"FASTER SOLDIERS, FASTER. NO FEAR, YOU ARE ALLOWED NONE HERE!" Feed pounded across the ground in a cacophony of rhythmic thudding, "YOUR HONOR LIVES OR DIES HERE!" The bodies threw themselves to the ground crawling through the dirt, and over jagged stone. Small cries of pain and whimpering broke from small mouths as orange blood dripped onto the rocks. "FEEL THE WAR IN YOUR BONES YOUNG SOLDIERS!" a staff thudded and cracked against carapace with a sharp crack drawing from it the wailing of an injured creature, "SOLDIERS DON'T WEEEP!" Another loud crack, but there was no noise this time.

The mud gave way to a field of sharp stone, a small figure braced the carapace of her forearms against the stone and began struggling with vigor over the sharp rocks. She made no noise as the stone cut into the grey of her skin spilling the orange of her blood across the rocks. Her eyes were set forward past the stone and towards the finishing spot. She scuttled on all six limbs with her belly to the ground biting back the pain as it rolled up in waves from her abused skin. The light flexibility of her forearm carapace had not yet set, leaving the armor pliable enough to feel the sharp rocks underneath.

She was going quickly, or at least she thought she was, until one of the other younglings outstripped her by a good pace or two scuttling across the stone with his long legs and arms. He was much taller than Sunny, but in her eyes, he was cheating. He wasn't using the proper technique avoiding the rocks that dug into his skin.

No one saw.

She kept her head down, that was fine, as long as she finished second, and did it right, she could feel good about herself. Something tugged at her leg from behind, pulling her onto her stomach atop the hard stone. She bit back a grunt and a whimper. Something scuttled past her, as a shadow loomed over her pressing down on her back and using her for leverage as it moved forward. This time, she cried out in pain as the sharp volcanic stone cut against her. They didn't even move back as the bigger Drev children pushed past her.

She lay on the stone seething and hurting as she watched them go. Someday, when she was bigger....

Just then, she was eclipsed by another massive shadow looking up through her pain to find the tall shape standing over her. Gold eyes, not unlike her own, flashed against the volcanic sky.... General.... Her mother.

Sunny quickly scrambled to the correct position bracing to be yelled at, but the mass, regal form turned away from her in dismissal, "LOWER DOWN SOLIDER" She scolded towards the back of the group. Sunny felt her heart drop, what she would have given to be yelled at instead of simply ignored.

She vowed to try harder, pushing towards the front scraping and cutting herself against stone, dripping blood onto the rocks before limping to her feet at the end of the course, her entire front was slick with little lines of blood. She ran to her place in line and stood straight as the others pushed themselves over the line. They were less bloody than she was, but she could take the pain, she had finished fourth after all.

The general was here again, walking up the line with the purple metal of her carapace glittering in the light of their sun breaking through the ashy ceiling. She eyed them passing over Sunny and then stopping. She said nothing. Pointing towards a group of younglings at the back, "Moderately acceptable work you three." She lifted her noble head adorned by the decorative and ceremonial armor, "the rest of you.... PATHETIC!"

She stormed about the grounds yelling insults at the young recruits, as Sunny felt her heart sink, but she had tried so hard, so much pain, but she kept quietly to attention her head up and her eyes staring straight forward. The general made her way down the line pausing by Sunny for a long moment. She didn't make eye contact with her, she stared straight ahead.

"Next time, just focus on your form, and stay at the back. You're an absolute mess." She walked away just then fading into the ranks of Drev as the sky's ash thickened, and Sunny was thrown into darkness.

***

She jolted from sleep by the slowing of the tram nearly running her face into a metal bar. Vir was already ushering Krill to his feet as they stepped off into the city. Sunny followed in silence trying to shake off the dream.

Vir glanced over at her, shrugging his duffle bag into a more comfortable position, "Feeling alright, Sunny?"

