The Power of Three

"Science is no more than an investigation of a miracle we can never explain, and art is an interpretation of that miracle."

- Ray Bradbury

The Power of Three is an Easy Mystery storyline in .

Power of Three: Disappearing Act
"This event was unlike any malfunction predicted in the security protocols. Orbital scans on the site revealed no evidence of the existence of the huge structure - only a black cube matrix centered on the spot where the extractor was supposed to be.


 * Effect: A Concrete Extractor has been destroyed by a Black Cube. An Anomaly has appeared on the site."

Power of Three: A Black Cube Appears
"The mysterious object appears to consist of pitch-black cubes arranged in a matrix. The cubes seemingly levitate above the ground without the aid of any support structure.

Preliminary image analysis remains inconclusive. An on-site investigation is required to assess the Anomaly. We advise caution.


 * Effect: A Black Cube has appeared seemingly out of nowhere. We have to investigate this Anomaly."

Power of Three: ...For, They Came in Numbers
"The cube structures tend to emerge without warning, as unscientific as it may sound, out of thin air. Apart from their evident presence, so far the structures pose no threat to the Colony.

Until further investigation, the scientific board of Mission Control has decided to impose an information blackout on the matter to prevent the spread of panic and fear among the Colonists."

Power of Three: Making Sense of the Unknown
"Without any credible explanation, the Colony was soon flooded with various rumors and interpretations of the mystery. What if they're bombs? Billions of tiny bombs? Or transport capsules maybe, with a mini robot inside. Or deadly hard drives. Or alien eggs? Or messages needing decoding. Or they're all parts of a bigger whole. Jigsaw puzzles that need to be put together.

The team at Mission Control is against trying to spread further misinformation and propaganda - partially because it would just add to the total confusion, but mainly because it would endanger the philosophical principles of our mission. We could only trust in our Colonists and hope for the best."

Power of Three: Dark Properties
"The insides of the cubes as well as the physical forces behind their levitation remain an enigma. Individual cubes as well as their combined structure retain a perfect symmetry and any attempts to physically disturb their positions have failed.

What is even more puzzling is the analysis of the photonic spectroscopy of the cubes. They seem to emanate radiation of an unknown wavelength which excites the separation of electrons inside of the spectroscopic lens. While our science team refuses to jump to any conclusions, the Chief Engineer suggests that we should study the effect empirically on the Colony's Solar Panels.

The science team requested permission to commence experimental research on the cubes' properties.


 * Effect: New research on the mystery of the Black Cubes is now available"

Power of Three: Post-benign
"It appears the Black Cubes materialized inside the Extractor. We could only guess what happened to the building.

It seems any of the artifacts could materialize inside a structure, sending it into oblivion. We are now facing the potential threat of future human casualties.

Mission Control advises a top priority on the investigation of the disaster.


 * Effect: More buildings could collapse in the future. Preventive research is now available."

Power of Three: A Time For Speculation
"The science team is divided in two camps: those who speculate it will amplify the cube signals allowing them to transmit through the reaches of space, and those who believe it could be some kind of weapon meant for destruction, not communication.

Outside the labs however, the cult of the Cubes has gained even more momentum. People are gathering to wait for what they think would be the coming of God to humanity's second home."

Power of Three: Solace in Science
"In a moment of brilliance, or possibly desperation, one of the physicists proposed they should try to crack open the structures.

The scientists moved the cube matrix inside a non-baryonic shell and proceeded to bombard a single cube with high-energy ions, a process known as sputtering. The results were immediate - the shell of the cube gave in, resulting in its rapid decomposition. The matrix itself reacted to the influence by rearranging itself into a solid structure made of the remaining cubes.

Though we have no explanation for the process, at least we have a way to deal with the cube matrices popping up everywhere. It appears that the exact solution rests on our reason and moderation.


 * Effect: Cubes can be stored in special sites or destroyed"

Power of Three: Embracing the Unknown
"The Colonists have divided into factions centered around a certain hypothesis about the nature and purpose of the mysterious artifacts.

The excitement about the cubes is evident from the schedules of the weekly hearings in the Colony. The trivial themes such as the quality of the food and the requests for additional scientific funding had completely disappeared, replaced by requests for publicity for each faction's viewpoint.

So far, there are three major camps. The moderate skeptics argue that the truth is hardly within our reach and cubes need to be preserved and stored for further research. The pessimistic ones insist on the destruction of all the cubes, seeing them as a deliberate threat. Then, there are those who hold the firm belief that the cubes are meant to be a gift to humanity from some unknown benevolent entity. They request the cubes to be transported inside the Domes and put on display for everyone to see.


 * Effect: Decoration Buildings made out of cubes can be constructed."

Power of Three: Primal Fear
"Still, our scientists managed to define to some extent why the cubes sometimes materialize inside our buildings. It seems that some cryptic algorithm first sends a pulse of tachyons to the area where the cube will materialize. If the Cherenkov radiation measurements are within certain limits, the cube appears on the spot. Thus, the cubes avoid appearing inside rocks - indeed, none of our scans confirmed that any cube spawned inside of a high-density object.

Our structures tend to be much less dense than the monolithic Martian rocks. We can modify our sensor towers to create a fake Cherenkov Effect by bombarding the areas around our structures with particles which are harmless to our Colonists, but would still prevent the cubes from threatening our Colony.


