Enned System
Letona's Gaze

The captain sighed a breath of relief as The Watchman's Eye vanished in a bright flash of light. A cursory examination and a report from the sensors officer confirmed that the ship was in no immediate danger, even with the FTL Drive having overloaded and with the weapons fire that had been going off nearby. Reports from engineering confirmed that the alert had come early enough that they had been able to prevent any injuries. The only real problem was the lack of a functional FTL drive.

"Professor Shiru, please have your team compile translated transcripts of the messages from The Watchman's Eye and have them sent to the E.R.C. Let them know just how close this entire expedition came to going belly-up. That should encourage them to secure the system in a more efficient manner."

"Very well. Just make sure you set a sublight vector for the starbase again." The Professor said as she turned to leave the bridge. "We left a few technicians adrift and their life support will not last forever."

Minutes later, the Letona's Gaze began to maneuver in order to begin the long journey back to the starbase, and a message was transmitted to the G.N.T. ground forces and assault carrier, the Federation's drone carrier, and the Empire's destroyer.

Moments later, the East Wing Nostromo bluespaced into existence in high orbit.

"Just shoot me now." The helmsman muttered as the sensors and communications officers both started shouting into their headsets simultaneously while the Captain furiously hammered on the shipwide alert command a second time. The communications officer was busy sending out copies of the message from the Nostromo while reading it back out loud, and had already transmitted a warning similar to the one that had been sent to The Watchman's Eye.

A more frantic and much less formal message was transmitted back to the F.S.S. Mars, the IRN Faithful, and the GNT Sovereign.

The arrival of East Wing's delegate had been ill-timed and ill placed. Still panicked from their recent brush with The Watchman's Eye, the bridge officers of the Letona's Gaze had sent their messages before confirming the affiliation of the Nostromo. Even though Captain Rollin's message had been received and noted, it would be several minutes before any of the SI researchers familiar with them realized who the newcomers were thanks to the renewed shipwide emergency alert.

With the Federation's drones and carrier both within effective weapons' range, the situation had potential to turn ugly...

((@duck55223))
Unidentified System, Proximal to Alpha Centauri
"Commander, we've been pinged!" the Communications Officer cried. All combat sensors aboard Kastakor were activated and found an incoming fleet. The ship also received a message, but unfortunately was all in binary. The Communications Officer looked at her system which was all in an octal coding format. She quickly got on the ship PA, requesting that a technician experienced with both systems come to the bridge immediately. Just her luck, an IT proficient in both binary and octal systems came through, with the doors of the ship hissing as they parted.

He quickly began to read through the binary coding, piecing through it as octadecimal code until he figured out that the fleet that contacted them was made in peace. When this message was relayed to High Commander Banan'um, a cheer rang out through the bridge. An alien civilization, an advanced one, successfully contacted.

The Asrabi shipmaster ordered that a message be send to the fleet, translated by the IT.

"NPAS Kastakor comes in peace as well, we mean you no harm. We are quite pleased to discover a new civilization proximal to us, and we request some information on your nation."

Enned System, Soveriegn
"..." At the leave of the Azu, a ship-wide sigh of relief could almost be heard, before the second-in-command called through the intercom. "Alright, get back. Ground teams, re-enter the gravity well, and proceed as original." Easing off the communications key, they sighed, until the message from Letona's Gaze patched through. Glancing at the commander, they couldn't help but to give a shrug. "What should we do about the Fourth?"

Mayumi couldn't help but to give a wry smile, as she heard the transmission. "Unlike the Azu, which would've glassed half the planet, Yuu-chn's ship is capable of cracking it from range." The two only sighed in exasperation, before pondering over their next course of action. While they had asked the Fourth for help, now that the Azu had left, would she do the same thing? It was nigh on impossible trying to figure out how the commander of the Fourth Division thought.

Mayumi opened up a private line between herself and Yuuyami, before speaking. "Yuu-chan~ Now that the Azu left, could we ask of you to warp out? Some of the others are panicking, especially with what the Azu were planning." At the rather normal request, the commander of the Fourth smiled. "Ara~ ara~ but perhaps we have another reason to be here as well?" At such a whimsical, vague, yet somewhat ominous response, both Mayumi and her second-in-command fell into cold sweat.

However, before anymore words could be passed, yet another ship warped into Enned space. "Just one thing after another..." It wasn't clear who muttered these words, but it reflected just about everyone's thoughts on the matter. However, at least they haven't fell into combat stance. First thing first, they should clear up misunderstandings regarding the unidentified capital ship.

Sending a transmission to Letona's Gaze, Mayumi spoke. "The capital ship on the outskirt's of the system belongs to the Fourth Division of the GNT. Howeverm there is something of importance with that warship. While she is outside of everyone's range by a longshot, that ship has a WMD that is capable of cracking the planet from where it stands." Hesitatingly, she added, "Please, be courteous with Yuu-chan. She's rather similar to a cat. Don't be surprised by sudden changing actions."

A small group of federation scouts would detect a single ping emanating out from the crown world of the Hierarchy, clearly to give them it's location and draw them in towards it. If they chose to enter the system, they would find that outbound communication signals were being scrambled and would receive the same message again, followed by a single word in an alien language, spoken in a cold and electronic voice.

For the first time in her life, Astra had to admit to herself that she was utterly, truly and completely lost. The rate of fire at which Innes was capable of speaking, let alone thinking was way beyond the smartest living Faira. She managed to make a mental bullet point list of things to address, but she was unable to follow Innes' - completely wrong - train of thought. All she got was Temair -> Shirtless chancellor -> Slaves -> Crying heap in the corner of her room.

The Faira raised her hands and covered her eyes for a second, hoping she was seeing things. Nope, the chancellor was still there, and apparently done with innuendos and taking the game to straight up insults. “Enough!” Astra hissed, being on Innes in one leap and giving her a slap. There wasn’t any force behind it, albeit more to prevent Astra from getting a laceration on her hand rather than from the lack of intent for it to hurt.

“If you have something to tell me about your people that would prevent me from making a bad decision, fine. I wouldn’t want that either. But I do not have to listen to your insulting me and my people with your baseless, unproven conspiracy theories!”

Letting the slave talk fly by with her every second strengthening disdain (Innes was a good practice), the Faira addressed a few points Innes mentioned in hope of calming her down. “We’d never move against you unless you attacked us first. We can not live on Paardveid - literally, we draw energy to live from starlight remember? Why would we ever want your dark world? And finally, I have no problem with councilor Temair as a person, albeit her manners could use some refining. It is the church that seems like they would wipe most of us out if they had the chance as a whole. There, that puts your mind on ease?” she said, and by the time she was done her hands were laid on Innes’s shoulders gently.

Innes looked at Astra in shock. She hit her. Actually hit her. Not a light tap, or a playful punch, but an actual slap. For a few seconds she was too stunned to react. She just looked at Astra, eyes wide and mouth hanging open.

“Wha-” she swallowed, then started again “What the hell? Did you have to do that?” It was still in her head. She had been slapped. Actually, really, properly slapped.

“You - you could have just said something…” she muttered in a disbelieving tone. Her hand touched her cheek gently, like she expected it to start stinging.

But she had to admit, the more she listened, the more she realised that she had been mistaken. Even if an invasion was planned, they would have to spend at least a couple of weeks to get a task force together. And there was little benefit (besides the slaves, a little voice told her) in taking over such a dark world if one lived off of sunlight.

But she still had some doubts. Surprisingly frustrated, she shrugged Astra’s hands off and drew herself up to her full height - just under 5 foot, that is - before saying in a rather steely tone:

“No, it does not. There are other things you can do with a planet besides live on it - mine it, for instance, to get those supplies you seem so desperate for. And the population could serve as useful food or entertainment sources.”

She shook her head “But if that’s the plan, forget it. You’ve been showing off your tech like a peacock ever since I got here, but I have failed to be impressed. You seem to think gadgets and technological baubles ae what a nation is judged by. But our people breed faster, are more nimble and agile, physically stronger and have knowledge of things that you could never know in a thousand years.”

“But still, you have things that we desire - I can’t deny it. Therefore, I think it would be best if we were to make this… official.” She stroked her chin in thought, looking around the room for inspiration. “I want to meet whoever is in charge of this place, like you did with us. No offence, miss, but Rear Admiral does not sound like a particularly diplomatic rank. If I can talk to your leader, which you can feel free to join or not, then I can discuss these matters properly.”

She smiled ghoulishly, anticipating a response like ‘But we already had a talk with your Patriarch.’
“I believe there are a few things I have seen today that put me in a better position than Weyss or Temair to make agreements and deals, would you not say? So don’t tell me that he has already made agreements X, Y and Z.”

“Oh for the love of… YES, yes I had to! When I was visiting your world, you gave me a list of what wasn’t good to talk about, and I took care not to! And yet here we are at my home, with you knowing how we feel about life, homeworlds and whatnot, and you spit this garbage in my face? It’s like… well I don’t actually know the proper analogy to your culture, probably something like insulting your gods, but it’s bad and hurting, alright?” Astra vented and continued to dress the Sinnsyk down, unimpressed with Innes’ attempt at displaying courage.

Taking a few breaths to calm down, she thought about the other things the chancellor said, which finally started sounding like the job she was actually sent here to do. Good. Progress. “Well as a matter of fact, I already spoke to the Patriarch about buying a mining license - to the asteroids. Why would we fight gravity of the planet to get the resources up when we can obtain and process them already in space?” she shrugged, “But there’s been no answer yet, so no, it isn’t a done deal. And would you cut it with the slaver talk already? Do I look entertained to you?” Astra exclaimed, pointing to her clearly frustrated face to add an extra emphasis.

Her face turned to a grin when Innes mentioned her rank. “Actually, our military is also our government, remember? We don’t have a singular leader like you do, but the whole Admiralty, which I am actually part of now. But there are four others scattered over our systems. Would videoconference be sufficient for your business or do you require them to come in person, Chancellor? Keep in mind that might take some time.” Astra finished, taking a step back and folding her arms on her chest, waiting for what Innes would think of next. In astra’s eyes, it was a coin toss between as far as hugging her or running blade through her chest.

Innes was not impressed. If anything, her eyes narrowed and her tone sounded more nettled than before

“I said don’t bring up the Patriarch” she hissed “I am the Chancellor, therefore I am head diplomat. I decide whether or not a proposal should be passed or not. Anyway, you’d need my signature for any pre-approved deals to pass through.”

“It’s a chance I am unwilling to take. You could be carnivorous - you could want to eat us.” Innes shivered, thinking of how much skin she must have shown that day alone “So yes, I’m afraid there is still a threat.”

