History Characters / TheNatureOfPredators

* SweetSheep: Venlil have some ovine traits, such as woolly fur and side-facing eyes with horizontal pupils They're also considered the weakest and most timid species in the galaxy. Nevertheless, they're Humanity's staunchest allies throughout the story.

* FantasticRacism: His attitude towards predators as expected of his Federation upbringing. Even after his HeelFaceTurn he still struggles with discriminatory urges, particularly towards Onso who's a Yotul; a "primitive" species who resent the Federation for "uplifting" them[[note]]i.e. forcibly altering their ecosystem, [[KickTheDog including killing off carnivorous pets]], and destroying the Yotul's own technology to make way for "superior" Federation tech[[/note]].

* YouWillBeSpared: He promises this to the pilot of a downed craft so that he may become a conserver of Earth's culture. The human refuses since that would amount to [[CruelMercy seeing all humans die, inclunding his loved ones Kalsim refused to spare]], much to Kalsim's confusion.

* FantasticRacism: His attitude towards predators as expected of his Federation upbringing. Even after his HeelFaceTurn he still struggles with discriminatory urges, particularly towards Onso who's a Yotul; a "primitive" species who resent the Federation that "uplifted" them.

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: After his actions end up getting his homeworld invaded, and seeing that he was wrong thinking that Humans are monsters, captain Sovlin decides to surrender himself to them.

* BreakTheCutie: It's subtle, but it's clear that Slanek's experiences are taking a heavy on toll on his mind as time goes on.

* TookALevelInJerkass: The repeated traumas of combat, including several near-death experiences, and Marcel's seemingly confusing, and humiliating, [[spoiler:forgiveness towards Sovlin]] causes Slanek to grow increasingly bitter. He mellows out a bit after Marcel [[spoiler:[[WhatTheHellHero chews him out]] for executing a captured scientist and feeling [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone horrified]] about the act, before and after attempting to lie about his war crime to save his friendship with Marc]].

* BashBrothers: Whenever he and Slanek get into a mission, expect both of them to cover each other's backs.

* FeatheredFiend: Due to their high aggressivity against predators, we had yet to see one who isn't openly hostile towards humans, let alone friendly. Eventually {{subverted}} once we meet a helpful Krakotl character in chapter 83, as well as Luala from the 'Human Exterminator'' side story.

* WiseBeyondTheirYears: At least when compared to Kalsim and Zarn. you'd think that people coming to wipe out predatory life on earth would at least study what animals are dangerous. they wind up thinking that a venomous snake is harmless, while Arjun is extremely familiar with all of the potential dangers on the reserve.

* TidallyLockedPlanet: Venlil Prime, which is the exoplanet [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gliese_832_c Gliese 832 c]]. Also cue BigDumbObject for the orbital infrastructures deployed by Venlil scientists in additions to smaller scale measures that expanded the habitable regions of the planet, including atmospheric aerosols and an artificial cloud cover. this can be looked at as [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Terraform terraforming efforts]], if not for sovlin's statement that Venlil Prime was actually ''more'' habitable than some of the Federation's colony worlds.

* DeathSeeker: He became this after losing his family to the Arxur. However, his resulting aggressivity towards the Arxur led him to several victories instead of death. He still shows signs of this post-HeelFaceTurn due to guilt over his actions towards humanity, Marcel in particular.

* MysteriousInformant: He was Cilany's about several of the scandals that built up her carrier.

* FeatheredFiend: Due to their high aggressivity against predators, we have yet to see one who isn't openly hostile towards humans, let alone friendly.

* GoMadFromTheRevelation: [[spoiler:Does not take well the reveal that his species ate meat in the past and orders Krakotl population centers be bombed, which is thankfully refused]].

* CharacterDevelopement: He goes from utterly hating the humans to being willing to try his best to save them. Meanwhile, he grows increasingly disillusioned with the Federation.
* DeathSeeker: He became this after losing his family to the Arxur. However, his resulting aggressivity towards the Arxur led him to several victories instead of death.

