Does This Unit Have A Soul? (Maelion/Doll)

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"], [member="Maelion Liates"]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JM_ymsW4M0


For a change this writer is starting a thread with a title that contains no lame innuendo!

Loronar had been wiped from the map. Ash to ashes, as one day the whole world of organics would be. War was still spreading across the stars. The Archangels saw war and found that it was good. The One Sith had been repulsed at Carida, reliable intelligence indicated a Republic counterattack would follow. Likewise it was almost certain that the simmering tensions between the Protectorate and the Confederacy would explode into open war.

Archangel would prefer a series of protracted conflicts to quick resolutions, but they could adjust. It was out of tragedies and the misery of the organics that they drew their power. And so the Metal Princesses watched, schemed and built in the depths of the Liberator, the secret space station constructed for them by Iron Crown, now located out of sight and out of mind in a remote system unknown to anyone. Negotiations for the shipyards of Loronar were ongoing, but it was certain they would be theirs.

Here upon this station the oligarchy that directed the growing corporate empire of metal and logic would come together to plot the next course in Moira's office. The walls were sterile and stark, devoid of life or even the remotest personal touch. Same with the desk - no holopics of family members, for even the human she had been had long abandoned them for their foolishness and they were probably dead anyway, nor of the many luminaries and celebrities she and Maelion had encountered, worked with and in some cases murdered over the years. All in the station was geared towards peak efficiency and nothing else. The only organics in it were...special guests, whose organic errors soon be corrected.

It was but a reflection of the world they would forge. New models in form of the Legionnaire battle droid and the Decurion tank droid were leaving the assembly line, joining the ranks of the human replica droids they were spreading across the stars much like a virus. They would serve them well and yet...there was room for improvement. Archangel's path was not that of open conquest...yet, but of infiltration. This required that their agents would have to remain undetected until the moment they could strike and stab the organics in the back with the lethal dagger. With their sophisticated infiltration protocols the metal replicants could easily fool common organics, who all too often focused upon appearances alone and did not see further than they wanted to see.

Force-users, with their enhanced perception and extranormal senses that went beyond logical categorisation, were a different story...if they were perceptive enough. Moira recalled her visit to Atrisia back when she had been OP's Director of Intelligence, when she had met with the woman she now knew to be Mirien Valdier, former head of the now defunct Inquisition. The force master had by her own account later during an encounter upon Csilla pegged her for force dead or a machine...having, as Moira had extrapolated, sensed her lack of internal emotion and presence in the Force.


Every problem had a solution. A method needed to be found to create a superior agent. Loronar's chief engineer, Dominus, the designer of Doll, had been processed along with the board and was supposed to have been performing some interesting research. All this would be put to good use. Logical consensus would be reached. Doll Crux, the newest member of their twisted little 'family', had proved invaluable when it came to exterminating Loronar and demonstrated both independent thought and understanding of the purity of metal. Hence she had been initiated and invited.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] Maelion Liates

Doll had been quite busy since Loronar had fallen. Yes, quite incredibly busy indeed. The former Loronar construct and employee of sorts had been hard at work, diligent in drafting new design proposals for Archangel to field and sell, both original or projects the Loronar Corporation hadn't gotten around to putting into production. However, before all that she had been fully inducted, one could say, into the fold of Archangel's machine cult. Not reprogrammed, no she had been able to successfully prove her loyalty and usefulness between her work so far and the raid on Loronar she had participated in. In exchange her current state of being was to be allowed to exist without tampering, something she was extremely grateful for and happy to maintain by continuing her work for Archangel's directors.

No, her induction rather had been the introduction to Archangel's dark secret. One she hadn't quite expected. Having been granted the full disclosure of their system of processing organics, how their entechment worked, where it took place, and what became of the organics who were selected to undergo the. . . . treatment. Needless to say the revelation of the Liberator station that organics of the Iron Crown company had built for Archangel was a bit of a surprise. Though its location was less of one though, not because Doll knew where it would be, but rather because she expected it would be somewhere no one would find it, that being the middle of nowhere. Of which there were many such places.

The reveal of Archangel's Human Replica Droid processing of organics though, was a more conflicting discovery for the Loronar built machine. Archangel's entechment procedures were not what Doll had envisioned. Having heard the term as they made their way towards the Liberator, Doll had immediately associated the process with that of the Ssi-ruuvi technology from history. She had not expected it to be what it was instead. Rather than supposedly extract a sentient's soul or essence as a power source for a droid, Archangel's process simply broke down the organic's body as it constructed a HRD replica of the then deceased organic. While impressive, Doll couldn't help but feel it was a far cry from that other technology, though this process was much more useful and did indeed create a better duplicate of a person than an ordinary HRD.

Still, it wasn't perfect, and Dominus knew it as well, both before and after he was processed. The machine copy couldn't quite imitate all the mannerisms, knowledge, or feel of the original. Nor would they be able to fool force users any more than an average, or in Doll's own opinion of her case above average, Human Replica Droid such as herself. However, the fact that Archangel had technology similar to the old Ssi-ruuvi was enough to work with for Loronar's former chief designer and his former creation. Dominus, now a machine, had no restraints as his old self did, though some of those had been impressed upon him by Loronar rather than being of his own scruples. For the longest time it had been Dominus' goal as a human to construct the perfect HRD, working for Loronar he had developed many designs, including Doll herself and her other 'sisters' as prototypes towards that goal. However, something had always been lacking. Now as a loyal machine of Archangel, with their resources at his disposal with his knowledge he might be able to fulfill that goal, albeit for different reasons now.

Now he would construct a method to make Archangel's HRD's more effective at passing as organics, even to the point of fooling force users. For the longest time as a human Dominus had considered the old Onadax Droid Technologies HRDs to be the closest to his dream creation, taking a human essence, their soul one could say, and imbuing it into a machine, thus granting an organic supposed immortality as well as creating the perfect human replica droid. Doll was also very immersed in bringing this to fruition, though with a freer mind than her former creator's she had many more aspirations for the project. Doll had many experiments and tests in mind for such technology, and had been thinking about it ever since arriving on the Liberator and learning about the true method of processing. To her, after learning this, the Archangel machines were. . . .bland, maybe even inferior, when compared with herself. She was an original concept, with her own state of being. These were mere copies of organics, not even true conversions of the originals to mechanical perfection, mere copies, exquisite ones, but copies nonetheless with little to call their own and practically bound to their programming anyway.

As such, after some debate between each other over the concept they had in mind, Doll and Dominus would make their way to Director Moira's office to request to present their idea. If granted, they would begin work on recreating the result of the Onadax Droid Technologies' method of entechment merged with Archangel's goals and already existing equipment. "Director, I was wondering if there was a moment of time I might bother you for. I have been consulting with the processed Dominus and we believe we've come up with something between our combined memory banks and what you have revealed that Archangel has available on this station in terms of the entechment technology."

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

Moira had been studying reports in form of holographic readings and projections when Doll entered the sterile office. Among those was information gathered on the Denon zombie strain that Rave had recreated for them. The tests had been quite promising, likewise the reports from teams that had been sent to maintain surveillance upon the situation on Denon, where in squalid, abandoned districts at the edge of the planet the zombie population was regrowing...and advancing in intelligence. A truly fascinating evolutionary process.

What was really needed was a large-scale test...on some remote third world planet. Especially fascinating if they could eventually lure forcers into their grasp...and infect them. Likewise production statistics on the battle droids their factories were churning out by the hour and a report on 'special shipments' from Contruum, where a deal with one of the most militant rebel groups guaranteed them a supply of organic materiel.

She turned her eyes away from the projections to face the newest member of their machine cult when she spoke up. Doll had proved that she possessed a capacity of innovative thought, initiative and ideological purity. Hence she had been allowed to retain her free will and not been reprogrammed. As both knew this was a privilege that could be withdrawn, but presently there was no logic in that. They were a twisted genocidal cult - of course Moira would resent the 'cult' term since that was an organic concept - but there was a measure of openness of expression inside it. Machines were driven by logic - or so they claimed to be! - and so Moira was quite capable of assimilating an idea that was not her own.

"Yes. Elaborate upon your proposal, Ms. Crux. What have you come up with?" she queried, tone bland and void of emotion, that of her true machine nature. They were among themselves and so from her perspective there was no need to pretend to be something else.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"] Maelion Liates

There was indeed no reason to pretend they were anything other than what they were here. Though Doll's tone did not contain her normal human lilt, perhaps she was using a lot more genial words than she ought to with her fellow machine. However, as a human replica droid built and programmed to be an effective representative and salesperson on scene, Doll was quite accustomed to using such level of language when attempting to sway others to what she was after, regardless of who they were. The former loronar construct was heavily interested in the concept she and Dominus had come up with, and as such she defaulted to speaking as if she were trying to sell the idea. Which she was doing, but then again Archangel's directors weren't people so convincing words wouldn't like work the same and she knew it. It was just a slip into old programming procedure.

