FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

** CHAPTER 4**

After almost two hours surveying the small furred creature, now identified as Yukiomaru Alexander, the D.E Squad felt comfortable enough to lift the general alert in Canis Major. Feeling bad that they were keeping this adorable creature locked up, and knowing there wasn't anything else they could with him, they finally opened their home to little creature.

They were trained to handle a situation like this, but no matter how many times they went over it in organized drills, the real situation was virtually walking into the unknown. They followed all the protocol, but still relied heavily on their instinct. So far, they knew they could trust this little creature that looked so much like them. They hoped that he could trust them as well so everything ended up well for both sides.

Going against common sense, they decided to grant Yukiomaru access to the inner Canis Major. The parasite encountered in his blood could be a deadly threat, but as reckless as the decision of letting the little alien roam inside Canis Major sounded, they trusted that it wouldn't be contagious as Yukiomaru himself confessed. Besides, his appearance was playing a huge role in the Evos decisions. They couldn't even think on keeping this beautiful creature captive any longer.

All there was left to do now was to find a way to help him get back home. And until that was figured out, they would share their hospitality with the little creature of radiant white fur.

Hasky's family offered themselves to be Yukiomaru's escort for as long as it would be necessary for him to stay. The rest of the team would be vigilant.

It had been a strange day at Canis Major. Many knew about what had happened, but offered to show themselves as casual as possible with Yukiomaru's presence, to make him feel at ease. The D.E1 Squad finally split up and Husky and his family took Yukiomaru to their Sector, as risky as it sounded.

"It's okay, Yukiomaru." Husky spoke to the little creature. Yukiomaru had shown he was willing to trust them, but as they got further into the colony, he seemed much more alert and somewhat defensive. "This tram will take us to our home. You will stay with me and my family until we manage to fix your ship."

In front of them, the opened door of a tram awaited them to walk on board. All around Yukiomaru was the beautiful and cozy Canis Major. So full of light, vegetation, warm colors and textures, yet he looked very hesitant.

"Where exactly is this transport taking us?" Yukiomaru asked. His didn't suggest curiosity; it was almost as if he demanded to know. Yet the little creature always showed himself respectful and well mannered.

"I told you, Yukiomaru. This transport will take us to my home; where Fx, Hasky and I live at." Husky responded. He was concerned about the little alien's worries, but he understood that he was on his right to still feel defensive.

"I don't know..." Yukiomaru seemed to doubt. "I have to send a distress signal. My friends must be looking for me." He said somewhat worried. Yukiomaru held his head and took two steps back. It was the very few times that he had shown signs of insecurity.

"Please, Yukiomaru! Everything will be okay." Now Hasky, the female Evocanis identical to Husky spoke. "There are reasons why we can't... do that just yet."

Somehow her words didn't sound good to Yukiomaru. Being in that situation, he was right to doubt.

"I'm sorry..." Yukiomaru said, somewhat insecure of his thoughts. "I don't think this is the right thing. I appreciate your help, but I must keep moving."

"Yukiomaru!" Now Husky spoke to him. Husky was concerned about Yukiomaru, or how he would react to their plan. "Understand that we cannot take the risk of setting a beacon on our ship. I trust that your encryption methods must be safe, but that is no guarantee that the signal might not be intercepted by something else."

"Trust me. That won't happen!" Yukiomaru responded, now slightly defensive.

"And we do trust you!" Hasky interceded. "But you need to trust us as well, and understand that we can't let you set that beacon."

Where they denying him his means of returning to his home?

"Something tells me you are not bad, but I don't see logic in your statement." Yukiomaru responded firmly.

"We've been attacked many times now, Yukiomaru. One of those attacks was result of us being too trustful of our security... We don't want that to happen again." Hasky said. Her tone was now firm as well, but sadness in her eyes was also visible.

There was no response given by Yukiomaru, as he felt that something was affecting these aliens when the female spoke about those attacks. There was only a brief moment of silence.

"All you see here, Yukiomaru..." Husky now continued. "All you see here is what we have left. This is all we have as a species."

These words fell hard on Yukiomaru, somewhat reminding him of events that his own race went through. This made him go from being tense to feeling more empathetic about these aliens that were so similar to him.

