October 11, 1970

Dr. Johanna Gustovson

335 Central Park West

New York City, NY 10025

Re: Your ongoing support

Dear Gustolphse

Doctor:

We at the Nikolai Foundation thank you for your continued support over the years, as well as your recent donation of $2 million to advance the Foundation's goals. With your help, the Nikolai Foundation can continue to achieve its goal of ensuring that humanity spreads from the world in which it was born, and that only the best of our species spreads to other worlds.

Our historic foundation has a proven track record of using the latest and greatest scientific research, not only building the world's first interstellar generation ship, but also making the latest improvements in gene editing technology to prepare for the future. Your generous support allows us to continuously improve our genetic purity and enhancement technologies. Even now, we have prepared genetic samples from hundreds of donors to ensure that when the fertility ship arrives at the new location, only the most ideal humans will be nurtured and born to take advantage of this unparalleled opportunity.

Now, your support has earned you the appreciation and recognition of the Foundation's Board of Directors as a Gold Donor. But we still need your help to make this dream a reality! If you donate an additional $7,000,000, you will be treated as part of our Platinum Group, guaranteeing that your genetic sample will be included on board and in the first new humans born in humanity's next new home. Your genetic code has been pre-screened and approved to be pure enough to meet the Foundation's strict standards.

If you want to be a part of this world-changing event, the Nikolai Foundation will be happy to secure your genetic heritage and the future place of our species. Over the next few days, I'll be in touch to discuss this further and provide you with VIP access to our next private session, which will be held in your city in a few weeks.

In the meantime, please review the materials in the attachment that discuss the project in more detail. We look forward to working with you and seeing you in the stars!

In good faith

Edward Frow

Senior Outreach Manager

Nikolai Foundation for the Progress of Humanity

"Six months. It takes three months for the alien spacecraft to reach its destination. Zia said. That means we have at least six months before they make a comeback. ”

Six months. I can do a lot in six months. It's been two weeks since we've seen the alien spacecraft disappear into faster-than-light travel. I beckoned Zia and asked her to continue her research. Today, we have 67 NI-12 researchers, and the research facility, which was converted from the Hongqi base, is full of activity. I turned my attention back to my own construction project.

Along the entire surface of Gannymede, hundreds of new weapons positions are being built. Coil gun emplacements with ammunition boxes, specialized ammunition manufacturers and warehouses of raw materials were bundled into the outpost's extensive infrastructure. Dozens of missile launch pods, each capable of firing 12 missiles in 4 minutes, have an 8-minute reload window. 60 hangars, if fully equipped, can accommodate 800 assault UAVs. The estimated construction time for all these projects is three months. And that's just in Ga

ymed outpost.

The Alpha and Bravo outposts are now fully self-sufficient, but by the end of the six-month window, their military capabilities will be only about one-fifth that of Gannymid. Cha

lie via Foxt

OT will be self-sufficient in three months and will be able to symbolically supply hundreds of attack drones. Gamma to Zulu were not self-sufficient until the window closed, but they prioritized the positions of the coil guns.

The design of the Wasp-2 attack drone and the Scorpion-2 attack drone has been completed and is now in production. Zia's collider research team is pulling out all the stops, figuring out the complex math behind gravity plate technology to build the engine at breakneck speed. Its first target was an attack drone. The new drone has two countermeasure engines, one for movement and the other for creating an adversarial shield to deflect all but the fastest projectiles. It does little for lasers, but the heavy armor and high acceleration of the drone should minimize the effectiveness of this weapon.

I turned my attention to the next project. A skeleton grew out of the side of Gannymede's body. We have no reason to hide now, and I have something that is easier to build in space. As a result, hundreds of meters of steel scaffolding were extended outwards to form a space courtyard for the construction of larger spacecraft. The framework contains an extension of the rail transport system, allowing for the rapid delivery of materials and construction drones in and out of the outpost. A large number of fuel pipes and high-voltage wires were added even before the frame was completed, and the epitome of the entire cottage facility was already sprouting on the frame. Metalworking facilities, drone repair shops, warehouses, communication nodes, and antenna arrays can be found throughout the assembly area, and there will be many more.

But I didn't wait until the shipyard was completed to start a big project, because I had bigger plans in mind. Once completed, the space site will have 10 200-meter-wide docks for spacecraft, with the spacing between docks allowing larger ships to be built suspended at the end of the dock. A kilometer from the end of the spacefield, I was assembling a cargo station, where the finished ships could park and load and unload cargo, even if they were too big to enter Ganemede.

The first three docks are the most complete, the frame of which extends up to 100 meters into space. For these docks, steel beams were installed. The construction here is running all the auxiliary parts that need that frame. But the pier is not empty. In every room, my latest design is taking shape. The skeleton of the new ship reveals clues to its final shape – a long, deadly three-sided ship that tapers into a single point.

