Mission Unknown

I guess I'll never know why Commander Daw chose my life to ruin. <block class="choices">\ [[Before that day, I had no idea who he was...|neverseen]]\ [[I had seen him, of course, whenever he came to inspect the factory floor, but we had never spoken...|seen]]\ [[I didn't know him well, but he had always been polite to me...|spoken]]\ </block>

Most clients, we wouldn't let anywhere near the factory floor. But when you're supplying spaceships for military use -- and they legally count as munitions, even when it's a repurposed civilian model -- well, they have special security requirements. It had been a source of tension for as long as we had been dealing with them. So yes, I knew who he was. He was the fellow who came around to the Orbital Fanfare shipyard once every few weeks to direct his underlings to interfere with work while he disappeared into [[Jan]]'s office to talk money. <block class=choices>\ [[Still, I couldn't complain too much. This is the Space Guard we we're talking about!|patriot]]\ [[But it was worth putting up with them to have a regular paycheck.|cynic]]\ [[To be honest, it all made me uncomfortable. The character of the company was changing under my feet.|peacenik]]\ </block>

I was never into the business side. My job at Orbital Fanfare was to build the spaceships and, increasingly, to service them. But of course I knew that we had military clients now. That had been a controversial decision within the company, and [[Jan]] even offered to buy out my stake if I disagreed with it. <block class="choices">\ [[I had stayed, of course.|patriot]]\ [[I had stayed. It's not like leaving would make a difference.|cynic]]\ [[I had stayed, under the condition that I was never asked to mount a gun on one of our ships.|peacenik]]\ </block>

Just pleasantries, really. Chit-chat on his way to [[Jan]]'s office, to help us working stiffs feel comfortable with the increasing amount of business Orbital Fanfare was doing with the Space Guard. I always felt there was a little bit of probing there, too, like he was trying to figure out if I was an Arcturan spy. But he was charismatic, that's for sure. Always gave an impression that he was in charge and had things under control, which caused a little tension with Jan, who actually *was* in charge and had things under control. He had a very intense gaze, and always gave me the impression that he was sizing me up and had judged me worthy. I don't think he read me right, but somehow that felt like a failure on my part, not his. <block class="choices">\ [[Still, I was always glad to be on good terms with our men in uniform.|patriot]]\ [[Well, if he wanted our favor, I could play his game.|cynic]]\ [[I didn't like him, and I didn't like what he stood for.|peacenik]]\ </block>

Anyway, the day started normally. I hit the familiar concrete and oil stains of the workshop and said hello to the new hires who, as usual, had gotten there before me. Such eagerness. The place was a mess, bits of computer modules and life support systems all over the place, as tended to happen. <block class="choices">\ [[I got right to work on a repair job.|repairs]]\ [[Still, things weren't busy enough to keep me from taking some tme to watch the vats.|vats]]\ [[I decided to check to see if they needed my help in assembly.|assembly]]\ </block>

I entered the office and immediately felt underdressed. The whole decor is designed to impress clients. It's like a world apart from the factory floor. Jan gave a big smile and stood up to greet me. The Commander remained seated. "Come in and shut the door behind you. (if: (history:) contains "spoken")[You know Commander Daw." "We've met," I replied, looking around for a seat until Jan offered me hers, which I refused. The Commander acknowledged my presence with a nod. "I've had my eye on you for a while," he confided with a nod. I racked my brains to think of anything I could have said or done in his presence to leave an impression, good or bad, and came up blank.]\ (else:)[This is is Commander Daw." "Your employer here has been telling me a lot about you," he said with gentle confidence, fixing me with (if: (history:) contains "seen")[those pale blue eyes. I had never been the subject of his attention before.](else:)[pale blue eyes.] It was unnerving. His gaze gave the impression that he was sizing me up, and had found me worthy, and also that this was a mistake, but that this represented a failure on my part rather than an error on his. "I have to say, I'm impressed."] <block class="choices">\ [["What's all this about?" I asked, eager to discuss anything other than myself.|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3) </block>

