The Kamen Rider with a purple hair-like helmet staggered backwards, holding her arm. She knew that this was where the battle ended. She didn't even consider that she would be the first casualty of The Rider War, but here she was surrounded by her fellow riders that considered her to be more of a threat than any one of them individually. She took a step forward, in a defiant act of not going gentle into the night, but she was too damaged to even manage that and fell to one knee.
The other three Riders looked to each other and nodded. They all pressed the "B" Button on their Drivers each one shouting:
Kimiwaza!
Lastation!/Lowee!/Leanbox! Critical Crews-Aid!
With that, Kamen Rider Purple Heart was ejected from the War.
Neptune slept peacefully in a bed that was not hers. We'll get back to that, because really after all she had been through, Neptune really had no right to be sleeping peacefully. She was hit with three finishing moves at once. Any normal person would have exploded(literally). But Neptune was a goddess and therefore made of tougher stuff than explodium. That being said, she should be feeling sore, but the fact that she basically passed out after being ejected could explain why she was so peaceful.
An Alarm Clock sounded.
"Shuuut Up!"
There went the peacefulness as Neptune smashed the alarm clock. The word 'Literally' is not being used to convey hyperbole as it usually is.
"Oops, I think I broke something"
Neptune opened her eyes, noting that the room was entirely too yellow and pink. She tried to sit up but the soreness finally registered.
"Ugh, What happened? Where am I?"
"Oh you're awake!"
Neptune looked up and saw a girl with pink hair and a yellow sweater looking down at her.
"Good Mornin, Sleepyhead! Well actually it's Afternoon."
Neptune shifted again, the soreness still have a grip on her.
"Um… This isn't my room is it? Is it yours? Why am I tucked snugly in?"
The girl put her finger to her mouth as if recalling something.
"Well… it was only last night. I saw a shooting star. That was you!"
"That was a short answer," Neptune said, quirking her eyebrow. Her eyes went wide as she fully processed what the Pink haired girl said to her, "Wait, I fell from the sky?!"
The girl nodded.
"You and your gashat were sticking out of the ground, Just like soul-sword!"
Neptune cocked her eyebrow, "As much as I would love to go on a tangent about Soul C****** that establishes just how meta this franchise is. What's a Gashat?"
The girl tilted her head, "You don't know what a gashat is? But … I'm certain it's yours. It was laying right next to you. Maybe that's why…"
"Um… okay, I'm not following here. This feels like a plot twist. This is only the first cutscene."
The girl produced a yellow and pink plastic handle with a glass rectangle on top. The rectangle was covered in what seemed to be white connection points for an electronic reader (Read: Game Console). On the handle there was a black finger guard where the grip was and there was a sticker on the front that had a chibi pink haired girl wielding a giant syringe with the name reading-
"Compile Heart?" Neptune asked.
"That's me! Well, actually my name is Compa and this is my gashat!" The girl now Identified as Compa sat down, " They say that gashats are an extension of yourself, a sort of rite of passage the sets you apart from a normal NPC. I got mine when I entered nursing school."
"Okay… I think I'm following."
Seeing how this was Neptune talking, she wasn't really following.
Compa produced another Gashat this one light purple in color, The rectangle on top having fewer connection points and lacking a sticker.
"This is the one I found next to you. It is strange that there wasn't a name on it."
"Really? Super weird! You said that only super special people get these, right?"
"Well, actually a lot of people have them, but it's not exactly something you would buy in an item shop."
"Oh…"
Compa gasped, "Oh we didn't get properly introduced. You already know that my name is Compa."
"My name's Neptune!"
"Good to meet you Nepu...Nepti… Nep… I can't really pronounce it. Can I call you Nep-Nep?"
"Sure, you can call me anything!"
"Well, Nep-nep, do you remember anything before falling out of the sky?"
Neptune looked to the ceiling, thinking. She squeezed her eyes together in concentration before sighing in defeat.
"No… I don't remember anything."
"You have amnesia, that's why your gashat is blank."
"Compa say what now?"
"I told you, gashats are an extention of ourselves."
Compa gave the blank gashat to Neptune. As Soon as Neptune got a hold on it a surge of pain went through her head as an image of a power button kept flashing in and out for her.
"Nep-Nep!"
Neptune picked herself up, and shook herself off.
"I'm fine, I'm good, I'm fine. Just a sudden migraine."
"That's not good, Nep-nep."
Neptune felt a warmth in her hands and saw that her gashat was glowing. The glowing subsided to reveal that a sticker was placed on it. It featured a stylized picture of Neptune posing with a V-Sign with the title saying "Neptune Adventure".
"Well, At least we know what my Gashat is called, anyway."
"Do you remember anything?"
Neptune shook her head.
Compa held her chin.
"Maybe we can find a clue where you landed. I remember exactly where it was too! I can show you."
"Um… okay? But you said that you go to nursing school or something."
"Oh, Uh, yeah… classes got canceled because of the monsters, so I have the time."
"Oh, Okay then."
