Disclaimer: All respective rights/ownership go to their rightful owners. I claim no ownership besides any OC. I only wish to write a story :d.

Gamindustri- the beautiful world in the sky, separated into the four great landmasses we of this world have to come to know as with its CPUs (Console Patron Unit):

Planeptune, Land of Purple Progress ruled by CPU Lady Purple Heart.

Lastation, Land of Black Regality ruled by CPU Lady Black Heart.

Lowee, Land of White Serenity ruled by CPU Lady White Heart.

Leanbox, Land of Green Pastures ruled by CPU Lady Green Heart.

These four nations originally were at war in what was known as the Console War. A gruesome war that has lasted for years with no end in sight.

Or so we all thought, no one is quite clear on what happened but from what we learned, apparently Lady Purple Heart got amnesia somehow and went out to unite all of Gamindustri in the arms of friendship. There were some issues that occurred in all the landmasses, Lastation had big issue with Avenir that was resolved with the company being repurposed, Lowee had some sort of imposter CPU, and Leanbox had something about an Overlord Momus happen. Luckily our guardians were able to resolve all these issues and everything was able to slowly be returned to normal fairly quickly.

Aside from the continued threat of monsters that no one has any idea of where they come from (seriously it's as if the things are always meant to spawn in certain points or something), all is peaceful in Gamindustri now. With peace finally established between each nation and the birth of the CPU Candidates in all the nations (except in Leanbox), Gamindustri has never looked so bright before.

Although that can't exactly be said about Lastation still, as Lastation was the nation that suffered the most. Yes, this will be taking place in my beautiful home of Lastation. The country I was born and raised in and have stayed true to, even among all the strife. I still hold Lastation dear to my heart and as such: Lady Black Heart, the goddess and Console Patron Unit of Lastation.

Truth be told, there was a lot of movement between nations in the period of conflict everyone we had undergone. Many citizens from each of the four land masses began moving in and out. As such the populace of Lastation had lowered quite the amount, even with all the work our goddess put in to better the conditions in Lastation.

Although it's not as if her work isn't doing anything. With all the destruction that Avenir caused during their "experiments", many parts of Lastation were destroyed completely. But, with our CPU and CPU candidate hard at work, all these areas have been repaired and even improved upon! Thanks to their hard work the nation of Lastation is heading towards better times regardless of the issues that it had faced.

Is what I would like if it weren't for the loss of people. Much of the population left when they realized this all happened due to the Goddess having been so easily removed by a company like Avenir. Understandably, many people lost faith in a Goddess that was easily pushed away, as a result the regrowth of Lastation has been rather slow due to the lack of people to help rebuild, but progress is being made.

As a matter of fact, even amongst all of this, Lastation's people are still as prideful as ever. The people themselves all help pitch out to our Goddess in the rebuilding of Lastation. Many charities are held to help raise funds for rebuilding, volunteers for labor, bringing lost families together and all sorts of things whatever people can come up with to help ou. It's truly astounding to see the entire nation come together to fix their home. Well except for the monster issue.

See, during the incident many of the veteran hunters lost their lives trying to fight back in the absence of the goddess and as such many lost their lives. So now the only real fighting force against the monsters that are always trying to knock down the walls is our CPU and CPU Candidate.

As you might have probably already guessed from that, I had taken up protecting Lastation as my part for rebuilding Lastation. Since I've never really done well with people, I decided to do the solo job of taking out nearby monsters to help keep the peace. Also it comes with the deal with learning how to use a sword! Always wanted to use one, like some sort of main protagonist in a manga/anime.

…..Anyway, my fantasies aside. Today is like any other in the steampunk land of Lastation. One could clearly hear the pounding and shouts of people at work early in the day. One thing Lastation was known for was waking up early. This applied to me as well since I was bright and awake at 6AM today.

Well to correct that, I've been out for a long time and it's reached about 3PM. As I said before since most of the hunters are gone now (bless them), I'm one of the rare hunters going out now. I say rare because frankly, I think I'm the only one brave enough (or foolish, take your pick) to go out and do such a dangerous job when I could instead be inside the city walls and helping out some other way. I can back this up as I haven't seen anyone out in the fields or even much traffic in the guild.

