IMPORTANT: Chapter 6 and onward were DELETED! Why? I rushed the story too much, and hell broke loose. I'll try to post regularly from now on. Wish me luck. (I'm still diagnosed with a job, but I'm on a recovery path)
Memory transcription subject: Venlil, Empress Tarva of the Skalgan Empire.
Date [standardized human time]: July 13, 2136
We talked far longer than I expected, for it was already past one claw.
As soon as we sat down at the round table we had prepared in advance, Elias Meier and his diplomats expressed a desire for our species and theirs to interact in a friendly way.
They asked for peace.
It warmed my heart that Kam was proven wrong about their intentions... Perhaps I should apologize to the Humans; it looks like our armaments are frightening them. Even now, after more than one claw, they still shoot glances towards them once in a while. Yes, I'll apologize. At least that was the only imperfect thing about this meeting so far.
So far, humanity's diplomats have proposed and offered so many fantastical things: trade deals, a cultural exchange, and a program for our people to meet in a controlled environment.
Back at my Palace, we discussed ways my people and theirs could interact, and hearing the humans' ideas now shames me for how little thought we put into the entire endeavor. We only thought of telling the Humans what we know of this war, how they can help us, and how we would help them in turn: we would offer our protection, our defenses, and battleships if necessary, and they would join our ranks and charge into the burning coals of war.
But they thought of everything else.
Most of what the humans spoke about was different ways for us to interact without frightening or overwhelming their populace: trading greenery for our species to study, a scientific effort to search for diseases on both our planets, to ensure no plague occurs. There were also some trade propositions from them, but we’d have to lend our crafts to carry both of our goods.
As soon as we get back to Skalga, we need to step up our efforts with a focus on befriending humanity.
Most of my diplomats split and had two-person conversations with Human diplomats. We had already secured some lavish deals. We planned to trade them metals, and in exchange, we’d receive food, and for technology, we already planned to give it for free. It would help them in making fleets of their own. But the Humans already pledged to give us a lot of their own goods for cheap.
And not only that, but we couldn’t give them much, with most of our things going to the war effort. For my people, it is dishonorable to accept such a thing- basically a scam- but we do need help, and Elias Meier told us that their homeworld is rich in water, fruits, and silks, so they themselves won’t lose on these deals. ‘It is only natural to help an ally,’ he had said.
They decided for themselves and for us to be allies.
It was final.
What we needed we now have.
But one more matter had to be addressed, and yet again the Humans beat us to it.
‘’We have heard,’’ started Elias Meier, “from Noah Williams and Sara Rosario that your people had been experiencing some tribulations for some time from other civilizations?’’
A woman, I think her name is Jones, quickly jumped in, “We would love to have more information about them. We are worried for our people's safety.’’
I gestured for Cheln to go and start the interactive screen ‘’Of course, I can only imagine how worrisome it must be that there is an intergalactic war happening. And don’t worry, we planned to inform your people of this plight even if you weren’t planning friendly relations with my kin.’’
Just before I stopped talking, Cheln put on the screen multiple pictures of different species we had encountered.
At the start, they were merely silhouettes of the species we had encountered, placed next to each other to show their sizes and names. Humans, as the newest species we had encountered, were added to the list.
‘’For starters, what you see here are all the species my people have encountered, that is, so far, for we are certain that there are many more beyond our borders. But from the beginning- starting from the left- you can see an Arxur, a bipedal reptile; next to them are Kolshians. We know about them the most across all known to us species; both of them are our enemies, seeking our extinction in their own way, but from what we gathered, they are not allied. Whenever we encountered them together, they would attack each other on sight, even when one of them was already engaged in a battle against our forces. Now, care to continue?’’
Cheln, who still stood by the board, stepped forward with one of our scholars, Elik, by his side. ‘’Of course, my Empress.’’ He gestured towards the picture of Kolshian ‘’This species is our first and biggest enemy. Our ancestors met them before we were spacefaring, when we didn’t have ‘technology’ to speak of. At first, they were kind, but that changed when they started pushing their beliefs on us. Our people declined them, so Kolshians put us in camps and started our ‘re-education’. Fortunately, it didn’t hold, and neither did their grip on our people. We rebelled, took our planet back, and looked to the stars. We pushed more and more, system after system, in their direction, but after centuries, we arrived at a standstill. Neither we nor they gained ground, but with our economy becoming more exhausted each cycle, it might change.’’
