Runaway to the Stars: Page 229
Posted on November 25, 2025 by Jay Eaton

A person's capacity to inflict violence isn't determined by fangs and muscles. It's determined by their ability to depersonalize others.

Transcript

Adam: Ugh, ok! Since you grabbed me, I thought you'd be fine with it!

He waves a hand dismissively and walks off, flanked by Phoebe and Dominic. Yao follows after them at a distance, looking back at Talita uncertainly. Phoebe and Dominic whisper to Adam, still unaware Talita can hear them.

Phoebe: You trying to get fired?

Dominic: Screw that– are you trying to get gored??

Adam: Whatever. We’re getting “fired” soon either way. It’s not like it’s gonna use those things, anyways.

Talita tenses at his words with an electric shock of fury, gripping her face and clenching her jaw as if she could curl inwards until she imploded. Then the temps are gone. She slumps down to the floor of the changing area. The massive vehicle bay room is empty.

Runaway to the Stars: Page 229
Posted on November 25, 2025 by Jay Eaton

A person's capacity to inflict violence isn't determined by fangs and muscles. It's determined by their ability to depersonalize others.

Transcript

Adam: Ugh, ok! Since you grabbed me, I thought you'd be fine with it!

He waves a hand dismissively and walks off, flanked by Phoebe and Dominic. Yao follows after them at a distance, looking back at Talita uncertainly. Phoebe and Dominic whisper to Adam, still unaware Talita can hear them.

Phoebe: You trying to get fired?

Dominic: Screw that– are you trying to get gored??

Adam: Whatever. We’re getting “fired” soon either way. It’s not like it’s gonna use those things, anyways.

Talita tenses at his words with an electric shock of fury, gripping her face and clenching her jaw as if she could curl inwards until she imploded. Then the temps are gone. She slumps down to the floor of the changing area. The massive vehicle bay room is empty.

161 thoughts on “Runaway to the Stars: Page 229”

  1. Lezzlebit

    I think what hurts most to see is just how defeated Talita looks… In a lot of other situations someone might stand up for themselves and really acknowledge how bad everything in this situation is… I’m sure she knows she’s being treated wrongly but she just looks so hurt here. And with the way Mel deals with stuff I’m not sure Talita feels like anyone can actually help her with this situation.

  2. snapz

    ohh the othering “it” makes me so damn mad. really hope he gets to face the consequences sooner or later. hopefully sooner

  3. creatureofthelaboratory

    my heart aches for talita rn, i want to give her a hug 🙁

  4. Nikki

    this was a really difficult one. Really well written but ouch

    1. Nikki

      i would have stood up for you talita T~T

  5. Rad Internet Stranger

    “It’s”

    OKAY FUCK IT IM GONNA SLAP A BITCH >:0

  6. Mar

    Having a hard time articulating just how much I appreciate this webcomic. Thank you so much for sharing it, Jay, I look forward to it updating all the time.

  7. Ara

    Ouch on so many levels. I’ve been in a workplace where I wasn’t respected and felt like a problematic annoying thing instead of a person with feelings. It hurts so much and leaves you feeling shattered.

    Talita girl, I love you so much. I’d give you the biggest hug in the world if I could.

  8. Solidago

    I wonder if the avians deal with this level of depersonalization from humans who aren’t used to interacting with aliens? I imagine it’s not as bad, since there’s not literally only one avian on Dirtball, they’re bipedal which feels more familiar to humans, and they aren’t frighteningly large..

    1. rustbird

      One of the previous post-chapter Q&As mentioned that avians sometimes treat humans like dangerous predators, so it’s kind of a reversal! I imagine human-on-avian bigotry might be more like treating them like a pet, or doing things like casually picking them up to move them.

    2. glazeliights

      another factor is that centaurs are the newest-discovered species and, since they havent had access to Cool Alien Technology for very long, theyre often stereotyped as “primitive/savage” by other species

  9. holly...!

    cannot remember the last time i felt this much visceral hatred for a fictional character

  10. buam

    My heart breaks for Talita, but I love the nuanced way you portray this interaction and what it says about the characters and the world at large. Talita was assaulted – but the techs’ focus is on Adam (“You trying to get fired?”) and not her (“Are you okay?”). Yao is the only one looking back to check on her, but Yao has even less power than Talita; she’s early in her career, harassed by Adam, and hasn’t displayed much confidence. She clearly feels bad for Talita, but can’t intervene the way Talita did for her. And it’s telling, too, that everyone knows Adam will go unpunished – the most he risks is getting fired. Talita knows it, too, which is why she just sits there when everyone else leaves – who is she even going to turn to for help, Mel? Mel may enjoy playing savior, but they act with pity and condescension, not understanding.

    1. mocha

      reminder Yao uses xe/xem/xers

  11. Stray Cat

    A lot of other commenters here have honestly taken the words out of my mouth regarding this page. So instead I’ll leave this quote: “It’s not what you are that makes you a monster.”

    1. Stray Cat

      Actually, one additional thought: if the centaur temps theory turns out to be true, and they turn up before the human temps leave, and the two groups meet… that could potentially end very badly.

  12. SuriXiruS

    I honestly hate Adam right now, but in a way he’s a really well written character.
    He either just doesn’t give a damn what happens or knows exactly how far he can push it
    He’s a bad person but I admire how he’s written

  13. May

    I can kind of imagine Yao and Talita being friends if the other interns weren’t there, (or were better behaved). The antler question might have been awkward, but it didn’t feel malicious, and it might have been smoothed over if Adam didn’t turn it into an excuse to assault the manager. The issue is that Yao and Talita are both shy and conflict adverse, and the only times they are in the same room there are others there as well.

