SongNai145
Not too sore, are you?
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Only Human (Goddess of Victory NIKKE SI)
- Thread starter BakaSmurf
- Start date
Vicentehuerta777dragon
I trust you know where the happy button is?
- Joined
- May 9, 2018
- Messages
- 730
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- 7,925
God they're adorable and deserve so many good things ,really hope rapi reconciles her past chaotic self with her present stoic self cuz she is wound up tight ,Joe may have done a little whoopies by calling her his rock cuz she really doesn't know how to let her hair down at all cuz say what you want about red hood goon self but she did know how to have fun.
palacesound
Hunt Type Poster
- Joined
- Dec 2, 2019
- Messages
- 12,417
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- 218,370
Picture him rolling up in a doromobile.
NJesus
You guys need Jesus !
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2019
- Messages
- 1,792
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- 16,905
kek nobody could convince her to not destroy the arc anymore dorothy turns heretic on principle...... and the rupture queen trolls her with her own doro tyrant class
Gato
Getting out there.
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2023
- Messages
- 11
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- 91
Kinda glad that the meeting seems to take its time rather than rushing straight into getting the plot caught up. These moments where you can feel that they have a long history together, where the characters just grab you by the feels really makes me want to play the game. Then I realize it's an au and the game shoots my immersion by bringing 2B and Evangelion in.
Dorothys mental health might not actually allow her to see Joe as real since she did suffer from delusions in the game. That or she has an actual breakdown from the spanking Joe will deliver once he finds out she went rogue without him.
I'm really into this story right now. Someone save my wallet and tell me the game ain't worth it!
Dorothys mental health might not actually allow her to see Joe as real since she did suffer from delusions in the game. That or she has an actual breakdown from the spanking Joe will deliver once he finds out she went rogue without him.
I'm really into this story right now. Someone save my wallet and tell me the game ain't worth it!
NJesus
You guys need Jesus !
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2019
- Messages
- 1,792
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- 16,905
you should mortgage your house for current never returning collab characters and skins
Dasneaky
I trust you know where the happy button is?
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2021
- Messages
- 546
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- 1,950
Isn't the like rate up for those characters and limited is like less then .01% or something and you need like 200 hundred pull just to get guarantee character? If I remember right for pity
NJesus
You guys need Jesus !
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2019
- Messages
- 1,792
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- 16,905
nah like any special banner its 2% used 3 10x pulls just 10 minutes ago to get the last collab one
Your Target
He that awaits the future, and it has come.
- Joined
- Jun 29, 2021
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It would be nice to get some more Moments with Anis and Neon after this is all over.
They and the Mass production Nikke's need more screentime.
They and the Mass production Nikke's need more screentime.
Chapter 61 - The Ugly Truth
New
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Joined
- Nov 15, 2016
- Messages
- 212
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- 9,554
===
Chapter 61 - The Ugly Truth
===
Pioneer laughed heartily, with far more levity and merry than any of them had in a long while.
Both because of how long it had been since they'd had the privilege of enjoying such a refined meal, and because they had been reunited with their long-lost Commander and sister—and because they knew that Andersen was also alive too.
For as dark and miserable as the lives of the former members of Goddess had been this past century, this day proved to them all that miracles did still happen.
It was especially heartening to see that, all this time later, while Red Hood was noticeably different now…
The Commander was taking single pieces of chicken nuggets, setting them on the palm of his hand, and smiling like a buffoon every time Snow White lunged forward to eat the nuggets from his hand like a dog would.
The more things changed…
Moreover, Rapunzel was staring at Rapi, visibly confused as she periodically gave the much smaller blonde a blatant once-over. After a while of that, Joe had to ask: "Is something wrong, Rapunzel?" He inquired.
"Rapi's breasts are smaller," she immediately replied without missing a solitary beat, at this point, very obviously staring outright at the red-and-black-clad blonde's chest.
Needless to say, everyone, save for a Snow White still chewing on a mouthful of food, sharply turned to look at Rapunzel in shock at once… Then to a mortified Rapi.
Joe, while thinking of how damn gauche it was for Rapunzel to just call that out as she had, was the only one that didn't outright leer at Rapi in reply.
Instead, he fell back upon the ancient, mystic technique all men eventually instinctively learned with age: to look without looking by focusing in on his peripheral vision.
…Rapunzel was right. Rapi was noticeably larger back during their days as Goddess. How did-
Loudly swallowing her surely only partially-eaten food, Snow White cleared her throat and interjected: "No they aren't," she declared matter-of-factually. "She's just wearing a compression top under her shirt." She declared before she began contemplating a whole, baked potato.
