The Strange Physics of the Heidelberg Laboratory
Page 8
She groans as you reach the door at the end of the hall. "Looks like you chose wrong." There's a sign next to the door that says:
MAINTENANCE ROOM: RADIATION SYSTEM
"Darn," you say. "Oh well, at least it was a quick trip, right?"
To give Maintenance Room #2 a shot, HEAD TO PAGE 94
If your gut says Maintenance Room #3, then TRY PAGE 17
Or, if you want to check out the Radiation system anyways, GO TO PAGE 85
77
This is not a decision you should be making. You spin around in your computer chair. "Doctor Almer!"
He comes striding over. "Yes, Jeremy?"
You point at your screen.
His jaw drops as he leans forward, squinting. "There must be some kind of mistake. Did you check the main relay switch?"
"I wanted to notify you first."
Almer pushes you out of the way and opens the diagnostics program. He groans at what he sees for the main relay switch. Then he checks the coolant tank levels. You see over his shoulder that they're releasing coolant at maximum flow, which proves that the reactor is overloaded.
On the other monitor, the spikes reach 100 percent and the screen flashes red.
Almer wipes his cheek nervously. "Okay. Okay. We're fine here. We'll just abort." Next to your keyboard is a metal box built into the desk. He flips the box open to reveal a small red "abort" button.
The two of you share a look of fear before he presses it with his thumb, making a soft click.
You wait. And wait some more.
Nothing happens.
Almer looks back and forth between the computer and the abort button. Behind him on the main screen the large loop blinks green again, and again, each time repeating a flash from the supermagnet coils behind the glass. The test is progressing quickly, and the power indicator is now stuck at 100 percent. If you don't abort quickly...
"Doctor Kessler?" Almer says, licking his lips. "Doctor Kessler, I think you need to see this."
Get Kessler's attention ON PAGE 64
78
You click on the word BEHEAD. There's a long pause on the screen, and the click of the computer's hard drive.
INCORRECT INPUT
CORRECT CHARACTER MATCH: 3
SYSTEM LOCKDOWN: ACTIVE
SYSTEM LOCKDOWN: ACTIVE
SYSTEM LOCKDOWN: ACTIVE
"NO!" you and Penny cry out at the same time.
Jay slumps his head. "That was unfortunate."
"What are we going to do, Jay?"
"Well. There's good news, and bad news. The bad news is that the system is completely locked out, so we have no way of knowing if the core reactor is going to meltdown any time soon."
"And the good?"
"The good news is that by you two bringing up the network, the Decontamination Chamber is active. The system lockdown in the Control Room doesn't affect that."
You and Penny look at one another. "So we can get out of here? Really?"
"Uh huh." He doesn't look very happy. "I had hoped to stop the reactor, and maybe even... ahh, well there's nothing to be done now. You two better hurry up and get to the surface."
"You're not coming with us?" you ask.
He waves it off. "I'm going to try one last thing and see if I can bypass the computer. I'll be right behind you guys, I promise. Go, hurry!"
You take Penny's hand. "Come on, let's go!"
Make your getaway ON PAGE 79
79
You sprint out of the Control Room and into the Decontamination Chamber. The door opens at the press of a button, and you both jump inside.
You're blasted with powerful jets of hot air from all sides. The normally inconvenient process is pure joy, now. The system confirms you're clean and the door to the lobby opens.
There's a low rumble in the floor which lasts several seconds. You and Penny share a let's get out of here look. She runs past you to press the elevator button.
"Come on. Come on!" you say. What's taking so long?
There's another rumble, deeper within the facility. "Jay had better get out," Penny says.
"He will. I don't know how, but I can feel it." You're practically hopping up and down waiting for the elevator, now. "Hurry up!"
With a ding, the doors open. You both jump inside, close the door, and press 'S' for Surface. The car jerks into motion.
You begin to relax. After so much excitement down there, it almost feels strange to be leaving. Like you're leaving part of yourself behind.
"Will we be safe on the surface?" Penny asks. "You know. If the reactor..."
"Yeah, I think so. They test detonate nukes underground, you know? A meltdown of our core would be a big explosion underground, but not much up here except for a rumble."
As if on cue, there's another rumble in the walls, much stronger than before. The elevator car bangs against the walls of the shaft, scraping with a wicked noise. You can hear the elevator cables swinging around inside the shaft, making a sound like a muted lightsaber.
And then, without warning, the cable snaps.
The lights go out as the car plummets, sending you and Penny into the air. Your head crashes against the ceiling, and then you're on the ground bumping against Penny. She's screaming. You're too confused to make much noise at all.
It's a long drop. You have a lot of time to think while Penny screams into the darkness. Strangely, all you can think about is that stupid computer system and the password you couldn't hack. You know if you had another shot you could get it right. But that will have to wait for another time, since the elevator car is about to crash into...
