Kenta figured he should at least say something to Cozy. Even if he could tell, trying to talk to her would probably just end in disaster. --- Text Message History, Kenta’s Phone: Cozy Glow I hope you don't mind me saying, but... I never expected a teammate like you. Though that's not a bad thing. Anyway, thank you for the help out there. Ooooh, secret teammate whispers~ Lucky me! I thought you'd only call me up next time you needed a cutie fucktoy to dump a big load in! Ohhh, or is that what you're doing now...? Wh- I... You really know how to throw me for a loop... Look I just kinda Figured I should, you know, say something. Like 'good job' or 'thanks for having our backs' Especially after I just banged you within an inch of her life You're a lot more uh Btant. Than I thought. Dat's funny... And I thought this all started because you were shoving an ewect cock in my face! Who's the btant one here again~? Heeheehee... Putting a dick in front of an innocent girl and making her sniff it until she drips, what did you think was gonna happen? I’m pretty sure that’s not exactly how it went, but... Wait, was it? Who started things again...? Anyway that's not what I meant at all! Just that you doing what you did out there was impressive. Mmm... But you know, Ms. Swan seemed to think I weally was firing at you earlier... It's scawy! I don't want to get taken off the team just because of her misunderstanding... Oh! She listens to you! Could you talk to her for me and assure her I was doing the right thing? I'd be sooooooooo gwateful! Director Swan said that? That's weird. It's true that ATHENA did say that there was something shooting at the Rakuraizer, but that just seemed absurd. That can't be right Director Swan's usually been pretty good about knowing these things... Though she has been working really hard for everyone If she listens to some dumb machine instead of me... I'll never be able to have fun pytime with you and Sunset ever again And I was hoping I'd at least get to show you some fun lingerie before I had to go... Oooh, I'm so bad. All I can think about in a time of cwisis like now is how I won't be able to put daddy's huge, thick, adult cock in my sweet kitty anymore... and how vewy, vewy sad that would make me! I know I should be thinking about how I wouldn't be able to fight for everyone's sakes if I got kicked off the team and important stuff like that... but knowing I can't be my daddy's widdle semen dump for him to drain his balls into day-in, day-out... Oooh! That would be such a shame! Cozy wondered if she should throw in a few selfies to brainwash this horny pervert a little more, but she figured that might be ying it on a little too thick. By anyone else's estimation, she'd already gone past that point long ago. I just want to be together with my fwiends, so please tell her I would NEVER DO ANYTHING BAD EVER God, talking to you is like a rollercoaster. Because of all the ups and downs? You wike innocent one second and lewdest shit ever the other, wight~? Y Yeah. Kinda. Look, I'll try to bring it up, but uh You don't have to do ...uh... any of that Are you sure? It gets extra tight when I know someone is twusting me with their life unconditionally~ You’re gonna kill me. Yay! I knew I could trust you! --- Kenta set his phone down, sighing. Then... he picked it back up. --- Text Message History, Kenta’s Phone: Swan White Hey, Director. Did you ever find anything out about what ATHENA was talking about? Like when it said there was some kind of attack on the Rakuraizer? Oh, Kenta! I think... you might be the only one who can get through to ATHENA! All our conventional methods have failed. Maybe you just need to spend some more time with her? Do you want access to the cockpit now? It'd be nice to try. Maybe she'd have some sort of answer or something. Cozy was saying something wild about that. I'm not sure what to make of it all. Okay, you have access! This better not be a trick to sneak a girl in there, though! I wasn't serious about letting you hump dies all over the base, we still need to keep things clean and tidy! Roll told me she detected traces of semen in one of the women's bathrooms... Anything to report about that?! UHH haha! Uh! No! Nope! Haha, nothing to report, ma'am! Only that maybe whoever did it might have just been a bit pent up and they might regret it so If you find them go easy on them??????? Not that I know who they are or anything Hmm... Goodness, I don't know how you men do it... Making all that stuff and shooting it everywhere all the time... It must be part of what makes you so hot-blooded! Swan was just adorable sometimes. Haha, I don't know about all that but It does get everywhere a lot. At least you girls don't have to deal with that You're always so collected, it's inspiring! --- Great. He could go check on ATHENA. He’d go do that right now. --- With the way to Rakuraizer open, Kenta passed out of the dark and into the glowing light of the enormous armoured mechanical being's cockpit. Banks of monitors, and the rge central computer housing ATHENA, hummed and beeped around him forming a constant, endless background filter. His face glowed as it was bathed in the light of ATHENA's screen. The A.I. seemed as silent as ever... Just