[ DAY 005 ] audio
ATTENTION ALL CREW: This is Ripley.
[ It isn't the voice you woke up to in your pod, static and distant and harried, but the one that came later - the young girl who's meant to be whatever it is that's flying the ship. It's the same calm, almost soothing, tone that speaks from inside your head, rather than a radio or an intercom. ]
This has been far from the typical Kostka Corp HR on-boarding procedure - my apologies. The SOS protocol is a taxing process, even with fully operational systems, and we thank you for your patience while the ship was in recovery with me.
This may have led to the security breach that resulted in damage sustained to the Level 16 Maintenance Hall Airlock, which remains patched, not completely mended, at this time. From evidence gathered by feedback from your HUDs, the impact originated inside the vessel, rather than a threat from the environment. Source remains inconclusive, and under investigation. However, with only a patch, the ship will tear itself apart the next time we need to make a trans-dimensional jump, which is often and unpredictable. We'll need to explore nearby planets for materials that can be used for proper repairs.
During this time, a secondary, though less urgent, event was registered. Please review the following footage closely.
Examining your conversations from the incident, it appears roughly half of our crew was under the impression that an unknown intruder locked themselves into the Environmental Control room and adjusted temperature and oxygen settings to critical levels (which my logs show no history of). [ Is she calling you crazy? She might be calling you crazy. Or, she might just be intrigued by it - difficult to tell with the rather businesslike tone she has. ] Dementia and/or hallucinations have been known to be a side effect of extensive interstellar travel and experimental mind-save technology. Should you feel you may be questioning your reality, please contact Dimitri to schedule an appointment for VR therapy.
I would ask all crew refrain from bodily exploring the ventilation systems, as there are laser-extermination devices installed in many of the ducts to eliminate invading parasites. The lasers make no distinction between rats and small humans. Additionally, until further notice, please clear all laser-saw construction with Dimitri or myself before altering the interior or exterior structure of the ship, to protect from further risk of breach, and, as Dimitri tells me, “going to that big beautiful databank in the sky known as hell.” It sounds unpleasant.
[ Right. Okay. All that business covered, back to what you probably want from her. Explanations. There's a pause, probably more for you than it is for her, and what sounds like an inhale, despite her, you know, lack of lungs. These things, mannerisms and speech patterns, are probably picked up from years working alongside humans, perhaps some treating her more human than most AIs. ]
You stand aboard the Koskta IV, the latest model in a series of interstellar cruise ships dedicated to ferrying travelers from the stress and anxiety of polluted, over-populated hub worlds to any of the many Kostka Corp developing colonies around the galaxy. You may have noticed - we’re not currently in orbit of a Kostka Corp developing colony.
Our last voyage was interrupted by a devastating attack from an unknown assailant, leaving my data and systems corrupted, the ship crippled, and the crew decimated. What remained of us escaped just before total annihilation, through the use of as of yet untested jump technology.
This ship is all that remains of our port of departure.
[ It isn't the voice you woke up to in your pod, static and distant and harried, but the one that came later - the young girl who's meant to be whatever it is that's flying the ship. It's the same calm, almost soothing, tone that speaks from inside your head, rather than a radio or an intercom. ]
This has been far from the typical Kostka Corp HR on-boarding procedure - my apologies. The SOS protocol is a taxing process, even with fully operational systems, and we thank you for your patience while the ship was in recovery with me.
This may have led to the security breach that resulted in damage sustained to the Level 16 Maintenance Hall Airlock, which remains patched, not completely mended, at this time. From evidence gathered by feedback from your HUDs, the impact originated inside the vessel, rather than a threat from the environment. Source remains inconclusive, and under investigation. However, with only a patch, the ship will tear itself apart the next time we need to make a trans-dimensional jump, which is often and unpredictable. We'll need to explore nearby planets for materials that can be used for proper repairs.
During this time, a secondary, though less urgent, event was registered. Please review the following footage closely.
[ A video feed that swaps between several different surveillance cameras plays on the upper right corner of each character’s HUD. Focusing in on the feed will enlarge the window, giving the opportunity to view details closely. What it shows is the group of crew that went to deal with the Environment Control room issue, however... the door appears to be wide open.It stands to be reiterated: no other intelligent life remains conscious aboard the Kostka IV, aside from the AIs (Dimitri, the droids and myself), and you, the new crew.
