{"sf1_id":564427,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Skyfall Chapter 5","author":"Abyssa","words":3287,"posted_at":"2013-07-17T21:19:00.000Z","tags":["Alien","Anthro","Canine","Hybrid","Laboratory","Male","Werewolf","Wolf","space"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/564427-skyfall-chapter-5","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/564427","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=564427\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"       I woke\nto a tapping on the door. I rolled over in my soft, velvety sheets. I did not\nwant to move. I groaned as the tapping became a beating. \n  \"Jay, sir.\" A voice echoed through\nthe door, \"Misha sent me to wake you. You are wanted in the gym in about twenty\nminutes. I have some breakfast for you, here.\" \n  I rolled over, \"Okay, thanks.\" I\nyawned. \"Feel free to set it down.\" I mumbled.\n  My muscles felt much worse than\nthey had yesterday. Whatever Misha had given me must have worn off. I staggered\nout of bed and slipped on my casual black pants, along with a white t-shirt. My\ntail stuck awkwardly out the back, as always, except the shower last night had\ncaused it to puff up and become obnoxiously airy. I grumbled to myself. \n   I\nwandered into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. I didn't understand the\npoint of wearing the shirt, especially white. I looked rather similar without\none. I frowned and rubbed my eyes. Details\nlike this don't matter. I reminded myself. Focus on the big picture. \n  After dressing, I opened my door\nand picked up the dish of food. I ate the warm vegetable and egg mixture. The\nwarm food helped ease my tense muscles a bit.\n  I headed down to the gym, trying\nto stretch my legs along the way. I wasn't sure how I was going to be able to\ntrain. I was feeling terrible.  \n  Misha was outside the doors of\nthe gyms main entrance. \"Good morning, Jay!\" Misha shouted, clapping me on the\nshoulder. \n  I flinched. \"I don't particularly\nlike that name, Misha.\" I said, rubbing my shoulder. \"I also feel horrible.\"\n  \"You'll feel better once your\nmuscles warm up. Right now they're probably all tense and stiff.\" Misha said,\nturning to me. \"What name would you rather be called?\" He raised an eyebrow.\n  \"I don't know yet.\" I sighed. \n  We walked through a few\ndifferent doors and arrived in a large, dark room. A few lights flickered on\nupon us entering. \n   \"Alright, Jay.\" Misha said, pointing\ntowards the center of the room where there was a white, illuminated ring in the\nfloor. \"Stand in the center, and you will hear instructions from above. Dr.\nHale wants to see what you can do before we do anything formal.\" He looked up\ntowards the ceiling, where I saw some tinted windows in the wall. \"I'll be in\nthat room with Dr. Hale and Kato. Listen for instructions and follow them to\nthe best of your ability. Go ahead and do your stretches right now while we prepare.\"\n\n  I nodded as Misha left me alone\nin the room. I stretched absent-mindedly, too busy anticipating what was coming\nnext to be too invested in the task. I heard a crackling sound and Misha's\nvoice over the speaker system.\n  \"Jay, we are going to send out\nan entity that will attack you. This entity has been created with magic, and it\ncannot actually harm you. It is not a real being, but it can make you feel\npainful sensations. Attack it however you please. Do not let it touch your\nheart.\" Misha's voice boomed.\n  I looked around, processing\nwhat was just said. They created a being\nout of energy that was programmed to attack. I understand.  \n  \"Do you understand?\" I heard\nDr. Hale's voice over the speaker this time.\n  \"Yes.\" My voice was rough,\nangry. I was anxious and wanted this to be done. \n  There was nothing but silence\nfor a few moments. The lights shut off and blacked out the room. I squinted as\nthe bright, white ring around me blinded me. I couldn't see anything. \n  A rush of air passed by my\nhead, I jumped. The air rushed by again, and I felt a sharp pain on my ear. I\ntwitched, trying to fight back the fear. I could not be afraid. They are\nexpecting too much from me. I was capable of this. \n  My eyes scanned the darkness,\nand while I was distracted trying to see, the being struck my back. I nearly\nfell on my face, but luckily I caught myself with my arms, claws digging into\nthe slick ground. Seeing wasn't an option. \n   I heard the rush of air fly right next to\nmy face. I caught a glimpse of the being as it whizzed by; it was a silvery\nblur that seemed to be shaped like a small, flying reptilian creature. I caught\na glance of a sharp blade on its tail. My ears tilted foreword and strained to\npick up any sound in the silence. \n  I was becoming frustrated. I\ndid not think this was a good way to show my skills. My lips curled into a\nsnarl, I faced the area where I had seen the tinted windows earlier. I would show\nthem. The creature was on its way back towards me.