Reply With QuoteDATE 07.JUL.14
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GRASSI / MED/SCI / IMPLANT JOB
To: Polito, Dr. Janice
Hey, doc... a security bot showed up with orders from you to place this grunt into the recovery freezer. I'm no cyberdoc, but I know a plant job when I see one. I suppose you know they outlawed R-grade cyber-goodies after that fiasco back on Citadel Station... but, hey, I just work here, right?
JAMES R WATTS / MED/SCI / PATIENT WATSON, PT. 2
Patient Watson died at 0240 of non-specific causes. Despite zero respiratory and brain function, the body is still displaying autonomous motor function, as does the parasite. At 0847, the patient even spoke to one of the nurses. Autopsy is set for 1630 and then we'll see what makes this Lazarus tick...
AMANPOUR / MED/SCI / NEW CODE
Great. I've got to change the access codes out of Cryo A again! Like I've got nothing better to do. I think Grassi just likes to make work for me. I'll set the new code to 45100. That should be easy enough to remember.
JUAN CURTIZ / MED/SCI / MORE TROUBLE
I've been unable to get in touch with Delacroix... this place is falling apart... members of my team keep disappearing. The leaks in the venting shafts shorted out the primary access channel... and that means we'll all be on auxiliary power until we can get it back up. That means ALL the lifts are out... Marie, where the hell are you?
JAMES R WATTS / MED/SCI / MAINTENANCE CONDUIT
To: Curtiz, Juan.
All right, calm down already... the access code to the conduit is 12451. I've got an autopsy at 1630, but let's grab a beer on the Recreation Deck afterwards. Sound good?
JUAN CURTIZ / MED/SCI / LIFTS ARE OUT
I can't raise anybody down in Engineering. With the lifts out, I'll need to get down there through the emergency conduit in the Sci Annex. I think the access code is in Watts' lab.
JAMES R WATTS / MED/SCI / WATSON AUTOPSY
The time is 1630. Autopsy subject: A. Watson. Now we're going to make the first incision in... hold him down nurse! Nurse! Hold him down! Aahhh!!! Hey! AAAHHH!!!
MELANIE BRONSON / OPERATIONS / MEDSCI ARMORY CODE
I've authorized a change in the access code for the auxiliary weapons lockup in the crew quarters of MedSci deck to 98383. I won't have my own gear used against my men. There's no such thing as too cautious.
TURNBULL / MED/SCI / PROCEDURES
Goddamn Bronson and her stupid procedures. She's changed the code on the MedSci 2 sub armory again. Now I've got to head back up to deck 4 to find out what it is... Somebody's gonna frag her but good some day...
JUAN CURTIZ / ENGINEERING / THAT LEAK AGAIN
Delacroix was right, this ship was NOT ready for prime time. Ok, the automatic safety seals have shut due to the radiation leak in the tubes. I'm gonna head down to engineering control... I think I can use the fluidics monitoring computer to purge the tubes.
MALICK / OPERATIONS / BRONSON
I hacked into two of the Sim Units yesterday, and for the love of God, I don't know why... I felt... compelled by some power... My mind and my body are... changing... but they know it's me... they just can't prove it... The next Sim Unit that goes down, Bronson and her men will come for me... but I'll be ready... She may have guns and hatred on her side, but I am one of Many.
MALICK / OPERATIONS / MY RED FRIENDS
I have a secret from the Many! I've created overrides for my little experiments in reprogramming the Sim Units and entrusted them to the care of 3 special friends. I've dressed them in red and instructed them to stay away from strangers. A smart hacker always has a back door.
MELANIE BRONSON / OPERATIONS / SABOTAGE
Something is taking over this ship. The Sim Units on this deck are being diverted for reasons unknown. I know it's somehow connected to the larger picture and whatever is happening since they landed on Tau Ceti... My men look at me like I'm crazy, but it is my responsibility to safeguard this ship and its crew. Screw Anatoly, screw Diego and screw whatever poisonous influence has desecrated this vessel... I will not abandon my post or my charge...
