Vreta did not seem to be nearly as enthused by the estimates Freyr gave as she was. “Hours or days? There’s quite a large margin of error in that estimate.” He remarked as Nirann started to turn the rig around. Despite some of the inconvenience of its design for a Rothian, it was at least large enough to be a smooth drive even on rough terrain. Perhaps unless something disturbed it [i]too[/i] much. 

Marae did answer back quickly, though as she spoke, she did seem to be otherwise occupied by her own tasks. “I’ve just started my own analysis of the field, but I can see what I can do. Just from my first impressions, there are some distinct similarities to other examples of the object’s code base, so there may be something I can latch onto.”

While Freyr was working, Vreta observed from the sidelines. In those idle moments, Rhia’s avatar appeared in his field of view. She stood right alongside Freyr, seemingly watching her closely. [i]“So this is her: the Cradle expert. Her psychological profile is…quite something. I’d watch this one carefully. She’s a dedicated one, but not necessarily to the same things as us. Nor her own people, to be fair. She has her own goals, and right now, those goals want this test to go through no matter what. Careful that she doesn’t pull a fast one on you. I’d have Nirann double-check any calculations she gives you, just in case.”[/i]

[i]”I’m surprised you don’t want to do it yourself.”[/i] Vreta commented within his mind.

Rhia’s avatar simply shrugged and leaned back against one of the consoles. [i]”Oh, I will, but if Nirann does the fact-checking, it gives you something you can actually act on without drawing suspicion.”[/i]

[i]”Fair point.”[/i]

Of course, Vreta gave no clues to his conversation. He had still been aware of the discussion around him, and he responded immediately when Freyr pointed him to the rig’s loudspeakers. “Very well, I can try.” He replied as he stepped up to the mic. He hovered his finger over the button to activate it, but did not do so right away. “Okay, where to start? I…wish I knew this thing’s name.” 

In any case, after taking a moment to collect his thoughts, Vreta pressed the button to begin. “For our host, if you can hear me, we would like to speak to you if at all possible.” Vreta began. The entity had referred to the first team as its guests, so he decided to keep up that analogy. “We would like to inform you of the plan we have made. We believe we have a plan that will accomplish what you asked of us quickly.”