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>>Previous threads can be found at: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=NearFuture%20Cyborg%20Quest
>>Nanometa: 1000 Units
>>Credits: 200000
>>Fate points: 1

Your name is Dave Davis Davidson, and you didn't ask for this.
After getting hit by a car and falling into a coma for three months, you awoke with a prototype implant- The Bullfrog. Nobody is exactly quite sure how, but since you've gained the Bullfrog, you can do what physics says is all but impossible- at times, unreliably, you can hack any electronic device, despite the device's signal-recieving hardware. Since then, you've had quite the adventures in corporate warfare, and came out victorious, with a high-tech bunker of your own, an elite suite of AIs, An advanced state-of-the-art power suit, and an eccentric girlfriend.

"Well, this job has been rather boring." Amy said, 'lying' on your chest, as much as one could lay down without gravity. "We fly in for half a week, I get almost killed, and then by the time I wake up, the job is over and we spend another half week flying home."
"We did get to walk on mars, though." You say. "And try... a few things in zero-G."
"Yeah, now I have to finish the Sleipnir." Amy added, eyes twinkling. "Or just build an anti-gravity chamber in Valhalla."
She brushed her hand through her neon colored hair, where small bits of blonde poked through.
"I'm getting shaggy." She said, and frowned. "Ooh, there's earth! Let's get our pay." She said, pointing to the Raven's view-screen.

>>19862637
Make sure they don't see what you brought in the other raven.

"Let's just set this Raven down." You say. "I'll send the other one to Valhalla."
"Right." She said. "I have to admit, I am pretty curious about it..."
You tear through the sky, descending toward new york, and you set down near the Chrysler Building.
"Bathroom, bathroom..." Amy says immediately, and starts rolling into the building.
You follow her, and see Gareth talking to the secretary.

"Ah, Dave." The man says, and he shakes your hand. "How was the mission?"

>>19862716
"Those damn mining drones are dangerous. It's done, though."

"Those damn mining drones are dangerous." You say, gulping at the memory of Amy's torso being slashed open. "It's done, though."
"I see." He said. "We'll send a repair team up there, and they'll be able to confirm in a few weeks. But until then... I can trust you well enough to pay you, I presume. Shelly."
"Yes, Mr. Gareth?" The secretary responded.
"Give Dave his payment, and make a note that he and Miss Tolstoy get their discount."
"Yes, sir." She said, and started tapping at the computer.
"As for the nanometa bonus... We're sending the units here- It's only a ton, so you should be able to take it with you. If not, I'm sure we can send a cargo chopper anywhere you need. Your antarctic base, perhaps?" Gareth asked.

"Sending it here is fine. Just tell when its arrived and I will fetch it."

>>19862778
"Just a tip, Mr. Gareth. I think you should go back to making vans."

I noticed we haven't named the power armor yet.

I have a suggestion. The power armor's name will be - wait for it - DaveArmor!

"Sending it here is fine." You say. "Just tell me when it's arrived, and I'll fetch it."
"Well, this is our primary venture, and most of our production facilities are here, so I can get it strapped to the bottom of your vehicles any time." He said. "Shelly."
"Yes, sir." She responds, and slips on a headset, starting to talk to someone else.
Amy rolled back, into the lobby, her leg's wheels clacking against the floor as she came by.
"Just a tip, Mr. Gareth. I think you should go back to making vans."
"We should." He said. "Every time we try to do something else, we fail."
He shrugged, and started chuckling. "Maybe it's the name..." He said, and paced away.
"So, we got our cash?" Amy asked, and you check your account. Payment recieved.
"Yep." You say.
"Awesome."

The two of you walk out of the building, and see a crew strapping a large canister to the bottom of the Raven. Your atomic goop, presumably.
"One thousand units." Amy said, reading the outside of the canister. "Does that mean each unit is two pounds? Huh."
She shrugged.

>>19862965
"Well. What can we do with a ton of nano-meta? Do you think we can make a... Man of Iron?"

"Well. what can we do with a ton of nano-meta? Do you think we can make a... Man of Iron?"
"Yeah." She said. "But it'd be a waste. Stuff like iron and steel are common enough. Atomic goop is best used to synthesize stuff that's hard to get. Like power cores." She said, as the crew finished up. "If anything, if we wanted to make some kind of.. humanoid robot, we could go see how Mark is doing."

Mark was the engineer in EE, the corp you once worked for. Last you knew, he was working on making bionic robots, reverse engineering some robo-hounds you had captured and given him.

"I do kind of want to get back to Valhalla, though." Amy said. "Or back to my garage in Nearfuture City. I need a shower."

>>19863021
Yes, we can. but do we want to?

I have to plans for the immediate future: Build our spaceship and check with No.3. While Amy does the first we should do the second one.

>>19863111
We should definitely use the stuff to make a meta-thread.

"Let's just get back to Valhalla." You say. "Then you can start work on the Sleipnir."
"Right." She says, and climbs into the Raven. You follow her, and she pilots the Raven back to Antarctica.

Valhalla is a massive, demi-spherical dome, dozens of powerful railgun turrets covering every surface. It once belonged to the terrorist group Resurgence, but you quickly took it for your own.
<Greetings.> Talos says- Talos being the facility's resident AI. <Welcome back. Muninn has arrived several minutes ago, and our drones are active.>
<Take the canister from the bottom of Huginn.> You say, and his drones weave out of the facility, carrying off the canister of atomic goop. You urge the Raven into the docking bay, and the canopy closes.
"Shower, shower, shower," Amy says, kissing you on the cheek and then running off.
You stand, and stretch. Home, sweet, home.

Well, in truth, this isn't exactly your home- You have an actual apartment with most of your stuff in Near Future City, but Valhalla is just... larger, and cozier. You have a strange urge to talk to Three, the leader of Resurgence, so you walk down to the communication terminal, and ring him up.

"Dave." Three's distorted voice comes through. "Hello- it's been several weeks since we last spoke. To what do I owe this pleasure?" He asked.

>>19863297
>Correction- By demisphere, I mean hemisphere.

>>19863297
"Ancient aliens."

"Ancient Aliums."
"Ancient... ancient what?"
"Aliums."
Three hesitates.
"You mean Aliens?"
"Yeah, like I said." You say.
"I have to say, I have absolutely no context in which Ancient Aliens would explain anything." He said.

>>19863436
>"I have to say, I have absolutely no context in which Ancient Aliens would explain anything." He said.
"Thanksgiving, for example."

"Thanksgiving, for example." You say.
"..."

Three hangs up, and the communication terminal goes dark.

>>19863453
As in I should thank them for giving me such cool artifacts and tech knowledge.

Call him back.

"In all seriousness, Van Co has found some ancient alium technology."

>>19863481
Call him back.

"Three, you know, it's rather rude to hang up without saying goodbye. I'm dead serious, as hard as it is to believe. Turns out I've been sitting on illicitly Slavic merchant-acquired alien technology for a good long time now, and I found a far bigger treasure trove that technology, literally, fit into."

>>19863345
"Also how is your plan to bring technology and comfort to the poor of the world going?" (That was his plan, right?)

