augments.

[components]

cybernetics.

Advancements in biomedicine and weaponry has paved the way to the societal acceptance of cybernetics. While there are some who believe that too many cybernetic enhancements disrupts something essential about the soul (its 'essence'), just as many think that's new agey dickery. Some dedicated people have dataports, located either on the back of the head or even the palm (and some more secretive individuals have them located behind the eye). Dataports enable individuals to 'link in' and confirm their identity for reservations, banks, business deals, and can also install useful OS interface (think Iron Man's HUD display meets Google Glass) that they can turn off and on through will. It also includes the ability to navigate the Ultranet if directly connected to a node station. Some examples of other cybernetic enhancements include pain receptors, cyberarms, muscle augmentation, wired reflexes, dermal plating, vision magnification and tailored pheromones. While not much has changed in the hardware of combat, a lot of things have changed in the software. Some have their dataports always wirelessly connected to their weapons, meaning increased accuracy and only that individual can use it; others simply have their OS updated to suit their weapon of choice.

the ultranet.

TLDR: The internet, sort of. A more 3D landscape, the use and interaction with the internet hasn't changed for most people; through devices that connect to said Ultranet. For hackers and creators though, as long as the individual is 'wired in' through a node station (or through a wireless receptor in their datajack), they can directly control the information on the Ultranet. They can hack, steal, attack, defend; as the sci-fi extension of modern day hacking, it is not uncommon for hackers to manipulate surveillance footage or messages through a process that visualizes avatars into the network, tearing down walls or building them. Targeting attacks directly against another hacker within the Ultranet can cause 'datashock', a condition where the severity can range from an electric shock, seizures, or death to not just the avatar but their physical bodies.

eidolons.

Little to no information exists on eidolons, and some have different names for the phenomena. Unknown to the world whether eidolons are sentient e-viruses, incorporeal alien parasites, or magical gods, one thing is base: they all need a host to live. Depending on their growth cycle, they tax their vessel in varying degrees, from increased sensitivity in their pain receptors to high metabolism. Eidolons are often sentient, with a 'voice' and a preference for a name, and may communicate with their hosts. They also pass on to their shared-body/mind some form of heightened ability that is further evolved than the capabilities of a neurogenic.