Episode 5: The View from an Altitude of 20km
“Ma’am, regarding the procurement of food supplies…”
“Ah, yes.”
Hearing ＜Ringo＞ say that, she straightened her back with a bit of expectation.
“I have collected several samples. After conducting tests such as blood analysis, would it be acceptable to proceed with small-scale ingestion tests, and then make a final determination on whether they are edible?”
“Ah. Yes, I suppose. There’s no other choice, is there…? We don’t have any guinea pigs here either.”
The blood samples have probably already been collected by the Medical Pod. Whether they contain toxins that react directly with body tissues or blood, or whether there are any allergic reactions, can be investigated in a relatively short time.
“As for microorganisms, we need to observe their progress, but for now, we can assume that safety can be ensured by performing radiation sterilization.”
“Ah. Yes… I’ll leave that to you.”
“However, the investigation will take about 8 hours, so I regret to inform you that we will not be able to prepare a meal for you today.”
＜Ringo＞ reported this with a truly apologetic tone, and she gave a wry smile. As time passes, she becomes more and more emotional. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is another matter, but she was enjoying the change. She renewed her determination to be careful not to let it go in a bad direction.
“I’m prepared for that. Well, as long as I can drink water, I’ll manage somehow.”
“Yes, Ma’am. Drinking Water is secured. The freshwater purification plant is currently in operation, and we expect to be able to secure potable water within 30 minutes. We will perform radiation sterilization just in case, but so far, no problematic impurities have been detected in the purified water.”
“That’s reassuring. Well, bring it to me when you can.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
For now, she had established a path for food procurement. With nutrient injections and water, she could manage for the time being. She just needed to find something that could provide at least calories before the stock ran out. No matter how long it took, she should be able to get a lead in about a week. Fortunately, it has been confirmed that there are abundant fish shadows around.
“Now… I wonder if the High-Altitude Plane (Plane) is ready yet?”
“Yes, Ma’am, about 5 more minutes. We have dispatched a high-altitude drone in advance. Displaying the video.”
The video taken by the drone was displayed on the monitor she was looking at. The viewing angle wasn’t wide, perhaps because it was a drone for long-distance monitoring, but it was clear without blurring or distortion.
“…The sea, huh.”
And what was displayed on the monitor was a blue sky and sea, with a horizon that divided them into almost a straight line. There was no sign of land, let alone reefs.
“Yes, Ma’am. We are currently rotating horizontally, but we cannot confirm any land or artificial objects.”
A blue sky and a blue sea as far as the eye can see. Unfortunately, there seemed to be no islands or anything else within the distance that could be seen at this altitude.
“Hmm… Should I be happy that there are no threats nearby, or sad…?”
“Strategically, it is something to be welcomed that there are no hostile forces in the vicinity.”
“Well, yes, but…”
The drone continued to ascend slowly. However, even after watching for a while, no land was found.
“…. How much range are we seeing now?”
“Yes, Ma’am. Assuming that the diameter of this planet is the same as that of Earth, the range at the current altitude of 200m is approximately 50km. Also, for example, if there was a 200m-class mountain, it would be possible to visually recognize something about 100km away.”
“So, at least, there are no 200m-class mountains within a 100km radius, huh?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
She wondered if she should be glad that there were fewer things to consider. If there was a civilization nearby, some kind of negotiation would have been necessary. ＜Ringo＞ is a super-performance AI, but the problem is that she has little experience. The number of things she had to judge would increase dramatically, and she would undoubtedly have a terrible time.
“So, I guess we’ll have to wait for the results from the High-Altitude Plane (Plane)?”
“Yes, Ma’am. At an altitude of 20km, a field of view of about 500km in radius can be secured. If land can be confirmed, we will move towards the land and be able to collect some information. If there is no land, we will need to deploy more planes to collect information from further away.”
“I see… Is it ready to launch soon?”
She noticed that the preparation rate of the High-Altitude Plane (Plane) displayed in the corner of her vision had reached 100%, and she turned her gaze towards it. An image of the plane in launch position was displayed there.
“Yes, Ma’am. Starting the launch sequence. 10 seconds to launch (ten count). 9, 8,… Booster ignition, 5,…”
Flames erupted with white smoke from the rocket motor connected to the bottom of the aircraft.
