Just an hour or so ago, the skies above Pelican Farm in Leanbox were extremely busy, when the CPUs clashed with the robot invaders. Now, there was an eerie silence outside, with the upgraded turret watching over an empty field. Even the wind remained still.

There was some activity, however, inside the farmhouse. The party was split between people who sat around the living room, and those who stood in the dining room on the other side of the house. Thomas was seated with a few others in the living room, though he was close enough to listen in on the dining room, where IF had gone with some of the CPUs to speak with the family living here.

Looking down the corridor and into the dining room, Thomas could spot a man and woman, dressed in simple farming attire. The man was the one who called out from the entrance a while back, and after a quick talk outside, invited everyone inside to rest and heal after the battle. They looked fairly generic in contrast to the colorful characters surrounding them, with short brown hair and matching brown eyes. Nonetheless, they appeared to be the ones running this family-operated farm.

"Thank you for inviting us in," IF said in polite greeting, "We appreciate whatever hospitality you can offer."

The man clapped his hands together, bowing graciously, "Actually, we want to thank you all for rushing to our rescue. We weren't sure how much longer we could've held them off."

"Yes, thank you so much!" The woman bowed her head to Nepgear, who was the CPU standing next to IF, "I wasn't sure if we were ever going to get relief. But, to see so many goddesses come to our aid is truly remarkable."

IF brought up her inventory, quietly stating, "We've all come from the liberated nations of Gamindustri. People from the Guild, the Basilicoms, and volunteers have helped us get here. We're here to help Leanbox out of this crisis-"

"Oh, Iffy, no need to be sore," Neptune piped in, leaning back on a seat in the dining room, "It's only natural that citizens can be a little overwhelmed seeing so many CPUs in one place."

"I-I 'm not sore!" IF explained, "I was just noting all our efforts."

"We appreciate all of it, truly!" The woman spoke up politely, trying to be diplomatic.

Nepgear smiled, holding her hands together, "We're happy to help out in any way we can. We don't know what's been happening in Leanbox since these barriers fell. Can you tell us anything? We appreciate any information."

"Of course!" The woman nodded, then asked, "But first, after all that's happened, you must be thirsty. Please, allow me to brew some tea for everyone."

"We would be most grateful," Noire said from where she was standing between the kitchen and dining room.

"Been running on that stuff for a couple of days," the man noted, "We still have some supplies, water, and electricity, but we're trying to conserve as much as we could."

IF hummed softly, looking at her inventory a little more, before saying, "The ship we were on gave me some relief supplies. With your permission, I would like to place them somewhere here. We're also asking if we can set up our base of operations here."

"You're all free to stay here," the man said, "I think we have some space in the attic, if you wish to set up there."

"Sure," IF closed her inventory, "We got some rations and supplies that'll help you all out. If you need anything, feel free."

"Thank you," the man bowed his head. IF smiled weakly while the woman went to ask a few people in the dining room if they wanted some tea.

As that was happening, Thomas noticed something from where he was seated. He saw the stairway leading up to the second floor in the hallway between the living and dining room. He could see someone slowly going down the steps. Despite his obvious watching, the person did not even notice him. Instead, this individual was looking towards the dining room, growing more curious by the conversation.

The person was a young girl, likely in her young teens, dressed in similar clothing to the two adults the group has met. Also, like the two, she shared the same brown hair and eye color. The girl idly held back a strand of her shoulder-length hair as she peered around the corner, just as IF was about to make her way.

IF's eyes quickly noticed the new girl, and she stopped short of accidentally colliding with her, "Oh! Hello there!"

The girl sprung back a few steps, getting to the other side of the staircase. Even though she looked hesitant, she nonetheless waved a little to IF, humming quietly in response.

"Sorry about that, didn't mean to startle you," IF said with a warmer smile.

The girl nodded slowly, smiling back, though still keeping some distance. The woman, having just asked Neptune if she wanted some tea, looked over, "Oh! You've finally met our daughter. Sara, it's okay, all of these people helped us."

The young girl nodded to her mother, humming in an affirmative response.

