FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The air fell silent as we watch the dirt road behind our barricade of wooden carts, and whatever else we could find in the village. Half of us stand at the incline of the barricade as we watch for any signs of movement on the dirt road or the forest that surrounds it. My body aches as I stand in a single place unable to move because of everyone being squashed beside one another. I look up and see the sun has already passed the highest point and now is starting to descend back down to the earth. The line of guard dog standing in front of me makes it impossible for me to see over the barricade.

"Where the hell are they," grumbles a guard dog, "those scouts were supposed be back by now."

"Oh stop your whining," says a cat standing behind her, "I thought you guard dogs were trained to stand still."

"She didn't ask for your opinion hairball!" a different guard dog shouts.

"Hey look," A guard dog says at the front of the barricade "the scouts are finally back."

The scouts quickly run up the barricade and push their way through the crowd of animals. I try to look over their shoulders to see where the scouts went, but sadly to no avail. Slowly the commotion surrounding me starts to die down. Even the guard dogs around me straighten their backs which can only mean one thing.

I see the animals in my left start pushing back as if they are forming an open space to let someone through. I look up to the barricade and see a silhouette of a guard dog climbing to the top which I quickly recognized thanks to his black shield. "Everyone listen up!" Jedrick shouts as he stands right on top of the barricade looking into the crowd of animals. I can barely see Jedrick thanks to the animals around me being a couple feet taller than me. "The enemy has started preparing their camp down the road at the open clearing."

Cheering erupts throughout the crowds of animals. The faces that were once filled with dread from the thought of a battle and the blaring heat beating down upon them are now filled with joyous smiles.

"What in the name of Zao are you happy about!" Shouts Jedrick, "Is the enemy retreating? Have we defeated them? No, they have chosen to take a bit of a rest. So how about you start cheering when we've won this battle." The entire crowd of animals falls silent as they look at each other with shame. Some of them just look up to Jedrick frustrated, but choose not to speak out. Jedrick combs through the crowd of animals as he shouts, "where's Marco!" Annoyed, I raise my hand. Jedrick sees my hand poking out of a crowd of guard dogs. "Marco get your tail over to the commander tent right now. I want at least twenty guard dogs stationed on this barricade at all times. The rest of you are dismissed. " Jedrick then walks through the crowd of animals towards the guard camp. The crowd of animals around me starts to disperse back into the camp, while a couple guard dogs grudgingly stay at their spots on the barricade.

I make my way through the crowd as I walk to the guard camp. My body feels heavy from carrying my leather garb and weapons, but I know the importance of our meeting, so I trudge through the camp heading to the big black tent. The guard dog camp is slowly starting to be filled with exhausted dogs returning from to their tents. I run into the big black tent and see Cola, Jedrick and General Jeval standing in front of the large wooden table with their backs turned to me. Everyone is fully covered in plate and leather armor except for their helmets which they have chosen to place on top of the wooden table.

"So did Jedrick find any weaknesses in the thorn bushes?" They all turn to look at me with frustrated looks. "Oh yeah, I sure did," Jedrick says with a fake smile "come over and look at what I found." I slowly make my way towards the table as Cola, Jedrick and General Jeval separate to make a path for me. I look at the wooden table and see a new well drawn map, but this time it is a drawing of the Valley which our enemy now builds their camp in. My heart sinks as I realize that almost the entire camp is surrounded by thorn bushes, except for a small pathway which comes from the dirt road into the valley. I quickly turn to look at Jedrick and frantically say "are you sure". "Am I sure? Are you mocking my capabilities," Jedrick recoils in anger "yes, I am certain without a doubt in my mind."

"Well we haven't yet asked the local herbalists" retorts Cola.

Jedrick gives an angry glare to Cola "So you trust the rabbits over your own kind."

"I trust a local to know the area than someone who took the scenic route."

Jedrick growls and says "How about I show you the scenic route with the sharp side of my sword."

"Enough!" General Jeval shouts as he slams his hand against the wooden table, "you two have been at each other's throats since the fall of Georgos."

Both Jedrick and Cola look at one another then quickly turn their heads away in disgust.

"Is this a bad time?" We all look over to the opening of the tent and see a guard dog with three rabbits standing behind her. An awkward silence fills the tent. "Thank you Calla," Cola groans "please step forward." The beagle stands to the side as she lets the rabbits pass her. The three rabbits are covered in their average brown robes with a leather belt around their waist that carries all types of remedies to heal any wound or sickness.

