Chapter 18 - DPU vs CPU

"That's enough, Nicky." Neptune spoke sternly. She had quickly stopped the male from firing that fireball by disrupting its energy flow with her sword, thrusting it under the blade and flicking upwards, sending the fireball away from its intended target. It had been a close shave, if she had been a second later the fireball would have been released and the woman that likely had the answers she sought would have been burned alive.

Not a fate she would wish on anyone, lets just say that.

If the male was surprised by this action, he didn't show it as he stared soullessly towards the downed woman's face. Said woman's face was frozen into one of pure, unfiltered FEAR as she stared at the Soul Edge's tip, as if it would suddenly make another fireball and launch it before Neptune would be able to stop it. Those thoughts constantly circled her mind, making her realise that she had just had a near-death experience. That was enough for her to remain silent and watch the two for the time being It was almost as if he didn't even register Neptune's presence even if her sword was what was responsible for stopping him from killing the downed Woman. "There's no need to kill her. We need her to tell us about me, remember?"

The male remained silent, and it seemed like he didn't hear her. he just stared blankly, his crimson eyes having a slight fiery glow about them as he held Soul Edge just below the woman's chin, its tip an inch away from her throat. His wings radiated embers that fell out around him, calmly, yet dangerously. Neptune made to speak again, when Nico's eyes shifted to her direction, showing a flash of… something, she couldn't tell because it disappeared as quick as it had appeared. His Wings began to shift, the flames that they were composed of swaying strangely. They then split apart, reshaping and longing themselves into a set of 20 long, fiery Tendrils.

10 of them lunged towards the downed woman, making her close her eyes again, but she felt nothing. Opening her eyes again, though this time it was a lot harder to do so, she saw that, to her shock, a purple Panel had appeared before her, blocking them from hitting her. She looked towards Neptune to see that she had been the one to generate the Panel, though she was more focused on her companion than her at the moment. "You…"

(Play Metal Gear Rising OST: Red Sun)

"Nicky, what are you doing?!" Neptune yelled, ignoring the downed Woman as she stared fiercely into Nico's red orbs. The Tendrils pulled back and readied themselves, his sword hand gripping Soul Edge firmly. "What are you doing, Nicky, stop this!" she called out again, but he didn't listen. He just stared at her for a moment, his stare cold, empty and dark, like the void that in which they talked to Histoire in.

Then, in an instant he was charging at her, his eyes lighting up as orange flames surrounded them. He swung Soul Edge rapidly, his Tendrils lashing towards her in place of the large swings. Neptune deflected each swing with a grunt of effort, sidestepping to avoid the Tendrils. She didn't want to have that demonic energy coursing through her like that Woman and the Hraesvelgr.

Seeing that this attack wasn't working, Nico opted for a different tactic, slamming his Tendrils into the ground and propelling himself into the air. Pointing Soul Edge at her, he unleashed a barrage of Fireballs at her like rainfall. Neptune quickly put up a Panel to block it, the shower slamming into it with reckless abandon. "Nicky, stop this! We're your teammates!"

Again, Nico didn't listen to her as he lashed out with his Tendrils, smacking through her guard and walloping her in the face, making her give a startled grunt as she was sent flying into a wall. Neptune gasped when she hit the wall, only to quickly regain her bearings when she felt a strong heat near her position. She quickly flew upwards to avoid a swing from Soul Edge, but she wasn't fast enough to dodge the 20 Tendrils. Neptune growled in pain when she felt a Tendril grab her by her right ankle, wrapping around it and forming a tight grip, the flames that composed it licking away at her flesh. The Tendril made a single, harsh tug and dragged her downwards, smacking her into the ground. It raised her back into the air and repeated the process, each slam having more strength than the last.

SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM, SLAM!

At this point, Neptune was struggling to maintain her consciousness. her sight was blurry and much of her body had been heavily damaged by the pounding that she had just received. She barely managed to cut through the Tendril before it could continue its relentless pounding, flying away from his position. Her head ached terribly from the beating as she groaned and held it in one hand, quickly turning around to face him, had the male not already gotten to her and was swinging Soul Edge at her. Neptune cursed and raised her blade, pumping it with energy to help it endure the pressure behind the much larger sword. The two had a short battle of strength, trying to overpower the other, until Nico's Soul Edge was engulfed in flames of a high temperature, making Neptune gasp in horror as she realised what was about to happen next. "Oh no...!"

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A large eruption of flames rose from West Wind Valley from Nico's attack, shooting to the skies above, almost trying to burn it to ashes. The fames were hotter than most flames on Gamindustri, reaching UP TO 2000 Degrees Celsius, only half as hot as the sun itself. From the middle of the eruption, Neptune shot out, strafing backwards while trying to get her breathing normal. She was gasping heavily, a trail of blood going down her forehead as well as sporting a diagonal slash across her body. The slash reeked with demonic energy, which was now coursing through her system, making Neptune constantly cringe as it ran rampant through her, tearing away at er from the inside out. 'What... is this...?' she managed to think barely through the pain she was in. It was excruciating, like being melted inside an incinerator, so she wouldn't want this to happen to anyone else.

'Is this... Nicky's energy...? Why is it so goddamn painful?!'

She only barely managed to notice the 30 fiery homing rays launched from within the eruption. "Oh no!" she gasped, quickly pushing through her pain and began the process of flying erratically throughout the airspace, trying to lose the homing rays. However, they kept chasing her, not slowing down for a bit which caused her panic levels to increase tremendously. It was like she was fighting for her very life here, if she didn't do something soon...!

