FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The light of the rising sun cast its ember glow upon the wagon, causing the human driving the cart to shut his eyes a little as he rode towards it. With a grimace he pulled on the harness, encouraging the horse to ride faster, earning a neigh as they bounced over a small pothole in the muddy road, the clouds of rain from the night before slowly dissipating to clear their view. The dragon inside the back of the cart hit his head against the bar from the bump, causing him to widen his eyes suddenly with a groan. He looked around himself as he blinked them open, yawning loudly as he realized he was still in his cage. He squinted his eyes against the sun and the human leading the cart, looking over himself with a sigh of annoyance, finding his green plated scales almost bland looking without his armor that he always wore to cover it. He had gotten so used to being a war machine that the thought of acting like anything else seemed foreign to him, but of course, he would learn to accept his new position in time.

The night before had gone by fast, Malachite's mind focusing primarily on what his future would possibly be like without having his weapons and duties to protect the council. It hadn't taken long for someone to take notice of him online, quickly purchasing him and shipping him off to his location. Apparantly the elf who had bought him was quite rich, living in a house well outside the protection of The Elven Council, Although Malachite asked more about him they only told him his knowledge of this elf was as good as his. All they seemed to care about was getting money and bringing protection to where it was needed, whether that be to protect or for the owner's pleasure, both of which Malachite was uncertain.

It was also in the facility where his armor and mechanical weapons were removed, the special war equipment he'd been familiar with for almost all his life torn away from him, stripping him from all source of his power he once had. There were some things that they let stay, like the ability for him to harness the Life Essence within him to shoot lasers from his eyes as well as channeling the energy between his claws to act as an electric pulse. Other than that, he was only left with natural abilities like his claws and horns to use. The idea for his weapons to be taken away so that he could better protect and guard his new owner seemed almost counterproductive to Malachite, but knowing the threat and worry that would then put forth if their pets had deadly weapons that could overthrow their masters did seem to calm his annoyance, knowing that the elves did have a point.

Another bump in the road caused Malachite to shift his attention to the forest they were entering, noticing thick vines curling around many of the trees in this area, the dark brown wood creaking a little in the morning breeze as the horse ran down the beaten dirt road. It was then that through the trees Malachite could make out something in the distance, a big structure made of stone from the looks of it.

After only a few moments of traveling through the thick forest they reached a path strewn with stones and pebbles, causing the rest of the ride to become a little bumpier than he would have preferred, leaning onto the front of the cage for stability as he admired the building in front of him as it came into view.

What he once thought to only be a small house turned out to become a mansion, rising up to the treetops, vines, and moss climbing the walls and circling around the fence wiring that blocked out people from the outside. The cart stopped for a moment as well, scanning the path of stones that circled the building before walking the horse along the edge of it, letting Malachite take in the earthy scents of the place. Already something seemed to seem off about it all, an old mansion in the middle of the woods, but if he had the money to buy him then, sure enough, things weren't as bad as the looked. It was then that the human suddenly halted the cart, stopping at the gate, jumping off it to open the door before both of them, as if on cue, creaked open, the iron rubbing against stone causing the human to flinch while Malachite barely noticed.

As the doors slowly opened it revealed a long stone path leading down a courtyard, a stone fountain in the middle, lush green trees growing with fruit hidden just within the gates of the courtyard. This caused Malachite to be taken aback for a moment, watching as the human slowly opened the door to his cell and let him out, not bothering to try and tie a rope around him for a leash as he knew Malachite would follow anyways.

> UNNATURAL PLANT BEHAVIOR DETECTED > SCANNING SURROUNDING AREA...

It was then that he looked around the inner courtyard, focusing on all the oddly lively growth, knowing that just outside the gates were dying trees. His green sensors ran across the garden, taking longer than normal before returning to him with a strange answer.

