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The Nature of Predators 113
🕑 Added 2023-05-02 11:00:02 +0000 UTCMemory transcription subject: Glim, Venlil Rescue
Date [standardized human time]: December 19, 2136
The days since the raid against Venlil Prime had climbed into the double digits; ten days ago, every rescue learned the Gaians’ dark secret. I could recall the panic of being rushed to a bunker, by a predator whose name I didn’t even know. There were thousands of them packed in my vicinity, beady eyes glistening in the darkness. It brought back terrible memories, ones I’d tried to blot out from my mind.
I could still recall each of the numbers on my brand, torched into my neck in the Arxur lexicon; I could recite them by heart. When I was pried loose and herded around as the grays’ plaything, I wasn’t Glim. It was as if I could observe myself from the outside there, and distance myself from the binocular eyes scanning me as a scrumptious kill. The bunker humans left me overstimulated and slipping back into torturous times.
Noah would’ve known to comfort me, but he wasn’t there. The Terran ambassador was neck-deep in the Duerten negotiations, which had borne little fruit. Instead, I’d huddled within the bunker in a shaken heap, feeling claustrophobic and trapped among the predators. When the Gaian who saved me carried me outside, I could breathe again, ever so slightly.
How had the other cattle felt, having not already known that HUMANS were under those masks? I knew who they were, and it’s still taken me days to process that experience.
As an abstract concept, I could handle the reality of the predator infestation on Venlil Prime. My caretaker, by himself, was a welcome sight; I felt the smallest warmth, when Ambassador Williams rushed to visit me in the aftermath. It had taken me days to be able to speak with him though, after the bunker ordeal fried my neurons. Thousands of eyes, scattered throughout the periphery…the human presence….
I shook my head, and prayed that my voice wouldn’t leave me today. The Terrans hadn’t hurried me along, despite the breakdown of order among the rescues. However, my promise to aid them in getting through to the cattle hadn’t left my memory. I was supposed to deliver a speech the night of the raid, but I’d clammed up after the nightmare within an enclosed space.
“…so the Duerten are stringing us along. Now, they’re asking to see a rescue from the cattle farms!” Noah lightly draped an arm over my shoulders, which made me flinch. I’d zoned out as we were walking toward the auditorium. “Glim, you good? You told me you were all there.”
I clasped the folded-up speech notes tighter in my paw. “Yeah. P-perfectly fine. I’m just on edge from the raid. Haven’t been able to get out of that headspace.”
“Are you sure that’s it?”
“Totally. Say, I’m surprised to see Haysi and Sara talking.”
“Hm, she still screams and hides at every human but Sara. To think that you and her are rays of sunshine—you’re so clearly afraid of us, yet most rescues have renounced our kind altogether. The majority will never come around.”
“I’m going to try to help you with that. Oh, uh, what were you saying about the Duerten?”
“We need their ships, Glim; it’s no secret. The Duerten want to see what we’ve done for the farm rescues, and that means putting some poor soul through an inquisition.” The human rubbed his short scalp, pursing his lips. I found myself wishing he’d don his old helmet. “I hate to ask even more of you, but I think you’re the closest thing we have to an objective voice.”
I pinned my ears back. “If it gets me out of this place…I’ll do it.”
“So you’re good with leaving straight from the speech? I don’t mean to rush you, but the Federation is knocking on our doorstep. Each day we squander, they’re getting closer to us. To our friends.”
“I said I’ll help. Leave whenever.”
Sooner, rather than later, I hope. I need to clear my head.
Noah donned his mask, and my breathing felt much less strained. The human remained off to the side in the hallway, but pointed to a lectern in a conference room. Disaffected rescues had been shown to the area, and a few chattered nervously about the predators’ intentions. There was a camera to record my words, for the Venlil that hadn’t been coaxed to the meeting area.
I unfolded my speech notes, and surveyed the words I’d written before the raid. My conviction had been tested at every turn; I didn’t know how I could muster any persuasive abilities. Someone had to give these traumatized Venlil an explanation, if they were to attain any solace. It was shocking to discover the sweet species, who waited on us hand and foot, had the form of our enemy. I leaned closer to the microphone, summoning all of my strength.
