107 P: Two Cores

"We are simply checking our off board scanners," Brendan declared calmly in English as he examined the information displayed on Sys20si's auxiliary screen.

Adrian looked like he wanted to make another comment, but he held back after meeting Brendan's eyes. 

Sys20si suddenly replaced the contents of the lower screen with the image of a stylized dragon. 

Brendan felt more than a little nervous about the connections between the two core systems. He hoped that the picture the ship had chosen was not a sign that it was choosing to place its loyalty with the Dragon Empire, as the original would have. None of the active scans at the farthest available Eks Corp Security vessel showed any sign of the Beyonder's, not that they had the outer regions very well monitored yet.

The old core had no power to engage in unexpected maneuvers or otherwise endanger them, but if the new core had decided to cooperate with the Beyonders instead, they were in trouble.