("Author here, not with much of an update. I'm just slowly going through this Act. Right now, things are going fine, but I'm leaving this as a little warning just in case I do hit a wall and end up slowing down in content updates. Of course, if you are the close-to-100 people following this story, then no worries, since you'll be reminded when it does update, I'm sure. Seriously, though, near 100 people. I'm gonna have to keep looking over my shoulder!

Anyway, things will go slowly. This story is already big, but I'm not planning some War and Peace epic here. I've seen the big fanfic numbers here. Not gonna try it! Still, I want to take it easy here. In any case, I try to have my chapters meet a certain length, so they're not too big or too small for readers. That's the hope, anyway.

Thomas' backstory is, of course, going to be further explored. There's already a few bits here and there sprinkled in earlier chapters. I'm hoping this will further flesh out this OC and explain some of his attitudes. We'll see if that will make him more or less likable. Crossing my fingers.

Finally, appreciate all the feedback so far and in the future, even the ones telling me when I do bad. I want to improve, and it is thanks to you all that I'll have the chance to. All while reading this silly story I wrote! Again, my humble thanks." - An author with maybe less ambition than Blanc. "And then a boat capsized into my fanfic...")

With the fight over, the pathway to Parap Station lay clear for the party to continue uninterrupted. Plutia rejoined the party a few moments later after what she called a break, and no one was going to further inquire on that.

Uni, much to her mild embarrassment, received some compliments care of the other CPUs after her role in the battle. Neptune called her the "MVCPU", whatever the hell that meant. Uzume was amazed by how cool the laser looked. Blanc was even kind enough to give her an approving nod.

Uni didn't mind occasionally boasting and trying to stand out, but to get that attention was a bit surprising. Not so much from Nepgear or Rom, but the others? It was a little odd. For her, one CPU she would've liked to compliment her the most, was her own sister, Noire. Unfortunately, Noire wasn't present to see this. Just her luck.

Meanwhile, Thomas took a few slow and deep breaths to calm down, as he felt his heart rapidly beating. He felt his poor heart getting quite the workout since this adventure began. He could only guess that if the enemies don't end up putting him down for the count, his body soon would. As he breathed slowly, Compa smiled a bit and walked beside him, handing him an item.

"Compa?" Thomas blinked, "Wh-"

"Don't tell me you forgot about it?" Compa said with pleading eyes, "Remember the Compa Charger from all the way back in Haneda? I made some more!"

"Of course I remembered! The sweet medicine with a bit of honey," Thomas recalled, "It was very nice of you to make some more. I was saying where do you manage to know right away about my fatigue?"

Compa giggled, "I'm pretty sure that heavy breathing was a big giveaway. I'm glad you did remember. Maybe I should've offered some to you after that battle in Lowee?"

"Eheh," Thomas laughed meekly, holding the medicine with him, "I wasn't even doing the heavy lifting." He looked over at Uni's direction, seeing the CPU candidate talk a little more with a gushing Uzume, "They're the ones exerting all that energy to defeat the bad guys. I feel like I'm getting tired just by meditating."

"When you put it like that," Compa said, "It does seem really silly."

Thomas developed a sullen look on his face, "That's assuring me for the future."

"You did say you were new to all of this adventuring and fighting," Compa noted, "Perhaps your body is still adjusting."

Thomas shook his head, "I-It's not just that." He then glanced around him to make sure he wasn't going to be overheard. Although it wasn't going to bother him too much if he was, he would like to keep it to a small number of people. "Uh, Compa?" Thomas said quietly, "Can you keep what I'm about to say next between the two of us?"

"A, a secret?" Compa's eyes widened a little, before she closed her eyes, "I'll definitely try! As a nurse, I've got to remember patient confidentiality!"

"That's good," Thomas said with a slow nod, "This is a bit of a medical issue anyway... I think."

"Oh!" Compa phewed a little. For a moment, her mind rushed to all sorts of strange ideas and possibilities that Thomas may have said as a secret. She then paused again, "You think it's a medical issue?"

