Dr. Batsbak does not reach for the cigarettes offered, but instead slips his hand into a pocket of his coat. From it, he grabs his own cigar. Almost instantly, another robotic chimney-like tube descends from above, humming softly as it begins to draw away the smoke.
“I am more of a cigar smoker,” he says with a faint smile.
After a short pause, he pushes the pack of cigarettes back across the table toward the Don, along with a small holo-disc.
“Alright, Mr. Chenzo, I will help you with your project.
But this is under one very clear condition: that you keep your word.
What I have heard about the alien presence in the Omegas matches closely with what you just told me. I think you and I both understand the danger this could pose to all of us — especially if even the Nomads themselves are in conflict with these new beings.
So far, I have not personally encountered them myself, though I suspect it is only a matter of time. And when that time comes, I intend to be prepared.
Here is the disc containing the blueprints for the platform. It should assist you in the construction. I would provide you with the hardware as well, but moving such equipment out of Rheinland is… let us say, highly impractical.
Still, I believe you will manage. After all, if you already plan to build three ships incorporating technology the likes of which Sirius has never seen before, then constructing these platforms should prove no great challenge to you.
Now that we have settled this matter, I am curious, Mr. Chenzo…”
He leans forward slightly, his gaze sharpening.
“In your opinion, what truly happened in the depths of the Omegas?”
As Bastsbak is speaking, Chenzo begins to smile. Over time he'd made deals with all manor of house militaries and corporations, but this was the first working relation with a foreign scientist.
"Senor, without my word I'd be nothing, I'd break it for nobody. Nobody in my society lasts too long by being dishonest. I can freely walk through any Maltese suburb or station without guards which is more than I can say for some others who choose a less honest approach.
Alas, I digress.
I do believe what we discovered was some form of Daam K'vosh artifact. I'm sure I can obtain another also, with the right escape ship.
There are a few different types of Nomads, senor. I could be entirely wrong but my understanding thus far is that there is the kind that I personally have known since my first flight. I call them Spirits. They named themselves The Keepers. Such beings never got too close thankfully, but would randomly show up when fighting Corsairs. On more than one occasion, tipping the scales for a Outcast Victory. Likewise, whilst in the deep Omicron's I have come across them under heavy Corsair fire and naturally assisted, favour for favour. The curious thing is that they never linger. As soon as they've arrived they're gone again. disappearing before your very eyes. This, for me is the least dangerous kind, although I still wouldn't recommend getting close. There are two variations of these Keepers. One is clearly much older than the majority of the masses you can openly find in the Omicrons.
The next kind I personally know next to nothing about. I've tried to chase them down multiple times but my interactions are few and far between. They are much faster to attack, anything with a pulse and seem far less organised. Others call them Vagrants, but I've yet to learn anything meaningful about them.
As far as I'm aware, these two groups of Nomads do not like one another, do not interact positively yet not once have I seem them be engaging one another in combat. I'm very sure they are biologically similar if not the same, but they are most certainly singing from different songbooks.
The next few are what appear to be human infectee's or sympathisers gone too far. They're unhinged, dangerous and really just want you dead. at first glance they appear as unreadable transponders on scanners, but after a little while it's clear that not much is left of the host and everything quickly descends into chaos when they run out of what seems to be pre-scripted conversation to fool those they interact with.
it's a mixture of these infected/enslaved and the second half of the first lot of Nomads I mentioned I saw fighting an entirely new kind of Nomad in the Omega's. I lost good pilots escaping from them. There was a difference though, they were different again and I can't quite put my foot on the exact difference, but they seem much faster and stronger than all of the other types I'd just mentioned.
He chuckles lightly as he collects his cigarette packet from the table and lights another
"It's a shame you don't partake in Cardamine senor, Cardi-Cigar's really are the best in the galaxy. Although, I do prefer only the small cigarette's; lets be honest none of it is actually good for you.