Blinking once, Joe had to acknowledge that yeah, if anyone would know that, it would be Snow, given that she'd stripped Rapi down to her birthday suit to perform maintenance on her.
After a few moments, Rapi spoke up, more than a little sheepishly. "...They get in the way, otherwise," she explained herself, visibly uncomfortable and shifting about anxiously with the scrutiny she was receiving.
Only then, did Rapunzel seem to actually process what she'd said. "I-I-I didn't mean that in a bad way or anything! I mean, you're still shapely and curvaceous and beautiful and striking and—And—And-!"
At once, the towering blonde turned neon red, her big blue eyes bugging out as she slapped her hands over her face and squealed like a tea kettle in embarrassment.
At that, Joe was smacked in the face with a distant reminder of how… Repressed Rapunzel was, and how she'd actually made him look remarkably less prone to spilling spaghetti by comparison alone.
The poor nun was down bad, and everyone inevitably wound up knowing it. He'd forgotten what it was like to not be the source of social pasta disasters. How… Nostalgic.
"Well, at least the Commander seems to be enjoying this tableau, should one account for his contented smile," Scarlet observed between swigs of her flask.
Indeed, Joe had started smiling at the byplay unconsciously, and immediately attempted to correct by raising a hand to cover his mouth-
"Nooo!" Cinderella, however, did not let him, her grabby little digits immediately striking out to prevent him from masking his features. "Don't try to hide your smile from us! It's been so long since we got to see it!"
As the silver-haired Nikke suddenly invaded Joe's personal space, a wide smile on her flawless features which stirred far too much in the man… His space was suddenly invaded from two angles at once.
Rapi immediately claimed one of his arms and drew him in closely, as if in an attempt to demand his attention over Cinderella.
Glancing Rapi's way, Joe noticed that the blonde was visibly frustrated and annoyed, attempting to pull him away from the stark-haired, even smaller woman.
Where this situation would have normally escalated based on Joe's memories of Goddess… Instead, Cinderella paused, blinked, and retreated back to her seat with a small, sheepish cough.
Cinderella didn't say anything, leaving Joe and Rapi in a somewhat awkward position, as the blonde continued to cling to a perplexed Joe possessively.
Backing off was hardly Cinderella's typical modus operandi, so the man was more than a little confused…
After a few moments, however, Joe shook his head as the break served to remind of the time and place, and the fact that they needed to address the elephant in the room.
Thus, he moved to return to his normal seated position—needing to turn to Rapi to address her, "Rapi, let go of my arm, we've got to talk about everything," he pointedly noted.
Though Rapi was more than a little hesitant, she did eventually relent and let the Commander go, glowering lightly as she did so.
The air around the campsite had shifted at Joe's assertion, which caused everyone to adjust their seating positions.
Even Snow White, who had shoved an entire potato into her mouth, attempted to look as serious as she could while she played the part of a whole roasted pig on a platter.
Glancing about, affirming that everyone was well and properly settled in for the discussion that was to be had, Joe took a breath and settled his elbows on his knees.
Clasping his hands together before his mouth, Joe contemplated the situation. "...Dorothy," he began. "Why isn't she here? Why are you all so… Wary to speak of her?"
There was a heavy pause before someone finally spoke up. "The situation with Dorothy is… Difficult," Cinderella darkly noted, anxiously rubbing her hands together. "She, um… She… Isn't aligned with humanity anymore."
Turning to face the silverette, Joe's brow furrowed heavily at the assertion for obvious reasons.
It was Scarlet that followed up, though. "We were informed by our handler in the Ark, that Andersen and thee had been executed by the Central Government for 'outliving thy usefulness.' The gate had been sealed behind thee, leaving Dorothy inflicted with a most ruinous sense of betrayal."
Having chewed through and swallowed her potato in record time, Snow White spoke up next. "Dorothy has declared her intention to cast down the Central Government, and destroy the Ark. Not unlike a Heretic."
"Dorothy isn't a Heretic!" Rapunzel declared, rising from her seat forcefully. "None of what happened is her fault! She just needs to see Joe and know that he's alive and well and she'll calm down!"
"You don't know that-!" Snow White started as she too rose to her feet, rapidly growing heated.
She was cut off by Joe and Rapi rising to their feet, reminding everyone that they were, in fact, present this time.
Pioneer fell into rapt silence, all eyes on the Commander as he stepped aside and away from the campfire. Joe settled a hand on his bearded chin, as Rapi remained stuck to his side, understandably concerned for obvious reasons.
