Alright, let's have a go at the plan Azira proposed:
Trade 1 culture for 2 tools.
Attend seminar.
Go to Moiran.
Trade 2 tools for 2 crystals, then
VPKBVY (5 phases) Ask about Phase Steel.
F9ID7Q (5 phases) Visit the shipyard.
V9KDVQ (4 phases) Look for illegal arms and armor.
BPYB9Y (3 phases) Visit Dee's Pleasure Palace.
Go to Wellmet.
Trade 1 fuel for 3 munitions.
Trade 1 fuel for Laser reflector.
Return to crater.
Trade 1 fuel and 1 munitions for a Pulse inverter.
Go to Bugeye.
With one minor modification: we won't be visiting Dee's Pleasure Palace. Consider this a meta-gamey exception on my part.
On Crater, we buy 2 Tools in exchange for 1 Culture (=> current Cargo: 3 Fuel, 2 Tools) and then attend the seminar.
Paragraph 104
Olarus takes you to the auditorium where the seminar on combat and weapons is just about ready to begin. The lights dim and the speaker walks onto the stage. She steps up to the podium and greets the two hundred people who are waiting to hear her lecture.
"Welcome. As you know, it is of the utmost importance that every citizen be able to defend themselves in the event of an alien invasion. Today we will be going over the fundamentals of combat. We will be covering both hand-to-hand and ship-to-ship combat.
"At the end of the lecture you will be required to take a test on the material I have presented. Your score on this exam will be reported to the Crater Defense Authority. Feel free to take notes."
You gulp nervously and start going through your pockets, hoping to find paper and pencil. Thankfully you pull out an old notepad and a pencil stub. Feeling a bit more prepared, you settle down to listen to the seminar.
"There are two different kinds of combat: hand-to-hand and ship-to-ship. In hand-to-hand combat, you fight your enemy in person, on the surface of a planet. In ship-to-ship combat, you fight your enemy with your spaceship, in space.
"In both types of combat, the basic strategy is the same. You must try to hurt your enemy without being hurt yourself. Let's call hurting your enemy your attack and preventing being hurt yourself your defense.
"Any weapon or skill you use to attack can be classified in one of three categories: contact, projectile, or special.
"An attack contact weapon is one you actually reach out and touch your enemy with, like a knife. An attack projectile weapon is one that 'shoots' something at your enemy, like a gun. An attack special weapon is a clever trick of some sort, like sleeping gas.
"Any weapon or skill you use to defend can also be classified in one of three categories: armor, mobility, or special.
"A defense armor weapon is one that absorbs the impact of your enemy's attack, like a shield. A defense mobility weapon is one that enables you to dodge out of the way of your enemy's attack, like spring boots. A defense special weapon is one that protects you in some other way, usually a disruptive maneuver of some sort, like a smokescreen.
"To prepare yourself for the final conflict, you should try to have weapons or skills in all three attack categories and all three defense categories. Weapons in different categories can combine their effectiveness; weapons in the same category can't.
"When you go into combat, you'll be able to use exactly one weapon in each of the six categories—three attack and three defense. You can use your best attack contact weapon, your best attack projectile weapon, your best attack special weapon, your best defense armor weapon, and so on. You won't be able to use more than one weapon in the same category. So, I can't stress too highly the importance of having weapons or skills in as many categories as possible.
"Now let us consider the question of which specific weapons in each category you should try to acquire. Your basic hand-to-hand attack contact weapons are the stunner and the piercer. The stunner delivers a powerful electric shock to your enemy. The piercer has a sharp energy blade that can slice your enemy in half. Both of these weapons are effective and relatively inexpensive. Fancier weapons are available, but they're more expensive and harder to find.
"The basic hand-to-hand attack projectile weapons are the blaster and the exploder. The blaster shoots an energy beam over a range of up to 100 yards and is an excellent distance weapon. The exploder launches a chemical explosive charge over a shorter range, and is good for attacking enemies equipped with energy-resistant defenses or groups of enemies. As with the contact weapons, you can buy fancier projectile weapons, but they cost more.
