FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The banshee's howl from the storm raged outside as Oddclaw sat in the Dry Mountain cave along with Moonclaw and the newcomer Freya. The large warmblooded rodent was only a foot shorter than him as she checked over her helm in its slight scuffled marks.

"A dragoon...night?" replied Odd. "What is that?"

"An elite member of the Burmecian army," she said cautiously thumbing along what she thought was a crack, "tell me what is the name of this world?"

"Name? ...I...I do not think we have a name for it, not all of it."

"No?"

"I think the humen called it...Urth, yes Urth, they call it that."

"Huh..." she looked up after placing her helm to her side, "did you say humans?"

"Yes," he replied nodding.

"Are they nearby?"

"No, they are across the sea. I can call them on the ray-dee-oh, you must meet them."

"Why?"

"They are uhm...word..." He struggled to remember something before turning towards Moonclaw to ask in his primal speech. "Aaaagh what is the word hairless use for learning something?!"

"I do not know!" she argued huffing her nostrils in disbelief. "You are the only one of us that speaks their language it all sounds the same to me!"

"Well I am sorry that I had faith in your intelligence moonwatcher!"

"Oh shut up fruiteater."

Freya put a hand on her spear just in case a fight would break out between the two irritable raptors until Oddie turned back towards the dragoon.

"I am sorry," said Oddclaw pinching his snout, "we have not slept and this night is awful."

"It is fine," said Freya calmly, "are you two family?"

"No, she is my mate."

"Ahh...of course." She nodded with a silent smirk. "Only family and lovers would use such tones with each other."

"What about your stoo-dint?" asked Oddclaw. "Is he family?"

"No, he is a friend...of sorts, I instruct him in the ways of the dragoon in order to strengthen his resolve and teach him on the merits of patience."

"Ahh, you teach him how to hunt."

"In a sense. His name is Oberon, I have been teaching him for the past fifteen years."

"Why are you teaching him if he is not family?" asked the raptor rubbing his head.

"I knew his father well," said the Burmecian pressing her shoulder against the cave wall, "he entrusted me to be his son's mentor after he passed away knowing of my repute."

"You are a friend of his family."

"I have known Oberon since he was a child yes."

"So why did he fight you?"

"I do not know. Lately he has been vexed by strange dreams that claim will lead him towards some great prophecy. He has suffered sleepless nights, and more often than not has spoke to me of whispering voices that mock him. I am fearful that some form of hex has been put on him."

"A...hecks?" asked Oddclaw squinting.

"It is...a poison of the mind," she replied cautiously pushing her hair past her flickering ear, "caused by unknown methods."

"Not poison from plants or fish?"

"No."

"Then we will find him. I do not how to heal a hecks but-"

"I ask only that we subdue him and keep him alive until we find some means of returning home."

"The humen will know how to send you home," said Oddclaw with a gentle bow. "I will speak with them after we find your friend."

"Thank you," she nodded back with a small relief, "I appreciate such eagerness to help a wayward traveller."

"I help all travellers to our world, but only the nice ones."

He smiled showing all his teeth before remembering to close his lips. Freya cocked her head at this odd restraint until the sound of clanking feet came from the stormy mouth of the cave, showing a silhouetted figure with broad-brimmed hat.

"Stonevoice!" Oddclaw turned to the robot approaching with sleekest trail of rainwater dragging in. "Did you find him?"

"I could not find him," said Dronin morosely, "he was surprisingly swift and evaded me in the midst of the forest, but I surmise that he has travelled west and out onto the plains."

"Hopefully he will not be so foolish to let the lightning strike him," replied Freya with hand placed against her cheek, "I must find him, the more time I waste the more he-NNNGH!"

As she stood up, her leg bent itself against her will as the raptor rushed over to smell blood seeping from her leg.

"OH, you are hurt!"

"It is fine."

"No I must heal you! I will need some things, please stay here while I get them."

"My student needs my help!"

"If you do not help yourself first you cannot help him!" He turned to Moonclaw as he left the cave. "Make sure she does not leave, I have to find plants to heal her."

"Alright."

She nodded as her mate left the safety of the cave and out into the wild storming forest whilst she kept an eye on Freya. Dronin also stood watch against the torrid rain, dashing against the rocks whilst lightning twisted and snapped the forest asunder by parting trees and splitting trunks in half, charring leaves into ashen cinders that became flecks of mud, a funereal cremation in segmented griefs. Every striking glint of light cast half their faces in shadow as Moonclaw spoke to the mantis.

"Am I being selfish?"

"Of what?" he replied unmoving.

"To not want to be patronised by Oddclaw's mother, whilst also allowing this lie between us to exist?"

"Your desire to be respected comes at a price Moonclaw. If you so wish to deceive his family for the sake of hiding your true self, you must bear the weight of your false."

"What do you mean?" She turned towards him curious.

"Are you truly upset by Barren's offer of kindness, or are you upset at yourself for deceiving her kindness undeserving?"

