- - -
POV: Arthur Sinclair.
I connected the Flexi once more to the custom connector and placed it on the table. "Alright. Begin testing sequence."
"Beginning tests 1 through 2933," the ship's AI acknowledged.
As the seconds passed, I waited for the confirmation of a failed test, but nothing came. Finally, after five minutes, the AI spoke again. "Initial tests passed. Shall I begin full testing?"
I took a deep breath. I had spent five days doing nothing but updating the security protections for the Flexi. Luckily, I didn't have to come up with test cases. The Cobalt Eye was among the greatest pieces of anti-security hardware ever produced by the Inner Sphere. According to the AI itself, it could bypass basically all the security systems ever produced by any of the Great Houses, at least given enough time.
While I didn't know how effective it would be against Cylon or even a High Guard AI like Captain Pearce, it could interface with unique computer architectures and find weaknesses. During initial testing, the AI had found several thousand security vulnerabilities.
The first 2933 tests were the ones that could be completed within a few brief seconds. The rest were all more complex and were likely to take a lot longer to complete.
I nodded. "Continue with the tests."
The AI was quiet for a few moments. "Tests are underway. The expected runtime is two hours. Less if any of the tests fail."
As I sighed and relaxed into my chair, the pilot walked up behind me. "Sir, we'll be jumping in a few minutes."
I nodded. "Thank you for the warning."
He nodded and returned to his work. Approximately ten minutes passed when I heard the radio go off. "Prepare to jump."
A countdown began over the intercom, and I waited for the jump to go. It was a strange sensation. On the one hand, I could tell that something had happened, but there was no actual sign that anything had changed.
Over the intercom, someone spoke. "Jump completed. Destination confirmed. Time to next jump: 42 hours."
I looked around and let out a sigh. I had been expecting something more, but perhaps it was for the best that there wasn't. There was still other work to do. Namely, I had to copy all the code for the Constructor, Miner, and Smelter. It wouldn't take too long, especially once I had the Cobalt Eye's help, but it wasn't something I wanted to spend too much time on.
I worked for another two hours before the Cobalt Eye finally spoke. "All tests have been completed successfully. No failures."
I blinked. "Really? No failures?"
"That is correct." That wasn't supposed to happen. I was expecting at least another two days of debugging before everything was fixed. "Alright then. Time to take it to Deimos and see what it can do."
I unbuckled from my chair and made my way to the elevator, down to the cargo deck, and back over to the Manassas. From there, I had to wait a few minutes before the next trip back to Kaelastrum.
We had used a small cart when traveling from zero-g environments onto planets. It had happened a few times where people had gotten injured when they traversed through the gate, because they'd fallen from higher up, or just gotten disoriented. This was a much safer alternative.
From Kaelastrum, I took the Stargate over to Dendred and then up into orbit, where both Deimos and the Daedalus were waiting. The Deimos jumpdrive had been repaired a few months back, and it was now idling in orbit, acting as a training ground for zero-G practice.
I was genuinely surprised that the Colonials hadn't started shooting at her, but they were all soldiers. I grabbed my radio and spoke, using the frequency that had been assigned for contacting the Cylons. "This is Arthur Sinclair to Deimos. I have something I need to discuss with you."
A few moments passed before a reply came in an unnaturally smooth voice. It wasn't robotic; instead it was androgynous, with maybe a slight feminine lilt, but listening to the voice was just ever so slightly uncanny. "You are clear for arrival. Use the Ring Transporter."
The ring transporter had been placed pretty close to the Stargate for this reason, so I quickly made my way over and selected Deimos as the final destination.
The rings came up around me, and I suddenly found myself on the Deimos. I hadn't been on board the vessel in a while, but I still knew the way to the computer core.
As I entered the room, the display came to life, showing something completely unexpected… a chibi skeleton. The same uncanny voice spoke from the nearby speakers. "Welcome! What do you wish to discuss?"
I was frozen, slack jawed for several long moments, only regaining my composure when laughter emanated from the speakers.
I coughed once. "I'd like your help with testing the newly implemented security measures for this device."
"Can do. Hook it up" I nodded and got to work. I had already created a connector a few days in advance, so hooking the thing up was a piece of cake.
"Connection confirmed." A few seconds passed. "Wow, you did some great work. Give me six hours, and I'll tell you what I have by then."
I nodded. "Thank you."
- - -
Two days later.
Deimos had extended the requested time twice. The first time was for a period of a day, then another day. So, here I was two days later.
The moment I entered the primary computer core, the response I got was not what I was expecting. "I couldn't find a single security vulnerability."
I stared at the Chibi Skeleton on the display incredulously. "Really? Nothing?"
It nodded a few times. "Yeah. I couldn't find anything. Your people have some really advanced cybersecurity. I can't wait to get a look at it."
Its voice and choice of avatar still threw me for a loop. I blinked a few times. "Well, thank you for your time."
