FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

So, I've just updated the new chapter on the FA some while ago, but nearly forgot to put it here. As I said in the FA, the current approximation for the later chapters are like 1 chapter per every 7~10 days. Enjoy, and please comment!

Chapter 5: Ending of lies

Will woke up, groggy. For a minute, he forgot where he was, before the events of the last day crashed back. Sitting up, Will realized that he slipped into the tiger form while he was asleep. He looked at the bed next to his, and found his brother snoring, sleeping away. Will slipped into the showers, and came back in few minutes, feeling refreshed.

"Y...you awake?" Arthur mumbled as he sat up. Will also noticed that his brother had turned into his lion form, and stifled a grin at his messed up mane.

"You might want to brush up." Will spoke, smirking.

"Very funny...." Arthur spoke, as he headed into the shower. While his brother was taking a shower, Will took a look at his phone, and found it liberally peppered from the messages and missed phone calls from his friends. Sighing, Will made the phone call, hoping that they wouldn't be that excited about it.

Mark paced the football field, staring at the phone and muttering something that no one could hear. Suddenly, his phone rang, and Mark picked up the call, shouting "Will? Is that you!"

"Uhhh..... Yeah. Sorry I didn't say anything...." Will spoke, but was suddenly silenced by a tirade from Mark.

"Will, WHERE WERE YOU! And what's this about you quitting school? Why didn't you tell us? Why are you leaving school? Why...."

"Mark, stop!" Will yelled into the phone, and Mark fell silent. Will took a deep breath, and spoke. "Look, it's a bit complicated on the phone. Could you come and see me at the cafe in front of the school with Hailey after school's over?"

"Yeah. But you'd better bring a good story." Mark growled, and hung up. Will sighed , and looked back at his brother. Arthur called their parents before they went to school, and they managed to finish everything, including the issue about Will's school.

"You're not gonna tell them about the whole werebeast thing, are you?" Arthur asked.

"I won't. Besides, they won't really believe me, and I feel that they would be safer without me around. I mean, What am I going to do if I suddenly end up in the Sphere with them?"

"Sad but true. We've never completely figured out how to stop demons from dragging us into the Sphere, and they sometimes drag people who happen to be near us." Arthur admitted.

School never passed so slowly for Mark and Hailey, and when the bell for the last period finally rang, they ran out, running into the cafe. There, they saw Will, and a man that they've never seen.

"Hi, guys." Will spoke softly. He seemed sad.

"Will, where were you? One of the teachers said that you quit school, but why would you do that? I thought you wanted to go to college!" exclaimed Hailey.

"Well, I kinda have to go and live with my older brother here." Will spoke, pointing at the man who sat next to him.

"You're Mark, right? And you Hailey?" Will's older brother spoke, holding his hand out for a handshake. But Mark did not shake it. Something told him that something was wrong here.

"Will, is there something that you're not telling us?" Mark asked suspiciously.

"W...What? No! Why would you think that!" Will stammered, and accidentally knocked over a glass of juice that he was holding.

"Because you never stammer and spill your drinks when you tell the truth?" Mark replied sarcastically.

Will sighed. He could never hide things from Mark, and he knew it. But he couldn't go around telling the truth, either.

"Look, I can't really tell anything now, but I'll promise that I'll explain later. I'll still keep in touch."

"Why can't you tell us now? I mean, it's not like you're holding some type of a national secret, are you?" Hailey blurted out.

"It's complicated, and it's a family issue. I'll....... see you guys later." Will spoke as he walked out, followed by his brother. The two friends could only sit, stunned, as the brothers drove away.

While driving, Arthur looked at his brother, sitting next to him. He was silent, staring out at the window.

"You okay?" Arthur asked. He knew that it was hard leaving everything behind, especially one's friends, and not give a proper explanation.

"Yeah. I just..... feel a bit down." Will spoke. For the remainder of the drive, the two remained silent, lost in their own thoughts.

Will woke up suddenly, not realizing that he fell asleep. When he woke up, he found himself awake in a garage.

"Just in time. Let's get in, and I'll show you around." Arthur spoke as he got off, and Will followed him.

"One thing before we say anything, though: Promise me that you won't go beyond the yard for the next few weeks, would you?" Arthur spoke.

"Why?" Will asked.

"Because of the boundary spells. The spells I placed prevent a Sphere opening in the house, so you're safe as long as you're in here. But when you leave, a Sphere can open, and it can be dangerous for someone experienced like you."

Will thought that he could handle himself relatively well with the blade, but decided not to say anything. After all, all sorts of thing could happen.

"Sure." Will agreed. Arthur gave a smile of relief, and led Will around the house, showing the kitchen-which Will didn't care for much, seeing as it was right out in the open, the bedrooms-which was bigger than his old ones, a solid plus, and the basement, with several dolls for sword practice and some exercise equipments.

