NationStates Jolt Archive

872 Industrial Lane
Department of Research and Development
HotRodia AviTech
Showroomtown, HotRodia

Nimera Bullion watched the simulation run on her computer's touchscreen, keeping a keen eye focused on any small anomalies that might disturb the tranquility of her experiment should it pass the research phase and be performed as a part of AviTech's long-term plan to make space a viable home for HotRodians and at the same time make getting them there a profitable enterprise for the corporation. Nimera smiled as the simulation ended and broadened her smile as she found through a few moments of reading that the computer's compilation of the data indicated no problems and no errors, not even in the ever-problematic launch pattern.

She quickly saved the data to the network filespace reserved for completed research projects. The head of the R&D division would review the data and look for her report and recommendation on the project, so Nimera used her last couple of hours to type in a report and append it to the data she had already entered. She hoped that her boss would accept her recommendation for starting the development phase, and looked forward to participating in the process of creating what her computer simulations indicated would be a very effective means of moving larger vehicles into space.

631 Industrial Lane
Center for Hardware Development
HardSoft Electronics Incorporated
Showroomtown, HotRodia


James Exhaust clapped his hands as the program's most successful test mule to date moved in perfect synchronization with its human pilot. He knew that this was a breakthrough of magnificent proportions, and that the HardSoft executives would want to keep in under wraps for the moment. If this got out to the public, they would have people constantly calling on them to purchase the interface jumpsuits for military, transportation, commercial and private uses. Being able to control and large machine with natural bodily motions was certainly an incredible advancement, and James expected that he and his team would receive a nice bonus in his next pay period.

A few hours later, James smiled to himself as he closed down the lab. His final project report was done and a video recording of the test had been sent to the Executive Board and the Center for Hardware Production. It was likely that the production of a small number of the jumpsuits would begin shortly and the Center for Marketing would start working on a plan for selling these things at a nice profit.

951 Industrial Lane
Heavy Weapons Test Facility
HotRodia ArmaCorp
Showroomtown, HotRodia


As the single 200kg round fired from the maw of ArmaCorp's latest railgun, Elina Driveshaft kept an eye on the railgun's target, waiting to see the effects of the large cylinder of scrap metal entering--and leaving--a heavily armored tank and then driving through several concrete barriers and steel beams before finally succumbing to the effects of gravity and an intentionally low angle of fire. The results were...decisive, just as the simulations had predicted. The only remaining kink in the railgun was its all-too-slow auto-reload. Elina made a mental note to request an extra week from her boss so that she could really do a quality redesign of that particular feature of the railgun's systems. She was fairly certain her boss would be amenable to the idea. ArmaCorp could charge more for the railgun and consumers could fire more rounds per minute. Elina yawned, noticing that the day was coming to a close and she would only have enough time for six hours of sleep before work tomorrow because she had worked late tonight. She spent a few moments closing down the test site and powering down the weapons before leaving.

727 Industrial Lane
Fission Research Lab
HotRodia Electric Company
Showroomtown, HotRodia


The hum of an automobile operating perfectly was an appealing sensation for any HotRodian, but Bill Furstplas had perhaps an even more keen sense of this feeling. This was the first successful test of a fission reactor as the engine for an automobile, a truly historic event. Along with the satisfaction gained from hearing the hum of the automobile, Bill was content to know that he was probably going to get a footnote in the HotRodian histories for this.

The problem with this new development would be vocal opposition from more traditional HotRodians with strong beliefs about automobiles having only internal combustion engines. Despite this, Bill expected that the industrial sector would realize the potential of this technology and utilize it in larger vehicles meant for hauling cargo rather than hauling ass. Though he would never tell his neighbors, Bill was looking forward to racing a fission-powered car.

645 Gallos Lane
Research Facilities
HotRodia Motor Corporation
Showroomtown, HotRodia


Jillianera Burnaut fastened the final two carbon nanopanels together, completing the test mule of the HRMC's first vehicle intended for military applications. She knew that after the mule had undergone a series of tests designed to push its structural integrity to the limit, including being subjected to the detonation of high explosives all around it, the mule would be equipped with weapons and a camouflage paint scheme. Once so equipped, the mule would undertake a mock military mission designed to test its performance under combat conditions. The bugs would be identified during these two stages, and those bugs would be eliminated when the next mule was built, and that next mule would be subjected to the same tests. If there were still more bugs, the process would begin again. That was the HRMC way. No aspect of performance would go unconsidered, and the clients would only get the best vehicles money could buy. After all, this research had to be paid for in some way, and who better than the consumers who would be benefitting from it to pay for it?

872 Industrial Lane
Department of Research and Development
HotRodia AviTech
Showroomtown, HotRodia

Nimera Bullion smiled, her aged face wrinkling with pleasure. The plans were complete. After decades of R&D, AviTech was ready to make HotRodians immortal. The mobile synthetic bodies were constructed, the neural interface from HardSoft Electronics ready, and carefully-selected volunteers lined up. A dozen HotRodians would soon be enveloped in the large armored bodies, ready to begin their new, and conceivably unending, lives as machines. Unsurprisingly, many of them had chosen bodies resembling automotive constructs. Equally unsurprising was the fact that AviTech looked to make a healthy profit from this. Immortality was not going to be cheap, but many would see it as worth it.