HsSSV-01

Hamazura driving the Dragon Rider

The HsSSV-01, also known as Dragon Rider (ドラゴンライダー, Doragonraidā^?), is a special powered suit and motorbike combination developed by Academy City.

Appearance

The Dragon Rider motorbike has an aerodynamic shape, with a central jet engine running through the vehicle, circular armor protecting the wheels and their interior, and wing-like arms which stretch back from the left and right of the front wheel area.

The powered suit itself is described as exceedingly small, not that much bigger than a human. Unlike other models that look like thicker versions of Western armor, this one is more like a riding suit with a full face helmet attached. It is gray with black protectors attached where needed. There are no transparent portions on the helmet, with vision and all other information acquired via electronic devices and displayed on the interior.

Principles

The Dragon Rider was developed as a new model of powered suit, with its design doing away with the requirement of looking like a human body. In other words, it isn’t a bike created for powered suits to ride; it is a powered suit that includes a bike. The suit is absolutely necessary to ride the bike, said to be the most powerful ever created for military usage, and without it, no rider would ever be able to grip or endure riding it.

Like other powered suits, the Dragon Rider suit reinforces the user's body, allowing the rider to fire a Gatling gun or a smoothbore gun one handed while driving at high speed. Running an Aneri support system, the suit monitors and responds to the wearer's thoughts, in order to automatically perform desired actions when required, besides accelerating and decelerating (given a lack of controls on the bike itself). As the helmet has no transparent portions, vision and other information is acquired via electronic devices and displayed on the inside of the helmet's visor. If the rider wishes to check information on another device (such as their phone) when driving at speed, the suit can automatically access the device in response to those thoughts and helpfully display its information on the visor. The suit can also release a cable from its arms to connect to electronic networks, or interface with other similar systems to itself.

The suit not only enhances a rider's physical capabilities, but can also interact with their minds in order to support them. It completely modifies the wearer's sense of awareness so that they are able to drive at high subsonic speeds, as well as applying electrical stimuli and distributing the temperature of their brain to keep them from panicking at those high speeds. The suit's information controller can also "download" information into the rider's mind so they can easily perform complex actions, such as how to release fuel from the auxiliary boosters to create a 3500 degree explosion, and fighting skills with predictive support, though the information only remains while they are wearing the suit.

The Dragon Rider bike has multiple propulsion systems, including a central jet engine, linear engines installed inside the wheels that are completely protected by circular armor, and auxiliary boosters that provide both power and forced steering. The bike's top speed was stated to be 1050 kph, and it was said to be able to freely fly across the wastelands of Russia at over 1000 kph, climbing cliffs with a slope of 70 degrees at over 300 kph. It only has a throttle and a brake in both handlebars, so all actions besides accelerating and decelerating are automatically taken by the suit. There are extendable wing-like arms stretching back from the left and right of the front wheel area. The bike also has gyros for stability, completely electronically controlled anti-shock suspension, and wings on the back to keep the machine on the ground aerodynamically. To prevent electronic hacking from starting the bike, it uses an extremely elaborate analog lock.

During his initial impression while driving the Dragon Rider, Hamazura Shiage stated that it was incredibly disturbing how easily the suit supported an amateur bike rider like him, and on having his sense of awareness modified to drive at high speeds, felt like he would lose natural capabilities if he wore the suit too long. After seeing the suit respond to his own thoughts, Hamazura believed in the conspiracies where machines could spy on your own mind, reinforced when suit's information controller "downloaded" information into him so he could perform a complex action, executed as easily as riding a bicycle.

Background

The Dragon Rider was developed by a team which included maintenance worker Jousawa Michihiko. It was originally designated to be Anti-Skill's newest patrol bike, but the prototype was requisitioned for use in World War III. However, the Dragon Rider would ultimately see combat during the war as it ended sooner than expected, spending the entire time being remodeled. Afterwards, with surplus weapons from the war being shipped to School Districts 2 and 23, the Dragon Rider was slated to be sealed up in a warehouse somewhere, without ever being used.

Chronology

Shinyaku Toaru Majutsu no Index

Freshmen Arc

Main article: Freshmen Arc

During the incident caused by the Freshmen in early November, the trailer transporting the prototype was held up in resultant traffic on its way to storage. While Jousawa and the driver were talking about the Dragon Rider's circumstances, Hamazura Shiage approached them to commandeer the bike in order to continue pursuing Silvercross Alpha and rescue Fremea Seivelun. On confirming the situation and given the opportunity for his creation to help save someone, Jousawa allowed Hamazura to "steal" the bike.

Though alarming, with the advanced capabilities of the suit and bike, Hamazura was able to catch up to the enemy's Highway Cheetah in the subway tunnels and clash with Silvercross. However, when Silvercross ejected from the Highway Cheetah, Hamazura was forced to let the vehicle be destroyed in the course of rescuing Fremea from the pilotless machine.

Hamazura continued to wear the suit during the subsequent battle with Silvercross in his own suit, after which its reinforcement capabilities were unusable, and the encounter with the Freshmen's Five Over, eventually using it to take control of the unit after it had been incapacitated.

St. Germain Arc

Main article: St. Germain Arc

On December 1st, Hamazura Shiage test drove the successor to the Dragon Rider prototype in School District 2, its specs and cost lowered for mass production, with the Dragon Rider's support system Aneri installed.

Gallery

The Dragon Rider in Toaru Majutsu no Index: Imaginary Fest.

The Dragon Rider suit in Toaru Majutsu no Index: Imaginary Fest.

Trivia

• Going by the patterns for Academy City's weapon naming schemes, HsSSV might stand for Hard Science SubSonic Vehicle.
• During the incident where Hamazura took the Dragon Rider up against Silvercross Alpha and his own powered suit collection, the two similar sets of technology were compared and contrasted, one said to be a crystallization of surface-level "official" technology and the other of the dark side's technology.