FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

"So what's different?" Ilaria pulled up some basic sensor readings, but looked over to her new science officer for clarity. "Last time the Earth hadn't gotten past Medieval times, so I'm guessing something's different here too. We getting radio signals, Mr...?"

"Just call me Buck please, ma'am." The large moose leaned forward in his seat as he played with the foreign holograms of his station's display. "Yep, this here rock's blastin' on all channels. Nothing lock-andKey though, if that's your point."

Ari rolled her eyes back with a smile at the moose's surprising and quite heavy Cajun accent. "No, just any signal is fine. At least they've got some real technology this time."

"Let's take a look..." Carbon stepped up to a display and simply placed his paw on a data port to the side, the device then spooling though data at an astounding rate. "Well that's... promising. Their population is about eight or nine, right Eve?"

"Nine million? That's a bit ~less~ than ours."

"No, ~billion~. There's only minute traces of ionizing radiation on the surface too." Carbon smiled to Ari and preemptively proclaimed, "This might not be so bad if this Earth wasn't forced to nuke itself to death. Fingers crossed there's no sign of the Sect here either."

"You always mention this 'Sect'." Ari hopped out her seat and paced the bridge slowly. "Who are they, Carbon?"

"The bad guys." Carbon held back a chuckle over his simplified answer and explained further. "The Sect of Xor is a group of Yangurrans that broke off from the main lineage. They believe that rather than the planet of Yangurra itself, the goddess Gaia lives inside a certain large black hole. According to Rose, they also believe that the right to worship Gaia demands worshiping her 'proper' avatar and that makes both sides is mutually exclusive."

"In other words, they're fighting a religious war over who's right and neither side can win with logic." Ari groaned as she started putting the pieces together. "Well since we have a notion of Gaia on Earth I'd assume the good guys visited us way back. They might not want to interfere, but they're concerned at least."

Carbon shut off his console and eyed Fleur wandering into the bridge with Cid in tow. "What matters is I can't find any obvious traces of the Sect here. We should grab the Ashe think-tank and ask them to guide us to a patch of oxydium. Our sensors can't detect it yet."

"I'll ring up Ellie and see what we can do."

Carbon nodded and left Ilaria to do just that, bridging the gap to his daughter in the meantime. "I guess we're safe now, but you still shouldn't have come out of the ship's core without me saying so first. What's the rush?"

"Fleur was getting scared and sick when the gravity gave out." Sydney glanced over to the video feed on Ari's console, spotting Ellie's bust talking back. "Where's the doc? We're looking for some motion sickness meds. Maybe even something for her... time of the month, if she has anything."

Ari overheard and spoke up on Carbon's behalf. "She's headed this way. I'll make sure she brings something to help."

"Thanks, Ari."

Fleur looked up from her own internal struggle and shot her eyes open once she spotted the muscular model of a moose near the front. "Magnifique... I zhink it'z not zo bad now."

Carbon shot his eyes between the two once he saw his daughter was practically drooling over the hunk. "Definitely gonna need those meds. That ain't happening, Fleur."

"Ah, damn."

"As cute as the two of you are, could I borrow you a minute, Carbon?" Ari walked over to the port windows as they were the most level with the Earth's extended horizon. "I just noticed something odd. What else is out there?"

"Uh... space?" Carbon walked over to the same windows and studied the horizon, his extended visual bracket giving him far better clarity than the captain. "I don't see anything. Curious."

"Exactly my point. I could maybe expect less stations and colony ships since there was no need for evacuations, but there's ~nothing~." Ari pulled up a lidar sensor sweep on her console and emphasized her point. "They don't even have simple satellites. What the hell would cause that? You think the Sect held back their progress too?"

"Not necessarily. You weren't around for the Space Race." Carbon pointed towards the moon. "After the first wave of bombs we went into the cold stage of World War Three, right? Well during that we were pushing extra hard for new angles of dominance, where the goal was to colonize Luna. But if they still have their whole planet here..."

"They never had a third World War. No war, no race. No race--"

Buck interjected there. "No fancy gizmos and gadgets. All those signals coming from down yonder say yes to that. Those signals we're gettin' r' simpler than butter bread, Cap'n."

"Colorful, but correct." Carbon checked with Carmine's communications station and nodded in agreement. "They're using basic short-band radio... Timed signals, too. They're still analog."

"In that case, maybe we should take it easy with the UFO sightings." Ari nodded to herself and spoke her plan as she concocted it. "And maybe we should hide our weapons and gear. We could land in a secluded area, too. Carbon's stealth suit might even come in handy."

"Think of the details and we'll settle on the game plan once we know where any solid oxydium reserves are located." Carbon turned back to his daughter and girlfriend, then dragged both out the room gently by their arms. "We should get prepared in any case. And you, missy... You need a cold shower."

Cid grinned as she helped Fleur fight the familiar instinct to pounce the nearest healthy male. "I could sure use a ~hot~ shower, Carbon. Care to wash my back?"

Carbon sighed in relief as Fleur gave up on her ogling of Buck. "...Sure. I could use some R and R before we take care of business."