You ring him up again.
"Dave." Three says.
"In all seriousness, Van Co has found some Ancient Alium technology."
"Alien as in... extraterrestrial?" He asked. The voice distortion made it difficult, but you could tell he was rather dubious.
"Yes. I'm dead serious, as hard as it is to believe. Turns out I've been sitting on illictly slavic merchant-acquired alium technology for a good long time now, and I found a far bigger treasure trove that technology, literally, fit into."
"And.. what, you want me to send some Resurgence scientists to check out this technology?" Three asked. "Most of our guys are working on building more infrastructure in Czech, but I'm sure I can spare a few."

>>19863598
pretty much, yeah. who knows maybe we can get that teleportation artifact running and he can provide power cells for us to warp around the world.

>>19863639
"Czech, huh? You consider trying to help out in the Balkans instead? I'm sure they need it far more. I guess I wouldn't mind having some of your experts to help out, sure. Just one thing, I'm not going to promise exclusivity regarding analysis."

>>19863639
"That would be really nice. If you want anything done to help with your plans, just say the word and I will see what I can do. I will be away for space vacation soon but otherwise..."

"I guess I wouldn't mind having some of your experts to help out, sure. Just one thing; I'm not going to promise exclusivity regarding analysis."
"Of course." He said. "From the terminal you're on, I'm guessing you're still in the late Twelve's bunker?"
"Yep." you say.
"Then I'll send two cells of scientists your way. Douglass will be the team leader- He said he met you in a CD facility some time back." Three said.
"That would be really nice." You say. "If you want anything done to help with your plans, just say the word and I will see what I can do. I'll be away for a space vacation soon, but otherwise..."
"..Space vacation? You're saying that you have space capable vehicles running around? Did you make a second Omega or something, or is it part of the alien technology?"

>>19863771
"Amy got inspired on our way to Mars, and has a new project she's working on."

>>19863771
"I've got several AI constructs roving around in my head, a genius gal doing the engineering work, far too much imagination for my own good, and a veritable shitload- or perhaps fuckton- of nanometa laying around. I think I've got better than an Omega."

"I've got several AI constructs roving around in my head, a genius gal doing the engineering work, far too much imagination for my own good, and a veritable shitload- or perhaps fuckton- of nanometa laying around. I think I've got better than an Omega.
"I... see." He says. "I'm sending Douglass' team now. He'll be there in a few hours. Do you have any data on the tech you could send me?"

You check the data that Onyx had given you, but there's.. too much there. Way too much to send, even through the satellite uplink. If anything, you'd need a physical disk to send most of it, or a direct connection. Then again, most of the data has no context, and hardly makes any sense, even in machine code. It's simply too... alium to understand.
"Hey, Dave." Amy said, rolling up, drying her hair. She pulled the towel away, and you see that she's re-dyed it once again, adding many more neon splotches to her veritable palette. "Oh, you're on the terminal." She said. "I'll come back when you're done."
She gave you a kiss, then rolled away.

I miss Sorceress Quest

>>19863939
>We'll get back to it eventually. Some people prefer NFCQ, some people prefer SORQ. . but I can't exactly do both at once, not without going completely insane.

>>19863925
"There's too damn much stuff to send, and even then I'm not sure how much sense it'll make. Pretty much filled up the Bullfrog when the... transfer happened."

I'm assuming it's safe to share this stuff with him.

>>19863964
I'll just stare at your twitter until "eventually" comes, it's cool

"There is a bit too much to send you. However the Powershields are supposed to be Aliumderived, if you want something to look into. However I think it is best for your team to look at it themself"

>>19863939
Hush now, it will come back with time.

>>19863964
Pfft, sanity is for the weak. Start up SORQ and MEQ right now and run all three simultaneously, 24/7 until you drop.

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>>19864009
This.

>>19864009
>I would, but then I'd be a dried up husk in maybe three days of that.
"There's too much damn stuff to send, and even then, I'm not sure how much sense it'll make. Pretty much filled up the Bullfrog when the... transfer happened." You say. "However, the power shields are supposed to be alium-derived, if you want something to look into. However, I think it's best for your team to look at it themselves."
"I see." He said. "If there's so much data, I'll also send over a few computers for the researchers. I'll also see if I can look into where Cadmium Dynamics got their power shields from. Is there anything else?"

>>19864063
"More than you can possibly imagine. This thing's big. Smooth. Rectangular. Black. It's a monolith. A small one, but a monolith nonetheless."

>>19864063
Concerning the artifact? Lots, way too much for us to cover. It'll take a while for us to even scratch the surface of it.

About other stuff, how is everything going in the realm of international intrabusiness politics? No one is being a complete jerk about anything?

>>19864063
I think the existence of aliums who have been to Mars is a big enough thing for one day.

>>19864063
"I think that is all for now. Thanks. How do your plans come along so far?"

"Thank you again and good luck with your stuff."

"More than you can possibly imagine." You say. "This thing's big. Smooth. Rectangular. Black. It's a monolith. A small one, but a monolith nonetheless."
". . . That's rather interesting." He said. "But Douglass's team will tell me what they find."
"About other stuff, how is everything going in the realm of international intrabusiness politics? No one is being a complete jerk about anything?"
"Well, I'm fairly sure you've heard, but EE is entering into a merger. With KI, I believe." He said. "CD has completely fallen apart, and Armatek is trying to find more jobs, but nobody seems to need a paramilitary group nowadays."
"And how are your plans coming along so far?" You ask.
"They're going rather well." He said. "It will take some time, and a lot of work, but we have the technology to improve quality of life almost across the entire globe." Three said.
"I think that's all for now." You say. "Thank you again, and good luck."
"Good luck to you, too." Three says. The terminal goes dark.

>>19864195
Find Amy, give her a hug and a kiss and say to expecting some company.

You creep through the halls, as stealthily as you can while wearing heavy mechandrites and a power suit, seeking out Amy. You find her in Hlidskjalf, the facility's control center, wearing the VR goggles, and little else, waving her arms this way and that- No doubt designing more about the Sleipnir. You tap her on the shoulder, and she slips the goggles off.
"I'm expecting some company." You tell her, kissing her.
"Oh? Then I'd better throw something on. By the way, I'm thinking of retrofitting the Jormungandr. It has most of the parts we need, so it's a lot easier than making an entirely new creation." She said. "What kind of company? Abel, Grayson. . ? Please don't say Lucca."

>>19864195
Seconding >>19864234 and let's get Mark on the line, because we need some help with that whole 'humanoid robot' thing and we had an idea. Find our army case.

>>19864335
"No, no. It's some of Three's boys. Resurgence's top eggheads, including the fellow who designed that wibbly-wobbly sphere super power core. They're going to give us a hand figuring out just what makes that artifact tick."

>>19864335
Nah, nothing of the sort. Just some scientists to help out with investigating of alien stuff.

Though I suppose if you wanted I could invite the gang over for dinner, we send a Raven to get them and then travel time is kinda negligible.

"No, no. It's some scientists. Resurgence's top eggheads, including the fellow who designed that wibbly-wobbly sphere power core. They're going to give us a hand figuring out just what makes that artifact tick."
She bit her lip. "Right. I'll go get my armor and weapons- I'm not sure I trust Resurgence quite yet. They did drug and kidnap you, remember? Although I do want to see the guy who made that power core..." She said.
"I suppose if you wanted, I could invite the gang over for dinner."
She shook her head. "Nah, we can just go over there. It's easier and a lot more comfortable than trying to stuff four people into a raven."

