A Business Proposition

[Gary Cannon]

"Good. I'll be there in a jiffy." Cannon teleported from his home to the alleyway beside the Jericho Institute and retracted his suit to appear as a common business man should any passers by see him. He walked out of the alleyway, around the corner, and into the reception area of the Institute.

"I am Gary Cannon" He announced to the secretary. "Doktor Heidegger is expecting me." The secretary nodded. "This way please." she said in heavily accented English.

She took Gary around into an elevator and started their decent towards the lower laboratory that would be the scene for the early construction of Cannon's armor. The elevator stopped, and after a brisk walk, she halted in front of a door. "Here is the lab Mr. Cannon. If you'll excuse me, I must return to my post." She gave a curt nod and headed back the way they had come.

Gary pushed open the door and walked in.

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

Klaus turned to see Gary enter and then focused back on the machine in front of him. "Today we begin fabrication of the frame for the suit. I understand you have a suit already. Would you want to be the subject for this one as well? I need a specific person's measurements to contruct the frame."

[Gary Cannon]

Cannon chuckled. "If you're sure that you'd rather not make it for YOURSELF, then I'll be happy to be the subject." Cannon proceeded to rattle off his measurements. He'd been to enough suit sizing's in preparation for business meetings to know them by heart.

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

Klaus considered that. He almost never involved himself to a great degree in his projects. On the other hand, most of his technicians had gotten used to his niggling habit of putting his fingers into every single project. With a suit like Gary's, he could be personally at every site and have a greater chance to study the mutants under his "care" more directly.

"Not a bad idea, Mr. Cannon."

Klaus smirked and entered his measurements. Once it was completed, he confirmed the machine's parameters and got to work. "Another facility under my care is producing the nanotubes we need to build this machine. There has not been much cause foe me to use the nanotubes for more than cell construction and blast shielding, but I have plenty of the material here to perform this first phase."

[Gary Cannon]

Gary grinned a child's grin, from ear to ear. He laughed heartily and slapped Klaus on the back like an old friend. "I never thought I'd see the day you'd take any kind of liking to this kind of thing! Maybe you are just more adventurous than I knew you to be when you were older." Cannon nodded in response to the information about the nanotubes. "Good to hear. Depending on how many suits you are thinking of making, I can get a factory up and running within the week to make more. I dare say, if it came down to it, we could create a small army, or at least a squadron, of suits. Think of the possibilities.... But I get ahead of myself. My appologies."

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

"Unless we were to automate the suits, I don't think mass producing them would be a good idea. Mass production involves a standardization of the product. To make much use out of them, people of very specific height and build would be required."

Klaus ignored the part about being adventuresome. It was a practical benefit to his creation of the armor. He wasn't going to joy ride.

"Very well. Let's begin with the torso."

The frame for the chest plate would be done in halves, connecting across the tops of the shoulders and at his sides, with room for his arms and neck. He began drawing out the design on a sophisticated screen, with the computer adjusting the image so that it fit Klaus' measurements.

"While we're at it, we need to discuss the power source for this armor. Development of one as sophisticated as yours will take some time and effort. In fact, it could almost be a project on its own."

Klaus' original designs placed the power source in the chest or stomach region. Klaus didn't like that idea. He wondered what he had been thinking. The correct strike to the source could cause an explosion or some other serious malfunction, causing the wearer to suffer damage to the heart, lungs, or other organs.

Instead Klaus had made arrangements to replace the single powersource with multiple ones that worked in unison, placed over the shoulder blades. That way if one was taken offline, the other could provide at least half power to the suit and provide the wearer with some small chance of getting to safety or finishing his work.

There was still the danger of risk to internal organs, but it seemed to Klaus that the risk would be somewhat reduced. Klaus worried that serious malfunction could damage a person's spine, but paralysis was, for him, better than organ failure. Not all paralysis was fatal, but any serious wounds to the stomach, liver, kidneys, etc tended to be more fatal than not. Besides, he could make arrangements to protect the spine better than he could the other way around.

"Take a look at the schematic," he said as he drew out the places in the frame where the power sources were to be mounted.

