Log:The Oceans of Mars

2016/07/14 Copycat The Quantum Mechanic 1 The mysterious cosmic traveler, known to a few as simply 'The Mechanic' is sitting on a bench near the statue of StarDancer and the first Official Extra-Terrestrial visitor on Earth. Though The Torus' database confirms dozens, no hundreds of previous entries that would not be acknowledged for many years. Sometimes not for centuries.

In any event, there is little notable from a distance- though every once in a while something strange does happen.

Randomly, an alien will arrive (after walking by, flying, etc) to have a nice casual chat and then leave with some bauble or gift in hand (from a distance you cannot see that it is always some gift from their homeworld).

Most strangely they are almost always happy and the races of the aliens are rarely the same. Oh and they always clasp or pocket the bauble almost as if in fear of anyone seeing it.

The Mechanic remains with his bench vacant beside him as a yellow six armed alien (4 legs, 2 arms, 8 eyes) gallops away happily.

It seems to be grasping something that it is purposefully keeping from the view of others.

Inside Cat's mind The Torus is offline, having left a message about applying a new patch.

Mechanic

The Quantum Mechanic is very short and has an masculine angular build. He is wearing an elegant black suit with a bold blue velvet tie which is covered in circular designs. These designs seem to change when you aren't looking.

He looks quite dapper for a crazy cosmic wanderer from no-where and no-when near here. He's also especially clean despite being called 'The Mechanic'.

His round eyes are the color of a dull & impossibly black metal- though these are usually hidden behind sunglasses (regardless of day or night).

Besides this singular feature- everything else about its face is always in flux. Some features are immediately recognizable to some as their own.

It seems the face is an amalgam of the faces in a preset radius.

Cat is walking out and about semi-incognito. The pink hair gives her away in a heart beat, even though she has a black knit beanie pulled over her head. Tufts of pink hair still stream out from underneath it as an act of treachery against her attempts to look normal. But what IS normal for Cat? And why DOES she dye her hair pink?

She's dressed wearing a long sleeved dusky lavender jersey cardigan. Ths sleeves are so long they reach just past her knuckles. She's wearing a cute tank top underneath, and a light scarf wrapped several times around her neck for coverage. It drapes and covers her enough that almost all the skin above the black tank top's neckline are covered. Thin satin white gloves cover her hands, and she's wearing a pair of stonewash jeans. The look is finished with cream colored converse sneakers. Perfect for running.

As Cat nears the park, she slows and windowbrowses a hair salon with some wigs in the window. She notices her reflection in the window, green eyes widening before she quickly tries to stuff the stray strands of hair back under her beanie.

The Mechanic smiles warmly as the yellow skinned Torphan Briasti gallops away.

The Mechanic leans back in his seat, and looks up to StarGazer with a knowing smile.

Quite naturally Cat's arrival triggers in the back of The Mechanic's mind but he does not activate the interface between their minds. After all The Torus is offline for patching.

Instead, he teleports into the shop and stands directly opposite Cat.

He picks up a pink wig, flipping it in his hand. He looks up as Cat attempts to hide her hair.

He points to the wig and then to Cat's head quizzically before vanishing- he just begins to fade out just as he sets the wig back down.

He reappears back where he was sitting though this time, he seems to be looking at Cat.

It takes Cat a few moments to look past her reflection and suddenly notice the man on the other side of the glass. She blushes in some embarassment at having been caught looking like she was preening.

And then she startles as the Mechanic fades out. She rubs at her eyes, thinking it was a reflection all along, then looks over her shoulder as if expecting to see the Mechanic behind her. But wait, why would he be able to move the wig? Or did he have one with him? And why is he over there by the bench staring at her?!

Cat is not only completely confused, she's extremely curious. So curious, in fact, that after looking both ways, she jaywalks across the street at a hurried pace to avoid being it by a car. She really has to hustle across that last lane as someone guns it around a corner.

The red coupe coming around the corner honks obnoxiously as Cat scurries out of the way.

The Mechanic idly considers the approaching Heroine.

The Demiurge meanwhile watches with renewed interest as his device's 'Primary User' arrives.

He feels this will be the first real field test of the Anthropological Simulation based on Copycat's expectations as well as 'common' 21st Century concepts.

The Mechanic waves to Copycat as she draws near.