 * Effect: Sensor Towers now protect nearby buildings from the Black Cubes"

Power of Three: The Countdown
"The photovoltaic effect we observed earlier has completely disappeared. To make things worse, numerous glitches in the drone command software have our technicians scattering to extinguish fires all across the board. It seems that the pulses from the cubes are somehow interfering with the Drone uplink.

As reports are flowing in, we can clearly see a trend in the intensification of the light pulses. Is this some kind of countdown? And if so, to what?"

Power of Three: Of Mice & Men
"Some of them call for the immediate destruction of all the cubes while others still insist on storing and studying them - as far away from the Domes as possible. And yet, the number of eccentrics worshiping the cubes and erecting monuments with them has grown even larger. Could the cubes be affecting us like they influenced our drones?"

Power of Three: Construction Begins
"Between their usual command cycles, the drones have begun carrying cubes to a specific location and seem to be constructing a strange structure.

Diagnostics on the drone software and hardware reveal no clues for any reprogramming. All of our attempts to gather information about the purpose of this operation have failed.

Mission Control advises all personnel to brace for the unknown.


 * Effect: Some Drones are constructing a mystery building with the cubes."

Drones influenced by the cubes have started the construction of a Mega Monolith
"Eons ago, while Earth was still a molten world, Mars had already been a teeming, living world covered by oceans and forests. This long-forgotten Mars was the home for a sentient race which quickly mastered their primitive urges and reached technological peaks yet to be conquered by humankind.

We witnessed the astonishing evolution of the Ancients and the countless metamorphoses they experienced until they reached a state of existence which allowed them to transcend the boundaries of the material form. Without worrying about resources or lifespan, they traversed the universe, leaving their home behind. But they have not forgotten it.

The robust Black Cubes lay in wait on the Red Planet for a meeting of the minds. Our actions here were detected by the semi-sentient algorithm which controlled the cubes and triggered the message left by the Ancients. Some of the accounts given by our personnel describe being talked to in a language both familiar and thoroughly alien, while others describe being shown images most vivid and influencing. Some would even account for experiencing a sort of judgment. The essence of the information was, however, without exception, the same."

I saw it, too...
"Judging from their own history, they assume this was not necessarily an easy thing to do.

They recall the fondest epochs of their history, where such strivings were predominant amongst them. Proud and nostalgic, they offer us a gift.


 * Effect: Gained a new Technology, "

We communed with the Ancients in our collective dream. They were impressed by our curiosity.
"Ultimately they expressed understanding, noting that there were times in their own long history, dark times when they had the same hostile response towards the unknown.

They hope that with time and maturity we will come to embrace the idea that while the universe is a dangerous place, not everything is a threat and there are also wonders to be discovered.


 * Effect: All Black Cubes have disappeared
 * Effect: Gained a new Technology, "

We communed with the Ancients in our collective dream. They were somewhat surprised by our hostility against the unknown.
"Oblivious to the concept of higher powers, they seemed to see no other reason for our actions other than a pursuit of aesthetic decoration, one that seems to have eluded them as a possibility.

Not quite sure what to make of this, they express hope we will retain our creativity as a race in the ages ahead.


 * Effect: The monument collapsed into a pile of Black Cubes
 * Effect: Gained a new Technology, "

Power of Three: Out of the Eons
"Meanwhile, reports from all over the Colony indicate that all cubes have ceased their pulsating and reverted to their previous lifeless state. Many Colonists report to the medical facilities that they feel different states of depression - ranging from melancholy to outright despair. Could these events be attributed to the mysterious structure and the death of the cubes? We would never find out.


 * Effect: All Colonists suffer penalties to Morale."

Power of Three: For the Generations to Witness
"It would be irresponsible to mismanage the situation and leave public opinion to sway back and forth on the matter.

With the current state of events we lack sufficient data to judge the purpose of the cubes. It could take years if not generations of scientific research to reach a conclusion on that subject. Until then, we will attempt to control the erratic spread of the cubes which hampers our resources and colonization operations by storing them away in a convenient manner."

Power of Three: Might Makes Right
"We will attempt to remove all the cubes from our immediate area. A decision as serious as this required a consensus, which was reached through a vote at Mission Control. The public may deem this decision wrong, but we cannot place the fate of the entire Colony on our desire to wait it out. History had taught us that the inability to act often results in disaster. The destruction of cubes will proceed as planned."

Power of Three: Cult of Tomorrow
"To disregard the desires of our Colonists would be a monstrous, autocratic act.

Mission Control has officially allowed the creation of a series of monuments dedicated to the Higher Truth proclaimed by some of our most active Colonists. We must look into ourselves and at our history as a species - denying the possibility that these people are right would mean that we are no better than the fanatics who burned visionaries at the pyres because of their beliefs."

Power of Three: Singularity Imminent
"The obscure algorithm or - perish the thought! - the intelligence directing the construction has commanded otherwise. Within mere hours, the super-structure dematerialized, decaying to its basic components, and reappeared, commanding our drones to proceed with its construction anew.

The creators of the structure definitely want us to finish their plan. The potential risk from yesterday has now become a tangible menace and I don't believe that anyone in the Colony lives under the illusion that it is avoidable."


 * Effect: All Colonists suffer Sanity loss due to the threatening behavior of the Mega-Monument Construction.