"Wait, how did you afford the place? I mean, you work, but I doubt that you could afford this place that easily, with all the stuff..." Will trailed off as he looked around.

"Gotta thank my boss for that. He turned out to be a werebeast, and he helped me out a lot. Besides, our parents actually gave us a lot of cash." Arthur casually spoke as he went up the stairs.

"Wait, he's a what?" Will spoke up, startled. Just how many werebeasts were there?

"Well, it was a incredibly lucky coincidence, and he was a lifesaver. He let me stay here, lent me money, and he understands when I have to leave to fight demons." Arthur spoke. "He also gave me a few more day off when I said that I found you."

"So, do you have to fight demons often?" Will asked, startled. He was under the impression that things would calm down when he grew up and got accustomed to his powers.

"Well, it depends. Usually, we have to fight demons that are desperate enough to hunt humans, but we sometimes end up falling into a Sphere targeting us. Sometimes it's a rescue mission like yours." Arthur spoke. "Will, you can have one of the guest rooms. Want me to pull your things out and organize?"

"Sure!" Will spoke as he headed up. An hour later, Will sat down on the bed, looking at his new room.

"Will, what do you want for dinner? I can cook, or we can order something." Arthur called up.

"Do whatever you want!" Will shouted down, and approached his desk. On it were several books that Arthur gave about. Some were about basic magic usages, but some were about the magic world. Will picked up one at random, and sat down, flipping it open. "Demons" Will read, and continued.

"Demons: As their name suggests, they are beings from hell. They are inherently stronger than humans, and are merciless, enjoying fear and death. They have a hierarchical society. In the middle ages, they engaged in a immense war against the angels. They were defeated when several werebeasts assisted the angels. After their defeat, the 72 strongest demons were either bound or killed, and were known as Bound Ones to most. Over time, several escaped from their prisons, but they still remain mostly quiet. Ever since the battle, demons are unable to enter Mortal world directly. As a result, they open Spheres, which act as traps for humans and werebeasts. They use the soul and the residual energy within them to give them strength. They can enter the Mortal world if one initiates a contract with them. This will give the user extraordinary strength, but will result in eternal slavery."

"Well, that's interesting." Will murmured as he set the book down. Will stood up, and went down. He saw his brother eating pizza.

"You didn't call for me?" Will spoke as he sat down. Arthur grinned, and spoke back. "I did, but you didn't come down. What were you doing?"

"I was reading about demons." Will shrugged, and took another bite.

"So I was thinking: you seem to be pretty good at using a sword already. I think that maybe we could teach you a bit of magic, and help you use your Spirit." Arthur spoke.

"Wait, what's a Spirit?" Will asked.

"So there's two components to supernatural powers: One is Mana, and the another is Spirit. Mana is used for magic, but Spirit is more frequently used by martial arts practitioners, because Spirit is harder to control when used in magic." Arthur spoke, sipping coke. "I think I'll teach you omnyoudo techniques first. The only thing you'd have to do at this point would be to put your powers in charms that I make. I think enchanting the blades you have would work best, but we'll get around to throwing them."

"When do we start?" Will asked, feeling slightly excited in spite of the day. After all, he never had a lesson in magic before.

"Tomorrow. I got a couple more days. After that, you'll have to practice a bit on your own." Arthur spoke. "I think we should hit the bed early. Magic training will tire you out a lot, and I wanted you rested up before we start."

"Okay." Will spoke reluctantly. He wanted to talk to his brother more. but he did feel sleepy. Will fell asleep as soon as he crawled into his bed.

Will woke up in a dark room. The room was pitch black, except for its center, where light poured down from above. Will sat in the spotlight, staring around. Suddenly, he noticed a figure standing in the room in front of him. The figure was nothing more than a silhouette, but in his hand were two blades, shaped somewhat similarly to Will's own. The figure started twirling them, and began moving. The moves were graceful, fluid yet deadly. Will watched the movements, feeling that he's seen it somewhere. Suddenly, the figure stopped in a sword thrust. Suddenly, the darkness shattered, letting the whole place shine brightly. When Will squinted his eyes open, he saw that the silhouette was a large white lion. The lion suddenly strode over to Will, and knelt, holding the blades out. Will took the blades, and....

Will woke up, with his alarm clock ringing. With a growl, he turned the alarm off, and stumbled into the bathroom. By the time Will came out, he only had a faint trace of the dream.

"Sleep well? You look like you've lost something." Arthur spoke as he set out breakfast, which was-somewhat unsurprisingly- cereal.

"Well, this is creative. And yeah. I think I forgot something important." Will yawned.

"I don't want you to stuff yourself. When I first started, I ended up throwing up when I casted a spell." Arthur retorted as he sat down. "And what did you forget?"

