FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

A Warm Place

It was a cold night at the end of the world. Winter had hit the outpost hard, snow battering the stake palisade wall, to the point where we had to start assigning men to shovel it away. If we hadn't, they could just about crawl over the wall and get us.

They were out there. If you squinted hard enough, you could see the green tips of the pine and fir trees, their branches whispering as they swayed in the wind, off in the distance where they lurked, but it was getting harder now that the snow had picked up, just about making us blind when it got really bad. For all we knew, they could be right outside the walls, and half of us were afraid to peer down from over the ramparts, for fear of catching a jaw-full of fangs in the face and dragged down. It had been a lousy summer and an even worse winter, game was scarce, except for the human kind.

That's why I wasn't surprised when the Sergeant climbed to the ramparts, his heavy fur boots stomping deep into the snow as he did. His beard, normally pitch black, was now as white as an old man's and his chain-mail and officer's tabard were now covered up by layers of fur coats, making him look far more massive than he really was. But then, we were all covered up in as many pieces of clothes that we could manage to scrounge up, making us look more like a gang of bandits than soldiers of the King's army.

The Sergeant's icy eyes were locked on me. I knew what he was going to say, but I wasn't going to say anything. I ignored him and went back to treating my bow with a rag coated in pine resin.

“I need two volunteers," he announced. I saw it coming a mile away.

Whenever your commanding officer said that, it was a sign to keep your damned mouth shut, even if you weren't stationed in the most dangerous outpost in the civilized world like we were. No one spoke up.

“If no one volunteers," he continued with a pained sigh. This was definitely a suicide mission now, if the Sergeant was showing regret, “then I'll have to order you to go."

We kept our mouths shut still. It was only fair this way, unless someone had a death wish. The Beasts were out there and it was our job to keep them out there and far away from civilized, human lands. Still, we feared them: the wolves who seemed to fight like berserker warriors when the moon was full, the rats who were seemingly able to turn themselves invisible based on all the ones we caught deep inside the granary or armory; and most feared of all, the foxes. Rumor had it that just looking into a fox's eyes was enough to seduce a man or woman, and if you let one kiss you, it meant you were enthralled to them for life. Soldiers who vanished were often thought to have become tranced by a fox's magic and left to become their servants, or perhaps their dinner.

We wouldn't volunteer for that fate. None of us would.

“Alex and Vargas," the Sergeant pointed at Alex, an older veteran with thick bags under his eyes, and me. I bit my lip, suppressing the nauseous churning in my gut, “the snow-shovelers have gone missing. Go look for them."

Alex spat and planted his gloves on the head of his well-worn ax, which was resting in a loop tied to his waist, “Aye, sir."

“If you're not back in half an hour," the Sergeant looked to the rest of us, “prepare for an attack."

Cursing under my breath, I got up from my seat around the fire-pit and rubbed my hands together to try and keep some memory of the faint warmth with me. It would quickly fade as I followed Alex down the ramp, nearly falling off after slipping on a patch of ice were it not for the railing that was installed after poor Jim split his skull on the frozen ground below. Burned his corpse for heat, better that than at the bottom of a wolf's stomach.

A gust of frozen wind blew by and Alex's brown cloak flapped back. It was all very heroic looking to a bystander, the two watchmen bravely going off on a dangerous mission, but that wasn't us. We just wanted to come back alive so we could sit back by the fire and forget any of this had happened. We knew the shovel team was gone, we might find their bones picked clean and dotted with teeth marks, but they were gone.

Alex grabbed two torches, passing one of them to me, and we dipped them into a burning sconce hanging from the wall, setting them ablaze. It only the afternoon, but if we got separated in the endless white, this would be both our beacon for help and a source of warmth.

Shivering, I kind of wished I had fur like the Beasts. It would be a handy thing to have in a cold place like this.

We trudged through the snow and got our first reprieve as we filed under the overpass leading to the gates. We kicked the snow off our boots onto the damp, wood planks, a futile exercise, but one that we always felt compelled to do as soon as we got into a relatively dry area.

The two soldiers standing guard lifted up the board securing the gate and one of them gently pushed the heavy doors open while the other drew his ax, ready for anything that might come out of the white. Me and Alex did the same, torches in one hand and axes in the other.

Nothing came in, except for a buffet of snowflakes. A single wolf charging in would have been welcome, we could have slain it easily and it would give us reason to write off the shovel team. Now we had no other choice but to enter into the nothing, where anything could be lurking.

