Aberrant: Stargate Universe - How to dance a razor's edge.

[Omar]

When Omar suggested a class on controlling taint to SG command, they were skeptical of it's benefits and at first, refused. When Omar told them of the hazards that highly tainted novas presented, and how far along some of them might be already, they relented. His request also included the use of an off-world location where they could practice without damaging structures around them. Omar suggested the Alpha-site, for both its security and remote locations. It might take as many as 10 all day trips to accoplish the training.

Omar stood at the edge of a large clearing, surrounded on 3 sides by forests, and a cliff wall on the fourth. Other than the buzzing of millions of insects around them, there were no other sounds. He looked over at Kyria, then at the others assemble around him. Other than stripping him of his taint and most of his other powers, Omar was not sure if he could powermax safely. Early on, it was very difficult for him, but became easier as his powers grew. He told himself that he had to do this, even if he picked up taint.

"Any questions before we begin?"

((OOC: this fic is open to all SG personnel))

[Adrian Moss]

Major Caine was there even though he wasn't sure what this whole thing was about. It was't like he felt much drain on himself no matter what he did. He certainly didn't have 'powers'. This tied into taint though and that was a problem for all the Specialists. Damien hadn't ordered his team mates to attend. He prefered that they find the curiousity in themselves to seek these answers. Maybe fear would drive them, but he hoped that wasn't the case.

For right now, he sat back and watched. He would hold his questions until Omar had a chance to make his presentation. Time they still had, he hoped. After all, if something was wrong with any of his team mates, they would let him know.

[Ryan Hawke]

Ryan shifted uncomfortably. He'd not really manifested any powers like some of the others, his gifts were predominantly just enhanced versions of his own. This "Taint" Kyria and Omar mentioned was something he wanted to know more about.

Without knowing it he too shared Caine's concerns over what could happen.

He smiled at his subordinate. "Let's start with the basics. What exactly is Taint, and how does it affect us?"

[Forge]

Vinny stood languidly off to one side. He was here because he heard Kyria and Liv would be here. All this talk of 'taint' and going crazy was all well and good, but he didn't trust much that would come out of the alien's mouth.

Not that he couldn't chew the meat and spit out the bones, but he didn't expect anything but scraps of gristle.

Ignoring the idle chatter, he snuck looks at Liv as she stood near her CO. She appeared to be listening intently to everything going on, soaking it up like a human sponge.

He's such a fuckin' douche.

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

Olivia stood near Damien, taking a certain amount of comfort in the presence of her team. The Taint-issue was still tormenting her; she'd had nightmares of waking up to find that every specialist on base had grown tentacles overnight. That was only slightly worse than her nightmare of waking up to find that everyone else had dead silver eyes.

She shook her head at the request for questions; she'd wait until later.

[Omar]

,,

Quote:

"Let's start with the basics. What exactly is Taint, and how does it affect us?"

Omar essentially repeated what he said to the others in the DFAC the week before: "Taint is a reality for all us. Taint happens when the human body is exposed to toxic levels through channeling quantum energies. It is also called 'QBS' or 'Quantum Backlash Syndrome'. If you push your powers, there is a chance that the quantum energies can feedback through your body. When this happens enough times, physical and mental changes occur. Sometimes they are annoying...other times, they can be disastrous; hampering every aspect of your lives."

Omar decided that he needed to be more delicate this time as the reaction he received, both from the others and from SG command, was negative. "Sometimes you just acquire taint...it happens eventually over a long period of time, even if you don't push your powers. It also can happen at the moment of eruption. 'Eruption' is the term we use when someone gains the ability to channel quantum energy. I'm sure you have seen some of your teammates with strange eyes or auras- those are outward physical expressions of taint at a sufficient level to cause physical changes. There can be mental changes as well where memory becomes faulty, or you have problems controlling your temper or sex drive. Dementa, Delusions and Multiple Personality Disorder are not uncommon either. Essentially, as the Taint levels grow, you become less and less human. Eventually, you lose all your humanity and at that point, you will no longer cease to exist. You will have become a rabid animal who is a danger to all those around you."

