An alloy with off-the-charts strength, a super-powered engine, internal mechanics as intricate as Octopus Arms, and an active defense system capable of protecting against anti-armor weapons.
Each was a core feature of the "Legend," but the most important core was the thing that unified all these complex systems.
An AI.
[Lier: Get in and give it a try.]
[Little Octopus: I'm not getting in! (No)]
[Lier: ?]
Little Octopus hovered beside the car, refusing to get inside.
Jackie was still walking around the car, and V had also noticed Little Octopus clutching its tentacles in front of its head, adamantly refusing to get in.
"What's up?"
V came over, and Little Octopus sprang onto her shoulder, pointing at the car:
Mitch was still working hard to run checks. He wiped away his sweat, then shut his mouth and got back to work-
Of course, Lier also rubbed his chin and considered what Little Octopus had said: AIs sometimes had preferences that made no sense, but what it said was reasonable too.
Using a cheat tool you wrote yourself didn't count as cheating. It counted as research.
[Little Octopus: I'm not getting in. I'm a limb-control AI, not a car's onboard control system!]
Lier was a little confused:
Little Octopus nodded seriously:
[Little Octopus: Yeah! Look at my head, look at these smooth tentacles of mine, and tell me if they look like a car!]
Scorpion also saw what was happening. When Mitch didn't react, he kept his head down and carried on working-
"How can using your brain count as cheating?"
The "Legend" Mackinaw's internal structure was as complex as, if not more complex than, Octopus Arms.
"Yeah, it doesn't." V pinched Little Octopus's face, and the little guy leaned against her, looking like it was enjoying itself.
[Little Octopus: