New International Sealab

Roleplay Library
1

Roughly ten years ago, nations in The East Pacific, in order to understand and study at previously unlivable depths, came together to build an International Sealab, a facility used to further education and development in the region, as well as strengthen bonds in the realm. They created labs in two locations - one in the “ring” region in the ocean, and one in the sea bordered by Infinite Loop, The Capital District, and Stromburg. This focuses on the latter sealab, which just finished construction roughly one year after the first one. Various underwater subs / diving equipment have been fashioned exclusively, donated by various nations, for the advancement of underwater exploration and discovery.

A map of the building is provided below. The building, which consists of various sections built and designed by different nations, is connected via a series of tubes (no pun intended) and, in some cases, is joined wall-to-wall. The facility is massive - larger than the first sealab - providing sufficient space for some 40-60 people to live comfortably for an extended period of time. Important points of the lab is a greenery where plants and vegetation can grow (as well as supply sufficient oxygen), and a cafeteria where all scientists may eat. Classrooms also exist for students wishing to learn more about the sea on a more personal basis, along with personal and communal labrooms. Sleeping quarters and living quarters are located in the central section and east wing. Docks for submarines are located on the west wing in addition to diving chambers capable of allowing divers to pressurize and explore the waters surrounding the facilities.


SealabII.png Key:

A - Main room / lounge room (two stories)
B - Cafeteria
C - Conservatory
D - Submarine docks
E - Exercise room
F - Restrooms (scientist’s quarters contain bathrooms too)
I - Infirmary
J - Diving chambers
K - Library
L - Communal labs (labs everyone uses)
P - Private Labs (designated by supporting nations)
O - Observation area
R - Residencies / scientist’s quarters
S - Service closet

Smaller rooms not pictured

Some pictures:

Outside view of the residencies


Interior view of the residencies

2

It had been a while since Elana spent some time in an underwater lab. Just a few years ago she had spent her first time at the old Sealab. But this one was larger, newer, and probably free of some of the issues from the previous locale, like leaks. Leaks were to be expected now and then, but whole sections were assembled off the coast from Vekaiyun engineers using a special compound to seal plexiglass to the webbing.

Either way, it was a new season. Up north it was winter. But just south of the equator, where the lab was located, it was usually warm all year around, but warmer still during traditional winter months. The water would be a perfect temperature to test her new equipment and begin her new experiments. And she was definitely going to be busy this time around.

Once her bags were placed in her room, she used a rolling cart to get some of her supplies and her equipment into the lab designated for Vekaiyun studies. Some of the individuals on the sub helped - it was a lot of stuff. She’d have plenty of time to organize it all later though. She should introduce herself to her labmates for the new season. After getting a glass of water, she thanked those who took her down and walked over to the main room. Hey! It had a Tv now!

3

Elana wasn’t going to wait around for people to get to the grounds - she figured that she had waited long enough, after all. Plus there was work to do. At least, work to prep for.

She started unpacking her equipment and re-stocking her lab with the contents in the boxes, haphazardly stacked in one corner of the room, near the safety shower and eyewash station. Probably not a good idea to have that blocked, even if the lab was not in use. The first item unpacked was arguably the most important. The Siliac plant, a native species to the Iskul River and other tributaries in southern Vekaiyu. She wasn’t quite an expert on the subject, yet, but scientists had found that with a few modifications and CO2 scrubbers aiding it, this hearty plant could “keep up” with the vulpine breathing cycle. In layman’s terms, it could in theory provide use as an indefinite aqualung, and all it required was a little nutrient, a little sunlight, and a little water to live in. A specimen could occupy one side of a twin set of tanks, with a small band of plexiglass to allow in sunlight, with the other side was reserved for the storage of diluted oxygen produced in surplus. It was ingenous, really, but being a biologist most of the heavy-math fluid mechanics went over her head.

Either way, her job was to test it. Get to know how the plant would react in foreign waters. Obviously she would not simply introduce it to the environment, but, should the plant be able to survive here, perhaps in the not-too-distant-future Vekaiyuns could populate the sea with underwater colonies.

She placed the plant under her laboratory hood and shut off the lights. The entire package was rather heavy. It was already in a slurry of water and nutrients, and didn’t really need a whole lot of sunlight. At least it was safe and already in its rightful location. She’d have time to divide it up and test specimens individually later.

4

— Begin quote from ____

To the International Sealab program,

The Federal Republic of Rhodesia has interest in a international program of scientific progress, especially the International Sealab. We are sending this message to you in efforts to strengthen international ties and to formally request that Rhodesia send three of their scientists to the lab.