"Your basic types of defense armor are the laser reflector and skin armor. The laser reflector is a high-tech energy refocusing device that absorbs and partially deflects most energy beams. Skin armor is a suit you wear over your whole body that helps protect you from physical damage.
"For mobility, the most common items you can buy are a rocket pack and missile toes. The rocket pack straps on your back and allows you to fly short distances. Missile toes are worn on your feet; they permit you to run faster and leap farther.
"Attack and defense special weapons come in many guises, but are all relatively esoteric, so I won't go into a lengthy discussion of what is available. Buy whatever appeals to you.
"As you can see, there are many different kinds of weapons. How do you decide which ones to get? Without a knowledge of the specific enemy you will be facing, there's really nothing to go by. Each weapon has its strengths and weaknesses. A blaster would work well against a fierce animal, but an exploder would be better against a soldier wearing a laser reflector. A rocket pack would be effective outdoors, but missile toes would work better indoors. So, the bottom line is that you're best off acquiring every kind of weapon that you can. That way, you can use whatever works best in a given situation.
"Now, do we have time for a quick discussion of the basic ship-to-ship weapons?"
You look at your watch and see that two hours have passed.
"No, I guess not. We still have your tests to do. We'll cover ship-to-ship weapons next time. Meanwhile, remember that the fundamental tactics are the same for ship-to-ship combat as for hand-to-hand. Try to get weapons in as many categories as you can. Then, within each category, try to get weapons with different strengths and weaknesses, so you are prepared for as many kinds of situations as possible.
"O.K.—it's time for your test. Proctors will be coming around with the forms. You will have twenty minutes to read through the questions and hand in your answers. Good luck."
Although you did rather well in school, you were never really good at pop quizzes. You are not looking forward to this at all.
When you are handed your copy of the exam, you take one look at it and see that you are in trouble. The questions are written in a strange-looking script that you can barely read. It bears some resemblance to Earth Standard, but not much. It's closer to old English.
Guessing what the words are as best you can, you fill out your answer sheet. You finish just as the speaker calls "Time", and hand in your paper. Shrugging your shoulders, you leave the auditorium and go in search of Olarus. Several hours pass before you find him.
"Hello," he calls to you. "Did you enjoy the lecture? You certainly have quite a bit of learning to do before you'll be ready to fight the final war. You finished in the bottom ten percent on the exam."
You explain that you had difficulty reading the script, and ask Olarus why the Craterians don't use Earth Standard.
"Here on Crater we use the same language we did before the Boundary was set up—English. In the last three hundred years, the Nine Worlds built the Boundary and adopted a new language. Meanwhile, we devoted all our resources to building up our defenses. We don't have time for silly things like standardizing our language to conform to customs inside the Boundary. We need to get ready for the invasion."
"I see," you reply. It's amazing how paranoid these Craterians really are. "Well, I hope my low score on the exam won't disgrace me in Craterian society."
"Your chances of being accepted as a recruit for the Defense Forces won't be too good," Olarus remarks.
Just as well, you think to yourself, as you head back to your ship.
Shame on you, Professor Dambroke!
Next we return to Moiran...
Paragraph 122
Welcome back to Moiran, that run-down, foul-smelling, sorry excuse for a habitable planet. Of course, with Phase Steel, ship improvements, and personal weapons all available on one world, the place does have a certain attractiveness. You can't help feeling, though, that a gas mask concession stand would outsell all the other markets combined.
You arrive at the spaceport without incident; your options are the same as before.
...and trade 2 Tools for 2 Crystals:
While we're here, let's also inquire about Phase Steel.
Phase Steel: A rare, super strong metallic material which can only be forged under conditions of extremely intense, perfectly distributed magnetic pressure. Phase steel cannot be melted, bent, broken, or otherwise damaged by any known method.
Paragraph 305
A ballistic rocket takes you straight to the North Pole Flyport, where you are met at once by an obsequious official of the Moiran Metal Works. You spend a couple of days touring the complex and hearing all about the wonderful properties of Phase Steel before finally arranging a meeting with a sales rep. He is all business, and in no time you are asking him the key question:
"Do you have any Phase Steel for sale?"
