The probe arrives at the moons, and beams back interesting data. Many of the moons appear to be verdant, and divided up in geometric shapes, much as one would expect from intelligent life. There is a great deal of inter-orbital traffic: things are launched from the surface of one moon to the orbit of another, then dragged down from orbit to the surface. The probe is mostly ignored, though, and any communication is still aimed at the ship; it seems they haven't detected the probe.
The densest remaining patch of Algae is designated as a production zone, but it will take a month to resume industrial scale harvesting due to the massive damage inflicted. Attempts to use the laser are met with a hardware failure: the focusing mechanisms are out of sync, having been poorly constructed, and fail to properly gather and focus the light. It will take at least a month (if the effort is made) to fix it. A virus is also released, and it does a decent job of attacking the problem. Nevertheless, the algae infestation grows, covering 10% of the planet's surface now. The scientist is concerned. "The native species are mostly carnivores, and there is no natural predator for this stuff. We are in a real bind here... Aquarius is in serious trouble."
As the laser is inoperable, several satellites are deployed to watch for weather, and they notice another storm this month. Assets are shifted out of its way, thankfully, and no harm is done.
A quarantine kills of the remainder of the flu, and occasionally IV filtering is implemented to help sterilize the air. DNA scans are undertaken, and no major issues are found. Basic vaccinations are also administered, using stocks from the ship.
Breakthroughs occur in nano-assembly and quantum computing this month. The quantum computer stands ready to crunch data from the moon aliens, should it be instructed to do so. Nano-bots are now available for deployment, although the captain cautions against their deployment. "I've read too many novels about these things getting out of control. Move ahead with caution."
Speaking of getting out of control, a political consensus for change is brewing on the colony. Elections are held, and a new leader, called the Councillor, is elected. He demands that the captain step down from total command, and simply become a member of the new government. The captain is reluctant. Things are... tense.
Fortunately, the tension seems to lead to increased productivity, as different political groups race to wake up more potential voters. Another 1,000 citizens join the colony this month.
The terraformer notes that the ice comet-sea is most likely large enough to set up a sustainable ecosystem when combined with the existing water on the surface. He suggests figuring out a way to work on the temperature next.
Time lapsed in system: 1 year, 5 Months- In orbit of Aquarius
- Militarized Shipyard
- 2 Nano Factories
- 1,000 hibernating men
- 1,000 hibernating women
- 1,480 men on Aries
- 1,480 women on Aries
- 40 dead
- Bank of animal and plants
Note: if no location is given, resource is
on ship- Basic medical robots
- 2,000 space suits
- Small defensive fleet
- Mass drivers (orbital)
- Mass drivers (planetary)
- Sensor Probes
- Construction and miner bots
- Nuclear weapon (1)
- Orbital lenses (Aries and Aquarius)
- Planet A: abundant minerals, inhospitable
- Planet B: ash, acidic atmosphere, radioactive, small mining operation
- Planet C "Class.2224" "Aquarius": aquatic world, savage aquatic life, pack-like nomadic intelligent avians, virulent bacteria, plankton and algae infestation: 8% of surface, tattered harvesting operation
- Planet D "Class.1111" "Aries": some minerals, Mars-like with basic biosphere, medium mining operation, 2,860 person colony, medium industrial base, small brewery, small clinic
- Planet E: abundant minerals, inhospitable
- Abundant Asteroids
- Gas Giant A: mysterious interference, intelligent life
- Gas Giant B: mysterious interference, intelligent life
- Pack dwelling
- Near-human intelligence
- Nomadic
- Capable of tool use
- Quick breeding rate
- Teach new generations