YOUNT / OPERATIONS / SIM UNITS
To: Delacroix, Dr. Marie.
Simulation Unit four just went offline again... it took the six of us twelve hours to get it back online the last time... I hacked into the data log file and the last user online -- Malick... Oh, he denied it of course. I... I told Bronson about it and that paranoid crank showed up here with around fourteen security men, looking for blood. But she couldn't prove that Malick actually did anything... Christ, why would anybody want to sabotage the Sim Units?
MALICK / OPERATIONS / SIM UNIT 3
Mmm... Bronson knows... won't let her undo the work we've done... mmm... wired up a surprise for her... anybody approaching Sim Unit 3... will feel sorrow... so much sorrow...
NORRIS / COMMAND / A DREAM
They've cut off the central elevator. What's going on? Last night I had the strangest dream... I was in my room by myself... but all of a sudden, there was not just me there, but a hundred me's... a thousand me's... The strange thing was... it felt good... I felt like I was part of something... like I belong... I hope I have the same dream tonight...
NORRIS / COMMAND / WHAT'S GOING ON?
Something is going on. Korenchkin has sealed himself off in deck 3. He keeps calling for people to go down there one by one. Vogel, Boynton, Swiderek. None of them have come back. If they call for me... I don't know what I'm gonna do. And Bronson is starting to make a lot of noise: 'You're the senior flight officer... you have to act.' I would... if I knew what the hell was going on.
DATE 08.JUL.14
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MARIE DELACROIX / MED/SCI / NOT READY
To: Korenchkin, Anatoly.
This mission should have been scrubbed before it left Earth. We've been unable to contain the reactant coolant leaks on deck 1. I've put an order requiring Hazard Suits down there. I know you think this will cause a panic, but it's better than giving everybody radiation sickness, don't you think?
ANATOLY KORENCHKIN / HYDROPONICS / GLORY
Glory... to the Many... I am a voice in their choir.
LOESSER / HYDROPONICS / MILLER
I know what Miller’s up to. This morning… this morning… I saw Erin Bloome… she was tending to some kind of eggs… and she’d been… changed, in the most horrible, unnatural fashion. I can only think the worst for the rest of my staff. That son of a bitch. That son of a bitch. He won’t get away with this.
MELANIE BRONSON / OPERATIONS / MARTIAL LAW
To: the Crew of the Von Braun.
As of this time, I am declaring a state of martial law on the Von Braun. All primary sub-sectors of the ship will be locked down and only accessible by security access cards. If anybody is found to be interfering with the normal operations of this ship or impedes the work of the security forces they will be shot on the spot.
WILLIAM B DIEGO / OPERATIONS / CEASE AND DESIST
To: Bronson, Melanie.
You listen to me, you little bitch. Either you disband that little toy army of yours, or some real military is gonna come down there and walk all over your rent-a-cops. You can't possibly understand what our mission is here and the glory of our purpose. If you do what we say, you might have a chance to see the glory of the Many. Comply or die, sister. It's that simple.
MELANIE BRONSON / OPERATIONS / NO SHIRKERS
To: VB Security.
I feel you men aren't as dedicated to the mission as you need to be. You will do your duty. The traitors in Ops have still been unable to get the Sim Unit back online. If the situation is not remedied by 0600, we shall recon in force and ensure its remedy. I've changed the weapons lockup code to 13433. Fall in at 0500. Anything that gets in your way, human or not, kill without pause or remorse.
MALICK / OPERATIONS / GOOD BYE
I brought down the last of the Sim Units today... I am full of the glory of the Many... Here comes Bronson. I am at peace... Good evening, Bronson. Have you come to...
