"We need to talk."

"Hello to you, too. Good grief. Do you ever lighten up?"

"No."

Relera had to fight to suppress the laugh that wanted out at that moment. The worst part is that she wasn't sure whether Kei was being serious or snarking right back at her. "Okay, then. What's this about? I'm kind of in the middle of something—"

"It's important."

Something about Kei's tone sent an unpleasant chill through the Duchess of Leanbox. Suddenly finding that she wasn't in the mood to trawl Nepapedia's article on mountain climbing – hadn't she started out reading about the history of sentai shows? – Relera closed the browser on her phone and raised it to her ear. "I'm listening."

"Where are you right now?"

"You mean you can't see me on that spy net of yours?"

"I could take the time to track the location of your phone, but it is easier to simply ask."

Relera gave a sigh – she hoped it was audible. "I'm at Leanbox Lake. Right outside the onsen, enjoying the fresh breeze and the sight of bikini-clad babes. You want the exact coordinates of the bench my butt is planted on, too?"

"That will not be necessary."

"Oh, come on. I even put my sexual orientation on the line just to make you crack a smile, and you're going to sandbag me? I'm hurt, I am."

The sound of an exhale could be heard over the phone. "I would ask that you not try my patience. You are lucky that I am extending the courtesy of consulting with you before acting on evidence that you are endangering the domain of the Goddess."

Relera felt her own breath catch in her throat. Kei was doing her best to sound calm, but it wasn't hard to tell that she was really pissed – or unnerved, at the least. "What do you mean?"

"You know perfectly well what I mean. Or will I need to ask your errand girl from Lowee to jog your memory? Perhaps I should send the entire transcript of those 'secret' meetings you have arranged with her?"

That chill from earlier came back with a vengeance and a half. "So did the Oracle decide to spill the beans?"

There was a pause. "No. She has not spoken with me on this subject. To be frank, I was hoping that you would be able to tell me more about her involvement. You must understand that the picture currently painted of your Basilicom is not a flattering one. I do not wish to act on impartial, and perhaps inaccurate, information, but I cannot simply sit idly by when such a threat is present."

"Ah…hold on, Kei. What were you planning on doing?"

Another pause. This one was longer than the last. "I cannot say. A number of choices are presented before me. I can only hope that you can help me follow through on the correct one."

Relera's mouth wrung itself into a thin line. Her throat suddenly felt dry, her hand gripping the phone a little too tightly. "I…"

"You are a Duchess of Gamindustri, Relera. Prove yourself worthy of the title for once."

It was hard to even believe that she was having a conversation like this. She knew she was far from an exemplary leader, but she had managed to coast along so far with minimal incident. Now, it seemed that her luck had finally run out. "What should I do?" The question was posed more to herself than to the person on the other end of the line, but it was heard nonetheless.

"I would ask that you at least answer one question for me. The goddesses…have they returned?"

"They…"

Her attention was suddenly drawn to the bathers lounging in the pools of the onsen. Many of them were gazing upward, several of them pointing at something in the sky. A low murmur met her ears as she turned her head to see what was causing the fuss.

An incredibly loud crunch was the next thing to assault her senses, following by at least one scream. Before she even came to the realization that something had crashed into the skyway snaking above Leanbox, the object was already plummeting through the air. A veritable tidal wave exploded out from the lake when something large and heavy dropped right into it, followed by a cascade of cars and rubble. Several breathless moments passed before a few swimmers made their way over to the wreckage. At least one unconscious person was pulled from a vehicle before a quartet of splashes launched out from the water. The humanoid shapes that emerged were difficult to make out as they flew away at high speed in defiance of gravity, and they hardly caught the attention of those preoccupied by the disaster that had just unfolded.

"Relera? What's going on? Are you in danger?"

"Th…they're…" Relera forced herself to take a breath before rising to her feet with a quick motion. "Sorry. This meeting is adjourned."

"What? Do you not understand the impor—"

Beep.

"What the hell was that about?!"

"I couldn't see where I was going!"

"Like hell, you couldn't!"

"Well maybe if Vert would've moved her big, fat ballistics out of the way, I would've been able to see!"

"Excuse me?! I have no wish to be dragged into this argument! It is hardly my fault that you are too small in stature to see over the level of my chest!"

"Ladies, please—"

"This was your stupid plan, Neptune!"

"Yeah! This whole idea was rotten from the start!"

