FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

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Ruari heard a knock at his door and quickly padded up to it and opened it to find Aidan and Des waiting for him. Excitement and nervousness welled inside him. He had never seen his friends outside of school before.

"Ruari!" Aidan said and greeted him with a nose bump. "Mind if we come in? We've never seen a rich person's house before!"

Ruari shook his head and stepped away from the door. "It's not that spectacular..."

"Says you!" Aidan retorted and wiped his snowy paws on the mat before taking his first steps inside.

"Wow..." Des said, doing the same. "The foyer already has more decorations than my entire house..."

The foyer was wider than it was short: the left side led to bedrooms while the right led to the family area. Along the wall facing the door were a few landscape paintings as well as some swirly designs etched into the wood. While the foundation and majority of supporting walls were made from stone, the inside of Ruari's home had a lot of wooden walls to divide the rooms. It was easier to decorate that way, and the way the wood was carved brought an elegant flavor to the house.

"R-really?" Ruari asked and led them to the right. They walked into a vertical hallway that led deeper into Ruari's home toward the kitchen and pantry, but an archway opened up on the right side to the living area.

"Well, your family did just move here, Des. I'm sure it'll take some time to acquire more belongings. I'm sure Ruari's family has lived here for centuries!"

Ruari shook his head. "My father had this built after he married my mother--about twenty years ago, I think. Most of this stuff came from their ceremony."

"That must have been a grand ceremony," Aidan said, looking up at a portrait of Ruari's grandfather.

Ruari nodded and showed them the living area. Inside, there were several soft, fluffy mats and beds laid along the floor. There were four bookcases in total, though only two of them saw any real use. The others just had books and scrolls that gathered dust on them. A table was pushed against the wall, which held a few leftover glasses.

Aidan immediately charged into the room and jumped on the fluffiest bed there. "It's so SOFT!" He wriggled around in it and sprawled out comfortably with a huge sigh.

Ruari giggled and plopped down in his own bed that he always used. "It's my mother's. She loves soft things."

"I can imagine why! I could just fall asleep in this anytime..."

"I have a hard time believing that!" Desmond said and jumped onto the bed with Aidan. It was just large enough to fit both of them. "You're so full of energy all the time... I'm not sure how you even sleep at night."

Aidan grinned and rolled over on top of Des with a pillow in his talons as he smothered the purple dragonet with it.

"Mmmrrrrpphh!" Des kicked at Aidan and tried to throw him off, his tail lashing back and forth. He shoved the bigger, red dragonet onto his side and rolled on top of him, pinning him into the soft bed. "Hey!"

Aidan giggled happily. "This was mine first!"

"You can't claim something that isn't yours!" Des retorted.

"Make sure you don't claw up that bed," Ruari's father said from the archway. "My mate would not be pleased if she found claw marks and tears."

Both of them squeaked and scrambled off the bed and sat on the stone floor with their tails tucked around their legs and their wings pulled tight against their backs. Almost in unison, they said, "Sorry, sir!"

Fallon grinned toothily and hovered over Ruari. "These are your friends, Ruari?"

He nodded and pointed to the red and white dragonet, and then to the violet and blue dragonet. "That's Aidan and that's Desmond! But we call him Des for short." Aidan was about half a foot taller than Des was, but his body was lengthier and lithe while Des had a broad, bulky chest and muscular legs.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both," he said. "I expect you'll look after Ruari on this trip?"

They both nodded dutifully without saying a word. It was the first time Ruari had seen them look so obedient!

"Good, then I'll leave you three to it. Have fun!"

"Bye, Dad!" Ruari wiggled in his bedding and then returned his attention to his friends, who both looked like they were scared stiff.

"Your dad is a lot scarier in person," Aidan admitted. All at once his stiff body collapsed into his normal, relaxed posture.

"Yeah," Des agreed, "He looks like he could tear me apart with just his claws. I heard his Ice magic is even scarier..."

"He wouldn't do that!" Ruari replied. "He's really nice and gentle."