The little blonde reached over and set a hand on Joe's elbow, more than a little uncertain. The man in question, however, was stuck pondering the situation. Dorothy, she hated the Ark and the Central Government. Understandably so.
Yet Snow White considered her to be a Heretic because of this. This was a complicating factor, but, given everything that he knew, Joe was firmly of the opinion that they couldn't, and shouldn't pull the wool over Pioneer's eyes.
From Joe's perspective, the best path forward would be to walk Pioneer through the situation, explain to them what had actually happened in the Ark on the Sealing Day. Then… Discuss contacting Dorothy.
With a nod, he gave Rapi's shoulder a squeeze, turning around and facing his girls once more, making note of how anxious the lot of them were.
"I don't think you're going to like what I'm about to say," Joe declared, crossing his arms and stepping closer to the campfire again. "But, clearly, it needs to be said. First off: your 'handler' lied to you. Whatever it is you've been led to believe about what happened on that day, was a lie."
"Then what happened?" Rapunzel asked, leaning forward, heart going a mile a minute in her chest along with the rest of her long-time companions.
"After I arrived in the Ark proper, I was called to meet with the Central Government council. The message they had for me was simple and clear: Goddess was to be disbanded, the Grimms which made it up 'deactivated' and disassembled to reverse-engineer the technology that went into their creation."
Walking aside, Joe had his back to Pioneer, looking out into the distance as he continued to speak.
"They wanted me to become their figurehead, to lead the charge to shifting the Ark into fascist rule, wherein everyone would answer to the Central Government, and anyone that was in with the CG would live like royalty."
Joe's voice was tinged with no small amount of anger. Anger which would never leave him; a deep-seated hatred for those bastards that would have seen his girls disposed of after all they'd done for mankind.
"I would lead Goddess to their deaths, because all of you had outlived your usefulness, and they wanted super soldiers they could control absolutely, not potentially contrarian heroes that might put their rule at risk."
Joe continued to look outwards into the horizon as he continued.
"Red Hood had been sneaked into the Ark, lured in ahead of everyone else, because Exceed was deemed to be the most valuable ability among those granted to Goddess. Then, in their infinite wisdom, they had allowed her to roam free while setting up her execution. This was the opening I needed, that we needed, to do what had to be done."
Rapi glanced back over her shoulder, making note of the mounting horror on the faces of Pioneer as Joe laid out the facts to them.
"Enikk, the Ark's central managerial A.I. overheard us… And immediately cut us off from the rest of the system to ensure we wouldn't be caught. She confided in us, informed us that the Central Government's immediate plans left humanity with naught but ten years before extinction."
That was the point when Joe turned around to face Pioneer, his expression grave as he too saw how mortified they all were. It did little to discourage him from continuing to reveal the ugly truth.
"Enikk served as our handler in the two-man operation to eliminate the council. Her intervention is the reason we succeeded, and humanity did not go extinct ninety years ago."
Silence reigned, Pioneer staring at Joe and Rapi in open horror. Doubtlessly, this was just about the very last thing they'd expected to hear from their Commander a century after their last meeting, back when they were all loyal soldiers of the United Forces of Humanity and the Central Government.
After an extended period of time, Cinderella was the first to speak up. "...Dorothy was right," she breathed, gaze becoming unfocused as it hit her all at once. "All this time, she was right…"
"-Bullshit!" Snow White all but screamed, on the contrary, eyes having gone wild as they snapped between Joe and Rapi. "That's not- No! No! That doesn't- You're lying! You wouldn't betray-!"
"Snow White, calm yourself," Scarlet interjected, pointedly rising to her feet commandingly. "If even the Commander and Red- Rapi have been driven to turn their sights upon the Central Government, then any betrayal would have been upon them by those we trusted—those who hunt us to this day, if thou shalt recall!"
As the pair stared at each other with considerable intensity, Rapunzel remained quiet, just staring at Joe and Rapi. It seemed, that of Pioneer, she at least had the wherewithal to wait for them to finish explaining themselves, and so they did.
"Our enemy is the Central Government," Rapi, notably, spoke up rather than Joe. "Not the Ark."
That caught Snow White's attention once more, the golden-eyed woman now keenly focusing on the smaller blonde.
"The Central Government is not the Ark," Rapi asserted matter-of-factually. "The Central Government has infested the Ark. It needs to be extricated, like a cancerous tumour, so that the Ark itself and the civilians inside of it may survive in the long term. So that we may one day reclaim the surface the Central Government has forsaken."
