Hyperdimension Neptunia is owned by Sega, Idea Factory and Compile Heart and whomever else worked on it.
So real life was TOTALLY kicking my ass for the past two weeks. Let's just say that if it wasn't for Pokemon games, I'd probably have gone more crazy than I already am. Finally got enough drive to write, so, here's the chapter.
Chapter 74
Wandering around Planeptune, Neptune looked around in slight awe. "So this is a thousand years in the future, huh?"
"Must suck knowing that your mom died sad and alone thinking you were dead, huh?!" Croire's voice came from inside her Nepnote.
Neptune sighed and felt her shoulders slumping as she lowered her head. "Thanks, Crostie," she said in a soft voice before turning the corner and running into something. "BLURB!" Her eyes widened as she saw greenish-blue liquid all around her, covering her and cutting off her air. "BLURGBLE!"
There was a blubbery sound as something wrapped around her body and pulled her out of the liquid. Coughing a few times while on her knees, Neptune looked up and stared at the tall, translucent creature. "Sorry about that." The creature said to Neptune. "Please try to be careful, you never know what you'll run into or get stuck in."
"Y-yeah." Neptune nodded as she stood up. "I should have paid more attention." She smiled at the creature, who nodded at her and the two walked off in different directions. "...I guess it didn't sink in until now..."
"What?" Croire asked from inside the Nepnote.
"I truly don't have a home anymore." Neptune said softly as she walked around the city. While the sights were quite new and unique for her, in many ways it felt wrong.
Croire said nothing as Neptune walked around the city and met several creatures that weren't human or even native to the planet.
It was nearly an hour later that Neptune found herself in a local park, sitting on a bench and sighing. "What about you, Crostie?"
"Meh, don't ask me. I was Rei's helper back when she was a Goddess." Croire grumbled from inside the notebook. "Really, even if she didn't suffered from psychosis, her nation would have fallen because of how pathetic she was."
Neptune frowned in confusion. "Who's Rei?"
"A-a-are you t-talking about me?" A stuttering voice spoke up and Neptune nearly jumped off of the bench in surprise as she looked up to see a woman that looked like she was almost thirty with light blue hair, blue eyes, a horn on her head and wearing a black suit-dress.
"Holy shit! Talk about the Devil and she appears!" Croire laughed from inside the Nepnote.
"Croire?!" Rei gasped in surprise. "Where are you?" She looked around in an almost comical manner, looking for the source of her book fairy.
"Oh, you know me, just stuck inside some random book for no reason, want to let me out of here so I can help you regain your powers again? I know who has them."
Neptune immediately jumped up and over the bench as she jumped back. "No way, Crostie, you keep this up, I'll tell Tiny Me to seal you away like she did her own daughters." She reached into her pocket to grab the Nepnote.
"You do that and you'll never be able to go through dimensions again." Croire warned, though she was internally sweating and hoping that it wouldn't happen. Neptune had left her daughters sealed for over two centuries after all. If it wasn't for circumstances, those two would likely still be sealed up.
Before Neptune could respond, Rei smiled and held her hands up in a disarming fashion. "N-no. I don't actually want my powers back. I'm living a much happier life without them."
Neptune nodded and sighed slightly. "That's good, because dealing with Uzume's crazy CPU self was bad enough, I don't want to deal with more crazy." She laughed and rubbed the back of her head.
Rei just tilted her head. "Another crazy CPU?" She asked, shivering. "That's never a good thing."
"Tell me about it." Neptune groaned. "I love her to death, but Kurome was all like "rawr, I hate everyone, so I'll smash this dimension into that dimension and..." She trailed off as she saw Rei's face go stark white. "Uh..."
"But that would destroy both dimensions and would cause problems for any dimension that was basically next door," she shuddered and hugged herself, "it would be l-like a s-sun going su-supernova with other suns only a few light years away." She clasped her hands and then pulled them apart while making a sound to emulate an explosion while Neptune stared in horror, her face just as white as Rei's. "S-so i-if that person is still doing it..."
"Nah, she got her cute butt spanked and she's good now." Neptune laughed, causing Rei to sigh in relief. "But how did you know that?"
Rei smiled at Neptune nervously. "B-Because my name is Rei Ryghts, I was the Goddess of the ancient land of Tari and the first CPU of Gamindustri thousands of years ago." Neptune gawked and Rei continued. "I, um, I had the power to control the weather and could even control dimensional space." Rei blushed hard. "I, um, wasn't good at my job and didn't realize that people need to love their CPU for us to have power."
"Plus you ended up being batshit insane." Croire couldn't help but comment on things.
Rei nodded at that. "Indeed, I wasn't the most stable." She walked over to Neptune and smiled at the slightly taller girl. "By the way, if that's Croire, where is she?"
Neptune reached into her pocket and pulled out a purple notebook. "She's in this book here. I sealed her in it when I was fourteen because I thought she was some sort of rare bug." Neptune laughed at Rei's look. "Imagine my shock when she could not only talk, but she showed me whole new realities." Her smile slid from her face and she sighed softly. "But apparently time went so fast here that while I was only gone for like three years for me, over a thousand passed here."