"Sara's a bit shy around others," the man said, "She also doesn't say a whole lot. Kinda took after me when I was a lot younger, it seemed."

"It took you quite a while before you opened up," the woman teased her husband, "you spent more time dashing between crops to water them."

The man shrugged, as Sara rolled her eyes at the discussion. "Hey, I only had a watering can back then. It took a lot of time and effort to water everything."

IF smirked at the couple, before looking to the young girl, "Anyway, hello Sara. Name's IF. It's nice to meet ya. I'm gonna be heading upstairs to store some supplies."

Sara once more nodded, humming an affirmative. "Sara doesn't talk much outside of her group of friends, or whenever she's doing online gaming," her mother said to IF as she went into the hallway.

"Oh, lemme guess!" Neptune said excitedly, "She becomes a demon whenever she's online! Haha, did I guess right?"

The man pondered a second, "That's, uh, not far from the truth."

"Please, try not to use any of those words while the goddesses are here, Sara," the mother asked of her blushing daughter. Sara glanced away from everyone, grumbling tepidly.

Neptune smiled, her eyes slowly looking over into the living room. Close to the fireplace, Blanc was seated comfortably in a recliner, next to a sofa where the twins leaned back and rested. In fact, upon further inspection, one could see Plutia's body laying down behind with her back against the girls, taking another nap, acting as a little pillow for the two. Both Rom and Ram were first to notice Neptune's stare, and turned their heads to Blanc, who was taking some time reading.

"Hmm? Is something the matter?" She asked in confusion, looking up at Rom and Ram, "What is it?"

The twins were equally puzzled. "I don't know," Rom admitted, "Miss Neptune was looking your way for some reason."

Blanc flinched a little, her eyes meeting back at Neptune, who didn't really much of an expression to show this time. It still bothered her, though.

IF took the time to wave a bit to the people in the living room and made her way upstairs, heading towards the attic access hatch. Meanwhile, Sara's mother peeked into the living room, "Any of you want a cup of tea?"

"Yes, please," Compa said from another couch, sitting next to Uzume.

"S-sure, I'd like one, please," Uzume raised her hand, as though she was taking attendance in class.

"Do you have something for the little ones here?" Blanc asked.

"We have plenty of fresh milk in our fridge," the lady answered, turning around to meet with the Lowee CPUs, "Would you like a glass?"

"Sure!" Ram chirped while Rom nodded.

"I'll have a glass as well, if that's alright," Blanc said casually, her fingers tapping a bit on her book before she flipped a page.

The mother smiled, "It's no problem." Seeing the sleeping and content Plutia, she went to the last person in the room, "Sir?"

Thomas smiled and nodded, "Uh, y-yeah, I'll have some tea, please."

"Right! I forgot, can I have a cup of tea as well?" IF called out from the second floor.

"I'll prepare one for when you get back," the mother said with a small titter, turning back to the dining room. Uni would cut in, standing next to Noire near the kitchen, and ask for a glass of milk instead. It seemed everyone in the party was accounted for.

Meanwhile, Sara looked around the group with intense curiosity. After a while, her gaze stopped upon the nearby Nepgear, who she went a little closer to. Sara was quite short, not having reached puberty yet, and looked up at the CPU Candidate with a few sparkles in her eyes.

Nepgear's head tilted a little, observing the young girl's gaze, before turning to face her, "Hello! Sara, isn't it?"

Sara's gaze broke and she turned her head down at her feet. Once more, she hummed with an affirmative tone. Her body fidgeted a bit, and she appeared quite nervous.

Seeing this, Nepgear bent her knees to be more at eye level with the daughter. "It's okay," Nepgear said politely, "We're here to help out." She paused briefly, before introducing herself, holding a hand to her own chest, "My name is Nepgear. I'm a CPU Candidate from the nation of Planeptune."

Sara's eyes widened upon hearing this, and she leaped forward, quickly embracing the surprised Nepgear in a hug. Clearly, Sara was the sneakiest villain the whole time! Okay, maybe not. "Uh, Sara?" Nepgear asked in confusion.

