FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The library wasn't crowded that time of day. The smell of books pervaded the air as I sat in one of the comfortable chairs facing the windows, a stack of research books to one side, a small notebook on the arm of the chair for notes, and in my lap, a book that would have made one of the many purveyors of second hand books on Milton Avenue drool and extend their hands towards it.

It was bound with crimson dyed kidskin leather, soft and supple in my hands. The pages were vellum, and the ink was a coppery red, written in a careful, quite legible hand. While the chair was comfortable, the position I had to sit in in order to use the book cradle was not. I was wearing white cotton gloves and turning the pages with a special stylus that used a minute vacuum to gently pick up each page.

The the book was not so much titled as categorized. Along the spine was a single word, embossed with gold that still clung where some artisan had carefully placed it. The word was "Dragon."

I suppose I should back up a little. My name is Dartanian Grimson. Occupation at the time: Layabout author. I'd published several books, though none of them hit it big. You probably haven't read or even heard of them. A few people on Milton Avenue collect my books, mostly for the typesetting and binding value. Since my father owned Grimson and Milton publishers, I got a sweetheart deal and got to typeset and design the binding myself. It pumped the book price a lot, but the kind of novels I wrote are almost as much about the book as the writing. It's an atmosphere thing.

Still, for a twenty three year old, I suppose that wasn't too bad an accomplishment. I wrote historical fictions with lots of research and a soupcon of fantasy mixed in. This latest one I was writing had a little more than that, seeing as the subject matter was one of my favourites.

I turned the page, and looked up at the only other occupant of the room. He was engrossed with a small novel, but the book in his hand didn't interest me much, though he did. The library was kept cool, and the stranger was wearing his white leather jacket, the collar crisp and cut high, which is what first caught my eye.

His hair was long, white and flowing, cut to his shoulders, though when the light hit it, silver highlights flashed. He was wearing blue tinted glasses, so his eye color escaped me. I took another look, and the only other feature I could really see was the silver pendant he wore, a cat's eye made of silver with a blue gem of some kind cut around a black stone. I stared for a bit, shivered, then went back to my book.

His clothing and hair was a little odd, yes, but I wasn't sure what quite drew my eye back time and again to the stranger. There was just... something. Soon enough I forgot about him and became re-engrossed in what I was there for. I'd spent two days already reading the tome on the stand in front of me, not counting today, eking out the details I would weave with my own touch for my latest book.

The cloudy light from the window started to fade, and a polite voice informed me that the library would soon close. I put my notepad back in my small satchel, capped my pen, and picked up the book to take back to the special collections desk. I looked over to where the stranger had been, but he was gone... though he had left something, it seemed. A square of white paper was left on the arm of the chair he'd been occupying.

I handed the book to the man behind the desk and signed it back in, removing my gloves and putting them in the bin to be washed, and then walked back to the chair to investigate. What could he have left? His library card? I shook my head... there was something intriguing about the stranger that I couldn't quite put my finger on, and... well, who knows, maybe I'd find his name.

I picked the little square of paper up and looked at it... the second my fingers touched, I felt a strange sensation, like the whole world had sneezed, but tried to hold it in. I must have blacked out for a moment. I looked down at what I was holding, though whether it was a thousand years or two seconds later, I couldn't tell, and my jaw dropped. A drawing of a silver dragon was on the page, every line drawn carefully into an intricate design that filled the whole page... all except the eye, which was blue. I turned the card over, the other side was blank... I shook my head, confused, and turned it back to look at the picture... but both sides were blank now. A smudge of silver ink stained my fingers the only evidence of it being there in the first place.

I stared at the card for another minute, sniffed it, folded it a little, held it up to the light... nothing. It was a plain piece of blank card stock. I shook my head. Whatever I had seen, it must have been a figment of my... but the silver ink on my finger stubbornly refused to go away. I glared at it, and shuddered, trying to rub it off with no effect. Too much research. I'd go home and write, maybe incorporate the idea into my story. I walked to the waste paper basket to toss the bit of card away... but stopped, and just slipped it in my satchel, next to my notebook. "Just too long reading that damn book." I muttered, and turned to leave the library.

