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[Ross Vernal]

We can indeed develop the ability to get power from sunlight and/or electric organs, but the ability to directly convert electric energy into biological energy is going to be a bitch.

(Hint hint: a kind of bacteria exists that can convert electrical energy into methane gas.)

Spoiler: You Are: (click to show/hide)

Fully Independent
1 Queen Kai (B-Caste, Mining-Adapted, Minor Cold Tolerance) (Not Hungry)
Independent
1 Level 3 Nurse Drone (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
2 Level 2 Navigation Drones (T-Caste) (Not Hungry)
Intelligent
1 L2 Heavy Soldier (S-Caste) (Not Hungry)
8 Drones (T-Caste) (Not Hungry)
4 Soldiers (S-Caste) (Not Hungry)
5 Armored Soldiers (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
Dependent
6 Pollinators (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
15 Drones (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
Unthinking
10 Larvae (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
2 Grubs (B-Caste) (Full)
2 Hybridized Larvae (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)

Spoiler: Your Eggs: (click to show/hide)

Laid:
8 Bore Worm Eggs
12 Digging Drone Eggs
---
Unlaid:
60 Eggs (B-Caste)
10 Grub Eggs (B-Caste)
10 Drone Eggs (B-Caste)

Spoiler: You Own: (click to show/hide)

Weaponry
1 Queen-Sized Light Energy Machine Gun
4 Ship-Based Point Defense Lasers
5 Soldier-Sized Light Energy Machine Guns
10 EMG Batteries
10 Drone-Sized Digging Tools
10 Soldier-Sized Digging Tools

Armory
3 Drone-Sized EPS

Technology/Utility
1 Badly Damaged Navigation/Telemetry Computer
1 Biorecycler
1 Internal Combustion Spacecraft Engine

Parts/Resources
7 Large Heavy Armor Plates
6 Units of Universal Spare Parts
3 Partially Damaged Xenobiological Samples
2 Xenoflora Samples
Water
Titanium
Gold
Copper
Superalloys
Universal Elemental Supply (Hydrogen, Helium, Oxygen, Neon, Iron, Nitrogen, Silicon, Magnesium, Sulfur)
Iron Spheres
Large Iron Spheres
Scrap Metal
Scrap Plastic

Agriculture
2/3 Container of Fertilizer
1 Bacteria Vat
19 Dormant Flowers
8 Barrels of Refined Pollen Fuel

Spoiler: Your Food Supplies (click to show/hide)

Dead:
1 Dead L1 Commander (B-Caste) (2 Units of Food)
3 Dead Xenobiological Samples (Mammal-Caste) (6 Units of Food)

Food:

Synthetic Food:
0 Units of Synthetic Food

Drones - 1/10 of a Unit of Food
Soldiers - 5/10 of a Unit of Food
Levels 1-4 - A Unit of Food
Predator / Nurse / Commander - 1.5 Units Of Food
Queen - 2 Units of Food / Reabsorb 20 Eggs
Level 5 - 3 Units of Food

Your Nest
Location - Here
Visibility - Extremely Hard To Detect

Spoiler: Inside (click to show/hide)

Dusty Heavy Improvised Door
Oversized Insulated Hive Chamber
- Climate Control System
- Fusion Plant
- Computer-Aided Design System
- 1 Miniature Refinery
Flower Garden with 10 Active Flowers of Life
Queen's Chamber with 1 Immature.1 Queen's Flower
- Queen's Biolab with Stasis Chamber, Nursery
- Flower Chamber with 0 Flowers of Life

Unsecured Geothermal Bore Hole
- Mining Tunnels
- Ice Tunnel
- Silicate Aluminum/Lithium Crystal Tunnel

Spoiler: Outside (click to show/hide)

A Hole
- 1 Dust-Covered Scuttle Charge Transmitter

[kopout]

We can indeed develop the ability to get power from sunlight...
(Hint hint: a kind of bacteria exists that can convert electrical energy into methane gas.)

Those articles are the coolest things I'v read all day.
more to the point is the hint
electricity+CO2+H2O>methane+oxygen
then
methane+oxygen>CO2+H2O+bioenergy?