>>19864442
"Or, all of us could simply show up at your parents house and demand dinner. Your mother would be delighted."

>>19864442
Makes sense, it's not like we can't leave after meeting our guests and getting them set up, we can have Talos keep an eye on them.

But for meeting them, I think we're going to need some more decorum. Quick, find your slinkiest black dress so you can lay down on the piano while I play it as our guests arrive.

>>19864477
"She'd probably be overjoyed to host a number of esteemed scientists and philanthropists, right? In addition to another chance to see yours truly."

"Or, all of us could simply show up at your parents' house and demand dinner. Your mother would be delighted to host a number of esteemed scientists and philanthropists, right? In addition to another chance to see yours truly."
She snickered evilly, but then shook her head. "Not today, at least. She has one of her parties tonight, and I don't want to crash those."
"We can have Talos keep an eye on the eggheads, though."
"Good idea." She said.
"But for meeting them, I think we're going to need some more decorum. Quick, find your slinkiest black dress so you can lay down on the piano, while I play it, as our guests arrive."
Amy rolled her eyes. "Dave, you should know by now that I don't like dresses." She gave a pointed look to her robotic augments. As you watch, heat cores shunt out of the back of her calves. "They get caught on my more awesome pairs of legs. I can put on my prosthetics, if you want." She said. "Mark designed them for me a few weeks ago, before we left EE and I haven't really gotten to use them yet."

>>19864610
Only if you want to dear, I just thought a sufficiently slinky dress would look good on you.

>>19864610
"Well, whatever you want, but they'll probably be expecting us to answer the door in full combat gear. We can't be a pair of one-trick cyborgs, and your mother's probably gossiped about our antics. We need to mix it up. Hence, we'll surprise them by being as classy and nonchalant as possible before we get down to business."

rolled 80 = 80

>>19864610

>>19864691
>>19864648
if necessary we can atomic-goop out a full tuxedo fitted for a man with 4 drites (biggest pair stays on the suit IIRC) or even just the 2 little ones...

and of course the powered armor acting as butler with a near future wal-mart smiley face as it's only expression

>>19864746
I agree on the butler, though if I remember correctly our current drites are integrated into the powered armor. We might have some of our old ones in storage though.

Also it might be funny for someone to see us without drites, it'd surprise the hell out of them, they might not even recognize us.

"Well, whatever you want, but they'll probably be expecting us to answer the door in full combat gear. We can't be a pair of one-trick cyborgs, and your mother's probably gossiped about our antics. We need to mix it up. Hence, we'll surprise them by being as classy and nonchalant as possible before we get down to business. Plus, I thought a sufficiently slinky dress would look good on you."
"It would, if I had more of a bust and if my hair was longer- not to mention my natural color." She said. "But yeah, I'll go change. I'm curious what you think. I don't have any tiny black dresses here, but I do have a few at my parents' home."

She grinned, then got into her Raven- it having been emptied by talos's drones.And she flew off, no doubt toward her parents' house.

Onyx chirped, beeped, and sent an image in the back of your head; You suddenly see a dizzying array of lines, mapped over a grid. The images make no sense, not to you, and not to Azure.

File: 1342214306968.jpg-(4 KB, 300x57, image.jpg)

rolled 8 = 8

>>19864780
"okay, I know that that's dave in the suit, and this must be miss tolstoy in the dress but who in the blue hell are you Mr. Piano-Man?"

>>19864784
Keep the image in mind, it might be a map of some kind, try to see if we can get a reference point.

Also strip off the powered armor, put on a suit, and tie a bow tie around the powered armor's neck to make it even more butlery.

>>19864819
The best part is that we can switch between whether we answer ourself or if we have the armor answer, we could even do the creepy finishing each other's sentences thing.

rolled 44 = 44

>>19864784
to the computational center!!!

VR goggles ACTIVATE.

"show me in three dimensions whatever it is I am seeing"

>>19864858
We should probably do that before fiddling with suits. Keep the image fresh in our mind.

File: 1342214820583.gif-(9 KB, 307x357, onyxramblings.gif)

You quickly memorize the image, ever glad of the fact you're a cyborg- you just need to 'copy image to clipboard' and then paste it as 'onyxramblings.gif'. You try to arrange it in three dimensions, in two, convert it into a 3D model. .
And then, when you twist it a certain way.. you see it.

>pic related!

Onyx seems incredibly, incredibly smug.

You peel off your power suit... And then you decide that you really need a shower. You go into Valhalla's facilities, get cleaned up, shave, and then you tie a bowtie around the power armor. By the time you have your own suit on, Amy returns.

She's barefoot, her toes twitching randomly, and she's wearing a long, slinky black dress.

"How's this?" She asked.

>>19864974
It looks like an Einstein-Rosen bridge, or wormhole.

Sweep her up into a hug and a kiss.

You're absolutely gorgeous darling, though you toes are twitching a little bit.

How do you like our butler? Is this a fitting use for perhaps the most advanced set of powered armor on the planet?

>>19864974
"Perfect."

rolled 41 = 41

>>19865017
...oh and I think we found a wormhole generator

"Perfect." You say, sweeping her off of her feet. "Though your toes are twitching a little bit."
"Yeah... that's because my awesome legs normally have their 'unique functions' triggered by my toes." She said. "I'm not used to having them. Like, look."
She twitched her big toes. "Those are my wheels, this is my overcharge. and these control the thrusters. . "
"So... you like the dress?" She asked, going red.
"You're gorgeous." You say, and kiss her. "Oh, and I think we found a wormhole generator."
"You say that like it's an afterthought." Amy said, half-heartedly trying to struggle out of your arms.

<I require more computing power.> Onyx says, finally. <The control scheme is difficult to decipher.>

>>19865138
<Don't be too voracious, Onyx. You're trying to grok something that simply can't be grokked so simply. Take it easy for a bit and try to better comprehend what you've already deciphered rather than try and unlock even more of the artifact, alright? At least wait for the scientists to get here.>

rolled 42 = 42

>>19865138
"but it is an after thought, I just got finished thinking about it."

"Onyx feel free to take some compu-omph from the facility if you need it. Magenta do behave with my suit."

>>19865138
Don't let her escape, keep on smooching her.

Be careful, don't move too fast. You can borrow some from the computer if you need to but I'd rather you look at what we've already got and wait for the scientists. We already have a lot of information to sift through.

<Don't be too voracious, Onyx. Take it easy for a bit and try to better comprehend what you've already decipgered rather than try and unlock even more of the artifact, alright? At least wait for the scientists to get here.>
Onyx pouts in response.

"But it is an afterthought." You say, hanging onto her. You give her another kiss.
"I see." She said, with a wry grin. "So.. I should likely leave a space on the Sleipnir. A wormhole generator would be useful for space travel."
She blinked.
". . Why. Why am I not surprised?" She asked. "I mean, Gen-twos in 2009, power cores in 2014, plasma weaponry in 2018, nano-metamaterials in 2022... And now power shields, repulsion drives, and hover plates this last year, which all work the same way. And finally, faster than light travel. It's almost like we're in the future. I wonder how long until we start cloning people, or genetically modifying our young?"