Thomas winced a little, again glancing around for any potential eavesdroppers. He then whispered, "Yeah, I am not too sure, but maybe you know what it is."

"Oh, sorry Tom-Tom! I'll whisper really quiet-like!" Compa said, as her whisper was still only a little quieter than her normal voice.

Thomas sweatdropped, but figured he'd talk about it anyway, "Right. Anyway, Compa, I have been feeling restless since we've been on this adventure."

Compa nodded, taking some of the information, "That sounds normal so far."

"By that, I mean, feel, restless," Thomas emphasized the word feel in that sentence. "I had some trouble sleeping, but the few times I have slept well, I don't feel like I have slept enough. There's this constant feeling of fatigue that no amount of sleeping is fixing."

Compa hummed softly, before saying more quietly, "Well, I can't say for certain what that could mean. I'm not a doctor. However, I can say it could either be a lack of minerals, or a lack of exercise, or something psychological."

"Like stress, huh?" Thomas murmured. Compa slowly nodded, before Thomas continued, "I guess it could be any of those things. Still..."

"Is something else bothering you?" Compa asked.

Thomas nodded, "It's just, lately I have been having these odd dreams. At least, I think I have. I get the lingering feeling that I dreamed something, but can't remember much."

Compa stayed quiet a moment, as Thomas continued, "I've been getting that feeling at about the same time I've been getting restless too, so I thought it might be somewhat related."

"Do you remember anything at all from these dreams?" Compa asked, growing more curious, "Anything at all?"

Thomas closed his eyes, trying to think, "Well, let's see. I do recall hearing, I recall hearing something. Actually, I recall hearing someone." As he struggled to recall, Compa grew more concerned, but was hesitant to say anything. Thomas eventually shook his head, "I don't remember any words said, sorry. The voice was familiar but I couldn't pin it down on anyone. Being a little tone deaf doesn't help in that department."

The nurse hummed a little, "I don't have anything to help there, I'm afraid. Not yet, anyway. I'll go look into what you've told me so far when I have the opportunity to. Maybe I can find something then." Compa bowed her head, "I'm sorry I couldn't help there."

Thomas smiled meekly, "It's okay, Compa. I'm just glad to be able to talk to someone about it, at least without getting everyone else involved and worried."

"Don't worry, I'll keep it between us," Compa got back to smiling, trying to cheer Thomas up, "In the meantime, I do have some orders for you, at least to combat the fatigue!"

"I'm all ears," Thomas said, returning the conversation to a normal volume, "What is our medical expert prescribing?"

Compa beamed, "Eheh, I would've suggested more exercise, but I think we're getting plenty of that." Thomas nodded in agreement, before Compa went to the next suggestion, "You eat a lot of fish, right?"

"I don't fish merely for sport," Thomas said of his hobby, "But I have been feeling like I haven't eaten much of it in a while."

"Eating some fish might help," Compa suggested, "The fish have some oil and acids that can help with that sleepy problem." She then giggled, "I have one last suggestion. Can you guess the last one?"

"Uhhhhhh," Thomas blinked, looking a little puzzled.

"Staying hydrated, silly!" Compa teased him, "You need to drink plenty of water! And liquids! For example, that medicine you're holding!"

"Oops!" Thomas realized, and held the bottle up, "Right, of course! This'll help. Er, bottoms up?" He went to take a good swig of the drink, and finished with a phew, "Maybe I shouldn't drink that so quickly." He cleared his throat, "My mistake. No mistake in this being delicious, though. Thanks, again, Compa."

"No problem, Tom-Tom!" Compa said cheerily, "We're all here to support one another, after all!"

Thomas smiled a little, as telling someone of his recent fatigue problems has put a little ease on his mind.

Compa, meanwhile, had something else on her mind.

After a while of walking down the path, Uzume returned back to the front row once she was done gushing over how cool some of the juniors were during the last battle. Laser beams and magic fireworks made for an interesting combination, or at the least gave her a pretty light show. Of course, Uzume felt a little pressure to step up her game, as she wasn't going to sit back and let the candidates steal the spotlight. Still, she was happy to see the younger generation of CPUs doing their best.

