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The Nature of Predators 172
🕑 Added 2023-11-23 12:00:06 +0000 UTCMemory transcription subject: Onso, Yotul Technical Specialist
Date [standardized human time]: March 25, 2137
The lasers from the planetary defenses gave the Kolshians no quarter, as humanity ramped up its efforts against the shadow fleet. While the Arxur were getting eviscerated by the higher quality drones, we took it upon ourselves to direct our allies. The Sapient Coalition, who’d been distracting the Dominion so the Duerten could go after the Commonwealth, joined the avians in whaling on the enemy with everything they had. UN automatons mobilized from beside the moon, while the Federation was preoccupied with the frenzied grays. More of our drones swooped in to reinforce them, coming from the far side of the planet, where our foes’ fleet was capsizing.
Dominion ships had fallen in with Ilthiss, and were meandering toward our half of the globe; Yotul Technocracy vessels stationed over there took charge of hunting down the last stragglers. Our warship, meanwhile, fired off plasma shots and every mini-missile we had left, enjoying our cozy spot out of the firing lines. Even as isolated Arxur near our engagement floundered, they were hellbent on issuing parting gifts—that meant every missile or close-range kinetic they could throw against Kolshian metal. No algorithm could escape the quantity of weapons firing all around our enemy. The shadow fleet numbers were ticking down like sand in an hourglass.
I was transfixed by the viewport, as far-reaching particle beams cut through Kolshian vessels with an invisible paw. The Dominion had comprised close to half of the enemy contingent here, so flipping their ship count alone put us on even numerical odds. The planetary defenses were built to tear any invading foes to shreds, which meant they could smite thousands of Aafa’s defenders until they were removed from play. The enemy had no chance to take the complexes offline; we were really doing it! I wasn’t sure the shadow fleet could fend off the assault even if the UN, the SC, the Technocracy, and the Duerten Shield ships were taken out of the equation.
The Arxur are the miracle reinforcements we needed, here all along. It wasn’t worth the risk of provoking Betterment before, but now was the opportune moment to flip the grays—however humanity achieved that, it was a Ralchisend.
I perked my ears up. “Sir, I’m sure you know, but we should take precautions with our manned vessels. We need as many ships like ours intact as possible to occupy Aafa; it’s ideal if this doesn’t turn into a two-way bloodbath.”
“Right on. I’m going to the ground, when we end this fight, to find out what happened to Slanek. I don’t know if you want to come with me, but you ain’t got to. There’s no telling what we’re walking into,” Tyler replied.
“I wouldn’t let you bumble off on your own. After their ordeal, we’ll have to see if Sovlin and company are up for another ground excursion; they could be worn out. Might need some shuteye.”
“Well, this battle’s been ongoing for a lot of fucking hours. We’re all tired, but we can rest when the Federation no longer exists as an entity. Any ideas for how we help kill the ones up here, quick and easy?”
I gestured toward the sea of explosions, as the Kolshians were bombarded by thousands of munitions. “I say we sit back and watch the show. Is this what ‘fireworks’ are like on Earth? I see why you said it’s beautiful.”
“This is a fine light show, but spectating ain’t really seizing the opportunity, Onso. I thought you wanted to make them pay.”
“Well, I also want to make it back to Leirn, and see you and all the others on a return flight to Earth. We can still kick their ass from here. It just takes a little imagination.”
“I’ll bite. What’s your play?”
“Remember on the submarine, with the torpedoes…how they went past the enemy and looped back? Why don’t we try that with our missiles? With the abundance of stimuli right now, the Kolshian drones might see them as off-target—less warheads would be deflected.”
Tyler tapped my screen. “Forward your suggested pathing to weapons. I’ll loop everyone into the picture.”
Proud of myself for improvising that idea mid-conversation, I began passing along targeting vectors to weapons. The missiles could have new instructions transmitted to them mid-flight, coordinates I’d have standing by for the humans to send them doubling back. There were still sixty thousand active shadow fleet ships, despite their enormous losses. While that count was much lower than our combined force, we had to take them down before they could land a counter-punch. The flipped Dominion ships were going to be a memory in the next few minutes. That meant we’d bear the enemy’s full attention soon, if we couldn’t dial up the pressure.
Plus, the racist old Gojid will be back any minute. I don’t want him to get a word in, questioning my skills in this station.
