FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The AdvAnTAGE Project

By

Mantrid Brizon

Episode 24: Spring Cleaning

Pulling into the old service station, the pine green Ford Escort drives over a small strip, ringing a bell. Just as they pull up to an antiquated gasoline pump, a man emerges from the tiny kiosk of a building. Wearing old, blue coveralls, he wipes his greasy hands with an old rag.

“Hey, there!” He chirps.

“Hi.” A young woman in the passenger seat waves.

“Oh, hello. Is this a full-service station or something?” A man asks as he climbs out of the driver’s seat.

“Used to be, but I can still pump fer ya’ if ya’ like!”

To the surprise of the car’s five occupants, the service station attendant walks around the rear of their old, Ford Escort and begins to pump their gas. As he does, he checks their tire pressure and asks the driver to lift the hood to check their fluids.

“Thanks, mister. We really appreciate this.” The driver says to him.

“Aww, it ain’t nothin’! So, where y’all headed? We don’t get many travelers ‘round these parts.” The attendant speaks with a thick accent.

“About that... Want to ask for directions now, Doug?” The girl in the passenger seat looks to the driver.

“Lay off, Barb... But, uh... Yeah... We’re kind of lost.” Doug begins.

“Lost?! In this day N’ age, everybody got them GPSes and touch phones.”

“Poor service out here.” A girl in the back seat chimes in.

“Well, where ya’ headed? I bet I can steer ya’ there!” The attendant exclaims, leaning over the exposed engine on the car.

After a short back-and-forth, the five young people in the car tell the attendant where they plan to go. While on a trip to Texas, they took a scenic route and became lost. After a little chuckle at their expense, he points them toward the highway, only to close the hood of the car and look them over.

“Ya’ know, there’s an old road that’s a lot faster. Ain’t no one hardly uses it and I’m willin’ to bet you could race through that old ghost town without no one stoppin’ ya’.” He says, wiping the engine fluids off of his hands.

“Is it a short cut?” Doug asks.

“Yeah... A nice diagonal line straight to the highway.”

“How come no one uses it?” Another young woman in the backseat asks.

“Ain’t no one left in the town you’d be passin’. Was abandoned decades ago. It’ll save ya’ a good couple a’ hours.”

Looking between each other for a moment, the group all nod their heads or shrug their shoulders, casting silent votes. Turning back toward the attendant, Doug flashes him a little smile.

“Thanks, mister. What do I owe you?”

“$25.50 will do it.”

After paying the attendant, they drive away, ringing the bell as their tires roll over the second strip. Following the attendant’s instructions, he watches them as they drive deeper into the wilderness, toward the abandoned stretch of road. He leans against a gas pump, staring at them for the longest time.

“That guy was kind of creepy.” A girl remarks.

“Shut up, Stacy. You say that about everyone and everything!” A man in the back chuckles.

“Oh, I do not, Billy!”

“Yeah, you kind of do.” Doug chimes in.

“Doug!”

“Aww! Poor wittle Stacy is scared?” Barbara turns back in her seat.

“Come on, guys. Leave her alone.” The third girl begins. “She’s never been this far from home before and you have to admit, he was kind of odd. He was almost... Too friendly.”

“You coddle her too much, Bobbie.” Billy says, slipping an arm around her waist and pulling her in.

“Yeah, and there wasn’t anything weird about him. That’s just the south!” Doug says, glancing into the rearview mirror. “Y’all not used to that there southern hospitality!” He speaks with a mock accent.

“Well, let’s just find this road and get back to the highway...”

As the dusk approaches, they finally arrive to the spot the attendant had spoken of. Seeing the old signs, Doug turns the wheel and drives slowly down the old road. Overgrown trees hang low along the berm, and scraggly bushes creep toward the center line. With the high beams turned on, the shadows darken and the road takes an unnerving, even menacing appearance. Stacy looks to and fro as Doug drives faster and faster, nervously biting her fingernails. Without fear of law enforcement, as the road is so clearly abandoned, he drives with the center line passing beneath the car. Faster and faster, the modest engine roars.

