Only Human (Goddess of Victory NIKKE SI)

[Dasneaky]

I can see why red hood is jelly goddamn words don't do that grill justice.

 

[Dasneaky]

Baka starting to go into withdrawal......you okay baka been awhile since we heard anything from you?

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 54 - Silver Bullet
===

"Joe, my office," Andersen gave the Commander of Goddess a firm order. Motioning for the younger man to follow him resolutely.

"Uh, yeah, sure-" the burly long-haired figure moved to comply, though he found it difficult to do so, given the… particular, distressingly soft and supple figure weighing down his arm. "...Ellie, if I could have my arm back…"

"No, I'm using it," Cinderella asserted pointedly, firmly clinging to the man's arm with a self-satisfied grin stretched across her gentle features.

"Relinquish the Commander's arm, Cinderella," Andersen said with a surprising amount of uncharacteristic authority.

"No-" the silverette began to pout…

"That's an order, soldier," the young woman's father pointedly commanded her, his typically jovial tone entirely absent.

That visibly caught Cinderella off guard, and it took her a moment to warily comply, looking more than a little put off by her father's tone, but being very aware of the fact that he was her commanding officer, and disobedience would put her in hot water. Thus, the tiny Nikke backed off, releasing Joe's arm - as displeased as she seemed about it.

"The rest of you," Andersen continued, looking over Cinderella's head to acknowledge the squad, all of whom were in various states of amusement and/or annoyance at the new girl's behaviour. "Show Cinderella around the Avenger. This being our effective home for the foreseeable future, it would be best if she learns her way around sooner rather than later."

"Understood," Liliweiss nodded, stepping forward to take control of the situation. "Cinderella, come with us, we'll start off with the mess hall. Snow White looks ready to start gnawing on the handrails," she asserted playfully.

"We got rushed out to the deck of the ship so quickly!" Snow White asserted with a heavy pout. "It's not my fault I'm still hungry!"

Rapunzel reached out and gently patted the squad's youngest on the head with a contented smile on her face, the rest looking somewhat entertained by the group's designated little sister's behaviour.

Cinderella, meanwhile, looked more than a little conflicted by Liliweiss taking charge. Understandably enough, given how Liliweiss and Andersen were an item - and Liliweiss was pointedly not Cinderella's mother. Yet, being the first Nikke, she was immediately afforded no small amount of respect most others didn't receive by default.

From their previous talks, Joe had gathered that Cinderella's feelings on Liliweiss were complicated, to say the least.

"Go on, Handsome," Red Hood waved Joe and Andersen off. "We'll go ahead and make sure Daddy's Girl is good and settled in while the Big Boss and you hash out your grand strategy stuff. That and make sure she understands how things work around here, and how the hierarchy for who gets the Commander's attention works too. She'll learn quick enough that she's third and get out of your hair lickity-split!"

"Wait, 'third?'" Dorothy turned, brows furrowing as she turned to look confusedly at Red Hood. "-Oh for-! The Commander and I are not in a relationship, you brainless gorilla!" The elegant pinkette sharply stepped towards the redhead, indignation awash over her features. "And- Wait, who would even be first and second in this imaginary scenario you've concocted!?"

"Hm, I wonder…" Red Hood made a show of picking her ear, a cat-like smug grin spreading across her unpainted lips at the chance to stir shit arising. "I don't gotta say, right? I mean, it's super obvious, isn't it?"

"And just what is that supposed to mean!?" Dorothy pressed on, glowering angrily with flaring nostrils at the pleather-bound redhead, the two at eye-level parity on account of Red Hood's taller heels. "You presumptive little-!"

"What're you even getting all worked up about?" Red Hood wondered aloud, a shit-eating grin stretching ear-to-ear as she replied. "I thought you ain't in a relationship with him anyways…"

"I lay claim to the winner of the upcoming and inevitable duel!" Scarlet interjected herself in the budding conflict, making a thrusting motion with her outstretched hand, as if to present an unseen sword for emphasis. "Our battle shall be legendary!"

"Uh oh, Handsome's suddenly got competition?" Red Hood sounded halfway between scandalized and elated. "And of all challengers to arise too!"

"That is not what she meant and you know it!" Dorothy set her hands on her hips, leaning forward aggressively towards Red Hood. "Cease with these puerile and perverse presumptions of yours at once! Why must everything come back to base intercourse with you!?"

"Good question…" Snow White grumbled, glowering childishly up at Red Hood, visibly unimpressed by her elder's horndog nature.

Rapunzel, meanwhile, had simply gone as red as a beet, and was attempting to appear wholly uninterested in the ongoing topic… as none of them noticed that Liliweiss had moved to direct an increasingly bushwhacked Cinderella down the hall and away from Gooness Squad, going in the opposite direction which Joe and Andersen had departed in as well.

Quickly enough, the Commander and High Commander were indeed in Andersen's weeb cave of an office. The man's personal computer adorned with anime girl stickers, his mouse pad being a soft anime girl booty pad, and no small amount of plastic models from various franchises littering the room. The area was well-lit by powerful ceiling lights, with the typical small, porthole windows granting a minor view of the Earth below.

"Sit," Andersen directed Joe as he himself moved to drop into his own chair, settling his elbows upon the desk's top.

Having little reason to be insubordinate, the Canuck claimed one of the seats also rated for Nikkes across from the High Commander. "Alright, what is it?" he inquired.

Andersen visibly hesitated, kneading his knuckles as he contemplated whatever it was he intended to say. After some time, he did eventually take a deep breath and a nod. "I haven't been a good father to Ellie," he began. "Goes without saying that I could have been a better husband to her late mother as well, but… I intend to make it up to my daughter as best I can right here and now, every minute of every day. I'm not going to neglect her again, just dump money in a bank account and expect her to handle herself while I'm off directing Andersen Solutions on the other side of the world…"

He referenced the paramilitary company he commanded, which Joe was currently a part of.

Andersen continued. "That starts with me making damn sure that the man I entrust her to understands the importance of protecting her smile, of making her the happiest girl in the world. She deserves the entire world, and while I know that you're a damn good man, probably one of the best I've ever met, Joe… I still need to make one thing very, very clear-"

"Um…" Joe raised a halting hand, a small sheen rapidly building on his forehead at the topic of discussion. "I, uh, okay, look, I get that I'm probably totally misunderstanding here, since I'm a dense idiot and everything, but… uh, my guy, the way you're talking right now…" he nervously adjusted his collar. "You're almost making it sound like you're handing me Ellie's hand in marriage or something, dude." The Commander trailed off with an anxious, almost wheezing laugh.

Silence reigned between the two for an uncomfortable amount of time.

With Joe's pulse quickening, he spoke up again, "...A-Andersen…?" He inquired, almost ready to panic.

