The Privateer

Scarrend had stewed in surly silence throughout the tour. The Captain noticed, but didn't acknowledge it, either unwilling or unable to break the ice and put the Vrrl at ease. Probably both, Yvian decided. Mims wasn't a people person to begin with, and he had no love for the Vrrl as a species. He also had Scarrend pegged as a moody asshole. Yvian didn't disagree, but she still wanted to break the tension. He was part of the crew now, after all.

Yvian wished Lissa was here. Yvian wasn't good with people like her sister was. Unfortunately, she was on the Priderender in Vrrl space, having just finalized the alliance with the Starfang Empire. Yvian had been nervous about her going, even with three Peacekeeper units serving as escort, but the talks had gone well. Very well. It had taken a scant two weeks to hammer out the details, and Warmaster Scathach had personally requested the unit known as Ambassador Khan to stay with him as liaison and advisor. A different unit would have to be sent to the Vrrl Homeworld to serve as Pixa's official ambassador. The unit that was chosen had immediately dubbed himself Ambassador Ming.

Striking a deal with the Vrrl had been easy. The Warmaster had been eager to see it done. The hard part had been convincing the human. Mims did not want the Vrrl on his side. He definitely didn't want one on his ship. He especially didn't want to teach them how to fight like a human. Lissa and Kilroy had worked together to convince them. They had not been enough. Not by half. Not even with Yvian backing them up.

In the end, Skrell Scathach was the one who made the difference. He'd asked to speak with the Captain alone. Yvian still didn't know what was said. After three hours, the Captain came back. He had been furious. Shaken. He brushed off all questions and all attempts at communication, ordering that he be left alone. He walked straight to the room he'd set up for physical training. He came out two hours later, covered in sweat. His fists were battered and bleeding. He gave Lissa his consent and went to the kitchen, where he proceeded to get roaring drunk. Yvian and Lissa had both asked him what was wrong, what the Warmaster had told him. The human refused to speak of it.

"So..." Crunch take it, if Mims wouldn't get Scarrend talking, she would have to do it herself. "I've been meaning to ask." Scarrend snapped his slit pupiled yellow eyes to her. Yvian pretended it wasn't unnerving. "What's a Mafdet?"

The Vrrl simmered as he regarded her. Yvian didn't think he was going to answer, at first. When he spoke, it was grudging. "Mafdet is a rank. Academic. All Vrrl must achieve the First Ordinance to be considered adult. We must achieve the Second in order to serve on a ship, and the Third before we can vie for leadership."

"And you're a..." What had the Warmaster said. "A Sixth Ordinance?"

"Fifth," Scarrend growled. While Yvian was debating if she should apologize, he continued. "The First Ordinance is just basic education. Applied science, engineering, chemistry. Languages and the rules of the hunt. The Second is mastery of the self. The ability to control your instincts, to follow orders."

"You don't seem terribly in control of yourself," Mims noted coldly.

Scarrend bristled, drew himself up. Stopped walking. Yvian cursed under her breath. Crunch take it, why did the Captain have to be such a dick? "You..." the Vrrl started. A low growl escaped him, a deep, rumbling thing that echoed through the corridor. "You are..." He slumped. "Correct." The anger flowed out of him, replaced by a mournful dejection. "I am one of the youngest Vrrl to achieve the Fifth Ordinance in a generation. I was ninth Hsst of the Priderender, on course to become a Warmaster myself, someday." His lips curled in disgust. "Now I'm the lowest Hsst on a fighter, taking orders from prey animals. And for what!?" He slammed a pair fists against the bulkhead. "So I can catalogue the death of my species?"

The death of his species? "What are you talking about?" asked Yvian.

"A war of extinction," said Mims.

"Yes," the Vrrl confirmed.

"What?" Yvian looked between the stone faced human and the downcast Vrrl. "Why?"

"Because we are the Apex," Scarrend told her. "We have to be."

