Lucie's Body

The following is a log of the process undertaken to rebuild Lucie's body on the Maverick.
== Requirements ==
* Craft & Repair vs 1d20 
* Concentrate vs 1d20 
* Craft & Repair vs 1d20 
* Medicine vs 1d20 (Avix) 
* Ignore Pain vs 1d20 
As per the science process
== Log ==
=== Lucie ===
The little robot reverently took the crumbling bones and turned to what looked like a hastily welded hopper. It deposited the bones one by one, and machine noises began to fill the space. Screens flickered with information as Lucie's old DNA was sequenced, and the room whirred to life as it began the rebuilding process.
A large, vertical tank in the middle of the room began to fill with a cloudy liquid, and robotic arms inside started to spin as they tested their dormant servos. Information blasted through cables and fluids ran through feed lines to the robotic arms, ready to print out a brand new body.
[First check for body build (roll:D20+5)]
=== RPBot ===
@Lucie [GM] rolled 25. (20, 5)
=== Lucie ===
Lucie immediately got to work making sure the DNA was correct and the correct fluids were being sent down the correct pipes. She didn't have to do much, though; the machine was working perfectly and the very first outline of a skeleton was beginning to appear in the tank.
If Lucie had had a mouth, which she soon would, it would have been hanging open in a mixture of surprise, excitement, and awe.
=== Lucie ===
The tank cast up a cloud of bubbles, and for a moment Lucie could see her own skeleton floating in the water. Feed lines gave the bones nutrients, and the viscous liquid in the tank kept them upright and in position.
One of the robotic arms gently weaved in and out of the skeletal form, beginning to attach the first muscles and nerves. The second arm began to pull from a number of metal cases, now on display inside the tank. From the cases, it withdrew organs one at a time. Now a lung went in, and with careful movements, the arm began to connect it to the body, ensuring all along that the process went smoothly.
[Concentration check (roll:D20+1)]
=== RPBot ===
@Lucie [GM] rolled 10. (9, 1)
=== Susanna [GM] ===
[Counter roll against @Lucie [GM] (roll:D20+1)]
=== RPBot ===
@Susanna [GM] rolled 10. (9, 1)
=== Lucie ===
Lucie began to think about how life would be with a new body. It had been so long! She wondered if-
A feed line snapped, and suddenly the tank began to fill with a red haze as artificial blood spilled from the detached hose.
"No no no no!" Lucie exclaimed, and quickly shut off the flow.
But the damage was done, and the clearing process took time. She sighed, the speakers buzzing with static exasperation, and the tank began to cycle its liquid.
Frustrated at herself and at the arduous process, Lucie sealed the door to the room. When the feed process restarted, she would have no distractions.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie received an alert as Devesh powered up the ship's engines. Worried that the damaged reactor wouldn't be able to keep up properly without leaking radiation into the crew area, Lucie powered down her own body workshop. It would work just fine as long as the downtime was less than an hour, and by the bearings Devesh was working with, it looked like they were only going to Galaea a few thousand kilometres away.
Turning her attention to the external viewports, Lucie watched as the great green disc of Galaea moved closer and closer, filling their view and coming into spectacular clarity.
Once the ship had safely set down, she turned her attention straight back to her lab and redirected power there from the engines once again. Hopefully the crew wouldn't need her; she was totally absorbed in her task now. She felt as though her whole life had come down to this process and she refused to mess it up.
=== Lucie ===
Avix's earpiece crackled to life and Lucie's fuzzy voice came through.
"Hey Avix are you in the Port?" She asked. She hadn't been watching him since she had been so busy with her own affairs.
"I need a huge favour. Can you find me some clothes?"
She paused again, then "stupid feed tube what's going on?
"The jumpsuits on board when I came on were hideous so I got rid of them." She explained. "Oh and can - no wait arggh - can you make them firaxi sized please. I'm a bit smaller than you. My body I mean, I'm - nooo!"
A hiss of static came through the earpiece and then Lucie's voice was replaced with silence.
More things were going wrong with her build process than she anticipated. It made sense of course; she had never tested the machine. But so far she had been on top of things and she figured everything would work out in the end. At least she had to think that, or she'd go crazy.
She wanted to kick herself for forgetting clothes. How many years had she had to think about this? But it was going to be alright; Avix was on the case.
=== Avix ===
He left Susanna to take care of herself. She was capable and he had a market to check out. As he left the Maverick, his earpiece sounded with Lucie's voice. He didn't really agree with throwing something perfectly good out because of appearance; but then again, who knows how bad the old jumpsuits really were. Even he had some standards. "I can do that." This would be the first time he shopped for anyone else, especially a girl. What did firaxi girls wear? He didn't want to ask some stranger or emporium employee. His thoughts were replaced with concern. After a moment of silence, he tentatively asked, "Is everything okay, Lucie?" Hopefully nothing had happened with her body.
=== Lucie ===
The question came as a surprise. She was working on her current project and was fully involved. But the surprise wasn't because of the distraction, it was because of the concern. Avix seemed to genuinely care if something had gone wrong.
"Uh, not really." She answered, unsure of her robotic voice. Suddenly she understood.
"Oh, no nothing's gone wrong don't worry, the ship is safe. None of your things have been damaged." She said firmly. If someone was concerned about what she was doing, she could safely infer that they were worried she'd mess it up. Of course she'd been asked the same thing in the past. "Can you get there without causing trouble?", "Do you need help carrying that? It's very expensive." It always seemed like concern at first.
"Everything's okay." She said again, a little forlornly.
But there was no point worrying about it now; she had things to focus on. Perhaps things would be different when she could prove herself physically.
