Chapter 5 - Screaming like a Banshee

In another part of the cave, there was an entrance to the outside world, one that was located on another path through the Virtua forest. This entrance, was the one that Neptune and Compa had found after some backtracking and a lot of searching through the wilderness. It showed through more on Neptune than Compa though, as she looked to be in a state of exhaustion, slightly swaying from side to side as she walked.

"#huff# #huff#… Never… I'm never going through so many bushes again…" she muttered in fatigue, looking down as she raised her hands to her face. They looked to have seen better days, with scratches made from passing branches, dirt from searching through muddy areas, hell there were even several leaves sticking out. And let's not forget that this extended over to her attire and the rest of her body by the way, her hoodie dress had several tears down the arms and waist, with leaves sticking out of her hoodie. Neptune had obviously had better days than this.

Looking over her, Compa could only smile weakly as she remembered Neptune's 'mad search routine' through their search for another entrance to the Cave-like Dungeon. "Nep-Nep, you have only yourself to blame, your search places were, sometimes, pretty insane…" she commented. She had searched through, trees, mud puddles, bushes, even looked down a pair of rocks to see if there was a 'hidden lever' in Neptune's words.

In response to Compa's comment, Neptune turned her head to look at her, a pouty expression on her features as she made to defend herself. "B-B-But Compa, you never know! Developers can put levers in some pretty weird and insane places to throw the player off their grove." … By utilising a mix of gaming and fourth-wall breaking logic. Don't judge, it was her fall back for any sticky situation she found herself in.

Compa's weak smile steadily got weaker. "Anywho," Neptune began as she decided to change the subject before things got any worse for her, and her near non-existent sense of shame. Looking around at the Dungeon, Neptune adopted a confused expression as she asked her friend. "You know where we are? I mean, you're the one of us that has her memories, so…" she ended off. It was true, sad but true nonetheless, that she was the only one of them who still had her memories as Neptune didn't, so it was only natural for her to assume that Compa had an idea of where they were.

However, that proved to be a negative as Compa shook her head, placing a hand on her chin as she looked around, trying to figure out what exactly this place was. "I don't really know, Nep-Nep. I haven't seen this dungeon before. I never really went out on quests involving these kinds of scenarios, just stuck to the ones that involved healing sick and injured." She explained, before looking up at the ceiling and furrowing her brows. "Although, if I were to guess I'd say this Dungeon was located underneath the Virtua Forest. It feels like so, anyways…"

Her answer made Neptune hum in thought as she pondered this new information. In her mind, this was like one of those secret corners in videogames where the player can find secret treasures that'll make the MC totally broken later. "Huh… that DOES feel like what this is… but the 'how' in that eludes me, it does." She mused to herself, once again spouting references.

"Oh yeah, Ni-Ni did tell me once," Compa gasped suddenly, her eyes widening as she remembered something, getting Neptune's attention after she practically jumped at the loud tone Compa had used. It was only made louder thanks to the soundwaves reflecting off the Cave, creating a repetitive echo. It vanished after a few moments, but its effect had maintained. "When a new Dungeon is discovered the most important thing is to locate any monsters within the Dungeon and evaluate them, get an idea of their strengths. You don't know what to expect when in situations like this."

It was always important to know the lay of the land, to know what your enemies were so that you could strike them down quickly, efficiently. That was the first thing Nico had told her when she and him first exchanged texts, born from a nearly-botched mission that almost took his life. It was only accomplished thanks to Nico and his comrades working together to survive. They were stranded in unknown territory with a mission to collect several types of special ores, and had to fight their way to an open space where they could get evacuated to safety.

One could imagine how she reacted when she found out.

After recalling the words that he had said to her after he had spent 2 hours trying to calm the worried Nurse-In-Training down, a worried expression formed on her face. "Nep-Nep… um, maybe we should find Ni-Ni as soon as possible and get outta here. This place gives me the creeps…" she said, shuddering while wrapping her arms around herself, as if attempting to seek warmth that only her own body could provide.