In response, Andersen opened his desk's drawer, retrieving a large hunting knife from within and calmly depositing it onto the fine wood surface sitting between the two mercenaries. "If you ever make my daughter cry, this is the knife I will use to cut off your dick and balls. Am I understood, soldier?"

…Ah.

Shit.

---

"That's going to be a problem," Dorothy declared as she gazed upon the holographic display showing the Rapture horde which had built up what looked to be a defensive force, blocking the UFH's forward progress towards the Orbital Elevator.

This was, of course, expected. South and Central America were wholly lost to mankind, with Mexico being well on its way to being conquered just the same—though an attempt was made to hold the line, the line was being shifted further and further north every day. The results of that were shown here. The line had drifted far, in the relatively short time frame Goddess had taken to pick up Cinderella. Dorothy was loath to see the territory lost, though she never took it particularly well to witness loss.

Some time after Cinderella had joined, the Avenger had made its way south from Montana, needless to say.

"Nah," Andersen countered Dorothy's declaration.

"What?" Dorothy glanced up at the older man, brows knitting in no small amount of confusion.

"Bet," the High Commander asserted further, turning to face Joe and Liliweiss. "Commander, Lilith. Prepare to deploy. I think it's time to put our newest squadmate through her paces."

As Cinderella visibly braced herself off to the side, the Commander of Goddess and his second-in-command both nodded in acknowledgement of the order. "Lilith," Joe began, "Get the MP Nikkes ready."

"To be deployed?" Liliweiss coyly inquired, a knowing smile widely featured upon her face.

"To bear witness," Joe declared, meeting her smile with a grin of his own, spinning on his heel and marching off, the gathered members of Goddess, Scarlet in particular, looking more than a little intrigued by the unspoken assertion. "Make sure we've got cameras on the battlefield too, Andersen! On me, girls!"

"Of course!" The High Commander loudly and proudly asserted with a great toothy smile. "We'll make damned sure the world sees what's about to unfold!" Turning to his daughter, Andersen declared, "Now go! Rekindle the embers! Forge a new legend for mankind to look up to!"

Cinderella, for her part, was visibly filled with anxious anticipation, rushing forth to catch up with Joe, breathing deep in preparation for what was to come. This was what she had joined for, and she could only hope that her purpose would be fulfilled. That she would give humanity hope.

---

The horizon burned. The front line had been driven back, the assorted forces that had been set to hold the line all stood in no small amount of horror, yet still, with budding awe and hope.

Joe, adorned in slim-fitted flak armour as his pilot's suit, loomed tall over the thousands of men in the immediate vicinity, arms crossed as he stood in the open cockpit of the Hoplon mech he'd been assigned for the operation. Nothing special, no ace custom—just one of many machines which were used in a desperate attempt to give unaltered humans the means to directly combat the Rapture threat. Behind them, was the company of Mass-Produced Nikkes whose purpose was to support Goddess in their battles.

Before him, stood the Goddesses of Victory, facing humanity's encroaching doom with grim determination. Weapons at the ready, bravely showing that they did not fear the Raptures. They were strong. They were unbending. They were indomitable. The many men and women standing at their backs, ashen-faced, gaunt, beaten and bloody, tens of thousands in their number, clinging to inadequate weapons and armour, were understandably uncertain of the promise of victory. They had been driven so far back, they'd witnessed South and Central America fall, and now, so far as they were concerned, were cursed with front-row seats to the inevitable loss of Mexico too.

They would learn.

As was the plan, Joe activated his comms, projecting his voice to each and every soldier, near and far, that had fought tooth and nail to hold the line and grant Goddess the chance to join them. "Soldiers of the United Forces of Humanity," he began, opting to keep this short and sweet. "You have fought long and hard. Day in, day out, against the greatest threat our species has ever faced. Day in, day out, you have been asked to sacrifice everything you have, every piece of yourself, to grant mankind just one more moment, one more day, in hopes of a miracle emerging from the dark…" Pausing for dramatic effect, he then declared, "Well on this day, I ask only one thing of each and every one of you: bear witness to a miracle."

With that, Joe motioned to Cinderella, turning his palm upwards, and raising it, as if to beckon her to take to the sky.

At the silvery white Nikke's sides, the cases containing her weapons, the Glass Slippers, popped open. Four great metallic devices polished to a chromed, mirror sheen, looking the part of massive technological shields drifted upwards as if with minds of their own. The common soldiers blanched at the sight, seeing the seemingly unorthodox weapons hovering, then moving to form around Cinderella, almost looking the part of great, folded wings.

Then, with a broad smile, Cinderella obeyed Joe's command. Heels first, then by her toes, did she rise. By centimetres, then inches. Then feet. Cinderella rose from the ashen Earth, all those around her staring in mounting awe. Nikkes, for all of their might, had not been capable of conquering the skies. Until today. The first flight capable Nikke rose, and came to a stop, at eye-level with Joe, standing atop his mighty Hoplon. She was beaming, seeking praise from the Legendary Commander, and receiving it in spades.

Hand still outstretched, Joe smiled back at her, then curled but one of his fingers inwards, pointing at the Raptures in the distance. "Cinderella!" He cried.

In reply, the Glass Slippers spread out wide like an angel's wings, emphasizing the role she was to play for mankind on this day.

"Halt the Rapture's advance!" He directed the silverette.

At once, with a back-flip, Cinderella threw herself backwards, and towards the Raptures, rocketing outward and forward like a silver bullet.

A collective breath had been taken by all present. The South American Rapture Invasion forces. A lone Nikke had been deployed to attack the entire front line, on her own.

The tension could be cut with a knife as Cinderella turned into a distant, white glint.

Then the tension was broken and the breath released at once in a singular, collective gasp, when the Rapture's front lines exploded in a dazzling display of white. Flashes, bursts and streams. Cinderella's purpose, at once, was clear. Where the Grimms before her were startlingly powerful in single combat, as they had to be by virtue of their production and means of combat… Cinderella was an anti-army Nikke.

Beams, what appeared to be dozens upon dozens, even hundreds screamed out in the distance, the horizon well and truly erupting in flame. But it was no blackened, sweltering flame, but a purifying Heavenly white. The Glass Slippers were particle beam diffractors, causing a singular beam to turn into a shotgun spray, a singular concentrated beam, into many dozens of searing streams, into hundreds of needle-like points of blinding light, all at once and just as Cinderella willed it.

Beams, each of which obliterated hundreds of Raptures, the beams coming in such intensity, in seemingly random, utterly unpredictable patterns. They could not react, they could not counter her assault. The sheer speed of the woman alone making landing a shot on her as likely as striking a bullet from the sky.

This force had driven the United Forces of Humanity from Ecuador up to central Mexico. An unceasing, unrelenting tidal wave that could not be stopped, could barely be slowed.