"Eh?" Purple Heart took a step back as the glares were suddenly turned her way. "But you all agreed to it?"

Black Heart gave a disgusted groan just as a shiver went through her. "Uhg. It's going to take forever to get dry."

"Tch. You're practically wearing a bathing suit as it is," said White Heart.

"As if you have any room to talk! I'm surprised that fat backside of yours manages to fit in that getup!"

"Are you really calling me a—"

"Ladies, please!"

Finally, silence came over the group. Other sounds returned to their ears – cars, conversation, sirens, and a dozen other noises that made up the ambience of Leanbox City. Yet, there was one element that was unfamiliar to them. It sounded much like a faint buzzing, coming from somewhere far above. A look upward revealed its source – drones. A teeming swarm of them hovered overhead, some of them swooping down between the skyscrapers of Leanbox, flying this way and that as if in pursuit of something. Had there always been so many?

"Staying here would only bring us more trouble," said Purple Heart. "We need to leave the city."

White Heart shook her head. "We can't. Not until the Festival is over."

Three of the CPUs jumped when a loud crunch shook the ground. "This whole trip has been nothing but a waste!" Black Heart rose back to her feet, having punched a sizeable web of cracks into the pavement of the abandoned lot they were standing within. "To hell with this stupid Festival! I never wanted to come here in the first place!"

"Calm yourself, Noire," Purple Heart chided. "There has to be a reason Histoire sent us here."

"Does there?" Black Heart's gaze moved over the faces of the other goddesses. "She's been wrong before, hasn't she? What if this was just one huge mistake, and now we're stuck in this world with nothing?!"

The party fell into silence again. None of them were able to meet Black Heart's eyes after such an outburst.

"Has it finally gotten through each of your thick skulls? If Blanc hadn't decided to start robbing banks or whatever she did to get all of that money, we'd be starving on the streets! Us! We're goddesses of Gamindustri, and here we are, sleeping in alleyways! We're supposed to be queens!"

"A credit chit. I stole a credit chit." The words from White Heart were hardly more than a mumble. She seemed to be intently focused on wringing her hands as she added, "Several credit chits. There's at least a dozen different ways it could've been noticed, but I managed to get enough value out of them to last us a while."

Green Heart's brow raised at this revelation. "Well, at least you're an honest thief. Of course, I can hardly approve of stealing from my own people, but…"

"They're not your people, Vert. This isn't your Leanbox. None of us belong here."

"Then what is the source of our shares? It is easy enough to sense that our connection to home has been severed. There is an energy present here – it is only logical to assume that we have followers in this land, yes?"

A sense of alarm suddenly shot through Purple Heart. "Where is the human boy?"

"I thought you had him?" asked Green Heart, her eyes darting around to confirm that only five people were present.

Purple Heart shook her head. "No. He…must've been left back in the lake."

"Hmph," Black Heart scoffed. "I didn't care for him, anyway. Useless NEET trash."

"Noire…" began Purple Heart. She then decided that it would be better to drop the point, lest she start an argument against Black Heart's pride.

White Heart gave her fingers a flex, gazing intently at her hand as she held it up. She threw a glance toward the CPU of Lastation before meeting Green Heart's eyes. "It doesn't make any sense. We shouldn't even have enough followers here to let us transform, let alone shrug off a bullet to the head."

"How can you know that?" Green Heart took a step forward, her gaze questioning. "Just how many things have you been keeping from us, Blanc?"

"I…" White Heart's head turned away, her words trailing off.

An irritated groan came from Black Heart before she turned and began to walk away.

"Noire? Where are you going?" The question had come from Purple Heart.

"I'm leaving."

"You can't leave," White Heart immediately insisted.

That was enough to make Lastation's goddess stop. She turned her head back to face the others. "Why not?"

"There's no way through the magic surrounding the city," explained the CPU of Lowee. "We're stuck in here until the sun rises."

A wry smirk briefly formed on Black Heart's face. "If you say so."

She barely took another step forward before Purple Heart called out to her again. "Noire."

"Get my name off your tongue. I'm not your friend. I never was."

Moments later, Black Heart was taking off into the air, the dark outline of her armor quickly becoming one with the night sky.

Purple Heart would have moved to race after her if she was not interrupted by a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Green Heart's solemn expression.

"Let her go. She can be difficult if she wishes to be. Either way, she's not worth the effort."

