FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The ship reemerged at a sullen world sitting on the edge of a red dwarf star. Everything on the viewports was still, quiet. Tyra relaxed back into the pilot’s seat, merely staring out at the expanse that surrounded them. Not far from how this whole thing started, but in a way it was a do-over.

Joshua sat in the co-pilot seat next to her, also looking into the nothingness.

“So… now what?” he asked.

“I know you would rather be spending a luxurious vacation time on a tropical planet, but I think it’s best that we wait a little longer,” Tyra said.

“You’re telling me to wait after all that time I spent in death valley?”

“Consider what we’ve accomplished. Theft of a vesperratus ship and the escape of a human vessel in said ship. Both sides are going to desire answers, quite aggressively.”

“Oh, right.” Joshua’s smile widened. “Sounds kinda cool when you put it like that.” His smile lessened and he raised a brow. “But won’t they just track where we went? Shouldn’t we be hopping?”

“I doubt they will have the chance to prepare a recon. Either one will flee, warping any possible readings of our wake, or they’ll engage in battle, which should take more than enough time for our path to disperse.”

“Hopefully.”

“Though, we perhaps should maneuver around the planetoid, in the small chance that neither occurs.” Tyra slid her arms into the controls again, pushing the ship around the quiet planet. “Should anyone reappear in this system, we will know.”

“And this thing is stocked with food, right?” Joshua asked. He stood up, already searching through the small ship.

Tyra brought the vessel to a halt and stood up. “Yes, more than enough to last several months.”

“Point me to the water, first.”

Amusingly, Tyra was somewhat out of place on the ship. She knew how it flew and functioned, broadly, but its interior had been a mystery to her up until now.

“I’m afraid even I don’t know where it is.” She tilted her head. “We’ll have to search together.”

“Another challenge, huh?”

“Indeed.”

The two slowly picked through the ship, finding food, weaponry, miscellaneous clothing, other gadgets, and finally, water. Tyra plucked out a metallic canister painted in vibrant blues. She held it up, shaking it.

“Your fresh water is here.”

“Oh, thank God.”

She handed the bottle to Joshua, who quickly held it up to his mouth and then frowned.

“How’s this thing work?”

“Pardon.” She hissed out a laugh, then pointed at the tip of the bottle. “We bite at this portion with our mandibles to open the valve. You should be able to do the same with your teeth.”

Joshua followed her words, letting out a muffled groan as water trickled down the side of his mouth. After a few seconds of chugging, he pulled the bottle from his mouth and let out an exaggerated sigh.

“May I?” Tyra asked.

“Oh, right, sorry.”

Tyra took the bottle and drank some herself. She was going to be more reserved about it, but as soon as that cool liquid hit her throat, she was greedily chugging down more.

“I had never realized how much I would miss the simple pleasures of water.”

“Right?” He walked over to the far end of the ship, gesturing to a door. “What’s this, by the way? Not an airlock, is it?”

“That is a decontamination chamber.” She took another sip. “In the chance that a valuable material is imbued with toxic materials.”

Joshua opened the door and peered in. “Looks like a shower to me.”

“You could use it as one, I suppose. It uses water or another cleaning chemical, which should be skin safe.”

“Should be?”

Tyra shrugged.

Joshua smiled back. “Alright, guess I’ll save that for later. How about beds, do we have beds at least?”

Tyra walked to the center of the room and slid a portion of the floor aside to reveal two cots underneath.

“You guys just love your coffins. If I crawl in there, promise you won’t close it on me.”

“It’s capable of being opened from the inside.”

“Please.”

Tyra nodded. “I promise.”

Joshua crawled in, folding his hands behind his head. “Y’know, I think I miss that little mattress.”

“Care to go back to death valley for it?” Just saying those words made her chug down more water.

“Naaaaah, I’m good. Bit bright in here, though.”

Tyra walked to a small panel on the wall and lowered the lighting. The viewport brought in the only light from all the twinkling stars and the sleepy dwarf. Joshua’s eyes glistened in that small light. Tyra took the other cot, laying down and staring up at the ceiling.

