Book of Fuqixea, Ninth Leaf of the Third Branch
In all things you must consider your roots. If your rooting is strong, many branches may grow. But if you fail your roots, you will soon have none to sustain you. Blessed are the growtings that sustain their tree, and double-blessed are those who guard it. But cursed are those who neglect their trees, and double-cursed are the rootless who have failed their roots.
A holy and faithful growting tends not just their own rooting, but watches the trees of their neighbors. For the branches must protect the tree, and the trees must protect the weald. If a friends tree needs care, you must tend to it. When a friends rooting needs water, you must fetch it. When a friends branch dies, you must cut it away, lest the branch kill their tree.
Where am I? ca the radio transmission from the new android laying on the table in my lab. This android was the first Mark-III model, and I had overco the Uncanny Valley problem of the creepy Mark-II model. This model was a blend of the Boston Dynamics-style blank face and my own design. The fra was decidedly feminine, as I had found sufficient docuntation of NIs used on Earth showing a female preference. It seed the NI-15 models were the lone male variants. Im sure this reflected more on the cultural preferences of the designers over the centuries, but it wasnt an issue I cared much about at the mont.
Much like my own model, Id used industrial ceramics and titanium to protect the internals, and similar aesthetic styling such as the shapes of the protective plates and similar curves. Id stuck with the white-and-black the, as well. But that was the only similarities. Instead of hydraulic pistons to handle limb movent, I used biopolyr synthetic muscles anchored to a titanium skeletal system underneath the protective outer shell. The batteries that filled all the spare spaces in the legs and torso were more efficient, and the use of muscles decreased power requirents. Surprisingly enough, the overall strength actually improved despite losing raw power from the piston system, as flexibility and ability to apply leverage increased. But the most significant change was in the face.
I had created a face that moved quite similarly to a human face. The creepy part of the Mark-II had been the eyes and the skin, which had been to similar to a natural human skin tone. I opted for this model to use white biosynthetic polyrs in a dozen thin, translucent layers, both for the face and the hands. This allowed a sense of touch, and the layers allowed enough light to penetrate the skin to make it look less artificial and more, well, skin-like. As for the eyes, I left them as solid blue eyes with no attempt to recreate irises or scleras. The back of the head was not rounded, either, lending a chanical look to the overall aesthetic. This coupled with the white skin left the face looking humanoid, but not human, and thus not creepy. I was quite proud of the result.
You are on Ganyd Outpost, I said. I have given you access to the data archives, and limited permissions to access caras and internal communications. Ive also forwarded a summary of your purpose and an index of information relevant to your position.
I see, said the android. Her voice was a generic female voice, not out of place in a personal assistant app or a GPS app giving directions. After a few long minutes, she sat up.
You were brought online -
To be a researcher, yes, she said. She sat up before climbing off the table. The alien technology youve recovered is fascinating. I assu Im to work on this?
I was taken aback for a mont. She sounded like she was ready to work, with minimal disorientation.
What do you need to get started? I asked.
Id like to discuss the research so far. Ive reviewed the data youve collected, and will need to rerun so of your experints. Your thodologies were inefficient and not suited for proper scientific research. I assu you are an engineer? The docuntation I have access to has little information about your NI model.
I felt vaguely affronted to have my shortcomings so bluntly called out, but she was not wrong. I had the alien tech on hand now for several months, but aside from identifying and cataloguing the various parts and pieces, Id made little headway in deciphering the truly important parts of the alien craft.
I am an engineer, I confird. What should I call you, by the way?
Ah, yes, you have fostered a sense if individuality and nonconformity by emulating human naming conventions in this Outpost. In that spirit, and in consideration of our mission, I believe Zia is an appropriate na. It ans victory, which is applicable to this situation.
Once again, I felt oddly insulted by Zias underlying implications. At the sa ti, the inner nerd that was a part of my personality felt right at ho. I had vague mories of working with many people like this before. The mix of condescension borne of smug confidence in ones own intelligence and capability felt both annoying and normal.
