Hyperdimension Standard Time: [18:00] November 23rd 20XX
Location: [Gapain Field]
After Katsuo and I had our first real spar, we unanimously agreed to depart to Gapain Field to find the real Oracle and perhaps the Mascot Character, since Miyo brought up something she thought of just a little while ago
"Karen, to be honest; while I have my doubt considering Linda's capabilities, I can't help but feel suspicious about all this. Even the lowest of peons is capable of deceiving her enemy, and sometimes it's easy for people like her."
"While I doubt she's capable of such a thing, I get your point here Miyo. We should keep an eye open nonetheless."
"Miyo, if what you say is true; we should consider the possibility of Chika not being here."
"I agree with Shino on this one. While I don't believe you are leading us into it, I am concerned that we are walking into a trap."
"Relax Yuuki; we don't need to worry about anything bad happening as long as we work together. We've come this far after all." Katsuo proudly proclaims as he tries to reassure her.
"Ya, you're right. I mean, after everything you've been through, I imagine it's impossible for you guys to fall in battle if you truly try."
After this warning, we wander through the field, keeping our eyes open on the surroundings while we fighting the monsters in our way, though it's getting hard to see since we're in the winter season and therefore; the night comes far earlier than usual. But what is truly odd is that despite the fact it clearly is that time of year where there's not as much sunlight compared to night, the temperature feels like a modest seventy five or so; much better than Lowee since it was freezing cold. Clearly Gamindustri's laws of physics are drastically different from Earth since the climates appear anchored to specific areas instead of what exists on Earth. Though when we reach the end of the dungeon, we find no trace of Chika since we searched every nook and cranny which practically confirmed Miyo's theory about Linda lying to us.
"Well, you were right Miyo. Linda lied to us; Chika isn't here." I groan rather irritably as I then begin racking my head to think of where ASIC would hide the Oracle.
However, my thoughts are cut short when I suddenly see a huge magic circle appear from under us and Miyo instantly pushed me out of its radius and when I regain my senses from this sudden shock, I see that everyone apparently has been turned into stone statues. Seeing the sight of my friends petrified like this is rather horrifying since their expressions are all terrified. Miyo's statue in particular scares me a bit since her right arm is extended toward me.
"Miyo! Everyone!" I exclaim in horror since I know that Miyo practically sacrificed herself to save me from this petrification magic.
"Hahaha. I can't believe you actually fell for such an obvious trap, especially when you no longer work for us." I turn around to see Magic float toward me, scythe drawn as if she's ready to fight or even kill me.
"Magic, I won't let you get away with this!" I scowl as I draw Celeste to prepare myself for battle against this de facto leader of ASIC.
"How foolish, even if ASIC's faith has been weakened, I am still far more powerful than you are; and to prove my point" Magic mockingly laughs at me and she then extends her right arm and I feel a sensation similar to lightning course through my body and the pain is outright unbearable for me to handle beyond a couple of seconds and I fall to my knees in pain, Celeste being the only thing keeping me from falling to the ground itself "How pitiful. I expected a Console Patron Unit to be stronger than this."
Because of all of the pain I'm experiencing, it's taking all the strength I have to stay conscious, and I regret it somewhat as I see my friends suddenly vanish from where they were before
"What did you do Magic?!" I demand though I shout in pain immediately afterward since she is still torturing me with this lightning sensation.
"They now lie in the Gamindustri Graveyard, but you needn't worry since your life is forfeit."
"Not on your damn life. I will not let you kill me!" I proclaim proudly and I then remember Filia telling me often that anger is a weapon only for one's opponent, and that's rather universal. If I fight Magic if I'm this pissed off, I'll certainly lose the battle and my life. Even though I feel like I'm dying from all this pain, I do my utmost best to shrug it off and stand so I can fight or I'll die no matter what.
"You sure talk big, but it is meaningless. I fought five CPUs that fought me at once alone and I emerged victorious; you do not stand a chance. Don't forget that they were all far more powerful than you."
"I...am...human. We never...give up, no matter what obstacle...stands in our way!" I strongly scowl in face of what Magic said though it's taking all the willpower I have just to stand.
"That's what sickens me the most. You have died once already, so suffer the agony of death once again!"
Right when Magic would've struck me with her scythe, she is hit by what appears to be a beam of light which sends her flying against a far off tree. I quickly look in the direction the beam came from and see a girl with orange hair looped in a frail circle, almost like a ribbon, but the rest of her hair flows out in the front. I notice an unusual metallic headpiece in her hair, which I presume is what's keeping her hair like that. She's wearing a bodysuit colored white and orange, with what appears to be a blue undershirt or something at her torso, though her legs are utterly exposed. She also has something resembling a tiny buckler shield on her left arm though I can't figure what purpose it has, if it has one. Her eyes are light blue though the design is what fascinates me the most: It's the same design that Nepgear, Uni, Rom, and Ram have when they engage their HDD, so this girl is a Goddess too? She quickly dashes toward me and helps me up from how I was face-first on the ground from the torture Magic inflicted on me.
"Are you okay?" The girl worriedly asks me as she quickly equips a pair of bracers and lightly hops in sequence, keeping herself mobile in preparation for a renewal of battle.
"Yeah...but I wish you came earlier ya know." I groan rather irritably, since I hoped she would've come before the others got petrified.
"No way...Uzume! You're alive?!" Caelus exclaims when she heard this CPU talk to me. Considering that this girl is obviously a CPU considering her appearance, is she perhaps one of her little sisters?
"Eh? Cae? It's good to see you again!" The girl yelped and practically throttled me though when she glances at me she blinks in confusion "Huh? You don't look like Cae."
"Uzume, this girl is my avatar. I merged my life with her's to save us both. In a manner of speaking, I have sacrificed my corporeal form but I am not unhappy about the situation. But how did you survive the battle against Arfoire so long ago?!"
"I was forced into the dimensional void during the battle because of a spell casted by ASIC's followers and I've been stuck there, incapable of aging, but I thankfully avoided going mad since I was asleep all that time, also in meditation. I was awakened by someone called Croire and she told me that I had a greater purpose back among the living, so she brought me back here. I'll give my full story once we're safe. Here, let me lend you a hand, then leave this to me."
When she finishes this, she quickly helps me up. Afterwards, Uzume dashes toward Magic, who has recovered and re-engages her battle with us. When Magic attempted to slash at her with her scythe, Uzume acrobatically dodged the attack by jumping over Magic and a rapid series of kicks quickly followed suite, which is obviously irritating her considering the anger on her face. I have to say, I am impressed by what I'm seeing here since I've never seen anyone this acrobatic since Magic herself is rather fast and is trying to strike against her to no avail, but I can tell that Uzume's attacks barely have any strength to them, the attacks being more irritating than harmful to her. However, Magic quickly forces her back and teleports away, to my extreme displeasure since she's taken my friends.
"Damn it!" I snarl as I punch the ground in anger, knowing that my friends have been abducted by ASIC. I quickly notice that my punch had injured it rather severely as it cut open a bit of skin, letting blood flow out.
"Were the people taken close to you?" Uzume asks me as she hovers her hands over my injured one with a bright silver glow and the skin over my hand appears to be painlessly stitched together "Thank goodness that's the only injury you have. Nearly all of my power has been drained during my long sleep and the eviction Croire forced on me, so I can't use any stronger magic right now."
"You have my thanks regardless Uzume. But to answer your question: very. While I've only known Miyo, Yuuki, and Shino a few months; I've known the others nearly five years."
"Uzume, how are you able to maintain your goddess form with no shares?"
"Thing is Cae; my human form was er...'disconnected' during my long sleep. As far as I know, I'm stuck in this form for good."
"But we need shares to maintain our CPU form and if your human half is disconnected like you say, how are you even alive without faith?"
"You can thank Croire for that one. She enchanted the gem on my torso with a spell that cut my dependence for shares, though she said it wasn't for my benefit; she did it because she wanted to see a lot of fun. And my being alive apparently fulfilled that. But I'm not complaining; I mean, I get to see my big sister again!" Uzume explains before tackling me again to hug me and nuzzles against my cheek, though thankfully, she didn't knock me to the ground.
"Caelus." I would poke fun at this nickname she seems to have, but I'm too annoyed over how my friends were taken to do so. And then there's the fact I have some girl I don't know all over me.
"Karen, look; just let her have her moment alright? She adored me back in the day and she's spent so long trapped in nothingness. Look, it's not like how RED or Izumi would do it. The girl is simply pining for her older sister. Please, I want to ask this of you as a favor. Just, play along."
"Very well. But er, play along how?"
"Just let her vent the pent up feelings she has. She'll calm down when she lets it all out."
After a few more minutes pass of her nuzzling against me, she finally eases up and steps back a little bit.
