Interdimensional RED-Coded Contract
Fallen Soldier
The force of impact sent Nepgear flying. She crashed through the trees, each one hurting more than the last. If someone checked her status, they'd have seen she was at critically low health.
It didn't get any better after she came to rest, the branch she got stuck on broke and fell with her. The good news was the wood hit the ground first, softening the fall ever so slightly; the bad news was that all the splinters were driven further into her flesh, taking a chunk more of her already small amount of health on top of the fall damage.
The CPU Candidate heard an explosion and the Ancient Dragon's roar shortly after. The lizard had switched priorities after the Demolition Man just blew its tail off, a good thing as she was in no condition to fight anymore. Her entire body hurt, and the damage sustained was enough to turn her back to her human form. Without her HDD form's defense, her entire body hurt even more… There was some sort of liquid in her mouth too, with a metallic taste. Blood. She's also too weak to free herself. All she could do was wait for Compa to save her…
But Nepgear didn't manage to live long enough for that…
Suddenly there was an immense pain in her chest, even stronger than when Medic inserted the nanomachines into her body! It's right where her heart is (unless Medic switched its location) and it HURTS! Please make it stop!
Seconds passed, each feeling like a century to her. The mercenaries and Nepgear's friends were still fighting. Compa probably forgot about her for now…
The pain didn't subsided, if anything it might've gotten worse. Nepgear also found herself getting weaker and weaker, and thoughts and senses going hazy, overwhelmed by the agony. It was a struggle to keep her eyes open and it was impossible to speak, much less move a finger.
'It hurts! It hurts so much! Compa please… make it stop…'
So this is it, huh? Her very first serious battle and she managed to get herself killed. At least she died fighting against a truly dangerous foe, a Viral Ancient Dragon, died protecting her sister's nation. Maybe her death won't be in vain, maybe the mercenaries will manage to do what she couldn't?
Neptune. Her sister is still in the Gamindustri Graveyard. The CPU Candidate's only regret was that she couldn't save her herself. Goodbye. I'll see you on the other side…
…
…
..
.
...Darkness…
…An empty darkness was all that she could see on the other side…
…A blissful, painless darkness…
Nepgear tried to look around, her mind full with confusion. Nothing, no body, wounds, pain, anything. Only darkness where the eye could reach, though she wasn't sure if she had eyes anymore.
Her entire life flashed before her 'eyes' anyway, moment by moment. She remembers it all. Her first day in existence, created by Sharicite and equipped with nothing but some basic knowledge. Not even clothes, which made her birth the 2nd most embarrassing moment of her life, beaten only by the recent memory of Compa stripping her half-naked in front of a mad doctor.
A day she fixed Neptune's broken game console, and found her love for tinkering. It was a week after her birth.
Memory after memory, each of them looking as if happening in the present.
When she met Blanc, and to Neptune's dismay she spent more time with the Lowee goddess reading books than with her own sister.
Her meeting with Noire, who impressed the CPU Candidate with her diligence, much to her sister's annoyance.
The incident when she met Vert for the first time. The Leanbox's CPU tried to make Nepgear her own little sister…
Err… it was a rather painful memory. Both of them played tug-of-war with her arms…
When she met the mercenaries with their good-spirited(?) insanity that reminded her a little of Neptune… just her sister doesn't torture people by making them sprint 3 miles while constantly whipping them for running too slow.
Suddenly a light shone in front of her vision, acting as a beacon in the endless dark.
Re:Spawning in: 33 SECONDS
And that's how the Planeptune's CPU Candidate Nepgear died for the very first time. The Re:Spawn System collected her body and started reconstructing her, giving the girl another chance to make her wish a reality.
Or just die another horrible death. Who knows?
Suddenly the darkness vanished, and its place a brown brick wall. A few bricks have been chipped and the mortar binding the bricks in place was slovenly placed. Nepgear stared at the bricks for a few moments. Her mind didn't register anything, it was completely blank. There wasn't any pain anymore, but her entire body felt numb, especially her chest.