"You're his son! Of course he is to you!" Aidan countered. "But anyway, we better get going before it gets too late. I want to explore as much as we can!"

They stepped out of the living area together and walked toward the door, and then Ruari saw Keira walking toward them before she stopped in her tracks and stared at them. She looked like she wanted to retreat back into her room, but she obviously didn't want to back down.

"Oh, hello!" Aidan said and gave a friendly smile. "I didn't know Ruari had another sister! It's a pleasure to meet you... uhm..."

"Keira," she answered and looked past him at Ruari. Their eyes met before Ruari shifted his wings and turned his head away to avoid her gaze.

"Keira!" Aidan said and bowed his head. "We're going on an adventure, so we'll have to talk another time!"

Des tilted his head respectfully to her too and followed Aidan out of the door.

"Can I come?" Keira asked hopefully. Her crimson eyes were wide and bright.

Aidan and Des shrugged and looked to Ruari for an answer, putting him in a very awkward situation. "I uhm..." He didn't want his friends to think he was mean, but he also didn't want Keira to be anywhere near him. He quickly shook his head and hurried outside, trying not to see the hurt look on her face.

"Maybe next time!" Aidan said before Ruari slid the door shut behind them.

"She's not my sister," Ruari grumbled crossly. He wore a frown on his face and dug his talons into the snow. His father and mother may have set a place for her in their family, but she could never replace Raegan.

"She's a Northerner," Des stated. "Why is she living with you?"

Aidan finally realized what was going on. "Oooh!"

"My dad and uncle saved her and brought her home," Ruari answered.

"You don't sound all too happy about that," Aidan replied. "She's beautiful..."

Ruari muttered beneath his breath, disagreeing. "She's been nothing but trouble so far. My dad keeps spending more time with her than me, when I'm his own flesh and blood. It's... it's infuriating." Small beams of red light shone from beneath the snow, radiating from his forepaws.

Aidan bumped into Ruari and hugged him with a wing. "Hey, it's alright. You have us now! And we're about to go on an adventure!"

Des nodded next to him. "You'll find time to spend with your dad during the break."

A smile replaced Ruari's frown and he lifted his head up. "Okay, fine. Shall we go then?" He was surprised to find himself actually wanting to go. He didn't feel that scared or nervous as he had first been. In fact, he couldn't wait to see what else the world had to offer!

"Let's!" Aidan squeaked and led the way.

Ruari was absolutely positive that he had never flown so much in his life! His wings ached terribly, he couldn't breathe steadily, and he was constantly trying to readjust himself so he didn't drift too far away from Aidan and Des. Thankfully, they must have noticed him lagging behind and slowed down for him.

"C'mon, Ruari!" Aidan called back. "We're almost there!"

Ruari gulped and felt how dry his throat was as cold, bitter air filled his lungs. He coughed and pushed forward despite his wings threatening to collapse. All he could concentrate on was staying airborne.

Snowy hills rolled beneath them with coniferous trees covering the land in what looked like a fine fur coat from up high. There were hardly and breaks or clearings in the dense forest until a huge river snaked in from the east. They briefly stopped for a water break, and it took all of Ruari's remaining energy to thrust himself back into the sky. He was worried that his wings would cramp up and he'd go tumbling to his death, but Aidan reassured him that even if that did happen, he would catch him.

Not far off in the distance, he could see the city resting beside a lake. It cut into the water along a peninsula and trailed beside the edge of the water, north and south. Vance was about half the size of Mongrove, but it was still impressive nevertheless. They followed the river there for about another half a league.

Like Mongrove, it made most of its income through trade, though primarily from water routes. Large boats filled the harbor, crafted from the talons of manual laborers. Although most of the work was done without magic, a lot of the process included magic, such as shaping the wood and putting it together.

They finally landed just outside of the city on a dirt path. Snow covered the majority of the road with paw prints stamped all over. A few small houses hid behind some trees while a few dragons walked around or flew above them. Distant sounds and voices could be heard coming from deeper in the city, though it was rather quiet here.