These three scientists are S’ara Sihaan, Jason Rurkett, and Ron Slagers. S’ara Sihaan is a female Fedilea with a doctorates in Ocean Engineering. Jason Rurkett is a male human who is in the middle of completing his doctorates degree in Oceanography but desires a thesis on the International Sealab before graduating. Ron Slagers is another male human with a Masters in Marine Biology.

We are looking forward to your consideration,

Trafford Parker & Webster Jess
Presidents of the Federal Republic of Rhodesia.

— End quote

5

— Begin quote from ____

Trafford Parker & Webster Jess,

Scientists from any nation are allowed in the lab, provided they can all pass background checks and are sponsored by their government. Nations must provide all materials and transportation of scientists to and from the facilities. As the lab is internationally-owned, any additional nations added to the labspace will be required to pay maintenance fees to keep the lab in optimum shape.

Best of luck with your research.

Regards,
Riyna Ibinasteri
Vekaiyun Minister of Science and Technology

— End quote

6

S’ara stood there waiting for her companions, the two males were busy gawking at the sights and sounds at the airport. They were homebodies and this was an entirely new experience for them. It was slightly irritating for her since they were on a tight schedule. Their plane was to take them to another airport, and from there they were to take a ride by boat and meet with a submarine that would take them down to the sealab.

They only carried their clothing and other essentials. Their lab equipment would be transported by submarine a day after their arrival. Their main goal was to find a way how to improve the fertility and reproduction rates of the Tuna and shrimp. Rhodesia was relying to heavily on the local seafood since the sanctions, and that environmental scientists have predicted that in 4 years the population would be depleted. Not only would Rhodesia’s main source of food be of seafood since the sanctions be secured, the technology could be shared with other nations to help replenish their regional shrimp and tuna from over-fishing.

“Come on! We gotta go!” said the fedilea female, who is in her late 30s and in casual clothes and nerdy glasses. Her companions looked at her and quickly stopped what they were doing and followed her to the right terminal for their airplane.

A few minutes later and they were sitting in their seats ready for the long trip. The plane sat on the taxiway for a good 10 minutes before finally getting clearance to take off. Slowly the passenger jet airliner positioned itself on the runway, and then took off. S’ara was fast asleep after the takeoff although her two companions were next to her, chatting about everything they just saw or might see.

7

As she was exiting her lab, a tone played over the loudspeakers. Orientation for meeting other occupants, most likely. She hurried over to the main room to meet some of the new recruits.

8

S’ara and her two fellow colleges walked into the SeaLab, fresh off the submarine and into the world of Science. She was impressed by the location and marveled at how expensive of an endeavor it would have been to fund and construct this. At her home country their labs were either on a boat or on land using pre-fabricated structures on leveled ground. As she walked through, she heard the tone over the loudspeakers and her ears picked up rapid yet subtle footsteps coming their way.

Jason Rurkett and Ron Slagers were bickering between each other about their bags and anything that could have been forgotten on the trip. The fedilea groaned and then spoke with a tone of disdain, “Boys, let’s stop fighting and get to it.” With the two males looking at the other in an argumentative fashion, they shrugged and picked up their bags. There was more equipment on the submarine and that would be offloaded later. For now it was time to visit the residents and fellow scientists.

(Sorry about the slow response, Life has been busy. :-/ )

9

The FPSN Bolton once stood as the pinnacle of Free Pacifican military technology. The lead ship of a tiny class of nuclear submarines designed to support special operations, the Bolton spent years supporting the most important military missions of the Federated Alliance. The Bolton last undertook such a mission in the early 2000s, though, and instead spent most of the last decade on loan to various civilian departments. The submarine was ancient, frankly speaking, and the navy had little use for it.

The Free Pacifican navy had just as little use for Senior Petty Officer Scott Graham. Graham had joined the navy some four decades ago, and served faithfully in the submarine force for nearly that entire time. He had made a name for himself as a reliable man, but nothing more. He never showed any ambition, any leadership, or any particular skills. And so, at age 57, he shared a rank with many men in their mid-twenties. He was ancient – and just like the submarine on which he stood, the navy had little use for him.

Graham watched in interest as the submarine’s crew slowly unscrewed the specialty hatch connecting the submarine to the International Sea Lab. He remembered a time when special forces operatives would swim out of that hatch, and later be recovered through it. Now, the Bolton carried only a skeleton naval crew; there were no elite operatives in sight. Picking up his bag, and the bag of the woman with him (despite her protests that she could carry it), Graham made his way onto the sea lab.

