by D G Hervey
“Well, our Parrots can no longer contact the database. So we are pretty much on our own,” commented Lieutenant Elina.
Through the intercom, Captain Simona called, “Captain Simona on Subtle bridge to Captain Naqvi on Hidden bridge. It is Subtle’s time to have operational control, but if you are in significantly better condition than we are, then please take over bridge operations.”
“Hidden is in no better condition than Subtle is to be in charge of operations,” replied Captain Naqvi. “As you have stated your problems, we found that ours are the same. That includes the loss of power on the bridge with only uninterruptible power available. If our situation improves faster than yours, we’ll let you know.”
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When Lieutenant Garbine left the bridge to help get the reactor back up, as Captain Simona had ordered, she found that the walkways had stopped and were now only dimly illuminated. She ran as best she could, pleased with herself for watching and doing Jon’s workouts with him whenever she was not on duty. Eventually, she reached the reactor control room.
Entering the control room Lieutenant Garbine asked, “Who is in charge here?”
“I am,” Natalia responded. “The reactor scrammed when the surge killed the magnetic field. We have no power from any other reactor at the moment and are working using uninterruptible power. Our Parrots are non-functional. Apparently the database is off-line and must be rebooted when it gets power. We have a local computer such as was used for the initial startup. It is now on uninterruptible power. We have found that it has instructions for a dead startup. We are walking through them, but without the help of bots, since it does not communicate with them. A lot of the bots in the vicinity were sheltering from the predicted radiation and using the opportunity to charge their batteries. The unprecedented surge seems to have damaged many of those, so they might not be of much help anyway. Furthermore, they obviously need access to the database to function in an unusual situation. None of the women on duty here were around almost six years ago when this reactor was initially brought on line and up to full power, so we are very carefully trying to understand and execute the reactor’s start up protocol.”
Lieutenant Garbine asked, “Are you checking for local radiation from the reactor?”
“The detector is working,” Natalia responded. “But it checks only for neutrons and radiation that the reactor might release. I’m not sure they are the only types of radiation of concern. What might a CME and Jupiter together cause in here?”
“If there is uncertainty,” Lieutenant Garbine answered, “then Captain Simona says that any pregnant women should not risk radiation exposure.”
“I’m in my first trimester. I have not been much help so far anyway,” Dudar volunteered. “So, I’ll take Captain Simona’s recommendation and excuse myself.”
Lieutenant Garbine responded, “I will take her place. Just tell me what to do.”
Lieutenant Garbine reached for the com and reported, “Captain Simona, the reactor control room is functioning on human actions only. Procedures for a dead restart are found and in progress. Due to unfamiliarity with the protocol and having no bot assistance, we can provide no estimate of time until the reactor is on line.”
Over the com Captain Simona’s voice responded, “Acknowledged. Thanks.”
-
The infrastructure throughout Calypso had numerous failures. Jupiter stirred up extra doses of radiation with ample help from the sun’s CME.
The women in the computer control center managed a reboot of the digital system on uninterruptible power. The first things that returned to operation were the mainframe and database. Many bots were not operational. With the computer and database functioning, the operable bots were able to contribute their able assistance to what needed to be done. A lot of circuits were short circuited and needed to be disconnected from service. The shorted-out circuits were identified and isolated. Then the ‘poison’ was partially withdrawn from the reactor, which was powered up, bit by bit, as circuits were added to its load.
Subtle had regained its power, temperature control, database, limited bot assistance, and some functional moving walkways. They opened a rarely used electrical link to Hidden which gave them some power, enabling them to restart their own reactor. The bridge was still blind ahead, relying on radar only.
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After the radiation from the CME dropped to tolerable levels, Captain Simona commented, “The six bot-operated spaceships should have weathered the radiation in their hangers. Lieutenant Elina, first check our communication with them and their hanger doors and let me know the status.”