"I...hmmm..." She leaned her head back against the wall sighing with small frustration. "I do not know. I am...I am perhaps...no, I wish I could tell you."

"I know not of what truth you hide, only that Oddclaw has sworn his honour to keep that between you and him. But it will do neither of you good to force your anger upon him for what you are unable to speak of."

Dronin sat himself down close to her in the lotus position, seeing that Freya had relaxed herself to not make any move towards escape.

"I have sensed from your words that you feel undeserving of this family, of Oddclaw by your side and a future with them. Perhaps your anger is towards yourself for this truth that I am not aware of, and the first thing you must do is forgive yourself."

"I cannot do that," said Moonclaw coldly. "Oddclaw does not forgive me, so why should I?"

"Then seek forgiveness. Do kindness unto others like that you have done before with Oddclaw on his journey. Perhaps by assisting this starbeast to find her tormented friend."

"I will do so if she asks," her reply came a little too swift and snappy, "I appreciate what you say but I am tired now so please forgive me if I wish to rest my head."

"Of course," said Dronin with a bow and sweep of his hand, "rest for a moment, I will keep watch over the starbeast."

"Thank you."

The raptor sighed with frustration as she laid herself down fully to close her eyes for a moment, drifting off into a short nap as the robot stood up to block the doorway and face towards Freya.

"I have never seen a machine such as you," she said glancing her eyes across his visage.

"I was formerly a badnik," explained Dronin, "but now I am merely a guardian for the tribe that lives here."

"I first thought you were an armoured beast...but I saw no separations in your armour from which to disrobe."

"I am fully automatic, with solar-powered helm and a fine steel chassis reliant on speed rather than strength."

"I am...hmmm." She lifted herself up slightly whilst keeping her wounded leg off the ground in a gentle hop to look at him closely. "Not remotely-controlled then?"

"I am my own master," replied the robot humbly with curtsy.

"I have known golems similar to that of you, autonomous but magic-based, never mechanical."

"Golems? I do not know that term."

"Normally they are soulless creatures that are sculpted from mist...but despite their masters' wishes they too develop their own ambitions."

"I have no ambition, other than that desire to be free that all sentient creatures wish to be."

"That was more my intent of meaning yes," she nodded with hand to her chin in ponderment whilst standing perfectly balanced on her one good leg. "How did you come upon this tribe?"

"I befriended Oddclaw's brother," explained Dronin, "when an island from my world was sent here and after I aided him in rescuing his sisters from a menacing thief, I so chose to live here in his world alongside several others of my kin who now reside at the human base."

"I see. Forgive me if this sounds rude, but are they as sentient as you?"

"Yes. All of us former badniks are sentient to an organic standard with varying degrees of eloquence."

"Hmhmhmhm, really? The golems I knew spoke rather well with little variation between."

"For us it was more a 'quirk' of our programming more than intent. But then one can argue that all personalities are simply 'quirks' of programming in the birth of life. I speak therefore I am."

"Hahahaha that is true," she said smiling with the back of her hand to her lips.

At that moment Oddclaw returned with a small bundle of moss and vines soaking wet, his body dripping down to his slender shaft which Freya politely looked away from.

"I have things for your bleeding," he said happily.

"Ah thank you," replied Freya kindly, "what must I do?"

"Sit down and I will put them on you."

With a hop back towards her stone seat the dragoon put up her foot as Oddclaw applied the moss to her wound. Grasping her long clawed toes to steady the leg he soon wrapped his vine around the mossy clump that he applied to the cut. It felt soft and cool against her warm fur now red with staunching ichor.

"There, the plant will stop the blood coming out of your wound and let you heal."

"Ahhh, a poultice," she commented, "I appreciate all that you have done in the short space we have known each other, but we must find Oberon as soon as possible."

"It is too dangerous to travel at night," said Dronin with a raised hand, "if your friend is wise he will find a place to sleep until morning."

"I fear that he is in no state to be wise for anything, hence my urgency to seek him out before the dawn."

"Your friend will be alright," said Oddclaw reassuring, "you can sleep here and we will leave tomorrow as soon as we can. Would that be alright?"

"Yes. I will see you tomorrow then, if you are offering assistance to be a guide."

"I am, Freya. I want to find your friend safe too. Goodnight."

"Sleep well."

Freya slowly hobbled herself over towards the back of the cave and laid herself down on the smoothest section of floor. The two raptors left with Dronin to head back towards the Hunter's Nest where the rest of the raptors still slept, or tried to amidst the thunder and lightning. As they scaled down the short mountain Moonclaw took this chance to speak once again to her assumed mate.

"I am sorry for my anger before. I know your family mean well, I had no right to speak out like that."

"It is fine," he said gently licking across her cheek, "I understand you are frustrated but I am here for you."

"Even when I still choose to not become a mother since I first told you of my family?"

"I am here for you," repeated Odd. "Now let us go sleep, we are tired and tomorrow we shall be better."

