FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Emily maintained a tight clutch on the letter as she pounded her fist on the front entrance. Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump! It had weighed on her mind ever since she first read it. This wasn't like anything she'd seen before, not during her few years of being an adventurer. Quests came every which way and she took them as she pleased, but this was just downright strange.

Come to The Rarest Wares at Noon, Sunday

I require your service.

That was all the letter said. No return address other than the mention of The Rarest Wares, a shop she'd never even heard of before. It turned out to be just a few blocks from her home, but if that was the case then why didn't the sender just come to her like everyone else did? Something smelled fishy, but Emily wasn't about to let a nice payday slip past her. Now here she was standing in front of the strange shop, waiting for someone to unlock the door for her. It's in the middle of the day. Aren't they open?

She swept her blonde bangs off her eyes. The rest of her hair fell in a spectacularly thick cascade down to her waist. A pair of astute fox ears sprouted from her scalp, listening past the door for any sort of sound or stir. While leaning closer her rosy pink eyes darted across the street to see if anyone was looking at her. She must've looked kooky banging on a shop's front door in the middle of the day. She certainly felt that way. This better not be a dead end or some kind of joke.

Clunk!

The sound of the door's tumbler unlocking made Emily jump. A voice called from deep inside, so muffled that she wouldn't have heard it if she wasn't listening so closely. “Please, come in."

Emily did so reluctantly, first opening the big, heavy door and then finding herself in the lobby of a rather queer feeling shop. There were no shelves or display cases, rather just a brief sitting area which ended abruptly against the opposite wall. There was an open window behind which sat the proprietor, an older wolf fellow with a grizzled muzzle, wiry whiskers, and petite half moon glasses which sat in front of cloudy gray eyes. He sat perpendicular to the wall, resting one arm on the windowsill with his head turned towards Emily. “Welcome," he crooned with a smile. “If you would, please close the door behind you." Emily obeyed, a quizzical look on her face. This wasn't who she had envisioned after such a mysterious note. “As you may have noticed, I've closed for today. You're the only person I'm expecting. I'm glad you came."

“Uh, thanks." Emily approached the counter and noticed what lay beyond the owner. Several enormous shelves ran down the length of an enormous space, each one stacked with various objects of varying appearance and quality. She recognized some of them from the books she'd read and descriptions she'd heard. Many of them were rare artifacts she had yet to encounter on her adventures. The place lives up to the name. She held up her paw, showing him the balled up paper. “I got your letter. You know, you could've just showed up at my place. We could've discussed business there."

“Ah, I could've, but I'd much prefer the privacy of my own shop where I know there aren't any prying eyes or ears. It's an important job I've got for you. I only want someone I can trust handling it."

“Well, alright." Emily stood proudly and held her chest out. “You came to the right gal. I'm Emily, adventurer extraordinaire, at your service."

The man smiled. “So I've heard. I'm Enoch, dealer in rare artifacts. It's nice to meet you, Emily."

“Likewise, now tell me, Enoch, what adventure do you have planned for me?"

“Well, put it simply, I've been stolen from recently." Enoch reached behind the wall for something. He produced a folded piece of paper that he slid towards Emily. “Something very precious to me. I need it back, urgently."

Emily grew serious. She took the paper and unfolded it to see that it had been torn out of a book. There was an illustration of some kind of religious idol. It was a lioness atop a pedestal, only she wasn't any normal lion. Her body stood on four legs like a wild animal, but the torso of a regular person rose from the shoulders. She sat like a sphinx with her two forelegs stretched in front of her while the arms were crossed in front of her chest. Beneath it was a lengthy description of its origins and religious significance. She studied it closely, chiseling every detail into her mind. “What is it?" she asked.

“An idol from the altar here in my home. Thugs broke in, vandalized it and stole the idol. Without it I cannot worship properly, not as is decreed." A bitter look befell his expression, one wrought with anxiety and vitriol towards those thieves.

Emily felt for him. “Then I know why you need it back so badly. Do you have any idea who these guys are that stole from you? If I find out who they are I might be able to track it down." She wanted to help, but she wasn't a detective. A master adventurer could sneak into or even brute force their way through the toughest to crack places, but if Emily didn't know where it was, then there was no point.

“Actually, I have a fairly good idea who it might have been."

That was convenient. “Who?"

“A loan shark whom I borrowed money from when I was in a tight spot not long ago. A foolish choice on my part, but I was in dire straits. This act of burglary and intimidation reeks of his enforcers."

Emily could hear the guilt in his voice, the shame of having fallen victim to somebody who preyed on the unfortunate. She adopted a cheery tone to let him know there was no judgement. “A loan shark, eh? Nothing I haven't dealt with before. Bunch of slimy, two-bit criminals. Tell me where the guy's holed up and I can get you your idol back no sweat."

Enoch smiled. “Thank you. He goes by Trennic. He's an elderly tortoise fellow with a few goons in his employ. He lives at the root of one of the hills out of town." Enoch drew another paper from underneath the window. It was a map this time, one that traced a path out of town into a boldly marked X where Trennic was. Emily could tell he wanted this guy out of his life. Enoch tapped the X. “He'll have it tucked away in some cave here. I pray he hasn't sold it or plans to, but I don't think he will. He's the type of scum who likes to keep trophies from the people whom he's exploited."

Emily slid the map closer to herself and scanned it. The journey from there to the foothills was only a two day's march. If I was some conniving loan shark dishing out debt and trying to hide, that's where I'd be. A good place to hide, but not for housing a big camp, especially if it was in a cave like Enoch described. “Alright, I can work with this," she said with a proud nod. Though I'll need help. I bet Ty's up for an adventure. “I'll find this guy and get your idol back, no problem."

Enoch clapped his paws together and shook them gratefully. “Thank you. It would mean the world to me. How much do I owe you for this?"

“For a journey like this? 40 gold, but you don't owe me anything unless it's a success, which I'm very confident it will." Emily left out how a great deal of her income came not from the purchase of her service but the acquisition of loot along the way. If it was a loan shark she was dealing with, odds were there was a healthy stash waiting for her at the end.

Enoch nodded. “Perfect. It will be waiting for you when you come back."