=== Avix ===
"That is reassuring. Let me know if you need help with the-- your body. I have no experience building one, but can try to assist," he offered. She didn't sound exactly confident, but if something were terribly wrong, he assumed she would ask for help. It made sense that someone would protect the goal they had been working towards for who-knows-how long. He shrugged and moved on. He looked at the port around him for a moment. Everything seemed... less bright than in the pictures and videos he had seen. Maybe a side effect of being filmed, or maybe a trick. It didn't seem like he was being actively watched. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling. The slight paranoia sat on the back of his mind. He remained stoic and pressed onward, weaving his way through the docks and various streets until he eventually came upon a scattering of stores. He found his way to a bright store, having been drawn in by the glass display of female clothes. At least, he thought they were female. He had never really consciously noticed much about the way firaxi dressed, and now that he was presented with choosing items, he felt a little at a loss. He turned to the nearest rack and shuffled through it, all hands clumsily piecing items together, making sure he got all essentials. The flowy style of clothing was consistent at least, even if it made him wonder about sizing. He purchased the items and stuffed them in a sack, choosing not to go directly to the ship. Supplies were needed. He made his way through several stores, coming out with a few small items and a new pulse rifle. He tapped the earpiece. "Lucie? I am on my way back.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie noted Avix's message, but didn't reply; she was too focused on the task at hand. She would probably need his help should any of the organs she was growing fail. Ideally that wouldn't happen, but a million things could go wrong with the process and it could turn out that she needed him to sew something up or reset something broken anyway.
She focused on the movements of the robotic arms. Feed tubes had been reattached, and the tank had been purged and refilled. It was time to make another attempt at internal organs and muscle.
[Concentration attempt (roll:D20+1) @Susanna [GM] ]
=== RPBot ===
@Lucie [GM] rolled 18. (17, 1)
=== Susanna [GM] ===
[Counter roll against lucie (roll:D20+1)] @Lucie [GM]
=== RPBot ===
@Susanna [GM] rolled 6. (5, 1)
=== Lucie ===
Lucie watched the loose feed tube like a hawk, repeatedly instructing the robotic arm to re-sit the fluid laden pipe. Thankfully, her diligence paid off and she was able to successfully install most necessary organs as well as the beginnings of her body's muscle and nerves.
The next step was the construction of her own brain, as well as the finalisation of her muscles and neural network. The brain would be tricky, because it would need to be built correctly to house her own computerised mind. Thanks to the original process, she had had a starting point when creating the method to inject her consciousness into an organic brain once again. All she'd really had to do was reverse engineer the original method. Easier said than done, but easier than designing the entire process herself. She set to work readying the required procedures as the physical construction of her brain began.
=== Avix ===
No reply came from the earpiece. He shrugged and continued on, choosing to make his own pace. There wasn't an emergency, so he could take the time to explore a little. The gnawing feeling in his stomach never fully went away, unconsciously quickening his pace until he reached the ship again. He stepped inside, letting our a breath of relief. Sure, here Lucie could watch him, but one person was much better than what felt like an entire planet. He stopped by the armory to drop off his shiny new rifle before finding his way back to the room containing Lucie's remains. Well, maybe not so much remains any more, he thought as he stared at the figure building in the tank. It had come a long way, quicker than he would have thought. Some organs and muscles floated around, some attached properly and others in the generally right spot. He held a hand to tank almost reverently; this process was truly an inspiring medical marvel. The moment passed and he cleared his throat and help up the bag. "I have hopefully everything you will need for a basic excursion," he announced. He looked around for a spot to set the bag, but ended up deciding to hang the clothes in a corner far from the machinery. He rambled a little as he spoke, using it to cover the slight discomfort he felt at handling another person's personal items. "Shirt, pants, jacket in case it is cold for you, socks and shoes, and -- ahem -- other items." As he spoke, he held up the items for approval. The shirt was cropped and brightly colored, matching the bright swirling lines on the jacket. The pants flared, and true to his own style, were black and somewhat loose and had at least 3 pockets for utility. Basic white socks and strappy shoes were revealed next, and finally... a matching pair of cute panties and bra, set right on top of the pile. He handled them slightly awkwardly, but did his best to keep a professional demeanor. "I hope this is okay?"
=== Lucie ===
Lucie watched through the cameras as Avix came in and stared at her tank. The body was a little grotesque at this stage; organs were suspended externally and bare muscle and bone showed between the slow, fat bubbles in the thick liquid. But he seemed to look upon it quite reverently, and his awe at the process gave her a faint sense of pride. After all, this machine had practically been her life's work.
"Welcome back, Avix. Thank you for getting me some clothes. I can't believe I forgot..." She said. She supposed that not having a body for so long meant these things were easily forgotten. It did seem like a silly thing though; clothing was such a staple.
Had she a face, Lucie would have blushed when Avix laid out clothing and underwear for her. In her previous life she had been paraded around in what was essentially underwear on multiple occasions, but it seemed so taboo when she was with a friend. Who knew if he had managed to find anything the right size either.
"Uh, well, thank you." She said awkwardly. 
Juxtaposedly, Avix seemed totally unphased by the situation. She supposed he wasn't familiar with the social norms of dressing and was blassé about the whole thing, but it was still strange to her.
She looked more carefully at the clothes, zooming her lens in on them from the central camera. They were lowborn clothes alright. A little mismatched and perhaps not the style she would have chosen, but Avix had done surprisingly well nonetheless.
"Yes those should work fine."
She turned her attention back to her machine. She had to focus if she wanted to get this new body operational without spending too much time fussing over details.
"What do you think?" She asked tentatively.
