FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The odd pair left the dimly lit bar behind them. They walked in silence for a few moments, wondering how best to proceed.

"So, Mr. Silver," the taller began, "what do you think of violence?"

It took a moment for a reply, "I try to minimize the necessity for violent actions."

"And yet, I understand that at a very young age you mastered some advanced martial arts?"

"Uh...yes, that would be accurate."

"So what would drive someone with an aversion to violence, to learn skills that enable more violence?"

"I don't think I understand the necessity of these questions."

"You don't need to understand. I assure you, it's necessary."

"Does this job require violence?"

"It's quite possible."

"I'm sure you could find a bunch of thugs to do your dirty work for you."

"Yes, that's quite true. There are plenty of hunky brainless idiots blundering about, but it's just that. They lack brains."

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I only have about half a brain."

The taller one laughed, "we can take care of that."

"What do you mean?"

He reached into a jacket pocket and produced a small white tablet. Austin reached over and took it from him. "What is this?"

"It's a psychotropic drug. Known to counteract the effects of PTSD, schizophrenia, and memory loss."

The wolf looked at the pill for a moment before popping it into his mouth and swallowing it. For all he knew, it could have been poison.

"You got guts, I'll give you that," he laughed. Austin grinned before doubling over a moment later. It was as if his mind was being yanked from his skull. He cried out softly in pain, but just as quickly as yet came on, it subsided.

"What the fuck was that?" He yelled.

"How do you feel?"

He felt like punching the man, but stopped, "I...I feel great!" The wolf mustered a smile again.

"Good. I have a whole bottle left for you if you agree to take the job."

"Yeah, I'll do it."

"Fantastic, two things you need to know first," he took the small glass bottle from his pocket, "if you exceed two tablets a day, you will die. Second, if the cops catch this stuff on you, be prepared to spend a very long time in jail."

"Where'd you get it?"

"Same place you'll have to get it from when you run out...someone's cold, dead corpse."

He swallowed hard as the guy beside him laughed. The two parted after he gave Austin a slip of paper with an address on it.

Austin woke up the next day with a handful of texts and a raging headache. From the information he could gather, he'd be walking away with an enormous sum of money in less than three days. Still unsure as to what the job was, he continued on his way in anticipation of payday. He examined himself in front of the grimy motel mirror and picked up the small glass bottle of tablets that sat on the sink. The label on the front clearly stated "warning, do not ingest, for laboratory testing only." He laughed to himself and unscrewed the lid of the bottle, taking up one of the tablets, and placing it in his mouth. It sat in his tongue this time, slowly dissolving, eating away at the tendrils of insanity that had clouded his mind for so many years. The feeling was freeing, almost addicting; he never wanted to get hooked on anything but he couldn't help feeling the need for more after only the second dose. A wide grin spread across his features as he tipped his head back and sighed. Almost normal, almost. Perhaps another tablet would make him feel completely normal, but as for today, he decided it was best not to push it.

He got into his car and drove off towards the address outlined on the small slip of paper. The night before had felt almost unreal today. Whatever the job was, it seemed way to easy to get into for the amount of payment due. Maybe they saw him as disposable, never intended to receive well over a million cash, instead he'd die. A bullet to the head, dribbling blood on the mossy ground of an unknown forest in the middle of nowhere. The thought made him laugh. The roads were long and isolated, carved into the sides of the mountains. It was early enough in the morning that the sun had not yet shone. Despite the darkness and lack of a guardrail, he punched the accelerator and sped down the smooth cliff side roads. It was an adrenaline rush, a thrill, putting his life on the line for a brief feeling of bliss. He narrowed his eyes at the headlights up ahead, the road was his, he was not about to move over for anyone else. Perhaps the drugs had lost their effect, or maybe he was too far gone for help. The semi tuck approached him head on, Austin kept going. There was no room on either side of him for the truck to pass, either one of them drove off a cliff, or they both died. He laughed as he drove faster, edging on the other driver; just as tough as he was, but not quite as nuts. A bag of cookies caught his attention when he hit a large bump, the package crinkled loud enough to spark his interest. Forgetting about the other driver, he picked them up and began to feast. People used to always tell him how he'd become diabetic, or overweight, but it never happened. If he had his way, he'd eat nothing but. The sound of a horn and blaring lights tore him away from his sugary trance just in time for him to see the large truck plunging down the side of the mountain into the darkness. Austin put the bag down and drove quietly for a few moments, a bit shocked. He almost died, on top of it, he just killed another person. Death didn't seam so bad to him. The early morning sun glinted off a picture frame in the passenger seat, and suddenly he wasn't so sure about death anymore. He slowed the car to a stop and pulled over onto the side of the road breathing heavily. His mind was so messed up and he knew it. Fumbling around in his coat pocket, he managed to produce the small glass bottle; his shaking hands delivering another tablet to his mouth.