FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Through the 21st century, capitalism had slowly taken over Earth. Megacorporations gained increasing influence and humanity had hit a lull in breakthroughs. The ultra-wealthy had slowly run out of things to compete for on Earth, and so they focussed their attention to space. The intergalactic frontier presented new opportunities for monetisation at a scale never seen before, and no self-respecting trillionaire could resist.

To serve this lust for ever-increasing wealth, the corporations steadily drove advancements in space travel. Technology slowly evolved to the point that spacefaring became relatively mundane, as many historic sci-fi productions had predicted.

By the start of the 22nd century, commercial spaceships were as common as cruise ships. Their crews pushed into the unknown to explore new galaxies, constantly searching for more resources to claim and supply the neverending consumerism back on Earth.

As was humanity's way, there was plenty of bureaucracy to ensure claims were processed 'fairly'.

The Federation of United Corporations, also known as FUC, was created to oversee and administer the payment of claims for resources delivered. Any ship wanting to make a claim needed to be registered with FUC.

One such ship was FUC registration 2127/FG/0010D273, a freighter casually known as the FUC Platitude.

The Platitude was a basic freighter, designed primarily to collect and haul a moderate cargo. It normally carried a crew of around 15, although that varied depending on how far in debt they were and how shrewd the captain felt.

Amongst the fleet of ships pillaging the universe, the Platitude was relatively small. This meant it was generally not on the forefront of new discoveries. Rather, it was more like a vulture, picking at the leftovers of larger ships' finds.

Currently cruising through the Ennuyeux galaxy, the crew of the Platitude were on a standard rotation, looking for a site to scavenge.

On board, it was the middle of the night cycle. In space, there wasn't the typical day and night, so spaceships followed an imaginary cycle to replicate this Earthly phenomenon. During the night cycle, most of the crewmembers slept, with the ship left to run on a skeleton crew.

However, on this particular night cycle, one crewmate was not asleep.

Second engineer Leon was lying awake, staring at the ceiling of his personal quarters.

Currently in his third year aboard the Platitude, he was responsible for most of the support systems that helped keep the ship running. Earlier that cycle, one of the auxiliary coolant lines had burst a seal. He'd done his best to rig a fix, but with the limited resources available, the potential for his fix to fail was giving him some serious anxiety.

For the millionth time that 'night', he checked the time on his datapad.

03:17

It was a struggle, trying to relax and yet constantly aware of the fact he couldn't. He was a natural worrier at the best of times, always thinking of the worst that could happen. Whilst he had become quite proficient at hiding it on the surface, in private he would fidget and fuss to no end.

The net effect was to render him unable to sleep. He swung his legs out of his bunk and sat up, clutching his head and rubbing his temples with both hands.

He pulled on the standard-issue jumpsuit and headed for the engineering systems sector.

Strolling through the empty corridors was a bit eerie during the night cycle. The usual buzz of other crewmates was replaced by the quiet hum of the Platitude's systems, all working to keep them alive against the hostility of space.

He made it to the coolant distribution hub room. A large cylindrical chamber sat in the centre of the room, with a multitude of pipes snaking out and heading to the various parts of the ship's engines.

He quickly found the auxiliary line he had mended earlier, running his hand over the repair to check for any leaks. To his credit, there was no sign of cooling fluid excreting around the patch.

Nonetheless he paced a few times, thinking if there was anything he could do to reinforce it until they stopped at a settlement and he could source a new seal.

He could feel his heart rate rising as he struggled to come up with anything viable. Stressing out again, he had to remind himself of the tips a physician had given him.

“Ok, just breath. Easy… easy. Pheeewww. It's only the auxiliary. The main line has to go before that becomes an issue."

He closed his eyes and forced himself to stop thinking for a moment. It didn't last long.

“...argh! But if it does, we're all done for!"

He clasped his hands atop his head in frustration.

After a moment, a smell caught his attention.

He looked down, realising his anxiety was making him sweat. Dark patches had formed under each arm.

He'd been so focussed on the fix earlier and had been running around enough to work up a decent sweat. After he'd finally got it under control, he hadn't bothered to shower, opting to take a nap instead.

Now, he was regretting it, with his current perspiration reinvigorating the stale odour he'd generated earlier. At least there was no one around to make fun of him for it.

With a sigh, he decided to head for the showers, continuing to rationalise not working on the coolant line any further.

“Nothing I can do about this for now. Might as well wash up."

He gave a snort as he made fun of his own stressing.

“...not like I'm gonna be sleeping anyways."

—

The showers formed part of a large communal washroom. Lockers and cupboards lined one wall, with shower cubicles on the other. A row of benches sat in the middle, much like the old locker rooms back home.

He stripped off his jumpsuit and dropped it on one of the benches, leaving him in just his shorts and singlet. He stepped over to one of the cupboards where fresh towels were stored.

“Aw, seriously?"

Opening it up, the cupboard was bare.

Despite the sound advice of Douglas Adams, it was common practice for crewmates not to bring towels when travelling through space. Ships had long been stocked with a shared supply of bathroom products, from towels to shampoo. As such, it was considered inefficient for the crew to pack their own, particularly given the weight and space limits placed on personal effects.

Leon sat down on the bench, resting his arms on his knees and letting his hands hang limply. He stared at the cupboard, unable to believe his luck. After a moment he let his head fall in defeat, indulging himself in some self-pity.

The silence was broken by the pneumatic woosh of the main washroom doors. Caught up in his wallowing, it didn't register in his mind that this signalled the arrival of another crewmember. It took the sound of the visitor's voice breaking the silence to attract his attention.

"Good evening, crewmate Leon."

“Huh?"

He recognised the stranger immediately from the slightly synthetic tone of voice. Even if he hadn't, only one person on the ship used the term 'crewmate' when addressing others.