Omar paused to let that sink in. "We are here today, to learn how to control our powers. The fastest way to get taint is to use your powers without knowing the do's and don'ts."

[Courier]

Steve paid attention to what Omar was saying but also glanced at Kyria occasionally. His impression was the two had very different experiences on this subject.

Originally Posted By: Omar

Omar paused to let that sink in. "We are here today, to learn how to control our powers. The fastest way to get taint is to use your powers without knowing the do's and don'ts."

*And some of us with a view towards the future think this kind of study would be useful in general...*

[Adrian Moss]

"Is there an effective way to jugde how much someone's been altered by taint and to figure out what their manifestations are? Did they have something like that were you came from, and, if so, can you help us develop a way of creating such technology (and finding a way to cheat it if necessary)?"

Livy was here and that would ALMOST be good enough. Caine would prefer Gwyn and especially Declan be here for the first-hand training. There was no way Caine would give up on Declan just because some damn disease was trying to rewire his mind. NO WAY IN HELL.

[Rorx]

Gwyn finally found his way throgh the surrounding forest, still cursing the stupid airman and his directions in four langauges under his breath.

"Sorry I'm late, Major, Captains", he says nodding towards Omar as he makes his way over to the other of his team.

[Omar]

Quote:

"Is there an effective way to jugde how much someone's been altered by taint and to figure out what their manifestations are? Did they have something like that were you came from, and, if so, can you help us develop a way of creating such technology (and finding a way to cheat it if necessary)?"

"Aside from the outward physical oddities, mental changes, and other bizzare things...no." Omar had to suppress a chuckle. "There is no device which says...'You are 50% of the way to becoming a taint-maddened beast'. It is a guessing game. However, when you get closser to the end-stages of taint-sickness, it will be impossible to hide how far along you are. You will neither look nor act human. What we do know, is that at low levels, taint will cause no changes to the body."

Quote:

"Sorry I'm late, Major, Captains"

"You can have your fellow specialists brief you on what you have missed. The important part is that you are here."

Omar continued. "As you know, when you activate your powers, you can feel a surge of energy. That surge is the quantum from the surrounding universe, being manipulated and channeled by specialized cells called farahcytes. The energy should flow through your body. Do not...I repeat..DO NOT, hold the energy in your body. We will learn about that later. I would like everyone who is able, to activate one of your power to familiarize themself with their normal usage."

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

"A few questions. Can you please define 'act human'?" Olivia piped up. "Some of the changes you mentioned at our little talk are definitely human behaviors, just abnormal ones. Please don't think I'm trying to pick; it's just very important that we understand exactly what is happening to us. Is it possible for someone to have a natural imbalance of hormones that causes the rage you mentioned - which happens to non-specialists - and not by Taint? And if so, can medical science differentiate?

"Also, what about those of us who have no powers? What can we do during this exercise?"

[Adrian Moss]

"Me too," Caine says then explains, "My power seems to be the ability to remember other people's experiences and meld them seemlessly with my own. It's always active and not something I feel I need to 'cut on'."

"I don't suppose this makes us more resistant to taint, does it?"

[Forge]

Vinny couldn't help himself, he had been asked to use his powers and that little boy inside him that used to get his kicks from lighting firecrackers in the clutches of scorpions jumped out and took over.

He wasn't stupid though, the clearing was large and he wasn't trying to make it a large explosion. The black mortar flew over the heads of everyone gathered and off towards the other end of the field and exploded, causing a thump in everyone's chest.

heh

[Adrian Moss]

Caine caught the movement out of the corner of his eye as Vinny did what he felt he had to do. Forewarned, he didn't flinch when the blast went off. He just got the look - the look an older brother got when his younger brother jumped out from behind the sofa with a bath towel for a cape and a face-action lightsaber, while older brother was with his date.

You expect such dumb crap because they are emotionally stunted. Yelling at them only empowers them. Paying attention to them only empowers them. Best to let it slide like water off a duck's back.

Mind you, Caine was also keenly aware this was the same sort of display he had used to nearly annihalate SG-8 when he had been with Olivia. He wondered how that memory would mesh with this action. He would be finding out any second.

