Dr Archeville

Doktor Archeville

"I've a feeling we'll need to go to ground on this one," he replied grimly.  "I'm not thrilled with the idea of maneuvering the Xeno around in there.  Fortunately," he patted Starshot reassuringly on the shoulder, "we've already got your ATV prepped."

He headed back to the garage-hangar and busied himself with re-finalizing the prep on the ATV while Starshot found a landing spot.  But doubts nagged at him.  I suppose it was foolish to think I'd never encounter that again, out here.  I've just got to keep a clear head, open eyes, and an open mind.  If this is some... some natural supernatural thing, he shook his head at the seeming contradiction, maybe something unearthed by construction, or an errant drone, then it could be contained.  And if there is a person behind this, someone intentionally drawing Sarcota here, then we can try to reason with them.  Or, if need be, force them to stop.  Some supervillains cannot be reasoned with, at least not in an immediately productive fashion.

So if there is a person behind this, who could it be, and why are they doing it? 

"Hey," he called to Starshot, "there's no sapient life native to this world, is there?  I didn't see any mentioned in my briefing on the flight over, and the climate makes it unlikely, but... well, you know this part of space better than I do.  Are there even rumors of intelligent life here?  Intelligences which might be opposed to what the Lor corporations have done to the planet?"

Doktor Archeville

Static crackled softly over Lyn's radio, and Gwen Stefani's powerhouse soprano was slowly overlaid with a crooning tenor.

"...Still schweigt Kummer und Harm,
Sorge des Lebens verhallt..."

Lynn was then aware of footsteps coming down the stairs from the apartment above.  It was her former mentor, uneasy ally, and current tenant, humming merrily.  He smiled and waved at her as he passed, but the smile was quickly replaced with a look of utter horror as he realized what was playing over the store's sound system.   His voice snapped off from the stero, and Stefani's sang true once more.

"Oh," he ran up to the counter, hands up, "oh, my goodness, I am so very sorry about that!  Sometimes, when I've got a song going through my head, it will, well, leak out to nearby devices."

Doktor Archeville

I'm really glad that worked, he thought as his hard light barrier faded, but I'd need more power than I can safely generate to stop one of the bigger ones.  Its path didn't deviate, implying it did not sense the barrier, and thus does not rely primarily on perception of the visible spectrum.  And was that sound an involuntary exhalation of gases, or an actual expression of discomfort?  Questions, questions, questions....

"I have... some experience with magic," he called to Starshot as he returned to the cockpit, "most of it... unpleasant."

There's the understatements of the millennia.

"I'd normally call on a few trusted experts I know, consult with them, but they're... temporarily out of reach.  But," he took a breath, "I do believe that, between the three of us," he checked to make sure Kinarr was still on the comm, "we can get to the bottom of this."

Artificer

Heroditus' eyes widened at the thought of meeting Fleur de Joie, the Savior of Sanctuary, and seeing her in action.  He had long been following the stories of her reclamation efforts on that damaged world, and hoped to help her some day.  And if some Atlatean techniques could prove useful there, and some of the techniques she & her people (giant bees?) had devised could benefit the reconstruction of Atlantis, so much the better!

But that would have to wait until the current crisis was resolved.  But what could he do?  

He made a sudden click-pop sound, what some Claremonters had learned was the Altantean equivalent of "Oh!"  "There are a few Atlantean outposts near that area!," he exclaimed, "If we can tie the Lighthouse's scanners to their sensors, that should help us pinpoint the Star Khan's location."

Dok's using his VP for a Create Object effect, like so

Create Object 10 (“hard light constructs”; 10 5-ft. cubes, Lifting STR 50 [heavy load 12.8 tons]; Extra: Movable; Flaw: Distracting)  {20/20p}

That should be enough to build a wall 10 feet high x 25 feet wide x 5 feet thick.

Doktor Archeville

Moments later, Archeville was at the observation port, Screwdriver at the ready.  Alright, this shouldn't be too difficult, just set up a simple barrier to gently nudge the beastie away.

A thin beam of blue light shot out of his device (well, out of him but channeled through the device), aimed a hundred feet or so ahead of the errant Sarcota.  The end of the beam expanded into a sphere of blue light, intense but not blindingly so, which then stretched like dough being rolled out.  The ends reached out and curved slighlty inward, somewhat like a croissant, directly between the Sarcota and the solar colector it had been headed towards.