=== Avix ===
Avix was glad he had chosen acceptable items. A part of him had been worried she wouldn't like them, or of some other issue. "Do not worry about it. Not everything can be predicted, and clothing is something often taken for granted." Coming from the man who rarely wore shirts, the advice seemed a little contradictory, but it was well-intentioned. He went to the machine again, this time studying the partially-formed body within. "I am surprised at how well the process is going. Of course, the true test will be once it is fully formed." He thought for a moment. "I would suggest keeping a close eye on your body after integration. Bodies are intricate things and we want to be ready for any complications. But everything looks healthy." He looked around but saw no visible status screens. Lucie was probably fed the information directly. "You are doing a good job." He gave a rare smile.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie listened to him carefully, noting his advice. Avix was an experienced surgeon and she had seen him work, so she trusted his judgement.
In the years Lucie had spent building this machine, this artificial womb, she had never spoken to another person. The entirety of the build process had been learned from books and data libraries and speculation. She felt that if Avix had been around at the time, the process would have taken significantly less of her lonely life to complete.
She felt a weight on her nonexistent heart. So much of her life had been spent working constantly to learn mechanics and biology and programming... She would soon finally get the chance to actually live, but she would never be able to un-do her solitary past. It was hard to be optimistic after being imprisoned for so long.
"Thank you." She said, noting Avix's smile. She was fairly certain she had never seen it before.
"It's still a few days from done. I had a little setback but I'm on track now.
"But I've been monitoring the proteins and I'm a little worried."
The build relied heavily on a constant supply of protein; every time an organ was attached to a nerve or a tendon was bonded with a bone a great flood of protein was required to bind the connection correctly. A low supply would mean everything would just fall apart. The situation wasn't critical yet, but there wasn't a whole lot of room for error at this stage.
"Will you, um, stay around and help me if I need more traditional surgery?" She asked tentatively. She was concerned she had already asked too much despite Avix's reassurances, and didn't want him to think she was taking advantage.
=== Avix ===
His mind worked over the possibilities of this process. Avix was glad he was able to experience something like this, and debated on asking her for a copy of the various vitals and status reports that came of the process. It would be interesting to possibly replicate in the future and could hold value for his own research. He had no idea how long Lucie had been working on this, but it was incredibly well thought out and built. Maybe when she was done with it, and they made sure all complications were taken care of, he could inspect it. His hands itched to work with technology again, memories of his thesis work in the back of his mind. Lucie's invitation for him to stay excited him. To actually work with this process would be fantastic. "Of course. It is no problem at all," he said. "I will be back. I think it would be prudent to gather some emergency medical supplies in here to react quickly should anything go amiss." He left the room, wandering to the med lab. He was excited. The process itself wasn't the only impressive thing, but the fact that Lucie could even conceive and build it was another. He returned to the room with a satchel of supplies containing miscellaneous things like surgical tools and worked on setting them up for easy access. "So how did all of this happen? Susanna told me you were originally a firaxi with a body whose mind was melded with the ship. How long have you been like this?" he asked, finally feeling like he could ask the questions that he had been dying to ask.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie found Avix's excitement to be infectious, and she revelled his enthusiasm. When he dashed out of the room to get his medical equipment, she laughed mirthfully. This was such a dramatic turnaround in his character; it was as if he had suddenly seen his muse.
In her inherited excitement, she began to collate information on the process. While she had documented some of the plans for the machine itself, there were huge amounts of data flowing in from her DNA, as well as the entire rebuilding process. She had written code and incorporated medical equipment to monitor blood oxygen levels, muscle density, and even to closely observe and correct the attachment of nerves and veins to internal tissue. There was a lot to gather, and she was interested to see what Avix thought about it all.
When he came back, she watched him curiously as he busied himself setting up his own little doctor's corner. She was a little taken aback by his questions, but decided it was worth opening up a little. Perhaps the information would help him repair her body should he need to.
"It's a bit of a story I suppose." She said uncertainly.
"I was brought to the moon, and my mind was uploaded to the computer. Uh, what I mean is that the Maverick had a supercomputer, and the scientist put my mind into it." She paused to gather her thoughts, realising her explanation was somewhat lacking.
"According to the ship's clock, I first awoke inside the computer on the 10th of December 866." She said carefully.
She remembered the feeling of being alone and abandoned. Not hot, not cold, just... Not. She couldn't feel her fingers or toes, and she couldn't even see. The feeling of being hooked up to cables and cords was totally abstract and terrifying. Not even able to scream, Lucie had just existed in sheer terror. She never even saw the scientist leave to bury her mindless body and let it suffocate to death in the cold ground.
"I managed to link up with the AI. I started by just asking for help and it gave me a list of commands." She laughed. "Eventually, I guess a couple months later, I found my way into the AI system itself and I could look through the cameras and control the service droids and stuff."
She remembered the feeling of seeing again after so long. She could hear, she could actually influence the outside world. It wasn't as good as having a body, but it was infinitely better than that unending, blinding and deafening prison.
"I built up the Maverick again, and started making all this. I said one day I'd have a body again. It seems so soon now!" She said enthusiastically. It had been a long time since she had been genuinely excited.
=== Avix ===
Avix listened, ending up leaning against the table, arms crossed and one hand under his chin. He soaked up what she said, chittering lightly in thought. Questions rolled through his mind. He knew he had stumbled upon a gold mine, both for his personal curiosity and his research. He knew that asking for information on the method of upload she had experienced would be callous. So he settled on another question: "You have been stuck as part of a supercomputer/AI for over one hundred years?" Longer than he had been alive. Some part of him wondered what it felt like, but also knew that to be a prying question. His self control was something he worked to maintain and it wasn't going to fail him now.
Another thought bugged him. "Did you say you 'were brought' here?" It sounded as if it were against her will. While he was realistic enough to know and accept that it was a practice used, he found it distasteful and wrong like most people. Living on Port Elizabeth had shown him enough of that. Hell, he had earned his way onto the Maverick by forcefully removing the wetware from a kidnapped man. But he couldn't argue with the result. He couldn't go back in time and change what happened, so he didn't worry about it. "That is a shame. At least your time as computer is coming to an end," he offered. At least she didn't seem melancholy at the moment, so he hoped she wouldn't be offended by his questions.
