FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Felix sighed heavily and rubbed his face and eyes, feeling exhausted after a long day, and an even longer evening the previous night. He'd been working later than he should've, and the effects were quickly getting the better of him. The calico had nearly nodded off at his desk on several occasions, and even coffee wasn't doing him any favors at this point. Fatigue was compounded by the large blocks of programming code displayed on his monitor, blinking the tiredness out of his eyes so he could read clearly.

Earlier that day - after Frosty departed with Tess secretly shadowing him, at Felix's instruction - a team of CATS handlers and technicians had gathered to test the latest updates to the system software. Although everything had initially gone according to plan, an unexpected jump in system power had triggered a failsafe, shutting CATS down and bringing the test to an immediate halt.

What had initially begun as a simple bug - the ability to enter a timeline anchor code that conflicted with mission orders - was turning into a series of gremlins that were becoming increasingly difficult to root out of the system. Felix wasn't the only one working overtime to resolve those issues, as it was critical that everything be working flawlessly to ensure their field agents could safely travel between timelines during their missions.

A pair of black and orange ears swiveled to attention when the door to Felix's office abruptly swung open. Felix tiredly lifted his head to see a white cheetah standing in the doorway with something tucked under an arm, though it was obscured by his monitor. He huffed quietly as Frosty moved toward his desk, returning his attention to his workstation.

"Things went well, I take it?" the calico dismissively asked. "Surprised you didn't land yourself in that mouse's gut again." Felix visibly jumped when the bundle was slammed down on his desk.

"Tess did, no thanks to you," Frosty shot back. After contacting Tess's handler to let them know he'd already secured her belt - knowing that her beacon would have been activated - Frosty had been advised to check in with Felix, confirming his involvement.

"She did what now?" Felix's green eyes turned toward the silvery bundle that Frosty had planted on the end of his desk. On top of it was a ragged belt which had seen better days, bits of wiring and circuitry visible in places where the leather band had been digested away.

Unlike Frosty, who had been provided a durable collar that could survive trips through most predators due to his unusual habits, Tess had never needed something so robust. The tuxedo cat made it a point to avoid ending up on someone's menu, and Frosty knew it.

Plucking the damaged belt from the desk, Frosty held it up in front of Felix to reinforce what he was about to say. "This is why we do things my way. Good luck getting any useful data from this."

The data Frosty was referring to was essentially Tess's memories since the last time she had updated her "master copy" used for reforming. Places she'd been, people she'd talked to, missions she'd gone on. All of it would be lost if the belt's data store was damaged, which appeared likely.

Frosty tossed the belt at Felix's chest and growled, making the other cat flinch back. "This whole mess with Tess and Drake was your doing; you deal with it."

Felix looked too stunned to speak, staring down at the tattered object that was now resting in his lap as the cheetah turned and abruptly left without another word. Frosty was fuming as he hurriedly walked down the corridor between a row of offices, making his way back to his private suite. He'd made his point clear, and staying any longer than necessary in Felix's office would have been explosive.

By the time Frosty reached his room, he'd cooled off enough that exhaustion was beginning to quickly catch up with him. He didn't even bother dressing down before he dropped himself onto the queen-sized bed, rolling onto his back to stare at the ceiling.

"Damn it, Felix," he muttered, letting out a heavy, frustrated sigh. First Drake, and now Tess. Frosty was much more concerned about the latter, knowing that she'd be rather fired up about how things had gone with Fomo. A knot formed in his stomach as he considered the fury he'd face. Tess was the sort that wasn't afraid to voice her displeasure with her fists. It wouldn't be the first time she'd thrown a punch Frosty's direction over a mission-gone-wrong, either.

If she even remembers what happened, Frosty reminded himself. But he wasn't willing to make that gamble. Perhaps he could take some time off and hope things would blow over by the time he returned to work. Long shot, because he knew that she tended to hold grudges, and letting her get eaten would be no exception.

While Frosty considered the best way to handle the situation, he thought back on the exchange between himself and Fomo that had escalated to the point that Tess needed to intervene. He couldn't deny the fact that if she hadn't been there, he'd be stewing away in the mouse's belly right now instead of Tess.

The cheetah's eyes wandered to his bathroom door, eyes resting on the black collar that was pinned beside his depraved silhouettes of the other mice that had met unfortunate ends with Frosty. Only some of those had been restored to their respective timelines, and now the most recent example was flipping the food chain in their own world.

