FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

...

The pair had been traveling together for a few uneventful days now. After another unremarkable day's march came to an end with the setting sun, they had set up camp in a clearing once again. These small clearings seemed to be abundant in this section of the Backroads for some reason. The two had fallen asleep next to each other for the 4th night in a row, with Vintio lazily sprawled out and Rirka obediently lying in her handcuffs.

_ Boom. _

Vintio jolted awake. He sat up and looked around frantically. Nothing seemed odd- His tent was just as he had left it the night before, and his Kobold was laying right beside him like she had been when he fell asleep. He checked over his things only to find nothing missing. But something didn't feel right to him.

"Mrhmm.. C'mon, Sir.. Can't we sleep for a few more minutes..." Rirka murmured, still half-asleep.

Vintio rolled his eyes and crawled out of the tent, taking one of his shortswords with him. He grabbed his cloak from on top of the canvas and wrapped it around himself as he looked around his campsite. It was daylight at last, and everything was illuminated in the clearing. Still, he couldn't see anything alarming, and the camp was entirely silent save for the squawks of a few birds. He wondered what could have woken him up. Could it have just been a bad dream?

BOOM.

His thoughts were interrupted by that terrible crashing sound again. Whatever that was, it was most definitely real. And it was loud. Vintio could hear the creaking of wood as trees fell off in the distance. What the hell? He hadn't heard that the first time. It must be getting closer, he thought. But what was getting closer?

Suddenly Vintio put two and two together. Slowly, he looked up at the window in the branches granted to him by the clearing he was in, hoping beyond hope that he was wrong in his guess.

"Oh.. Oh no. Aw, fuck!" Panic was clearly present in his voice as he stared up at the golem towering above him. It was taller than anything he'd ever seen before, and by a wide margin. It's body appeared to be made entirely of dark green bricks of massive caliber, accentuated by a black brick for every few green ones. It looked almost like a giant human, except for the head; It lacked a neck, and instead carried a giant dome of bricks on it's shoulders. The only features present were what appeared to be two rectangular eyes, glowing an incandescent yellow. It's mere presence was so menacing that Vintio couldn't bring himself to move for a few seconds.

Shaking himself out of his stupor, he dived back into the tent, desperately shaking his Kobold companion awake.

"Rirka! Rirka, get up! Now!"

"Whaa-!" She cried, burying herself deeper in his blankets. "Okay, okay-! I-I just wanted a little extra sleep, please don't be mad at me Master! I'm sorry-!"

"Huh?" Like multiple times before, Vintio couldn't believe his ears. Had she not heard those two thunderous steps outside? "I'm not mad, you idiot! There's a golem outside of the tent!"

"WHAT!?" Rirka's eyes shot wide open.

_ BOOM! _

The pair jumped simultaneously as the golem took another deafening step towards them. It was evidently coming their way, and neither of them wanted to wait and see what it wanted. Vintio grabbed his equipment and threw it out of the tent, leaving Rirka to don her gear inside as he hastily put his armor on. It wasn't long after he finished re-equipping himself that Rirka came outside to join him, tightening the last few straps on her breastplate.

"Help me take the tent down!" He shouted over the sounds of trees crashing down. He hastily fell to his knees to start removing the stakes keeping the canvas of the tent in place.

For once, it was Rirka who couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Er, Sir? Are you insane!?"

"It's our only shelter out here! We need it!"

She momentarily considered running anyways, but she couldn't betray her oath. Nor could she betray her human after her promise to him. She worked as quickly as she could to remove the stakes, and in the meantime Vintio moved on to repacking the bedroll. The moment they had hastily gathered everything up, they darted from the clearing and into the woods.

_ BOOM! _

Their timing could not have been any more brave. Or stupid. Moments after they had left running, one of the golem's gigantic feet stomped down on the clearing and brought down a few more trees around it. They both gasped as they realized just how close they had cut it.

"What the hell does it want!?" Vintio cried out as they ran.