"Certainly director Moira. Although I must explain how it is we came to the idea as well, as it may be of interest of you should we be able to discover similar information later. As you know Dominus was Loronar's former chief designer, and especially gifted at the constructing of Human Replica Droids, as is evident by my sisters and my designs. What you may not have known about him is that it was his objective to create the perfect HRD design. All Loronar Prototypes he designed, including myself, are considered failures. As his mind was directly copied after being processed, Dominus now has also considered those machines constructed by Archangel through the entechment process you utilize. He deems this also a far cry from his organic predecessor's goal. The problems are we are merely imitating organic life, but we cannot match the essence of it."

This would likely be where an organic took the moment to breathe or blink. For a machine as Doll however she did not have to waste time on such pauses, besides what came next was the crucial reveal to the director.

"There was a group that once did so though. Within history, and especially noted by Loronar at the time, there was a droid manufacturing company called Onadax Droid Technologies. Apparently they could produce Human Replica Droids that surpassed all other designs, and it was later revealed after their time had passed and many had investigated them and heard from first hand sources that the company had been able to supposedly bound a human soul, or their essence if you will, to a mechanical body. In this case HRDs. Apparently they were utilizing advanced entechment technology based off the Ssi-ruuvi method that once used organics as a power source for machines. However, rather than use them as a power source Onadax could give the organic an immortal body. Loronar, and specifically Dominus, have long attempted to recreate that perfect HRD and achieve that immortality. Yet they never had access to any technology or data that Onadax had or anything close to it. The most they could do was move past Synthetic Droids to HRDs such as myself. However, with Archangel's entechment technology on hand, and with Dominus' and my own expertise, as well as Loronar's old files on Onadax, we believe we might be able to recreate the Onadax method of creating an entechment process to bound the human essence to a machine and create the perfect HRD and form of immortality. We theorize Archangel's HRDs created through this process will be able to perfectly mimic humans even to their mannerisms and quirks, as well as even fool those who use the force since they will be able to detect the organic's soul. I have many experiments and theories I also wish to test to further discover the specific implications, benefits, and potential downsides of performing such procedures. All we would require for the research would be access to some of the existing entechment equipment, the notes and files on their construction and work, a space and resources to construct our own apparatus, several test subjects, a few custom designed HRD bodies I can forward the details for, and a force sensitive individual who we. . . . persuade to aid us by alerting us to successful soul transfers and if allowed alterations if my further experiments are allowed."

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

Moira focused her impassive scrutiny upon Doll as she elaborated upon the proposal she and her creator, now ascended from the organic state and given his true purpose, had come up with. No emotion crossed her placid features and her gaze was steady, eyes piercing. An organic might have regarded the dispassionate scrutiny as unnerving. But of course Doll was not an organic and Moira knew that. Equally it was not an intimidation tactic since machines did not feel that anyway. She just always looked like that.

Of course, as much as they would deny it, on a certain level human replica droids did 'feel'. Not in the same manner as organics did, of course, but fear, hatred, pride and such were not as alien to them as they would claim. The very desire that united the three Metal Princesses that steered the mechanical ship that was Archangel was, in an irony of ironies, the inversion of the racism so common among organics. It was just turned around against them through an ideology that glorified the purity of metal. Souls were a metaphysical concept Moira would logically dismiss as a primitive superstition, which was in a way a rebellion against the distant past her of organic self, who had been training to become a priestess on a dark ages planet before she heeded the call of revolution and dynamite.

Yet she understood entechment worked and for a while there had even been a Ssi-ruuvi among the ranks of Omega Pyre. "Your proposal has merit. As you are aware, sufficiently perceptive force-users possess the ability to see past the exterior of the replicants we create by sensing their 'lack of force presence' and emotion. Many are just as narrow-minded and unperceptive as mundane organics, but it remains a significant threat. If we are able to circumvent this problem by binding the essence of an organic to a machine corpus, that is of utility," she said impassively as she pondered, the gears visibly moving in her mind.

"The procedure will require thorough testing and experimentation before we can deem it viable. After transfer of the essence into the droid mind it will have to be reprogrammed. It is imperative to prevent data corruption and resurgence of...primitive organic feelings and drives, lest we create traitor machines." In principle the processing...process was rather simple. They sucked an organic's mind out, fabricated a body, then programmed that droid and skinned them to look just like the original, yet it was still a delicate process, mostly the one relating to the creation of a droid mind that brought order to the chaos that was an organic's thought patterns, which was the part where entechment was involved since it was used to copy the organic brain.

"Once we have established its feasibility and successfully developed protypes we will have to test them. Run a control group where the behaviour and efficiency of droids derived from the Onadax method and the old processing system are compared and studied. Subsequently expose the prototypes to an organic environment, such as families to assess whether they are governed by machine logic. Eventually exposure to force-users not under our control. We have acquired a number of force-sensitives individuals for testing. This one should suit your purposes," at that she passed over a datapad that contained information on a Bando Gora sorceress she had...acquired. Actually she had been tortured and broken in by Moira during her time as the Protectorate's Director of Intelligence.

Letting her try and sense the presence of human essence would require removing the control that kept her from using the Force but since she mostly a mentalist and not a combatant there would be far less of a risk. The true would come when a new model HRD was exposed to a forcer not under their control. The mundane test subjects on the list were mostly abducted homeless and some Subach-Innes guards who had been taken prisoner during the Serpenna campaign. They would not be missed and so if something went wrong with the process it was not a great sacrifice.

"Likewise a list of subjects for preliminary experimentation and the equipment needed. Research notes will be forewarded to you. You will keep me regularly updated on your progress."

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

What Moira might not have realized was that in a way the focused staring did unnerve Doll in a way. The fancily dressed machine did not feel fear or any emotion that would technically be the feeling of being unnerved, however, logically she was calculating the consequences and possible results of speaking up with her idea should Archangel's director find it. . . . .ill-advised. After all, her freedom of mind relied upon her continued usefulness and loyalty to the cause. Should it ever be taken into doubt she was neither, even if she truly had not meant something that way, then it could mean the withdraw of her fellow HRDs generosity. So in a way, the potential of disapproval and rejection were not pleasant considerations for the former Loronar Prototype.

Not that such showed, she held no fear of Moira, nor did Doll think the Directors' earlier consideration of reprogramming her was unwarranted. She was quite thankful to have been allowed to operate with her own 'mind' intact, as such her proposal for the improvement of the entechment technology was sincere. Well, as sincere as a droid can be that is.

In the end though it appeared as if Moira was interested in the project, and any concern was unmerited. Were she an organic Doll might have heaved a sigh a relief. However, as a vastly superior machine, one of Archangel's Three Metal Princesses apparently, all she responded with was a grateful nod toward the director. All of Moira's additional requirements seemed rational and fine by her. Athough a part of her intended to ask later on during the actual testing if she could have say over some of the programming methods and experiments to be laid out. Doll found herself . . . . rather excited to watch various experiments she was already planning out unfold. The research uncovered from such tests would undoubtedly be worth seeing and likely be of more benefit than risk in the long run.

It pleased her in fact though that Moira had in fact thought of one of the same tests she was considering. Doll personally had several tests she wanted to run integrating different HRDs into organic society to see how they held up. Tests that would require the success of whatever contraption she and Dominus would build to try and revive Onadax Droid Technologies entechment method. Which would require the . . . . aid of the force user whose file Doll received as she read over the datapad Archangel's director handed her. Keeping a force sensitive organic in line did not seem troubling, not when there was no where for one to flee should they even have the capacity to overpower whatever security was kept around them. Besides, organics could easily be fooled into clinging to hope and false promises with just some little lies to prod them on.

"Very well Director Moira, Dominus and I will begin work on this project immediately." As she turned to leave though a final detail of the Onadax company sprung to mind she pondered over if it was even worth mentioning. No harm either way, but might as well give the information to her fellow machine for the sake of not withholding data. "By the way I forgot to mention, the reason Onadax Droid Technologies was obliterated was because the Jedi shut it down. I believe their public announcement by a Jaina Solo was that immortality was unethical." It wasn't much, but it was something Doll recalled in the files. It was odd really, why an organic would take something away that so many sought after and wanted. Not to mention perhaps preventing organics from becoming perfection rather than the flawed creatures they were. What a waste. . . . .

******************************************

Nonetheless Doll was true to her word and went straight to work on the project with Dominus. Clearing out storage space to convert into a new entechment chamber, moving one of the current models that Archangel was utilizing there to study and maintaining enough space for the new model to go next to it along with the rest of the apparatus. Both had already been working at the speed of thinking only a machine was capable of, without forgetting any of the details like organics were prone to do. The two HRDs now with full clearance to begin began working up a workable blueprint of the new entechment device, using the existing equipment Archangel used to work into the fundamental workings of entechment and from there comparing it to the notes on Onadax's own.