"How am I going to fix this mess?" Frosty wondered aloud. Incensed though he was at Felix's interference, the fact that Fomo was even here was still Frosty's fault. And after several attempts, he didn't feel like he was any closer to a resolution. His offer to prove things to Fomo had nearly gotten him eaten. Again.

But as Frosty continued to stare at the collar on the door, at the round golden tag glimmering in the dim light, he knew that it would be key to pointing things in the right direction.

It's the only way he'll believe me.

Frosty decided then and there what needed to happen. As an added bonus, it would give him cause to get out of the office, to avoid or at least postpone the inevitable confrontation with Tess.

Fomo had already given Frosty a tidbit that would be useful to reinforce his claim. And if the mouse still didn't believe him...

What's the worst that he's going to do? Eat me...?

Frosty decided he'd find out soon enough, and pondered what to say while he closed his eyes and settled in for a nap. He'd pay the mouse another visit in the next day or so.

* * * * * * * * * *

As planned, the snowy cheetah once again found himself on a familiar doorstep. His tail lashed about quickly, one hand stuffed deep into his pocket while the other nervously fidgeted in front of him. He hadn't yet knocked or rang the doorbell, and half-considered bailing on his plan entirely, considering the outcome to his previous conversation with Fomo.

But that wouldn't solve anything, and he'd already come this far. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Frosty planted a finger against the doorbell and waited. When the door opened, Frosty was greeted with a familiar face and a beaming smile.

"Heya, chee!" Forest's bushy tail wagged as he reached out, the grey wolf bringing his arms around Frosty's waist and pulling him into a tight hug.

"Hey, wuffie. Good to see you," Frosty murmured, cuddling into the hug and giving his friend a squeeze in return. The warm embrace was a welcome thing compared to the cold reception that he was anticipating from Fomo. "Wasn't expecting you to be home today."

"Pleasant surprise for both of us," the wolf grinned, nuzzling between Frosty's ears. The familiar vanilla scent earned a soft growl that made his tail wag even faster. "What brings you around, kitty?"

"I'm willing to bet it's me," a voice suggested behind Forest, bearing more than a hint of annoyance at the cheetah's unannounced presence.

Forest's ears perked and he glanced over his shoulder. Fomo was standing in the entryway with his arms folded over his chest, scowling at the cheetah cuddled up to Forest. He'd heard the exchange and came to investigate. The wolf frowned a bit at Fomo's expression, then looked back to Frosty when the feline nervously coughed.

"Er...well, he's not wrong," Frosty replied. "Came by to hang out and chat with him for a bit." When he noticed the wolf's tail slowing, Frosty was quick to save face. "But it shouldn't take much time; we should do something afterward, wuffie."

Forest nodded and squeezed him again. "Sounds good to me, chee. I'll be in my room working on a few things; come find me when you're done."

Frosty breathed a sigh of relief as he watched Forest depart. The wolf's presence meant he could relax a bit, because Forest would likely intervene if things became too heated between himself and Fomo. On the other hand, if Fomo decided Frosty would make another good addition to his diet, Forest would likely assist him in that effort.

To his surprise, the mouse's stance relaxed a bit and he smirked. "So, what actually brings you around, spottycat? Decided to take me up on my offer?" Fomo's arms unfolded and he reached down to rub across his soft belly, still rather round from Tess's addition. "There's plenty of room for you."

The cheetah's face suddenly became warm. Already off to a great start. Frosty nervously cleared his throat again, fidgeting in place as he watched Fomo's digits trace across his bare stomach, the bottom of his shirt tugged up to ensure Frosty got a good look at the added weight. It distracted his train of thought for a long moment, but he eventually tore his gaze away to look into Fomo's eyes again.

"A-actually, I wanted to revisit our last conversation," Frosty nervous started.

Fomo's hand paused on his gut and his eyes narrowed. "What, the part where you wanted to prove to me that a mouse can reform after being eaten?"

The cheetah felt his chest nervously tighten. But he pressed on. "That wasn't what I was suggesting at all. I should've...been more clear on that," Frosty admitted. "Though in a way...I guess you kinda did."

The mouse's tail lashed as his ears laid back. "Chee, I'll give you one chance to stop being so cryptic and tell me what you're getting at, otherwise I'm gonna see if you still reform after being eaten."

He might still get eaten either way. One hand still in his pocket, Frosty clutched the object in his fingers and dragged it out. Lifting it so Fomo could get a good look, a slightly-ragged leather collar with a golden medallion dangled from the cheetah's fingers. He shook it gently in the air, making the tag jingle softly against the metal link.