"Yes..."

She did not sound convinced but they said nothing more as they rejoined the family and hunkered down into the damp grassy forest and curl up against each other's bodies. The night was furious with tormenting thunder and baleful lightning until morning came at last, the clouds parting briefly to deliver a softened spate of torrential showers as the raptors stayed hiding out under the trees. Some of the hatchlings went out and played in the rain, splashing around muddy puddles and dancing between raindrops, whilst Oddclaw explained their latest visitor's dilemma to his leader before attempting to contact the human base.

Freya woke up early, waiting for the raptor to return in not wanting to approach his tribe and startle them as she tested her healing leg. Sore but healing, the moss having done its task well in staunching the bloodflow and giving her skin a chance to coagulate.

"Good morning," said Oddclaw climbing up amidst the downpour.

"Well met," she replied. "How are things?"

"I spoke with my leader, he wishes to speak to you. I brought you something to help." He brought out a small collar with what appeared to be a pale oval shape on its front. "The humen made a tra-...tranzzz-lay-ter, if you wear it on your neck we can un-derstand you."

"I see. Do the humans study you?"

"We are friends and we protect this world, I had to tranzzz-late for the humen but now I do not have to because of this."

She took it from him to study its hard smooth surface and clasping attachment to allow a variety of neck girths. Gently fitting it upon her throat, she heard it beep in registering as Oddclaw made a test.

"Can you understand me?" he asked in his primal tongue.

"Huh! Yes...what a curious device this thing is, and surprising comfort."

"Good! Can you come with me and speak to the Alpha?"

"Of course." She braced herself "But what about the humans, did you contact them?"

"The speakstone is not working," he said with regret slowly scaling down the slippery rocks, "the skyfire silences it, that is what the hairless have told me before."

"Are the stormclouds so impenetrable as to defy your long-distance device?"

"That is what they tell me before yes. I am sorry."

"Then we must go alone."

Travelling through the forest amongst mud-slick leaves and dampened logs beneath dripping trees of warm muggy heat, Freya resisted the energy-sapping moisture as Oddclaw got a proper look of her in the daylight. Her eyes were a bleak turquoise as lines of distressed fur had seeped into her cheeks belying her approach to middle age. The raptors chirred and sniffed at her curiously, but she strode with confident steps without fear knowing how beasts could sense her emotions, grasping her spear with calm firm fingers as she approached the Alpha.

"Are you the Starbeast that Oddclaw speaks of?" he began.

"Yes." She knelt in reverence with head bowed respectfully. "My name is Freya Crescent, my student has disappeared in a fit of madness and I must seek him out before he succumbs even worse."

"I understand. Before we would not have agreed to give starbeasts our time, but considering how they come with every greatmoon, it is inevitable. I will allow Oddclaw to accompany you on your journey, along with two others he shall choose but that is all I can offer you."

"Thank you great leader." She bowed deeper to almost touch her nose to the soil. "Your kindness and wisdom is reflected well amongst your people."

"Hmhmhm...I am glad to see even warmbloods know respect and order. Our scouts saw a beast that resembled you with a longstone running towards the Jaws of the Earth."

"What is that?"

"The great deep stone from which many creatures have fallen to their deaths. But when the greatmoon appeared before, the starbeasts who arrived before you had made a path around the Jaws which allow any beast to travel through."

"Then we shall find him there. Thank you."

"Go, and be safe amongst the plains."

With that they took leave of his presence, Oddclaw heading to his family with new companion in tow as the raptor introduced Freya to them properly, except for Dronin and Barkclaw who were away elsewhere whilst the anthro explained his new task.

"At this rate you will have more friends than you have family!" said Barren chuckling. "And to think they are all not even hunters!"

"Is that a bad thing?" he replied.

"Only if they are good friends."

"I thank you for your patience," said Freya easing her stance with spear over her shoulder, "I understand this is a most unusual acquaintance."

"We have known beasts more odd than you, Longstone. How far will you travel?"

"As far as we must, hopefully not too long, the sooner we find my student the better."

"Agreed. But I do hope you are not going alone just the two of you."

"No," said Oddclaw stepping forwards shaking his head, "I wanted to ask if I could bring two of our family."

"ME ME!" shrieked Sand jumping up.

"I WANNA GO ADVENTURE!" cried Leaf stomping in mud. "C-can we Oddie, huh?!"

"After what happened on the island?!" cried Eggfang. "The only use you have is staying here where WE can keep an eye on you."

"It wasn't our FAULT Eggy, yer just jealous cuz you never got a shiny!"

"I don't CARE about your worthless stones!"

"I will come with you." Moonclaw stood up firmly to meet both Freya and Oddclaw's gaze. "As the hunters to have welcomed you, I think it only fair."

"And to keep an eye on your mate," said Barren proudly, "do not become like I was even before you have children!"

"Hmph. Agreed."