"Seriously?" This was about the tournaments. Yvian had watched them. One on one fights, human versus Vrrl. No weapons. To the death. She'd known the species had been shaken by their defeat. She'd known half the reason they'd allied with the Pixa was to get martial arts instruction from Mims. She hadn't known it was a problem that could bring about genocide. "That's stupid."

"I know." Scarrend closed his eyes, pulling himself together. He straightened his back, folding both pairs of arms behind it. "You must understand. My species does not worship stars, or the lifestream. We ate our gods."

"The Vrrl believe only in themselves," Mims added. "They're status as top of the food chain is the closest thing they have to religion."

"It is the core of who we are." Scarrend brought one of his hands forward, sheathing and unsheathing his claws. "The greatest of hunters. The deadliest form of life." He licked the back of his hand and rubbed it across his mane. "Our status and our faith in the empire are our only comfort in the hungry dark of the galaxy. Take them away, and we are nothing. If we cannot be the Apex," his growl echoed through the corridor. "Then we will become a Scourge. We will burn the worlds of the humans, extinguish their suns. We will drown them in our blood."

"And the humans will retaliate," Mims told him. "They'll kill every single one of your kind."

"I know. The Warmaster knows." Scarrend snorted. "It doesn't matter. Our people clamor for it, already. They would rather die gloriously than live as prey. We are delaying as best we can, but the war is inevitable. Even the Emperor cannot keep it at bay for long."

"But Scathach sent you here," Yvian pointed out. "He wouldn't do that if there wasn't any hope."

"Of course he would," Scarrend scoffed. "He is a Mafdet of the Ninth Ordinance. He will do everything in his power to save us, no matter the cost or the odds. My coming here, this study of human violence, it is a ploy. A political trick, to buy time. Even if I learn why the humans are more dangerous than us, it will not make them less so." The look he gave Mims was both frustrated and curious. "Though I suppose it is a mystery worth solving. No fangs, no claws, and physically weaker by every measurable standard. You've only got two arms, for scat's sake."

"Well," the Captain scratched the back of his head. "Let's finish the tour, and I'll show you why."

Kilroy joined them once they reached the bridge, and they travelled back down to the living quarters. The rooms on the lower deck had been set up for various forms of training. They entered the one the human referred to as the "dojo."

It was not a large space. Five meters by five meters. The deck was covered in a blue mat for padding, and training implements were secured to the walls. Gloves, strike pads, and melee weapons of various types.

"Time for your first lesson," said Mims.

Scarrend drew himself up to his full height with a growl. "Yes. Let us see if you are as dangerous as the Warmaster claims."

"Not me," Mim shook his head. He pointed at Yvian. "Her."

"The pixen?" Scarrend stared at Yvian in confusion. "But they're the softest of paws. All they do is scream and die."

Yvian glared at him. "Try me." She took a stance.

"Isn't she the only one who can use Lucendian technology?" The Vrrl protested. "Surely you don't mean for me to kill her."

"She will not die," Kilroy assured him. "This unit will prevent fatalities." The Peacekeeper drew a stunshot pistol from a holster in his suit.

"Don't hold back, either of you," Mims ordered. "Fight as hard as you can."

Yvian nodded. Fear and adrenaline rocketed through her, making it hard to stay relaxed. Scarrend was half a meter taller than her. He outweighed her by nearly a hundred kilos. The size difference would be trouble enough if she was up against another pixen, but the Vrrl were known to shred bone with their claws. Their jaws could bite off a limb, or crush skulls. Not that he needed them. A Vrrl was five times stronger than the average pixen, and she'd seen how fast they could move.

Scarrend eyed the human for another moment, then growled. "Very well." Yvian let out a slow breathe as the beast crouched slightly, legs coiled to spring.

