Chapter 15: S
Orin Vale was very pleased that he had ultimately succeeded in reasoning with the Cross Gang.
A large crowd had arrived menacingly, only to leave in disgrace. As they departed, each one was bruised and swollen. Their wretched state was somewhat comical, and they even seemed a little pitiful.
Many neighbors, hearing the commotion, gathered to watch from afar, gloating over the misfortune of these barbarians who were so used to throwing their weight around. At the same time, Orin Vale suspected that after today, another chapter would be added to the strange tales surrounding him, the coffee shop owner.
He couldn't care less. After all, it was an internal brawl; they looked this way from their own infighting. As for himself, he was just Orin Vale, a clean, upstanding businessman. It had nothing to do with him.
Order in the community was maintained once again, and the neighbors could sleep peacefully at night. The bracelet's energy also maintained its slow but steady upward curve. All in all, it was a good outcome.
In the period that followed, Orin Vale devoted most of his time to developing the battlesuit.
To the Land of Light's technology, a basic exoskeleton was as simple as assembling LEGO bricks. The slightly more complicated issue was the power source. Just like with Iron Man's battlesuit from the universe next door, the core of all its black technology was concentrated in the chest-mounted reactor.
From the battlesuit's power output, maneuverability, and movement speed to its weapon power, temperature, and destructive force—the upper limit of all its base stats was determined entirely by the power supply system.
This was also the biggest difference between the armor known as "Mobile Ultraman" and an ordinary exoskeleton. The name wasn't just because its outer design resembled an Ultraman; the essence of its energy system relied on the Light of Ultraman, and it could synthesize and release Specium energy as its strongest weapon.
Therefore, the battlesuit was essentially a life-sized, weakened version of a miniature Ultraman. Moreover, it could be conveniently modified for special purposes according to the mission's needs, such as emphasizing power, speed, or stealth.
To support the battlesuit's systems, Orin Vale also wrote a simple, dedicated AI program. For him, an intern from the Land of Light Technology Bureau, this was naturally a fundamental skill.
He named the AI Pal, the same name as the fighter jet assistance AI that his senior, Gaia's human host Gamu, had created back in the day.
There was no particular reason; he just did it for good luck.
As everyone knows, the first two protagonists of the Heisei Trio were both known as "aircraft killers."
Daigo, of course, needs no introduction. To him, the Jet VTOL I was basically a Tiga-launcher; its main purpose was to facilitate a crash so he could transform. Asuka, who came later, was even more absurd. His vehicle rarely had the chance for a stable crash; it usually just exploded into a firework display in mid-air. Aside from helping him practice the speed of his transformation into Dyna, its only other function was probably to make the blood pressure of the TPC Finance Department skyrocket.
In contrast, Gamu, as Gaia, crashed only a handful of times while being active throughout the entire TV series, a stark contrast to his two prodigal seniors. His AI co-pilot, Pal, was undeniably a major reason for this success.
With all tests passed, it was finally time for a field test.
Mechanical arms remotely controlled by Pal assembled the armor onto Orin Vale's body piece by piece. Gears interlocked, circuits entwined, and the battlesuit combined, enveloping Orin Vale from head to toe in an instant.
The azure core on his chest, designed in the same style as a Color Timer, lit up. The helmet descended, locking into place with a click, and its eyes glowed with a golden light.
"Pal, system self-check."
"In progress. Please wait, sir."
The progress bar finished loading. All over the armor, various components sequentially opened for inspection, then folded back into place once the check was complete.
"Check 100% complete. System operating optimally."
"Excellent. Let's go out for a test flight."
"Yes, sir. Anti-radar system activated. Engaging stealth mode."
Like a meteor, it streaked toward the heavens, the battlesuit trailing azure tail-flames. It performed two acrobatic somersaults and vanished into the sky.
The battlesuit's design was mixed with Nth Metal, so it inherently possessed the ability to levitate and fly. However, the Old Wizard had provided very little Nth Metal, so the purity of the suit's materials was low. It could fly, but Orin Vale wasn't satisfied with its speed. Consequently, the design adopted a propulsion system similar to Iron Man's.
Two main thrusters were housed in the soles of the combat boots, with multiple auxiliary thrusters on the waist and back for short-distance sprints and directional control. The two energy output ports in its palms could serve as both the main weapon cannons and as thrusters for maneuvering.
The thrusters were merely for acceleration and maneuvering, but thanks to the Nth Metal, it could still levitate and fly even if it lost propulsive power or if the entire armor shut down.
As for its ultimate trump card, it was still the most classic move of all: by connecting the dedicated positive and negative poles on the armor's wrists and forming a cross shape with his hands, he could instantly maximize the Specium energy and unleash it in a single blast.
It was precisely the improved version of the Specium Ray Cannon he had developed earlier.
Orin Vale already knew how to fly, so his three thousand years of flight experience naturally made it easy for him to master the suit. However, after only a few exhilarating loops, Pal's voice chimed in his ear.
"Sir, the bracelet is showing a reaction."
"Hm?"
As he spoke, the specific data appeared on the UI before him. Information from the bracelet was projected onto the helmet's internal display.
"Anomalous spatial fluctuation... again?"
Last time, it detected the entrance to the Rock of Eternity, a portal to the Magic Sanctuary. So, what was it this time?
It made him feel that space in the DC World was truly pitiful. It let all sorts of big shots pop in and out as they pleased, without the power to refuse, and could only endure the humiliation in silence...
Oh, come to think of it, he was one of them too.
Never mind then.
"Change course. Mark the coordinates on my internal display," Orin Vale said.
"No problem, sir."
The Ultraman armor changed course in mid-air, tracing a magnificent arc of flame as it flew directly toward the location of the anomalous coordinates.
Before long, the source of the reaction came into his view.
In the desolate outskirts of Gotham, a long gash had been plowed into the ground. The deep trace was instantly reminiscent of...
...the marks left behind when senior Daigo's Jet VTOL I plowed the earth with its tail on fire.
And at the end of this trace, there was indeed an object that looked like a flying machine.
It had a white, streamlined exterior. The front was sharp yet rounded, like a brilliant diamond. The hull gradually tapered toward the rear, forming a slender ellipse. Its wings swept slightly upward, giving it a light and nimble appearance.
The design of the tail was even more refined, with a conical nozzle at the stern equipped with multiple thrusters. Its entire surface was composed of some kind of white metal that shimmered with a soft, silvery-white radiance, both gentle and aesthetically pleasing.
Neither its design nor its materials looked like they were from Earth technology.
The cockpit was open, and the single-person seat inside was empty.
However, the first thing to capture Orin Vale's attention was on the very front of the spaceship—an iconic, incredibly conspicuous emblem that was impossible to miss.
On the emblem was a large "S".
(end of chapter)