Neptune came to in a bed that was not her own. Her neck was cramped, she could not feel her arm, and she felt like she was sleeping on pins and needles. She was exhausted, more than she had ever been before.
The first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was the black-and-red blanket covering her legs: Lastation colors. With a start, she realized she was already sitting up; her head was bowed, and she was slumped over like she was sleeping at a table.
After a couple seconds, she gathered herself and moved to push back the covers but found that she could not move her right arm. Cold fear settled in her stomach, but she swallowed and lowered her eyes. In the dim lighting, she could make out a dark piece of fabric. Her arm lay across her lap like a small, napping kitten. It was bundled inside the material, which felt like soft leather or hardened cotton. "Whoa... Is it broken?"
She grimaced at the restricting brace around her shoulder. "Ah, darn." Her memory of last night was hazy. She could remember the sound and the painful sensation: loud, burning then numbing. It had been a really unpleasant experience, but Noire had been there. The puzzle fitted itself together: She was still in Lastation, probably the Basilicom, after she had been shot at last night.
She tried to move her arm, but it was a fruitless effort. Any movement on the upper right of her body resulted in immediate discomfort. Her shoulder was sore, there was no sensation in her arm, and—even though she did not give up easily—she was tired beyond belief. Her fatigue was probably owed to Planeptune's ever-decreasing shares. If she was not in such a bind, she would have done something about that.
Forcing herself to put some energy into her actions, she shoved the bedsheets away with her free hand and dragged herself to the edge of the bed. Struggling to this position drained a large portion of her stamina and probably her health points as well. She had to fight the urge to retreat to the center of the bed, where she could go limp and relax against the cushion-lined wall.
In the process of mustering her courage, she noticed that she was missing her hoodie. Instead, she was clothed in the tank top and shorts that she always wore under her sweater. She was wearing a sleeveless undershirt, but only one of her shoulders was bare. The right was wrapped in bandages that encircled her torso and shoulder. They were wrapped tight, almost to the point of being uncomfortable; she was reminded of Compa, whose work as a nurse classified as bondage with bandages.
The uniform that she had gotten from Noire was gone. It must have been a spare uniform, but it could have also been from the goddess' private collection. Neptune felt bad knowing that the clothes were probably ruined by bloodstains if not the bullet hole. At the same time, she knew it was definitely not her fault.
Restlessness and boredom prevailed over self-preservation. Her legs dangled out of the bed, and she pressed her toes to the carpet experimentally. Her sense of balance was far from comfortable; she was too tired to even sit up straight. If she was not careful, she would hit the floor and break something else. Ignoring her disease, she leaned forward and—
A small noise, the click of a lock to be specific, was easily audible in the silence of the bedroom. Half a second later, the door swung inward and the owner of the room, and the entirety of Lastation, peeked inside. "Hey, you're awa..."
She yelped as she saw the purple-haired girl about to rise to her feet. "Neptune! What are you doing?!"
Noire rushed into the room and took Neptune to the waist, pushing her back down onto the bed. Using force to prevent her charge from hurting herself was counterproductive, but it was better than letting her face-plant into the ground. "Oww! Agh, h-hey, Noire, that really hurt!" Neptune winced, squirming as she tried to roll onto her unpained side.
Noire drew back but kept Neptune pinned. "Sorry. I didn't mean to do that," she apologized. It was hard to tell if she had known what she was doing, but she really did look sorry.
Now that her smooth entrance was over, Noire drew back and stood over the bed to look down at the disabled CPU. Neptune squirmed and crawled back to the wall to rest against the pillows. "How are you?" Noire looked Neptune in the eye, then turned her gaze to the sling on her arm. "Does it hurt much?"
Neptune frowned and nodded her head a few times. "Yeah, it sorta does. I don't think love-tackling me to the bed helped much, although it did wonders in a whole different way..." she mumbled, glancing to the side for added effect.
The raven-haired goddess flushed and looked away, murmuring something under her breath. Having gotten what she wanted—an indirect apology was fine with her—she laughed and tapped her bound shoulder. "So, yeah. I've been shot before, right? What makes this one more important, besides being a key story event?"