"First, though, let me change those bandages!"
After some shenanigans with the bandages and Compa nearly suffocating Neptune with bandages. The two girls stepped outside into the main city of Planeptune. The city looked as if Tommorrowland was design by a purple unicorn. Tall sky scrapers filling the horizon while people commuted through sky bridges and flying busses. It was truly the Land of Purple Progress.
"Nep-Nep, do you know how to fight?" Compa asked suddenly, "I mean, you have a gashat, so I would think…"
"What does having a gashat have to do with fighting?"
Compa pressed a button on her gashat without saying a word.
"COMPILE HEART!"
The voice and music seemed to come from everywhere as a giant screen appeared behind her, showing off a cute Pink title screen for Compile Heart, with the instruction 'Press Start' at the bottom. The screen disappeared as Compa held her hand infront in front of her. A screen with a syringe flew in on a ring that appeared around her. The screen rotated and a giant syringe appeared in Compa's hands.
"Wow! It's like an inventory screen in your pocket! Although I have to admit that the syringe for a nurse is pretty cliche."
Compa just smiled at that, "Gashats have become very useful for monster fights. Before the monsters appeared, some of them used them for IDs and random storage."
Neptune pulled out her gashat and looked at it, "I wonder if I have anything stowed away…"
Neputune pressed the button on her gashat.
"N-NEPTUNE ADVENTURE~!"
A screen also appeared behind Neptune, but this one was glitched to all get out. The music was all garbled and the screen had random bits and pieces going out.
"Oh, Nep-nep, that doesn't look too good."
"I guess my fall messed it up a little, huh?"
"Well it could also be your amnesia."
"Oh yeah, there is that!"
Neptune rested her face in her hand in thought.
"Although, I'm pretty nepped if I don't have something to defend myself with…"
She looked around the area and spotted a dumpster. She ran towards it and somehow picked out a wooden katana. Even the author is surprised, but whatever progresses the story.
"Are you sure you'll be okay with that?" Compa asked.
"Eh, it's only the first dungeon. I can handle it."
Compa shrugged and the two made their way to Virtua Forest.
Virtua Forest was a first dungeon just like any other. Low level mascot enemies, fairly linear path and crafting items that will become useless by chapter 2. The Fights with the Dogoos and the tulips did show another cool thing about gashats: They could keep track of their owner's HP with a little screen that popped up for them.
"Here we are!" Compa announced.
Neptune looked around, "You sure, Compa? I would've thought that there'd be a big crater, and I would be laying down in it like a joke character in a martial arts Manga."
Compa giggled and showed Neptune the spot where there was a small crater with another hole that was presumably for her head.
"Remember anything, Nep-Nep?"
Neptune shook her head when something caught her eye. She looked and saw a faint glinting in the got down to her knees and lightly dug at the spot, revealing what looked to be a handheld game console. A violent handheld gaming console, one side seemed to house mini cannons and the other side having what looked to be a chainsaw. The body itself was a light blue, the apparent screen was simple square framed by 'A' and 'B' buttons, and on top of the apparent screen was a protrusion coming out at a 45 degree angle.
"What is it, Nep-Nep?"
"Okay, so… this is going to sound cliche and sort of out of character, but I have a feeling that this thing is super valuable."
Neptune reached to pull the device out of the ground. It was stuck in there really well. It took a couple of tugs, but she managed to dislodge the device from the ground, only to have the ground crumble from under both her and Compa.
"Wouldn't have minded this part going off script!" Neptune yelled as she and Compa fell into a cavern.
For the record, The author is the one who decides when and where to go off script.
The Two girls fell to the floor.
"Aw, man, I don't care how valuable that thing is, that was not worth it."
Neptune heard a scream, and looked to see that Compa was captured by a spider type Monster.
"Neptune?"
"Oh hey, Histy! I forgot you were a thing! The author sorta glossed over our conversation"
"Neptune, your friend is in danger! Aren't you going to do something?"
Neptune cocked an eyebrow, "I only have a wooden sword."
"You have your Driver, don't you?"
"I.. have amnesia, so… I don't know what that is… I have this game pad."
"That's your Driver, but… If you don't remember anything. That might be dangerous."
"Histy, the more we talk, the more danger Compa is in!"
"..Fine, take the Driver and attach it to your waist"
Neptune did just that and silver straps came out of the handheld and secured themselves to her waist.
"Now, Press the A button on the Driver"
When the button was pressed, a catchy techno jingle started playing all around her. Neptune started to feel woozy and unseen to her the screen on the driver was showing a power symbol.
"Activate your gashat"
When Neptune pressed the button, the Gahsat didn't shout it's name like it did earlier. Neptune whited out and an image of an older version of herself in a cybernetic leotard ran through her head.
"PLANEPTUNE ADVENTURE!"
Neptune opened her eyes and once again unnoticed by her, her eyes became a lighter shade of blue and the irises became shaped like power buttons.
"Histy, I think I can take it from here."
She brought the gashat to her face and held her other arm in front of her.
