Pylo floated across from the Redweed Ministry of external affairs’ selected advocate. She actively did not fidget or twitch or puff out with nervous spores.

She repeated to herself that this was not a serious accusation threatening her well being or legitimacy.

Even under the worst possible results of this situation she and Tunie would merely be forced to pay for damages. Hardly anything at all for such a small community even if the other traders allowed Redweed to gouge them to the worst conceivable heights.

As with most of the important officials from Redweed it was a stalwart. Which if her read of the tendencies of the species was correct this was probably not the best choice the ministry could have made. But then again it was not an uncommon mistake, Many ports in that awkward stage before proper urbanization were prone to weird species nepotisms like this.

“Esteemed and beloved traders, We have requested your oversight and expertise in resolving this matter of the population center anchored on the ascendant traversal line of Petal Weft Salt’s interests and the disaster of the Passengers brought to our humble home of Redweed by the Ship Mistress of the Lesser Void Courier Tunie, Pylo Courtesan.”

Pylo looked out to the assembled speakers of those crew representatives that had agreed to stand for a tribunal of the trade peerage for this affair.

The total number of ‘present’ representatives varied from one tribunal to the next. Or at least that was how it worked as far as Pylo had seen in the seven tribunals she had been involved in.

Still this was only the second time she was involved as the principle crew (which she was actively trying not to remember last time).

“-We represent . of the lingering rose . Redweed . acknowledge . elements . WE . traders . recognize . The Minister . our vessel . Judgement-”

That was an interesting one, some kind of spindly element or a speaking symbiote from a canner ship.

Spoke in an entirely different cognitive framework then the others.

There was always one of those in every tribunal, some idiosyncratic entity or organization that just did not fit anyone else’s cognitive grammar at all. Honestly Pylo didn't mind, the last two times she had been involved in a tribunal she was able to endear herself to the token outcast and sway the vote just that much more to her prefered outcome.

Pylo glanced at the rest of the assembly to see if anyone had anything close to an immediate comprehension of the ‘elements of the vessel lingering rose ’.

Alas it looked like everyone had fairly up to date translation codices.

Well she didn't need the unfair advantage anyway.

“Hi!”

Everyone present waited for the trader representative to elaborate on their position or ship of origin. Eventually the silence was broken by it seeming to realize perhaps there was more to add.

It was a bit of an odd one, some kind of smoothed over vacuum form? It was not fully spherical but that was a near thing. The ship it had come from offered no explanation or justification for the choice. And the representative itself did not provide a name. It also did not think very deeply about anything as far as Pylo could tell, that said it seemed to have some kind of deep archive of information to draw on, which it seemed inclined to waste on the simplest statements possible?

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Could be dangerous.

“I’m Here!”

Everyone shared a mutual reflection on this response before unanimously deciding to proceed with the introductions.

“Zimble-wee-trala-la-do! What a good time we are having, this Ohma of the Perilous Puff is present for these tidings! We are many disturbed by the conduct of the officials of redweed in this action. It is a breach of the trust of Traders to berth our ships here.”

That was a peculiar sort of creature, it loomed bigger even then Pylo herself which suggested it was either inefficient or had significantly more room to distribute its intelligence and processing about itself.

Its surface communicative thoughts did not provide the siren with clarity on which, as after things entered or exited those cortices it was encrypted into gibberish as far as Pylo could tell.

“I am Onduilin, I am here on behalf of our ship Lutish and as speaker for the unattending crews in these proceedings. I promise oversight on behalf of my ship and others to make sure that this affair is settled fairly for all trade vessels and crew. Both those here and involved as well as those yet inbound and distant”

That one was a bit smaller than herself, with a ganglionic intelligence that was never the less fairly easy to read and process. She had met a few others of that kind across the reef, although they were by no means numerous.

Pylo was pleased, it was a fairly trader friendly selection of representatives which spoke well for what the voting crews and their vessels would favor. She looked around once more then nodded.

Wait.

She huffed and gave a quick head toss, damn terran mannerisms still leaking. She was spending too much time with the flatlanders, it was getting to be a habit to emote like them.

“I am Pylo, of Family Courtesan. Ship minder of the lesser void courier Tunie. As one of the involved parties I am present to represent the interests of myself, my ship and my passengers”

The stalwart bobbed in the chamber and then emitted in a comfortable trader-dialect of light.

“And I am tea-of-galena of the Ministry of External Affairs. I shall represent the interests of Petalweft Salts and its citizens in this matter as a protectorate and community within the purview of the polis of Redweed and its infrastructure”

There was a pulse of wide light signal that was then echoed by repeaters and signalers in resonance cascading out across all the vessels which felt it in their interest to vote and weigh in on the results of these proceedings.

Pylo took voice to confirm and finalize the gathering.

“As the representative of the principle involved crew and ship I acknowledge and witness these voices and judges. With this do I declare the Trade Tribunal of Redweed Regarding the conduct of the Trade Crew of Tunie and Cargo open”

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