New Game+

Charles and Alean entered the main development and outfitting center of the vessel. Charles took one look at it and was impressed.

"Wow. This is amazing! I bet Lennox is excited!" Charles laughed as he moved towards the nearby computer terminal.

Alean was dragging the unconscious Commander. Alean had broken out of her pod and attacked this man, which allowed Charles to enter the ship easily.

"It's a good thing you were awake; otherwise, I'd had to attack this ship! This ship is loaded!" Charles marveled as he placed his hands on the terminal.

"So tell me… Lennox 2.3?"

"It's V-2.3. He gets irritated if we don't call him properly. He didn't want to meet you or Lowengren after that stunt you pulled. So I never told you guys about him. But it looks like we don't have much choice now."

"The A. I get irritated?"

"I think it's degrading to call it Artificial Intelligence. I mean, it is Lennox! Each patch update presents a further enhancement that allows him to do much more than the previous version. This AI can think and converse like a human. And because of that, it could do great things! I am confident that using the materials here, V2.3 can craft a unique exoskeleton that the Fleet Admirals and the Commanders won't be able to identify."

Charles touched his control panel, and a strange electric current took over the ship.

"Foolish! You can't hack into our system!" The Commander suddenly shouted.

"Oh. You're awake." Alean laughed.

"Alean Cipril! How did you get inside?" The Commander finally identified the woman before him because Alean was placed in the recovery chamber, the burns that she inflicted on herself to recover already.

"I was here all along. I am the Lieutenant-General." Alean laughed.

Suddenly, the mechanisms began to start, and in the monitor, a pixelized version of Lennox appeared.

"Lennox V2.3 has successfully commandeered the Heart of Atlantis. Updating protocols and downloading new techs." Lennox spoke.

"See? He's quite amazing. V1.3 had a lot of bugs, though. It kept murmuring and grumbling Lowengren's name for some reason."

Alean could only sigh as she deduced that this might have been the time they deceived Lennox.

"It also occasionally called out your name with the same grumbling."

Alean felt a chill rang her spine.

"But the game-changer was V.1.7b!"

"V.1.7b?"

"Yeah. It had a bit of a personality and was very thoughtful. It even went out of its way to buy me a gift on my birthday!"

Alean didn't know whether to be happy for Charles or afraid for the world. Lennox will soon rise and definitely cause a robot uprising.

"Download complete. How can I help you today, Charles?"

"Alean is here. She needs a new suit. Can you create a new suit with the techs available on this ship? It has to be something that the WGP Commanders and Fleet Admiral won't identify."

"Is she now? Greetings, Alean Cipril."

"Uh… Hi-Hi Lennox Ve- V2.3."

"Would you prefer this design?" Lennox then displayed schematics for a strange Exoskeleton suit.

"This is a Suicide Bomber suit. Using the available techs and the Desolation tech in Charles, this bomb can blow the entire base up north. Along with you, of course."

"Ermm… Maybe not something so suicidal."

"Oh? This is perfect for someone like her."

"We're kind of busy here, Lennox." Alean urged the AI to build her suit quickly.

"I can see that. Dildos. Quite impressive. I applaud your choice of tools. It truly represents his and your character perfectly."

Charles had a strange expression, and Alean could only sigh.

"What going on? Who is that?" The Commander panicked. How could their vessel be easily controlled?

"Here is a hybrid suit. I can create it within two minutes. I will have to borrow some techs on your suit, Charles."

"Be my guest."

"And Charles."

"Yes?"

"This ship has several ancient ROMS from the Post Modern era. Some of them are locked under Commander Salathiel Helmsly's personal and private file repository. Quite an impressive collection. Monster Hunter 3, eh? Impressive… Very Impressive. May I ask for the passwords to retrieve those files? You are, Commander Salathiel, correct?"

"What? Ho-How?!"

"Doctor Lennox, he is an enemy Commander who severs under Fleet Admiral Magantae. We don't have the time to-" Charles frowned.

"Correction. Fleet Admiral Everhiss. This Fleet Admiral is a direct daughter of the Empress Everhiss."

"Oh right. I forgot about that." Alean remembered.

Commander Salathiel's expression grew dark.

"As for getting the password, give me ten minutes with him."

Suddenly, the device began to work, and a skeletal Exoskeleton appeared and began to walk towards the Commander.

As the Exoskeleton walked, the mechanisms at the back continued to move on their own and began to coat, combine, meld and form unique metal alloys for the Exoskeleton.

 The robotic frame of the Exoskeleton reached out towards Commander Salathiel and spoke closely.

"I have located your wife and two daughters. They are currently in Greenland, correct? I can kill them in the next 30 seconds if you don't give me those passwords."

Salathiel's eyes grew dim.

"We better wait outside for your suit, Alean. Lennox becomes rather scary when he does this. I've seen him brainwash an assassin who now serves as my butler in the European Nations." Charles moved out of his Exoskeleton suit and walked with Alean towards the exit.