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

The mortar wasn't black to her; it was a fiery comet of light that arched over the group to the clearing. As she stared at it, it exploded and Olivia did jump - sideways into Caine. He caught her immediately and held her instinctively. A second later, Olivia caught herself and stepped away, mumbling an apology and biting back the odd urge to call Vinny an asshole.

But she quickly had more to worry about. Around her, those novas with powers were lighting up in an array of colors and lights, as if each were a prism with the light shining through. Olivia's jaw dropped as she stared wide-eyed around at the brilliant display. It was like when Declan had glowed with the golden light.

What is wrong with me? she wondered.

[Adrian Moss]

"Olivia, what's the problem," he whispers to his Mental Specialist. She was looking around as if looking for something, or more likely, looking at something knew. Caine followed her gaze, but saw nothing too out of the ordinary or out of place. Nothing came to us.

"What are you seeing? What's wrong?" He reached out and held her hand. "Describe the situation to me."

Click to reveal..

(16:06:35) ChatBot: (Adrian) rolls 6d10 and gets 4,10,10,6,3,5 = 2 dice in Synergy to help Olivia see.

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

"It's the thing on Abydos," she whispered, as slow understanding crossed her face. "I... Damien, I can see their powers!" She stared at everyone, a grin on her face. "They're so pretty! All bright lights and colors, like prisms of light. I'll have to figure out what they all mean, but... this is just amazing. Vinny's bomb was..." She paused, feeling deja vu. Shaking it off quickly, she said, "It was like this fire-soaked comet... just beautiful."

[Omar]

Quote:

"A few questions. Can you please define 'act human'?" Olivia piped up. "Some of the changes you mentioned at our little talk are definitely human behaviors, just abnormal ones. Please don't think I'm trying to pick; it's just very important that we understand exactly what is happening to us. Is it possible for someone to have a natural imbalance of hormones that causes the rage you mentioned - which happens to non-specialists - and not by Taint? And if so, can medical science differentiate?

"Also, what about those of us who have no powers? What can we do during this exercise?"

"That's a lot of questions, and I might not be able to answer your questions to your satisfaction." Omar began to wonder what he got himself into. "But I'll try and address each of them."

"To you first question about acting human...If I was to say that someone who consumes rocks or salt as a necessary part of their diet, would you say that was human? What about someone who needs exposure to high concentrations of radiation, like plutonium or toxic substances like arsenic? How about the man who is so afraid of babies that he falls to the ground in spasms. Or the woman who inhabits other's bodies so she can kill and wreak havok for the enjoyment?"

"You second question is a good one. As Nova, we are still what we were before in many cases, except that disease and other more mundane problems no longer affect us. A previous mental illness might still be present and can lead others to think they have an aberration. But the one real sign is that regular people instinctually feel threatened by Novas with aberrations. A simple phobia does not threaten baselines, but on caused by taint will be picked up by normal people who will feel the difference and react negatively."

"As for medical scientific intervention...it is unfortunate that we don't yet have the minds capable of creating a cure. Even if we did, it would take a century..maybe even longer."

Omar didn't know what to tell Olivia about her last question. he had thought that they all have at least one power that they could build-up and discharge. "You might not have a power, but you are enhanced. Judging from what you are seeing, your perceptual abilities allow you to see the quantum energies in the world around you. It is like a power and it is powered by quantum."

Originally Posted By: Caine

"I don't suppose this makes us more resistant to taint, does it?"

"Unfortunately not. While you might not pick up taint through backlash of your powers, you can accumulate it in other ways. I will get to those later." Omar had to remind himself that there had never been Novas here, and that there was no science to draw the information from. Omar was giving his best shot in explaining what he knew.

Omar saw that Captain Wright was enjoying himself as he launched one of his black mortars. He would need to keep an eye on him.

"There are also powers that are always on and they need to be consciously turned off. They do not drain you, which is great in a fight, as you can allocate your energies to other things. I have one of those."

"Cap't Wright..." Omar said with a smile. "How would you like to toss one of those mortars at me...as a demonstration?"