Anyway, these new-fangled nomads give me the creeps. It's why I'd like to dissect this Beacon of yours and make effective countermeasures as soon as possible. They say it takes between three and five of the very best Militaries or Corsairs to take down a single average Maltese pilot senor. I had a whole squadron with me and were matched one for one with these new Nomad whatever the hell they are. Only four of us got out alive after killing none of them"
“Do you think that, much like us humans, the Nomads might be fighting over territory or dominance?
I find it difficult to imagine such a highly advanced species engaging in something so... primitive.
Until now, there have been no credible reports of Nomads fighting among themselves. They have always directed their aggression toward us—humans. At least, that was what history taught us.”
He paused for a moment, his tone thoughtful.
“I am no expert on Nomads, but I intend to reach out to a few of my contacts—people who might have observed similar behavior or hold relevant data. If there is indeed a rift among them, it would change our entire understanding of their hierarchy and purpose.”
He leaned slightly forward, his expression growing more curious.
“What interests me most, however, is where these new entities come from. The discovery of the new Omega systems—especially one containing a black hole that went previously undetected—troubles me. A phenomenon of that magnitude does not simply appear out of nowhere. Overlooking a black hole of such size, and so close to our galaxy, seems nearly impossible with our current technology.”
He folded his hands together, speaking with quiet conviction.
“When the time comes and your ship is complete, I would like to accompany you on an expedition into those systems.
Do you think you can make that possible?”
Chenzo listens intently to the man across the table, giving genuine hard thought to the points being raised before speaking.
"For starters, you're most welcome on any voyage undertaken by us, I'd place your protection above my own in such missions.
The Nomads are very strange and I don't think we'll ever understand what fuels their decisions entirely.
On one hand, they have the capability to create almost anything and destroy almost anything, harness raw power from the sun to generate entirely new matter. Create new elements at what appears to us as a whim. On the other hand; they choose not to wipe us out one by one or as a whole in one go.
I'm sure there are dividing lines between them and if they were not fighting over the uncovered artifact then they were fighting out of serious rivalry.
One thing I am certain of, the new kind we came across is much, much more advanced, slick and skilled in the art of combat. over anything I've seen before."
He taps away at his PDA, bringing up guncam footage from Edison Trent's ship during his most famous five minutes
"I've pondered over this a lot over the years, senor.
Call me crazy, but what if the same events which lead the Nomads to be largely sucked away in Trent's most famous act for humanity holds key information behind this sudden appearance of these syetems we're calling the Deep Omega's? Perhaps these new more powerful Nomads have the ability to connect space? Disconnect it? Generate new passage or seal it up? I know a guy in Liberty although he has not called out to me, I doubt he will either, but I do suspect the rumours to be true. Through the grape vine he has information on Kusari's bridge-jump capability technology. Maybe the recent activity has caused this rift anomaly?
Maybe everything I said makes no sense at all, senor. Maybe it holds some weight. What do you think?"
Dr. Batsbak leans forward over the table, a look of genuine shock crossing his face.
“You’re suggesting that these new kinds of Nomads are capable of traveling across the galaxy without relying on jump holes or jump gates?
If that’s truly the case, then they would be far more advanced than the old Nomads. We know for certain that the earlier ones were not capable of such movement, otherwise, how else could we explain the countless ancient Nomad gates still scattered across Sirius?
For a time, I worked on a similar technology myself, one that could create temporary jump holes when the right conditions were met. But that system was unreliable at best and dangerously unstable at worst. Not to mention the enormous cost — not only in terms of money and equipment, but also in sheer energy consumption.
The thought of a hostile civilization possessing this kind of technology and using it freely as they wish… it frightens me. I can’t begin to imagine the threat it would pose if they ever unleashed its full potential, moving their forces anywhere in Sirius, without warning, without detection, until it’s far too late to respond.
I can’t help but wonder… that black hole they discovered, could it be a side effect of their technology?
It’s unimaginable what else these aliens might be hiding from us…”