Rei had a confused look for a few moments before realization dawned on her as she saw the sad look on Neptune's face. "Your family's all gone, huh?" Neptune nodded while looking down and Rei felt the urge to hug the long-haired girl. "Um... If it helps, I know a place that might help you feel better."
Neptune just looked confused.
(-)
Meanwhile...
Stadia sighed as she and Ouya walked through the Basilicom. Sure, it was the residential Basilicom, but everything was so different than what they were used to seeing. "I know it's been a few hundred years, but..."
"I know." Ouya said as she hugged a stuffed rabbit to her chest. "It feels like home, but everything feels wrong."
"Well," Stadia cracked a small smile, "not everything. Aunt Plutie, Big Sis, Histy and mom are all here after all."
Ouya nodded and smiled back, "yeah. Plus aunt Noire, Aunt Vert and Aunt Blanc! Plus we don't have to ever worry about fighting mommy again."
Stadia was about to say something when she heard a piano playing. "What the..?" She looked around and realized it was coming down the hallway in the direction they were going. "It sounds... Familiar."
"This sounds like that song mommy used to sing to us." Ouya said softly as they continued down the hallway, stopping in front of the room the music was coming from. "...Isn't this our room?"
Stadia shrugged and opened the door and walked in with Ouya. What surprised them both wasn't that the room didn't have any beds anymore, but it did have a lot of pictures of the two of them, along with a glass cabinet with some of their favorite games and toys. But the biggest surprise to the girls was that in the corner was Sobar playing on the piano that was there. "...This song..."
"Huh?" Sobar blinked his eyes as he turned to see the girls standing there. "Oh, sorry, did you need something?"
"Where did you learn that song?" Ouya asked while Stadia frowned at him. The two walked to the middle of the room where a couple of chairs were resting.
"Neptune taught it to me back when she was brainwashed." Sobar told them. "I always wondered where she learned it, but she never could answer me." Whenever he asked, Neptune always said that it was something that she just knew.
"She had a piano playing and sang to us when we were feeling sad." Stadia told him as she trembled. "...C...Could you play it again?"
"Sure." Sobar nodded as he turned back to the piano and started playing again.
As the notes filled the air, Stadia found herself humming the tune that Neptune had sang to them after first bringing them to live with her centuries ago. Ouya followed along as they enjoyed the feelings that the song was invoking in them.
When the song ended, all three were surprised to hear some clapping and they turned to see Histoire hovering in the doorway. "I was wondering who was playing that song." She smiled at Sobar. "I'm surprised you're so good at the piano."
"I spent centuries refining what I could do." Sobar told her. "I have no natural talent at the piano, but that song was the only thing I had of Neptune while we were split apart."
Opening her mouth, Histoire paused and thought about it. "Yes, I suppose it's time to show you three this then." She floated over to them and held out a small device. "When Neptune realized that she was going to be here for a long time, she had this device made and put one single program into it." Histoire smiled as she turned the device on. "I've kept it working for years now."
A holographic image of Purple Heart and Purple Sister appeared on it as the music started to play and the two both sang and danced to the music and beat.
After the song was over, Histoire turned it off and smiled at them.
"Where did she learn that?" Stadia asked, though she was happy to see such a thing.
"Why don't you ask her?" Histoire suggested and motioned at the door where Neptune was at. "She followed me looking for you three."
"That old song?" The small CPU laughed as she rubbed the back of her head. "It was actually before Nep Jr. and I got caught in the graveyard. I wanted to try out for an idol contest and I wanted a partner for it. So Nep Jr. came up with a song and we practiced and took part in it."
"Oh, so this was..." Ouya trailed off as she saw Neptune's sad smile.
"I didn't want to forget her, so I programmed me and Nep Jr. singing and dancing to that song." Neptune said sadly. "And now..." She trailed off, her eyes widening as a thought came to her. "OH! That's perfect!"
Everyone jumped as Neptune suddenly turned and ran off.
"We should follow her and make sure that she's fine." Histoire said, sighing softly and wondering what was going to happen.
(-)
Elsewhere...
"Where... Where are we?" Neptune asked as she and Rei walked out of the portal revealing a grassy meadow with several purple flowers and a large, thick tree that overlooked a valley that led to Planeptune City.
"A meadow that I discovered a few centuries ago and have been taking care of since." Rei smiled at her before looking to the West. "I helped found a nation called Eden a thousand years ago. I wanted it to be a place where people could live without needing a CPU." A sad look came to her face as she sighed. "It was destroyed a few hundred years ago."
"Hey, Neptune, can you open your notebook up?"
"No way, you want me to let you go." Neptune said as she started to put her notebook back into her pocket.
"Just open up to my page, okay?! I can at least record the history of the area I'm in that way." Neptune looked at the notebook with suspicion, but decided to open up her Nepnote to the page Croire was in. "Finally, sheesh, I was trying to say, this place seemed familiar to me for some reason."
