FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Tobias sighed, his stomach uneasy as I stretched, trying to calm himself down. He walked out and smile lightly, the sun was shining, making the small village look calm and serene

Leaning on his walking stick, he set off, the cool air making him shiver slightly as the sun had not yet claimed its hold on the earth just yet. As he walked, several tribe's people called to him, giving him smile and waves which he returned, though half-heartedly. He was worried, the tribe was in danger, and he knew it. Hiding a member of the Church was not the wisest of moves, but it's what these people did, the village people were kind, and cared for others. No matter who it was, if they needed help, the deer would provide. That was one of the many reasons that Tobias and his party were there.

He kept walking, soon reaching the edge of the village where he took a seat, yet another sigh escaping his lips as he did. Tobias stared into the distance and frowned, against the clear sky rose a large cloud of dust. This struck him as odd, since no wind was blowing, the only explanation was if a large group were-

His eyes widened and he stood, cold fear running through his body as he made out the vague outline of a fairly large group approaching. He didn't need to see what they wore to know who they were. The Church had found them. This, was very, very bad.

He dashed into the village, crying out, doing all he could to warn the others.

Eyes widened, screams rang out and people scattered.

"Ugh..." He groaned, dashing to the tent. "All of you, we've got a problem... they're here..."

One of his party, Kesst, stood and nodded, then turned to the others. "Well... we all knew this was coming... let's go everyone."

Tobias turned as the sound of screams began, and the unmistakable crackling of fire met his ears.

He dashed down the hill, smoke burning his eyes as he ran. One of the tents was already ablaze, turning the cool morning air hot and dry.

Knowing there was nothing he could do to save the burning home, he pushed through the charred flap and cast his bright blue eyes about, searching for anyone who may have still been inside.

A small child, eyes wide and fur sooty lay curled in a tight ball in the middle of the floor, whimpering. Tobias stepped in, smoke burning his eyes as he did.

"Hey!" He called out. "Hey there little one... I'm here to help okay."

The child looked up, eyes wide and body shaking.

"Don't worry." The prong-horn said, "It's just me, you know who I am, don't you?"

The young deer nodded.

"Good, goo-"

One of the beams keeping the tent up succumbed to the heat, and fell, just between him and the child, how let out a cry of fear, scrambling away.

"No no no, it's okay!" Tobias called out, trying to get closer to the small boy. "I'm gonna get you out of here okay?"

He thought hard, the child was terrified, and wouldn't be easy to motivate. Finally, he made his decision. "Hey, little one... See my cane?" He asked, lifting it up to show him. The boy nodded, whimpering.

"Well..." He said, mind racing. "It's... magic, and will keep you safe if you touch it."

The boy looked at him, unmoving.

"Look, I'll show you."

Taking a chance, he leapt through the dancing flames, thankfully moving fast enough to make it through without any burns. The young deer's eyes became massive, and Tobias gave him a smile.

"See?" He said. "Safe."

With a weak smile, the young deer took the end of the cane and stood up.

"That's it... now just come with me okay?"

He led the child to the entrance, making sure to walk around the fallen beam.

With a sigh of relief, Tobias pushed the boy through the entrance just as a second beam snapped under the pressure of heat. The large piece of wood fell, prompting Tobias to move as fast as he could. Not fast enough, the beam hit his head with a solid 'Thunk' and he hit the ground, vison swimming. When it cleared he saw something that made his spin tingle. His antler, snapped off and laying before him. Unsure of how to react, he pushed himself up and began to crawl forwards. Another cracking noise brought his attention up just as a third beam hit his back. He felt a nasty crack and breathing began harder than normal in the smoke filled tent. My ribs are broken... He thought vaguely_. And I can't feel a thing... how strange._ He was in shock, so not much registered just yet. Blackness began to creep into the corners of his vison and sounds became muffled and far away. So this is how I die... oh well, I suppose that it's not the worst way to go... He closed his eyes, letting the blackness swallow him whole.

He was surprised when he woke up, he hadn't expected to do so. He lay there for a while and just took everything in. He was laying on a soft bed, not like the ones in the tribe. It felt more modern. And the ceiling above him wasn't made of tent canvas, it was flat and made of dark oak wood. He was confused, where was he? He tried to sit up and he gasped as pain exploded in his chest. He lay back down quickly and tried not to breathe too deeply. Once the pain had died down to a dull throb, the prong-horn lifted his head. He WAS in a bed, that sat in the center of a small room. A hotel room? He wondered. Voices grew outside the room and the door opened, admitting Kesst. He gave him and smile and pulled up a chair and took a seat. "Hey there, how are you feeling?" The drake asked him.

"Like I was hit by a log... which ironically I was..." Tobias muttered in response, closing his eyes as a wave of pain washed over him.

Kesst nodded and glanced to the door. "We got most everyone out, in case you were wondering. And we're at a hotel called 'The Homestead' The others are looking for a real doctor to come and fix you up. Sound good?"

Tobias nodded, feeling himself drifting off, that little amount of activity leaving him drained.

"Sleep well, we did a good job..." The drake said as he rose and headed for the door.

The antelope nodded a second time and closed his eyes. "S-sounds... like a plan." He felt better once the darkness washed over him again.

End