Only Human (Goddess of Victory NIKKE SI)

[Jsebas19]

another chapter and it seems that Joe is taking the initiative in leading Nikkes.

Something that is true, the Nikkes even in the game suffer from almost constant mistreatment by the commanders so the reaction of Mica, Belorta and the other Nikkes (except Rapi) to how Joe leads and his kindness is normal.

And it was funny to me that Rapi literally threw a tantrum to join the mission...

I don't know what will happen once they have the harmony cube but I don't rule out that there won't be any rapture there, but in reality that Siren, Hansel and Gretel who were sent by Abe's orders will appear and that it will be revealed that they work in Eden.

I know it sounds far-fetched but let's remember that the large-scale butterfly effects began when Joe prevented the corruption of Cinderella and possibly Red Hood.

So I don't rule out that Rose kicked Old Tales out of the elevator or that she alone went to the queen, preventing Old Tales from being separated for a century.

And if it's correct then it means that in this timeline Abe never became Grave.

In the game Grave referred to the MC as "SuperHuman" but here I imagine he theorized that he called Joe "Anomaly" Because Joe's presence in itself in Nikke's world is an anomaly.

 

[Fragment of Serenity]

Joe proving that he's a Professional loot goblin. Good on him.

What would be hilarious is if nothing goes wrong at all... except as they're leaving they run into Doro.

And then DOROING ensues.

 

[Jsebas19]

Joe proving that he's a Professional loot goblin. Good on him.

What would be hilarious is if nothing goes wrong at all... except as they're leaving they run into Doro.

And then DOROING ensues.

Click to shrink...

Or that they encounter Old Tales since Abe/Grave makes use of the harmony cube in the game.

Here I wouldn't be surprised if Abe and Old Tale work in Eden.

 

[Jsebas19]

If there will be some kind of respite episode or another flashback, I can't help but imagine Joe getting drunk with Andersen in the goddess era where the two of them relax (actually Joe only came because Andersen might do something stupid) and drink and things get out of control, something that would end with the two of them being chased by the authorities in the purest Red Dead Redemption 2 style (Arthur and Lenny's mission getting drunk), Joe would escape but Andersen would be caught. Something that would be seen by Cinderella from afar who didn't hesitate to take Joe to the Avenger.

Something that could be inspired by that mission:

- YouTube

Profitez des vidéos et de la musique que vous aimez, mettez en ligne des contenus originaux, et partagez-les avec vos amis, vos proches et le monde entier.

www.youtube.com

changing the subject If Cinderella meets the Cinderella from the game I imagine this encounter:

-Cinderella from OH: "Is that me?"
-Cinderella from the game: "You don't know how lucky you were to have a Joe"

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 77 - No Tyrant
===

Rocketeer was set up on the tallest roof of the Lost Sector, ready and able to provide support for Rifleman as they swept the area's streets and made their way to likely locations that might house the Harmony Cube.

On their way up, and on their way down, the building had decoys established so that if Raptures tried to ambush Rocketeer, they'd get forewarning when the decoys were attacked ahead of time.

So now, the only thing left for them to do was proceed onward, hugging walls and street corners to avoid bumbling ass-first into local Raptures.

Things were going well, minimal Rapture resistance was met, and what few Raptures came at them fell easily. Joe had First Affection drawn and readied to fire, doing his duty as the squad's Commander, and the girls kept hitching any time they caught sight of a man actually forming up alongside them with a functional weapon.

That made Joe sad. It went to show just how far the Central Government had fallen, and how useless the Commander Corps really was. Men were capable of fighting alongside Nikkes back in the midst of the Initial Rapture Invasion—primarily in supporting roles, owing to Hoplons and lighter exoskeletons—but Nikkes didn't stare like fish out of water at the sight of a man actually pulling a fraction of his own weight back then.

It encouraged him to work all the harder. Where the Commanders that came after him had failed these girls, Joe would not. He was back, and he'd show these Nikkes that they could look to Commanders as proper comrades-in-arms. Things would be different. Things would be better.

Moving down the street, what stuck out to Joe was how uneven the construction was. It almost looked like this Ark was being 'grown,' and parts of the buildings and streets had 'overgrown,' and would have had to be shaved down to be level with everything around the overgrowths. It also meant that the street had fairly significant bumps and divots in it, large squared-off potholes and upswells that made walking down the street kind of a bitch.

This didn't slow the squad down, at least. The Nikkes just stepped harder to bound up boxy upsteps, and across holes, while Joe followed suit. The high-mobility nature of the exoskeleton Ingrid had provided him was proving its worth already. Where someone might have had to slow down and pick Joe up, even carry him across this uneven terrain, he was hauling ass without slowing down everyone else.

It felt good, feeling like less of a burden on the girls that depended on him. This was so much closer to how it should be. Not some blowhard attention whore Commander that saw himself as better than the girls doing the hard work. A fellow soldier, fulfilling their specialty in the squad, contributing to their collective success in this war of humanity's survival.

The moment these girls looked at him with pride, was the moment he'd know he'd succeeded. God damn, would he make them proud.

"-Commander," Cammie's voice crackled over comms. With a halting motion from the Commander, everyone stopped and waited. "There's a fairly large concentration of Raptures converging in the street around the corner you're approaching. Mica says that she'll be able to soften them up significantly if necessary, and maintain a steady stream of fire with Belorta's support if need be."

Pausing, Joe glanced down the street, and noticed something… "The uneven 'cubing' of the road has produced a line of workable cover along the entire length of the street on our end," he observed, checking the drone's feed and getting his own eyes on the situation around the corner. "It looks like we could set up a firing line behind that cover while Mica paints targets and ambush the Raptures."

The Raptures were grouped up near one of the major search locations for the Harmony Cube, so it'd be best to deal with them to ensure they could do their job.

Joe made a lowering motion to the ground with his palm.

"We all lower ourselves to the ground, and crawl to stay behind cover. We set up, and after the first volley hits, we pop up to unleash a wall of lead on those bastards, giving Rocketeer the chance to reload and fire again, finishing them off."

Again, only Rapi wasn't caught off guard by Joe's relative competence. As sad as that was, it was what it was. When nobody had any complaints or objections to the plan, they went about complying. Crawling into position, Mica assured the Commander that Rocketeer was ready to rain Hellfire at a moment's notice, and only needed to receive the go-ahead.

Quickly enough, Rifleman was set up, and with the affirmation that everyone was ready…

Joe pinged Rocketeer, and the distant thump-thump-thump-thump swoosh of Mica's multi-stage multi-lock launcher going off was all the warning the man needed to brace hard against the street's cover. Had he not been readied, he'd have been blown clean off his feet. Nikke explosives were terrifying.

Luckily, the girls didn't need to be babysat by the man, and so they'd all popped up to open fire on the now screaming and screeching Raptures. They received fire back, but not very much, considering how many Raptures had converged at the end of the street.

Another thump-thump-thump-thump swoosh sounded out, and the girls dropped back behind cover just before the second salvo came.

There were no words to convey how glad Joe was to have the Ark's super-tech ear protection. He would have been deafened a thousand times over if he'd needed to rely on the basic bitch shit from his own world. Let in the good sounds, block out the bad noise. It said a lot that he was still left reeling and shocked every time he was close enough to a gun or explosion going off to rattle his bones, regardless.

Following the explosions, was silence. Joe directed the girls to all remain right where they were, and for Rocketeer to hold fire. He used the drone to go in and investigate, and found that the Raptures were all dead. Absolutely fucking shredded. Entire simulations existed around attempting to just survive these sorts of numbers back in the Ark.

"All hostiles down," Joe declared. "Good work girls, we got 'em."

Mia looked absolutely gobsmacked. "...N-none of us are even hurt though…!"

Sunny was reeling in disbelief, even as Rapi peeked over cover and glanced around to affirm with her own senses that they were in the clear.

Rising to his feet, Joe let out a hefty sigh and a nod, reaching up and applying pressure to the side of his shoulder as he rolled his neck. "Stay frosty, ladies. The Lost Sector isn't clear yet, and we still have a job to do."

"Yes, Commander," Rapi complied as she too stood and moved to set herself in front of Joe, clearly making an effort to continue ensuring he was safe.

Turning around, Joe looked up to the rocket perch, and made a raised fist gesture to them. They were too far away for his mere human eyes to make out, but he was sure they got the affirmation, regardless.

Thus, the squad started off once more, closing in on the first of the possible Harmony Cube locations. There were more Rapture encounters, but nothing quite as noteworthy as their biggest encounter. Sunny and Mia proved themselves to be competent, Rapi was putting in the work as she ever did, but she was hardly 'carrying' the new girls, as it were.

Everything was going smoothly. By all appearances, they were, in fact, going to finish this operation without running into any Tyrants. The Lost Sector was mostly quiet, bereft of much other than the distant skittering of weaker Raptures.

Yet, Joe could already see all the ways in which a common Commander would have fucked everything up, gotten Nikkes killed unnecessarily, and even produced a mission failure out of what should have been an easy win. This was emphasized by how dumbstruck Sunny and Mia were, how they visibly could simply not believe that things were going as well as they were.

One could hardly blame them. But, luckily, things seemed to be working out for the team-

"Commander!" Mia cried as she lunged for Joe. "Move-!"

An explosion of the crystalline white material which made up the Lost Sector produced a glassy scream. With a terrible crash, Joe went soaring along with Mia, the pair slamming into the street and coming to a rolling stop as the man gathered himself.

A singular Rapture towered over them, entirely mechanical in its make, it almost resembled a Metal Gear. The warbling cry it produced as it pitched itself upon its quadrupedal feet only served to emphasize this similarity.

"Heavy Metal!" Rapi called out from where she'd been thrown by the assault. "Lord Class!"

-Of course, of fucking course. No worries about running into a Tyrant, just a mere Rapture of the class immediately below a Tyrant in power and danger!

