Challenge #03229-H320: Prepared For Anything

in #fiction2 years ago

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They found a planet that was, at most, a level 1 to level 2 deathworld. It was a cooler planet still within its sun goldilocks zone, but barely. They'd never seen snow, or dealt with cold temperatures. But the humans enjoyed the exploration, seeing all the animals adapted to semi-mild, yet still arctic, conditions, the conifer like trees, and having the occasional snowball fight for laughs. -- Anon Guest

Tundra, taiga, arctic ice. Whilst technically a tolerable Deathworld, the crew of the survey vessel Explorer Fancy were largely wondering exactly who would find it tolerable. That is, until the Ships' Humans got out in it.

The alarming part was that they had pop-out adaptations for the climate pre-installed in their livesuits. They were zooming down the snow-covered hills on skis. Pelting each other with balls made out of snow. Making effigies out of pre-frozen precipitate. In brief, doing anything but their jobs.

If the Humans were relaxed enough to mess about, then it may yet bode well for the planet. Until someone yelled, "Bear!"

It was not a bear. It looked amazingly like one, because convergent evolution does these things to life forms. Nevertheless, the Humans were racing up trees at that moment's notice. Some were preparing ziplines in case this particular ursinoid could climb[1].

The surveying team were the ones who scanned for hostile potential first and asked salient questions later. Since this planet had not evolved cogniscent life, the first question was, "Could it be friendly?"

The next question after that answer of 'yes' was: "Can we stop the Humans taking one home?"

Fortunately, Human Targ had an aversion to ursinoid lifeforms. As soon as she deemed an ursinoid too close, she let out an unbelievable howl of, "PERKELE!" Even though the animals didn't understand what it meant, it worked to have them fleeing for their lives from the scene.

They would have to remember that word. And, perhaps, learn what it meant.

[1] Humans are very rarely embarrassed twice.

[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / Crystal_Ray]

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I guess the fact it's a tone not a word/phrase that does it hasn't caught on yet? :D

It'll catch on soon