With a good meal in them to help focus, the trio and their disguised ship followed the path of the freighter halfway to the system, where they expected the warp signature to end before it abruptly vanished.

"Check the region. Let's see what we can find." Max ordered and entered a sub-light speed course that would take them in a large circle around the point where the signature disappeared.

They had just begun their loop when the sensors detected four incoming vessels from a nearby star system. It was well off the course of the freighter that they were following, but it was likely that they were waiting for anyone following this course.

[Unknown Vessel, power down your drives and lower your shields. Resistance to our boarding effort will lead to unnecessary casualties.] The closest incoming ship informed them while the others kept their distance.

[Understood. However, the casualties will be on your side. This vessel is under the protection of the Terminus Trading Company. I recommend that you stand down.] Max replied.

The incoming ship glided to a stop beside them, almost close enough that their shields touched and close enough that Max could read the minds of the people on board.

eαglesnovel`c,om "So, we have ourselves some curious humans who ended up where they shouldn't be?" Someone was asking.

"Make them go away. If they have found the path of the data probe, then the Government is onto our activities. The Humans must be working with them on something big if they're popping up all over the Alliance, and only an idiot would believe that it was to eliminate some alien infestation in the middle of the core worlds." Another member replied.

"Do you think that we could cut a deal with them? I heard that Humans are mercenaries in nature, like the Hunters. They might take a bribe to look the other way about our curiosity." The first thought stream replied.

"Too much of a risk. If the Government finds the cloning facilities, they will find out how many of our people have infiltrated their departments. The humans might let it slide for all we know, but the Government won't stand for mind-swapped clones impersonating their workers."

Max turned to Nico. "I think that it's possible that we've found our moles. That was not where I expected the path to lead, but they are talking about mind-swapped clones in government positions."

Nico's gaze was blank as Max was speaking, and he suspected that she was attempting to hack the nearby vessel through their communications system, so he just waited for her to respond.

"They are moles, but not the right ones. They're talking about the local planetary branch of the Central Government. They have been making clones and putting cultists in them in order to implement a pleasure cult as the national Government of this region.

historical

The Reavers might actually get along well with these guys, but I don't think that the Envoys would look favourably upon us cutting a deal with an insurgent cult."

Max looked over the data that Nico had gathered and chuckled to himself. Their grand dreams of a "Pleasure Cult" were milder than an average day at the Broken Blaster. They were trying to overthrow the Government to implement something that the humans would deem borderline family-friendly.

"Do you think that we should tell them? I feel like we should tell them." Nico suggested.

"Go for it."

[Alliance Vessel, this is Subcommander Tarith Nico of the Terminus Trading Company. We have hacked your ship's logs and computer system, and we find your plans for changes to the culture of your home planet to be quite intriguing. I am sending over a file now. It is a six-hour security video feed from the most popular of the employee taverns aboard our mothership.] Nico informed them.

[You did what? How dare you! Our ship's computer isn't some toy for you to play with.] A voice from the other ship stammered.

It was the voice that seemed to be questioning the one in command, so likely the First Officer under the Captain of the vessel, though their thoughts hadn't referred to each other by rank yet, and Max wasn't close enough to do a deep investigation of their minds.

Their vessel began to power up its weapon systems, and Nico smiled.

[I recommend that you don't try to shoot at us. We are not that friendly.] She reminded them, and Max saw a sudden power draw increase appear among the data on his screen as the weapons systems of his vessel came online.

Max listened as their thoughts turned panicked as their ship detected the weapons signatures and then began to blare an imminent disaster warning as the antimatter torpedoes were armed and detected by their computer. They immediately powered down their weapons.

[Our apologies Subcommander, we misunderstood.] The voice with the stutter replied in a hurry before Nico could shoot at them.

[Take a moment to look over the video compilation that I sent you. It should help you understand something about human culture so that we can continue this conversation in a more productive manner.] She informed them in her favourite seductive lilt voice setting.

There was a half-hour impasse while they watched the video, and Max tried to resist his urge to laugh. Nico had no such reservations and was making video clips from their security cameras for her personal records.

[Subcommander, is this real? Do humans really live like that? And how did you convince the other species to go along with it? We recognize the Innu, and they are known to be quite liberal, but I am not familiar with most of the others.] the voice of the Commander of the other vessel asked.

[Most of the ones that you are seeing are Valkia, Giants, Myceloids, and Hunters. At the fourteen-minute mark, there is a short clip of a Dryad doing body shots of fruit juice. They all voluntarily chose the amenities of the vessel that they enjoyed, and we didn't deliberately influence their behaviour in any way.] Nico informed him.

There was a pause while Max could see that they were looking up the species that she had mentioned, and Max realized that this was one of the incurious species, but they were evolving and gaining curiosity that was leading a portion of their population to desire a different lifestyle than the daily ritual routines that their local Government had prescribed for citizens for over a millennium.

It was an incredible milestone to have observed firsthand. Their actions might be seen as insurgency or rebellion against the planetary Government, but they were a direct result of an evolution of the thought processes of the species. Using clones to spread their altered thought patterns among the Government was definitely an unexpected way of introducing a new genetic alteration to a species, though.

He saved everything that he could, including the data that Nico had gathered from their computers and their medical records so that he could show it to the Giant later. He loved things like this, and it was a very rare occasion that such a notable evolutionary change happened.

[We have some questions for you about a group of alien embryos that may have been deliberately jettisoned in this region. It isn't clear if the action was intentional or accidental, as the embryos might have been smuggled from their home system for unauthorized research purposes.

Now that we're on less hostile terms, do you have time to join us aboard our vessel for a conversation?] Nico asked.

[Do you have substances known as alcohol and pie aboard your vessel? We have yet to sample them, and their production is not authorized in our system.]