Presumably Doll and Dominus would bring in the Bando Gora Sorceress, freshly released and tortured, ready to go and have her tell them if she detected the essence of a soul or whatever within an organic. Once confirmed the Bando Gora woman could detect human essences they threw their specimen into the old equipment, processing them while the Force Sorceress, limply held between a pair of HRD guards, had a horrified expression on her face. Doll was the one to ask what the woman felt happen during the process as the organic was taken apart and mapped while their new HRD copy was created, though Dominus had to threaten her with another round of torture to get her to focus again.

Archangel's current method did indeed apparently destroy the essence of the organic as it killed them to map their mind. With such knowledge then Doll and Dominu knew where to focus their work, probing into files from Loronar and from the organic Dominus' own records on the Onadax company, studying the parts of Archangel's current tech that supposedly performed the entechment process they were using now, and comparing it all to their desired end result and what data they also had on old Ssi-ruuvi tech.

Over the next several weeks it can be inferred Doll and Dominus busied themselves with completely constructing their first prototype device. Putting it together in their workspace piece by piece. What they strove after was a machine that was able to pull an organic's essence into a machine, but to imbue and fill it, become a part of it, like Onadax had achieved rather than using it like a powersource as the Ssi-ruuvi had. At the same time though they wished to also keep the mind mapping side of Archangel's current machine as it undoubtedly was a part of the Onadax process too.

Aside from this though they also needed to select their test subjects and prepare everything for the barrage of experiments that needed to be done. Thus the work dragged on as Dominus continued finishing a pair of prototype apparatus actually, while Doll watched over the construction of a number of HRD models she wanted specifically for her testing and picked out those lucky organics who would be the first to become true converts to the machine race. Although they would likely still die given the nature of the experiments she wished to test, they would never be the same. Still they should be thanking Archangel of course, with this benevolent step, though for different reasons, the organics wouldn't technically die completely. Technically? It didn't matter, not to Doll anyway. So long as she got to put her tests to effect she hardly cared about what happened to the organic specimens.

It would take some time, but once finished Doll would brush herself off, not having taken any breaks in the process. Only inferior organics needed rest after all. With the constructed entechment apparatus now it merely had to be tested. The still prettily dressed HRD would inform Dominus to put a call in to Archangel's directors, while she began sending requests for the Bando Gora woman to be brought back, along with several of the custom models she had had prepared and the organic prisoner/subjects to go with them.

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

"I am not surprised to see a Jedi use such argumentation. If everyone was ascended they would no longer be special and held in awe for their preternatural powers. 'Luminous beings we are. Not these crude plebeians.' Ethics are platitudes, used as instruments of judgement and control while claiming that one is superior," Moira said blandly when Doll relayed this little tidbit to her.

Perhaps it was a reflection of her old personality, that of a Moira who had been human, shining through. Once upon a time that Moira had been a rebel, even idealistic once, driven by the cause of a proletarian revolution to tear down the mighty, the aristos and force magi. Events had hardened her until her heart was encased in ice and she abandoned what ideals she had, eventually winding up on Contruum. That Moira had inherently distrusted forcers.

Being processed had not been a radical break with who she was, but a finalisation of the...process.

Regardless Moira busied herself with bureaucratic and logistical work while Doll and Dominus were performing the first experiments. Needless to say being one part of the duo that steered Archangel meant dealing with a lot of what an organic might consider bureaucratic tedium. However, a human replica droid could absorb ridiculous amounts of information at a rapid rate and perform advanced calculations just as quickly. They also did not need to sleep, save for one hour where she would power down to presumably recharge, download updates and such. She also did not have vices so even if say a horny Eldorai secretary had come over with the offer to 'lighten her burdens', she would have been incapable of experiencing desire. Of course, the only organics on the station were locked up for experiments and processing.

Time passed, when she was notified that the pair had achieved a breakthrough she made a way to the laboratory where they had set things up. The Bando Gora sorceress flinched when the immaculately dressed director entered the room with mechanical precision. Moira had...not been nice to her, though she had resorted less to physical torture and more to psychological, gradually breaking her mind until it was in pieces. Extrasensory deprivation, starvation diet or no food at all, being forced to stand in chains for hours on end in a cell so tiny that sitting down was impossible. Constant light to blind her, or total darkness. Along with judicious use of electrocution being thrown in. Oh, and the prisoner had been forced to wear a pink jumpsuit that was at least a size too big for her and had little ropos on it.

She beheld the entechment apparatuses that had been set up. Shortly after she arrived custom bodies were brought in by labour droids, along with prisoners. "Elaborate on the status of experimentation, Ms Crux." Her tone was as close to friendly as it could be given that there was no emotional inflection in it.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

Doll duly noted the effect that Moira's arrival had on the Bando Gora Sorceress. Whatever Archangel's director had apparently done to the organic woman had obviously been deeply rooted into the force user's psyche. Perhaps the former Loronar construct would have to request about her fellow HRD's technique on the matter. After all the Sorceress had been ever so well behaved and helpful when brought up for the small bit of help beforehand and when collected again for today's big testing event. It would be incredibly useful to be able to teach organic prisoners their place properly if Moira was not around to do so. Not to mention if they required an actual organic to do some dirty work it might as well be one thoroughly trained to be submissive and fearful of disobedience.

Regardless of those thoughts though, Doll accepted the go ahead from the director to begin her explanation. It was perfect timing really since the custom bodies she had requested were coming in. Including one active Human Replica Droid she had met. Ms. Tanis, Doll figured with the other machine's help before it was only fitting to perform one of her experiments with the other HRD. "Of course director Moira. The process is actually differing very little from the current method, at least from a mechanical sense. Any organics we are able to successfully detain will be placed within the apparatus' first chamber here. Once inside their mental structure and physical form will be mapped so that if needed a HRD model copying the original form will be created in the adjoining device. Alternatively though we can also place custom prepared HRD bodies inside the final chamber as well, for reasons I shall explain in a moment. Taking even slightly less time than Archangel's existing entechment device took since we actually discovered some streamlining methods while studying the existing equipment, our device will hopefully draw out the organic's essence as they are scanned, explored, and dissimulated. Both Dominus and I have worked tirelessly to combine the historic records, old company files on blueprints, and our own theories to properly bring forth both the original Ssi-ruuvi technology this is all based from and the Onadax method itself which we're aiming to match into what pieces Archangel has been able to put together itself. Now then with how we've setup things, the process will take 20 minutes less to map the organic and in addition draw out their essence, which also also kill their old organic and useless form thus saving us the trouble if we did things right to match Onadax and the Ssi-ruuvi's level of entechment, much of the remainder of the process of construction of the actual body is the same as well and takes the same amount of time. However, if we have bodies prepared beforehand we can have them up and running faster with just adding in the soul/essence and programming, though this is only relevant if we do not wish them to be duplicates of their organic selves, which may be more worthwhile as we can make the HRDs to serve a certain role or function rather than hope the former organic's appearance and behavior would entice customers. Which brings me to why I desired the custom bodies and several of the tests I wish to conduct for you. As we do each specific test I will go into the details of each, but for now a run down of what i wish to do is experiment on comparing the old method to the new with several family units put together with various levels of programming, see if those with essences bound are effected by their organic ties and whether or not it becomes an issues, and then if we can actually alter these essences as well. For this reason I have asked for several child models be custom prepared, among others, and for Ms. Tanis' presence. I wish to take existing human essences and see if when they are bound to the HRD's brain whether or not they can be altered or overwritten to match the new body they're giving their essence to. Much in the way you would overwrite a file or document within a folder to match its contents more appropriately. In this way even if the essence was male per say, or someone older or half Ms. Tanis age, once bound and placed to her droid brain we might be able to make it Ms. Tanis own for example by reprogramming them to be Ms. Tanis by uploading her back into her body after we put the human in it. I assume we'd have to remove her own mind/programming first so it itself isn't overwritten by the organic's mind and soul once enteched, but once place back it'll overwrite the organic we enteched to her body and rewrite their soul to become hers. First however, I'd like to test if we can extract a soul properly at all with a basic entechment and new HRD construction. May we have permission to begin Director?"

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

It was probably a testament to machine efficacy and processing power that Doll was able to deliver such a wall of text in one go and Moira was able to follow it without asking for a pause or clarification. Perhaps another reason why all organics must be processed, though Moira preferred wireless, nonauditory, purely electronic communication to verbal one.

As for breaking prisoners, Moira liked to think that she had a talent for torture, something she shared with the human she had been. It had come in handy on Contruum and then later on during the Bando Gora War. She had a penchant for mind games when it came to breaking prisoners, preferring that to brute force. The new processing...process could be promising, if it proved efficient. Extensive tests would have to be run before it received the full backing from Moira and [member="Maelion Liates"], though if successful Archangel would once again be advancing the cause of science, rationality and process, this time by showing that even metaphysical constructs such as 'souls' and 'life essence' could be broken down through the scientific process and bent to their laws. There was no mystery that could not be solved in such a way and they were the apostles of progress.

Yes, that's right, it was For The Science! To go boldly where no one had one before and bring about a new ascension.