_ > DETECTING SIGNATURES OF DARK MAGIC WITHIN RADIUS OF BUILDING _

This only left him more confused, keeping his claws extended in case something went wrong, the presence of dark magic causing him to become alert. It seemed as though the human had no idea something seemed off and instead approached the two large wooden doors calmly, Malachite at his side while the human brushed off the dirt on his clothes and took a deep breath.

Then, without another word, the human rapped his knuckles against the door loudly, looking down at the handle along with Malachite following his gaze, noticing two V's for handles, meeting in the middle to form a W when they were closed. The human then muttered, looking over to the cyborg as he spoke, "Don't worry, I'm sure this is the place." There was then a pause, tapping his boot on the ground before leaning forward to knock on the door again.

Just before his knuckle reached the door it swiftly peeked open, a head poking around the corner to peer at the two of them with his green eye. He spoke in a brisk and impatient manner, sounding like one would sound when they were interrupted by something, "What do you want? I'm trying to concentrate on important things, but your _obnoxious knocking_is keeping me from my work." He then seemed to pause, his eyes flicking over the human and then to the cyborg, widening his eyes as he let out a gasp, opening up the door a little more to ask the human, letting Malachite get a better look at him. He seemed to be wearing a matching pair of clothes, his shirt, and pants decorated with floral designs such as flowers and vines. He had a scruffy face, his skin a little pale with his beard almost entirely grey. He also quickly noticed the pointed ears on the man, identifying him as an elf. He then asked the human, glancing at Malachite, "Hmm... curious. This must be the cyborg I ordered, is it not?"

Both Malachite and the human exchanged glances before he responded, explaining to the old man, "Um, yes this is. Let's see..." He then pulled out some documents on a clipboard he'd brought with him, holding it out to him, "You are... Mr. W, are you not?"

"Well, I would hope so! If I was not then I would surely be dead by now, after all, not many get past the front door without my permission." He then looked at the board the human was holding out, tilting his head, "What is this you are holding out to me?"

"It's, um... You're supposed to sign this."

"And why should I, an outcast to the capital, be needed to sign a formal document to a city of one to which I do not belong? I do believe such things would be of no importance to them, as they really do seem to have no power over me. That is one of the reasons I live out here, you know?" The old man gave him a sly smile, watching as the human held out a pen, still pushing forward.

"Well, I'm afraid I need a signature or the council may have a problem. This is more about knowing where the cyborgs are more than anything. Like a way for the-"

"FINE, yes yes! I understand. I mean, not really at all but of course, that won't help. Here." He then reached forward as he grabbed the sheet and took the pen, holding the cap in his mouth before using his fingers to scribble on the paper. After a moment he handed it back, asking him with a grumpy huff, "There. Happy now?"

When the human took it back he seemed to be taken aback, blinking before responding with a stutter, "U-um... I don't t-think that... 'Fuck Off' was really the sort of signature they were looking for..."

"Well, it's in my handwriting, is it not?" He widened an eye, holding his hands out for emphasis, causing the human to open and close his mouth in thought. After a moment of silence, the man eventually reached into his flowery pocket, pulling out one gold coin before using his thumb to flick it into the air, catching it in his hand. "Here, I'll tell you what. I have a... 'soft spot' for people in the lower rankings of society. Take this..." He then tossed the coin to him, the human catching it with both hands, smiling brightly.

He then thanked him, with a confused and yet thankful bow, "Wow... thank you, sir!"

"It's Mr. W, but you are welcome. Now, get away from here and leave me be. I have some visitors coming soon and I think you would find their kind... most unsympathetic to you." That caused the boy to pause, holding the coin as he watched Mr. W. Then, after a moment of looking over the paper with the foul language and back to the old man, finding Mr. W's eyes to be glaring at him in warning, he thought better, bowing to him and to Malachite, leaving them without another word, walking back to the cart in haste. Malachite watched as the man finally got back onto the cart and with a pull on the harness they started off again, disappearing into the dark forest beyond.

