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The challenge is to have a rogue Kerbin which only has a small time window to get in to the inner system. Your goal is to either: Colonize a planet successfully and be self-sufficient(extra planetary launchpads mod and drills) Create multiple self-sufficient stations(see above possible mod) or Get to the top of the tech tree so you can 'redirect' Kerbin into the system (hyper edit) So that's my take! Thanks! -Noah

ROGUE A story by: electricpants How will the kerbals adapt to a Kerbin that's frozen and starless? [BEGINNING OF PART ONE] [BEGINNING OF PROLOGUE] 11/27/2033, Log 1: A larger star, perhaps of G-F typing, has just skimmed the edge of our solar system. Meanwhile, our system has captured one of this star's planets. We have decided to name it "Coma". Because it was just captured, Coma has an elliptical orbit, and as such will come very close to Kerbin's orbit, so close that it will either capture planet Kerbin or [CLASSIFIED]. [END OF LOG 1] 2/18/2035, Log 2: Coma is getting closer. The average kerbal living in the northern hemisphere can now see it during the day because it's so close. We're all hoping it'll just capture Kerbin, instead of [CLASSIFIED] happening... [END OF LOG 2] 2/21/2035, Log 3: Well it appears that the worst happened... [CLASSIFIED], as we've been calling it, just so the public doesn't freak out. But I guess now is the best time to tell you about it. What we've been covering up is that Coma has ejected Kerbin out of the Kerbol system. So basically we'll be a starless planet. How wonderful... Oh, and did I mention that Coma also captured Minmus? [END OF LOG 3] [END OF PROLOGUE] [BEGINNING OF CHAPTER ONE] In modern times (2067)... "Hey, wanna go make a snowman, Bill?" Jeb asked. "No way! Are you crazy Jeb? WE'LL FREEZE TO DEATH!!!" Bill shouted. "Okay, okay, jeebus, Bill!" Jeb replied in a slightly annoyed-slightly hurt voice. "No, really Jeb. We actually will freeze to death. The temperature outside is -204 degrees Celcius." Bob said after their unnecessary fight about freezing to death and snowmen. "Speaking of which, Bob, could you turn up the heat more? It's getting colder in here by the minute!" Jeb shakily said as Bob complied and turned up the heat. Bob then turned on their oven (which had mini icicles hanging from the outside) and began to cook their food, which was pizza. Not pizza as in leftovers, but pizza as in he's actually making homemade pizza because ever since it had started getting REAL cold, Pizza Hut was out of service, so Bob had to make his own pizza. And while Bob is cooking pizza, let me tell you the basic layout of their hou- er... bunker. There's 8 rooms total, and the largest is the living room, which has 1 three cushion couch and two chairs next to it at a roughly 45 degree angle. They have a T.V. which connects to an internet box underneath the T.V. setup. The second-largest room is the kitchen, which has a full counter, drawers, cabinets, an oven, a microwave, a fridge and the like. Next is their bedrooms, all of very similar sizes, which is just enough to fit 1 bed. Oh, and there's four of em'. The second-last room is the laundry room, with your average washer and dryer, but it also includes the dishwasher. The very last room is the computer room. It has four computers and four moniters and four desks and chairs. It's really that simple. "Hey Bob, you done with that pizza yet?" Val asked, very tired because she just woke up. "Not yet, though it is going to be done pretty soon." Bob replied. "These potato chips are gonna be all gone if you don't hurry up with that pizza!" Jeb shouted, suddenly eating chips from a bag. "Oh, Jeb? You remember your and Bill's argument about making a snowman earlier?" Bob asked Jeb. "Uh, yeah Bob. That happened like ten minutes ago." Jeb replied, slightly annoyed that Bob thought he would forget so quickly. "Okay, well, it would actually be impossible to make that snowman, because since it's so cold outside, not only has the snow frozen into ice, that ice is frozen rock solid." Bob explained to Jeb. "Oh..." Jeb replied, amazed and saddened that he couldn't make a snowman. "Hey guys! the pizza's done!" Bob suddenly shouted at the others. Then they all proceeded to grab a plate, take two slices of pizza, and then sit down on the couch to watch some T.V., which was Cartoon Network, that's what they