FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

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"Hand me the multimeter," Viridan called, his tail snaking back towards Jonas. He had his head and both hands jammed into a space between the Pathfinder's enormous engine and one of the four new fuel cells that he had been installing over the past two weeks. He had already successfully installed three of the four fuel cells, with the last one undergoing its final check before the ships' shakedown cruise. Jonas had been helping him during the whole process, which meant that he had been handing him tools. He knew nothing about machinery, especially alien machinery, and as much as Viridan tried to explain some things to him, he was ultimately too busy to give him an engineering course. But as useless as Jonas felt, Viridan has insisted that he was being a huge help, especially with the upper fuel cells.

The cells themselves weren't that large, but due to a lack of space, they needed to be installed horizontally, and ten feet above the floor. Viridian had been able to get himself up to the first set, but the second set was far too high. So, they currently dangled on high-tension cables from the bottom of the first catwalk, some fifteen feet. And on top of that, Jonas had been weighed down with countless tools, from wrenches to soldering guns to a high-intensity welding torch. Several of these devices had generators or fuel tanks with them, which left several long lines running between him and the floor, where these canisters sat.

"Uh, here," Jonas faltered, frantically searching for the device. He found it, a large black box about the size of a DVD player, stuck to his arm. He was wrapped in a suit of some sort of material, probably magnetic, that the tools just stuck to. He shakily held the device out to Viridan's tail tip, which wrapped tightly around the box and retreated.

"How's it going up there, Vir?" The voice of the captain shouted up from the floor. The engine had been completely turned off and the starter disconnected for the installation of the fuel cells, so it was much quieter in the engine room than normal.

"Good, Captain," Viridan shouted back, his voice slightly muffled by the metal bulkheads around him. "We should be ready to fire her up within the hour."

"Excellent, because I just got us a contract," Regent replied proudly. "As soon as we get our crew, we'll ship out."

"That's great!" Viridan said. "Is it a government or private contract?"

"It's private, and the pay is twice as good as a government gig," she replied. "There aren't a whole lot of assets for us to use, but then again, you can't tap into anyone's assets on the edge of the charts anyway."

"We don't have to paint the company's logo on our bow again, do we?" he asked.

"No, in fact, I don't know who the employer is," Regent replied.

A loud clang suddenly came from between the fuel cell and the engine, and Viridan emerged with a hand on his forehead. He stared in disbelief down at Regent, who merely held her satisfied grin.

"You took an anonymous contract?" he exclaimed. "What the hell? Don't you remember the last anonymous contract we took? We nearly got spotted by the humans following their orders, and they couldn't be held accountable at all."

"Well, this one is a bit different," Regent replied. "We're going to be reporting to a coordinator for orders, instead of just following a list like the last guys gave us. Also, they paid up front."

"You're kidding," he said.

"Not in the slightest. I checked the account, and it's all in there, not a credit short," Regent exclaimed.

"It could just be a scam," Viridan replied. "They could've put a worm in your account to syphon all the funds back, plus any other money we ever make."

"That's the best part, I made a second account to transfer the money into," Regent replied. "It's completely secure, so if there is a worm in the original account, there's nothing for it to steal."

"I don't like working for people without faces, Captain," Viridan said, activating the winch on his harness to lower him to the floor, with Jonas following close behind. "Maybe we should just wait for someone honest to give us a job, or even a government contract."

"We can't wait, the payoff is too big," Regent replied. "I've been doing some research and everybody, even the government, thinks that there's something big at this site. Something huge! This isn't just some ant farm contract like Earth was. This is a good old-fashioned treasure hunt!"

"All the more reason to wait for a more secure employer," he said. "I don't want to run out to the edge of space and have no one to save us if we get stranded."

"I don't think anyone's getting a lot of support on the fringes of space, anyway." Regent replied. "We were never promised any from the government when we were scouting for them. Besides, the government jobs are only half the pay, and not upfront, either."

"It's not all about the money, Captain!" Viridan exclaimed. "It would be nice to have a sense of security."

"What's up with you?" She asked. "You never used to be this uptight about a job. You would've been packed and ready to go as soon as we got confirmation."

"I don't know, Captain," Viridan replied with a sigh. He noticed in the corner of his eye that Jonas was struggling to remove himself from the thin cable that had been wrapped around his waist. They didn't have a safety harness that would properly fit him, so Viridan had simply tied the cable around him. It would have been difficult for someone without claws to undo the knots, so he gently pushed the boy's hands away to take care of it. "I suppose it's because of what I've been through. It was really hard, being stuck in that place for so long. I don't want to be stranded again."

"We're not going to get stranded, Vir," Regent replied confidently. "The Pathfinder will hold together, like she always does."

"I'm still not sure about this, Captain," Viridan said.

"Listen Vir, I needed you to install the fuel cells, and you've done that. If you don't want to come, then that's alright. I'll pay you for your work, and you can sit this one out," Regent replied.

"Oh, you know I can't do that," he said, turning around to stare up at the massive engine block behind him. "The Pathfinder is still my baby, and I'm not ready to let her go yet."

"Technically she's my baby," Regent retorted, coming up to stand at his side. "I feed her, after all. Speaking of which, someone needs to feed us. I don't have any food stocked in the cargo bay, so you'll have to go buy some supplies before we leave."

"Are we leaving so soon?" he asked, heading towards the small space between the engine and the fuel cells. He turned around and pushed his tail into the gap, rooting around for the multimeter he'd dropped. "Doesn't it usually take a few days to finalize everything?"

