USD: 1 Day after Cadre-S Graduation
Location: Van Biesbroecks star, ltisar, MIL-1A Elevator
[Informative: A computronic hijacking attempt has been thwarted. Eighty-seven modules have gone offline. Physical destruction is suspected. No sensors or detectors can be remotely accessed. A faulty surveillance system outside of MJSR&D facilities indicates an evacuation is ongoing. Cascading failures attributed to over usage are present in a majority of units. Estimated total failure at current rate of consumption.]
But we arent even using them for anything... Alex muttered, her brow furrowing as she turned to Tia and relayed the information.
A yellow ergency light began pulsing inside the elevators cabin, casting shadows on the other passengers faces. Their expressions ranged from curiosity to alarm, but they didnt know about the evacuation unfolding in another section of the station. A flight attendant attempted to soothe several anxious passengers just as the captains voice crackled over the intercom.
Attention all passengers. There is currently an ongoing incident on MIL-1A. Please remain seated while we determine whether we can begin disembarking or will need to return to the ground station.
A frustrated voice shot back, But we just docked! Thats a two-day delay!
Screw this. We need to figure out whats going on, Tia declared, her eyes narrowed with determination.
Alex and Rachel exchanged alard glances.
I dont know if thats a good idea Alex hesitated, her face creased with concern. They told us to stay put
Its a misdeanor and civil penalty to disobey a safety order from a flight officer. They like to throw the book at cadets, too, Rachel warned.
Tia shot Alex a disbelieving look. I cant believe this. Okay, miss-follow-the-rules, stay here. Toss a module onto the station so I dont fry when you go back down, please.
Alex blinked as Tia strode toward the airlock. After a monts hesitation, she turned to Rachel. Hey. This is our problem; you dont really need to get in trouble too.
Alex hurried to catch up with Tia, falling in step beside her. The flight attendant intercepted them just as they reached the airlock. Ladies, please sit back down in your seats. No one is allowed
Tia cut her off, waving dismissively at the airlock. Its pressurized and good to go.
The red light above the sealed door flashed to a welcoming green, leaving the attendant speechless.
Alex nodded, and Tia pulled the lever. The door rolled into the wall, leaving the attendant stamring about legal consequences. As Alex moved to shut the airlock behind them, Rachels voice rang out. Wait!
Rushing into the airlock, Rachel cradled three ergency re-breather masks in her arms. If there is an ergency, we might need these.
We can take them. You dont have to co with us, Alex insisted.
I cant just let you two go off and cause trouble. Soone needs to monitor you.
Yeah, right, Tia scoffed.
Alex hesitated briefly before finally giving Rachel a nod and pulling the airlock shut. Im not sure the mask will help if we end up in a vacuum.
Rachel arched an eyebrow as she pressed one mask into Alexs hands. Vacuum? The stations I-fields are pretty safe. I was more worried about toxic gases.
Rachel extended a mask to Tia, but the silver-haired girl scoffed, her eyes cold. Youre the only one who needs it. We can filter out tear-gas and toxins ourselves.
Uhh Alex stamred, catching a harsh glare from Tia.
What? You cant even do that?
Alexs right eye twitched. She snatched the extra mask from Rachel and threw it at Tia. Did soone twist your panties or sothing, Princess? You dont have to be such a bitch.
Tia stared at her before a sly smile crept onto her face. She looped the masks strap behind her head, letting it hang from her neck. Sure thing, boss.
Feeling the need to justify herself, Rachel interjected, Im wearing a skinsuit, otherwise I would have stayed in the cabin.
Alex gave her a thumbs-up. too. Were skinsuit friends!
Tia snorted, while Rachels cheeks flushed. That doesnt an what you think it does
The airlock beeped, and the exit hatch released a puff of air as the indicator turned green. Station Atmo reads full standard, Tia announced, pulling the control chanism. The door slid open, revealing gangway ergency lights, and flashing red warnings of the lockdown. But it didnt hinder their access.
As they entered the station, Alex glanced back at Rachel. Thanks for coming with us.
Rachel offered a weak smile and nodded. Hopefully
An overhead announcent interrupted her. A station-wide lockdown is in effect. Duty personnel should report to their ergency stations. All inhabitants should evacuate to ergency bunker locations.
That doesnt sound good, Rachel murmured.
Where are we going for the computronic modules? Tia inquired.
Im not sure Alex admitted, realizing she hadnt thought it through.
Did every bit of critical thinking skills drilled into your head disappear the second we left Glisson? Tia asked.
Wait. Naless. Didnt you say sothing about MJSR&D? Alex asked.
A Nalesss voice erupted from a speaker on the wall so Rachel could listen in as well.
[Informative: Computronics location has been narrowed to a subset of labs inside the ltisar Joint Services Research and Developnt Facility located on station.]
Tia nodded. Thats where they let work on them. Were taking a tram.
Who what was that? Rachel asked, puzzled.
She has a dissociative identity disorder or sothing, Tia remarked casually.
