Witch Hunt

By Troim Kryzl

Sequel to Plugger Site One, life does go on once the traveller has left.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Troim Kryzl
• Release date: May 20, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370241569

Troim Kryzl

Not providing a photograph and writing under a pen name for professional reasons. Please refer to my website and LinkedIn profile for as many details as can be made available under my current career circumstances.Mastodon: @[e-mail]

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Witch Hunt

Published by Troim Kryzl at Smashwords

Copyright 2015 Troim Kryzl

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be given away or resold to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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Chapter 1

Stage fright

Officially, I'm having a siesta and will be woken up just in time for a light afternoon breakfast that is supposed to get me ready for my first videoconference with assorted political VIPs, perhaps even including the president of the US of A himself.

In practice, I keep my eyes closed to signal compliance, but can't help frantically rehearsing possible answers to a lot of impossibly tricky questions.

I'm trying hard not to panic too badly. How will I ever manage to convince this illustrious audience I'm harmless? I perfectly well know I am. Totally harmless even. But I'm also and unfortunately very aware of colleague Alfa's attitude. For him, and for people with a comparable mindset, I'm not even a proper human with corresponding rights. And dangerous. One out of a total of six people familiar with the more exotic details of my 'condition' is so scared of me that he would prefer to see me kept in a high security facility. Not exactly brilliant odds for convincing a bunch of politicos not knowing me personally...

Gina, you can stop pretending to be asleep. Ok if I get us some coffee? You don't need to worry about the telecon. You are good at meetings, you'll do just fine..

Not even my more mathematically than interactively gifted lover is fooled by my sleeping plugger performance. This is a warning not to cheat. It will have to be the truth and nothing but the truth in the upcoming interrogation. Everything else is beyond my means. Shit.

I open my eyes to answer: Stan, thanks a lot, it's nice to try and cheer me up. But I'm no good at this type of exam. Anything that could be called crucial, vitally important, existentially decisive,... This freaks me out. Not my type of situation. But thanks a lot anyway, for trying to give me hope. Your help is very much appreciated..

This gets me a very fleeting flash of a smile. He quickly disappears to fetch the coffee, trying to hide he's blushing.

Stan is already all dressed up for today's occasion: A real shirt instead of his usual faded slogan t-shirts. Impeccable black jeans instead of baggy old whatsoevers. Matching black shoes instead of outworn sneakers or sandals. Even the ponytail is orderly. Sort of. Very relatively speaking.

He looks smart in this outfit. Would love to tell him. This would definitely be an overdose of praise. My beloved IQ high scorer is getting better at bearing compliments. Even sometimes refrains from protesting. But I can't risk destabilizing him now. Not ahead of a meeting. Not ahead of this particular meeting.

Our charmer in chief core team lead still lies on the second couch, right across the table. Deep sleep, pronounced version. Saph is breathing so slowly that it's borderline scary to watch. It probably was a last exit type of urgent when his closest and most resolute direct report stopped him doping himself into overdrive with amphetamines and forced him to get some rest. Rush might well once again have saved his life. Wonder how Saph will cope, with the Claude-shaped hole in both our lives. Mine's hurting, bad.

Stan is already back with the coffee. He has also brought some energy bars and a bag of crisps: I didn't know... Would you like to eat something? Can you eat anything ahead of the telecon? I thought... Perhaps you should eat, even if you are not hungry? Or are you starving, do you need more? Do you want me to fetch anything else?….

He may be the most brilliant physicist of our generation and currently in advanced process of resolving a couple of tricky questions around dark matter and energy, but this ultra simple kind of multiple choice situation stretches his interactive skills to the limits.

You're an angel, Stan, excellent idea! I was thinking exactly the same thing, that normally I should be a hungry plugger on waking up. But I'm to tense for a real breakfast. An energy bar is just perfect. You will be there in the meeting, won't you? You did great, yesterday. You're really marvelous at explaining the devices and the traveling..

Part of me is sorry to send him blushing again. But I'm in a selfish mood. I urgently need confirmation he will join me in this bloody ordeal. The sorry mount of exhaustion barely breathing on the other couch can't be woken up any time soon, that much is obvious. Saph would normally be the guy keeping me safe in the middle of a potentially antagonistic group of interrogators. The prospect of facing this kind of challenge without his support makes me feel terribly vulnerable.

Stan bravely does his best to smile: "Sure. Direct order, courtesy Rush. And I solemnly promised I'll try to find the golden middle path between fucking up by shutting up too tightly and fucking up even worse by saying exactly the wrong things whenever I open my mouth. With me in the room you'll at least have some real snafu-potential to worry about, instead of just performing perfectly, as you sure will.

Alan will apparently do the most tricky part of the talking, we will only need to answer a couple of very precise questions. He will even say who is supposed to answer. Neither slide shows nor speeches expected, according to his plan. I of course don't believe a word of this rosy outlook. Also very much looking forward to finally share a dynamic meeting situation with dear Vanessa again, been missing these so badly. But hope is not completely lost, there is a bit of good news: Rush will be in there with us and she decides how long we proceed. Counting very much on her to save us, if this gets too bad.".

