FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Hmm. Most of my indents on my paragraphs were butchered on the journey over, but oh well. I've finally posted the first chapter of the story I've been working on. The first bit is actually an edited version of the original from two years ago. I welcome any comments on the story, so feel free to do so.This first part is depressingly bad, so bear with me, all right?

I genuinely hope you enjoy the story. :3

Prologue

The humans lost their claim to earth because of their choices; they chose to ignore the earth and what they were doing to it. When the changes became more noticeable they refused to claim responsibility for their actions, they blamed everyone but themselves.

The government blamed the people, the people blamed the government, the people rebelled; the rebellion led to the war which consumed the earth.

They fought a losing battle, the machines they created were unstable; they programmed them to kill, nothing else. They destroyed everything, they polluted the air and water, plant-life became scarce, and their food, once abundant, was gone.

In the wake of the war only rubble, the metal husks of machines, and the bodies of the millions killed remained.

But with the fall of the human race came a new hope, the world began anew. Soon plants were found growing in once barren grounds, cities were reclaimed by the wilderness, and pre-war experiments emerged from hiding and claimed the mantel that the humans had so long ago surrendered.

They were something entirely new, they had fur, and claws, more animal than man, but instead of becoming the animals that they were modeled after, something truly unique happened, they retained their humanity, their morals, their ideals, and developed, a profound sense of the world around them. They cared for the world the way humans never did.

Born Anew

Chapter 1

New Beginnings

When Naraki entered the clearing, he was aware of a light breeze blowing softly through his fur. He distantly remembered something important, but he pushed the thought away. He needed to see what is on the other side of the clearing.

He heard a soft cry in the thick foliage, but as he approached it stopped. He pondered it for a moment before continuing, but as he tried to push his way through the undergrowth he heard something again; he stopped and listened momentarily before continuing, but then he heard something esle, louder than before,

"Naraki..."

He remembered again that he had forgotten something important. The voice said his name again, this time he recognized the voice as Inari's.

~

Naraki awoke to Inari's muzzle millimeters from his own. A big, silly grin plastered on his face.

"Boy, are you a heavy sleeper, I've been trying to wake you up for like five minutes." Inari said playfully as he tried to hide his grin unsuccessfully.

Naraki swiped his paw at Inari, but he jerked his head back just in time, which caused Naraki's paw to whistle past his nose.

"If you don't wipe that smile of your muzzle I'll knock it off." Naraki said menacingly, but the effect was ruined by the smile that slowly spread across his face. Naraki stretched and yawned loudly, scratching his head-fur sluggishly.

Inari never failed to put him in a good mood. Inari stood there, paws on his hips. Giving Naraki one of his trademark smirks. His teeth gleamed brightly in the light shining in through the small window next to which he stood.

Naraki and Inari were surprising similar when it came to looks; both are fairly tall and have the same greyish fur. They both are canine in appearance and have ears that stick up past their longer head-fur. Naraki has a white stripe in his fur, cutting across from his left shoulder to his right hip, while Inari has black tips on his ears. The most noticeable difference though, is their eyes. Naraki has one blue eye and one gold, but Inari's are as black as a cloudy night sky.

"Inari, Why are you here?" Naraki asked, more than slightly confused at his friend's presence so early in the morning.

"Oh, that's right. I almost forgot." He said, "Your mom told me to come and get you; she wants you to meet her in the central meadow."

"Okay." Naraki said slowly, pondering as to why his mother would want to see him in the meadow today of all days.

Naraki slowly got out of his bed and stretched before walking into the other room. While Inari waited he took a moment to survey the room; next to Naraki's bed is a night stand covered in nick-knacks and trinkets of every shape and size. The walls, like almost everything else in the room, were covered in the same fashion. Inari is so engrossed in his thoughts that he doesn't notice Naraki reenter the room. Naraki had changed from the pair of pajama pants to a pair of tan cargo shorts and an "I'm with stupid" tee-shirt.

"You're wearing that?" Inari said with a look of disgust, motioning his paw towards his friend's clothing.

