Bookworms and Shadow Bugs

[trustycrowbar]

[Video, to students taking his class]

Greetings. To the newbies in the school, my name is Dr. Gordon Freeman and I'm the physics teacher here. Now, much as no one wants to admit it, the school year is coming up on us fast. Enclosed with this transmission is a list of supplies and books you'll need for my class this fall.

[Private, to Mac]

Hey kid, are you ready for another year?

[To faculty, plus Ishimaru]

Hey, has anyone learned anything new on this shadow bug situation? Best I can figure is that it's all coming from the world on the other side of those rifts up above us. Those clones might be part of their life-cycle, a sort of parasitic larva-to-adult transition... I wish I could say that it's the first time I've seen something like that. If anyone has any information, I want to know.

Comments

[golonghorns]

[Joel was quiet for longer than was maybe necessary before speaking again.]

...if it really is a parasite, shouldn't there oughta be a vaccine or somethin' that could be developed? Some kind've repellant to stop the things being able to grab ahold of folks to clone them?

[trustycrowbar]

A repellent... [He scrubs back his hair in thought and adds with a shrug.] Other than fire, obviously. Right. In order to effectively stop the process I'd have to learn how it works in the first place. So let's take a look at what we know:

We know it takes a number of these bugs to clone anyone. We know they can also clump together an form big-ass monsters. We also know that they require physical contact with a host in order to make a clone. Can you think of anything else importnt?

[golonghorns]

From what I've seen, they can take on the, uh, special abilities of folks they copy. Weapons, even. But when they turn into the monsters, they have their own abilities and attacks. We don't know if the monsters they combine to form are copies of somethin' that already exists in this world or if they're an entirely made up thing. Somethin' the bugs can do on their own without findin' a host to copy.

We know the individual bugs feed on electricity. Weird dinner choice, but they seem to love it.

So. We either figure out a way to stop 'em feeding, If we're gonna kill them all starvation might work out somehow. Or, we stop them clumping together to make bigger shit. Short of spraying them down with Pam, I don't know how we'd do that.

[trustycrowbar]

That's not a bad idea! Preventing them from unifying might help. They likely read the magnetic fields generated by the current in order to feed. An EMP might disable or stun them. The problem is, that would also disable anything else that runs on a current.

[...Like his SUIT.]

[golonghorns]

If you can figure something out for those of us who don't use fancy weapons, it might be an equalizer. I'm handy with guns, knives and that kind of thing... but I get the feeling that sets me a little out of my depth against the bigger shit these things can make.

[He'd be strawberry jam if he'd had to take on Galleom by himself, after all.]

[trustycrowbar]

[...For the benefit of those without crazy electronic shields, suits and sensors, this might be worth investigating.]

Tell you what; I'll do some work and see what I can do.

[golonghorns]

Alright. Sounds good, Gordon. I'll be happy to test whatever you come up with.