FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

An all consuming darkness with no end.

There was no light to be found in this void. Neither ground nor sky existed, yet still the youth found himself fraught with intrigue at his surroundings, as he had each time this odd dream appeared to him.

Kalil had been here many times before, for he was the only thing that existed within the blackness. Messy blue hair framed his soft features, parted roughly at the middle and allowing his matching eyes to observe the space he'd stirred in.

But it would not last–the tranquility crumbling away as a low, monotonous rumbling took the place of its former silence–and his eyes rose upwards in awe as a towering shape appeared before him, formed of nothingness.

The silhouette was clear despite the greater expanse of blackness. Large and imposing, eyes blazing with forgotten power that made his skin–his very soul quiver as he stood in its shadow, willing him to fall back, to flee, to surrender–yet drawing him closer, like a moth to a flame–powerless to resist its pull.

A pair of large leathery wings fanned out from behind the beast, talons digging into the nonexistent ground while its head lowered before him–maw parted in a bid to speak, only no sound came.

No matter how hard he tried to strain, the youth could never make out the being's words. It had been the same as long as he could recall. He closed his eyes, head lowering as he withheld a frustrated sigh, not desiring to show disrespect. The creature's gaze remained fixed on him, but still–he could not hear it.

Yet then… he heard something. A foreign sound. Something which pierced the soundless void and caused his eyes to snap open and widen as they glimpsed the visage before him cloaked in flame, a wall of fire rising to surround them.

" AWAKEN…"

A booming voice erupted from the burning beast's maw as the flames around them roared in unquenchable hunger. The blue-haired youth could do nothing but stare at the creature before him as it let out a pitiful moan–body already turned to ash, scattered and lost somewhere in the blackness. He raised his hands as the flames billowed, still he could hear the distant voice. It carried with it a power greater than any he had known.

" A** WAKEN… AWAKEN… AWAKEN…**"

The eyes which glimmered with power flickered, and soon they were all that remained as the shadow of the beast was consumed by the flames–the single word repeated–an endless mantra, one which tainted his very being before he too, was swallowed by the flames…

" AWAKEN AWAKEN AWAKEN AWAKEN AWAKEN AWAKEN..."

Its hauntingly familiar eyes pleaded with him a final time as he watched them dissipate within the flames. The voice faded thereafter, and the roaring was all that remained.

---

"Awaken, child! If you do not, you will perish!"

Kalil's eyes shot open, a gasp escaping him as he felt himself be shaken roughly–not even a second to gather his bearings as the face of an elderly woman came into view of his blurred, stinging gaze.

"G-Grandma?"

He coughed at the thick scent of smoke which filled the air, still groggy from sleep–the uncharacteristic warmth which caused his skin to burn made clear as a bright orange glow made itself known from all corners of his vision. Quickly, he rose, observing the billowing crimson flames which had engulfed their wooden hut.

"Why's... the house on fire?" He wheezed, snapped free of his delay as the elderly woman yanked him from his bed, the scent of ash filling his lungs. "W-What's going on?!"

"There's no time! We cannot stay here!"

"W-Wait–what about Kayda...?" He grunted as he was pulled by his hurrying grandmother from the burning ruins of his room–the warmth from the heat causing his hair and night garb to stick to his skin. "Where's my sister?"

"Helping the rest of the village!" His grandmother shouted, undaunted by age as she beckoned him down the stairs of their hut. "Now hurry, to the sanctuary! Our magic is warding the flames, so we'll be safe there!"

"But..."

"Quit standing there like a slack-jawed idiot and move!"

Flinching, Kalil quickly complied, trekking down the steps as his grandmother followed closely behind him. They hurried towards the center of their village, the flames crackled and roared in a wild frenzy, licking the very edges of the sky. While he knew not to underestimate the magic his sister possessed, the dread in his chest would not relent–continuing to rise as he ran out towards the familiar sight of their sanctuary, his sandals kicking up small puffs of ash and scattering burning embers.

