There wasn't a soul outside as Nepgear and I walked to the crematorium. The rain had stopped a couple minutes ago, but we were still both soaked. And neither of us were saying anything. When we made it to the building, the people inside had already prepared for the cremation. But I suppose they weren't expecting a Neptune look-a-like.
"Is that lady purple heart!?" One of them gasped. "No... well, not your lady..." I mutter. They led us to a room and I laid her on the bed. "I... I can't watch." Nepgear said, rushing out of the room. "I can't blame her..." I mutter.
I could feel tears beginning in my eyes again. Her final smile was still etched on her face. "I'm so sorry, Neptun... I promise you... I will avenge you and I will prevent the tragedy of our world from reoccurring." I say as her body is moved into the incinerator. Right before the door closed, a purple light filled the room, which felt strangely comforting.
I drop my head into my hands. "It's a sad day when a goddess dies, even if from another dimension." I hear Noire's voice. I look up and see Noire, Blanc, and Vert. "Much more so, considering she looked so much like our friend..." Vert said. I looked outside to see the moon, which was a faint hue of purple. "So why are you all here?" I ask. "Neptune asked us to check up on you and Gear." IF said. I then noticed my exo-suit was still running when my HUD flashed.
"What... my hours went up ten percent...did I gain more sharicite? No, not possible... I didn't accept any..." I mutter. My right arm also felt more human. "Excuse me, what happens after the body is cremated?" I ask the attendant. "There is nothing left. For reasons unknown, in this world, all bodies completely disappear. It's actually finished. We are deeply sorry for your loss." She says. I nod and our group begins to leave. When we make it outside, the only light is the purple moon. All the buildings are eerily dark.
"So, is Histoire the most knowledgeable on things like this around here?" I ask. "Yes." Noire replies. I see my palm pulsating. I stick my hand out and a hologram appears. "DNA error. Unknown DNA found in host." I read aloud. "What...?"
I scan the DNA and what I find is shocking. "Four percent of my DNA now matches... Neptun's?" I ask aloud. Then a different error appears on HUD and I find myself unable to move. "Hold up... my suit needs to re-calibrate."
"Why?" Nepgear asks. "Probably his new DNA..." IF says. "It's finished." I say as I begin walking again, the suit feeling slightly less resistant. Then something walks out in front of us. A person in a cloak. "Anatoly...You're becoming one with this dimension. And your rise to god ship is beginning. Do not fail these people." They said. Wait... that voice. "Toma!" I call out to her as she leaves. "Anatoly! What's wrong?" Nepgear asked. "D-do you guys see her?" I stammer out.
"No... can't say we do..." IF tells me. "Who's Toma?" Vert asks. "My oracle... why is she here..." I ask quietly. "She told me my rise to god ship is beginning..." I say.
"A fifth nation...?" Blanc mutters. "Not necessarily." I hear Histoire. We all turn to see her and Neptune. "Did you see her..?" I ask. "Yes...I believe she is the one who sent me a message long ago, only we couldn't decipher it through the static. At least... not until we heard the torturous screams of the dimension being tore apart." "Why do you..." I ask.
"I do not have an answer, but since all the goddesses are here, and someone else who this information may be of value, the worldwide collection of shares has risen by ten percent." She tells us. "I thought it wasn't possible to create shares..." Blanc muttered.
"But neither can they be destroyed. Neptun's shares had to go somewhere... they must have entered the cycle here... which would explain why my shares increased." I deduct. "That also means Byehliy has the most of the corrupted goddesses... she probably has about fifty percent. She's also the most dangerous of them." I continue. "Noire, Blanc, Vert, you should all go back to your nations. There is no telling when the next attack will happen." Histoire tells them.
"Ana, you are going to come back to the tower with us." Neptune says. "Ana? Where the hell did you get that nickname?" I ask before realizing... "Oh... I see..." She smiles at me, a smile that said 'This is your new name from me, get used to it'. We make our way back to the tower and Neptune shows me a room, which they said was my own. It was a quite plain one, with white walls and purple trim. The bed matched the one I had awoken in hours earlier. I suppose that probably meant it all the beds here had a purple bedspread.
