FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

"Stranded but Not Alone"

The orange glow of the sunset showered the valley in its light through the sparce trees in the area that Chance had discovered the Turbokat several hours before. The machine was mangled almost beyond recognition, but he'd hoped that with Garr's help, he would be able to get her to fly once again. The jet had suffered some heavy damage to its hull, but all he really needed to do, was salvage the engine and find enough parts to make a new plane... the idea of doing this work wasn't a matter of weeks or even a matter of months; Chance began to think, as he wrenched out a broken bolt he had found and caused the engine compartment; or what was left of it to pop open, that it could take years for him to salvage enough material out of this mess to make an actual, flying plane. He groaned and let out a growl of frustration before throwing his wrench off to the side; the metal colliding with metal made a resounding bang as the tool fell off into the brush. Garr glanced up from his own task with a puzzled look on his face.

"Chance? Are you alright?"

"Oh yeah." Chance snapped in frustration. "Yeah, I'm just peachy."

The Guardian rose to his full height and stared at him. "What's the matter?"

"What's the matter?" Chance repeated. "I'm in a place I couldn't even begin to explain, talking to a dragon who actually exists, trying to repair a plane that is so far beyond repair it might as well be a pile of metal toothpicks!"

"Hmm." Garr nodded in response. "Yes, this vehicle does seem to be in disrepair, but perhaps we can get enough together..."

"You've got a lot of optimism, Garr." Chance rolled his eyes. "I'm starting to think you were better off being a snarling, mating beast." He grunted as his hand groped his backside. "I am still aching from that too."

Garr smiled; but in the smile was a hint of an embarrassed blush. "Well, perhaps you should keep your ass out of my sights for a bit, I could easily go for it again."

"I can't. If you remember, you shredded my jumpsuit to ribbons." Chance said. "I guess I ought to thank you though, I'd be sweating in them in this jungle otherwise."

Chance sighed as he slid down the wing he had been sitting on and landed in the grass below to search for his wrench. Picking the discarded tool up, he looked it over and then climbed back onto the wing; the metal creaking as it leaned somewhat to the side. "So Garr, where is it you come from?"

"Urkan Tapa. To the north of here several hundred miles." Garr explained.

"Nice. There others like you?"

Garr's expression became somewhat sullen, the Guardian's wings drooping a bit as he continued to work on removing a panel; as if unimpeded by the words. "Not anymore." He responded.

"Oh." Chance frowned somewhat. "Sorry about that."

"Don't be." Garr shook his head. "My kind... at least what I am became an extinct race long ago."

"Still, it's gotta be pretty lonely."

Garr turned an eye toward the feline and gave him a slight nod. "Sometimes. What about you?"

"Me?"

"Are there others of your kind? You seem fairly unique as well."

Chance shook his head. "Nah, in my world everyone looks...well we're all the same species."

"Ah." Garr nodded and returned to his work. "And somehow you ended up here?"

"Yeah. My partner Jake developed this new engine that would make our jet be someplace in the blink of an eye. Somehow it landed me in a whole 'nother world."

"Partner?" Garr raised an eyebrow. "I am unfamiliar with this--"

"Oh." Chance pondered for a moment. "Well he and I fight crime together, we call ourselves the Swat Kats."

"Huh." Garr nodded understandingly before he returned to his work, wiping sweat from his brow as he did so. "We best hurry." He admitted before wrenching another part loose and pulling it clear from the jet. "It will be dark soon, and many dangerous animals wander these woods at night." Chance nodded in agreement, and removed another large metal panel.

It didn't take long for the orange glow to fade to a more silvery colored one as the sun set past the horizon, and the shining color of a moon emerged almost simultaneously from the western cliffs. It was a full moon, and left the area still well lit as Garr and Chance made their way back toward the clearing they picked for their campsite. Their backs faced a large rock wall, while each side was covered in trees; the trees opened up into the open space that led back down the hills toward the lower part of the valley; the shine of a nearby river could be seen between the trees, running along the center, leading off into an unknowing distance. Things were quiet as the two of them settled around the fire; the sound of crickets chirping off in the distance and the soft crackle of fire were the only things that could be made out through the darkness. Chance laid back and groaned a bit; the stress of the day's work making his back ache, putting his hands behind his head, he looked at Garr seated across from him;

The dragon-looking man was extremely well muscled, that was something that Chance had noticed right off the bat; when he removed the tunic he wore, his form reflected perfectly off the similarly-colored glow of the fire as its shadows and lights bounced off of him. Chance adjusted his posture somewhat, bringing his knees up so they arched over the ground. "So, Garr. What was that when we first met?"

"Hmm?" Garr cocked his head a bit. "Oh..." He added with a bit of a divert in his eyes. "Ahh... it happens every few seasons; I am overwhelmed with an insatiable urge to...to procreate. This rutting sees little difference between males and females; I just have to breed with someone and it becomes a relentless thirst that gets more and more needful as the days go on. What you encountered was following a three-week dry cycle. I--I didn't want to force that on anyone."