***

The trip home was uneventful, but throughout it I saw... something. Colours seemed different, more vibrant. I saw things out of the corner of my eye that I couldn't quite make out, but when I turned to look, they were gone.

I got off at my stop, and unlocked the door with a heavy sigh, dropping my satchel at the door and walking to the kitchen to rustle up some tea. My hands were cold, and I rubbed them together to warm them. I walked in to the kitchen and stared dourly at the sink full of dishes. The maid would be in to do them tomorrow on one of her twice-weekly visits, but it still annoyed me to have them sit there. I thought, perhaps, that I'd install a dishwasher for them to sit in instead. Or even run the damned thing myself.

I picked up a clean teapot and spooned two measures of black tealeaves inside, lighting the gas stove with a match and setting a kettle-full of water on to boil. I stared out the window while waiting for the water to boil. The view from the small kitchen window wasn't much to speak of. Mostly just the overgrown greenery of the creeping vines that covered most of my patio, and the bus stop outside, then stared.

For a second, I thought I saw someone seated on the bench, looking at me, but I blinked, and saw it was just a trick of the light, a few leaves contriving to make the shape of someone leaning against the small enclosure. I shook my head, and poured the water into the pot, placing it on the tray with a cup and a small bowl of sugar. I walked with the tray into my study.

Here, books lined the wall, and a fake fireplace warmed the room with a cheerful crackle. There was really no purpose to the flames, nothing an electric couldn't do, but there was something peaceful about a fire, or at least, the illusion of one. I'd install a real one, but then I'd have to keep it going and... well, I'm not good at keeping such things up. I grew up with a house full of servants, though I don't keep one now. Just a maid twice a week and a gardener when the plants got too unruly.

I sat down at my favourite piece of furniture, an old-fashioned roll-top desk, stroking the wood softly as I switched on a much more modern desktop computer, pulling my notebook out.

The card fell out of the satchel with it, landing on the desk with a startling crash almost sounding like a thunderbolt. Startled, I stared at it for a good ten seconds before picking it up again to examine it.

Jeremiah. My Maine Coon jumped on the desk, fluffy tail waving as he mewed a hello to me. "Such nonsense." I told him, letting him sniff the card as I pet him with my other hand... He did, and flattened his ears, hissing as he bolted from the room. "Jeremiah!" I called, exasperatedly, standing up and dropping the card against the desk. It again landed edge-on, with a crack. I stared at it, then at the spot of silver ink on my fingers, and shivered... it was gone! "What the hell is going on here?" I asked, shaken, then felt foolish for swearing, and sat at my desk and transcribed my notes in silence. Just before I switched off to go to bed, I stared at the card still sitting on the desk, and pinned it to the cork board next to my monitor.

***

I got up early to make tea when something strange caught my eye out the window... There was a crowd of people standing waiting for the bus, mostly commuters and students. The bench was packed... except for the one spot on the bench that seemed occupied the night before. Several people were standing, but nobody sat in that spot... I shrugged, perhaps there was gum on the seat. It didn't seem to matter a lot... but somehow it still nagged at me.

I turned the radio on and made some breakfast. The strains of Gymnopedies filled the air, and I gave a soft smile. One of my favourite classical pieces. I sat down at my desk with food and switched on the computer... when something on the cork board caught my eye. it was the card... only now instead of being white, it was pure silver, a mirrored surface... I stood up, breakfast forgotten, the song still echoing through the flat from the radio in the kitchen. I reached for the card when I realized there was something wrong with my reflection... My face seemed normal, not ruggedly handsome, just plain, black hair in need of a cut... but it took me almost ten seconds to realize what was wrong... around my neck was a thick metal collar, silver, just like the color of the ink that I'd smudged...