“This isn’t half bad. Those reclaimer guys had it pretty good, huh?”

“We might be biased, having just left the arid, dry place.”

“True.”

Images of those “reclaimers” came to Tyra’s mind, and she just as quickly pushed them aside. They stood in the pair’s path to freedom, ergo, they had to be removed. War, right? It was all just war. She set the water on the floor next to her. This was her prize for survival, a ship and an entire galaxy to explore. Oddly, that didn’t fill her with as much excitement as it should have. She looked to Joshua. It was about time he found his new home, wasn’t it? At some point she would have to admit to herself how much she wanted him by her side.

“What was that agreement thing you were talking about?”

“Pardon?”

“You know, when we shook hands, I asked if you had some sorta thing like it.”

“As mentioned, it wouldn’t work exactly with your anatomy.”

“I think it’s only fair for me to give it a shot.”

“Why?”

“You’ve spent your whole time dealing with a human and human things. I think I give uh, y’know, your guys way of doing things a shot.” His brow furrowed. “Do you guys have a name for yourselves?”

“Not necessarily. When you believe yourselves to be the only sentient creature, there is no need for such a classification. There has been some consideration now that humans have entered the stage of the galaxy.”

“You pick out a good name?”

“I’ve not given it much thought. I suppose it’s irrelevant now.”

“Sorry.”

“I’ve chosen my path.” She wanted to add, “and I’m happy with it,” but those words couldn’t be drawn forth. Tyra sat upright and faced toward Joshua, legs in the small space between their beds. “Here, we may perform my cultural handshake.”

Joshua sat upright as well, legs settled around hers. He looked to her expectantly, but a strange wave of embarrassment hit her. To another of her kind it would be a casual, if perhaps stand-offish, affair. With Joshua? It wasn’t far from a level of intimacy she had never delved into. And that thought was enticing. Tyra leaned forward slowly, placing her forehead against his. She could feel blood rushing to all parts of her.

“As I mentioned, it wouldn’t exactly work,” she said.

His warm breath blew over her sensitive mouthparts. Tyra held herself steady. Her horns eased forward, bracing against his head. Joshua waited patiently, his eyes flittering from her visage down to the ground.

“Our horns would interlock.” Tyra tilted her head, bringing Joshua’s mouth at an angle. “And we would pull…” Her voice lowered to a whisper. Tyra’s mouth stirred, delicate parts reaching out for his soft lips. In that moment she envied that plump anatomy. She was not a stranger to their displays of affection. Tyra’s mandibles gently opened.

“Is… this part of it?” Joshua whispered.

Tyra had no reply, shifting her head to bring her mouth to his. She had to try it, just once. Her hardened jaws had parted just enough for their mouths to meet. Joshua seemed frozen, but not at all in a panic. Tyra started to press against his lips, running her mouthparts along his lips, crudely miming a kiss. Her plates shifted, horns growing more erect. Those horns tingled as she kissed, oozing a small amount of her personal pheromones.

Joshua loosely returned the favor, eyes closing and lips pushing back against her. How strange. They weren’t made for one another at all, and that only made it more arousing. She could feel his warmth and blood pumping through his sensitive skin. Their strange mashing continued on for a little longer, before the logical side of Tyra yanked at her muscles, pulling her back. Joshua swallowed.

“Pretty strange handshake,” he said.

“Yes.” Tyra looked down. “Very.”

“Strawberries,” Joshua said.

Tyra looked back to him.

“You smell like strawberries.”

A compliment, she supposed. Tyra’s true name, a complex concoction her body produced, was boiled down to strawberries. And yet, that felt so entirely pleasing.

“I like it,” he said, laying down.

“Thank you.” Tyra lay back down, herself.

Utterly moronic. Destroying your goodwill for a taste of human delights. The low sound of the engines was deafening in the painful silence between them. And yet, a part of Tyra was happy that she took that small kiss, as much as she shouldn’t have been. It wasn’t love, was it? It couldn’t have been. Her interest in keeping Joshua close to her side, in her grasp, must have been an evolution of her research. Stress and loneliness had warped it into an obsessive fetishism. That reclaimer was correct, wasn’t he?