The Heavy Metal looked the part of a walking turret, its core encased in squared-off armour with a pair of massive cannons mounted on either side of its body. It looked like a walking turret, and those cannons would probably hit like stationary turrets would too. It only figured that they'd manage to be bushwhacked by something like this when everything was going too damned well!

Scrambling to his feet, Joe pumped his legs and booked it. He had to get out of the immediate danger zone, let Rifleman focus on fighting the Lord rather than fixating on keeping him alive. "Rifleman, spread out, and keep moving! That thing's cannons will shred any cover you could take! Don't let it focus on any one of you!"

Joe would have panicked at the speed he achieved with the exoskeleton, had he not locked the fuck in, years of combat instincts kicking into high gear and causing him to slip back into a Hoplite's mindset.

The man leaped into an open second-story window of what would have been an office building in the proper Ark. Crampons deployed to dig into the ground and arrest his forward momentum, allowing him to stop and spin on his heel. The Heavy Metal was fixated on the Nikkes, not having aimed for him once.

"Rifleman! Create as much distance between yourselves and the Lord as you can!" He commanded the girls as he fell to a knee, withdrawing the tablet to take control of the drone and get a proper view of the battlefield from a safe position. "Rocketeer! The moment Rifleman is clear of danger close, you have permission to fire at will! Cammie, you take up arms and open fire as well! Belorta, support Cammie and Mica's reloads as you can! If Belorta is busy, you reload your launcher yourself!"

"Sir!" Mica, Belorta, and Cammie all called out over comms to acknowledge Joe's directions.

Observing the ongoing fight, the Heavy Metal unit was ripping about the battlefield, barrelling over any changes in elevation with ease given its quadrupedal nature. Despite its size, it moved with terrifying speed, its cannons blowing massive holes in the buildings the Nikkes zipped by as they avoided being hit.

Joe's stomach leapt up into his throat as a bullet struck the building he was in, shaking the whole damned thing. A sharp reminder that there was a reason it was Nikkes alone that were entrusted to protect humankind from Raptures.

Regardless, the man did his best to scan the battlefield using the drone's eye, and the thump-thump-thump-thump swoosh of Mica's rocket launcher announced itself alongside a harsh, distant ting-fwoooOOOSH for a brief instant before a number of explosions, along with a single massive additional explosion sounded out.

Mica's weapon was a multi-stage multi-lock crowd killer. Cammie used a hyper-velocity dumb tandem rocket meant to do massive damage to a single, heavily-armoured unit. The pissed-off scream of the Lord indicated that she'd probably turned a good chunk of the thing's armour to slag.

"Commander! Raptures converging on the Lord's location!" Belorta called out over comms, "Mica's opening fire on them to try thinning them out before they get to Rifleman, but there are more than she can hit all at once!"

"-You have permission to open fire too, Belorta!" Joe proclaimed as he spun the drone around to confirm Rocketeer's assertion. Indeed, it was a minor horde, one that lost a large chunk of its numbers on account of Mica's assault, but a horde was a horde. It would be enough to break Rifleman's focus and put them in a position to be sideswiped by the Lord.

Grimacing, Joe did some quick calculations, and immediately sent out a wide-band message across their comms. "All forces, this is Commander Pholus, converge on our location at once! We are engaged with a Lord class and are about to be overwhelmed!"

A series of affirmations replied, and while he knew that Nikkes could haul ass, they would still be a good minute or two out. A minute or two when a bullet or two would be all it took to turn Rapi, Mia, and Sunny to scrap.

It was stupid of him, but they needed all hands on deck right now. So Joe rose to his feet, charged for the window, drove the crampon spikes into the rim of the open frame, and shouldered First Affection, the laser sight snapping to life to give him a quick reference for point shooting.

Gritting his teeth, the man started firing into the Rapture horde, single bullets being all that was needed to convert scout class Raptures into scrap metal. One shot, two shots, three, four, five, six. Scouts weren't individually dangerous, but they didn't need to be, they only needed to be allowed to distract Rifleman while a fucking Lord was gunning for them. So Joe shook his head between shots, growled like a pissed off bear, and powered through the stunning effect of each trigger pull.

It was like fighting to control a motorbike you'd accidentally revved without being mounted on it, but it just kept bucking, right back at you. His brain rattled, his muscles cried as the exoskeleton only absorbed most of each round's recoil. The advanced ear protection set deep into his ear canals struggled to keep up with the repeated point-blank thunderclaps, everything fading out into a white static with each shot fired. Stop all external noise entirely, if nothing else.

Another salvo of missiles struck the Rapture horde, the shockwave nearly knocking Joe off his feet, the spikes attached to his exoskeleton frame keeping him anchored in place as he continued to fire for effect, actually successfully thinning the wave of scouts down to a small handful. Maintaining his aim, the man braced himself and continued to fire, aiming to pick off the last of the scouts.

The last handful of Rapture scouts took notice of his shooting at them, and they returned fire. The energy bolts went wide, missing the Commander by several feet. Joe was faster to put rounds in their cores, actually reducing them to the single-digits.

Another hyper-velocity munition struck the Heavy Metal Lord, damn near knocking it over outright as the red glare of its core was now visible.

As Rifleman was forced to turn and pick off the scouts that Joe and Mica hadn't managed to stop entirely, the Lord spun in place, following the trajectory of Mica's missiles- Oh shit-!

"Rocketeer!" He called out as Rifleman was entirely distracted by the last of the scouts. "Away from the ledge! Get away from the ledge-!"

A staccato of cannon fire sounded out, the Lord's aim proving true as the ledge upon which Rocketeer had been perched burst into a debris cloud of glassy, crystalline dust. With wide eyes, Joe felt his heart plummet into his stomach, seeing figures tumble and fall from the roof.

His attention was caught by the sound of Rapi screaming at the top of her lungs, bounding off the crystalline street and leaping at the Lord, spinning and cocking her leg—the stiletto heel spike she'd last used in their fight against the Blacksmith to anchor herself to the Tyrant's back firing out as the blonde aimed to repeat the same manoeuvre here.

Only for the Lord to spin atop a single leg, the rest flaring out like propeller blades and catching Rapi by the midsection, sending the Grimms soaring down the street at extreme velocity and out of sight with a horrible crash.

While Sunny and Mia finished off the last of the Scout classes, the Heavy Metal—honed in on Joe.

"OH SHIT-!" Joe cried out as he scrambled to get the fuck away from the open window, having to wrench his spiked boot from the ground upon which he'd anchored himself to secure his firing position.

A series of thunderclaps punctuated the entire front end of the building collapsing in on itself, the floor giving out from beneath Joe's feet as he lost any semblance of balance and went tumbling out into the open air. He'd mercifully avoided being directly hit by the massive bullets the Rapture fired, but had been caught in their area-of-effect anyways.

If not for the armour he wore, the effect of hitting multiple out-hanging struts of debris would have put him entirely out of commission entirely on their own. To say nothing of the exoskeleton mercifully having emergency airbags, which had detected his falling back-first at the ground long and fast enough for said fall to risk severe damage.

They popped instantly, but broke his fall more than enough to cause him to be only winded by the tumbling out of a second story window.

Now in the middle of the street, Joe could do little but stare in wide-eyed horror when the Lord remained focused on him, and pounced. Bringing its legs up around it as the extraterrestrial Hell machine clearly aimed on crushing him beneath its immense body weight.

Joe could barely even manage to begin trying to roll over to ineffectually shield himself from being turned into a crimson stain—but a great crash and a strained scream precluded the sensation of being crushed outright. Sunny had lunged for Joe, and not having been able to grab and pull him free or shove him out of the way, fulcrumed herself onto her back and caught the falling Lord with her legs.

At once, he could see her limbs giving out, being driven well beyond their safe limits as she braced herself against the ground and pushed with all of her might against the massive Rapture which pushed right back. Screaming in agony, Sunny had planted herself in a situation that would surely kill her to save Joe's life.

Without a second thought given, without pondering the wisdom of his next move at all, Joe became a creature of pure Id as he saw one of his girls suffering for his sake, and the hateful red glare of the Rapture's core, exposed by Cammie's carefully-aimed missile fire.

Joe braced the butt of First Affection against the ground upon which he lay, used the laser sight to settle the barrel on the Lord's core, flipped the fire control onto full auto, and unloaded the entire remainder of First Affection's magazine directly into the Heavy Metal unit's core at point-blank range.

Everything turned to static, the man's senses entirely drowned out by the unfathomably vicious recoil and stunning effect of the veritable autocannon's singular, buzz saw-like report of many dozens of furious thunderclaps, each of which struck the man like a punch to his throat.

There was little to be done with Joe's senses were so hopelessly overwhelmed, that the man effectively blacked out with his eyes wide open. Only a series of terrible crashes could be made out, as the Commander lay where he'd fallen, damn near slipping out of consciousness outright.

 

[Dsaeg]

I expected not below but above tyrant but this is fine.

 

[Valthorix]

Damn Rapi you really dropped the ball on this one, Joe almost gets smooshed and he has to rely on an MP to save him instead. Smh girlfailure strikes again.

 

[JKD_666]

Damn, Joe's boosting his K/D ratio against Raptures again. Not like he needs it, he's already at the top of the scoreboard.

 

[Fragment of Serenity]

Damn, Joe's boosting his K/D ratio against Raptures again. Not like he needs it, he's already at the top of the scoreboard.

Click to shrink...

Sometimes, it is simply necessary to flex. Remind the world why one is not to be fucked with.

 

[SuperPulp2789]

With The rest of Goddess Squad minus Dorothy, I can say that Chatterbox might not be able to do his one last F U

Thing is, I don't think he's stupid, so if he knows beforehand how much of a threat is before him, he'll do something to get stronger

 

[Jsebas19]

Neon will be angry when she finds out that Joe didn't call her for a mission of this caliber with a lot of FirePower.

I honestly expected Syren, Hansel and Gretel to appear here due to the harmony cube, although maybe they will appear in the next chapter along with Abe.

