Thursday, November 1, 2018

National Novel Writing Month 2018: Ashes of Parnassus

Synopsis

The decadence of the Chrome Age collapsed upon its own hubris, leaving the Worlds in ruins.  The Central government relinquished control to the state-worlds in the chaos.  Then on the verge of stability, the Ubiquity ravaged all.  Anything made with metal, all tech, broke their molecular bonds.  Humankind plunged into a pre-Bronze Age.
Space craft were saved from Ubiquity, but scattered to the edges of the galaxy, lest they succumb to the same ravages of destruction.  Worlds were abandoned, overcome by the nature that technology pushed away.  The humans left behind became animals.
On the science vessel Proust, the crew studying Ubiquity from afar believes they have found a way to process metal and overcome its destructiveness.  If they are correct, they have built the bridge that will save millions of lives across a dozen planets.

Excerpt

"The nominal level of debris surrounding any one of our dozen systems is impactful across 1.2 billion kilometers, orbital."  Teft flashed the monitors so that the historical citations firmly rooted themselves next to his data.  There were hundreds of governmental studies that cropped up on Ubiquity, effectively feeding into a single institute.  Teft was one of the last adherents to the Metallic Sciences Foundation, before it unceremoniously lapsed after the dispersion of all shifts beyond the orbital affected zone.
"There are known deviations to this.  Gravity wells.  Star corona.  These form paths, however, until three years ago, we could not 'see' these safety zones.  We were excited of course, but quickly found that they did not allow egress to most of the worlds, except one."  The image of the planet Arcārius came into view.  There was a path that brought most craft within hundreds of thousands of miles closest than any other planet.
Teft straightened his posture as he was to evoke the paper's name.  "In 2637-MSF-300837-WRIT-14-V-H, Metalurgical Stability of Transpurposed Composite, I must...we must traverse the space carved by Arcārius' star to come within 370,000 kilometers of the planet."
A well constructed animation visually walked through the effort that Teft described.  He loosened up and walked the stage, "I will need the following crew, fuel and craft to break through the effective area, assume descruction of the origin craft, land on the planet using composites as described before.  Once on the planet, I can build a fully operational facility to produce enough composite and prove out our working theory."
A hand was raised.  Dr. Philomea.  "And if it doesn't work?  We assume you are saying this is a one-way mission should you fail?"
"Correct.  The crew and myself will assume, if the collective theories do not hold true, that Arcārius would be our final home.  However, there is a bit of an out."  A new graphic showing an elliptical from the point of insertion.  "If we can prove out Ubiquity on the composite in the effective area, we have several minutes to shoot ourselves back toward the Proust.  Of course, using the correct protocols of sanitation.  If not, we would simply fly out into space."
Not even a chuckle.  Teft didn't expect one, but he half wanted to chuckle himself.
"I'll remind Senior Engineer Teft that suicide is not permissible.  You will have to prove the data to ensure us that your risk profile is low.  Lower than the mean."  Dr. Archer.  She shifted in her seat and her lips were pulled into a tight line.
Teft nodded.  "I can assure you by data my intention is purely risk adverse.  The reward however will outweigh the cost should we lose any of the two dozen lives that I ask committed to this task.  This is our best shot to save worlds and save ourselves."
He understood as he said that he had planet bias.  He did and he would doubt denying it.  The survival of the human and animal species depended on what the collect crafts could commit.
....