FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

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CHAPTER 1

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Where was I? I couldn't move and it felt like I was floating. I tried to open my eyes but my eye lids felt so heavy. I heard the slosh of water as something moved nearby. I could sense someone or something hovering over me. I tried once more to open my eyes but that was not going to happen any time soon. My entire body felt numb. I was helpless. I was completely at the mercy of the being in the water with me.

What had happened to me? Memories of the battle came back to me. I had chased Kaleb. Why had I done such a crazy thing?! Looking back I just couldn't comprehend what I had been thinking! I had gotten myself surrounded by wolves who wanted nothing more than to end my life. And they certainly tried! Knowing I wasn't going to be able to escape I had used the last of my strength to try and take as many of the wolves with me as I could. I remember the intense heat of the flames, the deafening and fang rattling explosions as barrels of their black powder ignited as a result of my flames. Had I somehow survived? Or was this place the afterlife?

Since I couldn't move or see I decided to see what information I could gather with my other senses. There was such an array of scents in the room I was having trouble separating them. The water, assuming that was what it was, felt cool and warm at the same time; keeping me at a perfectly comfortable temperature. The only sound I could hear was the soft breathing of the being hovering over me and the gentle sloshing of the water. I inhaled deeper, trying not to make it too obvious what I was trying to do.

"I think he's waking up." An unfamiliar voice. It was masculine; deep and heavy with a rough edge to it.

He had noticed! Damn!

"About time!" Another voice. This one feminine, but with an aggressive edge to it.

"Can you hear me?" The masculine voice asked.

There was no point in trying to hide it anymore. I was completely at their mercy.

"....." I tried to speak but nothing came out of my maw.

"Easy now." Another feminine voice, this one was gentle, caring. This was the voice of the fur who was in the water next to me. I heard the splash of water as they moved and then a paw came to rest on my chest. "You were badly hurt."

With each passing moment I was able to differentiate between their individual scents, although I couldn't tell whose scent was whose. The most prominent scents were strong earthy tones, the tang of metal and blood along with the scent of flowers and something I couldn't identify.

A wet cloth was rubbed gently against my eye lids. It was refreshing but left me feeling extremely vulnerable. But if they meant me any harm they wouldn't be caring for me like they were. Once the wet cloth stopped rubbing my eyes I was able to open them, blinking heavily as the world and the individual standing above me was lost in the blur of my vision.

As I blinked, desperate to clear my vision, more memories of what happened came back to me. I had been wounded, an arrow had struck my leg. But there was no pain. Medicine perhaps? Was that why my body felt so numb?

"Take it easy." The soft, caring voice of the one caring for me cooed. The wet cloth returned and washed my eyes once again. "Try opening your eyes now."

My eyes slowly opened, that simple act an effort in itself, but my vision was better this time. I looked up into the flat face of a female. I had never seen a species like hers. Furless, and yet no scales. Just a pale, smooth skin. Her cheeks were tinted a slight pink. Her snout was short and jutted out a short distance from her head. Her head fur was long, silvery white and sleek and cascaded over her shoulders like a waterfall of light It might have just been the blurriness of my vision but she almost seemed to glow.

She was strange to look at, but she was definitely pretty. Despite how strange she looked to me she was definitely attractive. Pretty in a way that only females could be. She looked at me with a kind gentleness that reminded me of my mother. I felt like I could trust her. That no harm would befall me while under her gaze.

"So he finally wakes." The aggressive female voice grunted.

I cast my gaze to my left. This female while obviously being the same species as the other was as different as they were similar. Her gaze was aggressive, dangerous and made me feel like prey. I think I would probably have felt that way even if I was at full fighting strength.

Her skin was caked in war paint. Red, black and white. I recognised the pattern of her war paint, at least part of it. It was similar to the traditional war paint designs the Rovarian wolves would use, only much more heavily done. The symbol of the deity of war; Jan'Zar.

She knelt down at the side of the pool and leaned over me. Her armour creaked like only leather could, but it didn't look like simple leather. It was more like a set of plate armour, only the plates were not made of steel. It was more organic, rougher than steel. If I had to guess it looked like bone!