Only as he entered into the safety of the stone-walled sanctuary did he feel some semblance of relief--though the panic remained as he observed nearly the whole of the village crammed inside–and from the still-open doors leading outside, the burning sky over his home. Some were wounded, harsh burns scarring their bodies, bits of their clothing sopping wet and burnt black.

In a bid for answers, Kalil scanned the room, settling his gaze on an elderly, ancient man clad in a green robe decorated with silver markings–the leader of their forested home. Thankfully, the elder seemed to notice him as he immediately made his way towards him.

"Elder, what's happened?"

"A fire, as you can tell. We don't know what quite started it, but the forest isn't helping matters…" The elder frowned, a grim look crossing his face. "This was no accident…"

Kalil felt the pit in his stomach deepen, though before he could voice another question, he found his gaze drawn to the sanctuary entrance as a young woman clad in similar robes to the elder shambled inside–locks of blue hair framing her face, which bore an unreadable, yet determined expression.

"Kayda!" The boy shouted in relief, stumbling towards his older sibling.

"I'm glad you're okay, Kalil." She smiled as he neared, though she returned her focus to the greater crowd which had gathered, and the weariness of her expression became evident.

"A-Are you alright?" He asked hesitantly, even after noticing she seemed to be physically unharmed.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me."

Apprehensively, Kalil looked back to the elder, who simply nodded. Only then did he realize the panicked chattering between the villagers had ceased–undoubtedly waiting for what his sister had to report, and so he relented and joined them.

"A legion of demons has arrived from the north." Kayda announced after a period of silence, tone stern and unflinching. "They caused this fire, and have surrounded both our village and its forest. What they intend is clear."

"What do you mean?"

Her gaze drifted to Kalil, as though questioning whether or not to tell him. "They intend to kill us all."

"The seal... has broken?" The elder gasped, and his face paled–causing the panicked murmurs to resurface with twice the intensity amongst the gathering of villagers.

"The Demon King has returned...?"

"What can we do to fight them off?"

"We're all doomed!"

"They fear us still, even with the knowledge our clan's power has waned?"

"We should fight back then!"

"Enough, all of you!" Kayda cried, voice ringing out and startling the crowd into silence; inhaling, then exhaling slowly as she regarded the villagers before addressing them once more. "I know of the pride our clan holds–but such reckless action will only guarantee your demise. If you all choose to fight, it will end in our complete annihilation." Her voice shook as she finished, head lowering.

"What would you have us do then?!" An elderly woman screeched, dissatisfied with her answer. "Would you have us stand here to be consumed by the flames instead? Escape is our only course of action!"

"We could dig a tunnel..." A young girl, perhaps ten years old suggested.

"A tunnel? To where?" Another villager asked.

"Don't listen to that hag!" A young man piped up, stepping forth and halting before the clan's heiress with a determined gaze; turning back to face the crowd as he pumped his fist. "If they want a fight, we'll give them one! They messed with the wrong forest tribe!"

Kalil found himself nodding to the man's words, and he glanced hopefully to his sister. Her face, however, showed no such keenness for battle.

"No," Kayda's voice lowered, and she glanced up to meet the man's eyes when he turned back to face her, "I cannot allow this. My role should not fall to you."

"We can't just sit around and—" The clansmen's brow furrowed in confusion as he felt his voice leave him, his eyes lowering to study the strange white light which lay painlessly embedded into his chest.

His gaze lifted to meet that of the clan's heiress–her right hand lifted and outstretched, palms dimming as the spear of light's origin was made clear. He was unharmed as the spell dispersed through his body, though whatever words he would have spoken, she would not hear as he discolored and stilled–before ceasing to move altogether, to the shock and horror of the rest of the tribe.

"Kayda–what have you…?!" The elder strode forth, as though he were living out some sort of nightmare.