In a scarce few minutes, the beams slowed, and Cinderella soared straight back the way she'd come. She was greeted by absolute silence, coming to a halt where she'd begun, once more, meeting Joe's eyes as he stared in open wonder.

Comms flared to life, and in open wonder, a voice declared: "...Retreating. Re- the Raptures are retreating! I repeat! The Raptures are retreating! I say again: the Raptures are retreating!"

With a wide smile, Joe activated his comms again, declaring to all present: "Soldiers of the United Forces of Humanity!" he called out. "What did you just witness? Let me tell you!" He made a grand, sweeping gesture over the entire horizon. "A miracle! The tide! The tide, turning! In mankind's favour!" He motioned once more, directly to Cinderella. "A promise fulfilled! Promised victory, before your very eyes!"

Punching the sky, Joe made a declaration.

"Against all odds! We rise!"

The uproar that followed, when mankind witnessed the tide finally break, would have been the stuff of legends. The songs sung in the honour of Goddess, of the hope Cinderella had rekindled in the hearts of humanity everywhere…

All of that, yet, somehow, managed to pale in comparison to the smile the graced the heavenly woman's features. A dream come true, not just for the many, but for her. Ellie Andersen's greatest wish, after all, had been a simple one. To be a shining beacon of hope for mankind.

And how brightly did she shine.

 

[Your Target]

Always need me some more "Only Human", thank you Smurf.

 

[NJesus]

thanks for the chapter
kek dorothy and redhood are gold , even better now in the middle of chapter 26 for me

 

[Dasneaky]

He lives was getting worried baka don't scare us like that bro

 

[AmethystEspeon]

The only nikke fic that is actually being done. Please keep it up.

 

[legiodamnatus]

Oh dear. Wonder how bad the fall is going to be. They get done in by superior numbers?

 

[Ace of Scarabs]

It's probably going to be this timeline's First Heretic. Cinderella didn't become Anachiro because she was sent to Goddess Squad before th Grimms facility was overrun.

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 55 - The First Whispers of Heresy
===

"The Montana Grimms facility has been destroyed by Raptures," Joe repeated Andersen's words with a blank expression worn on his face.

"That's right," the High Commander of Goddess declared, arms crossed over his broad chest, Liliweiss standing alongside him, both wearing darkly pensive faces. "I confirmed it thrice over with the brass—Raptures actually infiltrated Montana, avoiding contact with all UFH forces, disrupted comms, assaulted and destroyed the production facility, and disappeared long before anybody else was aware of what happened."

"Every Grimms that was in production there," Liliweiss added, "and all the equipment that was meant to keep Cinderella's Glass Slippers maintained in the long term were destroyed, or captured. Meaning that what we have to keep her weapon in working order on the Avenger is all we have to keep her weapon in working order for the next while."

Forehead resting on a port window overlooking the open plains of Mexico, Joe took a long, shuddering breath. Best to address this topic one issue at a time. "Don't tell me we've lost all information on how to produce parts for the Glass Slippers too."

"Luckily, the Big Three had the presence of mind to decentralize that information at the Tetra Line CEO, Mustang's suggestion," Andersen continued, moving to lean on the metallic wall next to Joe. "Elysion actually started the process of doing much the same with all of their general information. Missilis thought the idea was daft, but they've strongly reconsidered their stance on the matter considering that it was their share of the Glass Slippers information that was lost in the attack. With the fact that they were the primary contributors to the actual technology of the platform, it's a major pitfall, I'm not going to lie. But at least a portion of the team that worked on the Glass Slippers was off-site working on other projects when the Grimms production facility was trashed."

"Meaning that it will take some time to recreate the technical data and tooling machinery that was lost," Liliweiss added as she walked up to gaze out the next porthole over from Joe. "But with at least part of the team still intact, we should be able to do so in 'a few months time' as according to current Missilis estimates…"

"Assuming nothing else we hadn't accounted for goes wrong," Andersen darkly noted. "Considering a Grimms Production Facility was just taken out and looted by a stealth Rapture force in the heart of the United States, one we cannot track and whose current whereabouts are unknown…"

"From here on out," Joe wearily began by way of reply. "We have to assume that we will receive nothing by way of materials for maintaining Cinderella's weapons beyond what we already have onboard the Avenger," he nodded with a heavy grimace. "So, no more repeats of that stunt where we had her singlehandedly break the Zacatecas Rapture invasion line. We deploy her far more strategically, and more conservatively."

"My thoughts exactly," Andersen nodded, reaching up to tip his officer's cap by the brim a few centimetres. "Cinderella herself can be maintained using the same materials the rest of Goddess are built from; and Snow White will be able to account for any necessary adjustments with the technical package Tetra Line sent on her featherweight frame. Her weapons, though, will be absolutely instrumental to clearing the zone around the Orbital Elevator's entrance. We can't risk losing them before we even get there."

"That shouldn't be a real issue," Joe pushed himself off the window, hands planted on either side of the porthole, he still leaned heavily on the wall. "We only deployed her as we did for the sake of putting on a show for the world; to give everyone a much-needed morale boost. There is absolutely no good reason to not have her perform as a fast-attack bomber and artillery platform from here on out."

Liliweiss responded. "The crowds may enjoy a good barrel roll or two at an air show every so often," a small, nostalgic smile finding purchase on the former fighter pilot's features. "But there's a time and a place for showboating. Cinderella has a dedicated role on the battlefield. Though she can operate on the front line, indirect, anti-army fire is what she does best."

"Artillery is king," Joe nodded resolutely. "And holy mother of God, is Cinderella a goddess of sky-borne hellfire."

Andersen adjusted his cuffs as he replied seriously. "So long as we're smart about how we deploy her, logistical concerns should be minimal going forth."

There was a beat, the three high-ranking officers standing in silence for a few moments before Joe spoke up again. "The Raptures have generally presented themselves as a tidal wave of mindless animals. Base creatures that overwhelm with sheer numbers and a terrifying capacity to hard counter our most powerful weapons of mass destruction…" fingers tensing heavily against the aluminum wall, he continued. "Raptures being capable of performing undetected precision strikes on particular sites of interest, deep in the heart of human territory…"

"Is unprecedented," Andersen nodded with a heavy grimace. "And, moreover, it's an effective confirmation that while individual Raptures are nothing more than thoughtless attack drones, they must have some form of 'officers' capable of intelligently directing them in as sophisticated a manner as any human military force can be. And they must have some form of intelligence gathering apparatus, to have known to target the facility in the first place."

"Fuck me," Joe let out a shuddering breath. This was huge, and bad.

"It gets worse," Liliweiss assured the long-haired young man. "From what information we were able to scrape together, from damaged black boxes and the like… the 'officer' that was directing the Raptures in question, was a Nikke."

"What," Joe's breath hitched, his pupils dilating.