“Woo!”

“Doug! Slow down!”

“Think I’ll hit 100?!”

Suddenly, they hit something.

“Eee!” Stacy shrieks.

“Oh, shit!” Doug exclaims as he applies the brakes.

“Nope! Just whatever that was!” Billy snickers.

“What was that? A thick branch?” Bobbie asks.

“Whatever it was, it felt like we jumped a few feet in the air!” Barbara exclaims.

As Doug steadies the car, steam begins to pour out from beneath the hood.

“Oh, great!”

Pulling over, he puts the car in park and pops the hood. Jumping out, he glances down, only to become distracted.

“Shit... Hey, Billy! We got a flat tire! Hop out for a sec!”

“Well, I’m sure glad you decided to open up your fifteen-year-old piece of crap car!” Billy says as he climbs out of the back seat.

“Yeah, yeah! That was dumb, now go fetch the spare, boy!” Doug chuckles.

As Billy digs out the spare tire from the trunk, Doug examines the engine. He notices a tear in a hose that’s rather dramatic. What’s odd is the tiny bits of rubber lying near it, as if it had been dug out from the rubber, weakening the hose. Are those cut marks? It isn’t the first time his car has overheated - it’s a common enough problem on these smaller Fords and one he’s fixed many times before - but he’s never seen a hose look like this.

“Jesus Christ, there’s so much stuff in here!” Billy exclaims, still pulling their bags out from the trunk.

“We only brought what we needed!” Bobbie exclaims.

“Really? I’m pretty sure if I packed for you the car wouldn’t be this heavy. I can see it lifting with every bag!”

Climbing out from the back seat, his girlfriend looks him over and smirks.

“If you packed for me, you wouldn’t have given me any underwear.”

“We all have to make sacrifices, don’t we?” He flashes a lustful grin.

As everyone climbs out of the car, the girls stretch their legs. Doug attempts to repair the vehicle, using a pocket knife to shorten the hose, which he then stretches to fit. He looks around for Billy, who’s suddenly disappeared.

“Hey, where’d Billy run off to?”

“He said he had to pee. He’ll be right back.” Bobbie replies.

The minutes tick by but Billy never returns. After almost half an hour, Bobbie begins to panic.

“Doug?! Doug!”

“What is it?” He asks, grunting as he struggles with the hose.

“Billy’s not back yet!”

“Err! This damn car and it’s tiny ass engine compartment! Could they make this any more difficult?!” He growls.

“DOUG!”

“What?!”

“I’m scared... Billy should’ve been back a long time ago.”

Seeing the fear in Bobbie’s face, Doug begins to worry. He checks his own wristwatch, his eyebrows raising as he notes the time.

“Huh... I didn’t think he was gone this long. Alright, I’ll go look for him. You girls stay in the car.”

“Thank you!” Bobbie exclaims.

“Woah! You’re going off by yourself?!” Stacy gasps.

“What if he fell and got hurt or something? I just need to check and make sure he’s alright.” Doug says, pulling a flashlight out of the glove box.

“Be careful, okay?” Barbara asks, resting a hand on his bicep.

“Sure thing, babe.”

After kissing his girlfriend, the young woman in the passenger’s seat, Doug turns on the flashlight and makes his way toward where Bobbie had last seen her boyfriend. He walks carefully down the sloping embankment, his light eventually disappearing into the Georgia forest. They sit in the car, waiting and waiting.

“D-do you think maybe they’re playing a joke on us?!” Stacy suddenly suggests.

“They better be...” Bobbie whimpers.

“I’m just wondering if it’s like that time we went to Florida and they-EEE!!!” Stacy suddenly shrieks.

“Ahh! What is it?!” Bobbie jolts and turns toward the nervous girl.

“I-I... I saw something!”

“Doug? Billy?!” Bobbie asks, opening the car door.

“No! It was... Something! I don’t know what it was!”

“Maybe your eyes are just playing tricks on you?”

“That wasn’t it, Barb! I saw something moving!”

With the fear swelling within her, Bobbie jumps out of the car.