(unless: (history:) contains "accept")[So I called Commander Daw and told him I had (if: (history:) contains "think")[made my decision](else:)[changed my mind]. ]A mere two days later, I was ready to go to space. With an overwhelming sense of anticipation, I launched from an open field outside of town. The ship [[turned out]] to be a Crocus -- basically, a Tulip bolted to an FTL drive. Inexplicably, it had been painted desert camouflage. I strapped into bed for the ascent, taking care to position myself so I could watch Earth drop away on the aft cam. By the time this got boring, I'd be in space and could float free. I spent the next couple of hours relentlessly inspecting the facilities and inventorying the supplies, waiting to get our of communication range of Earth, feeling like a kid on Christmas eve. Somehow, it only occurred to me then to wonder what form the briefing would take. Probably from the ship's computer? <block class="choices">\ [[I addressed the computer from its speech interface.|Computer Dialogue]]\ [[I poked around in its filesystem.|Computer Interface]]\ </block>

(link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ + ├──[[OS]] ├──[[Apps]] ├──Settings │ └──[[Voice]] ├──[[Course Data]] ├──Storage │ ├──[[General Storage]] │ ├──[[Photos]] │ └──[[Logs]] └──[[Exit|Computer Dialogue]] ]

The fact is, I was alone in the void on a little ship bound for uncharted space, with no idea of where I was going, or what I'd find there, or what I was supposed to do. And there was nothing I could do about it. I couldn't contact Earth. I'd be lucky if I saw another ship. I had to ride this out to the end. \(if: (history:) contains "Needing to know what it was all about.")[ The worst part is that I had gotten on the Crocus specifically to get answers, and even that one small thing had been denied me. ]\ Hopefully I'd wind up someplace settled and civilized, where I could refuel and head home and lodge a complaint with a minimum of hassle. (END OF PROLOGUE. Keep an eye out for the next episode: MYSTERIES OF THE WILD PLANET)

We certainly had enough repairs to do these days. This used to be primarily a ship manufacture company, but the more units we sold, the more time we spent fixing them. I wonder if there's a natural limit to that, or if there comes a point where you're just spending all your time on maintenance, forever. That day, we had a [[Buttercup]], a [[Daffodil]], and a [[Tulip]] in the yard. (Yes, all our models are named for flowers. No, the Space Guard doesn't use those names. They came up with their own names, like a Buttercup is a PEV-2 or whatever.)

In theory, this was productive labor. I was "inspecting" the congealing process, making sure the hulls weren't coming out deformed. The sooner any problems were noticed, the sooner we could flush the vat and start over. But in practice, that never happened any more. The tech had improved greatly in the last few years, and now even a small operation like ours could manufacture a solution pure enough to not need supervision. I still did it because I found the process fascinating to watch, kind of meditative. Polymers automatically knit themselved into programmed shapes, slowly forming a shell capable of keeping people safe and comfortable as they hurtle through the void at unimaginable speeds. Every once in a while, I'd see a new strut coalesce, a line racing into being, and then start the slow process of filling in and thickening. (display: "invitation")\ <block class="choices">\ \(if: $invitation_seen > 1)[[But the Commander, and more importantly Jan, was waiting for me.|Act 2]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "assembly")[[I could only spend so long here before feeling restless. So I headed over to the assembly area, where the action was.|assembly]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "repairs")[[But I had some real work to do, down in the repair yard.|repairs]]\ </block>

The Buttercup was our smallest model -- basically, a little blob with just room enough for one person and a few hours worth of compressed air. They don't even have enough engine power to get them into orbit on their own, and have to be launched from a larger ship. They were initially intended as excursion vehicles for exterior maintenance on starships, but in fact they're mainly bought by enthusiasts for joyrides and even racing. The one in our yard that day was totalled. Big gash in its side, probably from an inexperienced or drunk pilot scraping it against its carrier. I really hope they were wearing a spacesuit, because that would flush the air in an instant. There was no repairing this. Might as well melt it down and throw it back in the vats. (display: "repair links")

The Daffodil is our interstellar truck, by volume about half FTL drive and half cargo space. Before we came out with it, cargo ships were all massive things, built to carry an entire colony's worth of supplies to the outer worlds. That makes a lot of sense for efficiency, but one of Jan's early strokes of genius was figuring out that there were a lot of individuals and businesses that wanted to do their own transport anyway. I understand the Space Guard uses them for courier missions -- the fastest and most secure way to get a message out to Arcturus is to physically carry it on an FTL ship. The one we had in the yard that morning had gotten one of its FTL drives misaligned, so it was useless for doing anything interstellar. Apparently the owner had kept on using it anyway, just in-system. That's a really bad idea, by the way. When an FTL drive stops working, you really need to get it checked out right away in case it's catastasizing. The owner was lucky. A few minutes with a socket wrench was enough to put it right. (display: "repair links")

