[ WP ] War has been raging for years upon years now . You are a reporter embedded in a famous military unit among your newest allies in this war , humanity .

Sithis' antennae wiggled irritably as the rec drone buzzed about hesitantly, trying to find the proper vantage point to frame the shot for the daily events report. The steep earthworks and the near constant flash of explosions and energy projectiles played havoc with the viewfinder ai. Realizing the furious movement of his antennae, a childish habit he had n't managed to grow out of, he willed himself to calm down. A drone, his secret stash of fermented sugar dew and a few personal items was the only trinkets of civilization he had in this hellhole, and right now he would very much like to chuck the drone right out of the trench and let the enemy fire deal with it. 
 
 He had been forced out here by the studio to do public interest stories and frontline semi-propagandic pieces on the human part in the war effort. He was n't even a war correspondent, but they had orders to send someone, and it sure was n't going to be the nymph with the iridescent wings, now was it? No, that head biter was still doing glitzy interviews with hive leaders and celebrities. `` Oh humans'' she had said, failing entirely to mask her amusement, `` they seem very.. exotic, I hope you enjoy it''. 
 
 Ah yes, the humans. For years they had wanted to be a bigger part of the coalition war effort, with their hilariously clunky ships and even clunkier weaponry. Coalition command had taken one look at them and relegated them to supply and patrol duties far behind the frontline. But then the other side had overloaded the subspace gate network, and suddenly everything had changed. No longer could they zip by star systems, with sleek military craft performing animated battle dances in space. Now the war consisted of slogging across the surfaces of fortified planets and moons to set up forward supply stations, and the humans had found their in. 
 
 The first meeting of embed reporters to the human front had been an awkward one. Him, a lone Chirritid among a few human reporters, and nobody else. He had been embarrassed by the human reporters, who had been more curious about him than their own soldiers, asking what the other member civilizations of the coalition had thought of humanity and its contributions. What could he say, that they really did n't care about some semi-primitives that only were members out of obligatory good will sentiment? That the only reason he was here at all was because he was working for a third rate station, and they therefore got the least important fronts to cover? Say what you will about them, but humans were n't dumb and had realized full well, some taking out their hurt feelings on him as a representative of the coalition as a whole. Meanwhile, the studio panel could hardly bother to feign interest in his initial report from the Human High Command press conference. In short, he had been sent out here to do a job nobody really cared about, in order to spare the feelings of the humans, ironically highlighting the disinterest in them in the process. 
 
 Happily it had all blown up in their faces. Even the humans had taken to calling him `` cockroach'' after he had crawled out of the debris of a quickcrete bunker that had taken a stray hit with him in it. A slur and a compliment rolled into one, as one of his human colleagues had explained it to him. Cockroaches were a sort of pest on earth, arthropods who bred prolifically and were famous for their survivability. A dual compliment to his ears, as before this, he had been unlikely to get to breed at all, with females going exclusively for individuals of power and prestige. After this though, he would likely get his pick of some of the most desirable females in his hive. 
 
 An insistent chirp from the rec drone broke him out of his reverie. The ai had finally found him his shot, and was now counting down to the beginning of the transmission. As the countdown reached zero, a monitor on the drone lit up with the image it was broadcasting. It was perfect, soldiers milling about behind him, a giant war machine in the background, and the skyline lit up with fire and explosions. He was going to get to breed with whomever he liked. A deep breath and he was on the air. 
 
 `` Good evening, this is Sithis of Tamheri hive, coming to you live from the front of what Human Command calls theatre Sigma 4, and what viewers at home would know as planet Nardek, the very gate to the enemy core systems. As we speak, behind me, lead elements of the 271st heavy armored infantry, the very spearhead of the human war machine, is pushing through the last crumbling lines of enemy resistance on the planet.'' 
 
 While speaking, commentary and questions from the studio panel was being fed to him through an audio piece fitted to the side of his head. They sure were n't disinterested any more. Even that smug little head-biter had started to sit in on the panel, sensing something with even more ratings gold than her celeb interviews. 
 
 `` Yes, that is correct Makiri. In an unprecedented 16 standard days, they dropped in, established a front, and are now in the process of clearing out the last enemy holdouts. Asked for a commentary on the development, Human Expeditionary Force's General Alexander had this to say about the situation.'' 
 
 The drone monitor switches to a fullscreen view of the stern, gray haired general, pictured at the bridge of a human warship, with inset pictures of Sithis and the studio panels in the corners. 
 
 `` Trench warfare is old news to us. Fixed fortifications has been dead for centuries on Earth. We have now captured or destroyed most orbital defense batteries on the major continents and are bringing in artillery ships to clear out the last remaining pockets enemy resistance. Enemy command has been given the option of surrender, but have yet to respond.'' 
 
 The main picture on the drone switches back to Sithis. 
 
 `` When Nardek is under full Earth control, this will be the twenty fifth system captured by the Human Expeditionary Force since the war shifted focus from intraplanetary fleet engagements to planetary combat. The advance has been restricted in order to not push too far ahead of the supply chain and adjoining fronts, but it is safe to say that the pace for the coalition has been set by the indomitable human forces. Or as one human soldier I spoke with earlier put it: `` We might not have your fancy ships, but put us on the ground and we can dish out a whuppin''. They certainly have. This is Sithis of Tamheri hive, reporting live for info station Lir.'' 
 
 As the drone powered down, Sithis cast a glance at the activity behind him. Yep. They sure can fight if you put them on the ground, he thought. Good thing that their hurt feelings manifested in an even greater effort to prove you wrong. This was going to make his career. Suddenly, everyone wanted to know about the humans, and thanks to the choked supply lines no other reporters would be getting shipped out to the front any time soon. That nymph had even looked suitably interested during his report. Thanks to the humans, he would be able to take his pick of jobs, and thanks to the reports, the humans would be getting some prime real estate when the war was over and spoils were to be allotted. Yeah, he thought, we sure showed them. 
 
 *This may very well be pure shit, but I've wanted to do one of these for a while, so I took the chance. I dont know how to comma. *
