Did you miss me?

I have 4 chapters prepared, and I'm going to post one every week.I was thinking to upload all 4 of them at once but I decided to use this time between uploads to go back and rewrite some past chapters.

It will also allow me to respond to your reviews and give you some time for the information to sink in.

And to celebrate the fact I actually got so far, I commissioned an artist to draw me a picture of Samantha. It's ready and… I'm not going to show it yet. I'll wait for the 3rd chapter of this batch to show it, as few details should make more sense then.

Interdimensional RED-Coded Contract

Even if Driven to the Wall-

They all charged at Saxton Hale, their weapons ready. The australian put forth his forearms, intending to block their weapons with his bare skin. It worked; Magic's scythe failed to do any damage, and Falcom's blade wasn't even a tickle to him.

They stepped aside and CFW Brave took their place. The machine swung his swords, one after another. The force behind each strike was so great that a CPU would yield, Histoire's mercenaries would be killed, and a normal person would be pulverized.

Saxton Hale parried them all, without even a scratch on his arms. The sword of ice collided with his left forearm, then the sword of fire struck his right forearm, rinse and repeat. Saxton Hale kept grinning as the ASIC leaders struggled to penetrate his defenses, like any other opponent before him did.

Magic and Falcom came to Brave's aid, and they both struck Hale ribs. The CEO laughed at them and bent his knees. "Brave jump!" Hale jumped, his legs carrying him way above the group. Magic quickly wrapped her arm around Falcom's waist and took off, flying away from the CEO of Mann Co. CFW Brave flew in the opposite direction. The gravity finally took a hold of the australian, and Saxton Hale started falling down.

Much faster than physics would allow.

He collided with earth in a three-point landing. The shockwave was so great that it sent the retreating CFWs into an uncontrollable flight. Magic wrapped her arms around Falcom and a moment later they crashed through a wall. A pink barrier saved them from taking any damage. CFW Brave stabbed his swords into concrete, stopping him after destroying ten meters of pavement.

The CFW opened slots in his armor and fired a barrage of rockets, all of them aimed at Saxton Hale. Each rocket came at him like a bullet, breaking the sound barrier; no one should've been able to even see them fly, not when they were so close to their target.

None of them struck home.

Every rocket that came too close, Saxton Hale slapped it away. His hand were like a blur even to CFW Brave himself. The CEO deflected every missile, even when there was less than a tenth of a second between each incoming projectile.

And when the barrage ended Saxton Hale stood unscratched, while there were two dozen rockets lying behind him, all of them dismantled. None of them exploded. The australian laughed loudly while CFW Magic and Falcom returned to the fight.

"That's what I was talking about!"

CFW Magic dropped Falcom and summoned her tendrils. The trio of tentacles flew at Hale, their forms shifting and hardening mid-flight until they were no longer tendrils but needles, with tips so thin they were invisible to the naked eye, while also coated with deadly venom. CFW Magic thought this was overkill against Miss Pauling and hadn't thought of using this technique, but against this humanoid abomination of a man? There was no such thing as overkill.

The needles broke upon contact. Saxton Hale didn't even feel them strike him.

CFW Brave charged at him, swinging his sword of fire. Hale grabbed the blade and held it tightly, the flames licking his palm didn't seem to bother him at all. With one of his swords immobilized CFW Brave swung the other sword, but that too was grabbed by Hale. The australian's hand begun to be coated in ice and frost, but that didn't disturb the CEO.

However something about those swords caused Hale to frown. With a mighty kick he knocked Brave away and separated the machine from his swords. Everyone watched warily as Saxton Hale grabbed both swords by their handles, giving them few testing swings.

"Hmm… Interesting stuff you got there." The CEO murmured, tapping the ground with the sword made out of fire. The ground turned black upon contact, and the longer exposure briefly melted the pavement. "Burning Agony." Hale said out loud. "It increases its damage with each successful strike. No cap on that, but the damage will fade off after couple hours." Then he looked at the sword made out of ice. "Freezing Yasha. Each strike will lower the target's Max HP. Am I right?"

Even CFW Magic was taken off-guard. With his appraisal complete the CEO threw the swords at Brave's feet, rearming his opponent. Brave's was too dumbfounded to realize that Saxton Hale was giving him his weapons back, but he quickly recovered. "...How did you know?" Brave said while picking his swords.

"I'm the CEO of a weapons-manufacturing company." Hale shrugged. "You think I don't know how to appraise a weapon? Anyway, do we continue or not?"

Magic jumped at the chance. "I would rather not. There's someone I must hunt down, and she's getting away."

And while she was getting away, Magic saw that Samantha's thunderstrikes were getting alarmingly frequent, while none of them were even relatively close to Miss Pauling's location. The Overseer must've been ambushed, and she has no way of breaking through.

Unfortunately Saxton Hale wasn't willing to listen. He shrugged his shoulders and punched his palm.

"Tough luck, cuz I'm feeling pumped!"

When he charged at them, it was with the force of a train. And they had no choice but to try to survive.

"Sylhet Spear!"

A gigantic spear rushed at Samantha, from which the Overseer rolled away only to stand face-to-face with Vert. The CPU sent a strong punch to Samantha's gut. If it wasn't for kevlar it would crush her organs, but the jacket dispersed most of the retaliated with a left hook to her face, then with a jab.

Then Vert uppercutted her, staggering the brunette back. An overhead punch was a finisher that sent Samantha sprawling on the ground. With the Overseer down Vert was free to retrieve her weapon. She ripped it out of the wall and twirled it with her hands. A bullet struck the back of her head, moving it a little.