On the other hand, Rapi will be worse after this with her confidence or self-esteem problems due to being incapacitated by a Rapture Lord.

Joe once again showing why he is the legendary commander who does not hesitate to put himself in danger for the Nikkes.

Now that I think about it, how would the relationship between Joe and Helm be if they meet and under what circumstances? In the game, Helm and the MC only interact at events (mostly festive ones like Sea you, Again) and crossover events like the current Evangelion event, but since Bakasmurf already said that crossover events or festive ones will not happen, then how would Joe and Helm and the rest of Aegis meet?

Bakasmurf I think should explain why the collabs won't happen in this timeline. I theorize that since Goddess was more united after Ark Guardian, Goddess at some point located the Gatekeeper even though it was being built or weakened, to which they did not hesitate to open fire, destroying the Gatekeeper before it could even react or know what was happening.

 

[FatBabyYoshi]

i can't wait for the next chapter. I wonder if this explosion fest will activate hidden defenses or alert some sleeping giant in the city.

 

[Gato]

In hindsight, I still think it was the right choice to put Rocketeer on that tower for fire support was the right decision. I had my doubts, figured they'd be run over with no way to retreat from there until I remembered they could probably make that fall with no injuries. Wondering if they made it out okay after getting shot at. I'd say coming out of this fight with only Sunny as a sorta casualty is a decent outcome.

But, I'm sorry to say. Rapi is done. Cooked. Finished. Sunny jumped to save Joe and landed right on the waifu pedestal. Kicked her right off the throne. Her self doubts will make sure that we will talk about a harem for years to come. Pure Chad energy that Sunny. Damn.

If Dorothy finds out that she laid next to Joe until her legs stopped working we're all dead btw. But I'm sure no gossip at all will spring up from this. There's no gossip between soldiers, no Sir!

Cool arc so far. Really into exploring the apocalypse with Joe and his knock off Dragon Quest party sidekicks. Also, have we had any news how events will be handled in this story? Can't imagine a beach episode will fit the narrative.

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 78 - …When They're Making a Mistake
===

Rapi had, the very instant she'd recovered, launched herself at the Lord-class and kicked it off of Sunny and Joe as hard as she could. The whole thing was knocked clean off the MP Nikke, and crashed on its side bonelessly. While Rapi had drawn Wolf's Bane and moved to drive the barrel into its core, she was caught flat-footed to find that it was already dead.

Turning aside, she found Sunny laid out next to Joe, her legs visibly partially collapsed from fighting against the weight of a Lord, the ground around her surrounded by Nikke blood; and Joe himself, coated in Sunny's blood as well, with a massive pile of hot brass next to him. The man was noticeably and extremely discombobulated.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what happened as Mia, the team medic, rushed to Joe and Sunny's side. The Commander, deranged maniac that he continually proved himself to be, had dumped the magazine of his weapon into the Rapture's core when Sunny had caught and effectively held it at point-blank range.

Rapi was quick to descend upon the idiotic man, scooping him up despite Mia's protesting to cradle him with extreme worry. He was… Awake, but saying he was 'conscious' would be pushing it. The raw burst of Nikke-grade weapons fire must have rattled and stunned him. He'd need a few minutes to recover, at least.

He was probably even concussed to some degree, given how hard Nikke-grade munitions were on mere humans.

"You idiot," Rapi chastised him with a heavy grimace. "Absolute moron, damned fool…!" The blonde practically whined as she drew the Commander in, even as he groaned, mumbled under his breath, and otherwise indicated that he wasn't fully aware of what was happening around him.

Once it was clear that Rapi couldn't be separated from him, but he was in no apparent life-threatening danger, Mia had shifted her attention to Sunny. The twintailed blonde's legs were totalled, she'd need to be carried back to the Ark, but she'd ultimately be fine. The risk she'd taken to protect their Commander was noted, however, despite her sour attitude, when it mattered, she saved his life. That mattered, and would be remembered.

The salvage team, having converged on their location just in time to witness a Commander kill a Lord, kicked themselves into gear and moved to secure the surrounding area.

The whole lot took every chance they could in order to steal a wondrous glance at the Commander and the Nikke clinging to him with such terrified, desperate affection. This, on top of his having been an already known favourite of Mustang and trusted ally of Tetra Line beforehand.

Word would quickly spread among their number that he'd put his own life on the line to defend a 'mere' iDoll, and in so doing directly killed a Lord-class himself. He was doubtlessly going to become a celebrity among Tetra Line's forces with rapidity.

Such was the way in which providence guided the hand of the Legendary Commander of Goddess.

---

When Joe eventually became fully aware again, he was met by Rapi cradling him as they sat in the midst of a pop-up medical camp. It was confirmed that he'd concussed himself firing First Affection on full-auto, and that the only reason he didn't require a shoulder replacement was that he had the presence of mind to brace the gun against the ground, rather than his arm.

The exoskeleton, which he'd been warned wasn't rated to absorb the full-auto recoil of a Nikke-grade firearm, had damn near failed under that punishment, as he was told it would. Again, bracing it against the ground meant that the majority of the recoil it produced was dissipated directly into the street, but the exoskeleton still had to contend with more than it should have.

The exoskeleton was still functional, but he wasn't going to be using First Affection for the rest of the operation. Not that he could regardless: he'd spent the entire magazine, after all.

Sunny was a mission casualty, given that her legs were absolutely destroyed preventing the Heavy Metal Rapture from crushing him. She was unconscious when Joe and Rapi went to check on her, by her own request. She didn't want to be aware when she had injuries that so obviously marked her as non-human.

Some Nikkes were like Anis and Neon, and could just shrug off reminders that they had metal bones and hyper-tech artificial muscles, at least in the short term. Others… Preferred to be placed into an induced coma until they were fixed back up. He could hardly hold it against Sunny, and it was all Joe could do to lightly touch the twintailed blonde's forehead, and wish pleasant dreams upon her until they could get her to a repair centre.

He'd been informed that Mica, Belorta, and Cammie were all fine as well. They'd fallen from the roof of the tower, yes, but they'd all caught the side of the building, drove their hands into the structure, and were able to slow their descent enough to be able to kick off the wall when close to the ground and completely disperse all of their momentum into a series of rolls.

They were all also apparently really peeved that nobody saw them pull that off, and Joe could understand why: it sounded like it would have looked really cool.

Though the girls all had the skin stripped from their hands doing that stunt, they all just shut off their pain receptors and were able to keep functioning. They, along with Mia, opted to accompany the salvaging team that went out to keep searching for the Harmony Cube.

From Cammie, that wasn't too surprising, but Joe couldn't help but feel more than a little impressed by Mica and Belorta proving themselves to have no small amount of mettle. The two rocketeers didn't exactly strike him as hardened warriors, despite being Nikkes. Old Nikkes, at that. Even the cutest of girls could be tough little troopers in the Ark, as it turned out.

Joe couldn't help but feel more than a degree of pride in the entire team. They'd more than proven themselves to be worthy and reliable allies, so far as he was concerned.

That all being said, Rapi remained absolutely locked to his side, her arm locked around his. Both because he'd been hurt and she was worried, and because he was still concussed and had already once gone light-headed to the point that he'd have lost his footing, had the blonde not been holding onto him at the time.

The Commander was in no state to be accompanying Nikkes into potential combat for now, so he sat out the remainder of the operation, and would be forced to check in at the Outpost hospital once they were back. They needed to ensure there wasn't anything seriously wrong with him, given the concussion.

So, it was all he could do to settle in, sit among the small medical team, and wait.

Some time later, Rocketeer and the salvage unit rocked up to the temporary medical post they'd built near the now-dead Lord-class. Reports suggested that they'd actually cleared out the Rapture infestation with that battle, and might have made the Lost Sector safe to tear apart with wild abandon for any and all resources within.

Mica marched up to Joe, dropped the backpack she was wearing, dug into it, and presented the prize they'd descended down there to find to begin with. A small block, about the size of a Rubik's cube. Black, textured similarly to the uneven cubic manner in which the structures of the Lost Sector were, with squared-off 'windows' which revealed a red core within. "Look, Commander! We found it!"

With a smile, Joe gave the little brunette with absurdly flowing long hair a thumbs-up. "Hell yeah you did."

As Mica beamed, Belorta stepped forward, the little silverette too grinning broadly. "Hey, hey, Co~mmander! Syuen said that the one Harmony Cube was absolutely hers, and that every single other thing in the Lost Sector belonged to us, riiiight?"

Joe blinked, nodding once. "Yeah, her declaration and the contract she had me sign emphasized that the only thing she was interested in was 'that singular one,' and that 'every single other thing you might find down there, belongs to you.' She pretty clearly wanted me to feel like the job would be worth my time."

Belorta's smile widened with each word that came from Joe's mouth, and with a bounce on her heel (which almost made Joe grimace and hurgle, given the reminder that Belorta was quite well endowed despite her diminutive size), she buried her hand into one of her large pouches-

To withdraw a second Harmony Cube.

"So, this one would be one of the 'every single other things' Syuen mentioned, then?" The golden-eyed little woman inquired with a gremlin-esque smile.

Joe stared at the black-bodied, blue-accented cube that had a circular window to a bright, sky-blue core. He'd gone blank-faced, then an absolute, shit-eating grin found purchase on his features, alongside a rumbling chortle building upon his lips into a gut-busting laugh to the Heavens above.

Belorta and Mica's eyes sparkled at Joe's reaction, while Cammie made a valiant effort to not look totally taken with how utterly rapturously joyous the Commander's reaction was. Joe jumped to his feet, actually startling Rapi enough that she missed his arm when she tried to reach out and clasp onto him again.

Joe's first instinct was to reach down and pick Belorta up by the waist to spin her around, because holy shit, get fucked, Syuen! However, part of him remembered that he was both concussed, and also that Belorta, being a Nikke, weighed some 360kg, or about 800lbs. Meaning he'd probably throw out his back like a decrepit old man if he latched onto her waist and tried to lift her off her feet.

