Starship Armstrong - Season 2

Part 19 - Sides (IX)

Dux Simmons leaned forward in his chair and tented his fingers conspiratorially.

"So, Commander," said the Dux "Why are you here, hmmm? What brings your people across the stars to our humble little world. What's so important here that you'd risk a crash landing to visit us?"

"We're explorers," replied Gibson "Our mandate is relatively open-ended, but in short we've come to reunite the lost worlds of humanity in the spirit of peace, and to prove our sincerity by helping the people of the periphery however we can."

"A noble endeavor indeed," said the Dux "I take it the people of the periphery includes my people?"

"That would be a correct assumption," said Gibson.

"If you really want to help us you can aid us here," said the Dux "We've reduced this culture of lawlesss barbarians down to their last stronghold."

"That doesn't sound like something the Foundation would support, if I may be frank," replied Gibson.

"Well if I may be frank, Commander, that's because you are aliens," said the Dux "You don't know what these people are capable of."

"I don't know that-" began Gibson.

"Do you know why this military encampment is the largest settlement in the area?" asked the Dux.

"I can't say that I do, no," replied Gibson, honestly.

"Would you like to?" the Dux asked. He didn't wait for a reply.

"The bridge our enemies are currently occupying wasn't built by them. It was built by the people of Fountainhead, a city just shy of 50,000 souls. Within a month of the bridge having been completed the Libertines crossed it and sacked Fountainhead. They sacked it, Commander. That's a word with little meaning in the modern world. Perhaps it is too sanitized to truly convey what occurred. We should call it the Massacre of Fountainhead. Or the Rape of Fountainhead. The Libertines ran through the city like some barbarian hoard out of the darkest memory of the past and they had their way with it. Whatever they didn't take they despoiled or destroyed. So now the city is no more. You won't find anything on the site but ash. And, of course, now they consider this land theirs."

"And you believe this justifies your own people acting in the same way? Perpetuating the cycle of violence?" asked the Commander, growing bolder.

"Oh, we kill Libertine soldiers, make no mistake about it," said Dux, in a tone bordering on concern "And since every man damn one of them fancies himself a warrior-poet and carries a weapon that means we kill most of them. But even in the face of their unfathomable barbarity we still conduct ourselves as a civilized army. We do not burn their homes or defile their people. We accept surrender. We take prisoners. We treat them like humans even if they are incapable of acting like them."

"You've given me a lot to think about, Dux. Could I have a moment alone with my crew mate?"

"Take as much time as you need. Consider what I have said. If you are who you say you are I'm sure you could help us in ways we don't even realize. An overwhelming victory on our part would reduce the bloodshed on both sides. If we can impress upon the Libertines the hopelessness of the situation we might be able to convince some of the bastards to surrender."

"Thank you, Dux," said Gibson "Ensign."

Gibson nodded towards the door of the tent, and the two men walked outside.

* * *

There were prying eyes everywhere, but eventually Gibson and Gul were able to find a relatively secluded part of the camp between a tent and the palisades where they could talk privately. Several soldiers were still keeping an eye on them but they were too far away to hear the whispered conversation.

"I say we help them," said Gul.

"It's more complicated than that," said Gibson.

"Is it?" asked Gul "The Dux said he'd help us find the shuttle once they've taken the bridge. If we can help them do that sooner than might make the difference between life and death for Lieutenant-Commander Mitzner and Wagner. What if they're out there, right now, too injured to move?"

"We have no reason to assume that is the case," said Gibson "If we get involved then the Foundation is involved. This is a local dispute between two alien civilizations."

"One of which has already expressed interest in joining the Huxley Foundation. We always liaise with the largest local government."

"You're simplifying thing again," said Gibson "There are conditions. Benchmarks. Thresholds. We don't just throw our weight behind the most powerful local polity."

"From everything I've heard I bet these people would pass every single one of those conditions," said Gul "We can either do our best to find our crew mates and help these people seek justice, or we can wait around and see what happens. I know what I would choose."