Proxima Centauri b
Fort Benavidez
May 27th, 2176 A.D.
Talik stomped his foot, feeling his hackles rising as he tried to bluff stare at his opponent. The large human male seemed unimpressed with Talik’s attempt to intimidate him, which infuriated him even more.
The human took one hand off the padded stick he was holding and lifted the protective face cover, smirking arrogantly at Talik. The human then puckered his lips at Talik, something the humans call kissing.
Confusion ran rampant in Talik’s mind at the insinuation of affection from the human male.
Does he want to mate with me? Talik thought in panic as the human brought the same hand to its mouth and puckered his lips against it before blowing on his hand towards Talik.
All around them, human recruits started cackling in that strange laughter they had, while others started shouting encouragement to Talik.
You got this Talik! Kick his ass!
Honey badger don’t care; Talik don’t care! Tear him a new asshole, Talik!
The DI monitoring the fight stepped forward and looked at his opponent first, who slapped his face shield back down and screamed a primal yell.
The DI looked at Talik next, and he growled as he bared his fangs, making his fur puff out to look larger. The DI raised his hand and brought it down, simultaneously blowing on the whistle that was hanging in his mouth.
The shrill sound was the signal Talik had been waiting for, and he charged forward, ready to disembowel his opponent for wanting to mate with him. The human male charged forward as well, his impressive musculature bulging against his unusually pale skin.
They smashed into each other in the middle of the sand pit, Talik using his shorter height and dense, stocky body to absorb the sudden impact of his much larger opponent slamming into him.
The human was incredibly strong, and Talik struggled to brace himself, his clawed paws failing to find purchase in the shifting sand. An internal flash of light came inside his head, immediately followed by pain as the human used the padded stick to bludgeon Talik’s head.
Enraged, Talik responded in kind, swinging wildly with his stick as he tried to kill his opponent. The human either blocked his hits or maneuvered in such a way as to turn them into merely glancing blows as he continued to hit Talik in the head and chest.
Talik’s face shield had been knocked askew and he was mostly blinded now, but he still swung wildly, trying to hit his opponent.
He felt a powerful blow behind his right leg, and then he was suddenly on his back, trying to cover his stomach and chest as he was repeatedly hit.
The whistle blew loudly, and the blows falling down on Talik immediately stopped.
“On your feet, Recruit Talik!” The drill instructor yelled out as Talik struggled to get his face shield off. He instinctively responded to the order and rolled onto his front, still not able to see as the face shield was now almost completely turned around.
He leapt up and came to attention as he took huge gasping breaths, his breathing constricted by the protective head gear. “Recruit Talik, remove your face shield!” The DI yelled again.
He reached up and struggled to get it off his head, his snout making it difficult to spin the gear back around without hurting himself. He finally got it off, relishing the feel of cool, cold air on his soaking wet facial fur.
He blinked rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the ruddy sunlight and placed the face shield on the floor before returning to a position of attention.
The DI pointed at him and addressed the recruits. “Do any of you know why Recruit Talik did not win this round?” Still staring straight ahead, Talik heard one of them answer the question from somewhere behind him.
“I do, drill sergeant!”
“Recruit Lambert, please enlighten us.”
“Recruit Talik allowed himself to be goaded into anger and uncontrolled aggression, drill sergeant. He fought with his anger, not his mind.”
“Out-fucking-standing, Lambert. You could’ve been a general with a brain like that someday if you weren’t a goddamn mouth breather who looks like someone beat the shit out of your birthing creche with a baseball bat while you were still gestating!”
“Thank you, Drill Sergeant!” Lambert answered as several of the human recruits snorted, trying to hold in their laughter. They failed miserably, and the DI as well as two others immediately pounced on the offenders, screaming at the top of their lungs as they ordered them to fall out.
Talik was grateful that he still couldn’t understand half of what the humans said as he continued to stare straight ahead, listening to the sounds of the human recruits dry heaving as the drill instructors mercilessly punished them for breaking discipline.
This went on for some time, and Talik finally breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the DI had forgotten about him. The instructor suddenly appeared directly in front of him, his eyes bulging out as a fine mist of saliva hit Talik’s snout while the DI screamed in his face from less than two paw lengths away.
