After all this time trying to understand the differences between the sexes and all I have to show for it is the following story. I don’t know about you, but I’m disappointed.

OPERATION GHOSTED

Before the Great Exodus of the “Jorthin”, Tzolmar was a world where two subspecies lived side by side: the “Sharnith”, who were born with a faint, natural glow on their foreheads, and the “Jorthin”, whose foreheads were smooth and glowless. For the “Sharnith”, this glowing crest was no more significant than the color of one’s hair or eyes. It was simply part of their biology, not a symbol of superiority or status.

But for the “Jorthin”, the glow was an unbearable slight, a constant reminder of what they lacked. In their minds, the “Sharnith” glow was a sign of secret condescension. The “Jorthin” convinced themselves that the “Sharnith” must think themselves superior, even though the “Sharnith” never thought twice about their glowing heads.

After centuries of imagined slights, the “Jorthin” declared their independence and left Tzolmar. As the last of their ships ascended into space, the “Jorthin Ambassador” shouted back to the “Sharnith” delegation, “If you don’t know why we’re leaving, then I’m not going to tell you!”

The “Sharnith” shrugged and carried on with their lives, content to enjoy the peace that followed the “Jorthin’s” departure. Over time, the “Sharnith” perfected their cities, extended their lifespans, and created bio-mechanical replicas of the “Jorthin”—called “Krellbots”—to handle all menial labor. Life was serene.

But then, thousands of years later, everything changed.

Onboard the “Luminous Star”, a Sharnith exploration vessel, the crew picked up a strange signal in deep space. Captain Korzen studied the screen as the image of a smooth-hulled ship appeared.

“Captain, it’s them,” said First Officer Lira.

Captain Korzen, a thousand years of deep space exploration under his belt growled to his Number One. “Open the Prime Emergency cabinet and get me the file pad marked S.H.H.T.F! (Shit Has Hit The Fan) The code is Delta, four, nine Sigma, Epsilon.”

Lira punched in the code. The door slid open and the First Officer pulled out storage pad with the letters SHHTF, switched it on and waited as the screen glowed green and then a document appeared. “In Case of Jorthin Encounter – Classified Protocol,” it read.

“Read it fast, and tell me what I need to know,” growled the Captain for Lira’s ears only. She nodded and began scanning the document.

Korzen sighed as he opened the communication line. “Here we go…”

The viewscreen flickered, and a female Jorthin appeared. Her forehead was smooth, unadorned, and gleaming under the harsh lights of her bridge.

“Well, well, well,” she sneered. “I am Captain Yzreth of the Jorthin starship Golden Beauty. It seems after all these centuries, you’ve finally come crawling back.”

Korzen blinked. “What?”

Yzreth ignored him, reaching for her own top-secret document titled “In Case of Sharnith Contact: Response Procedures”. She glanced at the instructions and continued with her prepared script.

“As per our orders, I must demand the following reparations if our two peoples are to rejoin in joyous union,” Yzreth said, scanning the file for the demands.

“I’m sorry, what?” asked the Captain blinking several times in rapid succession.

“We require full transfer of your technology, an immediate apology for your crimes, and reparations for centuries of abandonment!”

Korzen shook his head, clearly confused. “We didn’t come looking for a rejoining, Commander Yzreth, we didn’t even know you were out here. We happened upon you by accident.”

Yzreth’s eyes narrowed. “Accident? Don’t lie to me! This was intentional. You should have come after us! You should have begged us to stay!”

Lira whispered from the side, reading from the “Sharnith” protocol. “Captain, she’s deflecting. Classic denial tactics. Stick to the facts.”

Korzen exhaled. “Commander, you left. You said you didn’t need or want us, so we respected that. We’ve lived in peace ever since.”

Yzreth’s lip curled. She was now furiously skimming her classified instructions for more responses. “We didn’t leave because we wanted to! You pushed us away! And now you come, expecting what? Forgiveness? Reconciliation?”

Korzen furrowed his brow. “We didn’t even know you were here! Wait, you’re angry because we did exactly what you asked and left you alone?”

Yzreth slammed her hand on the console. “What part of ‘leave us alone’ meant ‘leave us alone’? We wanted you to chase after us! To fix things!”

Lira stifled a laugh. “Captain, she’s completely delusional. You need to get control of the situation and calm her down. Just agree to something vague and non-committal.”

Korzen forced a diplomatic smile. “Commander, we will take your demands into consideration and… uh… discuss them at length.”

But Yzreth wasn’t done. She was deep into her people’s classified orders now, and the list of absurd demands continued. “You owe us everything! We demand you send all your resources, your finest technologies, and apologize in front of the entire galaxy for abandoning us. And don’t forget the formal ceremonies of apology! There will be no peace until you acknowledge our suffering.”

Korzen turned to Lira, his patience wearing thin. “Are you getting all this?”

Lira, still reading the Sharnith protocol, gave a small nod. “Oh, yeah. She’s following their script to the letter. I’m afraid this is going to escalate.”

Yzreth was oblivious to the growing exasperation on the “Sharnith” side. She was too engrossed in her instructions to notice. “And furthermore,” she added, “you must dismantle your entire Krellbot system. It’s the only way to make up for centuries of using those… things to take our place.”

Captain Korzen frowned. “How will we maintain our infrastructure without Krellbots? Our society would crumble. Will your people take their place?

Yzreth laugh scornfully. “Of course not, foolish man! We are above that sort of thing?”

“How are we to maintain our society?” asked Korzen.

She laughed again. “That is hardly our problem, is it?

Korzen rubbed his temples. “Right. Of course. We’ll be sure to look into that. Now if you’ll excuse us—”

Yzreth cut him off. “Oh, no, no! We’re not done yet! You’re going to make this right, Sharnith. You can’t just sweep centuries of oppression under the rug!”

Lira gestured urgently to Korzen, pointing to the final line in their secret protocol: “When demands become untenable, disengage immediately and initiate full stealth procedures. See Operation Ghosting.”

Korzen sighed. “Commander Yzreth, we’ve heard your demands, and we will contact you once we’ve… prepared an appropriate response.”

Yzreth’s face contorted into a triumphant grin. “You’d better. The galaxy will hear about your crimes if you don’t comply. You’ll have no choice but to surrender to our rightful demands.”

As soon as the screen went dark, Korzen wasted no time. “Cut communications. Shut down our beacons, wipe the records, and get us out of here.”

Lira nodded. ” Full stealth mode engaged.” She handed the pad over to the Captain. He punched in “Operation Ghosting’ and read with eyes widening with every word.

One of the younger crewmembers looked puzzled. “Are we really just going to disappear?”

“Absolutely,” Korzen replied. “We’re not sticking around for this madness. Send a warning to all colonies—prepare for full evacuation in case the “Jorthin” try to track us. Call base and tell them I’m calling an emergency and recommending ‘Operation Ghosting’ immediately. Then shut down all comms.”

As the “Luminous Star” vanished into deep space, the crew collectively exhaled. Korzen shook his head in disbelief. “They’re really mad because we did exactly what they asked. What part of ‘leave us alone’ was I supposed to misinterpret?”

Lira chuckled. “Apparently, the part where you didn’t follow them and beg for forgiveness.”

Korzen stared out into the void, knowing they’d never return. “Well, now they’re ghosted. Let’s just hope they don’t find us again.”

And thus, “Operation Ghosted” began, leaving the “Jorthin” waiting for the restitution that would never come.