Side-Step KW
Reactor in the back. Too big. Not enough output. Needs to be redesigned. Composite armor is too heavy. Lighter material? Samples from Newtype's suit showed nothing but carbon, but the armor seemed far more durable than that.
How did she do it?
"Hey nerd."
That light. Particles of some kind. Probably how she managed to fly. Maybe strengthened the armor as well? An energy field?
"Chris."
Impossible. Those particles and whatever power source produced them came back as agitating white noise to his power. Thinkers apparently got headaches if they used their power too much. He'd never heard of a tinker headache before, but trying to comprehend how Newtype's tech worked gave him one hell of a headache.
And the weird part was that he knew something…Something beyond the noise, but it didn't come together. Just jumbled vague images.
"Yo."
Chris' pen swiped back and forth on the page. His frown grew against his desire. The numbers started jumbling faster than he'd like, slowing his progress. He kept going back and checking, and double checked again. No, it's a twelve. That's it. Twel- it's black. Why is everything black.
Chris shot up from the desk with a gasp, clutching his shoulder.
"Hey. You back from lala land?"
Chris leaned his head back. Alec stood over him with a controller in his other hand.
Maybe Missy has a point about PR's sense of humor.
Lowering his other hand from Chris' face, Alec shook the controller.
"Got any double A? I'm out and the legions of hell are swarming."
Chris frowned, his entire train of thought gone into…wherever his power kept everything in his head. He pulled open one of the drawers on his workbench and pulled out a pack of batteries.
"Thanks."
Alec opened the pack and popped off the controller cover.
Chris lifted the papers from the table, trying to make sense of what he'd done for the past-
"What time is it?"
Alec shrugged. "Sixish?"
Past four hours then.
On one page he'd been working on some kind of power reactor. On another armor, and a third something that looked like…a bunch of metal bars and beams?
"What you working on?"
"No idea."
"Neat. I'll tell the hell swarm you said hi."
Chris just hoped the batteries lasted long enough. The door closed behind him, leaving the young man alone in his workshop of chaotic but organized rubbish. Half-finished or barely started projects here and there, schematics and design ideas that never got off the ground.
Looking at the page in front of him, Chris felt an all too familiar frustration.
Three or five? Nine or two? He hated it, the way the numbers just didn't stay right. Dyscalculia the doctors said. Dyslexia, but with numbers more or less.
Chris liked to think he didn't really have problems with numbers. He just needed to work hard at it. What kind of tinker struggles with numbers?
The kind that still doesn't know his specialization, apparently.
Leaning back in his seat and holding the sheets up, Chris continued to try and decipher them. The first page looked like lines and gibberish. The second page looked like lines and math. The third got all three-
Chris stood slowly, holding the stacked pages up toward the ceiling light. Lining them up so that all the corners met, the lines, numbers, and gibberish all came together and…Swore he saw it somewhere before.
In a game, he thought.
Mega Man?
Samus?
"Master Chief?"
Am I allowed to build Mjolnir armor…It's not like Microsoft actually has any.
Gathering up some of the other strewn pages and layering them together the picture started coming together. Not Mjolnir armor. A stupid thought in hindsight, though he saw the similarities. A broad visor, on the helmet and strong geometric lines and a sleek armored look.
He wrote a name at some point, but Jim seemed like a dumb name for an armored suit.
Chris blinked and started over.
An armored suit.
He'd designed a suit. Like Newtype's, but a bit smaller and more mundane.
Would PR approve that?
Newtype was popular on PHO, and the PR guys always seemed to want tinkers to invent new gear. New gear meant new merchandise. A little demeaning, but it kept the tinker budgets full.
Although, anything he wanted to build need to go to Armsmaster too, and the Protectorate leader was not a fan. Chris didn't really understand it, but Armsmaster and Alec had a lot in common.
Namely that they both did their thing and trying to change that usually ended in annoyances.
A mild tension worked its way into his muscles thinking about it. Hardly seemed fair, but Armsmaster never helped him as much as he wanted. Usually the older tinker became frustrated and left, or spoke too bluntly and just made him feel useless.
Maybe Newtype had the right idea not joining. No PR approval for her tech, and no Armsmaster to berate her for trying.
Still…Armsmaster's frustration didn't compare to his own.
Chris wasn't the tinker he wanted to be. He knew it too. Even as he looked over the schematic in front of him he saw the flaws. Bad math and missing pieces. Several. More than several. A lot.
