Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 44

 The following day Uni, Noire, Nepgear and Neptune made their way to Kei’s office. As they walked everyone could hear Noire grumbling under her breath. “Seriously the nerve of some people. Trying to make my sister sign an exclusive contract. I ought to beat some sense into that girl!”

“Big sis… Kei didn’t try to force me to sign the contract.” Uni said.

“Of course she didn’t. She knew she’d get a beating from me! There’s more than one way to get out of a contract and it doesn’t always have to be legal.” Noire said, in the same tone as before.

“Whoa… Noire is scary.” Said Nepgear.

“Yeah, but can you blame her? I mean Kei tried to get you to sign a contract too, right?” Asked Neptune.

Nepgear shook her head. “No. She actually dropped the subject when I told her that I wouldn’t be able to sign.” Said Nepgear, folding her hands together in front of her.

“What?! But you’re so reliable!” Neptune said, before crossing her arms angrily in front of her chest. “Not trying to make my baby sister sign a contract despite being so reliable. There’s more than one way to get you an offer and not all of them are legal!” Neptune said, annoyed.

Nepgear sighed deeply. “Sis, do you even know why you’re mad?” Nepgear asked.

When the girls finally reached Kei’s building, Uni opened the door and waited for everyone else to go inside, but halted Nepgear before she could go inside. “Nepgear could you please help me settle my sister down?” Asked Uni.

“Yeah, but my sister might need to be settled down as well.” Said Nepgear. Both Nepgear and Uni looked into each others eyes before they sighed deeply.

“So you must be Kei.” Noire said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “My sister told me you wanted her to sign an exclusive contract.”

“Ah! So you must be Noire.” Kei began, getting to her feet and extending a hand to the raven black haired girl standing before her. “She’s told me a lot about you. I’m happy to meet you.”

“Uh… Thanks.” Noire said, feeling slightly disarmed. Noire shook Kei’s hand. “So about this contract. I’m sure you wouldn’t want me to read it, but-”

“Of course I would.” Kei said, pulling out the contract and handing it over to Noire. “I’ll also be glad to go over it with you and we can iron out any details you’re unhappy with.”

“Uh…” Noire began. “Um… Good!”

“I can tell, thanks to Uni, that you’re a good big sister. She refused to sign anything until she got your permission. I also had a feeling that you’d want to come down and look the contract over for yourself. That’s what a responsible guardian would do.” Said Kei, matter-of-factly. “While you’re reading that, why don’t I get everyone some tea.”

“Uh… Thanks?” Noire said. Noire took a seat as she started reading over the contract. Meanwhile Kei made her way to the back where she started making some tea. Before the tea finished however, she returned and introduced herself to Neptune.

“Yeah I heard about you! What’s the deal offering Uni a contract but not my beloved big sister! She’s reliable!” Neptune snapped.

“Oh no. I would love to offer both your sister and Uni the same contract, but she informed me that you were on a quest. Of course if she has your permission, I would love to have her work for me.” Said Kei.

“Really?” Neptune said, perking up. “I appreciate the offer, but Nep Jr. and I are on a quest.”

Nepgear sighed even deeper than before. “Oh big sis…”

Kei giggled. “I see.”

A silence fell over the five girls as Noire continued to read through the contract. When Noire finally reached the end of the contract she took a deep breath. “Alright. I read through this entire contract and it’s pretty good, but I saw a small problem I would like to discuss.”

“Of course.” Said Kei.

“First off I have to ask. How many other hunters have you signed up so far?” Asked Noire.

“As of right now. None. Uni would be the first.” Said Kei.

“I see. So if you asked her to collect a certain item from a monster, she would have to act on her own. Correct?” Noire asked.

“Yes.” Kei said, nodding her head several times.

“You already see the problem, right?” Asked Noire.

“I do.” Said Kei.

Uni looked from Kei to Noire. “What’s the problem?” She asked.

“Uni you’re strong, but that doesn’t mean you can hunt every monster by yourself. You need a way to refuse a job for safety sake.” Said Noire.

“That was an oversight on my part. I apologize.” Said Kei, bowing a little. “Please give me a few moments to create a new contract.”

“Thanks.” Said Noire. “But before that, I need to ask you something Uni.” Noire turned in her seat and looked up at her sister. “I agree this is a good deal and Kei does seem like a trustworthy person to work for, but I still have to ask. Do you want to work for Kei?”

Uni opened her mouth to say something, but quickly changed her mind. “I mean… I like doing quests with you… It’s just… Um…”

“It’s okay Uni.” Noire said, taking Uni’s right hand into her own. “If you want to work with Kei. I won’t get upset and of course I’ll help you out whenever you need it. If you don’t want to work for her, no one will force you. You know that.”

“I know.” Uni said, nodding her head. After a few moments of silence, Uni took a deep breath and said, “I want to work with Kei.”

“Excellent.” Kei said, happily.

“Alright. And of course I expect you to do an amazing job while working for her. No slacking off.” Said Noire.

“Right!” Said Uni.

“Wait a minute!” Neptune said, marching up to Kei’s desk. “What about Nepgear? I know she can’t sign a contract, but she’s still reliable!”

“Yes she is.” Said Kei. “And she’s more then welcome to work here without signing a contract.”

“Great!” Neptune said, before twirling around to face her sister. “No slacking off Nepgear.”

“Right.” Nepgear said, her cheeks were bright red now.

“I doubt Kei has to worry about Nepgear slacking off. Now if she were hiring you Neptune, then she might need to worry.” Said Noire.

“Exactly my… Hey!” Neptune snapped.

“Anyways. I’ll get a new contract written up in a few moments.” Said Kei, before turning her eyes to Uni. “Uni? Welcome aboard.”

Uni smiled brightly. “Thanks!”

***

After the contract was signed Kei requested that Uni and Nepgear return the following day to officially start working. Even though Nepgear wasn’t able to sign a contract, Kei promised to pay her a fair wage. “Thank you very much. Please look after both of our sisters.” Noire said, as she and Neptune bowed a little to Kei.

“My pleasure.” Said Kei.

When Noire stood fully erect she furrowed her brow. “I didn’t want to say this before, but you look familiar. Have we met before?”

Kei shook her head. “To be honest. I’m not really sure, but yes. You look familiar to me too.”

When the four girls finally returned home, Uni was left a bit surprised. “Noire? Aren’t we going to take on some quests today?” She asked.

“Not today.” Said Noire. “We’ve saved quite a bit in the bank. Besides I want you and Nepgear to go into work fully refreshed tomorrow.”

“Thanks big sis!” Said Uni.

“Yes. Thank you.” Said Nepgear.

“I also want you two to relax for the rest of the day as well. Neptune and I will take care of quests today.” Said Noire.

“Whaaat!?” Neptune cried. “I thought we were relaxing today! Now I have to do work? Boo!”

“Don’t worry Neptune. It won’t be that difficult.” Said Noire. “Besides. We need to prepare for our trip to the next Fairy Tower. We only need to activate two more, right?”

“That’s true, but still…” Neptune said, sighing deeply. “Noire’s a slave driver!”

Noire grabbed Neptune’s hand and led her back out of the house. “Come on Neptune.” Said Noire, dragging the girl out.

Once Uni and Nepgear were alone, the two girls were left staring at each other. “So… What should we do?” Uni asked.

“Uh… How about video games?” Nepgear offered.

“Sounds fun.” Said Uni.

***

Neptune was nearly doubled over. Her arms swung lifeless back and forth as she followed after Noire. “Noire… Time for a break!” The girl called out.

Noire sighed deeply. “Neptune. We are taking a break. I wanted to do something nice for our sisters so that’s why I told them we were going to take on quests today.” Said Noire, glancing over her shoulder at Neptune.

“Really?” Neptune said, suddenly straightening back out and perking up. Now Neptune was walking beside her friend. “What kind of surprise?” She asked.

“Well were going to buy some gifts for our sisters.” Said Noire, smiling happily. “Uni’s had her eye on this rifle part for some time now and I know about a video game she’s been wanting to. You need to pick out a few presents for your sister too. Presents she would enjoy.”

“Really? Wow!” Neptune said. “Here I thought you were a greedy miser, but I guess you’re pretty nice after all.” Said Neptune.

“Hey!” Noire said, annoyed. “I might be frugal sometimes, but that’s for our sake. Bills are high, but thanks to you and Nepgear we’ve been put over the top. So I want to celebrate with them.”

“In that case were going to need some food.” Said Neptune.

“Yeah, but these presents…” Noire began.

“Huh? I’m going to pay for Nepgear’s presents and the food. Don’t worry about that.” Said Neptune.

“Huh? Are you sure?” Said Noire.

“Of course I’m sure! I can even pay for Uni’s presents too!” Said Neptune.

“Hold up.” Noire said, placing a firm hand on Neptune’s shoulder. “Do you come from a rich family or something?”

Neptune giggled. “Nope! Purple Heart pays me every time I activate a new Fairy Tower. She’s never missed a payment.”

“Whoa… I wish Black Heart offered me that kind of deal.” Said Noire, before she shook her head. “Regardless let me take care of Uni, okay?”

“Alright.” Said Neptune, shrugging her shoulders.

“We also need to get some supplies for our trip to that fourth Fairy Tower. Like I said before, that tower is located in the middle of an abandoned city. Who knows what kinds of monsters are living there now.” Said Noire.

“Why was the city abandoned?” Asked Neptune.

“I’m not sure.” Noire admitted. “As far as I can remember, the city has always been abandoned, but I’m starting to realize that we can’t rely on our memories.”

“Tell me about it.” Said Neptune.

“Well enough talk. Let’s start shopping!” Said Noire.

***

When Neptune and Noire finally made it back home they had purchased several things. “I think we might have gone overboard.” Noire said, when she realized that she bought more than two gifts for her sister.

“No way. Our sisters are worth it! Right?” Said Neptune.

Noire nodded. “I guess so.” Said Noire, before a large smile appeared on her face. “Either way I know Uni’s going to love her gifts!”

“Same with my sister! She’s such a nerdy nerd when it comes to electronics, so I bought her stuff that I know she can use!” Said Neptune. After opening the door the two girls walked in. “Hey girls!” Neptune called out.