"I would love for you to come with us," said Oddclaw smiling with a lift in his chest, "thank you Moonclaw."

"Pffffft, typical," whined Sand slumping back into the dirt, "picking his mate over his own sisters."

"But, we need someone who knows of what lies beyond the Jaws of the Earth. Her friend may have gone beyond it."

"I will come then." Fishclaw appeared to their side from the direction of his own family. "If you must reach the other side, you will need a scout who remembers that way."

"F-fishclaw? Are you sure?"

"Wh-what about your family?!" asked Barren. "You cannot leave your mate and children!"

"My children are old enough to fend for themselves, I have told Shadetooth and she understands."

"Understand!? No, this is absurd, Oddclaw and Moonclaw can leave together but I will not allow a father to-"

"I have my OWN family, mother. And we make our own decisions, that and I do not plan on dying so far away from home especially when I have my greatest brother with me."

The older raptor nuzzled and licked Oddclaw's snout bringing a warmth to both their faces as Odd replied:

"Thank you Fishclaw, I would love for you to guide us."

"What about Eggfang?!"

"I cannot," said the oldest sister leaning over a log, "because I have at last managed to find a mate and I will not leave him."

"WHAT?!"

"WHAAAAT!?" Both mother and younger sisters gasped in shock much to her look of disbelief.

"What, I am a female, I have needs!"

"YOU have a mate?!" squeaked Leaf. "What you do, ride his cock when he was sleeping?!"

"THIS is exactly why I did not tell you before, he is a strong and clever hunter whom I have spent the past cycle with."

"And who IS he then?!" challenged Sandrunner with snout stabbing towards her. "How come we've never met him?!"

"Because he is not part of the tribe yet, if you bothered to come hunting with me then you would have met him!"

"GH-UH-BUH...MOTHER!"

"She is right," conceded Barren with a sighing slump of her shoulders, "had you gone hunting you would have, instead of playing all day like hatchlings. Well I cannot force my daughter to leave her mate from our family growing, especially if it is new blood like Moonclaw."

"Then it is settled," said Oddclaw finalising with arms crossed, "Moonclaw and Fishclaw come with us."

"Forgive me but," Freya lifted a long finger that drew their eyes, "I expected Stonevoice would be joining us after the night before."

"He wanted to stay and look after my brother Barkclaw. You have not met him, he gets lonely and easily frightened."

"Ah, I see."

"If we are leaving soon I should tell Barkclaw, would you like to come Freya?"

"Yes, let us go."

Introducing the newcomer to Barkclaw, Dronin and Oddclaw eased him to her presence as the anthro explained to his brother the new mission whilst the two were hunkered down amidst a large broken tree to keep dry, which was also where Oddclaw had stashed his radio and weapons.

"How many days until you return?" asked Barkclaw.

"I am not sure," said his brother whilst slipping on his new gun's holster from Angel Island cloth and vines, "let us say six-and-one, it will be a long journey."

"Okay. Be careful."

"I will."

Oddclaw gave him a gentle hug round his neck whilst Bark nuzzlelicked him several times on both cheeks, before the anthro shook Dronin's hand as the robot gave a bow to Freya.

"I apologise for us not spending more time."

"It is fine," said the burmecian with a kind nod, "we have our duties and once we return I would be delighted to speak more with you."

"It is a date, as others would say my good madame."

"Hmhmhmhm, I am already taken!"

"Ah, then they are the luckiest lover in your world surely."

"I would hope...hm, farewell Stonevoice."

The knight headed out of the forest with three raptors accompanying, the rain continuing with a light patter across the plains whilst the lake turned into a wavelength of scattered droplets, shelling fractions into ripples as the warming waters of the sky gleamed off their backs. The scouts on the edge of the Hunter's Nest wished them good luck and gave final directions for their target still heading west.

The cool moist grass gave a wet slickness to their bare feet, trudging between the soft blades and gentle slippery mud that smeared out between their toes. The sky was clouded by dull silver winds gasping from the Skylands from whence not a single beast came.

"That is a sad thing to see," said Oddclaw.

"What?" asked Fishclaw looking up with him.

"There are no flyers. Not one. If they were here I would ask them to find Longstone's friend."

"Hmhmhmhm...how you have changed."

"What?"

"Cycles ago you would have despised the sight of them in the sky."

"I learned to better myself, thanks to a good friend."

He turned towards Moonclaw who smiled proudly with a knowing nod. Freya peered briefly at the sky whilst raindrops lashed across her helmet, trickling down the slanted waterproof cloth that covered the steel barbut beneath as Moonclaw decided to ask:

"I am surprised a warmblood such as you does not hide from the rain."

"I was born within a kingdom of rain," she began with eyes half-blinkered against the weeping winds, "a realm of eternal downpour where I so lived and one day I shall hope to die peacefully to the lullaby I have known since birth...the sound of droplets against my window."

"Your world forever rains?" The grey raptor shook her head in disbelief. "How awful to never know warmth from the sun on dry grass."