"I have turned him to stone. As is, he cannot be harmed." She stated bluntly, glancing away with an almost regretful sigh as silence pervaded once more, before she steeled herself to meet the eyes of every person in the room. "All of you cannot forget the mission of our tribe–nor our destiny as the inheritors of the sacred blood..."

"You would cite that old legend?! When our lives are at stake and when our village is in flames?!" The same old woman from earlier cried in disbelief, her anger and fear as one. "Humanity has no need for us! We renounced the power of our ancestors!"

"...Perhaps I am a fool to believe the myths, especially now..." Her eyes fell to the floor, a self-deceiving smile crossing her face as she turned to the sanctuary's exit, her cloak flourishing behind her. "But I've wasted enough of all your time as is. I will not ask for forgiveness. Now I—"

"W-Wait, Kayda!" Kalil found himself moving before he could even register what he was truly doing, his heart pounding as he halted at his elder sister's back–all eyes on him. At this point, everyone, even the children, seemed to hold their breath in anticipation. "Let... let me fight with you!" He fought to keep his voice low and unemotional–as she had managed to do for so long.

Kayda's lips grew into a small, sad smile as she turned and met his eyes–the azure color shared between them. She shook her head, gently placing a hand on his shoulder after fixing his hair and lowering to a knee.

"Kalil." Her gaze locked with her younger brother's–grip on his shoulder tightening as her face hardened. "I want you to promise me something."

"A-Anything, Sis."

"Grow strong… and never lose hope. It is in you our tribe's blood flows strongest. It has, all this time. And... that is why I..."

She lowered her head, biting her lip and willing her eyes to close. Raising the fist which had been lowered at her side over her head, she opened her fingers to let loose a flash of blinding light which enveloped the group before her–any and all protest to go unvoiced–a crowd of unmoving statues taking their place as the light faded.

Kayda's shoulders slumped, her eyes filled with tears she hurriedly tried to blink away.

"I'm sorry."

She forced herself to stand–unwilling to spare another glance upon her younger brother's face–his unsuspecting gaze. The hand that had held his shoulder tightened, and with no words nor time to spare, she left the deafening silence of the sanctuary behind her to step back out into their burning village.

The ash and smoke clouding the air had thickened to the extent she could barely glimpse the ruins of her home–yet Kayda's resolve did not waver even as the doors to the sacred grounds slammed shut behind her–rings of magic forming along its surface by her will. So long as she could ensure the survival of their clan, her fate did not matter. She could at least ensure that much.

"Well, well, well... what have we here?" A sultry voice resounded from beyond the ocean of flames, echoing with a thick tinge of cynicism.

At the ruined entrance of their village where the smoke billowed the strongest, a towering figure clad in armor appeared, trailed by lowly demons who could not hope to compare. In contrast to the grotesque appearance of the demons at his feet, the figure's face was revealed as strikingly human–effeminate, even–though that was arguably the closest it would come to passing as anything remotely close to one. Patches of jet-black scales lined the sides of his face, framed by long locks of vermilion hair which contrasted his ivory skin; matching the tips of the pointed ears which protruded out from the sides of his head, as well as the ram-like horns atop his skull and thick reptilian tail from his back. The inhuman beauty made it clear this was simply a visage masking something greater and far more terrifying–one which had already begun to fester through the cracks.

"Hm. So you're all that's left then?" The armor-clad demon crossed his arms, revealing rows of sharpened teeth as he grinned. "Shame. I had expected a lot more resistance from the so-called warrior tribe of the forest."

Kayda stepped forward without fear, and although her voice remained level, her expression darkened. "Explain yourself, demon. Our clan has all but lost the power you believe we possess."

"Is that so?" He paused, before shrugging. "Shame I can't exactly return empty handed. I think your corpse would help me keep my head, though keeping you alive would make for an interesting reward... If you come along willingly, there won't be any need for–"

A barrage of thunder shot forth from Kayda's outstretched hands, her patience long worn thin from the tone of the demon's voice. In an instant, the armored fiend and the demons at his side were engulfed, eliciting a series of shrill screeches; leaving a charred mess of bodies as the flash from the spell cleared–with the armored fiend nowhere in sight.

