"Once more I owe you for your services. Should you ever need anything, I'm merely a skip away. Ask, and it shall be yours."
"Woah..." Linda whispered into Kurome's ear, leaning in a little and keeping her voice as quiet - yet audible - as she could. "Didn't know the boss and that guy were buddies."
Neither did I.
Vante didn't seem like the type of man to be involved in criminal affairs; he always came off as just a simple trucker. He had weapons, they knew that much, but she'd just assumed everyone in Gamindustri was somewhat armed - with violent monsters being so common it didn't seem all that odd.
After getting the locational coordinates from Anonydeath, the crew had been set to travel. Unfortunately for them all, taking Gary would result in little leg room. It was as they were looking over their far too small method of transportation that the boss spoke up. Surprisingly enough, he had a vehicle that offered plenty of space: a limousine. But at the same time, right as Linda began to get all excited alongside Uzi and asked about it, the boss revealed that it was currently under repair.
Supposedly, certain paints didn't exactly come out as easy as one would think, and he was having it both sent in for its regular tune-up, as well as getting a new paint job after another 'spray out' - the term she'd learned they used to describe a paintball shoutout.
With that everyone hopped in Gary after all and was forced to deal with the squish, but it was only a short ten or so minute ride to the repair shop, where Kurome recognised the name set above in splotchy brown paint, right on a bleached billboard.
"Demon's Can't Fly."
Apparently, Vante was doing repairs for one of the big crime lords - that being the boss - and the party were thus first greeted by Dergil. The little lad was excited to see Kurome again, made deafeningly evident by his lightspeed pounce onto the woman. Through a brutal show of strength, Kurome managed to stay on her feet, and once the kid got all his excruciating hugs out, everyone got to watch as he blindingly ricocheted around the street, bouncing off walls and windows so fast you'd swear he was leaving a trail of lightning.
At the exact moment he stopped, everyone got a front row seat to the show of several windows shattering, and almost every single owner of said windows stuck their heads out, choosing to just shake them in disappointment - apparently, this was a common occurrence.
With Demon's Can't Fly's windows also shattering, Kurome heard Vante step out. With a long sigh he walked over and picked up his still jittering little brother by the back of the shirt, lightly tossing him inside, all the while the kid retained his look of unbreakable joy. The man received a series of odd looks from all but Kurome and the boss, and spotting this, he replied to their silent question with a single statement.
"I'm automatically billed. Everyone was made aware when they moved in."
The boss himself filled in the few confused stragglers who didn't understand initially - Lonk and Linda, because of course it was those two - as they went inside. Vante was quite the mechanic despite also being a trucker, and it was his reputation for getting things up and running not only better than ever before, but also faster than anyone else which drew in jobs from all sorts of places.
The boss was a regular apparently, even having brought Dergil a few gifts on his birthday from time to time; being a well known criminal leader drew forth the wrong type of attention from everywhere, and while they couldn't outright hire hits on one another, most gangs and such chose to try and steal power by vandalizing the property of one another. All sorts of the boss's vehicles and more were regularly under fire, and it was Vante's quick work which made these attacks a non issue.
It also explained how the man could afford to pay for all the damages his little brother apparently causes on a regular basis; something Kurome never knew before now - or maybe it was only when he got too excited, she hadn't a clue as to how 'regular' these moments were for the kid..
"Sorry to say, but it's not quite there yet." Vante's word wasn't exactly wanted, but his follow up erased any sort of confusion on the boss's face. Kurome doubted he'd retaliate in a poor manner anyways; after all, you should never piss off your mechanic. "Whoever jammed her up did a thorough job. I'm finding strawberry seeds not only inside the cushions, but also behind the mirrors."
Jam? Okay, so Kurome was beginning to piece together new methods of battle between the gangs… and they were dumb.
"I see." The shorter of the leader's kept a professional air as he let out his acceptance of the scenario, however the same couldn't be said for Lonk.
"Drat." The much more playful dude's shoulders slumped. "How are we gonna get there now?"
"Hmm?" That comment had, for some reason, drawn Vante's interest. "Are you all in a rush? I figured you were only here to check up on the limo."