Nepgear and Uni were sitting on the couch playing a video game. “Welcome back-” Uni began, but stopped speaking when she noticed all the packages in her sisters arms. “What’s all this for?” She asked, getting to her feet.

“Well we decided to reward you girls with a few gifts!” Noire said. “Nepgear? We have stuff for you too so get over here!”

“R-Right!” Nepgear said.

Neptune and Noire felt incredibly excited as their sisters tore into their gifts. “Oh wow! I can’t believe it sis! Are you sure I can have this?” Uni asked.

“A brand new tool set! Thanks Neptune!” Nepgear said, brimming with joy.

Neptune giggled and scratched the back of her head. “You’re welcome girls!”

“That’s right!” Said Noire, placing her hands on her hips. “Enjoy your gifts!”

Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 43

 Nepgear and Uni said goodbye to their sisters. After that a strange silence fell over the house. “Well… They’re gone.” Uni said, standing in front of the doorway. Uni crossed her arms in front of her chest like her sister would before abruptly turning to Nepgear. “Nepgear!” She began.

“Y-Yes ma’am!?” Nepgear said, taken off guard by Noire’s sudden outburst.

“We need to get out there and get some work finished. Let’s go!” Uni shouted.

“Right!” Nepgear said, and with that she followed Uni out of the house. The two girls made their way to the guild and started looking through the dozens of quests. “Hunt monsters, collect herbs, collect scrapped parts…” Nepgear said, as she read through each quest.

“Look at this one.” Uni said, suddenly appearing next to her friend.

Nepgear glanced down at the request paper. “I’m looking for workers to carry out various jobs.” Nepgear read. “It’s signed Kei Jinguji.” Nepgear read.

“It looks a bit suspicious.” Said Uni, eyeing the request. “But I don’t see a reason to turn it down just yet. Let’s take the quest on.”

“Alright.” Said Nepgear.

A few moments later Uni and Nepgear found themselves standing in front of a small grey building. The building was only one story tall and it had two large black windows embedded on either side of the door. “This building kind of stands out, huh?” Noire asked, when she glanced at the buildings that surrounded it. Those buildings were incredibly large and were black in color.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t really matter does it?” Asked Nepgear.

“No. Not really.” Said Uni, shrugging her shoulders. “Come on. Let’s go inside.”

Uni and Nepgear stepped through the doors of the building and instantly found themselves standing in the middle of a large mess. The floors were covered in boxes, wires and papers that were nearly stacked to the ceiling. Located on the furthest side of the room was a large metal desk and a single girl sat behind it holding a cell phone to her ear.

“Yes.” The girl said, looking straight ahead at Uni and Nepgear. The girl motioned for them to come closer. “I understand that you’re busy, but I’m extremely busy as well. I just moved into my first building and I still have no internet access. How do you expect me to do any business without the internet?”

Nepgear’s eyes suddenly lit up with joy as she rushed forwards. Uni watched as her friend started dancing around the table trying to get the girl’s attention.

“One moment please.” The girl began. “I think someone is having a fit in my office. I might need to call an ambulance.” The girl took a deep breath as she moved the phone away from her ear. “Can I help you?”

“Me! I can build a device for you that can give you access to the internet for free!” Nepgear said, excitedly.

“Seriously? How long will it take you to get done?” The girl asked.

“Not long! An hour! Two tops!” Said Nepgear.

The girl eyed Nepgear for a moment, before she brought the phone back to her ear. “I’ll be in touch.” And with that, she hung up the phone. “My name is Kei Jinguji.” The girl began, getting to her feet. “And you two are?”

“My name is Nepgear!” Nepgear said, the girl was bursting with joy.

“My names Uni.” Said Uni, standing close to the door. “Sorry about my friend. I’m not sure what got into her.”

“Sorry about that, but I love building things like this! I promise I can build you a great device that will give you unlimited access to high speed internet with no slowdown time whatsoever!” Nepgear said.

“That is tempting.” Said Kei, scratching her chin thoughtfully. “How much would it cost to get this done?”

“Cost? Oh no. I’ll do it for free.” Said Nepgear.

Kei sighed deeply. “Then I’m afraid I can’t agree to those terms. It’s true that getting this done for free would be advantageous to me. I wouldn’t fee right taking advantage of your charity.”

“It’s not charity.” Said Nepgear, surprised by Kei’s response.

“She’ll do it for two thousand credits!” Uni said, suddenly appearing behind Nepgear and placing her hands on the girls shoulders. “But you have to supply all the parts and electricity she’ll need to make it.”

“I see…” Kei scratched her chin. “That price does seem more fair considering what I’ll get out of the exchange. Nepgear are you happy with the conditions?”

“Um… Yes.” Nepgear said, after Uni gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze.

“Great. When do you think you can get started and have this device finished?” Asked Kei.

“Just to play it safe. Three hours?” Nepgear offered.

“That’s more than acceptable.” Said Kei, extending a hand to Nepgear.

Nepgear smiled brightly and took Kei’s hand into her own. “Nice doing business with you.”

Uni smiled proudly. “So while Nepgear’s doing nerd stuff, what can I do to help?”

“Nerd stuff?” Nepgear said, in a small voice. Uni gave Nepgear’s shoulders another gentle squeeze which got the girl smiling again.

“Well as you can see. This place is a disaster area. Could you please straighten things out for me?” Asked Kei.

“Will do.” Said Uni. “But if you don’t mind. What is this business of yours?”

Kei smiled. “I’m glad you asked.” Kei began, as she cleared her throat. “You two have fought monsters in the past, correct?”

“That’s right.” Said Uni and Nepgear.

“During those battles, have monsters ever dropped any items?” Asked Kei.

“Yeah. Quite a few of them actually.” Said Nepgear.

“The items that monsters drop can be used for many different things. From synthesizing medicines, to creating new powerful weapons. That’s what my business is. To hire hunters to kill monsters, gather the items they drop and sell them to people or business for a profit.” Said Kei. “Of course I’ll expand my business to cover other things, but for now that’s what I’m currently focused on.”

“So these boxes…?” Uni began.

“Yes. They have items that monsters have dropped. You can shove those over to a corner. Right now I’m trying to find my filing cabinets.” Said Kei.

Uni smiled. “Well finding filing cabinets is my specialty.” Said Uni. “Nepgear? Ready to get to work?”

“I’m ready.” Said Nepgear. “I’ll have to go out and buy some supplies first.”

“That sounds good.” Said Kei. “Just remember to get a receipt.”   

And with that, Nepgear and Uni started working. Nepgear headed out of the building and nearly an hour later returned with a bag filled with parts. By the time Nepgear had returned, Uni had found several filing cabinets and was currently helping Kei fill them with paperwork.

“How did you collect all these items?” Uni asked.

“I hired hunters before to gather these items for me.” Said Kei. “I knew things would be tricky at the very beginning so I decided to have some things to fall back on to help keep me afloat.”

“That makes sense.” Uni said, though she wasn’t actually sure if it made any sense or not.

While Uni continued to help Kei, Nepgear got started on her device. It took her a few hours to finally complete, but soon she was finished. “I’m done!” Nepgear said, as she plugged the small device into a nearby outlet.

Kei glanced at the device skeptically. The device was small and it flashed a green light. “Really?” She said, as she made her way over to her desk. After lifting the lid on her laptop she began pounding information into it. “It works.” Kei said, her eyes lit up with joy. “Thank you Nepgear!”

“You’re welcome.” Said Nepgear, blushing a little.

“May I have the receipt?” Kei asked.

Nepgear did as she was asked and handed the receipt over. “So altogether I owe you about five-thousand credits.” Said Kei. “I’ll send that to you right now.”

“Thank you!” Said Nepgear, who was bursting with joy.

Kei took a deep breath before she turned her eyes towards the floor. Even though there were still a lot of things that needed to be taken care of, Kei couldn’t help but feel a little better about things. “Nepgear? Uni? How would you two like to sign an exclusive contract with me? You’ll have steady work and earn ten percent more.”

“Oh… Well…” Nepgear began, her smile faded.

“Bad idea?” Asked Kei.

Nepgear shook her head. “To be honest. I’m not actually from around here. My sister and I are… doing something important and I’m not sure how much longer were going to be here.” Said Nepgear.

“As for me. I need to get permission from my big sister.” Said Uni.

“Your big sister is your guardian. Correct?” Asked Kei.

“Yeah.” Said Uni.

“I see…” Kei said, folding her hands together in front of her. “How about a verbal agreement then. Until Nepgear leaves and Uni get’s permission, you two will continue to work for me? How does that sound?”

Uni and Nepgear thought about this for a few moments. “So this is a legitimate company right? You wont ask us to break the law right?” Asked Uni.

Kei smiled. “I promise you. This business will be strictly legal. I actually expect all my workers to strictly obey the law.”

“Well in that case.” Nepgear began.

“We can agree to that.” Said Uni, nodding.  

“Excellent!” Said Kei. “Would you two like to keep working today, or wait until tomorrow?”

“We can keep going.” Said Uni.

“Excellent. I was hoping you two could help me bring these boxes into the back. I’ll sort them out myself. I just need help moving them.”

Uni, Nepgear and Kei spent several long moments moving the boxes filled with items that monsters dropped into the back room. The back room was rather large and it had three long metallic shelves already filled with other boxes.

“Thanks girls.” Said Kei, after they moved the final box. “I’ll send you the credits I owe you. I’ll also inform the guild that you completed your quest to my satisfaction.”

“Thanks Kei.” Said Nepgear.

“Yeah. Thanks Kei.” Uni said.

For a moment Uni and Kei locked eyes with one another. For a moment, Kei’s cool business woman demeanor seemed to drop and a strange look appeared on Kei’s face. “Y-You know. It’s strange…” Kei began.

“What is?” Asked Uni, tilting her head slightly to the right.

Kei opened her mouth to say something, but pressed her lips firmly together and shook her head. “It’s nothing. I’m sorry to hold you two up. I’m really glad we met and I’ll see you both tomorrow morning. Around eight?”

“Sure.” Said Uni.

“See you tomorrow Kei!” Said Nepgear, and with that the two girls left.

Once Kei was alone she began rubbing her forehead. “How strange. I don’t know why, but I suddenly remembered something. I think I met both of those girls somewhere before.”