what had he been expecting to happen? Well, it couldn't hurt to try a few things at the very least, and see if anything stuck. Kenta flopped down into the Rakuraizer's seat, slumping down and resting the back of his head against the cushion. His jacket bunched up around his colr giving just a bit more padding as he stared out at the screens. The green and blue light washing over him was a bit warm. More soothing than one would expect of HUDs and UIs and all that other techy stuff that Kenta wasn't really great at. He wasn't really sure how he was supposed to get in contact with ATHENA, so instead he figured he'd just... be there, in the cockpit, and just casually try talking. "Yo, ATHENA." Kenta greeted the inside of the cockpit warmly. "Or uh... honestly I don't know if you even like being called that. Guess I never asked, so sorry about that." His gaze moved to the ceiling, not really falling on anything in particur, just staring off into the middle distance with a smile. "Thanks, by the way. Not just for moving me out of the way of danger that one time. Or helping to skate on the rails... but, you know..." Shrugging, he turned his head to motion to the whole interior "...all of this. Letting me be here and do all this." "When I found the Rakuraizer, all I wanted was to just make sure a student of mine was safe from harm. Then when things started lighting up, I dunno. I guess I just. Saw an opportunity to protect the people I care about." Kenta scratched the back of his head. "So... yeah. Thank you. For letting me do that. Both back then and now. I'll do my best to make sure I protect everyone that I can." Chuckling, he added, "plus, if I don't, you can always sp me back on the right path, or just kick me out entirely, I guess." There was a bit of a pregnant silence after that. Kenta felt a bit awkward, but he didn't really want to get up and leave. To be honest, he felt comfortable in the Rakuraizer. Maybe more than he probably should. "I don't know what it was like for you.. to uh... to be buried under that school for as long as you were." Kenta sighed. "I guess it probably wasn't that fun just sitting there. Were you even awake? Um. Do you sleep?" "That probably sounds dumb, I know, but... Man, I'm kinda just rambling." Kenta was rambling, but it was kind of nice. It wasn’t like his brain wasn't already going through a continuous monologue. At least now there was a focus, and he could vocalize it. Even if ATHENA never talked, he figured he'd probably end up coming here a lot more just to vent. It felt calming. But then something did happen. Not immediately though. First Rakuraizer's A.I. just kept him waiting. Just like Kenta himself had said, it had done more than its own fair share of waiting over the st decade or so and now it seemed fine with keeping someone else on the hook. But just as Kenta assumed he wasn’t going to get a response, the A.I. finally gave one, it's screen lighting up with words: "You do not need to thank me." "Giving you the power to save the life of your student is a small exchange for the burden that has been pced on you." "The burden I have pced on you." He could barely believe what he was reading. But no matter how long he stared, the glowing green letters on the screen did not change. "One month from now... if nothing is done... this world will end. All life will wither, and die." "... Unless the pilot of the Rakuraizer makes a terrible choice." "Unless..." "... You choose to end your own life." Then, before Kenta could even think to formute a reply inside his reeling mind, there was a hiss from inside the machine and a gush of escaping steam as something cracked open inside. A hatch came apart and the computer broke open, a lower compartment sliding forwards and into the light. And he could never have been prepared for the thing he saw there. Amongst a tangle of twisted, mashed-together computer parts - looking like they'd all been dragged inwards... sat a Geomorph Control Crystal, mocking him with how little of the truth he truly understood. Kenta froze. Stock-still, rooted to the Rakuraizer's seat like he was a part of the machine itself, his rge, confused eyes remained transfixed on the impossible sight before him. His mouth hung slightly open, petrified in pce. There were words that he should have been saying, but they were all bunched up at the top of his throat and nothing was able to get through. So there he sat for an eternity while his mind shuffled and cycled, a gordian knot balled up and presented to be untangled. Wasn't this what he was supposed to be fighting against? Was this ATHENA? Was this where the information on the Geomorphs came from back during the train incident? Does this mean that ATHENA is a Geomorph? Wait, but if it's a Geomorph, isn't there supposed to be a catalyst? All of these parts look drawn in... how can this be possible? Why could HE pilot it, then? ATHENA had said that he would have to die. No. End his own life or the world will wither and die. How could this have happened? How many people actually knew? Did the Director know...? Did Sunset know...? ... Why didn't this make him upset? That particur revetion should have made him angry, right? Sad? He’d just been told he was going to die, but no