"Yeah, so what if I am," Naraki shot back, "What's wrong with it?"

"It's a little, well, retro, don't you think?" Inari said, the telltale grin finding its way back on to his muzzle. It made him look smug as hell and Naraki didn't appreciate it.

"Well maybe a little," Naraki said, looking down at his clothes. "But I like it. It's... Well, different." He finished shyly. This was true, Naraki never cared much for the red tunics his pack traditionally wore. He preferred to scavenge old structures he happened across for intact clothing from the time before his pack claimed the territory. He didn't think the old inhabitants minded much, so he helped himself to any interesting things to be found. He looked back up just in time to see Inari give the shirt another look before shrugging and walking toward the door,but he stopped when he reached it and said,

"Whatever dude, let's go." Then he opened the door walked down the and into the morning sunlight.

Naraki followed suit and walked out the door, shutting it behind him. He looked up and squinted as he surveyed the sun. He took a quick look around and noticed the ashes of the cooking fire from the previous night's meal. With that thought his stomach growled loudly, but he saw Inari up ahead, still walking quickly down the trail. He pushed all thoughts of food aside for the moment and quickened his pace to catch up with Inari, who had gained a considerable lead on him as he stood, lost in thoughts of food.

They walked in silence for a while before Inari spoke. He was talking about the sword he had gotten from the caravan that had come through town three nights prior.

"Where did you get the gold for a sword?" Naraki interrupted, suddenly curious. "I've always wanted one, but my mom told me I couldn't get one until I was old enough to handle the responsibility; whatever that means." He finished sulkily.

"Besides that," Naraki said, "I thought you mom wouldn't let you buy one.

"She finally agreed to let me." Inari replied happily. His tail was swishing back and forth excitedly as he told his story.

"I found one of those gold time-telling things that go on your wrist."

"You mean a watch?" Naraki asked.

"Yeah, that's it. I found it buried under some tree roots near my house. I got the last bit of gold I needed by selling it. Now all you have to do is get a sword and we can finally spar together."

"I don't see that happening too soon." Said Naraki sadly, "I don't have anything to trade, and I'm never lucky enough to find valuable stuff on the ground."

As they approached the meadow Naraki's sadness was replaced by worry as Inari said,

"Hurry, your mom won't be too happy, we've taken too long getting here as it is."

"Why are we in such a big hurry anyway?" Naraki started to say, but he was cut off mid-sentence by the shouts of his friends and family; as he looked around he noticed the tables of food around the clearing and the banners that hung from the trees. He slapped his paw to his forehead as he remembered what he had been forgetting; today was his birthday. Today he turned seventeen and he had forgotten, he silently cursed himself. He wasn't given much time to prepare for the onslaught of hugs and handshakes from his family and friends, but in spite of himself he began to enjoy the company.

After the initial excitement of the party died down, his mother approached him. Anyone could tell at a glance that she was Naraki's mother. She has the same fur, same ears and white markings. She was wearing a flowing green dress covered in lace. Her long, flowing hair was let down out of its usual tightly woven bun, her bangs hung slightly over her eyes, which were a deep brown.

She was holding a long wooden box carved with intricate pictures of trees and flowers; she placed the box into his paws with a warm smile.

"Thank you so much, mom." he said in a choked voice, struggling to hold back his tears he hugged her tightly, never letting go of the box as he did.

"Open it." She said as she broke their embrace. She motions for him open the box.

He struggled with the small, metal latch for a moment before getting it open, this time he failed to keep the tears from flowing down his cheeks, leaving tracks through his fur. Inside was a sword, it had a plain leather scabbard and an unadorned hilt, but as he pulled the sword free he could feel the work that was put into the making of the blade; it felt as if it were made just for him.

The last time he had even held a sword was before his dad had died. His father had been teaching him basic swordsmanship, nothing fancy, but Naraki had loved every minute of it. His father was killed by bandits on his way home from hunting one cold, winter day. When Naraki received the news he was crushed. He never forgot that day and it still haunted him.