Samantha, her mouth bloody and missing a tooth, fired the Firecracker again. Vert slapped it away with her weapon, and then panicked as she just noticed that her hair was on fire. With one hand the CPU tried to put out the flames, other kept twirling her spear as Samantha kept firing at her. Each bullet was intercepted by Vert's weapon, but it served as a good distraction to stand up.

The CPU felt annoyed at her ruined hair, she spent much time getting it all nice and proper. She came at Samantha with the ferocity of a tornado, burying her under her flurry of strikes. The first stab Samantha deflected with Firecracker, a second and third grazed her side. The blade easily cut through her jacket's fabric and skin, letting Samantha's blood run freely. The Overseer moved back as Vert continued her advance. Her strikes too quick for Samantha to avoid, too strong and frequent to deflect.

A lightning bolt suddenly took Samantha away, interrupting Vert's onslaught. Vert's spear was already mid-motion, stopping only after it crashed into a wall. The CPU clicked her tongue and looked up, waiting for a sign showing where Samantha will reappear.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited…

Vert frowned. She couldn't see anything.

Back in True Celestia, Samantha tried to calm her beating heart. That was too close. Way, way too close. That last thrust was aimed right at Samantha's chest. That would've killed her if she hadn't teleported. "Holy shit, lady... You're actually out for blood." The Overseer breathed out.

The CPU wasn't messing around, that's for sure.

And she got her weapon back. Which meant the scales weren't in Samantha's favor.

Now Samantha had a big problem to face. Forgetting the fact that Miss Pauling got away, it was going to be hard to even leave the area. Vert was waiting down there, and time wasn't on Samantha's side. Every second she wasted here meant a second longer her allies were fighting Saxton-motherfucking-Hale.

She couldn't fight Vert, the CPU will destroy her. She couldn't run, as Vert somehow knows where she'll teleport before she even teleports. Her spear was already flying whenever Samantha went back to Gamindustri.

What can she do?

She could wait until Vert became bored, but then she might go after the CFWs. Or she might realize that Samantha was considering her next step, and will just wait until the Overseer pokes her head out.

"The situation's really bad, huh." Samantha murmured to herself.

One option would be to give up and teleport outside Leanbox, but Samantha hesitated to do that. Giving up meant her allies becoming captured. While Vert was already beaten twice by the CFWs, both of those times were with Magic and Brave being at full strength. With Saxton Hale fighting them there was no telling if they'll have enough strength to deal with Green Heart. It would be a perfect opportunity for Vert to arrest them.

Or Falcom could get taken over by Gehaburn, and kill Vert instead. That was also a possibility she has to avoid at all costs.

Samantha had to get to her allies before Vert, but Vert outmatched her in every meaningful way. She could fly, she was stronger and she has way more options than Samantha. Vert would know where Samantha would appear, before Samantha even got there. Vert was already throwing spears wherever the Overseer reappeared. Each teleportation within Leanbox carried a risk.

The worst thing is Vert wouldn't even be a problem if not for another obstacle. Saxton Hale. Samantha gripped her head in frustration. "Goddamnit Hale, why now?!" She growled. With Hale occupying both CFWs, there was no one who could divert Vert's attention.

She just needed to take the risk. Teleport where the CFWs and Falcom were fighting, dodge Vert's spear and extract her allies before Vert arrives.

A seemingly easy and simple plan. But one with one major problem, as she suddenly realized.

Samantha couldn't leave True Celestia.

"Huh?" The Overseer blinked. She couldn't open the gate, something was preventing her from leaving. And the only person who could do that would be… Magnavox.

"Oh, you're still here, old man. Good." And speaking of her. The True Goddess just entered Samantha's domain. The Overseer turned to face her.

"Magnavox." Samantha said. "What do you need?"

The True Goddess looked just like before; a modified miko outfit and silver hair. Magnavox smiled at Samantha and sat down - a comfortable chair appeared out of thin air as she did so. "I just came here to watch. You versus a CPU? One-on-one with no holds barred? Entertainment at its fullest." She said, summoning a bag of popcorn. "And you think you can actually get away from Vert?" She added.

Considering that Samantha could teleport literally anywhere the Overseer was confident about his chances. "Yes."

Her answer seemed to amuse Magnavox, and suddenly Samantha had a bad feeling. The brunette's face paled as the True Goddess smiled at her. "Oh no, old man. I think it will be much more entertaining if you actually didn't run away."

No...

No.

No!

Despite Samantha's calm appearance, the Overseer was screaming and crying inside. "You don't mean…"

"Yep! A new objective!" Magnavox finished, smiling wider. "Now you'll have to do it now, right?"

Samantha wanted to scream but she couldn't, her mouth wouldn't respond to her orders. Magnavox knew very well what giving an objective meant for Samantha, she wasn't allowed to dismiss it. She had to follow through with it even if it killed her.

If there were any chances of Samantha getting away from Vert, they were gone now. Now she was obligated to fight Vert until Magnavox was satisfied.

Sensing that Samantha wasn't about to disregard an order, she was allowed to speak. Samantha put it to use immediately. "That's cruel, you know."

Magnavox rolled her eyes "Oh please, I'm not going to just send you to die for my amusement. I'm not like the others. You just need to survive a bit longer. Trust me, it'll be worth it." Magnavox responded.

Samantha narrowed her eyes. There was something more to it that just a duel between her and a CPU. "Just to be clear, I don't need to win, right?"

"You just need to survive. And not to run away."

"Survive for how long?" Magnavox wasn't very specific about this. Samantha could use it to her advantage.