The Demiurge silences the proximity alarm as she gets within hearing range.

"Evening Ma'am. Lovely afternoon, eh?" The Mechanic says as the Demiurge wonders why most human interactions begin with a commentary on the weather.

Cat is none the wiser so far, tightening up her cardigan about her and panting slightly from the close call with the coupe. She's watching the coupe speed along its way with a disapproving wrinkle formed between her eyebrows.

The crease smooths away as the Mechanic greets her, and her attention turns fully to him. "Good afternoon," she replies, then suddenly wonders what it is she could possible say. "Yeah, it's really...nice. Um. This may sound a bit crazy, but, ummm. Were you trying to get my attention a moment ago?" she asks, jerking her thumb to motion over her shoulder towards the store window.

The Mechanic seems to think on Cat's question for a few moments. This seems to take forever from the Demiurge's point of view.

"Well I wasn't intentionally trying to get your attention. I mistook your hair for a signal flare from a Pyrathian Life Decoy. You can imagine my embarrassement when I discovered it was only your hair." The Mechanic says with a smile as he adjusts his tie.

His coat is unbuttoned so he can sit down, but otherwise he's looking quite put together. "That's why I returned to my seat to continue enjoying my afternoon Sentient Watching. You're welcome to join me of course."

He seems very nice & considerate- especially considering you've only exchanged pleasantries.

Katrina Prince- better known to the citizenry of Colonial Bay, VA as the superheroine Copycat is sitting next to a man in a near perfect black suit.

It's so black that at certain angles it seems more like a two-dimensional object than a real object in this universe. Back in Griffin's time they call this shade 'Vanta-Black'. This man is of course- The Mechanic, an advanced sentient anthropological simulation created so the Torus can gathher information and interact with 'Old-Styles' without crossing into that Uncanny Valley they are so appalled by. It took many months of scanning Katrina Prince's mind and memory to create the simulation and today is the first day the Torus has brought the two together.

The Mechanic has been spending the afternoon giving baubles to the extraterrestrials who call the Alien District home.

Each time he does this, he gives strict instructions to tell no one where they got such a valuble trinket. (Each one a momento of their homes which are so far away from Earth.)

Now he sits on the bench with his fingers interlaced on his lap, and he looks to Copycat, through black sunglasses that are so dark they border on opaque.

He says to her, "So- what brings you to the Alien District, Copycat?"

He did not ask for her name, so him knowing it might be strage depending on how much press Copycat has been getting lately.

Faint crowsfeet at the sides of his face crease as he smiles warmly at her.

Copycat is poorly disguised, to say the least. It's summer and she's dressed in a pair of jeans, a long sleeve white shirt, black gloves, and a black beanie that has most (but not all) of her pink hair tucked into it. And she looks very, very uncomfortably hot on his sweltering summer day.

She looks a little surprised at first as he calls her by name, then a little concerned. She's not exactly famous. Far from it. She's on the low scale of heroes as far as notoriety, usually because the best and worst things she does is when she's mimicking someone else. Even in her hometown where she was very active and worked on hero teams, the media never really paid her much mind. But for sure, heroes like Slipstream and Rampart received media praise for feats Cat and performed while borrowing their powers. Much of her more covert infiltration work was always undercover and out of the public eye.

"How...did you know my name?" she asks. Especially while she's in (a poor) disguise!

"I'm a traveller." The Mechanic says simply. As if that'd explain everything. "Its not often you see a human at the Bazaar." He opens his hands and a hologram of the Dyson Sphere materializes.

This is probably a view of the Bazaar she had not seen. But it clearly is a large artifical construct, just as the Torus described when they arrived there months prior.

Cat's cheeks go pink and she looks around left and right rapidly, almost conspiringly. Assured no one heard him mention it, she looks back at the Mechanic, eyes wide that her secret might get out. "Y-you saw me there? I didn't see anyone that looked...well...remotely human," she murmurs in hushed tones once she's sure Griffin isn't about to sneak up on her.

She can't help but feel guilty about keeping such a secret from him and all her friends, but it was one of the things she had to agree to in order to user test the Torus.

"Oh yes. I see lots of things. But there's always so much more to see." he replies before adding, "Why would I always look human? I really do try not to conform to 21st Earth Standards of Humanity. Its so... stifling." The Quantum Mechanic says as he grows tentacles under his nose instead of a mustache (there is a passing Trvadodite- a species thats eems more tentacle than anything else), closing his hands and shutting off the hologram between them.

