Rift Station: Open Worlds
There are three people inside: an Asian woman with a neural implant, a blonde woman with short hair who looks like the concentrated essence of 'Manager', and a slightly hungover looking man in need of a shave, sitting in the back to let the others do the talking.
They open with small talk. 'How was the trip?' and 'How are you feeling about tomorrow?' and all that. You quickly come to realize the reason they were meeting you all alone; it's to give you a chance to chicken out.
"The rift's energy signatures are in constant flux. There are patterns to them that lets the computer detect when a destination will meet parameters that are safe for your biology." the woman with the neural implant says. "Of course, I won't lie and say that means there's no risk. But the range we let volunteers test is a narrow one that's been the focus of most of our research over the years, and thoroughly checked out with drones and ah...certain members of the prison population. And even a few androids."
"The androids would have been ideal to continue with," adds the blonde woman, "so people always want to know why we don't use more of them. But they're too expensive even for the work we do here, and we could only get individuals on the verge of being decommissioned. But at any rate, barring the odds of a one in ten thousand freak accident, the jumpthrough itself and the arrival location will be safe, with atmosphere and temperature levels and gravity and so on that you're familiar with."
Now it's the man in the back's turn to join in. He clears his throat. "It's, um, the mental ramifications that are more of a threat than anything physical. It's very likely you'll never see another member of your species again. Very few are prepared for that kind of complete isolation in the long term, no matter how desirable they might find the thought in the theoretical sense. And so if you have any second thoughts at all, you shouldn't hesitate to say so. Because if you want to back out, this is your last chance. We'll have you transported to the Thimble station and someone there will arrange passage to the closest Republic settlement, free of charge."
"Otherwise, sign these waivers, and you'll be good to go," the blonde woman said, sliding a stack of papers across the table.
"Well...there is a middle ground option," the other woman pointed out. "There are four exact signatures in the guaranteed safe range that often repeat, and another hovering right on the line. We've sent multiple volunteers to all of them over the years, and learn a bit more each time. There's a high possibility you'll be able to make contact with previous subjects, if you prefer one of those options." She shrugs lightly. "But of course, most of our volunteers prefer the idea of being the first to step foot on an uncharted planet. That is what you all originally signed up for."
They open with small talk. 'How was the trip?' and 'How are you feeling about tomorrow?' and all that. You quickly come to realize the reason they were meeting you all alone; it's to give you a chance to chicken out.
"The rift's energy signatures are in constant flux. There are patterns to them that lets the computer detect when a destination will meet parameters that are safe for your biology." the woman with the neural implant says. "Of course, I won't lie and say that means there's no risk. But the range we let volunteers test is a narrow one that's been the focus of most of our research over the years, and thoroughly checked out with drones and ah...certain members of the prison population. And even a few androids."
"The androids would have been ideal to continue with," adds the blonde woman, "so people always want to know why we don't use more of them. But they're too expensive even for the work we do here, and we could only get individuals on the verge of being decommissioned. But at any rate, barring the odds of a one in ten thousand freak accident, the jumpthrough itself and the arrival location will be safe, with atmosphere and temperature levels and gravity and so on that you're familiar with."
Now it's the man in the back's turn to join in. He clears his throat. "It's, um, the mental ramifications that are more of a threat than anything physical. It's very likely you'll never see another member of your species again. Very few are prepared for that kind of complete isolation in the long term, no matter how desirable they might find the thought in the theoretical sense. And so if you have any second thoughts at all, you shouldn't hesitate to say so. Because if you want to back out, this is your last chance. We'll have you transported to the Thimble station and someone there will arrange passage to the closest Republic settlement, free of charge."
"Otherwise, sign these waivers, and you'll be good to go," the blonde woman said, sliding a stack of papers across the table.
"Well...there is a middle ground option," the other woman pointed out. "There are four exact signatures in the guaranteed safe range that often repeat, and another hovering right on the line. We've sent multiple volunteers to all of them over the years, and learn a bit more each time. There's a high possibility you'll be able to make contact with previous subjects, if you prefer one of those options." She shrugs lightly. "But of course, most of our volunteers prefer the idea of being the first to step foot on an uncharted planet. That is what you all originally signed up for."