Carinae Sector: 02 - Admiral's Fury - Part 3 - Fleet Action (20 page)

Eliarhee felt that the Trader captain was acting very much like a senior vassal of the despised Zronte, but she had too much common sense to state as such. The Trader actually had a point and she knew he was entirely accurate in his misgivings about the Dradfer’s presence in the Carinae sector. Never mind that her long dead ancestors had nearly pulled off the impossible, and had all but broken the vile and ancient biological bond holding the Vorinne in thrall to the foul Zronte.

Eliarhee noted that Narindestat was looking at her critically as he awaited a response to his last direct statements. The lead Dradfer researcher looked around for a long moment at her fellow researchers and then gave way to the Trader’s full demands.

‘Captain Narindestat, on behalf of the Dradfer I will advise you that we will give away any and all claims to the new colony worlds in favour of the Traders. We also accept in full the conditions you impose upon us for trade, while leaving the door open for any special future projects you wish us to assist you with resolving. Note that after this meeting we will not speak with the humans again unless a Trader is also present.’

Narindestat was elated at the outcome and he knew that this news would be well received at the Captain’s table on Barede. He now adopted a much more genial tone as he replied.

‘Thank you Researcher Eliarhee, and on behalf of my race we consider ourselves in agreement, and we are happy that the issue of the colonies is resolved in our favour. Rest assured we will seek to trade with the Dradfer in vigorous manner and your race will benefit greatly over an extended period.’

Eliarhee looked over at the silent Maveen probe, undoubtedly listening to every world, and silently thought ‘If only you knew Narindestat you would reconsider your race’s renewed interest in the other races in this galaxy.’ However, she had made a series of promises earlier to the Maveen, and she had to keep resolutely quiet as the loss of eight potential colony worlds still chaffed her. Narindestat stayed with the Dradfer for a polite but quick meal before excusing himself with a perfectly reasonable excuse.

‘I must now go and inform my ship of our agreement and the fact that we now have rights to the eight colony planets of the Fulcrum cluster. We will travel back directly to the Barede system, and we will not again speak with the Altoran or the Dradfer until I can return in another battle cruiser.’

The Trader gave single full bow of courtesy to both the Dradfer and the junior Altoran observers, and then walked off briskly back to his landed sneak ship. After several minutes the Trader sneak ship then slowly backed out of the large hangar and made for the Resuria. The other Dradfer researchers also left as the meeting was over, and one of them took the drinking glass that the Trader captain had used. Eliarhee still felt very annoyed, and glared at the Altoran observers, who took the hint and quickly also left for their own ships. She was concerned at the outcome of the intense meeting and now turned her attention to the nearby and still silent Maveen probe.

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The Dradfer probe, so named as he had long ago spent years working with the Dradfer, took in the silent regard of Eliarhee and waited politely for her to speak. He was quietly delighted with the result and he predicted that he would soon be heading home to report the outcome of the meetings. The probe noted the now subdued skin markings of the Dradfer as she finally spoke at length.

‘Well Maveen I trust you are satisfied with us sundering our claim for the eight colonies. We at no time mentioned the presence of the ancients, the precious last of Kariqua, still on Earth so this vital secret is safe with us. We do insist that you take this research base back to the Crux sector and within fifty years supply sixteen suitable worlds near Denvian space, also in the Crux sector. I will later explain this agreement to the Narra, but I foresee no major problems.’

The Dradfer probe kept his response polite, but with a warning as he replied.

‘We will honour our agreement and I will leave shortly to begin the process. We are considering your additional covert request to help the Denvian and we will reply at a later stage. Also you will refrain from sampling any of the genetics from the Traders as this could lead to further problems.’

Eliarhee gave another skin colour change, this time of exasperation, as the presence and lectures of the Maveen probe were starting to goad her, so she wasted no time excusing the obdurate probe after finally losing her temper.

‘Well then you better leave here and get on with it!’

