FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Phase 1, Chapter 2.

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"Who are you? And Who are you.. Talking to...?"

Kalevar felt his head begin to reel as he spun around to face the darkness, attempting to look every direction for girl who was speaking to him. It was in this moment that he realized he was unclothed, glancing down across the muscled portions of his form which he could see without a mirror. A sudden urge to take a self inventory hit him like a reflex, and he stopped imediately to run a 'diagnostic'. He appeared to be some sort of wildcat, strong and well muscled, with exceptionally thick fur. His coat was predominantly a dark grey, with a deep black coating his underbelly and paws, as well as the tips of the mane-like bangs which hung nearly over his eyes in tufted spikes. A quick test of his paws revealed sharp claws to be at his disposal should he wish to expose them. A few steps forward, balance was good. A jump next, the impact was barely stressful. A little something more, then. In a series of quick movements, the soldier darted up a portion of rusted out framework, climbing between the bars with graceful ease, leaping from one structure to the next one over with perfect accuracy, before performing a forward dive towards the floor. Rolling through the motion, he found his capabilities to feel natural.

"Kalevar? What's going on, you're showing sudden spikes of adrenaline in your system. Are you hurt??"

Turning again, Kalevar glanced around inquisitively. Nothing but shadows met his eyes. He had traveled quickly across the building, and still had caught no glimpses of movement other than his own. It was doubtful that anyone was merely playing ring-around-the-rosey with him after a manuever like that. The only viable solution appeared to be that no one was really there. Perhaps if he again tried to speak? Tilting his head lightly, some part of him felt inclined to raise a paw towards the side of his jaw as he began to call out to the darkness, feeling slightly foolish as he did so.

"No.. I'm not hurt.. Is that my name? Kalevar?"

"Thank god, I've been paging you for seven minutes.. Yes, your name is Kalevar. Kalevar Savantes. You are a soldier working for project Overseer, and I'm your partner. You can't remember anything, can you?"

"No, I can't.. Am I supposed to remember something specific? Is something wrong?"

"No, Kalevar, No. You're doing just fine. Project Overseer is a preventative measure, used to save lives preemptively. You have been launched into a new timesphere in order to complete a critical protective operation. The process used to transfer your consciousness between planes results in memory loss, which is why you have me to guide you. My name is Fayah."

"Fayah.. Alright, wait.. So you're telling me I'm a new person? Who was I before? ... A soldier... I guess that feels right."

"Yes, you were a soldier, Sir. One of the best. Seven plus years spent in service, with many accomodations to your name. You do good work, Kalevar, which is why we need you to listen and focus. Your skills are inherant, they are inside you still. Even if you don't remember much about your personal life, you will find that your physical abilities are still very much intact."

"So I've noticed.. I have a question, though. Why am I naked?"

"....You.. You're naked? Are you sure?"

"Quite."

"......"

_"Is that bad?" _

"N-no! It's just.. I've never done this before, I uh... One moment."

There was a sudden rustling of paper and the sound of what could have been a chair flipping over before the noises in Kalevar's head became muffled, as though someone were pressing their hand overtop of a microphone. Hushed voices spoke in the background, and the wildcat strained his ears to listen. A silly thing, considering it was all in his mind and there were really no noises to hear, but one tended not to think of those sorts of details when in the moment. Bits of phrases slipped through the static, enough to piece together things like 'Is he supposed to be naked?', 'What do I do?', and 'What if he's in public?!'. Blinking, Kalevar adjusted his weight on his paws before clearing his throat rather loudly. Another burst of scurrying sounds were the result, followed by Fayah's sudden stuttering.

"I.. Uh.. I'm sorry.. I had a.. uh.. Technical issue."

"You mean me being naked in public?"

"No!! I mean, well, Yes! I mean.. What?! Are you on the streets?!"

"Unfortunately, no."

"Oh, thank god... Don't scare me like that! If you get arrested for something as stupid as public indecency..."

"You have no way of controlling the law enforcement? I have no clearance?"

"No, Kalevar... Our organisation exists in theories. We have no influence outside of our own timeline, other than you. You have to be careful! You are your only backup, your only resource... You are everything."

"Sounds like a great plan."