\n  I forced my mind to become\nquiet and relaxed, just as I had done with the pain tolerance test. I heard my\nattacker's every movement. It would be nearing my face in three..two..\n  I snatched it out of the air\nwith my claws, tearing right through the thick blur of energy. I heard a crack\nand saw a few sparks fly up into the air. That seemed easy enough.\n  \"Well done!\" Dr. Hale's voice\nboomed. \"We are going to send something a little bigger out, this time. Stand\nyour ground until you hear a beep.\" \n  I heard a noise that sounded\nlike air being sucked into one spot, and saw an illuminated form on the other\nside of the room. This creature was illuminated bright white with blaring red\neyes. It resembled the werewolf I had taken DNA from. \n  The creature stood still as\nits form materialized. The lights in the room flickered back on and revealed I\nwas standing in the middle of a field of rocks and trees. I stood still, my\nheart starting to race.\n  As the creature finished\nmaterializing, I heard a long, low pitched blaring noise. Apparently that was\nthe beep, because the werewolf charged me and slammed into my body before I\neven knew it was moving.\n   I smashed into a rock, my aching muscles\nbecoming paralyzed. The wolf reared back and came down for another strike. I\nnarrowly avoided its clawed fist, which cracked the rock behind me. \n  I scrambled out of the way,\ndodging rocks and fallen logs as I ran across the field. The creature was on my\ntail instantly. He grabbed a chunk of my stupid, fluffy tail, tearing the fur\nright off. \n  Good riddance. I thought.\n   They clearly wanted me to find a creative\nsolution to this. I snarled again, my patience thinning. \n  Launching myself off a rock, I\nclutched onto a tree branch and swung upwards. I snagged another tree branch in\nmy arms, slipping down as the leaves were stripped off of it. The werewolf was\npacing below the tree. I scrambled up and stood on a thicker branch. \n   Panting\nheavily, my lungs ached. I watched the werewolf slowly scaling the bark of the\ntree using its giant paws. I noticed that its legs had a different shape to\nthem than mine did. The way its legs bent and sprang upwards gave it quite the\nadvantage on mine. I considered trying to rearrange my DNA, but the thought did\nnot last long. The werewolf launched itself upwards and slashed a chunk of bark\ninches from where my branch was. \n   I looked around desperately. I could not\ndefeat this creature using my own strength. I was strong, but this beast would\ndefinitely be more than a match for my weak muscles. \n  The werewolf grabbed a branch,\nwhich splintered off and formed a jagged tip. My ears perked up. Quickly, I\nmoved towards the edge of the branch I stood on. I needed to make it lunge for\nthis one. The branch was thick, but I was sure it wouldn't be able to support\nthe wolf's weight, assuming the werewolf had weight to it. \n   I snapped off a few twigs and tossed\nthem at the roaring werewolf, which in turn tried reaching the branch I was\nstanding on. My movements had to be quick. I planned them out in my head,\nadrenaline suddenly coursing through my body. \n   The werewolf finally reached my branch. It\nclutched onto it with a howl of rage. Just as I had predicted, the branch\nsnapped. Instantly I dove towards the beast, grabbing the sharp end that had\nsnapped off. I used the force of the fall to drive it into the creature's heart\nand smashed into the ground alongside it, hoping that the combination of the\nfall and the stab wound was enough. \n  I slowly stood up, gasping\nfor air. The creature remained motionless, and began to dissipate. Eventually,\nit burst into sparks like the last one had. I fell to my knees with a sigh of\nrelief. \n  \"Excellent!\" I heard Dr.\nHale's voice echo. \"I think that's all for today. You are free to do whatever\nyou please for the rest of the day.\" \n  I remained on my knees,\nregaining my breath. I wondered what sort of impression I had made. I looked up\nto the window, feeling isolated. \n  A few moments later, Misha\nentered the room. \"Hey! Great work!