FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The trees flashed by outside the window as Nate watched the scenery they were passing as Auren drove on towards their destination. In the back of the sedan, Glauron and Ren were going through the pack that had been left for them, as well as going over the tablet that showed where they were to go. Resting his head back against the headrest, the silver-furred lupine looked over at Auren out of the corner of his eye, wondering just what was going through the dragon's mind. The drake had been almost completely silent ever since they left the warehouse where they had woken up less than an hour ago, eyes fixated steely on the road ahead. Nate replayed Auren's words over in his head, about how it seemed that for the last few weeks, the four boys had been the subject of one test after another.

"You okay?" the wolf rumbled softly, leaning closer to the dragon as he drove.

Auren sighed, taking one paw off the wheel to rub the back of his neck. "I dunno, Pup," he growled. "I just wish things weren't so complicated, you know?" he slouched in the seat, eyes flicking to the mirrors for a moment before returning to their forward stare. "I mean, three weeks ago, we were just a bunch of normal students at the Academy. Now we're on a cross-state race for some Tournament, that according to tradition, we shouldn't even be in!" He shook his head, letting out another sigh. "One way or another, I want some answers when we get back."

Nate nodded, already thinking of a few choice words for his uncle when they returned. He loved Blayde like another father, but Nate had to agree with Auren's assessment; the older wolf seemed to know something about them...about everything that was going on. The fact that out of all his employees at the club and other locations, Blayde had taken a keen interest in the four of them, was enough to raise even Nate's suspicions of his uncle. And then there was Reston. For a professor, she certainly knew things simple educators didn't, or more accurately, wouldn't reveal to first-year students. Something about the panther just felt...off.

Leather seats squeaked slightly as Glauron leaned forward between the two front bucket seats. "Hey, the GPS says the town we're supposed to go to is just ahead. Next exit on the right."

Nodding, Auren changed lanes to the out-most right lane in preparations to exit. "Alright. How accurate is the location on that thing?"

The golden drake pressed a few buttons, zooming in the display on the tablet he held. "Pretty good. I can zoom in to the very building its in, but I can't see inside."

"Good enough," the silver dragon rumbled, his eyes flicking downwards to the dashboard. "I think we should split up when we hit the town. No telling if the other teams are already there, so we should head straight for the medallion." He looked over at Nate, then back at Renfear. "Do you two want to go for the medallion while Glau and I get some supplies?"

"Sure," Renfear said, leaning forward to set his paw on Auren's shoulder. "No offense, babe, but dragons do stand out a little more than us wolves. We should be able to get in without anyone else taking notice if they are here." Nate nodded in agreement.

Auren inclined his head as the highway exit approached, and he turned the sedan off the main road onto the road that led into town. All four companions took in their surroundings as they entered town, noting that is was smaller than average, having only a few main streets before breaking into residential areas. Glauron directed Auren towards the western end of the main strip, to what looked like a sizable strip mall. The silver drake pulled into the parking lot and came to a stop. Kisses and nuzzles were traded around as Nate and Renfear hopped out of the car, heading towards one of the clothing stores as Auren drove off once more. "So, any idea what we're looking for?" Nate asked as they approached the main door.

Ren grunted, and pulled out a small picture from his pocket. It showed a simple pendant on a chain displayed on what appeared to be a table. The pendant itself was unremarkable, being roughly half the size of one's paw with a single crystal in the middle. "Info packet in the bag said that the crystal is also a homing beacon," the snow wolf muttered, keeping his voice down as they entered the mall. "It broadcasts a signal that not only the tablets pick up and guide us to, but one that they can track back at the Academy to keep tabs on our progress." The two parted to bypass a family with three squealing children, then continued walking. "Glauron said the signal was coming from the northwest part of the mall, so that's where we're headed."

"Alright," Nate nodded, eyeing the people around them, trying to see if he recognized any other competitors from the Tournament. "Look for a simple pendant in what is probably some bathroom or something. Shouldn't be too hard, right?" he joked, as they rounded the corner. Both wolves smirked, then froze as their faces fell upon seeing the store in front of them. Dozens of people filtered in and out of the entryway, bypassing the few mannequins on display there. Beyond the glass windows they could see aisles and rows of shelves, displays and other mannequins, all piled high with clothing and accessories. The store's name,American Outfitters stood out in white letters against the blue background.

