"So about that vortex drive," Tanya said, settling into a more comfortable position on the chamber floor. The alien voice in her head was still surreal, but she'd learned long ago to roll with the universe's strange offerings. "Any chance you know what's wrong with it?"
//The drive is not malfunctioning,// Sage replied, its voice carrying what might have been amusement. //This planetary body is protected by an atmospheric and interdimensional stabilisation field. Vortex drives cannot function within its influence. Your drive will operate normally once you achieve sufficient distance from the surface.//
Tanya blinked. "Well, that's... actually excellent news. But it doesn't help me with the tiny problem of getting my ship into the air in the first place. Kind of hard to reach 'sufficient distance' when I'm stuck on the ground with a busted hover system."
//Correct. This presents an interesting engineering challenge.//
"Right, so what exactly can you do to help? I mean, no offence, but having a voice in my head is fascinating and all, but I need practical solutions."
//My primary function is educational development and societal integration. I am designed to convert compatible individuals into productive colony members based on their demonstrated aptitudes and psychological profiles.//
"Convert me into..." Tanya paused, parsing that statement. "Okay, that sounds either really helpful or mildly terrifying. What exactly does that mean?"
//I contained the complete educational and cultural database of my creators. Through systematic instruction and enhancement, I can develop your existing capabilities far beyond their current limitations.//
Tanya caught the slip immediately. "'Contained,' past tense. Want to explain that?"
There was a pause, and for a moment, she wondered if Sage had simply decided not to answer. Then the voice returned, carrying something that might have been uncertainty.
//My memory systems are... fragmented. Much of my original database appears to be corrupted or locked away from my current processing capabilities. However, I retain sufficient knowledge to provide meaningful assistance. The fundamentals remain intact.//
"So you're running on backup systems," Tanya said, immediately understanding the situation. "That's why you can't access everything you used to know?"
//An accurate assessment. But my core educational protocols remain functional. It is time to select your development path.//
"Development path?"
//Based on your psychological profile, educational background, and demonstrated capabilities, I can offer three career specialisations within the Shipwright discipline. Each will unlock distinct design philosophies, construction techniques, and technological advancements.//
The knowledge slid into her mind, but not like the violent surge from before, but a smooth, natural flow, like rediscovering skills she'd misplaced. Three distinct paths took shape in her thoughts, each unfolding like a fully illustrated blueprint. She could see where each would lead.
//Option One: Military Shipwright. Master the design of warships, strategic defence platforms, and tactical support craft. This path prioritises armour, heavy weapon integration, and rapid-response deployment capabilities.//
She almost snorted. Military? She was just a farm girl who had learned to weld because someone had to fix the tractor. The idea of building weapons for a war she wanted no part of felt wrong down to her bones. No matter how powerful it might make her, she had no interest in designing ships meant to destroy.
//Option Two: Utilitarian Shipwright. Specialising in multi-role civilian vessels, industrial platforms, and sustainable infrastructure. This path focuses on adaptability, efficiency, and technologies that support long-term habitation, commerce, and cooperative ventures.//
That… had appeal. It was practical, broad, and most importantly, it fit with her upbringing and her own goals. It was about keeping people alive and connected.
//Option Three: Exploration Shipwright. Pursue advanced survey craft, deep-space research vessels, and interstellar scout ships. This path emphasises endurance, scientific equipment integration, and navigational mastery beyond charted space.//
Exploration stirred something in her. The thought of charting new worlds, finding resources, and uncovering what lay beyond the maps was tempting. It had adventure in it, the promise of discovery. But it felt… smaller in scope. Exciting, yes, but it wouldn't touch as many lives.
She took a breath, weighing them one last time. Military was out. Exploration was alluring, but Utilitarian was the one that could help the most people, building the backbone of whatever came next.
"Utilitarian," she said firmly. "I want to build ships that keep people alive, fed, and working together. That's where I'll do the most good."
//Selection confirmed. Initiating specialisation integration.//
The burning sensation in her brain was brief this time, more like a quick flash of heat than the overwhelming fire of the initial connection. When it faded, she felt... different. Not fundamentally changed, but as if someone had turned up the resolution on her understanding of specific spacecraft engineering knowledge. Those lessons that she didn't understand now made sense, that last 5 percent of knowledge had been unlocked.
//Integration complete. Displaying current status.//
Information cascaded across her vision like a living blueprint, yet she could still see the chamber around her with perfect clarity. The data wasn't simply appearing before her eyes—it was being etched directly into her mind, slotting into place as if it had always been there.