>>19865314
"We could always give 'em a try. It'd be child's play compared to what we've accomplished already."

rolled 35 = 35

>>19865314
how soon would you like my bullshit hacking magic to give it a try?

>>19865314
Well those'll take a bit longer, you'll need to wait for a bit between each test case to get a handle on any defects that shine through. But it won't be all that long.

Given that I replicated blood and tissue for you it shouldn't be all that hard to make a body of any age, it's just meat, but as me and my bullshit hacking prove the brain is a rather fucking weird thing that we don't fully get, so we'd have to start from kids on the cloning thing unless we can get a better handle on how exactly I managed to transfer my consciousness to the Bullfrog.

"We could always give 'em a try. It'd be child's play compared to what we've accomplished already." You say. "Given that I replicated blood and tissue for you it shouldn't be all that hard to make a body of any age, it's just meat, but as me and my bullshit hacking prove the brain is a rather fucking weird thing that we don't fully get, so we'd have to start from kids on the cloning thing unless we can get a better handle on how exactly I managed to transfer my consciousness to the Bullfrog."
"Well, I'm not in that much of a hurry." she said. "With modern medical science, I'll likely live long enough until I get immortal." She said.
She tried to twist her way out of your arms, but you held her tightly. She accidentally kicks you, and 'eeps'.
"He put sensors in the skin!" Amy called, going bright red. "And he put them too high."

She frowned, and twisted her legs off, where they piled onto the ground.
"There. Now you *have* to carry me." She said.

>>19865513
"I'm not seeing the issue here."

>>19865513
Oh no, carrying my lady love, what a terrible fate to subject me to, you monster.

So you're saying that with those legs if I tickle your toes I can get results, we should keep these around I'm sure we could think of some use for them.

Do you want to go get a different pair of legs?

"Oh no, carrying my lady love." You say, in a deadpan voice. "What a terrible fate to subject me to, you monster."
"So you're saying that with those legs if I tickle your toes I can get results? We should keep these around... I'm sure we could think of some use for them."
"Once I set the sensitivity down." She said. "It's strange, though. Most of my awesome legs have sensors in the soles, but that's just so I can keep my balance- I've never had real prosthetics like that."
"Do you want to go get a different pair of legs?"
"Nah, I just need to cable my computer to those." She said. "Then I can change the settings. Also, Mark said that they're based off of the same stuff as power suits- synthetic muscle- So they're stronger than what I'm used to."
She shrugged, and raised her wrist computer.
"I am thinking of getting another augment, though." She said. "I'm not sure what, but I'm thinking I might get an eye."
She nudged you with her elbow.
"Maybe I could get Jun to give me a bullfrog. I could use some magic bullshit."

>>19865708
"Dunno, I like you just the way you are."

>>19865708
"Amy. Your brain might melt out of your ears, you realize."

>>19865708
I wouldn't go for the bullfrog, the person who used it before me died, and I'm currently braindead. Nobody, least of all me, knows why I got that magic bullshit. You also have to be in one hell of a coma for the implant to work.

You don't need to replace any meat though, it's like a tattoo but even moreso. What could a cybereye get you that Power Armor sensors with a neural uplink won't? We might have to work on the neural uplink though.

"Amy. Your brain might melt out of your ears, you realize."
". . .Yeah, good point." She said. "I'll just wait until the science gets better."
"You don't need to replace any meat, though. It's like a tattoo but even moreso."
"Well, I was thinking." Amy said. "You could do that atomic goop thing to give me legs, I realized, and then I decided that I wouldn't want it- I prefer my overchargers and rollers instead. So I was thinking about getting more cyborg parts."

>>19865826
Do whatever you think is best honey. Though don't fiddle with your bosom, it's already perfect.

And remember, be willing to let powered armor do lots of the work for you, that's what it's there for. I'm doing pretty ok and all I've got is a spine, a few cables through my arms for hacking and electricity and my brain is kinda strange.

>>19865826
Yesss, we will be the founders of the Adeptus Mechanicus. Praise the Omnissah.

"Do whatever you think is best." You say, punctuating your statement with another smooch. "Though don't fiddle with your bosom, it's already perfect."
"If you say so." She says.
"Remember, be willing to let powered armor do lots of the work for you- that's what it's there for." You say.
"I don't like power armor, remember?" She said. "It's all too thick and cumbersome for me. Though, I could ask Mark to make me an extra-light version.."
She bit her tongue, and then finished changing the settings on her legs, twisting them back on again, the flaps of synthetic skin covering the socket's rim.
"Test it out for me, will you?" She asks, and you slowly run a finger up her leg.

The two of you quickly get... distracted, and soon after, Talos informs you that a helicopter has arrived.

"Quick." You say. "Positions."

Amy shimmies up onto the piano, and you get your hands ready. The power suit stands by, and adjusts it's bowtie.

Douglass and the scientists walk in, just as you finish playing.
"Why, hello." Douglass says. "Bullfrog, Naga. . .and you, sir?" He asks you.

rolled 24 = 24

>>19866026
(the suit)"oh thats the piano man, I picked him up somewhere a while ago."(dismissive gesture.)

dave plays some light music...

>>19866026
Have ourself and the powersuit speak in unison for this.

We are Dave. We are Bullfrog. We are the Storm. We are the next step in your evolution. All shall become Dave!

Then stop speaking in unison, burst out laughing and say that we're Dave and we just like using hardware that makes bleeding edge military gear look primitive as a butler.

>>19866073
Brilliant! But we should continue to play piano, nonchalantly, as the chorus grows louder, before swiveling around to face them as we go "ALL SHALL BECOME DAVE."

>>19866069
>>19866073

Oh man these are both fantastic ideas... I'm gonna have to vote for >>19866069 though

>>19866069
This is hilarious.

>>19866069
This

"Oh, that's the piano man." The suit says. "I picked him up somewhere a while ago."
"Yeah, he's not very interesting." Amy says, and shrugs. You start playing more, and she gives you a smirk.
"I see." Douglass said. "If I can ask... that large vehicle on the outside of this bunker... It looks like it has the cyclic repulsion weapon CD was working on. Did you ever get it to work?"
"It's called a disintegration cannon." Amy said. "And yes. You were the guy that designed that power core Dave stole from that facility?"
"Yeah." He said, scratching the back of his head.
"Well, you fucked it up." Amy said.
"What?! How did I fuck it up?"
"You let the extra energy just sit there, turning into heat." She said. "I just modified it make the spare energy pump into a small freewheeling engine. You need to learn better heat efficiency."
"Right, right." Douglass says. "Anyway, we're here to examine the alien tech. Is it here?"

>>19866199
Our flesh body should just stay here playing the piano while our armor leads the way.

Also introduce them to Talos.

At some point we'll ask if they want some food and take off the helmet to reveal that there is nothing there, just to freak them out. Or something along those lines, like the suit and Amy sharing a hug and she takes off the helmet to give him a kiss and there's nothing there, then she pretends to freak out while the scientists really freak out.

rolled 16 = 16

>>19866199
(via the suit)"ah yes, Talos could you bring these men to the tech."

(dave)"...or indeed bring the tech to the men..."

(suit)"indeed, indeed, how would you like it gentlemen? Amy has quite a workshop...

>>19866238
This, except I propose that Amy goes to do X while the suit offers refreshments and proceeds to take off the helmet and pour something inside the suit.