Emily shot him a grin. “Good to hear. I'll get your idol back in no time." Then she turned to leave, but was quickly stopped.

“Ah, wait! Just… one more thing." Enoch cleared his throat. “About the idol. When you find it, please be careful handling it."

“Is it fragile?" Emily asked.

“No, not quite. It…" He pursed his lips and thought about it. “It's… difficult to explain. I would recommend never touching it with your bare paws. Hold it with a cloth and immediately stuff it in your bag where you can't touch it."

That got her curious. “OK… Why's that? Worried I'll tarnish the metal?"

Enoch's paws fretted in front of his chest, the grayed fur whispering against his paw pads with an ominous timbre. “No, er… Yes! That's what I'm worried about." Emily heard something shuffling behind the wall at the same time Enoch scooted closer towards the counter. She wondered if he was kicking something against the wall so she wouldn't see it.

“Well, alright. I'll be extra careful." She gave him a wave goodbye and headed towards the door. “Next time you see me, I'll have your idol."

Enoch waved as she went. “I can't wait." When she was gone he sighed and muttered to himself. “I just hope it doesn't become your idol too."

Emily dashed her way home and burst through the front door. It scared the hell out of her brother Ty who sat playing solitaire in the second floor loft. He jolted hard in his chair and sent a bunch of cards flying over the railing. His sharp green eyes bugged out of his head as he reached to save as many as he could, only to watch as one tumbled down to the first floor in front of where he saw his sister standing proudly and beaming up at him. Play it cool was the name of the game as he cleared his throat and moved the dark gray bangs out from in front of his eyes. “Give me a heart attack, why don't you? Is everything alright?"

Emily shut the door behind her and marched straight for her armoire. It was a great big thing standing against the opposite wall, out in the open for ready use. “Oh, I'm doing just fine, fine indeed."

Ty watched as she disappeared beneath the loft with a recognizable gusto behind her cadence. “Did you get a new quest?"

He didn't see her smirk. “Maybe." Emily flew the doors open on the armoire. Inside were the quintessential gear for an adventure. A plated leather breastplate hung stoically before here amidst the various tools of the trade. A long gladius sat docile in its sheath, ready to clash with steel like it had done so many times already. A quiver of arrows hung off a nail with the unstrung bow resting just beside it. The rucksack sitting on the armoire floor was heavy with tools for making camp and navigating trails. None of them had seen the light of day since Emily's last adventure, the sudden spring of the doors forcing a gleeful dilation and sway within their arrangements.

Ty heard the armoire opening. His long, gray fox tail wagged. “Awesome! What is it? Do you need help?"

Emily was sliding her arms through the sleeves of her tunic. “I'll tell you after you get your gear on. We've got a hike in front of us that I wanna get started."

Ty did a double fist pump. “Yes!" He zoomed from the loft balcony and made for his own gear which he kept in a chest at the foot of his bed. The lid was launched open and in just a few moments he was packed up and ready to go. Short of being armed like Emily, he kept a utility knife tucked in his belt. His knapsack rattled loudly on his back as he ran to the ladder and slid down to the floor, landing with a heavy thump on both feet. Emily was just finishing up putting her stuff on. “So? What's the skinny?"

She walked past him without a word. Her open paw landed on his chest. When it came off he saw the page with the idol illustration which he began to read. “Some guy who sells artifacts down the street wants us to get that back for him. A loan shark he owes money to sent some guys to steal it. We're gonna steal it back." She grabbed the front door knob and looked back to see Ty still standing in place, taking in every minute detail the page had to offer. “How's that sound?" she asked.

Ty turned around and walked towards her, his attention still firmly on the paper. “Cool, it sounds cool. It's just…" A puzzled look twisted his face as he scratched his head. “I swear I've seen this before or read about it somewhere."

Emily raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah? What do you know about it?"

Ty ran a paw over his scalp. “Nothing, it just rings a bell."

“Well, if something jogs your memory, let me know. Until then, let's hit the road."

Ty folded the page up and tucked it into his tunic pocket. “Yeah, let's do it!"

***

Brother and sister made their way out of town and into the western fields where brick and cobblestone quickly faded into tree and dirt. The last they saw of civilization was a windmill on its gentle roll, gears tearing at man's labor to provide, feed, sow, and labor again. The road turned rocky when they couldn't see it anymore, and what semblance of domain withered. Emily and Ty hiked into the foothills where the ground swelled and yonder peaks were close enough to lose their atmospheric blue. Emily kept a paw on her gear as it rattled at her waist and back. Ty held onto the map, watching Enoch's line trail past the ridges and depressions they passed.

The sun set over the mountains and cast a long shadow. The siblings set up camp with a crackling fire at its middle. Emily sat on her sleeping bag with a paw full of jerky that she snacked on. Ty was opposite of the flames, her view of him eclipsed by the jittering, snapping peaks. He was on his back, holding the idol illustration up on his chest while he used his forearm as a pillow. Emily had waited for him to say something, to have a sudden bloom of memory and tell her where he had seen the idol before.

“Remember anything yet?" she asked finally, her mouth full of tough, salty jerky.

Ty shook his head. “No, I don't think I will. I've been reading this page, though."

“Oh yeah? And what does it say?"

He looked at her. “You haven't read it?"

“A glance," she said with a shrug.

“Well, the text carries over from the page before it-" He flipped the paper. “-and the next page is about something else, so there's not a lot going on here, but…" He flipped the paper over and resumed reading. He went quiet. “It says some stuff I don't like. Maybe not bad stuff, but stuff that rings some alarms. This Enoch guy, he didn't tell you anything else about it?"

“Not really, just that it's for prayer. Didn't say what he worshipped. Wait… He did say one thing. He told me not to touch it with my bare paws. Pick it up with a cloth or something and put it straight into a bag. Said it might tarnish it, or something like that." Emily gulped down the jerky, leaving her inner mouth feeling empty and raw. “Why? What does it say?"

Ty looked concerned. “Well, it talks about the religion, I think. It starts off like '-is not taken into consideration. Converts of all species are accepted but forbidden to leave. If a follower does not have an idol in their home or a church to report to they are expected to make their own. Only those blessed by a priest will create converts on contact.'" Ty looked back at Emily. “That's where it ends."