"Unfortunately so, my friend." The boss, it seemed, chose to be the voice of explanation. "We're looking into the matters involving the sudden invasion of undead all over Gamindustri, and we were relying on the limo being capable of use."
"Undead..." Vante threw up a brow upon hearing that. "I don't like getting involved with these things most times, but you're not responsible for this, are you?"
"I am not; none of us are, so you needn't worry."
Vante relaxed a little after that.
"Good; you never were the type for senseless chaos. I'll admit, those things are starting to become a problem. Dergil can't get to school with those monsters on the loose; they've shut right down entirely until the problem is dealt with." A small 'yay' could be heard from the little guy behind everyone, somewhere deeper in the building. "For some reason, the goddesses haven't looked into it yet, and most people are starting to wonder why."
"Strange." Boss had responded, letting his curiosity flow. "They're usually quite quick when it comes to the safety of the populous."
"I know. Most are assuming they're busy with something else." Vante appeared iffy at the mention of that, and Kurome recalled both him and boss sporting a pair of tense looks.
"No, that's not right. Through means of other sources I often keep on hand, we know the four are looking into the matter."
"They are?" Vante seemed genuinely befuddled at that.
"Yes." The boss fell into a deep stance of introspection again. "Although it doesn't quite look like it."
"No, it don't."
Vante had then taken a breath before calling out.
"Dergil, come here."
"Yeah?" Just as quick as ever, the small boy was beside his older brother.
"We're going on a trip; go start the truck for me."
"You got it!" Kurome hadn't been sure to label it as irresponsible to let a little kid start up machinery, especially a truck, but Vante treated it like an everyday occurrence. He'd turned back to them again, bearing a more firm face.
"I might not have the limo done, but the back of the truck is empty right now. Supposing you don't mind a bumpy ride, I can take you wherever you need to go."
"I appreciate the offer, but..." The boss actually looked a little bit hesitant as he continued. "Do you not have other deliveries to make today?"
"Taken care of yesterday; don't worry. Besides, I'd sleep easier knowing someone was actively lowering the volume on those jittery jerks." Vante spoke with a hint of gruff, and Kurome saw the boss smile honestly, nodding and accepting his offer.
"Very well."
And so they were here, watching Vante drive back down the path, and presumably back to the road with not a single issue navigating through the thick forest. He'd offered to come get them again once the job was done with, but he couldn't stay; not with Dergil. Not a single babysitter alive could handle that kid, which was why both were going to be waiting at a nearby pit-stop farther off. This left just the main crew standing before the entrance of a far too familiar cave system in the middle of nowhere - Vante had proven himself a master of driving by getting his ride so far into the wilderness.
"Is this... what I think it is?" Linda knew what they were staring at, and so did Kurome herself. Nobody else had a clue, but that didn't really matter: they were all going down anyways.
"Yeah."
Being abducted and strung up by cultists sporting flippers of all limbs hadn't exactly been the highlight of Kurome's time as her own person, even more so when their leader was a stripper. But it happened, and it seemed both Linda and her were set for another visit.
Back again... joy.
.
.
"What's the matter Histy?" Came the voice of Neptune as she strolled in casually, yet again being the last to arrive at the scene. The other three goddesses were present already, with Nepgear beside them. IF and Compa however were missing, alongside the other candidates and both Big Nep and Uzume.
IF was out trying to deal with the sudden appearance of skeletons all over the place, stretching herself as thin as possible while the goddesses came to Histoire's call. Compa was, similarly, aiding in this effort, helping the sick and injured with her medical expertise as a Nurse. The candidates were out with Big Nep and Uzume, although those present were unaware why. Histoire mentioned not getting them involved, and while they could see why the less mature candidates were left out, they hadn't been told why Uzume and Big Nep were similarly excluded.
"Would it kill you to show up on time at least for once when I call you?" The oracle of Planeptune, usually rowdy when ignored by the two divine protectors, said that with quite a lot less anger than anyone was expecting. Neptune was the first to notice this, and even slowed her casual pace just a smudge, but however Nepgear was the first to actively question the fairy on what seemed to be a tense air of unease surrounding her.
"What's the matter, Histoire?"
"Yeah." Came Croire, who wore a smirk far too heavy to be anything less than a bad sign. "Go on now, they're all here, so show 'em."