"Fuck...."

* * * * * * * * *

Pulling into the lot behind one of the town's gas stations, Auren angled the sedan past the parked cars and towards one of the large maintenance sheds near the rear of the lot. The clock on the car's dashboard proclaimed it was shortly after 9 AM, and the quaint little town showed very little activity. Sliding the car up to the large doors of the shed, Auren shifted into park and hopped out of the car, followed closely by Glauron. "Care to fill me in?" the golden drake asked as they crept up to the door.

"Car's low on fuel," Auren rumbled, peeking inside the windowed small door on the side of the building. Seeing that there was no one inside, he knelt down and examined the lock. "Doubt it will make much more than another thirty or forty miles, so we either find some fuel, or steal another one." Glancing back at his golden-scaled companion, Auren jerked his chin towards the bag he held. "What else is in there?"

Opening the bag, Glauron dug around inside, pulling out a few random items. "Let's see....medkit, tablet of course....photos of the medallion..."

"Any pins in the medkit?"

Blinking, Glauron cracked open the small white kit. "Umm...yeah, some bobby pins to hold the bandages. Why?"

Auren just smirked, and looked past the dragon to an unattended toolbox sitting alongside other assorted tools and junk, no doubt left by the resident mechanic. "Grab me a pin," he grinned, striding over to the toolbox. Flipping open the lid, the silver drake let out a pleased growl as he grabbed a small screwdriver, before turning back to the door. He took the pin from a wordless Glauron, bent it, and inserted it into the lock along with the flat head of the screwdriver. "Watch and learn, dear Glauron."

The golden drake shook his head with a slight groan. "What, you know how to pick locks too?" A gentle _click_was his answer, along with a fanged smirk, as Auren twisted the knob and the door to the maintenance shed swung open. Creeping into the dirty building, the two dragons looked around. Inside, a rather large truck with a tank on the back sat towards the rear of the shed, surrounded by crates and shelves full of tools, parts and various junk.

"Jackpot," Auren snorted, stepping up to the tanker truck as Glauron picked at a shelf.

"You're seriously considering on robbing this place?" the golden dragon hissed, ducking back outside to make sure no one was coming.

Auren had clambered up the side of the truck to tap its tank, grinning as he heard a semi-solid thud. "I do believe the rules were 'by any means necessary'," he rumbled, sliding back to the ground and rummaging for a hose. Moving to the back of the truck, he found an outlet hose hooked into the tank and practically purred. "Alright, go open the door and back the car in here," Auren nodded to Glauron as he began unwinding the hose.

Glauron stood there with his arms crossed for a few moments, staring at his first boyfriend. Auren sensed the stare and stopped, looking right back at his slightly shorter companion with and even glare. The pair of them stared each other down for a minute, before Auren simply raised an eyebrow. Sighing and throwing his paws up, Glauron turned around and headed back to the car, mumbling something about 'grand larceny' among other things. He slid the big bay door open as quietly as he could, constantly looking around for anyone who might see them, before darting back to the still-running car and throwing it in reverse. He crept the sedan tail-first into the shed as Auren brought the hose around, tapping the trunk of the car to let Glauron know when to stop.

Sliding the hose into the fuel cap, Auren darted back to the tanker truck and used the hand pump to start the flow of fuel. Starting the truck to use the motorized pump would be too loud, and probably _would_attract attention. As he pumped the liquid fuel into their stolen sedan, he saw Glauron giving him a glare from over the roof of the car. "What?"

The gold-scaled drake sighed, shaking his head slightly. "Nothing, its just....you seem way too comfortable with this sort of thing."

"What things?" Auren asked, still pumping the handle on the truck.

"All of this," Glauron said, waving a paw. "Boosting cars, picking locks, breaking and entering. Almost like you've done it all before." His voice carried a slight accusatory tone.

Auren slowed his pumping as he looked back at his friend. "Maybe I have," he said simply. Seeing the golden drake's eyes widen, he quickly waved a paw to forestall the impending outburst. "Okay, not the breaking and entering bit, but the others..." He chuckled and leaned against the tanker truck as it slowly fed its fuel into their stolen car. "Did I ever tell you I'm originally from Oklahoma?"