Joe just nodded in agreement of Rapi's clarification, very much appreciating that she was supporting him on this matter, and so well at that.
That seemed to give Pioneer no small amount of collective relief, though the tension in the air did not dissipate in whole.
This was exemplified by Scarlet's response. "So… Thou suggests that our purpose ought to be combating the Central Government, for the sake of mankind?"
Joe replied to that. "The Central Government are enemies of mankind. They have no interest in reclaiming the surface. They know the Ark's time is limited, that it is not self-sustaining and will one day run out of resources. The only thing they care about is ruling over it and what little remains of mankind until our species hits its expiration date."
The man was looking between the girls that had served under him amidst the Initial Rapture Invasion.
"Andersen has been among their upper echelons for years now as one of the Ark's Deputy Chief Commanders under a pseudonym. If anybody would know these to be facts, it would be him. Would any of you argue that it is not our duty to see the CG cast down, in light of these facts?"
As Snow White's hand balled into a fist, Cinderella anxiously wrung her hands together, while Rapunzel clasped her hands in uncertain prayer, and Scarlet rapped her fingers on the butt of Fleetly Fading.
They weren't going to get anywhere by sitting around and leaving everyone to brood and get lost in their own heads. So, Joe pressed the issue immediately. "Look me in the eye, and tell me that the Central Government is not humanity's enemy, despite actively and knowingly engaging in malicious behaviour they know will lead to the extinction of our species for their own short-term gain."
That only momentarily made Pioneer all the more visibly uncomfortable, shifting about with no small amount of mounting unease.
But Joe wasn't having it. "That is an order," he dictated with anything even approximating a semblance of humour.
That caused the attention of the girls to all snap to Joe at once, wavering slightly, only to deflate more than a little bit at the newfound pressure placed on them.
Scarlet was the first to reply. "Nay, I cannot," the ashen-haired swordswoman said with a heavy sigh. "The Central Government, by thy own words, can only be construed as mankind's enemy, if they do be truly bettering their own purses at humanity's expense."
Cinderella replied next. "...If my father has been serving as a… A spy, I suppose, and he says they're evil too… Your word alone would be enough for me, Joe. If our next mission is to destroy the Central Government for humanity's sake, then so be it." Despite the clear conflict in her shimmering blue eye, the Commander could see that she was indeed truthfully putting her faith in him. He wasn't misleading her, so he simply nodded once in acknowledgement of her assertion.
"...I can't believe that… But Dorothy wants to destroy the Ark-!" Snow White began, only to be cut off by Rapi.
"We are not discussing Dorothy or the morality of her actions or objectives," the diminutive blonde asserted forcefully. "You are being informed of our newfound mission which, as all other missions we have engaged in, is for the sake of mankind. Not Dorothy, not Joe, not ourselves, not revenge. The Central Government is knowingly driving humanity to extinction. Is this acceptable to you, yes, or no?"
Snow White closed her eyes, visibly conflicted by the notion of knowingly and deliberately taking up arms against human beings. Yet… "...No," she growled out, demonstrably resenting that she had to vocalize such thoughts in the first place. She left it there.
At that, only Rapunzel was left, who was clearly lost in her own head. Muttering quietly to herself, periodically shaking her own thoughts, trying to sort something out on her own. Rapi didn't seem content with this, and so interrupted the towering blonde's thoughts. "Rapunzel? You've been asked a question."
Rapunzel jumped in her seat, large blue eyes going wide before she cleared her throat. "I-I hate the thought of bringing harm to humans. But… If the Central Government is truly deliberately working towards mankind's extinction, then there's only one path forward: bringing them to justice for the sake of the many to whom we exist to shield, from anything and everything that would threaten them."
She paused, lips still parted, gaze drifting aside for a few moments before she spoke back up.
"I'm more so thinking of Dorothy, though. She… It's as has been stated. We all left her, because she made it clear that she considered mankind to be the enemy, that the Ark had to fall, that she would see it fall for the 'sins' committed against us… How for what they did to you, Joe, that the Ark absolutely had to be punished, for profiting off of and benefiting from your 'murder.'"
That brought everyone to silence once more. Joe hadn't been expecting to hear that Dorothy had become an extremist after the Ark was sealed. Nor that she was driven to such hatred specifically by what she'd been told of his fate, which was itself a lie… He'd known that she cared deeply for him, but to the extent that she'd effectively stopped just short of Heresy herself for vengeance?