"If I remember what I forgot, than it wouldn't be something I forgot, would it?" Will sarcastically replied. "Anyhow, where are we going to do it? I mean, we can't do it in the back yard."

"The basement. Sometimes demons could hack into our Spheres, so that's out." Arthur spoke. "Anyhow, if it's the dreams, don't worry. You're overly attuned to the world now, because a werebeast is inherently attuned to nature. Sometimes a rogue emotion slips into our dreams and gives us a sort of twisted view on the current situation."

"I don't think it was a bad dream. It was.... just weird." Will spoke, finishing is meal.

"Same applies. Anyhow, you done? Then let's go down." Arthur spoke as he went down. Will followed him down.

"All right, first hold your paw out." Arthur spoke, holding his own paw out. Will obliged, and winced as his brother grasped it. Arthur spoke three phrases, and a glyph burned itself onto the back of Will's paw, which he could see by the shimmer of light tracing the glyph beneath the fur.

"What does it do? Will asked as he stared at the glyph.

"It's supposed to be a glyph that helps you draw out your magical energy. With this, you don't have to focus on gathering your strength. The spell does it automatically, so just focusing on calculating the spell will make the spell come true." Arthur explained, and held up his paw, where an identical glyph shimmered. "But it still is a good idea to be able to summon your own power, so let's focus on bringing out your hidden power."

Will concentrated, reaching into himself again. This time, he could feel two sources of energy pulsing within him. Will randomly tapped into a single energy source, and opened his eyes. Similar to what happened in the forge, Will was surrounded in a blaze of blue-white energy, similar to a fire.

"That's pretty good, but that's not mana. What you just tapped into was the Spirit." Arthur spoke.

"How do I tell them apart?" Will asked. Strangely, unlike last time, the energy seemed perfectly content to swirl around him.

"Try to feel them with your mind. Mana will have a smoother feeling, and Spirit will feel rougher to the touch." Arthur spoke kindly.

Will concentrated again, and this time, he touched the next energy source. Looking at his brother, he knew that he got it right this time. Unlike Spirit, the mana did not feel like a flame. Rather, it felt like a wave washing over him.

"Now, try to focus it into a single ball, and extend it into a circular field, while imagining this glyph." Arthur spoke while projecting a image, and Will followed suit. Suddenly, the field shakily materialized, and shattered.

"What happened?" Will asked, startled.

"You have to keep on grasping the spell. When you cast a spell, you have to constantly keep it in mind. Otherwise, it works for a second and disappears." Arthur explained. "By the way, did you feel something when you casted the spell?"

"I don't remember. I mean, I've only casted it for a second...." Will mumbled.

"Try again, this time keeping your hold on the spell." Arthur suggested. Will tried again, this time keeping focused. Suddenly, he felt something go through his mind. he felt things passing through mind. Grasping them, he found a magic circle. Instinctively, he reached out and erased the outer rims, and opened his eyes. Suddenly, he found his field shrinking.

"You saw the circle, right?" Arthur asked, and Will nodded. "That's the circle, the basis of your magic. You can alter your magic by adding or subtracting parts from it."

"Wait, what's the difference between the glyph you told me to imagine, and the circle?" Will asked, confused.

"The glyphs are simplified versions of the circle. It makes it easier to cast a spell, but it's harder to adjust a spell with a simplified glyph, so we also use the circle when we alter our spells."

"Also, you can dissipate the opponent's magic. by reverse calculating their magic." Arthur spoke as he created his own field. The field was much more stable than Will's own, and shimmered dark red, unlike Will's light blue.

"Right. Try touching the field, and visualize the circle. Then, make a reverse image of the circle, and directly apply it to the circle." Arthur spoke. Will touched it, and found the circle. Unlike his, it was complex, filled with near-invisible lines and swirling shaped. Concentrating to the best of his ability, Will managed to make a reverse image, and pressed it over the original circle. Suddenly, the shield shattered.

"When you tried that, you didn't feel any energy leaving you, right? Reverse calculation doesn't take any magic energy. So it's actually one of the best anti-magic techniques. But it's also one of the hardest at the same time, because the opponent could quickly change the spells and prevent your attempts. But it's not that easy to them either, in the heat of combat." Will's older brother spoke, and quickly demonstrated by creating several circles that changed shape rapidly. They spent the next few hours, mastering several new circles and learning to adjust circles for various purposes.

"Well, looks like you've got the hang of it." Arthur praised Will as they took a brief lunch break.

"What are we going to do later?" Will spoke.

"Spirit manipulation, and basic combat practice." Arthur spoke. "If you're finished, let's go."

"Sure." Will spoke. When he went down, he saw his brother focusing in the air in front of him. He muttered a word, and a metal gauntlet and a large gladius dropped in front of him.

