A-044 The Metal Plague

== CACG Item File ==
Item A-044 is a sentient swarm of nanites capable of infecting organic hosts and self-replication. After infection, a host for A-044 will begin experiencing delirium, fevers, and ██████████████. Three days after infection, A-044 will start subconsciously manipulating the host's psyche, exerting the hive mind's control over the infected. After a week, A-044 will begin to convert the host's organic tissues into synthetic analogues. Upon this stage of infection, hosts are considered to be highly infectious. All staff interacting with patients of A-044 in this stage are to wear respirators rated for nanotechnological threats.
A-044 was first identified after a bioterrorist attack on Camelotian soil by Group of Interest "Iron Front," and subsequently contained alongside all hosts. Since initial containment, devices have been devised to expel the A-044 "infection" from the body, as well as distinguish A-044 hosts from the general population. A-044 is generally thought to be curable until the tissue replacement phase, after which care shifts from expelling the nanites to disabling their connection to the hive mind. As of writing, only █ subjects infected with A-044 have received this post-replacement treatment. Should no intervention be taken, A-044 infection will eventually result in full-body tissue replacement, effectively making the host a fully synthetic lifeform. To date however, only █ cases recorded by the CACG have resulted in this full transformation.
All samples of Item A-044 are to be secured in a standard high-security biohazard enclosure in the Vitae Biochemical Sector of GEO-7. A-044 "colonies" are stored in a high-strength canister with an electromagnetic trapping function to prevent vessel breaches. A-044's enclosure is to be separated from the rest of the sector with an airlock equipped with an electromagnetic interference dynamo to effectively "kill" any possible A-044 instances on employees exiting the enclosure. Should A-044 instances be found in the field, they are to be retrieved and scrubbed of possible contaminants (host tissues/cells, etc.) and stored alongside the rest. As of writing, the Group is in possession of three canisters of A-044.
Category:CACG Anomalies