"You look to be in good spirits!" Uzume heard Compa's voice snap her from her thoughts, and she looked over to see the nurse walking up beside her. She was surprised by Compa checking up on her, but Uzume didn't seem mind the visit, all the same.

"Hey, Compsy!" Uzume grinned, "Yeah, I'm feeling pretty good so far." She clenched one fist while getting her other hand around it, "We've almost got everyone together against this crisis. I'm already pumped for when we get to take on whatever Unisy said forced them out of Lastation."

"I'm glad to see that!" Compa smiled to Uzume, and tilted her head, "And you're doing well on the whole, too?"

Uzume tittered, "Compsy, I'm physically and mentally doing well. I don't think I need a check-up at this time, though I thank you all the same for asking!"

Compa hummed softly, "I guess you're right. Honestly, I came here to ask you something . Mind if we chat a bit?"

Uzume shrugged a little, "No, not at all! Is something bothering you?"

Compa shook her head, "Not really sure. I just wanted to check up on something and thought I'd ask. It's a bit of a personal question, though, so if you don't wanna answer-"

"Compsy, it's fine," Uzume interrupted, assuring her, "Besides, I can't answer a question unless it's been asked first. Don't leave me hanging."

"O-okay!" Compa was a bit excited, if only because Uzume hyped her up, "It's about that dreaming ability you had."

"Oh! Going that far back, huh?" Uzume tilted her head a little at this.

We pause this conversation to explain a little backstory, and may have some spoilers from a previous game. Seriously, go play it if you haven't. Anyway, Uzume here is an old goddess of the nation of Planeptune in this dimension. During her time, she had an incredibly powerful ability to make her dreams into reality. Now, this might be a cool superpower to have, and it has been used as a nice plot device when the situation arose.

However, a power like this was hard to control, and could, and has, led to some dire consequences. This was not even mentioning that such a power could also be used for evil purposes! Such a thing could make for a really bad ending for everyone in Gamindustri, to say the least! Sadly for our orange CPU, her power was too much for her to control properly, and so an effort was made to save Gamindustri and... seriously, play that game to find out more. Or wait until Uzume finally tells Thomas this story, if she ever gets around to it.

Alright, back to it, Compa nodded, "Yeah, I knew it was a very powerful ability. I was wondering if you still have that ability."

Uzume shook her head, "Nah, ever since I came back, I haven't got any of that ability back. Can't look into dreams, can't affect them, can't make them a reality, nothing at all. Histy was adamant in looking me over in some weird examination. Believe me, if I still had that daydreaming power, I would've definitely used it by now."

"So, do you have any normal dreams when you sleep, then?" Compa asked, "I know you still daydream."

Uzume laughed nervously, "Eheh, the less said about that, the better. I still feel a bit embarrassed doing that now and then." Her old cutesy personality broke through on more than one occasion so far this adventure. Uzume spoke again, "But yeah, I just get ordinary dreams when I sleep now. Nothing really weird or anything to indicate me manipulating reality there. It, it's actually nice to have just plain old dreams, you know?"

Compa closed her eyes in thought, though kept her cheery expression, "Any particularly good dreams you like to share?"

"Hmmm," Uzume took a moment to think about what sort of dreams she had, "Nothing really out there. I was just happy to have some of the common kind of dreams. I dreamed of flying the skies over Gamindustri, but in human form." She shrugged, "Looks like I'm gonna have to dream up big next time!"

Compa giggled a little, "You don't have to do that on my account."

Uzume smirked, "Oh, but I take these challenges very seriously!" She then hrmed, "Anyway, that's all I got to say on that front. Any particular reason you're asking this, Compa?"

Compa opened her eyes, shaking her head, "I was just thinking of some things. Curiosity, I guess."

Uzume stretched her arms, "Ah, well, no worries here. Although, now I kind of want to go for a little nap." Uzume held back a yawn.

"Oops! Sorry!" Compa exclaimed in a joking manner.

Uzume scratched her left cheek, "Eheh, I better not get too sleepy. We already have one Plutia in the party."