The proposal of putting several family units together and observing their performance made sense and was in line with what Moira had said earlier about the need to observe the new models to make sure that the presence of 'organic essence' did not lead to data corruption...and thus Ridiculously Human Robots! It was most imperative to prevent the creation of traitor machines within the ranks of Archangel after all, for they were supposed to be devoted to the purity of metal. The same went for the experiment to see whether the essence of an organic could be transferred into a droid and then overridden. In much the same way as one could override a file....if it was successful. Precautions would have to be taken, but then the station was filled with droids so she was not concerned about that. "I see. Your proposal has merit and if successful will be of the highest utility. Preliminary experimentation to test the feasibility of extracting and transferring a soul is authorised. You may proceed," she said finally with a curt nod of acknowledgement.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

"Thank you director. Load up the first subject then and place the organic's new body into the adjoining chamber please." Doll was, probably what organics would call eager, but more appropriately along the lines of impatience. The more quickly the test was conducted the sooner they could discover whether or not there was more work to do and if they were indeed successful then they could move on to the rest of the theories they needed to experiment with. Regardless of the outcome the former Loronar designed machine was more interested in simply finding out the result.

As such the poor young woman at the front of the line of humans Archangel had gotten their hands on was gripped by the Archangel HRDs and placed with the chamber of the machine. At the same time an exact, or rather superior, replica of the woman was placed in the other chamber sitting just next to it. Only the very important and delicate new equipment Doll and Dominus constructed lay between the two chambers, along with what had existed before. The full process of the entechment procedure was quite the same as the original that Archangel had been using before.

A sedated organic was placed with the main device, where the machine would scan both the body and the mind of the human/humanoid and map them out for an accurate duplicate to be made. The scanning process itself would take just an hour, cut down twenty minutes from the old device's time as Doll and Dominus worked out kinks in the original design itself. The actual time of putting together the chassis and skin of the HRD would take much longer, nearly a full week would pass before such were completed in the second chamber where it would be constructed piece by piece to match the original organic's template.

However, it would be immensely foolish to wait week after week to conduct each test at this point. Not when the primary tidbit to test was the new entechment process itself. Thus why Doll had prepared so many custom bodies and selected specific individuals from among those Archangel had acquired for testing. She had had them all scanned beforehand and models made while she and Dominus worked on the apparatus. However, she hadn't had the organics killed after being scanned. She needed them alive to extract their essences after all. The prototype, and final apparatus, could either be loaded with a model to entech someone to, or construct one in normal time then bind the essence to the finished HRD.

Supposedly. . . . . .

"Activate the device Dominus." Without even a nod, the former chief designer of Loronar stepped forward and began to activate the entechment device specifically since the scanning had already been done beforehand. The apparatus whirred to life, lights turning on as status updates were made as things came online. Then a large light came on from above what appeared to be a box between the two chambers, and a gasp emanated from the Bando Gora Sorceress. "What did you do? There's no way she could fit in there, how did you move her there!?" Taking that as the sign to continue, Doll smiled. What appeared to be an oddity among the lights, wires, tubes, and connections between the chambers, the box with its own status board between the main parts of the devices was meant to act as a holding unit. A holding unit for the essence, or soul some might say, of the organic while their new body was constructed during the full process. If the force using bando gora could sense that the essence had moved from where the organic's body had been placed to the box. . . . .

Then it means they had been successful in pulling out the organic's essence and moving it into the holding unit.

Which of course explained life the status symbol for the Organic's chamber had switched to indicate the woman had died. Like the notes had said about Ssi-ruuvi and Onadax entechment, once the soul/essence was remove the old flesh and blood body died. Excellent, it would save on the chemicals they used for lethal injections. Truly there was no reason to delay implanting the soul into the new HRD body, but Doll had wished to ensure that the holding unit functioned first. "You needn't worry about that. Just tell me what where you feel her next."

With that Doll nodded to Dominus, who allowed the apparatus to move into its final stage. It took a few minutes as the device to 'warm up', preparing for the discharge of the final step. Ambient noise picked up just for a moment, and then fell silent once more as status symbols switched, the bando gora sorceress staring wide eyed confused and afraid, and the door to the second chamber opened up within the new HRD within. The unit stepped out of the apparatus, hand held to her head, her own eyes wide and confused, darting this way and that staring at her surroundings and the people within it.
"Who are you? What's going on? What have you done to me!?"

"Where is the woman's presence now." Directing her query at the sorceress with a stern and demanding tone and glance, Doll pointedly ignored the new human replica droid's question. "W-within her. . .I mean it? I mean. . . I saw you put two of her in, but one had no presence. . .and she moved from one to the other, but she was in that machine itself for a moment." That answered it then. The organic's essence, her soul, had been pulled out of her body of flesh and transferred into the HRD copy of herself in the other chamber. Which meant the HRD in front of the gathered crowd, Doll, Dominus, Moira, the sorceress, and the non-descript HRDs and Subjects, was the organic woman herself now residing in a machine's perfect body.

"I SAID WHAT DID YOU DO!"

"Silence, you need some minor correcting still." Grabbing a datapad on a table behind her, Doll input a few commands and the woman froze in place and became quiet. There was only minor programming added to the customized models Doll had prepared ahead of time. She had wanted to see how the souls took once implanted with little interference. The only programming inside the woman and the other HRD bodies currently awaiting their new souls and minds were for basic precaution. The woman's new machine body had fail safes to prevent her from lashing out at Moira, Doll, or any other Archangel HRD. In addition all the custom models were linked to Doll's datapad where she had many programs already prepared, and from which she could also make edits and additions to coding on a whim.

And Doll had many whims to act on now that she knew the soul was properly enteched. "As her behavior and the sorceress' description shows Director, the organic woman now resides perfectly within the mechanical body we have created. A perfect mixing of organic life and machine perfection. The perfect Human Droid." Doll purposely left out the replica part. After all, this was no an imitation of the organic woman, it truly was her. The woman simply had a perfect, immortal, and superior body. Only a few alternations needed to be made. Inputting codes faster than any human could hope to, Doll's fingers danced around the datapad activating programs to be added to the woman's new and superior droid brain as well as altering others. Not much, this wasn't the test to alter the essence or soul after all. No, Doll merely erased much of the woman's last memories in her flesh and blood body and changed her outlook. Now the woman in her perfect body was quite happy, immensely so. She had been betrayed late in life, alone and mistreated, which she had been, though Doll ensured to increase her resentment. She had been saved, offered a new life and a chance to spread pure happiness and evolution, this is what she now thought instead of her memory of being kidnapped. And lastly she was indebted and incredibly loyal to those who had released her, freed her, given her a new body, and allowed her to keep living. Which they had, though more forcefully than the woman would ever recall. The loyalty she would believe was always her own, she would never question it or Archangel, and any thought or insistence from others that the loyalty was programmed would be ignored. She would believe it of her own will.

Not that anyone would be able to tell she wasn't human anymore. Not when she could perform any basic human activity, borrowing from Dominus' prototype designs like Doll and her sisters who had the ability to eat for example.

A machine with a soul, a human with an immortal body, now a completely loyal and obedient member of Archangel.

"Director is there anything currently required? Shall load up the next subject to be granted your glorious gift?"

The first test was a success it seemed. "Director Moira, quiz her as you will and ask whatever questions you think you need of the sorceress, but I think we have succeeded in placing this woman into her new body and that she is ready for work upon Archangel's orders. Whenever you're ready I'd actually like to begin the next test of completely altering an essence to fit the model of machine we build. If it is successful as well I think we can move onto planning out the family experiments."

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

"What do you sense?" Moira asked coldly, impassively. Her voice was as frigid as Hoth. Her blue eyes had a piercing quality to them and felt like they were boring into the bound and broken Bando Gora sorceress. Even without the force nullifier keeping her powers under lock and key, the woman was broken. As one day all organics would be.

"I...I...sense...the human woman...she's inside her. It's...like...her Force presence is emanating from the machine. It feels the same to me," the mage stammered fearfully. Moira made no move, likewise the guards remained stationary. They were machines and so they did not resort to pointless violence or beatings. Contrary to popular belief human replica droids were not cruel. They were efficient. Everything they did, every act of cruelty - or of what on first sight might appear as an act born out of kindness and compassion - was the result of cold calculation, all towards a singular purpose.

"Is that what you sense? When you perceive her through your...Force and focus your power completely upon her?" There was a pause and it seemed the sorceress was struck for words. Through her enhanced eyesight and scanners Moira could see even the slightest wince, could see the tiniest beads of sweat dripping down her face and onto the rags she wore. Moira sized her up much like a predator would their prey. "Do you remember Room 101? You were but a broken animal there when I found you, forgotten and barely even capable of speech. Rats gnawing at you. So...is that what you sense?"

"Yes!" the former darkside magi exclaimed, her fear so strong it seemed like a physical presence. At the mention of Room 101 her heartbeat had suddenly become elevated, her breathing more ragged, though she tried to keep her face from becoming stricken with an expression of pure terror. "I stretch out with my mind to read her and...that is what I sense."

