Subject: Ship-Head Uleena

Species: Urakari

Description: Reptilian humanoid, no tail. 5'3" (1.6 m) avg height. 135 lbs (61 kg) avg weight. 105 year life expectancy.

Ship: RSV Lowelana {Fights with Honor}

Location: Unknown

Nothing had changed on the bridge of the USSS Thanatos. Clean to the point of nearly sparkling, the low murmur of people communicating to complete their tasks, and not a single empty seat. A far cry from most Republic vessels, which were usually only passably clean, loud as all hell, and understaffed. If one were to realize that spaceships are enclosed environments and make the mistake of wondering where all the grime came from...

The neat freak in me shuddered. We should demand the tech that the humans use to clean things in exchange for building their fleets. Though they'd probably deny us something important in exchange, like the weapons tech. I sighed as I glanced around the bridge. It would be obvious to any casual observer that the technology in this room is decades ahead of anything in Republic space. The only station I can recognize is navigation, and the only reason for that is because the US kindly gave us an outdated version of their tac-map.

"Been a while, hasn't it?" Reynolds asked.

"It has," I replied.

"Yes, well, I have someone grabbing you a guest seat. Just hang tight until then," he smiled. "Nima, what's our status?"

"We're just outside of the system, sir. Scanners are showing quite a bit of wreckage," one of the crew replied.

"What about intact vessels?"

"Hard to tell, sir. There's a LOT of wreckage," Nima said. "Oh, hang on. Got two potentially inhabitable planets, both have intact ships around them. We also have a station with ships around it. It's unclear what the ship's intentions are."

"No time like the present to test out our new first contact message system. Hail the planets and the station with message... 4, I believe," Reynolds ordered.

"What's that one say?" I asked.

"Something along the lines of 'Greetings, I am an emissary of the United Systems. We come in peace and offer our assistance if needed.' I believe there's also a part mentioning how well armed we are and that attacking us is a bad idea," Reynolds grinned. "The scout ship was thankfully able to grab a language kernel, so they'll definitely understand us."

"Message transmitting on repeat, sir."

"Very good. Oh, and here's your seat Uleena!"

I turned as a gont approached with a comfortable looking chair. He grinned as he set it on the deck with a heavy sounding thud. A hiss and thunk made me jump back a bit, and both Reynolds and the gont chuckled at my reaction.

"Mag-lock. That chair isn't going anywhere, my friend. Have a seat," the captain said.

I sighed at my shame and sat down. A harness fit itself snugly around my waist and chest automatically, but I managed to stifle my alarm. I looked proudly at the gont, who smirked in response and left. One of these days I'm going to perfect my stoicism, dammit.

"Message incoming from the station, sir," Nima said.

"Let's hear it."

"Greetings, United Systems," the message began. "Your claim of peace is noted and your offer of aid is appreciated. However, we are at war with an unknown force and cannot help but find your timing suspicious. Our leaders need time to determine our course of action. In the meantime, you may approach to these coordinates with the understanding that all weapons platforms in the system will be targeting you. We will not fire unless provoked."

"Well... that's about what I expected," Reynolds chuckled. "Use sublights and move us in. Shields up, weapons off."

"What if the OU show up?" one of the bridge officers asked.

"There's a chance that we'll see the OU before they do. If we start powering up weapons before they see the OU... Well, even one itchy trigger finger will see us in a spot of bother. Await my orders regarding weaponry," Reynolds replied.

I was barely listening. I had my eyes on the tac-map, watching us move into sensor range. As soon as we did, all of the green icons immediately turned to target us and my hearts started hammering away. An alarm began to ping as well, causing Reynolds to roll his eyes.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

"Omega, I don't care that we're being targeted. I only care if we're shot at. Would you kindly turn that off for us?"

"Of course, sir," the AI said over the intercom.

The alarm silenced, and so did most of the crew. A few small murmurs and the occasional beep were the only things that interrupted the silence. The tension was well hidden behind nonchalant and stoic expressions, but it made itself known via the occasional fidget. The silence had almost become suffocating before something occurred to me.

"Captain Reynolds," I said, causing heads to nervously snap in my direction. "What's this species called?"

Reynolds laughed, "Oh right, I forgot to tell you. We don't actually know! There were several words in the language that could be the name of their species, but we weren't able to nail it down. The briefing is calling them Species Bravo 2. Or B2, rather."

"B2? Why?" I asked.

"Who knows?" he replied with a chuckle.

"I do," said Omega, his avatar appearing next to Reynold's chair. "They're the second space-faring civilization under the B classification. There have been others, but they've all graduated to A-class, with one noteworthy exception."

