
Part 1
Two weary spacefarers, Fannia and Donnaught, drift twenty light‑years from their destination with only a trickle of transformer fuel left. A battered Galactic Pilot guide points them to an uninhabited plain on the planet Cascella, where a cache of the precious fuel is supposedly hidden. Their mission is simple: land, refuel, and leave—no detours, no diplomacy.
When they touch down, however, they discover a bustling settlement encircling the cache, its residents armed with an astonishing array of blades. The locals, though outwardly fierce, are described in the survey as “friendly” and bound by a curious social order that defies the crew’s expectations. As the pair don their armor and attempt a cautious greeting, they must decide whether to trust the alien customs or prepare for a clash, all while the clock ticks down on their dwindling reserves.
Language
en
Duration
~23 minutes (23K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Greg Weeks, Stephen Blundell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2009-07-30
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1928–2005
Best known for sharp, funny science fiction that could turn absurd in a heartbeat, this American writer made a specialty of stories that feel playful on the surface and unsettling underneath. His work helped define the satirical side of mid-20th-century SF.
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