Andersen elaborated. "It was mentioned several times in what few audio recordings we could salvage. From multiple units guarding the base, the reports were the same: at least one unidentified hostile Nikke was fighting alongside the Raptures. None that spotted her lived long enough to give details on her appearance. That speaks volumes to the power this turncoat must possess, considering we had no small amount of well-equipped Nikkes of our own guarding the facility. Unfortunately, we don't have enough information to determine who it is that's working with the Raptures, only that they must be a specialist model."

"You've gotta be shitting me…" a stone had dropped into Joe's gut. Nikkes, fighting alongside the Raptures against mankind? How? Why would- A light bulb switched on in his head, and he recalled a particular breed of Rapture they'd encountered in Europe. "Codename: Ultra," he declared in realization.

"That's the running theory right now, yeah," Andersen nodded in acknowledgement of the declaration. "Nikkes that come into direct contact with Codename: Ultra types have a startlingly high chance to experience a psychotic Mind Switch, turning them into violent berserkers that attack anything and everything in sight, including their own allies… Chances seem likely that this Nikke is one which was corrupted on the front lines, and rather than being eliminated by her own former allies, simply… Persisted. Persisted, and developed."

Unbidden, Joe was made to recall Red Hood's close encounter with a Codename: Ultra type. She was so convinced that she was doomed, that she was going to go berserk and need to be put down before she became a danger to everyone, only for the expected symptoms—even the most benign ones—to simply never manifest. After all, Nikkes would often experience a sudden onset psychotic Mind Switch upon being struck by one of the bastards, but not always.

It had been insufferable, trying to convince her that she was one of the lucky ones. Even despite the fact that Rapunzel was a former researcher in the Vatican Technical Collective, and was still remotely, but actively collaborating with them on Rapture research despite now being a soldier in the UFH. The towering blonde was one of the premier minds on the matter of the so-called Rapture 'Corruption.' So many tests, so often did Red Hood melodramatically cry that she was sure 'this was it this time,' based entirely on 'a gut feeling,' only for Rapunzel to find absolutely nothing—or more commonly: bloating and getting gassy because Red Hood had overeaten. Again.

Insufferable.

Liliweiss reached up to brush a few stray strands of platinum silver hair from her face as she spoke. "This presents the possibility that any given Codename: Ultra's attack has a high chance to force Nikkes to undergo a Mind Switch in an attempt to 'Corrupt' them to the Rapture's side, as it were. A good deal worse than simply making them go berserk, as has been the case up to this point."

"Jesus fucking Christ," Joe allowed his face to fall to the floor. "So now we have to worry about Nikkes becoming active agents for the goddamn Raptures now on top of everything else too?"

"Possibly," Andersen shrugged. "It isn't good, I'll give you that. But Nikkes on their own are easily countered by other Nikkes. Granted, this one seems to be particularly powerful on her own, but it's just one Nikke. I'm sure that no small part of the reason our own forces were overwhelmed was to do with the sheer shock of seeing a Nikke fighting alongside, likely even commanding Raptures, then being blitzed. Though…"

Joe turned to face Andersen, a deeply put-upon expression worn on his face. "I'm not about to like what you're going to say, am I?" He inquired.

It was Liliweiss that answered him, however. "Most Nikkes on-site were killed via the means that are typical to Raptures. Puncturing stingers, claws, mechanized teeth and energy weapons… There were also a few unusual examples that looked more like clean cuts from a blade, which suggests that those rare few Raptures with bladed tails that we've received scattered reports on in the frontiers must be being cycled into the general Rapture populace as more regular production units. That, or they're more specialized models we can expect to encounter in particular scenarios where they seem to thrive—such as assaulting heavily fortified locations wherein close quarters battle can be expected."

Joe just growled. "...So the Raptures are deploying goddamned special forces models to infiltrate and directly assault our fortified locations. Great."

Liliweiss let out a shallow sigh before she replied. "That shouldn't affect us directly aboard the Avenger, if nothing else," the First Nikke declared. "A cold comfort, but that's about all we can hope for here."

"So our logistics, already strained as they were, just got stretched yet thinner than they already were," Joe observed as he leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest himself. "And there's a non-zero chance we may encounter Nikkes fighting alongside the Raptures from here on out too… that is not going to help the morale situation."

"Needless to say, there's a gag order on announcing sightings of turncoat Nikkes to war reporters and other non-military forces," Andersen noted dryly. "Additionally, the UFH brass has emphasized the importance of Goddess ascending the Orbital Elevator and eliminating the Queen as quickly as possible. The last thing we want to do is drag our feet when there's a non-zero chance that any particular fortified location in humanity's domain can be blitzkrieged. HQ just became a lot less safe and secure, to say the least."

"No shit…" Joe grumbled. "Anything else I need to know?"

"I'm trying to tear as much information as I possibly can from the brass," Andersen declared, pushing himself from the wall and setting his hands on his hips. "The bastards are making it difficult, to say the least. I'll fill you in on as many details as I can regarding these developments, but I'm not expecting the brass to be particularly forthcoming about this."

"In other words." Liliweiss began, "aside from the necessity that we inform the rest of Goddess about these developments, we're done here. The High Commander and I will further refine our ongoing strategy as it is. You go do what you do best: talk to the girls, and arrange for everything to be in order when we next deploy. We're being rushed to reach and assault the Orbital Elevator, so it would be best for all of you to enjoy whatever downtime we get between sorties from now on."

With a shallow nod, Joe moved for the hallway door. "If it's not one thing, it's another with this war…"

Andersen and Liliweiss allowed him to depart.

---

Sitting at the desk in his room, Joe worked to get the logistics of Goddess in order. Though, generally, everyone was encouraged to make the most of the time off they had which was going to rapidly grow increasingly brief, somebody had to do his job, and Lord help him, the job was his to do.

It was tedious work, but it had to get done. To say nothing of how it was helping keep his mind off of the talk he'd had with Andersen and Liliweiss. His side to the hallway door and hand resting over the eye closest to the door, he didn't see who brazenly walked into his room without bothering to knock—and Dorothy would glide along the ground with almost mechanical precision, producing a minimal amount of noise with each step taken with her heeled feet.

So Joe knew at once without turning to face the woman in question that it was Red Hood, given that Red Hood, despite her diminutive size, kind of trundled around like a bull. You could hear her coming from down the entire hallway, even if she actually uncharacteristically kept her mouth shut for some reason.

"Co-mmaand-der!" Coming to a stop directly behind him, the bodacious redhead started, and Joe could hear her shit-eating grin as she did so. "Commander!" The man continued to focus on his work, not ignoring her, but expecting her to just declare what she was there for as she usually did. "...Commander!" She more forcefully declared, seeming actually somewhat frustrated with his lack of a reply.

"What?" He acknowledged her presence vocally with a roll of his eyes.

"Turn around!" Red Hood demanded of him.