The woman, Xiao-Yan Nguyen, seemed more in place at an international research station. A doctoral and medical candidate at Shiro Academy, Nguyen had spent years researching medical issues relating to pressurization, and she was now preparing her final thesis. She would spent the next six months conducting experiments, hoping to ultimately win an assistant professorship at Shiro next year. She was just starting her career, and had the ambition of someone planning to go far.

By contrast, Scott Graham was finishing his career, and had the relaxed nature of a man ready to retire. Graham planned to muster out in just a few months, once he reached a full forty years in the services. A loyal man by nature, Graham had made many an ally during his time, and when he announced his retirement, several senior officers had stepped in to make sure Graham enjoyed a cushy final assignment. There were few assignments more comfortable than being on loan as custodian of a science lab.

The two stepped onto the station just as the tone came across the loudspeakers. Nguyen looked around, confused, but Graham immediately knew what it meant. He’d been through a couple dozen orientations on a couple dozen vessels – he knew how things tended to get going. “Do you think we should maybe head to the main room, ma’m,” he asked? Nguyen nodded, and the two set off.

10

All that Troy Innocenti could do at the moment was just watch as the hatch door closed in front of him leaving him in the docking bay all by himself except for a few others walking about. He was filled with a mixture of excitement, fear, and a little homesick. But this was an opportunity that may never happen in the future and he had to make the best of it.

He put on his backpack of personal belongings and carried the other bags filled with all of his equipment. It was not the best equipment in the world but at least it filled its tasks. Troy was part of the marine branch in the Scientific Department and was praised for his research. Problem was that his nation, Fortuna, saw no need in his work and gave very little funding to his branch. It was a big surprise to him when they agreed to send him to this sea lab.

At least the uniform is nice, Troy thought to himself taking another quick look at it. The dark green color of his country gave him a military look and fitted nicely with his brown, curly hair. Even though he wasn’t shown much respect for his research, he was still very proud of his nation. He might not be a soldier fighting the rebels at home but maybe here he could get his nation noticed through his actions and his work.

The loudspeakers brought him back to reality and could make out something having to do with an orientation. He quickly pulled out his guide of the lab to find out where the meeting area would take place. Quickly getting frustrated with it he decided to just follow the others.

“Well let’s see what this is about,” he quietly said under his breath. Troy tucked the third bag between his arm and began his slow trek towards where the orientation was taking place.

11

Scott Graham and Xiao-Yan Nguyen arrived in the main room along with a trickle of others. Some of those arriving knew each other, some did not, but Graham’s attention immediately focused on the windows. The Senior Petty Officer had spent years in the submarine branch, but he had never, ever, actually seen out of a submarine. Making his way to the window, Graham stared in amazement at the underwater world laid out in front of him.

Xiao-Yan Nguyen found the underwater ocean view equally amazing, but the young student had seen it before when she briefly visited the station. She was more interested in the people arriving – she was going to be here for some time, and she wanted to make sure to make some friends. Looking around, she saw a curly-haired, green-uniformed young man enter the room. She made her way over, and introduced herself. “Hi, I’m Xiao-Yan. I’m from FPS. How about you?”

12

After entering the main room Troy was suddenly caught off guard when a woman walked up to him and introduced herself. Unsure what to do he decided the best thing to do is just answer back. “Uh, hello,” he placed his bags down and extended his hand out for a handshake," I’m Troy Romano from Fortuna, two-star scientist of the marine branch. Um, so, what brings you to the sea lab?"

13

“I’m doing some research on the impact of pressurization on various humanoids,” Xiao-Yan said, providing a simple but accurate answer, “what about you? Two-star scientist, huh? So is that a flag officer rank? You must be doing something very important.”

14

“Well I’m studying the type of sea plants, like seaweed, that are found in this area. Looking for the one best to sustain a growing population based on a few, uh, variables,” Troy replied. He quickly cleared his throat before continuing," Also two-star is, um, not really important. They rank scientists based on what we have accomplished and importance, five-star being the highest. I’m hoping my research would ‘bump’ me up a bit." Feeling uncomfortable about talking of himself, Troy decided to change the subject, " Do you know if we are waiting for something or no?"