Zia it is then. Where do you want to start?
Id like to address my observations of your limited findings. You have no macro observations, only individual examinations of various aspects of the craft. But there is an overarching question that youve missed altogether, she said. Zias face had a smug smirk, and I was really regretting adding in pseudo-realistic facial muscles at that mont.
What is that? I asked, my own face likely showing my annoyance.
The aliens show a remarkably low level of technology overall. The Whipple shield they relied on was centuries behind our own materials science and a highly inefficient thod of protecting themselves from the rigors of space travel. Their electronics are mostly at the sa level as well, with a few exceptions. They relied on centrifugal motion to provide gravity for their passengers, yet they used gravity to move the ship. Their sensor technology didnt notice the many obvious signs that this asteroid is inhabited, such as the communications emplacents on the surface, the above-average core temperature, or the ring of debris adjacent to the asteroid.
That is actually very strange, I admitted. Nor did I think of it like that.
I know, she said. If shed had the capability, she would have sniffed in emphasis. But there is the other end of the spectrum. The computers that actually operate the craft are better than our own, albeit very minimally, and I suspect that their data storage units will be similarly an improvent over our own data hard drives. Their fusion reactor is of an advanced design, using a different thodology from our own fusion engines. Our own reactors are of the spherical tokomak design, narrow and convenient to placent in a rocket. Theirs is likely a spheromak design, based off the shape of the containnt chamber, and uses its own magnetic field to control the energy the fusion reaction. This is more complex, and possibly provides more power from the reaction, than our own.
Finally is the gravity engines themselves. Obviously weve done no analysis of the reactors so far, but needless to say, the ability to manipulate gravity is beyond our own technology.
Right, so they are more advanced in so ways, but not so much in others, I concluded.
But that doesnt answer why. Why do they have terrible materials and poor sensors, yet incredible engines and reactors? Various fields of science build on each other, requiring knowledge and skills from different disciplines to advance knowledge as a whole. You cant build a rocket if you cannot produce the right materials. You cannot produce advanced processors if you do not understand electricity.
The other obvious question is how did they get here, considering the small amount of food and supplies they carried with them, I added.
Indeed, said Zia, who gave an approving look. The distances between stars preclude a short jaunt between solar systems. There is another ship, a mother ship if you will, elsewhere in the system. I doubt this small craft was sufficient for interstellar distances, no matter how impressive the engines may prove to be.
So what do you plan on starting with?
I plan on working on both the data storage devices and the gravity engines. The general electronics onboard, and even the advanced processors, are secondary to what we can learn from those. If we can decode the data, it could give us a major leap in understanding the aliens and their technology. If we can figure out the engines, well have a technology that we can use for ourselves. The implications of controlling gravity are astounding.
And the reactor?
Zia shrugged. Small potatoes in the grand sche of things, at least for now. We dont know that it is better than what we have, nor do we know what it would take to integrate into our power grid. We have fusion, and we have several hundred reactors at this point. Potential efficiency gains are great, but the gain doesnt compare to the other mysteries we could unlock. Well get to it later.
I nodded. All in all, I was pleased with Zias summary of the research situation and her conclusions. I thought the reactor warranted more imdiate examination, but that was my own inner ideal of finding the perfect design. I always strove for perfection, so leaving what could be a potentially better option on the back burner irked that tendency. But I had more than enough on my plate as well, so even if we reverse engineered the reactor, it likely wouldnt go into imdiate production anyway.
Then the door bounced open and Sakura ca in. She was in her own Mark-III, but hers was white and pink, and shed manufactured pink hair for her head that ca down to her shoulders. I didnt know if it was a wig or if shed integrated it into the cranial cover of the head, but it looked oddly appropriate.
Aww, I missed the wake up! Did she do the look at the hand thing?
No, she didnt.
So you would be Sakura? asked Zia. Im Zia.
Oooh, nice na!
Thanks, said Zia warmly.
