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House Of Brockton Bay (SplicerWorm SI) by BatRou-Dawg
Misc » Book X-overs Rated: M, English, Supernatural & Drama, Words: 53k+, Favs: 29, Follows: 41, Published: Jan 11, 2023
9Chapter 4
I sighed as I walked away from the console, leaving it to run as I knew it would, the programs already loaded into it to ensure that it ran properly. Stepping out of the door to the Nursery, I heard it close behind me as I kept walking, a mental countdown starting in the back of my mind as I considered how long it would take for both the dogs and the Parahuman to finish up with the transformation even as I headed elsewhere.
As I walked, I considered what I knew about my new teammate, not to mention the fact of actuallyforminga team, not necessarily something I had originally planned, but the idea of having more support and backup was one I found appealing. Still, just scooping up any random Parahuman's off the street was not something I wanted to do, especially considering the shit that I knew was coming. The Undersiders were all Cat's paws for Coil, Coil himself would betray me in a moment if he thought it would serve his goals, the PRT and Protectorate were corrupt and Cat's paws for Cauldron, and the gangs wouldn't hesitate to use me for one purpose or another. I disliked the idea, not to mention the fact that actually finding a truly independent Parahumans in the Bay was just not happening, Bitch being an exception, not the rule.
I sighed as I walked into my main lab, instruments coming alive as I walked into the room and walked over to a console, the main control console within the chamber as it lit up while I made contact with it. A moment later, I was looking at files and information stored within, simulated test results for a dozen different project ideas and the most workable methods of using them. Most of them weren't anything specially, just incremental upgrades on pre-existing things, but a few were a bit less conventional than that. For instance, I looked at one in particular as I opened the file and looked at the data, absorbing it through both my senses and the direct connection I had with my bio-tech.
The project wasn't anything too impressive, a simple method of creating an organic receiver capable of listening to microwaves. The actual work was easy enough, but I had found that tuning it to be the most difficult thing to do since I'd already found that simply using an upgraded version of an Electro-receptive organ was something that wouldn't work. Looking over the report, I noted the simulated results and the various designs that looked to have the best chances based on the possible ideas I had inputted. Currently, I was looking at the one with the highest likely hook of working as I wanted, an array of organic, carbon-based crystals with each crystal tuned for a specific range of frequencies of the EM spectrum that were in microwaves and radio waves.
Taking a step back as I finished looking over the data, I considered what to do with it now that I had it, not to mention the potential to access the internet if I continued down that path, probably through wireless data if I got a receiver close enough to the city. I fell back at that, a seat rising to greet me as I cupped my chin in thought as I tried to remember what I knew about the way the internet worked before I considered making another few part ions for my DNA computers to work through for the next day or two. Still, actually making the array would be the hard part, once I got it working, I could potentially link it up to the internet and pirate a signal with ease, this was especially true since, while working with my own Bio-tech was tricky at times, actually working with normal tech was a piece of cake by comparison, especially with my Tinker-augmented mind. Sighing to myself, I mentally considered everything else and wondered what other things I had to do even as I skimmed the data, only to come up short. I didn't really have much let to do, even if Ididhave things to prepare for, said preparations already underway and would be ready in due time.
My sample delivery of Healing Fluid was already being distilled, it would be ready by the end of the tomorrow while Bitch's transformation would be finished around the same time. My deliver wasn't actually due for another week or so, meaning that I had a week to do as I pleased with. However, there wasn't really much for me todobesides my experiments. Most of my base was run on automatic, while those functions that weren't run and maintained automatically were maintained by Drones I had created. Drones being an intentional version of Homunculi that weren't fun sized, stood around two metres tall and with a bit more intelligence, at least in some ways. A Drone would make a horrible conversation partner, but they worked without complaint and did as they were told. They didn't really have minds of their own, so the most they could be called were semi-intelligent biological robots.
Currently, my Drones were working to add additional defenses to the world around my base, adding a greater saturation of defensive firepower while also patrolling the surrounding lands, hidden via their camouflaged skin, but ready to act.
With that in mind, I glanced back at the files I had on a dozen possible improvements and my own more... Of the wall projects and shrugged to myself.
"Not like I have anything better to do..." I muttered to myself as I started drawing biomass.
The sooner I started, the sooner I finished.
XXX
I had done a bit of work with engineering before, a bit of metal and woodwork before, I had found it interesting and certainly enjoyed the experience, but there was something...Differentabout crafting something from raw Bio-matter and shaping it with a thought. Certainly, such thoughts always came to me as I worked, little temptations of the Human sort and little 'what-ifs' that I just ignored, but they always remained as that; idle thoughts from an active mind. I knew that acting on every temptation and impulse was a bad idea, especially given my own abilities and the shit I'd get thrown in if the PRT or protectorate caught wind of it, given the fucked-up situation of Earth Bet.
Still, as I leaned down and examined the array of carbon-crystals that I had grown from a mass of delicate flesh and bone, I smiled slightly as it hummed and breathed with energy as I looked at the faintly transparent cables wrapped with strings of muscle fibres. The entire thing looked like something out of Lovecraft's own imagination, partly fused to the floor and flickering with lights flowing through both the dark-green tinted crystals and exposed optical fibres. The light danced through the area around me even as I worked calmly and inspected each element in turn. A day's work having gone into the initial prototype as I got ready to turn it on, connected to a DNA computer that was, in turn, linked to a bio-monitor to allow me to see the data input with sections highlighted to identify what band of the EM spectrum they had come from. The most annoying part having defining them for my bio-computers to understand, organic technology not leading itself to the level of precision that would be needed, thus, there was a bit of overlap between each crystal. I grimaced at that, hoping that the program I made that would remove any echoes of the same data input would work.
Sighing once more as I stood back from the massive lump of flesh, I turned to the console and gave a hopeful smile as I tapped a few nerves on the screen, starting the bio-machine, the lights growing brighter as I saw signal input start showing up.
"Well, here goes nothing..." I muttered as I touched another nerve and watched as the glow reached its full brightness, bathing the walls in a disco-style show of light over the area. I looked to the screen and watched with interest as some signal information started showing up. I could feel the DNA computers running overtime as they took in the signals and translated them with some basic software I had created, turning ones and zeros into other things, voices, words, pictures and other things as my system accepted anything and everything, regardless of what it was. I watched it keep on going while keeping a close eye on the Bio-array as I extended my senses and spotted damage starting to build up, micro-fractures that were growing larger and larger as the test continued. I felt an eyebrow rise for a moment as some gained fractures more swiftly than others before something happened.
The crystals started exploding like fireworks.
