Kal
Whispers
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Quantum Entanglement Distress Beacons are relatively small orbicular devices containing a relatively low number of entangled particles. By timing the 'activation' of particles down to the nanosecond, data-brains can relay a surprising amount of information compared to cruder manual activation. Even so, QEDB communication is inherently barebones - even the largest devices would struggle to relay even a tenth of an average novel.
Due to the expensive and consumable nature of the entangled particles - 'activation' only works once per particle before the link is broken and they must be kept separate during containment - a clear majority of CISLO freighters are not equipped with such devices.
That said, any single freighter might hold one and if it does, positive identification of the attacker is very possible - well-informed pirates know that to kill CISLO personnel in order to protect their identities is a gamble akin to Rattataki Roulette due to CISLO's use of 'punitive strikes'.
- Intent: An exotic alternative to conventional distress beacons.
- Image Source: Quantum Entanglement Sculpt by Piotr Majkutewicz
- Canon Link: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Primary Source: N/A
- Manufacturer: The Globex Corporation | CISLO
- Affiliation: The Globex Corporation | CISLO
- Market Status: Closed-Market
- Model: Quantum Entanglement Distress Beacon
- QEDB (Official Abbreviation) or Q-Sphere (Unofficial Abbreviation).
- Modularity: Limited; primarily size.
- Production: Mass-Produced
- Material: Entangled Particles
- An average QEDB is an orbicular device made of silvery metal; devices meant for spaceships are generally no larger than a baseball, but it is possible to scale it up quite significantly to facilitate longer / multiple messages, albeit at a significant cost. Miniaturised models can be added to people as implants or to communicators as chips - these generally lack the capacity to transmit much more than barebones coordinates.
- QEDBs contain entangled particles 'paired' with a sister module stored in a distant location, often a headquarters or communications hub; as an example, QEDB-equipped CISLO freighters typically relate an Urgent Incident Report that includes coordinates, number and capability of enemy vessels, and a positive identification of the hostile assets (if possible) - the latter is used for punitive strikes if help arrives too late.
- Should a QEDB be destroyed, the linked system would immediately notice due to the paired particles reacting, but no other information would be relayed. CISLO crews are instructed to destroy their QEDB as a last resort if it cannot be activated during a crisis.
- QEDS can be manually activated by a trained operator - the mechanical mechanisms used (the twisting of certain parts of the orbicular shell after the safety is disengaged) are far less precise than a digital interface; most can only hope to send a few sentences this way.
- Unjammable Call: Q-Spheres transmit information instantly and unjammably from point to point; distance is completely irrelevant.
- Concise Content: Q-Spheres are text-only and have a hard limit to the amount of information they can relay before burning out.
Quantum Entanglement Distress Beacons are relatively small orbicular devices containing a relatively low number of entangled particles. By timing the 'activation' of particles down to the nanosecond, data-brains can relay a surprising amount of information compared to cruder manual activation. Even so, QEDB communication is inherently barebones - even the largest devices would struggle to relay even a tenth of an average novel.
Due to the expensive and consumable nature of the entangled particles - 'activation' only works once per particle before the link is broken and they must be kept separate during containment - a clear majority of CISLO freighters are not equipped with such devices.
That said, any single freighter might hold one and if it does, positive identification of the attacker is very possible - well-informed pirates know that to kill CISLO personnel in order to protect their identities is a gamble akin to Rattataki Roulette due to CISLO's use of 'punitive strikes'.