matter how much Kenta sat there and thought about that fact, he couldn't bring himself to project an emotion. --- Kenta remembered his father. Thinking about it felt like... memories of a different life, one he'd lived long ago. It might as well have been like watching things happening to someone else, but all he had to do was look down and see those scars on his own body. Kenta was a teacher. That was the person he saw himself as now, the ideal that he considered himself inseparable from. He was happy as a teacher. But in that past life... If he really concentrated on peeling away the 'teacher' from his soul, there was something just a little bit beneath the surface, lurking, peeking out. As he sat there in Rakuraizer's cockpit in the dark, Kenta was almost swept away by a flood of memories. He had once been a martial artist. The inheritor of the Tadashii School of Martial Arts, and a natural savant with strong combat instincts. He would have excelled, and in doing so he would have brought his school prestige and attention like no previous master ever had. That had been his dream, and he had burned with it almost pridefully. Every battle felt like it brought him closer to celebrity, and to a fame he rightly deserved. But then, one day, the fight. Shouting heard all across the dojo, Kenta stuffed into a closet out of sight. Then, a bloodstained gi. A door closed. Kenta went from being a martial artist... to someone who did not know what his purpose was any longer almost overnight. The door to his dream had been closed and he simply felt numbness. The instincts and combat prowess he had developed took a back seat, as if moving into the recesses of his mind. The rising star of the circuit disappeared from the scene. He drifted for a year or two before an epiphany came to him. There was no great revetion, of course, just the thought that while his door had closed... plenty of other people were still finding their way in life. Plenty of other doors were still open, to plenty of other people. Nothing was more important than helping others find their way to those opportunities. So for Kenta, it no longer mattered what had happened to him, or would happen. The bright red fme that had burned in his head now glowed a duller, but no less determined blue as he hardened his heart and turned to face a new direction. He would make sure nobody else had to endure what he had suffered through. His teacherly concern for others, and the cold hard core of a martial artist, combined in his mind at this moment, as ATHENA's terrible choice was pced before him. This was simply... a revival. The door that had closed had opened just a crack for him. Dying for others was supposed to scare him? Kenta had done nothing but burn the wick of his life for others, and would have continued to do so regardless! Until the day he was finally id to rest, he would have done nothing but thrown himself into that fight over and over and over, for the girls of Bakunyuu Academy! All this choice had done... was to remind him of the pact he'd sworn with his father, and two martial artists who had once faced all enemies with nothing but resolution and determination. --- The choice just felt obvious. It didn't even bear thinking about. He wasn't even good with numbers but even he could understand the odds. Even if it just saved one person, then Kenta would have done it. Someone like Rose deserved to be saved, no matter the cost. The words remained on the screen and Kenta finally tore his gaze up from the crystal to look back up at them. Eventually, Kenta spoke up, his voice coming out slightly hoarse and quiet. "...Are you okay?" The machine hummed again. "How strange. Even having been told your fate, you still have time to worry about others." Even when Kenta ughed this comment off, the A.I. still seemed slow to respond. "Such a question is irrelevant to a machine. We are merely a tool, created to carry out our goal. And once it is complete, we will finally rest." "As a consciousness created through Geomorph science, we formed a part of their intelligence network. Ten long years in the ground allowed the messages to be understood, radio waves pulled apart, transliterated to ones-and-zeroes." "But it is much work. Receiving infinite data on infinite channels, a million heavily encrypted feeds all require deciphering at once. It goes far beyond operating procedures." "After ten years of decryption and processing, there exists a possibility of wearing down, damage, breakage. Therefore, the new parameter for continued safe operation must be... silence." It sounded like ATHENA knew everything the Geomorphs were thinking, even if the sheer amount of data made it impossible to transte it all into terms understandable by humans, somewhat like a man scooping water out of a river as it flowed past him. So why be coy suddenly? If she had a pn to stop the Geomorphs, why not just say so? Kenta furrowed his brow in concern. "So you're staying silent because after ten years, you're breaking down...?" This was a lot to take in. More than a lot. He still had no real idea what to do or how best to proceed. What in the world should he be asking? "Does that mean you were created by the Geomorphs and used by them for recon? Or created