“So… if we touch this thing it makes us a follower of the religion? How does that work?"

Ty shrugged. “I don't know. Mind control?"

Emily saw herself in a trance brought on by a hypnotic purple hue beamed from the lioness's eyes. She shook her head. “Sounds crazy. If it does something like that, Enoch would've told me."

“Are you sure? I've never met this guy or seen him, and it's not a big town we live in. Who knows if we can trust him? There's definitely more to this thing than he's putting on."

Emily just shrugged. “If there is, then we'll be careful. I got a feeling there's a big stash waiting for us at this guy's hideout. I think the risk of some magic idol is worth it." She laid down on her sleep roll and pulled a blanket over herself. “In the meantime, I'm going to bed. Big day tomorrow. G'night, Ty."

Ty followed suit, though the page's text still echoed through his mind. “Yeah, goodnight Emily."

***

In the morning they kicked apart the firepit and packed everything to resume their journey. If Enoch's map was right, they would come upon Trennic's hideout late that night. Emily's plan was as always when it came to sneaking into places: scout the place out, find an opening, then get in and get out. The rest of the trek there was spent mostly in silence. With the increasingly uneven terrain came the threat of bumping into one of Trennic's men. This was his territory now. No one else would come to help them.

Night fell. It was too dark to read the map, leaving them to navigate by memory alone. They were too close to stop now. Emily could all but smell the hideout on the wind with all its curmudgeonly thugs guarding it and all its treasures. The idol's image glowed more brightly in her mind's eye than the hilly landscape in front of her, ensuring a dogged forward progress no matter how badly her feet paws hurt or how heavy her pack was starting to feel. I'll get you your idol, Enoch. Just you w-

A sound brought her to a stop. Her fox ears perked on her head, aiming straight ahead. Ty halted a few feet behind her. “What?" he hissed.

Emily stayed quiet. Murmuring voices, the clink of silverware. She sniffed at the air. Smoke. Burning wood. A boiling pot of stew. “Close," was all she said before falling into a crouch and hurrying forward towards the nose of the ridge they were climbing. Ty's stomach turned as he hurried to catch up while keeping his profile even lower than hers.

A knob grew from the ridge's face. Big and round, it overlooked a steep dropoff which fed into a small valley between the two ridges. The sounds and smell of camp drew Emily onto it. She weaved through the trees and small boulders towards the knob's edge, and there she saw it. In a tiny clearing where there were few trees a couple hundred feet below was the flickering glow of a campfire surrounded by three canvassed chuck wagons. Against midnight black dappled with stars she saw the column of smoke rising. Shapes moved about the camp, casting colossal shadows which stretched, wavered, and then settled.

“Bingo," she said. She slid her pack off her back and reached inside for her binoculars.

Ty knelt beside her. “Those our guys?"

“They gotta be." She peered through the binoculars and adjusted the focus. The camp sharpened into view. First she saw one reptilian fellow, a tall and skinny lizard, resting on his side with his back to her. His company was a squat alligator who sat right next to the fire, jabbing at it with a stick. There were tables, crates, and three wagons full of supplies around them, but no signs of anyone else. Maybe they're out somewhere extorting more people, Emily thought. Then she scanned above them and saw the face of a tall rock wall. Gaping the granite-checkered facade was the mouth of a cave. A smile curled her lips just beneath the binoculars. “Oh yeah. They're our guys alright."

“Oh, thank goodness," huffed Ty. “What's it looking like security wise?"

Emily lowered her binoculars. “Well, two guys out front and a big cave behind them. Looks like a big camp for just two fellows, so there's gotta be more inside. Plus, I doubt that cave has any other entrance, so it's straight through the front with us."

Ty's ears drooped. “That doesn't sound good. So what do we do now?"

“Well, we either wait and see if they fall asleep, which it looks like they might, or we make a distraction and sneak in."

“OK… What do you suggest? How would we distract them?"

Emily's first thought was to send either Ty or herself to approach the two guards and make a scene while the second snuck in. That, or start a big fire and sneak in while they try to douse it. The first is too risky because we'll be separated, and there's no guarantee we can even start a fire big enough. Emily scratched her nose. “I guess we'll wait. These guys look bored and tired. They've got to pass out some time and give us an opening."

“Well, alright." Ty shrugged off his pack, sat it down, then laid back against it. “Tell me when it's my turn to watch."

Emily was already looking back through her binoculars. “You got it."

Ty snoozed away while Emily stayed focused on the camp in front of them. She caught faint sounds of the two guards' conversation, but nothing concrete. They sure look tired. I doubt they get much company out here. They might not even be guards. She stared at them through the binoculars, occasionally shifting her position once her eyes or some other part of her started to ache. Ty was ignored so she wouldn't start feeling sleepy herself. Either way, she wasn't going to let him sleep for too long.

Then something happened. The lizard fellow who was laying down put his cup aside and did a big stretch before rolling onto his back with his hands folded behind his head. Emily could see that his eyes were closed. The conversation between him and the gator had gone quiet. The gator was busy poking a stick into the fire, seemingly unbothered by his friend dozing off. Emily clutched her binoculars tighter. Come oooooon. You too, buddy. You're feeling tired, aren't you? Eyes getting heavy? Sure enough, his head started to nod forward. It snapped back up, then nodded, snapped up, then nodded one last time before staying down for good. Just a moment later Emily heard snoring.

It was time to go. She stashed her binoculars into her pack and gave Ty's shoulder a heavy shove. “Wake up. It's time."

Ty was up and alert in an instant, having grown used to Emily's abrupt alarms. “Already?" he said while twisting his head to look back at the campfire.

“Yeah, these guys are slackers." She drew her bow from the pack and jabbed one end into the dirt. With a heavy pull it was bent into a curve so that she could fit the string onto the knock. Her sword swayed next to her thigh when she put the bow over her shoulder. “You ready?"

“Yeah! Yeah, I'm ready." Ty scurried up to his feet.

Emily put a finger over her lips. She spoke with the tiniest whisper. “Shh… Good, now let's go."

