FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

One week after incredibly harassing trip to the Industrial planet ruled by the dragons, I was summoned by Alecto to the Central Hall on the Saturday morning. Draco announced we were heading to a new planet. I naturally volunteered to ping the planet, and after half an hour of getting ready, I pressed the teleport button, surrounded by my fellow explorers and the mostly indefatigable Silverine. After the usual half a minute of falling through the timeless blackness, I hit the ground, and opened my eyes.

What a strange landscape greeted my eyes. I was standing on a hill, but not a very big one, overlooking the rolling vistas that were covered with dark green grass that was only slightly illuminated by the red sky. The sun hung gently over the horizon, and it's feeble light cast long shadows over everything. I looked around, and saw a flock of sparrow like creatures fly over head.The temperature was fairly moderate, and the gravity was, although slightly lighter than my own planet, not uncomfortable. I spoke into my microphone.

"Atmosphere is reasonable, temperature and gravity ditto. Come on in, the sun's lovely."

"Normal people use the term 'it's fine'." Draco replied in my microphone. I planted a scanner in the dirt on the hill, and after a minute, the others were there. Salbar was still not using his own teleporter, so was currently holding onto Javid's arm. Simba pulled out a device, and ran it around in a circle.

"The detector says there is a construction about a kilometre in this direction, it might be inhabited."

"Right, I'll change into my Lambo form, and drive over there." I nodded, and, changing into my car, scouted ahead.

The planet didn't seem unfriendly, it just felt eerie, different. So like, but yet unlike. I could feel the turf underneath was hard and rocky, unforgiving. As I navigated around a bunch of rocky sections, I found out just what Simba had meant by construction.

What it was was a maze. A good thirty metres per side, there was a large entrance on this side. I skirted around it, and found the exit, and then drove back. I changed and stood at the entrance. There was a stone tablet at the entrance to one side, and it read in my language, which was strange. It was not in my language, but I found it easy to decipher. Simba spoke into my headphones.

"It is strange, but I'm reading that tablet in my own language."

"Likewise here." Javid added.

"It must be some sort of writing that triggers familiarity in all those who read it." Draco said, slowly and surely," there are many types of writings which are easy to decipher for any language, the sort of universal language."

The stone tablet said thus:

Friends, if you wander through this maze, you will find the knowledge you came to find, but not one of you can walk together. All ways lead out, but no two can walk side by side."

The others came up to the entrance soon after, and we all stood looking at the tablet. Simba looked at with interest.

"There are ten paths, six of us, we're not exactly starved for choice. I suppose it can't be too hard."

"I'm keen."Javid added. Salbar merely nodded. Draco smiled.

"I'm amazed that Alduin hasn't said anything about this. Aren't you going to join in?"

"Oh, of course, it's just I was waiting for everyone else to cast their vote... oh, ha ha ha." I finally got the lame attempt at humour. Draco smiled, while everyone else had to run it through them again.

Thus unanimous, we chose one path each, and I changed into my Reventon form as I went down my passageway. The maze was actually more difficult than it looked, and for something that looked so tiny it certainly had a lot of dead ends. Draco announced he had finished, Simba soon after. Salbar was next, and then Javid. After a further five minutes, I finally found the exit, and I stepped out, looking at my friends, who were playing a game while waiting.

The exit had ten exits, obviously each had their own seperate maze, making it ten in one small maze. Draco looked up, and his face rearranged itself in puzzlement. Salbar turned at Draco's unbelieving face, and likewise his jaw hit the ground. Simba turned, and I saw his eyes widen. Javid turned, and burst out coughing. They were looking at my entrance, and the one next to me, and as I stepped forward, I realised why.

There was a person stepping out beside me. I use the term person loosely, and the reason behind this is because the figure was in fact looking like me.

Yes, it looked exactly like me. Every pimple, every spot on my clothing, every strand of untidy hair, even the weapons across his shoulder. We were absolutely identical. The other Alduin looked at me, and his face rearranged to suit my companions. In complete tandem, we said the same thing.

"What the hell?"

I looked in disbelief.

"What is a doppelganger doing looking like me?"

"I might ask you the same question." the doppelganger replied, with equal surprise.

"Wait!" Draco shouted." Alduin?"

Both of us answered in the affirmative. Simba spoke heavily.

"It's bad, guys.One of them is a doppelganger."

"Wait,"I said," a doppelganger is a creature that can assume someone's shape, correct?"

"It's obvious isn't it, seeing as you are the doppelganger." the other me replied.

"I am not, you fraud! I'm the original."