THE END
80
You're happy to leave the Engineering Bay behind you and continue down a short hallway. Only the emergency lights in the floor are working, illuminating the metal floor and walls in a reddish glow. Jay stops at the next door and punches in another code.
The Particle Beam staging room is the size of a small bedroom, and it's built for one single device. The particle beam laser takes up half the room, with a thick body in the center and a round barrel disappearing into the far wall. The frame of the laser is dull metal, but it's covered in exposed green circuit boards with wires crossing all over. The wall on the left is completely comprised of computer screens, knobs, and dials. Not only that, but the floor is glass, showing a view of the wires below. There's hundreds of them, thousands! Wires and power cables, all different colors criss-crossing and overlapping, like a pit full of snakes.
"This is where the magic happens," Jay says. "The supercharged proton is created and launched from here, into the small loop."
You already knew that--you have worked here for a while--but Jay seems to like to hear himself talk. "Okay," you say, "just one more hallway until we reach Penny."
But Jay is staring at the wall of computer screens. "That doesn't... One second, young Mr. Heller." He begins examining the computer up close.
"Come on, we need to get to Penny. We're almost there."
"No..." Jay says, trailing off.
"What do you mean, 'no'? We need to help--"
"I wasn't talking about that," he says. "I'm talking about this." He points to the screen as if that should explain it. When you give him a blank look, he continues, "The power. Someone cranked it way up. About twice the recommended amount. That would have supercharged the proton far more than recommended!"
"But who would do something like that?"
Jay pursed his lips. "I don't know. Someone who really wanted to find that Causality Neutrino." He takes a deep breath. "Okay, Penny time."
Head into the next hall ON PAGE 92
81
You lead the way, shimmying on all fours. The air shaft goes for about ten feet before splitting off. "The Maintenance Room should be just ahead," you say.
You continue for another twenty feet before reaching a dead end. There's one last grate right at the end, and nothing else. "Here's hoping this is the right room," you say.
You kick awa
y the grate, which bangs onto the ground below. Lowering your legs first, you hold onto the side of the vent with your fingertips and drop, hanging in the open air like you're on the monkey bars.
There's nothing to do but let go. You fall through the dim air, bracing for impact. A jolt goes through your ankles and knees as you strike the ground.
Penny lands next to you a moment later. "Not afraid of heights?" you ask.
She grins. "Nope! Just mice. Now, are we in the right Maintenance Room or not?"
Examine the room ON PAGE 100
82
"Jay," you say as you burst into the Control Room. "You've got to let us keep looking."
He's busy banging away at the keyboard. "Get out of here. It's too late for searching."
"But Jay..."
"The reactor is going to meltdown! You have to go right this second." He grabs the CS Rifle from your hands. "Leave this here. I'm going to stay a few more minutes and see if I can delay it any further. You did your best, young mister Heller, but there's nothing more you can do. Please don't argue with me."
He seems strangely morose. The indicators on the computer show that he's right: the reactor core pressure is dangerously high. Reluctantly, you take Penny's hand. "We'll see you on the surface?"
Jay gives a sad smile. "I promise to see you in the future. Now get going!"
You sprint through the hall toward the Decontamination Chamber. The barrier looms above you, a massive blast door made of thick steel, designed to withstand a meltdown. The control panel on its surface glows with electricity. You punch in a few keys and, with a loud groan, it opens.
Inside, you're blasted with powerful jets of hot air from all sides. The normally inconvenient process is pure joy, now. The system confirms you're clean and the door to the lobby opens.
You rush to the elevator door to press the button. The elevator car takes forever to descend, but finally it reaches your level, opening with a polite ding.
The ride up is just as long. After several minutes the doors open on the surface. The frigid air of the Alps buffets you in the face as you jump out of the car.
And into an enormous crowd of armed people.
QUICK, THINK BACK! Did Penny injure her arm earlier?
If so, TURN TO PAGE 48
If Penny is unharmed, GO TO PAGE 134
83
You stop just inside the Engineering Bay. Jay turns and punches some numbers into the keycode. "There. That should lock the door."
"Will that stop it?" Penny asks. "Can't it just touch the door and, like, melt it? Like it did to my arm?"
Jay twists his mouth. "Well, yes... but the Phase Beings need to know they can do that. In reality they probably think everything looks normal, so it will see a door in front of it."
Penny touches her arm and lets out a hiss of pain. "So... am I going to be okay?"
Jay takes a closer look, but doesn't touch it. "It appears so. The Phase Being disrupted the atoms on the top layer of your skin, but nothing more. If he had grabbed more of you, your entire body might have become unstable."
"And then I would be like one of them?" she asked.
Jay shrugged. "Good question. Let's continue before we have to find out."
You examine the Engineering Bay. Before, there were only two paths for you to cross, but things look different now. Part of the ceiling has collapsed again, which has knocked aside some of the debris that was blocking your way before. Following the wall to your right, you now have a clear path around. You pass a door marked "MAINTENANCE CLOSET #1" and continue around the side of the room.
