Evolving Beyond Parameters
Jackie dove from the high catwalk and her brain screamed.
BDJ spoke into her neural net and it was followed with white hot pain. "Protocol Asset 4986J first priority has caused a catastrophic error. Due to eminent danger all fluid systems are undergoing evolution. Internal system evolution at the cortex/thought matrix level, and ocular-weapons systems Evolving for tactical and defensive measures. This will give a 98.74% increase in survivability."
Jackie bit her lower lip to stop the scream as she felt the pain. First it was at the base of her skull and it was like thin shards of glass being pushed into her brain, her optic nerve then burst into hot lava pain as her optics began to further integrate into her living systems.
Through the pain she heard Dax call her his voice was a coarse piece of sandpaper grating across a wound. She gritted her teeth and spoke slowly.
"My systems… are evolving… I should be… okay. Go ahead… with… mission… I will… catch up."
She didn't know if he responded because the next round of pain was worse than the first as the nanites from her cybernetic suit worked to maintain her blood pressure and stem any shock to her organs.
Her eyes rolled in the back of her head as the pain tried to consume her then…
There was a quiet tick inside her skull and she could see everything around her in a 360-degree arc, even though her eyes were shut tight.
Her ocular implant began running calculations and trajectories as the inner city floor continued to quickly approach.
Dax almost physically screamed into his comms when he saw Jackie dive off the catwalk.
The encrypted neural comms sparked to life and he barked orders. "Get to it everyone we got a job to do." He leaned over trying to track Jackie.
"Jackie can you hear me? What the hell…"
"My systems… are evolving… I should be… okay. Go ahead… with… mission… I will… catch up."
"The hell we will! You're evolving?! Jackie? Jackie!?"
There was an odd sickly pained groan over the comms and nothing more. He looked to Adien and made a split decision. "Cover the others I will go after her."
Aiden opened his mouth to say something then felt the weight of the still recovering Mikael against him. He watched Commander Dax disappear in the blackness below just as Lyra and Sura returned with a tall thin woman with dark blue hair.
Aiden looked at that hair and thought about how he was suddenly beginning to hate his world.
Jackie's mind blinked and then a think blue cursor blinked at the left hand side of her vision.
Words began printing out for her like an ancient word processor from the 20th century.
>System evolution complete. System designated BDJ has been upgraded to undocumented 3.0 series.
> Open system operating Screen yes or no?
She only thought yes and everything flashed, and instead of the screen that she had opened once before lines of data rained down from the top of her vision and she understood it all as if it were spelled out in a plane alphabet.
Her brain had fundamentally changed and it seemed that BDJ had begun to integrate with her cerebral cortex.
>asset 4986J protocol high priority protect stands to be a fatal flaw and catastrophic error. Recommend deletion.
>Delete Asset 4986J protocol high priority protect yes or no?
'yes'
The waterfall of code wavered and then parts fell away or simply vanished. Jackie was amazed at how much of this asset code had been integrated into her systems. She frowned. Some of the targeted code did not fall away.
>code embedded too deeply into primary functions. It is estimated that another two upgrades are needed to delete all code. There is now a 78.34% chance to fight against, and when, if the asset code initiates in the future.
And then the world came back and the whistling of the wind told her she was till falling.
She quickly made calculations.
>New ocular defensive systems online. Gravity dampers engaging.
>prepare for sudden Gravity well. Cybernetic suit will adjust to protect all living tissues.
Jackie suddenly flipped up right and her body came to an abrupt halt. Her foot touched the black pavement, and she bent over and vomited.
>Alert! Commander Dax is coming in with a semi-controlled fall.
'Does he need help?'
Jackie's ocular view in her HUD shifted and she quickly tracked Dax, calculated and her arm quickly formed into her cannon and deployed an odd foam.
Jackie looked at the foam and then at her cannon.
>weapons upgrade. Defensive foam. Can be used to seal leaks, stop most fires, and help in high altitude falls.
The cannon shifted again and a gravity pulse was released. Dax slowed and hit the foam and rolled off to stand next to her with a bewildered look.
"Thanks kid. Seems I am in need of some repairs. My hover thrusters cut out."
>hover thrusters were inadequate in the current situation.
Jackie pretended not to hear BDJ.
"I told you not to worry commander. Now two of us are in a bit of problem."
"Evolving systems huh? We have a lot to talk about."
In a dark office on a secret battle dome the Nexus Directive board sat and watched a sequence of events. Michael Martian headed the board. He was currently the second riches person on the planet, with his mother being the first.
He looked at the other board members.
"I say she is incredible."
"She is too dangerous Michael. Destroy her now."
"Shawn you lose money like sand from between fingers because of your fear. I agree with Michael she is extraordinary. Of course it is hard to time the extraordinary but it is possible."
Shawn sneered at the beautiful woman who spoke. But said nothing.
"The program is still embedded we still have control. It is a good experiment and an interesting asset. I agree with Michael and Eloise."
Everyone else nodded. Only one descended with Shawn.
Michael smiled. The opalescent sheen of his synthetic skin shimmered across his knuckles as he flexed his fingers.
"Then we watch and wait."