"Not all of it is rain, just my home, there are occasions where the storm of Burmecian nights can get a little too much which is why I so travelled with my student."

They reached the end of their territory as Fishclaw surveyed the tall-grass plains with a cautious sniff of the wind. The fresh water caused the land to shimmer like silken jade beneath a grey sky, an ever-constant threat of storms giving the air a tense feeling. Would any of the raptors have hair it would be standing on edge, but Freya seemed to be at ease moreso than before as she watched the red-backed feral scout ahead in sniffing the dirt.

"Same scent as Longstone...he went this way."

"Be cautious." Oddclaw pulled out his weapon from its holster on his back.

"Why did you choose the starfire?" asked Moonclaw tilting her head at him.

"It can only kill stonebeasts," he replied factually, "for other beasts it will only wound them without bleeding, so if we are forced to fight Longstone's friend he will not be harmed."

"How diplomatic of you," said Freya with a kind nod, "I am grateful for your consideration."

"But if we face greater beasts," added Fishclaw with a grimace, "you have crippled your strength in not choosing the other fire."

"Our teeth and claws together are enough," replied Odd.

"Plus my spear," said the knight with cautious twirl of her length in mid-walk, "from the skies it shall pierce through even the toughest beast from sheer gravity alone."

"Like what your friend did when fighting you Longstone?"

"Yes. Speaking of which..." the dragoon eased her grip on sensing no threats in the vicinity, "I admit I am intrigued at your language. The fact that my name seems to translate to "longstone" is amusing."

"It is not a name," explained Oddclaw in English, "we do not have names in my tribe, we name ourselves after what makes us different from others."

"Such as?"

"I am Oddclaw, because of my odd claws. You are Longstone, because you wield a long thin stone."

"Ah, my spear?" She looked upon its glinting cold steel and nodded. "I understand, you are named after qualities."

"Yes."

"You are able to speak a language of the modern world and yet one of ancient times. I have thought only scholars could do such."

"Would that make me a skoh-lurr?"

"Well, do you read a lot of books?" she asked with a gentle hop onto a large stone to survey the land.

"Yes!" he chirped excitably. "At the human base I read lots of books!"

"Hah, then you are a scholar true as they come! Do you know how to swim Oddclaw?"

"No, I do not."

"Ah, a pity. There was a place I knew back in my world far beyond the sea that housed some of the world's greatest books. Some of the rarest too."

"I would love to read those."

"Even with that throatstone I still cannot understand some of the babble warmbloods speak," said Moonclaw muttering behind their backs.

"I think only Oddclaw knows truly," said Fishclaw in tandem beside her, "speaking of which I am glad to see the two of you have mated."

"It was difficult...and it still is."

"But your love is there for him, and his love is there too. That makes every struggle worth it."

"How did you meet your mate?" she asked with head fully turned to him.

"She loves fish!" He swerved to lean closer with a devious grin. "The only female I ever met who turned moist from the scent."

"HmhmHAH, are you serious?!"

"Oh yes, she first approached me when I was hunting at the lake, smelt the blood of the fish upon my snout and hmhmhmhm, I shared it with her. Day after day she wanted me to teach her, and now I have three-and-two children."

"Well I am glad to hear that went well for you."

"There!"

The burmecian pointed towards a small flash of green that did not match the shade of the verdant grass. The sight of a small brown pip bobbing towards the west confirmed their suspicions as the wind carried on westwards.

"I cannot catch his scent," said Fishclaw, "but its body resembles yours."

"It's him," she said wrapping fingers round her staff, "we must approach him carefully, if we try to face him all direct we shall cause him to attack or flee."

"Do you have a strategy for this?"

"I do. Oddclaw, how many rounds does your weapon have?"

"One," he replied, "its fire is never gone but it needs a few moments before it is ready again."

"Then I have a plan."

Staggering through the grass which became longer the further he went, the young burmecian shivered with ragged breaths as the rain dripped thick from his auburn helm.

"Sh-sh-she can't. she can't, she doesn't kn-know!"

"Why doesn't she know?"

He turned to see the voice sitting against a large earthen mound slippery with mud, a large swollen bump that deformed the land amidst blades of grass at verdant dawn. Another burmecian even younger than him with the body of a child, sitting in rag-fettered clothes as a teasing smirk crossed his pudgy brown snout.

"She's YOUR master now, why wouldn't she know about it?!"

"B-because she can't! She can't th-there's NO WAY she could!"

"You really think the Lady Freya, hero of the Burmecian Knights who fought in the great war of 1800, wouldn't KNOW about your thing?!"

"SH-SHUT UP!" shrieked Oberon. "SHUT UP YOU BRAT, YOU KEEP FOLLOWING ME EVEN HERE, WH-WHAT IS YOUR DEAL!?"