Ari stood up again and issued a like-minded order to the bridge crew. "I'll take care of things here. Everyone get ready for whenever we're hitting landfall. Once we start, we might not have time to slow things down."

Trick stood up and headed for the hallway almost immediately, taking a brief moment to graze a finger against the back of Buck's neck. "I've been cooped up in here since morning. One of those showers sounds about right."

Curiously, Buck closed out his station and followed spryly behind the amphibian. "Does it ever..."

Ari drooped her head a bit and took a deep breath. "Gods, don't let this turn into high school all over again..."

A faint rapping against the bulkhead door caused Carbon to slip out of a peacefully asleep Sydney's embrace and answer the call. "Oh, Ari. You finally giving up your post?"

"Twelve hours in a chair staring at black? Yeah, I'm done for now." Ilaria sighed, then nudged her head towards the dormitory hallway for Carbon to follow and reduce their chances of waking the others. "I don't like having to pull shifts, not when someone's existence is on the line. Whatever. I'm tired."

"It's a shame the Ashes need more time to search. They sleeping for now?"

"Ours is still giving it a shot. Someone's got to force her to sleep though." Ari heaved a weighty breath and slowly stepped towards the main hallway. "Speaking of, could you take over for a minute? I forgot to call in advance, so Trick just woke up a moment ago. If you could pilot for a while and send Ashe packing, I'd appreciate it."

"No problem. All you have to do is ask."

"Well I didn't want to disturb you if you were cozy..."

Carbon looked back to the ruffled spot he previously occupied as a chilled meerkat hoarded his side of the blankets. "I'll admit, it was pretty nice. We have a job to do though."

"Thanks. Oh, the kids are still running around, so could you try to keep it that way for a few hours?" Ari slumped through the hatch to the main port hallway and rubbed her eyes. "I really need some rest for tomorrow and their... ~bedtime needs~ are a bit much for me tonight. If need be, send them Yoyo's way for all that."

"Ouch. That's a tad cruel."

Despite their efforts at masking their presence, Fleur still managed to groggily awaken and headed slowly for out the bunk room. "Excusez-moi, s'il vou plaît..."

"Need something, sweetheart?"

"Non, papa." Fleur took a quick look around in the dark and then changed her mind. "Actooelly, I am joost lookeeng for ze toilettes."

"I understood 'toilets'." Ari hushed out an answer and pointed before leaving for her quarters. "Next to the showers, Fleur."

Carbon helped out as well before heading off for his temporary posting. "In the back of the dorms, but to the left instead of right."

"Merci." Fleur groggily groaned as she walked past the various bunk rooms on the way, wishing she'd worn something more than panties and a camisole when she realized how many were left wide open. "Ah, zhis one."

Fleur indeed took the left door as instructed, immediately finding the shared toilet stalls. Each was set up in a more standard collective format, with low divider walls between units to offer a modicum of privacy but still disallow secrecy. Still, Fleur picked one in the back, ducking down as she slid down her panties and sat. The rest was standard procedure, a light tinkle and then she was ready to sneak away before anyone noticed Fleur was even out of her room. However, the simplest plans never seem to follow through.

"Shh! Don't make too much noise." Fleur poked her head over the divider of her stall and then ducked it down when she saw Trick reeling Buck into the room. "We've gotta make this quick; I'm due at the bridge."

The stud of Fleur's dreams gave Trick's neck a kiss before sitting on a nearby toilet. "Well I'd be a slight happier fella' if'n we had 'till dawn, Alex."

"Well that's not happening. I actually like this ship, and I'd like to stay on her." Trick reached down for the moose's pants and apparently freed his manhood if her sudden grin had anything to say about it. "This thing still impresses, even soft. Let me help speed things up..."

Fleur winced in embarrassment and mild jealousy as Trick crouched into the stall, the back of her head repeatedly sinking and rising over the divider. "Ah! Don't go pushin' the horse right out the gate, darlin'. You know what that tongue o' yours does to a fella'."

Trick's head poked upward as she wiped some saliva and pre-cum from her mouth. "Well you're hard, aren't you? Don't fret; I know your limits." Trick picked herself up from her lowered stance and quickly jerked her uniform's pants to her ankles. Then she straddled over Buck's hips and rested her hands on his shoulders. "Now fuck me, babe. I don't wanna walk straight after this."

"Gods, zhey're..." Fleur's heart felt like it wanted free of her chest as she watched the two, her rational mind fighting her heat's lust. Then her own paw slipped between her thighs and started stroking and prodding at her heated, dripping nethers. "Zhey won't meend eef Ee joost... join een..."

Trick sank down a bit, then Buck lived up to his name and shoved his hips upward so she took as much of his cock as her pussy allowed. "Oh fuck, babe. Keep it rough like that today."

"You got it." Buck lifted the frog to a level he knew was safe and comfortable now, then hit that mark as hard and fast as his muscles allowed. "Won't... Gods, I won't be long like this, Speed Bumps."

"You know I don't like... Ooh... like that name."

"But it's true, Bumps..." Buck gave a few angled strokes to accentuate the feeling of Trick's piercings for both of them. "Gods, they send a guy to the edge o' insanity an' back."

