Aether Suits
Researcher
"I'm not sure I can build the suits according to these plans. What the hell even is a "polymer?""
Researcher
Vitrog
"You humans weren't ready for that yet! You are lucky Galrok the Supreme is allowing you to glimpse at this technology at all!"
Grand Commander Alvin
Vitrog
"Heh... Not likely, but do let us know when your worthless craftsmen over there fail! No one has the ability to build these anymore, not even Orcs!"The Original Plans
Because of an Incident that happened a few weeks ago, the Knight Council of Vreathe ordered an Expedition to The Moon Izi. The environment there is unforgiving and incompatible with human life. Magic can solve many problems for the people of Vreathe, but the knights wouldn't be able to carry enough Aethercite crystals for the month of longer they would potentially be spending on Izi. They needed another solution that would last much longer.
The Knight Council contacted the Orcs of Veracrul for help. While the Orcs did share plans with the knights for so-called Spacesuits, the mechanists, armorers, tailors, and scientists employed by the Knight Council had trouble understanding them and the Orcs were unwilling to help beyond sharing the plans.
The plans required materials and manufacturing methods not invented yet, at least not invented yet by Iron Age Humans and Elves. That knowledge was destroyed long ago during the The Silver Age Cataclysm or is being closely guarded by the Orcs. And without Orcish help, they were just going to have to go through each feature of the suit one by one and come up with a different solution or method, if one could even be found.
Suit Layers
Armor - Gravity Gemsteel
The suit plans called for armor plating made of an oil-based synthetic material the armorers had no concept of. At first they were going to not put any armor plating on the suits at all, but if the knights ended up running into trouble and had to engage in battle, they were going to need some sort of protection. Not wanting to weigh the knights down too much, the armorers made armor plating out of Gravity Gem Steel, which has a similar strength to actual steel but weighs significantly less.
The armorers weren't entirely sure if the conditions of the world was going to be corrosive or not, so the steel was covered with a thick oil based paint. The underside of each armor plate also has several aethercite crystals embedded within, giving it shock absorption properties, as well as resistance to extreme heat and cold. Nothing short of the piercing teeth of a dragon or the heat of a phoenix flame should be able to break this armor.
Outer Layer - Drake Hide
The plans had a long section describing the dangers of radiation in an airless environment and explained that spacesuits don't have effective long term protection from such things. The plans called for a Hydrogen rich polymer layer to help reduce exposure, but the people of Vreathe had no such material. The armorers and tailors already had a solution for an alternate material.
Drakes are the lesser creations of the ancient Dragon Lords and are quite numerous on Vreathe. They are large destructive creatures that almost always have bounties for hunting them so their hides are always in plentiful supply. Their hides are thick, impact resistant, and are known to resist the effects of just about any type of magic thrown at it. Drake Hides can also absorb ambient Aether from the environment, which can then be used for other things later on.
The only other thing that could resist radiation more than Drake Hide would lead-lined fabrics, but everyone determined that would make the suits too heavy for practical use.
Middle Layer - Lunar Cotton
One of the biggest dangers of the Moon Izi is the lack of an atmosphere. A human expedition to the world 200 years ago detailed the lengths that research team had to go through to be able to breathe. Most of their supply of magic crystals went into the generation of an artificial pressurized layer of oxygen around each of their bodies. The tailors are going to use the same concept, but will use a layer of fabric to contain the air inside. this will greatly reduce the amount of magic needed.
Lunar Cotton is a plant that grows in the deserts of Western Vreathe. It floats in the air in the form of large puffy spheres. It has a similar consistency to cotton, but is also has airtight pockets that hold small amounts of helium so it can float. The tailors decided to use use a textile formed from this plant as pressurized layer and hold oxygen instead. It is also sandwiched between layers of rubber coated linens to hopefully make it as airtight as possible.
Inner Layer - Light Silk
An inner layer was needed for comfort, and also deal with other things. For this the tailors went with Light Silk, a special type of elven textile that is stretchy and includes silver threads all throughout the weave. This silver thread makes contact with the body and allows for very quick channeling and casting of magic.
Every so often at set distances in a grid pattern, small aethercite crystals are set in the fabric, pre-programmed to destroy certain types of matter that comes into contact with it, such as dirt, blood, sweat, and more. The silver threads allows this crystal's magic to interact with the entire piece of fabric no matter the part of the body it is in contact with.
The fabric is generally pretty comfortable and was designed to be worn for incredibly long periods of time without wearing out or getting dirty in any meaningful way, making it perfect for use as the inner layer for the suit.
