[Fan Fiction] Tunguska

[wolf329]

A little art added...

[Kensai]

Have you gotten over the mental block on where to go with this?

[wolf329]

No, there's still some gaping holes in the plot, but I have added a whole new chapter! With gaping holes.

[Kensai]

No, there's still some gaping holes in the plot, but I have added a whole new chapter! With gaping holes.

Oooooooooo...... can't wait!!

[wolf329]

(finally)

From there, the airport, and the sky. Due to noise constraints supersonic flight was not allowed over populated areas, so I was treated to a leisurely, comparatively, flight across the continent aboard a military aircraft. Its form seemed extremely dated, but I was assured by the crew that, despite its age, given its regular upgrades and careful maintenance a B-52 was a solid machine. I couldn't help but wonder if rather than treating me to a jaunt in a flying antique it was to keep me from seeing a more modern atmospheric craft, which I subtly hinted at to my human adjutant, a Lt. Christine Saki.

She laughed. "You mizols really need to relax," she said then caught herself as I raised an eyebrow. "Ah. Sorry. Begging your pardon, ma'am, but this is a standard working craft. I swear, for sure."

The first stop of my tour was a dedication ceremony to a memorial for the commander of the Bellarmine in his hometown. Thankfully, given what I knew of the man's absence of pretension from Alex's memories, it was merely a life-sized statue of him accompanied by a modest plaque. I said a few words to the assemblage, expressing my regret at not having met him in person, but given the skill and competence of his remaining subordinate, as well as Alex's posthumous respect bordering on adulation for him, I was certain he was as fine an officer as ever commanded a starship. Shortly afterwards, I met with his widow who complimented me on my eulogy. I thanked her, and allowed myself to feel a bit of pride that my grasp of the regional language was probably beyond even Listel Beryl's at this point.

In further appreciation she invited us to her home for dinner. Lt. Saki accompanied me. Compared to the elaborate formal dinners the diplomats had relentlessly plied me with in New York, often with food that didn't agree with my stomach, a small simple meal was most welcome, and she had even gone to the effort to adapt some misesa flour to make a type of leavened bread, which was most enjoyable with the sweet syrup called honey. We all talked for some time, woman to woman. Again I found myself feeling as if I was amongst Loroi.

We ended up staying until nearly midnight, when Lt. Saki realized we would need to get to the airstrip in less than four hours if we were to maintain out itinerary. Thus the next day was a little rough from a hasty sleep and brief spots of napping on the noisy cargo plane. I was not as fortunate as the lieutenant who had the talent of young regular soldier everywhere to sleep in any situation, and snored contented while I struggled to snooze with the rumbling turbines strapped under the wings less than fifty feet from my more sensitive ears. Thankfully we had no diplomatic stops that day, only a quick refueling before an oceanic hop to another continent.

I was looking forward to the tour of this country, Japan, and Lt. Saki was as well. She still had some distant relatives in contact with her despite her family having immigrated to the American continent well over a century ago.

~~~~

As one of the main losing belligerents in the last truly global conflict centuries before, Lt. Saki's ancestral homeland had fiercely rejected its previous government's ideology, viewing it as the cause of the misery which had resulted from the war, and had adapted a strictly pacifist theory of diplomacy.

As I perused the TCA-provided documents covering the nation-state's history from that period my blood chilled as I recognized parallel after parallel. Nationalist and racial supremacy, military expansion, subjugation and genocide. I suspected that this portion of my tour, all of which had been supported and planned out by the TCA, was intended as a veiled but pointed critique; as a mizol I had to give whoever did so credit for the subtlety.

I was reasonably impressed by the temples and castles, many of them over a millennia old. Much of the leg was spent in ritualized meetings and dinners that bordered on the obsequious. However, I appreciated these since they gave me a glimpse of the wide differences between human cultures. As much as I enjoyed the company of Alex and his fellow TCA members, at times their brash conduct was a tad grating, and being amongst humans who valued contemplation and stricter formality was a welcome new experience.

Towards the end of our stay we visited a garden with a ruined building in it, far more modern but in much worse condition than most of the structures we had been shown during our stops.

"One of the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war was detonated above it," Lt. Saki said to my unasked question.

I thought of the Loroi Splinter Wars, and of the dozens, if not hundreds, of monuments commemorating a similar event that no doubt existed scattered across every Loroi world. It was a weapon. In war, weapons were to be used. Thus, we used them. The immediate radiation of a nuclear blast dissipated soon enough, and fallout was a short term issue, relatively speaking. Whereas humans, being from what I had gleaned from Alex just as warlike and in many the same ways as us, had seen the devastation such a weapon caused, and were terrified of it. Oh, there were those in power who saw it as a tool of brinkmanship diplomacy, and the more blood thirsty considered it an option, but despite the amount of conflict humans perpetrated on each other even since their invention and single use that line was never crossed again.

Odd, that such a wildly emotional species compared to ourselves would be more concerned with limits on warfare. As if the intense feelings they express verbally and outwardly rather than being a weakness instead allows them to share emotion between each other in a more complete way than the blunt, explicit communication between Loroi; as though being forced to understand another being's emotions without sanzai created stronger empathy. I could see now how Listel Beryl was falling so strangely in love with Alexander after such a short time. A rawer, more passionate relationship that a youngster barely out of her diral wasn't prepared to react to appropriately.

That it came in a rather attractive package certainly helped. While he's a bit young for my tastes, I can't deny he is physically appealing, as well as intelligent and friendly. And regardless how inappropriate it may be I cannot find it within me to stop them. Plus it is rather amusing seeing the human press reacting in almost exactly the same way as the more scandal seeking news agencies amongst the union. The two of them are becoming quite the talk of the quadrant.

For that matter if a pair of "star crossed lovers" can draw our peoples' closer I hope they succeed.

~~~~

"It's fascinating, really," Lt. Saki said over the radio. "It happened before we really even had much in the way of heavier than air flight, and it occurred, thankfully it turned out, in a very remote region. That plus the governmental shift in this country at the time meant nobody really even studied it until a decade or more after the air burst."

Our next stop was a less diplomatic in nature, and more visiting one of the more spectacular natural wonders Earth had to offer. Due to the presence of several gas giants, significant impact events on the planet were rare, but one had managed to occur just a few hundred cycles ago. Even at that age, there still remained a ring of open ground at what I assumed was the ground epicenter.

"So no witnesses?" I said, still amazed that a multiple megaton explosion could have gone unnoticed. And this a mere two centuries ago. The speed at which humans had developed in the previous millennia still staggered me, let alone that the majority of it had taken place in the last few hundred years.

"Oh, there were a few. No deaths that could be exactly contributed to it," she replied. "It was and still is a sparsely populated area."

Grass rippled beneath the helicopter as we landed, soon attended by a group of soldiers. Saki spoke with them, as none of them were trained in Trade, nor spoke English, the only human language I had managed to learn proficiently. She introduced me to a Cpl. Irina Berzin, our guide for the stop. Fluent in English, she welcomed me to East Russia, a splinter republic formed after a series of disastrous military expeditions by a corrupt regime a century or so before.

Surrounded by bog and fen, I almost felt at home. Though in contrast to the mushroom forests of Perrein we seemed to be in the middle of a chilly wind-swept field, save for the various patches of water visible through the brush. We walked along a plank road laid down over the soft ground, and between a pair of ancient stumps, and though weathered I could see the splintered form of a violent force.

"Most of the trees rotted away over the centuries," Christine said. "Made it easy to find the epicenter of the airburst though."

"Indeed," I said, though distracted by our local minders.

I noticed the usual stares male humans tended to give me, and as always mostly focused on my backside. But more so than expected, the rough cut and coarse soldiers seemed to be more agitated than would be warranted for a simple diplomatic junket, especially one in a peaceful and unpopulated region such as this. In fact their disposition seemed strange. Rather than watching the marshes, they seemed to be watching Lt. Saki and myself. As we moved closer to a pair of rather beaten looking wheeled vehicles some ways off from the landing site, she tapped my shoulder.

"How fast can you run?" she said straight-faced in Trade.

"Fast enough," I said, and true. A Loroi's muscular density was slightly above the human average. "Why?"

"Those trucks are not marked," she said, "and they've just maneuvered between us and our team." A quick a glance as I dared confirmed it, somehow they had placed themselves between us and our staff, thanks to the vivacious Cpl. Berzin chatting them up while slowing them down without their realization.

"On three, run between the trucks and head for the woods," she said, still in Trade. "I suspect they won't risk shooting you, whatever the reason for this."