always watched. "Hey Bob, this pizza tastes great! It's almost as great as Pizza Hut was back in 2043!" Val exclaimed. "Thanks, Val! I made it myself!" Bob said proudly. "Well obviously you made it!" Jeb replied, annoyed at how much of an imbecile Bob just was, even compared to him. After they were done, they put their plates in the sink and tiredly flopped into their beds and fell asleep not very long afterwards. Jeb dreamed about some trippy stuff. Bob dreamed about going to Pizza Hut one last time. Val dreamed about looking down on this frozen wasteland as she escapes to another solar system. Bill dreamed about slowly freezing to death down here, cold and alone. 9 hours later... "*Yawn* What time is it?" Jeb asked to himself sleepily. Then he tiredly got up out of bed and walked down to the kitchen to check the time on the clock. It was midnight. "Wait, why did I get up at midnight? Normally I'm the last one to wake up, but for some reason I guess tonight was an exception." He told himself, wondering how and why he got up so early. Jeb looked outside, and saw a cold, sunless wasteland as always, but then looked at their blocked off door, and realized that it was slightly ajar. And then he remembered how cold it was outside and the effects that extreme cold had on kerbals. "Oh dang!" He thought to himself as he ran to the door and slammed it shut. "I should probably check on the others, just to see if they're okay." He thought after closing the door and having a fresh cup of coffee, knowing he would never get back to sleep. Then he checked on his friends in this order: Bill, Val, and Bob. All of them were fine, though they were a little cold. Not too cold to be dead, though. After his sigh of relief that his friends weren't dead, he decided to grab some cold pizza left over from last night and head over to play his computer and watch some YouTube. It seemed not many people uploaded a whole lot anymore, though, so he just watched some older videos. After awhile, he heard the others get up and get some coffee or soda and then he heard Bob come over to his room to see if he was okay and saw he was gone. "Hey Jeb, where are you?" Bob yelled, bewildered that he was out of bed. "Watching some YouTube on my computer." Jeb replied. "Why did you get up so early, Jeb? You're usually the last one to wake up!" Bob asked Jeb. "The door was open, so I closed it and made sure you guys weren't dead." Jeb replied, Bob having a very shocked and surprised look on his face. "Hey guys! We need to barricade the door better! Maybe put one of the chairs in front of it!" Bob then shouted at the others. "But why do we need to barricade it better?" Val asked as she pushed a chair in front of the door. "Because according to Jeb, the door was open last night, and he closed it and made sure we didn't die." Bob responded with a very serious expression on his face. "Oh." Val responded, looking very scared at the thought of the fact that she could've died in her sleep. [END OF CHAPTER ONE] [END OF PART ONE] [BEGINNING OF PART TWO] [BEGINNING OF CHAPTER TWO] That night... "I should probably double check that door again before I go to sleep." Val told herself worryingly. She got out of bed again for the 23rd time that night and walked down to the front door to see if it was open in any way. "No, it's still closed. I guess I'm just being really paranoid..." She said to herself reassurngly. She then proceeded to walk away from the door, get some cold water, and walk back up to her room, and then drank said cold water from the fridge. Sometime afterwards, she somehow fell asleep that night. The next morning... "Val, you look really tired, do you wanna go back to bed for a while?" Bill asked Val. "No, I'm fine." Val responded, her extremely tired face having a slight hint of a smile. "You sure, Val? You really don't look fine." Bob told her after she said that. She nodded slightly in response and then proceeded to get a bowl, a spoon, some milk, and a box of cereal out and made some cereal for her breakfast. "Hey guys, do you think we'll have any chance of getting to another solar system?" Val asked, suddenly getting very serious. "Most definitely not." Bob replied, also being serious. "What about the Mun? Or maybe Minmu-Oh, wait. Minmus was captured by Coma. My mistake!" She then asked and apologized for absolutely no reason. "Maybe, although the chances of kerbalkind going