But was that any better than it being love?

There was nothing between them. Joshua held no similar interest in her, certainly. Save for her being the “coolest gal he knew”. No doubt she earned that title simply by keeping him alive. Any sane human would automatically place another creature in high regards for saving them. Even now, he likely held his tongue on a slew of insults simply because she was his savior.

Of course she had to make this impulsive, idiotic move now that they were in this small space. She would have to stew in her decision every waking second. Joshua’s presence would be constant. This ship consisted of one room. Two if they considered that decontamination chamber. Nothing technically kept them in this orbit, they could leave at any time, but there was a good chance both vesperratus and human alike would be hunting them.

“Have you decided where you want to go?” Joshua asked.

“No.”

“Hm.”

“Have you?” Tyra asked.

“Nope.”

“I see.”

_

Tyra awoke to the sound of gentle beeps. She looked to the pilot’s seat, where Joshua idly pressed away at the navigation console’s screen. Everything had remained the same from whenever she fell asleep. Echoes of being stuck aboard her original ship rang through her head.

“Looking for a home?” Tyra asked.

Joshua glanced to her. “More getting my bearing on the galaxy. They don’t really give you a scope of the war in training.”

Tyra got up and walked over to Joshua’s side. While the console was displaying colors he had no context for, it did give a simplistic look at the known galaxy and territories. Vesperratus in an undulating blue and humans in a flat mix of oranges and purples.

“Kinda weird. I know we don’t have all that many planets, but they make you think it’s so much bigger than this,” he said.

“The assumed scale makes you fight harder, perhaps.”

Indeed, Tyra hadn’t given the war’s size much thought, but the way it was spoken about as a violent incursion definitely felt as though it encompassed a space far more vast than the spattering of territories here. The exposed expansionists weren’t exactly expanding as quickly as they were said to be. Two opposing dots floated in their respective seas of territory.

“I’m guessing this must be Earth.” Joshua tapped on the human dot. “And this must be, uh, ‘Anchor.’ ” He tapped on the Lithovespa dot. “We’re practically in the same neighborhood.” Joshua propped up his head.

“It almost makes me wonder what lies beyond that miniature space. Another sentient species?”

“Hey, we can’t have that, then I’ll stop being so special,” Joshua replied with a chuckle.

“I do wonder how either side would react. Perhaps a diplomatic rush to secure an ally.”

“Or maybe another punching bag. We’re lucky to be at least on some equal footing. Imagine the poor suckers that are a rung lower than either of us.”

“They might be more advanced and consider us a nuisance worth destroying.”

“Hey, that’s a good reason to team up, right?”

“I’m uncertain how quickly either side would be willing to indulge a ceasefire for that.”

“Guess both of us are too stubborn.”

“It helped with our personal survival, so I can’t be entirely upset about that fact.”

“Guess that’s a universal constant. Stubbornness is survival.”

“Perhaps.”

Tyra stared at the screen a while longer. They could slink into the unknown forever and nobody would ever find them. Not that Joshua would want that. Especially not now. She turned toward the decontamination chamber.

“Hey.”

Tyra stopped. “Yes?”

“What was with the uh, handshake earlier? I’m gonna guess that’s not how it went, huh?”

The horns on Tyra’s head slightly perked up, ready to escape. “I do not know.” She didn’t dare look at him now.

There was a long pause of silence.

“I will use the shower now. Unless you care to use it first?”

“No, that’s fine. You go ahead.”

Tyra slunk into the decontamination chamber. The lights automatically flicked on, hitting her with brightness. She looked to the panel on the wall, which had an array of choices to scrub off just about any contaminant. Fortunately none were outright toxic, barring direct consumption. She chose simple water and set it to run. A shower head in the center of the ceiling began to spray. Tyra slowly unhooked her jumpsuit and let it drop to the ground. It was almost starting to feel like a skin.

The humidity had already begun to sink into Tyra’s plates. They shifted, allowing more of that delicious moisture to settle into her deepest parts. Then, she daintily stepped under the water, relaxing into the stream of warmth. Tyra hadn’t realized just how much debris had dug into her exoskeleton, it was almost painful.

