To all you who have been waiting for me to publish the next chapter I apologize. Family events have kept me busy these last few days and look to continue doing so until my summer classes start next Monday. Once that happens I will no longer have time to continue writing this story at any reasonable pace, and when I do once again have the time to write I will likely want to start on something entirely different. To that end I have written a summary of where I was planning on taking this story below. Each bullet point is roughly a chapter as I was envisioning it. I have also included a copy of the "PRT files" post from the Spacebattles thread on Seraphim's Shield Wings first. Don't read farther than that if you don't want spoilers in the case that I do ever pick this back up.
If you want to use the Crystalline Energy Lattice tech used in the implant for anything, ASK ME FIRST! That idea is MINE and MINE ALONE! I will definitely say yes, so long as you cite me, but that is an original idea of mine that I plan to use if I ever write an actual book or story of my own. I'll also give you a much more detailed description of what exactly it is, how it works, and why it is so much better than energy shield and Solid State Energy tech you will see elsewhere when I give you permission, so it is to your advantage to be courteous here.
-PRT FILES POST-
Files: Restricted Access: Parahumans: High Clearance Access: Protectorate: Brockton Bay: Seraphim: Shield Wings
General Description: An Implant developed and used by the hero Seraphim. Manipulation for use is achieved by means of neural interfacing technology, and power is supplied by a Graft Wave receiver component. Generates a number of force fields in the form of feathers and wing structure that interlock to form a pair of wings reaching from Seraphim's back. Each component ordinarily fits tightly enough together to be airtight, but can be moved separately if needed. Case in point, 'feathers' can be used as projectiles if need be, either individually or en-masse, but they are otherwise immobile relative to Seraphim unless he moves them. For further information on their uses as projectiles see notes on force field composition and multitasking below. Seraphim seems to be able to move the wings as though they are actually parts of his body, even on a subconscious level, and extend or dissolve them at will. While the wings on their own are incapable of anything beyond a well-controlled glide, when used in conjuncture with the 'Force-Wing' implant they enable high levels of maneuverability in flight. Further inquiry with Seraphim has revealed that he was unable to make the implant produce fields in other shapes at this time, although this may change in the future.
Location of implant: Back of chest cavity, in front and to the right of the sixth thoracic vertebrae.
Further Notes: (phrases in single quotation marks are directly quoted from Seraphim's report.)
The force field phenomenae generated by this implant make use of 'pure energy that acts like matter' to form a barrier. Unlike force fields observed that are directly created by a parahuman power, the individual 'feathers' are three dimensional constructs. Rather than being of effectively infinite thinness or a simple wall of solid energy, Seraphim claims that they are composed of many 'two dimensional force fields locked to each other in a three dimensional fractal lattice, using the octahedral crystalline structure of diamonds.' In consequence they are extremely energy efficient once deployed 'due to holding themselves together instead of bleeding off energy all the time,' and have resisted all attempts to break through or damage them thus far.
Seraphim is capable of making the edges of each 'feather' incredibly sharp as desired. He states that 'Because of their fractal crystalline structure and their nature as pure energy I can make the edges of my feathers reach the theoretical state of mathematically infinite sharpness. This is only possible because they are made of pure energy that is behaving like matter without being conducted by, or exerted directly upon, any actual matter, since you can only get so small with matter before you would need smaller atoms first.' It has been confirmed that so far, aside from other forms of pure energy shielding, Seraphim's sharpened feathers have cut everything they have been tested against with equal ease.
Also notable is the fact that Seraphim seems to be able to make full use of each feather at the same time as though he were focusing solely on it while not being distracted from other activities. See file on Seraphim's base power for speculations on a possible secondary Thinker ability.
File Last Updated: July 2, 2010
-STORY SUMMARY-
-Next chapter would have seen Taylor running into Jacob in a game store and recognizing him from several combined factors, the first of which being that he is wearing his watch on the inside of his wrist, as she had also noticed in chapter 1.3. They become friends. Jacob also starts working with the Wards a bit around this time as part of his punishment for insubordination in 2.1, but actually enjoys it due to working well with kids.
-Next would be a chapter with Seraphim's first endbringer fight. Seraphim is hurt and gets treated by Panacea, who is amazed to discover that his implants register as "alive" according to the Manton Effect.