A sudden rage flashed through the CPU of Planeptune at these words. She reached up to yank the hand away with such force that Green Heart was sent stumbling backwards. Purple Heart glared at the startled CPU for a time before charging forth and leaping into the air after her rival.

Green Heart took a moment to rub where her arm had been so rudely gripped. "Well, then. Noire, I can understand, but Neptune…" The goddess gave a heavy sigh. "What does she see in that arrogant fool?"

"'Her heart is tuned to resonate with the unforgiving beat of a tsundere.'"

A slight smile managed to form on Green Heart's mouth. "Hah. It was not too long ago that I bought a copy of the doujin you wrote that line in." She turned to face White Heart. "Are you suggesting that Neptune has a masochistic streak in her?"

"Considering her friendship with Plutia…"

"Plutia? Is this someone I should know?"

White Heart's eyes suddenly widened in alarm. "Er…nevermind. Forget I said anything."

"My, my. That was quite a pale shade you turned just then. Perhaps I will be performing a little investigation once this is all over, hm?"

"If we get that far."

The mirth on Green Heart's face faded. "Should we go after them? Our best chances are likely to be as a group, after all."

"Not yet. They will need some time. Otherwise, we'll have to go through this all over again."

A nod. Green Heart turned her head to view where two of the CPUs had disappeared into the sky. There was no telling where they were by now. "I suppose you may be right."

White Heart decided that it was finally time to acknowledge the outsider among them. "You've been awfully quiet."

Falcom gave a little chuckle, although it was more forced than usual. "I figured that it was best not to meddle in the affairs of goddesses."

Green Heart put on a reassuring smile. "Especially when they are busy exposing themselves as the bickering children they are, hm?"

Ah – such a delicious drama. What will the great Black Heart do now, hm? Will she finally reject her friends as enemies as she should have done so long ago? Or will she come crawling back once more, pitiful and mewling, feeling the crushing desperation of loneliness from her all-too-human self?

The stagnant air brushed against Black Heart as she flew over the cityscape of Leanbox. It occurred to her that she would likely end up being spotted and encounter the local police force once again, but she hardly cared. If they bothered her, she would just rip them apart and continue on her way. It was a fitting end for anyone who dared to attack a CPU.

Merciless defender of Lastation – always so quick to dismiss the lives of others. But what measure is a mortal in the eyes of such a being? Certainly, the pilots you threw to their deaths were not worth a second thought, hm?

"Shut UP!"

She was forced to make a landing on top of a particularly tall building as her emotions threatened to overwhelm her once more. The goddess almost immediately dropped to her knees, her fingertips creating chips in the roof as she caught herself. She raised a hand, examining the deadly set of claws that she found there. This didn't belong to a person – this belonged to a machine. A creation. A fantasy.

"It must really suck to be human." These were your own words, yes? Are you not satisfied with what you are, Black Heart?

The question was impossible to answer. Yet, somehow the CPU managed to channel the hundreds of conflicting thoughts clouding her mind into a single, overriding statement. "I don't know what I am." The words were spoken flatly, her eyes focused on nothing as she lowered her hand.

Oh? Surely you know at least that much. You are a Console Patron Unit, a creature of divine origin. A being who lives or dies on share energy, which may be garnered through any method it wishes. Nothing less, and nothing more.

"No." Black Heart gave her head a little shake. "There must be something more."

And just what do you believe that "something more" to be, CPU of Lastation?

"Noire!"

Black Heart perked up when she heard the voice in the distance. It took some glancing about to find its source, but soon enough she could see a figure approaching against the darkness of the starless sky.

The goddess of Planeptune came to a graceful landing a few feet away, leaving a cautious gap between them. A sigh of relief came from her. "I'm glad I managed to catch up to you. You always were the fastest—"

"Go away." If Black Heart had bothered to turn her head, she would've easily seen how taken aback her rival was.

"Noire?"

"Go away. I'm not in the mood to bother with you."

"I see." Purple Heart's gaze turned downward for a moment. "All I wanted was to give an apology, but if you wish to be left alone…"

No. I don't want to be alone. The words almost escaped Black Heart's lips, but some part of her still held back. "An apology?"

A nod. "Yes. For dragging you into this mess. And…well, for all the mean things I've done to you, too. I realize that I've hardly been a good friend."

Black Heart didn't even know where to start. She collapsed forward, barely able to hold back the tears that had been lining her eyes. All she could manage to say was, "I don't understand."