I shut my suit down and place it in a dresser, which to my surprise had clothing in it. I get a white undershirt and put it on before walking out to the balcony. I see Nepgear also outside. I walk over to her as she stares at the sky. "It's pretty isn't it." I say and she jumps. "Y-you scared me..." She said her eyes wide. "Yeah... sorry about that, haha. The night sky... been so long since I've seen it." I say.
"How long were you..." "Ten years? It was hard to keep track. Thank you for walking with me earlier... That was possibly the hardest thing I've ever had to do." I tell her. "Hey, look at that." She says pointing to a star in the sky. "What about it?" "It's a new star. I bet it's Neptun." She says. "It does certainly have a purple hue doesn't it." I reply.
"I'm really sorry I got all of you dragged into this..." I mutter. "What are you kids doing out at this hour?" I hear Neptune ask. I turn and face her. "Excuse me?" I say. She couldn't keep a straight face. "Just kidding." She says, laughing. "Sis, did you see the new star?" Nepgear asks.
"I did. I wonder what it means." She says. I then feel something in my right arm. I step back and look at it. "Ana? What's wrong?" Neptune asks. The some circles, a purple color, appeared leaving a sword in my hand. "Angel..." I say as I recognize the blade.
"What...? How did you do...?" Neptune asks. "Must be my now part CPU DNA. I know this blade quite well though. It was Neptun's." I tell them as I open my hand, causing the sword to disappear.
"I was with her when it was forged." I continue. "Well, that's cool. But I'm wore out, so I'm heading to bed. You two don't be up too late now." She said in a teasing tone. I look at Nepgear, whose blush is very apparent. I shake my head and lean on the railing. "In case you forgot, I slept for ten hours. I'm wide awake."
"I.. I slept in late too..." Nepgear says. Neptune sticks her tongue out at us and walks into her own room. "I wonder what the other three are up too..." I mutter. "Does it hurt... knowing you will have to kill them?" Nepgear asks.
"I suppose... they are the closest thing I have to kin here. But they also aren't the people I used to know. I know, they are trapped in those bodies, and they want out. But they can't, their only hope is death." I tell her. "But didn't Neptun break free? Even if was only for a couple seconds. Couldn't you retrieve them and rescue them?" She asked.
"No... That's another project I had been working on, but from what I've found, they can never truly awaken. The corruption has already infected all their cells. It spreads to fast to remove." I explain. I then put my head in my hands. I let out a sigh as I stare at my feet. "It... it happened out of the blue, we had no chance of preparing for it." I say sadly.
Suddenly the floor had became extremely interesting. "It's not your fault. Somethings are unavoidable." She says as I look up at her. She has a small smile, which I return. I look back out to the sky. "I suppose... But I will make sure they all find their peace." I say.
"Will we ever have to worry that one of them is pretending to be a CPU?" "You could easily tell the difference between Neptune, and Neptun, could you not?" I reply.
"Yeah..." She says, confused a bit. "In the end, they all radiate an evil, even a mere human can sense it. But they are capable of great horrors." I tell her. "But I will fall before I let them do anything." I say confidently.
"You really reek of confidence, you know that." IF says, appearing from nowhere. "Where did you come from!?" I ask, startled. "My room, not important. She then leans across the railing. Ya know, your exo-suit is really impressive. I never thought a human would be capable of fighting as if they were a CPU." She says. "Mine is a bit more special than the mass production ones we had. The world I came from was ravaged by war. In fact seeing the CPUs cooperate as well as they do here, it's quite strange indeed." I say.
"Anyway, mine was of the only ones capable of flight, and our normal soldiers had ones that would allow them to scale buildings and survive falls from ungodly heights. But mine came with a catch, to utilize my special abilities, I burn through shares, returning them to what we had called the share net. Or as you call it, belief. Our nation was had the most advanced military. So much so we only needed a fifth of the soldiers as the other to win. And this was all good and well, but our soldiers couldn't assist if a goddess attacked. So myself, and three other people had our systems attached to the share net. This enable our flight and strength. But, we lived on shares, one percent would equal about five days. And two and a half of using our suits at normal settings. Which is why earlier, though I should have used only about twenty minutes of shares, I used two hours. I can overclock, but I lose shares quicker." I explain, without realizing I was pretty much ranting.
"So, what would happen if you lost all you shares?" IF asked. "Well, it would begin with my DNA tearing apart at the seams, which you and Compa witnessed. Then, because my DNA was ruined, my body would start disintegrating. If Toma was right about me becoming a god, I should not have to worry as much. But what do I know..." I reply.