The rabbit in the middle raises her hood and shows her brown fur, which has long lines of gray carving along her face showing her older age. She looks at us with her bright blue eyes and with a calming somewhat sweet voice she says "my name is Ellen. The young rabbit to my left is Charmaine." She points to a young female rabbit who still has her hood over her head hiding her eyes, though the white fur of her muzzle is quite visible. "The other young rabbit to my left is Evander". She points to a male rabbit that has raised his hood which shows his white fur with black spots. He smiles and calmly says "nice to meet you".

"These two are helping me gather the materials I need to make my remedies," Ellen replies as she keeps her kind smile; "now, how can we help you?"

"Do you know the large valley near the village?" the General ask as he points to the well-drawn map on the table.

"The Valley which has thorn bushes," Ellen replies as she looks over the map.

"I told you," Jedrick says frustrated. "The entire thing is surrounded in thorn bushes."

"Well not the entire valley," Ellen says

"Of course how could I forget," Jedrick says. "Let's just go through the open path into the Valley. I'm sure they haven't in any way fortified that position."

"And of course the faker bushes as well," Ellen says with a coy smile.

"Faker bushes? What in the name of the grinning reaper are faker bushes," Cola asks.

"They are a type of bush that grows beside thorn bushes. They are called faker bushes because they look almost identical to thorn bushes, but their thorns are just leaves."

"I've never before heard of this in my entire life," says Jedrick.

"Well why would you," says Ellen. "To you they would look nothing more than a thorn bush, but for us it is a vital plant for medicine."

"What would you use the plant for?" I ask.

"Well, it is used for sore joints, aches, pains and..."

"I don't care about what its' used for", Jedrick says. "Do you know if there any faker bushes in the valley and can we actually sneak through them without making too much noise?"

Ellen continues with her kind smile and responds with "yes, there is a large group of them on the edge of the valley and you shouldn't have any problem getting yourself through a faker bush."

"Could you, guide us to the faker bush?" The general asks as he points to the map.

"It's been a long time since I have taken that short strip but," she turns to her left and points to Charmaine, "she was there just two days ago gathering some roots from the bushes."

General Jeval stares at Charmaine as he scratches the side of his head. "Can you lead us to them?"

"Of course," Charmaine says as she steps forward, but still conceals the majority of her face with her hood.

"Even during the night?" asks Cola.

Charmaine gives a kind smile to Cola and responds "I am certain that I will have no trouble."

"Cola, I want you to let every guard dog to have the rest of the day off to prepare for tonight's attack," General Jeval says as he straightens his back. "Grab a couple ferrets to guard the barricade and once you're done come right back."

"Understood," Cola says a he makes his way out of the tent.

"Make sure they get some decent armor and weapons. I don't want the enemy thinking that this is a great time to attack," General Jeval shouts.

"I'll make sure they get the shiniest piece of armor we have so when the enemy attacks they'll be blinded from the sun beaming off of them," Cola says as he runs out of the tent.

The room is filled with quiet chuckles that are interrupted with Jedrick's question. "What if the enemy also notices that those faker bushes aren't actually thorn bushes?"

"I'm not worried about that," General Jeval says with a smile "after all; you and your guard dogs meticulously scanned that valley for any openings. So if you couldn't find these faker bushes, then no doubt the enemy won't find them either."

Jedrick gives a frustrated look from the generals' almost childlike response. "So what's the plan? No offense, but I don't remember any part of Grimsson law on ambushing camps."

"It is true that we do not have any good ambushing tactics," General Jeval says as he gives out a long sigh "but..." He slowly leans forward over the wooden table as he says "but the Northerners have a good one."

"Are you insane," Jedrick shouts "you want to use our enemy's tactics."

"Do you remember how effective they were? It was utter chaos how they attacked us."

"Yeah, they were pretty good at attacking our camp and killing our soldiers."

"Just because there are our enemy doesn't mean we can't use their tactics."

"What tactics?" Jedrick says in frustration. "All I remember is frantically trying to figure out what was going on."