[Noxes]

We can indeed develop the ability to get power from sunlight...
(Hint hint: a kind of bacteria exists that can convert electrical energy into methane gas.)

Those articles are the coolest things I'v read all day.
more to the point is the hint
electricity+CO2+H2O>methain+oxygen
then
methain+oxygen>CO2+H2O+bioenergy?

Hmm, methane respiring bio-generators.... So maybe a new organelle that has an alternate respiration cycle... Or maybe even completely replacing the mitochondrial ATP cycle with this new methanophile organ, and then an "input organ" which converts electricity into blood borne methane? A new carrier molecule would be needed too...
So yeah, just completely restructuring the respiration pathway into a method of converting electricity into ATP, no big deal XD

Assuming a lot about Kai Biochemistry there though, especially considering Kai seem to be Anaerobic anyway

If we were T Caste I would suggest just circumventing the whole nonsense of middlemen and try to build a synthetic Kai, it would be easier XD

[Ukrainian Ranger]

While loosing few larvae to electricity is somewhat unpleasant, nurse and queen need something to do, and if we are lucky, then, we may modify the result further when we'll get some royal jelly

Besides I'd rather not waste royal jelly on generic larva ever, when we can modify one of T-drones, nurse or L2 soldier to so many useful roles. Plus we can modify the queen one more time

[Ross Vernal]

The first order of the day is to put all of the Soldiers into Stasis. As they patiently wait their turn to be made dormant by a pair of Drones and put in storage, the remaining Tech Drones assemble the Food Synthesizer from the designs. The subsequent attachment of the Bacteria Vat and Biorecycler proceed well, and the device is fueled with the remaining corpses. With this being complete, the Drones attempt once again to make lightbulbs with crude implements. As expected, most of these attempts are failures. Out of the six that are assembled, one blows out instantly, three bulbs provide an exceptional amount of growing light, while the remaining two are suitable for providing light.

You take some time away from the electric experiments to dig space for the industrial complex, which the Tech Drones assemble in short order. The installation is expected to take a while, but when completed, the Industrial Facility will be completed with a Foundry, a small-scale Atomic Separator, Universal Parts Assembler, Pollen Refinery, and a Molecular Assembler. With these components, a large variety of technology can be developed - not necessarily by You, though.

While all this is happening, You and the Nurse have been busy frying Larvae with electricity. Or at least, attempting to; the first attempt is too high and bursts the Larvae in flames, which is the complete opposite of what You intended. The second, with much less current, simply suffers minor nerve damage (and is promptly thrown into the Synthesizer), but the third seems to at least be tolerant to the further reduced electric treatment.

After deciding that this probably isn't the best idea, You and the Nurse inspect the Hybrids. They seem skinny and covered in some sort of fungus, but otherwise perfectly healthy. Another day must pass before the Flowers are expected to grow, however.  After briefly possessing one of the Hybrids, You learn that the presence of the Flowers is accompanying the Hybrid at a level equivalent to the presence in Your mind, suggesting that the Flowers may have more sway over these Kai than You do. Given the mutually beneficial bond between You and the Flowers, this is not a source of serious concern.

Night falls. Now what?

Spoiler: You Are: (click to show/hide)

Fully Independent
1 Queen Kai (B-Caste, Mining-Adapted, Minor Cold Tolerance) (Not Hungry)
Independent
1 Level 3 Nurse Drone (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
2 Level 2 Navigation Drones (T-Caste) (Not Hungry)
Intelligent
8 Drones (T-Caste) (Not Hungry)
---
1 L2 Heavy Soldier (S-Caste) (Stasis)
4 Soldiers (S-Caste) (Stasis)
5 Armored Soldiers (B-Caste) (Stasis)
Dependent
6 Pollinators (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
15 Drones (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
Unthinking
7 Larvae (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)
1 Larvae (B-Caste) (Not Hungry) (Minor Electric Tolerance)
2 Grubs (B-Caste) (Full)
2 Hybridized Larvae (B-Caste) (Not Hungry)