It nodded. "Of course. Thank you for the challenge."
I left the ship feeling rather confused. Echo and Deimos had both been using speakers to communicate for a couple of weeks now, since right after the signing of the charter, but the annoyingly cute skeleton avatar was strange. It had clearly thrown all the colonials for a loop as well. I had seen a few of them. They had always acted tense when around the Cylons; it was different now.
They still acted tense when around the Cylons, but now it was ever so slightly more relaxed. If I had to guess, it was likely a purposeful decision to get the colonials to lower their guard, and it was certainly working.
It was time for me to get back to work on the JFX project.
- - -
Three days later.
I entered the president's office. He, along with Ma'chello and Elder James, seemed to have been waiting for me. "Arthur! Please take a seat."
I nodded and took one of the empty seats. The President continued. "Currently, we depend on the Stargate and the Goa'uld communication orbs for all forms of interstellar communication. We have only eight pairs of orbs, and six of those are already in use. Now, it has come to my attention that we do in fact have another option, yes?"
Elder James nodded. "That would be correct. We have the Hyperpulse Generators that can do relatively short-range FTL transmission."
I sat back. I hadn't considered the HPGs since I'd seen them onboard the Claymore. Actually, why hadn't I? The Mobile HPGs included highly miniaturized Hyperspace Field Initiators. It wasn't exactly the same technology, but if I could apply the advancements from the HPG Field Initiators, I could probably increase the range of the Colonial Jump Drive by a short distance as well.
I pursed my lips and nodded. "The Stargate is only viable as long as we don't have any incoming wormholes. Should any of the Goa'uld learn of our existence, they can just flood our gate with incoming traffic to prevent us from leaving."
The president nodded. "That is why the orbs are so vital for our long-range expeditions. We need as many of them free for other things as we can get. Is it possible to produce more of these HPGs?"
The President was looking squarely at me as he spoke. I was silent for a moment as I reviewed the blueprint for the device in my mind. "It is technically feasible, but producing these devices is only barely easier than producing our own integrated circuits. The Hyperspace Field Initiator, the most complex part, is incredibly dense, for lack of a better term. I could probably make a slightly less complex variant, though it would have a much reduced range."
The President nodded. "How long do you think that would take?"
I winced. "Two, three months. Minimum. That is with all of my efforts focused on the task."
The President let out a sigh. "Then that will have to be put on the back burner. But I want a test of our current Mobile HPGs to prove that they function."
Elder James nodded. "That we can do. We'll have the tests completed by the end of the day."
- - -
18 Hours later.
We all watched as the HPG was activated and fired. My radio started screaming as the burst went off. I scowled as I quickly grabbed it and turned it off. HPG produced a lot of radio static; I knew about that ahead of time, and I had still forgotten to turn it off.
Behind me, one of the technicians yelled. "Message receipt confirmed. It looks like it worked perfectly."
The tests proceeded sequentially with a transmission and reception test for each of the HPGs. By the end, we had confirmed that all the machines were in order. I groaned. "Why the heck did you even need me here?"
Elder James chuckled. "You are currently the leading expert on HPG technology. Besides, it only took thirty minutes."
I let out a sigh. "Well, I'm getting back to work. You know where to find me."
It was at this moment that someone came rushing in. "We have an issue with the Stargate."
I blinked. That was strange. Elder James frowned. "Explain."
The soldier continued. "Well, sir, the event horizon isn't forming. All the chevrons engage, and we can even communicate with the people on the other side, but… well, we can't send anyone through."
Elder James stood up and gestured towards me. "Come on, Arthur. We're going to have to check this out."
I nodded and followed behind him. The Stargate was less than a mile away from the field we were testing the HPGs in. When we arrived, the gate had already powered down. Elder James spoke to the DHD operator. "Dial Mycena please."
A moment later, the Stargate sprang to life. The inner ring moved, and slowly but surely, each of the chevrons locked and engaged. Then, nothing. The Stargate remained active, but there was no blue whirlpool. Everyone's radios activated at once. "This is Mycena DHD Control to Kaelastrum DHD Control. Can you hear me?"
The voice was crackly, filled with a lot of static. That was incredibly strange. I'd never heard static from a transmitter at the other end of a wormhole.
While the reply was being sent, Elder James turned to me. "Arthur? Any idea what's going on?"
I nodded ever so slightly. "You hear the static, right? There is something interfering with the transmission. The only way that's possible is if the wormhole is unstable. The safety precautions have probably been activated to prevent people from going through."
Elder James nodded. "Alright. Go see what you can do."
I immediately jogged off to the small building, which was used to house the DHD. As I entered, I connected my compad and began looking through the logs. The issue was about what I had expected.
Subspace Destabilization. Chance of Matter Stream Collapse greater than minimum safe value. Current probability: 87%.
That wasn't worrying at all.