A ray got too close to her behind for her liking, so Neptune swerved around so she flew on her back before slashing down with her sword, cutting through the Ray. 'Well, at least I can cut them...' she thought, panting as she stopped flying away from them. She held her sword through the pain in a basic Kendo stance, closing her eyes and perking her ears. She listened to the air currents, heard the flames of the homing rays as they advanced on her, intending to burn her to a crisp. When they got close to her however, her eyes snapped open as she quickly began slashing about, channelling her energy into her arms for better mobility. She constantly slashed through each homing ray, twisting her body about to face them beforehand as the rays circled around her.

'This is-is bad...! If I keep it like this, I'll...!'

Neptune gritted her teeth, the pain from having to move so much in her current condition almost mind-numbing at this point. Fortunately she got the last ray before she could lose herself to it, which allowed her a short moment of respite as she hunched over, her arms feeling heavier by the second due to lack of strength. 'This energy... it's like a cancer, damaging my body slowly before going for the killing blow...' she thought to herself, trying to regain her breathing. Her eyes then narrowed, and her fist gripped the hilt of her sword with newfound strength as a fiery will too survive roared within her. 'If that's the case, then I'll have to...' she closed her eyes and allowed her power to spread through her body, calling more of it than she ever had before. She had it pump through her form, which caused a purplish black aura to swirl around her along with the pain to lessen, as she felt the energies within her contesting for dominance. '... Purge it!'

Her aura swayed, and that was her only warning before Nico appeared before her, his wings now back to their original forms as he raised Soul Edge for a diagonal slash. Gritting her teeth even more than before, Neptune took some of her power used to purge his demonic energy, and formed a Panel before her. The blade hit the panel hard, attempting to break through and cleave through her flesh. However, the panel held firm as Neptune constantly reinforced it with her power. This also had the added side-effect of raising the pain levels she had to their previous state, albeit slowly. Neptune was really beginning to curse her luck as the protagonist, for the first time ever in this franchise, even!

'Tch... Nicky!'


Down below on the ground, the three girls that were left behind watched the battle, or more precisely, the one-sided beat down as Nico whirled on Neptune with merciless swings one after another, showing no signs of stopping nor slowing down. "What's going on?!" IF cried as she sat up, her body having been finally treated from the poison though her strength was too low for her to do anything. She was quick to notice how Nico was now attacking Neptune with reckless abandon. She looked to be holding her own, but if that Woman couldn't handle Nico's power then how long would Neptune fare? "Why's Nico attacking Nep, we're on the same side!"

Compa looked as well, and had no idea what was happening. She couldn't bring herself to look away for a single moment as fear and dread warred within her. She felt these for both Neptune and Nico, for something had went wrong, from what she could tell, and now Nico couldn't recognise friend from foe. Why he attacked Neptune first instead of them was anyone's guess, really, but these thoughts mattered little to the Nurse-In-Training. "N-No idea, Iffy!" she answered as best she could, shaking like a leaf. "Ni-Ni doesn't do this!"

"Then explain what I'm looking at right now!"


Meanwhile, back with Neptune she could feel her power being depleted quickly. Maintaining this form, she was in plus the effort to keep this panel up while Nico constantly smashed away with it was draining her reserves rapidly. "Nicky, pull yourself together! We're your friends, why are you attacking us?!" she yelled, pain and confusion filling her voice like a bacteria spreading across a piece of used food. However, like the other times, attempting to reason with Nico was proven absolutely useless.

'I was afraid of this.'

Histoire's voice cut in, and Neptune's eyes widened when she heard the voice of the one they were supposed to rescue in her mind, echoing like a distant lover calling out to her partner to tell them that she was having a child. 'H-Histy?!' She mentally shrieked, before wincing as she fell back. The pain had been diminished thankfully, but much energy had been spent doing that. Maintaining the panel was no longer a viable option either as Nico chased after her. The two pulled a constant figure 8 in the air, clashing repeatedly with their weapons before beginning their ascension higher into the skies above.

'I do not have much time. My presence here is anchored by your HDD form, thus the drainage is increased. You have only one shot, Neptune. Strike the centre of his chest where the yellow spot it. It is your only chance to win.' Histoire briefly explained before she vanished from Neptune's mind, her presence which hung over her head like a cloak now gone.

However, her words did not. They lingered in her mind as her eyes glanced over Nico's form while they flew about. She noticed the yellow centre on his chest, and her eyes narrowed at it. She could see it to be glowing fiercely like a raging inferno, constantly pulsating like a living heart inside a being's body. 'Does she mean the core on his chest? Is that what I need to strike to win? In any case, I can't doubt Histy now, not with Nicky like this.' She thought with a determined fire brimming in her eyes. 'Hang on, Nicky! I'll end this!'