"I got no DEAL," said the youth leaning back with hands behind his head, "I'm what you call aaaaa...sorta valet. Someone to keep you clean, keep your head remindin' of all the stuff you did so it teaches ya sumthin', yanno you really oughta do better considering who ya come from."

"You're nothing!" He swung his spear out towards the kid. "You, are nothing but a little bastard and you KNOW IT, now gimme one good reason so I don't stab you through your smug little prickface!"

"Cuz then she'll do even worse."

The boy pointed towards a rustling in the green to his left, hearing the sound of bare clawed feet and a voice calling out his name.

"Oberon!? Oberon are you there?!"

"Shit!" he whispered with shaking grip. "Listen, you gotta distra-...oh, you've gotta be shitting me."

He snarled with gritting teeth seeing his friend had abandoned him before turning towards Freya's direction. The red burmecian cloak was easy to see as she parted the grass like curtains with her hand outwards in a steady approach towards her pupil in a sea-green coat.

"Are you...are you alright?"

"I thought...I TOLD you, to leave me alone."

"Oberon, please I know you are suffering from something-"

"It is MY problem Freya, I told you, I keep telling you and you just WON'T, LISTEN!"

"Because it is my duty as a knight to protect my people, and so it is yours too!" She walked closer with her left hand holding her spear behind her. "I do not want to hurt you. I am not angry with you for our fight the night before, I know that your mind is suffering."

"M-my, mind is NOT suffering," said Oberon with struggling conviction from his rattled teeth. "I don't want your help, I don't NEED your help, what part of that don't you get?!"

"It is one thing to not accept help, but fleeing the city the way you did was the part I do not get."

"B-because, y-you're all plotting against me!" The student swung out his spear as an autumn-coloured staff with a long curved rusted blade at its tip. "You...you think I can't be next, th-that I can't do what everyone thinks of me!"

"No I believe you can," she insisted gazing at his spear, "I did not train you just so I would not believe you."

"N-no, no y-you...you only wanted to see my weakness, the things I always f-failed, to do in combat."

"I would think that unlikely, considering how well you fought against me the night before."

"B-because I'm my OWN burmecian!" He thrust the blade forwards in threatening her cool unchanging face. "I'm not s-some, some loser SON to fill a hole in your damn heart!"

"I only meant you were LIKE a son to me," she insisted with one hand still out in peaceful mean, "I did not mean that literally, I only care about you."

"No you don't! You only care about the damn kingdom!"

"Do you not care about your home, the one that fed you, clothed you, kept you safe and sheltered?!"

"It was a FUCKING CAGE! Gilded, f-fucking gilded everywhere, statues of them, all of them staring down at me, n-never, saw anyone sm-sm-smile at me!"

"That is not true."

"YOU LEFT AS WELL, SAME AS ME! YOU spent two years moping around like some sad needlewoman and what didya do, you left! You left to chase after Fratley!"

"And I found only misery!"

"BUT YOU STILL FOUND HIM, YOU SELFISH BITCH WHAT ABOUT MY NEEDS?! WHY DO YOU WANNA KEEP ME INSIDE, SO YOU CAN RUN OUTSIDE CHASING AFTER YOUR MAN!?"

"BECAUSE I KNOW THE PAIN YOU WILL SUFFER SHALL BE THE SAME AS MINE, I AM USING MY EXPERIENCE TO PREVENT YOU FROM MAKING THE SAME MISTAKE!"

"_I WANT TO MAKE MY OWN MISTAAAAKE! _"

She watched his hand tense the second before he thrust towards her, twisting her body out of harm's way to whack her spear against his rusted blade as she gripped her staff in both hands. Left hand behind her right, she stood with shoulder facing her pupil as the gleaming three tips of her polearm glared before him. Oberon thrust once more with a lunging strike as Freya sidestepped to catch his single tip between her trident's points before twisting hard to bury it in the dirt and send a brazen thrust kick to the rodent's face.

The student gasped snarling at her clawed toes scratching his face, not deep enough for blood but enough to faze him briefly as he kept hold of his staff to pull it free in a mighty tug, to ride his momentum of strength in a huge swing to whirl his spear and slash across Freya's heavy coat. She blocked with vertical spear to try and dispel some of his force, her weapon knocked sharply to one side before he lunged once again in a brutal stab as she leapt back with powerful braced legs from out of his range.

Rushing forwards the student swung his staff like a longsword as Freya clashed back against, the two poles crossing fast as they glared at each other's eyes with hope reflecting madness. He pulled back to strike but she crossed once again in perfect strike as spears creaked diagonally against the other's weapon, before Oberon tried a third time to swing-strike with a feinting blow to trick his master. She saw his swipe with hesitant strength as he made a half-spin to stab out his pole from behind and punch Freya in the stomach with the blunt tip, but she countered with a swerve-and-whack of her own polearm to trap it against the ground.

"G-GET, OFF!" he barked.

"ENOUGH OF THIS! CEASE THIS MADNESS OBERON!"

