FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Knelt atop the stone platform where he had fought Mick, Graafen watched as the two slick, black, shiny cocoon finished setting. Their dark chitinous shells glistened under the bright light of the sun. The huge insects like guards, stood in a circle of four about each one had let their thoraxes go and were now just watching as their resin froze. The outer surface of each mound of black goop was taking on a smooth and shiny cast to it; there was no hint of the shapes that were now buried at the heart of each one. At some point during the whole fight and flight of the lizard and the engulfing of the dalmatian the stone platforms had moved together. Sandson and the mouse whose name he had learnt was Keith had joined him and had been watching with a sick fascination as the bugs did their work.

"What... what will happen to them?" Keith asked, looking up at the ferret before glancing back down and watching as two of the large bugs walked over to the red-panda and took him by the arms. They started to march him toward one of the tunnels and after a momentary glance back at the others he let them lead him away, "And what about him?"

The Memory Weaver watched silently until the bugs and red panda were out of sight then turned his piercing amber eyes on each of the remaining contestants. "They will become as they are meant to be, such... strong bodies are wasted with those foul attitudes living inside of them." He laughed in a rather chilling way, his eyes flashing with amusement as he turned to face the three mortals fully. "The spirit of this realm has a better use for such contestants." Leaning forward he smiled wider, showing off a row of glittering white teeth, "As for the panda boy, he lost but he tried his hardest... and so..." he shook his head and smirked, "Whichever one of you wins may find out what his reward is... but for now..." he pointed toward the massive black tower, "The final journey awaits..."

They all jumped as he clapped his hands together and the flagstones of the courtyard leapt up to form a long arching bridge. It passed over a wall, across a dark garden and up a short flight of steps to the roof of a narrow, circular hall that surrounded the base of the black tower. The three remaining contestants followed in silence, glancing at each other and out at the many structures that filled the compound between the black outer walls and the central tower.

"Weaver... er... caretaker... uhm... er..." Sandson started to speak, faltering as the black weasel like creature looked back at him with a raised brow, "What is all of this?" he blurted out in a rush before falling back behind Keith and Graafen.

"It is the citadel of the Dark Knight, each of these buildings, every courtyard, garden and passage holds a game, a puzzle or a reward and punishment. They are all different just as the varied lands beyond the black walls are. This is a realm of games, of challenges and puzzles.... and this..." he walked down a set of steps and stopped just short of the massive portal into the dark tower. "This... is the centre of it all, every floor in this tower holds a game, every floor is a challenge but you three... for the final round..." he stepped aside and pointed toward the door, "You three are going to the top... walk forward, be brave, be smart... be strong.... the Dark Knight... is waiting for you."

As the three hesitated the demonic beast stepped backwards and broke apart as he entered the shadow cast by the tower. His form just melted away into the darkness until just his eyes remained and he spoke in a soft voice, "Do not wait, the Dark Knight does not like to be kept waiting!"

Shivering at the way the shadowy beasts voice faded away Graafen glanced at Keith and Sandson then looked toward the door and took a deep breath. "Well, let's do this then..." with those words he started forward, the monkey and mouse falling into step beside him as they approached the dark portal.

Passing beneath the dark stones that made up the tower the trio blinked as their vision was suddenly plunged into gloom. It was like they had passed through a curtain; the sun was beaming down brilliantly in the courtyard but inside the light did not seem to penetrate the doorway. Glancing around nervously Graafen took in the length of the dimly lit hall that stretched ahead of them. The vaulted ceiling was lost in shadow and the only illumination came from small blue spheres that hung from iron chains and created a series of illuminated patches surrounded by shadow. Standing still and silent at the edge of each circle of light was a pair of the ant-like black-guards. Like statues they lined the dimly illuminated route toward a pair of solid bronze doors that must have stood on the far side of the tower. Glancing back and forth Graafen moved forward cautiously, watching the ants and walking as quickly as he dared. Something about this tower made the fur along the back of his neck rise. There was a dark, brooding, oppressive feel to the air as if something was watching them, judging them. Sound also didn't carry as it should, their bare feet made barely any noise against the floor and as they approached the bronze doors they rattled open gently, the clank and clink of gears seemingly absorbed by the darkness. He wanted to speak, to say something to the others but he couldn't quite muster the courage to profane the silent hall with his voice. So quietly and obediently Graafen stepped into elevator beyond the door, its bronze panelled walls cast with a base relief of the Dark Knight's helmet.