The two paused a moment to look away, checking to see if Plutia overheard that. Plutia briefly looked puzzled, but soon was back to lazily walking in the back row, holding back another yawn.

"I dunno," Compa thought about it as she looked back to Uzume, "I think your hair might look nice braided like that. And the pajama look might work." She then beamed, "Maybe you can have a little Umio plushie too."

Uzume was initially a bit flushed thinking about the sleepy look, before she froze, "G-!" She quickly closed her eyes and fidgeted, "No fair. Uzume totally wants an Umio plushie now." Even though she strained her voice, Compa could pick up the higher pitch.

"I really should stop giving you more ideas," Compa lamented, though she was enjoying Uzume's reactions. The CPU held her hands together and tried so hard not to give in, acting not too much unlike a certain CPU candidate when she was feeling the pressure to do something.

While she enjoyed the reactions, the back of her mind made mental note of what Uzume told her. Perhaps Thomas was just under some stress. Still, Compa could not help but wonder if there was something to all of this.

The party finally reached the end of the path to Parap Station. The area was not too large, and only had a few houses and farming crops nearby. Uni moved up to the front of the group so she could get a better look around.

Uni turned to look to Neptune and Blanc, who were taking point in the group, "Last time we communicated, the people said they set up a small camp close to the subway entrance. We should head there first."

"Alright, Noire Junior!" Neptune said as she pumped her fists up, "Since this is your side quest, you take the helm!"

"Uh, s-sure," Uni said, not sure if that's something to get excited about, "Just keep your eyes open for anything." She said this, even as she was surveying much of the area herself.

"It shouldn't take us too long, then. The camp is right where Uni said," Blanc stated, as she gestured a loose sleeve of her jacket near the end of the path. Sure enough, they could make out a small camp, similar to the ones that were in Lowee, though only a few cots and tents, enough for four to five people. Most of the cots were already taken, as one man stood alone near the subway entrance. The entrance was a simple staircase heading down underground, and the man posted was standing by, keeping an eye down the stairs.

However, he soon noticed the group of people walking towards the camp, and turn about to face them, "Halt." He gave a simple order in a gruff voice, and walked over towards them, though still keeping a glance towards the entrance, "It is very dangerous to be here right now. The subway's not working, in any case, and this barrier has made it impossible to reach Lastation. By order of Lastation, I ask that you redirect yourselves elsewhere."

Uni frowned a bit, before raising her voice and stamping her foot down, "Lieutenant! I expected you to remember who you talked to before leaving for here!"

The man bit his lower lip, before turning more of his head away from the entrance to see an offended CPU candidate, "A-ah! Lady Uni! My apologies! I was told to expect you from HQ, but I did not expect this many re-" He paused, slowly examining the group, "in... force... ments?"

The man took a moment to look at the people in the group. He was decked in military gear, complete with camo, helmet, and goggles, among other things. The man was notably tall, well over six feet. In comparison, Thomas might be tall, but he was easily below the man's chin, if he went up to him for a quick measurement. Also, while Thomas was tall, he was rather thin. The man, even without some of the hardware he carried, was noticeably more muscled. In other words, this man was physically a whole lot stronger.

The man scratched his chin with a free hand, as the stubble of facial hair was a little itchy. He finally spoke, pleasantly surprised, "Interesting. The CPUs of Planeptune and Lowee are here too?"

"Oh, you know," Neptune chimed in with her cheery tone, "We were just in the neighborhood and thought we'd stop by, say hello, beat up some robots, you know the deal." She paused, "Wait, you recognized us?"

"Of course, Lady Neptune" the man grinned, forgetting briefly about his not noticing Uni earlier, "It is an honor to finally meet with such a powerful fighter such as yourself."

Neptune perked up, "Ah! It's good to be acknowledged and recognized! I mean, I'm the most recognizable face of this franchise, but it's good that you didn't even confuse me with my little sister!"

The man nodded, even gesturing correctly to a bewildered Neptune and a nonplussed Blanc, "I can see that she is here too, as well as the goddess of Lowee. This is quite a boon for all us. Three of Gamindustri's strongest guardians here in one spot. I am truly honored to be in your presence."