***

“Oh wow!” Nepgear said, her eyes were twinkling. “That was such a productive day! We got a great job, I built an internet device and we got paid so much money! That was amazing!” Nepgear said, excitedly.

“Yeah. Today was really nice.” Said Uni. “I think we should celebrate by buying us some dinner!”

“How about a pizza? I’ve been craving a Lastation pizza!” Said Nepgear.

Uni nodded. “I could eat a pizza. I know a great place too.”

After Nepgear and Uni reported their quest, the girls bought themselves a pizza and took it home. They celebrated that night by playing video games and eating pizza before heading off to bed.

The next morning they returned to Kei’s building to help her with several more items. Once they returned from work the girls saw their big sisters heading towards Noire’s house.

“Noire!” Uni said, excitedly running up to her sister.

“Hey Uni. How did it go?” Noire asked, patting Uni on the head.

“Good.” Said Uni, happily. “Listen to this Noire…”

Nepgear ran up to her sister. “Hi Neptune. How did everything go?” She asked.

“Great!” Neptune said, patting Nepgear on the head as well. “We managed to activate the next Fairy Tower and we found some really strong monsters too! Oh  and Noire went kind of crazy trying to kill them all into extinction it was hilarious.” Said Neptune, giggling.

“Exclusive contract!?” Noire snapped, catching the attention of everyone on the street. “Exclusive contract doing what young lady?”

“J-Just work big sister.” Uni said, her cheeks were bright red.

“What kind of work?” Noire demanded.

“Y-You know. Work. I… I didn’t really ask, but…” Uni said.

“You’re not signing anything missy! Tomorrow I’m going to talk to this Kei Jinguji myself and read this ‘exclusive contract’ very closely. If I see one period missing or a comma used in the wrong place, I’m going to give her hell! Do you hear me?” Noire demanded.

“Yes big sister!” Uni cried.

Nepgear sighed deeply and smiled. “Noire really loves Uni, huh?”

Neptune nodded. “That’s true.” Neptune took a deep breath. “By the way Nepgear. You didn’t sign this exclusive contract did you?”

Nepgear shook her head. “Of course not.”

“Good.” Said Neptune, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “As your big sister you have to run every contract by me. I won’t let anyone take advantage of my cute and very smart baby sister!”

Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 42

 Before Noire and Neptune could start a fire, they heard the sound of a small girl grumbling from nearby. “I think this place is haunted.” Neptune said, as she glanced around the clearing the girls were standing in. “Do you know anything about exercising a spirit? Ew! I just hope it doesn’t possess you Noire and start vomiting thick pea-soup!”  

“Neptune. I think that’s Histoire.” Noire said, gesturing towards the Fairy Tower.

The two girls spotted the holographic image of Histoire who looked rather depressed. “Not that I’m important or anything. I would still like to be acknowledged. That’s not selfish is it?” Histoire asked, in a small voice.

Neptune and Noire quickly hurried over to the fairy girl. “Sorry Histoire!” Noire said. “We weren’t ignoring you. That bird. Phoenix monster just surprised us.” Noire said, suddenly remembering the mechanical birds name.

Before Neptune and Noire could feel the same dizziness and headaches from remembering something, they touched the Fairy Tower and healed themselves.

“That’s understandable.” Histoire said, a small smile appeared on her face. “You two did very well getting here. I’ll go ahead and send you data on the next Fairy Tower’s location.” Histoire said.

“Thanks!” Said Noire.

Neptune pulled out the N-Gear that Nepgear had leant her and grabbed the data. “This looks like another national park.” Neptune said, handing the N-Gear over to Noire.

Noire examined the map for a few moments before shaking her head. “Actually this is a small, abandoned town.”

“Really? Creepy.” Neptune said, hugging herself tightly. “Let me guess. It’s filled with zombies or something?”

“No.” Noire said, shaking her head.

“Then does it have a coal mine that’s been burning for hundreds of years and a siren?” Neptune asked.

“No.” Noire said, annoyed.

“Is this town actually abandoned? Are we certain it’s not filled with the ghosts of dead villagers who failed during a ceremony and the only way to deal with them is a magic camera that-” Neptune began, but Noire playfully bumped her shoulder into her friend.

“Stop guessing Neptune.” Noire said, annoyed. “Anyways Histoire. Thanks for the information.”

“Of course.” Histoire said. “Would the two of you like to try and boost your stats?” Histoire asked.

“Sure.” Said Noire.

“Doesn’t hurt I guess.” Said Neptune, as she made her way to the terminal.

“That Phoenix gave us quite a few shares.” Noire observed. “I think I’ll put all of it into my strength.” She said.

“My strength is nearly maxed. I better focus on defense.” Said Neptune. “Otherwise my sister will be crying over me again.”

“Huh?” Noire said, surprised.

“Well…” Neptune began, as she told Noire about their fight in the underground facility beneath the abounded house. “And that’s what happened.” Neptune said, finishing her story.

“Yes. Nepgear was understandably upset.” Histoire said, remembering how Nepgear started crying despite Neptune’s injuries being completely healed.

“Geesh. That kid’s been through a lot.” Noire said.

“Nepgear’s a big toughie though. My near death experience won’t be enough to stop her!” Neptune said.

“Still… You need to take care of yourself for her sake.” Said Noire.

“I agree completely.” Said Histoire.

“Great. I’m being teamed up on.” Said Neptune as an awkward silence fell on the three. The sound of Neptune’s stomach starting to growl broke the awkward silence. “Now I’m hungry.”

“I’ll get the fire started.” Said Noire, as she made her way back to the place she dropped all the firewood from before.

Noire and Neptune decided to make their camp close to the Fairy Tower. “I have a question.” Neptune began, as she took a seat on her sleeping bag. “I noticed monsters don’t really come around the Fairy Tower. MAGES. created a device to drive monsters away from us at night, but I think it was kind of pointless. Is it?” She asked.

“Well yes, but I didn’t have the hear to tell her that.” Histoire said. “The Fairy Tower is incredibly important so it uses an invisible barrier to keep monsters at bay. This barrier uses several methods to keep them at a safe distance.”

“That’s nice. I guess we can both sleep easy tonight.” Said Noire.

“Are you sure you can sleep?” Neptune asked, eyeing Noire. “Isn’t your head still running marathons because of everything that happened in Lastation?”

“I’m fine.” Noire said. “I decided to let that go for now. Besides. I’m really tired right now.”

“I guess even the great Noire is no match for sleepiness.” Neptune said, yawning loudly and stretching her arms over her head. “Well that walk and Phoenix fight didn’t do me any favors either.”

“It’s not just that.” Said Histoire. “The Fairy Tower does have the power to heal the negative effects of not sleeping, but it’s temporary. Noire’s exhaustion has increased.”

“Sounds about right.” Noire said, yawning. “Imagine the hell Linda went through. I feel even more sorry for her now.” Noire ignored her exhaustion and quickly finished building the fire. After that, she sat a pot down on the flames and watched as the soup they made started to boil.

Neptune and Noire grabbed a few bowls and soon were happily enjoying a meal that they had prepared together. “This is nice.” Neptune said, after finishing off her second helping of soup. Neptune stretched out her legs and leaned back against the Fairy Tower. “How are you feeling now Noire?” She asked.

Noire didn’t answer.

“Noire?” Histoire said.

Neptune noticed that Noire was now curled up on top of her sleeping bag. She was sound asleep. “I think we lost her.” Neptune observed. Neptune reached over and touched Noire’s shoulder. “Noire sweetie. You need to get inside your sleeping bag otherwise you’ll catch a cold!”

Noire only took a deep breath in response, but she didn’t open her eyes.

“It’s quite alright Neptune.” Said Histoire. “I can keep you both warm tonight. I promise.”

Neptune couldn’t help, but smile. “Thanks Histoire. I’ll leave that task up to you.” She said. before crawling into her sleeping bag. Neptune didn’t fall asleep like Noire did. Instead she stared up at the night sky and took in the endless sea of stars. “It’s amazing Histoire.”

“What is?” Histoire asked.

“Space.” Neptune said. “The night sky looks so beautiful. I couldn’t help, but admire it a little.”

“I agree. It’s very nice.” Histoire said, turning her eyes towards the sky above as well. “You know Neptune. Sometimes I’m surprised by how deep you really are.”

“Huh? Is that your subtle way of saying I’m stupid?” Neptune asked.

Histoire shook her head. “No. What I’m about to say shouldn’t be taken as an insult. You have a simple way of looking at things. I admire that sometimes.” Said Histoire.

“Yeah. Not insulted at all.” Said Neptune.

“With that said. I never once questioned whether I could count on you or not. Thank you for everything you’ve done so far.” Histoire said. “I hope I never forget to thank you, your sister, Noire or Uni.”

Neptune smiled warmly. “Thanks Histoire. I’m sure everyone’s happy to have you around.” A silence fell over the two girls and soon Neptune’s eyelids started to grow heavy. “Well… The days done with me. Goodnight Histoire. Sleep tight and don’t let computer virus’ bite.”

“Goodnight Neptune.” Histoire said. “Sleep well.”

***

 The next morning Noire woke up early. She didn’t remember falling asleep. At some point during the night, she must have woken up and crawled into her sleeping bag. “Good morning Histoire.” Noire said, stretching her hands high over her head.

“Good morning Noire.” Said Histoire. “How did you sleep?”

“Pretty good.” Noire said, as she touched the Fairy Tower to help fix a small pain she felt in her back. Noire then turned her eyes to Neptune who was still fast asleep. “I see that little goofball slept well.” Said Noire.

“Yes. She’s a sound sleeper.” Said Histoire.

Noire stretched her hands high over her head before turning her eyes towards the camp fire, which had gone out hours ago. After that, she looked up at the clearing and gasped. Four large Phoenix monsters could be seen floating around the area. The creatures screeched and flapped their wings.

“Whoa! Neptune! Wake up!” Noire said, grabbing Neptune’s arm and shaking her wildly.

Neptune opened her eyes and sat up. “Morning. Pudding.” She said.

“Never mind that. Look!” Noire said, pointing at the Phoenix’s.

Neptune stared at the Phoenix’s for a moment, before turning her eyes to Noire. “Breakfast?” She asked.

“Workout first. Breakfast later.” Noire said, getting to her feet. Noire summoned her sword and charged towards the first bird monster.

