FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The hull was silent that day. The sun still gleamed on the shattered husk of a proud ship. The planet edged ever closer across the empty sky.

One being sat alone in the center of her immobile home as she had done for quite some time. Her mandibles stirred, flexing them from their still position. Her eyes scanned the room. A hopeless gesture, she knew. Every day was like the last, and no sooner would she find a solution in a corpse. Still, a spark, a drive lingered in her.

She stood up, moving her plates about and looked to the empty sky again. It would have been at least somewhat fortunate to land on the planet, she thought. Then the stars would move. Then again, if she were planetside, she wouldn’t have to worry about staring at the stars at all. Would that be better? To fear the elements for the sake of a change of scenery?

The woman stared for a moment longer. Perhaps not. There was safety in boredom. She turned her head away back to the reality of her situation, walking over to the few functional sensor stations still outputting a stream of data. Null data. She ran a finger down its side, tracing the dents in it. A will of fate that it still worked, or maybe she wasn’t as forceful with this one.

If there were anything to see, the machine would pick it up and spit it right back at her with absurd speed. She picked up the half eaten ration and delicately picked at it with her mandibles, moving every little chunk from mouth part to mouth part until settling it in her stomach.

Would a prayer work? A pathway down a tunnel of fate rarely had its path split. If possible she would hammer right through it. Damn what fate had in mind. If fate were kind, this part of space would be free of spilled guts and mechanical carnage. Her horns flexed. Damn fate. She raised a fist before gently lowering it again.

And yet…

The screen buzzed. An array of colors flashed quickly, swirling into a coherent message.

Something was there.

And it was approaching fast.

The woman took a moment to steady herself. Her body inadvertently flexed, preparing itself for action. Horns peaking. Mouth tightening. Now was not the time to act so rashly. She took a moment to feel the air coursing through her.

It was a ship. Based on its exhaust, it was likely human. Small. Slowing. Slowing. Stop.

Her eyes looked to the viewport. In-between the shrapnel of the past she could make out a shape. That blocky human physique to their industrial creations. It hovered there silently, lights off. There was a good chance whoever this was wasn’t supposed to be here. She stared at it, looking for the slightest hint of motion from the beast.

The monitor blinked again, swirling its messages. One human was departing. Only one? She stood up, seeing a faint orange figure dip out of the ship and gently careen toward the remains of her still hell. No doubt, humans would enjoy picking apart anything alien. Profit was on its mind. Research was another guess, but this was no team. She approached the window. No, this was no expert of careful scientific research. This was a rogue element picking the bones of the dead.

Its ship was clearly functional, yet just out of reach. Her body wouldn’t withstand the rigors to get inside, and even then, it was no guarantee she’d be able to accurately pilot it. The guts, however, the working inner machinations, those could potentially be pulled free. And how would she do that? Sway the creature out there?

She watched as it danced, or perhaps wrestled through the wreckage, pushing scrap away with wild abandon. It had some sort of magnetic locking system on its boots, allowing it to move slightly more expertly. The creature landed on a larger section of hull and began cutting into it. Her horns flared. No!

There was a flash of white. The human was flung away. Their ship was hit by a stray chunk of gnarled metal, pushing it back and annihilating its cockpit. Her own ship slightly jittered but was no worse for wear than it was before.

The woman could only watch in unease as the human steadied itself. A bit of metal had torn into its arm but it was managing to hold itself steady. Now it was headed for her pocket of life. She immediately ran over to her one gun and prepared herself near the airlock door.

Seconds, then minutes. A faint thumping. A crack. The door whirred to life and another set of thumps, then a loud bang. The inner door clicked and hissed, revealing a limp body. Its lungs heaved uneasily. A streak of red ran down its side. It was going to die without any help.

And it could give help in turn.

_

A live specimen wasn’t something she had ever expected in her wildest dreams. Yet it produced no spark as it might have done in the past. Now it, or he, rather, inspired no joy save for the path to freedom. Black hair extruded from his scalp and finer ones down his chin. All over was a layer of soft flesh that paired awkwardly with the skeleton that lied underneath. His chest still heaved, drawing in air one slow gulp at a time.

The patchwork of its arm would have to do. Fortunately, between what supplies she could scrape together and the gauze in his pack, she could pull out that hunk of metal and repair his arm. It still oozed a sickening crimson but he was certainly not going to die at this point.

The woman figured she should probably check the situation outside for any potential intruders, but she was focused on him. This curiosity among the stars. Her vision soaked up every part of him, indulging in confirming the knowledge she had. She reached out, prodding fresh skin with her fingers. So oddly pliable and vulnerable.

The human male’s eyelids snapped open and his eyes wandered around his new environment until landing on the woman. They widened all the more. He was uneasy. Her horns flared. The man panicked, scrambling away from her, only to slam into the wall next to his makeshift bunk and further damaging his injured arm.

“Stop,” she said. “Stop.” Her hand held his other shoulder, gently pressing him into the bed. “You are injured.” Due to incompetence. “Do not move. Stop.”

“Yeah, I can see that!” He hissed, holding his shoulder. “Cool trick. What was that? Explosives? Setting scrap to explode is a lot scummier than I expected from a bug!”

She stared at him for a moment, willing up those words in her head. Explosives? As if! She let the air run through her.

“You were injured by reactive defenses. Your dismantling. It triggered the reaction.”

His eyes flicked away before focusing on her. “Yeah? I should trust you?”

“Your arm. Mended together. I performed that. I could have ripped that supple flesh and left you to expire. I did not.” She pulled her hand away from his shoulder.

“So, what, you want a thanks? Thank you. Now what? You eat me?”

I doubt you taste even the remotest bit well, she shot back silently. “No. Set aside your prejudice.” It was hard forming that word, but she managed. “I require your help.”

“So that makes two of us.” The man rubbed his shoulder. “I don’t know what you want from me, but you’re kind of up shit creek right now.”

She paused, trying to imagine his words. Sewage? “Your ship. I need to repurpose its organs for my own.”

“You’re going to fucking strip my ship?!”

“Its cockpit was destroyed. Your choice is this vessel or none at all.”

“You destroyed my–”

“I destroyed nothing. Your insanity is your own undoing.” Calm. Before someone gets hurt. “Remain still.”

“Or what?”

“Or you might expire.” The woman picked up his bag and set it down next to his leg. “Your foodstuffs are untouched.”

“Are there more of you? You convene with the hive and agreed?”

“I am the only one. You are more than fortunate.” She leaned down, raising her horns. “And I must ask, are there more of you?”

He turned his head and frowned, unfettered by her threat display. “I’m a one-man team.”

“You are certain no one will arrive? Seeking you?”

“How about you? Anyone looking out for you?”

“Your repeated questions are only stressing you further. Your condition may worsen.” Maybe she should have just let him rot. “I would not be here if there were a search party.”

“Maybe you’re here for a reason.”

She rattled, slinging out an insult in her tongue and slamming her fist into the side of the bedframe. “Remain still or suffer! Your choice.”

The man had no insufferable response, only staring back and easing into his bed. Easy, easy. No need to dig into his skull. Freedom was at its cusp. She relaxed and stood back up, returning to her sensor station. No answers from him, but she could at least gleam some information from this thing. Not that she’d have much recourse against a group of humans. Hostage? Some of her eyes focused on him. Unlikely they’d even care to take him back.