Chapter 85: Purr

Khan had obviously studied Nitis on the network during the two weeks of intense training with Lieutenant Dyester. The Global Army had landed on the planet for the first time only seventy years ago, which made it one of the last worlds discovered during the expansion of the human species.

Nitis was a cold planet mostly surrounded by pale darkness. The network described it as a world stuck in the last hour before dawn. Its distant star and its peculiar orbit never allowed it to bathe under the sunlight. 

The planet was the home of an intelligent species called Niqols. They were quite similar to humans, except for their dark-blue skin, pale irises, and white hair. The network described them as a peaceful kind with a great understanding of mana and a deep enmity with the Nak. It seemed that they had also gone through something similar to the First Impact in the past centuries.

Khan did his best to memorize a few useful lines of the Niqols' language during his spare time, but his knowledge remained poor when the day of his departure arrived.

The main issue was that the Global Army's network didn't describe too much. Khan couldn't access most of its information due to his low clearance level. He could only learn a few basic features of the planet, the Niqols, and their language before exhausting what his phone had to offer.

Faint excitement built inside Khan when he approached the teleport. Those emotions mixed with his tragic memories, but he didn't let them take over his mind.

His conversation with Lieutenant Dyester had helped. Khan had slowly started to see his bad feelings as a sign that he wasn't a mindless killer. That realization didn't make him feel atoned for his actions on Istrone, but it allowed him to accept them and begin to move on.

Professor Norwell was waiting for Khan in front of the building with the teleport. She threw away her cigarette as soon the boy entered her vision, but she showed a confused expression when she saw that he was alone.

"Will Lieutenant Dyester show up for your departure?" Professor Norwell asked.

"We said everything we needed to say yesterday," Khan explained.

"Good," Professor Norwell exclaimed before leading Khan across the insides of the familiar building.

"Our young relationship with the Niqols makes this training camp quite experimental," Professor Norwell explained while Khan went through the usual scanners and forms. "The Global Army took the liberty to choose lessons connected to your goal, but you can modify them if you change your mind. The Captain on the site will be your only connection with the rest of humankind, so rely on her whenever you need something."

Khan memorized everything and nodded from time to time. He felt happy to see that he was looking forward to that experience. Also, thinking about leaving Earth made him ignore part of the silence that filled Ylaco's training camp.

Forsaking peace forced Khan to focus on his next task. He didn't go full battle-mode, but most of his useless thoughts disappeared in front of the potential dangers of an alien planet.

"Remember that your actions might have a political impact due to the young relationship with the Niqols," Professor Norwell explained as the duo entered the circular hall with the teleport. "These aliens are very similar to us. I hope this is enough to explain how bad things can go if you offend their species. You might be a hero for now, but the Global Army wouldn't hesitate to use you as a scapegoat to preserve this relationship."

"I understand, ma'am," Khan replied in a firm voice.

"The soldiers on the camp will brief you after your arrival," Professor Norwell continued. "We don't have many classes there. You will complete the fourth. Still, you'll learn everything in detail after the travel. I don't know much about Nitis either. What I explained comes from a summary that the army has pressed me to say before your departure."

Khan's eyes flickered at those words, but he didn't show any evident reaction. It seemed that Nitis' matters were classified even for the professors. He didn't know if the same applied to the Lieutenants, but he started to gain an idea of how frail the relationship with the Niqols was.

Professor Norwell didn't follow Khan on the teleport. She pointed at the platform once everything was ready, and he jumped on it. The soldiers wearing white medical coats shouted numbers and coordinates, and synthetic mana soon filled the oval structure before activating its functions.

Darkness unfolded in Khan's vision before a pale blue light allowed him to study his surroundings. He found himself on a grey teleport surrounded by black consoles and grey walls. A small team of soldiers wearing white medical coats handled the various machines, and a young man stood in front of him.

"You must be Khan," The man didn't hesitate to say while his eyes studied Khan. "The Global Army has sent us some redacted reports of the Istrone's rebellion. Great fucking job."

Khan inspected the soldier too. The man appeared to be in his twenties. He had slightly long blonde hair, large green eyes, no beard, and an aloof face. He seemed to look down on Khan with his uncaring gaze, but the latter felt that he wasn't doing that out of arrogance.

The man was slightly muscular and a bit taller than Khan. He kept his arms behind his back during the inspection, and a calm aura surrounded him. 

"Thank you, sir," Khan promptly replied while moving his eyes on the boy's shoulders.

The uniform featured a star on each shoulder. The man had managed to become a first-level warrior and mage at his young age, which made him an elite even among talents.