"Here's your proof, Fomo. Like I said in the park, the dream you had wasn't just a dream."

Fomo's eyes widened with recognition. He didn't move a muscle as he took in the sight while the collar swayed gently back and forth in the air. It felt familiar to him. But it couldn't be. When he nervously moved closer to get a better look, he focused on the gold tag. It was noticeably etched, and as it gently turned back and forth, he could see that both sides were blank.

"That could be anyone's collar," the mouse muttered. "Tags like that one are a dime a dozen." For some reason, Fomo was having trouble even convincing himself of that.

But it couldn't possibly be his collar. Fomo had turned his life around some time ago, from being a meek, timid "prey" mouse that everyone picked on, into someone that could stand up for himself, even going as far as devouring the handful of cats that had threatened him in recent days. As part of his "transformation" he'd cut up his old collar and thrown it away as a sign of leaving his old self behind.

The collar that Frosty was holding looked identical, but mostly-intact with exception to obvious signs of wear and tear.

"But it's not just anyone's collar," Frosty pressed. He then pulled his trump card. "Maybe I can jog your memory a bit regarding that dream you had. About how good you felt in a cheetah's gut. About how much my belly liked you."

Fomo didn't say a word, his heart beginning to race. The cheetah's words almost perfectly matched those haunting phrases from his recent nightmare. How could Frosty possibly know all this? He'd never described his dream in detail to anyone. Vivid memories filled his mind as he stared at the golden medallion glinting in the sun, almost hypnotic as it rocked. Memories of a tight embrace squeezing and rolling over his body. Of a warm environment rumbling, purring as he was smeared and matted in slimy fluids.

"How did it go?" Frosty wondered aloud, voice lowering to match the sultry tone he'd used to tease the mouse he was digesting. "Just relax, mousie, kitty's got 'ya. You'll be where you belong-"

"STOP IT!" Fomo interrupted, nearly shouting as he cut the cheetah off and making Frosty jump. He felt sick to his stomach, and a wave of dizziness prompted him to lean a hand on the doorframe for support. Everything was falling into place in his mind, but it still didn't make any sense.

Frosty could see that he'd shaken the mouse up quite a bit, and decided it best not to describe the scene any further. He'd proven his point. But how would Fomo take the news? The truth, even.

The mouse lowered his head, ears laid back, visibly trembling. Eventually he took a deep breath to calm his nerves a bit, then lifted his gaze back to Frosty. "Why are you doing this? Telling me this? What are you hoping to accomplish?"

"I'm trying to fix things. I made a careless mistake, and I have to set things right. And to do that, you need to understand what's really going on. So, are you going to let me explain, or are you going to try to eat me?"

"No promises," Fomo mumbled. Despite that, he stepped away and gestured Frosty inside. Fomo was now keen to hear what the cheetah had on his mind...

* * * * * * * * * *

"We're ready to proceed with the systems test," a voice announced after hanging up the phone at their console. The lead technician, a small ocelot seated at one of the computer terminals, had been waiting for confirmation that the updated software had finished loading into CATS. They donned a headset and reviewed the checklist spread across their desk.

Preliminary checks indicated that everything was running normally while the system was idle, so the green-light was given to move forward. Now they would run CATS through its various tasks, to confirm that the system would perform as expected.

Everyone in the CATS control room looked nervous and tense. After the previous test failed, command had made the decision to cease all field operations until CATS was given a clean bill of health. No agents would be sent out or pulled back until the control team's task was completed to minimize the risk of mishaps. It meant that field work had effectively ground to a halt, as agents already in other timelines had no guarantee that they could be extracted should they find themselves in a bad situation. They could only hunker down and wait for an all-clear to continue their missions.

Felix silently prayed that the test run would go without a hitch as various operators gave a Go/No-Go status to begin. He gave a thumbs-up when his turn came, though the knot in his gut tightened considerably.

"Power systems?" the ocelot inquired via his headset, continuing down the checklist.

"Stand by," came the reply, and Felix felt his stomach turn. There was a long pause and nearly everyone in the room held their breath. A moment later the voice came back into their headsets. "Power is Go. We experienced a minor hiccup, but it seems to have cleared up."

There were several audible sighs of relief immediately after. Once he reached the end of the checklist, the ocelot nodded. "All systems go. Initiating test program." When the command was sent, the lights in the control room briefly flickered as CATS began to power up. It was expected, but still sent an ominous chill up Felix's spine.