Speaking up, Joe vocalized his thoughts. "I can see why Snow White would accuse her of being a Heretic…" Though Rapunzel clearly disliked that, Snow White seemed vindicated by his assessment. "But… The thought of treating Dorothy as an enemy…"
Rapunzel was quick to speak up at that. "I think she would be calmed just by seeing that you're alive after all! She's far gone now, but only because of how much it hurt her when we all thought you'd died! She just needs to know that you're still with us, that you've been working towards a less… Extreme version of what she has been all along!"
While Snow White was still more than a little uncertain and uncomfortable with the notion, Joe was just disconcerted by the question of Dorothy's state, and furthermore… "Where is Dorothy, then?" He asked.
At that, the girls all shared collective looks of uncertainty, and Scarlet was the one that answered him. "Eden, Commander. Dorothy is in Eden."
Rapi's brows furrowed. "...Eden?"
At that, Joe too was confused, spurring a question that was far larger than he'd have expected.
"And what, exactly, is Eden?"
Chapter 61 - The Ugly Truth
===
Pioneer laughed heartily, with far more levity and merry than any of them had in a long while.
Both because of how long it had been since they'd had the privilege of enjoying such a refined meal, and because they had been reunited with their long-lost Commander and sister—and because they knew that Andersen was also alive too.
For as dark and miserable as the lives of the former members of Goddess had been this past century, this day proved to them all that miracles did still happen.
It was especially heartening to see that, all this time later, while Red Hood was noticeably different now…
The Commander was taking single pieces of chicken nuggets, setting them on the palm of his hand, and smiling like a buffoon every time Snow White lunged forward to eat the nuggets from his hand like a dog would.
The more things changed…
Moreover, Rapunzel was staring at Rapi, visibly confused as she periodically gave the much smaller blonde a blatant once-over. After a while of that, Joe had to ask: "Is something wrong, Rapunzel?" He inquired.
"Rapi's breasts are smaller," she immediately replied without missing a solitary beat, at this point, very obviously staring outright at the red-and-black-clad blonde's chest.
Needless to say, everyone, save for a Snow White still chewing on a mouthful of food, sharply turned to look at Rapunzel in shock at once… Then to a mortified Rapi.
Joe, while thinking of how damn gauche it was for Rapunzel to just call that out as she had, was the only one that didn't outright leer at Rapi in reply.
Instead, he fell back upon the ancient, mystic technique all men eventually instinctively learned with age: to look without looking by focusing in on his peripheral vision.
…Rapunzel was right. Rapi was noticeably larger back during their days as Goddess. How did-
Loudly swallowing her surely only partially-eaten food, Snow White cleared her throat and interjected: "No they aren't," she declared matter-of-factually. "She's just wearing a compression top under her shirt." She declared before she began contemplating a whole, baked potato.
Blinking once, Joe had to acknowledge that yeah, if anyone would know that, it would be Snow, given that she'd stripped Rapi down to her birthday suit to perform maintenance on her.
After a few moments, Rapi spoke up, more than a little sheepishly. "...They get in the way, otherwise," she explained herself, visibly uncomfortable and shifting about anxiously with the scrutiny she was receiving.
Only then, did Rapunzel seem to actually process what she'd said. "I-I-I didn't mean that in a bad way or anything! I mean, you're still shapely and curvaceous and beautiful and striking and—And—And-!"
At once, the towering blonde turned neon red, her big blue eyes bugging out as she slapped her hands over her face and squealed like a tea kettle in embarrassment.
At that, Joe was smacked in the face with a distant reminder of how… Repressed Rapunzel was, and how she'd actually made him look remarkably less prone to spilling spaghetti by comparison alone.
The poor nun was down bad, and everyone inevitably wound up knowing it. He'd forgotten what it was like to not be the source of social pasta disasters. How… Nostalgic.
"Well, at least the Commander seems to be enjoying this tableau, should one account for his contented smile," Scarlet observed between swigs of her flask.
Indeed, Joe had started smiling at the byplay unconsciously, and immediately attempted to correct by raising a hand to cover his mouth-
"Nooo!" Cinderella, however, did not let him, her grabby little digits immediately striking out to prevent him from masking his features. "Don't try to hide your smile from us! It's been so long since we got to see it!"
As the silver-haired Nikke suddenly invaded Joe's personal space, a wide smile on her flawless features which stirred far too much in the man… His space was suddenly invaded from two angles at once.
Rapi immediately claimed one of his arms and drew him in closely, as if in an attempt to demand his attention over Cinderella.
