"I have an idea," Sandra said, grinning at the Captain.
"Ah," Mr. Sythe said, with a tone so non-committal that it bordered on pointed.
Sandra shot him a scowl.
"I didn't pass judgment on the idea," Mr. Sythe added, which did exactly nothing to sooth Sandra at all as she turned back to face the rest of the crew.
"I haven't even said it! The idea is, we start off by telling them that we will offer them…"
---
"...so whichever of you proves themselves most worthy of it, the wonders of the universe will be yours," Etna said, gesturing to the chart of UAS territory - which, to people who had spent their entire history in a single solar system, looked incredibly impressive. Etna was honestly impressed at the sheer level of cheek and gal that Mr. Sythe and Nhi had thrown into the astrogation projection they had put together to show the Purple and Greens. It managed to show every single solar system that the Union of Aligned Systems had in their border. Every. Single. One.
That included at least twelve suns that had a listening post, four systems that hadn't been explored yet but were included in the latest Zinovian-Union treaty settling their spinward boarder, and the independent colonies of Aquilian separatists that were within a stone's throw of the UAS, and a fair number of completely uninhabited stars that simply had not been actively claimed by anyone.
It
didn't include the borders of the Aquilian Empire, the Zinovians, the Voxite, or the Narine.
They might have made even this exaggeration look a bit less impressive.
As Etna spoke, Mr. Sythe leaned over, whispering in Lear's ear. "I still don't understand why we want to look like an imperialist, expansionist power."
Lera, with utter confidence, responded: "Imperialists are uncomfortable when dealing with truly revolutionary organizations. We want them to respect and fear us." She held up her finger, indicating the amount. "A tiny amount of fear. A healthy amount. And some reverence too! That comes free with the fear."
"I see," Mr. Sythe muttered.
"So…" The Green's President said, leaning in a bit. "We redirect our ships and get half their food. They stand down their war kites. ANd if we can prove to you that we're the most civilized, you'll give us all these fancy gizmos?" She rubbed her chin.
"Yes, that is about the picture. Most civilized, a…measurement of which we are utterly capable of quantifying," Etna said. She had crammed any concerns she had about the plan into a tiny ball in her chest, and was waiting to see if the other shoe to drop.
The Purple's leader frowned in the other projection. Slowly, she inclined her head. "I think this might work," she said.
The Green's President, though, was frowning even harder. "I want a guarantee the food will arrive," she said, her voice growing firmer. "We're going on caloric extension regimes soon-" a bloodless way to describe letting people starve to death. Or maybe just euthanizing them. "-and my population will require proof that this competition is being held in good faith."
"What kind of proof?" Etna asked. "The Purples have already promised the materials-"
"Yes, if you can trust the Purples," the Green President said.
"We WILL win this contest!" The Purple leader snapped.
"Yes, so you claim," the Green President said. "But I still must request at least a pro-forma detachment of our ships to escort the agricultural goods. The fleet is already on the way. It is the simplest thing."
The Purple leader looked as if she had just eaten a live uranium rod. "Which ships!?"
The Green President pointed at a display that she had whipped up. "I believe that the
Righteous Damnation of Our Enemies, the
Utter Victory of The Dutchies Over the Cosmos, and the
Bear Up Yee-"
"Those are three siloships!" The Purple Leader cut her off - and clearly relished the fact she could do so in real time.
"Well, yes, we need to ensure the food gets here," the Purple leader said, as if her counterpart was being unreasonable.
"...the Newton-2 can go faster than the speed of light, ma'am," Etna said.
"Yes, I am aware, however, we believe this detachment of ships will be of essential security support during the transfer of goods - it is impossible to travel fast while attached to a station." She smiled. "We simply wish to help you and protect you. That is, after all, what a…
civilized neighbor does."
Etna's eyebrow twitched.
---
How do you deal with this impasse?
[ ] Flatly refuse the Greens. If they move their ships, they forfeit the contest. They'll have to listen. (Piss off the Greens).
[ ] Tell the Purples that they just have to deal, if they refuse to deal, they forfeit the contest. Point out you can swat every missile on each silo ship out of space before it leaves the tubes. This is only a mild exaggeration. (Piss off the Purples)
