The Magellan Project
- Thread starter AlaskanPilot
- Start date
I've been following your work CMDR, truly an inspiring read!
I can feel my exploration itch coming back again [big grin]
I can feel my exploration itch coming back again [big grin]
Thanks everyone for the positive feedback and encouragement. I never planned when I started this journal to have it turn into the story it has become. It's been fun letting it evolve. My one fear is that when I am finished with this rescue plot I will have to go back to an exploration log 
. Having set a precedent for exciting storyline, I'm looking for ways to keep this thread interesting (well more interesting than just a list of places visited and a few screenshots).
I plan to continue writing Rand's explorations as a storyline, just to keep things more interesting, and already have more story ideas. I have nearly completed an Adobe Spark Page called SRV Operations which features shots of my surface rovings. If that is well received I will make more. Also, being inspired by CMDR Crusina's video compilation featured in the #140 newsletter, I am working on a video compilation of my own. I have 20-30 hours of captured video to play with, so I hope to be able to come up with something worthy of posting.
If anyone has any ideas, suggestions or requests, let me know. Also, if anyone has or knows of other great explorer tales, videos, or other stuff, do share. I always enjoy others creativity.
The next installment in Rand's adventure is in the works. I hope to have it out by this Saturday at the latest.
Fly safe everyone!
. Having set a precedent for exciting storyline, I'm looking for ways to keep this thread interesting (well more interesting than just a list of places visited and a few screenshots).I plan to continue writing Rand's explorations as a storyline, just to keep things more interesting, and already have more story ideas. I have nearly completed an Adobe Spark Page called SRV Operations which features shots of my surface rovings. If that is well received I will make more. Also, being inspired by CMDR Crusina's video compilation featured in the #140 newsletter, I am working on a video compilation of my own. I have 20-30 hours of captured video to play with, so I hope to be able to come up with something worthy of posting.
If anyone has any ideas, suggestions or requests, let me know. Also, if anyone has or knows of other great explorer tales, videos, or other stuff, do share. I always enjoy others creativity.
The next installment in Rand's adventure is in the works. I hope to have it out by this Saturday at the latest.
Fly safe everyone!
SRV Operations
Sorry, no additional storyline yet...
But, I have my first Adobe Spark Page created. This is more a test of the capabilities of Spark for now. https://spark.adobe.com/page/oFp2YSBa2QmUa/ I'll add more pictures, features, and maybe video after I get more comfortable with the App. I find that this works better on a smart phone or tablet where scrolling is more smooth. If you view this on a PC or Mac using a mouse with a smooth scroll wheel will make it look nicer.
Feedback and suggestions welcome!
Sorry, no additional storyline yet...
But, I have my first Adobe Spark Page created. This is more a test of the capabilities of Spark for now. https://spark.adobe.com/page/oFp2YSBa2QmUa/ I'll add more pictures, features, and maybe video after I get more comfortable with the App. I find that this works better on a smart phone or tablet where scrolling is more smooth. If you view this on a PC or Mac using a mouse with a smooth scroll wheel will make it look nicer.
Feedback and suggestions welcome!
I have several tips on finding interesting planets/surface features.
I see you have many many hours of video footage, but this might help you find even more
(BIG spolier tag, I don't really wish to hijack this thread by accident)
I'm not into video-making and other tech stuff, but I'm sure there are more qualified people out there.
I see you have many many hours of video footage, but this might help you find even more
(BIG spolier tag, I don't really wish to hijack this thread by accident)
-Heard of Mount Nerverest? It's a huge mountain found by CMDR FurtivePygmy.
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...n-Nervi-System-(pics)?highlight=mountain+huge
The point is, rocky worlds can have very interesting features.
-I pay attention when looking at system maps, becuase they show a lot more than I can imagine. Here are some extreme cases:
Gas Giant that glows in strange color
(It was a bit scary!)
"Ice Giant", large landable Icy Worlds, often exceeds 2G.
(Note how ridiculously big it is compared to other High Metal Content worlds)
Some of the craters were very deep, which gave some foggy effect.
With the next huge update to Horizons, we'll be given improved planetary maps as well!
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...n-Nervi-System-(pics)?highlight=mountain+huge
The point is, rocky worlds can have very interesting features.
-I pay attention when looking at system maps, becuase they show a lot more than I can imagine. Here are some extreme cases:
Gas Giant that glows in strange color
(It was a bit scary!)
"Ice Giant", large landable Icy Worlds, often exceeds 2G.
(Note how ridiculously big it is compared to other High Metal Content worlds)
Some of the craters were very deep, which gave some foggy effect.
With the next huge update to Horizons, we'll be given improved planetary maps as well!
I'm not into video-making and other tech stuff, but I'm sure there are more qualified people out there.
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A little too much movement on the page itself to my taste. I have noticed this is a trend that can be seen on other sites too, so at least some people (those who design the pages) like it
.I find this kind of sites very hard to navigate (I tend to get lost in the graphical polish).
A site that has also moved in this direction is the site of CMDR Ban Tse Mallory. This part depicts the story of Bomba Luigi and the Ship Rats (by the way, the original thread can be found here).
So for me: linear pages with embedded graphics and links to videos: yes! Everything moving and blending over: no!
Good luck with the story telling.