"Just a moment and I'll check our inventory," says the sales rep, but he doesn't move an inch. You sense he is waiting for something but haven't a clue what you are supposed to be doing.
"Ahemm!" the oily little man says loudly while rubbing his thumb and first two fingers together. It suddenly dawns on you that he wants money in exchange for this information. Without knowing the proper protocol, you try to nonchalantly slip him a bribe. Apparently you have done the correct thing because he smiles a greasy smile and opens a large ledger.
You must have given him more than he expected or he wouldn't be babbling away while he turns the large heavy pages of the book.
"We don't always have a lot of surplus phase steel for sale, you know," he chatters at you. "Our two biggest customers usually purchase everything we produce."
"Oh?" you respond, trying to be casual. "And who might they be?"
"Well, of course, there's Wellmet. They buy about fifty per cent of the material. Here we are," he interrupts himself, pointing to the ledger. "My, you are in luck. We do have some surplus this week."
You are excited by the opportunity to purchase some of the rare phase steel but you want to find out who the second big customer is.
"Great, we can discuss the prices," you reply. "Oh, by the way, who did you say the second customer was?"
"That information is confidential," the salesman replies.
Now that you know who you're dealing with, you instinctively reach for a larger bribe.
"...but I'm sure that you can be trusted. Our other principal customer is the Nine Worlds Space Patrol."
The oily salesman doesn't notice the overwhelming effect his information has upon you. The Space Patrol! That bastion of law and order! How could they be actively involved in Smuggling?
You do not hear what the man is telling you, something about the Patrol being a long-standing customer from the early days of the Boundary. You take a moment to catch your breath and regroup your scattered thoughts. Soon you are able to listen to what the man is telling you. He is giving you the price for phase steel:
- 2 Computers + 2 Food + 1 Fiber + 1 Tools
You need to decide if you wish to make a purchase.
You may select this option again.
We can't purchase Phase Steel just yet, but I'll put it on our shopping wishlist in the OP.
Now to the local shipyard!
Paragraph 331
As you approach the large construction yard located next to the spaceport, you can't help but notice that the ships inside are being fitted with guns, additional hull plating, combat maneuvering jets and the like. Inside, your eye is immediately caught by an advertisement for something called "The Nine Worlds Special", the centerpiece of which is an ECM package designed specifically for avoiding Boundary guard ships of the Nine Worlds Space Patrol. If this shipyard doesn't cater to professional smugglers, then you're prepared to eat your ship. Still, it's probably just what you're looking for. Get your checkbook ready, for...
- Photon torpedos—1 Munitions
- Magnetic deflectors—1 Food, 1 Iron
- Auxiliary rockets—1 Medicine, 1 Fiber
- Turbo navigation—1 Computers, 1 Munitions, 1 Radioactives, 1 Tools
You may select this option again.
This... isn't bad. What exactly are those things, though?
Photon Torpedos: Small but powerful energy packets that travel at faster-than-light speeds across space and explode at a predetermined target. (Ship-to-Ship Attack Projectile.)
Magnetic Deflectors: Powerful magnetic fields projected in front of a ship's hull to absorb energy attacks. (Ship-to-Ship Defense Armor.)
Auxiliary Rockets: Extra thrusters that give a spaceship more speed and maneuverability. (Ship-to-Ship Defense Mobility.)
Turbo Navigation: Computer algorithms that enhance the speed and maneuverability of a spaceship by carefully coordinating the drive systems, power generator, directional controller, and other components. (Ship-to-Ship Defense Mobility.)
Sounds nice. OP updated in case we want to buy any of these enhancements later.
Next we decide to look for illegal arms and armour here on Moiran. For that, we head to Tony the Shark's place. Sounds scary.
Paragraph 340
The directions you get to Tony the Shark's place send you deep into the maze-like back alleys of the warehouse district. And you thought the air was foul-smelling in the open areas of the city! The distinct lack of ventilation causes such a build-up of noxious odors that you feel your stomach heaving in protest.
