Log:Interface Upgrade

2013/09/09 	 Interface Marathon Regan Bee

1

Champions Mush - Monday, September 09, 2013, 9:33 PM

Workout Room

''As if from a Japanese period piece or possibly nature documentary the scene is one of a waterfall high in the mountains. Coniferous trees surround the small hidden valley as water cascades from the clifftop, crashing onto rocks beneath and forming a deep plunge pool. A small stream forms at the far end of the pool running away into the surrounding forest while a hokura stands at the side of the pool with a small offering of rice and sake placed before it. ''

Marathon steps back, seeming to noticed that Regan's a little discomfited by /something/ about this woman, this woman who Marathon'd assumed was a friend of Regan's by the way she so casually requested a favor the way she did. Anyone able to read her body language would be able to see that she's gotten a little tense, herself.

Bee appears with a crack of displaced air. Dropping a few feet before she activates her wings, she mutters "Well, that needs some additional calibration."

Grinning, Allison looks to Marathon, "You're a hero. That's awesome... and you're fast, even cooler. Never know when that might come in handy. I'm Allison. . . Allison Temple. Nice t'meetcha." Yep, Ally is not even 18 yet, but she's just about done with her Master's degree. Little does the college know she has her -doctoral- thesis ready. She's moving slower than she -could- move, just so they don't wonder just what the HELL is up in her head.

She heads to the now ready medical table. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about the instruments. I just need a bed with restraints, with someone on hand just in case things aren't... well in case." she adds as she sets her case on a tabletop nearby and opens it. Inside are four large translucent tubes that are attached to what can only be over sized hypodermic needles. There's a separator in the case and something on the other side of it. "All I need is four stands that can hold these and then restraints for me before activating all four injections simultaneously."

Yeah, what the HELL is she doing? Inside the tubes, what appears to be liquid seems to have just a small amount of movement within it.... Allison glances over towards Bee and grins a bit, "Well, hello there Bee. I think some of your previous questions and investigations are about to acquire some answers."

Regan's sombre gaze follows Allison's preparations with close attention. "I have training in emergency medical procedures." She volunteers without being asked. "Are you certain no more specialized care is required?" She nonetheless materializes four adjustable stands for the containers of liquid and a series of robust looking restraints attached to the bed. She also clears and evens out the flooring to provide a cleaner more stable setting, the chamber transforming to a clinical-looking white-panelled room.

Marathon shakes the hand offered to her, though a little stiffly, and (OMG!) remains silent... at least for a little while... as she watches the whole setup procedure going on. Then, as something's mentioned, her stance goes from tense to... excited? ... anxious? ... surprised? Almost certainly the latter when she blurts out, "Wait! What? The restraints're for you? You're gonna inject yourself with that stuff? Hey! Regan, I think she's trying to give herself superpowers, like that dude on the TV talked about!"

Bee lands and glances at the tubes. "I remember you from campus when you rescued Porter from that roof. If you are about to do what I think you are contemplating, may I point out that -a- all of us are trained in first aide but *none* are medical personnel and -b- ten people died and a great many more were threatened so that psycho could start a reality show for his own amusement. You do *not* need to be doing something dangerous and unannounced around violent people when we are all extra-twitchy."

Regan lifts her voice. "I THINK" she begins sternly. "That we can all display a little more respect for Allison's analysis of the situation. This is clearly not an arcane ritual being attempted and we therefore have no reason to conclude that is in any way connected to the recent announcement. Also the way Allison is preparing seems to be for her own restraint and conversely our safety. She has also chosen a very secure locale that will minimise the potential for danger to innocent civilians. All of that argues in favour of this being a well considered course of action. Those of you with misgivings are free to leave if you wish but I am exerting my authority to insist that no one try to interfere with a process that is most likely delicate and complex except to offer assistance. Am I clear?" She looks from Marathon to Bee and back again seeking confirmation.