=== Lucie ===
"One hundred and twenty eight." Lucie said quietly.
She'd spent what felt like her entire life preparing for what was about to happen. She'd learned mechanics, robotics, computing, biology, chemistry... All to build herself a body. After that? Well she'd have another perhaps 80 years of life. But she had already lived so long. A life in a metal box forcing oneself to just learn and build was hardly a life lived. She wanted to do something with her life.
But she supposed she had lived. It wasn't a great life, but it had been a long one. The last hundred years of studying and building had really been her life, but it was not something with which she would be satisfied.
"Have you ever heard of a House Corren fashion show?" She asked cryptically in response to his next question. "They're pretty amazing. In fact, we should visit one if we can. They happen every few months."
=== Avix ===
Oh, he did upset her. It was surely a sensitive subject. He had tried not to hit a nerve, but he regrettably did. She turned silent for a moment. Avix let her take her time. He was patient and didn't want to upset her any further. He was well aware that he was not the most charismatic person, but it was somewhat intentional. All of his life he had preferred to keep distanced from those around him. Even if he were social, he was just a very stoic person by nature. When she spoke again, he tilted his head slightly. She seemed to be changing the subject. That was fair. It seemed she didn't want to talk about her state of self any more. "I have not. I do not know much of the intricacies of firaxi culture." He knew what Houses were, but didn't really know specific Houses, let alone what one of their fashion shows was. It sounded self-explanatory and boring. "I have never been particularly fond of fashion," he said dryly.
=== Lucie ===
"Oh." Lucie said, completely failing to hide her disappointment. "Let me tell you, then." She said, brightening up again.
"House Corren was," she paused. "Well it's a major house on Galaea. It's known for its fashion. But I don't mean like the fancy dumb stuff, I mean quality, useful stuff. Stuff you'd want to be seen in."
Lucie continued to forge ahead, oblivious of Avix's complete disinterest in the topic.
"And they throw a big fashion show once every few months. All the lowborn are dressed up in the coolest stuff and we walk around the halls and the gardens showing off the new lines!"
The memories were flooding in now, and she was completely failing to separate herself from reality. She was enthralled by her own experiences.
"Sometimes, I'd get stopped by the highborn and they'd admire my outfits and my house markings, and even ask me to sit with them while they talked about the new styles and whatever business deals they were making."
She paused for a moment, reeling in her thoughts and memories.
"One time a man asked me to come and sit with him, and after a minute he told me to follow. I did, and he, well..." She trailed off. "Well he knocked me out." She said simply, a shrug in her words. "Next thing I was all tied up and there was a thing on my head and-" she cut herself off.
"Anyway, I'm here now."
Roiling thoughts swirled in her mind, flickering memories invading her thoughts. She settled back on the House Corren fashion show. She had to go to one, to be back in there and dressed in the latest fashion, to be paraded around and admired; the centre of attention.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie's body was looking much more like an actual Firaxi body now: it was completely muscled, and fat and tissue was being deposited. It was almost time to start working on the skin.
Lucie was nervous about the skin. It would be the most important part in making her look alive and well again, and one trip up in the chemical composition and it would be off-colour or impure. Not only that, but it had to be correctly distributed and creased or she would look alien. Steeling herself, she began to weave the complicated fabric of cells and chemicals which would determine if her skin was going to be what she imagined.
[Craft & Repair (roll:D20+5) @GM]
=== RPBot ===
@Lucie [GM] rolled 16. (11, 5)
=== Susanna [GM] ===
[Counter roll against @Lucie [GM] zo(roll:D20)]
=== RPBot ===
@Susanna [GM] rolled 15.
=== Avix ===
Lucie explained about the fashion show with much enthusiasm. He could tell it was something she loved, even if he didn't share the same feeling. He couldn't shake the feeling of there being something odd about the lowborn/highborn aspect, but he tried to shake it. It was a part of firaxi society and he didn't know enough to really judge. But her tone changed, and she reached the connection to his question. So it wasn't just deflecting. It was a shame to be kidnapped. She sounded so happy with her previous life before it was taken from her. He was silent for a moment, not sure what to say at first, before finally settling on "It is a shame that happened to you." It was a heavy topic, much more loaded than he had originally guessed. "You will be free soon. And maybe we can go to one of these fashion shows," he offered somewhat awkwardly. It was his best attempt at comfort. The poor girl certainly deserved it. He looked at the clothes he had bought, this time wishing he had the knowledge to have provided her with something she would actually like.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie heard the tapping in the earpiece just as she was about to answer Avix. Curious, she let it play out. She was taken aback when shouting and gunshots blasted through the earpiece. She was about to speak when she overheard Devesh speaking to someone about intervening, and meekly offered a "stay safe!"
She glanced at Avix through the camera.
"You, uh, you can go if you want to." She said. "But I might need you." She added quietly. She felt almost physically sick asking him to stay back and help her when their crew was in danger, but creating this body was her life's work and she simply could not prioritise something else which could end up not being dangerous at all. At least that's what she told herself. Surely they'd be okay. Devesh was a military man after all.
A motion detector pinged, and Lucie noticed that Lei had walked up to the bridge. Considering the terminal maps all throughout the ship, she was not surprised the woman had been able to navigate her own way up.
She noticed with a start that Lei was a firaxi, like Lucie herself had been. She performed a visual scan and her mechanical heart simultaneously sank and rose as she did not see the telltale tattoo markings of a lowborn. Lei was a highborn firaxi, and a whole life of conditioning told Lucie that Lei was simply better than her and to be treated thus. Lei, as a highborn, was as a celebrity to Lucie, and she was both ecstatic and terrified to have her aboard.