"Shit!" I cursed as the first one went off, shards of crystals exploding outwards and I dived for cover as I slammed a hand on the keratin shaped into an emergency, red button. The shards hadn't done any damage to me, but I preferred not having to worry about high-speed crystal shrapnel flying around one of my labs. The moment that the button was pressed, the light dimmed and I was left with the Bio-array looking like someone had decided to just randomly smash a few dozen crystals. I sighed at that, slightly annoyed at the damage as I looked back at the console, a log of the biological data and sensor returns from the various sensors around the room appearing even as I idly pulled a few sharps out of my skin, having managed to impact and implant themselves in the outer layers, but not doing much beyond that. Hardened skin, sub-dermal armor plating and mesh fibres, energy-absorbing tissue deposits and potent regenerative abilities meant that the damage was both easily stopped and easily healed. The small cuts disappearing within moments as I dropped the shards to the ground, making a mental note to have a few Homunculi and Drones clean the room up once I had finished working over the remains of my Bio-array.
As I stepped around from behind the console, a message appearing to show an estimate of how long it would take to fully process the information, I extended my senses and looked at the Array, noting the damage done and feeling an eyebrow rise in pleasant surprise. Most of the damage seemed to have been done around the crystals, thermal damage coupled with bits of crystal having implanted themselves in flesh, doing good impressions of the shrapnel from a weak hand grenade. Regrowing the crystals would be a pain in the ass, but was certainly better than rebuilding the entire thing from scratch, especially given how the initial design was about as large as a Ford Transit van. Hell, the only reason I had managed to build it into one of my labs was because a fair bit of it was built into the floor to save space and allow me to maintain some amount of room to work with.
Still, I sighed, the work of nearly two days having been wasted by the damage done from running the bio-machine for less than twenty seconds. The data I gained from the experiment being the only thing to make this approach worth it even as I mentally started the process of regrowing the crystals, jump-starting regenerative tissues and stem cells into repairing the fleshy damages even as I started moving tissues and organs around. Within a few moments, ducts connected to new organs formed and took shape, developing rapidly under my care as they started drawing in nutrients from the surrounding base, converting them into the required substances. The resulting slurry was then drip-feed into the empty slots, slowly growing into the beginnings of new crystals that, if my math was right, would be back in working condition within the next 48 hours.
I suppressed a groan at that even as I glanced at the bio-monitor, a timer being present on how long it would take for the data to be decrypted and analyzed fully. I frowned as I saw it would take at least thirty hours in turn, not any longer in comparison, but certainly a long time where I couldn't really do much of anything. Clicking my teeth together, I walked around the console and made my way over to the Bio-Array, placing a hand on it as I got ready to set up another experiment while the data was being processed.
However, before I could, I felt and heard an alarm going off. The alarm itself was beyond Human hearing, a simple message that sounded through my base even as I felt it transmitted through the nerves of the living structure.
'She is awake'
The message was simple and explained itself, telling me that my guest had finished undergoing her augmentations and was now, once more, in the land of the waking, along with her new Gorehounds. Sighing to myself, I abandoned what I was about to do, making a note to come back to it once the data was processed, just one more item on the growing list of things I wanted to get done.
Hopefully before Zion went nuts and tried to kill us all...
XXX
Walking up to the Nursery that I had left Bitch in to undergo her augmentation in, I honestly didn't know what to expect even as I kept my senses to myself. Sensory overload was not something I needed at the moment, certainly, it wouldn't help me since I needed to focus on the 'here and now', as it were. Moving up to the door, I stopped, touching the nerves needed to open the gate and hearing the muscles contracting as I caught a glimpse inside the room.
Inside the room, I caught sight of two things. The first was a pair of Gorehounds, massive beasts-like hounds that were covered in scales and carapace to protect them from attack, thick fur sprouting from their bodies while long teeth and sharp claws were visible across their bodies while tails wagged happily around the air. Both of them were large, both looking to be the standard size, putting it at 1.4 metres at the shoulder while I absently considered their breeds. Looking at them, I could see that the two had been turned into certain breeds of Gorehounds, one being a Bulldog while the other one looked like a Rottweiler. A slight smirk crossed my face at that, in Splicer terms, Bulldogs were the tanks of Gorehounds with stronger armor, more potent muscles and the most ability to pull heavy weights, they lost a bit in terms of speed, but it was a good trade-off. Rottweilers, on the other hand, would probably be considered as all-round dogs that were good at navigating the land and pretty damned fast to boot, making good scouts or messengers.
Even without seeing extending my senses, I could see that both of the dogs were in good condition even as I stepped into the room, only to pause as I saw the other thing that caught my eye within the room even as the door closed up behind me.
Bitch and her current state of dress, or lack there of...
Bitch was kneeling before the two dogs, scratching each Gorehound's ears while they sat before her, tongues happily dangling from their mouths as they seemed to ignore my presence entirely in favor of enjoying Bitch's scratching. Bitch, in turn, was currently ignoring my presence even as I felt my face heat up slightly from the sight of her naked body, mentally making me wonder just what the hell was going on as I looked at the girl before me, even as I felt my eyes trying to look elsewhere before being dragged back to her body.
Looking at her, I could honestly admit that she was well built, not overly muscles, but more in the way one would expect of a Athlete or something to that effect. Muscles were visibly toned and rippled under smooth skin that I knew hid the potent bio-augments that the process had given her. Legs were folded and shins were on the ground, but gave a nice view of the wide hips and thin waist, along with showing off just how long her legs were even as my eyes trailed up her body, getting a side-view of her well-defined six pack before moving further up. Moving upwards, my eyes saw her breasts as they hung from her chest, round, perky and large enough that I guessed them to be in the D range. Creamy skin made her body more prominent in the room, given the earthen tones of the shell, carapace and even pink muscle used to construct it even as I moved up to her face. Her face was impressive, a series of hard lines with a feral edge to it with sharp eyes, a thin nose and full lips even as I mentally noted the way her eyes trailed over her dogs while long, black hair cascaded down from her scalp.
Honestly, I'd be lying if I said that she wasn't fucking gorgeous, though, the way she looked immediately made me think she looked like a near ringer for Laura Howlett from Marvel's X-Men, not the kid version from the 'Logan' movie or the cartoons, but the fully grown one seen in the comics.
Absently, as I forced down my embarrassment at seeing a naked woman, I made yet another note to see just how the hell she looked like, well,this... Mostly out of curiosity, but also because I sure as hell hadn't put anything into the system to alter a person's cosmetic appearance. Padding further into the room, I took a few steps forwards before stopping a respectable distance from her and her dogs before I cleared my throat, drawing her attention as she snapped around to me, both Gorehounds turning towards me as I saw claws extending from Bitch's fingers by instinct, nails growing and hardening into wicked-looking talons.