Spoiler: Your Eggs: (click to show/hide)

Laid:
8 Bore Worm Eggs
12 Digging Drone Eggs
---
Unlaid:
55 Eggs (B-Caste)
15 Grub Eggs (B-Caste)
5 Pollinator Eggs (B-Caste)
12 Drone Eggs (B-Caste)
3 Scout Eggs (B-Caste)

Spoiler: You Own: (click to show/hide)

Weaponry
1 Queen-Sized Light Energy Machine Gun
4 Ship-Based Point Defense Lasers
5 Soldier-Sized Light Energy Machine Guns
10 EMG Batteries
10 Drone-Sized Digging Tools
10 Soldier-Sized Digging Tools

Armory
3 Drone-Sized EPS

Technology/Utility
1 Badly Damaged Navigation/Telemetry Computer
1 Internal Combustion Spacecraft Engine

Parts/Resources
7 Large Heavy Armor Plates
1 Units of Universal Spare Parts
3 Partially Damaged Xenobiological Samples
2 Xenoflora Samples
Water
-Ice
Titanium
Gold
Copper
Superalloys
Universal Elemental Supply (Hydrogen, Helium, Oxygen, Neon, Iron, Nitrogen, Silicon, Magnesium, Sulfur)
Iron Spheres
Large Iron Spheres
Scrap Metal
Scrap Plastic

Agriculture
2/3 Container of Fertilizer
19 Dormant Flowers
8 Barrels of Refined Pollen Fuel

Spoiler: Your Food Supplies (click to show/hide)

Dead:
1 Dead L1 Commander (B-Caste) (2 Units of Food)
3 Dead Xenobiological Samples (Mammal-Caste) (6 Units of Food)

Food:

Synthetic Food:
0 Units of Synthetic Food

Drones - 1/10 of a Unit of Food
Soldiers - 5/10 of a Unit of Food
Levels 1-4 - A Unit of Food
Predator / Nurse / Commander - 1.5 Units Of Food
Queen - 2 Units of Food / Reabsorb 20 Eggs
Level 5 - 3 Units of Food

Your Nest
Location - Here
Visibility - Extremely Hard To Detect

Spoiler: Inside (click to show/hide)

Dusty Heavy Improvised Door
Oversized Insulated Hive Chamber
- Climate Control System
- Level 1 Industrial Lab with a Fusion Plant, Computer-Aided Design System (Small Atomic Separator), (Universal Parts Assembler) Pollen Refinery, and a (Molecular Assembler)
-
Flower Garden with 10 Active Flowers of Life
Queen's Chamber with 1 Immature.1 Queen's Flower
- Flower Chamber with 0 Flowers of Life
Level 1 Queen's Biolab
- Stasis Chamber
- Nursery

Unsecured Geothermal Bore Hole
- Mining Tunnels
- Ice Tunnel
- Silicate Aluminum/Lithium Crystal Tunnel

Spoiler: Outside (click to show/hide)

A Hole
- 1 Dust-Covered Scuttle Charge Transmitter

[kopout]

Have some of the Pollinators do their plant-grow-dancing thing around one of the hybrids

[Noxes]

Have some of the Pollinators do their plant-grow-dancing thing around one of the hybrids

+1! Good Idea!
Also, is there any sort of symbiotic fungus with the flowers (perhaps in their root complexes?) that We are aware of? Once one of the qualified drones gets those two acceptable grow lights installed Observe the effects of the light on the hybrids as well.

[Fr0stByt3]

Ooh! Ooh! I just though of a song name for you, Ross! "Ride the Lightning" by Metallica.

[Ross Vernal]

Also, is there any sort of symbiotic fungus with the flowers (perhaps in their root complexes?) that We are aware of? Once one of the qualified drones gets those two acceptable grow lights installed Observe the effects of the light on the hybrids as well.

Yes, there's a good deal of fungi and bacteria that work with Us and the Flowers.

