Hello all,
This is my submission to the first round of the second season of the Information Finding Channel contest. It’s a little late, and I want to give a big thank you to 
I also wanted to give a shoutout to a musician I found while writing this. Given the topic prompt, I found this particular song of theirs quite appropriate. Here is a link to it on SoundCloud and here is a link to it on Bandcamp. Maybe it’s just me, but this song really evoked a strong emotional response that made me contemplate my place in our amazing universe. I hope you like it.
https://steemit.com/contest/@ifc/ifc-season-2-round-1-begins-now-100-steem-grand-prize
Topic: “The universe”
The citizens of Digita aboard their new spaceship were organizing themselves. With so much having happened since then aliens attacked, they realized they needed to take the time to sort things out, and make sure they had a good plan of action. To that end, they decided they needed a leader. Someone who would have the knowledge to help them navigate this new, vast terrain. Luckily for them, it turned out that one of their members was an astronomer. Perhaps that wasn’t the most qualified profession for the job, but it made a certain amount of sense. So with little ceremony, Captain Tina Lynn was appointed with a unanimous vote. She wasn’t entirely comfortable being a leader, but she was confident that with her knowledge of the cosmos, she’d be able to help the group avoid at least the more obvious dangers.
With everyone gathered into the ship’s spacious command center following the vote, Captain Tina decided to give a speech.
“Thank you everyone, for putting your faith in me. I will do my best to ensure that it is not misplaced. I have not had significant experience being a leader before, and want to make it clear that I will be asking for advice from you just as much as you will be asking it of me. We are all a team here, and just because I have a title doesn’t mean that I am somehow superior. I don’t want you to think of me as your superior, more as a guide. Together, I’m sure that we will have what it takes to handle this new adventure facing us.”
This speech was well received by the rest of the people on the ship, and Tina received a round of applause, to her blushing shame. After waving them down, she brought up her first goal: figuring out how the ship operates so that they can determine how easily they’ll live on the ship. After conferring with the group, they realized the top priority should be determining how the oxygen production systems worked, so that they could have at least some idea of how to fix them in case of an error. Luckily for them, the ship came equipped with an incredibly advanced AI, who had been listening the whole time, and chose now to chime in.
“Hello. I understand that you are inquiring about the life support systems aboard me,” said the floating blue orb, shimmering in time to the words. “My designation is X17N4, but you may refer to me as Moya if you would prefer. I control all aspects of this ship, and can tell you any information you’d like to know. As to the oxygen production, the Air Management Chamber handles that.” As the orb as speaking, another hologram appeared, depicting the ship with one room highlighted. The hologram zoomed in on that room, blowing it up so that details could be made out by everyone in the room.
Source Image address
“The AMC is filled with large algae tanks. All of the air aboard me is pumped through circulation systems in the water, allowing the algae to absorb the CO2 and produce many times more than enough oxygen for everyone. In fact, the air here is substantially cleaner and has a higher oxygen content than air you could find anywhere on Digita.” If Moya wasn’t an AI, the tone that it spoke with could almost have been considered smug. Accompanying the holographic imagery was a detailed manual, the words floating in the air, describing all of the processes of the AMC. Luckily, it turned out that Moya was equipped with a modular fabrication system that was capable of producing all parts necessary for the operation of the ship.
The new inhabitants of Moya were quite relieved by this information, as it provided them with a great feeling of confidence. Captain Tina decided that the best course of action would be to continue to query Moya for information.
“Thank you for the excellent news about the AMC. Our next greatest concern is our water supply. As we know there is running water, you must be handling that process somehow. Could you please elaborate on it for us?” Tina felt that the best approach to handling Moya was politeness. Regardless of whether the AI was even capable of feeling, the memory of HAL weighed heavily in her mind. Sure, that was just a movie, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Just as with the AMC, Moya pulled up an overview of the ship, this time with a vast network of piping highlighted. The hologram zoomed in once more, to what looked to be a room filled with massive pumps. “I am equipped with an advanced filtration system. All of the waste water produced throughout the ship is circulated through this continuously, with all the pumps operating at 20% capacity to ensure proper pressure in case of catastrophic failure. This filtration system is far superior to any you were familiar with on Digita, so there is no need to feel concern about the water quality. All harmful substances, broken down to their base elements, and used to provide nutrients to the crops. There are even water condensers that pull residual water vapor from the air and put it back into the system, maintaining an equilibrium. The water will last indefinitely, as long as there is power. If, somehow, we do lose some water, I also am capable of harvesting ice from meteors, but the probability of this being necessary is less than 0.01%. My systems were designed to be as perfect as possible.” Once again, that almost smug tone crept into Moya’s voice. It was beginning to seem that the ship had a very good opinion of itself. As with the AMC, there appeared a manual with extensive documentation. After reading through that, anyone would be able to repair all aspects of the filtration system.
