Brother Ranakah:
Our unique lot in life often came to the puzzlement and even bemusement of the populations of planets we either visited, were stationed near, or even fought on. San Wan lived on Savawarh and I learned to love that planet from the first time he brought Katook and myself there to visit.
San Wan's brother Ranakah took a certain fascination in the fact that Katook and I did just about everything together. "Sequential batch numbers." I heard San Wan explain as Japah, Sentury, Katook and myself were in the other room, trying our hand at a new strategy game. "Clone soldiers have rather habitual mannerisms. It takes some getting used to; but they are very lovable once you get to know them." San Wan chuckled.
"Well, I'd heard about their... unparalleled sleeping arrangements; but I didn't believe it until I walked through the family recreation room and saw the four of them cuddled up on the floor together last night." I heard Ranakah say. "Now I do admit, I pride myself in being the 'understanding/tolerant - ah what ever - Aardatian that I am; but even to me, that was just plain...weird!" Ranakah laughed. "Aren't humans kind of...well - you know! Aren't there issues with that?" I heard him inquire in a hushed voice.
"You mean that thing on Earth they call homosexuality?" San Wan replied as I came walking into their dinning area for something to drink.
"Yeah, Ewww" I saw his brother cringe.
"I know I don't understand that either" San Wan shrugged. "Just like I don't understand how they ever have more than one mate in a lifetime; but humans are very different from we are." San Wan looked up at me and smiled.
"You guys on the other hand." He said as he pointed to me. "I think you actually have Aardatian blood." He chuckled as he slapped me on the arm a few times before he sat down again.
"Hum." Ranakah looked at me and thoughtfully smiled before he turned back to San Wan. "Yeah, that non-reproducing genetic engineering component?" He cocked his head and made a funny face.
"You mean that, hormonal suppression, and behavioral conditioning?" San Wan added. "Even taking reproductive ritual out of the picture; they, like any of the rest of us still need to be touched." San Wan went on to explain as he poured another cup of tea. "Without it, we all die."
"Without what we all die?" Katook inquired as he came into the dinning area after me.
"Being touched, hugged and stuff you know; being close to someone else." I answered.
"Are you lonely!" Katook laughed as he suddenly lunged at me in a bear hug.
"Oh, go away you ugly clone!" I said as I gave him a shove. San Wan and Ranakah laughed.
"You all do have quite the sense of humor." Ranakah chuckled.
"Where'd Sentury and Japah go?" San Wan inquired.
"Running." Katook answered.
"What about you guys?" Ranakah asked.
"They went this morning." San Wan chuckled. "Didn't do too badly keeping up with me!" He grinned mischievously. "But I took it easy on them!" Katook and I just looked at each other and shook our heads. It really isn't a fair comparison, when there have been Aardatians clocked at sprints up to 45mph. Ranakah and San Wan just started laughing. "It's OK" they both chortled. "Have a seat." San Wan offered.
Katook and I sat down as San Wan got up to retrieve a fresh pot of tea and some additional cups for us too. He was so amazingly hospitable for someone who gravely outranked us.
"Thank you." We both smiled as we picked up our cups and tasted the tea.
"May we all survive this war." San Wan said as he raised his cup. Yes, we all agreed as we followed suit.
Katook and I sat drinking our tea and quietly commiserating as to what we felt up to doing next. It was a toss-up between Pontoon park or the mountains about 50 kilometers south of us.
"Sir." Katook inquired of San Wan. "Do you have anything you want us to do before we leave?"
"No not really?" San Wan answered. "Where you two going?" He inquired.
"Oh I think we are going to the mountains to hike the waterfalls." I answered.
"The college is on break" Ranakah interjected with a chuckle. "You mean you're not going to go down to the beach with all the other human males to ogle all the primarily naked babes?"
Katook and I just looked at each other and shrugged.
"You'd look good in one of those itty bitty bathing suits they all wear!" San Wan's brother giggled.
"Ranakah; bro! Shut up!" San Wan said.
"Well it's true!" Ranakah started laughing. "They all got the body for it; don't they? Young guys in great shape running around primarily naked themselves. Every one all slobbering all over each other. A virtual hormone fest!"
"Like I said" San Wan repeated. "Shut Up!"