"Are you sure he's the one?" She asked looking up at a male that stood behind her. As she turned her head I could see her ears. Flat against the side of her head, rounded at the base but extended into a point at the tips.

The male stared down at me with a knowing smile. He wasn't like the others, he was definitely a wolf. The biggest wolf I had ever seen! A thick brown pelt of fur covered his body. His amber eyes met mine. His gaze held no ill intent that I could tell, but it did feel as if he was staring into me, rather than at me.

"He's the one. I'm certain."

"Well I suppose if anyone was to know it would be you." The armour clad female snorted and cast a disapproving look down at me. I'm not sure what they were talking about, but it obviously involved me.

"What..." Was all I could muster, my voice breaking as I attempted to speak.

"Take it easy." The kindly female comforted me. "Here, drink." She pressed a cup to my muzzle and slowly poured a sweet liquid into my maw.

As I swallowed the cool refreshing liquid soothed my throat and then moments later a warmth began to spread outwards from my belly. Within seconds the warmth spread through my body. I could feel it moving through my body, finding its way into every fibre of my being. All the fatigue and numbness faded from my body.

As I stood in the waist deep water I looked around. The room I was in consisted of the pool, large enough to comfortably fit over a dozen furs. Around the edges of the room were large pillars that seemed to extend upwards for ever, disappearing into the darkness above us. The only light in the room seemed to come from the pool itself, but I couldn't tell how or why.

"That was amazing!" I grin, looking at my paws, clenching and unclenching them experimentally. "Thank you!"

I looked down at the female who was in the pool next to me. She slowly rose up, only coming up to my chest in height. Now I could see just how dainty and delicate she actually was. She wore a long, green flowing robe which hung heavily on her due to the water that had soaked into it from the pool we stood in.

"You are most welcome."

"So who are you?" Where am I?"

"You're dead!" The armour clad female grunted. I stared at her, panic from her words caused my heart to hammer in my chest. "Welcome to the after life!"

"WHAT!"

"Shh... calm yourself." The small female in the pool next to me cooed, gently grabbing my arm. "That's not funny Jan!" The armoured female, Jan, cackled in delight.

"So... I'm not dead?"

"No you're not." She assured me with her calming tone. "But you would have if Callen had brought you here."

I looked up at the wolf she motioned to. He gave me a slight nod of his head to confirm that this was true. He was called Callen, after the great hunter, Guardian Deity of beasts and nature.

"Why help me? Am I not your enemy?" I asked the wolf. "You were attacking Zangar!"

"I wasn't." He grunted. "But I can see why you might think that given that I currently look like a wolf."

"Currently look like?"

He nodded and made a sound that sounded like an agreement. Now I was really confused.

"Okay who the hell are you guys?! Where am I?!"

"Come with me." Callen said turning and walking away from the pool.

I glanced down at the female next to me. She nodded and motioned for me to follow. As I clambered out of the pool I realised I was naked, but this didn't seem to be a concern for anyone here so I followed without any complaint.

We walked into the shadows that surrounded the pool. It was dark but I could still see Callen ahead of me. I could hear the two females following. I was wet and it made the coolness in the tunnel almost uncomfortably cold. The pool had been much warmer than I had realised. I drew on my nen and used it to raise my body temperature.

We walked for a minute or so before a appeared light ahead. Day light. I had to shield my eyes as we emerged into the bright sun. The sun was warm, almost too warm. I quickly stopped using my nen and blinking tried to see just where I was.

Around the entrance of the cave we had just emerged from was a dense forest of trees. The scents of nature were comforting and occasionally a feral bird would call out, piercing the otherwise perfect silence of the forest.

In the distance there was a tall mountain, with a huge structure built into the side of it. I had heard of castles, but had never seen one. But the castles I had heard of never had white stone walls. It was miles away and yet I could see it clearly. It was massive! The sheer scale of it made it difficult to judge the distance.

"Well then, allow me to give you the proper welcome." Callen smiled. "My name is Callen. Behind you are my sisters, Jan'Zar and Luna."