Carefully, Tyra began to pick at her plates, dislodging whatever had stuck to her, washing it away down the drain. Naturally her thoughts returned to that ill-fated kiss. It was only fair, right? Joshua had planned to whisk himself away far from her. She just had a little gift for herself. A treat before the only living human she knew disappeared from her life entirely.

No. That wasn’t right. Sudden affection like that was ill-fitting in her own species, and it was an even worse infraction with humans. Her fingers gently touched her mandibles. A kiss. One she wanted to have again. Such a thing wasn’t possible with another of her kind. They certainly lacked the softness, or even the grace.

Could it be called love? Tyra had never experienced such a thing, not a romantic kind. She dug herself into her work and slowly alienated herself from the others of her kind, growing increasingly disinterested in their goings-on. She supposed the simple question was… Did she like Joshua? At first, he was a nuisance, a brutal wake-up call to the very thing she had devoted so much of her life to. Now, however, she found delight in his simple expressions and mannerisms.

The way pointless topics caught on his mind and the way he would ask her the very same. The way he smiled at her awkward phrasings or punctuated her sentences with humor. His spirit was bright. Had anyone bothered to ask Tyra’s thoughts on her research? No. Only him. In a way it was pathetic to latch onto him like that. The few people in her existence to show her any level of warmth, and she honed in on it instantly. Most expected her to be a logical beast trained on research and her military duty. Not Joshua. He slowly treated her as an ally, a partner, and soon, a friend.

But this was not a relationship meant to be. Tyra knew Joshua had to eventually return to his own kind. By her estimation, he must’ve been relatively young in the human lifespan, pushing into the beginnings of his 30’s. This was no place to be spending his youth. He had to find a proper mate to settle down with and grow his own lineage. Tyra couldn’t provide him with offspring or a stable homestead or even an attractive body.

Tyra’s fingers drew to her thighs, not far from her pelvic plates. Even if she were anything higher than merely “cute”, there was no telling how reasonable mating could be done between them. She was no stranger to how humans embraced. The general thrusting motion didn’t exactly equate to her own anatomy, nor was she even sure his member would fit inside her receptacle. Even her anatomy was logical and simple. Receptacle. There was no human passion to be had in a “receptacle.”

No matter how much Tyra put down her own anatomy, her own personality, her entire existence, a part of her desperately clung onto Joshua. Her one friend in all of this. The only way her psyche could handle his departure is simply to ask how he felt about her and their future. Then she could accept him disappearing forever into the stars. Or at the very least, not agonize over what could have been.

None of this was befitting of a researcher, or her new role as a survivalist. All of these questions pained her thoughts all the same. Tyra shook her head. Why did her existence have to be so tumultuous?

The fretting was over. Tyra shut off the shower and let the chamber’s drier run over her wet plates. When she was done with that, she placed her suit back on and strode out into the ship again. Joshua gave her a quick nod and got up from his seat, walking straight past her and into the chamber.

When was she going to ask? Tyra sat down and looked to the viewport.

After a few seconds, Joshua poked his head out from behind the door.

“How do you use this thing, exactly?” he asked.

She could ask later.

_

Asking, as it turned out, might have been the hardest thing Tyra had ever done in her life. Days went on by. Not that she could really judge those based on their position, but she counted off the universal timing onboard the ship. Joshua took to raising the lights for waking and lowering them again for sleep, loosely mimicking a day and night.

Most of their time was spent idly chatting, eating, or looking over the console for whatever media it held. Not a word of the kiss had come up since Tyra had shut it down a while ago, which was both a welcome silence and an agonizing one. She knew he wanted to ask again, however. In his eyes, in the way he moved. He was just as curious about her stupid kiss as she was. Or perhaps she was reading too far into the cues she knew.

At that moment, they were looking over an archived video of one of the more grand stage plays the vesperratus had put on.

“So, this guy goes around the whole world, urging everyone to come out of their caves to enjoy the surface?” Joshua asked, downing some pre-packaged food.

