It was a race against time. Despite the Dereggers giving a weak attempt at a blockade, refusing to believe there was any danger, the alliance ships swooped in to yank every man, woman, and child off of the two colony planets before the sun engulfed the entire system. The colonists had asked for help but the CEO's had been rejecting their requests, saying there was no danger, CEO's hate being proven wrong. -- Lessons
The CEO's of Planetary Domains Inc. swore up and down that their colony worlds weren't in danger around Spaetarin III. Their scientists had looked into the chemistry of the unstable star and their estimates said that it wasn't due to collapse for five hundred years.
The fact that Planetary Domains Inc. had been saying this for five hundred years seemed to pass them right by. Nevertheless, the Alliance kept butting in with inconvenient facts and spreading an unprofitable panic amongst the living assets. Colonists. Whatever.
They also decided to steal those assets. Colonists. People. Ignoring the fact that there clearly wasn't any danger and gouging into the bottom lines with their gung-ho hero complexes. CEO Mavros could no longer afford the security forces necessary to stop literal billions of ships coming in from the alliance and stealing his assets. Workers. It was a travesty. So he did what any CEO in his position would do. He filed suit.
The Alliance played coy, saying in essence, "All your people are free to return to your safer holdings. It's their choice. We'll even give them a free ride. But none of them took us up on that offer for some reason."
Planetary Domains Inc. responded with, "You took them from these planets, you put them back on those planets right now or you'll regret it forever." Understandably, not in as many words.
The Alliance maintained calm. "Our readings indicate that those planets are unsafe for habitation since they're orbiting an unstable star. We cannot return them to an unsafe area following a humantarian evacuation."
"Come on, that area is perfectly safe," argued Planetary Domains. "That star isn't due to collapse for five hundred years. You're costing us valuable mineral extractions!"
The Alliance steepled its metaphorical fingers and cooed, "Very well. If you believe it is so safe, set up your CEO in a permanent residence on the planet closest to that star. He and his inheritors and the board of directors must reside there with no plans to evacuate, for the duration of the time you claim safety, before we'll return a single citizen by their choice."
"You can't make us do that," yawped Planetary Domains.
"Why? You yourself claim it's safe for five hundred years. Prove your confidence in your science to us." The Alliance had a surprisingly sharp grin for an intellectual concept.
"Um..." said Planetary Domains. At which point, the star went nova and obliterated the planets in contest. No fatalities. "That wasn't our fault! It went up early!"
"And the matter of your lot holding a static period of safe habitation for the entire duration of that period had nothing to do with it," the Alliance rolled its metaphorical eyes.
"You still owe us workers!"
"As we stated previously, we're willing to give free rides to anyone willing to go back. We've made it very widely known. Nobody wants to go back for some reason."
Planetary Domains Inc. still insisted on classing it as a theft.
[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / Tonygers]
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