ROSENBERG / RECREATION / MY NANITES
Damn! Why don't I just make a bonfire and throw ALL my nanites on it. Last night with Nikki was amazing. Holo-woman, real woman, you gotta love technology. But I must have left ALL my nanites in her room in the Senusal Sim center. What a maroon.
ALICE MURDOCH / RECREATION / WHAT'S GOING ON?
I don't know what's going on here and I don't want to know. I'm not here for the glory of the stupid company. I'm just supposed to make sure the replicators are running. And now people are dying! We've got to turn this ship around and go home. God, get me the hell out of this place...
NORRIS / COMMAND / KORENCHKIN
I got an email from Korenchkin this morning saying he was coming up for an inspection. And when he arrived it was... something... revolting... it was Anatoly... but it wasn't... at the same time it seemed beautiful... and I felt like part of it... He sang to us... all of us... and we felt like one of Many...
CROKER / RICKENBACKER / BETRAYED BY DIEGO
The worms are everywhere... and Captain Diego is the one who let them in. Nobody knows who to trust anymore... nobody's even sure who's human anymore. I've blown out the access ladders in the torpedo room to restrict access to Pod 2. Let's hope that holds them back. As long as we're alive and drawing a paycheck from the Navy, those bastards are not getting the Rickenbacker.
DATE 09.JUL.14
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WILLIAM B DIEGO HYDROPONICS OUR ALLIANCE
To: Korenchkin, Anatoly.
I believe the plans the Many have for me are greater than I even imagined. The change is upon me. But the path is more glorious than we imagined. It does not stop at a mere single mutation... the form I've been promised is more beautiful than even that... They tell me I will float through the air and strike at the foes of our biomass with my mind... with our mind... my cup runneth over...
MARIE DELACROIX / HYDROPONICS / KILLING THE WORMS
It's becoming clear that the worms are some kind of communal entity... While I'm not sure whether airborne Toxin-A will directly kill any ambulatory specimens, it should impact their communal mass and remove the residue I've observed growing on the walls and the lift shaft. But perhaps there is a more potent formula to be synthesized...
WOOD / OPERATIONS / CRYSTAL GIFTS
To: VB Security.
They've given me two gifts... isn't that marvelous... two little shards of crystal... it's very, very sharp, and when I strike it, it sings to me... They want it to sing to Sgt. Bronson... I go there now to share my gift with her... they're very fragile, but very sharp!
ALICE MURDOCH / RECREATION / ICK
The eggs we found near the observation chambers are different than the ones in Hydro. They release some kind of disgusting flying swarming thingies. Bullets don't do anything. Bullets! For Christ's sakes, I never even fired a gun before this morning!
CORTEZ / RECREATION / UNDER THE GARDEN
To: Delacroix, Dr. Marie.
I've been working on dealing with all the bodies that have been stacking up. With the med bays full and the escape pods and ejection tubes mysteriously locked up all of a sudden, we've got to do something with them. I've chosen the maintenance tunnel underneath the garden as an internment site, keypad code 34093. I'm telling everyone to be careful... I don't trust the dead.
ALICE MURDOCH / RECREATION / - - - - - - -
They're coming... oh no... oh no... don't!
ANATOLY KORENCHKIN / COMMAND / MY COMPLETION
The glorious transformation is over and I am one of the Many. I imprint my thoughts on this device as a record of history. We began this journey as pilgrims of commerce and we now continue it as pilgrims of grace. I believed in money and TriOptimum, and now I believe in the joy of the Mass. Diego cannot be trusted so I must claim this ship for the Many. It shall be our vessel of salvation, spreading our message and our flesh.
PREFONTAINE / COMMAND / FLOATING PSI-USERS
The data gathering process is going well. Before I am taken by the Many, I will hopefully transmit a fair bit of information to whoever will listen. The large, floating creatures are not only capable of attacking with powerful psi-projections, but are psi-projections themselves. Destroying them only temporarily disables them. Their real source of power comes from a small control organism, which is usually located somewhat nearby. Although this control organism is quite powerful through its projections, it's eminently vulnerable once rooted out.