“Essentially. Not that it is considered a wholly good thing. Many saw the caves as a blissful existence lacking in conflict.”

“The armband he’s got, that’s his name? Colors make the name, right?”

“Not exactly. It’s more like a description of who he is and his role in the story. See the bright red and the touches of pink? He is an uneasy hero. Heroic red and a questionable pink.” There were more shades to imply all sorts of other aspects, but they wouldn’t exactly come across to him.

“Red’s a good color for it. Not sure about the pink.” He glanced to Tyra. “I’m guessing they chose those colors based on your body?”

“Essentially. Red for our armored shell and pink for our eyes that view the world. Though you’ll note his eyes are much darker than mine.”

“Yeah. Kinda weird seeing the whole asymmetrical thing on guys, too. Like he got his parts chopped off. You guys really find that hot, huh?”

“Not so much the features, but how they handle them.”

“Right, they bash into one another to woo the ladies. Not far off from the boxing matches some guys would get into.”

“Boxing?”

“You know, two guys punching the living daylights out of each other. We have it as a sport.”

“Nothing so violent. A better analogue would be wrestling.”

“How do you know wrestling but not boxing?”

“It was featured quite often in the human paraphernalia I went over.”

Joshua failed to hold back a chuckle. “Sorry, imagining you with a magnifying glass and examining a poster of the wrestler Wrecking Ball Red is really funny.”

Tyra tilted her head. “I suppose it is surreal. But I also suppose knowing every aspect of your perceived enemy is key in a war.”

“Must be why you guys are so clammed up. I remember part of the talks I’d have with buddies is that the recovery teams never found personal items in ship wrecks, so they were sure you guys were like a hivemind.”

“Some of us may as well be in such an arrangement with the way we act. Biologically, no. Wartime is merely treated as a fight for our existence and any distraction from that goal is tantamount to betrayal of the species.”

“That’s pretty rough.”

“It’s simply the way we are.” She looked back to the screen. “But as you can see, we still hold some underlying doubt as to whether or not all these tribulations are still worth it. The hero here and his deadly upheaval of the underground dwellers.”

“Is this a real story? Did someone actually do that?”

“Hard to say. Written history from this upheaval time is very spotty.”

“I kinda like it. The play, I mean. I don’t understand a lick of what they’re saying, but the props and sets are cool. Not sure about the colors on everything.”

“Do you think it was a good idea?” Tyra asked. “Leaving the caves?”

“Ignorance is bliss, after all, but I dunno, wouldn’t that mean you wouldn’t experience your world? I think there’s a trade off with how much you enjoy life versus how safe you are in it.” He shrugged. “I’m happy my ancestors discovered fire despite how miserable humanity’s been going. The whole space travel thing is cool, although with what we’ve been through, I’m good with staying planet-side the rest of my life.”

“I think I can agree. With both of those sentiments.”

Joshua smiled. “Right? Problem is the planet has to be perfect.”

“I know fishing would be part of that.”

“Fishing for sure. A nice cave to sit in.”

“Cave? You wouldn’t build an abode?”

“Not like I really know how.”

“With infinite time, you might learn.”

“That’d take time away from fishing.”

Tyra nodded. “I see. I must say I’m somewhat surprised hut-making isn’t in your list of skills.”

“Eh, just because my dad bothered me with a few survival skills doesn’t mean I’m a wild man. I’m surprised I even got to use them.”

“Strange that I wasn’t taught the very same by my military.”

“Well, they probably expected you to stay on the ship, right? With the whole… you know.” He shrugged.

“Yes. The suicidal counterattacks.” She would have thanked him for keeping her feelings in his thoughts, were it not a strange scenario to do so. “I suppose there’s little point in a survival skill if you aren’t intended to survive. Not on a planet, in any case.”

“But hey, you don’t need to think about that now. It’s all smooth sailing from here on out.”

“Provided neither side is on high-alert.”

“I bet the vesper military probably is. Humans? Caught up in all sorts of bureaucracy,” he said.

