FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Author's Note: This story contains scenes of explicit sexual description. If you are under 18, or in some places 21, you should not be reading this, as it will cause you to melt into a puddle. You have been warned. If you don't like what you see in the tags, don't read. Any similarities to other characters real or fictional is purely coincidental.

_Thanks to Vicious Reader for proofreading. _

Under Alien Skies

"Blackhorn , Aaron. Born 2353. Correct?" asked the buxom bunny sitting behind the desk.

"Yeah, that's me," the human replied, rubbing his newly cropped dirty blond hair absently.

"Welcome to Ventura base Private Blackhorn, here's your ID card," she said, handing across a thin piece of duraplas with microchip veins running through it. Her fingers flew in front of the sensor bar of the logiscreen in front of her. "You're in bunk room twenty-three of barrack C, just to the left of where you came in and around the corner. Dinner will be in the mess hall from 1600 to 2030."

"Thanks," said Aaron, taking the proffered card and slinging his bag back over his shoulder.

Turning back around, he stepped through the double air-locked doors of the administration building. He walked back out into the still bright late afternoon of the compound. The small moon of Girana was visible in the low horizon. The odd metallic dust that coated its surface glaringly reflected the light from the relatively close star, making it appear to be another sun. This planet was on the very inner edge of the so called 'Goldilocks zone', just barely consistently cool enough to allow for plant life and habitation. It was also the site of the known universe's richest source of Ultranium, hence why this base was here. The United Terran Federation wanted to make sure the invaluable resource was well protected, especially now that it was at war with the aggressive Sken'd'or race. Girana was right on the outer borders of what was known as Sken'd'or territory. So far they didn't seem to know of its existence, but it didn't hurt to hedge their bets as much as possible.

Following the directions he had been given, Aaron found the barracks marked out with a large C painted on the side. The utilitarian outsides of the compound's buildings contradicted their modern interiors, having been outfitted with the latest in portable habitation technology to keep the troops happy. After all, with the mine pulling in billions of credits monthly, the government could afford to spend a little extra on its security. Pushing his way inside the structure, he welcomed the immediate relief from the heat. Sweat had already begun to trickle down his pale brow, stinging his jade green eyes. Making his way through the grid of hallways, he passed several other soldiers, both male and female, fur and human.

The military had long ago dispensed with segregated barracks, and troops mingled freely. Despite the initial public outcry, there were very few instances of impropriety, and those were squashed so quickly that it hadn't been known to happen in decades. At any rate, most of the females who enlisted in the military were more than capable of taking care of themselves, and those that weren't merely had to team up with those that were. He found it hard to believe that he was actually here. It seemed like just yesterday (and, in retrospect, from his perspective it had been) that he had been lounging on the couch at his one bedroom. He still hadn't quite figured out what exactly had possessed him to listen to that recruiter and sign himself up. He was a computer worker, not an army jock. His physical prowess was limited to trips out to the local caf shops.

"You'll see exotic locations, meet new people, build self-confidence," The man had said. _"The pay is a nice bonus too, you'll make enough on one tour to live easy for awhile, or put it away for the future." _

Whatever it was that had convinced him, had him finding himself boarding a shuttle to the main star hub orbiting Mars less than 24 hours later, and then from there into the stasis sleep chambers of the long haul shuttle for the 6 week flight to Girana. Even with modern space travel technology, Girana was a long ways away from Terra.

Aaron finally located bunkroom 23, which turned out to be in the four man room section. Pushing through the door, he was greeted by loud electronic music blaring from an old school Ipod dock. He couldn't believe anyone still owned something as outdated as that, the last one had been made twenty years before he had been born. A hulking lion sat on the corner of one of the beds, wearing nothing but his BDU pants and rocking out with some air guitar to the music. Noticing Aaron's presence, the lion grabbed a remote sitting beside him and switched off the music. "Yo, Jeremy! Get your ass out here! Our new roomy has arrived!" he yelled towards the closed door at the corner of the room.

Aaron heard a toilet flush, and then another human came bursting out the door into the room. "Hey! What's up man? I'm Jeremy, as my noisy friend here has already indicated. And you are...?"

"Um, Aaron. Aaron Blackhorn," he replied, taking the offered hand somewhat gingerly, wondering just how fast the taller human had gotten off of the toilet.

"Great to meet'cha Aaron!" Jeremy said exuberantly. "We're probably going to get a lot of postings together once you get through basic, so I hope you like talking about cars and tits."

Aaron forced a grin at the energetic welcome, responding with, "Sure, who wouldn't?"

"And I'm Lextra, but everyone just calls me Lex," said the lion, heaving himself up from the bed and wrapping Aaron's hand in a crushing grip. Aaron winced at the pressure, seeing a grin on the lion's features as he felt the bones in his hand tremble.

"Hey now, play nice Lex. Don't break the poor guy on his first day!" Jeremy said.

Lex finally released Aaron's hand with a laugh, giving him a hearty slap on the back and causing him to stumble forward. "Sorry, couldn't resist."

"Anyways, your uniform is already in the closet over there," Jeremy said, nodding his head to the indicated storage space. "It just got delivered this morning. You won't be assigned any other equipment until you get through basic though, so it looks pretty sparse at the moment."

Sliding open the door, Aaron agreed with the assessment. The space being taken up only by a lone uniform with one change, his combat boots being already on his feet. Setting his bag down inside and sliding the door closed, he turned and asked, "So where's our other roommate?"

"Oh, there's no one else, you're it," Lex replied. "It's just the three of us. The base isn't crowded enough that they have to fill all the bunks to capacity."

"Just means more room for us," Jeremy said, vaulting himself onto the top bunk above Lex.

Aaron nodded. "So, I should probably be heading to the mess hall about now, right?"

"Yeah," said Lex. "We already ate, but it'll be ending in about an hour, so you wanna get there before all the good stuff gets cold."

"Take your time and enjoy your last evening of total freedom," Jeremy said. "Tomorrow, you'll be starting basic, and you'll be pretty much too busy to hang out, or too tired."

"Won't you guys be training too?" he asked, hoping he wasn't going to be the only one in the room with no clue what he was doing all the time.

"Naw," said Jeremy, dashing his hopes. "We've already been posted here for almost four months. We're getting close to the end of our tour."

"We get regular duties now, as you will once you complete your training," Lex added.

"Anyways, enough chitchat! You need to haul your butt over to the mess," Jeremy said.

"Right. Um, how do I get there exactly?" Aaron asked.

"All the barracks connect to the central building behind admin. Just turn left out the door and then right at the end. You'll see the connecting thruway into the communal building. The mess is the first hall on your right, down at the end," he replied.

"Great, thanks! I'll see you guys when I get back then," Aaron said, heading to the door.

The two both gave casual waves, Lex picking up his remote and restarting the din.

As the door swung closed behind him, Aaron heard Jeremy yell, "Turn that ancient thing down ya stupid cat! Why can't you listen on an Ilink like everyone else!?"

The door swung closed on Lex's reply, and Aaron shook his head at the actions of the obviously well-acquainted pair. Turning the way he had been directed, he hurried down the hall in search of his dinner.

The next morning, Aaron was rudely awoken by a banging on his door. Jeremy and Lex appeared to already be gone on some duty or other. He sleepily swung his legs over the bunk, as a voice shouted through the door, "Five minutes Blackhorn! Convene in the marching grounds."

Aaron groaned as he hastily slipped into his uniform. It looked like the guys weren't kidding about last night being the last one of freedom. Pulling himself together, he hurried out into the hallway, joining a stream of other fresh meat on their way out. They gathered together in the large open area of the compound, forming a rough box shape.

A kangaroo was standing at the front, wearing BDUs and a whistle.

"All right, roll call!" He shouted in a deep baritone. He began reading names off of a clipboard, checking them off as the replies came back. Satisfied with the attendance, he tossed the board on a nearby box, then shouted again, "We are going to start your training with a ten kilometer run! Any of you who fall behind are going to do laps for every minute when we get back! "

A collective incredulous groan went through the gathered troops.

"None of that now!" The kangaroo barked. "This is an important part of your training! Now lets go! Grab water bottles as we go by the gates."

Turning, he set a brisk pace through the main gates of the compound, the other troops doing their best to keep pace with his odd, hopping gait. Aaron snagged one of the bottles offered by the gate guard as he went by, clipping it onto his belt as he matched the slow jog. They moved out onto the cracked clay of the surrounding plain, heading towards the low-lying foothills in the visible distance. Aaron completely lost track of how long they jogged, the kangaroo expertly altering their pace to keep them going without exhaustion.

The sun was higher in the sky as they began to slow down. Finally, they reached the foothills, and the Kangaroo called a halt.

"Fifteen minutes troops, then we head back! Don't drink all your water, or you'll make yourselves sick."

A lot of the recruits, the humans especially, flopped flat on their backs gasping. Aaron was panting too, sweat pouring off of him. Even at this hour, the heat was very noticeable. He quickly downed some of his water, wisely heeding the drill sergeant's advice. Most of the furs were breathing hard too, but the majority of them had greater lung capacities than the average human, which explained why they weren't having as hard of a time. With the exception of a bear with a big pot-belly, who was starting to look a bit green from the exertion.

"You doing all right?" Aaron asked him.

The bear looked up, "Man, this is harsh. I signed up to be a vehicle driver, not a marathon runner."

Aaron nodded, "I know what you mean. And we're only halfway done too. Are you going to make it?"

The bear nodded. "I think so, I just need to catch my breath and take it a bit easier on the way back. I don't care if I have to do a couple laps."

"Alright! Break time's over!" came the cry. "Form up!"

The bear groaned and hauled himself up, and they joined the line trailing behind the kangaroo, heading back towards the compound.

Aaron stumbled into the compound gates, a bit behind the main group. The kangaroo was standing there with a stopwatch, clicking it as he passed. "That's one lap Blackhorn. Follow the fence, then join the others when you're done."

Aaron didn't bother to reply, simply falling into a slow pace around the fence. He could see the front runners waiting by a fenced off basketball court. Jeremy and Lex stood guarding the entrance for some reason. As he rounded the final corner of the fence line, he could see the last few runners coming in and starting their laps. The bear was still churning his way towards the gates, and the kangaroo was tapping his foot impatiently. Aaron finished his lap, and guzzled down some more water as he joined the rest of the group.

Spotting him, Lex waved him over.

"So, how's day one going?" he asked.

"Hard," he replied simply. "So, what are we waiting here for exactly?"

Lex and Jeremy exchanged a look, and Jeremy said, "You guys are going for combat training next. With....The Hammer."

"The what?" Aaron asked, perplexed.

"Oh, you'll see," Jeremy said with a grin. "It's sure to be...interesting."

Aaron groaned inwardly at the esoteric reference to what sounded like more torture. Why did he ever agree to this?

After about ten minutes of waiting, the group was once more complete, and Jeremy and Lex waved them through the gate. Inside the court, several pads had been laid on the ground, and a hyena was standing with his arms crossed on the far side. His brown eyes flicked over the group as they assembled, and as they all formed up, he said, "Finally. Boomer needs to be taught a lesson about making me wait." The voice was slightly incongruous with the tall, muscular form of the hyena. It was just a little higher pitched than one would expect, particularly when compared to the bass of the kangaroo from before.

"Alright troops," he said, beginning to pace in front of them. "Soon enough, most of you are going to start VARIA suit training, and you will start to learn to rely on them for everything. This is unacceptable. I am here to teach you how to defend yourself when the chips are down and you don't have any fancy technology to get you out of a jam. Now, I'll need a volunteer."

No one spoke up, and the hyena's ear twitched in irritation.

"Alright then, since you are all so eager. You!" he said, pointing at Aaron.

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Get up here."

Aaron grudgingly stepped up onto the mat, dreading what he was going to be made to do.

"I want you to try to hit me. Give it your best shot," the hyena said, widening his stance.

Aaron looked at him incredulously for a second, then shrugged and threw a wild punch.

In a blur of motion, the hyena grabbed his wrist, pulling Aaron's arm past his body. Aaron was pulled forward off balance, and the hyena's knee slammed up into his stomach. All the air was forced from his body, and he reeled backwards from the powerful blow. The hyena followed this up with a punching combo into his upper torso and stomach, then a sweeping kick that brought him to his knees. Following through on the sweep, the hyena kicked out again, shoving Aaron's torso backwards and slamming him onto his back. In a smooth motion, his attacker brought his foot down in an axe kick, and Aaron cringed as the bare heel slammed into the mat beside his head.

"See, now if this had been a real fight, I could've split recruit Blackhorn's skull with that move. But we should probably let him keep his brains for now," he said. Reaching down, he hauled Aaron up, the human still trying to catch his breath. "Right... again."

Aaron, determined not to be caught off guard this time, took a firmer stance. Fighting a feeling of nausea from the blows to the stomach, he feinted with his left, before following with a right cross. The hyena grinned and merely leaned back slightly, Aaron's punch passed well short of its target. Whipping his arm forward, the hyena's extended fingers jammed into Aaron's neck, causing him to choke and grab at his throat.

"That was a throat crusher," the hyena said. "Did you all see what I did there? I used my superior reach to hit him hard in a weak spot when his guard was down. Always analyze your opponent before you rush in. Your best weapon is this one right here," he said, tapping the side of his head. "You guys should never use a move like that in practice though. I know how to hold back, but an inexperienced fighter could do some real damage with that move in a sparring match. Savvy? Now, one more."