I gasped, and reached for it, but my fingers passed through it like it wasn't there... I tore off to the bathroom, and sighed in relief when I stared at my neck in the larger mirror. The band wasn't there... though when I looked closer there was... almost a shadow. I felt my neck carefully, but couldn't detect anything there, or even any change in texture. I ran back to my desk, staring again at the card, and reaching to grab it.

The moment my fingers touched the card, the silver liquid poured off of it and up my arm. I suddenly felt dizzy, light headed... that same feeling! I had no idea what was going on, except that somehow it was related to the man dressed in white... the image of his face filled my mind those blue tinted no longer hiding his eyes, the bluest blue... I opened my eyes, and I was standing in the window of my kitchen, looking down at the street. The bus stop! He was sitting right there! But... how had I known? How had I gotten here? I didn't remember walking over... the music on the radio had changed to some other classical piece now, I didn't remember the song ending, either... I closed my eyes and shook my head. It was too much. I fell to the floor, eyes closing again. The sensation of something cold and metallic around my neck the last feeling I had before I passed out.

***

~Dartanian.~ A soft, unfamiliar voice called. It wasn't loud, but it was impossible to ignore. My eyes flickered open. I was laying on the floor in my kitchen, and above me, he stood, looking down with an expression of soft mirth.

~Get up~ He said, arms folded as he looked down at me, but... was he really speaking? His lips didn't move. "Who are you?" I asked, whispering, my awareness suddenly encompassing the creature at his feet, my cat Jeremiah was nuzzling at his shins. I huffed and closed my eyes, but his voice persisted. ~Get up now, boy.~ I reluctantly opened my eyes, getting to my feet. "What do you want?"

He chuckled, the sound was mostly in my mind, but in my ears I could hear a faint hissing from him, fear gripping me for the first time as I realized that he'd broken in to my house. ~You know the answer to the first, Dartainain. As for the second... my desires and wishes are many and vast. Right now, I wish for you to understand your position.~

The collar around my neck weighed on me, suddenly, and I shivered hard. "Telepathy... You're a dragon." I whispered. "You're taking human form..." He laughed softly. ~Very good... Now... you have a choice to make You've read the book, I can see in your mind you know we keep human slaves.~ He walked over, every movement looking choreographed and speaking of the predator I knew now was within him.

~My old slave died.. Old age, I assure you, I don't mistreat my slaves. And I've been looking for someone to replace him. Not all humans can live with the shock of knowing we still exist.~ his eyes bored in to me as he gripped my collar. ~I've looked into your mind, and I believe you'd make a good enough replacement, with a little training. You have qualities that remind me of him, and enough intellect to not bore me... You now have a choice...~ He pulled me closer, his nose nearly pressed to mine as I scented the tiniest hint of sulfur.

He grinned wide at me, those eyes staring deep into mine ~You can choose to replace him as my personal slave, attending to whatever needs I may desire... or choose freedom, and become my next meal.~

In hindsight, I suppose my reaction wasn't too terribly surprising. Such a shock to the system triggers deep-seated reactions one can't stop. At least I'd been to the bathroom that morning, so the wet spot wasn't too large when I pissed my pyjamas... "It isn't fair." I whispered, closing my eyes and lifting my hand to grip his wrist... It was like gripping an iron bar. I could have more easily lifted my apartment block than get away from him. He gave a soft growl that rattled the glass doors of the cabinets around us, removing his sunglasses to reveal his eyes, the most piercing blue eyes I'd ever seen, beyond what was naturally possible... He fixed me in his gaze.

~Fair? It's more than fair. Do you think salmon in the stream get such a choice when a bear scoops them out of the water? Do you think a gazelle gets the option to serve a lion in any way but a meal when it's caught?~ He tugged hard on the collar. ~Your life was forfeit when you picked up that card... Now, Live or die. Choose now or I will choose for you.~

I panted, the sensation of the collar around my neck nearly too much to bear as he yanked it, and made the only sane choice I could make. "Live." I wheezed, and closed my eyes as a soft, deep rumble filled the apartment... it was his laughter. ~Good, slave. Remember, it was your choice to make. Accept it now and your life might even be... pleasant.~ He held the collar tightly, chanting softly as he did. I felt clicks and thunks as some mechanism inside of it locked into place, and knew it would be hopeless to try and get it off. The bulge forming in my wet pants from this didn't help my mental state any. I'd never admitted to myself before that point that males attracted me, but there was no denying this.