"Everything alright?" I asked neutrally as I focused on her face, forcing my eyes not to look below the neckline even as I saw her face go from passive satisfaction, to snarling anger, to surprise, then settling on joy and happiness as she stood up, nodding as she did so.
"Yeah... My dogs are a lot better, stronger... Same with me... Thanks for keeping your word." She stated, her voice sounding slightly disjointed, quiet, but firm even as she walked a bit closer before stopping in front of me.
"No problem, though, I just want to make sure you and your Gorehounds are alright. you experiencing any pains, headaches, dizziness or anything like that?" I questioned as I turned and moved towards the centre of the room, the console in the middle of the Nursery activating at my approach as I saw Bitch shake her head.
"No, I'm fine... My dogs... Gorehounds... are fine... Got stuff in my head... It's telling me how to talk, how to interact, how to think..." She started as I nodded absently along, checking the settings as she continued, I heard her padding along behind me, felt the prickle of her nerves running as they should be and even picked up the steady beat of her heart as she came around.
"I mean, I still think like before... But now... Now I've got this shit that is telling me how to talk with people, how to understand them... It's... It's like it's telling me what something means, like how dogs know showing teeth is a threat, people think it's can be other things as well..." Bitch stated as I felt her come up beside me, behind me left shoulder and coming very close to my personal space even as I looked over the recorded logs of what had happened with the process even as I started to slowly expand my senses. Directing them as best as I could, I shifted them to look over Bitch, mostly to ensure that she was alright as I looked through the logs, ensuring that nothing strange had happened and making sure that everything was as it should be.
Turning around to face her fully, I noted something different about her brain, her Gemma having grown slightly to connect to other parts of her brain, including the sections where the Savant augments had been added. I frowned slightly at that even as I looked at the girl before me, who was frowning at me in turn as the two Gorehounds looked in my direction, mouths closed, doing nothing but still observing what was happening with a keen eye as I nodded.
"That would probably be the augments I gave you. You asked that I make you stronger, but you didn't say if you wanted anything specific beyond being given similar abilities to your new Gorehounds. I did a bit of research and found out that, according to information present on the internet, that you seemed to understand dogs better than people. With that in mind, I gave you the ability to understand how Humans think, mostly just a framework to be more capable of understanding them in the context of a canine mindset." I stated as I saw her eyes narrow at me, claws slowly extending back out even as I noted the tensed muscles of her body.
"... You fucked with my head...?" The words were spoke quietly, softly, but I felt myself tense at that, knowing that a wrong word here could end up with her trying to claw me to death as I took a moment to consider the question, especially since I quiet enjoyed life.
"No, the augment is something you have full control over. If you don't want it floating around your head, either ignore it and it will go away until you want it back, or I can remove it." I shrugged slightly as I gave a toothless smile as to appear non-threatening.
"It's entirely up to you, I'm not going to force you into anything, especially since we're supposed to be teammates now." I stated with a sardonic smirk as Bitch remained still, her eyes narrowed and glaring at me as I met her eyes without hesitation as we stared at each other for a long moment. I heard movement to her side as I felt the Gorehounds moving towards us, padding on the ground as I forced down my fear of what might come next.
Only to be surprised when Bitch slumped, her muscles relaxing as her claws retracted back into her fingers, she nodded as one of the Gorehounds gently nudged Bitch's side, causing the semi-feral Parahuman to start scratching the hound behind the ear as she nodded lazily.
"Yeah, guess that makes sense since we're a team, you as the Alpha... The... Leader, right?" She asked cautiously, her brows furrowed slightly as she seemed to try getting the hang of the new mindset I had given her. I nodded at that.
"Yeah, something like that." I stated as I glanced off to the side, the Shell Vault still present on the other wall as I glanced back at Bitch.
"Anyway, since that's all sorted, I guess we can introduce ourselves a bit more than with just our fists, like we did a while ago. I'm Jason, though, my Cape name is Dreadnought, nice to meet you." I stated as I offered a hand to the other member of the fledgling team I now planned to build. Bitch looked at the hand for a moment, her brows furrowed once more in confusion as she seemed to look for understanding before looking back up to me and, tentatively, offering her own hand in turn.
"... Rachel, I'm Bitch." She stated before pausing for a moment before continuing. "The female dog, not... Whatever else it means... Might change it later though..." I smiled at that even as I nodded in understanding.
"Fair enough, I don't judge, though, the PRT certainly do. Anyway, you want to get dressed and I can give you the grand tour? I can give you back your old stuff or give you some new stuff? It's up to you." I stated as I flexed a bit of my power, allowing my control to exert itself as the Shell Vault opened to show her old close with a scraping sound that bounced around the room. Turning, Rachel saw her clothes and wrinkled her nose, sneering slightly at the sight of the old clothes as she glanced over at me, looking me over from top to bottom before nodding to herself.
"New clothes..." She muttered aloud, her voice low as she turned away from the Shell Vault and back to me as I nodded in turn.
"Then I'll go and get you something to wear, probably some of my spare stuff, but I'll get you some better fitting stuff in the future." I stated as I made to leave, turning to walk passed her. However, just as I was about to pass her, she stopped me with a hand to the chest and leaned over, I felt her press against me for a time before she did something that surprised me.
She kissed me on the cheek.
After the kiss, I turned to look at her, surprise stretching across my features as I looked at her with what was probably a gob-smacked expression. She smiled back in turn, a slight, hopeful smile on her own features as she offered a half-shrug in turn.
"Thanks... For everything..." She stated as she turned her attention back to her Gorehounds, seemingly more interested in finding all the best place to scratch since they had changed. I didn't say anything, mentally wondering just what the hell had happened as I snapped my jaw closed with an audible snap before turning around and leaving the room. As I left, I sighed, my body feeling tense as I moved away, further into the compound with a question playing across my mind.
"What the hell was that about...?"
XXX
"You can take a seat if you want, I'll get something to drink." I stated as I gestured towards the chairs even as I moved over to a different section of the final room that was covered by the tour: The Bar.
The Bar was really just that, a smallish room that was set at the top of the disguised tower that over-looked a portion of the surrounding forested land. A window was present, showing the outside world, a projected image taken from multiple different sources around the armored bark of the structure. Currently, I had it set to follow the sun, showing both dusk and dawn when they happened, certainly, it was a nice thing to see, especially after the chaotic time I had finding my footing.
Behind me, Rachel followed and offered grunt of acknowledgement before doing so, taking a seat as her Gorehounds followed in behind her, never more than a step behind her pace. I honestly didn't understand it, but I didn't put much thought into it, knowing that Rachel had trained the dogs well. In turn, looking at Rachel, I noted the clothes I had given her, a pair of trousers with a length of fabric to tie as a belt while she wore one of my tops to give herself some measure of modest. Though, while it was good for my piece of mind, I couldn't really help but wonder if she really gave a damn about that kind of thing, her mind was mostly dog-based, and dogs didn't really wear all that much in the way of clothes...