Aaron had finally taken his hands away from his bruised throat, and he gingerly prepared himself a third time. This time, he dispensed with the punches, and instead attempted a spinning kick like he'd seen in the old kung fu movies. He felt a breath of air go by him, and his kick connected with nothing. Suddenly, his arms were grabbed and yanked behind him painfully. The hyena's elbow locked over his chin, the forearm and free hand locking his arms backwards as he was forced to his knees in a surrendering motion. "From here, I could either break his arms or snap his neck, or just hold him in place to be disarmed," the hyena said from behind him. Aaron could feel his arms being stretched to the limit, feeling like they were about to be pulled loose from their sockets. The hyena held him there for a few more seconds, then released him to collapse face first on the mat.

"Alright! Everyone else pair off and spar for a bit. Go easy on each other though, I'll be keeping an eye on you and giving you pointers. Remember that in self-defense there's no such thing as dirty fighting, but I don't want to see any eye gouging or the like here. You are all on the same side after all." Crouching down beside him, the hyena patted Aaron on the shoulder. "You can just rest for a while. You've already had enough sparring for the day I think," with that, he stood back up, and began circling through the rest of the troops. Aaron just lay on the mat and groaned, aches starting to crop up everywhere. And this was day ONE?!

"Sorry bub, these ones are closed for cleaning," said the custodian.

"Oh, which ones are closest then?"

"You'll want to go to the ones in the workout room, just down the hall out the main doors."

"Alright, thanks," Aaron said, turning and walking towards the other end of the dining area. Pushing his way through the doors, he walked down the hall until he saw the windowed door marked 'Workout room'. Walking through the door, he saw to his mild surprise that the room was not empty as he had assumed it would be at the dinner hour. The hyena drill sergeant from earlier was running on a treadmill, dressed in a black wife beater and red shorts, while listening to music on an Ilink. He seemed to not even notice Aaron's entrance, so he just crossed the gym to the washrooms, passing the door to the communal showers.

When he came back out a good ten minutes later, the hyena had moved over to the bench press. Aaron once more chose to say nothing, starting to exit the way he had come.

"Hey, Blackhorn, you got a minute?" came a voice from behind him.

Turning, he saw the hyena gesturing to him.

"I'm just about to do a few lifts, would you mind spotting for me?" he asked.

"Um, okay, sure. I don't really have anything else to do," Aaron replied hesitantly.

"Great, let me just get set up here," the Sergeant said, stripping off his shirt and starting to add weights to the bar.

Aaron stepped up to the equipment as the hyena lay down under the bar. Aaron noted with incredulity that the weight was at three hundred pounds, which seemed like a lot even with the hyena's rippling physique. Black nipples stood out from the short tan fur of the hyena's muscular chest as he positioned his hands on the bar.

"Just keep a grip on the bar, but don't exert any pressure on it unless it looks like I'm struggling. Savvy?"

"Sure, no problem," Aaron said, doing as instructed.

"Great," and with that, the hyena gripped the bar and hefted it upwards with a grunted "One!" His shoulder and pec muscles strained with the exertion, but he seemed to be handling the weight with no real problems. He was pressing almost double what Aaron himself weighed, and acted like it was no big deal.

"So, anyways, I don't think we've been properly introduced," the hyena said conversationally. "Two! I'm Sergeant Zane Tatupu, but the boys like to call me 'The Hammer', as I'm sure you've heard. I'm not too uptight about always being addressed by my rank, but I'll expect it from you when we are on duty, or when senior officers are present. Otherwise, you can just call me Zane... Four!"

"Alright, well, I'm sure you already know that I'm Aaron."

"Six! Yep, I saw your recruit card."

Zane lifted a few more times without speaking. As he reached the double digits of his reps however, he broke the silence once again. "Hey, no hard feelings about tossing you around so much in training I hope? It wasn't anything personal. I like to make sure all new recruits know first hand just how much damage someone who knows what they're doing can do even without a weapon. How're ya doing after your first day? Sore?"

"A bit," said Aaron, downplaying the ache he felt in his legs from the running, on top of the tender bruises from the beating Zane had given him earlier.

Zane had started to slow down his reps now, sweat starting to glisten on his body as he strained into the lifts.

"Twenty-five!" He grunted. "Good to hear, a lot of new recruits are so beat up on their first day that they don't even attend dinner."

"So why aren't you at dinner anyways?" asked Aaron curiously.

"Oh, I like to eat early and then come here so I can have the room to myself for the most part. Twenty-nine! Usually someone comes in around now that I can get to spot my lifts. Thirty!"

With that final lift, Zane set the bar in place, sweat soaking his short fur as he sat up.

"You know Aaron, you could really use some more muscle on you," he said, punching Aaron lightly in the shoulder. "A few lifts every couple of days would do you a lot of good. Wanna give it a go?"

The way he said it made it seem more like a command than a request, despite the wording. Aaron found it hard to say no to this intimidating Sergeant, despite the fact that he seemed fairly friendly.

"Um, I guess I could try a few..." he said, eyeing the weights nervously.

"That's the spirit! Now, you'll wanna start fairly slow here. How much to you weigh?"

"Just one-sixty-five."

"Okay, we'll put you in at ninety to start then," the hyena said, sliding weights off onto the side rack.

Aaron took Zane's place under the bar, positioning his hands as he had seen the hyena do.

"Right, now I'm guessing that this is the first time you've done this in awhile at least. So take it a bit slow. Don't try to push beyond your threshold," Zane said.

Aaron nodded, then steeled himself and hefted the bar. It took everything in him to push it up to the top, his face reddening as he strained. Suddenly, he felt the weight ease, as Zane took hold of it and helped him lower it back down.

"Okay, looks like that's just a little too much," he said, sliding a couple more weights off. "Try that."

Aaron lifted again, this time able to straighten his arms fully without overexerting. He lowered the weight back down without assistance.

"There ya go," Zane said. "But you need to reverse your breathing. You are supposed to exhale as you lift, not as you bring it down."

Aaron hadn't even taken note of his breathing, and had to consciously focus to make the correction as he hoisted the bar again.

"That's better, there's two," Zane said.

Aaron lifted several more times cleanly, but he was beginning to feel the strain in his arms again. It was becoming difficult to raise the bar straight, and as they hit ten, Zane took hold of the bar again.

"Alright, I can see you are starting to shake a bit. That's probably enough for now. If you push too much right at the start, you'll cause too much damage. You need to start building it slowly."

Aaron nodded, breathing hard from the effort. He hadn't tried bench pressing since he had attempted to impress girls in high school. It actually felt kinda good, like his muscles were bulging with a previously untapped power, despite the ache. He got off the bench and stretched, noticing the hyena gathering his things.

"C'mon, ya wanna get that sweat off of ya right away," said Zane, pushing open the shower door.

"Oh, I think I'll just have one in the morning..." Aaron said awkwardly.

"No way bud, you don't want sweat to stay on you overnight. Bad for your pores."

"Alright, I'll shower in my room then..."

"Nah, those showers are shitty. C'mon!"

Once again, Aaron found it impossible to say no to the overbearing hyena, and found himself following Zane into the showers. He didn't know why he felt so nervous, he had played sports in high school and had survived the locker room scene just fine. He wasn't any stranger to being the smallest guy in the room either. Inside, Zane had already stripped out of his shorts, tossing them into the corner. Aaron had never even remotely considered himself gay or bi, but out of sheer curiosity, he found his gaze sneaking between Zane's legs as he turned the other way. He had never seen what a hyena fur looked like 'down there', and was a bit surprised with what he saw. About equally as much as he had been when he first heard the hyena speak.

A fairly small, tan furred sack dangled between Zane's legs, in the usual place for bipedal males. Just about the same size, or maybe a bit smaller, than Aaron's own. He would have expected the equipment of such a muscular male to match his physique. Above the hyena's balls protruded a short, slightly plump, fur covered sheath, a bit oddly shaped from a standard canine one. It only stuck out maybe an inch from his crotch, with just a hint of a pink tip pointing out. Hurriedly stripping out of his own clothes to avoid being caught looking, Aaron joined Zane at the shower stalls, finding the hyena had helpfully turned on the water of the stall next to him already.

"There ya go Aaron, It's already warm for ya," he said, starting to squirt soap into his paw.

"Oh, thanks," Aaron replied, taking the stall. The wall between the two was only waist height, designed to hold soap and shampoo to share between the occupants. The two showered in silence, the only sound being the splashing of pleasantly heated water.

Aaron sighed contentedly as he felt the days aches wash away down the drain with the soothing flow. Feeling the need to break the silence, he said, "That was pretty impressive, just how much weight you pressed sir, that bar weighed almost twice of me."

Zane gave him an odd look at his statement, causing Aaron to think, 'Oh no, I didn't just break some weird workout taboo did I?'

"Um, thanks, but...sir?" Zane said questioningly.

"Um, yeah, well, you are still my commanding officer..." Aaron said awkwardly.

"Well, yeah, but...you DO know I'm a female right?"

Aaron's jaw dropped, and he found himself staring at the hyena openly, before catching himself and whirling around to the side with a deep blush spreading over his face.

"Wha? You actually thought...Uwa, Uwa! Uwaa ha ha!" said Zane, breaking into the characteristic laugh of his....HER species. "Wa ha ha!" The high pitched barking laugh echoed across the shower walls.

"You really didn't know? Ha ha!" Zane said, starting to calm down.

Aaron just stood turned to the side, his head spinning.

"Ha ha! It's okay if you stare you know, I don't mind. I'm used to other species looking askance at my junk," she said.

"Um, um," Aaron mumbled.

"Yeah, I guess if you didn't know about hyenas, seeing this is pretty misleading," Zane said, trying to draw him out of his shock. Out of the corner of his eye, Aaron could see her heft her sack, rolling the little orbs around.

"You see, female hyenas get a major dose of male hormones as they develop, on top of the female ones, so that's why we get these. This isn't actually a dick, but my clit. And that's what I have to do everything through, just like a guy would. And these are just fat, they don't work like your balls do," She said, pointing across at his own crotch.

If the impromptu anatomy lesson weren't enough, Aaron's mortification grew even greater as he realized that not only was there a naked female of another species standing less than two feet away, but said female had had an unobstructed view of his naked self for the past fifteen minutes. Flushing an even deeper red, he slapped his hands protectively over his crotch, drawing another high pitched laugh from Zane.

"You human's are WAY too uptight!" she said, slapping him on the back, "Get over yourself, it's not like I haven't seen a human dick before. Just relax and enjoy the shower."

Trying desperately to recover, Aaron did as he was instructed, shoving his head into the spray. The next few minutes were spent in silence, broken only by the odd chuckle from the hyena, as the human continued to burn with embarrassment.

This time it was Zane who spoke first, saying over her shoulder, "Would you mind soaping up my lower back for me? I'm not flexible enough to reach it myself."

"Ummm.." Aaron said uncomfortably.

Zane let out a frustrated growl, "Oh come on, it's not like I'm asking ya to finger fuck me! Just do it already! You need to get used to not being so uptight about your body. Furs are WAY more open about themselves than humans are. And this base is half and half."

Speechlessly, Aaron squirted some shampoo into his hand and started rubbing it into the spotted fur of the hyena's back.

"Much better!" Zane growled, "Don't forget to get the mane really well, otherwise it mats."

Aaron complied, rubbing extra shampoo into the thicker fur that ran halfway down the centre of the hyena's spine. He could feel the taut muscles under the tan fur, seeming to radiate power and solidity.

"Thanks," said Zane. "Want me to do yours?"

"Um, no, that's fine. I can reach it." Aaron replied, finishing his duties.

Zane shrugged and rinsed off the soap, cutting off the flow of water. She stepped out into the middle of the showers and shook herself vigorously, sending the excess water flying. Grabbing a towel, she finished drying herself off, her fur now fluffed out every which way. "Well, this has been a ton of fun rookie, but I'll see ya around," she said, slipping back into her shorts as she pushed open the door.

"Yeah....see ya." Aaron mumbled awkwardly, collapsing against the shower wall in relief as the door swung closed behind her. Being posted here was definitely going to be an interesting time.

The next morning, Aaron was once again roused from sleep by an early call to training. Struggling into his uniform, he joined the other sleepy recruits on their way outside into the compound. Despite the early hour, the sun was already quite bright, causing him to squint slightly as he stepped through the sealed doors. The temperature was rising already as well, and it looked to be another sweltering day.

Zane stood at the far end of the compound with a group of already collected trainees. A large military backpack was slung over her shoulder, and she was once more dressed in uniform. Aaron found his gaze sliding down below her waistband, still finding it hard to believe exactly what he had seen the previous evening. Yet there it was, a small bulge in the pants, as she was obviously a bit keyed up. She caught his eye and gave him a smirk, as if to say, Yes, I saw you looking. He flushed and turned away quickly, noticing the last few stragglers forming up with the group.

"Alright troops!" Zane said. "Today, we are going to go for a little hike, and learn a bit about this simply wonderful planet. Form up behind me and don't fall behind."

