I kick in the door to one of the other apartments. I’m glad it’s empty.
I haul Jay across the living room to the fire escape window. The whole time he’s all, “Damn! I can’t feel my shit!” and “It hurts, nigga!”
I have to lug his fat ass out the window and jump off the fire escape. The suit helps me land.
Ain’t nobody in the alley so I start running. I hear somebody yelling from upstairs. It’s a dude sticking his head out of me and Jay’s window. I plug him one in the head and he falls. I don’t turn around, but I hear his body hit the ground – sounded like a water balloon.
I get out of the alley. There’s cars parked all outside around the building – all black, engines running.
There’s some dude inside a Challenger and we scare each other. Sometimes I forget I have the suit on. He goes for his piece, but I already got my hands through the window and around his throat. I drag him out and toss him head first into the Escalade next to us. He laying there like a broken toy now.
I set Jay down to get the door open. I don’t remember when his bitching and moaning stopped.
“Jay!” I shake him. “Jay! Wake yo ass up!”
Jay ain’t moving. The suit is telling me he ain’t alive no more.
“Bitch nigga!” Voices come up behind me. I grab Jay, spin, and hold him up. He catches every last bullet. I ain’t sure I can blame the suit for what I just did. But I got enough time now. There’s three of them – three bullets in the head.
I hop in the Challenger and unload the rest of the clip into the Escalade’s gas tank while I pull off.
The suit warns me I’m out of bullets. This Challenger got a loud ass engine, but I still hear the Escalade blow up. I ain’t know where I’m going. Maybe the suit knows a safe place. Sometimes it knows better than me. Just like it knew how much fun this would be.
I ain’t thinking about Jay. I’m trying to keep track of how many tally marks I gotta add later.
***
I turn off Jefferson and hit the bridge to Belle Isle. But the suit makes me hit the brakes.
There’s a black helicopter in the air. Three dudes come down on ropes. They got suits just like mine.
One of them is holding a big ass Call of Duty-looking rifle at me.
“Exit the vehicle, now!”
I’m out the car without even realizing it. I’m standing there with my hands up. I want to shoot these dudes, but the suit won’t move.
The triangle goes green and disappears.
The one with the big ass gun says something to the others I can’t hear and they start walking up on me.
All I’m thinking about is the fun can’t be over. It was so much fun. I’m thinking about all the good times me and Jay had the past few weeks. How them bitch ass VLs couldn’t fuck with me. These dudes came to take the suit back. They want me to be just another skinny nigga again. These dudes ain’t understand how the streets work. Once cats get word I ain’t got the suit no more, they gonna come at me – and they gonna blast my ass.
NO!
The triangle appears again. One of the soldiers reaches at me, but I put my boot right in his chest.
“It’s malfunctioning!” The leader raises his gun, but I dive and tackle that fool.
I’m up on my feet running with the big ass gun in my hand. Rocks are kicking up all over the bridge. The helicopter is shooting at my ass. The suit lets me clap some shots back at the helicopter but it don’t seem to do nothing. The suit is recommending – EVASION.
I get to the edge of the bridge. The Detroit River is fast as hell. You always hear about niggas jumping in, trying to get away from cops, thinking they can swim to Canada or some shit. Them niggas all end up drowned.
But the suit got my back; I know it.
They still coming at me. But they ain’t gonna get what I got. They can’t have it. This feels too damn good. It’s too much damn fun.
Look out below…
***
Journal of Biomechanics and Advanced Robotics
Research Report
Policing Themselves: Applications of Advanced Robotic Exosuit Technology in Urban Pacification
Xavier W. Yates: a, Gregory Fintch: a, Aisha Wentworth: b, Thanh Nguyen: a
a. Wayne State University, United States
b. University of Michigan, United States
Keywords:
Robotics
Exosuit
Artificial Intelligence
Urban Law Enforcement
Artificial Emotion Manipulation
ABSTRACT
Research has shown usage of robotic exosuits (REs) with AI-enhanced computer systems has multiple benefits for soldiers on the battlefield (Odom, et al, 2025) as well as cost savings for military institutions (Matthews, Williams, & Fisher, 2025).
With record rates of murder, as well as gang and drug-related crimes, as reported by the Department of Justice in designated Declined Urban Areas (DUAs) – most notably Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, St. Louis, and Atlanta – REs have been proposed as a measure to increase law enforcement capacity and efficacy.
With zero funding allocated toward increasing law enforcement staff in these DUAs, we proposed a study to determine if a properly modified RE with upgraded AI capabilities could be used by a typical urban denizen in the absence of trained law enforcement personnel. Newly-developed RE units designated the D-810V5.0 (the “Smart Soldier”) were strategically deployed to DUAs. Once found, they have been readily adopted by the local populace. The Smart Soldier is capable of recognizing violent and drug-related crime in progress and guiding the wearer to respond accordingly while delivering electrical stimulation to increase the wearer’s endorphine levels as well as serotonin production – thus reducing the chance of psychological trauma.
Results have show an up to 25% decrease in violent crime in an area up to 23.5 square miles around each RE unit’s deployment. These results suggest that automated REs worn by civilians of reasonable health and fitness are as effective as a police or militarized presence in high-crime urban areas.
Of the 58 D-810V5.0 units deployed, one was lost in the field and could not be retrieved.
©2028 BioMetronics Ltd. All rights reserved.
ABOUT THE EDITOR
Balogun Ojetade is the author of the bestselling non-fiction books Afrikan Martial Arts: Discovering the Warrior Within, The Afrikan Warriors Bible, Surviving the Urban Apocalypse, The Urban Self Defense Manual and The Young Afrikan Warriors’ Guide to Defeating Bullies & Trolls.
He is one of the leading authorities on Afroretroism – film, fashion or fiction that combines African and / or African American culture with a blend of “retro” styles and futuristic technology, in order to explore the themes of tension between past and future and between the alienating and empowering effects of technology. He writes about Afroretroism – Sword & Soul, Rococoa, Steamfunk and Dieselfunk at http://chroniclesofharriet.com/.
He is author of eleven novels: MOSES: The Chronicles of Harriet Tubman (Books 1 & 2); The Chronicles of Harriet Tubman: Freedonia; Redeemer; Once Upon A Time In Afrika; Fist of Afrika; A Single Link; Wrath of the Siafu; The Scythe; The Keys; Redeemer: The Cross Chronicles and Beneath the Shining Jewel; Contributing co-editor of three anthologies: Ki:Khanga: The Anthology, Steamfunk and Dieselfunk and contributing editor of the Rococoa anthology and Black Power: The Superhero Anthology.
He is also the creator and author of the Afrofuturistic manga series, Jagunjagun Lewa (Pretty Warrior) and co-author of the Ngolo graphic novel.
Finally, he is co-author of the award winning screenplay, Ngolo and co-creator of Ki Khanga: The Sword and Soul Role-Playing Game, both with author Milton Davis.
Reach him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Afrikan.Martial.Arts and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Baba_Balogun.
or reading books on Archive.
Black Power- The Superhero Anthology Page 39