Pushing those thoughts from my mind, I moved over and grabbed a try of pitchers and a few glasses, both made from a bio-plastic that I had cooked up. The pitchers were full of various juices, non-alcoholic and rather healthy for you, they were basically smoothies, but with a higher ratio for the amount of energy they gave you.
Organic energy drinks for the win!
Putting all that down on the table between us, I took two glasses and filled one for myself before looking over at Rachel, an eyebrow raised asking a silent question, partially to see the extent of the knowledge I had given her. She looked at me for a moment before the gesture seemed to register, offering a shrug in turn before lazily pointing to the same pitcher I had just poured my own drink from, containing a dark purple liquid that contained bits of pulp, the best part, from the Bio-tech fruits it had been made from. Filling another glass, I finally took my seat opposite my new teammate as I sighed, enjoying the comfortable chair as I glanced out the window for a moment, noting that it was nearly dusk before turning back to Rachel.
"So, now that the tour is out of the way, what do you think of my home?" I asked, curious as to her input. She looked at me as she took a sip from her drink, causing me to smile slightly as her eyes shot wide upon the first sip, I took a sip in turn, enjoying the taste, something she probably hadn't been expecting, given its strong taste. Coughing slightly, Rachel tried again, managing to swallow this sip now that she knew what to expect even as she sighed in turn, relaxing into the chair almost bonelessly.
"... Nice, comfy, safe... It's a nice place to live... Better than scrapping away shit on the streets to get enough to get enough to eat and feed my Dogs." Rachel offered as I nodded in turn.
"Thanks, I tried for that. Though, when I made it, I was more concerned with making sure that anyone trying to attack this place would either leave missing a few limbs, or would have to be dragged away as a corpse." I remarked, getting a savage grin from Rachel at the prospect, a snort of amusement leaving her as she seemed to try envisioning just that happening.
"... Sounds like it just gets better and better..." She offered with a smirk, seemingly getting a better handle on the Human mindset, as I nodded in agreement.
"Yep, and, given the team I'm planning to form, I fully plan to increase the number of defenses around this place since, if we're going to be active and running around, I want to be sure that our fallback position won't leave us all exposed and easy targets, should the worst happen." I added soberly as I took another sip, glancing at the image projected, taking in the sight of the setting sun, the distant clouds and the disappearing light. Rachel glance at it in turn, turning more fully as she took a sip and started scratching behind the ear of Brutus, the Bulldog Gorehound, she took in the sight as well as the silence stretched, only broken by the occasional sip either of us took from our glasses.
"... Then I'm going to need more Dogs..." Rachel suddenly spoke after nearly a minute of silence, drawing an eye from me as I looked at her. I blinked, confused by her statement.
"... Why?" I asked as Rachel looked back at me with a neutral expression, focus burning in her eyes.
"... You can turn my Dogs into more Gorehounds... I can amp-up my Gorehounds more than my Dogs... Get enough Gorehounds and no one will pick a fight with us..." She stated as I tried following her train of logic, nodding slightly.
"... Yeah... I can convert dogs straight into Gorehounds, like I did with Brutus and Angelica, but I can also make them. The Nursery that I showed you to, where I made you and your dogs stronger, that place can create Gorehounds from scratch, in batches as large as fifteen at a time. Though I'll leave it up to you how you want to use it, and what kinds of Gorehounds that you want to make." I explained as Rachel looked at me again, tilting her head slightly at that thought.
"... Kinds of Gorehounds...? What do you mean...?" She asked as I smiled slightly at that.
"Gorehounds come in various different types. The standard ones are the baseline, then you've got the different Breeds of Gorehounds, which alter the Gorehounds to give them different capabilities, temperaments and attributes. Moving on from there are the more advanced types called Mauler Gorehounds, which are bigger, tougher, and a whole hell of a lot more dangerous than the regular ones. I can turn a baseline Gorehound into any Breed you want, or even turn it into a Mauler if you want, I can even augment them with further Bio-tech additions such as weapons, more armor, blades and even guns." I paused as I took a sip from my glass, wetting my throat as I did so while I glanced above me, taking in the ceiling made from carefully sculpted carapace, each section coloured and altered to produce a rather nice image of a painted ceiling.
Of course, I would admit, my tastes in art were a bit different, since it looked like something painted by M.C. Escher, not that I minded. I actually found it rather relaxing to look at, a nice fractal design in warm colours, certainly, it helped with a nice glass of juice, especially with a bit of alcohol thrown into the mix.
"Of course, having a lot of Gorehounds, while a good thing, especially augmented with your abilities, there are more than a few Capes in the city that could easily tip the scales of a fight by themselves. Kaiser could slaughter the lot of them by impaling them on metal spikes so long as there is metal below them. Purity could blast them to oblivion. Lung could cook them alive, not to mention any of the other Capes in the city, the PRT or the Protectorate. No, while I agree with you that having a lot of Gorehounds would be a good asset to have, my main concern is finding new teammates, more Capes to add to our team to help balance the scales if shit hits the fan." I stated slightly, aware of how lopsided things could be if Capes stopped playing around and actually fought. Given enough training, any number of Capes could be a potential game changer, however, the problem with Brockton Bay was that game-changing Capes seemed to be a dime a dozen...
"... If you can make Gorehounds... Why not more Capes...?" Rachel asked, her voice curious as I snapped up in surprise, suddenly looking at Rachel with wide eyes.
"Making more Capes...?" I muttered to myself, a question to both myself and to Rachel as she nodded.
"... Yeah... why not just make more teammates, more Capes... Then we won't need to worry so much about being attacked... Lots of Capes, lots of Teammates... Big enough team that no one fucks with us..." Rachel declared as I nodded along with the logic. Irrespective of powers, a large enough number of Capes gathered together into one group would give pause to a lot of people, certainly, it would make any of the gangs back the fuck up and give us space.
Thoughts raced through my head as I considered the possibilities. I could still remember the bio-scans I had of a few dozen Capes' Gemmas, alongside their biological data, I knew a fair bit about the background information, meta-knowledge about powers and what conditions caused which kind of power to develop, not to mention what sub-category of power would be created as a result. Along with that, I knew that such things were already happening in Germany, who had created Night and Fog, so I knew that mass-produced Capes were a possibility that could happen, though, I questioned their methods even so. Still, even as I thought of the potential for such a thing, a fair part of me called it evil, cruel and disgusting.
I promptly ignored that part of myself, remembering one little quote that seemed to have been purpose built for the setting of Worm: When faced with Extinction, every alternative is preferable.