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A little too much movement on the page itself to my taste. I have noticed this is a trend that can be seen on other sites too, so at least some people (those who design the pages) like it
I find this kind of sites very hard to navigate (I tend to get lost in the graphical polish).
A site that has also moved in this direction is the site of CMDR Ban Tse Mallory. This part depicts the story of Bomba Luigi and the Ship Rats (by the way, the original thread can be found here).
So for me: linear pages with embedded graphics and links to videos: yes! Everything moving and blending over: no!
Good luck with the story telling.
Thanks for the feedback CMDR! And thanks for the links to the other threads, been combing through them.
- - - - - Additional Content Posted / Auto Merge - - - - -
Cool stuff CMDR Stallan! Thanks for sharing that!
I found the same to be true of system maps. They can reveal some really interesting stuff if you take the time to look them over. I also find that some big craters have some really interesting terrain down in them. I have to take some time to slice up some of my video footage. I have a large extra hard drive in my PC and use Fraps for my screen and video capture. Sometimes I have turned on video capture and left it running without thinking about it until I stopped playing. One of my lazy afternoon of playing videos ended up being a little over 5 hours long. Don't really need most of that footage. I just have been having so much fun writing I haven't gotten around to video editing...
Akio
Sorry to keep you all waiting. Here is the latest story installment.
Rand gasped for air as his suit started to take in air from the rapidly pressurizing airlock. His suit had run out of air a minute before Akio had helped him to her ship. He had grown faint and his muscles ached from having to work with no new oxygen entering his system. As he tried to catch his breath he looked to Rukil.
Rukil had climbed the few meters into the ship on his own with a fractured leg and broken ribs which was a feat by itself. Be had also done so with his air supply depleted. Once through the hatchway he had collapsed to the floor and lay unmoving. As the air returned he still did not move. Rand made for him at once, gently rolling him from his site to his back and pulling his mask free.
“Rand, wait! The chamber isn’t fully pressurized!”
Akio’s warning was not unfounded. Although the air in Rukil’s suit was no longer oxygen rich it was still at a higher atmospheric pressure than the air in the chamber. As Rand released the mask the face plate blew off hitting Rand in the face. Were it not for Rand’s own suit he probably would have received a broken nose.
Rand immediately realized the danger of his mistake. “How many atmospheres are we at!” Rand called to Akio.
“0.8 and rising.”
That was close but there was still a risk that the rapid decompression of his suit could cause decompression sickness.
But that was only one problem. The second was obvious within seconds and one that made the rapid removal of his mask worth the risk. “He’s not breathing.” Rand quickly prepared to start CPR on Rukil. “As soon as were at pressure…” A soft chime and green indicator interrupted Rand and signaled that the chamber had pressurized and they could move to the main part of the ship.
Akio was off before Rand could finish, bolting into the ship. Rand started chest compressions on Rukil. “Come, on Rukil. We didn’t get this far to have it end this way.” Rand finished his first set of compressions as Akio returned with the ships rescue medical kit and rapidly began emptying its contents as Rand completed his second set of CPR compressions. Rand was happy for the break as Akio attached the Vitals Restoration Kit (VRK) to Rukil.
The VRK’s hologram flashed to live and immediately started displaying medical information as it scanned Rukil. A three dimensional translucent model of Rukil with bones and organs flickering into place as data continued to pour in from the sensors. The image of Rukil's body glowed red as the VRK announced “Patient in cardiac arrest. Administering shock. Stand clear.” Rand and Akio moved back from Rukil as his body tensed from the first shock. The hologram display stayed red with detailed callout information forming around his hologram. Another shock later the VRK and Rukil's body change from red to yellow and reported that Rukil’s heart had normalized. Akio attached the needleless IV while Rand check through the list of injuries that the VRK was listing. Several areas of his body on the hologram still showed red. Broken ribs, fractured fibula, minor concussion, slight punctured lung, and a half dozen other injuries were highlighted. Still with the hologram now yellow Rukil was out of life threatening danger.
“I think he’ll live.” Rand sat back against the airlock wall.
Akio pulled her suit ‘s helmet off. “Should we try to move him?”
“Looking at his injuries, I’m not sure. He has minor bleeding in his lung here,” Rand said pointing to a red area on the hologram. “Moving him could make it worse.”
“We’re still in the airlock. I won’t be able to take off until we sealed the inner door.”
Take off. Rand let that sink in. There were not out of this yet. They still had to get back off this planet. Now that Rukil was stabilized Rand began to take in his surroundings. Emergency lights illuminated the interior of the ship. Akio must have shutdown the main power to avoid a possible explosion. But how did she get down in tact while both his SRV and the Zenith had detonated?
“Akio, how did you get to the surface without blowing up?”
Akio’s expression changed. She paled and Rand could see he jaw clench. When she spoke he voice was quiet, almost haunted. “How did you survive for nearly two weeks without exploding? Why did Belinski die three kilometers from the surface on his first pass? Who can explain what’s happening on this crazy planet?”
Akio seemed to grow more terrified as she spoke. Here voice cracked on her last sentence. Rand was quiet. He couldn’t answer any of her questions. He didn’t know any more now that when he was first marooned on this planet what was going on. He knew, looking at Akio, that it they all didn’t get off this rock soon. They would all be driven mad.