"We must have set up camp in it's path or something!" Rirka cried back. "Just keep running!"

"Fuck me!" He shouted with a grimace. "That explains all the clearings!"

They could see forest animals racing past them. Deer, hares, and even wolves paid them no mind as they also rushed to flee the lumbering golem. The forest had become a cacophony of fearful animal cries and crashing trees.

But all of those sounds were drowned out when the golem made a sound so horrifying that Rirka herself couldn't help but squeak in alarm. It let out a low, guttural roar like nothing either of them had ever heard before. The pair quickened their pace through the forest.

"I think that means it saw something!" Rirka gasped between heavy, panicked breaths.

Vintio never got the chance to respond. A cold, stone hand descended down from the heavens and wrapped it's cruel fingers tight around the smuggler, such that only his head could be seen. He cried out in surprise and pain as he was nearly crushed in it's grip.

"Master?" The Kobold warrior skidded to a halt, looking on helplessly as her owner was grabbed by the towering golem.

"Just go, Rirka!" He gazed apologetically at his Kobold friend. Even if they had only known each other for such a short time, he felt as though they had really begun to understand each other. "I'm sorry! AAAAAAAaaaaaaa_aaahhh_-!"

His voice trailed off as the hand lifted him towards the sky, and out of sight, until he could be heard no more.

...

Vintio's head went terribly light as the golem brought him high up into the air. It took him a moment for his vision to return to him, but when it did he saw that the golem had brought him up to eye level. The silent, glowing yellow eyes seemed to analyze him as he struggled in the being's grasp. He looked down only to sincerely wish that he hadn't; A fall from this height would undoubtedly turn him into a gory paste. That wasn't a thought that Vintio particularly liked to entertain.

He winced as the golem once again let out it's unique roar. It had been loud before, but now that he was up here with it it was deafening, leaving his ears ringing afterwards. Suddenly, he felt himself lurch forwards as the golem brought him closer. Oh Gods, he thought, was he going to be eaten? He remembered that the golem did not have a mouth, but this only heightened his terror. He was headed straight towards it's eye!

The golem placed him firmly in his right eyehole, and Vintio couldn't help but scream as he fell down a slide. The giant's eyes were not glowing at all, he realized- Rather, there was a superbly bright fire lit in a chamber in front of him. It quickly went out of sight as he slid downwards. He felt desperately for anything to grab onto, but to no avail, and before he knew it the slide ended with a decidedly sharp drop. His stomach lurched as he fell, the light from the flame fading into black.

Splash!

Vintio's fall came to an abrupt end as he plunged into a pool of water. He sighed in relief- That fall would have gone a lot worse had it not been for this pool. But as he saw his air bubbles leave him, it occured to him that his fall had probably sent him deep underwater. He frantically kicked up, breaking the surface with a gasp.

What he saw before him was a sorry sight. It seemed that he'd been thrown into some sort of prison cell- Except he wasn't alone. He could count 5 others in the cell with him: Two Goblins, One Orc, One other Human and lastly a being whose race he couldn't tell. They were entirely covered in a cloak, and facing away from him to boot. Looking close, he could see that whatever it was was extending a furred hand outside of the prison bars. Looking beyond that, he noticed that across those very bars was an identical prison cell- But this one was filled with assorted animals rather than humanoids. There were some wolves, some coyotes, and even a bear. Among them were numerous piles of bones; Likely the remains of whatever prey animals had been thrown in there with them. That cell must be where the golem's left eye leads, Vintio thought

Once again his stomach lurched as he felt the golem take another fearsome step forward from the inside. He needed to get out of this pool.

