NIKKE Xenoverse

Mission 8: Snow Blues Part 3

[-]

Several Minutes Later

"Ryu… Ryu… Hey, Ryu… Wake up, Ryu!" A voice called to Ryu as he was unconscious. Then, a stinging pain shot through his body and originated from his face as he realized he was being slapped. He yelped in pain as he shot up and opened his eyes. He held his cheek as he looked around, unsure what had happened. He then glanced over to see a young pink haired girl sitting on top of him, staring at him with an innocent smile on her face.

"Yay! Mister is awake!" she giggled as she claps her hands together in excitement. Just then, IF knelt beside Ryu and checked him over.

"You didn't need to smack him that hard, Alice… Jeez, left a mark and everything," IF said and rubbed Ryu on the cheek where he was smacked.

"Sorry…" the girl named Alice pouted.

"Good. At least he is awake now. Lucky we found you," a mature voice said and Ryu snaps his attention over to see a voluptuous woman with blonde hair donning a white winter coat and no leggings underneath standing over him.

"What… Happened? Where are the others…?" Ryu asked them.

"Avalanche… Happened after Suskian's battle with Cell. It wasn't intentional… Luckily, Unlimited was in the area and found us," IF smiled as she helped Ryu up and Alice got off of Ryu, "Thanks again, Ludmilla."

"No problem, IF," Ludmilla smirked, "We heard the sounds of battle nearby and had to come check it out. The avalanche deterred us, but we luckily decided to stay and check for any survivors. Are there others…?"

"Yes. But, unfortunately… We might be too far from them at the moment and Ryu was stuck in the snow for a while… We need to crash somewhere for the night to get Ryu back to normal," IF said and Ryu shuddered.

"Good call…" Ryu said as he hugged himself and sneezed.

"Bless you," Alice said as she smiled at him and hands him a tissue. As Ryu blows his nose, a voice called from above to them. They looked up and Suskian was hovering above them with Loona hanging onto him. Suskian lands on the ground and Loona hops off his back.

"You found us fast," IF smirked as Suskian and Loona came up to them.

"Sorry about that. Didn't think that through," Suskian said and IF shook her head.

"Don't apologize. We were ambushed, but we prepared for battle nonetheless. Thanks to you, we were able to come out of that dangerous battle relatively okay," IiF told Suskian with a smile, patting him on the shoulder.

"I am not sure if we are safe… But, I'm hoping to get some rest," Ryu said as he looked at Suskian and blew his nose on the tissue. Suskian glanced at Ludmilla and Alice and bows to them.

"If it's not too much trouble, we could use a place to rest…" Suskian told them kindly.

"A Commander that shows respect? I like you already," Ludmilla joked.

"Are you the Rabbity we have been searching for?" Alice asked Suskian and he looked at her.

"Rabbity? If anything, I'm more monkey than rabbit," Suskian joked. Alice tilts her head to the side as question marks appeared above her head.

"…I'm sorry. I'm not any Rabbity you're looking for, sweetie. My name is Suskian."

"Okay. So, that means you're the Mad Hatter?" Alice asked and Suskian blinked before turning to Ludmilla in confusion.

"Oh, he's more of a prince, dear Alice," Ludmilla said and Alice gasped in childlike wonder. Suskian realized in that instant that Alice is an innocent soul.

"Right. Sorry, my mistake. I am prince Suskian… Nice to meet you, little Alice," Suskian told her and Alice squealed while holding Suskian's hands in excitement.

"My Queen, we have to ask him to help us fight the Queen of Hearts!" Alice told Ludmilla.

"Queen of Hearts, you say?" Suskian asked Ludmilla and she silently nods in appreciation to Suskian.

"Yes, we are here to fight a tough enemy called the Queen of Hearts. She has taken many people hostage up here when they reach this part of the surface and we go to help them find their way back home," Ludmilla said and Suskian nods his head at that.

"That's… A very noble cause," Loona said as she folded her arms.

"That means you're Rabbity?" Alice asked Ryu. He blinked a few times before slowly nodding his head.

"Yay! You can help us too! Is this your legendary weapon?" Alice points over to the cast on Ryu's leg.

"…Yes! It is. I have to keep it locked up in this to make sure no one gets hurt," Ryu said as he played along.