I kept my cool, and glanced towards the trees. Several hundred meters away, across open ground, and not all of it solid. "How sure are you of that?" I said.

"I'm not," she replied.

"Then the fact we're already aware of it before they have realized we are is probably enough to keep things calm," I said.

She turned to me, with clenched teeth, "You are my responsibility, and I am not going to let them hurt you," she hissed.

"You said yourself they probably won't risk injuring me," I said. "And that is easier if they are not firing weapons in my direction." We kept walking. I risked another look behind, and saw the woman had even stopped our staff ostensibly to point something out. One soldier however, hustled to keep up with us. "And as much as you wish me not to come to harm, I wish the same of all of our men."

"Shit," the lieutenant spat. She keyed her radio. "Baker, slow down."

He slowed to a jog, and looked confused. I wished I could reassure him in sanzai.

"Are you sure about this?" she said. The accompanying "soldiers" had drawn closer, and I could see they were definitely readying their arms.

"I am one mizol," I replied. "I am not irreplaceable. To risk a dozen for myself is unreasonable." I came to a halt and held up my hands, and in English to an older human who seemed the most likely candidate, "All right. Stop this. Let our team go, and I'll come willingly."

He spoke quickly into his radio. I looked back at the corporal who to my complete lack of surprise had disarmed the closest guards, and watched as she narrowed her eyes in my direction. She nodded, and backed away from them as she cut a wide path around Baker back to Lt. Saki and I. He started to raise his weapon, but Lt. Saki called him off. Without pretense now, the surrounding soldiers prodded us towards the trucks after taking Christine's sidearm. Our staff looked on helpless and infuriated.

To assuage Christine, I turned to her, "We are tracked, and it is unlikely they will be able to get away with this. And more importantly, allowing ourselves to be captured could get us closer to finding out who is behind this."

Her expression told me this was little comfort to her.

A male slightly older than Alex made a comment along with a glance in my direction, to the laughter of one or two of them. Irina snapped at him in Russian, and he shut up. Nonetheless he kept his eyes on me. When we reached the trucks and were ordered to get in, he made sure to grab a handful as he pushed me in from behind. This earned him a swift kick in the face, and in turn I received the butt of a rifle against mine which knocked me to the floor of the truck.