"But right now, I have more than 600 hours, or more than twenty five days." I finish. I hear someone else approaching behind me, and a blade being removed from a sheathe. "Die heretic!" They scream as I quickly spin around, just barely catching the weapon and dodging. He yanks the blade back to himself and holds it in the ice pick position.
"What the goodness!" I hear Nepgear say. He smiles a terrifying smile, the top half of his face covered by his hood, and I knew, he was corrupted. I wanted to ask who he was, but I couldn't speak. I then hear a gun shot, and he dodges to the side, the bullet missing completely. He then grabs me by the throat in a flash, lifting me from the ground. "You die today." I then saw the exo-suit hiding under his jacket.
The next thing I know, I'm tossed from the balcony, and falling toward the ground. But I feel myself being lifted. "C'mon Ana, don't die on me now." Neptune, in her HDD form said. Nepgear, also in her HDD form appears, and tosses me a disc. I catch as Neptune drops me and press it to my chest. It seemed to equip quicker than I remember.
But I now had my ability to fly again. I then feel angel in my hand again.
I see him charging me, as I dodge to the side, with just milliseconds to spare. "Damnit! If I only I knew his model number..."
"If only you were able to use EXE drives like a real god..." He says, his hood falling. I see he has the same model as me, meaning I can't use the killswitch, or it would kill my own suit. I try to track and weak spots, but his suit is blocking my tracking. "I'll just have to kill you the old fashioned way, remember who had their exo-suit first... I still don't how you got an advanced one, or figured out how to use it." I reply.
"Lady Byehliy has had us protecting her for a while, you remember the one that disappeared?" He responds.
"But, Anatoly, I am surprised at you, fighting off the corruption. But the fight is futile, you should join us." He says. "Never. You will fall here." I respond confidently.
"Let's see if your words hold any water." He says, as he raises his fist, trapping us in a red coliseum. I see Neptune hit the wall.
"I'll end you here." I reply as he charges me. I dodge and clip him with Angel. I move away as he turns to face me again, blood seeping from his wound on his chest. "Hand of the underworld!" He says, his blade growing longer and darker. He charges me and swings to my left which go to block, only to be tagged in the side. This, although not cutting me, slams me into the red wall, right next to Nepgear.
Within seconds I'm back in my fighting stance. "You... you used an... EXE drive!?" I ask shocked. "This is the power the corruption can give you. You like power don't you?" He asked.
"I made a promise to lady Neptun, in her final moments of life, she regained her clarity. She asked me to protect this world, and I plan on doing so." I respond. "Then you leave me no choice, I will kill you." He mutters.
I charge him and swing at his leg, causing him to backflip, just as I expected. I shoulder check him and send him into the wall. I fly after him and strike him with my blade. He counters by kicking me in the stomach, knocking me back.
Then some words flashed through my mind. "Serenade of Shade!" I say and I quickly move toward him, striking him before turning to face him again, charging yet again, and striking him once more. He was now restrained by something that was pitch black, holding him in an X shape. I then charge him one last time, my blade perpendicular to his body. I slice through his body, metal and bone giving way to my blade, and hear him scream in agony. I land on the red floor as a burst of blue explodes behind me.
"I used... an EXE drive?" I mutter. I feel my eyes closing to their own accord. Then, I felt the air rushing as I drew closer to the land. Then, arms around my stomach.
I shoot up, taking in my surroundings. I see daylight streaming in through the window, and my lack of of my exo-suit. I recall something I heard from my dream. "Joining... a nation?" I mutter to myself. I realized, maybe in the future I'd have too, but at this point, this was a no go. If I did, I couldn't hunt the corruption. I then heard some stirring in the room. I look to my left and see Nepgear in a chair, asleep, but slowly waking. I could also feel deep down, my instinct to go on patrol.
I quietly get up and walking over to the sleeping girl. Without waking her I pick her up and lay in the bad I had just been in moments ago. "Must have been worried about me..." I mutter. So many foreign feelings.
I leave the room and walk down the hallway, before realizing, I was lost. But I soon noticed someone leaving their room. "Neptune?" I call out. "Hey Ana!" She said, a smile on her face. "Were you aware Nepgear slept in a chair in the room I was in?" I asked. "Yeah, last night she seemed worried about you. I just didn't know why you fainted. Anyway, I'm hungry, let's eat." She replied.