When Neptune saw this, she walked up to her quivering friend and rested a hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner, "hey, cheer up, kiddo. Nobody likes to have cry-babies around. And besides," her expression morphed from stern like it was before to a cocky smirk, the kind of smirk that she would make before delivering a joke, which in this moment felt like it was necessary. "When you're being bullied by somebody you don't say 'why me?' instead you say, 'try me'! so bucker up, girl! We got a party member to save."

Her words struck a chord in the cream haired girl, and suddenly, a huge load of confidence swelled inside of her stomach, pooling there and refusing to stop even if she wanted it to. There was just something about the words that Neptune had said that reminded her of her friend, she could see similarities between the two.

Both were courageous

Both were strong-willed

Both were willing to stick their necks out for their cherished ones.

A bright smile formed on Compa's face as she nodded eagerly, a "Hm!" being made within her mouth that made a matching expression form on Neptune's face. "Alrightie, Nep-Nep, let's go rescue Ni-Ni!" she shouted with motivation and determination. The speech given to her had worked its magic in settling her fears for the moment. She pulled her Syringe out and held it at the ready, ready for a combat situation.

There was one special perk that all adventurers and Guild Agents had, and that was called the 'Inventory' which was a portable sub-dimension hotwired to their users' brains. It allowed them to store many items, weapons, accessories, outfits and armour that they either find outside in the wilderness, loot off the carcasses of fallen monsters, or at item stores. Usually though there are few who carry armour around, because it is generally made for the military which focuses more on defence and endurance, while the adventurers rely more on attack, speed and agility. It varies from adventurer to adventurer, Agent to Agent, but nonetheless that was how it worked for them.

With her friend's confidence restored, Neptune turned to head on out, clenching a fist with a confident look on her face. "Alrightie then let's do it like a dude and Go-go-go-huh?" a glint of metal caught her attention near the end of her sentence, turning her expression from one of confidence to one of confusion. She went to where the glint originated from and saw something that was of great intrigue to her. "Huh? Oh hello, what do we have here?"

Compa watched her friend walk to a pedestal which seemed to have something of interest that caught her attention. Whatever it was the young girl wondered what it was, but couldn't see it thanks to Neptune being in the way. "Nep-Nep, what is it? Have you found something?" she questioned instead, hoping that the purplette would let her in on whatever it was she had found.

Neptune turned around and walked back to her, her gaze never leaving her new find which she held in one hand, her other one on her chin as she furrowed her brows while staring intently at it. The object was what looked like a piece of some puzzle, but it was hard to tell, thanks to the continuous silverfish-white glow that it had. When she looked up at Compa, Neptune realised she had asked her a question, and deduced that it was about her item. "Dunno, but I found it on that pedestal over there. It's gotta be some sorta plot device used to appease some king from another land or something." She remarked as she handed it to Compa, who took it back and looked down at it intently, her lips set in a deep frown. "Have you seen it before?"

"Hmmm…" Compa hummed as she looked over the item. The glow felt warm to the touch in her palm as she turned it over multiple times to get a look from different angles, as if that was the key to solving this mystery. However, she couldn't for the life of her figure out what it was. In the end, she shook her head negative as she handed it back to Neptune. "No, I've never heard of something like that. Maybe Ni-Ni might know since he's been around the 4 Continents." She suggested, drawing Neptune's attention.

The girl blinked multiple times as she regarded her friend with curious eyes. She placed a finger under her chin and hummed. "While we're on the topic, who is this Nicky guy anyways? I mean, I've met him, but can you explain to me what your relationship with him is?" she asked, for the first time since they'd met realising that she hardly knew much about them, both Compa and Nico.

Blinking, Compa smiled happily more than glad to be talking about her friend and possible crush. "Ni-Ni and I are childhood friends, Nep-Nep. We met when he was dropped off by the Planeptune government at the request of his parents, since they knew my grandfather. He spent a year with us before he left to join the Guild and do mercenary work across all four Nations. Or well, actually he had joined the guild part time, but then he became a Spec Ops after he left." She explained some of her friend's backstory, though she then recalled one detail that would REALLY snag Neptune hook line and sinker. "Also, he has partial amnesia."

"Say whaaaa? He's like me?!"