Hey! Alex shot her a dirty look. Thats Naless. Hes my MainComputer. He does the math.
[Informative: Avatars summarization skills are incredibly inaccurate. This unit provides efficient and effective solutions to Avatars frequent and notable lapses of judgnt and inability to operate effectively and efficiently.]
Oh. Its snarky like Tia, too, Rachel observed.
Girl, Im all Tsun no Dere, Tia quipped.
Naless, do we have a tram schedule for getting to the R&D place? Alex asked.
[Notice: StationNet offline. All non-essential services have been terminated. However, an incoming vehicle from the MJSR&D line is on approach. A requisition of the tram would be possible.]
Sounds like a plan. Good job, Alex #2, Tia said.
Alex bit her lip in annoyance.
[Informative: Mass destruction of computronic modules has ceased. However, units continue to go offline due to exceeding capacity thresholds and self-terminating. At the current rate of devolution, a complete loss of modules is expected within 15 minutes.]
Ugh. Thats barely even enough ti to get there, much less do anything, Alex said.
[Notice: A transfer of local modules to MIL-1A has been completed. They are currently attached to the hull near elevator platform 36A.]
Alex's brow furrowed. Wait, how did you get them out of the cargo bay?
[Informative: Local modules are now equipped with a miniature RCS capable of minor translation.]
Thats dangerous. ltisar has a system net that tracks all objects and flights in orbit, and they shoot down anything that isnt automated by their system.
[Notice: No risks were taken without Avatar approval. The ltisar Defense net was taken into consideration during transit. The low-powered gas-thrusters and minimum velocity profile would only register to the station security net, not the system defense net. Heavy stress testing is currently being done on the station security net, and this minor deviation should stay undetected.]
Tia and Rachel had stopped to stare at Alex while she conversed with Naless. She shot them a frown, feeling self-conscious.
Alex continued, We wont just be staying in one spot, like at Glisson. Are we going to have enough range on the station? I still dont like the idea of you trying to move our modules along the outside of the hull, if they get destroyed, we are dead.
[Informative: Sub-Core Celestias Avatar range is approximately 200km in this environnt. Avatars current range is approximately 25km.]
Alex glanced at Tia. Wait, is distance why you were sick on Mt. Hilly?
The other girl nodded slowly. The local modules at the tether were right on the edge of my max range.
[Recomndation: Access ANUF systems and improve tether range.]
[Notice: Sub-Core Celestia can act as a relay tether for Avatar.]
Alex refocused her HUD, bringing the ANUF system into full view for the first ti in ages.
|Avatar Nanite Upgrade Frawork v1.683|
|Physical |Projective |Utility |
|Points: 583|
Alexs brows furrowed in confusion. Wait. I have 583 points? Tia has 8 of the 12, and I didnt allocate any more to it?
[Reminder: Avatar ANUF processing efficiency has resulted in a 683% gain in Avatar ANUF allocation.]
[Recomndation: Apply available points imdiately.]
Alex scrutinized her old allocations, setup back in 92 Pegasi. She had moved points between her physical stats as needed without even thinking about it, but hadnt accounted for all her new points or even realized she had free points.
Okay. Lets keep tabs on sothing this important a bit more closely, Naless. If I forget about it again, remind . Alex ordered.
[Notice: This unit will rate-limit reminders, otherwise multiple spam filters might be triggered.]
Shut up, Alex retorted.
She shifted her focus to spending her free points; her gaze drawn to the Projective and Utility sections. There were items she realized she had wanted but had forgotten about.
|Projective ANUF|
|Kinetic Projection: Utilizing nanites, user can achieve a cohesive cloud of any shape or size controlled by Avatar ntal direction. Requires tallic feed material in an area to create a nanite swarm. Deactivation or unconsciousness renders all nanite swarm units inactive to prevent rampancy. |
|Teleoperative Processing: Utilizing neural connection to ShipCore, Avatar can take remote control of multiple electronic systems including remote pilotable aircraft, drones, ship systems, and terminals. Range limits can be increased with extra ANUF point allocation. Standard range: 1000m |
|Electrostatic Manipulation: Utilizing nanite movent allows Avatar to create static electricity. Nanites can be used to store, transfer, and discharge this energy. Consus a large amount of Avatar energy storage. Includes safety protocols for protecting Avatar from electric discharges. |
|Nanite Correlation: Allows the Avatar to increasingly combine multiple ANUF active abilities into new ones, altering or enhancing their effect. The power of these modified effects is limited by the level of Nanite Correlation. |
|Utility ANUF|
|Creation Utility: A specialized nanite computer nodule permanently installed in Avatar that allows for on-the-fly programming of nanite constructs. These constructs can either be produced purely out of nanites or fabricated from mundane materials and then deployed. Requires Kinetic and Electrostatic Manipulation and Nanite Correlation Projectives. |
