Free Carinae Sector: 01 - Traders' Scourge - Part 2 - Maveen Offer by David Buck Page A

research destroyer from the human television station with avid interest. The Barus commander had postponed any decision to leave and summon a fleet as she required additional information. She watched as an obviously important human leader was talking at length about installing a quarantine zone around the islands, as well as revealing information about a couple of surface ships in the vicinity.
    Her understanding of English was improving steadily, however she still had to concentrate to understand the full message that the humans stating. They certainly did have a preoccupation with news information, and Gindane wondered if there was any significance in that fact either.
     
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    Garendestat, still feeling defeated, was exhausted from his earlier outburst. He needed to get out of the rest of his space suit as his legs were also now very itchy. He had noted that humans wore clothes, so at least they also had that in common with the Traders. He then slowly stood and pulled at length of canvas that lay nearby on one of the forward benches. Steve turned to look at him questioningly as he wrapped the canvas around his hips. A couple of short pieces of rope then secured the canvas around Garendestat’s middle.
    Garendestat then tapped specific slots on the keypad of his space suit and the now familiar sound of the suit collars opening was heard by Steve. The bottom of the suit separated into a pants section, two lower leg sections with the knee joint, and two suit shoes.
    Garendestat felt an increase in pain and itching as he took off all the lower sections of his spacesuit. He looked down at his legs and noticed that a myriad of red spots of varying sizes were present. From some of the spots a white growth was evident, and he resisted the urge to scratch the infection sites.
    Steve gave Garendestat the privacy he needed as he got out of the rest of his space suit. The alien was definitely male, but different in that area for both plan and scale to humans. Then he noticed the large number of red sores on Garendestat’s massive legs.
    Garendestat, ungainly in his canvas wrap, sat down again on the deck and pointed at the red sores on his leg. Perhaps unnecessarily he spoke again.
    ‘Danger, Steve, Danger.’
    Steve quickly sent a message for Samantha and Rebecca to return to the rear deck to check out the illness now evident on the alien’s legs. The red sores reminded him of something, and he also asked Dan to come down again and look at Garendestat as well.
     
                                                                ***
     
    Probe three and probe two patiently followed the ancient matriarch as she approached her facilities along an immense line of underwater ridges. As the two Maveen probes entered the facility they could suddenly detect massive cloaked structures after they passed the boundaries of an enormous suppression shield encompassing the whole facility. The base included a fuel production plant, hull fabrication plant and a general outfitting plant for shields and weapons. The two first structures appeared to be full or nearly complete in their build lists. The general outfitting plant appeared to be running below capacity, and both the limited weapons and shields stored appeared to be of only adequate quality.
    Angwene led the two probes over to an object nesting in a makeshift cradle nearby. Probe three would have given a gasp of surprise if it possessed lungs and a voice. For in the cradle lay a Maveen probe of great antiquity. Probe three felt emotions of both trepidation and awe, as the Maveen were programmed to revere old probes for both their experience and leadership. Queen Angwene then brusquely spoke to Probe three.
    ‘It is here we have our reward for you. So can you verify the cargo in the Trader hold, especially the