Katook and I just looked at each other and shrugged again.
"I don't want sunburn." I commented.
"And I don't like being slobbered on." Katook added as Ranakah and San Wan started laughing even more.
"What experience have you got being slobbered on?" Ranakah suddenly inquired of Katook.
"Baby clones." San Wan answered as they both chuckled again.
"Amen!" Ranakah leaned over and slapped us on the back; than sat back and smiled, watching the two of us for some minutes.
"San Wan?" He suddenly asked. "Are they all like that?"
"You mean so platonic?" San Wan clarified. "Yeah they are." He answered.
San Wan's brother leaned over and whispered across the table. "Do they even know what sex is?"
San Wan put his tea-cup down, gave his brother "the look" and then glanced at us.
"I know!" Katook grinned real big as he suddenly raised his hand to volunteer an answer. "It's the process by which two organisms make a third."
Ranakah just gazed at the two of us.
"Well, that is correct!" San Wan commented with a chuckle as Ranakah continued to gaze at us and nearly with one raised eyebrow.
"Hum?" His brother said. "Are they all so innocent?" He inquired.
San Wan finally let out a sigh and stared into his tea-cup. "Well, some know more than others; but for the most part yes."
"Why such...oblivion?" Ranakah suddenly queried. "Why keep them in the dark like that? If they don't know some of this stuff; couldn't it get them in trouble?"
"Military unit cohesion." San Wan began to explain. "Fewer distractions. Easier to do a job. If you have no desire for sex and only a basic medical understanding of reproduction; you could happily live out your life that way without a second thought." San Wan shrugged.
"Literally hundreds of thousands of clones have lived and died like that." He continued. "They abide their whole lives pretty much in a strictly controlled closed society. It is the most cooperative, smoothly running organizational structure I think I've ever seen." San Wan paused to take a sip of tea.
"They are very close to each other. They take good care of each other and they feel very safe in that environment. It makes them an extremely affective military." San Wan chuckled. "They've been in existence for something like 600 years. That's the longest running standing army in Inter-galactic history that I'm aware of."
"Hum" Ranakah nodded again. "And all these drugs and stuff they get, are near 100% effective at getting the results they want, without the side effects they don't want?" Ranakah looked at Katook and I for another long minute.
"Don't you ever get curious about each other?" He unexpectedly asked. "I mean wasn't that an issue in past Earth militaries?"
"No!" Katook answered again. "Innocent curiosities could get you killed!"
Ranakah suddenly stopped and looked at us. "You mean they'd execute you for... experimenting?" He asked.
"On other clones - yes." San Wan answered as Katook and I both nodded.
"Wow!" Ranakah exclaimed. "Granted, yeah I think you all trying that out on each other would be really disgusting; but I also think a lot of human heterosexual behavior is disgusting too! That's harsh though!"
"Yes that may be." San Wan said. "But it, in conjunction with a lot of other aspects of their culture - is very effective; because let me tell you!" San Wan continued. "The last thing you want your soldiers doing is each other." San Wan paused a minute as they both looked at the other. "There's gotta be a better way of putting that." San Wan shook his head.
We all sat quietly for a few more minutes when San Wan asked us what we wanted for dinner. He said he had some other appointment that evening and what ever it was we felt like setting our taste buds too; he was willing to foot the bill for. Being it somewhat reasonably priced at least.
Ranakah looked at San Wan and than at us. "That's right." He said. "They don't get paid do they?"
"No, they don't." San Wan answered. "But the support planets are routinely pretty generous. They can request of the Quarter-Master just about anything. If it's reasonable, and usually edible - they'll probably get it." San Wan chuckled. "They sometimes get adventurous and like to try different food. The down side to that is you'd better have enough of it, because if one likes it - generally the whole army wants some."
"Like chocolate." Ranakah laughed.
"Well yes." San Wan laughed too. "It's a well documented fact across the galaxy that clones like chocolate, and chocolate in any way, shape, or form." San Wan paused a minute and then asked Ranakah. "Are you busy? Do you want to take them someplace?"
"Sure." Ranakah answered. "Let me check with Bella first. I'm pretty sure though that she's staying late to grade exams; or at least that was the last news I had."
"OK" San Wan said. "If not let me know. I'll make other arrangements."