The cold blasted our faces, forcing us to shiver as we stumbled through the dunes of snow piled up outside the fort. It was always colder outside the walls, even when you were on the ramparts and still got the chill breeze. Must have been the company that made things seem warm. Out here, you felt very small and very, very alone.

“We'll do a sweep of the perimeter, clockwise!" Alex ordered, pointing to the right of the fort gates.

I silently followed him as we swerved to the right. We couldn't stick to the wall, for the dunes were too steep and leaning against the palisade. The diggers had been here, but there was only so much they could do to get rid of it. Sometimes the snow was piled up just at the base of the slope, creating another wall that we had to walk around.

The whole time, I was eying the white void that surrounded us. A Beast could be inches away from us, watching us, smelling us, waiting for a moment of weakness.

Something caught my eye to our left. A print in the snow, alone, and it didn't look human. I let Alex know and started towards it.

It was canine, but I didn't get a good look at it. My foot stomped into the snow and found a steep hill leading down, which I tumbled down on. The world became a blur as I rolled down, dropping my ax and torch, and scratched at the icy snow to try and stop myself from falling.

A tree finally stopped me as I crashed my back into it. The pain was sharp, but dulled a bit by the chain shirt and the thick fur jacket I wore over it. I bit my lip to stop from screaming, but the pain quickly became the least of my concerns when I looked up and saw I was right next to the beginning of the thick mass of trees that was the forests. The Beast's home.

I scrambled to my feet and backed away, eyes darting from tree to tree, looking for any sign of a Beast. I didn't have a chance in hell at winning against one of the larger ones without my ax, but I wouldn't go down easy.

None showed themselves. Every noise in the woods startled me, from the whistling of the wind to the thud of snow falling from the branches. I kept thinking each was a sign of a Beast about to attack, but they never showed.

I was so focused on the sounds and the trees, that I didn't notice below me, the very thing that first caused me to fall down the hill. All around the crater in the snow that I made were footprints, most large, like a wolf's, while some were smaller, like a fox's. My lip quivered. It was one thing to get killed by a wolf, but foxes, they killed the mind, so they said. I'd rather die than be made into whatever it is the foxes did to the humans they charmed away.

Still, if they do capture me, maybe they'd let me snuggle with their warm, fur coats? I joked to myself in an effort to keep myself thinking positive. Anything to take my mind off the sound of my heart-beat, which was just about all I could hear now.

I began climbing the hill, finding that it wasn't nearly as steep as it was when I fell down it. If it was summer, it would have been nothing at all, but this damned blizzard made climbing it an ordeal. I followed in the path that I fell down on, crawling on all fours at times to keep myself stable.

The ax and torch were long gone. I couldn't find them and had no idea where they rolled off to. It was dangerous without them, but I didn't want to get lost, that would be the death of me for sure.

“Alex!" I called out as I neared the peak of the hill. “I'm okay!"

Something cried out suddenly and I froze still, pressed close to the ground. It wasn't human. It was shrill and sharp, and it was silent almost instantly. It didn't sound like a wolf or any other Beast. Must have been just an animal, I figured, sighing with relief.

I rolled onto the top of the hill, stopping to catch my breath. My heart quickly sank when I saw that Alex was gone.

“Alex!" I stood up and called out, cupping my hands around my mouth. “Where are you!?"

Nothing. There was no sound, save for the whip of wind gusting through the tundra.

I was alone.

Gods, I was alone.

Fear welled in my heart. I knew those bastards could smell fear, and that just made it worse. I began to feel lightheaded and started panting, breathing in deep the crisp, dry air.

I looked up, past the bank of snow piled up next to me, to where the ramparts were, hidden by the veil of white. I called out to the guards, let them know that Alex was missing and that I was alone, but I got no reply. My voice was muffled by the blizzard and lost.

I was alone.

Shuddering, I tried to keep calm and remember my training. Focus on the facts and what I had to work with, rather than give into blind fear. I was alone, but there were no Beasts here. I had my armor and my coat. There were no footprints around me, even the one that I saw earlier was now gone, after I rolled over it…

I froze.

There we no footprints. Not even Alex's.

The blizzard was strong, but I wasn't gone long enough for it to cover up our deep tracks. There would still be traces of it.

Silently, deathly silent, I knelt down and looked at the snow where we trod earlier. It was flat, unnaturally so. Someone had been brushing it down, covering their tracks.

