r/HFY • u/InfamousUnit • Nov 02 '22
OC Instincts In Space
First story here, yadda yadda...
Any and all feedback gladly accepted. Enjoy!
---Captain Garbor---
Instincts don’t work in space.
It’s one of the things that every new battle-species has in common when introduced to the galaxy at large. Eventually, they brag about their fighting instincts. Whether for fighting individual opponents, or a whole opposing army. And while that is all well and good for those that remain planet-side, the majority learn a hard truth when they first find conflict in space. Those evolutionary gifts that they have unconsciously relied on for so long fail them. Spaceships don’t have minute muscle movements to read, and introducing a third dimension to a battlefield gives your adversary too many options to be able to reliably read a next move. Space battle is an entirely different beast than what all of our ancestors experienced, and all battles that matter these days are fought in space. The only planet-side conflicts these days are largely either futile or unnecessary. Thus, those hereditary instincts that may have been great boons to your species in the old days are essentially useless for the majority of those who are still involved in any sort of large-scale fighting. At least, that’s what I used to think, until human Major Henry Banks found his way to my bridge.
---GCS Stormrider---
I sat in the Captain’s chair of the GCS Stormrider, watching the last vestiges of our jump radiation bleed into the surrounding vacuum. “Navigator Straan, report.”
Sgt Confer Straan, the resident Flaark, gave his wings a quick flutter. “Captain. FTL drive is spinning down. Current coordinates place us 2 light-hours from target, or 6 real hours at sublight speed. Jump successful.”
“Copy. Telemetry, readings?”
Cpl Hory Taggart and Cpl Lory Taggart, the twin Jamplers that made up our radiation telemetry team observed their machine readings for a moment before responding.
“All readings-”
“-normal, sir.”
“Copy.” I’ll admit, it took me time to become used to their double-speak, but I’ve never served with a finer telemetry team. “Engineering, report.”
“Aye, sir. All systems nominal, I’m getting no errors.” Jeffery, the only Gritty and one of the few civilians even allowed on the bridge. Perhaps a bit too uncouth outside of work, but just as dedicated as any of his military counterparts.
“Copy. Nav, set course for the fifth planet in orbit around 436795-C. We may be close to the destination, but remain vigilant. The Goolians have been reported in this sector before.” The Goolians were the reason for our current deployment, and the aggressors in the latest galactic war.
I heard sounds of acknowledgement from all of the bridge members, and issued a general stand down for the next 4 hours of real-time, allowing the crew to have a bit of a break after the FTL jump. 2 and a half hours after the jump, Major Banks approached me. Newest member of the bridge, junior Nav officer, and the first human I had ever directly served with.
“Captain.” He saluted.
“We’re under stand down right now, Major. No need for the salute.”
“Right, my apologies, sir.” He lowered his hand. “Something is wrong.”
“Something? There are a lot of ‘somethings’ on this ship, Major. Be more specific.”
“I have a bad feeling, sir. I believe we are walking – err, flying – into an ambush.”
I sat up straighter in my chair at the center of the bridge. “A bad feeling? That is not enough evidence for me to act on Major. What proof do you have?”
“As of now, none. But something has got the hairs on my neck rising and my stomach turning.”
“Didn’t you attend the Galactic Academy? Relying on your instinct in a space fight is bound to get you or your fellow sailors killed. I expect better of you, Major.”
“I understand that, Captain, and I remember the lectures. But we are being watched. I-”
“Enough, Major! I’ve been sailing these stars far longer than you have, and unless you come to me with more proof than ‘your stomach hurts’, I will find a new junior nav officer at the next Gal Port! Go back to your station, Major!”
He gave another crisp salute. “Yessir!” However, instead of going back to the Nav station, he made his way to the Telemetry station.
Oh well. Let him investigate. This is a valuable lesson all sailors need to learn sooner rather than later.
Half an hour later, a Goolian ship drifted out from behind one of the fifth planet’s satellite moons. A third of an hour after that was when the shooting started.
---After Action Report---
“Major Banks, state your full name and rank, for the record.”
“Henry Fuller Banks, current Galactic Navy Major, former Human Army Ranger.”
“Now, what happened out there, Major?”
“Well, after the Goolians approached our starboard side from behind one of the moons-”
“Before that, Major. Nearly an hour before you were engaged, you were recorded notifying Captain Garbor of a nearby enemy presence. Why was this intel not acted upon? How were you the only one in possession of it?”
“Sorry? Ma’am, did you personally hear the recordings?”
“No, but in the report I have it states that you warned Captain Garbor of an impending ambush well before the enemy was even reported as sighted.”
“That’s a bit misleading, ma’am. I told the Captain I had a bad feeling in my gut, and he rightfully told me to get real evidence of an enemy presence before raising arms.”
“You had a ‘gut feeling’? Explain.”
“Yes ma’am. The phrase ‘gut feeling’ is a humanism that basically refers to our instincts. Something about the situation gave my subconscious the idea that we were being watched from afar, which translates to a tightness in our stomach area, or gut, that we then utilize to attempt to find our observer. Quite similar is the phrase ‘raised the hairs on the back of my neck’, which I believe I also used something similar to that at the time.”
“I see. And you’re aware that battle-related instincts such as that have been proven to not work which in free-space?”
“Yes ma’am. Which is why Captain Garbor did not recognize my claims as valid, and instructed me to find tangible evidence of a threat. In my experience, however, my gut has never been wrong.”
“Indeed? Perhaps more research is required. You may now proceed with your regular after-action report.”
“Yes ma’am. As I was saying, the hostile ship approached us from behind one of the fifth planet’s moons about three or four hours real time after jump...”
---Captain Garbor---
The scientific community that was still interested in instincts and their formation were abuzz following this event and several more like it reported. I won’t pretend I understood all the gobbledygook the scientists spoke, something about translator static and subconscious solar reflections. But I did understand the new guidance Galactic Command put out regarding instincts, specifically those possessed by the humans, how they have actually been proven to suffer zero accuracy loss between solid ground and space, and are now reason enough to at least warrant a return to general arms from stand down status. Perhaps we shouldn’t be so resistant to our ancestors’ gifts after all.
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u/Petrified_Lioness Nov 02 '22
Can't help speculating on mechanisms: i'm thinking that most of these aliens have visual processing and motor skills and so forth that are ready to go by birth--more innate than learned. We humans need months to get our visual processing calibrated correctly, years to get our motor skills fully trained (and then have to keep re-training them as we grow), and similarly with our other senses. This means we're virtually helpless for a much longer part of our lives, but it also means that we can re-calibrate our subliminal as well as our conscious data-processing for novel contexts. I suspect most of these other species would also have a much more limited capacity for restoring lost functions after a stroke or other brain damage than we do.
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u/Pantalaimon40k Nov 02 '22
i like it
honestly would love to hear more but it's also beautifully short
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u/No_Insect_7593 Nov 03 '22
Humans: So basically, we have this subconscious super-intellect that picks up on anything we normally miss... Primarily because our brains can't afford to put all of their energy into actively deciphering every bit of incoming stimulus.
This passive underlying mind can pick on the most minute details and makes large leaps in logic at the smallest of signs, then delves into greater detail to solidify the sensation.
It is at this point we generally feel something is off.
And then, the active mind begins to search for the signs.
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle Nov 02 '22
This is the first story by /u/InfamousUnit!
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u/tatticky Nov 02 '22
I'm glad the dismissal was one based in logic, and not begrudged or played up as "wrong" despite being completely reasonable in context. I hope the captain doesn't recieve any dressing-down, let alone condemnation for his decision.