"Oh, well that explains it in full and explicit detail. Except for what the difference between the classes is," Reynolds allowed a bit of annoyance to seep into his tone.

Omega gave a chilling laugh, "Fair enough, Captain. A-class species are cooperative with the United Systems or its interests. B-class species are not currently cooperative and pose a potential threat to the United Systems or its interests. C-class species are not a threat, regardless of whether or not they're cooperative."

"So is the exception the Omni-Union?" I asked.

"No. The exception is the Daluran. The Omni-Union are not classified as a species, as they are mechanical."

"Bloody hell, at some point we're going to need to redefine the word 'species'. Especially if sentient machines keep popping up," Reynolds said.

"I believe it will take a lot more than the Omni-Union to cause that particular change. All of the people in charge of the dictionaries are scholars, after all. You know how they get," Omega chuckled.

"I don't, actually, and I'd like to keep it that way if at all possible," Reynolds replied. "Thank you Omega, that will be all."

The Grim Reaper bowed before disappearing and silence returned to the bridge. Thankfully for my sanity, we didn't have to wait long.

"Sir, incoming hail," Nima broke the silence.

"Well, let's have a chat then. Accept the hail, lieutenant," Reynolds said, rising from his seat.

Nima nodded and turned back to her terminal. A second later she raised a fist with her thumb protruding. A 'thumbs-up' gesture that indicates a positive outcome, as I'd learned. It strikes me as odd that many of the gestures that humanity has created can be imitated by most of the sentient species in the galaxy.

"Greetings. This is Captain Reynolds of the USSS Thanatos. I represent a multi-species federation known as the United Systems. I am joined by Ship-Head Uleena, a representative of a separate but friendly multi-species federation known as the Republic. We come in peace."

"Hello, Captain Reynolds of the USSS Thanatos. I am High Fighter Gewn, the leader of the Ynorincan military, and the de facto leader of our system government. I represent the Ynorinca in all matters at this time."

"De facto leader?" Reynolds questioned.

"Yes. Speaking candidly, I'm the last survivor of the executive chain of command. Everyone else died after the second attack."

"My condolences. How many times has the Omni-Union attacked?"

"Six. We've managed to hold them off, but they're sending larger and larger fleets. We've had to resort to using weapons of mass destruction that we swore we'd never use again. Your initial message offered assistance?"

"Correct. We are also at war with the Omni-Union and are seeking allies against them. We'll happily defend you if you join us in fighting them," Reynolds said.

The comm was silent for a moment.

"Join you in fighting them? Or join your... federation?" Gewn asked hesitantly.

"Join us in fighting them. If you'd like to join the United Systems, that can be discussed at a later time," Reynolds answered.

"Good. We are democratic, and I don't feel comfortable signing my people's fate away when I'm holding a position I wasn't elected to. I'll also assume you have some sort of plan involving how we can help the war effort in our current situation," the Ynorincan commander said. "Regarding our defense, though, are you expecting reinforcements? Your ship is quite large, but I don't..."

"Will twelve ships not be enough?" Reynolds interrupted innocently, his lips betraying a slight smirk.

"Twelve? Where are the other eleven?"

"Well... technically we have one hundred and twelve. The USSS Thanatos is a carrier. We have eleven frigates and one hundred fighters aboard. We can request reinforcements if things get dicey, though."

Another long pause as the High Fighter digested this information.

"I assume you're pretty technologically advanced if you're expecting to hold off the Omni-Union with a dozen deep space ships and a hundred fighters," Gewn finally replied. "I would be more comfortable with our alliance if you called in some reinforcements, though. Their last attack had more than half a million ships."

"Understood. I take it you're accepting our offer, then?"

"I'd be a fool not to."

"I'm happy to hear that. We can formalize our alliance at your convenience. Would you like to come aboard, or would you prefer that we dock?"

"We still have diplomats, I believe," Gewn said. "I'll send some of them aboard your ship. It'll be four total, will that be an issue?"

"That will be acceptable, High Fighter Gewn. I look forward to meeting your diplomats, and fighting alongside you in battle," Reynolds answered.

"The anticipation is mutual, Captain. Be well."

"They've ended communication, sir," Lieutenant Nima said.

Captain Reynolds nodded at Nima and took his seat once again. I began to wonder what these aliens would look like. Would they be massive like the gen-alt humans, or short like the alumari? How many limbs do they have? Are they covered in fur, flesh, scales, or something else entirely? Despite my anxiety about having to perform my diplomatic duties, I was excited to meet these newcomers to the galactic stage. Then, I noticed that Captain Reynolds seemed lost in thought.

"I wonder why they need four diplomats," he whispered to himself.