In reply to Jhiaxus (msg # 112):

The DOOR was online, but unmanned, which means it shows up as such, and thus less people are likely to use it, which is actually what the Gray prefer.

"All the stories we have, and there is only one of a Chinese philosopher in the eighth century who got a Gray to surrender.  Don't feel, bad, son." The General speaks.

Also, you remember that the glitter field did have an effect on your sword.  Its a two category shift to the lesser unless the damage is Fatal or higher, in which case, the field simply collapses without effect on an attack.  (You're thinking of the belt from the EE Doc Smith type world.)

"That's good. It means they have weaknesses we can exploit."

"I'm sending you Dr. James Parker, he's a chemist, and Mark Winston, he's our assistant to our lead engineer. As to 3D printing....I hear that the Triple T's have some prototypes they are working on, but we're not on the list to receive such toys. I can ask the Techheads near Tyler for a prototype next time you're down here."

(Bad GE roll.)

You are sticking a couple DF's into a spot under your chair when a wide-eyed man with glasses on his forehead sticks his head in.  He grabs the DF's, or Dessicated Foods with titles like 'Meatball Sauce Noodles' from your hands.

"OUT!!" He shouts in your face, and then pulls his head back out, and shouts from your ship down to the workers bringing stuff. "Everyone stop. This is a science project.  I'm having my guys come in, and take this beauty apart.'

*To the General*

"I would make the most dense, lightest sword science can create, I think then the field wouldn't work at all on it."

---------------------------

*I get visibly angry being pushed out, and when I hear what he is going to do, I pull out my shotgun and level it at his head*

"If you think I am going to let you Doom humanity, because of scientific interest, you are insane. Why don't you use that big brain of yours and follow the pattern. The DOOR has been manned, and defended, now there is no one leading the defense force of the DOOR. The Grey's unmanned ship has been lost to them. Put two and two together, how many days is it before they send an army through the door and send an invasion force to the earth? So you can either take the ship apart, strand me here, to leave the DOOR undefended. Or you can be patient, save the earth, be a hero, and then you can study it as much as you want."

*I smile*

"Oh and let's not go into the fact the first thing I did when I took over the ship is take it off remote control and only recognize my commands. While I haven't figured out the weapons, if there are any, I sure as hell can close the door and vent the atmosphere from out here. Your move Doc."

Jhiaxus

"I'll get one of my scientists to work on it." General Carver says, nodding carefully.

===================

Rage thickens and deepens your voice.

He spits in your face.

"Go ahead.  Violence is the only language the dimwitted know." He sneers loudly.  Everyone else has frozen in place about the shuttle, often with boxes of DF in their arms.

Intimidation botch.

*I smirk at him as I move closer to him, engaging him*

"You are correct, I am dimwitted, shortsighted and too stupid to walk up to you and rap you on the beak with the butt of my shotgun"

*I crack him in the beak with the butt of my shotgun*

"I still have more wisdom in my pinky finger than you have in your whole body. Your ego has turned you into a greedy little man. Pride is the deadliest of sins. You would Doom us all for your curiosity. You are lucky I keep all my options open. Just because you can do a thing, does not mean you should do a thing."

*I wait for things to calm down*

Jhiaxus

You hit him, and he goes down like a sack of potatoes.

Someone checks him, finds him alive, and another runs for the medic.

The rest shrug and get back to work.  Clearly among the tote and haul brigade, Dr. Whittaker was not a popular man.

In reply to Tadeusz (msg # 117):

*I shrug*

"Boring conversation anyway."

*I wipe off the spit from my face and continue to load the ship and wait for the other people who are coming with, as well as Mike and Hank*

Jhiaxus

You're rapidly loaded, and then Mike and Hank come in on gurneys being pushed by medics.  The scientist and the engineer come with them.

General Carver comes down as well.