“And yes, it would be hard for you to mine up materials on a planet, gravity being as merciful to us as it is cruel to you. But you don’t exactly need to be there in person, do you, little miss use-robots-for-anything-I-can’t-do?”

“And I for one am totally uncomfortable for a potentially hostile group of aliens to be so dang close to our system, even if it is just to pick up asteroids,” her eyes narrowed further, appraising Astra’s face for any signs of nervousness. “Another system would be perfectly sufficient. Why does it need to be ours?”

She huffed at the military-is-government thing “What a perfectly foolish way of working. No philosophers, poets or writers. If you’re no good at fighting, you’re no good at anything. Very silly. “

But Astra did have her in a tight spot, no pun intended. If she was a true Admiral now, then any meeting could be thrown off by her personal desires. No, she would not let that happen. Any personal diplomacy with Astra should have no effect on her official standing as an ambassador for the Republic and the Knights.

“Uh-uh. I’m not accepting that. I want to conduct a private meeting with the very tippy-top of the hierarchy - after all, you are a Rear Admiral, so surely there must be a reason why it is not straight-up Admiral. I don’t care if it’s an oligarchy, I want to meet the leader the same way you met Weyss.” She concluded, seemingly satisfied with her diplomacy skills.

“Well tough luck, miss Innes, I am part of the tip top, whether you like it or not. the differences between admirals come into play in military matters, but as leaders of the individual fleets, our votes are equal in the decision making. And see, the more you talk trash about us, the more inclined I am to sitting you on a shuttle, sending you home, collapsing the jump node behind us and leaving you blissfully alone as you seem to wish and work hard to achieve.” the Admiral barked back. One warning wasn’t enough, not the sinnsyk gone and made comments about their government? Good relations be damned, the chancellor apparently did not wish for them to remain good. And she can sign it herself if she so wishes.

Damn! She had her right where she wanted her! Whatever, it was like talking to theocrats. They ganged up in numbers, but on their own they swiftly fell apart. “I reserve the right to comment on appropriate political structures as I wish, miss Astra. “ she said floridly “If I notice that a certain structure will do badly, then it would just be bad manners to not point out the flaws, would it not?” That seemed like a good answer, and it was said with an air of practiced grace - it was a line she had used before.

“So very well, you’ll get your wish, I’ll summon the admiralty. I won’t be there because I consider you a lost cause, but you only need to convince three out of the five of us to agree with you anyway. I am done talking diplomacy with you without their presence, whether in person or over long range. You can schedule those with Captain Libra when you desire. And if you want to see me in private manner, I suggest you think twice of what you say. Apology would be a good place to start. That would be all, madam chancellor. Good day.” Astra finished, her patience running out. She turned around and gone back to her desk, intending to return to work.But she thought of one other thing to do, desperate to end the talk on that topic once and for all. Turning back around, she grabbed a hold of Innes’ hand and gave her finger a lick.

“PFFFFTHA!” she grimaced. Well that was one of the most horrible tastes she ever had to suffer. What were the sinnsyk made of, carbon compounds? No wonder… “Ugh, I can say with certainty that eating you is in no way a viable option.” Astra said, shaking her head and reaching for a package she had on her table. “Care to test our cuisine?” she said, opening the pack and letting a few silver spheres fall out on her palm. “Pure silicon. That’s what’s best for us - purified metal! Don’t bite too hard.” she snickered, certain Innes’ puny little teeth would break if she tried.

Innes looked at Astra. Then at her finger. Then at Astra again. Out of sheer curiosity, she brought the finger Astra had tasted up to her mouth - and licked it herself.

“Blegh” she said, much more calm that Astra was “Tastes like soapwort and… something vaguely sweet” she trailed off at the end, eyes going wide. Bury the issue, Innes. If you ask questions, bad things will happen.

“Um… yeah, I see your point” she said, going bright red. Oh gods, why did she say that out loud? “Just don’t get your spit on me again…”

But when Astra brought out the metal balls, she took it as a challenge. It was an assault on her pride. It would be craven not to at least make an attempt to try one of the metal balls.

Picking it up in her hand, she checked it carefully. It was cold and smooth, and not the least bit soft. But still, this was a matter of pride! If she backed out now, she would look like a chicken.

“F-fine! I’ll try one of the bloody things” she said, with quite a bit more ferocity than was probably intended. Then, she put the ball into her mouth, rolling it around her tongue. It was metallic and tough and she didn’t even try to bite it. Instead, she did the next best thing - she swallowed it whole.

It was hard going down her throat, but eventually she managed to get it down. When she was done, she opened her mouth to show it was gone.

“There. Let it never be said I spit rather than swallow…” she moaned. She was going to regret that decision later, she knew.

Shaking her head, she got back on track. What had she said? Something about diplomacy…

Oh yeah, that she would arrange the meeting and didn’t want to see her again. Wait, what?

“So this is it then?” she tried hard not to let her voice quiver, but it started wobbling anyway. “V-very well then. If that is what you wish. I’ll see you later, I guess…” With her head hung in shame, the Chancellor made her way to the door. “It has been an honour, Rear Admiral. May life treat you well.”

Before Innes could leave, Astra’s hand on her shoulder stopped her. Curses. Did she have to make that face and make Astra feel terrible about herself despite being in the right? Just look at her! She looked as happy as a basket of dead kittens. “I said don’t come to me with work related stuff. We can still talk about the usual, you know. Just.. .do me a favor and don’t ‘point out flaws’ as you put it, and we’ll be cool.”

Innes looked decidedly more cheerful, but still utterly miserable. In fact, she did a gorgeous pantomime of a girl who had just had hope inflamed in her heart again. “So you’re not mad at me?”

“Oh actually I am absolutely livid, but I came to realize you talk a lot faster than you think and I have to take you with a grain of salt.” Astra said, a cheeky smile appearing on her face as she mouthed the word ‘Airhead’ silently. And let’s not talk about sweet things either. Note to self: Scrub the security feeds. If that recording got out… oh my days.

Innes was too happy to be irritated “Oh, screw you. It’s a medical condition.” she growled playfully “Speaking of medical conditions, you might have something wrong with your mouth. My finger tasted funny. It tasted kind of sweet. Back home, spittle tastes sweeter when one is aroused...” Innes grinned, practically reading Astra’s thoughts and deciding a little bit of toying wouldn’t go amiss.

“Yeah, Diagnosis: You’re a loon. And I am sure it is your finger at fault. I am perfect.” the admiral said with over-exasperated narcissistic tone blatantly hinting she meant that in jest. “Oh and don’t act so sly, neither of us wants to even think of what your church would do to you if they caught a wind of just how hard you’re trying to bed me.” Astra shot back, certain she was starting a battle she couldn’t win - Innes was a lot better at playing with words than her, she would admit - but fleeing from the battle would be even more disgraceful.

It had begun. Innes laughed evilly to herself in her head. Oh boy. Punishment.

“Perfect… might be a bit of an over exaggeration.” she said with fluttering eyelashes. With a stare as intense as hers, it probably looked quite strange to see her blink so much in such a short space of time. “I, on the other hand, am a physical Goddess. I can tell - you told my finger so. With your tongue.” She said the last part rather pointedly.

“Oh believe me I could give you a list of things on your appearance that could use some work, but I’m afraid i’d send you into one of your self loathing angry loony fits.” Astra poked verbally with an innocent face. “And hey, all I was doing was trying to get you out of one. It’s you who keeps fueling the idea that it’s anything more. Don’t you have somebody back home? You know, of your species?”

“You seem to be under the impression,” Innes began in a diplomatic tone “that my purpose here is exclusively to get you into bed. That’s not my priority. The first thing I’m after is a mutually beneficial agreement between our two nations that will help the both of us in the long run. Then it is to stabilize the Paardveid region, then to find a way to involve you in a mutual romantic relationship [i]then[i/], maybe, we can talk about sleeping arrangements. Fourth down the list, not bad.”

Innes counted her objectives on her fingers, then shot Astra a questioning look “But, I get it, you’re not interested in girls or aliens, or you’re devoted to your work, or whatever. and I’m perfectly happy being unable to make any further progress towards my goals.” She tried to say it with a straight face, but her voice caught at the end, hinting that this issue was perhaps more important to her than she was letting on.

“Ah ah AH! No work talk!” Astra said with a raised finger. “And here I was keeping the hope alive that I could get you to talk about another topic. How shallow are you?” Astra shot back, leaning back in her seat provocatively. “And you’ll find out that I can also be very stubborn about some topics, so do yourself a favor and bump me down on the list.” she recommended with a rather rude gesture that Innes however wouldn’t be able to translate.

Her console pinged and Astra looked at what it wanted. “Ah! Your request has gone through. The admiralty can meet you in roughly 48 hours sans me and Sola who is occupied in the Nebula with… Oh, iiiinteresting. I might have to join her on this one.” Astra said as she read the report of what was happening back home. “Anyway, you only need to get those other three to agree anyway.”

“H-Hey! I object to that! I have other focuses and all, you just.. seem to take up most of my thoughts, is all.” the Chancellor sighed, unable to decide whether to be disappointed or angry. “Hmph. Anyway, we both have more important things to think about.”

“So wait, one of them won’t be there?” she said, open mouthed - and then she blew up. “THAT’S NOT FAIR! YOU GOT TO MEET THE WHOLE COUNCIL! THAT’S LIKE HAVING A MEETING WITHOUT VIGDIS OR TEMAIR OR SOMETHING!”

“Hey! hey! I told you you could videoconference right now, you insisted on meeting in person. they have other things to do, like running their fleets you know? You should be glad they are meeting at all, probably because they also have other matters to discuss. and frankly, not meeting Temair or that one other person i can’t recall but who was blatantly uninterested in everything that went on might have actually done you a favor.” Astra snickered. “I suppose we could join you through the vidcomm anyway when it’s going on but something’s come up back home that can not be delayed. unless you would be OK meeting at later day?”

Innes groaned through gritted teeth “If that’s the bloody best you can bloody do, I’ll bloody have to bloody go and bloody deal with the bloody best I’ve bloody got, do I bloody not? Fine, whatever. Go off and deal with the problem. But that’s just going to cause issues. If I can’t convince just one of them to see it my way, I’m hokey-poked. Gods be damned.” she was furious. One could almost see steam coming out of her ears. What the hell was that crap? If they don’t have time, MAKE time - as Gydja was always a fan of saying.

“You bloody might be bloody overestimating of just how bloody much of a bloody importance you bloody are to them.” Astra shot back teasingly. “Anyway, that’s what you get. Take it or leave it.” the Faira said in a tone that meant she considered the issue closed.