to the Mun is extremely low to impossible, as it's already impossible to go outside without freezing to death almost instantly." Bob replied, still as serious as before. "Oh. So basically we're stuck here?" Val asked, a hint of sadness falling over her. "Yep, that's absolutely correct!" Jeb replied without a care in the world. "Y'know Jeb, it's kinda dark that you didn't sound even a little sad when you said that." Bill told Jeb with a confused expression on his face. "Well what's the point of being sad if you know that we're going to die down here already?" Jeb then replied. "Oh, jeez. You ok, Jeb?" Val asked Jeb, looking concerned. "Yeah!" Jeb replied with a happyish tone. "Yeah, right Jeb. Also, speaking of which, hey Bob, how come you always make dinner for us?" Bill asked. "Because you guys are too lazy to make your own food!" Bob replied to Bill's question with an annoyed tone of voice. "Hey Jeb, what time is it right now?" Val asked Jeb. "It's around noon." He answered. "Then why does it look so dark outside?" Val asked Bob. "Jee, Val. Maybe it's because we don't have a sun!" He answered with a "You should have noticed earlier" expression plastered across his face. "Why are you so mad for like, no reason, Bob?" Bill asked him. "I don't know, I guess it's the frustration of knowing I'm going to die getting to me." He replied, suddenly sounding kinda down. "Oh, jeez Bob, that sounds extremely depressing. You alright, there?" Jeb asked him after hearing his sorta sad answer. "Yeah, I'm just guessing, though. It might be a completely different reason!" He answered, sounding a lot happier than before. "Hey guys, you wanna watch some T.V?" Jeb suddenly asked everyone. "Sure!" Bill, Bob, and Val replied in unison. Jeb then nodded and turned on the T.V, and then set the channel to Cartoon Network, like they always did. Bob then left his chair to get a snack, which was his favorite brand, called "Chocolate Nibbles" and sat down again so he could eat his snack and watch T.V, sort of like in a movie theater. "Hey Bob, you mind chewing a little quieter?" Bill told him, kinda annoyed that he was chewing loudly. "Uh, guys, I'm gonna go watch some YouTube with some potato chips." Val announced as she got up from the couch, grabbed a bag or two of chips, and walked down to the computer room and sat down and turned on some YouTube so she could watch some "JackSepticKerb" let's plays. After a while, she looked around, feeling a strange presence around her, until her eyes met with a door that she, nor anybody else, had seen prior. "Hm? What's this?" She silently asked herself. She decided to get up, put her potato chips down on top of her desk, and walk over to the door and open it. After Val had opened the mysterious door, she noticed a dark figure at the back of the small room, but she wasn't worried because it didn't look anything like a kerbal. In fact, it actually kind of looked like a strange machine from what she could tell. She then groped the wall, feeling around for a light switch, until she found one and flipped it up so that the lights in the room would turn on. What she saw bewildered her, and she actually thought she was dreaming. [END OF CHAPTER TWO] [END OF PART TWO] [BEGINNING OF PART THREE] [BEGINNING OF CHAPTER THREE] "Something so strange I can't even tell what it is" She saw the closet. Yup, a completely normal closet. "Hmm... I guess I must've forgotten about this closet. I mean, we never really use it much anyways." Val said to herself. "VAL!" She heard Bob yell. She hurriedly ran down the stairs to find him with a telescope looking out one of their windows. "I want to show you something really interesting that I found." Bob explained to her. Val looked through the telescope for a bit, looking a bit confused about this whole situation. "I see that you don't get it. I've recently been spotting a strange object near us. I've calculated it's distance from us, and it turns out to be around 1,000 AU from us, and it has a huge density for an object it's size." Bob replied to Val's expression. "So it's a black hole?!" Val said, rather scared-like. "No, it's something even more strange, something so strange that I can't even tell what it is because I've never seen nor catalogued anything like it before. The best thing I can describe it as is some sort of strange object." Bob replied, getting all scientific and stuff. "What do you