FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Time and Space

Karkas and the minotaur fought like actual beasts, using brute strength instead of cunning strategy. Raine tried to help, but he couldn't find an opening to attack the minotaur with Karkas being thrown across the room and the minotaur, too. They were both fighting without thinking about any strategy.

The human knew how powerful and strong a minotaur was, as they were mostly used as labor slaves in parts of the region. Their strength rivalled even a crocodilian, and the fact that even Karkas, the Wanderer's powerhouse, could not gain the upper-hand, was a commendable and terrifying achievement on its own.

The fight slowly turned into something different entirely when the minotaur was disarmed by Karkas. He forcefully pulled the axe and kicked the bull away from him. But, the moment it came off the minotaur's hands, it became very heavy that Karkas struggled to lift it.

"What the fuck?" said Karkas.

"That axe belongs to me, and to me alone," said the minotaur. "You have no rights to use that."

"Well, then let's fight fair and square!"

Karkas suddenly lunged towards the minotaur, who took his hands and tried to push the crocodilian to the ground, but Karkas did not let him, and they were locked in a stalemate. Both utilized most of their muscles and their grunted and pushed each other. Raine could only watch.

"This is like a goddamn wrestling match," thought Raine. "I should try to find a way to incapacitate that bull, but what am I supposed to do? I feel like I will be intervening a fair fight."

But as a survivor in a post-apocalyptic world, Raine was trying to win and get on with it, so he enhanced his knife and tried to find a way to kill the minotaur. But then, Karkas noticed Raine's movements and exclaimed, "Don't!"

"We can't waste any more time, Karkas!"

"I have a feeling that this is a trial in itself," said Karkas while struggling. "Isn't it right, minotaur?"

"You are correct. You have passed the trial, but..."

The minotaur suddenly stopped struggling and let Karkas's strength caused him to lose balance. He then forcibly pulled Karkas's arm and hit his chest with his palm, knocking the wind out of the croc. He pulled Karkas and threw him over his shoulder to the ground while Karkas was struggling to breathe.

"You lose," said the minotaur.

"Dammit...it was a feint, huh?"

"You do not fight with strength alone. Sometimes, even if you are equal in strength, you need to tip the balance, and let the opponent wide open for a follow-up. This is very important, especially with your type of body, reptile man."

"Like I said. I'm a crocodile."

"I don't know if your race has other sub-races, but I'll let that slide. The thing you want to find is in the marble pillar. Go on."

Raine was the first to get to the pillar and opened a secret compartment camouflaged within the pillar. It was a well-preserved ancient chest. Upon opening it, Raine was baffled by the content.

While it wasn't gold, as he thought at first, it was a collection of weapons that had enchantment in them. In that time of age, enchanted weapons were far more valuable than gold, and for Raine, it was gold.

"This can fetch a lot of muns," said Raine.

"Muns? I don't understand, but I guess you don't really want gold, so I'm fine with those weapons. The axe I'm using is one of those weapons sealed within where...I guarded it."

"Guarded it? For how long?"

"Based on a clock, I guess it has been 10 years since the king locked me in here," said the minotaur. "I'm a prisoner of war, by the way."

"The only war I know do not discriminate, so I guess there are other stories around. So, you're a prisoner who test treasure hunters. Kinda weird, but eh, things have been bad since I was born anyway. Do you have anything to eat?"

"There are tons of food in this place, mostly preserved. For a minotaur like me, some vegetables are enough. But, since you have found this place, I guess the lock is no more, huh?"

"Lock?"

"This prison is called the Labyrinth due to its vast room and confusing layout. I suppose you found the direct route here through the red-carpet hint, so I guess the lock is undone. Once you go in, unless you pass the trial, you can't go out."

"But there are people who managed to escape without ever encountering the 'beast'."

"Well...the beast is me. I tried to scare them, but ended up making them lost. Anyway, let's get out of this dreadful place. I need to see the world outside. I miss it."

The three of them walked away from the room by following the dusty red carpet, while carrying the weapons in the chest. Along the way, the minotaur said, "In my culture, it is disrespectful to keep a name secret for someone who are worthy to hear it. I will give you my name. It is Asterios."

"I'm Raine, and the croc is Karkas."

"Pleased to meet you."

After a while, they reached the front area with the exit door. Raine and Karkas walked out first, then Asterios. Yet, his reaction was not of fascination, but of surprise.

"What in the gods?" said Asterios. "There is no way this prison becomes a ruin in such a short time!"

"What do you mean? It has been in ruins for a while," said Raine. "Anyway, let's get back to Diamondback's Nest before..."

"Ah! What happened to the sea?!" exclaimed Asterios. "It's black like the Underworld!"

"Hey, Asterios. Are you sure you aren't hit in the head back there?"

"You two owe me an explanation when we get to a settlement. I need answers."

They reached the nearby settlement, but when they reached the town, they were all surprised by their appearance. Some even murmured and point towards them, which made Raine thought about the weapons he was carrying with the others.

When the whispering and surprise came to the point where the three of them became curious, Raine came to the same old human he asked information about the castle. He seemed surprised, but then laughed.