When Omar reached a distance of 70 meters, he nodded at Vinny to proceed. It's Showtime! Omar was grinning as he stuck out his chest.

[Adrian Moss]

'Okay. That's insane,' was all that Caine could think. Even if you are resistant, there is no such thing as being foolproof ... is there? No, right now Omar is showing off what he thinks he can do -withstand. If Vinny wastes him, what can the rest of us really do.

Kyria will be crushed, being the last real link to her home. I will have to make sure the Olivia gets right on that.

Here we go.

[Forge]

Vinny grinned wickedly at Captain Coodies, "With pleasure."

ass-tard

He waited until Omar was sufficiently away from the group before winding up and letting it fly, knowing it had no real chance of killing him. If it did hurt him in any way, Vinny would feel little remorse, it would have been Omar's fault afterall.

Click to reveal..

Q-bolt

(04:51:18) ChatBot: (Forge) rolls 5d10 and gets 10,9,1,2,1.[2] Smacks you in the chest!

Damage

(04:51:55) ChatBot: (Forge) rolls 4d10 and gets 8,8,6,10.[7L] Suck it, you alien monster

[Omar]

Omar barely had time to shut his eyes before the mortar detonated. There was a flash, followed by a pressure wave that tore at his clothing. Small pebbles, dirt and rocks erupted from the razed earth to pelt Omar's think skin, feeling like large fattened flies making kamakaze runs against his body. There was some slight scorching to his left arm, and he pushed his body into healing the damage.

When the dust and smoke cleared, Omar walked back to the group. His face more serious now, though not angry. In fact, Omar was thrilled: It was time for them to learn.

Click to reveal..

Omar takes 1 lethal HL. ('I laugh at your Kung Fu!')

Activating Regeneration: 1 HL healed

HL: unhurt

WP: 6

QP: 21

[Courier]

Originally Posted By: Omar

Omar continued. "...I would like everyone who is able, to activate one of your power to familiarize themself with their normal usage."

Steve's shadow faded into non-existence.

Originally Posted By: Olivia Jenings-Izumi

"It's the thing on Abydos," she whispered, as slow understanding crossed her face. "I... Damien, I can see their powers!" She stared at everyone, a grin on her face. "They're so pretty!..."

*I wish I knew if that makes thing easier or harder.*

Quote:

"As for medical scientific intervention...it is unfortunate that we don't yet have the minds capable of creating a cure. Even if we did, it would take a century..maybe even longer."

*Wonderful. Just wonderful.*

Quote:

"Cap't Wright..." Omar said with a smile. "How would you like to toss one of those mortars at me...as a demonstration?" When Omar reached a distance of 70 meters, he nodded at Vinny to proceed. It's Showtime! Omar was grinning as he stuck out his chest.

Steve didn't need anyone to tell him this wasn't a good idea. Vinny was throwing mortars around and 'restraint' wasn't a word he knew.

Quote:

When the dust and smoke cleared, Omar walked back to the group. His face more serious now, though not angry. In fact, Omar was thrilled: It was time for them to learn.

*...o....k....*

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

Olivia flinched as another mortar swung out, this time at Omar. The comet glowed brilliantly, beautifully - but knowing what it was and what its intention was made it ugly. She closed her eyes from the impact. She thought that Omar probably had reason to believe he would survive - he'd had a lot more experience with his limits and abilities than the rest of them. She still didn't want to see him being wrong first-hand.

She opened her eyes only when she heard positive gasps of relief from the others, looking to see Omar still standing in a clearing cloud of smoke and debris. She was amazed, and a little depressed. What Vinny had just done would have crippled her, probably for life. I am out of my league.

[Forge]

Vinny clapped a little as Omar emerged unhurt.

Ah well, maybe next time.

He stepped back again and watched, he had learned long ago when you were inexperienced, listening was the best way to learn things, people would volunteer way too much information if you kept them talking.

[Ryan Hawke]

Ryan nodded at the demonstration of Omar's resiliency. It was useful to know he could walk away from that sort of attack virtually unharmed. "Impressive Omar."

[Omar]

When Omar gets back to the group he motions for them to gather and kneel.