Akio suddenly rose. “I should signal the others that you two made it aboard.”
“Yeah, we should probably end the suspense for them. I’ll look over Rukil’s condition. When you get back maybe I will have figured out the safest way to move him.”
Akio nodded and move out of the airlock and turned to head to the bridge.
“Akio,” Rand called after her. She turned and met his gaze. “You risked your life coming to get us. You could have been killed.”
Akio didn’t answer for a moment, her expression unreadable. Finally, she answered “You two would have done the same for me.”
Rand regarded her and her answer for a moment. “Yes. We would have.”
Akio smiled slightly although it seemed to Rand that her smile was forced. There was still a great deal of anxiety stretched across her features. “Your father will want to know you’re alright.” With that Akio turned and left.
Rand stared at the empty doorway. What kind of toll had this whole ordeal taken on everyone?
Sorry to keep you all waiting. Here is the latest story installment.
Rand gasped for air as his suit started to take in air from the rapidly pressurizing airlock. His suit had run out of air a minute before Akio had helped him to her ship. He had grown faint and his muscles ached from having to work with no new oxygen entering his system. As he tried to catch his breath he looked to Rukil.
Rukil had climbed the few meters into the ship on his own with a fractured leg and broken ribs which was a feat by itself. Be had also done so with his air supply depleted. Once through the hatchway he had collapsed to the floor and lay unmoving. As the air returned he still did not move. Rand made for him at once, gently rolling him from his site to his back and pulling his mask free.
“Rand, wait! The chamber isn’t fully pressurized!”
Akio’s warning was not unfounded. Although the air in Rukil’s suit was no longer oxygen rich it was still at a higher atmospheric pressure than the air in the chamber. As Rand released the mask the face plate blew off hitting Rand in the face. Were it not for Rand’s own suit he probably would have received a broken nose.
Rand immediately realized the danger of his mistake. “How many atmospheres are we at!” Rand called to Akio.
“0.8 and rising.”
That was close but there was still a risk that the rapid decompression of his suit could cause decompression sickness.
But that was only one problem. The second was obvious within seconds and one that made the rapid removal of his mask worth the risk. “He’s not breathing.” Rand quickly prepared to start CPR on Rukil. “As soon as were at pressure…” A soft chime and green indicator interrupted Rand and signaled that the chamber had pressurized and they could move to the main part of the ship.
Akio was off before Rand could finish, bolting into the ship. Rand started chest compressions on Rukil. “Come, on Rukil. We didn’t get this far to have it end this way.” Rand finished his first set of compressions as Akio returned with the ships rescue medical kit and rapidly began emptying its contents as Rand completed his second set of CPR compressions. Rand was happy for the break as Akio attached the Vitals Restoration Kit (VRK) to Rukil.
The VRK’s hologram flashed to live and immediately started displaying medical information as it scanned Rukil. A three dimensional translucent model of Rukil with bones and organs flickering into place as data continued to pour in from the sensors. The image of Rukil's body glowed red as the VRK announced “Patient in cardiac arrest. Administering shock. Stand clear.” Rand and Akio moved back from Rukil as his body tensed from the first shock. The hologram display stayed red with detailed callout information forming around his hologram. Another shock later the VRK and Rukil's body change from red to yellow and reported that Rukil’s heart had normalized. Akio attached the needleless IV while Rand check through the list of injuries that the VRK was listing. Several areas of his body on the hologram still showed red. Broken ribs, fractured fibula, minor concussion, slight punctured lung, and a half dozen other injuries were highlighted. Still with the hologram now yellow Rukil was out of life threatening danger.
“I think he’ll live.” Rand sat back against the airlock wall.
Akio pulled her suit ‘s helmet off. “Should we try to move him?”
“Looking at his injuries, I’m not sure. He has minor bleeding in his lung here,” Rand said pointing to a red area on the hologram. “Moving him could make it worse.”
“We’re still in the airlock. I won’t be able to take off until we sealed the inner door.”
Take off. Rand let that sink in. There were not out of this yet. They still had to get back off this planet. Now that Rukil was stabilized Rand began to take in his surroundings. Emergency lights illuminated the interior of the ship. Akio must have shutdown the main power to avoid a possible explosion. But how did she get down in tact while both his SRV and the Zenith had detonated?
“Akio, how did you get to the surface without blowing up?”
Akio’s expression changed. She paled and Rand could see he jaw clench. When she spoke he voice was quiet, almost haunted. “How did you survive for nearly two weeks without exploding? Why did Belinski die three kilometers from the surface on his first pass? Who can explain what’s happening on this crazy planet?”
Akio seemed to grow more terrified as she spoke. Here voice cracked on her last sentence. Rand was quiet. He couldn’t answer any of her questions. He didn’t know any more now that when he was first marooned on this planet what was going on. He knew, looking at Akio, that it they all didn’t get off this rock soon. They would all be driven mad.
Akio suddenly rose. “I should signal the others that you two made it aboard.”
“Yeah, we should probably end the suspense for them. I’ll look over Rukil’s condition. When you get back maybe I will have figured out the safest way to move him.”
Akio nodded and move out of the airlock and turned to head to the bridge.
“Akio,” Rand called after her. She turned and met his gaze. “You risked your life coming to get us. You could have been killed.”
