FSE

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formerly SoFurry search engine

CHAPTER 4 : That first day

The lights of Canis Major slowly started to shine as the temperature slowly rose... The thick stuffed sheets felt so comfortable, hugging the bodies of the young male mixed breed and the female Siberian Husky. They fell asleep snuggling each other that past evening in need for a warm body to sooth their anxiety.

Rika's gentle voice woke both Evos up... They had an obligation now, and they had to stick to it.

After a few minutes of stretching and yawning they got up, helped each other on brushing their fur, got dressed and went straight to the training facilities. The first step was to check their physical capabilities...

At a special room within the Zone designated for the physical training, Rika's brother was waiting for them to proceed with the tests.

"Good morning!" With his arms behind him and standing firm, a chestnut, somewhat dark reddish dog with a silky coat and yellow eyes greeted them. It was Luke, Rika's brother.

Hemi noticed that he was basically identical than Rika, but he seemed to be bigger. Also, in contrast of the light cream color that Rika had, Luke's reddish tint made him look pretty much like an Irish Setter.

"Hasky, I'm so happy you finally decided to take the training. You will prove to be a very valuable addition to the D.E Development Team. My good old friend K9 needs someone like you." Luke said smiling at her. However, he wasn't surprised that Hasky finally made the decision.

"And you..." He then walked towards Hemi, placing his hand-paws in the black dog's shoulders. "I can't believe I'm in front of my best friend's son. It's such a great pleasure, Hemi."

"K9 said that he wanted to apologize for not seeing you two for a while..." Hemi returned the affectionate contact. "And it is my pleasure also, Luke."

"Rika already told me. Don't worry about it. It's not his fault."

Luke was very happy to meet his best friend's son. But after a warm welcome, it was time to get started.

To be part of the D.E Development Team there are no special requirements. In contrast, future members that would become true D.E's would require a rigorous physical conditioning. Nonetheless, trainers had to make sure that we were healthy and strong since some tests would put our bodies to certain amount of strain; especially the ones in charge of testing the ships.

After a couple of minutes of explaining how the initial physical training would be, Hemi and Hasky stripped of their clothes and their bodies were then covered with tiny cables to measure their vital signs and muscle activity.

"It's kind of cold you know." Hemi chuckled.

"No it isn't. I actually like it." Hasky replied as Rika and Luke were finishing with placing the tiny cables all over their body.

"You have a thicker double layered coat. I don't." Hemi ranted.

"Relax; you'll be heating up in a moment." Rika said as she stuck the last cable on Hemi_._

"Ok, guys. Everything is ready." Luke informed as he checked a computer sitting next to them. "Please step on the treadmills and start walking. After a warm-up we're going to see how far you can take your bodies. We will be back in fifteen minutes."

Hemi and Hasky immediately started with the first phase of the test. Since it wasn't more than just walking, they began to talk to make time go faster.

"So, Husky and Fx... I'm curious, Hasky; last night you mentioned that one of them was part of you."

"Yes, I know that sounded weird. It's somehow complicated to explain..." Hasky replied with a sigh.

"So that means the other isn't?"

"Fx is actually... Well, he is son of someone very special for me. You see, Fx's parents were one of my best friends. As a matter of fact, my brother, Fx's parents and Husky's father, we were all a family. We met each other after the first attack and eventually ended up living in the same Zone. We were very close to each other..." Hemi noticed how Hasky's eyes filled with tears for a second while she told him about her past.

Hasky quickly wiped her eyes and regained her usual calm nature.

"Then it happened..." She said.

"The second attack, right?"

"Yes, Hemi..." Hasky made a long silent pause before continuing_._ "Many lives were lost. But I guess you already know that..." She sighed, somehow reconciled with the past events of her life.

"I do, Hasky."

"Fx's parents, Husky's father and my brother... They were all part of that loss. There was nothing that could be done... At the end, I was lucky to survive with a still unborn Husky, and a little Fx of only a few hours old."