"Hello, mistress." She said over the speakers. "Welcome to the Maverick. I hope everything is acceptable."
Every little flaw with her actions and her caretaking of the Maverick sprang to the front of her mind. What if it wasn't good enough? Had she done an acceptable job?
It occurred to her that Lei did not know Lucie was a lowborn, and she relaxed a little. She could be a little less concerned for now, but with her body being formed in the tank, she was nervous of the interaction that might come.
=== Lei ===
Lei's ears twitched as she was suddenly addressed, knowing all too well that she was the one being called Mistress.... being called as such almost her entire life as of current. "Oh? You must be the welcoming committee." The Firaxi remarked with a fairly condescending tone, then it recurred to her that she was playing nice with the others first rather than looking down on everything that breathes. She has to adapt to the situation, rather than to expect it to adapt to her. Lei glanced around, looking around to see where she was being watched. 
She raised her eyebrow at the person's words, wondering if she was somewhat expected within the ship-- for now, she would play along. "Thus far, it is. Where are the ship's crew-- I would like a word with them." Her lips curled into a confident smile, enjoying the fact that she still garnered some sort of respect among the ship's crew-- despite not really knowing about them.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie tried to keep her cool as the highborn addressed her. She couldn't help but admire the woman's shoulders and chest: perfectly clear skin, unblemished by house markings. Lucie quelled her intense curiosity about the highborn's house and spoke.
"Most of the crew is, um, preoccupied at the moment." She said, unsure of how she could succinctly explain the multitude of situations happening simultaneously. How could she explain using a machine to rebuild her own body?
"But I'm the AI of the Maverick." She continued. It was almost the truth, and was the clearest answer she could give for now. "May I ask who you are? And what house do you belong to?" She asked quickly, unable to stop herself blurting out the question.
=== Lei ===
"An AI? How interesting~" She spoke as her lips curled into a playful smile. "Your quite advanced for an AI-- as well as knowledgeable and polite." She remarked, praising the ship's AI for a while then made her way towards the cockpit, knowing all too well that the AI was constantly monitoring her. "My name is Lei from the house of Corritrice." She replied simply. "Is the crew of this ship the same ones that took on those Lak Thnii earlier?" Lei threw her own question, genuinely curious whether the crew of this ship were those.... fairly capable individuals she had run in earlier. The Firaxi's hand subconsciously groped against her beamsaber's hilt, feeling sliiiiiightly queasy with the situation that she was in. An unfamiliar crew and a fairly unfamiliar ship-- thankfully, the AI helped put her at ease as it wasn't firing turbolasers at her yet, considering that she was an intruder.
"Also, why do you ask? Are you associated with the different Firaxi houses as well?" The ship didn't look like anything that a decent member of her race would use-- maybe the AI was developed by a Firaxi or something similar.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie watched Lei walk through the corridors, jumping between cameras as she moved in and out of their range.
"Thank you!" She said, starstruck by the highborn's compliment on her manners.
"Yes, Devesh, Avix and Susanna fought the lak thnii with you on G110. Devesh and Susanna are planetside, and Avix is assisting me with, uh, ship maintenance." She felt terrible about lying to this highborn, but she felt it was a necessary evil.
"I- I know of some firaxi houses." She stammered. She winced internally at her own truth-dodging, but she just couldn't expose herself so much to this newcomer, even if she was a highborn of House Corritrice.
"If I may, mistress, why were you on G110?" She asked. She knew that if the highborn knew she was a lowborn, she would probably not get away with asking the question, but she figured that considering how much she had already hazed the woman's questions, she would be able to get away with being a little more cheeky.i
=== Lei ===
"I'm travelling, but my ride hit a snag-- can I expect this one to fare better?" Lei replied without much hesitation nor problem, seeing that the AI was someone she could openly talk to-- but not to spill all of her secrets to. She recalled that injured man earlier, the one that seemed that would bleed to death but gave him little regard for now as she made her way unto the cockpit. "Is the captain of this ship present? Maybe it would be best to talk to that person for now." Lei assessed, still addressing the ship's AI. "Also, I believe it would be polite for you to introduce yourself as well, yes?" Lei shifted her attention to the closest camera, giving a gentle smile to the AI watching her.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie inferred from the woman's words that she had crashed on G110 somehow, and a hundred more questions sprung up in her computerised brain. Foremost: Why had her ship even been travelling to G110? And what had happened to the rest of the crew? Biting her metaphorical tongue for now, Lucie answered Lei's question.
"Actually, I'm the acting captain on the Maverick." She said. "My name is Lucie. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself before."
She thought for a moment, then decided to explain things a little more. If she wanted to garner trust from Lei, she would have to offer some trustworthiness of her own.
"I'm not actually an AI. Well, most of me isn't. I was originally a, uh, a person." She said carefully. "I was uploaded. It's a long story." he hoped the other woman wouldn't pry too much, but wasn't confident she wouldn't. Lucie was sure that if she had been told the same thing she would be asking many questions herself.
Steering the conversation a little, she said "are you looking for a crew? I didn't see a crew with you back on the moon."
=== Lei ===
Lei remained silent for a while from the AI's words, pondering deeply in thought as she stood infront of the cockpit's entrance, staring upon a closed door while thinking of what Lucie had just said for a moment. She crossed her arms around her chest then shifted her glance to the nearest camera, as if looking at Lucie eye to eye. "I shall level with you, Acting Captain." She began to speak, but somewhat with a calm and fairly polite tone, finally getting a beat of the personality that she would play while with others-- wanting to optimize her survival rate as well as the allies she could align herself with. Lei took that time conversing with Lucie to fully map out her emulated personality so that she wouldn't make any mistakes at all. "I have a lot of questions to ask as I'm genuinely curious-- but would you prefer to keep that to yourself for now and maybe we can talk about it when we're a lot more acquainted with each other?" She smiled at the camera, giving a slight nod to reassure Lucie that it was alright.
