Six Bits

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Authors: Laurence Dahners
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has been making its radar image both dimmer and larger. How big is the damn thing in actuality?"
    "Seven hundred thirteen meters long."
    “Holy shit!"
    The general turned and whispered to the president. "Sir that's not too big to nuke."
    Making it obvious that he had heard and fully understood the general’s whisper, the captain said "It is true that one of your nuclear weapons would readily destroy the krane ship, but the krane will have little difficulty destroying any rocket driven delivery systems. Do you have anything faster?"
    An uncomfortable silence reigned while the president considered. He felt as if he was in a situation careening out of control. "Can you help us, and if so, how do we know that you actually are the guys in shining white armor?"
    The small synthetic voice in the president’s ear queried as to whether “guys in shining white armor” meant “helpful or good beings.”
    The president nodded.
    Leis said, "Mr. President, we can enter into an agreement between you, as the highest available Earth authority, and myself, as the highest ranking member of the Humaniform Federation. Earth would become a protectorate, subject to later ratification by both sides. For such a protectorate treaty to be held valid requires at least token payment. One nickel iron asteroid of your choice, but greater than fifty-three meters on its smallest axis would be satisfactory. As evidence that we are indeed the good guys, this would come due only upon incontrovertible evidence that the krane intended to damage your planet and our successful intervention to prevent such an outcome."
    “And what else would we owe afterward?”
    “Nothing more would be owed. Once this immediate crisis has been resolved, you would then negotiate Earth’s entry into the Humaniform Federation with a diplomatic team.”
    The president shrugged, "I’m happy to agree to have you protect our planet. A single asteroid which we can't currently use is well worth it. However, I won't agree to anything further until we know more. Can you print up a document for me to sign?"
    "Sign? Oh! The computers have recorded your verbal agreement. That’s sufficient.” He got a grim look on his face, "Unfortunately, we may not be able to uphold our part of the bargain. Exceltor is only a cruiser. We are facing a krane light carrier which not only holds a host of smaller flickerships, but undoubtedly is escorted by one to three destroyers or possibly even some cruisers."
    The president’s eyes cast about the room for a moment. "Why don't you send for help?"
    "I sorely wish that I could. The nearest help is nearly 12 light years away. Our shift inaccuracy of one percent means that a message capsule sent that far would have an average error in its arrival of 43 light days. Thus after arrival, its radio beacon would take weeks to arrive. We could go ourselves, but with shifts, recharging of our accumulators and correcting shifts it would be at least 36 hours before we might be able to return. The krane already know we’re here and they will certainly see us depart. By the time we could return they would probably have destroyed most of your planet’s ability to sustain DNA life-forms."
    “Okay,” President Rayland said, pale with dismay. His voice rasped, “Do the best you can for us."
    Captain Leis gave a jerky nod then turned to the young woman beside him, “Ensign Mallor, escort our guests to the bridge visitor’s seats and answer their questions."
    The president retrieved the hand he had extended for a shake, but which the captain had not noticed. He and the general moved to the rear of the bridge with Mallor.
    The crew on the long, narrow bridge all seemed busy at one task or another. The president couldn’t avoid a subliminal feeling that they were all underdeveloped weaklings because of their small chests, but they appeared to be quite efficiently performing their assigned tasks. All had slender metallic halos about their heads, but rather than

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