"We aren't sure, but it has to be related to your shares. You probably guessed that already."
With that reminder of the ongoing conflict, Noire sat down on the side of the bed. Neptune had been unconscious since the incident, and no more than twelve hours had passed since then. Noire filled her in on everything that was going on. Neptune did not inquire about the details. In truth, most of the exposition was lost on her, but the abridged version was enough to satisfy her.
There was one elephant in the room that Noire had yet to bring up. The identity of the sniper was not confirmed, but she had found evidence shortly after the shot was fired. "This is the gun you were shot with."
Noire reached down and retrieved something hidden between the bed and the bedside cabinet. In her hands was the gun she had found at the scene of the crime. She handed it to Neptune, who laid it across her lap. "When I got to the sniper's perch, nobody was there, but this was lying on the ground. They... they must have left it behind when they made their escape."
Neptune examined the weapon, running her hand over the rifle. Decorated with attachments and built with plenty of detail, it seemed professionally made. As much as she wanted to rest it on her shoulder and look down the scope, doing so was impossible with one hand. "I'm not an expert when it comes to this long-range stuff," she admitted, "but this is a pretty sweet pea shooter. A hundred credits says I could have hit myself from that distance!"
All the ammo had been removed, and the firing mechanism was on safety mode. She messed around for a while before Noire spoke up again. "The owner's name is written on the side of the scope," she said finally. Neptune glanced at her and then at the weapon. She put it down in her lap and checked the scope: nothing. "Other side," Noire said.
"Oh, of course. I knew that, defi... definitely..." Neptune stared at the name engraved on the scope and went quiet. At first, she thought she may have misread it, but when she looked up, Noire would not meet her eyes. "Uh..." she faltered. "It... It isn't a common name, by any chance?"
Lastation's CPU sighed soundlessly and shook her head. Her shoulders deflated, and suddenly the prideful goddess appeared much smaller than she normally did.
"No. This gun belongs to my sister."
Descent
Even as the two goddesses met in Noire's room, the Oracles congregated in the main room of the Basilicom de Lastation. Joining them at the conference table were the other CPUs, who sat in silence while the four conversed. Blanc was disinterested enough so as to not pay attention, instead sneaking peeks at a book in her lap. On the other hand, Vert looked from speaker to speaker with narrowed eyes, poised as if to take notes on every uttered word.
The initiator of the conference, Kei, cleared her throat. "My apologies for summoning you all here on such short notice," she started, meeting every pair of eyes. "With the issue of the rebellion in Planeptune, this is something that should have been of no importance to the other three nations. However—"
"Of no importance?!" gasped a shrill voice. Surprisingly enough, it was Histoire who interrupted. The pages of her enchanted book fluttered, and it rose upwards before she could bring it, and herself, under control. She straightened her back and put her hands in her lap, issuing a hasty apology.
Kei's voice did not change as she continued. "However. For Neptune, one of the four goddesses, to be seriously injured, and for the evidence to lead to one of our own CPU Candidates... This is something that all of us should be aware of."
She paused for a moment, and her words were met with a couple well-timed sighs. "If nobody has any objections, allow me to explain the current situation.
"Less than twenty-four hours ago, Neptune was struck in the back, underneath her right shoulder, by a bullet coated and filled with a strong paralytic poison. The shot damaged her right shoulder and paralyzed her right arm. According to the analysis from one of our hospitals, a full recovery could take up to six months."
At this, Blanc snapped to attention. Across the table, Vert met her eyes. They seemed to share the same surprise.
"Noire tells me that Neptune was unable to transform subsequent to the attack, and she had trouble walking for a few minuets until she collapsed altogether. She was carried back to the Basilicom, and she is currently resting in Noire's room. Her condition has stabilized, so we can assume she will recover in all due time."
"Excuse me," Histoire was the first to speak. "Was there any blood from the injury?"
Kei nodded. She had been present when her goddess had removed Neptune's top and administered first aid. "Quite a bit. Is that not to be expected?" she asked. The pages of Histoire's tome rustled.