Fortunately, there were no indications of unusual activity as CATS was brought to full operation. Felix's eyes were glued to his console as he began to swap from one monitoring system to the next. Although he wasn't directly involved in performing the test, as a CATS handler and programmer he had to keep a keen eye on things to spot any potential anomalies or bugs in the system. Fortunately, it all looked normal for the moment.

Several cameras in the CATS chamber were focused on the platform at the middle of the room, offering various angles of the complex machine that connected their world to so many others. Two-way intercom systems also allowed them to hear the droning electrical hum from their remote location, which grew in pitch as more power was routed into the system.

"Warm-up complete. Proceeding with transmission test," the lead technician announced.

They would know soon enough if the fixes had worked or not. The transmission test would simulate sending someone into another timeline, which caused the most strain on the system, and also required the most energy. As Felix watched his console, various numbers began to fluctuate. Temperature readings and electrical current for various components, status readouts...everything looked normal.

Then the lights in the room flickered again. A moment later, every one of the computer consoles in the room went dark. The video feeds into the CATS chamber blacked out and the whine from the intercoms dropped off at the same time, making the control room suddenly eerily quiet.

Felix's head fell into his hands. "Damn it. Not again."

Several voices in the room began talking amongst themselves, then the lead tech stood up at his console, trying to obtain a status update via his headset but receiving no responses since his workstation had gone down. Moments later, his console phone began to ring. He scrambled to snatch it from the cradle and lifted it to his ear. A power systems specialist was waiting on the other end of the line.

"We're experiencing a major outage in the control room. All of the computer consoles are down and we're not getting any video or audio feeds from CATS. We still have power, though." The ocelot listened for a moment, then he nodded. "Understood. Standing by for reset."

A few seconds later, the room went dark for a moment, then the lights returned. By cycling the power to the room, the computer systems would be rebooted, and the audio/video feeds would automatically attempt to reestablish their links to the CATS chamber. The displays on the computer consoles illuminated, then displayed a CATS splash screen as they began to boot up. Moments later the feeds were the first to come online, running independently of the other systems.

As soon as the distinct electrical whine from CATS filled the room again, they knew something was seriously wrong. With something as major as a system crash or power fluctuation, CATS should have immediately shut down as it had done during the previous test. But it was still running, and the volume generated by the audio feed suggested it was still operating at peak power.

Felix looked down from the monitors to his own console as the home screen came up. A single status message indicated that things had gone from bad to worse: CATS Offline.

"Oh hell," Felix breathed, then he spoke up. "I've got my console back, but I'm getting no response from CATS. System is reporting offline." Several other technicians in the room reported the same message, confirming the calico's fear: the outage had knocked out the safeguards and CATS was running fully unmanaged as a result, at a power level that was intended to only last a few moments.

The lead technician nodded to his team and hastily picked up his phone to make another call. The only way to restore control to the system would be to manually reset the power to CATS, and it had to be done before anything was seriously damaged. Before he could place the call, however, a brilliant flash blinded the video feeds from the CATS chamber, accompanied by a sharp audio crackle that caused nearly everyone to flinch and cover their ears. The room was immediately plunged into darkness and the feeds went dead once more, along with the ocelot's phone line, but this time nothing powered back up with exception to the emergency lights that flickered on several seconds later.

"What the hell was that?" one of the technicians blurted.

Before anyone could respond, a muffled, distant bang was followed immediately by an ominous rumble that caused loose items on the consoles to rattle, along with the ceiling tiles. A moment later, brilliant strobes of light illuminated the control room, paired with the shrill tones of fire alarms...

* * * * * * * * * *

What Frosty had anticipated would be a short talk, as he'd explained to Forest, had already gone on for more than an hour in the living room. There were several points where the cheetah had to stop himself mid-explanation, lest he give away too much about his job. He knew he couldn't reveal anything about CATS, or the specifics of his body suit and collar. But there was little else that he fully withheld.

Even after Frosty had perfectly described the scene from his dream, showed Fomo the collar - which by the cheetah's explanation did belong to him in some fashion - and filled the mouse in on the details of his unusual career and why Tess had been able to "vanish into thin air," Fomo was still struggling to come to terms with everything. He'd already asked so many questions, and there seemed to be more at every turn. It all seemed far-fetched, but a gut feeling told him Frosty was being truthful.