  14. MyUniverseinaBox

    Adam might be the most obviously bad (I mean now he’s literally physically assaulted Talita), but all the other temps, and I mean all, are also awful.
    Dominic constantly talking about Talita’s body as dangerous as if she’s an impulsive animal, Yao asking insensitive and invasive questions (and this is also the first time we see xem even try to talk to Talita), Phoebe finding Adam’s discrimination towards Talita bold at best and funny at worst, and Clayton treated Talita as a boss at the very least but otherwise seemed indifferent to everything- and all of them constantly misgender her. Now with Adam going a step further and referring to Talita as an ‘it’. Sickening.

    They each show a different way Talita is often depersonalised. They suck!!!!

    1. MyUniverseinaBox

      As always, I love your writing Jay. Gawddd. This is gut wrenching.

    2. glazeliights

      adam has actually referred to talita as it before! this is unfortunately not new behaviour for him (“what, dont tell me that stripy sock puppet scares you just because it eats meat!”)

      1. MyUniverseinaBox

        Oh my gosh, yeah you’re right… yeesh.

    3. Senaru

      Yao’s only ‘crime’ is being autistic, xe may not have asked an appropriate question, but as an autistic person myself, I could easily see myself making the same tactical error with a purely curiosity driven question. I also read it as a little concerned for if Talita felt pain while going through the antler process. Xe can’t exactly ask a deer how it feels, and the mix of curiosity and subtle concern there is notable. I don’t think Yao actually did anything wrong. Xeir (?I’m not actually sure if that’s the right term, Xe/Xer is a newer pronoun word for me so apologies) question was merely technically inappropriate, but Xe is also visibly shy, and Talita also once protected Yao FROM Adam in an incident which involved those removable antlers Xe have. Xe is likely trying to be friendly while using a familiar topic between the two, and overstepped a little on accident. Not a terrible person, just autistic, unless I’m totally wrong in my reading of Xeir behavior as being similar to my own often over-questioning autistic self

      1. izimb

        I wish Yao would have stayed tho after seeing that, even if awkwardly – I mean, even in extremely awkward moments, if there is someone in pain, even if you don’t understand it, you can try to help (which I’ve also done, as awkwardly/or non-helpful as that may have been, with the classic “try to empathize with related anecdotes” or trying to mirror the experience somehow to show one cares).

  15. J

    I’m calling it, bigotry of some flavour is coming off Adam, just for the way he targets non-typical features. F*ck him

  16. Kitty

    Adam’s horrific behavior is self evident, but my god, Dominic also needs to get a grip. At least with Dominic I can find some comfort in the fact that he’ll probably never achieve his dreams, mostly due to his own terrible attitude.

    1. Kitty

      I meant to say Adam will never achieve his dreams… Damn it.

  17. Vinemaple

    Oh, thank Zod indeed, EvilEeyore was right, Adam has no master plan, he’s just living in the moment, randomly doing Adam things! Also notice that, while Dom and Phoebe aren’t sticking up for Talita, they’re starting to realize Adam is seriously acting out, but Adam thinks they’re admiring his bravery and “dominance” over Talita!

    I’ve been thinking how I would handle Adam if I was his manager… not how I would discipline him, but how I would prevent him from doing any of the crap he’s done. I think I’d try to keep him from getting bored if at all possible, find a way to let him think his “ability” is recognized, and trick him into thinking that getting evaluated for ADHD was his own idea.

    The Sophont Rights violations would be harder to fix, but I’m thinking an intervention after the first one, with the regulation discipline, figure out an education plan, and maybe try teaming him up with Phoebe, who’s visually enough to set him off, but counts as a typ human, and seems able to set good boundaries with him. He needs to learn that *individual* people who aren’t like him are just people, and unfortunately he’s not going to be on Dirtball long enough to challenge any of his assumptions about his non-typ-human coworkers. So if he was my temp, not much of that would be possible. I’d probably end up having to continue escalating the regulation responses to workplace harassment until I’d have to fire him, unless a warning or low-level discipline actually worked on him.

    1. Silyon

      As former middle-management myself, I’ve been wondering how I’d deal with him as well. Short answer, I wouldn’t, his butt would be fired and on the next shuttle off-world long before it got to this point. Simply for the routine verbal abuse alone. People like him need to be shown that they are not special snowflakes and will have the hammer come down for that kind of behavior early on, else they will keep escalating and creating a hostile environment simply because they think they’re invincible and can get away with it. Worse, them getting away with it will demonstrate to other workers that they can get away with it as well, dragging the entire team down. The failure to establish professional conduct on Talita’s part directly led to this assault, unfortunately. As a boss you cannot be conflict-adverse, because you need to be able to set the standards for what is and is not acceptable, and then hold your workers to those standards.

      As it’s gotten to this point, Adam’s gone. End of story, fired on the spot and sent straight home with no pay if he tries to show up for work. If it’s a contracted gig, which would be odd for temp work, then we’d be going over that contract with a fine-toothed comb and making note of each of the doubtless hundreds of ways he’s breached it in his time there. Breach of contract would generally mean he gets no payout or even fined, not to mention the negative reference making such employment more difficult for him moving forward and possible criminal charges if the breaches are severe enough. There’s quite a lot of ways to make him pay for this, and not a single one of them would be unwarranted at this point. Unfortunately, it seems unlikely Talita’s going to pursue any of them, and if she doesn’t she simply ends up proving Adam’s claim that she’s a doormat he can walk all over. I hope she proves me wrong.

