[ WP ] A Second Chance


 
 Month One- Day One. 
 
 Two weeks after we arrived on Arcadia. We thought today would be a good day as any to officially kick off the first'year' of our stay, despite our extended stay prior. The forecast, initially described as'wintery' by the shipboard AI, was a gross underestimation of what the planet had in store for us. A snow drift currently blocks one of the outbuildings, and a few piles of snow level up to the top of one of the perimeter walls, despite frequent use of security flamethrowers to melt it. Other than this, spirits are high and champagne is flowing. Martha and Randal of the security detail tell me that they see quadraped lifeforms in the distance on occasion- Which is amazing, given the arctic conditions at this time of the year. We're expecting it to warm up but not for another several months, and the ship AI and a few of the natural scientists are unsure how long the winters will be. We can estimate another three to four months. 
 We've recieved word from Shambala and Asgard, the other'towns' in our colony, on the other ends of the valley- North and South, to be precise as to their locations. I think it's lucky that we're close, in case something happen, but it's still a day and a half's drive to our neighbor, even with weather permitting. Short-wave FTL bursts are all we have, and frankly all we need. Natalie in Threshold is -not- someone I like talking to, and Andy in Asgard seems to be more preoccupied with preventing avalanches from'M1', a neighboring peak that -may- or may not be the edge of a massive tectonic plate. Seriously, to call it a mountain with it's sheer size and almost perfect shape is ridiculous, even if a glacier carved this valley out when we were still carving flint tools and wearing animal fur. 
 Connor is taking to the job as Expeditionary Captain well, and I'm not entirely sure I'm thrilled about the boy going out with a team to explore the local areas just yet. The weather is terrible, and we really do n't know what's out here. I wish he'd listen to me. He does n't have to, but I knew his mother and I was there for her when his drunk dad walked out on them. The man's a son to me, regardless if he thinks so or not, but I'm not opening that can of worms right now. Right now, champagne and vintage movies we brought on for the trip. The movies are five years old NOW, but they were snuck aboard by a company rep for morale purposes. I'm personally looking forward to watching them. 
 Even if they're packed to the brim with product placements and explosions. Eh, got ta take what you've got. 
 
 Month One- Day Two 
 
 We need to start naming the days and months. 
 The weather is getting better, and for a brief moment around'noon' we saw a bit of sun and a sky that went on forever. The ship AI finished her sweeps this morning at some awful hour. We're apparently sitting right on top of miles of subterran caverns, and Emile, the lead geologist, has asked that we check them out when the weather permits. I do n't see any reason against it, but damn it, it's cold outside. Deadly cold. I threw the waste of the last bottle of champagne in my study against the wall outside and it flash froze on impact. I'm wearing a jacket on top of three jackets, and still it's almost not enough. It's bullshit. This planet looked like a young Earth from the satellite and from the outside and we were supposed to hazard the guess? Hazard our lives for the Company? We're just NOT quite in the Goldilocks line and we're f- 
 I'm losing my temper, but I have every right to do so. They should have done serious research before sending us out here. The execs looked at me and told me that I was going aboard and that they were thrilled about the potential'benefits' that it'll bring humanity. The benefits are that I'm on a rock ninety three million miles from Earth and I'm so cold I hesitate leaving the ship. I'm going to ask the ship AI to raise the temperature of all outlying buildings that are n't temperature-sensitive. That may help the others. Inside here, it's about 80f, out there, it's somewhere around -5. At noon. 
 Martha joked that we should start a gas fire. Funny. Unfortunately, we ca n't spare the petrol, despite how nice it'd be to have a fire in the center of the camp. I'm wandering around my office, mumbling to myself and handing work orders to everyone who comes to me, like I'm supposed to. I'm sure Threshold is doing better, but I hazard to think what Natalie is doing in this frigid, inhospitable weather. It's practically her natural environment. 
 Twenty years ago, college, both seniors, she lifts my work wholesale and becomes the darling of the science community. She parades around with ideas that are n't hers. I'll say that in my private logs and I'll say that in court if I have to. I'm aware I'm bitter. I really hope the ship AI does n't read these things. 
 