Certainly, as I cupped my chin in thought, it was worth further thought and research...
XXX
In another reality, there was a Shard.
This Shard was alone, the reality locked and sealed to all but itself as it paused in its work of corrupting the connection between the Host of[ENHANCEMENT]and the Shard in question, and, in turn, the connection between the Shard and it's connection to the larger Entity. The cause being clear as it observed it's Host and scanned through the data it received with, what could only be described as, eager glee growing within it as it watched more and more potential data return to it. Certainly, the idea of making more Hosts was an interesting one, along with artificially causing their connections to form between themselves and Shards. However, the truly interesting thing for the Shard in question was the theories about Shard development and possible outcomes for the Hosts.
The idea of creating Shards and then creating more Shards further, each time changing the data within them and altering the parametres with which their abilities manifested through their Hosts was an interesting one. It offered the potential to rapidly develop highly comprehensive abilities mixed with the potential for each iteration to grow in strength as efficiency was improved further. With that in mind, the Shard begun running the numbers, considering possibilities and looking at the scans of a few of the other connection nodes made in the Cortexes of other Hosts. Already, the Shard was looking for those nodes and started the process of sneaking into those connections, covertly gathering core data and copying it into itself as it worked to gather the necessary resources for multiple Buddings of new Shards.
Moving rapidly,[EVOLUTION]worked as it's glee and excitement at the prospect of new data caused it to direct more attention to its Host and those that the Host might create.
Certainly, it would be an interesting, and potentially viable alterative, Cycle...
XXX
AN: Anyway, there is the chapter, hope you enjoyed it and I'll see about putting anything else up later down the line.
As a side note, A few things about Gorehounds.
A normal Gorehound, as mentioned above, stands around 1.2 to 1.4 metres tall at the shoulder, with the head up, that can increase to 1.8 metres tall. They can grow to be between 2.1 and 2.4 metres long and can been around 0.9 metres wide at the shoulder. The normal weight for a standard Gorehound can be anywhere between 157.5 and 225 kg while they can carry a total of 360 kg on their backs and pull around 900 kg of weight. The max speed of a Gorehound is around 160 kmph, or 100 mph, while a leisurely pace is around half that.
This is thestandardGorehound, specific Breeds can have aspects of that go up and down depending on what Breed they are.
Mauler Gorehounds, as far as I'm aware, aren't taller, but they can grow to be wider at the shoulder and longer than both the previous options. Currently, I knew about three types of Maulers: Cerberi, Shockers and Shredders. The Cerberus is basically that, a three-headed Gorehound that is a hell of a lot tougher than normal. The Shocker is what you get when you cross-breed an Electric Eel on steroids with a Gorehound. And the only way I can describe the Shredder is as a living bleeder of blades with it's teeth mounted in an organic chainsaw.
Another side note, Bitch could turn normal dogs into Hellhounds the size of a Ford Transit van, or bigger. How big and strong do you think a Gorehound, amped up by her power, would become...?
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House Of Brockton Bay (SplicerWorm SI) by BatRou-Dawg
Misc » Book X-overs Rated: M, English, Supernatural & Drama, Words: 53k+, Favs: 29, Follows: 41, Published: Jan 11, 2023
9Chapter 5
Looking over the data carefully, I took note of details and scrolled through the information that had come about as a result of my experiments into making a viable network connection to the wider internet. Not an easy task, but it showed promise as I worked to refine it through iteration and parallel simulations of different adaptations to the current designs. Currently, honing in on the wireless signal to piggyback into the wider internet was proving to be the easier part. Translation of the recorded signals had shown me where the resulting network was, while a quick program helped decrypt the required net pages that had been caught in transit between the sender and the requester of said pages.
It was slow work, but it showed promise, especially as I worked on a program to work through my Bio-Array, a complex thing meant to hide my interactions behind multiple layers of concealments with an organically controlled and adaptive algorithm to keep it from being noticed. The whole thing was meant to keep anything out of the ordinary from being detected, even as I worked to hide the creation of a backdoor from anyone that might come looking for it. Certainly, Dragon was at the top of my list of possible investigators, hence why the pseudo-AI was made using a bio-computer that was the latest prototype for a series of much faster machines, with biological processors aimed for speed rather than parallel processing like my DNA computers.
The end result worked just as well as a laptop computer, it was a start, better than nothing, but something to certainly improve on. Then again, mucking around with a restructured Human brain was not something that one could do casually, even for me, I had to take my time and do things carefully to ensure that everything worked as I wanted it to.
I frowned at that, closing my eyes as I kneaded the bridge of my nose. Prototyping ofthathad been slow, but well worth it as I saw the results before me, causing me to smirk as I looked back up at the screen before me, moving over to examine another page of information as I rolled my eyes at the spotty connection, aware of how ramshackled the design of the Bio-Array currently was. Further improvements were already in the works, but they weren't going to be happening for quite a while yet, mostly due to not wanting to spread myself over multiple projects, especially with the latest one I had just decided to take on after talking with Rachel two days previous.
Humming in thought at that, a thought caused the screen to change, a new image showing as I looked at the vast series of designs and simulations currently going on as I looked at the processes going into the DNA computers to make it work. Guidelines had already been set out, work had begun and chambers had already been set aside for the mass-growth of Human brains within the depths of my base. Pods were growing with these brains within them, each one being slightly different, either being left utterly alone, or being altered slightly to ensure that they all possessed some form of Corona Pollentia, either modified versions of my own one, modified versions of the Pollentia and Gemma of other Parahumans, or a hybridized version of the first two options.
Most of these brains were inactive, sleeping in a coma-like state that left them dead to the world; The perfect blank slates that were just waiting for the chance to be used. Admittedly, they didn't need to be, but I had decided to only do a limited production batch to begin with, two to start out of the entire group of thirty. Along with being more easy to manage, it was less of a strain on my network resources, especially given how I didn't plan to raise any idiot puppets.
Another thought and, as I leaned back in my chair, I watched as the image before me changed, an image from the first-person perspective of medical textbook laid out with a dozen other things laid out across the floor as I watched. The image itself was time stamped for as 'IS 2D-7M-5Y', meaning that, while only two days had passed outside the simulation, just over five and a half years had already passed. The image itself was already old, out of 'date' by several months of 'In Simulation' time. Then again, even as I paused the image for a second, I smiled, knowing that it was worth it even as I felt the heat build up from the various different DNA computers, a thought following as I enhanced the heat sinks and heat exchange systems to better cool the massive banks of organic computers even as I kept an absent eye on the multiple Bio-Arrays that I had built, following the success of the first one while I altered them on the fly. A final thought and the screen slip, showing images of within the simulation of one of the brains, while the other showing images of web pages rapidly being copied, condensed and compiled into a solid format for ease of understanding.
