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Gletch compliments the fashion sense of the pirates they pass. "Really, you gentlemen do a disservice by not starting a clothing and accessory line. You'd find quite a lucrative income in legitimate business enterprises."
He nods at Okwana's retort to Kalhoun, "Fair observation."
He listens to Dr. Vox's description of the situation.
Gletch begins working the problem as best he can.
Fashion branding is a bit subkective, but you do get a genuine smile from Captain Okwana at your comments there.
The more time you spend examining the engine within asteroid Y-47 though, the less upbeat you get. Amy Freeman and Gletch well know that the River Between was constructed around a preexisting natural phenomenon — a powerful solar current that winds through the Diaspora, connecting countless asteroids and debris. It’s possible that this solar current once connected locations on the twin planets Damiar and Iovo long before the destruction of these planets caused the creation of the Diaspora.
The arcane engine in the asteroid was clearly designed to interact with those solar currents, but it seems damaged and worn beyond repair. In time the arcane engine will suffer cataclysmic failure and explode. And when it does, it could damage or potentially destroy both the River Between and its underlaying solar forces, causing unknown ripple effects across the Diaspora. Worse, that 'in time' is doing a lot of heavy lifting to all your eyes; the ancient engineering of the arcane engine is too much of an unknown to calculate an exact time frame but it could be a matter of weeks. Or even days!
Looking at the design of the space and the engine itself, it seems to have three main components: the exterior chambers, the interior chambers, and the core. Right now you are all in the 'exterior', which serves as a control room for the arcane engine. Beyond the safety barriers and energy shielding is the interior, where deeper maintenance and repairs can be conducted. At present, that interior isn't accessible: solar energy and radiation are mixing with arcane energy from the damaged engine and clashing violently. This energy pulses out around the engine and grows worse by the hour. Finally, there would be a 'core': the arcane engine’s beating heart, where it could theoretically be turned off...but where the overflowing energies would be at their strongest.
Putting your heads and own analyses together, along with engineering and computing simulations from Gletch and Amy, you do pinpoint one theoretical option. If the arcane engine was properly recalibrated from the exterior chambers, much of the overflowing energy pouring from the failing arcane engine could be redirected out from the interior of the engine and out into space. This could allow for a small team to enter the interior of the arcane engine and initiate a manual shutdown from the core. It would also blow a large hole in the asteroid itself as the redirected energy shot through it.
Shutting down the engine this way would still involve shutting down the containment fields that encase the River Between, causing it to dry up. But it would prevent this engine's violent explosion, which could not only disable those fields anyway but damage or warp the solar currents that underlay it.
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"This is troubling, but does seem to be the only option. Do we have parameters on what we would need to do to divert the energy? And do we have any sense of what the manual shutdown would require?"
He tries to map out the most probable path of the explosion and consults with Okwana to see if that area of the asteroid is clear of her people.
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*sigh* I've been on a Zo! show before ... and it's not as if I've done underwater dance before. I perform at the Starlight Club on occasions. Helps pay for my doctorate. But yes, please film it .. I want to show my friends and Professor at least she replies with a grin.
The thing that gets me though ... this can't be the only engine surely. There must be others ... that help pump the River around
She also frown a bit. And I know I can survive in space ... but that's a lot of radiation down there, even if it is solar based. And a lot of entities depend on the River. We have to find a way to save it
She gets back to work on the computer model. Maybe I should go outside and get some readings on the solar flow outside the River
Embidi looks troubled. "So, just to make sure I understand the science here - there's no way to fix this thing? Like, repairing the River just isn't on the table?" Embidi sits down on his haunches. "...wow. So, controlled demolition is our best case scenario, then?"
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Embidi is fine to share our prognosis, as long as everyone else is. Assuming none of us think otherwise, he'd try and let them down gently.
"The work you've done studying this up until now is, well, truly phenomenal, but my colleagues and I are very confident - we just lack the know-how and understanding required to fix this technomagical relic. It's not a question of "if" the River will die, but rather, "when," and to a lesser extent, "how much collateral damage." It seems clear at this point that we should pivot from fixing it, and instead focus our efforts on damage control. How can we minimize the catastrophe to come?"
Embidi would then be quiet, to let someone else outline our plan.
Captain Okwana stares daggers at Embidi as he gives his report, but the 'guest' experts take it in solemnly, a few nodding. Dr. Vox sighs.
Yes, that sadly matches what we've come to realize as well. The engine is too old. It's failing and it can't be fixed.. A catastrophic failure is inevitable, and we're running out of options.
The sarcesian turns to face the Riveter captain and the few other pirates currently in the room. We've run out of options, but we they gesture to the other researchers have a plan. It's dangerous, but it's the only chance we still have. We can either let the engine explode, destroying the River Between completely, ORwe shut it down - allowing the River Between to dry up as the containment
fields dissipate, but preserving the underlaying solar currents that make it flow.
