FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

A long stream of curses fell from her muzzle as she glared up at the sky. It was just past noon by her count. She sniffed the air and stiffened. They were too close for her comfort. She shoved hard at his broad shoulder and managed to budge him perhaps a centimeter before her arms gave out. This did not bode well. She took a deep breath, gathered her strength and pushed herself into him. To her delight and relief he slid slightly off of her body. She sat up a bit and looked around. The soldiers were mere black specks against the sand and grass of the valley below. Their eyes would not catch them if she moved quickly. She slid out from underneath her companion and thought none too charitably about his body weight.

She grabbed onto his arm and tried dragging him. She leaned straight back and tossed her weight into it. She grunted in frustration when he didn't budge. She scoffed at herself. Of course she couldn't drag him using her weight; he had at least one ten over her. She lifted him by his armpits and pulled him along, using her weight and the little bit of leverage she could manage. His dead weight was more than she anticipated and she blew her bangs from her face as she grunted. It was slow painful progress, but progress nonetheless. He moved less than a foot with each yank and she began to pant from the heat. Her arms began to ache and her breathing shortened. She paused to catch her breath every once in a while and thought grudgingly about merely kicking him down the narrow tunnel.

The entrance loomed around them and she almost wept from frustration. Her body felt like it was on fire despite the cool air. She didn't know how long she dragged him. It might have been an entire day. Hours or minutes in the darkness. She couldn't tell. The stone smoothed out the farther she dragged him. Further down her paws began to slip. Through the panic of falling down into the cavern she felt relief. Slippery rocks meant water. The tunnel dropped shallowly into a wide cavern, easily as big as a European ballroom of old. They toppled to the mossy ground, a startled yip torn from her throat. They landed in a shallow pool of warm mineral filled water and she shivered. There was a small breeze throughout the whole high ceilinged cavern. She paused and took in her surroundings. The cavern would more than do for their purposes. It was covered in soft thick moss and lichen. The floor was slightly concave and a stream of water ran around its edges, creating a faux moat. A small pool deep enough to modestly cover her lay to her right and it steamed lightly in the cool air.

Her ears quirked and twisted, listening for signs of other life. It seemed too good to be true to be unoccupied. She heard nothing and relaxed a bit. She turned her attention to her companion again. He looked awful, that much she could admit. He was pale, bruised and wearier than he had any right to be. She carefully removed his armor and sword, setting them to the side and freeing his limbs. Sighing softly she stroked his hair back from his face. He looked so much younger, more vulnerable than he had when they had first come together. She could tell he was sick simply by looking at him, but she wasn't sure why. Other than a lack of sleep, he had eaten well, and taken fair care of himself. She growled softly but took his vitals. He would live through the night. He needed rest. They both did. So she flapped the travel dirt from his cloak and settled into his side. She tossed one leg over his torso and settled her head on his broad chest.

With a satisfied murr, she drifted into sleep with him at her side.