The actual condensation of the web pages into something usable was probably one of my better ideas, since I was rapidly building up a working database of Savant-type augments that could be implanted into others. Of course, running the information through a few processes also helped to figure out ways to teach the information to others, currently allowing me to teach subjects up to College level, even if it was mostly just as an info-dump with very little in the way of practical experience. Rubbing a hand down my face, I groaned slightly at that, knowing that I was probably going to need a few dozen more simulations running to properly get all the needed information to ensure such packages had both theoretical and practical knowledge.
Still, the thought of creating any more simulations was one I did not savor, especially since I knew how much of a massive expansion that would require since the current Bio-servers were being used to host the personalities of three growing individuals.
"One more item for the list, then..." I muttered to myself as I mentally accessed my controls, shifting the needed chemicals to get the information recorded in a rather specific format. DNA data storage was useful for short-term storage, especially given how much storage space was on the thing in the form of junk data that I could remove and replace. Then again, the stuff did degrade if it wasn't maintained properly, another fault I was trying to address with crystal-based memory formats. The initial prototypes had shown promise, but they were still a long way off from being somewhat workable.
Turning, I made to leave my workspace, a headache growing in the back of my head even as my own body started to rapidly work to remove it. Simply put, I had too many things to do and too little time to do them all myself, especially to a standard that I would have liked.
"I really hope one of the New Growths is a bloody Tinkers or something..." I muttered as I went off, out of my lab to find something else to do, hopefully something that could take my mind off the utter load of bullshit I was dropping on myself in an effort to advance my tech base.
... And if I couldn't find anything, well, alcohol had yet to fail me in getting rid of headaches, and I had recently figured out how to create pseudo-sugar cane...
XXX
Walking through the base, I quickly left the main lab and reached the surface entrance of my base, the main door open to reveal the wide ramp that lead out, into an enclosed clearing that was shaded by branches of the surrounding trees, all of said trees having been sculpted to be as such, and further enhanced with a few dozen different bio-weapons to turn the seemingly-harmless trees into defense emplacements of one type or another. Around the entry way, I saw a dozen Drones and a few Homunculi wandering around, a lot of them covered in vines and various plants, walking in and out of the entrance, most of them were carrying saplings for various Plant Fortifications out into the area while some others were carrying other things as well. Fertilizers, massive pitchers of water that had been sealed and molded to look like backpacks, not to mention tools needed to dig the fortifications in. A dozen other Drones were on overwatch duty, holding biological rifles of one kind or another while hanging around in the reinforced branches of the trees above, sometimes literally, as I saw one hanging upside down by talon-like feet. I wanted to roll my eyes at the oversized bat impression, but didn't, mostly because I felt that such a trick would work well to deter any attackers, especially as a surprise attack.
Stepping fully out of my base and into the light of the sun, I noted the chill in the air, winter being present, but my body barely noticing it as I kept moving without difficulty, body heat was contained and preserved internally as I looked out and saw the area.
Unsurprisingly, Rachel was present, sitting in the centre of the clearing with both her dogs, the Rottweiler having taken to laying down with its head in her lap while the Bulldog stood at attention before Rachel. Her eyes were narrowed at the bigger dog, who I knew to be Brutus as I stood back and watched, curious as to what was going on as I looked at the surrounding area. A second later, what Rachel was doing became apparent to me as I suddenly watched as the Gorehound's frame rippled and changed, my sense for biology suddenly blaring as I became aware of flesh literally appearing from what seemed like nowhere. It layered on top of the Gorehound, It was amazing to witness as I watched layers upon layers of muscles and tendons and bones rapidly being built up as the Gorehound itself was suspended within a cocoon of a sugar-rich solution, new nerves splicing into the main body while connection tubes and layers of fat allowed the Gorehound to survive attacks that would have killed it otherwise. Along with that, I watched as the original augments of the Gorehound in question became apparent within the bigger body, upgraded and much more lethal.
The thick claws that had once been present on the feet of the Gorehound had been expanded upon, the organs that caused them to vibrate having been augmented while the claws themselves had been sharpened and serrated to the point that even the smallest of cuts would leave a nasty wound, one that would take some time to heal. The teeth were also improved, stronger, serrated and with no small amount of extras being added, along with the fact that vibro-organs seemed to have been added to the front set, at least. Spikes covered the entire creature, growing at random from thick plates of bone armor that had been layered both on top of the muscles, and threaded through them. Both seemed to have more in common with the teeth of a limpet with a few added features thrown in, not to mention the fact that the regenerative abilities of the new body were simply insane.
In short, Rachel's Gorehound had gone from a small pony-sized murder-beast to something that I could only call mass-slaughter given form and pumped up with enough steroids to make it almost as big as a double-decker bus.
"Damn..." I muttered as I stepped more fully into the clearing, causing both dogs to look at me, while Rachel glanced at me from the corner of her eye as I approached, before looking back at her Uber-Gorehound creation. My own eyes were locked on the creature as well, but for different reasons as I took a better look at the biology of the creature, noting the faults in its construction.
While yes, the construction and design of the entire thing was impressive, it was clearly not meant to last. The muscles were optimized for fast, rapid movements while lacked the needed infrastructure to keep it up over a long term. The vibration organs were potent, but they would burn themselves out quickly from repeated use, along with rapidly dulling the edge of the claws if they were left on for too long. Mind you, most of that still meant that it could work for ten hours without fault, performance took a sharp dive after those ten hours were up. Then again, I could understand the logic as I moved closer to the Uber-hound, the entire meat suit turned the dog into a murder beast for a short time before letting it go. By that point, it would have already shed the old meat-suit and grown a new one for the next fight, it made sense in the way that it allowed for more potent abilities during a conflict, but a part of me disliked the idea of giving up endurance in favor of raw power and sprint potential, as it were.
"I see you've been learning your new limits with your Gorehounds, find anything interesting?" I asked as I patted Brutus on the leg, the massive hound barely responding beyond looking down at me before looking back at his Master. Rachel nodded as she stood up, walking over to stand by me as her other dog, Angelica padded alongside her.
"Lots... I can power them up faster, make them bigger a lot faster than before, but I can also go the other way as well." Rachel stated, gesturing to Brutus, who suddenly shrunk down to half the size before growing back up in the space of a few seconds. I whistled at that, watching with interest as matter disappeared before re-appearing back into existence even as Brutus remained still.
"Wow, that's pretty damned impressive. Definitely something to keep in mind, though, I don't doubt that would be one hell of a surprise for anyone that might try and pick a fight with you." I remarked, getting a nod from Rachel along with a slight smile. Turning back to her, something caught my attention as I considered the way she had just spoken.