Speaking of the guild, that's where one goes to get quests for payment and such. Depending on the quest's difficulty, the payment is different from amazing to decent. It's a little surprising that quests still are even in the system for the guild and even functioning. The guild itself was hit rather hard by Avenir but the few computers that do work are being handled by the Basillicom. The quests themselves are usually given by the citizens, so it's a little weird that quests are still being made since most people are to busy helping with the rebuilding effort. It's as if they are randomly generated or something...

Anyway, currently I'm out completing my quest for the day. Since my level isn't high and I'm a normal 18-year-old human, I'm unable to do too much. It also doesn't help I'm still recovering from an injury to my left leg currently. That spider really got me good, poison and all has made it slow to heal as well. I'd normally do a D slaying quest and a few E rank fetch/slay quests in a day to help lessen the burden on the CPUs, but with this injury I can't do much. Especially since she would make a huge hassle about it.

So here I am trying to take it easy, monologuing to myself to help pass the time as I make my way back to the tram system to take me back to Lastation as I had just finished my last fetch quest of the day. Speaking of making my way back, now that I finished with my thoughts, it's actually quite quiet in he dungeon now...

Since I was told to take it easy to let my wound heal as fast as possible, I avoided needless battles to try to do just that.

As such I hadn't noticed the lack of monsters.

Now this is quite the anomaly since I hadn't seen anyone on my way in or out of this dungeon so far. I avoided most of the monsters and had gone all way to the end of the dungeon but no sign of anyone in that time so far...So they must already be gone? Well best to keep moving, whoever passed through made it quite easy for me to avoid getting hurt more. Especially to stay away from the Ancient Dragon that's close to the entrance.

Deciding to thank the Goddess for this boon, I quicken my pace to get out of the dungeon before the monsters respawn. I really wonder how I didn't notice them being gone? Like, I had come here prepared to fight hard since my injury wouldn't allow me to run away easily so-

*ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR*

What th-

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

…..Well those were a set of noises I can't ignore no matter how much I wish I could. Especially since it's near the bridge I'm about to cross.

*Sigh*"Some things can never be easy can they, eh life?" I say to myself as I prepare myself to run towards the two noises…

The scene I come upon isn't something I ever expected to happen upon. Seeing a girl running away from an Ancient Dragon towards a cliff. Totally isn't something I EVER expected to see. I mean, I expected to have multiple scars and battle wounds on my body by the end of it. Maybe a broken body part or two, getting some cool treasure from a dungeon due to the random nature of them, or something. Really, in this line of work that I expected to only do for maybe 2-3 years? That would be enough for me to save a good amount of credits, support Lastation, and be experienced enough to last my life time right?

Of course all that went out the window with what I'm seeing now. Definitely didn't think I'd see something like this...

From what I can tell from my position at the bridge leading to the cliff, the Ancient Dragon is about to corner the girl. It's basically herding her away further and further from her fallen weapon right in front of me. Of which looks like some type of gun?

Well, I have two options here: Run and pretend I never saw this or try to save her and die.

The possibility of me dying here if I go help is a certain 99% chance. I've never tried fighting anything big even, in top condition. I know all too well that a human has little to no chance against an Ancient Dragon by themselves. Back then it'd take a total of twenty or so veteran hunters to kill even one of them without anyone getting hurt badly. Us humans just can't hope to compare at all to the Goddesses who are able to fight anything. We really do depend on the Goddesses. So what chance would I have against a Dragon, one of the most feared creatures of all time in human terms? I'm just a regular human after all. I have very little experience in actual fighting. Aside from the short sword training camp I attended, some time out in the field, I have no real experience in the art of fighting. Especially with this injury to my leg, what chance do I have against one of the most feared creatures in Gamindustri?

With all these thoughts in my mind, an overwhelming feeling of fear grips my heart. It's with this feeling that I feel my feet start to move aw-

"KYAAAA!"

