AN: A huge thanks to Ghost 501, Shadow1176, and striberx for assisting me with this massive project of a story.
Please do enjoy.
After all, it is up to one's own self to decide how to spend one's limited time.
Begin Experiment Log S-98: Incongruous.
Play.
Screams. Gunfire. Smoke. Another page was turning in the ever-lasting war that had seen Gamindustri brought to its brink. No one knew how much longer the conflict could go on. Resources were starved, and citizens were dwindling. Such a small world could only offer so much.
This world was all that its inhabitants knew. And all of them knew that to render it uninhabitable would be beyond foolish. Yet, peace had failed. Treaties had been broken. Battles raged on in endless stalemate, coming and going as if the ebbing and flowing of the tides covering the surface of the never-ending ocean below. No one could even remember an era in which Gamindustri had not been embroiled in combat.
This time, the enemy had hardly even waited for daybreak to resume the offensive. Black Heart stood atop her nation's Basilicom in the heart of Lastation, wondering which opponent had been so eager to throw their heads against a wall. Not that it mattered – her land's defenses had held firm for so long, and they would continue to do so.
Still, she had to admit that her curiosity was piqued. Surely, the aggressor was not Leanbox – Vert would never manage to wake herself in time to carry out such an early attack. Something also told her that Lowee was not behind this, given Blanc's bullheaded strategy of amassing her forces for an all-out attack once every week against what she perceived to be the weakest target. Lowee had already been repelled three days ago, and it was doubtful that Blanc would be changing her tactics anytime soon when she seemed to be getting stronger each and every time.
That left Planeptune.
A sigh escaped Black Heart's lips. She wasn't afraid to admit that the only reason Purple Heart's nation had yet to completely dominate the land seemed to be due to its lack of effort more than anything else. The nation appeared unwilling to fully devote itself to war, unlike the others, and its attacks came sporadically, usually without any particular objective in mind. Any attack made against Planeptune, however, was deflected with ease, leading to it being an unpopular target, both for combat and espionage.
Was the issue one of leadership? It was hard to say. Purple Heart had proven herself multiple times to be the strongest of the four CPUs of Gamindustri in regards to single combat, but how effective was she at leading a nation to war?
"Lady Black Heart!" A man came running up from behind, panting heavily. He must have had quite the stairway to climb to reach the roof – elevators were forbidden in the wake of an ever-constricting energy shortage. "We have confirmed reports of a new offensive begun by Planeptune! Their force is different than any we have ever seen before! Larger! More powerful! With weapons that cannot even be identified! We humbly beg for your assistance on the battlefield, Lady Black Heart!"
Black Heart's eyes narrowed, her gaze focused on the horizon where plumes of smoke and flashes of gunfire could already be seen. "I know."
"Then, please – you must aid us, Lady Black Heart. I am afraid that our defenses may not hold for long against such an overwhelming force."
The CPU turned to face the messenger. "Don't be ridiculous. Lastation will never fall. Not while I am your goddess."
"O-Of course, Lady Black Heart." The man gave a respectful bow. "My deepest apologies for the insult that I have brought you, Lady Black Heart."
"You're dismissed."
The man bowed again, but by the time he looked up, the CPU was already gone.
Crossing the distance to the battle was a trivial task for a being such as Black Heart. It was as the man had said – a new type of foe was on display. An aerial assault was already underway, consisting of an armada of aircraft that filled the horizon. Had Planeptune been saving up for this?
Planes were firing missiles into the defenses bordering the floating island that Lastation rested upon, even as the multitude of anti-air weaponry lining the walls created a barrier of flak and ammunition. Despite the effectiveness of Lastation's weapons, their massive barrels letting loose a deafening barrage as if in rhythm, it was clear that they weren't enough to stop the attack in its tracks. Soon, a series of smaller planes came darting in, shooting out a spray of bombs that seemed to fall just short of their targets, disappearing beneath the edge of the island.
Hah. I guess Planeptune's randomness extends to the reliability of its weapons.
Next came the expected airdrops, but their payload was most curious. A few were turned into balls of fire in the sky, but most hit their marks inside the nation's walls, crashing down to the ground at speeds much faster than those that were possible with Lastation's parachute-based systems.