\" He said, grinning. \"That was amazing; I\nnever expected you to pull some crazy move like THAT on the werewolf!\" He\nlaughed. \"Kato will do some more instructional stuff with you tomorrow now that\nwe have an idea of what you can do and what your natural fighting style is like.\"\n\n  I nodded, feeling dizzy as\nthe adrenaline faded. The pain returned to my body. My bruised muscles ached. \n  \"You okay?\" Misha asked,\ncrouching down next to me.\n  I stood up and walked away\nfrom him. I am not sure what it was, but I was not in the mood to speak with\nhim. I felt ill. \"I need to shower.\" I said, wiping blood from above my eye. \n  \"Alright...\" Misha said,\nclearly feeling rejected.\n  \"I feel like shit, Misha.\" I\nsaid, giving him an exhausted look.\n  \"Sorry about that, Jay,\nit'll get better!\" He promised. My ears laid flat.\n  \"Stop calling me Jay.\" I\nsaid in a desperate tone. I wanted to at least have control over my name, and\nnot be related to a fluffy, weak bird. I was strong, I knew that much.\n  \"Okay, okay!\" Misha said,\ntrailing behind me, \"But you have to give me another name to call you.\" \n  I looked at his face, trying\nto decipher what he was feeling. I felt like that's all I ever did-decipher\nothers and their motives. I narrowed my eyes. That was a good word, had a nice\nring to it...\n  \"Decipher.\" I said flatly. \n  Misha laughed, \"Ok, sure.\"\nWhen he saw my annoyed expression, his face became serious. \"Oh. I mean, sure,\nbuddy. I guess I just don't understand why.\" He said, his expression now\nnervous and apologetic.\n  My expression softened. I\ncouldn't remain upset. I did not have the energy. \"I am good at deciphering\nthings.\" I explained. \"I feel like it describes me well. I'm sure it has some\nsort of deep, symbolic meaning to it as well.\" I smiled lightly. \"I also think\nI understand technology well. That works into the name somehow.\" \n   \"Decipher.\" Misha tested the name, \"Alright,\nI'll use that name from now on.\" \n  \"Please do, and tell the\nothers as well. I'm going to shower in my room.\" I said, leaving the\nbattlefield. \n  \"Lunch in an hour?\" Misha\nasked. \n  \"Sure, Misha. I'd like\nthat.\" I said. It had been a while since Misha and I had sat down and eaten\ntogether without it being rushed or awkward.\n  I\nmade my way back to my room and showered in the glass dome inside my bathroom.\nThis shower felt so much more secure than the gym showers. I shuddered at the\nthought of using them. \n  After cleaning off and\nexamining my minimal amount of scratches, I sat down on my couch and stared out\nthe glass windows. Outside the windows I saw the jays, the birds, fluttering\naround. They were tiny creatures, no larger than my palm. Their figures were\nsharp and they twisted and dove through the air effortlessly. These birds\ndefinitely did not relate to me. I have no idea why Misha ever thought they\nhad.\n  I glanced at the clock on\nthe wall. It was nearly time to meet Misha. I sighed and headed out the door.\n  I met Misha in the dining\nhall. He was already eating his meal when I arrived. I grabbed my food and sat\nnext to him and Kato. They were in the middle of discussing my performance.\n  \"...the whole spearing the\nwerewolf through the heart thing, brilliant!\" Kato laughed, patting my\nshoulder. This new gesture seemed to be happening a lot today, it must have\nbeen congratulatory, perhaps a sign of acceptance.\n  \"Right, thanks.\" I nodded,\nunsure how to react to the attention. I looked to Misha, who held a paper in\nhis hand. \n  I picked at my food,\n\"Misha.\" I said, \"Would you be interested in taking a walk with me today?\" I\nasked. I missed spending time with him. There were always too many distractions\nunless we were alone. \n  \"Sorry, J-\" Misha began,\n\"Decipher, I just received some bad news about one of the patients in the\nmedical center. I need to go run some tests.\" He said, picking up his things\nfrom the table. \"I have to go, but I'll see you later!\" He said before rushing\nout.\n  I sighed. Kato was staring at\nme; I could feel his concerned, wide eyes boring into me. \n  \"I'm fine.\" I mumbled. \"Just\nfeel sort of isolated lately.\" \n  \"Well, I could take you out.\nWe could go for a walk in the woods outside the facility, like I was going to\ntake you that one day!\" Kato offered. \n  I nodded. I might as well\nspend time with Kato and get to know him a bit more, seeing as he'd be training\nme in combat. \n  \"Great. There's a beautiful\ncliff outlook on the trail just behind the facility. I want you to see it.\"\nKato said.\n  \"Is it far?