Absolutely stunning piece done by the amazing   Kirena-Kaya . Her detail and speed with each piece I get from her always surprise me!

The day of me posting this, December 4th, is my good friend, DespicableCrow's birthday! I thought I'd surprise her with a story and an art piece of our characters together! I was extremely happy that this piece, along with the story, had made her entire night!

Lierahen (left) belongs to   DespicableCrowButt

Niobe (right) belongs to me,   TheGoldenJackal

ORIGINAL POST: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/34099244/

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A tall jackal walked along a dirt pathway in a forest. Her dark brown fur shined in the sunlight that pierced the forest roof, with her golden fur glowing with her will. She enjoyed the light breeze that made its way through the trees. The flowers in her hair moved with the wind, spreading their pollen into the forest.

The path had led her onto a stone bridge. Vines had overgrown the aged marble. Blue and violet crystals had formed in the stone, glowing with a mysterious energy. The jackal looked off the side of the bridge. A vast lake of crystal-clear water covered the land in front of her. Behind her was a large waterfall. The water crashed down from its source on the sheer cliff above it, yet it was still quiet.

The jackal took in the beautiful view and took a deep breath. She smiled, and thought of her home, many millennia ago. This magical place reminded her of her peaceful village, before all of the horrible things happened.

"I’m glad you could make it, Niobe," a voice said.

The jackal turned around. A familiar face walked towards her. A white cougar had appeared with a large smile on her face.

"It’s been a while, Lierahen," Niobe responded.

The two shook hands and hugged. Lierahen’s tail wagged as they wrapped their arms around each other. Once the two were done, Niobe looked back out into the lake.

"Quite the nice place you’ve got here," she stated, still in awe of the beauty of the world she was in.
"Thanks," Lierahen responded, partially in awe herself, "I loved building it."
"How did you build this beautiful world?"

The cougar took a second to think. It wasn’t just herself that built this place. The souls she guided to closure needed somewhere to rest or live on in their afterlife.

"The souls I’ve given closure to, helped me. It is the ideal paradise of all of them. There is plenty to explore. Plenty to hunt," she held Niobe’s hand, "and of course, plenty of time to spend with people you care about."
"You mentioned hunting?" Niobe quickly changed the subject.
"Of course! The circle of life is the only law here. I am the sole guardian of that law. I can create as many beings here as I want, barring I have the souls to do such a task."
"Your abilities still interest me, Lierahen," Niobe smiled.
"I learn more and more about them everyday. I’d love to teach you a thing or two someday."
"I’d be happy to learn from you!"

The winged cougar smiled. It was fun, having someone else around.

"Maybe you’d be able to teach me about the Aura someday, in exchange," Lierahen added.
"It’s a deal then!" Niobe agreed.

The two took in the view again, enjoying each other’s company. In the water below them, schools of fish swam by. Birds flew over the lake, migrating to a new area for the changing seasons. There were several different pack animals in the distance hunting and gathering. Niobe was fixated on the pack of feral wolves in the distance.

"It’s odd, seeing feral canines," the jackal stated.
"To you, it may be," Lierahen responded, "Once residents of Aetas are not the only beings that seek refuge here. There are other worlds the Everlast Forest is connected to. Worlds that humans are on top of the food chain, and dominate nature. Worlds that haven’t reached the point of sentience yet."

The pack of wolves in the distance had successfully caught up to the deer they chose as prey. It had fallen over, and the wolves had started to feed.

"But of course, none of that changes the law of the land here. Everything here is natural. I want to keep it preserved," Lierahen explained.
"A sanctuary of nature," Niobe concluded, "I completely understand."

The two friends continued to watch the world as nature took its course. The wolves from earlier made quick work of their meal and started to move back towards their dens. Birds of prey began to pick from what was left of the wolf pack’s meal. The small herd of deer that were chased away from the wolves slowly returned. They examined their late brethren, and moved to the water to drink.

Niobe finally spoke up, "as much as I love this place, it does remind me of home…"

Lierahen tilted her head and perked her ears. She worried about her jackal friend. The first time they met, Niobe very briefly mentioned her past, and how much she avoided talking about it.

"Anything you want to talk about, Niobe?" Lierahen put her hand on her friend’s shoulder, which Niobe quickly brushed off.
"It’s nothing to worry about," Niobe snapped.