“Did you think I forgot about you, Recruit Talik? You’re the only goddamn trash panda here, and you're kind of hard to miss, you fucking hairy, Pepe Le Pew-looking son of a bitch! Now tell me why you fucked up and got your ass handed to you!”
Talik resisted the urge to wipe the human’s spittle from his snout and suppressed his desire to claw the human’s face for speaking to him in such an insulting manner. I am not on Xenxia, he reminded himself. I chose this.
“Drill sergeant! My opponent wanted to mate with me; I cannot allow him to dominate me like that; my clan would cast me out if I allowed a human male to mount me, Drill Sergeant!”
The DI’s eyes widened at what Talik said, and he could almost vow on the sacred stone that the corners of the drill instructor's mouth started curling up before he began barking in Talik’s face again.
“Recruit Talik, the worst thing I ever saw in my life was two Chihuahuas trying to fuck. I would gladly pay credits to have my eyeballs taped open and be forced to watch that abomination for the rest of my life than to see Recruit Johansen trying to copulate with a goddamn Xenxin!”
There was more snorting and laughter from the recruits around Talik, immediately followed by enraged screaming as the other DI’s ordered the newest offenders to fall out for punishment.
The DI in front of Talik continued ranting at no one in particular as he stalked in front of them, waving his arms around wildly.
“Un-fucking-believable! I have Pepe Le Pew here, a known molester, telling me that Casper the ghost is trying to fornicate with him! The war hasn’t even started yet, and they are already sending me the genetic leftovers scraped from the bottom of the barrel!
This is ass backwards! I am only supposed to be training degenerates and morons after everyone else has been killed first, but nooooo, instead I have a badger and a fucking albino trying to hump each other!”
The DI suddenly stopped ranting and charged at Talik so aggressively, he truly thought the DI was going to strike him. He instinctively bared his fangs and brought his paws up, his claws automatically protracting in self-defense.
The DI noticed the aggressive reaction and halted his advance, now one and a half arm lengths distant and out of range of Talik’s sharp, curved claws. The DI eyed the claws warily before staring into Talik’s eyes as if he were digging into his very soul.
This time, the barest hint of a smile touched the DI’s lips before turning back into the perpetual frown that Talik thought was a permanent facial feature until now. Still out of striking range, the drill instructor spoke again, his voice no longer screaming and full of disgust.
“Recruit Talik; I see you have the ability to react to danger and defend yourself. That is good. It will do you no good if you are ruled by your passions, though. Fight with your mind first, then your heart.
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
You are not here to learn how to die for your world, Recruit Talik. You are here to learn how to make the enemy die for trying to kill your family. The longer you are alive, the more of them you will kill. Do you understand the difference now, Recruit Talik?”
Talik, still surprised at the almost friendly disposition of the drill instructor, made himself as rigid as he could before yelling out his response.
“Yes, Drill Sergeant! I understand now. Thank you, Drill Sergeant.”
As soon as Talik confirmed he understood what the DI was trying to teach him, the drill instructor’s face changed back to its habitual, angry disgust as he started screaming at Talik again.
“Good. You better unfuck yourself, or I will PT you until your fur falls off. You will go from looking like a badger to looking like a fucking mole rat undergoing chemo. You get me, Recruit Talik?”
Talik did not understand half of what the human was saying, but he did know one thing: he had better act like he did.
“Yes, Drill Sergeant!”
“Get back in formation, Talik.”
Talik spun around and returned to his position within the formation as the drill instructor raised his hoarse, grating voice to be heard by all the recruits.
“I hope you enjoyed your break. Line up, nuts to butts, hams to clams! We are doing a 10k, courtesy of Recruit Talik and Recruit Johansen. Move out!”
Talik suppressed the groan that wanted to come out of his jaws. He hated running like the humans did; it was incredibly difficult for him considering he was descended from ambush predators.
Their claws repeatedly striking against the ground was not something the Xenxin were used to, and it was excruciating to endure for such long distances.
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One and a half solar hours later, Talik was limping badly as he stared at the Republic flag flowing in the breeze above the treetops. Judging the distance, he figured he had at least another two thousand paces to go, the equivalent of just over three and a half human kilometers.