What she was telling Hemi was something that she had been fighting to assimilate for many years. Yet, she maintained her strength. _ _

"Fx's mother... she gave me Fx in her last moments...She was trapped and it was impossible to free her. She made me swear that I would protect him until the very end. I didn't want to leave them but at the end there was no choice. They promise me that they would do whatever it took to save her and that we would reunite, but somehow I felt that was the last time I would see them... So I ran and hid into the depths of a crumbling Canis Major fighting for my life and the lives of those two... After miraculously surviving that horrific moment, I'm still fulfilling that promise... I love Fx, he's the only thing I have left from my friends."

Hasky took some air as she proceeded with her story. "You know, Hemi... Something really beautiful happened a week after we were saved by the Retcans. Husky was born... He was actually the first Evo to be born after the attack that almost ended our species. He was like a ray of light... Between a shattered Canis Major, Husky was a symbol of hope for our kind... Husky and Fx have been together since; they were raised together, so you can imagine how close they are. It doesn't matter if they don't share the same blood, they are brothers. For some reason, seeing them together makes me feel like Fx is also my legitimate son. Husky loves him so much... We are a little proud and happy family. We don't need anything else as long as we have each other."

"It was really difficult, wasn't it? I lost most of my family, but I was very young and can barely remember it. But I do understand you..."

Those were painful memories for many Evocanis. Soon they changed the conversation. That was the past, and there was nothing that could change it.

Hemi and Hasky soon changed the mood of their conversation and started talking about more casual things.

"It's funny but others always think that Husky and I are twins." Hasky chucked.

"So you two are that alike?"

"Yes. The typical black and white, blue eyed Huskies. My nose is more of a brownish color and the white pattern in my face is somewhat different, but other than that we are exactly alike."

"Well, that and OTHER things, right?" Hemi innocently joked in a goofy tone.

"Yes, obviously!" Hasky answered, letting out a playful chuckle.

"Now, Fx is a very rare Evocanis. He appears to be a spitz type dog like us Huskies, although his color pattern is very uncommon. We think he's descendant of a fox-dog hybrid. He's orange and white, with very expressive yellow eyes."

"I've read about that in the old archives. It's strange how two seemingly different species were able to produce fertile offspring. These Vulpes individuals were very alike with our Canis Lupus ancestors. Maybe there was compatibility between their genes, making it possible to breed."

"What about your family members, Hemi?"

"Well, believe it or not, even though I look like a Black Labrador, I'm half German Shepherd. My mother was a black one. My father in the other hand, he is a Golden Retriever-Yellow Labrador mix and probably other breeds that we have no idea of..."

_ _Focused on the conversation, Hasky and Hemi didn't notice that the test was almost over. Luke returned and prepared the second phase of the physical test. Hasky and Hemi spent a couple of hours putting their strength and resistance to the limits. It was no surprise that Hasky had a superior physical condition and strength due to the characteristics of our breed. Though Hemi made a good job as well... Thankfully, both passed.

Meanwhile, back in the D.E cruiser... I woke up late that morning. The reaction of the nanobots destroyed me completely that last night. Thankfully, K9 gave me those pills that made me sleep like a stone.

As I woke up I felt numb, but there was no pain anymore. The headache was gone and I was as hungry as never before. I was definitely ready for my true first working cycle at the D.E cruiser.

After rubbing my eyes for a few seconds and stretching thoroughly, I got up. I walked to a small mirror in the room to check myself. I grabbed a brush and fixed my black and white coat.

As I continued with my grooming session, I noticed my surroundings. I couldn't believe that I was standing there at the D.E Cruiser. Again, many thoughts went through my mind. Doubts started to stalk my serenity... But I knew there was no turning back.

After my coat was finally soft and tangle free, I gained strength to continue. Going back to the bed area, I found my D.E uniform carefully folded. I couldn't remember who took it off from me. As I stared at the uniform reading the letters D.E , I thought of the importance of this project. I somehow visualized our lost comrades being rescued by future D.E Squad Members; for that to happen I knew that it all depended on the success of us the test crew...

I wore my uniform once again, and headed out to duty.

As I walked outside my room, I saw Fx with the Dingo twins having a light snack at The Dome.

"I see that you guys started the day without me."

