Traders Risk

On a routine freight run through a three‑star system, a seasoned Ciriimian crew finds their cargo – a ferocious Canthorian beast called a Zid – turning their ship into a hunting ground. The four operators, known as the Chafis, scramble with telekinetic powers and hastily plotted jumps, trying to outrun a predator that easily outmatches their strength. Their only hope seems to be to discard the creature onto the nearest uninhabited planet, a water world catalogued as home only to simple marine life.

When the ship lands, the crew watches the Zid stalk the sandy islands, confident that the creature cannot survive among the sea‑dwelling intelligences. Their relief shatters the moment they hear voices and see signs of a warm‑blooded, land‑based species—a complex civilization the catalogue never recorded. Faced with an unexpected ethical crisis, the freighters must decide whether to break galactic protocol and seek help from the newly discovered natives, knowing the Zid could soon wipe out the island’s inhabitants.