All the other human and Eleani recruits had passed him long ago and finished the run, and he was the last one, as he always was. He saw a fallen tree on the side of the running path and headed towards it, deeply inhaling the pine scent of the trees surrounding him.
He groaned with relief as he sat down on top of the half-rotted trunk, disturbing an insect nest that was inside of it. Thousands of small, brown insects swarmed out, and he ran a hand through them, scooping up dozens of them and then using his long tongue to lick them off his hand.
They were slightly bitter, but he was so hungry he did not care. One of them somehow avoided being torn apart by his fangs and bit him, causing him to scream out in pain.
He stuck his tongue out and looked down with his eyes, seeing it hanging on the side with its tiny mandibles. He used two fingers and squished it before pulling his tongue back in and swallowing it.
He quickly scooped up two more handfuls of the insects and ate them, wishing he had water to wash the bitterness out of his mouth. Leaning down, he examined his clawed paws, gingerly pressing against one of them.
He cried out in pain before cursing in Xenxin as he checked the other claws. He wasn’t paying attention to the path, and he slammed his paw into a tree root that was now exposed due to erosion.
It was definitely broken, and he did not want to feel anymore pain. He was tired of hurting and suffering. He had been so sure of himself when he decided to join the Republic Interspecies Training Battalion.
The humans were excellent fighters in space and within their machines, but he always considered them weak. They looked frail to him, as if he could tear them apart with ease.
They did not have claws or loose skin to protect from bites and claws. They did not have sharp teeth, and they would die of exposure quickly on Xenxia if they were dropped into the middle of the wilderness with no clothes to cover their nakedness.
His opinion was shared by many of the younger Xenxin, who always considered themselves the toughest of all the species in the Commonwealth. They greatly respected the combat abilities of the human warships and their willingness to fight to the death to save others.
When it came to their physical abilities, however, the Xenxin tendency for arrogance clouded their perception of the soft, hairless allies. He went to the capital to join the RITB, and there was a slightly older Xenxin in charge of induction into the volunteer battalion.
He was covered in scars, and his bearing marked him as an obvious veteran of battles. He was missing his left arm, and Talik studiously avoided looking at the bioprosthetic in its place.
After Talik submitted his application, he arrogantly made an offhand remark about easily completing the training of the weak humans. He continued boasting as the veteran placed his application on top of the pile.
He had nearly finished saying those words when the warrior veteran shot up and clasped his claws around Talik’s neck with his right arm, cutting of his breath with paws as hard as glarcik stonewood.
The warrior lifted him easily off the ground and brought his face to within a paw’s distance as he snarled at Talik, his sharp fangs wet with saliva. He growled with fury as he spoke, his eyes digging into Talik’s soul.
“Youngling, you know not what you speak of. I have fought with the humans on the worlds of the dead zone when we took the planets back from the Insectoids. Twenty-two humans died saving my life and the lives of over a hundred Xenxin after our own clanmates left us behind when they retreated from the endless waves like cowards.
They came for us, you dull-minded youngling. And when they found us, they fought off wave after wave of drone attacks, dying all around me even as I begged them to kill me and save themselves. They do not leave anyone behind, human or ally. I am here only because of them.”
Talik felt his vision darken as he started passing out, and the warrior let him go suddenly. He collapsed on the floor, heaving for air as he stared up in terror at the warrior looming over him.
“They may not have claws, fangs, or fur, but they do not need them. They are fighters and killers, you weak-minded fool. One human warrior is worth ten Xenxin, and if you ever speak ill of them again in my presence, I will disembowel you. You will soon see just how tough they truly are and how lucky we are to have allies such as them, youngling.”
Shame of his arrogance and stupidity came over Talik as he remembered that interaction while debating whether or not to just tear the broken claw off. He was right, Talik thought to himself. I was a fool, and these humans are not weak. I am the weak one, sitting on a tree. Always last, always losing to the humans.
Talik heard sudden sounds near him, pushing himself off the trunk as his fur puffed out. The humans believed in protecting the natural world, and they did not kill off all the predators like other species did.
