[quote=Endocrinology]
[b]Cortisol[/b]
Cortisol is a steroid hormone, more specifically a glucocorticoid, produced by the zona fasciculata of the adrenal cortex. It is released in response to stress and a low level of blood glucocorticoid. Its primary functions are to increase blood sugar through gluconeogenesis, suppress the immune system, and aid with fat, protein, and carbohydrate metabolisms. It also decreases bone formation.

[img=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Cortisol2.svg/225px-Cortisol2.svg.png]
[img=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Cortisol-3D-balls.png/225px-Cortisol-3D-balls.png]

Cortisol is produced in the human body by the adrenal gland in the zona fasciculata, the second of three layers comprising the adrenal cortex. The cortex forms the outer "bark" of each adrenal gland, situated atop the kidneys. The release of cortisol is controlled by the hypothalamus, a part of the brain. The secretion of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) by the hypothalamus triggers cells in the neighbouring anterior pituitary to secrete another hormone, the adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), into the vascular system, through which blood carries it to the adrenal cortex.

In the fasting state, cortisol stimulates gluconeogenesis (formation of glucose, in the liver, from certain amino acids, glycerol, lactate, and/or propionate), and activates anti-stress and anti-inflammatory pathways. Cortisol prevents the release of substances in the body that cause inflammation.

Cortisol is released in response to stress, sparing available glucose for the brain, generating new energy from stored reserves, and diverting energy from low-priority activities (such as the immune system) in order to survive immediate threats or prepare for the exertion of rising to a new day.[/quote]

With tools in hand Zachary began working on the various systems of his carriage. His powers had made significant changes to his work-flow. Underneath the carriage, he casually levitated a spanner to his hand so he could remove a section of mangled power redirection piping. He used one hand to grab the pipe for stability and also so he could read it to see the state of the nuts and bolts. With the spanner, he would use it to loosen a nut and then, with a flick of his metal bending, he unscrewed it the rest of the way without having to manually turn it. On the tighter screws he used his magnetic powers to apply some extra force to the spanner. Removing the offending segment of piping Zachary slid out from underneath the carriage and headed over to the spare parts. He found a suitable replacement, which wasn't hard as such parts are common, and returned to the carriage. Putting the nuts and bolts back on went in much the same way as before, this time using his powers to levitate the nuts and bolts which had been lying on the ground into their positions. He was able to give the piping a strong nudge where it was required to get it into shape and use his machine reading to tell him exactly how well it lined up and sealed.

This done, Zachary moved up to inspect the engine block. A few moments of reading it gave him all the diagnostics he needed. Save for the missing kinetic core, the sparker metal was partially missing, so he'd have to patch that up if he wanted the force to be delivered evenly. Sliding back out, Zachary grabbed a scrap of compatible sparker and collected his welder by passing his hand over it and picked up his welding mask manually. Back underneath, Zachary used his magnetic powers to hold the new piece of sparker in place, machine read so he could see exactly what he was doing without needing his eyes and used the welding torch to partially melt the new sparker into place, using his magnetic powers all the while to mould it into shape. This was tricky, as his powers had a limit. He had found earlier that if a metal is hotter than its Curie point, he can't manipulate it. So in order to still be able to use his powers Zachary only heated part of the new metal at any one time. To help get it into place when hot he also telekinetically used a rounded lump of metal as a small hammer. In no time at all Zachary had repaired the engine's core housing to his satisfaction.

Moving on to the electronics and electrics, Zachary had a bit more work to do. A lightning core battery, which was missing, powered the rest of the core devices in the vehicle. Controlling the power supply was the controls, with a mix of manual switches and embedded circuits. Fortunately, from a quick diagnostic Zachary was able to identify that the small silicon chip circuitry was still intact and functional, although a couple of relays would need replacing. Numerous wires had also been severed, so those would have to be fixed too. With his powers of machine reading, he was able to find these problems much faster and much more accurately than a normal mechanic could. His metal manipulating powers also helped him in dealing with parts which were out of easy reach, such as fallen wires. Most of the broken wires could be accessed with a bit of elbow grease and a screwdriver to remove internal panels. The electronics could be access from the underside of the carriage. After a lot of tinkering, Zachary finally finished with the electrics.

Settling down for an early dinner, after having washed his hands of course, Zachary looked on at the carriage. While no improvements were visible on the surface, he knew that a lot of progress had been made under the chassis. A lot of work still remained- he would have to find and install the correct cores, rebalance the power manifold and many other little changes to make it run reliably. Then there was still the ambitious goal of adding the skyway unit to it so it could climb up the Wall. And he pondered all this as he ate, and he looked forwards to the project ahead.