The Misadventures of Hyperdimension Peashy
Episode 64
by Derald Snyder
*Overlord's Castle*
"You disappoint me, kitty," Etna chastised in mild annoyance, pointing at the disabled Nepgya. "This is NOT the reason I sent you to Gamindustri!"
"N-no, Master," the black cat shook her head. "But I, I thought-"
"QUIET!" the demon lord cut her off. "I sacrificed a Warrior and a Prinny for your sake, and you bring me back a hunk of scrap metal!"
"NNNN... NEPGYA..." said robot attempted to reactivate again, only to glitch and shut down.
"Master, it could still be fixed!" the cat insisted. "You could use it as another diversion, meow! Maybe that scientist you captured could do something with it!"
Etna pondered this for a few moments... "Eh, fine. I guess it wouldn't be a total waste of effort... Hey, Majin!" she called. "Take this hunk of junk down to our prisoner and have her fix it up!"
"As you wish, Master Etna," said Majin complied, picking up Nepgya in his arms.
"And keep an eye on her so she doesn't sabotage it!" the demon lord added.
*Leanbox City Hospital*
"I can't say I really approve of this," the NPC doctor sighed as he regarded the little angel in front of him. "But, if you're confident of her abilities, petty officer, I'll hold my tongue."
"If it worked on me and Arthur, it'll work on Peach," Adrian asserted, standing by his fiancee's hospital bed, along with A-Mac and Nisa. "Anytime you're ready, Miss Sicily."
"Okay!" the demon angel nodded, raising a hand. "Giga Heal!"
Peashy took in a breath as the energy washed over her, feeling the throbbing pain in her stomach swiftly fade away. "I think it worked..."
"Well, let's take off your bandages and make sure," the doctor said, helping Peach sit up, before gently removing the bloodied gauze... revealing nothing but healthy skin underneath. The NPC then touched the spot where his patient had been pierced through... "Does that hurt?" Peach shook her head, so the doctor poked a little harder. "How about now?"
"No more than it should," the blonde answered. Standing up and stretching, she couldn't suppress a grin. "Heh... Looks like Peach C. Macintosh is finally back in action!"
"That's great to hear, sis," A-Mac nodded.
"Well, I would still recommend no strenuous activity for 24 hours, just to be safe," the doctor recommended. "You did a good job, young lady... just try not to put us medical professionals out of business now, okay?" he addressed Sicily.
"Okay!" the angel nodded.
"Alright then," Adrian spoke up, "Peach, how about you call your Mom so she can take you back home? I would do it, but someone needs to take Arthur home, and I wanted to have a word with him alone. C'mon, Arthur." With that, he grabbed Peach's brother by the wrist and gently pulled him away.
"Uh, I'll see you later, Peach!" A-Mac awkwardly waved before he disappeared.
"Bye, A-Mac," Nisa called after him. Turning to Peashy, she said, "Y'know, I'd take you home myself, except I don't have a driver's license..."
"It's fine," Peach shook her head and smiled. "Actually, how about I have Mom take us all over to the Basilicom? Lady Vert's probably gonna want a debriefing anyway..."
*In the hospital stairwell...*
Adrian waited for the door to shut, before abruptly grabbing A-Mac by the shirt and shoving him against the wall! "What the hell were you thinking?!" he whispered harshly. "You'd think after the incident at the mall, you would've known better than to try to play hero all by yourself! If it hadn't been for me and Nicole, you'd be a head shorter by now!"
"I-I, I..." Arthur grunted in dismay. "I thought the Prinny blowing up would be enough..."
"Well obviously, it wasn't!" the soldier retorted. "That's your problem, you don't think things through before acting! Your sister used to be the same way, still is sometimes! Just 'cause you don't have your father's or your younger sisters' brains, doesn't mean you should act like a complete idiot! Do you get me?!"
"I get it, I get it!" A-Mac asserted frantically. "I should've just called the police or something...!"
Adrian glared at him for a few seconds longer, before finally letting go and backing off. "All right... Look, when you get home, you tell your dad that you came upon that demon by happenstance, and that he decided to chase you for fun. If he finds out that you didn't learn your lesson from the mall, he's probably gonna force you to separate from Nicole forever, among other things! Do you want that?!"
"No! No I don't!" the young man shook his head vigorously. "I'll tell him what you told me!"
"Good. I don't usually encourage lying to your parents, but you are my future brother-in-law. And I wouldn't dress you down like this if I didn't care," Adrian stated. "If nothing else, remember this: from now on, do NOT go into a situation like that without backup, be it Nicole or Peashy, okay?"
"Okay," A-Mac nodded.
"Alright, let's go," Adrian turned and started making his way down the stairs, Arthur timidly following behind... "You know, if you just had a bit more discipline, I think you'd make a damn fine soldier in the army..."
"But I don't like guns," Arthur pointed out.
"Neither did Peashy," Adrian countered, "and she did pretty well for herself, all things considered..." Then an idea started to form in his head... (Hmm... Me, Peach, Arthur and Nicole... and maybe Chika, too... Maybe...)
*The next day...*
"Done," MAGES. grunted as she closed the maintenance panel. "All that's left is to power her up..." Walking over to her crude electrical apparatus, she threw the switch...
"This had better work," the Majin warned.
"It will. This time I'm certain," the Mad Magician asserted... Sure enough, the robot began to stir, pulling herself into a sitting position.
"...POWER-UP COMPLETE. SYSTEMS ONLINE. HELLO, I AM NEPGYA, A ROBOTIC DUPLICATE OF NEPGEAR BASED OFF HER FUNNY-FACE COMPONENTS," the not-Nepgear intoned. "UNABLE TO LINK WITH GPS. WHERE AM I? THE LAST THING I RECALL IS BEING BURIED IN GARBAGE..."
"You're in the Overlord's Castle," the Majin replied. "And I'm going to take you to your new master."
"WHY SHOULD I DO THAT?" Nepgya asked defiantly.
"Either that, or you can stay locked up with her," the demon retorted. "Your choice."
The lilac-haired robot looked around the dungeon cell, briefly locking eyes with MAGES., who managed a small smile. Turning back to her captor, she stated, "VERY WELL, I WILL COME WITH YOU."
"Good answer," the Majin nodded, unlocking the cell door and letting Nepgya step out. "Oh, and before I forget, good work, prisoner. Here's your reward- a square meal." He slid in a tray of food and a water bottle before shutting and locking the door again.
"...bottled water? really?" The Mad Magician sighed. "I would rather have a can of Duck P with my meal..."
"What you see is what you get. Take it or leave it," her jailer deadpanned. "Alright, c'mon, robot. Time to meet Master Etna..."
"ACKNOWLEDGED. BUT PLEASE, CALL ME NEPGYA..." the robot said as they left together...
*To be continued...*