"Okay then, let's get moving. We're burning moonlight."
"Go where?" I actually lost track of the conversation between me and Uzume since I was communicating with Caelus.
"Ain't it obvious? We're going to save your friends of course."
"Uzume, no. You're not doing that. ASIC is too strong for any one person to defeat, even you. You must remember the old days right? We all fell against ASIC. Remember how Eris, Corrine, and Manila fell? I saw their… Look, as your older sister, don't throw yourself in such dangerous battle again. I can't stand losing family."
"Huh. So ASIC is as strong as before Cae? If so, I can see your wanting to stop me. Then how do we proceed? We do have a goal in mind that we need to finish."
"We need to acquire the Mascot Character in this nation then we go to Planeptune to prepare for the assault in the Gamindustri Graveyard. Unfortunately, we're six people short of our full group. If Planeptune's CPU Candidate is even willing to cooperate with us, we'll only have thirteen people to attack; barely an eighth of the force that was used to rescue the captive CPUs three years ago. But I have some doubts that they will help us, and if that is the case, we will only have seven people; eight if you wish to help us."
"Can we shelf this for now? I want to return to the city, but at the same time; I don't want to see the others."
"I understand why you're scared Karen, but we can't afford to hesitate. Think of it this way, we took losses, but we have regained another ancient CPU. Uzume and I know our enemy so that's a blessing."
"Right. Er, about that, Uzume, I need you to wear this if we're returning to Leanbox." I say as I pull out the robe Miyo gave me and pass it to Uzume. It's best that we hide the fact there's another CPU in this world for the time being, to avoid attracting attention and causing panic.
Uzume thankfully takes the robe without any questions and puts it on, which is hiding her appearance entirely aside from her face and thankfully the robe's enchantment apparently is hiding the computer power design in her eyes so her eyes are just regular blue.
"While this is way late, I think we should do a proper introduction. I'm Karen Koizumi, my divine name is Aqua Heart." I say as I offer my hand to Uzume for a handshake.
"I'm Uzume Tennoboshi and my divine name is Orange Heart, call me Uzume. Let us return to the city."
Chirper Events:
Lily Rank 3 - Karen, Uzume, Caelus
"So Karen, I want to ask. How did you come across my big sister?"
"Well, I'd like to say it was simple, but it really wasn't. About six months ago, I was asked by the Oracle of Planeptune: Histoire to rescue the CPUs in the Gamindustri Graveyard. I heard Caelus speak to me when I got to the halfway point asking for me to save her. Thing is; when my friends and I got to the end, we got attacked by one of the CFWs and it turned into a horrific fight...I was badly injured and I actually died when we got back to Planeptune."
"You died? But you're alive now."
"It's because of how I merged my life with hers. Her vitals were dropping badly and I used my own life force to sustain hers until she recovered. Despite what I may have said, it was not pleasant sometimes. I barely had any strength remaining and I used what little I had keeping you alive; I was so weak, I was concerned I'd fail and we'd both die. When your vitals were stable, you still wouldn't recover and I was desperate. I shouted at you to get up because I would've died within an hour if you hadn't woken up."
"Wha- Caelus, if you had told me of that part, I wouldn't have resisted your intimidation attempt." Hearing that Caelus was that close to dying when she was desperately trying to keep us both alive, that's a strong blow against me.
"I...I have said that I do not think things through sometimes. I didn't know what would happen if I told you I was dying. I was afraid so I lashed out since I hoped I could influence you to act if I threatened you."
"It was certainly rash, but I guess I understand your plight Caelus. Desperation forced your hand and we sometimes make decisions we later regret."
"Exactly. I'm surprised you don't hate me after all that."
"Wow, this is surprising. Cae, I want to ask; were you conscious all this time?"
"Unfortunately yes. My consciousness was limited, but I was fully aware all this time. I had no knowledge of the passage of time, but the recent battle between the CPUs and ASIC brought me to my senses somewhat and I hate myself for lacking the strength to manifest my corporeal form to help them. Next time will be different. We will bring the full fury of the five nations upon them and enact holy retribution. For Eris. For Corrine. For Manila. For everyone who died against ASIC."
"Wow, you certainly do feel strongly about all this Caelus."
"Karen... ASIC killed just about everyone I ever cared for. My sisters, my people...I wanted them destroyed for everything they did to us. Arfoire tormented me by showing me the bodies of my sisters; mangled and heavily injured. It was gruesome to see. I want ASIC destroyed and I want to see their damnable leader's head on a pike!"
"Cae…"
Back to story
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [22:30] November 23rd 20XX
Location: [Leanbox]
Even though I had an extremely heavy heart about what happened in Gapain Field since I had led them all into a trap, albeit unintentionally, and worse of all: Miyo knew something like this could happen to us and she still followed my lead to the end. That's what hurts me the most about all this. While I admire loyalty, it's a bit painful to witness someone willing to sacrifice themselves for that loyalty. Back in the day, I expected people to survive to the utmost end to the best of their ability since you can't help people if you die.
I wandered through the city's quieter districts since I never knew where Miyo sent Izumi, Rom, Ram, and RED to get trained by her contact and with Miyo abducted by ASIC, I have no idea where to go. After about an hour of searching, I see them rapidly approach me and I hide a severe groan under my breath since a part of me didn't want to see them, since Miyo was the one who connected us all, but I can't really hide it any longer since they're here.
"Karen, you finally got here, we've been looking for you for an hour now." Izumi says rather enthusiastically though she looks about with a mildly confused expression "Where's Miyo and Filia? And who's this?"
"This is Uzume Tennoboshi and er…" The introduction was the only part I was comfortable talking about at this current moment.
"Miyo Hanari has been petrified and taken by ASIC. Karen's friends from her world have been taken as well. I do not wish to discuss the details, but Filia is safe; she just won't be here for a while; she had other priorities to take care of."
"Goddess. I'm not going to let them get away with this, but I know what would happen if we try to rush this. Even if we managed to save her and the others, we wouldn't leave unscathed. She'd be pissed too, so we need to do this 'right', not fast." Izumi scowls rather strongly when she hears of how Miyo and the others were taken by ASIC.
"Right; not fast." I mumble in my head and I feel like my own philosophies have been slowly changing when I was revived with Caelus' help without my being aware of it. While I'm not unhappy about my path since I got to meet Miyo, Izumi, Filia, and the others; I usually don't take such drastic changes when it comes to my plans since I learned that it would usually end with casualties and I lost trust from my friends doing this. We have the same goal here and this needs to end if I want to save them.
"It's getting late though, we should return to 5pb's place. She arranged a number of rooms at a high-class inn for us all and we were about to go find you to let you know. So let's go." Izumi says with a giddy smile as she dashes away, apparently eager to rest in this inn, and I don't blame her since we've been sleeping in tents for the better part of the last few months.
"Uh, go on ahead, I'll catch up later." I weakly say to the group since I need to get something settled straightaway.
"Are you sure Karen? You don't seem the type to do stuff like this." Ram quickly asks me though it stings hearing that so bluntly.
"Yes. Please."
"Ram, it's best if we not ask too many questions on this. Karen obviously needs a little time, so let's go to the inn and rest. And here you go Karen." RED says as she passes Miyo's notebook to me, with the address of the inn written on one of the pages "Izumi was a bit too childish so I decided to hold on to this for you guys since out of the four of us, I'm the most responsible."
"Wow, this a damn good case of the pot calling the kettle black. And that's hardly freaking true, but then again, Izumi did take off; and since she's gone, RED technically is the most mature of that group of four in a manner of speaking, but there's a huge disparity there."
After this internal monologue, the others leave to the inn leaving me and Uzume in this small area
"You're not going with them Uzume? Aren't you tired from everything you've gone through today? Particularly the forced exit from the dimensional void."
"I guess I am a little tired yeah, but I was born a goddess so I don't truly need to eat, drink, or sleep, but I'm still a living being and my body does feel like it needs food, water, and sleep sometimes. Besides, I have to prove myself to Cae."
"Prove yourself? What do you mean?"
"Urk...I thought she would've outgrown that. Karen, Uzume has a bit of an inferiority complex because of how, when I 'created' her; Eris, Corrine, Manila, and I had done so many reputable things. She desperately wanted to earn my favor since she wanted a place to belong in a family that had done many, many things before she was even born."
"She was born into a family where she had little to no chance to prove herself, especially to a sister she idolizes. Or perhaps in a way, no way to prove her life was worthwhile to her mother."
"A...mother. I'll be dead honest; I never saw myself as a parent since I created my sisters as what they were. I didn't need to raise them one bit."
Since I was talking with Caelus, I only heard murmurs from Uzume but when I finished talking, I heard her say
"-And that's pretty much it Karen. Do what you need to do, and I'll support you. That is a promise from me: Orange Heart, former ruler of the nation of Astrocade."