"So, if I've only been 'here' for a week or two, how do you explain all the memories I have? I can remember activities with Forest, Bee...heck, everyone the wuff knows, for...gosh, I don't even know how far back. Everything turns into a blur prior to me waking up in the forest. But it's a lot longer than what you're describing."

Frosty pondered the mouse's question for a moment, then shrugged. "Honestly, I couldn't say. As much as we know about the way things work, a lot of it is still a mystery. Heck, a lot of us believed that if you and Forest came in contact, the universe might explode, and that clearly hasn't happened."

Fomo couldn't help giggling at that, which was welcome relief from the anxiety he felt about his very existence being brought into question. "Yeah, I think we're safe there," the mouse mused, thinking back on his recent encounter where he'd forced Forest to gauge the size of his hips.

"Best thing I can come up with - and this is just a theory - is that when you appeared here, adjustments had to be made to the timeline to fit you in. Places you've been, different people you met, experiences you've had, their memories of you, even though you...technically never existed at the time. But as far as anyone close to you knows, you did. It's...really complicated. In the time I've done my job, I've never encountered a situation where you and the wuff existed together. And I don't think anyone before me has, either. So this is all new to us."

Frosty felt like he was beginning to ramble, and paused a moment to let Fomo take that in.

"I...guess that kinda makes sense?" the mouse eventually replied. "I mean, from what I can remember, there's always been some weirdness that I could never fully explain. Situations that felt out of place, or discrepancies about certain things. Assuming these memories I have are even real, based on what you're saying."

The cheetah shrugged again. "Let's just say, for all intents and purposes, that the memories you have of your life here are just as valid as what actually took place, as far as this world is concerned."

Fomo nodded to him. "Fair enough." Then he asked the question that Frosty had been hoping to hear. "Sooo...if I'm from somewhere else, or however you want to put it, then...what are you intending to do about it? What's your endgame, chee?"

"Well..." A rumble caused the windows to rattle for several seconds, interrupting the cheetah's thought. He turned his head and raised an eyebrow. "Geez, was that thunder?"

Fomo looked equally perplexed. "I...don't think so? It was clear and sunny when you got here."

After a shrug, the cheetah turned his attention back to Fomo. "Well, at any rate. What's my goal here? If nothing else, I want to settle things. Whether that means leaving things as they are, and figuring a way to keep my coworkers out of your hair, or getting you..."

Before he could finish, a warning tone came into Frosty's earpiece - disguised as a gold earring. It was audible enough that even Fomo heard it, prompting the mouse's ears to perk to locate the source. After another alert tone, an automated message was broadcast to Frosty via the earpiece.

"What was-" The cheetah lifted a hand to silence Fomo as he listened to the message.

This is an emergency alert to all CATS staff. Code Red. All employees in the CATS facility should immediately evacuate the building and report in as soon as possible.

The message repeated several times, accompanied by instructions for staff off-campus to check in and report their status. "Code Red" meant fire. Frosty reached into his pocket and quickly dug out his phone, jumping up from the couch. "Sorry, I need to make a phone call. Hold that thought, Fomo."

Fomo nodded. He wasn't really sure what was going on, but his sensitive ears had eavesdropped enough that he knew it probably wasn't good.

Hurrying down the hall, Frosty didn't consider that the mouse would be able to overhear any conversations as long as he was close by. He paused near the back door once the living room was out of view and reached for his collar, waking up the display and tapping in a command that would report his location for headcount. He then thumbed through his cell phone contacts and dialed Felix, hoping that he'd get an answer regarding the alert that he'd just received. But his handler didn't answer, only his voicemail box.

"Come on, Felix." Frosty attempted again, with the same result. He dialed Diego next, and to his frustration, received another automated reply.

After two more coworkers yielded the same results, Frosty growled and stuffed the phone back into his pocket. He scurried quickly toward the front of the house, catching Fomo's perplexed gaze as he all but sprinted past the living room.

"I've gotta run, Fomo! I'll get back to you as soon as I can," Frosty quickly explained as he pulled open the front door. He didn't even bother closing it when he noted the dark column of smoke growing in the distance, scrambling to his car.

Fomo appeared at the front door a few moments later, watching the cheetah rush to start his car, followed by squealing tires as he sped away. The mouse followed him with his eyes until he turned a corner, rolling through a stop sign in the process. His gaze then turned to the dark cloud that was growing steadily thicker over the tree line, ears perking to listen to the whine of a fire truck, soon joined by another, then several more...