He swam to the edge of the pool and lifted himself out. By the way they all stared him down, it was obvious that the goblins, orc, and human all wanted nothing to do with him. They kept huddled to their own corner among themselves. The Human in particular kept close watch of him. Her skin was far tanner than his, and she was wearing tattered Bounty Hunter's clothing. She must be new to the job to be in the Backroads, but still seemed aware of the fact that any other humans here were undoubtedly up to no good. Vintio sighed, instead figuring he'd try his luck with the cloaked one. As he approached them, he could see a furred hand patting one of the wolves. The wolf seemed to trust them, but backed off warily as it saw Vintio approach.

"Do you mind?" The figure said, turning around to face him. "I- No way. Vintio?"

"You're kidding me."

Vintio smiled as he realized that the cloaked figure was actually someone he knew: Artamo, the Catfolk. His pelt was a dark gray with even darker gray spots, and his eyes were a triumphant green. The cloak he wore was standard for any Backroads traveler as it was dark and helped him hide, and underneath that he wore his trademark opulent nobleman's clothes. He was a traveling merchant who roamed the Backroads, selling contraband to anyone he came across. He didn't ask questions so long as his customers didn't ask any either; An appropriate agreement considering the inherently illegal nature of all his wares. With supplies ranging from illicit potions to stolen guard dossiers to illegal weapons, Artamo carried everything that a wary Backroads traveler might find himself lacking. And on top of all that, he was the closest thing Vintio had to a friend before he had met Rirka.

They shook hands, and Vintio found himself unsure of how to feel. On one hand, he was glad to have a familiar face with him in this ordeal. On the other, he knew that they both awaited the same terrible fate in this cell, whatever that may be.

"Aw, Art. Quite a mess we've found ourselves in."

"You're telling me, Vin!" Art exclaimed, wrapping an arm around him. "I've been stuck in here since yesterday!"

"Do you have any clue what's going on?" Vin whispered.

"Haven't the slightest, mate. All I know is that every now and then some robed guys come by to take one of us somewhere. Not sure for what, but whoever gets grabbed doesn't come back."

That didn't sound good. "And your wares?"

"Hey! No questions, 'member?" Art chuckled as he saw the tired look on Vintio's face. "Ahh, not like it matters now anyways. They got left behind when this thing scooped me up. I was worried sick that all my goods would get stolen by the time I got back to them, but lately I'm not so sure I'll even get that far now."

"How reassuring." The smuggler joked back. They stumbled and caught themselves on the bars as they felt the golem step forward once again. "Alright. So how do we get out of here?"

Artamo raised an eyebrow at him. "You sure you didn't hit your head on the way in? The last Vin I talked to would've been content to sit here and wait to die for all he cared."

Vintio grimaced. It was true, but now he had a force driving him to push on no matter what. He had a Kobold to keep, and a city to see.

He worriedly glanced back towards the pool of water, and the chute that had dropped him into it. He sincerely hoped that Rirka had gotten away.

"..Don't tell me you're not a loner anymore?" Art interrupted his thoughts.

"Er.. Something like that." Vin replied in a way that was intentionally vague. Art may be a scoundrel like him, but he was no slaver. He wouldn't wait for an explanation should he see his relationship with Rirka.

"I'll believe it when I see it!" The catfolk chuckled before going wide-eyed. "..Which I may never get the chance to do! They're coming!"

The sound of the heavy lock on the door to their cell being opened made itself clear, and everyone inside turned to look. A multitude of robed individuals filed into the room, all of them wielding cruel iron clubs. Their hooded robes were the same dark green as the bricks that made up the golem, and they had an insignia of a black, dead tree on their chests. The shadows cast on their faces made it hard to tell just what they were. A group of them surrounded the Orc before beginning to close in on him, menancingly smacking their clubs in their hands.

"W-What are you waiting for!" The Orc shouted at the other humanoids in the cell. "Attack!"

The pair of goblins valiantly charged forward, only to be savagely beaten down by their captors. The other human quickly realized that an insurrection was not worth it, and backed away. Nonetheless, the robed ones clearly thought her to be involved- With one swift swing at her head they knocked her unconscious to the ground. Satisfied that they'd quelled any would-be rebellion, the robed men proceeded to drag the Orc out of the cell kicking and screaming. The door slammed shut as they left, and there was a loud click as it was locked once again.