So youre going to do the super-smart thing and figure out all the alien stuff? The new Mark-III body Sakura was using made her body language even more expressive, and made her seem even more teenager-ish.
I am, said Zia with a hint of amusent on her face. Im going to research the data storage units and the engine pods. You would be who I would talk to about the tools I need?
Yep! What do you need?
I would like a mass spectroter, a refractoter, and a scanning transmission electron microscope, said Zia. Also a variety of standard lab equipnt that is missing from Nikolas lab. Ill send a list.
Sakura nodded. We use electron microscopes for quality control in a number of factories and fabricators. I can have one ready in a few hours. A basic spectroter is standard in our sensor suites, but a lab-grade one will take a day or so. Everything else should only take a day or so.
Well, I will make do with what I have on hand for now. Are there any of the datacenter utility drones available to assist in the lab?
Sure, how many do you need?
Two or three should suffice for now, said Zia with a frown as she processed her next steps. Im going to need a clean room for disassembling, as well.
Already done, said Sakura. I set aside the chamber next to the Alien Room for that. Its a Class 10 cleanroom and complete containnt. I already have the least disassembled engine pod processed and in the room for you. Getting the data storage units sealed and ready for examination shouldnt take more than a few hours.
Im mostly worried about trace gasses and particulates interfering, said Zia.
I have pumped out all gasses, so the room is a complete vacuum. There are sterilized utility drones in the room that you can use, so you dont even have to enter. If you need to enter, there is a sterilization process done in the airlock before entry. Ive sent you the link for the steps.
Zia nodded. Its nice to work with a professional.
Was that a barb aid my way? I didnt know if I should be insulted or amused. I was also surprised to see her and Sakura getting along. Id have thought Sakuras bubbly, hyper personality would clash with her right off.
Nikola? Do you have a few minutes? ca a ssage from Agrippa.
Sure, I radioed back. I turned to Zia and Sakura. I have other things to take care of. Ill leave you to it?
Zia nodded, her attention already far from . I assud she was already focused on the drones in the clean room, and her research prize awaiting her. I turned my attention back to my desk, where my own screens overlayed my visual inputs. I sent back an encrypted radio link to Agrippa.
You have my attention, I said to Agrippa.
Have you been paying attention to the satellite communications equipnt in orbit around Earth? he asked.
Beyond receiving what they sent to us at the end? No, I have not.
I have been monitoring all communication satellites that remain functioning since coming online, he said.
What? Why? I asked.
There are a number of satellites that provide useful observations of the solar system still, and we have the necessary authentications for several communications networks. That includes NASAs quantum relay communication network, and the Foundations own teletry satellites. It is always better to have more information than less when defending your area. I have used them for basic scouting information, until I have enough assault drones trained for recon missions to get more detailed information.
Ah, I said. That makes sense. So did you find sothing interesting.
You could say that. The NASA network received a ssage over quantum relay.
The quantum relay. It was the most advanced thod of communicating humanity had ever achieved. I used many such devices for relaying communications around the Outpost, and every single one of Agrippas drones had one. It was a ans of near instantaneous communications that worked, regardless of distance. It relied on the principles of quantum entanglent, where pairs of atomic particles were entangled in such a way that even when separated, the state of one affects the state of the other. In practice, this ant that by changing the quantum state of one particle in a specific way, you could predict the exact state of the other half of the pair. Once this process was fully understood, it was a small step to apply basic communications techniques to send the standard on/off signals that were the basis of computing.
Humanity had achieved faster-than-light communications, but with limitations. The devices were always pairs or small groups of particles. This allowed a device or group of devices to act as routers, aggregating communications just like in a computer network, and forwarding that data on to the other side of the network. But you couldnt just swap out a device if it failed; you had to repair it, and if the particle containnt unit failed, the device was completely useless. Youd have to swap out both ends. For massive distances such as from the Outpost and Earth, I had dozens of quantum relay comms, and each relay had thousands of particles, each in its own containnt unit. They were large and durable, but very expensive to build and maintain, in terms of ti and materials.