Glauron blinked, then shook his head. "I thought you were from California?"

"Nah, we've only been here a few years now," Auren smirked, crossing his arms over his muscular chest. "Born and raised in the south, where most of my family comes from." He closed his eyes for a moment, smiling to himself. "Gramma would make the best pecan caramel pies." The drake chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "Anyways, being the oldest guy out of mainly female cousins, I spent a lot of time around my Dad and his brother, Coy. Now, while my Dad was more for being the 'straight and honest' man, joining the Army and all that, my Uncle Coy was what you would call a 'good ol boy'." He grinned at Glauron as he let his natural southern accent slightly color his voice. "Anyways, while my Dad taught me all the usual things you would teach a son; riding a bike, throwing a football, how to fight, Uncle Coy taught me some things on the other side of the spectrum."

"Like, how to boost cars and pick locks?" Glauron asked, unable to keep the smirk off his face.

Auren grinned and winked. "Among other things. He always told me 'a man can only be as good as the knowledge he has to fall back on'. So, he tried to help me by teaching me the things Dad wouldn't, so that when I got older, I wouldn't be someone who didn't know how to take care of himself or handle things on his own when times got tough."

Glauron tilted his head slightly. "Sounds like a bit of a ruffian, if you ask me....teaching a young boy how to do things like steal a car."

"You'd think so, wouldn't you?" Auren chuckled. "Fact is, Uncle Coy was the one that got me my first job working at a garage. Taught me the meaning of a hard-day's work, and the value of a well-earned dollar. He is as much responsible for the dragon I am as my Dad." The hose started to splutter, and Auren stopped the hand pump, starting to reel the hose back in as a few drops of fuel dripped out of the end. Replacing the hose, he walked back to the driver's side of the car as Glauron slipped around to the passenger side.

Leaning against the roof of the sedan, Glauron sighed and ran a paw over his head. "Honestly, the more I find out about you, the more I wonder how the heck we became friends - hell, boyfriends- in the first place."

Auren paused, and looked over at the other drake. "You saying you don't like me anymore, Glauron?"

"No, dummy," Glau snorted, shaking his head. "I'm just saying that, had we met a few years ago, I doubt we would have become friends." He shrugged. "We're pretty different, Auren. You grew up rough-and-tumble, I was sheltered by my parents. Your uncle was teaching you to pick locks, while mine bought me a chemistry set."

Grinning wolfishly, Auren leaned over the roof. "So...he taught you how to blow things up?"

"It only happened once!" Glauron snapped, blushing. The two shared a quiet laugh, gazing at one another, that bond still present in their eyes. "All I'm saying is, how do two guys who drift towards opposite ends of the spectrum end up falling in love?"

"Opposites attract, Glau," Auren said as they climbed back into their stolen sedan. "Look at the two of us compared to Nate and Renfear, and you'll see the same separation in personalities. Nate and you are quiet and reserved, while Ren and I are more outgoing and playful. Ren tries to hump anyone he flirts with, while us three are more traditional romantics."

"Four-way relationship. Yeah, real traditional," Glauron interjected with a snort. His muzzle was plastered with a smile though, staring over at the silver dragon that he had fallen for when the year began.

"My point is," Auren went on. "We four may be totally different in some ways, but frighteningly similar in others. Together, we come to an almost perfect balance." He flashed that brilliant grin of his over to the other dragon. "It's why this relationship is working out...and why we're gonna win this thing."

Glauron rumbled, and slid over the center console to pull Auren into a kiss, their muzzles locking together as their tongues danced. The fire and passion that they found on their first night together was still there, and the pair of dragons growled happily. "I'm with you until the end, Auren," Glau whispered, touching their noses as he ran a claw down the silver drake's proud jaw. "You, Nate, Ren...no matter what lies ahead, or what path we choose, I'm staying with you. Always."

"Even if we decide to drop out of school, become world class villains, steal, extort, and bribe our way to an overly lavish lifestyle?" Auren waggled his eyebrows playfully.

Glauron giggled and licked his nose. "I get to design the 'lair'," he teased.