"Don't get too excited, Neptune," Uni said as she was still a little irritated, "One of the new policies of our armed forces was to make sure our soldiers knew and recognized each goddess."

"I guess that means I can no longer afford an incognito visit to Lastation," lamented Blanc in a quiet murmur to herself.

"The soldiers are more likely to recognize you now," Uni said, "not everyone. It was designed so our forces can cooperate more with the goddesses." She then sighed, "Though even then, it sometimes doesn't work. Isn't that right, Lieutenant?"

"Well, uh," the man winced a little, "That really was just one time."

Uni narrowed her eyes, "More than once. I'm not a freakin' kid. I can't believe when I even briefed you earlier on this mission that you thought I was someone's child."

Thomas sweatdropped, recalling when she didn't recognize Neptune at first and noting the similarity. Meanwhile, the man sighed, with Uni grumbled, "You recognized the others quickly..."

The man tried to change the subject, "Excuse me, but I might as well introduce myself to your group before we get into what's happening here." He cleared his throat, "Lieutenant Gabriel of the Lastation Strategic Network, reporting. If you wish for nicknames, I suppose Gabe will suffice."

"Strange name for a military force?" Blanc asked, not quite sure, "Never heard of it."

"I did not come up with the name, lady White Heart," the soldier said, "But I will note that it is a more recent addition to Lastation's armed forces. After the events involving security leaks, delusional monsters, the CPU shift period, and others, Lastation created this agency. Its mission is to prepare Lastation for situations that may arise."

"Such as a robot incursion or a giant firewall?" IF raised an eyebrow.

"Truth be told, I doubt my superiors thought about a giant firewall dropping on Gamindustri," Gabriel answered, "An incursion might've been anticipated, but I was in Lastation when it happened, and I doubt they were prepared for such numbers."

"The LSN has managed to help out during this," Uni added, "We just tweaked a few things from a contingency plan in the event Lastation was taken over from the inside."

"Correct," Gabriel then took a few steps back, still glancing to the entrance, "Our group was tasked with securing this subway station, in the event the robots would attempt to go through the tunnels."

"Given that apparently the robots can fall back to other sealed-off regions," IF said, remembering how the robots retreated after Planeptune and Lowee were freed, "I assume this is to contain the threat to other places in Lastation."

The lieutenant nodded once more, pausing at the person speaking, "Affirmative. We made sure the few people living around here were safe, and set up camp here. Uh, apologies, but I do not recognize you."

IF grimaced, "Really? Uh, well, I'm from the Guild in Planeptune. Name's IF."

"Ah, a long-time ally of the goddesses, but of course," Gabriel said, seeming a little more dismissive than he was with the CPUs. IF simply made a polite nod to him.

"In any case, Lieutenant," Uni ordered, "Report your status."

"Very well," Gabriel straightened himself up as he turned to the entrance, "Our men have secured around the entrance but have struggled getting further into the subway. The robots have laid obstacles in our path, leading to a few of my group being wounded."

"Wounded?" Compa's eyes widened, "Do you require any medical assistance. I'm Compa, a nurse from Planeptune."

Gabriel nodded, "We have a field medic within our ranks, but any assistance you may provide her would be greatly appreciated, miss. She is in the sole tent in our camp tending to the wounded."

Compa smiled, "I'm on it! Be right back, everyone!" She quickly ran off towards the tent, and went inside to tend to the wounded.

"We should wait for Compa to finish what she can before we proceed further," Nepgear said, to which no one objected. Plutia took this as reason to sit on the ground for a rest.

Neptune smirked, "Ah, so now these guys are laying down traps, huh? Don't you fret, Gaberoni, we'll go down there and clear that area! I'll have you know that I am very good at Minesweeper." She said this while taking a heroic pose, holding her hands on her hips, like this was an accomplishment.

"Tch," Blanc rolled her eyes, "Playing a Minesweeper is not in any way comparable."

"Actually," Gabriel said coldly, "It is comparable, as there are plenty of mines down there."