TANYA FURROW — Level 2 Shipwright (Utilitarian Specialisation)
Core Skills:
Structural Engineering: Level 2 — Design and reinforce civilian and industrial vessel frameworks.
Power Systems: Level 2 — Optimise energy distribution for sustained, non-military operations.
Propulsion Theory: Level 2 — Configure drive systems for long-term reliability and efficiency.
Materials Science: Level 1 — Select and adapt resources for multi-environment durability.
System Integration: Level 2 — Harmonise life-support, cargo, and habitation systems for continuous service.
Specialisation Bonuses:
Adaptive Architecture — Enhanced ability to design multi-purpose, modular ships suited to trade, transport, and habitat roles.
Sustainable Logistics — Increased efficiency in fuel, food, and resource usage for extended civilian operations.
Community-Focused Prototyping — Accelerated construction of facilities and vessels aimed at improving quality of life.
//Your aptitude assessment indicates significant potential for advancement. You have been assigned your first development mission.//
"A mission?" Tanya asked, though part of her was still marvelling at the skill display floating in her peripheral vision. "Let me guess, to build a ship that can get off this planet?"
//Correct. Mission parameters: Construct a functional atmospheric-capable vessel using available resources. Success will demonstrate your progression readiness and unlock advanced capabilities.//
//Mission Reward: Structural Engineering advancement to Level 3, unlocking composite material synthesis and advanced stress distribution techniques.//
Tanya stood up, brushing dust off her suit. The chamber suddenly felt less like a mysterious alien artifact and more like a new classroom of the strangest engineering program in the galaxy.
"So where do I start?" she asked. "I mean, I appreciate the skill upgrade and all, but I'm still stuck on a dead planet with a crashed ship and limited resources."
//Resource survey indicates sufficient raw materials within the facility complex. Additionally, your crashed vessel contains components suitable for integration into new designs. Shall I begin instructional protocols?//
"You're telling me this place has a workshop?"
//Multiple fabrication facilities are available, though some require reactivation. Your current skill level grants access to basic construction bays. Higher-level facilities will unlock as you progress.//
Tanya felt a grin spreading across her face, and the familiar excitement of a new engineering challenge was bubbling up inside her, amplified by whatever Sage had done to her brain.
"Alright then," she said, cracking her knuckles. "Let's build a ship."
//Excellent. Proceed to the construction bay. Your education begins now.//
As if responding to Sage's words, a section of the chamber wall dilated open, revealing a corridor that led deeper into the facility. Soft lighting activated along the path, guiding her forward.
Tanya stepped through the doorway with the confidence of someone who'd just discovered that the universe's latest curveball was exactly the kind she'd been trained to hit. Sure, she had an alien AI in her head and was trapped on a dead world, but she also had access to technology that made her wildest engineering dreams look conservative. She was excited to see what she could achieve.
"You know what, Sage?" she said as she walked down the corridor. "I think this is going to be fun."
//That attitude will serve you well, Tanya Furrow. Welcome to your new education.//
The corridor opened into a workshop that made Tanya's engineering heart skip a beat. It was massive, easily the size of a small hangar with fabrication equipment that belonged in her wildest dreams. Precision manipulators hung from ceiling tracks, material synthesisers lined the walls, and in the center sat a holographic projection system that could have doubled as modern art.
Then her crashed shuttle materialised in the middle of the space.
Not moved. Not transported. Materialised, like someone had copy-pasted it from her crash site directly into the workshop.
"Okay," Tanya said, walking around her battered ship and trying to process what she'd just witnessed. "I know I should probably be used to impossible things by now, but that was genuinely impressive. How did you—"
//Spatial manipulation technology. Standard feature of dimensional workshop facilities.//
"Right. Standard." She ran her hand along the shuttle's hull, noting damage she hadn't been able to see from ground level. "So your people had mastery over space-time, incredible preservation technology, educational systems that can directly interface with alien brains... How did a civilisation this advanced end up as ruins?"
//That information is restricted.//
The response was immediate and final but also carried the suggestion that the restriction wasn't Sage's choice.
"Restricted by who? You're fragmented, remember? Maybe the data's just locked away with everything else?"
//Classification protocols remain intact. I cannot access or discuss historical records regarding my creators' fate.//
Tanya studied the workshop around her, comparing it to the crumbling ruins outside. "This place is completely different from everything else I've seen. The other buildings are ancient and worn down, but this facility is perfect. Why?"
//That information is also restricted.//
"Of course it is." She sighed and shook her head. "Well, there's nothing I can do about galactic mysteries right now. Might as well focus on what I can control."
