They were supposed to be a massive, mindless, killing machines, huge and terrifying to behold, they were thin, nearly hairless, and soft-bodied under their suits. I'd heard so much of these beings, we all have, that the idea of one of their ships docking at this newly built station scared many of us to nearly soiling ourselves. Galactic Law required us to let them dock, they were in need of aid, their ship damaged almost beyond recognition.
They were supposed to be massive, mindless, brutal savages. Our newly built dock is now strong enough to fend off an entire raiding Vorax fleet. All it cost us was giving them lodging and food so they could fix their ship. -- Anon Guest
There is one law of the sea that is inviolate, and also has become inviolate in open space. Always respond to a distress call, for the distress may one day be your own. The flag of truce has always come with the cry of help, and it is the worst and most venal of crimes to pretend distress in order to attack anyone coming to aid them.
Therefore, when the Human vessel's distress call was heard by Lilli Station, there was some cause for panic. This was a Havenworlder system, with a Havenworlder station, and all associated safety measures... but they had to answer.
Here we are, they said. They added, Please do not hurt us, we will supply what you need. Accommodations are being adjusted. The Phrajji aboard did their best with the toughest materials they had to hand. Using available information to make things ready for the Human horde that would surely come and take advantage of the situation. They even laid in offerings of live domesticated animals in the hopes that the Humans would eat those first and not feel inclined to polish off the cogniscent residents.
To understand the resulting accommodation, the Phrajji were not terribly well informed about the Deathworlders. They knew, for instance, that the mass of one Human could easily make four Phrajji. Therefore they made all doorways and passages four times as high and four times as wide as the egress that the Phrajji found convenient. They knew that Humans could physically break most substances that the Phrajji preferred to build. Therefore, the walls and floors were made of thick, re-enforced asteroid iron. They supplied plants for oxygen that also bore fruit, because they heard that Humans liked sweet fruit.
Nothing that a Havenworlder liked to eat would cause a Deathworlder any harm. That was certain. They even offered some of their toxic waste in the form of sealed containers of theobromine and capsaicin. Humans devoured those for fun, they knew that. Then they built a special shelter for themselves with easy access to the lifepods. A chief fixture of which were the walls that were four times as thick as the walls for the Human reception area.
They hid and waited, watching the securicam's feeds to see what happened when the Humans docked.
The Omnihatches let them in, and a small horde tumbled in, grunting and gasping and making animal noises. That was when the first fact became evident.
"They're so small," murmured Security Officer Grox.
They were not hulking brutes. Most of them were ragged and thin. Filthy, scruffy, and other detrimental words ending in Y. Then they spoke.
"Sweet air! Thank [DEITY] for sweet air!"
One of the even smaller ones pointed at the plants and said, "Mama, Mama! Food! They got us food!"
One of them had a scanner, running it over the plants. "Harmless, completely harmless. You could feed everything here to infants."
They didn't even wait for the entire announcement to finish. Half of them were picking fruit, half of them were dealing it out. One each, even though they were clearly starving. The live animals were a subject of some debate, but since the edible plants had a way of abundant growth, the Humans weren't entirely inclined to kill anything.
"Why the coffee and hot sauce?" wondered one of them.
"We have air, we have food, and we have enough stuff to fix the ship. Why ask questions? Gift horse, dentist."
"They even left us clean water," said another by the spigot. Once they started to drink from their cupped hands, they started weeping. "They're angels."
"Courtesy rules," said the one with the scanner, apparently the leader. "Don't ruin what's gifted. Repair the purifiers and printers first so we can replace what we take... and we need to figure out what to trade for their hospitality."
Someone said, "They're Havenworlders aren't they?"
A moment of vertiginous terror for the observers. Were these Deathworlders still going to come for them? Were they going to conquer and destroy anyway?
"They are," said the leader. "We know what Havenworlders are like... we should give them something simple. Something we can fabricate easily..."
"Sugar," said one of the smallest ones. "They like sugar."
"We can calibrate a food printer, use the carbon and water... It'll be slow, but we need to be here for a while."
Someone else, working with the animals, said, "These things give milk!"
The Humans stayed for a month and a half, Standard Calendar, a time during which they did not venture further than the area made for them. The difference in architecture seemed to be all that was necessary to stop them.
The Phrajji gained enough confidence to edge back into the rest of their station, but never enough to get close to the Humans. Yet, every time they came within sight of those deadly Deathworlders, the only thing the Humans did was coo, "Oh, they're so tiny and cute..."
When they left, they surprised the Phrajji further by leaving a gift. They had been working on it since they arrived, and had worked to keep the processes underway. They didn't need to do it, but they did it anyway.
There were fifty Standard Weight Units of pure, molecularly printed sucrose. Rendered in easily-transported cubes. They also left a note, alongside the art they made on the walls. Two words in Galstand Simple:
Thanking you.
They got a lot of things wrong, but in the process, they got everything right.
[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / devon]
If you like my stories, please Check out my blog and Follow me. Or share them with your friends!
Send me a prompt [72 remaining prompts!]