Rush at our side in the videoconference is excellent news indeed. She won't let this get out of hand and will make them treat me ok. Alan himself should work hard for a smooth ride. He certainly wouldn't want to make a mess with the top boss listening: Come on, Stan, time for a more positive attitude. Alan will have thought this through carefully, he won't want the president to see any snafu. You wouldn't be in there if he wasn't convinced you'll do a great job, again. What you achieved yesterday was far more difficult. And you had to do it all on your own. You'll be fine, you'll see. Alan said there won't be no scientists involved. With a little luck, you'll only need to look clever and nod, piece of cake.

Stan tries even harder to smile. But he abhors meetings so much, there is still a hint of a death row mood scrambling his face: You are very kind, let's hope you are right..

Rush comes in, the personification of a seriously positive attitude: Well done, kids! I hoped you'd let this heap of marital debris of mine sleep it off in peace. Sorry for dropping him on your sofa like that, Gina, I don't usually leave my stuff laying around unattended. This mess was a classical case of emergency rest. Watching over only one patient would also have been a waste of student nurse Connor's considerable talents..

Being called 'student nurse Connor' does the trick, Stan manages to move on to a real smile: My pleasure, doctor Costa, sir. Nothing to report, additional patient didn't dare stop breathing. He's no fool and wouldn't want to find out what you'd do to him in case he ever tried to disobey a direct order..

Not that much of a total fool, that's how I'd put it. You two ready to face the firing squad? Gina, if ever I fail to notice this gets too tedious for you, you won't hesitate to give me a sign, ok? After a defib intervention you'd normally be granted minimum three days of rest in intensive care. We are being very accommodating by allowing this to happen, keep this well in mind, ok? No Stan, don't you even start getting your hopes up. We won't cancel this wonderful event now. You just shut up and stare at something. You got two tough girls at your side to keep you safe. You'll be ok, ok?.

She's better at this than me. She gets a proper smile and nod in return. And off we go. The living room of Claude's apartment has been refitted with a videoconferencing installation. There are three chairs on our side of a table facing an XXL screen that make this feel like a real face-to-face meeting. Poor Stan. A Skype-type telco setting with little faces displayed in tiny windows on a small laptop screen would be easier for him to handle.

It will be me sitting in the middle. Now is the time for a bout of center stage anxiety. Stan takes the seat on the left. Rush will be at my right side. We've still got more than a couple of minutes. We were asked to come early to give the guys remotely operating the equipment the chance to test that everything runs smoothly on our brand new and slightly improvised side, before bringing the VIPs online at the Washington end. I'm glad for this. Gives me a little chance to get used to the setting and clear my still pretty coarse and also by now trembling voice in a one-two-three microphone test.

The technicians count down, and this is it, the screen comes alive and my fight for a normal life- or perhaps even life as such - moves up to the next level, first round.

I would so much prefer this to be a computer game. With a chance to try again. And a couple of back-up lives in case I fuck up.

First contact briefing

Alan sits in the middle, facing me directly. Not at his freshest. The last 48 hours and the boosters that already brought down Saph have taken their toll. He's flanked by two guys I don't know. Mister right is a very senior citizen. Remnants of a military haircut in advanced process of turning into baldness. Unremarkably formal dress. Dry as firewood overall and a nose that risks cutting through our screen if ever he leans forward. Mister left is only slightly younger. A majority would probably attest him good looks. He's stylishly groomed and dressed. Personally, I'm no fan of this politician or lawyer type of slick guy. Neither Vanessa nor any other additional listeners are visible. No idea if they are somewhere in the same room, outside our field of vision, or attending remotely.

Welcome to the first plugger task force videoconference. Records are subject to FOIA exemption 3, details enclosed. My name is Alan Anderson, DNI, plugger project liaison Washington. Locally, I'm joined by presidential security advisers Frank Fullmer and Max Malling.. Mister right nods ever so slightly on the Frank Fullmer clue. Mister left switches on a terribly cheesy - or fantastically telegenic, if you like this sort of person - grin on the Max Malling prompt. No idea if this would be names a proper US citizen should recognize. Better activate my nondescript general purpose half smile too, just in case.

"At Plugger Site One, I'm glad to welcome our senior plugger device operator. We will stick to her plugger site name - Gina Briatico - for convenience and confidentiality purposes. Gina, glad to see you up and in better shape than yesterday. We'll keep your precarious health status in mind and won't make this last longer than absolutely necessary.

She will be seconded by our plugger device subject matter expert - you are all familiar with a transcript of the plugger traveling technology overview Stan Connor delivered yesterday - and our medical lead. Doctor Rosa-Maria Costa was given preference over plugger project lead Saphrain Cavarelli - you know him well enough - to take part in today's meeting because of Gina's aforementioned health issues. Rush, we are all aware this goes on only as long as you consider it safe enough.".