"Not... quite." offers Allison in response to both Marathon's and Bee's words. "See, I'm ... well it's complicated. I am actually performing a procedure to alter some already existing things. Most notably, these.." she gestures to the tubes, "are filled with nanobots. I've already made use of them to enhance my optical senses. It took some adjustment but... it makes things far less likely to be stolen and replicated..." she leaves the words 'like they already were' unspoken. But it's not like the words are not likely to be heard anyway. She flips the divider in the suitcase open, and there is the helmet, chest plate, gauntlets and such for her Interface suit. "I'm simply internalizing much of this." she offers with a tremulous grin while climbing onto the table. "Trust me, I've done all of the research, put it all together, but I just didn't want to take the chance of performing the upgrade in private." <> she adds.

"And thank you Regan. I appreciate the support here."

Marathon crosses her arms, her feet shifting to just a bit under shoulder-width apart. Her face can't be seen past her visor, but anyone who /really/ knows teenagers can tell she's probably 'pouty' behind it. Her demeanour projects that she doesn't really like having been 'told' how it's going to be, like that, but also that she's going along with what she's been told to do.

Bee nods. "All I wanted was an explanation." She gestures toward the armor. "I think this qualifies."

Regan nods slowly as she moves forward to help Allison onto the bed. "IDo you have any information that might be useful regarding the procedure?" She looks over the tubes and the way they have been set up. "Duration, hydration levels that sort of thing?" Lifting her voice she calls out. "Full biometric and vital readings on the subject on the bed. Project readings." Several seconds later a suite of diagnostic panels shimmers into existence against the wall. The information is limited to what can be observed remotely but somehow it's better than nothing.

"Well, one thing. I have an assistant that you might want to meet." And now that they are in the workout room, Allison can make use of the systems here to give an image. Julius, in her head always appeared like the way she imagined her father looking. A 3D image appears above the bed. <> Allison mentally tells him.

"Hello. I am the Junior Universal Library Interface User System, created three years ago by Allison here. I am a fully functional artificial intelligence. You may refer to me as Julius, or any appellation of that name as Allison herself does. If there is any way that I can be of assistance here." The big holographic head without a body, looks to one wall and an image comes on the wall, the technical details of the procedure about to be attempted. "If you would please give her a sedative... we have both agreed that she would not wish to be conscious while the nanites are augmenting, reinforcing, and growing new connections to her bones and nervous system. It would be decidedly... uncomfortable for her."

Marathon's crossed arms uncross, more as if she's just forgotten to keep them crossed, as the hologram appears. "...whoa-a-a-a....!", she breathes. "Totally wiz!"

Bee says, "I'm more interested in expected biological effects: sorting out what is supposed to happen from ... for lack of a better word 'oops'."

Regan nods at Julius's instructions and taking an alcohol swab prepares the injection site before administering the sedative via an intra-muscular injection. "Should I apply the restraints now or will we need to remove clothing to administer th injections?" Four simultaneous subcutaneous administrations is something she's never before attempted. "Oh, and a pleasure to meet you Julis, I apologize for my manners, I'm a bit distracted."

"Removing clothing shouldn't be..." and the sedative hits Allison. She just shakes her head, "Keep the... oh skip it." and she fades out. Julius however remains active. He's always active these days. "My recommendation is to go ahead and remove the outer layer at least. She would be most unhappy to wake up and find herself embarrassed entirely." And then the head turns to look towards Bee. "That is an intelligent observation. Here.." and another chart appears on a wall. "The proposed augmentations will add to her muscular density, her skeletal durability, it will insulate the organs from excessive harm. There will also be an increase in the synaptic communication speed and the bio-electrical field will be enhanced. All in all, just about every bodily function will be increased. The pulse rate should reamin within these parameters. Here are the vital signs that we expect to see." (I don't know the technical details, but assume it's the... buffer that should things go outside that, something is wrong)

Then Julius remarks softly, "You may administer the primary injections now. It should be noted, that should all work properly, the nanites will also be accelerating her body's ability to heal by roughly fifty percent."

