Carinae Sector: 02 - Admiral's Fury - Part 3 - Fleet Action by David Buck Page B

teeth grin to appear both disinterested and aggressive over the video link to the Jerecab admiral. The captain then merely offered a curt reply in response, as he knew his lack of civility would offend the protocol conscious Jerecab admiral.
    ‘You cannot destroy what you cannot catch admiral. You should leave this haven star system immediately before our reinforcements arrive here. Note that active scans and the use of mines in this system contravene galactic edicts.’
    The Jerecab admiral screeched in rage and now charged at the view screen yelling loudly. Captain Omerio merely shook his head in disbelief and waited for the admiral to stop ranting away. After several minutes the Barus captain merely repeated his claim for the admiral to remove his armada from the solar system. The view screen went blank in response and Omerio turned stonily to Tamerio to ask a brief question.
    ‘So we have a recording of the admirals’ refusal to listen to reason?’
    Tamerio answered that they had recorded the conversation and Omerio went back to his command chair to think about the further lives that would soon be lost. Tamerio then sent a copy of the recent video conversation off to Gindane as a matter of form. Omerio later noted that the Jerecab gave a half hearted attempt at following his squadron into deep space with a section of sixty frigates, but they soon abandoned the pursuit and rejoined the rest of the armada.
     
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    Captain Narindestat walked down the rear ramp of sneak ship three and noted the landed form of the nearby Maveen probe. The Trader crossed the white sand of the beach towards the probe and was reminded briefly of his own landing on distant Earth so long ago. Those he was about to meet were very different from humans and he wondered how their earlier meeting had progressed. The probe, the ranking Maveen probe with him, was actually the Dradfer probe that unknown to the Traders had been secretly recovered from Earth during the Trader landing and later heavily repaired.
    Narindestat did know though that the sector delegate must have recently swapped missions with the Dradfer probe, however the reasons were something he could only speculate upon. The black Maveen probe in question opened its blue vision strip and patiently watched the Trader captain approach.
    The Dradfer probe then referenced the secret message suppled earlier by the sector delegate before it finally spoke.
    ‘The humans have been the catalyst for a peaceful reformation amongst the Huopheen. The two major clans are now allies by an arranged marriage and welcome the other tribes in a loss knit federation. You are to ensure that this process continues and you are to also reassure the Huopheen that they will be protected from the vassals.’
    Narindestat snorted in disgust at the presumptuous nature of the Maveen probe, but he elected to give a civil answer and then a question.
    ‘I will not argue with you when the Huopheen are due shortly. Our forebears helped you hide the Huopheen in secret so long ago and we then stayed away to help them hide. Rest assured I will seek to maintain Grant’s good work here and to get your reassurance across to them. So you are stating that this system is now under the protection of the Maveen?’
    Narindestat was actually hoping to hold the Maveen down to a fixed answer, but the probe gave no answer and the Trader captain fumed in annoyance. Obviously the defence of this system was considered to be strategically high in value and possibly the Maveen probe did not have the authority to commit to an answer.
    Narindestat was about to chide the Maveen probe for an answer, but he was distracted as he realised that several large forms were slowly emerging from the nearby water. The Trader knew what a Huopheen looked like of course, but he knew that the last meetings between them