At best, he'd build a mock up that looked cool.
After retrieving his pen, he checked the time. He could go home, picking up where he left off tomorrow. Dr. Asuno kept saying he needed to moderate how much time he spent tinkering. His parents probably worried, though they never bothered to call when he didn't come home.
…
Another hour won't hurt, he decided.
A particle cannon here, or maybe the alternating pulse cannon he'd been toying with. Anti-grav disks on the feet and back, though he'd never tested his design for something so heavy looking. Just in case it didn't work he designed the feet to come apart easily.
No need to completely rebuild the foot if he messed up. Or if it got damaged somehow.
That's a good idea.
Easier to build in stages, he decided. Start with one piece, make sure it worked, and then move on to the next.
That idea sounded nice actually.
Setting the armor design aside he got to work on weapon ideas. If he built a universal standard into everything, he could pick and choose the equipment. Drones for search and rescue, armed drones for fighting, heavy weapons for brutes, lighter and speeder for fast response.
The possibilities kept coming and coming. His hand kept working, design after design flowing from his head. He stood up once, he thought, to go find the printer in the common room. He looted the lower two trays and carried them back into his lab.
Alec lifted his head as Chris left.
"Having fun?"
"Mhm."
He returned to his game, Dennis sitting beside him and furiously pressing buttons on the controller.
"You do you."
Dennis cheered.
"I got you now!"
Alec yawned.
"You're not beating me with Jigglypuff."
"Watch me!"
Chris ignored them entirely. Spreading the pages out, he dedicated each to different concepts. Related ideas became stacks, and the stacks grew and grew. Canons and rifles. Pistols and spears. Swords. Each interchangeable with the rest.
Yes. Not as high performing as Newtype's suit, but infinitely more flexible. A perfectly modular system.
The door opened once or twice, but no one bothered him.
Not even when the lights went off.
Chris kept working, only vaguely aware of the voices.
"And you didn't tell anyone?"
"He wants to work in the nerd cave, who am I to stop him?"
"You know we're trying to keep him from tinkering all night."
"Big fat mission failed on that one."
"I know!"
The hand shook his shoulder.
"Chris. Hey, Chris!"
Chris raised his head. "Hm?"
Carlos leaned over his shoulder, costume on and helmet tucked under one arm.
The red light flashed, illuminating the dim room around him.
"What?"
"Didn't you hear the alarm?"
"Alarm-"
Chris leaped from his seat as the siren roared in his ear.
"What?!"
"Started up fifteen minutes ago," Alec said lazily.
"Fif-" Chris looked to Carlos quizzically. "Did you get called back in?"
"I just got here. It's Monday morning."
"Sun- Oh." Chris rummaged through the papers until he found a clock. Six in the morning. "I worked through the night again."
Felt like it too. Muscles sore. Eyes heavy. He'd probably be ready to pass out like usual if not for the-
"Why is there an alarm?"
"Don't know." Carlos pointed over his shoulder. "Suit up. It's just you, Valiant, and me right now and the door's locked shut. Whole place is in lockdown."
Chris nodded and ran to the alcove containing his armor.
When Kid Win emerged into the common room ten minutes later, Alec had gotten on his armor, and Aegis stood over the console typing away.
The door opposite Aegis didn't look sealed. Normally a red light came on if the magnetic locks trigger. Sure enough, when he approached it the door didn't respond, and the manual release didn't work either.
The sound of gunfire sent Chris spinning on his feet
Alec sat on the couch, controller in hand.
"Really?"
"The console isn't working. The door isn't opening. What do you want me to do?"
"Something useful?"
"Find anyone you want to give a muscle spasm, let me know. Till then…"
Kid Win wanted to argue, but why bother? Alec barely listened to Aegis. He got along okay with Dennis, but Chris didn't consider that very impressive. In a world gone mad Dennis and Alec being chummy made complete sense.
But, standing around doing nothing left a bad taste in his mouth.
Glancing over his shoulder to the Ward's leader, Kid Win asked, "Does the console work?"
Aegis stepped away from the array of buttons and monitors.
"It's turned on. Other than that…"
"Radios?"
"Nothing but static."
An explosion on the TV drew Aegis' gaze. Even with his face mostly hidden, Kid Win saw the frown. Wards learned how to express themselves fast with Miss Militia around.