It was as if the thought of that former Federation captain summoned him. I could hear the clicking of claws on the floor behind me, the methodical plodding of Sovlin’s feet; however, the light strikes of boots belonged to a single pair, and it wasn’t the commanding thuds of Carlos’ bulky form. Samantha looked unusually dispirited, the standard sneer wiped from her face. The Gojid’s haughty air was also missing, replaced by his claws curling into a ball with rage. I drew in a sharp breath, as I put two and two together about what happened on the moon. While I hadn’t known Carlos well, he had always been a kind-hearted presence on the bridge.
Tyler’s mouth parted with sorrow, as his bushy eyebrows slanted downward. “How bad is it?”
“Carlos isn’t coming back,” Sovlin said, in a voice that lacked tonality. He squeezed his eyes shut, as if to bury his emotions. “Tell me the planetary defenses made a difference. If we didn’t have a chance, our…whole mission was for nothing.”
I placed my tail on his wrist for a brief second. “Those lasers killed at least ten thousand of the shadow fleet ships. I’ll tell you: revenge, it didn’t make me feel as good as I thought it would…but you’re wired differently. Turn toward the viewport, and watch the end of the Federation. I came up with a damn good idea for our missiles.”
“You have lots of good ideas, Onso. There’s no need to prove yourself to anyone.”
“Um, who are you and what have you done with Sovlin?”
Samantha’s eyes landed on me. “I’ll tell you what he won’t. Sovlin agreed not to call you a primitive. He told me he was proud to work alongside such a bright-eyed ‘taushana.’”
My tail snapped away from the Gojid’s arm. “The fuck did you just say?”
“It was a joke, but it’s not funny anymore,” the Gojid sighed. “I don’t have the heart to mess with you.”
“That’s not messing with me. That’s crossing a fucking line. The only reason I’m not dropping you, military law be damned, is because you’re suffering from Carlos. You ever say that word again, and I’ll rearrange your facial features the way you did to Marcel.”
Tyler glowered at Sovlin. “Then I’ll throw you into another cabinet for good measure. But I’m gonna cut you some slack, and assume you weren’t in your right mind ‘cause of what happened to Carlos; it’s a damn tragedy. I liked that guy. He had his whole life ahead of him.”
“I’m sorry,” Samantha grumbled. “I didn’t know there was anything wrong with that word.”
The Gojid slumped his shoulders. “I just wanted to get under Onso’s skin. For what it’s worth, I only took the time to even research Leirn culture because I like him.”
“That’s enough on this topic for now, but you’re gonna hear why slurs are real fucked up later,” Tyler scolded. “I don’t want to spit on Carlos’ memory with this bullshit now, ‘cause it ain’t the right time. Also, I don’t wanna miss the shadow fleet getting blown the fuck up for your bullshit. My best friend’s ideas are gonna wreck those ships!”
If anyone else had called me that charged term for Rinsians, I would’ve resolved this issue on the spot. However, my opinion was that Sovlin was sincere in viewing it as playful banter, without understanding how it was far beyond acceptable. It was difficult to summon anger when the Gojid looked so devastated by Carlos’ demise. I was forced to consider how easy it would be for any one of us to bite the dirt. After losing one of our station’s personnel, it drilled home the risk we’d be undertaking landing on Aafa. I tried to shake the thought of our peril, but I knew, now more than ever, that I was responsible to help protect our group. The pledge I’d made to my best friend wasn’t one I’d back out on, no matter how much I’d love to stay up here.
What I did know was that Sovlin and Samantha were committed to see this all the way through as well. While we hadn’t asked them, I could tell they intended to head to Aafa’s surface with us, as soon as the shadow fleet was eliminated. It was difficult to muster up my old exuberance, following such heavy news, but I did want to burn the Federation’s fall into my memory. Years of resentment for the aliens who stole our culture and made a mockery of my species led up to today. Humanity needed one more spike of enemy casualties, and the threat of Kolshian control returning would be gone. The primates’ arrival had given us a chance at being our true selves again.
The missiles are away, and sailing wide of their targets. Let’s see if the underwater tactics translate…if we can deliver the final punch. I’m ready for this all to be over; I’ve seen and done too many things that risked my welfare.