  18. anonymoose

    Huh. TIL I can gut-reaction think “oh. i need to bite him” in a NON-affectionate way, lmao. Kudos, Jay, on the fantastic writing – and art-ing – here!

  19. Jackie

    Goring is the least of his worries let me bite him. I’ll only gnaw a *little* bit I promise!

    The other people just letting him say that and not speaking up (and being almost as bad) is way to like reality where I live with right wing nuts. The fact that he’s observant enough to see she’s not prone to violence too grrrrrrr

  20. AccordYeen

    and then in comes the autonomous frontloader with the STEEL CHAIR!!!!

    1. hessian

      i’m such a huge fan of your username. accordion love for ever

  21. SpaceCactus

    Aughhhhh this part is so painful…. Poor Talita. It’s so awful that no one around is saying anything to help or defending her, regardless of how they feel about what is happening…. 🙁

  22. tyrone

    Alas…How deep venomous words made of air , can cut.
    Far deeper than the most foul blade of poisoned steel.

  23. kabb

    adam sucks but i really, really don’t like dominic lmao.

    1. Zachar

      Seconded. “Gored”? Dude, what the fuck???

      1. Enai

        Yes, with the way her antlers are positioned on her face I’m not sure she would even be able to properly stab anything with them without her trunk getting painfully (for her) in the way. Dafuque, Dominique?

        Quite aside from the fact that Talita’s about as aggressive as your average newfoundlander dog (they will not bite for anything, I’m told).

  24. florence

    adam is getting sent to the pear wiggler I HATE ADAM WITH SUCH A PASSION
    and godddd do i wanna hug talita so bad, i feel so TERRIBLE FOR HER im gonna cry the poor girl agghh :(((((

    1. Nox

      YOU?? hi flo, also YES YES PLEASE WERE THROWING HIM INTO THE ADAM WIGGLER AT MAX SHAKE

      1. florence

        HI NOX YES ITS ME

  25. petra

    drawing that panel of talita with hatched colouring really hammers home that jarring, scratching itching dissonance of having your personal space aggressively violated. grabbing her own wrist and that tight feeling of her shrinking into herself.. ough. good jorb

  26. Eux

    talitaaaaa :(( ough. once again fantastic artwork

  27. Septemberdale

    What an obnoxious asshole. Even if it won’t teach him any lessons, he should still get fired just to get him out of everyone’s hair (and feathers).

    And poor Yao, who, being a kind (if at times awkward) person, as we know, surely wants so badly to find the courage to stand up for Talita but visibly can’t!

  28. InsideOutlander

    [*raging outburst being censored for the sake of decency’s and consideration to others*]

  29. 40

    YAO BEAT HIS ASS!!!!!

  30. mossrabbit

    that look yao gives talita as xe awkwardly shuffles off. the horror, the sympathy. the GUILT. remember, when adam grabbed yao’s horns, talita stood up for xer IMMEDIAYELY. she cut that situation off at the root.

    but yao froze up instead of helping. xe saw xer bully target talita and just. did nothing but watch. and i can say from experience, having a freeze response in situations like this feels AWFUL. the guilt and worry just makes it worse, mixed with that awful sense of relief that youre not the target this time, the wanting to act but not wanting to be the target next. i hope, at least, yao gets to apologize to talita for not saying anything.

    also: talita’s pain is so palpable here, too. the weight of her emotions is so heavy that when she collapses, her panel sits at the bottom of the page like a rock. and its so… empty. its just her, alone and in pain.

    1. Vinemaple

      Agreed. Well said, about everything!

    2. anonymoose

      owie ;~; *thumbs up*

    3. mossrabbit

      also i just realized: the panel of adam calling her ‘it’ literally slices the whole page in half. his words literally cut right through talita, the lines from his panel continuing into hers. his lines being faint; this is nothing to him, just another bullshit job. talita lines being stark black and white; this cuts her DEEP. the gradient at the bottom of the first three panels and the bottom panel being interrupted by the insult, the way his head is turned, speaking to dominic, but framed like hes speaking to talita. what excellent usage of the medium for real.

      1. hessian

        holy.crap. youre right

  31. Oodl

    Im going to climb up on my big ol armchair and say that i think adams got some kind of ‘thing’ for horns and antlers and it makes him mad.

    1. mossrabbit

      iii dont think thats the angle to approach this from. he likely grabbed yaos horns because they were within reach and would quickly instill yao with discomfort. he likely grabbed talitas antler because it also was within reach and, similarly, would be a quick and easy way to upset talita.

      i think we should be careful about implying adams motivations being anything but that of an entitled, egotistical asshole. like the (probably joking. i hope) comment about him “secretly having a crush”, it can imply some things about the story and characters that i think jay isnt going for.

    2. Mitta

      I think from the way Adam treated Pheobe (?), made a snide remark about her ears, that he is just overall discriminatory towards non-typ humans. And a minority alien like Talita is even lower on the social ladder for him and nobody is willing to defend her. On top of his apparent lack of respect for authority.

    3. Vinemaple

      It’s funny as a joke at Adam’s expense, though. His two physical assaults have both been horn- and antler-related.

    4. Oodl

      (a joke guys. Obvs character is badmean)
      Adam the antler sex pest has a fun ring to it.

  32. kieran

    talita ;_; this page made me tear up wtf. if i was there id throw hands.
    your writing is so realistic, and talitas expressions here break my heart, i cant wait for more 💔💔

  33. Heather

    Noooooo Talita 🙁

    I wish I could invite her over for a movie and chocolates. But centaurs can’t eat chocolate… what would the centaur equivalent be? Dumplings? How fast could I express ship dumplings from the centaur homeplanet?