"I hope the others can find us," IF said as she shook her head, "At any rate, we should find a way to… Umm… Suskian, Loona… Do you have any signal?" Loona checked her comms and Suskian checked his visor.

"Alva Particle concentration… High. No signal. Great," Loona said in annoyance.

"That's fu- Freaking wonderful," Suskian said and sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "No communication with Vert or Shifty. We gotta get comms back up somehow."

"Yeah, definitely," IF said as she shook her head, "Ungh…" She held her side, as if she was damaged.

"You injured?" Suskian asked her and she nods her head, "Let me see." IF opened her jacket and showed Suskian that she had some sort of metal blade sticking out of her side. It was small, and some red liquid was dripping from it.

"It hit my pain receptor. It's stinging hard," IF said and Suskian slowly pulls the metal blade out of her side, "FUCK! Ah!" She panted in pain as she held her hand over her side.

"Language," Ludmilla said as she looked at IF.

"…Sorry. That hurt," IF groaned as Suskian takes out a blue Capsule and clicked on the top of it, a needle popping out the other side.

"This might hurt a lot. Sorry," He said and she closed her eyes while nodding her head.

"Do it," IF groaned and Suskian stabs her side, making her yelp in pain and grab at his left arm for support. She breathed in and out heavily a few times as the medicine worked its magic on her.

"This is a nanomachine healing Capsule. It is usually used to repair Selene's synthetic body when I upload her into her body. Nikke have the same structure as Selene, so it should help you a lot," He told IF and her wound healed quickly. He pills the needle out and she stumbled back while shaking her head.

"Might feel a little tippy afterwards… Can never get that side effect to go away, though… It'll be there for a minute."

"Thanks, bro… Ugh," IF groaned as she knelt on the ground, getting her bearings.

"Is Iffy okay?" Alice asked as she went over to IF's side.

"She just needs a minute. Loona, are we clear of any Raptures?" Suskian asked as he puts the Capsule away. Loona sniffs the air and nods her head.

"Clear," Loona said as she folded her arms and hummed to herself, "So, I have many questions to ask you, Commander Suskian. Mainly… What kind of Rapture was that bug man? How did he know you?"

"He wasn't a Rapture. He was an android made by Dr. Gero," Suskian said as he glanced at Loona, "He's an android that was made to be the perfect warrior. In actuality, he was… Because he absorbed 2 Androids. The short of it is… That was no Rapture. In fact, Cell was worse than a Rapture." Loona flinched at that last remark.

"No kidding… Cell is a menace in the Dragon Ball series. Crazy that he could easily infinitely evolve and get stronger because of the Saiyan D.N.A. inside him," IF said as she shook her head, "Thank God Frieza didn't show up."

"ESPECIALLY the current Frieza," Suskian said and IF looked confused, "You don't know, do you…?"

"I'm pretty sure you can handle Frieza. Super Saiyan Goku did it," IF said and Suskian flinched at that, not in embarrassment… But, horror.

"How much of Dragon Ball have you seen, IF…?" Suskian asked her and IF raised an eyebrow.

"Only up to I think… GT?" IF asked and Suskian's jaw drops at this, "Why?"

"You are SO late to the party," Suskian said calmly, "We are WAY past that. In fact, the timeline I'm from doesn't covet GT." IF blinked in shock at this.

"What do you mean…?" IF asked.

"I'm from the main timeline, which most fans dub the Super timeline. Where gods are introduced," Suskian said as he glanced at her, "Did Melina ever tell you about Beerus?" IF blinked and gasped as she remembered that she heard the name Beerus from Melina before.

"I forgot that quickly because I never heard the name Beerus before," IF said and Suskian Gulps before nodding her head.

"Let's walk and talk… You're gonna get Hella whiplash," Suskian told her.

[-]

Hours Later; Abandoned Industrial Warehouse

"That's quite a story you told us, Commander Suskian. And, I would not have believed it had you not have images ready," Ludmilla said as she drank some tea from a brown teacup. Suskian was standing up while showing everyone some images to emphasize his story.

"Yes. I understand this is a lot, but it's 100% true. It's why I have to tell you the updated lore… To not have you caught off guard," Suskian said as he leaned back against a table.

