Chapter 23: Let’s get hard!

  “The science of armor is fascinating. It evolves over time and with different challenges. Often kingdoms and countries make stupid mistakes. Look at the war of 1812! It is a fascinating case where over time, armor was fully discontinued because guns were able to penetrate it! Then, the Europeans increasingly fight in battles with enemies that don’t have any firearms.

  It is, by far, the most hilarious lack of adaptation in armor history. It’s not like they didn’t have armorers and the technology to make armor! Full plate armor at that! Hey, they made cuirasses all the time! Extreme battlefield advantages were thrown out the window because Europeans wanted to play IRL RTS chess against zergs!

  – Drunk out of work Historian, from the video ‘Drunken history lessons episode 42!’, 2035

  ***

  “Alright Altany, now it’s time to upgrade! What’s my point total?” I had a big smile on my face and couldn't help it. Transforming into a super soldier’s just awesome. Plus, we had a great plan for our floors!

  Current point total… 7456!

  “Damn, that’s not bad! We can buy some fun shit with this!”

  Yes, and a better helmet.

  I rolled my eyes at her. “And a better helmet, yes.” Really, I wanted the helmet, but just because she asked that way, I felt like being difficult. No time to be childish though… or just a bit. “Got any pink bicycle helmets?”

  Millions. Would you like one for when you are walking? It may prove useful to protect your poor neurons.

  I snorted but moved on. “Alright, what are my problems and areas of improvement? Bring in Lila and Robin if they’ve come back to sanity.”

  To come back to sanity, they had to have been there in the first place. Connecting.

  “Hi pandear!” Came quickly.

  “Hey panboss!” followed right after. Now that was just lazy.

  “Hey, discussing my next upgrades, thought I’d ask for opinions. You’re included Johnny, of course. Altany, what are my weak points?"

  Your testicles and sense of humor.

  “Burn!” Exclaimed Lila with a laugh. Johnny tried to keep his mirth contained but my damn husband couldn’t be bothered!

  “Love you too honey.” I said in the flattest voice I could. “Altany, my dear, my friend, my AI squatter! What do you believe my weaknesses are combat wise?”

  In your battle, most injuries were accrued from projectiles that you were not able to position plates for. I believe your current approach is correct, your morphic armor offers you a very substantial amount of protection. This type of close quarters fighting would have been deadly to most vanguard.

  “Really?” I asked a bit surprised. I wasn’t that good was I?

  Most vanguards ensure that they do not end up in such a situation in the first place. Even when they do, they have escape mechanisms, such as single-use teleportation devices. In other cases, they only enter close proximity battles while in a vehicle, such as a tank or mechanized warframe.

  You came into this situation without the protection afforded by shields or classical power armour. Few vanguards opt for such close-in fighting. They are prepared for it, but they do not jump in the middle of a horde.

  “I sure as heck don’t want to end up in that.” Johnny said which, yeah, now it made sense. I wasn’t that good, I was just focused on defense and close-in fighting.

  One solution would be to learn a complete martial art in order to mitigate the risk and increase your effectiveness, but it would require a few hours of learning using a dedicated learning module. I believe you do not wish to spend your time in this manner.

  “Yeah, got shit to do…” I said dejectedly. I’d learn it when I had the time though. That sounded awesome!

  The other is to add protection and strength enhancing systems to your armor. You can add a micro-generator to turn your suit into true power armour, of course. The system is morphic and modular, after all.

  “Ok, so I need more plates, some sort of chainmail that’s better with projectiles, strength enhancements… can I do speed enhancements too?” Johnny gave me an approving nod, because of course he did.

  Yes and no. You will have to upgrade your mental enhancements to interface with your armor if you wish for it to increase your mental speed. This will mean that you can equip a co-processor to enhance your perceptions and thinking speed without needing brain reinforcement and management systems that would be required if these systems resided inside you.

  You will, however, be limited by overheating and neural load issues. You will be faster, but only in bursts to preserve what few working neurons you have left.