"Please trust us, Yukiomaru. We will do everything in our paws to help you return home." Husky said; his eyes sadder than before, but he still managed to let out a faint smile. "But let us do this our way." He once again extended his paw as a friendly offering of trust.

Fighting against his feelings, Yukiomaru once again accepted the friendly gesture that twice had been offered to him already. The three Evos and the little white alien boarded the tram and soon were taken to the depths of Canis Major.

It would take them close to twenty minutes to arrive at H2. The ride was as silent and peaceful as ever. There were other Evos on board, but they understood that they had to be as calm as possible so to avoid overwhelming their visitor. When Yukiomaru stared at them, they only gave him a friendly smile or waved at him.

Yukiomaru seemed worried still, but something had caught his attention. The tram often went through crystal clear tunnels, showing the beauty of the gigantic ship. The Evos were sure that Yukiomaru might've been used to such technology like any species capable of space travel, but they understood why Canis Major could be such an impressive sight.

"How... long did it take you to build all this?" Yukiomaru couldn't help to ask. He was sitting next to a window, with Hasky next to him; Husky and Fx were in front of him.

"It's... complicated." Husky responded. He was also next to the window enjoying a view that he was so used to, yet that it always amazed him.

The white furred drove his stare toward him, as if curious to know more.

"We didn't build this ship." Husky responded when he noticed the inquisitive golden eyes staring at his. "It's a long story..."

"This is something that not many races can afford to build under normal circumstances. There had to be a strong reason for this ship being made." Yukiomaru theorized.

"And that is something we don't know, unfortunately." Husky replied. Deep inside, like many Evo's, he always questioned his origins and the origins of Canis Major.

"Wait... since when are you living in this ship?" Yukiomaru asked.

"Five hundred years; standard astronomical time." Husky didn't wait to respond.

The small furred creature didn't respond immediately. Instead it seemed he tried to figure out this strange race of furred aliens, and why would they take a huge risk to live out in space.

"It doesn't make much sense..." Yukiomaru thought out loud. "You are telling me that you actually live here permanently? Why did you decide to leave your home planet?" He then asked directly.

"We've never been... outside this ship we call Canis Major; our home." Husky confessed.

There wasn't any response again. For Yukiomaru this was something that made very little sense. Five hundred years in that massive ship, yet they haven't been anywhere else before? What could that possibly mean?

"I promise we will reveal much more about us when the time comes, Yukiomaru. All you need to know is that for now you're welcome here and that we will help you get back to your home."

A slight frown could be seen in the small creature as he turned and looked again at the window. The response that the Evo gave him didn't clear even half of his doubts, but it would have to suffice for now.

Some time passed and the tram soon started slowing down until it reached its destination. Yukiomaru seemed to have lost himself in his thoughts, looking out the window. Who knew what went through his mind, but Husky and his family could notice his golden eyes being glossier than usual, suggesting that the creature might've been fighting with strong emotions. Time would tell if he would open himself to the Evos. They wouldn't want more than to comfort him.

Yukiomaru didn't even seem to notice that the tram had stopped, until a soft hiss from the doors was audible, and the Evos stood up. Immediately his ears sprung up to the direction of the sound and saw Husky once again extending his paw at him.

"Welcome to Sector H2; my home." Husky said with a friendly smile on his face. "Let's go."

Yukiomaru let out a sigh and followed the Evocanis. The walk to the complex would take a while, but Husky and his family would make sure to answer any question that the little creature might have.

Some time passed as they seem to walk deeper into the Sector, finally reaching the entrance to some of the Zone complexes. All that Yukiomaru could see was a huge corridor, with a very high ceiling. It was big enough to make a reasonably sized ship fit in that space. All along the corridor there were heavy looking blast doors that the little furred creature inspected closely. Every now and then a small green area with a couple of trees and bushes could be seen. It was a strange but very lovely fusion of technology with nature; the artificial with the organic. This was something Yukiomaru was used to, but to see it outside his world was a new experience.

"How many of you live here?" Yukiomaru asked after he returned a friendly smile to a passing by Evo.

