The two dropped out the other side of the portal, landing on the soft ground within the middle of the forest. Mira groaned a bit as she got to her knees while Artison scrambled to his feet. He looked around for anyone had followed or seen him, but no one had followed them through after the portal closed.
He turned to Mira who still was on her knees, "Are you hurt?" He asked and held out a hand, but she was able to take his. He helped her up then looked around a bit more, "Where did you send us?"
"I don't know," She said as her ears drooped more, "I was panicking like you as we tried to leave the monastery. So I just did it blindly."
"Well, you had to have been thinking of somewhere if you managed a portal to it." Artison said, and he looked a bit more at the trees. "What were you last thinking of?"
"I thought of if I didn't make it out." Mira said, "I feared if they took me to that sacrificing place, and buried me among the roots to be forgotten."
"And yet we're above ground.." Artison said as he looked around, following a few dragged tracks he found, "I know where we are." He felt the tracks just to be sure then looked to Mira, These tracks are from when I dragged that branch to help move that stone. We're not far from the hole." Her eyes widened as she looked at him. "Mira, that means we know where we are now, we can figure out where to go from here."
"Ohh.." Mira took a deep breath then a faint smile came over her, "Yeah, So we just have to head back where I met you, like before?"
And, with a nod from Artison, they were off.

Artison pulled out the stones from before and set them out while whispering the incantation. Mira stood back as the wind picked, watched the stars fade as roaring clouds rolled in. The portal soon opened, and she ran to Artison's side, but then a spear landed between them, just missing her feet. The two looked back to the woods, and there were four shimashabi and Morokai.
He glared straight at Artison, and raised a spear at him. "He's mine, take the princess." The four came with charging spears at Mira, but she jumped through a portal and landed behind them with their guard down.
Morokai ran straight at Artison, lunging his spear forth, but Artison dove to the side and went to grab his spear. "Why do you bother chasing us?" Artison asked as he dodged another thrust of the spear, "We're dissenters, and we're leaving your settlement, how are we still a problem?"
"You're words mean nothing, dissenter!" Morokai shouted and his spear just missed his hips, "You break our tradition, corrupt our ways, and take what we hold dear!" He swung his spear at him over and over.
"Did you even love her?" Artison asked and grabbed hold of his spear, "She simply wonders if there's ways for the better and you kill her? What love is that?" and the shaft of the spear started to smoke.
Mira, meanwhile, held up well while fighting against four hunters. But only with her portals acting as shields from two while she watched two others come at her. Her eyes would turn to Artison though, her father was trying to kill him, and Artison didn't seem to hold well against the chief of the settlement. At the right moment, she grabbed a hunter right and flipped him. While he laid on the ground, she looked to Artison again and Morokai shoved him to the ground, fearful for him she took the downed hunter's spear and threw it. "Artison!"
Artison caught it and blocked at least one attack, then scrambled to his feet. "Ever thought she could still love the settlement?" He asked while he locked spears with him, "She still would, and want the best for it, but that demands change."
"You're changes are poison!" Morokai shouted and shoved him back, "And you are the serpent that must be scourged!" and with a hard whack, Aritson's spear was in two. "Our old ways have kept us alive for centuries, and nothing could change that for the greatest!" he lunged again, and Artison grabbed it.
"And you'll never get better." Artison said, and his hands set on fire, burning the spear at his grasp and snapped at two places. "Just let it go for a moment and think." Artison said and dropped the piece that was still in his hand, "How hard can that be?"
Morokai glared at him, and then dropped his pieces of the spear shaft. "And when you let you..." he draw a stone knife from behind him, "... You plummet to the inferno!" He lunged at him slashing the knife. Artison dodge best he could, but soon Morokai jumped on top of him. He held him down with on hand, and raised the other arm to plunge the knife in. Artison was forced to use both hands to try and keep the blade away.
Mira saw it all, and dared to use her portals to reach him, but the other hunters would block her way to the portals or wrestle her to keep her busy and away from them.
The knife still drew slowly more and more to Artison's chest. He panicked as he was near helpless as this warrior was about to kill them, yet the portal was so close. The knife was inches from his chest, and then Artison took a hand off. The knife started coming loser, but the second hand pressed a hand to Morokai's face and started on fire again. Morokai, reared back howling in pain as his fur singed and flesh seared. Artison shoved him off while in pain, and the other hunters saw what happened. They left Mira and ran to their fallen leader's aid. Artison and Mira ran for the portal Artison made, with the chance they gained, and once upon the other side, they sealed it, leaving Morokai with the burning scar to remember this all by.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Part 22

Title: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/26765572/

Part 21: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/28740428

Part 23: https://t.facdn.net/28981772@300-1539195686.jpg

Art, Morokai, and Mira © Thefuzzies ( https://www.deviantart.com/fairyfox12 )
Artison and story © me