known populated planet, all of them seemed to have small chests and pale skins. Thicker atmospheres on their home planets allowed smaller lungs and filtered out the UV which selected for additional melanin on Earth. Though they had small chests and pale skins in common, otherwise there was tremendous variety in size, shape and feature. As he looked around, President Rayland thought he saw some with similar variations, as if they might have come from the same sub-species.
A bald young man with a ring of short dark hair just above surprisingly small ears turned to face the president. "President Rayland, I am Captain Leis, commander of the Humaniform Federation's light cruiser Exceltor. We are very sorry to have abducted you, but your world appears to be in grave danger from an alien race known as the Krane.”
Rayland gave the young captain a dubious look, “And I’m supposed to believe this, just on your say-so?”
Leis said, “No, though I fear we may not be able to prove it to your satisfaction. However, we do expect that you’re aware of the arrival of a krane light carrier in Earth orbit a little more than seven of your hours ago. It would have arrived in a flash of energy easily visible at your planet's surface. Currently your planet is bombarding it with microwave radar and other imaging radiations. We expect that your people are trying to figure out what it is. To radar imaging techniques its appearance will be quite dim due to sophisticated absorption and diffusion techniques."
Rayland and the General glanced at one another as they thought about the commotion they’d just left at the White House. Then Rayland looked back at the captain and frowned, “We’re aware of such an object. What kind of danger are you claiming it poses?”
Leis took a few moments to explain the presence of LSA and DNA life-forms in the galaxy as well as the ongoing battle between humaniforms and kranes for the small liquid water planets. "Both species are currently surveying star systems for suitable worlds and trying to protect worlds populated with their own life-forms.” Leis shrugged, “Unfortunately, both are also trying to convert worlds populated with non-sentient species to make them suitable for their own life-forms.”
General Price narrowed his eyes, “Convert?”
Leis nodded, “By wiping out all existing life and seeding the world with their own form of life.”
The president’s stomach lurched at the implication, but he didn’t show it on his face. “But they wouldn’t wipe out life on our planet because of the intelligent life there, correct?”
Leis got a pinched expression, “There’s the problem. Defining what’s intelligent or sentient is always open to interpretation. Kranes have been known to wipe planets populated with intelligent humaniforms, claiming that they believed the occupants to be no smarter than monkeys. Recently the Krane Empire agreed to a treaty with our Humaniform Federation protecting worlds belonging to either group. Unfortunately, that treaty does not extend to your planet because you are neither a member, nor a protectorate of our Federation. We think it likely that the krane carrier intends to sterilize your planet and begin seeding it with LSA forms prior to any chance that it might become a part of our Federation."
The president listened to both the captain speaking unintelligibly and the small voice translating in his ear with a sense of unreality. He did his best to show an outward calm despite a heart hammering in a chest become too tight. "I suppose that you feel that this krane carrier is capable of such a thing?” He wondered briefly to himself just why he even began to believe the captain’s incredible story, but then reflected that, in view of what had just happened to his own person, he must either believe in the incredible—or find himself insane.
“There is no doubt,” Leis responded solemnly.
“We’ve been assuming that some kind of electronic trickery
A bald young man with a ring of short dark hair just above surprisingly small ears turned to face the president. "President Rayland, I am Captain Leis, commander of the Humaniform Federation's light cruiser Exceltor. We are very sorry to have abducted you, but your world appears to be in grave danger from an alien race known as the Krane.”
Rayland gave the young captain a dubious look, “And I’m supposed to believe this, just on your say-so?”
Leis said, “No, though I fear we may not be able to prove it to your satisfaction. However, we do expect that you’re aware of the arrival of a krane light carrier in Earth orbit a little more than seven of your hours ago. It would have arrived in a flash of energy easily visible at your planet's surface. Currently your planet is bombarding it with microwave radar and other imaging radiations. We expect that your people are trying to figure out what it is. To radar imaging techniques its appearance will be quite dim due to sophisticated absorption and diffusion techniques."
Rayland and the General glanced at one another as they thought about the commotion they’d just left at the White House. Then Rayland looked back at the captain and frowned, “We’re aware of such an object. What kind of danger are you claiming it poses?”
Leis took a few moments to explain the presence of LSA and DNA life-forms in the galaxy as well as the ongoing battle between humaniforms and kranes for the small liquid water planets. "Both species are currently surveying star systems for suitable worlds and trying to protect worlds populated with their own life-forms.” Leis shrugged, “Unfortunately, both are also trying to convert worlds populated with non-sentient species to make them suitable for their own life-forms.”
General Price narrowed his eyes, “Convert?”
Leis nodded, “By wiping out all existing life and seeding the world with their own form of life.”
The president’s stomach lurched at the implication, but he didn’t show it on his face. “But they wouldn’t wipe out life on our planet because of the intelligent life there, correct?”
Leis got a pinched expression, “There’s the problem. Defining what’s intelligent or sentient is always open to interpretation. Kranes have been known to wipe planets populated with intelligent humaniforms, claiming that they believed the occupants to be no smarter than monkeys. Recently the Krane Empire agreed to a treaty with our Humaniform Federation protecting worlds belonging to either group. Unfortunately, that treaty does not extend to your planet because you are neither a member, nor a protectorate of our Federation. We think it likely that the krane carrier intends to sterilize your planet and begin seeding it with LSA forms prior to any chance that it might become a part of our Federation."
The president listened to both the captain speaking unintelligibly and the small voice translating in his ear with a sense of unreality. He did his best to show an outward calm despite a heart hammering in a chest become too tight. "I suppose that you feel that this krane carrier is capable of such a thing?” He wondered briefly to himself just why he even began to believe the captain’s incredible story, but then reflected that, in view of what had just happened to his own person, he must either believe in the incredible—or find himself insane.
“There is no doubt,” Leis responded solemnly.
“We’ve been assuming that some kind of electronic trickery
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