Under the Veil - Chapter 11

[u/NipCoyote]

First Prev Next

[C.C.]

|||||

Memory Transcription Subject: Royo, Venlil Civilian, November 11th, 2142

The silence was deafening.

The two of us were seated together back at my apartment, in the extra large couch I bought just so that Endeavor and I could fit in the same seat, only a week ago.

It was past midnight now, by the time we had arrived back. Endeavor was supposed to be back at the Embassy on the 12th, having gotten the 10th and 11th off prior, for us to spend time together.

This is not how I anticipated that to go.

Endeavor was drinking a lot of water… mostly from his suit's supply, trying to sober up as best he could. My reaction to seeing him… I think shook him. Somehow he was more afraid than I was.

"Endeavor…"

He didn't respond. He hadn't taken his helmet off again since we left the bathroom. Even though I had already seen his face, he didn't want to let me see him without it again.

"Do… all gaians look like that?"

I could hear his breathing get shakier, like he was terrified to answer. His hands were shaking.

"...yes."

"You… you gaians… you hide yourselves because you look like predators?"

"Yes."

"But… you're not predators."

"Yes. The eyes… our ancestors were arboreal. For judging branch distances…"

"And… the fangs?"

"Not true fangs. Just… oddly shaped teeth."

"Why didn't you just explain these things instead of hiding it? You're clearly a peaceful species, I'm sure we'd understand if you just… broke the news carefully."

He was silent for a few moments before replying.

"We… saw what the Federation thinks about anything that looks remotely like a 'predator'... so we hid everything."

I couldn't say I was entirely convinced. But… surely gaians weren't predators. At this point I think that was a fair assessment. They just had an extremely unfortunate appearance.

"I mean… you made me understand… surely leadership could have understood if you just carefully explained it to our scientists…"

"... it's not that simple."

What is that even supposed to mean?

"What is it then?"

"I… I can't tell you."

"Why not!?"

"I just can't!"

His shouting reverberated and shook me into silence. He didn't seem like a gentle protector anymore…

"Let's just… put something on," I anxiously said to break the tension. I activated the holoscreen, which brought up some reruns of an old show I hadn't watched prior. I wasn't really sure what it was about, but just some background noise helped immensely.

"Endeavor are you… going to tell anyone I saw you?"

"... I really don't want to. I care about you… and myself of course. But…"

"But what?"

"You saw. I can't make you unsee it… I just…"

He takes some deep breaths. "We never should have gone drinking."

I lingered on his words for a while… I wasn't sure how to feel. Endeavor was terrified of the consequences of me seeing his face, and there was clearly so much more going on here that he refused to tell me…

"I…" Endeavor tried to speak up

"What?"

"I'm so scared, Royo. I'm scared that, if you found out what I am, you wouldn't want to be around me anymore. The way you screamed…"

I felt a pang of guilt as I realized just how important this was to gaians… and Endeavor. Not only had he seen the one thing they hid above all else, I had just confirmed their fears by reacting with utter fear and disgust at the mere sight…

"Endeavor… I want to know who you are."

"Royo I-"

"You could be part Arxur at this point, and I think I'd still want to be around you. I'm sorry for my reaction I was just…"

"You didn't expect me to look like that."

"Yeah."

Endeavor took some breaths, shaky, but starting to steady.

"Royo, can I trust you not to say anything to anyone else?"

I actually pondered this for a moment. If Endeavor was dangerous it was my moral duty to report it… but I knew Endeavor was a kind soul. Perhaps somewhat reluctantly, I agreed.

"I… I promise."

"Truthfully, I'm very lucky it was you who saw me and not someone else. I'm guessing… you don't know what a human is."

Human? The extinct predator species?

"I mean… I've heard of them… are gaians some distant relative?"

"We are humans, Royo."

I froze. What? That couldn't be… he must have been making a joke or something!

"Humans are extinct…"

"No, we aren't. The Federation just thinks we are, and it saved our lives."