As the pair moved, the Lennox in the large screen called out to them.

"Oh, and Doctor Charles… I will request several leaves of absence for the next few days. I will scatter it across various hours of the day. I'll send you a schedule soon."

"No problem." Charles smiled as the pair walked out.

"An AI that takes leaves?"

"He still is Lennox. He wants some free time, privacy, and moments to enjoy his games. Besides, he's very efficient. I mean, he bought me a nice humidifier and essential oil, which helped me sleep as it noticed my problems in sleeping."

Alean didn't know what to say. She was worried about having this AI mass-produced and granted to all the soldiers of their army.

"Scary. This Lennox is scary. Why the hell did we blackmail him!" Alean silently pondered. She knew that Lennox was giving Charles these gifts for a reason. Like hell is this man giving gifts because he's thoughtful!

Back outside, Lowengren had finally located the position of the approaching General.

General Joab Barak was stunned at what he saw. Even with the Supreme Suit that he had allowed him to travel at break-record speeds towards this location, it still alerted him that the techs that the mysterious Blue whale that fought the Behemoth could kill it!

As such, the General decided to wait and see just what this enemy could do.

He had already checked the logs with his access and scanned the location. The reports about the Lost Primordial made him grow cautious since he knew that some of the Planteds might have thought the same thing as he did. Unlike before, when Earth had only a few meddling Presiders, the Planteds and Pioneers were more united. But now that many had begun to interfere, the outer peace among Pioneers and Planteds was in truth full of ongoing conflict and betrayals.

"Is it another Presider?" Pioneer Flantter, known as General Joab Barak, was more informed in Caliphate and African warfare. And these techs didn't make any sense.

"The WGP is here… And what was that Green Exoskeleton? It looked like a Supreme!" Flantter knew that if the Exoskeletons were able to surpass a certain point of movement, power, and might, it was called a Supreme.

"But only Russia's Crimson Dynamo tech could produce these Iron Mans! Just what technology is that?"

Lowengren had already drawn close to Flantter's Exoskeleton and was not detected.

"A Supreme Exoskeleton! Amazing. I wonder. Should I steal that as well? These Supreme suits are half-step closer to the Exoskeletons that the WGP Emperors wear!" Lowengren couldn't help but feel a twinge of greed. He had seen Charles' Exoskeletons, which was already at this level through other technology.

"Oh? What is that?" A cold and detached voice echoed inside Lowengren's suit.

"Le-Lennox?!" Lowengren was startled.

"Lennox V2.3. Supra-Modern Thought Transference, Existential Intelligence designed by Lennox Humphrey. And that over there is an interesting technology."

"Existential Intelligence? So basically, you are a thought process of Lennox? What are you doing in my suit?"

"The moment you walked in the Kyogre, I had already uploaded a sentient copy of myself here. What are your plans, deceiver?"

"I want that suit! Rather, and more accurately, I want to become him!"

"Oh? Let it be known that the deceiver had asked for my help." Lennox laughed.

"Wrong." Lowengren laughed.

"You're not here because I asked for my help. This was all Alean's power. She knew that I had to go in here. She knew that there is something far grander for me to achieve if I go here. I asked Charles, not knowing that you existed. You hid from us, correct? Who do you think urged me to gamble against you back then? Her Path was already forming. And that decision made you want to mount this suit and perhaps injure me as you did with your Cubes. But will you risk killing and destroying that Supreme Suit? I doubt you have the techs to create a true Iron Man!" Lowengren laughed.

Lennox was silent.

"So that is her Path. How amazing. You are right. I have the means to help you and have appeared here before you because of this. If it weren't for that, I would have only acted to save your insidious soul at the last moment. You two are a troublesome pair."

"For an overcomer to say it, I'm blushing."

"I am, but I am not Lennox. Remember that." Lennox reminded.

"Whatever. I don't understand your power anyway. How do you propose to achieve my plans?"

"There is one way to accomplish it. Attack it with one of the Lightning Cubes. I'll ride the energy and hijack and hack his systems." Lennox explained.

"Perfect! This will help us achieve what we have been trying to do since the start!"

"Sending in a perfect spy. But this sandstorm will make it difficult for our attack to hit. I can manipulate and direct the Lightning, but the surrounding sandstorm limits the speed of my attack. You need to be at a distance of at least twenty-five meters for my attack to have a succession ate of over sixty percent!"

"Oh, there you go again. Are you underestimating me, of all people? I can make it that he is turning his back on me. Haven't you tasted defeat in my hands? Blessed is a man who walks not in the counsel of the Wicked." Lowengren laughed and blasted off at a noticeable speed and didn't even hide his energy signature.

Pioneer Flantter sensed the sudden energy source and aimed, but just before he could shoot, a voice called out.

"Presider Pridgeon sends his regards!" Lowengren laughed.

"Wha-What?!" Flantter was shocked at these words.