"We are close to one million. Canis Major has a maximum capacity for five million inhabitants, so you won't see many of us." Hasky now replied, being more knowledgeable about technical details of their ship.

"So, is that all your population?" Yukiomaru dared to ask.

"I am afraid so..."

There was no response by Yukiomaru. He just seemed as if thinking a lot and examining his surroundings discretely.

"Well, this is it." The vulpine Evo now spoke. He wasn't of many words, but he seemed excited that they finally made it to their Zone complex.

"This is where we live, Yukiomaru. Please come in with us." Husky said.

One of these heavy looking blast doors opened when the Evos got close. At the other side, an unexpected view made itself visible for the small alien; a large green area with many plants, trees, a small hill and a wonderful artificial sky reflecting itself over a small creek. Surrounding this beautiful green area were smaller doors with numbers on them. As they walked up the small hill, they soon got to a door that read _ 112 _.

Before they could gain entrance, two Evocanis walked out. They bared a very strong resemblance. Both had silky smooth fur and long floppy ears. The dark chestnut one was larger than the other that had a very light cream colored fur. They both smiled and welcomed them in. It was Rika and Luke; the Zone Managers in that area.

"You finally made it." Rika said.

"It was a long trip, Rika. But here we are at last." Hasky responded, wagging her tail at her friend.

"I can't believe what I'm seeing..." Luke said in awe. He kneeled down to take a good look at Yukiomaru. He had been informed already and they knew everything about him, including images of when he was at the quarantine room. But being in front of a creature that bared such an intriguing resemblance to their race was something that they never thought they would see.

"My name is Luke." The chestnut Evo presented himself. "This is my sister, Rika. We welcome you to our home, Yukiomaru Alexander."

Yukiomaru's eye twitched almost unnoticeably when he heard his name. Luke noticed this.

"We are directly related to Canis Major's defense team; the D.E1 Squad. We are already knowledgeable of what happen. I just wish to tell you that you are welcome here, and that we will start working tomorrow on helping you out."

"Thank you..." Could be heard from Yukiomaru.

"As for now, it is late and I'm sure you've had a very difficult day. So we won't be holding you back anymore asking you questions and such. Hasky, Husky and Fx will welcome you into their room, but everyone here will be at your service for whatever you might need."

"Please, come in." Rika now also welcomed the small furred creature.

They soon walked into the Zone as the door closed behind them. Rika and Luke were obviously fascinated by Yukiomaru, but tried to remain as neutral as possible. They could notice how the little furred creature examined his surrounding as they went through the peaceful and cozy living areas of the zone until they reached the inner corridors were the rooms were at.

"It is very silent here... and comfortable." Yukiomaru said as they stood in front of the door that led to Husky's family room. His little paw toes seemed to be squeezing the fluffy carpet beneath them. It was obvious that Yukiomaru was doing a huge effort to feel at ease, but there was something in his eyes that still made him seem uneasy.

"Come in. You'll love our room!" Husky whispered excited, wagging his tail while he pressed a button that opened the door. They didn't want to disturb the rest since the night cycle had already set in.

"We'll leave you four to rest for tonight. Tomorrow there will be much work to do regarding our visitor's situation." Rika said. "Please feel at home, Yukiomaru." Rika slightly bowed at the small creature and caressed him in the shoulder. With similar friendly gesture, Luke left with her sister into their own room.

With nothing else to do, the four furred creatures entered the room. Yukiomaru was the last, and the door slid closed behind him in silence. While three Evos got comfortable in this fairly large but cozy room, Yuki still stood by the door, examining his surroundings.

"Fx, can you help me make something to eat before we go to bed?" Hasky said to the vulpine Evo. "You can show Yukiomaru around, Husky." She then said to Husky. "And Yukiomaru, please feel like home. Anything you need, just let us know."

The small furred alien just nodded at her as he watched her walk to the far left side of the room where the kitchen was.

"Come here. I'll show you around." Husky said with a huge smile on his face. There wasn't much to see, but he would make sure Yukiomaru felt comfortable there.

Almost yanked by Husky, Yukiomaru was now taken on a tour to get familiarized with the room. The room wasn't huge by any means, but it had all the necessary and enough space to move around freely.

