"My head falls too, of course," the captain went on. "You're too little a goat. They may even chop down Sector Admiral Carruthers."
He sighed and looked at the overhead. The ensign opened his mouth.
"I see my error now," the captain forestalled him. "You are not mature enough for command. But I was ensign under your grandfather Welnicki in the old Ashburton before you were born. I thought I sensed in you the same intangible that made him great. Well, spilt milk, Stephen. What can we do?"
Ensign Welnicki suggested unsteadily that the Fishdollars might consent to removal to an approved planet.
"First offer I made, Stephen. They voted it down unanimously. Bluster was no good, pleading no good. With that treaty they've got us cold and they know it."
Ensign Welnicki wished he were dead but did not see how that would help. After a long silence the captain spoke again.
"I have one last hope, Stephen. Something you've overlooked. I got it from Rutledge."
The ensign looked his question.
"You didn't formally assume plenipotentiary status until after you signed, so technically your signature is not binding. Now if it was a forced subterfuge to counter logistic pressure, your ship being lost and all, we can repudiate the treaty without breaching faith. Only you can really know."
Ensign Welnicki breathed deeply. "The Fishdollars with no treaty, how they can survive, I don't know, captain...."