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Smaller Chihuahua-like race is seen spontaneously levitating away in the background.

Being chased by a medical team and a chemical weapon team.

When the humans were questioned. They simply stated. "It's northern Michigan in early summer. We told them to soak themselves in the repellants. They are milder than the noseeums."

Edit: A: "the whatseeums?!"

H: The noseeums. They bite like horse flies but you can't see them.

A: HORSEFLIES?!

Y'know the helicopter scene in Apocalypse Now? The one with Ride Of The Valkyries? Imagine it with mosquitoes, albeit slightly bigger than the choppers. That's summer in Winnipeg.

Now that the Red Planet is infested by rovers, a semi-regular winter news item is "Today local temperatures are once again colder than the surface of Mars -- before wind chill. Bundle up!"

Wanna know how tough Ukrainians are? They like Winnipeg weather.

Thanks for pointing this out! Writers can't grow without critics (not saying you're critical).

In my mind, the 2-species planet that goes to war each election is more stable than humanity. They fight, a winner is declared, a Senator is sent, and the two species go back to peaceful cooperation. Now look at humanity's history of wars, where things like WWI directly causing WWII, and WWII sparking the Cold War era and the Korean war and Vietnam war and countless proxy wars... in the alien's view, did WWI ever actually end? Or does each war only serve to start up the next one?

I hope that makes sense. I wrote this while up with my fussy infant at 1 AM, so I apologize if I didn't make that cohesive enough.

“Take hold of your hearts brothers and sisters! For these trenches shall be our tomb. The enemy stands in the east one hundred of them for every one of us. But our loss is not whole, for if we can keep this line steady for six hours then those of us behind our lines may yet escape massacre.”

There is silence in the ranks, Heil does not blame them. Who would want to die here? Maybe if it wasn't so cloudy it would be better. He thinks as he walks between his prefect valiant soldiers. Shen, a trusted commander, with Heil from the earliest days of his service intercepts his walk and pulls him away from the rest of the soldiers.

“Sir, take to the others fleeing from the city. Without you they do not stand a chance!”

“Shen, please gather yourself. We must be calm now and face this impending dread. How can I tell these people to refuse to yield when I would not do the same for them? There is another among their ranks who I trust, who will lead better than I ever could have.”

Distant cannons rock the earth and shells begin to rain down upon the neatly dug lines. Cries and guns break the silence between the blasts and for the smallest moment light breaks from between the clouds and kisses the rebels with its warm embrace. Shen grips at his friend's shoulder with mist in his eyes.

“Sir, please. There is no need for such a sacrifice.”

“Hold your head high Shen, it's time for us to be the bravest we have ever been. I was a coward when the God of our enemy was against us and we had to throw away brave men and women to steal another day from his cursed grasp. I was a coward when I sent you to deal and dine with criminals in the depths of the city so I might save my reputation for the rebellion. I was a coward when I sent you all to execute the lords of the land while I sat within my headquarters. Even now I paint my cowardice as bravery. I ordered children killed, families slaughtered, I sent young people to their graves in droves. I suffer endlessly under the weight of those choices. I will not live to see justice, instead I for once do what I have told others to do.”

Heil can see the enemy now as they approach the first row of trenches. Machine guns roar along with rifles while the ground soaks with blood. The dead and dying lay all throughout the battlefield. The green grasses quickly dissipate and become a mudded brown scorched by fire. For three long hours the struggle till the smoke clears and the enemy retreats to lick their wounds.

Heil can feel pain in his side, a bullet has struck him through his stomach and exertion from battle has tried him too far to tend it. Shen lay dead and gray, killed mere minutes after speaking with Heil. But three hours remain, Heil knows he will not live to see them. He finds a long rod and jams it between the trenches. His rifle barrel finds a home in the mud with the stock planted firmly in his chest. Slinging his arm over the rod he breathes, waiting for relief.

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More like humans are Space Tourists. No special powers, no invincibility, just a willingness to travel and compare it to home.

Single biome planets are a staple of science fiction as it is, and it's easy for a species to stick with its comfort zone as long as there is no pressure to change. And "unified species" make it easy to play the segmentation game. I'm guessing that the Parliament was split four ways, with constantly shifting political allegiances. Earth's tourism was enough to show up the extremists, and bring together the lesser extremes.

...Not that I don't like a good Humans Are Space Orcs story, heh.

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Armor Piercing Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot. Why in the hell I know that thing?

I’d read the shit out of a book like this

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Woman and a man with passion for medieval style of fighting, have a duel against each other in a medieval fair, result was a bitter draw. Who knew such would spark something so great between these two.

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Claymores were used in this respect, have guys swinging the bloody things in wide arcs under the pikes to cut the legs out from anything just out of reach of the tips of the pikes.

I could totally see children being used like this. The reality of children in warfare is chilling.

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I lost my "Carol" last month. You did an excellent job of describing the process of this sort of thing. You tend to forget the little, stupid things like that just become part of the everyday wallpaper until you eat, or drink, or smell something that reminds you of the person that used to be there.

Every time I smell something cherry or hear the sound of boots clomping, I think my "Carol" is walking up behind me and I turn to see nothing. And it's enough to break the heart every single time.

And I'm not sure what I'm going to do on her first birthday without her later this year, myself.

Very, very effective writing. 10/10.

Sapient/sentient is my Berenstain Bears. I could swear their definitions have flipped since college in the mid-2000s.

I was expecting the fourth to be cats 🐱 but mice were and unexpected twist

Ah, I see now. I thought you meant whoever takes over =P

I'd love to see Blockbuster come back from the depths and take them to task. That'd just be hilarious. Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, and Family Video just lock arms and make an amazing streaming service.

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"Texas? Sounds harmless, let's go." - Xeno tour guide # 516 (Repitilian predator). Last seen 6 weeks ago in the far eastern sector of the target polity.

"Craziest tasting gator boudin ever." - swamp dweller.

i visited Kansas way back when i was scared of thunderstorms, and i had an awful time because of it lmaoo

then i went back after i got over it and had a good time swimming with the jellyfish in potato lake

Glad you liked it :)

Thanks :)