Cover art Provided by my friend Creator of Hybrids
UPDATED - 12/11/2014
Hi everyone this is Dakkaman777 and here is chapter 1, in this chapter I'm introducing the Kamads who are my OC alien race, unlike many other writers I'm going to approach the kamads introduction by showing you their home world and their way of life instead of introducing them as soon as they make contact with the humans.
And seeing how none of you speak Kamad this entire chapter the Kamads will be speaking English (I would be a crappy writer if I did otherwise) enjoy.
Chapter 1: The Kamads
Human Year: 800 AD
On the far edges of the cosmos lies a planet, a planet that has existed for the better part of 8 billion years, this planet's name is Arkadia Prime and it is an arctic planet twice the size of earth. 45% of the planet's surface is covered in large mountain ranges and glaciers while the rest is covered in large cities and vast snow fields.
The life forms present on the surface of Arkadia Prime are among the most dangerous in the universe, the great LarGuar, a colossal flying reptile capable of changing the very landscapes of the planets they roost on, the gargantuan RaaLtrak, a reptilian mammal that could make the pyramids look like road bumps and heards of Kreevans, horse like reptiles that roamed the planet and had the ferocity of a tiger. But these creatures were not the dominant beings of the planet, the dominant species of Arkadia Prime were the Kamads, a race of reptilian humanoids who had ruled their planet for 7 ½ billion years and managed to build an Empire than stretched over thousands of worlds and consisted of hundreds of different species.
One such Kamad was sat down cross legged in a large gathering hall; this particular Kamad was only 30 years old which by Kamad standards meant he was the human equivalent of a 13 year old, this Kamad had shoulder length white hair and chalk white skin, Kamads all looked very human and were very identical to them if not for the features that set them apart; in place of fingernails Kamads had sharp black claws and instead of flat teeth like a human Kamads had serrated teeth like that of a shark. Kamads also had long bulky reptilian tails like those of a monitor lizard and not to mention the fact that Kamads had reptilian eyes.
This Kamad was sat in a large gathering hall and was wearing what seemed like a Japanese style kimono that was coloured black with a white haori jacket, this young Kamad was gazing out of a nearby window out at the snow-capped city, what got his attention the most was the amount of spiralling towers and gleaming temples that adorned the city.
"ELI PAY ATTENTION!" a large male Kamad sitting in front of all the other Kamads shouted at the boy
"Oh I'm sorry master" the young boy said as he looked back at the Kamad
This was the Kamad equivalent of a school and the young Kamad known as Eli was having a very bad day, the Kamad sat in front of Eli and his classmates was a teacher or at least the closest thing to a teacher.
"I know the city is beautiful Eli, but if you doze off like that again I'll have to assign you to mistress Prevelia's class" the large kamad announced earning a few chuckles and snickers from the other young kamads in the room. Mistress Prevelia was for all intense and purposes a good teacher but when it came to disciplinary procedures she tended to be a tad bit extreme, like the one time she caught a fellow teacher drinking on the job, she chained him to the front of the school….naked.
"Well I'm glad that settles that then." The kamad then returned to teaching his students.
"Now can anyone tell me the difference between a red dwarf and a neutron star?" the teacher began as students from all around the room raised their hands to answer the question.
"Hey Eli, how's the view?" whispered a black haired male kamad from Eli's right
"What's that supposed to mean Rezeal?" Eli whispered back
"From the window, you always pick a seat next to a window; it must be a hell of a view" Rezeal stated
"Its spectacular" Eli smiled to his friend earning a smile back
*a few hours later
Eli and Rezeal left the school now with their casual clothes on, even though the Kamads were born on the arctic planet they still preferred to wear warm clothing when walking around outside, the two young boys were walking side by side until they saw a crowd of Kamads gathering around something.
"Want to get a better look Eli?" Rezeal asked his friend
"Does a LarGuar have wings?" Eli stated. The two boys began pushing their ways through the crowd until they came to see what everyone was gathered around.