There was silence in the cell for a short time. Neither Art nor Vin wanted to say a word until they were sure their captors were gone.

"I'm not waiting around here any longer." Vin eventually said with determination in his voice. "We need to find a way out."

"Wait!" Art shushed him. "Look up there!"

A few bricks above them on the wall opposite to the door, a rattling sound could be heard. Vintio looked up to see what looked like a metal access panel the size of a brick that was being.. Kicked?

"What the..?"

...

"No!" Rirka cried as Vintio was lifted upwards. She didn't have long to lament her loss, however, as the shadow of the golem's rising foot overshadowed her. She dove out of the way as it crashed down on where she had just been.

Coughing amongst the dust kicked up by the stomp, Rirka scrambled to her feet. She turned to face the giant golem. This was probably the closest anyone had gotten to it without being abducted, she realized. More importantly, she noticed that what she previously thought were black bricks in the sea of dark green weren't actually bricks at all- In reality they were metal access panels. Which meant a potential way to get inside the golem.

Knowing she had precious little time to act before the golem took another step forward and left her alone, she rushed towards the closest panel on the golem's foot, unsheathing her sword. Jamming it in between the panel and the other bricks like a pry-bar, Rirka leaned back with all her weight. It took a bit before the panel began to give, but before too long she had it halfway open. More than enough for her to slither in.

It was dark inside the golem's foot, but Kobolds were used to dark spaces. Rirka blinked a few times to adjust her eyesight to the new light level. She appeared to be in some sort of vent.

Suddenly she felt the foot lurch upwards, taking her with it in the vent. As it came slamming back down to the ground in it's destructive path she was slammed into the top of the vent and then back to the floor.

"Ow.." She muttered, rubbing her head.

Just what the hell was she doing? She slumped down in the dark vent. By all accounts what had just happened would be more than enough justification to render her free again. Wherever this thing had taken Vintio, there wasn't much chance that he would be coming back.

Still.. A part of her wanted to make sure.

Rirka awkwardly returned her sword to it's scabbard before beginning her crawl forward. She had no idea where she was going, but her surroundings still felt familiar to her. This must be a result of Kobolds having lived in tunnels for years, she thought.

Eventually the vent sloped upwards. It was like a spiral, up for a few minutes before turning sharply. She could only assume that she was climbing slowly up the leg. She had to brace herself for every time the golem moved, trying to be careful so as to not make too much noise.

After what felt like an eternity of slowly ascending the beast from the inside, finally the vent leveled off. The next time the golem moved Rirka wasn't thrown around nearly as much- She must have made it out of it's leg. Ahead, she could see light coming from a grate.

She moved to it, curious as to what the rest of this giant's insides looked like. Peeking into it, she was surprised to see a room. A figure in dark green robes stood over a table, but she couldn't see what the figure was doing from this angle. She decided to wait for it to move.

When he finally did, she went wide-eyed at the horrific display. On the table laid the remains of a goblin, thoroughly dissected and labeled. Some of it's organs had been placed in jars with a strange liquid, ranging from it's heart to even it's eyes. Rirka scrambled away from the grate, unable to look any longer. She had to find Vintio before he met the same fate.

She continued upwards in the vents of the golem's torso, looking for any signs of her human. She passed more grates where she saw other creatures who had met the same end as the goblin she first saw. Elves, wolves, hobgoblins, and more made it seem as though there was no limit to the carnage. The only thing they seemed to have in common is that they were all obviously taken from the Backroads. She didn't want to look at the gruesome sights, but had to in order to make sure that Vintio wasn't among them. Hope was beginning to fade for her when she at last heard something to restore it.

"...So how do we get out of here.."

Vintio! Rirka let go of a breath she didn't know she was holding. He was alright- For now. She had to find him before that changed.