So, he just reached out, cupped and squeezed her cheeks, laughing uproariously like a madman. "What did I do to be blessed with such wonderful Nikkes, huh?" He rhetorically inquired with a gleeful cheer. "Screwing over Syuen by the letter of her own word! The best! My girls are the absolute best! Ha!"

Belorta's eyes lit up like fireworks at the positive attention, her smile stretching ear-to-ear, then she plonked her hands (including the cube she was still holding) over Joe's, bouncing in place excitedly alongside an also eager Mica.

Mia had ambled over from where she'd been checking on Sunny, a more reserved smile on her face. She seemed just as heartened to see their Commander absolutely glazing them for a job well done. A very, very rare occurrence for any Nikke.

Rapi remained close to Joe, ready to grab him if he looked like he was about to experience another fainting spell, but otherwise remained quiet. Both because of her own persisting worries about the situation between herself and the man, but also because she was used to Joe being decent upon a successful mission, while this was something of a first for the iDolls and Carronades.

So she'd just let them have this, and remain focused on keeping to Joe's side and ensuring he was as safe as he could be at any given moment, even if from his own foolishly self-inflicted injuries.

---

With their mission done, Joe, Rapi, the Carronades and iDolls all departed from the Oregon Lost Sector and set off to return to the Ark.

The salvaging team remained behind with their own vertical take-off and landing vehicles, having confirmed beyond a reasonable doubt that the failed Ark was clear of Raptures and safe to pillage unopposed. They'd rip everything up, analyze it, package it, then bring it back to the Outpost to be shoved into their resource piles and used as the Commander saw fit.

Which meant that the Initial Rapture Invasion-era Nikke parts from the Lost Sector's long-abandoned repair centre would be following them shortly. Along with a whole mess of other raw materials they'd be able to find all sorts of uses for.

The former members of Goddess were going to get a much-needed round of proper maintenance with parts which—while still nowhere near proper Grimms material—were a damn sight better than the improvised and jury-rigged Rapture junk they'd been using since having left Eden. Rapi especially would benefit from this, after she'd gone and damaged her body by using Exceed against Modernia- Marian.

Additionally, in the back of his mind, Joe recalled their stop at the Northern Base—and specifically upon considering Rapi—Ludmilla requesting that Joe ask Mustang for permission to have Snow White perform maintenance on Alice. The little pink bunny girl who too had an Exceed system, but one which was actually incredibly faulty compared to Rapi's.

With that in mind, he'd make a point to set an entire body's worth of spare parts aside for Alice and put in the request to Mustang as soon as possible, then get Syuen her Harmony Cube, before passing his Harmony Cube along to Ingrid. He needed to have their Harmony Cube identified before they could do much of anything with it, and if Elysion would potentially benefit from having it on hand, giving it to them to use much like Syuen would use hers.

They shortly arrived at the Outpost, or the trip at least felt short given how Joe had passed out pretty hard and wound up sleeping most of the way there. At any rate, Sunny was immediately picked up and brought to the repair centre, while Joe was instantly dragged to the armoury to deposit his exoskeleton and First Affection for repairs and maintenance, then to the newly-established hospital.

Rapi would hear no arguments, and made it clear that if the man attempted to protest, she'd throw him over her shoulder and carry him there like an undignified sack of potatoes.

Upon arriving at said medical centre, which just looked like a normal hospital, a nurse gave Joe an examination to see if he was okay.

He was, for the most part. He indeed had a minor concussion, and some bruising on his arms where he'd suffered blunt force trauma death-gripping First Affection while mag-dumping it, but he'd be fine as long as he sat his ass down and didn't slam his head on anything for a while. A tall order for him, yes, but one he could at least give the ol' college try.

When Rapi asked about the fact that a doctor hadn't been sent to check on him, she was told by the nurse that 'Doctor Mary' was set to transfer to the Outpost alongside 'Doctor Pepper' in a few days, and they'd likely call Joe back to check him over again.

Until then, the Outpost's hospital was just staffed by some temporary Ark nurses to basically get the place running in preparation for the proper permanent staff's arrival.

The mention of 'Dr. Pepper' caused Joe to long for a Dr Pepper, which made him kind of sad, but otherwise, everything seemed to be okay, so he was cleared to return to the Command Centre and not go around doing anything while recovering from his injuries.

Before setting off, he stopped and sent Syuen a message, requesting a Missilis representative be sent to the Command Centre for a package pick-up, alongside messaging Mustang to request a brief meeting as early as tomorrow, if he could spare the time.

Rapi, again, escorted him back dutifully, the pair arriving home to little fanfare. Pioneer were off helping with some construction, apparently, while the other girls were either at the repair centre, or off working in the case of Anis.

Or… Whatever it was Neon was doing. Joe actually had no idea what Neon was doing. When was even the last time he'd seen her? Bah, probably not important, she'd show up sooner or later and turn out to have been doing nothing important.

Mustang confirmed that he could show up to talk to Joe the following day, just as a Missilis courier showed up at the Command Centre. Joe handed them the Harmony Cube—in a sealed box, of course—and they already understood that it was to be delivered straight to Syuen, no questions asked.

With that, the red-cored Harmony Cube was hauled off, and Joe's end of the agreement with Missilis was fulfilled, Syuen being none the wiser to the sheer scope of the mistake she'd thoughtlessly made. A very, very profitable venture for Counters and their sub-squads, to say the least.

As soon as all business was done, Rapi immediately directed Joe to the elevator, clearly intent on dragging him to his room and having him lay down right away. Any other day, he would have complained, but, concussion. It would probably be wise for him to not fuck around and lay his weary head to rest as early as possible.

Thus, quickly enough, he was in his room, was stripped down to a more comfortable state, and found himself seated on the edge of his bed. He sighed as no small amount of fatigue started catching up to him all at once.

Rapi lightly fussed over the man, understandably still concerned given everything that had happened. He wasn't too bothered by having a beautiful woman worry about him, and, in the midst of seeing her seeming to cling to excuses to stay with him as long as possible…

"Am I going to find myself waking up with you cuddled up next to me again, at this rate?" Joe teasingly asked as his mouth moved faster than his brain, causing him to wind up stunlocking himself.

Rapi had, in turn, recoiled as her eyes went as wide as dinner plates, her face turning as brilliant a ruby red as her irises. She stared at Joe, who had frozen still with a seemingly unphased, expectant expression on his face. Not being privy to his internal thoughts, she did not hear his internal screaming.

After a few moments, Rapi shyly averted her gaze, suddenly playing with her own fingers, she lightly bit her bottom lip. Then, she responded shakily, "W-would you like that…?" The anticipatory edge to her tone wasn't lost on Joe.

For his part, Joe's brain first crashed, then rebooted, then went into overdrive as it devoted all of its runtime to this singular moment, to process that response of Rapi's.

A great many thoughts fired through his mind over the course of a few seconds, including the fact that while Rapi didn't remember it, or at least not as much as he did, she was still Red Hood. Meaning that that had been intimate a great many times as it was, meaning it would hardly be new ground they'd be breaking.

If anything, it would just be a step taken back to what they had before. Something that the both of them had very much enjoyed, back then.

Then his libido, which he'd been fighting so hard to suppress for a great number of reasons, upon being granted an inch, decided to forcibly take an entire mile and suddenly Joe could see nothing besides Rapi's flawless figure, her peak womanly countenance, the borderline ethereal quality of her hauntingly familiar yet exotic features, how very perfect she was from top to bottom…

Fuck it fuck it fuck it fuck it FUCK IT-

"I very much wouuuuaaa-" Joe started with an anticipatory timber of his own, only to start tipping over as he grew lightheaded and slurred his words. His concussion reaching out and slapping both himself, and a visibly mortified Rapi who had lunged out to catch him.

"-You need to go to sleep, Joe," Rapi said in a hushed, yet somewhat forceful tone. She did her best to repress the disappointment she felt, but holy shit what cruel timing.

The Commander let out a heavy groan as he allowed the gorgeous blonde to gently lower him onto the bed, before retreating just enough to grab the bed's sheet and cover him with it. The unspoken message was clear: nothing would happen while the man was actively concussed.

While that might have been perfectly understandable, it didn't make it any less frustrating given that Joe's defences had only just given out.

Rapi quickly beat a hasty retreat, standing and immediately moving for the door to depart. She did stop and turn to call back over her shoulder: "Send me a message if you need anything, okay? Even if it's just a glass of water, don't get out of bed unless you have to."

Joe just nodded, taking a few heavy, bracing breaths.

"...Good night, Joe," Rapi said with a forced even tone, doing her best to not let her own frustration show. They both noticed it, however, which made it all the worse.

"Night, Rapi," Joe answered in turn, to which Rapi nodded and set off, closing the lights behind her as she did, leaving the man to lay there and rue his life in the dark. Granted, it probably would be an exceptionally bad idea to get intimate with a 630kg cyborg super soldier while concussed, but still. It would probably be worth it. Maybe.

At this rate, surrounded by all of these unreasonably beautiful women, some of whom were being very forward with their interest in him, Joe knew that there was an increasingly high chance of him slipping up as he just did with Rapi again, sooner or later.

Turning aside, he caught sight of Marian's ID on his nightstand, her gentle, soothing smile hitting him like a brick. Then, he remembered Cinderella's heartfelt confession. Hell, even Privaty had been acting a certain kinda way with him, hadn't she? He felt his stomach twist and form a knot as he rolled onto his side and settled a hand over his chest.

He didn't want to hurt anyone. Yet he was just a man, surrounded by too-beautiful women, who had too-complicated relationships with him, who he had too-complicated feelings for.

Joe loved these women with all of his heart, but God damn it, did they not make it easy for him. Or rather, they made it entirely too easy to love them.