    1. Enai

      I bet it’s two weeks minimum, because of the transfer time to/from the wormholes. Order a selection, maybe the super tasty ones she liked are among them. I’ll chip in with some Jovian money – what’s your SpaceBankingNumber?

      (in case it isn’t obvious: Do not give me your banking details. Or any details. I have no Jovian money. Or real-world money, for that matter.)

    2. HAL9000

      excellent pfp and comment combo! the centaur sweet treat is fats, so i guess a treat made of flavoured animal fats, like dripping on bread, would be a pretty good chocolate substitute. or a bone marrow and fat mixture rolled in bone chippings like a ferro roche- crunchy outside, rich velvety interior. oooh spiced brain jelly on centaur-world-chicken feet for a chewy soft combo of salty jiggly dissolve-in-your mouth jelly and then the crunch of the bone and chew of the cartilage.. or spread it on animal hoof for even better chewing time. one of those little hamster-bug things lightly fried, stuffed with a flavoured herb and blood mix like a blood sausage… talita girl let me cook for you im making myself hungry here

      1. Mitta

        a melted butter fondue fountain to dip chewy jerky into. frozen blood popsicles with fat chunks mixed in

      2. Flori

        Holy shit I’ve never wanted the ability to eat bones more than right now. Absolutely beautiful and mouthwatering descriptions. I need this shit so bad

      3. Heather

        Oh man! Excellent pfp and reply combo! Hold on let me try something:
        /-.9*C.-\ <- two centaurs trunk bumping (kind of like a human fist bump, if I recall correctly??)
        Wow, you're making the forbidden molecules sound REALLY edible right now. Talita let us give you a delicious box of chopped bones and live worms. The textures wil be so good together.

  34. NotOkapi

    Ohhh the way the coloring style completely changing to express the emotion… Like her whole being is sliding… highlighting her body’s angles…

  35. Mimi-Fox

    This page brought tears to my eyes and made me write my first comment. I’m hurting along with Talita!!! This is all not real, but Im so worried about her!

  36. Napkinkat

    Every page my hatred for Adam grows even more <3
    I feel like Adam sometime in the future (when he’s no longer in the comic) is eventually going to get his life cut short by a workplace accident because he refuses to take anything seriously.
    Oh my god poor Talita those panels perfectly show the horrible emotions she’s feeling I wish I could give her a hug 😭

  37. Jason Myers

    I want to call this unrealistic. I want to say, ‘not ONE person defended her? BS.’
    But I know better.

  38. Illy

    That…. that’s worse 🙁 That’s so much worse, oh my god. This set of circumstances just sucks so much for Talita, and I hate that Adam is right in that she will likely not retaliate, because for one that shouldn’t even be necessary in the first place, and for two people will treat such retaliation differently from if a human or a centaur like Talita does it.

    At the very least I hope Adam gets very much fired and given a bad review for his next job, because wwhhhhat the heck.

  39. Anony

    NOOO TALITA. NOO. Talita. Talita I will protect you. Talita.
    Genuinely devastating page. That frame of her face you can feel the overwhelming rush of all the horrible emotions she’s feeling. Just pure unrelenting emotional pain 🙁
    I can literally feel the physical feeling of embarrassment and shame and deep hurt, and the physical strain of trying not to break down crying right there. Oh my god :((( The way she doesn’t even say anything in this page either, because what is one to say in this situation? You’re too stunned to even think a coherent thought in these kinds of moments. And even then, nothing she could say would make anything better anyway.
    It hurts so much. All she can do is lay down and try to hide her face. OH MY GODDD :(((
    I love this comic so much. I think this scene is going to live in my head for a while. Wow 🙁
    I have so many thoughts but my comment is getting too long I think. My heart hurts for her.

    1. Anony

      And god the rage too. The shock and rush of anger when people say such hurtful things to you but you can’t do anything. You can hardly think or function. You’re paralyzed as your fury stabs itself into your soul. And all you can do is sit there while your mind rushes with so many thoughts and feelings and your heart feels like it’s going to burn up your entire body and jump out of you. Oh my god RAAAAH

      1. bryn

        THIS WOW YEAH :((((

  40. Trees

    Momentarily misread ‘Admin Exit’ in the second panel as ‘Adam Exit’ and for a second the world of RttS was a more surreal place.

    1. Sabella

      The Adam Exit is the airlock. Without a space suit.

      1. bug

        true !

  41. Isabelle Alexander

    Now I need a page of Idrisah, Gillie and Bip finding out what happened and comforting Talita

  42. blythe

    and here is where i start getting mad at the protagonists for not standing up for themselves

    ofc i cant change the character or the narrative (nor would i) but god talita your fear of doing literally anything is gonna keep biting you in the ass, and it nearly happened with gillie even. ive met people like this irl and while yes they deserve empathy it gets exhausting watching them never do anything themselves to the point it drains on you bc youre essentially acting as a person *for* them while they never change. a testament to how good her characterization is though, as infuriating as she may be

    1. the Inmara

      As one of those people, who also, like Talita, is bigger and stronger than most everyone else, and happens to be of a demographic that gets vilified even more than straight white cis men, we can talk a bit about this. If you’d like to develop some empathy for people like us. (in our case, a trans woman, but there are other demographics that share the same kinds of stigmas)
      Because, one of the reasons we refuse to defend ourselves most of the time is because we know what happens when we do act in our own defense. Even if we don’t get directly punished for it, what happens is absolutely terrifying. We become the thing that people accuse us of. A monster.

