Yesterday, I got through on the train without further incident, and managed to hand Jabez his bag. Kyte was surprised when I returned earlier than normal, but apart from that, I had a normal afternoon.

When I arrived at school this morning, I, along with everyone else in the hero program, was collected by Professor Vorsichtiger again. So we headed down to the underground labs, and that brings us to the present.

We are currently in what appears to be a similar lab room as last time. It could be the same room as last time, in fact, but it's difficult to tell. The tables were set up the same, but there were no boxes on them. Instead, all along the left wall of the room were clothes racks filled with various suits. Alongside the right wall were similar clothes racks, except they were empty.

I stand at one of the tables. Alongside me at the table is Misa, Stephanie, and a few other System Physics students they know.

 Professor Vorsichtiger steps up onto the raised floor and starts speaking.

"It occurs to me that last lesson might have been a bit difficult for some of you. After further thought I decided to give you a simpler, yet still fundamental task that will undoubtedly help you in the future."

Vorsichtiger then takes one set of clothes from the clothes racks, and lifts it up. While shaking the clothing, he starts speaking.

"This is a recently damaged battlesuit. Due to the recent shortage in staff, there has been a backlog of battlesuits that need repairing. Hence, for today, we will be repairing all these."

Vorsichtiger puts the battlesuit on the table near him and gestures to the wall covered in racks of clothing.

"It will be good practice for you to learn to repair suits yourself, so you wont have to wait on others to do it for you. Huff, It's terrible, I tell you. People leaving their jobs on every whim and want of the system. I hope none of you kids grow into people so irresponsible as to shirk your duties at every opportunity you get."

Vorsichtiger sighs, then holds up the battlesuit, pointing to the inside area near the neck.

"Each battlesuit will have the name and code of the material needed to repair it. It will usually be around the collar, here, but could also be near one of the sleeves or rarely the ankles."

Vorsichtiger continues to explain, step by step, how to repair a battlesuit. In short, it involves painting the damaged areas with a gooey substance, waiting five minutes, then gently scraping off any excess goo.

I start working on repairing the battlesuits near me.

After completing a few battlesuit repairs, the lab begins to have a relaxed atmosphere. You have to wait between five and ten minutes for the goo to harden, before hanging the repaired suit on the racks on the right side of the room. Because of that, and the little tablespace there is to work, we end up talking or idling while waiting.

Vrrhhm... pop!

While I wait for the goo to harden on one of the battlesuits, Beachball appears out of nowhere. It starts hovering closely around the battlesuits on the table.

Oh yea. There was that one task related to battlesuits wasn't there.

It was something like making a hero costume, I think?

Battlesuits are the foundational piece for a hero costume. It's the piece of armour a hero wears while on duty. After putting on the battlesuit, gadgets like wings, belts, or gauntlets can be attached to the suit for added functionality. Battlesuits generally try to cater to a few specific functions:

Firstly, it has to be tight-fitting armour. It sounds simple, but it needs to be armour that is resistant to everything. It needs to deflect piercing blows, absorb blunt trauma, resist corrosions from chemicals, and resist changes in temperature.

secondly, the suit needs to be self-repairing, or be able to be repaired easily. Otherwise it would be too costly to use.

Thirdly it also has to be comfortable, breathable, and lightweight. These just ensure you can wear your battlesuit for an extended period of time without becoming exausted or overheated.

Finally, battlesuits need to be "wearable". By "wearable", I mean you can actually put it on and off again with relative ease.

Some people seem to think you can just say some magical catch-phrase and your battlesuit somehow appears out of nowhere and takes the place of your normal clothes.

This happens to be exactly right. There are superpowers that allow battlesuits to do just that.

However, there are a few problems with said superpower. One is that it only works on items of clothing that can be taken on and off normally. Otherwise the system fails to consider it clothing. The second problem being that you need the superpower in the first place, and usually one would get their hero costume first.

With old types of materials, these conditions would be very difficult to meet. But material science happens to be one of the most effected studies by the appearence of systems. Materials were found.

The base of a battlesuit is made by thin wireframes with shape-memory, and plastic-attraction properties. This serves as the framework of the battlesuit.

These wireframes would be dipped into a viscous plastic goo that solidified into a flexible, sturdy material over time. Furthermore, if the battlesuit ever gets damaged, the liquid plastic is re-applied to the damaged areas. This allows easy and cheap repair of the suits.

Like what we are doing now. Of course, if the wireframe of the suit gets damaged, it gets more complicated to fix.

At the edges of the individual pieces are seams, made with a special material that has a property only possible with the help of the system- that property being toggleable magnetism.