There was no need to note upon the implied sarcasm that dripped over his last words as Kalevar began to pace across the floor of the building, taking a few moments to put all the information he had recieved together. As he explored his mind, he began to realise just how much space there was inside. Vaults and vaults, as if there had been hundreds of thousands of files of intelligence stored away which had all been erased. Carefully, he took what he had recieved and filled a few inches of space on the shelves, a pitifully meager beginning in contrast to the wealths of informative knowlege which had once dwelt there. He was a soldier, in a different world. He had come to this world to fulfill some distant purpose, a purpose which would prevent lives from being lost in his own world. The catch being that in this world he was nothing special, just your average cat off the street. No clothes, no weapon, and certainly no authority. Things were getting interesting.

"So, Fayah. I have questions for you."

"Yes?"

"What is my assignment exactly.. And what measures am I authorized to take to achieve it."

"Well, as I said... We can't technically authorize you to do anything at all, but.. Because of that.. You are at liberty to use whatever means you see fit to meet the objectives. A -- Killing a Scorpion by the name of Roman Espinoza, and B -- Keeping yourself alive and able to perform your mission."

"A scorpion... How pleasant. What's the rundown on him?"

"Let me activate your HUD... You should see his files now. Scorpion, sand, orange eyes. Responsible for one of the largest drug-rings in this part of the country. He has recently decided to stake his claim at bringing out the big guns. According to our files, in only a few weeks from the date you have arrived on, Espinoza will attempt to use his narcotics to infect the entire city's water system, lacing the chemicals with a poison. He will demand a 6 billion dollar hostage fee from our government in exhange for the cure."

"You expect me to kill a cartel in nothing but my birthday suit??"

"Information will be your greatest weapon, Kalevar. You have me, and all the intelligence we can offer on the matter. We've given you a new time and a new identity, all you have to do is put the pieces together."

"I suppose it's a start... What other files do you have?"

"I could show you yours? Perhaps it would help offer a bit of orientation."

"Alright.."

"Screening... Transferring now. Do you have visual?"

".... This can't be right."

"What do you mean??"

"The files, they're wrong. Look at me, I'm all black.. And I'm.. a dog."

"Yes. And not too bad looking for a canine, if you don't mind me sayi--"

"I'm not a canine!"

"... You're not?"

"No! I'm some sort of cat!"

"Hold on."

It was difficult work to keep from tearing his own fur out as the shuffling sounds broke out again. Shaking his head angrily, Kalevar turned his attention away from the conversation and mentally swatted the display screens off of his view. Technical difficulties aside, he knew enough details now to have a feel for what needed to go down. He was here on a hunt. Already his blood had began to boil at the prospect, pushing him to seek out this new foe and put him in the earth. The insane, violent urges almost startled the wildcat, but after a few minutes they began to feel controlled and justified. Looking around the warehouse once again, Kalever strode over to a piece of frame and began to push, the loud grating of rusted iron dragging against concrete filling the room. Once the bars were in place against the wall, he carefully made his way upwards, climbing to the top in order to look out of the broken windows which lined the upper walls of the building. Quietly as he could, he knocked the remaining glass away, peering over the edge to look downwards at the street.

It was night, that much was certain.. From what he could gather in the low-light, this was your average city. Skyscrapers loomed in the distance, and the smells of smog and cigarette smoke were easily distinguishable on the air. The ambience of traffic could be heard in the distance, though the area he was at seemed to be largely run-down. Lights flashed a few buildings across, where a lineup of what could only be clubs and bars began a few blocks away and trailed off into the darkness. All in all, the setup was excellent. With the dark alleyways as concealment, he could get away with almost anything if he kept it silent.. And when the only company you had was a handful of clubs down the way, it was doubtful that anyone would think twice about an unclothed stranger. Smirking now, the wildcat gripped a portion of iron bar and swung down to the floor. A quick descent from his little tower, and Kalevar was out the side door of the warehouse, trained pawsteps moving swiftly but silently into the street. What he needed was...

"Whoah-ho, man! Someone was drinking tonight! Haha! Had a bit too much, hey buddy?"

... That. Kalevar turned to find a brutish hyena snickering away at him. There was a half-empty bottle of beer in the canine's paw, and sharp eyes quickly found that there was also a knife tucked into the waistline of his jeans. Now, it wasn't that Kalevar was embarassed to be found naked, nor was it that the hyena had managed to offend him... No, where this particular animal had gone wrong was in being roughly the same size as the wildcat he was giggling at. The fact that he was intoxicated, smelled like a dumpster, and had visible holes over his veins from the use of needles only helped Kalevar feel less guilty about what was about to happen next as the canine began to rub up against him.