Ruari collapsed on his side and took in big, ragged gasps, his wings drooping limply on the cold ground. "I- I... can't... further..."

Aidan and Des stood over him with worried expressions. "We're probably going to have to carry him back," Des said and poked a claw into Ruari's side.

"Carry him back? He needs carried now!" Aidan dug a small hole in the ground next to Ruari's snout and filled it with cool, pristine water. Ruari eagerly drank it up and asked for more. "Yeah, I think so. Poor little guy."

Ruari groaned and stood up onto all-fours, but his wings felt too weak to pull against his sides, so he had to manually push them into place. "I didn't think it would be this far..."

"Well, we made it!" Aidan cheered excitedly and jumped around in front of him. "Now we get to explore!"

Ruari took a few more deep breaths and tried to calm down. As long as he could get the oxygen he desperately needed, he could do it.

They started to walk into the city while Ruari caught his breath. The snow disappeared with the wear of travel, and the streets inside the city were clear. His head was swirling and he'd thought he'd fall over, but thankfully his legs had their full strength. It wasn't much longer before he could ignore the ache in his wings and begin to think clearly and process all of the sights he was seeing.

Many wooden buildings lined the cobblestone streets, one directly next to another. Dragons of all ages walked around, and there were a few crowded streets that the trio had to push and shove their way through, careful not to step on any tails. Ruari saw stalls and shops, so he assumed that they were passing through the market district. There were so many different voices all drowning in the uproar.

Vance's layout wasn't too different from Mongrove's; there were separate districts that organized the city by sections. Stone wasn't a very common resource here, so most buildings and structures were made from wood.

Ruari remembered reading that Vance was home to some of the most brilliant woodworkers on the continent. Their shipwrights crafted and built boats fit for ocean travel, and they even sold boats to large cities along the eastern coast of the continent--it was their primary export.

"I didn't even think about bringing money," Aidan said disappointedly. He had his golden eyes fixated on a golden bracer as they stopped at a stall filled with armors and metallic apparel. Ruari kind of liked the silvery cuffs inlaid with sapphire gems.

Ruari didn't think to bring his satchel along either, but it looked like Des had a coin purse tied around his neck.

"Like you could afford anything here!" Des teased. They stepped away from the stall and continued through the crowded street.

"True... Maybe I'll save up some money and get Ciara a necklace or something."

"She already has two different necklaces," Ruari said, "as well as a golden anklet and a tail ring."

Aidan shot him a surprised glance. "I thought you didn't pay any attention to her!"

Ruari smiled and shook his head. "I don't, but I do happen to notice things."

"Hmmph. She's been wearing that new scarf a lot, and she certainly loves it..."

"Why do you even want to get her something? She doesn't like you very well, from what I can tell," Ruari added. "She usually calls you a jerk and walks away."

"She's just playing hard-to-get! I bet she'd finally open up to me if I bought her something," Aidan replied with a toothy grin.

Des rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't count on that. Her family is rich and she has a lot of expensive apparel."

"You guys are really trying to crush my dreams," Aidan chuckled. "Fine, then I'll think of new attempts to swoon her!"

Ruari and Des sighed. Aidan bumped the both of them and hopped out in front of them and turned to face them. "So, where should we go next?"

"I'm a little hungry," Des said. "I don't mind paying for a meal for the three of us."

Ruari felt his stomach growl as he thought about food. He had yet to eat today, and he flew for nearly three hours straight! It was no wonder he suddenly felt famished. "I could really use something to eat."

"Then it's settled! We search... for food!" Aidan exclaimed and whirled around before padding away. Des and Ruari followed behind him, weaving their way through the crowd.

Ruari did enjoy Aidan always being so upbeat and happy all the time. It lifted his spirits and made him feel more at ease in public environments, and that was mostly because all of the attention would be directed at the bouncy, red dragonet and not him.

"Do you even know where you're going?" Des asked. They took a sharp turn to the right, and then another turn to the left, and before long they were the only three wandering around in an alleyway. Ruari didn't really like the feeling of that. What if someone attacked them?

