<> <> <> (Milk: The Deadliest Substance Known To Operatives.) (MILK. IT DO A BODY GOOD) * Kyle is ready to get some DELICIOUS MILK. (THE PLANET OF MILK. OWLS.) (unacceptable) * Tomas enters the lounge from offship, plops on the couch, picks up an issue of Red Cat Fancy and begins leafing through it while waiting on the others. (.... Cats on Mars?) (I don't stock the lounge with Red Cat Fancier.) (Are you full of owls?) (That's all you.) (I AM FULL OF OWLS) (Red Cats. They uh aren't exactly like felis felis) (DunnoCat Ambivalence. For those who could take or leave their DunnoFelines.) (Tomas fancies cats. He even has a book, 'How To Serve Cats'.) (That's how much he cares.) (*stares at OPERS* Out of $600, you kept $120 in taxes?) (ONE FIFTH. 20%.) * Lexi emerges from the shower, wrapped in a towel, because uh... fanservice or something! And then heads to her closet, floats some clothes over, gets dressed and heads out to the lounge. "Sup, Mas." (I should probably note this is the next day, June 9th, in the morning.) (Okay.... Vanilla Coke Zero and Cruzan rum is delicious.) (We have a shower? I should look into this shower some time.) (unacceptable again) (I has a Hendricks) (Of course the ship has a shower.) (VCZ is worst CZ) (Lies. It's delicious) * Kyle walks up from the bowels of the ship with a high-priced space coffee in one hand and a datapad in his other. He sips. "'morning. Ship checks out for jump whenever people are here." (It's become like my new favorite soda. I liked Cherry Coke Zero, except I have some psychological attachment of that flavor to throat lozenges. So my throat inexplicably gets numbed by it) * Tomas smiles at the both of them over the magazine, "You looking forward to today's milk run?" (Tomas: Also Likes Milk With Cats.) (CCZ is best CZ) (Anyhow, back. If I am quietish tonight it's because I'm vascillating between blind fury and existential despair.) (I find that existential fury is generally more fun, personally) (I wouldn't recommend blind despair, though.) (Sense of humor, not so much.) * Hestia is sipping coffee at her desk. The past few days she has been a very early riser. Why? She is Working On A Project. (Oh god, we're all gonna die!) * Tomas shrugs and returns to reading the article on managing red cat separation anxiety. (It's an impossible project. If I succeed I'll break ATC4 and the universe will explode.) (so you're saying Tomas doesn't need to do his homework for Monday?) * Amadeus is in the lab, as is typical. Someone can go get him if they're doing stuff! * Zeke and a pair of drones, along with his birdsect, make their way into the lobby. (You guys can take off when ready.0 * Hestia actually wanders to Amadeus' lab, for the hell of it! Carrying a pad. At the door, she leans against it and looks in, all sexy Emma Peel pose and everything. "I know you're not an astrophysicist, but you're the best I've got at the moment." * Amadeus is messing with something under a piece of scanning equipment, and he looks up and lets out a long-suffering sigh at Tia's words. "Be right there." * Hestia puts up a hand. "Nothing you need to look at. Just a theoretical question. What's faster than light?" (rumor) ( Damnit, Tia! I'm a biologist not an astrophysicist!) (sand! a coffin! nothing!) * Kyle shrugs at the others in the ready room and starts watching silly videos of people doing, well, FAIL. * Amadeus looks at Tia blankly. "Um... well... normally nothing." But if we're talking about Nullspace, likely everything there. * Zeke moves over near a wall and states, "It appears to be a... slow morning." * Hestia sighs. "Yes, that is sort of the problem. I've been trying to think of some way, if it exists, to get us FTL communication, even in short bursts. Morse code would be better than the nothing we have now." (Sorry, pizza guy arrived.) Haha, hey, Zeke, you should see this. Check out what this old lady does to this punk who keeps honking at her. * Zeke gives Kyle a holo-eyebrow. "I assume it will end in violence?" (ALL WILL END IN VIOLENCE) FTL communication? I've no idea. I'm sure there are theories, but... I mean, unless we were to tap into nullspace somehow, you've got me. Oh totally. And hilarity. I have to wonder if we could... sample phlogiston somehow. * Kyle laughs as the lady manages to wreck the kid's car with her purse. Who knew those purses were so HEAVY. (It's not heavy. Granny is a cyborg.) I've no idea how it'd be done. (GRANNY DETH CLACK MEK MAKE YOU DIE WITH ELECTRIC POINTY BITS CLACK) (More tea?) * Zeke frowns. "That is a strange weapon." (...yes.) * Hestia stretches. "The fact that