Salvation: Part II

“Look, even those with the best of intentions can create monsters if they aren’t careful.” Garand said, “Right now, we need to focus on the task at hand.”

Zepar looks at Darkside, “So, we have more of a map?”

“But this could very well be what we need for the task at hand. Do you have the slightest idea what opportunities this could provide for us?”

“I would be insulted,” Facelift says, “were your sentiments not completely baseless. A-nywho…”

The doctor gets to work, removing sections of Starchaser’s armor to get at her internal mechanisms.

“Usually, our bodies handle this themselves,” he comments. “Y’know, you scan a plane or a car or a tank or an animal that catches your fancy, and everything just kinda reorients itself accordingly. But, when you’ve just got blueprints to work with, that’s where guys like me come in. Gotta do some of the work manually.”


Greasemonkey shrugs.

“The first key had a map stored on it that led us to this planet,” he says. “Presumably, the other had one that’ll lead to the next, and so on.”

SideStep shot fingerguns and a wink at Lurch.
“You betcha. You’re the most likely suspect, pal.”[quote=“Chromeharpoon, post:8342, topic:49995”]
Drone helps her set the giant hand down. The rest of the repair team side-eye the extremity.

“I, uh… I guess it’ll do until we can build a better replacement…” one says uneasily.
[/quote]

“I c-c-can h-h-help!” Spectrum offered.

1 Like

Lurch rolls his eyes.

“What do you want now?” he drawls. “Must I start keeping a detailed log of my daily activities? Will that satisfy you?”


“By all means,” the bot replies.

“Yes.” Garand said, “But I am also being mindful of the dangers this can birth.”

“Huh… I guess these things hold cartographic data.” He said, the espionage-oriented part of his mind quickly memorizing the incomplete map.

He decideds to tap a couple times on the console, just to see what happens.

OOC: i’m trying to find the upgrade section, but do what you want.

Pixel nodded and dismounted Blight. He spun around, searching for something.

The holo-map of OL-2 shrinks, giving space for more screens to materialize around it. One displayed a list of Salvation’s recently-acquired upgrades, among them the ground bridge and self-regenerative hull plating.

“Nah, we’re gonna use the Cortial Psychic Patch.” SideStep grinned gleefully.
“I have full permission from the Captains, so don’t even think about sniveling to them.”[quote=“Chromeharpoon, post:8355, topic:49995”]
“By all means,” the bot replies.
[/quote]

Spectrum clapped her hands together excitedly, flipping out her medical tools as she did so.

“The what?” Lurch scoffs, having never heard of the machine.

“Wat’cha looking for Pixel?” she asked.


He taps the list to get a better view. It would be good to know the ship’s capabilities in full.

“I can read your mind” SideStep summed up.

Pixel ignored her, spinning faster and faster until a dark shadow fell over him. He looked at its owner and smiled.

“Pixel, why did you- Oh.” The disappointment in the newcomer’s voice was apparent. Blight slowly turned until he was face-to-face with his sister, Caedia.

The list expands, showing all of the upgrades that had been made to the ship since her reconstruction on OL-0, along with some of their sources.

Exterior energy shields- ICS Inquisitive Savant
Self-regenerative molecular hull plating- ICS Inquisitive Savant
Augmented interior defense turrets- Chaar-X4 Submachine Gun
Short-range Space Bridge module- DC #4859.22.1
Cybermatter production facility/Omega Key interface
Unarmed heavy transport vehicle, requisitioned to crewman Facelift
Long-range vital statistics reader and display
Augmented engex production equipment- (the terminal displays a lengthy chemical equation)


Lurch scoffs.

“That’s preposterous! That kind of technology doesn’t exist!”

SideStep chuckled. “Wrong tense, pal. didn’t exist. It does now. Let’s give it a go, shall we?”

“I suggest you comply, Lurch,” Shockwave drones from his workspace. “A forceful interface could cause serious damage to both participants.”

Lurch looks nervously between SideStep and Shockwave for a moment, before reluctantly taking a step forward.

“Very well,” he growls, a hint of nervousness in his voice. “If it will appease you and our good captains, ‘patch’ away…”

Sidestep cackled excitedly.
“Alright, Shocky, let’s get this going.”

“Huh… I wonder how we add new ones…” he wondered, scrolling through the list.

“Uh-huh.”
Starchaser said. Keeping her optics fixed on the doctor.

“So every key… Leads to the next… The keys make a lock… Can they do… Anything else?”

“Well sometimes progress is worth the risk.”
Brieg asserted.