A Mysterious Ruin
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Requirements and Notes
- To start this quest you need access to Susan Novak. This can only be achieved at or after level 4.
- You will also need the ability to fly.
- After initiating the quest, each Alpha you defeat allows you to skip 1 rollover when it is needed to advance the quest.
Walkthrough
0. This step is not mandatory, and it does not in fact open the quest, but it hints at it. Patrol Outskirts of Area 54 and go speak with Susan Novak while you have the ability to fly. You'll get:
Susan asks if you ever patrol out of town. When you mention that you've spent time in the desert, she suggests that you may want to keep an eye out for anything interesting. Particularly if you can get an elevated view, that may be a good way to scout out strange activity in and around the mysterious Area 54. "I don't really buy the conspiracy theories, but your reports of giant insects out there make me think there must have been some nuclear testing at some point."
A Mysterious Ruin
1. Using any form flying patrol Outskirts of Area 54 until you come across the Just Deserts adventure. Choose the 3rd option. This will start the quest, and the following text will appear in your journal:
You've found something strange out in the desert. You ought to talk to your friend Susan Novak--the only real scientist you know--about what it might be.
2. Visit Susan. This will yield the following text:
You stop in and tell Susan about the mysterious mechanical ruin you found in the desert. She listens thoughtfully, first seeming skeptical but then growing more interested as you fill in the details. When you're done, Susan has you go over everything a couple of times, to make sure she understands. Finally you ask, "So, what do you think?"
Susan pauses to collect her thoughts. "As always, I'm skeptical until I have more data, but this sounds intriguing. There are any number of possible explanations, and in the limited light it makes your observations all the more suspect, but I'll definitely send out a team tomorrow to investigate. I don't know if I mentioned, but I'm not only faculty here at the university, I'm also a founding member of an 'abnormal occurrences' research team."
"You mean something like the S.U.I.T. researchers?"
Susan laughs. "No, those guys are a bunch of quacks. We like to collect stories of all sorts of unusual occurrences--paranormal investigation, U.F.O.s, you name it. We're open-minded skeptics, so we don't have an agenda to prove people wrong, just apply good science. Most of it still involves telling crazy people they're delusional, but it's an interesting hobby."
Susan suggests you check back in tomorrow evening and she'd let you know what she's found.
This also update the text in your Journal to:
You've found something strange out in the desert and you've told Susan about it. She said she'll investigate tomorrow, so you'll have to check back with her then to see what she thinks.
3. After rollover, your Journal message will read:
Susan's had time to investigate the strange mechanical ruins out in the desert. You ought to see what she found.
Visit Novak again, after rollover. This begets you:
"<player>! Come in. I've got exciting news! That crash site you found out in the desert, it's amazing! Whatever it is, it's not of human origin, you're right about that. It was mechanical, but it's not like any kind of machinery I've ever seen, and what little bit of language could be found is no earthly language. Plus it's got to be hundreds or thousands of years old--again, too old for humans."
"Did you find anything significant?" you ask.
"Other than the discovery of non-human life out in the universe? It's too early to say for sure. There's one thing that's particularly interesting, and I'll get to that in a moment. Most of what's in there was badly damaged--it looks like whatever it was crash landed and barely survived complete destruction, and time has not been kind to it since. There's no sign of life, either, which is strange. Either it was an unmanned ship, or the beings inside it escaped before the crash."
Susan continues, "There's all kinds of things we can learn from this technology, given the time to piece it together again. But there's one thing we got out of there, though, that's particularly intriguing. We found a large crate that was damaged on the surface, but the inner contents were exceptionally well padded. Layer after layer of strange materials: foams and harnesses and whatnot. Inside were two large devices, shaped like hollow triangles. We have no idea what they're for, but at least on the surface they appear to be in perfect physical condition. They're our best hope for learning something about this technology. We've brought them back to the lab for investigation. Check back in tomorrow and I'll tell you what we've found."
It also updates the Journal message to:
Susan's confirmed that the ruins are non-human in origin. That alone is the scientific breakthrough of the millennium, but she's very excited about a couple of mechanical triangles that seem to be among the few things in good condition. Her plan is to send the triangles into space as soon as possible. Check back tomorrow for more details.
At this point the quest name changes to "A Mysterious Triangle from a Mysterious Ruin".
A Mysterious Triangle from a Mysterious Ruin
4. After rollover the Journal message reads:
Don't forget to check back with Susan to see what she's managed to find out about those triangles.