While she giggled at the shocked look on Neptune's face, the Nurse in Training shook her head, her hair swaying softly behind her. "No, it's not like yours Nep-Nep. His starts from age 6 to 11, when he first met us. He can't recall anything between then, and ever since his parents had disappeared, leaving him to be taken in by my grandfather. It's always been a priority for him to find out what he had forgotten, to possibly learn about his parents. It's what drove him to become the Agent he is today."

Dull, was the expression that was on Neptune's face. That stuff was deep, deeper than she expected. "Sheesh, he really has it rough, I mean, while I have no memories, he still has some memories leading to unanswered questions, it must be hard for him." She remarked, thinking between their situations. Since she had no memories, she didn't have anything tying her down to the past, which made her easily able to form new memories.

But Nico on the other hand, still had some memories of the past he had unknowingly, maybe even unwillingly, left behind. They must constantly haunt him when he slept, never resting until they were cleared up, which could only happen if he discovered the truth. Neptune had the advantage of not remembering anything at all, which wasn't a luxury he had.

The Nurse in Training nodded sadly, looking down at the pavement and kicking a pebble away. "Yeah… anyways!" Seeing that things were getting awkward real fast, she quickly changed the subject to an immediate concern, though it was still about their missing party member. "We should head on in and find Ni-Ni, he may be hurt and surrounded by meanie monsters. We gotta help him!"

right on, Compa! Let's go get our comrade!"

#ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!#

Their happy atmosphere was instantly shattered, broken beyond recognition without mercy when they heard a massive and loud roar echo throughout the Cave. It sounded like a mix of a roar and a shriek upon closer examination, made only greater by the volume of its intensity. The volume was great enough that both girls had to cover their eardrums to protect them from the overly loud roar, but even then, it was next to useless as the roar felt like someone honking a horn right in their ears.

"Ouchies, my ears!"

"Holy screamers! What Nep is with this awful sound? My eardrums feel like they're gonna melt! Is this one of those high-level boss event triggers?"

Both Neptune and Compa cried out their comments, barely hearing each other thanks to the ringing in their ears being as intense as all hell. Both closed their eyes in hopes to further block the sound, though it was evidently fruitless. Their hearing was so bad right now, that they failed to notice something approaching them, growling with primal anger and… HUNGER, bloodlust bleeding from its very essence.

Luckily, Compa had good instincts, which made her look upwards where she felt the bloodlust originating from. All the colour drained from her face as her eyes turned big, circular and white. "Watch out, Nep-Nep!" she cried, diving down while taking a startled Neptune along with her. She had let out a gasp and an exclamation of her signature 'Nepu!' while this happened, but it was what saved them, for the source of the bloodlust had lunged down from the top of the Cave, slamming into the space where they had once stood. The impact force had sent them further back however, delaying their recovery by a few seconds.

If they thought that they were safe for those seconds, then they were dead wrong. They couldn't see the monster, but it had already started on its offensive, sending something they couldn't see to attack them. They continuously attacked the girls from above, trying to skewer them alive before they could recover.

By the time Neptune had recovered, she had over 10 near death experiences under her belt as she stood up and glared at the enemy, slashing at whatever was trying to attack her to give Compa time to do the same, "Oi! What gives buster?!" she cried as the smoke began to disperse and whatever attacked them receded into the smoke. "It's against the rules to attack outside a battle event! Your cheater, poo eater, belly dancer-WHAT THE NEP?!"

At first Neptune had been all mad and eager to kill what was attacking them, but when she saw what was concealed in the smoke in its full glory her eyes shrunk to dot size as she lost all colour, just like what Compa had done before, quickly changing her tune. "Huh? What is …it…? OH, MY GODDESS, THAT'S NOT WHAT I THINK IT IS, IS IT?!" Compa looked to her friend and noticed her quivering state. Confused, she looked towards the direction Neptune was while asking a question, which soon die in her throat when she saw the monstrosity before them.

If they thought that all monsters would be either cute or weird looking, then they were soon proven wrong as their opponent glowered at them. It had a head the shape of a Moth, with many small beady red eyes with black scarlea staring down at them. It had a mouth fill of razor sharp teeth which was drooling, but not saliva. Actual blood fell like waterfalls from its maw, meaning that it was hungry… for blood. its body looked like that of a moth's as well, with 2 large reverse jointed legs covered in purple armour plates and ending in twisted looking Talons. The plates didn't cover everything however, and what looked like neurotic flesh could be seen underneath. A similar scheme was applied to its 2 muscular arms that ended in lethal claws which looked sharp enough to cut through reality itself.

