A Science Fiction Text Adventure

Post 196

> Aaron: Answer honestly.

"Yes, I was helping to build that mini starship! I haven't been able to check in with that in a while; engineering something like that takes time, even in the best of circumstances. The scale we're working on brings up whole new issues, I'm sure you can understand. I'd love to get back to it, though! It would be great to be able to communicate quickly with Earth. For us, to talk to people we've left behind. For you, to be able to set up more regular communication with Earth, which – if I'm not misunderstanding – is one of your goals. And if we have to warn Earth. As for treating me well – I had no particular claim on you and your organization's friendship, but you helped rescue us, hide us, and a way to work toward what we came here for. I can't ask for much more."

Feer nods.

> Nanette: Make sure the signal jamming extends to the new copies of Phil's nanites that Ruby's experimenting with, just in case.

She makes sure the signal jamming extends. Now. But it didn't earlier. At least they're not at Feer's secure location? You might have put Ro and Blu and their lab in danger, though. Um. Is there anything you can do about this?

> (General) Eat food

Everyone comes home and they make some good food. The humans collaborate on the best semblance of a human dinner they can make with Bintanni ingredients. There's a salad, some roast "fish" (which they caught themselves while on the way back to Remiska – they had a lot of success with fishing and saved some), something resembling cheesy roast potatoes as a side, and Ruby even uses her baking skils to put together a pie. As Aaron had suggested earlier, Kif and their family join them for dinner and meet Phil. Phil does seem to become a little more relaxed after a while, and he watches the parents with their kid closely and even joins in with an impromptu drawing session when Aaron starts one.

Is there anything Lucie needs to do before her interview? What about the rest of the group? Anything to ask Kif while he's here?

> Presumably, take a shower and get a good night's rest for tommorrow.

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

> Nanette: Make a small set of decoy nanites, with location and signal strength equal to those you just jammed, and send it at walking pace away somewhere, leave it there until it's discovered, and at that point create a diversion so it seems someone could have been there but then escaped, turn off the decoy signal, then return the nanites to one of the main swarms invisibly. (Anyone else have ideas for the location/diversion?)

> General: Catch up with Kif, ask how they've been doing.

Was there a time skip with the food, and can we still respond to the question of what Nanette did next before it?

There would have been a time skip to eat dinner, yeah. ...Okay, I'll let you respond to what Nanette's going to do next, yes.

Post 197

> Nanette: Make a small set of decoy nanites, with location and signal strength equal to those you just jammed, and send it at walking pace away somewhere, leave it there until it's discovered, and at that point create a diversion so it seems someone could have been there but then escaped, turn off the decoy signal, then return the nanites to one of the main swarms invisibly.

Eventually, police do respond to the area Nanette has sent the decoys. She sends them to a public transport hub connected to the Remiska subway underground, so a person carrying the signal could have gone anywhere. They are confused. The conversation the nanites overhear, however, does suggest that the police are going to look into why the signal was at the lab in the first place. It's not a likely place to go unless there was some reason.

> General: Catch up with Kif, ask how they've been doing.

Kif says they've been doing okay – they were able to get a new job under the new identity provided by the F.f.E.C. Getting used to the new name as well as the new job has taken a lot of getting used to, though! Niu is starting their art business back up under their new name, and Ver is still adjusting to their new school, but has found some new friends.

> Presumably, take a shower and get a good night's rest for tommorrow.

Kif and family go home, and everyone takes turns having a nice shower before turning in.

What do you want to take care of when you wake up?

> Nanette: Warn the others about the suspicion of the lab, and hopefully start brainstorming ideas to solve the problem.

> (general) Well, go on. Tell the F.f.E.C. what you did.

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

Post 198

> Nanette: Warn the others about the suspicion of the lab, and hopefully start brainstorming ideas to solve the problem.

> (general) Well, go on. Tell the F.f.E.C. what you did.

When you all wake up and have breakfast, Nanette brings up what happened at the lab yesterday. She says she extended frequency interference to the new Phil-type nanites at the lab, and sent some decoys out to drag out any followers. That the decoy bait was taken, but that they do now know about the lab and will be checking out why Phil-type nanites were there. Ruby looks a bit bashful at her part in all this.

Feer is not happy about this, of course, but acknowledges that at least Nanette's action kept it from exposing the lab without warning. He's going to make some calls and warn Ro and Blu. Yes, he will get to Lucie's interview soon. Is there anything you can think of to help keep Ro and Blu's operation at the lab and their connection to the F.f.E.C. secret?

