Operative Falcon/Widow Claws
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
A Widow's primary weapon is her claws, with most relying on some combination of implants and worn devices. Falcon, despite his dislike of cybernetics, has received thorough augmentation. Much of his hand, wrist and forearm bone structure has been rebuilt using lightweight nonferrous alloys. The lengthy procedure involved the transplantation of muscles and bone marrow to the new framework, through miracles of modern medical science. Although there were no complications, it left him with unsightly scars all over his forearms and hands.
As complex as a human hand and wrist are, their replacements are even more so, so as to offer a comparable level of flexibility and superior durability while housing the weapon's varied components. The core of the system is an electromagnetic rail down the middle of the forearm, with a number of further segments in the wrist and hand. When necessary, hydromagnetic bolts quickly and securely lock the user's wrist in the position required to align the segments into one, long rail.
Before any other modes can be accessed, the three razors must be deployed. Located between the bones of the hand when withdrawn, these blades are carefully folded from multiple layers of hard alloys, resulting in a sharp, durable weapon. Once pushed into position by a electromagnetic pulse, they are securely locked there. The mechanism was carefully designed to disperse impact energy as safely as possible - despite their small size, coupled with a Widow's quick reflexes their jagged edge makes a surprisingly good parry tool. Just as importantly, they are effective stabbing and slashing weapons in their own right.
With the razors locked and out of the way, the main weapon can be used. The sword-blade as it's informally called is a hollow, single-edged V-shaped collapsible blade, between two and five segments and a foot to two and a half long, in Falcon's case three and two respectively. The weapon is stored in the underside of the forearm[1], collapsed along the rail, its hollow structure letting segments slide into preceding ones. The insanely sharp edge and tapered shape make the sword-blade an excellent slashing and stabbing weapon. The electromagnetic pulse used to deploy the weapon is strong enough to drive it into a target with considerable force.
It is not without its downsides however. Deployed, it locks the user's wrist in position to support it. The blade's hollow, segmented construction leaves it quite fragile and easy to damage if negative pressure is applied. Parrying with it is not only unwieldy, it carries a high risk of damaging it, making it impossible to retract, and should be avoided. It is heavilly reccomended to make use of the weapon's rapid deployment to only extend it when it is needed for a strike.
The electromagnetic rail has been also designed with another purpose in mind. It can function as a rudimentary railgun, launching specially designed darts at high speeds. Falcon's model can handle both the regular darts, as well as the much smaller ones meant to be fired in bursts at groups of targets. An accurate regular dart can cause considerable damage, however, Falcon's wired reflexes cannot compensate for his missing eye to line up a right hand shot. As a result, he only loads scatter darts into his right launcher.
The darts are stored in an ammo cartridge located in the back of the forearm. Its design lets it slide back and forth along the rail, meaning it can be reloaded in the field. The same applies to the venom canister placed to the front of the cartridge, usually containing a fast-acting paralytic agent. All blades and darts are designed for being poisoned.
The electromagnetic rail at the heart of the implants is powered from a small power cell located between the venom canister and the dart cartridge, and suffices to slide the parts in and out. Every dart cartridge is built around a high-density power cell, used to recharge the permanent one, and to power the energy-hungry dart launching and sword-blade use.
Partially as a result, the claws' sheathes are designed to reduce risk of contact between the poisoned, potentially tainted blades and the user's bloodstream to an absolute minimum. The entry points of the blades had the skin specially treated to enable rapid, bloodless opening and closing. To ensure hygiene (and sharpness), it's recommended that the blades are regularly replaced in sterile conditions. Between the entry points' design and some strategic nerve ending suppressing, the drawing and sheathing of claws is relatively painless, however, replacing the blades, dart cartridge or venom canister involves some less than pleasant stretching of skin and shifting of muscles and artificial bones. Some Widows with those augmentations, Falcon included, suffer from occasional hand or arm ache due to the implants. Standard pain medication is usually sufficient.
- ↑ As a side-effect, its durable housing protects the Widow's forearm bones from attacks to a certain degree.