Turning to face the doors Graafen was unsurprised as a grill rumbled across the inner doorway of the elevator car even as the large bronze doors rumbled shut. With a slight jerk they started to travel upwards and Keith let out a soft sigh and sagged back against the far wall watching the elevator shaft pass beyond the grill. That sigh seemed to release Graafen from the strange pressure that had kept him from talking and he shook himself, thick grey tail batting against his ankles as he glanced at his fellow contestants.

"That... was unpleasant..." he murmured as he followed Keith's example and leant against the back wall of the moving room and stared through the grill, "Did anyone else feel it?"

"Yes..." Keith squeaked softly, rubbing at his arms and shivering, "We were being watched... something decidedly... dark was in that room."

Settling down cross legged on the carpeted floor Sandson glanced up at the others about to say something but he paused as the wall vanished and they got a glimpse into a large chamber. For a few moments as they passed the open door-way they could see gantries and bridges criss-crossing a room divided into huge vats of different coloured liquids and then it was gone and the smooth black stone of the elevator shaft returned.

"I wonder what sorts of games are played here in the tower?" he mused half to himself, leaning forward expectantly as they continued their journey up the tower.

"No idea," Keith replied, "That last one looked kind of interesting though... oooh lookit..." the next chamber had two very large rolls of black fabric standing atop a platform and a device strung up between the two of them that looked like it could weave the fabric about anyone standing on the platform. "I... I know what that is for... I saw it in a game show once..." Keith said eyes wide and bright as he looked at the other two. "It's a mummification device, your team had to get questions right or one of your team-mates would get wrapped up..." he squirmed slightly and coiled his long naked tail about his waist. "It was a really hot show I thought..."

"Yeah," Graafen growled shifting his black shorts unashamedly as the bulge of his sheath thickened somewhat. "I know that one; I used to dream about being the guy on the podium being mummified. What about you Sandy?"

"Nah... don't think I saw that one, but my mum wouldn't let me watch TV, said it corrupted people and they went bad," he gave Graafen a long look, playing his tail back and forth between his hands, "Not that it mattered, I went bad anyway."

"Yeah..." Graafen said quietly, "But I reckon you paid for that here and... fuck me look at that!" scrambling forward he pressed against the grill as another opening in the lift shaft showed a mist filled chamber. Across a moat of swirling grey fog rose a massive sixteen foot tall icosahedron of glittering crystal. The chamber was lit from within by a beautiful blue glow and in the moments that it was visible the trio could see a cloud of gold and silver confetti whirling about inside the dome.

"Was that..." Keith asked in a subdued voice, eyes even wider than before as he looked at the others.

"Yeah," Sandson said with a soft ook, shaking his head in disbelief, "The fucking Crystal Dome... even I know that one! Why is that here?"

"No idea," Graafen replied and shook his head, "But damn I wanna go back down and try it out! Though..." he frowned and tilted his head to the side, "Something the caretaker said to us makes a bit more sense now, this place is every game... a darker reflection... a true reflection of what we play outside... I think."

"Maybe you're right there... heh... Imagine what the wipe-out zone would be like?" the mouse said with a soft chuckle, "Or... well any game.... anything could be out there..."

"I wonder if..." Sandson paused as the elevator stopped and with a clang the bronze grill slid open revealing a long dark ramp ascending toward a bright light, "Is that it?"