Mims had coached Yvian extensively for this fight. He'd outlined their tactics, made her watch the holos of them fighting humans. They'd trained for this in every way they could. He leaned back against a bulkhead, arms crossed. Only a slight tension in his shoulders gave away his worry. He hadn't wanted Yvian to be the one to do this. Yvian didn't want it, either, but she knew it was the best play they could make. Now she just had to beat a hundred sixty kilogram killing machine with her bare hands. Or at least put up a good fight.

The Vrrl nearly always attacked the same way. They would leap. Four claws would grasp their opponent, and their snapping jaws would crush the skull. The move was easy to counter, if you knew what to do. And if you could see it coming. Yvian was ready.

Scarrend did not leap. He shot forward. A clawed hand snapped around Yvian's wrist. He was going to pull her in. Another jolt of adrenaline shot up through her legs, but she didn't have time to feel it. In less than a second, she'd be pulled into the Vrrl's embrace, and she would die. Or at least, lose.

Yvian made the only move she could. She shot forward herself, moving with the enemy's pull. She twisted her body, adding the full force of her hips and shoulders to the force of the Vrrl's yank. Her fist whipped out like the end of a whip. She hoped her aim was good.

Her aim was good. A blow to the head or the abdomen wouldn't have done much, but her fist sank into Scarrend's throat. The strike staggered the Vrrl. He stumbled back, gagging. His grip spasmed, allowing Yvian to twist her wrist out of his grip. Even better, he was fully upright, knees straight and locked. Her body was moving before she noticed the vulnerability, capitalizing on the weakness without the need for conscious thought. Her weight dropped as she pivoted, foot smashing into place just below the creature's knee. A sickening crackle as the joint gave way. A startled, gurgling yelp. The Vrrl fell.

Scarrend's scrabbling claws nearly caught her on the way down. She jumped back, batting them away at the cost of minor lacerations. She darted back in the moment he hit the ground. She couldn't let up. Not for a moment. The second Scarrend regained his wits, he'd either grab her or let loose with a roar. The higher pitched cries of pain were loud enough to make her ears hurt. If he let loose with a deep, proper roar, he might shatter her eardrums. It would certainly freeze her for a moment. She'd seen it on the tournament holos. Something about the volume or frequency would paralyze the nervous system. Not for long. A second or two at most. But long enough.

Grappling with Scarrend would be tough. Possibly fatal. Against his extra arms and sheer physical power, most of her techniques would be useless. Not to mention the claws. Punches and kicks wouldn't do much better. She wasn't strong enough to cause real damage that way.

Yvian knew what to do. She'd trained for this. She needed two more joints. Two more limbs, and she could win. Scarrend had landed on his side. His good leg was wide open, but Yvian didn't take it. She'd have to wrap her body around his leg to get the leverage to pop the knee. It would be too easy for him to grab her. If he got a solid grip, she was done. He could crush her bones with one good squeeze.

She went for an arm instead. The lower one, on the left. She cupped one hand on the bottom of back of his massive paw, the other clamped around his wrist. She turned with her whole body, twisting the arm towards her center in a direction the joint wasn't meant to go. The Vrrl realized what she was doing, but he was too late. His muscles tensed near the end of her move, and she had all the leverage. The wrist snapped. The Vrrl yowled.

Scarrend yanked his arm back. Yvian couldn't let go fast enough. She tumbled forward. She was on one knee, one hand on the deck. Claws latched onto her shoulder. With one arm broken, and the other two on the deck, he only had one hand to control her with. One was enough. He drew her face towards his maw.

Once again, Yvian did the only thing she could think of. She drove two fingers into his left eye. Her fingers curled in a scooping motion as she struck. She'd been trying to pop it out of it's socket, but the angle was wrong. Instead she squished it, popped it. The creature's scream nearly made her ears bleed. She tried to use the distraction to break free. It didn't work.

The Vrrl went wild. His claws in her shoulder tightened, pulverizing the joint. As she screamed, the monster bucked off the ground, spinning Yvian and slamming her into the deck. Claws raked her, splitting her abdomen. His maw opened, rushing forward to clamp onto her skull. Yvian was going to die before she even finished her scream.