Keeping all of your bodily functions in control is a monumental task but you manage it somehow. Soon you find yourself in an area of buildings that are almost presentable. You correctly guess that you have arrived at your destination.
Tony the Shark's place is located inside a relatively well-kept warehouse. It makes sense that the proprietor (aka 'Tony') would want to keep the area around his establishment policed and safe for his clients. You begin to feel better about being here.
Upon entering, you see floor-to-ceiling racks of all the latest equipment: personal body armor, hand-held blasters, starship gun nacelles, and so on. You spend several minutes just wandering around inside and looking at all of the fabulous equipment. Eventually, however, your presence is noted by a bulky man with the clothes and demeanor of a professional thug.
"Hey!" he says. "Whaddaya think yer doin' here?"
"Shopping," is your brilliant reply.
"Shoppin'," he says. "You think we got Brussels sprouts here or somethin'? We'd better go see Tony."
The thug leads you to the back of the store and through a door into a small office. A fat woman with bleached blonde hair is seated there doing paperwork. She looks up as you come in.
"Hey, Boss," says the thug. "This one came in to do some shoppin'."
She gives you a withering glance and you can see she now thinks you are some soft excuse for an explorer. You think quickly about how to get some credibility back with this hard woman.
"That's right," you say in your toughest sounding voice. "I'm shopping to see what I can pick up for my crew, a dozen of the nastiest prison escapees you've ever laid eyes on. I'm just lookin' around for now, maybe pickin' up one or two things and maybe I'll place a bigger order later."
Tony is looking at you with new respect and you breathe a sigh of relief. Your ruse is working and you'll probably get a reasonable price if she thinks you will place a larger order in the future. With any luck, if and when you return, she'll have forgotten your face.
Tony heaves herself up out of her seat and leads you over to a catalog of the merchandise she has in stock at the present time, including the "Class B" price list. You briefly wonder how expensive these same items would be on the "Class A" price list.
- Blaster—1 Fluids, 1 Tools
- Neuron Whip—1 Computers, 1 Munitions
- Missile Toes—1 Fiber, 1 Radioactives
- Disintegration Gun—1 Computers, 1 Culture, 1 Food, 1 Medicine
You may select this option again.
Even more things we can't buy any of!
Blaster: A common hand-held weapon that shoots an energy beam over a short distance. (Hand-to-Hand Attack Projectile.)
Neuron Whip: An electromagnetic wave designed to interfere with the normal transmission of neural signals between the brain and muscles of living creatures, causing intense pain. (Hand-to-Hand Attack Special.)
Missile Toes: A colloquial merchandising name for rocket-assisted footwear, designed to give the wearer greater speed and agility in endeavors such as ballet, sports, and hand-to-hand combat. (Hand-to-Hand Defense Mobility.)
Disintegration Gun: A hand-held weapon that uses an ultra-high frequency energy beam to cause an object to fade out of existence. (Hand-to-Hand Attack Projectile.)
But as we walk back to our spaceship...
Paragraph 557
You leave Tony the Shark's place and begin making your way back to the spaceport. You find the twisting back alleys too much for your sense of direction and soon find yourself hopelessly lost.
"Oh great," you think to yourself as the noxious odors threaten to overwhelm you. "What else can go wrong?"
You should know better than to ask because you immediately find yourself in a torrential rainfall. It is over almost as quickly as it began, but leaves an extremely unpleasant aftereffect. The same way a slight dog odor is exacerbated by water, you find Moiran's extremely unpleasant planetary odor is severely affected by the rainfall.
Gagging, you stagger through the maze of passageways trying to reach an open area where you can breathe.
As luck would have it, you take a completely wrong turn and find yourself walking down a blind alley. Turning around brings you face to face with a mugger.
Damn.
Or maybe it's alright.
Paragraph 659
Despite the handicap of not being able to breathe, you find you are more than a match for the would-be attacker. Deciding not to let a chance for some loot of your own pass you by, you frisk the unconscious body and discover the mugger had a blaster. You pocket the weapon at once, mentally thanking him, and whatever god kept you safe during the fight.
