The view out the windows on Jump space went down right weird for a few hours. Just as it returned to the normal tunnels I'm used to, we got a huge lurch and the drives had to cut back automatically. The drag that we had been experiencing just evaporated all at once. Temporal deflection, which was all over the place, has now calmed back down to what I'm used to. Thought I am still ahead of things. Right now it is as if I had only been gone a few days from Home.
Has actually been nearly a month in Jump, and I'm still arguing with myself as to if I should upgrade my friends. It would be nice to have a real conversations with them, and yet..., I don't feel it would really be right. It is something I'm going to struggle with, and unlike the upgrades to myself, I am not really sure what the end result is going to be.
As for other things. I think we are finally clear of the Universe Nebula. This is based on the views of the Arc Drive chamber and the temporal deflection against Home. Still. Going to stay in jump for another week at least. I'd rather back-track a bit to the signal, than still be stuck in the back side of the Universe Nebula. As beautiful and amazing as it is, there is also a lot going on that could really ruin your day. Like dropping out right in front of one of those giant back-holes the dark life are trying to use to seal the fissure.
On a whim, I have done a full systems diagnostic for every independent compartment. Not sure why, but felt like something I should do. Considering it has never been done, also seemed like something that should be added to my regular tasks. Which I have now done.
Rather glad I decided to do the diagnostic. I've spent most of the in transit month making repairs, fixing connections, upgrading systems. It's been a whole thing. I will be just about done when we go to drop out of jump. The final items have to wait until we are out of jump. Not a great idea to take life support down, even in just one module, when you are not at least close to a world with breathable air. So that will be one of my first task when we drop out of jump. Locate a good place to complete the final system maintenance. I'd like it to be a place that, if push comes to shove, Kotth, Lurr, and I can survive comfortably while I make repairs, should the worst happen.
I've also made sure that all modules are stocked, including the armory cabinet. I will be putting myself back in the Adoc as well. I've decided to add a few more upgrades. Found some new files as I was doing this. Were stored in a disconnected unit in the control module. Of course I did a full scan of it before connecting it for the purposes of actually accessing the data. Some additional upgraded versions of my existing implant and upgrade set, as well as some others I will be partaking of.
I will be getting what is called Sub-dermal plating. What that translates to is an organic polymer mesh that will serve several purposes, including acting as body-armor. It will also result in a modification to my skin, allowing me, with a few other upgrades, to operate without a suit outside the ship for about an hour without too many negative effects. That said. It isn't something I would want to do, it is more a precaution. Then again. I don't suppose the other things are necessary, yet I am doing them anyway.
I am really modifying my person more and more as time goes by. I have added retractable claws in place of my old finger tips. I think I may have forgotten to mention those. My left eye has already been replaced. Damaged it while working on something, almost a year ago now. Don't even remember what. Going to be replacing the right, and upgrading the left to match. Existing systems will all be upgraded. I'll also have an embedded weapon system in my arm. It's just a Mid-range pulse laser, about the same as one of the combat pistol versions, with a welder function included.
Honestly, I may have let myself get a bit carried away. I already have weapon hard points on my hands, and a power core installed to power weapons and my various implants. Something that will also be upgraded. I have blade sheaths stitched into me. Looking at it, I can start to see why these things had become looked down on back home. It is easy to get into a cycle of constant upgrade and addition, until what is left? I'm already a cyborg of sorts, though I am still 90% organic. Still, that 10%, soon to be 12% if I am honest with myself. Does that change me? Does it change who I am? I don't think so, but then again, this entire experience has fundamentally and permanently altered who I am.
According to the monthly test I take. My mind, my outlook, my whole person has changed to the point of being unrecognizable when the current baseline is compared to my original baseline when I stepped aboard the Viteză Furie. I would be very much an alien person to that old me. I can see the changes, the slide from who I was then, to who I am now. It is fascinating, but other than keeping an eye out for aberration, it really doesn't help me. The truth is, the majority of the aberration signs disappeared after the aberrant me brought Kotth and Lurr aboard.
Well. It is time for dinner, then back to the final repairs and system upgrades I can do while in Jump. I've taught Kotth and Lurr how to help tend the garden, and they both have a knack for it. Their sense of smell picking up on the ripeness of a vegetable or fruit even better than the sensors that are supposed to pick that up. Then again, they are basing their choices on what we like, not a calculated ideal. Which is probably part of it.