"This is our personal control center. In this screen we can check status on Canis Major, the Sectors and anything going on inside or outside the ship. It's almost always on, but we had it off since we weren't here." Husky explained as he threw himself in a squishy huge brown couch. He made a gesture at a glass panel in the wall and this immediately turned on and showed a menu with a wide variety of content.

"It's pretty much like an access panel to anything we need. We can also control everything in our room from this screen like temperature - which is almost always fixed at certain parameters-, lighting systems, energy saving, door locks; you name it." Husky kept on explaining, as he made paw gestures which the screen seemed to follow by moving between screens and sub-menus.

"We also have a massive collection of educational data bases that we can watch here. Everything from engineering, science, nature, space; you name it, it's here." Husky kept on explaining. Yukiomaru just stood almost frozen next to him. The little furred alien kept close attention to what showed on the screen and how Husky controlled it.

"It also serves as entertainment. We have some flight simulators installed here. Also some strategy puzzles and games that keep our brain well toned." Husky said as he kept going through all the menus. Yukiomaru didn't say a word, but he seemed interested in what Husky showed him. Some curious nature in this white furred alien was showing.

"Here, follow me." Husky stood up and walked deeper into the room. Yukiomaru followed slowly and in complete silence.

A small door was opened by Husky at the end of the room, after the small living room. It was a dark small room, but was soon lit after Husky slid his paw gently in a panel on the wall.

"This is where we keep our clothes and some useful supplies for our daily living." Husky explained as Yukiomaru slowly walked inside, always looking around. It was a very small square room, but enough to walk around. "If I'm not mistaken..." Husky said as he dug around some Px outfits. "Oh yes; here it is." Husky then took a small outfit, the same size as the one Yukiomaru wore at that moment. It had different colors thought. "I requested for a couple more outfits for you. I'm glad my friends brought them."

"Thank you... But you don't have to." Yukiomaru responded with an almost mute tone.

"It's okay, Yukiomaru. We want you to feel as comfortable as you can while you are here." Husky said with a big smile. "I'll leave them next to mine so you know where to look for them if you want to wear different colors tomorrow."

"I..." Yukiomaru tried to speak but was soon interrupted by Husky.

"Over here. I need to show you something." Husky said enthusiastically, but almost whispering due to the thick silence of that place.

Husky opened another door inside the closet room and walked in. Yukiomaru just stood at the middle of the closet room. But after insisting, Yukiomaru finally walked into the room with Husky.

"This is our bathroom." Husky said with an innocent chuckle. "It's small, but it has all the necessary." Husky continued while smiling. "You can brush your teeth in this small sink... which reminds me..."

Husky opened a small compartment and took a tooth brush from their supply cabinet. "Here; so you can keep those lovely pearly whites of yours shining." Husky said, again with a huge smile while he gave a toothbrush to Yukiomaru.

"You're... too kind." Yukiomaru responded as he accepted the gift of such useful item.

"So..." Husky continued. "Here's our tub. This is a very important thing to us since we can relax here while we contemplate the stars and enjoy each other's company. If you feel like it, you can use it. We've thrown a lot of chemicals at you today and I imagine you want your fur soft again."

"I don't know...I..." Yukiomaru again appeared a bit insecure.

"Yukiomaru. While you are here, we want you to feel like in home. Before we go to bed, it would be good if you wash off those chemicals from your fur."

"If you insist..." Yukiomaru hesitantly accepted. He had grabbed his gorgeous tail and noticed not only that the fur felt rough, but that it also had a very strong smell of some sort of disinfectant substance.

"But first, we will give you something to eat. You must be hungry and you need to recover from that crash." Husky said while he walked outside.

"Excuse me... Husky." Yukiomaru stopped Husky.

"Yes, Yukiomaru? What do you need, my little friend?" Husky responded surprised.

Hearing the little creature calling his name felt strangely pleasing; as if trust was finally growing between them.

"What if..." Yukiomaru tried to speak, but didn't seem to find the right words. "Well... if I need to..."

"Oh! I'm sorry, I forgot about that. I know what you mean." Husky responded quickly understanding what the little creature needed to ask. "You go over there." He pointed at the place in subject.

