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Chapter 2: Transit

Chris woke from a light sleep as he felt the bus roll to a stop and engage its brakes. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and the fog from the bus window, before he gazed up at the massive steel and glass dome, which enclosed Furton City. Beyond the parking lot where the bus had stopped was an entryway, which composed of a series of airlocks and security stations. Outside the dome, only human personnel could be seen. Many of them were scientists or other employees of the Kaspersky foundation. However, many of them were armed security guards who relentlessly checked bags, performed background checks, and ensured all paperwork for each person entering or leaving the dome was correct and complete.

Chris stood and retrieved his bag from the overhead compartment before hobbling off the bus. He stretched out his stiff and sore muscles from the lengthy ride after he stepped onto the sidewalk. As he stepped into the sunlight, he gazed up once more at the dome to marvel at the feat of engineering. Despite how much the world hated or despised the Hybrids, they were willing to spend a fortune to keep them locked away in relative comfort. A security guard at the edge of the parking lot motioned at him to approach, appraising him as he did.

"Name?" the guard demanded in a serious but monotone pitch.

"Chris Tailor...," he answered as he showed the guard the student ID around his neck, which he had received in the mail along with the university's surprise acceptance letter. "I'm a new student for the University," he explained with slight hint nervousness.

The guard shook his head disapprovingly before he asked, "What made you decide to come here for college, kid?"

Chris didn't afford him a response, and simply handed over his entry paperwork.

"Alright, looks good," the guard said before handing the young man's paperwork back. "Go through the door on the left. Leave your suitcase on the table inside, before you proceed through the security checkpoint. Your belongings will be delivered to your dorm after they have been decontaminated," he instructed while motioning toward the building behind him.

Chris nodded and followed the directions. Just inside the door was a large, square room full of tables. Each was burdened down with luggage, packages, and other items entering the city. He set his suitcase on one of the tables, which still had space available, before he headed through the door at the other end of the room. He was immediately greeted by a pair of stern looking security guards who walked him through a metal detector before pushing him into the next room without a word.

"Clothes," said a blonde haired woman sitting behind a desk on one side of the room. She hadn't even looked up at him while she continued intently to read a fashion magazine.

Chris muttered questioningly, since he was unsure if she was referring to him or the magazine in her hands.

After a moment of still silence, she lowered the magazine and looked up at him with annoyance. "Your clothes, take them off. Throw them in the bin over there," she instructed with contempt as she pointed to a large waste bin that took up the entire far wall.

"You want me to get naked, here?" Chris protested nervously.

"You have to be decontaminated before you can enter the city, which means the clothes you're wearing have to be removed. The next room over is the decontamination processing room. After that you'll be given temporary clothing and entrance to the city," the blond woman explained with a sigh of annoyance.

Chris nodded and began to strip nervously. He noticed the blonde-haired woman watched him for a moment, as if she intentionally wanted to make him uncomfortable. Then she went back to reading her magazine as Chris continued to peel off clothing until he was completely naked and shivering, while trying to protect his modesty any way he could. However, the woman never looked up from her magazine again. She only motioned at him to proceed on to the decontamination room. As he pushed the door open, he heard her remark from behind the magazine, "Nice butt," and could feel his face flush at the comment.

The decontamination process room beyond was actually a long hallway with a moving sidewalk stretching down the middle. He didn't have to walk. He only had to stand in place as the walkway moved him from one end of the hall to the other. Along the way, he was barraged by blasts of vapor, smoke, and water while a recording told him to breathe normally. At the end of the hallway, a series of air blowers dried him off before he was spat out into what he assumed was a changing room. A set of clothes for his size were already laid out on a bench. The pile consisted of a plain white t-shirt, boxers, socks, loose blue jeans, and a pair of black tennis shoes. They were plain, but they were new and clean. He donned the clothing quickly before he opened the far door, which led out into a large plaza just inside the dome.

In the distance, he could see multi-story buildings rising up at the center of the dome, with smaller structures surrounding them. He barely recognized there was a tall figure at the center of the plaza motioning to him as he marveled at the skyline inside the dome. Chris examined the being, which had summoned him from across the plaza as he approached him. The male stood roughly seven feet tall, with distinctly canine features and covered with dusty and black mid-length fur, making him appear similar to a husky covered in coal dust. That is if a husky could walk on two legs. His eyes shone brightly and in stark contrast to the dark fur, one blue and one brown. Chris found it was an interesting heterochromia similar to what some wolves and dog breeds would display. The canine had a long snout with a mottled pink nose. He was holding a clipboard in his paw-like hands, which made his long nails click against the wood. Chris stared awkwardly at male hybrid's long and sharp teeth, which were nothing like those of a human as the hybrid spoke to him.

"Chris Tailor, correct? It is very rare to have a human coming to the university," the male hybrid declared as he looked over the young male human.

Chris barely heard what he said, before the Canine growled slightly to get his attention. Chris flushed for embarrassing himself by his rude staring. "Uh, right, sorry... you're... just the first Hybrid I've seen up close...," he apologized quickly as he began to stammer and sweat nervously.

The dog-man smiled a toothy grin before he replied. "I won't hold it against you, then. But for future reference, most of us prefer to be called Furs, not Hybrids. It's a little impersonal and makes us seem like we're still all lab rats," he explained in a friendlier manner.

Chris nodded his acknowledgement to the advice. He was encouraged by the Canine's sudden good mood as the fur patted him on the back with a large paw to turn him towards the city. "So what made you decide to come here. Most humans would rather attend college with their own kind?" the fur asked curiously, as he walked with the young male human.

"I'm studying genetics. I figure the best place to do that is where genetics are being applied to life on a daily basis. Besides, I've been fascinated by Hybr... furs... ever since I was a kid," Chris answered with a nervous shrug of his shoulders.

"Well we need more humans like you" the canine replied once he stifled his chuckles. "Maybe if the world out there didn't see us as so different, or as such a threat, we wouldn't be caged up in here like common animals," he added more seriously, before he pointed with a furry hand towards one of the nearer buildings. "That's a transit station. There are no roads or cars in the dome. Therefore, all transportation is done by subway trains under the surface. Take those stairs over there, down into the station. The map will show you the city, and where all of the transit stations are located. You'll want to take the train to station D, which is at the center of the Furton University. It's right next to the main office. I'm sure you can find someone there who can show you to your dorm and explain the rest of the dome to you. Dont be afraid to ask. You'll find we're much friendlier than the outside world makes us out to be," he advised with another friendly pat on the young man's shoulder.

Chris nodded and shook the canine's paw while he thanked him for his assistance, before heading off to the transit station.