ic Brain Drain

[Heritage]

Casey frowned and narrowed her eyes as well; she really didn't trust this woman at all, since she was clearly holding back a ton of information. But if there really was a dangerous robot on the loose, Terrifica could probably use the muscle when she went up against it. Then again, Casey was also a Girl Scout, which among other things meant she didn't like to lie, though not talking to the authorities about any wrongdoing was technically more of a lie by omission.

Think of her as a source; sometimes a reporter can only get the facts by promising anonimity. Woodward and Bernstein probably thought 'Deep Throat' was a complete jerk, too!

The blonde powerhouse shrugged. "Sure, I can keep a secret; but if it comes down to having to choose between saving an innocent life or protecting Mr. Big Brain's reputation, that's not even a question, okay?" She landed next to Terrifica's bike and patted the seat with appreciation. "This works for me; sweet ride!"

Edited November 28, 2014 by Heritage

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Nobody is talking about taking or saving innocent lives. At least not yet" answered Ms D, opening up the van. 

 

A short drive later...

 

Doctor Ring's house had that kind of modest luxury. It was not extravagant, but it was big, spacious, and elegant. His door was opened by a tired looking nurse, who stifled a yawn. 

 

"Come in...he's still up" he said, forcing a smile, and leading the three women in. 

 

Doctor Ring was not a well man. He was in a wheelchair and had a haggard, weak look, thinning hair. The weight had flown off him, leaving a clearly ill man. 

 

"Two?" he asked, peering at the women. "...Terrifica...and....Miss Miracle...is it?" he asked, before tapping his nose "I try to keep abreast of things!" he chortled, before collapsing in a coughing fit. The tired nurse grabbed an inhaler mask and placed it on his ward for several seconds before Dr Ring recovered. 

 

"As you can see...I am not a well man" he said, with a bitter smile. "I was trying to find a way to preserve my mind, but instead...I created a modern Day Frankensteins Monster. A potentially, but not necessarily, dangerous artificial intelligence. I would not have my dying days marred by a horror to my reputation..." he explained. 

[EternalPhoenix]

“You mean you allowed desperation to drive you. Sufficient testing and safety procedures would have prevented this…horror, as you call it. You know this.†Terrifica took a second to let that sink in. “However, I am not unsympathetic. I cannot honestly say that I would not do something similar, in your position. Death is…frightening, to say the least, but the worst thought is leaving one’s work unfinished.†The old man was pitiable in his dotage, and Terrifica did not possess a cold, icy heart. Despite what some might think. She walked up to him and gently took his hand. “Tell me how you made your monster, how I might find it, and how I might stop it. Do this, and I promise you, I will stop it. Do not be concerned I won’t understand. Such a thing is essentially impossible.†She smiled slightly. I am the most intelligent person in the world, after all.

[Heritage]

The blonde teen was troubled by everything she was hearing; this Dr Ring wanted to put his brain in a robot body, and Terrifica was fine with that? Sure, why not! He might have made a few mistakes, but who wouldn't want to live forever in a freaky metal body? She also seemed awfully big for her britches, as her Grandpa would say, but many super-smart people were like that in her experience.

But even though Casey had a feeling she and the masked woman would not see eye to eye on many issues, that didn't change the fact that this thing was still out there and needed to be taken down. Feeling she wouldn't have much to add to the conversation between the two more tech-savvy people in the room, she was content to listen and wait.

Edited November 30, 2014 by Heritage

[Supercape]

GM

 

"I see the tales of your breathtaking arrogance are essentially correct" sighed Dr Ring at Terrifica. "I myself take no value in intelligence, it is nothing to boast of. A gift, a roll of the dice, that is all. It is but a tool" he said, pushing himself in his wheelchair. 

 

"And all your intelligence... it gives you no right to chastise a dying man" he snapped at Terrifica. 