"Him deserve, but watch actions, yours," Irina said in crude but recognizable Trade as she slammed the gate of the truck shut and peered over it. "Live stay yes, but injury not, guaranteed not."

~~~~

A short chapter, but the majority of this was the sticking part I was having trouble with between two already completed sections. Apologies if it's a little rough, but I really just had to get it out there and move on. Some prep work on the next chapter which is already written, and it'll be ready to post! So this time anybody reading this won't have to wait... wow. That long? Really? Yeesh. Yeah, next week at the latest, probably sooner.

[Snoofman]

I seem to recall from the fanfic “Beacons” in a dialogue between Duskcrown and Alex, and I’m paraphrasing, that humans would not need protection from loroi. Rather loroi would need protection from human men.

I believe Tempo, as strong as she is, does not fully yet understand the danger of being around immoral men.

Awesome chapter.

[wolf329]

I would think most teidars are quite safe and even an average Loroi isn't going to be too troubled by an average human given physiological differences. Although I'm working from an understanding that Loroi are slightly denser muscle fiber-wise given their gengineered biology and some word of god I'm half remembering. But there's also the fact all the Loroi currently in contact with humans at this point in this AU are all experienced and trained military caste members in good standing which means none of them are exactly "weaker" baseline Loroi either.

There is another issue I've just now realized, but will have to be played out as-is, which I'll discuss in more detail after the next chapter.

[wolf329]

Content notice: the spoilered section is a description of attempted sexual assault.

I stumbled again as Shaved Sides, as I'd come to think of the hand-sy captor due to the hair above his ears being shorn to the skin, shoved me into the tent, and I nearly fell on my face, grunting as my shoulder hit the packed dirt floor.

"You're risking something serious here, you know she's an interstellar diplomat?" Christine said in English. Shaved Sides ignored her, and sat me in a chair in the center of the tent, then tied her to another. He conversed with Irina for a minute, then she left with the rest of the guards. Given the way he continued to trail his eyes over me, he certainly wasn't my first choice for a guard.

Although if distracted enough in the obvious way Lt. Saki might be able to overpower him if she were able to get free. But I had no way of communicating this with her. Once again, a situation that could have been quickly solved with sanzai stymied by the human lotai.

"So blue, why, eh?" he said in rough English to my mild surprise.

I decided to humor him. "It is my blood. It is copper based instead of iron."

SpoilerShow

I flinched back as he touched my hair and ears, unable to resist. "Hnh, cold too," he said. Perhaps he really was just curious, although with typical human male overtones towards my physical appearance. "I wonder. Blue all over?" His smile grew into a vicious sneer.

"You will nev-" I began, but he put his hand over my mouth. Unable to tolerate his inappropriate contact any longer, I bit down on his palm. He cursed, and slapped me hard enough to knock me out of the chair. Before I could recover, he was on top of me, and trying to shove a hand inside my suit. I twisted my body and struggled against him as he tried to get though my armor. Lt. Saki swore and threatened him, her face contorted by rage.

Suddenly the tent opened behind him. A shout, and as he stumbled to his feet, his pants fell to his ankles. Cpl. Berzin shouted at him, in terms which seemed to indicate she was not happy with what he was attempting to do, but with faltering bravado he blew her off. He turned back to me, seemingly intent on resuming his assault. I took that moment to rebel against all my loroi instincts and kicked him as hard as I could in his genitals with both feet.

Irina watched and made no attempt to help him as he fell to the floor gasping. Despite our difference in species, and the fact I was her captive, our eyes met briefly and I sensed a bit of mutual respect. She turned and shouted out of the tent. Two men came and dragged him away, and she followed.

"Nice one," Lt. Saki said. "I was worried you wouldn't be able to because..."

I did not tell her how sickened it had made me. Nor did it lessen my foreboding. I dismayed that even with all the advantages of Loroi technology, and my sanzai feared across light-years, I was next to worthless tied up in a tent with all that I could see at that moment was humans. To take this kind of action, when it was certain to be swiftly met with retaliation, was either an idiotic and desperate last attempt by some party to gain concessions at the negotiating table, or-

I froze. Unwanted but warranted premonitions sent a shiver down my spine as I reached out again in panic, and this time I brushed the mind of...

An Umiak.

"It can't be," I whispered in shock.

My face must have given away my fear, something I needed to work on if I was going to be deployed amongst humans. "What is it?" Christine asked.

Knowing we couldn't risk speaking anymore, I turned to her and tried as best I could to mouth the words. If speaking itself was difficult for Loroi, let alone in a foreign language, one might imagine how tricky this was, but I am a Mizol. She understood immediately what I was trying to do, and leaned forward to watch my mouth.

Oo. Mi. A. Ck.

Her face went pale as recognition dawned. How? she mouthed back.

I shook my head, to indicate I didn't know. I. Will. Try. To. Read. It. I mouthed back to her.

She shook her head violently. No! she mouthed.

It. Is. Safe. I replied. It. Can. Not. Feel. Me.

Saki didn't try to say anything more, but obviously regarded my opinion with suspicion. I didn't blame her, we still weren't sure of the technology or method behind their artificial lotai. But the briefest touch of that noisome mind of clicks and chirps was enough to tell me whatever lotai they used it wasn't active. I reached out with my sanzai again. Interestingly, though completely worthless at the moment, was the fact the humans created spots of nullity I could partially discern, though not with any accuracy. Certainly not enough for a teidar to sight in and attack in a pinpoint way, more of a "There are humans in this area" sensation, an absence of whatever our telepathy sensed. At one point I was almost certain one of them passed between the Umiak and I as its presence faded for a solon.

Again, not particularly of any value to me. I reacquired the hideous chittering brain of the Umiak, and searched around its vicinity. Damn! At least five, and-

"Piss."

Saki almost smiled at my outburst, the only curse she had ever heard me utter. "What?"

Giving up any pretense of silence, I struggled to lean myself as close to her as I could and whispered as loudly as I dared. "Hardtrooper."

"What is that?"

"Umiak ground combat soldier. Only one, but still enough to wipe out this camp in solons."

I struggled to think. Out of any ideas, I went back to the Umiak mind, and listened in. It was odd, like hearing one side of a transmission, with one party speaking, then silence while they heard a reply you could not. Oddly, the Umiak was talking in almost a clear pattern of normal speech, rather than the cluttered gibberish they usually used.

<Yes, it said. You will be compensated richly.>

Pause.

<When we bring our might to resist the enemy, you will be privileged.>

Pause.

<Do not worry, we treat our friends well.>

Pause.

<Of course you can trust us.>

Pause. I could hear human laughter in the camp, just barely. I felt disgust, that a species could betray its own for nothing more than promised wealth. So much like so many others who had failed the Loroi. Were humans the same? Were we mistaken in thinking they could be allies? Then I looked at Saki and remembered her anger at my mistreatment and attempted assault. I thought of the bonds I had with Sarah, Rebecca, Cynthia, and Miranda, our hours of chatting and laughing together. Alexander, with his intense and inexplicable yet overwhelming and oh so genuine individual human love of Beryl, of his desire to protect those he cared about, and knew how furious he would be at this treachery by his own kind.

No. I trusted humans; I turned back to the mouth of the tent flapping in the breeze and resolved to fight to the end for them, even these scum.

<You know differently, of course.> [laughter, but inward] <Don't you, loroi witch?>

Those words were not directed to speech centers. They were for me alone, as only it knew. Mocking me.

I froze. Did it sense me?! No. It just knows I'm here and probably listening in. In desperation, I lashed out, futile and pointless. I screamed in sanzai as loud as I could, my face tightening with concentration as I desperately tried to find a receptive loroi mind, in the dim chance a rescue team was nearby. Nothing. I slumped and closed my eyes.

"Tempo?" Saki said in a soft tone, that loving warm and welcoming voice I knew from caring humans. "Can you... sense anything?"

I shook my head. "Nothing but animals, one big one nearby but nothing more."

Saki hesitated, then her brow furrowed. "Can you...? Control lower lifeforms?"

I shook my head. "No. We can make suggestions, and there is one species we've run into that is weirdly and strongly affected by our sanzai to the point they become instant slaves as soon as we are nearby, but our abilities are almost always more a method of communication or observation than of control. A teidar can move or burn things, but my abilities are not of that type." I felt helpless again.

"How big is it, can you tell?"

I looked at her askance, then shrugged as I went back to the... thing. Husky, big, lumbering. Food, food, sleep. Care. No, young gone. Care no more.

Sadness?

"It's big, very big."

"A bear." Her eyes grew. "How close?"

"A few hundred... meters."

"It must be scoping the camp for food. They're intelligent, and often attack human settlements."

I felt shock at this. "Really?"

"Yes, they can be very dangerous."

"...How big are they?" I asked, an idea forming in my mind.

"Adults are usually well over 600 kilos," she said with a smile beginning to form. "Can you...?"

After a second to translate that number in my head I smiled back. "Maybe." I reached out again. I knew there was something there I might be able to use.

Sadness. Care, but no.

<Care. Me.> I sent.

Confusion. Food? Then care?

<Help me and give food>

Help? Confusion.

Piss. Too complex. <Care. Protect.>

Protect!

There! That's it. <Protect. Kill. Food, then care.>

Food! Protect!

Base instincts. Prodding. Was it dark enough outside? I glanced at the door of the tent. The sun was barely over the distant trees, and shadows stretched inside.

<Wait. Dark.>

Food, soon. Protect, soon. I felt it stop and lay down, but remain alert.

We watched intently as the sun lowered, then darkness settled in. No lights were lit in the camp though I could see the dim glow of night vision masks wandering around; sensible, to avoid detection as best they could with the crude technology they had. But as I listened in on the Umiak infiltrators the humans had no idea it wouldn't make any difference in solons.

<Well, [shall we get rid of] at [these [unknown] scum]{indicating contempt}> This time in no clean form for audible consumption by another race, pure staccato clicks and chirps. It was talking to another of its kind.

<Yes. [release the hard] one {indicating relaxed}>

I have never been in ground combat. I hope I never will. Because I will remember the screams I heard as the Umiak destroyed the camp for the rest of my life in my nightmares. It was over in barely thirty solon, exactly as I had said.

<What of [the witch]{indicating hatred}>

<[Might as well] let the [hard] one lop a limb [or two] off {indicating amusement} see if we can [get some answers] out of it before we [leave]>

<What about [human] with it {indicating query}>

<[Dispose] it is [worthless]{indicating contempt}>

As the skittering of Umiaks legs on frozen ground drew near I reached out as fast as I could. Now alert from the sounds of conflict, the bear had drawn close, just a few meters from the tent now. I screamed at it in sanzai.

<PROTECT! PROTECT! PROTECT!>

A deafening roar erupted from behind us.

CARE! PROTECT!

<What [curse expletive] thing {indicating shock}>

STRANGE! FOOD! KILL!

Alexander had once told me that most humans felt instinctive revulsion towards arthropodal "insects", which the Umiak strongly resembled. Now I learned those same feelings were also carried by other large mammals of his planet. Though a hardtroop had easily killed a dozen unprepared human soldiers, it now faced an animal ready and eager to fight which out-massed it by thrice, in gravity it had evolved to live in rather than lumbering around in cybernetics straining against the pull. I hurriedly closed my sanzai off to the horror of the Umiak as it attacked.

I turned back to Saki. To my surprise she had already untied herself, and she loosened my bonds as well. She winked. "It wouldn't have done much good until now."

Carefully I reached out to the bear, and watched through its eyes as a paw bigger than my head bore down on a terrified Umiak, and I quickly pulled back as the fountain of gore splashed out of it. It roared again, and I checked the surroundings. Most of the remaining Umiak were already decidedly dead; one whom I assumed to be the commanding officer was fleeing, and from its scrambled thoughts I knew they had a flyer nearby. In its mad dash to escape they would probably alert half the local system.

We rushed out of the tent, but unfortunately right into the path of the hardtroop, unarmed and dripping black fluid from a missing limb. Lacking options, and being young and therefor bolder than wise, Saki grabbed a tent post and thrust at it. With a ear grating screech it slapped it away, leaving the splintered remains of it in her hands. I leapt and pushed her out of the way as the hardtroop swung back, thanking all Human and Loroi deities or gods that it was wounded, crazed, and weakened by the high gravity.

Before it could strike again, the bear arrived with a roar, and I nearly emptied my bladder in fear despite already being face to face with an Umiak bioweapon; at least I knew and understood those. Easily well over twice my height as it raised itself on shipping canister-thick hind-legs, it towered over the hardtroop as it lifted arms broader than my torso to strike. The Umiak stabbed first, landing what looked like a deep piercing blow, and I dismayed for a moment until the bear struck, shattering the hardtroop's metalloceramic augmentations surrounding its inch-thick carapace to scatter across the grass as if it were a bundle of rotten twigs. The Umiak's body crumpled to the ground, and twitched for a few solon. It lowered itself again, and sniffed at the black blood of the Umiak, then stuck its tongue out in unmistakable disgust. Finally it saw the cowering human and loroi.

<Protect. Care.>

Care? Food.

<Care. Care.>

...Care.

It shuffled up and I did my best to not shake too hard in abject terror as it sniffed at me, then licked my face with its enormous tongue. Saki stifled a laugh.

<Care. Care.> "Besides, I taste terrible, I guarantee it." Indeed, it made a retching face to the sweat on my skin. Thank goodness for my "alien" Soia biology in that regard, I thought. Saki couldn't hold the laughter in now.

Care. Protect. Food?

"Um," I turned to Saki. "Food?"

"Hold on," she said.

She dove back into the tent, then emerged with some plastic bags. She tore one open, and offered the food inside to the bear. With a grunt she, and a she it was, slurped it down, and Saki quickly offered the contents of another package. I realized now why her desire to protect us was easily accessed, as I felt the aching loss towards an infant deep in her mind as I stroked it with my sanzai to keep her calm and friendly towards us. Cautiously, I checked it for wounds, but found little besides minor scratches it almost certainly would recover from on its own; even the final stab I had witnessed was little more than a shallow cut across its side, deflected by thick muscles and bone.

"We should breed them for boarding troops," I said. Saki laughed again, and I cherished the sound I had come so close to losing. The bear chuffed as Saki fed her another half dozen opened food packets, and she slumped to her backside, sitting there like an eager pet as she ate. "It is staggering in its strength, a most impressive species."

"You know, it was probably disappointed the Umiak taste so bad," Saki said as she came back out of the tent with another armful of the plastic containers. I felt my mental suggestions soon wouldn't be necessary as the bear eyed them eagerly, and happily devoured every offered morsel.

"How so?"

"One of their main food sources is grubs and insects."

"At its size?" I said, incredulous.

"It digs in the ground to find them," she said. "The biomass of bugs is so high on this planet that it's more than enough to sustain it in lean periods."

Now I understood its build and bulk. Not purely for attacking and defending itself, but also as living earth moving machinery. The bear chuffed and snuffled at my hair, grooming me apparently, and I allowed it to Saki's amusement.

We found a radio, and Saki managed to connect with the TCA. We explained the situation, and within solon they replied they had triangulated our location. Saki and I fed the bear a few more packages of the military rations, then I gently touched her with my sanzai.

<Care. Done.>

Done. Done. Fed. Sleep.

I hesitated. "Saki," I asked, "What is the standard human funeral custom?"

Surprised by my question, she didn't answer immediately. "Uh... Well, most cultures practice some kind of burial."

"We have something to do before they arrive," I said.

<Follow.> She grunted and sat forward, then accompanied me. At first confused, Saki quickly understood. I had far more in common with humans, even ones who would betray me, than the Umiak. To treat them properly in death was necessary. Saki and I began to collect their torn bodies, as I cajoled our large furry sister into digging a pit. Once she finished, we laid the bodies one by one in the exposed earth. There were no survivors. When we found her ruined body, I closed the eyes of the woman who had attempted to stop my assault.

In the back of my head I was aware of the gruesome fact we were essentially stocking a larder for the bear once we left and she was no longer under my influence, but reminded myself that it wasn't all that different from the bugs and microbes in the ground which would normally do the job. Plus she would live well, and maybe have another child, a reward she deserved for saving us.

We stood over our work. "Find peace," I said to them for lack of better words.

Saki glanced at me. "Find peace," she repeated.

