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Challenge #02367-F177: Impossible Dreamers

If you think that "something" is impossible to do... Give it to humans and they will make it "possible" -- Anon Guest

Never tell a Human what's impossible. -- Galactic Alliance saying.

They had once said that travelling faster than light was impossible, just like time travel. Humans managed to find one-way wormholes, which utilised both, and then proceeded to use them to seed their colonies all over surprising corners of space. Humans, it seemed, accomplished six impossible things before teatime.

It was impossible to hold one's own against the Vorax, unless you were a Human. It was impossible to merge conflicting technological philosophies of construction, unless you were a Human. It was impossible to terraform a rogue planet... unless you were a bunch of Humans who thought it worthwhile.

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Challenge #02366-F176: Fight, Flight, or...

Fight or flight, the natural reactions to fear. Though, people don't mention one, freeze. People like to ignore that possibility because it tends to put them in danger. Unfortunately for them, it is real, it is dangerous, and it is terrifying if you happen to be the one experiencing it. -- Anon Guest

Most Humans can be relied upon to act quickly in an emergency. Most of them. Their presence in any place of inherent hazard is reassuring to anyone in field

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Challenge #02365-F175: Motivational Inspiration

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iYYRH4apXDo -- Anon Guest

It was vaguely conical, and smaller than the most popular cars of the late Terran Twentieth Century. This was a vessel designed to get three Humans back to their planet after a long and perilous journey to truly hostile territory. There was just enough room for three Humans and all the samples they had gathered while they were up there.

What was more worrying was the landing craft for their missions to

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Challenge #02364-F174: Deconstruct Reconstruct

With so many species coexisting, we must create new stories and nursery-rhymes. This is one such story. -- Anon Guest

Three blind Meiss, three blind Meiss/ See how they run, see how they run/ They all ran after the farmer's wife/ Who cut off their tails with a carving knife/ And violated the cogniscent rights/ Of three blind Meiss. -- one of many adjustments to Human nursery rhymes.

There are others. With integration comes a certain amount of cultural cross-pollination, so to

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Challenge #02363-F173: The Ego Won't Be Landing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDs5Abg0M9A -- AmberFox

There is, in fact, a Starman waiting in the sky. He is not leaning back on his radio, as the song once said, but is seated comfortably in a red roadster, wearing a stylish spacesuit. He posed so that he could, with a glance, read the dashboard display that says, Don't Panic!

He does not say anything. He does not do anything. That's because he is, in fact, a dummy. An effigy of

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Challenge #02362-F172: A Sundae on Foursday

First Contact should always be celebrated with Ice cream! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mzgn0b67oIA -- Anon Guest

Humans are pretty good at interesting food. Their food-on-a-stick philosophy has solved, and started, many combats, mostly over who gets the last theobromine-free chocolate one. The introduction of popsicles to the Galactic Alliance blew many a mind. So, too, did Ice Cream.

A ready and easily consumed, portable cold treat of fats and sugars. Some blended to be certain that there were no

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Challenge #02361-F171: Do You Remember?

It's your Old School celebrating a milestone. What happened to those you used to know, and how have they changed. Remember the Libel laws. -- Anon Guest

This used to be my playground... Ze had come from here, more or less. The society that dysfunctioned in these borders had done more to form hir than hir parents had. This used to be my hell. They hadn't understood, in decades prior what 'nonbinary' even was. As a result, they had tormented hir mercilessly.

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Challenge #02360-F170: The Chances... Are a Million to One

Trip of a Lifetime, all the places they wanted to see, Jahn Average (choose sex) finds themselves the only "non-fan" in a Sci fi Fantasy group. They don't know the jokes, they wear the wrong clothes and why is everyone going to Grover's Mill. -- Anon Guest

There comes a moment when one realises that, at least metaphorically speaking, one has entered the wrong bus. "...and now we're - BANNED FROM ARGO, EV'RY OOOONNNNEEE..."

Pen had passed that point, but the sing-along

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Challenge #02359-F169: Noisy Air

"What was that sound?"

"Oh, it was nothing. I'm just haven't gotten a chance to eat yet."

"Your body makes threat growls when it is hungry!?" -- Anon Guest

Working with Humans has its own hazards. The most common of which is encountering something the Humans consider normal, but the rest of known civilisation considers strange, new, or frightening. In turn, every species has their own unusual features, functions, or quirks that set them apart from everyone else. It's why the very

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Challenge #02358-F168: Dramatis Personae

Reading a lot of these I noticed some recurring characters. Is there any kind of character bio for them, and if not would you possibly give us some? -- Anon Guest

[AN: Not exactly a story but this must be important so...]

Amalgam Universe

Rael

  • Species: Faiize, a gengineered version of the non-cogniscent, sluglike 'cleaners' with some massive feature creep and consequent legal battle in regards to their concealed-until-undeniable cogniscence. Each Faiize is named by a computer, using a random collection of
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Challenge #02357-F167: Armour-plated Badass

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6ODSKfPs0iA

Some species have chitin as Armour.

We Humans have interior Bones and Skin.

But what If an Alien species has developed an exterior Skin of Bone ? -- Anon Guest

There are very few examples of osteodermis extremis in cogniscent lifeforms. For Deathworlds, and the Deathworlders who dwell on them, it makes more evolutionary sense than -say- being small, mobile and squishy. Though not common, it's generally expected for Deathworlders of level four or above to

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Challenge #02356-F166: Strange... on a Train

"May I scare you?"

"What?"

"May I scare you. I want to scare someone but just doing it outright would make me feel guilty. So, I was hoping someone would give me permission to scare them." -- Anon Guest

"Well, it's going to be a bit more difficult than jumping up at me and yelling 'boo'," said Mae. "I know it's coming, now. Jumpscares can't work if they're anticipated."

"Oh, I know this," said the amenable stranger. "I have an entirely different

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Challenge #02355-F165: A Peculiar Friendship

It had waited 3 hours for her. It had planned it's attack for days on end. It knew exactly how to take her down, and it would have already done it, if not for one question.

"Are you scared too?" -- Anon Guest

Ze who hesitates is lost, -- Ancient wisdom.

Unfortunately for Grethagh, terror of the darkness, it was remembered too late. This was its first hunt, and taking its time to enjoy it had seemed like a rational choice. Now?

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Challenge #02354-F164: Occupational Safety and Health

Humans don't know it but they acutely have a small connection to the 4th dimension.

Whenever a human gets a 'gut feeling' or 'deja vu' that's when they do it. -- Chara Dreemur

Three dimensions, all beings can navigate: length, depth, and width. The fourth, time, is something that moves us, and can be sensed by most[1]. What surprises many is the occasional ability to navigate the fourth dimension... partially. This ability inevitably turns up in Humans, but those infected with

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Challenge #02353-F163: But it Looks Like Fun

I can't believe I have to say this but, stay out of volcanoes. -- Anon Guest

Of all the multiple and nuanced arguments in favour of Humanity being an insane species, there is one that is simply one word:

Vulcanologists.

Though the field of science exists across any species born on a world with tectonic activity, only the Humans ever came up with the idea of wandering around and poking at a mountain that might explode. Everyone else was sensible about it,

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