Letting the thought go, he clipped the scabbard to his belt and re-sheathed his sword; he let out a loud laugh, and tears still streaming down his muzzle he jumped into his mother's arms again.

"Thank you mom, you're the best." He cried.

His mother let him go and wiped away his tears. She gave him a kiss on the forehead before turning to face the crowd that had gathered around them. She took a step forward and addressed the crowd around her with warmth.

"Let the Feast begin!" She said, and on that cue they all shuffled towards the food-laden tables. Everyone wandered from table to table eating the countless number dishes that had been brought and talking with the other guests. Occasionally some friend or family member would drift over, wish him a happy birthday, and give him a gift.

Naraki received countless gifts from friends and family, but none came close to matching the gift from his mother. After the feast ended and everybody gave their goodbyes and wishes for good luck; Naraki, his mother, and Inari started the walk home.

Inari's mother had left the party early, so she wasn't walking with them. The trip was taken in a comfortable silence, and as they reached Inari's house Naraki gave him a smile and said,

"Thank you for getting me to come with you today. I had a lot of fun." Naraki said.

"It wasn't that big a deal." Inari replied happily, "Anything for a friend." With that Inari walks into his house giving a final wave of goodbye before closing the door.

Naraki and his mother walk the rest of the short distance to their little thatched hut, the same kind everybody else in the village used. They could use some of the buildings left behind by the humans, but it never felt right. They preferred the woods, the feeling of the grass under the pads of their paws, and the endless blue sky over their heads. Their connection with nature is what kept them from inhabiting the buildings left behind.

When they get home it was after dark; Naraki gave his mom another hug before heading to bed. He sat awake for a while, going over the events of the day, but eventually he drifted off to sleep.

~

He walked through the clearing again, he felt the soft grass under his paws and the wind in his fur. This time however he didn't hesitate when he heard the cry through the undergrowth. He pushed his way through, following the soft cries. As he grew closer, the thorns and vines seemed to move to bar his way, the branches grabbed at his clothes.

He pushed his way through the seemingly endless forest. He was about to give up and turn back when he burst through into another clearing, this one significantly smaller than the last. All around, the knotted, scraggily trees seem to lean in; creating a shaded dome; in the middle was a strange being he hadn't noticed upon entering the clearing. It looked like a small pup, but instead of fur it had pinkish skin, like when Inari had burned off some of his fur the summer before. It looked like a female, she had small rounded ears on the sides of her head and her paws didn't have pads or claws. It seemed to be crying.

She must be a human, he thought as he remembered the stories his mother had told him when he was just a small pup. Along with the memories of his mother though, came those of the hateful comments the elders of his village always had ready when the subject of humans arose. They despised what the humans had done. They called them evil and cruel.

Naraki never said anything, but he had a higher opinion of humans, he believed they had made mistakes, everyone does, but that doesn't make them evil.

He sniffed the air cautiously; the small girl had a funny smell, like a house that has been closed up for too long. He proceeded slowly, but she showed no notice of his approach.

He closed the last of the distance and knelt down in the grass next to her.

"Are you all right?" He asked the girl softly. But still, she took no notice of him. He laid his paw on her shoulder, but before he was able to inquire further the ground began to shake. The trees around him start toppling over, ripping their roots from deep within the ground, mere inches from where they sat. He grabbed the girl from the ground, and began to run, hurtling rocks and fallen trees as he went. She looked around, startled; her tears still glistened on her cheeks. She looked up at him and tried to talk, but he couldn't tell what she is saying, but he had no time to stop and listen, so he ran on, desperate to protect the small girl nestled in his arms.

~

Naraki jolted awake suddenly, the panic from his dream was still fresh in his mind. He looked around worriedly; out of his window he saw the sun had just risen above the tree line. He began to breathe a little easier as he realized it was all just a dream. He let out a deep sigh and slowly slipped back into sleep, hoping to get a little bit more before having to start his day.

Chapter 2: https://www.sofurry.com/view/506634