Turning with a flick of her tail, she set a steady pace for the gate at the back of the compound, the group of soldiers forming up and trailing. They passed through the guard checkpoint and hiked out into the wilderness, working their way towards the closest tree line of the jungle. Aaron took the opportunity to do something about the glaring sun by pulling his sunglasses out from their holder and placing them on his nose. He had been issued a standard pair, but he liked his own far better, and was glad he had decided to bring them with him.

After a good fifteen minutes of walking, they passed from the cracked red clay of the plain onto the softer earth of the forest floor. The surrounding trees provided a welcome relief from the sun's rays. Zane stopped just inside the forest, waiting as the group gathered closer before speaking.

"As you all already know, the actual mine is located deep within the jungle. Which, of course, is why you have to learn how to deal with said jungle. Fortunately for us, the fauna here isn't much of an issue. Most of the predators are small, and unless you are stupid enough to attack an Archeadon, or get between a male and his in-heat mate, getting stomped to death is also a small risk. The flora however, is another matter entirely."

She paused and gave a slight grin.

"For those of you who are still taking third grade, flora means plants. This planet has quite a few...interesting types. I'm sure you've heard of carnivorous plants before. Well, here we have a few species that are big enough to be a threat to us. And those are above and beyond all the other little beauties. So, before we get any further, safety first!"

She tossed her bag on the ground and unzipped it, pulling out an aerosol can of some sort.

"This is your defense mechanism if you get attacked by any hungry greenery. Our inventive scientists have worked hard on this problem, and have given us a nice solution."

"Is that some kind of plant repellent?" An otter standing near the front asked.

"Nothing quite so fancy," she replied with a toothy grin. She raised the can over her head and pressed the trigger. A jet of flame shot out of the can with a whoosh, extending about two feet.

"There have been multiple methods tried," she said. "And this is still by far the most effective. They hate fire, and one good shot from this baby should be enough to get them to leave you alone."

Tossing the can to the otter, she handed the bag to the next recruit, telling him to pass them around.

"Use the attached clip to put it on your belt. Don't lose it. You need one of these whenever you go into the jungle. So long as nothing manages to get it away from you, it can save your life if you are attacked. The safety button is right below the trigger. Just hold that down first and burn away."

She patted the can attached to her own belt, hanging beside a large brush clearing blade.

Seeing that everyone now had one of the cans, she said, "Right, now put that pack on soldier, and everyone follow me. Make sure you stay close, and DO NOT touch ANYTHING unless I tell you to."

Aaron followed the group into the greenery, slipping in near the rear. A short ways inside the tree cover, Zane stopped again, beside a plant with large purple flowers and broad leaves.

"This little guy here is our first specimen. Pretty little thing ain't it? That's what the bugs think too, until they get close..."

Extending her hand, she lightly touched one of the white tendrils that stuck out from the center of the flower. Immediately, the flower snapped closed on her finger, trapping it inside its petals as it pulled downward.

"See," she said calmly as the plant futilely yanked on the appendage. "If my finger had been an insect, it would have been toast. Let that be a good object lesson." Pulling her finger free, she wiped it on her pants, smearing a yellowish liquid. Turning again, she led the way further into the trees.

"Yo, hey man, do me a favour," said the recruit walking behind Aaron, another human that he didn't know. "I really need to piss, can you cover for me for a sec?"

"Um, sure, but the Sergeant said..."

"Yeah yeah, I know, but I'll just be a second," he said, turning to the side of their path.

Aaron shrugged a bit helplessly, before taking a few more steps to follow the group.

A loud shout of "HEY!" split the air suddenly, and Zane came sprinting into view, shoving past Aaron. Grabbing the other guy by the shoulder, she spun him around. His fly was hanging down, and he had one hand in the gap, about to pull himself out. He quickly pulled his hand away with an embarrassed look on his face.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING SOLDIER!" She snarled into his face. "What part of STAY WITH THE GROUP, AND DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING did you not understand!?"

"Um, I just needed to take a leak," he mumbled.

"Yeah? Well try this on for size!" she snapped. She whipped out a baton from her belt, extending it to its full three and a half foot length. Gesturing towards the bush he had been facing, she said, "That right there is a buckshot bush, genius. It's fine if you only touch the branches, but the leaves..."

Gingerly, she reached over to the far side of the bush, and swiped the end of the baton through some of its leaves. Several inch long spines shot out from the bush, embedding themselves in the trunk of a tree.

"Those spines are filled with a powerful neurotoxin. It will paralyze you within seconds, and kill within the hour. That's if you are lucky enough not to be hit close to one of its usual companions, the witches kettle. One of those would happily gulp down a nice paralyzed snack. If I hadn't gotten to you in time, your pecker would be riddled with them right about now. It reacts to its leaves being moved, so don't stand near one in the rain. And for fucks sake, don't pee on one! Savvy?"

Grabbing him by the shoulders again, she walked him around to the other side of the tree, turning him to face the forest again. "Here is where it's safe. Finish your business," she said, crossing her arms.

"Umm," he said, glancing at the group and then back at her.

She raised an eyebrow at him, saying, "Well? What are you waiting for? We haven't got all day here for you to make a puddle."

Realizing he wasn't going to get any privacy here, the guy did as he was told, his face burning red.

"Now that that's over with, maybe we can get on with your training," she growled, marching back to the front of the group as he zipped himself back up. "Move out!"

They had been out in the forest for a good few hours now, Zane taking them on a tour of horror through a wide variety of aggressive flora. They had seen a few of the planet's indigenous inhabitants as well, including a passing small herd of Archeadons. The long, shaggy fur of the massive beasts swept the ground as they walked, erasing their tracks in the soft dirt. Their majestic quadruple tusks pushed small bushes aside as they used their long tongues to snap choice leaves off of the lower tree branches. Zane had pointed out the difference between the females and the lone male, the females having opposite curved tusks. She explained that during their mating season, the animals would interlock their tusks to test out prospective mates.

They also saw a few of the small, hopping Carginags, their two short forelimbs being tipped with a scything claw to bring down the smaller reptiles that they found to be an ideal meal. Their iridescent vivid blue scales made them stand out jarringly against the green, but Zane explained that they had little to worry about, as the only carnivores larger than them were the plants. The colours helped them pick each other out with their keen eyesight, assisting in pack hunting. The creatures were only a couple of feet tall, about the size of a wallaby back on Terra.

At long last, Zane led them to the base of the largest plant Aaron had ever seen outside of the tree family. The thing was at least ten feet tall, and a good sixteen feet around. She stopped them well back from it, a few stray shafts of sunlight illuminating its poisonous looking orange and yellow sides. Purple stalks extended up from the centre of the thing, stretching towards the sky like hands reaching from a grave.

"This here, is the grand daddy of them all. The Sarlaac flower." Zane said.

"Is it....moving?" a female human asked.

"Sharp eyes. Yes, parts of it are moving," Zane replied. "For those of you who haven't seen it yet, look towards the base of the flower, at what appears to be dead leaves there."

Aaron looked, and that's where he saw the subtle writhing that the other recruit had noted.

"Those dead leaves are just a disguise," Zane continued. "They are there to hide its multiple vine arms. No one has been able to determine if these things are actually sentient or not, but as far as plant life goes, it's as close as it gets. One this size could have as many as fifty arms hidden away waiting to grab you and toss you in. Right now, they are at rest and drawn in fairly close to it, so we should be at a safe distance. Even Archeadons aren't safe from these things, they just die a lot slower than everything else."

As she was speaking, a small flying lizard coasted overhead, cruising leisurely through the clearing. It passed just over the edge of the plant, its wingtips almost brushing the stalks.

"SHIT! Get back!" Zane yelled, pushing the closest troops further away from the plant.

In a blur of motion, the plant lunged upwards, snapping closed around the unfortunate flyer. As it did so, its hidden vines started whipping around wildly, one narrowly missing Zane's head. A wolf standing at the edge of the group wasn't so lucky, as he was clubbed squarely in the stomach, the air whooshing out of him as he was sent flying into the chaos.

"STAY BACK!" Zane yelled. "I'll handle this!"

Whipping out her spray can, she rushed forward, judiciously treating the whipping vines to a dose of flame. The appendages recoiled at the onslaught, but refused to release their much larger prize. The screaming wolf was fully wrapped up in three of the vines, and being hoisted towards the mouth. Unsheathing her buzz machete with her other paw, she flicked it on. She blazed a trail through the vines, with the flames coming from one hand and the vibrating blade slashing through with the other. Quickly, she reached the limbs that held the wolf, coolly hacking and burning them away. The wolf fell heavily to the ground as the plant let out an unnatural wail at its lost meal.

"Get up now!" she said. "We've gotta retreat before it gets REALLY pissed!"

Hauling the wolf to his feet, they began to run back as the plant seemed to cradle its injured appendages.

Suddenly, the vines whipped forward again, and Aaron cried, "Look out Serge!"

She spun, responding to the attack with a protective wall of flames. The plant shrieked again and recoiled at the heat, allowing her to back up and cover her retreat. She finally made it back to the group, drawing her forearm across her brow with an noisy exhalation.

"That was close, this thing just ran out," she said, giving the empty can a shake. She hurled it at the plant, the arcing can bouncing off it's orange sides. "Hell yeah! How do ya like the taste of that?"

She turned back to them, her teeth bared in a fierce grin of victory. "Well, I think that's enough training for the day. What say we head on in?"

A ragged cheer rose from the troops, and the intrepid Sergeant lead them on back towards the base.

The day had progressed into the afternoon when they arrived back at the base, Zane freeing them to eat their midday meal. All any of them had eaten was a few ration bars on their little adventure. She decided that they would have the rest of the day off from physical training, instead sending them for a weapons and equipment care session, and some basic first aid training. After that, they would be assigned some of the many menial chores that went along with running a military base. As they dispersed, she caught Aaron briefly, saying, "Don't think I've forgotten about your extra training Blackhorn. I expect you to meet me in the exercise room tomorrow evening." Aaron groaned inwardly at the thought of another mortifying experience like the last one. But he didn't see any way to refuse, so he just gave her an affirmative and then caught up to the others.

It was well into the late evening by the time Aaron finally made his way down the hall to his shared room. He had a lot of information to digest, and was looking forward to some peace and quiet. Once again, he could hear muffled music through the door, and groaned at the prospect of trying to rest with that going on. He pushed open the door, and stopped dead at the sight in front of him. Jeremy and Lex were both stripped naked, Jeremy on his hands and knees on the bed. Lex was rapidly pistoning his length in and out of Jeremy's rear, the human's erect cock bouncing from the pounding. Aaron could clearly see Lex's furred sack slapping against Jeremy's pink one, the blasting music lending a surreal feel to the scene.

Jeremy noticed his presence first, turning his head and saying casually, "Oh hey Aaron."

This caused Lex to stop his movement, also looking back over his shoulder. "Hey bud, either come on in and join us, or go back outside. Don't just leave the door open though."

Aaron's mind just couldn't deal with this right now, and he turned around and walked back out, letting the door shut behind him.

"Damn, do you think we offended him? I hope he's not a homophobe," Lex said.

"Nah, I'm sure he'll get over it. Now, I believe you were in the middle of something?" Jeremy replied pointedly. Lex growled lustily, and gripped Jeremy's hips to slam himself back in.

Aaron wandered the hallways aimlessly for a bit. It wasn't quite that he had been offended by walking in on his roommates, but he wasn't exactly prepared to watch either. It looked like Zane hadn't been kidding about things on the base. Finding himself near the outside doors, he decided he might as well go outside. Now that the sun had gone down, the air was a pleasant temperature, and the cool fresh air would be nice right about now. Walking out through the doors, he almost crashed into a woman coming the other way.

"Oh hey, you're Blackhorn, right?" she asked.

"Um, yeah, that's me," he replied.

"The office sent me over here to find you. Apparently there's a call waiting for you."

"Oh, okay, thanks," he said, heading towards the admin building. He briefly wondered who it would be, although he had a strong suspicion.

Arriving inside the admin centre, he found the same female rabbit from earlier, who directed him back to the wormhole net centre. Even though a method had yet to be discovered to teleport physical matter, data was different. Through manipulation of micro wormholes, data could be transmitted across massive distances almost instantaneously. Trying to apply the technology to anything larger than a small logipad however, had resulted in complete failure and some pretty nasty accidents.

Inside the spacious room, an assistant directed him to one of the terminals. The long tube of the wormhole transceiver extended back with the ones from the other terminals, connecting directly into a large power grid on the wall. A logiscreen was at the end of each one, his indicated screen displaying a Call Waiting sign. Sitting down at the terminal, Aaron flipped a switch, re-opening the machine's wormhole to establish the connection. A woman's smiling face appeared on the screen, a couple of seconds of lag showing as she didn't react to his appearance right away.

"Oh! Aaron! Hi honey!" she said.

"Hi mom," he replied, his suspicions confirmed.

"It's good to see you dear, it's been so long since you've called," she said pointedly.

"Yeah...well...I've been busy."

"Too busy to tell me you had enlisted? I had to find out from your old boss!"

"It's just how things went down. I barely had time to get my stuff together."

"Well, you still could've called. Anyways, I really can't chat long, I just wanted to check up on you and see how your first days went."

The statement said much more to Aaron than the words did, and he replied simply, "Everything is fine mom, you don't have to worry about me."

"That's good to hear. Keep in touch okay? Stay safe!"

