Aberrant: The Middle Children of History - Echo Infinity

[Mech]

"Shae's got the right of it Jager. At least here we have a measure of privacy, and the room and power grid to run the equipment."

He looks to Shae. "Whatever's fine. I don't know that we should leave in case there's some need for us, but if need be I can go just about anywhere instantly if there's something we'd need."

[z017]

Shae looked the movie star over for a moment and grinned. She seemed about to say something, then glanced at Jager and back to Mech.

"I meant y'know, like cards. We should probably stick around, just in case Geni decides the hotel needs a new dimension or something."

[Mech]

Mech visibly relaxes. "Another nova that actually enjoys playing cards, or can at least tolerate it. As I said I think it best if we remain here."

He smiles. " I can get a deck easy enough if there isn't one already here." He gets up and searches the room and suprisingly finds a sealed deck of cards. "I'll be damned." He holds up the cards. "I didn't really expect to find a deck, but it does save me a quick jaunt to some store."

"So what game shall we play?" He opens the pack and starts shuffling making multiple random piles and then shuffling them together and doing it again without looking at them..

[Jager]

"Well ... we are one shy for bridge. We could play Spades, Hearts, or Poker. We could take stuff out of the mini-bar to play for!"

Jager grins, totally missing out on the whole dynamic of two beautiful adults in a hotel room together. But that's okay. He's still a kid.

[z-Infinity]

Infinity watched them play around with the cards; after a moment, she pulled out her drawing pad and started to sketch them. It was something to do, while she waited, that wasn't playing a card game.

[SalmonMax]

At that moment Genesis walked into the room everyone was waiting in and sat down on the bed nearest the windows. She gave everyone a wan smile, though her eyes had that unfocused look that suggested she wasn't really paying attention to what was in front of them. In her hands was a device that looked kind of like a video game control pad, with more buttons. A lot more buttons.

"Hey guys, how's it going?" she asked absently. "Infinity, just about ready?"

[z-Infinity]

"Well, I still have to remove my piercings," Infinity said, pushing her drawing pad off her knees and standing. "I'll, uh, be right back." She exited to the bathroom, closing the door tightly behind her. It took a couple of minutes, but she got everything out of her body and tucked into her pocket. Hopefully, she wouldn't have to get anything repierced to get them back where they belonged.

Stepping back out into the main room, she said, "Ready when you are."

[SalmonMax]

Genesis nods and looks at her little...whatever the hell it is.

"Good deal. Right on time." She gestures with her head towards the door. "Come on over."

Then she's out and going back next door to where whatever it is that she's got set up is waiting.

When Infinity pushes through the other room's door, she sees a room transformed.

Sitting between the two beds is a large contraption that consists of three broad, horizontal metal rings held together by a few vertical bars. Between them an LCD screen is mounted, facing into the rings, at about head height. On the beds themselves, part of the 'ring-thing' are machines of unknown purpose, though she guesses the one that's humming and has volt symbols on it is some kind of power supply. The dressing area right outside the bathroom has been made into something resembling Mission Control at Cape Kennedy. Monitors and controls completely conceal the original wall space.

Genesis is fiddling with the ring-machine. When she hears the door open, she unlatches something, and swings a portion out, making a space big enough for Infinity to get through into the middle of it all.

"Okay, if you have anything metal or electronic, just set it down on the AC there by the window, them hop in and we'll see what makes you tick," the nova scientist says cheerfully. Only at the end does she step aside and turn around to beam at Infinity.

[z-Infinity]

Infinity stared at all the stuff in the room for a long moment, not floored by how rapidly Genesis had gotten this in and set it up, but trying to see what it did. She'd grown up with such minor miracles, and she's suspected that Genesis would be capable of nothing less.

Moving to the built-in unit, Infinity deposited the contents of her pockets on the AC, which included a handful of coins, her cigarettes and her lighter in addition to the removed piercings. After another moment's thought, she stripped off her shoes and jeans and dropped them next to the unit. Reaching under her shirt, she wiggled out of her bra and added that to the pile. She wasn't sure it was a metal underwire, but she didn't want to risk it.

"Ok," she mumbled, climbing into the device and letting Genesis close her inside of it. "Now what do I do?"

[SalmonMax]

"Now we do biometrics," Genesis replied. With a fizzing noise and a momentary blur of light she produced a pair of round-lensed tinted goggles that she put on. They gave her grin a sort of 'mad science' look, and the dimly visible readouts and data on the lenses didn't detract from that.

There was a clunk, and the hum cycled up in pitch an octave. Dark metal strips set into the loops that now surrounded Infinity began to rotate around her.

