Power gloves were not all that common in Miller's Rest or the surrounding regions, partly because electricity was not that common. Cornelius was a rarity in this respect because he was one of the few Caterpillars with the patience to master the cumbersome power glove. The structure of the Power Glove was very simple, a high voltage, high current battery took most of the space on the elbow-length glove, with the metallic hand-piece acting as an electrode. In this respect, it acted like a non-arcing version of the Tazer, but the structure was different. The power glove was a contact weapon, discharging its current the moment it made contact with a conductive substance, like chitin. This was especially effective on caterpillars and aphids because the sudden electric shock caused their muscles to convulse. As a caterpillar was mainly muscle with chitin plating, the shock made their entire body convulse. The problem faced with using such a tool in combat was that it was difficult to use one without accidentally hitting yourself at some point.
Copyright 1999 Ian Rennie, for Remiel Productions.