“Hello everyone. To answer your burning question, the Gaians hide their faces because they know what they are. A predator race. They rationalize the deepest evils with ease, and their past rivals the Arxur’s in its h-horribleness.” My voice came out flat, save for the last stutter. Nervous gasps tailed from the audience, and I tried to add gusto to my tone. “Their real species name is human; the Federation has known about these wicked flesh-eaters for centuries. As an exterminator, and someone who has faced the same evils of captivity as you, I’ve encountered the worst predators. They are everything I’ve fought against and then some.”
Noah stiffened in the hallway. Several Gaians began to start toward me, perhaps to cut off my speech; they thought that I was generating additional panic. I could feel my caretaker’s awful eyes on me through the helmet, before he decided to trust what I was doing. The Terran ambassador extended an arm, holding his colleagues back.
Scrawled in red ink, I read my hasty additions to the speech, which I tacked on last night. Addressing current events was important, both for these Venlil and myself. This was about reminding myself why these primates were nothing like the Arxur who tortured me.
“But all of you know that humans act kind and endearing to us. You saw them save Venlil, while the weaker predators cowered alongside us.” That was what really happened, Glim—you saw it. Your logical brain knows this, but it’s like someone turned a faucet of memories back there. “Thousands of them locked with us for hours, across from makeshift hospitals their people set up. Inundated with fear scent and copious amounts of blood. The EMTs clasped packets in their hands and didn’t drink them.”
The Gaians seemed taken aback by my last note, but among the crowd, I saw a few tail swishes recognizing that oddity. There had been many things I’d regarded in the outside world, which suggested the predators had carved out ordinary lives here. Venlil and humans intermingled across the capital, and banded together in the war. Clearing my throat, I hurried through the last bit of my speech.
“I escaped this very facility weeks ago, and the world I saw wasn’t enslaved or suffering. I saw these predators playing fine-stringed instruments, trading fruits, and talking piteously about us. My caretaker pulled me back from an oncoming train, saving my life, and held me when I mourned a familial tragedy. He felt empathy, as proven by our scientific tests, and he didn’t shy away from his species’ worst moments.
Humans, Gaians…they aren’t the least bit predictable, but I believe that they won’t harm us today. Is that enough? All I can say is that we’ve seen them do more than kill, inside and outside these walls. Despite knowing the danger of predators, the Venlil decided to trust them. We have to trust the herd, or we have nothing.”
I flicked my ears a single time, and slunk away from the podium. That was the best declaration I could drum up for the rescues; I hoped it was what the humans wanted from me. Perhaps Noah wished I was less honest about their flaws, though he didn’t challenge me. My helmeted caretaker merely waved a hand, and guided me outside to a car. Being locked in an enclosed space with a predator jogged the horrible memories again, but I kept that thought to myself.
I tried to shut off my brain, hoping to dissociate during transit. Fielding Duerten questions, on behalf of humanity’s diplomatic outreach program, might be a good way to ground myself. It was a distraction at the least, one which I was relieved to have. Why couldn’t I get better?
---
The ornate exterior of the governor’s mansion sparkled in the sunlight, as we pulled up near the reception lawn. A female avian with dull gray feathers waited under an awning; she was clearly expecting our arrival. It was uncommon to see Duerten outside their systems, since their species denounced individual ambitions. Setting out to a foreign world on their own went against the Homogeneity’s collectivism.
I risked a glance at Noah, who had long-since abandoned the helmet. The human ambassador was unusually quiet, with a despondent look tugging at his lips. At first, I presumed it was because I was ignoring him, but he didn’t even notice we had arrived at our destination. Reaching out with a hesitant paw, I jostled his meaty hand. The Gaian blinked in rapid succession.
Do I really want to know what he was lost in his head about?
“Noah…what’s wrong?” I murmured.
The astronaut forced a snarl. “Don’t worry about it. You have your own problems, Glim, which are much heavier than mine. Besides, we’ve got to go. The Duerten ambassador is right there waiting for us.”
“She can wait ten seconds for you to tell me. I’ll feel better knowing.”
“If I tell you, will you promise to get out and talk to the Duerten, without any additional questions or comments to me?”
“…fine.”
“The stampedes. I can’t stop thinking about it all—the bodies, the calamity. Thousands died, even with our help. Tarva says that’s normal during emergency evacuations on Venlil Prime.”
“That’s what you’re brooding about? It’s sad, Noah, b-but there’s nothing you can do about it.”