She waved a dismissive hand at him, as they continued their way down the city, and past a line of shops cutting into the large white, and towering buildings. They walked at about mid-level in the city, higher than the subcity where they had slept the night before, but low enough that the tallest spires still hung high above them. Vir cut around a corner, and then shouldered his way through a swinging door, pulling Krill and sunny in his wake.

They stepped through into the wide open room. Most of the floor was made from stiff grey concrete. One large corner was completely covered by mats, and the very center was taken up by an odd platform surrounded by three lines of rope increasing in height until they surrounded the very perimeter of the platform. The room was large, and despite the mid-size crowd of humans that congregated there, the space seemed rather empty.

On the center platform two humans stood circling each other. Sunny watched in quiet fascination as the humans lunged and danced at each other. Their hands were almost completely covered by comically large padded gloves, and their heads were encased in cumbersome padded helmet all while their shins were protected by the large padded guards. Despite this, it didn't stop them from trying to beat the life out of each other fighting in that way only humans had using closed fists, and, legs as only humans could.

They approached the center platform as the fight continued. Sunny watched as the smaller human made a feint jab towards the face of the other before coming in with the real punch, an underhand strike towards the abdomen. It made contact with an audible THWACK doubling the second human over as the wind was driven from his chest. The smaller human took a step forward just then grabbing him under the arms, turning quickly and bracing her back against the other human's front.

Then, with a quick jerk, she threw her upper half forward levering with her hip and so, throwing the larger human in a cartwheel through the air and onto his back with a SLAM. He lay where he had fallen gasping and wheezing.

The other human stood over him, and pulled off her face helmet. Her light-chocolate face was slicked with sweat and her hair was pulled back in a rather matted ponytail. She had the body of a warrior, and the eyes of a predator. Their approach had not gone unnoticed, and she stepped forward pulling off her gloves and leaning against the ropes one eyebrow raised at them, "Well, Adam Vir, haven't seen you in ages." Sunny's eyes looked down surprised to find the woman was missing both her legs. She hadn't noticed before as the prosthetics she was wearing were very well made and matched the color quality of her skin.

"Ramirez." The captain nodded dropping his bag next to the stage, "Was hoping that offer you made still stands."

She ducked under the ropes and down from the stage resting her gloves behind her, "Of course, offer always stands." She walked over and clapped him on the arm, "It's nice to see you again." She leaned down and patted Waffles on the head eyeing Sunny from the corner of her vision, "I wonder if it was a good idea to bring your friend here though. You know a lot of the guys here still have a thing against them."

Vir shrugged, "They can get over it, I did."

She watched him for a moment, "Very well then. What can I do for the three of you?"

***

Sunny hadn't been worked like this in years. When Vir had requested a training session, she had assumed it would be working mostly in fighting, which she had looked forward to, and while it had many of those elements, it also had elements designed to frustrate and exhaust. Human exercises were modified for her, and she did them side by side with Vir as Krill watched form the sidelines having declined in participating, he was a doctor, not a warrior after all.

Her body ached, and with that familiar pain came a numbing sensation in her head. The slow sinking of her mind into a place where she could no longer feel pain.... She had to do her best.... Had to prove that she could do better.

***

She could barely breathe. She ran with all the conviction in her body pushing against stone and moss, thrusting her body forward as hard and as fast as she could, but still, it was only enough, only enough to keep up with the back of the pack, with the legs almost a foot longer than hers. They ran with the effortless grace on their long strides as she charged at the back shorter strides thudding against the stone in a desperate staccato beat.

She was falling behind. She lifted her eyes to the sky pleading for strength, catching, instead a gaze from the distant ridge, and a disappointed expression as the figure turned and disappeared behind the stone. She sped up despite the screaming in her body, but would it matter anyway? No one would see...

But on the off chance they did...

***

They raced back and forth across the length of the room bending down to touch the painted line before dashing back again. Vir had fallen behind many minutes ago, racing on his prosthetic doggedly at her heals. Sunny desperately wished to slow herself down, but she couldn't she had to keep going, she had to go faster.