His voice meant that he was close. She just had to find the correct panel to open. She started by putting her ear up to all the ones nearby, listening closely for which one led to the voices. It wasn't long before she found her mark. She quickly opened the latch and tried to push the door open. Much to her distress, it wouldn't budge. She tried again to no avail. The panel was stuck shut.

She knew she had to open it somehow. He was so close! Rirka considered using her sword to pry it open again, but she just didn't have the room to do that in there. She would have to settle for a more straightforward approach.

Bracing herself, she began to kick at the stuck hatch. It shouldn't take too many kicks until..

...

The rattling panel flew open, hitting the stone wall with a loud crash. The smuggler and the merchant jumped back in surprise, only for Vintio to let out a huge sigh of relief when he saw Rirka's face poking out. But that relief quickly shifted to worry as he realized what she was bound to say now that they were reunited.

"Master!" Rirka beamed happily. She looked confused as she saw the color drain from Vintio's face.

"..Master?" Artamo repeated questioningly. The realization hit him when he saw the collar she was wearing, and he turned wide-eyed towards his human friend before roughly grabbing him by the collar. "Vin, I know we're both crooks here, but slavery!? Are you fucking crazy!? Don't tell me you don't know the punishments for that!"

"Get off me! And quit calling me Vin! You know I hate that!"

"I don't care what you hate! Have you gone mad!?"

The catfolk was interrupted by a small chunk of brick smacking him upside the head. Their eyes both darted towards the open panel, where they saw the armored Kobold readying another piece.

"Let go of him!" She shouted angrily.

Art ignored her, and resumed frustratedly shaking Vintio. "I can't believe you! I was almost under the impression that you didn't have a deathwish anymore!"

"Hey! Can this wait until we're outside of this Gods-damned prison!?" The smuggler shouted back, shoving his furred friend off of him. "There's an explanation for this, but I'd like to get the hell out of here first!"

"Oh, I'm sure the reason why you're committing the highest crime in the land is gonna be rich!"

"Whatever happened to no questions, furball?"

"I didn't ask! I saw-!"

Rirka was very confused at the heated argument happening below her. Was her family tradition really so wrong among these people? She had been warned that many would not take kindly to the people who owned her if they knew, but she didn't think it would be so bad that two criminals of all people would be arguing over it. She shook her head. This would be very amusing to her if they weren't all currently in a life-threatening situation. The folk who lived up here were so strange.

"Fine, I don't care. I'm just trying to look out for you." Artamo finally conceded. "People swing for this, Vin! I just.. Never took you for someone capable of this. Thought you knew better. But whatever, let's get out of here."

"Thank you." Vin sighed. It felt as though his luck was simultaneously the worst and the best in the entire world. He'd have to have a serious chat with Rirka about appearances should he survive all this.

"Are you boys finally done?" She yawned from the vents. "I don't think you'd be wasting time if you'd seen what I saw coming up here. Sir."

"Sorry.." The smuggler muttered. "Rirka, this is Artamo. Art, Rirka."

With introductions hastily out of the way, Vintio set up so that he could boost Artamo towards the vent. Rirka moved out of the way as he crawled in, and he extended a hand down to help Vintio up in return. It seemed that their vitriolic spat was behind them. Vintio was about to shut the panel when his eyes strayed towards the unconscious bodies of the three other prisoners. "Wait. What about them?" He asked, gazing back at his companions.

Artamo solemnly shook his head. "They're gonna be out cold for the next few hours. Nothin' we can do, Vin."

He sighed. His feline friend was right, but leaving anyone behind in this place still left a bad taste in his mouth. He regretfully closed the panel and latched it shut.

"What now?"

They could hear shouting from below them. It seemed their captors had come to investigate the commotion caused by their argument, only to find that they had prisoners missing.

"We need to leave. Fast." Art whispered.