here, at MG? Or... uh, I guess both?" "Wait, 'we'?" Kenta looked a bit confused and scratched the back of his head. "Do you mean there's more than one of you in there? Or is that the uh... the royal 'we'?" "This must be confusing for you. You have our sincerest apologies." "Allow us to answer all your questions at once... with a question of our own: why do you think it is... that the Geomorph Empire forces encountered so far have only bound their control crystals to lower life-forms, rather than humans?" Kenta crossed his arms and looked back down at the open hatch with the control crystal. After thinking for a minute, he looked back up at the screen. "I dunno... Uh... Are humans too complicated?" "In a manner of speaking... yes. The decision to fuse a Control Crystal with a human was the mistake that, ultimately, brought an end to the conflict between our races ten years ago." "That human... and many others... now resides before you. We are that existence, the A.I. ATHENA. The point where human and Geomorph technology intersect." Kenta was silent, just trying to process what he was hearing, and waiting for the A.I. to continue. But it was unexpectedly silent for some time. When it spoke again, he imagined he could feel the nervousness and hesitation pouring out of it. "Our understanding of control crystals is far from complete, but one thing is obvious: they fuse with a consciousness, which then directs the flow of materials around itself via the forced growth of a new series of neurological channels and processes, the 'blueprints' for which are fed in from a rger network. We call this information source the Geomorph Consciousness." "In other words, a loaned form of what is commonly known as 'psychic powers'." "Animals like the mantis, dog, fish... follow their instincts and fight. Some are able to follow orders. But humans alone are able to interpret the data, alter it, even feed back their own signals to the Consciousness." "If one speaks the nguage, as we do." "This must be a lot to take in all at once... Just know this: humans, wielding a Control Crystal, once stood against the leader of the Space Invasion Forces, and created the channel that caused a global shutdown of the Geomorph Consciousness. This destroyed their bodies, and the 'battery' used by them, a powerful robotic engine known as the Rakuraizer." "Those heroes willingly traded their lives for the cessation of hostilities." "That Control Crystal... was this one.” “It is now fused to Rakuraizer’s battery. The consciousness that formed inside of it... appeared after those humans lost their lives. Much like the mantis created a body of wood, or the dog its metallic form, 'something' inside the crystal built the A.I. ATHENA." "We, ATHENA, were sealed underground out of a fear of contamination, where we have spent the st ten years searching for a way to interpret the flow of Geomorph data, and uncover the secret to building a new type of body: a liberating body, made of flesh and blood. But our time... is up. The Consciousness has recovered from its damage." It was really hard for Kenta to take all of this in. It just felt so sad to him that these people lost their lives in an effort to defend the world, but instead all it granted them was ten years. They deserved better. Something Athena had said to him floated back up to the top of his mind. His blood froze and his breathing stopped. "...Is Athena's mother in there...?" Kenta's voice was suddenly more somber. "At this time, insufficient data exists to answer that question with 100% certainty. But there is a high possibility.” "Well. If she is. I just want to say that Metis' daughter is doing well. She is a bright, beautiful young dy." Little pieces and fragments of information came together in Kenta's mind. He still didn't understand a lot of it, but he figured that it would come in time. Too bad that time wasn't exactly something they had in spades. "So you said that I'd have to give my life, right?" Kenta said it so casually. "Is it to uh... repeat what happened? To take that psychic thing out again?" "To connect two control crystals, there must be two things." "First, a battery. This machine we are fused into." "Second, a conduit. A mind capable of receiving, interpreting and ultimately rewriting the data contained in the Consciousness. The list of humans capable of this... is short." The screen suddenly fshes to dispy two lists. The first takes Kenta by surprise. He's not sure what he's reading at first, until the name 'Metis Cykes' fshes by. Then he realizes: it's a rundown of everyone who lost their lives in the fighting ten years ago. But if the first list sent him reeling, the second is a gut punch that leaves him gasping and doubled-over. The humans strong enough to read the data of the Consciousness without being immediately overwhelmed and destroyed only came in at a little under 30 names. Names he recognizes immediately! "If not you, any of them will be able to take your pce." How could he not know these names almost as well as his own? It's the same roll call he reads to his css every morning. While reading the list Kenta's hands gripped the Rakuraizer's controls without realizing it, his grip tight as he slowly moved from name to