A very large and advanced looking kamad ship was set down on a landing platform though what got most people's attention were the three Kamads boarding the ship, these kamads were dressed as if they were going into battle. The first kamad that seemed to be the leader was wearing very intricately patterned armour that looked like a cross between a Japanese samurai's and a medieval knights, he was also wearing a flowing red cloak and had a very beautiful looking broadsword sheathed in his belt. The second kamad was wearing more lightweight armour that looked less bulky and more suited for movement rather than protection; he did however have a steel pauldron with a symbol of a LarGuar with an arrow in its throat on his right shoulder, he carried a Bladebow which was a kamad weapon designed for both long range and short range combat, this kamad was hooded and wore a red cloak the same as the leader. The third Kamad wore armour that leaned toward the medieval knight style than the samurai style, he also worse a horned helm and had a large two handed axe on his back.
"Wow…Elites" Rezeal breathed in awe as both he and Eli watched the Elites board the ship, the Elites were the greatest warriors the Kamads had at their disposal, the best of the best, warriors that rose through the ranks to become instruments of the Emperor's will across the Empire, It was every Kamad child's dream to become an Elite.
"I wonder what they're going off to do" Rezeal said with wonder
"Probably something exiting, dangerous and awesome" Eli watched as the ship took off into the skies and out of the planet's atmosphere.
"Eli?" Rezeal asked
"Yes?"
"Do you think that will be us someday? Flying off to new worlds in search of adventure and glory?"
"I'm certain of it my friend, now come on if I'm late my father will be furious" Eli said as he and Rezeal began running down the streets.
After a few long minutes of running Rezeal and Eli finally made it to their destination, the shining crown of the city, the palace of the Emperor, oh did I forget to mention? Eli was the first son of the present Emperor and heir to the throne.
"I'll see you later Rezeal" Eli waved as he ran up the large stairway to the palace doors, as Eli came to the large doors he stopped and looked to the two guards standing watch gripping halberds while dressed in ornate armour.
"Is father in the middle of something?" Eli asked
"His meeting with the Primarchs finished an hour an ago my prince" one guard said
The Primarchs were the emperor's chief generals, rulers of his armies and his closest advisors, Eli knew the Primarchs personally as he grew up learning the ways of the emperors and saw the Primarchs as Uncles, Aunts and friends of his father.
Eli then sighed before opening the doors to the palace and stepping through into the hall of the throne room, the hall was of such grand and beautiful design that it was impossible not to be in awe of it, by sides of the hall were grand pillars with intricate and beautiful carvings of the warriors of old and ancient battles past. In between the pillars were statues of the previous Emperors all the way back to the first Emperor whose statue was set behind the great throne of the Emperor.
Eli attempted to make as little sound as he could in order to not draw the attention of the Kamad sitting in the throne.
"If you think I can't smell, see or hear you, you are sadly mistaken my boy" a powerful commanding voice echoed through the halls causing Eli to stop dead in his tracks
"Come here my son" the voice said, Eli sighed and began walking down the hall toward the throne, sitting on the throne was a large male kamad with pitch black hair in the style of braided dreadlocks with many ornate rings adorning them, he wore blue robes with intricate markings all over them with segments of ornate armour adorning his large muscular figure.
The emperor sat with a troubled look on his face as his son came to him, his hands were clasped together in front of his face as he sighed.
"You were supposed come straight home Eli" the Emperor said with a hint of annoyance in his voice
"I was going to father, but Rezeal and I were going to..." Eli began until his father cut him off.
"Oh so it was Rezeal again? What did you two do this time?"
"…..nothing" Eli said trying to hide something
"Really? Because I was informed that you and him cut the reigns of the KreeVans in the stables across town"
"…..no we didn't" Eli said earning only a sigh from his father.
The Emperor then rose from his throne and began walking away, he turned to his son and said
"Walk with me, son" Eli quickly obeyed and began walking with his father
The height difference between the two was obvious where Eli was a measly 4 foot his father towered above him at a stunning 9 feet, male kamads could grow to become very tall with time and some Kamads could even grow to stand at 12 foot if they had the right build.