"I'm just the second year in charge of the new class," The man replied. "Don't bother with the formalities. I don't want to feel old when I'm barely nineteen."

Khan nodded before jumping out of the teleport. That was the first building on a different planet where he didn't see any aliens. That feature hinted at how the relationship between the two species had yet to solidify, but his reasoning couldn't go further.

"I'm Paul Stratbert, but don't bother checking my family on the network," The man announced while turning and starting to walk toward the corridor connected to the circular hall. "Families don't matter much here. Only talent and achievements can get you into the special classes."

Khan couldn't help but notice how the structure appeared almost empty. He didn't see the usual soldiers handling scanners to check the newcomers. He had to pass through a rectangular machine that listed some of his important features on a nearby screen, but that was it.

"Almost thirty-nine percent attunement with mana when you aren't even seventeen," Paul whistled. "And they called me a talent."

"I have been lucky," Khan said to tone down those compliments.

"Lucky my ass," Paul scoffed. "You have the same numbers as someone who has received the first infusion of synthetic mana. Are you implying that everyone else has been unlucky?"

"I didn't mean that," Khan promptly replied while lowering his gaze.

"Then be proud about it!" Paul snorted. "This isn't a training camp on Earth. Playing it low will only make the army forget about you."

Khan felt surprised by how easily Paul could read through his behavior. The soldier had probably dealt with similar situations already.

"I'm the best of the best," Khan announced in an emotionless tone while inspecting the structure and avoiding Paul's sudden glance.

"Everyone is the best of the best here," Paul eventually explained when he understood that Khan wouldn't reply to his gaze. "Nitis even requires an attunement above thirty-five percent to breathe freely. The Global Army sends only true elites who have the potential to climb the ranks here."

"Do you plan on using this experience to get a promotion?" Khan asked as the exit of the building drew near.

"I have a shot at becoming a Lieutenant by the end of the year," Paul exclaimed as a tinge of pride appeared on his aloof face. "The final evaluation of the class under my management will influence the test a lot, so don't make me lose face."

"Noted," Khan said while a dark environment unfolded in his vision.

A dark-blue sky made the entirety of the scenery dark, but a faint radiance managed to reach the surface anyway and create unclear shadows.

An uneven plain spread from the lonely building and stretched in the distance until it met a short mountain chain. Dark grass grew from the ground and filled the scene with an eerie vibe.

Nitis was completely different from Istrone. The former lacked tall trees and featured small bushes at best. Narrow cracks and short elevations filled the plain, and a few paths cut right among them. 

Khan saw a series of buildings in the distance. He wouldn't normally be able to notice them due to the faint darkness that covered the entirety of the scene. Still, those structures radiated azure light that almost managed to reach his position while they shone on the plain.

"Humans didn't want to mess with Nitis' layout since they didn't know how the Niqols would react," Paul explained. "I think the higher-ups of both species are discussing the purchase of lands, but the aliens don't seem to like that."

"It's still their planet," Khan couldn't help but comment while keeping his voice down.

"I agree," Paul announced. "Imagine if the same happened on Earth. Do you think humans would ever sell parts of their planet to an alien species? We are lucky enough that they let us stay here."

"Do they fear us?" Khan asked.

Paul clearly knew a lot more than the network, so Khan didn't hesitate to use him as a source of knowledge.

"They actually like us," Paul laughed. "We are really similar. They are above us when it comes to understanding mana, but we surpass them in the technological fields. They only want to make sure to keep clear walls between our species."

"How do we reach the training camp?" Khan asked when he didn't see any vehicle around him.

The teleport stood alone in the middle of the plain, and the area didn't feature anything else man-made. Only the city in the distance showed the presence of other intelligent living beings, but it was too far away to reach it on foot in a reasonable time.

"You'll eventually understand how things work here," Paul commented before putting his thumb and middle finger in his mouth to give voice to a loud whistle. "Remember that the Niqols have developed with mana as their foundation. They have a peculiar approach to most stuff."

The ground under Khan and Paul suddenly began to tremble. Two presences that carried dense mana became clear in his senses and made him lower his gaze.

Khan instinctively jumped backward as cracks opened around a fissure a few meters from him. Two large Tainted animals quickly crawled out of the ground and approached Paul.

The animals resembled giant moles. They had long black fur, unusual long limbs, and pale-grey claws. Their grey noses were quite long and hid sharp teeth, and loud barks came out of their mouths as they charged toward Paul.

Khan prepared himself to fight, but a confused expression appeared on his face when Paul gestured to him to stop. His feeling then transformed into pure astonishment when he saw the Tainted animals stopping next to the soldier and purring under his caresses.