There's an odd bleeping sound from Marathon's direction and she yelps, startled, hopping a good foot into the air. "oh crap! Regan! Can you unlock the door for a sec? I gotta dash....", she says, adding, "... dangit!" The moment Regan does unlock the door, too, she's gone in a blur of motion that leaves the door closing behind her as she goes.

Bee walks over to the control panel and reconfigures Regan's display do that the relevant readings are right next to expected results (expected heart rate next to heart rate readings, etc). Once everything is rearranged to her satisfaction, Bee says to Regan, "In this configuration I should be able to track the all readings so you can concentrate on Allison."

As Julis gives a brief precis of the expected augmentations Regan divests the soporific girl of the outermost layer of casual wear. Her movements are deft precise and try to preserve as much of the sleeping girl's dignity as possible. Folding the clothes and setting them aside she calls again to the room controls. "Temporary security override, two seconds before reassertion." There is a dull click from the doors and Marathon is gone, the chamber door gliding shut behind her then clunking again as the locks snap back into place. In the meantime regan has moved to applying the restraints, making sure they are firm and flat, the edges unable to cut or abrade. That done she finally moves to introducing the intravenous feeds from each tube. "That would be very helpful thank you Bee." Having inserted the tubes she prepares to allow the fluid contents of each cylinder to flow.

Once the restraints are set up, and the injections are ready, the AI sends the signal so that the four needles inject precisely at the same moment, and the plungers begin to depress. "The process should not take very long." he tells the rest of you. "But once the injections are complete, I would appreciate it if you could begin placing the armor upon her. The nanites will begin the secondary process as soon as that is done as well."

As the approximately one total litre of nanites are injected... yeah, that's a lot when they are microscopic individually... anyhow, the skin begins to crawl, and muscles twitch. The reason for the restraints is obvious as the muscle augmentations are causing involuntary movements and spasms. She'd roll right off the table without them. Her eyes roll a bit under the lids. Thank -god- for Sedatives. She is going to weigh a few pounds more once this procedure finishes.... the vital signs are fluctuating, but not terribly. This was planned out with a lot of attention to detail.

And when the armor pieces are placed upon her body, they begin to... dissolve. "Please do not be alarmed, that is what is intended." The nanites are breaking down the armor, absorbing much of the material into their data storage files for replication later.

Bee lets Regan deal with the armor, although it occurs to her a bit late to wonder what material is used in its construction. For somebody who can act like a hyperinquisitive nine year old when bored, Bee can be remarkably focused when she needs to be and her eyes swiftly move back and forth from screen to screen.

Regan moves briskly, removing the feed lines once the liquid has been objected and carefully observing the physical process of integration. At Julius' signal she removes the restraints and skilfully manipulates the unconscious teen into her armour, carefully following Julius's instruction. "Do we need to reapply the restraints?" She asks as the process nears completion. She blinks as the armour begins to sink, slowly seeming to melt from the inside as it is relocated molecule by molecule to carefully selected and indexed locations inside Allison. Blinking, she looks down at her hands and purses her lips.

If it must be known, the armor was built out of a combination of non-conductive metals, and composites. Shock absorbing soft layers between hard plates. Sufficient to deflect most small arms up until the point when armor piercing ammo might be used. "Yes, please reapply the restraints. If you can give me control over their tightness, I will adjust as the armor fades so that she is secure the whole time." After a few minutes, the armor is fully dissolved and integrated into the nano-composite.

Fast forwarding just a bit, the augmentation takes roughly thirty minutes, the skin rippling the whole time, muscles twitching, growing in intensity and strength as they do so. The charts and readouts show the force being generated by her twitches approaching the 800 kilogram pressure level. While not tons and tons of strength, that is still beyond anything that a normal human would get without being grotesquely muscular. But finally, the body stops twitching, and the readouts stop fluctuating. Julius's voice then says, "Okay. You can you inject her with the following stimulant?" he asks, displaying a chemical and the appropriate volume to wake her given her increased metabolic rate now.