“Noire’s nuts.” Neptune said, dreamily.

Neptune and Noire managed to defeat the Phoenix monsters together, but it did take Histoire some coaxing to finally get Neptune to get up and help her friend out. After that, the two girls made their way back to the Fairy Tower where they used the shares they gathered to increase their stats.

“I think we might need to stick around here for a while and gather more share energy.” Said Noire, excitedly.

“What? What about the other two Fairy Towers?” Neptune asked.

“It’s not like were going to forget about them.” Said Noire. “This is just our chance to get stronger.”

“Yeah…” Neptune said, feeling tired. “So… Breakfast?”

“Fine!” Noire said, annoyed. “I’ll get some more firewood.” And with that, Noire headed into the forest to collect some.

Neptune sighed deeply, a small smile appeared don her lips. “Man… She doesn’t have to go that far to get a stick. She’s got one shoved right up her-”

“It wouldn’t hurt you to work a little harder Neptune.” Histoire said, cutting Neptune off before she could finish speaking.

“Fine.” Neptune said, feeling even more annoyed.

Noire built up another fire. While she did this, even more Phoenix monsters started to float into the clearing. “How many of those things live out here?” Noire asked, feeling excited for more battles.

“Actually. Those are the same four Phoenix’s you already defeated.” Said Histoire.

“Huh?” Neptune and Noire said, at the same time.

“I…” Histoire began. “Did I forget to mention that the Fairy Tower has the power to respawn monsters?”

“Uh yeah!” Noire shouted.

“First time I’m hearing about this.” Said Neptune.

Neptune and Noire were now towering over Histoire. “Well… I apologize for not… mentioning it sooner.” Said Histoire, her cheeks grew bright red and she turned her eyes away from the girls.

“So… Every time we defeat a monster and then touch the Fairy Tower, that monster is respawned close by? So technically we could sit here for days, kill thousands of those birds and not have to worry about them going extinct?” Noire asked.

“That’s correct.” Said Histoire, nodding.

“YES!” Noire cheered, as she threw her hands into the air. “Neptune! Were camping here again tonight!”

“Hold it!” Neptune said. “Even if I agreed to that, we don’t have enough food.”

“Huh? Who cares! We can…” Noire began, but she stopped herself. Noire thought about suggesting they use Histoire to heal themselves of starvation, but remembered the sorry state Linda was in. “You got a point.”

“Don’t count this as a loss.” Histoire said. “As soon as you activate the last remaining Fairy Towers, you’ll be able to teleport back here.”

“That’s right Noire. Perk up buttercup.” Said Neptune.

Noire giggled. “You two got a point. Sorry about that.” Said Noire.

“That’s okay. I knew it was just your bloodlust speaking.” Said Neptune, but she quickly looked away when Noire shot an annoyed look her way. “Anyways lady Noire, let me get breakfast started for us. Okay? Okay!” And with that, Neptune placed the pot of soup of the fire.

After the two girls finished eating their breakfast, they packed everything up. “Well were off Histoire.” Neptune said, grabbing the straps of her backpack. “I guess we’ll see you soon!”

“Yes.” Histoire said.

“We’ll activate the rest of the Fairy Towers in Lastation soon and then we’ll becoming back for you!” Noire said, pointing the tip of her rapier at the Phoenix monsters. “And I swear were going to get even stronger than before!”

“That’s right!” Neptune said. “See? Bloodlust.” Neptune cleared her throat and in a much louder voice said, “come on Noire. I’m sure our baby sisters are missing us.”

“Yeah.” Noire said, turning to Neptune and smiling brightly. “Let’s get going.”

Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 41

Noire tried to sleep that night, but all she could think about was her conversation with Black Heart and Black Sister. She also couldn’t get the story that Uni and Nepgear told her about G. “What is going on?” Noire wondered to herself, as she continued to roll around in her bed. “First we have to worry about the Fairy Towers, then my sister gets attacked by this G person and that strange conversation with Black Heart and Black Sister.” Noire thought to herself.

Noire wasn’t sure how long she had been laying there, but soon light started streaming through her bedroom window. The moment Noire noticed that it was morning, she started to feel exhausted.

“Great…” Noire breathed, as she threw her blankets off of her.

Noire quickly changed into her regular clothes before heading downstairs. Uni was busily preparing breakfast while Nepgear helped with smaller things. “Good morning.” Noire said, dreamily heading into the kitchen.

“Morning sis.” Uni said. “I’m making breakfast this morning and…” Uni began, but stopped speaking when she noticed just how exhausted her sister looked. “Noire. You don’t look so good. Maybe you should take the day off.”

Noire smiled and shook her head. “Thanks Uni, but I’ll be okay. I’ll just drink some tea and ask heal myself using the Fairy Tower.”

“That’s a good idea.” Said Uni.

Noire took a seat at the breakfast table while Nepgear placed a cup of hot tea in front of her. “Here you go.” Said Nepgear.

“Thanks Nepgear. I appreciate it.” She said, taking up the cup and sipping the black liquid. “Neptune’s still asleep, huh?”

“Well…” Nepgear began.

Neptune suddenly trudged into the kitchen. She looked just as exhausted as Noire did. “Oh man. I could use a cup of hot pudding right now.”

Nepgear giggled. “I’ll get you some hot tea instead.”

“As long as it’s hot and pudding flavored and is actually pudding.” Said Neptune, sitting down at the table on Noire’s left side.

“What’s wrong with you?” Noire asked, eyeing Neptune suspiciously. “Playing video games all night?”

“Well… Yes, but only cause I couldn’t sleep.” Said Neptune. “I don’t know about you Noire, but everything’s been bugging me lately. The Fairy Towers, G and those weirdo goddesses.”

“Hey!” Noire said, annoyed.

“Come on Noire! Didn’t you see how they were acting? It was so weird!” Neptune said, closing her eyes and placing her hands behind her head. “I mean. I know I never met those two before, but it’s hard to believe they’ve been running Lastation like that this entire time!”

Noire wanted to argue, but she knew that Neptune had a good point. “What were the goddesses of Planeptune like?”

“Well… Purple Heart liked pudding and Purple Sister was kind of a crybaby. I actually worried about her quite a bit.” Neptune said.

“Yeah?” Noire said. “To be honest. I felt really bad for Black Sister. I was surprised how blunt Black Heart was with her.”

“I know, right? Telling your sister that you wouldn’t be proud of her is just mean!” Neptune said, annoyed. “She needs to go back to big sister school!”

Noire nodded, despite how nonsensical Neptune sounded. “Well we can’t really do anything about it. She is the leader of Lastation after all and she is aware of our quest.” Said Noire.

“Yeah, but here’s my problem.” Said Neptune. “Do you really trust that those two are going to look for G and this Pirachu rat?”

“Well…” Noire began, thinking about it. “I don’t know. I want to say yes, but it’s hard to say.”

“You see?” Said Neptune.

“I see where you’re coming from Neptune, but right now we have more important things to worry about. We just have to trust that the goddesses will deal with this.” Said Noire, matter-of-factly.

“Big sis?” Nepgear began, as she sat a cup of hot tea down in front of her sister. “Maybe you should let it go for right now.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Said Neptune, sighing deeply.

“Don’t get me wrong. The idea that someone experimented on our sisters enrages me.” Said Noire, her voice was filled with venom.

“Same here. I want to give this G and Pirachu a Nep-smack!” Said Neptune, clenching her hands into tight fists.

“What’s a Nep-smack?” Noire asked.

“It’s a regular smack, except I yell Nep as I do it!” Neptune explained.

Noire giggled. “Thanks for clearing that up.” She said, taking another sip of her tea. “Anyways. Thanks to all the excitement of yesterday, I forgot to tell you two where the next Fairy Tower is.”

“Oh that’s right.” Nepgear said, shaking her head. “I forgot you two went to ask Histoire about that yesterday.”

“Yeah.” Said Noire. “Histoire actually told us that the next Fairy Tower is located in an abandoned nature park.”

“A nature park, huh?” Said Nepgear.

“We actually have to go past the first Fairy Tower to reach it. Unfortunately this trip will take us about a day and a night.” Said Noire. “So with that said. I would feel more comfortable if you two came with us, but I also think that would be a bad idea.” Said Noire.

“Why bad?” Asked Nepgear.

“We need to keep taking on quests to earn credits.” Said Uni. “Bills are pretty high around here.”

“Oh.” Nepgear said, surprised.

“Yeah… So with that said, I want you two to promise me you’ll be careful. Okay?” Said Noire.

“Yeah Nepgear and Uni. No taking candy from strangers! I don’t care how handsome they are or how delicious the candy is.” Said Neptune.

“We’ll be careful.” Said Nepgear, with a smile.

“We will. Don’t worry.” Said Uni, trying to sound as confident as she could.

“Good. That’s what I wanted to hear.” Said Noire.

“Now Nep Jr.. Are you trying to be brave or are you sure you’ll be okay without your big sister to bug you?” Neptune asked.

“I’ll be okay.” Said Nepgear.

“Did you hear that Noire?” Neptune asked, pretending to burst into tears. “My sister doesn’t need me anymore!”

“I-I didn’t say that!” Nepgear said, surprised.

Noire sighed deeply. “Oh geesh.” She and Uni said in unison.

After everyone finished their breakfasts Noire and Neptune grabbed a few backpacks and filled them with supplies. “Are you sure you don’t mind me borrowing your backpack?” Noire asked Nepgear.

“Not at all. Please use it all you want.” Said Nepgear.

“Thanks!” Noire said. “And don’t worry. I’ll take good care of it.”

After the girls finished packing for their trip they headed for the front door. “Alright. Were going out to activate the next Fairy Tower.”

An hour later Noire and Neptune had stepped up to the first Fairy Tower they had met at. “Morning Histoire.” Neptune said, to the small fairy like girl.

“Good morning you two. Are you off to activate the third Fairy Tower?” Asked Histoire.

“Yeah. Noire’s being a real slave driver this morning.” Neptune said, sighing deeply.

“Yeah that’s me alright.” Noire said, rolling her eyes. “Anyways Histoire. I was hoping you could do me a few favors.”

“Favors?” Histoire asked, furrowing her brow.