“No! I just, I could’ve done things differently before. I know for a fact that everyone on this world was sent to bunkers, when Sara and I first showed up. How many people did we kill by saying hello? Those casualties were directly caused by our arrival. An unintended consequence.”
“Oh.”
Remembering my promise not to press Noah further, I slid out of the car. There was nothing I could say to comfort him, unless he was feigning empathy to tug at my heartstrings. He must’ve noticed that I was pulling away from everyone, in the wake of the raids; it was never certain his feelings were authentic. The human ambassador’s gaze scorched into my back, and he shimmied out after me. With forced cheeriness, he waved to the Duerten ambassador.
“Ambassador Coji. It’s wonderful to see you!” Noah’s abrupt shift in demeanor left me questioning just how well he could act. “This is Glim. He was rescued during an exchange negotiated by the UN Secretary-General. I’ve been helping him settle back into Venlil life.”
Coji’s bill was lengthy and curved, and looked threatening when it was pointed toward me. The Duerten studied me with a haughty aura, not saying a word. The lack of a basic greeting soured any goodwill I had toward this avian, but I remembered what Noah said about the importance of gaining their ships. Humanity must have endless patience, to keep trying at diplomacy without any results.
“Glim? Say something?” the human prompted.
I curled my lip. “Hello.”
“Apologies for his shortness, Madam Ambassador. I’m sure you understand the trauma he’s recovering from. Feel free to ask him any questions you like.”
“I’d rather do so without humans monitoring him,” Coji clicked.
The Duerten’s cold request rubbed me the wrong way, with how she was giving orders as a guest. If Noah was phased by being told to sod off, he didn’t show it. The Terran dipped his head in a respectful gesture, and backed away with careful steps. His pupils studied me with concern, and I straightened my ears to show I could handle it.
“Well, I’ll leave you two alone for a few minutes. But I’ll have to circle back shortly; this is only Glim’s second time out of the facility. His welfare is important to me,” the predator responded, to be greeted with silence. “Okay then. Good luck?”
Noah seems more awkward than usual. I can’t blame him, not receiving any positive cues from the Duerten.
Coji inspected me once the Gaian vanished. “Has that human talked about Mileau at all, Glim?”
“Mileau…the Dossur homeworld?” I asked.
“I’ll take that as a no. In short, the Kolshians raided the planet and are doing stars know what to the populace. These Terrans made sure to give us all the details, but they care so little for their allies. It’s just propaganda to them! They use it as a tragedy to show what the Federation has done, yet they’re doing nothing to take it back. They won’t protect their allies, when push comes to shove…except for the Venlil.”
“I thought you wanted to ask me about the cattle rescues. I don’t know why you’re talking to me about this.”
“Because, you’ve heard what they really think. You won’t just defend them blindly like your government does. Humanity could glass her own world, and Tarva would be on television the next day talking about how wonderful they are. They just want our ships. They think the Homogeneity doesn’t know they plan to use us, and discard our lives.”
“Ambassador Coji, er, I—”
“What incentive do we have to go against the Kolshians? We don’t want to fight them. We don’t even like humans: they’re loud, selfish, and brutish, in the presentable version of themselves. Noah’s happy to woo us into getting slaughtered, and fan the flames of war. I don’t like him either, and I want nothing to do with their whole alliance!”
Listening to someone else insult my caretaker boiled my blood, despite my jumbled emotions. It was true, by the Ambassador’s private admission, that humanity was trying to flip neutrals to their small alliance for manpower. However, if the Federation had actually raided the Dossur’s homeworld, how could that be turned against Noah? These Duerten were just wasting the Terrans’ time, and that pissed me off.
“You’re a fucking moron!” I screamed. “You could use the humans to your advantage. If you were smart, you’d realize they were desperate and set the terms. You want to be protected, then specify that! You could probably ask for their help freeing Duerten cattle too; they’re good at that. I’m not sure what you want from them, but they’ll do it.”
The long-billed avian leaned back. “To our advantage? Involving ourselves with attacking fellow herbivores…it’s out of the question. They’ll bring torment upon us, and the Terrans can’t even fend ‘em off.”
“Why don’t you involve yourself solely with stopping attacks? For the love of stars, all you have to do is send a few ships to human-allied planets. I don’t get why you wouldn’t want to send a clear message, before the Kolshians turn on you or your friends. It’s Arxur behavior, and it must stop. If Mileau is being plundered, that’s disgusting.”