"Nope, everything's ready to go," Regent replied. "The beacon we use to talk with our coordinator is attached to the resupply station at the site. We don't get specific orders until we're at the site."

Viridan said nothing, but took on a disapproving expression as he walked away from the engine. The multimeter was wrapped tightly in the tip of his tail.

"Alright, Captain," he said with a sigh as he placed the device into one of the four open tool boxes. "I guess I'll have to trust you on this one."

"Exactly," Regent replied with a grin, and clapped him on the shoulder. "Now, why don't you take the speeder into the city, pick up a pallet of food, and then bring it back. In the meantime, I'll start getting us a crew."

"Are you going for a full complement?" he asked.

"No, let's run on a skeleton crew," she replied. "The Pathfinder's not that big."

"If you say so," he replied with a shrug, and headed towards the door. "Come on, Jonas,"

"Yeah, one second," Jonas replied. He was still standing on the other side of the room, pulling futilely at a section of his magnetic suit that was still stuck to his chest. With a grin, Regent grabbed a heavy wrench from a wall mount and pressed it to the suit. With a chuckle, she hoisted him into the air with the powerful magnet, laughing as he struggled against the adhesive on his skin. With a grin of his own, Viridan came over and took hold of Jonas' shoulders in one hand. With a tug, he pulled the boy free of the magnetic material, leaving the adhesive side with a covering of small hairs.

"Sorry, that section tends to get stuck," he said.

"Next time you can carry the tools," Jonas replied, rubbing the large red spot on his chest.

"Come on, I'll show you the city," Viridan said, leading the way to the lift in the cargo bay. After descending to the ground, they headed through the maze of corridors inside Viridan's cave that lead to the garage. It looked quite similar to the much larger landing pad outside, only it was completely enclosed in the mountain. A large circular door was mounted in the ceiling, the only exit for the large speeder that sat in the center of the landing pad. The room was lit with a long tube of light that ran all the way around the outside wall of the garage, along with several lights that ran around the edge of the landing pad. A few large tool cabinets were set against the wall to the left, along with a small room beside them that was filled to the brim with metal parts.

"How did you afford all of this?" Jonas asked, in awe as he stepped into the massive dome.

"Well, our economy doesn't quite work the same way as yours," Viridan replied, heading on to the landing pad and over to the speeder. "We get credits every day for simply living in the colony, or buying local. It's a galactic economy, but almost every species provides bonuses for keeping their economy contained."

"So you bought this place by just buying local?" Jonas asked, following him up onto the cool pavement.

"Well, that plus the work on the Pathfinder, some freelance mechanic work I did, and the bonus for joining the new colony." He replied with a shrug. "Things don't have the same value when there's a whole galaxy to produce them."

"I suppose..." Jonas replied thoughtfully. "So there isn't much poverty out here, is there?"

"Well, some species are poorer than others, but individually, not really. If you're impoverished on one world, it's pretty easy to just move to another, and jobs are easy to come by when skill sets are so varied."

"So Earth lost that one, too," Jonas replied, his shoulders sinking into a miniscule sulk.

"Jonas, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but Earth is not one of the high points of the galaxy," Viridan replied, placing a warm hand gently over his hunched shoulders. "Humanity will achieve deep space travel, one day, and they won't be widely accepted in the galaxy."

"Why not?" Jonas asked, shying away from the dragon's touch and changing his voice from disappointment to something akin to rage. "It's not fair! You've been judging humans for decades, and all I've heard about are the bad things. What about all the good things humans have done? We've cured diseases, and we give to the poorer countries. We haven't even met any other species, and everybody already wants to push us away. It's not right!"

"Jonas..." Viridan sighed. "Are you sure...Do you really want to be here?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, backing up again as Viridan reached for him.

"Do you want to go home?" Viridan asked. "Should I take you back to Earth?"

"No," he sighed. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I'm just...a little overwhelmed by everything that's happened. When we were in 'The Cage', I never had a sense of how big everything was out here. All I had to worry about was you, me, and Zereck. But now that we're out here, and we don't have to focus on surviving anymore, there's just so much. I've seen hundreds of different species in a few days, and none of them are even close to humans. It's...hard...to get used to the fact that I won't find another human out here."

"Maybe the galaxy isn't the right place for you, Jonas," Viridan said. "Maybe we should take you back. You're still very young. I don't want you to miss out on those joys."

"No! I don't want to leave you." Jonas replied, jumping into Viridan's arms. "You're the only one who cares about me. You're all I have left."

"What about your mother? She must be worried about you. You've been gone for so long."

"She's been gone longer than I have," he replied. "I don't even know if she's still alive."

"Would you like to go look?" He asked.

"I don't even know where to look," he said.

"Earth isn't that big a place," Viridan replied soothingly. "It wouldn't be too hard."

"Isn't it too far?" Jonas asked. "The captain wouldn't go so far out of her way."

"The captain doesn't have to come," he said with a grin.

Jonas shot him a skeptical look. "You wouldn't hijack her ship,"

"I wouldn't hijack it, I'd borrow it," he replied.

"You're just replacing one word with another," Jonas shot back. "She won't let you just take the ship,"

"Sure she will, especially now." Viridan replied. "We need to take her out to test the fuel cells, anyway. We might as well take a long cruise."

"How long is the flight?" Jonas asked.

"About six hours, one way," he said. "We can go pick up supplies, then leave, and we'd be back by early tomorrow morning."

"So, we could really find her?" Jonas asked apprehensively.

"If it would make you feel better," Viridan replied. "But we still have to go get supplies first."