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

Pulling away almost instantly, the younger rodent leapt across the small earthen patch until the bullrushes were at his back. Twirling his spear behind him he charged and made a half-leap rising above her head to come striking down like a hammer to carve his rusted spearblade upon her helmet, as Freya backed off with lunging stance to catch his blade in her trident and shunt him towards the side. But his momentum still held true as he swung his body forwards like a polevaulter to scratch-kick his mentor across the face, cutting claws that scraped at the snout forcing her to back away and cover her pale cheeks. Red soft grooves masked between blanched hairs as she counterstruck instantly, whipping her spear upwards with a driving wallop to crack the blunt end into Oberon's face like a golf club.

Falling on his back, the burmecian youth scrabbled back on his feet to straighten his helm and briefly reveal his sharp pale eyes now bloodshot and weary with bags underneath, pushing his clawed fingers into the dirt and grabbing his spear with gritted teeth. Brazen fury possessed him as he swung with horrid strikes back and forth, swinging his spear with cutting blade that remained sharp despite its rusted taint, slicing inches from Freya's face as she ducked and blocked with her spear in counterance. Glancing blows slid off her staff as she parried and twirled whilst never taking a step back, forcing a foot forwards in order to push Oberon back and take dominance of the fight. The two clashed once again as snouts almost touched, whiskers bristling with potent strength as the student forced as hard as he could against Freya's arms but she stood her ground firm. Taut muscular legs became rooted like stumps beneath her, claws digging in harder than Oberon's as she cried out to his face:

"OBERON, ENOUGH! PLEASE, I IMPLORE YOU!"

"OR WHAT, SEND ME TO PRISON?!" he ranted. "BANISH ME?! MAKE ME AN EXAMPLE FOR THE PEOPLE?!"

"I just want to TALK!"

"TALK IS WORTHLESS, YOU OF ALL PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW!"

"I do not know what you have done but I know you are not cruel, you have learned from past mistakes and I won't let you run from this whatever it might be!"

"I'M NOT RUNNING AWAY, THAT IS THE POINT YOU STUPID RAT!"

She punched him in the gut with her knee before striking a slap across his face and shove him down hard across the dirt patch. Pulling himself back the frenzied Oberon leapt into the sky with exceptional height, gripping his polearm with fierce possessive strength before spinning towards Freya like a missile. She waited boldly without any attempt to dodge him, staring cold into his eyes now laced with fear and fury as he screamed with tears streaking down his rain-spattered cheeks. But then from his side came a shrieking sound of hurtling fire, a burning pain that punched against his stomach.

"_A-AAAAAAA AAAAARGH! _"

Crumpling to the dirt, the dragoon knight's apprentice rolled through the grass before planting his staff firmly to stop himself and pull his body up.

"Wh-what?! Who are-y-YOU!"

"Stop it, now," said Oddclaw landing on his feet with smoking gun in both hands. "We do not want to hurt you, Freya said you are wounded."

"WOUNDED?! I'm not some runaway dog for you to pity!"

"We do not want to fight. We are friends."

"FRIENDS?!" Oberon forced himself harder upwards with spear planted deep into the earth upon shaking knees. "Y-y-you call...s-someone who points a smoking CANNON at your face a friend?!"

"It cannot kill you. If I wanted to kill you, I would have."

"I..d-don't THINK so, I dare you to shoot me again lizard!"

"NOW!"

Oddclaw's signal alerted the other two raptors, the sound of bullrushes parting as Oberon tried to leap away from danger in his partially-weakened state. Fishclaw snapped his jaws at the rodent's leg and missed, but Moonclaw hopped onto the red raptor's back and leapt even higher to clamp her teeth firmly above his ankle, pulling the young page down hard back to earth as he stumbled to his knees and tried to kick fiercely at her snout. Oddclaw rushed forwards to try and club Oberon with his shotgun, but the rodent stabbed towards him with his spear forcing the raptor to guard himself with steel weighted gun, scraping the sharp curving tip across its steel chassis to flense sparks from its surface. But the raptors feral had managed to pin him down fully, pressing their weight upon his body despite the furious struggle he made.

"G-GET OFF, GET OFF OF MEEEE!"

"We are not going to hurt you!" cried Oddclaw. "Please, calm down!"

"SHUT UP LIZARD, YOU KNOW NOTHING!"

"This is NOT the way a dragoon knight acts!" said Freya crossing her arms in contempt. "What would your father think to see you screaming like a babe in its cot?"

"I DON'T CARE WHAT HE WOULD THINK YOU SNOW-FACED BITCH! I HAVE TO DO THIS, HE TOLD ME IN MY DREAMS!"

"Who?!"

"THE...THE FAERIE! HE SAID...h-he said I...if I don't do this th-that I will...die, and our kingdom will rot, rot even further than it did back when Cleyra was destroyed!"

"I have told you before those dreams are nonsense, you are a victim of lunacy!"

"SEE, SEE THIS, THIS IS WHY I'M DOING THIS, CUZ YOU WON'T BELIEVE ME!"