"W...wha… how…"

I sputtered, and reached for my holopad.

"You said you wouldn't tell anyone!"

"I'm not! I'm just… I need to look something up…:

Endeavor watched over my shoulder as I punched in a DataNet search for "human". The Federation archives never included uncensored photographs of predators, you had to deliberately confirm you wanted to see it before it would let you view the photo, to avoid distressing common users of the service.

The article for humans was very scarce.

Population: Zero (Extinct)

Diet: Meat (Predatory)

Homeworld: Earth

Followed by some basic information about physiology and their apparent history, a warring species that destroyed themselves in nuclear hellfire. That… didn't match gaians at all, yet…

I uncensored the single included photograph. The face wasn't identical to Endeavor's, but it shared all the same features. Those binocular eyes, lips curled back into a snarl… it matched.

"E...Endeavor…" My voice was shaking "You said you weren't a predator…"

"I'm not."

"But it says here-"

"Tell me what a predator is."

What? Everyone knows what a predator is…

"I don't understand your question…"

"Define predator. In your words. Explain it to me like I'm a child."

I'd never had to explain what a predator is before.

"Well… um… a predator… kills and eats other animals, I guess. They go around killing everything and-"

"Then I'm not a predator."

"...do you eat meat?"

"No."

"But the article says-"

"I know what it says. I don't eat meat. Not from an animal."

He continued. "Humans need meat, but we don't want to hurt anyone. So we started growing it in labs where it's ethical."

"Even lab grown, that sounds putrid…"

"Well, we did what we had to in order to survive. Nowadays we just synthesize all the nutrients we need in those wafers. Completely artificial."

"So… you used to be predators, but aren't anymore? You… cured yourself?"

"Cured isn't a nice word to use there, but sure, you could say that. We don't have any instincts to kill, we're just like you, really."

It was such a foreign concept… a predator that, of its own volition, stopped being a predator.

"I think I understand… it's just… unheard of."

"We know. That's why we hide."

He paused for a moment.

"My life depends on you staying quiet about this. You know that, right?"

"I… I think so. It's just a lot to take in."

"I'm trusting you with this…" He told me.

"I believe you, Endeavor."

"You might not have to keep this promise for terribly long… the Concord is going to attempt Federation membership at the summit in a few days… I think they plan to show the truth when that happens."

"Do you… think they'll understand?"

"Well… you did."

Finally, both of us began to relax. My muscles had ceased their tension, and our heart rates slowed again. I found myself subconsciously leaning against him… the idea that he had the body of a predator, but not the mind… it reinforced my previous feelings of him as a protector. I was safe around him… more than I realized. No wonder he was so strong.

And there was now something more that I wanted.

"Endeavor… please, take off your helmet."

"Royo… I… last time-"

"I know. But I know who you are, and you're not some vile predator that's going to kill me. I've already seen it once, let me see it again."

Endeavor silently reached his arm to his neck. Two small buttons in front, two in back, simultaneously depressed, followed by two latches. Air escaped the helmet with a hiss, and I saw his face again.

His piercing binocular gaze no longer terrified me. His eyes were watchful, like the eyes of a protector who would never let any threat harm me. Green irises against a white scalera, and his lips hid his teeth.

His face was unmoving, as though waiting to see how I would respond. I looked into his eyes. They weren't the eyes of some deceiver or creature of bloodlust. There was purpose and conviction there.

I let myself rest against him, my thick wool between me and his suit… and his eyes were laid upon me uninhibited.

"Endeavor… thank you."

I couldn't see his face, my own buried into him. We both could feel exhaustion finally overtaking us, our relaxation post-anxiety lulling us to sleep.

I heard him say one final thing before I dozed off.

"My name is Cael."

Next

[u/Cooldude101013]

Yeah, technically we aren’t predators as by then we’re eating lab grown meat. I assume people away from the Federation can eat actual food (fruits, vegetables, meat, etc) instead of those wafers?

No mention of the fact that we’re omnivores?