“Oh, and now you’re mocking me.” Innes tone suggested she was hurt. “Well, you’re a real flaming honey-trap, ain’t you? Ach, whatever. Yeah, fine, deal. Go ahead and set it up. I’m blo- absolutely beat. I need some sleep.”

“Yeah I noticed you are getting reeeeaaaally cranky when you’re up a long time. Strange thing still that sleep of yours. I need to study that at some point. Would you object if I stuck a few electrodes to your head while you do?” Astra inquired with an angelic face trying to mask the mad scientist behind.

“Electro- wha? What are you talking about? Do what the hell you want, as long as you don’t wake me up.” Innes yawned and stretched, then realised she was forgetting something “GAH! Alkheim be damned! My PJs!” for yes, throughout all of this, Innes’ pyjama top was lying still buttoned up on the floor.

“S-sorry. Let me just get that…” She tried to walk over causally, but somehow wasn’t quite managing it. When she had it in her hands, she looked at Astra “So, can I conk out here? I have the awful feeling that if I try to go back to my room, I’m just going to pass out halfway there. And whilst you might not be interested, there are others who I’m not willing to give the benefit of the doubt to. You know, like Libra.”

Gods, Innes was tired. How had she not noticed before? Some sort of rush from all the excitement? Just standing here made her feel drowsy and without waiting for an answer, she mumbled “Thanks” and sat down, dozing off almost the second her butt hit the floor.

“Oh for the love of… No! I’d never live the rumors down. Chop chop! I’ll walk with you and drag you to your room if I have to. You might actually be onto something there with the good captain. I’ve known her for some time and she has a bit… extravagant tastes.” the admiral said with a knowing grin, hoping to spook the soul out of Innes with that one.

But Innes wasn’t listening. She was already halfway to dreamland, using her knees as a pillow. She still had her top in her hands.

Frowning, Astra did the only thing she could think of. She slowly lowered Innes to the ground and put her top on, before unceremoniously slinging her over her shoulders and hauling her tiny Sinnsyk frame to her room. Fortunately the suit was giving her the needed boost, otherwise she might have had a bit of a problem.

Slowly dumping the body on the strange, soft bed, Astra briefly wondered whether to go ahead and capitalize on that offer, but she guessed there would be many more downtime periods when she could do so. “Good night.” she said and left the room.

OOC: W/ @White Feather

Next day, Conference room

Innes had never felt this nervous in her life, and that's saying a lot. In a short space of time, she would be meeting three of the most important people in her host’s nation-stroke-army. Words could not express the importance of this mission - if it went awry, the consequences could be fatal.

She was still under the impression that the Admirals may try to eat her, Astra’s reaction to tasting her notwithstanding, and she knew that she was the inferior party. However, a quick call home had given her a little bag of tricks that may prove useful in the meeting to come.

Speaking of which, she went over what she had and what she would need just one more time. She was carrying several hefty reports, each one detailing different subjects from different experts. A quick flick through showed that they were all there. She hadn’t seen Astra, so she wasn’t in her head. And she was wearing the suit Astra had made for her, which she had decided to get in her native grey color. Her reports and her words were all that would be necessary.

This was a big one. Her biggest, in fact. If things went well here, the Republic could see itself with a close ally for years to come and Innes could focus on her next issue - stability of the Paardveidan sector. On the other hand, if things went badly, she might find herself on the receiving end of an Admiral’s fork, or worse. The weight of this lay like a cloak over the Chancellor and it worried her.

But at the same time, she felt sober and prepared. She had done literally everything she could to ensure that this meeting would go her way short of running away and going into exile. She might not have the military to back her up now, but she knew she was tough enough to take whatever would be thrown at her.

The conference room door opened and admitted the chancellor. Two of the admirals were already present - Cygnus Innes knew from before, and another who had the longest antennae she would have seen yet, held together in a ponytail by a similar clip to the one Astra gave her on the day they met.

Right behind her the door opened again, admitting one of the rarest sights Innes would ever lay her eyes on. In walked a Faira male in flesh, hist antennae barely longer than an inch, standing on top of his head. In contrast to the second female admiral whose pigment marks covered most of her accents, the male was almost universally silver.

“Ah, excuse me for being late, chancellor, admirals. Shall we?” he said, way too loudly. If Innes remembered Astra’s earlier warnings he would know that Faira males were quite deaf. Nonetheless he motioned to one of the seats around a U-table, the three of them sitting at the front.

The other female in the room stood up, nodding her greeting and giving Innes the Faira salute. “Chancellor. I am Admiral Lira, this is rear admiral Merkur, and I am told you already know vice admiral Cygnus. Would you like to start with your proposal?” Lira asked, being somewhat polite and protocolar, yet managing to cram it all into as short a speech as possible.

Innes’ ears were ringing, but she did not let either surprise or panic show. Instead, she took a deep breath and went straight into it “Admirals. I am Chancellor Innes of the Paardveid Republic. My role here is to conduct diplomatic communications between your nation and mine.” Well, almost right into it. But she bowed respectfully and kept her voice even.

“The first question I would like to pose is - what are your plans for Paardveid? We are an isolated nation, barely advanced into space. It is in my interests to work out where exactly you see us on the scale of friend to enemy.”

“The next thing is this RLC business. Whilst I have no problem negotiating with people I can see and talk to directly, I prefer to discuss my meetings with separate nations as separate nations. I wish to request that any arrangements with yourselves do not oblige us to follow RLC regulations and rules.”

“And thirdly, the negotiation of technology. I cannot stand here and pretend we are some greatly advanced race with more power than we know what to do with. You do have things that we wish to study in greater depth. However, I am not so dumb as to come to the table empty-handed and I believe we may be able to work out some sort of mutually beneficial deal here.”

“We are, however, on your home territory, and it would be impolite of me to railroad this meeting to suit my desires. Ours is a flexible and pragmatic people - therefore, I put it to you as to what should be the first point of negotiation.” Innes stood back, face serious but heart pounding. She was ready, she knew it. This was no different to talking to theocrats - they just looked funny and were absolutely huge.

Listening patiently to what Innes had to say, it was Cygnus who spoke first. “We try not to make enemies anywhere we go. I would have liked to think that there being no incident while my fleet was present would have been sufficient proof of that, however since you insist - My fleet has withdrawn for repairs to our home system. Only the Hexus is present here in Machina. So to sum up, all our war capable assets are two or more systems away from your home. At the present you gave us no push to engage in hostilities with you, and we would hope that it will remain so.”

Done with the military matter, the word moved to Merkur. “While we do not form one nation with the RLC, we are bound by a mutual defense treaty to some extent. While their consent is not necessary for most interactions between us, some aspect, such as certain technologies, we can not trade without their agreement.” the male notified. “We’ll however open to suggestions. I am sure we can come to agree on something.”

Finally, Lira took the word last. “Please, do not feel alien. You have summoned us here, so I assume you have a proposition or a topic to discuss. Direct the meeting as you see fit, the word is yours for now.” she encouraged.

Innes addressed Cygnus first “With all due respect, Admiral, it is perfectly alright to claim that your troops are moving away from us and that we have no cause to worry. However, that does not calm our fears. It is the nature of empires to subsume those around them, whether it is out of malicious reasons like greed or expansionism or benign reasons like mutual benefit and protection. I wish to know what role you see the Republic playing in the Faira’s future - both short-term and long”

Next was Merkur “To what depths, if you don’t mind my asking? If a space faring empire of gargantuan proportions were to arrive on your doorstep tomorrow, what are the RLC’s duties? We wish to be free of such overarching collectives until we have assessed them ourselves.”

Finally, she addressed Lira “As the lesser party, it would be dangerous to risk angering my hosts by demanding to lead the discussion. Forgive my caution but I must confess I do not trust your kin entirely just yet.” Innes looked at her finger thoughtfully. “Either which way, I would prefer to address the major issue at hand first - Paardveid’s future with the Faira.”

She was laying bricks and she knew it. She could feel herself getting steadily more and more nervous. Words were leaving her head and her great speeches abandoned her. All that was left was instinct - a dangerous ally, especially for one of Innes’ delicate mental state. She had to remind herself to keep any potential meltdowns in check.

Sighing, Cygnus was starting to get annoyed by this lack of trust. “If you choose to look at it this way, then whether I tell you that my destroyer is laying siege to your world as we speak or that we are scrapping all our warships and building a giant space station ready for the taking by the first power that comes near, you have no way of verifying it so what exactly is the point of this discussion?” Cygnus said, her voice clear that she thought she was wasting her time here. “The way I see it, it’s an issue of trust, and you obviously have none towards us. Case closed, moving on.”

Lira was obviously annoyed as well, but rather at Cygnus’ honesty than at the chancellor, as she gave the former a stern look. “I am afraid that the vice admiral has a point, chancellor. We are certainly not going to give you real-time data on our fleet movement. You were briefed about the situation of our homeworld, you should understand why we have to be even more cautious than you.” she said, much less harshly than Cygnus but saying pretty much the same thing. “As for the role of your world, I believe it is up to you to decide how big an involvement with us do you want. It is true we are in need of every resource and manufacturing capacity we can get our hands on, but while it would be preferable to outsource some of it to other nations, it is not an immediate necessity.”

The word passing to Merkur - who didn’t look particularly interested in the military matters - he looked up from the holo he has been studying. “There are two major points. First, we can not offer any military treaty that would not involve the RLC. It would simply create conflict between the existing and new treaty somewhere down the line. Second, it is for that reason again that we will not offer any military technology to a nation that is not part of said treaty. While, as the admirals said, we have no hostile intent towards you, the report we received on the Konjan church of your homeworld says that your people might be a different case. We would be foolish to arm a party that could potentially turn hostile towards us. We are willing to make one exception on Admiral Astra’s recommendation concerning the shielding that would aid you with your medical issues. However, and let me stress this right here - those shielding units would be independent modules with self destruct mechanism that would activate upon tampering with them.” he noted, giving the word back to the chancellor.

Innes bit back a hiss. Damnit, it was all falling apart! She must have looked like some jumped-up tribal in their eyes. No, Innes, negative thoughts make for negative results. Focus.

“I don’t need real-time data on your troop movements, nor any data at all.” she began, “But I must ask you to look at things from my perspective - stumbling upon an uncomfortably close and far more powerful nation is bound to raise anyone’s hackles. However, it would be nice to know that you don’t plan on marching into our system, or the ones surrounding it, any time soon. But, as you said, it is a matter of trust. Until we have proven ourselves to each other, I’m afraid this topic will go around in circles.”

