FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Author's note - Well, here it is: the long delayed and, in my opinion, suckish story that I should've had done three days ago. Anyways, I hope, but dont expect you to, enjoy this!

P.S. the next few parts I might just be focusing on the history of the two, so not too much on what's going on in the present with them. But don't worry, the Present will be focused on after all the history lessons are over. ;)

5 years earlier...

Deep in the Saharan Desert, near the heart of Africa, the barren hills of an ever-changing landscape was all that filled this near-empty picture. The shifting sands and occasional insect was all that gave hint to the passing of time, where time seemed frozen. An intense scorching came from the dancing sun overhead, with only the appearance of a cold, merciless moon. These very changes were what could drive a fur mad. For Ben, however, it was what kept him going. With only a few robes to protect him, the pain of the dry heat in the day, and the biting cold in the night, was constant, but it was all that told Ben that he was still alive. It's what kept him sane, knowing that he still had the ability to go on. During the day, Ben traveled many miles and climbed several hills, getting closer and closer to his objective. His best tool was a satellite GPS, and, after losing it awhile back, he had to resort to the simpleness of the map. This made things even more difficult. Trajectory and the changing sands were impossible to calculate without a proper tool, so Ben relied on sheer luck and a map that could be years old in only three days. He always set up camp just as the sun set, starting a fire with the small resources that he carried. His tent was close by, being heated and warmed just enough to allow survival through the night. After an hour or two of cooking, he put it out and went to sleep in a barely warm tent, shivering through the night. The desert had a way of making every second a living Hell. Ben spent weeks looking for the only piece of civilization left in a supposedly endless wasteland. A small town made out of sand, named the "Forgotten City," was his destination. And he would. His will, sense of survival, and the safety of a life that had protected him for many years, carried him. After about a month of hiking, Ben had found it. He conquered one last sand hill to peer over the only thing that looked even remotely familiar: a single line of buildings all built next to each other to create a community, and safe haven for those who needed it. After a minute of examination, it was obvious that everything was made out of sand. Every wall, every roof, it was all sand, with maybe one or two pieces of cloth flapping over a poorly carved out hole, what Ben assumed was the windows. After a minute of staring, he finally finished up the quarter of a mile left between him and his objective. When he finally entered the long line of one story buildings, he noticed that there were quite a few stalls with trading and bargaining going on. "I wonder if the entire city is one big market..." Ben thought. He took a guess that it was, since he could see stalls going down to the very end. It made Ben pity these people. They were living in the middle of a desert, the city they live in barely big enough to fit a street back in America. He held the thought and pity, until he came upon the building that he was told to enter: the only sand scuplture out here that was two stories high, with four windows, and a wooden door. He took a deep breath and approached the structure. As Ben slowly opened the sighing door, he noticed that there was a small, dark room with nothing in it. He closed the door, and waited in front of it, just as instructed. As Ben was about to give up hope that this was a lie, two armed guards appeared from a doorway across the room, holding AK-47s and covered in ammunition. "Name," one of the guards said in an almost monotonic voice. Ben's eyes flicked to the guard. "Ben. I'm here for the transaction." He was relieved that the guards told him to go on through. Maybe this would turn out quick and simple. As Ben entered the other end, he noticed a small, round wooden table with two chairs. The chair on the opposite side of him was occupied by a handsome tiger, who gave him a small smile. "Ah, so you are the one I talked to," the tiger announced with an Arabian accent. "It is good to finally meet in person. Have a seat." He gestured to the chair closest to Ben. Taking a seat, Ben was weary of any traps that may be pulled, at the same time giving off a calm demeanor. "Let's just get this over with. Is the prisoner unharmed?" the nameless tiger nodded. "As promised. You brought the money?" Ben smiled with a small part of his teeth showing. "As promised," he said mockingly, but the tiger didn't seem to notice. He picked up a tiny container hooked to his belt. It seemed small, but was quite heavy with the contents inside. He slid it across the table to the tiger, who returned another smile. "Very good.." he murmured, opening the box. His smile vanished, however, when he looked inside. "What the h-" was all he could get out before he caught Ben out of the corner of his eye, jumping from his chair to the farthest corner in the room. Just as Ben courched and ducked away, a small click was heard before the box, half the tiger, and most of the table was incinerated into nothing by a special bomb Ben rigged himself. Alerted by the noise, the two guards rushed in, guns blazing wildly towards Ben. He quickly responded by calmly pulling out a 9mm pistol and taking down the two tangos with relative ease. He got up from his crouching position and walked over past what was left of the tiger and into the next room. He had almost wished he hadn't. What was before him nearly made Ben vomit. Lying on a steel table, was the tortured, yet still breathing, body of his brother: Jake. His tail was cut off and propped up against a leg of the table, and half of Jake's left arm was gone, as well. When Ben finally worked up the courage, he shuffled closer to see that the left eyeball was missing and sand had been poured inside the pocket. "J-Jake...?" was all that Ben could say. Slowly, his other eye opened to stare into the teary-eyed face of his only loved one. "Ben... I'm glad... that you were t-the last thing I look at." He took in a deep, raspy breath, as Ben stammered. "N... no, I won't be. you'll make it Jake. Just hold on. I'll get help! I'll call in support and you'll be just fine!" Jake just grunted. "We both know... that even if they could come... it's too late. I'll be gone..." Before Ben could respond, Jake reached out with all his strength, and place something in Ben's paw. "Do me... one last favor... protect this. I... I.... love... y-..." The last of his life force had faded, and he was gone. Ben didn't know what to do, except open his hand and stare, speechless, at the one material object that Jake ever cared for: their father's rosary. Ben gripped it tightly, and stated to the cold body: "I will, Jake. It will be with me to my last stand." With that, he let one tear drop onto Jake's still chest.