      1. the Inmara

        TLDR: Talita’s not infuriating. Her situation is.

        1. Egg

          YUP! She can’t defend herself, or she’ll be seen as the aggressor. It’s a very risky to defend yourself in situations like this, so you’re often left feeling helpless to change your situation. I know thus because growing up, when I was a kid when I tried to defend myself against bullying I’d be the one reprimanded due to being labeled as the aggressor.

        2. Adrienne

          👏

        3. blythe

          por que no los dos?

          and its not that i dont have empathy for people. you can have empathy and still recognize when someone acts to their detriment, and one can only handle so much of watching someone you care about get themself beat up over and over again, even with help. i literally am mixed race and have a cluster b personality disorder, so i dont think i really need to be taught about the other perspective when ive been there and have had my actions invalidated or demonized when people learn of my disorder or heritage. ive experienced many a ‘damned if you do, damned if you dont” scenario, where im treated like a ticking time bomb or exotic fetish (exact words said to me). but that doesnt mean just letting it go. if we dont challenge assumptions we also dont make it easier for people with the same traits, nor does it help you with your own personhood.

          talita not standing up for herself not only harms her, but also enables adam to continue. yes, no one should be responsible for their offenders in this situation and the fault is still purely adams, but you cant deny that he continues to do so bc he isnt getting confronted. these two views can coexist.

      2. Claire

        As a transwoman myself, I challenge this approach. While your concerns are ones I’ve faced, there are many ways to stand up for oneself that side-step intimidation tactics. While some people will accuse us of that regardless, they will do so anyways- just look to the comment in this comment about “Trying to get gored”. Remaining passive is simply not a winning strategy. That doesn’t mean meeting a challenge bullishly, but also refusing to stand up for oneself becomes a problem. One must learn how to confront problems, even as the world tries to vilify you. I find the frustration both with her and her situation understandable- and its setting her up for eventually growing past that.

        1. Egg

          That is also true, I do think however that Talita is currently, and has been for the majority of her life, very isolated. Being so isolated is likely why she is so afraid to defend herself, as she basically would have nobody to support her through it, and if she is framed as an aggressor for trying to defend herself she is likely to be isolated further, she currently has no community.
          She IS growing closer to Bip, Gillie and Idrisha but what with her being hesitant to acknowledge Gillie and Idrisha as friends initially and the fact she has been conditioned to feel like a Problem her whole life she’ll be hesitant to bring up her problems with any of them.

          That being said, like you said I do think the story is building up to her growing less isolated, and perhaps with that she’ll become confident enough to defend herself.

          (Sorry if this comment is disjointed, I’m having trouble getting my thoughts in order)

        2. the Inmara

          We have worked our whole life to challenge this approach, as you say, and we still do.

          However, there have been and will be times when we are stuck in a catch 22. And, a lifetime of conditioning by very real, material conditions and being beat the hell up for just speaking up even mildly, is really hard to unlearn. And understandable. And forgivable.

          It does no good to be irritated or angry with a person like Talita or ourselves. It is, in fact, unjust.

        3. blythe

          yeah idk why roll over is seen as the only winning approach here just to cater to the feelings of bigots, when its clearly not working, but at least by not doing that, youd be reaffirming your value to yourself if no one else.

      3. Vinemaple

        Exactly! Thank you!

        And to clarify for others, it doesn’t even matter whether or not one DOES actually do anything intimidating to stand up for oneself, if one is SEEN as “intimidating” or “dangerous.” Anything one does will be filtered through the lens of that perceived danger, unless one is DEEPLY socially savvy and able to build a counter-narrative. Sometimes even having a neutral expression instead of a smile can be interpreted as “threatening.”

        And bullies and other abusers often know this very well, and know how to exploit it.

        Sometimes, the only safe thing to do is nothing. Even going through official channels, sometimes you get the same problem, because if you’re seen as “threatening” or “problematic,” authorities expect YOU to be the one exploiting the system, and it’s hard for some people to believe that the person causing the problem isn’t the one who stands out.

        I’m just thankful for Talita’s sake, that none of the permanent staff seem to consider Talita as anything but a gentle giant, who wouldn’t hurt a fly.

    2. mossrabbit

      unfortunatelt, talita has been forced to learn helplessness. and study after study shows the only way to UNLEARN helplessness is to, quite literally, move their legs for them to get them off the electric floor.

    3. Corbin

      The aggressor is not the victim’s responsibility. Also, people not standing up for themselves isn’t often due to laziness, but fear. It can take people years to leave an abusive relationship, and when they do, that is the time they are most likely to be murdered by their abuser.

      That, and in my case, I often give people too much benefit of the doubt, because the second I don’t, I go back to being like I was in high school, full of spite and resentment and whatnot. It’s genuinely a better circumstance for everybody involved if I don’t stand up for myself too often, because the other option is Hormonal Teenager at 21 Mode.

      1. Vinemaple

        Also this. If I had to choose between staying as an enabler, and going back to lashing out at anyone who didn’t approach me exactly right, I’d stay as an enabler. Fewer people getting hurt, fewer conflicts, less trouble navigating basic social situations.