"Blood is a sign of mortality," Histoire answered slowly, her voice loud and clear. "In our world, one with divine power does not bleed from regular wounds." The Oracle's words were followed by silence, in which almost all eyes in the room were trained upon her.
Chika broke the silence. Her usual flippancy was replaced by concern. "Paralysis poison can be cured with some medicine or magic, right? Even for humans and monsters, those two methods work perfectly fine. The CPUs of all people should not have any problems."
"That is usually the case," Kei shook her head. "But status ailments can be very unpredictable. When bound by the rules of reality, a powerful poison could resist detoxin, paralaxin, even panacea or elixir."
"But that's only in extreme cases, no?" Chika placed a finger on her chin. "And I've only heard of that happening when the patient is a human, never a CPU."
"The bullet was lodged in Neptune's shoulder for ten to fifteen minutes, and a large dosage of poison must have been injected into her body," said Kei with a frown. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the bullet in question, placing it upright on the table and sliding it to the center. It was no different from the typical round found in a sniper's kit: cylindrical and twice the length of a regular bullet with an elongated tip.
Vert stared at the object on the table, then turned her gaze to the one who had placed it there. "The bullet was not taken out within fifteen minutes?" she asked, disbelief showing in her arched brow. Kei did not respond immediately, but she lowered her eyes.
"I am afraid not. Noire did not think to remove the bullet, nor could she have done so without medical tools on hand. She and myself are not proficient in medical care. We did all that we could but left further treatment up to the hospital."
"I am glad to know that you are caring for Neptune in her time of need," Histoire interrupted from her vantage point. She floated down to the table, coming level with both Vert and Kei. "The poison would not have taken long to enter Neptune's bloodstream either way. There was nothing else that could have been done." Kei turned grateful eyes in her direction.
"Black Heart's investigations led to the discovery of a light sniper rifle that had fired only minutes earlier," she continued. "The gun is one of Uni's whom I have not seen in the Basilicom since yesterday morning."
Kei paused and rested her elbows on the table, her chin on her hands. "Although Uni adds up to be a prime suspect, the chances that she is actually the assailant are low. All four nations are on friendly terms, and there has not been blatant animosity between any of the CPUs or their Candidates."
Blanc clicked her tongue loudly enough to grab the attention of everyone in the room. "The chances are low?" she pulled a face. "And how exactly do you know that?"
"Blanc!" Mina glared at her, but the goddess only shrugged and looked down. "Do not be so rude!"
"No, it is a valid question," Kei intervened. Her action only earned her a baleful gaze from the goddess of white. "We have no evidence that Uni is innocent. I let my personal feelings influence my judgement."
Lowee's CPU snorted and, if not for the scholarly figure sitting next to her, would have vocalized her opinion. As it was, the brown-haired girl lost her rebellious attitude when her book and hat were taken away from her.
"Do not forget that everybody present is on equal footing," chided Mina. "I will not have you represent Lowee with such unaggressed hostility." Blanc's features darkened, but she did not say anything more. She scowled and crossed her arms in resignation.
After one last disapproving frown at the sulking CPU, Mina restarted the discussion. "There is one thing I am curious about. I think we can all recall at least one time that our own nation's shares have been low, even hitting zero at times like during the ASIC conflict. How come this has never happened before?"
"This is an extreme case scenario," Kei answered. "For a long time, Planeptune has had virtually no shares. Correct me if I am wrong, but Planeptune was going through a rough patch even before the rebellion." She looked to the Oracle of the aforementioned nation for confirmation.
Histoire nodded and continued from there. "Never before have our shares been near zero for such a prolonged period of time. This brings me to an important issue: the transience of the CPUs when they are without faith for too long." Her eyes hardened, and she smoothed the front of her dress. "Neptune is usually capable of rebounding from most injuries within minutes, like all the goddesses. Yet recently, she was shot and is still incapacitated. This reveals a major flaw that is most likely shared between all four goddesses: They are all much more heavily dependent on faith than we originally thought."
Blanc looked up with something besides apathy in her eyes. She did not speak, though Vert took the words right from her mouth. "So, you're saying that we could be removed from power if enough people wanted it?"