“Billy?! BILLY!!!” She begins to shout.

Running around the front of the car, she stands in the beam of the headlights, cupping her hands around her mouth and shouting her boyfriend’s name over and over again.

“Bobbie, get back in here!” Stacy screams, sticking her head out of the opened door.

“Billy?! Billy!!! ... Billy, damn it! This isn’t fucking funny! I swear to God, I’ll never fuck you again if you don’t get out here right now and-”

Stacy and Barbara scream as a shadowy figure leaps from the darkness and tackles Bobbie. It drags her away in seconds as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream. As Stacy closes the opened door and presses the button to lock it, something bangs against the car from the other side. Overcome with fear, Barbara babbles incoherently as she crawls toward the driver’s side door, away from another shadowy figure that lies in wait. The glass shatters and a hand reaches in, a sharp claw scratching her leg near her ankle as it tries to grab her.

“Oh, god! What’s going on?!”

Falling to the ground, Stacy looks at the strange feet of a creature which stands before her. She turns her eyes up, looking toward the beast. As it extends a clawed hand, she lets out a shrill scream.

“Well, Doctor... What shall we do with you?”

Walking slowly around the table in his characteristically inhuman manner, the Agent keeps his head on a swivel, staring through his mirrored sunglasses at the man in the chair. With his wrists cuffed to the furniture, he struggles to look behind him, contorting his upper body. The air of the small room is thick, a fog of fear looming over him. He hears a shuffling and he turns his head toward the table. Pulling herself up, the snow-white Siberian Husky AdvAnimal slithers toward the middle of the desk, her icy blue eyes fixated on him.

Leaning over and stretching out, she rests a cheek on an upturned palm, her claws pressing into her soft, white fur. Her ample breasts are held tightly in her top, but what draws the doctor’s attention is the large, silver revolver that sits in her shoulder holster. Lying on her right side and flashing him a sinister grin, she so casually displays her weapon for the trembling man.

“Did you have any suggestions, Doctor?” Agent Sharpe asks, his dress shoes clicking on the tile floor as he circles his prey. “Perhaps you could serve us, still? Perhaps removing your privileges would be enough? What do you think, Kris?”

“Hmm...”

She narrows her eyes and looks the handcuffed man up and down. Her lips curl around the corners of her snout as she slowly flashes a sinister smile, baring her sharp teeth. Lifting her left hand, she extends a finger and slowly draws her claw over her own throat. As per policy, AdvAnimals never wear communication devices, such as her bracer, unless at home; Sovereign Six considers it more unnerving to keep the trustees and their Agents’ partners silent. Gulping audibly, the man’s chains begin to rattle.

“Kill him?”

“Mmhhmm...” She slowly nods her head.

“Perhaps that’s too extreme? What do you think, Dr. Briggs? Do you think you deserve to die for what you’ve done?”

Standing directly behind him, Agent Sharpe rests his hands on Dr. Briggs’ shoulders, giving him a rather powerful squeeze. He winces through the pain as the Agent’s fingers dig into his flesh, pinching his muscles and putting pressure on the bones beneath. Hanging his head, he realizes that there’s no talking his way out of this situation. He’s offended his masters, and now he must pay the price.

“You want me to be sorry, don’t you?” Dr. Briggs finally begins.

“Excuse me?” Agent Sharpe asks in his eerie monotone.

“You want me to beg and plead, to promise that I’ll behave so you can follow me for six months or a year and scare me into silence... Well, it won’t work... I cannot remain silent any longer!”

“I see...”

“Do you?” Dr. Briggs attempts to look over his shoulder. “Do you, really?! Or are you just a puppet?!”

“Mind your tongue, Doctor...”

“Or what? She’s already suggested you kill me. What more can you do to me?!”

“If you didn’t already know, I would say, “you’d be surprised what we can do to you”, but since you do know... Why test my patience?” Agent Sharpe asks, removing his hands from Dr. Briggs’ shoulders.