  I snorted, that was a good one. Being faster in bursts still meant shooting a bunch, stopping and fighting or reloading. I could work with that!

  Your muscle signals can keep up thanks to your Quick Copper Coating. May I suggest enhancing the Vanadium Vambraces as well? Many of your bones suffered micro-fractures, cracks and even a few full fractures.

  “Shit, fuck, okay yeah. If I’m going to be defense oriented, it’s good to be prepared. I’m going to have to think about my offense too. You know what, give me the bone enhancement thing so it starts now while we’re talking.”

  Would you like a better model?

  “Hey Altany, is there one that would protect his skull super well against bullets specifically?” Robin asked because he’s perfect.

  Yes, however, it is a different augmentation. They can be combined and this would reduce the price if you buy both simultaneously as they have overlap. There is a system called the Carbon Cap mark 8. It is fairly expensive, although because of your existing augmentations and combining it with the Vanadium Vambrace, the price will be extensively reduced.

  “Take it.” Robin and Lila said at the same time. “Why?” I asked because I felt like being petulant. Lila took up the task of metaphorically slapping some sense into me.

  “Because you’re planning on pissing off a mother fuckton of corpos and they’ll want you dead. Chances are they’ll try it when you don’t have a helmet on dumbass!”

  Okay, that was fair. “Hum… yeah, I’m gonna take one like it, depending how strong it is.” I could feel the glare coming over the comms! “Hey, I said I’ll take it! Altany?” I begged her.

  It is a very… ‘strong’ augmentation. It will act as an acceleration equalizer, which will ensure that your brain moves as one and does not suffer anywhere near as much damage from sudden stops and starts. In part to do this, it will modify your intracranial fluid to make it a non-newtonian fluid.

  “Okay, so that will make sure I don’t get a concussion but what about preventing the bullet from… you know, getting there in the first place?”

  It will construct a triple layered shield of protection. The first is the hardest memory alloy available to you. To be clear, it is not the toughest or the most resilient, it is the hardest. I imagine I will have to spell it out for you.

  The goal of this layer is to stop the projectile entirely or break and dissipate energy into the entire layer all at once. It utilizes memory alloy in order to be able to heal itself, but this process is not instant. The harder the material, the slower it is to reposition and reassemble. If it fully shatters, it might cause… severe bleeding if you don’t have a helmet on. Skin reinforcements could also prevent unideal outcomes.

  Not thinking about the severe bleeding thing, nop! “Yeah, I get it. If it’s elastic it moves easier basically.”

  I will accept this gross oversimplification in the name of charity towards the neurologically impoverished.

  That got a few laughs, even from me. “Good one. So, this layer is like glass, hard but brittle. It… oh, like, piercing projectiles exert force in a very small area and this makes sure that the force is transmitted to as much area as possible? If it penetrates, it had to break a bunch of it instead of having to go through a ‘section’ of mud?

  Sure, we’ll go with that. The second layer is a thin layer of carbon nanotube reinforced metallic kevlar or CMKevlar. It should prevent complete penetration and redistribute the followthrough of the bullet. The third layer is a classic hard and tough memory alloy. It will deform to a certain extent, but the CMKevlar will ensure that it only dents.

  “Ain’t hard and tough the same thing?” Johnny asked the question I didn’t want to in order to not look stupid. This time, Bytal answered.

  Hardness is the resistance of a material to dents and scratches. Toughness is a material’s resistance to shattering, or fundamentally breaking. A hard material is resistant to a needle, whereas a tough material is resistant to a hammer. Glass is hard, rubber is tough.

  Hey, I understood that! Awesome, moving on. “So, you said I’d have a big discount on it? How much is it after the discount?”

  One thousand one hundred points.

  “What the fucking fuck?” I asked, eyes wide. That was the discounted price!?

  It is a severe reduction in price. The materials are very difficult to manufacture and the installation is complex and requires large quantities of smaller nanites, relatively speaking. Thankfully, because of the lack of pain receptors inside your bones and brain, you should not notice it nearly as much as with your muscles.

