FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Location: Wastelands.

Closest City: Falsetto.

Time: 13:05pm.

Year: 2180, March 13th.

It was torture; to be standing around expecting for something to happen. There's been no wind for around two days now, and I've resorted to sleeping late to make the time go by. Even then, it was so boring just sitting, standing and walking around. There was hardly any sunlight, and no wind. We even had to set up a few solar panels outside just to take in a little energy to go to the engines. It was like waiting for nothing.

I was on the stern, leaning forwards against the cold railings on the edges, though it was actually quite warm outside; so warm, in fact, that I was just wearing my grey shirt and loose grey trousers. There was no pint in wearing my seeker cloak if there was nothing to do. Elise was still inside, taking a quick shower before we had to have breakfast. I kept staring through the trench, hoping for some wind to come by and blow my hair back; at least then I'd know that we had a little hope of getting out of this place.

"God damn it." I kept muttering to myself; "How long is this going to take?"

I kicked my left foot softly against the railing, creating a small rhythm in my head to keep me occupied. I jerked around suddenly to see Elise sliding the door open, and closing it behind her whilst she walked up, traversing past the six solar panels set up. Her dark red, shoulder-length hair was a little scruffy, and she walked with a tired face on her; she looked like she hadn't had a very good night. It was impossible to sleep well with two fragile mountains above us, as well as staying still for so long. It was an uneasy experience.

"Anything yet?" Elise asked bluntly, coming out of the maze of panels. I could see that she was wearing a baggy white top with a long, loose pair of white trousers to go with it; she was also wearing a white pair of boots with stripes running along it.

"No light, no wind, no power." I replied bluntly, returning to the railings and trying to strike up a conversation; "So I guess with everyone else out of the way, there's only us two and The Director left, right?"

"Yeah." Elise muttered loudly, joining me at the railings and looking down the trench; "It's odd; everyone is out of the way, but we still end up being delayed."

Elise started to laugh at her own joke; I joined her and laughed along for a few seconds, until we both stopped and continued looking down the trench. All we could do is keep ourselves entertained and busy, otherwise we may just lose our heads. I turned my eyes to Elise and simply admired her. She was very laid back, cool headed and patient; I was calm and collected, but my patience was always a little limited -this situation being a prime example of how patient I really was.

"So what are we going to do once we arrive in Falsetto?" I asked, starting to move my arm around her body and half-hugging her. She didn't mind much, but she said one thing that threw me off balance a little.

"You're hands are always cold." She said, smiling and turning to me; I didn't draw my arm back, though. I thought of it as 'cooling her down with my cold hands'.

"Falsetto is a small place." Elise continued, turning her head back to the trench; "Only the size of one of New Vega's sections. I'm surprised it can hold itself up considering the size of it. It shouldn't take too long for us to track down The Director."

"Why do you always call him that?" I asked, still looking on at the trench. "It doesn't bother me much; but why don't you ever call him you're father or something like that?"

"Well, he's not much of a father figure." Elise replied, scowling in the corner of my eye. "I don't hate him, but I don't have to love him. To me, he's just another person who wants the treasure; but then, he does rightfully own a quarter of it. The Enforcers own half of it, and The Director's family owns the rest; the rest being just me."

I turned to Elise again, who looked back at me without emotion in her eyes or on her face. It was like looking at a dead body -I kicked myself for comparing her to something like that. Really, she was more like a flower in winter; beautiful, a little cruel at times, and a little bitter; at least, that's what I thought to myself. I never really told her anything like that...

"Could you do it?" Elise asked, putting on a serious face; "Could you take Enforcer money, maybe even the money of my father if he's dead?"

"...I could take the Enforcer money." I said after a long pause; "But not your father's money. That'd go to you; I don't care if my boss wants all the money; it's what I believe is right. Besides, if the money doesn't go to the Enforcers, I reckon life will just continue as it is; which is fine by me."

"...Yeah..." Elise muttered, keeping quiet. I had overreacted a little, and left her feeling ashamed for asking the question in the first place.

At that moment, I decided to go for it. I turned to her, and she turned to me; I wrapped both my arms slowly around her waist, and lifted my arms up to her body, where I embraced her in a hug that seemed to last forever. We didn't cry or anything like that, but just listened to each other's breathing in all the silence. Nothing was making any sound but us, taking deep, quiet breaths in and out. Finally, she let go, and I drew away from her slowly.

"I'm sorry." I apologized quietly, looking down at my feet; "Listen, it's my own opinion -my own view on what things will be like once this is all over..."

"So what will you do when this is over?" Elise asked, leaning back on the railings and staring into the air. "I'm guessing you'll go back to wherever you work, right?"

"Yeah..." I muttered quietly, still looking down and occasionally glancing at Elise. "I'm sorry it has to be like that; I might ask for a month or two off every year to visit you; unless you're not staying in New Vega, that is..."

"It's better to stay in a...familiar environment." Elise said, finally stating to grin. "I'll be staying in New Vega; maybe I'll keep The Cradle with me too; incase I want to go traveling or something."

"I'll take that as a yes, then." I said, smiling back at her and sighing. "I feel like I've known you for months; maybe even years. It's odd to think that it's only been a few days since I left for this."

"Time seems to drag on, doesn't it?" Elise asked rhetorically, looking down the trench again, but still smiling. "The only problem now is that we're starting to realize it, aren't we?"

I started to laugh with Elise again; first quietly, and then rising in volume until our laughs started to echo through the trench. It wasn't much of a joke, and not as funny so we would laugh our lungs out, but it was funny in an ironic way.

We had known each other for about three or four days, were riding a flying boat that was completely dependent on the environment, went up against impossible odds to hunt for money, and were armored to the teeth with weapons and equipment to give us an extra push.

Just when I was about to talk to Elise again, I felt something brush past the back of my head...

I turned around in the direction of what had brushed past me, and noticed that Elise had felt it too. As I looked forwards, I was partly blinded by a few rays of light that cut through the dark grey clouds overhead.

It was the wind! And the sun to go with it! In one sudden action, both me and Elise dragged the six stands that held the solar panels to the sides; three on each side of the ship. We tied them to the railings to keep them sturdy as Elise started The Cradle up, making the turbine start to squeak and sputter slightly.

"It's true what they say, Kobalt." Elise called over the sounds; "Good things happen all at once!"

I stayed silent and smiled, grabbing onto the railings as we slowly ascended and moved forwards at a sluggish pace. Though I say that it felt like torture, being stuck in a wasteland for days, I was actually lying a little bit. I never felt more at home than with Elise.

We began to pick up the pace, and moved down the trench.

And into the open air...