"Why?" Joe asked.

"Because I have something important to ask you!" She declared.

"And I have to face you for that because…?" Joe inquired, still generally keeping his focus on the damned paperwork he had to go through to ensure everyone's shit was in order.

"Because it's important!" She whined. "Now turn around!"

"Just ask what you're gonna ask, shorty, I'm busy," the beleaguered man asserted pointedly.

"I'm not short!" Red Hood, at that, audibly whined in annoyance. She remained silent for a few moments, before eventually actually just asking what she'd come to ask. "Red, or black?"

"...Huh?" That was vague, to say the least. "Red or black what?"

"Red, or black?" Red Hood repeated herself without elaboration.

"Little Red," Joe's eyes became lidded, the man taking a deep, mildly aggravated breath. "Red or black what?"

"Red, or black?" Yet again, the Nikke just plainly repeated herself.

Now growing rapidly annoyed, Joe turned around in his seat, once again and more heavily rolling his eyes as she did so. "Red or black what-!?"

The Commander stopped dead, eyes locked onto Red Hood's own, the little woman's smile quickly growing to stretch ear-to-ear in a Cheshire grin. Pointedly, he kept his eyes firmly upon Red Hood, and not the… skimpy, lacy, tiny articles of fabric dangling tantalizingly off of either of her outstretched index fingers for emphasis.

"Red," she shook the undergarment in her right hand for emphasis, "or black?" she then called attention to the one in her left just the same.

It was downright amazing, how Joe continually managed to somehow forget that Red Hood was a terribly bold and brazenly shameless down bad horndog.

Staring down Red Hood's increasingly shark like-grin, he was in danger, to say the least. Normally, hardly an issue. He appreciated Red Hood's beauty and company, and her apparent casual interest in him.

But it had rapidly become clear that, despite Andersen having put the fear of God in him, Cinderella was interested in Joe in a far more serious manner. The knife came to mind again, and the Commander was mortified by the notion of Cinderella not taking whatever weird thing it was that Joe and Red Hood had well…

What if Cinderella cried?

The knife appeared all the clearer in his mind's eye.

"Well-?" Red Hood moved to step closer to Joe, leaning over to call attention to her chest, only to have her attention caught by one of the Avenger's jet fighter escorts drifting by the bedroom window suddenly doing an aileron roll, likely out of boredom. "Oh shit," she excitedly started, "did they just do a barrel roll-?"

With her attention divided, in fear of losing his genitals, Joe leaped from his seat and bolted for the hallway door, demonstrating his strategic genius with his brilliant tactical retreat.

"Ohwa- HEY!" Red Hood immediately moved to follow him. "Coward! Face me-!" Only to, klutz that she was, trip over her own feet and loudly slam into the metallic floor of Joe's spartan office behind him. "-What the Hell!? Get back here you-!"

Joe didn't stop. For fear of his manhood, the Legendary Commander ran tactically retreated.

 

[NJesus]

starting to get scared for poor joe once redhood is back in full kek

 

[Crimson Reiter]

That ending got an honest cackle out of me xD

That aside... damn it, here start the ending of the hope stop they were enjoying...

 

[RavenSnake317]

This version of Red Hood is just utterly fantastic, love the characterization of her like this.

 

[Slamm-O]

Red Hood is walking Comedy and a damned good one who really wants to jump Joe in bed at this point before the 'incident'.

 

[VATSTeen]

Man Joe has it rough when he wakes up. Or is it Rapi who will have it rough when she wakes up.

Either way, Joe might answer her when he wakes up.

 

[BoundlessVortigern]

...Okay, that ending part is cute but now it's making me dread the scene of their "change in views" and Red's own switch from being so lovey dovey to actually hostile and mean. Don't get me wrong there's presumably a good reason for it, just gonna huuuuurt like a bitch. But on the bright side, we'll get to see this later when Rappi finally acclimates back to Red Hood, right? Lmao

 

[Dasneaky]

The Commander stopped dead, eyes locked onto Red Hood's own, the little woman's smile quickly growing to stretch ear-to-ear in a Cheshire grin. Pointedly, he kept his eyes firmly upon Red Hood, and not the… skimpy, lacy, tiny articles of fabric dangling tantalizingly off of either of her outstretched index fingers for emphasis.

Click to shrink...

I need an image for scientific research... cough... cough... yeah let's go with that....

 

[Slamm-O]

I need an image for scientific research... cough... cough... yeah let's go with that....

Click to shrink...

I wonder if Rapi will remember this.

God's she will die of embarrassment

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 56 - Scarlet Stains
===

"Okay, so," Joe noted as he sat across from Cinderella at her bedroom desk, the young woman in question seated on her plush, silken, decidedly non-military issue bed. She was focusing heavily on Joe with her lone visible sapphire blue eye, as she wore a dramatically oversized black zip-up hoodie (which looked suspiciously like the one that was supposed to be hanging off of the back of Joe's office chair) over her otherwise incredibly revealing bodysuit.

The Commander continued.

"Maintaining your distance from Raptures in battles will be key. The moment you start taking fire, retreat and relocate. We can't afford to lose the Glass Slippers, yet we still need you to deploy and aid in the coming battles to push to Ecuador, so-" Pausing, Joe noticed that Dorothy had drifted aside from her typical spot right next to him, and was staring at something on one of Cinderella's myriad shelves. "-Dorothy?" he inquired.

"I detest it," Dorothy sharply declared by way of reply. That caught Cinderella's attention, given that they were in her room and speaking of her possessions, needless to say.

"Huh?" Cinderella blinked, looking more than a little confused and put-off. "What do you mean?"

"This abhorrent little caricature. Its smug aura mocks me." Dorothy noted, violet eyes firmly locked onto… a plushie? Wait, was that- "Commander! I detest it! I demand that it be destroyed at once!"

"Nooo!" Cinderella cried, leaping to her feet and, with no small amount of speed, lunging out and grabbing at the plushie Dorothy had been glowering at. "The Doro hasn't done anything to anyone!"

"Do not call it that!" Dorothy demanded of the silver-haired young woman, pointing to the refuse bin next to the desk. "Dispose of it in the trash, immediately!"

"No!" Cinderella refused, tightly hugging to her bountiful chest the derpy little Dorothy plushie that was, for some reason, positioned upon all fours like a dog would be. From his position, Joe could see that, indeed, 'the Doro' wore a ruinously smug expression which mocked him too. "Joe! Tell Aurora that she's not allowed to bully me!" The little silverette pitifully pleaded with the Commander, rushing as if to take cover behind him.

"Do not call me that!" Dorothy, in turn, demanded of Cinderella. "I refuse that title! The pedigree of my given name is ample enough to suit my role as a member of Goddess! I am not lazy! And why are you speaking to the Commander in such a familiar manner!?"