Akio didn’t answer for a moment, her expression unreadable. Finally, she answered “You two would have done the same for me.”
Rand regarded her and her answer for a moment. “Yes. We would have.”
Akio smiled slightly although it seemed to Rand that her smile was forced. There was still a great deal of anxiety stretched across her features. “Your father will want to know you’re alright.” With that Akio turned and left.
Rand stared at the empty doorway. What kind of toll had this whole ordeal taken on everyone?
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It was worth waiting for
.
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News
Thanks, commanders, for the positive responses! Here is another short piece:
Rodrick stared at the Tanaka. It seemed that the whole universe had gone silent. He could hear his heart beating in his chest. A minute had gone by. Now two. Still no movement. No signal. No sign.
Commander Tomika and Jake Burr came back on the bridge. The noticed Rodrick fixated on the scene outside and quickly came to his side to see what he was looking at. There was the Tanaka, silent, glinting in the waning light of the alien evening.
“Sir, what’s going on?” Jake ventured.
No answer. Rodrick kept his gaze on the bridge of the Tanaka, not speaking, barely breathing.
Armanda and Jake exchanged looks but said nothing.
Five minutes had passed. Nothing.
Then suddenly Akio exploded onto the bridge of the Tanaka. Her hand flew over the controls and she began talking rapidly. The comm system on the Zenith was still offline so no sound came through their system.
“What’s she saying Armanda?” Rodrick said barely above a whisper. “What’s happened down there?”
Akio was almost frantic as her hands flew over controls. Rodrick felt sweat bead on his forehead. She did not look relieved. Something was wrong.
After a few seconds that seemed an eternity Akio turned toward them. She locked eyes with Rodrick and mouthed one word, “Rand”. Then she gave a thumbs up. Jake and Armanda both cheered, Rodrick felt a great knot in his chest release. His strength failed and he stumbled backwards toward his chair. He came down short of it and landed instead on the deck. He hardly noticed the impact. His son was alive. Jack hurried to his side. Rodrick registered that Jake was asking him if he were okay, if he needed help. He didn’t answer, couldn’t answer. All the emotion of the rescue mission, the risks, the losses, the close calls, and now the message that Rand was safe aboard Akio ship washed over him. He buried his face in his hands and was silent.
Armanda, seeing that Jake was tending to Rodrick, turned back to Akio. Akio’s serious expression didn’t change. She mouthed another word, “Rukil.” Then she held up the empty VRK container. Once Armanda registered what she was trying to say, Akio raced off the bridge.
Armanda turned to the others. “Hold on, Akio just signaled again. Rukil is hurt. Bad.”
Thanks, commanders, for the positive responses! Here is another short piece:
Rodrick stared at the Tanaka. It seemed that the whole universe had gone silent. He could hear his heart beating in his chest. A minute had gone by. Now two. Still no movement. No signal. No sign.
Commander Tomika and Jake Burr came back on the bridge. The noticed Rodrick fixated on the scene outside and quickly came to his side to see what he was looking at. There was the Tanaka, silent, glinting in the waning light of the alien evening.
“Sir, what’s going on?” Jake ventured.
No answer. Rodrick kept his gaze on the bridge of the Tanaka, not speaking, barely breathing.
Armanda and Jake exchanged looks but said nothing.
Five minutes had passed. Nothing.
Then suddenly Akio exploded onto the bridge of the Tanaka. Her hand flew over the controls and she began talking rapidly. The comm system on the Zenith was still offline so no sound came through their system.
“What’s she saying Armanda?” Rodrick said barely above a whisper. “What’s happened down there?”
Akio was almost frantic as her hands flew over controls. Rodrick felt sweat bead on his forehead. She did not look relieved. Something was wrong.
After a few seconds that seemed an eternity Akio turned toward them. She locked eyes with Rodrick and mouthed one word, “Rand”. Then she gave a thumbs up. Jake and Armanda both cheered, Rodrick felt a great knot in his chest release. His strength failed and he stumbled backwards toward his chair. He came down short of it and landed instead on the deck. He hardly noticed the impact. His son was alive. Jack hurried to his side. Rodrick registered that Jake was asking him if he were okay, if he needed help. He didn’t answer, couldn’t answer. All the emotion of the rescue mission, the risks, the losses, the close calls, and now the message that Rand was safe aboard Akio ship washed over him. He buried his face in his hands and was silent.
Armanda, seeing that Jake was tending to Rodrick, turned back to Akio. Akio’s serious expression didn’t change. She mouthed another word, “Rukil.” Then she held up the empty VRK container. Once Armanda registered what she was trying to say, Akio raced off the bridge.
Armanda turned to the others. “Hold on, Akio just signaled again. Rukil is hurt. Bad.”
Ah! That eases some of the tension! Now Rodrick at least knows that his son is OK. That is good. Now, how are they going to help Rukil, and maybe even more important: how are they ever going to get off of this space-ship eating planet!
(what were the coordinates again? I might want to go and check it out some day)
That eases some of the tension! Now Rodrick at least knows that his son is OK. That is good. Now, how are they going to help Rukil, and maybe even more important: how are they ever going to get off of this space-ship eating planet!(what were the coordinates again? I might want to go and check it out some day
)Ah!