* * * * * * * * * *

Getting back to work had been nothing short of a feat. The closer he got to the campus, the thicker traffic became. Eventually the street was so clogged with vehicles that traffic had come to a standstill, and he was still several blocks away. Every so often an emergency vehicle would approach from behind, sirens blaring and parting vehicles like the Red Sea as they pushed through the blockage to reach their destination. Eventually, Frosty made the decision to pull over and park, then jogged the rest of the way, watching the dark smoke rolling overhead, growing thicker the closer he got.

When the campus came into view, the scene that greeted him was nothing short of an inferno. Thick black clouds billowed from one of the buildings, fed by intense flames that were leaping through a newly-opened hole in the roof. Frosty's knowledge of the facility layout told him exactly where the fire was raging, and his heart sank as his stomach tightened.

Scores of fire engines cluttered the main drive in front of the building, and several ladder trucks were maneuvering into position to fight back the towering flames. A crowd of onlookers had gathered to watch the spectacle, and several larger groups were gathered in various places around the perimeter of the campus, consisting of staff that were forced to evacuate. Frosty maneuvered around the bystanders and quickly made his way to the gathering point for his department, but none of the faces he was looking for were present.

A short ocelot was standing near the edge of the crowd, who Frosty recognized as the Lead Technician for the CATS control room. He was also in charge of performing headcount for their area. Frosty hurried over and tapped his shoulder to get his attention.

"Ash, what the hell is going on?"

The ocelot looked to Frosty, then gestured to the roaring flames. "I think that explains itself. None of us are really sure what happened. We were running a system test, had a couple power hiccups, next thing we know fire alarms are going off and all hell breaks loose."

"Jeez. Did everyone make it out okay?" Frosty asked, fearing the worst.

Ash nodded. "Far as I can tell. Everyone's accounted for on our end. Couple people are with the medics for minor stuff, but nothing major that I'm aware of."

Frosty breathed a sigh of relief. "Have you seen Felix?"

The ocelot nodded, and pointed Frosty in the direction of a nearby ambulance. Felix was seated on the back bumper, with two medics looking him over. "Over there. He was the last out, doing room sweeps, and got out just in time from what I hear."

"Thanks, Ash!" Frosty hustled toward the ambulance, but was stopped short by a black lab in a police uniform.

"Sir, I need you to step back to-"

Felix had noticed the cheetah approaching, and waved the officer off. "He's fine, officer."

The lab nodded, but kept an eye on the cheetah as he let him past. "No farther than the back of the ambulance, please. We need to keep the area clear."

Frosty turned his attention back to Felix as he stepped closer, but maintained enough distance that he wouldn't get in the way of the pair of medics that were checking him out. The calico's white and orange fur was noticeably dirty in several spots, and the smell of soot and smoke lingered around him.

"Jeez, Felix, you look like shit," Frosty observed, earning a scowl from one of the medics.

"Nice to see you too. I'm fine, thanks," he replied, trying to subdue the cough that followed.

"Ash filled me in a bit. You were there, how bad was it?" the cheetah asked, gesturing toward the building.

Felix shook his head dejectedly, ears laying back as he looked toward the ground. "I'll be amazed if there's anything left of CATS when they put the fire out. I got a good look when I went to check the locker room to make sure everyone got out. Security doors into the CATS chamber were blown clean off, the roof inside had a new skylight...the whole chamber was going up in flames by the time I confirmed the locker room was empty."

When he began coughing again, a medic reached for an oxygen mask and pulled it over his face. "That's enough chitchat for now. Don't take this off until I say." Looking to Frosty, the brown rabbit pointed toward the gathering point. "Time to go."

Frosty lifted his cell phone and wiggled it at the calico. "You know where to reach me, Felix."

While he was making his way back to the crowd of employees, Frosty sighed and looked back as tower ladders began blasting torrents of water into the inferno. While he was observing, the cell phone hummed in his hand. He peered down at the screen, where a text message was waiting for him.

Fomo (just now): Hey, I think I just saw you on the news. Uh...everything OK?

Frosty raised his phone and snapped a picture of the firefighting in progress, then pinned it to his reply to the mouse. Frosty: I might be out of a job for a while.

His frown dipped further as he read Fomo's message again, thinking back on their conversation that had been interrupted by the emergency. A realization struck him, and he sent another message.

Frosty: Which also means you might be stuck here for a while, like it or not...I guess you should make yourself at home...