Time to play a little game, the Chancellor thought “A nation as advanced as yours must be aware of the term protectorate. In short, we shall keep our own rulers and manage our own state of affairs, manage our own wars and receive what trappings of technology you deem right to hand to us. However, we would allow you military and trade access to our region, pay a tariff towards you and will not expand or conduct diplomatic discussions with other races without your consent.” It was a few steps short of vassalisation, Innes knew, but it meant a guarantee of independence without any major contributions. It also helped keep the church in check, since most citizens would see this as a good thing - even playing for religious grounds, there would be opposition to any opposition.

But she had to be careful. Being seen as weak was always a bad thing, and she wasn’t quite sure if this caused the admirals to look on her with more or less favor.

The reaction among the admirals was surprise. Even Merkur raised an eyebrow. After a while, Cygnus pivoted forward in her seat, laying her arms on the table in front of her and entangling her fingers in thought. “An interesting proposition.” she agreed, “However, I am afraid we simply do not have the capacity to do so at this time. And it may still be in conflict with the MDA. We will have to get back to you on this issue. But I can say with certainty that it will not be possible sooner than our new fleet is finished.” Cygnus frowned.

Libra took over, approaching from a different point. “I would like to hear what you consider nearby systems. If I may be so bold as to inquire to the nature of any FTL drive you may be using? You have seen ours, and there is one problem with it. Between star systems, we can only travel alongside naturally occurring predetermined path. Now our scan doesn’t show any leading out of your system, however if some are found, your importance would frankly skyrocket as you might be our only way of travelling further. It is in your interest to allow at the very least our scientific ships in.”

Taking a pause to recap what else Innes brought up, Lira continued. “IF however you possess an omnidirectional FTL, systems you would consider nearby by distance alone are quite frankly unreachable for us at any rate. there is no conflict of interest in those.” Since Merkur had nothing to add at present time, the admirals looked to Innes again.

Yesyesyesyesyesyeyesyes! Chalk one up for Innes!

“I see no reason as to why it should come into conflict, since all military affairs are still our own” Innes said diplomatically “But I shall not pressure you further. Take your time to convene and discuss. However, in the meantime, I must request a guarantee of independence - that you shall not wage war on or allow any others to wage war on Paardveid or its vassals. A formality, mind you, but one the bureaucrats are a big fan of.”

As talk moved to science, Innes lit up. Two days ago, she would have been lost. Now, she was ready.
“Naturally occurring paths? However do you mean? I have reports of several ‘anomalies’ as our scientists called them, so they may have some use to you - if I know what you are looking for.”

“Our engines are amazing things. The ships are metal and stone, but the engines live. They eat, breathe and sleep as a living being should. Our control of it means we are wired directly into it’s brain. It isn’t a real living thing, mind you - it doesn’t think, have desires or wants, etcetera.”

“Our biomechanics have worked out a way to blend the Sinnsyk mind with metals. Give a ship simple thoughts and responses, allow probes to communicate through emotions, and even travel faster than light on leftover food and water. This stems, partly, from our aversion to EM, but also is helped in no small part thanks to the constant desire to use less energy. Consider that for a moment. The technology to live in the dark - less energy means less recharging and in shorter bursts, whilst eliminating any excess and waste uses of energies. It’s the reason we are so cold to touch. Being able to produce large results from low-energy mulches and plants is a big step. And it’s why we can go faster than light itself.”

“Everything you need wires and signals for, we use chemicals and hormones. Our bio-chemical advances are astounding, if you don't mind me tooting my own horn. Now, we are aware you don’t share the same biology as us. One of your Admirals tasted me not to long ago and found me quite unlike anything she has tasted before,” Innes cast a sly glance at Cygnus, remembering her as Astra’s mother, “when we all know that she should have tasted at least one other of her own kind before. But this science works. Regardless of the pilot, if the machine is set up the right way, it will perform its duties.”

“So consider this - if you can integrate the bio-engine with your own machines, you can drastically reduce energy expenditure for relatively common materials. It also means you can break out of fixed paths and start going anywhere you like. Even if it is only for smaller craft, that is still a massive benefit, would you not agree?”

Innes grinned, glad she had brought something useful along. And she would never have thought of it or considered it relevant if Lira hadn’t brought it up. She’d have to thank her later.

At the mention of science, Merkur perked up, barely holding himself from yelling ‘speak up please’. “It means that while our FTL method is the fastest we’ve seen thus far, it can’t go anywhere. Think of it as a galactic highway. For example, our home is actually about one sixth of the galactic diameter distant from here, yet it only takes us a few hours to get there.” he explained and continued listening to what Innes was saying.

The control interface she mentioned was indeed interesting, albeit rather redundant for their use. Faira have been thinking of similar interface given the fact that their antennae could process such massive input to one’s mind, but the advent of organic computing put those efforts on hold.

Unlike Cygnus who looked torn between yelling and evil laughter, the tasting remark went right over him. “All valid points, save for one thing. We already can go anywhere through the RLC jump gates. We simply prefer the speed and reach of our own.” he said, all but throwing one of Innes’ bigger bargaining chips out the airlock. “Still, the coordination of fleet one could achieve with such device… interesting.”

Taking over, Lira addressed the earlier point. “Your independence, as we have been trying to say over and over, was never in question, Chancellor. If you forgive me for being blunt, we have enough problems on our own to get into solving someone else’s.” she said. “However your proposal mentions us protecting you from others, and as mentioned, that is something beyond our capabilities for now. I can promise you a refuge if, stars forbid, you joined us in losing your homeworld, maybe drive the invaders away afterwards, but we can not spare the ships for permanent defense force.” Lira said uneasily. Loss of a homeworld wasn’t easy topic, no matter who’s world it was.

Cygnus still looked mildly amused and too deep in thought and Libra basically summarized their military opinion on the matter anyway, so the word gone back to Innes. Apparently mothers gathering blackmail material on their offspring was a trait universal across the galaxy regardless of species.

“I know, I know” Innes began, in reference to the Guarantee, “It is purely a formality. The folks back home will probably be on edge until I can send such a treaty through.”

They must not have understood her on the FTL issue. She was happy to clarify “When I asked what you meant by naturally occurring paths, I meant to ask how one would identify those paths. I have several reports on anomalies here, but I’m not sure which ones would be relevant to you.”

Then she addressed the issue Merkur brought up “I use ships as an example, good sir. But almost all of our devices run in a similar way. I have been introduced to your sunbeds, for example - if you could run those beds on organic matter rather than, say, solar power, it would drastically improve your survivability in dark regions. Not forgetting the lower energy use means less stress on a ship's primary resources, which allows unintegrated devices more power and thus greater longevity.”

But on noticing Cygnus’ expression, Innes had to break out of diplomatic character for a moment “Admiral Cygnus? Is something the matter?” she asked innocently.

“Very well, if that is what you want there should be no problem. Just send one of us your draft.” Lira nodded, finally understanding what Innes wanted. “If it won’t be in conflict with our current agreements with others, there shouldn’t be any problem.”

Passing the torch back to Merkur, the admiral looked pleased to get a chance to go on more scientific rants. “I am not sure to how much detail admiral Astra explained the nature of our drive to you, but it sums up to this: It uses a window that shifts the travelling object into another dimension of space. It is a relatively hostile environment, but the gravitational pull in our dimension makes it a lot more stable. In some cases, stable enough to form a gravitational lock with a body in another system, allowing us to travel that far. So, unless you have a means to detect fluctuations in the exact subdimension we sue, I’m not sure those anomalies are what we are searching for. We can take a look none the less though.”

The slightly informal question might have surprised Lira, but Cygnus was already past being interested in this meeting. Frankly the Chancellor didn’t sit well with her, and it wasn’t what she just said. In fact that gave her a few points. However, she had to agree that Astra was right - very little was to be gained by affiliating with these people. Before she would bite the bait of Innes’ miraculous engine, she’d have to see an object the size of a Raider actually utilizing it successfully. “Oh, nothing. Just an interesting piece of Intel you just gave me I will have to investigate.” she said in way too formal formulation for what it actually was. Undoubtedly Astra already got rid of the security feed, but perhaps the techs can salvage something from it. It would be good blackmail material both against Astra and Innes.

The fact of the matter was, Innes had already considered this a victory. In the end, she was happy enough to get confirmation that their Republic was not about to fall prey to a larger or more advanced empire. This also opened up a lot of options back home, since there was now a guarantee hanging over the Republic - that should make any warmongers on either side think twice before attempting a coup.

“An interesting system. I am not a scientist, as you are probably aware, but I can get in contact with some techies of ours who might be willing to discuss this matter further” Innes scanned her spacial anomaly reports again “Quite frankly, I can make neither head nor tail of half of these words” Without flair or attitude, she selected the reports Merkur might be interested in and slid them along the table to him “Even if they are not what you are looking for, they may prove interesting reads.” She flashed him a winning smile before focusing in the other two.

“Admiral Cygnus, may I be so bold as to inquire as to what this piece of intel is?”

Was she seriously asking that? No wonder Astra was frustrated with the way the Sinnsyk made conversation if she was like that even in private. Cygnus didn’t think it even worthy of any answer, but alas it was required. “That’s classified, I beg your pardon.” she spared.

Innes frowned at that, unsure whether to press on further or to drop it. However, she realized that Cygnus was the least likely to support her - bar Astra, of course, but considering she wasn’t here, that was a moot point - so she just shook her head and got on with it “As you wish. It may, however, be of import in the near future.”

“Another thing I’d like to discuss before we draw this meeting to a close is a matter of religion. I know, your kind are atheistic and personally I’m not here to proselytize, so I’ll make this quick. Basically, I need you to sign a paper that says you are happy to allow the faith to worship unhindered and without foreign influence - another formality, but this is pretty much the only thing stopping our church calling for a crusade,” Innes looked worried and for good reason - this could significantly harm her position here. “so I really would like you to sign this” she pulled out a piece of paper stamped by the Church, which said much more floridly exactly what Innes just said. “I personally find it rather insulting and i have no qualms if you deem it so, neither would my employers. But Theocrats are a paranoid bunch and I’d like to avoid a war if I can. Please accept my most humble apologies for this.”

Lira actually smiled at the request. “There will be no problem at all. Just because we do not believe does not mean we say it isn’t so. We lack proof for or against. The church might be right - we simply do not know. What people believe in is their business. However, our signature is conditioned by extending the same courtesy - we will allow no demands to convert and any missionaries they might deem worthy to send are not guaranteed any special status.” Lira said, taking the file and reading it to see what she was actually signing.

