Mezo Station: The Hunt for the Moonflower

MEZZO STATION: THE HUNT for the MOONFLOWER

Day 1/17

This is Doctor Wilhemina Kaley reporting. I have been asked to keep this journal during the duration of my excusion to Mezo by legal representatives of the Company. I do not know why, but the minds of lawyers are quite beyond me. Nevertheless, I will comply with their request.

I should state that my decision to come to Mezo is completely my own. The Company representatives expressed concern for my safety, given the current hostilities with the Tetherons. But the war is sectors away and, as I have been told by friends within the government, already starting to wind down. It is entirely possible that, by the time I return to the Core Worlds, the war will be over and we can all get on with our lives.

What has brought me to this isolated moon?

A flower.

It was missed during the initial survey of the moon, but scans of it arrived on my desktop a few weeks ago. The results were interesting and the Company employee assigned to Mezo Station was good enough to send more scans of the flower directly to me.  

I was planning to come to Mezo, to perform a more comprehensive survey of the local flora, but the emergent hostilities prevented that from happening. It has been several weeks, but I have managed to convince the Company to let me undertake my expedition.

Eventually, they capitulated, on the condition that I sign a waver exonerating them of any liability should my expedition end badly. I agreed and also agreed to keep this record.

In addition to myself, I am accompanied by a young colleague of mine, Hans Dexter.  He is an experienced starpilot with technical training, and together I feel we can deal with any unforseen problems we may encounter on this trip.

We have been granted permission to explore Mezo for seventeen days. No more.

We were also given permission to use Mezo Station as a base of operations during our stay. However, since the station has been powered down and secured, we will be remaining aboard the shuttle. 

I am not impressed with what I have seen of Mezo so far. It seems rather bleak to me, although I will admit that the view of the gas giant, Artella, is somewhat impressive. 

Today, we are settling in. Tomorrow, we begin the good work.

Day 2/17

Today has not been good. We discovered that some of the equipment we would need was not placed aboard the shuttle before our departure. It is probably sitting in some lost-and-found depository back home.  I am most displeased.

Day 3/17

The best I can say about today was that the weather improved. Hans was in good spirits all day. Good for him.

Day 4/17

Today, a ship passed through the system. We detected its transponder beacon. Of course, it did not stop at Mezo Station, but it was nice to be reminded that life continued beyond this place.

Day 5/17

Nothing to report today. Hans remains in good spirits. I wish I shared his good mood.

Day 6/17

The weather remains temperate, but my search for this ellusive flower remains unsuccessful. Hans surprised me with a lovely meal when I returned from my forays among the long grayish grasses. I believe he is trying to cheer me up. I do hope I haven't been an unpleasant companion.

Day 7/17

Still nothing to report re the flower. I am think that we should extend our search grid or possibly relocate our base to one of the wetter locales of the moon. However, Hans has argued against it, pointing out that if anything should happen, the Company and the Authorities would search for us at this location.

Day 8/17

Late this afternoon, we detected another ship's transponder moving through the system. An alien ship. A Tetheron ship! What on Earth is a Tetheron ship doing out here? Hans is quite unhappy with the situation. I can't fault him. If the Tetheron ship returns and is hostile, there is nothing we can do against it.

Day 9/17

The Tetheron ship has not returned, but Hans remains vigilant. I continue my search with fruitless results.  Reviewing the station records, it is possible there is an environmental component missing that the flower requires to bloom.  I am currently reviewing the station's meteoroligical files. It is not exactly thrilling reading.

Day 10/17

I am convinced that this odd flower must require rainfall to bloom. Hans vetoed my idea of using our water reserves to hydrate a region near the base. However, he did find a reserve of water in one of the base storage units that we did use for just that purpose. I have my fingers crossed that we will see results within the next few days.

Day 11/17

Today, as I checked the newly hydrated region, I slipped and twisted my ankle. Hans came quickly when I called for help and we quickly determined the ankle was not broken. Normally, this would not be an inconvenience, but our shuttle is not equipped to handle anything more than minor medical problems. So, until we return to civilization, I am hobbling around on a pair of crutches like some poor barbarian from the Internet Ages.

Day 12/17

Hazzah! Success! The flower has blossomed!

Day 14/17

I have spent the last two days examining the flower and running what tests I could with the limited equipment at my disposal. I believe this flower, which is not a flower at all, but something quite different, which I will go into in a seperate and comprehensive report, could provide a means of producing stable and affordable antiagathics! Just think of it! We could be looking at a cure, or at least an effective treatment, for old age!

If only I had all of the equipment that I needed!

Day 15/17

The flower is already starting to show sings of dying. I have taken what samples I could and placed them in stasis.  Hopefully, we'll be able to recreate the flower in the lab.

Day 16/17

I proposed to Hans that we should leave Mezo earlier, but he said that we might as well remain until the final day. It would give me more time to study my lab results and him more time to check over the ship systems prior to departure. It made perfect sense and, as it turns out, was a fortuitous decision. During his checks, Hans discovered a problem with the ship's navigation system. It took him a while, but he managed to fix it and we should be departing on time. 

I know I haven't spoken much about Hans in this journal, but I want to note now that he has been of invaluable assistance.  I could not have accomplished my goal without his steady presence.

Day 17/17

And so, this afternoon, we will depart Mezo and return to the Core Worlds. The samples are safely locked away in stasis and once I have completed this record, a hardcopy of it will also be placed in stasis.

As I find myself with nothing to truly do, for the first time since our arrival here, I have taken some time to contemplate the locale. I find it ironic that something that is going to have such a monumental impact on life as we know it, could have its beginnings in such an unassuming place.

I imagine that if the moonflower cannot be artificially replicated, that this moon will not remain a tranquil backwater for long. The Company will certainly not ignore such a valuable resource. They will no doubt make plans to produce the flower on a mass scale, if possible. If that is the case, I would like to be part of the team responsible for such work.

But that is in the future. The far future, I should imagine.

And now, it is time for us to go.

And so, this has been Doctor Wilhemina Kaley reporting.

Some notes: 

I caught Covid the other day and have been stuck at home for the past few days, mostly sleeping. Today was the first day I felt even remotely human and, rather than watch more YouTube videos, I decided to continue the story of Mezo Station.

This time, though, I wasn't going to play for as long. Instead, I just decided the redoubtable Doctor Kaley would visit Mezo, searching for the moonflower, in a limited window.

So, basically, the game mechanics stayed the same. However, this time, I decided that the Joker would indicate the successful discovery of the moonflower. The first time. Then I would reshuffle the deck.

If I pulled the Joker a second time, then something Calamitous would happen.

That didn't happen.

Doctor Kaley found the flower and she and Hans left Mezo. Perhaps to return? Maybe? I'm tempted to continue the story of Mezo Station and see where it all goes.