TEST DRIVE MEME #1

[space_aces]

WHERE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD

Your journey only happened because of your benefactor, so it begets that it starts at your benefactor as well. SUPERBIA, which is as much of a location as it is an entity, is where everyone's search for Fortuna begins.

There's not much of a welcome party: shortly after their fateful encounter with SUPERBIA, in which they swore to join the quest to find Fortuna, the new Privateers will find themselves afflicted by a sudden change in perspective. See, teleportation is a tricky process, so from SUPERBIA's point of view, why not make the target destination none other than itself? One highly disconcerting moment later, and the Privateers find themselves inside the belly of the beast.

The vast mega-structure is shockingly lonely, void of anyone other than the Privateers. Those who look off the metal satellite and to The Network for intelligence (or take a skim at the Space Wikipedia article) will find out that the surrounding space is clear for lightyears; rumors have it that the place is cursed. It won't take long to understand why.

1

Overclocked

The innards of SUPERBIA are that of an impossibly scaled up computer, and the Privateers start right in the middle of it. You are the spider living in the dusty PS4. Literal rivers of coolant, transistors the size of mountains, landscapes made entirely of circuitry. The sky, bounded by a distant metal ceiling, is constantly alight with coursing electricity that cracks the sky with lightning storms. It can be assumed that the Privateers are the first living things to set foot here, because such a place is not ever meant to be traversed by delicate, organic, mortals that worry about things such as "temperature" or "voltage". SUPERBIA needs not lifeforms to continue its operations; why design for them? Traversal itself is difficult: unscalable walls and perilous drops are common to encounter. The only company the Privateers will find are oddly adorable maintenance robots, which sadly seem too occupied by their directives of maintaining the massive machine to offer any assistance (or even acknowledgement of their new guests).

It is immediately clear that the most urgent priority is to get the hell out of here. Before your adventure ends at the starting line.

2

Skeletons In The Closet

If one stays inside SUPERBIA, either by getting horribly lost or losing all common sense, one will notice a peculiar pattern emerge as one gets deeper into the bowels of the mega-structure. Passages shrink and become more level, and the incredible hostility and danger of the surroundings fade away, until one comes across areas which were definitely intended for humanoid organisms to use at one point.

The construction of these areas is cramped, unfurnished, and dreary; they are reminiscent of artificial environments meant to handle harsh external conditions like a submarine or bunker, but they are entirely livable. One can eventually find distinct rooms, but everything in them has crumbled to dust and their original purpose is nigh impossible to discern. Deeper investigation may reveal the few items that have stood the test of time. While it is more plausible for life to have existed here, that doesn't seem to be the case now. What happened here?

3

The Shipyard

In the opposite direction, when one finally reaches the outer edges of SUPERBIA, they will be rewarded with the place to pick up a spaceship and a stunningly beautiful view of outer space. The outside of SUPERBIA has no atmosphere to get between you and the stars, and they shine brightly, like a beacon calling one out into the first steps of adventure.

The shipyard is already filled with countless space ships of every size, form, and function, all autonomously constructed by SUPERBIA's factories over the countless years. What's the harm in taking one or twenty out for a spin? Even if one has no intentions of permanent ownership of the vehicle, it's not like SUPERBIA will miss it. For a Privateer with a more specific vision, however, there are kiosks around the yard which will allow one to design their very own space ship down to their exact specifications. When the process is done SUPERBIA's matter printers will have it out and space-ready right before your very eyes.

If a Privateer has a ship, vehicle, or large item that they intended to bring with them, they will also find them here, neatly parked in the Shipyard. Why didn't SUPERBIA extend this courtesy to the pilot's themselves? The answer is revealed as soon as the owner makes a closer inspection: the inner contents have been rearranged, like a whirlwind was unleashed inside and assorted loose items thrown around. Now aren't you glad your transportation was given special attention, and the same didn't happen to your innards?

4

Hot Crewmates in Your Area

But how will a single Privateer man an entire space ship? No worries: when one steps into a ship, the strangely endearing maintenance robots will suddenly take acute interest. The robots will follow inside and immediately start assuming the duties of a spacefarer, eliminating the need for extra hands on deck.

Even still, there's just no eliminating the want for a human touch, though. Thankfully even that dilemma has a contingency plotted by SUPERBIA.

Communication devices are easily available on every space ship. They come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from huge stationary consoles to portable smartphone-like screens. But whenever a Privateer attempts to access the Network, a pop-up will appear, obscuring the whole screen.