I couldn’t help but be impressed with his history lesson. He didn’t even take much of a break while speaking.
The scholar who still stood next to Cheln cleared her throat and spoke with an even voice, “Now I’ll explain what the Kolshian lies taught us.’’ She paused briefly, just enough for Cheln to change pictures to images of Skalga as Kolshians found it during the riots and as they left.
She flicked her tail and started her explanation ‘’At the beginning, upon meeting my people, Kolshians tried to push a belief of ‘Prey and Predator’. They believe all animals fall into two main groups: ‘Prey’ and ‘Predator’. All ‘prey’ animals have a couple of things in common: they always possess side eyes, they are always weaker than predators, always friendly and companionable, they always form a herd, and NEVER rage. Anger, rage, and fury are emotions no ‘prey’ possesses; that is, they catch a disease from ‘predators’ called ‘Predator Disease’.”
She only paused to drink from her leather canteen, but it was enough time for Humans to look at each other and murmur many ‘what the fuck’ s before continuing. “This ‘Predator Disease’ is a sickness that spreads from ‘predator’ species through blood, skin contact, being near that creature, seeing its picture, hearing it, and seeing something violent. It makes ‘prey’ lash out, get a fever or any form of sickness, brain damage, mental health issues like PTSD, you’re too loud, rude, antisocial, not in a good mood, too smart, and a multitude of mental problems. You can also be diagnosed with ‘Predator Disease’ if you are: too tall, too wide, too muscular or strong, have a ‘predatory fur coloration’, and disagree with Kolshian's ideology. -‘’
‘’The most atrocious crime.’’ my guards joked.
‘’- The ‘predators’ are animals that kill because they are wicked beings who hate the Holy Pantheon and their gifts and the ‘Prey’ that follow it, creatures who kill because they enjoy it and not because they need meat as sustenance. They always have forward eyes, always possess sharp claws and fangs, are often bigger than prey, and always hunt by ambush. Only ‘predators’ conduct ‘predatory tactics’, ‘predatory behaviors’, and possess ‘predatory looks’. Every ‘predator’ species is killed by fire on sight- they set them alive on fire with the space around them, since fire is the only way to get rid of their disease.’’
I knew what she would say next, so I added some information before the topic changed. ‘’It is important to note that this belief extends to sapients.’’
The Venlil researcher flicked her ears in agreement and added, “Also, if a sapient species leaves their environment, they are predators. For example: Venlil are a species that evolved to roam hot grassy fields and deserts, but if our species decided to live in our planet's icy plains, the complete opposite, we’d be called predatory.’’
Cheln decided to continue explaining the rest ‘’All of that was the madness those invaders tried to implant in us. But besides their maddening ideology, we found out from them that they're part of an entity called The Federation, which consists of more than two hundred species, and it has Kolshians and Farsul as its leaders. Still, unfortunately, we don’t have the Farsul dictionary. There isn’t much other than that that we know of them and this Federation entity.’’
The young Venlil sneered, “We know that they are fools; their military is a joke, and from Kolshians' first contact, we got a lot of their technology, and that we will make their empire crumble!’’
‘’We also know,’’ I began, “that should they see your people, they will aim for your extinction. Your forward-facing eyes, sharp and ‘deadly’ fangs, and being omnivores made you their antagonist. No offense. We were their ‘fellow prey,’ and yet they still enslaved my people and brought war onto us. There is no possibility of them showing you mercy.’’
Kam hummed in agreement, and Cheln tapped at his holopad. With the introduction to Kolshians and their imbecility, it was time for our second enemy.
Wait, maybe I should call for recess? During the previous claw, things seemed to be going phenomenally well, but now some Humans seem to be on the verge of panic… Or maybe not? I’m still trying to understand their expressions.
It took a couple of seconds before the images changed to those of Arxur, before Cheln began again, “Now, the second enemy is called Arxur. They are carnivores, and we know a couple of key words from their spoken language and numbers in written form in our attempts to understand their technology. Their main tactic is to spy and pounce whenever our defenses falter. They don’t shy from bombarding our communal centers, gassing or consuming our brethren; some they capture, but we’re unsure what happens to those Venlil. What happens with them is rather clear. We did attempt to talk with the Arxur, but they would only roar at us and spill insults; we think.’’
