FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

With a heart full of unease, I checked the terminal again to confirm the time.

One more minute than a minute ago.

Great. I decided to count the various objects in the wormhole docking area again—a rectangular adamantine plate, two rectangular adamantine plates, three rectangular adamantine plates…

“Please stop," Tadao's irritated tone jolted me from my spiraling anxiety. It was only then that I noticed his defensive circle faintly pulsating with a soft glow.

“Oh, sorry!" I quickly realized I was the cause. “I'm… a bit nervous." Knowing I couldn't fully control myself at the moment, I activated a shield to prevent my erratic emotional waves from affecting others.

“Clearly," Tadao replied gruffly, stepping a little closer. “Just stay calm; it's not that hard."

“Of course, it's easy for you. You're not a socially awkward wolf." I clawed at my head until the screech of twisting adamantine reminded me that my erratic waves were affecting the surrounding metal. With immense effort, I stopped. “What if he hates me?"

“Oh, he's definitely going to hate you. Don't overthink it." Tadao waved a hand casually.

“What?!" My voice definitely didn't rise, and the adamantine panel falling from the ceiling definitely wasn't my fault.

“Don't overreact. It's not your fault." Tadao gestured, easily sliding the panel back into place.

“I'm calm!" I crossed my arms to emphasize my point, knowing flailing wouldn't help my case.

"What I mean is that herbivores in the Federation generally have a negative perception of carnivores. Whether it's from the information we receive or the overall atmosphere, it's normal for irrational biases against carnivores to develop. In fact, this was likely the original intent—to foster misunderstanding and intensify conflicts between the Federation and the Empire. That conflict, in turn, feeds further misunderstanding and hostility. Those who gain power from this tense status quo have no interest in change, and centuries of accumulated grievances have seeped deeply into the bones of every Federation citizen," Tadashi said calmly, slightly tilting his head and rubbing the tips of his antlers with his thumb and forefinger. "I've mentioned before how the more radical groups treat their own people with a 'carnivore preference'—and that's still relatively mild compared to worse possibilities."

“You're an expert at encouragement," I muttered, tugging at the fur on my arm. “At least your presence helps, right?"

“Yes, there's the herd instinct for safety. When I saw Tanaka senpai was there, I felt much calmer, even though I knew it was irrational." Tadao chuckled, flicking his ears. “Though there's a slight gap between deer and the savanna community, it should still help."

Noticing the space beginning to distort, I adjusted my fur and clothing, trying to appear approachable and non-threatening. Would lying on the ground with my belly exposed help? Shaking off the absurd thought, I steadied myself.

“Thanks for coming with me…" I said to Tadao, taking deep breaths to prepare for what was coming.

“It's no big deal. Mine about arrived, too," the red deer replied, glancing at his terminal.

After sending Tadao a grateful wave of mental energy, I stepped toward the platform's center, standing tall.

A rift tore through the air, warping the world and connecting two spaces. I could feel the distinctly different scent of the wind. The background revealed a nondescript room.

A visibly nervous impala stepped through the wormhole, scanning me from head to toe. He wore full khaki gear, including a matching backpack and boots. The only splash of color was a bright green rectangular badge pinned to his chest.

Two black streaks ran from his eyebrows to his cheeks, cutting across his brown eyes. A black line extended from between his horns to his snout, giving his face an intense, deep look.

Was that the right term? Deep? Not that it mattered; this wasn't a date. His outfit screamed desert camouflage—was that deliberate? The savanna? Tadao mentioned it earlier. Did Ares have savannas now? Had terraforming advanced that much? Wait, those shoulder sleeve insignias—Naval Academy. I knew that. Why did I forget? But if he's Navy, why… khaki? Shouldn't it be blue and white? Oh, right, Ares' “seas" are basically deserts with depth, so everything about naval is space-based. Speaking of which, Kotetsu has a uniform too. I wonder how he'd look in…

Focus! Focus! Focus!

“I'm Richter, the grey wolf," I said, discarding my tangled thoughts. I took a step forward and extended my hand. “It's nice to meet you!"

“Stay back!" Yamato—the impala, my junior—pressed himself into the gap between the wall and cabinet, his limbs flailing as he occasionally brandished his ridged horns in warning.

“Calm down first." I kept a safe distance to avoid alarming him further and raised my open hands in a calming gesture. “The disorientation is only temporary—"

“Don't come any closer!" he shouted, cutting off my carefully rehearsed contingency lines.

“What's going on here?" a deep voice called from behind. “Anyone watching would think you're about to eat him."

“Not the time for jokes," I retorted, sensing Kotetsu approaching. “A little help?"

“You're doing fine. Keep it up," the Altai wapiti replied with a tone that was nothing but amused.

I badly wanted to retort or at least glare at him, but Yamato's panicked yells were incredibly distracting.

“What's going on here?" A beagle approached. “Anyone watching would think you're about to…"

Frustration bubbled over, and I let out a bark that startled Robert senpai into freezing mid-sentence.

“Hello, Robert," Kotetsu said, clearly entertained as he greeted the beagle. “Are the assessment done?"

“Almost. There should only be two left when I leave, both herbivores," Robert senpai replied, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “Nothing special this year, just average."

“Can we not chatting right now?" I said as calmly as possible, suppressing my volume and keeping my tone level so as not to further agitate Yamato.

“So, what's the problem?" Robert senpai asked, his concern making me question if he had genuinely been worried earlier rather than teasing. I felt a twinge of guilt.

“It's the avoidance circle. Master Takahashi must've added some mischievous tweaks," I said, continuing to analyze Yamato's emotional state for signs of external interference.

“That was an hour ago, wasn't it?" Robert senpai asked. I nodded in confirmation. “That's unusual."

“Yes, likely a delayed adhesive effect, but I haven't identified any anomalies," I sighed, turning to Kotetsu again. “Could you help?"

“When I said you're doing fine, I meant it. His mental state isn't influenced by external waves—it's not your oversight." Kotetsu rested a reassuring hand on my shoulder, signaling me to step back. He then approached the impala. “Cadet Yamato, attention!"

I noticed Robert senpai tilt his head slightly, his ears twitching. Yamato, meanwhile, snapped to attention, heels clicking loudly as he stood rigid, fists clenched at his sides.

Before I could fully process what had just happened, details of Pavlov's conditioning experiments surfaced in my mind.

“See? Much better," Kotetsu said, flashing me a teasing smile.