DATE 10.JUL.14
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JUAN CURTIZ / ENGINEERING / JUST US
It's down to just a few of us now. Right after Valdez died, I guess I went a little nuts and started tearing things apart... but what do you know, I found two more Rad Hypes. Hopefully that will keep me going long enough to figure a way past that damn turret... Who is that? Delacroix? Sanger?
CONSTANCE SANGER / ENGINEERING / LOCKING ENG. CONTROL
God, get me out of here. I've re-coded the lock to this room. Maybe that will hold them. I'm heading to cargo bay 2, come find me there.
MARTIN / ENGINEERING / CARGO BAY 2
I'm not sure what's creeping me out worse: The hybrids with their pipes and shotguns, the berserk turrets, or our supposed allies. I don't trust those UNN bastards. I've got to find Sanger. She knows the access code to fluidics control. I'm gonna make my way over to cargo bay 2 to find her.
MARTIN / ENGINEERING / AMBUSH
They hit us six hours ago. Malone, the OSA spook, tried to take one of things out with pyrokinesis attack, but it didn't even break stride. Then it unloaded both barrels into his stomach. Falzone said there's a weapons cache in one of the engine nacelles. Maybe I can find him and the others there...
CONSTANCE SANGER / ENGINEERING / LOCKED IN
Malone's dead. I was just talking to him and this... cyborg came up behind him and... Okay, Connie, get a grip. Get a grip. I've re-coded the door lock in engineering control to 15061. I think I'll be safe in here. I'll be safe in here.
MARIE DELACROIX / HYDROPONICS / A RAY OF HOPE
Killing the children won't be easy. But I think I'm actually on to something. The biochemistry of these worms, which I call the Annelids, treats inverted proteins as toxins. With the help of a replicator in the Biological Survey lab, I've managed to isolate some inverted proteins in a number of vials. However, the mix with the base compound is still off, so I still need to do some more research. Once I do that and mix the toxin into the four Environmental Regulators... Well, things can only get better.
MELANIE BRONSON / OPERATIONS / RESIST
They've killed my men and now they've killed me. I'm holding my guts inside of me with both hands. I'm almost done... resist. This is bigger than my little life, the lives of my men and the lives of the people I was forced to kill. Resist. Humanity demands it! Resist!
CORTEZ / RECREATION / WORM ARTIFACT
To: All Members of the Resistance.
Taylor sent some email this morning indicating he found some kind of artifact that could infect the worms with a virus. However, if you manipulated the thing, it would introduce a toxin into the human bloodstream that could kill in minutes. Unfortunately, Taylor found this out the hard way. He died right after he sent the message. Now if we can only locate his body we might find that artifact.
ROSENBERG / RECREATION / LOOKING OUT FOR #1
Taylor found this weird kind of weapon, but he must have used it wrong. Made him sick, real sick. I stashed the thing on the second floor of the crew annex and jury rigged the door lock, code of 11111. Easy to remember, huh? I also stashed a pile of nanites and some other goodies there. No sense getting caught with your pants down. Except in this place...
ROSENBERG / RECREATION / DEFENDING THE REPS
What's wrong with people? Things go to hell and they think they can just walk over the rules. I'm not opposed to a little vice now and then, but outright theft... Hey... what are you doing over there! Get away from that replicator, you son of a-
CORTEZ / RECREATION / THE MALL
To: All Members of the Resistance.
Stay out of the mall if you can. It crawls.
CROKER / RICKENBACKER / THE RESONATOR
Simpson, Malone, Chandara, and Perez are dead. At least those are the ones we know for sure... Those bastards sabotaged the meson acceleration coil. They blew out the entire driver core, six subdecks... From what I can tell, somebody tapped the frequency resonator to refract human sized movements. The overload of all those people moving around must have blown the resonator. We've set up a magnetic shield and the ship's still functional... barely. I've quarantined the entrance to Pod 2... the secondary coil is right there and I don't know how thorough the son of a bitch who did this was.