"How…?"

"Awfully uncivilized of you."

The deep voice which rang out from behind her froze the heiress' blood in her veins, and she spun to meet the demon's prideful smirk, a glint in his darkened eyes–completely and utterly unharmed by her strike. She readied herself again, driving her heels into the ground and raising her hands–rings of white light appearing outside her open palms.

"Maybe it's my fault, though. I should've expected such savagery amongst a village full of recluses. A little behind the times, are we?" The demon trailed a hand through his hair, giving a tired sigh. "But that's beside the point. It's clear you're no Beastblood." His face twisted into a mocking sneer. "Of course, even if you were a heritor of the sacred blood, you'd have no hope of stopping us."

The ashen gale which whipped outwards from him buffeted Kayda with a fury she could barely comprehend, as though every spirit in the four winds were attacking her at once–yet never did she flinch or look back as she readied to fling another blast.

"You will be stopped!" She roared, a spear of blinding light launching forth from her other hand–to be caught by the demon, who only gave a curious lift of an eyebrow before it flickered to dust.

"...As I was saying. Hopeless." He clicked his tongue, voice echoing as he vanished in a cloud of ash. "Need I mention, we have the power of a certain… deity on our side?"

"W-What…?" Kayda's eyes widened, and she spun to find any trace of where her adversity had vanished to. "Are you mad? To awaken that god? Have you any idea what end that would spell for the world?! Even the strongest of your kind would not be able to control it!"

Eyes stinging and breathing heavy from the continued exposure to the smoke–a burst of ash before her caused her to stumble back as the demon reappeared with that same insulting grin–a large black claymore gripped tight in his clawed hands.

"Not holding up very well, are we?" He snickered, each step he took causing the blue-haired clanswomen to retreat. "A shame, really… if only I could have brought flowers instead of a blade. That would certainly make this much easier." With a final chuckle, he lunged forward, swinging the enormous sword.

Kayda leapt backwards, eyes widening as the blade's tip carved through the air where she had been standing only moments before. She braced herself and summoned the lightning once more, but this time the demon simply batted it aside with the flat of his blade, though the force of the blast made him stagger back a step. Capitalizing on his broken stance, Kayda flung a hand out, and a spear of lightning struck the demon in the forehead, forcing him another step back.

The armored fiend paused with a breath, trailing a claw along his brow and lowering it to glimpse the crimson which stained it–a short, humorless laugh erupting from his lips."You've got spirit, for sure. Seems I underestimated you."

With that, he rushed forth once more, bringing down his claymore overhead. It sliced through the air with a hiss–before her hands shot up–catching its edge and halting it just short of her face–a deafening clang erupting as it smashed against the barrier conjured against it. She grit her teeth, eyes narrowing–throwing her arms to the side to divert the thrust and let the tip of the blade stab into the ground. With her opponent open, she raised an open palm once more, and the lightning leapt forth, spearing him through the chest. He gave a yell of pain, stumbling back–and before Kayda could blink, his foot had swept out, kicking the ground out from beneath her.

Barely managing to break her fall with a roll–a sharp blow to the side of her face immediately sent her careening across the ground, seeing stars as she struck the dirt. There was a ringing sound in her ears, and her head throbbed as she scrambled to her feet–to be met by another strike from the back of the demon's hand, followed by a kick to her stomach that sent her further away.

Gasping for air, she rolled to her side–the heavy taste of iron stinging her lips. The armored demon strode toward her without interruption, a wicked smile upon his face; the wounds inflicted by her magic healed, as though they had never been. He stopped before her, lowering his blade until the tip touched her throat.

Anticipating her shameful fate, Kayda closed her stinging eyes and awaited death at the armored fiend's hands–the final words she had exchanged with her brother overtaking all else.