Tell me a little about yourself. Are you a LEADER or a FOLLOWER? What is your best feature?
The device will be rendered unusable until one relents to the pop-up's demands and provides answers to its questions. What will these be used for? The mystery will be solved when a social media app mysteriously installs itself on the same device, with profiles preemptively made for every Privateer. Each Privateer's profile consists of their given answers, paired with embarrassingly candid photographs. SUPERBIA has eyes in many places it seems.

Comments

[retributing]

[ Unfortunately for anyone unfamiliar with Gjallarhorn, while some decoration is evident on the uniform pauldron and cuff details, rank and department are mostly established by color scheme. On top of that, Gaelio isn't even wearing the correct one for the position he named. Arilanna can hardly be blamed for not knowing. ]

Ah, that sounds a bit similar to Gjallarhorn. [ Gaelio has met others by now from different times, so to him, it seems Arilanna is likely from his future. (He hasn't quite pieced together 'different worlds' yet, but he'll get there.) ]

Ah, you don't have them? [ If she's from another star, maybe her time has no more use for mobile suits? But she mentioned military. Hmm! ] Mobile Suits are mobile weapons - combat vehicles, in a sense. Different models exist depending on their use on land or in space, some few can be fitted differently for an engagement depending.

[ Gaelio pauses for just a moment, and a tiny smile curves the corner of his lips. ] It might be easier to show you, if you're interested. Mine is close by. [ Yes, he's proud of it. And fond of it. Insufferable combination, really, but the Kimaris is very cool, promise! ]

[astrogator]

[She's curious about the similarities between the Tradelines and Gjallarhorn, and makes a mental note to ask him more about it later, because on the surface, an Inspection Bureau didn't sound as if it had much in common with a trade-and-defense focused military organisation. It sounded... regulatory, whereas out on the lines, the ultimate authority was the ship's captain - a holdover from the old days of sub-c engines. Back then, time dilation had meant that outside orders could have taken many years to reach a frontier-bound starship.

For now, however, his description of the suits has caught her interest. In fact, it's that very pride in his voice that has sparked her enthusiasm, and she smiles back at him brightly.]

I'd like very much to see it! I don't think we have anything like that. Maybe they have them planetside on some of the colonies, I don't know, but if we're in combat, there's not much that can't be taken care of by firing the full length of the laser array at it. [Her last ship had been very heavily armed for its size.] I always enjoy seeing new technologies. Show me! [She gestures for him to lead the way.]

[retributing]

[ Gaelio's smile widens into a slight grin, and he motions with one hand before heading in that direction. He explains a bit more as he goes. ] All but the most basic civilian or local cargo transport shuttles are usually equipped with various weapons- anti-air, basic artillery, missiles, and the like. Mobile suits are independent and highly mobile, however, going where they are needed. Because of their ubiquity, now, many are often designed largely to fight other MS.

[ Around the side of one of the ships sitting in the yard, an 18.5 meter (or 60 feet, if that's your preference) humanoid robot comes into view. It is painted lavender and white with gold accents, though much of the bare dark metal is visible as well. Aside from two obvious shields held on mechanic arms, weapons are not readily apparent, though several details in the shoulders and even knees offer a suggestion. Aside from the frame being visible in what serves as a waist, and some gaps on the arms and back of the legs, this mobile suit is well-armored. ] There he is.

[ Many machines are fondly referred to as 'she' by their mechanics, engineers or pilots, but the Kimaris Vidar has a... unique functionality that makes 'he' more appropriate, at least to Gaelio. To him, the Kimaris Vidar is more than a machine.

Gaelio stops a little ways away from the foot, enough distance that one might look up and appreciate the sheer scale of it. ] This one in particular is a more advanced type of mobile suit called a Gundam. This is Kimaris Vidar.

[astrogator]

[As they walk, she nods at his explanation.] Tradeliner ships are well-armed, but there are others - little merchant clippers built for speed, passenger liners, and that sort, which have few if any weapons. They usually have a Tradeline escort if they're going to be flying a particularly dangerous route. My captain said that-

[But what Arilanna's captain said will have to remain unknown, because in that moment she caught sight of what to her looks like nothing more than a giant robot. A giant, very well protected robot. Her eyes widen in delight at the sheer novelty of it, and she looks it - him, she corrects herself - up and down carefully, appraisingly.]

He's magnificent. [There, that's the simple verdict.] We certainly don't have anything that compares, not in space or on the colonies. Let me see, you fire - from the shoulders, there? [Ari has a good enough eye, even for an unfamiliar machine.] And there, lower down? But you said a mobile suit - does that mean that the pilot sits inside, and isn't flying remotely - I take it that they do fly, if they're spacefaring. What sort of engines do they use? [It's a lot of questions, but she's genuinely interested.]