Lastly, its wings, oh gods, its WINGS! They looked like they were made from the flesh of over a thousand other monsters, many eyes, mouths and facial features dotting them, each wing having 4 larger eyes like the ones on its head, all of them having the same bloodlust-filled expression that the main ones did. In the end, it looked hideous, and both of its prey were quick to voice their complaints.

"Ewww, gross! What the heck is that ugly thing?"

"It looks so slimy, and gross! I think it's one of those 'Banshees' that Ni-Ni told me about!"

Compa and Neptune both grimaced as they turned their heads away from the sight, unable to stomach its grizzly appearance any longer than necessary. Some gagging sounds could be heard from them as well while they made sure their disgust was well known. Its body emitted a scent that nearly made them throw up. Never had they seen such a disgusting monster, both Neptune and Compa had the strong urge to just leave and never come back. The fact that Nico was here and his state being unknown was the only thing keeping them here.

"Banshees?" Neptune looked towards her friend with a curious look starting to break through the disgust, making an unholy combination of the two. It was a far cry better than having just disgust though, and for that she was grateful to her friend. If Compa hadn't said that tad bit of info, then she would have had to deal with that disgust in some other way. "What's a Banshee, Compa? And how the heck does Nicky know em?"

The Nurse in Training dared to look back at the creature before them, which was glowering as it flexed its claws, prepping to attack them at any moment. "Ni-Ni told me about them after one of his quests that involved running with one. He says they prefer close combat and like to overwhelm with numbers. What it did before was signalling to its comrades, so we'll be facing more soon."

"NEPU, there's more?!" Neptune wasn't sure whether she would be frightened or disgusted by that knowledge, that there were more than one of these ugly monsters out there. Her stomach was filled with bile, ready for her to throw up at the best moment of opportunity. "Great, as if we didn't have enough on our plates. The plot really is getting heavy right now and we're not even through the first Arc yet."

Before Compa could scold the amnesiac by saying this wasn't the time for her to be joking around, the Banshee shrieked as it pounced, flying towards them with its claws flexed to rip its prey apart. Both girls cried out as they dove to opposite sides, the Banshee's claws just skimming past them, barely nicking and cutting several of their hairs. The Banshee flew past them and circled upwards, roaring at them as it flared its wings. The flesh of its wings began to bubble, many sounds like stretching flesh being heard from them.

That was their sole warning, before what looked like Tentacles burst out the wings, lunging towards them with the intent to spear them. They were large enough to rival the size of a bus Tire, which made them large. Neptune and Compa screamed as they quickly began dodging like their lives depended on it. The Tentacles retracted after their initial attack failed, as the Banshee shrieked again.

Before they could recover in time, the creature once again went on the offensive, flaring its wings, but this time from their dead flesh there came a barrage of long, hardened spikes, designed solely for the purple of impaling through flesh and bone. Compa and Neptune once again tried to get out of the way, however one of them was not so fortunate.

A scream caught her ears, making Neptune's eyes widen in horror and dread as she turned to the direction it came from. "Compa! Are you ok-" quickly she shut her mouth, or rather, it would be more accurate to say that she was forced to stop talking by the sight before her very eyes. Compa had fallen to her knees, tears of pain streaming down her face while her eyes showed just how much pain she was in. one hand clutched around her shoulder, which had one of the Banshee's Spears imbedded in her flesh. Blood gushed from the wound in her bare shoulder no matter how much she tried to stem the bleeding, even though she was quick to activate her healing magic. In her pained state, Compa forgot she had bandages in her purse, so that was why she had gone straight for healing magic.

