The Warning Shot | 2185 | Free Sci-Fi | Best of HFY

[@dalemorgan8263]

Aside from their card games, it is very unlikely for a Terran to ever bluff. After all, calling someone's bluff is practically inscribed in our collective history.

[@samboyd1828]

ah, the time honored tradition of "bet." and "fuck around, find out"

[@NXTangl]

Yeah, we don't bluff. If we're overstating our capabilities on one front, it's because we're concentrating forces somewhere else.

[@erushi5503]

"Violence committed once makes for a Wise King, violence done repeatedly makes a Tyrant" -Machiavelli(Paraphrased)

[@amorphoussolid8512]

"if violence needs be done to a man let it be so severe that his sons retribution need not be feared"

[@aaverageweeb5660]

A good king commits all his atrocities at once

[@piedpiper1185]

"Planets are valuable" We can always mine the debris field.

[@DragonJohn]

yeah, but harder to grow wheat on an asteroid

[@peterhacke6317]

@@DragonJohn On the contrary, it is a lot easier to ship minerals, if there is no gravity well holding your shipments captive.

[@melkiorwiseman5234]

@@peterhacke6317 When it comes down to the final analysis, viable biomatter will always be more valuable in the long run rather than dead minerals. That's something which Earth corporate executives are only just beginning to understand (although still without taking appropriate action so far as anyone knows).

[@nyetzdyec3391]

@@peterhacke6317 True... but minerals are rather hard to digest.

[@Saviliana]

@@DragonJohn Oh just wait you heard form the asians......(Yes we did have done research and planned plans for building farms on asteroid fields)

[@willgallatin2802]

The most effective type of weapon is the type you only need to use once. Everyone gets the picture, and decides to negotiate.

[@erushi5503]

use that weapon multiple times, and you got a lot of people very very angry and when a mob is angry even giants seize to exist the terrans here in this story followed Machiavelli's theory very well, scare them with the weapon and tell them your not afraid to use it again, but at the same time showing that you still want a logical way to stop the fighting

[@nyetzdyec3391]

Paraphrasing an old general (Clausewitz?)... FORCE is always the primary reason TO negotiate... even when it's a "force" as gentle as a merchant and customer haggling over the price of a product.

[@danieljensen794]

No no no no no....Folding you like a pretzel is a ligament threat. I have watched professionals fold clothes with people inside of them. Jiujitsu is a real thing.

[@FuzzyMarineVet]

In 1977 I was posted to the 3rd Marine Division on Okinawa. I spent six months as a member of Camp Guard on Camp Schwab. When posted to an armed guard post, we were instructed to use the first round of ammunition to fire a warning shot, directly through the center of the intruder's chest. If the intruder failed to heed the warning we were free to fire anywhere we thought would solve the situation.

[@terrysaunders7107]

Oddly, the terrains made no mention of sun Snuffer's. Quite nice of them not to resort to total war protocols on the first scuffle.

[@noppornwongrassamee8941]

Gotta hold something back. Besides, sun snuffers are only really useful on systems with multiple inhabited worlds. Otherwise, you only need a planet buster to kill everything worth killing in a system.

[@Furzkampfbomber]

@@noppornwongrassamee8941 Also, planet crackers still allow to mine precious resources later on, as Dead Space has tought us. Something, considering they make a sun go nova, sun snuffers won't. Which _really_ would be a waste.

[@JacenHawk]

@@noppornwongrassamee8941 That assumes a lack of significant orbitals around the non-inhabited planets.

[@markfergerson2145]

Hm. I’d still like to see a tale involving the Nicoll-Dyson laser.

[@peterhacke6317]

@@noppornwongrassamee8941 sun snuffers are great once your enemies goes from inhabiting planets to building dyson spheres/swarms

[@RodneyG669]

Planet Buster weapons are easy, just line up a monster asteroid and push it up to near the speed of light with engines. It would do more then enough damage.

[@TRabbit1970]

“We didn’t do anything wrong, hardly” Roger Kuykendall

[@barelyasurvivor1257]

For the blessed Algorithm, and the Squirrel

[@MervDeGriff]

I'm a happy lil gryphon. I have learned one thing from my human friends. It's a MAD, MAD world.

[@Uzzgub]

A Interaction for the Interaction God, a Comment for the Comment Throne, for the Almighty Algorithm

[@allenmorgan1007]

For the Algorithm, for the Author(s), for the Holographic Voice!

