Anna and Julia are being brought up. They've dropped the Andantesite and the small control amulet. One of the Cherubs bends to pick them up.
“Don’t touch that!” shouts Anna. “Don’t touch the controller and don’t bring the Andantesite up! It’s set at very short range right now, and if you drag it up now the water tunnel collapses and everyone down there drowns?”
“So how are we supposed to get it up?” asks Celling.
“Tie it to the end of the rope,” Anna answers. She brushes her dark hair out of her face, and the wind blows it back. “Wait until everyone’s up before pulling it up. Then you can deactivate it up here.”
Fansworth rushes up to Celling and whispers in his ear, making sure the rebels can’t hear. “Celling, I don’t think that’s the best idea!”
“Why?” Celling whispers back.
“You said this psychic girl has unknown powers, right?” Fansworth says. “What if one of those powers is activating Andantesite by touch? I recommend we get everyone off as soon as possible and maser it while it’s still on the seabed. Getting it close to the rebels is a real liability.”
Celling turns back to Anna. “You could increase the range, right? Then we could bring it up now, safely.”
Anna nods. “With the control crystal, yes.”
“You can’t be seriously thinking of handing her the controller for that weapon,” says Fansworth.
Before Celling has a chance to answer he is interrupted by a sound that is becoming all too familiar. “I see you’ve captured our rogue prophet,” the voice of the Mittani drones on, sent to the radio transceiver Goonswarm gave Celling.
Celling quickly manages to hide it from Fansworth. “Yes, we have. So?”
“We’ll take her now,” says the Mittani. “Turn her over to us.”
“And if we don’t want to?” Celling asks.
“We have snipers all around the dock. Our men are ready and yours are tired, demoralized, and decimated. Suffice it to say that if you refuse you certainly will not leave this place alive.”
What do you do…
…about the Andantesite?
A: Anna’s suggestion: Wait for everyone to get up, then pull the Andantesite up and deactivate it.
B: Fansworth’s suggestion: Get everyone up, then deactivate the Andantesite on the seabed.
C: Give Anna the control crystal and tell her to extend the Andantesite’s range. Move it up, then get everyone else up.
D: Somethin else…
…about Julia?
A: Tell Goonswarm we’ll hand her over
B: Refuse
C: Pretend to agree while quietly getting your men ready to fight
D: Ask the rebels; they likely know what Goonswarm has in mind for her more than you do
E: Something else…