r/HFY • u/SpacePaladin15 • 23h ago
OC-Series Primal Rage 75
Patreon [Early Access] | Official Subreddit | Discord
I remembered the first time I’d arrived at NASA, terrified of being delivered into the human government’s custody, but I’d trusted Wade’s advice for the lack of a better alternative. Back at that point, my belief had been that the primals wanted to kill us from the moment we arrived. It was impossible to describe my delight at being back here, home, with Finley; the familiar building where my habitat was housed filled me with joy. It was all I could do not to grab his calloused hand and drag him off to a picnic.
The human scientists who’d taken me in applauded, as we strolled through the front door and waved. The researchers were all but drooling when they spotted Garriil, eager to learn about the new Kexin. Technically, Kexins had visited Earth when Snelga briefly stepped out at the handoff; however, they hadn’t ever spoken with one or seen such an alien up close. The most I’d said about their species was talking about Ushala on a late-night show. Kaitlin’s trove of knowledge would be catching them up to speed, if it hadn’t already.
Humans are so hungry to learn that they probably started on the framework for a translator and pulled all-nighters to inhale their culture. They wanted to know everything about Saphnos, down to how lucid our dreams were and what our exercise equipment looked like. Well, at least they weren’t sociopathic like Garriil about having that curiosity sated…uh oh.
“So many subjects! What a perfect opportunity to see if the educated ones are less angry, or if it’s just Kaitlin!” the Kexin gushed. “I have so many questions about primal hierarchy and workplace dynamics. I would love to hire humans—I think these ones would volunteer to go abroad, and then we could study them more! So curious and welcoming!”
I gawked at Garriil. “Garriil, they’re people, and you’re a guest among some of their smartest individuals; this is a place to study extraterrestrial life and astrophysics. They’re serious academics, more so than you.”
“I know. I am studying extraterrestrial life too. Look, I’ll ask them; I’m sure my interest won’t be of offense to them. I’m not diminishing them at all. I want conclusive data about humankind and their unique interactions. My research demands it.”
“Aren’t you scared of being around so many primals on the loose?” Finley sneered.
“Of course not. This is wonderful, because it’s never been safe to study primals on this broad of a scale, let alone the ones with the greatest complexity! You feel safe and in control here, for now, and you have social consequences for anger. There is too much security here for it to become dangerous to me. Again, for now.”
“The fuck does that mean?”
Garriil clucked his tongue. “You always were an agitable one, Finley. You will not be my baseline for long. I need other test subjects to be able to claim any comprehensive knowledge of humans.”
“Why did we let this asshole come here, after what he did to you?” Terry demanded. “He shouldn’t be walking around free.”
“I’m the reason the Council listened to you. The extreme measures were merited, because it’s the extreme circumstances that worry us about your control; it must be assessed at all degrees of anger. Look, all I want is to observe human behavior and…natural responses. This opportunity to see Earth up close will tell me what you’re really like!”
Finley bit his lower lip. “Craun, you can eat him now. Be a good rock monster.”
“Yes, boss,” I prodded. “Do you want me to save his headfeathers for your welcome home grilled cheese?”
“You betcha. It’ll be crunchy flavor for the picnic.”
“Primal attempts to make me uncomfortable with absurd threats due to anger,” Garriil muttered, scribbling his notes. “Speaks like I’m not even there. This last part would trigger anger in fellow packmates. Further data on these interactions needed in their natural habitat.”
Terry frowned. “Should we make it a drinking game to take a shot every time he writes aloud?”
“Nah,” Finley snorted. “I just got home. I ain’t wanna die.”
The Kexin bounced on the heels of his feet. “Oh, inebriation? I would love to see humans with lowered inhibitions, especially if you willingly drug yourself. We can witness the true extent of the rage under the surface and with limited control…double-impaired judgment. That’s a good idea! I should make a note: techno bars on Ushala would be unwise to serve you. It pushes you to your limits.”
“Ugh, you’re asking for a bar fight now, Garriil. I’d happily give it to you sober. I mean, shit, I need a drink just to listen to you say the word research.”
“Alcohol makes Finley happier and more social,” I remarked. “Humans aren’t inhibiting that much anger and aggression. They want to have friends and goof off—study that. They become a lot when intoxicated, and also become much louder.”
Finley made a pouty face. “Why are you helping him?”