Sara hummed happily. "Nepgear~!" Well, at least she wasn't completely mute, as her voice sung out the CPU's name.

Nepgear wasn't sure at first how to react, but as Sara's grip loosened, Nepgear returned the embrace, "Haha, nice to, uh, meet you too. Ha."

"Nepgear, are you alright?" Uni became a little guarded, if only by Sara's sudden movement.

"I'm fine, Uni," Nepgear assured her, gently patting Sara on the back as she hugged, "I think miss Sara is just really happy right now."

Uni blinked at the hug between the two, further commenting, "Looks like you have a fan here."

The man sat himself down at the dining room table, rubbing his temple before speaking, "Sara's very fond of miss Nepgear. I would say a lot of people around here are."

Thomas pondered this a moment, then spoke, "I think I understand. Nepgear is quite popular in Leanbox. If I remember, recent popularity polls have her being second only to Lady Green Heart in the nation."

"I was one of the people who attended that one concert the CPU Candidates did in Leanbox so long ago," the man admitted, "Miss Nepgear's efforts in the country haven't gone unnoticed since then, either. Ha, we kind of think of her as a little sister around here."

"Nep!" Neptune fidgeted in her seat, her mind going all over the place, "Does that mean I have to compete with an entire nation to make sure Nepgear remains my little sister?" She gasped, "Was this Lady Vert's plan this entire time? I didn't think she could be so cunning!"

"I think you'll only have to worry about Lady Vert, Neptune," Noire shook her head at Neptune's reaction.

Thomas furrowed his brows, pondering, "Is it really that bad?" Blanc stifled her laugh, holding the book close to her face.

Sara slowly let go of Nepgear, who was a little flustered by the discussion. "Goodness," Nepgear muttered. However, looking upon Sara's bright smile, Nepgear refocused her attention, "We'll be counting on each other while we're here. I can count on your support, right?"

Sara musically hummed an affirmative.

A couple of minutes later, drinks were served to everyone in the farmhouse, save for the napping Plutia. Sara joined the CPUs in the dining room, sitting at the table with a glass of milk, seated between the two Nep sisters. The mother and father sat down with their tea at the other end of the table, next to Noire, Uni, and the returning IF.

Meanwhile, Thomas took a sip from the black tea. He paused immediately at what he was tasting. "This is really good," Thomas commented from his floor seat in the living room. He looked over at the dining room, and asked, "Very good tea, by the way. Is this a more recent flush?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," the mother said, "This was harvested just before these barriers came down."

"You guys grow tea leaves here?" Neptune asked, somewhat curious in what was actually grown here.

"No, we don't grow any on this farm," the father replied, setting his tea down and looking at it in thought, "Leanbox doesn't cultivate tea plants here, generally. There's only one farm that has a small plantation."

"I'm guessing you're talking about Raguna farm?" IF chimed in, as she appeared to be checking on her phone.

The woman nodded, "Why yes. How did you know so quickly?"

"I pulled up some information on the surrounding areas," IF noted, briefly showing her phone to the farmer, "But I can only get some old information. I've been trying to contact Histoire back in Planeptune, but communications appear to be shot."

The man sighed, dropping his shoulders a bit as he became more depressed, "I've been meaning to talk about that. Initially, we've managed to stay in touch with the farm through normal means. Lately, however, we've haven't heard anything from them."

"This sounds like what happened in Lastation," Uni remarked, looking over to her sister, "Outside the city, the robots were disrupting our supply and communication lines."

Noire frowned at a similar situation happening in Leanbox, "They might be doing that once more."

"It's not just that that has us worried," the mother added, "We've heard people telling us about robots taking people from their homes and taking them to Leanbox. We lost contact with Flower Bud farm further south days ago, and now with Raguna, we fear the worst happened."

Nepgear was just finishing a sip when she heard this, but held back from spitting it out. Nonetheless, she sounded shocked and worried afterwards, exclaiming, "They're abducting people now?"

"They enforced a curfew in Lastation's city, but certainly didn't take people outside the city to bring in," Noire remarked, "Though I guess us surrounding the city might've been a reason they didn't try."