The general gives out a long sigh of frustration. "Look, when I finished my training in the city of Polemos, I was sent out with a couple hundred guard dogs to march along the northern border. I was so excited to go for my first ever march. I remember we choose to make our camp on the side of a mountain, though the camp was more on the base of the mountain with a small part of it on the actual side. I was one of the lucky few who got to put his tent on the side of the mountain, far away from any danger. The very night we set camp was when the Northerners attacked us. I was one of the few dogs still awake at that time preparing food for the next day. There were no sounds of war cries or screams that disrupted the night. The only thing that caught my attention was when I turned to look down the mountain and saw that the edge of the forest had hundreds of lit torches. In horror I yelled as loud as I could to get the attention of anyone who could hear me as I saw lynx pour into the camp. . The front of their army was storming into the camp carrying torches burning every tent they could find. This caused chaos to spread throughout the camp which had started to be consumed in fire. The rest of the lynx who were not burning tents were instead running around killing whatever guard dog they could find. What amazed me about them was how quickly they moved. By the end of the battle half of our camp was in ashes and there weren't many of us left standing. This simple yet effective method of attack almost completely wiped us out. This tactic we must use to attack our enemy if we want to win this battle."

"Fine, tell us what exactly you need us to do," Jedrick looks at the General exhausted from trying to fight against his commander.

"Firstly we need at least a hundred torches to use for attack."

Jedrick looks over to the single guard dog standing beside the tent and points to her. "Guard, get some hamsters to help you gather one hundred torches."

"Yes captain." The guard dog salutes Jedrick and starts to make her way the tent. "Thank you Calla," General Jeval says with a kind smile. The guard dog turns to him and gives a slight nod with her head in respect before leaving the tent. Jedrick gives an annoyed reaction to the general, but says nothing.

"Jedrick, I want you to pick one hundred guard dogs to carry the torches. I want them to be the most skilled guard dogs we have, and I want you to lead them into the enemy's camp."

Jedrick expression changes into a smile as he slightly nods to the general. "Thank you for giving me such an honor. I didn't know you regarded my skills in combat so highly."

"I don't," the General says with a plain expression. "I just wanted to make sure you really do get the best guard dogs; after all they will be the ones protecting your back."

Frowning, Jedrick grimly asks, "is there anything else you need from me general?"

"Also tell Cola to get the rest of the guard dogs into one large group," as he returns to looking at the map.

Jedrick salutes general Jeval and starts to leave. As he passes the three rabbits he gives them an angry glare as he makes it out from the tent

"I'm sorry about how he acted. He has a bit of a problem with rabbits."

"Do you know why?" Ellen kindly asks the general, unfazed by Jedrick's angry glare.

"Sorry, but if you want to know something about Jedrick then I suggest you talk to him."

"Well it doesn't matter if I know why he hates rabbits. I'm pretty sure that no matter what I say or do will change his opinion."

"How do you know?" I ask.

"Call it a hunch," Charmaine says interrupting the conversation while she looks back at the opening of the tent, making it impossible for me to see her face.

"Now I think we've kept you long enough," General Jeval says.

"Indeed; we need to prepare our medicine for tonight's attack. Which reminds me; if you want us to come with you during the night raid then we have two conditions. Firstly we expect like any other army, to be put in the very back and not to be asked to attack the enemy. Secondly we would like some animals to guard us while we treat wounded animals; they don't have to be very well armored or skilled. We just need someone watching our backs while we take care of the wounded."

"We can put you with the herbalist rabbits that came with us from Georgos. I already know where I'll be putting them during the night raid and I'm certain your two conditions can be fulfilled."

"Then we will see you at the barricade before nightfall." The rabbits quickly make their way out the tent leaving me alone with the general. The tent falls silent as general Jeval goes to his belt and pulls out his metal flask. He takes a quick swig and winces slightly. He looks at me and with a smile asks "want a taste?"

"No thanks," I say remembering the last time I took a sip from that flask. General Jeval takes another swig from the flask, then places it onto the table. The general gives out a long sigh as he stares out of the open tent watching the sky slowly darken. "How did it all crumble like this?"

A look at the general surprised from his question. "What do you mean?"

"Back when the gods walked among us there was nothing but peace and prosperity. We made our way through the land of Zao not afraid of the shadows that lingered in her forests. Back then the rivers of Zao seemed like endless streams of water that would reach the very edges of the world. It has been over 1000 years since the gods disappeared, leaving behind nothing but questions that can't be answered and answers that have been forgotten. Agapao taught her rabbits how to cure any illness, but now hundreds of animals die every day from diseases that rabbits can't cure. Ploutos taught his cats how to work together and build massive trading routes that spread food and luxury throughout Zao, but now his children fight amongst themselves over whatever fortunes they can find. Nomikos taught his ferrets to rule the land justly, treating all animals as equals, but now their ranks are filled with corrupted individuals that care more for power than justice. Auxano taught her hamsters how to toil over the bountiful fruits of Zao, but by now almost all of them have been forgotten. Dunamai taught us dogs how to fight and lead armies to victory, but now as time passes our skills of battle are slowly diminishing."

