03-15-2015, 07:16 PM
Seph shook hands with the two men then made his way to the table, where he deposited a pair of tablet devices which he slid towards the Regus and High Inquisitor. The devices contained indepth technical data on the things they would be discussing that day, as well as 'Coles notes' versions of each. Costs and acquisition times, training plans to bring the Atharim hunters up to date on their use, even tactical data plans which had been lifted from his contacts. That information alone would prove of great value; the leg work of learning how to employ the weapons and tools had already been done for them.
"It has been, Regus. Challenging, but fruitful. There have been great breakthroughs in the sorts of technology that will make our task far easier in today's society."
In recent years, it had seemed as though more of the creatures the Atharim battled had moved into the cities. Or beneath them, really. Such places were always a risk to work in; the risk of witnesses, of security systems and cameras catching sight of their hunters or their prey. The more they were forced to work in the cities, the greater the risk of drawing unwanted attention to themselves.
Brushes with law enforcement, with gangs and organized crime. Reporters, hospitals, government agencies. The more it happened, the harder the Atharim needed to work to keep that unwanted attention at bay.
"Our more traditional weapons, even in the hands of masters, ris drawing unwanted attention. Firearms leave evidence. They are loud, and recovering every fired round or spent casing is time consuming and difficult, especially for a prey that tries to run."
Modern forensic sciences could learn much from a few bullets lodged in a wall. A well preserved round could lead to the type of firearm used. Many hunters had a preferred weapon, their lucky gun so to speak, which could begin to link various hunts together.
"But this is the age of energy. Advances in micronization, power sources, computer technology have brought the fictions of our youth to the hands of soldiers and law enforcement agencies of today. These weapons leave no spent casings. Many make no noise, or leave any evidence of their use. And many, because they are, on their own at least, nonlethal, are seeing far more common use. Especially with the recent legalization of private armies."
Private security forces, more accurately, but already some of those groups were looking more like their own little armies loyal to corporations and the ultra-rich.
Seph drew their attention to a file on the tablets which had a rather efficient approach to describing such weapons. The file was lifted from a new experimental police task force found in Moscow itself. Naturally, much of the basis for the organization's use of such weapons was to prevent collateral damage to civilian and public property and persons, rather then the Atharim's approach of stealth and secrecy, but the information was still clinical and accurate.
The weapons ran the gambit of modern nonlethal tools. Directed energies, sonic emitters. Devices designed to inflict temporary pain, disorientation, crippling seizures, nausea, and all about as safe as a regular Tazer. Cutting edge generations of such weapons were often little larger then a more conventional firearm, and in most cases nearly as durable.
"The hardest part regarding the new firearms was lining up suppliers. Much of the work of how to use such things has been quite thoroughly explored. It was in other areas that my work proved more challenging. We seek to employ these weapons because they will be alien to the would-be Godlings. Something against which they will be unable to protect themselves. But much as we need new weapons with which to fight them, we need new means to protect ourselves from them and from the prying eyes of society.
"With these weapons, we should be able to level the playing field against these demons. But we will need new tools with which to avoid detection, and to protect ourselves against both the reborn gods and the common rabble's attention."
Other files that were found on the tablet devices would go into greater detail of the tools he would next refer to.
"The reborn-gods live within society. They are not hiding in the shadows of abandoned buildings or forgotten caves. They are in restaurants and schools, they live in apartments and have jobs. They travel the metro, hidden in plain sight. And as such, they benefit from the protection society provides. So we need a means to move undetected, to track them and corner them in places where we may strike unseen, or if needed, strike and leave as little evidence as possible."
"Advances is thermal-defeating fabrics. Paparazzi-maddening anti-flash clothes. Camera detectors and scramblers. IR glasses to detect laser-actioned security systems. Electronic lock pickers. Even signal-jamming technologies. Simply wearing a mask is not enough anymore. Modern thermal cameras can register person's unique thermal image. Bystanders with Wallet-devices and built in cameras."
The Atharim has fingers in every pie, so to speak, but even their reach only went so far.
"The sort of clothes and equipment we can employ are tried and tested by movie stars, politicians, and private security types the world over, and thanks to their money and contacts, is only a few generations behind military versions. And, loosely speaking, is entirely legal, or at least passive enough that having it raises few questions."
"The other devices...they are far more illegal. Not that we need worry so much about that."
He grinned and drew their attention to other files on the tablets, "For every new cutting edge security system, there quickly comes a new way to circumvent it. Camera detectors are built into glasses these days, and lasers to destroy them. Devices that can counter electronic locks. Others that can block common Wallet and cellphone signal bands."
Those had a relatively short range, sadly, although there were others that could work in tandem to form a comprehensive ECM bubble, to block off a few floors of a building, for instance. Thermal imagers like the ones Hood had provided to track the godling, Jaxen Marveet so many months ago, would allow Atharim hunters to study a building and plan their attack in regards to the danger of witnesses.
