NOVEL WEB Chapter 37
*Weeks later, somewhere deep underground of what used to be the Commonwealth Institute of Technology*
Allie hated these meetings.
"We need more power production! With Advanced Systems starting the Relay Grenade project, Robotics increasing third-gen production, and BioScience expanding the hydroponics fields, Facilities can't keep up with power management without rationing."
It was the mandatory quarterly meeting again, during which the heads of each division could report the progress of their various projects or make suggestions. It's typically also when the different divisions could request resources, unless that division is Facilities, in which case you just got crapped on.
"Can't you just keep tapping into surface power when there's a spike in demand?"
Allie glared at Nathan Filmore, her husband, who, unsurprisingly, again, wasn't on her side.
"No, Nathan, I can't keep tapping into an increasingly scarce and unreliable energy source. Did you perhaps forget that the surface is a post-apocalypse wasteland?"
"Well, Facilities will have to figure it out then. I don't know what you'll have to optimize, but we can not afford to slow progress in introducing portable relays."
Justin Ayo also piped up.
"And we're not slowing down the production of third gens. The SRB needs more Coursers to track down the escaped synth and deal with The Railroad.
Grenade this, laser that, that's all Nathan would ever talk about. This was just another argument in a long line of disagreements. The Institute's coupling algorithm had guaranteed that they were a good match, and it seemed true at first, but their marriage has been on a continual spiral downward ever since she was promoted to the head of facilities, Nathan became second in command to Madison Li, and they had their child.
She suspects Nathan held a grudge against her since she was a division head while he was still a vice head. It was not like it mattered since Madison rarely bothered herself with anything outside her projects, and Nathan was the de facto leader. Sometimes, Allie questioned whether it was a good idea to have every single decision in the Institute made through ruthless logical analysis.
"Enough, you two. While the relay grenade is an essential project, Allie is right that we are growing outside our power generation capabilities. Nathan, tell Madison to divert her researchers to improve on the fusion reactor."
There was a flash of anger in Nathan's eyes, but he held it back and swallowed his pride.
"Of course, Father."
Nice, and unexpected win for Facilities.
"Thank you, Father."
The elderly leader of the Institute simply raised a hand.
"Do not thank me, Allie. I did it because I need every division to be at full capacity, and for that, we need more power production. Of course, once we increase our generators' efficiency, every division can start on their backlog of projects, so I expect Facilities to still need to manage the power situation."
And there goes the wind from under her sails. Allie doesn't understand why they can't just make Advanced Systems focus on power production and have a surplus for once. Father has been approving projects left and right, and while the Institute has always been constantly and rapidly advancing, these last couple of years have seen a noticeable increase in pace.
"Moving on, Ayo, present the security report."
"Yes, Father. There were no synth disappearances this month. Our surface team is still tracking G7-81's whereabouts while Alana is investigating the salvaging site where his last known location was. She reported that there were no signs of struggle, so it is possible that G7-81 kidnapped or escaped."
"And what about Zimmer? Have we heard back from him yet?"
Dr. Zimmer was the head of the Synth Retention Bureau but has been MIA since leaving to track down a group of synths believed to have left the Commonwealth area. If any other division head disappeared, the Institute would be under lockdown, and the situation would be investigated with every last ounce of staffing they could spare.
But this wasn't the first time Zimmer went on one of his legendary adventures, and it was still within the timeframe Zimmer had set, so there wasn't too much of a fuss. The only real annoyance was that when Zimmer was gone, the SRB was under the purview of Justin Ayo, who was a massive fucking prick.
He constantly demands upgrades for Coursers from Robotics, new weapons from Advanced Systems, first aid from BioScience, and salvage missions from Facilities. And whenever he gets turned down, he throws a tantrum and accuses everyone else of working against him, which might not even be untrue. Of course, Allie would never admit to doing it, but she wouldn't be surprised if it were common practice to say no just because it was Justin.
"No, Father. Dr. Zimmer is still out on his mission, but Armitage's relay is still active, so we are confident the Doctor is doing well."
"Hmm. Keep me posted. Any surface activity that I should be aware of?"
"We are still tracking The Railroad and believe have found one of their homesteads. We don't think it's their HQ because there's not enough traffic, but we are still in the process of scouting the location and confirming its actual purpose."
"Good. The Railroad is a cancer; we need to root it out before it can fester and pose a real threat to our cause. Anything else."
Allie noticed a moment of hesitation on Ayo's face as if he was wondering whether it was wise to discuss whatever was on his mind.
"Well... M7-62 has heard rumors of large convoys traveling between South and East Boston. We've also confirmed through our watchers previously unseen robot patrols near the old Boston Airport."
"How many robots have been spotted."
"It's unclear which robots we've seen are repeats, but they have at least dozens."
"Where are the convoys coming from and going to? Do we know the affiliations of these Robots?"
"No, sir. Whoever controls them has a flying robot that hunts our watchers on site. All we know is that the heaviest activity is around Quincy at the airport. At first, we thought they were targeting our watchers specifically, but observation from afar shows that all animals are being hunted in a certain radius."
"Do they attack humans as well? Do we know how long they have been operating?"
"No, It seems they only target the wildlife. Animals in the region have already begun forming the habit of avoiding the general area. And... We are unsure how long these robots have been active, but it's been at least a few weeks. I'm sorry, Father."
Now, this is some exciting news. Functional robots are hard to come by in the wasteland, so dozens of them are definitely signs of something significant. And Allie could see how Ayo didn't want to bring it up, since not realizing it sooner would make him seem incompetent.
"Hmm. Send out one of our informants to see if they can sniff anything out. An entity that can repair or create tens of robots on the surface is brilliant, well-funded, or both. If the informants get a lead, try the diplomatic solutions first. And while everyone makes mistakes, I expect better from you, Ayo. The SRB must be extra vigilant with Dr. Zimmer still on his mission."
"Of course, Father."
Allie couldn't help but let a tiny smug smirk leak onto her face as Ayo was reprimanded.
From there, the meeting petered out into less and less exciting topics. Allie still paid attention until the end since Facilities always cleaned up the mess of every other department, so it was best to stay on top of what everyone else was doing.
When the meeting ended, everyone returned to their respective offices to start working again. Of course, Allie found five new work orders in her terminal, ranging from broken toilets to substations that are not working properly. It does suck to be Facilities, sometimes. Better than eking out a living on the surface world, she guess.
