The crowd discussed in small groups for a few minutes, and Max could see a few hugs and tearful goodbyes among the Co-Operative, marking the decision to stay or go.
"Can I make a request?" The young Centaur asked.
"Certainly, you can. We will likely grant it if it is reasonable and within our powers." Max agreed, making her giggle.
"I would like a placement within the forests of your ship. It's not natural for my people to live so tightly cramped together or in cities. There were members of a city-building species in our world, but we only rarely stayed there for more than a day or two."
Nico smiled. "We have a wildlife population management department. They tour the forests and other wilderness areas to make sure that the balance of the local ecosystem is in a sustainable state. Do you have any experience in that department?"
The Centaur shook her head. "I was still in grade school when I got on the ship. I would just be finishing now if we still had a world."
"Oh, in that case, we can finish your education, and you can take all the appropriate courses. I can arrange a nice place on the edge of town, where it isn't as crowded but still within commuting distance of the schools."
That intrigued some of the nomads.
"What do you have for public transportation?" The Centaur asked.
"Flying pods mostly. Three-dimensional transit routes are more efficient than road-based routes, though most other traffic is ground-based, except for the flying species."
"I think that can work. The species that we lived beside preferred a two-wheeled transport, and we were incapable of using them." She explained.
"Oh, motorcycles. We have a two-wheeled transport vehicle as well, or hoverboards, and several others. We have a traffic code that accommodates many types of road users and low-flying vehicles." Nico told her.
The conversation was selling a few more people on the prospect that life among a strange species might not be all that bad. Their plans were for a species they knew was going to take them in, but they knew nothing at all about humans other than how these two representatives looked and how they could speak Koleska despite not having Chitin.
"Is Koleska your native language?" One of them asked.
"No, it's completely foreign. We learned it when we arrived here to help defend the anomaly that leads from their territory to our Galaxy." Max told him.
Nico switched to Kepler Standard, as most humans used a variation of it as their language.
"Our language sounds like this, and it can be a bit difficult to speak, but I believe that most of your species can learn it."
They all looked confused, but the Centaur perked up.
"She says that is their language, and we can learn it. At least, I think that is what she said. It sounds like my language, only different."
The chances of having two languages this far apart in space sharing a common linguistic base were infinitesimally low, but it seemed that they did, and the Centaur could understand some of their words.
The group leader looked thrilled at the news. "It is in our translator database. For those of you using translator earbuds, please enable the Centaurus language module, and you will be able to understand the common human language to some degree."
That could be an issue, as they couldn't risk bringing it with them if they chose to accompany Max and Nico to Absolution, but it meant that the humans could likely make a translator that would work for them.
Max heard the concerns and decided to inform them that it wouldn't be necessary.
"We have a learning device that can teach you our common language in a matter of hours. If you choose to go, we will be able to give you the basic knowledge of our laws, cultural customs and language before you arrive at your new home. It will help the transition and prevent any egregious incidents due to cultural conflict.
Since your species were all non-violent, it shouldn't be a hard transition. All interpersonal violence is restricted to some degree aboard our ships, other than for sporting purposes."
That made the nomads laugh. Full-contact sports were common to most species, even theirs. Only the Centaur didn't seem to understand the concept.
"What are sports? I don't understand the word."
The leader tried in a few other languages until she smiled and nodded. "Oh, I get it, like a hunt where you don't seriously hurt or eat your target. We play like that a lot."
Close enough.
The group leader cleared his throat to address the group.
"I would like everyone who has decided to leave to stand and move to the rear of the cargo bay. Those who have chosen to stay can return to your rooms, for now, to make space for the others, who will need to pack what they are taking.
The humans are on defence duty in Koleska Space, so their time is limited, and they will have to go if the Arisen arrive here, which will force us to flee again."
They were all familiar with negotiations being interrupted in that fashion, and it sped up the process quite a bit.
Roughly three-quarters of the occupants moved to the back of the bay, including the Centaur, while a few dozen went to their rooms and left a frantic dozen or so trying to decide.
"We have most of an hour before the other ships are expected to have watched the negotiations and made a decision on the offer, so you have a bit of time to make your choices. Don't feel too pressured." Max tried to assure them.
Not that much could calm their minds. This was the second biggest choice they had made other than the flee or hide decision when their homes were attacked.
Nico looked at the group leader. "What about you? Will you be joining us?" She asked.
He shook his head. "I intend to shuffle as many people as we can onto a few ships so that the others can go looking for other fallen civilizations and survivors. Now that our computers have been cleared, we might be able to bring them to actual safety on forgotten planets.
Once a world has been uninhabited for a while, there is no reason for the Arisen to come back unless they detect a population, so there is a chance that we could find them a new home within the closer regions, among species they know."
Nico smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Rescuing survivors is a noble goal, and I wish you the very best of luck in your future endeavours."
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