"And as the former ruler of Magnavox: Aqua Heart, you have my promise as well."
"Thank you Uzume, Caelus." I sincerely smile in response, though I can't help but feel a little concerned about that because of what happened not long ago, since loyalty had me experience my friends being held captive by ASIC before noticing what Caelus said "Wait...Aqua Heart? And Magnavox? I thought you ruled Planeptune?"
"Well, yeah. You share the same Divine Name as me; we are the same being after all. And to be candid, while it's called Planeptune now, my nation was called Magnavox in the past, but I presume Histoire had it renamed over the course of time after Purple Heart or some other CPU was born."
"Yeah, I can understand that; it's happened a fair number of times in my world."
After this, I press a few buttons on my gauntlet to connect to the network Ophelia's gauntlets are wired to and I send a message to Nepgear, demanding a meeting within an hour outside the city.
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [23:15] November 23rd 20XX
Location: [Leanbox - Outer Fields]
After I sent the message, I went to the same field where I had my spar with Katsuo and awaited Nepgear's arrival. I notice that the area still bears the marks of that confrontation since the grass is black and gray and I still see hints of flames scattered about. Thankfully, I didn't need to wait long since the entire group has come to meet us and to little surprise, Nepgear and IF are not eager to see me, though that hardly fazes at this point.
"What are you going to pull this time traitor?"
"I'm tired of this game IF. I'm not expecting you to just forgive and forget, but we have the same goal yet we're treating each other like bitter enemies. This needs to end if we want to save the CPUs. I propose we have one final battle to judge our future. If I win, we put this aside for good and work together. But if you win, you can do what you wish to me."
"You must be joking. Do you think that-" IF tries to say before be cutting off by Nepgear.
"I accept your condition. Know that I won't lose." Nepgear says with a defiant look as she steps forward with Uni in tow.
"Hold up! Nepgear, what are you doing?!"
"IF, just trust me. I won't lose to her."
"Access!" Nepgear and Uni exclaim in unison as they are enveloped in the beam of light that signifies the activation of HDD.
However, the clothing appears rather different from when I last saw them since the undershirt of Uni's armor is gone and is little more than a bikini-like bodysuit while Nepgear is also sporting a bikini form and instead of the white and lilac colors, the new outfit is black and purple, similar to what I saw Purple Heart wear back in the Graveyard.
"How scandalous; the CPU Candidates wearing such revealing clothing. If you'll play this card, I will too. Access!"
While I know I can barely maintain transformation, I hope it'll be enough to defeat these two.
"Karen, I won't let you fight these two alone. Allow me to jump in."
"Stay out of this. I don't want to fight civilians." Uni interjects rather seriously though Uzume chuckles in response.
"Ehehe, you think I'm a regular human like them?" Uzume laughs as she takes off the robe and gives it back to me, and I put in my inventory since I don't want it getting damaged.
With the robe removed, Uzume's appearance is revealed to the group and they all go wide-eyed at her revelation; and this time, she is showing wings which look like mine but far more robotic.
"A-Another CPU? Where do you find these people?!" IF exclaims, glancing at Uzume in her CPU form.
"How dare you address me so casually! I am the illustrious Orange Heart of Astrocade!" While Uzume clearly was trying to sound condescending and certainly had the tone for it, I know her history so I have to hold back the urge to laugh at it "Karen, I'll fight this rotten girl, you take care of pinkie there."
"Wow. Caelus, is she being serious about this? Or is she playing around?"
"I'm not even sure at this point. It's been a very long time since I've seen her, but if I'm right, I get a feeling it's a bit of both. Remember when I said she had no chance to prove herself in the old days. But listen, you don't have time to talk with me, you need to fight!"
After inaudibly nodding to Caelus, I leap into battle against Nepgear though her aura seems far more battle capable and her talent has also drastically improved; even with my goddess form boosting my abilities and Celeste's magic, Nepgear has become my equal or even better than me; and that naturally terrifies me since I don't want to lose this battle since my life could very well be at their mercy.
"Oh goddess! Even with all the power at your disposal, Nepgear appears to be capable of surpassing that with a mere change of her Processor Unit!"
"Then can't I simply change mine to combat her sudden change?" I inquire while I try fighting Nepgear, to little avail since she's blocking every one of my attacks.
"Easier said than done. You're using the Processor Unit I used back when I had my own body. It's obviously outdated compared to current technology, and it's not simple creating these things. Uzume likely has the same problem."
Since Caelus practically confirmed that Nepgear is stronger than I am, I activate my Dark Saber though she grinned and her sword glowed when she struck me, and I found myself unable to activate the skill, as if it was utterly canceled.
"What the?! Why didn't it work?!"
"Ehehe; that's a new skill Ophelia's gauntlet made for me; it allows me to cancel enemy skills in action. Quite useful against treacherous enemies." Nepgear's tone was uncharacteristically venomous when she said this and I gasp in horror at what Nepgear has in her arsenal. My skill with Celeste is practically useless against her since she has this new Processor Unit, I can't maintain goddess form long enough to present resistance to her, and she is capable of negating my skills, which might have been the only thing that could beat her.
"No! I have nothing I can fight with her with!"
Nepgear then activates her Celestial Severance and since it's far stronger in Goddess form, the skill sends me flying back and I hit the ground several times before I land on my stomach and I see my HDD disengage. I look toward Uzume and see her struggling against Uni just as much as I did against Nepgear and she gets blasted back toward me. I then see Nepgear and Uni approach and tower over our injured, defeated selves.
"I have been defeated and I will honor our bet. Do with me as you will." I say dejectedly, dismissing any hope I had of victory at this point.
"Karen, extend your right arm."
I really am confused on why she's asking for this but I lost so I have to do what she says. But the moment I do this, she runs her blade through my arm, which makes me shout extremely loudly in pain since I had my arm stabbed with extremely high-temperature laser weaponry and the extreme pain made me pass out the second she pulled her sword out.
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [2:00] November 24th 20XX
Location: [?]
When I came to, I see Rom, Ram, Izumi, and Uzume using magic on my injured arm and I see the others around me with differing emotions of indifference, concern, and anger. I see Filia nearby sword drawn toward Nepgear and she has a few scars on her face which seems to have been healed a great deal. I can only imagine Filia found out what happened and took her anger out on Nepgear based on what I'm seeing.
"Damn it Karen; you should've told me that you were going to go find Chika. I would've helped."
"Filia, if you were there, you would've been taken by ASIC too. The fact you're here is better for everyone."
"I...I see that logic but that doesn't mean I have to like it."
I look toward my healers and they look remarkably discouraged as they continue trying to heal me
"Urk, sorry about this Karen, we've done the best we could, but you're not going to be able to use that arm for a week or perhaps even longer. Even the strongest regeneration magic is not strong enough to instantly heal injuries of this nature. Stitching wounds is one thing but healing bone takes quite a while." Izumi mutters as she covers my injured arm with a medical cast.
"Er, do any of you know what happened to my gauntlet?" I inquire since I didn't see it on my right arm before Izumi covered it.
"If I remember right, Miyo included a safety protocol in the latest upgrade. If it detected any degree of damage, it would instantaneously be sent to your inventory." Izumi says as she explains what happened in this regard.
"Now you know my pain Karen. Now we're on even footing and now we can work together. But know that my trust is not easily won back."
"Oh come on, you maim my arm and I still have to earn your trust?! Ugh, fate is a damn cruel mistress."
"That outcome is simply justice. You still haven't proved yourself in the absolute slightest."
"C'mon guys, let us give Karen time to recover." Uzume urges the others out of the room and she then turns around, sits on a chair near my bed, and looks toward me.
"You're not going to sleep Uzume?"
"Karen, I told you; I don't need sleep because of my origins. Besides, I wanted to ask you a few questions."
"Well I certainly have some of my own for you as well Uzume."
"Fair enough, let's keep it at three questions each max. You need to sleep after all."
There's a moment of silence since neither of us apparently knows who should go first so I decide to step up
"This is something I want to ask both you and Caelus. There is something I heard quite a while ago from Caelus when I was sick. She talked about Miyo's mentor, Thraaklon I think his name was. I heard he tore Caelus' nation apart a long time ago, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to ask about it."
"Ugh, could you be any more blunt Karen?"
"I wasn't exactly involved in that situation too much; Cae, Eri, and Rin fought him and the reconstruction process was led by me and Ila."
