Symbiontics

 

2587

 

Mars suffered from over population of the habitation domes and the slow pace of terraforming the planet. As an answer to these problems, the scientist of Mars experiment with and perfect NMBADs (Nano-Mechanic Biological Augmentation Devices), commonly called Symbiotes. [This is what Earthers come to call Symbiot Armor; a misconception of what the devices really do.]

 

The Symbiotes allow the MarsMen to establish unprotected frontier colonies. The basic strategy of Symbiontics is to rapidly repair damage to the human body; rather than, trying to protect and prevent damage, which is what encumbered the original terraforming process (large awkward pressure suites without the necessary dexterity of the human body and the constant need to return its occupant to a protected dome before its reserves were exhausted). The symbiotes completely integrate with their human host.

 

A human inoculated with the symbiotes is permanently transformed into a new organism, Homo Machina (man + machine). The Symbiotes constantly repair and maintain their host body; requiring damage of ten times (x10) the host's hit points in a single second of game play to destroy that body part.

 

Example:

 

An inoculated man (FreeMan) with 50 hit points in his chest would need to receive 500 hit points in a single second of game play to die from that injury. Thus, you can understand why Earther's believe this to be a form of armor, even though it provides no additional hit points.

 

The price for this increased healing ability is that it shortens the host's life span; the average life expectancy being 20 years after symbiosis. However, on Mars, those who choose to undergo this change are entitled to privilege and are treated as heroes, since they are patriots sacrificing themselves for the future of Mars and their species. Whenever a FreeMan (frontiersman) comes back to a habitation dome, it is time for celebration. This is the only compensation for a short, hard life of isolation in the Martian Deserts. Each year a competition is held and the winners are allowed to undergo Symbiosis. The MarsMen believe it to be an honor and the highest calling of patriotism to take on this burden.

 

It wasn't long before Mars leaders understood the distinct advantage of these individuals with regards to Earth resource mining expeditions, and in 2639 the first reconnaissance mission was launched.

 

The Process of Symbiontics

 

A NMBAD “seedling” (a symbiote that has not been introduced to a human host) is made available to the MarsMan; alone and in an elaborate ceremony, the initiate opens the stasis container and exposes himself to the symbiote. The seedling is so small that he never sees it contact his body and start the process. Upon contact the symbiote is awaken and encoded by the host body's electrical field. It quickly burrows its way deep into the host's thalamus and begins to replicate itself. At first the process is undetectable; however, after ten Mars days, the host begins to experience the first seizures of the transformation, indicating the beginning of the symbiote's synthesis with the body and its rebuilding of the muscle and skin layers. In the end (after approximately sixty days of transformation), the skin of the FreeMan becomes so thickly covered with symbiotes that he appears to be made of metal rather than skin. If you looked very closely at a FreeMan, you would see that the copper colored metallic surface of this skin actually swirls and shifts with the migration of the symbiote masses (this resembles the appearance of an oil-slick done in copper). These creatures are constantly allocating themselves to areas in need of repair or maintenance. Any impurities (bullets, etc.) are broken down by the symbiotes and expelled from the FreeMan; likewise, any necessity (oxygen, water, etc.) that is needed is constructed from the environment and carried to the site in need. [Note: any symbiotes blown off in combat will actively seek out their host and recombine; this fact had lead to much fear and mythos among the Earthers.]

 

The final program protocol for the symbiote (upon immanent death of the host body) is the deconstruction of the host body and the symbiote colony. Nothing is left except a mass of basic chemicals and proteins.

 

The process of Symbiosis is irreversible.

 

Since the symbiotes are dedicated to their host and the host's symbiotes cannot be transferred to another individual, reproduction in not affected. A mating of a FreeMan and a MarsWoman produces a non-symbiote child. This “Law of Containment” is one of the primary programs of the NMBAD devices. Symbiosis can only start from an seedling symbiote.

 

The seedling symbiote controls the colony via the hosts' central nervous system, which it reinforces and modifies. It determines when new symbiotes are to be constructed, where symbiotes are to be allocated, etc.