A world where you live surrounded by companions is an ideal world. A world where you laugh together and have fun every day could be described as bliss. Right now, Neptune, Noire, Blanc, Vert, Uni, Rom, Ram, and Nepgear are all enjoying themselves with a game in the Planeptune Basilicom. The game's victory music resounded from the T.V. as the round had concluded.
"Neptune you're just too good at this." Nepgear sighed as she lost another round.
"Ahaha! No one can beat me, I've been doing nothing but playing Mega Street Buster 2 all week!" Neptune cheered.
Noire remarked from her chair in the corner of the room, "Shouldn't you have been working?"
"Boo, you sound like Histy." Neptune responded.
"Hey, Rom and I want to play against Neptune!" Ram shouted as she grabbed Rom's hand as pulled her forward. Rom nodded in agreement.
"Hey, Neptune hasn't stopped playing since we got here! Play against my sister and me!" Uni shouted as she pulled Noire out of her chair and pushed her forward.
"H-Huh? I mean, I was fine watching, I didn't really want to play or anything." Noire responded in a soft tone.
"Huh? Didn't you say you couldn't wait to play against everyone on the way here?" Uni said, confused.
"Uni! Not out loud!" Noire responded, her face starting to redden. "I-I mean, maybe I want to play a little bit…" Noire continued, meekly.
Vert stood up and puffed out her chest. "Well, if Noire is busy with her tsundere act, perhaps I shall take the stage!" She started to proudly stride across the room.
"U-um, will Ram and I get to play?" Rom said softly, to which Blanc responded, "Of course you will." Blanc then directed her voice towards the other Goddesses, "Hey you friggin' assholes! My sisters and I are gonna play next!"
Neptune then boasted again, "Ha ha! Can anyone defeat the champ?"
Her boast was met with a unanimous, "No! It's our turn!"
Nepgear watched this scene unfold and thought to herself how nice the average everyday scene is. Truly, she lived in an ideal world. As this feeling came over Nepgear, she woke from her dream of the past.
A world laughing with friends is ideal, and Nepgear lived in such a world long ago. To defeat the Deity of Sin and save Gamindustri, Nepgear had to slay her friends with her own hands using Gehaburn, the sword which grew in power for each goddess soul it consumed. They would never smile again, and there was no going back to good times. Their last moments together were painful, facing each other in a kill or be killed situation, with only one remaining. Their dying words echoed in the back of Nepgear's mind. Nepgear pushed these dark thoughts to the back of her mind and sprang out of bed to start her day.
Making her way towards the main chamber, Nepgear passed Kei. They acknowledged each other's presence and continued forward. Even though no one doubted Kei's capability as the mediator between Nepgear and the people, she rarely spoke with Nepgear herself. Kei worked closely with Noire and Uni, who Nepgear killed to defeat the Deity of Sin. Kei worked with Nepgear only because, according to Kei, this was the most logical course of action after the death of her previous employer. Personal feelings had no room in the world of business, but Kei still chose to avoid Nepgear when she could.
Nepgear arrived in the main chamber greeted by Histoire. "Nepgear, I really must commend your work ethic these past few years. I did not think you could annex all four main continents in such a short span of time."
"I had to keep up with the work ethic of Noire now that she's no longer with us. If I don't show the people I'm a capable leader, Gamindustri will perish."
"Yes, yes, doomsday prophecies aside, don't you think it's time for a vacation?"
"A…vacation? Histoire, are you feeling all right? I never thought you'd suggest anything other than more work."
"Well, that is because Neptune would never work, and she would make you slack off with her!"
"Yeah…yeah she did." Nepgear said with a somber expression.
Histoire sighed. "Nepgear, it is because you work so hard that you need a vacation. Everyone needs a break eventually."
Nepgear protested, "I'm fine. I have a whole world to run, so there's no time for fun."
"It saddens me to hear that, because I have already arranged a stay for you at Rebeat Resort."