        1. Corbin

          Yeaaagh it sucks to choose between getting repeatedly hit with a frying pan and setting everything on fire, but needs of the many and whatnot

      2. blythe

        idk where you got the idea that i was excusing adam or calling this behavior lazy

        the point is that it is ultimately doing more harm leaving it as it is, you can be both the victim of a situation but also act towards your detriment

  43. Egg

    “Are you trying to get gored?!” Screaming and crying rn. She’s not an animal! The reason Adam is able to pull her antlers and get away with it is because everyone treats her like a dangerous animal, so if she were to retaliate or even get angry suddenly she’d be framed as the aggressor!! Talita….. As somebody who got treated like a dangerous animal growing up for being brown I love Talita so much. It’s not the same ofc but still, seeing her be treated like this hurts my soul

    1. Sabella

      That’s the part that made me saddest really. We expect Adam to be a prick. Yao being literally the only one to show Talita some empathy is crushing.

  44. rain

    God this poor girl… oh Talita…

  45. Arcstone

    “it”.

    Sniper team, you are cleared to engage, take him the fuck out.

  46. TotallySomebody

    Poor Talita…

  47. cypr

    oh poor girl…

  48. jax psylla

    just fell to my knees

  49. Baotheth

    She looks so hurt and vulnerable in the last panel. I don’t think many single panels in this comic have effortlessly brought out such an intense feeling of sadness and empathy out of me as this one.

    This isn’t exactly a problem that gets magically resolved by any variation of Adam receiving “comeuppance” for his douchery, either. Regardless of whether or not he faces professional consequences – which he’s clearly not concerned about anyway – this very much feels like an event that’s going to stick with her for a long time.

  50. ronan

    The last panel legit made me tear up a little, my heart is breaking for Talita 🙁

  51. un_pogaz

    It’s not every day that I feel a genuine urge to murder a fictional character, especialy with this intensity. Hat off for this excellent writing and portrayal of a terminal asshole.
    Until now, I wanted that it would bite Adam ass somehow, but now I want that something very very bad happen to him.

  52. Heck

    Adam pulled on her antlers, constantly misgenders her, ignores all instructions, and is a walking danger to himself and the other temps.
    But… Dominic treats her like a mindless carnivore and also misgenders her. Phoebe eggs Adam on and does nothing to help Talita. And while Yao clearly likes Talita and seems to be trying to connect, xey still asked an invasive question about Talita’s anatomy that seemed to treat her more like a fascination than a person

    They all othered Talita in some way 🙁

    1. gnome_artificer

      You hit the nail right on the head. I read a lot of the “Trans Experience” into Talita’s species dysphoria, invasive questions, even when asked out of genuine curiosity, are a harsh reminder of otherness. Adam is definitely the biggest asshole in space, but that doesn’t mean the other temps haven’t also contributed to othering her.

    2. Flori

      Clayton too! He’s probably the “best” of them, but still isn’t great. He calls Talita “boss” even after asked to just use her name, and is purely professional. Which is fine, really, he’s only a coworker, but it most certainly does not remotely help the feelings of otherness.

    3. bryn

      also yao just walked away too which kind of shocked me i didnt necesarily expect xem to jump to talitas aid but maybe hang back and check that shes okay….. i get it and the characterization is awesome it just sucks i really feel for talita so hard rn

  53. Corbin

    Can Ohwitiil please Kill Adam With Hammers

    1. Enai

      Ohwitiil can kill Adam with their pterodactyl screech alone. They won’t, though, because they’re a professional.

  54. Kyrean

    Obviously Adam is the biggest asshole here (calling Talita “it”, which wouldn’t be acceptable even if she wasn’t an exogendered sophont; as I recall the correct linguistic way to refer to a sophont whose pronouns are unknown is with a specific neutral set based on dialect; “it” implies a level of “dehumanization” where he doesn’t even see her as sapient) but Dom is absolutely seeing her as an animal that can’t control impulses, too. It’s infuriating. I feel terrible for Talita.

    1. eden

      Dom is absolutely the person that if she is asked what happened in an investigation she’ll make it seem like talita was an aggressor. (omg it was so scary!! I genuinely thought she was going to kill him i fear for my life) that’s the kind of person that makes it impossible to even express anger without getting in trouble

  55. Hubert

    It’s a common trope in folklore for someone to turn into a monster. The fear of losing our humanity and hurting others uncontrollably is in a lot of Art. A less represented fear is trying to convince others you didn’t lose it at all. I can think of two such curses: The Metamorphosis, and the Basque folk song Ura Ixuririk, a retelling of La Biche Blanche. In both stories the protagonist wakes up an animal, unrecognizable to others. The vermin is neglected and left to rot, too much an inconvenience to care for. The doe is hunted by her own dogs, Jakes too incredulous to believe the doe could be beloved Mayi. The vermin dies, the doe is cooked into dinner. What will happen to Talita? How would you convince everyone you’re still a person down inside? I did not expect to see hallucinations of transfigurement stories in this comic. “Hallucination” as, I am not sure such parallels are what the comic is going for. Still! What’s old is new weird again.

    1. Vinemaple

      Also, “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, popular in English translation. A mediocre but adequate businessman inexplicably transforms into a giant beetle, and discovers his family’s love is either conditional, or can’t withstand the strain of his not being able to be the sole breadwinner any more.

      1. Hubert

        No one wants an “ungeheueres Ungeziefer” for a brother. Let’s hope Talita never studied modernist literature in foster care!

  56. artemis

    degendering ✅
    unpersoning ✅
    treated/perceived as dangerous based on anatomy ✅
    unwanted physical contact ✅
    no one coming to her defense ✅
    going to higher-up(s) will only make it worse ✅

    big “transmisogyny in the workplace” vibes today*

    *I know the main thing here is her species, but the parallels are…too familiar.