"Steady as you can, Kapitän!," he called back to Starshot, "I'm not entirely certain how well this will work -- it will either sense the wall, and move around it, or be oblivious to it, and crash through it... or sense it, and try to crash through it!"

Doktor Archeville

Oh, you have got to be-

Archeville let out a stream of German profanities that may well have reminded Oskar of his days in the trenches.

The Doktor took a deep breath and smoothed back his hair, "there's something in those ravines there, something.... magical," he sneered, "that just went off.  I've a feeling that that is what is affecting our friends out there."  He transmitted the same message to Kinarr.

"But that little one," he gestured towards the roaming Sarcota, "is a more immediate concern.  I know the Xeno has no weapons, but if you can get us close enough, it's small enough that I might be able to corral it with my screwdriver."

Blinding flash?  No, we still don't know how they perceive their surroundings, and if I try for a powerful broad-spectrum electromagnetic pulse, that could affect the ship's systems.  But if I go for a more literal interpretation of 'corral'...

Intelligence check (with +4 bonus) is.... 23!

Artificer

Heroditus bowed to and saluted each Praetorian, briefly interrupted by the double-take he did on seeing Patriot.  It was only after doing so that he realized he was -- once again -- the tallest person in the room.

Are all the peoples of the galaxy so short?  I know Surfacers are short and thick compared to Atlanteans, but I was hoping to see more variety as I saw more and more, beyond even the Surface.  Could Atlanteans truly be so different from everyone else?

And then he saw Justicar Vor'an, who stood a few inches taller than Heroditus.  Ah, that is more like it.

Shakig his head to clear such existential thoughts, he looked to Doctor Elzak, briefly admiring her cerulean skin.  "I know little of human courtship rituals, but from what I have seen, extravagant gestures do seem to be the norm.  So this," he glanced to Patriot, "this Star-Khan is looking to impress someone?  Someone from out there," he gestured to the monitor showing the long-distance sensors, still trained on the wormhole near Pluto which they'd all comes through, "or someone on Earth?"

Trying to impress someone on Earth is unlikely -- how would they even have met? -- but long-distance relationships are possible.

Artificer

Waiting.  Heroditus could manage that.  Patience was a virtue, after all. 

But he would not spend the time idle.  He checked over his outfit, wanting to make sure it was neat and tidy in case he was to meet with alien diplomats.  (Well, he'd already worked to make sure it was all neat & tidy, to make a good impression on the Lighthouse staff.  But now he'd have to be extra spiffy.)  He fiddled with his bandolier and tunic, smoothing out wrinkles and making sure everything was lined up evenly.

"Still no word from the... the lead vessel?," he asked.

Doktor Archeville

"Acknowledged, Elite," he replied, surprised yet pleased that the Praetorians' mission control had responded.  "We'll keep things as frosty as our last chess match.  Ferrum out."

On one of his first visits to CoVic Station, he had taught some of the residents a few Terran board games.  Lady Tatiana had taken to chess with surprising quickness, and was soon routinely beating Viktor.  It had been a humbling experience for him, yet one he'd enjoyed.

"Looks like everything's above-board," he told Starshot, "CoVic confirms what Kinarr said.  So," he glanced out the cockpit, "let's try to focus on our original assignment.  Could Kinarr's arrival have agitated them?"  He looked back to the Xeno's sensors, or at least the ones he hadn't had to disconnect and reroute to make his call, "his mere proximity to them?  Or something his armor's giving off?  If we could just figure out how Sarcota perceive their surroudings, and how they communicate with each other..."

Doktor Archeville

Viktor sat in the pilot's seat, (fake) electromagnetic Screwdriver in one hand, the other deep in the guts of the console.  His device's beeping and flashing were meant to draw attention from his real work.  He had spliced the Xeno's sensor arrays to the communications system, to boost its range enough to reach CoVic Station, but doing so required a unique connector: his own technorganic nervous system. 

Hrm, tastes like Ruthenium...

As the last wire spooled around his finger, and cyberpahically entered the final lines of software updates, he readied his message.

It's been at least a year since my last visit to CoVic, so it's possible they've got a completely new staff rotated in.  Or it may all be the same folks, since some of these space-faring organizations move at a glacial pace.  Hopefuly it won't be anyone I owe credits to...