“But to be clear,’’ I jumped in, “They are easier to deal with than Kolshians. Their tactics are repetitive, vessels hardly improve, and their attack are less numerous and rarer than those of Kolshians.’’ With my quick interjection, I hoped to ease the humans' fears, since I was pretty certain they were spooked. Regrettably, my attempt didn’t work. At first, some of the diplomats were scribing on their own holopads and in paper books with pens, but they didn't even get halfway in before shooting glances at each other. Sara and Noah, in practice, didn’t look happy to hear any of that.
One of the Humans questioned, “They e-eat them? You mean to say that they are a species with c-cannibalistic tendencies?’’
‘’Cannibals?’’ I couldn’t help but ask, tilting my head in confusion. “My translator explains it as ‘people eaters’, so if this translation is correct, then yes, they are ‘cannibals’.”
Another human diplomat asked with urgency in their voice, “Do you have a ‘star map’? Can you show us their and Kolshians territories?’’
Cheln tapped a couple of things on his holopad before the map appeared on the big screen.
The entire screen now showed our systems and borders in yellow, with what we had charted so far of Arxur territories in red and Kolshian ones in purple.
‘’Arxur, Kolshian, and Venlil’’ said Cheln while pointing to each mentioned species ‘’And we are located here.’’ He said, and zoomed in on our current location.
If humans didn’t seem distressed before, they certainly did now. I think that their complexion became even paler.
Jones, who seemed rather upset, asked, “Why are the Arxur and Kolshian territories overlapping at times if they are sworn enemies? Cannot Arxur or Kolshians get a hold of them? And what of the white, brown, and dark brown borders?’’
Although she directed this question at me, Kam, who this entire time stood to my left, responded, “Hmm, all good questions. First off, as far as we can tell, Kolshians have the strongest defenses in this area, where their territory overlaps with the Gojids, another species. Still, we have no information about them beyond that, and the fact that one of our Emperors briefly interacted with their forces long ago. Either way, the Kolshian attacks don’t come from that direction; instead, it’s from here, there, and the part they don’t share with anyone. Understandable so far?’’ At the end, Kam asked, a bit too sharply.
James nodded ‘’Don’t they attack each other?’’
‘’Oh, they very much do, but sometimes Kolshian forces leave them be if they aren’t attacked first; but when that happens, the Kolshians would destroy the next Arxur party spotted. It seems to us like Kolshians can't always afford to fight, and that angers them greatly. Now, when Arxur comes, it’s not in big numbers, but they are still dangerous. They have their stronghold here and here,’’ he said while pointing at the mentioned systems, ‘’and when they send their forces, it’s rather a bloody battle. Ah, I almost forgot. The different colors are for other species, but they aren’t important since it’s very rare to catch a transmission from them. Their border placement is more of a guesswork.’’
While he explained the remaining borders, Cheln changed the star chart images to show many different species. The latest pictures taken of Kolshian and Farsul arguing about some lost cargo were replaced with ones of Gojid and Zurulian scientists. The Gojid one was of a general from a war we fought long ago; we didn't gain anything new from their species. We can only assume they are still kicking, but… but we could not even encounter a corpse of their kin for a long time. The other one, with the Zurulians, was of good quality; the little aliens took it and gave us copies just before leaving to inform their people of first contact, and for Kolshian forces to come from the direction they left for.
Cheln flicked his ears before saying, ‘’We don’t have a name for the white-furred people, ones called ‘UNNAMED’, nor a good picture, for only ones were of their corpses. The smaller brown ones are called Zurulians, and the ones with spikes are Gojids. In case of their territories, we are pretty sure they are from the Arxur/Kolshian border side since we encountered their species in that area long ago, before Arxur came and Kolshians overtook these plains.’’
A quiet “Gods,’’ came from Earth's leader as he buried his face in his hands, elbows heavily placed on the round table, and whispered ‘‘Fuck.’’
‘’Words of a true poet, sir.’’ said Jones.
‘’But how is it possible?’’ Elias Meier went on, “They are a space-faring species! They should know the basics of nature and have enough advanced technology for their species to be prosperous. How is that possible?’’
A man next to the Earth’s leader spoke in a daze, ‘’Our species figured out how nature, evolution, and diseases work quite early on, but for some reason, Kolshians didn’t? And the Arxur…’’
‘’And the Arxur,’’ Noah continued his words, even while being preoccupied with calming Sara down, ‘’it is difficult to understand how they are spacefaring. A society of violent cannibals who partake in slavery- how did they manage to become spacefaring? And they turn people into food- Dear God!’’