[kopout]

I wonder if there is somthing we can do with the two bright bulbs. Or did they burn out after one use? 
Edit: Dose the Biolab give use a bonuse to tinkering with out biology? Could we use out biolab to seperate the electic to methane bacteria from the bacterial vat?

[Ross Vernal]

I wonder if there is somthing we can do with the two bright bulbs. Or did they burn out after one use? 

Grow lights, presumably.

Does the Biolab give use a bonus to tinkering with out biology? Could we use out biolab to seperate the electic to methane bacteria from the bacterial vat?

Yes and yes.

[kopout]

I wonder if there is somthing we can do with the two bright bulbs. Or did they burn out after one use? 

Grow lights, presumably.

sorry, wrong two, I mean the 3 that are more than suficently bright

seperate the electic to methane bacteria from the bacterial vat

[Ukrainian Ranger]

1) Lay pollinator eggs, lay scout eggs
2) Try to will 30 eggs from B caste to M caste, but don't lay them just yet
3) Dig new chamber for one more flower garden. Plant 9 flowers here, keep the chamber cooler than the main one, but provide a lot of light. Do not forget to emulate Martian Day\Night cycle leaving the flowers without  light for a half of a day
4) Use grubs to dig thin ventilation shaft from the new chamber to the surface. It should have open\close mechanism and be long a curvy to a) let gases from  surface warm a bit before they reach the bottom and b)  opposite, to net create huge thermal mark. Original atmoshperic gases are needed for the adaption, and with system like that we may regulate temperature as much as we want.
5) Finally, keep the flowers into a much more nourishing analogue of Martian soil
6) Plant 5 more flowers into queen's flower chamber. Leave them in darkness, those are for deep ones that will feed underground part of the hive
7) Make more light sources

Idea with the new farm is to emulate surface to some extent, to make replanting them later easier.

[kopout]

1) Lay pollinator eggs, lay scout eggs
2) Try to will 30 eggs from B caste to M caste, but don't lay them just yet
7) Make more light sources

+1

3) Dig new chamber for one more flower garden. Plant 9 flowers here, keep the chamber cooler than the main one, but provide a lot of light. Do not forget to emulate Martian Day\Night cycle leaving the flowers without  light for a half of a day

don't we alredy have a second, empty chamber?

4) Use grubs to dig thin ventilation shaft from the new chamber to the surface. It should have open\close mechanism and be long a curvy to a) let gases from  surface warm a bit before they reach the bottom and b)  opposite, to net create huge thermal mark. Original atmoshperic gases are needed for the adaption, and with system like that we may regulate temperature as much as we want.

Risky, perhaps needlesly so, the atmospher inside is alredy pritymuch the same as outside.

5) Finally, keep the flowers into a much more nourishing analogue of Martian soil

arn't we alredy?

6) Plant 5 more flowers into queen's flower chamber. Leave them in darkness, those are for deep ones that will feed underground part of the hive

Maybe only 2 or 3 we need to keep origional flavor floweres in reserve for when we go back to space

[Noxes]

1) Lay pollinator eggs, lay scout eggs
2) Try to will 30 eggs from B caste to M caste, but don't lay them just yet
3) Dig new chamber for one more flower garden. Plant 9 flowers here, keep the chamber cooler than the main one, but provide a lot of light. Do not forget to emulate Martian Day\Night cycle leaving the flowers without  light for a half of a day
4) Use grubs to dig thin ventilation shaft from the new chamber to the surface. It should have open\close mechanism and be long a curvy to a) let gases from  surface warm a bit before they reach the bottom and b)  opposite, to net create huge thermal mark. Original atmoshperic gases are needed for the adaption, and with system like that we may regulate temperature as much as we want.
5) Finally, keep the flowers into a much more nourishing analogue of Martian soil
6) Plant 5 more flowers into queen's flower chamber. Leave them in darkness, those are for deep ones that will feed underground part of the hive
7) Make more light sources

Idea with the new farm is to emulate surface to some extent, to make replanting them later easier.

+1

Using the biolab can We identify the fungus found growing on the hybrids as one of the naturally occurring fungus that live with Us and the Flowers?