The Dradfer researcher stood back several metres as the Maveen probe lifted off and then left the research facility. She was secretly delighted with the outcome of the negotiations for she knew that the question of access to the humans would be later approached from a different angle. The drink glass used by the Trader would be microscopically analysed and she felt that the findings would be crucial. Already her hidden biology scanners had indicated that Trader biology had been altered subtlety, and that this change had occurred relatively recently as well.

The Dradfer probe ignored the larger Trader ship and flew off towards his two gate ships some distance away. The Maveen was also secretly delighted at the outcome for he had confirmed that the Dradfer had directly aided the ancients so long ago. The Dradfer would also keep this fact secret for the short interval needed for the renewal to occur.

The probe knew he would shortly spirit away the Quixxe refuge world to another part of the galaxy well away from the Altoran. He also felt relieved that the Traders now had both the belief and the actual worlds to begin to rebuild their long lost and once glorious civilisation. The old question of the interaction between humans and the Dradfer was now understood, the Maveen in turn now kept a vital Dradfer secret from the Traders, the humans especially, and the other races of the Carinae sector.

The senior Maveen probe detected the return of the Emerald Sky with her tankers, and he then gave another order that would see the Traders and the humans shortly return to Barede. Two small groups of Maveen ships powered away in different directions as the Emerald Sky headed over to meet with the Resuria.

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Grant Stoneham led Gayle and Olav down onto the hangar deck of the Resuria after coming across in a shuttle. Earlier he had been alarmed at the severe battle damage apparent as he prepared to come across to the larger Trader ship. He now gave both Narindestat and Garendestat warm smiles and full bows of greeting that had been returned by both the larger male Traders. Grant noted the jovial nature of the Traders and Garendestat soon provided the explanation.

‘The Dradfer have ceded the Fulcrum cluster to us and we will no doubt be founding colonies at a later stage.’

Grant warmly congratulated the Traders on their success, but had then noted that Narindestat obviously wanted to talk privately with him. Grant reported on the quick surveys that his crew had done on several of the worlds and that the information the Maveen had already provided was correct. Narindestat had then thanked Grant and his companions as further refreshments were handed out all around.

Captain Narindestat had later taken Grant to one side at the earliest opportunity, and after taking seat across a large table, Grant had finally learnt of the full nature of Narindestat’s mission into the inner parts of the galaxy. The meeting with the Cephrit was discussed and Grant was relieved that Narindestat’s mission to visit them reassured the Cephrit. The Barede Special Forces units were also mentioned, and Grant was amused for a moment by the fact that the Barede military had managed to stow away on the Resuria for an extended period.

Captain Narindestat then became sombre, as he informed Grant of the savage space battle the Resuria had fought with the eight Fenshilla cruisers. The death toll of the Traders, and the losses of humans, both from Earth and Barede, angered Grant and he made a terse observation.

‘So I trust that Earth survives for we will both have reason to seek out this Fenshilla race and punish them for their savagery.’

Narindestat could make no answer on the question of human survival on distant Earth, so instead moved onto the second part of his mission. Trader and human soon concurred in their assessments of the Huopheen as straightforward, the Quixxe as unfortunate, and both the Dradfer and the Altoran as needing to be carefully watched.

Narindestat now moved on to the details of the recent meeting with the Dradfer.

‘Grant we only will permit limited access with the Dradfer at our new colonies, so they get no mining and no research permits from us. In addition, I will insist that all humans only have limited access to out colonies and no access at all to the Dradfer. Only we will trade directly with the Altoran and the Dradfer. Also we will keep the secret of the Quixxe refuge world even after the Maveen move it to safety.’

Grant was actually relieved that he and his crew would not have to interact again with the Dradfer and he advised Narindestat about his misgivings about them. Narindestat absently rubbed the paint off one of his cheek tattoos as he thought about this revelation. He looked at the paint on his fingers and swore softly in Trader, as Grant wondered what suddenly afflicted the Trader captain.

Narindestat told him of the Dradfer and their deviousness biological technology and Grant made a pithy comment.