Seeing this lit a fire of anger inside her as Neptune turned to face the Banshee, her earlier disgust now being overwhelmed by her anger as she glared at it. "Dude, I know I'm a comic relief character full of jokes and memes, but right now this oversized bug is seriously pressing the 'Nep rage' meter to maximum!" Neptune shouted as she glared at the Banshee, which flexed its claws, sharpening them by scraping them against each other. What the girl didn't notice was the faint purple aura that was slowly forming around her. Pulling out her Sword from her Inventory, Neptune held it in a battle stance, while her aura covered the blade.

Compa was the only one of the group consisting of her, the Banshee, and Neptune herself, who noticed the aura around her. Her eyes widened as she summoned her Syringe from her own inventory, while also pulling the Spike out to finish her healing. The weapon fell to the ground with a clutter, her blood staining its tips. 'Something's wrong with Nep-Nep… her Aura… it feels different than before.' She thought, concerned for Neptune's wellbeing. She had no clue what this aura thing was about, but right now, in this situation, anything would be a help.

SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG! SWISH, SWISH, CLANG!

Blows were traded rapidly between Neptune and the Banshee, her wooden sword holding out surprisingly well against the lethal sharp claws that the creature had. The two circled around each other, neither of them backing down or giving each other any room to even breathe. Both were giving each other killer looks, wanting nothing more than to end the lives of each other. Neptune had foregone her usual cheery personality at the sight of her friend being injured badly, while the Banshee never once let up on its assault on her being.

Compa, having just entered the final stages of the healing process of her Skill, was sitting down by the edge of the wall, watching the battle play out. She knew she wouldn't be of much help right now, especially with her wound. But even if she was at full strength Compa doubted she'd be able to keep up with the speed that those two were going. She could barely keep track of them with how fast they were going. Their rapid swings created a near-constant sound of clanging that vibrated through the air, able to be heard for miles at the rate this fight was intensifying.

'Woooooow… Nep-Nep and the monster are moving so fast…' she thought as she watched the fight. She felt both in awe and afraid as she watched, in awe at the fact that Neptune was someone who could keep up with the Banshee, whose race had the advantage of flight to help increase their speed. However, she was also afraid of the unknown power that Neptune was showing. It had an inhuman feel to it, like it was beyond her and anything humanity could ever hope to create.

Finally, after what felt like hours of sword and claw swings, the two pulled back. Neptune then made a mighty cry as she reared her sword back, the aura around it becoming a spiralling vortex as her eyes began to glow the same colour. "Haaah! Take this!" she yelled, swinging her sword and releasing a mighty energy wave from the tip of her weapon. The attack sailed forth in a diagonal formation, churning through the ground while it surged towards its target.

Said 'Target' utilised the one advantage it had over its prey in this battle: It's Wings. It flared them as the attack neared, and just before it could collide with it, the Banshee flew upwards and found itself above it. The Attack, now missed, vanished just before it could hit the wall behind them, lest it damage the Cave and cause it to collapse, killing everyone inside it including the one that had launched it in the first place.

However, it couldn't rest easy just yet, as Neptune appeared above it with her sword raised for an overhead slash, her aura amplifying the next swing to a level that was unlike what she used before. She gained a small smirk as she brought the sword down on it, sending the Banshee down to the ground before it could have blocked her strike, causing a large cloud of dust and smoke.

Landing in a crouching position to negate some of the impact from her fall, Neptune stood up and put herself into a ready combat stance, her smirk now bigger and in much more prominence over her face as she stared at the cloud. "Heh, you're not so tough without your buddies to back you up, are ya?" she mocked, before her eyes hardened and her smirk vanished as she glared at the enemy. "Your gonna pay for hurting MY party members, ya big bug!"

Peering into the cloud of smoke, Neptune wondered what was taking it so long to come out. The answer soon arrived however, as a swarm of Spikes suddenly flew out of the cloud at her intending to turn Neptune into a pincushion. "Zoinks!" Swiftly, the girl began to roll, jump, duck and slice away at the Spikes that would have hit her, relying on her instincts to protect herself from the brunt of the attack. "Just like a bullet hell game, just gotta keep dodgin'!"

Even when she was angry and serious Neptune appeared to love making references and memes.