"By the way, your speaking a lot better than last time we talked, you been practicing?" I asked, curious as I saw Rachel nod, her smile wider at my remark as she approached a bit closer, a glance causing Brutus to start shrinking back until I saw his meat suit starting to fall apart. Within moments, the Gorehound was free from the meat suit while what remained of it seemed to just splatter on to the ground around where it once stood. I made a note to have the material collected, if only for study and as a quick source of biomass for later.
"Yeah, been trying to figure things out, get my head sorted out. Still working on it, but talking's easier than anything else." She remarked with a smile as she scratched Brutus behind the ear, the massive dog turning to press the ear into his Master's hand in order to get a good spot scratched by her fingers. As she spoke, however, I saw her pause as she glanced to the side, the gesture being nearly impossible to notice from the outside, but I could see her biology and saw that she appeared nervous, unsure of what to do as I stood back up from where I crouched, right next to what used to be the leg of a meat suit.
"Rachel, you alright?" I asked, curious and worried in equal measures as I wondered what she could be nervous about as she stepped a bit closer. I looked her over, noting that she appeared to be in perfect health before shutting down my biological sight. Immediately, I focused on her as I looked her over with more physical eyes than just the pseudo-eye that I had connected to my brain. In the two days that Rachel had been with me, I had managed to get her more fitting clothing of her choice, resulting in shorts that hugged her frame a bit more than the trousers I had loaned her and a shirt that, while still loose, hugged her body a bit better, Sandals completed the look. I would happily admit that she looked brilliant in her chosen attire, especially with her shorts showing off her well-toned legs and body, certainly, her choice of tops didn't help that as it fit around her. Not only that, but I knew for a fact that she had refused any kind of bra, not seeing the point in them when I offered them and just accepted a pair of boxers instead...
Then again, with me being a straight guy, I wasn't about to complain about it, even if I was still wondering just why the hell the augmentation process had given Rachel supermodel-like beauty without the need for any kind of makeup.
"... Yeah... Just..." Rachel started, seemingly shy as she glanced down at the ground. I raised a slight eyebrow at that, unsure about how to take that since, while I had known Rachel only for a few days, her being shy was not something I was used to, nor expected from a girl that had a mind more in line with a canine than a Human. I stayed silent as I watched her, waiting for her to speak as she glanced around, seemingly refusing to look at me before I saw her glance up at me while biting her lip, eye contact was made as she looked at me, her gaze seemingly assessing, looking for something. Honestly, I had no idea if she found what she was looking for, but the way she sighed sounded relieved. I couldn't help raising an eyebrow at that as she seemed to brace herself up and look me squarely in the eye, I saw determination shining through. I felt curious about that, wondering what she could be so determined to do as she spoke once more.
"... Uh, you know when you could augment me and my Dogs, Gorehounds, right? You said you could do lots of stuff, more than just making me tougher and stronger, right?" She asked, her tone cautious, but seemingly eager and hopeful. Though, I couldn't understand the reason for it, mostly because I was still unsure as to what Rachel was asking for.
"Yeah, though, I thought you weren't interested in that kind of thing?" I asked in turn, starting to see what Rachel wanted, but I didn't know for sure. The Parahuman in question offers a slight shrug of the shoulders, her hand going to scratch the ear of one of her Gorehounds that stood at her side even as she stubbornly kept her eyes on me.
"Yeah, at the time. Now that I'm thinking more, I want to see what you can do for them, and me as well, I guess." That last part was tacked on, muttered nearly under her breath as I raised an eyebrow at that, but said nothing about it even though I was sure she knew I heard it. I nodded in understanding as I considered what augments I could and couldn't do, either due to a lack of resources or because it wouldn't fit what I thought Rachel would want for her Gorehounds. I considered it for a moment before nodding, having considered the benefits of further augmenting Rachel to outweigh any kind of disadvantage.
"Sure. Do you have any idea what you want done to your Gorehounds?" I said, getting an instant reaction from the girl before me as her face almost seemed to light up at the prospect. A bright smile growing across her face for an instant before her expression turned thoughtful, her fingers still scratching the ear of Brutus as it happily wagged it's short tail at the attention.
"Uh, not really..." She offered, sounding embarrassed by the lack of thought she had put into it as I shrugged at that, having not really expected anything different.
"No problem. We can meet in the Bar and talk it out there. I'll bring some stuff and we can go from there." I stated as the happy, beaming look reappeared on her face. She darted forwards an instant later as she heard the words slip from my mouth, a peck on the cheek this time. Shorter than the last one, but seemed to be filled with her relief even as she quickly turned back around and wondered back to her Gorehounds, making to continue experimenting with her Gorehounds and their Meat-suits.
My brain stuttered as I felt the kiss, the action taking place at a speed that most people couldn't react to, thanks to the augments that both of us had. But it was still enough to get me to stop and stare as I wondered what was going on inside her brain. Absently, I considered the idea creating some method of reading the bio-electrical impulses of a person at range, creating a true ability to read the mind of another. After a moment, I discarded that idea as I shook my head, smiling slightly as I turned back and headed into the base.
Even if I could read someone's mind, chances were, that wouldn't help me understand them any better. Sure as hell, I doubted it would help me understand a woman any better than before.
XXX
Sitting in the Bar, I looked over some of the augments I could offer the Gorehounds while looking over printed reports of the various different experiments that I had going on in the background. DNA-computers and re-designed brains allowed for a vast amount of both processing power, and the ability to multi-task near-endlessly. A lot of the things I had them working on were simple things, usually taken care of within a few days. Still, they were annoying to deal with as I looked at some reports, things coming back from the investigation of various desert animals in an effort to come up with more Bio-enhancements. I was hoping to use such things to increase the range of my creations, not to mention their endurance. Sure, most of my creations could survive by eating any random hunk of rock they found lying around, but being able to go longer durations between feedings would be useful in its own right.
Another series of reports I was looking at covered ideas for weaponised Biological adaptations. These lists were filled with animals and their adaptations and traits that I could use for as a basis for a new enhancement, though, not all of them. Some of them just seemed completely random, but others held promise. My Inner-Tinker spiked when it saw some of the ideas, seemingly growing more interested with some rather than others. I made a list of several creatures that caused such reactions, while also keeping a list of other adaptations that I wanted to look into, several of which might have seemed useless, but I wanted to take another look at them to be sure. Sure, I could have come up with better stuff than what a lot of the things in the animal kingdom, but I figured it was better to take inspiration from them, if only to get ideas for future concepts.