phlogiston reacts to realspace things made me wonder if there wouldn't be some way to... well. Basically send phlogiston-based telegraphs, if you know what a telegraph is." It's a purse. Oh, hey, check this one out. See that guy on the treadmill? He's gonna turn it up all the way. * Amadeus flicks his eyes, then says, "I looked it up." I suppose it's *possible*, but it's also completely out of my area of expertise. ATC's probably done it ten years ago. (TASTES LIKE BITTER) Oh, it's not like I'm going to make it on the ship like a hobby kit. That seems unwise. Oh, it totally is. Clearly that would result in falling. * Kyle laughs again when the treadmill picks up and sends him flying so far back he smashes into a fishtank behind him, shattering it and causting all the water to spill all over his apartment. But if we could find out exactly what stellar phenomena influence the phlogiston, I imagine it would be possible. * Amadeus nods. (We should get our move on!) (I dno't pilot the ship!) (Neither do I!) (Oh, we're going? I'll go chart maps then! (Oh. Sorry. I can pilot. yay) Worth thinking about. I should probably go plot a course for GJ 758. * Amadeus gets a move on for the plottage! TO THE MAP ROOM (I could pilot if Lexi were incapacitated due to lack of booze or something.) * Lexi stretches and heads to the cockpit. "So... where are we going?" (HEEEEEELLLLLL) * Amadeus plots a course. "There, Lexi. GJ 758." <> (And then we all die?) * Hestia watches the phlogiston on the external cameras, with her hands under her chin and kicking her legs back and forth while she sips a malt. (Some of that statement was true! Guess which parts!) <<... seems being the operative term. Six or so light years out from the planet, now that you know what you're looking for, you can see the telltale patterns of a hurricane up ahead, and sure enough, one lies in your path. As before, it is a roiling wall of purplish-white clouds, and as before, the chain path bends around it.>> What the hell?! (The sleythinpedia said there were anomalies at the last place, yeah?) * Lexi shakes her head. "I thought this wasn't supposed to happen this time! I think there is some sort of hurricane assassin out for us." * Amadeus stares. "I'm calling bullshit. Lexi, get us out!" (The last place, yes. Not this one.) (Yes.) (That's what I thought.) * Hestia hmms. "You might as well pull us out at a safe distance this time. No sense slingshotting around Hurricane #2." * Lexi shrugs. "Uh... okay!" And she attempts to drop out into normal space. * Tomas puts down his magazine and gazes out the porthole. um... HANG ON! To something! (oh god. Did Lexi just kill us all?) (We'll see!) * Amadeus finds something. Oh, a chair. He hangs on to the chair. * Hestia was already sitting down. That malt is probably toast, though. <> (^ That was my thinking) (Spread some sand first.) (Yes. Fill the back with sandbacks for traction.) * Kyle holds on. (That's exactly what the Fate Breaker needs. Is ship testicles.) * Lexi sighs. "Alright! Let's try going around it." And she attempts that. (TENTACLES!) * Zeke is a rock. In terms of stability. Walls are great for that. <> * Tomas joins Amadeus at the map, "Where did we end up, doc?" Uh, let me... see... * Amadeus scrambles for the map, clearly a little shaken up, and adjusts his glasses as he tries to figure out where they are. <> * Hestia sighs and brushes her bangs out of her eyes, breathing out. "Well, that one surprises me. The last one I assumed they were watching the sleythin data, but that said this system was clear. So we know it's not the spatial anomalies from the last system that are causing that." * Amadeus runs his hand through his hair. "A few light years out. I'm plotting a course back to Mars now, if we want to take that." * Kyle curses. "I'll go back and start patching things up again." * Kyle puts on his com so he can talk to the folks while he's working on it. At least Kevin Corey will enjoy the increased data. Yes, I bet it will. * Hestia checks hull integrity! It's the future, we have readouts for that shit. <> <> * Zeke looks at Tia. "Is he not male? Or was that some strange insult?" ~We're good to jump back whenever. You think ACT's got their hands in on this?~ (ATC!) (Not to be confused with Advanced Combat Tracker.) ~I hope they aren't capable of ripping apart nullspace.~ (You just haven't met Vernon yet.) (ATC. XD) ~No matter what the reasoning, this is again disconcerting. Either Kevin Corey suspected this would be here, or these obstructions seem to be related to us. Coincidences that are not.