The Tulip is my favorite, and not just because [[I had a some say in its interior design|design]]. They're the extended-occupancy model -- basically a cozy one-bedroom apartment with thrusters, designed to be usable and comfortable both in microgravity and on a planet's surface. It's just a neat little bundle of everything you need. I actually lived in one for a couple of weeks when I had to move apartments suddenly, and could have lived in it longer if Jan hadn't kicked me out so we could sell it. Took it up into orbit a couple of times, too. It felt like going camping. The one in the yard that day had been brought in because its computer system was hosed. I checked it out, and couldn't figure out the problem in five minutes, so I told one of the new guys to just yank it and replace it. That was the fastest way to get it back to the customer. If we wanted to fix the computer and install it in another ship, we could do that at our leisure. (display: "repair links")

Contrary to popular belief, ships don't come out of the vats fully-formed. All you can do there is the structures: the hull, interior details, some of the moving parts like hatches and wheels. Everything else has to be installed by hand: thrusters, electronics, life support system. Mostly the life support system. That's the fiddly part. Improved tech has given us small, simple engines, but you can't do much to simplify anything that has to deal with living flesh. This is the glory work. All the new guys ever want to do is build new ships. Make themselves part of something new, I guess, rather than maintain the things old-timers like me had built. They looked so young to me, and the thing is, they were all much more qualified for the job than I was. Most of them had been obsessed with space since they were little. Some of them even had engineering degrees. My college major was medieval music. My only qualification to be here is that I had answered a want ad when the company wasn't famous yet. Anyway, they had it well in hand. It was busy as a beehive, but not much for me to do. This used to be my primary job, mind you. We used to have a couple of [[Arcturans]] working in assembly, did you know that? But they left for obvious reasons. (display: "invitation")\ <block class="choices">\ \(if: $invitation_seen > 1)[[It was probably a better idea to go where I was actually wanted. To the office I went.|Act 2]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "vats")[[So I figured I might as well go stare at the vats for a while.|vats]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "repairs")[[The repair yard is where they really needed my expertise.|repairs]]\ </block>

The thing is, I was actually actually a true believer in the Space Guard's mission back then. It's a dangerous galaxy, on the whole, and the farther you get from Earth, the more dangerous it gets. Their job was to keep us safe. My job, as far as they were concerned, was to supply them with small spacecraft to do it with. It was a mutually beneficial relationship that also benefitted all mankind. My feelings have become a bit more complicated since then. (display: "Act 1")

I mean, look. Unlike most of our newer hires, I'm no fan of space colonialism. But that's the system we live in, like it or not. People who try feel better about themselves by opting out are just fooling themselves. I'd change it all if I could, but I didn't have that kind of power. All I had the power to do is fix spaceships. So that's what I did. (display: "Act 1")

(if: (history:) contains "neverseen")[I needn't have worried. It turns out that the only weapons that are much use in space are way too big for our ships. And anyway, if they wanted guns, they were perfectly capable of installing them without our help.] You have to understand that I never chose to work for a military contractor. When I joined up, it was just a scrappy little startup that was doing something no one else was doing: bringing spaceflight to the masses. But now, nearly half of our sales were getting shipped out to Arcturus to fight the "insurrection", and the new hires tended to be people who wanted to be involved in that somehow. It was difficult to even talk to them. Their every assumption about the world was alien to me. (display: "Act 1")

That's Dr. Janice Maughm, the company's founder. Despite our success, it's still a small company and she's very hands-on. Brilliant woman, one of the first people to see the market potential of cheap consumer-grade spaceflight. About twenty years my senior. She hired me to do assembly when no one had heard of the company yet and I had no knowledge or experience in the field. She's been the best boss I've ever had, and I think it's mainly for the same reason that her company has been such a success: she has an instinct for figuring out what people need. <block class="choices">\ (link-undo: "Anyway, where was I?") </block>

That was back when we didn't have the resources to do proper market research and just asked everyone in the company to contribute ideas instead. Next time you're in a Tulip or Crocus and turn on the built-in reading light next to the bed, you can thank me. (link-undo: "But like I was saying...")