“... I bet you love this, don’t you? Intimidating people. Working behind the scenes. It’s like playing God, isn’t it? Well, I was doing actual work. I was trying to make a difference. What kind of monster are you to stop a man on the verge of real discovery? D-do you even know what it is that you’re doing?!” Dr. Briggs’ facade of strength begins to falter.

“Frankly, Doctor, I don’t care what you think or how you feel. I have my orders. Following orders is what birthed the AdvAnimals in the first place. The fact of the matter is that you overstepped your boundaries. Everything that happens to you, from this moment forward, is entirely because of your actions. You only have yourself to blame.”

“I know... I thought they were going to resolve it... The flaw... But then they never did. I brought it up but they never said anything. I complained but they never authorized the work... I knew it was going to become a problem down the line!” The doctor and scientist exclaims.

Pushing herself up, Krystal struggles to hide her worry, her eyes looking between Dr. Briggs and the circling Agent Sharpe.

“I’d been studying the different breeds and the Type Z seemed to be a step in the right direction! I thought it would behoove us all if I worked on resolving the flaw! I was trying to do it for them, as much as for us!”

“If they wanted you to work on that issue, they would’ve asked you.” Agent Sharpe retorts.

“Maybe they never will?” Dr. Briggs snaps back.

Now sitting upright atop the table, Krystal slowly slides toward the edge. Her custom-made high-heeled shoes click on the tiles quite softly as she makes her way toward a back corner of the room. Unable to hide her growing concern, she moves herself to where Dr. Briggs can no longer see her. Seeing the worry on her face, Agent Sharpe has had enough. Without answering his prisoner, he calls in some soldiers, who promptly gag the doctor and take him away. He’ll be packaged and shipped in a manner similar to Dr. Jose Chavez, whose fate he may also share.

Currently, Dr. Briggs’ future is undecided; Agent Sharpe has yet to receive orders from The Old Man or any of the other members of Sovereign Six. Once the soldiers have left the room, Agent Sharpe embraces Krystal, holding his lover firmly yet gently. His hands rub her furry arms and back while his nose nuzzles her cheek. Turning around in his arms, Krystal latches onto her partner and lover. With an impassioned kiss, their tongues caress.

Sliding a hand away from the collar of his suit jacket, her fingertips glide down his form. Reaching beneath his jacket, she pulls at his side and he holds her tighter. Just then, however, he feels something. Using her pinky and ring fingers, she slowly pulls out the notepad from his inner jacket pocket. He pulls back a little, giving her more room. She bows her head and looks down, appearing quite bashful.

“All better, baby?” He asks in a quiet but compassionate voice.

She nods her head very subtly. As she does so, however, she clandestinely opens his notepad and presses it against his chest, using him as an impromptu table.

“Good. You know how I worry about you.” He coos, brushing the edge of one of her canine ears with his nose.

“Mmm!” She sighs.

After drafting her little note, she looks up at him. With a wide smile, she leans in and they share another kiss. Upon finishing the kiss, they press their foreheads together and look down. Turning the notepad around, he reads her message. Their bodies continue to block the view from the camera in the room.

“What is the flaw? Is there something wrong with me?” Her message reads.

Shifting his eyes and seeing the worried on her face, he pulls her into another tight embrace. She carefully returns his notepad to his inner jacket pocket before wrapping her arms around his waist, keeping them beneath his suit jacket.

“You aren’t unhealthy. Don’t be scared...” He whispers into her ear, concealing it with a kiss. “I’ll explain everything to you when I’m able.”

Satisfied, Krystal nuzzles her partner and lover. After a moment, they resume their characters and make their way out of the interrogation room. Leaving the security wing of the small complex, they head toward the offices. Finding the office of Dr. Stevenson, they don’t even bother to knock, simply walking in unannounced.

“Oh! H-hello!” Dr. Stevenson nervously chirps as he rises from his chair.

“Good day, Doctor. Please, be seated.”

“Alright!”

“Do you know why we’re here?”

“Uh... Not really... I-I mean, I heard about the issue with Dr. Briggs but-”

Agent Sharpe raises a hand, silencing the man.

