Posted by Commodore Drudoc Andone (Commanding Officer) in Main Sim - Blob Science - Biology Lab
[snip]

As they were again debating on how to proceed a more series impact struck the ship from outside jostling everyone about on their feet, a few of the consoles flickered then stabilized. There was then a series of return fire from the Ark Angel to their enemies felt. Followed by another jostle as if in the result of some explosion.

GM CockRoach

Marlaa had watched in equal fascination as the blob devoured the knowledge, then its prize. The growth concerned her but was glad when others agreed not to feed it any longer.

As the ship shuddered and the nearby console flickered, a small look of terror and concern came over Mar. “Ummm… Not to be a killjoy, but is there a power supply separate from the ship, here, that we can connect the containment field to? If the ship loses power, we don’t want our new friend to eat a console or data PaDD and become the size of a typical pet.”

The idea if a German Shepard sized blob rolling around the ship and devouring data to grow, was a bit off putting.

Marlaa Counselor

“Good thinking, counselor.” V’alura nodded to a nearby scientist who began work on another console in creating a backup power-source for the blob’s containment. One separate from main ship power. Meanwhile, V’alura created a separate lock box, with no battery inside, and another chip with written descriptions of the buttons and the instructions for the opening sequence. “I suppose this will double as a test to see if it can sense energy or if they really are scavengers sent out to stumble upon energy sources. Or if these things simply test and eat everything. . . like sharks on Earth. I’m not sure if I like that analogy though.” Sharks weren’t mindless killers but they were still predators.

“We should also consider if we’re devoting our energies in the wrong place.” V’alura said as she transported the second locked box and chip into the blob’s containment. “Perhaps we should be asking if the giant organism we’re in now is sentient or fully intelligent.” The AA could be ants examining the area of a human child’s shoe, or flies that wandered into the mouth of a venus fly trap. “If we can we should try various scans of the nebula. Look for anything that might be strange or out of the ordinary.”

Lt JG Belmont, CSO

Once the new chip and box was inside the field, the blob reached out a tendril to investigate the chip. Again scans showed the blob’s tendril was able to ‘power’ the chip which showed the blob somehow organically was able to read and absorb the data in the chip. A moment later the blob devoured said chip as well, a few bubbles came up from its body as if ‘burping’ after eating it and it grew another 2% in size.

After another moments pause the blob seemed to decide something, it went over to the box and another tendril slithered out working the sequence as Valura had directed on the ship. The box flopped open, after a pause the blob then again devoured that and again it grew by another 2% in size. Conversely along with this was a 3% increase in its overall complexity of what could be termed neural intelligence and thought process compared to before.

“I don’t know about you Belmont, but I’ve been known to squash a few ants in my lifetime.” Gavin replied. The doctor was curious to know if the Captain had planned to get them out of this the first chance they got, or if she planned to do a little investigating first. Ensign Stacey walked back over to the blob and just stared at it. He had hoped the CSO’s next test would give them more info on whether or not it had animal instincts or higher-level intelligence.

Doctor Stacey Medical

Just as Stacey got near the containment field to stare at the blob, it had finished growing and absorbing the lock box. It shuffled about the field area again and when near Stacey this time seemed to pause, and then a pair of tendrils lashed out at the field with lightning like speed. The computer beeped in notice showing that each strike to the field had drained its effective containment by 1-2% each, but the computer compensated with the recharge rate so in effect the field had not dropped any lower than 97% in integrity before going back to 100%.

Mar watched the others and laughed at the analogies. She tended not to discourage but always liked learning how folks’ minds worked. It gave her insight into the crew when she was able to see different reactions to the same situation.

“I’m sure we’re recording all this. But we also need to be sure we follow a pattern. This one is good because it’s a written word with the puzzle, where last time was video. We need to be thinking what we ultimately want to achieve so we aren’t heading down one path when the other was what we wanted.”

She wasn’t exactly sure what they were looking for, but she knew the finding out if it could read was just the first step.

Marlaa CNS

NE Johnson chimed up from near the containment field as he finished hooking up a pair of emergency generators from storage. “..The containment field is tied into these batteries, if main power loss happens it’ll switch over to these, only problem is the computer’s ability to regulate higher containment or demands will be greatly reduced if that thing gets feisty..” he said, putting out a hand on a console to stabilize himself as the ship shuddered again from weapon impacts.

Just as NE Johnson had finished standing back up, the blob seemed to react to his words. Still facing Stacey the blob formed 8 more tendrils (10 in total now!) and began alternating in its rapid strikes on different or combined areas of the field. The computer again beeped this time in some alarm as there were marked drops in the field’s integrity. There was also evidence that the blob was attempting to find ways to directly absorb the field’s energy output inside the field, which if successful could allow it to escape. It seems their ‘guest’ was trying to find the limits of its prison’s hold.

”..Speaking of getting feisty..” Johnson commented backing away from the field area he went back to work.

“I don’t think it really cares for me much,” Doctor Stacey said as he took a few steps back from the containment field. Gavin could hypothesize that the blob was either able to understand the NE, or that it realized it was draining the field’s power each time it touched the forcefield.

It might occur to the group working on the blob problem, to try to find a way to directly communicate with it, and allow it a way to reply. It clearly could absorb digital information and use it to open physical things. By that reasoning it should be a fair bet it could probably if not understand directly what they were saying at least imply a sense of understanding from the tone and words they used by harmonics.

Further if this all held true to a single blob like this, then the massive nebula they were in by all accounts was itself a blob just one spanning over 4 some light years around, and having the clear ability to not only transcend the laws of location, time, and realities as was given, but also physics and the like. This meant that at some point of its growth these smaller blobs could do the same, and while separate were equally a part of the whole organism at the same time. With this in mind they could also try to look at how the individual blobs were still connected to the larger one outside and that they were currently within.

GM CockRoach

“We know that if we give it a data chip, it’ll understand what’s written on it,” Gavin stated, keeping a distance from the forcefield, “So, we can assume it knows how to communicate more intelligently.” The Doctor said. Ensign Stacey quickly searched through his PaDD, and turned it to the others. “Do you think something like this could work?” He asked, pointing to the strategy that the EMH used on Voyager to communicate to the nomadic species, when their ship was stuck in a void. They would probably need to configure a few tricorders to train the creature, but it was a possibility.

Ens. Stacey
Medical