Chapter 749: Business and a Distress Signal
Valerie took the seat opposite him.
She placed her water glass on the table and folded her hands in her lap, her posture relaxed yet professionally upright.
The two remained silent for a moment. The low hum of conversation and soft background music in the bar filled the void.
"Your people settled in?" Raynor spoke first, his tone casual.
"Yes. Some are performing maintenance on the aircraft, others are resting," Valerie replied. "Thank you for providing the temporary accommodations."
"Mutual benefit." Raynor took a sip of his drink. "Your people performed exceptionally well today. Without your fire support, we might not have gotten out so easily."
"We merely fulfilled the terms of our contract," Valerie said calmly. "Furthermore, observing the Swarm threat at close range is crucial for our sector risk assessment."
Raynor looked into her eyes, seemingly evaluating the truthfulness of her words. "How much do you know about the bugs?"
"Only limited to observation data and preliminary analysis," Valerie skillfully dodged the specifics. "But seeing them with my own eyes today confirmed that they are a highly organized, extremely aggressive biological threat. The speed at which Mar Sara fell... was beyond conventional bounds."
Raynor's face darkened.
"Yeah. This isn't the first time. Every time they show up, it means the end of a world." He swirled the liquor in his glass. "Those bastards in the Dominion, they only care about fighting for power and profit. They don't give a damn about the lives of civilians."
Valerie didn't reply, simply listening quietly.
After a while, she asked, "Mr. Raynor, what are your plans next?"
Raynor set down his glass and leaned back in his chair.
"First, offload the 'goods' we have on hand." He jutted his chin toward the entrance of the bar. "The buyer Tychus contacted. Hand it over, get paid, and then see what else can be done."
"Regarding that 'Artifact fragment'," Valerie's voice was steady, her gaze directly on Raynor, "'Far Star United' is very interested in it. If the price is right, we are willing to purchase it."
Raynor raised an eyebrow, seemingly a bit surprised. "Oh? Your company is interested in antiques too?"
"Not entirely an antique," Valerie explained. "The energy signature emitted by that object is unique, unlike any technology we know of. Studying it will help us gain a deeper understanding of the Koprulu Sector's history, potential technological heritage, and possible risks. This is very important for our evaluation of long-term investment value."
She paused slightly, adding, "We can offer a price higher than your current buyer's quote. And the transaction can be completed immediately, without complex handover procedures."
Raynor fell silent for a few seconds, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table.
He appeared to be seriously considering the proposal.
Ultimately, he shook his head.
"I appreciate your interest, Miss Valerie. But Tychus and I already have a prior agreement with the buyer. While I'm no saint, I still hold to basic business ethics. Breaking a contract isn't my style."
Valerie nodded, her face showing no disappointment or persistence.
"I understand. Respecting the spirit of a contract is the foundation of commercial cooperation." She picked up her water glass and took a sip. "Then, after your transaction is complete, would it be possible for us to obtain some research data from the buyer? Or, if there are similar discoveries in the future, 'Far Star United' would like the right of first refusal."
Raynor smiled, a tired cynicism in his expression. "I can consider that. We can talk again after this deal is done."
Just then, the communicator on Raynor's wrist suddenly let out an urgent alert.
Simultaneously, Matt Horner's voice came through the bar's public address system: "Commander Raynor, please report to the bridge immediately. We've received an emergency transmission."
Raynor's expression instantly turned serious.
He stood up immediately, saying to Valerie, "Excuse me."
Valerie also stood up.
"May I come along? It might be relevant to the risk assessment."
Raynor looked at her and nodded. "Come on."
The two quickly left the bar and hurried down the corridor toward the bridge.
The atmosphere on the bridge was tense. A star map was displayed on the main screen, with a cursor flashing constantly at a specific star system.
Matt Horner stood at the command console, his brow deeply furrowed. Several operators were rapidly processing data streams.
Raynor and Valerie walked onto the bridge. "What's the situation, Matt?"
"A distress signal just received, Jim." Matt pulled up the communication log. "From the Agria colony. The sender is Dr. Ariel Hanson, the colony's chief scientist."
He played the recording.
An anxious but trying-to-stay-calm female voice came from the speakers: "This is the Agria colony, I am Dr. Ariel Hanson. We are under a massive attack by the Zerg! Repeat, we are under Zerg attack! The colony's defense systems have collapsed, civilian casualties are heavy! The Dominion military has withdrawn, they've abandoned us! We need emergency assistance! Any unit receiving this signal, please save us! We urgently need medical supplies, weapons, and evacuation assistance! Coordinates are attached to the signal—"
The recording ended in a burst of noisy static.
Raynor's face turned extremely ugly. "The Swarm... has already spread to Agria?"
"Based on the signal strength and the appended decoded data, the attack has been ongoing for at least twenty hours." Matt pulled up some scan data. "The colony population is about three thousand, mostly agricultural and research personnel. Defenses are weak. Judging by the bio-signal signatures, the Swarm's numbers... are quite massive."
"The Dominion military withdrew?" Raynor's voice suppressed his fury.
"That's what Dr. Hanson said. Our intelligence network also confirms that the Dominion garrison in that sector had abnormal movements recently, likely a retraction of defensive lines," Matt replied.
Raynor slammed a fist on the console. "Those damn bastards! They just left the civilians to the bugs!"
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He looked at the coordinates on the screen, thinking rapidly.
"Distance from our current position?" he asked.
"If we go at full speed, about six hours," the navigator replied.
"The size of the Swarm, can we handle it?" Raynor looked at Matt.
Matt pulled up more detailed analysis data. "From the combat audio and energy readings parsed from the signal, the Swarm's main force should be a mix of Zerglings, Hydralisks, and Roaches, possibly a few Infestors. No clear signals of heavy units like Ultralisks or Brood Lords detected. But their numerical advantage is obvious."
He paused, adding, "Our Marines, Marauders, and Medics can form an effective defensive line. If we can establish a solid evacuation point and coordinate with the ship's fire support, we have a chance to save a portion of the people."
"A portion?" Raynor stared at him.
Matt's expression was heavy. "Jim, we only have one ship. The number of the Swarm... might exceed our capacity to handle. The most realistic plan is to establish a safe corridor and evacuate as many civilians as possible, but it's impossible to save everyone. Furthermore, this will expose the Hyperion to the Swarm threat; the risk is very high."
Raynor was silent for a few seconds. The bridge was dead quiet, save for the low hum of the instruments.
☆☆☆
-> 30 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Inkshaper
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you