I spend a lot of my working hours sitting in a chair in the center of an important room where I am in total command. I like my chair. It’s comfy and functional. I am currently on a throne. Never thought I’d be sitting on a genuine throne. Red velvet surrounded by ornate fixtures of gold and silver. Something the manufacturing sector whipped up in about an hour. To my left are Inanna, Vivian and Joan. To my right is Raze, Sagaci, and Alcea. They are all in their own thrones besides mine. The only member of my command staff to get out of this is Deed. Wouldn't be too helpful for what comes next.

  In front of us is a huge ornate table that spans the full length of all of the command crew side by side and then some. Across from us on the other side of this table is the entity of the Krint people currently on the Moby. Cameras are showing a live feed to every other ship in the refugee fleet. We had to set up in the outdoor auditorium to get everyone to fit and it was still a squeeze. We usually hold stage plays and music festivals here. Good for keeping the crew entertained. Instead we are doing this.

  A horn bellows. It has begun. Huge platters covered in food are brought before us. The table is quickly overstuffed by a mountain of food. Its legs creaked at the sheer weight. Not just the quantity but quality was something to behold. A gigantic roasted beast of some kind, looked like a weird hippo the size of a very large pig, was the centerpiece and took six guys to carry. There were poultry cooked in all manner with their feathers reinserted around the tails for a colorful flourish. Fruits and cakes and tarts of every color of the rainbow. Hearty pies and thick soups created enough steam it was almost like a fog setting in. And so much seafood of so much variety it looked like we raided an aquarium.

  When the last millimeter of space was filled, they started placing food across the floor. By the time they were done there were five or six more tables worth of food all across the ground. There was so much food it encroached on the Krint watching us. Those near the front were so close they could reach out and touch it. I wouldn’t mind in the slightest if they did, but they won’t. Not until the Festival is done. A second horn blow rings out. Show time.

  I start with a Teref Steak. Don’t know what a Teref is, just know it makes a Space Hell of a good steak. The outside is dark brown while the inside is a deep pink. A perfect rare, just how I like it. With a bit of the pungent sauce, a lot like horseradish, and this makes a great sunday dinner. Or it would, if I wasn’t staring down a three kilogram slab of it. When I have a good meal in front of me, I prefer to take my time. I take small, dainty bites to really enjoy each flavor as long as I can. Today, I pick up the whole hunk and tore into it like a giant meat cookie. Its juices flow and the sauce flares my nostrils. I press on, chewing the tough meat until it is just soft enough to swallow. I follow this up with a full glass of Blood Wine to wash it down.

  That’s enough of that plate; only ate about a tenth of the steak and that’s enough. After the turf comes the surf. Giant sea scorpion. A staple from Inanna’s planet. Looks like a daemon shrimp as long as my arm. I rip the thin shell apart and tear off a good chunk of white meat with my bare hand. It’s sweet like crab and so fatty it doesn’t even need butter. I was a little scared to try these before. Think I’ll give them a go another time.

  Plate done. Toss it to the side. I down a whole cup of broth as the next plate is laid before me. A mixed garden salad with a variety of greens and other veg. Not really a salad guy. Just tells you how good a salad this is as even without dressing the freshness and subtle sweetness is delightful.

  Two bites and we move on, chug some juice. A meat sandwich. Reminds me of a classic sub; strong vinegar. Couple bites and a glass of sweet bubble water and we move on. Quill grain bowl with cooked poultry. Think of a teriyaki bowl but richer. Long sip of tea and we are Moving On. Sweet stop. Berry tart. Sickly sweet sauce and medley of fruity flavors. Tasty. Some black Space coffee and We are Moving ON!. Sausage. Good spice. Good snap. Glass of beer. MOVING ON! Dumplings! Hot Soup! MOVING ON AND ON AND ON AND ON AND ON!

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  All of us go like this. Inanna is hogging all the clams. Or oysters. I don’t know, they are giant and on the half shell. Between Raze and Alcea all the meat on that side of the table is getting destroyed. Watching Alcea eat was not something I didn’t know I didn’t want to see. She will shove a full rib of some monster all the way down her throat like a professional sword swallower. Her body starts wriggling. Reminds me of old videos of piranhas eating a whole cow. And when she removes the bone it's pristine. Lucky Sagaci has five dozen arms and three mouths so they are still getting plenty to eat. Joan has the manners one would expect. While Vivvian is binging like a properly refined lady of high society. There is some kind of metaphor in there.

  This is our next Union hour. After a while I don’t even taste the food anymore. Shoveling mouthful after mouthful. My jaw is sore from all the chewing. My stomach is bloated. My belt is trying to cut into my flesh like a knife through stale bread. I’m sweating. Vision going blurry. When I look at any of the food in front of me I start to gag. I want nothing more than to stop eating. So I eat more.

  Taking a peak to my left and right, they aren’t doing any better. Even Raze and Joan are slowed down. Half eaten plates scatter across the ground. All the while we are being watched by the starving eyes of the Krint people. An entire population dying of thirst while I’m drowning over here. Makes the food taste worse.

  One last deep chug of… I don’t know, something with alcohol in it. And I am well past done. I struggle to my feet and start waddling away. I feel 30 kilos heavier. Need to use the wall to support me as I leave in the second least dignified way I can think of. Lucky the backstage isn’t far. Past the red light and curtains and out of the eyes of the Krint. Fairy pulls me to the nearest seat and helps me down. A glass of bismuth salts is ready for me. I hope I never see a single piece of food ever again.

  No one else is doing any better. You’d think we all took turns being punched in the gut repeatedly. Sagaci made sure to prepare the necessary stomach aids for each of us. It’s going to be a long night for everyone. Followed by a longer morning on the porcelain throne. For everyone but Deed, that is. Why is he back here anyway?

  “Inquiry: What was the purpose of this exercise? It appears you merely gorged yourselves to the point of personal injury in front of a starving population.”

  “Just look at the security feed.”

  Deed brings up the feed of the theater we had just left. In it, the thousands of Krint who up to this point had refused to eat so much as a single stale cracker were attacking the mountain of food left behind. They even ate the half eaten bits off the ground. Not especially sanitary but whatever it takes to get them to eat at all.

  “Error: I do not understand what is happening.”

  “Fairy, can you explain this one? I’m trying really hard not to barf and talking makes it worse.”

  Fairy gets her paperwork covered in scratches.

  “After more carefully examining the Krint culture we have determined the purpose of the Feasting Festival held at the end of each day. Because food was so hard to come by, the tribal leaders would eat first. If there was little food, the leaders would eat little. And the others would follow their example. If there was a great deal of food, the leaders would eat as much as they could and the others would again follow their example. When the Union began supplying food for the Krint, every day became a huge feast day. And that is why their leaders gained such extreme weight.”

  “Observation: This seems a needless and inefficient practice that punishes plenty.”

  “Well we aren’t allowed to judge. It is their custom and no matter how dumb it may seem, we just have to accept it. Alright, everyone get some rest. You need to do another Feast Festival tomorrow.”

  “Inquiry”: How long will our command staff be required to do this?”

  “Every single day until we drop the Krint off. Just thirteen more feasts to go.”