"You're all named after Guardian Deities?!" I wrinkled my snout in curiosity.

"We can't be named after ourselves silly!" The smaller of the two females, the one with cascading white hair, who I assumed to be Luna, Guardian Deity of the Moon.

I looked from her to the other female who sneered at me. Clad in armour, her flat muzzle caked in war paint meant that she had to be Jan'Zar, Guardian Deity of war. The wolves worshipped her more than any other Guardian Deity. Her teachings taught furs how to fight honourably and avoid needless bloodshed.

"Welcome to Aaru." The wolf said.

"You're kidding me right?" I gawked. "Aaru?" Of course I had heard of Aaru. The home of Asurmen and his children; the Guardian Deities. "Is this some sort of joke?"

"Nothing of the kind." Luna assured me. "You are in Aaru. Our home."

"So you guys... you really are..."

"Yes!" Jan'Zar, the Guardian Deity of war, snapped impatiently.

"Wh- why am I here?"

"You are hear because you need to be." Callen answered. "We have been watching you for a long time Malakye."

"How do you know my name?"

"This is not the first time we have met." He grinned. "Although I didn't look as I did now."

"You..." He had mentioned earlier something about being able to change his appearance. "When..."

"That doesn't matter." He cut me off. "What does matter is the reason you are here."

"Okay. I'm listening."

"You are here because you are a k'tan*."

"I know that I'm a k'tan." I said. "But I don't understand why being a k'tan has brought me here!"

"No... you really don't." Callen sighed. "I apologise for being so vague, I forgot that you are special."

"What do you mean special?" I asked, not sure if he was making fun of me.

"Can we get on with this?" Jan'Zar huffed. "You are k'tan of both races! Both Zangarian and wolven!"

"What?!" I scoffed. That was just too unreal.

"It's true." Callen assured me. "I'm sure you are aware of the stories about how all wolven k'tan are brought to Aaru to be given training."

"Sure. Those stories are well known, even amongst other species." I nodded. "When a wolf proves themselves worthy of Asurmen's blessing, they are stolen away in the night to Aaru. Where they receive their power and trained to use it."

"Well... that's not entirely accurate. The thing is there are just as many wolven k'tan as there are Zangarian k'tan."

"That's not true!" I exclaimed. "The only wolven k'tan alive today is Zaraki Kamir!" I argued.

"No. Wolves are just unaware of their abilities. For good reason." Callen declared. His tone made it clear he was being deadly serious about what he was saying. "You've heard the stories of wolves disappearing suddenly, in many cases never to be seen again. Some return a k'tan."

"Yeah... "

"We only bring them here if their power is a danger to themselves and the entire mortal realm!"

Did that mean that I to posed such a danger that they had brought me here?

"I'm sorry to tell you this Malakye, but you are possessed by a powerful spirit! If left unchecked then there is a strong possibility that it will eventually take you over completely, and then use you're body to cause chaos and untold horrors to the mortal realm!"

"We can not allow such a thing!" Luna declared.

"We are duty bound to ensure it causes no harm to the mortal realm!" Callen clarified.

Possessed? Harm to the mortal realm? What the hell was he talking about?

"I don't..."

"Understand?" Callen cut me off, finishing my sentence for me. I nodded. "Then tell me Malakye. Have you been having nightmares?"

"Yes." I had been having nightmares for a long time now. Ever since Rose...

"And have you had any nightmares, or visions of things that weren't there while you're awake?"

"N..." I was about to say no, but there was that time when I walked to the mine with Kassandra. I woke up passed out in front of the mine after having some sort of dream. "I might have." I admitted.

"Sudden bursts of violent rage accompanied by a surge of strength?"

There were several occasions when that had happened. Zangar when Rose was killed. Rengilar during the wolven attack. When I pursued Kaleb through the Eastern gate... I hadn't been able to control myself. And each time I was aware of the intense strength coursing through me, but I had never stopped to consider where that strength had come from. I simply nodded in response to his question.