When it finished, she had several long gashes on her body, and she was breathing heavily. Being a newly woken amnesiac, Neptune didn't have that much time for an exercise regimen, and she was a newbie adventurer so she had little stamina to begin with. Nonetheless, Neptune looked as though these injuries she had sustained were a minor hindrance, like they were beneath her notice. A fierce fire was in her eyes, the fiery desire to make sure her friend Compa wouldn't be hurt any more by this Monster.

Soon enough the Banshee roared as it flew towards her, and as such Neptune charged back, intending to cut its face off. However, just before they could collide the Banshee flapped its wings, giving it a sudden increase in height that made her sword slash harmless against it. Her weapon practically sliced nothing but empty airspace while the Banshee flew over her. "What the Nep?!" Neptune exclaimed in shock, turning to see where it was going to find that it had switched targets.

From her… to Compa.

The said Nurse in Training paled when she saw the Banshee heading over to her, intending to slice her head off. She quickly grabbed her Syringe, which had fallen to her side at some point in the battle, before raising it and firing blasts of purple energy at the enemy at the speed of a Machine Gun.

As the blasts collided with the body of the Banshee, the creature fell back, launching a series of spikes that Compa began running to get out the way of. She jumped as one of them nearly impaled her leg while she took a page from Neptune's book, shooting down those that would have hit her otherwise.

"Hey, keep your hands, er, claws off my friend!"

Neptune intervened before the Banshee could charge forwards, sending it flying when she performed her CROSS-COMBINATION Skill. The Banshee screeched as it flared its wings, launching a series of Tentacles, these ones being long but thin which made for them to be fired with greater numbers. Neptune and Compa scattered to dodge them doing a series of parkour stunts to help them avoid their tips from embedding into their feminine flesh.

They were good enough to endure up to this point, but they had little ways of defeating this adversary and both knew it. This foe had them out matched in speed and strength, even with Neptune's mysterious power up, so they had to find a way to knock it out long enough for them to escape and find another way to rescue Nico.

However, fate was a cruel mistress.

"Kya!" Compa screamed when she was cornered by the Tentacles. They had embedded into the ground where she was running to, forcing her to change direction only for everywhere else to be impaled. The Banshee snorted amusement in its many eyes that blinked rapidly while it began to drool even more than it did before. "Oh no! its caught me! I have to get out before it's too late!" she cried, stabbing into the Tentacles around her. However, her Syringe was practically useless as its tip couldn't even pierce their flesh. Even if it looked dead, it was harder than it looked. Compa… was trapped, like a rat, with the Banshee being about to capitalise on this like she was its prey.

Neptune witnessed the situation her friend had become invested in, and quickly ran to her aid. However, the Banshee was proven to be quicker than her in the end, for it had raised several Tentacles into the air, moulding them together into a bigger form that was ready to stab into Compa from above, ending her life. "Like I'd let you!" she yelled, running at the Tentacles Compa had tried to break with her aura condensing around her legs and her sword.

'Neptune's attack…'

Her sword hit with the force of a jackhammer aided by the impact of a dozen or so bullet trains. However, power was next to nothing if one didn't use it correctly, and this fact was proven terribly clear when Neptune's sword began to crack from the energy surging through it. and when it hit the Tentacles hard flesh, it just couldn't take anymore and thus, shattered into a million pieces. "Oh no!"

'… was completely useless.'

The feeling of being ticked off spiked inside her, but this time not at the Banshee as she yelled out in an indignant voice. "Hey, who keeps making commentary on my dialogue?!" she stamped her foot on the ground in anger, but when she looked up again, a surprise awaited her. Her surroundings seemed to have lost all colour, like the life from them was drained away instantaneously. The ceiling, the walls, the ground, the crystals, heck even the blood coming from the Banshee was now a dark greyish colour. Upon closer inspection, she saw that it was frozen in mid-air after coming out of the monster's mouth. "Huh? What the heck?"

'Do not be alarmed, I have merely slowed down time to a fraction of a second, you will have time to save your friend after we are done here.'

After hearing the mystery voice say that, a sigh of relief filled Neptune as she spoke with a cheery smile, her original attitude now completely restored. "Oh, thank Neps. I thought Compa was a goner there. Anywho, I feel like we've met before, somewhere? Have we?" she asked while looking up at the ceiling. Neptune felt like wherever the voice was speaking from, it would be wise to consider that it was speaking from somewhere above. Seriously whoever heard of someone speaking from within the ground? That was just weird.