  57. Scottoro

    Very impressive how well this captures how Adam makes himself feel powerful by bullying/dehumanizing (depersoning?) someone so much bigger than him without any of that being spelled out.
    The framing of that second panel is also really clever, having his speeh bubble where he calls Talita “it” breaking into her space. He’s not even intentionally directing it at her, but it hits like an attack.

  58. fuse

    assault and battery, workplace harassment on basis of identity
    recommend: severance without pay

    1. bug

      trueeeee

  59. aaa

    wishing adam a very Consequences

  60. guest

    what is the most devastating to me here is Talita’s overall situation. she’s stuck with her manager and ex-caretaker as the main person she could turn to for help with workplace harrasement and i think we all know Mel is extremely unhelpful with any stuff related to the bigotry Talita is experiencing. going through something like this is already extremely hard, knowing asking ur higher ups (slash Parents, no way that isnt complicating things) for help won’t change it makes it way worse, speaking from experience. i am looking forward to the future pages, knowing that Talita and co do end up in space eventually is very soothing, but i really wanna See her quit this job. hoping that her friends/other coworkers can comfort her but i dont even know if she would Tell them about this cause thats also a whole process to put yourself through

    1. eden

      I’m really worried that when talita leaves there will be an “after all I’ve done for you” conversation. definately as direct and aggressive as that, but I can see it

  61. Frankie

    This page makes my heart hurt!!!!! Sends my thoughts back to times when I have felt shame due to somebody else’s choices and actions. Way too relatable (positive)

  62. Lyra

    This comic hits an agonized familiarity of pain of “woman who struggles with depersonalization due to her body, because if you are a woman whose body does not conform to patriarchal societal standards, you have no value and are a nonperson.” I’m so sorry, Talita.

  63. ryn

    the confirmation that the current set of temps contracts are almost up fills me with dread, because we know what’s likely coming next 🙁

  64. Ruby

    Ceaseless Watcher, turn your gaze upon this wretched thing.

    1. malmo

      Bip, get his ass

  65. Seastarcrunchies

    I hope Yao like, anonymously reports that incident… xe doesn’t seem the type to be confrontational about it, but also seems like xe might care enough to try and report what just happened… (I hope I got the pronouns right, I tried)

    1. eden

      ehhh if it’s anonymous adam will assume it was talita and ramp up his bull

  66. HAL9000

    adam i wish you a very “work enviroment where people will Not tolerate that bullshit

    1. HAL9000

      oh idk why that cut off. wish you a very “work enviroment where people will Not tolerate your bullshit” in your very near future

      1. RottenFruitz

        Assuming I’m recalling the RttS Lore correctly (which I may not be!), he may have been through jobs that don’t tolerate his bs before. It could be that he’s a temp worker because at his more permanent jobs, he either never gets rehired (at best) or is outright fired (at worst). But of course, Adam being Adam, I don’t think he sees himself as the common problem here lol.

    2. HAL9000

      also interesting to see many comments along the same lines of Dominic’s in the prev post. talita isn’t a violent animal. she’s just a person.
      however i personally would maul adam to death on the spot.

    3. Enai

      I also wish Talita a very “work environment where bullying is not tolerated”, but for very different reasons. Ideally, she’d believe it, too.

    4. Peter Jensen

      I was thinking more “a work environment where there’s nobody who cares enough to prevent you from doing stupidly dangerous stuff”. Let it sort itself out, as it were. Of course, only if the stupid stuff doesn’t cause risk to anyone else. The “scrap-throwing fight” earlier was just mind-bogglingly stupid and dangerous in such an environment. Sure, space suit material tech is probably better than today’s, but still.

      Anyway, he definitely should have been fired for any of his numerous missteps up until now, and it’s a failure of higher management that Talita either hasn’t been allowed to do so, or has reason to *think* she wasn’t.

      1. Vinemaple

        If Adam had got himself killed, even if he deliberately snuck off to do it, Talita would pay the consequences for it, because she was in charge.

        The real problem in that scenario, the reason that doesn’t seem fair, is that Talita has been put in charge without any support or leadership training. She doesn’t know the first thing about being an effective manager, let alone being obeyed, and her mental health problems make it extra hard for her to figure it out on her own. But that’s what Mel expects her to do.

        1. Enai

          Yes, a common failure point for people promoted to management is that it’s expected you’ll just know how to manage. After all, you had managers before, yes? But managing is a skill like any other and needs to be taught one way or the other. Strategies to deal with Adam-types are especially difficult to devise, even if you’ve had the misfortune to meet such a person before. And Adam being horrible is his fault, not anyone else’s. He chose to behave that way.

        2. jade stormcloud

          I’m actually far more worried that he’s going to get someone else killed, and of course it wouldn’t be “his” fault, somehow he would make it out to be Talita’s, and sadly, she’d probably believe it and take on all that guilt.

  67. Lilac

    Oof ouch yowch. Ohhh this one hurts. Ouch. Have experienced similar to what Talita is experiencing now before. Really Bad. Really Awful. Ouch

  68. Sabella

    You know, we all knew Adam was going to be a child and go with the “but you grabbed me” excuse, somehow I didn’t think he’d go the extra mile of misgendering Talita as well.

    Fuck you, Adam.

    1. Kyrean

      Not just misgendering (in which case he would use “they/them” or “xey/xem” depending on the dialect of English), equating her to a non-sophont that doesn’t get a personal pronoun. “It” is only acceptable if a person explicitly tells you that is its pronoun.