"Have you heard anything from the city? Or Lady Green Heart?" IF asked, giving up with her phone for the time being.

"Unfortunately, no," the man replied, "Since the barriers, we've no contact with the city. I wish I could tell you where Lady Green Heart is."

Neptune nodded, "Vert's a tough cookie. She's probably still in Leanbox trying to take down the big baddies. Or playing games. Either one."

"I hope so," the man said, ignoring Neptune's remark about Vert playing games, "From where we are, we could only make out some light and explosions coming from over there. My best bet would be that there's still fighting going on in the city."

IF hummed softly, "Let's hope Vert and everyone else in the city is holding out. For now, however, we need to make sure our surroundings are secure." IF went to sip a bit of her tea, before setting it down and checking over her phone.

"Anything else you can tell us about these recent attacks?" Noire asked.

"Not much," the man admitted, scratching his chin in thought, "The turret usually holds up after one of these raids, but I would not know how long it could stand. My wife and I have taken turns remotely controlling the turret." He reached into his inventory, and pulled out a small device, "We get a warning signal from this thing whenever something enters its range. I'm actually grateful that turret's been doing well so far. Don't think we would have a chance otherwise."

"The robots haven't attacked at all during the evening," the mother added.

"My guess is because the robots go back to enforce their curfew in the city," Thomas recalled, "Lastation had a curfew imposed when it was attacked."

IF checked the map feature she had on her phone, which was still working despite the internet not being available, "Okay. It's getting late and we're going to need to be ready for the next day. The two farms you mentioned were Raguna and Flower Bud farm, right?" The man nodded, and IF traced her finger over the map, "It's a long way to get to either farm on foot. I can't believe I'm suggesting this, but I think we'll need the CPUs to split up and quickly check those places out first thing tomorrow."

"Hmm?" Blanc set down her book briefly, looking towards the dining room, "Is it really wise for us to split up?"

"Not like we haven't done so before," IF remarked, "Compa, myself, and Thomas can stay here in case the robots try another attack. We need the CPUs to see what's happened at those farms. We have go to find intel on our surroundings before we can proceed further."

The father of the household spoke up, "Excuse me, but I do remember that both farms, like ours, have a Razer turret installed. You might want to check to see if those are still operating."

"I'll definitely have to go check on them," Nepgear said.

"Hold on, Nepgear," Uni grimaced, looking a bit cross, "You can't go check on both farms at the same time. I'm so slouch in the weapons department, after all. I'll check out one farm, and you check the other."

"Looks like we got our two teams," IF said, "Nepgear, Uni, you'll have to decide the teams to go with you."

Uni nodded, then pointed at Nepgear, "Nepgear, your team can go to Raguna to the southeast. My team can go directly south to Flower Bud farm. Er, I mean, if you don't mind."

"N-not at all, Uni," Nepgear blinked at Uni's initiative, "But who will be going with us?"

Uzume piped in, "Hey Ifsy, mind if I stay here with the three of you while the CPUs are out? We need at least one CPU around this farm, don't you think? It'll even out the two teams also, make it easier for the girls to pick, you know?"

IF pondered over this, "You sure? Alright, consider yourself a volunteer. Nepgear? Uni?"

Nepgear hesitated, "Uh, well, I'm not sure who should go with who... uh, Neptune? Mind helping out your sister?"

Neptune smiled immediately, "Anything for my little sis! Sure thing! I'll help you out! In fact, I say we bring Plutie with us. I just hope she doesn't complain about having to move too far."

Noire sighed, "Neptune's already deciding the teams, huh? Figures. Well, guess that means we'll be heading out together, huh Uni?"

Uni pondered a second, then shook her head, "Actually, I think you should go with Nepgear for this one. If that's alright with you, Nepgear."

Nepgear phewed, "Thanks, Uni!" Her team was now complete.

Noire was rather surprised that, once more, Uni chose to be on a team separate from her, "What? Really? Why would I be on Nepgear's team?"

Uni cleared her throat, and leaned closer to speak quietly to her sister, "She's going with Neptune and Plutia, Noire. I think someone needs to be there to help the team stay on focus."