Eventually you make your way back to the ship where you immediately strip down and shower for over an hour to cleanse the stench of the planet from your body. There's no way you would have been able to sleep otherwise.
Loot!
A free Blaster for us.
Arriving on Wellmet, we trade 1 Fuel for 3 Munitions and then 1 Fuel for a Laser reflector. After that, we fly back to Crater...
Paragraph 377
When you return to the fortresslike planet Crater, you are careful to radio the spaceport before entering the atmosphere. You notice that the planet is built up with even more defenses than they had the last time, and the huge smoldering chasm in the planet's side is as ugly as ever. Like the first time you came here, spaceport control takes over your ship and brings you down on a ramp in the visitor's minefield. From there, you spend a few hours in quarantine, and a few hours being interrogated under truth serum. Crater Security decides you are safe, so the guard Olarus takes you to the underground city.
...for a Pulse inverter:
Our current cargo is 2 Crystals and 2 Munitions, we have two hand-to-hand projectile weapons (Blaster, Exploder), armour (Laser reflector), and a ship defense item (Pulse inverter). What we lack is ship-to-ship offensive something, but hopefully we'll be able to acquire some weapons for our spaceship later.
With that, we travel to Bugeye.
Paragraph 136
From space, the planet you're orbiting looks like a huge ball of mud. It is warm and brown, and the surface is made out of a thick, gooey substance that is half-solid, half-liquid. The gravity and atmosphere are well-suited to the evolution of native life. Indeed, the planet is teeming with vegetation and small insects. The hot equatorial region is especially populated. There, the mass of crawling, jumping, and flying bugs is so dense that the lifeform counts are off your sensors' scales. However, this phenomenon applies strictly to the small bugs. There are no larger animals at all. Undoubtedly the muddy surface makes further evolution difficult, since anything too big would sink.
The only regions of the planet where you could consider the surface solid are the north and south poles. There the colder temperature makes the gooey surface hard enough to support heavy objects (such as your ship). Just as you're wondering whether it would be possible to establish a manned base in these areas, your computer reports that it has contact a small human colony at the North Pole.
"Welcome to Bugeye, fuel depot of the Ghostworlds," the port officer greets you over the radio. "You are being cleared for landing at Range City Spaceport. Please transmit your identification codes and prepare to follow standard guidance procedures for your approach."
In less than an hour you are on the ground. "That was simple," you remark to the port officer, "You must handle a lot of travelers here."
"Not really, but we try to accommodate our visitors as best we can. We're a pretty small colony, and trading's our only source of income. You're in Range City now. Hope you enjoy your stay. By the way, you're not allowed to leave the city without a permit. You wouldn't want to anyway. Planet's full of bugs. That's why the name, Bugeye. Unbelievable number of bugs."
"Yeah, I was noticing that on the way down..."
"They're a great source of fuel, you know. Traders like you come to the spaceport with commodities we need, and we sell fuel that we make from the bugs. Best fuel in the galaxy. 'Course, we do more than just make fuel here. During the Great Expansion, a bunch of Harvard scientists started the colony for research. Then, when the Boundary was set up, most of the scientists left, but some stayed. The research is still going on. It must be pretty important, since we still get scientists from other planets coming here. Some kind of genetic studies that the bugs are good for. I couldn't tell you much more about it."
You thank the official for his time and head over to the spaceport's lodging facilities, which are provided free of charge for the colony's trading customers. Your options for further action are as follows:
- OGFEIM (3 phases) Trade commodities at Range City's import/export exchange.
- 8GHEAM (3 phases) Visit the famous Tavern on the Range, in the city's entertainment district.
- OWFGIE (4 phases) Get an appointment to see Director Colmaris, the head of the colony's fuel refining operation. He's rumored to know everything there is to know about everything.
- 8WHGAE (5 phases) Accompany a scientific research team on a mission to one of the reservation outposts in the equatorial region.
First, as usual, we pay a visit to the commodity market.