Scarrend slumped. His open mouth smacked into Yvian's forehead. Fangs nicked her skin. The impact bounced her head off the deck hard enough to stun her. It took her a moment to realize what had happened. Kilroy had hit him with the stunshot.

The Vrrl's weight only pressed down on her for another second before Kilroy lifted him off. The Peacekeeper unit unceremoniously tossed Scarrend to the side. Yvian's torso was on fire. Kilroy pressed a device up to her neck. A quick hiss as the machine delivered it's payload. Cool numbness spread through Yvian's body. She sat up.

A dozen lacerations had torn through her shirt and some of her ribs. The ones on her stomach were deep enough to see her intestines. The sight should have hit Yvian with a wave of nausea, but the painkillers were doing their job.

"Holy fucking Crunch," she swore. "That sucked."

"You did great," said the Captain.

"I lost," Yvian reminded him.

"You didn't have to win," he answered. "You just had to hurt him."

Yvian nodded, debating whether or not she should stand. She didn't feel any pain, but she'd taken a lot of damage. There was no guarantee she'd stay conscious if she pushed it.

"You have suffered severe lacerations, and your shoulder is heavily damaged," Kilroy reported. "You will require treatment, but your life is not in immediate danger."

"Thank you," she smiled at him. "And thank you for saving my life."

"This unit would never allow you to be destroyed," Kilroy told her.

"Aww," she crooned. He really did care.

"This unit was tasked with managing your incompetence." The Peacekeeper continued. "The other units would made fun of this unit if this unit failed."

"Oh." His eyes weren't flashing yellow. Yvian wondered if he was serious. "Uh, thanks... I guess?"

"You are welcome."

A low growl snapped Yvian's attention back to Scarrend. The Vrrl shook himself, propping himself up on hands and one knee. His gaze fell on Yvian, and he snarled. The roar that followed was deafening. Even through the painkillers, Yvian's body seized up. Heedless of his ruined knee, the Vrrl leapt.

Suddenly Kilroy was in front of her. He caught Scarrend by the throat, held him in the air. The Vrrl roared again, snapping and slavering. Claws lashed out, slashing the Peacekeeper faster than Yvian could see. Scarrend's left eye was gone, but the others were wild, bloodshot. His broken wrist flopped around as he tried to use it, heedless of the pain.

Kilroy endured the onslaught with perfect patience until the Vrrl knocked off his fedora. As the back of his shiny metal head was revealed, the Peacekeeper unit's eyes turned red. His arm moved faster than Yvian could blink. So fast she wouldn't have been sure it moved it all, if it weren't for the meaty thwack that followed. The Vrrl stopped swinging, howling louder. Yvian realized the thwack was actually four thwacks put together. All four of the creature's shoulders had been pulverized.

"Stupid meatbag," said Kilroy. He let go of Scarrend's throat. Before the Vrrl could hit the ground, the Peacekeeper's foot slammed into his abdomen. It was much slower than whatever Kilroy had done to the creature's shoulders, but fast and hard enough to send the monster across the room. He bounced off the far bulkhead and fell to the deck. The Vrrl spasmed, the wind knocked out of him. "Calm down."

It took another minute or two for the Vrrl to stop writhing and snarling. The Captain waited til his breathing had settled somewhat, which took even longer. He walked over and knelt by Scarrend, a hypo spray in his hand.

"Keep your painkillers, human," Scarrend spat. "I don't need them."

"Shut up." Mims pressed the hypo into the Vrrl's neck. The Vrrl let out a relieved sigh as the medicine took hold.

"So." Mims stood up. "What'd you think of the fight?"

Scarrend eyed the human with cold fury.

"You can talk, now" Mims told him. "Answer the question."

The Vrrl snorted. "I won. I would have killed her, if not for the machine."

"I thought you were supposed to be smart. Mafdet of the Fifth Ordinance?" The human shook his head. "Go deeper. Try again."