“If that is all for now, we would like to take a recess and try to get into contact with admirals Sola and Astra to give them the short version of what was suggested and gather their opinions. I suggest you contact your homeworld as well. If that is acceptable?” Merkur suggested.

“I see no reason why it wouldn’t be.” Innes said, trying to remain chipper. After all, it had gone sort of right, had it not? At the very least, they were safe for another day.

But there was a horrible feeling that she had done much worse than she should have. She knew she was in a tight spot, asking without having much to give and especially with the latent distrust between her and the Admirals, but she wasn’t quite comforted by this.

“I best get going then. Thank you for your time.” she bowed respectfully, quite a bit lower than was strictly necessary before leaving the room. She was barely holding herself together and by the time she had got to a suitable location to contact her homeworld, she was in tears.

She was in no position to call home, she knew. Weyss would yell at her, Temair would go off on one, Asta would give her a disappointed look and Gydja would give her that arrogant, all-knowing smirk that made Innes want to hurt something. As she reviewed the prior meeting in her head, she couldn’t help but feel like she had failed somehow. She kept telling herself ‘we have what we need, anything else is secondary’ but it was still a bitter blow to her confidence. The worst part was that she didn’t even know why she felt like it had gone badly. Probably because of Astra’s drilling into her about how important their jobs were and how unimportant she actually was.

Unimportant. Not important. Not meaning much. The words went through her head like a thunderstorm, uprooting every nice thought she had and replacing it with acerbic sorrow. She knew, she always knew, that Paardveid and it’s dealings would have little gravity on a universal scale. Tomorrow they could vanish into thin air and no-one would pay much attention. But only now did the full weight of that minor position descend on Innes. She always thought of herself as hyper-important, quelling uprisings and encouraging good relations amongst the Republic and its vassals. Her pride had taken a firm beating today and it was not likely to recover.

After the meeting resumed about an hour later, it was only Lira waiting on Innes. “Hello again, Chancellor. I trust everything went well? Admiral Cygnus and Merkur excuse themselves for not attending further. The former has to go back to her fleet and oversee the repairs and latter is currently trying to find a spot on our construction queue for manufacturing what was promised to you. I am ready to give you our statement on what you offered. Am I correct to assume you are as well?” the admiral asked, apparently Ok with it if Innes needed more time.

Innes’ heart almost stopped right there. A snide little voice asked her ‘What will you be doing when this is over? Oh that’s right. Bugger all.’ but she swallowed and pushed it down. Words failed her, so she just nodded fervently and hoped it would be quick.

Nodding and seating herself, Lira motioned for Innes to do the same. “There are three points to bring up. Starting with science exchange, as I mentioned we already agreed on providing you with the shielding equipment. If you would like we can supply you with the suits to go with them as well, however I believe you would prefer to adapt them to your own power grid and use? Remember, the units will be secured against tampering, lest we would be blocked by our defense treaty. In return, we would like to have an instance of the engine you mentioned for study. Are those terms acceptable?”

“I would rather,” Innes began “That the shields were not tamper-proof. But yes, that is agreed.” They would find a way to break into them later, she presumed. She did not sit, but stood as stiff as a ramrod. Her voice was likewise dry and emotionless.

“In time, perhaps. That translates us into the segment concerning military actions. First of all, regarding the previous issue, the release of the design specifications would be conditioned by your admission to the Mutual Defense Act. We have discussed this and I am afraid I have to say we will not be recommending that at this time. You may convince the RLC to do so, but since the treaty currently consists of only our two nations and it falls to majority vote, you will to need to change our opinion anyway.” Lira explained pretty much what Astra already told Innes would happen.

”Moving on. Point one: As per your request we will not send any armed ship to your system without previous invitation or approval to do so. Point two: We are at this time not obliged to defend your system from other threats. We will attempt to help you is we can, but we wish it to be stated we can not guarantee it.” she summarized their understanding of what they agreed upon previously.

She might have seen it coming, but it was still hard to take “I suppose that goes as a given.” she muttered unhappily. “Robots and silicon don’t tend to work well with flesh and bone.”

Not having any armed ship entering the region was all well and good, but it just reiterated that the Faira had no desire to conquer them anyway. Literally nothing had changed. “Works for us.” she stated laconically.

“Final point, politics. The statement says that your republic chooses to retain its independence. The Exiles of Faira recognize the sovereignty of your state and your claim to the Paardveid system, and any other colonies you may have established at this time but didn’t tell us about - please do list those now. We are also in agreement upon your request for religious tolerance, with the addendum of its parity.” Lira finished, stacking the documents in a pile and passing them over to Innes. “Our signature is already on, it only awaits yours. Once signed, we do not object to amendments or cancellation after further negotiations should the situation change.” she reassured.

“Three colonies currently - Hested, Pferdreich and Alkheim. Hested and Alkheim are out-of-bounds for civilians and foreigners and Pferdreich is in its infancy. There are also probes scanning the closest star system for a non-rogue planet that is capable of sustaining life, so a fourth is in development.” Innes didn't even need to look at the documents. She had practiced and refined her signature many times - it was second nature to her now. She was signing documents as she spoke. “The signs we read show the star itself is quite young. Knowing your history, it may be worthwhile to consider colonizing, or at least scanning the region. You may be pleasantly surprised by the results.” If the protectorate went through, then any colonies outside their de jure system were null and void. This was not a bargaining chip - this was simply a suggestion.

“These ships are impressive. But you really must find somewhere to settle down. Have you not passed by many star systems and considered settling down on one of the planets? Surely you have the technology to uncover the age of the stars? It might be something for you to consider.”

Believing thše official business was more or less over, Lira slumped a little in her seat. “IT is not the age of the start that matters for us. It is the type, and our planet was relatively rare kind as well. Yes, we could settle on a less hospitable planet, but given our resource shortage, building a colony on a planet that is less than ideal was deemed a bad idea. Instead we chose to expand our fleet as you already know to be able to look farther for possible candidates.” the admiral explained.

“I just hope that when we do find one, no one will be there. So far he didn’t have to resort to using our arms, but the vision of a new home might be too strong to resist.” she shared. “Very well then. If we are finished here, I have some other things to take care of while I’m here but I shall be available for two or three more days before I have to leave. should you wish to talk to me, notify Captain Libra and she’ll schedule it up.” Lira noted, politely waiting to be excused.

“Well thank you for divulging that information. It seems I have a few scientists to talk to now. Please, don’t let me keep you. Your duties are of great import, after all.” Innes bowed once again, then left.

She went straight to her room and sat down on her bed. She had a lot to think about. Especially that bit at the end - is it possible to find a planet that could support Faira life? If so, what would the benefits be?

Faira Fleetnet News

Nebula threatened
Today in early hours, elements the Defender and Watcher fleets intercepted a series of probes in our home Nebula. The FD Nyxa managed to intercept the source ship now confirmed to belong to a new species called Khasi, No fire has been exchanged, however the situation remains unresolved. Admiral Sola reports the Nebula appears to be safe for now. Stand by for further updates.

Negotiations with the Paardveid republic
First round of negotiations with the Sinnsyk have come to a close. Agreement has been made on exchange of some technology. Both sides declined mutual military involvement at this time.

MSCR Space HQ

After the recent incidents with the aliens and the formation of the MSCR , the UNR has progressed in all areas , especially in the exploration of their own system thanks to the creation of a FTL drive which is stable and standart in everything except for the energy comsuption of the drive which the fusion reactors of the ships can supply well , the public and especially the neo-countries which are largue groups of people that represents the nation of old have started to compete for the ownership of some mining spots in the Ralthar System , the relations with the Ryukyu Empire has been normal for a long time and there are no news given by the goverment.

In the meanwhile the MSCR has organized the first fleet with the original "Savior" Crusier as flagship , this fleet is currently patrolling the system and they have no other orders , the MSCR space HQ has been finished and now is the center of the military in the UNR , recently new spaceships are being made and specially a space carrier has been designed and is waiting for the aproval of the UNR .

The MSCR has been allowed to send explorer ships to nearby systems and nebulas with the orders of not making contact with any sentient species in their journey , this is because the MSCR is afraid of another surprise contact with another civilization and restoring the order in Ralthar was a difficult job after the events with the aliens , but they have encouraged the public to work in the space and enlisting for a project to colonize one planet in the Ralthar system is expected that this project will finish in 5 years with the final goal of stablising cities and if possible the terraformation of the planet .

After this , the UNR has formulated laws for space activities , specially the law of not leaving the designated zones for the public which is only the Ralthar system , so none is allowed in outer space and breaking this law means a entire life in prison , even if this the economy is booming in the Ralthar system and new enterprises are made to make profit of this.More recently the UNR has accepted one law which consist of allowing the people in the space to get weapons for themselfs and their ships with a firepower limitation of course , there hasnt been invented a new weapon since the alien contact but with this the UNR expects innovation in the weapons field a thing that they need to protect themselfs.

-Outer Perimeter of Federation Space-

Deep Listener Satellite 27 was transmitting some very interesting information which if confirmed would prove invaluable to the scientific community. The readings seemed to indicate that their could be a naturally occurring wormhole or some other form of singularity in the system and another suggested that their was something the size of a small ship giving off a life sign. Using its internal software it sent a message to the nearest ship to verify this information which was the battle cruiser Z-81.

Aboard Z-81 on the bridge it was rather still with people silently manning their stations. Suddenly the rather bored looking communications officer brightened up as a message came in from a satellite on the outer perimeter. The young officer picked up a portable terminal taking it over to the captain her face beaming as she was happy that they would know be doing something instead of patrolling empty space. Quickly snatching the terminal out of the young officers hands the captain quickly read though the information she looked rather less impressed than her crewman. "Set course for Deep Listener 27 looks like it's malfunctioning and giving off false readings" the captain ordered. "What makes you say that Varra" her second in command enquired. "Because the last time we investigated some fantastical signals from one these satellites it was spinning in circles after being hit by a solar flare and its captain Varra to you Commander Dix" she stated appearing very annoyed with her new second in command not being comfortable with someone she didn't know calling her by her first name. Commander Dix looked very disappointed with herself already having annoyed the captain and she was hoping to make a good impression.

A small beam of energy shot out of from the ship and in a few seconds a large swirling vortex opened and Z-81 went though disappearing and soon after so did the vortex. The ship was now in hyperspace looking out the window one would see a whole host of colours. Z-81 was now on its way towards the suspected malfunctioning satellite and unbeknownst to them contact with two new species. Whether this contact is friendly or not lay in the hands of the crew of Z-81.