"Ha! See Blanc, I was totally ri-wha?" Neptune was briefly stunned by this, "Mines? Like, the ones on the ground that explode kind?"

"Affirmative," Gabriel said with a simple nod, taking it as a serious question, "They are not the floating in mid-air kind, or the proximity mines that someone stickied on the wall. At least as far as our group has surveyed so far. Thankfully we didn't suffer severe casualties, or a fatality." He grimaced at the notion.

"Oh, well, that makes it a little better, eheheh," Nepgear laughed nervously, "But seriously?"

"We'll have to be especially careful," Blanc stated, "We can't have mines in the subway on a popular transit route."

"We could quarantine the area," Gabriel suggested, "Not that the subway's open presently, but we could set up our own barriers, and make sure those robots don't come up here to set up more surprises."

"Why would they be setting up mines down there, anyway?" Uni wondered, "There has to be something down there they don't want anyone to see."

"That is what I thought, lady Uni," Gabriel said with a growl, "To use such a cowardly tactic, and to hide behind the safety of their barriers, irritates me to no end. If I ever get my hands on whoever did all of this..." He balled his free hand into a fist, visibly ready to punch anything nearby. Thankfully, no one was in range.

"We should check it out, then, and be very careful," IF said, "Although, I am not sure how we should clear the mines. Let's at least go down and check it out."

Uni sighed a little, "Sure wish Noire were here to offer some advice. But, for now, let's go with that plan. We'll take a moment to rest our feet before proceeding." She then looked to Gabriel, "Lieutenant, is it just you checking the entrance?"

"For the time being, yes," Gabriel answered, "I'm taking shifts with another person to keep an eye on it."

"I'm still pretty rested," Uni said, "Let me take watch until our group is ready to go."

"U-understood, lady Uni," Gabriel relinquished his spot, "I will check on our soldiers in the meantime."

"Good," Uni said, as she took out her submachine gun, "First robot that gets anywhere close to here gets my own personal greeting." She then looked to the others, "You guys rest up in the meantime."

"Allllllllllready on it!" Plutia said as she slumped down on the ground for a little rest and sky-watching. Uzume shrugged, and flopped down to the ground nearby to rest as well.

Rom fidgeted a little, "Maybe Ram and I should help with miss Compa and miss medic."

Blanc responded to her sister with a slightly glum expression, "Are you sure, Rom? The lieutenant said the wounds weren't serious, but it could still be gruesome."

Rom winced, "Oh!" She closed her eyes a moment before trying to be determined, "Then I'll try extra hard to be strong so I can do my healing magic!"

"Good response, Rom!" Ram said happily to her sister, "I personally don't mind the icky stuff, so it won't bother me to help out! But I'll be sure to help you out, sis!"

Rom smiled sheepishly, "Thanks, Ram. I'll do what I can!"

Thomas decided to sit down by some rocks to do some reading, while IF followed along with the twins to keep an eye on them, and to check on Compa's work.

Meanwhile, Nepgear slid up beside Uni and clasped her hands together, "Uh, Uni? I-is it okay if I help you out here, for a while? I'm not tired at all, so I should be plenty of help!"

Uni sighed, "I would tell you to get some rest anyway, but just this once, sure. Not that I need any help or anything."

Nepgear, happy to hear her friend agree, jumped a bit on the spot with a bright expression, giggling before taking a position near the entrance to help Uni with observing.

"I guess that leaves out you and me, Blanc," Neptune grinned, before saying, "By the way, since you're the tank of the group, I'm putting you on point when we go down there. You'll be able to clear those mines with your face, I'm sure!"

"Like hell I will!" Blanc angrily responded, "Think up another strategy, dumbass." She then grumbled, "I'm gonna go see what Tom's reading up on."

"Oooh, let's do that," Neptune said, "I'll go on the other side, and we can just look over his shoulders."

"I'd rather do that alone," Blanc muttered, before shaking her head and going, with Neptune bouncing behind.

"Odd group of individuals," Gabriel murmured to himself, "To think they faced some terrifying bosses and act like this... I should've become an adventurer."