 

"Help me, or do not. I have other means, other avenues. Go public with it, I also care not. The dying are not threatened, you see. All I care for now is to stop my creation doing untold harm. If possible, I would do this quietly, so that no government or agency impounds it or takes my ideas. If that is not possible, I will do it fully in sight, and we shall all pray the dice of chance fall kindly for civilization"

 

He snapped on a projector, which illuminated a wall with the diagrams of a metal body, complete with head. 

 

"My creation. I called it only version 3. A simple, but functional artificial intelligence with the ability to download thought patterns and memories. However, it appeared to download too much, too quickly, and worse, indiscriminately. A process that, for lack of a better word, has driven it insane. And now, it has vanished!"

[Heritage]

Casey had a really hard time keeping a straight face when Dr Ring read Terrifica the riot act; yes, it was super-mean and she shouldn't laugh, but she had a feeling the masked crimefighter hadn't had a tongue-lashing like that in a long time. And then because she was a good person at heart, she felt sick to her stomach for grinning.

Best to focus on the problem at hand. Clearing her throat, Miracle Girl stepped forward; she was quite confident for one so young, with a clear gaze and a quiet strength. "We'll take care of this, Dr Ring, as quietly as we can; you have my word." Then she folded her arms and took a step closer to the projected image, studying their target closely."So what did it copy from you that was so bad? And did it only copy from you, or were there others?"

Edited December 1, 2014 by Heritage

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Who knows? V3 as gained sentience. From me, most probably, from others, quite possibly. It could have absorbed the whole city, even you!" he answered, without any certainty. 

 

"One moment I was working on its brain, the next, it had fled. Perhaps frightened by its new sentience. Perhaps not. What I can propose is that its prime directive is to absorb the thoughts of others. In itself, the positronic brain has only a basic intelligence, but it could absorb more and more, until..." he shrugged. 

 

"An uncontrolled and dangerous thing, no doubt. It is also potentially very useful. If it can be saved...either due to sympathy for an infant sentience, or for its utility for humankind, then it should" he explained. 

[EternalPhoenix]

Terrifica seethed. She was absolutely furious, in a way few could manage to make her. I…I don’t think I’ve EVER been so insulted in my life! She wanted to take the good doctor to task for it. She wanted it almost more than she had ever wanted anything in her life. Who does he think he is?! I was being nice! Stan says it’s good when I’m nice! The absolute NEED to verbally tear the aging man apart pressed on her. And she wasn’t even trying to hide it. She almost trembled in pure rage. “Yes, intellect is a tool. Like any other tool, it demands intelligent, wise, and above all responsible use. If one cannot manage to use all of those, then one should not use the tool. I manage to use all three when legions of others do not. It. Is. Not. Arrogance.†Oh, yes. She was the right one, the rightest and most correct. She didn’t make mistakes, those were for lesser minds. And so much other stuff.

Then, she remembered her training. A breathing exercise from childhood at the temple. Her fury cooled. “It doesn’t matter. I am here to help you, and to do so as quietly as possible. I will do that. The rest is unimportant to that task.†She studied the charts. “You’re saying it absorbs just thoughts, like a version of telepathy? Or does it soak up intelligence itself?†The speed with which she’d changed tacks was almost dizzying.

Edited December 1, 2014 by EternalPhoenix

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Potentially, both" explained Dr Ring, a slight smile as he noticed Terrifica's affect. 

 

"Its flexibility is, unfortunately, it downfall. It could absorb personality, memories, skills...even, possibly, telepathic abilities. It's positronic brain functions in more than four dimensions, giving it almost unlimited storage space, and the networks..." he looked proud for a moment. 

 

"But it is, essentially, a blank slate. It can do anything, and it can do nothing, and anything in between" he explained. 

 

The asian woman, Ms D, stepped in. 

 

"I was hired to help. Information is my speciality. There have been sightings..." she explained, flipping the projector onto blurred images around Freedom City. It seemed to have wandered throughout those streets, but there were several of it going in and out of Freedom City Library. 

 

The robot itself looked human, at least from a distance, but not human enough. It was wearing an upturned mac, sunglasses, and a wide brimmed hat too conceal its appearance. 

