Space Rocks! Read Online Free

simply leave and go back to Eo,’” said Sheln, affecting a simpering tone. “Well, they’ve got a whole planet, ten times the size of our asteroid, and that still wasn’t enough for them! Hoo-min greed and aggression know no bounds. This goes deeper than iridium, folks. This is about right and wrong. This is about good and evil. This is about the very future of the Xotonian race. These hoo-mins, they hate our way of life.”
    At this, the crowd quaked with dread. Many began to weep openly, big, salty tears dripping from all five eyes. With large groups of Xotonians, emotions tend to run high.
    â€œHow can they hate our way of life if they don’t know we exist?” called out Hudka. The collective sobbing of the Conclave was undercut by a ripple of nervous laughter.
    â€œHudka? Is that you, you old bag of spores?” cried Sheln, scanning the crowd. “You’re a hundred years into senility. Why don’t you shut your stupid gul’orp and leave this to the Council?”
    â€œYou’re right. It took me a long time to go senile,” cried Hudka. “I defer to one who achieved it at such a young age.”
    The crowd laughed louder this time. A few even clapped.
    â€œI’m not the one who’s . . . who are you calling . . . I’m street smart!” Sheln sputtered with rage.
    â€œOrder! We must have order at the Conclave,” called Loghoz, still dabbing its eyes with the corner of its cloak.
    â€œNow is not the time, Hudka,” said Kalac firmly. Hudka shrugged and gestured for Sheln to continue.
    â€œThe point,” growled Sheln, “is that whether certain appeasers admit it or not, we are at war.” Sheln paused to let that final word sink in for a little while.
    â€œBut by Great Jalasu Jhuk, this is a war we can win!” cried Sheln. “Human technology is pathetic. They still use combustion-based projectile weapons! We have energy blasters—two hundred fifty-six of them, in fact. All in good working order. We have seventeen personal shield devices. They have none. We can monitor and jam their radio communications with our Nyrt-Snoopers. And let us not forget, folks, we have the Q-sik.” Sheln gestured toward the Vault, which sat behind Ryzz Plaza. It was a bold move to mention the legendary Xotonian weapon. Perhaps too bold?
    â€œPlus we have the element of surprise,” continued Sheln. “But not forever. Estimates put the hoo-mins only twenty-one days away from tunneling right into the Gelo cavern system. Once that happens, they’ll figure out we’re here. We’ll lose the advantage.
    â€œThat is why we must strike now! A small group of Xotonian warriors should take the Q-sik and blast the hoo-min spacecraft while they sleep. Boom! If any of them manage to make it out of their ship, we pick them off one at a time with our blasters. Pow, pow, pow! A single battle, and the war is over. Xotonians win.”
    It sounded more like a slaughter than a battle to me. I imagined the four humans I’d seen, disintegrated by the Q-sik or shot down as they fled their burning home. The crowd murmured in excitement or fear or both. Sheln had certainly painted a vivid picture.
    â€œNext to address the Conclave will be Kalac, the Chief of the Council,” said Loghoz.
    Kalac stepped forward. “I agree with certain points my fellow Council member has made,” said Kalac, gesturing to Sheln. “The humans are a threat to us. About that, there can be no doubt.”
    Sheln nodded. Kalac continued.
    â€œBut war is serious business. In considering the possibility, we cannot only name our advantages. We must take honest stock of our disadvantages as well. The first of those is numbers. There are twelve billion humans back on Eo. I’ll say it again: twelve billion. By comparison, there are about six thousand Xotonians. So it doesn’t matter how good our blasters are when compared