"Drone devices are technically illegal in most urban centers. Privacy laws aside, they are a risk for police and news helicopters, low-flying aircraft, and the like. But, they are still widely employed for surveillance and reconnaissance purposes. Even underfunded park rangers in Africa have access to such technology. Modern devices are as small as baseballs, and can be used inside buildings if the needed."
"It has been, Regus. Challenging, but fruitful. There have been great breakthroughs in the sorts of technology that will make our task far easier in today's society."
In recent years, it had seemed as though more of the creatures the Atharim battled had moved into the cities. Or beneath them, really. Such places were always a risk to work in; the risk of witnesses, of security systems and cameras catching sight of their hunters or their prey. The more they were forced to work in the cities, the greater the risk of drawing unwanted attention to themselves.
Brushes with law enforcement, with gangs and organized crime. Reporters, hospitals, government agencies. The more it happened, the harder the Atharim needed to work to keep that unwanted attention at bay.
"Our more traditional weapons, even in the hands of masters, ris drawing unwanted attention. Firearms leave evidence. They are loud, and recovering every fired round or spent casing is time consuming and difficult, especially for a prey that tries to run."
Modern forensic sciences could learn much from a few bullets lodged in a wall. A well preserved round could lead to the type of firearm used. Many hunters had a preferred weapon, their lucky gun so to speak, which could begin to link various hunts together.
"But this is the age of energy. Advances in micronization, power sources, computer technology have brought the fictions of our youth to the hands of soldiers and law enforcement agencies of today. These weapons leave no spent casings. Many make no noise, or leave any evidence of their use. And many, because they are, on their own at least, nonlethal, are seeing far more common use. Especially with the recent legalization of private armies."
Private security forces, more accurately, but already some of those groups were looking more like their own little armies loyal to corporations and the ultra-rich.
Seph drew their attention to a file on the tablets which had a rather efficient approach to describing such weapons. The file was lifted from a new experimental police task force found in Moscow itself. Naturally, much of the basis for the organization's use of such weapons was to prevent collateral damage to civilian and public property and persons, rather then the Atharim's approach of stealth and secrecy, but the information was still clinical and accurate.
The weapons ran the gambit of modern nonlethal tools. Directed energies, sonic emitters. Devices designed to inflict temporary pain, disorientation, crippling seizures, nausea, and all about as safe as a regular Tazer. Cutting edge generations of such weapons were often little larger then a more conventional firearm, and in most cases nearly as durable.
"The hardest part regarding the new firearms was lining up suppliers. Much of the work of how to use such things has been quite thoroughly explored. It was in other areas that my work proved more challenging. We seek to employ these weapons because they will be alien to the would-be Godlings. Something against which they will be unable to protect themselves. But much as we need new weapons with which to fight them, we need new means to protect ourselves from them and from the prying eyes of society.
"With these weapons, we should be able to level the playing field against these demons. But we will need new tools with which to avoid detection, and to protect ourselves against both the reborn gods and the common rabble's attention."
Other files that were found on the tablet devices would go into greater detail of the tools he would next refer to.
"The reborn-gods live within society. They are not hiding in the shadows of abandoned buildings or forgotten caves. They are in restaurants and schools, they live in apartments and have jobs. They travel the metro, hidden in plain sight. And as such, they benefit from the protection society provides. So we need a means to move undetected, to track them and corner them in places where we may strike unseen, or if needed, strike and leave as little evidence as possible."
"Advances is thermal-defeating fabrics. Paparazzi-maddening anti-flash clothes. Camera detectors and scramblers. IR glasses to detect laser-actioned security systems. Electronic lock pickers. Even signal-jamming technologies. Simply wearing a mask is not enough anymore. Modern thermal cameras can register person's unique thermal image. Bystanders with Wallet-devices and built in cameras."
The Atharim has fingers in every pie, so to speak, but even their reach only went so far.
"The sort of clothes and equipment we can employ are tried and tested by movie stars, politicians, and private security types the world over, and thanks to their money and contacts, is only a few generations behind military versions. And, loosely speaking, is entirely legal, or at least passive enough that having it raises few questions."
"The other devices...they are far more illegal. Not that we need worry so much about that."
He grinned and drew their attention to other files on the tablets, "For every new cutting edge security system, there quickly comes a new way to circumvent it. Camera detectors are built into glasses these days, and lasers to destroy them. Devices that can counter electronic locks. Others that can block common Wallet and cellphone signal bands."
Those had a relatively short range, sadly, although there were others that could work in tandem to form a comprehensive ECM bubble, to block off a few floors of a building, for instance. Thermal imagers like the ones Hood had provided to track the godling, Jaxen Marveet so many months ago, would allow Atharim hunters to study a building and plan their attack in regards to the danger of witnesses.
"Drone devices are technically illegal in most urban centers. Privacy laws aside, they are a risk for police and news helicopters, low-flying aircraft, and the like. But, they are still widely employed for surveillance and reconnaissance purposes. Even underfunded park rangers in Africa have access to such technology. Modern devices are as small as baseballs, and can be used inside buildings if the needed."