* * *
Lit-ta listened to me without interruption.
Igor, said she after a little pause, thank you for informing us immediately of your contact with the Empire. I appreciate it, and Im sure the Senior will appreciate it, too. I once invited you into my system, and you promised to come as soon as you could. It seems to me that now is the time to do that, especially since this visit is not too much of a burden for you, because you have set up a transport ring here.
I didnt think for long. Why not? Lit-ta obviously wanted to discuss something in person, and she promised to show me something interesting
Im ready. When will you get a chance to spend time with me?
Fly in. Ill always have time for you.
Then wait for me tomorrow. We shouldnt delay our visit to the Empire.
* * *
Lit-ta didnt invite me to one of the giant quasi-living cities raised by the lizards on the surface and partly beneath the surface of the planets of Iota Persei. Apparently, she thought the lizards habitat might not be entirely comfortable for humans. We met on board Dragons Tail. This battleship was originally built for a crew of humans and the lizards, and was therefore well equipped to provide comfort for both races.
Lit-ta has been aboard my flagship several times and felt quite free on the ship.
We have some very serious matters to discuss, Admiral, after completion of the formalities the lizard moved on to business, I invited you into my system for a reason we can talk in peace here. Id like to show you something, but to do that, we have to fly into the outer belt of asteroids.
Thats great, well have a few hours for a thoughtful conversation.
We set up in the study of my Admirals cabin, where there was a comfortable chair for me and some very specific furniture for my guest, as soon as a tail, especially as massive as the lizards tail, had certain requirements for furniture.
Arent you afraid, Admiral? asked Lit-ta suddenly.
I knew exactly what she was asking about, but I chose to ask her a follow-up question, Are you afraid to let them in here?
I was with you in the Kappa Ceti system, and I remember perfectly well what protective fields and plasma cannons are. Your ships were somehow able to resist them, though at great cost, and our dreadnoughts were powerless until your guns knocked down the power shields of the enemy cruisers. And there were only two smaller ships facing us. Now imagine letting an entire fleet in here, armed much better than the local toads. Theyll be able to dictate any terms they want to us. Admiral, are you aware of that? The Empire has transport rings, too, and once we let them in, they wont need us anymore.
Theyre humans, like us, Lit-ta, and Im sure we can make a deal. Theyre at war there, and theyre not very successful either, which means well need each other.
Youre humans, and it gives you a chance to come to an agreement, I wont argue, although there may be options. But why would the Empire want us, Admiral? Now, in our alliance with the Federation, there is a certain balance of power, for which, by the way, we thank you again hybrid ships with mixed crews have indeed become an excellent unifying factor. But now the balance would be lost. Humans will become much stronger than us, and lizards will cease to be full partners in the new alliance.
I believe it will be different, Lit-ta. Our interests dont conflict with yours. The galaxy is huge and theres enough room for us and you. Your biotechnologies far outpaced not only the Federation science, but the Empire science as well, so youll have something to offer the new allies.
What makes you think their bioengineering is inferior to ours?
Because they developed along our path, Lit-ta. Let me tell you a little secret. Our analysts believe that if humanitys progress continues on the same path as it does now, we can reach your level of working with living matter no sooner than 300 years from now, if not more. The thing is, were used to solving all problems with the help of machinery, and thats how its going to be. Bioengineering is evolving as a purely complementary activity, so it is not progressing so fast. In the Empire, the situation is exactly the same. Your technology will be a revelation to them, though perhaps less so than to us.
Think of the same hybrid battleships. If you hadnt grown armor and engines in space, we would have been working on building each ship for at least six months. And Dragons Tail was built in three months, and this is far from the limit. The last battleship of this type was commissioned 48 days after it was laid.
And the reconnaisance?! Can you imagine the effect of combining Imperial camouflage fields with your engines? Think of Yoon Gao hybrid recon ship. It seemed like a real breakthrough compared to everything we and you had before we met, and our electronic warfare systems are nothing compared to what the Empire has. Im counting on your technologies as one of the great trumps in the coming negotiations, Lit-ta. Now we have a unique situation where we all need each other. Perhaps, in time, even the quargs will find a place in the new alliance, though it will be more difficult with them, but it is not a question of today.
The lizard began to think, looking at me with an unblinking gaze.
Youre going to do us a favor again, Igor, finally said she. You informed me immediately of your contact with the Empire, and now youre offering us a real way to integrate ourselves into a new alliance that will allow us to play a prominent role in it. Why are you doing this, man?
Because I see good for us all, Lit-ta. Lizards are very convenient allies for humans, just as humans are for lizards, and I want this situation to last as long as possible. Do you remember a world without war, Governor General?
I do, responded Lit-ta after a little pause, but she didnt go into details.
And I dont. But Ive been told a lot about how it was, and you know, I hope to see this for myself as soon as possible. My children should not lead battleships and aircraft carriers into battle. I want a completely different fate for them, and for that to become a reality, I believe it is right to lay the foundations of mutual benefit in relations between our races.
Ill tell the Senior what youve said, and I dont think there will be any delay or difficulty with our decision to negotiate with the Empire. As I understand it, were almost there on our journey, Lit-tas changed her subject, Have you forgotten what a space suit looks like, Admiral? Were going to have to walk on the surface of one of the asteroids.
* * *
The asteroid looked, frankly, peculiar on the projection screen. In fact, it wasnt really an asteroid, but rather an asteroid stump. Once upon a time, this massive rock block had almost a spherical shape and a diameter of about 300 kilometers, but now there was only a little more than half of it left, and it seemed that once, quite a long time ago, a stone ball had been cut in half with a very sharp and hard object, leaving behind a perfectly plane surface resembling a petrographic cut. It was unclear where the other half of the asteroid had gone, at least, the scanners did not see it in the immediate vicinity. Its been clearly not a year or two since the event that gave the asteroid its current appearance. The surface of the cut, which had once been smooth, was now covered by numerous traces left by the impact of rock fragments of various shapes and sizes, which were abundant in the outer Iota Persei belt. There was no doubt that the asteroid was being used extensively by someone at the time of the accident. On the surface of the cut, in many places there were stains of the entrances to the tunnels going deep into the rock, which were almost identical in shape and size. The asteroid was pitted with these passages, but the lizards have been unable to determine their purpose.