Begin Experiment Log S-H-540: Null Heart, Part 1.
Play.
"Let's see…this morning, I have three back-to-back meetings with Avenir personnel…Hah! They never do stop complaining about the ordinances I implemented, do they? I'd like to see them try to change my mind! Hm…then I need to be thirty minutes early to a photo shoot – because apparently a goddess can't do her own makeup…Ah, and then I have a speech to make, of course! The people of Lastation need to know the bright future their goddess has in store for them!"
Noire continued down the list of chores she had written for herself, which covered nearly the entire wall of a living room, being projected from a fancy new gadget she'd just had installed onto the ceiling. Originally, she had started out with post-it notes, then a notebook, and then a giant whiteboard, but the daily list had just kept growing and growing in size with each passing day until it had grown unmanageable even for Noire. Finally, she'd taken up Histoire's suggestion to go digital, as much as it pained the CPU of Lastation to do so – the use of such tech was far too Planeptunian of a solution for her tastes. Still, it was awfully convenient to be able to update and synchronize her to-do list from anywhere with her phone.
The sound of muffled footsteps making their way down a flight of stairs came from behind Noire. "Good morning, onee-chan." This was followed by a noisy yawn.
"…Aaaaand I need to see Uni off to school." Noire had almost forgotten – today was the big day. She could recall squeezing it into the list somewhere, but she practically went cross-eyed trying to find it on the wall. Noire turned on her heel, making sure to stomp down her other foot with a notable thump on the solid floor of the living area. She perched her hands on her hips, watching Uni gulp down a glass of cold water that she'd gotten from the kitchen section of the room. "Why are you yawning, young lady? Didn't I tell you to go to bed early last night? If I end up hearing that you've been sleeping in class—"
Uni let out a whiny groan. "Gee, onee-chan! Of course I went to bed on time! It's just…" Her voice dropped a little in volume, her head turning away bashfully. "I was so nervous thinking about it that I could hardly sleep…"
Noire's gaze narrowed slightly – sometimes it was hard to believe that this timid little girl was her own sister. "Well, you'd better manage to put a little pep in your step. Pep pep!" Noire clapped her hands together twice as she said this. "You've got a busy day ahead of you, and you're going to need all the energy you can get!"
"But every day's a busy day!" Uni gave a little sigh as she placed her glass next to the sink – right next to the glass her sister had drank from earlier that morning – knowing that she'd have to get to it later. Noire apparently used to hire servants to clean up the various rooms of the Basilicom's living quarters, but those servants had mysteriously left the CPU's employ ever since Uni had arrived. Gee. If Noire's budget was that tight, there was no wonder her living room was so basic. The contrast between Uni's own home and that of Nepgear always left her a little jealous whenever she managed to sneak away from Noire during their visits to Planeptune's capitol building.
"Uni? What did I tell you about sighing? It's unbecoming of a goddess, you know."
In response, Uni unconsciously gave an even more irritated sigh.
"Uni?" Noire said, much like a parent warning her child.
Uni threw her arms down in frustration. "Okay, onee-chan!"
Noire continued to give her sister a scrutinizing gaze as the girl slipped on her shoes before stepping over to the CPU of Lastation. Uni looked up at her older sister, school bag clasped nervously in her hands, her eyes eventually averting to the side. The silence between them began to drag to an uncomfortable length before Noire was struck by the fact that she wasn't quite sure what she should do.
° (^_^) If I may, Noire – this is a milestone that many denizens of Gamindustri face at least once in their lives. It is evident that your sister will be quite nervous on her very first day of school. After all, it will be the longest she's ever been away from you! If you wish to help keep her focused, why not try giving her some form of encouragement, such as a pat on the head, or a friendly family kiss? I'm sure she will appreciate the support from her older sister!
The wise words of Histoire played themselves in Noire's head as if the fairy was physically present over her shoulder, whispering advice into her ear. So, with that in mind, the CPU leaned right down to plant a quick peck on Uni's forehead.
The girl's face immediately began to turn red as a beet, her mouth scrunching up a little as if embarrassment was capable of tasting sour in itself. "Onee-chaaaan!" she finally exclaimed, stepping back and making an indignant "hmph," her eyes turning away again.
Noire gave a quiet giggle, a little surprised at both her own and Uni's actions. Maybe her sister was more like herself than she thought. Then again, if Neptune tried to land a smooch on her, she wasn't sure if she would respond with just indignation…
The goddess shook her head, feeling a warmth creeping upon her own cheeks. She made sure to put a smile on her face as she said, "Do your best – okay?"