The stakes of this moment weren’t lost on any of the binocular-eyed faces in the room; the Terrans had endured a great deal, in such a short timeframe. Much like the species who’d suffered under Federation rule for centuries, humanity had their worldview flipped upside-down after first contact. I knew what it felt like to be treated as a primitive, but the burden of being viewed as a monster, unfit to exist, seemed worse. They’d been staring down the potential extinction of their species for many sleepless nights. As the explosives began to snake back toward the shadow fleet, I echoed the Duerten commander’s wish that the Earthlings could win and find closure.
The enemy seemed mystified by the explosives passing them, as they cleaned up the last of the Arxur. Particle beams were cutting down hundreds of Kolshians, from far-side UN drones closing in on them. The Duerten Shield was flying with senseless aggression, not giving the bastards time to process what the missiles were up to; our armada badgered Commonwealth marks with plasma beams from afar. Lasers scored instant kills from the complexes that Carlos had lost his life to bring into our possession. When thousands of warheads sent from an array of Terran ships doubled back in a flash, the shadow fleet was too overwhelmed to respond.
“Here we go!” Tyler declared, a grin of schadenfreude on his features. He must’ve been telling the truth about sharing my desire for payback, back on Leirn. “This is gonna be some flashy fireworks, Onso!”
I was mesmerized alongside the blond-haired human, as explosions rocked the shadow fleet. The hits landed in close succession, encouraging the Sapient Coalition to send follow-up missiles. Debris from the enemy detonations struck their own allies, as thousands of drones crumbled against a new tactic and sensory overload. It was now that the nearest human vessels swept in for the kill, going all-out for the finish. With the numerical advantage on our side, UN automatons found the surest way to eliminate the shadow fleet. They rammed themselves into surviving Kolshian vessels, with guns blazing on approach.
Planetary defenses had their pick of the few remaining survivors, sniping enemies without the need to recharge. Meanwhile, Ilthiss’ remaining band had arrived from the other side of the globe; the Arxur chased after the shadow fleet, hungry for revenge after the Kolshians wiped out their comrades on this half. Particle beams were still dissecting enemies, some from Technocracy ships that were hurrying to aid us. My disbelieving eyes stared at the sensor readout, as our flurry of threats made quick work of the few thousand enemies that remained, after the missiles and the UN’s own kamikazes. It was difficult to find hostile indicators on the screen.
Control of Aafa is ours, just like that. As long as the Duerten Shield will uphold their bargain about glassing the Kolshians and the Arxur will let us do the “raiding”, it’s time to start gearing up to head planetbound.
I scrutinized my readout for the decisive moment, and wagged my tail with enthusiasm when it arrived. “The shadow fleet has been eliminated from the orbital vicinity. It’s over—humanity has control of the Federation’s heart. We won!”
Captain Monahan didn’t quiet the cheers and applause, as my shouted announcement reached the ears of the crew. Humans embraced each other, with forward-facing gazes that watered with emotion. Tyler clapped his hand on my back, with a bit too much force. Samantha reached out for her fellow guard, to find he wasn’t there; she finally let the tears overflow, while shooting brief glances toward Sovlin. My gaze hardened with resolution, since I knew what I said wasn’t entirely true.
It wasn’t over. What came next was uncovering the truth about how the shadow fleet operated, to ensure they weren’t hiding out somewhere in space. If we discovered the origins of the conspiracy along the way, that would finally close the case on why the Kolshians were doing this. I didn’t care what their reasons were, but humanity did; Tyler mentioned something about recording history to avoid it happening again in the future. Assuming we were able to land safely, the United Nations still had to reckon with the fate of Aafa…and the entire galaxy.
Tyler pursed his lips, once the celebrations settled down. “Alright, we ain’t breakin’ out the champagne yet. Anyone who’s heading to the surface, follow me to the hangar. We’ll get a briefing there on everything we need to know, and any intel on the shadow caste that might help, then we’re going. No time like the present. Everyone else, watch out for enemy stragglers and reinforcements. Intel says that was all the ships they had, but we can’t afford to get blindsided. Now who’s with me?”
“I’m coming with you,” Sovlin said.
Samantha bobbed her shoulders. “I haven’t shot enough Kolshians for what happened out there. Let’s go.”
“Glad we’re all sticking together. Let’s just be careful for any spiteful traps they set for us down there,” I growled.
Tyler bared his teeth. “Yep, the way I heard it, all human soldiers will be wearing gas masks. I’m a red meat guy—don’t want to be cured.”