"I never thought I won the bet," said the human. "And you got someone out of the place!"

"Bet?"

"It's nothing big, really. More like a bar talk. We bet that if someone comes out with the treasure within, I'll get to drink free tonight. Damn. So that's what in that place."

Raine sensed something wrong. He remembered the remark of one of the people who survived the place, and the time it took for them to get out. He then said, "How long have we been in there?"

"Hmm...about two months."

"Two months! But we were in there for half a day!"

"And why is this place such a dump?"

Many of the people turned towards him, confused as to what his remark was. The old human, similarly confused, said, "A dump? Well, everywhere's a dump nowadays. And besides...you dress like a pit fighter."

"This is my battle clothes!"

"I see. But well, the good thing is that you survived, and I get to drink my fill! Thank you!"

Still confused, even after the old human left, they walked away from the settlement and towards Diamondback's Nest. Along the way, he met a traveler from Diamondback's Nest's direction, who was using a carriage with supplies in it. Raine then asked about the settlement.

"Oh, the new settlement? I am their regular trader, so I travel back and forth. It's a good source of muns, and they are nice people, too, even if their leader is a Fa'ar."

"A Fa'ar?"

"Yeah. Young, black fur, like your typical Fa'ar. He doesn't seem to be malicious, but I prefer not to associate with him. I'm okay with it, but my town doesn't like his kind. Anyway, you three seems to be looking for work. They have a mercenary group in that town. They might want to hire you."

He then bid his goodbye and walked away whistling, confusing the three of them even more. When they reached Diamondback's Nest, however, it was something of a surprise to them.

The place was growing, as expected in their two months of absence, with simple public buildings like the post office and a trading post being the first to be fully constructed. Some permanent houses had been built, and the river beside the town was full of fishermen trying to catch some fish. What took Raine and Karkas's attentions, though, was the city center.

"Keep your heads straight when you are thrusting the spear," said the familiar voice. "Your balance is key. Without it, you won't get the most of the force, and end up getting sideways. Keep your practice and you'll succeed."

The owner of the voice, Narati, then noticed two of his friend. He excused himself and greeted the two of them. Unlike before, Narati looked more toned and less of a timid rat person they used to know. He also gained more scars, this time by his arms.

"I did tell Teldir that you'll survive. Too bad he isn't here anymore," said Narati with a smile. "Welcome back. Oh, and for the bull...welcome to Diamondback's Nest."

"What happened to you? Where is Narati?"

"He died. I'm his twin." After a while of silence, the Fa'ar made a hearty laugh and hugged Raine, then Karkas, and said, "It's good to see you again!"

"Well...I suppose so. But Nara...when did you become this...cheery?"

"Teldir's to blame. But ah, enough of that. We are still expanding the Wanderer business, but it's kinda hard if one of the leaders is a Fa'ar, so I asked Kazan to do it for me. He's out, by the way."

"No, I mean...I thought you're..."

"Oh, let me show you something!"

Narati walked towards the town's center, where there was a statue of five, each a different race. Upon seeing them, Raine and Karkas realized who they were.

"Is this...us?"

"One of the masons turned out to be a survivor of the Creolean Waters assault. He felt indebted to us, so he wanted to sculpt the original members of the Wanderers. I wanted it to be just Jek since, well, he was the one doing most of the things. But he insisted to sculpt all five of us, so there you go."

"Wow...never thought I'd be immortalized as a statue," said Karkas. "What's more surprising is how those actually look like us."

"I have a good memory, and a knack of drawing."

"So, what's with that training session?"

"I'm in charge of Teldir's students now. They don't mind if I'm young or if I'm a Fa'ar but eh, two months are not that much of a transition. I never thought things turned out to be like this. Don't get me wrong, though. I'm still playing with my explosives."

"Who's Teldir?"

"Teldir was a Fa'ar who taught me how to use the lance and...the one helping me cope."

"Is he, by any chance, a brown-furred rat?"

"You know him?"

"Where is he now? He promised us the rewards for the treasure within the castle."

"Oh, about that..."

Narati gave them a pouch of the promised muns. His face turned solemn and sad.

"He passed away...two days ago," said Narati slowly. "Before he died, he told me to keep the pouch and give it to anyone who asked for it. He assured me that...only those who asked knew what's inside the pouch."

"He passed away? I'm so sorry, Nara."

"I'm fine.... It is a loss, but...it's a good time we had."

"Are you sure you're fine? You lost two people you know in two months. I know this is an unforgiving world, but I need to be sure you're..."

"I've moved on from Jek's, and now I'm mourning Teldir. Teldir's a good company, though I can't say he's a close friend. At least he's honest. But well...now that you two are here, wanna start building your houses?"

Raine and Karkas looked at each other, then back towards Narati. Raine was the first to say, "Let's go."

The three of them walked towards the river, with Asterios in tow. Two months had passed in their short adventure, but for Raine, seeing Narati grew so much was like seeing a child grow into an adult, and he felt so satisfied that his earlier assumption about Narati was false.

Now, with the Wanderers up and running, work would come, and Jek's legacy would grow.