"They are classic signs of possession. Your mental barriers are slowly breaking down under the attack of the spirit within you."

"But when did I become possessed?"

"It's impossible to tell." He admitted. "The time it takes for your mental barriers to fade depend on the will power of the individual and the strength of the spirit. For all we know you started having nightmares the moment you were possessed, or possible you've been possessed since you were a cub."

"So assuming I understand this. You have taken me here in order to remove the spirit from me?"

"That may be possible, so long as the possession hasn't progressed to far. But it's a difficult and dangerous procedure without a skilled shaman. Something which we don't have here in Aaru. But if your symptoms have progressed so far it is likely the spirit has already bonded with you. It is as much a part of you now, as you are of it."

I looked down at my chest and pressed a paw over my heart. As if somehow I could feel the spirit there. Was this still my body, or did it already belong to the spirit? It was hard to believe that I was possessed, but what he said made sense. It explained a lot. In particular my nightmares.

"Ultimately, we are here to protect the mortal realm from you!" Jan'Zar grunted aggressively.

"True. " Callen agreed. "But we will teach you how to suppress the spirit, so it poses no risk to you or others. Perhaps if you have the ability to do so, you will be able to use the spirits power for yourself."

"Is that what happened to Zaraki Kamir?" I asked, very aware of the fact that I was referring to Kaleb's father.

"Yes." He confirmed.

"Even if you don't learn how to control the spirit, and only learn how to suppress it you can still go back and continue to live a normal life." Shal'Naresh assured me.

That sounded nice. I had finally found a place where I could truly be myself in Zangar. A place where no one cared that I was part wolf. Sure there had been a few instances at first, but they quickly disappeared. If anyone still held a grudge against me for being part wolf they kept it to themselves, for one reason or another.

One reason of course was the fact of who my father was. The ruler of Zangar. I can't think of anyone who would openly oppose the leader of their community. Discarding the fact that he was actually the leader of Zangar, there was also his skill as a bender. He was one of two grand-master ranked benders, and Callidus Valelor, my fathers best friend and the other grand-master, had said that Kaldor was the most powerful fire bender in generations! Say what you may about Callidus. He was dismissive, cold and uncaring at times. But he was smart, honourable and not someone prone to exaggeration.

"But if you aren't able to suppress the spirit..." Callen said hesitantly.

"What?"

"We'll kill you!" Jan'Zar spat with all the seriousness that was possible. I felt a cold shiver run down my spine at the sheer willingness of her intention to kill me.

"Now Jan, no need to scare the poor drake." Luna scolded her sister. "This is a lot for anyone to take in."

"N-no... it's fine." I spluttered nervously before sighing. "It's best if I know this going in."

"Hooo!" Jan'Zar grinned. "Now that is an impressive attitude!"

"I've lived most of my life in fear, worrying that today would be the day that some wolf finally decided to kill me!" I took a deep breath and stared at the Deity of War with as much confidence as I could muster. Despite the overwhelming fear that was tightening my chest. "I will succeed!"

"You're an interesting one." She smirked.

"So when do we start?" I asked.

"Right now." Callen answered. "We shall set up camp."

"How does setting up camp help to train me?" I asked as I followed the large wolf into the woods.

"It is necessary for survival. And it helps you to focus when you have a task to complete." The big wolf smiled. "The next few days will be about allowing you to acclimatise to Aaru, and allow you to center yourself." Callen explained looking over his shoulder at me.

"Aaru may be depicted as a paradise in the mortal realm." Jan'Zar snorted behind me. "But there are plenty of things in this place that can kill you."

"Really?"

"Why do you think wolf butt over there is known as the Deity of Beasts?"

"Uh... I..."

"Because he has learned how to commune with them!" She snapped. "He also knows how to hunt them!"

Now that I did know. Assuming that this truly was the Guardian Deity Callen, the Deity of Beasts, who was also known as the protector of the forest. The master hunter. He was known by many titles. I don't know why I was still doubting who they claimed to be. Maybe because this whole situation was just so incredibly surreal! I was still convinced that I was going to wake up at any moment. They led me to a small clearing where there was a large rock, its surface smooth and cool under paw. In the center of the massive where a fire pit was located, the burnt earth surrounded by a ring of stones.

