FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

„I...", a voice manifested itself in the middle of the vast nothingness.

„I... am...", a form started to take shape, hovering in the center of what was going to be the universe.

„I... am... Ulric.", the form changed into a silhouette and finally into a body. When its eyes opened, the entirety of the universe, of time and space itself rushed through them and into the mind that had formed, and overwhelmed it utterly.

The voice screamed. In an instant everything was being channeled into its mind, every particle of space, every second the universe was going to live through, every creature that would live, every piece of knowledge that would ever be known, was forced inside.

After the process was complete, the mind felt like a teacup that an ocean had just been poured into.

Of course it could not possibly hold the entirety of the raw information it had just experienced, but the amount that was left was still enough to fill entire planets of libraries with.

It was confusing for the mind to „live" at first, because time meant nothing more to it than space. Only after observing the lesser lifeforms that inhabited the universe and imitating their behaviour, it managed to channel its being into one body that wandered through time at the same speed as other life. The body it chose was inspired by the bodies it saw, but infused with a touch of otherworldliness. A menacing beast, with a wild mane that roamed one of the worlds the mind saw, served as main inspiration. Together with the giant stinger borrowed from a smaller species it formed a unique hybrid, the mind had never seen anywhere before. As it would mostly be flying through the stars, it adopted their color. With this body, Ulric travelled the universe.

In doing so he noticed, that there were other beings like him. Some chose a body that closely resembled lesser lifeforms and walked among them, using their power to manipulate them for their purpose. Others chose to live above everything else and not manifest themselves at all, so they would not have to be concerned with the frivolous quarrels of mortality. Ulric never spoke to them, as he knew, he wanted to find his own path, uninfluenced by others. He thought, that maybe that was their purpose - to find a path of their own.

That was until the day he was the one being spoken to.

„Hey there, I'm Eleana. What are you doing here?"

She was a being like him and yet, she resembled him in neither body nor character.

„I was just... that is... you see, my name is Ulric, and I travel the universe, to-",

for the first time in his existence, he was caught off-guard.

„You have no idea what you're supposed to do, right?", she cut him off.

„Well... no. Do you?", he asked her. They sat down on a small moon, that orbited a blue planet.

„Not really. I don't think anyone does."

Despite the meaning of her words being rather sorrowful, the way she said them was full of energy and hope.

That was the first time, Ulric felt truly inspired by something, or rather, someone. He decided to study this being more deeply. The body she chose was, much like his own, inspired by lesser lifeforms, but augmented with features of their own being.

„I chose this simple appearance, so I could walk with the humans, that inhabit this planet. I guess I grew rather fond of it. Looking at your body makes me feel a bit ashamed of myself though...", she defended herself.

„There is nothing to be ashamed of. Simplicity has its own unique beauty."

„Oho, so you're saying I'm beautiful?"

Ulric stared at her for a second. „No! I mean... Of course, your body looks... uhm... how do I put this..."

Eleana threw her head back in a warm laughter.

„Oh man, don't take everything so seriously! I was just pulling your leg!"

A bit confused at first, he soon joined in her laughter. She made him feel something, he could only describe as warmth, but without a source of heat.

Ulric decided to stay for a bit, to see what Eleana did with her life. Together they went down on the planet and conversed with the humans. From time to time they would go back into space, to embrace the peace and serenity of the stars. But after some time they felt compelled to go back and check on the people they got to know. These persons were no longer random members of a species, indistinguishable from their peers. They became their friends.

Living among humanity, they learned their customs and traditions. One of them was, that most humans would find a partner to spend their life with and raise children together. As Ulric and Eleana were mostly seen together, they were assumed to be such a pair. They decided to accept their roles to further immerse themselves in the culture.

They didn't know if it was usual for their species to have partners, but the more days they spent on the planet, the more they came to relish the human way of living.

Eventually, mortality caught up with them. Ulric and Eleana learned the heavy consequences of their own immortality. After some decades, they found themselves less interested in meeting new people, knowing, that their death was inevitable and they would eventually turn into dust and memories, like any mortal life. But even though they grew weary of friendships, their relationship to humanity as a whole never wavered.

Over the eons, they resorted to watching over the planet, and the stars around it, only interfering when absolutely necessary.

And while their bodily forms were no longer needed as disguises, they kept them as a reminder of the allegiance they pledged to this world.

Then one day, Eleana grew sick. It was something, that had never occured before. Not only did Ulric and Eleana never experience it before - they knew that no member of their species in any place at any time had ever gotten sick before. Having no knowledge of a cure or remedy, Ulric was doomed to watch his friend, his wife, succumb to the sickness and perish. For days, he held her dead body in his arms, staring at her with blank eyes, not able to believe what happened. Wishing she would wake up. Praying to gods he doubted the existence of.

From this day on, he never met another member of his species. He didn't know, what fate befell them. He didn't know what caused this sudden change. Who was responsible for their disappearance. For Eleanas death.

After countless days he spent alone, in somber respite, he felt more and more curious about the planet. About humanity. But it was a peculiar kind of curiosity. It was not born out of interest or boredom. He was afraid, that something bad could have happened. He felt nervous about not being able to protect them.

For the first time in his existence, he felt worried. Maybe it was the loss of his wife, that made the world they used to protect together so much more precious to him. Maybe it was the fact, that it was the only thing he had left. Maybe it was just part of growing up.

Since that day, Ulric devotes his entire life to ensure the well-being of this world.

Ulric, the Keeper of the Stars.