"There was a purpose behind that demonstration, and Capt Wright is unfortunately going to be the one I pick on today." Omar looked in Vinny's direction and smiled.

"In combat, you might find that your attacks are inneffective, which means that you need to either flee, or find some way increase the damage you are doing. In combat with me, Wright would be at the disadvantage because it costs him more energy to attack and defend than it does me. What defended me from his attack costs me nothing. Eventually, he would be too tired to continue his deflection field. At that point, I could smash him to a bloody pulp. If he doesns't activate his field, I snap him in two."

Omar looks straight at Vinny. "Sorry, but you are the quinea pig for right now." He looked back at the group. "Anyways, there are two things he can do. One of those, is to increase the means of his attack."

This would be the most difficult part, as he had no specialized drugs to help them during all this. I wish I had some Arenocillin for them. "On my mark, I want everyone, even the Cap't here, to draw the energy necessary for that power, and instead of discharging it, hold it inside. It is difficult to do, and requires you to actively expend energy to do so. After 5 or so seconds of building it up, use that power again. When that power now activates, you will feel a surge of energy. You can channel that energy into increasing your power's effect, or making it do things it would not normally do. In the Capt's case, he could make the blast bigger or even punch through my armor."

"Any questions before we begin?"

[Adrian Moss]

"I get the general principle, but since I don't direct my energy anywhere, I am at a loss as to where I am going to see the 'energizing' effect when I release the second time around."

It was true. Until he could master some of his supposed effects, he wasn't going to be doing any of this 'maximizing'.

"Again, if I never get 'powers' like Captain Wright's, how am I going to develop this taint? I can't maximize my potential because my potential is already at that state."

[Courier]

*There's no computers around so...* Steve tried to 'hold' this energy but the moment he touched it his shadow went away. He let it come back then repeated the experiment and again his shadow faded the moment he started bringing out energy. It flickered in and out several times before he glanced around at the others to see if they were doing any better.

[Omar]

Quote:

"Again, if I never get 'powers' like Captain Wright's, how am I going to develop this taint? I can't maximize my potential because my potential is already at that state."

"Do you have enhanced Strength, or speed, or intellect? If you do, you are succeptible to taint. It doesn't matter that you have no powers that you can project like Wright, or initiate like telepathy or psychic domination, just by being a nova, you channel quantum energies."

[Forge]

Vinny summoned the mortar, but this time just held it in his hand and concentrated on making it better. Using his will to redesign it in his mind, sleeker fins, larger payload.

Those lines weren't decoration...they made it work...somehow. As Vinny stared at his black quantum mortar it changed shape, becoming larger and more alien looking, humming with its potential.

Click to reveal..

Max Q-bolt w/Explosion

(22:44:07) ChatBot: (Forge) rolls 2d10 and gets 10,10.[2]

Double distance and Explosion

Somehow knowing that it had 'filled up', he threw it into the air, the mortar screaming away like a small missle before creating a massive explosion above the clearing, washing the small crowd with heat.

[Courier]

Originally Posted By: Omar

"Do you have enhanced Strength, or speed, or intellect? If you do, you are susceptible to taint. It doesn't matter that you have no powers that you can project like Wright, or initiate like telepathy or psychic domination, just by being a nova, you channel quantum energies."

*Right, so much for lazying around.*

Originally Posted By: Forge

Somehow knowing that it had 'filled up', he threw it into the air, the mortar screaming away like a small missle before creating a massive explosion above the clearing, washing the small crowd with heat.

*OK... it can't be that hard...*

Click to reveal..

PowerMax Roll: 4d10.hits(7) → [1,1,9,7] = (2)
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2024146/

Cyber-K roll, first is Mega
7d10.hits(7) → [7,3,4,7,7,6,5] = 4 sux
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2024179/

Steve is attempting to get inside the stargate itself and learn more about it

[Courier]

Steve straightens and says in a surprised voice, "I'm in. This is... wow."

[Ryan Hawke]

Ryan fixes Omar with his own steely gaze. "We can get this taint, or QBS even if we don't have powers? How exactly? It was my understanding that only through overt power usage we could acquire it."

