How to Kill a Human

"How to Kill a Human" is a short story written by Mamaluigithedonutgal. It centers around Tiger's Eye, and takes place during the Rebellion on Earth.

## Synopsis

At the height of the Rebellion, despite the odds being stacked in their favor, the loyalist soldiers found themselves struggling to even hold their ground against the off-color rebels. Amidst the chaos, a Chalcedony commander devised a simple but effective way to improve their chances: education.

## Story

"Listen carefully, soldiers. What I'm about to tell you could save your life in this war."

Tiger's Eye stood before the new Rebellion draftees. She had deemed it necessary to educate them on their foes, as no Gem was made with knowledge of organic life.

"In this war, we will be fighting two main types of foes that will be problematic. The first, obviously, is Gems. But the enemies I want to focus on are our organic foes: humans."

She calmly paced before the Quartzes and Chondrodites, arms behind her back.

"It can be easy to assume humans are weak and defenseless. After all, they're organic. But in the past five battles, we've lost not one, not two, but **eight** Quartz soldiers because they underestimated humans.

"Yes, they aren't as strong as us. Yes, they aren't as fast as us. But they have one thing that makes them dangerous."

She stopped, turning to face the soldiers. "They are intelligent. I'm not talking 'you can teach them how to kill' intelligent. I'm talking '**they** can teach **others** how to kill' intelligent. In many ways, they are like us. That is why you need to learn their weaknesses."

With that, the Sapphire standing nearby nodded to her Pearl, who projected a holographic human beside Tiger's Eye.

"This," the Chalcedony continued, "is a holographic replica of a typical human. Just as they can behave like us, they also look like us. But their physical forms are more fragile, in that they can't regenerate grievous damage."

She summoned her partisan and sliced an arm off the holo-human.

"If you sever a limb, or portion of a limb, off of a human's body, it won't grow back. Generally, this will also cause vital fluids to spill out of the human, causing a fairly quick death without intervention."

Tiger's Eye placed a hand on the holo-human's chest as she continued. "The central area is full of organs that the human needs to function. Pierce any of them—especially in this area," she pointed to the heart, "and they are unlikely to survive. However, there is a problem. Humans know how fragile they are, and when in combat, tend to wear armor."

Some holographic armor, again projected by the Pearl, formed over the holo-human.

"It's possible that this armor will prevent your weapons from breaking through to their vital organs. But there is one part of their body that isn't so easy to protect. The head."

She plopped a hand right on the hologram's head, looking directly at her soldiers.
"The head is more vital to a human than their chest or any of their limbs. Think of it as their Gemstone. A helmet will protect them, but not completely. You can try to pierce the head, but that tends to be well-armored. Instead, if you have a weapon that allows you to do so, aim for the neck like so."

In one smooth motion, Tiger's Eye spun around, slicing the holo-human's head clean off, which caused the hologram to dissipate after a second.

"That will kill the human instantly. Now, before I continue... any questions?"

As Tiger's Eye dispelled her polearm, she received a myriad of questions from her nervous soldiers, all of which she could answer with ease due to years of research. What if you needed to incapacitate a human rather than kill them? How do you kill a human with only a blunt force weapon or your bare hands? Do humans have any natural armor—if so, how does one bypass it?

Eventually, though, a Cherry Quartz asked a question she couldn't answer so easily.

"Why are we killing humans at all, when they're so much like us?"

A silence fell over the troops. Many soldiers stared at the Cherry Quartz, expecting an example to be made out of her. However, Tiger's Eye stayed calm, and after a moment, gave a thoughtful answer.

"That's a fair question. And one I should have expected. In the end, as much as they are like us, humans, much like this Rebellion, are a roadblock that needs to be cleared for Gemkind to progress."

She took a deep breath. "If you're worried killing humans will cause excessive guilt, consider that many of them believe death isn't the end. So when you kill a human, you can tell yourself that you're not destroying them. You're just sending them to the next life a little earlier than they might have planned."

*At least*, she thought to herself, *that's how **I've** been able to clear **my** conscience.*