Brother and sister made a careful and quick jaunt off the knob and down the steep slope. Their nimble fox feet made barely a whisper along the dirt, their plush paw pads absorbing every bit of sound and weight from their flight. At level ground they crouched low and made a steady approach straight for the cave's mouth. An asymptotic speed brought them to a sluggish crawl by the time the gator's snoring became loud. Emily made a curt knife gesture with her paw to move left, and Ty followed. They would sneak around the camp, reach the cliff wall, then hug it all the way into the cave.

Stalking well outside the fire's glow they made it to the cliff wall. Both were at a low stoop, their weapons kept close to their belts. Emily kept an eye on the snoozing gator and his lizard buddy just beyond. Every step was crucial. One kicked rock or clumsy stumble and it would be their heads. Slow and steady. Everyone's asleep. She made it to the cave entrance. After one last hard look at the two guards to assure that they were sleeping, Emily slinked her way into the cave. Ty was right behind her.

It was dark. Very, very dark. The absolute black of the inner cave yawned before them not far away from the campfire. Not even Emily or Ty's nocturnal fox eyes could parse the darkness. They were drawn to the cave's walls, forced to hug it with their paws and feel their way through step by careful step. Emily halted upon knocking her paw into something that clung to the wall. She groped around it and felt the wooden shaft of a torch; its charred head was still warm from its last ignition. She pulled it from its mount and drew a flint from her pocket. She struck it against the cave wall, flashing herself with the resulting sparks.

Chk. Chk. Chk. Chk-Foom! A lazy flame blossomed from the torch and illuminated that portion of the cave. There was Ty opposite of her, hugging the wall for dear life. Beyond was no more featureless granite, but the furniture and decorations of Trennic's abode. A fancy rug sat on the smooth rock floor only a few feet from where they stood. Flanking it along the way were tall shelves laden with various artifacts Trennic had no doubt pilfered from clients who couldn't pay their debts. More torches hung on the wall. Ty grabbed the one closest to him and touched it to Emily's flame. They could see now, but they could also be seen. Emily nodded her head towards the darkness ahead. Let's go.

Past the oddly ornate rug and more of Trennic's stolen treasures they trudged. A close eye was kept on each shelf for the idol, but it hadn't shown itself yet. Ty held an empty leather sack open in the same paw that held the torch. He made sure to take whatever would fit inside, be it gold, silver, or just plain expensive looking. Emily had a similar sack tied to her belt. She would save it for the idol, though everything which glittered around her was mighty tempting.

They came upon a turnaround room. Brother and sister came to an abrupt halt at the sight of half a dozen men all bundled up in their sleeping rolls and atop cots. All of them were reptiles, their bald, leathery heads tucked into their collars for warmth. Quite suddenly the snap and crackle of the torches was deafening. At any moment there would be a yawn, then a confused grunt, then a loud shout as every man would rise to fight off the intruders.

All remained still. Emily took a deep breath. If any of them hears us, hopefully they'll think it's one of their buddies. She looked over and saw Ty gripping his torch for dear life, looking like the slightest sound would send him jumping through the cave ceiling. She got his attention with a small wave, then pointed at the ground. Stay here. She pointed at her eyes with both fingers, then at the men sleeping. Watch them. Lastly, her finger stabbed into her chest and then at the yonder black. I'll go on ahead.

Ty nodded. Emily moved on ahead, her feet paws falling like snow between each bedroll and their occupants. Her eyes were on her feet the whole time, watching each pair of eyes in case one of them would open. A lizard tongue flicked from one of their mouths. Needles swept across Emily's skin, bristling her fur. She noticed one fellow who was bundled on the floor and sleeping on his side with multiple blankets covering him. He took up a great portion of the floor with some unseeable mass rising beneath as if sharing the cover with him. Emily didn't know what it was, but there wasn't any time to investigate. There was no way the smell of a vixen had ever graced this cave. She hurried the pace, praying that the end to the turnaround would come soon.

It did so abruptly in the form of a wooden door that was a part of a wall fashioned in the middle of the cave's structure. It jarred Emily who came to a stop and laid an ear against the door's wooden boards. Someone was snoring inside. With still no sign of the idol so far, she had no choice. One paw gripped the cast iron pull ring and pulled.

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrr…

Emily and Ty cringed hard at the sound. She stopped the moment it was open enough for her to sneak inside, then had herself a peek. It was a small grotto featuring an enormous mahogany desk opposite from her. On the walls flanking it were more shelves, these ones even more loaded with prizes torn from desperate people. At the center of it all, snoozing peacefully in his rocking chair, was Trennic the loan shark. He was a stout, old tortoise whose scrawny head and neck barely filled the massive shell that harbored him. His parched, wrinkly face hung over the bottom carapace. A crooked walking stick lay on the ground next to the chair's gently rocking foot. He would've looked dead if not for the breath which rattled in and out of his slackened mouth.

Emily gulped, then slowly slithered her way in. She was even more careful here in the deepest part of the cave where, should the ancient tortoise wake up and call upon his lackeys, she would be cornered easily and cut off from Ty. In and out. Find the idol, then scram. In and out. In and out. Emily tip-toed her way to the nearest collection of rare items. The idol's description echoed in her mind. Bronze statue of a lioness on a pedestal. Bronze statue of a lioness on a pedestal. She gripped the empty sack in her paw with fist rattling energy. Please be in here somewhere. Please.

There it was. It emerged from the darkness on the bottom portion of the second shelf. It was exactly like she'd seen in the illustration, with that four legged lioness lying like a sphinx, her anthropomorphic torso rising from the shoulders proudly with her arms folded in front of her chest. Its tarnished bronze surface glimmered dully in the torchlight. Emily's heart skipped a beat. She squatted next to it for a better look, just to make sure that it was the real deal. It certainly was, and a celebratory grin split her features.

But she wasn't out of the woods- or the cave, rather -yet. She opened the sack and carefully lowered it over the idol, careful not to touch it like Enoch had warned. Once it was all covered she held it tight through the fabric and lifted it from the shelf. It was moderately heavy, enough to get a grunt of effort out of her. The moment it was off the shelf she flipped it upside down so that it would fall to the bottom of the sack. Then she made haste towards the door and slid her way out with Trennic still snoozing away, none the wiser.