think it's mass is?" Val asked him after he was done being sciency. "Based on it's radius and density, I think it might be around 1.2 solar masses, but it's acting like it has a mass of 132.9 solar masses, so I can't tell it's exact mass right now." Bob answered Val's question. "Oh. Do you think we might be orbiting it or something at least similar to an orbit?" Val asked him again. "Well I've calculated our trajectory over the last few months, and we've been moving in a relatively sharp curve, so I think we're orbiting it. At best we'll have a periapsis of about 250 AU and an apoapsis of about 1100 AU, and at worst we'll have a periapsis of 10 AU and an apoapsis of 3500 AU." Bob replied as best as he could. "Should we tell the others?" Val asked Bob. "I think it would be best to tell them, even if it worries them." Bob admitted to Val. "I guess that is true" Val thought. She and Bob then walked over to the rooms of Bill and Jeb, and woke them up. Then they led both of them to the telescope. "Ok, so we woke you up to show you something that might be bad, but it also might not be bad. If you look close enough, you two will be able to see a small dark spot. That is what we're talking about." Val explained as Bill and Jeb looked through the telescope. "What is that thing?" Jeb asked Val with a mystified look on his face. "That's what Bob is trying to figure out. Y'see, we don't have even a clue as to what this "object" is at all!" Val replied with a slight hint of annoyance that they couldn't figure out what the thing was. "Don't you think it's kinda scary that we don't even know what that is?" Bill asked Val and Bob. "Not really, because it might be a black hole. Now don't worry, because even if it is, we're orbiting it and are not going to get eaten by it." Bob replied. "What does it look like?" Bill asked Bob. "It looks kind of like a circle inside of a bigger circle connected by a line." Bob hurriedly explained. "That wasn't the best explanation ever, you know." Val whispered to Bob after he told Bill his "explanation". "How long will it take to get to periapsis, Bob?" Val suddenly asked after a moment of awkward silence. "Probably about 175 years." Bob answered Val with a simple yet satisfying answer. Jeb then decided to get some more chips and watch T.V. "Do any of you guys wanna watch some T.V. with me?" Jeb asked the others. "I guess." The rest answered as the scuttled over to the couch and/or a chair. Jeb somehow managed to eat all of the chips by the time the movie they had decided to watch was over, so when Bill changed the channel, he decided to get a bowl of ice cream and sit back down. "So do you think this "thing" will have any effect on Kerbin?" Jeb asked Bob. "If we get the worst case scenario, then with a periapsis of only 10 AU, I think Kerbin will be at least partially ripped to shreds." Bob explained uninterestedly. "So then what's the minimum safe distance from the "thing"?" Bill then asked. "Maybe around 45-55 AU away." He answered, slightly annoyed that everyone was pestering him about the "thing" he had discovered. After that there was a long silence amongst them as the continued to eat and/or watch T.V. "I think we should name it "Jebediah", after me!" Jeb announced after 45 minutes of silence. "There's no way I'm naming that Jebediah!" Bob scolded Jeb. "Ok, ok! Calm down, Bob. Sheesh, it was just a suggestion!" Jeb replied to his anger with a slightly hurt voice. "Maybe we should name it "X" or something else mathematical." Val suggested. "Well I guess "X" would be a good name for it, because it's an unknown object and all..." Bob replied, interested in Val's suggestion. Nobody said anything after that, and once the show was over, they were all tired, so all of them stumbled into their beds and fell asleep. After awhile of dreaming, all of them got up and ate breakfast in silence, due to the fact that they just woke up. When they were all done eating breakfast, Bob cleared his throat. "I have decided that this mystery object shall be named X, because of how much of a mystery that object is to us as of now." He declared. "Wait, you actually liked my suggestion for a name?" Val asked Bob. "Yeah, I though it was a very unique name, so I decided to use it as the name of this object!" Bob happily replied. [END OF CHAPTER THREE] [END OF PART THREE] If you feel like it, give me some feedback on/about my story. Thanks!