"...Hmm." The True Goddess mused. "You know, I could tell you. But that would spoil the surprise."

"A surprise?"

"Yes! You'll know when you'll see it. So survive until then, and then fight some more. Go crazy!"

Samantha stared at Magnavox with an intense expression, the True Goddess matched it with a smug gaze. Both of them knew that no matter what Samantha thought of this, she couldn't go against her employer's wishes. If she wanted Samantha to fight Vert, she'll fight Vert.

"Okay then, hope you enjoy the show." Samantha sighed.

"Yes! Entertain me! Fight the good fight!"

The Overseer ignored Magnavox's cheering and looked at Gamindustri. More precisely at Vert.

Vert was staring right back at her.

Samantha blinked. It wasn't just a momentary glance as Vert scanned the sky, the CPU was staring right at her with an intense gaze. As if she knew Samantha was there. "Hey Magnavox." The brunette called out. "Did Vert just find us out?"

"Well, after you teleported in and out so many times someone was bound to notice some consistencies" Magnavox shrugged.

"Oh. Oh!"

Have you ever encountered a problem that you struggled with for a long time, before realizing that the answer was right in front of you? You probably felt like an idiot, right? Well… Samantha sure felt like one.

All of her thunderbolts had the same entry point. Which meant that someone very observant, like Vert, could figure out from where Samantha was coming from, and where she'll appear. The teleportation first makes a faint trail to where it would go. That trail was almost invisible to the naked eye, and it also disappeared quickly. But if you knew what to look for, you could see where Samantha would appear before she even got there.

Fortunately she could also reconfigure the location of her entry point.

Now let's see how Vert's reaction would look like~

"Okay. I can make this work." Samantha chuckled to herself, grinning. The brunette was about to head back and maybe finally get away… but she just fell onto the floor instead. "...After some medical care." She said from the ground.

A pocket on her butt was flipped open and a small can of Nepbull hovered out of it, as if moved by magic. Samantha ordered her domain to open the can before placing it in front of her. The Overseer sat up and drank the can's contents.

She stopped immediately.

Who could drink this crap?

"...Holy shit, this tastes bad." She grimaced. There was bitter, and there was this abomination. Whoever designed this should be placed in jail. Nonetheless Samantha forced herself to drink the foul liquid.

"It's Nep Bull. What did you expect?" Magnavox deadpanned.

While it tasted terribly, Samantha did feel some of her injuries start to heal and some aches disappear. It wasn't Max Tonic though, the cut on her side was still leaking some blood, it just didn't hurt. While she felt an urge to vomit, the Overseer swallowed it down. A burp left her lips once the can was finished. Samantha threw away the can and waited, she felt her saliva turn watery, as if she'll vomit at any moment.

Magnavox watched Samantha wait for… something. "Are you-?" She asked but the brunette raised her finger, indicating for her to wait.

"...I'm about to vomit." Samantha groaned, her face turning green.

"Not here, please. I'm eating." Magnavox said, turning her head in disgust. That made Samantha chuckle, which in turn made Magnavox chuckle as well. The Overseer stood up and opened the Gate, this time it opened without any problems.

"Okay, I'm heading out." Samantha said.

"Make it look good!" Magnavox shouted.

Samantha showed her a middle finger. The True Goddess laughed loudly as a response.

Noire has seen better days.

She was lying in a swamp, inside a stinky sewers.

The CPU stood up. Her dress was dripping with she didn't want to know what, her hair was soaked as well. She was in dire need of a shower and clean clothing.

But first, she has her duty to perform.

She couldn't possibly hope to fight with CFW Magic again, the CFW was probably gone anyway. Unfortunately she couldn't be more help for that woman again. However the doctor and his assistant were still here… unmoving.

Noire pulled them out of the waters and checked their vitals. It didn't look good. Neither of them were breathing nor had a pulse. And their necks were broken. "I'm sorry this happened to you two." They must've died on impact. CFW Magic killed them, and she was about to kill that other woman as well.

She shouldn't leave them here, they at least deserved a proper burial. Noire tied the doctor onto her back, while lifting his assistant by his waist. The only exit available to her was a ladder, and she had no free hands and an additional weight attached to her.

An easy task for a CPU like her.

Light engulfed her form, and when it disappeared Noire was changed. Her hair became white and freely fell to her back, no more as pigtails. Her dress became a black leotard and her eyes turned blue. As an added effect going HDD removed all filth from her, she was as pristine as ever.

Except she had two dirty and filthy bodies attached to her, but Noire won't comment on that.

She peeked out of the hole, careful to not alert anyone. She was met with the sight of CFW Magic, a giant robot and a blue-haired woman fighting someone, a giant of a person, with muscles as big as she was thick.

And the CFW were struggling. Even with added help the pink-haired reaper just couldn't hurt that person, while he was joyfully knocking them around like ragdolls. Each of his punches packed enough force to knock all of them back.

Maybe that woman got away after all. Noire couldn't see her anywhere, so hopefully she escaped. This was also a good opportunity to make her own getaway too, that man didn't seem to be needing any help. The CPU flew out of the hole and moved in the opposite direction. Noire looked back one last time to see if he was really handling it.

CFW Magic erected a pink barrier and the man crashed into it, fists first. A single punch created a web of cracks inside the obstacle, a second one shattered it. The blue-haired woman swung her sword at him, the person slapped it away and punched the swordswoman. With a yelp she fell onto the ground, her sword clattering next to her.

CFW Magic was next, and the robot too. They charged at the CEO from the opposite directions, Magic swung her scythe from above while Brave slashed upwards, both attacks were blocked by Hale's limbs that seems to be made out of steel.