“Yes. Remember how you increased the healing capabilities for Linda when she couldn’t sleep? Could you do that for me right now?” Asked Noire.

“You couldn’t sleep either?” Asked Histoire.

“That’ll actually bring me to my next favor, but first heal please?” Said Noire.

Histoire nodded. “Of course. Please touch the Fairy Tower.”

Noire did as she was told and touched the Fairy Tower. Instantly all the drowsiness and fatigue she felt disappeared. Now she felt like she had actually gotten a good night sleep. “Thanks Histoire. I feel much better now.”

“Of course, but please remember. My healing ability doesn’t compare to getting an actual nights rest.” Said Histoire. “With that said. What’s your next favor?”

“Well…” Noire told Histoire everything that took place the previous day. She talked about Pirachu and G and the goddesses reaction.”

“I see.” Histoire said. “First off. Pirachu is a rodent like creature that lives in Lastation. I am aware of him, but where he lives is currently unknown to me. As for G. I’m not aware of who that could possible refer to. I can speculate that the name belongs to someone who’s name starts with the letter G.”

“And the goddesses?” Asked Noire.

“Yes. Their attitude does seem strange to me as well.” Said Histoire.

“Do you think they could be evil clones or something?” Asked Neptune.

“Well… No.” Histoire said, shaking her head. “As far as I can tell. They are the real goddess and goddess candidate of Lastation. As far as their attitudes go. I’m not sure what to say.”

“Well those are the reasons why I couldn’t sleep. Histoire… Could you please keep looking into this for me?” Noire asked.

“Of course. It would be my pleasure.” Said Histoire, bowing.

“Thanks!” Said Noire, turning to Neptune. “Alright pudding girl. It’s time to go!”

“Right.” Neptune said. “I mean boo!”

***
Noire and Neptune made their way towards the national park. As they walked, the girls encountered all kinds of monsters. Noire and Neptune fought side-by-side and defeated quite a few of them.

“You’re pretty good Noire.” Neptune said. “I guess that’s not too surprising considering how hard you work.”

“Thanks. You’re not bad either despite how lazy you are.” Said Noire.

“Gee! I was being nice!” Neptune said, annoyed.

“Sorry about that.” Noire said. “You’re a good fighter too.”

Neptune took a few steps away from Noire. “Now you’re creeping me out. You weren’t replaced with a clone were you?” She asked.

“Gee… And here I was trying to be nice.” Noire said.

Neptune and Noire continued to walk until they finally reached the national park. The girls were a bit surprised to see that there weren’t any monsters around. “Well that’s new.” Neptune said, as she made her way to the Fairy Tower. After fishing out the USB memory stick she stuck it into the USB port on the terminal and waited.

“Yeah, but I’m sure there’s something lurking around here.” Said Noire.

Just as Noire finished speaking, a large bird suddenly glided in front of them. The bird was large and it looked like it was completely mechanical. “You just had to jinx us.” Neptune said, sighing deeply.

“Sorry.” Noire said, scratching her right cheek.

Neptune and Noire launched themselves at the mechanical bird. The bird turned it’s body towards the girls and began flapping its wings. “Whoa!” Neptune cried, as a gust of wind hit her and knocked her backwards.

Noire too was hit by the wind and landed gracefully a few yards away from the mechanical creature. “This thing is tough!” Noire cried.

Neptune landed several yards away. The moment her feet touched the ground she began running around the large bird leaving a wide birth between her and it. The creature roared loudly as it turned its body so it could keep Neptune in it’s sights.

“Good work Neptune!” Noire thought, as she rushed forwards. Once Noire was close enough, she leapt into the air and began swinging her rapier wildly. The girl’s blade sliced through the bird several times, causing the creature to roar loudly and hold out it’s wings as far as it could.

The moment the creature did this, an explosion of energy shot out of the creature knocking Noire away. “Crap!” Noire cursed, as she fell on the ground.

The bird turned it’s eyes towards Noire. At first the creature looked like it was trying to size Noire up, but soon it launched it’s beak at Noire.

Noire quickly dodged to the left and right, avoiding the beak by mere inches, but suddenly the creature grabbed Noire’s arms using it’s feet and forced the girl onto the ground.

Noire winced in pain. She tried to pull herself free, but the creature was too strong. “Get off me!” Noire screamed.

The creature ignored her. Instead it peered into her eyes and reeled back its head ready to strike.

“This is it.” Noire thought, bitterly as she closed her eyes and awaited her death. “I’m going to die and leave Uni all alone. Neptune? Please take care of Uni for me.”

Noire opened her eyes when the pressure on her body suddenly vanished. “Huh?” She began. The giant mechanical bird was gone and now Neptune stood over her. “Neptune? What happened?” She asked.

“I defeated the bird!” Neptune said, smiling brightly. “You didn’t actually think I would let that stupid robot bird peck my good friend, did you?” She asked.

Noire felt a lump form in her throat. “Uh… Shut up. I could have killed that bird you know!” Noire said, as she slowly got to her feet. “But thanks I guess.”

“Classic tsundere!” Neptune said.

Noire sighed deeply. “Anyways, is the Fairy Tower activated? We need to get home.”

“We need to camp out. Remember?” Neptune asked, as she took off her backpack and removed a sleeping bag.

“Oh right.” Noire said, annoyed that she had forgotten. “I’ll get some sticks so I can build a fire. You set everything up.” Noire said, handing Neptune her backpack as well.

Neptune saluted. “Righty-o!” She said.

Histoire watched from the Fairy Tower as Neptune started rolling out the sleeping bags and pulling out food, while Noire disappeared into the surrounding trees to grab firewood. “I think they both forgot about me.” Histoire said, sadly.

Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 40

 Uni handed Nepgear her extra sword. After that she turned her attention back to the CPU Killer. The robot reminded both girls of some kind of robotic dragon. It had a long body and two large arms. The robot also held a large axe and mace in it’s hands. “This thing looks like it’s going to be tough.” Uni breathed.

“Yeah.” Nepgear said, taking a deep breath. Nepgear recalled her spare energy sword, as she held her second one out in front of her. “How do you want to do this?” Nepgear asked, nervously.

“I’ll back you up from here.” Said Uni. “Just like my sister.”

Nepgear nodded. “Alright.” Said Nepgear, swallowing hard.

Nepgear and Uni had been fighting along side each other for several days now. They’ve taken on quests where they dealt with all kinds of monsters, but even though they’ve done a lot of battling the girl girls could tell this robot was going to be different.

“You ready?” Uni asked, aiming her rifle at the CPU Killer.

“Yeah.” Nepgear said, before she started running forwards. As the girl ran forwards, the CPU Killer readjusted it’s body so it was fully facing Nepgear. At first the CPU Killer just floated in the air, staring down the approaching girl. After a few moments the robot suddenly lunged forwards which caught Nepgear off guard.

Before the robot could launch an attack, a beam of energy struck the robot in the chest causing it to be pushed backwards. “Stay focused Nepgear!” Uni shouted.

“Right!” Nepgear cried, as she continued to run forwards. Once Nepgear was close enough to the CPU Killer, she leapt high into the air and brought her energy sword down hard. Nepgear managed to slice through the robot’s chest, causing the CPU Killer to back up even more.

“TAKE THIS!” Nepgear cried, as she swung her sword three times. The first two swings she managed to cut through the robot, but the CPU Killer managed to parry her next attack using it’s large axe.

Nepgear hung in the air for a few moments, before the giant robot pushed her backwards, sending the girl flying through the air.

As Nepgear flew, Uni aimed her rifle at the few injuries that Nepgear managed to cause and fired at them. The first beam of energy managed to make the hole Nepgear created slightly bigger, but the CPU Killer blocked the other shots using it’s massive axe. “Damn.” Uni cursed, under her breath.

“TAKE THIS!” Nepgear cried once more, as she suddenly appeared above the CPU Killer’s head and struck the robot once more. The robot quickly dodged out of the way and launched it’s tail at Nepgear.

Nepgear held up her hand to block the attack, but she was too slow. The tail smashed into her body and sent her flying backwards once more, but this time Nepgear slammed into the ground and rolled several feet away.

“Nepgear!” Uni cried, in fear.

“I-I’m o-okay…” Nepgear breathed, as she struggled to her feet.

“I should have warned you.” G said, from somewhere overhead. “The CPU Killer has an adaptive combat system. You won’t be able to destroy it by doing the same attacks over and over again.”

“Is that so?” Uni said, annoyed. “Come on Nepgear! Let’s hurry up and destroy this hunk of junk!”

“Right!” Nepgear said, as she held out her hand. “HEAL!” She called out. Nepgear’s body started to glow brightly, but soon that light vanished along side all the wounds that Nepgear had sustained.

Uni aimed her rifle at the CPU Killer once more. “Hey G!” Uni shouted. “You said that this hunk of metal has an adaptive combat system? Well let’s see if it can keep up with this! BRAVE BURST!” Uni shouted.

An enormous beam of energy exploded out of Uni’s rifle. The CPU Killer placed it’s massive axe and mace in front of it’s body. At first it looked as though the CPU Killer’s weapons would be enough to block the attack, but as the beam of energy continued to slam against the robot’s weapons, a large crack appeared in them.

Suddenly with a loud boom, the weapons exploded and soon the beam of energy struck the CPU Killer in the chest. The CPU Killer tried to move out of the way, but it was pointless. Electricity and smoke exploded out of the robot’s body and soon the robot slammed into the ground.

“I can’t believe it.” G muttered, under his breath.

“That’ll do it!” Uni said, smiling proudly.

“Way to go Uni! You’re such a badass!” Said Nepgear, smiling brightly.

Uni giggled. “I don’t hear you talking anymore G. Upset a couple of cute girls managed to wreck your toy?”

“Actually no.” Said G, chuckling. “I was expecting the CPU Killer to be destroyed, but I thought it would last a little longer. No matter.”

“Hold on Uni. I’ll get that door open now.” Said Nepgear, ignoring what G was saying.

“No need. I’ll let you go.” Said G, as the door to the room opened. “I would advise you to leave immediately. I plan on destroying this lab. Can‘t leave any evidence after all.”

“Aw… I wanted to take the robot apart.” Said Neptune, looking longingly at the destroyed robot.

“Wait!” Uni cried. “What about the city above?”

