The Search for Seo: an Unsolved Mystery (Elite Dangerous)
It's more than 24 hours since Admiral Aden
Tanner of Aegis put out a call for pilots to track down former Azimuth test subject
Seo Jin-Ae. Some evidence has been discovered about what
happened to the test subject formerly known as D-2, but the trail appears to have gone
cold. Let's recap what has happened so far, and
see where the investigation has led. If you want to experience this for yourself
first, look for the message in your inbox from Admiral Aden Tanner, and follow his instructions.
In his message, Tanner said he was worried
for the safety of Seo, and for those investigating, it soon becomes apparent why he is concerned. Seo was used by Azimuth in experiments in
3303 or 3304 to develop a means to allow humans to control Thargoid scouts, and this has given
her the ability to intercept and partially understand Thargoid communications. Both Azimuth Biotech and Aegis are keen to
harness this power, but Seo is motivated mainly by a desire to take her revenge on the cruel
scientist, Salvation, who subjected her to these experiments. Early this year, she set off to try to find
Salvation, who has been assumed dead since his body was identified on the wrecked Glorious
Prospect megaship, in the aftermath of the Proteus Wave detonation in HIP 22460.
There is a beacon in the Ngaruayanka system
that has recorded a conversation between Seo Jin-Ae and Admiral Tanner, which explains
something about what Seo has been up to, and gives some idea about where to look for her
next. We'll play the recording in full here. Once again, if you want to experience this
for yourself, go and find the Hacked Comms Beacon in Ngaruayanka. Let's listen to the tapes.
Seo: You finally figured out how to contact
me. It took you long enough. Tanner: I’m out of practice. It's been a while since I received an anonymous
tip from some hot-head charging across the galaxy. Seo: Skip the lecture about how I shouldn't be "flying around the galaxy by myself". Or that the noises in my head are 'too important':
Alba already tried. Tanner: Are you sure? I've been planning my speech for hours. Seo: I found something, Mr. Tanner. Data pulled from an Azimuth archive. The files are still corrupt in places. but if the decryption I’m running is good
then— Tanner: Hold on a second. What do you think you've found? Seo: Salvation had a failsafe device.
Some kinda digital storage for human consciousness. He called it the “Nemesis” protocol; just
the type of codename an arrogant prick would give themselves. It must have been activated before the Bright
Sentinel was destroyed. The recovery crew only saw a corpse, right? Tanner: Yeah. the body's ID was confirmed but Thargoids
showed up before it could be recovered. I saw the report from the rescue crew. I can't say I doubted its authenticity. Seo: There's no chance Salvation would have
been on that ship if he didn't have a getaway plan. He's too much of a coward to face death. Final death. I mean. I know he escaped somehow.
Tanner: I understand why you're keen on this,
Seo. But this idea of uploading someone's mind
onto a databank is— Seo: Is what? Crazy? Tanner: Never said you were crazy, kid. Just don't want you to exhaust yourself chasing
rumours. Seo: I'm always exhausted. I didn't ask to join your stupid war with
the aliens. Now I'm trapped in the middle of It. because
of him. This Nemesis device will prove Salvation's
still out there. If l can find it. Are you going to help me or not? Tanner: I already said I would. What have you got? Seo: The upload's finished. Check your inbox. Tanner: Message received. There's a lot of stuff here, Seo. Seo: I’ve check marked the important parts. Tanner: So you have. Where did you learn to find this information? Seo: I used to be a private investigator. My boss had a soft spot for people who’d
been screwed over by the corporations.
He taught me now to access private networks
without setting off any alarms. Tanner: You're a hacker, then. Seo: On yeah, a real "cyber-net-hacker". Nobody talks like that anymore. Info Is only as safe as the network it lives
on. Didn't you ever learn how to bypass in the
Federal Army? Tanner: Federal Navy. And no, it wasn't part of my training to steal
classified data. I had a network of spies who did that for
me. Seo: I read that you tried to seize data from
Azimuth's computers at Hind Mine, but failed. Maybe that wasn't part of your training either. Tanner: I can hear your grin, Seo. Instead of smart-mouthing your way onto my
bad side, how about you explain how you found out about this Nemesis thing? Seo: Fine, fine. Remember when Azimuth was forced out of several
systems last year? They left a few unmarked data clusters on
local servers – I doubt on purpose. One had access port info for a primary…
Seo: Did you send someone after me? Tanner: No, Why do you ask? Tanne: Are you still there, Seo? Seo: I could have sworn there was movement
on my radar. Can't see anything now. You'd tell me if you did, yes? Tanner: It depends what my objective was. But I'm telling the truth. I'm not aware of any plan to have you followed. Seo: okay… okay. Let's go through this data. Start at the first check mark. Tanner: I’ll be completely honest with you, Seo. I'm still not convinced. Seo: How can you say that after everything
you've just read? Salvation had a failsafe for when he physically
died. Tanner: All I've seen is a theory about using
Guardian tech to build a storage device for the mind. But having an idea and making It a reality
are very different things Seo: Salvation had the credits and resources
to build anti-Thargoid megaweapons. He convinced the fleets of all three superpowers
to join his cause.