~ (Can we cut Zeke's response, since I was AFK and didn't notice my own typo?) (Yes.) (Ah, heh.) (I thought you were being witty.) * Lexi nods and fires up the ship. "Okay. Let's go home... again." * Lexi takes off for Mars. (I was responding to the sentence "This data will make him happy" in my head but that isn't what got said) * Kyle heads back up before the jumping and takes seat again. They'd better be ready to shell out for the repairs. <> (BUR-GER) * Amadeus slumps back in his chair. * Kyle rubs his head. "Well, get'em onscreen again?" * Hestia sighs. "Makes me wonder what the third one's going to be like. At least we'll know not to fly right AT it." * Hestia goes to check it ahead of time, since Preston had all three names. How far out from it would we have to target to see no interference? No clue. We can't know there'll be one of those things until we're practically on top of it. Sucks. <> * Zeke states, "We could plot a course that preemptively is short of our destination." Good call, honestly. There's measures to check phlogiston from a distance... that's how we get the forecasts, after all. <> (WELL FINE FUCK YOU) (... what?) (I'm just kidding.) * Amadeus plots the short course, then! * Zeke states, "We can contact Kevin Corey about this repeated instance to attempt to determine more information." (Plotted to where?) (We didn't pick a next planet yet, I don't think.) (I dunno, I'm as confused as you are!) (I was skimming sleythinpedia for anything that looked interesting out of the potentials) <> * Kyle glances over at Hestia. "See any patterns?" * Hestia frowns, and cross-refs back to the two planets from before to be sure. (Do they fit the pattern? Out of curiosity.) <> <> <> (As in, through the remaining systems?) (No. Just those two plus Earth.) * Hestia blinks. She looks up somewhat to answer Kyle, frowns, and then looks back down at her pad before getting up. "Come with me to the map room a sec." Off she goes! * Tomas follows, because I'm sure she has something earthshattering to say! * Kyle thumbs-up and heads to the map room! * Zeke uses the power of mental thinking to walk to the map room, birdsect included! * Hestia has already turned on the 3D, Attack of the Clones-style starmap which she is sure we have because I specifically asked for one in the ship upgrade. (Yup!) Right. Let's see. * Tomas avoids telling her he nixxed that for a larger fridge. * Hestia starts drawing a line from Sol to two other stars with her finger, going somewhat slowly, as she talks. "There was one pattern. All these stars are multi-star systems, which by normal reckoning aren't supposed to form planets, but all of these have. But that was just the beginning." Right, so we've already got something that's totally wrong,. (Not wrong, just improbable.) (If you have better visualization than the other guys, it's a good bet they'd have passed these systems by.) (Okay, highly improbable.) * Hestia stops drawing the line at one of the two planets with the hurricanes, which she's marked with something. Red glow, big hunter's mark red arrow, something. Now she's looking off into the distance. The line goes from the Sun, to planet 1, to planet 2. * Amadeus watches. "Okay?" (Waiting on GM for the rest.) * Zeke frowns. "Strange. Are there other relevant star systems on this path?" (Who's not at home.) * Hestia suddenly starts poking her finger at different stars, giving them the same marker as the ones on the line. "Now we just need to connect these." (Just a matter of connect the dots at this point.) <> (Wait not actually.) (Hahaha.) (I got your joke, Cham!) <> (WOO I AM GLAD) (I also got it, which is why he is bleeding from the leg.) (FORTY FOOT LETTERS OF FLAME) <> * Hestia connects the dots. She may be singing the song about it from Pee Wee's Playhouse. (I hope not.) (Today's secret word is "DYMAXION") * Zeke is waiting for Hestia to connect the dots. * Hestia connected them a long time ago, where 'a long time' is 'two poses' * Kyle takes a closer look at the systems on the line! (so long ago) If this line is the determining factor, then it is interesting that we are not suffering from such a hurricane in the Sol system. It implies something that has not reached us yet. That's an unpleasant thought. Which means whatever is causing it is originating at the other end. Or that Sol IS the origination. Totaly. * Hestia looks around the room. "Prophecy of ultimate doom? Remember?" (or between here and the earliest affected star, but that's not a mars doomsday scenario) Hey, we're the center of the universe or something! * Zeke glances to Hestia, then nods slowly. "I