Four Candidates in such a short time is rather unusual, as they are normally spread out a little more if several exist in the same generation. I feel it is most welcome, though; they can be playmates and peers, just like the four of you are.
-Histoire
A being formed within the stream and quickly gestated, faster than the one who came before her. It accepted knowledge and capability, only becoming more eager with every bit of data. Eager she was, wanting to meet her sibling as fast as possible. Only in realising that this person was not near did she slow down. Disheartening, but not a problem. She would be patient.
From one moment to the next, everything became light and Uni formed herself; her all-encompassing shine subsided just as fast, but the total darkness of before was forgotten already. The newborn Candidate stood in a dark chamber faintly illuminated by silver light. Behind her sat the only piece of inventory, a crystal formed out of Sharicite.
Somehow, Uni knew that she had time for now. Instead of rushing, she took a moment to admire the beautiful carvings and run her tiny hands over them.
It was the first time she saw her own hands; immaculate, rosy skin and five perfectly symmetrical fingers. Curiously, she leaned a little closer to look them over; her desire to see herself changed the Share Crystal's properties, turning its surface into a mirror and lightening up the room.
Unaware that it was her doing, Uni beamed at her own reflection. Fingers ran over her soft cheeks and firm jaw, wide red eyes taking in every single nuance of her own appearance. She faintly examined the shock of raven hair on her head, carding through it with one hand to find it silky smooth. The sensation made her giggle.
Satisfied with her examination, Uni turned away from the reverting crystal. Her attention was on the sole door leading outside. She walked up to it, recognising more Sharicite coating it as well as walls, floor, and ceiling. She was trapped in here.
Curiously, the Candidate knocked on the door; her uncontrolled strength produced a lot of noise, but did not do so much as make the coating shudder. Except for the fact that nobody had considered the hinges, which were still ordinary metal. They gave on the first strike and threw the door to the ground.
Uni blinked down at what she did, then stuck her head into the brightly lit room ahead to see where she was. Lastation, that much she knew, but she had no idea where exactly her sister's Share Crystal had been placed.
Ahead of her lay a well-ordered office with only a single desk; one door was placed at the front, one at the back of it, the latter with her nation's insignia displayed.
More importantly however, she found an old man staring at her with wide eyes, having jumped up from the ruckus she just created. He was pale as a sheet, which made Uni feel bad. She did something wrong, she knew. So the young CPU quietly stepped into the room and bowed her head toward the elder. "I am very sorry, sir. I did not mean to scare you."
She was divine after all. Refusing to admit her own mistakes was not acceptable.
Only then did Uni realise she was still standing on the door she broke. It would normally be completely indistinguishable from the wall it was set into, though she would not be able to tell after what she did to it.
Stepping off of the ruined secret passage, the Candidate turned her attention back to the dumbstruck man in front of her. "Who are you? And do you know where my sister is?"
For some reason, he merely placed a hand over his eyes and sighed.
. .
. .
Meanwhile in Lowee, Noire could not help but feel weird. Her Share influx had... hiccupped a few minutes ago and she could tell something happened, but not what.
Seeing that she currently sat with her fellow CPUs and was busy negotiating trade agreements, she did not have time to reflect on it either. Blanc and Neptune were driving hard bargains.
"I told you before that we can set up new mines more easily. Planeptune's workforce is more business- and IT-oriented, so-" her argument was interrupted by her phone. Not the regular one which was turned off, but the second one each of them carried in case of emergencies.
Her friends fell silent as well while Noire quickly pulled the device out of her pocket; they all knew their Oracles would not call over trivial matters. And it was Ganache, the caller-ID told her so.
Picking up the call, Noire did not waste any time with greetings: "What is it?" If it was urgent, there was no time to waste after all.
Which was why her brow furrowed when a sigh answered her. "My apologies for interrupting, but we have a... situation." He audibly hesitated, which only managed to agitate Noire further. She had to know how bad it was and whether this required her immediate return.
Then a different voice sounded over the phone, quiet but audible enough; young, female. "Is it her? Are you calling her? Where is she?" Noire blinked again; she knew Ganache had a young granddaughter, but he would not bring her to work. He was too serious a man in his duties to call on the emergency number for something trivial, too.
"Just a moment, please," the old Oracle mumbled, apparently to the child, then continued to speak to her: "As it were, I do not know what to do. In all the years, I did never think I needed to be prepared for a buck naked child to smash her way out of the secret chamber."
"I said I'm sorry!"
Another sigh followed the quieted response while Noire's eyes widened to almost comical degrees. Her surprise was immediately replaced with indignation which was overridden by glee. "Just, you could have said that immediately! I'm on my way!"
She ended the call, already leaping over the table with a backward turn. Neptune pushed her hands up against Noire's shoulder to give her a bit more height, allowing the lastationite CPU to land more gracefully. "What's going on?!" the purplette shouted after her.