Alan is good at this. Feeling slightly better after this introductory sequence. He's less charming than Saph and anything but funny. But his calm, business-style approach takes some of the scary weirdness out of this impossible situation. Good start.

And it gets even better: Gina, this isn't our first round on this topic. There have been a couple of preparatory briefings. All participants are familiar with all Plugger Site One core team essentials, meaning you won't need to explain the basics. Everyone here knows about Claude, is familiar with the fact that he's an alien and a traveller, is aware of his current 'location' and of the local dark energy and matter devices. We are coping as best we can with the news that there is a splattering of plugger civilizations distributed across the galaxy. This general background induces a number of urgent questions. As a local with and alien add-on and an intimate knowledge of Claude and the devices, you are of course our best - or rather our one and only - chance to get answers..

Alan describing me as a 'local with an alien add-on' is the tremendously good news of the day. Wouldn't have hoped for this and nod enthusiastically, now really ready to get started.

Perfect. We will focus on the most imminently safety relevant aspects today. Is anyone out there aware of our existence? What are our chances to see more, and potentially less friendly, travelers come dropping by, out of the one or the other device? Are the devices the only means for traveling? Or are there starships or star gates or whatever other interplanetary vehicles? Gina, if you could elaborate a bit on these questions, please?.

This is an easy one. Glad he lets me start with something comparatively simple I can answer straight: "The first plugger society has developed the devices and genetically engineered itself for plugging because they were running out of time, their sun approaching its end stage, and couldn't find any other way to relocate to one of the potentially viable planets they had identified in other solar systems.

At the local level, everyone dies, in the end - meaning at the end of the local star, or sun. There is no happy end for most individuals. But the few travelers printed by devices on other planets can initiate a new plugger civilization. And they don't need to start from scratch. Meaning a sort of happy end for the civilization that will be restored somewhere else. Plugging was invented ages ago. Neither Claude nor the gadget I call BDT are aware of anyone ever having found any other way for biologicals to cover interstellar distances. Lots of pluggers tried long and hard to invent an alternative means of transport, because traveling is very exclusive, only very few pluggers achieve it, and far from pleasant. But they didn't find any other solution. Physical interstellar travel by biologicals is impossible. To the best of Claude's and BDT's knowledge.".

My Washington audience does a fair bit of gaping on being exposed to this harmless piece of information. Makes me wonder about the quality of the preliminary briefings. Not sure at all if it's ok to continue.

My pause is long enough for Stan to whisper a question: Hope it's ok if I ask, sorry for speaking out of line. Gina, if you mention 'biologicals' only traveling by device, would that mean that there are 'non-biologicals' doing this traveling differently?.

This is not exactly a perfect remediation strategy for all that gaping. I'm once again impressed how fast Stan identifies critical information. Living up to my truth vows I can't help confirming: "Excellent question, Stan. There are indeed sentient non-biologicals out there. The pluggers call them synthetics. Basically similar to our devices, think dark matter and energy entities with lots of intelligence inside. But in their case we are not talking artificial intelligence. They are formerly biological intelligence.

Historically, some individuals were unhappy with the dying involved in any existence as biologicals, be it as a stationary plugger or as a more mobile traveler. Once a civilization has reached a level of technical development allowing it to genetically engineer the plugger dark matter add-on and the gadgets, a kind of immortality becomes achievable, for the few high potential pluggers who have mastered download techniques.

Similar suicide scenario as in a traveller download. But instead of getting sent to another device on another planet, for printing and biological reemergence, they get themselves permanently transferred to dark matter entities roaming space. Synthetics are subject to gravitational forces and can't get too close to planets without getting pulled down and being stuck. But as long as they stay sufficiently far out, they can wander forever.

Synthetics are a threat, for pluggers, keen on sort of harvesting them for fresh biological-specific emotions. Scared me sick, when I heard about it for the first time. But there's no risk for earth, we are completely safe: No sufficiently strong plugger potentials around except mine, and Claude has taught me to structure my plugger halo in a way that makes it invisible and inaccessible from outer space. This constant effort is by the way one of the causes for my above average metabolic rate.

Earth doesn't attract synthetics and it's mere existence will have dropped from any plugger records long ago. The Kilimanjaro device hasn't been activated since the stone age. If it ever was connected to the plugger network - no idea, not accessed this device yet - this link was severed way back, for whichever reason. The only visitor we can hope for, for the foreseeable future, is Claude. Assuming he reaches his destination, manages to get the go-ahead to come back and is successfully reborn here. Three big ifs, traveling not being what anyone would call a safe mode of transport.".

Remembering I'm only here to answer questions, not supposed to do speeches, I stop, probably a bit abruptly. Alan is quick to fill the void: "Gina, thanks a lot, very informative, or rather plain stunning. Gentlemen, glad we encountered this additional big bang of breaking news early on. This is exactly the situation we feared and warned you about.

You will all remember Saph Cavarelli fighting for a couple of days, or preferably weeks, of plugger core team exclusivity, relentlessly pleading for a chance for the team to get a better idea what exactly we are dealing with, before informing everyone. And you will also recall how his objections were dismissed on the basis of the assumption, let me quote here, that 'we already know the big news, the rest won't be more than mere details'.