"Okay," Jonas said with a soft smile, and nuzzled a bit deeper into the dragon's gentle embrace. "Thanks,"

"Anything for you," Viridan replied, affectionately lapping at the top of his head. "Now, why don't we get going?"

He released Jonas and stepped around him, until he stood beside the massive vehicle. He reached out and ran his palm across the smooth door panel, the machine giving off a soft whir at the contact. After a moment, the door panel pushed out and slid upwards with a rush of air, revealing the vehicle's interior. The entire space was upholstered in what looked like common leather, except for black metal trim pieces that ran over every seam. The seats looked more like beds than chairs, with four foot pedals and a short row of buttons on each, which aligned with the driver's feet. Obviously, only a dragon could possibly hope to operate the vehicle, and it looked as if even getting onto the passenger seat would be a problem for Jonas.

After circling to the other side of the craft, Viridan opened the passenger door to let him in. The seat itself stood five feet tall, which allowed a dragon to lie comfortably on it while still having their feet on the floor. Harnesses extended from the top of the seat and over the passenger's back, meaning that if Jonas didn't want to become an airborne ragdoll, he would have to haul himself onto the seat. With much effort, he clambered up onto the high seat and sat with his feet over one side, watching as the door panel slid down and shut beside him.

"You're going to have to lie flat on your stomach," Viridan said. "This baby has quite a kick."

"Do you make everything unsafely fast?" Jonas asked, spinning onto his stomach with his arms and legs at his sides. Viridan reached across from seat and tapped a button on Jonas' seat, far beyond his reach. Two belts immediately shot straight into the air, arching far over Jonas' small body until they sunk down to lie over his back. As soon as the belts made contact with the seat again, they affixed themselves and began to tighten, constricting Jonas to an almost uncomfortable level.

"Are you sure this is right?" he asked, struggling against the belts but finding no slack. "It's awfully tight,"

"Don't worry, it's not going to crush you," Viridan replied. "It just keeps you nice and secure."

"This feels like a very compromising position, actually," Jonas replied.

"Yeah, speeders are very popular sets in erotic films," Viridan replied quite matter-of-factly.

"Have you and Vyra used it?" he asked.

"Only a couple of times," the dragon replied, pushing a few buttons across his foot panels as he spoke. A dull thrum rose through the vehicle as several meters and indicators appeared on the leather panel in front of them. The metal at Viridan's height went completely transparent, allowing a perfect view outside as the speeder quickly rose straight vertically about a foot. "We first tried it after I got back from one of the Earth surveys. We had seen two humans having sex in the back seat of a car, so I decided to try it with Vyra. I thought she would like that sort of thing. I didn't even think about using the belts until she accidentally hit the button during foreplay and belted herself in."

Jonas could not think of a reply, and opted to keep his mouth shut as the speeder began to smoothly rise into the air. The large circular door in the ceiling above them slid open with a metallic rattle, and they suddenly emerged into the bright sunlight of the afternoon. Jonas couldn't see anything from where he was strapped, and simply felt the massive kick as the vehicle shot forward in what he assumed was the direction of the city. He could feel the force of the acceleration pushing him back against the belts, but they didn't budge. He was left with an uncomfortable tightness in his front as his organs pushed down towards his feet.

"It's been a little while since I last drove this thing," Viridan said, bouncing his front paws up and down on the pedals. This caused the speeder to slalom and roll from left to right, which only served to add vertigo to Jonas' list of discomforts.

"Maybe you should take it easy," he said, only now noticing that he'd placed a death grip on the seat beneath him.

"Sorry," Viridan replied, ceasing his prancing on the front pedals. The vehicle still flew uncomfortably fast, but after a few minutes, Jonas had gotten used to the speed. "You haven't seen the city yet, have you?" he asked, beginning to gently pitch the speeder down and bank to the left.

"No," Jonas replied. He strained to get a look out the windows, but he was too low to see anything that wasn't almost directly above them. A few moments later, massive towers appeared around them, and Jonas could see the interior of the speeder flash with neon colors that flooded in from the surrounding buildings.

"Well, that's what the tops of the buildings look like," The dragon said with a shrug. "Sorry you can't see the rest of it just yet. The distribution center isn't too far away."

Viridan pitched the speeder down again, and Jonas could see more of the street that had been previously obscured. Catwalks were attached along the sides of buildings, with suspended bridges connecting them from across the open gap. Jonas could see a few particularly tall people, mostly dragons, who were walking along the tall railing that ran along the edge of the platform.

"Are those sidewalks?" Jonas asked, turning his head towards Viridan. "How high up are we?"

"About a hundred feet up," Viridan replied. "We have catwalks like that every fifty feet, and a rail system that runs under the ground."

"How high do they go?" Jonas asked.

"It depends on what district of the city you're in," he answered. "Around here, the commercial district, one hundred feet is the highest level. Some of the really ritzy residential districts have catwalks at five hundred feet. It ultimately depends on the height of the lowest building, as they don't want to put in too many angled pieces of catwalk."

"Wow," Jonas replied, turning back to the scenery. The vast majority of the buildings around them were ablaze in bright neon signs, but were otherwise rather plain. The common building material appeared to be the same metal that Viridan's home was made in, although it had been dulled by exposure to the elements. Some buildings had windows, although they were made with a single pane of glass that Jonas assumed slid straight up into the wall to open. Most of the buildings lacked any sort of architectural artwork, except for a few of the nicer-looking buildings, which had edging or beveling around the windows. "It's not quite as interesting as, say, New York City."

"Well, architectural independence is hard to come by these days, what with most buildings over five stories being prefabricated."

