Spoilers ahead
This page may contain story spoilers! Proceed at your own risk...
A Personal Project
Francis:
"Driver- I'm sorry to interrupt, I know you've got a lot on your plate. But, if you get a moment, I sent you something through the pneumatubes. Think of it as a personal project, it's not urgent."
Francis:
"Thank you. I won't waste your time, I promise."
Francis:
"I just- would like to put a suspicion to rest. A while ago, I found out about something Oppy had been working on."
Francis:
"She told me she was trying to map out, or at least track, unreachable areas within the Zone. The instability constantly scrambles the landscape, so the method to even map destabilized areas has to be dynamic to stay accurate. Her working theory was that if you could trace the physical matter itself, you could determine a stable layout, and path to it."
Francis:
"I don't know what state her prototype is in now- I don't think she ever got it working. But, I think I have my own working theory. I know there's a lot happening, so I'll save the details for later, but if you could just help me out, it'd mean a lot to me."
Francis:
"You have to understand , Oppy would never work with anyone on this, let alone me. And I just... have a hunch."
Francis:
"Look around for the machine- she called it the ZETI System. She keeps everything, so it has to be somewhere in that garage. Probably. When you find it, go on and install the hardware I sent you. That should get it up and running, and connect me."
Francis:
"... Oh. This--Hm. This isn't quite what I thought it was... but maybe this could be useful. It's far more localized, and..."
Francis:
"I'll need more time to really figure this out, but it seems to be waiting for input. Driver, can you check the route planner?"
Francis:
"oh...well this is quite different... no wonder Oppy abandoned this. The source of this data is quite old, but with my additions, it does seem to have updated the locations when you booted it up. This isn't the kind of map Oppy talked about wanting to make, but I think we can make this work to track a specific location despite the instability."
Francis:
"This'll be similar to planning a route, but it might be a challenge, Driver. I'm really not sure what to expect."
Francis:
"...oh. Wow. Um, yes, this... will work with Oppy's ARC Device, but there seems to be some restrictions about what you can take with you. What you're seeing is the tracked location, and the area surrounding it- on a more localized scale than the route planner."
Francis:
"This'll be dangerous. It'll take a lot of anchor energy, but the ARC Device can still get you back through a gateway. We could get get a lot of data this way- and from that, more locations when you return."
Francis:
"Good luck out there Driver- and be careful. While you're out, I'll keep looking through what we've got, and I'm looking forward to seeing the data you bring back."
This Is- Classified! Private!
Francis:
"That worked!! And you got back in one piece, this is incredible!"
Francis:
"While you were out, I started to look into the ZETI System and the data Oppy had gathered for it."
Francis:
"Before you set out, you picked an expedition from the route planner, right? Those options were from the original data Oppy had for this project- old stuff, but it still updated the locations when we booted it up!"
Francis:
"Pick a location, and the ZETI System gives you a disc drive. That drive doesn't just have the locational data, it also has something Oppy calls Threads."
Francis:
"I... don't quite understand what Threads are yet. Unfortunately Oppy didn't leave detailed comments for someone else snooping through her work."
Francis:
"But I did find that ZETI stands for Zone Electromagnetic Thread Imaging, so I suspect it's scanning the Threads from the Rewoven Hard Drive."
Francis:
"I'm delving through the numbers, and the data you collected from the expedition you just went on will be used to update the calculations and rework the hard drive. I believe this is the 'rewoven' aspect of it-"
Ida:
"Not that I'm eavesdropping or anything, but I did hear something about 'collected data'. Conditions out in my neck of the woods are pretty dicey-"
Francis:
"I'm sorry- who- this is an encrypted frequency! How did you-"
Ida:
"Oh don't worry! I'm just an entrepreneur here to sniff out a good opportunity. If you send me the details, specifications, and informations about the nonsense you come across while you're out on your expeditions,"
Ida:
"I can utilize it to craft you some special order parts or tools! That's only a long distance offer: you send me the info I want, and I'll send your goodies through the pneumatubes."
Francis:
"This is- classified! Private! Who are you?"
Ida:
"Goodness, touchy. I'll keep this to myself, promise. My name is Ida! That's all I've got time for right now, the instability keeps me on the move. I'll rarely be close enough to even listen, let alone chime in. But hey, help a fellow scientist out, don't keep that data all to yourself. Good luck!"
Francis:
"Hey! How did- why would we even trust your promise? ...she's just gone. Unbelievable."
Francis:
"...well, my concerns about her disregard for privacy aside, she... has a point, and makes a good offer... These expeditions are dangerous, and if all she wants is the data, she'll have to figure out what to do with it on her own. None of this is worth more than your safety."
Francis:
"...I do have a lot of questions though. I need to get back to it, and I'm sure you're busy. Stay safe out there Driver."