~~~~

See, a lot quicker this time! I am probably playing fast and loose with sanzai in this chapter, but who's to say Ursidae aren't abnormally susceptible to it?

What I mentioned I'd go into after this chapter, is that I've realized after the fact that over the course of this work Tempo has had to put up with quite a bit of close human contact that hasn't been fully consensual (stripper propositioning her, drunk diplomat who walked her home, Shaved Sides' grabby hands). Definitely wasn't my intentions to give this story into some weird "damsel's chastity constantly threatened" pulp theme.

On that note, this work will take a short break, not to write it as the chapter to come is as finished as this one was, but for a very different reason. Since I'm sure everybody reading this is interested as to what exactly was in those paparazzi photos mentioned in the first chapter, how they came about, and do all pilots like beach volleyball...

The answers to those questions will be in... Tunguska: Lost Coast

[Snoofman]

Dude that was awesome!

A nice well-deserved kick to the kahoonies! Though I am surprised that Tempo didn't use her TK to unbind herself. Sure she is not particularly strong in psychokinesis, but even so. At least her Jedi mind tricks were handy.

I guess the Umiak really do breath to deceive (or so it seems for now, after all we are seeing this story play out from the Loroi's side of the war). I loved the bear tearing apart the Umiak sequence. Not sure if realistically a bear could take on a Shell hardtrooper, since no telling how durable their armor is. But I suppose the bear could at least get the jump on the hard trooper and that the hard trooper's limbs are more vulnerable than its primary body.

The Tempo of this story seems very open-minded. Aware of humanity's potential for treachery yet not forgetting her true human friends. Keep it up!

[wolf329]

Thanks, I was hoping my action sequences weren't too hokey.

Considering the region, it's a far ranging Siberian Brown Bear, a species that easily reaches half a ton in mass, and surprise counts for a lot especially if you're only expecting a bunch of complacent humans a third your size. Although I goofed up a bit when I made it female because there's a pretty good size difference between the sexes in that species. Fictional plot armor ahoy!

I assume that Tempo is intelligent, is reasonably (from a human standpoint at least) experienced due to being in her 50's, and given her rank is skilled in her tasks. Hence the fact I made her calmly allow herself to be captured, rather than risk a firefight, and understands that individuals of a species will not necessarily be representative of all.

[Kensai]

Not hokey at all!

Sometimes, allusions are far better than a description, letting the reader fill in the missing description with what their brain can picture.

I look forward to more of this... and can only hope the stuff I am doing with another SciFi universe holds up to this. If interested, I can send you a link or post it here. The sci-fi universe I am doing stuff in is the Battletech setting.

Again, I am super enjoying this and looking forward to more!!!

[Bamax]

I enjoyed it... meeting a she-bear bereaved of it's cubs is not a situation anyone desires.

And Tempo has class... she is no man-whore even though she could be.

She cares more about her job and doing right by both humans and Loroi.

I do not recall anything about volleyball... only Fireblade becoming a model for photoshoots.

It will be fun to see our well known feisty and hilarious pilot duo play volleyball though... if that's where we are headed.

[wolf329]

re: volleyball, It's a standing head-canon joke for me that Talon and Spiral are Maverick and Goose.

[wolf329]

New readers will want to read this fic before continuing.

~~~~

Alex, Beryl and Fireblade were awaiting my arrival at the airport. My two loroi comrades instantly sanzai'd to welcome me and ask if I was alright, Beryl in concern, Fireblade in her usual stoic manner which frankly appealed to me more at that instant. I returned their greetings.

"It's good to see you safe," Alex said, then wrapped me in an all too human hug. Though I knew he meant well and ordinarily would have weathered it as an inevitable human foible, I flinched and stiffened. He immediately let me go, sensing that something was wrong. Beryl nudged him aside and took my hand in a focused and private sanzai.

<What is wrong?>

<I was roughly treated by one of the kidnappers. By his manners I assume he was attempting to forcibly mate with me before he was interrupted by his commander.> I sent her the memory. She staggered back, but kept hold of my hand.

<This is-!>

<Unthinkable that a male would attempt it.> It was outside our comprehension. Amongst the local group, no alien species had any interest in breeding outside of their own, both Union and Hierarchy; every species was too different to even consider it. And not only was it unlikely a loroi male could overpower a female, their temperment utterly prevented it. It was wholly-

Alien.

Without meaning to, I glanced at Alex who still watched me with an expression of concern.

<NO!> This time I was the one shocked by her outburst. <HE WOULD NEVER, he is NOT like that- that male THING!> Beryl trembled in rage at the one who attacked me, but also from her refusal to allow me to even consider "her" Alex would ever do something like that. <Where is he?!>

I almost laughed at her overprotective nature towards both of us simultaneously; an angry Listel is akin to an offended Neridi, and about as frightening. <Well and truly dead. The Umiaks wanted to make sure no one was aware of their presence on Earth.>

<Good.> As she calmed down she tried to do the same to me. <Please, don't think of him that way, I can't stand the thought of that idea being in your head. Not about him...> Her plaintive feelings lowered her defenses for a moment as she thought of Alex, and being a skilled Mizol I snuck a quick peek before she yanked her hand back and turned her face away as a dark blush swept over it.

I couldn't resist. <My, that sand must have been tricky to wash off.>

Beryl's face turned an even deeper shade of blue. I turned my knowing smile to Alex, who rewarded me with a wonderful florid display in turn when he realized the cause of Beryl's reaction. With the two of them distracted from my problem, I turned to Fireblade.

"Now that we've suitably embarrassed the listel and 'her' human," an even deeper blush, for both, as Fireblade tried and failed to hide a smile, "let's be off?"

~~~~

Wordless, but intentions clear, the gnarled human hands reached at me, pulling at my armor, ripping it apart. I looked up at Alex's face as he leered down at me.

I sat up. The cooling unit in the window hummed. Saki's fingers occassionally tapping at her communications device in the other bed next to mine told me I was guarded. This couldn't go on, I wouldn't let it. One occurance, and not even carried through. At this point I'd met and worked with dozens of human males, all of whom had shown me nothing but the utmost and often exceeding the necessary respect. I got out of bed and headed to the room of the only people I knew who could help and might understand.

"Tempo?" Miranda said with bleary eyes. I sighed and reminded myself that humans needed far more sleep than loroi.

~+~+~+~+~

"I am confused by the feelings, something like this happening to a Loroi is unthinkable," I said as I paced. "It simply doesn't exist."

"Tempo, it's only..." Sarah began.

"Human?" I gave her what I hoped was an understanding half smile.

"Sorry." She shook her head. "It's just... my god, do you know how long humans imagined meeting aliens, and now we have, and men have already gone and fucked it up."

I sat down again, and patted her hand in what I hoped was the correct gesture. "Don't be so hard on their half of the species. I know the vast majority of human males would never stoop to such acts. I think I understand my feelings a little more now. Not to mention the bravery in telling me your own... Miranda; it distresses me to learn that that so many human women have suffered experiences like mine."

Thanking them, I left, and began to head back to my room before an idea came to me. Rather than returning to my quarters, I made my way to Listel Beryl's while I let her know I was coming via sanzai. Outside her door I waited as she scrambled to make herself presentable.