"She speaks of myself and her other sisters: Eris, Corrine, and Manila, though she calls them Eri, Rin, and Ila, it's a little quirk she has. Eris and Corrine helped me fight Thraaklon when he was devastating my nation and when that ended after six months of fighting, Manila and Uzume sent their entire craftsmen guilds to help rebuild my nation, though it was a grueling five year task. That was just rebuilding the infrastructure, and it took over a decade to recolonize the frontier provinces when the reconstruction was completed. Thraaklon killed thousands of my people, and that's not easily replaced. Not a lot of my citizens wanted to leave the city and rough it out in the frontier so I had to set up a significant number of incentives and run it through Histoire since we were depending on imported food since our fields were devastated. I'm just thankful that my sisters were kind enough to ship their excess food at a greatly reduced price."
"Interesting."
"Okay, time for one of my questions. I heard Croire mention something about otherworldly figures when she reawakened me. What exactly was that about?"
"Ugh, that was a real eye-opener for me when I found out. Apparently Thraaklon, Karen, and all of the mystery humanoids we have seen are all from different dimensions. For the longest time, we were led to believe they were from some far off continent beyond the ocean, but I was wrong."
"Yeah; Histoire took me and my friends from our world to defeat ASIC."
"That sounds utterly despicable. We CPUs should be the only ones handling matters of this scale; not forcing civilians into service."
"Not that simple Uzume. I saw the four CPUs and Nepgear battle ASIC but they fell against CFW Magic, the woman you saved us from. I saw that your strength barely fazed her aside from that spell you used, but that didn't help much either. As strong as we were in the past, we need all the help we can get here until we can regain our strength, if that's even possible."
"We need new Processor Units Cae, we got beat by those Candidates too easily; it wounds me far too much."
"Uzume, I just told Karen this. We don't have access to our resources as CPU to create Processor Units, and remember that we're both ancient CPUs; we have no idea in the slightest how to make top-grade level equipment."
"What about Histoire? While she was a bit conflicted, she has still helped us a fair amount without interfering with Nepgear. She's known about this CPU thing involving me for a while so do you think it's possible she had designed a set?"
"Forgive me when I say that I severely doubt it. While Histoire may indeed be helping you now, there's no way she'd go out of her way to make you any stronger than you are now. She values the balance of power too much to let it escalate out of control. Fact is, we'll likely have to work on our own once we defeat ASIC. And realize that I'm talking about the Oracle who was once sworn to help rule my nation."
"Yeah, while I want to believe her, I can understand you on this. But why are you two so big on helping me?"
"You insult us by asking. Our time has come and gone and yet we're still alive. We're both too outdated to establish nations again so we should attach ourselves to a CPU who has a legitimate chance to make it and offer guidance in the background."
"Okay, this has been going on too long now Cae; we need to let Karen sleep."
"Yeah, I really should." I mumble as I quickly let sleep take me since I've been fighting it since Uzume wanted to talk with me.
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [10:00] November 24th 20XX
Location: [Leanbox]
After I got a fair amount of rest, I received a change of clothes that better suits Leanbox's temperatures with Uzume's help and when I look in a nearby mirror, I see my hair and eyes has turned a mint green, I'm wearing white colored evening gloves on my arms which goes up to my elbow although the right one is largely covered by my cast, a rather thin dress with horizontal line patterns with a light green color and white at front, there also appears to be something like a feather design at the top of my dress and around my neck. I also see a small cape around my lower waist and I'm wearing a pair of light boots that appear to have heels on the back, so I guess they qualify as high boots, but they're still rather short.
I heard that Izumi, RED, Rom, and Ram went with Miyo's contact: an idol called 5pb. and her bodyguard: Cave for their training, so that leaves me, Filia, Uzume, who is wearing the robe I gave back to her before we left our room, Nepgear, Uni, IF, Compa, and Nisa among us and according to Compa; Falcom has declined to travel to Leanbox with the group since she doesn't like boats and hence, she returned to Planeptune to await our arrival.
"I say we pay a visit to the 'Oracle'; she has hell to pay for what she did." Filia says as she cracks her knuckles and then looks toward me "Mind if I borrow your sword for a while?"
"Only if you tell me what you'll use it for."
"Intimidation, my sword's not menacing enough. And if she doesn't answer; well, let's just say that it'll be a repeat of the day we left Lastation." Filia says with a solemn expression.
"No. If I do this, you keep it at intimidating only. Linda's the only one who knows where Chika is and if anything happens, we won't be able to find her."
"I don't approve, but you're still my protege so I'll atleast try to go about this path." Filia says as she takes my sword sheath and walks toward the Basilicom.
We then follow her lead into the Basilicom and we notice Linda walk toward us even though she's still disguising herself as Chika; I can just tell by the way she carries herself and she apparently knew the same, or perhaps from my companions
"Welcome back Karen Koizumi; where are you friends?"
"Don't play games with me Linda; I know you set them up. Chika was not in Gapain Field at all. You have ten seconds to tell us where she is!" Filia snarls as she rapidly draws Celeste and points it toward Linda's neck, keeping it within centimeters of it and that clearly horrified based on the expression on her face.
"S-She's in Underverse! She's there, I swear! D-Don't kill me!"
Filia sheaths Celeste with a good degree of authority and simply looks in her direction "If you're lying, I'm coming back to finish the job. Know that."
Linda gulps in acknowledgement and Filia hands me my sword back as she calmly walks out of the building, though it left everyone awestruck. We follow suite and simply stop outside the building as we see Filia waiting for us at the teleport hub which lies in front of the Basilicom which coincidentally is at the heart of the city.
"What is wrong with that woman?" IF mumbles in mild horror, noting Filia's threat toward Linda.
"She's just unflappable. She got that attitude from her father, who is, or rather was, in the same situation as I was. Stranded in this foreign world."
"Was?" Compa inquires as she notes the negative tone of voice when I spoke of was
"He's dead. Died last night."
"Oh." Compa despondently responds when I talk about the fact Driin died.
"If you guys wouldn't mind, I'd like to talk to Karen privately about something. Go on ahead and we'll catch up."
After we see the others walk to the hub, Uzume walks in front of me and I can see an uneasy expression on her face
"Karen, I'm going to be blunt but...I'm worried."
"Worried about what?"
"Worried about you and Cae sharing a body. Cae, remember that we have no idea what happens to individuals that merge with CPUs in the long-term."
"Caelus?"
"Urg...look um...I did say that this experience only happened one other time; well before my time. According to the stories, this CPU was severely wounded and about to die, and one of her followers offered herself as a vessel. Thing is, we never got a chance to see if there were side-effects since that CPU died a few days later. And it's not because of the bond; because of how faith in that CPU diminished because of her apparent death, her holy protection vanished and monsters were going to attack her capital. She sacrificed herself to save her people. I kept this concern to myself because I didn't wish to panic you but I had been monitoring your condition over the last few months. Thankfully, I only really noticed a slight deviation in thought patterns."
"Wh-Caelus! You should've mentioned this earlier!"
"Karen, I had no damn idea what I had to look out for with this! Like it or not, you must know that nothing comes without a price and all research demands a price and unknown fields like this is never convenient for everyone. This doesn't happen enough to warrant anyone committing any degree of research to it, and I honestly don't want it to, so investigation must happen on an informal level. Listen, you're my avatar and my friend, if I noticed something grave happening, I would tell you right away, but the problem I saw was thought deviations, which is extremely minor compared to what could have happened. And you apparently caught on to that on your own and are trying to fix it."
"I...sorry Caelus. I didn't mean to lash out against you."
"I am not offended. I suppose you could call it a perk; when you live a very long life, you learn to keep a level head...most of the time. In fact, in a way, I happen to like playing the role of spectator in your soul since it allows me to play the role of an advisor and guide hot-blooded youth."
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [12:00] November 24th 20XX
Location: [Underverse]
After getting the new bit of info from Linda, whether it's true or not, we left for the dungeon called Underverse which apparently is a volcanic dungeon and the temperature befits such a thing. If I hadn't changed my clothes before now, I am certain I would be sweating beyond belief. Because of how Nepgear practically melted some of the the bones in my arm, I can't use my sword arm, which means that I'm useless in battle so Uni said she'd stay close to me in case monsters try to attack me and she's a great help with her rifle since it keeps em from getting too close to me.
When we got our formation set up in preparation for battle in this dungeon, it was decided that Uzume, Nepgear, IF, Filia, and Nisa would be in the vanguard fighting while Compa and Uni would be fighting in the rear guard, supporting us from a distance. It sounds rather ideal and flawless, but when we actually had our first encounter with monsters, there were quite a few problems; particularly with our synergy since Uzume and Filia are not really shouting collaboration with the others at the top of their lungs and it's easy to tell that aside from Compa, Uni, and Nepgear a tiny bit, we hardly seem able to trust each other. Although we're technically working together, there's a major division with Uzume and Filia on one side, and IF and Nisa on the other; though I can tell that while Nepgear's trying to act as a balancer like Compa and Uni, she's favoring toward IF and Nisa, even if slightly.