I wasn't alone.

Carefully, I took a step forward towards the bank, nervously scanning the area around me. I couldn't see anyone, but that didn't mean anything. I held my breath, every exhale giving me pause, worrying that each breath was not my own; then all I could hear was the thump of my heart and it was loud like a bass drum, so I started breathing again.

I wanted to run, but I didn't. The Beasts, if they were watching, would give chase, and with the snow being as it was, I would slip at some point and that would be that, they'd be on top of me and I would be at their mercy, of which they had none. Slowly and methodically, I turned and started back towards the gate.

There was a gap between the piles of snow that the shovelers had made to my left. A perfect place for an ambush. I kept my gaze on it as I passed by, ready to attack whatever might be there.

A pair of amber eyes shot out from the void, matching my stare. I couldn't look away. I tried to ball up my fist to attack, but my hands went limp. They were beautiful, golden orbs, and they had me transfixed. I knew the Beast was a fox before it stepped out of the blizzard and I saw its tiny, black nose on the end of a long, thin, white muzzle, dripping with melting snow. It had a damp, bushy tail that was covered in pure white fur, much like the rest of the creature, save for the tip which was as black as night.

He padded closer, gently swaying his hips as he drew closer. I knew it was a male, as a sheathe bulged between his thighs, but despite that, I found myself charmed by his beauty. He was truly gorgeous and I wanted to feel his fur, run my hands through it and draw him into an embrace…

I didn't realize it, but I had taken a step towards the Beast. I snapped out of the creature's trance and realized I was in danger. Panic overwhelmed me and I tried to move, but there was still something stopping me from moving, a little voice that whispered into my brain, telling me that everything was going to be okay.

“Get back!" I managed to shout. The Beast flicked one of its long, pointed ears, but otherwise showed no concern and didn't stop its stride for a second. I could smell its rancid musk, almost as foul as a dead skunk's, which helped wake me up from the spell the disgusting creature was casting on me.

“I said, back!"

I caught sight of the black pads of the Beast's paws as he reached towards my face, cupping my cheeks in his palm. His pads were rough and calloused, like wolf's. He began rubbing his pads against me, and the roughness began to soften until it was like fine silk. I closed my eyes as pleasure washed over my face. My hand reached around to his back and my fingers ran through his fur, it was course and matted, but relaxing to the touch.

Snapping out of it, I opened my eyes just in time to see the fox's slender muzzle inching towards me, his breath reeking of old blood. I pushed him back with all my might, but it didn't seem to phase him and I couldn't escape his grip. I grabbed the tip of his muzzle, trying to force him away, but he was able to slip out of it and shove me back.

He landed atop me as I crashed into the snowbank. His claws gently rubbed against my cheek as he drew in closer. My arms no longer worked and I couldn't resist anymore.

His cold nose met mine and I closed my eyes. It was over. I felt the warmth of his breath and his whiskers tickle my nose as his tongue lapped at my lips. I couldn't fight it anymore. I let him kiss me, let his tongue dart past my defenses and into my mouth.

Warmth rushed over me. I opened my eyes and found myself in bed. A bed wrapped in the finest, burgundy silk linens and covered in blankets of fine, soft fur. A roaring fire blazed in a stone fireplace across the room, sending orange light dancing across the dark, wood bedroom.

To the right was my mate, my love. My head was leaning against his chest, nuzzling up against his coat of finely-groomed white fur, while he wrapped his arms around me, silk-soft pads massaging my back. A balcony was just behind him, past the bed, overlooking an endless world of snow.

But I was here, where it was warm, and safe. He would take care of me, I had nothing to fear. His sweet, sensual musk filled the room, it was enough to make me fall into slumber.

I giggled as I felt the tip of his cock press against my belly. I pulled back from his chest and looked up at him, he was staring down at me from across his thin muzzle with his bright, golden eyes, just like the day I had met him.

I licked at the tip of his chin, kissing like his people did, before drawing him into a human kiss, pressing my lips up against his. Our tongues wrestled, his sweet saliva mixed with mine. Gods, it felt good. I didn't want this moment to end and I knew it wouldn't have to. We could keep doing this forever…

You can keep doing this forever…

A voice whispered in the back of my head.

We can be together forever…

I nodded while my mate began licking at my cheeks, occasionally nibbling gently at them.