(unless: $invitation_seen > 0)[At that point, a stranger in uniform, one of the Commander's men, approached me. He couldn't have been older than 19, and he was a little unsure of whether to address me as "sir" or not. "Pardon, uh, but you're wanted in the office, when you're not busy, uh." That didn't sound good.(set: $invitation_seen to 0) <block class="choices">\ [[I saw no reason to delay the inevitable. To the office I went.|Act 2]]\ </block>]\ \(set: $invitation_seen to $invitation_seen + 1)

(set: _buttercup to (passage:)'s name is "Buttercup" or (history:) contains "Buttercup")\ (set: _daffodil to (passage:)'s name is "Daffodil" or (history:) contains "Daffodil")\ (set: _tulip to (passage:)'s name is "Tulip" or (history:) contains "Tulip")\ (set: _finished to (_buttercup and _daffodil and _tulip))\ (if: _finished)[\ And that was that. Repairs had taken less time than I anticipated. (display: "invitation")\ <block class="choices"> \(if: $invitation_seen > 1)[[Having finished, I made my way do the office to see what Jan and/or the Commander wanted.|Act 2]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "vats")[[I could kill some time down at the vats.|vats]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "assembly")[[I wandered down to the assembly bay to see if the the new guys needed any help.|assembly]]\ </block>]\ (else: )[== <block class="choices">\ (unless: _buttercup is true)[[I took a look at the Buttercup next.|Buttercup]]\ (unless: _daffodil)[[I went to the Daffodil after that.|Daffodil]]\ (unless: _tulip)[[The Tulip was still waiting for me.|Tulip]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "assembly")[[I'd had enough of repairs for the moment. I decided to check out what was going on in the assembly bay.|assembly]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "vats")[[I decided to clear my head down at the vats.|vats]]\ </block>

"Oh for Pete's sake, just hear the man out." Jan cast me a weary look. For her sake, I stayed. (display: "details")

"I can't go into a lot of detail here, for security reasons.(if: (history:) contains "seen")[" (So much for all those security inspections. They still didn't trust us.) "](else:)[ ]It involves going off-planet, in a ship we'll provide, on a pre-set course. You should return in less than a month. You'll continue to receive your salary while you're gone, and will be handsomely rewarded on your return." "Damn right you will", interjected Jan. Apparently she had been negotiating on my behalf. "The risk is minimal, but secrecy is of the utmost urgency. You'll understand when you get the full briefing, which will occur only when the ship is out of communication range of Earth, because, again, secrecy is of the utmost urgency. He stood up and leaned on Jan's desk, looming over me, his eyes practically incandescent. "I'd like to reiterate that this mission is absolutely crucial to the fate of the human race, and that I believe you to be uniquely qualified to execute it successfully." "Now, are you interested?" <block class="choices">\ [["Very well, I accept."|accept]]\ [["I'll have to think about it."|think]]\ [["I respectfully decline."|decline]]\ [["Are you INSANE? You want me to send me off to God knows where to do God knows what, and you won't even tell me what it's for until after I'm already underway? This is the worst idea I've ever heard!|decline]]\ </block>

(set: $decision to "yes")\ His face split into a grin, and he earnestly shook my hand. We talked briefly about preparations, then he left me alone with Jan. (if: (history:) contains "peacenik")[\ "I'm honestly surprised," she said. "What happened to the firebrand who complained so much about working with the military? Suddenly you want to be a secret agent so much, you'll go in blind?"](else:)[\ "That was (if: (history:) contains "refuse out of hand")[an abrupt turnaround](else:)[a quick decision]," she said. "I honestly thought you'd take a lot more convincing. What pricked you?"] It was a fair question. Why was I so quick to accept? I think it mainly came down to... <block class="choices">\ [[Wanting a change.]]\ [[The fate of the human race.]] \ [[Needing to know what it was all about.]]\ </block>

(set: $decision to "maybe")\ The Commander geve me his contact info and showed himself out. Jan kept me behind to discuss it further. (if: (history:) contains "patriot")[\ "Are you actually considering it? I can't tell if you're just being polite or if you really want to be a secret agent for the Space Guard that much." <block class="choices">\ [[I assured her that I was sincere.|really considering it]]\ [[I told her the truth: I just said that because it was the quickest way to get the man to stop talking.|just polite]]\ </block>\ ](else:)[\ "You're just being polite. I can tell. You've already made up your mind not to do it. Good for you." <block class="choices">\ [[As usual, she was right on the money. You couldn't put anything past her.|just polite]]\ [[I told her that no, I was really thinking about taking him up on it.|really considering it]]\ </block>\ ]