"Oh? What do you mean, Noire?" Purple Heart's gaze moved away for a moment as she thought something over. "Is my apology not enough?"

"I…I wish I could be you. It must be so much simpler to see the world from your eyes."

The Planeptune CPU's brow raised in genuine surprise before she gave a chuckle. "Now I don't understand."

Black Heart finally managed to raise her head to gaze upon the goddess beside her. She wished she could wipe away the tears running down her cheeks, but her hands were still covered in those metal gauntlets. "How do you handle being you? You bounce between being such a stupid little girl and such a stylish, kind, perfect woman so easily…How does it not drive you insane? I can't even handle being me."

Another laugh came from Purple Heart, this one more nervous than the last. "'Perfect?' Is that how you see me? That's hardly the case, Noire. I've made just as many mistakes as you. Probably more, in fact. I just can't remember most of them."

Black Heart beat a fist against the roof, throwing fragments of dirt and rock into the air. "Dammit…you're even more humble than me on top of everything else…"

"Wait." A pause. "Are you…jealous?"

A wry smile twisted its way onto Black Heart's mouth. "Finally, you're starting to get it. Yes, I'm jealous. Envious as can be…but not of you. Without you, Neptune wouldn't be worth a single damn. And yet, without Neptune, I wouldn't exist. None of us would. Why does an idiot like her get to be so important…so loved? Why does she get to have you?"

"I…see. You speak as if I am two separate beings, but…"

"Aren't you?"

A moment passed before Purple Heart shook her head, causing her braids to sway. "No. Even if it was true, it wouldn't matter. Neptune and Purple Heart are two sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other. Besides – it's not as if Neptune isn't without her own merits. She certainly knows how to turn a frown upside-down." A chuckle followed.

Black Heart fell into silence as she absorbed this.

"Noire, listen—"

"I'm not 'Noire.' I'm Lady Noire, or Lady Black Heart, with everything that the names entail. I'm a CPU, with everything that name entails. I'm an empty shell that rules a nation called Lastation. I'm a machine that gets its power from wooing people with cheap entertainment. No wonder I was given a human form to hide in – no one would follow something like me if they knew what I really was. But it's so easy to trick someone if you look like a cute little girl, isn't it?"

Purple Heart practically rolled her eyes at this. "Come now, Noire. You're being even more of an angst-ridden mess than your sister." She took a step forward, reaching down a hand. "I would at least ask you to stand. It's hardly befitting of a CPU to bow to another."

"Look at this." Black Heart raised a hand, but instead of taking the one offered to her, she placed a materializing object into its palm.

"What—"

"Look at it."

Planeptune's CPU gave a shrug as the white glow surrounding the object faded, bringing it fully into existence through a method developed deep within some secretive laboratory. "A handheld console?" A little grin formed on the CPU's face. "Ah. The one you signed for the boy? I'm sure the owner would be glad to have it back. And who better to deliver it to him than his idol?" She reached down to hand it back to her friend.

Black Heart accepted it without a word. She immediately began to tap away at the screen, a task made difficult by the sharpness of her fingertips. It occurred to her that interfacing with the device would be a lot easier with human hands.

Ah. Such a great irony, is it not? Or is it perhaps fitting? If one was to consider just what – or who – this console could represent—

Don't even go there. I'll kill you.

A laugh could be felt, seeming much like a distant echo. And how, pray tell, would you go about accomplishing such a task? One may as well attempt to strangle one's self.

For a few moments, there was the tapping of metal on plastic. Finally, Black Heart managed to coax the console into navigating to the correct menu. "Look," she spoke, holding it up to have it exchange hands again.

Purple Heart's curiosity was piqued as she struggled for a second to position her fingers comfortably on the edges of the device. Her brow raised almost immediately when she saw what was on display. "A-Ah…how lewd, as Vert might say."

"There's more. A lot more, I'm sure."

It was hard to discern just what the goddess of Planeptune was thinking as she took several minutes to browse the device's contents. Black Heart had only just scratched the surface and decided she'd had her fill, and yet Purple Heart didn't seem as if she'd be satisfied until she saw every inch of what was in store.

"Are you done yet?" Patience had never been one of Black Heart's virtues.

"Almost."

Finally, Purple Heart handed the console back, her expression remaining neutral.