The CPU Candidate turned to the left, her entire face pale and expressionless.
An opened metallic locker stood against the wall, a red cross and 3 black bullets painted on each doors. Next to it was a bench and series of other, smaller lockers. She recognized some of the mercenaries' personal belongings there. In the far corner of the small room lay junk and scrap metal.
Her mind didn't catch any of it however. Without changing her blank expression she looked to her right.
A calendar hanged from the wall, dating back to 1976 and with a picture of a half-naked woman. Another bench lay next to the wall, with two heavy-looking dumbbells under it. A bucket with a mop inside of it stood next to it.
Finally purple eyes rested on a staircase. As if on auto-pilot, Nepgear stepped onto it, and went up the stairs.
Her eyes saw, but her mind didn't register. As she ascended she passed the "Resupply Room" sign without acknowledging it.
The stairs led her into the receptionist area. The beige floor was kept more-less clean, expect for the patches of dirt or gravel here and there. 4 round light-brown wooden tables stood in the hallway, each surrounded by 4 sturdy and comfortable chairs with purple pillows added for bonus comfort.
A simple clock high up near the ceiling showed the time: it was early evening.
An active level 3 Sentry Gun behind the counter ignored her, its beeping the only thing breaking the silence. Was it any other time, Nepgear would flinch at the sight of the two chain guns and multi-rocket launcher, before getting very interested by the turret and attempt to dismantle it, much to Engineer's annoyance…
But this time, she completely ignored the machine and sat down on one of the chairs, burying her face in her hands.
Nepgear didn't know how long she sat there, doing nothing. But someone moved a chair to her right and sat on it, then poked her cheek.
"Ya feelin' alright, girlie?"
It was the Engineer's voice, concerned. Nepgear simply moved her fingers enough to peek at his frowned face, but it was enough to note how pale she looked, that ghostly look. "First death, huh?"
The CPU Candidate said nothing, she just went back to staring at the wood.
The Texan scratched his lower lip, choosing his words carefully. "Look, you're doin' fine, girlie! Ya may not know it, but the fact that you didn' break down and start cryin' means you already have Scout beat. Poor city boy even pissed his pants after the respawn." Engineer chuckled at the memory of the loud-mouthed Bostonian hugging himself and crying with a puddle of urine growing under him.
But Nepgear's lack of reaction quickly killed his amusement. Hardhat cleared his throat. "Right. Too soon." His mind searched for a way to cheer up the traumatized girl. He remembers his own first death and it wasn't a pretty one.
"H-How was it?"
It was the first sentence she made in what felt like ages. The sound coming from her mouth was quiet, hollow and scared.
"Pardon?"
"…How was it? Y-Your… first death, I mean…"
Engineer took a deep breath. He and the boys had an agreement to not reveal their pasts, during and prior to the Gravel War. But no one else was around, not even a Spy (Engineer's left ear starts to itch when a cloaked Spy is around) and the girl needs to be distracted somehow, so how much could a short tale hurt?
"Alright, c'mere." The Texan wrapped his hand around her shoulders. Nepgear's eyes widened a bit.
"H-huh? W-where are we going?"
Finally there was some life in her eyes, all it needed was a surprise. Engineer grinned slightly as he dragged her away from the seat.
"To my room. Got some pictures there that might help ya visualize it."
Engineer's room could be described as messy as hell and it'd be no exaggeration. Crates, scrap metal, oil stains, Sentry Guns, Dispensers (both buildings disabled), and other things lay everywhere. Nepgear managed to find a few blueprints lying on the desk, but all she could understand were the names of the interesting inventions.
"Repulsion Gel", "Aerial Faith Plate", "Combustible Lemon" and "Portable Combustible Lemon Launcher".
The first two sounded interesting, the latter two however… No comments…
The Texan paid them no mind however, sweeping them away as if they were trash and replaced them with several pictures in Technicolor. The first one showed a barren land with a few wooden shacks built onto it, some of them had logos of companies painted on them like "Cornwell" or "Jenkin Coal Co." But what are they doing there? Nepgear doesn't know.
