FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Stone was the first to step onto the chopper bound for Neon City. A small fleet of other choppers behind his own began to load the moment his other foot left the ground. Everything Stone had done in the past reflected off the faint rising sun. One of them a promise to his foxen mate and the other a promise to President Kyle. After all was said and done Stone had gathered the remnants of his army and decided to make a move against the Forgotten. There was no turning back, no more words to parley. Not anymore. It was all action now. Rising into the air Stone took one last look around at his home. Trees swayed gently with the breeze, flowers began to bloom with the rising sun of hope. These things shown through with a sign that would stiffen his resolve. For if hope had died then what else could there be?

Within a matter of hours Neon City began to form on the horizon. Indeed it was all or nothing now. Even with so little a force Stone would do or die, there was no room to try. A sudden feeling of dread overcame Stone as he gazed upon the smoking city that somewhere amongst the chaos Tiffani was waiting for him. Reaching for a handset Stone began his rally speech:

"To all wolves under my command. Today marks the beginning of the end for the Forgotten. Expect no mercy as none shall be given. Orders are as stands: Secure a foothold on the beach and begin making a push into the city. For today we fight not only for ourselves but for the future of us all. Now for me, for those who have yet to be, but most of all for yourselves. We shall not fall."

As the group of choppers neared the coastline an array of flashes suddenly appeared in the sky above the beaches. The Forgotten knew they were coming and welcomed them in an age old custom, with AA fire. The air around Stone's helo came under heavy fire as the pilot maneuvered the helo through the growing field of plasma. Tilting to the left the pilot narrowly avoided a direct hit to the front. "Sir! We can't avoid them all. Sooner or later one of them is going to get lucky..." "Stay on your flight path!" barked Stone "I have a small surprise for those assholes." "Sir?" came the distressed pilot's voice. "Just a little closer." Stone whispered to himself. From above came a line of assault choppers, leading the way. "Steel Wolf battalion at your service. HKMs armed and awaiting your order." A sudden smile crept onto Stone's maw. "You are clear to engage. Clear me an LZ." "Copy that. Clearing LZ."

Steel Battalion began their assault on the beach, creating large gaps in the Forgotten front lines as they cut to and fro amongst the sky fire, returning ground fire with bursts from their turrets.

Pilot 1: We have runners heading for cover near the boardwalk. Pilot 2: I have eyes on. Engaging.

A single chopper breaks from the pack and drops the fleeing Forgotten with a single gun run that sent sand spraying in every direction.

Pilot 2: Targets down. (sees a single soldier still standing with a strange weapon pointed at them) What the...(radio dies out)

Stone seen the chopper explode into a cloud of blue smoke as it went crashing down into the sand.

Pilot 1: We have a downed hunter.

Peering out from the edge of the chopper Stone lined up a shot with his XRM. His once light brown right eye suddenly hued clear as he engaged his R.S.E. (Reactive Sight Enhancer). The target was a little over three hundred yards out, and moving steadily towards the hectic front-lines. "For every wolf killed..." he said, pinpointing the center mass of the aliens head before pulling the trigger. "I shall avenge." Boom. The drone came to a sudden stop as the round connected with its head sending bits of metal and energy sparks in every direction as the drone fell to the sand.

Pilot: Nice shot. Who managed that?

Stone had little time to rejoice in his triumph as the battle had just begun. A plasma round ricocheted of the hull as Stone leaned back in and waited for the chopper to get close enough to the beach for a drop.

From a chopper not too far from Stone's, Rai had witnessed the shot and nodded in approval. "Nice shot." Rai said into a handset. "Quick and clean." "(laughs) It's just like old times." joked Stone. "Reminds me of...(radio static)" Rai shot her vision to the front chopper that was spinning out of control, Stone's chopper had taken a hit and was approaching the water at a high speed.

Pilot: We have a Black Wolf Down. We have a Black Wolf Down.

Rai watched as the chopper hit the water, coming to a dead stop shortly before blowing up. Jillian's voice came over the radio, "Was that Stone's chopper?" she yelled, hoping for a different answer. "We have our orders." Rai spoke as Jillian shook her head in disbelief. "I'm assuming command and I say we continue with the operation as planned."

Rai's chopper came within a clear drop zone and stopped to hover. Kicking the rope over the edge and Rai slid down. Plasma whizzed by as she took up a covering position for the other troops sliding down. An outline appeared in the smoke and drew Rai's attention to it. A single drone came rushing out with its weapon pointed and blazing random plasma rounds at Rai, causing her to switch on her RSE. The drones figure was highlighted in red as it came forth. Plasma rounds hit around Rai as she stood her ground, waiting for an opening. Boom. The first shot from her XRM dislodged the right arm from the drone. Armless the drone kept charging. Soon a blade appeared from its forearm as it drew near to Rai's position. The drone lunged at Rai and that's when it happened. Rai dodged the blade and retaliated by tossing the drone over her shoulder, putting two rounds into the cranium before the drone got a chance to regain its footing. "You're not so bad yourself" came a familiar voice from behind Rai. It wasn't a random soldier so that meant.... Rai peered over her shoulder to see a drenched Stone carrying a wounded wolf. "Too bad you missed one.", Stone pointed out as he nodded his head towards Rai. A plasma round emerged from the smoke and narrowly missed Rai's head as it singed the fur on her left cheek. "Engaging." she confirmed, swinging her rifle around and firing a round into the smoke as another drone staggered out before dropping to the sand, head missing its left side. The area was clear for the moment as Stone gazed around the battlefield. Indeed the landings had proceeded as planned, wolves had engaged the enemy and steadily pushed towards the mainland. "We seem to have the upper paw for now." he commented. "But for how long? I mean it seems a little too easy." "'So it goes' I do believe it is said." replied Rai. "More like 'It is done. So mote it be'" replied Stone before yelling out for a medic.