"Deal." The stolen sedan rolled out of the shed and took off towards the main road, heading back towards the mall.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Nate snorted out the tip of his snout harshly, rubbing his temples as he came to the end of another aisle. A few feet away, he heard a similar exclamation from Renfear, and the two wolves traded a glance of exasperation. "We've been at this for over an hour," Nate grumbled, flicking a mannequin in annoyance.

"Well, I didn't think the pendant would just jump out at us," Ren scowled back, taking another look at the small picture he held in his paws. He gave another cursory look around, then sighed and wandered off down the next aisle.

Nate grumbled under his breath and turned to follow, when a shape out of the corner of his eye made him pause. He turned his head just in time to see the edges of a coat disappear around a corner a few aisles down. Mentally shrugging, the wolf continued on his way, even though a slight nagging feeling had entered the back of his mind. If we don't find this thing soon, the other teams are bound to show up sooner or later. Nate heard Auren's words in his ears, about 'doing whatever it takes to win and get answers', but the wolf was still hesitant. He didn't want to start an all-out brawl in the middle of some town.

Yes, he wanted answers just as much as everyone else, but Nate was still hopeful for a minimal-conflict outcome to this last Challenge.

The silver-grey wolf brought himself out of his musings just in time to realize he had wandered down another aisle without really looking around. Sighing, he turned back around, only to freeze as he came face to face with Alex McCaville. For a few heartbeats, the pair just stared at one another, unmoving.

"H-hey...Nate...." the stallion finally nickered in a dry and soft voice.

"Alex..."

The equine brushed the back of his manned neck as his eyes dropped and looked to the side. "You guys too, huh?" The wolf just nodded, standing ram rod straight and stiff. Seeing Alex here meant only one thing; Outback - and possibly the other teams too - had caught up with them. The idea of avoiding conflict was becoming more and more faint as Nate began to stock of his surroundings. Most notably, the familiar scents of people he had met before as they drifted to his wolf nose.

"So...um..." Alex fidgeted, looking both apologetic and determined at the same time. His eyes would dart back to Nate briefly before looking around again, the stallion no doubt here to find the same medallion they were.

Finally, the wolf unfroze his tongue. "Look...Alex," Nate dropped his voice into a low, but sharp whisper. "I know you're here looking for it too." The flash in Alex's hazel eyes was all the confirmation he needed. The wolf shook his head slightly. "I don't want to have to fight you," he hissed, one paw clenching into a first. "But the others and I want answers. I'm finding that medallion. And we're-"

"Nate!" The snowy furred form of Renfear skidded around the corner of the aisle at that moment, having shouted across more than a few rows of merchandise and people. The snow wolf as panting but his eyes were bright and his muzzle open in a wild grin as he thrust his fist at his lupine partner. "Look!"

Nate finally tore his eyes from Alex and looked down to Renfear's tightly clenched paw. A simple cord hung from the side of the large paw, but inside was the telltale gleam of a crystal...the same one they had been scouring the store for. The medallion!

There was a sharp intake of breath from the opposite end of the aisle, and both wolves looked over to see Alex, and at his shoulders, a pair of dingos that Nate remembered were also on the Outback team. He could see it on their faces; the determination, the resignation to do what they had to, and at that moment Nate knew that all bets were off. Their eyes were on Ren's paw as well, and suddenly it felt as if the entire department store dropped several degrees. No one moved. No one blinked. No one spoke.

The wolf's ears twitched slightly as he heard a gentle crackling sound, and his eyes dropped slowly downward to see one of the dingos' paw becoming encased in ice. Nate felt Renfear tense up beside him, and the snow wolf's fur became chilly to the touch. A pit formed in his gut at the same time Nate made his choice, and he looked straight back at Alex. "Sorry," he said softly.

And then, with a loud BANG, Nate collected the static electricity around him and thrust out a paw to create a shockwave that pushed the three Australian students back onto their tails as items from the shelves flew everywhere. Before Alex and the others even hit the ground, Nate and Ren took off like only wolves could, footpaws barely touching the floor as they raced for the nearest exit. Shouts from all around the store erupted as people - civilians and other students alike - reacted to the commotion. Merchandise flashed by in a blur as the two wolves tore down the aisles, heading back the way they came into the store.