As he drifted off to sleep, the man renowned as the Legendary Commander mused upon the notion that he really wasn't sure that he was built for this.

 

[taovkool]

At this rate, surrounded by all of these unreasonably beautiful women, some of whom were being very forward with their interest in him, Joe knew that there was an increasingly high chance of him slipping up as he just did with Rapi again, sooner or later.

Click to shrink...

Bit of advice, Joe. Make sure not to do cowgirl or any position where the Nikke is on top.

Their internals weight a shit ton of mass that it's pretty much guaranteed to tore off your dick and pelvis. Best not risk it.

 

[Grim Dark Fantasy]

From what I've understood, Joe wanted to send the second Harmony Cube to Ingrid, but ended up calling Mustang. Am I right, or it's just misunderstanding and delusions?

 

[SKsniper128]

From what I've understood, Joe wanted to send the second Harmony Cube to Ingrid, but ended up calling Mustang. Am I right, or it's just misunderstanding and delusions?

Click to shrink...

He sent the 2nd cube to Ingrid, he called Mustang about the spare parts and repairs for Alice.

 

[Ace of Scarabs]

Bit of advice, Joe. Make sure not to do cowgirl or any position where the Nikke is on top.

Click to shrink...

There's a fanjoke that the Commander of Counters had his pelvis reinforced Wolverine-style with Goddessium as part of Project AD. Being fruitful and multiplying only works if you're durable enough to actually go through with it.

 

[Jsebas19]

There's a fanjoke that the Commander of Counters had his pelvis reinforced Wolverine-style with Goddessium as part of Project AD. Being fruitful and multiplying only works if you're durable enough to actually go through with it.

Click to shrink...

In the game yes, but here in OH the author repeated millions of times that there would be no harem.
And Joe won't be like the MC of the game in terms of romancing Nikkes.

It can be said that the love of Nikkes and Joe will be Platonic in different ways.

and now that I think about it, given that Joe is not like the MC of the game, I imagine that since Mary and Pepper appear, Joe will surely not trust or distance himself from Mary, refusing to forgive her when he finds out what she did as a human and I don't know how he will react when he finds out that Pepper accidentally killed her.

I mean Joe reacted aggressively and negatively when Pioneer told them about the draconian-Spartan practices that Dorothy promoted in Eden so I don't rule out that he reacts that way with Mary's past.

 

[Slamm-O]

Isn't Mary a Pentient at this point? She always struck me as someone who is aware of her sin and is trying to help fix what she did.

Heck she plays herself emotionally, works to help people to make up for what she did and she is close to Peper despite her killing him and is protective of her.

 

[SuperPulp2789]

Isn't Mary a Pentient at this point? She always struck me as someone who is aware of her sin and is trying to help fix what she did.

Heck she plays herself emotionally, works to help people to make up for what she did and she is close to Peper despite her killing him and is protective of her.

Click to shrink...

Given how I think they're both still going by their actual names

I presume that Mary was already that hot to begin with

 

[Jsebas19]

Isn't Mary a Pentient at this point? She always struck me as someone who is aware of her sin and is trying to help fix what she did.

Heck she plays herself emotionally, works to help people to make up for what she did and she is close to Peper despite her killing him and is protective of her.

Click to shrink...

Yes, but I was referring to Joe's reaction when he finds out what Mary did in the past.

And let's remember that Joe is not like the MC in the game who is compassionate in an idiotic way.

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 79 - The Blinders Come Off
===

The following morning, Joe awoke to a message from Syuen, denoting that she was deeply pleased with the results of the operation, and the sheer punctuality of it. She'd not been expecting to receive the Harmony Cube so quickly, evidently, and made a point to note that he should expect more job offerings in the future.

Otherwise, Mustang arrived not long after Joe woke up, and was not only quick to green light the suggestion that Snow White be allowed to perform maintenance on Alice, and he also metaphorically kicked himself for not having thought of that himself.

He also praised Joe for having the discretion to not just message this to Mustang over Blabla. Joe just said 'Opsec' in reply, to which Mustang chortled and departed. He'd arrange transport to bring Snow White to the Northern Base to get it done, just as soon as Joe requested it.

Obviously, Pioneer came first in that regard, but it shouldn't take Snow White too long to do her thing and get herself and her squadmates in better working order. Then, she could maybe make life a bit easier for Alice.

Ludmilla would surely appreciate that, if nothing else.

At any rate, Joe descended into the ground floor of the Command Centre to raid the kitchen for breakfast. Upon reaching the dining area, he found Anis, dressed down in her worryingly low-cut tank top, short shorts, thigh highs and little else. She was just finishing her usual bowl of morning off-brand Froot Loops.

Notably, the short-haired blonde instantly clammed up and displayed no small amount of anxiety the moment Joe was in sight. "Uh… Morning, Commander," she awkwardly acknowledged his presence, making a point to avoid looking directly at him.

Pausing mid-step, Joe's brow furrowed as he considered how she'd been behaving lately in general. Every time he'd seen her, she grew awkward and anxious. Visibly uncomfortable and uncertain, even at the maid café. She'd been behaving this way since returning from the Arctic.

"Anis," the burly man started, shifting to face the haphazard Nikke, visibly disconcerted. "You've been avoiding me since our mission to the Yukon."

At that, the blonde's body language tensed significantly. Her expression soured, and she started to subtly tremble.

That was probably a bad sign.

"What's wrong?" Joe immediately inquired, closing distance with her, but not quite reaching out to touch her.

Anis remained silent, her spoon lightly shaking as she made a concerted effort to not look Joe's way, or even acknowledge him. She was visibly terrified, to the man's intense confusion and mounting concern.

At that point, he did reach out and set a hand on her shoulder, eliciting a grimace and low whine from her. "Anis, seriously. What is it? What happened?"

"Nothing," the golden-eyed Nikke asserted sharply, with a slight tremble in her voice. Still refusing to meet Joe's gaze.

There was a beat as the man considered the woman, before he reached out, pulled out the chair next to her, and set his ass down right next to her. "Anis, come on," he started, leaning over the blonde's way. "You are boisterous, brash, and opinionated to a fault. You aren't convincing me that everything's okay by acting so uncharacteristically skittish."

At that, Anis grimaced, looking more than a little put-off by Joe's words. "Jeez, make me sound like an utter gorilla, why don't you," she whined, looking more than a little hurt. "...Being seen like that is about what I deserve though, isn't it…" She mused in a recriminatory manner.

Closing his eyes and sighing very deeply, Joe knew this wasn't going to be fun as he locked in. "Alright, neither of us are moving from this spot until you tell me what's happening with you. I'm not having this hanging over our heads like a storm cloud and potentially causing problems in the field."

Anis let out a low whine of dismay, dropping her spoon in the cereal bowl before crossing her arms across her stomach, now she was staring at the wall next to her, rather than at the Commander. Of course, she didn't say anything.

Even after at least a good, awkward minute.

"For the love of God Anis," Joe groaned, setting a hand over his eyes as he rued how this seemed like it was going to take a while.

"...Don't," the typically cacophonous blonde said meekly.

"Don't what?" The brunet, meanwhile, was already growing frustrated with the blonde's refusal to cooperate.

"Don't make me talk," she all but pleaded, her body language screaming intense discomfort.

That all but bushwhacked Joe, leaving him utterly gobsmacked and confused. Anis loved to talk. That much was made clear by how she'd go out of her way to spar with Neon just to justify yapping both in the field, and in the Outpost. "Why?" Joe asked with no small amount of confusion.

"Because I might make you hurt yourself again!" Anis snapped at him, curling in on herself with a heavy, deeply guilty grimace.

If Joe had thought he was caught off-guard before, he actually recoiled in shock, staring at the woman with eyes the size of dinner plates. His mind crashed, and he struggled to process her assertion.

Hurt himself? What? When? He hadn't-

Joe stopped, blinked several times in rapid succession, and his eyes were suddenly forcibly opened. He had injured himself. Right when they got back from the Yukon. He'd dug his nails into his palms badly enough that Rapi had forced him to go to a hospital to get them checked out.

And he'd hurt himself because of… Marian. He'd panicked. Flipped his shit, and lost control of himself. He was overwhelmed by what had happened. "-How was that your fault?" He inquired as he did his best to gather himself.

Anis scoffed, still refusing to look at Joe in the midst of this incredibly uncomfortable conversation. "You said it yourself. 'Anis is right everybody is just going to die if they try to rely on me.'"

There was a very long pause at that. Joe did not remember saying that. He- Blinked rapidly, again, feeling as though his eyes were being forcibly opened.

Anis did constantly bemoan and declare that she expected the entire team to be killed on every mission they deployed on. She didn't say it directly, but the implication was clear: she didn't trust Joe to keep them safe. She expected him to lead them to their deaths.

This, after she saw what had happened with Marian. After Anis saw Joe fail to protect Marian with her own eyes, and be forced to execute her himself, which ultimately led to her being turned into a Heretic.

Joe was rapidly being forced to wrestle with many things all at once. Up to, and including the fact that he had been actively attempting to avoid thinking about anything and everything on an interpersonal level.

Anis kept tearing open the wound, kept pouring salt all over the raw injury and reminding him of his failure, shouting directly into his face that she expected to suffer the same fate under his watch. Joe just refused to acknowledge this. He put it out of his conscious mind and marched onward, pushing such ugly notions back into his unconscious thoughts…

Into the same place where his dreaded feelings of being a failure of a 'Legendary Commander' wallowed. The same thoughts that whispered into his mind that he'd failed mankind once before, and surely would again, if he achieved anything less than instinctive mechanical perfection.

Oh.

Shit.

He was compartmentalizing everything. Too well. Too aggressively. Shoving things into such dark corners of his own mind that he would forget about them on a conscious level, while they gradually fermented into rot and poison. Blindly stumbling forward, in a near-drunken haze.

It was practically like there were multiple Joes that were hot-swapping into and out of control out of a mutually shared body.

