"Maxine McArthur - Time Future" - читать интересную книгу автора (McArthur Maxine)

clashed frequently.

The Seouras were an unknown factor. It was rumored that they had
returned to claim the area for their own, but in fact their ships made
no aggressive moves against the system or Confederacy traffic. There
was no indication that the Seouras had aggressive intentions or that
they possessed the level of technology necessary to effect a seizure.
Their ships then weren't half as big as the ones watching the station
now, and the design was different.

The Danadan and mercenary fleets ruined trade and filled the station
with refugees, which we could ill afford; because of the lack of
support from either Sector Central or Earth, the only way for us to
become self-sufficient was by trade. Even then, we were always low on
essential stocks--medical supplies, delicate equipment replacements.
To provide a counterweight, I suggested a treaty between Jocasta, the
Danadan, and the Seouras as we then
knew them. The captain of the Danadan ship that was disturbing trade
around the system at the time agreed to consider a compromise. Murdoch
was appalled by the idea and said so.

It took several weeks of intensive diplomatic effort to hammer out an
agreement basically satisfactory to all. Both the Seouras and Danadan
were to suspend hostilities in the Abelar system and a surrounding
twenty-light-year radius. No force was to be used against Confederacy
ships or installations in said area. Both species were allowed full
access to and trade privileges on Jocasta. If one party broke the
treaty, the others were to come to the aid of the injured party.

The Danadan were not happy at the prospect of losing a profitable area
of pillage, but perhaps they considered the benefits of having a
powerful ally such as the Confederacy worth conceding a demilitarized
buffer zone in and around the Abelar system. The Seouras seemed
pleased to be rid of the Danadan and expressed an interest in both
trading and communicating with other species in the Confederacy.

Unfortunately the trading conglomerates and their employees at all
levels of Confederacy government were not pleased, and neither were the
Q'Chn trade barons who manipulated them. Nor were Earth administration
(because Sector was upset), crooked traders and agents on the station
(because station Security now found time to deal with them), or
elements within? the Danadan hierarchy who thought the loss of their
piracy income too high a price to pay for a peace they'd never wanted.
As they say, you can't please everyone all the time.

The Abelar Treaty seemed a good idea at the time, and
 it worked for a while. It kept our space free from large-scale
fighting between Seouras and Danadan and let us concentrate on removing
smugglers and pirates, and on attracting genuine traders. We had
nearly a year of peace and prosperity afterwards. The Seouras kept