The ship exited hyperspace near the satellite scanning it for faults. Watching the readout the captains face was completely shocked all it read was all systems 100% operational. "Well looks like we have a bit of excitement for once" Varra mumbled to herself thinking how to handle the situation. "Well let's send out two of are fighters and a shuttle to check out the small life form. If it is one hopefully are smaller ships won't scare it too much. We on the other hand will investigate the singularity and have every one at their stations." Varra commanded and the whole ship came to life as crew ran down corridors as the battle stations alert siren went off. Varra wanted to be ready for anything and that meant having everyone awake alert and doing their jobs. The shuttle and its two fighter escorts took off towards their target as the Z-81 moved in for a closer look at the singularity.

After a while the shuttle and its escorts reached its target but the pilots where taken by surprise as it was a ship and not a life form as their scanners suggested. Quickly they messaged back to Z-81 wondering what they should do. "It's a what" the Varra asked "well then tell them to message it and escort it back here". What a surprise an alien ship that could be a living organism or at the very least have organic parts this could prove to be a useful if they where friendly. Then again they could prove a potential treat she would have to make sure they didn't leave the system without talking to them at any cost. "Sir we have the singularity in sight and well it's not what we thought it appears to be a large ship probably using a singularity to power it" reported one of the bridge crew. Varra thought about why these alien vessels are here could they be looking for each other maybe engaged in an intergalactic war or maybe they where allies doing recognisance on the Federation preparing to launch an invasion. Either way she had to find out the only way she could by asking them and see what they do "comms send a message to the large ship and ask are fighters to send the same message to the smaller ship. Have it say the following 'greetings we are from the United Federation of Clans we request that you tell us why you are trespassing in our space? We would also like to invite you on board are ship so we can discuss and exchange information and make it so their are no misunderstandings between our races'. Send it in all languages and just incase they are hostile lock weapons".

Ambassador Craft, Area Unknown

Vigdis had chosen an interesting pair of ambassadors to represent the Republic. And by interesting, I mean two that everyone who knew them agreed should never be in the same room as each other, much less be in a confined space for extended lengths of time in a high-importance mission.

Their names were Iona and Angus, sometimes mockingly referred to as "the Twins" due to their uncanny resemblance to each other, despite not being closely related. They were like chalk and cheese in terms of approaches to diplomacy. If the Seneschal knew this, she may have reconsidered. But as it stood, they now had to bear with each other for as long as they could. Which was not very long.

Iona was rather amazonian. She was tall and powerful, yet slender. She was undeniably a very attractive lady, well-shaped in all the important areas and pretty in the face. From the look of her, one would probably assume she was a professional athlete or perhaps a low-ranking military officer. But look past the pretty face and the elegant muscles and one found a more rebellious and bawdy nature, something greatly unsuited to the military world. It didn't help that she had been diagnosed with rampant nymphomania, which meant she was attracted to pretty much anything that moved. It also didn't help she considered herself the Gods' gift to the Sinnsyk race, resulting in an ego that put even Chancellor Innes' to shame.

Angus, by contrast, was a far less physically impressive character. He was small and youthful, with a gentle face and slim frame. He was far too effeminate to be called handsome. Most people settled on 'beautiful', something that caused no end of shame. He lacked the large muscles or impressive stature of his female counterpart and instead looked more timid and tender. Though he appeared quite shy, he was actually more thoughtful and ponderous than bashful, and would often be caught up in thought. He was very apprehensive of his appearance. He knew he looked feminine and he was taunted constantly for his small frame and girlish features. It frustrated him, but he was slowly coming to terms with it. Didn't dull the shame he felt when he was mocked, however.

Angus had busied himself with research and Iona always winged it when it came to diplomacy, so they should have been prepared for an encounter. Unfortunately, they had been prepared to meet on a planet, not in the dead of space, so it still came as a surprise when the radio began squawking.

Both ambassadors tried to understand the long-winded message but it was not spoken in a language either understood. This was to be expected but was still frustrating.

"Do you think they're hostile?" Angus had wondered

"If they do, we wouldn't stand a chance. We're not exactly built for combat."

It was true. Though the ship certainly looked nicer than the junker Innes had flew the day they encountered the Faira, it still lacked any decent firepower or armour.

"So what's the plan?" the pilot asked

"I don't know. We were supposed to have come across a planet, not meet them out in space. They might not be the ones we are looking for." Iona sat back in her seat, brushing a lock of hair out of her eyes. She was used to ab-libbing but this was completely unexpected.

"It is possible," Angus said thoughtfully "That they picked up on our probe and sent a welcoming committee to guide us in. That might be a bit hopeful, but at any rate I don't think they have a reason to attack us."

Iona huffed at that, but she had to admit it was a fair point. "Can we ping them back?" She asked of the pilot.
The captain shrugged shrugged "I can try, but I'm not sure if they'll pick it up. Even then, they might not understand."

Both diplomats looked at each other as if to say 'Do you want to handle this?'. In the end, it was Angus who rose to his feet to answer the call
"Hello? This is Ambassador Angus of Paardveid. Are you currently open to negotiations? If so, we would like to come aboard."

OOC: W/ @Queen Raidne

FD Nyxa

“They gone shields up, but are sending back transmission. they bounced us back our contact package, probably couldn’t decode it, and sent something of their own. At least we know how their communications work.” the Xo read the data.

Nodding, Sola already had an action in mind: “Not enough to translate, we need a bigger sample. give me all power the sensors can muster and fire up our ECM suites. I want their computers datamined and translated. Incidentally, if any mention of our home was to disappear from them, I certainly wouldn’t mind.” the admiral said with a sly smile, to which the XO was happy to oblige.

“In the mean time, break pursuit and come to a standstill. Let’s not give them the push to crash jump out of here. until we can talk, we need them staying here for as long as possible. If you detect a power spike, kill their engines, that order still stands.” Sola instructed, standing up and walking to the holo to examine the alien ship in more detail.

“Who are you people, and why did you have to come here of all places?” she thought out loud. The ship looked like nothing the Faira would ever conceive. The admiral came from an engineering background and she had fine appreciation for details. The aliens certainly knew how to build a pretty looking ship. Judging by the lack of turrets and the multitude of probes it launched, Sola made a guess it was a science cruiser. The engineer in her screamed though. Replacing any bigger system from within that monolithic armor had to be a nightmare. On any Faira ship, you would just uncouple a module from the outside and replace it with fresh one, ready to resume your post in thirty minutes.





Lt. Ray looked at the blocky xeno ship and said, “I don’t like it. They’re just sitting there.”
“Probably trying to decode our message,” Dr. Clavius said. “Just like we’ve been decoding theirs. Nothing to worry about.”

FD Nyxa, command deck
“We have something.” the Xo reported, and the holo shifted again, displaying a multitude of windows. They were all black at first, but slowly all of them filled with video feeds from within the ship, making the life on the deck stop for a few seconds as everyone watched the green aliens and their stylish, overly spacious interior design.

“Writing!” the XO pointed to what looked like letters on some of the screens and pointers around the ship and got to work, directing the translation AI to check the feeds and try to decode the language. Nodding, Sola hoped it would be done in time before they decide to depart. “Keep up the ECM, I want to know all there is to know about them. And shed the gloves, take a knife.” she urged to take a bit more drastic measure.

Nodding, the XO pressed a few controls and the Nyxa’s sensors started performing an active scan, much like they did with the probe before.



“I’ve got something,” Dr. Romanova reported on the viewer. “They started with pretty basic data, prime numbers, iconographic representations of the elements, that sort of thing. Then it gradually got more complex until I realized that you could-”
Captain Needlemeier held up a hand. “Captain-speak, please.”
“The aliens sent us a decoder ring. I could-”

_ping! PING! went the bridge.
Everything was deathly silent for a moment.

“Contact V-One is scanning us with active tech,” reported the sensor tech.
“Shields are under strain, we’re getting a 2.1% increase in drain,” an ensign reported.

Outside, the shields flared green in a nice arc, spreading away and reflecting with the Faira scan. It was all quite unnecessary, really.

Split decisions. Command was all about split decisions. Were they a threat? Was it a prelude to weapons fire? Or were they just looking? Would they take arming the laser cannons as a threat? Oh, right. Discovery One didn’t have laser cannons.

“Helm, bring us about. Match V-One’s course and speed with minimal variance,” ordered Captain Needlemeier. The bluespace crystals were still fried, but it was nice to have an option, however impractical.

_ping! PING! the computer synthesized again.

“They’re going to scan us, we’re going to scan them. At least we can prove ourselves on an equal footing.” He gestured to Dr. Clavius. “Get Natasha to perform a deep scan on that ship.” Then Needlemeier registered that Dr. Clavius was standing over the telecomms station.

“What did you just send?”
“Hello,” Dr. Clavius said. “Dr. Romanova figured it out.”
“Perform a deep scan,” the captain ordered.

Outside Discovery One’s hull, a series of twenty space-maneuverable microdrone cameras departed the ship and took up station around the alien ship, cautiously analyzing it.

FD Nyxa, command deck

“They launched something!” the XO said in alarm. “Fighters or missiles?” Sola asked, bracing for an impact. “Negative, it’s too tiny. We have visual, it looks like some more drones. We’re getting increased strain on the shield - a few got too close and melted and the others are probably returning the favor and scanning us. Makes sense if they’re a science ship, they would have the equipment.” the XO theorized.

This whole situation was taking far too long for the Admiral’s liking though. “Tell me you have the translation yet.” she asked. “Enough to say hello. We have their communications method from before, I believe we can talk to them directly.” her 2IC replied, and Sola gave him a nod. A moment later, the discovery One received a short text message.

FD Nyxa to Unknown ship, you are in violation of Faira territory. Remove your probes from our system and we can talk like civilized people.

Dr. Clavius had barely lifted his finger from the console when it received a signal. Kron was really making himself known today. Apparently they’d both managed to translate each other’s language and sent messages at the same time.

“New message from V-One, sir. Sending it to the main viewer,” the sensor tech reported.
“Friendly bastards, aren’t they?” Lt. Ray said, looking at the message.
“Wait, ‘their system’? Who claims a supernova nebula as ‘their’ system? Why would you do that?” Tycho asked. “Unless… they really like the color blue.” He only hesitantly dismissed that theory.

This was really no fault of Tycho’s logic. His sole xenodiplomacy class was taught by a tenured professor known for his wild theories and large cloud of attending microdrones. One was directly related to the other.

Captain Needlemeier glanced at the time. It was well past the ten-minute mark since the probes had been launched. Their shields had all likely failed by now. He hadn’t wanted to lower his ship’s shields to translate the drones back, but at least it would appear like they’d complied.