The two of them stood there for a few moments in awkward silence before Mr. W spoke up, opening both the wooden doors wide to allow Malachite to enter, motioning with a hand, "Follow me, Malachite. I suppose I should introduce myself to you if we are to spend quite some amount of time with each other." Without waiting for any sort of answer he ventured inside, leaving Malachite to follow slowly behind, his metal paws padding softly across the stone floor. Once they both entered the doors behind them suddenly closed on their own, causing Malachite to think back to what he saw earlier.

_ > DARK MAGIC PRESENT: PROCEED WITH CAUTION _

In reaction he slowly followed the old man, feeling a little naked and unprepared without most of his weapons, ready to use them if something went wrong. In all honesty, though, Mr. W didn't seem to hold any sinister intent towards him from what he could tell. In fact, it almost seemed like he was eager to meet him in a way.

The scruffy man motioned around to the large entryway to the mansion, plush green couches with intricately designed wooden frames, lamps set on top of wooden side tables, dark grey curtains draped over the windows to dim the lighting inside the room with the yellow flickering candles and lamps being the only thing to lighten the cold stone interior. After taking a good look at it all he looked back to the man as he asked him, "What do ya think? Quite a beauty, ain't she?"

Malachite paused, noticing as he looked around that spider webs covered some of the corners of the roof and floor, a thick layer of dust along the top of some of the furniture. The elegant flower designs of the wooden couch did happen to remind him of back home in the council, but despite the familiarity it didn't help to make him any more comfortable. In fact, it seemed to make him feel a little more out of place, but he supposed he'd have to get used to it if he was to live here from now on. "It is... adequate."

He raised an eyebrow at that, reaching down to the tea set he had apparently prepared for the two of them, "Adequate? Hmm... well, nonetheless, let me introduce myself." He then held up his teacup, spilling some as Malachite began to tell he was a little drunk, his hand shaking a little as he held it out, "My name is 'He Who Rides The Waves of Deep Knowledge', but you may call me Mr. W. I'm sure you're curious as to the reason of the name, so let's just say that they used to name elves off of what they were most proficient at. Now, while that name is very flattering, I must say I am more of a mad man than anything, but I think that within madness there are but the finest amounts wisdom hidden beneath. Don't you agree?" He then took a sip, downing it in one go, some of it spilling on his shirt causing Malachite to grimace, twitching his mechanical tail as he sat beside the couch as to not break it with his weight.

Mr. W then motioned to the cup he had for Malachite before stopping himself suddenly, "Oh! Of course, robots can't drink. That would be quite counterproductive now wouldn't it, Malachite?" He then mentioned, grabbing the drink that was once the cyborgs and taking a more appropriate drink before speaking, "And, your name is Malachite, as I saw from that paper the boy persisted on me signing. I am pleased to have you here, but there are a few things I must let you know of before my 'guests' arrive." He seemed to chuckle at his own words, placing the cup of tea back onto the table in between them before standing up and walking to one of the windows beside the front door, pulling aside the curtain just enough to look through, "As I have said, some call me a mad man for I love dabbling in the old magic. In fact, some might call me a danger to others, which is why they had me outcasted from the capital and sent here. They didn't bother trying to fight me though, they were smarter than that. They knew that my power far exceeds theirs and so they let me be, free to run my experiments and projects outside the city walls where I couldn't hurt anyone. That was until I got a little... bored, you might say."

He then walked over to a paintbrush that was held on a pedestal, tossing it into the air for show as he caught it in one hand, holding it towards Malachite. "You see, inventing things is a very exuberant task that I very much enjoy, but I never have anyone to show it off to and what is the fun in that?! Here, let me give you an example of one of my latest creations." He then used the paintbrush, closing his eyes for a moment as a slow purple ember began to burn on the end of it, the sound of fire crackling filling the room as he drew a small circle in the air, the end of the brush cutting into it like a knife cutting a hole into an old shirt. It was once he finished the circle that the area within the drawn circle slowly began to ripple like water in the sea. Malachite watched closely, looking on the other side to find it was undisturbed and then back to where he drew the circle, the area of it rippling softly. Mr. W then reached a hand inside, telling Malachite, "Oh, I think one of my snakes must have broken out of its cage! What a shame! Better not look behind you..."