|Energy Density: Converts empty spaces in Avatars body to store energy in nanite pockets. Directly increases the amount of nanites Avatar has imdiately available, as well as increasing ability to tabolize energy from food and other sources. Dangers include risk of fire, and rapid degeneration during a rampancy situation. |
|Nanite Cohesion Enhancent: Additional nanite processing nodes stored within Avatars body increase the ti Avatar can prevent rampancy. In ergency disconnection cases, automatically expels nearly all Nanites from the body and shuts the remaining ones into maintenance mode until Avatar regains consciousness or expires. |
|Nanite Connection Protocol: A multi-discipline approach to increasing Avatar range capabilities by deploying miniaturized high-powered transceivers inside Avatar body while improving Direct Neural interface connection protocols to be more bandwidth efficient. Current Range: 25km |
||Physical ||
(REROUTE-INCREASE) ( 45) |Strength Enhancent: 50 |
(REROUTE-INCREASE) ( 45) |Agility Enhancent: 50 |
(REROUTE-INCREASE) ( 30) |Physical Reinforcent: 50 |
(REROUTE-INCREASE) ( 45) |Biological Modifications: 50 |
(UPGRADE) ( 23) |Nanite Rerouting Alacrity: 33 (permanent) |
||Projective ||
(UPGRADE) ( 40) |Kinetic Projection: 50 points (permanent) |
(UPGRADE) ( 15) |Electrostatic Manipulation: 25 points (permanent) |
(UPGRADE) ( 115) |Nanite Correlation: 125 points (permanent) |
(NEW) |Teleoperative Processing: 50 (permanent) |
||Utility ||
(NEW) |Creation Utility: 50 points (permanent) |
(NEW) |Energy Density: 50 points (permanent) |
(NEW) |Nanite Connection Protocol: 50 points (permanent) |
(UPGRADE) ( 25) |Nanite Cohesion Enhancent: 50 points (permanent) |
All that from one module?
[Informative: Diminishing returns on additions to ANUF computronics will occur at a faster rate because of high efficiency levels.]
Alex blinked, taking in the enhanced clarity of the station. Colors seed more vibrant, and when she focused on a specific detail, her vision zood in slightly, without causing dizziness or loss of balance.
Shit, Ive been living with my hands tied behind my back, she mumbled to herself.
She noticed Tia and Rachel staring at her, their eyes locked on her chest. Glancing down, she realized her bosom had expanded noticeably.
Tia burst into laughter before managing to compose herself enough to comnt, Did your MainComputer not add compression to your ANUF list?
Naless! What the hell! Show the list again! Alex shouted.
[Informative: Nanite compression option would decrease efficiency of Avatar platform.]
A distant screech echoed from the tunnel the incoming tram was supposed to be arriving from.
Whats that noise? Rachel asked, concern etched across her face.
USD: One Day after Cadre-S Graduation
Location: Van Biesbroecks star, ltisar, MIL-1A, Navy Neurotrauma and Rehabilitation Center, Resident Annex A5, Room F
Elis sat confined within the sterile walls of the dical annex, acutely aware of the distant hum and beeps of dical equipnt mixed with the faint sll of disinfectant perating the air.
Her frustration mounted as she glared at the nurse standing across from her, fingers furiously tapping at the datapad in her lap. The nurses face displayed a mixture of sympathy and impatience, and she sighed heavily as she read Elis ssage.
I understand, Elis, but I cant leave my post to take you to the transit hub. Alex will be here soon, anyway. Just be patient.
Elis shook her head, her long red hair falling into her eyesa tangible reminder of the ti elapsed since her injury. She had avoided cutting it, recalling Alexs reaction when she had last cut it short. Besides, it wasnt as if she expected to be fighting anyti soon.
Continuing to type, Elis red eyes never wavered from the nurses face. I havent seen Alex since I woke up. I need to see her as soon as possible.
The nurse pinched the bridge of her nose, clearly frazzled. Im sorry, Elis. I cant take you; I need to check on other patients, and theres no one else available right now.
Elis gritted her teeth, her thumbs striking the datapad hard as she typed. Then just give my card access to the tram! Keeping stuck in the dical center is false imprisonnt!
The nurse sighed. I already notified the admin about the problem. They should fix it or send soone to talk to you. Its probably just a permissions glitch since you entered the system without a prior history file.
Before Elis could respond, an unfamiliar voice interjected. When is Alexs shuttle due to arrive?
Both Elis and the nurse turned to see a tall man in scrubs leaning against the doorfra. With black hair, brown eyes, and a friendly smile, he seed approachable. The nurse appeared surprised but relieved. In about twenty minutes, I think.
The man nodded, glancing at the nurse. Im about to go on break, and its on my way. I dont mind giving Elis a hand.
The nurse smiled gratefully at him. Thanks. I owe you one.
As he moved to Elis side, she typed a ssage of gratitude. Thank you so much. I really appreciate this.
He introduced himself as Fred. No problem, Elis, he replied, gently pushing her wheelchair. Lets get you to that transit hub.
As they left the room, Elis couldnt shake the nagging feeling that sothing was off. But the prospect of seeing Alex sooner had her dismissing the feeling as paranoia, and she pushed the feeling to the back of her mind.
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