a rage in his eye, I quickly tried to calm the situation.

"My apologies, we did not see you there" I called out in return, Faral's eyes burrowed into me like stinging wasp as he whispered "They walked clean into us Zerah!"

"There are three of them and two of us, and I do not fight Faral" I whispered back, the dog seethed and kept quiet.

"Use your eyes in the future" The cheetah said, chuckling to his friends as they entered the Inn.

"Come on Faral lets go, see the others are already setting off." Duloren was waving for us to join him in the back of an open backed wagon. Faral growled, his teeth gnashing as he turned and walked quickly towards Duloren, we both hopped onto the back of the Wagon amongst a few supplies and merchandise. The convoy consisting of three carts made for Malendri, one had Duloren's merchandise, Faral and myself aboard it, one was for the wolf Family and their belongings, the other was for the antelopes and their belongings, the three workers, Warren, Armand and Claude walked beside the wagons keeping guard. All three wagons were pulled by two tamed Carek. All six red plumed males, the males were used for work and meat, whilst herds of females are kept for the eggs they lay. In quick time, we were still energetic this early on in the journey you see, the wagons reached the forest, its dark interior was disconcerting, I turned hearing a cry from behind, it was that same cheetah shaking his fist at us, he had stopped however just outside the inn, Faral turned me back around forcefully "Ignore that idiot Zerah, don't worry he won't follow us alone." He said quietly, Duloren or the others had not heard anything, we were at the back of the convoy.

"What does he want I wonder?"

"I couldn't possibly tell you, it may have something to do with what is in your left coat pocket though my friend."Faral replied in an extremely casual voice.

"My coat Pocket?" I said more to myself as I reached down to pull out a heavy purse, which was not mine. I opened it and found it to be full of silver coins, "Faral you stole his money?" I whispered to the dog, who was looking very smug, leant back on the wagon rail.

"Oh calm down, he nearly knocked us over, we deserve some compensation, don't you agree?" I shook my head dumbfounded, I could not feel any remorse for the arrogant feline who was now presumably penniless.

"How did you get it into my coat pocket?"

"Well as I collided I found my paws to be in contact with a purse, which naturally jingled, I closed my paw in reflex and then was pushed clean into you, as I turned I had to get rid of the purse for I thought we may come to blows, and so dropped it into your pocket, I think you would have noticed if you weren't to busy playing the diplomat." He said carefree as the wind. It amazed me how he could talk about theft in such a casual accidental way, making it seem like it was the only action to take and even more surprisingly the right thing to do, playing my emotions in such a way as to make me come round to his side without second thought. He really was a slick character.

"Now if you don't mind, I would hate to weigh you down with my burdens." Faral took the purse from my paws and tucked it inside his leather jacket.

"You keep surprising me Faral"

"I do try my friend." He said and smiled warmly, as he finished speaking we had just entered the forest. The climate change was instant and brutal, outside it had been a bright warm, late summers day, a few clouds dotted the sky, it was comfortable, yet inside Malendri, the sun was blotted out almost completely by the thick spines of the trees which served as leaves, giving the forest a twilight ambience although without the romantic and calm assumed conditions of a twilight setting. The air was dank, it smelt of old foliage and rot. The mist road itself was a well trodden path with stones paved into it at random intervals, giving it a worn look, at least the ground was solid making the Carek's clawed feet easy to use, combining with the wheels made for a smooth ride. This was a stark contrast to the marshy ground in which the trees stood, often you could see water holes at the base of jutting tree roots filled with dark murky water from which the rotting smell clearly rose. It was clear how easily Malendri sickness could be caught, Faral had told me a few days previous that the water was not to be drunk, food was never to touch the ground and my paws should be kept as clean as possible, now I realised why.

Duloren called back to myself and Faral, " Have either of you travelled through here before?"

"I have before Duloren, but Zerah has not." Faral replied.

"Then I'll tell him how we are going to go about this journey," I listened intently, "We will not be lighting large fires, and the ones we do light must be smokeless, all food we have is cured or edible raw, no shouting or calling, we must not attract attention to ourselves, We sleep in shifts and keep guard in pairs, the males that is. Is that all clear friends?"

"Aye Duloren." I said and Faral agreed.

"Good then this will be a Lynx free journey if all goes accordingly."

I had forgotten about Malendri's unfortunately not elusive inhabitants, I hoped we would not encounter any and I feared that such a meeting would be violent. As we progressed on our journey the conditions got a little darker, night was obviously coming, the only states inside the forest was Darkness or twilight. The forest was silent, apart from the sounds of the occasional bird. I remember thinking that quiet was a good thing, we would be able to hear anything coming. A thought which is one thing only. Naive.

Thanks for reading this chapter!

Feel free to message or comment with any feedback, I can only improve with it!

I try and post a chapter every week or so.

Thanks again, Faral ^.^