"Really?" he asked.

"Oh yeah, buildings are basically a bunch of rectangular blocks stacked on top of each other and secured in place. Walls are just locked into place wherever you want them, and window holes are just punched out. If you look hard enough, you should be able to make out the separation lines in most of the buildings, unless they've been covered." Viridan replied. "This part of the city has really grown since I last saw it."

He banked the speeder to the right, and entered another roadway. A whole other lane of speeders was running directly above them. All shapes and sizes of hovering vehicles whizzed urgently over their heads, but Viridan took no heed as he immediately hung another right and pulled off the road entirely. The speeder slowed to a halt and began to slowly descend. Jonas barely felt a shudder as the speeder touched down on the platform beneath, and was freed from his restraints as Viridan reached over to release them. He breathed a sigh of relief as he pushed himself up, grunting as he dropped down to the floor of the speeder and instantly felt unstable. They had gone so fast just a moment ago.

"Speed is a lot more pronounced in atmosphere, huh?" Viridan asked, opening up the doors and stepping out onto the platform. "In space, speeds triple that feel like nothing. Well, that and the inertia dampeners in most standard gravity wells. I had to install the one on the Pathfinder myself."

"You don't use anything unmodified, do you?" Jonas asked. "You just have to tinker with everything."

"It's not my fault," he replied. "If the manufactures made good enough equipment to begin with, I wouldn't have to modify it."

Jonas chuckled as he followed the dragon across the sidewalk, and began down the block, with the buildings to their right. Jonas walked on the on the outside of Viridan, closest to the center of the sidewalk, and was subjected to quite a few worried, annoyed, or even downright disapproving glares from passersby. Jonas held the gaze of most everyone that tried to stare him down, and realized that they were all dragons. In fact, he could not see another species anywhere on the catwalks anywhere.

"Why is everyone glaring at me?" he asked, choosing to walk a little closer to Viridan's side.

"Oh yeah, this isn't a big trading colony, so there aren't a lot of aliens down here. I don't want to say everyone is a hick, but..." Viridan trailed off, glancing around at all the passersby and decided to choose his words carefully. "Well, even though we're a spacefaring species, some people just get used to not having aliens around."

"Are they...scared of me?" Jonas asked, watching worriedly as a mother pulled her child away from his general area as they passed.

Viridan had a hard time suppressing the laugh that sprang up. "Hardly," he replied, dispelling his mirth with a toothy grin. "They just like their routine, that's all. You're not part of anyone's routine, except mine, I suppose."

"So they wish I wasn't here? Jonas asked, his shoulders slumping.

"Hey, you're not going to get all depressed and pessimistic again, are you?" Viridan asked. "We're already going back to Earth, so the only other way I could think of to cheer you up would be to take you home and pleasure you for a bit."

"No, I'm okay," Jonas replied, trying his absolute hardest to remove the sense of solitude that was sucking at his brain. "I'll feel better when we see Earth, and some humans."

"Well then, let's get these supplies ordered, and then we can hurry back to get the ship," Viridan replied, displaying a soft smile to help calm his roiling emotions. He did help, Jonas was sure of that. Without Viridan here, he probably would've been reduced to a quivering ball of inner turmoil a long time ago. And he'd still be in "The Cage".

"I'm so glad you're here for me," Jonas sighed, reaching up to rub the dragon's shoulder.

"Glad I could help," he replied, flexing his grin a little wider before wiping it from his snout a moment later. He sudden stopped and opened a door to their right. The words "Supply Depot" were emblazoned on a rectangular sign above the worn metal door, formed with bent tube-light that was reminiscent of neon. Inside, the foyer was even dingier than the outside of the dull, weathered metal frame.

The once bright metal was now completely void of sheen, and was even yellowing in patches along the floor. A row of well-worn seats was lined up against the left wall, while an enormous digital bulletin board, covered in virtual postings, shone a dull blue glow against the floor and walls. A worn desk was set up at the opposite end of the room, with three workstations built into it. Only one of these stations was staffed, and the line was nonexistent. The slate gray dragon sitting at the workstation had his head on his hand, and was using the other to tap his tablet indifferently. A loud chime rang out through the deathly quiet room, causing the dragon to glance idly in their direction for a short moment. He returned to his tablet for a second, before his eyes shot back up and locked on Jonas, a surprised expression on his face.

"That thing's not allowed in here," he said shortly, as if he'd been bothered with the problem all day.

"What? Why not?" Viridan asked incredulously.

"It's just the rule, buddy," the dragon replied. "No aliens in the food distribution centers. If we got some kinda crazy alien virus in the food, it could cause a whole mess of problems."

Viridan opened his mouth for a moment, as if he had a rebuttal, but he realized that the logic was sound. The universe was a big place, and there could be all kinds of never-before-seen viruses that could get people sick. But while other species may have weaker immune systems, dragons barely ever got sick.

"I'm sorry, Jonas," Viridan said, swinging around to grin reassuringly down at him. "Would you mind waiting outside for a few minutes? I won't be long."

"Yeah...fine," Jonas replied shortly, and left back through the door they'd came in from. Sure, that guy had a sound reason for kicking him out, but he still felt bitter about it. He could be carrying some disease that some alien's never been exposed to before, and it could be a huge pandemic and kill millions. But the guy didn't have to be such a jerk about it.

He emerged onto the busy sidewalk and took a spot to the left of the door, leaning against the smooth wall with his arms crossed over his chest. The metal building felt warm against his bare back, the beating sun having warmed through the early afternoon hours. Jonas had noticed that the temperature was quite nice, although sometimes a little humid. It felt almost like a tropical country on Earth might be like, although Jonas had never gone to a place like that.