Scarrend considered. His gaze fell on Yvian. "She... she injured me."

Mims crossed his arms. His "and..." dripped with condescension.

"No pixen has ever done that." The wounded monster let his head fall back against the deck. "Injured one of the Vrrl. Enhancements?"

"No," said the Captain. "Not in the way that you think."

"It wasn't like fighting a pixen at all," Scarrend mused. "It was like fighting..."

"It was like fighting a human," the Captain finished for him. "Yvian is as dangerous as a Federation Marine, give or take."

The Vrrl's brows furrowed. Yvian noted with some instance that the middle eye stayed open and staring. No eyebrows on that one. "How?"

"She's been training with me for two years," the human explained.

"Training?" Scarrend thought a moment. "I've heard of this, I think. Prey animals must repeat the same task over and over in order to learn it."

"Something your kind doesn't do," Mims agreed. "You can learn a language in a day. Shoot with perfect accuracy the first time you pick up a gun. Play a song by ear on an instrument you've never touched before."

"Of course," said the Vrrl. "We are Apex."

"And that's your problem," said the Captain. "You never had to try. Never had to think about what you're doing." He uncrossed his arms, placing them against his hips. "You consider physical abilities to be intrinsic. You either have them or you don't. That's why your such shitty fighters."

"Shitty?" Scarrend snorted. "We are the most dangerous creatures in the verse."

"Then why are you getting your asses kicked with a five hundred percent strength advantage?" Mims asked. "Hmm? Hell, you can freeze an opponent with your voice alone. You bastards should be slaughtering us in hand to hand."

Scarrend said nothing. Mims continued, "You fight on instinct, getting by on aggression and superior physicality. You idiots pride yourself on your intellectual prowess, but you never apply any of it to the shit you're doing."

"I can think during a fight," the Vrrl protested.

"But you don't think about how to fight," the human spat. "We call them martial arts, but they're not. Not really. They're martial science. They are the study of how to use our bodies, and the most effective ways to break someone else's." He leaned over the Vrrl, eyes boring into him. "They are skills, and skills have to be learned and practiced."

Scarrend was silent, thinking. The pause seemed awkward to Yvian, but the Captain didn't seem to care. Finally, the Vrrl spoke. "You're saying that humans applied science to combat."

"Yes."

"And through that science, they developed knowledge to make their violence more effective."

"Yes."

"Knowledge that can be..." There was a small hitch in his voice. "Transferred?"

"Trained," Mims corrected.

"Power." The Vrrl's eyes widened. "You convert science into physical power."

"Knowledge is always power," Mims chided. "You should know that already."

Scarrend looked at Yvian again. "And you don't have to be human to use it." Disbelief colored his voice. "Can it be? Is it really possible to learn this power?"

"Not from a-" Kilroy started.

"Time and a place, Kilroy," Yvian cut him off. She didn't want the Peacekeeper to ruin the moment.

"It's not just possible," Mims glowered down at the Vrrl. "It's why you're here."

The Vrrl let out a sound. Like a sob, but higher pitched. Sadder, somehow. It sounded like, "Mroww." Tears fell from his two unpopped eyes. "Teach me. Teach me, and I will follow you to the ends of the verse. Your foes will be my foes. Your troubles will be my prey. I swear. By my claws and teeth. By blood and bone I swear. I swear it on the Empire, and by the name Scarrend Scathach. Teach me, Scargiver, and I will serve you til the last of my breath."

The Captain stared down at the wounded man. His gaze was cold as the void. The Vrrl was impressed and intimidated, but Yvian knew better. Mims wasn't weighing or judging anything. He just didn't know what to say. The Vrrl's outburst had embarrassed him beyond words. It was adorable, really. Yvian covered her mouth with her hand, carefully stifling the giggle trying to escape her clamped lips.

An eternity later, the human known as Mims gave his answer. "I've already taken the job, Scarrend. You don't gotta flatter me."