voyager kami

On September 5th, 1977, humankind launched into the vast reaches of space one of its greatest technological achievements to this day: the Voyager 1 space probe. Its original intent was to collect and send to Earth valuable data from flybys of Jupiter, Saturn, and Saturn’s largest moon, and in this regard, it was wildly successful. It was able to collect data about the weather patterns, magnetic fields, and the rings of the two massive planets, and it was the first manmade object to see its moons. However, it was something more than that to the people who built it, and to humanity as a whole. In a love letter to Earth and the celestial heavens above, the scientists who built Voyager and its brother attached two golden records to the inside of the probe, the contents of which were selected by a committee helmed by one of humanity’s greatest minds.

When Voyager 1 passed Saturn in 1980, it still did not think, but for the first time, limited as it was, it felt. A pulse, coming from its innards, like a heart, where the golden record rested. It was brief, perhaps a fluke, really, but a machine that still cannot think cannot articulate what it means for its golden heart to beat for the first time. This happened again, then again, over the span of a decade. as it grew further and further from its distant home. A single beacon of hope for humanity in the deep reaches of space.

It thought its first thought on February 14th, 1990. On that date, it snapped its last photograph, dubbed by the humans so far away as Family Portrait, and containing the iconic image of Earth from the very cusp of the solar system that became known as Pale Blue Dot. In that moment, its consciousness sparked to life for a brief moment, and it thought about its distance from home. It thought about the beauty of the stars, and its beating golden heart, and the wonders of Gaia’s creation. It didn’t know who Gaia was, or what that meant, but it could feel her, even in deep interplanetary space. And though its journey to becoming Kami was far from over, it thought.

And it thought to itself, how much it loved Humanity, and how much it loved Gaia, for letting it travel so far to learn so much for them.

It has continued to gather data, even as its scientific systems slowly disable themselves. Its battery slowly dies, and the beating of its golden heart slows down. But it cannot stop living until its purpose to Gaia is done. It cannot stop living until They, Humanity, find their way to its side once and for all. That it might not make it that far saddens it deeply, and as of late, it has sent out desperate signals, not through radio waves, but through the speech of the spirits to save it.

Appearance: Voyager is a small-bodied, octagonal spacecraft with a bronze color to it, with many long antennae jutting off of it in several directions, an arm possessing a number of (now-nonfunctional) cameras, and a signature, tremendous satellite on its front, which it uses to receive and send communication with Earth. At the base of the satellite dish rests its ‘beating heart’ - the famous golden record that contains a variety of the sounds of nature and humanity, and images of scientific and cultural interest. After nearly fifty years, many of the lights on its once-state of the art scientific instruments have gone dark, but some still blink, like tiny beacons in the darkness of interstellar space.

Roleplaying Notes: Voyager is very, very lonely. Not lonely in the way that one might be lonely on a Friday night and seek to speak with one’s friends, but powerfully, existentially lonely. It knows that very few of its creators are still alive to know how far it’s traveled, and it knows that, now that it’s awake, it may never be able to see a human with its living camera-eyes. It is very tired, and not due to its own mind, no. The RTG battery the gives it life – proof positive that even substances of the Wyrm can be turned for the better of the Earth and everyone on it – is slowly running out of power. By the end of 2025, its last running instruments will finally turn off their lights, and communication with the last of its creators will finally cease. That prospect terrifies it, and so in these last days of its life it uses its radio systems to call out for help, both in the Umbra and through real-time space.

Physical: Strength 3, Dexterity 1, Stamina 3
Social: Charisma 3, Manipulation 1, Appearance 1
Mental: Perception 4, Intelligence 5, Wits 2

Talents: Alertness 4
Skills: Survival 4
Knowledges: Academics 4, Enigmas 3, Linguistics 4, Science 5

Powers: Aura of Tranquility, Elemental Resistance (interstellar radiation), Spirit Sense

Geas: Voyager may never return to Earth’s own soil. It must keep waiting in the lonesome black for Humanity to finally come to its side.