Eli and his father then came to the balcony of the palace overlooking the entire city with the large mountain ranges in the distance, the moonlight shone off of the snow and caused it to glisten, this made the entire city seem like it was made of jewels as if it wasn't beautiful enough. The Emperor then looked over the city and extended his arm to it.
"Look my son, tell me what you see" this confused Eli as he looked over the city while trying to peek over and through the railings.
"I see the capital of Arkadius" Eli replied
"And?" the Emperor asked
"...Snow?"
"Well you aren't wrong my son, but did you forget about that?" the Emperor chuckled pointing up at the stars in the night sky.
"The stars?" Eli asked
"Not just stars Eli, but an entire universe full of life, and our empire covers how much of it?"
"uuuuum…all of it father?"
"Wrong, we will never even in the great span of eternity discover all of the wondrous and beautiful things in this universe, I doubt we even know of 1% of the universe right now, though I can tell you one thing I am certain of" the Emperor then crouched down and put a hand on his son's shoulder
"Every one of us has a purpose my son, the purpose of the sun is to bring light to our world while the snow and ice is to keep us strong and vigilant, the purpose of the painter is to bring his vision of art into the world while the purpose of the warrior is to protect those weaker than them. As the Emperor it is my purpose to protect and be an example to the people of this universe, not just Kamads but every species that deserves it"
"Father I don't understand" Eli said unsure of what his father meant
"You are my son and when I pass into the next world, you will become the protector and guardian of the people of this universe"
"But father why protect people who aren't our responsibility? Shouldn't we simply look out for our Empire and let the others protect themselves?"
"No my son, it is the duty and purpose of the strong to protect and fight for those who can't protect themselves, it is the reason why the strong exist, if the pillars of this palace weren't strong then the entire structure would give way. As my eldest son and heir you must learn this well, for you will be the Emperor and it will be your duty to protect those who need it"
"I don't think I can father" Eli said
"One day my son, you will be strong and wise enough to take my place and then you will understand why you are here, for that you must learn well and train hard" the Emperor ruffled Eli's white hair.
"Would becoming an Elite be a good way father?" Eli asked his father with a look of hope on his face
"It would be a good way to start" the Emperor chuckled as his son leapt and hugged him.
"Brother? Father?" came another voice; this voice was only slightly younger than Eli's as it came from a smaller Kamad, a little black haired male with a strange breathing apparatus covering half his face.
"Taruro, what are you doing out of bed?" the Emperor asked his middle son
"Yuna wouldn't stop crying and mother is asleep" the young Kamad said rubbing his eyes
"Eli go help your little brothers sleep" at this Eli nodded and went with his little brother.
The Emperor stood where he was and looked over his city, he then sniffed the air a few times and his heightened sense of smell picked something up.
"How long have you been standing there Hanzek?"
"It's amazing that you managed to pick me up this soon Rokuro, I even tried covering my scent this time" the second kamad said as he emerged from the shadows.
"Were you watching?" Rokuro asked
"Why of course, it's very rare that I get to see you act like an actual father, it's actually kind of sweet" Hanzek said wiping his eyes as if crying.
Rokuro turned to get a good look at his brother; Hanzek was one of the Primarchs and Rokuro's brother, he wore a large basket hat and a cloak that covered what he was wearing underneath, the Primarch also had the same dreadlock hair that Rokuro did, it was a warrior's hairstyle after all.
"Did you hear what he said about becoming an Elite?" Rokuro asked
"He takes after his father after all" Hanzek said with a grin
"I don't think I want him exposed to that type of life"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Remember the things we saw in our time as Elites?"
"The boy will have to see that life sooner or later, name one Kamad emperor who wasn't previously an Elite"
"I guess you have a point" Rokuro said after a long pause of thought.
"It is expected of an emperor to be a great warrior, and what better way than to become an Elite?"