"Already arranged? Histoire, I really don't think- "
"Nepgear! Have you looked in the mirror recently? Your eyes are bloodshot, your movements are sluggish, and to be honest, your handwriting lacks the neatness it once had. You have not taken a break in years and your body cannot handle the strain."
Nepgear could not protest the facts. She suffered from insomnia and could only sleep about 3 hours a night. When attempting to rest, she could only fantasize about how she would wake up with her sister next to her and realize all this was just a bad dream. The fantasy of returning to her ideal world kept her up for hours.
"Nepgear! You are spacing out again! Nepgear!" Histoire shouted.
"Oh!" Nepgear said as she was brought back to reality. "Okay Histoire, I'll take a short vacation, but be sure to call if you need anything at all."
"Of course. Now hurry and pack!" Histoire urged Nepgear towards her room.
Back in her room, Nepgear had neatly packed her belonging and observed the current state of her room. No traces of any mess were left in her room, same as always. Neptune would always create messes that Nepgear would later clean, but that never happens anymore. Nepgear's mech tools were starting to collect dust as well. She rarely had time for her hobbies anymore. Gehaburn silently rested against the wall. Nepgear had considered bringing the sword with her, but there was no need for such a powerful weapon on vacation. She had a normal Plasma Saber in case of any emergencies, such as a monster attack.
"All right. I'm off." She said to no one in particular.
Towards the heart of Lastation lie Rebeat Resort. A resort, as the name suggests, marketed itself towards the working class as a getaway location for holidays, such as the vacation Nepgear was currently taking. During the war against ASIC, Nepgear visited this resort in search of the Mascot. She felt a tinge of Nostalgia as she walked the resort's mechanical pathways that spread across the lake's shores. Nepgear stopped in one spot she remembered fondly. The pathway opened to a disc shaped platform that allowed for sunbathing and a diving spot into the lake. Nepgear had fought Uni on this platform after their true identities were revealed to each other. A while after the battle, the two of them had put aside their differences and joined forces to save their sisters.
"Uni…" Nepgear murmured as she remembered her friend. During their battles together the two had become close friends. Perhaps they could have become more than that if not for the sadistic requirements of the Soul-Stealing Sword. Nepgear felt tears start to well up as she remembered her adventure with Uni as she could almost swear she heard a voice.
"Get it together Nepgear!"
Nepgear looked around her surroundings for where that voice could have come from. It sounded just like Uni. She was always the one to set Nepgear on the correct course when Nepgear was feeling self-doubt. But Uni was gone now. Nepgear had only herself to rely on now.
"Wow it's really her! The One Who Stayed!" a little boy said as he pointed straight at Nepgear. She quickly wiped her tears and put on a brave face to approach the boy.
With the other goddesses of the realm gone, Nepgear had received a nickname for being the only goddess remaining in Gamindustri. Of course, the general public did not know the truth of what happened. Common belief held that the other goddesses had ascended to Celestia, with only the Purple Sister remaining for the good of the world. Kei worked hard to plant this seed into the minds of the public. Failure would have most likely resulted in a much more negative opinion of Nepgear.
Not everyone believed this rumor, however. Even if most people in each major city follow the Purple Sister, there are some dissenters, and of those dissenters, some use violence to express their views.
As Nepgear approached the young boy, a woman who appeared to be his mother had grabbed his head and bent it forwards so that he would be in a bowing position.
"Hey, show respect in front of our lady! Lady Purple Sister, I deeply apologize for the boy's insolence!" the woman shouted as she apologized profusely.
"Oh, no, it's fine." Nepgear said, unsure of why this woman was being so formal.
"Your kindness is truly a marvel to behold my lady." The woman responded with relief.
Now that Nepgear looked at the people around her, they all seemed to be avoiding any sort of eye contact with her. They were all lowering themselves in her presence as if she were a queen. This struck her as odd, as she had always known goddesses to be like idols in the sense that they were approachable but still respected. These people seemed to treat Nepgear with the amount of respect that would suggest they fear her, but unless they knew the truth of how the war ended why would they be afraid?