Yeah, he was handling them well. Relief washed over Noire as she saw their attacks fail to even pierce his skin. The CPU let him handle the CFWs while she made her escape. A quick glance around told her she was somewhere in Leanbox, maybe she could ask Chika for help. Or even Vert if she was freed as well.

While Noire left the area with two corpses Brave slapped Hale's face with Burning Agony. And again. And again. Until it looked like a comical scene of a giant robot slapping a human silly. After the 5th strike Saxton Hale put his fist up, blocking the Burning Agony and putting an end to Brave's assault. Brave pushed against Hale's guard, and the australian pushed back. The two of them were at a deadlock, with neither of them wanting to give any ground.

CFW Magic came in as the tide turner. Magic swung her scythe at Hale's leg, putting all of her strength into it. Hale jumped above the swing and the CFW Brave, kicking the robot into Magic's attack as he fell.

A pink barrier appeared before Brave, and Magic's scythe bounced off it. Magic's quick reaction saved her colleague from friendly fire. Saxton Hale hit the ground and rolled to his feet, his hands already readjusting his hat.

"Good, good!" He praised. "Love the teamwork, keep it up! Give me challenge!"

A sword collided with the back of his head squishing his hat a little. Saxton Hale turned back and saw Falcom standing behind him, her sword still touching his head. She moved the blade up and down, as if that would leave a cut on Hale's skin. Lullaby Song didn't even scratch Hale's hat.

"Are you feeling tired?" She asked.

Hale stared at her. "No?"

"Oh..." Falcom said with clear disappointment. She had hoped that would do something.

…

The two of them stood there. Falcom still moving her sword before Hale grabbed it.

Then Falcom was thrown towards the CFWs, courtesy of Saxton Hale.

Just now she learned that there are people that might be immune to the effects of her sword.

The adventurer stood up and dusted herself off. "Time!" She called out, making a T sign with her palms. Saxton Hale blinked for a moment.

"What?" The CEO said.

"We call for a break. We need to restrategize!" Falcom said.

Neither Brave nor Magic expected this to work, even Falcom thought this was a stupid idea. But against all odds the CEO of Mann Co. shrugged and sat down, granting them their break. Now they needed to use this moment to its fullest.

"...He actually agreed." CFW Brave commented.

"Do we take this chance to run, or…?" Falcom whispered.

"He's picking up a rock, let's not find out how good his aim is." Brave whispered back. The piece of rubble Saxton Hale just picked up was as big as Brave's head. The australian wasn't doing anything with it just yet, he merely placed it on his lap.

Nonetheless, they didn't want to find out if he was as accurate as he was durable.

Falcom opened up her pouches and pronounced various items from the inside, each one miraculously intact despite the damage she received from Saxton Hale, and after fighting through groups of enemies with Samantha. "Here." She held a green orb tagged 'Healing Field' and unceremoniously dropped it in the middle of their circle.

The orb shattered on the ground and disappeared, then a green light washed over the three of them. They felt their stamina coming back to them while the pain disappear. Now Falcom felt like she could actually breathe, and her sore breast stopped being… sore.

It didn't actually heal any injuries though, that thing wasn't a Medi-Gun. It just rejuvenated their bodies and killed their pain.

The next items were stat boosters.

Falcom has three STR Booster Z, and AGI Booster Z. Both of them were a yellow-and-white cylinder devices with a button and a small hole. The former temporarily increased their strength and durability, while the latter increased speed and reflexes.

Falcom handed one of each to the CFW, while saving the last one for herself. She took the STR Booster Z and pressed the end with a hole to her bicep. The adventurer pressed a button and she grit her teeth as a syringe penetrated her skin and entered her body - pumping its content into her bloodstream. She did the same with the AGI Booster Z, except this one went to her thigh. Falcom hissed as she felt the device fill her veins with even more drugs.

The CFWs did the same thing, with Brave even having dedicated ports for each of these.

Their effects were immediate. Falcom's muscles tensed and became more pronounced, her sword felt lighter too. She was in the state of hyper-awareness, where her brain processed everything at increased rate.

She was feeling pumped.

Saxton Hale noticed that they were finished, and threw his pet rock away. The australian stood up and clasped his hands, while his opponents moved into the formation.

"Finished?" Saxton Hale asked.

His words caught their attention. A slots opened on CFW Brave's armor and a rocket flew towards the australian. The missile flew even faster than before, as if the stat-boosters were affecting its performance as well.

Saxton Hale caught that rocket. With just one hand.

"Good~"

And the battle began anew.

Samantha returned to Gamindustri… and there weren't any spears flying at her. The Overseer managed to return without getting ambushed.

That was good news.

Unfortunately she didn't manage to electrocute Vert. When Samantha was picking the location she picked the space that would put Vert between her entry and exit points, hoping that this will cause the thunder to go through the CPU and deal some serious damage. Logical, right? Electricity followed the path of least resistance.

Haha. Samantha could only dream.

The thunder went around Vert, the electricity didn't even graze the CPU. While Vert didn't expect Samantha to pull off something like that, this maneuver was much less effective than she hoped. The brunette slashed at Vert's back, not letting her advantage go to waste. Samantha then stabbed the CPU and swung at her right shoulder. The Firecracker's blade leaving no more than small scratches against Vert's skin.

The CPU turned around and blocked Samantha's third strike. The brunette grabbed Vert's spear and shot Vert's hand. The Firecracker's bullet bouncing off Vert's gauntlets. She needed to be either at extremely long range or extremely close to Vert, otherwise the spear will become a problem.