"This isn't where Tari ended up dying off." Rei told Croire.
"Nah." Croire dismissed Rei. "That's not it at all. That tree was planted over a thousand years ago by this dummy's mother."
Neptune's pupil's shrank. "W...What?"
"Yeah, she was even buried at the base of the tree." Croire pointed out. "Don't say I never did nothing nice for you, you can at least say goodbye to her."
"Well, that does fit with the legend of this tree." Rei said as Neptune looked at her while the two walked to the tree. "This tree was planted by a woman who lost her only child with the hope that one day the two would meet at this tree sometime in the future."
Neptune was about to say something when a large screen over Planeptune City suddenly appeared in the sky. "What's going on?" She asked as Purple Heart appeared on it.
(-)
Purple Heart, wearing her processor, stood in front of the screen. "Hello to everyone in Planeptune, I hope you are all doing well today."
She took a moment before continuing on. "It's been awhile since I've done an announcement like this, but I want to introduce everyone to my little sister." Purple Sister smiled nervously as she walked onto the screen. "We were separated many years ago, before I became a CPU of Planeptune and were recently reunited. I thought, in celebration, that we would sing a song for all of you. A song that the two of us came up with years ago."
She nodded to the side as piano music started to pick up and the two sisters smiled before they started to dance to the beat.
"I wish, at this place we first met
Go fight, let your life blossom till the end
I don't forget, our endless journey
Promise to you, just this one single oath."
(-)
The people of Planeptune could only stare and smile as they listened to the song which had a tremendous amount of love and affection in it. Even if they had never known that Purple Heart had a younger sister, the sheer amount of happiness that were in the lyrics that they were hearing couldn't be denied.
"An amount of sadness is tied to each and every bond
That was something a goddess taught me ."
(-)
Sitting in the living room of the Basilicom, Flonne, Artina, Laharl and Pudding all listened as the two sisters sang and danced for everyone.
"Everybody now! The sky of our memory
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
I won't lose to anyone, all I want to see your smile.
Everybody knows, don't give up!
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
Let's grasp the future...Love and Peace!"
(-)
In her room, Plutia had a sad smile on her face as she listened to the song. "...I guess that this is a better way to leave than to be sad, huh?" She whispered as she packed more clothes away while tears fell down her face. "Dammit, Neppy. Why did things have to come to this?"
(-)
"I wish, for the courage to move forward
Go fight, don't let anyone stop you
I don't forget, our unwavering dream
Promise to you, just this one single prayer!"
All our hopes were gathered and turned into "strength" here
I noticed that I could become a goddess!"
Uzume bit her lower lip as she listened to the song. "...I wish you were my little sister, Nepsy, instead of just my junior." Tears fell from her eyes as the song continued. "If you had been, would I have fallen like I did?"
(-)
"Everybody now, spread your wings!
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
Let's fly away now, we can become free!"
Ouya and Stadia looked at each other and smiled before hugging Histoire gently, who leaned into it to enjoy it.
Sobar stood to the back, watching Purple Heart and Purple Sister sing and dance and found himself smiling in happiness. It felt so natural to hear that from Neptune. The sadness that she always seemed to have around her when he knew her always felt unnatural to him.
(-)
In another part of the Basilicom...
Blanc, Noire and Vert looked at each other and nodded as they made sure that the song was playing in their nations so that the entire world could hear it.
After all, it had been far too long since they had heard Neptune so happy.
"Everybody now, the dream we aim for
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
Let's grasp the future...Love and Peace!
An amount of sadness is tied to each and every bond
That was something a goddess taught me!"
(-)
Purple Heart smiled at Purple Sister, who returned it while they continued to dance and the music started to hit a crescendo.
"Everybody now, the sky of our memory
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
I won't lose to anyone, I want to see your smile!
Everybody now, don't give up!
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
Let's grasp the future...With Love and Peace!
Everybody now, spread your wings
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
Let's fly away now, we can become free
Everybody now, the dream we aim for
Happiness? Lucky? Your smile?
Let's grasp the future...Love and Peace!"
(-)
As the song came to an end, Rei looked at Neptune, who was smiling happily even as tears fell from her eyes. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah." Neptune nodded and blinked as she looked to the side. "...I could have sworn that I just saw my mom smiling at me."
"Who knows?" Rei said softly as she looked at the tree. "I can tell you that if a spirit is strong enough, they'll stick around, even centuries after they died."
"Well, if that's the case then..." Neptune took a deep breath and let it out. "I'm home, mom. Sorry it took so long."
A gust of wind picked up at that moment and a few leaves fell off of the tree, falling on top of Neptune's head.
"I think she forgives you." Rei said, getting a nod from Neptune, who was blushing with tears coming out of her eyes. "Why don't you sit at the tree and tell her all about your adventures, huh?" She turned and walked away. "Don't worry about me, I live nearby."
"Thanks." Neptune smiled at Rei and went to do just that.
Yes, that song was "Go-Love & Peace". What? Can't I like it? Anyway, I thought it would be good for this.
Anyway, see you next time.