"Just... hold out a little more for me and I'll forgive you." Trick rolled back her eyes and gave out her legs completely now, allowing Buck to fuck her like a full-sized cock sleeve. "Ooh... Might even... finish together like--"

Suddenly Buck stopped, freezing dead at some kind of noise or sound and causing Fleur to follow suit in fear she'd been discovered. "Well ain't this a kick in tha' jewels? We gots us a peeper."

"Like I even care right now." Trick tried to get the moose started again but he held his ground, even going so far as to pull Trick closer in case their joining was exposed. "Aw, come on! I'm so close!"

"Ain't gent'man-like o' me to provoke a girl in season." Now the detection made more sense, Buck's snout winking as he craned his head about the room. "We'll be outta' yer fur in a jiffy. Jus' let us get dressed, miss."

Fleur grabbed her panties and yanked them back up, then stood and hustled to the exit. "Ee am zorry!"

Trick didn't let that slide. She grabbed Fleur by the wrist and stared her in the eyes. "You! You're the Major's girl, right?"

"Ah, don't scold the gal..."

"I've got all the right to! She should have just come out from the start, or asked to watch or something." Trick huffed and puffed a few times as she came down from her sensual high sans a proper peak. "I was ~so~ close, girl. Now you owe me a fuck, and a good one at that." She stood and corrected her pants. "And after I'm done this shift, you owe me a huge load wherever and whenever I want it, Buck. You got me, Mr. Gentleman?"

Buck sighed and nodded his head, letting the frustrated frog leave in a fuss. "Sorry, Alex. I don' mean nothin' by it, just..."

"I get it. All us girls go through that now, except maybe that human I saw on board." Trick poked her head back onto the room and nudged her nose towards the moose's groin. "At least you're backing down out of respect for a fellow woman. Might want to follow through, Buck. Settle things here and... I'll be fine with that."

"She's actually a grinning dream most the time, I swear." Buck pulled up his pants and cleared his throat. "You feelin' alright, little lady? That wasn't too much for ya', was it?"

"Je ne voulais pas vous interrompre..." Fleur caught herself speaking French without intending it, her flustered state breaking her normal posture. "Z-Zorry... Ee didn't..."

"Ah, parlez-vous français? Et vous avec un tel accent raffinée ainsi!" Buck smiled for a bit, but after a little silence he started to pout at the confused elk's expression. "Oh, am I wrong? Ya' don' speak French? Sorry, but it seemed to fit the bill..."

"Ee... Ee do speak..." Fleur blinked a few times and forced herself to get a grip on her emotions, switching to her native tongue for the moose. "<I do speak French. It's my natural language.>"

"<Oh, I knew it!>" Buck smiled once more, enough to spread his grin around the room a bit. "<That's a beautiful accent, and I'm not buttering you up there. Where're you from? Canada?>"

"<My mother was French...>" Fleur's eyes settled on the massive bulge in the moose's pants, part of her curious about what it would look like without the cloth in the way and the other disappointed she didn't take a look when she had a chance. "<We evacuated to a colony ship during the war.>"

"<Well a true Frenchwoman is like a diamond in the sand these days. I'm glad your country at least lives on in you.>"

"<And... what about you? I don't recognize your accent, and your English is as bad as mine.>"

Buck gasped and sat up straight. "<Well isn't that ungentlemanly of me? We're still strangers, and we met like this awkward way...>" The moose stood and bowed forward, pulling up Fleur's hoof for a light kiss. "<My name is Buck Rouge, and I'm from what's left of New Orleans. If ever you need a helping hoof or just a friend, I'm at your disposal.>"

"<Ah... Gods, you're charming...>" Fleur giggled to herself for a moment before her words really set in, driving far too much blood to her face. "<I mean...! Fleur! I'm Fleur! I'm... My name... is Fleur, Fleur Bloom...>"

"<My, aren't you a treat? So lovely, and with such a delicate name, too.>" Buck smirked, kissed her hoof again, and stood upright. "<It's alright. I know how a girl's heat can make her see everyone around her differently. It probably doesn't help you're in the presence of a ~wonderful~ male specimen of your own kind.>"

Fleur giggled at that comment and started calming down, her new friend's cheerful mood playing to her favor. "<Well at least I'm not the ~only~ one that thinks highly of you.>"

"<You're not exactly a pile of trash yourself, you know. You should be more confident in yourself, not cowering and hiding. It suits you better.>"

"<You really think that?>" Fleur looked down to gauge her own looks then her head nearly popped when she realized she was only wearing a matching semi-sheer string bikini and camisole, baring more than any girl should at a first greeting. "<Gods! Could you, uh...!?>"

Buck nodded and turned his gaze away, himself realizing how pitiful this moment was playing out. "<We should probably find ourselves a better venue if we're going to hold a conversation. How about...?>" Buck's eyes drifted over to read the elk's reaction, but he was promptly scolded with a grunt. "<Uh, sorry. Well... would you like to grab some breakfast, Fleur? I'll gladly wait for you to ~prepare yourself~ better.>"

"<Yes!>" Fleur almost bit her tongue at that, grumbling and trying again with a more level demeanor. "<Why yes, I'd like that. I'd like that very much.>"

Buck took a few steps and rounded the corner out the room, pausing to smile blankly at the hallway ahead rather than risk peeping on his new friend again. "<Then it's a date, my beautiful Flower.>"

"Now that I see it, I'm not so certain we're in the right spot." Ilaria opened the side hatch to her chosen landing vessel, Carbon's old orbiter unit, and poked her head out for a better look. "Ashe, you're sure we're at the right coordinates? You didn't miscalculate or something?"

