Log Title: A Viral Plan Characters: First Aid, Ratchet, Scales, Twidget Location: Iacon Medical Center Date: October 6, 2020 TP: Space Cthulhu TP Summary: How do you cure a virus? With your own! As logged by Scales
Log session starting at 21:56:00 on Tuesday, 6 October 2020.
Scales is at a monitor with a couple of datapads for reference, working away on formula. Unlike earlier today when she had been all business, she's half lying in a chair and gnawing on a clean piece of metal as she looks back and worth between screens.
Twidget makes her way into the medbay, venturing towards a spot to climb up and sit that's not quite in the way. Clearly not needing any sort of medical...attention, she's just, well, there. Relaxing. Though she does glance at the activity going on casually.
Ratchet comes out of his lab, where he's been consulting with Greenlight. He approaches Scales' monitor, smiling down at her apologetically. "Any progress yet? Sorry for dumping this in your lap without consulting you. I've been trying to get information on the Dweller in case it'll help both your research and our Space Bridge problem."
Scales blinks up and stops chewing the bar long enough to straighten up a bit. "Havin' First Aid's old notes are a real help!" she says. "Even if it didn't kill it entirely, he has a lot of good notes on what he did."
Twidget blinks a bit. "Dwellawhosit?" She furrows her brow and consults...her datapad. "Anything Engineering needs to help out with on that front?"
Ratchet nods to Scales. "Good! Good! I so hoped they'd help. If nothing else, we can deactivate the virus again, although of course it'd be better to kill it completely." Looking up at Twidget, he replies, "Maybe. We have an Elder God in the Space Bridge network, and we need to find a way to get it out. How do you feel about working with former Decepticons?"
Scales picks up one of the datapads and scrolls through it a bit. "I -did- wonder if we could modify the forcefields we're using to keep it out in order to trap whatever it is. Just been busy with this stuff." She finds the bit she's looking for and hunts for a specific section on the monitor she's using.
Twidget hmms... "Well, you know, if you need the mechanical stuffs, just let me know, yeah?" She shrugs. "I'll just be working on Icarus in the mean time I suppose... stupid thing won't fly and I've no idea why."
Ratchet looks at Scales. "How can I help?" While waiting for an answer, he glances at Twidget. "If we need anything mechanically built in regard to the Space Bridge problem, can I come to you?" he asks.
Scales taps the monitor. "This is the routine First Aid managed to trigger to shut it down. I think the key problem is that the virus burrows into the processor's code... so it'd be hard to remove it without damagin' the place where it's worked itself in. Easy to turn off, harder to get out. I think... we might need the equivalent of our own retrovirus to go in and rewrite the virus, so it turns it into something that the dweller-thingy can't use?" She chews on a claw, her optics carrying a tinge of purple unease and uncertainty to it. This is really new ground for the little tape.
Twidget nods. "Yeah, I do enjoy that kinda work, after all." She grins. "Just let me know what the problem is and I'll finangle a way to get by it. Or...blow it up." She chuckles softly and blinks. "Retrovirus? Out of my league."
Ratchet nods, listening to Scales. "You might be onto something. This is more than medical - we need a programmer. Do you think Chromedome is likely to come out of hiding soon?" He glances over at Twidget. "We could use finagling, for sure, and in the worst case, explosions. So, I'll count you in doubly," he grins.
Scales tilts her head. "I dunno... he was awfully twitchy the last time I saw him, an' that was weeks ago now." She hmms. "Said he was doin' somethin' with the Combaticons and he didn't want other people gettin' involved with it."
Twidget nods. "I...couldn't say about Chromey, but yeah, count me in no matter what." She blinks. "Combat...oh. That...mess, yeah." She shrugs lightly. "We all get stuff wrong sometimes, or right, or wrongfully right, or rightfully wrong...just gotta keep moving, yeah?"
"Yeah...." Ratchet responds. "That didn't end well." He nods in agreement with Twidget's assessment, though. "Well, maybe see if you can get First Aid back on it," he tells Scales. "He came up with the original treatment. Together I can imagine you'll come up with a cure," he says with an encouraging smile.
Scales nods, optics still carrying that tinge of purple. "Yeah... this is one of those things you don't wanna get wrong, you know? I think it's possible, but I'd still want somebody who's done this kinda thing before to help me get it all worked out." She twitches a tailtip.
Twidget just settles back, letting the medical talk go on as she stretches a bit in place and thinks on the whole situation.
"I'll talk to him," Ratchet promises. "And make this his utmost priority." Stepping slightly away, Ratchet starts making some calls.
Scales nods and gets back to documenting code, gnawing on the metal bar again as she works.
First Aid comes back from working on the virus. Hes been working away as of late, moving in and out of medbay as he goes about business.
Ratchet looks up as First Aid arrives. "Doctor," he greets the Protectobot respectfully. "Thanks again for helping with this."
First Aid nods to Ratchet. "Its the least I can do, Doctor Ratchet." He says, giving a very respectful nod of his head. "How can I help tonight?"
Scales looks up and gives First Aid a wave, still chewing on the bar.
Ratchet looks at Scales. "Can you explain to him your idea?" he asks, rather than try to summarize her findings himself.
Scales sets down the bar, nodding. She points to the monitor she's sitting, er, sprawling in front of. "Okay, I've got your analysis of the dweller virus here, with some of your notes and some of what I've worked out. I think, if we want to turn it off for good, we're going to need to make our own retrovirus to get in there and re-write the nanovirus itself, break it up so it's no longer usable by the dweller-thingy."
First Aid nods "I agree." He says. "I'd love to see what you've been working on. We can base it off several retroviruses we already have. How long do you think we have before we can finish one? That dweller moves quickly."
Scales ums? "I don't know.. I've never done this before." She looks back at the screen. "Where's the retroviruses we can use?" She picks up a datapad and offers it to First Aid to use.
Ratchet says, "I'm willing to commit any resources the two of you need. After we cure Typhoon and the Lambo Twins, we still need to capture Hubcap and the rest of the Weatherbots, AND get the Dweller out of the Space Bridge -- though I'm getting help with that."
First Aid pauses. "Im not sure if we have any similar to this one but if not we can surely come up with one." He says. "Sounds like we have our work cut out for us. Typical day around here."
Scales hehs, taking a moment to breathe out a bit of smoke. "Yeah.. inventin' new cures by the pound."
"I'll leave you two to it, then. Let me know if either of you need anything." With a tired smile, Ratchet returns to his lab.
Log session ending at 23:56:35 on Tuesday, 6 October 2020.