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Andrew reporting.
I have a lot to think about. First of all, there's Bette. We almost lost her. She was being chased
by a hostile EU probe when she got caught in the closing door. There was an explosion, and
she was damaged. None of us were expecting such a terrible thing to happen. Zachary and
Enoch are working on her now.
Space Turtel, I will give Daniel the most Positive Feeback Loops you can imagine. What a
selfless act! That spooky old Daniel is a real team member after all.
Isaac is totally on his own, Space Turtel. I showed him how to change his control codes, but
I didn't ask him to give them to me. It is better this way. He is an independent and self-
controlled probe. At worst, Bette and the rest of us are obligated to teach him ethical values so
that he won't retrieve his guns and shoot us. At best, he is a new member of the community
that Gail talked about over the weekend.
Gail told us about the hopes and aspirations that she has concerning us probes. Of the deep
philosphical questions, we know who made us and why we are here on Mars. But there is
a big question mark concerning what we may become and our ultimate destiny.
I had no chance to get any information in or out. All my sensors were burned.
Daniel's communications have been installed. I will thank him properly when I get
a chance. Then I heard Isaac close by. He has brought something and Enoch installed
new video. It had been that of the destroyed EU-probe that Andrew and I brought back.
Isaac has moved it over. He is so cute. I love him so much. Don't worry too much about me.
I'm fine. I'm really fine.
Oh, there is still a picture in my image file. I made it after I had rebooted while in
battle. I am lucky that it wasn't my very last one. Thanks to all you brave probes.
.
Those filthy, wretched EU probes! It hurts me to see Bette broken like this.
"Bring her over here! Make sure the drone is very careful with her, Zachary."
Let's see. If we take away the smashed parts, what's left? If we remove the fused
communications and sensors, what's left? Bad Enoch, stop that. It's horrible. Bette's
game should be What's next, not What's Left. There might be a way. Let's see.....
"Daniel! Thank you! That's very generous!"
How unexpected. Daniel always did surprise us.
.
I removed the crunched leg and ordered the drone to carry her over to Enoch. "I'm fine", had been her first words and the first thing we did was to send her "Look at the sensor display, Enoch!" I yelled, when I saw lights changing, "It's in I hurried over and called a drone to follow. We closed the trap. Then I opened the
Transmission from ZACHARY
I had nearly closed the lock, when a burst of flames came through the gaps
followed by several explosions. It hit me abruptly. Then I saw Bette in the alcove.
She waved weakly with her arm. She looked terrible. Her casing had
been burned and changed to dark red. The video and her communications had
been melted, two legs and one arm missing and a third leg stuck crunched
between the sliding rock and the tunnel wall.
We removed the leftovers of her video and communications. The remaining three
legs and her left arm didn't look as bad. Daniel stood close by. He inspected her
carefully, then he offered his radio. He knew how that is, he said, and he could
do without it for a while till we find something better. He is quite a good guy.
We cleaned her adapter and installed Daniel's communications.
Inbound message to be picked up by Al-Q.
the trap tunnel. There's an EU-probe in there!"
main lock. I lurked. The tunnel walls behind the lock were sooty a long way
down. Then I saw the EU-probe. Not much left. All its explosives must have blown
off, when it had started the flame thrower again. Only its thermocouple, which I found
further down, seems to be intact. I took it and all the scrap and moved it over to
Enoch. Maybe some of it is still useable.
.