"Up above your head there's a metal plate with four vinyl pads," Genesis said over the sound of the machine starting. "Pull those down. The two on short wires go on your temples. The two on long coiled wires go on your wrists."

Investigating, Infinity discovered the pads, each about the size of an earbud headphone speaker with a little metal plate showing through a hole in the vinyl. Some clear goo covered the metal. When she cautiously cleared away her bangs and stuck a pad to her temple, it did stick there. The goo was cold for a moment, but warmed almost immediately...and got sticky when it did. The wrist pads were on cords like phone wires, in tight coil that gave her some freedom of movement even in the tight confines of the rings.

Genesis turned away to mess with the instruments over near the bathroom door. As she did, she called, "Going to turn your display on now, so you can see a scaled back version of the data I'm getting..."

The LCD screen that was directly in front of her face lit up with a blob of mixed greys, all sort of moving around. It took her a second to realize it was an image of herself, like an X-ray, sort of, only it didn't really show bones. Aside from the fact that it had her outline, in fact, and moved when she did, she wasn't sure WHAT it was showing.

"This is a modified MRI I developed," Gen says happily from where she's working. "With data from the EEG and cardio monitor thrown in. Just getting some baseline readings now, so try to relax and stay still for a couple of minutes."

It's hard to see, but Infinity can just make out that she's got three screens, with multiple images on each one, all of them showing different patterns of light and dark...some are rotating as she talks. Scaled back, indeed.

[Mech]

In the other room they'd moved onto poker. "I'll Call. Three Jacks whatcha got?" Connor said laying down his cards, showing the Jacks of Diamonds, Clubs, and Spades. He looked at the others. They were playing for fun as such nobody was betting, which was good in the end since they weren't all legal.

[SalmonMax]

Whatever it was Genesis was doing didn't take long. A few minutes maybe, and she said, "Okay" in a cheery voice. She inspected the images a moment.

"Looks like you're in pretty good health, except you smoke too much...see the reduced blood flow and nerve activity in your lungs there? Definitely a non-erupted nova. You've got node tissue running all through you, and judging by the sheer volume I'd say it's pretty burly..."

She squinted and tapped something, then went on, "I don't see any real activity though. No changes in physical constants measured. I'll be damned."

Genesis grinned and looked over at Infinity, pushing her goggles up onto her forehead.

"I think you're the real thing."

[SalmonMax]

Whatever it was Genesis was doing didn't take long. A few minutes maybe, and she said, "Okay" in a cheery voice. She inspected the images a moment.

"Looks like you're in pretty good health, except you smoke too much...see the reduced blood flow and nerve activity in your lungs there? Definitely a non-erupted nova. You've got node tissue running all through you, and judging by the sheer volume I'd say it's pretty burly..."

She squinted and tapped something, then went on, "I don't see any real activity though. No changes in physical constants measured. I'll be damned."

Genesis grinned and looked over at Infinity, pushing her goggles up onto her forehead.

"I think you're the real thing."

[z-Infinity]

This was kind of a drag, and much like every other exam that had been done on her before: plug her into stuff and take readings for hours. At least this time it was blissfully short. Genesis's assessment was much like everyone else's - too much smoking, your body looks like a zips, yadda-yadda, ad infinitum. Then Genesis finally said something interesting.

"The real... what?" Infinity said, unsure of what the woman - who was rapidly taking the label of "mad scientist" in her mind - meant by that phrase. "You mean you believe me?"

[z-Infinity]

This was kind of a drag, and much like every other exam that had been done on her before: plug her into stuff and take readings for hours. At least this time it was blissfully short. Genesis's assessment was much like everyone else's - too much smoking, your body looks like a zips, yadda-yadda, ad infinitum. Then Genesis finally said something interesting.

"The real... what?" Infinity said, unsure of what the woman - who was rapidly taking the label of "mad scientist" in her mind - meant by that phrase. "You mean you believe me?"

[SalmonMax]

"That you don't have any powers?" Gen asks. She seems about to say something, then pauses and shifts gears.

"What if I said you didn't?" she asks. "What if I said, for all my magic science hoo-doo, I couldn't see any evidence of powers. What would that mean to you?"

[SalmonMax]

"That you don't have any powers?" Gen asks. She seems about to say something, then pauses and shifts gears.

"What if I said you didn't?" she asks. "What if I said, for all my magic science hoo-doo, I couldn't see any evidence of powers. What would that mean to you?"

[z-Infinity]

Infinity rolled her eyes. "Absolutely nothing, because I already know that I don't have powers," she said, her voice angry. It wasn't hard to set her off apparently; she seemed quite bitter about her lack of abilities. "And that today was a waste of time; the whole purpose is to find powers, not tell me what I already know."