"I can be super focused!" Neptune protested, clearly overhearing Uni's words, "Like me and Plutie would take advantage and slack off or anything like that!" Despite the cheery tone, it was hardly a convincing argument, as Nepgear was feeling a little nervous.

"Good thinking, Uni," Noire murmured.

Uni sighed a little, "Yeah." She then leaned a bit away to look over into the living room, "Lady Blanc?"

Blanc closed her book and put it away in her inventory, "I understand. Rom? Ram? Looks like we'll be heading to Raguna farm first thing tomorrow."

"Ooh, a mystery!" Rom said in a bit of excitement, "Don't worry, Big Sis. We'll look around for clues!"

"Yeah yeah," Ram clapped her hands, "This is perfect! We'll be like super star celebrity detectives!" Ram looked more excited than her sister, seeing an opportunity to prove herself as a future wise and powerful sage. Finding clues and solving a mystery would count as showing some wisdom, right?

Uzume smiled at the enthusiasm shown by the twins, "We'll be counting on you two. I look forward to seeing what you uncover!"

Plutia, meanwhile, muttered some sort of cheer, though it was difficult to hear as her face was turned towards the couch. It didn't help that it came out rather slowly, "Goh... fait... wen... mumble..." Plutia stirred a bit more before returning back to her nap.

"Looks like the teams are all set," Thomas said quietly. A part of him was relieved, as it looked like he would be staying back this time. No need for a leap of faith or a rush to be a hero.

Having finished his tea, the father got up from his seat, taking his cup to the kitchen. "Before the day is done, might I ask some of you to help us feed animals at the barn?"

"You're raising animals here?" Noire asked with a look of surprise.

"We do have a few animals that we raise and feed, but not a whole lot," the mother said.

Thomas raised an eyebrow, curious, "Animals such as?"

Chirper event in progress, to be sent later when the internet gets better.

The message would come from Thomas' icon, which noted "Not sure if this is a barn or petting zoo, sometimes."

"Ran-Pigs!"

The barn wasn't too far away from the farmhouse, though it looked to be a recent addition. Next to it was a small storage shed. Inside, on one side of the barn were a few cows. Both Sara and her father went to work refilling the troughs in their section, separating between water and food for the animals.

It was at the other side of the barn where Thomas blurted out the previous line, happy to be able to see these strange creatures. While they looked like regular run-of-the-mill pigs from a distance, they had rather odd faces, similar to a text emoticon.

"Ran-ran~! (´・ω・｀)" One of the animals squeaked, also somehow being capable of using words, and emotes if the need be. For the sake of my own sanity, I probably won't show the emotes so much.

"You look excited," Blanc held her hands behind her back as she walked beside Thomas in the area set for the Ran-Pigs, "First time seeing these things?"

"Aye!" Thomas exclaimed, watching the things run around them, "They're such a rarity on the mainland, and yet they flourish here in Leanbox. I never went out of my way to see any in-person until now, though." He bent his knees and wrapped his arms around them, quietly laughing at the goofy expressions he saw.

Blanc glanced away, "Aren't you so easily amused? Acting like a kid."

Speaking of, the Lowee twins dumped the last bit of feed into the troughs for the Ran-Pigs, who immediately rushed over to eat.

"Are we being shipped?" One of the Ran-Pigs squealed, a thing they're often concerned with.

"Nuh-uh!" Rom shook her head at the Ran-Pig, who immediately looked relieved, and rushed to the trough to eat with the others.

While that was happening, both Uzume and Nepgear were watching the goings-on from the fence surrounding the Ran-Pig area. As Uzume curiously watched, something came to her mind, and she leaned a little to Nepgear, "Gearsy?"

"Yes, Uzume?" Nepgear blinked, speaking normally while Uzume was more hushed.

Unphased, Uzume continued, trying to keep her voice from being overheard by the others, "You were in Leanbox when the Gold Third was running things, right? Those million Ran-Pigs... um, those people... did you find a way to get them back to normal, or are they..." Uzume's eyes widened, her imagination giving her some rather terrible ideas of what could happen.