“Red meat?” Sovlin wrinkled his nose with utter disgust, a trace of his normal attitude surfacing. “You mean, blood-soaked?”
“Nah, I’m talking about the color of their flesh, my dude!”
“Which is determined by how much oxygen is held in the muscles,” I added, with a tail lash of mischief.
The Gojid flailed his claws. “Why the fuck do you know that?! I didn’t need to think about that, Onso! I mean, Protector, are you getting a doctorate in predation?”
“I know many things. You’d be amazed what reading actual words on paper can teach you.”
Tyler smirked. “Something tells me Sovlin doesn’t want knowledge about our culture. Why don’t we resume the discussion about meat eating on the ride down?”
“I’d rather not,” Sovlin spat. “Just walk, predator.”
My exchange partner snickered to himself; it was clear that our orbital victory had lifted everyone’s spirits, except for the sullenly silent Sam. We needed to find a new normal without Carlos, so we could achieve success on our mission. As I marched toward the hangar bay, I considered how our stint on Aafa might play out. Humanity was likely taking its first actions as the default leaders of the galaxy. While I was grateful for how differently they treated aliens from the Federation, I hoped that they would continue to uphold a moral example in this new future.
A/N - The space battle comes to a close! The shadow fleet is able to rip apart the Arxur, but with their concentration pulled in too many direction, humanity can clean them up--and a tactic ripped from the submarine torpedoes finishes the job. Orbital control belongs to the UN, who are holding their more bomb-happy allies at bay; Onso, Tyler, Sovlin, and Sam (with a hole left by Carlos' death) are heading to the ground in search of secrets and prisoners. How do you feel about humanity finally securing victory in the Battle of Aafa? What do you expect us to find out on the surface of Aafa?
As always, thank you for reading and supporting!
Comments
Cooldude101011
Then they’ll give them sticks as spears. WW2 Japan did it
Cooldude101011
Or have setup nukes or antimatter bombs in cities waiting until UN/SC forces land to detonate. “Better to die than to be cattle”.
Cooldude101011
Well currently we may be making the mistake of invading what is essentially the Japanese homeland but on a planetary scale. Ketsu-go. Casualty numbers for both the UN/SC and Kolshian sides are going to be horrific
Cooldude101011
Yup, full NBC gear. Here come the tanks baby
neon_ns
"What the fuck did you just fucking say about me, you little bitch? I'll have you know I graduated top of my class in the UN Navy, and I've been involved in numerous secret raids on the Federation, and I have over 3.000.000 confirmed kills. I am trained in EMU warfare and I'm the top sniper in the entire UN armed forces. You are nothing to me but just another target. I will wipe you the fuck out with precision the likes of which has never been seen before in this Galaxy, mark my fucking words. You think you can get away with saying that "taushana" shit to me? Think again, fucker. As we speak I am contacting my secret network of spies across the Sapient Coalition and your quill-less ass is being traced right now so you better prepare for the storm, maggot. The storm that wipes out the pathetic little thing you call your life. You're fucking dead, racist. I can be anywhere, anytime, and I can kill you in over seven hundred ways, and that's just with my bare hands. Not only am I extensively trained in unarmed combat, but I have access to the entire arsenal of the United Nations, Sapient Coalition, Druerten Shield AND Arxur Rebellion Navy and I will use it to its full extent to wipe your miserable ass off the face of the galactic arm, you little shit. If only you could have known what unholy retribution your little "clever" comment was about to bring down upon you, maybe you would have held your fucking tongue. But you couldn't, you didn't, and now you're paying the price, you goddamn idiot. I will shit fury all over you and you will drown in it. You're fucking dead, kiddo." - best character
Dcluigimario
Part of me, a small part mind you, is predicting that humanity has indeed been wearing a mask this entire time. As soon as they take over Aara, it would be easy for humanity to play the long game until we can build our forces back up and take over the rest of the universe
Seamus
Maybe if they’re slowly creeping through the jungles of affa. I was thinking a little more “kick start my heart” or some metallica for the drop
Yannis Morris
Time to drop into hell
Troy
How bout firing squad
PhycoKrusk
I'm glad I'm not the only one who used that descriptor.
PhycoKrusk
@Cera Onso already explained the meaning in a prior chapter, and like @Lvm suspects, it's not really very interesting. It's exact origin, however, is not explained, and the is possibly very interesting.