"And I don't mind a crew that could take me to Port Elizabeth-- I just left from Galaea recently~"
=== Lucie ===
Lei's serious words came across as almost chiding to Lucie. She had listened to orders from the highborn on many occasions, and when they had spoken to her earnestly in the past it had usually been because they were explaining something simple to her as if she was a child. "Lucie, you hold the glass by squeezing your fingers together. If you let go, it falls! I don't want to see it happen again." And so on.
She steeled her nerves and used her present untouchable predicament to her advantage and spoke her earnest feelings.
"I can answer your questions, but I have a lot to do before I can answer honestly. I do not mean to distrust you, mist- um, Lei, but I need time before I can explain.
"We may go to Port Elizabeth, but we are on Galaea now, and we are not a transport vessel."
Had she a body, Lucie was sure she would be blushing furiously now. She had never spoken to a highborn like this, and in a past life she would have been reprimanded for such outspokenness.
"But," she continued. "We are looking for crew, and would gladly take you in if you wished to join. I can't promise a life of glamour, but I can certainly provide a measure of adventure an exploration. I intend to take this ship into the stars when many would rather keep to their day-to-day lives; to live a life of freedom and discovery. Would you join?" She asked, head roaring as if she had given a speech to a crowd of thousands. This was nigh disrespect: offering a position to someone who outranked her by fathomless heights. But it was exhilirating! She was no longer confined to her lowborn status. As much as she had always loved her house, she could feel the freedom in the winds flowing from the future, and she intended to chase it.
=== Lei ===
Lei nodded at that then gently brushed the hair on her forehead back. "Sure, until then, I'll sate my curiosity." She remarked then nodded at Lucie's offer, that exactly being what she wants to happen. To leave her life of luxury paid for with repetitive cycle of duties, responsibilities and commitments-- wishing to trade such a life for one of adventure, thrill and enjoyment.... "To become a crew of this ship.... huh?" Lei spoke with a low tone, considering everything that could happen while she was travelling with people that she didn't know. The Firaxi took a deep breath but wanted to hold unto her decision-- she had left everything she had known in her life for such a life and backing out right now would simply be foolish.
"Sounds like a fun idea." Lei's lips curled into a small smile, looking at the camera with her arms crossed around her chest. "Your proposition seems quite exciting~" Lei deemed that this would be the best-- besides, if anything did anything foolish towards her-- they would meet the same end as those fools at the freighter earlier. There was a exhilarating thrill to be had when slicing up living beings with a beam saber... no wonder that its previous owner coveted the weapon....
=== Avix ===
Avix was startled by the sudden tapping from the earpiece at the same time Lucie heard it. He listened, not concerned at first until he heard gunshots. He stood straight and stiff, brows furrowed in concentration. It sounded like Susanna and Devesh had gotten into some kind of trouble. Any kind of trouble that involved guns was inherently dangerous. The message ended, leaving the two in silence. He listened to Lucie, frowning. This proposed a bit of a dilemma. There was immediate danger to the crew, but just a possible danger to Lucie. He knew the two could handle themselves, having recently seen both in combat. Still, he knew his choice was made. "I will stay. Devesh and Susanna are capable. We do not know what could possibly go wrong here." He had to see this process through. It was mostly selfish, not assisting others who were in danger for his own interest, but he couldn't resist his curiosity.
"However, I will prepare for sudden departure, if it is needed," he said, and left the room. He walked down the hallways, but before he reached the lab, he heard the voice of a woman. His hand instinctively reached for the gun at his side, but he suddenly remembered: yes, it was the firaxi woman they had picked up on that moon. He relaxed somewhat. Lucie had to have been aware of the woman. It was impossible for her to not be, most likely. He had just gotten lost in the process happening in the back of the ship and tunnel visioned.
And then he remembered: the woman had also handled herself in combat. He remembered the way she had landed on the monstrous lak thnii and shoved the saber into its head. This stranger could help Devesh and Susanna. They had provided her with a ride off of that rock, so she could pay them back by helping the crew. That is what he would say if she denied. He knew he couldn't trust her, but it was probably better than nothing. He followed the sound of voices until he found her, conversing with Lucie. He cleared his throat as he approached. "We have not been properly introduced. I am Avix, the ship's doctor," he said with a hand outstretched.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie was overjoyed to have a new crew member, especially a fellow firaxi. She was highborn, which gave Lucie conflicted feelings. On one hand, being around a highborn gave her a certain sense of security and familiarity, but on the other, she was becoming used to being her own person and not having to take orders.
Part of her consciousness which had remained with Avix noted his concern for his fellow crew members. She felt his anguish; she wanted to help too, but her current task was just too important to her. She hoped they would understand.
She monitored him walking down the hall, and saw that he was approaching where she and Lei had been conversing. She was happy to see him introduce himself, and had to choke down her own opulent introduction. Part of her was intently conscious that Lei was a highborn, and wanted to present him to her as an attendant would. But she ignored the desire. Lei wasn't even of her own house anyway.
Instead, Lucie watched passively. Had she been in the room as flesh and blood, she would have been smiling and standing to the side: A presentation of her house's wealth, seen and not heard.
=== Lei ===
Lei's ears twitched as she sensed another person coming towards her, quickly glancing back and looking at him eye to eye for a moment-- before her gaze turned to the creature's form, remembering seeing him at least once prior-- oh, yes, he was with those others that tried to treat the wounded man earlier. The firaxi pursed her lip for a moment then smiled to Avix, extending her hand to the kaiten to shake it.