The Joe that led Nikkes into combat, locking in, becoming the warrior he had once been for the sake of those who depended on him.

The Joe that bummed around the Outpost, feeling bad for himself and longing for what he no longer had.

The Joe that would offer his hand to the Nikkes under his command, lift them up, and show them that the Legendary Commander was back, and that they were his Goddesses of Victory, regardless of whether they were Grimms or Mass-Produced.

The Joe that went down into the Ark and had those little dates with Privaty, where he actively fought the pain down and projected the image of an ordinary, fun-loving guy. That same Joe that Marian had fallen for.

The Joe that reunited with Pioneer, that was a shadow of his old self in their presence, yet was still there despite it all. That same Joe that Cinderella loved so truly and wholly that she had waited for him for a hundred years, despite believing him dead.

The Joe that couldn't take it anymore, and periodically started imploding, only to be caught at the last possible moment by someone else, gradually burning himself out as he did his very best to deny the truth: that he was hopelessly overwhelmed, and kept forcing himself to pretend it wasn't the case as the foundations of himself buckled and crumpled in slow motion. Ready to fall. Ready to collapse. Ready to crash.

Holy fuck, he'd been just bumbling into active combat situations while metaphorically lobotomizing himself. He'd been in command of these girls and leading them into combat with blinders on.

The man was stunlocked. Staring into the aether as he was overwhelmed by these mental blocks all coming down at once. He'd put everything off, pushed all these problems into a closet and avoided acknowledging them to the point that now that he'd been reminded of the actual depths of his workload, he had no idea of where to start.

If he tried to pull any one thing from the pile, the structural integrity of it would fail, and the whole damned thing might well collapse right on top of him, crush him beneath all of these problems he'd let build up rather than address them as they came.

A Jenga tower of issues. Which block did he reach for, try removing first? What a right proper state he'd worked himself into, by refusing to do the work when it fell upon his desk. Lazy. Idiotic. Childish. How had he let all of this happen?

Amidst all of this, something caused him to take notice of Anis again. The girl was still sitting right there next to him, trying to avoid his attention. Joe liked her. Most of the time.

When she was decent, she was great to have around. She could be downright bubbly when she was upbeat. Her smile, when it was real, was something to behold—Anis was beautiful, gorgeous, fun. The type of girl your dumb ass would trip and become ass-over-teakettle smitten with if you bumped into her at the right time, when she was in the right mood.

When nobody else could, she remained by his side at the Northern Base, to ensure that he wouldn't wake up alone after everything that had happened. There was loyalty there. There was a trustworthy companion there, someone that had the potential to be a reliable ally.

But.

The constant tearing him down, reminding him of his failure. Rubbing her lack of faith in him in his face. Banging a drum as she sung about how he would get her and all of her fellow Nikkes killed, how she didn't trust him despite his best efforts to do right by she and her peers…

That, despite Joe's attempts to ignore it, had hurt him. Anis was preventing that Marian-shaped wound from healing. She was tearing it open repeatedly… Hell, she'd made it worse. Marian kept coming to mind unbidden. Marian kept dominating his thoughts, despite Joe knowing that he needed to move on and focus on the girls that needed him to prioritize them in the here and now.

Of course she did. Of course Marian was always there, at the forefront of his mind. Anis wouldn't let him forget. She wouldn't let him put what happened with Marian out of mind. She wouldn't let him move on without reminding him that she had about as much faith in him as she did the average Commander.

And why? What great failure and sin had he committed against her, Rapi, Neon, Sunny, Mia, Cammie, Mihara, and Yuni? When had he done anything less than go above and beyond to ensure they were all living as comfortably as they could? When had he done anything less than demonstrate his intense respect and consideration for the Nikkes under his command?

What had he done to deserve that from her? Legitimately? If Joe looked at everything objectively, if he stepped back and put aside his own personal hang-ups, he'd been putting his best foot forward when and where he could.

Was he handling his relationships with the individual girls as well as he could? No, obviously not. He was in a bad place, and kept deflecting any attempts from them to offer him emotional support, turning it around on them instead. He… Categorically refused to grant himself any relief at all. Even when it was reciprocal from the likes of Rapi.

But, he wasn't being unkind, or cruel to them. He wasn't being inconsiderate. He was trying his level best to make sure the Nikkes under his command lived well, lived comfortably, and without needing to face the discrimination they so commonly did in the Ark proper.

Yet, Anis kept digging her fingers into that gaping wound, tearing it open at every opportunity.

He stared at the blonde. Feeling no small amount of intense resentment flaring in his chest, once he'd started to actually acknowledge his interpersonal situations, rather than hyper fixating on the bigger picture.

What was he supposed to do now? Tell her that it was okay? That he didn't hold it against her? That he wasn't mad? None of those were true. Her cruel stabs and twisting of the knife… That's what was ultimately actually causing him to turtle up emotionally, wasn't it?

If Anis would continually shiv him in the kidneys as she had despite the fact that he was doing his best, what else would the other Nikkes do, if given the opportunity? Hell, that fear was reinforced in his own memories via Red Hood. They'd been in a relationship, Joe was sure that, if he wasn't in love with Rapi back then, he was damn close to it. Then, she just flipped and turned on him, and he didn't know why.

Anis was making this worse. She was validating that fear. That horrible anxiety that he wasn't good enough, that any of these girls he was doing so much for would turn around, and just attack him for reasons outside of his control.

Joe was trying to do everything he could for Anis. In turn, she hurt him. Because of things he hadn't done. In retaliation for sins that weren't even his, for actions performed by the Commander corps he constantly professed his own hatred for, in no small part for how they treated Nikkes like her.

The man stared at Anis for a few, long moments. Then, in the midst of feeling resentful anger swell in his chest, he stood up, and walked away. Joe knew himself. He knew what happened when he got mad. When he lost his temper—which came so easily to him—he got stupid and impulsive. He said and did things he'd regret. He said 'fuck it' and did things he knew he'd regret out of sheer, overwhelming spite. Salt the Earth, burn the bridge. Fuck it, fuck all of it.

Better that he leave, lest he do or say something he'd regret to Anis, regardless of how much she may well deserve it.

Of course, up and leaving without saying a word after a withering, nearly hateful glower was a telling decision in of itself. Anis shrunk in on herself, lips curling downwards as she could do little other than listen to the man's uncharacteristically heavy footfalls as he stomped away. Joe was so forgiving and considerate. For him to react as he had, after she confronted the gravity of her own behaviour, made such an admission of guilt…

Anis didn't finish her bowl of cereal that morning.

---

"Joe?" Cinderella's refined, womanly voice called out to him.

The man had departed for the edge of the Outpost, to a low-traffic section that had benches set up for public use, but no real reason to be frequented by what population the settlement had just yet.

He didn't want to go down into the Ark. Basic pattern recognition suggested that he'd run into Privaty if he did so, and he just wasn't in the mood for a date. But he did want to get away from the Command Centre and the girls around him. He wanted time to himself, to settle down, to calm himself and get his thoughts in order.

Luckily, he'd been sitting there, ruminating long enough that he'd largely relaxed, if nothing else. He wasn't good, not by any stretch of the imagination. But he was calm.

Glancing up at Cinderella, she was wearing a hardhat and high-visibility vest over her pretty little sundress. Right, she'd been helping Mighty Tools with construction alongside the rest of Pioneer. Being productive. Which, thinking about it…

"Helping to build homes and such probably feels absolutely wonderful for you girls, huh?" The burly brunet inquired with a small smile.

Cinderella's smile, meanwhile, was absolutely magnificent and downright radiant. "It does," she affirmed his supposition. "After so long, wading through naught but destruction and rot on the surface, seeing almost nothing but ghosts and echoes amidst dust and a century of death… To build homes, to know that we are helping to build up a new settlement for mankind, it feels so wonderful." The silverette said as she removed her hard hat and vest, gracefully striding over to claim the seat next to the Commander.

"Destroying Raptures helps, yes, but, so soon, we shall see these homes abuzz with life and love. It is beautiful. Building something, after losing so much. And it's all because of our reunion with you, Joe," the silverette smiled brilliantly at the man, her eyes glimmering with adoration and gratefulness. "All this time, we would muse about how much better it would be, if only you were here again. Lo and behold…"

Cinderella leaned over, resting her head on Joe's shoulder.

"Thank you, my Prince. For making things so much better for us, just by being here."

That long response caught Joe off guard. He took a long, shaky breath, centring himself after that debacle with Anis…

"-Joe?" Cinderella shifted back up to attention, lifting her head from his shoulder and giving him a disconcerted look. "Your breath is hitching, and your eyes are bloodshot… Are you well?" She reached over, taking the man's hand, entwining her fingers with his.

I'm fine, I just stayed up too late on the computer last night. Tell me more about you girls doing construction work.

The words damn near slipped from his mouth unbidden. Without a thought given, he almost reflexively doubled down on the mistakes he'd been making since his first mission to the surface. A lie, parrying and riposting the truth… When it was Cinderella showing concern.

It was bad. It was so much worse than Joe had even realized it was. Of all the people in the world, Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, and Scarlet were among the last he should ever dare lie to. They had never been anything but his loyal friends and comrades-in-arms, those who had jumped into Hell and fought their way back out with him.

His heartbeat intensified, grimacing heavily as the idea of actually discussing what had happened hit him like a brick. The feeling of opposing a coping mechanism always sucked, didn't it?

Cinderella leaned in further, her expression contorting into one of pure worry. It was so terribly clear that he was in a bad way. She knew him well enough that she could tell, and he couldn't deflect as easily as he could with pretty much anyone that wasn't once a member of Goddess.

"No," Joe forced it out, not letting himself lie to one of his original, still loyal girls, of all people. "I'm not."

The admission came with no small amount of audible strain. His expression falling and chest tightening.

In immediate response, Cinderella slid over to press herself into Joe's side, wrapping her arm around his, and redoubling her hold on his hand as she projected an air of intense focus and concern. "What happened?"