Any ideas on how to protect Ro and Blu and the lab, or how to deal with the Bintanni secret political police in general? Other than Lucie's interview, any other plans for the day?

Nanette: Draw attention to even more innocent locations - send out several invisible nanite clouds around the city and send decoy signals from them randomly, including one right next to one of the police officers tracking the signal if possible/safe, so that they think there's a problem with their equipment. Also keep an eye on the area around the lab in case they come back anyway.

Post 199

Nanette: Draw attention to even more innocent locations - send out several invisible nanite clouds around the city and send decoy signals from them randomly, including one right next to one of the police officers tracking the signal if possible/safe, so that they think there's a problem with their equipment. Also keep an eye on the area around the lab in case they come back anyway.

Nanette does this, and successfully confuses the matter with the police. One of the more astute police officers wants to keep an eye on the lab anyway, since it's the first place they found a signal. They're apparently only getting just a little bit of support from their superiors in order to continue the operation.

Feer is glad you were able to do something about this, but he's also aware that you were the ones who brought it about in the first place.

After breakfast, and dealing with the police investigation of the lab, Feer is ready to talk with Lucie. They ask her about the miniature communication ship, Waverton's leadership, how she's found their nanotech engineering, and how she sees Aaron and Ruby.

> (Lucie)"Where were we on that thing anyways? Power plant, I think? It's basically a mail drone with an FTL engine. We give it our message, hyperjump it to Earth, they read our letter, give it their message, and send it back here. Radio waves can't go FTL, otherwise they'd have never bothered sending people. I highly reccomend using fusion power for safety and speed."

Edited by dvorak on Feb 18th 2021 at 7:40:56 AM

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

> Nanette: There's just one officer left trying to investigate the lab? Distract them a bit more if they get too close, but whatever you do, don't let them discover what you are.

Post 200 (!)

> (Lucie)"Where were we on that thing anyways? Power plant, I think? It's basically a mail drone with an FTL engine. We give it our message, hyperjump it to Earth, they read our letter, give it their message, and send it back here. Radio waves can't go FTL, otherwise they'd have never bothered sending people. I highly reccomend using fusion power for safety and speed."

Feer nods. "Yes, yes. Do you think you can make the fusion power generator as small as you need it? Or is that one of the things you're still hashing out with our own engineers?"

"And, I really do want your perspective on the other humans. Just to hear it from you yourself, who know them so well."

> Nanette: There's just one officer left trying to investigate the lab? Distract them a bit more if they get too close, but whatever you do, don't let them discover what you are.

Nanette fakes a call from their superior to go to a different (real) crime scene across town. One also being investigated by the group of cops they regularly work with, so they're not unexpected.

Ro and Blu breathe a sigh of relief and begin making sure everything is where it should be. Especially anything that could potentially be incriminating, although they're careful of that in general.

Does Nanette need to do anything else about this persistent police officer? Does Ruby get back to work on the neutralizer for Phil (Y/N)? What about Aaron and Waverton?

[I would also like to say a thank you for allowing me to keep this going for so long. You all are amazing. <3]

Edited by PointMaid on Feb 19th 2021 at 11:31:23 AM

This game is great!

> Lucie: Honest answer.

> Internal: (Like Feer said, she knows them best!)

> Nanette: Keep an eye on the officer for a while, just in case.

> Ruby: Yes.

Yeah, it's great to be part of a long runner like this.

>(Lucie) "Oh, a fusion reactor can be almost as small as you like as long as you've solved the Break-Even problem."

>(Ruby) Yes.

>(Waverton) "So what are we gonna do?"

Edited by dvorak on Feb 19th 2021 at 12:24:33 PM

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

Post 201

>(Lucie) "Oh, a fusion reactor can be almost as small as you like as long as you've solved the Break-Even problem."

"That's great! ...Um. Do you expect that to be a serious obstacle, obtaining as much energy as you put into it to start it up and keep it going? Hopefully our precision nanoengineering experts can help there."

> Lucie: Honest answer.
"I've known Ruby for years! She's like a sister to me, I'd trust her with my life. She's a damn good biochemist, xenobiologist, and teacher, too – of course, if she wasn't, she wouldn't be on this mission. I've been working closely with Aaron since this mission was put together. He knows his stuff backward and forward and he's meticulous, but more importantly he's creative. You can see it in his work – he's a theorist, after all, that requires creativity – but he loves to draw and paint, too. And Waverton's solid. Commanding's difficult and I don't envy him the decisions he has to make. But his heart is in the right place, and wouldn't trust anyone else to do a better job."