[Heritage]

The blonde powerhouse felt a pang of guilt when she saw the veins popping out on Terrifica's neck; clearly the aging doctor had really hit a nerve. But she had to admire how quickly the self-proclaimed genius got her emotions under control; clearly she was above all else still a professional, and would get the job done no matter what her personal feelings were about Ring.

As the robot's inventor continued to describing the unit, a thought occurred to Casey that troubled her, and she held up her hand to speak like the schoolgirl she still was. "What kind of range does this effect have? Do you have to be close to it, or is it more like a radio receiver where it picks up thought waves at range?" She nodded in the masked woman's direction. "Because if it needs proximity, maybe Terrifica shouldn't engage it directly; the last thing we want it to do is start copying the skills and abilities of someone really smart." She turned to her new 'partner' and shrugged. "Maybe it's best if we trap it and somehow find a way to shut it down from a safe distance, like an EMP or something?"

Edited December 29, 2014 by Heritage

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Its range? Practically unlimited, although I did not test it. Essentially, it is a telepathic effect. Quite an achievement, if I say so myself. As you say, like a radio receiver"

 

"An EMP would surely blind it, maybe even hurt it. You could certainly try that, although such pulses may cause considerable collateral damage, or at least the conventional ones do. EMP directed weapons are of course feasible, but this is not my field" he said, cutting his own musings short with a wave of his hand. 

 

"Despite my own meagre intelligence" he gave a pointed look at Terrifica "I am no tactical expert, no spy, no detective. I am very good at what I do, but I fear my failing body will be of little use in the field, so to speak. I can keep in Radio contact, if you wish, and if you have your own communication, but I will be of little use otherwise. My lady friend here is the expert in finding things and finding things out. And she is at my disposal"

 

He twisted his mouth in admiration and annoyance at Ms. D. "She is also very good at what she does, but she doesn't come cheap..."

[EternalPhoenix]

Terrifica’s eyes briefly narrowed. She went through her breathing exercise once more, and the annoyance passed. “Fortunately, I am all three and very good at them. It would be good if you kept in contact with us. You know your machine better than I can learn in this short amount of time.†And although I would prefer to handle this without outside interference… “Your Ms. D ought to also be of use.†She turned and looked at her near doppelganger. “In fact, if you are the kind of woman I think you are, you already have an idea as to where to start looking for his monster.â€

[Supercape]

GM

 

Ms D smiled at the compliment. It was hard to say if it was genuine or not. She was a master of self regulation and unreadable. 

 

"If the sightings are accurate, and, having investigated, I have every reason to think they are, then I would hazard a guess that the creature is staking out Freedom City Library. Presumably to gather knowledge, either in the conventional manner or in its own unique style" she explained. 

 

"I would suggest the search start there. Allthough be wary of scaring it off. You may wish to go incognito" she suggested. 

[Heritage]

Casey looked down at herself; she'd deliberately dressed as boring as possible. "Well maybe I can be the bait while Terrifica hides in the shadows?" She tapped one of her ears. "I can pick up radio frequencies with these, though I can't broadcast."

Another thought worried at her, and she raised her hand again. "Doctor, you've mostly talked about Its, well, 'mental' capabilities, but you haven't really said much about what its body's like; how strong, how fast or how tough it is, or any dangerous weapons or abilities it might have. I know you'd kind of prefer we didn't pound on it, but we still might have to anyway."

Edited December 8, 2014 by Heritage

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Of course. Tactical of you" conceded Dr Ring. He scrabbled about his projector and notes - both paper and electronic, to explain further. 

 

"The V3 Model is essentially my positronic brain in a box. A human shaped box. At a distance, it could pass, but not up close. It is not a full android. The robot body is well built, an armored chasis, tough, but not indestructable. It has superhuman strength, and is a fast and agile as any man. No doubt it would be a formidable opponent, although I am sure that you outclass it on a purely physical level" he said to Miracle Girl. 