"This is one of several warded sites here in Aaru." Callen explained as he turned to face me. He pointed to one of the nearby trees and I could see a symbol of some sort was carved into it. "It's an ancient and powerful magic. So long as you reside within this circle no harm can befall you. Even Jan'Zar couldn't hurt you."

I turned to look at the Deity of War. She looked rather pissed off. Or rather, more angry than she normally looked. I looked back at the symbol carved into the tree trunk. The symbol was simple and yet complex... and the more I looked at it the harder it was to make it out, almost as if it were constantly changing shape. All around the the perimeter of the clearing these symbols were carved on the trunks of the trees. All of them the same and yet different from one another.

"How do they work?"

"The wards... well that's complicated. Simply put, you can not intentionally harm anyone or anything, and they you, so long as either of you stand within the protection of the wards." Callen smiled.

"That's not really simple... I'm a little confused." I admitted.

"No matter." Callen waved his paw dismissively. "You are safe here. That is all you need to know."

"Okay..." I glanced back at Jan'Zar who had stopped snarling at me and was obviously having an argument with her sister a short distance away. They were too far away for me to make out what they were saying. "So I'm safe, but how do they protect..."

There was a flash of movement out of the corner of my eye, I started to spin round to see what it was only to see the vicious snarl of Jan'Zar as she thrust her spear at my chest. There was no time to react! A flash of light and the immanent impalement forced my eyes shut. I stood stock still, waiting for the pain, but it never came. Confused I slowly opened my eyes. Hovering in the air a couple of inches away from my chest was one of those glyphs on the trees, this one glowed brightly, flickering through colours fast than I could possibly hope to name them. The tip of the spear was pressed up against the glyph.

"As you can see the wards protect anyone within the barrier from physical harm." Callen pointed out.

With a grunt Jan'Zar retracted her spear, the glyph disappeared a moment later. To my surprise the spear Jan'Zar held vanished into thin air. Amused by my expression of shock and surprise Jan'Zar chuckled before turning away and stalking off into the forest.

"Where is she going?"

"She's going to catch dinner while we set up camp." Luna answered.

There was a lot to do in order to get the camp ready. Firewood to be gathered. Shelters to be built, sleeping mats to be made. I helped in gathering the materials we would need in order to build our camp. With the forest it was easy to get branches big enough to build simple structures, and to gather firewood. I knew how to make a fire of course, I had learned how to do that with a flint a long time ago when my mother was still alive, but Callen did it in a way I had never seen before, using two sticks in order to generate enough heat to ignite the kindling we had gathered. When he noticed me watching he beckoned me closer with a warm smile, and began teaching me the technique.

By the time we had gotten the fire going, and had finished constructing our shelters for the night, the sun was getting low. Jan'Zar suddenly appeared with supper. I hadn't seen an animal like them before. She had four small scaly creatures with long ears and long tails. I helped to gut them and then we put them on sticks to cook over the camp fire.

They tasted pretty good. The meat was succulent and tender, and I had been hesitant about not skinning them, unsure about eating the scales, but roasted over the fire had made them go crispy and gave them a satisfactory crunchiness when I bit into them.

After I finished eating the need for sleep washed over me suddenly. I excused myself and crawled into one of the shelters, we had made them large enough to fit two, the wooden frame covered in large, waxy leaves. I lay upon a mat made of yet more leaves, offering some comfort and protection from the cold stone the camp was built upon. Callen had said that we would make some more substantial mats when we had more time, ones that would not need replacing so frequently.

Once I had found a comfortable position on the rustling mat of leaves I closed my eyes and waited to drift off to sleep. While I waited my mind went to thoughts of home. I had been so busy I hadn't had a moment to just think today. Everyone thought I was dead, didn't they? I hope that I'd be able to go home soon, or at least send a message to let them know that I was alive and well. But since they said they would be teaching me survival skills I doubt I'd be going anywhere anytime soon.