Rokuro simply looked out onto the city and leant on the railings, Hanzek put his hand on his brother's shoulder
"He will be fine brother, before you know it he will be one of the deadliest creatures in the universe, and he will be able to defend himself"
"I suppose you're right"
"So I'm wiser than the great Emperor Rokuro?"
"Don't push your luck" the two brothers laughed together as the city lights flickered.
TIMESKIP: 1400 YEARS LATER
HUMAN YEAR: 2200 AD
A single Kamad stood in the centre of a room wearing a pair of steel plated boots that went up to his knees, a pair of black chain mail trousers with a red sash around his waist, a pair of fingerless gloves and a blindfold. The Kamad had long white dreadlocks that reached down to his shoulder blades that where adorned with gold rings , his very muscular figure signified that he was a warrior, the kamad was holding two intricately patterned katanas and had them down at his sides.
Four other Kamads slowly approached him from the left, the right, behind and in front, these other kamads wore what seemed to be black body suits adorned with black armour plates and wielded katanas of their own.
The white haired kamad took a long sniff of the air.
The first kamad made his move and attacked the blindfolded warrior, he took a swipe with his katana which the white haired kamad dodged and delivered a kick to his face, the next kamad attacked from behind trying to impale the blindfolded warrior who side stepped and elbowed him in the face sending him reeling.
The next two kamads decided to attack at the same time from two different fronts; the warrior sniffed again and began deflecting their attacks with his katanas, the two warriors exchanged sword blows with their enemy for a short while until the white haired warrior smirked and suddenly crouched down and cut off both of one of the kamads legs causing the kamad to yell in pain as luminescent blue blood gushed from the wounds, the white haired warrior then impaled the other kamad with both swords and tossed him to the other side of the room.
The two kamads from before began their next attack as the white haired warrior engaged them, the first kamad took a few swings only to have his arm cut off and receive a sharp kick to the stomach sending him flying, the last kamad standing attacked desperately trying to land at least one blow only to have the blindfolded kamad dodge every blow without trying, the white haired warrior then kicked the katana out of his foes grip and then deliver a second kick to his face which sent him to the floor.
The kamad had his back to the floor and the white haired warrior stabbed his swords into the ground in a scissor motion around his neck, the kamad on the floor was panting while the warrior above him smiled.
"TIME!" the warrior shouted
"14 seconds, a new record!" another kamad emerged with a time on the wrist computer on his gauntlet.
The white haired kamad removed his blindfold to reveal his golden reptilian eyes and threw it to the floor; he then removed his swords from the ground and helped the other kamad up.
"Good effort my friend, but your footwork was the problem" the white haired warrior said.
"But you were blindfolded my lord"
"I could hear your steps, trust me it was your footwork"
"Thank you my lord Eli" the other kamad said as he bowed, Eli then held his sword tip to this kamad's chin.
"Never take your eyes off an enemy, even when bowing" Eli said
"Of course my lord"
"And don't call me lord for the Creator's sake" Eli smiled, the other kamad then left, another kamad entered the room, a kamad wearing a long red coat with black markings, black dreadlocks with gold rings, he also wore black steel plated boots, gauntlets and a black steel plated undershirt, this kamad's armguards reached up to his shoulders and had a single black steel shoulder guard on his left shoulder. The kamad in question then began clapping as he approached Eli.
"Nicely done my friend, I've heard of disarming the enemy but…" the kamad looked at the warrior who got his arm cut off who was busy trying to re-attach his arm "…that was something else"
The kamads were lucky indeed to have a regeneration ability, on a planet where frostbite could make limbs fall off, it was handy to have the ability to regrow limbs and heal wounds rapidly, the kamads who had their limbs cut off by Eli would simply re-attach their limbs to the bleeding stubs and they would be good as new while the kamad who was impaled would only have to wait a minute before he was back to 100%.
"Oh they will be fine, after all we've had worse haven't we Rezeal?" Eli bumped fists with his lifelong friend; Eli went up to the kamad who had his legs severed and handed him one of legs while he was busy re-attaching one.