“We have communication with five of the bot-operated spaceships,” Lieutenant Elina replied, “and have control of the doors of four of those.”
“Pick one,” ordered Captain Simona, “open the hanger door and see if we still have good communication with the spaceship.”
After a pause Lieutenant Elina replied, “Hanger doors are open on number 3 and we still have good communications.”
Captain Simona ordered, “Have the manipulator arm of spaceship number 3 grip the outer edge of its hanger to take the ship out.”
“Done,” responded Lieutenant Elina, “and still good communication.”
Captain Simona ordered, “Activate one of the forward looking cameras of number 3. Get it to view ahead, past the edge of Calypso.”
“Forward view on our forward screen,” Lieutenant Elina replied.
“Good!” responded Captain Simona, “Now we can see forward again. It is just empty space as usual. We just see a bit of Calypso’s conical shield in the edge of the view. But, at least, we can see forward again. Somehow a view in visible light seems more comforting than the radar blip or nothing on the radar screen.”
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Somewhat later President Elect Agnieszka was meeting in her offices with some of her staff. By holographic projection, Vice President Elect Jelena and her secretary, Helve, were present.
“Good to have communications functioning normally, Jelena,” commented President Elect Agnieszka. “How have Hidden’s women weathered the storm?”
“None of the women have been injured,” Jelena replied. “No pregnancies seem to be endangered and there were no miscarriages.”
Agni asked, “What is the current status of your cylinder’s infrastructure?”
“Our reactor is up and the power link with Subtle is inactivated,” responded Jelena. “Any breaches of the hull were microscopic and repaired by the self-healing layer. We have sufficient moving walkways to get around without having to walk too far.”
“How about the situation with Hidden’s bots?” asked Agni. “Ours took a major hit.”
“Eight percent of our bots are still out of commission,” answered Jelena. “The power surge incapacitated them either by shorting out their communication with the main frame’s database or by frying their internal circuits. Those with communication failure can be repaired as the parts become available. Those with fried internal circuits still have intact exoskeletons, but their electronics need complete replacement, which may take us a couple of months to make.”
“How functional is Hidden’s bridge?” inquired Agni. “Does it have adequate instrumentation to take its turn being in charge of Calypso’s overall navigation and operations?”
Jelena replied, “I suspect Calypso will be better off with control working out of Subtle for a while longer. Hidden is down to 32 percent functionality of our outer hull sensors, including those for temperature, micro-particle impacts, radiation, strain, current, voltage, magnetic flux, and hatch positions. The bridge crew is working feverishly to restore the inputs of such data so they can know what they are doing.”
“I wonder if we should take ML’s approach to the myriad of pinhole penetrations our hulls suffered?” stated Agni. “You remember that she had all of the tiny holes spot welded and the self-healing coating reapplied after her cargo spaceship got shot.”
“We have adequate between-hulls bo
ts and welding supplies to do as she did with her decoy cargo ship when they were attacked at Phobos,” answered Jelena. “I believe our people will expect us to follow that precedent.”
“I think so, too,” agreed Agni. “ML always tended toward the safer way of maintaining her spaceships. How about restoration of Hidden’s component of our magnetic field?”
“The bots have already located the failure points where the surge shorted out our magnetic-field circuit,” said Jelena. “We should have the failure points repaired within the next day, but the repairs will have resistance to current flow, no longer superconducting. So with the same current addition as before, the magnetic field will be less effective in providing protection from cosmic rays. But it should be tolerable. It is the best we can do in the short run.”
“Good” responded President Elect Agnieszka. “We are about the same on Subtle. I guess our bridge is ahead of yours in being repaired.”
Jelena asked, “What is the latest on our add-on asteroid?”
“It is still there trailing us,” answered President Elect Agnieszka. “We expect to re-activate our ion drive in six days. Soon we’ll need to get bots onto that asteroid to activate its ion drive so that it can keep up. It will be a strain to spare bots from Calypso. In keeping with ML’s concerns, any bots we send there will have to stay until we are confident that it poses no risk to us.”
