"Should I make a portal back to home?" Mira asked, she raised a hand, her hysteria starting to whirl around it.

"No no, we shouldn't do that," Artison said, "Anything of value draws attention. Even what's natural." He looked around for a moment, trying to avoid seeing the ruined orphanage, "We should head for the Mining Lifts, from there we could climb our way back up. Just like before." Then he lead Mira toward some buildings, "It should be safe once we're there."

"Should?" Mira looked to him puzzled but just followed him, she looked around more and more. Then saw something, one of the workers from the crowd they passed, they were walking, and even followed them around a corning Artison turned. "Arty, I think someone back there wants to talk to us."




Artison looked back to who was following him. His ears went down as he took Mira's hand, then he ran as fast as his legs would allow him.

"Don't stop!" Artison said, "If we can reach the Mining Shafts we should be safe!"

"Who is that guy?" Mira asked as she followed, "Do you know him?"

"No, and he followed without saying a word." Artison said, "He planned to rob us!" He panted as he tried to keep running, "Depending how long he was following us, he must think what we have is worth something."

The two dashed down street after street, but the worker seen before was now running after them too. This man was a red wolf, carrying a sleek piece of metal in his hands, and it was starting to gain on them another street with few people in it, and then a large bull walked out in the middle of the path. A towering bull that hard stains of dirt and mud from horns to pant leggings. Artison's eyes widened, but he just ran faster, pulling Mira now. "Mira, remember what I said about the portal thing?"

"Yes?"

"Change of plan," Artison pulled her a bit closer as he ran, "Do it now, hurry!"




Mira raised out her hand as hysteria built up around it, it reached out and out appeared a round and flat portal the skywalks and towers they knew from above shined into the streets they ran through, right between them and the bull. Immediately, they both dove into the portal, escaping this at last, but then felt a sharp as they came to a stop. Artison clawed at the metal skywalks as he was dragged in by his left leg, and Mira was still part way through the portal, and then was dragged back through by her tail. Dangled upside-down, the bull held them both with a dark smirk.

Panicked and thinking fast, Artison took a breath, and his body started to glow bright. Burnt fur could be smelled, then burning flesh as the bull yelled out in pain and dropped Artison on his head. Artison scrambled to his feet, but then the wolf came up from behind and the metal out from before and held where Artison could see it, like a knife. This wolf was red like Artisan, and didn't seem bothered at all by his body heat. Artison didn't move from there, he seemed to completely freeze up, almost teary eyed, all in front of Mira as she tangled helplessly.

---

Part 13

Part 12: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/58252668/

Part 14: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/58444816



Mira (C) Calypso-Dreams

Artison, Loretta, art, and character (C)  watcher12