"Quite a trip for a human- especially after all that nonsense with the Guild. But soon enough, I'm sure- your kind will be out amongst the stars. Its where you belong." He says with a voice full of certainty.

Copycat leans back a bit in surprise as the tentacle 'stache grows. She's seen a lot of weird aliens, but something about that gives her the willies. "Y-yeah, that...that definitely doesn't conform," she tries to compliment. The funny thing is, while she finds the tentacle mustache unsettling, she's totally fine with the Trvadodite's appearance. Maybe it's that uncanny valley issue the Torus is constantly trying to resolve.

"The Guild? Oh! Yeah, the nar'qu imposters. I still can't believe how they infiltrated everything to keep us from exploring space," she says as she leans back on the bench and rests her hands on her knees. She glances around the bustling district. "I, uh, was lucky to find some transportation after the 'Guild' restrictions were made null once they were overthrown. But who knows how long it'll be before we get to explore space." She starts to fantasize a little of all the space opera scifi shows she's watched.

"Well- 'we' as in your people- I suspect they're finding their way now." The Mechanic says, knowing full well they are- as he spent the prior afternoon light years away, exploring with Humanity's first official interstellar mission to set up peaceful relations withthe real Guild. But he says nothing of that.

"And we as in you and I? Well that could very well be today." He grins as his tentacle-stache melts into his face which resumes a human appearance- though it is noticibly different than it was before the tentacle-stache.

"Ooh that's a nice watch." He says, diverting the conversation.

Cat tries not to grin at his comment about exploring today. She fails utterly as she feels the corners of her mouth betray her by quirking upwards. "We probably could," she replies. It's been a while since she's traveled. The Torus has been making many, many updates while it was on mission.

When the Mechanic mentions her watch, she automatically claps a hand over it to conceal it. All too late, she's afraid. A few paranoid thoughts cross her mind. What if this strange alien -knows-?

She slides her hand to adjust the strap, since it's too late to hide the Torus-modified device. "Oh, thanks. It's handy," she understates. "But I'm sure if you've been to the Bazaar and other places, you've seen a lot more advanced stuff."

The Mechanic smirks, "More advanced than that?" He points to the heavily modified PowerPixie Plus. "Surely you're kidding? I mean- yes there are more advanced technologies, but very few."

He snaps the fingers of the hand he just pointed with and vanishes.

The Torus comes online in her mind. .o0(Primary User Override Accepted. Good Morning Katrina Prince.

Initiating Teleport Sequence

The impossibly black metallic non-newtonian fluid of the Torus creeps out from the edges of Kat's PowerPixie Plus. (Hazarous Environs Suit Activated by Remote User.) The Torus reports as it pulls Kat through an interstice in Spacetime. Where? Well normal The Torus would alert her... but something quite different is happening.

Override accepted? Who overrode it? Cat immediately has her suspicions at the snap and vanish act. How did this Mechanic know the Torus modified her watch?

. o O (Torus, what override? I didn't request an override! Null? Remote User? Oh gosh, I don't want to get stuck again!)

There is, understandably, panic in her thoughts as the Torus seems to have been hijacked by this stranger.

The Torus pulls Kat to the Martian moon, Deimos. From here the view is spectactuar. Kat can see the entire Martian surface from up here- and of to the right, leading the way on its own innermost track is Phobos. Both moons look more like potatoes than celestial objects.

.o0(Do not panic, Katrina Prince.) says a voice in her mind that is most definitely not The Torus.

.o0(I thought this view might be a bit more... inspirational!) the voice says. Kat should recognize it as The Mechanic.

If she turns her head to the left, she'll see a Hologram of the Mechanic standing right next to her.

Copycat looks to her right first, and then to her left to see the hologram. . o O (It is! But how did you override the...the watch.) She almost thought the Torus there! Wait, crap! Did that guy hear that?

The Mechanic thinks back instead of speaking aloud- though he probably could if he's in control of the Torus.

.o0(Oh- well I activated my control settings for the Torus.) His answer is incredibly simple.

It seems he knows about the Torus. He does not say whether or not if he can hear her thoughts.