"Lei Corritrice... a pleasure." She spoke with a fairly friendly sounding tone, despite having a slight aversion to kaiten due to their physical form. Lei knew all too well that this person was a member of the ship's crew and pissing off the medical officer wouldn't fare too well with her survival.
=== Avix ===
Avix shook her hand and nodded. Lei seemed like the typical image of a firaxi: polite, beautiful, and poised. It was surprising she was capable of fighting. Appearances are deceiving. She was new, but so was basically everyone on board. He could trust her just as much as the rest, he supposed. How best could he bring up helping the crew? "I know you are just getting acquainted, but there is an issue we require assistance with. The rest of the crew has responded to a distress call sent by Susanna -- the other kaiten on board. I cannot leave just yet as I am needed here. Would you assist them in my stead?" he asked. "We do not have much information at the moment, unfortunately. But I can direct you to their location and supply you with a ray gun."
=== Lei ===
Lei looked at Avix for a moment, crossing her arms around her chest for a while then looked at him from head to toe then nodded at his request, knowing all too well that these people would be her crewmates-- and needed them alive and in high spirits to make the journey across space a lot more comfortable. "Hmmm... alright, I'll gladly help-- it's going to be a bit difficult going in there blind, but it's nothing I can't handle." She spoke with an air of confidence, a smirk across her lips. She deemed the ray gun a fairly uncivilized weapon-- but might as well have it just in case.
"Come on then, direct me to where they are..."
=== Avix ===
Right then, Avix decided he probably didn't like Lei. Hey arrogance and intentionally drawn out decision annoyed him. He maintained his stoicism, though. It would be best not to make enemies, and first impressions weren't everything. "Excellent. Follow me," he stated before turning to lead her to the armory. On the way, he filled her in on the location and details of the distress call. It wasn't much, but it was obvious they had gotten into trouble. Once there, he opened the door for Lei, but only stayed long enough to grab his pulse rifle.
"I will join you when I can. In the meantime, I will gather supplies so I may leave quickly." He turned and found his way to the med lab. So it turned out Galaea wasn't as perfect as they tried to make it seem. It gave him satisfaction on some petty level. It wouldn't stop him from doing what he could to help, and not just because his crewmates were in danger. He wasn't that bad of a person. Plus, where there was violence, there was need for medical personnel.
On that note, his triage bag was ready. A satchel containing a small amount of emergency care supplies was readied and placed in the room with his rifle on top. His field medicine was rusty, but he was still a doctor, even without the ideal conditions he was used to. "What do you think of the new girl?" he asked Lucie.
=== Lucie ===
"I-" Lucie began. She was cut off as five separate alerts blared in her computer mind.
The proteins feed to her newly built body had failed, and previously bound organs were beginning to weaken. If this error was left unchecked, the body would become weaker and weaker, and before long it would fall apart entirely.
She switched her consciousness back to the build room to repair the feed. While she had been focusing on other areas of the ship, the automatic process she had left in charge had all but completed the body; flesh, skin, and all was floating serenely in the tank, platinum hair billowing about her head in the fluid.
Not pausing to admire her creation, Lucie's mind kicked into emergency mode and hastily began to work on repairing the protein feed.
Avix's earpiece blasted to life as Lucie frantically threw emergency instructions at him. She would need him now or everything would fall apart.
"Avix, get down to the build room now! I need you to repair the frayed organ connections. Use the manual override console for the robot arms; they haven't been programmed for this!"
And just as suddenly, the earpiece went quiet.
[@Avix please make a Medicine roll to operate on the body]
=== Avix ===
Suddenly Lucie spoke to him, panicked. Something had failed and the body was in danger. Good thing he had decided to stick around. He sprang into action, running down the halls until he reached the build room. He burst through the door and quickly got to work, taking control of the robotic arms. One arm steadied a camera allowing him to see his work, and two others held surgical instruments, poised and ready to spring into action on his command.
?roll d20+8
=== RPBot ===
@Avix rolled 23. (15, 8)
=== Avix ===
The arms moved skillfully, finding entrances and pathways to organs so he could begin his work. Some tissues had to be stitched together, others directy stimulated with more protein solution, and so on. He didn't know how much time passed as he focused entirely on keeping Lucie's body in one piece. Stress tensed his shoulders. Focus was etched onto his face. He tackled the surgery head on, making few mistakes once he had gotten accustomed to the use of the arms and learned how the body behaved. Some time later, he stopped. One last look over everything seemed okay to him. "How does it look?" he asked Lucie. She would be able to see things he couldn't with her knowledge on the body and process surpassing his.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie worked side-by-side with Avix for hours. Both were focusing on different tasks, but working together they were able to keep the body intact and restore the feed line without issue.
Lucie breathed a symbolic sigh of relief through the speakers when everything was in order once again.
"Everything looks good." She said in response to Avix's question. "Better than I could have hoped. Thank you!"
He had done an excellent job at repairing the partially detached organs, his extra arms giving him an advantage in working her clumsily designed manual override. No surgery scars were visible anywhere on her body at all.
Looking through her mental checklist, Lucie realised that the body was nearly complete. All that remained was to test the body off life support and begin the process of downloading her mind. A whole new wave of nerves passed through her consciousness; there was a lot that could still go wrong.
She began to cycle the fluid in the tank, replacing it with a thicker, electrolyte-filled formula. As the obscuring liquid filled the tank, Lucie noticed with a start that her old tattoos had appeared. They were faint now, but even as she watched she could see the lines thickening.
How? She asked herself incredulously. She had built the body based entirely on DNA taken from her bones. Was it possible that her house had managed to imprint her tattoos on her very DNA? Whatever had happened, the tattoos were growing back.
As Lucie started at the rapidly obscuring body, she realised she wasn't disappointed. Something about having the tattoos which tied her to her house and advertised her lowborn status gave her a sense of pride.
Whatever had happened, it had become invisible as her brand new body was entirely enveloped by the opaque liquid.