This vessel kept getting better and better. Perpetual water sounded very appealing to everyone. Tina however, was curious about something else. “Having mentioned the need for power to run the filtration system, how exactly are you powered Moya? I have to assume that running the life support systems for a ship this size uses an immense amount of power.”
“I’d be glad to answer your question, Captain Tina,” Moya replied, with that undercurrent of pride. The hologram once again shifted to the full ship overview, this time with a number of large, circular structures highlighted. “I am powered by multiple fusion reactors, distributed throughout the ship for optimal power efficiency as well as redundant backups in case of collisions.”
“As with the water pumps, each of the fusion reactors is capable of fully powering the ship by itself, but runs at a much lower capacity to distribute the load. With my ability to selectively seal off portions of the ship, I am capable of handling massive hull breaches without any functional damage. However, I will do my absolute best to ensure that this level of damage never occurs. I was designed to be as safe as possible, with numerous built-in redundancies.” As with all of the previous systems, a manual for the reactors appeared in mid-air. This one appeared to be significantly more complex, but if the others were anything to go off of, it would be a detailed, step-by-step guide to troubleshooting all aspects of the reactor. At some point, Tina decided, she would have to ask Moya how all of these manuals were in English. Somehow, the aliens must have been monitoring Digita for long enough to have the language in their database so that Moya could use it, but why? For what reason? A mystery to be explored later, certainly.
Tina contemplated the information they had learned. It certainly seemed like the aliens who had built Moya had thought of everything. This ship seemed to have been designed to last eons. However, she had one more gnawing question, as her gurgling stomach reminded her. “So Moya, how is food grown onboard? I would have to imagine, given the advanced state of all the other life support systems, you have something highly elaborate and efficient?”
“Indeed I do, Captain Tina. Spread through the ship are vertical aeroponic systems. These are all harvested autonomously, and brought to the central kitchen where they are prepared into any kinds of meals you would like.”
Source By Valcenteu - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0
“Also, in the main chamber, there are numerous multi-level orchards, which were planted many years ago with numerous varieties of food bearing trees from your planet.”
“My previous masters were very curious with the dietary practices of your species, and luckily for you the systems were put into place to produce human food for an essentially infinite time. As an AI, I have no understanding of taste, but hopefully you will find all of the meals to your liking.”
Everyone was thrilled to hear this. No more having to cook or do dishes for any of the inhabitants of Moya. It was seeming more and more like all of their old worries from Digita would be no more. And Moya seemed to be an incredibly accommodating host, who would take care of all of their needs. The aliens who created this ship were an immensely cruel species, but they were also impressively intelligent.
Once again, Tina addressed the crowd gathered in the command center: “Well, it seems that we will be covered for all of our basic needs for a very long time to come. Now, it seems our main question is, where do wish we to explore in the near-infinite universe? We have everywhere at our fingertips. Moya, can you pull up some images for us? I think it’d be easiest to make a decision if we can have some idea of what it is we would be traveling to.”
Moya, who had disappeared while Tina was addressing everyone else, shimmered back into existence. “Of course. I could take you to visit nebulas, the birthplace of stars.”
Source NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell University and University of Leiden Image Address
“Or if you would prefer, I could bring you to some of the largest planets in existence, the gas giants of the universe.”
Source NASA / SWRI / MSSS / GERALD EICHSTÄDT / SEÁN DORAN © CC NC SA Image Address
“I could also take you to visit a binary star system. It is quite different from what you have here, so you may enjoy viewing that.”
Source NASA/JPL-Caltech Image Address
“Or if you all would prefer, we could simply tour galaxies, viewing their complex patterns from afar.”
Source NASA Goddard Image Address
“All of these are possibilities, or anywhere else you would like. I am capable of warping, bending the fabric of spacetime so that I can travel immense distances almost instantly. So the universe is yours to explore.”
The people gathered in the command center were awestruck at the beauty of the universe. Seeing everything up close, holographically projected, really brought home the majesty of the cosmos. Tina, who had spent her entire career studying these systems, was slightly less awestruck. But the holograph system was new to her, and Moya’s depictions were more clear than any she had seen before. However, she felt she needed to make a recommendation, as this was her area of expertise.
“I think a good first option would be the moons of Jupiter, primarily Europa.” She turned to the rest of the people in the room. “I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but Europa has some amazing properties. It’s been hypothesized that there may be life under it’s icy shell. Now that we know there is life in the universe, and we can easily explore, it strikes me as worthwhile to see if we can find some that isn’t hostile.”
The rest of the people talked it over. Most agreed that for a first journey, nearby would be closer. Some wanted to explore the farthest reaches of the universe, but were eventually persuaded to wait on that urge for now.
So, it was decided that the maiden voyage of Moya with its new inhabitants would be for moons of Jupiter.
“Moya, engage warp drive,” Tina said, in her most captainly voice. With a low hum, and a slight feeling of acceleration, the ship started moving forward.
Into the unknown.
Into the start of a grand adventure.
To be continued
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