"You doing okay Karen? What Nepgear did was a bit out of line considering the circumstances. I thought she'd simply tell you off or something, not drive her sword through your arm like that." Uni worriedly asks me as she stares at my cast covered arm.
"I feel like I had it coming Uni. I betrayed her trust after all."
"There is something I've been wanting to ask you. For a while now, it seems as if you were testing Ge-Ge."
"Compa, you were there. You saw how powerful ASIC was when they decimated us. I nearly...no; I did die fighting them and I'm alive only because Caelus saved my life. I don't want Nepgear or anyone going through that so I had to play a villain some to strengthen their resolve. After all, if you can bring yourself to hurt a friend, you can ideally fight your enemy with no problem. I usually try to avoid doing that, but I know that sometimes you can't avoid it." I explain with a heavy heart, as my mind recalls that horrifying day when we arrived in Gamindustri. Saying that it wasn't my finest hour is an understatement.
"Oh yeah. That was scary. I had no idea what we were thinking; thinking we could rescue Nep-Nep and the other CPUs with just six people. Even though we did get Ge-Ge, we nearly failed there. Hopefully we'll have better luck next time since we'll have more people helping."
"It'd better be. I lost my friends to this world, and I'm going to get them back. No matter what." After I say this, I tightly clench my right hand and it makes me cringe since my arm hurts from that mere movement "Damn! That hurts more than I thought it would."
"Karen, take it easy before you make it worse. If you push yourself too hard, the regeneration magic will shatter and your arm won't heal."
"I know Uni; I couldn't help it." I groan as I try shrugging off the pain.
After this exchange of dialogue, we continued to proceed through this volcanic dungeon and I had to spend the whole time simply watching everyone battle since I'm not ambidextrous and can't use my left arm to handle Celeste even with that magic. Even though it lets me fight like a master, I doubt my own senses would be able to adjust fighting with my left arm and the magic and my body would likely be in contest. Of course, what I was presented with was a small mob incapable of coordinated unity and that won't freaking stand if we fight ASIC; they'd likely tear into us like ribbons.
"Damn it. If we act like this when we return to the graveyard, we're all going to die." I snarl in my mind seeing this group fight. If we were in Aincrad when we were doing this, I would have exiled them from the frontline.
"I won't deny it Karen. This is an utter fiasco."
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [13:30] November 24th 20XX
Location: [Underverse]
After we got to what we presume to be the end of this dungeon, we see a pair of heavily armed guards in front of a small metal platform. WIth a little bit of looking as I try my best not to get seen by the guards, I can also see the Oracle restrained to a wall which apparently is the reason why she didn't try to escape before when she was captured by ASIC.
"There's the Oracle. Two of ASIC's followers are there; Uni, can you handle this?"
"I think I could, but these two are still human and once worshipped the CPUs. It wouldn't sit well with me to kill innocent people like this; even if they did worship Green Heart."
"Okay then...let me think." I mumble as I switch my glance toward the two guards again and try to think of a plan to use here that prevents death "Uni, how about this? We could draw the guards' attention with a rifle shot and bring them here, then we can have Filia and Nepgear knock them out if you hit them with the pommel of your swords. That'll buy us a few moments and you can keep them restrained until we free Chika."
Nepgear and Filia nod and take up their positions against a wall dividing us from the guards, to strike them with IF and Nisa supporting the pair with the imprisonment of the guards while Compa, Uni, Uzume, and I are preparing to rush toward Chika once we begin the operation. When we get into position, I nod in Uni's direction and she nods in sequence and she aims her rifle in the direction of the barrier's entry. She has her right hand free and in plain view of us all when she calmly hides one finger, then two, three, four, and when all five are firmly clenched into a fist; she rapidly fires her rifle and runs to the left behind me to evade notice. Thankfully, my plan worked perfectly as the two guards run out toward us and Filia and Nepgear swiftly hit the guards in the back of the head with their sword pommels which knocked them to the ground and IF and Nisa rush to help with their suppression. With the guards out of the way, we run toward the Oracle and do our best to free her.
"Are you okay?" I worriedly ask though I can't help break the chains holding her because of my injuries.
"Ugh...I spent goddess knows how long chained up here in this toaster oven and I can't move any part of my body, so what do you think?"
Uzume quickly uses weak fire magic to shatter the chains keeping her bound to the platform and she slightly falls as Uzume supports her from falling to the ground outright
"Thanks I guess. My name is Chika Hakozaki, Oracle of Leanbox. Who are you all?"
"My name is Compa, a nurse in training from Planeptune Medical School. Pleased to meet you Miss Hackysack."
"I'm Uni, CPU Candidate of Lastation."
"I'm Uzume, former leader of the nation: Astrocade."
"I'm Karen Koizumi. In a matter of speaking, I am the former leader of the nation: Magnavox."
"I'm not even going to argue about that mispronunciation girlie, I'm too tired to. The candidate is a bit bland since I know of her already, but two ancient CPUs in front of me? That is a gold mine begging to be unearthed. The knowledge we could tap into. But now's not the time for such things; I want to return to the Basilicom. I am sick of this place."
"I don't blame you Oracle Hakozaki. This place is insufferable and I am eager to leave. I am not good with this level of temperature." Uzume admits rather quickly in response to Chika's apparent dislike of the surroundings.
"Nepgear, we got the Oracle; let's get out here!" I call out as Uni pulls out an Escape Button and throws it to the ground when we grouped together.
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [14:15] November 24th 20XX
Location: [Leanbox Basilicom]
After we got the Oracle, we returned to the Basilicom and we happened to notice that Linda is long gone, apparently driven off by Filia's earlier threat and if I were in her shoes, I would've run off too
"I can't believe I'd say that I missed this place. I guess being imprisoned in a volcano makes a girl think about her stake in life."
"Let's get to the point. Oracle Chika Hakozaki, we need the Mascot Character for this land."
"I can't give it to you Karen Koizumi. Realize that because Leanbox doesn't have a CPU Candidate like the other nations, we weren't able to soften the blow to our shares at all. It was fine at first, but things began plummeting drastically over the course of the last year so I had to take unorthodox measures. Having an idol competition to build faith was one of my only options."
"I see. I guess." I simply huff since we're going through so much effort getting this last Mascot and it's in a way I detest.
"And I have to say. It's good to see you again Filia Yuasa."
"You know her Oracle?" Nepgear curiously inquires and I'm curious about this myself. I know Filia was born here in Leanbox but I don't know anything more than that. She keeps more secrets than anyone I know.
"Know her? She was one of my top agents among the Special Missions Department; a literal one man army; but she suddenly quit a little over two months ago. She walked off without a single word to anyone, even to Cave, who was the closest person she had to a friend according to what I heard."
"I left the SMD because I am sick of their inactivity. If you weren't so weak-willed, you would've sent them to rescue the CPUs yourself; we're some of Gamindustri's strongest. You would've sent me. In addition, I left because my father and so many people were at risk of dying from that Guardragon and no one was willing to get off their high horse and do something about it. Only one group had the guts to do something so of course I'd leave to do what's right. Even if it's ASIC."
"Filia, you do know I can consider that as high treason right? And remember that I can't risk the SMD; if they're lost, Leanbox is defenseless."
"But do you want to play this card Chika? Even you admitted I'm practically a one man army." As if her tone of voice wasn't evident enough, she kept a hand close to her sword sheath which made her nervously scratch the back of her head.
"Point made. The last thing I want to do is piss you off. Regardless, I need things to proceed this way until the idol competition is concluded and Leanbox's shares rise. That way, Leanbox will have some use to my dear Vert when she returns." After saying this, she crosses her arms and stares at us all "Now, if you wouldn't mind, I want to speak privately with the CPUs here. If you desire anything, talk to the servants and they'll do what they can. Tell them that it's an order from Oracle Chika Hakozaki, but if you order anything outlandish, you will hear from me."
After this, Compa, Nisa, IF, and Filia walk to a different room leaving me, Uzume, Nepgear, and Uni with Chika in the main lobby as she paces about with a nervous step in her walk
"Okay listen CPUs. I am going to be direct. I need you and anyone working with you to rescue my precious Vert and the others as quickly as possible, before it's too late."
"What do you mean too late?" I ask since I knew that while defeating ASIC was important, Histoire never put a time limit for us all.
"I had an agent from the SMD infiltrate ASIC a while back and according to the report, they're getting close to reviving their guardian deity. A woman called Arfoire. The CPUs fell against a mere follower of ASIC, so if this Arfoire is revived, the prospect will be grave. But I suspect that if you manage to destroy all four CFWs, you can stop the ritual from happening and prevent her resurrection."
"If Arfoire is revived at full power, we won't be able to stop her. My sisters were at full power and they were all killed, well; aside from Uzume. I myself fell in battle but I won, albeit barely. I wasn't able to dispose of her, merely seal her away. We'll both do our duty to fight the Syndicate however."