(set: $decision to "no")\ But obviously it didn't end there, or I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you about it, would I? The Commander geve me his contact info, just in case I changed my mind, and showed himself out. Jan kept me behind to discuss it further. (if: (history:) contains "patriot")[\ "Well, I'm not very surprised, but I honestly am a little surprised. I thought you idolized (if: (history:) contains "spoken")[that man](else:)[the Space Guard]. You don't even want to consider helping the man out?" "What's to consider? He wants to uproot my life for a month and doesn't even tell me why." She nodded noncommitally. ](else:)[\ "Well, I'm not surprised. I had to let you choose, of course, but it was a terrible offer. Uprooting you for a month and not even saying why." She paused. I could tell there was a "But" coming. ]"But you know, sometimes a person can use a little uprooting. I worry for you, you know? You haven't been as happy here as you used to be. You've outgrown this place. It's a strange request, yes, but who knows where it could lead?" (display: "sleep on it")

I mean, the Commander had told me what model of ship I'd be using. Obviously. He wanted me to find it. But he had told me to look for an "FS-9". I had no idea what that was. (unless: (history:) contains "repairs")[\ See, all our ship models are named after flowers, but the military doesn't like that for some reason, so they come up with their own names for them. The Orbital Fanfare names have the advantage of being meaningful and easy to remember.] (link-undo: "Anyway!")

Thousands of files, just to cover the basics. It would be easy to slip an extra file in here, but it would also be easy to detect: just run a self-diagnostic in strict mode. I did. It found nothing. Maybe the diagnostic program had been tampered with too, but it didn't seem likely. (link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

This would be the obvious place to put any instructions. It's explicitly the part of the filesystem for user data. But no, it was empty. (link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

Nothing here but the standard Entertainment Module that we put on all ship systems. Hundreds of public-domain books, movies, and games for the traveler who underestimated how long it takes to cover interstellar distances. Would you believe I have the checksum for this memorized? It hadn't been altered. (link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

Ah, the external camera. The most-requested and least-used feature. Everyone thinks they're going to take amazing photos of space, then figures out how empty space is. There were no photos stored here. (link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

The log files were unexpectedly short. Every user who logged into the system would be recorded here. Had the Commander logged in? He had not. I was the very first. Apparently the OS was newly-installed. That was a bad sign, not just for my search, but for the reliability of the system. Who installs an OS and doesn't boot it up and log in to make sure it's working? (The Space Guard, apparently.) (link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

Aha! At the very least, this would show me where I was going. I was a little relieved to see that I was headed almost directly away from Arcturus. The route went through a section marked "Unexplored", then a section marked "Danger Zone", then a section marked "Redacted". The terminus was simply labeled "Terminus". Well, that taught me a lot. Actually, it told me one thing: Even at superluminal speeds, I was going to be at least two weeks in transit, Earth-relative. Either the actual mission was going to be pretty short, or the Commander was stretching the truth when he said I'd only be gone a month, or he just didn't understand general relativity. (link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

And once it was in my brain, I couldn't stop thinking about it. Most of the major decisions in my life had been made without adequate information. I had no idea what I was getting into when I joined Orbital Fanfiare. Would one more leap of faith be that bad? I didn't sleep much that night. The thing I kept circling back to was... <block class="choices">\ [[Wanting a change.]]\ [[The fate of the human race.]]\ [[Needing to know what it was all about.]]\ </block>

(if: (history:) contains "accept")[Let's face it: I wasn't really happy ad Orbital Fanfare any more.](else:)[Jan was right.] My place was no longer with the company, and they didn't really need me. For my own sake, I had to move on. To what? No idea. And "No idea" was exactly what the Commander was offering. And anyway, if the mission turned out to be not to my liking, I could always just turn around and come home. What could they do, court martial me? (display: "Embarking")

I mean, it sounded hokey. The fate of the human race in my hands? Surely this was an exaggeration. But what if it wasn't? Could I in good conscience refuse? I've never had much power to make things better. What little power I had at work seemed to be slipping away. God damn it, I had to take this. (display: "Embarking")

