Incendiary nanites are microscopic machines designed explicitly as weapons. Unlike medical nanites, which heal or maintain biological function, these are meant to destroy from within—typically by igniting tissues, generating intense internal heat, or causing internal combustion-like reactions.
Key Characteristics:
- Delivery Method:
- Usually injected or delivered via a dart, flechette, or micro-needle projectile.
- In some cases, they may be disguised as medical nanites or mixed into a medpack, making them a favored tool of assassins or black ops operatives.
- Activation:
- Controlled via remote signal, time-delay, or biochemical triggers (e.g., activation once they detect a specific hormonal or cellular marker). Suicide bombers may use an app to self-detonate.
- Some may even self-assemble and go inert until a remote signal wakes them.
- Effects:
- Rapid onset of intense internal heat or spontaneous combustion localized to organs, blood vessels, or even the brain.
- Victims often die screaming, with little time to react, leading to rumors of “invisible fire” or “burning from the inside out.”
- Autopsies, if attempted, may yield little beyond massive internal burns and fused tissues.
Known or Implied Usage:
- Sabotage:
- A character might be implanted with dormant incendiary nanites without their knowledge, used as a walking time bomb.
- Could also be used to destroy vital equipment or biotech from the inside if injected into cybernetic systems.
- Psychological Warfare:
- Tales of “spontaneous combustion” linked to insurgents or dissidents can demoralize populations or resistance cells.
- Some suspect the Gelt have developed their own variants, though the Gelt typically favor clean execution or ritual duels.
Limitations and Risks:
- Countermeasures:
- EMP pulses or targeted magnetic disruptions might disable them, but at great risk to the host.
- Some variants are persistent and must be deactivated by their control mechanisms
- Moral and Legal Implications:
- The Compact’s laws likely ban incendiary nanites under war crimes or weapons of mass destruction clauses—particularly for use against civilians.
- Their existence is rarely acknowledged publicly, making them a shadowy threat.