He took the card from my shaking hand, dropping it on the gas stove as he chanted a few words over it... the surface became metallic again, and the liquid metal seemed to pour into the pipes supplying the gas stove... a stink of gas filled the air. He reached for the collar of my pyjamas, tearing them off of me without any apparent effort. A second later, the tears in the garments reversed themselves. He tossed them on the stove top as I stood there, naked and whimpering... he surveyed the room, looking down at my erection with a smirk. ~Ahh, yes... this will work. I'm sure of it~

He turned to look at my cat, a soft thrum filling the air, just as a human might make a thoughtfull "Hmm". I opened my mouth to speak, but he shook his head, apparently hearing my thoughts before I voiced them. ~Not worth eating, silly boy. Now... Jeremiah, is it? I guess you can come too.~ he said, and flicked his fingers at the cat. Jeremiah curled up and then shimmered, his body shrinking, then turning into a silver statue on the floor... I was too stunned to say anything, but the dragon... my new Master, smirked at me. ~Just a temporary transformation. I'm going to have to fly with one squirming pet in a moment, don't need two.~

He walked back over to me, lifting his hand quickly towards my head, making me cower as he yanked a few hairs out. He chuckled, and closed his hand around them, chanting something in a language I could only hear in my head, and tossed them hand at my pyjamas... they started to expand, as if something was growing inside them. ~This way, they'll at least have a body to find.~ he said.

I cracked, the faint sent of urine rising to my nose as I started to cry. He growled softly and reached towards me... only his hand grew to the point where it could easily grip me, the white leather outfit fading away as he grabbed me in a white-scaled taloned paw. I went weak at the knees as I was lifted and held to those scales... so warm! Paradoxically, against such a deadly creature, in a grip that could have killed me instantly... I felt safe. Truly safe in a way I hadn't ever felt before.

His form filled the apartment, calming me with his mind as I lay slack in his grip. A moment later we were airborne, heavy wings beating the air as the wall of my apartment fell into the yard, flames erupting from what was left of my kitchen, the cries of neighbours as they pointed towards the gaping hole, apparently unaware of the large dragon, or me held in his grasp, as we flew off into the morning sun.

***

The door to the computer room was pushed open by a white-scaled forepaw, claws each as long as a kitchen knife, and a blue eye the size of a saucer looked inside. A moment later a grey mist surrounded it and a white-haired, hard bodied human walked inside, nude. A soft smile crossed his face as he walked up behind the grey-haired slave sitting at a computer terminal, typing a document up. ~What are you up to, boy?~ he asked, tousling the other male's hair. The smaller man smiled and rubbed lightly to the white haired one's hand.

"Oh, nothing, Master, just writing something for the one who will come after me." He says, blushing a little. "I mean, I know you'll keep me in good health for as long as you can, but even your magic can't sustain me forever." The grey haired one looked like he was at his physical peak, strong, well muscled, very healthy, but his eyes were old.

The dragon nodded softly and stroked his hair. ~I'd keep you forever, if I could, but everything has it's season... One day, you'll still die.~ he said, sighing noislessly. ~We've had a good run, Dartanian. And it's not over yet.~

Dartanian grinned. "I know, Sir, but I want to make sure to leave my replacement some tips... maybe he'll figure out to let himself enjoy it faster than I did." He leaned back in the chair, looking up adoringly to the shape-shifted dragon. "My life has been better than it would have been otherwise, Master. Thank you for giving me meaning."

The dragon grinned, wrapping him in strong arms and lifting him from the chair. Behind him, the computer automatically saved its work and went into standby mode. ~You're welcome, boy... Now come on. Time for bed.~

***

~fin~