"I... know. I imagined when I saw it. It's just that... well... it looks a bit different of what I'm used to." Yukiomaru said. He lost his almost emotionless demeanor and he was now obviously very shy.

"It's fine, Yukiomaru. Don't worry!" Husky replied, trying to make Yukiomaru as comfortable as possible. "I'll tell you how you use this for when you have the need."

"Thank you... That's... good to know." Little Yukiomaru responded; almost as if blushing beneath his fur.

After a brief explanation, Husky rushed outside with Yukiomaru to show him the rest of the room. Yukiomaru now seemed more comfortable. It could be that the Evos were sharing their more private life, or that he was growing tired and his mind was loosing focus. Whatever it was, he now didn't look so tense...

"Here, Yukiomaru. Take a look." Husky said as he walked behind a half wall. At the other side the floor seemed different. It was a big area on the floor that felt very soft when Yukiomaru place his paw on it.

"This is the sleeping panel. This is where we will be resting for tonight. I'll take out some extra pillows and some sheets for you." Husky proudly showed off the comfy sleeping panel.

"The view..." Yukiomaru said when he noticed the wall adjacent to the sleeping panel. This wall was a simulated window that covered almost the entire wall cross the room. "It is beautiful." Yukiomaru placed a hand-paw in the window as he saw the beautiful veil of stars.

"It's... simulated." Husky confessed. "It helps ease the feeling of enclosing."

"I imagined."

"It can be changed, or it cycles by itself through night time and day time. You will see it tomorrow."

Soon after, they finally got to the kitchen area. Husky and Yukiomaru now sat at the breakfast bar while they saw Fx and Hasky prepare a small meal for them to eat before bed.

"Do you need something, Yukiomaru?" Fx asked at the other side of the breakfast bar. It took time for the little alien to finally respond.

"I would..." He said.

"Yes? You can ask for anything." Fx reassured.

"I am a bit thirsty. May I have some water?" Yukiomaru politely asked.

"Of course you can, my little furred friend." The friendly orange Evo replied.

Immediately he filled a small strange container with fresh water and passed it over to Yukiomaru. It was the first time the little furred creature accepted something so quickly and without hesitation. It didn't even take him more than a second to figure out how to sip out of the small container and drank all the water.

"You want more?" Fx asked.

"Yes please." Yukiomaru didn't doubt when responding this time.

"Here you go my little furred alien friend."

Fx filled the container again and Yukiomaru gladly sipped all the water again.

"Why didn't you tell us you were thirsty, Yukiomaru?" Husky asked worried. He realized that it might've been a while since Yukiomaru had something to drink or eat.

"I am sorry... I didn't think about it." Little Yukiomaru responded while his pink tongue wiped off the water around his muzzle. "And I am a... Canideran, by the way. That's the name of my race."

The Evos were pleased that Yukiomaru was opening a bit more now and gave out the name of his race. This also confirmed that he was not related to them, but also rose many more doubts of how such a similar creature exist.

"We are Evocanis Genesis." Husky confessed. "Although we prefer not to use the latter; but just Evocanis. We discovered the full name of our species just a few months back, but we are not very... pleased about its origins. You can refer to us as Evos for short.

A slight frown on Yukiomaru confirmed for Husky that the little Canideran might've not expected that they were in fact not related at all.

Within the next minutes, Yukiomaru started showing himself a bit more open to the Evos. Not opening conversation himself, but being more open when answering questions.

Soon, the fragrant aroma of something baking filled the kitchen area. Husky could notice Yukiomaru's nose sniffing the air, examining what that lovely smell could be. It didn't take long until Fx helped Hasky pull out a pan of steaming chocolate chip cookies from their oven and placed them right in front of Yukiomaru and Husky.

Yukiomaru's eyes never lost contact from the cookies, and Husky noticed this.

"Are you hungry Yukiomaru?" Husky asked.

"Yes... a little bit." Yukiomaru admitted, although he immediately sat straight and tried not to make evident his craving for those lovely cookies. But it was too late.