"Husky! Baby brother! Good morning! Feeling better?" Wagging his tail, Fx jumped happily to greet me.

"I'm much better. Thank you Fx." We gave each other a quick cozy hug. "Hi, Kala and Zulu." I then greeted the Dingo brothers.

The Dingoes were worried about me. They were familiar with the negative reaction of the nanobot's vaccine as Kala also went through it. Thankfully, she just slept it over like me.

Fx offered me something to eat before we started our work for that day. I was hungry, but I would settle for a light breakfast; he served me a cup of hot milk and three extra-chunky vanilla and chocolate breakfast cookies. One had the shape of a bone; the second one looked like a paw print and the last one was a smiley dog face.

While I enjoyed my breakfast I decided to talk with the dingoes about their lives at Canis Major and why they took the decision to participate in the D.E Project. This was the first time I got to talk with my new friends in a more intimate approach.

"My brother Zulu and I live in the same Zone complex than Captain K9." Kala said while munching through an energy bar with chocolate chips. "We saw how the D.E Project grew day by day. As your brother and you already know, K9 is very well know in Canis Major for working with the Retcans together with a large group of Engineering Scientists to improve Canis Major's security, as well as for the development of the D.E Project. Having him as a neighbor somehow got Zulu and I involved in all this. What started as curiosity ended up on us knowing a lot from the D.E Project. We were part of the first training group together with Anubis." Kala Explained.

I was surprised by what Kala told me. The reason why Fx and I joined the D.E Development Team was almost because of the same reason, due to the fact that Luke and Rika were heavily involved in the D.E project.

"Curiosity..." I uttered. "That's the reason Fx and I joined also."

"You know, Husky..." Zulu continued. "Like you and your brother, Kala and I didn't go through those terrible events that almost ended our species. But we were affected also... We lost everything." He said. Somewhat you could feel sadness in his tone, but also acceptance. "Like you said, we also did it for curiosity. But after a couple of weeks of being here we found out that the main reason that keeps us here is because of the Evos that took care of us after the attacks. I feel that being here ensuring the future of our kind is the best payment that we can give them for all the effort."

Zulu's words really got into me. I realized that although Fx and I still had Hasky as our own true family member, being in part of this would probably be the best way of showing her our gratitude for keeping us alive and raising us in a safe environment.

"So the first training was done in your Zone complex, right?" I asked.

"Yes." Kala now replied. "Anubis joined the training the first day that we started, but there were also other two Evos before him. They were two lovely brothers, I remember; also very good friends of K9. Their names were Luke and Rika. The ones in charge of your Zone, right Husky and Fx?"

"Yes!" I exclaimed. I instantly remember the day that Luke and Rika left to meet with their friend K9 and the Retcans. We were so excited that day. "How can I forget when they left. That's what fueled our curiosity in the D.E Project."

"That's right." Fx replied. "It was when they returned that we couldn't help ourselves to bombard them with questions about what they learned. Luke and Rika have always been so attached to Hasky that they've basically helped raising us; all we know is thanks to them. So a couple of months later we were so knowledgeable of the D.E Project that we decided to be part of it."

_ _"Talking about the D.E Training?" Andy interrupted, appearing from nowhere then sitting next to us. "Lucas, the one in charge of my Zone was always checking out for news on the D.E Project. That's what got my interest on the D.E Project."

"Lucas?" I couldn't help to ask. When he mentioned his name, I could notice through Andy's eyes that Lucas was someone very special for him. Andy never talked about his life over at Canis Major. Not that he wanted not to, but it was more likely because we never had the chance to talk about it. Besides, I've only be there a bit more than a day.

"Yes. He's..." He let out a sigh before he could continue. "Well, he and I are very close... He raised me. We came across each other the day of the last attack. I can't really remember it since I was about six months old.... Without saying a word, he made a pact. He held me tight, surrounded by what was left of that Sector... surrounded by death. It's like we promised to each other to stay alive; to stay together until the very end." Andy took a bite of his cookie. It was obvious that this was something very delicate in his life. "I really don't know the details since he is usually reluctant to discuss the subject."

"I understand..." I knew that moment that discussing about that event in his life was probably very difficult for him too.