Paragraph 676
The import/export exchange is a small office in the city. You talk with the young woman at the front desk. She tells you that the Bugeye colony does most of their commerce through regular shipping contracts with the other Ghostworlds, primarily Wellmet and Supa. This business is carried out by freighters that arrive at the spaceport a couple of times a month to drop off various commodities and pick up fuel. Individual visitors such as yourself come to the planet only occasionally.
However, they are happy to have you visit Bugeye any time. They will offer you the same terms of trade they have with their regular customers. Namely, they will give you:
- 3 Fuel for 1 Culture
- 3 Fuel for 1 Munitions
- 2 Fuel for 1 Tools
- 1 Fuel for 1 Food
You may select this option again.
OP updated.
We decide not to trade for now (this is a decision for you to make after this update). Instead, we head to the local watering hole.
Paragraph 670
You leave the heat of the afternoon sun behind you as you step into the tavern. The cool dimly lit interior is a pleasant change from the humidity of the outside world; you seat yourself at the nearest table with a contented sigh.
Looking around, you can see no more than a dozen patrons like yourself taking advantage of a lull in their afternoon's work to stop by the bar for a cold one. You nod pleasantly to the nearest person who snorts in disgust and turns away. Now what was that all about?
The bartender approaches your table—apparently they don't have waiters here. He asks for your order.
"A tall frosty iced tea, my good man," is your reply. He stands there for a moment as if to give you time to place your real order, then heads back to the bar shaking his head. He returns a short time later with your drink and you pay him.
You give the room another scan to see if there is anybody who looks like they would be interested in exchanging information with you. The table in the far corner has five people who are intently playing a rather complex-looking card game, and you wisely decide not to bother them. Three people are seated at various tables with whom you might be able to strike up a conversation. First you would have to wake them from their drunken stupors, though. This doesn't seem too promising a proposition, so you continue to scan the room.
Two women in miner's clothes are sitting with a young man wearing the frilliest outfit you have seen in a good long time. They seem to be making some sort of deal, because you see them shake hands before going to the back room together. Now what could that have been all about?
That leaves the less-than-friendly man who turned his back on you when you first entered. Not being the type to hold a grudge, you take your tea and join him at his table.
"Hot, isn't it?" you begin. "But it's not so much the heat as the humidity, don't you think?" With this innocuous start, you proceed to introduce yourself and ask if you can sit down.
The man turns toward you with a fierce glare. "I hate outworlders, I despise space jockeys and I can't find the words to say what I think of YOU!" he bellows, rising from his chair. He is about seven feet tall and you estimate he weighs at least 400 pounds.
You try to smile and back away; you are not looking for a fight. You don't get more than two steps towards the door before he grabs you and starts to take a swing at you.
Good gosh, our second combat in one update.
Pew pew pew. Phrmm. Hell yeah.
Paragraph 31
The man may be big, but you are smarter and faster. You evade his punches and strike back with a mug of beer in his face, a chair leg to his midriff, and a bottle of whiskey over his head. A cheer rises from the area of the card players as the bully slumps to the floor, dazed but not seriously hurt. Next time he'll think twice before messing around with a space traveler.
The next several hours are spent accepting the drinks the other patrons insist on buying you. Apparently the bully liked to pick on at least one innocent victim a day to work out his aggression. If he couldn't find an offworlder, then a local would have to suffice. This is the first time somebody was able to get the best of the big lug and they love you. Maybe this mud-covered, bug-filled planet isn't such a bad place after all.
To each combat encounter, multiple outcomes are possible. This was a pure win scenario.
Time to see if Director Colmaris, the head of the colony's fuel refining operation, knows something about... something.
Paragraph 298
It takes you two days just to get permission to enter Colmaris' private office building, much less see The Man himself. You are quite taken aback when no sooner do you sign the guest book in the lower lobby than you are greeted by the Director's private secretary and ushered upstairs into a plush, penthouse suite.