The glaring and stares from the public had not stopped in the few seconds he'd been away from them, and while he held a steady gaze with them, he found it much more difficult to do with Viridan right next to him. He felt quite small amongst these strangers. And after being in "The Cage" not a month ago, he was still concerned that some of these dragons may try to rape him. He knew that the fear was crazy and unfounded, but it was present all the less. They were more likely to stab him with their claws, as opposed to with their dick.

"Didn't Vir say that the show wasn't played on dragon planets?" Jonas thought. "So these people have no idea who I am."

"Human, how did you get here?" a gruff voice asked suddenly, pulling him out of his thoughts. Jonas lifted his eyes to see two enormous dragons standing before him, taking up most of the sidewalk and halting all traffic into a wide semicircle around them. The two dragons were wearing a full set of metal armor, which covered them from head to tail tip. A web of very small metal chips bonded together created the armor's joints. A wickedly keen claw covered the natural ones, and a row of slots in the tip of the tail looked as if more blades could emerge there. The dragon's wings were stuck against their sides, incased in a thick metal shield, and two back-mounted jets modernized their flying ability. A formfitting helmet adorned both dragons' heads, the mouth being the only part of the armor that appeared to open. A band of metal covered the dragons' eyes, but Jonas knew that they could see him just fine. A blue shield was emblazoned on both the forehead and chest plate, giving the strong impression that these guys were with the police. "Speak, human,"

"Umm...well, I suppose I teleported here," Jonas replied, lowering his eyes to the sidewalk and rubbing the back of his neck apprehensively. "I beat 'The Cage', and instead of going back to Earth, I followed a friend here. He's, ugh, right in there if you want to talk to him."

"Your story does not fall within acceptable probabilities," the officer said sternly. "You must come with us,"

"Umm...maybe...maybe," Jonas struggled. As he floundered from something to say, he reached over and began to pound his hand against the door, trying to get it open in the same way Viridan had a few minutes before. After several tense seconds of unsuccessful massing, the door slid open with a hiss. Trying to keep as much of his body still as he could, Jonas leaded across the wall and peaked his head through the door. To his relief, he could see Viridan standing at the counter. "Hey Vir, two nice, very well-armed guys want to take me to the pound, I think."

"What?" Viridan asked, leaving form he'd been filling on the counter and making his way to the door. The crowd back away from the door a ways as he stepped out onto the sidewalk and straight to Jonas' side. "What's the problem, officer?"

"This human is not permitted to be on this planet," the officer replied. "Are you the 'friend' mentioned in his testimony?"

"Yes," Viridan replied, glancing over at Jonas for a moment.

"Then you are under arrest, charged with abduction of an undeveloped species, protected under the Interplanetary Directives Act. Please assume the pacification position, or my partner will be forced to subdue you."

"What? This is insane!" Viridan exclaimed.

"Sir, you have ten seconds," the officer replied, stepping back to allow his partner to step in front of him.

"I better get my goddamn phone call!" he shouted as he lay down on his stomach, with his arms stretched before him and his legs behind him.

Jonas watched in horror as the two officers advanced on Viridan. They both reached back to their wing shields, and a pair of large metal gloves dropped into their hands. They were about the same shape as a dragon's foot, but his claws would be completely enclosed in a dull, cylindrical rod. One of the officers stepped over his tail and forcibly lifted his wings straight him, snapping a brace around both to keep him grounded.

As soon as they were finished, they stepped back and allowed Viridan to stand up, his head hung low as he was ushered into the center of the semi-circle. Jonas was still pressed against the wall, too afraid to move as his friend was restrained. He realized that feeling would've done nothing but anger the well-armed officers, and he'd much rather deal with them when they were calm. He, on the other hand, was sweating bullets, as both officers suddenly turned on him.

****

"So..." Jonas said, looking up at Viridan from across the hall. "Is this your first time in jail?"

He was sitting against the back wall of his cage with his feet laid out in front of him. Cage was, unfortunately, a quite accurate term, as he had been place in a cage designed for some large animal. Luckily, whatever animal that had previously occupied the cage was gone, although it still smelled pretty feral. Viridan was in a properly sized cell just across the hall. He had a bed and a toilet, along with a window panel that had been cracked slightly. It smelled pretty feral in there, too.

"Yeah," he replied, lying on his belly facing Jonas. He rested his chin on his hands, which kept their eyes level. "How about you?"

"Yep," Jonas sighed, resting his chin on his knee and wrapping his arms around his leg. "I can't go to prison, Vir. Do you know what they do to people like me in prison?"

"You won't go to prison, Jonas," he replied reassuringly. "I'll go to prison. They'll just burn out your memories with a laser and drop you back on Earth in a pod."

"But I don't want to forget you!" he exclaimed. "Or lasers in my brain!"

"Oh, don't worry. They'll use a big laser. Probably screw something up and kill you."

"That's not reassuring!" Jonas exclaimed.

"Silence mammal, or I'll silence you myself," a hulking voice called from down the hall. Jonas couldn't see exactly who had threatened him, but he was sure that it was an equally hulking dragon.

"It looks so soft and squishy," another voice said. "It'd make a great chew toy."

"I've always wanted a mammal bitch," a third voice chimed in. "It looks like it's be great at sucking my cock."

