Chapter 6: Rise to success to fall hard

Gravity is one variable in a lot of scientific processes. If you can remove gravity or minimize its effects, then you can understand the other processes that are going on. Laurel Clark

Starting the day with an early rise, a rarity for me as I sleep late wake up late. But today is a big day I need all the time I can get to fit it in. Starting with some internet time, watching YouTube, and enjoying some downtime. An uncommon occurrence over recent times. I do, chill productively if you can call it that. I watched several videos on metalwork. How to bend, manipulate, bolt, weld all those good skills to make a suit. I start breakfast which is poached eggs on toast with a side of pickled cucumber and burned lemon. I check my emails to find the second researcher has replied back offering £1000 per 2 grams of crystal, a better deal. As I had hoped. It’s risky but I say I will sell him 2000 grams, which is roughly 1/3 of all my supply but it will be worth the 2 million.

With swift reply he the deal will take place in 4 parts for security, later this evening. Now I know I have some money pumping in I call my brother. He will be a big help. Explain my plan his only response was “Crazy; I love it”. Now that’s sorted we discuss what metal we should make it out of and how to go about it.

I order half a ton of aluminium costing £1551 which is cheaper than I anticipated. It's coming in metal sheets 1 cm thick. Reminding myself I need a bigger house very soon. We found titanium is very resilient and light but we need resilient, cheap and heavy, because otherwise where’s the bang for our buck, and its several folds easier to work with. I also order some metalwork equipment, welding torch, heavy-duty tools, metal shapers, presses. It cost me a lot but it will help us a lot. Now onto the thrust, I plan. Anything ejected out will produce thrust in theory so who said we needed a jet. A small fuel compartment with an ignitor in the gloves will work well. We can put the tank on the back shielded then pipe it through. Obviously making sure the heat produced from the flame on the hands doesn’t transfer to the hands, we put the ejection pipe slightly off the hands with lots of insulation.

2 Weeks later, the world has returned to normality somewhat and the project is finally done. We had to remake it 3 times because of technical difficulties nearly killing Connor in the first trial run. Thankfully we tested the jet gloves beforehand, a mighty fine boom if I do say so. I completed the trade successfully but I got skipped out on only netting 1.5 million. Damned weasels, knew I can’t rat. I give 200k to my brother and invest 300k into a home with a sizable lab-ready installed for me. I made sure the tax would be low for the building and its far from common civilized areas. The armor is a good 3 cm thick on vitals and 1 – 2 cm thick everywhere else. Should be able to shrug off the heavy fire. The mask was the biggest problem. Realizing traveling at high speed needed face protection we had to install a camera and a small screen inside so they could see while having a filtered air vent to breath while being protected from somewhat bad air. YouTube helped a ton with metalwork and electronics. For now, we have a baseline metal suit that will function. We went with a pulley system on the legs that with the click of a button shift the gravity crystals or down moving the radius so we can control body weight for landing and other control functions. Everything is powered with a rechargeable battery and a small solar panel on the back of the neck for emergencies. We made sure it had a handbag-sized storage module on the bottom of the spine for equipment and supplies.

The fuel for the propulsion will last at full throttle about 3 hours, but staggered in half for normal travel lasts up to 5-7. It lasts a long time because we weakened the fuel lines to reduce the risks of explosions. It can be overclocked with some manual tampering for a massive burst of fuel lasting about 30- 50 min. And now my first dream is somewhat complete. I’m rich, we have an awesome home, and we can fly like ironman. The suit even has interchangeable crystals in a magnetic casing, small pockets over the entire suit excluding the legs which have a simple pulley system.

It’s a shame great things don’t last, hiding the suit for now in a now hidden lead cave I have military knocking on my door. I say knocking but blasting down my brand-new door. They immediately arrest me searching the house for what limited amount of crystals I kept on site. Most are hidden in the cave. We are no that stupid. They got 27 grams at most.

