FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

PLEASE NOTE: Much time has passed since the last chapter. It will be a little confusing in the beginning, but it will all make sense soon enough.

Mike awoke to the sound of tornado sirens. He sat up in his bed and looked at the clock; five minutes before his alarm was set to go off. He knew there was supposed to be a storm today, but he didn't think it would be that bad. After putting on his robe, Mike walked out to the living room to find his mom watching the news on TV.

"It's just a warning for severe storms, no tornados." Mikes mom said to him without turning to look at him.

"Since when did they start doing that? Oh well, I'm going to take my shower now." He didn't get a response. Things between Mike and his mom were still a little rocky. Both because of what he became and because he didn't think his family would except him.

Showers took much longer now, what with all the fur. Mike doesn't mind though because it's the only time he can relax and just think. Drying off is the biggest pain in the ass though. As he stepped out of the shower, Mike was greeted by a flash of lightning followed by a clap of thunder. It sounded close.

"Should be a fun drive to class..." Mike thought to himself before getting dressed and heading to the kitchen. As Mike popped a pair of pop tarts into the toaster, he chuckled a little at the shear simplicity of it. Thinking back to the months he lived in the wild, such luxuries almost seemed unnecessary. Breakfast was quiet except for the thunder, and before long Mike grabbed his backpack and headed for the door.

"I'm going to class now mom." Mike called from the door.

"Mike wait." Mike turned in time to receive a big hug from his mother. "I'm so sorry. I'll always love you, no matter what you look like. I want you to always remember that."

Mike was shocked. His mom was way into religion, and he never thought he would hear what he just did. But he quickly regained his composure and returned the hug fivefold. "Thank you mom. You have no Idea how much that means to me." The stood there in the door holding eachother for a few moments before his mom let go.

"I should let you get to class. Have a good day." She said, looking close to crying.

"Thanks mom, I will." Mike said as he turned to leave.

The drive to his campus wasn't too long, only 20 minutes or so. He was going to a small community college now, just taking a few classes while waiting to see if he could get back into his old university. This was another time Mike could get lost in thought for a while. He plugged in his iPod, started Led Zeppelin III, and did just that. He thought back to the last few months; how he got to where he is now. With Tom being able to "transmute" steel and iron objects so that they could affect the soul stealers, the two of them started an all-out offensive against them. For a while it didn't seem like they were getting anything done. They would kill one, only to find another one latter. That went on for a few weeks, but soon they began to be the target of the soul stealers. Things got a little hairy at that point, they weren't prepared for defensive combat, but they managed to survive. That isn't to say they didn't have their fair share of close calls. Both of them nearly had their souls ripped from them.

Finally, a few days after the two of them became the targets, the higher-ups of where ever the soul stealers came from decided enough was enough and opened a portal directly to Earth. They began pouring out at an alarming rate, spreading all across the globe to collect power then return to kill the two of them. Tom realized that if the soul stealers succeeded and launched their attack as planned, he would be killed, and no one else would be able to stop them. Without a word, tom manifested and took off towards the portal. That was the last time Mike saw him. Whatever he did, it must have worked because within an hour, the portal closed and all traces of the soul stealers vanished. Well, that's not entirely true.

It's unknown if they have to follow some kind of code, or if it is just the mechanism of how they get their power, but each and every soul stealer had to grant the person the sub-conscious wish before stealing their soul. As a result thousands of people were found dead in their homes, cause unknown. However, even more, possibly millions, were left alive with their wish granted. Many of those people didn't last long either. Many were given powers that were abused for personal gain. Soon martial law was called into effect. The military didn't hesitate to shoot the "freaks."

However, a very high number of people, like Mike, were furries at heart, and as a result were turned into anthros. These people received lots of ridicule. It could be compared to how gay people were persecuted, except you couldn't hide it even if you wanted to. There were beatings, murders, and worse. As a result new protective laws were drafted. Even still, Mike decided to stay in hiding a while longer. Finally though, he decided he didn't need to hide anymore. He found a pay phone and called home. That was the hardest thing Mike had ever done in his life. The pain in his family's voice, yet the sheer joy that he was alive... It's something Mike never wants to do again.

When Mike returned home, things didn't go over very well. His dad answered the door and literally said, "Who the hell are you." Then he noticed his son's car in the driveway. The look Mike saw in his dad's eyes when he looked back at him first showed happiness relief. But they were quickly replaced with disapproval and disgust. His dad merely got out of the doorway to let him in, not even a welcome home. There was a welcome home banner hanging from the wall in the living room, but no one said anything. Mike simply walked across the house to his room. He found everything just as he left it all those months ago. He dropped his bags and laid down and went to sleep, quietly crying to himself.

Mike was snapped from his day dream by a bolt of lightning just up the street from him. He had driven almost all the way to class without even realizing it. He hoped he hadn't ran any red lights or anything. As he rounded the last corner and pulled into the parking complex, he got a few dirty looks from a few other students. As he parked and got out of his car Mike heard them say some un-kind things from across the structure. His tail twitched in annoyance, and he turned to them.

"If you have something to say to me, say it to my face!" he yelled to the two students.

The shock on their face was apparent, and Mike heard one whisper to the other, "He heard that?"

"What, you think these ears are for show? Of course I heard you!" With that he turned and headed to class.

Mike was fortunate enough to have an anthro for a professor. It ensured that the class kept their mouth shut, but only in class. Mike always got an earful in the hallways, whether it was meant for his ears or not. Luckily the woman who sat next to Mike was very nice and didn't mind in the least. As he came in and sat down, she jokingly mentioned that he would smell like wet dog by the end of class if he didn't dry off. He chuckled and pulled a small towel from his backpack.

"I guess I could have brought an umbrella, but that wouldn't have been as funny now would it?" He got a smile in return and began drying his hair. The professor, a hyena, walked in and began class shortly after.