Tough

The first time it happened, no one took notice. When it reached the hundredth time, everyone took notice.

The newest members of the Galactic Alliance were tough beyond imagination. Stories were spread all over the place.

“I once saw one go for ten klicks without stopping, while their leg was broken.”

“Hey, have you heard about the time one managed to lift half of a ship to get a member of the crew out?”

“They do what???”

“They pierce metal into their flesh and inject ink into their skin.”

“How do they not die?”

“They heal so fast it doesn’t trouble them.”

The species in question: Humans. Rumors spread of their strength. Twenty years after they joined one of the Universe’s most brilliant minds released an article on humans.

She had lived among humans since they joined. Every bit of their culture fascinated her. When her apartment complex went up in flames she saw men and women racing inside to get those trapped out. Her eyes widened when she met veterans. They told her stories that she could hardly believe, but their mental and physical scars told otherwise. Her heart stopped when a child went missing and their parents searched for weeks even when others had given up. Famine struck in small countries, cars crashed, children were born, friends became family, some were lost, others were gained, and these strange creatures always kept going. Humans were people of iron wills, mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers.

This brilliant mind read through their lore and felt all their feelings. Danger was not unfamiliar to them. It was a fact of life. Animals nearly gave her a heart attack.

“What creatures are these?”

“Those are cats. They’re a type of pet.”

“You keep flesh-eating clawed animals as pets?”

Not to mention the weather, and the planet itself.

“Why is the ground shaking?”

“It’s an Earthquake. They’re quite common here, because we are on a fault line.”

“Is this planet designed to kill you?”

“In a way, yes.”

The atmosphere was made up of oxygen. Which is used as a type of fuel source. Essentially, humans breathed death.

When the article hit the mainstream humans became the most sought after explorers. Who knew that these people were so tough.

…