"What about-" "Histy will wake her up." She said, cutting me off. I nod as we walk toward the kitchen. The kitchen had an awesome view of the city, much like all the other rooms. "You guys really like good views, huh?" I asked grabbing for a pack of rations, which I didn't find. "Eh? Oh... right... I suppose you would have normal food." I said opting for a box of cereal.
'Nep-charms... was everything named after her?' I think to myself. "Well yeah, what have YOU been eating." She said, grabbing some pudding. "Pudding for breakfast?" I ask, smirking in amusement. "Hey! Pudding is a superfood, don't you forget it!" She said narrowing her eyes. I offer a sarcastic salute with the box still in my hand. Now was her turn to be amused.
I got a bowl and poured some of the cereal, and poured some milk. I sat at the table, across from Neptune, who seemed to be greatly enjoying her pudding. I get a spoonful of the food and insert it in my mouth.
Only one thing hit my mouth. I immediately spit the food out and run to sink, grabbing a glass and filling it with water. After I begin drinking the liquid, relief flowed through my body. I turn back to Neptune and she gave the biggest 'What?' look I have ever seen.
"Too... sweet..." I gasp. "What have you been eating?" She asked again. "Bland shit..." I mutter sitting back down, glaring at the food. I then tried again, managing to actually swallow the bite, but not without grimacing. Neptune watched with a pained look. "What?" I ask, somewhat confused, yet not at all.
"It's really been a while since you had any actual food, hasn't it?" She asked. "Years..." I say, my gaze floating to the window. Then Nepgear walked in. "Well hello, miss sleepy Nep." Neptune says.
"Um... Anatoly, why did I wake up in your bed?" She asked, blushing slightly. "I thought she was in a chair?" Neptune asked, a teasing smile on her lips. But little did she know I was immune to it. "I moved her when I woke up, I imagine a chair isn't the most comfortable place to sleep." I reply nonchalantly.
"Oh.. haha.." Nepgear laughs. Poor girl, must've given her a heart attack. I finish my meal and walk out into the hall again, only to bump into Histoire. "Ah, Anatoly. Sorry about that." She said moving to the side. "Ah, it's no problem, I actually need to ask you something." I reply.
"Hm, what is it?" She asks. I move away from the door in case one of the other two walk out. "I'm sure you know what occurred last night?" I reply. "Yes, a man with an exo-suit attacked and you fought him off. Was there something else that happened?"
"Yes, I used an exe drive, something I shouldn't be able to do, you know being a human and all, but I fainted afterwards... any idea what that could mean?" I ask, hoping to find an answer. "Well, I do have a couple ideas, one could be that in this world, even humans are capable of exe drives, another is you absorbed your goddesses power, giving you an innate ability to use one, which is more likely, considering it would also explain why you fainted, because you weren't used to the power." She says.
"Do you think, I'll ever be able to transform into an HDD form?" I ask, as I feel my heartbeat increasing. "That's a possibility I don't doubt." She replies.
"I see, well, I suppose I need to start earning my keep. Is there anywhere I could take on quests?" I ask. "Oh don't you mind that, Ana-worry." Neptune said walking out of the kitchen. "Ana-worry?" I ask, giving her a skeptical look.
But she straight up ignores me. "You don't need to worry about your keep, you just need to keep being Nep jr.'s friend." She said, giving me a look that could only be described as pervy. "Wh-wha?" I ask, before realizing she was teasing me about the whole moving her to my bed incident. "Ah.. I see..."
"Anyway, I should probably take on some quests anyway, I'm somewhat out of shape." I reply. "Out of shape?" Neptune asked quizzically. "Yeah, being stuck in a base for years on end does that. Besides, it'd give me a reason to watch out for corruption." I continue.
"Shouldn't you rest for today, you did faint last night." Histoire says to me. "My drill instructor would run me to the bone for fainting, I'm sure I'll be fine." I reply.
"At least take Neptune with you. Just in case you can't make it back under your own power." Histoire said. "No can do, forgetisty. All the cpu's have a meeting today. Hey, Ana, you should go, it does, after all, have quite a bit to do with you." She says.
"Wonderful..." I mutter as I go to retrieve my exo-suit. "Guess flying there would be easier?" I ask to no one in particular.