Present Day

It was midnight. Dark had gently fallen over the city like a blanket, as the sun had slowly faded over the horizon. the gentle whisper of the breeze swiftly traveled through the air, colliding with buildings across the city. It was perfect everywhere, except.... Ben awoke with a start, slowly gasping for breathe as he held his chest. He blinked, coming back to reality as his hand clasped with his shirt that was a part of his civilian uniform. He felt the cross-shaped lump under his shirt and reached under it to find the rosary his brother gave to him so long ago. He recalled the dream, his memories flooding back to him. Beside him, Justin heard all the commotion and opened his eyes, to see Ben holding the rosary. "Something wrong, mate?" Justin said sleepily as he propped himself on his elbows, lying on his back. Ben gulped down his memories and smiled weakly. "N-no, nothing at all.Just... reliving the past, I guess." He put the cross back under his shirt and put his head back down softly against the small pillow attached to the sleeping bag. Justin stared at him for a moment longer, and did the same. Ben sighed and drifted back into a more peaceful sleep.

Morning came quicker than Ben wanted. He groaned as Justin shook him awake. "Hey, Ben, get up, dammit. We got to go. It's past curfew and they might come looking for us soon." Ben sat up remembering who he was, and hurried to pack his things. He took apart his personal sniper rifle and placed it in the open case at the bottom of his "bed." He rolled it up and put it under his arm with his case in the opposite hand. Ben walked quickly to the open door near them and entered it, hearing Justin slam it shut. They walked down some stairs and into another door before coming across a cat walk. Ben remembered that they were on top of an abandoned warehouse, quite similar to the one that the mob boss was assasinated in. They glided a few more feet before reaching a small hole in the floor. Ben peered downward to see the 20 foot drop and the highly unstable ladder and sighed. "Can't we at least dropped the bags?" Justin just smiled and gave him a nudge. Sighing again, he lead the difficult descent onto the first floor. He dropped about a foot to the concrete and watched as Justin was taking his time coming down. After several impatient moments of waiting, Justin finally reached the bottom and followed Ben to a car covered by a thin sheet. They sat their things down and removed it, revealing a shiny new 2011 Honda Civic. Ben grinned, seeing the shiny black exterior and chrome rims. "What a beauty..." Ben whispered to himself. Justin interrupted his proud gaze, shuffling in front of his vision toward the trunk. Ben opened it up with his key and let it fly open, coming to asafe halt on its hinges. They placed their cases and bags in the back neatly and slammed it shut. Justin walked around and entered the passenger side as Ben hopped in the driver seat. With a click of a few keys and a roar of the engine, the warehouse door was opened from a small button Justin pressed. The sleek car slowly pulled out onto the street, and revved to its destination. The long 15 mile drive back to SIO headquarters was uneventful and quiet. Ben tried to make small talk with Justin but failed after a few minutes and a quiet awkwardness fell over the car. They were both thankful when they came across the glorious skyscraper of SIO's home. The shadow entered into a small hole produced from the side of the giant metallic monster, and pulled to a stop in a dim-lighted garage. Ben and Justin exited their car and looked around to see several other unmanned vehicles, ranging from small junkers to powerful and heavily armed APCs. They left their equipment and car behind, knowing Butler would handle it. Ben stretched, knowing the boring debriefing that would come. Through the entire "we-couldn't-have-done-it-without-you" speech their commanding officer gave, Ben was recalling his dream and wondered when he would stop having that nightmare. It came to him once or twice a week, and he would go into a deep depression for the rest of the day after having it. Only Justin knew why he became that way, with everyone else avoiding his quiet rage. Even the leader of SIO, Tork Nowell, knew better than to get in his past. He was a dangerous man when he wasn't in a good mood. After debriefing, the two soldiers were given the rest of the day off to relax. They both lounged in their room, Ben listening to his iPod and Justinreading a book.Ben would always torture Justin about his love for literature."You are so boring," Ben would always say. Justin just ignored him everytime. An entire day went by too slowly for Ben, and he was glad it was over. The dream still hadn't left his head, however, and as he was brushing his teeth, he heard commotion coming from the other side of the doorway.He glanced through it just in time to see Justin taking off his clothes, changing into something more comfortable. However, he moved just out of Ben's vision on the other side of the wall before he could get a good look. Ben sighed, and finished brushing his teeth. He walked into the bedroom to see Justin already in the top part of their bunk bed, covered up by a thin sheet.He crawled into the bottom and decided to think about the gorgeous body Justin had to keep the nightmare away. Finally, after several exhausting minutes, he closed his eyes, and fell to sleep.