A few days later, just before they were set to approach the Border Nations, Terminus received a message from an Alliance Vessel in the outer reaches of Death Wind Territory. An unexpected failure of their Warp Drive had caused an explosion and thrown them off course.
They knew where they were, and they knew that access to this Galaxy was supposed to be restricted due to high danger, so they sent a message for immediate retrieval.
As the only Alliance vessel in the Galaxy, Terminus was responsible for going to help them out. The vessel was the Exploration Vessel Gaia, a Cutter Class scientific ship from the far side of the Alliance. According to the data that had come with the message, they were over a hundred Alliance Standard Units from home, putting their home Galaxy out of humanity's observed universe.
Now that they knew where it was, they might be able to search for and find it, but until this point, it was not a star listed on any Kepler map. The only data that Terminus had about it came from the Alliance.
[Exploration Vessel Gaia, this is the Human Vessel Terminus, we are on our way to your location. We will open a portal in ten minutes.] Max informed them, then began planning a new route through the Galaxy and back toward Rae 5 from the outer ring inward.
The portal took shape six minutes later, and Admiral Drake led the ship through to the location indicated by the Alliance ship, only to find that they weren't the first ones there. A group of Pirates had just dropped out of warp and began firing on the disabled ship, hoping to capture it and plunder the technology, bringing them to the peak of human development.
Or so they thought.
"Cutters, launch now. Rescue the Gaia, and eliminate the Pirates." Max ordered.
Seconds later, the Cutters were flying out the bay doors, their secondary weapons already firing. The impacts were making the shields on the Pirate ships flicker, and both vessels immediately turned to flee.
Two blinding flashes lit up the vacuum of space, followed by a field of debris as the Pirate vessels exploded under the force of the Disruptors.
[Sorry about that, Gaia. As I am sure the Alliance warned everyone, there are still Pirates and other hostile forces active in this Galaxy. Terminus has certified status as a trusted force, verified by the Valkia and Giants. You are safe with us.] Max greeted the vessel which had sent the distress call.
A video link opened between the two vessels, and Max found himself in the odd position of looking at a forest without anyone visible in the scene.
[We cannot thank you enough, Terminus. We are the Shin, a flora-type species, as you can see. Like the Illithid aboard your ship, our communications are primarily mental, but we also have a well-developed physical language that might be difficult for you to learn and impossible for you to replicate without hundreds more limbs.]
They were speaking the Alliance standard language, which Max was well used to after dealing with the Illithid for so long, so understanding them was no problem when they were speaking telepathically.
[You can call me Commander Keres. I am also capable of a limited version of the mental communication that the Illithid use, though that is very rare among our people. Most will answer you verbally if you can understand that or through technology if you cannot.
We will bring your vessel aboard ours for repairs, and you are welcome to enjoy the facilities we have available. How is your mobility?]
[We have gravity control technology, so we can be quite agile for flora-type species. Do you have hydroponic facilities? Perhaps even something as luxurious as real dirt gardens?] The Shin leader asked.
[We have both. We also have shared water features that the Innu and similar species enjoy. Do you require oversized accommodations?] Max asked, not having any data on their size.
[Our species is under two meters tall. The sizing of your accommodations should be fine, though we prefer to be in communal areas to rest. Separation from others is stressful for our root systems.]
Max considered a moment and had the Cruise Ship maintenance crews add a large portion of dirt flowerbeds to the public walkways in the central column, the open area at the core of the Cruise Ship area. That should meet the Shin's needs for communal activities.
Terminus pulled the disabled vessel aboard with a gravity beam, revealing the extensive structural damage to the hull from the explosion of the Warp Drives, though the Pirates hadn't managed to breach their shielding, despite the damaged state of the vessel.
Once they were in place inside the hangar, a group of ten small coniferous trees came out to greet Max, looking a lot like Bonsai trees but with various colors of needles.
"Welcome to the Cruise Ship portion of the Colony Ship Terminus, a human trading vessel. If you would like to accompany me, one of our technicians can work with your engineer to help repair your vessel. We have extensive refit facilities here and can work as a dry dock facility for smaller vessels such as your own." Max explained.
[Who would have thought that we could find a dry dock out here in the middle of nowhere? The Alliance really has spread out recently. Thank you for your hospitality, and we are looking forward to seeing what an isolated species of mammals have created for the first Flora Species that they are recorded to have met.] The Captain responded.
They floated behind Max as he walked, their bodies mostly motionless, but Max could see the rustling of their branches, indicating that they were speaking to each other in their silent language. How they perceived each other or the world around them was a mystery to Max since they had no eyes, but they didn't seem to have any difficulty navigating the hallways or interpreting the motions of their neighbors.
"I believe that we can start here. We have created gardens on all twenty levels in the central common areas. The gaps in between the walkways can be used to traverse the ship with gravity-controlled flight if you like. Only common courtesy limits flight in the Cruise Ship area.
At this kiosk is a map of the facilities, and we have prepared a large meeting room for your group, as you stated that you preferred to be together."
Max led the way to the meeting room on the main level, where the floors had been reformed to bare concrete and covered in thick black loam, with clusters of various plants placed around the room to make it less barren. There were watering spouts hanging from the roof, almost reaching the soil, which could be touch-activated, but none of the staff really knew what these new arrivals would like.
"We honestly had no idea what you would prefer in your accommodation, so we can reform the room if it isn't suitable," Max informed them politely.
"No, this is amazing. So many species don't have soil floors available. They grow entirely by hydroponics, so real soil is a true luxury. Even on our ship, only one room has soil, and it isn't nearly this rich." The Captain, a bonsai tree with immaculately manicured branches and blue needles, informed Max.