Glancing Rapi's way, Joe noticed that the blonde was visibly frustrated and annoyed, attempting to pull him away from the stark-haired, even smaller woman.
Where this situation would have normally escalated based on Joe's memories of Goddess… Instead, Cinderella paused, blinked, and retreated back to her seat with a small, sheepish cough.
Cinderella didn't say anything, leaving Joe and Rapi in a somewhat awkward position, as the blonde continued to cling to a perplexed Joe possessively.
Backing off was hardly Cinderella's typical modus operandi, so the man was more than a little confused…
After a few moments, however, Joe shook his head as the break served to remind of the time and place, and the fact that they needed to address the elephant in the room.
Thus, he moved to return to his normal seated position—needing to turn to Rapi to address her, "Rapi, let go of my arm, we've got to talk about everything," he pointedly noted.
Though Rapi was more than a little hesitant, she did eventually relent and let the Commander go, glowering lightly as she did so.
The air around the campsite had shifted at Joe's assertion, which caused everyone to adjust their seating positions.
Even Snow White, who had shoved an entire potato into her mouth, attempted to look as serious as she could while she played the part of a whole roasted pig on a platter.
Glancing about, affirming that everyone was well and properly settled in for the discussion that was to be had, Joe took a breath and settled his elbows on his knees.
Clasping his hands together before his mouth, Joe contemplated the situation. "...Dorothy," he began. "Why isn't she here? Why are you all so… Wary to speak of her?"
There was a heavy pause before someone finally spoke up. "The situation with Dorothy is… Difficult," Cinderella darkly noted, anxiously rubbing her hands together. "She, um… She… Isn't aligned with humanity anymore."
Turning to face the silverette, Joe's brow furrowed heavily at the assertion for obvious reasons.
It was Scarlet that followed up, though. "We were informed by our handler in the Ark, that Andersen and thee had been executed by the Central Government for 'outliving thy usefulness.' The gate had been sealed behind thee, leaving Dorothy inflicted with a most ruinous sense of betrayal."
Having chewed through and swallowed her potato in record time, Snow White spoke up next. "Dorothy has declared her intention to cast down the Central Government, and destroy the Ark. Not unlike a Heretic."
"Dorothy isn't a Heretic!" Rapunzel declared, rising from her seat forcefully. "None of what happened is her fault! She just needs to see Joe and know that he's alive and well and she'll calm down!"
"You don't know that-!" Snow White started as she too rose to her feet, rapidly growing heated.
She was cut off by Joe and Rapi rising to their feet, reminding everyone that they were, in fact, present this time.
Pioneer fell into rapt silence, all eyes on the Commander as he stepped aside and away from the campfire. Joe settled a hand on his bearded chin, as Rapi remained stuck to his side, understandably concerned for obvious reasons.
The little blonde reached over and set a hand on Joe's elbow, more than a little uncertain. The man in question, however, was stuck pondering the situation. Dorothy, she hated the Ark and the Central Government. Understandably so.
Yet Snow White considered her to be a Heretic because of this. This was a complicating factor, but, given everything that he knew, Joe was firmly of the opinion that they couldn't, and shouldn't pull the wool over Pioneer's eyes.
From Joe's perspective, the best path forward would be to walk Pioneer through the situation, explain to them what had actually happened in the Ark on the Sealing Day. Then… Discuss contacting Dorothy.
With a nod, he gave Rapi's shoulder a squeeze, turning around and facing his girls once more, making note of how anxious the lot of them were.
"I don't think you're going to like what I'm about to say," Joe declared, crossing his arms and stepping closer to the campfire again. "But, clearly, it needs to be said. First off: your 'handler' lied to you. Whatever it is you've been led to believe about what happened on that day, was a lie."
"Then what happened?" Rapunzel asked, leaning forward, heart going a mile a minute in her chest along with the rest of her long-time companions.
"After I arrived in the Ark proper, I was called to meet with the Central Government council. The message they had for me was simple and clear: Goddess was to be disbanded, the Grimms which made it up 'deactivated' and disassembled to reverse-engineer the technology that went into their creation."
Walking aside, Joe had his back to Pioneer, looking out into the distance as he continued to speak.
"They wanted me to become their figurehead, to lead the charge to shifting the Ark into fascist rule, wherein everyone would answer to the Central Government, and anyone that was in with the CG would live like royalty."
Joe's voice was tinged with no small amount of anger. Anger which would never leave him; a deep-seated hatred for those bastards that would have seen his girls disposed of after all they'd done for mankind.
