The sun has started to set, painting the sky beautiful shades of pink and orange, though the beauty of the scenery is lost on you. It has been another long week of work. As you pull into your small driveway and park your car, you let out a sigh; your thoughts turn to Saki, your dog. You rescued her from the shelter a few years ago. She is a good dog, sweet and affectionate. Always excited to do anything with you. She has brought a lot of joy to your monotonous life. However a couple months ago, a global pandemic hit, and it only affected domesticated animals. Later dubbed the “Furry Fever,” it rapidly spread, effecting pets and livestock around the world. And just a few weeks ago you learned that Saki caught the disease. Saki is no longer just a pet dog. She has changed so much, both physically and mentally due to the illness. You are still unsure how to handle this new development. You exit your car, your house keys jingling in your hand. As you ready yourself to enter your home, you decide to be ready to do your best to be there for Saki in her time of change. You walk through the front door and announce that you have returned home.

You are walking back to your apartment after doing some grocery shopping after work. The sun setting behind you casting your shadow long and dark in front of you as you walk the bustling streets. Your thoughts wonder to Judo, your pet cat. She caught the Furry Fever early on during the pandemic. It took some adjusting but you both have gotten accustomed to this new normal. However, you have noticed something off about Judo. She seems clingier, more worried every time you leave the apartment. You have tried to speak to her about what is going on but she always brushes it off with a joke or a prank. You cross the street and enter the courtyard of your apartment building. You juggle your keys and the grocery bags as you enter the lobby and turn left, entering an open elevator and pushing the button for the 5th floor. You are soon putting your keys into your apartment door and step inside. “Judo I’m home.” You call out into the apartment, but are only greeted by silence. You scan the apartment entrance, Judo seems to be up to her usual tricks again. You head to the kitchen to drop off the grocery bags and continue your search for Judo. She is not lounging on the couch or in her usual sunbathing spot, nor is she in her room. As you walk back towards the kitchen the coat closet door swings open and someone or something has pounced on you, sending you tumbling to the floor.

(CNC and possible Bloodplay warning) You look up at the high rise office building, white puffy clouds lazily float in the light blue sky. The hustle and bustle of the metropolis surrounds you. People of various races, humans, orcs, elves, dwarves, beast-folk, all going about their day. You work in the advertising department for a large pharmaceutical company. You bring your Sunbucks coffee to your lips and take a sip, the caffeinated liquid would fuel you for another busy day. Entering the lobby, you place your ID card on the turntable gate, a gentle buzz signals that you can pass through. Entering the elevator you push the number for your floor. The elevator doors open with a ping, you notice the office is already buzzing with activity. You pull out your office chair after setting down your coffee. Your boss, Tessa Artemia, walks by your cubicle in a rush. You notice her face is flushed and bags under her eyes. She speeds into her office and closes the door behind her. You don’t think much of it and dive straight into work. After about an hour or so of work, you realize you need Tessa to sign off on a couple documents. You gather the papers and head to her office. Just as you are about to knock you hear a loud crash. Without hesitation you enter Tessa’s office, she is on the floor, panting and in distress.

There is not a cloud in the sky as you drive. Thankfully the road is empty because your mind is somewhere else. You received a phone call from former employers of yours asking for your help with Halley’s Comet, a name you didn’t think you would hear again. Halley’s Comet was the most difficult and temperamental race horse you have ever worked with, but there was no denying her talent as she won race after race. However, after taking a kick to the chest from Halley, you decided the success was no longer worth the risk and left. Then the “Furry Fever” pandemic happened. Even though precautions were taken a few race horses caught the disease and were no longer allowed to compete for obvious reasons. You pull into the driveway and park in front of the luxurious farmhouse that will be your home for the foreseeable future. You step out of your car and look around, noticing the horse stable just a little ways away from the farmhouse. You know that is where you will find Halley’s Comet, so you start making your way there.

You shift your backpack on your shoulders, a thin layer of sweat forming on your brow as you walk along the trail. The sky is a beautiful shade of blue, puffy clouds float on by without a care in the world. You wish that you could be as careless as those clouds. You have recently gone through a break up and have been down in the dumps. Your close friend Ilza, someone you have known since you both were kids, invited you on another one of her weekend camping and hiking trips. Obviously she is hoping to lift your spirits and get you out of your funk. You enter the pinewood forest that Ilza mentioned in her text, she was suppose to meet you here and set up camp. As your round a bend you see a small clearing, a tent already up and Ilza lying on the grass, her head on her backpack. She seems to be enjoying the warmth from the sun. Her orange scales glinting occasionally as you make your way closer to her, the tip of her tail lazily waging side to side.

You make a left turn down a familiar dusty dirt road. It was a road you drove down many times during the summers of your childhood. Both your grandparents passed recently and have left you their small farm. You have recently lost your job, so this felt a bit like fate had a hand in this opportunity. Though you have limited knowledge about farming, the farm hand, Clover, who helped your grandparents, remained to help you look after the place. After parking in front of the old farmhouse, and as you step out of your car, the sound of hooves on the wood porch echo in your ears. On the porch stands who you assume is Clover, a tall and muscular horse furry.

You rush past some idiot standing in front of your office building staring up at the clouds. You shake you head in annoyance before entering the large bustling lobby of the high rise office building. Your manager informed you yesterday that you will be taking on a subordinate, though they were vague about the details. You were slightly annoyed to have this additional responsibility thrown into your lap. You breeze past the turntable security gate and open the stairwell and head down into the bowels of the building where the IT department was located. You toss your messenger bag onto your chair before turning and heading towards your manager’s office. You open your manager’s door without knocking, your mouth open, ready to give your manager a piece of your mind, when you notice a tall and muscular orc woman standing in front of your manager’s desk, her arms crossed under her ample bosom. Her red eyes lock on to you, her gaze piercing and critical, her face adorned with a slight frown as she looks you up and down. Your manager clearly hasn’t arrived at work yet, his chair empty.