“Don’t worry. I don’t plan on using any explosives. I have other means of getting rid of evidence. Now I suggest you start running.” G said.

Uni narrowed her eyes at the place G’s voice was coming from. She felt furious. Furious that someone would trap her and her friend in a lab, furious that they would be tested on, furious that they could have died. “I don’t know or care who you are G! I’m going to get you for this!” Uni screamed angrily.

Nepgear grabbed Uni by the hand. “Come on Uni! We need to run!” Nepgear said, as she pulled her friend towards the now open door.

Uni and Nepgear ran as fast as they could through the open door, down a long hallway and up a flight of steps. After the girls reached the top of those steps they ran through a door and slammed it closed behind them.

The girls now found themselves back outside. Not only that, but the box Pirachu had taken off with was sitting on a barrel just in front of them. “Were out. Were free!” Nepgear said, sighing a breath of relief.

“Seriously! What the hell!” Uni said, in anger. “That jerk captures us. Attacks us with a giant robot and then lets us go? What’s going on here?”

“I don’t know.” Nepgear said, scratching her chin thoughtfully. “What do you want to do? We need to tell our sisters, but we still need to finish that quest, right?”

Uni took a deep breath. “That’s true. I’ll call our sisters and tell them what happened.” Uni said, as she took up the box that Pirachu stole and handed it over to Nepgear. “Nepgear? Thanks for following after me. I don’t know what would have happened if you didn’t do that.”

“What are friends for?” Nepgear said, smiling warmly at her friend.

Uni and Nepgear returned to the café. The girls were surprised that the owner wasn’t upset with them. “I’m just glad you two are okay. Please. None of this stuff is worth chasing a thief down over. If something get’s stolen, just let me know.”

“We will. Sorry.” Uni said, bowing.

“Sorry.” Said Nepgear, bowing as well.

Uni and Nepgear finished their work and headed back home. Once Uni opened the front door, she nearly screamed. Standing on the opposite side of that door was Noire and Neptune. Both girls wore a worried look on their faces.

“UNI!” Noire cried, throwing her arms around her sister and hugging her close to her chest. “What happened! Tell me everything right now!”

Neptune smiled warmly at her sister. “You had a pretty hard day today, huh Nep Jr.?” Neptune asked. “Well come here!” Neptune held out her arms and Nepgear happily slid into them.

After that, Nepgear and Uni took their time telling their sisters everything that happened to them. At the very end the girls story left their sisters completely speechless. “That’s nuts!” Neptune said, finally breaking the silence.

“That doesn’t even cover half of it.” Noire said, angrily. “I don’t’ know who this G person is, but I’m going to squash them!” The girl roared with rage.

“That robot’s name was really weird too. Why call it a CPU Killer?” Asked Neptune. “I mean, does this guy hate the CPU’s or something?”

“No idea.” Nepgear said, shaking her head. “All I know is that he’s planning on building another robot sometime in the future.”

“He might actually have one already built.” Uni suggested.

“That’s true.” Said Nepgear. “I don’t know what we should do. I mean, we have to activate the rest of the Fairy Towers, but we can’t exactly leave G alone either.”

Noire closed her eyes and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “We don’t have to worry about this G person. As much as I would like to stomp him into the ground until nothing’s left and then-”

“Keep it wholesome Noire.” Neptune said.

“And then… give him a stern lecture. We don’t have the right to keep this to ourselves. We need to report this to the Basilicom immediately.” And with that, Noire made her way over to the phone. Noire spoke to someone on the other end for several moments before returning to everyone else. “The Basilicom said they’re sending someone over here to take statements… Hey girls?” Noire began.

“What’s up big sis?” Uni asked, worried that a lecture was coming.

“What would you two like to eat for dinner tonight? We can stay here, or go out if you want.”

Neptune quickly scampered behind Nepgear. “Pudding!” Neptune said, mimicking her sisters voice. “What Nepgear said, pudding!” Neptune said, moving behind Uni and mimicking her voice next.

“I’m asking our sisters who had a really rough day.” Noire said, annoyed.

“Fine…” Neptune said, sighing deeply.

“Oh… I want meat!” Uni said.

“That sounds good.” Said Nepgear. “Thanks Noire.”

Noire smiled at both her sisters. “I just hope the person they send get here-” Before Noire could finish speaking, the sound of someone knocking on their front door interrupted her. “That should be them.” Noire said.

“I got it!” Neptune said, running over to the door and opening it up. To Neptune’s surprise, two girls dressed in black stood in front of her. “Uh Noire? These two look kind of like Purple Heart.”

Noire gasped. “Lady Black Heart and Lady Black Sister!” Noire cried. Noire ran to the door and pushed Neptune aside. “My ladies! Please come in!” Noire said, bowing.

“Thank you.” Lady Black Heart said, stepping into the house. “Please call me Black Heart.”

“Call me Black Sister.” Black Sister said.

Black Heart scanned the room. “So you four must be Noire, Uni, Neptune and Nepgear. Correct?” Black Heart asked.

“Whoa!” Neptune said, who was lying flat on the ground. “You  already know who we are? Are we famous? No autographs without a payment of pudding.”

“Shut up Neptune!” Noire said, under her breath. “Get off the floor too. These two are the leaders of Lastation!”

“You’re not famous.” Black Heart said. “Histoire has been in contact with me through my dreams. She asked us to keep an eye on you four. I told her I was far too busy to baby-sit, but she insisted.”

“I see. That was very kind of her.” Noire said.

Neptune slowly got off the ground. “Noire is all business all the time, but I think Black Heart could totally beat her in the game of business.” Neptune thought. “I better not voice that or else they both might kill me.”

“We both apologize. We should have introduced ourselves much sooner.” Said Black Heart.

“I don’t see why we should have bothered. I have enough to worry about.” Black Sister said. “First I have quests to complete in order to get my sisters approval, which never happens, so I’m always doing quests.”

“We’ll discuss that later at an appropriate time.” Black Heart said, her tone of voice never changed.

“Fine. I’ll make an appointment with your secretary. Sure you can get to me in a few years, right?” Black Sister asked, annoyed.

“Anyways. We heard about an incident that took place in Lastation. Please let us know exactly what happened.” Said Black Heart.

“And make it quick. I’m about to kill some Horsebird monsters and I’m sure this will finally get my sister to love me.” Said Black Sister.

“Okay…” Nepgear said, taken aback by what Black Sister was saying. “Anyways, this all started earlier this morning.” Nepgear began. Nepgear told Black Heart and Black Sister everything that happened to them and didn’t leave anything out. “And that’s everything that happened.”

“The robots are what bothered me.” Noire said. “I was worried that this G person might attempt to attack one of you next.”

“Like a stupid robot could kill my overpowered big sister who doesn’t love me.” Black Sister said. “What kind of citizen would think that badly of their CPU?”

“No.” Noire said, shaking her head. “I didn’t mean-”

“Ignore her.” Black Heart said, cutting Noire off. “I appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We’ll start looking into finding this G and Pirachu person. Well rat.”

“Thank you.” Noire said.

Black Heart turned to her sister who looked like she had more to say. “We need to go. Prioritize finding these two individuals, understand?” Black Heart said.

Black Sister grumbled loudly. “If I manage to find them, will you be proud?”

“No.” Black Heart said.

Black Sister grumbled even louder than before. “Fine. I’ll do it anyways.” She said, and with those words the two sisters headed outside.

Neptune rubbed the place between her eyebrows. “That was… Weird… Right?”

“Yeah.” Noire said, nodding with agreement. “It almost felt like an extreme version of us. Huh Uni?”

“Yeah.” Uni said.

“Well let’s think about that later! Time to eat!” Neptune said. “I’m starving for pudding!”

Nepgear giggled. “You’re always hungry for pudding.” She said. “Though after everything we’ve been through, I feel like eating something sweet too.”

Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 39

 The following day Uni made her way downstairs to get started on breakfast. Uni couldn’t sleep well the previous night, but thanks to her sister, she was finally able to get a little sleep. “I want to show my gratitude to sis and make breakfast for us.” Uni thought, making her way into the kitchen.

“Oh.” Said Uni. To Uni’s dismay, Nepgear was already in the kitchen cooking breakfast fore everyone.

Nepgear turned and smiled warmly at Uni. “Good morning Uni. How did you sleep?”

“Uh… Good.” Said Uni.

Nepgear noticed that Uni wasn’t really that happy. “Uh-oh. Did something happen?” She asked.

Uni shook her head. “No. Nothing like that. I was just hoping to make breakfast for everyone. That’s all.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.” Nepgear said, folding her hands together. “How about you make breakfast for everyone tomorrow?” She offered.

Uni nodded. “Yeah. That sounds good.”

Nepgear nodded, before turning back to the stove. “Anyways. I was giving it some thought and I think I’m going to lone Neptune my N-Gear.” Nepgear said, as she poked at the eggs she was frying in a pan. “I have a feeling that your sister and mine are probably going to deal with all the Fairy Towers in Lastation.”

“That’s a good idea.” Said Uni, as she made her way to a nearby cabinet. After taking down some plates and grabbing some silverware, Uni carried the items to the table and sat them down.

“Nepgear.” Uni began. “Do you actually mind working with me on quests? You’re not feeling forced into it, are you?”

“No. Not at all.” Nepgear said, shaking her head.

“That’s good.” Said Uni.

Once Nepgear had finished making breakfast for everyone. Neptune and Noire made their way into the kitchen. “Neptune?” Nepgear began. “I wanted to lone you my N-Gear.” Nepgear said, handing the device over to Neptune.

“Thanks Nepgear! I promise I won’t download any games for it. Except any cool ones.” Said Neptune.

Nepgear winced when she heard her sister say that. “Um… Please use it to get updates on the Fairy Towers in Lastation.” Said Nepgear, hoping that her sister wouldn’t download a bunch of apps on it.

“Don’t worry Nepgear. I’ll make sure she doesn’t break it.” Noire said, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“Huh? I would never break my sisters stuff!” Neptune said. “It’s not my fault if IF accidentally spilt a bunch of pudding in her favorite console, or if Compa used one of her shirts to clean it up.”

“Huh?” Nepgear said, confused.

“Oops. I mean. They might get lazy and do that. It’s not guaranteed.” Said Neptune.