      1. Sabella

        Yes, I’m aware. I have a handful of it/its pals. We also have Bip as an in-universe example of someone that prefers explicitly agendered pronouns. Among reasons why I said “misgendering” specifically. It’s because I have friends that prefer it/its pronouns that I lean away from giving these ones particular weight in depersonalizing Talita. Context matters of course, and we know Adam’s intent here, but the misgendering is doing more to depersonalize her than using it/its specifically. Ask your local transgendered/genderqueer person about this.

        1. Kyrean

          I AM the local genderqueer person here. Hi there, I’m agender. My pronouns do not include “it”, so I would probably be pretty offended if someone used it for me because of the connotations it has (witness how many people refuse to call it/its people by those pronouns because they feel it’s wrong, period, due to the connotations, and thus misgender it/its people instead). Adam pretty clearly means it in that way, not as a set of neutral pronouns it would be considered locally appropriate to give to a gender-unknown sophont. It’s intent, not merely the words used.

        2. Sabella

          Damn, my transition is going so well, I’ve even got other genderqueer people explaining things to me that I already know, and that I’ve literally just finished saying. It’s like you didn’t even read the part where I said “we know Adam’s intent here”. I didn’t need you to take me to school on what Adam meant by what he said, I need you to think about why I chose the words I did.

          My point is that you shouldn’t be hitting with friendly fire your fellow agendered people who DO like and prefer it/its pronouns by giving Adams use of them particular weight in hurting Talita. Because it’s what my it/its friends have said to me (along with my own experiences as a trans nonbinary person) that had me focusing on Adam misgendering her over the particular way he did so.

        3. Kyrean

          That is, in fact, why I started out this thread by explicitly stating that some people use “it”. I wasn’t saying you didn’t know any of them. I wasn’t implying YOU weren’t aware of them. I was saying that for anyone who WASN’T aware.

          I guess I’m just too damn neurodivergent to be having this conversation. I’m not trying to punch down at or discount people who use “it/its” pronouns. That’s pretty much what I’ve been trying to explicitly NOT do, and using a lot of words trying to clarify, and that probably doesn’t help how I’m coming off. So I’m sorry, for inadvertently causing harm to people who use “it/its” pronouns.

          I’ll shut up and go away now.

      2. Adrienne

        Knowing Adam, it isn’t a matter of misgendering anyway… he meant that “it” as disrespectfully as possible 🙁

        1. Kyrean

          Exactly!

        2. Sabella

          I literally just spoke to this, yes. I have it/its friends that don’t like how quick people are to make their preferred pronouns a depersonalization thing. And I’m not interested in giving people like Adam more power than they deserve by putting such a heavy negative connotation on these pronouns.

        3. Adrienne

          Fair enough, Sabella, but it sure seems like “it” has plenty of power against Talita. I know it would against me

  69. egg

    Honestly fuck Adam here, I wanna hold Talita, tell her she’s loved and a whole person and Human’s like Adam don’t matter in the long run

    My poor girl, she deserves the world

  70. Entguarde

    The description just- yeah. Adam doesn’t see Talita as his boss, much less a person. She even told them all to refer to her right pronouns rather than the Jovian standard for aliens, but Adam goes a step FURTHER into dehumanizing her by referring to her as “it”.
    I’ll be honest, with his behavior I’m surprised he ended up working in a co-species environment, seeing his behavior towards Yao and even Phoebe to an extent.
    Also, amazing job on the transcriptions when it comes to writing character expressions! Really nails down how much Talita has been restraining herself when listening to them talk behind her back. And of course the paneling! Especially the texture change as Adam’s words really hit her.

    1. Claire

      Yeah, Jay’s flow from the previous page to the middle panel here feels like a slash. It’s really evocative, doing so much with so little. Well done, Jay.

    2. Enai

      Adam’s been referring to Talita as “it” before here.
      He’s a grade a douchebag, for sure.

      Also, poor Talita. I have a feeling that if centaurs cried, she’d be doing so now.

  71. hurgaburga

    girl just had to get stuck with the perfect combination of people to directly and indirectly bring out all of the worst in her.
    conveniently at the time she’s gonna have her perfect ticket out of this (literal) dump…

  72. K

    I haven’t seen anyone comment on this yet, but Adam called Talita an It which I think is particularly cruel.

  73. Adrienne

    🙁

  74. luluberri

    i know we’re not supposed to threaten this guy but oooo he is not making it easy.
    a big part of what i love about this comic is how grounded in humanity it is despite the scifi setting, but sometimes it can get a bit too real…

    fantastic comic still!! and i cant wait to see where it goes :3
    i just hope talita had a better day soon </3

  75. Accursed Dirt Boar

    We must poke Adam whit pointy sticks

  76. ttt

    and the airlock is right there! either a brief moment of talita wishing she could airlock adam, or her big inconvenient dysphoric self.

    adam, i hope you have a near-death experience after talita leaves dirtball and learn to appreciate people protecting you from your own inexperience. or possibly both.

    1. ttt

      *airlock adam or herself. possibly both.

      cursor misfire and the sentence ended up in the wrong paragraph. oops.

  77. Claire

    I appreciate Yao’s presence. Xer presence really highlights the difference between traits by choice and traits by default.

    That expression Talita has… I’ve worn it before. May you not need to wear it again, Talita.

    1. Enai

      Yeah, Yao’s shy and awkward but good natured. Adam has all the social graces you could wish for and chooses to use them to torment the people around him. Boo.

  78. Matt

    Adam. What the fuck.

  79. rory

    TALITAAAAAA 💔💔💔💔💔💔💔
    this page is such a gutpunch oh my god. her expression…

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