Wearing Power Armor to a Magic School (43/?) WiP 1 (Patreon)

Hey everyone! Here's the Work in Progress for Chapter 43 I hope you guys enjoy! :D 

My heart practically skipped a beat as I saw what was at first a far-fetched idea quickly evolve into a full-blown plan. Or, at least, the first inklings of a plan.

Whether or not it would be successful was another matter entirely. Though that didn’t take away from the excitement of actually seeing another hare-brained scheme coming together. The fact that there was a way forward whereas before none existed, was cause enough for celebration.

We could potentially find a way to rectify this whole situation. A way to possibly fix this mess and regain the ability to make contact with the IAS. A way to prevent things back on Earth from spiraling out of control, to prevent everyone back at home from jumping to conclusions before it was too late.

Because the consequences for going beyond the five week cutoff point was something nobody wanted to deal with. The Director herself had made sure to drill that into me from the first week of my training.

Practical concerns and the very real potential over a complete overhaul of standing policy for a recovery and response mission over a missing agent aside, the ramifications of a complete loss of contact went far beyond the UN’s response plans.

It also would have far reaching implications on the future of the IAS itself.

The Director had, over the course of an entire year of slow gradual talks, made it clear what she was putting on the line with Pilot II. Indeed, after the failures of Pilot I, there was an immense level of scrutiny coming in from all parties landing squarely on the IAS and the director’s head. From assembly committees, to military reviews, to even a top-to-bottom internal audit performed by an out-of-branch internal review board, the IAS was this close to being reshuffled and overhauled.

I could still vividly remember the colorful language the Director had used to describe the fallout that would come from a failed mission. Or at least, a failure to report in before the cut-off point.

“Imagine you’re on your last paycheck and you’ve just put everything on Richard Madison in the first quarter of the Armstrong-Irving Hump during the 302nd Luna Grand Prix. Imagine doing this, whilst knowing full well what happened to Steven Wu and Harry Roy on the 300th and 301st respectively.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Not a space-race fan?”

“Not particularly, ma’am.”

“Alright I’ll avoid long winded metaphors and get straight to the point then. You remember our talks with Field Captain McCay at the Waterfront, correct?”

“Yes.”

“And you know the current pressures being put on the IAS following the incident with Pilot I and what became of your predecessor?”

“As far as has been disclosed to me, ma’am.”

“Well, I will be frank with you Emma. I believe you’ve earned this trust given what you’re putting on the line. Let’s just say that the past two decades have been spent with the explicit purpose of rectifying our shortsightedness on Pilot I. Meaning the IAS as we currently know it, including all of my plans following this mission, all ties back to the success of Pilot II. This includes our potential partnership with the LREF.”

…

“No pressures, right ma’am?”

“Well, I was trying to ease into this using the space racing metaphor.”

“Speaking of, maybe we should finish that thought. Whatever happened to Richard Madison during the Luna Grand Prix, ma’am?”

“He was losing, until the very last second where he managed a gravity sling maneuver at the risk of his own life. He made it, just barely, with the ship holding together by its literal outer plating. He beat the first hump by 5 seconds.”

“Well, I hope Pilot II won’t come to that ma’am. As long as the lab techs have done their work, I’m confident I can make sure I don’t pull a Richard Madison.”

“I’m counting on you, and will hold you to that promise, Cadet Booker.”

Everything was now riding on Pilot II actually succeeding. Everything all the way from jobs to the insanely intricate web of plans the Director had for the IAS moving forward. Every last bit of it relied on getting a signal out.

But it was easy to get lost in my own sauce when it came to the implications of being unable to get a message back out to Earth. Because if my time in the Nexus so far has taught me anything, it’s that the consequences of me not getting in touch wasn’t just limited to the future of a single agency, or heck, even the entire United Nations Science Advisory. No. There was far more on the line now if I wasn’t able to get in contact with home.

The intel I’d gathered, the things I’d learned, had just elevated the stakes from just departmental drama to national security. Heck, it might even go beyond national security, even dipping its toes into a complete and utter existential crisis.

I needed to get this data out.

And thankfully, despite the obvious setbacks, we at least had a clear path forward.

Starting with the library.

“A winged ally.” Thalmin repeated with an indignant huff. “You’re talking about that trickster spirit wearing the skin of a benign beast, aren’t you? That self-described librarian. You’re suggesting we return to that accursed place, to trade ancestors’ knows what for an answer to this new challenge facing our comrade?” The lupinor prince gestured harshly in my general direction, extending the full length of his arm out for added effect.

“Correct, Thalmin. The library is the only neutral party removed from our rapidly complicating circumstances. Moreover, it is the only party that I am more than certain posessesses at least something akin to the knowledge we seek.” Thacea concluded simply, standing her ground despite the lupinor prince’s best efforts at dissuading her.

“This overreliance on the library will see us faster become slaves to its enigmatic machinations, than gain any true, meaningful enlightenment.” Thalmin growled.

“The library is a tool, Thalmin. Like any tool, reliance or lack thereof is a tradeoff that is highly dependent on the contexts and circumstances surrounding its user.” Thacea promptly snapped back, holding her ground without even so much as flinching to the lupinor’s arguments. “In most cases, I may be inclined to see eye to eye with you on this matter. However, the situation we find ourselves in places the library as a uniquely beneficial choice in our rapidly depleting arsenal of potential options.” The avinor paused, if only to allow Thalmin a chance to provide a counter to that argument. The lupinor, however, simply shrugged, before nodding for Thacea to continue. “We find ourselves once again faced with a dilemma with no apparent solution. A quest with which there exists no true contemporaries to seek guidance or wisdom from. We are, by every practical measure, alone in this novel and unprecedented venture; to construct for ourselves a line of communication outside of the Status Communicatia.” Thacea let out an exhausted breath, part of it emerging as a harmonic trill which resonated sharply throughout the empty room.