The ship's android, Casey.

Turning to face the source of the voice, he spied the android approaching him, pushing a small cart of fresh towels.

If you told the average person Casey was an android, they would obviously tell you that meant he wasn't human. What they might not tell you was that Casey also did not resemble a human.

Advancements in technology had gotten to the point that the creation of androids was quite straightforward. Unfortunately, it turned out humans were generally uncomfortable with anything that looked like them. Too realistic, and there were fears of being replaced. Not realistic enough, and people were just creeped out.

Manufacturers had quickly come up with a simple solution: design the androids so they didn't look like humans.

And the obvious alternative? Man's best friend.

Casey's model designation was CAS-E, short for Canine Android Servitor model E. But rather than that mouthful, the crew had taken to simply calling the android Casey.

The CAS line was one of the more popular range of androids back on Earth. They offered a range of models based on the most common dog breeds, such as German shepherds, huskies and the like.

However, in the case of the model E, the base inspiration was a bit more unique.

Casey was a wolf.

Like most androids, his form was similar to a human's, walking on two (albeit digitgrade) legs. His hands were also similarly shaped, although each of his fingers ended in blunt claws rather than nails.

His face, however, was entirely wolfish. With a pointed muzzle, upright ears and a mane running down the back of his neck, the android was easily distinguished from humans. The coal-black fur which covered the android from head to clawed toe might also have given it away.

Casey was wearing his standard uniform, a simple grey polo and matching shorts. He wore no shoes, toughened foot pads providing ample protection.

Leon gave the android a casual greeting.

"...hey Casey. Late night chores?"

"Yes, I am completing the tasks I was not able to finish during the day phase. This is a good time to complete my duties without interruption."

The crewmate wondered if there was a hint of implication in that statement. He knew many of the crew, including himself, would often take advantage of Casey's inability to say no. The android was quite invaluable given his broad knowledge of all things related to the ship's operation.

"Uh… sorry. Do we interrupt you too much when you're working?"

"Not at all. I am pleased to assist with any tasks you are performing."

"Oh, ok. That's good."

As they spoke, the android had pushed the cart over towards Leon and now gestured to the open cupboard.

"May I access the cupboard?"

The crewmate gave a dramatic flourish of his arms toward the cupboard, as if he were an usher guiding a patron.

"Of course. Knock yourself out."

"That would not be conducive to my current task."

Leon let out a sigh. CAS androids could be quite fluent conversationally, however they still had the occasional quirk of literalness. Normally he would try and teach Casey about the expressions humans often used, but it was too late in the cycle and he really couldn't be bothered right now. Instead, he just played along.

"Yep, you're absolutely right, Casey. Help yourself to the cupboard."

"Thank you, crewmate."

The wolf got to work, transferring the towels efficiently from the cart to the cupboard. As he was doing so, he struck up a conversation with the crewmate.

"...I find it unusual for you to be awake at this time of the night cycle. Do you not need to rest?"

"Uh, well… I guess I should be, but I was having trouble sleeping. Was just lying awake, so I figured I'd come have a hot shower. You know, try and soothe myself."

"If something is troubling you, perhaps I can assist."

"Ah, not really, just paranoid about that patch on the coolant line. It was the best I could do with the tools we have, but it was in an awkward spot and I'm not 100 percent certain it won't leak again. It's just been keeping me awake."

"If it helps, my assessment is that the strength of your repair was within 1.2 percent of the coolant line's nominal strength. Well within accepted tolerance levels."

“Uh, really?"

“Yes. Do you have concerns about the reliability of my assessment?"

“No-no, uh… just… I didn't think my patch was all that good."

“I can assure you it was near-optimal given the available resources."

"Huh. Ok, I guess that's pretty reasonable then. That… that does help, actually. Hey, I might actually be able to relax and enjoy my shower."

"Do you require assistance?"

"What?"

The wolf finished storing the towels and turned to face Leon.

"Do you require assistance in the shower?"

The wolf stared at him calmly, the neutral gaze completely unfitting for the suggestive question the android had just posed.

Leon stared with his mouth hanging open, completely unprepared for the question.

"Uh, Casey… that would be kind of… like… weird, wouldn't it? Showering with another guy."

The wolf maintained his calm demeanour, unperturbed by the crewmate's trepidation.

"I do not believe so. You would simply be making use of my services. My purpose is to assist the crew with any task as needed, including personal care. And as you are aware, I am an android, so you would not be showering with another person."

The android had no qualms pointing out his artificial nature, but it did little to ease Leon's concerns. Despite any logic in the wolf's argument, he was still uncomfortable with the idea of sharing a shower with someone, android or otherwise.

Leon eventually stammered out a response.

"Uhhh… that's very, um… generous of you. But… no thanks. I'm… I'm good. I can manage by myself."

"Very well. I shall continue my other tasks."

With a simple nod, the android turned and left, taking the now-empty cart with him.

Leon simply sat and watched, still befuddled by the android's sudden left-field question.

Eventually, he snapped out of his daze and went back to his original reason for being in the washroom. He grabbed one of the freshly folded towels and smirked to himself.

“Saved by the wolf."

He stepped into the nearest shower stall. Each stall had two areas separated by cheap curtains. One to strip off and another for the actual shower.

He felt a bit bad as he unfolded the towel, undoing Casey's hard work. One of the benefits of having the android was his ability to do things so precisely. The towels had all been folded perfectly, much like in a hotel.

Thinking about it, he realised most hotels probably had androids doing the laundry, so it made sense.

He hung it up and quickly stripped off his garments, before stepping into the shower cubicle and adjusting the taps. It took a moment to find the right temperature before he immersed himself.

The heat had an immediate soothing effect and he let out a relaxing sigh.

"Ahhhh…"