"I can't believe we've come this far." She mused aloud. "But the hardest part comes next. I hope it works out."
=== Lucie ===
It felt strange to have her own mind analysed and progressively downloaded. The process she had set up was sequentially examining, processing, and saving pieces of her computer mind, formatting and readying them to be loaded onto a biological mind once again.
The sensation made her nervous all over again, and she hoped that her feelings wouldn't affect the process.
"Okay," she said aloud over the speakers in the build room. "Everything's nearly ready. The body is alive and comatose without life support, and the system is getting ready to make an upload attempt."
She thought for a moment. Avix had been so helpful during this process, and she knew she would not have a body at all without him. But she needed to be alone for this next step. It wasn't technically necessary for the process, but for her own comfort, she felt that she had to be completely focused.
"Avix," she started, then paused, thinking about how to word her request. "I think for this next part I need to be alone." She wanted to apologise or offer an explanation, but she didn't really have one. It would just be wrong to go through such an intimate brain-melding process with an observer.
=== Avix ===
A look at a clock showed him more time had passed than he thought. Hours. Avix felt like he needed a break; it was the most intense surgery he had been a part of in some time. Last time would have been when that poor human was brought in with barely half a body; the man had run in front of a cargo carrier and been eviscerated. Luckily Lucie's rebuild was much more successful. Once he was given the okay, he finally relaxed, sighing heavily and leaning against the console. He could relax. He looked at the tank and the floating body, feeling the success surge through him. I helped with that, he thought. It would be soon that he would be able to see Lucie in the flesh. The thought was almost odd. He had been used to addressing the ship. He wondered what possible side effects could linger from being part of an AI? He watched the tank fill with another fluid, obscuring the body -- her body. He supposed it was close enough that he could stop referring to it so impersonally. He listened to her and nodded. It was time. She wanted to be alone. He wanted to ask if she was sure, just in case something happened, but something in her voice stopped him. Resolution? Nerves? He didn't know what it was, but decided to leave well enough alone. "I will leave, then. I will stay nearby in case you need me," he said with a nod. It made him a little nervous to leave her alone at such an integral part of the process. What if she couldn't speak? What if she fell from the tank and cracked her skull open? He left the room, but elected to stick close. The armory would do. Hopefully the distance was okay for her.
=== Lucie ===
Lucie watched through the cameras as Avix left, sealing and locking the door behind him. It was probably a dangerous move to seal off ones own medical support, but she had decided she didn't want anyone else to be there. Last time someone else had been present during this procedure, they had locked her in a box and left her to die. No matter how much she trusted Avix, she couldn't let anyone be nearby.
Now that the body was on life support, Lucie began the process of removing it from the suspension fluid. Carefully so as not to break any bones or damage any organs, Lucie activated the capsule's mechanism.
Agonisingly slowly, the capsule moved out from the wall and rotated on a horizontal axis, laying the body down on the flat rear side of the tube. The fluids drained fully, and Lucie saw her new body lying under the glass, skin slick with residual oil-like fluid. It was surreal looking at herself from this viewpoint. And it was like looking at herself; the procedure had been a huge success and the body was exactly the same as her original one. The glass tube slid back, and the body lay silently in the room, pristine and fresh.
Diodes guided by the robotic arms - now attached to the sides of the stasis tube-cum-table - were linked to her head, and the supercomputer system began to ready the previously extracted consciousness.
Lucie remembered the first time she underwent this procedure. It was a time of panic and pain, a horrible moment she would rather forget. But now it was happening by her own choice. Her nerves jittered around like living things buzzing inside her metal case. it was now or never.
The process began and Lucie's thoughts stretched to oblivion, torn asunder by connections being unmade and remade in a totally different environment. Her synthesised neurons were brutally rewritten and connected to those of the body, and intense pain shot through every nerve. She had not realised how dull her computerised mind had become to pain and every single physical impulse was a horiffic needle through her skin and organs. But she could feel them! She could feel the body! It was the worst pain she had ever known, but she concentrated and tried to get past it. The procedure was well underway.
[Ignore Pain (roll:d20+1) @Susanna [GM]]
=== RPBot ===
@Lucie [GM] rolled 15. (14, 1)
=== Susanna ===
[Counter roll (roll:d20)]
=== RPBot ===
@Susanna [GM] rolled 4.
=== Lucie ===
For what felt like hours, Lucie's mind was wracked with pain. Tens of billions of synthesised neurons were torn from her computer mind, taken apart, and read into her biological brain one by one. Every single time, she felt a new part of her mind and body flare to life with a harsh prick of pain. She didn't know how long the process took, nor if she screamed aloud with the pain, but she managed to push through it and her thoughts swirled back into place like stinging nettles grinding against the inside of her skull.
She sat up.
She sat up. But it didn't fully register.
There was something smeared on the camera she was looking through, and she tried to switch to another, but nothing happened. The camera burned.
That doesn't happen. She thought.
She blinked, and felt her face move. Everything rushed back, and she gasped aloud. Suddenly she could see her own arms and legs, her naked, fleshy body slick with the last of the suspension fluid was right there under her.
She started breathing quickly, and felt liquid catch in her lungs. She coughed repeatedly, clearing her brand new airways of gunk. It was a horrible feeling, being alive: her limbs ached, her organs strained, and her ears, nose and eyes all felt full of the nasty liquid which had kept her alive.
She looked up at the room, eyes wide and blinking. Everything was completely different. Her years of looking down from the ceiling had turned her viewpoint upside down and her new eyes were quickly making her feel nauseated. She squeezed her eyes shut again.
It took some time before the reality of the situation really dawned on her, and she began to cry. Thick, unattractive sobs shook her whole body - her body - and she could feel every little muscle twinge and every movement. She felt real.
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