HUGE disclaimer before you read this. Because of the dumb person that is me, I accidentally uploaded chapter 11 instead of chapter 10 last week, which meant that you most likely skipped a chapter. Sorry for the problem. It's fixed now, but still, sorry.


Chapter 11


After yesterday, Blanc really didn't feel like waking up for the day.

Hearing Ventus' criticisms, seeing CFW Brave standing before her, the crazy clashes of energy she felt from the two almost instantly knocked her out.

It only drove home the point of how small and powerless she was in comparison to these behemoths of power. The incomplete Arfoire she fought back then felt like a simple grunt compared to Ventus, and even then, she had to fight TOGETHER with the rest of the CPUs.

In this moment, she was a complete and utter failure.

The other 3 CPUs were captured, her two twin sisters were corrupted by Negative Energy, the CPU Candidate of Planeptune is still missing, and she could do absolutely nothing to help in this war.

She laid unmoving in her bed, her hands tightly clenching the bed sheets as she cried in frustration. Again, she experienced the dream of seeing her twin sisters get corrupted and hurt, while she could do nothing but watch. The expressions they had as they called out her name, their hands reaching out towards her as Trick did whatever he wanted to them, it haunted her.

But she had to get up.

For her sister, for Ventus, for her people, but most importantly, for herself.

She slowly forced herself out of the bed, letting the blanket slide away from her, revealing the white dress she was still wearing from yesterday. Gently bringing her feet down onto the floor, she stood up and walked over to the cabinet, taking and wearing a large white jacket with brown fur on the side to keep her warm.

She stepped out of the room, the chilly morning coldness stabbing into her skin. She ignored the shivers running along her skin and walked towards the living room, where she could smell the nice fragrant of warm tea.

Reaching the door, she was about to open it, when-

"They what!?"

She heard a scream, accompanied with the sound of a pair of hands smashing against a table. Most likely, someone had just jumped up from their seat and smashed onto the table in shock.

She leaned in closer and looked through the gaps.

There, she saw Ventus, Kei, and Linda sitting around a table, a cup of tea prepared for the three of them to drink. The one who had just jumped up was Linda, a look of shock and worry spreading across her face.

She did take into notice that Ventus didn't look as well as she remembered. His face was pale, and she could tell that he hasn't gotten much sleep as of late.

"…You heard me. Brave came her yesterday and told me his plans. Hello? Still there? Ventus to Linda? Earth to Linda?"

Ventus weakly answered back with his 'sarcastic?' remarks as he watched Linda worry it out with a grin. Kei was just silently sipping her tea, passively listening to the conversation. But she could tell that there was a slight look of worry and anger on her face. Who that anger was directed towards, she did not know.

"Ah, uh, sorry." Scratching her cheek, she apologised and quickly sat down. Ventus sighed as he took a sip from his tea, before he continued speaking.

"So, he plans to turn all 4 CPUs into Negative Energy factories and use the accumulated Energy to revive 'Arfoire'. At this point, the only thing holding them back is Blanc, who I saved by smashing Trick several times through hard concrete."

"Is…All we need to do is hand her over, and we'll be able to revive my mother, right?"

She….what!? That girl, right there, sitting among the two of them, was the child of Arfoire!? Blanc had to take several steps back to compose herself, calming herself down at the fact that the child of the woman who almost destroyed the world was in her house!

"…Linda. Who do you want to bring back, Arfoire, or your mother? There's a difference here."

"…Huh? My mom IS Arfoire, you know?"

"Ah, good. At least that's taken care for."

'?' Linda simply had a question mark floating over her head as she, along with Kei and Blanc, pondered why Ventus seemed so relieved at that confirmation. After a light chuckle, he continued his talk.

"There's the problem. If they only bring the 4 CPUs in, all they'll bring back is a personification of Negative Energy, in the shape of Arfoire, if slightly distorted. That's not what you and I exactly want, yeah?"

"Ah, um, yeah?"

She didn't exactly catch what he meant by that, but she agreed nonetheless.

"So, what's our plan then?" Kei asked as she set down her empty tea cup, watching as Ventus went over to her to fill it back up before he went back to sit down and answer her question.

"Simple. I'll-, we'll go there, and interrupt them. Easy enough, right? Obviously nothing too major was going to happen, riiight?"

And a nice lick of sarcasm was added at the end, just to drive home the point of how stupidly dumb this plan was. For one, they'll need to go and barge into the enemy's base, and two, something was obviously going to go wrong.

But the one speaking here was Ventus, and…well, somehow Kei had this belief that he'll manage to do it, somehow.

With that, their talk was finally over, and everyone went on to enjoy their breakfast.

Blanc could tell however, that Ventus was hiding something crucial. Not about the plan, but about himself.

Why did he want to go alone? Why did he know Arfoire? Why was Arfoire's child sitting among them? Why did she feel like his strength suddenly rose drastically from yesterday?