Waiting for the right moment, Neptune saw an opening present itself. 'There!' after quickly erecting a panel to block a slash from the rampaging male Spec Ops Agent, the purple haired Sword Maiden slashed his Soul Edge away from her, the male's grip on the demonic weapon loosening enough for her to kick it out of his hand. His words about how overreliance on a weapon would be costly, and just as she predicted the out-of-control Nico quickly slashed at her with his Tail before diving to get his blade, his form coated in his flames to make him look like a giant, humanoid flaming meteor that was bout to crash into the ground and wipe out an and all life on it. However, just as he was about to reach it, he let out a silent gasp when he felt several explosions impact him on his back, stopping him from gripping Soul Edge's hilt. Looking up, he saw the cause to be Neptune as she dove at him with her aura swirling around her like a vortex. "Haaaaaaaaaaaa!" the woman called out a mighty battle cry. She then rammed into him, knocking both him and her to the ground with a mighty crash.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

(Red Sun OST: end)

Their impact caused a large explosion to erupt from the epicentre, forcing IF, Compa and the mystery girl, whom had been watching the fight with both fear at the boy's power, and awe at Neptune's attempt to fight him off. They quickly began coughing though when smoke entered their lungs through the wrong wind pipe, forcing their bodies to try and forcefully eject it from their systems. Compa had her hands over her mouth while coughing as IF swiped her hand in front of her, dispersing the smoke before her as she got her act together. "ACK! Ack! Ugh, damnit, that Nep. She's always gotta be like this crazy." she shouted, although it was more of annoyance than of actual anger towards the transformed preteen.

"B-But Nep-Nep may have done something to stop Ni-Ni." Compa spoke, attempting to try and reassure the brunette Guild Agent. She may not have seen enough of the fighting above them, but she knew that Neptune in HDD form always did things for a reason, and wasn't like her preteen self who acted recklessly and charged ahead.

Grudgingly, IF had to admit that she was right, since she had noticed the same personality traits that the Nurse-IN-Training did. "Alright then, lets go see what Nep has done this time, maybe we can get some freaking answers as to why Nico flipped out on us. I'm pretty sure there was a chapter named after him flipping out moments ago!" IF shouted in frustration. Maybe hanging around Neptune was a bad influence on her, but now IF had just gotten as meta as her and Nico. The poor fourth wall will be shattered beyond redemption by the time this story was done, she predicted.

Just after she said that, the smoke began to clear up, allowing them to see the epicentre where Neptune and Nico had impacted with the ground. By the time it was completely clear, the girls saw that, to their surprise, Neptune's HDD form was now straddling Nico by the waist with her sword stabbed into the ground beside his neck, one hand grasping his wrists and pinning them above his head, while the other was on the core on his chest, gripping the space around it tightly. Various purple energy blades had pinned his wings down to the ground, sticking out like the famous sword in the stone. If this were any other time, this position may have been interpreted deeply, but considering the situation right now, this fact was largely ignored.

"Don't worry, Nicky, I'll stop this!" she called out, swiftly taking her hand off the core and then forming a fist, plunging it into the yellow core-like piece on his chest. Swiftly, the male's body froze, his eyes, which had that same blank stare, shooting open with a shocked expression, the first change in his expression that had happened since his transformation. The fiery wings, which had been about to morph into Tendrils that would circle around the swords, breaking them before proceeding to impale her from above and behind, stopped just seconds before they could complete their transformation. His Soul Edge, whose eye was impaling the ground next to them coincidentally enough, made the indication of being frozen in place just like its wielder.

For a moment, nothing happened. A tense silence covered the area as everyone watched Nico's motionless body with baited breath, waiting for something to happen. They hoped that something would signal that the male wouldn't attack them anymore, since they wouldn't be able to stop him even if they went all out. If they couldn't touch him in human form, then in DPU form they had NO CHANCE.

Then, the Wings fell to the ground, extinguishing themselves as the male's body burst into flames, becoming cocooned for a few moments. When it vanished, it revealed Nico's form, his eyes closed to show he was unconscious, while her fist was touching his chest... but not penetrating it. Neptune didn't notice nor care about it, as she let go of his hands, took out the ground and placed her sword to the side before leaning down and pressing her ear to his chest, to see if there was a heartbeat.

BA-DUMP, BA-DUMP, BA DUMP

To her relief, she could hear his heart beating, meaning that Nico was still alive. Memories came to her during the battle, memories of Nico telling her and the others about his powers, and the risk that comes with using them. Now that she thought about it, Neptune felt a little guilty, not only about having taken him away from the Landmass of Planeptune without giving him the time to train in his abilities, but also distracting him from training them, by agreeing to his demand to train THEM. If she hadn't been so focused on that, as well as their mission to go collect the Key Fragments, this wouldn't have happened. Nico would have learned about his powers and how dangerous they truly were, how to control them, and wouldn't have lost it like he did. It was fortunate that she was able to stop him this time, but what about the future? She was sure the time will come when he'll have to transform again, and at that point what'll happen would be anyone's guess.

"Nep/Nep-Nep!" Looking up, the purple haired Sword maiden gazed upon her two friends IF and Compa as they ran over to her and their unconscious party member. Both girls looked startled and fearful, even the ever-composed brunette. That was how scared she was of what Nico had just done, the fact that he had almost killed one of their own fresh in her mind as she gazed at his unconscious form. it was like she was uncertain if he would just come up and suddenly stab them somehow, but when she saw that he truly was unconscious, the brunette looked upwards at her transformed companion. "What the hell, Nep, what happened just now?!" IF shrieked, looking over the two's forms again. She had no time or patience to notice the compromising position they were in.

Neptune closed her eyes and sighed. She then opened them again before looking at the two. "It is as Nico told us, back in Planeptune. His power relies on control, control he didn't have. Thus, he went on a rampage. I had to stop him from killing himself, for as long as he was like that his power would have devoured him till the person he once was no longer existed." She explained painfully. Now she could see the seriousness of the power he now wielded. Her other form may just swipe this under the rug, but for now that will not happen, not while she's in this form.