"Sorry about that my friend, but at least you won't fall for that same trick twice" Eli said
"Don't worry my prince it isn't the first time I've had my legs cut off" the kamad chuckled as did Eli, Eli then went to get dressed.
Eli was now wearing his Elite attire which consisted of his steel plated boots, black chain mail trousers and a long black leather coat, he also wore a red armguard on his left arm that was in the style of a medieval knight's, he had a steel pauldron on his right shoulder and a samurai style chest plate, he also wore a black arm cover on his right arm which covered his entire arm and his hand, the arm cover also had a few steel plates attached.
Eli stared into the mirror and took a long look at himself
"Came a long way in a thousand years eh?" Eli said to himself as he put on a red and white patterned bandana around his neck.
A thousand years to a kamad was like ten to a human and Eli was now a fine young man who just reached his prime, in the thousand years of his maturity Eli had become a force to be reckoned with, he was no longer a little Kamad who couldn't defend himself, he was now one of the Kamad Elites and was an achieved Blade master, a warrior who was skilled in the art of combat and swordsmanship.
Rezeal had also become an Elite in the many years that past and was Eli's teammate on many a mission, while Eli used a pair of katanas Rezeal used something a bit more unconventional, he wielded a weapon known as a Hookblade which was a designed to bring enemies in close so the user could finish them off with a short sword or dagger, his style of fighting was unorthodox by Kamad standards even though it was common for an Elite to be unorthodox, in fact it was one of the reasons they were so deadly to begin with.
"Finish dressing proper your highness?" Rezeal joked as he peeked through the door
"Go Fuck yourself Rezeal" Eli swore earning a chuckle from Rezeal
Eli and Rezeal were now walking side by side down the streets of the city and at one particular corner they saw a few kamad children looking at them with the same wonder in their eyes that they had when they were younger, now both Eli and Rezeal knew that being an Elite wasn't all glory and action, true it did have its exciting moments but mostly their missions really showed how dark the universe could be, an assassination mission would get very complicated when a targets family would get in the way, an exploration mission would uncover dark secrets or sentient species that had been destroyed way before their time.
"So what did my father say the mission was?" Eli asked
"He was mum on that, he only mentioned that whatever it was it deserved the attention of two high ranking Elites like us, you especially" Rezeal said to his friend
"It must be important then"
"That's putting it lightly; this mission is ranked as a category 5"
"Category 5? that's...well high end, only the best get those missions"
No matter what the mission was, it would not break Eli's or Rezeal's resolve in the matter, they had come to take whatever the mission was, he had learned that if he was going to take his father's place as emperor someday he was going to have to do the difficult things for the sake of the Empire.
It wasn't long until Eli and Rezeal came to the doors of the palace, the palace had hardly been touched by time in fact it looked even better than it did a thousand years ago. Eli looked to one of the palace guards who hadn't changed at all over the long thousand years
"Is the Emperor expecting us?" Eli asked
"He has awaited your return for an hour my prince" one of the guards said
"As you were" Eli said as he and Rezeal entered the palace
The two guards were silent for a moment until they were sure the prince was out of range.
"I can't remember a single time he hasn't been late" the first guard said
"Some things never change"
Eli and Rezeal walked down the hallway of the palace until they came to the Emperor, the Emperor was sat in his throne with a pair of armed guards at his left and right. Eli and Rezeal went down to one knee before the Emperor in respect, even though Eli was the crowned prince he still had to give his father the respect he deserved.
"No need for formalities boys, get up" the Emperor said with a 'get up' hand motion
"What are your orders your highness?" Rezeal spoke up
The Emperor looked to the guards at his sides and waved his hand
"Leave us" the guards obeyed and left the Emperor alone with the two elites.