Other Design Details
No Helmet - Initial designs of the suit had a large pressurized glass helmet, which would be an utterly terrible decision to make if the knight was to enter combat and the helmet was to immediately shatter. Instead, several large aethercite crystals are placed around the opening to the suit. Constantly recharged thanks to the properties of the drake hide suit, these crystals generate a never ending pressurized bubble of air. The interlock ring for the unused helmet still exists in the original design.
Boots and Gloves - In order to stay pressurized, the boots and gloves have a metal locking mechanism that attaches directly to the suit. They are also made of much tougher leathers to reduce wear and tear.
Armor customization - Initially, the armor was going to be integrated into the suit and have a layer of leather over it, but as virtually all knights of Vreathe's many orders refuse to wear their standard issue armors in favor of what they are comfortable in, the designers decided that the armor can be removed. It is attached with simple leather straps and buckles.
Order Emblems - Completely unecessary but requested by several knights as they were getting measured for their suits. Emblems of their order are painted on the left shoulder. If they were officially at war, their right shoulder would be painted with the military unit they were actually assigned to, but that was left out.
Eating.... - Due to there being no helmet, it is possible to eat and drink at any time, but due to the pressure differences between the air bubble and the atmosphere of the Moon Izi, it might take some practice without getting it all over your face. Luckily the mechanists are currently working on a pressurized mobile shelter for the expedition, and once inside the aethercite powering the suit's air bubble can be deactivated.
"How does the suit feel? Do you like the adjustments we made?"
"I always hated wearing Light Silk. It doesn't even feel like silk. but it will work. Tell me, why did I have to cut my hair?"
"Because Izi has virtually no atmosphere. If your hair was longer and it passed through the barrier, the difference in air pressure would pull on your hair, ripping it out at the root! You'd be bald and in great pain in a matter of seconds!"
"Couldn't I have just tied my hair up in a tight braid, or wear some sort of stretchy head covering?"
"I suppose you could have done that, but what's done is done I suppose!"
"...thanks." Renelle didn't say anything else and left the room. "Damn researchers..." She mumbled to herself, clearly annoyed at the whole situation. Just a few days ago, she was in quarantine as a possible host for a plague called Frostrot. Today, she's leading a team of knights to another world to find the source of the plague. The promotion to Field Commander was nice, but the absurdity of everything else around the situation was what annoyed her.
Renelle reached the barracks and saw that very few members of her team were here. They must still be getting adjustments made to their aether suits. Renelle walked over to her locker and opened the door. She had several longswords in here and her skycloak was neatly folded on the top shelf. Renelle has considered taking that along, but wasn't sure what the moon's environment would do to it. There was also a set of drakehide armor, made of the same material as the outer shell of her suit.
If there was time, Renelle would take a few days to head to her actual armory, stored at the Château Des Vagabonds in the nearby barony of Orthez. There she had dozens of magic weapons and probably had a better choice of armor than the cheap looking painted plates she was given, but there was no time. It didn't really matter which sword she took, so Renelle grabbed the one made of brightsteel.
There was also a revolver in a holster, hanging from the hook on the door. Renelle looked at it for a second but decided to not use it. The revolver was a gift from her sister Isabel when she reached the rank of Master Knight. It was not meant to be a friendly gift. Isabel always thought her magic as superior to Renelle's, so when she sent it, it was taken as a gesture that Renelle wasn't powerful enough, that Renelle was beneath Isabel. After remembering this, she slammed the locker shut.
"You still aren't gonna use that thing Ren?" Renelle heard some ask. She turned and it was Lucia Sar, a friend and one of the knights under her command for this mission.
"No," Renelle responded, "Are you seriously going to take that hammer along?"
"Nivema's Sorrow? Of course!" Lucia slung a large sledgehammer from behind her back. The head of the hammer was comically large and had a runic circle on it that was inscribed with the words: 'Sorrow of Nivema'. It was an Ice Hammer, capable of creating and spreading frost across the battlefield quickly. It was also made of gravity steel and was actually rather light, which allowed Lucia to manipulate it with a single arm despite its size.
"So how's the suit?" Renelle asked.
"I always heard of Elven Light Silk and how special the fabric was! Now that my whole body is covered in it, it doesn't feel like silk. They expect us to wear this for a whole month?!?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Renelle said as she finished tying her sword's sheath on her belt. "Let's get the rest of the team together. We head out in three hours."
Smoke and Frost II
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Next:: Phoenix Expeditionary Force
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This is awesome! \o/
Thanks!