PhycoKrusk
Don't forget that U-505 exists: The last Type XIC u-boat in the world. So badly damaged in combat that the crew of 50 abandoned her after setting scuttling charges, only to watch her continue to float after she received emergency repairs from 14 (probably insane) Americans, and then watching comfortably from jail as she was towed 1,500 miles to Bermuda to receive even more repairs to become seaworthy again. (She can still be seen to this day, proudly displayed to the world in Chicago, IL) What I'm saying is that even if they've set up antimatter devices in their population centers, Humanity might just say "No" when they try to ragequit as the humiliation train keeps on chooglin'.
PhycoKrusk
You would need different drugs in any case, and I'm sure all the predator disease facilities that will be raided will have plenty of them.
PhycoKrusk
Well, they've clearly already learned an important one: There aren't any Soviets in space.
PhycoKrusk
Hm, na. I think something that will actually provide them with practical advice, like how they shouldn't go walking slow when the Devil's on the loose, and they'd better run through the jungle. ~ Whoa, don't look back to see ~
Reptani
This is feeling a lot like WWII, with humanity being about to emerge as the Orion Arm's sole superpower amid all the destruction. I wonder if we'll learn from America's mistakes.
Seamus
Can we please get an orbital drop scene with some “classic” metal playing over the comms? 🤘
Tazeell
Even the shadow boarders weren't exactly great at anything but dieing en mass. Definitely lacking in flexible thinking and tactics they were mostly throw meat at the problem till you or they run out of meat. I expect bombs planted all over, hell I wouldn't put it past them to detonate antimatter bombs in their own population centers if nessisary to hide their secrets, especially with so much time to prepare. I expect our heros to be spared such things but if casualties aren't in the the hundreds of millions minimum I'd be shocked.
EliasArt2Life
Now that I think of it, I don’t believe that we’ve really seen any Kolshian soldiers in ground combat. We’ve seen troops fighting on spaceships, and there were the guards who captured Slanek, but those don’t really count. We have yet to see what their planetside military is like. Are they like the Tilfish, or the Gojids? I think most of their competent fighters died defending orbit. Unless the have a “Shadow Army” caste, this could be more like the Gojids. The only non-Shadow Fleet, non-ship combat with Kolshians I recall (that mattered) was on Milleau, where Arxur and human tore through them with little issue. I agree; I expect dirty tricks, but I don’t think it’ll stop us (especially with us wearing gas masks).
EliasArt2Life
@Some Lvm Oh, it’s totally possible for them to be against us. In fact, I’d estimate 9 in 10 would probably be against us in some way. But that still gives them agency, and a 1 in 10 chance to prove themselves. I sincerely doubt the ENTIRE civilian population is against us, for the following reasons: 1) It’s not Space Paladin’s style. All other species have shown nuance, even the Yulpa have had Mallin, why would the Kolshians be the outliers? 2) Recel. 3) From Aucel’s one shot, we heard that the citizens are not happy with their government, and are now aware of the Secret Police Caste. Anti-government tensions are high, and will likely climb higher after censorship has been stopped. While most of them could choose not to believe the truth, SOME of them will.
Edmund Lam
Off topic. IRL, I am very iffy about supporting death penalty, given there are so many issues with inequality in the legal system. Having stated that, the guillotine is actually one of the most humane execution method. Often times, the neck doesn’t break in hanging and the person takes a long time to die. Electrocutions are sometimes botched with the person still being alive while literally being on fire. Lethal injections are getting harder and harder to do because the drugs needed are produced in countries that have banned capital punishment.
Some Lvm
@Wesley Rigg - realistically? For the same reason they don't do it today in countries that actually still practice death penalty like the US. I am no expert on execution methods, but there are much more humane methods than hanging. And while we may joke here about "calamari", in any realistic scenario the future humanity's justice system would not seek to inflict retribution torture on the condemned.
Some Lvm
Ah, but what side will they shine on, once they do get their agency? Just because the outsiders see some government as an oppressive dictatorship, does not mean majority of the citizens do. Or in this case the may believe the devil you know is better than the one you don't.
Daniel Kerr
A civilian carrying a weapon is probably too close to predatory behavior.
Edmund Lam
There may be no neck to break.
Wesley Rigg
Why wouldn't we do hanging? A properly done hanging is probably the best way to be executed.