Aaron nodded and bid her goodbye, cutting the call. He leaned back in the chair and shook his head. Typical. Now that he stood a chance to make a decent amount of money, his mother was all concerned about his well-being again. The last time she had called had been on his twenty-third birthday. Asking for: "Just one more little loan, I promise I'll pay you back soon." Aaron had been angry at his father at first when his parents had separated, until he had found out about his mother's constant addiction to net-gambling. His father had continued to send her money, which she had squandered away until his father had been caught on the wrong end of a wayward trash hauler. His mother had at least had the decency to show up at his funeral, but it hadn't been long after that that she had begun calling him every once in awhile, always asking for: "Just a little more." He knew that he should still love his mother, but it was incredibly hard after all she had done to him and their little family.

Getting up out of the chair, he went back outside into the bright moonlight. It was hard to think of it as 'night' when Girana's lone moon made it almost as bright as a cloudy twilight. It hadn't been very long since he had left his quarters, and he thought it would be a good idea to wait for a bit for Jeremy and Lex to finish. Wandering a bit aimlessly, he found himself at the back of the compound, staring up at the sky. He heard a boot scuff the dirt behind him, and he turned to see another human standing in the shadows of the barracks.

"Hey, how's it going?" he said.

"I'm alright man. Smoke?" the guy replied.

Aaron refused, and he shrugged, lighting up his own.

They stood for a moment in silence, before the other man spoke. "Aren't you the guy who got beat up by that hard-ass hyena sergeant yesterday?" he asked, blowing a cloud of smoke.

"Um, yeah, I guess I am. You were there?" Aaron asked, not recognizing this soldier from the band of recruits.

"I wasn't training, but I did see it."

Aaron nodded. "So, you aren't a trainee then?"

"Nope, I've been here a couple months already. I'll tell ya one thing. We humans gotta stick together out here."

"What do you mean?" Aaron asked.

"Fuggin furs is what I mean," he said, spitting to one side.

Aaron was a bit taken aback at the statement, and unthinkingly asked, "Why do you hate them?"

He spat again, "Damn unnatural beasts, takin' away human positions. The guys are all fags, and the wimmen are unfuckable psychos. Like that hyena. I hear the crazy bitch turned down a promotion to come here. Hafta have a few screws loose to do that. And any one of 'em will stab ya in the back if you let 'em."

Aaron couldn't believe the blatant racism. Surely there weren't people who still thought this way?

"I dunno, I don't think they're that bad, Zane seems to really care for her troops."

"Shit man! You aren't one of them fur fuckers are you?"

"What! No, I just don't see why they should be treated any different."

The guy flicked his cigarette on the ground, stomping it out with his boot. "Whatever man, you can keep 'em as far as I'm concerned. See ya around." He turned and walked off.

"Yeah... see ya," Aaron said. Prick, he thought.

Aaron was quite surprised to find firsthand that even here, there were some who clung mindlessly to old prejudices. He had grown up living in a modern hub, and integration was perfectly normal daily life, and had been for the better part of a century. He had always thought it was more or less the same everywhere. After all, it had been just over 250 years since the bio-bomb had struck Terra, leading to the rise of the anthro races. That event was what had led to the United Terran Federation, with the uniting and expansion of the various space programs. It still remained a mystery, just where the bio-bomb that had transformed portions of the animal population into humanoids had come from. The prevailing theory was that it was either an accident or cruel experiment from an unidentified alien race.

It hadn't been long before the battle for equal rights for furs had started, a civil rights battle like none before it. It was the first time a brand new, sentient race had been spontaneously generated. It seemed that the prejudices of that era died particularly hard. Of course, the discovery of Ultranium in a nearby asteroid had changed everything. The energy rich compound had allowed the peoples of Terra to extend their reach into the stars, expanding to the closest inhabitable planets, and relieving the strain on Terran resources. The generally superior physical attributes of furs made them great workers for the expanding Federation, and equal rights followed shortly. Now, in most places, such bigotry was a thing of the past.

Figuring he had given plenty of time, he headed back inside. Arriving once more at room 23c, he paused for a moment and listened. The music had been switched off, and all seemed quiet. Cautiously, he eased the door open and peeked in. Jeremy and Lex were sound asleep on the lower bunk, Lex spooned around Jeremy under the covers. Aaron quietly went in and made his own night-time preparations as stealthily as he could. It had been an exhausting day, and he was glad to slip into his own bed.

The next day involved more conditioning, some vehicle and weapons training and more chores. The recruits were not yet worked into the regular rotations for guard and transport duties, and were just given whatever menial tasks needed doing. True to her word, Zane made sure that he made it to the workout room with her again, supervising his bench presses, and getting him to do a few free weight exercises as well. Once again, she all but forced him into the showers with the weight of her personality. She told him to consider it a part of his training, as privacy issues held no place in the life of a Federation Marine.

The ensuing week fell into a rhythm of conditioning, learning, chores, and workouts. The latter of course only applying to Aaron. He gradually began to grow more comfortable around Zane as they spent more time together. He figured that two people seeing each other naked on a regular basis would have that effect. The time passed quickly, as each night he was falling asleep exhausted. He was looking forward to when their schedule would relax a bit. Jeremy and Lex hadn't said anything about him walking in on them, and he hadn't brought it up either. Nonetheless, they were obviously holding back from having sex when they knew he would be around, respecting his personal space. He really didn't care that they were romantically involved, he just wasn't voyeuristic enough to be comfortable being in on their make out sessions.

Their second week of training was an important one, as it marked their first day of VARIA suit training.

Advanced battle technology was one of the biggest advantages the UTF had over the Sken'd'or. The alien race was quite advanced in their space travel technology, despite not having Ultranium. However, they were quite a ways behind in weapons. Most of their weaponry was consistent with early 21st century Terran technology, with projectile rather than energy based weaponry. It was still quite dangerous to unprotected troops of course, but the Marine corps had been extremely successful in the early skirmishes with them. Which, of course, was why the Federation was in such a rush to expand the Marines.

The trainees were filtered together inside the large armoury structure. Rows of various suit components lined one of the stainless steel walls, with other equipment being sorted on rotating racks on the other. A canine of short stature and a breed Aaron didn't recognize stood waiting for them in a lab coat.

"Ah, Herrs, and Fraulines," he said in a thick accent. "Velcome to your VARIA orientation."

He strode over to a steel table in front of the wall, and manipulated a control console there. A mechanical arm swung over and deposited the leg section of a suit on the table in front of him.

"VARIA stands for Variably Autonomous Robotic Integration Armour. Eet ees the culmination of modern battle technology. Each zuit ees powered by a kernel of Ultranium, vhich vill last for vun to two years, depending on use. The legs of the zuit contain motorized joints, vhich vill allow you to jump higher and run faster and longer than any opponent. The trick for you vill be to learn how to moderate this extra power. Vhat vas once a leap shall now be a hop, and zo on."

Moving on, he pulled out the torso and arm pieces next.

"The power zupply ees located here, as vell as many of the monitoring zystems. The arms are capable of lifting 350 pounds unassisted. That, of course, adds to your existing ztrength. They alzo contain your primary veapons."

Tapping a recessed button on the right arm, the fingertips were hidden inside the shell of the extending gun barrel. The entire forearm was now a smooth tube of metal, with an impressively wide muzzle.

"This ees your main veapon. A powerful energy cannon vhich can charge energy for an explosive zhot. Eet also contains the targeting for the missiles vhich launch from the back of the zuit."

Finally, he brought down the visor piece.

"The front of the vizor ees made of spetzially enhanced Duraperspex. Eet vill lighten or darken appropriately to give the best visibility in your zurroundings. Eet can alzo be zwitched to thermal vision or limited range x-ray. The visor display will zhow the ztatus of the zuit, as vell as your own vital zigns. Eet ees zealed against gas, but eet uses air zcrubbers, not oxygen supply. Eet vill not allow you to breathe underwater or in a vacuum on eets own. For that, you vill need an add on. Eet does contain a zmall supply of oxygen, but only for emergency. Vhen no oxygen can be extracted from the atomozphere. Now, Frauline at the front. I believe you are of a zize for this particular zuit. Please come over here."

The human woman in question stepped forward, and was handed an all black bodysuit. "If you vish, Frauline, you may change into this in the back?" The canine asked.

She shook her head, stripping out of her BDU and down to her undergarments. She quickly pulled on the form fitting outfit, zipping it up at the front. The canine then began fitting her into the armour, first the legs, followed by the torso, and then finally the helmet.

A smattering of supportive exclamations came from the group of recruits as she flexed her limbs experimentally.

"The inzide of the zuit ees padded vith a forming gel, vhich adapts to any body zhape. Ve merely need to match the body zize to the armour approximately. The adjustable joints and inzide vill do the rest," The researcher continued. "Now, if you vould all please follow me," He turned and walked through a sliding door to an adjoining room, the recruits following behind being led by the freshly armoured woman. Her gait was a bit odd at first, but she quickly seemed to get used to whatever the suit was doing and adjusted.

The next room contained a long line of vertical metal chambers, about the size of a shower stall. The front of them were open, revealing their insides to be formed to the shape a bipedal being. A coated tech stood beside each one, waiting patiently. Across from them were curtained change stalls.

"If each of you vould please take a bodyzuit?" the researcher said, gesturing to where they hung on a rack. "You can place your current garments on the hangers of the zuits."

A handful of the recruits went into the change rooms, but all the furs, Aaron and a few others just stripped down and slid the black undergarment on right there. He couldn't help but notice that all the furs, male and female, didn't have anything underneath their BDUs. He supposed that tighter clothing would eventually chafe their fur, even with modern fabrics. He couldn't help but grin at the thought that if it weren't for his interactions with Zane, there would be no way he would have been comfortable changing in front of everyone else. The feel of the body suit was strange. It was obviously a highly advanced material, it fit right to the skin and almost didn't feel like he was wearing anything at all. He guessed that it had been specially designed with furs in mind.

"Vhen you are ready, please come to an auto equip," the canine said. "No matter vhat your mission ees, this ees how you vill obtain your equipment. The techs vill set the machine to the correct configuration for your azzigned equipment."

Aaron stepped into the nearest auto equip, sliding his arms and legs into the forms, and watching the door slide shut. There was a soft hum from the machine, and he could see a blue light scanning down his body. Its measurements complete, the blue lights clicked off, and he felt the leg pieces of the armour slide into place. The front and back torso piece came down from the ceiling, locking in with the legs. This was followed by the arms and helmet, sealing him inside the tan armour. The view through the visor was perfectly clear, and he found he could breath perfectly normally. The only sound the suit made was an almost imperceptible hiss of the air scrubbers.

The door slid open, and he almost stumbled as he took his first step. There was a real sense of power in the armour, and he barely even had to move his legs to walk. The mechanical joints propelled his legs, and he had to modify his steps to avoid breaking into a run. He could see he wasn't the only one, many of the recruits stumbling on their first steps out of the AEs. Inside the armour, it was very hard to tell who was who. One of the taller recruits tried an experimental jump into the air. He put way too much power into it, and catapulted up, smashing into the ceiling and then back to the ground.

"ACHTUNG! Ztop!" the canine shouted. "These zuits are expenzive! Vait until you are in the training field to experiment!"

The trainee picked himself up sheepishly, and the already suited trainees waited quietly until everyone was ready.

"Zo, you vill now go to the training grounds, this vay," the canine lead them through a third door, which led to an intersection. He pointed them through back towards the inside of the building, the other door leading back out into the compound. The room they were in now was a wide open space, containing targets at the far end, and a high ceiling for practicing jumps. Two armoured forms were waiting for them, which as he got closer Aaron could see were Zane and the kangaroo Sergeant "Boomer." Both of them had their visors retracted, since none of them had their radios linked.

"Alright you lot," Zane said. "I'm sure you're all anxious to get started. We have this nice big training area to make it as hard as possible for rookies to break all the fancy technology you are wearing. "

"The suits you have on are your lifelines," said Boomer. "They will help keep you alive in a fight. Each one carries a limited level of energy shielding, which will protect you against attacks until it is depleted. Your HUD will show how much power it has left. Whenever you are in the field, you are to have it on at all times. The only reason for it to weaken is if it takes damage or if the suit's power is low. Beyond that, the armour itself is coated in a special compound that disperses energy charges, minimizing damage. Most projectile weapons can't pierce it either, but watch out for heavy ordnance."

Zane held up the cannon arm, tapping it lightly. "The micro Ultranium reactor also gives you almost limitless ammo for this. Your missiles however are physical ammunition, and you are only equipped with twenty." Bending her legs, she sprang into the air. She soared up a good twelve to fifteen feet before coming down and landing lightly, the suit joints absorbing the impact. "You'll also be able to perform some impressive moves in these. The trick is knowing just how hard to push."

"If you do get hurt," Boomer said, "the suit is capable of administering antibodies and painkillers, as well as assisting you to get off the battlefield to get real medical attention. Now, half of you come with me for weapons practice first, the rest go with Sergeant Tatupu for movement training. We'll switch places later." Aaron moved over to put himself in Zane's group, the trainees parting roughly in the middle as Boomer led some of them over to the target area.

