Kuti was confidently climbing through the maintenance vents of the Dawn. The ship's design was relatively old, and they had its schematics in their databases. She just had to download it to know where she needed to go to reach the ship's core. She expected to spend a day or two in the vents, hiding away while she downloaded all they knew. Even if it was useless, her Boss always sent her on missions like this when she had guests. Kuti was already an expert, with more than a hundred similar tasks under her belt. Yet this one would turn out differently.

She was closing in on her target when suddenly, the emergency seals shut close behind her. No matter what she tried, she couldn't open it. At first, she thought it was because of the ship's age, but then the seal in front of her also closed shut, and a greenish gas started to fill up the vent she was in. Her heart rate immediately skyrocketed, realizing she had been spotted. Her suit had a filter, so she was not afraid of poisons… but she knew she was screwed.

When Dawn realized the sleeping gas was not working, she took a much more drastic method and blew one of her fuses next to her. Dawn not just overloaded it but also shocked Kuti's body, knocking her unconscious.

"Is she dead?" Sylen asked, but she was not really worried. This was her home, and she was an intruder. She was already angry that someone was sneaking on the ship she grew up. Aiming at stealing or sabotaging them? She wouldn't bat an eye if Kuti died.

"No. Her vitals are stable. She is just unconscious."

"I'm going to retrieve her! Prepare a room for her; we are going to keep her hostage! Call Omega and tell him about it!"

"Already doing it!"

When Omega noticed the silent, incoming transmission, he just moved his fingers, connecting his thoughts to Dawn. From the outside, he looked like he was listening to Junita, who was hosting the two in a fancy room, explaining how she was going to play the role of mediator when the Wuulfharns arrived. This was mainly aimed at Omega, as he was introduced as Mirian's proxy. He just nodded, slowly blinking his eyes, pretending to listen but instead, he was talking with Dawn.

"I see." He said, thinking for a brief moment. "For now, keep silent about it. Tell Sylen she should not bring it up to anyone. Strip naked the intruder; she might have something hidden in her suit to communicate with Junita or whoever sent her to spy on us. She may have implants or hidden communicators inside her. Best to make a full body scan. After it is confirmed that she is clean, tie her up and seal her away. We will use her as a bargaining chip if push comes to shove."

"Roger. Sylen is already retrieving the body. She looks thinner and weaker than her. Even if she regains consciousness, I estimate Sylen can overpower her."

"Just don't go too far." Omega joked a little before Dawn cut the connection.

"Are there any questions?" Junita asked, finishing her speech and trying to look professional and one of the leading figures of the Alliance before Omega.

"None." He answered politely, bowing towards her.

"I have one," Keshnar spoke up, who was mostly silent and bored until now. "Why the act? I already told him about you."

"About my supposed antics." She sighed. "It is not good to spread rumors about your own granddaughter!"

"Rumors… yeah!" He shrugged. "So? What now? Are we supposed to wait here until they arrive?"

"You don't need to wait for too long." Junita jiggled as they could see from the room's window an Astropath opening up and a crescent-shaped ship exiting it. "Great!" She laughed as the fact that the meeting was going to happen made her exceptionally happy. This was already enough for her to hold it against Roxo in the future.

The Shadow leisurely closed on the station while Roxo watched it from the bridge, sitting in the captain's chair. There was utter silence; nobody dared to interrupt his thoughts as he watched it get bigger on the main screen. Everybody onboard was at least a head shorter, if not more. Few of his species grew as large as he, and his aura alone was dominant enough to keep them in line.

"We are being hailed." His second in command finally spoke up after watching the silent, blinking light of the ship's communication for a minute by now.

"I know. Ignore her." Roxo waved his furry hand. "She just wants to brag and start pushing her ideas. Request a docking procedure, so I can get aboard. If they are too slow, simply park next to the Neo-Hegemony's ship, and we will get onboard ourselves!" He chuckled, drawing smiles onto his officer's faces.

Luckily they were not barred and quickly received instructions. After their vessel docked, it overshadowed the Dawn, as it was now laid in the shadow of the crescent 'moon' descending on them. When stepping onto the station, Roxo had to lower himself by getting through the doors as they were not designed for his size. He walked forward confidently, ignoring the welcoming jellies to guide him as he only needed his nose to follow the weird scent he was smelling.

"Weird." He thought to himself, "I never tasted one like this." He took a deep breath, memorizing Omega's scent. Coming into the room where Omega, Keshnar, and Junita were, his eyes focused straight on him, adding a face to the scent in his mind, recording every feature of his.

"Coming alone?" Junita asked, looking at Roxo, who didn't even bring any guards.

"Why, is this a trap?" He asked, still watching Omega.

"No, it is not." Junita shrugged. "But you are rude to not answering my call! I should at least punish you in a way or two!"

"If you can. You are welcome to try." Roxo smirked, finally blinking his eyes, looking at Keshnar. "You must be the Professor."

"And you are the Claw of the Night." He answered.

"My title. Yes. And….?” He walked next to them, towering over Omega, visibly curious at why he smelled so different from anybody else he had met in his life.

"Omega." He answered, not cowering away from his gaze. "I represent Mirian from the Neo-Hegemony."

"I know of her." He nodded. "Are you capable of making serious decisions in her place?"

"I am," Omega answered without hesitation.

"Good. Even if you lose that system you just got your hands on, our business can still come to fruition. I can even ensure you won't have any further retaliation from my brethren." Roxo continued with confidence and was surprised to see Omega smile at him.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that!" He looked up and down at him while Keshnar also jiggled a little. "After the invasion fleet is repelled, there won't be any force to resist our further advance. That Blackstripe or whatever they call themselves… are going to be pacified."

"You think you can conquer a Wuulfharn system? A planet full of my kind?" Roxo asked, raising his eyebrows and crossing his arms before his chest. Now not just were his eyes focusing on Omega, but his ears turned towards him fully, wanting to hear his answer.

"We can bomb them to oblivion." Omega shrugged. "When there are no survivors, it is much easier to conquer a planet."

His answer shocked not just Junita but Keshnar too. Roxo, on the other hand, was not shocked but impressed. He started to like this weird human-looking man before him.

"You…" He opened his mouth and, seeing Omega's eyes, without fear, drew a grin onto his face. At that moment, he looked like he was snarling while answering. "I am starting to like you! Did someone finally pop up from your ragtag coalition with a backbone? Hah! Now I want to meet your Boss! If she is as fierce as you seem to be, we can definitely work together!"

"Good to hear." Omega smiled softly. "So… Why are we meeting? If you are finished analyzing me, we may start the negotiations!"

"Mhm." Roxo nodded. "I agree. Let's talk business then!"