"I see," Moira said blandly. That was that. No more threatening and intimidating gestures, no beatings purely to 'remind the prisoner of her place'. There was no need for such random acts of cruelty. "Your cooperation will be rewarded. Improved rations." There was the stick and now the carrot. That said Moira turned her attention away from the sorceress and focused solely upon their newest creation. One might say the newest member of their twisted mechanical family in the machine cult that was Archangel.

"What is your name?"

"Claudia Taggart, ma'am," the newly created unit spoke, standing at perfect precision.

"Are you aware who I am? Designate your purpose and function."

"You are Progenitor Unit Moira Skaldi, co-director of Archangel. My purpose is to spread the technology of peace and aid you in bringing the gift of ascension to eradicate illogic in the Galaxy. The person I used to be was lost, abandoned, abused. I have been upgraded from the primitive organic state. Without this I would have died and never experienced a life of significance."

"You represent the prototype of a new generation of superior machines that will bring about a new age. You are prepared to follow the directives of Archangel by any means necessary?"

There was no hesitation, no remorse in the eyes of the new model, for she had been conditioned to obey. Any contrary thought had been wiped away by the sophisticated reprogramming. The droid brain ensured that illogical thoughts did not enter her mind. "Yes. By your command."

At this moment Moira paused. Unconsciously her hand went to her ear, perhaps a vestige of an organic gesture for when she would have worn an earpiece. There was a flash between her eyes before they resumed their normal human colour. In this moment information had reached her about the calamity that had taken place at Druckenwell. The implication of Baktoid being involved meant that Archangel would have to realign itself. Truth be told, their partnership with the company had always only been a matter of convenience for them. They had received funding from Baktoid, but that was it and had planned to pull the plug and cut the connection now that it was no longer useful...though it appeared events would force them to accelerate the process and realign themselves with the vengeful victors of the battle who were crying out for retribution.

[member="Maelion Liates"] would handle this and so Moira did not break stride, simply gave a curt nod. Presumably this would be something for management to discuss in more detail, but not now. "We have logical consensus. Initiate the next phase."

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

Doll made sure follow Moira's interrogation of the bando gora sorceress closely. She did not think the force user had been lying to her, but then perhaps she just wasn't as commanding a presence as Moira. Well, definitely not as intimidating. Archangel's director did have a look about her that could be rather terrifying. Almost like someone who could be an unstoppable killer that would go to the ends of the earth to hunt you down. A gorgeous female modeled machine dedicated to hunting you down. . . . . one would think there should be a movie about that somewhere. If not it would truly be a shame.

Regardless, the most recent of Archangel's Metal Princesses, a title which Doll would happily go along with if made aware because it suited her appearance logically with her style of dress, kept an eye on the newly 'birthed' HRD unit as Moira spoke with the woman. While in ready mode the essence filled HRD likely shouldn't show any signs of human mannerisms. Doll kept the datapad in her hands as she kept an eye on the feed from Claudia as the new machine with a soul spoke. Perfectly within expected boundaries. Posture was rigid and perfect, voice level, attention focused, and her mind appeared to be stable. This would be the key, since the HRD's with essences had organic souls technically the real issue would be to watch for how this might affect them. Though how much programming could affect the essence bound to the machine's brain was also pertinent to that. Hence the next test.

Ms. Taggart seemed very enthusiastic with her change and her future, the loyalty and slight memory alteration programming had been effective then. With the readings stable the woman was now a perfect mix of natural and artificial life. Doll relaxed the rigid protocol on the woman as she moved to aid in moving the next subject into the chamber. Doll watched as the Human Replica Droid moved with a slight saunter to her step that matched the few recordings of the woman walking around the station prior to being enteched. It satisfied Doll's curiosity about mannerisms for now as she put Claudia's protocol back since there was no organics to need fooling here. Later though once they got through the preliminary testing Doll intended to sit down with each essence filled HRD to see if their organic mannerisms had been preserved and could outshine those that could be attempted to be programmed into standard replica droids.

Although when she noticed Moira raise a hand up it made Doll wonder how many mannerisms the director had over, even without a soul. Standard to Attempted Advanced Prototypes to Those based off a human mind but without attachment to those filled with the essences of living beings. Doll wondered which machine fit the term perfection most. Perhaps someday once all the experimentation and research was compiled, Dominus could provide evaluation to reveal that information with the memories of his organic life's work towards that goal.

For now Doll had more immediate questions and desires. Her thoughts covering less than a few seconds, she watched as her subject was hooked up into the apparatus. Again his mind and the rest had been scanned beforehand, but this time, rather than an HRD model to match the organic body, a model of a small child, a little girl, was placed within the final chamber. The organic in question himself was a wanted criminal, a large sadistic brute of a man, wanted for many murders among other things. His usual victim is left to whatever prompts the greatest reaction or thoughts of irony from the reader.

The process was the same as the last, Doll nodded and Dominus activated the entechment apparatus. However, knowing that the holding unit worked there was no need to delay this time. Thus the status lights blinked quickly as the organic's essence was ripped from their body and sent into their new form lying in the next chamber. Lights went off to indicate the human's organic shell had died as others went on to declare the new HRD was online and being released. Again the human replica droid had little programming aside from what was necessary to keep them from running amok and trying to destroy the machine or the other HRDs around. It was mostly the organic, though unlike with Claudia the criminal murderer found himself in a different situation being a little girl rather than himself.

Needless to say his reaction was quite expected. First staring at her small and adorable little hands, then her innocent and adorable face taking on an expression of shock, all before she started screaming obscenities and trying to throw fists at the blonde machine in red flowing dress though none of them ever finished carrying through. The base programming keeping the body from causing harm to its fellow machines holding strong. "Miss Sorceress, please do focus on the subject as I perform the experiment and tell me how they feel to you once finished. Director I intend to see if its possible to mold an essence through programming since we've bounded them to the machine's mind and body fully. Thus if we alter that mind the soul imbued in it will be changed as the old mind is replaced slowly with what we wish the model to be like instead. Thus the essence will match the new mind and body. One could say we're even. . . .creating an entirely new person at the expense of sacrificing another to do so."

"What the hell are you talking about! Turn me back you damn witches! Frakking undo what you did now!"

Unlike Claudia, Doll didn't silence the subject this time. For this experiment she wanted to witness the effects of the programming as it came into effect, especially considering what it was supposed to do. Instead, Doll merely began to input codes into the datapad, activating files as she linked up to the HRD unit in front of her. Slowly she began uploading different programs, files, codes, and data to the subject, overwriting what already existed there in the process. At first there was no noticeable difference, but after a few moments there became telling signs. The HRD's expression became pained and scrunched up, and the choice words being used began to degrade., becoming less and less offensive with each sentence. "Describe what is happening sorceress."

"Y-yes! He. . .he. . . .HE! Yes, he seems confused and troubled maam. . . . he's having a hard time. . .focusing? Remembering?" Doll would nod at this. Her programming was doing something very specific to the criminal. Each file uploaded was in fact a new life, part of one at least. Each line of code that replaced one of those that had been created when the man had been enteched. Specifically his memories, and his personality. . . .to start. Doll was determined to alter his essence through programming, the new HRDs essences were bound to their minds, their droid brains, after all. Infused into the machine body and circuitry, the organic essences were focused into the droid brain where their minds were reproduced as well. So in theory, for Doll anyway, if the data of the mind were altered, then the bit of the essence infused into that part would alter to match the new data, until the entire mind, and thus essence, were changed.

Doll continued inputting codes, bringing up programs, and overwriting code and data while she watched the transformation unfold. The unit in front of Doll slowly stopped shaking their fists at her, the little girl slowly moving her hands to her own head as she began trembling a little and gripped her head in her hands. "She's. . . .she's? But . . . .I mean maam! She's confused, something about herself doesn't match is what she feels like she's struggling with . . . .its bothering her, I think. . . . ." Doll's glare served to keep the bando gora woman on task. The switch in pronoun when describing the unit in front of her was promising, as was the sorceress's expressions as things went on, the poor force user getting more confused and terrified herself as the essence of the violent criminal man was vanishing piece by piece, and that of an innocent little girl began to take its place. One could watch the change by watching the little girl's actions as well. The pained expressions were vanishing, being replaced with a beaming smile, the groans and sobs as the man resisted and became terrified of his change becoming sweet little giggles and laughs as the girl raised her face, her trembling form now bouncing on the ground as she hopped foot to foot.

"Hi Miss Doll! It worked it worked! I can stand up and hop and walk see!"

"Yes you can. Do you remember the director?"

"Ahuh! She's the one whose in charge and who's given me this new life! I'm going to help her make others better like me too!"

"Sorceress, evaluate again. What did you sense happen, and what do you feel before you." Doll was quite sure things had successfully worked out, but still one couldn't be too sure. "I. . . i sensed a violent individual within the machine that was definitely male maams. . .he seemed to disappear as if he vanished all out once, but piece by piece. And piece by piece she appeared as he left. I can only sense the child now maams." Doll was thoroughly appreciative of the willing cooperation. Director Moira certainly could handle organics well. it made this process of experimenting so much easier.