"Ehehehe.. Hey Man, hey.. You're pretty well built, there. Whadd'ya say we find ourselves an alley and have a little--"

The words were cut short as Kalevar brought his knee up sharply to strike the canine's ribs, his paws grasping for the man's wrist and quickly snatching the bottle from his grasp before flipping the brute over his shoulder. In a combat speculation, this was a poor tactical choice. He should have prioritized taking the man's knife over controling his paw. However, the situation at hand was more than simply life and death. Stealth was an inherant factor, and as such, the last thing Kalevar needed was the sounds of shattering glass echoing down every street. Having winded the hyena he removed his target's ability to cry out or call for help, by gaining control of the alcohol container he had dampened unwanted sounds. The brute reached for his weapon as he choked on his own throat for breath, only to have his arm pinned roughly against his own stomach by a strong hindpaw as Kalevar stomped on his elbow joint. Kneeling quickly over his opponent, Kalevar proceeded to bend the hyena's arm into a submission point, wrapping his own free arm around the canine's throat in order to squeeze shut the arteries in his neck. Slowly, he felt the fight in his victim melt away as sleep took his senses. Holding the grasp tightly for another few moments, it became safe to assume that the lack of oxygen had killed the brute. Hefting the body over his shoulder, there was a grin on Kalevar's face as he headed back to the warehouse.

"Step one in my mission to save the city... Become a murderer."

The wildcat chuckled darkly, wasting no time in patting down his prize. A wallet with a some spare cash, a club pass, and a couple IDs. A long-bladed sheath knife, a bit dull but still in decent condition. Some street-savvy jeans complete with those 'fashionable' rips that Kalevar had personally never understood, a black shirt which hugged nicely to his body, covered by a blue and black checkered button up. After dressing himself, the wildcat took a few moments to relocate the hyena's body to the back of the warehouse where the view was as obstructed by shelves as possible. Taking the IDs, he made a mental note to toss them each down a different stormdrain along his way down the streets. They were the only thing in the wallet that he couldn't use, but it just wouldn't do to leave identification on the body of someone he had killed... No.. On the off-chance that this dog was ever found, the harder it was for them to identify him, the better. Infact, on that train of thought, Kalevar deftly reached for a portion of iron bar and began to wail away at the body. The sickening crunches of bone hardly bothered him as he worked, doing as much as he could to make the face indiscernable up until a sudden voice in his head caused him to stop.

"Kalevar? What is going on? You're giving off some strange chemical patterns.."

"...It's nothing. I was just procuring some clothes, is all. Probably some slight embarassment from being naked and all that."

"Actually, these readings indicate pleasure, or satisfaction... A bit of an exhibitionist, are you?"

"Eh, yeah... We can go with that."

Kalevar breathed a bit easier after the initial exhange, glad he had been able to lie his way past that one. It would have been awfully difficult to explain that he had just beaten a man to death for the clothes on his back. Another soldier might have understood, perhaps.. But a civilian scientist who already was building herself a reputation for being a little fragile? Not so much. Better to live by the code of 'what Fayah doesn't know won't hurt her.'

"So, you have some clothing then?"

"Yes. And I got a membership pass for one of the local hotspots.. I'm going to go check it out, see if I can dig up any information."

"Oh.. Wow. Already with a plan and everything? I guess you really are an assassin."

"Don't read too much into it... In all honesty it fell into my lap. Or rubbed up against my crotch, more accurately."

"...Do I want to know?"

"Probably not.. Disregard."

"Well, good. I'm going to cut out my comm-link for a while then, and let you work.. Before you start getting into the thick of things, though, I should tell you that you don't have to speak out loud to me. You can think to me. Just make sure you have your psionics keep a good toggle on the filter, because something tells me you really don't want me to hear everything that crosses your mind."

"....It's not on now, is it?"

"No, not yet. It naturally rests in the off position unless you tell it to do otherwise."

"Excellent. Thanks for the tip. I'll get moving, and let you know what I find. Kalevar out."

"Copy that... Oh, and one last thing. In this world, the real you still exists. That's why you've been assigned a random form, to help you blend... So you may want to think about using a different name as well. It would be best. Fayah Out."

Now that had been a piece of information that might have been good to know beforehand, really. He had already gotten into the habit of responding to his name again. What would he call himself? Maybe he could just choose a nickname or something... A street name. He'd work on it along the way. Straightening out his shirt and stuffing his paws lightly into his pockets, the soldier looked himself over for a moment before stepping out into the open once again. The clubs glinted and flashed temptingly in the distance, and already he could feel the fur on the back of his neck beginning to bristle with anticipation.

"Time to hunt myself a drug lord..."