First, we must recalibrate the engine from here in the exterior, venting the energy from inside the arcane engine out through the asteroid into space. Then we send a team into the arcane engine to perform a manual shut down at its core.
Vox looks towards you Starfinders when mentioning the 'team' heading to the core, but Captain Okwana quickly interrupts with a quirked eyebrow. “Just want to make sure my ears haven't gone bad from blaster fire: your 'plan' is to destroy my base, most of the asteroid, and let the River Between dry up?”
Dr. Vox nods. Yes. But, technically, the solar currents underlaying the River Between will endure. These currents predate the creation of the containment fields, meaning it predates the flooding of the River Between. The River Between isn’t the water at all, it’s the solar stream within
the water!
“People can’t drink solar currents, Vox!”
Yes, but the solar currents are the only thing we can salvage, and they have so much potential. We have to try. And who knows what the team in the core may find? Vix gives a faint smile of hope in Kalhoun’s direction. Miracles can happen.
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"Before we destroy the base, what other options are we deciding against? Can we reroute the river? Replace the machine? Make a new containment field to patch or sheath the old one?"
Gletch nods to Thraega. "Yes, sadly, the analysis shows that none of those options are viable. We don't have the capacity to fix it, only to minimize the scope of the destruction."
Linatta speaks up 'The engine embedded here is an ancient form of magitech, the type of which we've never seen before. Possibly dating all the way back to when Damiar and Iovo were planets. It's not something there's even an equivalent of to replace.'
Quira also adds: The magic empowering it is also strong and of a tpye I cannot fully recongize. But it's that magic that generates the containment fields around the existing solar pathway that lets the River act like a river.
Rad-3 notes: All the actual water in the River Between comes from Nisis. You could route a new river however you like, but its the containment field that's the problem. It's an engineering nightmare to have one set up that'd wind all throughout this region, and not remotely cost effective even compared to shipping pure ice and water in tugs. Until a few weeks ago no one really knew how the River Between's field managed to work and stay up - and unfortunately for everyone it looks like now the answer is 'it can't anymore' the field along the river could probably be supported and held for maybe another month or so? But it'll go down too eventually.
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Amy nods sadly. Alright. Thanks guys ... yeah ... I was hoping to study it more as part of my own paper ... but ... okay .. let's do this. Looks like I'm gonna compose and dance an eulogy to the River.
She looks at the other scientists. Should we collaborate on one final paper about the River Between?
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"I don't like the sound of walking into a technomagical dynamo that's been spewing out who-knows-what-kind of esoteric higher-dimensional radiation for thousands of years. Anyone have a spare hardened sci-shield suit lying around? Hells, even a radiation buffer, or a rad-out would be nice," Embidi asks, without really expecting the pirates to have a well-stocked anti-rad larder.
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Gletch taps his radiation badge. "I have this, so we'll at least know if the amounts are increasing to dangerous levels." He frowns. "I actually can channel my magic to generate a radiation buffer ... but it only lasts for 5 minutes, so it would dissipate before it is even installed. I can also remove minor conditions, but my magics cannot yet influence radiation sickness."
Captian Okwana sighs heavily. "FINE. I’ll order an evacuation. You and I stay, Vox, to operate the machinery. And you too, Starfinders. You wanted to meddle? Great, you'll get your chance. You can enter the arcane engine and shut it down. My Riveters will see the other researchers to their homes.”
Within minutes, the Riveter base already descends into mildly organized chaos as the pirates and researchers begin evacuating all personnel, data readings, and valuables. A few of the Riveters go to help the experts gather their things and get off-rock, but before departing Quira nods to Amy. I'm sorry circumstances didn't lead us to meet at a better time, but it is always heartening to meet a fellow scholar. Assuming this works, yes: perhaps we can meet up later. No matter what the result here is there is certainly going to be much to write about.
Dr. Vox begins moving around the exterior room preparing for the recalibration. They talks as they work: What I'm doing should vent out most of the energy through the rock. Flushing everything out The interior should take quite a while to 'recharge' and become refilled with cosmic forces, but if you're concerned make whatever preparations you can. We honestly have little idea as to what exactly the core of this thing will look and act like.
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"Well damn. Blowin' up a perfectly good asteroid base and the river. Hell of aday."
Drone lets out a sad whistle.
He perks up, gets his business face on, "Well, I got little ta protect me from radiation 'cept my natural hardiness and armor. Drone will be fine fer a while though. Any clue what we'll be facin' once we're inside?"
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Gletch says, "There doesn't happen to be an AbadarCorp distribution center nearby, by any chance? Perhaps orders can be placed and delivered by drone within a matter of hours, if anyone needs to stock up on anything that isn't available."
Gletch sorts through his spell chips. "Alas, I don't have one for detect radiation. I shall have to remedy that on my next shopping trip."