"That's what you would say." the other me sneered.

"Stop!"Salbar shouted." Before this becomes anymore complicated than it already is, something was in the maze, and it assumed Alduin's likeness. It had to be in the maze."

"Yes." Javid replied, smiling." Alduin's been cloned. I wonder if I can have them both in bed."

"Hahahaha." the doppelganger replied sarcastically. This was bad. The doppelganger even had the same personality traits I did, the same evil laugh, the same flawed character. I spoke to Draco.

"Draco, it might be worse than that. He's got all my characteristics as well. My own, individual sense of humour, my reflexes, everything."

Simba thought on this, and spoke.

"What is Alduin's job on Earth?"

The doppelganger beat me to it.

"Grocery Assistant." he said. I was determined to win this one.

"At Woolworths Anderson's Bay." I replied.

"I work four days a week." the doppelganger said.

"Twenty eight hours per week, under the command of Marie." I added.

"So it's fairly obvious..." the doppelganger said with a nasty look at me, which I returned.

"...that he also knows everything I've done in my history and am capable of doing." I finished, looking coldy at my alter ego.

"Ah." Simba shrugged. I was busy thinking of ways to outwit this creature, but this was impossible. The creature thought like me, that's how close it was.

Draco spoke."Well, I'm not prepared to take home a potentially hostile doppelganger. Not until we sort this out can we go home." he said this firmly.

Javid looked annoyed." Alduin, you are a pain in the neck, you hear me? Both of you."

"It's not my fault." I shrugged.

"Yes it is, you made yourself look like me." the doppelganger replied.

"What is this, the room to have an argument?"

"Are you here for the five minute one or the full half hour?" the doppelganger smiled.

"He even knows my Monty Python sketches."I sighed, beating the doppelganger to the line.

"I wonder if he knows about the Goon show?" the doppelganger laughed, and put on a high pitched voice." I'll get a proper medal for this."

"You'll get a cracking up your shirt." I followed the script, smiling.It was apt, that last sentence." We were in that car."

"Oh, it's my captain all rags and no eyebrows.That's a good costume for explosives." he finished. Well, at least he had something friendly in common with me.

"Hang on, arm up, thank you." Draco ordered. We both stuck our right arm in the air. No good, both of us were wearing teleporters.

"What if both of them pressed the teleport button?"

"Either one would vanish, or both would, and we can't have a clone running around with a teleporter."

"Don't worry, Draco.I'm not prepared to leave." I said, cordially.

"That's because you can't.That's a fake on your arm." the alter ego replied.

"Oh is it? Ten pounds says you're wrong."

"The New Zealand currency is the dollar."

"Yes, but I've always used the term English pound."

"Absolutely inseperable." Salbar sighed, and lay down. I thought briefly, and then had an interesting idea.

"Right, Simba, run your scanner over us."

"I just did. Both of you have the lattice running through your bones. I'm sorry, but you are impossible to tell apart."

"Then, I shall prove it's me." I smiled, thinking fast.I changed into my Lightning form. But before Draco or any of the others could react, the other Alduin likewise changed.I changed back.

"Oh well, it was worth a shot." I sighed.

"Jumping the gun. I can do that too, because I arrived here with that ability."

I arrived here with that ability. He knows my Lightning form, and he knows my Reventon form. Is it possible that he copied everything in the maze? In that case, what if I changed my Reventon form now?There was a possibility that he would not pick it up. I sat down, and pulled myself cross legged.

"Draco, I'm going to do some yoga." I said.

"Yes, he needs to make excuses for when I unmask him." the doppelganger replied.

"I don't know which model I prefer? They're both obnoxious, grumpy smart alecs." Javid said, provoking a roll of laughter from my friends. I smiled, at this, and the doppelganger rolled his eyes in mock frustration.

The doppelganger sat beside me, and the others kept a watch on us as we sat there. I don't know what the doppelganger was thinking, but I started my routines, and concentrated on my Reventon form. It was a pity, but I was thinking I should move on from it anyway, possibly something with off road abilities.Something good on all terrain. Tracks instead of tyres, or, ah, that's perfect. I started concentrating super hard on this new form, and felt the empty place caused by the vanishing of the Reventon fill up.

After I felt wholly complete again, I opened my eyes. The sun was rising slowly, and the others were sitting there, where they had been. The doppelganger was looking at me hard, and I saw him wink.

"Give it up, you cannot beat me. I am you, you are me."

I hissed back."I am not prepared to spend the rest of my life sitting on this deserted hunk of rock you call a planet, whatever name you have. I will find a way, or kill both of us in the process."