"I might be blind, but the maths are strong in me." Ari grabbed her radio and clicked it down a few notches in case any of the natives were nearby. "Yep. Your telemetry says you're a mile east of the largest deposit we could triangulate."

"Oh, I thought we were to the ~west~. There's the outskirts of a city that way, so that makes more sense." Ari swirled her arm in a circle and pointed to the exit. "Everyone get ready to move out. And try to keep anything high-tech hidden from sight until I say otherwise."

Ensign Morgan picked up his rifle, then sighed and replaced it with a more concealable sub-machinegun. "You heard the lady. Small weapons only, and keep them covered. Try not to give away your armaments with odd movements either. Move out, marines."

"Off to a good start, James." Ari smiled and let the leader do his thing, instead turning her attention to her children. <You two should probably stay here until we've verified it's safe.>

<Aw! No way!> Both girls synced up perfectly in their discontent. <What if your skin gets a tear or something? You need us.>

Ari looked to the graft in question, a sheath of synthetic, furless skin covering her prosthetic arm. <If it's coming from you guys, I don't think this skin will fail on me. I know you take pride in your work.> She stretched out her arm and watched as the color of the surface dynamically changed to simulate the morphing sheen of warm brown fur. <I guess you're smart enough to look after yourselves then, if reason follows. Fine, but stay close. Agreed?>

<Yeah!>

"Ma'am... Ari...?" Trick unlocked her seat and spun it around to face the otter. "Can I tag along? I've never seen such a well-populated area."

"Damn..." Ari looked to her children, realizing that the additional burden of guarding a pilot would be too much for her. "Sorry, Alex. We need you here until we've confirmed it's safe; you're our evac flight. If things look good though, sure."

"I just knew you'd say that. Duty comes first I anyway, I guess." The frog turned to face the front again and resumed her post-flight checklist. "Call me in any case. I'll keep this bird ready to fly."

"You got it."

James hopped out the exit hatch after the last of his men, then offered a hoof to aid Ari in stepping down. "We're ready to go, ma'am. Who's taking point?"

"Nobody. Don't hold any military formations." The otter looked to her girls and revised her plan. "Well, I'll go first and my kids will be right behind me. Have a few guys follow them around just in case."

"Jenkins, Souda--watch the kids." The giraffe nodded with a smile as his offer was taken, then joined his men after guiding Ari down. "Loose and casual for the rest of you. We're just a horde of friends, not soldiers. Clear?"

"Hoorah, sir!"

"Thanks, James. Let's go." Ilaria forged a path through the lightly-wooded area until she found a paved road. She jogged ahead and held a paw up to the others when she spotted some furs in the distance. "Spread out here, into smaller groups. We're too conspicuous as a single large one."

"Aye, ma'am."

"Okay. I'm thinking we'll check out this town in pairs, reporting back every half hour with reports. Once we find the stash of oxydium, we'll--"

"Bloody hell!" Ilaria immediately spun on her heels to find a very surprised copy of her dead wife. "As I live and breathe...! No, you aren't her. You can't be her. You're the best yet, but you can't..."

"I can't be... who?"

"And of course you ~sound~ like her too! Fuck, I need my pills..." This world's native Robyn pulled out her purse and fumbled inside for two pale blue pills. "I'm sorry, miss. I'm legally bound to inform you that I'm mentally ill. I don't mean to disturb you."

"No... it's nothing, really." Ari frowned at the state of her non-wife, making note that her attire, from patterned dress to cat's eye glasses, reeked of the nineteen-fifties. Misunderstanding and intolerance likely followed suit as well, so they needed to keep on their toes. "But out of curiosity, who exactly do you think I am?"

"I used to have a... really close friend, but she died in an automobile accident." Robyn swallowed her medication and scuttled her gaze to the tarmac of the road. "I see her every now and then without my pills. Sorry to inconvenience you like this."

The others tried to hold back for the remainder of their orders, but they all were forced to continue walking so as not to raise suspicion. "Maybe you can make it up to me, then? I'm new around here, and--"

"Oh, you're one of the new engineers? I thought you were coming around ~next~ week." Robyn popped her eyes up, but shot them right back down when her brain still didn't agree on the truth they saw. "Too bad you're all for Doctor Thompson. Then again, they'll never give a nut job like me more staff."

Ilaria nudged her snout to town and tapped her ear, the others silently getting the hint to go ahead and scout. "Well why's that? I think I'd have a blast assigned to you."