"CoVic Station, come in CoVic Station, this is a priority message from Ferrum.  Kinarr Khan has arrived, offering to assist us with a... an infrastructure issue.  He claims he was recently at CoVic, extending an offer for peace to the Republic and other Coalition worlds, and had left a Justicar there to negotiate terms while he has set out to 'accomplish heroic deeds' and 'prove himself worthy'.  We are... cautious.  Can you confirm?"

So it looks like Starshot's ship has

Communication 16 (Radio, nearby star systems; Flaws: Limited [One Way], Feats: Subtle) [9 EP]

I'd like to have Dok boost/enhance that using his internalized E.S. to 

Communication 18 (Radio, same galaxy; Feats: Subtle) [19 EP]

Uses 10/20 of his Variable points.

Assuming CoVic Station and Ferrum are in the same galaxy.  If they're not, he can go one rank higher, to Communication 19 (nearby galaxies), or even Communication 20 (anywhere in the universe).

Artificer

Heroditus' head tilted at the technician's announcement, "a pursuer?  Do they have any weapons charged?"

Of course he is 'good friends' with a dragon, that is likely where he learned his geomantic abilities.  He nodded at Gaian Knight's words, "I... had not considered that angle."  He gave GK a slight bow, a sign of contrition.  "Yes, of course Earth is but one island in a vast ocean of stars, and so we must move with care." 

"I would hope," he replied to Ghost, "that if these Praetorians are a... galactic Freedom League, then they would be open with us as to what is happening.  Which they seem intent on doing, once they reach us."

Studying the monitors, and addressing no one in general, "so, does it seem more like the Praetorians are pursuing the first one, or... escorting it?"

Doktor Archeville

He looked to Starshot, one eyebrow raised, "a promising start, yes?  However, I am reminded of the Russian proverb 'doveryay, no proveryay,' or 'trust, but verify'"

Then, back to the new Khan, "in that case, we would be honored to have your assistance!  If you can home in on this signal, we -- that is, my associate and I -- can join you, and we can see what can learn about the Sarcota who have settled in here, and how to gently nudge them away."

Back to Starshot, "I'd like to contact CoVic Station and get some verification on what he's said, preferably in a way that Kinarr won't immediately notice.  I can manage that," he waggled his (fake) electromagnetic screwdriver, "but it will be easier for me to do if I'm not also engaged with him.  Would you mind escorting him for a bit?"

Dok's Diplomacy check is... 26!  (almost got a Nat 20 on the roll!)

Doktor Archeville

... sure, why not.

"I've not had the chance yet to meet this Khan in person," he replied to Starshot, "but I have heard of him.  His father Kinan built and ruled the Stellar Khanate, but was grievously injured during by Communion forces during The Incursion."

Memories of his own encounters with Communion drones on distant worlds, always trying to stay one step ahead lest they assimilate him and his vast knowledge -- and regrets at focusing on personal evasion and defense, rather than assisting in the offensive efforts -- flashed through his mind.

"Rumor is Kinan had recently succumbed to those injuries, and now Kinarr, his youngest -- and only surviving -- son is looking to put himself onto his father's throne.  But what sort of Khan will this one be, diplomat or warlord, is an open question."

He looked to the sky again, "might as well try opening with diplomacy," and beamed out another message.  "Khan Kinarr, Son of Kinan, you honor and humble us with your presence.  I am Herr Doktor Viktor Archeville, of Terra, brought in by Lor corporate interests to see to these legendary creatures and the unfortunate circumstance in which they find themselves.  We would of course welcome any assistance you might bring, knowledge and expertise from your vast star-spanning Khanate, but surely there are more pressing matters which require your attention, yes?  Ferrum's supply of power cells is an important matter, certainly, but one which you need not involve yourself personally."

Artificer

Okay, okay, if it comes to it, my devices can provide me with water to breathe, and I can manage the cold of space on my own.  But I have not yet sorted the issues with the vacuum seals, so that would still bean issue.  If I- no, focus on what is happening now.

"I would rather not meet what might be friendly curiosity with naked aggression," he replied to Ghost, "and diplomacy is always preferable to battle.  On the other hand," he pivoted to Velocity and Gaian Knight, "we must also show that were are not a defenseless clam waiting to be shucked.  I would suggest a small force go out to meet this vessel, a group focused on precision rather than power, to attempt to establish contact and divine their intent.  Meanwhile, those who remain behind focus on shoring up defenses, just in case.  Also, the Freedom Hall should be alerted, if the Lighthouse has not automatically done so, so they can begin preparations."