-The chapter afterwards would see Sophia getting pressed into the Wards, as in canon, but unlike canon Seraphim notices that she is one of Taylor's bullies due to his friendship with Taylor. Sophia is restricted further in ways designed to prevent the continuation of this, but it just leads to Emma picking up the slack instead. Seraphim begins implanting a select few PRT officers with his implants, cutting heavily into progress on further enhancing himself.
ARC 3 Begins
-At around the same time as the locker in canon, Emma does something bad enough to cause Taylor to trigger. The original idea for Taylor's power was something along the lines of being able to dress up as fictional characters and get their supernatural abilities and some measure of their skills. Sort of a cosplayer's dream power. The more closely she was imitating a character when she activated her power, the more powerful she would be with their abilities. By now though I was planning on having Taylor trigger with either Grana's or Amagi Miroku's abilities from Psyren, which you probably haven't heard of. Grana is a ridiculously powerful TK, self-enhancer, and is strongly implied to be equally as powerful in the use of things like telepathy and energy blasts, though I would definitely remove the telepathy part. For an idea of how powerful his TK is, he has a habit of telekinetically gathering all incoming sunlight in a part of the sky for a short time to a single point, and then using it all at once as a massive beam attack that he calls "Divine Judgement." The second time he does this he uses several at once without showing any strain. Amagi Miroku has an extremely powerful ability called "Sephirot" that uses a "tree of light" in a number of ways that are a bit hard to explain, and he is also a very powerful self-enhancer.
-Taylor considers joining the Wards, but at this point the Paige Maccabee Trial occurs. Seraphim publicly denounces the trial, listing several ways that the proceedings were directly illegal, before stating that he cannot directly work for a legal system that ignores its own laws, and leaving the Protectorate.
-GBscientist's prize come into play here, as Seraphim uses the requested Robot Dinosaurs(purchased from Toybox) as distractions when he breaks Canary from prison. As they escape they are confronted by Armsmaster, who tells Seraphim to stand down if he wants to be looked at leniently. Seraphim refuses, stating that as soon as someone gets it into their head that he could have created an implant that would justify Master/Stranger protocols all chance of a fair trial would go out the window. Before Armsmaster can attack he is contacted by Alexandria who tells him to shut up before he somehow turns Seraphim into an outright anarchist, and that they will deal with Seraphim and Canary another time.
ARC 4 Begins
-Seraphim, Canary, and Taylor form a new team. The PRT and Protectorate decide to leave them alone despite the prison break and Canary's conviction, since they are willing to play ball and are a powerful resource in dealing with S-class threats. It is not seen as worth it to pursue since they are working as heroes, rather than villains, and Canary is offered the chance for a retrial. They state that they will not submit or consent to being tried at the very least until laws are in place that they feel can assure them of a fair trial.
-Events occur in Brockton Bay for a chapter or few and, depending both on what I found out about her canon personality and on how the story has developed at this point, Canary and Seraphim might become a couple.
-Leviathan attacks Brockton Bay. Unlike canon, Scion arrives at the end of the fight. He is confused by the fact that some PRT officers who register according to his senses as unconnected to a shard are using abilities that should not be possible for normal humans, because of Seraphim-given implants. While he is distracted the Usurper attacks his real body and kills him. Scion's projected body dies publicly as Leviathan is driven off.
After this point I was planning on possibly ending Mechabiological and continuing with a sequel. The sequel would include the Slaughterhouse 9 coming to town, and either Bonesaw or Mannequin would pick Seraphim as a candidate. Seraphim would first encounter Mannequin, and would totally obliterate him in short order. However the rest of the S9 arc would go, Bonesaw would be conscripted from the S9 at the end by Seraphim's group, Seraphim stating that he is a strong believer in personal redemption. I don't really know enough about Worm's storyline from there to say where it would go, but I suspect that there would be so many butterflies in place that EVERYTHING would be different. With Scion's apparently-spontaneous death Eidolon wouldn't feel so much pressure to regain his old power, for one thing, and thus endbringer attacks would drop sharply in both frequency and severity, leaving the world to wonder what that meant.