but if you should take the bond of goodwill out of the universe

[oathwalk]

Characters: Richard and the Archive
Date: July 26th
Location: the Hydroponics Garden
Situation: The Archive is taking notes on stuff, stuff breaks, she fixes it, and then Richard and the Archive talks plant stuff. But it's really all part of Richard's Subtly Befriend Sad Bird-Feeding Girl plan. Not that he deliberately broke things. Not even in the name of friendship. It's less a plan than a long-term goal, really.
Warnings/Rating: Rated F for Friendship.



It is during the regular course of things that Richard notices something wrong with the row he is studying. When the pH level of one separate section is off, it is a simple matter to correct it. After seeing that all segregated plants in the area are similarly affected, he writes a note describing the problem, as instructed, and waits for the Archive.

He wonders how that works, how she can know what is written here. Something like the network, perhaps? That doesn't seem quite right, but he has nothing else to judge on. Truly, Richard is almost glad that this has gone wrong. He can't help worrying about that girl.

Comments

[constants]

Luckily she lives not too far from the Garden, so it takes her no more than fifteen minutes to arrive. Soon enough there's a little blond head with hair in a ponytail, rather than the usual down, bobbing through the garden straight for him.

When she stops next to him she's wearing her garden clothes: a plain shirt, khaki capri pants, tennis shoes, and an apron with her notebook and rainbow ordered pens. Far more casual than usual, but this is a garden and she still somehow manages to look like she stepped out of a gardening magazine.

"You said that there were pH levels that were wrong in this area?"

It's sort of like 'hello'.

[oathwalk]

He can accept that hello. Rather than smiling or wasting her time on greeting, he nods. "Given the distribution, I think it may be a problem in a feed or pipe, but I'm not familiar enough with the system to be certain."

in which i totally make up science

[constants]

She gives him her full attention while he talks, and then nods her understanding and turns to the plants. It takes a few minutes of poking around to find the problem, and unfortunately it's not a problem she can walk away from to fix.

"Part of this mechanism here," she indicates the broken part she's holding together to make things work properly, "cracked and isn't distributing the chemical levels properly. We have more, but I can't let go of this to get it. They're in the top cabinet over there on the far right, could you get one for me?"

Also looking at the height of the indicated cabinet shows that she's too short to reach it without a chair.

fakescience: the science that gets us jetpacks and therefore the best science

[oathwalk]

"Of course." He heads off briskly to retrieve the part, returning a moment later to offer it to her. He doesn't ask if she needs his help setting it in place because she seems as if she would ask. He is also paying careful attention so that he won't be ignorant about the same problem twice.

[constants]

She begins the process of fixing it, and notices him watching. As she works she describes the process of turning off all the appropriate things that feed through the part before removing it, removing and replacing the broken part, and then hooking everything back up properly before turning things back on.

Once the process is complete she waits a minute for things to begin circulating properly. "Now we just need to check that the readings are correct. Can you tell me what they are?"

They should all be correct (she's good at what she does) but integrity is key to science. She pulls out her notebook and a pen to record the readings he gives her. Inside are precisely written and color coded columns of information from the garden.

[oathwalk]

He listens attentively, committing it to memory. As requested, he delivers the readings. When it all checks out, he smiles. "It seems it is all in order. Thank you. And thank you as well for explaining your work as you went."

[constants]

Even though she won't forget anything, the Archive writes the numbers down dutifully in her notebook, nodding as they come out correctly. "It was no problem. I am glad to explain the workings here so that others may understand them. Especially in a place as volatile as here, it is important to pass down knowledge quickly."

[oathwalk]

"Yes, that does seem an issue. Looking back through the network, it was unsettling to see how many people who were once with us are now gone." It was one of Richard's great concerns in their efforts to gain a comprehensive understanding of the situation. How much of what had been learned had since then vanished with those who knew it? "Do you know how many of us have a comprehensive understanding of how these gardens function?"

[constants]

The retaining of knowledge was certainly a challenge with this many people. Strictly from a statistical point of view it was not likely for them to unify in any long term manner at this point. Especially not with people subject to randomly vanishing. As for the gardens,

"I believe myself and two other individuals are comprehensively knowledgeable in both the mechanical and scientific functions of this garden, one other person is mechanically knowledgeable, and one person who is scientifically knowledgeable."

Unless there are people she doesn't know about in the garden, she should have everyone who functions on a level higher than a simple volunteer.

[oathwalk]

"That's not so bad," Richard muses. "It gives us a little buffer room, at least, if not as much as might be desired."

[constants]

She nods in agreement. "If you come across any individuals who would like to participate in this project and would be inclined to be knowledgeable in this area, I would be willing to teach them what there is to know here. I can see no harm in others carrying forward the knowledge of this place in case I and others vanish."