 

"It has a variety of improved senses, more acute than a normal humans and including radar and radio capabilities. But its most formidable asset is the positronic brain, which can download other peoples thoughts, personalities, and even memories. In essence, it could obtain the mental abilities of anyone, which would make it potentially very dangerous. As it is, its basic cognitive capacity is limited, no more than an average man, and a niave one at that..."

[EternalPhoenix]

Terrifica nodded, absorbing the information while turning away from the charts and diagrams. “At any rate, this shouldn’t come down to a fight.†Honestly, she would have preferred to learn what the robot was capable of through personal observation. That said, not everyone was of that school of thought. “A simply conversation should be all that is required.†A thought occurred to her. “It does not have any violent behavior programmed in, does it?â€

[Supercape]

GM

 

Dr Ring paused, coughed unpleasantly, and wheezed. There were a few flecks of blood on his shirt sleeve, but he ignored his discomfort, pressing forward urgently. 

 

"Yes, and no. It will not, in its infantile state, act violently. Only in self defence. After all, it is carrying, or would carry, the thoughts and feelings of a human. It will protect itself"

 

"Of course" he continues, " the matter changes when and if it absorbs the minds of others. Something of that mind will be imprinted in its anti-positronic quantum architecture. How it behaves then...depends on who it absorbs. You would do as well to study psychology as engineering if this happens" he finished. 

[Heritage]

The blonde powerhouse listened carefully and decided she'd better take some notes; she didn't have any paper, so she grabbed a nearby pen, rolled up the sleeve of her sweatshirt, and wrote on her forearm like she was preparing to cheat on a test.

"Okay, so we're basically treating the robot like a runaway, like a kid who might bolt if we scare him or make sudden moves. We need to convince it to come with us." Casey still got the sense there were things the doctor wasn't telling them, but the didn't have time to talk all night. She jotted down a few more notes on her arm then set aside the pen. "Ready when you are."

[Supercape]

GM

 

A short while later, Freedom City Library...

 

Ms D had given the pair a ride in her black unmarked van, and had parked almost directly outside the Library. No doubt she would get a ticket soon. No doubt she would worm her way out of it somehow. Perhaps the Vehicle might gain a temporary fault, or something. Or perhaps she would just smile nicely. 

 

"There it is, Freedom Cities finest collection of paper and ink" she said, almost proudly, to Terrifica and Miracle Girl. 

 

"Now, ladies. I do love the spandex and cloak thing" she said to their costumes. "But you need to decide how to handle this. Maybe your stealth fields, or invisibility cloaks, or something...or maybe just a costume..."

 

She had quite a collection of disguises in her van. Suitable for the spy and information gatherer she was. And she was not so different in build to the two heroines!

[Heritage]

Casey's eyes went big when Ms D gave her and Terrifica the proverbial keys to the costume kingdom. "Cool, thanks!" She was grinning like an idiot and bouncing on her toes. "Oh, do you have a mirror? I want to change my hair and make-up, too."

Even though she could be a bit of a jock, Casey like many teenage girls enjoyed experimenting with her look. However, her straight-laced military father had always frowned on her getting carried away, so other than the occasional free pass for a Halloween party, she usually kept it pretty low-key. But now she was given the chance to dress up and be someone else as part of a mission; how cool was that! On the other hand, she didn't want Terrifica to think she was just a dumb blonde teenage bimbo, either; this would take a little finese.

Just play it cool, Case; real cool!

There were then a few short bursts of wind as clothes billowed and shook with Casey's passing, until at last she stood before them, transformed; she'd decided on a sort of 'art school girl', with old-fashioned horned rim glasses, random streaks of color in her haphazardly braided hair, an old army jacket covered in various left wing pins and buttons, pleated skirt, black tights, and a pair of red Converse hi-tops covered in random doodles. Her own clothes were securely tucked into a messenger bag over her shoulder. Her eyes were dark and heavily made-up and she reeked of patchouli, but her beaming face practially glowed.

"Ready!"