'… yes, we have indeed been acquainted before, Neptune. I am Histoire. We met once before in your dream. Do you not remember me?'

The voice's words jogged Neptune's memory as she realised who the voice was. "Hey, its Histy-Histy! How have ya been?" she exclaimed, beaming happily. If it were a comparison contest then her smile would be as bright as the sun itself with how much joy she was exhibiting at meeting an old friend. Then, the sight of the Tentacles, albeit in their frozen state, and the situation she was in right now returned her from her musings to the present. "wait, got no time to chit-chat Histy, a friend needs my help! I gotta save her, but my weapon broke!"

'Indeed, you are facing a formidable adversary, one which humans have gained specialised soldiers known as 'Spec-Ops' to handle. Our world has evolved new monsters thanks to a war which should not have happened. However, that is a story for another time. I assure you Neptune, if you just use Hard Drive Divinity, you will be more than a match for the Banshee.'

Upon hearing the name of the Guild Agent Classification that a certain male party member of hers belonged to, a surge of intrigue welled up inside Neptune. However, unlike normal she didn't voice this opinion and instead focused on another, more confusing, aspect of the voice known as 'Histoire' or Histy as Neptune called her. "Hard drive wha?" she questioned with a dulled stare. Whatever that meant, it was an alien concept to her. She spoke while scratching the back of her head dumbly. "Hhhhhhh, Histy I don't think you know this but my minds' kinda blank. No memories whatsoever, so couldja take it step by step?"

'I see… that explains why our conversation was so all over the place back then. This complicates things, if you have no idea how to use your strongest weapon, this situation seems to be all the grimmer. This leaves me with only one option: we must force run Hard Drive Divinity (HDD) for now. Doing so will-'

"Aaaaaalllrighty then!" Neptune proclaimed, throwing her arms up to the frozen and grey ceiling. "Let's get to it! Compa's in need of the help of mwah, so the risk is worth it! I gotta save her, so please help!" in Neptune's mind, memories of their short time together with Nico flashed through her mind, their first meeting in Compa's house, the unfortunate 'bondage' session that Neptune had experienced, all the way till the moment that Nico bravely sacrificed himself to get them to safety while he just fell down alone. He had been so brave doing that, and learning of it moved her just as much as it concerned her. 'If Nicky can do it, then so can I!' she thought in her mind, a fiery determination blazing to life.

'Ufufufu, how brave of you. This 'Nico' character seems to have inspired you, Neptune. Very well, let us begin. Are you ready?"

Histoire didn't even need to ask as a floating Disk manifested in front of Neptune, a series of glowing lines appearing on her chest, almost creating a port the size and shape of te Disk. Neptune swiftly grabbed it as she made a pose, grinning eagerly with a new level of confidence. She didn't know where she got this confidence from but she didn't mind at all, in fact she gleefully welcomed it. "Ready and willing!"

Instantly information poured into Neptune's mind, information she didn't know way but she felt like she knew about it for some reason. Was it something to do with her lost memories? No matter, she'd figure it out later. The Disk began to glow a light lilac colour as she pressed it into her chest, right where the symbol on her chest was. And in that moment, the process began.


Deep within another part of the Dungeon's depths, a dark, almost void-like part of its depths, a pair of red eyes opened wide, as if the owner had been awakened suddenly from a long sleep.

This energy…

It knew this energy…

It had to go,

it had to go,

it had to go!


Back to the battle, Compa could only blink at the sight that was being presented before her.

One second she had been having a near death experience with a Tentacle belonging to a Banshee about to impale her like one would do with a stick and some pocky. It was true what they said about how when one's life was about to end they had flashbacks of everything they did up until their current moment. A whole mybrid of emotions had passed through her at that moment, too many for her to properly process in her shock. But there were several emotions she could clearly make out amongst the swirling vortex that swirled inside her gut:

Sadness: she was about to die without seeing her friend, without telling him something she had been keeping secret for a long time.

Resentment: she resented the creature that was about to take her life right at that moment.

Resignation: she resigned herself to the fact that the hands of the reaper were going to claim her soul today and take it to the other side.