"You would kill the original?" the doppelganger smiled.

"I never liked me anyway." I muttered, remembering the words of Mr Smith from Lost in Space.

Another few hours passed. Draco came over to us. I could feel nervous. This plan I was thinking hinged on the maze.The dragon almost seemed to be amused by this series of events. He looked at the pair of us, and spoke with a jocular tone.

"Have either of you anything to volunteer? We are quite prepared to teleport away and leave the pair of you here. Anyone coming back to Central from here onwards will be arrested.This is your last chance, Alduin and Alduin."

I scowled, and stood.

"Well, there's only the slight possibility he doesn't know my other form."I sighed.

"Why try to make your undoing any the faster?" the doppelganger smiled.

"Well, you haven't gone first yet," I shot back."If you are so clever, what is my other form?"

The doppelganger sighed theatrically, and changed.He shrunk down, grew wheels, and was suddenly there in my Reventon form. Draco sighed.I kept quiet, careful not to blow my chance.

"Well, if that's all you have to say..."

"It isn't." I smirked evilly.

I changed. My body mutated, and likewise shrunk. I was larger than the Reventon, in width, height and length, and I had no normal four wheels. Instead, I had tracks, and the huge engine chucking out one thousand two hundred horsepower roared into life. I could see from the slit directly beside the big barrel gun, and I turned around, the top of the M1A2 Abrams rotating to focus at Simba, who was looking in surprise. The doppelganger changed back into his normal form.

"Draco, this is madness. I can change into that as well."

He turned into the Abrams, and I changed back.He changed back, and I bowed.

"Dogfight?"

I changed into the Lightning, and hovered off the ground. Not to be outdone, he changed into the F-35 as well. I changed back into my bionic form just as Draco grabbed the doppelganger as he changed back.

Simba laughed." So clever, and so simple. Alduin can't change into three forms, but that Alduin just did."

"I knew he was fake." Javid laughed. The human wrapped in Draco's arms struggled, but Draco kept him firmly in grasp. Finally the doppelganger went limp in his arms.

"I surrender." he lowered his hands. Draco didn't let go.

"Why?Why were you determined to pretend to be Alduin?"

"Look around you. Do you see any other life on this planet?"

"Nothing save the birds."I acknowledged.

"Absolutely nothing." The doppelganger replied,"the entire planet is dead, and I am the last. I need no food, I need no water, but I can once every ten years imitate someone completely perfectly. Normally I can just shape change, but that doesn't give me their memories. Only this time could I do so, and the next time will be ten years from now. And that is Earth years."

"So why?"

"I want to come with you. I know about your organization, and I want to join."

"How do you know?"

"I've got his memories. As soon as I change back, I will have them no longer, but if I went to Central, I would keep all those memories related to Central."

"So you know all my darkest secrets?" I said, shuddering.

"While I am in your form, yes." the doppelganger nodded.

Terrible thought.

"But I do not wish to keep them, and I shall not. But I do wish to come to Central."

"He's quick thinking, I'll grant you that." Javid nodded.

"Wrong, I'm quick thinking, it's just he's using my abilities." I replied.

"No, I am naturally fast on my feet, like you. I had but two minutes to change myself and catch up with you." the doppelganger looked remorseful.

"Is there any other way we can tell you from someone else?" Simba asked.

"One way. Lower me to the ground."

Draco did, and I looked at his feet hard.

"They don't touch the ground." I said, surprised.

"They don't, by about a centimetre.I am unable to touch the ground in any way.Likewise the water, so I hover above it. That is the only way you could have told us apart without Alduin's cunning, by putting us both on water."

Draco let go of the doppelganger, and he started to change. Not into one of my forms, but instead into a, well, a three d silhouette of a man. Six foot tall, features, he had none. And his feet? He had none of those either, just a long black cloak like tail that stopped two centimetres above the ground.

"He looks like a spectre."I commented dryly."Do you have my memories now?"

"No." the doppelganger seemed more meek." Ask me a question."

Simba drew an item from his pocket, and held it in front of the black figure's mouth.

"What is Alduin's favourite type of drink?"

"I have no idea." the creature replied.

"Yes, he's telling the truth." Simba replied.

"Lie detector?"

"Yes, and nothing can fool it." Simba nodded. Draco spoke.

"Well, my friend, what's your real name?"

"I have no proper name, I just call myself the Polymorph."

"Ok Poly, take hold of Simba's wrist. Could you actually teleport?"

"No, that was just a bluff."

"There's something to be thankful for."

"If I could," Polymorph replied," than I would have left instantly."