The GNS sign shows a modern recording studio with presenter Ozymandias Vazul in the center of the image.
“Good evening, galactic sentients! Tonight we open our news program by delving into the latest stunning scientific discovery and ask fundamental questions. How old is our galaxy? Where is the center of the galaxy? And are we really just a small footnote in all the accumulated history?
The latest press release by the veteran mining company XXX MINERS suggests that we have to change the perspective if we are interested to understand the origin of our galaxy.
Scientists of the company claim that they found the oldest rocks in existence, which formed just minutes after the big bang. The pile of raw material was apparently discovered during an everyday cargo haul. They stated the following:”
A statement narrated by voice-over appears on the screen:
------
In a public depot drop-off station, a group of freelance asteroid miners offered their monthly yield to XXX MINERS. Including Corellian Chief Pilot Kirlan Krane, who manages the group of Zero Gravity freelancers. Several different piles of Krane’s load were initially not accepted due to the strong quality protocols. Standard X-ray diffraction analyses revealed unusual physical properties. However dedicated monochromatic X-rays in a four-circle kappa goniometer produced regular patterns of reflections, which are attributed to the common 21 minerals. Aliquots were sent to the particle accelerator mass spectrometer in the company's newest research laboratory in the Tapani sector. The geophysicists and geochemists evaluated the cosmogenic nuclides and then acknowledged that the raw materials in Krane’s shipment are everything but the purest minerals and damn old, probably the oldest in the entire galaxy. The discovery leads consequently to new standard cleaning and polishing procedures in XXX MINERS. They are now the only mining company that offers ultrapure raw materials to the public. It does not affect the moderate pricing policy.
(...)
-----
The image again shows the presenter in the center of the image:
“Incredible, isn't it? Tonight we have brought some of the protagonists of this discovery to our central studios. To my right is Kirlan Krane, Chief Pilot of Zero Gravity, and the lucky man who found the valuable cargo. And on my left is Zeta Blix, Director of Operations of XXX MINERS, and the person responsible for this research project. Welcome to both of you!”
The camera opens up and brings the interview guests into the picture, as applause rings out in the studio. Kirlan, dressed in a flight suit, waves, and smiles at both the presenter and the audience. Zeta wears her white miner's jacket and pit trousers and she is noticeably friendly.
“Thank you both for coming to the moon Trasi Companion B. We know you've come a long way to come to this interview. Let's start with you, Krane. How did this whole story begin? Where did this shipment of raw materials come from?”
“Well, it all started half by chance, half by tenacity. I was aboard the Southern Shoot Star, the YT-510 that I use for deep space exploration. I was mapping in detail everything I came across in the Kira CW sector. Suddenly I came across a small space station that was not emitting any signals or appearing on any of the available astrographic maps. I checked that it was empty and went inside to explore it. It looked like no one had been there for many years, but the old systems were intact, and I was able to access the ship's internal storerooms. And there I found, packed in old containers, all this merchandise.”
“Wow! Although we have a complete map of the known galaxy at hand, it seems that within it there are still many corners hidden from our eyes. Krane, how did this valuable cargo end up in the hands of the mining company?”
“Well, I knew there were raw materials in the shipments, but I had no idea what special characteristics they had. So, since I was working for XXX MINERS for a while and I knew that they bought mined raw materials, I called Zeta and sold the shipment to them.”
“And this is where the mining company comes in. Blix, your company handles a huge amount of minerals on a day-to-day basis. How did you discover that these raw materials were not common?”
“Hello, Vazul. Well, it is true, the box stackers of XXX MINERS handle about 7.5 billion tons per year. As a side project, we started to buy raw material from freelance pilots, especially as asteroid mining becomes more and more popular. In the end, we do not need to know where the material is coming from, but we have very strict quality protocols implemented. Every single shipment of raw material is screened for contamination and then sorted before we relocate the material to our major depot hubs for further cleaning and polishing procedures. In the case of Krane’s delivery, the box stackers told me that the cargo containers were extremely deteriorated and equipped with locking systems that had been obsolete for several centuries. Our employees back in Tapani know that I kinda have a fascination with old minerals, so by the time I had arrived, our geologists presented me with these ultrapure minerals. And a day later the analyses confirmed that it is the best and oldest stuff in the entire galaxy.”
“What did the scientific division tell you about these minerals? “
“You know how scientists are. First, they are very vague and talk in uncertainties. You have to leave them alone for a while and then they return with their evaluated analytical evidence and several new groundbreaking hypotheses the next morning. It is amazing how much information they can infer from a single piece of the mineral. They told me the temperature, pressure, and most importantly the time of formation. So, now we know that we have the oldest rock in our hands and also the purest in quality. The original minerals will be on display in our natural history museum on Glee Anselm.”
“Well, it is certainly fortunate for all the scientists of the galaxy to have found this ancient booty, thanks to your space curiosity. I hope that the fame for this achievement will satisfy you, Krane.”
“The fame... and the reward. Zeta reached out to me after I left to inform me about my unusual discovery of this shipment. She added an extraordinary compensation for bringing this treasure to her. So I get a lot of zeros and the credit for finding the oldest raw materials in the galaxy.”
“The analyses show that they are very, very old materials, but not that they are the oldest in the galaxy... at least as far as the scientific reports say" -says the journalist, looking at Kirlan and Zeta.
“But there is no one in possession of older materials, so we have the oldest set of raw materials in the galaxy" -replies Zeta.
“... but maybe tomorrow another abandoned shipment will turn up and it will turn out to be older than this one" -replies the journalist. “It could be, couldn't it?” -he/she asks, also looking at Zeta.
“Well, if they find it, let them bring it to light" -says the Corellian.
“And let them analyze it in XXX MINERS labs to compare them, right?” -adds the journalist.
“Well, of course, it is possible, but highly unlikely. I am sure our scientists will not mind running the initial analyses. Why not, I think it's a good idea…” -Zeta intervenes with a thoughtful face.
“What do you mean, Mrs. Blix?” -asks the journalist curiously.
“I mean, XXX MINERS is very interested in possessing the oldest materials in the galaxy to understand the origin of the galaxy and develop further useful research. Ok, let’s make an appeal... or rather, a challenge to the galaxy" -she says, looking seriously at the camera.
“Well, attention, there's a live exclusive coming up" -says the journalist excitedly.
“XXX MINERS challenge every government, company, sentient, and creature in the galaxy to prove that they have even older raw materials in the galaxy than we do. Those who send us a sample of minerals to our Tapani Research station will get a full report - free of charge and minerals proven to be older than those we have in our cabinets, will be recognized and rewarded.
We have the expectancy to have the oldest material units on display at our headquarter museum on Glee Anselm. So yes please why not turn in your material for an X-ray test.”
“What a surprise, Mrs. Blix! This is a quick and shrewd reaction, and one that is sure to help research on all these ancient raw materials.”
“Well then, viewers! You heard the Mon Calamari: search in your depots for old shipments and pull out a sample of your oldest possessions. This small gesture can help research in the galaxy, and in getting similar compensation to what Kirlan has achieved.”
“We will continue to report on this matter soon! In the meantime, you can read more about the quest for these ancient RMs on the XXX Miners Holonet!”
PLEASE NOTE, THE DEADLINE TO SUBMIT MATERIALS TO THE RESEARCH TEAM WILL BE YEAR 22 DAY 260. ADDITIONAL RULES AND MORE INFO CAN BE FOUND HERE