Jonas curled both his legs against his chest, sinking back against the wall of his cage as a ruckus of laughter rose from the other dragons. Viridan shot him a sympathetic expression. The third voice had been the dragon in cell next to Viridan's, and Jonas could see him from where he huddled. The cyan dragon was standing on his hind legs, resting against the bars of his cell. With his free hand, he was slowly tugging at his erect member, which was aimed directly at Jonas. As the dragon slowly taunted him, it sneered at him the entire time. After a long moment, the offending dragon stuck the end of his cock between the bars, and groaned as he launched his load across the hall. He had obviously been pent up, as the fluid arced through the air and straight into Jonas' open-bar cage, splattering against his arms and stomach. Another roar of laughter rose from the other dragons.

"Next time, I won't have to do it myself," the dragon jeered, and licked his lips in an exaggerated fashion.

Jonas didn't say anything. He merely stared at his knees, tucked in tightly to his chest, and didn't move a muscle. Viridan held a concerned expression. Jonas' mental state wasn't particularly sound at the moment, and prison rape wasn't going to help anything.

"Jonas?" he asked gently. "Are you okay?"

Jonas didn't reply. He only stared into space. Viridan could see his eyes from under his tilted brow. He didn't look angry, or upset, or anything. It was simply a blank stare. He didn't like that at all.

"Sir?" One of the officers said, stepping in front of the cell door. He could hear beeping from the keypad just outside his reach, and the door slid open. "We're sorry for the trouble, sir. Your story has been confirmed, and you are free to go."

"What about my friend?" he asked.

"The human is free to go, as well, although I would not recommend bringing him into the city again," the officer replied.

"Thank you, officer," Viridan said gratefully, and stepped into the bare hallway as the officer opened up Jonas' cage. After the officer had stepped back and retreated to the exit door, Viridan stepped up to the front of the cage. Jonas hadn't moved in the slightest, even with freedom so close at hand. "Jonas? Come on. Let's go home."

The boy barely responded to his call. Maintaining his blank expression, he crawled his way forward and stood. Semen was still running down his arm and chest, but Viridan couldn't do anything about that until they were out of the jail. If he heard another comments from the guy that did this, he'd kill him.

"Alright, let's get you home," he said, walking very close to Jonas as they followed the officer out. He wanted to hold him, to tell him that everything was alright, but he couldn't do that and walk at the same time. He'd have to do it later.

They emerged a moment latter into the main lobby of the police station. It was a tall, rectangular room, with an elaborate rock water wall right in the center. It ran the length of the front desk, where two dragons currently stood and directed visitors. Unlike most other buildings in the area, only the walls were made of metal. The ceiling was made of glass, which bowled up into four domes. The floor was covered in a smooth tile, which had a coat of thick, clear sealer to preserve the texture for hundreds of years. Behind the water wall, a metal wall divided the foyer from the offices. On the opposite side was the front door, which opened up to the beautiful Municipal Square. It was a suspended green space, not so much a park but a flat, grassy field. A large flagpole projected a holographic flag which accurately waved in the winds, and paths led to every side of the park, each corresponding with a public service. The courthouse was to the east, and the main fire hall to the west. The police station was on the south end of the square, and city hall was directly opposite. Parking was on the level below the square, and no vehicles regularly flew this high, making it a very peaceful setting.

"Oh my god, Vir!" Vyra exclaimed, rushing over to him as soon as they emerged from the hallway. "What the hell happened?"

"They thought I'd abducted Jonas," he replied calmly, nuzzling against her neck and snout to help soothe her. "Thanks for coming."

"Hey, I can't have a chief engineer with a criminal record," Regent chimed in. She was standing just behind Vyra. "You're lucky I had a copy of this missing persons report."

"Jonas, are you alright?" Vyra asked, a frown crossing her face as she watched the boy's unchanging expression. "What's that all over your side?"

She leaned in to lick it away, but shied back when its thick scent invaded her nostrils. "Is that semen? What happened in there?" she asked.

"I think we should get out of here," Viridan replied, leading the way out the door and towards one of the elevators to the right of the police building. "Where did you land?"

"We came over in the Pathfinder," Regent replied. "It's on level four,"

"My speeder should still be at the distribution center," Viridan replied. "And I never finished filling out the forms."

"Don't worry, I picked up your speeder and finished the requisition while Vyra was sorting you out," Regent replied.

"Captain, I promised Jonas that we could fly out to Earth and look for his mother," he said. "Do you think we could...borrow the ship for a few hours?"

Regent cast a skeptical gaze on him for a moment, and then allowed it to relax into a soft smile. "Well, she does need to go on a bit of a cruise to properly check the fuel cells. You can take her out, but you have to run a full diagnostic on the cell's capacity during the cruise."

"Yes, captain," Viridan replied, a small smile crossing his face. "Thank you,"

"I still need to fill the crew roster anyway," she said. "We're not going anywhere until I get at least one person at every station."

"Well, you're free to use my computers at home," Viridan added.

"Damn right I am," she replied. "You're taking my house, so I get to take yours. Maybe I'll even have sex with you mate again."

"I thought I asked you not to do that anymore," he said.

"You liked watching us," she shot back with a grin. "You're such a bad mate."

"At least I have a mate," he replied playfully, although he knew there was nothing to strike on that route. Regent was not the kind of person to settle down, and she had probably gotten several abortions before, although he'd never heard of them. She was good at hiding things from her past, unless she was very drunk. "Well, come on, Jonas."