That was the most maddening part, the not knowing. What was it for? What was I expected to do? In what way was I "uniquely qualified"? It nagged at me like an unanswered riddle, and the only way I was ever going to get answers was to get on that ship. (display: "Embarking")

"Well, I can't say I'm too surprised. You haven't been as happy here as you used to be, have you? I notice these things. And here comes Mr. Bigshot with an offer of something new and exciting where you get to be a hero. You could just get another job without him, you know that? I'd be sad to see you go, but I don't want to see you languishing." Jan's advice was usually good. But the Commander's offer, however indefinite it was, had the advantage of being there on the table already, where I could just pick it up with minimal effort. (display: "sleep on it")

"Well, don't just dismiss it out of hand. The Commander is a good friend, and if he says this is important, he knows what he's talking about. And I know you haven't been happy here lately. A little change could be good for you. "And anyway, he knows that if anything happened to you out there, he'd never hear the end of it." It's funny how a few words from someone you trust can turn an obviously bad idea into one you're seriously considering. (display: "sleep on it")

(set: _visited_everything to (history:) contains "OS" and (history:) contains "General Storage" and (history:) contains "Apps" and (history:) contains "Photos" and (history:) contains "Logs")\ (if: (history:) contains "Computer Dialogue")[\ I gave the voice interface another go. (if: _visited_everything and ($said_checked_everything is 0))[ (set: $said_checked_everything to 1)\ "I've checked everywhere. It's not there." "Then I suppose I do not have it(display: "voice")]\ (else:)[(if: (history:) contains "General Storage" and ($said_checked_general_storage is 0))[\ (set: $said_checked_general_storage to 1)\ "I checked your general storage. It wasn't there." "Then I suppose it might be somewhere else in my filesystem(display: "voice")\ ](else:)[\ "Are you (nth: visit, "", "really ", "really, really ", "absolutely ")sure you don't have anything for me?" "Yes(display: "voice")\ ]]]\ (else:)[\ (if: (history:) contains "Computer Interface")[Well, that was fruitless. I closed the desktop and tried addressing the computer through the voice interface. ]\ "Hello, computer?" "Hello, user(display: "voice") "What can I do for you?" "I'm supposed to be getting some kind of instructions? Do you have those?" "No." "..." "Perhaps it is in the General Storage section of my filesystem."\ (if: _visited_everything)[ (set: $said_checked_everything to true)\ "I've already checked the entire filesystem." "Then I suppose it is not there."\ ](else:)[(if: (history:) contains "General Storage")[ (set: $said_checked_general_storage to true)\ "No, I've already checked there. "Then perhaps it is somewhere else in my filesystem."\ ]]] (set: _done to (_visited_everything or visits > 2 or (history:) contains "wait"))\ <block class="choices">\ (if: (history:) contains "Computer Interface")[[[I sighed and pulled up the manual interface again.|Computer Interface]]](else:)[[[I pulled up the manual interface.|Computer Interface]]]\ (unless: (history:) contains "wait")[[Maybe we weren't far enough out yet. I decided to give it a little more time.|wait]]\ (if: _done and not ((history:) contains "mistake"))[["There's been a mistake. You have to turn around and take me back to Earth."|mistake]]\ (if: _done)[[The truth was sinking in at last.|Ending]]\ </block>

(link-style: (text-colour: cyan))[\ SELECT VOICE MODULE: (dropdown: 2bind $voice, "Default male", "Default female", "Child", "Whisper", "Drawl", "Hatsune Miku", "Nolan North", "Majel Barrett-Roddenberry") [[BACK|Computer Interface]] ]

I restlessly let time tick by for another twenty minutes or so. Maybe something would trigger? Did the Space Guard have the technical sophistication to do that, put an undetectable trigger into a ship? (if: (history:) contains "patriot")[Much as I revered them, ]I doubted it. This was one of *my ships*, possibly even one that I had put together myself. No one knew their ins and outs better than me. At any rate, nothing happened. <block class="choices">\ [[I went to have another chat with the computer.|Computer Dialogue]]\ (if: (history:) contains "Computer Interface")[[I opened up the manual interface again.|Computer Interface]]\ (if: not ((history:) contains "Computer Interface"))[[I decided to try the manual interface this time. Maybe there really was something in the file system.|Computer Interface]]\ </block>