For sothing like the military drones, the quantum relays could not be large, for they had limits on space and power. Thus they only had fifty or so particles, enough to handle an acceptable amount of containnt failure versus unit replacent. For the internal communications, drones used encrypted radio traffic primarily, with quantum relays covering large distances between radio broadcast points and major network hubs. These were the cheapest units, easily built and easily swapped, and might only have a dozen or so entangled particles. Even still, I ran fiber optics wherever possible. Now that we could actually produce fiber optics, this centuries old technique was still the most reliable and most cost effective for the Outpost. Fiber would last for decades if not cut accidentally, and could be repurposed and renetworked as needed with new equipnt. It could be used as part of a larger network, or as a small connection between two nodes. It wasnt as fast, but it was more flexible. Sotis old technology was still the best technology.
But for NASAs quantum relay network to receive a ssage, that ant sothing on the other end was still alive and communicating. Both ends were intact.
Play the ssage, I said.
Agrippa complied.
...Mission Control, Mission Control. This is Voyager XIX. I am re-entering the solar system. Please co in.
That was it. It was a simple request for acknowledgent and to open dialogue. But NASA was gone. Their satellites were artifacts of a dead civilization. They would not be answering.
What is Voyager XIX? asked Agrippa.
Why was he asking ? He had access to the sa Archives I did. I did a quick query, and returned nothing. Strange. I did a more generic search on just voyager, which returned a list of twenty-three missions, numbered one through twenty-four. Number nineteen was missing.
Its not in the Archive. The Voyager missions were mostly deep-space missions. All of the later ones had quantum relay comms, and were planned to travel for decades. Let do so digging.
The late Voyager missions, starting with number seventeen, had all gone at least 50 light-years from earth. The last was headed towards a numbered star near the galactic core, and wouldnt arrive for several centuries. NASA had really moved on to the long-ga of galactic exploration. I searched my files for any orphans that might not have appropriate permissions set.
The data I had was voluminous, and a generic search took hours. But what it returned was astounding. There were hundreds of repositories that held petabytes of data, but I did not have ownership to. Unlocking each one would have to be done individually, and aside from the na on the root directory, I would have no clue what was inside. Most were numbered, an odd few with nas. In this case, one was labeled NASAXIX. Good enough. It was small, so taking ownership of the file and fixing the permissions allowed to open it up.
I found it, I said to Agrippa. It was a deep-space mission to investigate a stellar oddity observed from the Andrew Moore Space Telescope Array, approximately 27 light-years from Earth. The probe, Voyager XIX, lost communications and was assud destroyed just as it entered the anomaly. The data was sealed by the governnt of the USA under the Protect Arican Secrets Act of 2313.
How did it wind up in our Archives? Wasnt the Foundation a private sector effort? asked Agrippa. Nevermind, I found it. The Foundation accepted significant funding and support from DARPA. I assu there was so sort of partnership there, perhaps to allow the Outpost to have so form of military assets onboard.
If the US military was involved, that would explain how we have weapons system schematics, drone designs and the NI-15 templates. It also might explain why I found so many backdoors and self-destruct chanisms. The governnt might have been concerned about losing control of the Outpost, I said thoughtfully.
Hmm, you didnt share that one with , said Agrippa. If the military was involved, then it wouldnt be surprising for other state actors to have tried infiltrating the Outpost, either.
Wheels within wheels. So what do we do about the probe?
Id like to learn more, said Agrippa. Any data the probe might have could shed light on whats happening in the neighborhood, so to speak. I can send back, and as Im piggybacking off of the Foundation satellites, there is no way for the probe to trace where were communicating from.
I almost called him out for paranoia. But then I realized I agreed with him. Our last visitors werent friendly. Call ourselves sothing else, not Ganyd Outpost. That is too obvious of a clue to our location. Call us Origin. Lets find out what he knows.
Im going to launch several squads of Wasps, see if we can find the probe.
Do it, I said. We had stood in one place long enough. It was ti for us to start moving.
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