“I agree, Glim. But this is why none of the races who talked to humanity will pledge support. It’s hard to stick your neck out.”
“It’s not hard. You want the humans to save the Dossur, and you know damn well they don’t have the numbers. Why? Because you won’t lift a wing to help. You don’t have to publicly declare support, or do a thing you don’t want to! Help care for the rescued cattle from the Sillis battle. Defend prey from attack, and nothing else. If you want Mileau recovered, then you and dozens of others need to contribute.”
Panicked footsteps ran down the walkway, so Ambassador Noah must’ve heard the commotion. I’d raised my voice to a staggering level, in my initial outburst. His binocular eyes were wide with alarm, and he raised his hands in a placating gesture. I could feel anger simmering off him, as he all but wrenched me away from Ambassador Coji. The Duerten was stewing over my words, and she studied the predator for several minutes.
“I have a proposal, predator. You get this one chance to accept it, and you may not counter-offer.” Coji moved her beak inches from Noah’s cheek, and I could see my caretaker trying not to shy away. “We’ll send a few dozen ships to your weakest worlds’ garrisons. We will only intervene in the event of an attack on prey; that means not Earth, and no offensive aid. You have no control over our ships, and you don’t order us around.”
The Terran looked surprised. “O—”
“I wasn’t finished. Furthermore, we will not be openly on humanity’s side. We don’t want to fight the Kolshians, unsure of their capabilities; nobody does. We will reach out to dozens of our allies to help retake Mileau. A full-fledged attempt to reclaim it is a mandatory condition of the deal, and we expect humanity to send the bulk of the force. It has been days, and you’ve done nothing.”
“We wish to help, really. But there’s forty-thousand of them…the number of ships we’d have to send to contest their claim would be too high. We couldn’t afford to take those kinds of losses, or to merely lose half of the craft we send. Even if we succeeded, we’d be leaving every other system, including our own, open to attack.”
“I don’t care about your system. I care about the Dossur, and I expect thousands of your ships in the rescue fleet. Do you accept our terms?”
“Yes. Yes, we do. Thank you, Amb—”
“I’m leaving. Quit talking.”
It was striking how Coji deigned to speak to Noah, and how casually the human brushed off the insults. His brown eyes watched, as she fluttered over to the reception lawn. The visitor boarded her spacecraft in a hurry. The predator leaned back, and waited until the Duerten had taken to the skies. Ambassador Williams then flashed his teeth, throwing an excited fist pump into the air.
“How did that happen? What the hell did you say, Glim?” the Gaian asked. “I mean, first off, I don’t have the authority to make that deal, but I’m sure the UN will accept it. Besides, if I didn’t say yes, she would’ve taken it off the table.”
I tilted my head. “I told her she should set the terms. That’s what that Duerten really wanted: control. Sorry that she, um, took my advice in a forceful direction. Aren’t you angry?”
“Oh, not at all, you brave, wonderful Venlil. You just gave us the ability to increase our friends’ defenses, and try to take back Mileau. We can win this war! Peace, that’s all we want in the whole wide universe.”
The predator was radiating excitement, though the impact of this moment was starting to hit me. I might’ve just tipped the war’s balance in humanity’s favor; there was no telling if their proclaimed intentions of peace would end up being the truth. Dwelling on that wouldn’t help my shattered mind, though. A Federation that bullied its own people into submission, and used secret fleets for conquest, was no better than whatever Earth would do.
Noah seemed to have a good heart, so I needed to continue accepting that at face value. The rest of his kind were ambiguous hunters to me, but I knew his character was pure and polite. He was deserving of my trust. It remained to be seen how the Terran alliance fared in its next battles, but I hoped they’d retake Mileau and kick the Kolshians in the teeth.
A/N - First update of May in the books! Glim puts a neat bow on our cattle arc by imparting his truth to the other rescues, and comes to Noah's aid in an unexpected political way. Humanity's desperate need for allies, before the coming war push Zhao mentioned, might be fulfilled. Will it be possible to retake Mileau? Will the Duerten give us numbers to tip the balance?
As always, thank you for reading and supporting! The next few chapters are insane and shocking: you don't want to miss them. Mystery one-shot tomorrow too, so some exciting things!
Comments
Lobotomiskii_
It’s the nature of (p)asserines
Rick
Is it a universal rule that all bird races are assholes.
John
I love how they use the term raid even though it was a full blown invasion.