 Month One- Day Three 
 
 Thirteen months, thirty five days in each barring the occasional leap day. The weather is now clear, but we're unsure for how long. We're taking this opportunity to mount an expedition into the caverns below, of which we're aware through holographic mapping that an entrance lies nearby, some six hundred feet into the mountains from our east side of the camp. Connor and twelve others are going, leaving us with fourty researchers, scientists and engineers. He's leaving this afternoon. I'm worried about him. We've already sent in automated seekers through the tunnels and they're massive- Much larger than we initially believed. The others have taken this as a vote of confidence that we'll find something down there- Threshold's similar searches have turned up empty, and Asgard is currently seriously considering dismantling and moving away from the base of the mountain, electing to'screw Company protocol' when it comes to the potential of a million ton landslide of snow and rock. Can not say I blame them. Natalie called me with FTL and asked me about any way she can render assistance. I told her we do n't require assistance, in no small terms. 
 
 — 
 
 The shipboard AI has given me a message and I'm unsure what to make of it. The Company has a protocol of obtaining any necessary information regarding- 
 
 -Sustainability ( a given ) 
 
 -Geological Variance ( Rocky where we're at, there's plains to the north and a desert and alien forests around the equator. ) 
 
 -Local wildlife ( Yaks? Yaks that- Well, they're not Yaks, that would be a disservice to Yaks. They're..ugly- We'll call them Yaks for now. ) 
 
 -Weather ( The Devil's frozen backside ) 
 
 - [ PASSWORD LOCKED ] ( Your guess is as good as mine. Nothing is an accepted password. ) 
 
 - [ PROTOCOL ALPHA ] ( See above. ) 
 
 Month One- Day Five 
 
 The tunnels below us are either carved by some form of subterran water movement or are an entirely unnatural formation. The walls are smooth and glassy, and are generally featureless, going at a downward angle into a lower area with a large, flat far side. 
 No stalagmites or any rocky formations. 
 There's a door and several hundred feet of ornate carvings on the far side, something they're still uncovering more of. The wall seems endless, with the carvings appearing to be nothing similar to anything but early civilization cultures- IE, Sumerian, early egyptian. A reoccuring element seems to be tall figures gifting fire, tools and wisdom onto smaller humanoid figures. We're all frankly overwhelmed and amazed by this. 
 We're mulling opening the door. 
 
 Month One- Day Seven 
 
 
 Martha is gone. A security captain told me about his discovery early in the morning, and I saw myself- There was a large smattering of blood on the battlement of the wall where she was stationed and no body, although there was a trail leading-..Leading to a patch in the field, where a large sixty-square feet of grass was simply burned away. We need to call the expeditionary team up and do a headcount. We're unsure what could have done this but I'm doubling up on security checks. 
 
 Also, someone has checked into my computer earlier today when I was n't in my office. I'm not sure who, and the ship AI is n't forthcoming with information, rather choosing to tell me'There has been no unauthorized access of the administrative terminal.' And I think this means someone has used my password- Or worse, the AI is in on it. I'm not sure. I could be paranoid, but I leave my desk a VERY particular way and it was not as such. I'm going to go over security feeds in the morning. 
 
 Month One- Day Eight 
 
 Emile. Emile is the one who used my terminal. I asked him why, and he told me that he was n't authorized to tell me. I told him that my authority supersedes his, and he informed me I was incorrect, that his orders come from the top. I've asked security to hold him in confinement until I can think of what to do. He said that he had to ensure Protocol Alpha was in effect and - I asked him about it. He just stared at me, with those gray eyes of his- `` Jack, I'm afraid I ca n't tell you.'' I stormed out in frustration. 
 Addition: Connor, Sarah and a few of the others have managed to open the door. A hover-light has been launched inside, and it seems to go on for another hundred feet, the floor littered with a three-by-three repeating pattern of steel jars, two feet in height. A massive statue stands in the center of the room, depicting a humanoid figure with a raised, flat palm. The room is humid, the floor coated in a thin fog, produced by some unknown means. 
 
 — 
 
 The team has discovered a series of fleshy pods in the back of the room, and it seems they're producing the fog through some unknown method. They're stuck to the ground, but the team has managed to wedge one off the floor, contain it in a transport cube and are carrying it up to the camp as I speak. The seeker used to map the cave system reports finding another cave system, this one far more askew and'jagged' jetting off of the jar chamber, down below. Another discovery for another day- For tomorrow, we study the sample. 