Ty saw his sister slide out from behind the door, beaming from ear to ear. She hoisted the idol-stretched sack over her head to which Ty clenched his fist in celebration. Now all they had to do was sneak back out of there and return to their packs. Emily snuck her way back across the minefield of sleeping cronies. She could already see the look on Enoch's face when she brought his precious lioness back to him.

“Hey."

That single syllable went ripped through the cave like an explosion. It came from the darkness behind Ty whose expression fell into wide-eyed dread. He turned around and saw the scarred visage of the gator and lizard guards from out front scowling at him with every ounce of malice possible. “And what might you be doing in here?"

It was reveille for his sleeping comrades, their dozen light-refracting eyes coming to life like marbles floated up from hell. Emily was in the middle of them all with her torch burning like a giant hot sun. The men rousing at her feet winced at the light, blinked, then saw her frozen image come into focus. The cave had become a hornet's nest.

The gator lunged for Ty. Emily's instinct was to hurl the torch as hard as she could at him. It swung through the air like an axe and landed square on the gator's chest, exploding into a thousand red hot embers which absorbed the fire's light. He fell away with a shout and slapped at where the fire had struck him. His partner was on the move towards Ty, but so was Emily. She darted out of the dark-drenched turnaround room for her brother. “TY!" she shouted. “Catch!"

Ty turned his head in time to see the sack carrying the idol flying through the air towards him. He had barely enough time to react before he turned his body and caught it with his chest. “Oof!" The torch was knocked clear of his paw, and it too met the ground with its flames doused by the impact.

Nobody could see anything. There were shouts, kicks, screams, curses. Emily sprinted through it all, bumping against a bunch of scaly bodies which fought and clawed to stop her. She cleared them all, paw on the grip of her sword. It came out with a shing! But before she could cut it into some poor soul she tackled her shoulder into the lizard who had gone for Ty. It rattled her bones hard. With the ringing in her ears was the heavy “Oof!" of her target toppling over backwards and hitting the floor.

Emily shouted, “Ty!"

He shouted back. “Yeah!"

“RUN!"

That's what they did, brother and sister sprinting through the blindness with nothing but the smooth floor at their feet to guide them. Behind was the chaos of an entire gang coming to kill them, their frustrations and confusions keeping them confined to the turnaround. The moonlit outdoors peeled into view, a soft, gleaming gift to the eyes. Emily ran faster. Ty panted right behind her, the idol firm in his grip. They met the gallant hilltop winds and crashed through camp with the croaking roar of one dissatisfied tortoise passing them.

“GET THEEEEEEEEEEEM!"

Trennic's thugs got their bearings at last and poured into the breech leading outside. Those capable filed out one by one, some in the nude and without weapons. The camp was empty. The foxes were gone. With the weight of his failure to keep watch hanging over his head, the gator barked the order to fan out.

The two adventurers were scrambling up the hill up towards the knob where they had left their packs. Weaving trees, rocks, and roots, they went as fast as they could. Emily was further ahead, unburdened by the idol's weight. Ty panted with burning lungs. His arms were sore holding the idol so closely to his chest. At the base of the knob Emily was able to scramble up its misshapen slope and reach the summit. Breathing hard, she stood at the edge and saw Ty struggling with the idol.

She waved towards herself. “Throw it here!" she hissed.

Ty came to a halt at the knob's base, fell into a squat, then hurled the idol straight up at her. “Hup!"

It was when the precious artifact was flying straight up towards her face that Emily realized that the sack she'd put it in was gone. She flinched from it like an arrow whizzing past and nearly let it plummet back down. It reached an apex in the air. When it began to fall instinct took over and she caught it with both paws falling around the lioness's upper torso. The cold bronze bit into her paw pads while the leonid goddess stared back at her morosely.

Ty clawed his way to the top of the knob. Emily put the idol down and helped him up. He gave a big exhale. “Whoo! That was close."

She hushed him. “Shhhh. We're not out of the woods yet." Voices shouted in the distance. She didn't have to focus to recognize Trennic's raspy voice screaming above the rest. “Come on. Grab your stuff." While coming over to grab her pack she spotted the idol sitting in place where she had left it, looking lonely in the moonlight. “Why is it out of the sack?" Emily demanded.

“It slid out when you threw it to me! You almost knocked me over."

“Crap." With little other choice, she bent over to pick it up by the pedestal. “Turn around," she told Ty. The idol was dropped into his pack, clattering against everything else he kept in there. When she let go of it there lingered an icy coolness in her pawpads like she had held a block of ice. She tried shaking it off, but it would not wane. Electricity rippled up her arms and made her fur stand on ends. “I hope we didn't ruin it."

“Yeah, me neither. Can we go? I think they're getting close."

She had managed to forget about the danger they were in. “Yeah! Yeah, come on."

The pair continued a hurried flight from the hills. The distant shouts of their pursuers faded until they became nothing, but that did not mean they weren't there. Scent carried, and all it took was one night for Trennic and his men to catch up to them. They did not stop, not for a while, not until the sun rose and bloomed a cheery crimson in the east.

Out of the foothills they returned to the fields out of town. Woefully sore and utterly exhausted, Emily came to a stop at the edge of the treeline where they could see the windmill from before spinning. She slumped back into a tree and slid down to her bum. “Alright… Alright… Let's take a break. I think we lost them."

The words hadn't finished echoing from her mouth before Ty all but plummeted to the ground. “Oh thank God." He rubbed his battered soles. “That could've gone smoother."

Emily shrugged off her pack and began taking her breastplate off. She set aside her bow and arrows. She never got the chance to use them, but that was a good thing. “Yeah, and it could've gone worse too. You still have the idol?"

“Of course. It's been weighing on me like a friggin' anvil this whole time." He shrugged off his pack and brought it in front of him. He reached inside and pulled the idol out by its pedestal. Emily was about to warn him not to touch it before giving up. They'd already touched it plenty, and yet there was no visible damage to it anywhere. So what was Enoch so worked up about? “Let's just get this back to Enoch and get our pay."