"So," Zane said. "By now, most of you have gotten the general idea about walking around in one of these. It doesn't take much. I'm going to lead you in a slow jog around here. The most important thing to remember is to go with the flow and not fight the suit. It will make its own adjustments, just move like you would if you were walking quickly to start. Gradually, we'll increase the pace. It will soon start to feel natural. Savvy?" Turning, she started to jog slowly towards the opposite wall. At first it felt a bit strange, being almost pushed along, but Aaron was already starting to get the hang of it. It only required a small amount of walking power to get moving at a good pace, and it didn't take them long to reach the far end of the training area and circle back. Slowly, Zane increased their pace, taking them around the second circuit at a half run. A couple of the recruits stumbled briefly as they fought the change, but quickly recovered and continued the exercise.

Bringing them to a stop, Zane said, "Okay, now for the fun part. We are going to do a full sprint from one end to the other. Just remember to start to slow down when I do, or else you'll crash." Snapping her visor closed, she set her stance and waited for a brief moment. Then, she took off, the recruits taking a second to react before following, as Zane accelerated at an alarming pace. Within several strides, Aaron was moving at what was normally his fastest running speed, and it was barely taking him any effort.

Buckling down, he pushed himself harder, feeling the suit take the strain as he pounded across the floor. The sensation of speed was unreal. He was now pushing as hard as he could, his lungs and muscles starting to legitimately strain, and he was moving faster than a galloping horse. It felt like he was flying. The speedier marines would have been blurs had he been standing still, but as it was he just saw them increasing their lead.

Within seconds, the other end of the room approached at an alarming pace. He began to ease back, seeing the others in front of him slow as well. As they neared the wall, all of a sudden Zane burst forward and leaped. Aaron and the other recruits watched in shock as she sailed towards the air, wondering what the heck she was doing. At the last second, she turned, meeting the wall feet first and pushing off. Flipping in mid-air, she landed behind the group, twisting to face them as she fell gracefully to land in a crouch. She gave them a toothy grin. "Welcome to stage two. This is where you learn how to jump."

VARIA training was now a major portion of Aaron and the other recruit's schedules. Within the course of a couple weeks, they began to learn all the ins and outs of the marvellous technology. The acrobatic feats one could perform were very impressive, and having your weapon essentially built into your arm made for a great improvement. Of course, they still had their regular training as well, Aaron's including his private sessions with Zane on a regular basis.

They began to be eased into the regular rotation of duties, generally the simpler tasks, but it was a start. Several times, he was posted on guard duty with Jeremy and Lex, as they were indeed part of the same unit. He hadn't walked in on them a second time, although several times he came in to find them asleep in the same bed, holding each other close. He was happy that his roommates had such a strong bond together, and that they didn't mind him being there and being a live-in third wheel to their relationship.

Whenever they were on duty, they were equipped with VARIA suits. Even though there was no indication that the Sken'd'or even knew of the existence of the base, the fighting had escalated recently. There had been talk of making a definitive strike against their homeworld, Sken'd'aa. However, there had so far been much dissent in the political segment about how that would affect their chances of truly ending the war. The last thing they needed was a drawn out battle on an unfamiliar planet. The goal was not to subjugate the Sken'd'or, particularly as there seemed to be several factions involved. An attack on their homeworld could isolate any potential advocates for a diplomatic resolution. Not to mention the danger involved. Even with their superior technology, the homeworld of the raptor like Sken'd'or was well defended.

Aaron found himself often plagued with insomnia. He would lie awake in his bunk, staring at the bed above him. He still hadn't found the answer within himself for exactly why he was here. He didn't really want to go into battle, but many of the recruits would be shipped out from here to join the fight. He wasn't a killer, that much he did know. If it came down to it, would he be able to handle the pressure? He was doing well enough with the training. He was definitely appreciating the improvements in his body from all the physical activity and Zane's imposed workout schedule. He had trimmed his waistline, the small bit of idle fat there turning into hardened muscle. He could fire his weapon and flip around in his suit well enough. But still...the thought of actually having to fight....

He sighed, rolling up from the bed and pulling on his shirt. Maybe a walk would clear his head. He slipped quietly out of the room. Jeremy was out on duty, but Lex was sleeping soundly.

Stepping out into the cool air, Aaron walked with no real destination in mind. It wasn't terribly late, but training was usually quite early, so he valued the sleep he could get. He found himself standing by the central guard tower. This wasn't a post that was manned normally, as it was only meant to be used as a rallying point if the base's gates were breached. Impulsively, he decided to climb the ladder and take a look at the grounds from above. A few clouds had moved in front of the moon, and he climbed through a rare moment of legitimate darkness. The lights from the compound's edge were too far away to reach here, and the light on this platform was off. Reaching the top, he saw with surprise that he hadn't been the only one with the idea. A dark form leaned against the railing of the guard tower.

It turned towards him, just as the cloud moved, and he could see now that it was Zane. A smouldering cigarette dangled from her lips, trailing ash as she spoke. "Hey there Aaron. Can't sleep either?"

"Nope. Stupid insomnia. I couldn't stand the sight of the bunk above me anymore, so I came out here."

She nodded. "I see. I have the same problem sometimes. I usually like to come out here when I do. For all the good it does. Can't see shit."

"What do you mean? You can see well enough now that the clouds are gone..." he said, looking over the railing.

She chuckled softly. "Not the grounds rookie. The sky. No stars."

Aaron looked up. "Oh, yeah. I guess you're right. Although, that's not really any different for me. I grew up in the Manhattan district. I'm used to the sky being a bit bright at night."

"Yeah? Well, not me. I'm from the Serengeti district. Probably one of the few places on Terra with only one decent sized city. I was from the outskirts of that too, so I'm used to getting a good view of the sky."

Aaron was a bit surprised, this was the first time he had ever heard Zane mention anything about her past. She seemed to be in a slightly melancholy mood, a state he had never seen from her. "You miss that I take it?"

She gazed upwards. "Somewhat. Times like this more than most. That moon obliterates half the sky here, and then the weird gasses in the atmosphere take care of the rest. Makes flying in at night a bitch apparently. The gas concentrates when it cools, and screws with your instruments and causes crazy turbulence. That's why shuttles usually only land here during the day. Otherwise, they have to come in on the day side."

They stood in silence for a long moment, Zane flicking her spent cigarette over the side. "Zane," Aaron asked, "did you really turn down a promotion to come here?"

She looked at him and snorted. "That's still going around is it? Yes I did turn down a promotion, it wasn't specifically to come here though."

"Do you mind me asking...why?"

She sighed, and looked out at the night for a moment before speaking. "There were several reasons, but mainly, I didn't want the extra hassles. I like what I do now. I get to be down on the ground. Training troops, getting in the action, that's what I enjoy. I just can't see myself working up the chain of command."

Aaron nodded. "I think I can understand that."

She looked at him sideways, "Really? You'd be the first."

"Sure. If you like what you're doing now, why change it?"

"Well... thanks. Although, like I said, that wasn't the only reason."

She didn't offer any further information on the matter, and Aaron didn't press her for it. They stood in the pseudo darkness for a few more moments, before Zane broke the silence with another sigh. "There's always so many rumours that go around the army. People seem to think that the only reason I stayed a Sergeant is because I enjoy beating up on my troops. Hence the nickname."

Aaron looked at her, her expression set as she looked up at the bright moon. "For what it's worth, I don't believe that."

She met his eyes, searching them to see if there was any hint of mocking. "That's...thank you. Really."

Suddenly, their conversation was broken into by the sounds of shouts coming from below. Zane broke eye contact as she looked down over the side. Whirling, she hurried to the edge, motioning for him to follow. Aaron hustled down the ladder after her, wondering what was up.

Aaron hit the ground to see Zane rushing towards two figures struggling with each other on the ground. He ran after her to help break up the fight, arriving as she was yanking up the guy on top. Aaron saw with surprise that the combatant she was holding was Jeremy, but quickly recovered and grabbed the other guy as he got up and tried to take another swing. Zane hauled the struggling Jeremy back, holding him under his arms. Getting his first look at the face of the guy he was holding, Aaron saw that it was the racist guy that he had encountered earlier. His nose appeared to be broken, blood streaming down over his mouth. Jeremy was also bleeding, from a small cut over his cheek.

"What the hell happened here?" Zane asked, as Jeremy started to calm down.

Aaron heard running footsteps, and a couple other marines from one of the guard towers came charging up.

"This fuckin asshole just attacked me," the guy Aaron was holding said.

"Bullshit!" Jeremy shouted. "He's a fucking racist! He called me a fur fag... And...said other things about furs that were just as bad."

"DID he now..." Zane said contemplatively.

"What? Yer just gonna take his word?" the guy said, looking to the human of the other two soldiers for help.

"He's probably telling the truth Sergeant," the guard said. "I've talked to this guy before, he doesn't seem to like furs."

"This is serious," Zane said. "Racism isn't something we take lightly here. You two, give me a hand escorting these two to holding cells. The higher ups are going to want to talk to them."

The two soldiers each grabbed one of the guys arms, while Zane kept her hold on Jeremy. The three marched their prisoners towards the central building, Zane giving Aaron a nod as she passed. Aaron watched them go, wondering if he should have spoken up about his earlier encounter. He would have to see in the morning, maybe ask Zane about it. Having had enough excitement for the night, he headed back to bed.

The next morning, Aaron was jolted awake by a loud rumbling sound coming from outside. He quickly threw on his uniform and dashed out, the other recruits he passed looking as confused as he was. Breaking out into the morning brightness, he caught sight of a massive battleship touching down just outside of the compound fence. Zane was standing nearby, arms crossed with a frown on her muzzle. Aaron walked up and stood beside her, noting that the ship was a carrier, multiple crossover fighters locked into its sides.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Apparently shit went down last night. The lizards know about us now. The brass decided to send in the cavalry for extra protection."

"Really? Do they think there will be an attack?"

She turned towards him. "Not likely, but they aren't going to take any chances with the mine. That there, is their top Shrike battle unit. The carrier they're using is made for space and atmospheric use. When it's on the ground, it'll act as both a defense station and staging point for the fighters to lift off."

As she spoke, the troops began to unload from the battle carrier. Each one of them was an Avian, as all Shrike pilots were. The long wingtips of the pilots just brushed the dust as they walked. Overall, Avians made the perfect choice for pilots. Their natural sense of flight translated into better instincts and reactions in the air. They were lead by a tall, striking hawk with brown plumage and white accents.

Zane groaned. "And THAT, is the other reason I turned down the promotion. Wing commander Tellius. Accepting the rank would have meant having to work with him a lot more often than I would have been able to stomach."

The hawk spotted them and made his way over, stopping in front of them and looking them up and down with a critical eye. "Well Tatupu, still working in the trenches I see?"

"I'd say it's good to see you Tellius, but I was always taught not to lie."

"Still in as good a humour as ever. It's going to be simply delightful to work with you again." Glancing at Aaron, he snapped, "Don't you have something to do private?"

"Um, no, not at the moment sir," he replied.

"Then go inform...ah, never mind." He strode off, marching over to where Major Brigham, the base commander, had come out of the administration building.

Aaron glanced over at Zane, who's teeth were clenched in a snarl.

"I swear, just the sight of that guy is enough to ruin my morning," she said.

Aaron wondered what had gone on between the two to cause so much friction, but didn't think now was the time to ask.

She shook her head, and then seemed almost surprised to see Aaron still standing there. "Go get yourself some breakfast Aaron, the Major has called a general assembly in half an hour."

Aaron snapped a salute, then hurried over to the mess.

Aaron crowded into the briefing room, which doubled as an assembly area. It was just barely large enough to hold all the troops gathered on the base currently. Aaron noticed that the avian pilots were conspicuously absent. He supposed that whatever was going to be said probably didn't apply to them, but he thought that it kind of defied the point of a general assembly.

Major Brigham entered the room, stepping up to a small lectern with the UTF marine logo on the front. Adjusting the microphone in front of him, he cleared his throat before speaking. "Greetings troops. This is the first time some of you have been addressed by me, but you all know who I am. I am sorry that the reason for this meeting is a somewhat serious one. Last night, there was an incident involving a fistfight between two of our marines. It ended with allegations of racism. This is something we take very seriously in the marines, and we took a close look at the matter. The marine in question is now being sent home. I've called you together today to put forth a general question. Now is the time to speak up. Is anyone here not one hundred percent comfortable working alongside furs or humans? If so, you may leave on the shuttle." He paused slightly, running a hand through his gray hair.

His voice rose slightly in volume as he continued. "We are at war here people! We CANNOT afford to have troops fighting alongside each other with these kinds of issues lying under the surface. If there are any here with these issues, take your chance to get out now. If this were to come up in another situation, serious charges could be laid against you. Stand and exit to my left if you wish to leave." He waited, examining the assembled troops for a long moment. No one moved. "Good," he said. "Dismissed."

Aaron pushed his way forward through the crowd moving the other way, and managed to catch the major before he left the room.

"Excuse me sir, what about Jeremy?" he asked.

"He has been questioned and released, with only a week's pay docked. He's lucky, fighting in the ranks is usually more harshly dealt with. But under the circumstances, we cut him some slack."

"Thank you sir. In total honesty, that guy had it coming to him."

The major frowned slightly. "You had heard him air his sentiments before?"

"I had met him before the incident, yes."

"If you heard him speak in a racist manner, you should have brought the issue to your superiors," the major said. "As I said, it is a serious issue. It is the duty of all troops to report aberrant behaviour in their peers. We could have been spared this incident."

