FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Original story by: Courgus

Translated by: Erazaa

Varshgar made a short sight back to the camp as he looked over his shoulder. For today, it was the last time he would see his people. Concentrated at his duty he pointed to the front and jumped over the branches further forward.

Still he remembered the map which was laid on Krashaks desk. He knew exactly that he would arrive at the place of the happening in some hundred meters. Even Varshgar could guess what to expect, you could never be prepared for such a situation regardless how hard he tried. That people from his clan have been killed made it even harder.

The feeling of the warming campfire was left behind and more and more he got covered in the coldness of the forest. Its canopy was still too dense so the moonlight wasn't able to shine through but as he got further it cleared up. More and more beams of the moon were shining through and arriving on the forest's ground in a majestic manner.

The camp's smell was also left behind and now he knew he would soon arrive at the place where his clan-friends have been killed. According to Krashaks information they've been hanged. But that's not all. It applied now to find the responsible and give them back what they have started.

With a last jump he reached for the next tree while pursuing his thought. He extended his claws and rammed them into the branch. With a swing out of the jump he got even higher to the next tree. Whilst the lading he softly touched down and grabbed with his right pawn onto the bough.

Carefully he pointed his sight downwards and scanned the surroundings.

“This should actually be the spot" Varshgar considered.

He paused for a moment to gather himself. He also tried to absorb a smell. For an instant he let the forest's scent flow around his muzzle. There were the trees with their many different and special smells. The plants on the ground spread their odor. Some animals bustling around in this part of the forest. But that's all.

Varshgar expected to smell the scent of his people or at least of their fight. Maybe even the odor of the enemies but there was nothing more. Varshgar got agitated due to the new findings he collected. With his left paw he grabbed for his backpack and pulled it down from his back.

“Hmm….No.Not here." he thought and put it back on his back. He looked around searching for a better spot. Further upwards he found a suitable knuckle fork. With a jump he climbed the remaining way up to the branch fork.

“Nice. It's better up here" he thought and put the backpack off again. He opened the belts and opened the leather cover. The most important utensil he got with him was the map of his surroundings. Varshgar made it himself so he captured some more important details the scouts would have discovered. These details were essential for his survival. They had always served him well.

He compared his location with the spot where his comrades had been found.

“If I'm seeing this right I'm a little bit too down to the south" he considered and pointed his sight towards the north. In the direction he was looking, there was soon a glade.

“Well..Still a little bit up." he thought, took the belts of his backpack in his snout and climbed upwards. As he reached the top part of the Treetop he was able to overview the whole forest.

“Let's see…" he thought and took a look at the map.

“Our camp is over there." Varshgar pointed to the West.

“In the North there should be our people" he considered and looked in the north direction.

“But where were the attackers coming from?" he thought.

Vashgar still reflected for a short moment but he didn't get an idea from what he knew and from what he was seeing. Every human settlement was far away from this spot. Most of them even avoided the forest since they believe it is haunted.

He looked around again. There must be a hint or a detail he hadn't noticed yet. Something that would explain why the humans have been over here. Several minutes passed by as Varshgar took a look around. But nothing. He couldn't find anything. No camp, no castle, buildings or other loopholes from where he suspected humans could be coming from.

Slowly Varshgar let himself down. He climbed some more branches closer to the bottom. Up here he was able to easily see the ground while being hidden at the same time.

He leaned back for a short moment and sighed.

There was no trace that would have led him further. The next time just speeded while he recapitulated everything again. THe possibility that he was at the wrong spot was still there but he immediately threw this thought off. No chance that he was wrong. Perplexed and without knowing where to go Varshgar crouched on the branch and stared down.

“Come on...This is not your nature. Think!“ turned over in his mind.

“I'm definitely at the correct place. They have to be somewhere close."

His sight wandered down. He seemed aimless and searching as it actually was. However, his search was abruptly interrupted when his sharp view touched something. In the pale light of the moon he finally saw it. On one of the branches, directly below him, there was something shimmering.

Carefully he climbed down to see what he scouted. He bent down and reached for what he had seen.

On the one hand Vashgar was surprised but on the other disillusioned.

“Fur...tufts of fur..." he considered.

“So I was right. I'm at the correct spot." he thought, when the insipid aftertaste of bloodshed was added.

“So it is true…" These thoughts were shooting through his mind.

The young warrior was proven right. Right here, on the branch, it happened. The fur of his comrades was taken before they've finally hanged. He was hoping that it happened the other way round as what he expected.

Vashgar was shaking his body as the thought came up in his mind. But now wasn't the right moment to grieve or even to let his enemies and their bloody deeds get away.

Varshgar was now very anxious to atone for these deeds.He would do what now needed to be done. With wrath in his heart and belly he jumped back into the treetop. The tuft of fur he was still holding in his right paw would lead him the way.

He led the paw to his nose and took a correspondingly deep breath of air. He sucked all the smells that emanated from it into himself. After an almost endless moment he opened his eyes again and stared precisely in the direction from which the scent of the fur tufts came.

No doubt. The attackers have been coming out of the East.

Varshgar squeezed his paw into a fist. Finally there was a trace to them who made this disapproval to his comrades. Anger rose inside of him. Anger about what has happened. Finally Varshgar jumped off and continued his trip to the east.

His movements became faster since he definitely wanted to catch up to the enemies. Every jump he made got faster and faster. The scent became more clear as he came closer to it, meter by meter. As it presented it really clearly to him, he stopped. He crouched and took a look around. From his position up in the trees he had a great view over the happenings on the bottom of the forest.