Samantha pulled the spear and Vert jerked it back, creating a tug of war between them. The spear's blade was swung in all directions as neither party wanted to let go, until Samantha ended the game with a kick to Vert's stomach. The CPU fell onto the ground, taking her spear with her, and Samantha kicked off, intending to dive kick Vert's stomach.

Vert raised her spear from the ground. The sharp tip being where Samantha was about to land. The Overseer's eyes widened. She couldn't evade it, she was already mid-air. There was no going back from that. She couldn't fly and within that very brief moment she didn't even think about teleporting. She needed to do something quick or else she'll be skewered.

And she had a plan. A very reckless, very stylish and dangerous plan. Magnavox was going to love it.

Samantha shifted her body and her foot landed on the tip of Vert's spear. The blade was already going through the sole her foot, as if it was nothing. The window of opportunity was small and it may've been already closed. The Overseer thrusted her body forward, using the momentum to keep going forward.

Samantha overshot Vert and landed on her arms, centimeters away from Vert's head, before rolling onto her feet… only to stumble at the end. Despite that improvised maneuver Vert's spear still went through Samantha's boot, making a tiny-but-annoying hole inside her foot. Samantha barely had any time to feel the pain before Vert swiped her legs off with her spear.

"Reckless, but impressive." Vert said, hovering onto her feet. "I never saw anyone crazy enough to step on the tip of a spear, and then try to use it as a foothold."

The CPU thrusted her weapon but a thunderbolt took Samantha away. That bolt didn't go towards the sky though, but behind her. Vert swung her spear in a wide arc, and struck empty air. Samantha was a bit further away, Firecracker aimed at Vert's face.

She fired it and Vert shifted to the right, avoiding the bullet completely and moving into another bullet. It struck the top of Vert's head and lit her hair on fire again. While the CPU patted the flames out Samantha charged in.

She avoided Vert's thrust and delivered a solid haymaker into her face. Then she punched Vert's gut, which felt like punching a brick wall. As a finisher Samantha aimed Firecracker onto Vert's exposed head and the goddess slapped the gun away.

Vert sent a punch at Samantha, and the Overseer caught it. Vert sent another one but it was caught as well. The two of them interlocked their fingers and reeled their heads back, before crashing them in the middle. Samantha winced from pain, Vert grit her teeth.

"Stop resisting!" Vert glared at Samantha.

The CPU did her best to crush the Overseer's hands. Samantha gasped and squirmed as she felt the pain intensify quickly. "Aaaaah!" Vert rose above Samantha, while the Overseer squirmed down from pain.

A thunderbolt struck the brunette, and suddenly Vert was grabbing air. Before she could react the lightning struck the earth once more and Samantha reappeared exactly where she was, already sending a punch at Vert and grabbing her spear.

The brunette pulled onto the weapon while kicking Vert back. The CPU jerked her weapon and Samantha was brought closer… right into Vert's embrace. Vert wrapped her hands around Samantha and bended backwards, flipping Samantha over and suplexing her into concrete.

...Or would have, if Samantha didn't teleport away.

The Overseer reappeared and kicked Vert in the side, while the CPU was still in an awkward position. Vert yelped and fell flat on her stomach. Samantha sat on top of her, grabbed a fistful of her hair and started repeatedly banging Vert's face against the concrete.

The CPU dug her claws into Samantha's legs, but the Overseer didn't stop. Eventually Vert put her arms on the ground and pushed. The Overseer's eyes widened as she felt herself moving. Vert was getting up, with the brunette still on her back. Samantha wrapped her legs around Vert's waist, let go of her hair and grabbed her head.

Now Vert was piggybacking Samantha, while the latter squeezed her eyes out.

Vert growled at the pain. While Samantha couldn't actually squeeze Vert's eyes out, having her eyes crushed really hurt. The CPU reached back, her hands brushing over Samantha's face but never getting a good hold on her. The Overseer was swaying back to avoid Vert's claws.

The CPU took off and slammed herself against the wall. The back of Samantha' head hit the wall and bounced back, right into Vert's grasp. Samantha's hold on Vert loosened upon impact and the CPU threw her off.

Before Samantha could get up, Vert put her foot on her chest and her spear on her throat. A light press forward and the brunette will have a very hard time breathing. "Goodness, you're like a rabid animal." The CPU sighed. Her hair was undone and her eyes hurt, all because of that woman underneath her.

The Overseer stared at her, her eyes blank and unfocused. From the way her brows were moving Vert realized she was still conscious, but she didn't like the bloodstain underneath Samantha's head. The CPU was moving pretty fast and Samantha hit the wall head-first. Maybe she has a concussion?

If she has, good for Vert. Samantha was alive and in no condition to fight.

"Surrender." Vert said.

They were still getting trashed.

Despite the medicine numbing their injuries and stat boosters increasing their performance, it still wasn't enough to tip the scales. Saxton Hale was still demolishing them as easily as before. The australian smacked Brave's sword aside and uppercutted Magic, before punching Falcom the gut.

It knocked her a few meters away… but the kevlar vest took the most of the punch.

CFW Magic yelped as Hale grabbed both of her legs while she was still recovering. Then he swung her at CFW Brave. While the machine raised his forearm to parry, a pink barrier was put in-between CFW Magic and CFW Brave, preventing any damage coming to either party.

Hale swung again but this time Magic held herself in place with tentacles, while her other arm slashed at Hale's face. Her nails released sparks as they were roughly dragged across his skin, but no marks were left on Hale's skin.

"What are you?" CFW Magic asked.