[@bigearl3867]

You never know where that red line is with Terrans. Oh you can cross a few, but the trick is to know when to stop. And that's why there is gamblers anonymous.

[@amorphoussolid8512]

Fold you like a pretzel is actually not a bluff or even that harsh of a threat. We have judo and bjj. The art of folding clothes with people still inside them. Besides, even after a planet is split I bet we could still mine the chunks. So, not even close to Total War.

[@blueberrycat4726]

Re-watching this because why not. 😹

[@mrtodddelaroderie]

May daily dose of Agro! Thank you brother!

[@brianjuergensmeyer8809]

A big how-do-you-do to Mr. Al Go Rithm, and wanted to say thanks for yet another story. I've always been a big proponent of using enough force very quickly, rather than waiting and having to push all the chips to the middle of the table.

[@Wastelandman7000]

Somehow O noble Narrator, I missed this. but, now I have found it!!

[@zachsmith1676]

So they a bug race… time to equip the flamer… the *HEAVY* flamer…

[@bertcombs9944]

You are very talented, you have a good voice even when you don't feel well. Have you tried biting a lemon wedge when you feel your throat starting to hurt? Used it when I was in the US Army

[@icefire5799]

I want to congratulate you on yojr thumbnails i find the absolutly normal eyes extremly eyecatching.

[@kevincaruthers5412]

We're sorry. Due to the rising cost of ammunition We will no longer be providing a warning shot.

[@anathardayaldar]

I once saw someone twisted into a pretzel.

[@simogamez]

thanks dude I loved it. best part was at the end of the vid and the look you had as you turned away. well done

[@Ryu_D]

Thank you for the video.

[@Nicmadis]

"I believe you will find that our words are backed by planet busting weapons.""

[@jasonbull6560]

Always good, you keeps telling I'll keeps listening. 👍

[@Fuxy22]

Challenging a teran on their horrible weapons inventory is a exercise in stupidty to begin with... especially when many use weapons as entertainment...

[@KwaterbugBUTCHER]

For the Algorithm ,For the Author(s), For the Disembodied voice!

[@yomogami4561]

thanks for the story and narration

[@jackaubrey8614]

Nice one! Understated..... :)

[@victortahlor4038]

Thank you for the reading

[@TRabbit1970]

“Navy Day” Harry Harrison

[@RealArcalian]

Greetings Mentlegent! For the Rhyhtm that is Algo There are two things I like about this story. Well, three, the first being that it is genuinely HFY. The second being that our Civil Wars made us stronger, when far too many stories assume the opposite. And third, the aliens were *actually sensible for once.*

[@lupaswolfshead9971]

Same

[@jackreisewitz6632]

"Chemical and Biological weapons would be too extreme, even for the humans." But apparently using a planet busting weapon isnt see as "extreme" !?!?

[@pandablair4226]

Your voice acting is pretty good

[@TS-bj8my]

Well read.

[@TheDurid1]

8:09 Crud, reminds me of how the bolo grand war started. Destroying an entire planet. Mind you, that instance was an act of intimidation, not as a warning shot.

[@klappstock943]

For the Algorithm the story and the voice

[@davidragan9233]

Stick an alcubierre white Torsion Drive on a thick spike or have the tail end of the spike leaking antimatter (Similar to a MoaB) and you could punch through a Star and make it go boomy.

[@t.p.3456]

For the algorithm 👽👾🤖🌌🛰🚀🛸🌠

[@genericuser984]

neat

[@Wastelandman7000]

Dear xenos, let me introduce you to the concept of Mutual Assured Destruction.... We may die, but we'll take you with us.

[@cameltanker1286]

Don't poke the bear.

[@MidnightSmoke]

Here is a like and comment as payment for the story.

[@safetysam6282]

The warning shot…a possible war crime that targeted civilians. This story was written in absence of the Geneva convention.

[@internetzenmaster8952]

Counterpoint: the Geneva convention only applies to humans. Aliens aren't signatories, therefore it does not apply.

[@renaissancepress247]

***Not*** bluffing 😉

[@jasonbull6560]

Please sir,,,can i have some more?

[@TheJeikou]

Comment

[@microkrop9580]

story aside, its funny scary on how quickly humans can innovate in violence when in war

[@merlinwizard1000]

33rd, 2 August 2023

[@elfeater1760]

For the Algorithm11!

[@merlinwizard1000]

71st, 13 September 2023

[@alanblack6500]

Damn good story, for the algorithm

[@xRa01]

For the blessed Algorithm, and the Squirrel