Do you really think he'd design a way to cheat
death and not go through with it? Tanner: Show me in this document where it
says he built the Nemesis device. Seo: You're being dumb.
Tanner: Show me
Seo: ..There's no mention of building it. Tanner: then you're still chasing a rumour. I agree that this is interesting and maybe
there's more to find. For now, come back to the Aegis facility and
we can plan the next phase of your search together
Seo: Together? Right.
You'll keep a close eye on me, I guess it’s
important to make sure your Thargoid wiretap is safe. Tanner: you're sulking? Seo: Don't talk down to me. I’m right
Tanner: Is that what you think? That we’re more interested in what you can
give us than who you are? Seo: If I couldn't hear the Thargoids, we
wouldn't be having this conversation. Tanner: Maybe you're right. But I'm not sure we’d be talking if I hadn't
been a Federal Navy Admiral. It doesn't matter what brings us to the dance,
Seo. What matters is you're here now, and we have
a duty to care for you. Seo: I wish I could believe you. I want to, but… I'm so messed up, Aden. It’s like my brain isn't my own anymore. The noises are sometimes loud and sometimes
quiet but I can never switch them off. Tanner: And that's a crappy hand to be dealt.
I wish there was a way to take it back, but
the doctors say we can't. Not yet, at least Seo: Maybe not— Need to go. Ships arrived with weapons ready. No identification. Tanner: Name a destination. I’ll nave a squadron deployed to meet you
Seo. Shangdi. Dropping comms. Tanner: Wait. Seo! Stay on the— It appears, then, that Salvation may have
had a plan to upload his consciousness to some sort of storage device, built using Guardian
technology.
He called this device Project Nemesis, and
it is certainly true that the word "Nemesis" was visible on the control panel beside Salvation
when the Proteus Wave destroyed his megaship. This raises all sorts of concerns. If Salvation really is alive in a Guardian
structure somewhere, and if – as Ram Tah believes – the Guardian structures can communicate
with each other, then Salvation would have the power of a widely distributed Guardian
network at his disposal.
We have speculated in the past about the Guardian
Artificial Intelligence coming back to combat the Thargoids, but what if the Guardian technology
were to come back to life under the control of a disembodied Salvation? This, though, is speculation, and Seo Jin-Ae
is in danger. It appears that someone, possibly Azimuth
employees, were trying to capture her, and she jumped to the Shangdi system to try to
evade capture.
Let's follow that trail. In Shangdi, there's evidence that Seo passed
through. There's some "Curious Ship Debris" that has
captured a conversation between the hired thugs that were trying to catch her. It seems that the resourceful ex-test subject
gatecrashed a wedding, forcing the guests to flee, and leaving her pursuers with several
high wakes to muddle the trail. They split up, with the plan of forcing her
to eject, and then scooping up her escape pod.
The four systems they set off to search are
Alectrona, EGM 95, Ankaa and Main. And this is where the trail goes cold. Wreckage, identified as "Notable Degraded
Emissions" has been found in one of these systems, Ankaa, but it contains a fragmentary
message that makes it hard to understand what has happened or to identify where to look
next. Is the wreckage Seo's ship, or is it one of
her pursuers? The message seems to suggest that someone
was extremely surprised, with the body of the message reading "What in the fuuu… is THAT?" The title of the entry may contain some clue,
but it is fragmentary, reading "E ENGHY 6E 88",
which does not appear to correspond to
any location. The possibilities may be that we have missed
some other clue, perhaps in one of the other three systems, that we have missed something
in this message, or that we must wait for further clues to become apparent before we
can continue.
Seo may still be on the run. She may have been captured by Azimuth. But what does that expression of horror and
amazement in the final message mean? What huge, unexpected sight could have caused
that level of shock? Could it possibly be that Seo Jin-Ae, who
has a neural connection with the Thargoids, could have been rescued from her pursuers
by a Thargoid ship? There is so much remaining unexplained in
this story. Is there a clue we're missing that will help
us to rescue Seo? Or is she beyond saving? The finest minds in the Galaxy are working
on this problem. We are hoping for a breakthrough, but whether
it comes today, tomorrow or in another week is anyone's guess..