“Hey Neptune? Are you sure you’re the older sister?” Asked Noire. Neptune didn’t answer. Instead she looked away from everyone and started whistling nonchalantly. “Anyways. Neptune and I will go out and get the information on the next Fairy Tower. Depending on how far away it is, will determine when we leave. We’ll also take on some quests as well.”

“Nepgear and I are going to do some quests as well! Right Nepgear?” Uni asked.

Nepgear nodded. “That’s right.” She said, smiling.

“Thanks Nepgear.” Said Noire. “I’m glad I can always depend on you Uni. Also it’s nice to know that I can count on at least one girl who’s name begins with Nep.”

Uni blushed a little. “Of course you can depend on me.”

“You’re welcome.” Said Nepgear.

“Boo!” Said Neptune.

After the girls finished their breakfasts, they headed outside and made their way to the guild where they could all take on quests. “It looks like were going in opposite directions.” Noire said, looking at the quests she held in her hands. “Hunting monsters, gathering herbs.”

“Yeah. Were moving things for someone.” Said Noire, looking at the quest she excepted. “It pays nice at least.”

“Well have fun you three.” Neptune said, looking at the quest paper she held. “Looks like someone wants to test out a new flavor of pudding and-” Neptune began, but Noire cut her off.

“You’re hunting monsters with me.” Noire said, grabbing Neptune’s hand and dragging her awya. “Let’s go!”

“No!” Neptune cried, but she didn’t try to fight back.

Nepgear groaned with embarrassment. “Sis…” She muttered, under her breath.

“Well Nepgear? Ready to get going?” Asked Uni.

Nepgear nodded and followed after Uni. The two girls made their way down the streets of Lastation. As they walked, Nepgear couldn’t help but think about the quest they had taken on. “I’m a little surprised that someone went to the guild to post a quest asking for help to move things. Normally people want help fighting monsters or gathering items.”

“Yeah it’s unusual, but the pay is good.” Said Uni.

The two girls finally reached the café where they  would be moving items for the owner. The café wasn’t very large, but the outside was filled with wooden crates and other types of boxes.

“Hello?” Uni said, stepping up to the café’s front door.

“Hello.” A woman called back. The woman walked around the counter and stood in front of the two girls.

“Hi ma’am. Were from the guild. Were here to help you with your quest.” Said Uni, handing the paper over to the woman.

The woman looked down at the paper and smiled. “Awesome. I was a little worried no one would want to help me.” She said.

“Were happy to help.” Said Uni. “Just tell us where you need everything placed.”

“Will do.” Said the woman.
 
After Uni and Nepgear spoke to the woman for a few moments, they began moving the boxes inside. The boxes weren’t very heavy thanks to the girls high strength stats. “You two are pretty strong. I couldn’t possibly move most of those boxes myself.” The woman began.

“Some of these are pretty heavy.” Said Nepgear, as she carried a wooden crate around the counter and placed it down in front of several cabinets. After that she headed back outside and was about to grab another crate, when she stopped.

At first Nepgear couldn’t understand what she was looking at. A small rodent like creature was holding a box over it’s head and it was staring straight at her.   

“Who are you?” Asked Nepgear.

“Me?” The rodent began. “I’m… Nobody chu!”

“Well what are you doing with that box?” Asked Nepgear.

Uni suddenly walked out of the shop. “Nepgear? Did something-” Uni began, before she spotted the rodent. “Hey!” She snapped, pointing a stern finger at the rodent.

“Oh crap! I gotta go chu!” The rodent said, turning and running away as fast as possible.

“Come back here thief!” Uni cried, as she started chasing after the rodent.

“Uni! Wait!” Nepgear cried, as she started running after Uni.

Uni didn’t stop. Instead she picked up her pace and continued running after the rodent. As she ran, the girl could hear the creature saying something to itself, but she couldn’t hear everything it was saying.

Uni chased the rodent down long alleyways, she leapt over trashcans in her pursuit of the creature. After several long moments of running, the rodent soon found itself staring at a wall blocking its path. “Oh great chu!” The creature said. The rodent turned and saw Uni and Nepgear standing before it. Uni wore an angry look on her face.

“Give that back now!” Uni ordered.

“Sorry chump, but I can’t do that.” The creature said.

“Um… Who are you?” Nepgear asked, standing a few feet away from Uni.

“My name’s Pirachu and I was hired to bring you two here!” Pirachu said.

Uni and Nepgear blinked their eyes several times. “What do you-” Uni began, but before she could finish speaking, the ground beneath their feet gave way and the two girls fell into darkness.

***

When the lights came on. Nepgear and Noire saw where they had landed. The two girls were lying side-by-side on a large cushion that was set up to break their fall. The room they were in wasn’t very big, but the walls, floor and ceiling were made of metal. “Where are we?” Uni asked, sitting up.

“No idea.” Said Nepgear, nervously. “Where did Pirachu go?”

Uni groaned loudly as she glanced up at the ceiling. “Still up there. We fell for a little while, hit a slide and then fell into this room, right? If he fell with us, he’d be in here with us.”

“That’s true.” Said Nepgear, getting to her feet. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.” Nepgear grabbed Uni’s hand and helped her off the cushion. After that the two girls made their way to a nearby door.

“Can you unlock it?” Uni asked, as she watched Nepgear try to pull the door open.

“No.” Said Nepgear, shaking her head. “If I had my N-Gear I could hack the door open, but…”

“Right.” Said Uni, sighing deeply.

“There’s no reason to hack the door.” Came a voice overhead.

“Who’s there?” Uni demanded.

“My name doesn’t matter, but if you had to call me anything, call me G.” Said the voice.

“G?” Said Uni. “Why are we here?”

“I wanted your help with a little experiment.” Said G. “I hired that rodent to help me lead you two here.”

“What kind of experiment?” Nepgear asked.

“Just a little battle test. You see, I’m developing a powerful robot and I need to see if you two can defeat it.” Said G.

“And if we say no?” Asked Uni.

G chuckled. “Well you can say no, but that’s not going to help you. Once those doors open, my robot will be unleashed. So good luck!”

“Wait!” Nepgear cried out. “Why us?”

G didn’t answer right away and the two girls wondered if he ever would. They stood watching the door for several long moments wondering what was going to happen next. “Sorry about that.” G said, breaking his silence. “I needed to type in a code there. Anyways, the reason I’ve chosen the both of you is simple. I know who you two are. You and your sisters are activating the Fairy Tower’s correct?”

“How did you know?” Nepgear asked .

“Simple. I saw you and your sister activate the first Fairy Tower outside of Lastation. Yesterday I hacked the security cameras in the west part of Lastation and saw your sisters activate the second one. Their abilities are impressive and I’d rather test my robot out on them instead, but beggars can’t be choosers.”

“Great.” Uni said, rolling her eyes. “It’s nice to know that you consider us sloppy seconds.”

“Not sloppy. I have no doubt this fight will yield some great data.” Said G. “And with that said! Let’s get started!” And with those words, the door to the room opened. Located outside the small room, was a much larger room.

“This is freaky.” Uni said, glancing nervously around the enormous room. “What’s going on Nepgear? I don’t like this at all.”

“I don’t either Uni, but look.” Nepgear said, pointing towards the left side of the room. “There’s a door over there. I think we can get it open if we use our weapons.”

“Alright. Let’s do it.” Uni said, as she summoned her rifle.

Nepgear summoned two energy swords, instead of just one. “Alright, let’s go.” Said Nepgear. The two girls quickly crossed the room and were soon standing in front of the door. “Could you hold this for me?” Nepgear asked, handing one of her energy swords over to Uni.

“Sure.” Uni said, taking the sword. “I was wondering what you were planning. I didn’t think you were the dual wielding type.”

“No. I’m going to try and force the door open by overloading it. I hate using my sword like this, but if it means getting out.” And with that, Nepgear activated her energy sword and cut open the panel located near the door. “Alright. Now I need to…” Nepgear turned her eyes towards the middle of the room. “Oh goodness…”

Uni turned and gasped. Located in the middle of the room was an enormous robot. “Don’t tell me you forgot about the robot.” Said G. “This robot was built for the sole purpose of killing the goddesses. It’s name is CPU Killer.”   

Neptunia Heart Souls- CHAPTER 38

 “Oh yeah!” Neptune began, suddenly perking up. Neptune smiled brightly as she turned towards Noire. “You said this place was filled with bandits, right? I almost forgot about them!”

“That’s true.” Said Noire.

“No. She’s not a-” Histoire began, but Linda cut her off.

“Why don’t you two shut the hell up.” Linda said, as she pointed at Neptune with her pipe. “You think you can just wander into my territory and do whatever the hell you want? I don’t think so.”

“Your territory?” Noire began, as she placed her left hand on her hip. “The last time I checked this place still belonged to Lastation.”

“Really?” Linda said, giggling. “Did you hear that Pirachu? I guess I was wrong! This place belongs to Lastation.”  Linda giggled even harder. “Yeah, these two are delusional.” Said Linda.

“Pirachu?” Noire muttered, under her breath.

“Do you know who that is?” Asked Neptune, in a low voice.

“No. I also don’t see anyone else here.” Noire said, scanning the area behind Linda. “Anyways. You need to get out of our way, or else.”

Linda’s smile vanished, her eyes narrowed at Noire. “Or else what?” Linda asked, in a voice that threatened to cut Noire down.

Noire aimed the tip of her rapier at Linda. “Or else were going to have to hurt you, though I’d rather not fight a human though.”

“Well… Don’t let that bother you!” Linda screamed, as she rushed towards Noire as fast as she could and once she was close enough, swung her metal pole. Noire parried the first attack and ran quickly to the left as Linda swung her pole again and again. Noire dodged left and right, avoiding each attack by mere inches.

“You little-!” Linda began, as she raised her metal pole high over her head and brought it down hard.

Noire quickly dodged the attack and ran around Linda. “Know it off.” Noire said, as she jumped back several feet.

“Noire! Nep her up already!” Neptune said, as she started punching the air with her free hand.

“No.” Noire said, shaking her head. “Look at her.”

Neptune looked at Linda like Noire asked and noticed exactly what Noire had. Linda was strong, but her movements were slow. Not only that, but Linda was also sweating and breathing hard. “She’s exhausted already?” Neptune said, confused.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you two. Linda arrived her about a month ago. At first she was accompanied by another individual, but I haven’t seen him in a while. As for Linda, she’s been fighting for her life the entire time and hasn’t slept since she arrived.” Said Histoire.