"That's might' king of you... Well they think I'm crazy enough for saying the Earth rotates around the sun. But thinking we can fly into space?" Robyn sighed slowly and deliberately, the air she huffed tasting distinctly of failure and hopelessness. "Excuse me if I think we can achieve more than just a more efficient power system with his new element."

"New element? Uh... which one?"

"Really? There's another out there? Damn, we're finding more each day. You'll have to show me the papers on that sometime." Robyn pulled up some reports she'd tucked under her arm and presented them. "This ætherium stuff though, that's what we're concerned about at this lab. I understand the desire to harness it for electricity, but with that much potential output..."

"You think you can make a decent propulsion device. I think you're onto something, Robyn."

"Wait... Did I tell you my...?" Robyn looked to her bottle of pills and shrugged her shoulders. "Right. Short term memory loss with these things. Sorry."

"That sounds... horrible. I'm sorry to hear that.' Ari frowned at the squirrel's predicament, then forced herself back on track rather than down Memory Lane. "So, can I see some of this ætherium? Now I'm interested."

"You'll see it soon enough what with working around it, but... sure. It's just over there in building A-5. I was just on my way over for the day, as a matter of fact." Robyn looked around and perked up when she spotted an analog pay phone near a bus stop bench. "Just let me call my therapist before I forget. I think I'll need an appointment after this."

"Oh... I really am sorry for that." Ari inspected the ancient hardware from afar, admiring the fact that hardwired pay phones stood the test of time in this world. The video screen built into the back of the bus stop though was far more advanced, even if it was a turbocharged cathode tube design. The news broadcast on it had no sound, but the reporter looked flustered just before the signal dropped out. "Huh. Do what you have to do."

Robby scurried over to the phone and started inserting a few coins, having to search deep in her purse for another few cents in the end. "I never have enough for these things. Damn phone monopoly. Doesn't help there's terrorists destroying the lines." She smiled when the extra coin surfaced, then payed up and began dialing. "So are those your children? You guys moving into the family dorms?"

The otter looked back, groaning a bit when she indeed found her kids sans guards. "Yeah, they're ours--uh, mine." Ilaria's eyes bulged as she slipped that last tidbit, but this Robyn didn't seem to notice due to her distraction. "This is Mikhaila and this here's Michelle."

"Oh, I've always dreamed of having a little Michelle! Lucky you." The phone finished ringing and Robyn listened to the general receptionist's spiel. "Ah, for Doctor Rustfelt... Oh no, I don't have one. I'd like to book one though... Cheers. Oh yes, I'll wait..."

"Rustfelt, eh?" Ari smirked to herself and then checked on her kids, but a set of prying eyes from the bus stop seat dug beneath her pelt. "Can I help you, mister?"

A sickly-looking raccoon Ari addressed started, stalled, and rebooted a question several times, all in differing tones due to differing mental and physical difficulties. "...Normal furs don't glow. Why are you and your kids... uh...?"

"Oh, shit." Ari turned to Chelle and Mik then pointed to her eyes. <We forgot about this part didn't we, whelps?>

The raccoon dropped his newspaper on the ground and backed away slowly, only to then turn paw and run. "I'm getting the police!"

"Wait, they're ~actually~ glowing!? I thought it was just in my head!" Robyn started cowering behind the phone stand. "Bloody fuck! Stay away from me!"

Ilaria conjured a soft, blunt arrow made of nanites, pulled out her bow, and sent the makeshift blackjack into the back of the fleeing, distressed raccoon's head. "Sorry, Robby. We really need that oxydium--ætherium--whatever, and if you're all going to freak out instead of talk with us then we'll just have to take it." Regretfully Ari drew another blackjack arrow and pointed it at her beloved squirrel. "Do I really need to use this?"

"Please, no! I'll stay quiet!"

Ilaria huffed out a sigh of relief and lowered her bow, only now noticing the headlines on the dropped newspaper. "Cannibal cults? A new deadly virus? Terrorists? Damn, your world is just as fucked up as ours."

"Our...?" Robyn sat on the bench and raised her paws. "You're from another world? Like... you came here in a flying saucer?"

"Guess there's no hiding it now." Ilaria pulled her bow over her shoulder and reached for her revolver instead. "We came in a spaceship, yes. However, we're not from another planet. We're... Well, there's infinite versions of everything--"

"You're from another dimension? Like in the Starlight Zone, number two-ohFive? Oh wow!"

"And of course the Robyn on this world would be a complete geek as well..." Ari hinted for her children to come over, but they shook their heads in fear of what their mother just did to that raccoon. "Fine, have it your way. Robyn, these are our children in my world. You did have a little Michelle somewhere out there."

"What? You mean..." The squirrel leaned up close to the gargantuan otter's face. "So you ~are~ my Ari. I always ~knew~ you were the only one for me. But then..."

"Hey, we're not married here, honey. I don't ~want~ to use this, but I will." Ari held up her weapon and Robyn submitted, sitting along the far end of the bench. "Yes, I'm the fur you think I am. Didn't quite make it out whole, but I did survive that crash on my world." Ari pulled up the cuff of her pant leg a bit and revealed the mechanized replacement for her right foreleg. "It's tough, but you're the one that helped me get through it. Even if you're not the same Robyn, you deserve my respect for that."