She could now TRULY understand why Histoire had said how terrible this power was. When she first transformed, Neptune had been amazed at the sheer power that flowed through her veins. it had felt war, comforting and confidence-building, which was something she revelled in. Seeing what Nico's power did to him if he wasn't careful made her feel ultra lucky, for his power was much more potent and wild than hers, according to her senses. Hell, her senses even told her that Nico hadn't even exhausted a quarter of his power in that fight, meaning that he had not been at full strength. The purple haired sword maiden looked around the battlefield, her eyes gazing at the thoroughly charred section of the dungeon. Trails of smoke rose from several high points, and in the distance she could see more of them, probably were stray homing rays had landed. There were even craters from where she had been slammed into by those fiery Tendrils of his. That was both a blessing and an ominous omen. If Nico could cause that much devastation, what would happen once he reached full power?

The girls both remembered the same thing as Neptune did, and felt their heartbeats quicken at the thoughts of Nico losing himself to the power of the DPU within him. If that was what it was like, then they feared what would happen when he would have to use it again. Not if, WHEN, because there will likely be a time on their journey where Nico would HAVE to use it again.

A groan broke them out of their musings, and drew their attention to the male below Neptune. Nico's eyes scrunched up as he groaned, slowly rising to a sitting position but in a diagonal angle and a hand on his head, the other arm used a support by pushing off the ground. "Ugh, my head… feels like it was boiled alive…" the male uttered, shaking it to get the pain to die down. He then looked up and saw everyone's faces. "Uh… guys, what happened?" he asked them.

The girls looked to each other, debating with their eyes whether to tell him or not, when Neptune decided to do it as she looked back at him. After explaining what happened, Nico groaned again, this time in dismay. "I am so sorry for that…" he mumbled under his breath. "If only I had trained a bit beforehand…"

"No, I am the one who should apologise." Neptune stopped him by interrupting his words. She lifted a finger up and placed it on his lips to silence any response from him. "it was an error on my part to move to another landmass right after you told us about your powers. A grievous error, I might add. So, I must yet ask you this." Her eyes turned from apologetic to stern within seconds, though her guilt was still there. It didn't make him feel any better though. "Please, only use that power as a last resort until you can control it. Could you do that for us, for me?" She asked that last bit under her breath, but Nico heard it, to his confusion. "I may have been able to stop you this time, but who knows what will happen next time."

Nico thought about it, and decided to agree with her demand. While he wished he could train with this power to control it himself. Nico didn't want to worry the woman any further than he already had. Hell, he felt guilt gnawing away at him when he saw the fearful look in Compa's eyes. Nico never wanted to be the cause of such pain, not to her, or the girls. Looking down when he felt something warm against his waist, the male flushed heavily as he finally noticed what Neptune had unknowingly done. "U-um, N-N-N-Neptune, could you by chance g-g-g-get off, please?" he stammered.

Confused by the question, Neptune looked down, following his gaze, before she too began to blush when she realised what he did about their position. However, instead of getting off like he had requested, and secretly pleaded for her to do, Neptune glanced at his eyes and smirked sultrily, her eyes gaining a seductive gleam to them that only an expert seductive temptress would have. "Why Nicky, if I weren't here right now, I wouldn't have noticed, but you wouldn't happen to be… aroused, by chance?" she asked with a tone that matched the nature of her smile.

If it were possible, Nico's face just got redder as he tried to stammer a reply, however nothing would come out his mouth as it repeatedly opened and closed. A girl was on top of him, giving the look that many women give their partners when they are about to rock their world. His mind was still trying to deny that possibility however, resulting in an all-out war within his body.

Unaware of his inner battle, Neptune's smirk only widened when she saw that he didn't answer her, and she leaned in. "Come on, there's just so much that I want to ask you, shouldn't you just… focus on me?" she whispered like a succubus would on her victims in their dreams as she placed her hands on his shoulders. His blushing face was just adorable and it took all her effort not to go full power on him.

Fortunately for Nico, not so much for Neptune, an irritated IF pulled her off with little effort, though that was because an equally irritated Compa was helping her and that her power was running low. "Enough teasing him, Nep. Let the guy breathe." The brunette scolded the purple haired sword maiden. Before she could lose her temper completely with her, IF pointed to the downed Woman, who was watching the display with both embarrassment and confusion. "Back to the subject, don't you have some interrogating to do?"

For a moment, Neptune had no idea what she was talking about, but when she thought on it, it came to her like a sudden spark. "Your right, Iffy! I have to get information on my past!" she exclaimed as she got off Nico, much to his relief, and went over to the white-haired Woman.

'I guess that even in her transformed state, Neptune doesn't completely lose her original personality…' Nico thought to himself, trying to quell the embarrassment inside his heart. Shifting a bit, the male got to his feet, still flustered from what had just happened. He didn't know why Neptune suddenly tried to do that, but damn did she know how to incite reactions like that from a guy. Seriously, whoever she would take as her mate or boyfriend would be uber lucky.

Noticing his state, Compa puffed her cheeks out in jealousy as she stared at him with red cheeks. "Ni-Ni… do you like big-boobies…?" she asked him, breaking the male from his thoughts. Before he could reply though, she threw herself at his right arm, wrapping her arms around it and pulling it into her own chest. "Because mine are big too!"

It wasn't unnatural for someone to call Nico a tomato right now as steam rolled off the top of his head when he felt the breasts of Compa on his arm. His form froze, too tense to do anything as he once again tried to form a response. Sadly, his mind had blue-screened, and would take time to reboot.

