Draeth's careful, gradually-thawing account occupied the remainder of that first night and much of the following day, Sekar and Nakamura trading questioning duties while Rama maintained continuous integration-connection presence, ensuring Timeline itself received every piece of accumulating information in real time. By the second afternoon, enough trust had accumulated—earned slowly, through consistent restraint and patient, unhurried honesty—that Draeth agreed to something considerably more significant than continued individual conversation.
He requested permission to attempt contact with his own civilization's leadership.
Rodriguez authorized the attempt without hesitation, understanding immediately the diplomatic significance of what Draeth was offering: not merely his own continued cooperation, but genuine institutional bridge-building on behalf of a civilization whose defensive instincts, however well-earned, had nearly produced fatalities within seconds of first encounter.