Aaron flushed slightly, thinking of Jeremy and Lex. Surely they didn't count that as aberrant behaviour did they? "I'm sorry sir. I'll keep that in mind in the future."

"Good. See that you do. Now, report to your squad leader to receive your duties private."

Aaron saluted, then left to obey the order.

Later on, during their workout session, Aaron posed the question to Zane.

"Zane, what is the status on sexual relationships in the marines?"

She looked a bit confused. "What do ya mean? As in, is it frowned upon?"

Aaron nodded.

She thought about it for a second. "As long as both sides are consenting, there's no rule against it. If it were a case like a senior officer using his rank to get some, or rape, then yes. But otherwise, it's not a problem. Bonding between the troops and all. Why? Ya shaggin' somebody?"

He felt heat rising in his face. "No, just curious. The major said something to me about watching for 'aberrant behaviour' and I was curious as to just what that meant." he reached down to pick up his water bottle.

"So you wanna be shaggin' somebody then..."

Aaron choked on his water, causing Zane to slap him on the back as he coughed.

"No! It's not that!"

Her high pitched laughter filled the air as Aaron got the last drops of water cleared from his windpipe. Suddenly, she cut off as the door opened. Wing commander Tellius stepped into the room.

"Ah," he said. "Someone told me I could find you here Tatupu."

"What do you want Tellius?" she asked flatly.

The hawk shrugged, "Just a friendly visit. I was wondering if you maybe wanted to finish what we started the last time we saw each other. Unless you are too busy with your...protégé." He glanced at Aaron from the corner of his eye, his expression showing just what he thought of the concept.

Aaron heard Zane growl softly. "I'd love to. We were rudely interrupted last time."

"Glad to hear it," the hawk replied. Stepping over to the sparring ring in the corner of the room, he pulled a pair of boxing gloves off the wall.

"Lace me up private," he ordered, slipping on the gloves and holding them out to Aaron.

Aaron complied, noting with irritation that he had picked out the only pair of gloves that had laces. All the others were Velcro. He was beginning to see why Zane didn't like this guy.

Zane rummaged in her bag, pulling out a mouth guard and chomping down on it. She put on her own gloves, then vaulted over the side of the ring. Aaron honestly didn't know how the hawk was going to fight hand to hand. Wouldn't his wings get in the way?

"Bring it on feather face," Zane said.

"That's commander feather face to you."

"Whatever. By the way you guys structure things, you outrank me by what, half a level?"

"You should pay more attention in officer training. Wing commander is equal to a major."

She snorted, "Well then, as long as you don't let it go to your head..."

The two circled each other, Zane throwing a few testing jabs that he blocked easily.

Suddenly, he struck out with surprising speed with his left wing. Aaron could hear the swoosh of air as Zane danced back, countering with a right cross that he blocked by raising his wing in front of his body.

He began to attack in earnest, alternating powerful sweeping blows of his wings with straight jabs. Zane was forced backwards under the assault, dodging the sweeps and blocking the follow up punches. She angled her retreat sideways, not wanting to be pushed against the ropes. Suddenly, she leaped forwards and sideways, countering his sweep with a straight punch that was reinforced by her momentum. His arm was pushed backwards, and he let out a squawk of pain as the elbow joint was stressed. He countered by leaping into the air, adding a short flap for height before shooting down into a full body jump kick. She dropped and rolled, passing just underneath him as his taloned feet hit the mat. Spinning on the ground, she swept his legs out from underneath him, bringing him down with a thud. They rolled away from each other to get back up, eyeing each other from the opposite corners.

"I thought this was supposed to be a boxing match commander," she said.

"What's the matter? Can't take the heat?"

"So long as you don't complain when you get hurt..."

They both stepped forward into striking distance warily, once more starting to circle. Zane went on the offensive first this time, feinting a punch, then kicking up high in a circular motion. Leaning forward into the attack, she brought her heel down hard, and he had to use both hands to block the blow. Aaron thought he had heard a pop when the kick landed, and he saw a slight grimace on the hawks face.

Jumping backwards as the kick slid off, he tucked in his wings and spun, extending his wing at the last second as he moved forward. Zane was just regaining her balance from the kick, and just got her hands up in time to protect her face as the powerful blow slammed into her, lifting her off her feet and throwing her against the ropes. She looked a bit stunned from the hit, and he jumped into the air again to try another flying kick. Just in time, she rolled sideways on the ropes, and he crashed hard. One of his legs was stuck outside the ring, and she used the opportunity to throw a blurred punching combo. He blocked the blows by raising a wing, but took quite the pounding as he disentangled himself. He backed her off with another sweep from his other wing, and he shook the injured one a bit as they regained their distance.

She smirked at him. "Whatsa matter? Arm sore?"

"The only part of me that will be sore tomorrow is my knuckles."

Despite his words, it was obvious that he was indeed hurting, as he blocked her next flurry of punches with the other wing. All the damage so far had been to the same wing arm, and Zane was doing her best to force him to use it.

He sidestepped, and brought his arm forward in a full body punch towards her open side. In a blur of motion, she brought her arm up to block and spun inside his reach, the fist passing harmlessly by her ear. She stepped backwards into his body, bringing an elbow into his torso and a heel into his knee. He grunted, and responded by grabbing her with his wings, squeezing her as tight as he could around her stomach and bringing a knee up between her legs. This proved to be a mistake, for as he lifted her, she slammed her head sideways into his beak. His head snapped sideways, and she dropped to the ground as his grip loosened. Getting an arm free, she followed up with a reverse jumping uppercut to the chin, and the hawk dropped to the mat like a stone.

She panted slightly and rubbed her stomach as she looked down at him. He groaned, proving that he was indeed still conscious.

"Alright, it's your victory," he said.

"You'd better believe it. Although, I have no problem going another round if you're up for it."

"No, I'll pass I think," said the beaten Avian, hauling himself up.

He held his gloves out for Aaron to remove, and over his shoulder Zane gave him a toothy grin as she slipped out of her own.

Once he had left the room, Aaron said, "Wow, that was a pretty vicious fight."

Zane grinned at him, "Yeah, we have a bit of a history... as I'm sure you've noticed."

He nodded. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened between you two?"

She shook her head. "Nothing really specific. We had to work together on assignment a couple times. He looks down on anyone who isn't a flyer, humans most of all. It's not blatant enough to call him racist, but it is there. That, and he's just a bit of an overall asshole."

Aaron nodded. "I noticed that. But the way you two were going, I thought he might've been your ex or something."

"Holy shit, no!" she yelled. "How could you even say that?"

Aaron couldn't help chuckling, and was rewarded with a hard punch to the shoulder as Zane caught on to his sarcasm. "Just for that, I'm makin' ya lift twice as much weight next time!" she said.

"Oh no! Please not that..." he said in mock horror.

She laughed, giving him a shove towards the showers. "You'd better be good then marine! No backtalk to your commanding officers! Savvy?"

"Yes ma'am!" he said, snapping a salute.

Still chuckling, the pair entered the showers to get cleaned up.

The course of the next two weeks saw the completion of Aaron's training. He and the other recruits were now fully integrated into the normal assignments of their respective units. For the time being, this still mostly involved guard duties, with the odd drill thrown in to keep them sharp. The garrison at the mine only changed out once a month, so it would be awhile before Aaron would get to go out there. Several shuttles had left, taking mostly soldiers who had been there awhile out to the active battlefronts.

The avian fighter pilots kept themselves quite separate from the rest of the troops. They spent most of their time in the compound moving in groups, sticking amongst themselves. They were living out of the carrier, and would occasionally perform manoeuvres in their fighters. Aaron enjoyed watching these, the agile Shrikes twisting and fluttering like leaves on the wind. He didn't know how anyone could keep control in an aircraft that was whipping around in such seemingly impossible ways. He supposed that that was why this was the elite unit.

Commander Tellius was the only one Aaron saw walking around the base with some consistency. He quickly learned to avoid the hawk if he saw him first. Tellius had seemed to take a personal dislike to Aaron, likely because he had witnessed the beating Zane had given him. If he caught Aaron before he could make himself scarce, Tellius would go out of his way to assign him some menial task, usually involving some physical labour. Aaron just gritted his teeth and bore it. Complaining probably wouldn't do anything, and would only make the hawk hate him more. He elected to not even tell Zane about it, as she might do something rash and get into trouble herself.

Finally, Aaron received his first real assignment. He was to go with a team that was scouting out potential locations for turret defenses in the forest. If there was a Sken'd'or attack, they would likely attempt to sweep right in on the mine itself and get out before the base could respond. The garrison was well equipped, but anything that would blunt the attack would help out. They hadn't wanted to build anything when the threat level was low, since the jungle made it very difficult to erect any structures at all. Hence why the base had been built separate from the mine.

Aaron went to the armoury to receive his VARIA suit, and was surprised to find Lex there ahead of him.

"You're coming on this mission too? Where's Jeremy?"

"Yeah, I'm your driver. Jeremy's a bit pissed that they didn't pick him for this one for some reason. Something about there not being space in the vehicle."

The two collected their equipment and proceeded to the assembly point. They found Zane, a fox Aaron didn't know and a human tech waiting for them beside a large four wheeled buggy. The tires on the thing were almost as tall as Aaron was, looking almost comical compared to the relatively small body. The sides of it were open, and one of the six seats was taken up by a pile of equipment.

"Good, now that we're all here, we can get moving," Zane said.

Aaron started to climb into the back of the vehicle, but the human tech shoved past him.

"No no!" he said. "That equipment is very delicate! I can't have you clambering over it and damaging things you don't understand." Aaron stepped back, allowing the excitable man to take the spot. He instead sat in the middle, beside the fox, as Zane and Lex took the front. Once they were all seated, Lex started the thing up, the odd low rumble confirming that it was indeed a hybrid reaction fuel vehicle.

They rolled through the compound gates, and as soon as they hit the open plain, Lex punched it. They sped towards the forest, the wind whipping loudly past Aaron's visor.

"This baby is specifically designed for this place!" Lex yelled back to Aaron over the rushing wind. "It's nice and narrow to fit through trees, and the suspension is designed to let it actually jump over obstacles! We can drop twenty feet in this thing and barely feel it."

Aaron nodded, not bothering to give a verbal response as they quickly ate up the distance to the tree line.

Lex slowed as they neared the edge of the forest and flicked a switch. Duraperspex shields rolled up around the vehicle, just high enough to reach over their heads. "Protects us against some of the nasties that like to shoot spines." Lex said. Aaron recalled the training session where they had gone out into the jungle, noting that there were quite a few scratches on the shields. They started rolling through the trees at a slower rate, Lex weaving them through the gaps, flattening a few bushes as they passed. Aaron took the opportunity to meet his other companions, holding out his hand to the fox. "Hi, I'm Aaron."

The fox shook his hand, "Dewey. Nice to meet you Aaron."

The fox wasn't wearing a VARIA suit, instead he was dressed in all black. His outfit was slightly tight, with a hood that would pull right over his head and secure a mesh over the bottom half of the face. A lightweight padded armour of some sorts covered his torso, and it had a few large pockets on it. He had a long barreled rifle slung over his back. "So what exactly is your role here Dewey? What kind of equipment is that?"

"Oh, I'm a sniper. This suit is designed to blend into the surroundings. It basically takes the same concept that a chameleon's skin uses. Pretty cool stuff."

Aaron nodded in agreement. "Is the rifle energy based?"

"Yeah, but it uses clips. The energy is more concentrated than what comes out of your arm cannons, so it can't use an internal power supply."

"Makes sense," Aaron said.

Aaron twisted in his seat to say hi to the other human, but he was fiddling with his equipment, pointedly ignoring the other occupants. Aaron shrugged and faced forward again, and they rode for a few minutes more in silence. He hoped that they wouldn't need too large of a clearing to set up a turret, as those were usually inhabited by some of the larger species of plants.

Eventually, they broke out into a small open space. Lex brought the vehicle to a halt, waiting a moment to check the area before retracting the shields. Zane held up a hand to get them to wait, hopping out first to make sure there was nothing smaller around.

"Looks like we're good here," she said over the radio. "It's completely clear."

The rest of them hopped out, with the exception of the tech, who started passing equipment down with admonishments of, "Careful! Gentle!"

Once the ATV was unloaded, the tech went about his work, setting up some sort of tripod thing in the middle of the clearing. Aaron just watched, not really having much to do aside from keep an eye out for any potential threats. A few small rodent like creatures scurried by, but otherwise all was quiet. Most of the plant species that were motile were only active at night, so there really wasn't much to worry about. Zane came over and stood beside him. "He's checking the soil for any compounds that could eat away at a structure," she said, her voice slightly muffled through the helmet's speaker.

Aaron nodded, and they stood in silence watching him work.

Aaron noticed Lex fiddling with his helmet. He flipped a small catch on the side of his neck, popping the headpiece loose with a hiss.

"Hey, what are you doing marine?" Zane said over the radio. "You aren't supposed to take your helmet off while on duty!"

"Sorry, sorry," Lex said, taking it off anyway and slapping at his suit. "There's this damn bloodsucking bug that got in here somehow, it's driving me insane!"

"Well suck it up! You're breaking regulations." She barked.