"Aw, geez…" IF groaned as she face-palmed herself. "Nep and Compa totally KO'd Nico…" she muttered behind her hand. She then looked down at her chest, before quickly shaking her head at the thoughts running around like toddlers laying in a playground in her head. 'Damnit IF, don't think those thoughts! Bad thoughts, bad thoughts!'

While the three had their antics, Neptune floated over to the whitehead, contemplating on why she did that. 'What has gotten into me? I mean, sure Nicky is handsome and all, but it can't have gone that far, right?' she wondered, masking her confusion behind a face of seriousness. Despite how she looked like she had been in control earlier, even Neptune was stunned at what she had done to the male. She couldn't explain it with words exactly, but when she saw how adorable Nico looked when he was blushing, she didn't-se couldn't help herself. It was like she had lost all sense of self-control and turned into an expert seductive temptress, willing to control the situation to make him do anything she wanted. It didn't even matter that Nico had almost killed her, either, since she knew beforehand what the cause was and that Nico had little control over his actions.

True, he could have waited till another time arrived that was worth testing his powers on, but how was he supposed to know that he would be like that when he transformed? True, Nico had been made aware of the dangers behind it, but still he was one of her companions, one of her party members. Thus, his actions were also her responsibility, she was just as at fault for making him like that as he was. No doubt Nico would feel insanely guilt for what happened as well. Hopefully though, he would be able to push through it, and if he needed help, then Neptune would be there for him. She was the only person in their group that could transform after all.

In the end though, she couldn't focus on it for very long, not with current matters to attend to.'No matter.' She shook her head, pushing those thoughts aside for now. 'I'll deal with that later. For now, I'll focus on the task at hand.'

When she was floating above the downed Woman, Neptune put a hand on her hip and stabbed her sword into the ground beside her. "Now that I have won, tell me what you know about me." She demanded, while inside her head she did admit that Nico did most the work there.

Her words snapped the Woman out of her previous stupor as the realisation that she lost to the purple haired swordstress settled upon her mind once again. "Don't think you won just by downing me!" she spat with venom, glaring up at her opponent, but with her current state it wasn't very effective at intimidating Neptune, making the Woman even angrier. "And it was that guy that transformed who did all the work, you guys were just in the way!"

"I admit that we did outnumber you, and that comment of yours about Nicky doing most the work has merit, but still, a win is a win." Neptune countered calmly, a stark contrast to the fuming woman below her. It was apparent that her face was a light shade of pink, not by embarrassment, but by rage as she glared even harder than before.

She then shook head in fury, denial laced in her words. "No… No…! I won't accept this!" she yelled, and in a burst of power she created a shockwave that knocked Neptune back. It lasted long enough for her to get into a kneeling position and take to the skies, flying off into the direction of the exit to the Dungeon.

"Wait!" Neptune called out, but it was too late.

This action roused the others from their previous antics as they rushed over to her. IF was the first to speak. "Go after her, Nep!" she commanded. The purple haired swordstress nodded, preparing to take to the skies again to chase after her. Unfortunately, things got even worse for her as just when she was about to take off, she was engulfed in a purple light. When it died down, it revealed Neptune had transformed back to her human self.

"Whoa, what?!"

"Nep, what are you doing changing form, now?!" the brunette cried in shock and anger. Shock at the fact that she had changed so suddenly, and anger that she decided to do it now of all times, just when their target for information about her own past was getting away!

However, the girl looked like she could hardly stand. She looked to be incredibly tired, worse than when she was complaining earlier about the slopes and stuff before they got attacked by that monster. "I'm sorry, Iffy, I used up all my juice already, and Nicky was no help either. I'm sooooo tired…" she whined, her body slouching as her arms hung in front of her, dangling like crystals on top of a cave.

IF, however, was having none of it as she grabbed Neptune's hand and began pulling her along. "No time to be tired! Let's go! She's our chance to get info on you!" she shouted like a military instructor, before she looked around and noticed the absence of a certain party member. "Compa, where the hell did Nico get to now?!"

Momentarily startled by the loud question from the brunette Guild Agent, Compa fearfully stuttered an answer. "N-N-Ni-Ni went a-a-a-after Mrs. White sword poison lady while you t-t-t-t-two were talking." she explained, IF nodding as she and the girls began running off after the Spec Ops Agent and to catch the white-haired girl who had all their answers.


Up ahead of them, Nico had gained significant ground in the chase for answers. He was flying practically, even without wings, through the Dungeon as he pursued her. His mind had recovered finally, from the… embarrassment of that moment he woke up earlier, and was now focused on locating the target. 'Tch, damnit all, why the hell did she have to run like a coward like that?!' he raged mentally. 'She should have just accepted defeat like a real fighter would, defeat sometimes can be more important than victory!'

It was an insult to him that the Woman had just up and left like that when he had gone and transformed to show her what kind of mistake she made by challenging them when they were in a group. True his power had gone out of hand, and he had curb stomped her to the ground, but the point was that she was outmatched and she ran like a coward. That was the kind of people Nico despised, they were nothing more than bullies, and he hated bullies. True the weak are devoured by the strong, it's the law of the jungle, which applies in every battlefield, but only scum would flee a battle and break their word. Nico valued his word, and to see someone just toss it aside like that grinded his gears.

