What's this? A multi-part prologue? Yes, dear readers. The prologue ended up being so long it had to be broken into multiple parts. This story requires a lot of setup.
Welcome to the story. Gather your popcorn. The war will begin once the prologue is concluded.
Prologue #1: F.N.G.
Lt. Cali D’Kara
Interstellar Security Assistance Force
Fort Shiroyama, Arcadia
Stardate 2257.09.30, 06:30hours (Six months before the Year of Hell)
Cali D’Kara had been serving as a peacekeeper longer than anyone else. She was passionate about her work because she was passionate about Arcadia. When she was younger, she spent time here. She got to see this world when it was peaceful and happy, and she desperately wanted to help Arcadia get back to those days. So, at the first opportunity, Cali joined the Alari Armed Forces, demanding that she be transferred to the peacekeeping mission.
Four years later, Cali was a Lieutenant in the AAF and one of the more respected Peacekeepers, doing her best for the planet she loved. This morning, Cali was standing at a firing range on a Human military base, waiting for her students to arrive. Two more Alari soldiers were nearby. Pol T’Talok and Vir B’Scul were young Alari men who often helped Cali run these classes. Pol was setting up the rifle range, making sure the pop-up targets were functioning as intended. Vir was in the tower, watching everything.
A beeping noise caused Cali to reach for her digital phone.
“Lieutenant D’Kara here.” Cali answered.
“Good morning to you.” Said a familiar voice. “I just arrived in Tianjin.”
This voice belonged to Cali’s husband, Dak J’Bassim. He too was a peacekeeper.
“Listen, Cali. I need you to do me a favor.” Dak said over the phone. “There’s a new girl joining your team today. HQ just told me.”
“Should I be worried?” Cali asked.
“Well… that’s the thing.” Dak said. “Listen, the new girl joining your team is… she’s my younger sister. Moka. Do you remember her?”
Cali froze up.
“I do.” She replied. “Moka showed up at, like, the tail end of that adventure we had years ago, right? Isn’t she a kid?”
“She joined the AAF as soon as she was old enough to get my parents to sign the waiver.” Dak said. “I’m really sorry for not telling you. I didn’t think it was going to come to this. I tried to talk her out of it… but… here we are. Moka really wants to be a peacekeeper. She idolizes you, Cali.”
“I remember that.” Cali said, starting to sweat. “I was flattered, but this might be going too far.”
“My thoughts exactly.” Dak replied. “Could you talk to her? See if you can get Moka to quit the military and go home. I don’t want her to be here, and I think you feel the same. If you can’t talk her out of this, then scare her straight, alright?”
“You’re right, we do agree.” Cali said. “I’ll see if I can put the fear of war in her.”
…
About half an hour later, a convoy of military trucks arrived at the firing range. Ten Humans, dressed in powered exoskeletons and carrying rifles, dismounted and moved to the range. An Alari woman jumped out of the truck and made a beeline for Cali.
Moka J’Bassim was five years younger than Cali. She looked not a day over twenty, the age where Alari become adults. Short and scrawny, Moka could have been mistaken for an underweight boy if she let her hair down. Two details made Moka stand apart from the Humans: Her hair was dyed silver, as nearly all Alari women preferred to dye their hair. Additionally, Moka, and all Alari for that matter, had sharply pointed ears that Humans affectionately referred to as “elf ears.” Most Alari did not appreciate being compared to mythological creatures, and some had gotten into the habit of wearing headgear that covered their ears while on Arcadia. Moka was not doing this.
“Aunt Cali!” Moka greeted Cali cheerfully! “I’m so happy to see you!”
“I’m not your aunt, I’m your sister-in-law.” Cali admonished her. “And comport yourself, you’re a…”
Cali quickly leaned in to look at the rank insignia pinned to Moka’s chest. Then she resumed:
“You’re a Private First Class in the AAF now, and I’m your superior officer. Behave!”
Moka snapped to attention.
“Listen, you and I are going to have a conversation later.” Cali said to her. “I’m not too sure how I feel about you joining up and my husband, your brother, feels the same. Right now, you’re going to help me run this class. Pay attention and do as I say, understood?”
“Yes ma’am!” Moka said. “And thanks for letting me take the opportunity. I’ve always wanted to be part of something like this.”
Cali ordered Moka to collect a rifle and some ammunition from the tower. Meanwhile, she beckoned the Human soldiers to approach.
“Alright, good morning everyone.” Cali said. “My name is Lieutenant D’Kara, Interstellar Security Assistance Force. The Corporal to my right is T’Talok and the Corporal in the tower is B’Scul. The F.N.G. scurrying around behind you is J’Bassim. If you’re here right now, it means you can’t shoot a brick wall at ten yards! Welcome to the ‘guns for dummies’ class. Sit down. You’re gonna be here all day.”
Cali had already come up with a twofold plan. She was going to educate these Humans and also give Moka the big humiliating first day on the job nearly all professional soldiers went through. The girl looked like she was fresh out of Basic Training. If Moka was forced to embarrass herself in front of a group like this, she’d be left with a bad first impression of military life. Cali rounded on her sister-in-law.
“Private J’Bassim. Show the locals how its done. Post up on the firing line and start shooting targets.”
Pol and Vir looked up and down the rifle range, making sure it was safe to start shooting. They gave Cali a positive signal and Moka got to work. To Cali’s surprise, Moka proved to be a competent marksman. Moka grabbed one of the portable shields from the base of the tower, deployed it, and then knelt behind it, perching her rifle on top of the shield. Moka’s gauss rifle made loud snapping noises as she dropped targets at 50 meters, 100 meters, 200, and finally at 300 meters.