“Deep scan complete; recalling the microdrones,” Natasha’s voice said.

Again, a convenient appearance of compliance. Why fight Kron?

“Anything interesting?” he asked Dr. Romanova.
“Initially, it looks like their drive system operates on unknown principles. Their ship may be ugly, but it’s got a potentially beautiful engine.”
“Fine. Dr. Clavius, proceed with as peaceful a contact as we can. Maybe we can get some new artwork for the engineers back home to utilize,” Needlemeier ordered. After glancing at the clock - still 15 minutes before his ship could leave - he pulled up the image of his Head of Personnel and 2IC, Commander Leslie Knope. “Leslie, your turn for the chair. I’ll be in the mess.”

As you can see, we’ve complied. We come in peace. We’re on a scientific mission to study the after-effects of supernovae. Didn’t expect to find you here. Would like more contact; especially interested in your drive. Interesting piece, pretty, much in contrast with context of ship, very blunt, ugly. Juxtaposition interesting. Very much interested in speaking to primary engine artist. Suggest face-to-face if possible, air permitting.

FD Nyxa, command deck
“She did not just call my ship ugly!” Sola hissed, sending her XO into a fit of giggles. “Makes sense why they came here though. Could they have seen the light from the event? It would put them some 350 light years from us, have the sci-dept look for what systems would match that general distance.” the admiral ordered and sent a message back. At the very least they were complying with their request. Then again, it might have been the two 50m cannons pointed at them.

Then we welcome you. Our hangar is open for your small craft if you have any. On board conditions::
Atmosphere - 70% N₂
Atmosphere - 30% O₂
Temperature - 300 K
Gravity - 0,8G
Physics unit system part of previously sent 1st contact package.

No small craft, crew transferred from space dock, no need to land on imaginary planet in exploded nebula. Air looks good but somewhat warm, slightly greater concentration of O₂. Possibly meet on Discovery One if you retain small craft; note docking ring - will engage visual guidance system.

Dr. Clavius glanced at Commander Knope. Needlemeier would never have let him get away with offering xenos an invitation to board the Discovery One. Commander Knope, however, had only the Captain’s short shift-takeover briefing to go on. And she believed rather whole-heartedly in the Rules, and the Rules said that he was in charge of xenodiplomacy. Lt. Ray looked unhappy at the recent turn of events, however. Leslie was talking to someone, Nedry, he thought, and that distraction was ultimately what let him get away with it.

“Fine, whatever, you’re in charge of the aliens. Just don’t get us into a war,” she’d said, before turning back to Nedry. That was just enough room to give him power to officially order the docking ring guidance lights online.

Outside the ship, a nice long “runway” of holographic vectoring lights led to the ship’s docking ring. They were dynamic; a radar unit detected incoming vessels’ approach and speed and indicated appropriate correcting maneuvers.

Convincing Commander Knope to lower the shields to allow docking was more difficult, and involved some yelling. But she was convinced. And if Lt. Ray’s grin looked a little feral, well, the man always looked a little feral. Who went for blood-blue bodypaint, anyway?

Faira shuttle
“Admiral! You’re not serious about going yourself?” Sola’s 2IC exclaimed as they walked towards the transport that would take them to the shuttle. “Dead serious. They’re scientists, what could they do? Iven if they had small arms, we’d be able to get out of there and our suits are EVA-worthy. Hold the fort, and wait for me to come back. Remember your standing order - they try to leave, stop them. That goes double for when we’re on board.” the admiral decided and put on her helmet, sealing the suit with a hiss.

They boarded the shuttle and swiftly left the hangar. Sola had to admit that it was impossible to miss where they were supposed to go - the lightshow was quite impressive. Their holos were definitely years ahead of them - the Faira had trouble creating fields this big.

The inside of the ship looked as fancy as the rest of it. The camera feeds they hacked into didn’t really do it justice. It needed a lot more red though. “Conditions?” Sola asked one of her guards who accessed the shuttle’s sensors. ”Somewhat breathable atmosphere, slightly higher gravity. Cold, but not colder than where we’ve gone before. We can go helmet-off.” Shaking her head, Sola denied that: “Not yet. Let’s make sure they won’t blow our heads off first.”

The airlock on the shuttle cycled and opened with a hiss, and the admiral walked out bracketed by her four guards, looking for someone who looked like they were supposed to meet them.

Minutes ago, Dr. Clavius had been trying to jerry-rig the toxins lab's isolation chamber into a xeno environment room. Dr. Romanova had been singularly unhelpful, claiming to be busy with something "important" involving her husband. What could be more important than meeting a friendly new species! Then he'd had to go, barely remembering to grab something blue to offer them as a gift. Just in case.

In Arrivals, three red-suited security personnel met him at the internal airlock. They were armed with electric stun pistols, rarely used on unruly scientists. Two were female, as Tycho had insisted. One had violently pink hair; one was a daring natural black. Body paint was, of course, quite colorful, but all of them had blue displayed somewhere prominent. Just in case. Tycho had outlined the veins on his hands. There was also a dense cloud of microdrones. He caught himself looking for, and finding, his loyal green viewer.

The airlock chimed, and the gas meter display indicated standard pressure. The airlock opened with a satisfying hiss, carefully piped from well-hidden speakers.

"Welcome to Discovery One, guest. Continue toward to the security checkpoint. An official will meet-" the computer said. Dr. Clavius quietly pressed the door's mute button before the computer went on about a giftshop that didn't exist. The xenos were standing outside their gray shuttle. What was with them and the color gray?

Tycho fumbled in his lab coat for the two slates he'd uploaded Dr. Romanova's translation program to. He tapped out a message before handing one to the center xeno.

Hello. Accept this as gift. Contains translation routine. Interface a bit sparse, rushed job. No idea how to arrange keys, sorry. Basic tutorial upper left icon. More gifts soon, then my name, then follow to environment room.

Tycho grabbed the two blue cups, pens, magnet and silicone board back from the sec guards and handed it to the xenos. He pointed at himself, and said, "Tycho." Then he waited to see if the xenos had something to say.

Nodding and grabbing the offered computer, one of the guards flicked her wrist control panel open and tapped a few keys. A small holo flashed to life in front of her, showing the progress of loading the data from the device.

A beep annéounced the end of the procedure, and the guard nodded to Sola who now stepped forward. “Thank you for inviting us, Tycho. I am Fleet Admiral Sola of the Faira. We bring greetings from the Nebula. We have had difficulty translating your language, but with the data you provided we were able to complete the database. Our suits have built-in audio that will translate for us, so feel free to use your native tongue. If something becomes unclear, we will ask. Please, lead the way.” sola said, the reproductors on her suit delivering in a thickly dialected, but recognizable Khasi.

The people at least seemed the right size, being about as tall as the Faira and the preferred size of RLC’s mobile hardware. From the reports she got, the sinnsyk were the exception with their midget size. What interested her most was the green skin - a color that was virtually nonexistent on the former Homeworld and thus overall in the Faira design. The only use for the color they had was the highest grade of alarm.

they were lead into what looked like hastily refurbished chamber, and yet still it looked more comfortable than any room on the Nyxa. Just how vain could they get with the design? Sola was unable to stop herself from scrutinizing every detail she could lay her violet eyes on

^{Security Office}
Security was empty. There weren't even any microdrones. Most of those were busy ogling at the aliens. In Lt. Ray's office, CE Nedry pointed to a looping snake of flashing red code on the console. It was gradually working its way through a complex 3D maze.

"There it is," he said to Dr. Romanova, Lt. Ray, and the Captain.
"We've copied my experimental multichromatic phase inducer routine into the main computer. It should be a while before that thing can analyze the routine," Natasha said.
"But it will analyze it. Isn't that an experimental weapons routine?" Needlemeier asked.
"They could be making their lasers multicolored right now," Lt. Ray said sarcastically.
"Actually, it doesn't even work. It needed too much processing power; the code wasn't optimized."
"How much did they get?" Needlemeier asked.
"Well," Nedry said, "as you know, they already got the microdrone feeds. After that, Tr'tza knows. I've got a team going through the telecomms logs now. But-"
"The real problem," his wife interrupted, "is what they destroyed. I double-checked the Research servers. All our nebula data is gone."
"Now can I arrest their xeno butts?" Lt. Ray asked.
"How long until it figures out the routine?" Needlemeier asked.
“Could be an hour, if it's rate of progress doesn't change. Maybe 30 minutes," Nedry said.

They were a research ship. They weren't equipped for electronic warfare. The Captain glanced at the clock. 10 minutes before they could translate.

"Not yet," he said to Ray. "Natasha. I want you to personally prepare a distress signal to Space Fleet. Do not send it until my order. Further, set the computer to inform us the moment it breaches containment. Nedry, stand by to cut power to telecomms and get us the hell out of here. Ray, get your people ready. Discreetly. I'm going to inform Dr. Clavius. Protocol requires it."

^{Environment Chamber}
Tycho was impressed. He had no idea how they'd managed to go from text to spoken language so quickly. Nor how they'd figured out an adapter for their interface ports. He sat down at the conference table, shooing out most of the drones. They could watch from the window. One sec guard took up station discretely in the room, the other two stood outside. Maybe they'd get more than art techniques from this agreement. Maybe he could make a name for himself. Maybe that cloud out the observation window would stick around. He glanced at the lone green microdrone he'd let into the room. He hadn't had the heart to shoo it out, too. He wondered how many people were watching that stream right now.

Gifts, check. Greetings, check. Next was... diplomatic relations.

"We'd like to establish greater rapport. Maybe even diplomatic relations, perhaps an exchange of artists or some form of trade," he said. His commlink buzzed. Needleier, probably finally off break and ready to yell at him. He was in the middle of first contact. It could wait.

“We would prefer that as well.” the admiral agreed, tapping her comms and sending a short message back to the Nyxa. “As a gesture of goodwill I have ordered mys hip to stop scanning your vessel and worming your computers. We have however relieved you of all data on the nebula. I hope you understand, but until we know who we are dealing with, we can not agree to have you poking around one of our systems for security reasons. If there is any damage to your hardware, we will reimburse you, of course.” she apologized.

If they were looking, the bridge crew would be able to see the Nyxa breaking off before pulling to a halt on a parallel course, flying in formation with the Khasi ship, it’s shields dropping. The weapons stayed on though, still pointing ominously on the science ship’s engine cluster.

“If I may inquire, I have already introduced our kind. What do we call your people?” the admiral begun, hoping to get some cultural bearings before any discussion developed. Experience with other contacts said that was a good way to avoid a faux-pas.