Tyra hung onto that word, humans. It was if he was distancing himself from them. Not illogical considering where he stood, but a desperate part of her wanted to feel as though the two of them were separate from either side. To belong to neither faction meant that they belonged to each other.

“Are you certain they wouldn’t report to their superiors with that information immediately?” she asked.

“Oh, absolutely, but they have no way of knowing who did what. It’s going to be a mad scramble for them to figure out if there really is a secret agent guy like me going around snatching up vesperratus tech. Layers upon layers of secrecy. It’s just how we are.”

“It’s at least somewhat reasonable considering possible interrogation by the enemy.”

“Yeah, but there’s also just the level of competition between each arm of the military.” Joshua shrugged. “It’s all a ‘need-to-know’ basis, and if you don’t, well, you get shafted. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if they play it up for propaganda reasons.”

“So, in a way, you’ve scored a victory for humans,” Tyra said.

“They’d sure want to spin it like that. Can you imagine the hell that’d be raised if everyone figured out some grunt and his alien girlfriend got a hold of a ride like this? Especially with that fancy ship trying to grab us.”

Even his casual jokes were, in his slang, playing with her heart.

“Fortunately, they are unaware of my presence,” she said.

“Yeah, it’s why I think it’ll be a while before anyone figures out the real story. I’m sure they know you need a special key to get in here, and they probably don’t make those just anywhere.”

Tyra tilted her head. “I wonder, are the vesperratus aware of you?”

“I don’t think that guy saw me before I shot. I took my chance the second that ship came rolling in.” He looked out into the vastness of space. “Those signalers have some range, huh?”

“Only as far as the edge of that solar system, I would wager. I imagine there is a good chance they were already in wait to attempt to use their new entrapment device. And once they noted a cry for help, they sprung immediately to take advantage of the situation.”

“The other guys don’t have anything like that, do they?” he asked, looking back to her.

“They do not. Certainly not something I am aware of, in any case.”

“Crazy. Those guys back on Earth actually came up with something new.”

“Yes, it’s a curious thing to finally see in this conflict. Humans are so quick to try new technologies in their conflicts, as I’ve learned. Naturally I would’ve expected something like this sooner.”

“Guess earthlings are finally done playing catch-up, so they can splurge on the crazy stuff now.”

That was a simple realization that Tyra hadn’t come to just yet. Now that humans had slowly sized up to the power of vesperratus, they no longer had to play themselves defensively. The bloodshed may yet still escalate. And with the potential belief that the vesperratus were mindless conjoined insectoids subservient only to violence, any measures may have been taken to eradicate them.

Tyra pictured that reclaimer yet again. Perhaps it was somewhat true. Violence drove a lot of her species, not out of the sheer delight in carnage, but out of the belief that nothing short of extermination would ever stop humans from their encroachment across the stars. It was their duty to kill out of self-preservation.

“You doing alright?” Joshua asked.

“Yes, I am fine.”

“Really? You’re doing that jaw grinding thing you do when you get antsy.” He rubbed his fingers together.

Tyra almost raised her hand to her mouth. She hadn’t realized he picked up on her smaller habits. “Sorry. Your words gave me a lot to think about.”

“I run my mouth when I get bored, just ignore me. We don’t really have to worry about that war stuff anymore, or whatever they’re cooking up to kill each other.”

“Maybe not the actual conflict, but I do wonder what the victor will do.”

Joshua paused, pulling one corner of his mouth back. “Nothing too crazy, I’m hoping. I’d like to think humans -- and the vesperratus -- wouldn’t just wipe each other out. And if they would, I just hope it happens long after I’m gone.”

“Maybe a third faction wouldn’t be such a terrible outcome after all.”

“There’s always a bigger fish. Though, that doesn’t mean the smaller fish are gonna gang up.”

“I must say, our talk of the war makes me appreciate our… Friendship in this far away place all the more.”

“Have to agree. I’d definitely blow up my arm all over again if I had to.” Joshua chuckled.