"It's ok." Andy replied with a smile. "We can talk about those things later on our free time. Go ahead and finish that quickly guys. K9 wants us in the armory as soon as possible."

I dipped my cookies in the milk and swallowed them as fast as I could. After a few minutes, the five of us were down at the main deck. K9 was waiting for us.

"Finally!" K9 said when he saw us walk in the control bridge. "Husky, I hope you're feeling better now." He smiled at me.

"I am, K9. Thank you for your help."

"Anytime, Husky boy." He then stood up form the Captain's seat and walked towards us in serious stance. It was time to get to business. "Now... It is required that we start immediately with the armor testing. This is a crucial part for the D.E crew, as it is the first method of defense against anything that could harm their bodies directly. It also works as the primary method of monitoring each crew member individually, no matter if he or she is part of the defense squad or the exploration team. Follow me."

We followed K9 to the Armory to test the D.E armor. Once there, K9 opened a compartment where one of the D.E armors was kept. This was the first time I saw one of those in reality. K9 quickly disassembled the armor suit revealing the outer and inner layers individually.

"I need a volunteer." K9 ordered.

"It would be my pleasure to help, K9." Kala replied, almost running towards K9.

"As you know already, this is the armor suit code PX500LD. This armor is the same used by the Retcan defense forces aboard the R105 Cruiser. The main difference between ours and theirs would be its color and slight differences in its design. Other than that, it is the same suit. You have studied the basics of this suit, but I will refresh your knowledge before we do some testing. This armor consists in two parts: one being the overall suit made entirely of a reinforced, extra thick PX compound. This PX undergarment has isolating characteristics, protecting from extremely high or cold temperatures. It also acts as a retardant in case of a fire hazard, as well as having mild shock absorbent characteristics."

K9 instructed Kala to put on the inner overall suit so we could appreciate it in better detail. She quickly stripped out of her uniform and she soon turned into the first of us to ever wear the armor besides K9.

We noticed that the relatively thick suit snugged tightly around Kala's body, only her head, hand-paws, tail and paws were uncovered. This suit was charcoal black all around, with dark blood red accents in the thigh area, arms, and in the collar area.

"Sandwiched between two layers of the reinforced PX fabric, sensors run through the whole suit, linking directly to our ComPods and the ship's monitoring systems." K9 explained. "That gives us information on location, outer and inner temperature, atmospheric pressure, and it can also record forces of impacts that might affect the user. How does it feel, Kala?"

"More comfortable than it looks." Kala replied as she stretched a bit. "It's actually very flexible too. It pulls my fur a little bit, but I guess you could get used to it."

The next step would be to put the actual armor on. K9 helped Kala on putting the metallic portions of the armor, which was what really protected the user from hazards.

"This is the outer layer of the armor. It covers mainly the vital parts of our body; neck, torso, part of the abdomen, pelvis, and parts of the limbs that are easy to fracture and that could ultimately render our mobility useless. I'm talking about the lower part of the legs, paws, forearms and hand-paws, as you can see. The rest of the body is not covered by the armor plating to ease mobility."

The armor plating that formed the outer layer was molded in a way that followed most of the body contours. We could notice it was a light armor, but undeniably solid. The color finish of the metallic armor really got my attention being a very dark brownish gray with a glossy finish. The brown was visible when shined with direct light; otherwise, the armor looked almost black.

"As you already know, this metal was also a gift from our friends, the Retcans. It's called Lantracit. The special feature about Lantracit is that it can be forged in various hardness levels, keeping its resistance. It can be as flexible as plastic, or firm as steel. This is managed by controlling the distance between Lantracit's molecules, when forging it. The further the molecules are from each other, the more flexible it will be. To make flexible Lantracit, a special polymer is added to fill in the gaps between molecules. Either way, Lantracit is as hard as titanium, and lighter than aluminum. It's interesting to mention that our version of the armor has no color finish on it. Probably you thought it did, but it is in fact just a clear coat. This grayish brown that you are seeing is the real color of Lantracit, unlike the matte gray finish of the Retcan version. The metal plates of this suit also have integrated sensors."