Well the Jenkin one sounds like an easy one…
The second picture showed a huge rocket among other buildings…
"It was our very first assignment, we had to defend one of our employer's mining facilities. 'Dustbowl', we called it." Engineer motioned for the CPU Candidate to sit on the bed. She obliged and kept looking at the pictures while Hardhat sat on the chair and turned towards the candidate.
"Anyway, since it was our first time workin' together, things were a little rough. There were no nanomachines to power us up or medi-guns to patch our tails when they're full of holes. All we had was Re:Spawn which the folks in charge had to enter data into manually."
"I wasn' used to fight before, ya know." Engineer smiled bitterly. Nepgear kept listening in silence, but she nodded for him to continue. "But I needed to, to support the wife and kids, so I signed up the contract and constructed this lil' thing." Hardhat patted the disabled level 1 Sentry Gun.
"The first fight was hard for both teams. We didn' know anyone, enemies or allies, all they told us was that we were perfect candidates for the Team Fortress. So I was waiting inside the shack with the first point they needed to cap, with the Sentry Gun ready. The other boys pushed further and took positions there, leavin' me alone."
"Suddenly this BLU Spy appears behind me." Engie looks over his shoulder out of habit. Seeing nothing but wall he turned back and continued. "He had no disguise, so the Sentry quickly locked onto him. Problem was, I was between 'em. I barely had any idea what's going on, so I just stood there like a dummy while he grabbed me and covered my mouth so I couldn't scream."
"You know, the Sentries were color coded back then, fire at everythin' that's moving an' not red, figured it might work since our side had to wear red while on the job. It did work nicely, but I forgot one small detail. I made a mistake and didn't think of what happens when you're between the Sentry and the target. That's what got me killed the first time." Engineer sighed, going to the more traumatic part.
"The turret fired, right into my gut, and it kept on firin' until I died, all while I screamed, bled and tried to get out. But ta snake held me tight, his dirty hands gaggin' me. The bastard was laughing even."
"I wasn't keen on goin' back there after that, most of us weren't, even the BLUs were afraid. But we still needed our pay, ya know, so eventually we left the Spawn and went back to the frontlines. And ya know what I found there? Same Spy, bleedin' to death next to my Sentry as it kept clicking at the French boy, all outta lead. We looked each other in the eye. The End." Engineer finished his tale with a dark smirk, leaving the ending open for imagination, as the Texan withheld the rest of the story: him brutally beating the BLU Spy to death with a wrench as revenge. The girl doesn't need to know that. And Engineer never saw that BLU spook again for the rest of the match.
"Ya understand, girl. It's normal for you to feel scared, but you're alive now and given another chance, with new knowledge and experience that you can use later. That's the true power of Re:Spawn, not the immortality, but the ability to learn from dyin' and use it to not die again."
The Texan stood up, walked towards the CPU Candidate and placed his gloved hand on her shoulder. Engie could see a bit of the Gunslinger peeking from underneath the glove, another story for another day. "You have a big sis, right?" He asked.
Nepgear nodded, a bit more life in her once lifeless eyes. "Mhm, Neptune. B-But… she's still captured."
Engineer shrugged and sat next to her. "We're workin' on that, aren't we? And won't your sis get worried if you get all traumatized over somethin' like this?"
A small smile appeared on the candidate's face. "…Yeah, you're right. She wouldn't want to see me like this." But then the smile was replaced with a frown. "But… do I have what it takes? I mean-"
"Girl."
Engineer pressed his finger on her lip, his disappointed look hidden behind his goggles. "Ya just cheated death. Do you think there's anything that can stop you now?"
She fell silent, considering his words. It's true, she achieved a feat that most of people could only dream about, a feat that even surpasses the Goddesses. But is it really enough? She just died on her very first battle! Pretty horribly at that… If this is going to be her entire life now, constantly dying to overcome a single obstacle, then…
As if reading her mind, Engineer suddenly said as he stood up. "And if there is actually something that gives you trouble, me and other boys will gladly take care of it. That's what we're being paid for afterall. Anyway…"
Suddenly a bag full of scrap metal was thrown onto the floor in front of her, the loud sound causing the candidate to yelp. She stared at the bag full of junk before lifting her head to look at Engie.