They are certainly not out of trouble yet!
(what were the coordinates again? I might want to go and check it out some day
The planet all this is happening on is Outopps BQ-H B51-0 B1. Just to set expectations, the planet in game is somewhat unremarkable other than it does have trace amounts of Tungsten, Antimony, and Mercury. It just happened to be the site of the game glitch that sparked this story line. That and I really did find a number of wrecked ships and SRV's in very close proximity. Here is the system info:
If you do visit it sometime be sure to pay your respects to poor Belinsky. May the solar winds ever be at his back.
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Thanks for the information and rest assured that I will go and pay my respects to CMDR Belinksy. I'm thinking in the direction of bringing him some tea, which appeared to be something that can be found quite often alongside wrecked vehicles. Whether that is due to other commanders having payed there respects or to the unfortunate commanders having brought the tea along themselves I don't know...
The most common cargo I found on this planet next to the wrecks I came across was firearms, both small and military grade, followed by animal meat. (?) Yeah, figure that one out... [weird]
New Problem
Sorry about the wait everyone. Been really busy at home and work. I finally sold my house though! That is a weight off my shoulders! Here is the next installment of the story of Rand Jasc:
Rand leaned into the Comm console on the bridge of the Tanaka. “No, Rukil is resting. He’s beat up pretty bad, but now that we have him stabilized he should recover.”
Rodrick’s voice came back over the comm. “What are his injuries?”
Akio spoke next, “Five broken ribs, broken femur, lacerated liver and spleen, and recovering from cardiac arrest.”
A heavy sigh came through to speakers. “But, sir, he is stable and should make a full recover, especially if we get him back to habited space and proper medical treatment.”
Rand noticed that there was strain in Akio’s voice as she spoke of getting Rukil back to habited space. He also noted her use of the operator "if". He paused for only a moment before continuing.
“Which leads us to our current problem. Getting back to habited space. How bad is the damage over there?”
Commander Tomika came over the comm next. “We have damage to the fuel vents and the power plant. We also have our nose buried with damage to the forward landing gear and some external damage to the hull. The AMF should be able to repair our vents and power plant. It’s already at work and will finish shortly. The other damage will require start port services.”
Which brings us to or next problem. Rand thought to himself.
“To state the obvious however we won’t be doing any repairs at a station without getting more fuel. The explosion burned all the fuel in our tanks. We are currently running off battery in a low power state.”
“How long do you have before your batteries are drained.”
“At the current rate of drain we have just under two days.”
Jasc saw a shadow cross Akio’s face at the news.
Miriam spoke next. Up until now she has said little and held her position as top cover for the fleet. Now that everyone was out of immediate danger the communications channel was open to the whole fleet. “So to sum up, the Zenith and her crew are stranded with two days to either figure out a way to refuel her or abandon ship.”
Commander Tomika responded. “That sums it up. Akio still has the Tanaka here which can be a means of us getting of the planet if we can’t refuel the Zenith.”
“Assuming we can get off the planet,” Akio mumbled.
“Sorry, we didn’t copy.”
Akio was silent.
Rand jumped in. “Akio was just pointing out that getting off the planet is not a sure bet. We still have to get off surface without exploding. And since our fuel tank is still at 38% we could be in danger ourselves.”
Rodrick stepped into the conversation at this point. “Bottom line is we have to find a solution to the Zenith’s fuel problem ASAP or abandon her and make off planet in the Tanaka. To do so we need a way to transfer fuel from the Tanaka to the Zenith. At this point I’m not willing to risk another ship getting close to the planet. Even with the fuel limpets on Miriam’s and Akio’s ship they do no good to us on the planet surface. Zero gravity is needed for safe transfer and with the Zenith bellied in our receptacle is inaccessible. Given that being on surface is dangerous and our batteries run dry in just under two days I’m giving us a eight hours to refuel the Zenith or we leave on the Tanaka.”
There was silence on the comm and everyone digested Rodrick’s words.
“Jake Burr picked up some interference at each accident that he is analyzing. Akio and Rand, he will send you the signature for the interference with a way to program your sensors to monitor for the signals. If they get above a certain intensity, you should do a complete system shutdown. We will take over monitoring from the Zenith since we have no fuel to explode with again and give you the all clear when things return to safe levels. At this point this is an open forum on how to get fuel onto the Zenith. Anyone with ideas, chime in.”
The comm was silent again. One-by-one people started voicing ideas. Rand offered a few while also trying to keep an inconspicuous eye on Akio. She was silent during the discussion. Her eyes were on the communications console, but it was clear she was preoccupied. The shadow that has crossed her face before had returned. Rand now thought he knew what it was. This planet and the threat of death, unexpected and without warning, was taking its toll. Rand felt that if we didn’t get off planet soon Akio may break. Rand understood. He has spent days on this planet faced with the same threat. It had a way of gnawing at your sanity and Akio’s was becoming raw.
“…question is, do they have that kind of equipment on the Tanaka? Also Akio’s ship isn’t equipped with a SRV. How would they make the connection by hand? As I remember the connection point on an Anaconda is more than ten meters off the ground.”