"Oh... I don't..." Robby leaned in a bit to check the prosthetic, but kept a large margin between them this time. "So you're asking for my help? You could just barge in with that crazy technology of yours, but..." The squirrel paused as she watched the twins create bladed polearms out of thin air. "But you brought your family with you. You came in peace."

"That was the plan. We hoped your lower level of technology would mean you had no use for the oxydium and we could barter for it." Ari sighed in frustration as Chelle started teaching Mik how to use her weapon in broad daylight. <Girls, stop that. We're trying not to stand out, remember?">

"I've seen that before. Isn't that stuff for the deaf?"

Ari nodded and lowered her pistol, Robyn now appearing a lot more level-headed and in control--much like the Robyn she married. "They ~are~ deaf. Carbon says it's because of genetic incompatibilities or something and Ellie says it's just a birth defect from..." Ari shut her muzzle for a moment, then shook her head and continued knowing full well how strong the woman next to her actually was. "You... ~She~ died before she could birth them."

"Oh... I'm sorry..." Robyn hugged herself, the concept of an unnatural death now very relevantly on her mind. "I don't plan on joining her. If you'd like to speak to my boss, I'll arrange it. I just hope you won't take away my dreams with that ætherium."

"I'd never do that given a choice." Ilaria pulled out her phone and tapped on a modification that she'd installed to it so she could connect to her ship. "See this? That's the main telescope on my ship. You can't see us like this yet because of the clouds, but it's pointing at us."

"How is this screen so... small?" Robyn took the phone and inspected it first, the engineer in her going nuts. Then she looked at the video feed and compared the clouds to the view from above. "It... That really is a live feed..."

"When we're done with all this, I'll take you up there. That's a promise." Ilaria finally holstered her pistol before taking pack her phone and standing. "Whether we take away all your rocket fuel or not, I'll see to it ~this~ world's Robyn sees her dream of flying through space." She smiled to her children as she thought about doing her late wife some spiritual good for a change. "I might even share some schematics if they'll help you get back there on your own. Sound like a deal?"

"Does it ever, mate." Robby stood as well and went back to the phone, dialing for an operator since she was out of cash. "Let me set up a meeting with my boss and we'll see what we can do. He's not in the labs today, but--_ Ahguh _!!"

Ilaria saw the reaction of pure terror on her pups' faces first. She turned around with Mjolnir drawn, but froze in fear herself as red spattered in her eyes. She quickly wiped them clear enough to see, but still couldn't believe what had happened. The raccoon from earlier was holding Robyn's red-coated body and was chewing--literally eating--a chunk of her neck. Instinctively Ari pulled the trigger, placing two anti-personnel slugs into his chest and forcing him to reel backwards to the grass.

"What the fuck!?" Ari ran over and cradled her wife's replica, only to watch the life drain quickly from her eyes. "Gods! What the fuck were are you thinking, asshole!? Robyn! Don't you die on me! Not again!"

The raccoon shambled back to his hindpaws, disregarding his large wounds entirely. Then Ilaria noticed one of the shots went right through his heart, an impossible flow of blood gushing out the hole in his chest. Ari raised her weapon to fire again, but her kids beat her to the chase. Chelle formed a glowing yellow partisan out of thin air and sliced the raccoon's head clean off his body from a safe distance.

This time the monster of a raccoon stayed down, giving everyone time to think. "Michelle! What did you do!?"

<That man was a threat to all of us, mom. He was still under their influence, so I prevented his brain from having access to his body.>

Mik crouched next to her mother, formed a knife in her paw, and impaled this iteration of Robyn through the side of the head. <They're going to kill us if we don't route them first, mom.>

"'Them'? Who are 'they'?" Ari looked up, tears drenching her clothes, and saw another dozen rabid furs heading her way. "Oh, shit!"

<Precisely. There appears to be a form of small fii changing them into something odd.> Mik stood and joined her sister's side to protect their frazzled mother. <Please don't hesitate, mom. We're... new to fighting. We're scared.>

"Fuck." Ari stood and started firing at the surrounding furs. "They're not staying down! How is that possible!?"

<The fii are repairing them enough to-->

Ari watched as her pups hacked into a new target, but the more-intact opponent fought back. "Girls, no! Run!"

The twins barely pulled their weapons free of the new corpse, but were immediately attacked by another. <Mom!>

Ilaria fired a few more shots into the rabid furs between them, but couldn't clear a path. More of these 'rabids' streamed in from the direction of the town, forcing her to move or face their wrath as well. Ari tried to circle around but couldn't find an opening. Then she heard the one sound she'd hoped to never hear in her life; one of her children screamed in pain, for but a moment, before the other followed suit. The horde of rabids suddenly shifted their attention to Ilaria, apparently done dealing with the twins.

"No... No! This isn't happening! My little girls!" Ari spent the last rounds in her weapon on the nearest rabid, the very last shot hitting her in the face and dropping her limp to the ground only to be followed a moment later by the floaty contents of her skull. "You're fucking right you bitch!"

"Ma'am?" Trick squawked over the radio, scaring the ever-living shit out of the otter. "I've been made. There's two people heading my way. And did I just hear gunshots? What's the deal?"