"It is not you I do not believe," she retorted with spear stomping the dirt, "it is your frenzied delirium!"

"WHY WON'T YOU BELIEVE MEEEEE?!"

The young student broke down into sobs of grief as he stopped fighting against the two raptors. Sniffling mewls and gasping sounds broke up from his throat as Freya rubbed her head trying to ponder on what next to do."

"Oberon...I will help you. I promised I would, but you need to come with me, you must stop this and see what madness you have wrought upon yourself, that dreams are nothing but the mind's ramblings of non-sequitur, do you understand?"

"I-i-i just...I j-just don't wanna die, p-pleaaaase!"

"You will not, I promise you, on my oath I promise."

"Y-you...you w-will...are you...h-how can you?"

"I am your friend. You know that, did I not keep my promise to you ever since we started training?"

"You...y-you did......I'm sorry Freya."

"Thank you."

The student placed his head upon the cold damp earth feeling the rain drip from off the raptor's head above him.

"I'm so tired, c-can I just...sleep someplace?"

"Of course. Oddclaw, is there shelter nearby?"

"There is," said the raptor holstering his gun, "to the south, I will show you."

Freya walked over to her student as she beckoned the raptors to move off him, carefully lifting his muddied body up and hoisted one arm of his over her shoulder in comfort. They followed Oddclaw through the tall grass towards a small hill of half-buried earth, a huge tree having dislodged and fallen over to cause its roots to uplift and form a gaping mouth. Carefully laying down Oberon first they each sat down beneath the sheltering mound as the rain continued on spilling over the soft grass. The young burmecian fell asleep from exhaustion and bruises on his person much to the relief of his mentor.

"He has earned this sleep," she said quietly, "I hope only that dreams do not come to invade his thoughts again."

"I have not known any of us who suffered madness from dreams," said Fishclaw sitting at the outer rim watching the rain.

"What do you dream of then?"

"The water. Smallwings and water."

"The sky turned to blood," said Oddclaw, "I dream of that sometimes."

"I do not remember my dreams," said Moonclaw cautiously. "What about you Freya?"

"In times of peace I imagine my beloved...reminisce on adventures with my friends in the year 1800...in uncertain times I fear death, a thousand times impaled and brutally murdered by fiends and soon forever forgotten."

"To be forgotten would not be bad for me."

"Do not say that," snarled Oddclaw, "you are a part of my life, I could never forget you."

"I...you are right, I am sorry."

He cuddled up towards her with a careful lick and nuzzle of her cheek. Fishclaw smiled at them before turning towards the dragoon sitting close to her pupil.

"You said you had a mate. How did you come to meet him?"

"Through our training," she replied. "When I was an intermediate of dragoon knights he said he saw promise in me and took me under his wing. Our love blossomed in growing respect for each other's skill."

"Wonderful. How long have you been together?"

"Twenty-three years. A whirlwind romance when we began since at one point he left to travel the world, and my heart ached for him. I searched for him because waiting for him wounded me."

"Why did you not travel with him?" asked Fishclaw sitting up towards her.

"He wanted me to remain in Burmecia and complete my training." Freya clasped her fingers together into a small tenting posture. "But once I did I went to find him. And I did but much to the cruel fate of life his memory was gone completely."

"He...he could not remember anything?"

"No. Twenty years have passed since then as I have tried to rebuild our home and his life together. He may not be the same as when I first knew him, but the fact is he could finally return home and I could at least piece together most of him. I am happy with that."

"As long as you are both happy. That is a burden to take on yourself to heal his mind."

"Love gives us strength. You would do the same for your beloved too."

"I would. So would they." He leered his head over towards his brother and Moonclaw who both smiled at them. "Do you have family, Freya?"

"No," she replied tersely with a slight twitch of her head towards the rain. "Fratley is my family now."

"I understand."

"What will we do now?" asked Oddclaw with an arm around Moonclaw's neck. "It is still morning, and I do not know if I can speak to the hairless yet."

"We will let Oberon rest for now," said the dragoon with one knee lifted against her chest, "we shall take him to a safe place when he is ready, is there perhaps another way to contact the humans?"

"I COULD ask the flyers, if we journey closer to the Skylands I can speak with them, they could carry us to the hairless' home."

"Flyers? Are they birds, like chocobos?"

"They are beasts with wings, they are my friends."

"Ah, I see, then we shall do so once Oberon awakes."

The small party sat up against the earthen walls beneath the wretched tree, its corpse laid afresh the grass above them in a sloping slant where insects creeped and festered inside it as a home of breet dampness. None of them slept for only Freya enjoyed the sound of rain whilst the raptors glumly gazed at the shattering droplets sliced upon a field of blades that reached to their heads. Soon Oddclaw began to doze off with his head resting on Moonclaw's cheek whilst Oberon softly whimpered, his hand clutching against his spear beneath him like a wolf with his bone.