"Right this way." The suit says, and leads Amy and the scientists down to the storage room. "We cleared up a storage room for your computers, and there's the artifact in question." the suit said, pointing at the monolith.
"This.. this was found on mars, right?"
"Indeed." Amy says.
"Well." Douglass said. "Let's get to work, shall we?"

The scientists quickly put together a large series of computers- just a bit shy of your own supercomputer, along with a large sensor array surrounding the artifact.
"Would you like some food?" Your suit asks, holding a tray of food.
"Awesome, sandwiches." The scientist says, and takes a bite.
Your suit takes off it's helmet, and pours a simple glass of water into it, then screws the helmet back on.
He just kind of... stares.

They spend hours in there, trying to scan for anything, anything at all.
Eventually, Douglass comes away from the computer, teeth gritted.
"Bad news." He tells the suit. "Three is going to be pissed as hell when we tell him you had us come all the way here to look at a fucking chunk of carbon. Nothing else. Nothing else at *all*. It's not even molecularly interesting."

>>19866307
Show him the data we picked up from it.

rolled 69 = 69

>>19866307
teleport 4 feet to the left where he can see and say.

"you just aren't looking properly"

>>19866307
Onyx, could you show him some of what you got out of it, maybe help us understand why we're not seeing anything.

Teleport our actual body over. Why haven't we given them the data yet?

"Well, I can show you some of the data we picked up." Your suit says, and your physical body surruptiously plugs the bullfrog into their computer systems, where you upload the data. Static rolls down onto the screen, along with random unicode chunks, and difficult-to-decipher bits of code and schematic.

Douglass takes a few seconds to examine the code.
He blinks, and calms down.
"We will need... a lot of coffee." He said, slowly.

The scientists got to work- some of them ranting about some kind of 'eternity code', and others arguing about machine code, and the Douglass is mostly downloading quantum physics textbooks on his headset. Amy walks around here and there, examining what everyone is doing. Finally, she comes back to your real body.
"They think it's using something other than our standard digital computers." She said. "Like.. a different way to program, I suppose you could call it. The bits they can understand is very similar to power shielding, but it involves lots of metaphysics. Unless you can bullshit magic, we'll need something like a . . Rosetta Stone."

>>19866421
I'll give it a look, let me know if my brain starts draining out my nose.

I may as well tell them who I am, it's been long enough that it's funny, maybe sneak the armor out, get in it and walk in and take the helmet off.

>>19866421
I could always try opening a wormhole and see what happens... What so you think?

We do have a large empty space around here, don't we?

rolled 29 = 29

>>19866421
I think I have the stone here as it happens!

(suit in the room with the eggheds) "gentlemen, I may have a translation source. ahem "Mr. PIANO-MAN!"

teleport to the room in question (I think the tele-box is stuck in the actual bullfrog right?) pull out the box <onyx get ready for some crazy hacking bullshit> "yes boss" and insert it into the block.


proceed to bullfrog it into submission.

rolled 74 = 74

>>19866485
but not with that roll, so here is another one...

CHILI CON CARNE!

"I'll give it a look, let me know if my brain starts draining out of my nose." You say.
She nods. "I will."

"Gentlemen, I may have a translation source." Your suit says. "Ahem. Mr. Piano Man!"

Onyx targets the location you are, and the bullfrog whirrs, as you teleport into the room. You draw out the teleport box from your bullfrog, and slide it into the artifact.

<Onyx, get ready for some hacking.>
Onyx beeps gleefully, and then your vision goes dark.

---

You're drifting in the emptiness, small points of light here and there. You turn around... and see the artifact itself. Strange, unnatural glyphs tear through the air. You reach forth, and grip one of the strange, alien glyphs. You suddenly feel like lightning blasted into you, the pain arcing out from your spine.
"Dave." You hear Amy say, as if far away "Your brain is draining out of your nose."
You feel her stuff your nose and ears with tissues. "And ears. Are you going to be okay?"

rolled 75 = 75

>>19866530
Currently I'm okay. My brain is just meat. If it gets too bad I'll let you know.

Don't grip any of the glyphs yet, it hurts, try to look at them, how they interact, if we can clear our mind and see them for what they represent.

>>19866530
My mistake, apparently manhandling alien language isn't polite, I'm going to have to seduce it slowly.

>>19866530
"I don't think I was meant to touch that bit. It's fine, I'll touch a different bit next time."

"Currently I'm okay." You say. "My brain is just meat. If it gets too bad, I'll let you know."
"Right." Amy says. "... Be careful."
You feel soft lips cross your own, as you examine the glyphs. The glyphs interact, small streams of light going from one glyph to the other, in random, haphazard arrays. . .
And then Onyx chirps, and tears it's way out of you, leaping toward the monolith, and grips the glyphs tightly, tearing them away. . and arranging the lines in perfect, straight patterns. Everything... twists.

And then you feel your head literally burst- you hear your own skull crack, and you're torn away from the artifact.
"Dave?!" Amy calls.
<Your brain has been. . vaporized by unknown means.> Azure said. <But you have translated 98.5% of the artifact's unknown code.>

>>19866618
Well, I'm glad I wasn't using it for much, though I'm guessing my bullshit hacking and overclocking won't work for a while.

Hey Amy, I translated 98.5% of it. I also took out 98.5% of my brain, it'll grow back.

Hey Douglass, I'm not actually the piano man, I'm Dave/Bullfrog, I've been controlling the armor remotely. Have fun with the data, I'm going to go take a nap with Amy.

>>19866618
Aww fuck, this was the most stupid of ideas. Tell Amy were Alice, if we can. Abort and get back to the bullfrog if possible. We might have to leave onyx there.

Also, I vote no alien hacking in the future.

>>19866638
I think Douglass worked out we were Dave from the fact that Amy keeps shouting "DAVE?!" in our faces.

Maybe we can grow a new brain with atomic goop?

"Well, I'm glad I wasn't using it for much." You say, ignoring the blinding pain. "I translated ninety-eight point five of it. I also took out that much of my brain. It'll grow back."
You open your eyes, and blood immediately drips into them.
"You're bleeding really bad." Amy said.
<With your help, I figured out the control scheme.> Onyx said.
The scientists, save for Douglass, starts examining the code, now that it's translated into something they can understand.
"You okay, bullfrog?" Douglass asked. You nod. "Okay, good. You should get some rest."
"Yeah, I'll take him to his room." Amy said, pulling you to your feet. Despite the way she looked like a dainty, delicate woman, she was just as strong as you are- probably moreso.

>>19866717
Apply some sort of painkillers, grab something to drink and make Amy swear never to let us do that again.

rolled 86 = 86

>>19866717
see amy now it's your turn to carry me...

remind me in the morning to make some more brain...I seem to running low again...

>is our brain gone? what occupies the space?

"See, now it's your turn to carry me." You say, and she gives you a small grin.
You grab a handful of pills, a glass of water, and then take both at once. Alas, the pills don't even work on you. So you just turn down the pain on your bullfrog, letting it settle to something more managable.
"Amy." You say.
"Yeah?"
"Swear never to let me do that again."
She blinks, and wipes more blood off of your brow. "Happily." She said. "I kind of... really don't like whenever you do something like that. I have a bad feeling about it, most of the time."
She frowned.
"Mostly because I can't help you with it."