“We are also short of bots,” Jelena replied, “but activating the ion thrusters for the trailing asteroid should be a priority. We surely want to get the technology ML believes that asteroid may provide us.”
“Indeed,” responded President Elect Agnieszka.
Jelena wondered, “What else should we discuss?”
President Elect Agnieszka suggested, “Since our emergency is now being well addressed, I feel it is reasonable for us to schedule our inauguration. I’d like to keep it simple.”
Jelena replied, “I have no problem with simple. How about a week from today? Mining may even be able to restart by then. Do you think that will be too soon?”
“It will give folks something to take their mind off of our problems,” answered President Elect Agnieszka. “I think we can be ready. With regard to the inauguration, how about having Jon administer the oath of office for each of us?”
“Good idea,” responded Jelena. “Be sure to let him know so he can be prepared.”
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Captain Simona commented to the Subtle bridge crew, “We are not only piloting Calypso, but, thanks to ML, we are also about to have a trailing asteroid to navigate until it is judged to be safe to dock it on Calypso’s trailer. We will have to get it to match our velocity and direction so we can get the technology it implemented in its attack. Complicating the task of maneuvering it, we will need to keep that asteroid out of the ion streams from Calypso’s thrusters or else the ions which are accelerating Calypso will be decelerating the asteroid. As long as our main frame remains operational, I am confident that we should be able to accomplish this task since the constraints of the problem are understood.”
Captain Simona spoke to Lieutenant Garbine, “On the trailing asteroid only one of the bots has survived unscathed, the one from ML’s Spaceship. The radiation of Jupiter’s environment combined with the sun’s coronal mass ejection storm did in the others. During the CME ML’s bot was shielded by the other ones. Find out from that bot what is needed to repair the asteroid’s ion-drive propulsion and if any of the other bots back there can be fixed. Then fly one of Calypso’s bots to the trailing asteroid. Equip it with adequate supplies to accomplish the possible repairs of the bots. The Calypso bot should also take a microwave power receiver, wiring to connect it to the asteroid’s propulsion unit, and a supply of regolith for propulsion of the asteroid.”
Lieutenant Garbine responded, “Yes, Captain.”
Captain Simona continued, “After the supplies are transported, the two operational bots should try to get any reparable bots on that asteroid up and working. Following the attempted repair of the bots, successful or not, the functional bots should get the trailing asteroid’s ion-drive propulsion working again. After that the bots need to install the microwave power receiver to keep the asteroid’s ion-drive propulsion powered indefinitely, with power to be transmitted from Calypso’s trailer. Some of our trailer bots can set up a microwave power transmitter to track the asteroid. The final bots’ job is to position adequate regolith, taken there from Calypso, as feed to make the ions for the asteroid’s ion-drive propulsion.”
Lieutenant Garbine replied, “Yes, Captain.”
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“The bot and all of its cargo are ready to navigate the gap to the asteroid,” Lieutenant Garbine stated. “Our trailer bots have already installed the microwave laser power transmitter on the stern of Calypso’s trailer. Everything is on schedule, Captain.”
“As you fly that bot to the asteroid,” Captain Simona cautioned, “scan that hunk of rock, or whatever it’s made of, thoroughly. See if there is anything that seems to be amiss about it. Don’t land until I instruct you to do so.”
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So Lieutenant Garbine remotely flew the bot, using an EDA (extra-development activity) thruster module, back to the asteroid. She flew it all around the asteroid, scrutinizing it.
“There seems to be a perfectly circular dissimilarity in the surface toward the front of a bulge that is near the midpoint of the asteroid,” Lieutenant Garbine observed. “Should I have the bot investigate it?”