Lierahen stood, confused, for a moment. Niobe wasn’t like this. At least, Lierahen didn’t think she was. She wanted to help Niobe move on, but she couldn’t help if she didn’t let her in. Lierahen looked into Niobe’s eyes.

"You can talk to me, Niobe," Lierahen said, "that’s what this place is for."
"What do you mean?" the jackal questioned.
"It’s a sanctuary. For everyone and everything. The Everlast Forest is meant to be that."

Niobe looked down and thought to herself for a moment. Lierahan cared a lot about her. She explained a lot about her past when they met in Europa, many moons ago. The winged cougar had been through a lot. She explained it to her, and why the two of them were similar. Before she could speak up to answer, Lierahen asked her a question.

"How are the two of those jackals doing? Siber and Luca?" the cougar asked.
"From what I can tell, they’ve been fine without my guidance. I guess loneliness isn’t the only way to get stronger," Niobe explained.
"Interesting. What difference do they have to you?"
"They have one another, constantly making their partner stronger, day by day. They even got the attention of the goddess that watches over the Caena region."
"Really? How did they get Sagira’s attention?"
"Their actions spoke to her. They hunted down the bad apples that fell from the tree, and brought them justice. Sagira had been in need of an equalizer for a very long time."

Lierahen looked off into the distance. She thought about inviting these two interesting characters into the Everlast Forest, as well.

"Why did you stop guiding them?" Lierahen asked.
"I…" Niobe started, "I thought they were strong enough to not need my guidance."
Lierahen looked Niobe dead in the eyes, "maybe you need to have them guide you. Tell me. What are the things they have that make you say that?"
"Like I said before. They have one another. That’s what makes the two of them strong."
"That’s what Bonded Jackals do, Niobe."

Niobe squinted her eyes. She tried to make sense of what her friend had said to her. Why did any of that matter? She was fine how she was.

"Loneliness is the source of my power, Lierahen," the jackal explained, "I shattered my bond long, long ago."
"Who’s to say that you can’t become even stronger by rebuilding a bond?" Lierahen wondered.
"Apostle is long gone. There’s no way to."
"Who might that be?"
"He was my mate. Several millennia ago, the two of us were partners. We were inseparable. It made our wills strong. We were the apex of our species, and I was the first one to do so. The Hunts were what split us apart."

The winged cougar didn’t know too much about this ‘Hunt’ Niobe had mentioned. The most she knew was it was the reason the vast majority of Niobe’s species were wiped out. She had not known the details of the near extinction-level event.

"As we were hunted," Niobe started again, "Apostle and I were on the run. After thinking about our options, we both came to our conclusions. He decided to leave me. He didn’t want to live his life on the run, or in hiding. So, he agreed with the world. He gave up his Bondedness."

A single tear ran down the jackal’s cheek. She noticed it, and wiped it from her face. It was the first emotion she had felt in a very long time.

"We had been together for ten years," Niobe continued, "We had been through so many hardships. So much pain in trying to figure out the extent of our powers. At the end of the day, it was always the two of us, happy with each other. We never looked back."

Lierahen was speechless. She sensed a lot of pain lift off of Niobe. She was happy that she was able to help her friend.

"Have you ever…" the cougar spoke

Niobe looked at Lierahen. The cougar had looked toward the ground.

"Have you ever thought about getting into another relationship with someone?" Lierahen blushed slightly.

Niobe giggled and put her hand on Lierahen’s chin. She gently pushed her white and gray chin up. The two looked into each other’s eyes.

"You know…" Niobe blushed, "I’ve started to develop this soft spot for a cougar that I’ve known for a bit, now."

Lierahen smiled. Her cheeks turned to a bright red. Her long, fluffy tail started to wag. Niobe looked into the distance.

"She’s given me closure about my past, and I feel like I can have emotion again, even with all the pain I’ve endured."

Niobe gave the winged cougar a kiss on her cheek. The two smiled at each other.

"Thank you for all that you’ve done for me, Lierahen," Niobe spoke.
"Thank you for opening your heart to me," Lierahen responded.
"Well, from what I’ve learned, everyone needs someone to trust. No one has listened to me for a very long time."
"I’m always willing to listen, Niobe."

The jackal’s golden markings started to glow with this new bond she had made. It burned brighter than it did in Europa, several months ago.

"I look forward to talking to you again, Niobe," Lierahen stated, "for now, I will let you explore this sanctuary."

Niobe smiled and nodded. She knew exactly where she would go first.