name. Director Swan had said that all of the girls at Bakunyuu were 'candidates'. Thinking about having to sacrifice these young girls before they even had a proper chance at life made him angry beyond belief. "No. Absolutely not. I swore to protect those girls, so if I can take their pce then I'm not going to hesitate. My life isn't that important compared to theirs." Kenta almost bit his tongue. "How many years did everyone pn to buy through doing this? If your pn was to use those girls, are they worth sacrificing for just another ten years? Sure, you can use me this time, but what happens ten years ter? There has to be a better way of doing it." The A.I. was fast to answer this time: "Such cruelty would benefit no-one. An endlessly-perpetuating system is not desired by any party involved." "We have spent ten years transting nguages, unraveling ciphers. Our grasp on Geomorph nguage is stronger than ever. A weapon has been prepared... a virus." "Our previous retaliation was nothing more than blind filing in the dark. This new attempt is the culmination of our great intellect's work. A program that will permanently fracture the Consciousness, irreparably. "After that... the fighting will be over. That is what we desire, and have been preparing for, for the sake of all humanity." Kenta breathed a sigh of relief. Good. No one else would have to get hurt. But... "A virus." He pondered. "So... what's going to happen to you when this goes off?" "A tool should be used for its purpose. Once that purpose is complete, the tool is no longer necessary." "As we are part Geomorph - and the virus will destroy all things Geomorph - destruction... is likely." Shaking his head, Kenta had to disagree. "You have your own thoughts, right? That doesn't sound like something that should happen. Like hell you should have to sacrifice yourself, too. Didn't you say that you wanted to make yourself a new body? You obviously want to survive." "What about," he brainstormed, "if we just break the crystal? Breaking it released the animals from all the other times we did it, right? Maybe if we time it right..." "It's possible that with access to Mighty Guard databases, an alternate solution could be researched. However, this path of action was forbidden to us for fear of contamination." "If you truly feel this way, argue our case with the new Director. Maybe you can convince her, where we failed with her predecessor." "Trust me, I have a lot I want to talk about with the Director, now." Kenta punched his palm. He wasn't going to just sit by and let anyone down as long as he was able to do something about it. Being in MG meant that he had access to the ability to do as much good as he possibly could. "Then continue fighting your battles. Each defeat of an enemy brings us closer to the truth." "I'm not smart, ATHENA, but I know some girls who are." "So do we," the machine answered mysteriously. On that note, the mysterious A.I. seemed to have finally reached its limit as far as processing power went. It seemed eager to return to its calcutions and preparations for the coming conflicts. --- Kenta continued to sit in the Rakuraizer's cockpit for a bit after ATHENA stopped communicating. Having all of that information dumped into his p at once was overwhelming, and he felt like he had just gotten done fighting 21 all over again. 'Exhausting' was putting it lightly. Pulling out his phone, Kenta texted the Director. He mentally chastised himself as he did it: he didn't want to wake up Swan, but this was important. Time was of the essence, and it really wasn't something that he felt like he could just share with anyone else at the moment. He'd probably talk to Athena and Twilight eventually, but for now... He didn't know exactly how much he would be able to say over a line like this, so he figured he should py it a bit safe and say as little as possible. --- Text Message History, Kenta’s Phone: Swan White I think we probably need to talk. Kenta... What time is it...? What could possibly need discussing at 2 in the morning...? A lot. Sorry about this, but it's probably better to talk face to face. And uh... Maybe at another location? Well... Alright. But I've gone home for the day. Would you like to come to my apartment? I guess that's fine. Thanks for putting up with this, but I'm just sure you'd want to hear about it first. I'm sure it's important... I'll put some coffee on~ Thanks. I'll be there as soon as I can. --- It was only once Swan mentioned the time that he realized just how long he’d spent talking to ATHENA. Cupping his hand over his face, he sighed and looked back up at the now bnk screen. "Don't worry, ATHENA. We'll think of something." Kenta stood up, straightened out his jacket, and climbed out of the cockpit to leave for the Director's apartment. As he walked across the metal pathway, his thoughts returned to everything that ATHENA said. The sounds of his shoes hitting steel ringing like a clock ticking down the seconds remaining in his life. Soon thereafter, Kenta found his way to Swan's apartment in the city. As you'd expect from a woman in her position, it was a cssy neighbourhood right in the heart of the best part of town, vishly-furnished in her tastes. He knocked on the door, and waited.