Blake S
Given what happened on the cradle the civilian issue just might solve itself, if the planet hasnt already gone all mad max from the cyber attacks
Tobias Sumrall
My guess is they are still omnivores, didn't cure themselves, and eat various meats from around the galaxy as delicacies.
Adam Myers
You know, thinking back, Sovlin was trying to mimic humanity with the razzing. That wasn't native to his line of thinking. In that perspective he simply misunderstood.
Byron Ritchie
Me neither
Some Lvm
@Mr. Walker - why not? I doubt they can organize against the ruling caste, and they will make the perfect distraction bumbling around firing random shots, while the shadow caste snipers take care of the invading humans.
Danny Luca
Monahan: We’ve taken orbital control. Now, it’s time…. Send in the otaku!
Edmund Lam
Well, no neck to break, so hanging will be slow death by strangulation. Death by calamari. Yes. Fried in a giant pot of oil.
Some Lvm
Actually, we did see some good action during the boarding chapter, which is much more indicative since those were actual Kolshian shadow soldiers, rather than just a scientist. I seriously doubt there will be any Arxur on the ground. The Kolshian control over them is not so refined as to be able to have them mingle with the population and not eat anyone, or get their commanders to feed them enough not eat anyone. Plus, too many chances for information contamination. For both the Arxur and the Kolshina civilians. But I do suspect there will be other surprises waiting for our troops which have not been seen on any other Fed planet the humans have ventured to so far. As for Sovlin, I think he had enough torture for one life time, possibly two. He isn't my favorite character, but honestly it is about time he got a break! As for Sam, it makes sense she wanted to cling to the belief Sovlin was being genuinely nice at that moment, just to make something feel positive, so she didn't scrutinize his words too much. She has been through enough both training and personal loss as to not be so in shock that she would forget it completely.
Some Lvm
Why not? From all the descriptions, they are more or less humanoid shaped now, with distinct heads, bodies, arms and legs. They even seem to have bones or some equivalent, since Isif was able to break some legs while rescuing Ferla. Though I doubt they would still use hanging in 2137. And in the Kolshian case in particular, I am favoring drawing and quartering. You know, just in case :P
Some Lvm
@Cera - yes probably, but the meaning isn't the interesting thing - was there a war? Were the islanders enslaved? Butchered? Did the Yotul have their version of Spaniards discovering the "new world" or the transatlantic slave trade? We got some glimpse in to pre-Fed Yotul society, but it was pretty narrow, since it was from Onso's POV. I am wondering about their wider history.
Edmund Lam
Getting ready for Nuremberg 2. Would hanging work on squids?
Wesley Rigg
Yea, I think this is going to be like the planned invasion of Japan that the nukes prevented. The US called it Operation Downfall and minted so many purple hearts that we are still working through that stockpile today, Japan straight up called it "Ten million glorious deaths."
Wesley Rigg
She did give herself a safety net by stating that she was quoting Sovlin, so it's possible she wasn't completely tricked.
Cera Treascair
My bet's on it being somewhere in the realm of a speciest slur that implies some *exceedingly* unsavory things...
Caleb Carter
The trees can’t talk if there are no more trees…oh wait…this belongs in “The Sacrifice” chapters
SimpleArtist
Huh, I didn't expect Sam to be tricked so easily, she seems like a a smart woman, I would have expected to just plain forget about that word, with the shock of Carlos dying. I'm very interested in seeing what is gonna happen in the surface of the planet. We haven't seen ground combat since Slanek killed the Kolshian, it'll be very interesting to see how our group react to the whole chaos, how would the environment would look like? would there be Arxur on the ground? if so, would they be willingly to combat with non-Humans? Would it be wise to keep Prey-Folk and Arxur near each other? How will this specific group react to that? :D Also, let's just torture Sovlin with the knowledge of Earth's biodiversity!
PhycoKrusk
If they're hiding in the bushes with rifles, I doubt it's because the ruling caste "let" them.
DemonVee
@th3h4ck3r There was a hint of that belief. But I wonder how true that could actually be. I think it was said that they "used to be" semi aquatic. So unless that's just a lie for the public caste and they still are, it would be crazy if they evolved to be land dwelling within a civilization's memory. (And a little odd considering that the seas are filled with predators too, and they know that to be true considering that they use that as a threat against venturing out into the oceans) But it does give me an idea, if the Farsul or any other predator species (if I'm right about the Farsul) reigned on the planet's surfaces I can imagine lower caste kolshians being sent up from the oceans to fight their war of conquest, and a type of hierarchy developed based on how far you are from the depths. Ocean dwelling>Surface dwelling>...Basically any other alien.