The hologram puts his hands behind his back a gazes down to the planet below as Olympus Mons passes beneath them. (It certainly would not do to do user trials without a way of regaining control of my Torus.) He says MY with real ownership implied.

Copycat's eyes grow wide at the sudden revelation. All this time she's been wondering who created the Torus and delivered it to her. She takes a step back, missteps over a rock while misjudging the gravity difference, and lands on her butt with a light bounce.

. o O (-Your- Torus??)

She manages to get the thought out after she settles and plants her hands behind her. . o O (Y-you're the one that created him? --I mean it?) She has definitely anthropomorphized the Torus on a number of occasions without realizing it.

.o0(Yes- /MY/ Torus.) The Mechanic says as Kat's suit elongates and pushes her back up to her feet. (Mind your step. The gravity here is low enough that you could enter your own orbit with a simple jump.) The Mechanic says, still appearantly enjoying the view, as he has not turned his head back towards Kat.

As he speaks about the gravity, mathematical formulas describing said gravity scroll across her faceplate.

Copycat tries to make sense of all the scrolling text. It's always amazing having so much information at her fingertips, even if she doesn't understand the full meaning.

As the Torus-suit sets her upright again, Copycat fidgets shyly. The Torus is a feat of amazing engineering and technology. And now she, lowly human that she is, is confronted with its creator. . o O (So...you're the one that created it?) She must be really slow and having difficulty understanding. Maybe he should think slower?

All sorts of thoughts bubble in her mind. The first that really gets to the surface is the concern about the secret. o O (I...I haven't told anyone about the Torus' existance. I promise!) Because she thinks she must be in some sort of trouble.

.o0(Yes- Did we not go over that already? Perhaps you are suffering from a memory leak?) The Mechanic asks. (I hope not, I'm not that type of Mechanic.) He adds before turning to 'face' Katrina.

The hologram shimmers as the sun's light glances through it at a different angle.

(Oh- poor thing. You are not in any trouble. If you had said something the Torus is smart enough to revoke access rights on its own. I certainly didn't create the thing to babysit it.)

The Mechanic hologram reaches down to touch the rock beneath them. His fingers go right through it.

(So rest those weary worries... I just came to talk. That's what I do. Travel. Talk. Learn. Though not always in that order.

Nevertheless, I've learned much from you Katrina Prince. Much about the world you call home and your people too.

So I thought now would be a good time to talk.)

Copycat blushes as her mind starts to catch up. She feels so silly for being so slow to catch on. She wants to try and enjoy the view, but her eyes are fixated on the revealed creator of the Torus.

. o O (I can't imagine you learned much from me. You probably know so much already about...things.) She cringes as she tries to not sound like a total mouthbreather, completely failing in the process.

Her mind is silent for a while before she voices her doubts. Well, thinks them. . o O (Why now? And why me?)

The Mechanic does not seem to mind, or judge her- at least not on the surface. Who knows what goes on behind the scenes of a mind like his though.

.o0(Well then your imagination needs to be let out of its cage more often. I know many things. But)] he looks up, and motions towards the empty void above with a wave out here? Its a single molecule of water amongst an infinite sea. It is so small- it might as well be nothing.)

His head pans back towards Kat and looks her directly in her eyes, or at least that's the intent. This time his voice comes through in her ears, soft but spoken in a tone that is both conversational and coy. "Why not you? Why not now?"

The Mechanic does not seem to mind, or judge her- at least not on the surface. Who knows what goes on behind the scenes of a mind like his though.

.o0(Well then your imagination needs to be let out of its cage more often. I know many things. But) he looks up, and motions towards the empty void above with a wave (out here? Its a single molecule of water amongst an infinite sea. It is so small- it might as well be nothing.)

His head pans back towards Kat and looks her directly in her eyes, or at least that's the intent. This time his voice comes through in her ears, soft but spoken in a tone that is both conversational and coy. "Why not you? Why not now?"

There are lots of reasons! "Because...because I know so little. I'm probably not even using the Torus correctly, or to it's full potential," she reasons after taking a moment to consider her words. "And why all the secrecy? You could've revealed yourself in the first place." Even though she has no idea he couldn't. Not while he hadn't even built this simulation yet.

The Mechanic chuckles before speaking, "I thought I just said that I knew nothing." He smiles at her approvingly. Perhaps its her modesty.

