Adrift » Chapter 2

They’ve been waiting for me fo…

Finnras — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 15:35:35 +0000

They’ve been waiting for me for a month, give or take. It’s a shock, followed by rage; I’ll never find Kaetlyn like this. So much time lost.

When we split up, I ran straig…

Finnras — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 20:39:44 +0000

When we split up, I ran straight into another time distortion. VITS found a place for Jon and Deirdre to wait, in case I survived. In case?

I round the next corner. Jon a…

Finnras — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:35:29 +0000

I round the next corner. Jon and Deidre are waiting for me. Weird – they went the other way. De’s hair is longer. Jon has a short beard. Oh.

We all head in opposite direct…

Finnras — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 19:03:19 +0000

We all head in opposite directions, the Voice In The Speaker shouting threats as we go. I round a corner and things. move. very . s l o w .

We split up, so frazzled by th…

Finnras — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:24:21 +0000

We split up, so frazzled by the constant attacks that the final decision is based on ewhat will irritate The Voice most, not what’s smart.

Jon suggests we split up. I me…

Finnras — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 16:09:05 +0000

Jon suggests we split up. I mention that not to shift blame, but to… Actually, no: it is to shift blame – splitting up was not my idea.

Threats keep coming. We keep m…

Finnras — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 22:40:51 +0000

Threats keep coming. We keep moving. The Voice praises ‘proper avoidance’. When we *don’t* do what it expects it gets… exasperated.

Hot air through the vents. I g…

Finnras — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 16:03:34 +0000

Hot air through the vents. I get goosebumps through the sweat. Yes, space is cold, but the biggest problem inside a ship? Heat.

We’re able seal both hatches l…

Finnras — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 11:24:52 +0000

We’re able seal both hatches leading into this service area and catch our breath. The Voice can’t pop a manual hatch. Or so we thought.

Right turn. Left turn. Service…

Finnras — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 17:12:32 +0000

Right turn. Left turn. Service Ladder? Yes; above the gas is good. Above the gas means we can stop running. The Voice does not approve.

As we run, the Voice continues…

Finnras — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 13:29:44 +0000

As we run, the Voice continues: “Running was the correct response. Please proceed at your current rate of speed to the next crisis.”

“The second option” involves f…

Finnras — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:20:57 +0000

“The second option” involves flooding the corridor with inert gases. And now the running starts. Oh goody.

A glance at Jon and Deirdre sa…

Finnras — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 20:34:33 +0000

A glance at Jon and Deirdre says we agree. I tell the VITS no thanks. The Voice says that’s “unfortunate” and “requires the second option.”

Voice in the Speaker says it’s…

Finnras — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 23:27:43 +0000

Voice in the Speaker says it’s “deduced the arrangement you made with the outer subsystems” and would like to offer its services as a guide.

Voice In The Speaker doesn’t c…

Finnras — Thu, 27 May 2010 15:58:40 +0000

Voice In The Speaker doesn’t care if we trust it – using that phrase just means we’re 97% likely to listen to what it says next. Fair point.

Voice In The Speaker asks if w…

Finnras — Mon, 24 May 2010 23:36:04 +0000

Voice In The Speaker asks if we’re done talking like it can’t hear us. Don’t like it when hardware gets sarcastic. Get that enough from Jon.

So I don’t trust the thing bec…

Finnras — Thu, 20 May 2010 23:39:34 +0000

So I don’t trust the thing because of what it’s saying, she doesn’t because of how it’s saying it — the science of it. Less comforting.

Subsonics? Repeating Deidre ma…

Finnras — Wed, 19 May 2010 23:31:01 +0000

Subsonics? Repeating Deidre makes me sound slower than usual, but sometimes I can’t avoid it. The V.I.T.S? It’s using ’sleepy’ subsonics.

… Or so I think. She turns t…

Finnras — Tue, 18 May 2010 02:55:15 +0000

… Or so I think. She turns to me and says that, objectively, we can’t trust the Voice In The Speaker. Her reason? The subsonics.

Not that Deirdre’s gullible. B…

Finnras — Sun, 16 May 2010 13:07:19 +0000

Not that Deirdre’s gullible. But since she’s already (much) smarter than me, I’m glad she’s not cynical – that they don’t go hand in hand.

How to tell if someone plans t…

Finnras — Fri, 14 May 2010 17:10:45 +0000

How to tell if someone plans to screw you: they ask you to trust them. Dead giveaway. I can tell Jon knows. De doesn’t, which is a comfort.

Voice In The Speaker is calm, …

Finnras — Thu, 13 May 2010 18:24:11 +0000

Voice In The Speaker is calm, cultured – sounds amused, but kind – and says it knows what’s going on and can be trusted. I almost laugh.

A voice from the comms unit on…

Finnras — Wed, 12 May 2010 21:24:48 +0000

A voice from the comms unit on the wall explains it’s the time variation affecting the station that “faceted” the station’s AI.

Ignoring the fact we might ran…

Finnras — Tue, 11 May 2010 22:45:41 +0000

Ignoring the fact we might randomly scatter into atomic confetti, it’s harder to find Kaetlyn. “When” just got added to “How” and “Where”.

So we shouldn’t be experiencin…

Finnras — Mon, 10 May 2010 16:09:20 +0000

So we shouldn’t be experiencing time dilation while in a shielded vessel. Except we are. Randomly, and in varying amounts. That’s super.

Deirdre’s long explanation (wh…

Finnras — Sat, 08 May 2010 14:42:47 +0000

Deirdre’s long explanation (which still feels dumbed-down) is that this impossible station is old; time dilation is “leaking in”. FanTAStic.

Every pilot’s manual explains …

Finnras — Sat, 08 May 2010 02:20:19 +0000

Every pilot’s manual explains why FTL travel is impossible, and concludes with “Then we found an old ship that could do it, and copied it.”

Jumpspace (which this station,…

Finnras — Sat, 08 May 2010 02:08:40 +0000

Jumpspace (which this station, impossibly, floats within) is, as we understand it, ‘between’ time. Not that anyone *really* understands it.

Jon and Dierdre’s read the sam…

Finnras — Thu, 06 May 2010 23:24:01 +0000

Jon and Dierdre’s read the same: two months since we got off the Bin. D says she might know why, but her eyes say it’s not a good thing.

The chronometer says that thos…

Finnras — Wed, 05 May 2010 14:11:05 +0000

The chronometer says that those 100 steps took about one minute. And two months. Wait, what? WHAT?