Malachite then spun around, expecting to see some scaly reptile standing before him, widening his eyes as another portal like a circle had opened behind him, the hand of Mr. W held out to him, his finger suddenly pressing on his nose once while the mad man laughed, "Boop! Haha, such fun! Didn't see that coming did ya?!" He chuckled like this for a good moment before retrieving his hand and walking back to the window, adding, "Ah, well I must say that we are about to have much more when my guests arrive."

Malachite then spoke up, put off by the way he acted so happy and thrilled despite the wicked grin on his face and the paintbrush in his hand. The portal he had created had intrigued Malachite greatly, he couldn't deny, but his curiosity as to his new owners 'guests' intrigued him more, "Who are these guests, Mr. W?"

"Oh, I only call them guests. Think of them as... thieves. Yes, thieves! I do believe that's what they are..." He then paused, thinking to himself before looking over to Malachite, seeming like he had forgotten he was there, "Ah! Oh, uh where was I... Oh yes! As I have said, I get quite lonely out here on my own and with no one to show my new devices to I supposed that inviting a few thieves to try and steal my treasures would be a good way to test them out. It's always so refreshing to see fresh blood splatter the garden! It is the world way of painting a canvas, as you may think of it. Or maybe that's just me..." He then suddenly peered out the window, a blinking red light on his wrist fading in and out quietly, causing his tone of voice to become much more serious, flipping the knife in his hand in excitement. "Ah, looks like our guests have arrived... Three of them. There's usually at least five of them, but I suppose this will have to do for your first night."

Malachite then stopped, looking to Mr. W as he smiled back at him, nodding to the door. The cyborg spoke up, more annoyed than anything as he realized what he was proposing, "Are you saying that I have to-"

"Guard my castle? Well, yes. I like to think of it as a way to prove yourself to me. You did fight in the military so this shouldn't be too difficult for you. Besides, I will be watching if you need help. I do love to watch them beg for mercy before I pluck out their eyes. Hehehe..." He snickered, pressing a button at his wrist as the sound of the metal gate from outside reached his ears, the button most likely unlocking it and opening as it did for them. Mr. W then turned to Malachite, looking to him and then at the door, finishing, "Take it from me, Malachite. You'll be much more happy to have something to do instead of sitting around all day, so go have fun and play with them. Do make sure they struggle though, I love seeing them squirm..."

.......................................................................................

Malachite huffed, lying on the stone floor of the living room, thinking about the last few months since he had arrived at Mr. W's mansion. It was about midnight at this time, the room only lit by the flickering of the candles, watching as Mr. W scribbled something in haste with his feather and bottle of blood that he used as ink for writing.

The last few weeks Malachite began to become more and more annoyed with Mr. W and how he would always put them in danger with his 'guests' he would invite over. The two of them would go bickering for hours about it before Malachite would simmer down, knowing he had to conform to his master's wishes. It was true that it gave him something to do, but with his main priority being to protect Mr. W, he saw inviting killers and assassins over to be a little... against the program, as you might say. Most of the thieves and assassins would end up dying to either his claws or Mr. W's spells and contraptions, making Malachite feel even more out of place since in his past life he was encouraged to save life when possible opposed to now where his owner encouraged him in killing anyone who tried to steal his possessions. But in the end, the two of them put up with each other, usually keeping to themselves unless Mr. W ordered him otherwise. As of the last few weeks though his owner had seemed to slowly be giving him less and less orders, leaving decisions in battle and what he wanted to do every day up to him. Of course, this only confused him further as he tried to explain that his purpose was to serve, not to choose, but his persistence in the matter never seemed to let up curiously.

He had even mentioned the idea of getting Malachite a girlfriend eventually, joking around about his own 'needs' as a machine. Malachite tried to explain that things of that matter were not something of need in machines, that things of that matter were more for functional and reprogramming purposes more than anything. The idea to Malachite of having what humans would call a 'girlfriend' seemed pointless to him since he really had no need for it. It would only cause a distraction for him and there was no need for something like that.

