FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Okay. This one's set in a different universe from all the stories I've posted so far... It's one I really like and would like to develop further, so unlike most of my scraps, this one may get revised/reposted at some point, but I haven't worked on it in a while. Lots of language and race play in it, as you'll notice. Fairly short, and cuts off before anything too exciting happens, but hopefully it's a fun one... I would like to finish this someday, and do more writing in this universe.

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Dominic was _not_having a good day.

"Look, Mister Nigrelli," he began, placatingly. "There's nothing I can do about it. Your vessel's been impounded, it's illegal for us to release it without a dedicated capacitor for each drive unit. You must understand--"

The richly-dressed raptor took off on another tirade, and Dominic sighed and nodded empathetically, struggling to avoid visible exasperation. He glanced off to the right, where Nigrelli's hovercraft sat forlornly, two of its four engines in pieces under the stubby wing. The lower half of Maurizio's solid reptilian body stuck out from under it as well, legs crooked and spread, his blue jumpsuit greasy with spatters of clear coolant. He rolled forward on his sled, catching Dominic's eye and grinning.

"...absolutely _no_reason why I can't have a six-stage hybrid capacitor managing both engine lines, it's got almost double the throughput of a standard model!"

"I'm sorry, sir, but the regs clearly state - "

"To hell with the regs! It's my hovercraft and I'm willing to take the risk of it blowing up."

"The regs are as much for the protection of other pilots as your own, sir," Dominic said disarmingly, throwing another glance toward the wing. Maurizio was watching with an air of amusement; to the irate raptor he would look as though he was tightening a bolt, but Dominic could recognize a stalling mechanic. He offered the most beseeching expression he could muster.

Maurizio grinned and redoubled his bolt-tightening.

"Ass..." Dominic muttered, low enough that Nigrelli wasn't likely to hear.

"I demand you release my vessel at once!"

Seeing his opening, Dominic attempted a remorseful grin. "I'm sorry, sir, but that's not something I can do; even if we put it back together for you, it wouldn't run. Your immobilizer cards are already up in the office with the paperwork. If you want them back you'll have to talk to my boss."

"I think I'll do just that! And I'll be sure to tell him what I think of his..." his eyes swept down the tiger's jumpsuit-clad body, seeming to slice through it to the fur beneath, and returned. "...hiring decisions."

He stormed off. Dominic grimaced. You couldn't win them all.

With a sigh, he tramped back over to the right wing to help Maurizio, who was now re-loosening the bolt he'd just tightened. "Thanks a lot."

"Anytime, ol chap!" the saurophaganax replied cheerily, working the filter off the rightmost engine's intake. "Right tailhole, wunne?"

It took Dominic a second to interpret the reptile's thick accent; Maurizio was from the southwestern part of the country, and the tiger's Castilla was still pretty weak. He could usually make sense of the carnivore's lilting Istriao, but when Maurizio started lapsing into his native dialect he couldn't keep up.

"Aye, that he was."

"Rikar's not gonna be happy with ya, when he gets through with tha'."

"No, likely not," the tiger replied shortly.

"He di'n call you nothin, did he?" the perceptive reptile inquired. "Cause if so I'll - "

"No," Dominic interjected, and both fell silent, focusing on the engine. When Maurizio had it well in hand, Dominic started on the inner engine, which had the cladding removed, but little else.

Twenty minutes later he was tugging on a stubborn power coupling. "Blasted foreign piece of shit," he growled, giving the engine a kick with his booted footpaw.

"Need a hand?" came a voice, lighter and softer than Maurizio's.

Dominic looked up, and found himself looking at a tall, somewhat slender herbivore with striking copper eyes. "I thought you weren't in today?" he asked, somewhat suspiciously.

Aureliano smiled. "All right, I guess I'll just trip on home, then..." He turned.

"Dammit. Get back here. Yes, I need a hand. Thank you," he grated, as Aureliano took hold of the engine's mounting and pulled. The tiger pulled on the cord, and the frozen coupling suddenly snapped, sending the tiger sprawling on his ass.