"Um," Tycho said. They'd done what!? Different races, different perspectives different customs. Rule number one of xenodiplomacy. He bit back his anger.
"That perhaps wasn't the best start," he said. "In the interest of peace I'll overlook it. However, in the future, know that we consider such electronic intrusion - especially against a defenseless research ship - a hostile act."

Captain Needlemeier, watching through the microdrone since the idiot hadn't picked up his commlink, grudgingly stopped his preparations. Well, all save for having security personnel on standby.

"Anyway, we're called the Khasi. Our nation is known as Eastwing after the capital building. Over 150 seasons of very entertaining politics. Well. Entertaining to some. I've always been more of a Space Force fan myself. Protocol says that I should inform you, as part of our cultural heritage, hold on, what was it?" He glanced down at his slate of hastily-written notes. "It's not a big deal, pretty standard-ah! 'We are a nation whose primary source of entertainment is reality. You should be informed that hundreds if not thousands of our people are watching this moment through our microdrone cameras. This is not a spy network; if you feel uncomfortable, please inform us and we will desist viewing you.'"

“I would have prefered different approach, but I am sure your nation also has secrets they do not wish others to know. Please understand our position - a small, hardly detectable ship sending probes into our territory? Do not tell me you wouldn’t be alarmed if that was happening on your borders. However, we have no hostile intent and it is our hope we will not need to resort to such measured in the future.” Sola said, mixing a reassurance and a warning to her words.

She was a bit bewildered at the thought of a whole culture based around having fun. The universe was weirder with every discovery the Faira made outside of their little star cluster. Perhaps they should just stay home. That was why Sola didn’t mind at all being the admiral of the Defender fleet. The Nebula suited her just fine.

At the mention of the feeds, she squirmed a little. Great, she just notified everyone that they molested their computers on reality TV. This day was fantastic!

Deciding to reciprocate in the same manner, she shared that their recorded history reached 355 years ago, wondering whether they would make the connection to the Supernova. All their records were lost with their home, albeit most of their history was a struggle to escape the impending doom.

“We’re explorers and inventors, looking for other cultures to trade with. I don’t know whether we can satisfy your lust for artists, but I believe our engineers would be interested in talking further. If you wish, we will also introduce you to our other contacts. We have a ship stationed in one of our system that serves as a diplomatic hub between us, should you wish to send an envoy there.” she offered. It was painfully obvious Sola didn’t catch on much to her diplomatic training, her words flowing just as the thoughts came.

Dr. Clavius hadn’t thought about the xeno’s ability to introduce Eastwing to other xenos. It was painfully obvious, in hindsight. He wasn’t sure what the distinguishment between artists and engineers was. Engineering had always been a subset of art for the Khasi. Oh, sure, sometimes you just had to design an automated cannery, but even then, there was an approach to it - some canneries felt more cannery-like than others. Or perhaps you wanted to be ironic and make a cannery feel like a fishery. There wasn’t much wiggle room with canneries. There was a lot of wiggle room with starships.

“I can safely say that we’d be interested in meeting your contacts. We ought to be able to reciprocate. For the diplomatic hub, if you give us the coordinates, I’m certain my government would be interested. Unless,” Tycho added, ”you’re particularly sensitive to its location. Similarly, if you were interested, we may be able to grant you the land - or space, if you prefer - for an embassy. At this point, I suggest we break and contact our respective governments. I imagine that some form of treaty will follow, once the bureaucrats write enough words. In the meantime, you’re welcome to stay aboard the Discovery One. I think the Captain could find quarters for your party if you wish, and I could get a few selected Eastwing video feeds while we wait.”

“I appreciate the offer, however I am afraid our duties lie here. We will transmit the coordinates once I am aboard my ship. You are welcome there any time. We can discuss treaties and introduce others there. Until we meet again then.” Sola said, and the quintet of Faira gave them their salutes.

One shuttle ride over, Cygnus had the techs transmit data to the Exodus system and Exodus Juno. As a token of goodwill, she also had data on the composition of the Nebula and reading of the neutron star that remained of their star included so that discovery One’s scientific mission wouldn’t be in vain. Promptly the Nyxa departed the area, but the fleet continued monitoring the outskirts of the Nebula to the best of their abilities for some time afterwards.

Machina system, Faira Hexus
@White Feather, @HounderHowl

“Chancellor!” Captain Libra called over the hallway when spotting the tiny Sinnsyk. “I have received new orders. The ship is to move to one of our uninhabited systems. I am to tell you that we have been contacted by yet another species, and in order to allow them to come here for talks we need to move out of the RLC’s home system because until we know more about them, we do not wish to grant them that knowledge. Please notify your people of that.”

She left right after and headed to the bridge to send a similar message to the RLC and order the helm to proceed.

Innes gave a mock salute to Libra upon receiving the message and yelled back "Gotcha!" before making her way to her room. In the relative privacy of the room, she set about getting a link back to Dun Ara to tell the Patriarch the news.

Weyss did not look surprised when Innes told him what was happening. In fact, he seemed to have seen this coming. He sat back in his chair and rubbed his chin, thinking carefully. Innes knew better than to disturb him when he was like this - he was clearly trying to add everything up in his head and decide the best course of action.

"This is an interesting development." He began, choosing his words cautiously "They haven't told you to leave, so my assumption would be that they don't mind you coming along."

"Should I? I mean, they said they could take me home if I needed to and I don't want to get in the way..."

"I think it would be a good idea for you to stay with them for now. It is unlikely these newcomers are going to be openly hostile and to attack you whilst in the company of others would be out of the question. This also allows us to meet another nation without having to devote any probes or new ambassadors."

"So what's the plan?"

"You will remain as a conduit for Paardveid to the Faira, but now you will have to present us to this new race as well. This is a big task, Innes and I have no objections if you need someone to accompany you..."

Innes waved away the concern "It shouldn't be a problem. Anyway, it will be nice to meet someone who I can address by name for once."

"Alright. I'll inform the Council. Anything else to report?"

"Not yet."

"Alright. Contact me after you've met the new race." And with that, the call ended.

Z-81 still had the larger ship on the edge of scanner range and it still wasn't responding probably because they probably couldn't pick up their transmissions. Maybe they were to weak or they might be completely incompatible. Still though they had received a message from the smaller ship in the area but they couldn't understand them they were trying to decider the language with the same computer algorithm they had used to decrypt The Invaders language. However they would need more so they could translate it. Captain Varra sat pondering what to do then she made a judgement call "let's deal with the small ship first send them a message telling them to enter the hanger send it in our language but also show them a visual representation of what we want them to do. Have the shuttle guide them in from the front and keep the fighters on its tail just behind". "Message sent captain what now" Commander Dix asked? "We are going to head down to the hanger in full suit and have a several guards meet us done their lets give are guests a show of force" Varra said with a smile on her face.

Inside the hanger of Z-81 soldiers stood guard at the doors and on the catwalks. Captain Varra was standing in front of the hangers main door way with a computer terminal in hand which contained instructions on what to do incase of alien contact. Before Varra had left the bridge she had ordered comms to send a message to be sent home so the higher ups could advise them on how to proceed. Varra and her crew were all on edge as the only alien race that had been encountered before this just wanted them all dead. Hopefully these aliens would be more friendly. Varra and her crew put on their helmets as the hanger depressurised and the doors opened to allow their guests to enter.

Amar Cenadi
200 km from capital

It was a dark, cold and rainy day in the city. In the days of modern man, such weather was characteristic of a violent and life-threatening cyclone; in the age of future technology, this was just another negligible storm, and not even an occurrence severe enough to halt launches. Of course, other catastrophes take place when others fade to insignificance. Such as meteor impacts, or barbarian invasions. Osteros Madus, his arms pressed against his sides in an effort to slide through dozens of crewmen, slipped through the iron doors of the Ceco's cockpit.

The room smelt of grilled Mardijas, with hints of Cabac mead mixed in. Even for a room simply designed to navigate the corvette, there were a few pieces of art and decoration stuck around; some were built-in as part of the classic Canzanese design, others were later installed by the crew. Such example is a colored painting in the center of the rain-soaked windows, tacked to the partition. On it was the face of an Adarro male in his 70's, with a glimmering blue exoskeleton and ruggedly handsome features on the face underneath, known to the general populace as the incumbent Emperor Cadacasus. Another were the murals at the edges of the semicircular ceiling, with depictions of Escerianic scenes on the far left, Qasteric scenes on the far right, and general Canzanese and Maratigal historical events at the center. Interestingly, the exterior of the ship-- and most ships of the Empire in general, seems to be void of any decoration and follow simple, minimal designs.

Activity was hectic. If one could understand all the jargon being thrown about, most of the talk was all about a pre-colonization reconnaissance mission, or to make it simple, checking a planet if it has everything the telescope-slash-spectrometers said about it. If the instruments said that a certain planet had high concentrations of iron and rests on the habitable zone, but the mission denies it, then they could simply look elsewhere. Otherwise, without a mission, time and resources are wasted on making dozens of colony ships return-- just one fuel-efficient recon ship going there and back here is enough.

Osteros descended slowly down the steps to meet with his brother up front, taking a bottle of mead from a crewman that immediately took the initiative to serve him along the way. Cemau Madus, able to hear Osteros' treads approaching closer among the sea of noise, raised his left hand in a welcoming gesture. The Corator, after sitting down and taking a quick swig of a Cabac, sensing the burst of bittersweet flavors swirling and gushing in his mouth, leaned to his side towards his brother. (Neither of them are heirs to the throne.)

"You know..." Osteros said.

"Yes, yes, I know what you're talking about." replied Cemau, "Qadem ain't a very nice fellow, and you don't like him."

"No, that's not what-" said Osteros.

"Outsiders, sure. You've been talking about them for the last... three years. The heir you keep griping about how you don't like him for like, five. Calm down. We don't even know if they're real yet. Besides, we'll just speed away if we ever saw one, because all they speak is good old gibberish, and we haven't even figured out the art of breaking language barriers fast."

"Ugh." Osteros groaned. "You have no sense of caution."

"And you're pessimistic. But enough of that, we're about to do the job."

"Wait, I-"

The room trembled and shook, and the heart of the engines raced as the ship began its vertical ascent to the grey skies. Immediately the remaining few crewmen who forgot to sit beforehand sat and buckled up, trying to secure themselves before the Ceco would suddenly thrust itself forward, upward and away from the skies of Maratigal, dropping raindrops from its hull. The ship then stopped again to adjust its position, calculate, prepare and engage its warp, and in the blink of an eye the Ceco was no more from the vicinity of the world.