Rand had been paying just enough attention to keep the conversation going. “I can’t speak to how we would hook up the line, but my SRV had enough raw materials to make the equipment your talking about if we can adjust the synthesizer on the Tanaka to build replacement parts. I was toying with that a bit in my SRV but I didn’t know the coding well enough to rewrite the protocols.”
One of the Sidewinder pilots chimed that she had worked on programming replicators before taking this job and could probably walk them through the lines of code that would need to be changed. Rand continued to glace at Akio without being too obvious. Not that it appears he needed to take such precautions. Akio was in another world, a dark and frightening one. Getting the Zenith refueled was only one problem he faced.
The conversation continued on for another ten minutes with a plan devised to refuel the Zenith. A fuel line would need to be created in sections by the synthesizer on the Tanaka and coupled between a fuel vent on the Tanaka and one of the fuel loading ports on the Zenith. Space walks would be required to bring materials back form the wreck of Rand’s SRV to build the conduit. They would move the Tanaka to the crash site so that loading could be done more quickly. After the conduit was built it would be attached to the Tanaka which would hover over the Zenith to perform the hook up. Once the line was connected the Tanaka would vent fuel down to 10%. Since connecting to all the vents on the Fer de Lance would take more time and a more complicated conduit system it was decided that some of the vented fuel would be lost from the other three vents that were not connected. However, the equations showed that a vent process that dumped 28% of the Tanaka’s fuel should fill the tanks of the Zenith enough to get her off the planet and to the closest in system star where she could use her fuel scoops to fill her tanks.
The plan had several risks. The Tanaka would have to power up and fly to the SRV crash site as well as perform the hover maneuver over the Zenith to hook up the fuel line putting it at risk of explosion. Also there were the several space walks with their inherit dangers on a world with low gravity and no atmosphere. However, everyone agreed it was worth a try to get everyone off the surface. Everyone except Akio, who had remained silent through the entire discussion.
When the conversation was over everyone got to their several tasks. As Jake and the Sidewinder pilot with the programming background got to work on the data packages for scanning for the deadly interference and the needed synthesizer scripts, Rand suggest that Akio check on Rukil to see how he was doing. Once she was off the bridge Rand opened a channel to the Zenith.
Rodrick’s voice came over the system “Yes son, is everything alright?”
“No, dad. We have another problem.”
Rodrick’s voice showed obvious concern. “What’s the problem.”
Rand hesitated looking back down the main corridor from the bridge. Then with a sigh he turned back to the comm. “Akio.”
Sorry about the wait everyone. Been really busy at home and work. I finally sold my house though! That is a weight off my shoulders! Here is the next installment of the story of Rand Jasc:
Rand leaned into the Comm console on the bridge of the Tanaka. “No, Rukil is resting. He’s beat up pretty bad, but now that we have him stabilized he should recover.”
Rodrick’s voice came back over the comm. “What are his injuries?”
Akio spoke next, “Five broken ribs, broken femur, lacerated liver and spleen, and recovering from cardiac arrest.”
A heavy sigh came through to speakers. “But, sir, he is stable and should make a full recover, especially if we get him back to habited space and proper medical treatment.”
Rand noticed that there was strain in Akio’s voice as she spoke of getting Rukil back to habited space. He also noted her use of the operator "if". He paused for only a moment before continuing.
“Which leads us to our current problem. Getting back to habited space. How bad is the damage over there?”
Commander Tomika came over the comm next. “We have damage to the fuel vents and the power plant. We also have our nose buried with damage to the forward landing gear and some external damage to the hull. The AMF should be able to repair our vents and power plant. It’s already at work and will finish shortly. The other damage will require start port services.”
Which brings us to or next problem. Rand thought to himself.
“To state the obvious however we won’t be doing any repairs at a station without getting more fuel. The explosion burned all the fuel in our tanks. We are currently running off battery in a low power state.”
“How long do you have before your batteries are drained.”
“At the current rate of drain we have just under two days.”
Jasc saw a shadow cross Akio’s face at the news.
Miriam spoke next. Up until now she has said little and held her position as top cover for the fleet. Now that everyone was out of immediate danger the communications channel was open to the whole fleet. “So to sum up, the Zenith and her crew are stranded with two days to either figure out a way to refuel her or abandon ship.”
Commander Tomika responded. “That sums it up. Akio still has the Tanaka here which can be a means of us getting of the planet if we can’t refuel the Zenith.”
“Assuming we can get off the planet,” Akio mumbled.
“Sorry, we didn’t copy.”
Akio was silent.
Rand jumped in. “Akio was just pointing out that getting off the planet is not a sure bet. We still have to get off surface without exploding. And since our fuel tank is still at 38% we could be in danger ourselves.”
Rodrick stepped into the conversation at this point. “Bottom line is we have to find a solution to the Zenith’s fuel problem ASAP or abandon her and make off planet in the Tanaka. To do so we need a way to transfer fuel from the Tanaka to the Zenith. At this point I’m not willing to risk another ship getting close to the planet. Even with the fuel limpets on Miriam’s and Akio’s ship they do no good to us on the planet surface. Zero gravity is needed for safe transfer and with the Zenith bellied in our receptacle is inaccessible. Given that being on surface is dangerous and our batteries run dry in just under two days I’m giving us a eight hours to refuel the Zenith or we leave on the Tanaka.”
There was silence on the comm and everyone digested Rodrick’s words.