[Gary Cannon]

Cannon leaned over to get a better look at the schematics. "Hmm....I do like the idea of multiple sources of power, but not too much about them being on the back..."

Cannon straightened. "I know you yourself are not a combatant. You are a scientist, and in regards for a suit for yourself, I suppose you could put the power supplies wherever you like. Myself, I like to have it in front of me, where nobody can land a blow on it, at least, not without me knowing. I am many things, and can do many things with my suit, but I am not omnipotent, and my suit has it's limits. I have about a 180 degree vision in front of me, so I have to turn to see what's around. Anyone, or anything, if they are quiet enough, and I don't have the ability to see myself via satellite, can sneak up behind me, and strike a blow to the power."

Cannon started pacing back and forth, keeping his eyes focused on Klaus as he explained. "Another benefit, ESPECIALLY if you have a front mounted, multiple power supply, is that the armor between yourself and the supply can be reinforced substantially, so that IF the source is breached, the resulting flux of power or explosion would be directed in front of you, giving you two important things. A neigh unstoppable, short attack, and secondly, the ability to direct it, thereby having the option and ability to reduce collateral damage."

He tapped the schematic on the table. "BUT!" He raised the index finger of his other hand into the air. "I am all ears if you can find a way to make it less of a vulnerable spot."

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

"Well," Klaus said as he moved the delicate machines that wove the fibers into the frame, "By segmenting them and making them smaller, a person needs to have far more accuracy to hit them. Also, being smaller, I can encase them in thicker armor."

Klaus shrugged nonchalantly. "It's an alternative design I want to toy with. If it turns out to be a bad option, I can re-design. Just because I know how I did it before, doesn't mean I'm just going to follow myself down that one path. As you said, in this time frame I have the leisure to make the suit as perfect as possible. So I'm going to design several suits and test them all."

[Gary Cannon]

Cannon's eyes widened. Several suits... he thought. He the corner of his mouth tugged upward in a slight grin. This is exactly why I came to him.

He nodded his approval of Klaus's idea. "A good plan, as I would expect from you good Doktor. What did you have in mind for the different suits? In case you've not had the idea in your head yet, I've one in mind. I find myself constantly wishing for more hands when I'm in my lab...and the idea of a multi-limbed attachment, or suit, came to me before I came back to this time, but alas...there was no time to explore such an option."

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

Klaus shrugged. "The mechanics for the extra arms will take some time to develop. For now I just want to see what sorts of designs make the most efficient suits. We'll be playing with power sources, circuitry, HUD interfaces, and the like. We can specialize suits based on the final design choice for the basic suit."

The frame was coming along well, but the going was slow. Weaving the nanotube fibers took a long time since Klaus could not help but deal with them on a microscopic level. Klaus finished adjusting the settings and allowed the machine to fabricate the frame for him based on his inputs.

"We're going to let this machine work for us for a few hours. Come, I want to discuss power sources with you."

[Gary Cannon]

Cannon nodded. "Lead the way."

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

Klaus nodded. The two men left the room together and walked down the hallway to another room. "So far the only technology I can think of available to use that is even feasible is nuclear power. I am aware of zero point energy technology that is undergoing testing. Of course, creating a nuclear reactor small enough to fit on the suit is nearly impossible. However, I have been doing some research."

In the energy room several machines were being fabircated. A series of radioactive isotopes stood behind a transparent shield. Behind the shield a series of robotic machines kept track of each isotope's half-life and energy output.

"So far we have been testing longevity versus energy output to see which would be optimal for the reactor." Klaus gestured at a video screen. "I wanted to direct you to this mutant. It is located in the very bottom of the facility. His body generates an enormous amount of nuclear power. Apparently it generates out of his stomach or his heart. If I can find a way to get close enough to take samples of him, I will see what it is that is causing such a thing and apply that to the development of the suit."