The door opened. <Tempo?> Beryl, wrapped in a sheet, looked at me confused. <It is late. Alex is sleeping.>

<Oh, so you do eventually let him rest.>

The only downside of my newfound personal game of *Making The Listel Blush* was it being as easy as spearing fish in a drinking glass.

<If he's asleep, that is better.> I entered the room, then sniffed and sighed. <Although that smell might be distracting.>

I scored another point in *Making The Listel Blush*.

<Wait! What are you doing?!> Beryl gawked at me as I climbed into the bed where Alex snored.

<Listel, being in fear of human males is detrimental to my job, and I am trying to not be.>

<Doing THAT is a rather extreme solution!>

Oh for all the stars... I rolled my eyes. <Tozet. I am not going to try to mate with Ensign Jardin. He has made it clear and given my solid understanding of human pairbonding he is not interested in me in that way, and instead is woefully and madly in love with you, and you alone. Were he a loroi male, we would have to remove him from the mating pool for possessing such a defective genetic trait.>

Her expression wavered, and I couldn't resist. <Besides, he looks tired and I wouldn't want to overexert him with the both of us at once. Now, rather than be surprised, does he have undergarments on, or is he as naked as you are under that sheet? Never mind, I'm too tired to care.> As I lifted the sheet I raised my eyebrows. <Oh. Impressive.>

Another point.

~~~~

"Morning!" Major Hogan said as I entered his office. A debriefing regarding my incident was clearly warranted as I had important data regarding the dispensation of the Umiak bodies to give him, and I had made sure to visit him first thing. His mock sternness mixed with barely concealed amusement, however, led me to notice he had one of the rumor mill news sites open on his tablet.

"Now I'm not going to criticize," he began, "because Loroi culture is not Human culture. We are different. Period. But. Nonetheless. You're gonna put that poor boy in an early grave."

I tried to discern the expression, then as a smile grew over his face, I realized his meaning and without waiting for his invitation I swung the tablet around to read it.

WILD HOTEL
ALIEN THREESOME

One Blue Skinned
Beauty Isn't Enough
For Ensign Alex

Could Hot New
First Interstellar
Supermodel Fire Be
His Next Conquest?

Accompanied by photos of our suite almost certainly in violation of any possible regulations or laws regarding privacy, and various shots of Fireblade including one taken when she had changed into her swimsuit at her first session, albeit with pixelation of the private areas of her body. Also her breasts as well, for some odd reason. Unfortunately, one of the images had Ensign Jardin in the background catching an eyeful of her and not exactly trying to look away. In the images of the hotel room nothing could be seen of Beryl, Alexander, and I apart from several lumps under a sheet, all obviously asleep, but the article was intended to fire the reader's imagination, not provide the facts.

"None of this is true, of course," I said as I turned the pad back to him. "Are there laws regarding false information in the press? Let alone the invasion of privacy."

"Sure, but my guess is they're betting the Loroi aren't exactly interested in wasting time filing a libel suit against a minor news outlet a couple hundred light years away, and they'll only get a slap on the wrist for the peeping since they'll foist that off on the freelance paparazzi who took them."

I sighed. "You are correct. It is very unlikely. Would you have the address of this organization regardless?"

"It's public record, they'd be required. Gotta know where to send the hate mail and crank letters."

I put the odd phrasing aside to question another time. "I am more concern how Teidar Fireblade might react to the insinuation she is romantically involved with Ensign Jardin."

Major Hogan sucked through his teeth, a wonderfully strange human physical expression which denoted a wide variety of intent. "Hmm. Yep. That'd be a good idea."

At that moment Ensign Miranda poked her head through the doorway. "Sir, we might have a situation at a news group regarding-"

He sighed. "Lemme guess, Hotofftheweb dot sol?"

"Yes, sir,"

"Must have been about that party you and Beryl had with Jardin, eh?" he said with a wink at me, a little joke at my expense which I had become accustomed amongst humans, their jovial insults to one another a relief valve between friends rather than scoring points it seemed.

"No. Sir." Miranda's voice dripped with ice colder than the Tunguska forest, and I realized I needed to explain to Major Hogan just why I had snuck under the covers with my subordinate and her paramour very soon. "Apparently the police were called when Teidar Fireblade's-" she raised an eyebrow, "..'agent' started trouble in their lobby."

"Well, we better get over there and deal with this," he said, grasping at the out from the unexpectedly chilly conversation.

"There is something else I need to discuss with you regarding the incident," I said as we made our way to the ground vehicle storage yard.

~~~~

"...And you're sure that sonuvabitch is dead?" he growled as we exited the vehicle. Fireblade led, moving a pair of clerks out of our way as we crossed the atrium.

"We made a sweep of the encampment when we buried them. Every human was accounted for, and no tracks were found," I said as we walked up the stairs.

He sighed. "I apologize in the strongest possible terms, and with my full regret that my words could have been harmful," he said, and continued in a strict, formal tone. "I recognize that at times our rapport is a little too friendly, and will make attempts in the future to rectify that attitude." He switched to a voice more in line with his natural one, "I definitely don't want to damage our friendship, either in regards to our governments or individually. I like working with you, ma'am."

"Your apology is accepted, though given the fact you had no idea of my experience, I certainly don't believe you meant to say anything offensive, Major." I smiled at him. He sighed and nodded.

"Just being careful," he said. "Still getting used to the whole, 'alien coworker' thing, you know?"

As the elevator doors opened, loud shouting took hold of the air. "..And if you ever have her name on the cover of your shitwipe rag again, I'll have your goddamn J-license revoked!" Greg, held back by a security guard, was jabbing his finger towards a man in a suit standing behind several others and holding his jaw. The area around one of the man's eyes was beginning to swell up. Greg noticed us, and nodded, then turned back and seemed to about to start yelling again when he realized Fireblade was with us. He shook off the guard and made his way over.

"Look, it's not a big deal, this asshole is trashing her- my client's name, and I'm not gonna put up with that," he said. I held up a hand.

"As far as I know, criminal acts such as false statements and other such civil issues are dealt with via the legal system, are they not?" I said. "Not by fist fights in the public commons?"

Fireblade regarded him sternly, her eyes not wavering from his. He nodded as a contrite look began to color his face. I turned back to the staff of the news group. Some were already pointing recording devices towards us, and I sanzai'd Fireblade to allow them for the moment.

"And this situation will be resolved. As it regards individuals with diplomatic status, it is a very serious matter," I began, then locked onto the eyes of who I assumed to be the news agency's authority figure, "especially since it involves the breach of privacy on what amounts to embassy grounds, and therefor could be construed to be an act of trespass on Loroi soil, an offense in which all cases has resulted in severe repercussions for the parties involved." My words were having the desired effect, as the previous smug expression of several of the news agency's staff quickly faded. Loroi history made for a convenient hollow threat. "There will be no further attempts to release imagery of our personnel obtained covertly, or it will be regarded as such."

"Now, Mr. Morris. Are you satisfied with these statements?" I turned to him. He straightened his tie, and did his best to appear calm.

"Yes, Mizol Parat Sedel."

I raised an eyebrow. Very good. I wondered where he got my full title from, but remembered I had been in the news rather often recently. He had the makings of a good Listel, perhaps.

"Then this matter is closed," I said. Major Hogan nodded in agreement, and turned to leave while I followed. Greg hesitated, then approached Fireblade as she was about to join us.

"Look, um, Fire, I'm sorry I-" he got out before she slapped him across the face so hard he stumbled to the side. She whipped her head around to me, then back to him.

"Gregory Morris," I relayed to him from her sanzai, "I am Teidar Pallan Leinnol. My name is Fireblade, an Unsheathed, a ranking officer of a caste of Loroi warriors unparalleled across hundreds of star systems. I am not..." I hesitated and hoped Listel Beryl wouldn't somehow hear the rest and think it directed at her, "not... some leg spreader who will... jump on the first handsome alien male who fills my ears with pretty lies. I neither desire nor need your protection of my honor. Are my words understood?"

Through this he managed to look her in the eyes, rather than at my voice. "Yes," he said. She nodded stiffly, then immediately turned away, though not before pyrokinetically lancing the recording devices of several members of the agency hoping to record my, or more accurately, her, speech. Greg followed us to the elevator and joined us as it headed down, taking the wall opposite Fireblade. He looked rather charinged.

Being the nearest, I leaned closer to him. "Gregory?"

"Yes?" he looked up, with his face somewhat like that of a Neridi denied a trade route.