The boy followed him almost blindly into the elevator, crowding into the back corner as the three dragons filled the remaining space. The lift stopped at level one first, so Regent and Vyra could get off and to the speeder. After a moment's hesitation, the lift began to quickly descend three more levels, were several large ships were parked. The Pathfinder was among them, in a landing strip just to the left of the exit hatch. Unlike most ships, which used a remote or access key to unlock, the Pathfinder had a secret keypad, hidden in the support strut on the rear left leg. Viridan pried the hinged panel open with a claw, and after keying in an eight digit code, the lift began to lower from the belly of the ship with a loud whir. When it settled on the floor a moment later, Viridan stepped up and then reached down to help Jonas onto the high platform. The distant boy ignored it, and simply hauled himself up. Viridan could only sigh, watching him with a concerned expression while he returned an empty one.

They were on the bridge a moment later, with Viridan seated at the pilot's station, and Jonas standing perfectly still just off to the side. With slightly shaking claws, he grabbed the flight controls and slowly eased the ship off the floor. He hadn't flown something of this size in a long time, let alone in such small confines. He really didn't want to scratch the paint. With a steady hand, he slid the ship towards the exit, and then backed straight out. He knew it was risky to rely on the rear camera so much when it had such a narrow field of view, but he didn't dare spin the ship around inside. When he had backed all the way out and hadn't heard any terrible scraping sounds, he breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know how the captain was so good at piloting the bulky ship, but she did a more than decent job of it. He hoped that she never stepped back to let another pilot take over. With much more confidence than he'd had a moment before; he pointed the nose of the ship to the sky and fired the engine. With a roar that may have deafened anyone standing outside, the Pathfinder shot straight up, and out of the atmosphere a moment later. After a few keystrokes into the console in front of him, the ship began to turn and adjust speed on its own. Satisfied that the autopilot could take care of everything, Viridan stood up and motioned for Jonas to follow him. He led the boy up to the crew deck, and into his snug cabin. He climbed into his single bed and pushed his back up against the wall, doing his best to make some room for his friend beside him. All the while, Jonas stood blankly just inside the room, until the door slid shut on its own. The moment they were completely alone, away from the hums and beeps and bathed in the dim light of Viridan's desk lamp, he broke down. Tears began to stream from his eyes, and quiet, shuddering sobs broke his silence.

"Jonas," Viridan murmured. He reached out to the pitiable little human, wrapping him in a warm embrace against his broad chest. The semen that had been splattered all over his right side had long dried, leaving a brittle gloss over his soft skin. Viridan took the opportunity to finally clean the substance from his friend, using his tongue to wipe it away with long stroke. All the while, Jonas cried softly into the crook of his arm. "Don't cry, Jonas. Everything is alright now. I'm here."

"Everybody hates me," Jonas spat suddenly. Viridan was taken aback by the intensity of Jonas' statement.

"Not everyone hates you," Viridan replied.

"I didn't get a single kind look from anyone on that street," Jonas shot back, Viridan's long licks doing nothing to soothe him. "There weren't even any people who didn't give me a look. Everyone there wanted me gone."

"But I was there, and I didn't want you gone," he said slowly, hugging the soft body a little tighter. "And Vyra doesn't want you gone. Regent doesn't want you gone, either."

"She's always insulting me!" he exclaimed.

"Yes, but she does that with everyone who's new," he replied. "When I first joined the crew, she called me a robot, and told the rest of the crew that I was having sex with the engine when no one else was looking."

"But, you're like best friends," Jonas replied, a little more quietly. His tears had also stopped, giving Viridan a chance to like away the salt left on his cheeks.

"I wouldn't really say that," Viridan replied. "We're good friends, true, but there's someone I care for far more than I care for her. Do you know who it is?"

"Of course I do. Vyra's your mate," He replied.

"It's not her," he said.

"Then it's your kids," Jonas replied.

"It's not them, either,"

"But...I haven't met anyone else," he said sadly.

"Oh, you've known this person all your life," Viridan replied, giving him a gentle squeeze. "It's you, of course. I never, ever want to see you sad again, alright? I'm sorry for taking you into the city like that. I should've known that something like that would happen. Just, please, don't think that everyone is so uncaring. I bet there are countless people in the universe that would love to have you as a friend."

For the first time in what felt like ages, a smile cracked Jonas' face. "I didn't know you were so cheesy," he said, eliciting a chuckle from the dragon.

"Whatever I can do to cheer you up," he replied with a warm smile.

"Thanks, Vir," Jonas said. He felt warm in Viridan's arms. It was the kind of feeling that he'd felt like he'd lost for a time. He felt loved, and he never wanted to forget that ever again.

"Why don't we get a bit of sleep?" Viridan asked. "I'm exhausted after all that, and once we get to Earth, we'll have a few tests to run."

"Okay," Jonas replied. He smiled as he received one last affectionate lick on the top of the head before Viridan rested his head on the pillow and closed his eyes. Resting his own head in the crook of the dragon's arm, the warmth and the beating of the dragon's heart quickly lulled him into slumber.

****

An incessant, shrill chime drove the sleep from Jonas' mind, bringing him back to the warm metal room in which he slept. He was alone, sprawled out on his back with a large blanket covering him. As warm as the smooth blanket was, he already missed the sturdy chest of his friend against his back. He pulled the cover away and threw his legs over the side of the bed, letting his feet sit against the icy metal floor. After rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he stood and headed out the door.

The shuffle to the bridge was a lethargic one, but Jonas made it in good time. He found Viridan seated in the pilot's chair again, his eyes fixed on the screen in front of him and a look of full concentration on his face. It was pitch black beyond the window in front of them, without a single star to break the tone.

"Where are we?" Jonas asked.

"Oh good, you're awake," Viridan replied, not taking his eyes off his work. "We are currently on the dark side of the moon."