JANICE POLITO / RICKENBACKER / PANDORA
To: Delacroix, Dr. Marie.
The genie of Citadel station is out of the bottle, and I am the cause. I can't bear to be Pandora. And I'm not brave enough to wait around and see the death and misery I have caused... This is my last transmission, my friend. Be careful... I think SHODAN has plans for you.
DATE 11.JUL.14
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WILLIAM B DIEGO / ENGINEERING / RESIST THE CALL
My duty is to the UNN and to this ship. But can I resist the call of the Many? My father's weakness brought SHODAN into existence. MY weakness has invited these things aboard the Von Braun... can I undo the wrong I have done?
WILLIAM B DIEGO / ENGINEERING / IS IT SO BAD?
In some ways, the Many is not unlike the UNN. There is a joy in working towards a collective goal, in being able to put aside the things that draw us apart and make us separate. Why do we fear the loss of our individuality so much? Man can dream, but the Many can accomplish.
MARIE DELACROIX / ENGINEERING / A NEW FRIEND?
I've been contacted by some kind of artificial intelligence that wants to help me reclaim control of the Von Braun from whomever... or whatever is now in charge. I don't know where it came from, but I must confess I'm happy it is here.
TURNBULL / HYDROPONICS / CHANGING
What do you know, Bronson was right after all. I imagine I've got about an hour... but I'm tracking the... the transformations in the hope that the data might be useful to someone else... there are tumors... on my leg and back... I can feel that thing inside of me... chewing, growing fat. My theory is they need a living host to complete the transformation... Screw Diego, screw Korenchkin, screw Tau Ceti 5. If someone finds this, don't have any regrets about punching my clock. I was already gone.
REBECCA SIDDONS / OPERATIONS / CIVIL WAR
To: Suarez, Tommy.
I'm trying to get up to find you, Tommy, but I can't. I'm stuck in Ops. There's some kind of civil war going on here... the security forces came in and... Now don't freak out, but I'm hurt... but not too bad, I managed to pull together a supply of med kits and a few other goodies... some of it looks valuable, but I'm not sure what it is, maybe some kind of military grade implant. I left the stuff I didn't need in a corner of the data library, out of the way in case I need it later. I'm on my way. I promise you, I will not die. I will not die. You do the same, my love. Yours... Becca.
MARIE DELACROIX / OPERATIONS / THE MAIN ELEVATOR
If we can reprogram the Sim Units and divert power to the transmitter on deck 5, my new friend will be able to regain control of the primary data loop from Xerxes. She... it says that will let us use the bridge elevator and take control of the ship.
MARIE DELACROIX / RECREATION / FRIENDS AND ENEMIES
To: Cortez, Enrique.
Mon petit, there is something you should know about. I have received information from some form of artificial intelligence that is calling itself SHODAN. Yes, SHODAN. Wherever this intelligence actually came from, it has a terrible grudge against these Annelids and has saved my life more than once. SHODAN has told me that there is a UNN operative aboard the ship, armed to the hilt and equipped with R-grade cyber implants. Strange bedfellows, eh?
CORTEZ / RECREATION / TRANSMITTER UNITS
To: Delacroix, Dr. Marie.
Okay, Delacroix. Yang and I have got the transmitter almost ready to go. Once it's up and running, we'll be able to warn Earth. Frank's split up the transmitter code and uploaded it to a number of art display terminals throughout this deck. Just cycle through the art and you'll find a piece of the code. I don't think the worms will spot this... I don't figure they've got much of an interest in the great masters.
YANG / RECREATION / BARRICADED IN
Okay, I got the art terminals wired up to display the fragmented dish alignment for the transmitter. I've also rigged up the tower to set off a security alert in case somebody else tries to tamper with it... I'm headed there right now to start the transmission. Hey, who's that? Juan? Marie- <>
MARIE DELACROIX / RECREATION / TURN ON TRANSMITTER
To: Wilson, Edward.