Knowledge (Galactic Lore) check is... 31!

Doktor Archeville

Viktor winced as the alarms blared directly through his head, I really should've anticipated that, and shut down the cyberpathic link between the Xeno and himself.

"I'm not expecting a third to come aid us," he said as he began scanning the skies, "are you?  Or could this be someone taking advantage of the unusually high concentration of Sarcota to snag a trophy for themselves?  I suppose it's too much to hope," he passed one hand over his (fake) gravimetric belt, and a bubble of softly glowing blue light sprang up around him, "that it's another astrobiologist, come to independently study this unprecendent phenomenon?"

He continued scanning the skies where the Xeno's sensors had indicated the bogey was, and cyberpathically sent out a broad spectrum radio greeting, in GalStandard.  "Unknown flier, please beware, this is a hazardous area.  We are here on a mission of astrobiological conservation and infrastructure maintenance.  Please identify yourself."

Doktor Archeville

Viktor sucked his teeth, "you're not wrong on that, unfortunately.  So the question is, do we got for speed, or stealth?  Your ATV would get us across the terrain quicker than we could manage on foot -- and would be more fun!," he grinned, "but its stealth capabilities are nonexistent.  I'm sure you can sneak and stalk with the best of them, and I have a few tricks of my own... oh!"

The doktor had a wild gleam in his eyes, "if we assume that Sarcota spend a majority of their life in the vacuum of space, then they likely never developed auditory senses in the process of their evolution.  Or if their ancestors did have it, the sense atropied, like with blind cave fish.  Which means we wouldn't need to worry as much about muffling our sounds, but would need to focus on masking our visual and other energetic signals," he held up his (fake) Electromagnetic Screwdriver, "which this little wissenstab can do!"  To illustrate, he entered a few command on the devie, and slowly faded from view.  A few moments later, he faded back into view, "I should be able to adjust the field to cover your entire ATV, and the two of us, as long as we don't get too far apart."

Artificer

Twenty five thousand... what?!

"Yes, yes, oh, of course," he nodded absently at Velocity, processing the distances she had so casually mentioned, "your just because you can exceed those spaceplanes -- exceed all vehicles -- in one area does not mean they are useless to you.  Machines can help us in many ways."

Once they'd reached the command center, many things vied for the Heroditus' attention.  There was the view, of course, hinted at by the hangar but now a full panaroama.  Then there were the workstations, displaying station life support, communications, sensor logs, and more.   And then there was Gaian Knight.

The Earth-Shaper!  He is the last one I would expect to see up here.

He gave GK a bow and salute, and returned his grin, "I imagine the Lighthouse hosts beings from a variety of different environments.  Providing habitable areas for all of them -- much less comfortable ones -- must prove quite the challenge."

2023 December 14th

When I had left Earth on 2019 November 26th, I'd planned to return after about five years, mid-December of 2024.  My unexpected return, a year early, has been... well, unexpected.  But, one must roll with the punches, and work with what one has.

I'm sure people will have questions about what I've seen and done, and I had always intended to share all I had experienced once I'd returned.  But with most of my research notes and sensor logs left on my ship -- which is still (I hope!) on that distant Lor colony world -- making a full presentation will not be possible.  There's much I can share, of course, my memory is as prodigious as ever, but it won't be up to my preferred level of detail.

I suppose I can start with my ship itself.  The Synthia Bower started as a Freedom League Pegasus-class space plane, which I modified heavily to support a smaller crew for a prolonged period of time, and to have improved sensors and defensive capabilities.  After numerous encounters with a variety of aliens, taking inspiration from many (and in some cases actually integrrating extraterrestrial technology into my ship), my Synthia is now in a class of her own.

(Yes, I had fought the traiditon of anthropomorphizing ships and other vessels by referring to them as "she/her," but some traditions refuse to be ignored.)

One of the most immediately noticeable changes is her speed.  Before, she'd had a maximum atmospheric operating limit speed (V_MAO) of 8,046 kph (Mach 6.5, or 5,000 mph), which was actually not enough to achieve escape velocity from Earth – I had to redline the engines with every trip out of the atmosphere!  Now, after making improvements to both the engines and the structural integrity field, her V_MAO is 402,300 kph (Mach 325.9, or 250,000 mph) – fast enough not only to comfortably exit Earth’s gravity well, but to escape that of Jupiter!  Her interstellar speeds have been greatly increased, too.  Before, it would take about two months to get from star to (close!) star, but now, such a trip takes about four days.