Mr. Walker
"Are they just hiding in the bushes with rifles?" I doubt the upper caste will let the common rabbel have weapons.
Mr. Walker
"C: It's to do with another force outside of the Orion arm of the Galaxy that will have a role to play in NoP2. I doubt the Kolshians were uplifted, but if they were they could have been essentially been granted the role of "stewards" over their region of space by their uplifters, so that the Kolshians protect life." I don't know. Feels like kicking the can down the road. Like, explaining the origin of life by means of panspermia.
Tazeell
Head out of ass and all it took was a friend dieing. Kolshians are far from the best infantry so I suspect a lot of dirty tricks and high civilian casualties coming in the future.
EliasArt2Life
I’m excited for what they might find on the ground; I know there’ll probably be atrocities and horrible stuff there, as well as a lot of fighting, but this is also the opportunity for the Kolshian civilians to shine. So far they’ve been devoid of almost all agency, so if the possibility of them getting some agency back exists, I’m excited for it. Also, I predict we’ll be seeing Aucel there, and we haven’t gotten anything from her since the one shot.
Some Lvm
Well, now I want to know what the hell happened to the Rinsians to make Onso so triggered over a slur.
Apogee
This gonna be crazy down there. Too many possibilities, the population is unlikely to surrender given the tactics so far, and the physical reaction they have just to the sight of forward facing eyes. (Extreme nausea)
PhycoKrusk
Uh oh. I don't like those eyes....
OctupleThreat
Whatever awaits on the ground is going to immensely fucked up, no matter what it is. I'm imagining that maybe the Kolshians have their own sapient cattle farms and that they're far more depraved than the Arxur could ever be or maybe there is a dead man's switch for the planet and Kolshian leadership on the ground is waiting for the best moment for maximum casualties. Fuck, maybe they have Deadman's triggers in the biology of altered beings. All we know for sure is that Mengele would probably blush at the shit they'll find out in the first 10 minutes on the ground.
I think 'wide of their targets' is gramatically correct. I see those exact four words often when referring to firearms or bows or thrown objects.
Space Paladin
Always a pleasure!
Space Paladin
👀
PhycoKrusk
Well, I was right: Sovlin actually really liked Onso and was trying, in his clumsy old man way, to be a bro. Unfortunately, I was also right: The laughter died with Carlos. Sovlin's only choice now is to find Slanek, because if Carlos isn't going home, someone needs to in his place; that's just the rules. Right now, I'm most curious about what the reception will be like: I doubt they'll be welcomed as heroes, but how bad off is Aafa after the grid went down? Did it ever really go down for them? Are they just hiding in the bushes with rifles? Or are they trying to figure out a lottery system so they can trade some of them as food to spare the others? I'm kind of anticipating total chaos one way or another.
PhycoKrusk
I don't think Sovlin really cares anymore.
PhycoKrusk
The ability to scan brains does, yes, but the technology to transcribe memories has not been invented yet. All this means for us right now is that there is enough Slanek left to transcribe something from.
PhycoKrusk
The surface might also be in complete ruins. The Kolshians got hit by the cyber attack too, so for all any of us know, the shadow caste might've hopped offworld to some other location and left the civvies to their fate. I don't personally think that's very likely, but they absolutely could be about to step off shuttles into Mad Max.
PhycoKrusk
Hey, come on now friends. Leave the edgy 12 year-old alone.
th3h4ck3r
From the Kolshian's POV (we don't know how true that is) they hate predators as retribution for being absolutely decimated by terrestrial carnivores after they came onto land as were not accustomed to the new environment. Sapience would be one of the few evolutionary exits out of that rabbit hole other than going back to the ocean. So for them, sapience would literally be an anti-predator adaptation.
Invariance
She thought she was being helpful; Sovlin told her it was "a loving term of affection". What makes you think she knew it was a slur?
Alekss Žukovskis
also we had a Recel perspective too i believe
Alekss Žukovskis
no its correct. as in wide IN RELATION TO their targets
ToddTheSquid
Maybe he shouldn't have said the slur to begin with. Don't blame her, she didn't do anything wrong.