"I am thankful for that; whoever you are. But that's why you need to defeat ASIC before it's too late."
"She is right to be concerned. Back when I was a full CPU, Arfoire and her followers utterly destroyed the nations of Faricity, Colico, and Vectria, people and CPU included. The nations of Astrocade and Magnavox were badly ruined but managed to evacuate their people to escape the bloodbath before it begun. It was a dark day for Gamindustri but victory was earned, for a time."*
"Well then; we'll simply fight our hardest to ensure this Arfoire is properly defeated this time." Uni proclaims proudly.
"That's...Yeah, you're right Uni." While Caelus was rather confident when she spoke to Uni, she confided a rather different opinion to me privately "I have severe doubts about that to be honest Karen. She wasn't there."
"I can only imagine." I mutter in response, knowing that this situation is apparently capable of getting far worse than it was before, and if she's this desperate, perhaps I can mine that a little to get extra power I need "Chika, I need to ask you for something myself."
"If it'll help my darling Vert, name it and I'll do what I can."
"Uzume and I need new Processor Units. Our sets are, well, horribly outdated and need replacing."
"Processor Units huh? That's a rather tall order to ask out of the blue, but I know how it's done, and like I said; if you swear you'll rescue Vert, I'll do it." After I asked this question, I got suspicious glares from Nepgear and Uni for about a minute since I'm asking Chika to make the two of us far stronger than before, though we all nod in response; with Nepgear and Uni having a bit of hesitation doing so "Looks like I won't have much time for relaxation, but I say it's worth it. For the sake of that process, I'd like for you and Uzume to stay here while I work. The others are free to do what they wish."
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [10:00] November 30th 20XX
Location: [Leanbox Basilicom]
About a week has passed since we rescued Oracle Chika Hakozaki and we've been doing various errands, jobs, and quests to raise shares in Leanbox before the idol competition though Uzume and I have been staying in the Basilicom at Chika's request so she can work on our new Processor Units. The first day she began working, she went to rather long lengths to take rather accurate measurements of our bodies, to the point where it felt extremely disturbing, and then she wanted to see our talents in battle. But thankfully that test was last since my arm was still recovering so she said she'd hold off on my combat simulations, though Uzume went through it straightaway and she tells me she has never felt so powerful in her life.
When Chika gave me my new Processor Unit, she assured that my appearances in CPU form would be unchanged but my parameters will receive significant boosts which should mean I'll be better in fighting in that form. I know I got to see Uzume with her new processors during her training and while she looks the same as before, she was far stronger than before.
"Okay, I finished making your new Unit, but now we need to test it in battle. Come with me."
I follow the Oracle through the Basilicom to the training room, which has glass walls which is rather reflective, where Uzume has been training and it has special enchantments restricted to this single room which offers CPU an endless supply of share energy for training though it only works in this room only. It's a little unsettling when I heard that Chika's predecessor had it arranged on Vert's behalf and the only one who knew how the spell was made died that very day. Although it could be because of other reasons unrelated to it, that piece of news practically confirms the suspicion that the person was silenced to prevent recreation of that spell.
"Well, now that you can use her sword arm again, let's see how well you can fight with your new Unit installed."
I nod and shout out 'Access' to engage Hard Drive Divinity and when my CPU form is finalized, I draw Celeste from her sheathe to see that she has transformed from her old appearance. Before, she had a blue grip, a gold guard and shoulder, and a shiny silver color on the blade; but now the blade is a deep crimson red and the guard is shiny silver in a crescent moon pattern. And furthermore, the sword feels heavier than before but I feel stronger which seems to balance out that fact.
"Well Karen, that sword is now your own since you have reached the final phase of acclimation: Full synchronization between the sword and the master. Calling her Celeste wouldn't be right anymore. It was my sword and now she has changed for your sole use. Give her a new name which befits her."
"A new name" I mumble in my head before I think about what to name her now "Considering the personality I have in this form: formal and elegant, I want to give a name that matches that. I will name her...Benten. Back in the part of the world I'm from, she is the goddess of everything that flows: Words, speech, and eloquence. Fighting is not the only way to defeat an enemy: words can wound an enemy as much as the sharpest blade. Rumors can destroy the strongest of nations. Elegance is beautiful yet dangerous if used in a certain style. But I have one concern. Will I be able to use Celeste, er, I mean Benten in human form if it's like this?"
"Definitely so. Benten's magical enchantments are designed for synchronization with her master, human form or CPU form. The sword should adjust its size once you revert. Now let's see how you fight with your new sword."
I mentally nod in agreement to her statement and I face Uzume who is keeping herself nimble in the same manner when I met her in Gapain Field.
I dash toward Uzume with a firm sword slash though she blocks it with her bracers and quickly retaliates with a rapid series of punches and one well-timed upward kick which sends me back a few feet. What surprises me is that she has far more power in her strikes and if I were in human form, I would've been defeated by now. But she needs improvement if she wants to exceed the limits she was burdened with during her life before she fell against ASIC.
"Holy. Uzume, you are certainly very strong, but you're not using your strength to your utmost potential. You're attacking too randomly; if you focus your efforts on the body's pressure points, each focused strike can be as deadly as ten random ones." I say as I try teaching Uzume how she can be even more powerful.
"I'll take note of that, but you're in a poor position to lecture me when I'm beating you Karen." Uzume smirks very amusedly and she practically sneers at the fact I'm on the losing end even though we've only just started this spar.
"You have far too much arrogance Uzume. It's high time I knock you from your high horse and teach you some manners."
I grip Benten very firmly and slash at Uzume repeatedly and although she blocked most of the strikes, I got one good one in atleast. Uzume quickly jumped back with multiple backflips in response to my slash.
"That wasn't half bad to be honest Karen. Looks like I have to step up my game. Next Form, Engage!"
The moment she shouted out what appeared to be an incantation, she is enveloped by a pyramid shape of light. When it fades, I see that the shield Uzume keeps on her arm has vanished and appears to have formed the wings I see on her back resembles mine somewhat as it matches the robotic angel theme though the extravagance seems almost excessive as if she's trying to stand out and there are even small orbs attached to the wings the design make think they're for ranged combat since they look like optical drones run by a VI or something. While the colors are unchanged, her wardrobe has changed from her usual to a full skin-tight suit colored orange and white with no skin aside from her face being visible, but for the oddest reason there appear to be something akin to metallic cocoons around her lower legs. Her hair has also lengthened past her waist and I also see that the gem on her torso has moved from her headpiece to her torso with a circle surrounding the gemstone and the headpiece itself is gone.
"Now witness the power of the CPU's next form!" What surprised me is that normally Uzume takes things at a rather casual pace but she sounds far more assertive and high-paced.
After this proclamation, Uzume connects both of her bracers for a brief moment and dashes toward me guns blazing and the increased strength of her 'Next Form' is making it incredibly difficult for me to block her attacks and the strike sends me reeling back a bit, creating distance between us
"Karen, you need to step up to the plate. Don't let Uzume beat you this easily! Access your Next Form transformation!"
"Activate Next Form!" I shout as I am enveloped with the same pyramid as Uzume.
I quickly notice that I am seeing my body from outside my usual senses and I see most of the robe I'm wearing fade as they glow and it stops at the bodysuit I've seen of all the CPUs. I then see parts of armor colored gold and white spawn which magnetically attach to my legs, torso, and arms. Benten is also even larger than before and naturally heavier than in my regular CPU form.
When the pyramid vanishes and I'm brought back into my body's natural senses, Uzume rapidly charges toward me to resume the battle in earnest, and the first of my strikes nearly sent her flying
"Holy...I feel so powerful; even more than I did in my conventional CPU form. Caelus, did you know about this power?"
"Not in the slightest. All I know is that Uzume used it and she is far more powerful using it. Next Form was something that never existed in my day; I can only guess that the requirements were far too demanding for our Processors to handle."
I then charge toward Uzume and my fighting style seems to be incredibly strong yet I am dodging quite a few of her attacks. It seems like I can freely use the fighting style Driin taught me in this form and perhaps use it even more effectively.
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [12:00] November 30th 20XX
Location: [Leanbox Basilicom]
After what felt like an eternity, the spar between me and Uzume finally began to slow down as we're getting exhausted but to go nearly two hours is an impressive feat nonetheless. At the end, the sole thing keeping me up was Benten being used as a crutch. I quickly see my Next Form transformation vanish from the view of the glass walls and immediately after, my normal CPU transformation ends and I'm back in my human form.
"Goddess. I have never felt so exhausted in my life, and I've gone through a coma when Caelus revived me."
After I weakly muttered this, I see Uzume's transformation end as well and go back to her regular appearance.
"I most certainly agree." Uzume agrees with heavy panting in her voice.