"Thank you! I'll tell you later!" And out of the door Noire was, leaving three befuddled CPUs.
. .
. .
Back in Nordral, the elder that introduced himself as Ganache was keeping a close eye on Uni. She did not really understand, though his previous actions and words on the phone made it clear he had a problem with her state of undress.
He had attempted to wrap her in his own jacket, but Uni tore it apart when she tried to move her arms. The surprise stumped them both, and the Candidate quickly apologised; she also decided not to touch him at all until she figured out if it was okay. Humans were so fragile.
The silence between the two was more than a little awkward; Uni wanted to ask questions, fill in the blanks where her memory failed to deliver information. She wanted to learn about the world, but more importantly, she wanted to see her big sister. Noire.
The fact her sibling was not home to greet her bothered Uni a little, but she did her best to not let it show. Her eyes were on Ganache, her nation's serving Oracle. His face was wrinkled and held no hair anymore, but he was still clad almost immaculately; 'almost' being because he took off his suit's jacket for her and herded her around. Uni sat still under the torn garment, still sheepish about having ruined it.
The two of them were seated in a medium-sized living room, which the Oracle had explained belonged to Noire and now Uni as well. She could not help but look around instead of keeping her attention on Ganache. Paintings and all kinds of craftsmanship were displayed along the wooden walls, made masterfully and near perfect.
"Did Noire make all of these?"
She could not help but ask. Ganache blinked and beheld Uni's curious expression, then turned his head to take in the craft surrounding them. "Ah. Yes, yes she did." The elder could not help but smile when he saw Uni beaming. "Your sister is quite the artisan."
The Candidate bobbed her head up and down, eyes going this way and that. "I can see it, Noire is great! I want to be like her when I grow up!" Her excitement drew a mirthful chuckle from Ganache, who leaned over to give her a gentle pat on the head.
"I'm certain you will be. You're quite well-behaved for a newborn, too." Uni just beamed under the praise while the old human considered her. "Say, I heard Candidates can create clothes for themselves rather quickly. Would you like to give it a try?"
"Huh?" The CPU blinked up at him and then down at the two halves of a jacket covering her. "Are you sure? I don't know how." She had an inkling, but just doing things without actually knowing they worked felt like a bad idea. Uni could not tell whether her instincts could be trusted.
Ganache, unaware of her actual problem, chuckled warmly and offered her an encouraging smile. "From what Noire told me when I asked, it should be the easiest thing in the world for you. 'Just imagine what you want to wear and push your essence a little', she said. I'm not made of Share Energy, so I don't know how that is supposed to feel, but you-"
He was interrupted by a flash of light. His destroyed jacket peeled off the glowing Candidate while something similar grew around her. Moments later, she sat clad in a pristine black dress that reached down to her ankles. It was mono-coloured, lacking embroideries and any other distinguishing additions. In fact, it appeared as if Uni had taken a piece of cloth and masterfully cut it to the right proportions.
The CPU looked down at herself before frowning. "No, not like this." She glowed for another moment and the dress became more pronounced, turning from pitch black to a dark blue. Then she added Lastation's crest in gold on her chest, as well as white trims to the hem. Her work done, Uni smiled up at Ganache. "There, all done. Thank you, Ganache!"
Her thanks made the elder smile once again, impressed and delighted at the same time. "It was nothing; you did well, my Lady."
He rarely had children around, but talking with Uni made him feel as if he sat with his granddaughter. It also reminded him of calling his son, but he could do that later.
It had only been a few minutes since he called Noire, meaning that he would have to keep this little one occupied a while longer; even at her fastest, Black Heart would still take some time to fly all the way from Myora.
Thankfully, Uni took most of that task off of him with an inquiry of her own: "Now tell me about Lastation. How is our Share balance, what products are on the rise, societal problems, everything you can tell me." Her almost commanding tone was somewhat lessened by the innocent and wide-eyed expression she still held, but Ganache held no illusions about the order he was given. Not that he minded.
He had intelectually known that CPU Candidates were born with intelligence and capacity to match any human, but seeing it in person had come as a surprise nonetheless.
. .
. .
Noire reached Ganache's office in a state which would be called 'out of breath' for a human. Her whole being throbbed from the force she pushed on it, having exceeded her own maximum speed by almost a third. She had dashed through the Basilicom's upper storeys, only slowing down once she neared her destination. Disheveled hair righted itself with little thought, her rumpled skirt and shirt smoothed themselves out under her mental command.
With no one being in her Oracle's office, she figured where she would likely find both Ganache and her Candidate. Just the thought of it almost made Noire lose her composure, wishing to run again to meet her that much sooner. A Candidate of her own, the thought remained almost unbelievable.
It had only been Nepgear so far, Neptune's adorable sibling. Where Planeptune's ruler held a special place in Noire's heart and always would, Nepgear wormed her way in within four encounters of them. Neptune was even worse off in that regard, being positively in love with her darling sister. She smiled more than she used to, easier, brighter.