“Because he’s going to write papers on you that the whole Council will read, and I want humans to be appreciated and accepted. Reducing you to just primals who can have your settings tampered with to make you act out…it’s insulting.”
“Aw, I knew I liked you for a reason, Craun. I might have to do something about it.”
“Just mostly straight friendship rituals,” Terry drawled. “Nothing to see here.”
I puffed a cloud of smoke at him. “As the local saying goes, I’m going to kill you.”
“As the local saying goes, bless your heart!”
“I…don’t understand this one.”
“I wanna see you try to figure it out as a palate cleanser from Garriil and Snelga, so I’m not gonna help, sweetie,” Finley chuckled. “Wait, where did Garriil go?”
I glanced around, finding him approaching an excited researcher named Daryl, who I’d spoken to a few times. “Well, he’s allowed to interact, and he is the only Kexin who’ll come here. Let’s see how this plays out; I’m sure these smart people can handle themselves. I’ll watch him though. I owe NASA too much not to.”
I waded through a sea of scientists to approach the Kexin subtly, and accepted the warm welcomes; I also shook hands with a few military officers, offering my gratitude for everything humanity had done—both for me and the Saphnos who wouldn’t fully appreciate them. The primals were all smiles, quite exuberant to have succeeded in their recovery mission. There was a certain safeness here with the Earthlings, trusting them not to give me up the way the Council would.
I would have never imagined how protective and generous primals could be; it’s that deep loyalty that always reminds me of why I love them, regardless of how illogical they can be with their drivenness.
At this point, it was evident to me how the humans must’ve felt through all of this, and that it had nothing to do with anger, for the most part. These same people who worked at NASA were caught off-guard when they were told about my presence on Earth, with many thinking that it was a hoax at first according to Kaitlin. Their entire species had experienced confusion, wonderment, and pain at being left out of the galaxy; it’d been an exercise in futility, to convince the Council’s expedition that they were civilized.
Now, the humans were reunited with the first alien they’d inducted into their culture at long last. This scary primal world had become more than the Saphnos’ last hope; it was home. I did want to see the Venus colony and work to “slap some sense” into Administrator Pelpau (though then again, I thought it’d do more harm than good to have those Saphnos thinking I was going primal). However, I doubted Finley had any interest in leaving Earth, after his prolonged abduction. It’d felt wrong for me just to step into the other room with Rauja, so I didn’t want to gallop off to Venus.
Daryl had his chair turned backward and leaned against the front of it, his eyes glittering with excitement as he found that the Kexin was more than happy to be questioned. “Our names rhyme! Sorry, that’s unprofessional; we’re just used to…”
“Yes?” Garriil prompted, unblinking while his pen hovered over his notepad.
“Well, Craun used to take bagels and wear them on the asymmetrical part of his head. He called them his tiara. When we would laugh at him, he’d ask why we made fun of his hat, but Finley’s was okay. He claimed he was ‘camouflaging’ himself. He posted videos of himself doing this on his social media with titles like Fooling Primals Into Thinking I’m One of Them. I love that vid…”
I do too, Daryl.
The Kexin’s eyes were glassy and tranquil. “Please be your natural selves. Professionalism muddies my results; it’s filtering your true thoughts. I am a humble observer! Also, it sounds like this bagel thing actually worked…I may try it. I would like to try eating primal food too. Does anger impact your levels of sanitation?”
“Huh?” Daryl squinted, looking perplexed. “Uh, I’m not sure how anger could possibly impact sanitation, but we…have health and safety standards. And germ theory, but uh, you must know that. I could get you a bagel. Awesome that you’re taking an interest, that’s really sweet! I’m sure it’s a lot to be on Earth with us. Let me know if there’s anything we can do to make you more comfortable, you don’t need to pretend.”
“Perhaps some cameras so I can remotely observe your dynamics and keep myself aware of the safety levels. You know, for my peace of mind, if it gets too much. I want to be included,” Garriil lied. No. Do not give that to him…
“That’s a little weird, but I mean, if we tell everyone and they agree to it…”
“Hidden cameras. If you’re all aware of them, how reliable is that data? You’re smart enough not to act out in front of them.”
“That’s completely unethical, I’m afraid we can’t grant that request as you’ve phrased it. People have a reasonable expectation of privacy; don’t yours?”