“Jake Burr picked up some interference at each accident that he is analyzing. Akio and Rand, he will send you the signature for the interference with a way to program your sensors to monitor for the signals. If they get above a certain intensity, you should do a complete system shutdown. We will take over monitoring from the Zenith since we have no fuel to explode with again and give you the all clear when things return to safe levels. At this point this is an open forum on how to get fuel onto the Zenith. Anyone with ideas, chime in.”
The comm was silent again. One-by-one people started voicing ideas. Rand offered a few while also trying to keep an inconspicuous eye on Akio. She was silent during the discussion. Her eyes were on the communications console, but it was clear she was preoccupied. The shadow that has crossed her face before had returned. Rand now thought he knew what it was. This planet and the threat of death, unexpected and without warning, was taking its toll. Rand felt that if we didn’t get off planet soon Akio may break. Rand understood. He has spent days on this planet faced with the same threat. It had a way of gnawing at your sanity and Akio’s was becoming raw.
“…question is, do they have that kind of equipment on the Tanaka? Also Akio’s ship isn’t equipped with a SRV. How would they make the connection by hand? As I remember the connection point on an Anaconda is more than ten meters off the ground.”
Rand had been paying just enough attention to keep the conversation going. “I can’t speak to how we would hook up the line, but my SRV had enough raw materials to make the equipment your talking about if we can adjust the synthesizer on the Tanaka to build replacement parts. I was toying with that a bit in my SRV but I didn’t know the coding well enough to rewrite the protocols.”
One of the Sidewinder pilots chimed that she had worked on programming replicators before taking this job and could probably walk them through the lines of code that would need to be changed. Rand continued to glace at Akio without being too obvious. Not that it appears he needed to take such precautions. Akio was in another world, a dark and frightening one. Getting the Zenith refueled was only one problem he faced.
The conversation continued on for another ten minutes with a plan devised to refuel the Zenith. A fuel line would need to be created in sections by the synthesizer on the Tanaka and coupled between a fuel vent on the Tanaka and one of the fuel loading ports on the Zenith. Space walks would be required to bring materials back form the wreck of Rand’s SRV to build the conduit. They would move the Tanaka to the crash site so that loading could be done more quickly. After the conduit was built it would be attached to the Tanaka which would hover over the Zenith to perform the hook up. Once the line was connected the Tanaka would vent fuel down to 10%. Since connecting to all the vents on the Fer de Lance would take more time and a more complicated conduit system it was decided that some of the vented fuel would be lost from the other three vents that were not connected. However, the equations showed that a vent process that dumped 28% of the Tanaka’s fuel should fill the tanks of the Zenith enough to get her off the planet and to the closest in system star where she could use her fuel scoops to fill her tanks.
The plan had several risks. The Tanaka would have to power up and fly to the SRV crash site as well as perform the hover maneuver over the Zenith to hook up the fuel line putting it at risk of explosion. Also there were the several space walks with their inherit dangers on a world with low gravity and no atmosphere. However, everyone agreed it was worth a try to get everyone off the surface. Everyone except Akio, who had remained silent through the entire discussion.
When the conversation was over everyone got to their several tasks. As Jake and the Sidewinder pilot with the programming background got to work on the data packages for scanning for the deadly interference and the needed synthesizer scripts, Rand suggest that Akio check on Rukil to see how he was doing. Once she was off the bridge Rand opened a channel to the Zenith.
Rodrick’s voice came over the system “Yes son, is everything alright?”
“No, dad. We have another problem.”
Rodrick’s voice showed obvious concern. “What’s the problem.”
Rand hesitated looking back down the main corridor from the bridge. Then with a sigh he turned back to the comm. “Akio.”
(By the way: Akio is not wearing a red shirt, is she?)[/QUOTE]
Time will tell...
- - - - - Additional Content Posted / Auto Merge - - - - -
Rodrick was silent on the other end of the communications for a moment. Rand had just finished describing Akio;s behaviors and the strain she seemed to be under. “Thanks for letting me know. This is a bit like a terror thriller. There is something invisible here that has the ability to kill us. Not knowing what it is or when it will strike can erode a person’s sanity.”
“This is Commander Tomika, sorry to eavesdrop, but your father motioned me over. I’ve seen this before during my time in the military. There is that unsettling thought as your lining up someone in your crosshairs that someone else might be lining you up in theirs. That kind of continual uncertainty of death can lead to post traumatic stress disorder, or cause someone to breakdown in the thick of a fight. Sounds like Akio may be suffering from the same thing.”
Rodrick spoke next, “What do you recommend we do?”
“Well, given we are in the thick of things now, we can’t exactly get her counseling or medical attention. Helping her focus on something else is good. Not allowing time to think about the current risks can help.”
Rodrick, who was with Tomika noticed that she seemed to be holding back on something. “You have another idea?”
Commander Tomika exhaled. “Well we need Akio’s ship to do some flying, both recover materials, and to hook up the fuel line. Flying poses a risk since her ship could explode. That might be too much for her. We may want to consider relieving her of command and letting Rand to the flying.”
Everyone was silent while Tomika’s idea sank in. Relieving a commander of their ship is no soft order. How would she react to that? Plus relieving her of duty would not remove her from the ship. She would still be in danger once they started flying operations and she would likely feel less control over her fate that when she was at the controls.