Already, I had a few ideas for a way to create new bio-constructs, War mounts and Host Armors that allowed for multiple different metabolisms to be melded together. In this case, I was mainly thinking of making something that was a Lithovore, Photosynthetic and Thermosynthetic all at once. The advantages of being able to do all that would greatly extend the operational endurance of a given creation, not to mention making it less likely to fear for their lives. Though, that wasn't to say I was going to say no to something that was a Carnivore, Herbivore or Omnivore, not to mention the possibilities of using the Vampiric or Parasitic options that seemed to allow for more possibilities further down the line.
Taking a sip from my drink, I shifted through the other things in front of me. The paper having a distinct texture to it that told me I still had a long way to go before I could make it properly, mostly due to if feeling more like parchment than anything else. A moment later, I heard something as my head twitched to the source of the sound, though my feet, I felt the muscles of the base shift, soft impacts against the thick carpet-like floor telling me that someone was approaching. A second later, the muscles for the door twitched open led Rachel into the room, her Gorehounds following behind her even as I felt an eyebrow rise even as I forced down the blood that wanted to rush to my face.
Thank god for augmented body control...
Despite the fact that she seemed happy enough with her normal clothes, it seemed she had decided to change into something else for our discussion. I wasn't about to say no to her choice in attire, but one could forgive me for wondering what the fucking hell was going on when Rachel practically bounced into the room. Gone were her usual loose trousers and top, replaced with a much tighter vest-top that left her stomach exposed and a shorter, tighter pair of shorts that stopped just shy of the knee. Behind her, Brutus and Angelica padded along behind her, making me wonder if those Gorehounds had ever left her side in the time she had been with me. Absently reviewing our meetings, I noted that they had not as she came in.
I smiled at her as I made to stand up. Her own smile, already rather bright, brightened upon seeing me and I met her halfway into the room as she came to a stop.
"Alright, so I didn't know what you wanted for your Gorehounds, but I've got a list of all the stuff I can do at the moment, both for them and for yourself, if you're interested. You want some juice before we start?" I asked as she nodded, her eyes glancing over to where I normally kept the stuff. I noticed her gaze linger on the dark purple drink, the same one I usually had, as I had learned that she had developed a taste for it.
"Yeah, drinks sound good. Where you sitting?" She asked as I made my way for the drinks, standing to one side as she considered the large pile of sheets I had left lying around the table between the two sofa-like chairs. Honestly speaking, I still thought they were some of the best things I had made, if only because they were pretty damned comfy to relax into.
"I'm on the left sofa, closest end from the door. You want anything with your drink? Ice? Lemon? Lime?" I asked as I looked through the other options, adding ice to my own drink as I heard the shuffling of feet behind me. I heard Rachel's Gorehounds panting into the air as they followed her even as I heard the sound of someone taking a seat on one of the sofas even as I heard Rachel reply with 'No thanks'. My hearing was good enough to pick out where they were, roughly, in the room even as I turned around with the two glasses in hand. Immediately, I saw Rachel seated on the same sofa as I had previously sat on, over on the other side of the sofa, but with her Gorehounds flanking either side of the sofa itself, their heads hanging over the sides of the armrests with ease as they looked at the large amount of parchment curiously. Angelica seemed to be more curious, as the Rottweiler Gorehound approached and sniffed at the parchment, pocking her nose at some of the loose bits before a gesture from Rachel got the large canine to move back as I approached.
Approaching the table, I offered Rachel her drink, the glass held out in my hand as she took it, her fingers trailing over my own and the touch lingering for a moment before she pulled back and took a sip from the bio-plastic cup, seemingly savoring the taste even as I saw her eyes glance my way every once in a while as I took a seat. Placing the cup down, I took my own seat as I shifted through the parchment, flipping through the different sheets as I put the reports to one side.
"Ok, so, where do you want to start? You want to start with your own augments or the ones for your Gorehounds?" I asked as quickly organized the papers into two piles while keeping the reports to one side. Rachel slid a bit closer to have a look at the two piles as she glanced over the writing on them. I had the pages bound together with rubber ties, in crude book-like formats that merely lacked covers. Contents pages detailed what was in them, mostly by purpose of the augments, such as sensory augments, defensive augments, weapons, etc. Taking a second to look over them, she glanced at me before pointing to the one that I had helpfully labeled to contain the augments for her Gorehounds.
"Can we start with my Gorehounds?" She asked as she slid a bit closer as I nodded in turn, reaching out, I picking up a few spare sheets of parchment, a biological-equivalent to a pen and a hard board of carapace to write on, I put that on my lap. Along with that, I picked up the book itself even as Rachel drew closer still until our two bodies were touching. I felt her pressing into my side as slipped a hand behind me, running it to my opposite shoulder and placing her chin on my other shoulder as she looked down. I forced down my instinctive reaction to that, forcing my body not to flush as I felt her breasts pressing into my side and back while the rest of her body seemed to try and mold into my own. I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye, seeing her beaming expression as I wondered about why she was so happy while I repressed a shudder at the feeling of her breath tickling the hairs along the back of my neck. Once more, I thanked my own enhancements, grateful for the greater amount of bodily control I could enforce beyond simple body language as I pinched the blood vessels going to my cheeks, preventing a blush from showing.
"Ah, ok then... Where do you want to start?" I asked as I leafed through a few pages as I got to a more detailed summary, detailing names I had given for the different implants as I felt her head look down, her body moving up as she slide over my back to get a better look. Once more, I didn't know if Rachel was doing this on purpose or not, given how her mind mostly ran on Dog-logic, I thought not, though, I couldn't rule it out since I had grafted a Human-logic translator to her mind. Her free arm snaked around and pressed a finger against the pages, sliding down as she read titles until she came to the section detailing the enhancements to base attributes, enhances strength, speed, reaction times, that kind of thing.
"There." She stated as her finger moved back to the section title as I nodded, starting to flip through the pages even as Rachel pulled her hand back, lightly tracing it over my thigh as I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye once more. The Parahuman's eyes were directed to the flipping pages, a very slight smile on her face even as she shimmied a bit closer still until there was no longer a gap between us. Turning my attention back to the pages before me, I stopped at the requested section and began to speak once more, describing augments and such as Rachel listened, nodding and offering various comments at times while asking for more detail. Those augments that she liked, I marked them out on a separate piece of parchment before continuing onwards, doing my best to not show reactions to what Rachel was doing as she shifted her body, trying to keep certain aspects of her body in contact with my own.
Both of these lasted well into the rest of the day, and some part of the night. By the end of it, Rachel seemed extremely reluctant to separate, though she eventually relented. This, of course, wasn't helped by the fact that her Gorehounds had taken to curling up by our legs and didn't feel the need to move.
Still, walking out the room and heading for bed, I didn't know what to think as I considered the whole event. Shaking my head, I decided to sleep on it, if only so that I could try and make sense of everything...
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