Pressing her lips together, Terri nodded and left the flight deck with Krono following close on her heels.
2
Veral narrowed his eyes on the approaching vessel. For the last several minutes, he had been ignoring the comm request from it as his mate made her way to their quarters. He knew she was unhappy with his decision to send her away, and her impatience and restlessness were becoming increasingly more apparent, but it was what was necessary.
He did not trust anyone when it came to her safety. Least of all those who send out emergency hails in the vast stretches of space between habitable planets so close to the system’s fringes.
Linking into his ship’s systems, he tracked Terri as she made her way toward their room at the well-fortified heart of the vessel. Strictly speaking, it wasn’t the official captain’s quarters on the salvager. That was a large room that stretched across the entire front of the vessel beneath the protective shelter of the flight deck. It had once been luxurious, with a vast viewing screen.
When Veral took over the ship, however, being a reasonable and cautious male, he calculated the chances of damage done during an attack even with the protection of the flight deck and found it unsuitable. It had not taken him long to convert three of the smaller crew quarters that went unused near the center along a narrow corridor into one large chamber, and he turned the other room into a storage and work area. It had served him well over the years, and now with a mate on board the past several galactic standard months, he could not think of a safer place for his female.
Autolocking the door behind her, he withdrew his consciousness from the ship and accessed his comm system.
“Open frequency. Respond to hail,” he ordered.
The system complied, and the viewscreen in front of him opened a window that filled the surface with the frowning countenance of the Blaithari. The delicately scaled pink male regarded him hesitantly through gold eyes before bowing and bringing all six of his palms up in supplication, the scarlet crests of his hair arranged in six knots bobbing as he moved. Veral curled his lip at the copious amounts of jewelry dripping from the male. The male was a fool to comm a stranger who might rob him. Even the robe he wore was of the finest quality that spoke of wealth of a station or prestige.
Either a very wealthy trader or a male of a noble house from Blaitharsha.
Veral’s mandibles clicked as he returned the Blaithari’s regard suspiciously. “This is Salvager Vessel 289-Veral. What assistance do you require?” he growled ungraciously.
He could almost sense his mate’s disapproving glance at his immediate hostility and repressed a smile. Terri was a soft-hearted female. She did not understand the necessity and thrill of instilling fear into one before they got it into their heads to do something unwise.
The Blaithari cleared his throat nervously. “Greetings, Salvager Veral. I thank you most graciously on behalf of Oulia and Motang, the benefactors of…”
“These details and thanks are unnecessary,” Veral interrupted, his vibrissae twitching more aggressively around him. “What assistance do you require?”
“Yes, of course… I… that is…I, Egbor of House Torg’bornor formally request emergency transport to Zarcruga.”
“No. I will transport you to Janilik. It will put me two days off schedule, but it is within my means.”
Egbor gaped. “But that is not where I need to go! I am to settle into an agreement on Zarcruga, not Janilik. I am already behind schedule.”
“Then get on your long-range comm and find someone else to assist you,” Veral replied coldly. “Zarcruga is behind me, and I do not have the time or inclination to backtrack many days to transport you. You can repair your ship and continue on to Zarcruga from Janilik. Your business on Zarcruga is no concern of mine.”
The male looked around at the males nearest him as if seeking some support. Veral’s lips quirked as he took note that not one of them took their master’s side against him. The male wilted as he faced Veral once more.
“We are left with no choice. Our life support systems barely have enough power and are in rapid decline. We do not have the power to send a long-rage comm. It is only fortunate that we managed to bring our ship to a stop when the thrusters went offline rather than sail beyond the regular trade routes. There are only five of us who require lodgings upon your ship…”
“No!” Veral snarled, his vibrissae instinctively moving so viciously that the male in the screen stared at him with stunned horror. Although it was near useless since the male was not close enough to get further readings on, the overall result through the comm was at least satisfying.
He would permit no strangers upon his ship!
“But… our life support. We only have a few galactic standard hours left at most before it is completely gone. The ship is already miserably cold with the failing systems. How would you expect us to survive?”
Veral hissed in frustration. He wanted to tell the male that his capability for sustaining life was not his responsibility… but he also knew that Terri would not approve if he let the male freeze to death or asphyxiate when the life support failed. There was a good chance that she might not find out. Yet there was an equal probability that she would learn of it. If she learned of it, she would be extremely displeased that someone actually died. Maybe if he tried to explain to her that it was for her safety…
“Salvager, I really must insist…” the male interrupted, his chest puffing out in a show of bravado before his crew.
Veral glared at the male. “I am considering my options. Be silent.”
“Options?” the noble squeaked. He instantly deflated, his gold eyes widening to a ridiculous proportion.
Veral’s mandibles opened wide and returned to their resting position as he turned the matter over in his mind. He was aware of the way the male seemed to watch every movement.
No. Terri would not accept any excuse for the deaths of the Blaithari. He would have to allow them to board.
Rules.There would be many rules.