"Not sure, that didn't feel like we went high enough..." Graafen offered the monkey a paw to help him back to his feet and with a quick glance at Keith started up the ramp. The stones were slick underfoot but not hard to climb in bare feet and soon enough they crested the lip of the incline and stepped out onto a broad platform about a third of the way up the length of the tower. They were slightly higher than the outer wall of the citadel now and the wolf could just make out the interlocking canopy of branches of the jungle to the southwest.

"Well now what?" Graafen demanded as he moved away from the ramp exit, shading his eyes against the bright sunshine.

"That way," Keith pointed at a line of grey bricks that curved out of sight around the tower, "Looks like a path to me, come on monkey you can sun yourself after this is over."

Sighing, the simian nodded his head and started after the mouse as he led the way around the tower. "Sun does feel good on my fur though, something about that first hall left me feeling icky. Like I'd been dipped in syrup or something... know what I mean?"

"Yeah... I do," Graafen said, rubbing at his arms, "But this... this whole place is weird, exhilarating... but weird."

Keith stopped at the end of the grey path and frowned at the glass elevator car waiting for them. "He's up there though isn't he? Waiting... for us?" The mouse asked quietly as the doors swung around in a blatant invitation for them to step inside. Wasting no time the rodent hurried inside and turned around as the others joined him.

"Yes," Graafen said softly, looking up and visibly shivering, "He is up there.... ahh..." the wolf jumped as the new elevator leapt skywards. It shot up the side of the tower without any sound and the clear glass walls left the wolf feeling somewhat disorientated as it looked like there was nothing between him and the drop back down to a very messy end. After a few moments though he slowly got used to it and carefully sat down next to the others and looked out across the vast domain of the Dark Knight. As they climbed higher he could see rolling hills of sun-dried brown grasses that formed a savannah to the north-east whilst off to the south-east the sun glistened off the bright blue waves of a shallow ocean dotted with islands and strange structures.

"I guess the swamps are round the other side of the tower," Sandson said after a few moments as their glass ride continued to climb up the outside edge of the tower. "Every type of terrain necessary for a game," he murmured, "It's a bit daunting when you think about it..."

"Yeah," Keith whispered with a soft squeak, "and the sun is setting... so... well... " he looked up at the tower looming above them. "It'll be dark by the time we get to the top..."

"Another three or four tiers on the way though," Graafen said, "I have a feeling it's going to be very late by the time we reach the Dark Knight..."

"Well then," Sandson said, leaning back against the glass, only relaxing once he was sure it was going to hold his weight. "I am going to nap, wake me when we reach the next level"

Shaking his head at the monkey's audacity Graafen leant against the glass and looked out at the darkening landscape, trying to imagine what it would be like when they finally reached the top and faced the Dark Knight. It was going to be magnificent, brushing away the tears that threatened to fall he placed one paw against the bulge in his crotch and bit back a whimper at the thought of the Knight waiting for them at the top. He couldn't wait, it was his darkest, fondest desire come true... he was going to play against the Dark Knight and already the temptation to lose was filling his thoughts. Just to feel what would happen if he gave in and those satin cloaked arms surrounded him. He gasped and his eyes snapped open as a pair of strong arms wrapped about him and a thick bulge pressed against the small of his back. The scent filling his nose told him who it was and the hairless hands that pressed down atop his bulging shorts confirmed it.

"Keith... I," he tried to say but the mouse just squeaked, one paw slipping inside the wolf's shorts, nimble fingers finding his cock, buck teeth nibbling at the fluff of his neck as a quiet voice whispered in his ears.

"It's ok, Graafen, he's up there... I can feel him too..." hips moving Keith ground his thickening shaft against the canine's spine and whimpered. "I want to enjoy this... with someone else who understands..." he drew back then and looked into Graafen's eyes and the wolf smiled and leant forward to kiss him, his own paws delving into the mouse's tight shorts to play with his bulging cock. Helping each other they indulged in their dark pleasure, bonding in a way that few could understand as they rode up the side of the Dark Knights tower beneath the last rays of the setting sun.