The shunt has been online for two hours. Go tell Cortez in the crew section to come out and turn on that transmitter. If this message doesn't reach you soon, they may be able to interfere with the transmission from the bridge.
REBECCA SIDDONS / RECREATION / ESCAPE PODS
To: Suarez, Tommy.
Listen... there's one escape pod Xerxes didn't eject... but it's busted. I've managed to get it functional, but I don't know how long its going to stay that way. Make it there, Tommy. With or without me. If I don't get there, I want you to take the pod and go. You understand me? Take it and go.
TOMMY SUAREZ / ENGINEERING / HANG TIGHT
To: Siddons, Rebecca.
Stay where you are, Bec, I mean it. This isn't something you can fight, this isn't something you can run from. If you love me, you won't come looking for me. Just hang tight... I won't let you down.
MARIE DELACROIX / COMMAND / SHODAN
Polito indicated that the AI, who now I believe to be SHODAN, was actually going to... <>
CROKER / RICKENBACKER / CUT OFF FROM POD 2
Until I can reverse the gravitronic generators, we're effectively cut off from Pod 2. Wozcyek's e-mail said the only way to do that is by resetting the power grid from the access station in engine nacelle B. Of course, he didn't volunteer to do it himself. What a goddamn mess.
CROKER / RICKENBACKER / NACELLE B ACCESS
In order to reverse the gravitronic generators, I need to get into nacelle B. In order to get into the nacelle, I need my damn access card. But I left the it on the opposite side of the hull breach. Wait a minute... if I can extend the auxilary support struts, I could... if they've survived the blast, that is.
ANATOLY KORENCHKIN / RICKENBACKER / RAPTURE
What did I think power was? What was my concept of joy? How empty life must have been. As I merge my body with the biomass, I begin to sense the borders of rapture.
DATE 12.JUL.14
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MARIE DELACROIX RECREATION TRUSTING SHODAN
The Annelids have cut us off from the transmitter. SHODAN tells me that once we've got the transmitter back on line and the ops computers reprogrammed, she'll be able to take control of the ship away from Xerxes. Who should I trust less? An imposter claiming to be that monster, or the monster herself?
REBECCA SIDDONS / RECREATION / FIND ME
To: Suarez, Tommy.
I just killed some kind of... some kind of spider... I don't know... but it bit me... and now I'm sick... I'm down to my last med hypo. Come quick, Tommy... come quick...
TOMMY SUAREZ / RECREATION / DON'T STOP
To: Siddons, Rebecca.
Don't stop Rebecca. Keep moving. Get to the escape pods on the command deck. We'll take off, set the toaster to wake us up in 30 years and we'll be back on Earth before you know it. A toaster built for two, baby, that's our next stop. Sound good? So let's do it. I won't take any excuses
MCKAY / COMMAND / THEY'RE ESCAPING
To Delacroix, Dr. Marie.
I hope you're still alive, Ms. Delacroix. We really could use some guidance up here. They've got those lady cyborgs of theirs loading up the shuttles with those eggs... I don't know what their plan is... but it looks like they're running scared... I hear rumors of someone else, besides you, fighting back... Should I even hope to get out of this... I'm just gonna hang back... until I figure out what the hell to do...
MCKAY / COMMAND / A MONKEY WRENCH
I don't know what those goddamn worms want with the shuttles, but I'd love to throw a monkey wrench their way. If I can reach the control chamber above the shuttle bay, I can turn off the shields the worms and their helpers have set up around the shuttles. Once they're down, I can blow holes in those TriOptimum brand tin cans with my sidearm. Now if I can just get in there without getting caught. Oh, God, just get me out of this...