> Nanette: Keep an eye on the officer for a while, just in case.

Nanette keeps an eye on the officer for now. They seem to have accepted being sent to the existing case.

> Ruby: Yes.

Ruby calls Ro and Blu and asks if they're okay, and if it's ok if she does some more work on her neutralizer. As long as she's very, very careful about keeping any signals contained – yes. She heads back to the lab and mixes up a few slightly different versions of the new neutralizer she's been working on. She gets Nanette to check on the signals the experimental nanites are giving out when dosed (signals contained, of course). One of them works much better than the others.

>(Waverton) "So what are we gonna do?"

Aaron nods. "I suppose I should look over the blueprints for the mini-ship again. And maybe our FTL technology could give me an answer to get around the quantum encryption. It's a long shot, but it's an idea. But, yeah. As for the rest… well, do you think this is the best use of our time to stay on-mission? You are the captain, after all."

Is Ruby's neutralizer ready? What's Lucie's response to Feer? How about Aaron and his proposals?

> Nanette: "Ruby, is the neutraliser as effective as it could possibly be yet? Do you think it would be worth testing it on Phil now?" (If that does happen, keep blocking the signal until it's definitely totally gone and not coming back, and make sure the testing nanites as well as Phil's are all 100% neutralised as well.)

>(Lucie) "Well, that'd be Aaron's area of expertise. He's the physicist, not me. But a fusion reactor was selected to save space."

>(Aaron) Look up specifications for a small enough fusion reactor for the comm drone.

> (Waverton) Ask the AI for help in hacking the government's quantum computer.

Edited by dvorak on Feb 21st 2021 at 8:36:22 AM

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

Post 202

> Nanette: "Ruby, is the neutraliser as effective as it could possibly be yet? Do you think it would be worth testing it on Phil now?" (If that does happen, keep blocking the signal until it's definitely totally gone and not coming back, and make sure the testing nanites as well as Phil's are all 100% neutralised as well.)

"I… I think so. I think it would be worth it, yes."

>(Lucie) "Well, that'd be Aaron's area of expertise. He's the physicist, not me. But a fusion reactor was selected to save space."

Feer nods. "I know you're the engineer, but I suppose he might have a better understanding of the more… unusual issues. Since I believe you said this is a new thing for your civilization as well? How delightful, a useful collaboration, isn't it? I think that about wraps up our interview, unless you have some more questions for me."

>(Aaron) Look up specifications for a small enough fusion reactor for the comm drone.

He looks up the smallest they have blueprints for. It takes up about eight cubic centimeters of space. Maybe he'll have to modify it a bit.

> (Waverton) Ask the AI for help in hacking the government's quantum computer.

The AI responds that the quantum encryption might be easy enough to hack, or at least tap into, if you can insert your own qubits entangled with the encryption link. But they'll know the link isn't secure. Aaron's idea about possibly using FTL to intercept a message before it's even sent/ received and therefore before it can be discovered that the link is compromised is… speculative at best. He's an imaginative physicist, but his imagination does get the better or him sometimes. Of course, it retorts, it's just an AI, so has little imagination.

Does Ruby try to persuade Phil that she has a working formula now and to let her try it on her (Y/N)? Is Lucie done with her interview or does she have any questions for Feer? What about Aaron and Waverton and their problems?

>(Ruby) Yes

>(Lucie) Yes

>(Aaron) Do what you can to make it work. If the hull needs to be a bit bigger, would that be OK?

>(Internal) I could have sworn they were gonna do the hull last...

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

> Ruby: Yes.

> Nanette: Out of curiosity, learn how to use the machines to make more Nanette-type nanites. If there was, hypothetically, some kind of emergency where the swarm needed to become even bigger, how fast would it be possible to grow, etc? (Assuming it's possible to take control of any individual nanite the instant it's fully formed?)

> Lucie: "Actually, I do have one question. I think someone said at some point that the F.f.E.C. was formed at least partially by the humans from twenty years ago when they escaped, but that they all died soon after that, I guess it sounds like they must have had different kinds of nanites tested on them or something... But, the point is, I'm curious to know more about what happened to them? How did the three of them escape?"

