Template:Featured Articles/14-2022
They were ~asking~. He didn't have Fixer's ability to control the nanites, but that wasn't the point. Fixer almost certainly exerted direct control. He didn't ask, he took. But this particular group had its own intelligence, to some level. Curiosity. A desire to know. They had ~evolved~. And what was Xavier's, if not a home for the next steps in evolution? A metaphor he would not have expected came to him - the Hellfire Club. Not the power and politics of the courts, but the ostensible 'cover story' of an orgy club for the rich and fabulous. Consent should be clearly and freely communicated. A verbal and affirmative expression of consent can help partners understand and respect each others' boundaries. Consent should be enthusiastic - the presence of 'yes' rather than simply the absence of 'no'. Doug's eyes fluttered closed. They were asking. ~access granted~ The spread of copper and metallic grey crept down over his fingertips, warm and itching where it tried to crawl under the cracking nailbeds. The injection site on his back went blazingly hot, and then numb, not the numbness of ice but of a lack of feeling. Then the room spun wildly as the pinpricks of pressure went up Doug's neck and into his skull. A wireframe structure filled his vision, outlining the room with bright spots anywhere there was embedded technology. The lights, the temperature controls, the countless gadgets and machines, an abandoned phone, and the blindingly technicolor of the body that the nanites were constructing. ~connection protocol established~ ~Identify subroutine 'no'?~ ~identify user?~ ~identify hardware?~ ~identify system machine language?~ The additional input was almost overwhelming, even with his eyes shut. It was the unexpectedness of it more than anything. And the volume of questions - it was like herding a couple million toddlers who all wanted to know 'are we there yet'. But it had to be him, Doug kept reminding himself that. It was keeping him steady in the face of all this. Angie had said it, with the certainty only she could have. ~User designation: Douglas Aaron Ramsey = Doug = Cypher~ That was the easiest reply - introducing yourself was the first part of any real interaction, after all. ~Hardware: biological neurologic system~ He wasn't a full up doctor, but he'd spent enough time with Laurie to at least provide the basic information about the human nervous system along the linkage. ~System languages...~ He couldn't help the frisson of amusement that went through him at that query. After all, his power was certainly the reason they were able to communicate in the first place. ~All languages and syntaxes viable.~ |
