The Nature of Predators

Memory transcription subject: Slanek, Venlil Space Corps

Date [standardized human time]: August 31, 2136

The thought of a world without my human was too much to bear. After all we’d been through, he felt like a long-lost brother rather than an alien predator. I would never hear his voice, message him in a chatroom, or fly a spaceship with him again. His life was about to end in a haze of misery, because I was too weak to stop it.

Why had I promised Marcel I would free him from this hell? It was cruel to give him a false sense of hope.

If I had said the right words…if I had woken up sooner, maybe this wouldn’t have happened. What kind of friend am I? A failure.

I thought I had more time to talk the Federation down, since they refrained from killing him this far. There was no reason for the captain to rush to an irreversible decision…though he didn’t seem in a particular hurry now.

Sovlin was savoring the anguish on Marcel’s face, and seemed to be daring him to fight back. He tapped the gun against the predator’s crooked nose, which elicited a cracking sound. He swiftly returned the barrel to the human’s temple, and flashed his teeth. The lack of a reaction disappointed him; Marcel was too out of it to process any more sensation.

The captain sighed, and resolved himself to finish the job. I wanted to make some sort of last-ditch effort, but Zarn had me ensnared in his suffocating grip. The doctor chuckled as he realized the human was about to be terminated. It was that callous glee that spurred me to action.

“NO!” I screamed. “Leave…him…alone!”

I bit Zarn’s arm with force, then thrashed about with my tiny claws. The weighty Takkan restrained me with ease, dragging me further out of the cell. My teeth hadn’t even pierced his thick hide; the efforts wore down my strength more than anything else. The doctor clamped a paw around my mouth, suppressing any other attempts to call out.

I reached out for Marcel desperately. The human made eye contact with me, and tears rolled down his mangled face. Despite the overwhelming pain, he tried to put on a brave smile. The predator was thinking about my feelings, even in his final moments.

Sovlin’s claw drifted toward the trigger, and I averted my eyes. I didn’t want to see Marcel’s brains come out the other side of his head. His beautiful snarl should be the last thing in my memory. That was how I wanted to remember him.

“Lower your weapon, Sovlin, or I’ll put you down with that thing.” Recel’s quavering voice broke the silence, rather than a gunshot. “I can’t watch this anymore. You are behaving just like the Arxur.”

My eyes blinked open to find the first officer, pointing his sidearm at the captain. Several emotions rushed across Sovlin’s face. Most seemed to be a shade of outrage or shock. The Gojid was relishing his assault of the predator, and didn’t appreciate having the finale cut off.

“Recel, there is no intelligence we need from it. Slanek can tell us everything.” Zarn tightened his hold around me, imploring the first officer to stand down. “Its life has no value. It is nothing but a danger to the crew, in the case that it gets loose.”

“It is sapient. That must have some value. No matter how little. Why have you both forgotten that?”

The captain’s lips curled back, revealing his curved molars. “Because they took everything from me. Everything! And now, this monster has the nerve to corrupt my crew. Let me tell you, it is done taking from us. This ends now!”

“But it has done nothing wrong. Look at it; it’s helpless,” Recel hissed. “You’ve beaten it half to death.”

“So you think this human is sweet too?” Sovlin sneered. “It thirsts for blood just like the Arxur do. It is a violent creature at its core, its rotten core. Marcel savors the hunt. If it was honest, it would admit it!”

The only time Marcel ever showed any violent impulses, was after he watched the Arxur torture Venlil children, I thought. The captain isn’t wrong about human bloodlust, but they have reasons to kill. It’s not anger borne from a place of cruelty.

The first officer swallowed nervously. “Are aggression and compassion mutually exclusive? We don’t know. There could be more to the story. If there’s a chance it wanted peace and we kill it, what does that make us?”

“It makes us heroes. I think you’re a damned fool, if you give it the chance to do the exact same thing the Arxur did. Now you’re going to let me protect us, and we’re going to put this incident behind us.”

“How can you be sure you’re right?”

“The Federation wouldn’t have voted to destroy Earth the first time if they weren’t sure, Recel. I trust in the judgment of several hundred species, as should you.”

“Earth?” Marcel groaned. “I never t-told you…”

The captain’s paw twitched around his gun. A shot rang out moments later, and my fur stood on end. Blood spurted through a wound in Sovlin’s thigh, and the crippled leg buckled beneath him. It wasn’t the Gojid who got off the first shot, to my exuberant relief.

Recel tackled the spiky male away from the human. The first officer disarmed his superior, and cast a blank stare at the prisoner. The proximity to Marcel seemed to bother him, though he tried to keep his wits. I was amazed that the Kolshian veteran had intervened. The talk of human neural activity must have instilled some qualms in his mind.