Well. Time to rip the Band-Aid off, and actually begin surgery on the open gunshot wound.

Better late than never, right?

 

[palacesound]

Well. Time to rip the Band-Aid off, and actually begin surgery on the open gunshot wound.

Click to shrink...

At least this didn't happen in the middle of a mission which is then rudely crashed by a sudden Modernia jumping out of the tall grass.

 

[VATSTeen]

Finally he needs to lay out his problems and probably get laid. He is too high strung and too many people will die if he breaks down at the wrong time so this is good.

 

[SuperPulp2789]

At least this didn't happen in the middle of a mission which is then rudely crashed by a sudden Modernia jumping out of the tall grass.

Click to shrink...

Whilst the corruption was removed in canon

And it's implied that Marian could slowly get more on her old memories

I think that Modernia may love the Commander too, albeit in a twisted fashion, since in stead on just killing him, she was planning on absorbing him

 

[Gato]

Is-Is that a mature take on a deep seated emotional trauma in my dystopian waifu simulator!? What's will come next on this slippery slope? Monogamy? Pure romantic love? Wholesome handholding, dare I say!? Good heavens.

Yeah, the recent chapters have really elevated the setting away from the gacha stuff and it feels much more like some VN with shooter gameplay and I can't believe no one ever did that. Must be harder to program than RPGmaker slop. Am looking forward to how that train boss is gonna be covered cause, not gonna lie, that shit was wild.

I'm hooked on this story and can't wait for more. I have fallen into a deep hole of nikke meme videos and the visage of gatekeeping Rapi won't leave my mind. Release me from this hell. Please and Thank you.

 

[Valthorix]

Well, at least it happened in the outpost where it has a chance to resolve without fireworks instead of in the field. Good luck Joe, hopefully Anis doesn't do something catastrophically stupid in the background while this conversation happens.

 

[BakaSmurf]

===
Chapter 80 - Revealing the Rot
===

Taking a deep, bracing breath, Joe resolved to reveal everything to Cinderella, to finally let it all out. To let the work begin.

So, he started. "You've been told about everything that's happened to me, since I woke up in the Ark, right?"

"No," Cinderella flatly replied.

Joe blinked several times, turning to stare at the platinumette with open confusion. "-Huh?" He vocalized said surprise. "Wha- Nobody told you?"

"Scarlet and Snow White only told myself and Rapunzel that you were alive, that you have been in the Ark this entire time, and that you sought us out the moment you knew we were all alive and well."

The man blinked owlishly, coughing into his fist and sighing. "Ah. Okay, well then, I suppose I should bring you up to speed on everything, then…"

Joe spared little detail when he recounted his journey, starting with waking at the hospital to Cinderella. He relayed all the hardships, twists and turns, and even the relationship issues he'd been having.

Cinderella's reaction to learning about the almost-relationship with Marian was muted. Her brow fell in concern upon learning of how he'd had to execute Marian for her own sake. She nodded and listened intently when being informed of their missions to the surface. Her brow started to furrow when Joe mentioned turning away the support he'd been offered.

Then, she was staring silently at the man when he finished speaking on how Anis had been verbally harming him. She remained silent, scrutinizing him intensely even as she actually peeled back from the man. An uncharacteristic display from her, to say the least.

"...You have been in a terrible mental state," Cinderella started slowly. "You have been struggling to keep your head above water. You have been trapped within your own mind, mired in a miasma of loss, fear, and imposter syndrome."

"Yet you've rejected every instance of Rapi attempting to offer you a shoulder as you offered to her, you've said not a word of your suffering to my father, who, despite your disagreements, was ultimately your best friend?"

Joe went very quiet as Cinderella's tone grew increasingly sharp with each word spoken. Her lone visible eye narrowed as she stared at him with notable intensity.

Cinderella continued. "You've said nothing to anyone? This entire time, you've not addressed Anis' attitude and the harm she's been causing you to anybody? Even when Anis herself remained by your side after the conflict with Modernia, even when she showed that she cares about you directly, hugged you, expressed joy at hearing you cared for her in turn…"

"You said nothing to her, or anyone else, about this apparent abuse she's been putting you through?"

Joe felt no small amount of pressure building around him, the air permeating their surroundings becoming charged. Cinderella, normally so boundlessly sweet, seemed increasingly aggravated.

After a period of silence, she continued. "Rapi, when confronted by Snow White over your state, admitted to being a horrible person. A terrible companion, that she's been hurting you and showing that she 'hasn't changed' since her days as Red Hood, where she was so terribly hostile and cruel towards you, even in our last days together."

"Yet, even all you just told me points towards her being all but desperate for your affection and acknowledgement. Nothing but loyal, an unbending companion that has to be pried from your side by force."

"She said that she 'forced' you to kill Marian. That she wouldn't let Anis do it for you." Cinderella cocked her head as her eye grew all the sharper. "Anis, who has supposedly been nothing but emotionally abusive towards you? Was that a lie? Did she not try to take the gun and spare you that horror?"

Ah- Oh.

"Rapi was only following protocol, as according to your own recollection. Anis was putting herself at great risk suggesting mercy killing Marian for you, as far as the Ark's understanding of how Corruption works. Both of these actions qualify as abuse to you? Rapi protecting Anis from her own bleeding heart, that is cruelty?" Cinderella demanded as she rose to her feet and rounded on Joe.

"If so," she continued. "Why did you never say as such? To anyone? Why would you allow this to go unaddressed? Why would you not confront either of them? Why would you just sit upon these things that have been stewing in your mind this entire time?"

Joe didn't reply. He just stared, his mind shorting out at the intense interrogation.

"Why would you have never brought this up to Rapi during all of your many moments alone together? Why would you never confront her with how horribly she'd hurt you? Why would you never ask if she'd meant to hurt you?"

"Why would you never ask if her cruelty was intended? Even after she showed how much she clearly loves you, to so longingly remain by your side, to the point of attempting to commit suicide for your sake."

That caused Joe to recoil in shock, his eyes going wide and his breath hitching as his jaw dropped, utterly flummoxed.

"Did that fail to register to you?" Cinderella leaned over, expression hardening yet more. "Exceed would claim her life if she used it. She knew this, you knew this. The moment it seemed that you were in imminent danger of being directly targeted by a Heretic, she did not hesitate to use it."

"She had no reason to believe that Snow White would be in any state to help her, nor that the Northern Base would have just so happened to have the materials on hand for Snow White to just barely save her life! As far as she could see, how could that decision have been anything but the ultimate sacrifice, for a chance to protect you!?"

"Yet, you'd leave her to set herself in such a head space, that she would admit her 'heartless sins' to Snow White as though she were some monster!? You would allow her to degenerate into such a state that she'd feel that she had to beg for your forgiveness?"

Cinderella was now looming over the man, wearing no small amount of genuine anger on her otherwise soft features as she did so.

"Has Anis really been verbally abusing you? Has she?" The twintailed woman inquired, projecting a deeply disconcerting aggravation. "Or are you projecting this offence onto her, so that you may further justify pushing her and Rapi away? All the while you seek comfort from another not even serving alongside you, this 'Privaty' that you have also told lies about Rapi?"

Ah- Ah. Oh.

Silence reigned for a good long while after that. Joe was too overwhelmed to even begin to formulate a reply.

So, Cinderella continued once again. "I love you, Joe," she started, her tone becoming pained, and deeply disappointed. "I love you with all of my heart, and that is why I will not tolerate such hideous behaviour from you. Not when I know that you are better than this."

"Not when I've seen you confront Dorothy and Scarlet about their harmful, team-breaking conflict to make them see reason without putting them down. Not when I've seen you admonish Red Hood in such a way as to make her cease crossing the line with an increasingly distressed Rapunzel."

"Not when I know you'd helped Lilith uplift Snow White, when she was terrified of so much as meeting Goddess before me, and sequestered herself away from all but you two…"

She leaned forward even more, tears starting to form in her eyes as she spoke through teeth grit together out of sheer frustration.

"Not when you fought so hard for me, not when you did all you could to grant me my wish, to give me happiness, before we'd even met! Because it was simply the right thing to do!"

Her breath came in ragged gasps, closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, gathered herself as best she could, and when she looked upon him again, she looked downright betrayed and heartbroken. "The man I fell in love with did all in his power to uplift those around him. Even when he didn't know where to begin, he blazed a trail forward."

"When he was struggling, when he was hurting, when he didn't know what to do, he allowed his most trusted allies to lift him up in turn. He would allow me to hug him, to listen to his woes and offer unconditional support. He would allow Dorothy to cradle him, to reassure him that he was still her Commander in our darkest hour. He would hear the gentle assurances of Rapunzel that encouraged him to aim to be someone better than he was."

"He would listen to the sharp, but well-intentioned critics of Scarlet. He would let Snow White tell him about how much he'd helped her grow, how she wouldn't be who she was if not for his help. He would hear the harsh, but earnest words of his best friend that only wanted him to open his eyes, and be the best version of himself he could be."

"But here? Now? Hearing this story? Hearing these complaints? Hearing how you've conducted yourself, seeing the wretched belief in your eyes? Seeing your expression harden and shift into such genuine anger, relaying these supposed offences so egregiously inflicted upon you by those you have sworn to support?"

Her breath hitched, and the tears started to fall, her expression becoming tortured as she gazed mournfully upon him.

"I almost don't see the man I fell in love with in you anymore."

It felt like a piece of Joe's soul had shrivelled up and died. Cinderella, of all people, of all people, to turn on him like this, to grab him by the scruff of his neck, and drive his face into his… Mistakes.

'Mistakes.' That sure was one way of describing them. No, he was underselling it. Cinderella's heart was broken by his behaviour, because she looked upon the Prince Charming she'd fallen in love with, and found something hideous gazing back at her.

She was right. She was right, and he knew it. He'd reflected upon how lesser he was compared to before, but, even still, he'd not grasped the sheer depths he'd fallen to.