"Earth's moon?" Jonas asked, making his way forward to the window.

"Yep," he replied. "As soon as I create a loop in all of the human's orbital monitoring equipment, I can take us over the lunar pole."

"You can do that?" Jonas asked. "Hack into all of it,"

"Human server security is not a well-designed system," Viridan replied. "Anything can be hacked with time. Human tech just takes less time."

"Is that how we're going to find my mom?" Jonas asked. "You're going to hack into the satellites?"

"That's right," he confirmed. "You said that your mother was fighting in a war?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "She's in the U.S. Navy."

"Then it shouldn't be much of a problem to hack into the military's database and check her records." Viridan said. For the first time in an hour, Viridan looked up from his console and out the window. It was difficult to tell from the pitch black view, but he was currently pitching the ship up and powering it slowly forward. Within a few minutes, stars began to appear around the edges of the rocky surface, and then a ball of blue slid into view.

"You've never seen Earth from space, have you?" Viridan asked.

"Only in pictures," Jonas replied absently. He realized that his jaw had dropped a little as his home planet appeared before him, glowing against the inky backdrop. He reined it in before Viridan could see him. "It's beautiful,"

"It's certainly not the ugliest planet I've seen," Viridan said. "It's probably my fifth favorite,"

"Really?" he asked. "You'll have to show me your favorites someday."

"I'd love to," he said, and returned to the screen. "Now, give me a second to get into the network...there."

"It was that fast?" he asked.

"Sure," Viridan replied with a shrug. "We've done it so many times that we decided to get one of the techs to write us a program to do it for us. Now, what did you say your mother's name was?"

"Roseanne Graystoke," Jonas replied.

"Right," the dragon murmured, his fingers gliding over the controls again. "Alright, it says here that she's completed her tour of duty."

"You mean," Jonas began. He couldn't believe it, it sounded too unreal to him. His mother hadn't been home in nearly a year, and she comes home when he's gone? "She's at home now?"

"It doesn't say that here, but I would guess that she would return to your home," Viridan replied.

"I have to see her," Jonas stated firmly, placing his hand against the cool window.

"I'm sorry, Jonas," Viridan replied. "We can't get any closer than this. We wouldn't make it halfway to Earth without being spotted by ground telescopes, let alone into the atmosphere and into an urban center."

"But...I haven't seen her in so long," he replied pitiably. "I can't even remember what her voice sounds like."

"Oh, you can talk to her. That's easy," he said. "It's just, seeing her, we can't do from here. Here, let me get into one of the communications satellites, and we can bounce a call through a portable phone."

"I can call her?" he asked, turning back towards his friend at the console. He had a reassuring smile on his face, which helped to ease Jonas' disappointment.

"Do you remember your phone number?" Viridan asked.

"Yeah, it's five five five, five five five, eight four three six," he recited.

"I thought they didn't use that area code on Earth," Viridan said, as he keyed in the number.

"They started just before I was taken," Jonas replied. "They were running out of numbers."

"I see," Viridan said flatly, continuing to type on at the console. Jonas simply stood and watched him concentrate fully on the screen. A moment later, the dragon looked up and waited. "The call's been sent," he said. "If she picks it up, you can just speak normally, and the bridge mic will pick you up."

Jonas nodded, and turned to face the Earth again. He couldn't get over how beautiful it looked from there. Every other planet he'd seen had been covered into gray cityscape, but the Earth looked so green and lush. It was almost as if the pollution problems amounted to nothing.

A click suddenly burst from the speakers. "Hello?" a female voice asked.

"Mom? Is that you?" he asked hesitantly. "It's Jonas,"

"Jonas? Oh my god, where are you!" she exclaimed, her voice rapidly dropping in volume as the speakers automatically compensated for her shouting. "I...I got home and you weren't here. I asked around and no one's seen you in over a month."

"I'm sorry, Mom...I,"

"Where are you? I want to see you," she said firmly. "You have no idea how long I've waited to see you again."

"Mom...I'm sorry," Jonas replied. "I...I can't come home."

"Why not?" she asked. "Where are you?"

Struggling for an answer, Jonas turned back to Viridan. The dragon had looked up from his console and was watching him keenly.

"I'm...I'm safe. You don't have to worry about me. I've got the best friend in the...in the universe to look after me." he said, finishing the sentence with a silent sigh.

"Let me talk to this friend," she demanded.

He peered over his shoulder at Viridan, and saw him frantically shaking his head. With a sigh, he turned back to the planet. "He doesn't want to talk to you. I...I wish I could say more, but..." he sighed again, loud enough for her to hear this time. "I just want you to know that I'm safe, and that I love you. I want you to know that I am exactly where I want to be."

"Jonas," she sighed. "When will you come home?"

Jonas stopped for a moment, as memories and thoughts began to perforate his mind. He remembered his childhood, about his mother and at one time, his father. He remembered how warm he'd felt around her, the days at the park, his sixth birthday, and all kinds of things. And then, like a storm blowing in front of the sun, all of the events of that day blanketed. The looks, the murmurs, hell, he'd been raped in prison. Was this really where he wanted to be for the rest of his life?

"I'll be home soon, Mom," he replied. "Just wait for me, okay?"

"Okay, sweetie," she replied. "I love you,"

"I love you too, Mom," he said, and the call ended with a click. He turned and looked back to Viridan, who was slowly shaking his head.

"You know that there's no way to get you onto the planet without being noticed, right?" he asked.

"I'll find a way to get down there again," Jonas replied firmly. "I'll do whatever it takes."