Aureliano started laughing, as Dominic shook the stars from his ears and looked at the ruined cable in his paw, and the coupling still wedged into the engine block, which he'd now have to pry out and replace. Hopping over the wing, he stood over the tiger and offered his paw; Dominic took it and stood up.

"Stupid fucking spawn of a putrid whore's slimy cunny..." Dominic spat in Saxon. His native tongue was safe to curse in with impunity; none of the other mechanics spoke any of the english dialects. He gave the engine a much sharper kick, making it rock on its stays.

"Woah, easy there, micul meu tigru," Aureliano said softly. "Don't want to have to replace the whole thing. Ricardo would kill you."

"Rikar'd what?" Maurizio asked, returning and wiping his forehead, before lifting the outer right engine clear out of its holster. He set it down, dusted his paws off, and then noticed the tiger's frayed cable end. "Ah, cripes. Here, kid, let me handle it, I'm good at getting these out."

Dominic willingly backed away; the saurophaganax took to prying at the frozen coupling and muttering challenges to it. "I'm going on break, Mauriz'," the tiger growled.

"I'll come with you," Aureliano said immediately, and the two paced through the general commotion of the shop's operating floor, out the large overhead door at the rear, and into the spare parts lot, which was deserted at the moment.

Aureliano pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his jumpsuit pocket and offered. Dominic hesitated, then accepted - he rarely smoked alone, but more often socially, and after the day he'd had...

The brachiosaurus lit both their smokes, took his first puff, looked out over the dusty lot and chainlink fence, topped with razor wire to deter thieves. In a low voice, he said, "'Got somethin I think you'll like at home."

"'Nn?" Dominic questioned.

"Couple new shots I posted. Good ones. I think you'll like 'em."

The tiger blinked, slowly exhaled. "Really?"

Aureliano grinned. "Now, don't be poppin' one here, but yeah. Figured it's been a while since my last ones, and you sure liked those, so..."

"Yeah," the tiger replied slowly.

"Do you..." Aureliano glanced around surreptitiously, lowering his voice even more. "Do you... ever jack off to them?"

Dominic looked at him; his eyes were burning; he was leaning in and breathing with a slight, imperceptible roughness. "Yeah. Course I do. Why'd you think I liked them, cause they were artistic?"

Aureliano grinned slowly. "I figured." He hesitated, and then murmured, "T-tell me I have a big cock..."

"You do..." Dominic growled, low and sensuous. "It's fucking huge..."

The brachiosaurus inhaled, swallowed, and was about to reply. Then, the chainlink gate to the lot clattered as one of the other mechanics stomped in, and both males looked away from each other, quickly.

"Got a light, bros? I'm all out," inquired the portly Proceratops.

Aureliano hesitated, then nodded. "Sure." He held out his cigarette, and the other reptile lit his from it.

"Thanks, man."

Dominic glanced to the brachiosaurus. Aureliano was blushing delicately, and seemed to be avoiding his gaze; he didn't say anything for the rest of their break. When they went back in, he promptly disappeared, as though he had never approached in the first place.

The tiger sighed, unsurprised, and returned to help Maurizio with the left engines. Aureliano was an odd guy. It was clear that he liked the little game he played with mammal, in person and online, but every time Dominic tried to imply something further, he promptly closed up, protested that he was straight, that he wasn't interested (though Dominic had seen his jumpsuit tenting more than once, whenever this happened and they were alone). He either had some identity issues, or some very specific fetishes. Dominic had tried to introduce him to the idea that anyone could be a 'friend', that a few extra y chromosomes between them didn't mean they couldn't have some fun... but Aureliano had never bought it, and the tiger, to be honest, had come to think he never would.

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Aaaaaand that's all I have. I do really want to finish this - I made freaking isogloss maps for the dialects. Yes, all the languages are based on real languages, mostly romantic languages, as my european friends will probably recognize, but I think it's fair to say the languages in this story are not necessarily mutually intelligible with their real-world equivalents... just 'familiar-sounding burbles of whut', like someone speaking with an accent and slang that you can't quite figure out a single word of, but other than that it all sounds right. Continents are different, too. So much worldbuilding!

Anyway, I think that's all I'll post today. I'll see you guys in two weeks, and I do apologize for the continuing dearth of FA updates.