"I'm amazed how this suit feels." Kala said as she comfortably moved around. "I thought it would be hard to move around with such a solid armor."

"It is." K9 responded. "Although no matter how ergonomic and flexible it is, it will limit your movement at some point. A couple of minutes might be needed to get used to the feel and adjust your natural movements to it. Still, as the first Evocanis tester of these suits, I must confess there will be moments were you forget you're wearing it."

K9 then grabbed Kala's arm and showed us the various integrated controls of the armor.

In the right arm we have controls that link to our ComPod, emergency signal activator, armor release control, and also two powerful direct LED diodes. At the back of the belt, we can find the docking slot for our ComPod, which is linked to a small earpiece so there would be no necessity to carry around the ComPod on our hand-paws. At the front of the belt there are another couple of LED diodes that illuminate with a broad light. Finally, in the boots, we find compartments for the E.M.P gun, and our Saber.

We spent most of the morning checking the monitoring systems of the armors, and links between them. After a couple of hours, we were all at the hangar, wearing the PX500LD suits and getting ready to test our defense weapons.

"Imagine when we get to fly one of these!" Andy said as he walked around a Wolf500, looking his reflection in the almost mirror like metallic finish that these had.

"I know. But we need to be patient. Remember that will be the most delicate and dangerous phase of our testing." Fx replied. That caught my attention.

"So you guys didn't perform any of these tests before?" I asked.

"No." Andy answered. "K9 imagined that you and Fx would like to share this moment together, so he postponed it until you arrived. That and the fact that we need to check other million things before even thinking of sitting in the cockpit of these babies."

K9 wasn't with us at that moment. He stayed back and said he needed to grab something. After a couple of minutes, he appeared in the small terrace that holds the elevator shaft. He quickly ran to us carrying something in one of his hand-paws.

"Sorry for that, crew." He said while panting. "Husky, I have something for you."

I immediately tilted my head and directed my ears to K9. His words surprised me a bit. What could he have for me?

"Here, blue eyes."_ _ K9 gave me a strange device. It looked like nothing I've seen before, but somehow I immediately knew what it was.

"These are the D.E Squad ComPods. These are way far more advanced than any communicator device you've seen. These are not made only for communicating purposes, but they are also linked to everything you see here. That means you'll have a direct link to every single system that the D.E Cruiser has. Not only that, but also to any secondary ship aboard the D.E Cruiser and especially the Wolf500 fighter that you will be assigned. Like mentioned before, it also links to your armor, serves as a tracking device, and it also has the capability of remote connectivity to some of R105's systems."

_ _"Ok... Uh, thanks." I replied confused. Was he giving this device for me to use in the ship, or...?

_ _"It's yours, Husky. I couldn't find a way to thank you guys for the effort that you're making. So I thought to give you this a little gift for participating in the D.E development Team. You and your partners can keep it even after we are done here." He smiled. I was shocked. I didn't expect something like this. This device was developed by the Retcans, and now I would be able to keep it for my entire life.

"I don't know what to say..." I stumbled in between words. "K9... thank you so much. You have no idea what this means to me. My brother and I admire you so much and now you're giving this to me. I will never be able to repay you."

_ _"On the contraire, Husky..." K9 said proudly. He approached me and places his hand-paws on my shoulders. "I am the one who admires you and your brother. Because even having a family in Canis Major, you were able to leave it all behind, and carry on with this noble mission. Trust me; it makes me feel honored to have Evos like you in my ship. Welcome to D.E1."

I felt like I wanted to cry after hearing those words from my Captain. It really moved me deeply. As I looked at this amazing ComPod device, I even noticed my name engraved in the metallic cover at the back of it. I've never felt so happy in my short life. I'm a techy Evo, so these types of gadgets always get me exited... But it was more the meaning of it what made me feel proud of what I was doing.

Any doubt that still remained in my heart dissipated completely after that. I felt so happy of being there. I felt so proud of having Kala, Zulu, Anubis and K9 as my new partners... my friends... my brothers.

Soon after the warm moment, we continued with our duties.