"An Australian!" Saxton Hale answered, and ripped his 'weapon' free. The CFW tried to escape his hold. She tried to wedge his fingers out, thrash around, stab his hand with her nails or scythe or even going for his eyes.

Saxton Hale simply swung her again, and Falcom was on the ground again. The adventurer never stood a chance. CFW Brave saw Hale's eyes lock onto him, and the machine had no time to react before Saxton Hale charged at him.

The australian swung Magic, and she bent her body to avoid getting hit. Hale swung again but achieved the same result. In retaliation CFW Brave slashed and stabbed Hale with Burning Agony.

"Are you satisfied now?" Magic deadpanned.

"No. Can you stop moving? I want to hit him!" The australian said, parrying Freezing Yasha with the CFW. Magic bended backwards and the sword of ice smacked Hale in the head. CFW Magic offered no verbal response but Hale already knew her answer.

"Alright, fine." Saxton Hale said as he threw his 'weapon' away. He expected to hear a wet splat as she fell down and hit the concrete, but the australian heard nothing. Magic simply activated her wings and flew above the australian, her scythe ready.

She swung her weapon at him and the CEO swayed away from the blow. "Ah right, you could do that." He ducked as Magic targeted his neck, her blade went between Hale's head and his hat that was flying. "And please, watch the hat."

CFW Brave thrusted both of his weapons at Hale, and the australian jumped back. The CFWs didn't follow him but they circled around, surrounding him. The CEO anticipated another pincer attack... and he got it. Falcom was falling towards him, screaming at the top of her lungs. The adventurer kept her feet pressed together, intending to plant them on Hale's face.

Hale caught her legs and become vulnerable.

Brave charged at Hale from above, his swords raised over his head. Magic came from behind, scythe poised to take Saxton Hale's head. And from the front Falcom was filling the Lullaby Song with SP, making it shine with vibrant colors.

That color faded out as Hale used her as his new weapon.

The CFWs canceled their attacks and retreated, as their opponent again used one of their own against them. Falcom didn't struggle as much as Magic, she couldn't bend in unnatural ways to avoid getting hit. Hale was free to use her to smack the others around, while the adventurer felt dizzy.

His constant, gleeful and powerful swings confused the adventurer and made her nauseous. While she didn't actually take any damage, as the CFWs were careful to not get hit by her, the constant movement was building up some G forces, and that made it hard for Falcom to hold her consciousness.

When Hale stopped madly swinging Falcom around like a ragdoll, the adventurer was unconscious by that point. He gently placed the girl on the ground and faced the CFWs. "Well, that's one down for the count." He told them. "Two to go!"

Then he heard scraping near him. The CEO looked down and saw Falcom standing up. Hale rolled his eyes. "Okay, three to go!" Apparently Falcom was tougher than she looked, if she could wake up so quickly. Hale grabbed her by the scruff of the neck. Then…

Then Hale whole body tensed.

His mind experienced something he hadn't felt in a long time. Something that he's been looking for in this world filled with monsters and strong people. Something that he just couldn't find back home.

Pain.

Hale looked down once more, his head sounding like scraping stones as it moved. Falcom just stabbed him with a sword, but it wasn't the pastel-blue blade of the Lullaby Song. It was a dark purple blade. The Gehaburn.

And that sword penetrated Hale's skin. For the first time, Hale finally bled.

"That really pissed me off." Falcom said, but her voice didn't sound like Falcom. Her voice was disfigured, completely different. Saxton Hale wasn't fighting Falcom anymore. He was fighting Hilda Gehaburn.

And Hale couldn't be happier. He threw a punch at Falcom and the adventurer swayed away from it, he threw another and she rolled to the side. Falcom retaliated and thrusted her sword at the Australian. Hale threw up his arm to block the blade.

Gehaburn went through his skin, embedding its tip inside his flesh.

The blade didn't go far, barely two centimeters deep into Saxton Hale's arm. But the mere fact that out of three of them, Falcom was the one to hurt him made the australian feel excited. Finally this boring preamble was over and he had found true excitement. An actual threat. A challenge.

The possessed adventurer grit her teeth and pushed Gehaburn further. The blade went a minimeter further into Hale's arm, as the australian flexed his muscles with a grin on his face.

There was even some blood leaking out of the wound.

When was the last time he had felt so alive?

Saxton Hale grinned widely, showing off his teeth as Possessed Falcom tried to break through his defense. The australian couldn't wait to see what she has in store.

"Oh, it's on now."

Samantha has no idea what was going on.

She was on the ground, with her head pounding, and there was a half-naked woman on top of her. With a spear at her throat. Samantha couldn't see her clearly, everything was spinning and blurry. That woman was saying something but Samantha couldn't hear it clearly. "Wah?" The brunette let out, her voice slurring like from a drunk person.

"You've committed several crimes against Leanbox and its citizens. You're under arrest. Surrender now." The green haired woman said.

…

Crimes? What crimes? What sort of trouble has she gotten into again? All of it felt familiar but Samantha couldn't recall what happened. She tried and tried and while she knew something had happened, Samantha just couldn't recall what.

The brunette turned her head to the side, and almost wished she hadn't. The motion made her feel like she was falling, the pain intensified and the world revolved. It took Samantha a while to get her vision to stop spinning. She saw a gun in her hand… with the name she could barely recall. 'Fire...crack?' No it didn't seem like it.

There was blood underneath her, which made her cheek and hair wet.

'Blood under my head, a headache… the woman on top of me…' It was all coming together. That bitch just hit her in the head and wanted to arrest her. Well, fat chance!

