FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The dragon waited at the loading bay for this section of the Labs, ticking off each shipment as it arrived. It was a pretty boring job, but there were benefits on occasion. He had the prestige of working at the Labs and the pay was good, not to mention a bonus every time he caught someone on the property.

He grinned as he looked out over the wide, grassy area beyond the loading bay. Kids, the homeless, competitors, they all thought the loading bay the least guarded part of the Labs and came up to either try to get in or to have a look. Either way, once they were on the property, they were property: property of Watcher Labs.

Another truck pulled up and then another three after that; the dragon was busy for most of the afternoon with those. When the last of the cargo had been taken inside for storage, he sat back on his chair, yawning and looking at the clock on the wall. His shift was almost over, but he could not clock out until his replacement arrived. With any luck, he would get a little overtime at the very least.

He had yawned again when he spied movement in the grass. There were slow, rolling depressions, giving someone the opportunity to sneak fairly close. The fading light of the afternoon had illuminated something moving out there. The dragon smiled; something good was here to end the day. The bay was mostly unlighted and he was sitting in deep shadow. Whoever was out there would not be able to see him. Keeping perfectly still, he watched as the shape continued to move closer in the grass. Some kind of feline, he noted.

He knew the distance between here and the property line very well, as well, as how fast he could run. If he moved now, the feline -- a lioness, he decided -- might be able to make it out before he caught her. However, soon she would be close, too close to escape once he acted. So, he stayed still, watching. She must have been in the 'curious kids' category; probably just wanted a closer look at the big, imposing buildings. He smiled softly; that would cost her, and would net him a good, fat paycheck.

The lioness slowly came closer, obviously trying to hide in the semi long grass. It was cut less often for this purpose, although it did not conceal her as well as she thought it did. She stopped on the edge of where the lawn was neatly cut and it was then that the dragon acted. He leapt up from his seat, sprinting for the intruding cat. The intruder's eyes widened at the sudden movement, realizing that she'd been seen. She scrambled backwards, rising to her feet and turning to run, but it was far too late.

The dragon was almost disappointed. One cat, a spry cheetah, had made it all the way back to the fence by the time he'd caught her. This one had barely taken ten steps when his hand closed around the back of her neck, stopping her desperate run immediately. She made a small "hurk!" sound as he grabbed her, the dragon lifting her off her feet easily. She was young, the dragon saw, though not a child; definitely late teens, and was most certainly a lioness. He hoped that those were in short supply; that would give an even bigger bonus.

"You are trespassing," he growled, trying to keep the glee out of his voice, "on Watcher Labs property." He turned, dragging her with him and began to walk back towards the buildings.

"I'm sorry!" the lioness whimpered, stumbling. "Please, just let me go! I'll leave, I swear!" She began to struggle against his grip and the dragon tightened it with a grunt.

"Stop that!" he snapped, thinking up a lie to tell. "We're...we're just going to go to someone in charge, and then you can leave!"

That quieted her down a little, although she was still whimpering a little and squirming. The dragon knew that she would run the first chance she got so he held on tightly to her neck as they stepped onto a path that led into Watcher Labs. He swiped a card at the door at the end of it, grinning now as he pushed the lioness inside and then slammed it behind her, the lock beeping as the door sealed itself.

The dragon was already thinking of what he'd spend his bonus on.