>>19866784
Maybe, when its the future, you can get one of those spine implants that the drone users had. Then you can join me in adventures through cyberspace. Be sure to get some dampeners though, brains don't grow back.

>>19866784
"Amy. You wouldn't want to, trust me. I mean, my brain just exploded like a cat in a microwave on high. God, Johny, why did you have to do that to Mr. Fluffles..."

rolled 98 = 98

>>19866822
...well mine does, sort of, not entirely. well maybe if my plans for tomorrow work out properly...

>>19866784
I've come out okay so far, and while you can't help with directly in diving into alien machines you support me in so many other ways. I would never have gotten anywhere as far without you.

"Amy, you wouldn't want to, trust me. I mean, my brain just exploded like a cat in a microwave." You say.
"But would it have if you had someone helping?" She asked, then shook her head. "No more trying to bullshit hack alien tech, you." She says, working on your head wound. You feel a scalpel digging something out, and then needles.
"I've come out okay so far, and while you can't help me directly, you support me in so many other ways." You say. "I would never have gotten anywhere as far without you."
"You got that right." She said. "Also, you got blood on my dress. I suppose it fits me a lot better now than it did when it was clean."

so guys we need a new brain or something any ideas?
pst doesn't have to be a new brain
(we now have a open space in our head where are brain used to be imagine the possibilities)

>>19866884
What are you taking from my head? Thief!

>>19866884
"Can't we just clean it with some atomic goo? Maybe resize it a bit to make it fit better normally?"

>>19866884
"I need something like...an augment in my brain. It would just use nano-gel to repair all damage. Can we do that?"

"Can't we just clean it with some atomic goo? Maybe resize it a bit to make it fit better normally?"
"The size isn't the issue, although it could be a bit shorter. . . I meant that it fit my personality. Covered in blood. Sanya always thought I was entertaining, every time I ended up with crusty, dried blood in my hair. I used to freak. Then I stopped caring."
You feel something else get torn out of your head.
"What are you doing?" You ask.
"Bone fragments." She said. "They're splintered everywhere up here. I'm fixing what I can, and then using atomic goop to repair the damage to your skull." She said. "Talos, got that?"
<Yes, Ma'am.> Talos responded, and brought a small repair drone down. Amy connected to it with her wrist computer.
"This won't be perfect, but you'll heal." She said.
"I need something like... an augment in my brain. It would just use nano-gel to repair all damage. Can we do that?"
<No.> Azure says, using your helmet to speak aloud. <I don't recommend it- Synthesizing brain matter is all but impossible.>

File: 1342224553645.jpg-(73 KB, 428x518, gunther hermann.jpg)

>>19866885
>Possibilities
>Implying there is more than one possibility
I need a Skull Gun.

>>19866983
"So who's Sanya?"

>>19866983
I probably shouldn't be awake for this... Tell me more about sanya.

"So who's Sanya?"
"Back when I was a merc, with Verne- Him, me, Verne, and Oleg ended up on missions together quite a bit. Remember that one job we did, way back when? The one where you first used the Javelin? He was one of the guys loading the plane." She said. "I kind of want to talk to him again, now."
"Tell me more about him."
"He's the guy who taught me demolitions, way back when." Amy said. She hit a key on the wrist computer, and your head suddenly feels like it's in a vice.

>>19867071
"OW! OW OW OW OW OW! You're running your wrist computer through my brain as a proxy or something! OW!"

>>19867071
"Okay. Ow. What's this now?"

rolled 14 = 14

>>19866983
<azure, how many impossible things have you seen me do in the past?>

>Sorry for the delay, but now, today's thread should last longer than normal.

"Okay, Ow." You say. "What's this now?"
"Stop whining." Amy said. "I'm putting your skull back together."

Suddenly, as soon as it started, it stopped.
"Thanks, Talos." She tells the AI, and the drone flies away.
"There." She said. "Whatever remains of your brain matter won't be falling out every time you tilt your head." She said, then closed her eyes.
"...Today was a long day." She said, and sighed. "Once I clean my hands, let's get to bed."
She kissed you again, then stepped away. You lay down on the bed, and then drifted to sleep.

When you come to, you have a headache, and Amy's laying atop you, as she usually does.
<Dave, The scientists wish to speak to you.> Talos says. <They say that they know what the artifact does.. but they've been using the word theoretically between every word.>

>>19867279
Let me guess, it creates wormholes and lets you travel the stars? I already knew that.

rolled 90 = 90

>>19867279
"tell him to take a cold shower"

<suit, make them breakfast. then make us breakfast and wake me up when it's done.>

if we cannot get back to sleep I figure we can ask azure about the plausibility of installing extra CPU power in our newly evacuated braincase

>>19867279
Fine. Give Amy a kiss and tuck her back into bed, put on pants and go to see what's going on. Also ask Azure how I'm doing on brain recovery.

<Azure, what's the feasibility of installing extra CPU in my head?>
<Rather feasible, but I don't recommend it. When your brain is active, it loans extra processing power to the bullfrog- moreso than a standard CPU would.>
<How much of my brain have I recovered?>
<Five percent.> Azure said. <You heal more quickly when asleep.>
"Let me guess, it creates wormholes and lets you travel the stars?" You ask. "I already knew that."
<That is what they're saying. They're rather excited... because they say they know how to use it.>

"They know how to use it?" Amy asked, sitting up- She was already awake, which was rather unlike her. "Then I'd better get the Sleipnir started." She said, then started to attach her legs. "You don't mind if I retrofit the Jormungandr, do you? I mean, that way we get to use that massive power core. And the death ray. I mean, the drone won't be much use now that Resurgence is one of the good guys."

>>19867380
"Certainly, saves time having to construct a new hull, too."

>>19867380
"Sure. But we need more rays on Sleipnir. Peace rays. Y'know, like Tesla made."

>>19867380
I thought when you built it you forgot to put in enough space for people. Don't tell me you'll have to remove some dakka to make room.

File: 1342226765626.jpg-(58 KB, 480x322, infinitas-yacht3.jpg)

rolled 46 = 46

>>19867380
yeah that...

can I ask for a few things?
1 a ramming prow
2 a space bubble
3 a great deal of space
4 I want you to go nuts on the ability to build on-board components as needed
5 a MASSIVE computer
6 more space

>>19867380
After that, I thought, when You did use the word monolith, and wormholes in one quest, is there ANY possibility that we just accidentally discovered Necrons artifacts?

>>19867412
We want it to be spacious enough to live in, it's going to need some expansion.

"Certainly." You say. "Saves time having to construct a new hull, too."
"Awesome." She said, putting on her strange, armless armor.
"I thought when you built it you forgot to put in enough space for people. Don't tell me you'll have to remove some dakka to make room."
"Not at all." She said. "I'm just going to make it bigger. Space out the dakka, maybe add more."
"Think you could add the ability to build onboard components as needed?"
"Of course." she said. "Already in the plans. We don't want to get trapped in space without a way to get anywhere, right?"
"What about a ramming prow?"
"Can't do." She said. "The disintegration cannon on the Jormungandr is forward-mounted, remember?"
Someone knocked on the door.

>>19867474
"Well I guess in a pinch the disintegration beam would work as an impromptu ram."

