FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Once he had gotten the location of the colony he stood up and immediately felt a sharp pain shoot up his spine. He let out a loud yelp of pain as he turned back towards his chair, only to find it the same as before. As he rubbed where the pain radiated he found the source of his pain in a large nub that had formed at the base of his spine just above his rear. His entire body trembled as his fingers slid over the new rubber-covered flesh, the sensations radiating up his back with his touch.

Max steeled his resolve and made the final arrangements for his trip to the colony world where he hoped he would find his answers. Once he was packed up, his luggage consisting of a simple duffel bag since none of his other suits fit properly anymore, he walked out of his apartment for the first time today. As soon as he hit the crowds of the atrium he could feel those eyes staring at him once more, now more than ever since the modifications to his body weren't covered up even when he shifted the suit's appearance. He could see their gazes shift from him down towards his clunky, oversized feet or the protrusions on his head and his backside. Some just shook their heads and continued on while others actively began to move away from him.

By the time Max had made it to the long-distance hypership bay he had his fill of public scrutiny. He understood their trepidation, those that took their physical body modifications to the point where he looked like he was often got them by less than legal means, which meant extra hassle when he got to the security checkpoint. Max knew that his biometric fingerprint scan would likely still fail, so he opted to go into the retina screening right away. Even then it took more than one scan for him to pass and allow him into the port proper, and as he left he frowned as he wondered just how long before all his means of identification eroded.

Thankfully trying to pick up food was less scrutinizing, and a few minutes later he sat on the bench waiting for his flight while tearing into a large protein bar he had bought. Just as he finished the first one and was about to open another he heard a loud beep and the video notification icon appeared on his visor. When he saw who it was he quickly opened the line and saw the face of his friend staring back at him.

"Hey man, how's it going?" Evan asked. "I finally managed to get a stable enough connection in order to link up to the net, I swear some of these places they send me to would have to sell half their station just to afford what we're offering. Anyway you didn't really respond much after that last e-mail you sent me and I was worried something had happened with the suit."

Max swallowed hard as he tried to think of what to say, or even what he could say. He didn't know the extent of how his suit was compromised, and since he and Evan have the same model he didn't want the hacker to get him, too. "Just a question on a function of the suit," Max finally lied, internally sighing as he did. "Everything seems to be squared away though, nothing to worry about."

"Well that's good to hear," Evan said as he started to lean back, then moved further in. "Wait... are you at the hyperlink transport? Where are you going?"

There was a moment of panic as Max cursed his lack of foresight, since he could see the area around Evan, it made sense that Evan could do the same. "I got some time off of work actually," Max tried to explain, hushing his voice slightly as he did so. "Thought I would head off to that great resort we visited for the expo and spend some time there unwinding."

"First of all you don't have to whisper," Evan pointed out. "We're actually talking via sub-vocal communication, which is essentially telepathy since our suits are linked. Second, I remember that expo, and you stated on more than one occasion that you hated the service there and would never go back. Seriously dude, what's going on?"

"It's just... something that I got to do, alright?" Max replied, trying to hide the bitter anger in his voice that he had to push away his friend. "I'm hoping that it shouldn't take more than a few days, otherwise if it does then... well, I'll be back when I'm back. Don't worry about it Evan, I'm sure things will turn out fine in the end."

There was a moment of silence on the call link as he could see the dismay on his friend's face despite most of it being covered by the visor he wore. "Look, I'll be back at the station in the next week or so," Evan reasoned. "Whatever it is you're going through, why don't you just wait for me to come back and we can do it together? Or least tell me why you suddenly feel the need to go zip off into deep space."

The offer tempted Max; when Evan saw the physical alterations happening to his body he would know something was wrong, he even thought about trying to show him what was happening over the video link. But a week was a long time to wait, and Max had no idea how far these changes were going to go or what else the hacker potentially had in store for him. Plus the fact Evan's company already told him they didn't believe him made him wonder how well he could explain it wasn't him. In the end he told Evan that he would likely be back before he got home, anyway, and they could discuss it once he was back, then after a prompt goodbye closed the link and sat back in the bench.