Well, no ten minutes into this exercise we have already learned about the existence of the synthetics, not the kind of additional news anyone in this videoconference would call a detail. And without Stan's intervention - thanks Stan, please don't hesitate to speak up again - we wouldn't have the faintest idea they are out there.".

Yep, hope hereby confirmed. Alan is very much on our side. Even trying to spare us repeat performances of this ordeal. If we continue to do well, he might have a chance to revive Saph's proposal to grant us some time to work on what I can now openly discuss in the core team. Instead of breaking the news in this messy broadcast format.

Need to stay focused. Essential not to loose momentum now, good impression-wise. The better I do, the higher Alan's chances to be allowed to let Stan and me get our act together before having to face this board again.

Alan moves on to the next question: No interaction with aliens imminent, no acute invasion threat. So far, so very good. But what about the two devices? You emphasized they are no weapons. This makes a lot more sense now that we understand their function and have witnessed a departure, granted. But still, something moving through any barrier, and at considerable speed, but also able to create a solid coating and to make any type of stuff, this sounds like a potential threat, to people and installations. Especially if it's also invisible, undetectable and can generate an impressive burst of energy. Could you please provide some more substance for your claim that these gadgets aren't dangerous, Gina?.

Oops, a tricky one, especially as the truth is less innocuous than my general previous statements suggested: "I see your point, Alan. Or rather, you very definitely have a point. These are powerful machines, and an operator can try to make them do terrible things.

I say 'try' and it really is 'try'. All device makers have always been well aware of an abuse risk and built in a couple of safety features, such as a a strong desire to make all kinds of real matter stuff and an equally massive aversion against destroying anything.

The gadgets also need a connection with an operator to be allowed to do anything more than floating around underground, waiting to be called up. They can perform very complex tasks over prolonged periods of time autonomously, but they need a go-ahead first. Actions affecting the material world can only be performed if initiated by a biological equipped and trained for device manipulation. The devices additionally feature a sort of inbuilt moral compass urging them not to hurt people.

Pretty comprehensive safeguards against rogue device mischief, to the best of my current knowledge. And there might well be many more such safety features I'm not yet familiar with. It's still early stages for me. Can tell you more once I'm strong enough to call BDT up and access what we call its library. If this topic is of primary interest, I will of course make it a research priority for the next device sessions.

That said, I also know that this quest for information will bring up examples of havoc by gadget. Claude was for example once asked to disable a device that had been used to create and spread a deadly virus. The paranoid operator lived under the delusion of a necessity to intervene against overpopulation and had in turn convinced the gadget that killing some people was ok as long as it served the greater good.".

This once again risks turning into a speech. I'm a lousy witness. Better pause to give Alan the chance to say if he wants more of the same or would prefer to switch topics again.

But it's not Alan jumping in, it's mister right, whose name I promptly notice I have already managed to forget. Will have to learn to write down this kind of information. But first of all I need to listen to however his name: Did I just hear ‚disable'? As in ‚shutting down'? This might be worth considering. Only one operator is not acceptable. In case of a fatality - you are not immortal, we need to keep in mind that we are but one stupid plane crash away from a disaster - we are stuck with lethal devices we can't control. Unacceptable..

An approach that makes sense. Would love it was that easy, and he won't like the next bit. Still building up my courage to clarify when the other one, recall his first name was Max, second name one more blank, makes this his turn: "Frank, thanks for your input, but a narrow military perspective on this is what would really be ‚unacceptable'.

Primo and first of all, let me call for a minimum of humane proceeding here. There is no need whatsoever to introduce a fatality topic. We wouldn't want to scare such a nice young lady, wouldn't we? Segundo and even more importantly, these devices are of overwhelming value, of a strategic importance not properly acknowledged at this stage. It's a must to keep them operational, even if the scope of their use still remains to be defined. As I recall mentioning in yesterdays exchange on the same topic - won't elaborate in depth again under the current timeline constraints - what happens now might well be the defining moment for this administration. First contact! We are living through a period of broadening horizons and fundamental changes calling for decisive leadership and courageous moves, not dithering ambivalence and seat belt phantasies...".

Well, now that I'm confronted with the real thing I'm relieved I've not been speechifying that badly after all. No idea where this is going. Sounds like they've been at it before. The Max guy goes on for more than a while, and is very clearly not done yet, when the Frank guy cuts him short, pretty rudely: Max, timeline constraints! We listened to this speech yesterday, thank you. The operative you call a ‚nice young lady' is recovering from a very close device encounter. She can handle the fatality topic and we need to keep this short. We should shut these things down,....

Stan is also getting restless. Probably gearing up to fight for keeping his new toys. Need to beat him to the talking slot: Sorry, can I please clarify something? You won't like this, but it's the only fact I've got on offer: We can neither disable these gadgets, nor are we in full control. Only a traveller can achieve this. It's way beyond my limited novice means..