admit that is possible as well." <> (Two planets or two systems with planets?) (Shall we verify this?) (Systems with planets, sorry.) All right. Assuming the prophecy of ultimate doom is correct and we're creating these hurricanes, I don't see how. Unless it's through chainjumping? That would not imply linearity. * Hestia looks up at the ceiling. "I don't think holes in space care about time, do they?" I mean, it could be we're fucking up spacetime so bad we're rewriting history. * Zeke frowns. "That... would be mostly undetectable." Look, I'm not saying the prophecy is true or plausible or that the Sun is the cause But it's obvious this line of planets has got something in common * Zeke frowns for a moment, then says, "Plot our paths travelling to the two previous planets on this." (Smack Cham and tell him to respond.) * Hestia draws with a finger. Bam! Copper-colored line. <> (and that'd be why. son of bitch.) * Zeke nods slowly, and says, "To gather more information, we should plot courses that end near this line to see what conditions cause the storms, and where they stop appearing." * Tomas examines the star chart more closely, "GJ 758 is closer than that first system. The anomaly wasn't there when the sleythin visited GJ 758, but it was for the other. That'd mean it's not originating here and that it's been on the way for a long time." (Sleythin didn't visit, just as a note. they used Super Scope technology) (Not the more advanced Super Scope 64?) (Fuck that thing) (It was a gd bazooka. How can you not like that?) (It was AWESOME.) (And you could shoot Yoshi with it.) * Zeke holo-nods slightly at Tomas, then says, "I am interested in gathering more information. Do people disagree?" * Tomas shakes his head. * Hestia rubs her chin. "Let's give the data from that last planet to Kevin... but I'd like to explore the rest on our own." * Amadeus nods. * Zeke replies, "That is reasonable." <> If we're careful, we might even be able to go out more than once. * Kyle smirks. (I have no problem calling him. I have the power of creepy on my side. Otros?) (Apparently I am the only one with an opinion! Score.) (Go for it!) <> (Well that would defeat the purpose of going out alone.) ("We're off to investigate this mystery you accidentally uncovered. bye!") (Very much so!) (Though it occurs to me, there's no reason ATC couldn't have drawn a similar line. I mean, they gave us the planets.) (They probably know already.) <> (A PLANET) (I'm thinking as far on the line as we can with some buffer so we come out a ways before the hurricane.) (Extrapolate a likely next system based on 1.) the data we already know and 2.) a likely direction for the line.) (One that's not on the list.) (Educated shot in the dark. Worst case scenario we find the Cylon regeneration ship.) (It seems to me the tests are 'find the nearest system that does this shit' 'find a point not on a system and see if it's doing this shit' and 'find a system not on the list that's doing this shit'.) (TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH!) (But that's more like exhaustive testing.) <> (Most of the line is away, yes?) (As far as I gleaned.) <> (Ah, I would start on the near side.) (Which one's closest?) <> (Hi?) (Hi!) (Hi. Sorry. Totally exhausted. Okay. waking up now.) * Amadeus plots a course to near there, then? (Totally do that one then!) * Lexi nods to Amadeus. "Okay! Ready, guys?" * Hestia settles in. Hopefully we'll find the baby in space. * Kyle thumbs-up. "Oh, hey, don't forget to plot ALMOSt there. We don't want our ship getting wrecked again." * Zeke replies, "Yes, let us see what is going on." (Okay! AFK a very brief second.) <> * Tomas hmms, "So the effect hasn't reached here?" Which means it is unlikely it is coming from Sol. More evidence doesn't hurt. (So now we just keep doing this until we find all the waffles in the universe!) (Didn't Todd make the galactic leyline joke last session?) (CTARL'CTARL THE SLEYTHIN IS COMING) (Sadly, yes.) (Can we have C'arl-C'arl instead.) ("What's that hangin' off your ship, there? Like it's yours.") <> (DAMN WRONG BRACKETS NOW IT'S CANON) (all over the rug) <> (Because you're seeing light from a year ago, but current Nullspace conditions. Yay for weird causality) (So weird.) * Zeke states, "We should approach the farther planets, then, to see if it is localized or comes from a distance." * Hestia sighs and leans back. "Be nice if we could be 100% sure without getting near in nullspace." That would be helpful. I second that. <> (WAUGH) Space Jesus! ...the hell? How... * Lexi starts momentarily, then looks back