Though it sickened him to leave his friend out of the loop Max grew more assured that what he had done was the right choice. The modders were specialized in this sort of thing and it would only take a day or two to reach them, which meant he was accurate when he said he could be there and back before Evan returned home. His musing was interrupted when they began the boarding of his flight, Max quickly ate the second protein bar as he waited in line and finished it just as he sat down in his seat. Unlike the conventional transport shuttle from space station to space station this one was outfitted for long-distance travel, his seat doubling as a sleep pod for the long journey. Each one was sectioned off for privacy, something that Max was thankful for as he closed his eyes and tried to rest...

A sudden alarm caused him to awaken, one that he didn't remember setting as he put on the suit's visor to see what time it was. He was shocked to find that he had spent nearly a full day asleep and was already a third of the way through his trip. As he slowly got up and out he was also slightly surprised to find a video had been downloaded into the memory of his suit, one with no title or the name of any maker on it. Despite his curiosity he decided to get food first, a sinking feeling growing in the pit of his stomach as he had a good idea what was on it.

When he got to the mess area where he could pick up his food to eat, he immediately noticed that there was more than one pair of eyes on him. At first he thought he had forgotten to enable the settings in order to make his suit appear like normal clothing, but when he looked down at himself he saw that the camouflage was still up and running. When his gaze got to his hands; however, is when he saw what had caused everyone to glance at him. His fingers had grown significantly since he had boarded the hyperspace transport, his claws fully formed and his pinky partially merged into the finger next to it.

While his first reaction was to panic, Max managed to hold it together long enough to wolf down the food he paid for, feeling a difference in his mouth, as well, while he ate as quickly as he could. The stares and hushed conversation continued to grow in intensity as he occasionally overheard all manner of words from modder to weirdo and freak. When he was finally finished he sat up so fast he nearly knocked the seat over and placed the empty tray aside before running to the nearest bathroom.

The second Max found an empty restroom he slammed the door behind him and locked it, then placed his back against the door as he struggled to control his breathing. His vision started to spin slightly as he struggled to regain his composure and keep down the large amount of food he just ate. It took several minutes before he finally had enough courage to open his eyes again and look down at his hands, then hit the back of his head against the door with his face in anguish as he saw the scaly appendages were still attached to his wrists. When he had pushed his head back again he heard the sound of scraping metal, and when he turned his head around in confusion he saw two sets of dents in the door that he rubbed his new fingers over before he suddenly stood up.

Max cringed when he saw his reflection in the mirror, the normal angles of his face now slightly altered underneath the rubber of the suit. When he tried to activate the material to pull away from his head he found the same error message that happened when it covered his hands and feet. No doubt another means of control by the hacker, he thought to himself as he lowered his head and saw the cause of the damage to the door was from two pearl-white horns that had extended a few inches out of his head. It had pushed up past his hair, which also had started to turn white and grow longer, as well as trail down the back of his neck.

"I can't believe this is..." Max started to say before he felt the strangeness of the words leaving his mouth. "What the hell?" He leaned in close to the mirror and pulled up his lips, finding his human teeth had all gained blunted points and had shifted slightly in his mouth. While they weren't sharp it was quite the fearsome sight to behold as he bared his teeth at the reflection in the mirror.

As he continued to stare at himself Max remembered the video that had been left for him and he put on his visor once again. Though part of him thought to go back to his section of the ship to review it, his need to see what it was overwrote his want for privacy. As soon as he started the video his assumption on the sender was correct, a shadowy figure sat in the middle of a frame with no background behind him. The hacker must have known he was in hyperspace because calls wouldn't work there, possibly setting up the notification to appear when he was in transit as the video started.

"Hello Max," the digitally-altered voice greeted, which caused Max to roll his eyes as it continued on. "If you are seeing this it means that your attempts to try and flee your fate has culminated in you attempting to find a solution far outside the bounds of your home system. Now while it is amusing to see you scurry through the galaxy in order to try and find some sort of solution, I feel that I should warn you though that the further you stray from your home system, the faster the changes will take place. I wouldn't want you to try and get too far away from where I know I can pick you up."

Max felt his blood turn to ice as the hacker continued to taunt him, but from that statement a potential kernel of knowledge came out of it. It appeared that the hacker wanted him to stay where he was, which meant it was very likely they were a resident of his station or a nearby one. While he wasn't sure where Albert lived he did work on a nearby station with Evan, so it could be more evidence it was him, though the fact he didn't just capture him when he saw him still put that in doubt. Other then that he didn't know too many other people than Evan at his home station, which meant that the list of suspects could be nearly anyone.