"Diminishing?" I interrupted him, surprised by his statement.

The general takes another swig from his flask and continues his story. "When the Gods suddenly disappeared the northern barbarians charged from the northern mountain range into Zao. It was said that there was rivers of lynx carving their way through our land and in the night the forest were filled with the eyes of Wolf's. Our ancestors did not fear this endless wave of Northerners. They didn't even buckle from the weight of their armies bashing against their borders. With a single swift attack from our ancestors the Northerners were set cowering back north into their wasteland of ice and snow. But now our weary and beaten armies march across the northern border hoping to defeat what little barbaric tribes have passed through the northern mountains. The northern cities of Zao cower in fear from the distant screams that echo throughout the forest of those who had wandered too far from the city walls.

General lowers his head in frustration as he takes another swig from his flask. "And now this unknown enemy from the east has captured Georgos. Our armies have been fighting wars against small bands of Raiders harassing our borders, but now an army marches to our gates. With one quick strike they have taken the heart of the wetlands and soon they will consume the rest of it cities that still stand."

"Why would the wetlands fall so quickly;, don't we have armies stationed in each city?"

"Marco you were there when they took Georgos in nearly 2 days. Hell, the only reason it lasted two days was because of the massive river that split the city in half. Their weapons were able to destroy walls in mere seconds. I fear no matter how well a city is defended they might not stand a chance against them."

"Do you think... We could win this war?"

The general takes one more swig of his flask and places it back on his belt. "Marco nowadays you don't win wars, you survive them."

"General we are ready," Cola says as he walks into the tent.

"Marco you will be in charge of third block of animals. Go gather all the hamsters, ferrets, cats, and bunnies that have any type of weapon and go join the rest of the Army at the barricade."

"Why do you ask me? Wouldn't a guard dog be a better choice," I ask, surprised!

"It is true that a guard dog spends more time training then you have, but what they need right now is not somebody who knows how to lead an army but somebody they can trust to win the battle. You are the one who came up with the ambush attack that defeated the enemy. They will trust your words much more than a guard dogs. Remember that Zaons don't fight for themselves but for each other and remember stand proud with no fear in your eyes for if you do all others will follow in your footsteps."

His inspirational words gave me a bit of pride to fight in the battle ahead. "Alright, I'll get them ready for battle," I say as I make my way out of the tent. General Jeval and Cola continued talking amongst themselves, but I had to focus on my order so I bear no interest in their conversation. I look up and see the sun has already started lowering behind the forest leaving an orange glow. A cool wind blows through the camp making the hot spring day into a cold night. I make my way through the guard camp and arrive to the citizen side of the camp. I notice a large group of animals sitting around in a circle talking amongst themselves. Most of them are carrying some type of weapon, from a small knife to a shovel. I run over to them while waving my hands to gain their attention. "The general wants any animal that has a weapon to go to the barricades. We are running out of time so I need the rest of you who are not going to barricades to tell everyone else what is going on." I run past them as I continue on my path through, but I stop when I hear. "Hey Marco." I look behind me and see a cat standing up from the circle of animals I just passed. I notice the fear in his eyes as he says "can we win?" I am taken back from the sudden question. I look to the crowd of animals and see that most of them are terrified, as some of them cradle their loved ones in their hands. Suddenly I realize that all these animals are as terrified as I am. Like me, these animals are farmers, carpenters, blacksmiths, merchants and hundreds of others, that have not trained for war. For some reason they all just look at me as if I can give them hope. I take a couple seconds to think of the right words to say to these terrified animals.

"Every battle fought from here on out is not for our lives or the lives of the families, but the survival of Zao," I say as I quickly remember what General Jeval said to me, hoping that this will help them through their fears. Eyes that were filled with fear are now filled with pride. Not just pride, but determination. They do not respond with words but merely nod their heads in respect. Then they quickly start to disperse amongst the camp. Most of them heading towards the barricade as others run around talking to any group of animals they can find.

I quickly notice a ripple effect happening around me as animals quickly split into two groups, one group running towards the barricades as they frantically put on their armor and the rest running around trying to find any animal that has not yet heard the news. Noticing that they do not need my help I quickly turn my attention to the barricade. On my way to the barricade I see Jedrick talking to five guard dogs while behind him two large groups of dogs stand at attention. On the other side of the barricade there is a large mass of hamsters, rabbits, and ferrets sitting down nervously waiting for the battle ahead. Jedrick notices me making my way to the barricade. He dismisses the five dogs in front of him while he makes his way towards me.