to see who it is. "What the hell?" Are we being tailed again? * Zeke starts to move towards weapon systems immediately. Must not be the trusting sort. * Kyle punches a few buttons to get their weapons systems online in case they must be used. (NOTE: NOT ME THEM) (Someone should find out if they're actually a threat.) <> (We're doomed! We don't have a black woman on this ship!) (Quick, start broadcasting whalesong and don't stop for anything.) * Lexi blinks ..."Uh..." She opens the comms to talk to the other ship. "Hello?" (It's true! Without your magical comms woman and/or Strange Whoopi Goldberg you're fucked) (Yeah, we are royally fucked.) <> (We have a drunk heiress. And an angry chick with a gun. I think we may be okay.) * Lexi cringes. "AH!..." * Kyle gets to work to try and change the frequences and such so that the computers can make sense of SOMETHINg. * Lexi calls down. "TIA! Can you get up here and talk Sleythin to these things or whatever. Everyone seems to know that damn language but me." * Kyle chuckles and remarks in Sleythin. "" * Lexi shakes her head. "Or Kyle can. Just somebody who can get them to stop talking in strangled cat." <> [-KTI-CLAIMED TERRITORY. YOU ARE ADVISED TO RETREAT PRIOR TO THE DEPLOYMENT OF INTERDICTION DEVICES.] ...oh, you've got to be kidding. Oh fuck. (Time to goooooo.) * Lexi shakes her head. "Oh Space Fuck Jesus Fuck." She kicks on the mole drive and warps the fuck out as fast as possible. * Hestia pauses. "Wait a second. He said 'interdiction devices'..." <> * Hestia turns to look at Amadeus. "You said they were genius terraformers, right?" That... would be the case, yes. * Amadeus is shaken up, once again. He looks to Tia. "Why?" * Lexi also comms over the ship. "Someone want to explain to me how NOBODY seemed to know a race of beings existed who seem to own HALF THE FUCKING PLANETS IN EXISTENCE!" (It's only five!) 'cuz this is a space-sitcom. Duh. (Lexi is angry. Don't ask her to count.) * Hestia ticks off on her fingers. "Planets in systems where planets are unlikely. Inexplicable nullspace phenomena that makes chainjumping difficult. Duekti claiming to 'deploy interdiction devices'." It's possible these... phlogiston hurricanes are man-made. Or, uh, angry space chicken-made. (It takes a tough chicken to make a tender ... space anomaly.) (sleepbail soon. today was exhausting.) ... I could see it. They're paranoid enough. (Yeah, we can close up now.) I mean, it's not the most plausible theory in the world. Unless they've got nullspace technology that doesn't care about a massive whirlpool of phlogiston, they'd be screwed too. (EX-TER-MIN-ATE) * Zeke comms down to the two of them, ~I am not certain they are creating the planets, but it seems likely they are the cause of the hurricanes. Additionally, if it is not a coincidence, their path towards the Sol system is highly worrying.~ * Lexi thinks for a moment. "Wait, Tia... you said that these things appeared in some sort of a line? Ending with Sol? Does the line extend into the Duekti system we originally found?" <> It doesn't end with Sol. The line heads in both directions FROM Sol. (I didn't say they created the planets!) (That doesn't even seem possible.) * Lexi shakes her head. "Whatever. Does it intersect with the Duekti or not?" * Hestia tappity. "Yes. Eventually." * Lexi nods. "Hm... Is it possible that they are using these storms as some sort of advanced nullspace travel?" Who knows? They could be using them to dry laundry for all we know. * Lexi nods. "I'm just thinking... maybe we pissed them off REALLY bad... and they've decided to wage war." ~ If that is the case, they are moving very slowly. ~ The Duekti don't seem to be concerned with being quick. Just effective. And... you know... It's most effective if they can secure planets along the way and surround us. * Kyle nods. "Yeah, that does seem to be a good strategy." (Okay, wrap up.) But then the question is, what do we do next? I mean... what are the chances that we discover these weird anomallies that are unrecorded immediately after encountering the Duekti, then we travel to a planet that should have an anomally, but doesn't, and the Duekti show up three seconds later? I don't think anyone doubts these and the Duekti are connected... I just don't know I buy the invasion fleet story quite yet. * Hestia looks up. "I think we need to find out what the *sleythin* know about the duekti." * Lexi nods. "Well... just a working theory. All I've figured out to do next is mix a drink." She goes to do that. (Egg: "GOD DAMNIT. :|") The Duekti advance towards Sol is clear, however. <>