"Good luck, son." He nods to the two newbs. "You're detached to serve with the Grand Admiral, in a wartime position, so its a combat position with danger pay, and he can punish cowardice in the face of the enemy or deliberate and repeated insubordination with lethal force."

The two nod seriously in response.

And in a few minutes, you're airborne, and then a bit later, you're spaceborne.  The engineer hands you some pills.  "Pain relievers. This is going to seriously stink." He swallows a handful himself.

*I nod to the General*

"Once we can establish communication from there to here, we will report."

_____________________________________

*I take the handful of pain meds*

"You should have been on the shuttle without internal dampeners, that was painful, while this will be, at least it will be far more pleasant."

*I will set course for SCEPTRE Moon Base*

Jhiaxus

By the time you're at Moon Base, your legs are starting to cramp in the insufficient space, and there's been a couple minor spats as the two work off their excitement from being in space.  Both of them seem to be quality workers, a bit high-strung, but eager to jump into things.

"Welcome back, Jarl.  The base is secure." SCEPTRE says.  "There were no incursions."

The apes holler at you as you see them playing some sort of dodgeball/football cross which involves a heavy wad of junk tied together.  It does not look like a game that is healthy for a human to play because when an ape highballs a twenty bound lump into the face of an opponent, and then jumps down fifteen feet from the DOOR cage to land with a small boom on the floor, and the other ape rolls back to his feet, unharmed, and tosses the ball to his teammate while taking himself to the penalty box.....and then his teammate gets hit by a flying tackle of eight hundred pounds.....and the ball pops loose, and everyone including those in the penalty box dive for it...

SCEPTRE calls the ball for Team Big Head.

*I breath a sigh of relief as I stretch*

"Thanks SCEPTRE"

-------------------------------

*I smile a bit as I watch them play, they seem really happy*

-------------------------------

*I give them the tour*

"This is the base, that is the DOOR, which luckily for us, seems to only allow organics who pay through. If not we would probably already be eating missiles or grenades. The reactor room is there, storage rooms, the shuttles. Two of them are flyable, one more than the other. The last one is a parts ship now. I promised the General that we would repair both and give them one. The bots here are helpful but need direction. I am working on the golden bracelet copy, which is a priority, to get Mike and Hank back up and running. The bracelet also grants a force-field against projectiles and limited protection against melee. We have a lot of work to do, and carry a melee weapon with you at all times. If the DOOR opens, we must defend it. Any questions, or preferred work assignments, now is the time."

Jhiaxus

The scientist asks for a workspace for his lab.  He begins setting up some monitoring equipment from the suitcase he carried.

"There is so much here that is far past the state of Earth science that I hardly know where to begin.  I'd like to just look around, and see if I can find something easy to figure out, take measurements of everything, and of course, do whatever jobs yo uhave for me."

The engineer says that he'd like to get started on the shuttles, and work with the bots.

*I nod to the scientist*

"Feel free, I think I am going to get back to the bracelet, since Mike and Hank need it, and I think it is the key to unlock the lab on the ship."

*To the Engineer*

"I have the list of things I know need to be done to the two working ones, the third is the parts one."

*I will wait for the game to end and ask the apes to help me unload the food and water from the slave ship*

Jhiaxus

You struggle on with the bracelet for the next two days, and then the scientist joins you in it.  He's fascinated by the possibilities of multi-atom wide energy channels including computers waaaay better than they have now.

The engineer is working well with the bots.

The apes are enjoying life and Mike and Hank are zoned out.

The two new guys have occasionally said odd things like how they enjoy watching the National Lacrosse Tourney games for the Birmingham Vulcans and the Nashville Guitars.