The first officer aimed his gun toward the doctor. If he turned to the tertiary threat, he must be satisfied that Sovlin was restrained and Marcel was incapable of lunging at him. I yelped as I felt a sudden tug around my waist. Zarn was propping me up as a shield, and trying to load a syringe.

“Let the Venlil go, Zarn,” Recel spat. “You don’t want to hurt him.”

“I don’t want to hurt Slanek. But I need to fix him! He’s ill.”

“Release him, now.”

The doctor pressed a needle to my throat, ignoring my whimper. “Or what?”

“Or I remove the human’s collar and we find out.”

The predator was in no condition to move; it was obvious to me that he was on the brink of losing consciousness. I think Recel knew the threat was empty, but it worked like a charm on the doctor. Zarn’s grip slackened, and I slithered out of his arms in a flash. My sprint to Marcel’s side was a blur of elated bliss.

The human yelped as I dove atop his chest, forgetting about the inflamed bruises. He pushed me off of him, with care not to hurt me. Gritting his teeth, he tried to sit up, but didn’t get farther than raising his head. My stomach flipped at the sight of his nose, twisted to the side, with the skin turning a deep purple already.

“Did you tell them?” Marcel croaked.

I tilted my head. “Tell them what?”

“About…Earth. T-they…they’re…going to…”

“No. It’s a long story, but we’ve got to warn your people.”

While my eyes were averted, Recel placed a makeshift gag around Sovlin’s mouth. The captain was squirming, his voice muffled to grunts. The first officer had resorted to pacing back and forth, palming his head in frustration. I assumed he was at a loss for what to do with Marcel.

Intervening to spare the human’s life was simpler than releasing him. At the end of the day, Recel was a frightened Kolshian with a gun. He was the primary obstacle in our path to getting Marcel home. I contemplated an angle of persuasion, since my odds of fighting him unarmed seemed paltry.

If the human dies, why did he shoot his own captain? I thought. Surely he realizes he’s too far in to back out now. He wouldn’t want his treason to be for naught.

“Recel, we’ve got to get Marcel out of here. He needs a doctor,” I pleaded.

“I know. And Zarn would poison the thing as soon as treat it,” Recel sighed. “If there’s billions of these predators out there, I suppose letting this one go isn’t going to make a difference. Even if...ugh, never mind.”

I better not give him time to change his mind. He really sounds like he’s having second thoughts.

I flicked my ears toward Marcel. “How are we going to move him?”

The first officer surveyed the vicinity. His eyes landed on the wheelchair Zarn used for me yesterday. I sensed his hesitancy to retrieve it from the observation room, with Sovlin still grumbling curses and Marcel trying to sit up. The Kolshian tapped me on the shoulder, and pressed the gun into my paws.

“If Sovlin or the predator try anything, shoot them,” Recel growled. “I’ll be gone a few seconds.”

The officer sprinted over to the wheelchair’s resting spot like a predator was chasing him…which I guess he felt like it was. He rolled it back to our location, and almost fell over when Marcel glanced at him.

I considered pointing the gun at Recel, since I didn’t trust him to treat the human like a person. The Kolshian was a bystander to Sovlin’s torture, after all. Even now, he kept referring to Marcel as “it” or “the predator.”

The sole reason I decided against backstabbing him was that I needed help. Recel had saved Marcel’s life, and wasn’t actively trying to hurt him. I didn’t know my way around the ship, so getting out of here was impossible without him. Not to mention that the veteran was stronger, well-adapted to stress, and more adept at combat.

The first officer seemed oblivious to my deliberation, as he stepped away from the wheelchair. He reclaimed his firearm, brandishing it with shaking graspers. I was by far the least threatening entity in the room, to his brain.

“Move the human into the chair, Slanek,” Recel grumbled.

“I can’t. I’m too weak. You have to do it.”

“I don’t want to touch it!”

“Grow up. He won’t bite.”

Recel huffed, but slowly knelt by Marcel. He reached out with a grasper, and hissed in disgust as it touched sweat-soaked skin. His breathing devolved to sporadic gasps, as the fear chemicals became unbearable. When he lifted the predator, I worried his grip might falter. The human shouldn’t be dropped, especially in his current condition.

With eyes the size of moons, Recel deposited my friend into the chair. Marcel yelped from the rough landing. My lip curled up without thinking, an instinctive warning not to hurt the predator.

“Don’t give me that look, Slanek! I’m trying my best,” the first officer spat. “I don’t see you doing anything helpful.”