Sensor range and speed has been greatly enhanced.  A full active planetary (atmospheric/biological/electromagnetic/geologic) scan can be run in under 10 minutes, and a passive scan of an entire star system -- enough to detect the major points of interest, and (most) potential threats -- can be run in about 30 minutes.

The energy systems received a complete overhaul, incorporating Lor gravity crystals to harness a microsingularity, a Grue-inspired bioreactor, and a few other things.  The matter-energy converters work better than ever, as do the holographic systems -- a realistic hologram, with radio and visual components, up to one mile in diameter can be generated!  Weapons and other energy projetion systems have had their range and accuracy improved; range is still far short of being able to hit planetary targets even from low orbit, but sufficient for most space combats.  The EMP blasters have proven ineffective against a variety of ships: conventional EMP shielding is rarely enough to stop their effect, but ships which don't use electronic circuits at all, such as Grue bioships or spacecraft using optical/photonic chips (as well as 'magic' and psionic vessels), are wholly immune.  Fortunately, the EM sensor flashers/overloaders are often still effective against such targets, as are the surveying & prospecting lasers.  I've also added a gravitic/magnetic tractor beam, for nudging asteroids and towing stranded ships.

I also finally got around to adding a teleporter.  I'd held off on that since I have my own personal teleportation systems, but some redundancy never hurts.  Besides, most people expect a spaceship to have a transporter!  The system is mostly a larger version of my own wormhole-based teleportation system, with a few minor augmentations.

(I'm still unsure on how the 'alien Santa' transported me back to Earth.  Nor how -- or even if -- I will be recalled to that Lor colony, and to my ship.  If nothing else, I can get back there the long way, but that would require borrowing, or building, another spaceship!)

Doktor Archeville

"Well, what are the odds there'd be two different spaceborne megafauna coming to this mountain range?," he called back from the observation station he'd set up, with an uneasy chuckle.  I hope I didn't just jinx us...

He hadn't made any real alterations to the Xeno's sensors, since he wasn't sure what to alter the sensors to look for, but he had, with Oskar's permission, set up a tap to stream all the sensor feeds directly to his Electromagnetic Screwdriver, displayed on a series of holographic screens, which would make it easier for him to collate and examine the readings.  Well, it was actually streaming directly to his technorganic brain, but he was still going with the "I'm just a human scientist with some fancy gear" image.  It was a fascinating sensation, one he imagined as similar to when a telepath accessed another person's mind to see or hear through their senses.  He could easily get lost in such datastreams, but the relatively narrow focus of this data-dive carried little risk of such distraction.

Having someone nearby to talk with helped, too.

"I'd considered the infection angle," he said after doing some quick scan of the mountains, "but the problem with that is, we don't really know what a baseline, healthy Sarcota looks like, so we'd have nothing to compare these scans to.  If we don't know what a standard Sarcotan body temperature is, how can we tell if one has a fever from fighting off an infection?  If one has flaking, scaly patches all over their skin, but the other is smooth and slimy, which is the sign of illness?  Are the flaking scales a sign of healthy molting, or of dehydration?  Is the slime an overproduction of mucus, blocking pathogens from entering the skin, or is it a part of their photosynthesizing process?  No," he shook his head, "I'm afriad we are going to have to settle in for a bit and observe."

Horrorshow

"Must be all those actors I've been dealing with," he replied, matching her smirk, "rubbing off on me.  Then again, when you can bend as much as I do, you're bound to become a bit... arch," he winked.

As soon as the trio had seen their first Shambalan, a part of Davyd's mind had been reaching out.  Just as his body sometimes shifted unconsciously to imitate aspects of people with whom he'd interacted, his mind often reached out telepathically.  Not enough to read even a person's topmost surface thoughts, but just enough to glean the intent behind any words they were speaking.  He had been training to get that under a more conscious control, much like with his physical transformations, as sometimes speaking a stranger's language could cause more issues than not being able to speak it.  But now, he needed that connection, so he allowed his mind to reach out so he could immerse himself in the Shambalan language.

Of course, Veronica's mojo had been a big help, both for getting the translations and in serving as a cover for his own abilities.  

(Especially useful given how distracting Lulu's arm around his waist was!)

He gave a small bow to the 'lead' monk, "you have a lovely home here."