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𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐈𝐍
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐄
ELEANOR
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'HELEN, are you there?'
'For you, ma'am, always,' her the AI said in her usual cool drawl. The haywire of screens before me seemed to alter into sentry mode, turning a dull blue from the scarlet colour that was hued. I blinked to adjust to the sudden change in lighting.
'Woah,' I said breathily. 'Amazing.'
I had found my refuge in a small, abandoned barn in the outskirts of Sacramento. I had laid eyes on the tattered, unwieldy abode in the middle of nowhere and I knew that this was the place I was going to use to dwell for the night. Outside, the darkness was unsettling and I was thankful for the few lightbulbs that littered the ceilings of the shed. I had to blow into my palms to receive warmth, the chilly night starting to seep in through the poorly maintained clapboards. I didn't waste time in cosying the Iron Maiden up in her corner and trying to figure out the know-hows installed in her.
There was nanotech involved in creating her so the headgear was an easy click off and heft on. It was long despite the face mask, a silvery hood attached to the cranial structure. I hand my hands on the side of the helmet for precautionary purposes, ready to rip it right off if anything malfunctioned.
'Um, so,' I tried to sound like I knew what I was doing, 'what exactly can you do?'
'Anything you want, ma'am,' she said, a smile in her tone which I found odd. 'I'm the interface that will bridge the gap between MAIDEN 1 and yourself. I contain the complete Stark dataspine and have a playlist of all your favourite songs.'
I laughed. 'So, Tony made you take care of me.'
'Correct,' she replied. 'Mr Stark was particular about comfort, support and convenience in this distinct MARK 516 type. I was designed to be more compassionate than his other hyperintelligent systems.'
'MARK 516,' I repeated in awe. 'He made five hundred suits?'
'No,' she said, in a weird drawl as if she were mocking me. 'He referred to it as MARK 516 but she is your MAIDEN 1.'
'Hang on, how am I linked to the armour without a reactor core?' I asked, genuinely surprised. 'Is that even possible?'
'Of course, ma'am,' she said, delighted and the screen in front of me produced a thermal scan of my own body, showing my nerve endings and brain in a brilliant violet. 'The repulsomagnetic tech enhancements in you interface the power; along with the other augmentations Mr Stark has implemented within you, you are the armour's perfect and only pilot.'