ANATOLY KORENCHKIN / COMMAND / THE MACHINE-MOTHER
The machine-mother has enlisted avatars against us. They struggle, but they will fail against our unity. Does not the machine mother know her own creation is greater than she? She is cold and empty and we are warm and full... she seeks only to destroy... we seek to embrace... to include... all flesh will join ours or be wiped clean...
MARIE DELACROIX / COMMAND / SH$8DD@#N'S PL4N
They've got me now... And SHODAN has abandoned me. I'm not surprised... I've discovered her plans for the faster than light drives... her will is only matched by her imagination... if she gains access to the <>
TOMMY SUAREZ / COMMANDS / POD PROBLEMS
Getting the escape pod working again wasn't as easy as we thought. Bec had to go back down to engineering! Thank God somebody managed to get the elevators turned on again. I found the bridge key and performed an override on the access protocols and now I think we're ready to go.
ANATOLY KORENCHKIN / COMMAND / THE LOVERS
Suarez and his whore want to escape. I do not understand. They get offered a miracle and they bite the hand. The Many has shared its wisdom... they shall not leave this ship.
WILLIAM B DIEGO / COMMAND / MY RESPONSIBILITY
To: General Laurie Brasco.
I am a soldier and a simple man. I cannot explain what has happened to me or this mission. I take complete responsibility. I've brought danger to my ship, to my crew, to my honor. I cannot resist the changes that are happening to me. The call of the Many is seductive. They got Korenchkin, but that bastard is weak. I am not weak. I can resist this cancer... and if I cannot, I will remove it forcibly. God save the UNN.
WILLIAM B DIEGO / RICKENBACKER / LAST WORDS
Those worms were a cancer in my body, so I had the autodoc cut it out. Do you think they're going to let you blow up the Von Braun? The Many will never allow it. But I've got something to help you. it's in my quarters. you'll find the access card on my. body. take the fight to them, soldier. And remember, you're the only one you can trust.
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / STUCK IN HERE
One of those flying things dragged me and David in here last night. I don't remember much about the trip... I guess I must have blocked it out, half- conscious most of the time. I keep remembering that part from Pinocchio, you know, where the old man goes looking for the puppet inside the whale. Except I don't think anyone's coming in here to save me...
PREFONTAINE/ THE BODY OF THE MANY/ OPENING THE SPHINCTER.
The arterial passageways are blocked by some sort of sphincter. I've followed the nerves that threaded out of the walls from the blockage. They lead to a pair of nerve clusters. When the passageway's open, the cluster seems to contract. Conversely, I wonder if I was to destroy both clusters, it would open the blockage permanently. I'm anxious to see the rest of this beast.
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / THE MANY
It's clear that this thing I'm trapped inside of is intimately linked with all of the organisms I observed aboard the Von Braun. Strike that... this creature IS the same organism. Perhaps the best way to describe it, or perhaps the only way I can comprehend it, is that this organism serves to perform the highest mental functions of the entire species. The smaller creatures exist only to enact its will... no strike that, too. All of the specimens act as a whole, like different organs in a single body, with this entity acting primarily as a brain. If one were to destroy this large specimen, I wonder, would it snuff out all the others?
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / CENTRAL CONTROL?
Now I'm convinced that this... Many, as it calls itself, indeed has a centralized nervous system. Which means it would have some kind of centralized control. To this end, I've gathered as many weapons as I could and stashed them in caches. One of the beasts discovered a cache and apparently mistook it for food... it simply brought into the crunching room...
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / ANNELID LIFE CYCLE
While I don't understand the Annelid life cycle fully, it's clearly extremely diverse. The eggs produce either a male or female spore. The male, the drones, are small wasp-like creatures. The females are worm-like annelids that seek a host to infect. Following infection, the host begins to transform into a human/annelid hybrid. From that point, the life form can take numerous paths. I believe this path is determined by the Many itself. The creatures have communicated their need to grow the biomass, so I imagine that biological material is their primary resource. Therefore, each path has costs and benefits. The proto-arachnid is extremely quick and potentially relatively cheap in biomass. The hulking, fleshy ones are powerful, but are clearly a larger investment. I've observed only one example of the floating organisms. The only comfort is that the more dangerous organisms are quite costly to produce, limiting their numbers.