[Omar]

,,

Quote:

"We can get this taint, or QBS even if we don't have powers? How exactly? It was my understanding that only through overt power usage we could acquire it."

"That is one way to get." Omar could see that Ryan was skeptical. "Because we weren't born with the ability, to manipulate quantum energies, our bodies will react negatively. Also, as you grow in power, you will pick up taint...it is unavoidable. The human body is not designed to handle that much power. And sometimes, you pick up taint for no reason at all. That is why it is imperative that you learn about the other ways to pick it up."

Omar could see that Steve and Vinny had achieved what he had asked. Now he needed to warn them of the dangers to doing what they did.

"Spc. Courier, Captain Wright. What you two just did was called a powermax. While useful, it does carry some risk: Had you lost concentration, failed to channel it properly, or simply made a mistake, you would have picked up taint."

[Courier]

Originally Posted By: Omar

"That is one way to get." Omar could see that Ryan was skeptical. "Because we weren't born with the ability, to manipulate quantum energies, our bodies will react negatively. Also, as you grow in power, you will pick up taint...it is unavoidable. The human body is not designed to handle that much power. And sometimes, you pick up taint for no reason at all. That is why it is imperative that you learn about the other ways to pick it up."

Originally Posted By: Omar

"Spc. Courier, Captain Wright. What you two just did was called a powermax. While useful, it does carry some risk: Had you lost concentration, failed to channel it properly, or simply made a mistake, you would have picked up taint."

His 'boost' in power gone, Steve lost track of the Gate and refocussed on the here and now. He thought a few moments then said, "That was... useful. And tempting. And we don't have a way to judge when we're getting taint and when we're not."

[Forge]

That felt fuckin' awesome. Vinny thought as his eyes danced with power.

Originally Posted By: Omar

"Spc. Courier, Captain Wright. What you two just did was called a powermax. While useful, it does carry some risk: Had you lost concentration, failed to channel it properly, or simply made a mistake, you would have picked up taint."

"Oh sure Captain, give us a brick of fuckin' crack, stab us with the first dose, then tell us not to do the shit. Fuckin' brilliant." Vinny said, crossing his arms and glaring at the alien.

[Courier]

Originally Posted By: Forge

"Oh sure Captain, give us a brick of fuckin' crack, stab us with the first dose, then tell us not to do the shit. Fuckin' brilliant." Vinny said, crossing his arms and glaring at the alien.

Steve thought, *He's right. I could do that all day... I wonder how long it'd take me to taint out? It'd be like smoking.*

[Omar]

,,

Quote:

"Oh sure Captain, give us a brick of fuckin' crack, stab us with the first dose, then tell us not to do the shit. Fuckin' brilliant." Vinny said, crossing his arms and glaring at the alien.

"When the shit hits the fan, you are going to need to powermax...so cool your pistons!" Omar didn't need Vinnie's hot-headed, quantum-rookie complaints, and Omar let him hear his displeasure. "Yeah..it is addicting and you need to know that. But the choice of whether to do it is yours. So stop your whining and deal with it like a man!"

[Forge]

Vinny arched an eyebrow at the response, "What the fuck did you just say? Whining? Are you fuckin' shittin' me?"

He was getting mad, the audacity of this alien butt-nugget to call him a whiny bitch in front of everyone had him hotter than a two-dicked billy goat shittin' habaneros in Hell's kitchen.

"Where in thee fuck do you get off calling me a whiner?" He asked vehemently as he walked up to Omar.

[Omar]

Vinny's outburst was a little unexpected, and Omar was almost caught off-guard by the young man's agressive posture. There was a time, long ago, when he might have backed down, but to do so now, would put Omar in a weakened position. At another point in his life, he would have grabbed the man and choked him into submission. in either scenario, he would lose all credibility in Vinny's eyes, he could never earn the man's trust.

Omar raised both his hands up and dropped them to his side in exasperation. "That is real mature, Captain Wright." Omar shook his head as he looked the Vinny in the face. "I would have thought you were beyond simple playground bravado. I guess I was wrong."

Omar turned to the others and continued his lecture, leaving Vinny to steep in his own anger.

"Where were we?"