[Gary Cannon]

Gary stewed over the possibility of a nuclear powered suit before answering. "Well, the power source of my own suit is complicated yet simple all at once. You were experimenting with a mutant that could absorb light, and transfer it into energy. Based on that we came up with this suit design for gathering energy. The actual source tho, is a simple, large battery. It is stored in a trans-dimensional pocket on my chest. In order to get it there, we had to make it long and narrow, about twelve feet long and no wider than the panel you see on the chest of my suit, when it's active of course. The reason it glows is because of the battery itself began to glow from storing the power, and it makes the plate glow. As you mentioned about your other sources, yes, this plate is very heavily armored, and it is not made to open as easily as the other pockets on my suit. However, a new power source could be of great benefit if for some reason I was trapped in a completely dark environment for more than a week."

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

"Oh yes, dimensional pockets. Just another facet of the living work of science fiction that is the Power Suit Project."

On their way to the energy R&D room they passed another, larger laboratory where scientists were gathered around a large circular metal object with six nodes ringing the inside.

"By far the most challenging aspect of this adventure. Despite my very clear notes the team is still having trouble locking down the particular frequencies of other dimensions. It's an aspect of time and space human kind has as of yet only dreamed of."

On one of the large screens in the lab, visible from the window in the hallway was a hypercube: a four dimensional brother of a normal cube.

"We are working on reaching into the fourth dimension to create hypercubes for now. With luck by the time the month is out that phase of the project will be basic training for interns."

[Gary Cannon]

Cannon nodded his approval. "It may be more helpful to yourself and your staff if, instead of thinking stricktly of the pockets as an 'extra demension', they were to view it more as a rip in the fabric of this dimension. After all, as humans, it is easier for us to cut, tear, rip, and destroy than it is to create. The dimension is already there, it's just a matter of getting to it, not creating it out of nothing. That view may help your scientists better grasp the concept."

As they walked, Cannon turned his head and looked a Klaus with a gleam in his eye. "So....I know at one point durring your research, you had mentioned wanting flight capabilities in the suit, but, due to circumstances, time was short and you were unable to progress in that direction. Now that you have time to your advantage, have you any ideas about implementing an addon, upgrade, or modification to allow a suit to fly?"

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

Klaus considered Cannon's point. "I suppose that is true, but the thought of ripping and tearing has never appealed to me. I don't think the pockets will suit well as a mere gash in dimensional fabric. It's science fiction at it's finest, but I don't want the gap to be unstable and cause problems. I at least want the pocket to open and close and remain stable when opened."

The flight capabilities were different. "I have interns working on that, actually. Most of them space and aeronautic engineers. There are a number of theories. Magnetism has been suggested. Thrusters using high-energy, high-efficiency fuels, miniature jet engines..." Klaus trailed off and he shrugged. "No matter what we try, the technology will be clunky until we can refine it."

[Gary Cannon]

Cannon shrugged. "I only mentioned it because as humans, our ability to create is fairly limited. After all, the art of healing is in reality, the art of the controlled killing of whatever ails us. It's just easier for most people to wrap thier minds around."

He switched topics only after a brief pause, "Yes it would....be klunky I mean... That was the problem we had before. Basically, it would take an entirely new propulsion system to be invented, or like you said, a massive fine-tuning of whatever we could come up with...."

He stared off at the celing as they walked, mulling it over in his mind. "If at all possible, I'd rather not use magnetism. High powered magnets would have the potential to mess with the AI and other computer components of the suit...among other things.... It would probably end up being more of a liability than a help. On the other hand...magnets could be powered by the power source of the suit, as opposed to conventional engines, which would need a steady supply of petrol...ugh."

Cannon rubbed his tempels with the middle finger and thumb of his right hand.

[Doktor Klaus Heidegger]

Klaus nodded.

As they walked along an intern dashed up to Klaus and gave him a clipboard with notes. The doctor took it and looked it over.

"Well, it would seem flight might not be impossible after all. It would appear that the technicians in Energy have developed a Zero Point Energy Generator that can fit inside of a standard backpack. This is fortunate."

He handed the clipboard back to the intern. "Go get yourself coffee."

It was the only reward Klaus ever gave an intern: the ability to get their own coffee, and not other people's coffee.

"Well, we can adapt that for sure. Plus it fits squarely with my previous design of placing the power source on the back of the suit."