Digital Gorgon (World Guide, XenoTech) (Patreon)

Digital Gorgon

Invented by a race of diminutive race of aliens known as the zexta, the digital gorgon is the common name of a variety of camera-flash-like devices which are capable of instantly transforming a living organism into stone. Depending on the exact nature of the particular device, the type of stone or gemstone can be selected beforehand. Larger devices are even capable of creating new stone, apparently out of thin air.

The principle active component of a digital gorgon is a highly exotic lens placed over the device's camera flash. Containing exotic minerals including trace amounts of the infamous purple slime, the lens will become active only when a specific combination of wavelengths of light passes through. Almost any living thing within it's highly directed core cone, out to its designed range, will be instantly converted to stone upon activation. Each activation, however, causes permanent deterioration to the lens. Most lenses can only be used fifteen to eighteen times before becoming ineffective.

Larger digital gorgons are notable for two particular properties absent in smaller versions. The first is that their lenses have a 'memory' of those who they've transformed. As long as the lens has remaining useful life, a second standard flash will restore the transformed individual to their former form, within about 72 hours. After that time, the reversibility chance diminishes by 15% per day, up to 7 days at which point the transformation becomes totally irreversible. Transformation is also rendered irreversible if the lens runs out of useful life before the reversal is attempted.

Large digital gorgons can also use a separate force projector to define volumes in which stone is to be spontaneously generated. This is typically used as a shortcut to create complex stone artworks, or as a means to craft unique one-off mountings for other transformed subjects.

The range of stone types available to most digital gorgons is quite broad. Pure gemstone is the most popular, as are less complex mineral composites. The most complex mineral composites, as well as specific mineral patterns, require a larger type digital gorgon.

Digital gorgon lenses are difficult to come by. Tiny comm sized lenses with accompanying software can be obtained for no less than ¢50,000 is one knows just where to inquire. Large type lenses sell for no less than ¢400,000, and their accompanying force projectors for no less than ¢4,000,000.

Complete digital gorgon devices are much rarer, though an occasional few have been found in public including comm-sized gorgon cameras, specially equipped hover-drones, and a handful of fixed, public access large types mounted in special venues. These have never been found for sale, however, so any estimate of price would be purely speculative.