"Ok, so following on with what we were doing. I told you upstairs about the weapons that every D.E crewmember will carry on his armor suit. Well, we'll put them to the test right now. Follow me."

We followed K9 to the end of the runway. A portion of this was adapted as a shooing range. This would be the start of a series of tests that we would perform to our weapons throughout our stay in the D.E Cruiser.

"This was one of the things you didn't learn in the D.E training over at Canis Major. Reason is that there is still no place adapted for this." K9 said as he prepared the E.M.P gun.

_ _"So we are really going to test weapons?" I nervously asked as I saw the strange gun in K9's hand-paws.

_ _"Yes, Husky, that is our duty. I know that weapons have never been part of our species and we vaguely knew about these before meeting with the Retcans. But due to the events that almost ended our existence, there is much need for them now. Our paw held weapons are powerful, but are not as dangerous as one might think. Still, an appropriate training followed by extreme caution is needed. Let me talk to you about these defense mechanism."

The E.M.P Pistol is our primary defense mechanism. It is the same used by the Retcan defense squad. This E.M.P gun emits a powerful and very destructive electro magnetic pulse burst that affects any mechanical being, or electronic device. The E.M.P is harmless to any organic life form, but it can be somewhat hazardous. Any organic life form that would get hit by this pulse will get stunned severely. It is not fatal but it is very painful, taking up to a few hours to fully recover from the excruciating pain. The gun channels the energy of a Blue Crystal and it amplifies it, meaning that the E.M.P Gun is the only device that will drain a Blue Crystal in matter of minutes if shoot continuously. The armor holds an extra power magazine in case that this happens. But if used carefully, the Blue Crystal should last for around 600 rounds.

It felt strange discussing about these devices that were mainly used for harming others. The Retcans have a vast knowledge on these weapon devices, but they are usually against it. They explained us that some species use these things to deliberately hurt others, which we find to be very disturbing. In our case, these are used for defense purposes only, just like the Retcans do.

"And this is our secondary weapon, which is in fact the most important one." K9 said as he took another device from his other boot. It looked like just the handle of the E.M.P pistol, but after pressing a button, a large blade popped out in sections. Fully extended, it measured around a meter.

"The Lantracit Saber..." He said while wielding the short sword. "As you can see, when activating the saber it extends to measure 35 inches. What's interesting about this saber is that the blade itself is completely dull."

A dull blade... I've heard about the Lantracit Saber being dull. This was very intriguing since a blade is supposed to have at least a sharp edge.

"So you might be asking how a dull blade can be of any good." K9 said, predicting our doubts. "Inside the blade, there is an energy pulse that vibrates at a specific frequency that makes it capable of separating the molecular structure of any metal and most minerals.

In organic tissue, how ever, it does not do any damage due to the lower frequency that is needed to separate flesh and bone." He explained. We all wielded our Lantracit Sabers to have a closer look at them.

"This is our most important weapon." K9 continued. "This is an extension of our claws and fangs. This does as much damage as you want it to do. This is the type of weapon that Retcans defend the most. In the point of view of a warrior, this is the most honorable way you can defend yourselves. That is the reason why the Retcans have trained us for many years on their arts of self defense. So I will ask you that although you will probably never use it in combat, please respect this blade as if it was part of you. We will put this blade to the test as soon as we are finished with the E.M.P Pistol practice."

A couple of hours passed. We learned how to disassemble the E.M.P pistol, as well as how to properly shoot with it. We were somehow shocked. This was probably the first time that any Evo held a weapon and actually fired it. But it was for the safety of our species, and we would be for ever responsible with its use.

We tested the Lantracit Saber as well. I was amazed on how powerful that blade could be. K9 had a chunk of steel ready for these types of testing, so we used the Lantracit Saber against it. The blade was able to cut through the chunk of steel with less than half of my full strength. We also sparred with the sabers deactivated to refresh our self defense techniques.

It was a serious day of work at the D.E Cruiser, but I enjoyed it like I've never enjoyed any day in my life. I felt so much love for my partners also. And our Captain; he was an admirable Evocanis. His love for the D.E project and the dedication he had for our species was admirable. I never regretted being part of the D.E Project...