Glancing around the room, Kid Win felt some butterflies in his stomach. Some hero. Locked in a room with no apparent danger and he still felt nervous as hell.
Turning back to the door, his eyes settled on the light that should be on but wasn't. The PRT built everything to prevent tampering, and that included tinker tampering. The panels and covers didn't simply come off. A few tools in his workshop might work but the light annoyed him. Why would the light be off?
"I think the power is off," Kid Win mumbled.
"The lights are flashing," Alec pointed out.
"I mean to the door." Kid Win pointed. "When the Ward Room goes into a lock down, the light up there turns red and the door seals magnetically. The light isn't on, and I'm betting it's not sealed either."
Aegis nodded. "I tried pushing it before, but I didn't try that hard."
"It'll be easier with a lever. Let me go back to my lab and I'll just-"
A black mist poured out of the vent in the ceiling, So-Shadow Stalker dropping onto the couch beside Alec. The older Ward looked away from his game for a moment, offering a "sup" to the girl before she bounded over the back of the couch.
"Stalker?" Aegis asked. "I didn't know you were here."
"I was out for a morning walk," she growled.
Aegis blinked. "You weren't scheduled for-"
"Piggot called me in. Whole building is on lockdown and she has me playing messenger."
Kid Win glanced to the ceiling and the vent. Figured. She probably couldn't get through the walls easily, but the vents weren't loaded with power lines.
"What's going on?"
"How should I know? Piggot says check on you, so I'm here checking on you."
"Wait, no one said anything about why-"
The console monitors flashed, Aegis and Kid Win both turning. The screens began to flicker, windows opening and closing rapidly.
Aegis walked over and tapped a few keys. "Huh. I couldn't get it to do anything before."
Stalker scoffed. "Did you try turning it off and on again?"
Kid Win took the mouse, but the cursor didn't move with it. He tested it a few times, swiping back and forth just in case, but…
"It's being controlled remotely," he realized.
Apparently finding this interesting enough, the sounds of gunfire from the TV stopped. Alec got up and walked over, watching as code played out across the monitors.
Aegis tensed. "By who?"
Kid Win thought about it.
"You can't just hack into the PRT. Dragon-tech protects our servers. I don't think even a cape with computer powers can just get through."
"There is a computer cape in town," Stalker said.
"StarGazer?" Aegis shook his head. "Why would she?"
Stalker shrugged.
"How would I know?"
Chris watched the screens, wondering. Why would someone shut off the power to just the door but mess with the console-
"Someone's taking control from inside the building." Chris turned back to the door. "And they cut off our radios and shut us in so we couldn't tell anyone!"
"Why would someone-"
Aegis voice cut short. He inhaled sharply and cursed.
Kid Win, Stalker, and Valiant all turned to him, asking, "What?"
"Nothing," he said.
"Doesn't sound like nothing," Alec mumbled.
"Armsmaster told me not to say anything, okay?"
"Even if we're right in the middle of it," Stalker snarled.
Aegis looked at her and sighed. "There's a mole hunt going on. Newtype accused the PRT of leaking information to the gangs last week and everyone's been quietly running around trying to find out if it's true."
A mole, in the PRT?
Stalker scoffed again. "Of course."
"Then it is an inside job," Kid Win said.
"Maybe." Aegis nodded to the computer. "Someone is up to something. Can you stop it?"
"I can try."
Kid Win pushed the single chair aside. The doors and walls might be sealed, but not the covers for the Console. Crouching and leaning under the control board, he pulled one of the panels free.
"I can't disconnect them, but I can probably pull the"—he reached and yanked on a series of bundled cords. "Did that work?"
"Nope," Alec answered.
"Huh. I guess that wasn't the power supply…Or there's more than one."
He heard Stalker pace behind him. "Aren't you a tinker?"
"That doesn't mean I-"
How many times have I done console duty and never bothered to look at how this thing is wired?
Damnit. Didn't matter now. Someone was up to something and he needed to stop it. He found another cord and pulled.
"One screen down nerd, only about nineteen more to…go…"
"Uh…Chris."
The sound in Aegis' voice sent a chill up Kid Win's spine.
"You might want to hurry," he said.
"Holy shit," Stalker cursed.
"Why?" Kid Win started to pull back. "What happened?"
Aegis didn't stop him as he stood and looked up.