Questions poured in and out of her head, confused and worried as to what that may entail. In her worry, she missed Ventus looking at her through the door, his eyes staring piercingly, glowing a shade of red.

Somehow she felt the intense desire to get the fuck away, right now.


Ventus was narrowminded, stubborn, and selfish.

He admitted that, and he'd seen what hell they could cause if he didn't keep them in check.

However, if there was a way to save his sister, no matter how obscure, he would take it, no matter what he needed to cast aside or sacrifice for it. It was the least he could do to repay the debt.

And honestly? Giving Blanc away would have saved him many headaches. No extra breakfast, no need to watch her all depressed, no need to keep himself tied down, nothing. All he needed to do was hand her over to Brave, get Arfoire revived, and walla! Mission accomplished!

But…well, he just didn't feel like it.

He could almost sense her feelings and thoughts at a spiritual level, going as far as knowing where she was at anytime and anyplace without as much as a thought.

And seeing all that regret, frustration, and hatred all aimed at herself for not being able to stand up for her twin little sisters was…endearing. It reminded him of himself to be honest, if much brighter than how his story played out.

But that still left him with a gaping problem, what to do now?

He did say that their best plan of action was to bust in like heroes, but he doubted he could face off against 3 CFWs at the same time while protecting Kei and Linda AND making sure Blanc was holed up in safety.

He'd just…die.

That's bad.

He needed an easier path to take, a solution he could use to lighten his burden a bit. Right now, all rests on him, and if he goes down, the rest of the team goes down as well.

"Hmm?"

An…easier path? No, perhaps those words weren't right. But…path…path…Why did he feel like he's forgetting something?

Then, it clicked.

Right here, right now, Ventus and his companions were in Lowee. He's lived here long enough to know the layout pretty well. Perhaps in his time running about in the outside world, he's forgotten some things,

But not this.

"The path of trials…"

A long road, spanning several tens of kilometres, an enormous quantity of mana swirling in the air causing a similar affect to a god's domain, monsters freely living and breeding, and a guardian that eliminated any who are deemed unworthy.

At the end of this hellish road, was an 'enhancer' as he called it. Long story short, it infuses ancient mana into someone's body and enhances all abilities they have to an incredible level.

"Path of trials?" While he did whisper, Kei still managed to hear the name, intrigued. It was a place she did not have on her map, or on anyone's map for that matter. It was a place unknown to the world.

Ventus looked at her and thought for a bit. While he's already gone through the path itself, Kei, Linda, and Blanc have not. If they managed to complete it…It wouldn't completely overpower them, but it'd help to lessen to burden on his shoulders.

To answer, he explained to her about the path of trials, along with the reward of getting stronger by beating it, before asking whether she, along with Linda and Blanc, would want to give it a try.

Losing wouldn't be a problem, since the path would just spit them back out into the snow, and by then, Ventus could come in to protect them until they woke up.

Kei looked at the sword on her hips warily, probably using her smarts and skills to calculate whether she even had a chance of trying to survive, overcome, and come back stronger without getting her ass beaten in one too many times.

But-

*Bang!* Even if Kei wasn't convicted on what to do, someone else was.

Blanc, riddled with the guilt of being powerless, couldn't help but slam the door open, her eyes staring at them with determination, perhaps too much determination even. Her eyes looked maniacal, but her burning resolve shined brighter.

Hearing that there was an unknown place that allowed her to get stronger, coming from an insanely powerful being that could kill CFW Trick and take on the pressure of Brave's presence, she couldn't be more sure.

And behind her, while invisible due to her Illusion Magic, was Linda, leaning her back against the wall with her arms crossed, one eye opened staring at them as well.

She was already ready with her iron bat tied on her waist and her body energised. While much more silent, she too was ready to head out and fight.

"…It seems they're ready. How about you? Ready to grind yourselves out? Don't worry, you won't die, physically anyways."

He taunted, a grin visible on his face as he eyed her, seeing the unrest and wariness in her eyes, mixed with a hidden tinge of excitement and wonder. It's quite nostalgic to see.

"A-Are you sure onii-chan…?"

And painful too.

"F-Fine. I guess I can do that."

"…Huh? Oh, great. Get yourselves ready, we're heading out at noon. Oh, and for lunch, just take something out of the fridge, I've left some food there."


It was a starry night, the black sky dotted with many shining stars. It was a full moon tonight, the large white sphere floating above all existence.

There, Ventus stood upon a cliff, his dead, lifeless eyes staring out into the distance. His gaze was empty and unfocused, filled with no emotions.

"Painful, isn't it?"

He heard someone speak, the voice sending chills down his spine, but he didn't respond. He simply stared out. The voice was feminine, filled with ridicule, but also sounding soft from a sense of sympathy and understanding.

He said nothing, but in the deep reaches of his vacant mind, he agreed.

Staring down, his witnessed the hell that had manifested on this world. Corpses lied about, bloody weapons stabbed into the ground, cracks spreading out across the earth. The scent of blood lingered constantly.