"Of course I do! I'm the lead explorer," he stated unquestionably. He didn't look the least bit concerned.

The scents of dragons faded away and Ruari started to pick up the smell of cooked food in the cold air. It grew stronger and stronger, so Aidan must have been right! His stomach gurgled loudly. They cut down a narrow, dirt path, but Ruari suddenly stopped in his tracks. The other two stopped several yards ahead of him and looked back.

"Ruari?"

He looked down at his talons and saw runes etched into the dirt by claws that read: "Danger, turn back." But before Des and Aidan could see it, it disappeared.

"What's wrong?" Aidan asked and nudged his snout.

"There... there were letters," Ruari answered. "'Danger, turn back.'"

"Now that's spooky," Aidan said. "You sure you're okay? You were pretty exhausted." He suggested it like Ruari was seeing things.

Ruari nodded and started to back away. "I don't think we should go that way."

Aidan looked at Des and then back to Ruari. "Well... Let's go the other way, then, and turn down another street?"

Des shook his head. "If we are actually in danger, then we probably shouldn't keep going anywhere near that direction." Even though his friends didn't see the runes, they still believed him and wanted to solve the problem; that made Ruari extremely glad that he picked the right friends.

Ruari glanced around, trying to find a clue of some sort. How could runes just appear and disappear? He had never heard about that kind of magic, and there weren't any other dragons in sight! Was he actually seeing things?

"Well, what do you think, Ruari?" Aidan asked. "There are some more food places down that way," he pointed with a claw in the opposite direction. "Or we could go to the harbor and eat lots of fish!"

"I-I don't know..." Then Ruari felt himself freeze up. A high-pitched ringing filled his head, and he tried to cry out in fear, but he couldn't move. It looked like the world was frozen around him, he couldn't hear anything other than that ringing, and his muscles refused to move. He couldn't breathe and wanted to clutch at his chest. Alarm overwhelmed him as his senses completely shut down besides his hearing.

Turn around..._a ghostly voice whispered into his ear. Then it was over almost as soon as it had started--whatever that was. He could suddenly move again and inhaled deeply before he turned around. A black-scaled dragon quickly slinked past the alleyway and cut to the left. _Was that his doing or someone else's?

Ruari's heart raced in his chest, hammering away at his rib cage. He gulped and gasped for another breath, clutching at his breast, but he was completely fine.

"Ruari!" Aidan yelled. "Ruari!" He was shaking Ruari back to his senses, a concerned expression furrowing his brow. Des looked nervous and scared.

Ruari snapped back to attention and shook his body. "D-did you feel that? Did you see him?"

Both of them looked confused.

"A black dragon... he went that way," he said and pointed left. He looked down and saw more runes, but this time they read: "Stop him!"

Fear gripped him and seized his trembling heart. He needed to move, but he couldn't bring himself to. His legs shivered and refused to budge. The letters disappeared before the other two could see them, just like before.

"You need to rest," Aidan said worriedly, bumping snouts with Ruari. "You're exhausted. We shouldn't have pushed you so hard..."

"N-no, it's not that... We have to stop him..."

"Who?" Des asked.

"That black dragon!" he answered frantically and finally moved forward. He quickly ran to the alleyway, looking to the left, and saw a black tail disappear toward the right down another path that split apart buildings.

"Ruari, wait!" Aidan and Des ran after him, and just then an explosion went off and shook the buildings all around them. Ruari turned back and saw fire engulf the entrance to the alleyway before his world turned upside down. The blast itself sent the three of them tumbling to the ground. Dust and smoke filled the air and stung Ruari's eyes and nostrils.

His head was ringing and he couldn't hear what his friends were saying. Everything was happening so fast and his lungs ached as he inhaled some of the smoke. Shattered, wooden pieces fell from the sky and rained down upon them, and the top half of the building next to them was completely missing. Luckily the debris had missed them almost entirely in the narrow alleyway. The world went dark, so Ruari did the first thing that came to his mind.