His eyes widened.
"Is that…"
The pages flashed by every few seconds, but lingered long enough for Chris to get the idea.
Cape names with PRT threat ratings, descriptions of their powers, official policy positions, and even pictures. The PRT seal water marked each page, along with a "Confidential" stamp in red.
"Hey." Alec pointed. "Isn't that the Doll girl?"
Kid Win followed his finger.
Parian
ROGUE
/THREAT RATING: minimal
Master 6
-Controls threads, can form animated minions from cloth
-Unknown if she can effect clothing worn by others or-
The page vanished, replaced by another with a Think Tank assessment of Parian's motivations. That page went too fast for him to read any of it and I shouldn't read any of this these files are only-
The next page contained still images from a video of one of Parian's shows, and the next a bunch of theory about her power from analyzing said video. Then the page changed again.
Chris stiffened.
No long text blocks or numerical assessments. No video. No charts or figures. Just a few words in big red letters with a "Do not disclose unless absolutely necessary" warning and "disclosing under any circumstance is cause for termination."
/PRT Confidential: Director/Prot. Leader EYES ONLY
REAL NAME: Sabah ibnat-Saleh
College Student/Fashion
"Grue," Stalker hissed.
Chris followed Stalker's eyes, finding the skull shaped helmet of the Undersiders a few screens over. Brian Laborn according to the PRT. How did they know that- why did they write it down?!
The same red text appeared over and over, and then another cape's file started appearing. Some said "Identity Unknown" but a lot named names and occupations or status. Rogues. Heroes. Villains. The only people who didn't come up were those in the Wards, the Protectorate, or a gang.
Alec turned his jaw. "The nerd in math class is Dazzler?"
"Valiant," Aegis warned.
Alec leaned forward, eyes scanning over the various screens.
Stalker inhaled on Kid Win's other side, mumbling, "Laughter's real name is Laughter?"
Kid Win spotted the screen and noted it was spelled "Lafter."
"With an F," Aegis lamented. "And we shouldn't be reading these. These are confidential. No one but the Director is supposed to be able to-"
And yet they're right there.
Chris thought back to the code he saw before. He didn't remember all of it, but he remembered one line.
An IP address.
"Shit!"
Kid Win dropped back to the floor and started pulling wires. Disks. Boxes. Anything he touched with any give, he pulled. The servos on his armor whirled the enhanced strength letting him rip drives out of their screws and break boards and cards inside the machine.
"Chris? What is-"
Kid Win didn't stop. He yanked an entire motherboard out and threw it aside.
He shouted, "Someone's uploading to the internet!"
He heard a heavy thud, and then another. Aegis pulled on the console, ripping out the boards and monitors, and anything else his hands got a firm grip on.
"I think you guys broke it," Alec suggested a few seconds later.
Chris scrambled to his feet panting. The monitors, the ones not broken and laying on the floor around him, were all off.
"It might still be running," Chris said.
Aegis lifted another chunk of the console in his hands. They'd reduced the entire console to a pile of scrap. Torn wires and hanging cords, broken boards and cards, drives and processors strewn about. Some blood.
Chris turned to Aegis. "Are you bleeding?"
Aegis lifted his hands. "Yeah. Sharp edges, but I'll be fine. More important-"
Chris didn't wait. As soon as Aegis assured him of his wellbeing, the young hero started to clamber back under the Console.
"Let me-"
"It's too late." Aegis' hand fell on his shoulder. "You have a camera in your mask right?"
He nodded.
"Play it back. To the code and stuff. See where on the internet everything went."
Kid Win pulled up the PAD on his arm and started pressing at the buttons. His visor played back everything to right when the hack, or take over, started.
He stopped and let the video play forward.
Aegis was right. Dozens, of files got out before he started pulling anything, and taking the entire console apart might not even stop it. Other computers in the building could be doing the exact same thing.
He needed to find out where the files were goin-
"I got it."
The top left most monitor. While the others showed the command prompt boxes and code, that one flashed for a second with something else.
Rewinded and pausing, Chris played it forward frame by frame.
A webpage. Light brown colors, bit earth symbol on the top corne-
"Well?" Stalker tapped her foot on the floor. "Who just blew up the unwritten rules?"
Aegis stiffened. "Chris?"
Kid Win stared at the banner.
Phantom Pain - A Forum by Naturals for Naturals.