I’m blindfolded and thrown in a van, don’t know where they are taking me. After what felt like days, I end up being dragged into a dark room it seems underground, dark, damp, and all-around unpleasant. Awoken abruptly by a military officer, full black garbs. I know he’s military I caught glances through my blindfold of full military equipment.

In an emotionless voice, the officer speaks. “We know you have more crystals, we have video footage of you driving away with an impressive quantity, where is it? You are breaking the law by having it!”

Sweat dripping down my face I’m pretty scared but I know there is no such law, they tried to instate such a law a week ago before a riot knocked down every affiliated government building with the law in mind. Nasty stuff.

“What law, I don’t know any such law,” I say fearfully and questionably. He immediately knows I’m taking the piss he knows no such law exists and so do I.

“Sure, the law is we will never let you out of here” with a sinister grin he walks out

Now realizing that’s damned true I start to panic. I’ve only ever known the lovely law-abiding military this is crazy. “You can’t do that” I shout as he leaves the door.

Now I don’t know what to do, I can’t sell out my stash, maybe I should it would keep me alive; I have the money. But that wouldn’t do I have big plans for the material I can’t give it up. I have to think of a plan.

They are expecting me to break I assume they think little of me, I should wait a few days and grow increasingly erratic, really sell it. If I remember correctly, I completely forgot but I buried a massive meteorite in my old back garden, this might work, maybe. After what felt like an eternity I scream “I will tell you please let me go”. With a door opening the man walks in and says “Okay, where!”.

“I say first, what can you do to assure I can leave if I tell you” Sweat dripping down my face I’m really nervous.

Pulling out a binder of paper, he expected me to say that “In this folder is several legally binding documents that swear you to the secrecy of today's events and assure you we will let you go, copy’s will be sent to 1 family member and 1 third party organization to assure we let you go”

“Please sign here”

Reading the contract, it’s as he says, never speak of today, don’t disclose details of how I was abducted in flowery words and other small details. Nothing with bad intent, I sign. I release the info about my garden and how the lead in the soil stops it from appearing. He applauds my intelligence in hiding it so simply but effectively. After I get out that hell hole, I go visit my brother, avoiding my home and any phones which could be tapped I say, we need a plan they will watch us like hawks.

I know they wouldn’t let me run free, a dodgy car on a corner here, a listening device in my lampshade, they are careful alright. Hiring a professional to clean the house of wires then a bodyguard to roam and keep things safe and alert. I start wondering what I can do. No way I can work on future projects like this. I’m not the CEO of a big company I’m a normal person. I can’t believe I caught the eye of such big fish.

Anxiety sets in, in my moderately sized house, a slight glow wanders through the window a cobweb flutters in the doorway illuminated. I’m trapped, really trapped. I could sell off the rest of my supply and be done with it, live easily for the rest of my life and several other lives. But I finally have a passion, something to work towards IL be damned if I’m going to be scared of this easily.

But I need a plan something that will get the military out my hair. Maybe, just maybe what if I used the ironmen suit to get a big company to back me. I won’t be a little fish anymore and I might just survive the swat team quietly grabbing rocks from under the table. I will get my revenge one way or the other. But how should I do this, it could go sideways very easily. I consult my brother about it in person, he says it’s a good idea but why not the researcher we sold material to in the past. They are rich, big fish naturally, and have government-supported research. As much as they sneakily buy crystals off the common people. It might just work but who knows at this point.

I think I should sleep on it, have a day or 2 off. You know finally rest for a bit. I’ve neglected my mental health recently. Then I will hustle down and quietly study the crystals in-depth, push and pull them, find out everything I can to use to reel in a big fish to protect my back. Then the real adventure starts. This plan will take a very long time, no doubt, and a lot of details are up to guesswork for now but I’m sure I can do it, positive, I’ve never been pushed down and silenced before and they will regret it. Without noticing I start laughing maniacally, I guess greed has a way of warping people.