DISCLAIMER: I do not own Infinite Stratos or any other tech from different shows. This is my first attempt on IS fanfic and my second fanfic, so go easy on the grammar, enjoy the fic.
Warning: This story is SMUT with plot. A bit darker than your usual RomCom IS.
PAIRING:
Main Pairing: Ichika/Harem (Madoka/Chifuyu/Tabane/Houki)
Harem extension because of plot, but not so important: Chloe, Rin, and Charlotte
Side Harem Member (Basically a girl that suckered by a reason or another to be Ichika's sex partner): Other female character besides those whom were mentioned above.
Glossary of special terms used in this chapter (actually, you can find this in Infinite Stratos wikia, but I put this here for convenience sake.)
IS — abbreviation of Infinite Stratos: powered exoskeletons, which were originally meant for outer space exploration. Designed by Tabane Shinonono, they possess technology and combat capabilities far more advanced than any other weapon system, thus threatening to destabilize the world.
IS related Terminology;
Shielding:
Primary protection for IS and its pilot is provided through use of energy shield (invisible to naked eye) that could block both physical and optical weapons. The protection level of IS shield is sufficient to be impenetrable to most conventional weaponry, but it could be penetrated by high-powered IS weaponry. The basic armor plates of IS offer minimal protection against incoming attack, since any weapon powerful enough to pierce the shield would be also powerful enough to penetrate the armor plate. (That should explain why the pilots are so scantly covered by armor plates). However, special equipment such as additional physical/energy shield or augmented heavy armor plate (specially designed to withstand damage) could provides moderate to adequate level of protection. The integrity of the energy shield is maintained unless the IS is depleted of power, but the shield tends to lose its strength when nearing a complete power depletion. (Same thing applies to all other components such as armor plates. Weapons, especially, tend to have difficulty maintaining the materialized shape when nearing power depletion)
PIC (Passive Inertia Control):
Incorporating PIC allows the IS to accomplish extreme agility and mobility unparalleled by any conventional platform. PIC largely absorbs and negates impact shock, thus protecting the pilot and the IS from catastrophic events such as high-speed collision. PIC is also applied to flight assist, and coupled with gravity control technology, makes IS capable of flight and hovering.
Hyper Sensor:
When the pilot is linked to Hyper Sensor, she receive augmented sensory input data from IS's sensor, directly into 5 sensory system in her body. Simply put, when piloting an IS, the pilot's senses such as vision are greatly improved. Using the sensory data input from IS, the pilot gains 360 degree field of view, being able to 'see' directions that are not possible for human body without turning her head (Such as behind, directly above and below) However, because such improved sensory input is much different from normal human body, the pilot must process the input data into something she could comprehend first. (The speed and efficiency of processing such data decides the effectiveness of IS piloting)
Cores:
The Black box of an IS that allows it to function. Because only 467 Cores were created, most of them are shared by the world's governments where only a few IS pilots, who work under certain organizations and large corporations, possess their own personal IS. The reason for having Designated Pilot and Personal IS lies with the very nature of IS itself; possessing self evolving mechanism which is manifested only when IS is kept paired with a pilot for a prolonged time. It is considered illegal to exchange or remove the cores, due to the fact the core is a mixture of an AI and a power source. Of the 467 cores created, 322 are used for actual combat and the remaining 145 are handed over to research facilities and enterprises of various countries.
Energy Barrier/Absolute Defense:
The Absolute Protection is activated by IS itself and not by pilot. If the attack is deemed by the IS as not life-threatening to cause serious injury to its pilot, IS would not activate Absolute Protection ability, even if it results in minor~moderate injury to its pilot. This ability is said to be able to protect the pilot from any kind of attack, but it also has seriously high power consumption, depleting the power of IS with just single activation (In that sense, it is more like pilot safety mechanism rather than combat defense mechanism). In competitions, the pilot is declared to have lost the fight if the shield level hits zero, so as to avoid any injury to the pilots.
Mandatory unlock:
Although only mentioned once the IS also reacts to extreme damage to the IS its self or its pilot. This is called the "mandatory unlocks". There is a warning that you are taking too much damage. If this continues the IS will return to its "closed form". It apparently is dangerous for this to happen.
Preset:
The standard weapon/equipment that all IS possess in the beginning, such as swords for melee type, rifles for long range.
Equalizer:
Additional weaponry outside of Preset.
One-Off Ability:
The special ability that IS can attain in 2nd Shift. There is no exactly same One-Off ability.
Fold-Off Armor/Development Armor:
The special armor created by Tabane Shinonono for 4th Generation IS and above with Ichika Orimura's input. The Fold-Out Armor enables the IS to configure itself to a form optimized for various roles, such as attack, defense, and mobility in an instant. When fully optimized, the performance of the particular IS becomes twice of the capability of normal status. This makes the 4th Gen. IS capable of performing various assignments just by switching its function in real time, thus removing the time-consuming process of changing Equalizer. The one main drawback of the Fold-Out Armor is that it rapidly consume the IS's energy. This makes it difficult to deal with in situations where it needs to be continuous used (such as high-speed racing).
Active Inertia Canceller (AIC):
A system designed to negate the inertia of a moving mass. In simple terms, it stops the movement of any object the user wishes. It is the special weapon of the Schwarzer Regen — German's mass-producted 3rd Gen IS. Its weakness is that its range of effect depends on the total area its user can concentrate on; in other words, it is weak against multiple foes.