"That's not why you were titled after Sleeping Beauty, Dorothy, it's not meant to imply that you spend all day sleeping-!" Joe started, only to throw his hands up in frustration, not really wanting to have this argument again. "That aside, leave Ellie alone, she hasn't done anything to-"

"Oh I'm not so sure about that," Dorothy crossed her arms beneath her chest, "that poorly-produced doll is leaving me feeling rather 'bullied!' Am I to simply suffer knowing that cruel mockery is occupying the same space as me? What have I done to deserve this manner of humiliation?"

"Dorothy, it's a plush doll," Joe declared, rubbing his face wearily. "It looks hand-made-"

"It is!" Cinderella interjected. "And I worked really hard on it!"

"Did you?" Dorothy questioningly inquired, brow slightly furrowing in distaste.

"Okay, now you're just being shitty," Joe cut in, standing up and crossing his arms with a frown. "Ellie hasn't done anything wrong, and you're just being an ass, Dorothy. Cut this shit out, or do you intend to snap at everyone we meet that made something to show their appreciation of you?"

With a huff, Dorothy responded by just spinning on her heel and swiftly strode out of the room. Joe was exasperated by that, needless to say. Immediately falling back into the chair and cupping his hands over his eyes with a groan. "For the love of…"

Dorothy never took it well when she perceived Joe not taking her side in something, and she probably felt like 'the new girl' was receiving preferential treatment. So, great. He was going to have to deal with that.

Taking a few deep breaths in an attempt to de-stress, the attempt quickly turned out to be for naught. Blood pressure and anxiety spiking, from a pillowy sensation that really should have been nothing but heavenly.

As Cinderella jumped on the chance to sit across Joe's lap, he suddenly remembered that the whole reason he'd asked Dorothy to accompany him to talk to her was to dissuade the bold silverette from doing something like this.

Not only did Cinderella claim Joe's lap, she then leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder, smiling sweetly up at him as she did so.

He spoke up, out of no small amount of rising wariness, without quite thinking first. "C-Cinderellie…" he stammered anxiously.

At that, Cinderella chuckled adorably, nestling into Joe's chest with a broad smile. "My perfect hero…"

"...Huh?" Joe blinked owlishly at that.

"You've always known exactly what to say to make me happy," the little silver-haired woman noted. As she reached up to take Joe's arms and wrap them around her shoulders and slim waist. "No matter how badly my day may be going, you always make the sun seem to shine so bright, even when you were just a voice over the phone, a face on the screen…"

Joe felt like he was in imminent danger, mortified by the idea that Andersen was going to barge in and catch them like this, and the Commander was rightfully terrified of what would happen to him if Andersen misunderstood-

"Am I pretty, my hero?" Cinderella sweetly inquired.

…Okay, so, Cinderella was probably actually interested in him then. Shit.

"Joe?" She pressed, a slight pout forming on her glossy lips. "You don't think so…?"

"No, you're resplendent!" Joe panic-replied, his dumbass monkey brain just flinging out a dangerous truth without a moment given to consideration.

That seemed to do the trick for Cinderella, though. Given how she immediately let out a goofy, breathy chuckle as a light blush played across her features. "Am I the most beautiful woman you've ever met?"

Don't- Joe's brain attempted to reason with him… "Y-yes!" FUCK. To no avail.

With another melodic chuckle, Cinderella started to joyously kick her legs where they hung in the open air, making herself good and comfortable in Joe's arms and on his lap. "I'm the most beautiful girl in the world…" she rapturously sighed.

In a display of impotent futility, Joe tried to cope with the idea that this was just Cinderella's lack of self-confidence manifested. She had been something of a mousy little woman before her conversion. Shy, nervous, introverted… maybe she just wanted affirmation that her conversion had made her 'beautiful?' Not that she wasn't pretty before, but, holy shit the effect her conversion had on her was… significant, to say the least.

Given how intensely she'd been looking herself over in her, again, very non-military issue full-length mirror when he and Dorothy had entered the room to discuss tactics and strategy with her, and how eagerly she'd shown off her new figure and revelled in Joe's attention on the Avenger's deck when she joined up with Goddess…

Yeah, that was probably just it.

"I'm so happy that I was assigned to Goddess," Cinderella noted cheerily. "Not only do I get to be on the same team as all of them, I get to spend everyday with you, and be a beacon of hope for mankind… It's a dream come true. I still can't believe all of this is really happening…"

"Well," Joe started, his mind drifting back to the dazzling show she'd put on for all the world when she single-handedly broke the Rapture invasion line. "It is. And you aren't just fighting alongside Goddess… I'd wager that you're even the most powerful member of Goddess, bar none." Liliweiss, and maybe even Red Hood would likely have an advantage in a melee, but good luck getting within punching range of Cinderella in the first place.

"...Don't say that," Cinderella almost whined. "I can't be as amazing as them. I… I want to be that sort of person, but how could someone like me-"

"Enough of that," Joe cut Cinderella off when it seemed as though she was starting to backslide into the pessimism she'd demonstrated before she underwent conversion. "You're the most powerful Grimms to have ever been created - even more so than Liliweiss. You've given mankind hope. We're closer to winning this war, because of you. Don't discredit yourself; you're amazing and have given all of us hope for the future. Your beauty shines brighter than the sun itself, and I'll not hear you disparaging yourself over abject falsehoods."

There was a long pause, wherein Cinderella balled up somewhat, seemingly attempting to hide from Joe even as she sat on his lap. Then, after a few moments, she started giggling with a broad, lightheaded smile. "...Charming…" she started in a breathy voice. "You really are my Prince Charming, here to lift me up and make me feel like a perfect princess…"

…She couldn't find out that Andersen only relented and ultimately allowed her to undergo conversion because of him. This was already getting way too dangerous, and Joe couldn't be trusted to not douse himself in chum before leaping into shark-filled waters-

"Lilith told me that it's because of you that I was allowed to become a Nikke," Cinderella piped up.

FUCK.

The silverette continued. "You tried to reason with my father, until he finally forced your hand and you just beat him up for the way he treated me, and we hadn't even met yet… You fought for me, when nobody else had before. You fought for me and gave me the chance to become so much more than the unremarkable nobody I was…" She hummed sweetly. "You gave me my glass slipper, gave me the chance to become the most beautiful woman in the world… What else could you be if not my perfect Prince Charming?"

The knife. The knife. It looked so keen, so terribly sharp in his mind's eye.

Keeping quiet, not trusting himself to not somehow make the situation worse and endanger his genitals via Andersen's knife, Joe just remained silent and wordlessly held Cinderella.

After a few moments, the little lady in question nestled further into Joe's chest and shoulder, humming lightly and quietly musing, "Sometimes, silence is golden… Your actions speak louder than any words ever could, my Prince…"

HE WAS JUST SITTING THERE. HE HADN'T EVEN DONE ANYTHING. WHY?