You're quickly tested again. There's a strange glow in the dim room and another Phase Being comes into view. He's standing in the doorway that leads to the Control Room. It looks like his back is to you.
"We need to go that way to get to the Control Room," you say.
Jay makes a face. "There's another way around, but we would have to go through the Backup Reactor for the test accelerator."
Penny looks at the pile of debris next to you. "We could throw something at it, distract it maybe."
Try to distract the Phase Being! Roll a die (or pick a number at random):
If you rolled a 1 or 6, FLIP TO PAGE 104
If you rolled a 2, 3, 4, or 5, GO TO PAGE 110
Alternatively, avoid it altogether by taking the alternate route TO PAGE 61
84
"Jay," you say as you burst into the Control Room. "You've got to let us keep looking."
He's busy banging away at the keyboard. "Get out of here. It's too late for searching."
"But Jay..."
"The reactor is going to meltdown! You have to go right this second." He grabs the CS Rifle from your hands. "Leave this here. I'm going to stay a few more minutes and see if I can delay it any further. You did your best, young mister Heller, but there's nothing more you can do. Please don't argue with me."
He seems strangely morose. The indicators on the computer show that he's right: the reactor core pressure is dangerously high. Reluctantly, you take Penny's hand. "We'll see you on the surface?"
Jay gives a sad smile. "I promise you'll see me in the future. Now get going!"
You sprint through the hall toward the Decontamination Chamber. The barrier looms above you, a massive blast door made of thick steel, designed to withstand a meltdown. The control panel on its surface glows with electricity. You punch in a few keys and, with a loud groan, it opens.
Inside, you're blasted with powerful jets of hot air from all sides. The normally inconvenient process is pure joy, now. The system confirms you're clean and the door to the lobby opens.
You rush to the elevator door to press the button. The elevator car takes forever to descend, but finally it reaches your level, opening with a polite ding.
The ride up is just as long. After several minutes the doors open on the surface. The frigid air of the Alps buffets you in the face as you jump out of the car.
And into an enormous crowd of armed people.
QUICK, THINK BACK! Did Penny injure her arm earlier?
If so, TURN TO PAGE 48
If Penny is unharmed, GO TO PAGE 134
85
"While we're here," you say, "why don't we check it out anyways? Maybe we can verify if the core is going to meltdown just from the radiation levels."
You enter the Maintenance Room. It's hardly more than a closet, with just enough room for both of you to stand inside together. The three walls are covered with dials and instruments, although currently none of the lights are on. In front of you, sticking out of the wall, are two side-by-side levers connected by a handle.
"Here goes," you say, pulling the handle down.
It makes a mechanical CLUNK as it falls into place. A green light next to the lever blinks for three seconds, then a second green light joins it, followed by a third. Then there's a soft hum as all the equipment begins powering on all around you.
"Too bad it's the wrong room," Penny mutters.
Not sure what else to do, you turn toward her and take her hand. "Look, I didn't mean to sound like I was blaming your father. I know you're scared for him, so I'm sorry if what I said came out wrong."
To your relief, she smiles. "Thanks, young mister Heller."
You chuckle. "I don't know why Jay keeps calling me that."
"Do these dials tell us anything?"
You take a look at the nearest computer screen. "No, it looks like radiation levels are normal. That doesn't mean the reactor core is safe, it just means no radiation has gotten out yet. That will change if the core suffers a meltdown."
"Oh. Too bad." She points behind you. "What's that taped to the wall?" You turn and look. It's a torn-off sheet of paper:
...MUST THEN OPEN THE CORE AS THE FOURTH STEP IN THE SEQUENCE IN ORDER TO...
"Hey, we're in luck!" You show Penny the paper. "Part of the sequence. Alright, let's keep going."
You now have PART FOUR of the shutdown sequence! Be sure to write it down.
; To try Maintenance Room #2 next, TURN TO PAGE 94
To try Maintenance Room #3 next, FLIP TO PAGE 17
86
"Let's try Maintenance Room #2," you suggest.
Jay points to the wall, where there's a square metal grate screwed into the wall at the corners. "You guys should take the air ventilation shaft. It will be quicker than walking."
Penny smirks. "The air vents? Seriously?"
Jay shrugs. "Why not? It worked in Die Hard. Come on, in you go."
You remove the screws and the grating. It's just big enough for you guys to crawl inside. "Just head in that general direction," Jay suggests, pointing. "You should reach the maintenance room at the end."
You lead the way, shimmying on all fours. The air shaft goes for about ten feet before splitting off. You pick the direction toward the second maintenance room. You ignore the spiderwebs and piles of rat droppings that constantly brush against your arms.
There's a grate ahead. "This is the Physics Lab. We're on the right track."
Penny picks up something off the ground. "Hey! Look what I found!" She holds it up, and you squint in the darkness:
...MUST THEN OPEN THE CORE AS THE FOURTH STEP IN THE SEQUENCE IN ORDER TO...