Samantha slapped the spear away and pointed her gun at Vert. The gun clicked empty. The CPU grabbed her wrist and twisted it, creating more pain for Samantha to deal with. With a pained groan the brunette opened her palm, letting the gun fall out of her grasp.

So focused on the gun in Samantha's grasp, the CPU didn't realize that Samantha was looking for something with her other hand. The surprise hit her like a brick, literally. Samantha found a brick, grabbed it and chucked it at Vert.

With the CPU stunned, Samantha punched the leg off of her chest. Vert slipped and fell screaming. Samantha got to her feet, trying to stop the spinning world. The brunette took 2 steps before Vert kicked her back, and the brunette ate the dirt once more.

"You're in no condition to fight." Vert shook her head "Surrender."

Samantha had other ideas. She went back to True Celestia and returned to Gamindustri, Bloody Mess in hand. The CPU turned towards Samantha and a red beam of light assaulted her eyes. The CPU flinched away. While her accessories made her immune to the status ailments the beam inflicted, having her eyes assaulted was not a pleasant experience.

Vert raised her hand to protect her face, shielding her eyes, but the beam was relentless. Samantha always found a hole in her defense, always found a way to send the beam right into her eyes. The Overseer grinned as Vert turned away. Samantha kept her finger on the trigger, squeezing it tightly.

Vert charged up her SP and put all of it it into her spear. Then once her attack was ready she unleashed it in Samantha's direction. It wasn't a proper skill, it wasn't even something that Vert did before. She just felt annoyed because Samantha was flashing light into her eyes, so she did something to make her stop.

The unleashed energy had neither form nor color, it was completely invisible. A wide wave of energy moved towards Samantha, like the wind itself. The Overseer was completely oblivious to the danger it carried. A small mistake, but one with a hefty cost.

Vert's attack reached her, and the result was immediate.

There wasn't any resistance, nor any time to react. The energy reached Samantha and it cut through her defenses. The energy went through the fabric and skin as if they were nothing. The flesh and bones offered no resistance as well. The energy left her body just as quickly as it entered-

-Leaving the Overseer's body legless.

Samantha was surprised when she was falling, without even knowing why. Her body went into a confused shock as she fell onto the ground, crashing against the concrete.

The energy Vert unleashed at her severed both of her legs, leaving only stumps a little below her knees. Both injuries didn't waste any time to leak blood.

Then the pain kicked in.

And it was unbearable.

Samantha screamed like never before. The once competent and mysterious woman has been reduced into a screaming and crying mess. The pain was too great to ignore, even her thousand-year-old mind struggled to comprehend the pain of losing two limbs at once.

What happened?! What's going on?! Why does it hurt?! Is my arm okay?! Vert? Where's Vert?! Oh fuck I'm gonna die! Vert'll kill me. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. Help! I need help! Fay! Fay! Fay! Help! I don't wanna die again! I don't want to!

With her mind in disarray Samantha panicked. She thrashed around, grabbing whatever she could to help her bear the pain. She found something being pushed into her and she hold onto it for dear life, squeezing so hard as if she wanted to crush that thing.

She felt wind breeze past her. If it wasn't for her panicked state of mind Samantha would've realized she was flying, that Vert grabbed her and took off. She would also hear a thundercrack coming from behind her. The CPU wanted to investigate the last one, but she had more pressing matters.

Samantha continued to cry as she latched onto her, holding on for dear life, while Vert flew as fast as she could. The two stumps that were left of the woman's legs were leaking blood fast. Unless Vert wanted Samantha to actually die she needed to act fast, and considering that Vert has tons of questions for that woman that needed answers, she didn't want her to die.

And she was also a CPU. CPU shouldn't kill others.

Vert returned to the commercial district. Everything was in ruins, the street was littered with rubble and some buildings were even toppled over.

There was also lots of dead bodies.

Vert flew a bit further and saw robots moving around. Clearing out the rubble, collecting the deceased and helping the injured. She landed in front of a Robo-Medic and placed Samantha on the ground. Vert didn't need to give any orders for the Medic-bot to start healing Samantha. The wounds closed itself, her legs grew anew and her clothing was repaired.

The brunette calmed down and relaxed. After a moment Vert realized that she fell asleep.

This opportunity couldn't be more perfect. Vert grabbed Samantha's hands and placed cuffs on them. These didn't look like the pairs Samantha stole from her before. These didn't have any keyhole, were more solid and had some… special properties.

Samantha sensed something was wrong and woke up, alert and alarmed. The Overseer woke up to see Vert pressing some buttons on the handcuffs, and the lights lit up in response. The CPU saw Samantha looking at her and said "These cuffs can't be lock picked and they constantly drain your SP. No more teleporting around."

"G-Go to hell."

And to prove Vert wrong Samantha teleported away, but Vert wasn't surprised. In fact she felt rather smug.

Samantha fell into her trap.

Vert didn't tell her that those cuffs will electrocute her if she moved too far away.

Back at Miss Pauling's last known location, a lightning bolt struck the earth and Samantha fell down screaming. The cuffs on her arms activated and released electric shocks that went through her body. The Overseer's muscles tensed and her body went rigid. She couldn't move, she was in pain and paralyzed.

Her escape attempt was already turning sour. Samantha couldn't even raise her hands, she wanted to smash those handcuffs against the concrete but her body wasn't listening to her. All she could do was scream.

"FUuUaAaaAaAaaaaACK!"

And scream she did.

With all motor skills lost, Samantha was left to wait until Vert bothered to find her and disable the cuffs.