You just have to…

I woke up in the snow bank that the Beast had tossed me into, gasping for breath. I was alone and it was dark out, the sun having set ages ago.

My face was numb from the cold and I buried it in my scarf, hoping to restore some feeling. I was cold, but it was a distant cold, like a wound that had began healing over.

It was a dream, I told myself. I passed out from the cold, that's all.

There were no footsteps around me, no sign of any struggle. It would have all been buried by now, but there were still no signs.

I rushed through my brain, trying to restore some sanity to myself. I felt normal though, upon thinking about it. No man ever survived meeting a fox like that and turned out normal, but I felt fine, so it must have been a dream.

I had to get to the gate. I had to get back in and tell them…

Stumbling through the snow, I rushed back, no longer fearing any Beast that might be tracking me. I slept for at least eight hours in the snow, I figured that I had enough luck to get me back safe and sound.

Indeed, I got back to the gates without any incident. I wasn't even feeling cold anymore. They were closed shut, so I pounded on them and cried out.

“I'm back! Let me in! Alex is missing!"

I backed up as the gate slowly creaked open and I was greeted by the two night watchmen manning the gate.

“Vargas! What the fuck happened to you?" one of them exclaimed in shock as he waved me in.

“Fuck!" the other shouted as he touched the side of my face with his gloved hand. “He's like ice!"

They sat me down on the floor just inside the gatehouse and began taking off some of their extra layers of clothes and wrapping me up in them.

“Guys, it's fine!" I said, feeling very warm all of a sudden. “I'm not even shivering anymore!"

One of the guard's eyes went wide and he slapped the other on the shoulder, “Get the doc right away!"

The other guard ran off while the remaining one tended to me.

“Vargas, you're gonna be okay, y'hear?" he said while wrapping his scarf around my shoulders. “Just stay calm and keep breathing."

“Really, I'm fine."

You're going to die.

The voice from the dream whispered in my head.

If you stay here, you're going to die.

I couldn't hear the guard anymore. The whisper in the back of my brain drowned out whatever he said.

I can take you away. Take you somewhere safe.

But you have to…

“I understand," I said aloud.

The guard was so worried about me that he didn't even realize that I had pulled his ax free from his belt loop and now had it by the handle. He only realized how much danger he was in after I landed its bit in his neck.

Blood spurted from the wound as I yanked the ax free. The guard stared down at me in wonder but said nothing. He collapsed shortly after.

I struggled to stand, only assisted by promises of returning to my mate. My mate was the only one I could trust, the only one I could love. An eternity with him would be heaven, a heaven I could escape to from hell.

I stepped over the guard's body and went to the gate. I pried the board free and shoved the gates over, revealing a gap in the endless clouds of the night sky, a perfect circle that allowed the bright full moon to envelop the land with its light.

Collapsing in the snow, I laid on my back. Dark figures leaped over me, some with weapons and others armed only with their jagged claws, but all of them were naked except for their course fur coats. Screams rang out from within the fort as the Beasts assaulted it, ignoring me the whole while. One wolf stopped in front of me, blood-shot eyes darting around before wrapping its jaws around the dead guards neck and thrashing him around like a rag doll until his throat ripped free.

I was starting to feel tired and began to nod off. I didn't feel cold or warm now. I didn't feel a whole lot of anything except for the distant promise my mate had made with me. Part of me was afraid that he might not show, that I had did all this for him and it meant nothing. Just another stupid human who got tricked.

But then he showed, his white body shimmering in the moonlight. His eyes were warm, but not as warm as his body was when he knelt atop my legs and cupped my face in his palms. He stared at me and I felt my heart thaw. I hadn't made a mistake, it wasn't all for nothing. I would be taken away with him like he promised.

“I love y-" I began to say when the fox shot forward and met my lips with his. He ran his tongue across my lips and cheek until he was at my neck, which he nibbled gently at with his sharp fangs. A jolt ran down my spine and I moaned.

The fort was gone. The snow was a distant landscape below the balcony that I didn't have to visit unless I wanted to. We were back in bed and I was leaning my head against my mate's chest.

I breathed in, taking his sweet, earthy musk into my nostrils. I felt safer here than I ever was behind the walls of the outpost. Why had I stayed there for so long when I could have had this?

I was warm now. I couldn't imagine ever being cold again in my life and wouldn't ever be. This was everything now, this was my forever. I'd be warm forever. It was so warm. So hot. I'd never be cold again.

I'll never be cold again.