I then hear a few amused claps come from Chika who was watching our spar this whole time
"Impressive. Seeing you two fight this strongly makes my work well worth it. When Vert is freed, I'll be able to make her stronger than ever with these designs, once I make modifications. The CPUs will need all the power they can get soon, so I need to tell Histoire, Kei, and Mina to get working on new Processor Units for Neptune, Noire, and Blanc using my designs." Chika says rather amusedly as she lightly tosses a pair of bottles to us "Here, have some health drinks; you're exhausted."
"Normally I'd say I feel uneasy about being used a guinea pig for experimental technology, but considering the leaps and bounds I've advanced with it, I'm okay with it." I say with mild unease before opening the lid on the bottle and taking a sip of the drink Chika gave me but the moment the drink touched my tongue I immediately do a spit-take "Dear goddess, that taste is revolting!" I exclaim in mild pain and I see Uzume has one of her hands on her throat followed by a few coughs; I guess she drank it too.
"That's an unfortunate side of it. The taste is bad but the effects are near instantaneous, the stamina you spent fighting each other should recover quickly. Anyway, the competition starts soon, we should hurry and see the proceedings." Chika says rather enthusiastically as she leaves the room.
We spend a minute trying to recover from the nasty taste on our mouths from that drink but Chika was right when she said that my energy would recover very quickly after drinking it. Afterwards, Uzume puts on the robe like usual whenever she goes out
"Ugh, she needs to improve that blasted taste. I felt like I was going to die."
"Er, Karen; how long do I have to keep wearing this thing? It's beginning to look a tad suspicious."
"I don't know Uzume, but trust me; this needs to be done."
"I...very well. You're still Cae in a manner of speaking, and even if we're not linked by blood, she's still my sister. I'll trust you Karen."
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [12:30] November 30th 20XX
Location: [Leanbox Tournament Grounds]
After we left the Basilicom, we see a moderately sized stage and a huge crowd in front of it here to watch the idol competition happen and the person I see on the stage is the person who was teaching Izumi, Rom, Ram, and RED: 5pb. I quickly heard her begin singing and her voice is beyond angelic and the song she's singing is equally angelic. I have to say; I've seen animes and games involving idols once or twice, but this girl outranks them all in both voice and choreography.
"Incredible. I've never met such a talented singer and dancer before. Though I never really saw the need to seek such qualities before."
"Yeah. I'm just as amazed as you are Uzume."
I continue watching 5pb's performance and I see that the judges have given her perfect marks with Izumi's group following suite. I then quickly see Cave run toward me, Uzume, and Chika with a calm expression that has a hint of fright.
"Lady Chika, ASIC has just stolen the Mascot Character. Filia is in pursuit of the individual responsible with a squad of SMD members."
"Goddess- Karen, Uzume, get moving! We need to recover the Mascot Character immediately!"
"Got it! Cave, lead the way!" I exclaim as I follow Cave who is leading the two of us in the direction of the city teleport hub.
When we get to the hub, the three of us find Filia outside it at the controls
"Good timing. I need your help. We need to pursue CFW Magic; she stole the Mascot. My former colleagues in the SMD tracked her to the Gapain Fields and are awaiting us outside that dungeon."
"Yeah; Cave just told us that. We need to hurry and get the Mascot. We can't let ASIC have it."
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [13:30] November 30th 20XX
Location: [Gapain Field]
After I joined up with the six man team of SMD members outside the dungeon, we dashed through the area fighting anything and everything in our way and I must admit that these guys are crazy skilled in combat and although their weapon sets are incredibly varied, I can easily tell that they've mastered their individual skills. In fact, neither Uzume or I haven't been able to get a single hit on a monster, but I certainly am not complaining...much. When we got to the end in an organized manner, I began getting a little suspicious since we haven't seen Magic yet.
"This was the same area where…" I mumble in my head when I remember that friends fell into ASIC's trap around here "Wait, I just remembered about Sleuth. I never really paid it much mind since I can't see stats on people, but maybe…" I touch the side of my head to trigger Sleuth and when the transparent visor spawned in front of my eyes; I see the environment's color rapidly shifting and when things turned into an x ray vision, I see a magic circle hidden underneath the ground and the design is identical to what I saw when they got petrified "I should've anticipated this. Sleuth has changed its purpose from people to environments." "Guys, stay behind me." I pick up a nearby rock and toss it toward the magic circle, hoping that I can trick it into triggering.
Thankfully, the trick worked as the magic circle is triggered and since no one was there, no one got petrified
"Kch, I should have figured you wouldn't fall for the same trick." Magic scowls as she appears behind one of the trees.
"I'm not stupid Magic. Guys, stay back and let us handle this." I say to the SMD members since Chika mentioned that the SMD is crucial to Leanbox's survival.
Uzume and I walk forward ahead of the group to fight against Magic, with Uzume throwing her robe to me as I quickly put it in my inventory and I engage my HDD to balance the odds between us
"Uzume, we should take this chance to discover how long we can maintain our newest power outside that field."
"Yeah, let's see."
"Execute! Next form!" We shout in unison and transform into Next Form for this fight.
When the pyramid that transformed us into this extension form faded, I quickly dash toward Magic and attack her with an upward slash which sends her into the sky and I follow after her through flight and I rapidly attack her with several sword slashes which is keeping her from falling to the ground. I follow this series of attacks with a strong downward slash which has her going toward Uzume's turn to strike
"It's your turn Uzume! Go all out!" I shout as I quickly fly to the ground and my HDD deactivates immediately because of the low share issue.
I turn my eyes toward Uzume as she flies toward Magic and she attacked with rapid punches and kicks which certainly are taking their toll if her strikes are as strong as the ones she used against me in the spar. What truly surprises me is that I see Uzume grab Magic in a grapple and strongly throw her toward the ground with a very strong kick accelerating the impact speed and that very impact created a small crater in the ground. I quickly dash toward the crater with Uzume floating next to me.
"Damn you...How are you so strong…?"
"I told you Magic. Humanity will never give up no matter what obstacles lie in our way. It is time I end this once and for all!" I retort very solemnly, as I draw Benten and drive it through Magic's chest.
However, where I expected shouts of pain, I hear laughing "Do you think this fazes me CPU? If you thought what I inflicted before was pain, you are sorely mistaken!" After proclaiming this, I see Magic strongly grab my blade and the sensation of lightning once again courses through my body.
I'm thankful Uzume firmly stomped on Magic's arm which made her drop her grip on my sword and I quickly drew Benten out and walked back a short distance out of surprise. I see Magic teleport away yet again which irritates me greatly but there is a silver lining: In her haste, Magic left the final Mascot Character we need. When the pain subsides, I gently pick up the disc from within the crater.
"Green Disc, are you okay?" I serenely ask; I can't imagine being kidnapped was a pleasant experience.
"I'm quite alright. I am thankful you came to my aid so quickly. I owe you my life. But who are you?"
"My name is Karen Koizumi. I became the avatar for CPU Aqua Heart of Magnavox six months ago."
"I am Uzume, leader of the nation: Astrocade which fell in ages past. My divine name is Orange Heart."
"My goodness. I never would've expected old CPUs to reappear in this age. It'd be an honor working with you. But may I ask why you have come for me?"
"We're here to fight ASIC, the woman who kidnapped you is one of them. I would like to ask for your assistance in fighting them."
"I see. I will gladly offer my assistance for such a cause."
"Thank you very much." I say with a sincere smile as I feel power well up within me, as Green Disc is giving me her power.
After this, I see the members of the SMD stare at the two of us in awe
"Wow. To see actual CPUs after three years of absence. It's a miracle." One of the members mutters in surprise at our displays not long ago.
"CPU Aqua Heart, Orange Heart; if you'll have us, we'd like to swear ourselves to your service." After this was mentioned, all of the SMD members save Cave and Filia quickly nodded in agreement.
"I appreciate it but your place is here in Leanbox, helping Chika Hakozaki."
"Karen, I wouldn't shoot them down so quickly. There has been fractures in the SMD lately, faith is beginning to waver. So let them join your chain of command." Filia interjects rather seriously about the situation.
"Filia, what is the meaning of this? Why are you determined to shatter the SMD? Leanbox is defenseless without them."
"The SMD is already reeling from Vert being gone three years Cave; I don't want the organization fracturing and its members scattering to the wind. There'll be a new nation in the near future and they could be a great help. It'll preserve some semblance of the organization but in a new country."
"Filia, that is high treason. What happened to you since you left? You were loyal to Leanbox and the SMD."
"I'm sick of sitting on my ass, twiddling my thumbs doing nothing. I am a woman of action and I left the SMD to help Gamindustri. Question my methods as much as you well like, but do not doubt my intent. I respect the ideals of the SMD, but I will no longer let them stop me from doing what's right. I refuse to sit around doing nothing while the rest of the world suffers and burns."
