Visibility at sea is extremely limited. GPS and radar are two commonly used positioning tools.
Comparatively, radar is much more expensive than GPS equipment, and also simpler to operate. Pirates generally prefer GPS for navigation—
And their own eyes.
This, however, has led to some ridiculous incidents, like Somali pirates historically mistaking warships for cargo ships and launching attacks.
Wakanda's patrol ships couldn't fire directly at the U.S. military—nor would they win in a fight—so the only viable plan was to push Frank's elite team to the limit. A boarding tactic became the only option.
They needed several speedboats to get them close to the enemy ships, along with plenty of decoys to mislead the warships.
Those decoys? Directionless pirates.
[Skye: Boss, frequency scanning complete. Ready to jam.]
They scanned all signals in the area, categorized them, and identified communication channels and frequency bands—basic protocol for wireless hacking.
Under Leo's command, the Wakandan vessels moved toward the signal source, acting as a signal bridge while sailing across the sea.
Though patrol boats lacked firepower and had outdated electronics, they were more than enough to handle pirates.
Frank's team boarded speedboats equipped with communication gear and advanced toward the warships.
These devices were scanned for active communication signals on the sea, which Skye then cleaned, analyzed, and processed.
This kind of low-level information warfare was useless against the U.S. military, but not against pirates.
Now, they had the pirates' communication frequencies.
Not just that—they identified GPS as the pirates' main navigation system.
[Leo: I'm prepping GPS spoofing. Get ready to stop jamming and send them fake data.]
[Skye: GPS spoofing? That advanced?]
GPS spoofing involves sending fake GPS signals to provide receivers with false information. The spoofer must understand GPS signal structures and transmission mechanics to fake signals from multiple satellites.
This kind of forgery is extremely difficult. You need synchronized timing, accurate positioning data, and more. Some hackers even use GPS signal encryption to protect their files.
Skye had seen such encryption techniques before on the hacker forum of her former group, RisingTide.
But Leo was planning to use Wakanda's outdated systems to spoof GPS?
[Leo: Watch and learn. I'll forge the signals; you handle field operations.]
[Skye: Roger that, Boss. Can I try using my AI assistant?]
[Leo: Not this time. Save the data for training.]
Skye didn't ask more questions, because Leo had already sent her the first data packet.
At the same time, Leo relayed instructions to Wakandan forces:
[Leo: Send false data across the entire Somali sea. I want every pirate heading here.]
[Shuri: You're using them as bait!]
[Leo: Yes, I'm using them as bait. But if they don't serve as bait, other navies will continue firing in your waters without hesitation.]
[Leo: If they do it once, they'll do it again. Do it enough times, and your so-called maritime sovereignty is a joke.]
[Shuri: But they're people!]
[Leo: You're right. But this isn't something you should be involved in.]
[T'Chaka: Listen to him, Shuri. I'll handle the rest.]
Shuri, technically a princess and sister to T'Challa, was outranked. With the king, T'Chaka, giving the order, T'Challa would side with Leo—and what Leo said hit home:
The Americans couldn't keep using force in their waters without consequence.
Until now, all they could do was protest. This time, maybe they could strike back.
Following T'Challa's orders, Shuri went silent and started taking control of all nearby networked devices in Somali waters.
Pirates, unaware, suddenly saw their GPS readings drift—and then they were redirected by false maps.
They were being led straight into a warzone.
Soon after, radio chatter began filling with a repeated line:
["That cargo ship is carrying gold!"]
["That cargo ship is carrying gold!"]
Like magic, this message kept reappearing.
Thanks to Wakanda's efforts, all nearby pirates were misled by fake GPS signals. Lured into the area by a juicy rumor, they heard the broadcast.
And then, one after another, they repeated the message themselves:
"Faster, faster! That's gold, damn it!"
Aboard the speedboats, aggressive pirates gripped their AKs, waving arms furiously as they urged their peers onward—sometimes wanting to throw rivals overboard!
Boom!
A moment later, a fellow pirate boat was obliterated by a shell.
Their leader turned pale. "Something's wrong. That firepower is too strong—there's a warship!"
Boom!
Another naval shell splashed nearby, nearly flipping their boat. As they recovered, he saw more speedboats charging in—just like them minutes ago.
Shells rained down again. Some pirates saw it coming. Some didn't. Some panicked. Others, emboldened by the growing crowd, thought:
"With this many people, no way I'll get hit."
Bad signals. Tempting intel. The pirates swarmed like sharks smelling blood. Wakandan vessels kept the bait alive, and the "gold transport" legend grew stronger.
Like a truck spilling its cargo—once the crowd makes that first step, there's no going back.
Grab it and you win. Miss it and you lose everything.
Machine guns and cannons opened fire. But the pirates kept coming. Radar, jammed, occasionally failed to detect them.
Vroom!
One speedboat rode the waves, mixing into the pirate swarm. A sniper from the Atlas Strike Team adjusted his helmet, locking on to ship weaponry and navigating from blind spots—
The pirates were in total chaos. Some charged. Some fled. Some had already sunk.
And chaos was the perfect cover.
"Ex-U.S. Marine attacking an active U.S. warship. That's something," Frank muttered, tightening his grip. His magnetic gloves were ready.
"Tomorrow's headline: U.S. warship gets raided by pirates off Somalia!"
"Hahaha! They'll think they saw a ghost!"
"This is gonna be wild!"
In their exosuits, the Atlas soldiers hyped each other up. Cybernetic systems showed rising adrenaline levels—
Yes, they were nervous.
This tactic had no precedent in modern warfare—Marines attacking warships like infantry.
The massive frigates came into view. The spotter saw movement on the deck:
"There's someone on deck—wait, humanoid robots?"
"Ignore them. We're close. Get ready to board!"
The speedboats broke through the firing range. The enormous hull loomed closer, casting a shadow over them.
The fear of man facing a steel monster.
[NexusOS: Combat mode engaged. Power increased.]
[Exosuit status: Nominal.]
[ Enhanced reflex mode activated.]
[3D mobility gear preheating. Ready].
A faint electric current surged from the brain-machine interface, down the spine, igniting every cell and muscle.
The ocean roared, every sound heightened.
Motors hummed softly. Power gathered.
Waves slammed the boat. It launched upward—
"Jump!"
The exosuit's legs extended, and Frank soared toward the warship!
From his wrist, a web-line launcher fired under pressure, sending a cable that latched onto the frigate's bow, swinging him in an arc—
Thud!
His legs hit the deck first, bending to absorb the shock. Before sliding, he slapped his palm against the hull!
The magnetic gloves locked him in place. The successful swing left him exhilarated—
Falling into the sea here would be much worse than falling between buildings.
[Frank: Report.]
[Team: Successfully latched on.]
Two frigates. Four sides. Twenty-four special ops soldiers—all latched onto the ships!
"Woohoo!" Kurt whooped. "Way more thrilling than chip training! We're on a Navy ship! We're attacking the damn U.S. Navy!"
"You sound way too excited, just like the pirates. Don't start thinking this ship's carrying gold," Frank joked.
"That's racist!"
Frank chuckled and began scaling the hull, using the web line.
Mini jet thrusters fired. Arms and legs pushed together. Frank vaulted higher.
He could now see the steel soldiers on deck.
Suddenly, they stopped moving.
[Frank: We've been spotted. Demo team!]
[Ghana: Standing by!]
Using the web-line, Ghana lifted a rocket launcher. One steel soldier peeked over—
"F*** you, U.S. Navy."
BOOM!
Rocket fired.