14.8 Ton Limit

Into the area of the compound where my old Patrol team was gathered. They were standing around a set of trucks, and one of those trucks had my new stuff.

The key thing was a laser cannon, as long as the rear container of the truck, with a tarp draped over top of it, partially folded back. It was painted black, with two gold stripes along its housing. The entire thing was about ten feet long from end to end, with the barrel being long and thin, and the gun itself pear shaped and heavily armored.

*****

"Hey! So… super cool," Kenzie said.

"It is," I admitted. "I'm not sure how big a difference it will make, but I'll really love to have an option in a fight that isn't me getting in the thick of things, running into stuff that penetrates my invincibility, and adding new injuries to my collection."

"How much can you lift?"

"When I was Glory Girl, it was fourteen point six tons. But it wasn't easy, and it gets weird when you express it as strength that isn't straight lifting."

Thank you, PRT power testing.

"This is twelve tons," Kenzie said, patting the side of the gun.

***

I walked around the weapon, undoing straps, getting a better look at it. Armor with a wavy texture that only appeared in specific, direct light.

With my forcefield, I seized the edge, and lifted it up, aiming the barrel skyward. I found the handholds, framed with gold paint, and adjusted my grip.

Metal creaked as I lifted twelve tons of gun with only eight handholds. To figure out where to put the handholds, Dragon would have had to scan and record my body shape. I worried that one handhold would pull free of the housing and I wouldn't be able to hold the gun up with what remained.

But I could lift it. My flying was a bit sluggish.

"You're not even touching it," Jasper told me. Kenzie was right between him and Camisola, device held up to her face, taking pictures or recording.

"Scans show some yellow-tier stresses," Kenzie reported. "I'll let Dragon know as soon as the phones connect."

"Translate?" I asked her.

"It's… safe but it could be better. If the wrong parts on the underside took battle damage, it might not be safe to hold. Some of it can be tweaked, but I'll let Dragon figure that out."

"Perfect," I told her.

- Radiation 18.8