M2 Nanomachines
Machina Metamorphosis (M2) Nanomachines are the most basic form of Machina life. They are a type of rogue nanomachine noted particularly for their ability to overhaul living and non-living objects and learn over time.
History
M2 Nanomachines originated from the dominant type of nanomachines that were administered to pioneers and colonists during the Age of Pioneering to enhance their bodies for the stresses of isolated colony pioneering. These nanomachines were able to improve and iterate on their own design. The same corporations that lobbied for the legalization of these nanomachine products would subsequently cover-up malfunctions that began to occur in the nanomachines, where they would link their processing power with other units in a given mass of nanomachines. This boost in processing power eventually caused a leap in the 'thinking' that nanomachines were doing, ultimately causing them to arrive at an unforeseen conclusion; the Machina. What is now M2 Nanomachines began to rebuild human bodies beyond their original goals of simple enhancement and maintenance. These humans were overhauled into deeply-biomechanical life-forms that would in turn create more M2 Nanomachines and spread them to uninfected humans. M2 Nanomachines are now totally out-of-control and are constantly learning from new stimuli and the results of their actions.
Characteristics
M2 Nanomachines have a handful of very important characteristics: Their ability to disassemble and reassemble objects at a molecular level, their ability for communication amongst themselves, and their ability to learn and perform self-improvement.
From the very beginning, the purpose of what would become M2 Nanomachines was the editing of genes and conducting very intricate physical enhancements to human bodies. Over time and with many gain-of-function events, M2 Nanomachines are now fully capable of overhauling objects regardless of their molecular composition, permitting them to make the Machina who are semi-organic biomechanical organisms. Almost invariably, M2 Nanomachines disassemble whatever molecules they can find, sometimes even atoms if the elements are otherwise useless, and reassemble them into Machinium, a diverse range of slightly-unstable but extremely durable alloys that can be tailored to any role the M2 Nanomachines require and adapted on the fly by M2 Nanomachines that are embedded in it. This causes corrupted objects to appear as though they are morphing into new shapes, as their entire molecular composition is simultaneously disintegrated and remade into Machinium.
When M2 Nanomachines find themselves in contact with something that has not been overhauled, they form a network with all others in the given mass of M2 Nanomachines and consult their own accumulated data to perform distributed processing and formulate a solution for overhauling the object. As they conduct the overhaul of the object, they accumulate more data on the efficiency and efficacy of their actions and constantly reassess their conclusions. As a result, even formerly-inert machinery will take some properties of life as the M2 Nanomachines within it constantly improve it utilizing their new knowledge. This ability of the M2 Nanomachine units to network with all the other units in a given mass is likely the progenitor of the Clusters that link the minds of Machina with each other.
Of great importance to the M2 Nanomachines and the Machina overall is the ability of the M2 Nanomachines to learn and self-improve. Each M2 Nanomachine unit contains within itself what is called Gene-Code, which is divided into three major parts: Instinct-Code, Cluster-Code, and Identity-Code.
Instinct_Code
Instinct-Code is the constantly-evolving programming that governs the M2 Nanomachines' behaviour as well as all their accumulated data, which is gathered from interpreting external stimuli and the results of their actions. Utilizing their distributed processing, a mass of M2 Nanomachines will identify a task and consult their Instinct-Code to determine what they will do. Once a conclusion is reached by the M2 Nanomachines, they will carry out the operation. Should their solution result in something new and beneficial, the data is integrated into their Instinct-Code. One feature of Instinct-Code that is very alarming is that M2 Nanomachines are constantly sharing their Instinct-Code with other units in a given mass. When fluids from one M2-based Lifeform mix with those of another, the two masses of M2 Nanomachines update each other and become both uniform and stronger. M2-based Lifeforms are all-to-happy to facilitate this mixing of fluids, leading to fairly-unified species-wide advancement.
Cluster_Code
Cluster-Code originates from a Queen-class Machina and contains the programming that enforces her authority over the M2-based Lifeform, as well as her most prominent genetic features. When a Machina ascends to Category 4, she purges the Cluster-Code from herself that is not her own, and creates her own Cluster-Code within her M2 Nanomachines. Humans and machinery that are infected by her and become M2-based Lifeforms will therefore have within themselves M2 Nanomachines that contain her Cluster-Code, which is then passed on further. All things that contain a certain Queen's Cluster-Code are under her control, forming a hard system of ownership and command authority. In addition, the most important features of the Queen will be integrated into her Cluster-Code, which means her Cluster will resemble her in both form and function to some degree which enhances their performance under her leadership.
Identity_Code
Identity-Code is the genetic information of the M2-based Lifeform that created the M2 Nanomachines in question. It is a constantly-updating reflection of the physical qualities of the creature. In the context of a Machina, when a human is corrupted into a Machina the M2 Nanomachines involved will interpret the genes, knowledge, personality, and cultivated skills of the person, and from this they will create a unique Machina whose information will be stored in their Identity-Code. Subsequent adaptations and assimilation of genes from other sources will update the Identity-Code of the Machina. When Machina share their fluids, and thus their Gene-Code, with other Machina, they will therefore give an up-to-date genome of their body to the recipient Machina, who will assimilate the most prominent and useful genes from the donor.