Worry: Neptune was still out there, Compa didn't know if she would be able to make it on her own.

Those were some of her emotions, and all of them dominated her mind, making her senses even more aware of what was going to happen than they usually were. The Tentacle, her body, everything moved in slow motion as Compa tried to move, even though she knew that it wouldn't work.

Though, with what happened next, she didn't need to.

In an instant, everything changed when a bright coloured stream of energy seemed to slam into the Tentacle, cutting through it like it was Tissue paper. The Banshee roared and shrieked in pain at the sudden severing of the Tentacle, which flailed about like a helpless chicken which had lost its head before receding into the Banshee's wing. The stream then flew at it, slamming into the Banshee's body with the impact force of a large freight train, sending it flying backwards and into the side of the Cave.

Because of this, Compa saw the Tentacles around her get jerked out the ground as they receded into the Wings that spawned them. The Banshee growled ferally, slowly taking itself out of the hole shaped like its body it had made in the cave Wall and floating to th ground. Its body had been dealt several wounds in the form of large gashes, most of them through its large Wings, which grew long trails of flesh that knitted it back together.

Looking up, the Banshee's many eyes narrowed as it caught sight of what it was facing.

Compa looked on in awe as the stream slammed into the ground in front of her, dissipating from existence to reveal a figure kneeling like a samurai on the ground, what looked like a sword in its hands. The figure stood up, and the light from the crystals dotted around the Cave revealed the figure's form to them both.

'… who is… that?'

That was what Compa thought when she saw the figure. The figure was a buxom adult woman, with her hair being a dark lilac colour and held in twin braids that reached her waist, with several messy bangs hanging over her forehead. On top her head were a pair of black pieces with blue 'X's that looked like the tops of screws. Her eyes were a bright blue, matching that of the skies looming over the world of Gamindustri, which also had glowing white symbols that replaced her pupils. Strangely enough they looked like the power button for machines.

Her attire consisted of a black and purple skin-tight one-piece swimsuit with some light blue areas here and there. The hands were encased in clawed gauntlets that had purple armour plates where the bones would be, while the feet were mechanical, like a machine' her legs up to her thighs were covered in a thin black material, probably stockings or some form of leg armour, with the trim being made of many +'s, black being the prominent colour with traces of dark purple. Out her back was a set of 4 digital wings, the upper ones bigger than the lower ones. There were black and purple armour pieces floating above the screws of her head, the shoulders, feet, and the sides of her waist.

In her hand, was a sword the same length as her height, which was five feet 4. The sword was shaped like a Katana, with a dark purple blade that turned black at the base, with multiple light blue squares lined at the base. The hilt and straight guard were almost mechanical appearance, and the weapon itself had an ominous dark purple aura covering it like a shroud.

The woman gave a glare towards the Banshee, before her eyes blinked several times as she looked herself over, her eyes losing their fierce look and replacing it with a sense of wonder. "What… is this? This power… I felt it before when I was angry, but… now it's on a whole other level." The woman commented in amazement, raising her hands to her face while examining herself, like she had never seen herself before.

When she said this, Compa looked at her weirdly, tilting her head in confusion. What was the woman talking about, was she one of those people who were messed up in the head like how others called them, only with crude words? The girl's eyes went to the hairclips in her hair that looked like screws, which were screwed on tight. So, she didn't have a 'screw loose'…

'Did Nep-Nep infect me with her puns? That one sounded like one she'd make…'

'This is your true self, and your true power. It is only expected that you be surprised, Neptune.'


Chapter end!

Hey guys! how's it going?

Now, I guess some people may be wondering how I have these chapters uploaded so quickly. The answer to that is that while this is my first story, its only my first time ever PUBLISHING my stories. I've been writing stories for years, but only recently have I made my Fanfiction account. In actuality, this story has over 50 Chapters ready for editing and publishing. I have plenty of other stories waiting in the wings, but I'll be focusing on this one first, I know how it feels, reading a fanfiction and waiting for months on end to get another chapter. No offence to other authors though, I understand completely how life can be demanding at times.

like, fav, follow, even review, please!

HunterXKiller87, peace out!