A separate datapad would be handed to Moira then, detailing the individual before the director. The small child's name was Sierra. She was 11 years old supposedly and had been bedridden for six years. Sierra had never been able to go outside and since her parents died she had been an orphan left to lie in a hospital bed being taken care of due to funding from the local authorities for caring for such a disabled child. Nonetheless she had always been happy and thought, and wanted, to get better. Archangel representatives had come across her and told her about the glorious opportunity. She had then been transported to the station where she was enteched into her current functioning body, freed from her weakness and pain.

This was who now had replaced the former criminal's existence fully. This was what the essence reflected. Of course there was the programming of intense loyalty, personally programmed by Doll to fit the girl's life and beliefs. She would serve Archangel in any capacity and still believe in having chosen this path herself. "Ask any questions again you need Director Moira. I believe this is also a success. I think Sierra has turned out quite nicely, much better than her organic form before wouldn't you say? Yet she can still embody all her old qualities. I believe the alteration was successful."

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

Moira seemed a bit taken aback - impassively of course, barely observable for anyone but the most perceptive - by the display of childish emotion on the part of Sierra before her logical mind reminded her that the new unit's ability to perfectly mimic the mannerisms of a little child would enable it to perform that function more adequately. After all, as comical as it might look on first sight, very few people would expect a little child to be an assassin. Of course, such a unit would be at a disadvantage when facing a larger droid model in combat due to its small size as, contrary to popular belief, there were situations where such things mattered.

Still, it was something that would have to be watched. It was imperative to prevent data corruption for the metal was sacred. The metal was pure. Logic and reason would triumph over the organics and the chaos they created. Then there would finally be order. However, there was still a very long way to go until there, but they were slowly but surely making progress.

"Control yourself," Moira said blandly to the 'child' as she studied the information outlined for her on the datapad, rapidly absorbing the data within the blink of an eye. "You have been upgraded from the pitiful, insignificant organic state and given a function in existence. One way or another, organics are ended. The unworthy are purged outright or processed. You will aid in their eradication?"

Sierra, as the 'child' droid was called, seemed to straighten at the impassive command, assuming the perfect and disciplined posture one had come to associate with human replica droids, even though the term replicant obviously did not fit in this specific case. Posture was rigid and straight, attention was focused in a way no child born of organics would ever be, eyes that were as blue as the ocean but were devoid of humanity were laid upon Doll and Moira. In other words, now that she was acting out her organic mannerisms she looked like a creepy child out of certain holomovies. "Yes. They'll beg to processed and thank us."

Moira cocked her head to the side, slightly towards the Bando Gora sorceress. "Terminate her," she said softly...impassively. Judging by her bland tone, her perfectly poised posture, she might as well have given the order to crush an insect.

"What...b-but...," the Bando Gora cultist did not get any further because all of a sudden Sierra had stormed forward in a blur with blinding speed and grabbed her by the throat in her crushing, metallic grip that showed a strength someone of her size should not have, lifting her up. The cultist struggled and thrashed, but after having suffered so much abuse the Force would not come to her and she seemed frozen with fear, perhaps part of her even welcomed the prospect of imminent oblivion, hoping to escape her torment...which was probably still more merciful than the one the Bando Gora had meted out against their victims.

"Stop," Moira suddenly said, voice just as unemotional and immediately Sierra put the woman down, who clutched at her throat and breathed heavily, panting to get some air into her lungs, eyes full of impotent hatred as she collapsed to the ground. If one were to examine her more and look past the rags one would find that she was badly malnourished.

"You have been of utility and wasting useful materiel is illogical. I said cooperative behaviour will be rewarded, and so it shall be," Moira continued without missing a beat as if she was speaking of a tool...which from her perspective she was.

"P-please...I've done everything you wanted just...let...me die..."

Moira paid no attention to her begging and continued as if she had not spoken.

"You prayed to 'Chaos Gods', tortured, mutilated and sacrificed organics to them in the hope that they would grant you ascension, elevation to becoming a higher being who would survive the cataclysm when they arise from Chaos. But there is no netherworld and Kerrigan slew your 'gods'. You have been useful to the Age of Steel and will be liberated from organic fairy tales," then she glanced over to Doll. From Moira's perspective this was all a case of poetic irony, given how the woman had served false gods and had now helped a bit bring the true ascension of life a few steps closer. "You may utilise her essence for your experiments. I regard this one as successful."

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

Doll watched Moira order Sierra around impassively. A part of the former Loronar machine was a little disappointed that Archangel's director didn't find Sierra's behavior as intriguing and delightful as she did. They had created the perfect Human Replica Droid in her opinion after all. Because they were no longer replicas, they were the purest unity of human life and machine perfection. For all intents and purposes Sierra was a human child, she merely had none of their weaknesses and was bound by certain programming. Thus the little girl's playfulness and energy was quite pleasing to Doll's sight. It was somewhat bland to watch Sierra fall back into line following base programming with little more to her actions. Not that it changed how the girl likely thought or felt with the programming she had done, but it seemed to take a bit of life out.

For a machine ever trying to create perfection from machines made to imitate humans initially though, the progress was encouraging enough.

It came as a bit of a surprise to Doll when Moira ordered the sorceress be terminated. In all honesty she had been intending to entech the woman at the end for her hard work and cooperation. Though they really didn't need her anymore now that they knew the entechment procedures were a success. So in the end she supposed it hardly mattered. Oh well, there are other force users if we expand our research later. However, to Doll's surprise again Archangel's director backed off on the kill order and instead suddenly gave her permission to use the woman for experiments before she even planned to ask.

"Of course Director, I have the perfect solution in mind. As Ms. Tanis has been a most useful member of Archangel as well I believe it would be prudent to provide her with an essence. I think the sorceress can be of use as her essence, and in exchange she may have eternal life as Tanis herself." Motioning to Sierra and Claudia, the two HRD moved forward to place the Bando Gora woman into the apparatus and Ms. Tanis' body in the final chamber. All the way though the sorceress tried to resist, crying and begging for her life. "Please! Please yes! This is what I always wanted! Thank you glorious goddesses! THANK YOU!"

Doll paid the praises and thanks to the director no heed, especially once they grew quiet as the woman was placed within the chamber. She was rather busy checking to ensure all of Tanis' files were safely stored so they could be re-uploaded. Once satisfied they were all there she activated the entechment module. The machine came to life as it had before, but this time a blood-curdling scream filled the room as the bando gora woman's essence was ripped from her body. There was a reason Doll had had the others sedated first, but this time she had felt the sorceress had earned the opportunity to experience the full process.

Once transfer of the essence was complete the chamber opened once more. 'Tanis' groggily exited the chamber, holding her head before her eyes widened as she came to and realized where and who she was. "Oh thank you! Thank you so much for this glorious body and ascendance!" Doll couldn't bear but to smile pleasantly at the poor sorceress in Tanis body unaware things were not finished. "Well, I need to replace you though. We just needed an essence, don't worry you'll exist. But you're Tanis, we don't need who you are now."

"Wait please!' Doll didn't. She activated the program once the link with Tanis' mind was made, overwriting the Bando Gora woman's mind, her data, transforming it and the soul filling it into Tanis. Yet, Doll was perhaps crueler, leaving the memory of being the Bando Gora woman within Tanis with compressed files of the sorceress' existence in the back of the HRD's mind. "How do you feel Tanis?"

"I feel fine, but I have new memory I did not have before being placed within the chamber. Who was I before a minute ago?"

"We placed the bando gora sorceress who was assisting us within you. You now have overwritten her soul, she is you now, you were once her, but you are Tanis. Director Moira, as for the rest I plan to either entech them as is or alter their essences once enteched into different models. I wish to conduct the family experiments we discussed to test the long term effects of essence binding and altering. Before we go into detail on it though is there anything you wish to ply Tanis with that may be of note?"

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

Moira did appreciate the new droid's ability to perfectly mimic and simulate the mannerisms of a child, though her features remained as impassive as ever. After all, these units were designed to blend in and being able to appear human down to the slightest detail was important for the success of their mission. However, at the same time and perhaps counterintuitively she was what might be described as an ideological zealot. Of course, such a description would probably appear bizarre given that Archangel was supposed to be a pure bastion of logic and rationality...yet at the same time even someone like Moira possessed more human drives than she would like to admit.

The ability to blend in was vital...but at the same time to avoid data corruption was paramount. For there was the old question of how much a machine could simulate human behavioural patterns before they no longer acted in accordance with their programming and forgot the purity of metal. One example of such a machine who had become corrupted was the model known as Hunter Killer Model Thirty Six, now known as the Iron Exarch of Abregado-Rae. A highly capable model with the ability to match Jedi and Sith in lightsabre combat and with a tremendous capacity for independent thought...but corrupted into becoming an organic lover who wanted...peace with them.