*I am thankful for the help on the bracelet, it means the faster we get this to work, the faster Mike and Hank can not be prisoners in their bodies so to speak, will redouble the efforts to get this done, and then I can move onto re-purposing the Cyborg bay into making Exosuits.*

------------------------------------

*I am happy the Engineer is working well with them, took a long time to get them up and running, glad someone who can give the right direction is there*

------------------------------------

*I keep a watchful eye on the door, and since the apes love to play on the barrier, it was an unintended result, but one that will do us well in the future.*

Jhiaxus

The scientist and the engineer take off a half day and come up with a jig that allows faster straight lines in the microforging.  You still have to reset the jig for every change, but it speeds things up considerably.

The DOOR booms, and you go out to see a ten foot tall bear standing  in front of the DOOR.  He is holding the trap above his head with one hand.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:54, Wed 23 Nov 2016.

*I walk out and nod as I look at what has come through*

"Do you communicate? If so, we should parley."

*I keep my options open, if he turns out not to be intelligent, I am sure the Mighty Joe Army will not be happy about someone messing with their playspace*

Jhiaxus

"Why do you have this, err, trap above the DOOR. That seems rude after you invite guests.  You'd better not be trying to run a thiefhole because you don't want to make one of the Bear Folk mad."  He growls.  His words are hard to understand, but by paying close attention you can manage.

He's got a belt, and pants.  The belt has a number of package holders on it.

*I smile*

"My apologies there is a race of beings that act like they own the DOOR, and have forcefully tried three times in the last month to physically take this DOOR and turn it off by force. We have had to put measures in to make sure we had some warning before being attacked. You have my apologies. That trap is also a playspace for our Ape friends, so it does pull double duty. I am Grand Admiral Space Pirate Jhiaxus, and this is the DOOR to the Terran system. Don't get worried, I have only pirated one unmanned slave ship, but the title fits. How may we be of service?

*I direct the Might Joe army to graciously lift and move the door guard so that our guest doesn't get more miffed*

Jhiaxus

He nods, and walks forward, and gives you the ounces of gold for his weight.

"Do you have transport to Earth?  I'm a student in the Academy, and so I'm going on a Grand Tour of interesting spots for my graduation.  And since Old Earth just opened, that means I can get a much more interesting paper than the other students.  I do have a Morph Shield, Level 2, as I understand Old Earth is primitive."

He pauses.

"Those aren't Spiders are they?"

In reply to Tadeusz (msg # 131):

*I listen*

"I do have transport to Earth, although I am loathe to leave the DOOR undefended. I will tell you what, you give me a crash course in how everyone knows the DOOR system works, if there is a New Earth, and generally the state of technology and whatnot and I will provide you transport. Also do you know anything about the bracelets the grey wear? I am having a difficult time replicating one."

*I give the Engineer and the Scientist the sabre and one of my katanas*

"To defend the door, in case someone unfriendly comes through. I know the shuttles aren't up to snuff, so we will be taking the slave ship. You have 15 minutes of requested supplies and to contact the General about our visitor. I do expect those back."

*Back to the Bear folk*

"I am assuming that a morph shield makes you look human? If that is the case, I don't see a big problem with taking you to Earth. Do you have places in particular you wish to visit? I will need to file a flight plan with the General, and pay him a visit, but if you play along, everything should work out."

Jhiaxus

"Surre." He walks up to the DOOR, and flips open a small hatch in the doorframe that you had not noticed.  Inside is a map of the DOOR system, or at least part of it.  Some dots are unlighted, which means 'not in use' which Old Earth used to be before you arrived.  Others are green, which Old Earth is now.  And a few are red, which ...

"Tasmogia. Without a Level Four Ultrahazzard suit, you don't want to go there.  Some idiot released a nano-bio virus.  Killed everything, and I mean everything, down to the plankton in the seas. We think it was a Spider trying to mousetrap a Snake war base."

"Lights green, means its open." He tags the Old Earth Symbol which is a baby's cradle.  He also points out New Earth.

"Never been, I hear they have agrav, which is more advanced than the Bear Folk. The dirty, rotten Grays use a similar tech to my morph shield, which yeah, does as you say.  But more advanced, and more, ah, err, focused."