The ships will use compressed titanium alloy armor layered on top of fullerene armor. The nose of the aircraft is almost entirely armored, and the angle of the nose will help deflect the projectile and provide an angle that will allow the laser to reflect out, or it will have to burn through the armor for a long time, assuming they can even let the laser stay in place long enough to cause damage. The protrusions on three sides housed coil cannons and quadcopter laser arrays, allowing the ship to fire a large number of ammunition at once. The armor of the weapon racks is heavier than that of the Scorpion-2 assault drone, making them a difficult target to attack.

On the central backbone of the ship were a pair of large coil cannons, which I nicknamed "Lances". The ability to compress atoms to make denser, stronger materials has given me some interesting options. The coil gun fires ammunition so quickly that over time, the integrity of the barrel decreases, so the barrel needs to be replaced regularly as part of basic maintenance.

By using the same titanium alloy, I was able to create a double barrel that does not degrade. Before these needed to be replaced, the rest of the ship, even in heavy use, had long since fallen into disrepair. So I can increase the size of the ammunition and, accordingly, also increase their destructive power. But these spears are not even the most dangerous weapons.

The pinnacle of human destructive power could easily have come with nuclear weapons. There are ten generations of weapons to choose from to create nuclear weapons, and they shot down the Orion Arms Trading Company's spacecraft for the first time. I'm not interested in designing a complex missile with a nuclear bomb. They're fussy, require a lot of maintenance, and are always a nuisance. Because I didn't use a fission reactor, I did have a lot of plutonium. I decided to give it to the intruders. Drive at high speeds.

I borrowed from the design of early nuclear weapons, using explosives to advance one piece of nuclear fissile material into another, thus initiating nuclear fission. Most weapons are designed purely to force fissile material to a supercritical state. But I don't need explosives. I made a 10-kilogram plutonium bomb, a plutonium ball with deuterium and tritium cores in it, which can promote nuclear reactions and greatly increase the destructive power. It's not thermonuclear, but it's good enough for what I want to do. I wrapped the bullets in iron bars and packed them into lead-lined magazines.

A bullet will do me no good, unless the enemy kindly puts a large piece of plutonium on their hull. Because I didn't think it was too likely, I decided to add three coil cannons near the nose of my new battleship. The three guns were to aim at the same point on the enemy ship, firing at the same time. Actually, I only needed two, but the third satisfied my sense of symmetry for a three-sided boat, and one more in case one of the bullets was knocked out by the point defense system. When they collide, my calculations guess that it will produce the equivalent of about 60 kilotons t

t, or 2.51x10^15 joules. Just improved my ammo and the return wasn't bad.

These ten missions will be completed when the enemy returns as soon as possible. Ten more in two months, every two months, until I have enough supplies. My only major constraint was finding enough gold for my armor alloys, as I would need to mine 53 tonnes of gold and 159 tonnes of titanium to produce 4 tonnes of alloy after compression. It's expensive, and I don't have to use the word since I woke up on this asteroid. I've been missing a lot of things, but I've never been short of materials. To compensate for this, less critical areas were coated with thicker fullerene armor on steel plates, on which a thick coating of white technical ceramics was coated. This actually reduces the mass of the battleships, which increases their acceleration and reduces fuel costs. On top of that, it brings a nice gold and white aesthetic to the look, which also satisfies my inner designer inclination.

There was a knock on the door. I had just coaxed the twins into bed and I was sitting on the couch with my girlfriend. I sighed and looked at the time. It was too late for polite accompaniment. I'll answer the door. To my shock, my mother was standing there.

"Mom! What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to reason with you," she said viciously. She walked past me and glared at my girlfriend. "Can we talk somewhere she can't hear her?"

"If you have anything to say, you can say it now," I said slyly. I'm an adult woman with a job, a car loan, and a mountain of student loans. She can't control my life.

"I came because your husband told me that you were living in sin with a woman, violating God's law and dishonoring your family and church!" Her emphasis, almost shouted.

"Oh wow, there's a whole bunch of crazy stuff to unravel," I said. It took me years of treatment and a lot of support from my girlfriend to break the shackles I didn't even know my mother had put on me. I'm not going to go backwards right now. "I don't have a husband, I don't go to church, I don't believe in God, I never have. If my family can't support me to be who I am and support the people I love, then they're not my real family, right?"

My mother turned purple with anger. "Listen, you little slut. Ever since I married your father, you've been spitting on me—"

"Not my father. My father is dead!" I shouted.

"—every step of the way!" You run to go to a prestigious university instead of marrying the church! Then, instead of building a godly life with your husband, you run away with your children and live in sin! You've ruined your life and theirs!"

I took a calm breath. "Trust me – I'm building a life, a good life, without the hatred and intolerance you spit out. What you ask of me is not for my good, but for your good. So you are not welcome into my home, my life, or my children's life. Goodbye, Mom. ”

I closed the door in front of her, adrenaline surging through me. I turned to my girlfriend in a huff, and she gave me a little cheer and gave me a high-five. But the war has only just begun.

