Semiki Situation Deteriorates; Ishukone Watch Releases Initial Findings

Semiki, Lonetrek – The situation remains chaotic on the Zainou Biohazard Containment Facility and Aliastra Warehouse stations in Semiki, after an adaptive virus infiltrated their networks a week ago. In the latest incident today, an unmanned internal transit car within the Zainou station accelerated beyond safety limits and derailed, crashing through several internal bulkheads and injuring dozens of residents.

Aboard the Aliastra Warehouse, employees with compromised implants continue to suffer a variety of symptoms, including lapses into fugue states and even short comas, lasting anything between a few minutes or a few hours. These symptoms have caused several incidents of employees collapsing while performing critical tasks, such as operating heavy machinery or performing first aid. Medical professionals on station fear the frequency and severity of these symptoms may grow without targeted treatment.

"One of the areas infiltrated by [alleged perpetrator] Steine Vailakkel appears to have been our rogue drone disposal facility, and our experts, as well as consultants from Itsukame-Zainou Hyperspatial Inquiries [IKAME], confirm that a great deal of the base code resembles an infectious rogue drone subroutine. However, the subroutine has been extensively modified, and standard countermeasures have proven ineffective," Ishukone Watch Officer Kauntora Itkaku said. "The modifications have made the subroutine behave more aggressively, while making it more effective at subversion and infiltration across a variety of platforms."

Capsuleer offers of assistance in the form of personnel and equipment have been refused for fear of contamination. However, after vetting, checking certifications, and rejecting those with criminal, pirate, and terrorist associations, Ishukone has permitted several employees of IKAME to verify Zainou's conclusions. IKAME is not the only capsuleer entity with a presence in the system, however Ishukone-Raata Enforcement Directive [I-RED] representatives have refused to discuss their activities with the Scope, citing operational security concerns. Other capsuleer organizations operating in Semiki include Heiian Conglomerate and Phoenix Naval Systems.

Ikomari-Onu Enforcement's Hageken Ku speculates that the attack resembles the one made on Holene Vailakkel because it may use the same base subroutine. "Rogue drone software and firmware has a reputation for being malleable. It's not easy to manipulate for specific goals, but when introduced to new code, it's very good at re-purposing. Sane experts avoid using it as a foundation for bigger projects because of its unpredictable nature; it's far more likely to backfire than anything else, the attack on Holene Vailakkel notwithstanding," he said. Ishukone Watch have confirmed the interrogation of Steine Vailakkel is ongoing.

"It would assist our researchers immensely if amiable parties would be able to gather and supply us with relevant research material, like rogue drone nexus chips, artificial intelligences, and other fragments of rogue drones. Additionally, any trinary datastreams," Officer Itkaku said. Officer Itkaku did not confirm if the alien modifications resembled the Triglavian Collective GalNet worm deployed several months ago, but he reaffirmed that the Watch and the Peace Corps are investigating every possibility.

Lai Dai released a statement asserting that Steine Vailakkel's employment had been terminated last year and that he acted without the knowledge of the megacorp, or any of its subsidiaries and affiliates. They declined to share his personnel file or disclose any information pertaining to his employment.

IKAME affiliated ARC Studio has additionally released an edition of The Discourse newscast on GalNet reporting on events from their perspective, while the Zaibatsu Associated News Institute has produced a survey of capsuleer activities since the crisis broke out.