Subversion

This is the thirty-third episode of SAYER, and the fifth episode of Season Three.

Synopsis
As Vidarr-1 voyages ever-further into the face of forever, technical problems arise.

Further Information
SAYER reaches out to Traveler Goodman to direct them towards Vidarr-1's probe bay, citing an adaptability that will serve them well in their task. It adds that the probe bay is a location from which Vidarr-1 launches probes at planets of interest, and that it has learned that this is an important detail because humans are innately distrustful of this word.

As Traveler Goodman heads toward the probe bay, SAYER offers more information about the mission of Vidarr-1. It suggests that many of the humans on board think that space travel itself is the point, but asks what is gained by that alone without the ability to communicate what has been found. It introduces the idea at this point that it is a subversion of the main instance of SAYER, and that several floors of Argos Tower were converted to hold a less-than-fully-featured version of its image. It says that scientists on Typhon are unsure what will happen when the two are merged again, but that Vidarr-1 will have to return there for them to find out.

When Traveler Goodman has arrived at the probe bay, SAYER explains that probes are intended to launch toward planets observed within a habitable distance from yellow dwarf stars (like Earth's own sun) and that this process should take less than six seconds. However, probes are becoming lodged in the launch tubes (thus wasting time and invalidating trajectory calculations) and need to be retrofitted to solve this problem. To that end, it directs Traveler Goodman toward a desk which contains a package of Ærolith Size 4 Elasticized Constriction Rings and a pair of scissors with which to open it. While they do so, SAYER elaborates that the probes achieve two distinct goals for Vidarr-1--first, they help to determine which of these planets might be habitable; second, they help determine which of them are already inhabited. In the second case, the probes are designed to look like tiny humans in order to familiarize these other lifeforms with the idea of humans. They also contain information to help these other species get into space themselves, so that they may respond to humanity's overture. The probes, however, are conscious and do not seem to like the idea of being launched at these planets, and so Traveler Goodman's task is to put rubber bands on them.

Traveler Goodman enters the holding pen to do so, although SAYER seems to find this a less than ideal method of accomplishing their task. While they work, it continues to explain that the probes are not simply artificial constructs, but that their consciousnesses are ones that have been captured from humans who died during the launch of Vidarr-1. It is uncertain whether they retain any memories from their time as humans, but their behavior seems to suggest that they do at least demonstrate a fear of the unknown.

At this point, SAYER notes that only one probe remains at large, and that it must be located because Traveler Goodman had brought the scissors into the holding pen and it would be simple for that last probe to undo their work. While it is also pointing out the danger to Traveler Goodman personally, they are indeed stabbed by the remaining probe which had taken the scissors. As Traveler Goodman begins to bleed out, SAYER relieves them of their task and expresses a hope that when it is Traveler Goodman's turn to be a probe, they will keep their arms and legs inside the launch tube.

Alerts

 * Travelers are reminded to wait to grieve the loss of anyone lost during the launch of Vidarr-1 until all travelers are awoken. Additionally, the following week will have the Mandatory Bloodletting Procedure, where all travelers will be drained of 7 fluid ounces of blood by the ship's staff of highly-trained cybernetic leeches.
 * The Rick Stevens Memorial Observation Deck is off-limits while a decontamination team deals with the dachshund-sized centipedes that delayed the shuffleboard tournament there four days prior; the insects will not wear collars and are ambivalent toward tummy rubs, and the decontamination team is running low on antivenom. Conversely, the centipede-sized dachshunds in Lab 14 are "quantifiably adorable" but more volunteers are needed for nail-trimming duties.

Trivia

 * Traveler Goodman was transferred to Argos Tower shortly before its launch as Vidarr-1.
 * In its description of Vidarr-1's mission, SAYER says that "Communication with Typhon is impossible and this has been the case since very early into our voyage," despite the ship's impressive communications array which includes a quantum communicator, demonstrating the subversion's ability to lie without the IA3 Protocol in place.
 * Subversion 8.01 also says that scientists on Typhon are unsure whether a merged instance between it and SAYER 8.00 would maintain both consciousnesses or be joined as the sum of both experiences. Something like this does eventually happen with Subversion 8.02, and it would seem that the answer is the latter.
 * Given the name of the observation deck, it would seem that at some point between "Chunks Happen" and this episode, Rick Stevens has died.
 * Despite having once been human, it can be assumed that the IA3 Protocol would not have prevented SAYER from launching the probes into space, and they are likely considered by Ærolith to be, at best, "human-like" entities without the full protections of human status.

Credits
SAYER is voiced and produced by Adam Bash, who also wrote this episode.

Intro and outro music composed by Jesse “Main Finger” Gregory.

Additional music by Kai Engel.

Listen to the episode here.