The whistle blew, and she turned on instinct and raced across the room with Vir at her heals, stopping by the large bags. She closed her firsts in the way the humans had taught her pulling them up to cover her face and her throat. Her feet planted against the ground, she lunged forward. Again, like the humans taught, she brought the power from the back of her heal, up the twisting of her body and into her shoulder blades, allowing the power to be released in punches which slammed against the bag in a flurry of motion.

She had to be perfect, she had to get everything perfect.

***

She crouched in the circle opposite of her opponent. Moss eyed her back his glittering green carapace dark under the light of the sky. They lunged at each other, Sunny in desperation trying to bring all her power against her larger opponent. There was a flurry of motion, ground, sky, stone and Moss, and then she was on her back staring up at the sky winded and pained.

"Stay down Sunny, before your embarrass yourself." Moss muttered, "There is still time to forfeit."

She snarled and launched herself off the ground slamming into Moss's chest and sending him flying backwards. But he didn't lose his footing, grabbing her around the middle and crushing her with both of his large arms. She struggled and wriggled against him, and the longer she did, the more she could feel the humiliation leaking into her body as the group around the circle looked on in pity and disappointment.

She wouldn't stop fighting though, and she continued through she grew weaker and weaker by the moment.

"Stop this NONSENSE!" The call was commanding and powerful. Moss stopped struggling, and so did she. A mass shape pushed through the crowd gold eyes alight with an angry fire. Moss dropped Sunny to the stone, and stepped back. A hand reached down grabbing Sunny by the arm and hauling her to her feet out of the circle, past the crowd, and away towards the dwellings.

She was thrust to the stone, "What were you thinking! Embarrassing your father and I like that." She snapped.

Sunny remained stubbornly silent, head down.

"You better hope they all think that was just a joke. By all rights you should be dead, those are the rules of a true duel. What made you think you could pull a stunt like that! You should know your place by now. Keep your head down and stay at the back where you belong, like your father told you. Honestly, Sunny, what were you thinking. Moss is one of our best soldiers, and you..... well....

***

"Sunny! SUNNY!" Her eyes cleared vision blurry. She saw orange, it covered her hands and rolled down her palms, but she couldn't stop.

Something caught her arms, she jerked to the side raising her fist, and pausing. Captain Vir stared back at her with wide eyes, gripping the wrists of her lower hands pushing her back away from the bag. Her hands were slicked with blood, "Sunny, calm down, stop."

Looking around, she found the entire room staring at her. Human eyes blinked at her with wary confusion and some in disgust, she knew that look. She pulled her hand's from the Captain's grip and ran from the room, out the back and into the alleyway breathing hard watching her blood drip onto the pristine stone.

The door flew open behind her, but she didn't look back to the door head down.

There was quiet for a few long minutes as she began to calm.

"Sunny...." The captain quietly stepped around to her front, "penny for your thoughts?" He wondered in that odd way that humans had. His expression was non-confrontational non-judgmental. He seemed honestly worried.

She stepped back, and sunk down against the wall, looking at her hands now covered in blood where the skin had opened sours against the bone.

Vir knelt in front of her, taking her hand in his, cleaning her up with his own towel until it was stained orange with her blood. He wrapped her hands patting them once he was done.

He looked up them watching her with critical green eyes. He held up the back of his hands so she could see. Small purple scars glittered against the first few knuckles of his right hand, "It gets better the more you do it."

She said nothing

The human frowned. Then, "You know.... I got some Oxy with your name on it.... I'm licensed, so under medical laws, I can't let anyone know." When she said nothing, the human took the matter into his own hands scooting forward on his hands and knees until he rested, back to her as close as he could. At this time he said nothing trying to convince her, almost like she had seen the dog, that he was safe.

She refused for a long moment, but eventually caved hugging the human to her in a desperate chase for that illusive feeling of worth and happiness. At least the human thought she was good enough.

It was an odd feeling that flowed through her after a while, a sense of subtle relaxation.

"Come on Sunny, let's go, and finish what we started."

***

You will do as you're told, you will do as ordered, you will keep silent, you will stay where you will not cause trouble.

You will not embarrass this family.