Frank and Max are stunned into silence by this bit of more unexpected news, some of their respective brilliant plans obviously in process of crashing into the wall called reality. Stan is sitting still again, quietly focused on counting the bubbles in his glass. And I have managed to stop myself gracefully after uttering the clarification pretty coherently. First proud moment of this bloody quiz show.

This in turn provides Alan with a chance to resume his role as chair. He doesn't hesitate to restate the obvious: Well, that makes it two out of two topics pointing at the soundness of letting the core team do some more of its research job before starting to brainstorm about grand schemes. Also beginning to understand how Saph Cavarelli developed his ‚bag of surprises' rhetorical tick. Gina, as we seem to be stuck with both devices, I still would like to understand them better. What more can you tell us about them?.

Now this is one of the questions I anticipated. Problem is, still not sure which of the rehearsed answers to select. When in doubt, I'm supposed to shut up, according to Saph's repeated advice. It's probably best to use the shortest possible version: Stan explained the devices brilliantly yesterday. Not much to add. They are artificial. Each and every single one individually designed and sent to its target planet by plugger engineers. The basic design and core functions are always identical, but there is a lot of variance between sort of device series. Each plugger civilization, and even each historical period of one and the same civilization, has its typical design specifics. This makes it hard to generalize. We need to look at both our devices for details..

Not enough. All three of them clearly want more. Brace myself for the next device question. Alan is poised to try again when something on the tablet lying in front of him proves distractive. Must be some important information on this screen. He forgets about us for the time being.

This provides Max with his another chance to speechify: Both devices are here to stay, glad to hear this, and now is the time to start proceeding with a comprehensive exploration of their potential. Alan, make sure to note I'm contradicting you here - the Plugger Site One core team won't do. We of course need senior security experts on board, to do this thoroughly and cover all potential applications. Expect you are not seriously suggesting to leave such an eminently important task in the hands of an obscure science freak with a dubious - putting it mildly here - reputation and assorted middle management level field personnel? I'm sure the young lady will understand that she has to restart her device work immediately and that 9 to 5 is not an option here, she needs to go full throttle....

Whereas Stan doesn't even seem to notice the insult, totally absorbed by whatever mental operations he is performing with regards to the bubbles he must be done counting by now, Rush switches from impassively detached to massively engaged participation in a blink: Forget it, sir. No way Gina accesses this bloody death trap. Prerequisite for medical permission is 10 consecutive days of 100% ok physiological core data. We know from pretty comprehensive experience acquired over the past couple of months that anything above 10 minutes per day puts her life in peril and I won't let you kill the one and only high potential plugger available on this planet without a fight.. She's as oblivious to the insult as Stan, but she won't let them try murder me. I would never access a device in my current state, but I'm so glad she spares me getting rude myself.

Max looks puzzled and slightly deflated for an instant. Staff contradicting him directly might be something he experiences only on the rarest occasions. But he quickly pumps himself up again: Thank you, captain Costa. No one asked for your opinion. I seem to recall you, an experienced military personnel, should know that you would need permission from a senior officer to speak up. To make this plain: Shut up. The security of the nation and the future of mankind, under the proud leadership of our magnificent country, is at stakes here, this is ample justification for taking a little risk....

Thank you Max, refreshing to hear how familiar you are finally becoming with the military chain of command and way of doing things. Great achievement for an outsider. But please note one more important detail: You've got no military rank, you don't give orders. Captain Costa, you sure about these risks?. Frank won't let mad Max harm me. And we share an antipathy. Possible ally. Rush keeps it short: Yes, sir. Similar problem as with exposure to high levels of radiation. Only just brought her back last time, sir..

Frank nods in agreement and might have been poised to add something, perhaps something refreshingly rude to shut down mad Max for a while, but Alan is now visibly on a mission, has been a bit agitated throughout this exchange: That's settled, thank you. Was by the way already settled before we got going today. We've only got one device operator and need to keep her out of harms way. Now let's please proceed to a question a very important remote participant wants addressed. Gina, these two devices, are they contacts to the plugger civilizations? It's understood you currently can't operate them. But once your health is restored, once you can go back to the daily 10 minutes device operation routine, will you be able to send out a message, kind of greetings from earth?.

Another easy one that they probably won't like much: Yes and no. The Kilimanjaro device Claude used is by now reconnected to a kind of plugger civilization ‚keep in touch' network. All connected devices send out some sort of record of the action they see at regular intervals to relay devices distributing them further. Bit like our Internet, only on a much larger scale. Which means totally different response times. The focused dark energy beam carries information at light speed and the closest plugger civilization, the one where Claude is currently headed if he really wants to come back during our life time, is at 1.2 light years. Any reports the device will be sending out from now on, roughly every 2 to 3 months, will travel at the same speed. Same for any messages we send, assuming I manage to get myself registered as an operator on the Kilimanjaro device and learn how to do this. Claude is our first message to the plugger civilizations..