"Goodness, look at the time!" Nepgear realized that her presence created a scene and promptly made her way towards Lastation proper to find her hotel.
Entering her hotel room, she noticed it was quite spacious. Did Histoire really arrange for a room this large or did the hotel staff insist of giving their goddess the biggest room they own? The room contained a king-size bed, a mini cooler, a couch with tables, and a rather large bathtub. Feeling exhaustion from the journey, Nepgear plopped face first onto the bed and sank into the bed a little bit. She began to drift off to sleep, but before she could reach dreamland, Nepgear heard a knock on her door. Annoyed and drowsy, Nepgear moved off the bed and opened the door.
"Yes, who is- " Nepgear could not finish her sentence as she was promptly punched in the gut. She felt bile start to rise in her mouth as she fell to her knees. She looked up and saw three heavily armored military men at her door, all armed with submachine guns.
"Hey that was supposed to knock her out!" one of the men whispered in a stern tone to the man that had punched Nepgear.
"I thought it would." He responded. "I didn't think she'd be so tough."
"Well, let's just hit her again!" The third man said as he raised his gun, the stock poised to strike Nepgear in the face.
"This is bad."Nepgear thought to herself. "My sword isn't in reach, I'm outnumbered, and my stomach is really hurting right now. The sooner I act, the better."
The stock started to move towards Nepgear, and with lightning-quick timing, Nepgear sprung upwards from her crouched position and twisted her body to reach her arm behind her head to catch the gun by its handle and pulled the trigger, firing into the man's face. Blood sprayed from his wound onto the doorway, the walls, and Nepgear's cheek.
"Shit, she doesn't hesitate. Open fire!" the first man who had punched her shouted.
Nepgear used this chance to jump back into the room and move behind a wall towards her equipment to pull out her Plasma Saber. Adrenaline kept the pain in her stomach at bay for the time being. She crept up to the corner of the wall and waited for her chance. As soon as the man who punched her entered her range, she leaped out from the corner and thrust the saber into the man's throat. The man remaining near the door opened fire and Nepgear used the now dead man's body as a shield while she inched closer to the final threat. Once within range she discarded the body to the side and charged towards the final soldier-looking man. The man dropped his weapon and fell to his feet.
"M-Monster! You're a monster!" he said, paralyzed by fear.
Nepgear, now coated in blood on her entire frontside, approached the man and rested her sword above the man's throat. Eerily calm, Nepgear asked the man, "Who are you and why did you come here?" The frozen soldier looked into her eyes and saw no intent to show mercy. This girl, drenched in the blood of his comrades, cold eyes lacking compassion, and poised to kill the man with no hesitation was the most terrifying sight this man had ever seen. He rolled over and cowered in the fetal position.
"P-P-Please don't kill me!" He said.
"…this is pointless." Nepgear stated matter-of-factly and stabbed the cowering man through the heart.
Now that the immediate threat was gone, Nepgear searched the bodies to see if she could find out who these people are and why they attacked her. She uncovered a note on one of them giving directions to this hotel room and instructions to take her sword. Nepgear started theorizing to herself.
"My sword? My Plasma Saber is one of a kind seeing as I made it myself and no other technology like it exists in the world as far as I know. But that's probably not what they're after. I'd bet they thought I'd bring Gehaburn with me. It's an incredibly powerful sword, enough to fell the Deity of Sin in one strike, but only a few people know about it's true power. Do these people know the secret, or did they just assume I have a powerful arsenal?"
Upon further inspection, these soldiers have an emblem on the uniform. Nepgear was not overly fond of the name these people had chosen for themselves, as it strongly implied they were rebelling against her.
Gamindustri Liberation Army
The hotel is no longer safe, and Nepgear decided to cut her vacation short and make plans to return to Planeptune. A new threat to the peace of Gamindustri seemed to approach.