"Lock the doors and stay tight. They're dangerous if they can touch you."

"But they just look curious to me--"

"They just killed my children. Don't let them get to you too." Ari looked around at the hopeless path to the city and abandoned her mission. "That goes for everyone else. If you can get to the orbiter do so, otherwise lock yourselves somewhere safe." She turned around and started jogging back to the shuttle, noticing the rabids weren't picking up the same pace and using the disparity in speed to reload her pistol with a large stripper clip of smaller bullets. "Trick, I'm coming to help. Then we're on rescue duty."

"Aye, captain." There was a slight pause followed by a thump. "Hurry. They're beating on the hull now."

Ari cocked Mjolnir and placed two rounds into a nearby rabid's forehead. "They won't be for long."

"Go away!" Alex curled up in a ball behind the pilot's seat of the orbiter, every now and then building the courage to check the external camera feeds. "You've eaten enough people for today! Leave me alone!"

The hull throbbed and cracked with the incessant pummeling of fur and flesh, as if the horde outside was demanding entry as one being.

"I said stop it!" Alex ground her teeth and rocked back and forth on the floor, the torment starting to get under her skin. "Please... Just fuck off already!"

The noise suddenly ratcheted up the volume in an uproar, then ceased altogether. Then the outer hatch opened and a familiar otter slipped through, slamming the door shut right behind her. "Fuck! Bastards just won't take a hint!"

"Ari! Oh ~gods~, I'm glad to see you right now!" Alex jumped to her feet and sprang towards her captain. "What the hell is going on? Those people are eating each other!"

"I... I don't know..." Once the door was latched shut, Ilaria slumped to her knees in a combination of exhaustion and defeat. "My whelps were onto something about it... before they..."

"You're crying..." The frog knelt down next to her otter friend and put a hand on her shoulder. "Wait, where's everyone else?"

"Missing. If none came back by now, they've probably holed up somewhere." Ari fell to her side held herself. "Or they're dead too..."

"'Too'? What the fuck happened out there? And where are your kids?"

"Dead... They're all dead..." Ari just let go, sobbing into her arms until her undercoat was soaked in tears. "I couldn't save them. They were right there and I just... I couldn't..."

"Shit, that's right. I forgot you... said that over the radio." Trick grabbed Ari by both shoulders and pulled her up, staring right into her eyes. "It's not your fault. It's... fucking wrong, but it was all those things. You did whatever you could, I'm sure of it."

"I don't care about that! I just want them back!" Ilaria fell into Alex's arms and cried over her shoulder. "I'm... all alone now. Robyn's dead. My children are dead. Even this world's Robyn died. What the hell am I supposed to do now?"

"Rescue the others, to start. Then we can talk about what happened. I'm here if you need me, Ari."

"No... We should wait in case anyone else makes it back." Ari gripped down hard around Trick's back, really leaning into her comforting hug. "Gods, I can't stop thinking about them... I just want to go back out there and look for them, or at least their... remains..."

"No. That's not the way you should be thinking." Alex rubbed Ari's hair and massaged the back of her neck, a trick she'd learned from her mother far too many times. "Just clear your head. Don't think about anything at all. Last thing we need is for you to start hyperventilating on me."

"But I can't! They were my life! Without them, I don't have a reason to live!" Ilaria shuddered in fear, her ragged breath rolling down Trick's back. "I don't think I can even stop thinking about them or I'll kill myself. How the fuck can I clear my head right now?"

"Shh... Just ~don't~ think. Focus on something else, like your breathing. Or focus on mine. Whatever it takes." Alex rubbed Ari's back and their embrace tightened, to the point she could feel Ari's modest breasts against her own. "I can feel your warmth all over. You're wheezing from running too much. You smell like forest too, girl--ugh. Just... observe stuff like that and you'll be calm down. Trust me."

"Gods... That won't work. I trust you and all, but my--"

Before the otter knew what hit her, Alex brought her lips to hers and tested an idea. "Mmm... Well if you trust me, just follow my--!"

Ari didn't hesitate, pressing back into another kiss immediately. Trick froze for a moment, then smiled and pressed her long , studded tongue into her captain's mouth. The two intermingled tongues for a few seconds before Ari backed off, not far enough to say 'no' but enough to show she had mixed emotions. Alex gave her a moment to choose her path, though she did sweeten her offer by cupping the bulge in the otter's jeans.

"Isn't this a fine distraction?" Trick's hand slipped beneath the lip of Ari's pants and rubbed her slit through her panties, the other of her sexes proving quite up for the task as well by how moist she had become. "I'm just trying to help. Don't think too much into it."

"I... I don't..." Ari wrapped a large paw around Trick's wrist, but started guiding her to press harder rather than stop. "Ah, screw it. This one won't count. Alex... make me feel better."

"Oh, I can do that. Pants, off." Trick slipped her slicked hand free and undid Ari's waist, then helped her scoot free of her jeans. "Been too long since I've had good pussy. Also a while since I've seen someone rock lace panties. Props."

"They... breathe a little better."

