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<h1> Unlikely Encounter </h1>
<p class="light">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
What was that? Annie turns around.
</p>
<p class="light">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
That came from the hallway. She steps outside her office to see where
this noise is coming from. Everyone else had already gone home and she
was about to leave as well so this is weird.
</p>
<p class="light">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
Following the sound, she walks down the hallway. She stops to listen.
</p>
<p class="strong">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
Behind that door to the left... Opening it reveals the staircase down
to the basement.
</p>
<p class="strong">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
The sound is clearer, it comes from down there. Annie walks down the
stairs and turns on the lights. She rarely goes to the basement, usually
just to add to the piles of archived paperwork on the rows of shelves,
but she had no idea there was anything other than the archive down here.
</p>
<p class="strong">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
The room is dimly lit by a few light fixtures on the walls. Looking
through between the rows of binders, boxes, and loose stacks of paper,
she notices a small dark area in the back of the room. She starts
walking towards it.
</p>
<p class="heavy">
beep beep
</p>
<p>
The noise is now very close. Behind the last shelf, sectioned off from
the rest of the room, she finds a corner that looks like a small office.
There is a large desk with a comfortable-looking though well-worn leather
chair in front of it. Next to the chair is a floor lamp that was
apparently placed there in the absence of a desk lamp. The desk itself is
a mess (apart from a neatly organized row of books at the back of the
desk). Front and center is a terminal...
</p>
<p class="heavy">
BEEP BEEP
</p>
<p>
... and apparently it is the source of the beep sound. The terminal is
a device that looks like kind of a weird TV. It has a screen to display
text, a couple adjustment knobs, and a flat section with rows of buttons
with letters and symbols on them. The reception desk has one of these
things; they always use it to order new office supplies and for other
important-sounding work...
</p>
<ul>
<li class="comment">
might want an image of a dumb terminal somewhere
</li>
<li class="comment">
might need to drive the point home even harder that the flat part of
the terminal is a keyboard - Annie may or may not know this
</li>
</ul>
<p class="heavy">
BEEP BEEP
</p>
<p>
The text on the terminal blinks. She had never used one before but
taking a quick look can't hurt...
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
Hello, anyone there?
This is Jack from Cryo Facility 53. I got woken up from cryogenic sleep
and am stuck down here. Please respond or send help.
Type reply: █
</pre>
<p class="heavy">
BEEP BEEP
</p>
<p>
She sits down on the chair in front of it and switches the lamp on.
Her eyes fall on the rows of buttons with letters - should be easy
enough. Annie starts looking for the right letters...
</p>
<p class="heavy">
BEEP BEEP
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
hello
</pre>
<p>
Click,   
click,    
click,
click,   
click.
The buttons click with a very satisfying feeling and sound. Unlike the
beeping noise which is ... now gone. It was kinda loud and getting
annoying.
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
i am going to get help
Thank you. Appreciate it.
</pre>
<p>
That took a while to... type?... Is that the word? The rows of buttons
are arranged in a strange order... Annie looks around. A pile of papers,
an empty cup, some pens and pencils, a screwdriver and other tools, a
rubber duck - what an odd place to find a rubber duck... A phone! She
picks it up - no signal. <span class="comment">Signal might be the wrong
word in an age where everyone has a radio transceiver in their pocket
</span> Weird. Maybe it's disconnected. She looks on the floor and,
sure enough, there is the plug - not for much longer as she finds a
phone socket and plugs it in. Strange electrical noises. She tries to
dial a number but nothing happens. A couple random characters appear on
the terminal. She drops the receiver back on the cradle and types into
the terminal again:
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
i cant call anyone the phone is only making weird noises
This modem is probably on the same line, I'll disconnect. I will dial
in again in a bit. Talk to you then.
LINE DISCONNECTED -
Tue, 2106-06-01, 19:16
AgriWorks Login: █
</pre>
<ul>
<li class="comment">
This would be a good place for Annie to ask about what a modem is.
Could help to fix the terminal dialog.
</li>
<li class="comment">
Also an opportunity for Karl to get very interested in Jack's
situation.
</li>
</ul>
<p>
Annie picks up the phone again - but who to call? Her coworkers would
probably make fun of her or be annoyed. Also, this place,
"Cryo Facility 53", she had never heard of it.
The only one who might know more about that place is her grandpa, as he
had thoroughly studied the plans of the city in his spare time back in
the day. So she dials his number...
</p>
<p>
She is greeted by the friendly voice of an old man. <br />
<span class="speech">What's on your mind that you call now?</span>
<span class="comment"> Note to self: Improve this, it doesn't sound
right to me </span><br />
<span class="speech">Uhhh...</span><br />
She makes a short pause. <br />
<span class="speech">This might be a little bit weird but someone
contacted me from a location called
"Cryo Facility 53". I wondered if you happen to know
where that is. <span class="comment">or anything about it</span></span>
<br />
<span class="speech">Cryo Facility? Haven't heard anyone talk
about these in a while... Are you sure?</span><br />
<span class="speech">Yes, it says here: Cryo Facility 53.</span><br />
<span class="speech">What does he want?</span>
</p>
<p>
Annie relays what Jack had told her about his situation and asks who
would be the right person to help him.<br />
<span class="speech">That's a bit of a tricky question... These
cryogenics facilities are outside the dome.</span>
</p>
<p class="comment">
Missing dialog here:
</p>
<ul>
<li class="comment">
needs to explain to the reader that the city is inside a large concrete
dome under a mountain
</li>
<li class="comment">
his dad had mentioned it in passing when talking about the old world
and attempts to overcome the impending doom of humanity
</li>
<li class="comment">
explanation of what "cryogenic sleep" is
</li>
<li class="comment">
his dad had thought that it was a ridiculous idea that could never work
</li>
</ul>
<p>
Slowly, she sets the receiver back on the cradle. What would she tell
Jack? What could she do for him? And the outside world was real? A whole
world, much bigger than the city, that she had never heard anything but
rumors about? She looks at the terminal but nothing had changed.