"Oh!" Nepgear said, "Those people who were cursed and turned into Ran-Pigs were brought together, and we eventually found a way to get rid of the curse. Don't worry, everyone's been turned back, even the one that got away before the ritual."

Uzume closed her eyes, and breathed a huge sigh of relief, feeling her heart no longer sink, "Oh, good."

Nepgear smiled weakly, "Admittedly, it did take a while. We had to call in Mr. Badd to help us with the whole process."

"Mr. Who-now?" Uzume blinked, not sure who Nepgear was talking about.

"Right, Mr. Badd," Nepgear idly scratched one of her cheeks, "One of the Seven Sages from Ultradimension. During my time there, he was responsible for turning children into monsters." Uzume looked mortified at this, before Nepgear quickly kept going, "He's reformed now! He felt really bad about what happened and since worked to revert them back to normal. He's a bit of a softie, too, since he grew attached to those kids."

"Must have been some kind of strange story," Uzume remarked, "You should probably bring me up to speed with what happened over there some time."

Nepgear sighed a bit, "I guess I could tell you some time. You could ask Neptune or Plutia about it, too."

"I don't think so," Uzume chuckled a bit, "Plutsy's going to take too long to say... er, anything, and I'm pretty sure Nepsy would add a lot of embellishment."

Nepgear giggled, "Yeah, they probably would." She paused, her smile fading, "Those was difficult times for some of us."

"If you're not comfortable with telling me about it, I can understand," Uzume said.

"Oh, no, it's alright," Nepgear twiddled with her fingers, "I'll tell you about it later."

Uzume and Nepgear smiled to each other, then went back to watching the antics in the Ran-Pig area. By this point, some of the Ran-Pigs were done eating, and were running around in circles. Both Rom and Ram gave chase to a few, while Thomas stood back up to watch, only to be gently nudged over by a few of the pigs. Thomas eventually fell back on his side, stifling some laughter at his sorry state. Blanc could only hold a sleeve up to her face, trying to hide her expression.

Uzume snickered a little at the antics, before thinking once more. After a little while, she spoke, "Gearsy?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna tell him," replied Uzume, looking more determined.

"Tell him?" Nepgear tilted her head in confusion.

Uzume nodded, "I'm going to tell Tomsy. Everything. He needs to know by now."

"Really? Are you sure you want to do this?" Nepgear asked, having a feeling on what answer she'll get.

"Yeah, I do," Uzume answered, "Sooner or later, he'll find out about Uzume Tennouboshi. I need to do this, and put that past behind me."

There was a quiet moment between the two, before Nepgear said, "Any idea how he'll react?"

"I... I don't know," Uzume was unsure, "I just can't hide that info forever. I... we'll figure things out. I need to get this off my chest. So yeah, I'll be telling him tomorrow. Tonight, though, let's just get some rest."

Nepgear hrmed, "Alright. Good luck to you. Hope it goes well."

"I won't need luck!" Uzume exclaimed, before clearing her throat, "But, th-thanks for offering."

After another pause, the two were interrupted by Sara, who waved at the both of them to watch her.

"Looks like Sara wants your attention, Nepgear," Uzume said with a grin.

Sara entered the Ran-Pig area, and checked each pig for something, before stopping on one of the pigs. It was a small pig, so it was wasn't too difficult for the young girl to pick up the creature carefully. She then turned towards the two and showed them the Ran-Pig in question, showing it off specifically to Nepgear.

"Ran-Gear~!" The girl said happily. Apparently she named one of the pigs after one of her favorite CPUs. Much to Nepgear's surprise, the creature looked over at the two, and was immediately surprised.

"Ran-gya~! (´ｏωдｏ｀)" The pig made a face similar to Nepgear's own shocked face, much to Uzume's great amusement.

Uzume laughed, "Wow, Nepgear, there's even a Ran-Pig imitating you now! Ha ha ha ha, it's so freakin' adorable!"

Nepgear pouted, "Another one? Ohhh, why do I feel like I'm being picked on again?"

I dunno, Nepgear. I thought it looked cute, personally.