"Gods… Universes… Jeez, and I thought the Raptures were the worst things out there," IF said as she folded her arms while leaning back against a wall. Ryu silently sat in a chair, staring at the images and then back at Suskian before asking…

"Will we have to fight them?"

"Hopefully YOU won't have to. This is my and Melina's job. As I'm the only one capable of fighting these powerful gods, I have to keep training and make sure I don't fail. I can't accept failure as an option. No matter what, the job's never finished. Right now, this is a top priority… Alongside fighting the Raptures with you all," Suskian said as he swiped the images away, "The Demon Realm faction are making Raptures harder to fight, so it just makes things easier for me to help out."

"True that. Knowing that there is someone else making the Raptures, we might have a chance to ruin their plans more," IF said seriously, "For now, we continue our mission out here. Finding Chatterbox and the Pilgrim…"

"Which we can help with. We have been tracking the Pilgrim's movements," Ludmilla said as she stood up and walked over to the table that Suskian was leaning against. He turned around and Ludmilla smoothed out a large map of the entire northern region.

"It's gonna be hard, tracking her movements right now," Ludmilla said as she points to a red line on the map, "This is her normal route… But, she has been steering away from it recently. I have no idea why, though…" Suskian and Ryu looked at the map as IF and Loona stood back with Alice at their side.

"Has there been an increase to Rapture activity in the area? Maybe she is hunting something…" Suskian said as he glanced at Ludmilla. She hummed and rubbed her chin.

"No. Things have been pretty… Calm before you guys came along. The most excitement we have had is your fight," Ludmilla told Suskian as she glanced at him, "…I don't know the cause for her change of route… We could check the area for anything changing."

"In the meantime, we can check the research center that is nearby. It's on the route that she takes… Maybe she is using it for a home base of some sort," Ryu said as he points to a building in the pathway of the red line.

"That research center is a hot spot for Raptures. I doubt she is using it right now," Ludmilla said as she glanced at Ryu.

"Well, we can clear it out. Make a safe zone for ourselves while we are out here," Suskian said with a smirk, "In the meantime, we can find our squads and meet up with them."

"…That can wait until tomorrow. I can hear the snow picking up again," Ludmilla said as she stood up and glanced out the window to see the snow picking up.

"Alright. I hope the ladies are okay… Especially Melina…" Suskian said as he also glanced out the window.

[-]

Meanwhile…

"…I didn't know Suskian had it like that with this Fia woman…" Roberta said as she smoked on her cigarette. The large group took shelter in an abandoned building, sitting around a large space heater to stay warm.

"Yes. As a Deathbed Companion, Fia steals the life force from anyone she sleeps with. Suskian has an astronomical amount of life force due to having access to runes, much like a Tarnished. However, he has avoided sleeping with Fia because he does not want to be with her," Melina said as she looked at her left hand, which had the Golden Order Seal tattooed on the back of her hand.

"So, does that mean you are the only woman who has slept with him?" Theresa asked as she stared at Melina and the Finger Maiden nods her head solemnly, "That's… Actually sweet. But, if that is the case… why do you want him to have an open marriage…? Aren't you happy with just being with him only…?"

"I am very happy for being with a man like him… I requested that we have an open marriage for several reasons. Main one being… I am unable to give him children, and I know one day we would have a family," Melina said as she pushed her hair out of the way of her face, "In a way, I want him to have children… And, in order to do that… He would have to have many wives."

"That's… Kinda odd, in so many ways," Akeno said ass she stared at Melina, "You're not afraid of him just… Leaving you?"

"…Yes, I am. But, he has always proved to me that I am his #1 in his life. If anything, he once told me… If I ever leave you, I give you permission to kill me however you want. Because if I ever fell out of love with you, you know it's not me," Melina said and everyone stared in shock at her.

"Whoa. That man is head over heels for you," Revy said in shock as she stared at Melina.

"It's why I love him with every fiber of my being. He has this burning passion and loyalty to me that makes me feel alive again. When I was the Finger Maiden for Yuki Bertha, the current Elden Lord… I honestly had a one track mind to a certain mission. I did not consider how much Yuki needed me for moral support," Melina said as she nods her head, "As I died to set the Erdtree ablaze, my place in that world was complete to me. But, I denied her that closure and never gave it back until I was revived…"

"So, the events of Elden Ring are true?" Yuni asked Melina and she nods her head, "And, this Yuki person… Was she mad when you came back?"