“Rand,” Rodrick said, “your there with her, what do you think we should do?”
Rand was silent as he thought things through. “Akio is a trusted pilot. Whether she can handle the stress of the situation, I’m not sure, but I think we owe it to her to talk to her about our concern, and our concern for her before we do anything. I’ll go talk to her now.”
“I think your right son. Akio deserves honesty from us.”
“Rand,” Tomika chimed in, “be honest with her but be frank. We want her to be okay, but was have a lot of people in harm’s way and we need to move quickly. No foul, no penalty, if she wants to bow out, but if she’s in she needs to be all the way in. Lives depend on it.”
“I understand your point. I’m worried about stressing her more by putting that burden on her.”
“That is thoughtful, but sometimes the understanding that others are relying on you for their lives can be the inspiration that gets you past your fears. I know a lot of people that used their family and friends and the reason to do what they did, and to come home safe.” Tomkia hesitated. “It’s what is keeping me going right now.”
Again everyone was quiet for a moment.
“Thanks Tomika, I’ll keep that in mind when I talk to her.”
“Tell I have faith in her. She’s a good pilot and a good commander.” There was another pause. “Jake says that the configuration for your scanners is almost ready. I’ll check on the code for your AMF while you talk to Akio. You better get going, time is a luxury we don’t have.”
“Understood, Rand signing off.”
Rand hit the comm switch and sat back in his chair. I’m not a psychologist, he thought. How do I help her? All he could do was be honest, and be a friend. He stood, took and deep breath and turned to leave. He froze in place. Akio was standing just outside the bulkhead door to the bridge.
Time will tell...
- - - - - Additional Content Posted / Auto Merge - - - - -
Rodrick was silent on the other end of the communications for a moment. Rand had just finished describing Akio;s behaviors and the strain she seemed to be under. “Thanks for letting me know. This is a bit like a terror thriller. There is something invisible here that has the ability to kill us. Not knowing what it is or when it will strike can erode a person’s sanity.”
“This is Commander Tomika, sorry to eavesdrop, but your father motioned me over. I’ve seen this before during my time in the military. There is that unsettling thought as your lining up someone in your crosshairs that someone else might be lining you up in theirs. That kind of continual uncertainty of death can lead to post traumatic stress disorder, or cause someone to breakdown in the thick of a fight. Sounds like Akio may be suffering from the same thing.”
Rodrick spoke next, “What do you recommend we do?”
“Well, given we are in the thick of things now, we can’t exactly get her counseling or medical attention. Helping her focus on something else is good. Not allowing time to think about the current risks can help.”
Rodrick, who was with Tomika noticed that she seemed to be holding back on something. “You have another idea?”
Commander Tomika exhaled. “Well we need Akio’s ship to do some flying, both recover materials, and to hook up the fuel line. Flying poses a risk since her ship could explode. That might be too much for her. We may want to consider relieving her of command and letting Rand to the flying.”
Everyone was silent while Tomika’s idea sank in. Relieving a commander of their ship is no soft order. How would she react to that? Plus relieving her of duty would not remove her from the ship. She would still be in danger once they started flying operations and she would likely feel less control over her fate that when she was at the controls.
“Rand,” Rodrick said, “your there with her, what do you think we should do?”
Rand was silent as he thought things through. “Akio is a trusted pilot. Whether she can handle the stress of the situation, I’m not sure, but I think we owe it to her to talk to her about our concern, and our concern for her before we do anything. I’ll go talk to her now.”
“I think your right son. Akio deserves honesty from us.”
“Rand,” Tomika chimed in, “be honest with her but be frank. We want her to be okay, but was have a lot of people in harm’s way and we need to move quickly. No foul, no penalty, if she wants to bow out, but if she’s in she needs to be all the way in. Lives depend on it.”
“I understand your point. I’m worried about stressing her more by putting that burden on her.”
“That is thoughtful, but sometimes the understanding that others are relying on you for their lives can be the inspiration that gets you past your fears. I know a lot of people that used their family and friends and the reason to do what they did, and to come home safe.” Tomkia hesitated. “It’s what is keeping me going right now.”
Again everyone was quiet for a moment.
“Thanks Tomika, I’ll keep that in mind when I talk to her.”
“Tell I have faith in her. She’s a good pilot and a good commander.” There was another pause. “Jake says that the configuration for your scanners is almost ready. I’ll check on the code for your AMF while you talk to Akio. You better get going, time is a luxury we don’t have.”
“Understood, Rand signing off.”
Rand hit the comm switch and sat back in his chair. I’m not a psychologist, he thought. How do I help her? All he could do was be honest, and be a friend. He stood, took and deep breath and turned to leave. He froze in place. Akio was standing just outside the bulkhead door to the bridge.
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Sorry for the wait on the next story installment. My wife and I had a new baby girl and I have been sort of distracted. I pulled my story line back out though and plan to have the next part done and posted by this weekend.
I pulled my story line back out though and plan to have the next part done and posted by this weekend.Sorry for the wait on the next story installment. My wife and I had a new baby girl and I have been sort of distracted.
Dude, the story is great but real life (occasionally) has to take priority - we can wait but, on medical advice, will refrain from holding breath