"I recall you askin' about my dispenser."
This one sentence made her forget all that horrible pain she felt just… an HOUR ago!? (time sure flies fast) and made her eyes sparkle like there's no tomorrow.
Nepgear, clad in a yellow hardhat (which was a little too big for her) and borrowed goggles, played with the level 1 Dispenser Engineer built for her. Her job was to manually disassemble and then reassemble it entirely, with him watching her like a hawk and pointing out the mistakes. The lilac-haired girl quickly understood the inner workings of said machine, but Engineer was careful enough to stop her from disassembling some of the parts entirely (so she won't be able to reverse engineer his creation in case Histoire was dumb enough to give their technology to the general public). All she needed to do was correctly remove and insert back the parts inside the casing and then wire everything with a new set of cables.
"The wiring's wrong." Engie casually noted, tapping the part in charge of creating metal. "The cables should go; red, green, orange, blue and pink." He pointed out.
"Oh goodness, right!"
"Atta girl." Hardhat praised.
Texan briefly left her side, going for the drawer in his desk. Inside he found the two Power Up Canteens. Engie winced, he forgot telling the team about those… He'll have to do it later.
This wasn't what he wanted however, as Engineer placed the canteens onto the desk and snatched the worn-out photo at the bottom of the drawer.
It showed him, a little younger, with a woman and a boy standing between them. Irene, his wife, who took the kid and divorced him. He's lost all contact with his son for a while, but last time he heard from him he was doing fine. Perhaps he wasn't the best father on the planet, but he does love his family.
Engie glanced back at Nepgear, who's screwing a part the wrong way. "Ya screwing it upside-down." Hardhat pointed out, and the reaction was instantaneous, with her apologizing and quickly unscrewing it.
She'll be okay, he thought to himself. She's a strong one, this one. She just needs someone to teach her a few things.
Some people may think it weird, but Nepgear loves tinkering, especially with such complex machinery like the mercenary's dispenser. Sure the Engineer's restrictions disappointed her a little but that's a small price for seeing such a beautiful machine up close!
She worked in silence, thinking about Engineer's words, the Re:Spawn System's true advantage, and the tale he told her, everything…
They both made mistakes on the battlefield and paid with their lives, but unlike so many others, they came back, maybe not stronger, but with more experience, and with that, Engineer grew stronger. If he could do it, then so can she.
Learn from death to not die anymore… Yes, she surpassed death today…
If even death can't stop her…
…Does that mean she can really…?
Interdimensional RED-Coded Contract
Fallen Soldier
Hello internet! I hope you enjoyed this short and sweet but pretty important chapter. So Nepgear died (pretty fucking horribly… Mwhehehehehe) and it shocked her so much that her mind went blank. To be honest this chapter is based on 'Hyperdemise Nepgear Re:Try' by Zetta1001, and Re:Zero. Why this animu? I won't tell cuz spoilers. (Hint: Chapter 15)
Why this is important? Well this is major point for Nepgear's character development, she just died and came back from the death your character just CAN'T NOT change after such an experience.
Also I just received a fan art of Nepgear, based on this fanfic. It looks nice, I posted it on reddit (r/Gamindustri) already and it's link can be found in my profile (if I manage to set it up, if not then you need to search on said subreddit, but just type fic's name to find it)
Responses:
Piggyslayer1235 –
Well we sorted it out privately, so not gonna respond here.
Guest –
Yeah, this sucks… and congratulations on correctly guessing what happened to Nepgear :v
BreadNotDead –
I think this chapter answers what happened to her, and if you thinks that I nailed Nisa correctly then yay me!
I feel like if I limit the mercs' insanity to only a limited amount of main cast then this story could become pretty boring, why limit yourself with small spark when you can have an entire inferno of insanity?
- Harmless Orange
