Will do Colonel. How about on that hill in the grass plains? I can see on the view screen tall long legged herd animals grazing thereabouts. Any radio signals Colonel? Should we send out drones or even a Dome teleport shell? What do you think Healani?
Both Henri and have Felix install the hologram invector as we may need that if we find life forms. Healani assemble your people as we land on Mars in precisely 20 minutes......
The Hologram Invector is now installed Colonel. I enjoyed using my tools again even if Felix was hovering over me like a mother hen. He said I did a good job. Felix said he outfitted Healani's six warriors with bio armour and an array of weapons if needed. Also a simple mind chip each importantly incorporating a universal language translator, radio, easy data bases, like maps etc.... I think he tricked me into giving tacit approval for their upgrades. Seems ok I hope? He did it on the way here whilst they were in Stasis. I think he upgraded me too wirelessly. I seem to know engineering a lot better? My AI Tempus seems smarter too. I think he was complicit even denying it. What about you Col Richie and Healani?
Healani has been in sick bay for the past 48 hours Henri. She says she is now feeling better but we may have to delay our descent to Mars for a little while until she is fully recovered. That gives us extra time to prepare for what hopes to be an historic expedition on one of the least visited planets in our Solar System. It is only because we have gone far back in time that we are able to actually step foot on Mars without freezing to death within minutes or be poisoned from massive carbon dioxide ingestion.
I and my six warriors are ready for descent. We can leave Felix on board to keep a lookout for us. If he sees danger, he can beam a signal to us. I'm anxious to see what we find planet side. We will begin in the grassy plains. Y'all get inside the dome and ..... down we go. Let's roll, Guys!
Our dome has landed on Mars. However our calculations are off we appear to be in a distinctive volcanic region not the grasslands Felix calculated. Henri send a message back to Lara to drop two Flash all terrain vehicles as we are going exploring for the forests/grasslands. There is also a strong smell of sulphur and some other material in the air so I suggest we wear breathing apparatus while in this region. Well folks our Martian landing has not quite gone to plan............
Will do Colonel, Flash ATV's are on their way according to Felix. I'll get the Dome's replicator to manufacture us breathing masks too. Olympus Mons is the highest mountain in our Solar system at 25km high with a giant 50km wide Caldera at its summit. We'd need these breathing masks if we go there, and warm bio clothes. Just saying but I'd love to see it up close. I took these pictures of it as we orbited the planet. The base has a diameter of 624km. Olympus Mons is located near three other volcanoes known as the Tharsis Montes. ... The volcanoes in this area are all 10 to 100 times bigger than Earth's largest volcanoes. It seems our Dome is amongst these volcanoes. Felix reckons their great mass attracted our dome to them. Something about a gravity well he said.
(Reading off dome computer screen) Henri says to Healani and the Colonel: "Mars in 1754 has very little active volcanoes Healani, as Col Richard knows, but best we keep the Dome's high tech seismic monitors active. Tempus says there's only a 0.053%/year chance of either an earth quake or volcanic eruption hereabouts somewhere in the frozen plains in amongst smoldering giants. Nice landing Felix! Very inconspicious. Dome sensors are saying there's much more than expected heavy metals about this region with Olympus Mons being a focal point? Hence the gravity well Felix mentioned? Appartantly it distorts Lara's sensors and emc comms. Radio communications and the like, even quantum stuff. High physics stuff. Just the odd volcanic vent computers say. Much of the heat stored inside the planet when it formed has been lost, and the outer crust of Mars is too thick to allow molten rock from deep below to reach the surface. But long ago, eruptions built enormous volcanoes and piles of thick ash. I reckon ( Henri says not reading off the computer) yonder Olympus Mons was formed by a giant Meteorite Strike. Even the AI's differ on that point and want investigation and samples. I'm easy. Also, I'm just reading this stuff off the Dome's computer with my annoying watch Tempus interrogating it better than me. Readings on the Dome's Sensors say our Flash vehicles are arriving in 10 minutes using smart atmosphere chutes. See them here on the monitor Healani, once landed you can remote control them mentally with your brain chip, likewise your 6 warriors. Gee, they're big men. Their ancestors produce some of the best Rugby players on Earth. True! They called themselves 'The All Blacks', but have a sprinkling of White players too. All History for me, Future for you! Opps, One of the Flash ATVs is off course a bit. "
All of a sudden Felix's face bulged out of the Dome's big monitor screen saying: "That's weird, only one of the Flash ATVs is being drawn off course and headed towards Olympus Mons. Its AI circuitry won't respond either. I sense a very powerful directed magnetism but nothing else. I sniff intelligence. Colonel?
Does it have something to do with the graphene aluminum-ion battery used to power our ATVs and that which gives them almost hypersonic power. My knowing what is actually causing the magnetism is no more than your theories. Healani if it is in fact an underground city then it has a strong magnetic force as we are still at least 50 kilometers from Olympus Mons.....
Sensors say our wayward Flash ATV has landed only 8km from here Colonel and Healani. It should be easy to retrieve it. I'm not sure what caused it to drift off course Colonel but I think you have a point with the graphene aluminum-ion battery.