Well that was a nice few second of losing myself. With her plea of help I put all my reservations behind me. No matter how much of me is telling me not to preserve my own life, leaving her to die would downright make me worse than any other evil existence.

With this resolve in mind I made this my goal: Save her.

Today was like any other day since the young girl was born. Wake up early, make breakfast for her sister, and work until the wee hours of dusk. This was a routine she had adopted in order to prove herself to her sister. Although said sister wouldn't acknowledge her much, but she knew that's how it'd be since she was born. Her big sister made it clear with her rather strange introduction, but she was still the big sister she looked up to.

But even with the amount of effort she was putting in to get any form fo acknowledgement from her big sister, it never worked out. Her sister would turn red and stutter out how she expected more from her. Even with the extra effort she put in to help rebuild Lastation, it never amounted to anything from her big sister.

So she changed the routine.

This day she decided to wake up much earlier to get a head start on her paperwork. Once it got close for breakfast time she carried out the last task of preparing breakfast and eating quickly to finish the last of her work for the day in time. With the now extended free time she had now, she made a hastily made up excuse to go out to her sister and went to the guild.

This isn't her first quest or anything, she had gone out with her sister before to complete one. So she wasn't a stranger to the danger quests had. With the experience she had gained and working with her sister on her skills, she had been wanting to go on a small solo quest for quite some time. Problem being, her sister wouldn't let her. No matter what the young girl would say or do, her sister wouldn't budge. Whether it was from thinking she was incompetent, inexperienced, or whatever. Her sister wouldn't give her an answer either. The only answer she would get was a fierce blush, a lot of stuttering, and a large amount of rejection from her sister. So seeing that her sister would never see her way, she decided to take her own action.

The quest she had picked up was a bunch of hunt quests and had been going well so far. She had completed all but one of them, this final one was to defeat the Ancient Dragon that has been causing trouble lately. If she could beat such a strong foe by herself, her sister would HAVE to acknowledge her strength then.

All this was going through the young girl's head until now. Because she was running now. Away from the Ancient Dragon that is currently chasing her to the convenient placed nearby cliff. Things went south rather quickly. Maybe her sister was right about some things.

The fight had started well. She got a "Symbol Attack" on the dragon and started off nicely. The fight was going extremely well for her. The first few blasts were able to damage the dragon greatly and she was sure that she'd beat the dragon in time before dinner.

That was until the dragon knocked her gun away. That was when she had to let out a scream.

With her weapon gone and slowly running out of space between her and the dragon, it wasn't looking good. The young girl could feel a strong sense of fear overcame her as she got near the cliff. She let out another scream in the vain hope that someone would hear her, but she knew that no one else would hear her. She knew this one simple fact now that all this had occurred: She was going to die.

She didn't want to die! She just wanted to make her big sister proud of her! To see that she was worthy of being her sister's little sister and surpass all the expectations she had on her.

But…..now…..

As she reached the edge of the cliff, she knew it was over now but even so...even so!…..She wouldn't take this lying down!

With the best glare she could make up, she stared down Ancient Dragon as it got closer. There was only one thing she had to say as she stared down the dragon that was lifting its claw to end her:

"I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough big sis."

And down came the cl- (I got interrupted…)

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

She had blinked but now there was someone in front of her blocking the dragon's claw with their sword. Said person looked to be in their late teens. Blue spiky hair that was just long enough to cover part of his forehead, pale complexion, a height of around 5.5Ft. He wore a black and blue open coat that's lightly armored throughout. All to end with a simple plain white shirt and black combat pants.

Said someone turned to her with resolved black eyes and clenched teeth, clearly showing the strain it toke in holding the claw back.

"Run! Now! I can only hold it back for so long!" said the blue haired youth.

Stunned by the sudden development, the young girl simply stared at her unexpected savior as he withstood the full brunt of the Ancient Dragon's attack.

"What are you waiting for!? Get outta here, I'll hold it off!" he said as he made a grunt of effort and pushed the giant claw away. Taking this as her que, she quickly started making her way towards her fallen weapon.

….Only for upon arrival to her weapon, the monster's began to respawn around her.