He hadn't realized that the video had continued to roll while he was deep in thought, so he rewound it in order to hear what he had to say. "Do make sure to not wait too long to return as well, I'm sure you've realized by now that it will grow harder for you to get through certain access points as the changes progress." The hacker continued. "I would hate for you to be stuck on station that might see you as something that needed to be harmed rather than helped. But continue to try, try as hard as you can, because it's no fun if you don't."

"That bastard..." Max grimaced as he put his hands against the wall to try and steady himself. "He better hope I don't find someone to help me, because if I do I'm going to make him pay for everything he's done to me."

"Also," the voice in the video continued on, bringing Max's attention once more to it. "Just to show you how little control you have right now, I would suggest taking the masking ability of your feet off so you can see the extent of your changes, though if you do then you will never be able to put it back up again. But whether you do or you don't, I've also arranged for another demonstration, this one far more... impactful to your sense of self that will start when this video ends. Now be a good girl and try to enjoy yourself, this is the last time you'll ever be human, after all."

Max felt a sense of panic rise up in his body, but by the time his brain could even comprehend what the video had just told him it stopped, then promptly deleted itself from his storage. A few seconds later his hands shot to his abdomen as he felt the suit around his groin shift, the material pressing tightly against him as he struggled to make his way over to the toilet. As soon as he sat down he closed his eyes and waited for the surreal sensations to pass as the rubbery material moved of its own accord between his legs. Though he couldn't tell for sure it felt like the transformation went on for minutes and at one point he braced himself against the toilet as flesh and muscle were altered by the nanites in his suit.

When the sensations finally passed he nearly collapsed in a heap on the metal floor of the bathroom, panting hard as he felt the suit absorb the profuse sweat he would have otherwise broken out into. As soon as his body stopped shaking from the overload of feeling he slowly stood up and looked down at himself. He knew that something had happened to him, but considering the location of where he felt the changes taking place he almost didn't want to know, especially since that meant putting down the camouflage of normal clothing to look at himself.

After a few minutes of fierce internal debate he decided to head back to his seat as quickly as possible, especially since he knew he was lucky he hadn't had someone demanding him to vacate the bathroom yet. After poking his head out to see if anyone was there he snuck back to his seat while avoiding as many people as possible. Sometimes it was impossible and he would receive the usual strange looks, but by this point he was starting to get used to them. He began to wonder if he could get acclimated to them enough that he could continue to live even after the hacker's changes are complete, though he wasn't even sure what exactly he would be when the transformation finished.

Once he was back to his seat he drew the privacy curtain and took a deep breath to steady his nerves before he disengaged the camo and let the suit drop back to its normal rubber configuration. When he looked down at himself he couldn't believe his eyes, not only at what happened between his legs, but the unnoticed alterations that happened to his feet. With the facade of his boots gone he saw his toes had merged into three thick, scaled digits with a sharp claw on the end of each. The black plates of scales had grown all the way up past his ankle, and now that he was able to see it, he could tell that he had been standing slightly different with his new appendages. As he tried to wiggle his feet he was struck with how surreal they looked, huge draconic paws on an otherwise human leg that made him almost look like a monster.

After the obvious change had been thoroughly investigated his sights turned towards the other present the hacker had given him. Even before he looked between his legs he could feel something was off, much like his feet everything felt slightly out of place as he looked down between his legs. What he saw was... nothing, and after he carefully rubbed his clawed hand against the patch of rubber in front he could feel the bulge it formerly contained was gone. It took a bit more exploration before he found what he was looking for, and as soon as he felt it all his shock and confusion turned into white-hot anger.

Max tried to shout but the words couldn't come to his lips as the protocols that prevented him from giving away his condition stopped him. Was it really necessary, he thought bitterly to himself as he tried to reinitialize the suit's clothing camouflage only to find the pants and shirt portion reappearing. He was already turning into some sort of strange alien creature, did it have to be a female creature as well? What was the purpose of doing such a thing to him?

The emotions he felt threatened to overwhelm him and he had to sit down to avoid collapsing on the floor as questions and possibilities continued to bounce around in his mind. The thought of how much more he was going to change disturbed him as he laid there silently, unable to do anything but think. With his body wide awake and his mind in turmoil he knew sleep wasn't going to be an option, instead he turned to whatever it would take in order to try and take his mind off the situation for the rest of the trip...