FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Raptor woke up on a cold cobblestone floor. He stood up and looked around. The entire room was made of cobblestone and it was closed off by a thick iron bars and a cell door. "Shit." All of his things were gone, even his clothes. All he was wearing was torn up cloth pants, the usual look of a prisoner.

A guard carrying a spear moved by the iron bars. Raptor walke over and asked, "Hey boss. Since I'm here now, we should talk."

The guard looked at Raptor. "No."

"Aw, c'mon. Tell me your name." Raptor held on to the cell door.

The guard turned his head away. "Johnny, and that's all you need to know." He began walking again.

Raptor began shaking the cell door making an annoying rattling noise. "C'mon, talk to me."

The guard spun around and yelled, "Shut up in there, will ya?!"

Raptor let go of the door and walked into the corner and sat down. His intention was to get on the guards good side and ask him to let him go. It sounds like a stupid plan at first, but it has worked for him in the past.

The cell had ahorrible smell as if it hadn't been washed in a few years. The floor was a bit damp and had moss growing in between cracks. "This place smells like shit!"

"All the better reason to doas I say." The king was standing at the cell door watching Raptor.

Raptor stood up and walked over to the door. "You got the stuff, what else would you want from me Kingy?"

The king shook his head. "Please, call me Roth. You have something that I cannot take. Words."

Raptor suddenly felt a wave of hope. Maybe he wouldn't be stuck in this cell forever after all. "Ah, I see. You don't want me telling anyone about your little problem."

"Correct." Roth turned around. "I want you to do some work for me."

Raptor laughed. "You want me to keep my words to myself and you are asking me to do work for you? You're not very good at bribes."

Roth laughed back at Raptor. "Oh no? Well, I'm not finished. Maybe that's why." Roth turned back around and faced Raptor. "You know that ten thousand gold you wanted? Become my private mercenary and you will be paid that every three months."

Numbers began running through Raptor's head again. Ten thousand gold every three months. There are twelve months in a year. Divide that by three, you get four. Four times ten thousand is forty thousand. Forty thousand gold a year. After five years that would be two hundred thousand. People with a decent job would only have about one thousand gold by then. "Woah! Hold on a minute! Back it up a bit! Ten thousand gold every three months?!"

Roth smiled. "I'm assuming you are interested in what I have planned."

"Interested?" Raptor was estatic. "I'm simply at awe! Never before have I thought of having that much money!"

Roth put his hands together. "You just have to follow three rules." He put up one finger. "One. Do what ever I ask you to do." He put up another. "Two. Do not speak of the opium problem." He then put up one more finger. "Three. You cannot tell ANYONE of the deal we have going." He put his hand back down. "You are my private mercenary. No one must know of it or others will try to hire you."

Raptor put his hand on his chin. "Do I get awesome leather armor?"

Roth laughed again. "Why would you want leather armor? Why not iron? It protects you so much more. And it would be custom made."

Raptor thought for a bit. Being a secret mercenary for the kingdom would be an awesome job. But the secret part was putting the idea to the side. He would want to tell one certain person. Melissa. She only showed up in his life last night, but she was the nicest person he had ever met. But it would be a better life than a thief. Raptor stopped thinking and looked at Roth. "You got yourself a deal."

Roth smiled and stopped motionless for a second. "Really? I thought you would have refused. But that means I wouldn't have to kill you." Raptor felt relieved. "My first task is that you kill a Dro in the Dantar Desert."

Raptor put on a confused look. "What the hell is a Dro anyways?"

Roth looked surprised. "You don't know what a Dro is?" There was silence between the two for a moment. "You're surious. A Dro is a giant sandworm. Some get big enough to engulf entire cities. They usually stay underground, but once in a blue moon they come to the surface and cause havoc."

There was a silence between the two again until Raptor spoke. "Ok wait. So either i get my head cut off by Johnny here, or I get swallowed whole by a worm that could be bigger than a friggen city." There was a silence once more. "There is no way you can even think of me saying yes to this."

Roth put on his serious business face. "We have a deal. Rule number one, you do whatever I ask you to do. Or would you rather have your little friend Melissa executed in front of you before you are executed as well?"

Raptor let his jaw drop a little. He was apauled by the cowardly actions and threats of the king. The only thing he could think of is what the world has come to where even a king would threaten the life of ones friends. Raptor lowered his head, he felt as though he were a puppet whose strings were in the hands of Roth. "Fine. It's better than being killed by Johnny." Johnny stopped when he heard that. He felt insulted. "But if you lay a hand on Melissa." Raptor lifted his head and stared into Roth's eyes. "I will hunt you down and rip your eyes out so you could watch me mutilate your dead body."

Roth chuckled and then smiled. "Alright. Johnny will take you to the fitting room. He will measure you so we can start making your armor." Roth turned and left the dungeon.

Raptor was furious. He never felt as angry before as he did now. The nerve of someone to threaten a friend's life to get you to do something. Even now the money was not important. He was only doing this to keep Melissa safe. A thought crossed Raptor's mind. Roth didn't care about having a private mercenary. He only cared about ending Raptors life. He knew something that could detrement his life as a king. The opium, but that alone was not much. There was something much more to it, and it had something to do with the ring.

Raptor shook his head. He didn't know enough to be making assumptions. But it was still some sort of lead as to what the hell is going on. He needed to find more evidence.

The cell door swung open and Johnny motioned his hand at Raptor. "Come on, we don't have all day."

Raptor nodded and followed Johnny out of the cell. He was lead up a set of stairs and through a wooden door. They were both in the main hall which lead to the throne room and outside. He was guided up a stair case, along a balconey and through another door.

"Keep still." Said Johnny. "Spread your arms out." Raptor spread his arms out and Johnny seemingly pulled measuring tape out of nowhere. He began taking Raptors measurements.

Raptor could tell that there was something up with Johnny. He looked tense and looked like something was wrong. "Johnny. You know something." Johnny ignored Raptor. "There is something up with Roth and you know what it is."

Johnny looked at Raptor. "Shut up. You should keep your nose out of other peoples business. It just gets you into a load of trouble." Johnny went back to measuring Raptor.

Raptor wanted to know what was going on. He had a thought of figuring out what was going on and hen becoming a hero. He thought he would be the one to finally bring peace to the world. It was a farfetched thought, but there was a thin light of hope in it.