Devourer

CHAPTER 5 The Lunar Refuge

Finally, humanity’s negotiations with the alien emissary showed some small signs of progress. Fangs yielded to the demand for a lunar refuge.

“Humans are homesick creatures,” the Secretary-General had said in one of their meetings, tears in his eyes.

“So are the Devourers, even though we no longer have a home,” Fangs had sympathetically answered, nodding his head.

“So, will you allow a few of us to stay behind? If you permit, they will wait for the great Devourer Empire to spit out the Earth after it has finished consuming the planet. After waiting for the planet’s transformed geology to settle, they will return to rebuild our civilization.”

Fangs shook his gargantuan head. “When the Devourer Empire consumes, it consumes completely. When we are done, the Earth will be a Mars-like desolation. Your worm-technology will not be enough to rebuild a civilization.”

The Secretary-General would not be dissuaded. “But we must try. It will assuage our souls, and it will be especially important for those of us in the Devourer Empire being raised as livestock. It will surely fatten them if they can think back on their distant home in this solar system, even if that home no longer necessarily exists.”

Fangs now nodded. “But where will those people go while the Earth is being devoured? Besides Earth, we also will consume Venus. Jupiter and Neptune are too large for us to consume, but we will devour their satellites. The Devourer Empire is in need of their hydrocarbons and water. We will also take a bite out of the barren worlds of Mars and Mercury, as we are interested in their carbon dioxide and metals. The surfaces of all these worlds will become seas of fire.”

The Secretary-General had an answer ready. “We can take refuge on the Moon. We understand that the Devourer Empire in any case plans to push the Moon out of orbit before consuming the Earth.”

Fangs nodded. “That is right. Combined, the gravitational forces of Devourer and Earth will be very powerful. They could crash the Moon into our ring ship. Such a collision would be enough to destroy our empire.”

The Secretary-General smiled ever so-slightly as he replied. “All right then; let a few of us live up there then. It will be no great loss to you.”

“How many do you plan to leave behind?” Fangs queried.

“The minimum to preserve our civilization, one-hundred thousand,” the Secretary-General answered flatly.

“Well then, you should get to work,” Fangs concluded.

“Get to work? What work?” the Secretary-General asked, perplexed.

“Pushing the Moon out of its orbit. For us, that is always a great inconvenience,” Fangs answered dismissively.

“But,” said the Secretary-General as he grasped his hair in despair as he meekly voiced his protest. “Sir, that would be no different than denying humanity our meager and pitiable request. Sir, you know that we do not possess such technological prowess!”

“Ha, worm, why should I care? And besides, don’t you still have an entire century?” Fangs concluded with a chuckle.