"Show us what?" Noire's tone was fairly blunt and to the point, whereas Vert spoke with a little more understanding.
"Would it be right to assume the news you've prepared for us isn't as positive as we might have hoped?"
"Yeah, what give's Histoire?" Blanc crossed her arms, eyeing the oracle. "You're usually on point."
"I'll admit, I'm not the most excited about what Croire and I have found, but it needs to be shown regardless."
"Well then, spit it out." Neptune, while speaking forcefully, had the common courtesy to at least tip off into a more sensitive tone. "Whatever it is, we can handle it; you know that."
"I do, however I'm not sure you'll be able to see the significance in what I'm about to show you." Histy sighed after, steeling herself as she summoned forth a ball of light, which then expanded to encompass them all.
"Woah... trippy." Neptune reached out into the white void, grasping at the air for a little bit before turning back to her nation's often more active caretaker. "So what's with the light?"
"What I'm about to show you isn't merely a slideshow or graph based explanation. What we're going to see are two instances in time, very much close to one another, hence why I've opted to display it through this method: image enhancement."
Vert hummed for a second before spilling her thoughts.
"I see, so if I'm correct this void will act as a screen of sorts, or rather a three-dimensional projection, allowing us to view everything as if we were there ourselves."
"Precisely." Histoire then waved her arms, and color faded in slowly to show the Planeptune sharicite. However, unlike its usual way of shining, the object of the nations shares was glowing far brighter than ever, almost blindingly so, and even shaking. Nepgear was the first to ask what was happening.
"Histoire, why is it glowing like that, and why does your other self look so..."
"Worried." Neptune finished, with Histoire herself staring astutely.
"What you're seeing here is the birth of a goddess..." Histy turned to Neptune. "Or to be more specific, this is the birth of Neptune."
"Say wha~?" Said goddess whipped her head back and forth between the oracle and the sharicite. "Are you saying we're watching me tumble out into the world?!"
"Although that is a rather barbaric way of putting it: yes. Unlike with the candidates, creating a standalone goddess takes far more energy, and usually only occurs when there are no candidates to take over for the last. It's an emergency backup for the nation should all its protectors fall for any reason." Histoire set her eyes back on the object just as it glowed its brightest, and the void was white again.
However, after a few seconds of nothing, the light died down, and what happened next drew everyone for a loop.
"Oh dear..." The other Histoire floated closer to the sharicite, who's glow had dulled gray. That hadn't been the brunt of everyone's shock though, no, that belonged to the young girl who sat plainly on the ground, flopped on her belly while snoring. Seeing Neptune napping wasn't anything strange, and getting to witness her first few seconds of life be dedicated to lazing on the spot was almost comical in its familiarity. What had everyone so stilled by the sight was not the fact Neptune came out lazy, but rather that...
She was buck naked.
"Look away Nep Jr.!"
"Ouch!" Being slapped in the face was not something the young candidate expected to experience firsthand at the sight of her older sister's birth; although, the gaps between the fingers allowed the young girl a perfect view of the other Neptune's awakening. A long yawn rolled out, with the sleepy one flapping her arms back down again after stretching.
Noire grunted and growled.
"Great... just as slow as the Neptune we have now; wonderful."
"I suppose she was always like that." Vert chuckled a little.
"I'd always assumed it was a learned habit, but to know it was there since day one..." Even Blanc was making fun of her now.
"And thus, our lovable protagonist's dignity and plausible deniability is whisked away with the wind." Neptune sighed deeply. "And once more, the author finds a lewd way to devolve me into nothing more than another plot point." Her face grew irritated. "Hey, buddy: wasn't Noire's game enough for you, or Blanc's, or even Vert's? I thought we agreed to keep me in the protagonist seat from now on."
Unfortunately, no such deal was made, but at least Historie put an end to the topic before the irritated Nep could start prying too deeply: the other Histoire, that was.
"H-hello?" The younger version of the oracle appeared quite timid before the sight of the girl, with said girl popping a single lazy eye open, shooting her glance up towards the fairy.
"Yo." And thus, Neptune's first word was spoken.
"Yo?" Noire appeared... at a loss for words, turning towards the regular Neptune and having somehow found her words again. "The first word out of your mouth was 'yo'?!"