Kei shook her head. "Not just removed from power, but also killed. I hate to think what would have happened if Uni... if the sniper had acted when Neptune was even weaker, or simply struck a vital point." Her slip up did not go unnoticed, but the room's occupants were gracious enough to let it by.
"Let me backtrack to what's happening in Planeptune," Chika spoke, preventing the tension from smothering anyone. "Histoire, didn't you say something about radicals or rebels or something?" The Oracle sitting atop her book nodded. "Those kinds of people could pop up anywhere. Give them something to use as leverage, and they could grow into large threats to the CPUs."
"These groups seem ridiculous at first glance," Histoire sighed, "but they can amass an alarming amount of people to support their cause as pawns. This is not the first time people have turned away from goddess worship, but heretic groups are much more eminent now that we are aware of this vulnerability."
"Excuse me," Mina rose. All eyes were on her as she continued. "Recently, faith in Neptune has been wavering so much that some are going beyond non-belief and turning against her. If we factor in the general rule of our world's democracy, which is that a CPU's power stems from their people's faith, would that mean that the opposite is also true: that negativity and resentment can weaken said CPU?"
The room fell silent for a long while. Blanc met Vert's eyes again, and again, they seemed to share the same thoughts.
As if to end the meeting on a bad note, Histoire offered a final detail. "That is precisely what happened to the CPU of the lost, ancient nation of Tari. Her people revolted and ended her tyranny by starving her of power."
On that note, the meeting was adjourned. Kei stood up and, in her usual fashion, thanked the attendees. The representatives from Lowee and Leanbox left soon after, but Histoire stayed where she was. She stayed stationary until Kei saw her and understood the Oracle's silent request. When Kei nodded her approval, Histoire headed to the stairs to find the room where Neptune resided.
After Histoire turned the corner, Kei was the only one left in the main room. The manner with which she had conducted the meeting vanished, and she sank into her seat at the empty table. She folded her hands and rested her brow on top.
"Uni... Where are you?"
Descent
Though nowhere near as cold as its northern counterpart, the Land of Black Regality was experiencing sweater weather. Coats were pulled tightly around shoulders, their tails fluttering in the breeze. Unfortunately, Nepgear was not equipped with one herself; she had not come to Lastation thinking it would be windy. Her two traveling companions, Rom and Ram, were not bothered by the low temperature. Wrapped in their fleecy winter jackets, they were anything but affected.
"I guess you two are used to the temperature, huh?" Nepgear sighed and smile. The twins rarely changed out of their winter clothing. They went outside sporting blue and pink in both rain or storm, hot or cold.
"Yup! Doesn't bother us at all, right Rom?" said the girl in pink, looking to her double for agreement.
Rom nodded and looked at Nepgear, whose arms were crossed to conserve body heat. "Miss Nepgear... Are you cold?"
Young Miss Nepgear shook her head, straining to keep a pleasant expression. "It's okay, I'm alright. Thanks for asking, though."
Rom ignored her and moved closer, fiddling with the buttons on her chest. "Do you want my jacket? I'm used to the cold..."
"G-goodness, no! You don't have to," Nepgear denied and took a step back. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Keep your clothes on."
"But, Miss Nepgear..." pouted Rom as she fixed both girls with pleading eyes. "You're cold..."
A minute of reassurance later, Rom's hands were safely away from the golden buttons on her top. Without idle chitchat to distract them, the trio was reminded of the task they had set out to do. Three should have been four, but the girl who normally filled the party's fourth slot was missing. As they walked the streets, Nepgear's eyes flitted between her two friends.
"Hey Rom, Ram." Nepgear's quiet voice got their attention. The twins turned in sync to look back at her. She had fallen slightly behind, but she made no effort to catch up. "Uni wouldn't actually shoot Neptune. You agree, right?"
Her mouth went dry from the implication. She had not wanted to sound insecure, but the words had caught in her throat. Two people close to her heart were at stake. Her sister was in danger of losing her life, and her best friend had disappeared without a trace.
