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<span class="mu-s"><span class="mu-r">OH SHIT- THE SPACE WHALE!</span></span>
There's no way to know if it is the same one- but yes, it is a space whale. Just like the one first discovered by the long-distance Skiff probe sent to Andoen centuries ago.
This whale was discovered in one of the two remaining star systems in your local cluster- a red giant which has since been named the <span class="mu-s">Drakas</span> system.
<span class="mu-g">”What a beautiful song.”</span>
<span class="mu-b">”...Kimnan, your computer is not detecting any communication signals from that alien animal, is it? Can anyone else on the crew report?”</span>
<span class="mu-g">”Can you not hear it? Nobody else...?'</span>
The massive space whale is absolutely ginormous. It couldn't swallow a star... but a small planet or a moon? It totally could. It moves slowly through space, beating its tail pointlessly in a great vacuum. It eyes your ship, its body bioluminescent. It doesn't seem hostile, but it is not making any attempts to communicate or hail your ship. Your own hails do nothing either, it simply drifts very slowly, peacefully, towards the massive nebula nearby this system. It is so big and clearly strong there's zero chance you could ever capture it, or even really try and make it go where you want even with your advanced frigate, it'd be like a wasp trying to sting a whale to swim north.
The concept of such a creature existing, much less evolving in space like this, is so mind-boggling to your current understands of physics. No <span class="mu-i">known</span> materials, much less biological ones, could create a single object of such a large size without falling in on itself- except for maybe a high Azurium framework. But certainly not a living creature with cells and tissues and... blood? You assume it has blood. The existence of a space whale like this violates the square-cube law so hard that you have no idea how such a thing could even exist.
But there is a theory. The prevailing science behind the space whales since their discovery is that these immense creatures somehow <span class="mu-i"><span class="mu-s">sustain themselves on fusion power</span></span>. Since they cannot swallow stars, or even a humble brown dwarf, they must be capable of creating a fusion reaction in their bodies, somehow. Surely they couldn't sustain themselves with biological matter- there wouldn't be enough biomass in twenty planets a day for something of that size to sustain itself! You have no idea how rare, valuable, or special these animals are either; could this be not one of a species, but a unique creature, one and alone in the cosmos? Is it a protected species according to a charter of interstellar empires? You don't know. But the chance to <span class="mu-i"><span class="mu-s">advance your fusion technology</span></span> is very enticing...
>Vivisect the space whale for scientific research
>Attempt behavioral study of the animal and get closer
>Try to lead the whale towards an occupied system for closer study
>Leave the whale alone and observe for now
>Other?