Characters are seen doing all the same motions, even with hands that are banging on the door halting midair, as if impacting an invisible wall, but the feed clearly shows the door retracted - nothing parting the characters from the wide open Environmental Control room. The keypad is torn apart, the laser saw is flashing and burning against the door frame, there are people crawling around in the vents, but nothing inside the room that looks suspect, and nothing that appears to be barring the characters from just waltzing on in. Aside from whatever invisible nonsense is having them do an A+ pantomime job there at the doorway.
Ripley lets the footage speak for itself for a good several minutes before chiming back in. ]
Examining your conversations from the incident, it appears roughly half of our crew was under the impression that an unknown intruder locked themselves into the Environmental Control room and adjusted temperature and oxygen settings to critical levels (which my logs show no history of). [ Is she calling you crazy? She might be calling you crazy. Or, she might just be intrigued by it - difficult to tell with the rather businesslike tone she has. ] Dementia and/or hallucinations have been known to be a side effect of extensive interstellar travel and experimental mind-save technology. Should you feel you may be questioning your reality, please contact Dimitri to schedule an appointment for VR therapy.
I would ask all crew refrain from bodily exploring the ventilation systems, as there are laser-extermination devices installed in many of the ducts to eliminate invading parasites. The lasers make no distinction between rats and small humans. Additionally, until further notice, please clear all laser-saw construction with Dimitri or myself before altering the interior or exterior structure of the ship, to protect from further risk of breach, and, as Dimitri tells me, “going to that big beautiful databank in the sky known as hell.” It sounds unpleasant.
[ Right. Okay. All that business covered, back to what you probably want from her. Explanations. There's a pause, probably more for you than it is for her, and what sounds like an inhale, despite her, you know, lack of lungs. These things, mannerisms and speech patterns, are probably picked up from years working alongside humans, perhaps some treating her more human than most AIs. ]
You stand aboard the Koskta IV, the latest model in a series of interstellar cruise ships dedicated to ferrying travelers from the stress and anxiety of polluted, over-populated hub worlds to any of the many Kostka Corp developing colonies around the galaxy. You may have noticed - we’re not currently in orbit of a Kostka Corp developing colony.
Our last voyage was interrupted by a devastating attack from an unknown assailant, leaving my data and systems corrupted, the ship crippled, and the crew decimated. What remained of us escaped just before total annihilation, through the use of as of yet untested jump technology.
This ship is all that remains of our port of departure.

no subject
Surveillance systems have not been affected my ass. The words are on the tip of his tongue, when the memory of someone or something smacks him upside the back of the head and he keeps it to himself.
Focus on immediate needs. ]
I'd like to take a look for potential nutritional value, and medicinal purposes. Also the ones with the teeth are cute.
no subject
There is a selection of seeds and bulbs in the O2 Garden's cold storage that were once planted in hydroponics for nutritional value, but many will take some weeks to grow to maturity.
The escaped, hostile specimens - the Stradusi Snapweed (the cute ones with teeth) and the Pendulian Bittercress (the less cute ones with acid) - ravaged the gardens and consumed what crops had been grown. The gardens will clearing and reworking before anything new can be grown.
However, the Snapweed can be cooked and eaten as a source of protein, and the Bittercress can be used as an anti-fungal.
no subject
Brilliant.
Is there anywhere else on the ship that would be able to sustain these plants? I'm thinking that the Snapweed and Bittercress should be isolated away from the non-invasive species, but they are still worth cultivating.
no subject
If you relocate a portion of the equipment in the current garden, theoretically any closed room with good ventilation would work. Are you a botanist, Adrien?
no subject
I've spent ... quite a long time learning how to test, identify and then use native flora and fauna as a resource when resources were scarce. [ Most of the time those resources were medicinal, sometimes food. Occasionally lethal poisons. It always depended upon the mission. ] Xenobiology has become one of my specialties and one of the first lessons was that everything can have a purpose; even ankle biting plants.
Is there any working equipment in either a medical or research and development lab? Anything that could help us run tests on what we have here?
no subject
But, if you have the time and can find the resources, you're welcome to cultivate whatever plants you please, so long as it doesn't detract from the O2 Garden team's work.
[ so, yeah broski, grow your demon plants if you want, it's all good. ]
There is functional equipment, however, all other medical or R&D labs are currently sealed off. Once I have more processing power freed, I can open more wings of the ship.