Edited December 29, 2014 by Heritage

[EternalPhoenix]

Terrifica regarded MG with a practiced eye. “Very good. I have an idea. However, you could say that I’m shy. Could you leave me alone while I do this?†Her reasons were twofold. First, SECRET. IDENTITY. STAYS. SECRET. Second, not having anyone besides her husband know how the suit came off seemed to be of a similar level of wisdom. “No need to be alarmed, Miracle Girl. I will meet you inside. Go and have a look.†Once the two had been shooed out, Terrifica went to work. She’d done this a time or two before, but she didn’t have the most practice at disguising herself. So she essentially didn’t bother. In short, the mask and gloves came off and went into the longcoat’s pockets, which then was reversed to its gray side. A long straight black wig, oversized glasses, a baggy sweatshirt and jeans, and an adjustment to her manner later, and she was virtually unrecognizable to anyone who didn’t know Samantha Carson. A walking stereotype of a shy Asian nerd girl entered that library and didn’t catch a second glance from anyone, least of all Casey. So when said girl spoke to her, it had to be least a little surprising. It was one of the rare times when Terrifica let her rural Chinese accent out to play. She was still understandable, but so very obviously foreign. “HÇŽo jiÇ” bú jiàn. My friend was supposed to meet me. She said she wanted to show me a miracle.†Terrifica couldn’t quite help herself. A little smug slipped out with the next sentence. “Have you seen her?â€

Edited January 2, 2015 by EternalPhoenix

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Very...modern..." said Ms. D her face a stone mask of unreadability behind jet black sunglasses as she let the two heroines out of the van. If nothing else, the dealer of information was good at what she did. She had earphones and cuff commlinks for every body. And a computer for herself in the Van. 

 

Inside the Library...

 

It was moderately busy, with every section of Freedom City society milling around quietly, from quiet academics, to quiet students, to quiet retired citizens, to (surprisingly) quiet schoolkids. Even some quiet hobos trying to get warm. 

 

They where all pretty quiet. 

 

Except one youth with spiked up blond hair, a tight shirt emblazoned with "Freedom City University" and high cheekbones, an aura of arrogance swirling around him, who clicked his fingers at the two heroines and sidled up to them. 

 

"Yo! What are two hot babes like your hot selves doing here?" he said, trying to be cool. 

[EternalPhoenix]

Terrifica wanted to verbally take this poser apart, but she was committed to her role. So she ducked her and stepped slightly behind MG, speaking softly in Mandarin, as if she was bashful. “<Can’t you see we’re busy? Go look for your penis’s next sheath somewhere else, fool. You won’t find it here.> So sorry. English bad. Meg, help?†She shot a pleading look at MG. Kindly get rid of this idiot, Miracle Girl. We lack the time for his foolishness. She glanced around surreptitiously, looking for the android. It would stand out somewhat, after all.

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Hey you speak Asian, thats cool, huh! Do you know karate?" said the dude, making a few fake and inappropriate karate chops in the air and trying to be charming and sophisticated, relying on a smile and a wink to vault him over social catastrophe. He made sure the two heroines could see his flexed bicep when he did a few air chops. It was, to be fair, an impressive bicep. but still. 

 

Out of the corner of her eye, Terrifica caught sight of a lone figure. The right build, the right size. Walking just so ever so slightly stiffly, dressed badly, in a track suit and hooded sweater, with sunglasses on. He was making sure he did not go near anybody else, and sidled off into the poetry section of the library, a section not most popular, and almost empty...

[Heritage]

'Meg' rolled her eyes, which required no acting whatsoever; adjusting her bag on her shoulder, she leaned over to the boy and hoarsely whispered. "Do you mind? I'm supposed to show Li around the city, and I don't think you want her dad, the Chinese ambassador, pissed off at you." She looked over both shoulders, then dropped her voice even lower. "Back in China, they call him the 'Iron Dragon of Death'".

She made a frightened face, and then adopted a fake cheerful tone of voice. "C'mon, Li, let's have a look around!" She started to lead Terrifica towards the stacks.