"I would lead Goddess to their deaths, because all of you had outlived your usefulness, and they wanted super soldiers they could control absolutely, not potentially contrarian heroes that might put their rule at risk."
Joe continued to look outwards into the horizon as he continued.
"Red Hood had been sneaked into the Ark, lured in ahead of everyone else, because Exceed was deemed to be the most valuable ability among those granted to Goddess. Then, in their infinite wisdom, they had allowed her to roam free while setting up her execution. This was the opening I needed, that we needed, to do what had to be done."
Rapi glanced back over her shoulder, making note of the mounting horror on the faces of Pioneer as Joe laid out the facts to them.
"Enikk, the Ark's central managerial A.I. overheard us… And immediately cut us off from the rest of the system to ensure we wouldn't be caught. She confided in us, informed us that the Central Government's immediate plans left humanity with naught but ten years before extinction."
That was the point when Joe turned around to face Pioneer, his expression grave as he too saw how mortified they all were. It did little to discourage him from continuing to reveal the ugly truth.
"Enikk served as our handler in the two-man operation to eliminate the council. Her intervention is the reason we succeeded, and humanity did not go extinct ninety years ago."
Silence reigned, Pioneer staring at Joe and Rapi in open horror. Doubtlessly, this was just about the very last thing they'd expected to hear from their Commander a century after their last meeting, back when they were all loyal soldiers of the United Forces of Humanity and the Central Government.
After an extended period of time, Cinderella was the first to speak up. "...Dorothy was right," she breathed, gaze becoming unfocused as it hit her all at once. "All this time, she was right…"
"-Bullshit!" Snow White all but screamed, on the contrary, eyes having gone wild as they snapped between Joe and Rapi. "That's not- No! No! That doesn't- You're lying! You wouldn't betray-!"
"Snow White, calm yourself," Scarlet interjected, pointedly rising to her feet commandingly. "If even the Commander and Red- Rapi have been driven to turn their sights upon the Central Government, then any betrayal would have been upon them by those we trusted—those who hunt us to this day, if thou shalt recall!"
As the pair stared at each other with considerable intensity, Rapunzel remained quiet, just staring at Joe and Rapi. It seemed, that of Pioneer, she at least had the wherewithal to wait for them to finish explaining themselves, and so they did.
"Our enemy is the Central Government," Rapi, notably, spoke up rather than Joe. "Not the Ark."
That caught Snow White's attention once more, the golden-eyed woman now keenly focusing on the smaller blonde.
"The Central Government is not the Ark," Rapi asserted matter-of-factually. "The Central Government has infested the Ark. It needs to be extricated, like a cancerous tumour, so that the Ark itself and the civilians inside of it may survive in the long term. So that we may one day reclaim the surface the Central Government has forsaken."
Joe just nodded in agreement of Rapi's clarification, very much appreciating that she was supporting him on this matter, and so well at that.
That seemed to give Pioneer no small amount of collective relief, though the tension in the air did not dissipate in whole.
This was exemplified by Scarlet's response. "So… Thou suggests that our purpose ought to be combating the Central Government, for the sake of mankind?"
Joe replied to that. "The Central Government are enemies of mankind. They have no interest in reclaiming the surface. They know the Ark's time is limited, that it is not self-sustaining and will one day run out of resources. The only thing they care about is ruling over it and what little remains of mankind until our species hits its expiration date."
The man was looking between the girls that had served under him amidst the Initial Rapture Invasion.
"Andersen has been among their upper echelons for years now as one of the Ark's Deputy Chief Commanders under a pseudonym. If anybody would know these to be facts, it would be him. Would any of you argue that it is not our duty to see the CG cast down, in light of these facts?"
As Snow White's hand balled into a fist, Cinderella anxiously wrung her hands together, while Rapunzel clasped her hands in uncertain prayer, and Scarlet rapped her fingers on the butt of Fleetly Fading.
They weren't going to get anywhere by sitting around and leaving everyone to brood and get lost in their own heads. So, Joe pressed the issue immediately. "Look me in the eye, and tell me that the Central Government is not humanity's enemy, despite actively and knowingly engaging in malicious behaviour they know will lead to the extinction of our species for their own short-term gain."
That only momentarily made Pioneer all the more visibly uncomfortable, shifting about with no small amount of mounting unease.
But Joe wasn't having it. "That is an order," he dictated with anything even approximating a semblance of humour.
That caused the attention of the girls to all snap to Joe at once, wavering slightly, only to deflate more than a little bit at the newfound pressure placed on them.