It was not only the fur Varshgar could smell, there were other scents, too.

He noticed the odor of fresh meat. It was the most intensive one. Again, he was holding his muzzle into the air and the wind was blowing around it. So he noticed the smell of leather.

“They really work through the fur of my comrades…"

To his anger and rage mixed now deep sadness. Everything that was done to his friends was a misdeed he could hardly bear.

Varshgar knew what he wanted. In order to bury his friends, according to the rites of the Bloodfangs, he definitely needed the fur of all of them.

After he had seen everything he could see from his position he climbed further onwards to the treetop. As he arrived at the top he got an overview of the entire area. In front of him, in the East direction, there was a huge rock face rising up.On closer inspection of the rock face he could perceive a fine light.

“Is it possible that this is the human camp?" he considered.

He further looked around and tried to perceive as much as possible.

“It's the only location that could be their camp" he assumed.

After he had seen everything, he slowly climbed down again and settled on a branch.

“I have to go on. It seems like I've found their camp. The smell of my friends' fur is extremely intense over here. It has to be here." With these thoughts he jumped onto the next tree. He now stalked on and on. Finally he stopped on another branch. He was looking down again. There, on the tree trunk, there is something.

He took a closer look and identified weapons leaning on the tree.

“They can't be far from here…" he presumed and looked around again.He let his eyes wander and noticed a flickering light coming from further east. It was faint and gave off hardly any heat but it was bright enough that he could see it.

Self-confidently he stalked on. He came closer and closer to the supposed fire that the humans had made. Slowly the warmth of the campfire he was pointed at, rose and his fur was heated by it.

He stopped as he noticed something below him. A human was warming itself sitting next to a campfire. Varshgar couldn't identify the human's armor, but it seemed like it was leather.

Varshgar waited patiently for what would happen next. Moreover, it was necessary to find out whether they really were it or not. In addition, there was the unknown size of the group that had killed his comrades. It could have been five or more of them who were involved in this assassination.

Again he grabbed the tuft of fur and sniffed it. The well known odor immediately hit his nose.

Once he had picked up the scent he could be sure. The camp was the right one. Here, the track of his comrades was the strongest.

Carefully, not causing any noise, he climbed some more branches upwards. The wind blowing through the trees was hiding his climb, in addition.

Arriving at the tree top he took a look around but unfortunately the canopy of the forest was so dense so you weren't able to notice anything. However, he was very close to the rock face which he had already seen from far away.

Disillusioned, he climbed down the branch again and saw some boxes standing at the edge of the fire, directly under the tree on which he was squatting. More cautiously than before, he climbed down. With every step he took he tried not to be noticed. When he had solid ground under his paws again he looked around. Exactly one person sat at the fire. He made sure he was alone and stalked behind the person. Slowly he approached it. His movements were pretty carefully until he grabbed the human. He put his left arm under the head of the man and pressed his paw on the mouth.

The human tried to scream and flounder like a fish that had been taken out of the water, but it did not help. Varshgar was pulling him into the bushes. Now he could smell even more clearly the scent of his people. This person had been involved. Without hesitation he grabbed his dagger from the sheath on his leg and stabbed him. Soon the human stopped wriggling while the warm blood still was flowing over Vashgars paw. He pulled his dagger out of the chest of the man and let him slide gently to the ground.

As he took a closer look at the armor he noticed the smell of his people. Obviously the fur had been processed further.

Now, the anger was even stronger. It was so extreme that he could see red.

He grabbed his sword and pulled it out of the sheath on his back. Anger and rage now dominated his thoughts and directed his steps. Just at this moment another person approached him. It looked around the campfire, probably searching for his comrade. Before he could react Varshgar popped out of the thicket and stabbed the human with his dagger and sword. He pressed him onto the ground. Horror was written in the eyes of the man as he took the deadly hit.

Once again Varshgar pressed himself with all his body weight and strength on the human being. The blades gave way and slipped deeper into it. But his anger was still not gone. Quickly he ran further and approached a small cottage. It was the only building in this place. Here the smell of his comrades was very strongly represented, too. A short look through the window showed him the reason.

There, on a tanning rack, another human had just attached the last fur of his people. He pulled a knife out of a box and was about to start tanning the fur when the door slammed open.

The human was shocked and raised his knife. Enraged, Varshgar rushed at him. The first stroke of his dagger was parried by the human but the sword quickly followed. The humans' arm got hit and hurt. He flinched. Out of balance, Varshgar already saw his advantage and rushed forward. He stretched the dagger forward but the human repulsed the attack, but only to neglect the blade on the other side. At that moment the sword hit him in the neck. When Varshgar was wetted by the blood of the human, the human sank to the ground motionless.

The bloodlust Varshgar had experienced was still frightening, but he had it under better control than before.

With one swing of his sword he let all the blood fly from the blade. He put his dagger back into the sheath on his leg, but kept his sword still firmly in his paw and cut off the attached fur.

“At least I was able to save this fur" he thought, relieved and packed it into his backpack.

He went through the door and got hit into his ribs. Gasping for air, he fell to his knees, panting and gasping.

>>You have killed my people…<< a cold and malicious voice said to him.

As he tried to look up, he got struck by the person, directly into the face. The hit was so hard that he spitted blood. It was flowing directly out of his muzzle.

>>We're going to have some fun...You and me…<< told the person to Varshgar.