His thoughts however, were halted when his nostrils twitched, a scent reaching them. His eyes widened in sheer horror, no longer angry as the scent took up his thoughts instead. 'Oh no… is that what I think it is?! It's been a while, so I completely forgot! If one of THEM has come here, then that woman, weakened as she is, won't stand a chance!' he thought as he sped up his running to the point where he was a blur. His instincts were running at full capacity, to the point where he had almost forgotten just how powerful they really were. It had been a while since he'd felt them this way, something he'd hoped to never feel again. 'Please, just let me make it there in time…!'


Further towards the exit of the West Wind Valley Dungeon, the black-haired girl who had been spying on the party as they fought the Hraesvelgr, was walking towards the exit. Or rather, she was limping. One of her feet dragged behind her as she moved on her other foot, which didn't feel too good either. Her entire body burned like a furnace, with numerous wounds over her body as she clutched her right arm with her left. Blood ran down the arm as well, making her situation even worse.

A pained sigh came from her lips. "Lost to Neptune and my Hard Drive Divinity is off now. Oh, what a day…" she mumbled in despair as she whimpered at the pain burning through her system. Hard to believe, but this state was better than the state she was in before. When she changed, it released a pulse of energy to heal some of her wounds, enough for some mobility, and right now the rest of it was focused on healing her body.

It was that sinister energy that boy commanded that was at fault. Whatever it was, it did horrific damage to her body internally. She dreaded the thought of what would have happened if he was able to finish her off.

The girl moaned in pain as she decided to let her body heal a bit before moving again. She leaned against a cliff wall before sliding down to a sitting position, a hand draped across her stomach while her legs bent backwards as she tried to curl into herself. "I can't believe a lost to Neptune… and a stranger on top of that!" she whined like a spoiled baby, gazing down at her thighs. She then winced as there was a spike in the burning in her gut. "Well, it was 4 on 1, so... I bet if it was 1on 1 I would've…."

"Ooooh, now this is a surprise…" Her eyes widened as she realised someone else was here when she heard their voice from close by. Her head almost cracked as it turned in the direction of the voice. 'What?! Why didn't I notice anyone coming?! I must have been damaged heavier than I thought!' she cried in her mind. If she were at full strength she wouldn't be so panicked, but right now she was injured and in a Dungeon. Any surprise encounters in such a setting almost never ended well for the weaker party.

When she looked to the source, the girl saw that the voice came from a middle-aged man who had been standing atop a tall hill, looming over her in a… disturbing manner. His upper half was bare, while he wore a pair of black trousers to cover his neither regions. The girl tried not to look at the upper body of the man because she found it inappropriate, as well as because of embarrassment.

His form was rather… scrawny, for lack of a better term, like he hadn't eaten for a while or something along those lines. There was some point where she could see his veins. Even so, there was still some muscle on the guy, so it looked like he did get some exercise. But that wasn't what drew her attention. That achievement belonged to the smile that the man sported.

Usually smiles brought people happiness, ease, relief. A Smile was something that indicated that the person's attitude was positive. It was something done a lot in society, to the point where it was one of the basic expressions the human face could make. In a sense, she was glad that Goddesses were moulded to appear human, so they could act and live human lives. Just imagine how difficult it would have been otherwise? Like if they had animal parts instead of human ones? They would be considered abominations!

This guy's smile… didn't promote anything like that.

His smile inspired negativity to her. It looked creepy, disturbing even, to her. It made chills go up her spine, which only hurt her even more thanks to the strange energy running rampant through her body now. Worse. Was that it seemed to hide something underneath it yet unseen, like it wasn't a true smile. At least, one that was supposed to be honest. This one scared her, though she did her best not to show it.

"Wh-who are you?! What are you doing here?!" the girl asked him, no commanded though she cursed herself for stuttering at the beginning. Not like she could have helped it, this guy caught her while her pants were down, figuratively. She had the right to be on guard here!

Though, it didn't seem to bother him as the man hopped off the hill and landed in a crouch… the fall being from 13 feet in the air. That made the girl's eyes bulge to the point where they nearly burst out their sockets. How the hell could a human survive a jump like that without losing a few bones? Something was wrong here, she could just feel it. Her instincts were screaming at her to run and hide so that this guy wouldn't find her, but it wasn't like she could move right now. That thought scared her most of all: her ability to act.

Losing the ability to act was a terrible thing. It meant that one's own fate could no longer be handled by them, it was no longer in their hands, but in the hands of lady luck. And like fate herself, lady luck can be a divine goddess or a cruel mistress, completely unpredictable and acting out on whims alone. That was what made her so scary yet beautiful at the same time. Today seemed like she would be the latter if the girl's instincts were to be believed. The girl didn't doubt she'd deserve it after what she has done, and not just what she did to Neptune either.

The man chuckled as he made his way over to her, either oblivious or uncaring about how she tried to shuffle away from him. "I was just here taking a stroll. Some of my usual meals are unavailable for some strange reason right now, so I'm pretty hungry." The way he said hungry disturbed her instincts even more, increasing te intensity of the girl's chills. Her heart pounded heavily against her ribcage, threatening to burst out her chest as her breathing grew increasingly hangered. "Much to my joy however…"

In an instant, everything made sense, why her heart was pounding, why this man seemed so disturbing and why her instincts told her to run like the Goddesses were on her heels. The man was instantly in front of her, hands around her wrists and pinning them to the cliff wall behind her. She gritted her teeth when the burning intensified from the sudden movement, the pain her arms' pain receptors reported to her doubling from the grip this man had. She tried to break free, but that ended in failure. The man's grip, despite his frame, was exceedingly powerful. 'I-Impossible… has my power lowered to such a level…?!'

