collab:BlueJonesDrMoned

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"To be the first to enter the cosmos, to engage, single-handed, in an unprecedented duel with nature—could one dream of anything more?"

Yuri Gagarin, Russian Cosmonaut


Noah blinked himself back into reality, looking away from the giant logo that hung above him, the blue falcon logo looking down on him sternly. He looked around to distract himself from the memory. The lights in the reception flickered on and off again like they were slowly dying before a loud shout from far away can be heard. He turned slowly in his suit to see a woman in a dark blue business suit walk down to him with a clipboard in her hand. Her hair was tucked into a bun at the back with a hair clip to keep it in place.

"Noah," she said in a bored tone. "The oxygen machine is working wonderfully here. Should be ab— why are you wearing a spacesuit? I told you the air in here is clean."

"What?" Noah yelled from inside his suit. "You gotta use your comm link! I can't hear you!"

She looked him up and down in that same bored gaze and removed his helmet. "I said the station is good sir. Please take this seriously, we are in a historical area."

"Sam," Noah said, shaking his head with a smile on his face. "We are exploring! At least have a bit of fun with this! For all we know, the air could have been poisoned, or a zombie virus could have got on here! We don't know if this is safe!"

Sam looked at Noah and rolled her eyes. He looked up again to see the lights come on properly as the logo loomed over them. The one piercing eye stared down on them as the bird looked like it was about to take flight. He turned back to Sam, who then looked up and then back at him, same bored expression on her face.

"Er… Sorry, Sam. Shall we go in?"

Noah looked beyond the reception into a corridor as it flickered to life. He walked down the corridor, looking through the different windows embedded in the doors. Sam's heels clacked on the metal floor and she shook her head whenever Noah stopped to peer into the next door. The corridor was spotless, little more than stale air was in the station. The further they got, however, the more dim the lights were. Noah turned on his suit's light to add more visibility, while Sam continued on with her clipboard in hand.

As Noah peered into another door, it suddenly opened with an empty shell of a Peregrine model falling on top of him. He let out a small yelp as it fell, causing Sam to turn her head. She dropped her clipboard and walked over to him. She shook her head and grabbed the model off of him.

"For Vince's sake, get back sir. I'll check this room for dangers."

She moved in and pulled out her pistol while Noah moved further back, breathing heavily. He sat there and looked into the dead white eyes of the soulless machine on the floor. His heart rate slowly calmed down as he closed his eyes. He pondered to himself, in that dimly lit corridor, what it felt like to be more than human. But also more than just a sapient machine….


The computer miraculously booted up. Noah reverently brushed the dust off the worn, black keyboard. A logo flashed up followed by a login screen with the phrase "Anderson Research Center" being displayed.

Noah paused. He hadn't expected a password lock. Sam seemed to have disappeared off somewhere and the old robot would be no help, he sighed. Might as well try the obvious one, he knew the company was formed around 1990, but not quite when.

Maybe 12062025, the first official Anderson outer earth orbit station was launched, he remembered his grandad telling him all about it.

Bingo!

He was in, with a few clicks he had navigated to the documents folder of the computer. He was about to open the blueprints file— when he saw another folder right at the bottom of the list, "Expansion." While he was here, he might as well take a look.

Gasping, he read through the folder, blueprints for AI and machines that hadn't seen the light of day. Ideas for ship AI that never came to fruition. He eagerly scanned through the remaining documents, his eyes glowing and his mind abuzz with potential. Too soon he reached the end, the final document displayed the name "Nanites," it didn't seem to be a blueprint, rather a transcript of a kind, he eagerly opened it.

Subject: Noah Frostman
Subject Age: 6

Version 3.0.7 nanites have successfully integrated with subjects bloodstream, no adverse effects discovered. The procedure went smoothly, the subject is scheduled to come out of surgery within 24 hours. All additional modifications have interfaced with the nanites, no system errors detected.

Transfer: Successful

Update Log - 14. Age-7

Subject is displaying heightened movement levels for a child its age, the nanites seem to be correctly enhancing existing muscles causing greater mobility.

Update Log - 59. Age-12

The upgraded 3.1.8 nanites have been inserted into subjects bloodstream. However, complications during the procedure were discovered. It seems that the older the child is the harder the integration process is as the body started to reject the nanites. The subject is currently stabilised and being held in stasis.

Transfer: Partial failure

Update Log - 60. Age-12

The subject has been removed from stasis, no further adverse effects have been detected.

Transfer: Successful

Update Log - 102. Age-15

Subject has displayed extremely high mental and physical aptitude. A brief checkup was performed and the body seems to have completely assimilated the nanites as its own.

Noah if you ever find this, I am sorry. In the downfall of Anderson Robotics as a company, we tried one last huge experiment…
You have… augmentations. Watching you grow up filled me with joy and pride, the machines didn't change anything. As Vince said, You aren't fully human, but you are very much more than a machine.

- Grandad Phineas.


Quote found here: http://www.seasky.org/quotes/space-quotes-space-travel.html

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