Aaron only half listened to the exchange, instead focusing on the odd rumble in the distance. "Hey! Do you guys hear that? Is that an aircraft?"

Zane paused, listening intently. "That...doesn't sound like one of ours..."

Suddenly, there was a muffled crack, and Lex spun and fell, a hole blown through his forehead.

"SHIT! DOWN!" Zane yelled, grabbing Aaron and the tech and pulling them to the ground. Dewey had dropped as well, and Aaron heard something whistle overhead and thump into the slight rise behind them. The tech screamed something indecipherable as Zane lifted her cannon arm to return a few shots. Aaron couldn't take his eyes off of Lex's motionless body, feeling numb. They were actually...under attack?

"Sniper, tree." Zane ordered, pointing behind them. Dewey nodded, belly crawling his way up the slight rise and behind a tree. Wood chips flew, and another shot reverberated right after. "They've got two snipers, one is closer than the other." Zane growled. "Base! Do you copy? We're under attack, we have a man down. We need air support!" Out of the corner of his eye, Aaron saw Dewey launch something attached to a wire high up into the tree. He heard a thunk as whatever it was buried itself into the hardwood. Dewey pulled the trigger in his hand, sending himself zipping upwards into the foliage. Zane reached up and fired a few more cover shots in the vague direction of the gunfire.

The tech took the opportunity to run, jumping to his feet and dashing for the trees, eliciting a curse from Zane. He never saw the bullet that took him. Aaron watched in horror as the round took him in the head perfectly, spraying gore. "Damn lizards!" Zane swore. "Their weapons may not be up to par, but their snipers are some of the best." A shot rang out from above, and Aaron heard a bestial roar in the distance. "Got one!" Came Dewey's voice on the radio.

"Can't we just charge them?" Aaron asked. "The suits will protect us."

"Sure, until they hit us from the side with an RPG or a Bazooka. We need to let Dewey smoke 'em out first. Make them close the distance so we can see what we're up against."

Aaron glanced up, noting that the fox was stretched out on a tree branch, sighting down his weapon. His suit had turned a dark green, blending him in against the leaves almost perfectly. Suddenly, a beam of narrow energy lanced out from his weapon, slicing through leaves soundlessly. "Damn, missed him," Dewey said. "I count at least ten of them, no heavy stuff that I can see. Doesn't mean it isn't there though."

"How far?" Zane asked.

"About 1400 meters. And advancing!"

"Out of our firing range still then."

"DAMN!" Dewey swore again. "He moved! I hit the guy behind him though."

Wood chips suddenly flew into Dewey's face from the branch beneath him, heeled by an echoing crack. The fox jolted back, almost losing his rifle.

"They're getting too close! We need to distract them. Where the hell is our air support base?!"

"The fighters are scrambling, ETA 90 seconds." Came the reply.

"Prepare a charge shot. Standby for my mark!" She ordered.

Aaron did as he was ordered, feeling the cannon vibrate as the energy built up.

"Break left! Aim for their location!" She yelled, rolling sideways and leaping out of the depression.

Aaron mirrored her movement, bringing his weapon to bear and releasing the charge beam. The twin balls of energy flew out towards the enemy. Aaron's hit a tree and exploded in a blinding flash. Zane's got a bit closer, and Aaron heard a roar as hers exploded too. Immediately, he dropped into a crouch. A beam of light shot through the trees from Dewey, followed immediately by the crack of the Sken'd'or sniper's weapon. Aaron looked back to see Dewey slumped in the tree, blood dripping down from the opening in his hood.

"Dewey's down!" He yelled into the radio.

"Shit!" she replied. "Can you tell if he got their sniper?"

"No, but I can see movement!" he replied, firing several shots in that direction. There was a staccato burst of machine gun fire, and several rounds bounced off of his energy shield. He returned fire, this time being rewarded with a roar of pain. About 40 feet to his right, he suddenly saw Zane leap into the air, firing in a sweeping arc towards the advancing Sken'd'or. Aaron heard several roars as she landed gracefully, but Zane shouted, "Retreat! Jump back to the clearing and through the other side! GO! GO!"

Aaron followed suit, back-flipping from his position and landing behind her, preparing to run back the other way. As he landed, there was a muffled thump, and the ground in front of him burst up in a geyser of earth. He and Zane were thrown backwards out of the depression by the explosion, Aaron's ears ringing from the blast as he landed hard on his back. "Rocket launcher," she groaned, rolling to her knees and hauling him backwards.

Suddenly, there were twin blasts from the direction of the Sken'd'or, and two Shrikes screamed overhead. They pulled up into wickedly sharp turns for another pass, their underside lasers strafing the forest. Zane fired several bursts as well, covering their retreat as the fighters cut their swath of death. "It's clear. Your evac is touching down now," came the voice from the radio. The thumping of copter blades filled the air, the light troop transport appearing overhead and lowering down into the clearing. The pilot's voice came on the radio, "I can't land here! I'm throwing down a line!"

A rope ladder fell out the open side, and Zane hauled Aaron to his feet. The two of them scrambled up the ladder into safety, Aaron falling in as the adrenaline drained out of him. They had made it. Barely.

Upon arrival back at the base, Zane and Aaron were greeted enthusiastically by the guard contingent, who knew a little about what had happened. The congratulations sounded hollow in Aaron's ears, inappropriate for the lives that had been lost. Even though he hadn't had that much physical exertion, he felt as exhausted as he would after a hard day of training. The aftermath of the adrenaline rush left him feeling a deep seeded tiredness.

The two of them continued on towards the central building to be debriefed, but were stopped on their way by Commander Tellius.

"Took your boys long enough to get there Tellius," Zane growled.

"We bailed your ass out today Tatupu. The least you could do is say thank you."

"I lost three men out there. I'm not in the mood to pat you on the back."

Tellius looked slightly pained. "I... am truly sorry for you. Losing men is never an easy thing. But we truly did do our best. They had to go after the Sken'd'or aircraft first. They hightailed it as soon as the Shrikes showed up, but we couldn't let them through to the mine."

She shook her head and brushed past him, continuing towards the debriefing room.

Aaron glanced briefly at the hawk, then followed. He thought that it was perhaps a little unfair of Zane to blame Tellius, but he supposed she was just venting her frustration. He stepped through the doors into the building, feeling a chill as the cool air hit his face. Boomer was standing in the reception area waiting for him.

"Marine Blackhorn, Major Brigham will be debriefing you after he is through with Sergeant Tatupu. I...have some sad news however." He paused, gesturing Aaron to one of the chairs. Aaron sat, a feeling of dread coming over him. "I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you," Boomer continued. "But, your squad mate, Jeremy Tetra, committed suicide when he heard of the death of Private Lextra." He had a sad expression on his face. "I'm sorry for your loss. I understand that the two of them were... quite close. Both were good soldiers, and will be missed."

"I...see," said Aaron, unable to summon any emotional response at the moment. "Thank you." Boomer nodded and left, leaving Aaron to slump forward, head in his hands. Both his room mates, dead. In one day. He had only known them for less than two months, but you couldn't share a space with someone and then just feel nothing if they died. He was too overwhelmed at the moment from his experiences of the day, but he knew that it would hit him later. He was not one to contain his grief. He didn't even hear Major Brigham's assistant calling his name until she was standing right in front of him.

"Private Blackhorn?" The bunny said. "Major Brigham is waiting for you."

He nodded and stood up, passing Zane on her way out.

Was this what it was like to be at war? He just didn't know anything anymore.

The debrief didn't take long. There wasn't really much for Aaron to add to what Zane had already said. It seemed that the Sken'd'or had been on a scouting mission. Or possibly a sabotage attempt. They had been a small party, with one drop ship and several escort fighters. They had attempted to sneak in on the far side of the planet, coming in low to avoid detection. It was obvious they didn't know the exact location of the mine though, as they had missed the target with their team by a good margin. The Shrikes had indeed taken care of them, as the follow up team had confirmed. The fighters and drop ship had managed to escape though, which was possibly a bad sign as they could return in greater numbers.

"Our secret may be out, but this war shouldn't last much longer." The Major had said._ "We've established a beachhead on Sken'd'aa. If we press them hard enough, we should see a treaty by the end of the month." _

Aaron left the room to find Zane waiting for him, and she walked beside him as they left the building. "Hey," she said. "I heard about Jeremy. That sucks. Both your bunk mates. Were you close?"

"Somewhat, not as close as the two of them were."

She nodded, stopping in front of the entrance. "Pretty intense day huh?"

He nodded in reply.

"I dunno about you, but I need to unwind. I could use a good screw. You game?"

He stared at her, a bit shocked at the sudden statement. "Um, I...don't think I'm ready for...that."

She seemed a bit taken aback, "Oh...okay then. Um, later." She turned and walked quickly in the opposite direction, leaving Aaron staring after her in disbelief. He hadn't really seen that had he? Could it be that she really....liked him?

Aaron arrived back at his empty room alone. The silence seemed to close in on him. He could almost hear Lex's music blaring. He flipped his boots off and flopped down on his back on the bed, staring at the bunk above him. He tossed and turned, trying unsuccessfully to find a comfortable position and try and sleep. The images of the day kept invading his mind. Lex's motionless body. The human tech, who's name he didn't even know, having his brains blown out. Dewey slumped in the tree. But one image kept standing out above the rest. Zane, turning to walk away. A hint of glistening moisture at the corner of her eye.

Her proposition had taken him completely by surprise. He hadn't even suspected that she might have feelings for him. It seemed a bit irreverent to be thinking about a sexual relationship right on the heels of his comrades' deaths. But it was all he could think about. Did he have feelings for Zane? He wasn't sure. He respected her certainly, maybe even admired her a bit. She definitely seemed to have an easier rapport with him than with others. But...was he attracted to her? He thought back to that first time in the showers, his reaction to finding out she was female. If there wasn't at least a little attraction there, would he have been that embarrassed? And what did that say about him? He had thought she was a guy... But no, he had been fine up to the point of discovering her true gender. There was no question as to his orientation.

He lay on his bunk for a good couple hours, head spinning. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He got up to go find Zane.

The bar was almost deserted at this time in the afternoon. A couple of troops played pool in the corner, and the robot bartender waited quietly for instruction. Zane sat with her elbows on the bar, an impressive line of empties in front of her. Aaron slid into the stool beside her.

"Hey, are you alright?" he asked.

She fixed him with a glare from the corner of a red rimmed eye, a half empty drink in her paw.

"Yer not the person I wanna see right now," she slurred, tipping back the drink with a gulp.

"Well...I wanted to talk to you. About what you said..."

"You said you didn't wanna, so fuck off," she growled, grabbing another glass.

Aaron seized her wrist, "I think you've had enough."

She shoved him back with her other hand, toppling him off his stool and onto the floor.

"I said FUCK OFF!"

The two other soldiers looked up from their game, but when they saw who it was, put their heads back down. Aaron stood up, this time slapping the glass from her grip, shattering it against the bar.

"What'd ya do that for? I was drinkin' that..." she muttered.

"I said you've had enough. Let's go."

She stared at him for a moment, but seemed to respond slightly better to an order rather than a request. He hauled her up, steadying her as she stumbled against him. Slowly, he guided her towards her room.

Arriving at her room in the officers quarters with a little guidance from the tipsy hyena, he managed to get her key card out her pocket and open the door. She seemed to have shifted to a more brooding mood, muttering under her breath. He manoeuvred her through the door, getting her seated on the bed. Her room was slightly smaller than his, but designed for a single occupant. Aside from the slightly larger bed, there was a chair in the corner and a small night table with a lamp.

Aaron went into the bathroom and found a glass, filling it up with warm water. He brought it back in to Zane, swiping the plastic garbage bin from the bathroom as he passed.

"Here, drink this. It will help you feel better," he said, handing her the glass.

She swiped it from his hand and gulped it, gagging as the warm water hit the potent cocktail of her stomach. He shoved the bucket at her, grabbing the glass as she retched, emptying the alcohol overdose into the bucket.

He patted her shoulder, "Sorry, but you had to get that out of you."

She sat up, wiping her mouth, then staggered into the bathroom. He heard water running, and he followed her in to see her rinsing her mouth out at the sink. He tossed the bin into the shower, turning it on for a moment to swill the mess out as Zane leaned on the sink. Finishing the clean up, Aaron helped her back into the room, where she collapsed on the bed. She fell asleep almost instantly, and Aaron settled into the chair to watch over her.

Some time later, Aaron started awake, hearing the sound of the toilet flushing. He glanced at the clock on Zane's night table and was surprised to see that it was already 11:30. They had slept for that long? Zane came back into the room, wearing only a pair of shorts and rubbing her eyes.

"How're you feeling? Headache?" Aaron asked as she sat on the bed facing him.

"Better. I'll live," she replied. "Hey, um thanks. You know, for getting me back here. I'm sorry you had to deal with me like that. I...don't remember what it was that I said to you, but I remember pushing you. You didn't deserve that, and I apologize. For whatever I may have said too."

Aaron smiled at her. "It's okay, really. I understand."

She sighed, getting up and rummaging for something in the night table. "I'm not sure if you do. I...what I said earlier... I realize now that it may not have been appropriate. You just lost friends after all. No one will ever accuse me of being all that sensitive to the emotions of others. And...no isn't a word I hear very often. I kinda went off a bit."