–Who did this?

He knew not.

–Why did this happen?

He knew not.

–Why was he here?

He knew not.

The Negative Energy lingering in the air, all born from the regrets, hatred, and foul desires of the corpses was suffocating, even taking form as a dark mist.

"Come on, let's go back. Nee-chan will get angry."

Once again, he nodded in agreement and turned around, leaving behind the scene of death. He came for nothing, felt, nothing, and ultimately gained nothing from this experience…No, perhaps, if there was one thing he learnt-

Humanity was utter garbage at times.


After everyone got ready, Ventus and his group went out on their quest to get stronger, heading towards a place Ventus called the 'Path of Trials'.

…Well…Calling it a 'place' wouldn't be correct actually.

There's a reason why no one even knew of this place.

"W-What is…"

Blanc couldn't help but voice her surprise upon seeing…whatever this was.

Not far south from where Lowee was, stood a lonely statue. It's figure had long been destroyed, due to the snow and winds brushing against it, slowly peeling off pieces after pieces. Now, all that remained was an unrecognisable lump of stone.

But even as its body withered, its inside had not.

Hidden deep inside the statue was a black and white gem, and this was what shocked Blanc the most.

Just as Ventus was an enigma, this gem was too. Holding both dense Negative and Share Energy inside like it was nothing, and even blending the two energies quite well enough to create a nice gradient between the black and white.

Without another word, Ventus simple bid good luck to the three girls and placed his hand over the gem. It shined upon his touch, a soft blend of black and white light, slowly consuming the four of them.

Before they knew it, they were standing over a straight road, about 10 Kilometres or so. Made out of pure…something, painted to look like a racing track, with a blue void surrounding them from all sides.

This was, the Path of Trials.

"So, welcome. As I said, I won't be helping you, since that's cheating. And don't worry, lose as many times as you need. Time won't pass when we're inside here, so good luck!"

With his words done and said, he stepped back a little and crossed his arms, grinning as he encouraged them to go on. Somehow Kei felt a little irritated.

And so, their trial began!

The first try was…ungraceful, at best.

The three girls were completely out of sync. They didn't have any regards of what was happening, and in a flash, they were kicked out into the snowy landscape outside. Being the nice guy he is, Ventus gently pulled the three back in every time they failed.

Blanc, probably too used to using her brute strength to overwhelm her opponents, failed miserably when any airborne or speedy enemies came to fight them. Before she would even get a chance to use her large hammer, or transform into her Goddess mode, they would strike and knock her out, mostly using their numbers to completely overwhelm her.

Kei was…slightly better, but also a bit aloof in her battles.

Since she spent a good chunk of her life studying and working as Lastation's supervisor, she didn't have much training in combat. While her mind was quick in creating tactics in battle, her body couldn't make up for it. Her sword techniques were also painfully terrible.

Linda was the best out of the 3. She could hold her own, fight against the incoming enemies using a 'hit and run' tactic, and use her illusions to bring her out of trouble when things go rough.

It didn't, however, make up for the fact that her cowardly nature dragged her down a bit too much when she comes up against a tougher enemy. Once something breaks through her illusions or is capable of kicking her down, she simply gives up and waits for the inevitable.

So, in essence,

One needs to work on her battle mindset, another needs to learn the essentials of fighting, while the other needs to stop hiding.

A troublesome trifecta of problems, if he had to admit.

Those problems were not something he could fix in a matter of a week, but needed months, maybe even years to finally fix. Kei's problem especially, as the art of battle and combat comes from experience, so she needed the most help out of them all.

Linda's cowardly nature could probably be fixed by some force, and Blanc's battle style should be able to be bent a bit through some short but gruelling training.

But after the 11th battle, he began to see another problem, one that belonged to the resident Lowee Goddess.

She couldn't transform. Or, to be exact, she couldn't use her HDD, or Hard Drive Divinity.

A special power only owned by CPU and their candidates, the HDD was when the CPUs finally decide to use their Share Energy to turn into their Goddess Form. This, along with a power boost and an appearance change, could even shift the CPU's personality a bit.

It was a CPUs ultimate trump card.

But like all skills, it too had a downside.

For one, any contact with Negative Energy in Goddess Form would result in disastrous results. The second was that it needed Share Energy to activate, so if someone were to run them dry or cut off their Energy supply, they would be forced to turn back.

And lastly, if they couldn't believe in themselves, HDD becomes nigh impossible.

If he had to guess…perhaps Kei was right, he might've been a bit too harsh on her. His words added on with her recent failures might have caused her to lose her confidence, hence causing to be unable to use HDD.

And because she couldn't use her HDD, she lost even more confidence.

He leaned back and closed his eyes, trying to think up a way to try and crack her shell of self-doubt. Sighing, he opened his eyes as he watched the three girls fail the trial once more and get kicked back out into the snow.

This was going to be a long one, he thought to himself as he went out to fetch the injured girls.