"Summon your own Idea," Arthur spoke, and Will obeyed, letting his twin blades drop down.

"Right. I didn't want to open a sphere, but it's too dangerous inside the house, so we'll just do a quick drop into a Sphere." Arthur spoke, and muttered a word. Suddenly, the world shifted. Will looked around, and could've sworn that the world was different. It felt blurrier, and darker.

"This time, try to use your Spirit. After you do that, try to focus it on your blades, like this!" Arthur spoke. Suddenly, the blade shone dark red, emanating a strong surge of energy. Will followed his brother's instructions, feeling pleased when a gush of white-blue energy surged from his own blade.

"First, try slashing. at the air. Then, try to imagine the accumulated Spirit shooting out, like this." Arthur spoke while swinging his sword. The sword emanated a crimson crescent, slamming into the wall and leaving a long gash on the wall. Will followed suit, and managed a similar crescent.

"A Spirit is easier to manage than Mana, because all you have to do is to imagine how you're going to use it, and follow it." Arthur spoke. This time, the energy coiled around him, and melded into his clothes. The red shimmer was hardly noticeable, concealed by his clothes.

"Besides using it for an attack, you can focus it on a specific body part to boost that area, or draw it around yourself like an armor. But you have to remember that the amount of energy that a matter could contain is limited. Crystals are very good containers for Mana, and metals are also very good for both energy sources. But many common materials like glass or plastic can't take in that much energy, so you have to remember that." Arthur spoke, and handed Will a bunch of paper bound in twine. Will took a look, and saw that they were charms, with several Greek or Chinese characters written on them.

"Remember what I said about you learning omnyoudo techniques? These charms already have magic circles inscribed into them. Just put power into them and throw them, like this." Arthur spoke as he picked up one and tossed it. Suddenly, the charm transformed into a shard of sharp metal, piercing the floor. Will gave it a try, but found it hard to hit the targets. However, he found that he had an easier time forcing power to flow through them and make them stiff, allowing him to use them as close range weapons.

"Right. Let's try for a mock battle. I'll put up a barrier that allows prevents us from being injured. Still, don't overdo it." Arthur spoke, and drew his sword again. Will followed, but he didn't feel nervous. Instead, he felt confident, with energy coursing through his limbs. Suddenly, Arthur attacked, trying for a downward stroke that carried a large amount of power. Will raised his blades, but nearly fell to his knees when the blades met each other.

He's strong! I didn't think he would be this strong! Will thought as the sword grinded lower. He gritted his teeth and sidestepped, letting the blade crash by. He freed his blades, and went for a diagonal slash at Arthur's body. However, his brother leapt back, and the blade missed. Arthur raised his blade and swiped sideways simultaneously. Suddenly, a red aura blazed from him, and when Will parried, he was thrown back. He managed a twirl and landed on his feet, only to look up and see his brother striking again. This time, Will surrounded himself with his own Spirit, and slashed downwards, parrying the attack. As they both focused their Spirit upon their own blades, they began to glow. Suddenly, Will had the feeling again. Following his instincts, Will focused his energy on a single point, and let it explode.

Arthur locked blades with his brother, when he was suddenly thrown backwards with a tremendous explosion, which slammed him against the wall, eyes flashing. When he could look, he saw Will, who was also pushed back by the force of his own explosion. He had stabbed his sword on the ground, which prevented him from being thrown back.

"I think we had enough. Also: how did you do it?" Arthur spoke, while dissipating the shields.

"Well, I just had a feeling. Before I transformed, I occasionally had some types of weird feelings. Whenever I followed them, I could manage techniques like those." Will spoke as he made his weapon disappear.

"What?" Arthur spoke, startled. He never heard of other werebeasts ever having such instincts toward battle. Admittedly, some werebeasts experienced their senses being overly boosted before they managed their first transformation, but he never heard of a case where a werebeast could manage such advanced techniques with ease without any formal training.

"Did I do something wrong?" Will asked, looking concerned, and a slight bit frightened. Arthur decided to ask his boss about it the next day, and replied back.

"No, you didn't do anything, and nothing's wrong. Anyways, let's go back. It's almost dinnertime, and I'm exhausted." Arthur spoke, and dissipated the Sphere.

Dinner was silent that day. Will was too worried about the practice to speak, and Arthur tried to think up a case similar to Will.

"Look, Will..... Like I said, don't worry. It's nothing. As a matter of face, you should be worried more about what you're going to do tomorrow. I mean, I don't know about you, but I'll find being cooped up inside home for weeks boring." Arthur spoke, trying for a smile. Will gave a reluctant smile. Muttering "good night" to his brother, Will went up the stairs. When he entered his room, he saw his cellphone vibrating. He picked it up, and saw that Hailey was trying to call him. Sighing, Will turned off his phone, and tumbled into his bed.