I manage to stop myself again. Getting better at this by the minute. Prefer to let them ask about BDT. Why should I embark on this complex story unless I absolutely need to? Stan has of course noticed I've only been talking about the African device, instead of the one I'm familiar with. Pretty sure he guesses there are issues. But he won't whisper another question any time soon. Too upset about mad Max's disregard for my physical safety.

Alan is watching his tablet again. Whoever was interested in the communication network aspect might well have posted an additional question. But while he reads the guy trying to send me on a suicide mission quickly grabs the slot: Alan, Frank, we need to go back one step. We are by no means done resolving the device access timeline and volume issues. Captain Costa's judgement might well be distorted by a lack of emotional distance. I doubt her professionalism in this case. No offense meant, of course not, never. Any excessive emotional engagement on her side is perfectly understandable if you take into account the 24/7 aspect of this job including the peculiar accommodation arrangements and the exotic circumstance to have a husband and wife team running the local show. Let's hear someone more senior on this. Would Alfa Turner happen to be on the line?.

Oops, need to keep my face under control now. Two of my worst foes uniting to expose me to mortal danger. That's exactly what I need to speed up my recovery. Adrenaline flush. Absolutely mustn't show anger. And here he goes again. Alfa doesn't even wait for Alan to give him permission to speak. The latter doesn't seem to appreciate, but lets Alfa do his thing anyway: "Thank you Max, of course, pleasure to be able to contribute, on the basis of some more comprehensive experience than dear Dr. Costa who - allow me to bring this to everyone's attention - has only joined the core team very recently, at a pretty late stage. There are a couple of points to consider here.

Let me just mention them summarily before going into the details: We've only got young Gina's not very well informed word on the dangers associated with accessing devices. We should not exclude the possibility that Claude made her believe it's hazardous on purpose, to slow us down. The remarkably resilient high potential plugger physique should keep her safe enough under most circumstances. You only need to look at her today for confirmation on how fast she recovered from being subjected to a defibrillator intervention Dr. Costa might have performed a bit prematurely anyway. Any dangers associated with operating the devices are minor compared to the risks imposed on all core team members by Saphrain Cavarelli's unwillingness to implement appropriate containment of both aliens. It's high time to reconsider this folly, now that there is only one left. Today demonstrates how perfectly possible it is to work with her remotely, there is no need for direct contact.".

What I really hate about the last bit is Alfa having a point, sort of: Both him and Max are beyond reach. The attack mode of the potential requires an exact measurement of the distance to the target and this can't be done through a video link. I would of course never actually harm them. But imagining I could - as a last resort - would provide some comfort.

Alan doesn't seem to like this much better than me. But he's a bit overwhelmed. This chairperson role is by no means easy. Instead of him it's another familiar voice we hear.

Stan has been a model of self control up to now, but hearing Vanessa makes him flinch: "Vanessa Koch speaking. Sorry to interrupt, Alfa, and sorry to contradict you, too. But I need to set this straight. I'm the exobiologist here, on board from day one - to mention an irrelevant detail in case someone considers it important- and Gina is to valuable an asset for the future of mankind to risk wasting her in overoptimistic experiments.

She can't face a device in her current state. I helped Rosa-Maria compare the data on the few available indicators - we can't put the subject on a cardio bike yet, obviously, she barely manages to sit on her one - with the baseline I have been determining over months. This incident was serious, totally different scale from the little malaise she suffered after her very first round of device access. It's also clear enough that a dose of more than 10 minutes won't be feasible. Blood sugar levels drop way to fast and far to low. Sorry Alfa, but this is an absolute physiological constraint.

And please move on and do us the favor to finally forget about this counterproductive containment idea. We need her cooperation and I bet she won't just gracefully accept a quarantine decision. Claude will have taught her his pseudo-coma trick and we can't risk antagonizing her, otherwise she might decide to shut herself down.".

Wow. I would never have expected Vanessa to rescue me. Stan is equally stunned. Alan doesn't seem to fully believe this big lump of good luck yet. Whereas Rush just smiles. Some of Saph's zen seems to have rubbed off, all of a sudden. She looks anything but surprised. How the hell does she do this? Did she know?

Frank looks expectantly at Alan. He should get us back on track now. As this doesn't lead to the intended result, the target not displaying any reaction, Frank gives him a hint: Alan, you received one more message with an urgent question, didn't you? We are in danger of wasting precious time here, we need to proceed more efficiently..

Alan nods: Yes Frank, absolutely. Gina, it's actually two additional questions, on the communications issue. Claude's report being our first message to the plugger civilizations, we would of course be thrilled to know what he will tell his superiors. We would also have preferred to send out our own message in the first place and will at minimum want to send it now ASAP. How fast you can learn to do this, assuming we make it the top priority?.

Feasible. Not easy, but feasible. And the news I bring aren't too bad. Definitely feasible. Except I'm starting to feel the strain. Not well at all. Afraid I'll have to struggle with wobbly visual once again. Anyway: Claude being our first message to a plugger civilization is actually the best possible scenario for us, for earth's image. As I learned when he shared himself, the arrival of a traveller is always a big deal, for any plugger society. There is of course the network, keeping up mutual awareness. But meeting someone who has actually lived on another planet in a different solar system is one hell of a thrill. A senior traveler - and senior starts at a low double digits number of downloads here, Claude with his by now 74 downloads is very senior indeed - is even more extraordinary....