"They are hot. Let's just wait a couple of minutes until they are cool enough so they don't crumble into pieces when we grab them." Hasky now said. "Here, Yukiomaru. I don't know if you drink this, but it goes well with cookies. It will also make you feel full and it's somewhat relaxing." She then gave Yukiomaru a clean container and filled it with warm milk.

"Is this... milk?" Yukiomaru asked.

"It is, Yukiomaru." Hasky replied.

"Where do you get it from?" Yukiomaru again asked. And a very valid question.

"It's synthetic. But don't worry; it's just like the real thing. And we also make sure that it won't be hard on your tummy."

"That's good to know..." Yukiomaru said, as he took a tiny sip of Canis Major milk. "I'm surprised... You seem to have it all figured out here."

"Living in space is not an easy thing. But we've grown used to it. Well, it's the only life we know basically." Hasky said.

Some time passed, and the cookies were now cool enough for the touch. They were still warm and moist and the chocolate chips were still molten on the inside.

"Here, Yukiomaru. Have a cookie." Hasky said as she served a cookie in a little plate and gave it to Yukiomaru. "I noticed you haven't taken your sight from these. You'll love them."

Yukiomaru didn't hesitate too much this time. His muzzle was watering heavily when he finally gave the cookie a huge bite. Hasky, Husky and Fx noticed how Yukiomaru's golden eyes opened in awe as he happily chewed on the chunky cookie.

"Thank you... this is delicious!" Yukiomaru said, still with his mouth full of cookie crumbs. It didn't take him too much to finally finish it. But the Evos were glad to give him more.

The Evos and the Canideran enjoyed the cookies and milk while they talked more about themselves. Yukiomaru was finally opening himself more and this made the Evos feel at ease.

They soon finished the whole pan of cookies and their warm milk. With bellies full and happy, they soon got ready to bed. As planned, Yukiomaru had a nice warm bath and later he was dry, soft, well groomed and smelling like a puppy.

Hasky, Husky and Fx also took a soothing bath and soon they were all in bed. With lights off, they shared a few words between each other while their voice soon became softer as they grew tired.

Fx finally fell asleep. Hasky and Husky were also very close of falling asleep. Before he almost dozed off completely, Husky noticed that Yukiomaru was still sitting a couple of feet way from them. He sat in front of the window, caressing his own tail. By now, Husky would've expected the little Canideran to have gotten close to them and got comfortable. Instead, those golden eyes were again full of sadness, as the little creature kept brushing his tail.

"Yukiomaru?" Husky asked worried. Yukiomaru turned and looked at him but didn't say a thing. Only the faint light from the simulated stars illuminated them softly. The light bounced on Yukiomaru's pure white fur and his yellow eyes.

Husky didn't know what to say. He gently got loose of Hasky's grip since she was spooning him, but thankfully she didn't wake up and instead turned around to snuggle with Fx. Husky now slowly approached Yukiomaru.

"Yukiomaru... Is it okay if I... hug you?" Husky said. Yukiomaru was still sitting in front of the window, while Husky lied very close next to him. There was no response.

The little Canideran now turned his sight away from Husky, and Husky heard like how he started sobbing. This broke Husky's heart... He didn't wait for an answer and wrapped his arm gently around Yukiomaru's waist, pressing the little body against him. He pressed his face against Yukiomaru's belly, feeling the soft scent of the Canideran that reminded him so much of his own.

"I miss him..." Yukiomaru whispered, now openly crying.

Husky sat up and held the little Canideran in his arms now. Yukiomaru didn't oppose any resistance and accepted the embrace, burying in Husky's body. Husky did all that he could to soothe Yukiomaru, softly petting him, liking his face and hugging him harder. This was breaking Husky's heart and he did start crying as well...

"Yukiomaru... I know that you might be worried about your friends... But again I promise you we Evocanis will help you get back. It's the only thing that we can tell you right now... I'm sorry little one..." Husky softly uttered as he pressed the little Canideran closer to him. Some time passed and Yukiomaru seemed much calmer by resting in Husky's warm embrace. Husky gently pulled Yukiomaru with him into the sheets getting close to Hasky and Fx. He lied down never letting go of him and soon both fell asleep while never letting go from the tender embrace...

The next day would be a new day for Yukiomaru. One day closer to reuniting with whomever he missed so dearly...