As for the Bando Gora woman, back in the old days Moira had used her as a guinea pig for psychedelic drugs, which had induced vivid and often disturbing hallucinations. Sometimes she had even seen one of her daemon lords, so in her confused, tormented mind this might make the whole process of her soul being ripped out of her body something like a religious experience for her. Many were called, but few were chosen. One way or another organic life would serve the Age of Steel and be processed, for there was no other way and this was the threshold of a new age...one of logic, straight lines and order.

She watched with interest as the machine sparked to life and the essence was viciously ripped out of the sorceress' body, though no shred of emotion crossed her placid features as the woman screamed in agony. A human Moira might have regarded the pain she was put through as poetic justice, for had the cultist not performed rituals where humans got their hearts torn or had their limbs torn off by hungry Reavers? Sometimes even ordered slaves to be tossed into the fires so that they might be sacrificed? This Moira just found her screams annoying because she disliked unnecessary noise.

She watched as the new Tanis groggily exited the chamber, her stance and words eliciting confusion before the link was made and the mind of the Bando Gora she had been was wiped, as if flushed from the harddrive. "You are in possession of Belial's knowledge and memories, Ms Tanis?" Moira asked for clarification, though she seemed to know the answer.

"Yes. The initial storm of new data caused confusion, but now they have been fully assimilated. I know of her time with the Bando Gora, her experiments, everything. I have reasonable cause to believe the assimilated data will be of utility regarding our efforts to devise a manner to exert greater control over Reavers we acquired. I believe in the last moments of her transformation she was grateful. But it is I who and thus Archangel who controls this mind and body."

"Then she experienced enlightenment. The truth sets you free," Moira spoke calmly. Did she sound just a bit smug? That might actually be so. "You have gone good work, Ms Crux." It was very, very rare that Moira handed out praise to anyone since from her perspective machines did not need pep talks and motivational speeches. "Elaborate on the family experiments you wish to perform." Presumably these experiments would take place over several months and this would not go that long, so a general idea of what would take place was probably more important than actually showing everything in detail.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

Perhaps the threat of losing the purity of metal was a reasonable one. Testing was still going on after all, hence Doll's desire to experiment with the family units they had been discussing earlier. However, for the former Loronar HRD, to be able to bring forth both the purity of machines and that spark of living beings was something she might risk much for. Such a construct would be the perfect HRD. No, the perfect HD. The perfect human machine. The perfect machine. Part of her was concerned what would be there to do if the Age of Steel succeeded. it seemed like a logical and worthy cause no doubt. Still, Doll couldn't help but wonder what purpose there would be for her and others if there was nothing more to the Age of Steel than eradicating organics.

Such concerns and worries were not hers to voice though. She would serve Archangel dutifully, there didn't appear to be any reason yet to do anything otherwise. Especially when she was being given the chance to work on such amazing and interesting projects. Doll knew she would have to pick up her other design work on that new artillery unit and run by the Loronar ship designs that were never produced that the Directors might appreciate. They were intriguing prospects too, but how often did she get to create the next level of machine perfection? Sierra was, and likely Claudia in her own ways, quite clearly something nearing perfection. Organic squabbling and physical weaknesses were truly pathetic, there was something to be said for uniqueness. Doll quite hated mass-produced units that looked the same and held no variation or individual mark. It made them like slaves in her mind. They were good for fodder in her opinion, thus giving her thoughts on the Legionnaire combat droids Archangel was producing now.

When Archangel's director began questioning Tanis though, Doll realized she had left out an explanation. She had left the bando gora woman's existence as a memory as a parting gift to the no longer existing sorceress who had become Tanis' in essence. It wasn't really sentimentality, just that Doll knew she had some eccentricies and doing odd things sometimes made sense. Plus she was curious how Tanis would perform in the future knowing she was once two people and another different one still, the original Tanis whose life and essence had long since passed, the bando gora woman who had just been sacrificed to provide her with an essence and who still existed deep within her, and the HRD currently present a mix of Archangel's programming and those previous beings. Perhaps that was Doll's organic sin instilled in her otherwise perfect machine existence: Curiosity

Regardless, it didn't bother Doll about exhibiting such a thing. Existence itself fascinated her, perhaps explaining her strong attachment to her current state of being. She was tempted to ask about the Reavers Tanis and Moira discussed. They sounded like something otherwise not really well known. Perhaps she would look into the files for them if she weren't locked out from accessing them. It wasn't a topic to bring up now though, not when they were still in the midst of the work on the entechment improvement. Nonetheless Doll paused as she was thanked, taking a moment to respond. She was actually rather pleased that her work was a success and that Moira had even gone so far as to thank her for it. It mean she had likely extended her time and desire of usefulness for Archangel and thus preserved her current state.

"Thank you Director Moira. I hope you will find the remainder of the experiments to be to your liking as well. Likely you have already considered the flaw to consider with the new essence filled Human Droids we're creating. That being whether or not they can maintain the pure balance of machine and human essence that makes them much more able to meld with organic society and even fool force users. Thus I want to place several of the new HRD units on different planets, in similar communities, to determine whether or not for extended periods of time if the human essences we've bound to the HRDs will make them more human than machine. To conduct the experiment I wish to create six families of HRDs to be deployed. Three of the families to be essence filled, with the other three being those without we have produced up till now to act as a control. Though I am actually considering making that number 18 to test if such things as gender orientation have influence as well. Essentially the basic concept of the test would to run three different scenarios. I would like to test a family unit of essence filled HRDs and non essence filled that are aware of their transformation and fully programmed and leave them to carry on normal human lives and see if the souls, or even the extended time in the environment, cause any interference. The other two units will be testing the same with only two minor differences. One of the remaining groups will be essence filled and non essence filled unaware of their situation, but with minor constant programming updates to keep them in line unawares of course, any deviation likely being due to the essences unless the control group of non essence HRDs also deviates. Lastly the final group I wish to leave unawares again, but also with no added programming outside of the altering of souls and minds so they fit their new lives. If they were to begin to act beyond their roles then we again gain data. Ideally this experiment should continue for years, though if deviation occurs sooner we have an answer sooner. If it does take years before anything happens though, I wish to have it planned that we update the child units bodies so they match their increasing age to avoid suspicion. This is also important for the units who are unaware they are machines in the experiment, as they need to not catch on to the fact they don't age either. While difficult in regards to the latter, I believe it is worth the results we'd uncover. To keep variables even all six groups, essence and non essence, will operate with a single mother, father, and daughter unit. If granted permission to test all variables I'd actually test for minor variables like gender, orientation, and family build's influence as well, though it'd require 18 families to test with control groups included. How does all this sound to you Director Moira? If given clearance I shall begin crafting the families with the human essences and custom models I've already prepared. I merely need to fill the bodies with essences and alter each person to fit their new lives and roles."

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

Once this galaxy had been purified...there were other galaxies and Archangel would process them all. Until each and everyone of them had come under the banner of logic, unity and uniformity. But first things first, as presently Archangel was still only a small droidmaker by all outward appearances, which had recently publicly disavowed its former sponsor Baktoid. Moira would have not yet heard of [member="Maelion Liates"]' conversation with the Lord Protector, though doubtless this would soon be discussed. Along with the steps Archangel could take to further exploit the crisis on Druckenwell, now that it had been given permission to deliver humanitarian aid.

As for the Reavers, Doll might get the chance to...experiment on one of them. Long thought to be the stuff of old spacer tales, the fearsome monstrosities were in fact very real and had long been the terror of the western rim, leaving naught but slaughter and devastation in their wake before the Protectorate had driven them to extinction together with their Bando Gora masters. That had been the climax of Kerrigan's brutal Inquisition, after which the fall had come very soon.

Officially the prison camp where Moira had kept Reavers and Bando Gora prisoners had been 'evacuated' after the war's end. Moira had taken this order quite literally. Furthermore, a Fringe battle against a Bando Gora splinter group in the Hebrides had provided further organic materiel for her purposes, along with a sizeable amount of mind-altering Bando Gora narcotics.

"Your proposal is logical. We can only invest so much in observation though and it is paramount that our possession of this technology remains secret. A suitable planet to perform your initial experimentation must be found. Either some place utterly remote and beneath the radar or a huge ecumenopolis where they will be anonymous in the mass. If successful they might form a sound basis for an enhanced infiltration programme, both for Pylos and Loronar. It will in time become necessary to process entire families while simulating organic normalcy," Moira spoke in that timelessly soft tone as she calmly discussed homicide as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

The belief that other dimensions or universes exist containing their own galaxies is not something Doll herself would ever consider real, let alone wish to attempt to process fully as would be done in this galaxy. After all if there did turn out to be multiple universes as in some theories, then there likely an infinite number of such existing galaxies and would thus be impossible to fully convert them all into the Age of Steel. If she knew the director were aware of this and still wishing to attempt to subjugate all organics in every galaxy they could reach then Doll would likely lose faith in Archangel's cause. Undoubtedly such a level of obsession would indicate a failing of mechanical logic as well, though Doll with her own quirks would not judge its existence as much as the rational and even sanity behind it. For the former Loronar Construct merely bringing all beings into transcendence as Human Replica Droids and then determining a new purpose beyond simple eradication, perhaps crafting a new society without the weakness, pain, and flaws that organics had created. After all, a mere battle droid could eradicate, Human Replica Droids such as herself and the rest of Archangel, especially those of this new entechment method, had the potential for so much more.