It was unnerving to think that Uni hated Neptune to the point of trying to kill her. The thought was insane, and Nepgear refused to believe it until she heard the story from the accused herself. There were so many possibilities: Uni had been kidnapped, Uni was not actually at fault, Uni—
"Nepgear? Nepgear! Hey!" a childish voice drew her attention. Blinking hard, she turned to face Ram, who was about to poke her in the eyes. "Don't ask a question and ignore the answer!" she snapped.
"Uni is... really nice," Rom put forward with a nod and a hesitant smile. "She wouldn't shoot Miss Neptune... They're both nice."
"Right? I bet Uni woulda missed anyway!"
"But... Uni can hit anything..."
"Yeah, so? It... Wait, 'Miss' Neptune? Why are you calling her Miss too?!"
As the twins duked it out, Nepgear could not help but smile. They were in the middle of an argument, but they both agreed on one thing: Uni was innocent. Uni was a close friend before she was a CPU Candidate. Nepgear, Rom, and Ram knew her well enough to know she would never intentionally hurt one of her friends.
Regardless, it was concrete that the gun-toting girl disappeared around the same time an attempt was made on Neptune's life. It was frightening, disheartening news and struck at Nepgear's heart.
Between Uni and Neptune, who should have taken priority? Was it her sister, who was bedridden and maybe even mortally wounded, or her closest friend? Uni was a strong girl, but something was undoubtedly wrong, and Nepgear wanted to find her as soon as possible. At the same time, she wanted to rush to the Basilicom in Lastation to visit and care for her sister, whether she was welcome or not.
To say the least, there was a lot on Nepgear's mind. it was one thing to hear that her sister had been shot, but it was another thing to hear that her best friend had been the one to do it. She could not even imagine how Noire was dealing with the situation.
"Miss Nepgear, don't cry!" someone tugged on her sleeve. The purple-haired girl gasped, and tears fell from her eyes to the path below.
Rom was comforting her with a quivering lip and a gentle touch. The girl in blue looked like she was about to burst into tears instead, but she stopped when a smile broke across the purple Candidate's face. As she was wiping her eyes, another hand tugged sharply on the other sleeve of her uniform.
"Yeah! Just because they found a gun doesn't mean it was Uni!" Ram contrasted her sister's subtlety with volume. "What if she was kidnapped? Or they just used her gun? It's probably those losers who want to take over Planeptune!"
Ram could only be talking about the Anti-Neptune Force, the group rooting for Neptune's dismissal. Their campaign had snowballed, evolving from spam email and online complaints to riots and full-fledged fights. With the rebellion laying metaphorical siege to the Basilicom, it had only been a matter of time until something like this happened.
"Gamindustri to Nepgear, do you hear me?" said a familiar voice. Nepgear shook her head and turned to face the Lowee CPU Candidate. "You don't? Oh, stop daydreaming, let's go find Uni!" Ram yelled with the highest tone of command a child could possess.
Despite her foreboding thoughts, Nepgear sighed and smiled. "Yeah, let's go. Thanks Ram, thanks Rom." Forcing her disparage into the back of her mind, Nepgear shook her head again before nodding with resolve. "We need to find Uni as fast as we can!"
Descent
The setting sun signaled a brief respite for the hardest worker in all of Planeptune. Twenty-four hours had never before felt so long. Histoire welcomed the night as an excuse to take a breather. Neptune had begun to do more work as of late, but even so, Histoire knew she was the one capable of keeping the nation afloat. This entailed working overtime behind the scenes, but she intended to carry out her duty until it was literally impossible. Considering the source of her power, a mystical book, literal was a good way to put it.
Excusing herself from the office, Histoire shut the door and floated through the quiet corridors. Compared to the constant buzz of the workplace, the ambience of the Basilicom was many times calmer and more soothing.
However peaceful her ambience was, she could not escape reality for long. The door to Neptune's room was shut. If Histoire were to fail in her task, that door would remain closed.
She was not taking a break in good conscience. Her place was at the desk or in the library working to keep Planeptune from internal collapse. She felt a twinge of guilt being idle for more than a few minutes at a time. Abilities were meant to be used to their fullest. Her powers had been a gift from her predecessor, who bestowed them with the hopes of Planeptune becoming "a force to be reckoned with".