"Let's… Henshin!"
She then inserted the Gashat into the driver where the 45 degree protrusion was.
"GA-SHAT-TO~!"
'Japanese Pronunciation… Odd.' Neptune noted, she pushed the red button on the driver.
"ACCESS UP!"
A Holographic card shot out from the screen and overtook Neptune as the Driver (Or at least the disembodied voice that accompanied the gashats and the driver) sang.
"Close my eyes and feel it burn...
Now I see what I gotta do!
Open your heart, Planeptune Adventure.
Alright!"
The resulting light faded to reveal, in Neptune's place, a taller woman wearing a purple leather one piece with a breastplate, armored gloves, and boots.
The breastplate had an hp readout along with Icons that looked like a hammer and a sword.
Her head was covered in a helmet that completely covered her face, save a visor that showed two exaggerated eyes on a black background. The cap of the Helmet looked like Neptune's hair, but is was a hard piece, with two braided tassels coming from the helmet.
"I will change Compa's fate with my own hands!",Neptune noted her deeper tone, alongside her new sense of focus. Right now, Compa's safety was the only thing that mattered.
Neptune held out her hand and a hammer materialized in front of her much in the same way Compa's syringe had.
"GASHACON BREAKER!"
It even had an announcement, cool. Although whatever was left of Neptune's pre-transformation mentality noted that a hammer was not a weapon befitting a main character.
Neptune proceeded to (finally) engage the spider. She hit the monster several times with her weapon, a "Hit" graphic popping up with every strike. The Monster took swipes at Neptune, yet she was able to dodge them.
She noticed that the hammer also had an "A" Button and "B" button. Experimentally, she pressed the "B" button a couple of times and a "jumping" sound effect played in kind.
"Okay.. Just decoration… Good to know"
Neptune struck the spider again, but this time the hit counted as three and actually pushed the spider away from her. It lost it's grip on Compa and she flew into Neptune's arms.
"Nep-Nep?" Compa asked.
Compa couldn't see it but Neptune smiled under her helmet. She set Compa down and faced the spider.
"Let's see what 'A' does…" Neptune thought to herself as she pressed said button.
"Ja-Kin~!"
With that announcement, a sword popped up from the hammer.
"Now that's more like it!"
She took a few swings at the spider with her newly found sword, feeling so much more natural with it than she did using hammer mode. The spider stabbed down, barely missing Neptune.
"I wonder what the driver's buttons do?"
Neptune pressed the 'B' button on her Driver.
"Kimiwaza!"
Neptune found herself being overcome with a great power. She took a couple of steps back and crouched down. Cybernetic wings materialized in back of Neptune. She then jumped towards the spider with a leg extended towards it.
"PLANEPTUNE CRITICAL CREWS-AID!"
The kick connected and the spider exploded into a storm of Pixels.
"Kaishin no Ippatsu!~"
Neptune met up with Compa.
"Nep-Nep! That was so cool!" Compa gushed.
Neptune pulled her gashat out of her driver with a "Gashuun~". With that, she reverted to her regular form.
"Yeah, I guess I was pretty great." Neptune said, "The sound effects were a bit much, though."
"Nep-Nep, look at your gashat!"
Neptune cocked an eyebrow and saw that her gashat did indeed change. The most noticeable change was that the connection points were now going at a 45 degree angle. The other change was on the sticker: Aside from the obvious title change, character on the gashat was changed from Neptune in her current form to Neptune wearing a purple leotard sporting twin braids.
"Huh, Weird. Let's find a way out of here, Okay Compa?"
Compa nodded in agreement as they tried to find their way of the cavern.
"We forgot to recover her gashat." Kamen Rider Black Heart said, suddenly after Ejecting Purple heart from the War.
"What?" Kamen Rider White Heart looked to Black Heart with a eyebrow up (or at the very least a similar expression that could be done through a helmet.).
"We forgot to recover Planeptune's Gashat!" Black Heart exclaimed, growing more nervous, "There's no telling what someone might do with that kind of power."
"I'm not so worried," Kamen Rider Green Heart stated, "Only goddesses such as us can use the CPU Gashats, let alone the Drivers."
"And without Shares backing it up, That gashat will just crumble into dust in time." White Heart glared at Black Heart, "You just made me agree with Thunder Tits, you will pay for that!"
"Perhaps, on another day?" Green Heart asked, "It would be a bit awkward now to do battle immediately after we teamed up."
"Feeling tired?" White Heart taunted.
"I think all of us are, We did just blow through each of our finishers. I propose a temporary ceasefire, in honor of the fallen."
"Kinda twisted to honor someone we just killed."
"If we did kill her…" Black Heart muttered to herself.
"It's better than the three of us keeling over from exaustion."
"I'm getting really sick of agreeing with you!" White heart turned her back. "Fine, We'll each go back to our country and recover. Next time we meet, we'll be enemies again."
Both Green Heart and White Heart departed, leaving Kamen Rider Black Heart still worried about the fate of Planeptune's gashat.