It was almost funny that a survey ship with a glitched navigational computer could turn out so lucky. The crew only realised the problem when they found themselves deposited in open space while navigation adamantly claimed the were in a solar system. A system they determined was still half again as far as they had already travelled. More critical though was the status of their drive core's static build-up, turning back was out of the question and going forward carried no functional safety margin. But what other choice did they have?
En route they had made calculations based on prior observations and dropped to maximum sub-light velocity as close as they could to the estimated orbital path of a gas giant. First contact (de facto) occurred at that point when the Girik came into contact with the Idavoll system's datasphere and a semi-adaptive advertising program triggered the computer's firewall into shutting down communications. First contact (de jure) occurred ten minutes later with a trio of system monitor craft boxing them into a coarse towards the polar orbital plate they had recently launched from, active targeting engaged.
While there was substantial questioning on the who, why and where of their arrival and a pointed discussion on safe flight protocol and the fines payable by those who ignore them, the Girik's crew were nonetheless left feeling that first contact had been rather played up in the history books. They would return with a reprogrammed navigation computer and firewall, a basic understanding of the League of Systems and a temporary licence to trade in system (necessary for proposes of refuelling).
The mineral survey of the system they had started in was good enough to bring the Flotilla in and begin mining, which escalated regularly as deeper veins were uncovered. At the same time the Conclave and Admiralty board were both heavily discussing this new discovery and if and how it might be of benefit or threat. No particular concern was given over informing the Citadel Council.
The decision was eventually made to send a small group of ships back with a cargo hold of rare earth metals and instructions to make a more formal contact and conduct an investigation on the possibilities of future relations. They returned with a much more detailed understanding of how the League operated, a provisional contract in the hands of the freighter captain for more of the same and a large section of new hull plating, purchased for the Flotilla's engineers to inspect.