Visiting Susan again results in:
"We've got amazing news!" Susan says before you can even say hi. For someone who likes to talk about being calm and rational, she looks like she's about to explode. "Those triangles? They're portals! To each other. You go in one, and you come out the other."
"Wait," you say, "like a tunnel or something?"
"No, like teleporting. Instantaneous matter transmission. You know, 'Beam me up, Scotty.' Or something right out of Stargate. The triangles aren't connected, and it doesn't matter how far apart they are. Here, watch."
Susan turns on a TV in her office and starts playing a DVD. "This is a recording from earlier, when we still had both of them in the lab." The scene is a large garage or warehouse. Two large metal triangles are set up 30 feet apart. The space inside the triangle shimmers oddly. As you watch, a woman approaches one of the triangles, steps inside, and steps outside of the other one. "Wow ..." is all you can think to say.
"Exactly. We've driven one out to the edge of the city, and the results are the same. Instantaneous travel."
"What are you going to do with them?"
"Oh, that's obvious. We send it to space. There's all kinds of potential uses, but the greatest energy challenge we face is getting materials into orbit. If we can essentially get up there for free, it opens up space travel in a way nobody has ever imagined. It's hard not to sound over dramatic, but this could be the most valuable discovery in history." Susan pauses, and grows more serious. "We have to hurry, though. The other implication of this discovery is it's clear there's other life out there. Not only that, but they have the means to reach Earth, because they've already done so. And instantaneous transportation changes everything--they could be here any day. So we've got to move fast. We've got to get one of these portals into space as soon as possible, and start building a space station. We've procured funding for a space launch, and we're scrambling to get it ready. Construction on a space station should start tomorrow--stop by and I'll make arrangements so you can go up there and visit if you're interested."
The journal messages becomes:
You've seen the strange teleporting triangles, and Susan has convinced you that getting them up into space quickly is a good idea. Construction has started on the space station and you should be able to visit tomorrow.
At this point the adventure changes its name to "A Mysterious Triangle in Spaaaaace".
A Mysterious Triangle in Spaaaaace
5. After rollover the Space Station opens and your Journal will read:
You've seen the strange teleporting triangles, and Susan has convinced you that getting them up into space quickly is a good idea. Construction has started on the space station and you can visit whenever you like.
Talking to Susan you get:
Susan is working on a spreadsheet when you stop by her office. "Oh, hi, <player>, I'm just wrapping up the project budget."
"There's not much up there yet, but I've made arrangements for you to go up there any time you like. The portal is here at the university. Construction will go on for a while, but I think the results of some serious anti-gravity research ought to allow us to quickly make use of a number of manufacturing techniques that aren't possible here on Earth. You may find it worth your while to investigate."
6. After another rollover the Space Station is further built.
7. After another rollover the Space Station is even further built.
8. After another rollover the Space Station is built a bit more.
9. After another rollover you get a message from Susan:
<player>, this is Susan Novak. Something terrible has happened at the space station! Please visit me immediately.
The journal message becomes:"
Danger! Danger <player>! Danger in the space station! Something's wrong with the space station. You'd better visit Susan to see what's going on.
Trying to visit the Space Station before visiting Susan yields:
Armed guards stand in front of the portal and insist that the station is closed right now. You'll have to talk to Susan first to see what's going on.
Visiting Susan you get:
Susan is visibly shaken when you enter. She says, "We're still trying to figure out what happened, but it's a disaster up there. Earlier today some kind of machinery entered the space station, like a robot with tank treads. Nobody at the space station thought much of it initially, but the thing is, we didn't send it up from down here. We don't know where it came from. At first the robot seemed to roam around for a bit, like it was scouting the area, especially by the pond. Then some other machinery--this one more like a tall, skinny, and somewhat humanoid robot--came through the portal, and almost instantly attacked the treaded robot."
"Most of the people aboard the station quickly evacuated, while several more robots of each type appeared in the station. The fight swiftly escalated to a serious battle, with the robots tearing each other apart. We've got the the campus police and a volunteer militia of sorts guarding this side of the portal, but so far the robots haven't shown much interest in us or doing anything but fighting each other. We're watching them fight via video uplink. Still, I'm really worried. I don't know anything about these robots: where they came from, what they might do to us, or where it will lead us. But I do know that if we don't put a stop to the fighting they'll tear the space station apart. Can you go up there and try to put a stop to it?"
Further visits to Susan result in:
How's the fight in the space station going? Have you had any luck putting a stop to the robotic destruction?