[retributing]

[ Good thing she's interested, because Gaelio is ready with all the technical specifications she Arilanna could ever want. He keeps it simple though... mostly. ]

Ah. [ He nods in confirmation.] Most of the firepower comes from the lance- [ Gaelio points to an absurdly sized lance stored a little out of the way, which looks nearly as tall as the Gundam itself. ] It is equipped with special KEP bullets- the launchers are electromagnetic; [ That is, basically a railgun. ] -as well as a drill, and two two-hundred millimeter guns. I am better suited to close combat as a pilot, but there are other suits with longer ranged armaments. The openings you see at the top of the knees are pile bunkers. The other ports are gas vents. If the lance is inoperable or the opponent is too close, Kimaris also has a sword that mounts behind the left side armor. You can't really see it when it's put away.

[ As for how it's powered and how it flies, hoo boy. ] Gundams are unique among mobile suits - aside from their frames - in that they have two Ahab Reactors. [ Oh right, he had met the other woman who didn't know what that was, so best explain: ] Ahab Reactors utilize the transformation of artificially created vacuum elements. This creates a great amount of energy. They're virtually indestructible as well. The particle emissions from the reaction allows for gravity and inertia control, but there are also thermal phase transition thrusters as well.

[ Gaelio smiles, almost apologetic. ] I'm a pilot, not an engineer, so I can't tell you much more than that about the Ahab Reactors.

[astrogator]

[She takes all this in, trying to commit as much of it to memory as she can. It seems a peculiar style of machine to her, the way it's so closely modelled on the human form, and with a lance and shields, and she's not sure how much affectation was prized over efficiency of design, but she can't deny that the overall effect is very striking.]

I'm not an engineer, either, so maybe I wouldn't understand even if you did say more. [She smiles, self-deprecatingly.] I'm an astrogator, so that's - piloting, along with plotting courses and keeping charts. I do know enough to say that your Ahab Reactors sound very different to our engines and generators. Our artificial gravity is actually one of the most annoyingly unreliable things about our ships. Far too many fluctuations; you have to keep absolutely everything strapped down in place unless you want to risk returning to chaos in your cabin or your office.

[Of course, in this shipyard, she can pick out something which has all the advantages of Tradeliner technology, with none of the glaring faults. It's all a little overwhelming for the young lieutenant, and seeing Kimaris Vidar is a very welcome distraction.]

So he was yours, back home, and you brought him here with you? Will you have him instead of a starship, or in addition?

[retributing]

[ The design of the Gundam in particular is a whole other beast than traditional mobile suits. Efficient or not, though, it is what Gaelio has grown up with.

Gaelio smiles for what Arilanna shares - it sounds troublesome. ]

I might trade having to strap everything down in exchange for faster travel, [ he admits, sounding just a tiny bit wistful. Visiting other stars and systems? His home is Earth and the Earth Sphere, but he can't deny it sounds fascinating. ]

Mm. In addition. [ Gaelio's gaze returns to the Gundam. ] The Ahab Reactor provides a great deal of power, but the other thrusters still require fuel for more precise maneuvering. Besides, the cockpit is in the chest, and there's room essentially only to get in and sit down. The rest is taken up by the systems and display. That would be a rather cramped journey.

[ He indicates the direction they came from. ] There's a little kiosk over there which apparently will build a ship to specification. That's what I was watching, when we met. I expected I would just be guided to something close already built. [ A slight shake of his head. ] Technology like nothing I've ever seen. [ An entire starship in hours, instead of months? ]

[astrogator]

[She gives Gaelio a small smile in return.] You do get used to it quickly. Or you get someone senior standing in your doorway and telling you which of your possessions are likely to be flung around, and nobody wants that.

[Her gaze follows his, back to the Gundam. Surprisingly little space inside, for something so large! Ari shakes her head.] Cramped and claustrophobic, I'd bet, but tolerable for short periods of time. [She's accustomed to very small cabins, so that each member of the crew could have some private space of their own, but the working areas on her ship had been quite spacious.]

[She hadn't been watching the kiosk as closely as he had, but she knew what it did, and she too was amazed by it.] It really is remarkable. In my sector, you'd have to be exceptionally wealthy to have a ship made to your exact specification, and it would take a long time. [She sighs. Her father could easily afford it, if he'd been inclined to buy a starship, but that only makes her feelings on the matter more conflicted.] It feels very decadent, when there are all these ready-made ships here, but it's also very tempting. Maybe it would be just as wrong to waste the opportunity.