Tyra tittered back, trying to emulate some level of human laughter. Lithovespan emotions, while painted colorfully in the tapestry of pheromones, seemed so physically dull now. A simple smile forming on Joshua’s lips was a cheery explosion that only made her happier. Maybe it truly was love. She could name every muscle in his face that formed the expression, but all of that scientific jargon evaporated from her thoughts the second she looked at him. The longing for a kiss grew all the more.

“And I would sew it back up just as delicately,” Tyra replied.

“I dunno about that. I probably deserved a bit more pain with how I acted.” His eyes glanced to the screen. “I thanked you for that, didn’t I?”

“You certainly did.”

“Almost hard to keep track of what I have to thank you for.”

“It’s hardly necessary anymore. Nor do you have to apologize for your actions. Were I in your situation, I might have acted the very same way.” Perhaps even worse. “If anything, I must thank you for keeping me sane over these many days.”

“Really? Thought I was driving you crazy,” he said with a smile.

“I would say a touch of insanity is required for sanity,” she replied.

“That’s relieving.” He nodded. “Sometimes I wonder if I’ve already gone crazy myself. If you told me a few years back, this was where I’d end up, I’d have called you insane.”

“I would have been delighted, personally.”

“I’m definitely better off than I thought I’d be,” he replied. “Half convinced this war was started to get a bunch of people off Earth.”

“I wouldn’t necessarily put it past leaders to consider that option. It may very well be a similar conspiracy with the others of my kind.” Tyra looked to the screen, watching the dubious hero tug at hiding kin. “Or maybe some underlying desire to prove to themselves that leaving the safety of home was not a mistake.”

“It’s probably a trend for any successful animal to want to leave home. Only problem is, we can realize how bad of an idea it can be.”

Tyra nodded. She supposed, then, violence was almost an inevitability in the face of two expanding species. A blatant realization, though a frustrating one. Tyra was proof enough that they could get along on some level. Not that she would sing praises for all humans everywhere, she knew they were capable of terrible things in their own way, but amicable enough to leave each other at an arm’s length.

Unlikely that either side would realize that until a victor was crowned, or their bloodshed became so ravenous that a ceasefire was called. Tyra supposed that, aside from outright genocide, those were the most likely and possible options.

“Even if we were to run away, the ramifications of such a war are worrisome,” she said.

“Any point in worrying about it if we can’t do anything?” Joshua offered a weary smile, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I mean, not to sound defeatist or anything, but everyone’s dead set on this happening. We can sit it out.”

Tyra’s head dipped. “No different from how I carried myself in my work before being taken up by the military. Pretending as if nothing were happening.”

“I’d say you had a reason for that.”

“I would wager that others did it for their own reasons, leaving me to stew in my work.” She tilted her head. “Does anger exude from me?”

Joshua’s weary smile lightened. “Sorry, what?”

“A strange thing to ask suddenly. I keep thinking back to that reclaimer who spoke to me.”

“When we made our daring escape, right.”

Tyra chittered at his words. “Yes, our daring escape.” She nodded. “He insisted that I was placed where I was to prevent my emotions from running wild.”

Joshua’s grip on her tightened. “You’re hotheaded and somehow smart at the same time. I think that makes you pretty great. Probably worried you’d steal your job from them. Makes me happy you’re not the military type.”

“Hotheaded?”

“You get a little excited over things sometimes.”

“Ah, you mean to say I am quick to anger.”

“In a nicer way than that, sure.” He gave a sheepish nod.

She laughed. “Anger has its uses.”

“Helped you get this far, right?”

“True, but it won’t help in every matter.” She placed her hand over his. “When do you suppose either side will give up their search for us?”

“Dunno. I may have had my stint in the military, but you’d know way more about it than me.”

“I’m… uncertain. It may be quickly, or may stretch forever.” She paused. “What did you have planned after your time in the military?”

“I was hoping I could go back home and start a family. Make my parents proud.” He raised his brows briefly. “Guess it’s a bit simple, but simple is better than where I was going.” Joshua turned his head. “Kinda curious what you had in mind.”

“I’m not sure I had ever planned for anything past my work, least of all when I was drawn into a military post.” She nodded. “And as for what I’d want to do in this moment…” Best left unsaid. She shrugged.