Post 203

>(Ruby) Yes

Ruby takes the neutralizer and cleans up, destroying the experimental nanites. Then she goes back to Feer's She tries to persuade Phil that yes, she knows what she's doing, and if she administers the neutralizer he won't have to worry about being manipulated or tracked anymore. (Roll: 6, Went Horribly Right). Phil agrees – heartily, in fact. He wants the nanites shut down pronto! Ruby gives him a shot of the neutralizer. He… falls fast asleep. He is breathing, his heart is beating, but he's currently not responding to the outside world.

[[strike]]>(Lucie) Yes[[/strike]]

> Lucie: "Actually, I do have one question. I think someone said at some point that the F.f.E.C. was formed at least partially by the humans from twenty years ago when they escaped, but that they all died soon after that, I guess it sounds like they must have had different kinds of nanites tested on them or something... But, the point is, I'm curious to know more about what happened to them? How did the three of them escape?"

Feer twitches. A very Bintanni gesture you've come to associate with remembrance. "The humans managed to convince one of their guards to smuggle them away. But what had already happened to them, it wasn't possible to reverse. It became… fatal. This Phil, he was the last to be experimented on, but they took him away just before the rescue. Presumably, they learned."

>(Aaron) Do what you can to make it work. If the hull needs to be a bit bigger, would that be OK?

They indeed haven't finalized the hull, but the size of the generator does have an affect on the final size of the ship. How small does the ship need to be? If the ship can be the size of, oh, a shoebox, he should be fine.

> Nanette: Out of curiosity, learn how to use the machines to make more Nanette-type nanites. If there was, hypothetically, some kind of emergency where the swarm needed to become even bigger, how fast would it be possible to grow, etc? (Assuming it's possible to take control of any individual nanite the instant it's fully formed?)

Nanette gets out the manuals and pages through them to figure out how they work. It looks like, on these lab sized models rather than industrial production grade, she could turn out two cubic centimeters of nanites an hour..

What does our intrepid group do next? Does Ruby try to wake Phil (Y) or let him rest for now (N)?

>(Internal) Ohhhh crap...

>(Ruby) Yes

>(Nanette and Lucie) Try to help Phil.

Edited by dvorak on Feb 23rd 2021 at 1:54:21 PM

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

> Nanette: Try to work out what went wrong. Are Phil's nanites all neutralised? Did he have a bad reaction to the chemical, or were the nanites vital to him in some way? And, if necessary, could some of your nanites replace whatever function that was, if that was the case? (Remembering that he has taken some of the other neutraliser before, so maybe the anti-neutraliser project needs to start again too? Or would adding more nanites counter a neutraliser's effects in any case? All of this only if Phil does turn out to need nanites for some reason.)

> Internal: (About the idea of instantaneous/FTL communication being able to intercept quantum messages somehow, isn't our signal to Nanette "coming from everywhere at once" or something? (Or are the communication places covered by more anti-nanite shields anyway?))

Edited by EloquentOrNot on Feb 23rd 2021 at 10:13:45 AM

Post 204

>(Internal) Ohhhh crap...

>(Ruby) Yes

>(Nanette and Lucie) Try to help Phil.

> Nanette: Try to work out what went wrong. Are Phil's nanites all neutralised? Did he have a bad reaction to the chemical, or were the nanites vital to him in some way? And, if necessary, could some of your nanites replace whatever function that was, if that was the case? (Remembering that he has taken some of the other neutraliser before, so maybe the anti-neutraliser project needs to start again too? Or would adding more nanites counter a neutraliser's effects in any case? All of this only if Phil does turn out to need nanites for some reason.)

Ruby tries to wake Phil, but he's fast asleep. She might try adrenaline, but she doesn't have any. Lucie tries to help, once she hears about the situation too, but doesn't have a better idea than Ruby does. Ruby would like to assess the situation more, but it's not a hospital with equipment.

Nanette has quite a lot of sensing and capability, though. She tries to assess Phil's condition. It does seem like the nanites have, over the years, taken over some of Phil's conscious pathways, running parallel circuits. The brain, at any age, does have plasticity… and the damage is not too great. He may well return to consciousness given some time. Nanette would have to displace all the nanites in those circuits in order to insert herself in them instead, which is a delicate operation. The initial symbiosis probably took years to happen.

> Internal: (About the idea of instantaneous/FTL communication being able to intercept quantum messages somehow, isn't our signal to Nanette "coming from everywhere at once" or something? (Or are the communication places covered by more anti-nanite shields anyway?))

Yes, your signal to Nanette is coming from everywhere at once.

Do you do anything more for Phil at the moment? Do you have an idea about how to crack the quantum encryption? Anything else?