Rapid Switch:
A technique that enables the pilot to access and switching between weapons with relative ease during battle. The ability to execute this technique requires the pilot's ability to remember the shape of the weapon, as well as their concentration.
Valkyrie Trace System:
A program developed to increase the performance of the IS by mimicking the former winners of Mondo Grosso.
IS Forms Terminology:
Inactive Form:
The form all IS take when there are no pilots. In this case, IS retains the physical manifestation of its components even when inactivated, and call-up just activates IS without any significant visible change. Described by Ichika to be kneeling like a samurai before its Lord. All Training IS are in this state since the fitting process is rendered useless due to multiple users.
Closed Form:
The form the IS takes when not being used. It takes on different shapes for different users, mostly accessories like ring, earrings, necklaces, etc. for girls, and a gauntlet/bulky bracelet for Ichika.
Default Setting: The form it takes when it is being used for the first time. The IS have the basics like flight capabilities, shielded barrier and its related weapon, but the power exhibited is very low, thus it is not recommended to be used immediately in a fight. Once the IS has finished configuring all the settings for the user, it will take the next form.
1st Shift: The form taken after the IS has finished configuring the settings. This is the stage that most users would have for Personal IS. Here they gained full usage of the weaponry given, like the Yukihara from its default metal blade to the energy blade.
2nd Shift: An upgrade from the 1st Shift. This is apparently a rare case for an IS to go into a second form, as there are not many cases of IS unit evolving to 2nd Shift. In 2nd Shift, the IS undergoes a dramatic transformation, altering its appearance and gaining new abilities, in particular, the One Off Ability , which is unique to that particular unit.
Partial Summoning: a skill of pilot to summon a part of IS without summoning the entire set of armor (i.e: arm, weapon, foot or wing only)
IS Type:
Training IS:
Used to train IS students in how to use an IS. It's settings remain the same despite the user. Japan, being the leading pioneer for IS, has developed a mass-production version to train the girls at IS academy, but one must have permission to use it.
Personal IS:
Special IS units that "bond" and change to fit with the user's specifications. Originally harder to use in their default settings but once formatted to their users, they become like an extension of the users themselves. Personal IS units' abilities far surpass those of the Training IS units, boasting greater output in firepower, speed and maneuverability, etc.
IS Generations:
1st Generation IS:
The basic goal of 1st Gen. IS was the completion of IS. The RD was focused on applying various IS related technologies to produce a stable, operational IS.
2nd Generation IS:
The basic goal of 2nd Gen. IS was the utilization of add-on capability, known as Equalizer. Application of various equalizer packages enabled the 2nd Gen. IS capable of various assignments.
3rd Generation IS:
The basic goal of 3rd Gen. IS is the application of advanced Image-Interface technology, enabling it to field more advanced weapons such as BT, Shock Cannon and AIC.
3.5/4th Generation IS:
The basic goal of 4th Gen. IS is the application of Fold-Out armor, which enables the IS to configure itself to a form that maximize specific role, whether attack, defense, or mobility. This makes the 4th Gen. IS capable of performing various assignments just by switching its function in real time, not requiring the time-consuming process of changing Equalizer. (In this story, three units are planned to be this Gen: Charlotte's, Rin's, Chloe's)
4.5/5th Generation IS:
IS with upgraded version of Fold-Off Armor. The armor didn't only configure itself to a form that maximize specific role, whether attack, defense, or mobility, but also equipped with addition to boost its specific role. There was only three units are planned to be this generation (Ichika's, Madoka's, Houki's)
Other Terminology:
IS National Representative: the title given to a Professional IS Pilot who had completed and excelled in high level piloting skills.
IS Representative Cadet: a top student chosen to represent their country as an IS pilot. Acquiring a Personal IS is considered as the utmost honor for any IS pilot due to harsh requirements and sheer rate of competition.
Representative Candidate: one who has been selected as a potential Representative by the Government of the Country.
Alaska Treaty: a treaty to stop usage of IS as weapon for war because IS' potential in destruction.
Mondo Grosso Tournament: An Infinite Stratos (IS) International Fighting Tournament that is held every two years (think of it as the World Cup for IS). There had been 3 Mondo Grosso before this story started. In the canon Infinite Stratos, it was every three years, instead of two. I make it two for my plot's sake.
THE INFORMATION BELOW CONTAINS SPOILER FOR STORY.
READ AT YOUR OWN ACCOUNT!
YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!
Time line of the story before the beginning:
6 years before the beginning (B.T.B) — White Knight incident when Tabane Shinonono hacked all missiles around the world and send it to Japan, only to be stopped by the "White Knight". It's the event of the first appearance of IS.
5 years B.T.B — Alaska Treaty and the First Mondo Grosso
3 years B.T.B — Second Mondo Grosso. Ichika (11yo) was kidnapped. Ichika started living with Tabane in secret after Chifuyu went to German.
2 years B.T.B — Chifuyu returned from German. Ichika already lost his innocent. Chifuyu started her job as IS Academy's teacher.
1 years B.T.B — Third Mondo Grosso. Tabane kidnapped Madoka from Panthom Task. Ichika massacred his old family and destroyed Phantom Task main body. Ichika started to be sexually active. Everything is hidden from Chifuyu by Ichika and Tabane.