Rapi had tried to be his rock, even despite her own problems. Why hadn't he allowed it?

Andersen was right there. He was terribly busy, but when was he ever not? He was literally the primary grand strategist of Goddess and the Nikkes serving as their support aboard the Avenger. Was he not busy then? Was he not busy when he was directing the spear in the war against humanity's extinction? When he was the General to Joe's Commander?

Anis had opened their relationship by trying to shoulder the burden of mercy killing Marian for him. She was difficult, yes, but she wasn't malicious. She might've been willing to at least try to help.

Yet, he didn't reach out. He kept everyone at arm's reach. He just sat in his darkened room, wallowing in his misery, refusing to actually confront any of it. Worse yet: he'd started projecting it onto others, instead of looking inwards and acknowledging that he'd done this to himself. It hit him like a brick, the realization of just how pathetic he'd been.

This was the so-called Legendary Commander? This cretin that refused help, that used his suffering as an excuse to lash out at others? What the fuck was wrong with him?

"...I'm sorry," the burly man started, his voice small and intensely regretful. "I-" His gaze rapidly wandered, yet he was looking at nothing in particular as he processed everything all at once. "I owe so many of you girls apologies. I owe you all so much better."

Cinderella didn't say anything. She just continued to stare, her cheeks streaked with tears and her breath coming in hitched gasps.

"Ellie," Joe, despite desperately wishing to retreat to a hole and die, to never meet anyone's gaze again, he met her heartbroken gaze. He wouldn't let himself look away, spare himself a moment of her disappointed sorrow. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Cinderella remained quiet, and after a few moments of extended quiet, she reached out, took one of the man's hands, and drew it out, settling his palm over her heart. It was beating hard, and fast. Her face was flushed.

"Do you know how much this hurts?" She asked, still staring into Joe's eyes. "How it feels? After a century apart, after waiting for you, after seemingly defying the reality that you had to be gone. After remaining loyal, faithful for so long, for this to be what returns to me? To feel my heart breaking like this, as my reward for refusing to give up on you against all reason?"

Joe's own heart would have fallen into a thousand pieces, had he not braced and hardened himself. It still hurt, but, in a way that only steeled his resolve to be better.

In her eyes, Cinderella could see that resolve finally reflected back at her, and after several long moments, she let out a shuddering sigh. Releasing Joe's hand, she extended her arms to him. She didn't move, though. Immediately, he knew that she was demanding that he be the one to reach out. That he show that he wouldn't make the girls be the one to do all the work, only to be met with a nonreciprocating wall.

He responded by extending his limbs, grasping her shockingly slight waist, and drawing her in. She circled her arms around his neck as he wrapped his around her midsection. Once again, she let out a shuddering breath as she set her cheek against his crown.

"Do better," she instructed him. "Be the man I fell in love with. Not… That hideous thing that was wearing your face."

Her words were horribly harsh. But, it was warranted. He deserved it. He nodded into her chest, declaring: "I will." He took a deep, bracing breath. "I'll start with Anis."

Cinderella didn't immediately reply to that, the two simply remaining there for a time. Eventually, she did peel herself away. She wasn't smiling, but she did seem hopeful. "Then start," she directed him, backing off entirely and watching him expectantly.

At that, the man rose to his feet, looked down at the woman that had set him straight, and nodded once. He hesitated only to say, "Thank you, Ellie." He then moved to return to the Command Centre.

Cinderella watched him go, and immediately, she saw a change in the way he carried himself. It wasn't even subtle. In some way, she caught a glimpse of the man that had stood alongside Goddess. Not the resentful face stealer that had been hopelessly miring in his own self-imposed rot.

"I'll be here," Cinderella whispered as she watched the man stride off to correct his latest mistake, hopefully, but the first step towards bettering himself into the figure she'd fallen in love with. "Once you've returned, I'll be right here. Waiting for my Prince Charming to lift me up, and carry me into the sunset."

"For you, I will wait, my Prince."

---

Emerging back into the Command Centre, Joe wasted no time in searching for the short-haired blonde. He quickly found her fluffy locks peeking out from her bunk, curled up in a ball beneath the sheets. It was just her, everyone else seemingly out.

Grimacing heavily, no small part of Joe wanted to avoid the awkward discomfort that would follow if he continued on. He stabbed that doubt and threw its body in a dumpster. It had no place here. It had no place when it came to being the Commander these girls deserved.

So, he gradually approached her. His steps quiet, measured. Anis noticed, regardless, given the way she shifted ever-so-slightly. She was upset. Of course she was. He stopped just short of spitting on her as he left. Over a misunderstanding. Over his own self-delusions.

Or, at least, half-delusions. Anis shouldn't have been projecting that doomer shit at everyone around her the way she did. He'd spoken to Rapi about it, however briefly. The long-haired blonde had learned to just ignore it. Avoid letting it get to her.

Joe owed Anis an apology, but he'd also talk to her about how negatively that could affect everyone around her. He didn't have to be awful, mean, or cruel. He just had to say it like it was, and affirm that she could trust him and her comrades to protect her and themselves in the field.

He came to a stop alongside her bed, and after a beat, he spoke up. "Anis," he started, voice gentle and quiet. "I'm sorry."

The Nikke stirred, stiffening at his words. She didn't reply, however, falling still just as quickly.

It was all Joe could do to continue, reaching up and setting his hand on the frame around the bunk, which was inset into the wall.

"I've been refusing help from any of you girls. Miring in my own shit, locking myself away from everyone else. Blocking everyone off. To the end point of hearing your… Pessimism, and hearing a personal attack against me. An affirmation that you only trusted me to get you killed… In the same way I got Marian killed, before, well, we knew better."

He wasn't there to discuss Modernia, so he'd brushed past it to focus on Anis.

"That was awful of me. Atrocious. I don't even have a good excuse for why I did it. I just… Did. It didn't feel good. It didn't justify anything. It just further enabled me to wallow in shit, look at you girls as though you were- I don't even know. I still tried to help you girls, be there, give you cause to trust me and feel safe. But I grew resentful over how alone I felt. Even though I was making a concerted effort to hold everyone at arm's length."

It sounded so fucking ridiculous when he said it out loud. Like, really? Seriously? That's what he'd been doing this entire time? Christ, he really had been utterly pathetic, hadn't he?

"I fucked up, basically. Looked at you like you were my enemy, like suddenly all of my self isolation was justified, when you were so obviously trying to show that you felt terrible for what happened. Even though it really wasn't your fault. You didn't do anything wrong, Anis. Please, don't think you did. You're great. Really, You're wonderful to have around. And… I'm happy you're here."

He released the frame, letting his hand fall back down to his side.

"So, I, yeah," he lightly shrugged. "I'll do better, be better. Otherwise, um, I suppose I'll just, leave you be-"

As soon as he took a step away, the blanket Anis had been hiding under was thrown aside, the girl lunging out and firmly grabbing onto Joe's arm, locking him in place.

Her eyes were bloodshot, her hair a frazzled mess. She hadn't been crying, but it had been damn close. She stared up at the man, her breath heavy and somewhat heightened.

She held him there, staring for a few long moments, before averting her gaze and looking more than a little sheepish. "U-uh. I, uh," She stammered by way of opening, clearing her throat. "D-don't go," she meekly asked, sniffling lightly as she did so. "I-I want to talk."

Joe blinked in surprise. Part of him had expected her to let him leave, if not run him off outright. But, if she actually wanted him to stick around, have a discussion with her, then, who the fuck was he to deny her that? To do anything less than give her anything she asked for at this point?

"Alright," he agreed as he stepped back, and settled down to sit on the edge of the blonde's bed. "We can talk. Whenever you want from now on."

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Anis looked over at Joe, and inquired: "Um, first, Commander-"

"You can still just call me Joe, Anis," he assured her. "Unless, you don't feel comfortable anymore-"

"Joe," she corrected herself fairly firmly, locking eyes with him at least momentarily for seeming emphasis. "I-I just- before we start," She released his arm, and extended both of her own to him. "Can- can I get a hug?"

Ah. Well, that made him feel like even more of a piece of shit, if that was the first request she made of him despite the bitch baby tantrum he'd thrown earlier. But, if that's what she wanted. "Of fucking course-" he reached out and drew the blonde into a gentle hug- or what was gentle at first, before she latched onto him and squeezed. "-Any time you want, Anis. Hugs, talks, games, watching those shitty trashy animes of yours, just ask, and I'll gladly come running."

"My taste in anime is immaculate, you uncultured jackass!" Anis countered with a grumble, though there was no actual anger in her voice. "But, okay, I'll hold you to that promise, you hear?"

"Please do," Joe asked. "Don't ever let me fall back on my bullshit again. You deserve better than that."

Anis just hummed quietly in reply, just leaning into the hug for a few moments before she spoke up again, slightly playfully. "Am I still 'really nice to hug?'"

Joe let out an amused huff, squeezing the girl more intensely. "Squeezable? Check. Friend-shaped? Check. Nice and soft? Check, check, and check. Certifiably 'really nice to hug.'"

"I'm gonna choose to interpret 'squeezable, friend-shaped, and soft' as complimentary as possible," Anis lightly grumbled, though she didn't pull back from the hug in the least. "I'm… I'm really happy to be here too, Joe. I'm really happy that- that we don't hate each other."

At that, he smiled broadly. "You can be awful difficult, but you're pretty hard to hate by any reasonable metric."

Anis just snorted in reply.

This felt so much better than sitting around his room, feeling sorry for himself about all the bad shit that had happened. And all it took was being reminded of who he was by Cinderella, and remembering how friend-shaped and huggable Anis was. That she, and all of the girls that served with him, deserved nothing less than the best he could be.

He'd damn well never make the mistake of forgetting again.

 

[KapraMarat]

Lmao "I almost don't see the man I fell in love with in you anymore." women the second after you tell her how you actually fell.