“You’re kidding. That’s impossible.” Noire said. “She’s been here since last month, right?”

“That’s correct.” Said Histoire.

“So you’re tell me that this girl hasn’t slept in thirty-one days?” Asked Noire.

Histoire nodded once more. “Yes. I’ve had to increase the healing effects from the Fairy Tower in order to keep her alive, but the tower was never built to keep people awake for that long of time.”

“That’s nuts dude! I would die if I didn’t get at least sixteen hours of sleep each day!” Neptune said.

“Shut up!” Linda cried, the girl was breathing hard. “I don’t need your pity! I need you-” Linda stopped taking and turned her head towards the left. “What? Alright! I’ll let you take care of them then!” Linda said, giggling evilly.

Noire and Neptune watched as Linda ran to the left side of the room and vanished into the shadows for a moment, before they heard the sound of something heavy being dragged along the floor.

“Uh-oh… Something big is coming!” Neptune cried.

“No. No it’s not.” Histoire said, sighing deeply.

A moment later a cinderblock was pushed into the light. The cinderblock had a face drawn on it in red paint. Moments later Linda appeared standing next to the rock. “I hope you two are ready to die!” Linda said, pointing at Noire. “Get them Pirachu!” Linda cried.

It felt like all the noise had been sucked out of the room at that point. Linda watched the cinderblock with a large smile on her face, while Neptune, Noire and Histoire stood there wondering if anything would actually happen.

“Yeah! You’re doing it Pirachu!” Linda said, as tears welled up in her eyes. “You’re beating them!”

“Um…” Neptune began.

“You can’t talk!” Linda snapped, pointing a stern finger at Neptune. “Pirachu just kicked your head off! So you can’t talk!”

“Oh! Sorry!” Neptune said, surprised.

“Neptune can’t talk? I think I like this Pirachu.” Said Noire, smiling mischievously. Neptune narrowed her eyes at Noire as she groaned under her breath.

“Unfortunately this is what I was trying to warn you about. This place was at one time filled with bandits, but those bandits have long since moved on. Linda has been alone this entire time with no one to talk to. If I could have kept her company I would have. I would have told Linda how to escape, but I was unable to. To make matters worse, thanks to the monsters roaming around here Linda has been unable to get any sleep, her mental faculties have suffered quite a bit.” Said Histoire.

“Why didn’t she just leave?” Asked Neptune.

“If I had to guess. She and this Pirachu probably came in a different way and now that way is unavailable to her.” Said Noire.

“Huh. So what should we do now?” Asked Neptune.

“Let’s take her with us.” Said Noire. “We’ll drop her off at the hospital.” And with those words, Noire made her way over to Linda who was still watching the cinderblock with a goofy smile on her face.

“Be careful Noire!” Neptune cried.

“It’s fine. I’m sure Pirachu killed me already.” Said Noire, as she grabbed Linda’s hand and bent down. Moments later Noire stood with Linda draped over her shoulder. “Alright. Let’s go.”

“Right. Thanks for everything Histoire!” Neptune said.

“It as my pleasure. Please take good care of Linda.” Said Histoire, waving goodbye to the girls.

“Should I bring that thing?” Neptune asked, gesturing towards the cinderblock.

“No. Leave it behind Neptune. I need you to keep us safe until we reach the wall where we came in. Okay?” Said Noire.

“I’m on it!” Neptune said, running ahead of Noire and Linda.

Even though it was tricky, Neptune managed to keep Noire and Linda safe and only had to deal with a few monsters and robots that got in their way. Soon the girls were making their way through Lastation.

“We did it Pirachu. We took out the goddess and now Lastation is ours!” Linda said, dreamily.

“Uh-oh. Looks like she just conquered Lastation.” Said Neptune, fighting back her laughter.

“Yeah. She’s going to need some rest.” Said Noire.

Noire and Neptune managed to get Linda to the hospital. “Take good care of her.” Said Noire, watching as the doctors wheeled Linda through a set of swinging doors. “Well I guess we should head back home.”

“Yep. We did good out there Noire. I was a little worried about you considering you’re not as strong as me, but…” Neptune began.

“Oh please. I was the one who was worried. I thought you’d keel over the moment you realized they weren’t serving any pudding over there.” Said Noire.

Neptune and Noire stared at one another until they both burst into laughter. “Geesh Noire! When did you get a sense of humor?”

“Since I met you.” Said Noire. “Come on. We’ve had a long day so let’s go home.”

“Nice!” Neptune said.

Neptune and Noire walked side-by-side as they made their way back to Noire’s home. As they walked, the girls wondered where the next Fairy Tower would take them. “Oh boy… I just remembered. We didn’t get the information on the next Fairy Tower from Histoire.” Said Neptune. “To be honest. I really don’t want to go back through that factory.”

“It’s alright. I’m sure Histoire shares information between the Fairy Towers. We’ll just ask the one outside of Lastation.” Said Noire, matter-of-factly.

“Good idea! Gee Noire! You’re a super genius.” Said Neptune.

“I know.” Said Noire, smiling proudly.

“But you’re not as smart as my baby sister. She must have gotten all the brains in our family.” Said Neptune, sighing deeply.

“I agree.” Said Noire.

“Hey!” Neptune said, annoyed. “Don’t agree with me when I put myself down! It’s not nice.”

Noire giggled. “Sorry Neptune, but I believe in telling the truth.”

When Neptune and Noire reached the house. Neptune ran to the couch and plopped herself down. “Time to game!” Neptune said, grabbing a controller and turning on the television.

“Neptune…” Noire began.

“Wait.” Neptune said, holding up her hand. “I respect that this is Uni’s console so I asked her first and she gave me permission.”

“I know that, but I was hoping you’d help me clean up around here. If you don’t help me, Nepgear and Uni is going to have to help me.” Said Noire, as she opened a closet door and pulled out a broom. “We shouldn’t always rely on our sisters to take care of us. Sometimes we need to take care of them.”

Neptune groaned loudly. “Noire… I hate when you make sense.” Neptune said, as she begrudgingly got off the couch and headed over to her friend. “Fine, fine. I’ll sweep up in here.”

“Thank you.” Noire said. “I’ll take care of the upstairs. You’ll see. Cleaning will go by pretty fast if we both work together. I’ll make dinner for us when I get done. Alright?”

“Right.” Neptune said, sadly.

After Noire finished speaking, she grabbed another broom and headed upstairs. At first, Neptune thought about doing a sweeping the floors for a few moments, before returning to her game. However, as she started sweeping the floor she started to focus more on that instead.

Neptune slowly made her way around the floor. She moved chairs, moved the table and soon had a smile pile of dirt ready to be swept up into a pan. After that she briskly moved around the living room sweeping around the couch. “This isn’t so bad.” Neptune thought.

The door to the house suddenly opened and Nepgear and Uni appeared. “Big sister?” Nepgear began. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

“Huh?” Neptune said, confused.

“You’re sweeping! Did something happen?” Nepgear asked.

Uni’s eyes went wide when she realized that Noire wasn’t in the room. “My big sister? Did something happen to her?” Uni asked, as she flew out of the room screaming Noire’s name.

“Whoa! What happened?” Neptune asked, surprised.

“That’s what I need to know! Did something happen to Noire when you both went to activate the Fairy Tower?” Nepgear asked, her eyes were filled with fear.

“Huh? No!” Neptune said, shaking her head. “I mean we ran into some monsters and a crazy girl, but that was it!”

“Crazy girl?” Nepgear asked, furrowing her brow.

A few moments later Noire and Uni walked into the living room. Uni was hugging Noire’s arm tightly to her chest. “N-Neptune you jerk!” Uni sobbed. “I thought my sister was dead!”

“Neptune!” Noire said, angrily. “Just because I asked you to sweep doesn’t give you the right to tell my little sister that I died!”

Neptune didn’t say anything. Instead she groaned loudly before turning her eyes back to the floor where she started sweeping some more. “Actually…” Nepgear began. “I’m at fault here. I was shocked to see my sister sweeping, so I thought something might have happened. I’m sorry.”

“Oh… I see…” Noire said, sighing deeply. Noire patting Uni’s arm as she turned her eyes to Neptune. “It’s so rare to see you clean that your sister naturally thought something horrible must have happened.”

“Sweep, sweep. All I do is sweep.” Neptune said, turning away from the girls.

“Sorry Neptune.” Noire said. “Anyways Nepgear? Can you do me a favor and play some video games with Uni? I’m going to finish sweeping upstairs and get started on dinner. Okay?”

“Sure.” Nepgear said, smiling nervously. “I’m sorry as well.”

“Big sis…” Uni began.

“It’s alright Uni. I had Neptune with me so I was fine.” Said Noire.

“Okay.” Uni said, nodding. Uni reluctantly released her grip on Noire’s arm, before she wandered over to where Nepgear was standing. Uni’s cheeks were bright red with embarrassment. “Neptune? I’m sorry I called you a jerk.”  

Neptune giggled. “Oh don’t worry about it. I’m sure I had it coming.”

***

Later that night Uni found it impossible for her to get any sleep. Even though she didn’t want to admit it, she was worried about her sister for the last couple of days. Even though Noire is the strongest girl she knew, Uni still couldn’t help but worry about her. Today the flood gates finally opened and she released all of those feelings, but she still found it difficult to sleep.

Sitting up in bed, Uni threw her blankets off of her and carefully crossed her room to her door. Uni had to make sure she didn’t accidentally kick or step on Nepgear who was sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor.

Gently opened her door she stepped into the hallway and into her sisters room. Now Uni was standing over her big sister. “Noire?” Uni breathed.

“Hmm?” Noire began, opening her eyes. “What’s wrong Uni?”

“I can’t sleep.” Uni began. “Can I sleep with you?” Noire didn’t say anything. Instead she slid over and pulled back the blankets. Uni smiled brightly as she climbed into her sisters bed. “Thanks big sis.”

“You’re welcome. Get some sleep Uni.” Noire said, before drifting back off to sleep.

“Goodnight big sister.” Uni breathed, before she too fell into a deep relaxing sleep.