The Two Sisters: Dire-fury Edition

Ch.36: Further Down the Swamp

They ran and ran until they were tired, in which they slowed down to walking. Night looked back to where Snowtread and her dragon were at to make sure they didn't try to follow them, even though he knew well that anyone that faces the Shadow Direwolves doesn't make it out. With a sigh of relief he turned to Zarsh who had a conflicted look. "Hey, what's wrong, man?" he asked while gently nudging the deer. "I just... I feel... I guess I feel sympathy for Snowtread  but she was awful my whole life." he ranted, looking down at his hooves on the ground.

Night sighed, his brows furrowing. "It means you have a good heart, Zarsh." he then huffed and glanced to the side for a moment then back at the deer. "Well, maybe too good in some ways, but still." he joked a bit, making the deer chuckle a bit. "Heh, yeah. You're right." Zarsh stated, looking up at the Night Fury with a smile. The dragon chuckled along, trotting alongside his friend. "She may have been cruel, but she was your mother. Either way, it's up to you to decide on how you feel on her punishment." he stated as he stepped over a large root to avoid tripping. Zarsh sighed, walking around that root. "Thanks, man."

They kept walking to where the edge of the territory would be at, but of course with that they had to be careful. The swamp claws of Terraforma are quite hard to tell the difference of, as only one is the safest option, which is named "The Blessing Claw". The group could only guess on which claw to go to, for the other claws are feral territory.

They walked for a while, and eventually passed by the castle which was the main landmark of the Morass Empire. The larger hybrid looked around, keeping an eye out for any danger. "It's getting quite dark out here... too dark.." Argon muttered, looking up at the sky. Sure enough, it was fading to multiple shades from light orange to dark blue. "We should stop and rest for the night. Anything could attack if we keep moving." he suggested, in which the others agreed.

Once they had settled in, Raven offered to take the first turn in guarding the group. Argon shook his head, stating that he can guard for the whole night. The smaller hybrid only shook her head, staring up at the larger dragon. "You're the one carrying our stuff along with Dark and the pup. You need to be well rested for this journey in order to fly properly, because lack of rest can cloud your mind and delay your actions." Argon exhaled, knowing she was right. He had to get good rest to keep Dark safe. "Alright. I'll rest." he mumbled, turning to Night. "Take the guarding turn after her, ok?" "Alright."

Dark curled in, turning to Raven who kept an eye out. She rested her head on her paws, staring at the now darkening woods. Even though she had her friends, she couldn't help but to feel unsure of her surroundings. "Don't worry, sis." Bonnie mumbled as he loafed next to her. "We won't let anything or anyone hurt you. Even the Shadow Direwolves won't let anything hurt you, no matter what." with that, Dark seemed to feel a little big better. He was right on the fact with the Direwolves, but it didn't quite ease her nerves.

Nevertheless, she closed her eyes to try and sleep. "Hopefully nothing attacks them..." she thought, curling further in. Bonnie put his wing over her and rested his head on his paws, also going to sleep. The group, except for Raven, eventually was all asleep. The night would be long, but it would be just enough for them to get well rested.

In the thicker part of the woods nearby, a large creature watched the group. The stranger stayed completely out of sight and scent range, watching each member. His gaze then set onto Dark and then on Raven, a grin growing on his face. "So they're headed down to the ruins..." he thought as he suppressed a hiss, claws flexing and digging into the dirt below. "We shall see if they survive the ferals then..." the creature then turned and left, chuckling darkly to himself.

The next morning...

Night gently shook Raven awake, since it had been his turn to watch over for the rest of the night. The dragoness shook her head slightly, moving her paws over her eyes for a moment before opening them. "Hmmmmwha..." "Wake up, sleepy head. We have to keep moving." he stated as he helped Raven to stand, turning to the others as well. "We should wake the others so we can keep moving." Raven nodded then trotted to the others.

She nudged Bonnie and Dark gently, waking them up from their slumber. The Dire-fury yawned and stretched, looking up at her sister with a smile. "Morning, sis." "Mornin', sis. We have to get up and keep moving." Raven stated as she helped Dark to stand. The Dire-fury pulled her socks back up as they were pushed down her legs, then she looked around with a tired look. "It's kinda dark..." she whined slightly, in which Raven gently licked her head. "It will get lighter, don't worry."

The Hell Fury then turned to the group, letting out a sigh. "Alright if anyone needs to go do their business go ahead and do so now because we're not stopping until we reach our destination." she then began to walk off to a more closed in area, but then paused and looked back to the group. "Or if, y'know, your wings get tired and begin to ache." with that she ran off, in which the group also went off to some private spots. Dark grabbed the basket with the pup inside and trotted to some bushes, then grabbed the pup and put him down on the ground. "Alright, little one. Go on and do what you need to do."

For a moment the pup just ran around and began to attack nearby ferns and bark at random critters, all while staying near Dark of course. He even tried to eat a fern, but was stopped by the Dire-fury. It wasn't long before he actually needed to use the restroom, so he sniffed around until he found a spot and did his business. Once he finished he was helped back onto the basket, and brought back to the spot where Zarsh was at. Dark handed the basket to the deer, stating that she will be right back as she trotted off to the bushes.

Later then, the group all were done and ready to continue on their journey. The Furies were all alert on their surroundings, although the only things that showed up near them were critters of the swamp. Zarsh looked around, looking amazed at his surroundings. Bonnie huffed, looking back at the deer with amusement. "What? Don't you see swamp pretty much every day?" he asked, in which the deer nodded. "Yeah, but I have never been to this part of the territory! It's all quite new to me!" "Alright then, swampy boy." the two laughed along, pretty much catching up on all the missed years. Eventually they bumped into Argon's leg, which puzzled them as to why he had suddenly paused. Then they looked to the front and saw why.

In front of them was a large building, heavily covered in vines and all there was of plant life. "Woah.." was all that Zarsh had said, taking in the details from the entrance to the statues. Night then took out the paper from the bag, unrolled it, and glanced at it then at the building. Sure enough, the one on the temple matched the paper, which of course told them what it was.

In front of them laid the Great Celesterran Temple.