Put some pants on

>>19867501
... with the possibility of unloading straightly into other ship. Well, ok.

>>19867474
Put on some pants, make sure Amy and ourselves are decent before opening the door and seeing who it is.

>>19867474
"What if the ray was mounted under or in the ram?"

>>19867474
What if we ram them backwards.

>>19867550
That would be ass-backwards.

"Well, I guess in a pinch, the disintegration beam would work as an impromptu ram." You say, putting on some pants. "Or maybe put it under the ram.
"It does use repulsion tech, after all. But yeah, I'll just mount the gun to the belly." She says, leering at you. "I'm giving it a ton of extra space, too. Storage for drones. . the ravens, too. Living spaces, massive computer banks.. It'll be a flying Valhalla. This thing will end up taking a lot of goop, though. Maybe half of what we have." She said. "And almost as much credits."

Now donned in pants, you open the door. Douglass is standing there, large bags under his eyes.
"We got it." He said. "We know how to use it, and what it does. It opens wormholes. *wormholes*. In space! Faster than light travel!"
His headset beeped, and he slipped it on, then frowned.
"If we can travel faster than two hundred thousand miles an hour, apparently." He said.

>>19867563
"Amy, how fast were the ravens going on the way to Mars again?"

>>19867563
Why the speed limit?

"Amy, how fast were the ravens going on the way to Mars, again?"
"Up to twice that." Amy said, rolling through the doorway. "Shouldn't be a problem."
"There's your answer." You say. "Why the speed limit?"
"The wormhole is apparently a certain length, and it only stays open for a certain amount of time." He said. "And, I'm not a quantum physicist, and neither is my team, but I have a feeling that you sure as hell don't want to be inside a wormhole when it closes."

>>19867644
Fair enough. So how do we make one of these things?

>>19867644
Sounds good. Should we test it now with the ravens, or wait for the Jormungandr to be finished.

I feel we should give Douglass a chance to be with us as we go through the first wormhole.

"Fair enough. So how do we make one of these things?"
"We have no clue." He said, shrugging. "The data is mostly drivers, but nobody can understand the hardware. On all our scans, it just comes up as incredibly strong, indestructible carbon. The one that's there is the only one there is."
"Should we test it now with the Ravens, or wait for the Sleipnir to be finished?"
"Let's finish the Sleipnir first." Amy said. "I've had the repair drones working on it, so it shouldn't take long."

>>19867723
Maybe you should try scanning it with the teleporter plugged in. It might change.

>>19867723
Sounds like a plan.

How does the wormhole creation thing work anyway?

>>19867723
Ask Douglass if he wants to join us, as we attempt SCIENCE.

"Did you try scanning it with the teleporter plugged in?"
"Yeah." He said. "We even scanned the teleporter alone. They're both nothing but chunks of carbon."
". . Sounds like a plan." You say. "How does the wormhole creation thing work, anyway?"
"Apparently, you need to punch in the exact locations of where you want each end of the wormhole to be. Then it runs it through an algorithm, and then pumps that into the hardware. And the hardware responds. We're a bit wary of testing it. . ."
"Well, when we test it, would you like to join us?" You ask.

"Of course." He said, with a grin.
"But the team needs some sleep. We've been running on soda and coffee since we got here."

>>19867818
Get some sleep Douglass, there's plenty of room. You did a great job.

Call up our buddies at EE and KI, ask if they want to go to space and venture where no man has gone before. After a nice dinner.

>>19867866
We should bring Gemini. We can try to set her up with Douglass, and that'd pacify Amy.

"Get some sleep, Douglass. There's plenty of room in the facility. You and your team did a great job."
"Thanks." He said. "And hey.. thanks for not killing any of my co-workers back in CD." He said, and walked down to the storage room.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Amy asks.
"Besides more zero-G sex?" You say. "Calling up everyone, and ask them if they want to come."
"Everyone?"
"Everyone. Grayson, Abel, Jun, Mark, both Gemini, Epsilon, Sigma. . " You say.
"Yes." She said, with a grin. "YES. You call them, I'll go make sure the drones are doing what they should."

She rolls off, leaving you to get this organized.
>Who do you call first?

>>19867938
Abel first, Grayson second.

>>19867938
I'm unfamiliar with some of these, so.. Alphabetically? Able first? Can we get char intros with these?

rolled 3 = 3

>>19867938
and don't forget reginald, his family and Amy's parents

and maybe our family if we're feeling up to seeing them again...

>That's actually why I'm doing it this way- This way you can learn who's who.
You call Abel first.

Abel was always your drinking buddy, your roommate, your co-worker. He was the first person you met when you moved across country to get away from your parents, and he was your only real friend before you got dynamically hugged by a car. He was always whiz at computers, and he was working IT in your old job before you got cyborged. After you got cyborged, during various life-threatening shenanigans, including one where he beat a one-armed insane girl with a chair, he ended up losing his job- so you got him one at Emulsified Electronics.

"Hey, Dave." Abel responds. "How was mars?"
"How'd you know I went to mars?"
"I'm working intelligence for EE, remember?" Abel asked. "I have to stay on top of things."
"If by 'on top of things' you mean surfing porn on company time." You say.
"Heh." Abel says. "So yeah, what's this about?"
". . Want to explore the galaxy with me?"
"You expect me to say no?" Abel asked. "Fuck yes. We taking the Ravens, or something new?"
"Something new." You say. "I'll pick you up in it."
You hang up there. Now, that's cryptic. The anticipation should all but kill him.
>On board: ABEL
>Who next?

rolled 39 = 39

>>19867938
aww damn...what is there for us to cook them?

how much food can we get up here?

CALL MARK FIRST HAVE HIM COME UP ON A SUPPLY RUN.

the ravens are fast but marks got more hauling space...

rolled 9 = 9

>>19867938

>>19868067
>>19868089
oh I miss read that...

I thought we were inviting them over for dinner...

>>19867972
Grayson is a security guy at EE and our current roommate in murrika.
Abel is a friend from before we got augmented, and a leet haxxor. He looked after our cat when he thought we were dead, how can you get more bro than that?
Jun is the scientist chick at EE who augmented us.
Mark is the mechanic dude at EE who built us our power armor and mechandrites and stuff.
The Gemini twins, Epsilon and Sigma are KI agents we've worked with a couple of times.
Sigma's some sort of cyborg ninja, Epsilon was a drone controller but then she got injured and now she's just Grayson's love interest. The Gemini twins are twins.

>>19868084
Gemini twins!

>>19868084
Grayson next.

>>19868127
We are inviting them for dinner. Dinner in another star system. You wouldn't expect us to go to some boring normal restaurant, would you?

>>19868084
Grayson next, remember the cat or we are liable to lose an eye.

>>19868245
Well obviously we have to invite Ishelda.

"Grayson." You say, through the smartphoneheadset.
"Dave." Grayson says.
"...Grayson."
"Dave." Grayson responds, his voice deadpan.

Grayson is a rather stern fellow- at least, until you get to know him well. He's also your roommate... technically, and he's currently taking care of your cat. A veteran from the military, he spent a short stint as a mercenary, and finally settled at being the head of security at EE, which is where he was when you met him. He lives his life like he keeps his home- spartan, and very plain. When he's not doing his job, he's working on getting better at doing his job. He also beats you at every card game known to man, and he's won hundreds of dollars from you. Bastard. He's augmented, but only slightly- just a few implants in his wrists that protect him from recoil- which fits, seeing that his his heavily modified, souped up rifle causes a lot.