'Oh for the love of!' the young girl thought as she began to fight off the monsters.

'I hope he can hold the dragon off long enough…..' she worriedly thought as she stole a glance at her savior.

'I'm totally going to die' was the first thought going through my mind. I was hoping by distracting the dragon, the girl would be able to get her weapon and help me fight it. With their different ranges of attack, they'd be able to easily take the Ancient Dragon. Most likely. Hopefully. Maybe with an injury or two. Of course his injured leg was already causing him problems (especially having ran the distance to stop the dragon from killing her) but he'd be able to power through the pain for a time. Also it surprisingly wasn't that hard to block the claw. Not to say it was easy though. Definitely wasn't easy.

That all went through the window when the monsters respawned.

With his companion now distracted with the admittedly weak monsters (a distraction that could prove fatal though), he is left all alone with the Ancient Dragon…..of whom didn't look very happy at the moment.

Apparently blocking/knocking its claw away made it very upset, as it was just staring at him…or it was just waiting its turn? Who knows? Gamindustri sometimes felt like some sort of RPG.

For now, he knew three things: 1. His leg hurt like hell, 2. That dragon was looking to use his turn right about now and 3. Today is turning out to be a bad day.

As the dragon was getting ready to bring down its massive claw down again, he got ready to make a quick dodge and slice.

*SLASH*

*DASH*

*SLICE! *

*GWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR! *

'ACK!' Obviously his leg wasn't going to keep up for very long. It just hurt so much with all the extra pressure he's recently put on it. He could feel the stitches starting to loosen already…!

*ROOOOOOOAR! *

*SWIPE*

It launched another attack, much quicker this, and landed a hit on me. It was a small gash on my side, didn't go through much thanks to me reacting fast enough…but for such an attack for my coat barely to defend against it…

It's often said a battle can be determined in just the first few moves. This situation is truly a testament to that. From having to dodge so suddenly I can feel my injured leg already oozing blood from its wound. I'm losing a lot of blood already. Not to mention the cliff is awfully close now…..

I can feel my vision get murky for a second.

Stealing a glance towards the girl, I can see she's already freed herself of the recently spawned monsters and is heading towards me.

Well, time to execute the plan B.

The dragon readies another attack, I wait and prepare myself for what is to come. Hopefully it goes the way I want. And…the claw comes down.

Taking this as my signal, I quickly ran past the claw and slashed its leg, to then stabbing my sword directly into its chest. Obviously it didn't take this very happily and promptly grabbed me. It raised me to its face and stared at me with its bright red eyes. Its grip is so tight; I can feel the oxygen leaving my body quickly. I can see the girl from here and I can see the horror written on her face as she stared on.

"RUN! NOW!" I yelled at her with what little breath I had left.

With a humph, the dragon threw me into the nearby rock wall like a rag doll.

*SMASH* *CRACK*

I'm not entirely sure what broke, but all I feel is pain. My previously injured (now even more injured) leg is now burning with pain, my left arm has no feeling, my head is spinning, and I feel cold. I can just feel the blood leaving me as the cold agony of dying sets in.

'Guess this is where it ends… it was a good run…. hopefully she makes it out. It's funny, I don't even know what she looks like.' I thought as I watch the Ancient Dragon get closer.

I can't do anything, moving is impossible and I suddenly feel so exhausted.

'I just hope no one misses me too badly…..' is my final thought as the dragon readies its claws again and I finally lose consciousness.

A/N: Hello! Well first, thank you for reading. I've been mostly a reader but I've always wanted to write a story and so here I am! Hopefully any of you will join me for the ride. In terms of an update schedule, I'm a little unsure as school will begin soon and college is a jerk. Also work and all that, but I will try to update at least once a week. If anything comes up I will put an update on my profile, so check that out! So anyway hope you all enjoyed the first chapter and have a good day/night wherever you are!

Also shout-out to ChangeHeart for reaching 100 chapters on his story: "Colors of Darkness". He finally is going to reach it today and it has been quite the joy! Hopefully some of you will check it out.