Paperclip
Good to know that Onso is also a biology nerd. Sovlin's never winning with him again
DemonVee
Also, Sam is going to die isn't she...
Taliesyn
The brain scan tech already exists in-universe. It was used on Meyers immediately after his death. It was mentioned an installment or two later.
Valkyrie
"The missiles are away, and sailing wide *of* their targets." Shouldn't that be "off"?
Taliesyn
You want Sam to die because Sovlin tricked her. Did you take the short bus to school?
DemonVee
Ooo, we're gonna get to learn some history. My guess for the options are: A: The Kolshians were predators (Which they blamed for their violent history) and they were projecting their past onto the rest of the Galaxy. Acting as "righteous saviors" in their eyes. B: The Farsul were predators, and either they came into conflict in an interstellar war (Where the Kolshians developed the ideology as a justification for their conquest or dehumanization of the Farsul if they were the aggressors instead) or they actually came from the same planet. Where the Kolshians developed their anti predator ideology fairly early in their history for similar reasons. Either way the Farsul getting dominated and essentially "domesticated". C: It's to do with another force outside of the Orion arm of the Galaxy that will have a role to play in NoP2. I doubt the Kolshians were uplifted, but if they were they could have been essentially been granted the role of "stewards" over their region of space by their uplifters, so that the Kolshians protect life. However, this role could have easily been mutated into meaning something else in their eyes, so the hatred for things that "destroy life" was born. Another option is a psycho species similar to the Arxur who raided Aafa eons before, which painted their view of all "aggressive species" ------------------- I'm scared for the moment we find Slanek. The Kolshians were the ones to do the brain scan, I have a feeling his brain is actually just going to be soup and they invent the memory transcript technology to try and bring back people like him by over writing his neurology. ------------------- The fight over Aafa might not be fun, I think the Public Kolshians were seen as no better than the rest of the Fed species by the Shadow Caste (A covert slave caste that wasn't meant to know the truth). So the civilians might just get used in traps and other horrors to inflict as much damage on the UN as possible. Going fully salt earth tactics, and maybe even just preemptively bombing their colonies so they their "resources" wouldn't fall into enemy hands. This is especially likely if the Kolshians really have a different base of operations for their Shadow Caste somewhere out there. (Maybe Aafa isn't even their homeworld.) Plus, giving that the public still believes the UN to be monsters. It's essentially going to be the exact reason why the US didn't want to make a direct landing on the Japanese mainland during WW2. The carnage might be unimaginable.
Anemoia
LET'S GOOOO ONSO-SOVLIN BONDING
Premier Zarkovik
💀
Steve Vega
We're going to find either something like the Kolshians evolved alongside a sapient predator that they ultimately had to genocide in order to stop being eaten. Or that they were also omnivores/carnivors before curing themselves and deciding to spread their bullshit to the stars.
Theflamre
God just couldn't resist making a moment with Sovlin about him being racist, could they? For once it seems like it's going well then Sam steps up "He also said a slur!" fuck you sam. Just let us get off the topic finally. Hopefully she dies next.
Sobek
>The Gojid slumped his shoulders. “I just wanted to get under Onso’s skin. For what it’s worth, I only took the time to even research Leirn culture because I like him.” The truest sign of friendship is spending hours carefully researching the best insults to throw at your friend. Also considering Sovlin is a Gojid would his originally-made-by-feds and likely fed approved research sources on Lerin pre-contact culture even explain why the yotul n-word is bad outside of saying it was a harsh insult?
HiMyNameIsFelipe
What things will we learn now? Also, I have the feeling the ground battle will be mutch harder compared to previous ones
Andrew Boivin
Me sloowww. As we draw ever closer to the end I’m worried what they’ll find in the surface. Will there be mass suicides from the fear of the predators? What’s happened to Slanek after all this time? Will Isif be able to take control of the Arxur? Can’t wait to find out!
Nebnoc
Yeah... Sovlin can't have a break.
Xskipy 10
This is it! We’re quickly approaching possibly the final twist reveal of the series
Matthew Mclemore
I feel like the arxur are gonna want to put claws on the ground. Might throw a wrench in
Lako
Thanks for the chapter!
Byron Ritchie
I wonder what twists we have in store?
dmg
Third! ;)
Second
Jackson Hazeltine
First! I can’t wait to see what the surface has in store for the team.