  The shell’s installation, even accelerated, will take at least an hour, and no, I cannot reduce the time in any meaningful way without additional catalogues and a severe increase in price. Making your brain more resistant to concussions, however, requires more time.

  “Yeah, about that…” I said, worrying about the very obvious problem at present, in my opinion. “It won’t change my brain’s functioning… right? I mean, I don’t want this thing if I no longer get to be… me, you know?”

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  It will not affect the functioning of your brain in any way, shape or form. It must take longer so that the incremental changes do not affect your brain’s functioning. It is, basically, applying a coat of paint over a computer’s casing.

  Spraying paint inside it by going too fast is likely a bad idea and might have consequences. However, not being an idiot will leave you with a better looking and completely unaffected computer.

  A small side advantage is that this augmentation will help increase heat dissipation and distribution. It should increase the length of your bursts with the coprocessor, as well as your total capacity.

  The Carbon Cap Mark 8 has limits, of course, and a high caliber bullet to the skull will daze you. However, you will be able to finally fulfill your dream of banging your head against the wall for hours with no ill effect.

  That got a smile back on my face. Altany, as always, was correct. Not about the head banging thing! This wouldn’t be a ‘just in case’ augmentation. It had important combat applications and would protect my head in general, not just when- I mean, if- actually no, when I get shot.

  I thought my armor was the most important investment in protecting me but at the same time, I wouldn’t always be in combat! Plus, if something got past my helmet, my head would have to tank the hit.

  “No sex until you take it.” Robin warned, the traitor.

  “Agreed!” Lila said, the backstabber! I wanted to not take it, just to be annoying, but no, I’d be the adult here!

  For the sake of doing adult things.

  “Alright… but only because poor Altany is such a scaredy cat.”

  Insulting the one deciding how painful your lifesaving augmentation’s installation is. Bold.

  I laughed. “Alright, so that and the Vanadium Vambraces? Maybe an upgraded model of it? I don’t like my bones breaking.” I said, wincing in remembered pain.

  Thankfully, the difference in price when it comes to the Vanadium Vambraces comes from the differing materials. This installation is much easier and faster for the lack of moving parts, vital organs or pesky nerves. It should be finished before the Carbon Cap. There is a model twice as potent as the previous model’s full installation.

  The lattice will extend to your old non-newtonian layer and integrate it. Bones, in general, have a better strength to weight ratio than steel since humans are inherently built for endurance, not strength or speed. Now however, this will extend to strength to volume ratio. It will increase their weight some, but not less than you may think.

  “Damn, I kind of want bones of steel now too, that sounds awesome…” Muttered Johnny by my side.

  The two augmentations together bring the overall price down to two thousand points.

  “... Or maybe not!” Hey, Johnny was starting to be funny! I knew I liked him for a reason!

  “This hurts like a motherfucker, but okay, I’ll take both!” I said with a wince.

  New Purchase: Magnetite Anti-Bullet Augmentation Package - Emergency Modified!

  Points spent… 2000!

  “Oh god, that’s… two hundred medical nanite suites, Jesus… Wait…” An idea started to form as I started the process. Same as last time, just a lot less painful.

  The buzzing felt more… constant? Higher frequency? Whatever, it didn’t cause nearly as much pain, at least. Didn’t even need drugs! Still felt fucking awful.

  I took a few deep breaths to recenter before getting back to it. “So, hum, that super Kevlar, can you put it in my suit?” My voice didn’t stay as steady as I’d like, but I had to change topics.

  Technically, I could, but it would be a waste of points for the purpose. In this case I would suggest a simpler carbon fiber/titanium alloy nanoweave chainmail. It will be an additional layer of protection, even if not a major one. Better plates will yield better results, but this will help in some use cases and will cover your entire body below your jaw.

  “Will it affect my mobility?”

  No, it should be elastic enough to handle stretching. The chainmail will act to prevent things that penetrate your armor from penetrating you. More purpose specific than what your enforcers are wearing but with a similar price. The nanoweave requires self-installation and integration systems. Forty points to line the inside of your suit of armor.