Rirka beckoned them to follow before started crawling forwards in the vents. They took a turn before hitting a dead end. This appeared to be intentional, however, as Rirka could be seen lifting another latch. All three of them found themselves blinded by the sunlight as the Kobold opened a panel to the outside. They could see one of the arms of the golem swing past their view as the giant took another massive step forward.

"There's a ladder out here!" Rirka called out after poking her head outside. She left the hatch and the two boys soon followed.

They were buffeted by the wind as they gripped desperately to the ladder. Vintio realized they were on the right side of the golem's torso. Just ahead of them he could spot a large lake, and the golem seemed to be headed right towards it.

"Look!" He pointed towards the body of the water. "Climb down to the end of the torso, and we can jump once it steps into the water!"

His two companions nodded in acknowledgement. They slowly descended down the side of the massive golem, holding on tight each time it lunged forwards. The wind threatened to send them falling with each step downwards, but they pushed on nonetheless.

"Hold on!" Rirka shouted as the golem took it's first step into the lake. The golem lurched forward, a part of it's right leg disappearing into the murky water. They had noticeably gone lower now that the golem's height had to contend with the depth of the lake, but they weren't quite at the middle yet. They hastened their descent as they realized they were running out of time.

The golem took a second step forward, moving even deeper into the lake. The water covered up to the Golem's knee, vastly reducing the height of the plunge they would have to take.

"Now!" Vintio shouted as they finally ran out of ladder. They leapt as the golem started to step forward and out of the lake. There was nothing Vintio hated more than the feeling of falling, and he resisted the urge to throw up as he dropped into the water. They were forced deep underwater upon impact, each of them hitting a different depth due to their different weights. As a result they all emerged at slightly different times, gasping for air. They were drenched, cold and shaken, but they were alive.

Hastily swimming towards the nearest shore, the group collapsed once the reached the landing. They all laid there for a bit in the mud as they tried to recollect themselves and catch their breath. Eventually Vintio and Rirka sat up, gazing as the golem slowly marched away. Even though there were escaped prisoners, it continued on it's path of destruction. Likely to go pick up some replacements.

Vintio abruptly brought his Kobold in close, giving her his version of a 'Thank you' in the form of a long embrace. This surprised her at first, but she wound up nuzzling into his chest when she realized what was happening.

"I owe you. Big time." He exhaled.

"Think nothing of it.." She responded nonchalantly.

He turned to glance at Art, only to find he'd already disappeared. He must have left quietly while they weren't looking. All that remained was a soggy piece of parchment in his place. Vintio shook his head as he stood up to go read it.

Vin,

It was wrong of me to get upset back there, especially considering my 'No questions' policy. But I'd truly hate to hear on the grapevine in a few months time that you wound up meeting your end at the gallows over this. I'm not sure what led you to this point, but knowing you it must be something more meaningful than just money. But I won't ask. Just be careful. Please.

Until next time,

Artamo

He sighed before pocketing the letter. Rirka had walked up next to him, her gaze fixated on the woods where the catfolk had likely taken off to.

"Was that guy your friend?" She asked with Kobold curiosity in her voice.

Vintio paused for a moment before responding.

"..Something like that."

...

Finding a small cave after traveling well away from the path of the golem, Vintio and Rirka decided to set up camp for the day. Both of them would prefer to spend the day resting after an ordeal like that. All of their stuff was still wet from the plunge into the lake earlier, and they'd very much appreciate the chance to dry it. With their weapons drawn, the two advanced slowy into the cave. Vintio had a torch lit to illuminate the way. The cave wasn't very large, and so it didn't take long for them to sweep it and make sure it was clear.

Immediately they returned to the entrance and began to strip their equipment, laying it all out to dry. Both of them were down to nought but their undergarments, but neither of them seemed to care at this point. Vintio set up a makeshift clothesline with the rope he usually used for the tent so that they could hang their drenched clothes up, whereas anything heavier had to make do with being spread out on the ground. The pair set off to gather materials for a fire, with Vintio setting up stones and Rirka gathering firewood and pinecones.