Scarlet was the first to reply. "Nay, I cannot," the ashen-haired swordswoman said with a heavy sigh. "The Central Government, by thy own words, can only be construed as mankind's enemy, if they do be truly bettering their own purses at humanity's expense."
Cinderella replied next. "...If my father has been serving as a… A spy, I suppose, and he says they're evil too… Your word alone would be enough for me, Joe. If our next mission is to destroy the Central Government for humanity's sake, then so be it." Despite the clear conflict in her shimmering blue eye, the Commander could see that she was indeed truthfully putting her faith in him. He wasn't misleading her, so he simply nodded once in acknowledgement of her assertion.
"...I can't believe that… But Dorothy wants to destroy the Ark-!" Snow White began, only to be cut off by Rapi.
"We are not discussing Dorothy or the morality of her actions or objectives," the diminutive blonde asserted forcefully. "You are being informed of our newfound mission which, as all other missions we have engaged in, is for the sake of mankind. Not Dorothy, not Joe, not ourselves, not revenge. The Central Government is knowingly driving humanity to extinction. Is this acceptable to you, yes, or no?"
Snow White closed her eyes, visibly conflicted by the notion of knowingly and deliberately taking up arms against human beings. Yet… "...No," she growled out, demonstrably resenting that she had to vocalize such thoughts in the first place. She left it there.
At that, only Rapunzel was left, who was clearly lost in her own head. Muttering quietly to herself, periodically shaking her own thoughts, trying to sort something out on her own. Rapi didn't seem content with this, and so interrupted the towering blonde's thoughts. "Rapunzel? You've been asked a question."
Rapunzel jumped in her seat, large blue eyes going wide before she cleared her throat. "I-I hate the thought of bringing harm to humans. But… If the Central Government is truly deliberately working towards mankind's extinction, then there's only one path forward: bringing them to justice for the sake of the many to whom we exist to shield, from anything and everything that would threaten them."
She paused, lips still parted, gaze drifting aside for a few moments before she spoke back up.
"I'm more so thinking of Dorothy, though. She… It's as has been stated. We all left her, because she made it clear that she considered mankind to be the enemy, that the Ark had to fall, that she would see it fall for the 'sins' committed against us… How for what they did to you, Joe, that the Ark absolutely had to be punished, for profiting off of and benefiting from your 'murder.'"
That brought everyone to silence once more. Joe hadn't been expecting to hear that Dorothy had become an extremist after the Ark was sealed. Nor that she was driven to such hatred specifically by what she'd been told of his fate, which was itself a lie… He'd known that she cared deeply for him, but to the extent that she'd effectively stopped just short of Heresy herself for vengeance?
Speaking up, Joe vocalized his thoughts. "I can see why Snow White would accuse her of being a Heretic…" Though Rapunzel clearly disliked that, Snow White seemed vindicated by his assessment. "But… The thought of treating Dorothy as an enemy…"
Rapunzel was quick to speak up at that. "I think she would be calmed just by seeing that you're alive after all! She's far gone now, but only because of how much it hurt her when we all thought you'd died! She just needs to know that you're still with us, that you've been working towards a less… Extreme version of what she has been all along!"
While Snow White was still more than a little uncertain and uncomfortable with the notion, Joe was just disconcerted by the question of Dorothy's state, and furthermore… "Where is Dorothy, then?" He asked.
At that, the girls all shared collective looks of uncertainty, and Scarlet was the one that answered him. "Eden, Commander. Dorothy is in Eden."
Rapi's brows furrowed. "...Eden?"
At that, Joe too was confused, spurring a question that was far larger than he'd have expected.
"And what, exactly, is Eden?"
Masayume
Professional Lurker
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Yeeesss an update! Finally the truth is out! Time to fish the Doro out heh, that or send one or two of pioneer to send a message to her. Hopefully Doro will agree to meet before dismissing Joe as a clone made by CG to get all of Goddess in one go.
Nehef
I trust you know where the happy button is?
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My headcannon is in the past Red Hood telling Scarlet the way to win against Dorothy is to win in "bed wrestling" against the commander. Doro finds out after Scarlet's gloat and as easily provoked as she is, the challenge is taken and the cummander needs to deal with it too.
And the "plot twist" is that the cummander is the "strongest" in this scenario. (This have been in my head for so much time since, the interactions between Scarlet and Doro and the memories of Scarlet gloati- *ahem* talking with the commander about how strong she is and one of the answers is "I'm stronger")
... YES, SEGGS.