Bee nods at Regan's expression. "Yes, it also occurred to me that this might be an excellent situation to employ hazmat suits. I would have turned on my force field, but it is not designed to stop particulates that small." She falls silent as the procedure runs its course until Julius asks for a stimulant. "Do you have stimulant's handy?" she asks Regan. "The only thing I have would likely mix in odd ways with this procedure."

Carefully adhering to Julius's direction Regan reapplies the restraints and sets up a protocol for him to communicate with the simulation computer. Instead of a direct electronic link it is a condensed high frequency audio prompts that the computers can easily use to convey binary-encoded signals. Once he has control of the straps Regan nods to Bee. "I'll have some in the medical stores." She moves to the doorway, unlocks the door by audio command and steps through the door locking behind her. A few minutes later she returns with a syringe and ampoule, carefully measuring out the desired dose and administering it.

And a short time after the stimulant is applies, Allison's eyes flutter open. She blinks furiously once or twice, and looks down. She nods as she sees the restraints there, and Julius slowly unfastens them. As Allison sits up, moving a bit faster... her hands move, and it's like she's getting used to growing up all over again. Great, she's going to have a -second- awkward stage as she learns about her speed and strength all over again. "So, we are within functional parameters then?" she asks aloud. Julius replies, "We are within one half percent of the predicted efficiency of upgrades. Once again, you were correct and my concerns were unfounded." Ally snorts and says, "You were looking out for me, that's part of your job you know. So thanks Jules." And she looks about to the others with a bit of a grin, "Okay, so... any questions?"

Regan nods. "Always, question number one, having made skin to skin contact while the nanites were activating is the any risk of transference and if so what side effects might that have. question number two: do you know have access to the full functionality of the suit at all times?"

Bee says, "Three, why store the armor intracellularly instead of augmenting the cells themselves? And four ... I guess will depend on the first three."

"The nanites are keyed to my genetics. Should they find themselves within a body that has different genetic sequences, they will simply break down harmlessly. But now I need to test one thing." and at Regan's second question, Allison stands up gingerly and nods, "A bit. The sensory enhancements, and the physical augmentations are now continuous. I will still need the armor for ... well.. armor, and to manifest a platform for my weapons and propulsion systems. That is what I need to test." she adds as she steps away from the table and says, "Okay Julius. Hit it." she says and slowly, the composites of the armor itself begin to grow atop of her... minimal clothing. Then she answers Bee, "I need to be able to -deploy- it from wherever I might be. But also to break it down so that it cannot be stolen. You might understand why that is a concern."

Regan nods slowly, watching the transformation. "So it's a security measure." She comments softly. "The transformation is not as abrupt as many that I've seen. Is that something that will improve as you gain familiarity with the process do you think?" She clasps her hands in front of her. "How did the weapons and propulssion systems hold up?"

Bee says, "I'm glad the upgrade went well, Allison. Is there anything else you need from us?"

"Thank you but I should be fine at this point." offers Allison. As she speaks, her voice starts altering as the helmet forms about her head and the voice digitizer comes online. The armor ends up all over her and she inclines her head, "More streamlined than before I see." she remarks. "As for the speed of replication. It's still faster than it was when I had to put each piece on individually. But.." she lifts an arm and the nanite-built weapon slides out of its port there. "I've also moved the main cannons from the shoulders to the undersides of the arms. I decided that it would help keep the mass down to have them build into the length of the arms rather than deployed from oversized pauldrons."

Regan blinks. "Interesting idea. I would find that very restrictive, how do you make sure your arms are always out of the way?" Her brows lift. "You must have designed this layout ahead of time of course."

"Indeed, the emitters are at the base of the palms. I still have low yield point defense aperatures on the shoulders. Also, I eliminated the projectile launcher in favor of a weapon requiring no ammunition. A stress grav lance so to speak." offers Allison.