The man grinned down at her, and if she thought his smile was creepy, his grin made it way worse. Especially when he had revealed his teeth. There were several red bits sticking out, bits that she couldn't make out if they were meat pieces or something else, but the stench they gave off made her want to throw up. What stopped her from upchucking the contents of her breakfast was the man's whole face, how it took on a disturbing, borderline madness-inducing expression with one eye narrowed and the other widening with a gaze of pure psychotic intent. His eyes were also a major point, for they were no longer the black orbs that had been gazing at her, no leering at her. They were a crimson red with a black sclera red veins spreading across the sides of his head.

"YOU ARRIVED, MY LOVELY."

Swiftly, the man leaned forward and snapped his jaw shut. The thing he snapped it shut on? The girl's arm. She screamed out in pain, feeling the teeth dig into her damaged shoulder with more blood oozing from the attack. She felt something slimy licking away at it, which made her eyes widen when she realised that it was his tongue. She was literally getting tongued by this man, and not in THAT kind of way.

It lasted for a short time, thank the Goddesses, but it didn't make it any less painful. She gasped as the man tore his head back, pulling a decently sized chunk of her shoulder out within his jaws. He reared his head towards the heavens and gulped, swallowing what he had ate whole in one move. Her wound burned, tears filling the bottom half of her eyes as she closed them to keep the tears in. Tears of pain and despair mixed together, forming a pair of ugly rivers that ran down both slopes that were her cheeks.

On the other hand, her assaulter was faring better. The man released a low, euphoric sigh, his breath foul with his recent intake of flesh. "Ahhh, SO DELICIOUS! A DELIGHT! DELIGHTFUL, MY LOVELY!" He exclaimed, laughing like a maniac before standing up and yanking her to her feet. With skill, he manoeuvred her so he was carrying her on his back like a sack of potatoes. The thought of food made the image of the man swallowing her… flesh, manifest in her mind and she had to do what she could not to barf.

"What are you doing?! Unhand me this instant, you brute!" she cried out, using what little strength she had left to pummel his back with her fists. Though this did little else but annoy him, as he grabbed her by the sides and slammed her against the ground by the back of the head. She gasped as a sharp wave of pain assaulted her senses and she began to see the edges of her vision turn black, sending a new wave of pain through her system. 'N-No… not like this, I can't let this happen… but still… my body feels really weak…'

Satisfied with his handiwork, the man lifted her up onto his shoulders once again and began walking off to wherever. The girl's vision began to darken, but she could still make out the image of tools tucked within his backside pockets, which filled her with dread at what this psycho had in store for her. The last thing she saw however… was a black blur racing towards them with speeds that would make the fastest bullets jealous.


By the time she regained consciousness, the girl gasped and her eyes shot open, wide and filled with panic. She expected to be in some creepy room with that man looming over her with some of those tools she saw in hand, ready to do all sorts of unspeakable things to her.

However, much to her relief that was not where she found herself at. Instead, she was back in the West Wind Valley Dungeon, leaning against the cliff that she had been at before. Her eyes blinked, confusion filling her crimson orbs at the… peculiar situation she found herself in. "What… was that…? A nightmare…?" she wondered, blinking her eyes several times. She groaned as she attempted to rise to her feet, which she suspiciously found easier to do than before. "But, it felt so real… I could have been delirious I suppose, since I was losing a lot of blood… wait!"

An idea struck her, and she decided to check for any injury on her arm, or anything at all to indicate her receiving of that bite from that psycho. However, when she looked down at her shoulder, the girl's confusion increased when she saw that her shoulder didn't seem to be as damaged as before, no, it was still damaged just without the hole or bite marks in it. 'what…? Was it really just a dream…?'

Slowly, she took a few strides, noticing that, while lacking full mobility, her limping leg had healed significantly. If she were dreaming while she lost blood then her remaining power reserves would have worked double time in healing her. That thought slowly became more and more appealing as seconds passed, and a relieved sigh escaped her lips. "Whew, I guess it was… Jesus though, that was scary…" she muttered, before chuckling without mirth. "I guess that I HAVE been overworking myself late, some hallucinations and blood loss would definitely screw me over."

WHAM! Her musings were interrupted when something came flying from behind and barrelled into her, wrapping a pair of arms around her chest with an insanely strong grip. "Gotchya!" a feminine voice cried out in victory. It sounded like someone who had run a marathon and had finally reached the end of the track.

However, that was not important to her right now. "Waaaaaaaah?!" a shrill scream ripped from her throat in shock, surprise and embarrassment. She was shocked at the sudden gesture, and that there was a gesture at all, surprised that she had not gotten any indication of someone being there in the first place, and embarrassment for her reaction. At least it didn't seem like it was in her dream, a part of her figured.

"Gotta catch 'em all!"

"Wh-What?! Like, wait! What?! Why?!"

"I'm not letting you go until you spill everything you've got." The speaker said with confidence. The speaker, who was a certain purple haired Amnesiac, had her head shot up and when she saw into the girl's eyes, expecting the teal eyed ones of the one she was hunting, she found that it was NOT who she was intended to catch. "Huh? Wait… I've got the wrong person!"

The girl noticed that Neptune's grip had loosened and she quickly shook herself out of it, taking a few steps back to calm her racing heart as panic spread through her system. "Wh-Why are you here?!" she cried while raising a hand and pointing it accusingly at the preteen girl.