Lowering my voice, "She did physically touch you, you know."

"I noticed," he said as he rubbed Fireblade's handprint. A few solons later his brow furrowed and he turned to me, "Wait. Don't the Loroi have a taboo about-"

The elevator came to a halt. "Good day, Gregory Morris," I said. Fireblade very pointedly did not look at him when she exited, and unless my vision was failing I was almost certain she had a slight bluing at the tips of her ears. One side of his mouth began to slide upwards.

"You're a braver man than me, son," Major Hogan said to him in a whisper I heard but hoped Fireblade was far enough away to miss.

TBC

~~~~

"What exactly does this 'marriage' entail?" I said and crossed my arms.

"It's a formal establishment of pair-bonding," Alex said. Beryl sat next to him on the couch across from me, visibly nervous. "I- it, um, I realize it's foreign to Loroi, but it's, well, to most human cultures it's the closest form a relationship can take, exchanged vows of companionship officiated by a religious or secular authority figure before family and friends."

"With mating exclusivity between the participants, as I am to understand it?" I raised an eyebrow at Listel Beryl. <This is quite a step to take for cultural research.>

Apparently Beryl had matured over the last few months, and didn't react to the comment. <Is it not the case that attachment is discouraged only because we have so few males?> she replied. <Alex is completely outside of that issue.>

I sighed. <Yes, you are right, of course. I am still rather surprised by all this.>

~~~~

"Alex, I would like to speak with Listel Beryl alone," I said.

Ever respectful and courteous, he nodded and stood, brushing Beryl's shoulder with his fingertips as he left. Surprised, she reached up to touch his reassuring hand, but he had already moved on. Still new to the endless variety of human physical contact between friends and lovers.

The door shut behind him. I struck hard and fast. <And how will his hand feel a hundred years from now?>

<What?> She blinked.

<Don't play ignorant, listel,> I continued, <You will outlive him by centuries. Are you prepared for that?> I even prodded her chest a little with sanzai.

She flinched. <I->

I stood and walked closer to her. <This is attachment. By every standard of Loroi society, by our laws both cultural and written, you are trangressing mores that have been held for millenia.> Leaning down I brought my face close to hers. She drew back, her eyes trembling a little. <How does that view of this make you feel, listel?>

<We...> She turned away.

I turned her chin back to me.

<...I know. But-but it's different from that,> she sent in sanzai so soft as to be inadvertent thoughts. <He... I don't want to possess him. I want to be *with* him. Together. Like humans do.>

<Beryl, you should be aware that despite my misgivings as your commanding officer, as a mentor, and, I would hope, as your friend, you have my full support.> I said as I stepped back and allowed a small pitying smile to return. <But others will only see a girl barely out of her diral falling into grabby lust for some male-looking alien, handsome though he may be. You will not be the first. We are not so cast in stone that no one has ever felt the way you have before.>

She scowled at me. Finally, some defiance.

<Oh, don't look at me that way, do you really think you are the only young loroi who has played this game?> I sighed. <All right, so it is a little different. I very much doubt anyone has ever harbored these feelings for a Delrias. I apologize for poking you, alright? I just want to impress upon you the seriousness of this.>

She nodded as she became a little less forlorn. <I know how it is, and how it seems to others. But humans at least->

I failed to withhold a smirk. <Most human males are smitten with us to the extent that I could point to them as a warning against attachment.>

<I meant,> she continued with a pout, <almost all humans see close pairbonding as natural, common, not something to be discouraged. And even though I'm not human they still understand our... this.>

I said nothing, but held up a datapad. On the screen was one of the more lurid news agencies in the Union, with the latest update on my pair of "star crossed lovers". Beryl's mouth fell open.

<Wha-w-what is that?!> she stammered and snatched the pad out of my hands.

<You weren't aware of the notoriety of your and Alexander's relationship in the Union?> I said as I raised an eyebrow in honest surprise. I knew she was a little naive but this was a shock.

<I-on Earth, yes, but-oh the stars that's the biggest agency on Deinar-OhnotheEmperorisgonna-> she said as she began to pace back and forth flicking through the stories.

<You seriously didn't know.> I slapped my forehead.

<I'm a listel, I don't read this gossip newsfeed crap!> she snapped. <I saw the human news every so often, so I knew about that bit about you in our room and the innuendo about Alex and Fireblade, but I just assumed it was the human propensity for fiction bleeding into their news so I never thought anything of it!>

<Well, at least the images of you two rolling around on the beach were censored->

<THE WHAT?!>

I sadly realized I would have to give up my little game of Making the Listel Blush because I would never be able to top this one.

~~~~

Amongst other Loroi in the cafeteria, Beryl, Talon, and Spiral grabbed some trays of food for lunch. I had already sat down at a free table by the window which allowed us a view of New York City, the bustle and grime and humanitii flowing by chaotic but silent behind the glass. As Beryl cracked the legs of a "crab", Talon licked her lips at the pile of "donuts" on her plate, a sweet confection altered by the subsitution of misesa for wheat. I had already eaten, but couldn't resist one when she offered; Major Hogan had addicted me to the damned things.

<You are going to get so fat,> Spiral said. She snapped up some grilled mushrooms, milder versions of the fungi of Perrein though still tasty, and one of the few foods humans and Loroi could share.

<Bite me, seedhead,> Talon said as she closed her eyes in satisfaction as the cloying sweetness filled her mouth. <Besides, I could use some curves if I wanna compete with human females.>

<They are considered desserts, you know,> I said. <Not an entree?>

<I don't have them every meal,> Talon said as she stuck her tongue out. <Besides, I'm celebrating our little listel's impending pairbonding ceremony.> Beryl snorted and rolled her eyes.

<So will you stay on Earth?> Spiral asked.

<Alex is deciding his options, and he feels he may be able to get a position on the surface,> Beryl said. <Were he to recieve another berth, it would be more difficult if not outright impossible for me to stay with him, but given his status it is probable he'll be able to get a diplomatic posting. Mizol Tempo says she will try to help as well.> She smiled at me, and I nodded.

Spiral shook her head. <You know, there's probably easier ways to go about it if you are this desperate for frequent rutting.> Talon snorted.

<Ha, ha.> Beryl replied. <You know Alex as well as I, and that he is far more to me than that. Besides, neither of you complained that ni- Um.>

Talon choked on a mouthful of donut while Spiral suddenly found her meal fascinating.

<Your secret is safe with me,> I said as I stood to get a drink while the trio avoided my eyes. <I'll be right back.>

After I stepped away the three of them laughed together. Talon wiped her lips and leaned back. <I think I could get used to living here, to be honest.> She winked out the window at a passing teenage boy who had slowed down to take in the roomful of Loroi.

Spiral cleaned her plate. <I can definitely get used to this food, did you know there's over two hundred varieties of restaurants in this city?>

<Now who's going to get fat,> Talon said.

<It is a little abnormal, most populations centers are far less varied,> Beryl said. <Still, I am looking forward to seeing as many as I can, hopefully.> She looked out the window.

<Leg spreading freak.>

It was almost unintelligeble, but intentionally broadcasted rather than directed. Sanzai in the restaurant trailed off. At a table of three teidars next to them, one in particular side-eyed Beryl with a look of disgust.

<You have a problem?> Talon said as she stood.

<I was merely speaking with my friends, tennoin,> the teidar replied. Her two friends let smug grins creep onto their faces.

<That's tennoin arrir, tonzadi,> Talon said as she narrowed her eyes.

<What of it?> the teidar replied as she also rose to her feet, and looked down her nose at her. Though a little shorter than Fireblade, she still outmassed the lithe pilot.

<I think you should show respect and apologize to your superior, teidar,> Talon said, holding her ground as she crossed her arms and scowled.

The teidar snorted, and barely turned her head towards Beryl. <I'm sorry you're a xenophilic slut making a mockery of our race.> Before Talon could reach her the teidar shoved her back with sanzai. Spiral caught her as she stumbled. The teidar smirked and turned to sit back down.

Instead of making it to her seat, however, without warning she flew across the room and slammed into a cart of dish tubs, crashing to the ground in a tangled heap of dirty plates and soiled napkins.

Fireblade looked down at her. <Did you just assault a superior officer, tonzadi?> she said.

Recognition filled the low-ranked teidar's eyes. Sprawled on the floor, her armor covered in bits of food and various liquids, her face paled.

<In front of multiple witnesses, as well as three associates of said officer,> Fireblade continued. <As I see it there is no need for a court martial. By the authority invested in me by rank and law I revoke your caste status. Since we have no use for civilians on Earth at this time, you will be remanded into custody until you can be returned to Union space.>

Shocked into action the teidar scrambled to her feet. <In defense of that?! You're no better than her!>

<You may contest it by duel if you wish,> Fireblade said. She tightened a clenched fist and her knuckles cracked.

<That will not be necessary,> I said as I approached to defuse and conclude the scene. <I observed this incident as well, and I second Teidar Pallan Fireblade's decision. See to your quarters and pack your things, girl.> I nodded at one of the teidars on guard duty, who saluted and grasped the offender by her arm, and led her away.

Fireblade sighed. <We are not getting the best and brightest here, are we?>

I couldn't disagree. Despite how I personally felt about the importance of Human-Loroi diplomacy, the Union had continued its general wartime policy of sending less qualified soldiers to softer, non-combat postings. While I couldn't fault the chain of command for doing so, sometimes the diral shirkers and supply warehouse chair warmers got on my nerves. I turned to say so to Fireblade, but she had already moved away to emphasize that caste expulsion was an illness which could be contagious to the former teidar's two friends, who stood at rigid attention before her.

~

<Parat Tempo, I have made a mistake.>

I looked up to see Listel Beryl with eyes bruised from wiped tears.

<And what is that, listel?> I said. Out of pity and respect, I knew I would need to tread lightly. I glanced back at my office mate. "Major...?"

"I'll be in the breakroom if you need me, Temp," he said with a kind smile towards us both.

<..This relationship I am pursuing with Alex->

<It is your choice. And his.> I crossed my arms. <No one else has any say over it. We are not a race of communal insects lacking all individuality. Humans are much the same.>

