I just received another message from Leroy Fenning:
-- Tannik,
A Nomad ship designated Harbinger has been detected, and it's been acting very strangely. First of all, it has been wandering all over Sirius alone, doing who knows what. Second, it recently attacked Freeport 11 and caused some serious damage. This is a serious problem. The Council of Zoners is deliberating the issue, but I have no idea how long it will take them to come to a decision.
In the meantime, I beg you to help. Apparently some people have had some success communicating with the ship, and this should be your primary objective. If you encounter it, attempt to communicate with it however you can. Find out what it wants and why it is acting so strangely and differently. If it attacks, defend against it to the best of your ability...but ONLY if it initiates hostilities or if civilians are in danger.
I will keep you informed of further developments, and I will also instruct my contacts to let you know when and where the Harbinger is detected.
-Leroy Fenning
--
No word from the "contacts" mentioned, but I'll stay alert. I hope peaceful communication works, but I don't relish the thought of engaging a Nomad battleship: the Aedos is no pushover, but she's certainly not capable of winning that kind of fight. If it comes down to fighting, I'll need a lot of backup.
Looks like getting that scanner from Hellfire may have to wait a bit longer still...