“Thrust at the specified value… 2, 1, launch (lift off)… 2, 3,…”
The High-Altitude Plane (Plane) shot out vigorously from the rocket ejection port. The external camera followed the aircraft, raising the shooting angle.
“Thrust and attitude are stable. Ascending smoothly.”
“…A relief for now, huh.”
She was relieved to see that the aircraft was ascending in the same way as when she had launched it two or three times in the game era. If it had behaved differently from the game, she would have had to investigate it all over again. If that happened, she would have been screaming about the lack of resources.
“…Reached an altitude of 5km.”
The aircraft’s shadow was being captured normally on the radar. The operation of the rangefinder system also seemed to be normal. If it could be photographed after reaching the planned altitude, it would be possible to observe a considerable distance away. It would be best if there were no hostile forces nearby, but it would also be a problem if there was only the sea. In any case, she couldn’t even move without collecting resources. She glared at the counting-up altitude numbers with impatience.
“Ma’am. No abnormalities have been observed in the aircraft, but the altitude is not increasing as expected. The planned speed is also below expectations.”
“…Huh? Is it okay?”
Then, ＜Ringo＞ gave a report of the kind she didn’t want to hear. She felt the blood drain from her face, wondering if some terrible problem had occurred.
“There are no abnormalities in the observable thrust or the combustion temperature of each part. All values are normal. However, the measured acceleration is below the planned value, and therefore the planned altitude has not been reached.”
As ＜Ringo＞ explained, she displayed the planned altitude/speed and the actual measured altitude/speed in a graph. The values that had initially risen as planned gradually decreased in growth around the altitude of 5km, and at the current altitude of 10km, there was already a difference of about 1km.
“This is… There are no observable abnormalities, is that right?”
“Yes. According to this curve, the reached altitude is expected to be about 17km… I apologize for the sensory explanation, but it seems that it is becoming more (・)d(・)i(・)f(・)f(・)i(・)c(・)u(・)l(・)t(・) to (・)a(・)s(・)c(・)e(・)n(・)d(・) as the altitude increases.”
“Difficult to ascend, huh…”
That would mean that there is some external force causing resistance to the ascent. The displayed thrust is measured by the sensors built into the aircraft. Of course, there is also the possibility of a sensor failure.
“If there was a failure in the sensors, differences with other sensors should be recognized, but there are no particular problems with the acceleration sensor, each thermometer, combustion temperature, infrared thermometer, etc. The possibility that all sensors are malfunctioning is almost zero.”
“Hmm. I can’t say anything for sure at the moment…”
“Yes… The booster’s combustion will stop soon. 5 seconds to separation, 4, 3, 2, 1, now. Separation completed. Booster, departure orbit, normal… Deploying the gliding wings.”
In the center of the telescopic image, the booster rapidly separated from the High-Altitude Plane (Plane). Although it was small and difficult to see, the reconnaissance aircraft itself unfolded its folded main wings and was shifting to horizontal flight.
“Aircraft control, all normal (all green). Entered horizontal flight. Starting the nose camera. Video coming in.”
A monitor unfolded in front of her, displaying video from the reconnaissance aircraft flying at an altitude of approximately 17km. The first thing displayed was a pitch-black sky. It’s outer space. The camera, which had been facing upwards, slowly moved, and soon a bright blue horizon came into view.
“…It’s blue, isn’t it.”
Yes, as a result of pointing the camera horizontally, what was being shown was a bright blue horizon. Unfortunately, land could not be confirmed.
“Yes. Since the angle of view is narrow, we will now enter a turning flight.”
And so, the video slowly began to rotate. For a while, only the black sky, the blue sea, and the white clouds were displayed. Fortunately, there were few clouds, and the visibility was good, but…
“Hmm…”
She let out a voice of disappointment because she couldn’t see any land. But immediately after that.
“Discovered terrain that appears to be a mountain peak on the horizon.”
“Huh!? Where!?”
“Displaying the replay.”
To her, who was leaning forward at the report, ＜Ringo＞ displayed an enlarged replay with consideration.