[retributing]

[ Gaelio chuckles. ] You get used to it very quickly in training.

[ His brows raise. He hadn't really considered it decadent, but upbringing and the general state of how things were regarded in his world affect his views on what is and is not 'decadent' or 'wasteful'. Still, he gives a thoughtful nod. ]

SUPERBIA seems to be able to afford it. [ Whether money or energy or resources. (Or some combination of all three.) ] An opportunity like this, I imagine, is once-in-a-lifetime.

[ Is this partially motivated by wanting to see what she would design up? ...Maybe. (A little, at least.) He gives a little grin, glancing from the corner of his eye. ] They're a bit limited, in terms of weapons and defenses compared to size, but I imagine the technology to achieve such high speeds takes up a lot of room. [ Although by the little shrug that follows, he means to say, 'but that's just a guess'. ]

[astrogator]

[Gaelio is right, she realises. SUPERBIA is offering all of this, and she's in contract now, there's no real reason not to take it. None except her own feelings of unworthiness, which she knows better than to share with another competitor, not even a friendly one. On the Tradelines, people with Ari's level of experience don't get offered their choice of ships. They don't even get offered command of other people's spare ships.

Except that as strange as it might be, Ari is in command now. SUPERBIA wants it that way. So the real question is - what would Captain Kavarai do? Ari thinks fondly of her old captain, and the four years she'd spent on his ship. And he'd have been delighted by this, and taken every opportunity, even if he'd be troubled over going privateer, just as Ari had been before she realised it was better for her career than the alternatives.]

Then I suppose I shouldn't pass up the opportunity. [She grins at Gaelio, much as if he'd just given her permission to do it.] It's true, the engines take up a lot of space. Engineering is always the largest department on our ships. It's possible to build a ship that's compact but heavily armed, though. You have to be careful about balancing the weight, and with your storage capacity - for fuel, and food and supplies for your crew. Although it seems that there's the possibility to have a crew primarily composed of robots. That's efficient, but it might get lonely out in the black that way.

[She's probably rambling, but her enthusiasm can't be faulted. If he wants to see what she actually designs, he might have to be patient.]

[retributing]

[ Gaelio, having seen that his Gundam is in order, has little else to do while he awaits his ship being built. While it is a rather interesting thing to behold, friendly conversation is preferable to hours alone. (It never hurts to know more about how your competition works, either; what really drives them. If you understand your enemy, you understand their limits. That was a hard-learned lesson that he had taken to heart a few years ago. Granted, while it can't be said that Gaelio isn't in it to win it, the journey itself is most important to him, this time.)

He listens and nods, taking mental note of the choices he had specified. He had chosen a not-quite small ship, fast and well-armored. What it lacks in weapon space, Gaelio can make up for if necessary with Kimaris. Although thinking of that, he might need to see about refitting some of the armaments. The Dáinsleif KEP launchers can puncture a hole in damn near anything, but require a clear and steady shot. ]

Ah, I'm used to being around other personnel on a ship. It will feel a little strange, only robots. [ Says the man that has a personal relationship with a 60-foot robot. ] Are you going to try to recruit a crew?

[astrogator]

[Ari nods.] My last ship had a crew of two hundred fifty, all human. That's a little high, but I don't want to rely on robots alone. I'll be doing some recruiting. Resources seem to be unlimited, after all - I'll pay very good wages to attract quality spacers, run my ship like one out in my sector, and it should be fine. I have some experience writing employment contracts.

[She doesn't see this as privileged information, or giving away any particular strategy - it's plain common sense, in her eyes.]

What I'm not so sure about is teaming up with other ships out here. From the look of things, there are some real loose cannons in SUPERBIA's fleet, such as it is. Don't you think so?

[This is the more interesting question to her. She'd thought it a strange suggestion when she heard it, given that they're all in competition, but it had indicated to her that maybe they'd be heading somewhere that safety in numbers mattered.]

[retributing]

[ Sounds to Gaelio like Arilanna has her head on straight, and will do well in that. He nods.

Other ships, however. He glances thoughtfully skyward, before returning his attention to her. ] Alliances that benefit all parties in the short-term are fine, I imagine. Who knows what we'll encounter out there? [ A knowing little smile, something almost nostalgic behind it. ] The difficulty lies in making sure you know all you need to know going into it. Honesty is not everyone's policy, even in the best of times.

[ Something almost morose shadows his expression and tone. ] What isn't said can be more dangerous than what is. [ A smile returns as though to lighten the warning, though a little more grim for whatever is clouding his thoughts at the moment. ]