"Want to come to space?" You ask.
". . Wait, what? Space?"
"Space."
"Like. . Outer space, going to neptune and saturn and stuff?" He asked.
"Possibly a bit further than that, but yes."
"Hmm. . .Can I bring Karin?" Grayson asked, talking about Epsilon- Apparently he's calling her by her real name, as opposed to her KI-designated code name.
"Yeah. I intended to invite her too, anyway."
"Sure, then." He said. "I'll have to ask Jun if I can get vacation time. For the first time, I think." He said, and chuckled.
"And if you do come, bring Ishelda."
"Of course." Grayson said, and you hear someone say something in the background. "Also, Karin said she's in. She's here with me. Call you back later, Dave." He hung up.

>>19868267
Quick, call Jun before Grayson can call her. It's no fun if they expect it.

>>19868292
Agreed.

Quickly, before Grayson can get to it, you call Jun.

Jun was the one you met first, soon after you got hit by the car. Jun was many things; a middle-aged japanese woman, a rather brilliant neuroscientist, a mother of an eight year old boy, and a widow, she was the one who originally invented and implanted the bullfrog into you. Since then, she'd joined the director's board of Emulsified Electronics, and she's always perfectly professional. Not to mention, she's your own personal augmentation facility.

"Dr. Viridian here." Jun says
"Hey, Jun." You say.
"Dave, what a pleasant surprise." She said. "Abel had told me you'd been to mars with Amy. Must have been some date, right?"
"Yeah, it was a rather bloody affair." You say. "But now we're building something bigger."
"Oh?" She asked.
You hear something knock.
"One moment, Grayson!" Jun called. "Go ahead and continue, Dave."
"You're cordially invited." You say.
"Invited?"
"To the Sleipnir, the newest and most advanced spacecraft of all time. Amy's building it."
"Well, I'd love to come, but I'm rather busy, with the EE and KI merger. There's so much to organize. I didn't know being on the board would involve so much paperwork. Maybe you could ask Grayson?"
"Already did." You say. "He's at the door to ask for vacation time."
You can hear the wry grin in her voice. "I see." She says. "Then I'd best go tell him that he can take off as much time as he needs. He's built up around a year of vacation time by this point- because he never takes them. I hope you all have fun."
"Thanks, Jun." You say. "I'll talk to you later."
"Right. Goodbye, Dave." she said, and you hung up.

>>19868428
Shall we just go down the list automatically, Exabyte?

Now, for the KI agents
First, you call Gemini- the female one. You first met Lucca during a car chase, when she shot your tire out and evaded- You didn't know it was her at the time, but you sure did after, when you ran into her by coincidence, where she freaked and drew a gun on you. She's a gen-three implantee too, although she doesn't have a bullfrog, but an 'IDW' implant- which stands for Unlimited Drone Works. Most of the IDW implants connect into chairs, but she's since 'borrowed' a prototype, portable version, with which you, her, and Amy fought resurgence together. Outside of combat, she's timid, shy, and rather neurotic at times.

"Hey, Lucca." You say.
"Dave?! Where are you? Are you in trouble?" She asked, starting to panic. "I went to antarctica but you weren't there, and you've been gone for weeks!"
"Me and Amy were on Mars." You say.
". . . Mars? Like, the planet?"
"The planet." You say.
She's silent for a moment.
"... Wow." She says. "Was it red?"
"It was more brown." You say. "And dusty. Anyway, I'm starting up a. . party, I suppose. We're all getting in a spacecraft and going somewhere. Want to come?"

>Sorry this is taking so long- What a decision to make, guys.

"Sure!" She said. "Can Lucas come?"
Lucas, her twin brother, was very different from her. He was certain of himself, and a crack shot with the sniper rifle he carries- he's one of KI's stealthiest agents. After he got his throat slit while recuperating from battle, Jun, with your assistance, did a very significant and difficult surgery bringing him back to life- a method known as Project Immortal, which essentially spends copious amount of nano-meta and hundreds of AI-controlled cables to keep his body intact. You're not quite sure how Project Immortal has affected him, but the little bit you know, he's glad to be back, without any major side effects.
"Of course." You say.
"Okay!" She said. "Hey, Lucas, you're coming with me!" she calls.
"Where?" He asked- you can hear him clearly.
"You'll see!" She said.
". . Hmph, fine." He said.
"You heard him." Lucca said. "Do you want us to go down there, or are you coming up here?"
"I'm coming up there- I need to pick Grayson, Karin, and Abel, anyway."
"Okay, good to know." She said. "I'm looking forward to it!"
She hangs up. . and you call Sigma.

Sigma's.. hard to describe. He's personable, he's nice, and he's an elite CQC expert, but. . he has no real face. He'd had some kind of major augmentation- one that replaces his entire skin with layers of armor, and vertical hover plates that allow him lateral movement. You've never seen his face. You first met him in combat, where you quickly locked down his augments and captured him- he was in rather good humor about that, in retrospect. He told you his name once, but you forgot it completely, as he prefers going by Sigma.
"Sigma." You say.
"Hey, Bullfrog." He responded. "What's up?"
"Want to see how your augments work in space?" You ask.
". . .Let me guess." Sigma said. "You- And by you I mean amy- used hoverplates to make an advanced version of Omega's dropship, and with that you're taking everyone you know into space to have a party." He said.
"Uh. . .Yeah." You say. "How'd you know?"
"How else would you get to space? Rockets?"
"Well, Amy could likely make a plasma rocket. . ."
". . please don't ask her to do that." Sigma said. "That girl's insane. But yeah, I'll come. I've got nothing better to do, now that KI missions against CD are all done."
"Cool. We'll pick you up."
"Right." Sigma said.

You hang up, and hold your head. That was rather busy.

That's when you hear the tell-tale sound of a plasma weapon discharging.

>>Thread two ended!
>>My twitter is @futureexabyte
>>And I'll stick around a bit to answer questions.
>Special note; Sometime next week, I may have to be a few hours late. If so, I'll do another MEQ.

>>19868787
>plasma weapon
No, you see Amy overhead what we said and instantly made a prototype plasma rocket. That's what the sound was.

We need to somehow discourage Amy from getting an IDW style implant. If she tries to hack things like us, it's not going to end well.

>>19869039
>Something to note- even if she does get a gen-3 implant, she, along with pretty much everyone else in the setting, will be unable to 'bullshit hack'.

Also, just so the classifications are clear:
Gen-1: Basic prosthetic
Gen-2: Prosthetic with feedback, aka a limb with tactile senses.
Gen-3: Neural implant.

>>19868787
Son of a bitch.

You really know how to leave a cliff-hanger.

>>19869647
I've honed this skill for three months now. I said this on thread eleven of NFC, and I'll say this now- Cliffhangers are my true power.

>>19869694
They truly are, you end most of your threads on a cliffhanger. It's impressive. But given that you do it daily, none of us mind that much.

>>19869712
No, don't worry- Soon, every quest I'll ever run will come to a head, and just before the final conflict. . .

I'll simply remove my name and trip, and vanish... forever.