It was then that Malachite glanced back over at Mr. W, listening to him as he rambled on to himself about something, picking up his tea as he wrote. Malachite then closed his eyes, letting his metal body rest against the rough ground as he tried to rest the sensors in his eyes.

"It's peculiar."

Malachite lifted an eye open, looking over to Mr. W, the orange candle lighting him in an eerie glow. He didn't look over though, he only kept writing as he spoke. "Peculiar that you choose to sleep on the cold stone instead of the warm bed I provided for you." Malachite then looked over to his right, raising his head as he noticed the large blue pillow laid out for him, big enough for him to lay his whole body down on. Mr. W continued, "Some would think you were doing it out of spite to try and prove a point, but I believe it's something different. So tell me..." His owner then put down his feather, turning his chair around and carrying it over to where Malachite slept, putting it between his legs as he turned the chair around, resting his arms on the back of the wooden chair as he looked over it at him, "why is it that you prefer the stone to lie on?"

Malachite looked up at him, examining him as his eyes blinked and then back to the pillow, unable to think of any explanation. "I don't think of it as a preference, more that it is... a requirement of my past life. Back in the capital, we would sleep on stone such as this. It has a familiar feeling to it, as you might say."

"That it does. It feels much more like home than the plush pillow I gave you, does it not?"

"I..." Malachite paused, shaking his head as he tried to think, "My programming tells me it is the correct way to rest. I can't just change that."

"But I have told you before to sleep on that pillow, haven't I? As your new owner you're supposed to follow my commands, so why would you not?" Mr. W widened his eye, looking over him more curiously then sternly, waiting patiently for Malachite to answer.

"It... makes me feel at home. Parting with my old life was hard and with no choice but to leave I find it hard to move on and past my old programming."

"And that's your choice, Malachite. You have that freedom to choose, and that's what you're doing."

Malachite shook his head, twitching his tail in annoyance as they both often argued about freedom like this, but despite all the arguments Mr. W continued to bring it up, "I am program-"

"Stop with the damned 'programmed' bullshit. Malachite, stop thinking about your programming and start thinking about you and who you are! You continue to choose to sleep on the floor and not on the pillow like you're ordered, and that's against your programming so, in technicality, your excuse of saying 'you're programmed to act a certain way' is false because you do not act it out, am I wrong?"

Malachite huffed, looking away with a grimace, "No..."

"That's right." Mr. W then pauses, looking over his cyborg before returning back to his desk, fixing his chair as he picked up his feather again. "Tell me, do you think freedom is harmful?"

Malachite sighed, looking over to his owner as he curled his tail tighter around himself, "Freedom is the gateway to failure. As machines, we have codes that help to keep us safe, to protect us from the problem of making choices. For robots, it is seen as a disease, that once you get addicted to is you can't stop. If you never have a choice in the beginning then you can never fail."

Mr. W sighed himself, his tone of voice more solemn then Malachite had heard in a while. "Wow... Is that really what you think?" Instead of letting him answer he then continued, hardening his tone as if he realized he was letting his guard down, "If we all lived by rules and coding then none of us would be different from the other. Malachite, your choices make you who you are and yes, sometimes things may go wrong, but it's from learning from your mistakes and fighting for your freedom that you can eventually develop into the person you want to be." He then grumbled to himself, finishing as he started scribbling again on the paper. "One day you might have to choose between your freedom and coding... I may have only known you for a few months, but I know there's something more in that metal head of yours. Now... Go to sleep."

After that the rest of the night was silent, leaving the two of them together in the living room before Mr. W retreated to his own bedroom for the night. Malachite tried to wipe away the past talk, something inside him almost... longing for something... Like part of his organic parts were screaming against his wiring to do something different, but he pushed those feelings away, closing his eyes and covering himself in his wings as he slowly drifted off.