The Kexin glanced over at me, making direct eye contact before twitching like I was his long-lost solution. “I meant no disrespect, I was simply curious to observe unfiltered human behavior. Of course, I mean no distress or intrusion. You should have the right to agree to experiments, now that I know you’re not animals. It’s just difficult to get used to when I’ve always worked at the institute. I’ve never worked with any primals even close to your level, Daryl!”
“Which is why we can just learn about each other by talking,” the NASA researcher replied with a wide smile.
“I’ll happily write down anything I learn about you. You’re a scientist, you know the importance of backing up what people say with objective observations. I’m quite happy to teach you about Kexins!”
Daryl leaned back, clicking his own pen and looking optimistic. “Awesome! We’d love to be brought up to speed on other carbon lifeforms and your biology, especially since that data can save lives medically or through avoiding blind spots. Let’s start with your patagium: that is, the membrane beneath your arms which allows gliding. Do you use them often or are they vestigial?”
Garriil’s eyes gleamed. “Did Kaitlin have anything to say on the matter?”
“That she never saw Snelga use hers, and that some Kexins have them surgically removed. That it didn’t seem to affect quality of life.”
“She’s correct, as usual. It was remarkable how quickly she learned, and I don’t mean in the demeaning sense of ‘compared to other primals.’ I mean compared to anyone. She absorbs knowledge like a sponge! The wing flaps are vestigial. A few Kexins glide for leisure activities, in the same sense that humans can learn to swim. Not that we don’t swim too, but you get my analogy.”
“I understand what you mean, Garriil. We’d love to see some examples of gliding activities. I’m fascinated to know the effects it had on your social development! Is that the reason for the multi-leveled cities?”
“Our ancestors lived in high-up places. If anything, our settlements have gotten closer to the ground over time. Once you’ve used up all the space in an area, the only way to build is up. You stack yours in the form of skyscrapers. We…treat our cities like parking garages, and travel to the floor we want before we ever leave our vehicles. Of course, it’s quite the investment! It’s all design philosophy.”
Daryl swished his pen for a final stroke, nodding and grinning from ear to ear. “Thank you for such a thoughtful answer. Is there anything you’d like to ask me about primals?”
“I seek permission. Can I study you?”
“Um, okay. Sure! That sounds great. What better way to dispel the rumors around us than seeing how we live? I’m an ordinary guy, but I’m more than willing for you to use me for behavioral observation. This is really good, that you let me provide informed consent! That’s what you should do if you want cameras.”
“I will consider it. I don’t want to cause too much of a disruption, or bring everyone’s attention to what I’m doing—but now, it can’t be said that I didn’t tell humans! I am so excited and glad you agreed! This will be a great step forward for real science, advancing our knowledge about primals in its entirety. Goodbye, Daryl, my subject!”
Daryl arched his eyebrows, before turning toward me with a grin. “Wow. He was wonderful. When I heard we had a Kexin visitor, I didn’t imagine he’d be so relaxed and delighted to meet us. Maybe the Council can be our friends; this is a good start.”
“Daryl, you…” I heard a hiss at my side and looked over, to find Garriil tugging at my arm. “…should not take this as a good…ow! Stop pulling my arm.”
“Then stop ruining my progress,” Garriil whispered. “I can’t let you do that. Let’s negotiate in private. I learned that from your Finley, and your Finley is exactly why you should hear what I have to say.”
I stiffened in horror, but allowed the Kexin primal researcher to drag me to a private conference room. “What do you want? If you go after Finley again, I swear…”
“You sound just like them! I would want to study that too, but you’re not as important. You’re not a real primal, and you never will be. You seem to want the attention they get though—please, stop trying it with me. I’m not interested. You’re going to help me run my experiments.”
“Why would I ever do that?!”
Garriil looked at me like it was obvious. “Because in exchange, I agree to leave Finley out of the experiments. Daryl consented. There’s nothing wrong with it, even if you don’t like me! All I need is a second observer to verify my results; you’re a lot less conspicuous. My methods are working to get them accepted. That’s what you want, right?”
“Of course I do, Garriil, but I don’t want to hurt them. Experimenting on humans is wrong, they’re not your toys!”
“So all science is wrong? Knowledge is useful, Craun, and we have a lot of correcting to do. Everything we knew about humans is invalid. You heard them, they want me to! If you believe I won’t find anything bad, there’s nothing to worry about. I can prove their innocence if they’re not dangerous, and I promise, I won’t risk anyone else’s life. They are people, so I don’t want to lose any of them if I don’t have to.”