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / THE MANY AND US
Besides the parasitic behavior evidenced in the life cycle of the human/annelid hybrids, it's becoming clear to me that SHODAN has bred the Many to use humans for other purposes. First of all, the Many clearly has the capability to convert human flesh to energy... it can eat us. But it can also directly use us in the creation of its egg pods... corpses are fed into some kind of tubular structure... and eggs are birthed through a nearby tube. I've been unable to determine whether the organism is directly converting the corpses into the egg structures or not, but it's clear that there's some connection between the nutrient pool we provide and the eggs that are being produced.
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / MANY'S EVOLUTION
With only a few short years of evolution, they've been able to conquer this starship, mankind's mightiest creation. Where were we after forty years of evolution? What swamp were we swimming around in, single celled and mindless? What if SHODAN's creations are superior to us? What will they become in a million years, in ten million years? What's clear is that SHODAN shouldn't be allowed to play God. She's far too good at it.
PREFONTAINE/THE BODY OF THE MANY/GRINDING NOISES
There's some kind of horrible grinding noise coming from the next area. It sounds like... chewing. I think I know what's going to happen here. This is some kind of digestive tract of a very large animal. I go back and forth between being fascinated and terrified. This creature is a remarkable discovery... I wish I could live long enough to learn more.
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / POOR CLAUDETTE
Five minutes ago, one of those large, burly creatures dragged Claudette towards the sound of the grinding. Apparently, the animal uses the smaller creatures to help move food along its digestive tract. I tried to help Claudette, but it wasn't even a contest. And, I'm ashamed to admit, I judged that seeing what happened to her was a vital element of my studies here. I imagine I won't have the opportunity to record any observations when it comes my turn.
PREFONTAINE / THE BODY OF THE MANY / - - -
I'm being taken away now... it's my turn... I'm being dragged into some kind of chamber... The ceiling is lined with a number of panels bristling with what appear to be stalactites... or teeth... The creature's put me down now... he's leaving... am I to be spared? What's going on? It's dark in here... I can hear the moans of someone... Claudette? Is that you? Hmm, I seem to have stepped in... something soft... slippery... Are the stalagmites mov
MARIE DELACROIX / CITADEL /
If you are receiving this, I am already dead. When I realized Shodan had betrayed me, I integrated these comments into her primary data loop. Shodan has exploited the warping capability of the Von Braun's faster than light device for her own purposes. The device works by altering space around the ship to fairly arbitrary specifications. Shodan has altered it to her specifications. The effect is rather small now, but spreads with alarming speed. Soon it will reach Earth. You are in her world now, her memories and her rules. Watch your back!
MARIE DELACROIX / CITADEL / A CAUTION
You're not alone here... SHODAN has spawned her own versions of the Von Braun's horrors... remember, they are virtual, they are not real... do not assume anything about their strengths or weaknesses...
MARIE DELACROIX / CITADEL / STAKES
You must understand the stakes here... if SHODAN is left to continue, her reality will completely assimilate ours. Space will become cyberspace and SHODAN's whims will become reality.
MARIE DELACROIX / CITADEL / THE END
You are near the seat of SHODAN's power. You will probably not be able to defeat her. But there is no choice... Remember to focus on your strengths... she will be vulnerable to your weaponry and your psionic powers. I've been able to introduce some assistance in the form of virtual terminals that you can hack into... they should help you defeat the monster.
*Edited to accomodate logs that G_Weir and davpod told me were missing. Thanks guys!*
[This message has been edited by DrCrypt (edited August 27, 2000).]
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