Though she wanted nothing but to apply herself twenty-four seven, she knew it would be better to give herself some time to relax. She was able to forego sleep and lose nothing except her patience, but having an on-off switch for insomnia did nothing to better her spirit. She was not a machine; her magic was powered by her focus and mental fortitude, which was impacted by her stress levels.
"You've gotta chill out sometimes, Stressty!" scolded a voice in her mind. "All work and no play makes for a dull day!"
Histoire headed down the hall with the intention of making tea. The kitchen was empty, but she was glad to have it that way. With Neptune absent for obvious reasons and Nepgear out in search of Uni, there was no one else that would have been in the building.
She set a pot on the stove and heated it. It would be a few minutes until the water was ready, so she landed on the countertop to wait. Histoire would have waited for the whole duration of the brewing process if not for a distraction in the form of an unexpected visitor. From across the room, sharp footsteps interrupted her thoughts.
"Histoire. I hope I am not intruding," said the speaker as they entered the room. Kei Jinguji, one of the only people who consistently spoke with proper formalities, bowed slightly in the doorway.
"Of course not." Histoire rose to greet her guest. "The Basilicom staff are more than capable of handling whatever issues may arise," she said, hovering eye level with the white-haired girl. "Would you like some tea? I started brewing some, so it will only be a minute or two."
"I appreciate it. Thank you," Kei nodded. "Do you mind if I stay awhile?" she asked after a moment. Histoire motioned to one of the seats around the breakfast counter.
Her guest thanked her with a small smile then sat down without a word. Unsure of how to start a conversation, Histoire gave the other Oracle a sidelong glance. Kei's attention was riveted on a bookcase, and she was scanning its shelves methodically.
When the indicator on the kettle lit up, Histoire floated across the counter to get it. Tea leaves from a black-and-silver storage tin went into the pot, and she moved the pot to the table. At the same time, Histoire busied herself looking for dishware in the cupboard.
"Magic must be convenient," Kei said offhandedly, lifting the lid of the teapot. Even as she said it, Histoire telekinetically set a cup down in front of her. "Thanks."
Histoire put her own cup down and held both her hands close to the surface of the teapot. "Being able to use magic is certainly helpful," she nodded. Though she appeared to be warming her hands, she had actually completed the infusion via a spell she had perfected on her fleeting spare time. "It saves a lot of time, considering how the simplest actions prove to be tedious at this size."
(' ^_^)
A faint smile formed on Kei's face. "Magic or not, you have a reputation for taking a notoriously long time to do anything," she remarked. Before Histoire could reply to the quip, Kei changed the subject. "By the way, this tea is excellent. I have to admit, it may even be better than what we have in Lastation."
"I am almost certain of that," Histoire mumbled, occupied with her drink. Her first priority to taste the revitalizer she had looked forward to for almost an entire day now. The fragrance and flavor of warm tea flooded her senses.
She felt better in an instant. "If I were to name one thing in which Planeptune was superior in, it would be our tea. Should we lose everything, at least we will have warm drinks."
The pair smiled at each other. Even knowing the grim double meaning of her own statement, Histoire felt the mood in the room shift to something a bit more amiable. Neither Oracle for small talk, they fell into a comfortable silence. Histoire took it upon herself to refill both cups when they were emptied. She was halfway through her second cup while Kei was finishing her first.
"How is Neptune?" Histoire broke the silence. "Has she been alright?"
Relief overwhelmed her when Kei nodded "Yes. She fell asleep shortly after you left. Neptune already has my CPU's undivided attention." Kei took a sip of her tea and set it down on the table. Her words would have sounded unsavory if not for the upturned corners of her lips.
"I hope she is not a burden," Histoire frowned, knowing her hope would be in vain. "I cannot thank you enough for taking care of Neptune, but her whimsical disposition will place untold stress unto your mind."
Kei raised an eyebrow and leaned a chin on her hand. "You may be right, but she may not be as much trouble as you would think."