The Space Station changes again. For the next step you have to be at least level 12.
Space Robots!
10. Once you reach level 12 you can start Fighting Robots in the middle of the Space Station. The adventure name changes to "Space Robots!". After killing 15 robots you get the Silence adventure. The journal text changes to:"
All is quiet again in the space station. There's been some damage, but not too much. The invasion is worrisome, though.
Visiting Susan you get:
"I'm glad you could put a stop to the rampaging robots. I'm worried we might have more serious issues to deal with soon, though."
And the Space Station is available for the rest of the day.
11. After rollover your journal message becomes:
You'd better check with Susan, again. It appears there's even more trouble on the space portal.
Like in step 9, you can't access the Space Station before visiting Susan. Visiting Susan you get:
"The robots are back! There's even more of them this time, and they seem to be stronger. I don't think anyone but you can stop them."
The journal message changes to:
Danger! Danger <player>! Danger in the space station! There's some kind of robots fighting there. Again. Everyone in the station needs your help! Again.
Further visits to Susan result in the same message as in step 9. The Space Station changes back again, and you can fight more robots.
12. After killing 25 robots you get the Silence Again adventure. The journal text changes to:
All is quiet again in the space station. Again. There's been some damage, but not too much. Again. The continued invasion is very troublesome.
Visiting Susan you get:
"I'm glad you could put a stop to the rampaging robots, again. I'm beginning to think I may have made a terrible mistake. I think activating the portal may have alerted the robots to our presence, and drawn them here. At this point all we can do is prepare ourselves for the worst."
And the Space Station is available for the rest of the day.
13. After rollover your journal message becomes:
You'd better check with Susan, again. It appears there's even more trouble on the space portal.
Trying to visit the Space Station before visiting Susan yields:
Armed guards stand in front of the portal and insist that the station is closed again. You'll have to talk to Susan first to see what's going on.
Visiting Susan you get:
"The robots are back! There's even more of them this time, and they seem to be stronger. I don't think anyone but you can stop them."
The journal message changes to:
Danger! Danger <player>! Danger in the space station! There's some kind of robots fighting there. Again. Everyone in the station needs your help! Again.
Further visits to Susan result in the same message as in step 9. The Space Station changes back again, and you can fight more robots.
14. After killing 35 robots you get the Silence Again Again adventure. The journal text changes to:"
All is quiet again in the space station. Yet again. The place is a mess, but you've put a lot of robots in their place. Maybe that's the end of it?
Visiting Susan you get:
"I'm glad you could put a stop to the rampaging robots, yet again. We've got to find a way to stop them, but we've also got to keep our plans going. It's far too late to pretend that we're not here. We're going to keep the gates closed as much as possible to try to reduce the window when anyone might come through, but we've got to keep working on projects up at the station, and we'll let you through whenever you need to go up there."
And the Space Station is available for the rest of the day.
15. After rollover your journal message becomes:
Yeah, the robots are at it again--again times four. It's an even bigger mess now. Maybe it's time for another tactic.
Like in step 13, you cannot access the Space Station before visiting Susan. Visiting Susan you get:
"The robots are back! It's a little different this time. There are more of them, many more. But there seems to be a different set, with greater variety. Still, they're making a complete mess of the space station."
The journal message changes to:
Yeah, the robots are at it again--again times four. It's an even bigger mess now. Maybe it's time for another tactic.
Further visits to Susan result in:
"Any luck with the robots?"
The Space Station changes back again, and you can go Fighting Robots again.
16. Adventuring in Fighting Robots you will immediately encounter Hey, There's Nobody Driving that Canoe!. Fight your way through robots until you encounter More than Meats the Eye, A Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Plot Exposition in 60 Seconds and finally Elementary My Dear OmegaTron, which followed by The Only Thing Worse than a Love Triangle is a Hate Triangle. The space station goes to its final stage. The following message is added to the Completed Quests section of your journal:
Well, you tried to fight off the robots, but now it looks worse than ever. You can't imagine any way in which they're not here to stay. At least the three-way battle seems to be fairly stable, and they're leaving humans completely out of it, other than talking to you. It's not a good solution, but it appears stable.
Rewards
- Full access to the space station's final stage.
- A bonus metal medal of mettle for your next retcon.
History
- The station was built with chip player donations. The list of top sponsors is available at the The Space Station.
- During the building of the station the quest texts were slightly different.