Shaking off her sudden onset of disbelief, Cali started to teach the class:
“Look at PFC J’Bassim’s stance. She’s posted behind cover, making it harder for the enemy to hit her. Now look at the targets. See how she’s aiming for center mass? Your enemy’s torso presents a bigger target than their head, and if you get hit in the chest by something like a gauss round or a plasma bolt, it will be equally as lethal as if you shot them in the head. Don’t get greedy, don’t try to be a movie hero. Kill the enemy quickly before they kill you.”
One of the Humans raised his hand and pointed at the targets, which were shaped like soldiers of the Galactic Imperium.
“Fevarian targets! Really!?”
“I’m so sorry.” Pol sneered. “Were you guys training to fight someone else?”
“You can’t hit anything anyway, so the Fevarians won’t mind.” Vir added, laughing.
Cali raised her voice, silencing her two subordinates.
“You Humans aren’t hitting anything because you’re not using your weapons properly. Last week, when we had that big firefight against the gangs in Persepolis, I saw a lot of you just shooting from the hip. Not even bothering to aim. You know your weapons have sights, don’t you? J’Bassim! Peg that 500-meter target in the head!”
Cali smirked a little. No fresh-faced recruit could-
The thought never finished crossing her mind. Moka pushed the portable shield aside and dropped into to the prone firing positon. Then she aimed down the sights and fired twice, striking the dummy Fevarian once in the head and once in the neck. Vir let out a low whistle.
“Hey Lieutenant, is she single?” Vir said.
Cali smacked the back of Vir’s head, and then did the same for one of the Humans, who had been staring at Moka’s rear this whole time.
“Pay attention!” Cali said. “If you could stay calm and keep your head in a crisis, then maybe you could hit targets like she does!”
Internally, Cali swore to herself. She just made Moka look good without intending to. No matter, it was a good excuse for one more lesson. Cali ordered Moka to cease fire and stand up. Cali walked back to the tower and came back with two long belts of ammunition, the type meant to be used in heavy machine guns. She draped both ammo belts over Moka’s shoulders.
“Knowing the basic fundamentals of marksmanship will get you to pass my class.” Cali said. “But it’s not enough out there in a real firefight. J’Bassim, start running laps around the tower.”
“What!?” Moka gasped. “Wearing all this extra gear?”
“RUN!” Cali barked.
Clutching tightly at her rifle and ammo belts, Moka started running around the range tower, huffing and puffing as she went.
“Real combat is nothing like this simple class.” Cali explained. “Those first few minutes after the adrenaline wears off will be the longest minutes of your life, and probably your last as well. Know yourself, know your limits.”
Moka came tearing around the tower again, running as fast as she could while weighted down.
“Look at the F.N.G.” Cali said. “She’s out of breath, practically wheezing. There’s sweat dripping into her eyes, she’s got a stitch in her side, she can’t see or run straight. She probably can’t even think right now! You know who does not care in the slightest about those things? Your enemy! J’BASSIM! HIT THE DIRT AND SHOOT THE TARGETS!”
Screaming from the exertion, Moka threw herself onto the firing line and started to open fire on the simulated Fevarians. All of her shots went wide, kicking up clods of dirt. Moka’s gun fell silent and made clicking noises.
“Reload!” Cali shouted.
Moka fumbled with her weapon and a spare magazine. Cali walked over to her position.
“Reload!” Cali shouted again.
Moka tried to jam her magazine into the well and charge the gauss rifle. It made a dull clicking sound and the magazine fell out. Cali drew a plasma pistol from her holster, pointed it downrange and started shooting targets. The noise of the sudden gunfire caused Moka to jump with fright. The Human soldiers gathered around to watch.
“Faster!” Cali yelled. “The insurgents aren’t gonna wait for you to reload! Faster!”
Finally, Moka managed to get her magazine to stay in the rifle. She raised her weapon and pointed it downrange before pulling the trigger. The gauss rifle made a deep thudding sound and did not fire. Several of the Humans sniggered. Pol and Vir held their sides, trying to hold in their laughter. Cali put her pistol on the ground and knelt down next to Moka.
“So… why isn’t your gun working, Private?”
Moka suddenly became very aware of everybody staring at her. She looked down at her rifle, stared at it for a moment, and then pulled the magazine out of the well. In her haste, Moka had inserted the magazine backwards. All of the gauss slugs were facing toward herself.
“Oh…” Moka squeaked. Then she looked away, trying to hide her face.
Cali addressed the Humans.
“This class is only meant to teach you the bare basics.” She said. “When you’re faced with the real thing, real war and battle, all of your books and lectures and simulations will only get you so far. You need discipline and presence of mind to stay in control of yourself and your weapon once the situation goes off the rails… and I assure you, it will. Combat is not binary; it is not cut-and-dry. It is uncontrolled chaos from the word go and the only difference between life and death is you, your weapon, and whatever’s going on in your head.”
…
Finally, Cali showed some mercy on Moka. While Vir and Pol drilled the Human soldiers, Cali pulled Moka aside to talk.
“Wait, I know what you’re going to say.” Moka interrupted.
“If you knew we wouldn’t approve, then why’d you join up?” Cali said, raising an eyebrow.
Moka looked around, making sure no one else was looking. Then she hugged Cali very quickly before letting go.
“You and Dak are my heroes.” Moka said. “You get to go on these awesome adventures and do good things for people and I wanna be like you. I want that same exciting life! Please, Cali! I know this is going to be, like, rough and difficult. But please just let me have a chance! Please. Just a chance.”
Cali groaned.
“Fine, you can stay for now.” She said. “But you stay close to me at all times, got it?”
Moka raised one arm in salute.
“Yes ma’am! I won’t let you down!”