The knife grew three sizes in his mind's eye that day.

---

Later on, Joe managed to disentangle from Cinderella and made his way to the deck of the Avenger, seeking air and a release from the increasingly suffocating-seeming confines of the helicarrier.

Upon stepping out into the bright blue skies of rural Mexico, he spotted a particular sight at the end of the runway. A certain specific black-clad swordswoman drilling with her neon red blade. A sight which was outright hypnotic - not just because Scarlet wielded that sword with a grace that borderlined on supernatural, but she did so as a grim, trance-inducing beauty. There were few environments wherein the grey-haired little woman didn't pop on account of her midnight black, crimson-accented bodysuit. Least of all against the cerulean sky which framed her in a manner so striking.

Scarlet may not have been the most curvaceous Nikke aboard the Avenger, but she was still as most Nikkes were regardless: jaw-dropping. A walking testament to the assertion that 'medium is premium,' to say the least.

So, entranced by the woman's display, it took Joe a good few moments to register that he'd just stood there gawking at the gloomy figure as she honed her skills. Mercifully, she hadn't seemed to notice, so he hadn't quite managed to make a complete fool of himself. Well, the crewmen on the deck noticed, but they'd been staring at Scarlet just the same as him, and so had no ground on which to stand to give him shit for it.

Regardless, it occurred to him, as he stood there, that they knew more about Cinderella, the new girl, then they did about Scarlet - and by no small margin. Scarlet was pointedly guarded, and when she wasn't demanding that Joe duel her with his swords (regardless of how much he told her he didn't even know how to actually use them), she was generally just… Milling about, keeping to herself when she wasn't being actively pestered by Red Hood. Or, like, getting into another full-throttle fist fight with Dorothy over something or another…

Scarlet wasn't the most personable individual around, but she was still a member of the squad, and it was Joe's duty to make sure everyone in the squad was well-integrated and comfortable. It would hardly do if Scarlet was the only girl he wasn't familiar with either, so, hands set in his jacket pockets, the Commander ambled over Scarlet's way.

The woman in question continued as she had been, paying Joe little mind, even as he came to a stop a safe distance away from her. For a few minutes, she kept practising in that entrancing manner, utterly unperturbed by her one-man audience.

Eventually, she smoothly sheathed her blade seemingly mid-swing, at once shifting to a neutral stance, back straight and baleful stare fixed square on Joe. "Commander," she finally directly acknowledged him. "For what cause hast thou sought me out?"

With a shrug, Joe declared, "You've been pretty distant. I figure it'd probably be best to just try talking to you for a while."

Scarlet just stared at Joe with a mild amount of annoyance at his words, rolling her eyes and shaking her head in reply. "Such is unnecessary. I am yet another blade to be directed at the oncoming Rapture horde. Seek not connections with me, I will surely be gone as swiftly as I have arrived just the same."

Lightly grimacing, Joe considered the diminutive woman seriously, eventually replying: "Does this have anything to do with how we met you to begin with?" he inquired.

At that, Scarlet turned aside, shifting her gaze over the edge of the Avenger and into the distant sky beyond. She didn't respond, though her off-handed grip on the hilt of her sheathed sword noticeably tightened.

After an awkward moment of silence, Joe spoke up again. "Scarlet… come on. You're a member of Goddess now. I understand that you don't get along with Dorothy in particular, but you have to at least try to open up to the rest of us. We're all looking out for each other out on the battlefield, the better we all know each other, the easier it will make it for us to all trust each other-"

"Closeness and familiarity are not the unbreaking chains thy all believe they are." Scarlet interrupted him, her voice taking on no small amount of bitterness. "Bonds are not unbending steel. Lean upon them with all thy faith, and thy fate shall be set in stone."

Joe allowed that to sit and percolate for a few moments, before speaking up again. "...So, this does have something to do with how we met you," he noted. "Your previous squad, the situation you were in…"

Eyes locked on the faraway horizon, Scarlet took a few moments to continue. "I was not shocked. Not in the least. When we were informed of turncoat Nikkes fighting alongside the Raptures."

…Ah. "The Melee Squad," Joe began as realization struck him like a sack of bricks. "We found you, surrounded by them…"

"As I had just cut them down," Scarlet declared. "My comrades, those I had sworn mine blade to the protection of, those who had sworn their blades to protect me in turn… Each and every one, betrayers. They turned on mankind. They spat upon our purpose, our duty, that for which we forsook our flesh and blood."

Joe went silent, and simply listened. Brow furrowing, focusing entirely on Scarlet's words as she did exactly as he'd asked, began to open up.

"I awoke in our barracks, to find two of them standing guard, as though to prevent my leaving. I demanded to know why, and I was told. My sister, she had spoken to them all as I slept. She was to murder our Commander, and I was to be kept in the barracks, prevented from intervening. Those few who would have allied with me in my attempt to stop her, had already been slain."

Taking a deep breath, she continued.

"They presented me with little other choice. I cut them both down, so that I may fly to prevent my sister from committing the ultimate sin, a mark of evil which would stain her legacy forevermore… yet, I arrived, far too late. Already, I found her looming over our Commander, and even two more of her collaborators. The blade of Fleetly Fading, a weapon made to protect humanity from the greatest enemy it has ever faced…" she lifted her sword from her hip to gaze down upon it, still sheathed, hands beginning to tremble ever-so-slightly. "This blade, meant to shield mankind, stained with the blood of a human."

Both hands now gripping her sword, Scarlet took a moment to gather herself before she proceeded.

"No explanation was offered. Despite my pleas, despite my demands… She just stood over him, that same gentle smile she ever did wear, even as the blood of our Commander ran down her figure and pooled at her feet… She raised Fleetly Fading, directed the tip of its blade to me, and informed me that she had no intention of stopping with him. That if she left that building, that she would hunt down as many human beings as she could, and slaughter them all without mercy… And she would not say why. Only that she would. She would not say why she hated mankind so terribly, only that she did."

"I had no choice. I did the only thing I could do as a protector of mankind. Despite knowing that Rose had always been mine better, despite knowing that never could I hope to defeat her in true battle… our blades did clash. I cannot recall how long our final duel had drawn out. Only that my entire body ached by the end of it. And… She attempted to disarm me. I allowed her to. A feint, one which I used to wrench her own weapon from her hands, and turn it upon her, defenceless as she then was… as though she could not have stopped me with ease. As though she had not countered and punished that very same manoeuvre countless times in our sparring matches before. She had proclaimed her intent to become a slayer of men, yet… she let me win. Using her own sword…"

"A sword meant to cleave through the abominable metallic armour of the Raptures, punched clean through her core." Scarlet paused, taking a deep, shuddering breath. "I… I took her in my arms, I cradled her, in her final moments. Those moments in which she chose to be an abomination. And, yet… she was smiling. She smiled so terribly radiantly, with contentment, joy, pride. She uttered no words, she only allowed herself to be held, met mine eyes, and smiled, so truly, so genuinely, as she faded… Why? Why?"