Black Heart flew over to examine one of the craters that were formed more closely. Her forces lining the streets were already firing upon the bullet-shaped pods to little effect. Then, the one below her burst open in a fashion not unlike that of a hatching egg to reveal a vehicle that seemed to be half-tank, half-man. It quickly unfolded to line its arms up to the barricade from which it was being attacked. Beneath the sounds of battle, a low electric hum could be heard, building up to a fevered pitch before the vehicle's arms unleashed a duo of violet-tinted lasers. The effect was devastating, completely incinerating anything that the wide beams touched. They did not cease until the vehicle was no longer faced with any opponents. It then rolled out of its pod, continuing onward in search of more targets.
That's going to be a problem.
Black Heart swooped down, sword at the ready. She wasted no time yelling a taunt, her blade soon making contact with the metallic surface of the vehicle's head. To her satisfaction, it cleaved right through, cutting a swath through the machine and leaving it a sputtering, jerking heap. She chanced a moment to peek into its exposed torso, the only place large enough to possible seat a person. No one was visible inside – just a mess of sparking wires and circuitry.
Completely autonomous? Hah. Looks like they figured out how to get around the population issue. No wonder their force is so large. I know some researchers who would love to get their hands on something like this.
A series of beeps of increasing pitch then met her ears. She had an idea of what that meant, but by the time she realized it, she was far too late to escape. The robot exploded into a fiery spray of shrapnel, throwing the goddess back into the broken pavement of the road below. She took only a moment to allow her senses to recover before picking herself up to her feet, relatively unharmed.
Well, then. Looks like they don't want us learning their secrets.
She was far from done, of course. The battle continued on through the streets of Lastation as the sun slowly made its way across the sky. It was quickly becoming apparent that Black Heart was indeed the only asset keeping the enemies at bay – despite the valiance of Lastation's people, their armaments simply weren't enough to contend with the advances that Planeptune had made stewing in silence behind its walls.
Eventually, she found herself winded, the power of even a goddess having its limits. It was hard to deny the sense of hopelessness that was beginning to creep at the back of Black Heart's mind. This might be the one – the battle that finally hurts us. She shook her head. No. My nation will not be the first to fall. I refuse!
Then, just as she took a brief moment away from the fighting to catch her breath, the ground beneath her began to rumble. At first she mistook it for the force created by the trademark artillery that her soldiers used, but it began to increase in intensity to the point where she was finding it hard to balance.
Some instinct within her urged her to move – she shot up into the air despite the energy such a motion required of her. The sound of a mighty explosion then came from beneath her, which would have proved deafening to anything less than a CPU. The ground had been ripped asunder with a spray of pavement and debris, replaced by the sight of a massive machine bearing a drill on its front. It soon exited the hole it had formed, righting itself on a set of tank treads. A dual-barreled turret unfolded on top and swiveled around before steadying on a target – as the vehicles seen previously had done, a whine of energy was heard before being unleashed in a twin purple beam, carving a scar across a towering building in the distance.
A chorus of drills could be heard all around as an entire army of the machines burst from the ground, each of them pausing a moment to take a shot at what seemed to be random targets. Black Heart's hesitation ended as she charged downward, taking a swing at the tank that had emerged from directly below her.
"What?!"
Her sword had simply bounced off with a clang against the vehicle's armor as if she was using a butter knife. Several repeated strikes had a similar effect, accomplishing nothing but a waste of energy.
"That's ridiculous! Nothing can stop—"
Black Heart's existence was turned into light and pain as something then struck her from behind, throwing her to the ground to just as suddenly snuff out the light of the world.
She had no idea how long it was before she regained control of conscious movement. An attempt to lift her head was met with immediate regret when a terrible sharpness shot through her, eliciting a pained gasp. The sounds of battle were still raging somewhere in the distance – no matter her condition, she had an obligation to defend her people. Gritting her teeth, she began to push herself up from the ground, eventually succeeding in rising to a knee.
"Hm. I can't say I'm not impressed. You never were one to accept defeat, were you, Noire?"
Black Heart took a moment to catch her breath before moving her gaze upward to meet the luminous eyes of another goddess standing several feet away. "Neptune. You're going to pay for this." She didn't waste more time mincing with words, instead choosing to suddenly jump to her feet, grabbing her sword from the ground and launching a lightning-fast strike at her enemy. Her attack was easily parried, a dramatic flash of sparks exploding from the clashing blades, before Purple Heart knocked her back with a counterattack.
