< - regrettably we cannot offer that.>

"...is there something wrong with it? Nobody on board knows how it works?"

<It might be strategic to claim as much but, no, we know how it works. Past sharing with pre-spacefaring civilizations has been disastrous and the policy of the Andalite High Command is to share no technology.>

"Is that what you're called, Andalites? Pretty name."

"...you don't understand," says Quema, "we really have to get into space. Not even Miolee in particular just the species -"

<Why is that?>

"Population crisis - did you not have one?"

<We have not had a population crisis.>

"Well, there are thirteen billion people on this planet and they all want an average of five children - that's with perfected birth control - and we have nowhere to go."

<That does sound like a crisis. The directive from the Andalite High Command is not 'do not start interstellar wars by promoting new peoples to galactic powers unless they're really sympathetic', it's to not do it at all.>

"In Tapa they literally shoot babies if they aren't authorized."

<Is that necessary?>

"Most places they just confiscate the kids, adopt them out. And sterilize the parents."

<There are not very many habitable uninhabited planets in this sector of the galaxy.>

"Even one would help, it'd buy us time to look for more."

<What I mean is that you would end up fighting over inhabited ones.>

"We've got arcologies, on the moons. They aren't that good but if there were more to work with like any atmosphere at all, more gravity, it'd probably be possible to get them better, then we could move into empty ones with nobody there yet..."

<You are also not the only species to have invented arcologies.>

They look at each other sadly.

<I am sorry.>

Sad humanoids.

Some of Matirin's soldiers leap the smouldering and come and join them. They want morphs also.

Yeah sure sad sad sad.

<They were hoping they could settle the galaxy.>

           <How original.>

<At least they don't actually intend the colonization to destroy everyone in their way.>

           <I suppose.>

Andalites morph Amentan!

A humanoid giggles weakly at one of the morphs.