Lastation's CPU dared a glance at the last image that had been checked. She was surprised to find that the lovingly detailed picture there could only be described as "lewd" by the most inclusive of definitions – one of Neptune and Noire lying in a grassy field beside one another, a smile and a blush on their faces, a hand from each being held together between them with a tentative grasp.

It's…adorable.

Black Heart stared at the scene for a time, realizing how ridiculous it was that such a fantastical depiction could stir some unspeakable feeling within her, but tensing up all the same. The urge to slam the device onto the hard surface of the roof seemed to possess her arm, and it took every bit of her will to maintain control.

Pitiful.

She hardly felt the pain shoot through her knuckles when her fist smashed down. In her other hand, the console remained safely clutched from her wrath, although her grip was threatening to scratch the screen. Letting out a breath, she dematerialized the device into her storage. "Do you see now?"

Purple Heart gave a bashful chuckle. "Ah…I saw many things, Noire. It may not have been the best choice to let my curiosity get the better of me, but..."

"You really don't get it, do you? Funny. Maybe you're more like Neptune than I thought."

"Oh? I would be the first to admit my own lack of intelligence. But, as before, I am curious – enlighten me, please."

Black Heart opened her mouth to begin what promised to be quite the diatribe, but something gave her pause. She slumped back down, her gaze turning away. A mirthless little laugh came from her. "How? How do you do it? Every time I think I might hate you, you manage to melt it all away. You're just too…" She held back from repeating the description of "perfect."

More perfect than thou, perhaps?

Claws scraped against the roof as Black Heart's fingers clenched. "You were made to be my enemy. What is it that I'm missing?"

Purple Heart offered her hand, as she had before. "Who's to say that you're missing anything at all?"

A moment of hesitation passed as Black Heart looked up. She accepted the hand, rising to her feet. Her heart fluttered, taking in a breath and turning her gaze away when she realized how close she was standing to her rival. "It doesn't make any sense. Why are you so good to me? I've fought against you for such a long time. I've done everything I can to make you hate me. Aren't we meant to compete with each other? To trick humans into giving us their strength?"

"Only if you believe that to be the case."

Black Heart gave a slight nod, her eyes growing unfocused. "And what if I do?"

"Then you would try to kill me. You might even succeed."

"I already tried once. You came back better. Then I tried again. It went even worse than the last time."

Black Heart felt a hand touch her shoulder. She turned her head to see Purple Heart's warm smile. The sight of it was enough to make her blush.

"You can give it a third try, if you want," spoke the Planeptune goddess. "It's your decision to make."

That image of the CPUs lying dead at Black Heart's feet came back to mind without provocation – it refused to leave.

It would be so easy, would it not? Such a clueless fool would hardly be able to muster the courage to fight her so-called friend.

"Noire?"

Are you so daft as to throw away an opportunity to get your revenge for so much humiliation? To claim your rightful place above all others?

"I'm just as much of a machine as you, if you wish to use such a word."

Is your worthless heart too enraptured by the allure of those beautiful curves? That lovely face?

"But can a machine think? Or feel? Or make its own decisions?"

What a shame – the very mechanism you use to entrance your followers will prove to be your downfall. What use is attraction to a being that cannot even reproduce?

"Why limit yourself in such a way when you can be a goddess?"

Black Heart's shoulders slumped. She didn't even know what she feeling by this point. Pride, jealousy – many stories existed of entire empires falling because of these heartworms. Yet, even after having come to terms with them, she still felt something just as insidious eating away at her.

It must really suck to be human.

"I don't want to be a machine. Or a goddess. I…"

"Hm." Purple Heart lowered her hand from her friend's arm, taking a slight step back. "Of course. Now it makes sense. But the Noire I know would never abandon her duty as a CPU."

Black Heart closed her eyes for a moment, the corners of her mouth forming a wry smile. "Then I'm not the Noire you know." Without further prompting, she took off into the air, once again leaving behind what she had for so long believed to be the source of her heartache.

What a twist. Even the almighty Black Heart is too weak to face her feelings. Or perhaps Noire has seeped too much of her influence into you. After all, the CPU of Lastation was never destined to form bonds of kinship. In this moment, you are corrupted – a half-breed. You cannot hope to continue in such a self-destructive state for long.

No. I'm not Noire. I'm not Black Heart. And I'm not some disgusting mixture of the two. I'm me.

Hah. Believe in a pointless twisting of words if you wish. I ask only that you prove me wrong – such an occurrence would be an interesting change, indeed.