They both let out heavy sighs of relief as Vintio started the fire up with a match. The warmth of the flame felt incredible in contrast to how cold and wet they were. They split some still somewhat soggy jerky as they warmed themselves up.

The pair spent most of the day lazing about in an attempt to recover. Once the sun had begun to set, and the bedroll was considered dry enough to be used, they stamped the fire out and retreated to the cave. Vintio laid the bedroll out on the smooth cave floor, and they both tiredly climbed in. Vintio didn't even bother commanding his Kobold to put her handcuffs on this time. He knew now for certain that he could trust her without them. The only things they'd brought with them were their weapons, which they kept right beside them just in case they should need them. It was always a possibility in the Backroads.

As the sun set in it's entirety and everything went dark, Vintio laid awake with his eyes wide open. Even after such a wild day, he couldn't sleep. He had questions burning at the back of his mind.

"Rirka?"

"Yes, Sir?"

"Why did you save me today?" He asked aloud. "You could have just left and become free again. Was that also part of your honor code?"

"No," Rirka pouted, nuzzling up to him again. Seemed like she couldn't sleep either. "I did that because I wanted to. You really think you can make me promise you something so big and then expect me to let you run away that easily?"

"I wouldn't dream of it." Vintio smiled. It appeared that he was just as much stuck with her as she was with him. "But you really risked your neck there."

"You say that as though you wouldn't have done the same thing had it been me who got grabbed by that thing, Sir."

He couldn't deny that. He felt the cool metal of her collar brush against his skin. Vintio fell silent for a while, unsure of what to say.

"You said you saw something when you were crawling through that thing's insides. What was it?"

He could feel Rirka shudder against him, and it wasn't because it was cold. "Presumably what would have happened to you had I decided to run off. The other prisoners.. Those robed people, they cut them up on these terrible tables and put their parts in jars. It's like they're gathering a collection of some sort."

"What!?" Vintio felt even more grateful for his Kobold's intervention. He got the grim feeling that this wouldn't be their last run-in with these robed types. "I wonder what they want with all that."

"Nothing good, Sir. That's for sure."

"Come on, quit it with the 'Sir' stuff. Don't you want to take that collar off?" He started. "You've certainly earned it. It feels wrong to keep the whole slave thing up after today. I mean, I wouldn't be alive right now without you."

"You should know the answer to that by now." Rirka gave him a light punch on the arm. "I won't take this off until the day you drop dead. But since we're on the topic.."

"Hmm?"

"Why was your friend so upset when I called you Master?" She seemed genuinely curious. Vintio sighed.

"Slavery is something very illegal up here. Very illegal. Our current ruler used to be a slave himself, until he took over the old guard in some big rebellion. That was all before I was even born, but slavery has been a huge no-no ever since. Out in the Backroads anything goes, but in the cities if someone heard you call me Master with that collar on, I'd wind up dead faster than if I went up to a guard and admitted to them that I'd murdered someone."

"So.. I'm going to need to call you something else when others are around?"

"Yeah. I really should've brought this up earlier, but it just didn't come to mind."

"Well.." She pondered. "Your friend called you Vin, right? I could call you that. It's cute."

"Call me cute again and I'll make you sleep outside." He responded jokingly.

"No fair!" Rirka pouted. "You owe me, don't you? What if I wanted to call you Vin, because it's cute?"

"Fine!" Vintio blushed. "But only because I owe you, alright?"

"You should stop lying, Sir." She teased him. "Kobolds can see in the dark. And I can see you blushing."

"Alright. Go sleep outside."

"N-No, wait!" Rirka playfully hugged his arm. "I'm sorry.. Vin!"

Vintio groaned and covered his face with his hands. "J-Just fall asleep already!"

The two fell silent as they rested into sleep next to each other once again. They sincerely hoped that tomorrow would not be nearly as stressful as today was.

...

(To Be Continued)