She awkwardly crossed her arms around the coiled cords connected to her wrists, feeling vulnerable in just a shirt and underwear.

[z-Infinity]

Infinity rolled her eyes. "Absolutely nothing, because I already know that I don't have powers," she said, her voice angry. It wasn't hard to set her off apparently; she seemed quite bitter about her lack of abilities. "And that today was a waste of time; the whole purpose is to find powers, not tell me what I already know."

She awkwardly crossed her arms around the coiled cords connected to her wrists, feeling vulnerable in just a shirt and underwear.

[SalmonMax]

Genesis nods. "Hypothetical question, really. Your node is doing something. Not quite sure what, but it's -something-."

She hesitates, then takes a thumbdrive out of her pocket and hooks it up to the device Infinity stands within. A moment later she unplugs it and waves a hand. With a hiss and haze of waste light, Infinity finds herself in an ordinary motel bedroom again.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you what you want to hear," Alex says sincerely. "Your node is active, but I'll be damned if I can figure out what it's doing. I can only make inferences. One, it must be something that requires a fair amount of power, because your node is both large and strong...which generally results from consistent exercise. Two, it must be something almost purely internal, because the laws of physics are rock solid around you."

She shrugs. "Want to go next door and shoot the shit for a bit before you go? I'll spring for pizza and beer, just so it's not a total wash for you."

[SalmonMax]

Genesis nods. "Hypothetical question, really. Your node is doing something. Not quite sure what, but it's -something-."

She hesitates, then takes a thumbdrive out of her pocket and hooks it up to the device Infinity stands within. A moment later she unplugs it and waves a hand. With a hiss and haze of waste light, Infinity finds herself in an ordinary motel bedroom again.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you what you want to hear," Alex says sincerely. "Your node is active, but I'll be damned if I can figure out what it's doing. I can only make inferences. One, it must be something that requires a fair amount of power, because your node is both large and strong...which generally results from consistent exercise. Two, it must be something almost purely internal, because the laws of physics are rock solid around you."

She shrugs. "Want to go next door and shoot the shit for a bit before you go? I'll spring for pizza and beer, just so it's not a total wash for you."

[z-Infinity]

Infinity, despite her bitter words just moments ago, felt disappointment slip through her. "Well, thanks for that much," she said, then winced and tried again. "I'm really glad you tried. Thanks. Pizza sounds fine, too. Thanks."

Getting her clothes and jewelry, she quickly dressed again. Some of her piercings wouldn't just go back in; she'd need to see her piercer again. No big deal, really, but it seemed one more hassle after a disappointing day.

Dressed, she went next door. Before she entered, she forced a smile on her face. "I have a big, bad node that doesn't so anything," she announced, then shrugged. "Go me and my awesome do-nothing self."

She tried really hard to make it a joke.

[z-Infinity]

Infinity, despite her bitter words just moments ago, felt disappointment slip through her. "Well, thanks for that much," she said, then winced and tried again. "I'm really glad you tried. Thanks. Pizza sounds fine, too. Thanks."

Getting her clothes and jewelry, she quickly dressed again. Some of her piercings wouldn't just go back in; she'd need to see her piercer again. No big deal, really, but it seemed one more hassle after a disappointing day.

Dressed, she went next door. Before she entered, she forced a smile on her face. "I have a big, bad node that doesn't so anything," she announced, then shrugged. "Go me and my awesome do-nothing self."

She tried really hard to make it a joke.

[SalmonMax]

Alexandra stayed behind for a moment as Infinity left. Her obvious disappointment stung a bit more than she'd expected. She'd really thought she'd be able to find something.

And she sort of had...but not what she'd expected. Mysteries weren't something Alex encountered often; Infinity was one though. Where had she been when Alex was working on these questions instead of...bah!

She looks at the thumbdrive she'd done the data dump to. Matter she made was impermanent, but information could still be transferred to something that was real. It'd have to be a side project...but it'd give her something to do while numbers were being crunched and the Directive was being appeased.

With that, she heads over to the other room, entering behind Infinity.

"Who wants what on their pizzas?"

[SalmonMax]

Alexandra stayed behind for a moment as Infinity left. Her obvious disappointment stung a bit more than she'd expected. She'd really thought she'd be able to find something.

And she sort of had...but not what she'd expected. Mysteries weren't something Alex encountered often; Infinity was one though. Where had she been when Alex was working on these questions instead of...bah!

She looks at the thumbdrive she'd done the data dump to. Matter she made was impermanent, but information could still be transferred to something that was real. It'd have to be a side project...but it'd give her something to do while numbers were being crunched and the Directive was being appeased.

With that, she heads over to the other room, entering behind Infinity.

"Who wants what on their pizzas?"