"A pleasure to meet you at last!" the Director exclaims. You never realized you were such a star. Fortunately, your puzzled expression gets the point across, and he launches into a lengthy explanation. Boy, does this fellow have contacts. He not only knows who you are, he knows where you were born, what you did back on your home planet, and why you decided to explore space. He knows your ship's name, what it's carrying, and where it's been. His business, he says, is to keep track of space travelers. It's a good thing he likes you.
"I admire people like you, people who are willing to take risks to break new ground. I was much the same way myself in my younger days. You can't just sit there and let other people box you in. You have to take control. Anyway, you're no fool. You're on your way.
"Now, perhaps I can be of some assistance. I don't like to see young adventurers scurrying around naked. Stop by the fourth floor on the way out and pick up some skin armor. It may be a little uncomfortable at first, but you'll appreciate it when it saves your neck. No charge this time.
"One more thing, before you leave. Something strange is happening. There's a lot going on—" he waves at the large picture of the galaxy plastered across the wall— "that I don't understand. Maybe the stars are just restless, but hey, let's be careful out there."
The Director's desk buzzes and his private secretary enters with the next visitor. You are ushered out almost as quickly as you were ushered in.
No luck in gathering information, but hey, we've been given new armour!
Skin Armor: Close fitting personal protective gear, designed to combine a high degree of defense with a near-normal freedom of motion.
(Hand-to-hand Defense Armor.)
This should be useful.
To top it all off, let's go on a research expedition!
Paragraph 216
Your expedition is headed by Captain Sandra Goffing, a biochemist. The other members of the research team include a geneticist, a chemical engineer, and a pilot/mechanic. The purpose of the trip is to collect data from Station E-2 and resupply the station for the next three months.
On your voyage to Bugeye's hot equatorial region, you learn why the scientists of this remote colony consider their mission so worthwhile. The many species of bugs on the planet are extraordinarily receptive to genetic experiments. Genes from other life forms can easily be introduced into the bugs, and the resulting effects analyzed. From these gene transfer experiments, the researchers have been learning a great deal about human genetics and the workings of life in general.
One of the most important unsolved problems, which the scientists are still studying, is to identify the function of an apparently useless gene in human DNA. The researchers on Bugeye have at least some understanding of the purpose of every other human gene, but gene 384-b is a complete mystery. By transferring this gene into the bugs, they have been trying to solve the mystery. However, they have been unsuccessful so far; 384-b seems to do nothing at all.
You arrive at the outpost, an unassuming metallic hut in the middle of an endless swamp. The place is swarming with bugs, some of which have been radioactively labeled for the experiments. You watch the scientists go about their duties for a while, after which your thoughts turn to going back to the city. The temperature is well over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), even with the air conditioners on full power. You feel like you're turning into the glop Dr. Goffing cooks up in her laboratory.
On the return trip, the expedition team begins analyzing the data they have just collected. You ask Dr. Goffing if they've found any answers. "Unfortunately," she replies, "384-b is as obscure as ever. However, we have discovered a way to improve the organic mix we use to speed up the development of traits associated with a transfected gene. Maybe we'll have some useful results the next time we visit the station."
When you get back to the city, you thank Dr. Goffing for showing you around. "Oh, it's been our pleasure," she responds. "We don't get visitors very often." Then you ask if you could have a sample of that organic mix she uses to speed up her gene transfer experiments. Obviously, the mix is a form of primordial soup, a rare and valued substance. She thinks for a while, then answers. "Well, I don't have a lot to give away, but I suppose I could spare a small amount. What do you need it for?"
"I am certain that it will come in handy in my travels," you tell her. "There are a lot of strange places in the galaxy, and concoctions like this can be useful."
She agrees to give you a small sample. You wish her success in her research and head back to your ship.
You now have a unit of Primordial Soup.
Primordial soup?
Primordial Soup: A biochemical compound that is innately capable of self-replication and may be caused to differentiate and grow into a living organism.
Primordial soup, yay!
This concludes our journey to Bugeye, and I have two things for you to decide on:
1.
Do we trade? (We can buy 3 Fuel for 1 Munitions)
2.
Where to next? (Galaxy map)