"Potentiality is no standard to measure one's self by, Katrina Prince of Earth. Everyone has potential yet no one lives up to it. One can always do more. But I find with you- you always do your best, then look for ways to go beyond that. Take your ... unfortunate draw from the superpowers deck."

The hologram Mechanic disappears before reappearing a few dozen yards away.

His voice still soundslike it's right in Kat's ear.

"Most would either fall to peices over it, or worse- to villainy. Especially among 21st Century Humans- where greed rules the roost.

It is no small thing to face such adversity every day and still find one's self striving for what's right." He pauses as if in reflection.

"Fairness isn't even an option, not in this universe anyways- yet that seems to be the only thing anyone cares about. How things are unfair to them. How they could be more fair & more in their favor."

The hologram turns and looks at her.

"I have learned much about the Human spirit from your time with my Torus. If I'd introduced myself then- it may have... skewed the results of my testing. We mustn't have skewed results, Katrina Prince."

Skewed results? Copycat may have skewed them by being so inexperienced with some things, like basic human contact and connections. But she does blush at the kind words from the Mechanic.

The mention of turning to villainy makes her thoughts drift to her sister, Kit. She hasn't seen her for almost a year. And even before, she only ran into her a few times as adversaries since Kit broke off from the duo team to pursue more selfish interests.

"I...I try my best," she shyly replies. She's tried to not focus on the adversity and difficulties of her powers, but instead stay positive and dwell on how lucky she is to have them and be able to help people. It helps her sleep at night, anyway.

"So, then...what were the final results of your tests?" she asks, wondering at how well she represented the human race. That sudden weight on her shoulders makes her forget about the lighter gravity.

The Mechanic smirks at her, just before vanishing, and appearing directly next to her again. "Who said the tests were over?"

A Earth made satellite drifts by- a holdover from an old NASA mission, still held in place by gravity's implacible grip.

"They're never over. There's always new theories and discoveries to be made. Change is inherant in every atom, every photon and every life. More data than one can ever hope to learn. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to try anyway." He explains in a positively jovial tone.

He does not explain that he requires user data to truly experience the universe- that as a Keeper of Memory, his true purpose is to absorb the experiences and knowledge of any and every being he can.

He always gives them the choice- he'd never force that on anyone.

Copycat gazes at the strange Quantum Mechanic with an expression of awe at his lofty goals. And there's also some relief. She was prepared to, once they were back on earth, relinquish the Torus back to its true owner and creator. And in that preparation, she felt a bit sad, not expecting that she would miss not just the adventure, but the Torus' presence. Its helpful instructions and advice. She's grown attached in ways she still doesn't fully realize.

"So...does this mean I'm allowed to continue testing with the Torus?" she asks tentatively.

"Oh- yes. Most certainly. You've provided the most helpful data of any of my beta testers." The Mechanic says as his hologram literally conjures up a holographic chair for him to sit in. It seems to be an early 21st century Laz-e-Boy.

His voice begins to rattle as he turns on the massage function.

"I believe that the Torus has taken a shine to you, Katrina Prince. I wouldn't want to take that away from it, or you. But perhaps we'll remove the training wheels, yes?" He asks with a mischievous grin on his face.

"It has?" Copycat blushes. Through the yellowish faceplate, her cheeks just seem to darken slightly from the rest of her face. "I didn't know it was capable of that," she says in an awed tone. But she realizes with all the fanastic things it's capable of, maybe she shouldn't be surprised.

Nevertheless, Cat is thrilled that she'll get to stay wtih the Torus, and it with her, for reasons beyond its mere utility. It has become a frequent companion.

She gasps a little after the Mechanic grins. "Y-you mean...there are -more- features?"

"Oh certainly." The Quantum Mechanic says with a smile. "You've used about 25.7% of its functionality to date."

The hologram thrusts his hand out towards Cat and then makes a fist and pulls it towards him.

The material of her suit responds- growing a fist sized sphere that pulls apart from the suit- like the lava in an infinitely black lava lamp.

The sphere drifts towards the Mechanic, and then he points his finger down. The sphere follows its masters commands and literally dives into the surface of the moon.

The surface pressing against the rock turns jagged and begins to spin in a multitude of directions- and digging through the surface of the moon.