Put it simply, using the system, materials were synthesised that have properties that can be activated and deactivated through the system interface. In particular, this meant materials with magnetic properties that could be turned on and off were manufactured.

Each individual piece of the suit is put on seperately. Once all pieces are on, the hero activates the magnetic property of the suit, fusing the pieces together through the system interface to create an outfit with no edges. Similarly, to take the suit off, all the hero does is deactivate the magnetic property through the system. Voilà.

Once the battlesuit is ready, the various accessories and gadgets can then be attached onto it in a similar manner with the magnetic fusion. Once the accessories and gadgets are on, the hero costume is complete.

So naturally, after seeing some of the complexity of battlesuits, I hope you see an obvious problem with me getting a villian- I mean- hero costume.

How am I meant to choose a design? I know all about the functions and properties a suit has but I lack artistic flair! What colour scheme should I opt for? Should I use a mask? What accessories do I need? I don't have any powers yet so how am I meant to decide what my suit needs now!

Money is also an issue I guess, but the battlesuits are cheaper than what one might expect. Mainly because they need to be cheap, otherwise it wouldn't be worth wearing one. Literally- the maintenence cost would be more than you would earn.

Against my better judgement, I ask Beachball.

"You don't happen to have a good idea for a costume, would you?"

Beachball pauses for a few seconds.

[ The Super Villainy System suggests a black costume with glowing red pieces attached. Also reccomended is a hooded cloak and mask that hides the face. The mask should have an in-built voice modifier to deepen and magnify the host's voice.]

I knew it.

[The Super Villainy System also suggests, horns on the shoulderplates, Spiked shoes and black metallic gauntlets.]

I shouldn't have asked.

I look around. Most of the battlesuits have been repaired by now. With that in mind, I decide to approach Professor Vorsichtiger about it.

I walk over to Vorsichtiger. He appears to be constructing some sort of robotic arm. The robotic arm appears to be made out of some kind of wood.

"Excuse me, professor."

Vorsichiger looks briefly at the name on my uniform, before looking up at me.

"Argus. A hero trainee. What is it?"

I explain to him my problem.

"In the hero program, we're told that we should consider the design of a hero costume carefully. For example, choosing a vibrant colour scheme over a darker gloomier scheme. I was hoping you could give some practical advice on choosing battlesuits."

"Certainly. It is an excellent question to ask."

Vorsichtiger takes out a pen and paper, and starts writing something.

"In terms of functionality, different people have different strengths and weaknesses. The materials and design of your battlesuit should match your own abilities. What I mean by that is, don't make a battlesuit that covers for your weakness, but make one that amplifies your strengths. For example, if speed is your strength, don't make a thick durable battlesuit for extra protection. It would just slow you down, and even if your suit can handle a large amount of shock, your body won't."

He continues speaking.

"Similarly, If you're strong and tough, have a battlesuit that amplifies that. Don't make a lightweight battlesuit, otherwise it won't support the force you generate, and will break easily."

He finishes writing, and hands me the paper.

"Do some research on these polymers. These are very cheap to aquire, but are still excellent choices. If you ever want one made, you can ask the design team here to make one for you. Does this sufficiently answer your question?"

Sadly it doesn't, but I'm appreciative of the the information anyway.

"Is there anything you could tell me about choosing the artistic design of one?"

"Ho, design. I'm not an artist, but my advice would be... to ask someone else, sorry."

"Ok. Thank you."

Vorsichtiger turns back to the mechanical arm on his desk. As I return to my table to continue repairing the battlesuits, he calls be back.

"Ah wait! Come here, I will say this."

Vorsichtiger flaps his hand towards me. As I approach him, he leans towards me, and rests one of his arms on the table.

"Kids like you, when they start out on this business, they have no idea what powers they are going to get from the system. Because of that, they don't know what sort of tools they need on their costume, right?"

I nod, and Vorsichtiger continues talking.

"The devices and weapons you use as a hero will change. When you grow and get new powers, your weapons will be specifically tailored to be used with those powers, and that's fine. Just use whatever tools you need to at the time you need them. For now, use something simple, like a gun. Theres nothing with heroes carrying guns. It isn't the weapon most people think of when they hear the word 'hero', but they are effective, and most heroes do carry one."

Vorsichtiger continues.

"Now I can't help with a colour scheme, but I might be able to give some practical advice on the matter. When you choose a design, think about the superhero you want to be. Not the powers you want to have, but more so the character you want to portray. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, thank you very much!"

"Excellent. You may return to your table."

I return to my table and continue repairing.