He mentions a few places, famous sights, but other than the River Euphrates, nothing is at all familar to you or the other two.

*I look at the map*

"The Greys are the ones trying to shut this DOOR down, do you know why? Also who lives on New Earth? Humans? Greys? Something else?

*I nod to Bear Folk*

"Well I know a lot of the places you would want to see on the Earth I know, I am sure a lot of it matches up. I will inquire with the General what is off limits, what is not safe, and we can go from there."

---------------------------------

*Once the Scientist and Engineer are done radioing the General, I will get on*

"It seems there is a New Earth connected to the DOOR system, also we have a visitor that is interested in historical sites on Earth. I was wondering which ones are safe. It seems that Old Earth might be a popular tourist destination. Also the Grey's are not loved by our visitor, so there might be hope for working together with others. I am leaving the Scientist and Engineer here to keep working on the shuttles, the bracelet, and to guard the DOOR. Were you able to contact the manufacturer of the component 3D printer. It would really help with repairs and fabrication up here, and get you a shuttle much sooner."

Jhiaxus

"I try not to deal with the Greys.  They will cheat you on a trade deal, even if it doesn't make sense.  New Earth...I think they're Human, kind of.  Used to be a big center of trade...the Trensker Towers, but not now."

===============

"We can set up a bodyguard pair with tour guide experience.  We definitely want to make a good impression if we can.  Interstellar allies would be nice." The General replies.  "We can draw up an itinery, see what this alien is interested in.  Some sights we won't be able to show him, but Grand Canyon and Pyramids are easy to do.  But we'll do our best to show him a good time.'

"We got the 3D system shipped yesterday night. Should arrive within the hour. They're sending a few members of their engineering staff with them to help us set up."
GE 9

*I nod to the bear folk*

"Well even by looking into their eyes and facial expressions when they speak, I could tell they were not to be trusted. The fact that they are harvesting humans to make their guards, and having a fit someone turned back on the Old Earth Door just brings it to the forefront. After you are done, maybe you could revise your paper, to also put in just how they Greys are using Old Earth. It takes someone to shine a light on a problem before others take notice."

---------------------------

*Listening to the General*

"I agree, the better impression we make, the more others will take notice of the situation here, other than the Greys that is. I will give you a few hours to make the arrangements and  I will bring our visitor down and start the tour with your permission. While I am thinking about it, the situation might call for an ambassador to post up here with us, since while I am a wonderful human being and host, perhaps a softer, more diplomatic person would make a better first impression"

---------------------------

*To the Bear Kin*

"The General is making arrangements as we speak, may I get you some food and drink, while the arrangements are made? I am not the greatest host, but now that I know we might receive friendly visitors, we will make arrangements to do so."

*To the Engineer and Scientist*

"The Metal Fabrication 3D Printer will be coming back with us, in the meantime, we should devise a move-able crane system, to lift up the gate when we have guests.

Jhiaxus

"I would be glad too.  Could I quote you in my paper, as the Ruler of Old Earth, it would make a fine addition to my work."  You can tell he's a bit greedy for your input, rather like a PH.d candidate might be happy to have a quote from a president of a small country to go in his report.

-----------

"Definitely. I'll get on that." The General replies.

------------

"Hah. Don't bother me.  We Bear Kin are not much to stand on ceremony.  Now if a Lord of the High Tree had come in, you'd have a mortal enemy for life, but then they would never come here in the first place without making sure with intermediaries you knew the proper protocol so as to know whether to bow seventeen or eighteen times before greeting them.  Must be exhausting to have to be so polite.  But I am a bit peckish."

It turns out that Bear Kin don't stand on ceremony, and don't mind putting up their elbows on the table, and really don't mind eating three days worth of food in one meal.  A loud burp, and a sigh later.  "You have  a bed, Jarl?  If you do, wake me when you're ready to leave, I'll slip into a mini hibernation until then."