Omicron Zeta Union
16-10-2007, 01:53
OOC: TG me or Vojvodina-Nihon for entry.
IC: The small Unii scout ship, the Unity was out on a regular patrol. Its ion engines pushed it along in the silent void of space.
And then something unusual happened. A contact.
"Sensors show incoming contact. Identify." ordered an omnipresent voice.
"Ship class unknown. Suggest hailing." said a cyborg, poking a few buttons on a panel.
"Will hail. Thank you for serving the Union." said the voice.
The cyborg stood at attention. "It is my honor and duty." he said.
"Uniimatrix Unity out." the voice said, cutting off.
On the bridge of the scout ship, a blue hologram of a person sat in a chair. It was the personification of Uniimatrix Unity, the controlling AI of the ship, and was named after the ship which it commanded. In this dimension the Uniimatrix appeared as a humanoid male.
"Open a channel." he ordered.
A humanoid man, this one not a cyborg, pressed some buttons on a console. "Channel open."
Uniimatrix Unity spoke.
"Greetings, traveler. It seems you have wandered into our jurisdiction. Please identify yourself and your intent."
Uniimatrix Unity finished and sat back in the chair. Now all he had to do was wait.
Vojvodina-Nihon
16-10-2007, 02:33
Tenacity as it floated through space was a curious sight. With no visible means of propulsion, a huge sphere crept through the cosmos, perhaps one point eight kilometers in diameter; on closer inspection its surface appeared to be made up of hundreds of alternating 24- and 36-sided polygons, making it a ridiculouslylongname-hedron. That, however, was beside the point, compared to what was going on inside.
"Oh dear. We're receiving some kind of message," Leftenant Crain Vaal, as usual taking her place by the communications array, turned to Cap'n Jelan Gesh as he wrote on a pad of paper, wings carefully folded.
"Hmm.... la, fa, fa, sol la ti, I should really get the lead guitar on this line..... eh, Leftenant, what was that?"
"In Standard. This presents a slight problem."
"Remind me as to the nature of the problem again." Cap'n Jelan was notoriously intolerant of incompetence.
"Well, it seems to translate everything in elaborate riddles. Either it's a translator error, which I think is pretty unlikely.... or it's because they actually do speak in riddles," Crain explained. Or because the translator was programmed by a practical joker like Melkat Saduun, she thought. Melkat, Crain's on-again off-again boyfriend, was a technician and engineer with the South Remenyi Aeronautical and Space Agency (SRASA), and was among the small cohort of engineers who had drafted the Tenacity and the ships that preceded it.
"Okay, let me know what the message is once you finish decoding it."
"It's not too hard. We're in someone else's space and they want to know what we're doing here, basically."
"Send them a standard response if you please."
The response ended up emerging as follows.
Travelers, wanderers, to all a friend,
We Caelipiscians through th'void do seek
The pot of gold at rainbow's end,
The great adventure; for ne'er do the meek
Set sail upon the good ship Tenacity.
I, whence these good folk come,
I live (with them upon me) near
A heaven-light known to all, to some,
To none who know it not. Hear:
First I am in liberty, but also in war;
Second I am my fourth and another's fifth;
Third I am the master of metallurgy;
Fifth I head the birth and death of stars;
Sixth I can be used to see;
Seventh I represent no less than Time;
Last I have no substance, except when others come to me.
What am I?
Omicron Zeta Union
16-10-2007, 20:28
Travelers, wanderers, to all a friend,
We Caelipiscians through th'void do seek
The pot of gold at rainbow's end,
The great adventure; for ne'er do the meek
Set sail upon the good ship Tenacity.
I, whence these good folk come,
I live (with them upon me) near
A heaven-light known to all, to some,
To none who know it not. Hear:
First I am in liberty, but also in war;
Second I am my fourth and another's fifth;
Third I am the master of metallurgy;
Fifth I head the birth and death of stars;
Sixth I can be used to see;
Seventh I represent no less than Time;
Last I have no substance, except when others come to me.
What am I?
"What's this?" asked Unity as the response was handed to him.
"It's a sort of riddle, I think." said the First Officer.
"Goddammit. I hate riddles." Unity said, scanning it quickly.
"Weapons on standby, sir." said the XO cautiously.
"That won't be necessary. Just ask them if they want to meet. We'll bring our translators since theirs appear to be... well... fucked up."
"Right away, sir." said the XO. Of all the AIs the XO had encountered, this was the only one that used profanity. The XO felt a flicker of uncomfortability. He keyed in a message and set it as tect. Maybe it would work now.
**********
Caelipiscians,
We wish to arrange a meeting. We can send a small shuttle to meet with you.