Just the thought of having a bit of family of her own made Noire's calm expression vanish; her lips curled upward in a hopeful smile, eyes softer than she would ever have allowed herself when in the process of meeting someone new.
Noire entered her own living room with measured steps, the sound of them alerting both Ganache and the little girl sitting by his side. They interrupted their conversation, the old Oracle greeting her with a friendly smile while the Candidate jumped to her feet. She was clad in a pristine if simple dress, red eyes wide and filled with a joy that stumped Noire for a moment. No one had ever been this happy to see her.
But she was her Candidate, no matter what; they could both feel it deep within. Noire's smile widened further and she met her charging sister halfway, wrapping her in an embrace. "Hello," she greeted the newborn, "I am sorry you had to wait for me."
"That is fine, sister," the girl mumbled into her chest as she nestled against Noire. "I am happy you came back so fast. Ganache said you were doing something important."
She had kind of left negotiations midway. Not that she cared for it at this moment. "No matter, you are more important right now. I am Noire." She could not help but tear up, as much as she wished nobody could see her cry about something like this. Five hundred years of being on her own aside from her dear friends, and now she held her sister for the first time, listening to her test the sound of her name.
"Noire... it sounds nice. I love it." She could only imagine her smile, but that did not change the surge of emotion. She never thought she would be this sentimental. "I am Uni."
"Uni," she tested her sibling's name in turn. Ganache had quietly made his exit, though the tapping of his feet on the wooden floor further up gave him away. Noire was grateful for his consideration. "Welcome home, Uni."
The child giggled and squeezed her more tightly; her strength was noticeable, but nowhere near the level required to actually injure Noire. It would take decades at the least for Uni to get there, potentially centuries.
She allowed herself to hold Uni a little longer, then gently pulled back to take a closer look at her sibling. "So, what did you do while I was out?"
Uni immediately began chattering, offering a cheer that Noire rarely saw from anyone but Neptune. "Oh, Ganache told me about current affairs!" Which was followed by various bits of information Noire had since memorised herself but still felt impressed to hear explained to her again. Her brow furrowed in thought, which in turn made Uni slow down and finally stop. "Did I do something bad?
The frown vanished and Noire quickly shook her head, having brought her sister close to tears with but a gesture. "You did not, why would you think you did?"
The answer was delivered almost as a whine: "Because you started frowning."
Noire blinked and realised she sent the completely wrong signals. Sighing, she took Uni's hand into her own. "I was not frowning about you, okay? Just thinking that I need to find a way to test your problem solving skills and talk to Histoire about your education." Uni nodded slowly, but the older CPU was not done yet; she gently squeezed her sister's small hands. "That will be a lot of work, you know?"
Not to mention that she had no idea where to start. The admission hurt a little, but it was what it was; Noire did not know how to proceed. She would have to ask Neptune, not to mention make some inquiries into how to act as a proper big sister. Her human friends could be counted on one hand and she never really looked into raising children; nurturing humans came easily, mind, but Uni was not human.
For now, she could only see about keeping her busy. Her sister mulled over what she had been told, eyes downcast. Noire wondered what went on in her young mind, but then her attention wandered to the dress she was clad in. Curious.
"Where is your dress from? Did you make it?" She wondered about that, knowing that she herself had been born with the innate skill to form clothes. Yet Uni must have done it rather fast on her own. The fact she could not see any seams at least made it a possibility.
Uni nodded, bunching her dress in her hands and lifting it a little. "I did, Ganache told me how you do it, then I did it too." Her proud smile did not waver, even when Noire ruffled her hair affectionately.
"Well done, Uni."
At this point however, Noire slowly began to run out of options; she knew few things a pair of sisters could do together, not to mention CPUs. Putting Uni to work immediately was out of the question, and taking her outside did not sit well with her either. On that note, she realised she ought to ask another question: "How is your strength? Can you control it?"
Unfortunately, the younger CPU shook her head and pointed at the two halves of Ganache's jacket. "I can't. Can you teach me how?"
"Of course I can, but it will take a little while until you manage." Noire offered her sister an encouraging smile and ruffled her hair further. "But I can not do it for you, you need to put in the work yourself."
Much to her delight, Uni pouted over that and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I know that. I am Lastation's Black Sister, I won't let you do my work!"
While she was impressed and also smitten, Noire's outward reaction consisted of a hearty chuckle. "Of course you won't. You are my little sister after all. Shall we get started?"
Her question made the younger CPU shake off the defiant posture and nod eagerly. "Yes, I wanna!"
It was the second time in her life that Noire had fallen in love, though this one felt radically different to the first. She looked forward to raising her sister, to teach her everything she could and see her become a proper heir apparent to the Land of Black Regality. Her friends could wait a little, she would tell them later.