  “Sounds good.” I didn’t feel like protesting. I’d been stabbed by spines a few too many times for that. “Next, more plates?”

  I believe I have a better solution than simple plates. Your current programmable memory alloy is a good defense, but it is designed as a base upon which to build more protective armor. In that vein, there is a system that can augment it massively. It is only available to class two Mole-Bear technologies.

  I rolled my eyes. “Come on, spit it out, the suspense is nice but we got a job to do.”

  Fine, spoilsport. Divisible plating layers. Memory alloys can suffer from hardness issues. This metal can only bind and unbind as it is both harder and tougher. The alloy you use for your armor is one of the most malleable.

  The reason to utilize this metal is that it creates an excellent under-layer. It allows for an almost unparalleled ratio of flexibility and protection for its tech level. It does this by creating armor that can rearrange itself. However, it needs other metals and plates to function as proper armor.

  “So… I’ve been using underwear as protection? I just didn’t have the points for clothes on top? Or, well, not a lot of clothes that I’d put on and take off and move around…” I asked, extremely amused. I could almost call myself a battle stripper!

  I think she understood the joke I thought to myself and really didn’t appreciate it! Her avatar appeared in front of me through my augs, rubbing its eyes with a single paw and sighing.

  I will ignore this for the sake of sanity.

  “Yours or mine?”

  Yes.

  Lila laughed her ass off. Johnny held his helmet in both hands and I could feel Robin fantasizing from where I stood!

  Altany decided to move on. Good for her.

  Consider them like sharp playing cards. To cover your side, they can be spread like a card dealer presenting a deck. If they are spread completely, they can bind their edges, like the edges of two knives, to create a flat plain.

  With a few strategically placed internal ‘hinge’ cards to act as pivots, at need, you create flexible yet powerful armor. If you bend enough to spread them out, you’ll have fewer layers to protect you, but this is the most protective option that does not hinder your mobility.

  That idea fucked with my brain a bit. I didn’t really have engineering knowledge in general. “Ok so… wait, if I bend over, my stomach…”

  Will turn into a single thick band of metal or split into two as necessary. There is a minimum size since every ‘card’ contains a certain amount of classical metal. This layer is composed of a gold and titanium alloy, which is four times harder than high grade steel.

  For resisting impacts, this mix is ideal. The gold-titanium alloy redistributes the force to a larger area of the tougher memory alloy, which may deform and bleed off energy.

  Projectiles are much more likely to shatter on a hard layer and under extreme forces, the memory alloy will act similarly as rubber, catching the fragments. The mix of two metals allows for the design, but also for a rare multi-layered, multi-metal armor. Both are good armor components with flaws, but they come together to create something more powerful.

  This will restrict your movements slightly. A minimal loss of mobility is necessary for better armor however. We could simply add more of the previous alloy, but it is not resilient enough to make it worth it in any meaningful way.

  “I imagine the stuff my armor is made up of currently will help the layers move?”

  Yes. It is necessary to keep the system functional. Slight amounts of current are sent strategically to tell them to bind and unbind. It will mostly appear as overlapping plates like ancient human gothic gauntlets. However, during movement they may multiply or divide, in part to keep even protection.

  The memory alloy itself is comparable to medium-high quality steel. Not only hard, but also tough and resilient. You will be able to replace broken ‘cards’ without much issue, but not in the middle of combat. Their base form is simple, and if damaged, they can return to it.

  I started to pace. It had always been my favorite thinking activity. I had trouble focusing on one thing at a time, hence always found pacing meditative. “Altany, can you put on some focus music? Something electro, or some lofi-metal?” Robin asked, because he embodied perfection.

  Altany obliged and I did feel better. “Thanks, love you…” I said distractedly. I came back to the land of the living less than a minute later. Had a job to do after all!

  “Ok, so, they’re sharp so they can slide over each other easily… Multi-layered plates sound like a good thing? They’re probably not fully interchangeable since I’ll need some curved ones…” I kept muttering for a bit and Altany didn’t interrupt me which I saw as confirmation that I might not be saying something stupid.