He conjured a bright ball of light and made sure his friends were following him, and he ran as fast as he could down the alley and took the next right.

Panicked dragons roared and darted all around them as they cleared the smoke and entered a different street. Finally Ruari could hear again, so he screamed at Aidan and Des, "We have to stop him!"

They both shot uncertain glances and looked like they wanted to object, but Ruari didn't give them much time to think before he saw that black tail again before it disappeared down another alley on their right. He chased after it, knowing only one thing: he had to stop the next explosion.

He had never been so sure about anything in his life. Whatever supernatural magic had saved him and his friends was urging him to save more lives and stop this villain.

When they turned into the alleyway, he saw the black dragon's evil, red eyes looking back at them. He quickly dashed away out of sight, so Ruari chased after him despite his friends' protests.

"What has gotten into you, Ruari!?" They were terrified, but they followed him anyway.

Could they not see him? Was he just a figment of his imagination?

The next corner Ruari turned, he saw a red, glowing crystal on the ground that grew brighter and brighter. Sheer terror pierced his mind as he realized what that crystal would do. It would set off another explosion, and there was no way he could stop it. He and his friends would die.

He grabbed it and yelped as it singed his paw. Pain contorted his face, but he refused to let it go. He quickly thrust his arm into the air and focused all of his power and energy into something other than his useless element. He wanted a big gust of wind to send it flying high into the air. If he didn't infuse his Light element with his projected energy, that was what would happen, right? I hope so!

Ruari panicked because it wasn't working and felt his mind slip away from the feeling of wind and he thought about pure energy. He thought about a bright surge of light that could shoot it into the sky, and then the crystal suddenly jolted up into the sky on a bolt of lightning. It flew high and fast, and Ruari saw the bright explosion go off high into the sky where dragons dared not to fly, safe.

"No way..." Aidan said breathlessly behind him. Ruari wanted to celebrate, but he still needed to stop the black dragon.

He surged forward, running faster than he ever had before. It felt like his whole body was filled with electrical energy. His muscles felt loose and powerful; each step sent him propelling forward. His movements were smooth and agile as he dived into the crowd and dodged the mass of startled dragons. He found his target about to head into another alley again and charged toward him. Aidan and Des were trailing far behind him, but he couldn't stop now.

The black dragon hissed and flashed a row of sharp white teeth. "Persistent whelp," he growled and turned around.

They were facing off in a narrow alley. Wooden houses formed two walls on either side of Ruari, and it didn't look like there were any other paths that intersected or led out; it was a dead end.

Ruari didn't know where his sudden bravery came from, but he didn't question it. His talons tightened into the ground as he lowered into a crouched position, a snarl at his lips. "Who are you!?" he growled. "Why are you killing innocent dragons!"

The dragon smirked and took a crystal from a pouch wrapped above his elbow. "Our cause is far too great for a youngling like you to understand. However, I commend you for making it this far. Had we met under different circumstances, I'm sure you would have made a fine addition. So long!"

He threw the crystal at Ruari's talons, and he couldn't react in time to stop it. He shut his eyes tight and braced for his imminent, fiery death.

But instead of hearing a loud explosion, he heard the sizzle of the crystal's energy dissipating. An orb of water had formed around it, and the crystal fell to the ground with a splash and a clatter.

The black dragon had disappeared.

"Ruari! Are you okay!?" Aidan was out of breath as he inspected him closely, checking for any wounds.

He saved me... Ruari pulled away and nodded. "I'm... fine... Th-thank you."

Des caught Ruari before he fell over. Ruari leaned against the purple dragonet. His head was swirling and he felt very, very dizzy. "You certainly don't look fine!" Des said and held his smaller body up. Worry and concern were painted across his face.

"I'm just... really t-tired..." Ruari felt his consciousness slipping. He had used too much of his magic and his energy was depleted. He took more than he had, so his body couldn't handle the emptiness that consumed his chest. So this is what it feels like...

The last thing he saw was Aidan's nervous face before his vision went black.

"RUARI!"

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