“Dr. Briggs is no longer in charge of Red Base. You are hereby promoted to the rank ‘Senior Science Officer’ where you will resume the duties that Dr. Briggs will no longer be capable of performing. Continue his research, conduct your experiments and follow your orders to the letter, for however long this facility proves to be useful to them. Is that understood?” Agent Sharpe explains in his soulless monotone.

“Y-yes, sir...”

“Then I bid you ‘good day’, Doctor...”

Turning around and leaving as abruptly as they came, Agent Sharpe and Krystal return to the main hallway and walk toward the security entrance. As they make their way back to the small airfield, where a VIP helicopter waits for them, they can see into the security room. The Chief Security Officer picks up a wall-mounted telephone as one of his subordinates signs out the Agent and his AdvAnimal partner. Heading toward the bulkhead door in a hurry, the CSO tries to yank the door open, though he forgets to swipe his keycard first and pulls himself into the closed door. He appears to be in a great hurry.

“Wait! Agent Sharpe! Hold on, sir!” He shouts as he finally opens the door.

“What is it?”

“You have a call, sir... It’s him.”

Making his way into the security room, Agent Sharpe does an excellent job of masking his surprise. Krystal glares at the CSO and silently snarls as she walks by him. She seems to take great pleasure in unnerving those around her, with the sole exception being her partner. Picking up the phone’s receiver, Agent Sharpe brings it to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Ah, there you are!” The Old Man chirps. “I was hoping I’d catch you before you left! It seems there’s an issue with the radio in the helicopter!”

“I’ll ensure that’s repaired when we return, sir.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. Before you come home, I need you at White Base.”

“Sir?”

“There’s another, more pressing issue, and I need you to deal with it... Immediately.” The Old Man’s voice takes on a dark tone.

“What sort of issue?”

“Clear the room...”

Even Agent Sharpe, the epitome of professionalism, is unable to keep his eyebrows from raising at the strange request. It’s not a speakerphone. Why is he worried? This doesn’t stop him from turning around and ordering everyone but Krystal to leave. They don’t hesitate; they know better than to question an Agent.

“Alright, sir. Carry on.” Agent Sharpe returns his attention toward the call.

“There’s been a rash of disappearances near White Base, about one-hundred miles out. It’s a very secluded part of Georgia with very few residents. All of the people who’ve gone missing are young adults, both male and female, though mostly female.” The Old Man begins.

“More subjects, sir?”

“No. White Base doesn’t need any more subjects and Red Base won’t even be operational a year from now. Besides, we’ve collected more than enough breeders for Red Base. We’ll have our hands full introducing them to Telivima as it is. These people are being taken by someone else. We need you to find out who...”

“I see...” Agent Sharpe tries not to sound perplexed.

“If only... Recently, a car with three young women and two men went missing but there was a survivor. She gave a very detailed and wild description of her attackers to the local authorities. We’ve gone to great lengths to ensure that this survivor and her story won’t ever be known to the general populace, however, it does beg the question...”

“Sir?”

“After the incident at White Base, with Dr Keller’s rebellious creatures over fifteen years ago, over fifty specimens were never recovered... It’s been posited that an original Type 6 might have escaped and either found or captured a human mate early on. They must’ve had offspring; that’s the only explanation. Now their children have reached sexual maturity and they’re looking for mates. You can see how this is a problem.”

“Yes, sir. Absolutely.”

“Head directly to White Base and coordinate with our people there. Find these creatures and deal with them... You’ll have every tool at your disposal.”

“It will be done, sir.”

“Good! Then I’ll be expecting a report from you within seventy-two hours! Don’t let me down.”

“I won’t.”

“I know, but I like saying it anyway! Good day, Agent Sharpe.”

“Wait.”

“Hm?”

“I beg your pardon, sir, but...” Agent Sharpe hesitates to speak.

“Yes?”

“Dr. Briggs... He was only trying to fix the flaw in the AdvAnimals.”

“Coming to his defense, Agent Sharpe?”

“No, but... It really should be addressed, sir...”

“You let us worry about that, Agent... Now, I believe you have work to do! I expect a full report by the end of the week...”

With that, The Old Man hangs up.