  “Alright, I’ll take those. Also, I'm going to need a better lining for heat resistance. I used flame walls a lot in that previous fight, great for creating paths, barriers and funnels. Some extra plating, upgraded of course, I’d like more options in shifting. Oh, also a few stupid strong plates in case of getting shot by something very powerful.”

  “Assassins going after someone in armor are probably going to pack armor piercing stuff after all. Those divisible plating layers, that’s not for my whole body is it?” I asked, trying to put it all together.

  I do not recommend it. They would hinder deployment of your blades and defenses. I suggest covering your most vulnerable areas, such as your neck, midriff and posterior. Some should appear on other non-plated areas as well, such as your upper arm.

  The plates will help even out your frame and make your armor more anatomically reflective of your body. Especially since I will place thicker armor in lacking areas.

  I was confused for only a second since Robin illuminated me by shouting “YES!” so loudly, I heard him from down the fucking hall!

  “Are you fucking… You’re going to add armor to my ass to make it look more accurate? Really?”

  And protect it. I told you your testicles were your greatest weakness. Protecting them from the rear is important.

  That got everyone but me in the group to burst out laughing. I didn’t even smile. Nop. Moving the fuck on!

  After the laughter died down, I asked an important question. “How much for all that?” I almost choked when I got the answer.

  Nine hundred and seventy-five points.

  My eyes widened. “What? I mean, I get the expensive ripperdoc jobs, I’m asking for emergency installs, tons of nanites, super complex stuff and all that shit, but this? It’s just plates of super metal! There’s no super complex stuff… right?”

  Complex? Mostly, no, but you asked for, and I quote, ‘stupid strong’ plates. ‘Stupid strong’ is a high bar. Of course, there is better, because there always is, but for the moment a simple plate of such an alloy arrangement is very expensive and complex to produce. This is the strongest your level of technology will afford you for a reasonable price.

  Okay, Altany got me curious. “What kind of plate is it?”

  The most precise name would be plates of Boron Carbide reinforced molecularly realigned Carbon polymer/(Molybdenum-Uranium-Titanium)Staballoy matrix.

  The short version is that these plates are extremely dense, hard, heavy and resilient because of not only the material, but the molecularly realigned matrix it is weaved in to maximize toughness, which is always a problem with materials this hard.

  Carbon polymer fibers must be weaved within the metal. Not nanotubes, but they perform a similar function. Due to being perfectly weaved, it increases elasticity without compromising hardness much. They are coated with an ablative layer of boron carbide that can be replaced easily.

  I blinked a few times at that. “God damn. How many do I get for that price?” I liked the idea but still…

  This covers eight plates. Two for the front to create a wedge, same for the back, and a backup for each. If you wish to resist armor-penetrating rounds at the velocities reached via a hand held railgun, you will need these.

  I thought about it for a few moments. Those were probably life-saving in the right circumstances. The additional plates I used were pretty strong already, but still…

  “If I need a backup, I’ll just buy more. The normal plates are good enough for most scenarios, plus I’m planning on a great helmet and I already have the internal head protection.” I could get more bang for my buck with other shit.

  Understandable. This will reduce your spending to six hundred and fifty points. The divisible plates are rather expensive and you asked for quite a few of them. Now, may we move on to a helmet? It would be best in order to fit the armor to your choice. We also have not talked about upgrading to full power armor yet.

  I was getting impatient and wanted my awesome new armor! “An upgraded version of my last one? Oh, with that reinforced neural link and spots for those speed upgrades? Is there anything else I’m missing?” Not much to discuss, really. Just more protective and speed stuff! I couldn’t think of anything else.

  How about increased field of view, better long range viewing, infrared scanning, a geiger counter, powerful antennas to increase your range for cyber-warfare purposes, a full rebreather so you can stay sealed indefinitely in an emergency, laser eyes, hologram projection…

  “Alright, alright! I get it! There’s tons of great stuff in a helmet! Can I get all of those? Especially the laser eyes?” I asked, hopeful.

  No.

  how Kevlar stopped projectiles.