“I want to help. I’d do anything, really—”

“Gah, I’m sorry. That was harsh. I apologize.” Recel took a deep breath, and positioned himself behind the predator. “This is overwhelming for me, okay? Shit…let’s just get moving.”

Marcel was wheeled out of the cell by the trembling Kolshian, past the watching Zarn. I made eye contact with the doctor during my own exit. A Federation officer, carting a wounded predator away, with a mesmerized Venlil in tow; suffice to say, it wasn’t his desired outcome. The Takkan seemed to be having an aneurysm at the sight of our posse.

“You’re making a big mistake. Humans are sociopaths. Murderers!” Zarn screeched.

Recel pointed at the doctor. “You get in that cell and treat Sovlin. I’d prefer if he doesn’t bleed out.”

The medic bared his teeth at us. He slunk inside with reluctance, and began tending to the captain’s injury with his kit.

Recel pressed a button outside the cell, and the door slid shut. Several clicks indicated that it locked behind us. Clearly, the first officer didn’t want his devious shipmates pursuing us, or tipping us off to the crew. Realization flashed in the doctor’s eyes, and he slammed a paw on the wall in frustration.

“Why didn’t I do that to you all?” Zarn wailed.

Recel snorted, waving a shiny object. “Because I have the key.”

The hint of a smirk played at Marcel’s face, which showed he was still conscious. I was pleased to see him responsive, though I hoped he didn’t start laughing. The last thing we needed was the first officer thinking the human was growling. It was going to be difficult to get a battered predator out unnoticed as things were.

“Recel…aren’t the crew going to wonder why the predator got loose?” I asked. “Won’t they freak out?”

The first officer thought for a moment. He yanked the fire alarm, then pressed a button on his holopad to trigger an evacuation order. An automated message relayed the command to abandon ship, while the overhead sprinklers doused us in cold water.

This guy is smart, I’ll give him that. I thought. Maybe he will be useful.

Nobody would question an officer moving a high-value prisoner under emergency procedures. In his current state, Marcel appeared sedated, so that might limit panic too.

Giddiness abounded in my mind at the thought of freedom. Returning home with my best friend might have been a trip to paradise, as far as I was concerned. It felt like we had been given a new lease on life.

With uncertain steps, Recel guided us into the shuttle bay. Several ear-piercing screams were our greeting, once the crewmates detected the half-conscious predator. The way they pointed at Marcel made me seethe. The people nearest to the entrance tripped over themselves in their haste to get away.

The first officer ignored them, pushing Marcel toward an unoccupied shuttle. He carried the human with less overt fright this time. His delicacy as he placed the predator in the back seat surprised me. The fact that he noticed his prior mistake, through the haze of terror, showed a great deal of empathy.

Recel clicked the harness over Marcel’s withered chest, which was forcing out shallow breaths. The Kolshian felt the human’s pulse; the concern in his eyes reignited my own worries. The heartbeat must have been rapid or erratic.

The first officer found a blanket under the seat, and draped it over the predator’s barren form. It was undeniably a kind gesture. Recel seemed to care; whether he would admit it was another question. As reluctant as I was to forgive the officer for his role in Marcel’s abduction, I was worried about what would happen to him next. We couldn’t leave the man who saved us behind to hang for treason.

“Come with us.” I jumped into the pilot seat, firing up the launch sequence. “You can’t stay here, Recel. They’ll have you hanged.”

“I’d rather face whatever the Federation has in store for me than live surrounded by humans.” The first officer took a last look at Marcel, blinking rapidly. “But I wish you both well. For the sake of us all, I pray you’re right about this.”

“Please…you don’t have to see the humans. I’m sure the Venlil will take care of you, and we can put you somewhere far away from them.”

For Marcel’s sake, we have to dock at the outpost…assuming it’s still there, I thought. I’m not sure how the humans would react to Recel’s presence, but we can cross that bridge when we get to it.

“But that’s not the point. I deserve to hang, Slanek!” The officer’s composure crumbled, and he buried his face in his tentacles. “I don’t know what came over me back there. I’m a traitor.”

“You stopped a murder. And now, this is our only chance to stop a genocide. If Earth is attacked, there will be no chance of peace. Not now, maybe not ever. The fate of the Federation hinges on what we do. Are you really going to sit that out?”

Recel stepped off the craft, a torn look on his face. He stood motionless and pondered my words. No wise veteran wanted another predatory enemy. That would ensure that the Federation lost the war.

With a reluctant sigh, the first officer clambered back onto the ship. He squeezed into the back seat beside Marcel, leaning away from him. Regret was already etched on the Kolshian’s gelatinous features.

I suspected this would be a long ride for our Federation savior.