"So this is it", he thought, as he slowly rose to a sitting position on the wall-mounted wooden bench that served as his bed in this miserable excuse for a cell.

"My day of execution, unless the gods themselves intervene, though I doubt it" He rubbed his hands over his face, attempting to chase the last sleep away.

It was ridiculous really, sentencing him to death for that small bit of piracy. He hadn't killed anyone that didn't fight back and he made sure they had both enough fuel and supplies to make it to the nearest spaceport. That was far more than most did. Still, these insane lizards had claimed him to be a cold-blooded murderer.

He didn't really mind the Kloxna as a race. In truth, he didn't really mind anyone as long as they didn't try to make him change his way of life. Unfortunately, most governments out there did not allow freelance work. You either had a designated role or you were a traitor. There were no Jack-of-all-trades. except for Terrans.

And if was being honest with himself, the young Kloxna females were not bad-looking. The tail made it strange but gave great leverage. It was just a shame they became so bossy and dominant in their mature years. Yeah, he was a freak, but then again, when had he cared about other people's opinion of him, except for his family, of course.

And they would never be part of that part of his life. so that problem solved itself.

If only they had stationed him somewhere with young rookie soldiers. At least those would be easy on the eyes. All these hardy combat veterans guarding him weren't exactly a stimulating sight.

A look towards the door of the cell showed a Kloxna dutifully posted, but pleasantly surprising, less meaty than usual. One could almost be tempted to say feminine-looking. Even more surprisingly, she was looking away from the cell, standing guard in heavy combat armor with a primed anti-armor weapon in her clawed hands.

(the Kloxna is a relatively small, cold-blooded reptilian race with a slight resemblance to Kobolds. Reaching about 140cm / 4´6, with a muscle density about 2/3 of a human, clawed hands, and a truly nasty set of teeth. their society is matriarchal in nature, with a martial culture. this, in turn, causes females to be bigger and stronger than the males)

It would seem the gods were in a good mood today. For 3 months he had seen nothing but old soldiers. Warriors in their own right, vigilant, aware, and utterly immune to bullshit. But this new one. she was none of those things. Sure, she might be a soldier, but she was no warrior. There was no experience in this one, a mere toy soldier. He took the time to look her over. "Cute little thing" he thought. "though that tail is blocking most of the view"

Her lack of attention on him was surprising to say the least, as the martial culture of the Kloxna made them extremely dutiful soldiers and guards, the officers boasting that once assigned a prisoner, their soldiers will not take their eyes off of their charge until relieved of duty. Perhaps he had been too boring to watch during REM sleep.

Further inspection of the few bits of skin not covered by armor, revealed the guard to be a fair bit younger than the usual grizzled soldiers that eyed him like a piece of prize Venison. The light green skin had not yet gained the darker, rougher tone and texture of the fully matured and battle-hardened soldiers.

"Huh, the veterans must be busy" He mused to himself. "How very strange, but a most welcome opportunity. Let's see if I can have a little fun with this one."

Without a sound, he stood up from the bench and started creeping closer to the cell bars. His bare feet never made a sound and over the next half-minute, he managed to creep up behind the guard.

Slowly extending both hands out through the bars he held his breath as he made ready for his attack. closer and closer his hands crept until..... he grabbed her tail.

She let out a mixture between a yelp and a squeak and whirled around with a look of complete shock on her face

Before she could process what had just happened and react to it accordingly, the human roared into the face of the stunned soldier.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"

The steel walls reverberated with the echo of his war cry, the young female soldier's eyes expanding in fear to the point where she looked like she had googly lizard eyes instead of normal ones while falling over as she clutched her ears. The sight was too much for the warrior in the cell and he started a hearty laugh that only got louder once the young female realized he was laughing at her.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN YOURSELF!!!! AHAHAHAHAHAH SOME SOLDIER YOU ARE; FALLING ON YOUR ASS WHILE LOOKING LIKE A LIZARD SHAPED STRESS BALL WITH THOSE EYES POPPING OUT!! AHAHAHAHAHAH"

As he started cramping up from laughter he fell over, rolling on the floor, lost to the world in his amusement at her humiliation.

_________________

She scrambled on the floor, her claws dragging dents in the floor and making loud frantic clicks and she tried to stand up faster than she had ever done before. her skin starting to take on a purple hue as embarrassment set in full force. "By the ancestors," She thought as she felt herself blushing violently " Why did one of the things we share with the humans have to be blushing!"

She let out an overly aggressive growl as she righted herself, the kind of growl reserved for challenges to the death, which was an impossibility and would land her a court-martial on account of the thrice-damned human being a prisoner in a military prison.

"Up against the wall, prisoner, it's time for a cell inspection" she hissed with barely contained anger, while she walked menacingly towards the cell door.

....Or at least she wished it was menacing to look at, however, that is kinda hard to pull that off when your intended target is both larger and stronger than you

Something this particular human was more than aware of, judging from his indifferent reaction. He breathed heavily and seemed to get his laughter under control, reducing it to a slight chuckle and a frustrating little smirk on his stupid face.

"Well don't you look absolutely adorable when you are angry," He said. "So purple I could spot it from a mile away and stomping like a teenage girl not getting her way. Did I scare the little greenscale playing soldier??" He leaned against the cell door, still with the annoying little smirk on his face "Such a shame" He thought "She is one of the cute ones"

His words almost sent her into a blind rage. "Greenscale" was an extremely derogatory term amongst her people to describe those too childish to serve the people by accepting their assigned role, or those who tried to succeed in a field where they have no skills. It was a word for outcasts and traitors to the state.

She violently kicked the bars to the cell and yelled "UP AGAINST THE WALL PRISONER, INSPECTION TIME!!"

Her violent outburst only seemed to amuse him. There was a sudden glint in his eyes as he looked at her. "Very interesting indeed" He thought to himself, looking her over. "it would seem the gods still look out for their true people"

"No, I don't think so. Arent you forgetting protocol?? A little girl like you can't handle a big bad human like me on your own" He mocked her with open glee, seeing her anger and inexperience as a possibility for escape.

Turns out the young Kloxna soldier did indeed not need much more to break protocol in an attempt to claw this human to pieces, consequences be damned.

"I DONT NEED HELP TO HANDLE ANYTHING; LEAST OF ALL A HUMAN!!!!!!" she screamed at him as she fumbled for the keys.

"And boom goes the dynamite," He thought victoriously as he started mentally preparing for the short struggle ahead. it would be quick, brutal, and silent. She would never know what hit her.........

"My my my, so feisty. I'm not used to ladies being SO willing" he said and winked at her, hoping to push her into a blind rage, making her forget any training she might have had.

"All this just from grabbing your tail??? Must have been a while then"

Her only reply was a primal scream as she slammed the correct key into the door lock.