"The course is locked. It can only be altered by someone with appropriate credentials." "I've got credentials! I'm an employee of Orbital Fanfare! I may well have built this ship!" "Please present ID card." I leapt to my luggage, tore it open with haste -- big mistake, in microgravity; socks went flying everywhere and drifted around -- and rummaged around for my employee ID card until <block class="choices">\ [[I found it.]]\ [[I had to admit that it wasn't there.]]\ </block>

"Here! Here it is!" I brandished it in front of me like I was trying to ward off a vampire. "That is not a valid Space Guard ID." Of course. Of course they would completely change the security on every ship they bought. They couldn't have any old civilian contractor gaining access to the ship they were stuck on. <block class="choices">\ (unless: (history:) contains "wait")[[Maybe if I waited a little longer?|wait]]\ [[Maybe I could give the filesystem another look?|Computer Interface]]\ [[The truth was sinking in at last.|Ending]]\ </block>

I mean, of course I hadn't packed it. Why would I? It's not like we had branch offices out in wherever this ship was going. Heck, half the time I left it at home when I went to work. <block class="choices">\ (unless: (history:) contains "wait")[[Maybe if I waited a little longer?|wait]]\ [[Maybe I could give the filesystem another look?|Computer Interface]]\ [[The truth was sinking in at last.|Ending]]\ </block>

[ =><= MISSION UNKNOWN Prologue: Orbital Fanfare (draft) [[Start|Preamble]] ]

(if: $voice is 0)[." It still had the default voice module. I'd have to do something about that.(set: $voice to "Default male")](else:)[\ (if: $voice is $voice_prev)[."]\ (else:)[," it (print: (cond: $voice is "Default male", "replied in the default male voice.", $voice is "Default female", "replied in the default female voice.", $voice is "Child", "replied in a slightly unnerving child's voice that didn't inspire confidence at all.", $voice is "Whisper", "whispered conspiratorially.", $voice is "Drawl", "drawled lazily.", $voice is "Hatsune Miku", "sang in Hatsune Miku's inimitable synthesized tones.", $voice is "Majel Barrett-Roddenberry", "replied, sounding exactly like the computers on Star Trek.", $voice is "Nolan North", "replied in Nolan North's brash and slightly irritating Drake voice. (Seriously, the man had more range than this, but that's what the voice module provided.)" ))]\ ]\ (set: $voice_prev to $voice)

(storylet: when (history:) does not contain "I noticed a box of fudge on the desk.")\ Jan noticed me noticing it. "Go on, have some." Her husband makes this fudge at home. It's really good. (if: $decision is 0)[ The Commander looked a little impatient, but was willing to wait. ]\ <block class="choices">\ [["Don't mind if I do."|fudge]]\ [["I couldn't possibly."]]\ (if: $decision is 0)[["Why don't we just get down to business? Why did you call me here?"|downtobusiness]]\ </block>

Jan picked it up. "The Commander here has a special request. He has..." She cast about briefly for the right word. "An opportunity," he filled in. "There's a matter of considerable importance to the future of humankind. I need someone to undertake a special mission, but can't be just anyone. It has to be someone with specific talents, and for various reasons, it can't be a member of the Space Guard." <block class="choices">\ [["No. Absolutely not."|refuse out of hand]]\ [["Tell me more."|details]]\ </block>

"Go on, take some. Fudge is for eating." <block class="choices">\ [["Thank you!"|fudge]]\ [["No, really, I'm sure someone else wants it more. Some of the new guys have never even tried your husband's fudge."]]\ [["As tempting as it is, I'm a lot more curious about why you colled me here."|downtobusiness]]\ </block>

"I insist!" she said, physically thrusting the box into my arms and giving me no choice. It's a familiar dance. (display: "fudge")

I picked out a choice bit of fudge and popped it in my mouth. I'm telling you it was SO GOOD. I know it's probably not all that relevant to your inquiries but it's one of the main things I remember about that meeting. Like, any other details I remember, I remember because they occurred in proximity to that fudge. Jan beamed. (if: $decision is 0)[The Commander cleared his throat. ]\ <block class="choices">\ [["So, uh, why did you call me here?"|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3) </block>