She approached the holographic emitter, and it activated the moment she came within range. The interface that appeared was immediately familiar, but not because she'd seen it before, but because it felt like something she'd always known how to use. The alien symbols resolved into comprehensible text, and the control schemes matched her intuitive expectations.
"Let me guess," she said, manipulating the display with natural ease. "You've adapted this to my neural patterns too?"
//Educational systems automatically configure for optimal student interaction. The interface reflects your existing knowledge base and learning preferences.//
"Right." Tanya shook her head and decided to roll with it. She'd had an alien AI restructure her brain, so worrying about user interface adaptation seemed like closing the stable door after the horse had learned to teleport.
She rolled her shoulders and dove into the design software, ready to create the spacecraft of her dreams. Advanced propulsion, elegant curves, maybe some of those impossible technologies she'd just witnessed—
A red warning flashed across the display: DESIGN COMPLEXITY LIMIT: 1000 POINTS
"What?" She stared at the limitation in disbelief. "A thousand points? That's barely enough for a basic atmospheric shuttle!"
//Lesson objective: resource optimisation and design efficiency. Constraint-based engineering develops superior problem-solving capabilities.//
"But I could build something incredible with all this technology! Why limit—"
//Would you prefer I simply fabricate a ship for you, or would you like to learn to build one yourself?//
The question stopped her protest cold. She'd been so excited by the possibilities that she'd forgotten the fundamental truth: the best engineers weren't the ones with unlimited resources, they were the ones who could do more with less.
"Point taken," she admitted. "Optimisation it is."
She pulled up the parts library and immediately understood the challenge. The basic components were familiar power cores, structural elements, and propulsion systems, but even a minimal atmospheric-capable design pushed close to her point limit. Every choice mattered. Every component had to justify its inclusion.
"This is going to be tighter than I thought," she muttered, cycling through thruster options. Each one cost precious points that could go toward life support, or structure, or navigation systems.
After two hours of increasingly frustrated design attempts, she sat back and looked at her crashed shuttle with new eyes.
"I'm going to have to cannibalise you, aren't I?" she said to the battered vessel. "Sorry, girl. I promise I'll pay the fee when I get home."
//Salvage operations provide additional component points while teaching essential shipwright skills. Disassembly is as important as construction in understanding spacecraft systems.//
"Right. Learning experience." She grabbed a plasma cutter from the workshop's tool array. "Though I bet you could disassemble this thing in minutes with those spatial manipulation systems."
//Correct. However, you would learn nothing from watching components disappear. True understanding comes from hands-on experience.//
And so began two days of the most educational demolition of Tanya's life. She stripped her shuttle down to its component atoms, cataloguing every system, understanding how each piece contributed to the whole. Sage provided commentary throughout, explaining design philosophies and pointing out clever engineering solutions she might have missed.
The power coupling that connected the port engine to the main grid taught her about redundant safety systems. The life support recycler showed her how to maximise efficiency in closed-loop systems. Even the damaged sections provided lessons about stress distribution and failure modes.
"You know," she said, carefully extracting a sensor array from the navigation panel, "this is actually kind of therapeutic. Like solving the galaxy's most expensive puzzle."
//Shipwrights must understand their craft at every level. You cannot properly design what you cannot properly repair.//
When she came across the communication array, still intact despite the crash, she paused. Her parents would be frantic by now. The private shuttle companies would have filed incident reports. Search and rescue might even be trying to locate her crash site, futile as that effort would be.
She powered up the communication device and crafted her message carefully:
Mum, Dad - I'm safe and well, don't worry. Had an incredible last-minute opportunity to study with a master shipwright who has offered to mentor me in advanced techniques. I couldn't pass up the chance! The location is remote, and communication is limited, but I'm learning things they don't teach in any academy. I love you both and I'll be home as soon as I can. Tell Eden-Five that Tanya Furrow is going to come back with some amazing new ideas. - Your loving daughter
It wasn't entirely a lie, she reasoned. Sage was definitely a teacher, the location was extremely remote, and she was learning incredible things. The fact that her mentor was an alien artificial intelligence from a dead civilisation was just... additional context.
She transmitted the message and sat back at the design terminal. The component point counter now reads 734 additional points from her salvage operations. Combined with her original 1000-point budget, she finally had enough to build something worthwhile.
"Alright, Sage," she said, cracking her knuckles again. "Let's see what we can really do with seventeen hundred points."
//Now you're beginning to think like a true shipwright. Shall I provide the advanced lesson on structural optimisation?//
Tanya grinned, her excitement returning as she contemplated the design challenges ahead. "Bring it on."