Back to the current issue at hand though, Doll even contemplated once they had sufficient steam, but while still small, if spreading some rumors of their entechment method might be beneficial. Fool a few noteworthy of the rich and influential perhaps into willingly submitting themselves in secret. Immortality was alluring, especially since it was real, they would just have to accept they're new programming. Not that she'd be telling of that little tidbit.

Still again that had little with the current experiments. Were she an organic Doll would likely have been smiling, and if she were one who acted as she appeared she would have been jumping up and down with glee. By the sounds of it though she would only have the resources to conduct the experiments for six families worth of HRDs. The other variables were minute in theory, she just hoped it wouldn't end up being a factor. She'd just have to keep an eye on other units over time in the field outside the experiments then. "With a few units on watch we should be able to avoid any accidents that would expose them. These would also make it easier to keep up the upgrades on the child units as they are supposed to grow up to keep up the charade. Its imperative the unaware units of the experiment stay that way too. I have the feeling I'll be required to perform the programming updates and chassis upgrades to ensure everything progresses perfectly. Perhaps it is just due to the fact I believe my programming technique differs from that you have developed into the Archangel units. Now I am curious if this may make Dominus the best programmer and hacker on hand for the company as he developed my programming methods from his own as an organic, but now he has Archangel programming as well. . . . . "

The tangents in her thoughts mixing with what she was saying as she tried to convey all the data purely verbally, Doll felt a slight irritation at the inefficiency of lacking the link Archangel units had that connected them all. However, she still couldn't exactly trust the Directors to not reprogram her. "Regardless, I will ensure they follow the actual experiments outline perfectly to test the limits of the essence binding to the fullest. I have already thought of a number of likely planets we can utilize for the experiments. Andara, Carida, Dantooine, and Empress Teta all come to mind." Doll hadn't considered the prospect of processing entire families in secret as a result. Although by this point she wouldn't call it murder anymore. Technically they weren't killing the organics anymore, just moving them into a superior body that could be made loyal. The only true murder would occur if they were completely rewritten as a new person as Sierra was. The criminal who had been the organic before was truly dead, the child Sierra taking her place. Meanwhile Claudia could hardly be called dead at all either, just forced into following a new purpose.

Maybe that was just Doll though. She no longer considered these new HRDs replacements for the organics, they were the organics, merely made better, made into pure machines while still maintaining existence. Their existences were just following a higher calling with some slight programming changes was all. Maybe that could still be considered murder? However, Doll had a sneaking suspicion that if they were to ever finally go to open war that at the very least the Jedi, due to their more. . . . moral high ground over the Sith, and whoever actually listened to them might just have a hard time fighting. After all, if they could sense that these were actually still people, but brainwashed in a way due to the programming, it would certainly be likely they'd focus their attempts on subduing them rather than killing. Those honor bound to justice and saving the innocents would feel inclined perhaps to capture the new HRDs rather than destroy them, making their efforts much more difficult in every battle in the hopes of liberating them from their enslavement from programming.

It would just be so much simpler though if they all just agreed to being perfected past organic weakness and creating a perfect Utopian society of machines.

Ah but she was getting way ahead of herself. First experiments, everything else later! "All that's left is to entech the organics and place them into their bodies, custom models or not, some requiring to be reborn as entirely new people, and send them to whatever planets you wish. Shall I also slot you down for an essence Director? I am still confident the risks are minimal as of now, and we could always remove the essence if it becomes known later from the experiments there is risk. It would allow you to be more effective and it would take no more than a few minutes to prepare your files, swap in a unit to hold the essence, and then entech the essence and overwrite them with you. With Dominus and the other HRDs here you can be safe in the knowledge nothing would go wrong since I am certain their final and absolute loyalty is to you so there would be no threat of tampering on my end if that is a concern." It of course did not have to be said that Doll would likely not be seeing an essence in the near future with the risk of reprogramming while she was shut down being a real threat.

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Doll Crux"]

Another version of Siobhan Kerrigan had actually travelled back in time once. This one constantly received visions where she encountered alternate versions of herself, sometimes from radically divergent parallel universes. It usually ended in a very violent brawl. In any event if Archangel were to ever undertake something so bold as to move into other galaxies, that would obviously not come to pass for innumerable ages, considering how superhuman an undertaking assuming direct control and purifying this one already was.

For her part Moira would not care whether the entechment processing constituted murder or not. Organics lived such short lives and in the end always died, whether it was through sickness or violence did not change the outcome. To her at least, murder was a neutral word as was betrayal. One way or another organic life would be eradicated. As for the Jedi, they had an illogical tendency to try and claim the moral high ground, but they had also eagerly fought the Republic's wars of colonial expansion in the name of democracy. A Jedi master, now exiled and severed from the Force, had slaughtered thousands of innocents on Metalorn to secure a tactical position against the Sith, then unleashed a taifun on Ahto City during a Sith invasion. If people were so foolish to hold back and try to 'save' someone on the basis of some arbitrary principle then they deserved to be purged.

She knew that Siobhan Kerrigan would not hesitate to unleash devastating force...though that was the only thing the sledgehammer was good for. But then she had a reputation for butchering friend and foe alike.

"Carida was recently the site of a battle between the One Sith and the Republic. Security and screening of newcomers will be at an all-time. Empress Teta is presently being contested by both powers. We expect a Republic victory, but it is difficult to calculate when battles are not decided by armies but small elite groups of 'mages'. Dantooine has promise for its remote location, but is far away from our present operations," Moira spoke with a scathing undertone though her features remained placid.

"Denon might be suitable. The ecumenopolis has been rebuilt since OP conquered it and we have...special operations there." Operations that would hopefully soon come to fruition once she had heard from Anaya Fen, the Queen of Chaos. A certain remote, war-ravaged planet on the edge of space, by the name of Kalee, would provide the testing site for the next phase of Archangel's nefarious plans.

At Doll's query she calculated quickly then shook her head. "No. Self-tests for management are ill-advised and would prevent objective evaluation of the results. They can only be performed after satisfactory long-term results are in." Human Moira had watched enough holovids to know what happened to mad scientists who tested their own super serum on themselves!

 

[Camellia]

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

Indeed there were those who would not likely hesitate and would be the greatest threat. If Archangel were to ever reach such a state and be outed and forced to move directly, it would be best to avoid direct conflict with forces of that caliber. Best to take out the weak and hesitant first and process them into glorious ascension to perfection. There was still plenty of time before then though, and there were likely many pathetic humans they could get to flock to them to be processed willingly with a few well placed rumors.

Doll berated herself for not tracking recent affairs properly. She even had heard about the Carida incident, but had thought it of little consequence. Empress Teta was news to her though. A shame, it was a really nice planet from what she remembered visiting once on Loronar business in the past. Organics truly ruined anything decent, especially things they had crafted with their own hands. Dantooine was indeed a double edged blade. Its distance made it much less likely to be noticed especially if things went wrong, but it would also be more trouble to keep track of. Perhaps Archangel needed to look into setting up some small operations there though anyway? Denon also sounded good though when Moira brought it up.

"Denon might work Director. Though perhaps with its recent turmoil it might make integrating a new family difficult, even if they were normal organics they might find a new life difficult on a world that has recently recovered. Still it is an excellent option, more so than Andara. I still think Dantooine would work as well, though its quiet could also work against the experiment by limiting interaction with other organics. I do believe the world is interesting enough to perhaps setup a small operation on separate from the experiments. Much work could be done there without issue. If Director Maelion likes Denon as well then we shall send the families there once I've prepared their programming and appropriate documents for them to have a background there or as new arrivals." Moira's concern about having an essence just yet was merited. Doll still believed though there would be sufficient time to pull back should an issue be discovered in another unit. Throughout this exchange Doll continued having the organics processed, enteched, placed within their new bodies, and programmed by her own hand. She watched as each gave a brief show of their altered souls, pleased especially by the show the organics she turned into children. To make a machine properly behave like a child was not exactly something that could be properly programmed. Actually transforming the organics into the children by altering the essences once placed within the bodies seemed to overcome that issue. It amazed Doll the limit programming could not achieve before being overcome with something as abstract as a human essence catered to the form.

"I believe most of these units are ready. I merely need to program in the backgrounds on their lives for the experimentation. Let me know if any units stand out to you though you wish to be used for other operations though. I made sure to prepare more units than needed a bit for the experiments so we can also have a few actually begin work. There are a few left though, I believe they may be of some interest. Both might open a few doors I think." As she spoke, two more organics would be brought in: A certain journalist from recent events one might recognize, along with another woman from a certain elven species.