"Where is General Jeval?"

"I don't know. He gave me an order to grab whatever animal I can find that has any sort of weapon and bring them to the barricade."

"He gave you orders?" Jedrick asks, surprised.

"What wrong with giving him orders," asks Cola as he and General Jeval make their way towards us from the camp.

"Is everyone ready," General Jeval asks, completely ignoring what Cola said.

"The guard dogs are already for the attack, but you should ask your hamster over there for the rest of the animals," Jedrick says, annoyed.

General Jeval looks over to me and asks "are we read?."

I look back at the group of animals and see that just a couple few are making their way towards the barricade. I look back at the general and simply say "yes sir."

General Jeval takes a deep breath as he looks over the barricade towards the forest. "Cola, find our local guide and Jedrick get your dog's ready." Both Cola and Jedrick salute their general and went their separate ways. The general looks up for a moment to see that the sun has disappeared beyond the horizon and now the sky is filled with stars. "Marco, get your animals ready," General says with a stern look.

I turn around and make my way towards the large crowd of animals, who quickly notice me walking towards them. They get back onto their feet adjusting what little armor they have on and tightly holding on to their weapons. They all stare at me with frightened eyes and quivering feet. They have grouped themselves tightly together as if they are watching each other's back from an unexpected attack. I stand in front of them trying to think of something inspiring to say but the words just don't come to my mind. I quickly remember the general told me that if I show them bravery. they will respond the same way. So I take a deep breath and look at them with all the determination I can bring myself to bear. Sadly there is no overwhelming change of emotions throughout the animals, but I can see just a few faint glimpses of hope in their eyes.

"We're ready to move out," I hear the general shout. "Everyone get into position."

Quickly the guard dogs form into two solid entities of metal and steel. The first group of guard dogs is about the size of a hundred strong and the second group about four hundred. "Everyone with me," I say as I make my way behind the two groups of guard dogs. I quickly guided my group to be the third group of animals of this long line of soldiers. I place myself in front of my group of animals and pulled out my sword, readying myself for the battle ahead. Once everyone is properly settled down in their group General Jeval shouts "forward into the forest!" With the general's words, the first group of guard dogs starts marching its way over the barricade and into the forest. Soon the second group of guard dogs starts moving its way forward over the barricade and with us closely following behind them.

I easily climb over the barricade and I'm about to make my way into the forest when I feel a shield hitting my right shoulder. I look over and see Eros standing beside me armored with his chain mail and carrying his round shield and sword.

"Did I miss anything," Eros says, jokingly

"Where were you?" I ask.

"I went out foraging for some spices to add to our carts."

We pass into the forest and start weaving our way through the trees while trying our best to maintain some form of linear path amongst us.

"Why are you foraging for food when were about to head into battle?"

"Isn't it obvious," says Eros. "Winning a battle is hard work and the last thing I want is to return back to the camp without any type of spices to add to my food."

"No talking."

I look in front of me and try to find out who said that, but the crowd of dogs continues marching forward through the forest as quietly as they can. I look over to Eros and see he has started moving more slowly through the forest watching where he steps. I quickly start mimicking his movements. The forest is becoming thick with vegetation which disperses our columns into small groups of animals weaving our way around the trees and bushes.

As we continue marching through the forest in silence, the thoughts of the ensuing battle weighs down on my mind. Once more I face against an enemy army but instead of being surrounded in a city filled with echoing screams of distant battles, I hear nothing but the quiet steps of the animals around me heading into a battle that most of them are not prepared to fight. The forest around me is almost pitch black except for the light that comes from the stars that pear through the trees above us. Then I see small lights peering through the forest which makes my heart sink in fear.

The guard dogs in front of me slowly stop and kneel down into the grass. I quickly fall behind them trying to hide behind a pair of bushes. I look around me and see that everyone is either hiding themselves behind trees, bushes or rocks. Eros is a couple feet in front of me standing straight up hiding behind a tree. He is taking deep breaths as he processes his shield against his chest while pressing his sword against his right leg. The air is filled with deathly silence as everyone seems to hold their breath. To my own surprise the silent night is disturbed by the sound of small critters scurrying along the ground. Their tiny footsteps bring back memories of me sitting underneath the large tree beside my house watching the stars with Dad as he told me his stories. I look up peering through the trees and see the lights lighting up the night sky. The tension in my muscles starts to ease as loving memories pour into my mind.

"Charge in the name of Zao!"