\" I asked. My\nmuscles were still aching, and as much as I wanted fresh air, I was also\nexhausted and did not want to embarrass myself. \n  \"Nope. Fifteen minute walk at\nmost.\" Kato said with a smile. \n  I finished my meal and we\nheaded outside the main doors. This was the first time I had been outside. My\nbare paw pads touched the soft, wet plants on the ground. The sensation was\noddly calming. I breathed in the fresh air. I did not have the same longing\nthat I did before to go outside, but being out was still wonderful.\n  Kato walked me into the\nwoods, up a steep dirt trail. The forest surrounding us was thick, with\nbeautiful splashes of color in the foliage. The flowers blooming had amazing\nshapes, some even resembled the birds in the skies, except painted with highly\nsaturated colors. \n  I stayed silent throughout\nthe walk, partially because I was immersed in this new world I had stepped\ninto, but also because the steep hill was difficult for me to climb.\n  Finally, we reached the top\nof the hill. The trail led out to a flat plateau that was sprinkled with\nbushes, rocks and three huge trees right at the edge. One of the trees grew\nfrom the side of the cliff, twisting back up towards the plateau.\n   Over\nthe edge, there was a steep cliff face and a valley full of green beneath us. I\npanted, taking in the sight. I watched the light filter down through the\npassing clouds and make the meadows below shine with brilliant gold and emerald\nhues. Everywhere I looked I saw more color and light. This place was amazing. I\nnever dreamed something like this existed. \n  Kato sat on the edge of the\nplateau and leaned back against one of the trees. Feeling rather brave, I\ndecided to sit out on the tree that snaked out of the edge of the cliff. The\nshape of the tree made a perfect spot to lay back and gaze into the valley. I\nsmiled, feeling purely blissful. \n  Kato let out a long sigh,\ngrinning. \"We came at the perfect time.\" He said, closing his eyes and letting\nthe air rustle through his hair. I did the same. \n  \"Yeah,\" I replied, \"You\nwere right, and I am definitely glad I came.\" I smiled. The feeling faded after\na few moments as I realized Misha had not come with us. I sighed.\n  \"Something bothering you,\nDecipher?\" Kato's knowing gaze fell upon me. \n   \"I wish Misha had come with us.\" I\nadmitted. \"It's been a long time since I've had the chance to spend some time\nwith him.\" \n  \"Ah well, he's a busy man.\nHe's one of the best doctors, you know.\" \n  I actually hadn't known that.\nI did not know much about what Misha did outside of the time we spent together,\nwhich reminded me...\n  \"I took the pain tolerance\ntest the other day. Someone asked me what my score was later that day...\" I\nmumbled, \"Do you know what my score was?\" I asked Kato. \n  \"I do not know that, but\nMisha would know.\" Kato said, squinting as the sunlight blinded him. \"Who asked\nyou?\" \n  \"Oh...just someone who I\nencountered in the gym showers.\"\n  \"Ah. Probably a guard or\nan assassin, then.\" Kato laughed, \"Let me guess, covered in muscles and scars\nright?\" \n  \"I actually don't know. I\nwas too embarrassed having someone shower next to me to notice what he looked\nlike.\" I mumbled, shrugging.\n  \"Makes sense.\" Kato said.\n\"Those guys are pretty outgoing with their bodies...cocky bastards.\"  \n  Kato and I talked and\nlaughed for the next few hours, watching the sun fall and set. The view of\nsunset was even more incredible. All the cool colored hues completely\ndisappeared in a sea of gold. \n  It had been nice talking\nwith Kato. He was always willing to discuss things with me or make me feel\nbetter about life. I was grateful to have him as a friend. After the sun had\nset and gone, I thanked him for the wonderful afternoon, and we headed back.\n \nThat night was the first night I had not fallen directly asleep after\nhitting the pillow. I lay in bed and stared out towards the glass windows,\nwatching the stars in the sky. After a great day with Kato, I still couldn't\nhelp but feel sad about missing time with Misha. \n  The lonely, empty feeling\nsettled in right as I tried to fall asleep, and I ended up sitting on the couch\nto gaze at the stars instead. I sighed, staring out towards the shimmering\nlights. Misha's behavior was always so sporadic. I could never tell if we would\nbe spending all day together or just the next few minutes. It was exhausting\ntrying to keep up with him...But oh well...At\nleast I have Kato. \n","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/564421-skyfall-chapter-4.json"}