Uni's eyes moved back to Noire momentarily as the girl gave a tiny nod.
With that out of the way, the goddess stepped over to front door that led out to the main hall of the Basilicom, reaching toward it to open it for Uni. "Remember – as soon as you get back, I'll be expecting you to join me for—" Noire froze mid-stride as a sudden thought plucked a chord of panic into her. She rushed over to a kitchen countertop, noting the massive stack of textbooks present there. "Uni, here! Quick!"
Uni did a little jog to move to her sister's side. "What is it, onee-ch—oorfph." Several of the textbooks were dropped into her arms, causing her to bend downwards almost to the floor. Before she could complain, or indeed, even finish lifting herself back upright, another book was deposited on top. And then another, and another…
"Good grief!" Uni exclaimed with a slightly strained voice, still clinging onto her school bag even beneath the weight of the pile that stretched up to her chin. "What is all of this junk?"
Noire crossed her arms, making sure to give a stern look down at her sister. "Uni, this is not 'junk.' A CPU needs to be properly educated in order to serve her people most effectively. You don't want to end up as a drooling, blubbering idiot like Neptune, do you?"
Uni made sure to breathe out her sigh as quietly as possible. "No, onee-chan." She didn't add that Neptune seemed to be doing just fine at holding her own against the other nations without any formal education. Any mention by Uni of the purple-haired goddess tended to put Noire in a right fine mood, and the last thing Uni wanted was to be grounded on top of having to deal with her first day of school. Plus, there was…whatever else her older sister had planned for her later. Probably more boring meetings with boring old businessmen about boring old business. Blech.
Noire gave a nearly inaudible sigh of her own. "I'll be waiting for you in the office when you get back, alright?"
Another wave of embarrassment threatened to wash over Uni as she stepped over to front of the living area, where one of her designated escorts – an employee of the Basilicom dressed in the sharpest of suits – was now holding open the door, tapping his foot and checking his watch impatiently. "Okay, onee-chan."
Noire practically felt herself deflate as soon as she heard the door click shut. Immediately, she was struck by the stillness within the room – the only sounds meeting her ears were the low hums present in the background generated by the Basilicom's various ventilation and electrical systems.
Was I too hard on her?
Noire never managed to get a straight answer out of Histoire whenever she asked that question. The fairy was, as a construct of the old goddess, interested in ensuring that all of the CPUs performed their duties to an acceptable level of competence, but she had an annoying habit of taking a hands-off approach in regards to the governance of each land. Still, she at least attempted to give some words of wisdom whenever the CPUs pestered her with questions – but there was one question that always seemed to annoy her to no end whenever it was brought up.
Why are the CPUs made to fight one another?
Once upon a time, the answer to that had been self-evident to the goddess of Lastation. Lately, however, she had found that question worrying upon her mind more often than not.
｡(`Д´)゜｡ Gah! I have already told you a dozen times, Noire! The CPUs are kept fragmented to prevent them from ever growing powerful enough to bring calamity upon the world! Must I worry that Neptune is not the only one who is suffering from memory loss?!
Noire made her way over to the stairway that led to the floor above. Her steps were slower than they normally would be, her hand gripping the railing with more strength than was necessary. As she reached the top, she was greeted with a tall hallway that stretched to either side for some ways. It had once been an ostentatious affair, decorated with such ornate trappings that there was no doubting the stately aura of this place, but those decorations had since been plundered and sold by a few entrepreneurial ex-employees during her last long-term absence from the Basilicom. A sight that had once filled her with pride now never failed to create a stab of shame within her.
Out of all of the lands of Gamindustri, Lastation had been hit the hardest by the tail end of the Console War. Even to this day, Noire was still struggling to get her nation's budget in order, so there was little money left over to spend on sundry trinkets to spruce the place up a bit – something that Uni had complained about quite vocally on several occasions. Noire could definitely understand Uni's sentiment – bare gunmetal walls were hardly befitting of a goddess' sanctuary – but the needs of the people came first.
The people always came first. That was the number one rule of being a CPU. Uni had yet to have this drilled into her – but, eventually, the day would come where she would rule her very own nation. Then, she would learn the hard way. Just as Noire had.
No fun. No games. No friends. Certainly no fraternizing between the CPUs themselves. A goddess must always sacrifice for the needs of others, no matter her own wishes. To think otherwise was to have one's existence erased from the world as her so-called friends drained her shares to nothing.