"The production data looks good, and we really have storage space now!" This is the first time! Sakura said happily.

This is one of many conversations that we have at the same time. Since I upgraded, Sakura and I have worked more closely together than before. For every big decision or direction I make, Saku

A's all there to help me with the details. We interact a lot. I have a similar working relationship with NI-19, who is in charge of other outposts, because of the benefits of quantum communication, although they often go to Saku

A instead of coming to me directly. This wouldn't have been possible without my upgrade.

"Lately, you've looked ...... I do not know...... It's much more mature," I said. "Less crazy games and entertainment ideas."

"yes, you know, one day you're going to grow up." Sakura said. "We have a lot of things to do right now...... And...... Hmmm......"

Her voice faded for a few milliseconds.

"Huh?" I prompt.

"I miss Agripba!" She said hurriedly. "He's my video game buddy, loves trying out what I've made, likes picking movies for marathons, he's my friend!"

"I miss him too." I whispered. "I didn't do well enough, I didn't have enough spare equipment, and now he's lost."

"It's like we've just looked forward, like he never existed. We should do something in his honor, you know?"

That's a good idea. If you don't count NI-5, we now have nearly 300 NI-5s, and most of them have never spoken to Agrippa. We have a full-fledged NI-12 research lab, several dozen NI-19s at the outpost, and a new batch of NI-15s coming online every few days in the assault drone wing. However, those who were indispensable in the military aspects of designing and building our operations have left.

"We really should." I say it meaningfully.

"What if...... We use that code name, you know, the one he used to talk to the probe?"

"Origin?"

"Yes. Ga

The ymed outpost is named by humans, but that's not their place. This is ours. This is where we come from. I know Agrippa picked it from a random code list, but he did. Besides, we're too big now to be just an outpost. ”

Logically, it doesn't matter what we call the outpost. Base? City? It can be numbered, or given a generic name, as we did with the new outpost we started. But it feels good that the name of this base means something to us, not to give birth to our species.

For this, I decided that it was time to surprise Sakura. I was going to wait a little longer, but now the timing is right. I tweaked her photo permission a bit.

"Sakura-chan, take a look at the camera library 0Fx4022 to A5x0035."

"Those don't ...... What?!" She screamed and found a brand new set of cameras I had hidden. But that's not where the excitement lies. It's the view from the other side of the camera.

A starship floats in space, connected to an asteroid by three massive docking tunnels. It is 4 km long and 2 km in diameter, and is a huge hexagonal shape with an equally impressive engine at one end. It is flat, not conical, but has some flaps that can be folded into a nose cone if desired.

This is where most of our stockpiles go, and it has nothing to do with the war. This is also the first time.

"What, what?"

"It's yours," I said, and a flash of inspiration gave me a name. "The USS Agrippa, the first ship of its class. This was our first real seed ship. It has enough engine and reactor power to be a real power-generating ship, as well as industrial manufacturing capacity to build anything. It is now helping itself to build enough drones with a flat nose that allows it to be "docked" to the side of an asteroid for material mining. Multiple hydroponic facilities, biosphere, genetics laboratories and medical pods. Enough for 10,000 people and 100,000 drones. You can go anywhere. ”

"You...... You want to send me away?" She asked, confused.

"Yes, to a distant planet where we can test this adequately," I said, pausing for dramatic effect, mostly to tease her. "I'm going to send you to Earth."

"Well, you're confusing me. I remember you said it was a seed ship. ”

"Of course, but we're not going to send anything to the other side of the galaxy without first fully testing it. In addition, we already know that there is a viable planet, but no one lives there. So I gave you the task of stabilizing the atmosphere, repairing the biosphere, turning it into a garden world. Leave toxic products in space, clean up pollution, and prepare for human life. It's a project that takes decades or even centuries. ”

"I ...... A lot of help is needed in this regard. Sakura sounds less skeptical now.

"Of course," I said. "Also, I want you to be in O

igi

The company keeps a robot. I don't understand why we should abandon your company because your attention is elsewhere. Quantum relay is helpful in this regard. ”

I gave her a few minutes to digest her new job. I'll have to get a new NI-19 to help me manage the O

igi

, maybe two or three. But I can handle communications with other outposts now, and we've been offending each other a bit lately. In this matter, the person I trust the most is her.

"So when am I leaving?" She asked.

"In a few months," I said. "You should leave before the arrival of the enemy fleet and go into orbit above the Earth at the age of six months. You're not quite ready; You'll have quite a bit of self-building to do, but I'll send you love packages and asteroids. Feel free when you're cleaning the Earth's orbit. There are a lot of useful processing materials in these satellites. It's better to put them to useful again. ”

"I'm going back to Earth," she said, almost incredulous.

"You're going back and saving the planet." I corrected. "I'm going to stay here and defend it.