“We will, we will." Emily opened and closed her fists. Looking back into the lioness's steely gaze brought back the cold sensation from when she had held onto it. A furious chill swept through her and threw her fur into a great big fuzz. A pit grew in her stomach. What's the deal with this thing?

Ty was acting strange too. He was rubbing his arms as if it was cold, even though he was doused in sweat. “I feel weird," he huffed.

Emily would've asked what was wrong if she wasn't feeling it too. The chill escalated into a vibrating shiver. She pulled her legs into herself. “Yeah, I feel it too." It occurred to her how deeply she was staring at the lioness and her lissome figure. How starkly chiseled her upper musculature was, the stoicism of her gaze, the raw power which resided in her dormant bottom half. The shivering intensified. Something queer was building inside of Emily, ready to come spilling out. “Ty, I think we should-"

“Ahh!" His shout interrupted her. Emily's gaze was torn from the idol to her brother. His paws were on his chest. A look of sheer panic contorted his features as he groped at his pecs. “Something's happening! Something's happening to me!"

“What!?" cried Emily. “What is-?" The demand died on her throat with an involuntary groan that heaved out of her. She doubled over where she sat, paws going to her tummy where it felt like her guts were being stretched vertically. “Ohhhhh!" The great pull and tear at her stomach made her claw at her shirt. It ripped apart on her claws, revealing the soft, white underbelly of her tummy and the cloth that was wrapped across her chest. Nothing she saw looked out of the ordinary, but the sensations inside continued to intensify, stacking and stacking up the height of her abdomen until it was piled up to the bottom of her thorax.

Then she saw it, the abnormal height of her snowy stomach. She wouldn't have noticed if she wasn't looking for anything wrong in particular, but with all that went on inside she couldn't miss it. Her trunk was growing taller, building the gap between her hips and her chest. The upper back was scraped against the tree bark while her bum was dragged further away across the ground. In short, she was growing. “What is this? WHAT'S GOING ON?"

“Ahhh! Emily!" The same was happening to Ty whose lengthening torso stretched his groin into the idol and began sliding it forward, away from him. His white underbelly was visible between his shirt and trunks as the two grew apart. That's not all Emily could see. Swollen against the fabric of his shirt right where he'd been grabbing himself were a pair of soft orbs, their hardened nipples already poked into the fabric. The shaggy mop of dark gray hair on his head grew longer.

Emily could not witness her brother's transformation before her own morphing body demanded all of her attention again. Her trunk had grown into a tarmac of stomach with the attached hips and legs looking a mile away from her. A great weight fell upon the bones in her legs like it was all falling into itself. Stretching, gritting discomfort blew through her lower portion and made her grimace. “Ahhhh!" The ankle joints were pulled upwards by the sudden lengthening of her feet paws. The thighs truncated until the knees were at a squat bend not far below her hips. They cracked and popped audibly, each bone, ligament, and tendon forcing themselves into place under some mysteriously ordained authority.

Ty suffered the same across from her, albeit with the added flux of hormones and feelings of the added woman parts. In the great reach between his warping thighs he felt his manhood shrink into a bead of euphoric tingles similar to what glowed in his inflated chest. Between his grunts and curses were soft gasps and huffs from having his pleasure bits morphed into something blissful.

Emily hadn't the luxury, and with every creaking, cracking bone she could feel its shift into place. More were born from nothing, added vertebrae, a new column of ribs to create a cage. She saw as well as felt them sporing out from her core and bubbling to the surface to form up against the skin like parasites alive and feeding. Tickling around their brunt formation was the tickle of muscle following the path of nerve and sinew to fill the gaps and add contour to her bizarrely stretched frame.

Then came two dense knobs of flesh from her midriff in a cordycepscaean bloom of bone and appendage. “Ahhhhhhh!" She watched through scrunched eyes while the two new limbs reached from her skin, first as naked, ill-developed extremities with only soft nubs to make for toes. Slowly the muscle built, and she saw those sharp, wiry muscles spring into the skin before becoming enveloped in orange fox fur up to the paw beans. Claws sprouted from the toes, and Emily was blessed with a new pair of legs.

The same had sprung from Ty, as well as a healthy pair of round tits which hung in his shirt like a pair of overburdened sandbags. Their growth and the disappearance of his manhood were further pronounced by the feminine squeal of his voice, now an octave higher in the absence of an Adam's apple. He'd rolled over onto his side, those four pedals clawing away at the dirt and kicking up a storm. His trunks had been kicked off his legs, sent flying to dirt far away. His upper half, what had remained the same if not for his breasts, bent itself into a right angle with his lower half, now a fully formed, proud and stocky fox body like what skulked the forest and poached eggs. “No! No, no, nooooooo!" squealed Ty. He clapped a paw over his mouth at the sound of his voice. It didn't belong to a man anymore, but a beautiful, buxom vixen. She was now a woman. “Emily! Emily!"

“Ty! Are you OK?" Emily called.

Ty looked down at herself, a view that was obstructed by the swell of her bosom. Beneath all that were a pair of strong forelegs looking much closer than what they had been before all this started. Looking over the shoulder she saw the length of her feral half, all that silver gray fur gleaming with a newborn sheen. “Uhhh… No? Yes? God… I… I'm not hurt, just… I have boobs…" Out of everything that's what captivated her the most. She didn't know whether to be amazed or humiliated. It was a sharp mix of both.

Emily thought there was a bigger issue at hand. “Yeah, I saw that." She took stock of herself as well. Forelegs, hindlegs, tail, hindquarters. It all pulsed with sensations and energy. When she wagged her tail it responded, thumping against the dry dirt. Moving her legs was something else. Used to only one pair of legs, her mind had difficulty separating fore and aft. What used to be regular legs were now way behind her, and in their place was what were technically arms. A mild panic squabbled at her legs, making them claw at the air blindly. “OK, let's just calm down." She was talking to herself as much as she was to Ty.

“I'm trying, I'm trying," said Ty who was going through a similar crisis of unfamiliarity.