“That’s not reassuring at all, Garriil. I don’t want you to even go near Finley; he needs time to recover from what he’s been through, and that comes first. I’ll help you up until the point you endanger lives for your research. We’re not losing anyone; there is no world in which we have to, any more than the Council had to sacrifice us. I’ve lost enough people to emotionless bastards.”
“Okay! This isn’t about you. It’s about them. We have an understanding though. You’ll help me, and you won’t contaminate my test subjects. If you do, I’ll convince Finley of your infidelity. We can really see him angry then!”
“What?!”
The pink-faced Kexin stared back. “That’s a good reason to help and not ask questions. Remember, you’re my hostage. I don’t care about you, but I will if I have to. Nobody wants that, Craun. This is all for the best.”
Garriil scampered off like the conversation was done, and I sat dumbfounded. I considered telling Finley and Terry about everything, but I was worried that the Kexin scientist would become more unhinged if his “tame” plans were subverted. While Daryl had no idea what he’d invited, he had agreed to it. Besides, it sounded like our new visitor wouldn’t do anything to the extreme of Finley’s experiment. For now, I’d go along with it to keep an eye on him, and try to prevent him from doing anything excessive.
I hoped that NASA could handle Garriil, because it was evident the Kexin intended to see his experiments through at all costs.
12
u/SpacePaladin15 23h ago
75! Garriil arrives at NASA eager to study primals and tries to get Daryl to agree to putting down hidden cameras. When this isn’t agreed to, Garriil coerces Craun into helping him run his experiments under threat. Will NASA figure out how dangerous the Kexin researcher is? What experiments do you expect him to run?
As always, thank you for reading!
12
12
u/cira-radblas 23h ago
Assuming our Protagonists gave a VERY CLEAR report on what happened the last time Garrill ran an experiment, NASA is already aware of his tendency and can have him shut down.
I have no idea what Garrill is going to be thinking, but it’s definitely cruel if he’s resorting to blackmail already
9
u/Jbowen0020 22h ago
Oh yeah that pissed me right off, and the worst thing for garrill but the best thing for everyone is for Craun to immediately go to Finley and tell him what he said. Then again, it might not look good for one of us "primals' to murder a Kexin scientist within hours or days of arrival on Earth.
3
u/pyrodice 15h ago
Well, at least economically we know we can sell them those flying squirrel glide suits so they can all enjoy the full experience, even if they've had their local equivalent of an armpit circumcision…
9
u/Intrebute 22h ago
Okay so it wasn't a one-off. Garill is genuinely irredeemable.
Craun should absolutely tell everyone what Garill just tried to pull. Literally nobody will side with him, they'll give him the boot, and bring in someone with actual morals.
Let me guess, Craun just folds immediately under the threat and makes things unnecessarily dangerous and sketchy as a result :V
2
2
u/kristinpeanuts 20h ago
Oh this will be interesting! The human researchers observing Gariil as he runs his experiments and they gather information and knowledge from this terrible alien. Maybe they can impart some ethical science wisdom at the same time. Thanks for the chapter!
2
2
u/Dangerous_Fox_6438 19h ago
Maybe they should have him watch the Island of Doctor Moreau or something about Mengele so he gets the hint they're not fooled
2
2
1
u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle 23h ago
/u/SpacePaladin15 (wiki) has posted 521 other stories, including:
- Primal Rage 74
- Primal Rage 73
- Primal Rage 72
- Primal Rage 71
- Primal Rage 70
- Primal Rage 69
- Primal Rage 68
- Primal Rage 67
- Primal Rage 66
- Primal Rage 65
- Primal Rage 64
- Primal Rage 63
- Primal Rage 62
- Primal Rage 61
- Primal Rage 60
- Primal Rage 59
- Primal Rage 58
- Primal Rage 57
- Primal Rage 56
- Primal Rage 55
This comment was automatically generated by Waffle v.4.7.8 'Biscotti'.
Message the mods if you have any issues with Waffle.
1
u/UpdateMeBot 23h ago
Click here to subscribe to u/SpacePaladin15 and receive a message every time they post.
| Info | Request Update | Your Updates | Feedback |
|---|
17
u/cira-radblas 23h ago
Here’s an idea, how about we have Garrill brought before an ethics board so they can explain to him that he’s basically a mad scientist?