“Not yet,” ordered Captain Simona. “Let’s be doubly cautious, since ML had suspicions. Let’s fly one of our laser-weaponized, bot-run spaceships out toward that asteroid. Have it position itself to the side of the asteroid, where it can barely see the round anomaly. Have the one operable bot on the asteroid position the most severely disabled bot in clear view of that spot. Then have your bot, with its payload of repairs, land on the asteroid out of view of the circular dissimilarity.”
-
“Everything is now in position as directed,” reported Lieutenant Garbine.
With the bot-run spaceship’s camera transmitting to Subtle’s bridge, Captain Simona could observe the survey of the asteroid. She ordered, “Have the bot-operated spaceship aim its laser at the anomaly, with instructions to fire at anything that moves at the first sign of motion.”
Lieutenant Garbine responded, “Ready.”
Captain Simona ordered, “Now land the bot that has been flown over with the repair cargo out of the view of the round anomaly.”
The EDA bot with its load of repairs touched down. The camera from the bot-operated spaceship showed a flurry of activity. The round anomaly was ejected from the asteroid and the bot-operated spaceship fired its laser at it. A sensor popped out of the hole in the asteroid that was opened with the ejection of its rounded stopper. A laser weapon popped out of that hole and fired at the disabled bot that was close to it. Then the bot operating the spaceship refocused its laser away from the hole’s plug toward the laser that was firing at the disabled bot on the surface of the asteroid. When the asteroid’s pop-up laser stopped firing, the bot-operated spaceship quickly ceased its firing.
“Keep that spaceship’s laser aimed at that hole,” directed Captain Simona, “in case something other than our bots move on that asteroid. It is a good thing that the bots are AI, independently smart, understanding intent, and not just adhering to the letter of their instruction. I’m glad it ceased firing at the plug quickly and took out the laser, the actual threat.”
“It is good that you heeded ML’s concern,” remarked Lieutenant Garbine. “You did not bring the asteroid closer to Calypso with that laser undetected. It could have done more damage than it did. What could have happened if it had been docked on our trailer?”
Captain Simona observed, “We are picking up radio transmission from the asteroid. Have ML’s bot, which is on the asteroid, get at that hole and take out the transmitter. We’d still like to see if, aboard the asteroid, there is technology that we don�
�t have. So, have it minimize the damage. Any harm the transmitter can cause, it has already caused. That can’t be avoided now.”
The functional bot from ML’s Spaceship 1 acted upon Captain Simona’s words. It was obviously tapping into the Calypso computer-bot communications. Moments after it got to the unplugged opening, the radio transmission stopped.
“Well, we were not as successful as I’d hoped to be,” remarked Captain Simona. “Anyone looking for that radio signal will know pretty much where we are. They’ll know that we got past Jupiter’s radiation zone successfully. We need to heed ML’s advice regarding delaying any decision of our final destination.”
-
That evening the residents of Marie’s and Jon’s pod were all in their common room.
Jon commented, “One thing I miss on Calypso is the sight of paper airplanes. I remember when I used to work in crowded offices, I’d occasionally see someone launch a paper airplane. Then everyone else would have to see if they could better the performance of the first one. But here, paper is such a precious commodity that we are all reluctant to waste a sheet of paper to make an airplane.”
“Let’s adapt that frivolity,” suggested Azek, “and have a contest of our own.”
Fawn asked, “Adapt in what way?”
“Suppose that we each build our own pseudo-paper airplane,” responded Azek, “with each of us using her own different idea for the materials for making it.”
Tami interjected, “But what if two of us chance upon the identical idea for elements to be included?”
“Well, if each one of you privately tells her Parrot exactly what items she intends to use,” suggested Jon, “then the Parrot can tell you whether that choice has already been selected by another. But no one should be allowed to learn what another intends to use unless she chances upon exactly the same idea. In that case, she may add another item or substitute one item for what the other is using. I suggest the pre-folded or flat pseudo-paper size should be in the range between the European size A4 and the US equivalent 8.5 by 11 inches.”