~~~~

"We have a problem," Major Hogan said. Rather than his typical hidden smile hiding a joke when he used that phrase, he shoved a datapad in front of me. A familiar face appeared on it, grey and blurry in cheap CCTV footage. In it the teidar Fireblade had reprimanded knocked down her escort and jumped off a bridge into a river to escape.

<That pre-diral fool!> I sanzai-ed loud enough to startle Clearbreeze and Stonebrook, the latter dropping her coffee in shock. As she left the room to grab some cleaning supplies, and possibly avoid my unexpected wrath, Clearbreeze looked towards me.

<What happened?> she asked.

"Aloud," I snapped, without deciding whether or not this was an embarrassment to the Union, although I still sent her the details in sanzai.

"Sorry, ma'am," she said. Her eyes snapped open as she realized the seriousness of the issue.

"What are her capabilities?" the major said.

I hesitated. Teidar skills were still heavily restricted information, and specifics about an individual even more so. "She can probably knock a heavy steel door open, and she can't be held with typical restraints." All true enough. By her records she wasn't a particularly adept psychokinetic, the only saving grace in this mess. I could play her up to be more dangerous than she actually was, and still not make the humans too nervous about her.

"Got it, we'll toss her in a bank vault if we catch her before you do," he said. "Let's move." I nodded.

"Clearbreeze, to me," I said.

"Mam'am!" she said as she grabbed her pistol harness and quickly strapped it on as she followed the major and I to the roof. A helicopter was already stirring up a hurricane of wind, and I thanked the stars I hadn't left my hair down as I had been tempted to this morning. As we boarded I realized what the speed at which the major had assessed and reacted to this incident meant. I rigged the microphone and tapped his shoulder, then my headset.

"Yes?" he said, his face as straight as possible. We had been working together long enough that I was fairly certain he already suspected the incoming line of questioning.

"It normally takes awhile to prepare a craft like this," I said.

"Don't beat around the bush," he said in a tone harsher than he had ever used towards me before.

"Sorry, mizol habit," I replied. "How long have contingencies been in place?"

"Since Ensign Jardin debriefed with the TCA," he said. "Though in truth we had prepared for..." he hesistated, for much the same reasons I had when divulging the fugitive's sanzai levels I assumed, "..against infiltration or subversive activities. Not chasing down a deserter."

"Stupid, stupid girl," I snarled. "I can assure you, these will be her last moments on Earth."

"Whoa, whoa," he said. "Ah, as it stands she is a fugitive, but given the low level of her crimes I cannot-"

"Sorry, word choice," I said. "No, despite how furious Fireblade is, this is not war and... summary... discipline... is not in the cards for her. Though she has now made her future on Deiner very unpleasant."

However, though our reponse was fast, no trace of her could be found in the nearby neighborhoods. To her credit despite her limited abilities she apparently managed a strong lotai, and couldn't be sensed. Loroi troops with diplomaticly sub-lethal weapons stood ready to comb the streets and alleys in addition to the dozens of local human police officers, and even a squad of TCA Marines had joined the search. I quickly took command as I arrived, defering the teidar squad to Fireblade already onsite. Breaking with usual standards I directed the rest of the Loroi to divide up amongst the humans, and instructed them to provide specific, though selective, informational support.

"How long can she hold up her lotai?" the major asked, guileless in the heat of the moment.

"I cannot say," I replied and held up my hand to stave off his immediate protest. "It differs between loroi. I do not know exactly how well this individual has exerted herself in training, nor how the stress of this situation is affecting her."

<A few hours, half a local day at most,> Fireblade, some ways off, replied to my simultaneous query. <As we discussed before, not the best and brightest. Imbecile! We have authority to enter in pursuit! I don't care if they complain, kick their door in if you have to! Sorry. Ours are not-> I could almost feel her teeth grinding, <-the best or brightest either, however.>

<Teidar, use discretion, I would prefer not to aggravate more humans than needed in this action,> I said as more people begin to trickle into view out of growing curiosity and not all of them entirely pleased by the sudden masses of uniformed personnel on their street.

A snarled retort of affirmation in sanzai, not exactly disrespectful, but harsher than usual. As I considered options my datapad buzzed.

"Yes?"

"Mizol Tempo? It's Gregory."

I pinched the brow of my nose. "I do not have time for-"

"I know, some shit's going down in Brooklyn, it's already on some of the newsfeeds. All I really know is all of a sudden Fire tore out of her photoshoot and-"

"Mr. Morris, Teidar Fireblade is an active duty teidar and that mission takes precedence-" I began, becoming more annoyed by the solon.

"I-I just want to know if she's in danger," he interrupted again, and I finally recognized his voice as more plaintive than anything else.

I sighed. "No, Mr. Morris, Fireblade is not in any danger here." Something small, furry, and filthy ran by my shoe dangling a crust of food in its mouth. "Though she may want to take a shower when she finishes. You can help her with that."

"Oh. Uh. Yeah, for sure. Ah, I mean, I'll just-" he stammered and closed the connection.

Happily, I had found a new target in my blushing game.

~~~~

<I am not interested in him that way, if that is what you are implying,> Fireblade said, then frowned. <...Stop that!>

I shot her a few more detailed albeit ficticious images of Greg in various states of undress before she raised a lotai and put an end to my fun.

<Even if I was,> she continued, <I am neither interested in the kind of relationship he may want...> She hesitated.

<I understand.> I said.

<Not as well as I do,> she replied. <Frankly, the intensity of human pairbonding is... disturbing. While a listel may find it intriguing, I am less adventurous in that way.> She stood, and as she left the room her hand slid beneath her hair to touch the scar that remained on her scalp.

Too far. I knew I would need to apologize to her in some small way, though I doubted she was truly angry at me. Perhaps even a close sanzai session together discussing it.

~~~~

Deleted some unnecessary negativity. I'll fix this up later.

[wolf329]

A side story tagging onto this fic... less finished, but still something I wanted to try. Same notice as previous.

Tunguska: Side Story

Tornstream's Run

Water far more frigid than she expected swallowed her, and her nostrils immediately stung with oily detritus of an ill-kept city. Nevertheless, Tornstream still managed to find her footing as it were, and swam forward, pushing the water ahead and behind her with sanzai as she'd planned, cutting through it like a torpedo.

Swimming wasn't something most teidar were skilled at, the vast majority not born on the watery world of Taben. Her comparatively limited sanzai abilities had only just allowed her to make the cut into their ranks, and she had always had to work harder than anyone else for recognition, chances few and far between for her squad of similarly inept comrades. Garrison duty in the back country, kicking lizards and shaving mammals, as the tours along the Delrias or Mannadi borders were called.

And then this. Relegated to guard duty on a planet of barely spacefaring, grotesquely Loroi-like bipeds, and to make matters worse every single one had a perfect goddamn lotai that made the Mannadi seem glass-minded. Their similarities only made them freakish in her eyes, and the whispered rumors "humans" were the Loroi template race disgusted her. And when that pathetic excuse for a listel started... debasing herself... with one of them, practically waving it in the face of every one of her sisters, Teidar Tornstream just couldn't keep her sanzai quiet when the leg spreader in question sat down right by her table.

