wish to continue to exist." The Lord God looked
toward a younger Officer standing near him, then continued to speak.
"What good is death if it serves no purpose, if everything is
destroyed? Let us find some world we can colonize together. Half will
be yours, half will be ours, and we will live in peace with
one-another, respecting each other's differences."
39 "Under the terms previously agreed to by our Ancestors," asked The
Voice, "free unobstructed trade, free exchange of information, free
travel between our peoples?"
40 The Lord God looked disturbed but nodded in agreement. "One thing,"
put in North, "we get three-fifths of whatever planet we find, you get
two-fifths."
41 "How dare you make such a demand?" The Lord God's young Aide
snapped, stepping forward. "The Lord God has already promised you more
than you deserve! You expect more than a fair division."
42 The Lord God raised his hand. "Enough!" he cried. "The General's
comments are not unreasonable. After all, they do have a greater number
to support than we do. They WILL need a greater share of the territory.
I am willing to be reasonable."
43 "Now," continued The Voice, "you obviously need something
desperately, or, you would have not approached us with this proposal.
What is it you want?"
44 "You do not use any delicacy or tact," The Lord God sighed, "young
man. You come right to the heart of the matter. You should learn some
manners! We need five-hundred gallons of drinkable water ….more, if you
can spare it. We also need some converter parts for one of our ship's
engines, and, parts for our air refreshing systems."
45 "Good!" snapped North, "we need connectors and navigating equipment
and an update from your navigational computer to ours, as we don't know
where we are. Plus, I