Fall of Reach - Mjolnir Shield

We’ve made hundreds of minor technical improvements,” she said. “I’ll have the specifications sent to you later.

Two of those changes, however, are rather serious modifications to the system. It may take . . . some getting used to.” Dr. Halsey’s brow furrowed. John had never seen her worried before.

“First,” she told him, “we have replicated, and I might add, improved upon the energy shield the Covenant Jackals have been using against us to great effect.”

This armor had shields? The Master Chief had known that ONI research had been working on adapting Covenant technology; Spartans had standing orders to capture Covenant machines wherever they could. …


… The air around the Master Chief popped—as if it jumped away from the MJOLNIR armor. There was none of the shimmer that normal Covenant shields had. Was it working?

He ran his hand over his arm and encountered resistance a centimeter from the surface of the armor. It was working.

How many times had he and his teammates had to find ways to slip past a Jackal’s shield? He’d have to rethink his tactics. Rethink everything.

It provides full coverage—”Dr. Halsey’s voice piped through the speakers.“—and dissipates energy far more efficiently than the Covenant shields the Spartans have recovered, though the shield is concentrated on your arms, head, legs, chest, and back. The energy field tapers down to a hair under a millimeter so you don’t lose the ability to hold or manipulate items with your hands.”

The lead technician activated another control, and new data scrawled across John’s display.“There’s a segmented bar in the upper corner of your HUD,”the technician said,“right next to your biomonitor and ammunition indicators. It indicates the charge level of your shield. Don’t let it completely dissipate; when it’s gone, the armor starts taking the hits.”

The Master Chief slipped off the platform. He skidded—then came to a halt. His movements felt oiled. His contact with the floor felt tentative.

“You can adjust the bottom of your boot emitters as well as the emitters inside your gloves to increase traction. In normal use, you will want to set these to the minimal level—just be aware your defenses will be diminished in those locations.” “Understood.” He adjusted the field strengths. “In zero-gee environment I should increase those sections to full strength, correct?”

“That is correct,”Dr. Halsey said. “How much damage can they take before the system is breached?”

“That is what you will learn here today, Master Chief. I think you’ll find that we have several challenges in store for you to see how much punishment the suit can take.”


- Halo: The Fall of Reach, Chapter 27