Page 55 - The Perpetrations of Captain Kaga

Cooking the Cannibals of Kek-lawa

him and themselves with Kek meat. He controlled it very carefully,
preventing the Garzon from having knowledge of it for a very long
time.”
“Finally it reached a point where it could neither be limited nor
kept secret from us. Kek society was torn apart at last; the innocent
fled and the guilty ransacked the villages looking for victims. There is
hardly any Ulgalga root to be found nowadays. That sauce drove
otherwise normal Kek into a frenzy.”
“I sent out several investigators to discover its source; many of
them did not return. Nevertheless, I was able to piece together the
information that the aliens were the supplier. I then consulted
Bezinflib about the matter, since he was in charge of alien affairs. To
my horror, he confessed the entire sordid history of his deceit and
corruption. He admitted that although he could not control his
appetite, he had come to recognize his responsibility for the tragedy
befalling us. He then went forth to stop his mob from continuing
their self-destructive feast.”
“That was several days ago. One of my informants told me that
Bezinflib threatened the cannibals with an end to the sauce. They
became enraged, and he became their next meal. From that day, even
the Gorzon have gone about in fear. So, you see, you must not bring
any more of that accursed condiment to Kek-lawa. Even without the
sauce, however, the lust for Kek flesh will not soon abate.”
Captain Kaga sat back in his chair and considered the ramifications
of the problem. If he reported the situation immediately to Galactic
Headquarters, the PKU mission would be pulled out, and the Kek
left to resolve their own affairs for several generations before contact
was again, if ever, attempted. Rem Fildop had retired, and could not
do further harm elsewhere.
No, thought Kaga, I must do something within of normal PKU
operations to save the Kek from each other. If only Fildop hadn’t
used that infernal taste test. Wait! That’s it!
“Tchorposk!” he cried. “I have an idea. Can you go quickly and
bring back an Ulgalga root, ready to eat? Good! I’ll be waiting.”
The Kek scuttled out, and Kaga went into the storeroom. He
brought out the testing device and set it up on his desk. He was
adjusting the dials on it when Tchorposk returned, a shapeless brown
lump tucked under one limb.
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