While Stone waited for a medic Rai pushed further inland, avoiding the various plasma rounds and occasional explosion as she made her way to the boardwalk. In the air she could hear screams from soldiers around her area as they charged and called out hostile positions to others. Large explosions shook the general area as attack helos rocketed enemy strong points at various positions around the beach. Stopping for a moment, Rai's RSE picked up a faint outline that was almost invisible to the naked eye, an Auricon. "Auricon unit has been sighted near the boardwalk. Advise all units to advance with caution." warned Rai into her headset. "Sighting confirmed. Permission to engage granted." came Stone's voice over the distorted channel. "Will keep you updated as situation develops."

Back on the beach...

"Don't worry son. You're going to be all right. You've just been shaken up is all." said Stone as he comforted the wolf. He was shaken up alright, then he got stirred and damn near drowned to boot. "I can still fight sir." "Good." Patting the soldier on the back Stone rushed on ahead to join the assault. Along the way he pondered the appearance of the Auricon. With the battle only beginning he didn't expect to see one so soon. Within a few moments the boardwalk came into view as he rounded the lifeguard station house. There he found Rai behind the cover of a shop returning to fire to a group of drones further in. "Having trouble?" joked Stone as he hit the shop with a deep thunk that almost gave away.

Rai ducked her head back into cover as plasma rounds hit the wall she ducked behind. "Nothing that I can't handle." she yelled over the sound of wood being splintered apart. "I got three drones behind cover and..." A wolf broke from cover across the way and hit the ground hard as he was picked off by a sniper. "Sniper!" Stone yelled alerting everyone to the new threat. Switching places with Rai, Stone peered around the corner to the rooftop area before slipping back into cover. "Single sniper. Top of the roof, building to the right. About two hundred yards out." "Cat and mouse?" Stone nodded his approval. "I'll get the assholes attention. You take his ass out. On three. Ready?" Before Rai could agree Stone yelled three and ran across dodging hostile fire while Rai lined up the shot from behind cover. The action was smooth and the round was delivered flawlessly. The drone didn't know what hit it until it was too late. "Rooftops clear. Now cover me. I got something for those other assholes." ordered Stone, kneeling down to grab a grenade from his belt. Pulling the pin he shouted, "Now!". At once every nearby wolf fired randomly about as Stone lobbed the grenade over the makeshift barricade. Kaboom! The detonation leveled the barricade along with those behind it, leaving only a smoky backdrop, falling debris, and silence. The signal was then given for the others to move forward while Stone drug the wounded wolf to the safety of cover to assess his wounds. A pool of blood had developed on the outer uniform. After removing the wolf's armor Stone was able to make more sense of the damage. A rather large hole, about the size of ones paw, had made an exit wound that went clear through the other side. The smell of burnt flesh and singed fur filled the air as Stone wafted it away from his nose. "Fuck me." grumbled the wounded wolf, as his breathing began to grow erratic. There wasn't much Stone or Rai could do, only to talk to him until the end. From behind the trio came Jillian. "What have we got?" she asked inspecting the wound. "Single wound from a sniper. There's an entry and an exit wound. Subject is bleeding profusely and..." "Thanks for stating the obvious Rai. Now hush and let me get to work." Jillian applied some pressure to the wound while she rummaged through her med bag for a covering. All the while the wolf's breathing grew shallow and he placed his paw on Stone's. "No point in letting me suffer any longer." the soldier choked out amongst the coughing fits, blood seeping from his maw. Stone had seen this many times before during the War of Pride. One of the rights his soldiers had all been given were the right for an officer to stop the pain and suffering by ending it all. And now this was one of those times. Taking his sidearm from its holster Stone cocked back the hammer and waited for the signal to be given. "What are you doing!?" came Jillian's shocked response as Stone stood over her and the wolf. The soldier closed his eyes and nodded his approval. "May our father's forgive me." whispered Stone as he emptied a round into the heart of the wolf, easing his suffering once and for all. The pistol was still smoking as it fell to Stone's side, hanging there like a noose in the wind for all to see. The taking of the soldiers tags was done with a swift jerk and held up to Stone's maw. This would mark the second time he had taken a life in the line of duty that wasn't an enemy's. Each wolf lost, a son or a daughter that served faithfully and died with honor. Such is the old way of the wolf, a thing the newer generation would never understand. "I could've eased his pain." came the outburst from Jillian. "If you'd only give me a little more time. I could've..." Her words falling on deaf ears. "Mind your tongue, young one. What I done is a duty you'd never understand. Nor would you have the heart to do it should the need arise." "But.." Stone placed the tags in his left breast pocket with care shortly before regaining his composure. "There are others out there. Waiting for our help. Divided we fight. United we shall stand."