The salty taste of the water confused her for a moment until she remembered how close she was to the river's mouth. Though already adapted to the cold, she tried to reach out and see if any loroi were nearby. The sooner she was out of the water, the sooner she could maybe steal a vehicle and get some real distance between herself and her pursuers. Water parted over her head as she rose to the surface and looked around. Though they were imprevious to sanzai, after spending several months around them she knew humans still had a detectable absence. If one were skilled enough to have paid attention to them at any rate. And she had, hating every waking moment in their prescence.

At least the Beast of Seren hadn't shaved her head on the spot. The looks of contempt as she was led out of the cafeteria brought her rage that she wasn't aware she was capable of. You're disgusted by me?! What about yourselves?! Human infatuated fools, all of of you! Her own squad refused contact in sanzai as she tried to reach out for someone, anyone to defend her. And as the hours passed the enormity of the situation dawned on her. Returned to Deiner in contempt, stripped of caste, relegated to civilian. Her dislike of Earth faded as she considered it, and she began to plan her escape.

No one, human or Loroi. She pulled herself out of the water as quietly as she could, and slipped onto the wharf. The datapad she'd grabbed from the guard was waterlogged and useless, but she knew it would have been tracked anyways. Instead she pulled out her old tablet from home, the only piece of Taben she'd held onto over the years. From before her diral and low-powered, but sturdy and waterproof. Certainly a match for the crude technology of humans. She checked the computer of the closest small, personal vehicle, something compact and dingy. Something that wouldn't stand out too much, and maybe wouldn't be missed. She set it on the ground to do its work as she hurridly stripped and changed her damp clothes for the gear she'd secreted in a waterproof pouch.

"[UNAUTHORIZED USER DETECTED, LOCKING DOWN. NOTICE: THE POLICE HAVE BEEN ALERTED TO THIS ACTION.]" Clear, loud human speech boomed from the vehicle, and its internal and external lights began turning on and off.

<What the bloody stars?!> she sputtered to herself. She scrambled to pick up her datapad; the access program had failed. Some kind of primitive encryption, but enough. She shoved it into her pocket, and ran away. Inland? For now, but away from the bridge. From what she knew the city was huge. It would have been much better to find some kind of vehicle.

But how could a low culture like this block out Loroi technology?! She was certain as even as old as her pad was it was still centuries ahead. The goddamn humans had managed to learn how to jump little more than a century ago! Then she remembered a half forgotten lecture herself and the rest of her teidar squad had been forced to sit through, computer basics with a small section on encryption, and how some versions of it though simplistic still required untold millenia of computation to brute force. Damn! She had been too arrogant. Even a backwards world like this could drop the digital equivalent of a large rock in front of a port.

As she threaded her way through the alleys, trying her best to not be visible on the numerous cameras outside the various warehouses by the harbor, she kept the hood of her suit pulled far over her head. Bulky and heavy enough to flatten her ears, obscure her figure, and cloak her blue face in deep shadow. The "jeans" she wore, she was less sure about. A squadmate more enamored by humans than she had purchased several pairs of them, and Tornstream had managed to sneak one out of her footlocker while she was packing, the guard at the time outside her room not wanting to spend anymore time around the newly fallen than necessary.

Her narrow-assed sister may have picked them to be loose, but on her they clung a bit too tightly, and the stiff blue fabric chafed.

~~~~

some stuff happens, and she winds up in a confrontation with a mafia don, Amanda Stella.

~~~~

"Tony," the woman said, her single word a command. The bruiser sighed, and cautiously approached her. Tornstream watched him, and as soon as he got close enough, shoved him back.

"Again," the woman said.

"Ah, commahn, it ain't no good," he griped. The woman sighed and pulled out a pistol. To Tornstream's surprise she pointed it at him instead of her. "Jesus, okay, okay! Fug, if you wasn't my aunt..."

He turned back and started pacing around Tornstream, who kept turning herself to face him. He glanced away from her for a moment. To Tornstream's contempt it seemed to have been an insulting attempt at a feint, and he charged same as before; this time she waited until he was closer and sent him flying as hard as she could muster. A trickle of sweat reached her eyebrow and she wiped it away as nonchalantly as she could. The other men chuckled, and made comments that seemed directed at him. Emboldened by his ineptitude, Tornstream smirked and beckoned him with a finger.

"'ey, she's begging for ya, Tony!" someone shouted. Hoots and whistles rose up, and several of the men slapped him on the back. He shoved them off, and tried for her again and again. To save her energy she merely pushed him back each time he got close enough until the woman ordered him to stop.

The woman smiled, and walked towards her. Tornstream readied herself, and knew if she could take this female out, the others would respect her and might even let her go. Just as she reached Tornstream's range, however, she stopped and pulled out what looked to be some kind of writing utensil. She reached down and drew an X on the concrete floor. Suddenly worried, Tornstream started to walk towards her, but she raised her hand. The men with the large weapons raised them again, and Tornstream nearly stumbled to a halt.

"Stay that far away from her, and you won't have any problems," she said. Tornstream stared her in disbelief as she turned and walked away. The men nodded and murmured compliantly, and though one remained seated in a chair watching her, the rest returned to whatever chores they had. Some even sat down around a table and began a card game. "Tony" was one of them, and just before he sat down, with a big grin on his face he motioned at her to come over to the laughter of the others at the table.

<STUPID! STUPID!> she screamed inwardly. <DIRAL FAILURE!>

She'd just given away her effective sanzai range. She sat down hard on the cold floor and stared at her feet as she continued to curse herself. How stupid could she have been?!

~~~~

A scraping sound, and she sat up. A plate of food had been shoved across the floor.

~

"She stupid or sumthin'? Why's she talkin' like that?" Tony said. He looked down his nose at the Loroi.

"She's part of the Loroi Teidar caste," Jordan sighed. "They don't don't talk on principle, so she doesn't have much practice."

"Can't understand english either then, huh?"

"Probably not. She's the one that the TCA and the Loroi Consulate threw that big party for a couple days ago," Jordan said. "Turns out she's an REMF that was gonna get drummed out over something, but jumped her transport."

"Must like it here then, huh?" Tony said with a chuckle. "Got a good looking human boyfriend or somethin'."

"No." The two men jerked their heads around. Tornstream scowled at them harder than she ever had before. "Digust. Me. Humanitee."

"So she can speak English," Jordan mused.

"I still say she ain't too bright though," Tony said. "Coulda kept that one under your hat, eh?" He smirked at Tornstream, who scowled back and said nothing.



~~~~

"I don't need your talents for humans, my dear," Amanda said. "I need you for the other parties we deal with."

~~~~



"So you managed to get some diral wash out," De'Lerth sneered. "You know most Loroi ain't all that impressive, human?" But his expression belied nervousness even a human could see.

And which Tornstream could easily read in his mind. [She's just a civvie, the human just has her for intimidation. Sure. No problem here. Yeah.]

Tornstream favored him with as knowing an expression as she could, telekinetically slid a heavy canister across the room without an ounce of effort, sat down on it, and crossed her legs. She returned her eyes to his.

"W-wait! She's a-a-?!"

"Yes. She is a Teidar," Jordan said.

Teidar Tornstream smiled.

[Bamax]

Your writings are few and far between yet since as of late they are interconnected it is easy to pick back up the story. Even though it's been like... years lol I think.

Despite any wording errors and missing sections there is definitely an entertaining read here.
I loved how you were able to switch character points of view with such ease, and even when you did not each characters point of view was readily apparent.

[wolf329]

I really have been trying to put out chapters of these more often; literally 75% of Tunguska and Lost Coast are hilariously old at this point, it is embarrassing. For an idea of just how long, I started them around the same time I started Loroi Accommodations. I honestly dumped these as they are just to try and motivate myself to keep at them.

[Snoofman]

At first I didn’t understand the scene changes and time skips. Took me a while to understand that the written story is still incomplete. By what I can guess, the disgraced Tornstream, though repulsed by humans, is about to be taken into a human gang and get some fun out of effing up some mafia competitors. Exciting.

One thing I’m a bit confused about: what did Greg do that offended Fireblade?

[wolf329]

Sorry, I'll try and get the missing sections written and give notice here when I do.

In my mind or at least in this story, Fireblade is a touch conservative as well as an experienced warrior, so a male trying to protect her "honor", especially one she does not currently consider a romantic partner, is sort of embarrassing. She understands why he did it, but sees him as being out of his proper place in regards to her, hence her response.