15

Xiao-Yan shrugged. “I’ve no idea. I know there is supposed to be some orientation, but this place seems rather unorganized. There was no real direction on what to do on arrival, and now, this orientation seems to lack any leadership. We could ask around, but I’m sure they’ll get to it in a minute.”

((Maybe a cue, Todd, to begin the orientation?))

16

Elana arrived to the main gathering room. As more and more individuals filed in, she kept looking for someone official to begin the small tour. It was becomming apparent that there wasn’t one, or the individual was running late. Then it dawned on her: she had been present during the previous two excursions, perhaps since she was probably the longest-serving scientist, she could attempt to orchestrate the tour?

“Well, hello everyone,” she began. “My name is Elana Navinsku, a recent PhD graduate from Calesu Polytechnic University in Vekaiyu. I’m a marine biologist, and my project is funded by the Vekaiyun government. I was present at the first Sealab, before it met an untimely demise…”

She continued, her common language skills were strong after years of practice. “Since we’re all probably itching to get to work, I figured I’d let everyone know where everything is. It’s really… quite peaceful down here, actually. Perhaps at first you might feel a bit clausterphobic. Perhaps you might have a bit of anxiety as we’re kind of far away from normal ammenities like a fully-stocked hospital or shopping malls. But down here, down here it’s like a different world entirely. You’ll meet new people, and people will come and go - you will have no idea if they succeeded in their journey or ran into problems, but you’ll remember them. One can only hope they remember you too in some capacity, especially considering most fish have pictoral memories that last for only about an hour or so.”

She began pointing in several directions. “Personal quarters are over there, the lunchroom is down that hall along with an exercise room, and the research labs are over there. Some of the personal labspaces are over there as well - if your government paid for one, you’ll have access to a room. If not, just stick with the communal labs. You know, the labs from where dock was. Anyway, on the maps there’s a hall with a bunch of unmarked rooms. That’s currently taken by my government… they don’t really want anyone down there because they’re working on some kind of mining project. That’s all I really know, really. But the best place to relax is this room and the observation posts, down that hall.”

She looked around, hoping folks were a bit less nervous about the prospect of being under water for an extended period of time. “I’m not really a guide or anything, but like I said, I’ve been here before. Does anyone have any questions?”

17

Graham had been staring out the window for some time when he realized that there was a woman speaking. Turning, he tuned into the conversation just as Elana began pointing out the various parts of the ship, and he quickly made mental notes to himself about where everything was located. A dozen different assignments had taught him to pay attention to the three most important things: where to eat, where to sleep, and where to work. He heard two of the three, and as Elana finished, decided to ask about the third.

Graham raised his hand, not wanting to speak out of turn. Seeing Elana glance at him, Graham spoke up. “Uh, hi. Scott Graham, I’ve been assigned here as the custodian. Is there a, uh, operations coordinator or something like that I should report to? Or, uh, maybe a mop somewhere around here that I can get started with?” He smiled as he asked the last question, not wanting it to sound pushy.

18

She nodded and pushed her glasses back up her nose. “Yes, I think so. Did you receive training with the Pergos Software? I think that’s what it was called. It has all the work instructions on it, including maps of the facilities. I thought the welcome packets had maps as well, but I haven’t looked at mine yet.”

19

S’ara pipped up, “Ummm, are there any regulations in terms of harvesting samples from the surrounding environment and possibly avoiding the introduction of invasive species and plants? Also, do we have to worry about predatory sea life?” She was especially concerned about accidental introduction of such invasive biological materials.

20

“Yes! Plenty! Plenty of predatory life forms that’d be willing to swallow up an unassiming scuba diver with one giant clamp if its jaws!” she smiled, but her smile quickly faded when she noticed an atmosphere of fear and self-doubt settle across the confines. “I mean, truthfully, I’ve not heard of anything too intense. There are some larger species in these waters, sure, but at least in previous seasons they’ve not killed anyone. So you should be alright. I’d… just carry a spear gun or a knife or something. You know - can’t hurt.”

“As for invasive species… well, we’re definitely of that ilk, but we believe in following the golden rule of the sea: touch, but not taint, sample, but not spoil, observe, but not obliterate. That’s at least the common language translation… it’s a bit more involved in Unonian. Anyway, the bottom line is we’re invaders in their ecosystems. If they happened to supplant a species that could remove us from our ecosystem, well, that would be bad. In general, and you may not quote me on this, any species permanently introduced to this gulf will result in the termination of the contract with that nation… and probably the nation in general. Depends on what Vekaiyu and the rest of the gulf states feel like doing, of course!”