Andersen had attempted to get information on the Melee Squad after they'd recruited Scarlet, only to be firmly and downright viciously stonewalled, to the point of being outright threatened to mind where he 'stuck his nose,' as there were matters which simply did not concern him or Goddess, and insubordination on this matter would not be tolerated, regardless of who he was… No fucking wonder. They were trying to prevent knowledge of most of the Melee Squad going rogue, of Nikkes turning against the UFH from spreading even earlier than it eventually did with the attack on the Montana Grimms facility.

The Melee Squad… were they victims of Corruption? Was Scarlet simply one of the lucky few? Rose's behaviour seemed… incongruous with her stated intent. As though she might not have been thinking straight? If she had decided to turn on humanity, why would she smile upon being cut down by Scarlet after only managing to kill their Commander?

Things to bring up with Andersen and Liliweiss as soon as he was done here. But, for now… "Scarlet," Joe began. "Thank you."

The little Nikke was quiet for a time, letting out a single, cough-like, mirthless laugh before she replied. "...I meant not to ramble and reveal so much. Such a fool I am…"

"But I'm glad that you did," Joe asserted. "Because now I know that I can put all of my faith in you from this point on. I know that no matter what happens, no matter how this war may turn… You will be there, at the front line, holding your blade high in defence of mankind. I know I can trust you. You'll be there for us, and we'll be there for you."

Slowly did Scarlet turn to face Joe. Her expression was deeply perplexed, and pained. She didn't speak up, just… staring at him in open confusion.

So, Joe made an attempt to further clarify. "I don't know what it's like, to feel driven to turn my weapon upon my fellows, on those I should have been able to trust to defend mankind against the greatest threat we've ever known… I can only imagine the strength of character, the sheer willpower it would require to do the right thing in such a moment. You're strong. Stronger than I'd have ever imagined. I hope nobody else will ever have to go through what you did, to do the right thing. But… in so doing, you've shown how pure of soul you are."

Nodding once firmly, Joe finished as he locked eyes with the swordswoman.

"I trust you, Scarlet. I trust you, I thank you, and most of all… I'm sorry. Just know that though it could never be enough, I will always be willing to listen to you, to talk to you, to be there if ever you need it. It's the very least I can do, for the proof you've provided me that you are truly a worthy Goddess of Victory."

Scarlet just stared at Joe. Her expression unreadable yet uncertain. After a brief time, her gaze broke, sharply wandering, eyes growing increasingly glossy… she took a heavy, shuddering breath, about-faced, and started off without a word.

Joe just watched her go. Both grateful, and heartbroken that Scarlet had to go through something so harrowing. But he knew damn well that some people required space and time more than anything. So, he would allow it, and-

Scarlet stopped mid-stride. Stood stock-still for a few moments, almost, but not quite looking back over her shoulder Joe's way, before she shook her head and continued off again.

-Somehow, Joe felt like the little woman's walls had already begun to crumble, and soon enough, she'd allow herself to become a fully-fledged member of Goddess.

Truly, they were lucky to have one as genuine and principled fighting alongside them, in mankind's darkest hour.

 

[Matttts]

More great character building. Also, Doro is eternal.

 

[Masayume]

ITS HEREEE! The Doro!

Now if only Joe can get Mika and Belorta to remake it again in bulk as a prank on Dorothy.

Also Rose's core may be gone but her brain was intact right?

 

[NJesus]

joe demonstrates why harem protags should run for the hills kek

any one taking bets on how long its going to take till Isabel gets bodybagged when the squad meets eden in current time?

 

[Nehef]

"This abhorrent little caricature. Its smug aura mocks me." Dorothy noted, violet eyes firmly locked onto… a plushie? Wait, was that- "Commander! I detest it! I demand that it be destroyed at once!"

"Nooo!" Cinderella cried, leaping to her feet and, with no small amount of speed, lunging out and grabbing at the plushie Dorothy had been glowering at. "The Doro hasn't done anything to anyone!"

"Do not call it that!" Dorothy demanded of the silver-haired young woman, pointing to the refuse bin next to the desk. "Dispose of it in the trash, immediately!"

Click to shrink...

Dorothy gets alone with Doro then:

Doro: *Starts to move*

Dorothy: *Gasps*

Doro: "Go ahead, tell them what you saw. No one will ever believe you."

Doro: *Stops moving and stay on plushie mode again*

 

[Dasneaky]

D fuck is a doro did I miss something here?

 

[RavenSnake317]

D fuck is a doro did I miss something here?

Click to shrink...

A meme from the Nikke Community being put into the story as a little plush toy thing made by Cinderella. Just google "Doro Nikke" and you'll probably see it immediately.

 

[EX143]

ITS HEREEE! The Doro!

Now if only Joe can get Mika and Belorta to remake it again in bulk as a prank on Dorothy.

Also Rose's core may be gone but her brain was intact right?

Click to shrink...

You are an evil, evil monster to push one of her rage buttons like it's a prize button at the arcade... one that's bright, shiny, and oh so horribly tempting to push.

...Must, resist... temptation

 

[Dasneaky]

A meme from the Nikke Community being put into the story as a little plush toy thing made by Cinderella. Just google "Doro Nikke" and you'll probably see it immediately.

Click to shrink...

Wait the doro is canon in the game that sick

 

[Masayume]

Must, resist... temptation

Click to shrink...

Give in, just think about that insufferable smug faced plushie that mocks everyone and everything. I can already see Belorta loving the absolute hell out of that plushie, the gremlin energy the plushie contains is too damn high.

They can even add that little green bandanna on the plushie to make it look like a cartoon thief sneaking about.

 

[Feng Lengshun]

Dorothy never took it well when she perceived Joe not taking her side in something, and she probably felt like 'the new girl' was receiving preferential treatment. So, great. He was going to have to deal with that.

Click to shrink...

Well, that's not a great thing to know, when Joe reunites with her and inevitably refuses to go with her and disagrees with what she's doing.

 

[skulker558]

"...Look, I get it, okay?" Joe stepped closer to Marian, softening his voice as he tried to take on a comforting tone. "I was the same way the first time I met the first person that treated me decently. That's why I'm not going to let you act as over-zealously as I did - I'm not made of glass, and you don't need to treat anyone not approaching me like a priceless artifact like the enemy, okay?"

Marian was quiet for a few moments after that, expression growing visibly strained as she just stared at Joe, eventually speaking up with, "...Who, who treated you badly…?"

TFW you discover your soon-to-be superhuman lover is a yandere obsessed with your kind-ass-self.
...And you just admitted you both pined for somebody else in the past and that they treated you poorly.