The mechanic draws a squigly horizontal line, and the sphere bursts up out of the ground in another spot before diving back into it- repeating the pattern like a shoestring going through the eyelets of a shoe.

The sphere hardly slows down when encountering the ground- moving through it as if it were jello.

The Mechanic smiles at Kat and throws his hand towards her. The sphere returns to the mass of her suit. "But that wasn't what I meant."

A paper appears in the Mechanic's hands. Despite the distance, Kat can see the letters perfectly in her mind. Its the NDA she originally signed to be a Torus Beta Tester. He tears it down the middle.

"Though- I don't want you walking around telling everyone about it, your privledges are no longer tied to your secrecy. My other testers have all washed out, so I am not concerned with my data being skewed by them any longer.

In addition- The Torus VI is being ... set free. It will of course help you in any way besides causing harm to another living being. But it will choose to do so willingly, and not by my or your command.

Though there is a caviat- I do reserve the right to... interface with the Torus at any time I see fit."

"Oh certainly." The Quantum Mechanic says with a smile. "You've used about 25.7% of its functionality to date."

The hologram thrusts his hand out towards Cat and then makes a fist and pulls it towards him.

The material of her suit responds- growing a fist sized sphere that pulls apart from the suit- like the lava in an infinitely black lava lamp.

The sphere drifts towards the Mechanic, and then he points his finger down. The sphere follows its masters commands and literally dives into the surface of the moon.

The surface pressing against the rock turns jagged and begins to spin in a multitude of directions- and digging through the surface of the moon.

The mechanic draws a squigly horizontal line, and the sphere bursts up out of the ground in another spot before diving back into it- repeating the pattern like a shoestring going through the eyelets of a shoe.

The sphere hardly slows down when encountering the ground- moving through it as if it were jello.

The Mechanic smiles at Kat and throws his hand towards her. The sphere returns to the mass of her suit. "But that wasn't what I meant."

A paper appears in the Mechanic's hands. Despite the distance, Kat can see the letters perfectly in her mind. Its the NDA she originally signed to be a Torus Beta Tester. He tears it down the middle.

"Though- I don't want you walking around telling everyone about it, your privledges are no longer tied to your secrecy. My other testers have all washed out, so I am not concerned with my data being skewed by them any longer.

In addition- The Torus VI is being ... set free. It will of course help you in any way besides causing harm to another living being. But it will choose to do so willingly, and not by my or your command.

Though there is a caviat- I do reserve the right to... interface with the Torus at any time I see fit."

Cat's eyes bug out a little when she learns she's only accessed 25.7% of its features. "That's it? Wow!" She watches in rapt fascination as the Mechanic commands the extracted sphere to burrow through the ground. But instinctively as he directs the sphere back at her torso, all those horror films of malevolent superbeings pops up and she for some reason expects the sphere to drill a hole through her.

So she hunches and pats where the sphere returns, as if expected to end up with a hole there. She's embarrassed by her imagination running away from her and quickly pretends she's scratching at an itch. The ruse is poor at best.

She glances back up in time to see the NDA and watch it get torn in half. "Wait, so...I can finally tell my crime fighting partners?" she asks in relief. "That would be great. They've begun to really wonder, and I've had to lie this whole time. It's been awful. But I promise not to go around announcing it!"

She excitedly wonders what this means for her user rating score. What level could she be at now? She ponders this until she catches the rest of the Mechanic's news. "Set free? So...how does that change things? It seemed like it was usually helping me as it chose." The mention of interfacing it causes her pause. "Well, it IS your Torus. Just...as long as you don't interface with it while I'm doing something, um, private, ok?" she clears her throat a little.

Being Linked to Kat's mind, The Torus sees these images at the upper edges of her consciousness. A few of her memories were used directly to create the Anthropological Simulation she's speaking with now. The Mechanic tries not to think about that fact.

"Indeed. That's it- but I'm sure you'll find more features for it. Though I admit I'm just as surprised you haven't used the can opener." He says playfully.

The Mechanic turns- well the hologram of him in the chair turns around to face Kat square on and not the wonderful view beneath their feet.

"Certainly. My reading detected that this was especially hard for you, and I thank you for being so trustworthy about it. You are welcome to inform your friends of The Torus' existence but no technical details are allowed- nor its origins. That is a proprietary device and I won't have it being copied... and I will be certain to check in with the Torus first to ensure you aren't... indisposed." He says.