“Maybe a human-centric concept, but you never thought of starting a family, yourself?” A smile tugged at his lips. “Not that I’m entirely sure how that family thing works out for you.”

“I suppose I had little interest in the idea. The urge for a family never particularly sunk into my thoughts. I was preoccupied with work, to the point where males rarely crossed paths with me, and when they did, they were prohibited from a relationship with another in their military squad. And now, it seems, few wanted to cross paths with me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Planetside, during our escape, the reclaimer noted how anger seemed to stain me. I can’t necessarily disagree. He smelled it on me.”

“I think you had a right to be angry for a pretty long time,” he said. “Plus, the guy was dealing with an enemy. I doubt he’d toss you a bone for any reason.”

“Maybe I had reason to be angry, but controlling it was another matter.”

“I’m still around, aren’t I? I’d say, y’know, not snuffing me out was a good first step.”

“Hardly motherly material.”

Joshua returned his hand to his side. “I’m sure it would be different when it came to kids. I’m sure you know how humans get when they have their own kids.”

“It’s a universal trait that extends to even the Vesperratus. Unfortunately, my status as a pariah severely undercuts any possibility of a future family.”

“Sorry,” Joshua said. He looked to the screen.

“Is human romance as fantastical as they make it seem?” she asked.

Joshua snapped back to her. “Huh?”

“Knowledge of human cultural staples, such as romance, are limited to what remains of entertainment. Ships hardly carry research materials not pertinent to space itself. The way romance is shown is often magical, yet fickle. Would you agree?”

“I’m not sure I’m the right guy to ask that.” Joshua gave a soft, if nervous chuckle. “Not sure I’ve really had the spark with anyone else. I mean, enough of a spark to make some dumb choices, sure, but I can’t say I’ve really felt that magic.” His expression hardened for a moment as he looked to her, then he lapsed back into a smile. “I’ve seen others go through it, and it seems to just hurt, you know? Is… that anything like how you guys go through it?”

“Somewhat. Love is the only emotion that we have not bound under our all-encompassing culture. While we may tend to which partner brings the most pleasing genes to the senses, many… still tend to the idea of a life partner to cherish. Consider it an open secret.”

“Better than how my culture did it. Practically law to hate your partner by the time you’re in your 40’s. If there’s any magic to romance, it runs out quick when you’re younger.”

Tyra nodded. She supposed that the shallow nature of genetics set a precedent of treating the relationship as a job. Vesperratus were good at following orders. Still, she wondered then what it was like between those who sought out that mysterious sense of love vibrating in their chitin. Was it anything like how she felt now? No. Whatever magical romance they were operating on still had a root in logic. They stayed within the boundaries of their species.

“But,” he started, “I’d like to think real love does exist. Somehow. Maybe it’s just me being naive, but hey, I’ve seen enough in the past weeks to know nothing’s impossible at this point.”

“Perhaps its rarity makes it all the more precious?”

“Or makes it hurt more,” he said.

“I would have to agree.”

The conversation came to a stop as they stared at the screen. Maybe it was best they all stayed on their planets, unbothered by the pains the cosmos brought. Ignorance is bliss, and with that bliss, the denial of all the experiences that crushed sentient creatures in the wrath of emotions. The heights of joy to the depths of pain, and all the writhing emotions that sent them each way.

Or perhaps the Lithovespan desire to remain loyal to one’s species with violent fervor was the perfect shield against these issues. Perhaps, in a sense, they hadn’t left the underground at all, merely shifted its metaphorical ceiling to the very stars, carving through and crushing anything that could pose a threat against mundane life. Bliss with a dash of violence. It wasn’t as though Tyra were a stranger to those sensibilities. She may have had a higher sense of respect for humans than most, but that didn’t preclude her from making her own rash assumptions about their tendencies. Only now had she grown to truly enjoy and cherish a human in their own right.

Tyra hadn’t even realized that the video came to a stop, the screen now requesting a new input. Joshua was already at the rations, going through them.

“Want anything to eat?” he asked.

“No, thank you,” she replied.