FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The shuttle came in swiftly, silently. Cip was able to time it so that the door opening to let them in was passed off like a random, automated test, and Luckily the bay they picked had been empty before they hacked the cameras. And since they didn't have the station aware that they were docking, Yuki had to mate the hatches manually. Considering that could have breached the shuttles armor, it was a small miracle that she did so without damaging anything, though the shuttle itself shook as it slammed into the bay. Cip was able to time it so that the airlock cycle was passed off as an automated test, which allowed Jabril to enter, place Mingo's device on the panel, and override the airlock so that it was fully in the hacker's control. "Green is good, right?" the wolverine asked, whispering through his ear piece.

Izel was next to enter the air lock, and the two of them waited for it to cycle before the door opened, finally, to the station. The grasshopper mouse wrinkled her nose at the foreign air before checking the up and down the hall. "We're clear, send the rest through."

It was an interminable few minutes while the airlock flashed red again, but soon it was green and Mingo marched through, unshouldering his pack while the rest of the squad, Kiyara with Wamai bringing up the rear, came through. "System check," Wamai said.

"Reading you loud and clear," Cipriano said through the local network.

Wamai nodded, then tapped his earpiece to put it on standby. Communication was important but risky, and it could possibly be eavesdropped on if they used it at the wrong moment. Personally, Izel thought that was overly paranoid, but they were also decidedly hostile area with very little in the way of back up. Izel shook herself, then suppressed a desire to howl out to her prey. Ancestors, but she was coming for them.

"Remember, stunning them now to get that information is the way to go. Do not kill anyone unless you absolutely have to. Let's move out." They fell in, Wamai taking point with Kiyara behind him, and Jabril bringing up the rear.

It was probably just as well that it was the four of them. Cipriano was hacking the cameras on a constant basis, massaging them to hide their passage. That would probably take up a lot of his focus. Mingo's job was to secure the airlock and hatch by whatever means necessary; once they secured the place he'd have additional duties. It made no sense to have the medic along, so Vennie stayed behind and Yuki was the shuttle pilot as well as keeping the shuttle warm in case they had to leave quick. The rest of the squad… they were all hunters by species. So they stuck to the route devised earlier, with Kiyara keeping them all on track. She'd grabbed a motion detector, snapped it into some kind of passive mode that wouldn't get picked up by other sensors. They were about as prepared as they were going to get.

The group came to the first intersection, and Wamai called a halt. He looked back at Kiyara, who shook her head: no movement. Then, Wamai very carefully peeked around the corner. Still looking, he flashed two fingers twice, then held his paw up in a fist, curled fingers toward the wall. Jabril hustled forward but stopped, parallel to Wamai. The cheetah's fingers went up, and Jabril went, hurrying across to the other side of the hallway and behind the next corner. Then Wamai flashed two fingers followed by one, and Izel shuffled closer. Again the fist, then the fingers went up and Izel hurried across the hallway. She glanced briefly down it, and saw one fur, casually smoking with their back turned toward the intersection.

So that's what that smell was.

The captain took her place at the corner, watching the wolf on their apparent smoke break. Jabril had made room for her, and once she was in position, went to check the doors. Kiyara came rushing past, and still the pirate wasn't moving. Izel held up a fist, like Wamai had while she kept her eye on the wolf. Still no movement, aside of the smoking. Were they sleeping? She opened her fist and Wamai came running, phase pistol held low.

The cheetah tapped his earpiece, muttered "Checkpoint one," then put it back on standby.

Checkpoint one. Only twenty more to go.

-*-

By checkpoint 4, she started to feel it.

Checkpoint seven found her feeling it badly.

It got urgent around nine, and she managed to hold on until ten before she had to say something.

"Bathroom," she whispered, as Wamai passed her. The cheetah didn't hear her, so she caught up to him and grabbed his paw. He whirled and looked at her quizzically, so she repeated herself. "Bathroom!"

Wamai signed and closed his eyes. She didn't blame him. "How bad."

"Extremely."

"Can't you hold it?"

"Been holding it for the last few checkpoints."

The cheetah's ears were plastered to his skull. He turned to the fox. "Kiyara, find the closest bathroom."

Kiyara's ears perked, and she glanced at Izel, who nodded impatiently. Snorting, the vixen spun around the wireframe map she had, then zoomed in, before turning around. "Next hallway down the right, first door on the left."

"Thank the ancestors." Izel took off before Wamai could call it in, as that biological urge intensified at the nearness. They were probably fine. After that single pirate they'd encountered at the beginning, the base seemed deserted. Fine by her.

Dashing into the bathroom she got into a stall, pulled down her pants, and sat down just in time. Relief was sweet, and she loosed a little sigh while her bladder drained itself. Maybe relief was underselling it.

Something flushed, and she assumed it was something automated. It wasn't until she heard the stall opening beside her that Izel realized she wasn't alone in there. Cursing softly, she stood, holding her phase pistol and hastily pulling up her pants. The other fur, whoever it was, walked past her stall. It was when she heard the sink start that she opened her door, took aim, and fired.

The sound of a phase pistol seemed a whole hell of a lot louder in the aucoustics of a bathroom, so she was pretty sure her crew heard that. She woke her earpiece, a paw still on the phase pistol pointed at the pirate. "Contact. I have one badger, appears female."

"I hear you," Wamai said. "You have help inbound."

That was all the warning had before Kiyara burst into the bathroom, phase pistol in front of her. "Check the stalls," Izel said while she crossed the distance to the stunned badger, feeling for a pulse. Seemed steady, and the grasshopper mouse huffed.

"Clear," Kiyara said, coming back. The vixen scratched at the back of an ear, holstering her weapon. "So now what?"

"Remember the plan? We find a storage room or something and seal it off until we can come back for them."

"Right…" The two holstered their weapons, then picked up the body, groaning. "Damn, badgers are heavy."

"Tell me about it."