Visiting Susan on step 4 read:
"We've got amazing news!" Susan says before you can even say hi. For someone who likes to talk about being calm and rational, she looks like she's about to explode. "Those triangles? They're portals! To each other. You go in one, and you come out the other."
"Wait," you say, "like a tunnel or something?"
"No, like teleporting. Instantaneous matter transmission. You know, 'Beam me up, Scotty.' Or something right out of Stargate. The triangles aren't connected, and it doesn't matter how far apart they are. Here, watch."
Susan turns on a TV in her office and starts playing a DVD. "This is a recording from earlier, when we still had both of them in the lab." The scene is a large garage or warehouse. Two large metal triangles are set up 30 feet apart. The space inside the triangle shimmers oddly. As you watch, a woman approaches one of the triangles, steps inside, and steps outside of the other one. "Wow ..." is all you can think to say.
"Exactly. We've driven one out to the edge of the city, and the results are the same. Instantaneous travel."
"What are you going to do with them?"
"Oh, that's obvious. We send it to space. There's all kinds of potential uses, but the greatest energy challenge we face is getting materials into orbit. If we can essentially get up there for free, it opens up space travel in a way nobody has ever imagined. It's hard not to sound over dramatic, but this could be the most valuable discovery in history." Susan pauses, and grows more serious. "We have to hurry, though. The other implication of this discovery is it's clear there's other life out there. Not only that, but they have the means to reach Earth, because they've already done so. And instantaneous transportation changes everything--they could be here any day. So we've got to move fast. We're trying to get funding for an emergency space launch. We've got to get one of these portals up there as soon as possible, and start building a space station. The problem is, we're also trying to keep somewhat quiet about it. If the government finds out about it, they're likely to shut these things up in a basement somewhere for perpetual study. My colleagues and I believe we have to act quickly, so we're trying to track down private funding for the expedition. We think once we can get the portal into space and get a significant station built, the momentum will carry the project forward. We need millions, though, so if you happen to know any potendial[sic] donors, please come back and let me know."
The following text appeared in your journal:
You've seen the strange teleporting triangles, and Susan has convinced you that getting them up into space quickly is a good idea. Too bad she needs a lot of funding to make that happen.
Heading by Susan's again at this point begot:
Susan is working on a spreadsheet when you stop by her office. "Oh, hi, <player>, I'm just working on the project budget. We've gotten a little private funding, but it's tough trying to ask about this and also keep it quiet. Have you had any luck finding any potential donors? No?" The scientist eyes your expensive fighting gear, and takes a deep breath before starting slowly. "I really hate to even ask, but I and most of the others on my team are pouring a lot of our personal money into this because it's so important. Do you have any funds to spare? We can't promise that there will be any rewards in return, other than for the good of humanity, which is something you already deal with on a regular basis. We'll give you free access to the space station, of course, but we would have done that anyway."
How much are you willing to donate?
If you headed to Susan's after that:
Susan is working on a spreadsheet when you stop by her office. "Oh, hi, <player>, I'm just working on the project budget. We've gotten a little private funding, but it's tough trying to ask about this and also keep it quiet. Have you had any luck finding any potential donors? No?" The scientist eyes your expensive fighting gear, and takes a deep breath before starting slowly. "I really hate to even ask, but I and most of the others on my team are pouring a lot of our personal money into this because it's so important. I know you've already donated some, but do you have any additional funds to spare? We're making some progress, but we still need a lot more to get there. Every day we go without action, there's a chance the news will leak to the public and we'll be stopped before we can even get started."
You have donated X chips to the cause thus far.
How much are you willing to donate?
- When the donation period was over, it led to step 5 for the first time. The text on the first occurrence was:
Susan is working on a spreadsheet when you stop by her office. "Oh, hi, <player>, I'm just wrapping up the project budget. We collected around twenty-four million chips in private funding, which should be enough for the initial construction. I'm just tabulating the final donation amounts so we can dedicate the station to the private contributors who made it happen.
There's not much up there yet, but I've made arrangements for you to go up there any time you like. The portal is here at the university. Construction will go on for a while, but I think the results of some serious anti-gravity research ought to allow us to quickly make use of a number of manufacturing techniques that aren't possible here on Earth. You may find it worth your while to investigate.
References
- The name "A Mysterious Triangle in Spaaaaace" is a reference to the Pigs in Space sketch on The Muppet Show.
- The journal entry when the robots first arrive at the space station (step 9 above) refers to the quote "Danger, Will Robinson!", a warning often vocalized by the Robinson family's robot in Lost in Space.