Aaron nodded. "Actually...that's the reason I wanted to come and find you." He stood up and moved closer to her, laying a hand on her shoulder. "I think...I think I might be ready to turn that no into a yes."

Her reaction took him totally by surprise. She whirled, grabbing his wrists and pinning him against the wall, a fierce snarl on her face. "Don't even THINK about pitying me! I'm not looking for a sympathy fuck!"

"No...really it's not that at all. I've been thinking about it. I...I think I want this too."

Her dark eyes searched his, seeking to find the lie she clearly expected to find.

She obviously was satisfied by what she saw, as she suddenly pressed her lips against his in an aggressive kiss. He felt one of her fangs draw blood from his lip as she forced her tongue past his defenses. Their saliva mingled as their tongues wrestled with each other. Her longer, stronger organ quickly took control, pinning his down as she explored his mouth. She pulled back, panting. A trail of saliva joining their teeth breaking as she smacked her lips. She gently wiped away the little bit of blood from his lips, releasing his pinned wrists finally. "Sorry 'bout that," she said.

Aaron didn't care, this time he took the initiative, grabbing the back of her head and giving her a strong kiss of his own. She rumbled in her throat as he worked his tongue inside, grabbing at his shirt. He pulled back, allowing her to bare his torso as he fumbled with his belt. He had taken his boots off before falling asleep in the chair, so he only had to kick his pants off to leave him in his boxers.

She grabbed him around the waist and hoisted him up, tossing him down onto the bed.

She kicked her shorts off and jumped up onto her paws and knees over him. Looking down, he could see the pink tip of her clit protruding a couple inches.

"This is your last chance to back out Aaron," she said. "After this, you're mine."

"No, this is what I want," he said, finalizing his decision.

She gave him a toothy smile, then ripped his boxers off, exposing his hardening shaft. "I finally get to get up close and personal with this little guy," she said.

"Not THAT little," Aaron muttered.

She chuckled, leaning her head down. "No, just right."

Aaron gasped as she drew her tongue across him, pulling up from balls to tip. His member jumped at the treatment, and she wrapped her agile tongue around it and started licking in earnest.

She kept one paw on his chest for balance, effectively pinning him down and forcing him to just watch. He enjoyed the sight, her head bobbing down as she took him fully inside. He felt a flash of concern for his manhood as he felt the brief scrape of a fang, but she was very careful, gripping him around the base with a paw as she sucked powerfully.

He could feel her nimble tongue drawing around his head as the pressure of her suckling quickly brought him to full attention. It was a bit odd, as her tongue was very soft but with a rough coating that set his nerve endings on fire. He couldn't help himself, and he bucked up into her muzzle, releasing a few squirts of pre. She murred around his length, and he saw and felt her swallow the liquid eagerly. She stepped up her efforts, massaging his balls to get him to give up their prize.

He thrust up into her muzzle, with a moan. His climax already drawing near from the incredible sensation Zane's expert mouth work. It had been awhile, and he felt the inevitable tension in his groin as his sack drew tight to his body. Zane growled, giving his testicles a squeeze, and that was all it took.

He felt his seed explode into her mouth, the suction increasing as she gulped it down rapidly. Jolts of pleasure shot through him as her tongue swirled around his hypersensitive head, drawing out his orgasm. She didn't let any of the fluid escape, swallowing the treat with alacrity. After several strong spurts the flow tapered to a dribble and she released his tool. A small dribble of cum smeared across her lower lip as he slipped out, and she ran her tongue across to pick up the last drop.

Leaning forward, she kissed him again, his flavour strong inside her mouth. It was a bit salty, but mixed with Zane's own flavour pleasantly. Aaron did his best to cleanse her palate with his short tongue, feeling hers almost make its way down his own throat.

She pulled back, both of them breathing heavily as she sat up on her knees.

"So, how exactly do we do this?" Aaron asked, glancing down at her now fully erect clit. She was obviously very turned on, as a bit of fluid was beading up at the tip of her feminine shaft. It was about five inches in length, and he wasn't sure how the narrow shaft was going to stretch around him.

"Whatta ya think? Ya put it in, and ya move in and out!" She said with a smirk. "Whatsa matter? Don't tell me this is your first time!"

"Well, no, but..." he gestured at her crotch.

"Here! I'll show ya how it's done!" she said.

She grabbed his shaft, which had softened slightly, and began rubbing it to bring it back up. With her other hand, she took a hold of her erect clit, positioning the tip against the head of his hardening member. She pushed forward with her hips, and he felt his cock press against her, trying to get inside. They weren't stiff enough though, and he slid off, a trail of her juices drawing down his member. She growled, and readjusted her grip closer to his glans. This time, he felt himself poke forward through her small slit, embedding the head into her.

The tightness was unbelievable, even with the moistness easing his passage. It felt like someone had fastened a rubber band around his penis, and the sensation brought him back to full hardness. She pushed forward again, working him deeper as her clit stretched around him. She let out a happy growl, feminine juices leaking out around their union as she clearly enjoyed the penetration.

Aaron could barely comprehend the sensation of incredible tightness. Even with no muscles to clench around it, his sensitive organ was being pleasured in a way he never thought was possible. She worked him in deeper, finally lodging her tip in his pubic hair. His longer shaft allowed his tip to finally penetrate her actual body, and he could feel her vaginal muscles milking him. The contractions didn't extend into her shaft, and it was a strange experience to feel so firmly gripped through and through, but only have his head inside her body.

She began to thrust her hips, not gaining a lot of motion but increasing the friction exponentially. Each buck of her hips slid his tip almost out of her inner walls, then slammed it back in. Her loose sack bounced up and down, and he felt the weight slapping against his shaft as it hit the thin wall of her clit.

She balanced on one paw, spitting on the other for lubrication. She grabbed her clit, gripping down and stroking, drawing a moan from her own lips. Aaron let out a moan of his own at the feeling as she jacked them both off simultaneously. His pubic shag was getting soaked from her liquids as she neared her peak, slamming back down on him.

"You should put those hands of your to good use," she panted.

Aaron complied, spitting on one hand and gripping her clit around his own base, adding to her own ministrations. With his free hand, he grabbed one of her nipples and started massaging it. She didn't really have breasts to speak of, but her chest was still softer than a male's would be, and she obviously approved of the treatment as she let out a loud growl, her face scrunching up in pleasure.

It only took a few more seconds, before she threw her head back and howled in bliss, her inner walls attempting to pull his shaft right in. A fresh wave of fluids poured out, wetting his balls and dripping down onto the sheets. Aaron couldn't hold back any longer. If it hadn't been for his previous orgasm, he would have popped almost instantly from this treatment. He let himself go, riding out the most powerful orgasm of his life as they bucked their hips at each other. He could feel his seed jetting into her, getting deep inside her passage, filling her womb. He fancied he saw her belly pooch out a bit from the blast, although it was surely just his imagination. She slumped down on him, her weight pressing him into the bed. He felt her squeeze a few more times as she came down from her long orgasm, his seed slowing to a trickle.

"Been awhile since I've had the real thing," she murmured into his ear.

Aaron smiled, grabbing her into a tight hug. "Me too."

Zane returned the gesture, then rolled them onto their sides to let him breathe a bit easier. They just lay in silence for a long moment, enjoying the afterglow as they gazed into each others eyes.

He felt his member softening, and she pulled back with a wet sucking sound. His spent shaft flopped out, a few of her fluids trailing from her still erect clit. "Wow, that was...amazing," Aaron said.

"Mmm. I think I'm going to take your ass now," she replied.

Aaron started, "What! Um.. I've... never..."

She laughed. "Relax, I promise I'll be really gentle. And if you want it to stop, then we'll stop, okay? I think you'll like it though."

He looked down at her rod a bit nervously. He had never experimented with anal before, although he was a bit curious. He supposed that he couldn't ask for a better time, as Zane was hardly intimidating in size. He nodded his consent, and she rolled over to grab something from the night table drawer.

He noted with amusement that she had a male sex toy stashed away inside the drawer, as she pushed things aside to find what she was after. She pulled out a bottle of lube, holding it up victoriously. Sitting up against the head of the bed, she squirted a good glob of the jelly into her paw, rubbing it up and down her member.

"Here, sit up," she said, patting her lap.

He scooted himself up onto her thighs, and he felt her slip a couple fingers into his crack and smear lube across his pucker. The cool sensation caused him to shiver slightly, and she rubbed it in slowly. She poked the tip of a finger in, her hard claw penetrating him easily up to the first digit. Fortunately, she kept herself well groomed, and her nails were blunt.

She worked her finger inside his passage, forcing it up past his sphincter. Aaron wasn't really sure how he felt about this sensation, it wasn't really pleasant or painful. She pumped her finger in and out a few times, removing it and pushing it back in with more lube.

After a moment of this, she apparently decided he was ready, and popped her finger back out. She seized the tip of her clit, placing it against his pucker as she used her other hand to spread his cheeks.

"I guess I'm..." Aaron started to say, then cut off with a gasp as he felt her penetrate him with a smooth motion. His well lubed walls allowed her to slide right in past his defenses, and he slid right down to the base of her shaft.

She halted there, allowing him to adjust to the intrusion. His breathing picked up as he tentatively settled back on the invader. It was...odd. He felt full down there, but had nothing to expel. He gave a couple experimental squeezes, drawing a growl of approval from Zane. It was...only slightly uncomfortable, but maybe a bit satisfying? He wasn't really sure what to think of the feeling. It was certainly extremely erotic to be taken by a female like this, and he felt his shaft start to perk up again for another round.

She wrapped her arms around him and began to thrust, his sphincter gripping her as she pushed against the resistance. The discomfort was starting to fade, all the lube making her movements easy. Suddenly, he let out a gasp, as she hit...something inside him. His prostate, he realised, the fabled male G spot. Even two orgasms in, his member jumped and inflated at the jolt of incredible pleasure. He felt her tap the magical button again and again, each one drawing a moan from him and a grunt from her as he tensed around her thrusting clit.

She reached down and wrapped her paw around his member, jacking him slowly in time with her thrusts. The sensations were completely incongruous, the hard pressure in his rear and the softness of her padded palm around his length causing his cock to pulse and dribble pre.

She sped up her treatment, hips slamming against his butt as she pounded into him. The pleasure focusing in his groin as she worked his pole. He cried out as she rammed his prostate, feeling his balls tense up again. He barely had anything left in him, but what was there jetted out from the pressure on his gland, spraying out over the sheets in front of him. His rectal walls spasmed, squeezing down hard on her clit and pushing her over as well. She hilted herself as her own orgasm crashed over her, biting down lightly on his neck. He felt her teeth sinking into the skin, just hard enough to mark, but not draw blood.

Aaron slumped back against her as his high dropped off, relaxing into her grip submissively. She released his neck and slid down the bed, rolling over on her side and spooning around him with a satisfied sigh. They fell asleep together, locked in an intimate embrace.

Hours later, they were awoken together by a pounding on Zane's door. Zane sat up, having slipped out of him sometime during the night.

"Shit, you need to hide," she said softly, pulling on her shorts.

"What? Why? I thought sexual relationships were okay?" he asked, matching her tone anyways.

"Yeah, they are, but that doesn't mean we want to start rumours right?" she replied.

Aaron saw her point, and rolled out of bed to shuffle into the bathroom, closing the door almost all the way.

He heard Zane yell, "Coming!" As she moved across the room.

He heard the door open, and Zane say, "Yes? What is it."

All Aaron could hear was a muffled voice on the other side of the door. Then, "I see," from Zane, and the closing of the door. He stepped back into the room to see her standing stock still in front of the closed door.

"Well? What was it?" he asked, noticing a piece of paper in her paw.

"That....was a transfer notice," she said, an odd look on her face. "They're shipping me to the assault base on Sken'd'aa."

"Oh..." he said softly, not really knowing how to respond. Suddenly, he was grabbed and pulled into a fierce kiss, her tongue forcing its way past his lips. Pulling back with a gasp of air, she said, "I don't know how this will turn out, but whatever happens, don't you DARE die on me. I expect you to be alive, healthy and ripped when I come back here. Savvy?"

"Hell yes," he replied, hugging her as tight as he could.

She squeezed him back just as fiercely for a long moment, before pushing away and saying, "Now get out of here. I've got to get ready to leave in an hour. And I hate long goodbyes."

Aaron pulled on his scattered clothing and respected her wishes. As the door shut behind him, he wondered if he truly would ever see her again.

Two weeks later, Aaron was watching a report on the net about troops who had been killed in action during the Sken'd'aa mission. He felt his awareness of the world around him fall to the floor and shatter, as one name stood out from the rest like a flashing beacon. Zane Tatupu. 28. Killed by a roadside bomb while riding point on an escort mission for the Sken'd'or ambassador. Aaron sat on his bed hugging his knees, feeling nothing but numbness as he stared unseeingly at the news feed. The report was heeled by a live segment, showing the Sken'd'or ambassador shaking hands with a representative of the UTF. The peace treaty had been signed hours after Zane's death, her sacrifice indirectly allowing an end to the fighting. Hauling himself up, Aaron switched off the screen, slumping against it. He still didn't know what exactly it was that he and the hyena had shared. Had it been love? A simple moment of passion? Or had it just been an escape?

All he knew was this:

Wherever she was now, he hoped that she could see the stars.