Story¶

[continued from Project 1]

Your satellite hacking adventures have convinced you that the Jupiter Orbiter project must be stopped…but how? Luckily for you, EvanBot has called on an expert for advice: CodaBot, an old friend of EvanBot and a CSA architect who previously worked on the Venus impactor.

According to CodaBot, it should be possible to intercept the craft as it travels near Mars for a gravitational slingshot. CodaBot’s intricate plan requires perfect coordination with your friends on Mars.

Unfortunately, there is only one communication channel between here on Earth and Mars, and it passes right through the watchful gaze of Caltopia.

REGULUS is a one-of-a-kind cloud data storage service that uses CSA infrastructure. Because its datacenters are located on the lunar surface, REGULUS can be accessed by both Earthlings and Martians. In fact, due to atmospheric interference, the only way to send messages to Mars is by first storing them on REGULUS.

But be warned: there is nothing stopping Caltopia from reading data stored in REGULUS. The privacy policy certainly seems a little suspicious to you. EvanBot points out that CSA may not take too kindly to reading about your plans to thwart their warship.

With no other way to talk with your Martian allies, you have no choice but to fly right under Caltopia’s radar. You’ll have to hide all your communication in plain sight, protecting your secret plans from any attempts to read or tamper with them. Every precaution should be taken to make sure the communication is safe from Caltopian signals intelligence. Only after you make sure Caltopia won’t intercept the plans will CodaBot agree to send the details to Mars.

EvanBot and CodaBot are already in a concealed position deep within the Arctic Circle, ready to establish connection with REGULUS and Mars at your signal. The plans must be sent securely by Earth date April 9, when the Jupiter orbiter slingshots around Mars. The future of interplanetary peace depends on you.