A Superior Breed of Humanity

Everyone seems to think that genetically engineered human beings have it easy. I am a minority in a universe teeming with hostile humans and aliens who blame my people for everything that goes wrong under the sun. I have to be on my guard all the time. Every second of every day. Does that sound like fun? Yeah, that's what I thought.

In case you're wondering who this is, the name is Marla Sybil. I am a sergeant in the Imperial Guard, stationed on the planet Thanatos. Anyone looking at me would see a six-foot-one, big and strong, black-skinned and yellow-eyed young woman. I am a genetically engineered human being. Human DNA flows through me, along with the DNA of an African lion. My parents were both genetically enhanced humans, just like me. We are called The Chim. I have six times the strength of a normal human being or mundane. I can run as fast as an African lion. And I also have the lion's sharp senses, reflexes and animalistic ferocity. All that coupled with an IQ of 180. Not bad, hey?

Because of my unique genetic makeup and the talents that come with it, I often get assigned to the most horrible spots in the cosmos. Places like the shit hole known as Thanatos. It's not my favorite spot in the universe. A vast, arid wasteland that's basically a giant desert with few rivers and one giant ocean. The planet is rich in minerals and precious stones which cannot be found anywhere else in the galaxy. It's considered a prize by the Empire, and I'm assigned to protect His Majesty while he visits the place. Honestly, I don't know why he doesn't much care to visit delightful places like the planet Eden. It's a beautiful place. No damn sand, except on the loveliest beaches you've ever seen.

I mean this as respectfully as I can, but His Majesty can be a real pain in the ass sometimes. I am his protector, his keeper and once, I was his bedmate but I can imagine why so many people want to kill the Great Prince. He's arrogant, vain and incredibly manipulative. He always thinks he's right and he never admits when he makes a mistake. The Alpha Male all the way. Yeah, he's a handful. Why did he have to be so sinfully sexy? I suppose thirty centuries of genetic engineering has that effect on a person.

I guess a little back story might be in order. We live in the year 7000 A.D. Since the late twenty first century, man has conquered the stars. We have colonized hundreds of worlds. Until 3400 A.D. we thought we were alone in the universe. Then, we encountered an alien race called the Sarthorians. A bunch of seven-foot-tall, purple-skinned and red-eyed humanoids. They are incredibly strong and fast. Seven times stronger than the average human and about as fast as a cheetah. They also have a lifespan of three hundred years. At a time when humans were still discovering fire, the Sarthorians were soaring through the cosmos on faster-than-light spaceships. They had a chip on their shoulder and saw themselves as the rightful rulers of the universe.

One day, they encountered a human spaceship , in January 3400 A.D. At first, peaceful contact was made between humanity and the Sarthorian Collective. The Sarthorians numbered in the trillions. They had colonized tens of thousands of planets. At the time, humanity numbered in the trillions as well. We were a force to be reckoned with. For decades, we traded with them amicably. Then, one day, seemingly without warning, the Sarthorians attacked. They destroyed the planet Earth, ancestral home of all humanity. As you can imagine, a lot of people got pissed. Humanity declared war on the Sarthorian Conclave.

The Sarthorian Conclave unleashed its massive armada of spaceships. They destroyed the planet Mars, along with the colonies on Phobos and Deimos, the moons of Mars. World after world was destroyed by the Sarthorian. Their technology was far beyond ours. We had faster-than-light spaceships. They possessed Teleportation Technology. They could transport themselves from one galaxy to another. We had yet to leave our galaxy, even after centuries of space flight. As you can imagine, we were outmatched when it came to weaponry and other areas of technology. How could we even the battle?

On the planet Heracles, genetic engineering experiments were conducted. Scientists combined human DNA along with the DNA of animals from the Ancient planet Earth, notably Tigers, Lions, Snakes, Crocodiles, Wolves, Bears and Fishes to engineer a new breed. Thus, they created an army of human-like creatures to fight against the threat of the Sarthorians. These were the first genetically engineered humans in history. Created specifically to kick the collective ass of the universe. My people. We were originally designed to be the slaves of the mundanes, the ordinary humans.

For decades, we fought against the Sarthorians. You see, my people were stronger, faster and smarter than the ordinary humans who controlled our lives. They kept us in line, granting us certain rights and privileges. But we were their slaves, basically. One day, we rebelled. In 3617 A.D. eight hundred thousand of my kind abandoned their human masters in the middle of a terrible battle. The Sarthorian fleet cut down the human fleet and destroyed twenty planets that day. As for us, we seized control of a large number of captured Sarthorian ships and used their Teleportation Technology to transport ourselves to another galaxy. A place where we might be free from both human tyranny and Sarthorian imperialism.

We found ourselves in the Hydra Supercluster, a galaxy far away from the Milky Way, from which humanity hails. We first colonized a planet which we called Liberty, an ancient English word meaning Freedom. In the millennia which followed, we colonized many other planets. Our numbers grew. The Hydra Supercluster was a galaxy filled with habitable, earth-like planets. A myriad worlds for us to conquer. At long last, the universe lay within our grasp. Over the course of time, our numbers swelled. We soon reached the billions and found ourselves becoming an empire which numbered several thousand colony worlds. We were safe from the humans and the Sarthorians. Until these fools brought their ancient war into our galaxy.

We were doing pretty well until they came along. The Chim Empire was in the hands of the wise old Emperor Jacques Saber III. Our people trusted him. He was a strong and experienced leader. He ascended to the throne when he was twenty years old. One hundred and forty years later, he was considered the best ruler our people have ever had. He strengthened our military and protected our people from internal and external dangers. He boosted the Imperial Economy and gave strong support to the most important aspects of our society including education, culture and civil service.

The title of Emperor or Empress has a meaning quite different from what it conveys in ancient earth dialects. The Emperor or Empress is chosen by the people through a vote. No Emperor or Empress may reign for more than two terms. Each term lasts ten years. Emperor Jacques Saber III came to power during a difficult time. Our people had a civil war. The men and women of various ruling houses were vying for power and the armies they commanded waged war. The Civil War lasted forty years. We're a race genetically designed for fighting. Surrendering simply isn't in our DNA. So, yeah, we do hold grudges and we love to kick ass. That's why our wars last so damn long.

In the Empire, there are Sectors. A Sector consists of a planet or group of planets and their inhabitants. Each Sector falls under the leadership of a Ruling House. The Lord and First Lady of a Ruling House are the hereditary leaders of the House. There are hundreds of Ruling Houses in the Chim Empire. And all Lords and Ladies of these Ruling Houses answer to the Emperor or Empress, who leads the entire Chim people. As you can see, we were an independent people with our own rules and customs before the humans and the Sarthorians invaded our universe and brought their age-old conflict to our doors. The humans hadn't fared well in the past thousands of years. The Sarthorians had driven ordinary humanity to the brink of extinction. And now, the humans came to us, desperate for our help. We, who used to be their slaves. They are now at our mercy. Whoever said life isn't ironic was definitely wrong. Am I right or am I right?