“Let's just… try and figure this out." Some calm breathing got Emily's legs to go still. Her heart raced and the fringe of a panic buzzed her mind, but years of adventuring had prepared her for all kinds of crazy situations, if not something this crazy. First I should probably get my feet underneath me. On her left side, she pushed with her arm and tried to simulate a rolling motion as if she were changing position in bed. It surprised her when her quadruped half bent slightly and rolled onto the stomach, slinging her upper torso along with it until it stood upright. “Whoah!" She waved her arms out to catch her balance, but she wasn't toppling over. Her body stood atop the bottom half as normally as she would sit down. The forelegs were stretched in front of her in the dirt. The hindlegs were folded neatly up against her trunk. Emily stared at her toes, the ones she'd seen stretch from her stomach like some alien spore. They looked like regular feet. The longer she looked at them, the more normal they felt. She tried wiggling her toes. They responded independently of those on her hindlegs. She tried doing the same with them, and they obeyed too. Now it was time to stand. Emily pushed, and all four legs pressed into the dirt to lift her proud vulpine form into the air, her four new legs standing as strong as when they had just been two. Emily looked back at her tail and made it flick. “Whoah," she said softly.

Ty lay mesmerized by her sister's accomplishment. It seemed impossible, like she wasn't even trying. Then she realized that was the trick, thus she rolled over and stood upright, doing the same unnecessary flail of the arms to keep balance. “Ahh…" A timid push of the legs brought her to her fours, and the two siblings had officially adopted their new bodies.

“Well, this is just great," harrumphed Emily. “That son of a bitch Enoch didn't tell me anything about this happening."

“Well, he did warn you not to touch the idol." Speaking of, the accursed relic was still on the ground next to where Ty stood. She picked it up, a task performed by a polite bow of her forelegs, something unpracticed yet executed flawlessly. “Well, now I remember where I'd seen the idol. I read a book on world religions. It had a section on… What was it? Taurism, I think it was called. Yeah, it talked about how four legged people who pray to idols like these ones. I guess that explains what happened."

Emily scoffed. “So now you remember. Enoch didn't say anything about the idol doing all this!" Emily tried walking around. The act came naturally, though she could not shake the queerness of four totally foreign limbs working in unison beneath her, all of them rife with sensations like the weight they supported and the cool morning air bushing through them. She could move fine, great, but how the hell was she supposed to turn up in town looking like this? Then she saw Ty, no longer her brother but a sister, gingerly putting the idol back into her pack. Emily's gut twisted when she saw those fat knockers swing and jiggle inside of Ty's shirt which seemed not to bother the gray fox. “You, uh… Wow. You really do have boobs," Emily said, late to accepting the fact.

“Huh? Oh yeah." Ty gave them both a hearty lift and then let them drop. The luscious tug of gravity and the resulting bounce made her giggle. “They're pretty neat, aren't they?"

Emily raised an eyebrow. “You're taking all this pretty well."

“Am I? I don't know. It all kinda feels natural, I guess." He looked back at his haunches where he felt the absence of a certain organ. “I think I lost my… you know."

“Do you… want me to check?"

Ty cringed. “If you don't mind." She did a 180 to face her rear end at Emily. A bashful lift of the tail revealed her star and a neatly parted slit of woman flesh flanked by two cunt lips.

“Uh, yeah, it's gone," Emily said. “You're totally a girl now."

Ty took the news well. “Huh, well, alright." She turned around with a thoughtful look on her face. “So, if I'm a woman now, does that mean I should change my name? I mean, 'Ty' is pretty masculine, don't you think?"

“Um, I think you're moving way too fast with this."

“T, T, T, something with a T. T- Tammy. Tammy. How does Tammy sound?"

“Fine," said Emily, at the end of her patience. “Tammy is fine. I christen thee Tammy." She turned around to face west towards town. She let out a long sigh. “Going back into town's gonna be awkward. How the hell are we going to explain this?" It didn't help that Emily had torn apart her shirt, leaving only a white cloth wrap to contain her breasts. She would have to cover it up with her breastplate. Her pants and belt both remained, but they were far away behind her around the hips where she could barely reach. She couldn't imagine the looks she and Tammy would get waltzing into town on four legs.

“I mean, what other explanation is there besides we got cursed by some idol?" Tammy asked.

Emily rubbed a paw down her face and sighed. She was exhausted. Somehow the last ten minutes had drained more of her energy than the retreat from Trennic's hideout. She wanted nothing more than to just set up camp and deal with it all in the morning. Perhaps she would wake up with her normal two legs, all of this being just some bad, bad dream. But she knew they couldn't afford to wait too long, not with a vengeful loan shark on their tail. At most they could rest for another hour, then they had to make the rest of the way into town. “Yeah, you're right," she said. A lot of hardships await us from here on out, I can tell that much.

“Yeah. Yeah. Say, can you help me put my pants on?" Emily turned around to see her sister holding her own pants, unable to put them where she needed them. “I, uh, don't wanna walk into town with my pussy hanging out."

For the first time in what felt like forever, Emily laughed. “Yeah, sure."

Emily helped Tammy get decent. Afterwards, sister and sister rested for almost an hour, a time spent mostly gathering the courage to show up in town. Even though their transformation had been traumatic, oddly enough they felt invigorated even after all that running. Their new bodies were imbued with the stamina and strength of a creature forged in the wilds. With each step rang the ability to flit incredible speeds and move with lightning agility. Emily got the idea that perhaps these bodies weren't as much a curse as she thought they were. Tammy had come to the same conclusion, albeit much sooner.

The pair headed off, trotting along the dirt roads and across the open fields where the farmers and millers had all started their day. They stood from their hoes and plows to watch with great shock and curiosity as the two quadrupeds strolled past. Emily felt naked with most of her torso exposed, but the great fox body below the waist did not bring as much shame as she thought it would. She met their odd gazes with an upturned chin and waved at them. Some waved back.

Back in town at noon. Double takes, gaped mouths, loud gasps, and dropped items followed the pair wherever they went. Concerned neighbors asked what the hell happened. Emily would answer “A mishap with a curse. Everything's fine."

“Oh, and I'm Tammy now," Tammy would add. There were a lot more questions waiting for them, but they would have to be answered later. First, there was a shopowner they had to have a conversation with. After stopping home to drop their belongings off and so Emily could replace her shirt, they went straight to The Rarest Wares and barged in without knocking.