Neptune cringed away, slipping on a somewhat awry expression.
"Why'd you have to go and make it sound like a bad thing?"
"Why were your first moments of life as a goddess dedicated to already giving up on work?!" Noire shot her arms towards the Neptune of the past, who'd fallen on her back and started to drift off into sleep again. "She hasn't even done anything yet, and she's already learned how to slack off!"
Histy chose then to intervene.
"As much as I wish to join you in disciplining Neptune, I unfortunately have to put a stop to it here." Reaching her arm out, Histoire washed away the scene with another bout of white, leaving behind a distraught Neptune in her wake, who looked like she'd just faced the greatest betrayal of her life.
"Histy's turned against me too!" The woman flung herself at Nepgear, and the candidate in question used all her strength to refuse the call of gravity. "Nep Jr.! Histy's changed teams!"
"I-It's okay. I'm sure it's only temporary." Nepgear didn't know what else to do, seeing as Blanc was smartly choosing to stay out of it, and Vert was holding back her giggles. Noire seemed to stew a little more, but otherwise let her building rage dissipate for a bit as color returned to the Planeptune cliffside.
The scene was somewhat beautiful this time, enough to snap everyone out of their silliness.
A lush green grass covered the ground, and a single tree sat across from them overlooking the city on the horizon. The sun was bright as ever, and the few clouds in the sky looked to frame the soft blue with fluffy puffs of white. Neptune let go of her sister, standing on her own again and stepping towards the cliff. She breathed in what she'd hoped was fresh Planeptune air, however was greeted with the same stuffy scent of the room they'd just been in.
"We're still in the scene, Neptune." Noire crossed her arms. "None of this is real."
"Way to spoil the mood, lonely heart." Neptune flatlined near the end, earning a huff again from Noire. Vert, however, apparently had something to ask.
"Histoire, why are we overlooking Planeptune in this particular spot?"
"Because." The oracle turned to face them all with an almost longing look. "This isn't Planeptune."
"Excuse me?" Vert sent her sights outwards to the city ahead. "Is that not Planeptower?"
"It is, however, merely an illusion: a memory of the real thing. Right at this moment we are still within the same timeframe as Neptune's birth." Histoire lowered her tone at that, and before anyone could ask her to elaborate, their ears were perked up by the sounds of a faint voice.
"Hold on everyone." Nepgear began to strain her hearing, and as every second passed them by, her face began to drop. "Is that... crying?"
"Huh..." Blanc's face somewhat shifted from its introspective visage into one of focus. "I think you're right." She then turned her head. "I think it's coming from behind that tree."
The crew followed the noise, and yet again, they were frozen stiff with shock. Noire, Vert, Blanc, and Nepgear gasped, releasing their thoughts all in that order.
"It can't be..."
"Oh my."
"No way!"
"Is it really...?"
And yet, the most explicit reaction through sheer uncharacteristic display alone belonged to Neptune, who very slowly approached the crying girl and reached for her, all the while muttering her name.
"Uzume?"
Before the party sat a girl, hunched over and curled in on herself with her back against the tree. Even with her knees covering her face, they were still afforded a sharp view of her appearance. Rather than the usual standalone legwarmers, this Uzume bore gray leggings underneath, and while it was similar to her alter-ego Kurome, the shirt worn was the standard white they'd come to love. Her suspenders were the same, and so were her arm warmers and gloves.
The difference was in the color, as opposed to the orange accenting, tie, and red hair, the party was presented with only a single color shared between all three: violet.
"She looks..." Noire was having trouble spitting it out, however Histoire had a response all her own.
"Just as I remember."
"Histy?" Neptune turned slowly towards the oracle, and seeing the nostalgic mist in her eyes, chose to stay silent as the guardian spoke.
"This is the Uzume I raised: one of the original Planeptune CPUs. This... this was her before there were two: the whole Uzume, before her heart shattered."
Neptune's sights fell back to the weeping girl, and once more Nepgear was the one to point out the sudden realization.
"Then... this place we're in... it's-"
"The unified Heart Dimension, yes." Histy's voice stayed peaceful, even as her expression fell. "Back before the Zero Dimension split off."