The core of the arcane engine is a bit tricky to get a perfect scan; you think it should generally be safe or have surprisingly low levels of radiation, assuming the energies in the interior between you and it are removed of course.
With that radius you'd also know that the water flowing through the River Between is incredibly cold (though your envrionmental protections would make it tolerable if you decided to take a swim in it)
With a final check that all other Riveters and personnel have gone out to a safe distance, Captain Okwana gives a resigned nod to Dr. Vox to begin.
The sarcesian adjusts a series of dials, levers, and magical energy as they recalibrate the arcane engine. Loud, metallic creaking resounds as the buildup of energy puts immense strain on the asteroid. Cracks appear along the ground as the built-up energy seeks the path of least resistance and is shunted out of the engine’s seams and into the air and porous rock below. Ribbons of light whip out of these seams with increasing urgency until a deafening explosion rocks the asteroid, violently shaking the ground as the energy blasts through the side of the asteroid and out into space. Inside the ritual chambers, emergency lights flicker on and off, shrouded by plumes of dust. When the dust settles, the force panel reveals the interior of the arcane engine.
Captain Okwana coughs loudly "Well, this whole thing had better work after all that." And she pulls one final lever, causing the force panel to lower and the energy shielding to dissipate. The path to the core is exposed.
As the six of you quickly go through the opening and into the engine's interior, the captain re-raises the lever behind you, reforming the force barrier. She shrugs at you, and over your comms you hear her say 'Just protecting us from any further buildups or blasts. You shut the core down and come back, just give a knock.'
Now within the engine itself you see that it is an incredibly complex devices. Series of tunnels and narrow gaps spread and branch about, one of them presumably leading further in towards the hybrid machine's core.
Embidi gets a bit turned around, but most of the rest of your group is able to follow the byzantine pathways with relative confidence. Each of the branching tunnels you move through has comfortably high ceilings and are wide enough to navigate easily. They seem sized for a tall thin being
After about ten minutes of travel, there is an ominous howling sound that echoes through the area. the walls and floor rumble for a few seconds before subsiding. Ominous, but at least by your calculations you should be almost there.
Finally your group turns onto one final cooridoor. At the far end sits a grand door or a strange metal, its ornate design clearly signifying its the opening to the core. The tunnel leading towards it is running directly paralell through part of the River Between, and translucent plates offer a glimpse of the rushing water to those passing through in an impressive feat of both art and engineering.
Unfortunately, water is also present in the path ahead: recent structural damage has caused water to leak in and flood the passage to the core with murky liquid.
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Replying to Amy: "Oh yeah?! And how are you going to make a strong magnetic field? That's right - using electronics! That's how they get you, Mercury. That's why we hanakans swore off using electricity centuries ago. It is our Great Nemesis," Embidi says, spitting off to the side in a small ritual.
At the flooded tunnel, he'd try and scamper along the crevasse.
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Replying to Amy: "Oh yeah?! And how are you going to make a strong magnetic field? That's right - using electronics! That's how they get you, Mercury. That's why we hanakans swore off using electricity centuries ago. It is our Great Nemesis," Embidi says, spitting off to the side in a small ritual.
Kalhoun, whose schtick (not stick, that is still up his posterior) is channeling electricity, answers, "A fundamental force like electricity is only a threat as long as it is not understood. My ancestors would huddle in caves in fear of lightning, but since at least the end of the Gap - likely much longer - we have used it for the betterment of society."
Amy braves the water, swimmingly confidently agaisnt the current to the door.
The rest of you prefer not to get wet and try to squeeze and parkour your way down the tunnel. For the most part it's successful, but at various points both Thraega and Drone slips down and plunge into the icy water. They manage to eventually make their way down, but in the process get battered into the walls and machinery by powerful currents
As you reach the doorway to the core, another set of ominous creaking echoes as the hallway rumbles and the qater shakes. But you can turn the entry handle and step through the doorway into the engine's core to see...
Bright light. The large chamber you find yourselves in is bathed with glorious yellow rays of solar energy. A ceiling rises high and it, the walls, and the floor all seem to glow as if made wholly out of magically solidified light.
Ahead of you stand six prominent statues of sarcesians, each themselves seemingly carved from colored light. The two nearest glow with soft red light and reach up toward a river of light 50 feet overhead that flows west-to-east through openings in the chamber that seem to lead to a pair of side rooms. Unlike the other four, these sarcesians are depicted without a set of solar wings. The two middle statues glow a muted whit, their faces cast downward. The final two statues are quite damaged, but they glow a warm blue and look toward the doors at the far end of the room. Beyond these final statues stands a set of stairs that end abruptly at a solid wall of light.
The floor of the chamber is damp, and periodic puddles can be found here and there. Engraved on the ground are three words clearly visible even through the faint water: Light. Loss. Life.