(storylet: when $decision is 0 and ($unseen: "\"How goes the war, Commander?\""))\ (if: (history:) contains "peacenik")[He either didn't notice the sarcasm in my voice or chose to ignore it. ]"Oh, we're making great progress in pacifying Arcturus. Thanks in part to you fine folks." <block class="choices">\ [["So, uh, why did you call me here?"|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3)\ </block>

(storylet: when ($unseen: "\"I finished the repairs.\"") and ($seen: "Buttercup") and ($seen: "Daffodil") and ($seen: "Tulip"))\ "That was quick. Anything of interest?" "Well, someone drove a Daffodil with a non-functioning FTL drive all the way back here. We need to tell people not to do that." "Yikes. Did you fix it?" "Of course." <block class="choices">\ [[The commander caught my eye. I figured it was time to let him talk.|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3)\ </block>

(set: $seen to (macro: str-type _n, [\ (output-data: (history:) contains _n or (passage:)'s name is _n)\ ]))\ (set: $unseen to (macro: str-type _n, [(output-data: not ($seen: _n))]))

(storylet: when ($unseen: "\"Is this going to take long? I haven't finished the repairs for today.\"") and (($unseen: "Buttercup") or ($unseen: "Tulip") or ($unseen: "Daffodil")))\ "It shouldn't," said the Commander. <block class="choices">\ [["Then let's get down to business."|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3)\ </block>

(storylet: when ($unseen: "\"How is your husband, by the way?\"") and ($seen: "fudge"))\ "Oh, he's feeling much better. You know how he was going in to the hospital?" The Commander cleared his throat. <block class="choices">\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3)\ [["Do go on. What happened at the hospital?"]] [["Wait, why was he going to the hospital?"]] (if: ($unseen: "patriot"))[["What does he want?"|downtobusiness]](else:)[["Beg your pardon, sir. Let's not waste any more time. What is it you wanted to see me about?"|downtobusiness]]\ </block>

"So he goes to the hospital and who do you think is assisting the doctor?" She didn't wait for me to guess. "It was Richard! Richard Footer! You remember him? He's an intern now!" Indeed I did. I hadn't thought about him in a while. Footer had joined the company around the same time as me. Then he left for better things, which apparently included medical school. And I was still here. Something to think about. <block class="choices">\ [["Enough chit-chat. Why am I here?"|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3) </block>

(storylet: when ($unseen:"\"I saw you on the news again, Jan.\""))\ "Really? Nothing too negative, I hope." "Well, the news station loves what you're doing for the local economy, but it was in the context of a piece about the protests, so kind of a mixed bag." She rolled her eyes at the mention of the protests. (if: ($seen: "peacenik"))[This was one of the few areas where she and I never saw eye to eye. I knew better than to press it.] <block class="choices">\ [["Let's change the subject. What was it you wanted to see me about?|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3)\ </block>

(storylet: when ($unseen: "\"I'm not in trouble, am I?\""))\ (urgency: 1)\ "Oh, heavens no!" guffawed the Commander. "Just the opposite, really. We're the ones in trouble, and we're coming to you for help." Well, wasn't that interesting. <block class="choices">\ [["Tell me more."|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3) </block>

"Didn't I tell you about that? He hurt himself installing a lawn sprinkler last week, and he had to go back to get the stitches taken out." "Okay, I do remember something about that now that you mention it." (display: "Do go on. What happened at the hospital?")

(storylet: when ($unseen: "\"Got any new designs in the works, Jan?\"")) "Eh, I have some ideas, but nothing I'll talk about in front of someone who hasn't signed an NDA." "Now, just a minute," objected the Commander. "We take information security very seriously--" "No NDA means you find out our new designs when they're announced, just like everyone else." There was a finality to the pronouncement. The Commander grumbled under his breath. Few people could talk back to Jan successfully. <block class="choices">\ [["So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"|downtobusiness]]\ (link-storylet: 1)(link-storylet: 2)(link-storylet:3) </block>

One thing I didn't know before I met an Arcturan in person: they're not actually from Arcturus. We call them that because that's where humans first encountered them, but it's not their home planet. (if: ($seen: "patriot"))[I always felt like it weakened their claim to the place, as if our claim were any stronger.](else:)[It made me wonder what else the general public believed about them that wasn't true.(if: ($seen: "peacenik"))[ I guess you could say that's what radicalized me.]] <block class="choices">\ (link-undo: "But like I was saying...") </block>