"…Very mad, at first. Then, Suskian stepped in and had us reconcile and see each other's point of view. It was then that I realized how wrong I was to sacrifice myself and not give Yuki that peace of mind," Melina said, "Suskian's compassion… It revived me, in heart and soul. Gave me feeling in life again." Melina then began to reminisce on the past about her relationship with Suskian.

"I can tell why you love him. He's a compassionate person with a bit of a hardass personality," Rapi said seriously as she blushed a bit, "It's… Admirable."

"No kidding," Yuni giggled as she hugs her forearms. Mihara pets Yuni on the head and smiled.

"Melina… I have a question," Bradley said as he looked at her. Melina looked at Bradley and nods her head.

"…You and Suskian fought a lot of enemies, right? Who's the worst one you've fought?" Melina hummed and looked away. She frowned as she remembered one enemy that she and Suskian fought.

"There is one. His name is Dryard, the Super Namekian. In personality, he was a master of manipulation. When Suskian and I were in our first month of marriage and things were a bit rocky, Dryard was like a parasite in our relationship. He would poke fun at everything Suskian and I did in private, almost like he was watching our every move. Didn't help that was extremely powerful and beat Suskian in every encounter they had. It got yo the point that our marriage was in trouble and Suskian was so frustrated that he nearly struck me. He instantly stopped, thankfully..." Melina said and everyone against wad shocked.

"He almost got abusive with you?" Mihara asked in shock.

"Yes. It wasn't his fault… I knew that and so did Suskian, because he never tried it again since. In fact, I made him promise me to never get to that point and train himself to never get that angry again. It's why he's always jovial… He has a very dark persona deep down," Melina said sadly, "But, honestly… That enemy brought out the worst in Suskian. I'm glad Dryard is dead now… He was like a festering parasite that fed on the worst of Suskian." Silence befell everyone.

"Note for later… Never piss off Suskian," Bradley said as he folded his arms.

"Melina… I have to ask. Don't take offense to this, but…" Chris said solemnly.

"I feel safer around him than anyone else, if that's what you're asking. One bad moment doesn't define him, Chris… I won't let that experience define who he is as a person," Melina said seriously as she glanced at Chris, "If anything, Dryard fed off his negativity and fueled it immensely."

"Fair enough," Chris said as she held up her hands in defense.

"…Apologies. I did not mean to react like that. Suskian isn't perfect, I know that. But, he tries every day to make it up to me and I love him for it. I would never hold that against him," Melina said as she shook her head and smiled, "Please don't try to view him in a bad light… If anything, it's what makes him human. Knowing his limitations and triggers…"

"And how to be vulnerable," Anis said as she nods her head, "Welp, at least we can understand why you are so protective of him a lot of the time. And, why you reacted like that to Syuen when she called him that." Melina nods her head.

"I do need to ask… Is primate a derogatory term to him? Because of his tail?" Mihara asked curiously.

"It actually stems from his race. The Saiyan side of him is basically a space monkey pirate, from what he told me. That the Saiyan race was enslaved by the galactic Tyrant, Frieza. That monster calls all Saiyans monkeys in such a foul tone that it is considered racist to call a Saiyan a monkey," Melina explained, "When I heard Syuen call him that, I saw red. I wasn't gonna have him racially profiled by someone like that. And, I can tell she is like that to you all, as well… I can tell that she is racist to you all by calling you rust buckets…"

"You don't know the half of it," Neon said as she shook her head, "Those who hate Nikke call us rust buckets."

"Even other Nikke say it," Roberta said as she folded her arms, "It's kinda stupid, being racist against your own kind…"

"Well, it's not like we can do anything big about it," Launch said as Roberta blew out a puff of smoke.

"Maybe that's why Ryu is fighting for your rights in his own way," Melina said as she stared at them, "I can tell he cares a lot about you all."

"The Commander? Yeah, we can tell too… Hope his beliefs are something he can keep," Anis said with a smile.

"And, we'll be sure to protect him with whatever he chooses to do," Rapi said as she nods her head. Their conversation continued as the snow outside fell. The scene fades to black as their voices fade in the distance.

End Mission 8