‘Well it looks like your tattoo illness may become more widely known and hopefully it causes no problems for a long time.’

Narindestat could only agree with his human protégé and they soon rejoined the others now celebrating on the hangar deck of the Resuria. After several hours, Grant took Gayle and Olav back to the Emerald Sky, and they quickly prepared to leave for Barede as the Maveen probe now returned with several more gate ships.

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Chapter 10

Vufora rustled her loose fitting but simple floral wrap, flushed for a moment in longing and embarrassment, and then sought to get comfortable. Her ship slowly cleared the last Narra hyper gate and set course for an enormous structure orbiting a nearby red star. Vufora’s Drafter master Eliarhee, with an important message for the Narra, had sent the Denvian aide away to deliver it personally. The journey had taken weeks to complete after her master had been in a discrete meeting with the mysterious machine race, the Maveen.

During the clandestine meeting, the Maveen probe had looked at Vufora and her assistants for an extended period before speaking in an obscure language with her beloved master. Eliarhee had displayed both shock and surprise, before promptly ordered all Denvian to leave the base and stay well away from the Carinae sector border.

Eliarhee had then sent Vufora off in her ship on a long trip to the centre of the Crux sector. Vufora had felt initially that her master was trying to get rid of her for some reason, but she could not understand why this would be necessary.

Vufora ignored the younger females nearby for a moment, including three of her youngest daughters. The females all tended to her or awaited her instructions, though her daughters looked bored with all the recent space travel. She looked wistfully at one of the three younger and much lower ranked males guarding her, and she wished they were high born not planet born servants. That did not stop her looking and the tallest guard gave her a secret quick smile that she relished as he gleaned some of her thoughts.

The Denvian felt like male company, but the formal and informal favours of the planet born and genetically average were expressly forbidden for someone of her high rank and status. The strong social restriction applied even to casual relationships with the planet born as she did not have unlimited breeding rights. She was suffering emotionally as her last formal mating with a highborn male was now months ago. It had been difficult to mate with the bed ridden male, despite his excellent telepathic manner.

Vufora later discovered that the male was nearly sterile in any case, so her heart still ached for offspring and her body ached for a male. She now reassured her youngest daughters after she had first made sure her important report was ready to be submitted to the Narra.

‘Rest here my precious daughters and I will return as soon as I am able. Hopefully we will return to our beloved master before too long.’

Rheama, the oldest of the girls at fifteen, gave her a delightful bow that enchanted Vufora as she replied.

‘Mother we will await your reply and your orders. I will ensure the two youngest continue studying your latest tests.’

Vufora sent a mental picture of love and forbearance at her three daughters, and got images of love and flowers in return. She felt great pride in her daughters, but she desperately wished she had a highborn son that had lived past birth. Vufora longed for the impossible, a highborn or space born male that was young, also telepathic, vigorous and could impregnate her. She really wanted many male offspring and they all had to survive and not die like so many highborn males she had conceived over countless years of trying. The fact that she knew that her reproductive longing was a so-called enhancement by the Dradfer to ensure her species survival did nothing to reassure her.

Long ago, the Dradfer had secretly taken her ancestors from their ancient home and the race later had developed into the highborn leaders and engineers, and planet born workers. Unfortunately, while telepathy was welcome trait of the highborn, but the assorted physical disabilities were most definitely not.

The Dradfer had only taken three thousand Denvian individuals from an isolated corner of the planet. Therefore, Vufora knew that her race suffered badly from a limited gene pool and that in only a few thousand years the Denvian would likely become extinct.

The Denvian aide turned her attention back to the large space base of the Narra they were approaching. The base was only a small one by Narra standards, the size of a small moon, but it was the residence of High Lord Tenviam, the senior lord in this part of the Crux sector. Vufora took her small personal shuttle over to report to the Narra, and by custom she was only wearing her skin and carrying her latest data tablet. She critically looked over herself in a mirror as the shuttle made the short journey.