FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

CRUNCH! A black paw stepped down through previously undisturbed snow. The mightyena pushed onwards as he was buffeted by the raging snow. His eyes, shielded behind a pair of goggles, were kept on the slope in front of him. His teeth grit as he forced himself to take each step, the cold seeping through his thick coat.

"Nova!" A chirp rang directly into his ear. "Nova! We have to turn back. The blizzard is too strong." It was Branca the pidgey. She was strapped into a little vestibule that was attached to his vest. The pidgey had her own little hood with eye protection, but just by how tight her talons were holding on, the cold was clearly getting to her as well.

"There is a group stranded up the mountain. We can't turn back now." Nova growled with determination. He staggered under the bough of a pine tree. He took some comfort in the shelter it provided and shook the accumulating snow from his fur.

"It's no use adding more 'mon to be saved. If we get stranded, it'll be more work for the actual rescue team." Branca peeped as she snuggled in closer. "We should go back and let the professionals take care of it. We're not equipt like they are." Her tone was of reluctant resignation and concern. She was always up to helping, but the extreme cold like this was too much for her little body.

Nova reached back and popped a pocket on his vest. "There should be aspear berries in this pouch. Should help stave off the cold. Get me one too while you're in there." The pidgey daintily plucked a hard berry from the pouch and crunched it in her beak. She gave a firm shudder at the sour taste, but seemed to relax a bit. She picked out another one and passed it forward, closing up the pouch with her little foot. "Thanks." Nova said crushing the berry between a molar. His fur stood on end at that taste, but it got his blood pumping. "We have to keep going, Branca. The alpine rescue team was still an hour out when we left the lodge. By the time they find the stranded pokemon, they could be seriously hurt or worse." He poked his head out from under the branch and flattened his ears down with the wind. "We're equipt enough and the only ones close enough to make a difference. I'm pressing on."

He pushed all the way out and into the full force of the storm once again. He went over the details of the situation under his breath. 'One. A group of fledgling pokemon were seen exploring the slope.' He sunk another paw in front of him with a hearty THUNK. 'Two. A white out stirred up on the mountain. All mon were called to shelter.' Nova braced his head against the wind, but took a step anyways. 'Three. The guardians could not account for the four fledglings. A messenger was sent out immediately.' The snow blurred the edges of the trees only meters away. 'Four. The rescue team is 20 minutes away and needs to travel 20 minutes to get to the lodge.' Nova aimed up the hill. He pushed towards the closest shape until the next came into view. 'Five. Fledglings will only last up to 30 minutes.' The mightyena's lungs burned with each breath. 'Six.' His legs trembled as he pushed to keep going. 'I can't stop now.'

"Listen! Hear that?" The pidgey suddenly chimed in. Nova stopped and perked his ears. It was difficult to listen through the dampening flakes. Then, ever so softly there came a sound almost like a whisper. It was so quiet that he couldn't tell where it was coming from. There was nothing, but white beyond the tree he was standing near.

"I can barely hear it, but I don't know where it's coming from." A panic welled up in his chest. He had come so far and gotten so close, but couldn't figure out where to go. He shook his head to try to clear his goggles and ears, but it still didn't help. All he could hear were whispers in the white. 'Is that their fate?' He thought. Nova's legs were shaking too much to even attempt another step. He desperately tried to keep calm, but the dread continued to seep into his thoughts.

"Nova, are you okay?" Branca chirped. She could feel him trembling.

'I could die here. Worse yet, I put Branca in danger.' He was so overwhelmed. He couldn't-

"Nova! You're eyes are glowing." Branca screeched. He couldn't take it anymore.

"AWROOOO!" With that howl, a black wave of pure despair burst forth from his body. The mighty force pushed all the free floating snow away from the two in a huge radius. When he opened his eyes, everything was still and crisp. There was a moment of complete silence. Then the whisper came back, but louder.

"We found them! They are just over that ridge!" Without a moment's hesitation, Nova threw himself into a run, spraying snow every which way. The sudden revelation revitalized his aching limbs. The cold and tired rolled off his coat as he grew seconds closer to the objective.

"The snow is starting to come back." Branca tweeted in a panic. She popped the buckle on her pocket and stretched her wings from the back of the mightyena. "I'm going to go back and get help while I still have the chance!" She lifted off with a quick turn to face back down the mountain. With a few flaps, she dove into a twist and darted away in a streak.

When Nova broke the hill to a flatter section of the mountain. He saw an overhanging rock with dying vegetation covering most of the entrance. The meek cries were coming from inside. He stumbled around the screen to find four young 'mon huddled together. There was an eevee, a deerling, a taillow, and a bunnelby. "All here." The mightyena managed to mutter out. As he did so, the eevee and bunnelby shakily looked up at him.

"W-we're c-cold." The eevee squeaked before resting their head back on the pile.

The bunnelby looked at the deerling and taillow, and in a weak tone said, "They fell asleep and won't stop shivering."

'Hypothermia' Nova thought. 'They're still shivering, so I'm not too late.' "I'm on it!" He barked. He immediately went to work ripping some of the dead stalks from the shelter. He tossed them into a sloppy pile a foot or so from the group of freezing 'mon. "Okay, everyone stay where they are. I don't want you to get hurt." He took a great breath in and the red marking on his face began to glow. As he released his breath, a controlled orb of fire shot forth into the bundle of sticks and lit them aflame.

The larger mightyena hobbled over to the side closest to the storm and curled around the group to add to the warmth. Though the small fire had only been going for not even a minute, it already shooed away the cold.After a short time, the taillow and deerling stopped shivering and their breathing steadied. A few minutes more, the two lifted their heads one after another to wearily look at the mightyena that had joined them.

"My partner, Branca, already went back to say that we found you. Help should be here any moment." Nova reassured the group. "I'm here, and I'll keep you safe until then."