Whether for Katerina or Lawrence, today's meeting was a novel experience. The Siren Queen had rarely left the deep sea since gaining her memories, and had never signed any agreements with another race. Lawrence, meanwhile, had been born and raised aboard the Ark and had never seen what an alien looked like in his entire life—he had even been startled the last time he saw Nangong May. Both were rookie representatives of their races, and fortunately, they were mentally tough enough that even their first negotiation hadn't gone off the rails.
The negotiation itself was actually uneventful, proceeding as smoothly as expected. The Siren Queen had already settled many details with Hao Ren in advance, while Lawrence—who only wanted to find the Ark fleet a temporary place to settle, where they could repair the equipment aboard their ships—was willing to accept almost any condition in the face of this crisis threatening his entire race's survival.
The Siren Queen only wanted one Ark from him. The condition was already far better than he had imagined.
The negotiations took place in a Rest Room beside the bridge of the Giant Turtle Rock Platform. As a major meeting that would determine the survival of two races, the rights to lease a planet, and communication between the highest echelons of two civilizations, the venue was undeniably humble. Perhaps years later, when the Sirens and Ark people described this meeting in their history books, they would lavishly emphasize this point: On such-and-such a day, two leaders shaped history in the Rest Room of a small spacecraft.
Only five people attended the negotiations. Representing Io's sovereign side were the Siren Queen and her two secretaries. Representing the Ark civilization was Lawrence alone, while Hao Ren attended the entire process as a witness. There was also an