Enoch was behind his window exactly where Emily had seen him last. He hardly flinched upon the sudden swing of the door, though his expression turned forlorn at the sight of Emily's body. “Why, hello, Emily. Welcome back. I take it you found the idol…" He didn't seem too thrilled about it.

He looked happier than Emily. “Yeah, what gave it away?" She trotted into the shop, Tammy following behind closely. The idol was cradled in her arms inside a sack.

Enoch gasped. “No! You didn't tell me you were bringing anyone!"

“You didn't ask. Enoch, this is Ty- Er, Tammy. She was my brother until recently. I think your idol had some extra ideas as to what kind of convert she oughtta be."

Tammy gave a polite wave. “Hi. No hard feelings here." She came over and placed the idol on the window sill.

Enoch hurriedly pulled the sack down off it. His eyes sparkled at the reunion and there came a joyous sigh of great, tender relief. “Oh, thank you. Thank you, thank you." Immediately he clasped his paws together and performed a quick prayer, recompense for time lost. “I don't know how to thank you."

“You can start with 40 gold," Emily said sternly. “We can talk about what else you can do for us in a little bit. But first, there's something I wanna know." Emily gave a sharp upwards jut of her head. “Why don't you come out from behind that wall and show us the rest of you?"

Enoch smiled wryly. “I was wondering if you'd figure it out. Sharp girl." The wolf floated upwards a few inches from the window counter by some unseen force. He then floated to Emily's left without the beat of footsteps, as if he were propelled by wheels. The door connecting the two rooms opened, and in walked Enoch on his quadrupedal body. “I'm a Taur, yes," Enoch said, gesturing to his lower half. It was long and built heavily, but grayed with age and having coarse, wiry fur. “Been one for many times longer than I haven't. Hopefully you understand why I had that letter sent instead of visiting you directly."

“You didn't want anyone to know you were like this," Emily said. “It also explains how I've never seen you around town. But why? If you've been a Taur, as you call it, for so long then why are you worried about what people think?"

“Because my people, our people, are not welcome in many places. Here I am tolerated, but I can weather only so many sour glances before I begin to fear my home will be set on fire in the night. It is not merely my form but my religion that many folk abhor. I made a conscious decision to convert and touch the idol and have been a devout follower since. Not many people know about us, and I prefer to keep it that way." He hung his head in shame. “It is why I couldn't tell you why not to handle the idol with bare paws. I'm truly sorry."

Emily let out a frustrated sigh through her nose. “We wouldn't have judged you for being this, you know. I still would've helped no matter what."

“Aye, I should've known that, but fear and paranoia has driven me to keep my cards close to my chest. I suppose I'm no better than the people who place such harsh judgements on me."

“No," Tammy interjected. “You're not like them. You had no way of knowing if Emily was that kind of person. I bet a lot of the experiences you've had with people made it harder to trust people."

Emily would've liked to think she wouldn't have been so judgemental, but she wasn't so sure. She'd never met a Taur before. Who knows what she would've thought. She certainly wouldn't have thought it normal. There were those strange looks Tammy and her got on the way into town to lend credence. She could only imagine how long Enoch had been going through that and how much worse the instances were. “Well, whatever people might think or say, we're in the same boat now, like it or not. Do we have to follow your religion now?"

Enoch shook his head. “No. It is the individual's choice." He let out a sigh and scratched the back of his head. “Also, I'm afraid this boat is one you'll have to sail yourselves."

Emily's frown deepened. “What do you mean?"

“I mean I'm leaving," Enoch said bluntly. “Trennic and his men will know it was I who hired someone to steal the idol back from him. He knows where I live, and his next visit will almost certainly mean a most unpleasant death for me. I have no choice but to leave town. It's not safe here. I've already begun to pack my things."

Emily and Tammy showed their surprise. “Wait, where will you go?" Tammy asked.

Enoch shrugged. “Wherever I can find that's safe and tolerates people like me. I don't know where that is, but if I look hard enough I'll find it. The roads from here to there will be treacherous, but they won't be anything I haven't traveled before."

That didn't sit well with Emily. Her fist clenched, and before she could stop herself she spoke. “No."

Enoch blinked. “I'm sorry?"

“I said no, you shouldn't leave."

Tammy looked at her like she was crazy. “Emily, what-?"

“Because he shouldn't have to!" Emily's blood was starting to boil. She took a deep breath. “His whole life shouldn't be uprooted because some thug came and threatened him. Yeah, he shouldn't have been borrowing from a guy like Trennic, but Trennic is a bully. I don't want him or any of his cronies coming to this town and threatening people. Enoch shouldn't be out all alone to fend for himself." Emily rubbed her shoulder. That and… well, I don't want Tammy and I to be the only Taurs around town. I think there ought to be someone around to help us learn how to live this way."

Enoch wore an uneasy smile.“That's wonderful, but what about Trennic? He'll still be coming back, and with numbers to support him."

Emily scoffed. “Please. His guys didn't seem so tough. We ran circles around them like it was nothing. For guys like those, all it takes is a bloody nose and they'll get the message. And it won't be just me and Tammy. We have friends who'll help protect you just for the sake of you living here. We're not gonna let some urchin like Trennic have his way with one of ours, no sir."

Enoch was struck. “Well, I…" He laughed with glossy eyes ready to spill tears. “I don't know what to say."

Emily smirked. “'Thank you' would be a start. Also, you can cough up that 40 gold."

“Ah, yes." Enoch wiped his eyes. “Of course. Coming right up."

Enoch scurried back through the door to fetch his payment. Tammy strode up beside her sister. “Are you sure about this?"

“No," Emily said flatly. “But I meant what I said. I'm not gonna let Trennic hurt him." She looked at Tammy. “Or you."

A feminine giggle from Tammy helped solidify the fact that she was a woman for Emily. “Please, I'm not so easy to kill."

Tammy looked strong atop her quadrupedal body, like a knight atop his steed. Emily felt the same way when she started to think about it. For a moment she had forgotten that she even had four legs and that less than 6 hours ago her entire being had been thrown into upheaval. It would be a tough adjustment from here on out, but she was going to make it. With Tammy and Enoch at her side, she was certain. “No," she said with a smile. “You're not."

THE END