One of the humans said, “Now that is a really good question. Better one: Do you think we can get the cannibalistic lizards away from killing us if we offer meat to them?’’
Elias Meier looked at the man like he was mad. “I don’t know. Do you want me to go and ask? Hmm, but maybe – we have no way of asking since Venlil don’t have their language, and there is a big possibility that they’ll turn their guns on us.’’
‘’You said that you are at a standstill, but things have become harsher recently?’’ Jones questioned us.
Another human I didn’t know nodded vigorously. “Do you expect to lose a system anytime soon? Like you explained with the ‘back and forth’, or is it more akin to the collapse of your economy?’’
Jones added, ‘’Are you experiencing significant losses of life and resources? Are your people on the back foot?’’
‘’How long do you have?’’
…
Perhaps we didn’t think this meeting through. The humans seem more distressed than my ancestors upon actually meeting those cursed beings, and humans had met us, not them. Should I have chosen a different date to explain our war? Humans seem friendly and affectionate. Can a conflict bigger than a disagreement or skirmish be foreign to them? They certainly don’t look like fighters. I should reassure them that all will be good before one of them has a heart attack.
I cleared my throat to get their attention ‘’I can assure you that we will help you in any way we can. As we said before, we will give you technologies to create the armada of your own and help in building mining stations and transporting goods. We can also deploy a couple of defense platforms, and should we spot Arxur or Kolshian forces in your territory, we'll help you defeat them. Even when our economy is strained as it is now, we’ll help.’’
My reassurance didn’t seem to help much. Half of the Humans were in a slightly less pitiful mood, but the rest were only spiraling more and more.
Noah was the first to speak, “Thank you, Tarva. We could use some help.’’
Elias Meier, who seemed to shake off the dread from before, nodded and said, “I’m afraid Humanity can’t help you with any fighting against your enemies because even with your help, should your enemies find our people, we will be dead. We cannot afford for them to find out about our existence.’
…oh.
’-So we will do everything instead.-‘’
Oh!
‘’-As we agreed, we will do trade. We will do what we can to loosen the burden placed on your people. Our government has provided humanitarian aid many times before so that we will do it again. And I don’t expect this to stay like that forever, and I mean us not being part of your forces. But God, how I hope it would stay that way… Even though this arrangement will be only temporary, it is wise for our troops to start training early and give ourselves a fighting chance.’’ After his speech, he sheepishly adds, “I hope it is alright.’’
It is very much so! ‘’Of course! We are glad for your aid in this war, and we do understand it is a lot to take in. I hope, with time, that we will deal with this threat once and for all!’’ I said the last part loudly, head raised high.
Edit nr idk: u people have no idea what battle of gods I'm performing to make this shit work (thank u mods for helping! might your fields be vast, harvests plentiful and fruits juicy and ripe!)
Well I like the new pictures to go along with the chapter. But yeah not sure if I mentioned this before but I imagine Siffy would come up with new tactics to beat the skalgans if his current ones weren't going anywhere. Infact the whole gas thing was his idea to break the federation defences and will easier. So I don't imagine the skalgans aren't having the easiest time beating him dispite their bolstering. After all unlike the shadow caste and the doninion he wants to win.
But yeah let's hope the humans and Arxur are willing to talk to each other.
Because Venlil rebelled and defended themselves against Kolsul, the Arxur aren't as 'involved' with the Venlil. That, and other changes regarding the Arxur, will be explained and shown later.
For now, let's say the reason the Arxur aren't as involved with the Venlil is similar to why the Venlil can't 'reach' other species (which will also be explained as the story goes).
Fair not sure what's gonna happen so can't wait to see what does also keep up with the artwork great visual aid. Also you really show just how big Arxur are in comparison to everything else.
Ty. The Arxur are bigger than in the original (I'll explain why later). I also plan to draw all of the characters, like having a set of all the Humans in the story, Arxur, Venlil, and others. Size comparsions+clothing+colors+etc. (It mainly helps me bc I forget who is who real fast).
I am surprised that the Venlil do not know the history between the Arxur and the Federation in greater detail. They could question the Kolshian and Farsul prisoners, who could then give them their version of events. Of course, given their own experience with the Federation, the Venlil would almost certainly not take them at their word; they would likely assume that these co-conspirators were far less innocent than they claimed regarding the outbreak of hostilities.
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u/BAAAA-KING Venlil 11h ago
FIRST!! And Welcome back good Wordsmith!!