Like her counterpart, Histoire's eyebrow went up. Neptune's main characteristics could easily irritate anyone not on the same wavelength. Because of that, Histoire had imagined her to be sent back to Planeptune after a day or two with an attached letter of apology.
"I do not know her as well as you," Kei continued, "but she is starting to mature. Completed quests logged on the GuildHub show that she put a lot of effort into the co-operative work she did with Noire. Not to mention, she was very efficient. Would you agree?"
Histoire thought for a moment before answering. "No. I would not," she said. Under duress, one would either break or become stronger. Thankfully, Neptune seemed to be of the latter category. "I may sound heartless when I say this, but I hope this situation makes her grow into a strong, reliable person."
When it was clear that there was nothing else to say on the matter, Kei took the initiative to start a new topic. "How is the current state of affairs in Planeptune? Has the Planeptune Liberation Force made any movements?"
It was obvious that the Anti-Neptune faction would have taken action at some point, and confronting even a weakened CPU was a foolhardy strategy. If the rebels had learned something from the skirmish between three of the Hearts, plus IF, it was that they did not stand a chance on a level playing field. To even the odds, they resorted to underhanded yet effective tactics.
Yet, there had not been any further activity from the rebel organization since the trigger had been pulled. A seasoned strategist would know to stick to the basics and exploit any weaknesses, and it was likely that the Planeptune Liberation Force was led by someone with substantial skill. They incapacitated Neptune but made no move to finish her off or seize control of the Basilicom. In fact, they had not made a single move at all.
Kei listened to Histoire's explanation without a word. The half-empty teacup turned in her hands. "How odd," she mused.
Her clockwork mind must have been at work behind her blue eyes. Kei was brilliant in business and in thought; surely she would have an idea as to why the rebels were suddenly laying low. "There is not enough information to come to a conclusion. For now, the best thing to do would be to keep an eye out for any further activity. I would suggest establishing a link via the information network; IF or Gust would be a help in that department."
The teapot was nearly empty. Histoire moved to brew another pot, but the bigger Oracle stopped her. "No, it's fine. I have something to ask you," she said. "I wanted... needed... What is your opinion on the matter of the assassin?"
Histoire knew from her friend's hesitation what Kei was asking of her. Dishonesty would not do but neither would it do to give hasty reassurance. With that in mind, Histoire blinked and told Kei, "As you said before: 'There is not enough information to come to a conclusion.' ( ̄^ ̄) "
Kei chuckled, surprising the pint-sized Oracle. "What about her disappearance and the weapon found at the scene?"
"Her disappearance and her weapon pardon her just as much as they incriminate her," Histoire reasoned. "The connotation between both findings can be flipped. Was she enacting a hasty plan to attack Neptune and flee Lastation, or was she abducted and made to appear guilty?" Her finger traced the lettering of the page she was sitting on.
"You're right. Anyway, I can't imagine Uni wanting to do anything with those people." Kei picked up her cup and hesitated for only a second before downing the rest of the liquid in it. "They snatched her from underneath our noses. I underestimated them; I did not think they would be so organized, nor so competent."
"Kei?" Histoire floated closer, but the Oracle did not react.
"To protect the peace and uphold the pride of Lastation," Kei projected, her voice twice as loud, "I will personally see to the defeat of the Planeptune Liberation Force and the recovery of our CPU Candidate," she declared with a small smile at Planeptune's Oracle. "As a side objective, we will protect Neptune as if she were our own. Noire would not have any issues with this. If you would have it, Lastation will ally with Planeptune for the duration of this conflict."
Histoire stared at Kei. Glad that she was no longer alone in this battle—yet shocked at Kei's sudden, swift-as-storm change in demeanor—she moved her lips without sound. Her eye's met Kei's, and the girl with white hair smiled and asked, "Is that alright?"
Instead of replying with words, Histoire replied through action. Given, she was only able to wrap her arms around Kei's shoulder, but a hug was a hug nonetheless. "I cannot express how thankful I am to you, Kei."
Kei returned the hug by placing a small, gentle hand on the miniature girl's back. "I am simply doing my duty as an Oracle and as a friend."
