[Naked Crook]

Vernette: The very fact that you ask that question tells me everything I need to know about how to perceive our men and women in power armor. You and I see them much differently. Vernette led Cochraine into the corridors of the Citadel. As he walked with her, he continued to speak. Vernette: I will admit; Spartans are dangerous. They are the most dangerous combatants that Humanity has ever put to the field. The extent of their capabilities greatly exceeds anything that you and I are capable of. With their power armor, they are nearly unstoppable. Vernette paused, as he turned a corner with Cochraine. Vernette: I emphasize the word "nearly". Take away the armor, and all you are left with is augmented Humans. Stronger, faster, smarter...but Humans all the same. They are not machines. They do not calculate their actions. They think and they feel. You and I think and feel. Their ability to think is no greater than yours or mine. You do not beat them with muscle or brawn. You beat them with thought...critical thought...observation. Vernette grinned, as he stopped in front of an elevator. He extended his hand, and pressed the button, before he continued to speak. Vernette: Do you know how I got involved with ONI? Weapons research. I was really good with weapons research. To this day, it remains my single greatest passion. While, it is true, I have spent many of my days commanding soldiers in battle, at heart, I am a scientist. That identity is at the very core of how I do my job as a leader. Vernette sighed. Vernette: I learned, long ago, that if I was to survive...I needed to out-think my enemies. I needed to be smarter. I needed to be more intelligent than my enemies. I needed to have greater perception. I needed to anticipate what they could do and what they were capable of. I needed to make sure that I always had the technological edge. I needed to see beyond the typical lens of a military officer. Vernette paused, as the elevator door opened. He led Cochraine into the elevator, before speaking out. Vernette: Level K. As Vernette said this, the elevator door closed, and the elevator began to move down. Vernette: Early in my career, I was among a minority of officers who had an inherent distrust of Spartans. I didn't trust them because I felt that I would be unable to stand up to one if he or she had decided to go rouge. I didn't trust them because there were no checks and balances. There was no contingency plan or disaster plan in the event of a rouge Spartan. ONI, at the time of the creation of the Spartans, was so concerned about the Insurrection, that the Spartans were created with no inherent weakness. ONI wanted to unleash a combatant that would have been unstoppable. They wanted to crush The Insurrection with Spartans. Vernette scoffed. Vernette: I was still a very green member of ONI when I first found out about the Spartan Program. I will tell you this; when I was first briefed on the existence of the Spartans...I was repulsed by the very notion of an unstoppable soldier. It was unacceptable. What hope would I have against such a thing? What chance did I have if I ever found myself in the cross hairs of a Spartan? Vernette sighed. Vernette: I thought long and hard about those questions over the years, and over the years, I developed methodologies designed to engage Spartans if the need were to ever arise. I watched them. I observed them. I learned from their tactics. I learned how they operate. You could say that I became an expert on them, simply through osmosis. However, as time went on, Spartans became better equipped, more experienced, and more relied upon. They became a staple in any military operation that needed to succeed. Even I was forced to rely on the expertise of the Spartan you may know as Cameron Z-091. I value Cameron as a friend, but, my views never changed. I would always be just a man...a normal man. Vernette paused. Vernette: When it was discovered that The Trust had Spartans in their employ, the brass at ONI panicked. Even I am not afraid to admit that I was disturbed by the revelation. However, that panic quickly turned into resolve. ONI's brass decided to create some checks and balances. Thanks to the checks and balances, we now have, and we do have tech which can bring Spartans down. We have weapons designed to take down Spartans. We have equipment designed to fight them. Hell, we have Spartans trained to kill Spartans. We call them Headhunters. They do good work. Vernette paused, as the elevator stopped, and the doors opened. Vernette led Cochraine into the corridor of Level K, as he resumed speaking. Vernette: But, the question still remains, front and center in your mind; what do I have that can shut down a Spartan? I will show you. Vernette stopped in front of a large black door, with the words RESTRICTED written across in bold letters. Vernette looked at a small control panel mounted on the wall, as he extended his hand, and entered in an access code. Once the code had been entered, the door began to open, revealing a rather large weapons laboratory. The lab was currently staffed with a significant number of scientists and lab techs, most of whom were too busy at work to give a second glance to Vernette and Cochraine. Vernette: This is but one location where our checks and balances are created. Please...follow me. Vernette led Cochraine through the lab, eventually stopping in front of a lab table. On top of the table was a disc like object roughly 9 inches in diameter. Vernette: This, Captain, is one of our newer toys. We call it an armor restraint. It is a magnetic device, whose sole purpose is to latch onto any generation of MJOLNIR armor, and short circuit the ENTIRE suit. Mobility systems are neutralized. Defensive systems, such as shields and integrated medical nano-systems are neutralized. Offensive systems, such as HUD, auto-targeting systems, SMART LINK, and thrust propulsion systems are neutralized. This device, once attached, can be powered indefinitely, by leeching power from the MJOLNIR's power systems. It is heavily armored, resilient to damage, and capable of powering its own defensive shield from power it leeches from the MJOLNIR. In short, once you attach one of these to the chest of a Spartan...they turn into nothing more than a statue. They are completely and totally locked down.