The sounds drew closer, and his claws protracted as his fear response activated. He looked around for a weapon before the source of the noises came into view. It was Recruit Johansen, his pale skin glistening with sweat.
Talik went into a defensive posture, as there was only one reason for the human to be here. He must be intent on either mating or killing Talik for revenge. The human finally saw him and stopped, smiling with malicious pleasure.
“There you are, Talik. Come on, I’ll help you the rest of the way.”
He took two paces towards Talik and then stopped again as Talik loudly growled, baring his fangs and stomping his good foot on the ground. The human raised both hands, a confused expression on his face as he eyed Talik with apprehension.
“What the fuck is your problem, Talik? Why are you getting ready to attack me?”
Talik snarled as he responded, trying to bluff the large human.
“I will not let you mount me or kill me, human. I will fight you to death before such dishonor is brought upon my clan.”
The human stared at Talik in silent shock for a few moments before he started loudly laughing with that grating sound the humans made. It made Talik angrier, and he stomped his foot again before slashing his claws through the air in front of him.
The human continued laughing uncontrollably, and Talik wondered if he was suffering a psychotic breakdown as tears started coming out of the human's eyes. Finally, the human spoke again, gasping for air as he did so.
“Holy shit, Talik. I think there has been a major cultural misunderstanding. I do not want to mate with you! I was mocking you; this is something humans do to each other in situations like that. And no offense, but I like human women, and you are definitely not my type.”
Talik became confused by what the human was saying, though he still maintained his defensive stance in case this was a trick. There was a lot he did not understand about human culture, and it was possible the human was telling him the truth.
“If you are not here to mate, then you must be here to kill me for revenge.” He finally said as he started shaking from the fighting chemicals still flooding his body.
The human threw his hands up in frustration as he yelled back at Talik.
“I am here to help you finish the run, Talik. I do not want to mate with you, nor do I want to kill you.”
Talik eyed him suspiciously before responding.
“Why would you want to help me finish the run? You are not a companion to me.”
The human eyed Talik with an expression he could not identify before replying.
“I do not need to be your companion to want to help you, Talik. You are here, same as I am. That means you are willing to fight and die for your family and friends, just as I am. This makes you my brother, Talik.
I do not need to like you to call you my brother. We do not leave anyone behind, and I will not leave you behind. So if you are done being a stubborn jackass, let’s get going and finish this run.”
Talik remembered again what the veteran warrior had said to him when he submitted his application, and he bent his head down in shame at being proven wrong again about the humans.
His claws retracted, and he felt himself deflating as he spoke quietly to the ground, too ashamed to look the human in the eyes.
“I regret... questioning your motives and for misunderstanding your intentions. I am grateful you have come back for me. I do not deserve to have a companion such as you.”
Talik looked up after he finished speaking and finally looked at the human. The human nodded and approached him as if nothing at all had happened and held up a fist. Knowing what the fist represented, Talik made sure his claws were fully retracted before making his own fist and touching the human’s.
“It’s all good, Talik. I will gladly pretend this never happened if you will do the same.”
Talik flicked his head up, indicating his agreement with what the human just said. Looking down at his bleeding paw, the human came over to his left side and wrapped his right arm around Talik’s back, placing his hand under the shoulder joint.
“Lean on me; I’ll bear some of your weight. Are you ready, Talik?” The human asked as he looked at Talik. Flicking his head up again, they started trying to walk in unison together, clumsily at first because of the different heights and body composition.
They soon fell into a gait that worked for the both of them, and Talik looked up at the distant Republic flag fluttering in the wind above the treetops. It did not seem so far now, and Talik leaned against his human companion as they continued to walk together.
Talik quickly glanced at his companion, seeing him in a new light as he felt the muscles of the human’s arm straining to bear some of his weight. The warrior veteran was right; the Xenxin truly were fortunate to have such allies and companions as the humans.
There was a question that Talik really wanted to ask, and he glanced at the human again as he asked it.
"Johansen, what is a pepilapoo? What is tra-trashpanna?"
The human looked at him with a surprised expression before laughing loudly at the questions Talik had just asked him. For some reason, he did not find the laughter coming from the human so grating this time, and he listened intently as the human began to explain what they were.