Said preteen nervously laughed as she rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. "Ummm, I'm looking for a girl… did you see anyone come by? She's black, shiny and flying. I figured she'd be really easy to spot." she replied anxiously. The fact that she had gotten the wrong person by accident was still fresh on her mind so she didn't notice anything else, like the girl's injured state. Let nobody say that, in her human form, Neptune had much skill in observation. She should really get to that, huh?

"Hey, I heard that Author! Activate mute!"

You can silence me, but you can't silence the tru-

BLEEP!

"The description reminds me of an insect pest…" the girl muttered under her breath, feeling insulted for her comments, while also ignoring the meta comment Neptune had made towards whoever. The urge to hit her in the face for that remark was strong, but the girl held it off. One, she was too weak to last another round. Two: she had just woken up from a horrid dream so she was still a little shaken. Three: it didn't seem that Neptune had realised who she was yet so hitting her would only rouse more suspicion on her end.

Remembering that Neptune had asked her a question from the curious yet impatient expression on her face, the girl pointed in the direction of the exit. "Well, there was someone going down that direction. Like, really fast." She explained with a hint of pride in her tone.

Though it went unnoticed by Neptune as she sighed in dismay and defeat. "Oh shucks." She groaned, kicking the dust away from her feet. "She was my important hint and all…" Neptune bemoaned, before shuddering. "Iffy and Nicky are so not going to like hearing she got away…" While the girl fretted over the possible retribution that the two Guild Agents in her party would deliver onto her, the girl remained silent, watching her closely and seeing how Neptune was lost in her own little world. She had this… perplexed expression on her face as he witnessed this spectacle, something that someone like her was not used to.

Soon enough however, Neptune came out of her delusions when she finally noticed how the blackette was looking at her with a face that asked, 'are you some sort of crazy person?'. If she had asked that, Neptune would have replied, 'just ask the developers', and that would have made her sound crazy. "Whoops. Sorry, just talking to myself there." She apologised.

It was then that the question she should have asked popped into her head. "By the way, why are you alone here?" she questioned, before looking her up and down and noticing that the girl was not in the best of shape. She did a double take in response to this. "Hey… your all scraped up!" Neptune exclaimed while pointing at her just like the blackette had done to her. Said blackette's response was a simple one. "Huh?"

"Yikes… you're really badly hurt." Neptune said with shock, fear and concern as she noticed all the injuries the girl she had bumped into had. She felt guilt shoot up her spine, if she had accidentally done all that… another possible idea hit her, one she was much more comfortable with. "I know! You were attacked by a monster! I'm here now, so no worries now." She said in a comforting manner, trying to 'cheer up' the blackette.

The purplette thought she heard the girl mumble under her breath. "Hmm? Did you say something?" Neptune asked, thinking she had heard something, but soon shook it off as it wasn't that important. "Anyhow, your wounds look bad, but you okay?" The blackette looked herself over, before turning her head to the side. She then flicked one of her ponytails, both of which thankfully being untouched by the chaos. "Oh, it's only a bunch of scratches. Nothing to bawl over." She said humbly, trying to downplay the injuries. 'The one I'm concerned with was that energy your FRIEND used…'

Still, the purplette looked unconvinced as she looked her up and down. "But it isn't good to assume your fine without a professional opinion." She protested. Neptune wanted the girl to be sure she was fine, but without outside help that wouldn't be a given. A light bulb went off figuratively in her mind. "I know! My friend is an expert in medicine, so let's have her check you!"

"What? Wait, um. No, really, it isn't a big deal…" the blackette waved her hands in front of her, trying to deny the validity that was a professional check-up. She didn't need something like that when her energy was already healing her wounds, and it was her stubborn nature also at work.

However, Neptune was not having it. "Oh, don't worry! We won't charge you! No strings attached, trust me." The purplette pressed on with her ever-so-dorky smile. Ignoring the exclamation of 'That's not the point!' made by the blackette, Neptune spun around and made a call while clapping her hands and bending her knees. "Compa-! Where are you, Compa-! Here Compa, come here!"

The blackette's eyes turned to a deadpan at the sight of Neptune's antics. Right now, she was too tired to note that she hadn't yet sensed how weak she was, which was a reliever on her end. She didn't think that her plan would work though, and was quick to voice her opinion. "I don't think calling as if calling for a dog will work..."

However, that proved to be the opposite case, when Compa emerged from behind a rock. "Did you call, Nep-Nep?" she asked, with Neptune and Nico, whom the girl flinched at, emerged with her.

"You're kidding me…" Seeing her surprise, Neptune hmphed, hands on her hips and chest puffed out. "Surprised? I am, after all the heroine, I have 108 skill styles, y'know!" she boasted. However, like usual, IF was quick on the draw to call out Neptune on her antics. She groaned and had her face meet with her palm once again. 'I bet Nico and my hands will get along well… wait, what?' the woman thought, shaking off some… unsettling thoughts before she looked back at them. "Stop lying, Nep. We just caught up to you right when you were yelling." She explained to them all, clarifying the situation.

'An amazing sense of timing if I do say so myself…' Nico thought as he looked the blackette over, his eyes landing on her shoulder… the same one that got bitten. His eyes narrowed as something briefly passed through his eyes, although nobody noticed it because it was gone just as fast as it came. His thoughts continued down onto the morbid, ominous route they had travelled. 'Who knows what would have become of this girl… if the timing was any worse…'