"Cave, we're going to defer to Filia's judgement. Sure, she's a little abrasive but she's widely considered the best out of all of us. The organization just hasn't been the same since she left."
"Wow, you certainly inspired loyalty in these guys Filia." I say in awe at their willingness to leave their job to assist me.
"They were part of my squad when I worked here and they grew enamored of my talents. You saw how powerful they were Karen, and I guarantee their loyalty. They'll work under my command."
"I don't approve of this Filia, but you are just someone I can't compete against."
"Glad to hear it Cave. Let us return to Chika and inform her of the situation."
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [14:15] November 30th 20XX
Location: [Leanbox Tournament Grounds]
After we returned to Chika and reported on the situation, Chika obviously is mildly peeved about the matter with the SMD
"Geez, if I knew you were going to steal members of my elite forces, I would've been more hesitant to give you your new Processor Units."
"I didn't force them; they wanted to serve me of their own volition."
I see Chika deeply sigh out of mild irritation and simply shrugs her shoulders afterward "I can't blame them for losing faith in our nation; my beloved Vert's been gone three years and without a CPU or a CPU Candidate, Leanbox had no way to soften the damage to our shares. I don't like it, but if my stray SMD members want to leave to join you, I'll allow it. On one condition."
"Which is?"
"I don't want you getting information about Leanbox through them. If you want them to join you, they would no longer be Leanbox citizens."
"That is a deemable sacrifice Miss Chika. But could you please let our families stay here in Leanbox until the matter is resolved? We wouldn't want to force them to leave our homes so abruptly." I'm a little surprised that these guys are so willing to leave their homeland forever for me. Were things that bad in Gamindustri before we got here? I'm surprised to see how much the appearance of a CPU can do in society.
"Consider it done. I'll let your families stay until ASIC is defeated, but afterward, they must leave."
"Thank you Miss Chika. We appreciate your generosity even when we are being exiled."
"Yeah well, you were my citizens and as Oracle, I have to look out for them to the best of my ability. I am certain that the SMD will miss you all. I do wish to ask for one favor, not as Oracle, but as a person: I want you to tear ASIC a new one for everything they've done to us."
"That's quite violent of you Chika, but rest assured: We will destroy ASIC." I say with a tiny sense of surprise seeing Chika speak this violently though I confidently smile at the desire for ASIC's destruction.
"Do so and Leanbox will be in your debt. Same with the other nations." Chika says with a calm face and pulls out a tiny laptop and checks something. After a minute passes, I see her grin and close her laptop "Perfect. Leanbox's shares have risen significantly. We should be safe for a while."
"Well then Lady Chika. It is time we get going. We need to hurry to Planeptune to fight ASIC."
"You sure? You all have been through a lot."
"Yes. We need to hurry after all."
"Okay then. Since the lockdown is over, we'll be sending ships back to their nations. I'll contact one of the captains and have him bring your group to Planeptune. I also told your friends to head there ahead of you. Cave, I want you to accompany this group, show them how strong you are. Feel bring to bring 5pb if she wishes. In the meantime, I'll be reorganizing the SMD and prepare them for the worst."
"Understood Lady Chika."
"Thank you Chika." I sincerely bow in gratitude and I walk away with my team.
Hyperdimension Standard Time: [19:00] November 30th 20XX
Location: [E.R.S. Perseus]
After the ship left the Leanbox docks, my friends had spread out to different parts of the ship but I've been staying at the bow of the ship staring out at the ocean. I heard that the captain upgraded the engines while the ship was in lockdown so he said we'd reach Planeptune within a week. Caelus told me that she had been overdoing things quite a bit and would be sleeping until we reach Planeptune.
"Six months and we've reached the final battle. I just wish that my friends were here with me. I pray they're okay, I'd never be able to forgive myself if they get hurt."
"You okay Karen?" I hear someone say to me and I turn around to see Uzume standing next to me.
"Eh, barely. I miss my friends. I failed them all when they got petrified by ASIC."
"I see it still weighs heavily on you." Uzume says rather blankly as she joins me in staring out at the environs.
"Yeah. They're my friends after all. Of course their being in enemy hands weighs heavily on me."
"Karen I actually want to get something off my chest. You mind if I rectify a few tiny lies I made?"
"Er, sure." I have to say, I'm really curious on what lies she told me amongst what she has said to me.
"I told you I was sleeping in the dimensional void for eons right? That wasn't exactly the case. Because of how I was born, I had no need for sleep or food so the only thing I really did after I was forced out was journey through the dimensional void. I stayed close to Gamindustri to a time and I saw the battle between Cae and ASIC. When I saw how badly injured she was, I began searching for someone who could help her survive and so I journeyed through the dimensional void, looking at various worlds and searching for people who resemble my sister, and you were a close match so I discreetly helped you along and make sure you make it to Gamindustri somehow. After who knows how long, I encountered someone who kept his appearance hidden underneath a black robe with red trims at the shoulders, arms, and lower waist and the headpiece which blocked his face had a very strange symbol inside a circle. He was surprised to see another person trapped outside the dimensional plane and when I mentioned my goal in passing, he said that our own missions could coincide. I was looking for a compatible individual to merge with my sister, even though I didn't know what could happen, and he was looking for a civilization that could make some kind of game. Regardless of the fact, I began helping him so he could help me." After saying this, she took a deep breath to make a small break of her speech since she did speak quite a lot "When we began working together, we began investigating other worlds and the first thing he asked me to do was to help transport a powerful AI from one world to one he had high hopes for, he wanted that AI to boost his own. However, there was a human who inadvertently got brought with the AI, and the power I used for the transport wasn't safe for living beings. I heard that human died shortly afterward and the AI was damaged somewhat. He was not exactly amused about the AI report, but he later said that it all worked out-"
"Er, could you wait a minute? You were talking about a powerful AI. What was its name?" I ask as I interrupt her, since elements of this story sounds familiar and if it's the same, that could explain some of the missing pieces of this puzzle.
"Well, I think it was called XANA. I never understood why you would name whatever this AI thing is though."
"XANA?! So...that human who died must have been Hikaru! So Hikaru and XANA were brought to my world by Uzume, who followed the directive laid forward by this individual she's talking about. But that raises more questions than answers." After thinking it over in my head I look toward Uzume "Uzume, you said this person was trying to make a game; did he ever tell you anything about it?"
"Not exactly. Or rather, I barely understood what he talked about. All I got was that it was some kind of fighting game. Anyway, come on; we're about to have dinner. You must be starving after everything we've been through lately."
"Yeah, let's go." I simply nod though my mind is processing all of this new information and the shock of the discovery of what brought Hikaru and XANA into our lives. Looks like things aren't as simple as it seems; and this person that Uzume worked with must know more about this than anyone.
A/N:
Firstly, I have to say: I want to sincerely thank those of you reviewing the story so positively. Seeing all of the positive feedback helps encourage me to keep writing these stories. I wouldn't have gotten this far without all of you helping me, so thank you all of my readers. And I want to hear potential ideas for skills for both Karen and Uzume and a combination skill between them.
Basically, in this fanfic, Uzume fights like Jude Mathis from Tales of Xillia or Senel Coolidge from Legendia, but at the current moment, she barely has any strength behind her moves. Also, I have a reason for changing her weapon style from headphones to bracers according to the official Hyperdimension Neptunia wikia. While I do bend heel somewhat, I like to keep my stories fairly realistically and therefore; there's not a lot of ways to explain how a megaphone could be used as a weapon.
Since I'll likely never directly mention it directly in the story, I'll list the names of the five ancient CPUs here. Also, if you're genre-savvy when it comes to video game console history, you should see the connection between Caelus as the progenitor and the other four CPUs as progeny.
Eris - Ruby Heart (Pink) - Eris led Faricity (Reference - Fairchild Channel F)
Corrine - Scarlet Heart (Red) - Corrine led Vectria (Reference - Vectrex)
Manila - Pearl Heart (White) - Manila led Colico (Reference - ColecoVision)
Uzume - Orange Heart - Uzume led Astrocade (Reference - Bally Astrocade)
Caelus - Aqua Heart (Blue) - Caelus led Magnavox (Reference - Magnavox Odyssey)
Lastly, because of how I said that I'll be ending this first arc on chapter 16, the next couple of chapters will likely be rather long since I'm doing my best to compress yet heavily focus certain parts of the game. This chapter works with Leanbox, the next will be the battle in the Graveyard that will free the CPUs and the destruction of ASIC, and chapter 16 will be the clean-up of ASIC's vestiges and an event I'll keep secret until then. Once I start chapter 17, I will be changing to third person since it'll be a huge pain trying to write what it'll be about in first person and I want to keep the amount of stress to a minimal.