Now wait a minute. Claude - we are talking about the mute sex addict with the sweet tooth? Correct me if I'm wrong! The Claude we know sure is no advanced civilizations idea of a senior representative. You must be misinterpreting something.... Mad Max's outrage is not completely fake. He's in for a big surprise, if ever Claude really comes back. Sick of mad Max, to hell with him. Want to finish explaining to get this meeting over with. How the hell am I supposed to do this with this showstopper always interfering?

Frank doesn't even pretend to wait for Alan to intervene. He has by now taken over the chair role and cuts my nemesis short: Thank you, Max, but I'd rather hear what this well informed young lady has to tell us, instead of listening to your speculations. Go ahead, Gina. What happens when a senior traveler arrives, whom would he report to?.

That's better, I can resume: "This of course depends on what we would call the constitution or basic law in force at the device location. It's important to keep in mind that while the traveler knows where he is going when he downloads, many things will have changed by the time of his arrival. The information on which he based his decision to select a specific destination is outdated, more or less dramatically depending on the distances covered.

Plugger communication being much faster than our more oblique languages, the traveller can and will give himself a quick update while still inside the device, to get ready for his contact with the plugger civilization in question. It's mostly a kind of first contact even for places he visited before, in the sense of new people and/or a new political system, again because of the distances involved.

Travelers don't have superiors. No one in practice has the authority to order them to do anything. Local laws might state this, most plugger civilizations do try to subject them to at least some rules. But formal legal obligations are very hard to enforce in dealings with guys who choose on which planet they live and can get very far out of reach indeed. Travelers will typically listen patiently to all sorts of demands. They'll try not to antagonize the civilization they get printed into. But they consider themselves to be bound only by their own codex,... Is this getting too long? Not sure how much detail to provide here?".

Not knowing whether to ask Alan or Frank, I look at both of them in turn. Max is already inhaling, trying to take advantage. But Frank is a pro, easily beats him to the slot: Don't worry, Gina, keep going just like that, very informative..

Not wanting to provide mad Max with an opening, I immediately resume: "Travelers are mostly held in very high regards. Sometimes even sort of worshipped. Not only as a source of information. Primarily because of their ability to use the full range of device functionalities, including shutting rogue devices down. This is going to play in our favor.

Claude very much likes earth. Especially the US and southern EU as the places he is familiar with from practical experience. He's a big fan of our local food diversity. And of the local people. In general. And of some very good friends he made on Plugger Site One. Plus he's fascinated. He has never before been confronted with - or even heard of - a civilization originally initiated by pluggers that has reverted to within a whisker of pure biological existence. Claude will praise earth as a fascinating destination where he wants to return ASAP. A perfect debut for a seriously low tech non-plugger civilization just starting to learn about dark matter and energy.".

Frank won't risk losing control again, it really is his meeting now: Makes sense. Though I won't hide being on the wrong side of this technological gap makes me shudder. Sounds like they will look at us like we look at non contact Amazon natives. Not exactly a road to equal partnership. But that's not your problem, Gina, we won't bother you with strategic considerations. Please go ahead, let's move on to the second question. How about your chances to learn how to send a message?.

I'm doing ok. Probably. Despite feeling sweaty and unwell. This bright spotlight sucks. Need to go on. Can't give in to exhaustion. Have to up keep it up: Sending a message should not be too difficult, once I'm back in the device operator game. Already got a rough idea how it's supposed to work. BDT will be keen to help me get going on this. It very much likes action. Timeline guess would be a couple of sessions, meaning a couple of days. Counting from when I'm fit enough for device access, of course....

Of course! Here they come again, the delaying tactics we discussed before. Whom do you think you are fooling, young lady?.

My mad Max foe is the perfect chair nightmare participant. Him probably being in a pretty senior role doesn't help one bit.

But Frank is no newcomer to this type of situation. It takes more than a rude Max get him off track. He doesn't even react explicitly to the provocation: Alan, these answers sound good, but they might lead to additional questions. Anything incoming yet?.

Alan is watching his screen for a reaction, but it comes by audio instead: Double o speaking, to speed this up a bit - Ms Briatico looks like she might need a break any time now. The plugger civilizations, how would they react to being addressed by the US president, as first contact? Would we be able to explain earth politics, our lack of a planetary representative and how we ended up being in control of the devices and sending the messages? Or would we risk being considered as impostors, meaning we would need to involve something like the G7, or the G20, or even the UN?.

The whatever ‚double o' means voice says ‚even the UN' in a way that signals horror. Involving the UN obviously to be considered a worst case.