</p>
<p>
Annie ponders over what she had just learned for a moment, then she gets
up to grab some snacks. A cup of juice and a cookie later, she returns,
holding two additional cookies. She leans against the wall while nibbling
at one of them. The second cookie is almost gone when she hears it again:
</p>
<p class="heavy">
BEEP BEEP
</p>
<p>
Annie looks up and walks over to the terminal.
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
Hello again.
</pre>
<p>
Again, she sits down in the chair.
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
hello i am really sorry but we cannot help you we cant get to
outpost 53 its outside
Hm. Okay...
</pre>
<p>
Annie doesn't know what to say. She feels bad for Jack, but there
really is nothing she could do about it.
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
is there anything else i could do for you
Let me think for a moment.
......
..............
...
......
</pre>
<p>
More dots followed. A lot more. Then this:
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
................................
Sorry for taking up your time.
I think I might be able to improvise some tools down here. If I had a
repair manual for the door, I think, I could get out. Do you think you can
get your hands on one?
i dont know where would i find it
</pre>
<p class="comment"> service manual </p>
<pre class="terminal">
You are in the city under the mountain, right? The dome city?
</pre>
<p class="comment">reword this</p>
<pre class="terminal">
yes <name of city>
If memory serves right, there is a library in the city center. They should
have it. I need the repair manual for a Neotek Dynamics B33FY-AF Bunker
Door.
yes but how would i get a book to you
They should have a digital version of it... You are not very familiar with
computers, are you?
no
Are there any computer people you could ask to send me one?
not sure they would do that my grandpa might but he doesnt work here
Any computer hooked up to a modem and a phone line should do. If he knows
his way around computers - and has access to one - he will be able to do
this.
whats a modem
A modem is typically a small device that allows a computer to connect to
the telephone network so that two computers that are far away from each
other can be connected - like the computers we are using right now.
i think he has one
</pre>
<p class="comment">
Note to self: This makes little sense given her unfamiliarity with
computers. She knows that her grandpa is reasonably familiar with
computers and that he has one, but that's about it.
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
Great! Could you please ask him if he can establish a connection to
<phone number> at 300 baud?
i think he would love to do that its his sort of thing but it will take a
few days
Thank you - I never asked your name...
annie
Thank you, Annie!
I can hold out down here for quite a while, don't worry about a couple
days. I'll check back on Friday evening if I don't hear from you
or your grandpa before then. Is that okay?
are you safe down there
Yes, the bunker seems to be holding up well and I have plenty of food for
now. I just wish I could get out of that damned door and see the light of
day.
ok thats good
</pre>
<p>
<span class="thought">The light of day</span>, Annie thinks to herself,
<span class="thought">what does it look like?</span>
<span class="comment"> reword this </span>
</p>
<pre class="terminal">
I have to go now, the bunker's daily phone usage quota is running out.
Thank you again and looking forward to talk to you and your grandpa.
The manual I need is for the Neotek Dynamics B33FY-AF Bunker Door, this
modem can be reached under <phone number> at 300 baud.
I will connect back to this terminal on Friday if we haven't
established contact before then, okay?
can we talk tomorrow i have questions
We can tal
LINE DISCONNECTED -
Tue, 2106-06-01, 20:12
AgriWorks Login:
</pre>
<p>
<span class="thought">Is that a yes or a no?</span>, Annie wonders,
still slightly puzzled by the whole situation. She starts reading all
that's still on the screen.
<span class="speech">The light of day</span>, she quietly says to
herself.
</p>
<p>
As she reads the section with the bunker door and the phone number, she
reaches for a pen and some paper and writes them down - whoever works
here hopefully won't mind. As Annie continues reading, she hears a
quiet clicking noise and the terminal turns off. The screen flashes and
quickly turns to black. A tiny red light on the side comes on to
illuminate the letters "RDY".
</p>
<p class="comment">
This still needs a satisfying conclusion of how she gets up, grabs her
stuff, and leaves.
</p>
<p>
Annie closes the door behind herself and locks it. As she takes a breath
of the slightly humid air, she takes a step back onto the sidewalk to
look at the clock above the entrance... 8:35 PM - the realization of how
much time had passed hits: Normally she'd be home by now. She starts
walking towards the metro station at the corner. The buildings here are
similar to the ones in other parts of the city - three to four story
houses painted in different colors - but they are lacking balconies and,
instead of being homes, they mostly house offices. On the other side of
the street is an embankment that holds the rails for the metro and beyond
that is the outer wall of the dome. The street lights illuminating the
area had already switched to their low-brightness mode for the night.
She had only seen it like this a couple of times, it made the area look
eerie.
</p>
<p>
Annie reaches the corner. She looks left and right before crossing the
street but not a single car is in sight. As she enters the station and
walks up the stairs, she glances at the display - 21 minutes until the
next train arrives, that's a long wait... The station is completely
devoid of life, nobody else is out here this late. Annie walks up to the
vending machine at the upper end of the staircase -
"OUT OF ORDER"... Hrm. Mildly frustrated, she sits
down on one of the benches and and starts rummaging in her bag. She finds
her headphones and puts them on. At the end of the cable is her walkman.
She presses play and starts listening.
</p>
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