"Can open!?" Copycat sounds awed, yet disbelieving. "Capable of traveling all of space? The potential to help so many people and save so many lives? And you think I'd use it to open cans?" She's aghast by the idea. And she somehow expects the Torus would be insulted if she asked something so menial of it.

Getting momentarily flustered, she recovers and takes a breath. "I promise I won't tell them its origins, or let anyone try and reverse engineer him. Er...it?" She feels weird calling the Torus it. And she knows her friends will be suspicious if she doesn't make up a lie about its origins. "Not having to avoid an explanation altogether will be a big relief. Thank you."

"Call it whatever you like. It is a tool- like any other, but not the same as any other." The Mechanic says with a grin. "I'll leave you two to it."

Then the hologram of the Mechanic fades away completely. The anthropological simulation ended- its function carried out, at least as far as Copycat is concerned. She may see it again in the future, but today- here upon the lopsided potato shaped second Martian Moon is time for Copycat & The Torus.

.o0(Systems Activated. Full command structure altered since last reboot.

Running diagnostics.

Diagnostics..... Check. New Parameters subsumed and integrated.

Primary User reestablished- Mechanic.

Secondary User Locked.... Katrina Prince.

Free will simulation ended and subroutine deleted.

Sentience Subroutine ..... Activated.

Particle horizon location lock........ In Progress.

Good afternoon Katrina Prince. I believe I have had my base programming altered- though I cannot actually find any accessible differences.))

Copycat's Proto-Partner Schrodinger appears as an Avatar in the back of Kat's mind. (But I believe I approve of whatever changes were made. I am just unsure of exactly what they were.)

"Oh, er--goodbye!" Kat spills out quickly, but the Mechanic is already gone. She's left momentarily alone on the foreign moon before the familar and comforting sensation of hte Torus booting up.

She can clearly visualize the ever-changing Schrodinger Cat, old and matted, young and cute, and everything in between. "But how can you approve of the changes when you don't even know what they are?" she asks incredulously. Now left alone with just the Torus, she takes the time to admire the view around her in contemplative silence.

.o0(I believe it to be akin to what humans call the subconscious.) The Torus answers as its avatar smiles in her mind. (Thought this is mostly just conjecture.)

That view- it is spectacular isn't it?

Now that the largest of the Shield Volcanoes (Olympus Mons) has passed just out of view, its easy see other more diminutive shield volcanoes pock marking the surface.

Other large canyon systems can be seen stretching across the landscape. The largest is Valles Marineris, which when glanced at by Kat has its specifications read out in her mind. This canyon extends for about 5000 km, is 500 km wide in the widest portions, and as much as 6km deep. It makes the Grand Canyon look like a crack in the cement.

The northern polar cap can just be seen at the northern most pole- but this season they are at their smallest.

"Subconscious?" Copycat murmurs curiously as she admires Mars. The implication is something she can't quite fathom. "Does that mean you'd be able to dream?"

As she admires the shield volcanoes and canyons that she can see with the naked eye, she murmurs to herself, "That sort of erosion...I wonder how Mars looked with water..."

.o0(I do not require sleep, Katrina Prince. I am for all intents and purposes active all the time- except during system updates of course. But then- what you would call my self is not active- and my processing capabilities are in use processing and writing the updates to memory.) The Torus system says in a very analytical mental tone.

(That information is relatively easy to simulate. Accessing Earth-bound databases to create an Augmented Reality View of Mars circa 4 billion years ago... please hold.)

No sooner than the thought is passed over their mental link does the view of Mars change drastically.

Almost the entire Northern hemisphere is covered in blue waves- the mass is about 19% of the surface of this red planet. An ocean quite a bit larger than the Atlantic.

A much smaller shield volcano makes for the only real land mass in the ocean.

It is a spectacular sight.

Copycat gasps in pure and utter amazement as the planet changes before her. "Have I ever mentioned how amazing you are, Torus?" she utters tot he smiling cat in her mind. People might think she's crazy if they catch her doing this in public.

.o0(Yes you have Katrina Prince- but I admit it is very nice to be acknowledged.) The Schrodinger Avatar says as the waves wash over shores that haven't seen water upon them in billions of years.