CRASH

A dinnerware display shattered a half-step behind Renfear as a chunk of rock shot past, barely missing the wolves as they ducked and quickly changed course. Another rock ricocheted off a shelf overhead and what looked like spikes of ice impaled the metal shelving just inches from them. The shouts from people around had turned to screams of surprise and even fright. All around them the sounds of many people rushing about - either in pursuit or in attempt to flee the store - echoed down the aisles. More shelves were smashed or ripped apart as arcane bolts impacted around them. Nate counted at least seven different attackers, and knew they were now right in the middle of a full-on brawl.

Ren let out a sharp yelp as he was tackled at the next intersection, going down under a mound of dark brown and black fur and vicious growling. Without thinking, Nate kept up his momentum and slammed into the shape, sending the large dog rolling with him as he got him off Renfear. The arctic wolf scrambled to his footpaws, left paw still clenching the medallion as he grabbed Nate off the floor with the other and barked, "Come on!"

All around them were sounds of chaos. The former customers of the store were shouting, screaming and running for the exits as the dozen or so students brawled it out. Some still chased after the wolves, others just openly fought against their rivals on other teams, not really sure who had the pendant or not. In the ensuing ruckus, Nate and Ren managed to find the side fire exit and slammed the door open, ignoring the shrill ringing of the fire alarm as it was triggered. Footpaws pounding the pavement, the pair of wolves bolted across the parking lot towards the street. Behind them, Nate heard the door slam open again, followed by a deep voice yelling, "There! They're out here!"

Jets of ice, rock and lightning smashed in the asphalt at their heels as Ren and Nate ducked and weaved across the lot, dodging between parked cars and the large cement pillars. Daring to look back, the silver wolf saw at least five furs running at them from the store; he recognized them from the previous challenges. Around them was a mass of people, either chasing them or simply running from what surely looked like some kind of robbery or attack. Another bolt of lightning sizzled past Nate's ear and he instinctively ducked and shot one of his own back. With their ward collars on, the Academy fighters knew none of their attacks would cause serious harm to one another, so caution was thrown right out the proverbial window when the reality of the challenge set in.

Ren and Nate had just ducked behind a large van when a screeching sound met their ears, and they whirled to see a sedan racing towards them. For a brief moment, they feared it was going to run them down, but at the last second, it darted to the side and lurched to a stop. "Get in!" Auren roared from behind the wheel, and beside him, Glauron reached back over the seat to open the rear door. No need to ask twice.

The wolves dove into the open door, barely getting their paws in before Auren jammed his foot down and the car shot off, the rear door slamming shut on its own from the motion. Thunks sounded off the roof and trunk as several objects - arcane and ordinary - impacted the retreating car, before Auren drove them out of the lot and onto the surface street. The sedan squealed through the intersection, completely blowing the red light as it fishtailed once before shooting off down the road, ignoring the honks and shouts from other drivers.

Nathanial and Renfear panted and slouched against one another in the back, as Auren nimbly manoeuvred the car around and through traffic, clearly not even attempting to stay under the speed limit. "Well that was subtle," the silver dragon retorted, glancing back at them from the rear view mirror.

"About as subtle as your driv - watch it!" Glauron snapped, gripping the dashboard with claws as Auren jerked the wheel and drove around a slow-moving truck.

The silver drake ignored him and focused on guiding the car out of the town and onto the highway. On the dashboard, the tablet beeped as the GPS was updated, now that it registered its users having possession of the first pendant. As the car raced out onto the highway, dodging the odd car here and there, Renfear leaned forwards and dropped the medallion into Glauron's lap. "Here, you hold the blasted thing," he snarked.

"Gee thanks..."

In the backseat, Nate rubbed his footpaw where a shard of rock or pavement had smacked into him during their escape from the store. "Nice timing you two," he grunted, trying to meet Auren's eyes in the mirror.

"Well, we were just driving up to the mall when everything went to hell," the driving drake responded, keeping most of his attention forward as he navigated the highway. Clearly, Auren was making no attempts to blend in as he went around another car. "People started racing out, screaming, and then the alarm goes off. So, naturally, my first thought is 'great, so much for nice and quiet'." His eyes darted back into the mirror again. "We pulled around to the back on a hunch and we saw you two running like Hades himself was chasing you."