"Uzume?" Neptune tried, fruitlessly, reaching for the girl. "Uzume, can you hear me?"
The goddess of Planeptune stilled, eyes wide as she saw her hand pass through her crying friend. From behind, Histoire's voice rose up once more.
"This is merely a memory: she cannot hear us."
"Histoire..." Noire said, looking towards the fairy with a wary look. "Why are we here with Uzume? What does she have to do with our sealed enemy?"
"Why are you crying?"
The outside voice was soft and familiar, terrifyingly so, and everyone twisted at the same time, agonizingly slow as their collective eyes settled on the twin tailed beauty far to perfect in her resemblance to the originator of her physical appearance.
Everyone's voice hitched for a bit, but Uzume, she was shocked most of all, practically walking through the shellshocked Neptune.
"W-who are you?" She stepped closer, feeling the woman with both her hands. Said woman just giggled, reaching down and patting the girl on her head. "A-are you real?"
"As real as you see and feel now." Her smile even held within it that motherly understanding and warmth. "As for my name, I'm afraid I do not have one. I'm not so sure I'd be all that good at picking names though, so rather, what would you like to call me?"
"I-I'm not sure..." Uzume stepped back. "I've been alone for so long... I..." She gulped audibly. "W-would you mind if I called you Dreamsy?"
"Dreamsy..." The older looking mimicry smiled. "I love it. Thank you, miss..."
"U-Uzume... Uzume Tennouboshi."
"Yes..." She smiled, stepping closer and lowering down. She took Uzume into a soft hug, breathing ever so easily. "Thank you, Uzume Tennouboshi."
"Neptune..." Noire just barely managed to fight off a stutter. "She... she looks like you."
Neptune knew that, Nepgear knew that, heck, everyone could see how perfectly the copy managed to match Neptune... or rather, her HDD form: Purple Heart. And yet, that tantalizing purple hue, of which Neptune's HDD was so well known for...
On the copy it was a deep electric blue.
"This woman here, Dreamsy as Uzume has dubbed her, is our mysterious enemy." Histoire said regretfully.
"How... how can that be?" Vert shot a look to Histoire. "Is this why you didn't call Uzume or the adult Neptune?"
"Yes." Histy nodded, sending a sad eye to the pair embracing ahead of them. "As much as I'd want to show them, I do not believe Uzume would be able to handle it, not yet at least. She's only just gotten used to being free, and I don't wish to drum up any negative memories from her by showing her this."
"Why?" Neptune's voice was quiet. "She deserves to know."
"She does." Histoire agreed, and then she waved the scene away. All attention was returned to her again, and she continued. "Dreamsy was born from the excess energy created by Neptune's birth, which spread so far as to infect the console Uzume was sealed in. Her own loneliness and desire for anyone to show themselves had her powers latching on to that energy, creating the entity we see now. This is why she looks so similar to Neptune: Uzume only wished for a friend, and the energy it took to create that friend merely molded itself into its true shape: that of its origin. She is a replica made from the same share energy as the original."
Everyone was, as most would suspect, shook by this revelation. But Histoire didn't end it there.
"However this is not all. I brought you here to see everything related to our enemy."
Nepgear's eyes widened, and from her lips tumbled the realization she'd come to know.
"You're going to show us how she was sealed, here, in Gamindustri..."
"Not only that." The scene began to fade in again. "I'm going to show you how Uzume lost her last friend."
"Lost her last friend?" Neptune was honestly having a hard time processing it already, but Histoire chose to nod and carry on anyways.
"Yes, how she lost her. This is not only the sealing of Dreamsy..."
Histoire had to pause herself, but as she straightened her expression, she spoke with conviction.
"But also the birth of Kurome."
Author's note
…
Oh boy, another set of cliffhangers, and some pretty big ones at that.
With any luck, I've made this all hit at least somewhat hard, even if most of the hints before were cryptic nonsense. How does this relate to the relics, Kurome, the shrines, the scarring event, the murals? Well, buckle buckaroos, we're about to head into some premium tomfoolery.
Both complex and convoluted; we're about to learn how a single choice, mixed with several instances of the most absurd luck out there, managed to not only create our beloved darth Uzume, but also set this story's events into motion altogether.
Until next time.