* AbsoluteXenophobe: DownplayedTrope (somewhat), as they are members of the Federation and end up leading a multi-species coalition against the 'Human Menace'. However, their inability to see humans as anything other than AlwaysChaoticEvil, combined with even the most sympathetic Krakotl (Captain Kalsim, the bastard who bombs Earth from orbit) seeing humans as, at best, [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy a race of conquerors who will sweep across the galaxy like Mongels with spaceships]], and most seeing them as PredatorsAreMean meets ImAHumanitarian, means that they ignore all evidence that humanity wants peace, in favour of killing them all.

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* TheApocalypseBringsOutTheBestInPeople: InvokedTrope (or otherwise played with) by Meier when he orders for the first contact information to be distributed to the populace in the hopes that the information will cause people to unite around a common cause.

Humanity's first contact in the galaxy, often described by their counterparts as one of the weakest and most emotional races. Their timidity can overshadow their fierce sense of morality, but their desire for friendship usually wins out in the end.
Their homeworld, Venlil Prime, requires constant defense due to its strategic location in the galaxy's outer arm. (Humanity calls this planet Gliese 832 c, and it's 16 light-years away from Earth) The Venlil Republic officially controls a swath of territory which stretches 20 light-years in any direction. This makes the Sol system technically in their domain.
As for appearance, the Venlil's flatter facial features remind some humans of stuffed animals. This, combined with their large, horizontal-pupiled eyes makes them rather "cute." One note of peculiarity is that they lack any nose, or sense of smell. Their wooly fur can be any shade of gray, with occasional tufts or stripes breaking up the singular tone. One example is the black tuft between Slanek's ears.
Their tails are bushy, stretching about 1 ft on average. They can be used as a secondary form of communication, or to help with balance and grasping. The Venlil have tiny claws, but they are not capable of real damage. Due to their lack of natural weapons or defenses, they were easy prey for their natural predators in their formative years.

With bipedalism as their designated form of locomotion, and spindly knock-kneed hindlegs, they are not well-suited to speedy escapes either. Their height places them at about the average human's shoulders.

The Gojidi Union was a prevailing political force in the galaxy for centuries; even prior to the Arxur's arrival. Their extensive border defenses left many to consider them impervious to an external assault. Their military presence within their territory was considerable, and they never hesitated to send assistance to their neighbors.
Their homeworld lacks an official name, simply dubbed "the cradle" by its occupants. What name would a planet need but something that speaks of fondness and home? The last Federation census listed the cradle's population at 12 billion. Its primary export is fruits from its famed orchards, and it had a wide array of merchant settlements.
The defining physical trait for a Gojid is their spines. Whenever one is afraid, their spines bristle as an involuntary response. The length of their lowest spines is the best way to approximate one's age at a glance. Their long, brown fur makes them well-adapted to colder climates.
They cannot engage in the animated tail language of other species, since their tails and legs are both stubby. Their claws are slender, and of a significant length; they can slash through most softer substances, including skin.

Avian species are a rarity, simply because ground-dwelling species are most likely to evolve sentience. The Krakotl evolved on a marshy world called Nishtal, which led to the development of talons for balance. These seconded as a defensive weapon, when they landed to eat algae.
Their curved beaks are bright, tropical colors. Evolutionary biologists suggest these colors developed to frighten away predators, since bright animals are often poisonous. When irritated, their feathers puff out in a semi-circle behind them.
A Krakotl possesses one of the largest vocal ranges in the galaxy. Their squawks can range from deafening screeches, to a melodic harmony. With their arsenal of physical defenses, the Krakotl have a higher aggression than most, due to their tendency to scare off predators.
For this reason, they led the path to create many Federation weapons and strategies, during the first phases of the war. The Krakotl Alliance's military presence is always known, as are their offensive capabilities. They aren't afraid to intimidate other species into going along with their plans.

* HidingTheHandicap: Shortly after arriving on Earth the Gojid refugees are under the assumption that only

* AintToProudToBeg: While every other Venlil is panicking about humanity's arrival, Tarva contacts the approaching ship, hoping to beg for mercy and save at least some of her people.

* Ain'tToProudToBeg: While every other Venlil is panicking about humanity's arrival, Tarva contacts the approaching ship, hoping to beg for mercy and save at least some of her people.

* AintToProudToBeg: While every other Venlil is panicking about humanity's arrival, Tarva contacts the approaching ship, hoping to beg for mercy and save at least some of her people.