"Close enough," Renfear muttered, slumping back into his seat, the leather squeaking under him. "Reston wasn't kidding when she said 'anything goes'." Nate just huffed and nodded in agreement.

In the front, Glauron held the pendant up and was examining it closely. "At least we got the first one," he murmured. Shaking his head, he couldn't help but add in a dry tone, "Property damage and theft aside."

"Oh, shove it," Auren growled, clenching the wheel tightly as he passed a semi-trailer. "We agreed to see this damn challenge through, if for no other reason, to get some answers when we get back." He turned away from the road to stare a Glauron fully. "Obviously the others aren't going to go easy, so why should we?" The golden dragon decided to remain silent, and after a few moments, Auren turned back to the road. His harsh blue eyes flicked to the dash and the tablet. "Its a good three or four hours to the next marker, and at the moment, we might have a head-start. Let's focus on that, shall we?"

"The other teams will probably grab transportation too," Renfear piped up, his ears splayed to the side. "They'll grab cars like we did and it won't be much of an advantage in the long run."

Auren shook his head and gripped the wheel again. "Then why do you think I'm doing eighty in a fifty-five?" he shot back darkly, as they zoomed passed another car.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The silver dragon hissed as Nate pulled a shard of glass from his shoulder. "Easy," the wolf muttered, trying to hold the quivering muscles still as he extracted the piece of broken glass.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Auren snorted sarcastically, wincing once more. "Maybe next time we can trade places and see how you like getting rudimentary surgery." He snarled again as Nate finally removed the shard from his shoulder blade.

The silvery-grey wolf sighed, and held the thumb-sized shard in front of the dragon's nose. "Maybe next time, you won't decide to take a shortcut through a picture window," he remarked dryly.

"Hey, blame that bovine bitch when she threw me through it."

A few feet away, Renfear giggled softly as he laid one of the large mattresses they had found. "Aww...poor Auren got beat up by a girl," he teased.

"Fuck you, dude, she was huge." Another series of muted chuckles echoed from the group, and Auren grouchily slumped onto his side as Nate applied the bandage. His icy blue eyes watched as Glauron poked at the pair of pendants, his other paw wrapped around the tablet as he tried to figure out more about them.

It was now late a night, and the four boys were recovering from their second confrontation with the other teams. A few hours ago, they had converged on the next location given to them by the GPS. The second pendant had been in another small town along the way back home, only this time it showed up in a diner. Auren and Glauron had gone in to retrieve it this time, seeing as how the wolves made such a scene at the previous pickup. The plan was to get in, find the thing, and get out as quickly and quietly as they could manage.

Needless to say, that plan went right out the window.

So did Auren, with the help of a rather angry cow girl from the Rozzaria team.

After a rather intense showdown at the diner, which ruined dinner for every poor patron there, the four boys - who had managed to get away with the second pendant, thanks to quick-fingered Glauron - took to the road again. Leaving the other teams back at the town as quickly as they could, Auren and the others stopped for the night after a few more hours hard driving, finding a small out-of-the-way service station that appeared closed down. It wasn't a five-star resort, but given the circumstances, it was better than spending the night in the car.

Finishing his patch job on the dragon's shoulder, Nate flopped down beside him on the mattress. "At least we got it," he groaned, gesturing to the pair of medallions on Glauron's lap. "Two down, and two to go."

"Mmm," Auren mumbled, rolling his shoulders to alleviate the remnants of the pain from his wound. "But if the next two go as well as these times did, I just hope we're still in one piece to make it back to the Academy." He shuffled over closer to the wolf beside him, draping a muscled arm around his furred midsection, earning a soft murr from the lupine. "Where's the next stop, Glau?"

The golden dragon, who had perched himself on a milk crate while he fiddled with the tablet, looked up and blinked. "Eh? Oh, right," he muttered, flipping back through a few screens to return to the GPS map. Another few taps, and he sat up straighter. "Ah, here we go. Yeah, this one will be a bit of a drive." He turned the tablet around to show the others the digital map.

The next marker pulsed on the readout, and Renfear felt his jaw gape open. "Are you serious?!" he barked, snagging the tablet from Glauron's paws. "Nevada?!"