Haven't got a real clue and need to admit as much: To say it very frankly, I don't know. As far as I can tell from Claude's memories, pluggers would rather expect to deal with some sort of planetary administration, responsible for a minimum of overall coordination and law enforcement for issues affecting the whole location. Claude is fascinated by the complexities of our attempts to discuss and perhaps even do something about climate change. I need to mention here that our planet is special: Earth is extremely rich, as far as agricultural resources are concerned. In Claude's opinion, this is the major reason why we managed to avoid extinction, even though the plugger civilization knowledge got lost. Most plugger populations strive very hard to achieve a minimum of food security, despite their advanced technology....

But this is horrific! It means they will come get it. We need to brace ourselves for an invasion, they will come for our food. Frank, how the hell can you listen to this all relaxed? We need to prepare to defend our resources, at once, and that would be your job!. Max really doesn't get it. He doesn't understand that you can't go planet hopping just like that.

Whereas Frank could well be called core team by now. He’s in full immersion mode: Max, just think before you speak up, do us a favor? We are running out of time here. These guys are one point something light years away and there are no warp drive space ships. Yes, they might want a go at our supermarkets and fridges, by the sound of this. But most of them simply can't. Only a couple of travelers are able to make such a trip, and most of these will be so many light years away that they won't even hear about us for hundreds or thousands or even hundreds of thousands of years. Correct, Gina? Please go ahead, you were not done answering the question about the presidential message..

That's the way. Only having to nod is a relief after all this telling. But it's not over. He expects me to continue. This is so terribly complicated: Claude as our sort of ambassador will certainly explain how humanity is organized, politically. He’s well aware of the importance of the US as the major power. Having spent time in so many and so very diverse plugger civilizations, he's excellent at understanding and explaining local structures, and an extremely openminded mediator between civilizations. As long as it works, preferably with a minimum of repression, it's fine by his standards. He will do his best to convince anyone else that this is ours to decide and theirs to respect. A message by the US president should be well received, with Claude's help. But the plugger civilization we are contacting might not accept permanent exclusivity and confidentiality....

This reminds me, the bloody sun-of-a-bitch has been fucking a Chinese astronaut, hasn't he? Whoever let that happen will have the heat on real hot, once we are done with the most urgent issues, that much I promise. How much did he tell her, about his origins and the devices?. The gloves are off for good now, as far as mad Max is concerned. Hard to even recall the polished politico speak we got from him at the beginning.

Alan and Frank both look poised to counter. They don't get the chance. The ‚double o speaking‘ voice intervenes: Permission to watch your language, Max. We have just learned that Claude is an ambassador of vital importance to US interests and he won't be called names. Glad he really seems to have forgiven our initial sins, as in water boarding a high profile alien more used to being treated as a VIP, if not an outright deity. The agents in charge by the way dutifully sought and received permission for the taikonaut angle of the plugger project. Talking both the general aspect, as in locating the plugger project and the taikonaut-astronaut exchange program at the same site on purpose, and the individual aspect, as in acknowledging the intimate relationship you just mentioned. Convincing rationale at the time of the decision, very much confirmed by recent events..

This sounds good. A clear endorsement of Saph's way to proceed. By whoever ‚double o‘ is. Definitely sounds authoritative, the guy. Alfa and Max aren't winning. Not yet. Need to keep performing. And it's indeed my turn again. Alan wants me to continue: Gina, you were just trying to warn exclusivity and confidentiality would not be accepted forever. Please go ahead, what would this mean?.

What was the question again? I'm really struggling now. Not sure what we were talking about. Why did I mention exclusivity and confidentiality? Oh yes, think I remember, back on track: The plugger civilization where Claude is headed now will most probably not want to be used by any one earth side trying to gain advantage in a local power contest. He's been there before, relatively recently, and that's where he was trying to go when BDT intercepted his transmission. They are way ahead of us. They will probably want to make sure any technological advances are shared fairly across all of humanity..

I'm so tired. An up swelling headache doesn't help. Better just stop. Frank looks like he has a question anyway. Here it comes: This reminds me, just one quick question for our very quiet scientific advisor: Are they more intelligent than us, the pluggers? Claude is obviously very clever, and no stranger to strategy and tactics. Gina is an astrophysicist with a Ph.D., hinting at solid brainpower. Stan, you are supposed to be one of the most intelligent people gracing this planet, and no plugger. What are our chances to keep up? Do you expect you will be able to make sense of the stuff we are learning?.

Great. I finally get a bit of a break, and instead of a chance to relax I now need to worry how Stan will cope, this type of statement and question not being among his favorites. And he hesitates. Of course he does. He’s lucky Alan is familiar with the reason for the lack of responsiveness and helps him to get started: Come on, Stan, no need to be shy. It's ok to confirm how clever you are, we all perfectly well know it anyway. What are your chances to make sense of plugger level physics, how long would you expect to take?.

That's better. This prompt gets him going: "Basically, genetically, the pluggers won't be that much cleverer, but that's Vanessa's area of expertise. For me, and any other physicists who might be allowed to have a go, the rest largely depends on whether Gina can access what we call the library. With library access, we are talking months or years. Without, we are talking decades