"As you are aware this mission I have planned for you is a category 5, and is of the upmost importance"
Eli and Rezeal then stood silent for the Emperor to continue
"A few days ago a transmission was picked up from one of our warships on patrol; the signal was a simple but effective binary code holding a message"
"A message father?" Eli asked
"Yes a message in the language of the human race"
"The humans?! Since when did those primitives have the technology to send us a receivable message?" Rezeal exclaimed.
"As you know our research on the humans' show that they are very fast at advancing, this has been proven more so within the past 200 years, apparently they have had several encounters with the Yautja during that time" the Emperor said only to be interrupted by his son
"Ah then it's no wonder we didn't know this, the Yautja aren't very high on sharing information with us" Eli said
"Apparently over the past 200 years, the humans have managed to master space travel and are colonizing many worlds in their sector; this particular message identifies one of their achievements as the Asclepheus"
"The Asclepheus?" Eli asked
"It's the designation for their most advanced ship" Rokuro answered
"Sooo, what is it you want us to do Your Highness?" Rezeal asked with respect
"Not what you might think, this is not a combat mission by any standards, it is a diplomatic mission" the Emperor replied
"What? Then why do you need us for this mission? Rezeal and I are warriors, not diplomats" Eli asked the Emperor
"This mission is one of first contact, to our knowledge the humans have only encountered one other sentient species and that would be the Yautja, the purpose of the message they sent is to make contact with other sentiments. It is your mission to represent our people and allow the humans to learn what they can to gain their trust, that way there is a chance they could become valuable allies to the Empire"
"And why may I ask are you sending us instead of an ambassador?" Eli asked
"You are to become Emperor after me my son, who better to make first contact with the humans than you, this will also show the humans our trust in them"
"What if they are hostile?"
"Then defend yourselves, you two are some of the best combatants the Elites have to offer, this mission must succeed. You two are to be an example of our people in this matter, I have the greatest faith in you and so does the rest of the empire" the Emperor noticed the look of doubt on his son's face
"Rezeal can you leave my son and I for a moment?" Rezeal obeyed and left the room; Rokuro then rose from his throne and approached his son. Eli had indeed grown over the years as his father no longer towered over him, Rokuro placed his hand on his sons shoulder
"What is the matter Eli?"
"I don't think I can do this father, this task is too great for me to accomplish"
"Do you remember what I told you as a boy? That one day you would be proving yourself worthy as my heir?" Eli nodded at this
"This is that chance you need, the blood of the ancient kings runs through your veins, it is what gives you your strength and it is what will let you accomplish this mission" the Emperor said
"Do you really think I can do this father?" Eli asked
"You've grown so much from that little child you were all those decades ago, your body has grown to that of a mighty warrior and your skill matches that of the warriors of old, the one thing you have yet to do is to realise what you are capable of, I believe in you my son" the Emperor said as his son smiled and raised a fist.
The Emperor smiled and bumped fists with his son as Eli realized that he had to do this to prove himself to his father.
Rezeal had already readied the ship for flight; this ship was an Elite cruiser and was built for more than just two crew members, though two pilots were enough for this mission. Eli sat in the second pilot's seat and strapped himself in.
"So what was that all about?" Rezeal asked
"Oh nothing just a little prep talk" Eli replied as he flicked a few switched and typed the coordinates into the Navigator unit.
"Ready for this my friend?" Eli asked
"Are you?" Rezeal asked back
"No"
"Me neither" Eli grinned before the two began flicking controls and activating their ship. the Elite ship took off like a rocket into the skies, leaving no smoke trails of any kind before it was in the air where it made the sound of a sonic boom as it left the atmosphere.
The human race was in for a big surprise.
Kamad translations/definitions:
LarGuar – a giant flying reptilian, name translates to 'mountain eater'
RaaLtrak – a giant reptilian mammoth-like creature, name translates to 'four tusks'
KreeVans – reptilian quadrupeds, kamad equivalent of horses
So what did you guys think? Did you like the characters? What do you think could have been better? Did you like how I introduced Eli as a child first and then put the time skip in?
Please be sure to leave a review and tell me what you thought.
Next time: chapter 2: the Researcher.