"And that cock of yours probably needs it. Impressive, by the way." Alex slid down so her face was flush level with Ari's thighs, her breath tingling Ari's folds. "You've got a knot and spade going? I didn't think otters were related to canines."

"We aren't, but my dad's one. A husky."

"Well I think spades are cute as fuck. My own little girl's still mostly... human." Trick pulled her partner's lace boyshorts clear of her crotch, then carefully teased her nethers with the tip of her long tongue. "Always wanted to go down on a pup, both ways. Whad'dya say, let me have some pussy or lick a lollipop?"

"D-Dealer's choice."

Alex smirked at that answer. That was exactly what she liked to hear. Without further adieu, she snaked nearly eight inches of slimy muscle into Ari's kitten, metal studs rippling her sensitive lips every half inch. Ilaria immediately responded by latching onto the back of the frog's head for dear life, guiding Alex further inside until she reached maximum capacity with two-thirds of her tongue still left unused.

Ari writhed and threw her head back from the feeling of fullness and the quirky bumps that rotated about. Then there was the awkward lack of expected heat, Alex's appendage actually seeming cool in comparison to ambient even though that wasn't the case. The oddities surprised her in a multitude of manners, heightening the sensations in her folds and rocketing her not just to her peak, but far over it.

"Fuck! Oh yes!" Ilaria's paws squeezed the frog close to her flower, her thighs clamping the sides of her head as her climax hit her. "Coming! Gods, I'm--!"

Alex not only let the otter have her way, but never stopped her assault on that plump, squirting pussy until those paws started repelling her back from over-stimulation. "He he... And that's why they call me Trick."

"Gods above..." Ari's chest heaved to and fro as she came down slowly from her quick climax. "That's better than anything I've ever felt down there before."

"Well I never put on the brakes. If anything could do with a lot, it's better with overkill."

"That sounds like a quote. Cheesy war movie?"

"My grandpa, and that's just as good." Trick smiled as she licked her lips, then began stroking Ari's solid cock. "Speaking of good, looks like you're still ready for action. You normally go a few rounds?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"Well damn, if you aren't a keeper." Alex slid down her own bottoms and sat in the panting otter's lap, sex grinding sloppy sex. "You up for this? We can always stop, but I'll tell you now I've got an itch."

"Oh... Yeah, but I don't have any..."

"No need, really. Hard for mammals to knock me up. Besides, I love the taste. Just pull out." Trick lined herself up and started sinking down on that spire of scorching flesh until just the tip rested inside. "Ah! H-Hot!"

"Look who's talking, ice pussy."

"I'll warm up soon. Just wait--"

A whoosh of air flushed through the cabin of the orbiter. When the source made itself known, Ilaria kicked herself back into a corner and reached for her gun. "No... No!"

"What's happening!?"

A void opened in the middle of the cabin, then with two whistles of air the twins fell through the wormhole. Chelle was barely able to move, but Mik crawled towards her mother, moaning and gasping with blood trailing behind her.

"No! You can't be one of them!" Ari held up her revolver, tears welling in her eyes as she cocked the hammer. "Please don't... make..."

Ilaria's eyes rolled back in her head as the wrong mix of endorphins and hormones paired with the blood pooling in the wrong parts of her body. "Ari!? Wait, stay with me!"

Mik trudged and slid closer step by step, terrifying the helpless pilot. Then she stopped by her mother and fell to her knees, only to reach inside her lowered jeans for her spare inhaler. With a few quick puffs Mik shed her wheezing, then turned her attention to the only other conscious person in the vessel.

"Wait... You're not one of them?" Alex held her rampaging heart and attempted to interpret the girl's odd pinching of her only three fingers. "You need something more... Something you can grab... A tool?"

Mik shook her head and nearly fell over from a sudden dizziness that wanted to overtake her. She moved her paw to her arm so her two fingers touched her skin and her thumb pressed towards the surface.

"Like a tattoo gun... or a shot. A syringe!" Trick's eyes widened as she remembered something Ari had told her earlier. "Right, you two have emergency injections. And they're... here."

Mik held out her paw as Trick searched a medical kit mounted near the front seats. Then she lost her strength, only caring to point to her sister.

"This one! Wait... formaldehyde? That's poison." Mik still insisted, nodding at the choice of injection pen. "Alright, but I'm not sure if that's a good idea."

Mik watched long enough to make sure her twin sister received her injection, then smiled as she passed out.

"Shit. Oh, she's breathing again." Alex sighed in relief, then in frustration as she realized she was not the only one awake. "Well fuck. They just ~had~ to cut us off. Am I ever gonna get laid today?" She pulled up her pants and then did the same for Ilaria, giving up on their fun now that more pressing matters came to light. "At least you have your children now, Ari."

The otter groaned as she was disturbed, as did her pups as Trick checked on each of them.

"What are you doing, Alex? First rule of sailing: Don't fuck your captain." Alex sighed again as she sat next to Ari and stared into empty space. "You just always have to fall for the complicated ones, don't you Alex?" She turned to watch the otter sleep, then smiled when Ari's eyes creepily half opened on their own. "Ha ha... But it might be worth it."