Growling and snatching the tablet back, Glauron fixed the snow wolf with a flat stare. "Yes, Nevada, and thank you for not being so grabby." He shook his head and returned to addressing the group at large. "Reston did say there were six pendants all together, spread out over the journey back to California." He glanced down at the map briefly, before raising his head once more. "I find it odd they skipped the entire state of Utah....but then again, maybe they didn't."

"What do you mean?" Nate asked from his spot on the mattress, unashamedly shuffling closer to the large dragon that held him.

Glauron tapped his claws on the edges of the tablet. "Well, we now have two out the needed four pendants in our possession," he began. "Maybe...because we're ahead of everyone else...the GPS is directing us to one of the later drop points, to give the other teams a chance to catch up."

"For an 'anything goes' kinda deal, that sounds a little cheap," Auren growled, his thick tail flicking across the bare mattress. "Letting the teams get on even footing just to have us clash at the end."

The golden dragon opposite him just shrugged and waved the tablet. "I'm just guessing here. Who knows what these people who planned this are thinking? All I do know is that they are probably monitoring us the entire way." He shrugged again. "Maybe this is their idea of making the ending interesting?"

Renfear huffed, then arched his back stretching and yawned. "Well, whatever the case, we should sleep. Especially if we need to drive across two states before we find the next trinket." The others nodded in agreement, and started making themselves comfortable. Glauron slipped onto the mattress next to the snow wolf, cuddling in close, while Auren and Nate got comfy on the other one. A few minutes later, the day's fatigue washed over them, and the abandoned service station fell quiet.

Feeling the muscular dragon's chest pressing into his back - among other things - Nate shuffled backwards a bit, rubbing himself against Auren. Since this whole mess had started, the wolf had still failed to get any time alone with the hunky silver drake. Naturally, current issues took priority, but still...it was an itch in the back of his mind, and had been for several days now. It was starting to really irritate him. As if his thoughts had been broadcast aloud, a few minutes after things had gone quiet, the muscular arm wrapped around Nate's waist slipped gently lower. The wolf stirred slightly, then gave a soft growl as the paw tracing across his belly slid below his belt. "Hey, now..." he whispered quietly.

A soft chuckle met his ear, followed by a gentle nip. "Sorry...its just tempting, being right there and all." Auren nosed the back of Nate's neck tenderly as his paw rubbed the front of Nate's jeans. "You know this is one of the first things on my agenda when we get back, right?" To make his point perfectly clear, he gave Nate's groin a soft squeeze, and the wolf moaned under his breath, feeling his thick sheath react immediately.

"We could go out into the car and take care of it right now," the lupine suggested without thinking. With that paw cupping his bulge, most rational thought drifted off, replaced by simple hormones. Auren was seriously starting to have that effect on him.

"Heh...and listen to the other two complain of the heavy musk for the next couple hundred miles?" the drake rumbled, his chest vibrating against Nate's back.

"I don't know if I can wait another couple hundred miles," Nate whispered flatly, pressing himself back against Auren's groin as the silver dragon spooned him.

There was another tender lick across his ear. "I know, I'm sorry," Auren murmured back. "Things haven't really been fair lately, and teasing you isn't helping matters." Despite his words, the dragon's paw remained securely where it was, cupping Nate's sheath through his jeans. After a moment or two of silence, Auren rumbled softly again. "Tell you what; next place and time we stop to bed down, we'll do it. In the car, on the floor, outside against a tree...whatever. You and me."

"Really?" Nate asked, turning his head slightly so his muzzle was touching Auren's.

"Really," the drake murmured back. Even in the dim moonlight filtering through the window, Nate could see the icy blue eyes shine in tenderness. "I want you too, wuff," he smiled. "And besides...I think we've earned a reward for our progress so far."

Nate felt his own muzzle split into a smile. "Sounds like a plan, babe." He laid his head back down and snuggled into the warmth of the dragon holding him. Between their toned bodies came the soft tapping of the wolf's tail as it wagged happily. They were just drifting off, when Nate snickered, and whispered once more. "Who's going to top?" he giggled softly.

"Guess we'll find out," Auren grunted, but not unkindly. He nipped Nate's ear once more, shushing him, and not long after, the pair fell asleep.