Some humans thought that, behind all the pretty smiles, the speeches, and the PR, being a CPU was a tough job.
They were right.
Noire stumbled her way into her room, falling upon her bed with none of the usual grace she presented herself with. She lay there for a time, wondering at how nice it felt to be still for once. She allowed her mind to blank itself, feeling the tension slowly leave her body. She had a few minutes, given that she planned to be "fashionably" late to the latest series of meetings with Avenir – may as well try to enjoy the moment of respite.
Histoire had noted multiple times that Noire appeared to be high-strung, but, of course, offered no solutions to this. The only long-term answers would violate the long-standing status quo of a Gamindustri of four separate nations. More problematic was that even the short-term solutions were ineffective. In the rare moments where Noire managed to steal away a little free time, it was even rarer for her to spend that free time in an unstressful manner. Her mind almost always managed to wander its way into the uncomfortable thoughts that had begun to plague her ever since the end of the Console War.
I'm tired.
She almost laughed at the banality of the statement she muttered to herself. It was certainly true in a physical sense – the heaviness of her eyelids attested to that much. Yet, there was another applicable element beyond that.
I've got a long, long life ahead of me.
She couldn't even remember how old she was anymore. At some point during the centuries of conflict that had only just recently drawn to a close, she had deduced that she would live forever, and that was that. She would exist perpetually upon this floating rock above an endless ocean, serving as the CPU of Lastation for the rest of time. She doubted anyone would have any objections to that – except maybe Uni.
How do the others manage to handle—
A cheery little tune interrupted her brooding. Good thing, too – she was already starting to drool into her pillow in a most Neptunian manner. A few more minutes, and she would've been having a miserable time in about two hours. She breathed a quiet sigh through her nose, lazily reaching for a pocket within her dress to retrieve her phone. Deciding that she wasn't in the best position for speaking with the proper cadence of a goddess, she forced herself to roll over, then rose to a sitting position.
"Mm…moshi moshi?"
Yes, it's "moshi moshi," Vert. A simple "hello" does not suffice.
"(^～^;)ゞ Ah…hello, Noire. I do hope I have not woken you from your well-deserved rest?"
Eh? It looks like Histoire is jumping on the "hello" bandwagon, too.
Noire's cheeks flushed red at the thought that she'd been caught slacking off. "Nononononooo! I'm perfectly awake!" As if to prove the point, she sprang from the bed, pacing to put some energy back into herself. "A-Anyway…it's strange that you would call me like this. Is there an issue that needs the attention of a goddess?"
"f(^_^;) Yes, in a manner of speaking. I am calling an emergency summit meeting to convene at Planeptune's Basilicom in about an hour."
"Wh-WHAT?! In an hour?! I…I have so much planned to do already! I'm going to have to cancel everything!"
"((´∀`;)) I am sorry, Noire. I do apologize for the short notice, but this is a matter that has occurred very suddenly. To be frank, I find myself at a loss as to what to do."
Noire paused, taking in a deep breath to steady herself after her outburst. Histoire had run into something she couldn't figure out? How was that even possible? "Okay. I'll see you in an hour, then."
"ヾ(´▽｀;)ゝ Thank you, Noire. I will explain everything once everyone has arrived."
Beep.
The goddess simply stood there for a moment, staring at her phone in silence. She would need to be making quite a lot of calls in the next few minutes. So why wasn't she already jumping to it? Time was a resource even more limited than share energy, was it not?
She lifted her head, squinting when her eyes came across the blinding sight of the sun peeking its way through the window of her room. She stepped over to the window, briefly considering if she should open it, but that was likely a poor idea. It was still early enough that the chill of dawn had yet to fade, the brownish grass outside coated in dew.
The air within Lastation tended to have an acrid aroma at this time of day, the result of Avenir's gross disregard for their homeland's environment. The cleanup process would be very long indeed, but Noire had already seen to doing something about the dozens of old-fashioned factories dotting Lastation's horizon with their black plumes of smoke. Eventually, Lastation would be making its next great leap forward, and this hectic, polluted era would become just another chapter in the nation's storied past. Another morning was dawning over Gamindustri – no doubt there would be a hundred thousand more just like this.
If I'm going to live forever…why am I always in such a rush?
The CPU shook her head to clear it of unwanted thoughts. I don't have time for this. I have a lot of preparations to make. There's no telling what Histoire has for us.
Noire let out a heavy sigh that had been building up as she began to thumb through her contacts list. At the very least, the summit meeting was sure to be a change of pace.