It was all Black Heart could do to simply glare when she recovered, sword at the ready, her breaths coming with difficulty. She knew she was thoroughly outmatched. She realized that perhaps a hundred weapons were pointed her direction, waiting to fry her into nothingness. But she also knew that there would be no tomorrow for her if she gave up now – and even if she survived, she wouldn't be able to live with that decision.
Purple Heart suddenly gave a humorless chuckle. "I'm sorry, Noire. I know this must be hard for you to accept. I won't insult your pride by asking you to surrender." The CPU raised her own blade, her eyes narrowing as she analyzed her target. "Unfortunately, you must be removed from this world if this war is to ever end."
"Like hell I do!"
The corner of Purple Heart's mouth turned upward. "If you believe yourself to be the future ruler of Gamindustri, then this is your final chance. Noire – show me what a cornered jackal can do."
Hardly a second had passed before Black Heart was rushing back into combat, leaping into the air to dive at Purple Heart for a sudden attack from above. As before, she was deflected with ease – and the barrage of hits she unleashed next were just as fruitless. She was just barely managing to trade blows, dodging and parrying each counterattack with all the strength and skill she could muster. It was clear that Purple Heart was an insurmountable foe in a duel, as she had always been.
Of course, both fighters were accustomed to honorable combat, but there were more options available to beings known as goddesses. It pained Black Heart to resort to what seemed like cheating, but the future of her people was on the line. Surely they would forgive her.
She gave a practiced feint, abruptly striking from a new direction with incredible speed. As expected, the blow was blocked, but it provided the opening she needed, as Purple Heart would be unable to quickly give a strike in return and likely expected the series of attacks to continue. Black Heart took that moment to gather energy within herself, feeling the desperate shares of Lastation build to an unprecedented level. In the next moment, she gave a scream as she unleashed that energy in a deafening shockwave that buckled the ground beneath her. Purple Heart's eyes went wide as she was sent flying back to land in a heap some distance away, apparently stunned.
Black Heart stood panting, feeling drained after such a display. At this point, she was barely managing to maintain the form of a goddess, but she could hardly stop now – her opponent was wide open. Yet, she paused as she came to stand over Purple Heart's vulnerable form.
"You're stronger than I gave you credit for," spoke the CPU of Planeptune, her expression formed into a grimace. "Your shares are burning brightly within you. The people of Lastation…how devoted they must be in their hour of need."
Black Heart knew that the smart thing to do would be to end this here and now. She could feel her mind sending the impulse to raise her sword, but her arm refused to comply.
Make your decision. The shock to her motor functions will not last long. A mortal would have been paralyzed, but a CPU can easily recover from such a blow.
"What's this? I've never known the goddess of Lastation to be a coward before."
"I…"
A vision suddenly flashed through Black Heart's mind – Purple Heart in her human form, laughing and smiling as she ran from Noire's own human self after telling a silly pun. In another, the four goddesses stood side by side several others Black Heart did not recognize, joined together in an effort to defeat a much greater foe. In yet another, a dimension unlike any that had ever been seen, populated by monstrous beings beyond description. A hundred such images appeared, a lucid slideshow of thoughts that refused to release their hold.
A countless number of possible existences lie just beyond your sight, CPU of Lastation. I can only wonder how your own will end.
Black Heart blinked, feeling her eyes refocus on her rival's expectant gaze. It almost felt as if a new level of awareness had dawned upon her – every sight and sound seemed that it had been coming to her before through a fog, and only now was she fully awake. Her muscles tensed, knowing that her next move would decide the fate of more than just the two dueling CPUs.
Kill her. This is your last chance.
"No…I can't!" Black Heart threw aside her sword with more force than intended, the numbness overtaking her body making it difficult to control herself. "This isn't how it's supposed to be!"
"Noire?" Purple Heart stared in surprise for several seconds before recovering from her shock. She leapt to her feet, assuming a battle-ready stance. "That was foolish. I can't say I'm sure why you spared me, but I'm afraid that I can't extend the same mercy to yourself. Goodbye, Noire."
"But…Neptune! This is all wrong! I—"
Any further words the CPU of Lastation had to say were ended by a single, decisive thrust. The goddess could only stare down at the blade sticking through her before her form faded away, being swept into the invisible current of share energy that permeated all of Gamindustri.
End of Experiment Log S-98: Incongruous.
Rewind.
.irtsudnimaG fo lla detaemrep taht ygrene erahsfotnerrucelbisivniehtotg, —