But then someone grabbed her, raised her hands and after a loud 'bang' she was free. No more electricity. Samantha panted at the pleasing sense of not being in pain, she felt herself being raised and embraced. Samantha knew by whom, and she couldn't feel happier about it. Magnavox's 'surprise' was here.

But as much as Samantha wanted to enjoy this, Vert was flying right here right now. So the Overseer had to cut the plesanties short.

"Alright, lemme go. We got a job to do."

The woman that hugged her groaned loudly in protest, but nonetheless she helped Samantha to her feet. Once she was standing Samantha gave her another quick hug, placing her own head underneath hers.

"It's good to see you back." The brunette said before breaking away. She walked over and picked up the Firecracker and Bloody Mess, her lack of shoes didn't seem to bother her a bit. Her boots were there, though. With her severed feet.

Knowing that these used to be her own legs made it surreal to look at. No matter how many times she went through it.

Pink mist appeared around Samantha's hands. When it dissipated the Overseer was holding a pair of clean, black socks. She put them on and then put on her old boots and shin armor. "...This actually feels really weird and wrong, somehow." The Overseer commented.

Her pants were repaired and cleaned by the Medi-Gun, she didn't need to change them. Fortunately so as Samantha didn't have anything for her size. The armor was bloody but otherwise untouched, her legs were severed above it. When that was done pink mist engulfed both the Firecracker and Bloody Mess. The mist disappeared and the weapons were gone.

Samantha turned towards the woman who saved her.

Her hair was long and blond, and was cinched with a rubber band to create a ponytail. She was wearing a dark green cloak and a red scarf, underneath which she had a green tunic with golden detailing, pants of the same green shade and brown leather boots.

She also had insect wings. Yellow tinted.

...And she was taller than Samantha. Even more so than before. Nonetheless Samantha gave her a wide smile and spread her hands, the woman quickly jumping into her embrace. Samantha felt herself raised and utterly crushed because of the woman's arms.

"I missed you." She said.

"I missed you too." Samantha responded.

Then she saw Vert getting closer to them.

"Enemy."

Samantha didn't even finish her command before the woman dragged them both into cover. Sylhet Spear struck the location where they both once stood. The blonde woman let go of Samantha and opened her palm; pink mist appeared around her hand, revealing a rifle. The blonde aimed it at Vert but Samantha grabbed it, preventing her from firing.

The woman looked at Samantha and the Overseer said just one word.

"Time."

The woman nodded and lowered her gun.

Samantha stepped out of their cover, her hands raised. She saw Vert flying above her, and some robots moving into the area. Soldiers, Heavies and Demomen spotted the Overseer but they didn't fire at her yet, probably because Vert didn't order them to.

Backup, huh? Seems appropriate. If Samantha was alone, then this would be really bad news for her. Now though? An easy fight.

"You are seriously persistent." Samantha said to Vert.

"As you are, if you could just surrender that would be great. I still have more things to attend to." Vert said to Samantha.

"And if you could just piss off that would be great as well. Now that Miss Pauling's run away there's a lot I have to do to mitigate the damage." Machias and 5pb would have to be relocated, she would need to write a letter to Histoire and pray that they would accept them.

"You're going to run?!" Vert snapped at the Overseer. "After all you've done to my nation, you think I'll just let you get away?! You're going to prison, one way or another."

"Okay, and then what?" Samantha challenged, putting her hands on her hips.

That wasn't an answer Vert was expecting. The CPU expected an insult, a remark or an accusation, not a challenge. But you wouldn't see Vert's surprise if you were to look at her. "And then you'll stay there for the rest of your life."

"Or I could teleport away, or have one of the CFWs break me out, or pick the lock and escape myself." Samantha shook her head. "I'm uncontainable Vert. You should know this by now." Although she'll ignore the fact that those handcuffs were an effective counter to her abilities. If she wasn't there, Vert would have her on a silver plate.

...How long can Vert keep herself in HDD? Samantha could've sworn it should've expired by now. Unless Vert was pushing herself through her limit or one of her BS accessories allowed her to stay in HDD forever.

"Then how about I just kill you and be done with it? With the destruction you've caused this punishment seems appropriate." Vert said.

"Do you have the guts to do it?"

Samantha knew Vert wouldn't be able to kill her. She could act tough all she wanted but Samantha had an extensive intel on her, across multiple alternate worlds at that. Vert was too soft to execute someone, even if it was justified.

"I severed your legs once, yes?"

"Oh yeah, that hurt by the way. But then why did you heal me if you're just going to kill me? That seems kinda counterproductive, doesn't it?"

"Because your information is useful, but even that usefulness has its limits."

"Didn't you say that you couldn't trust me? Why the change of heart?"

Samantha enjoyed the face Vert was making. The Overseer didn't plan on making this easy for her. Just like the CPU wasn't making it easy for Samantha, and Vert was still in her HDD with no signs of exhaustion.

...Was Vert sucking shares out of her Share Imprint? Was Samantha's mere presence enough to keep Vert in her Hard Drive Divinity? It did wake up the Planeptune CPUs, so there was a chance this 'buying time' schtick was doomed to fail from the start.

"Oh don't worry. I'm sure Gray Mann will have ways of extracting some information out of you. Accurate, truthful information."

"Oh… I'm sooo scared." Samantha rolled her eyes and reached out to Vert, her palm open. "As if you still have any chances of winning."

Those were some big words from someone who just had her ass handed back to her, but Samantha felt confident in her chances.

After all-

Pink mist appeared around her hand, revealing a sword hidden within. It was a very decorated sword with a golden blade and green-and-gold hilt. Gems decorated the crossguard and the pommel was made out of crystal. The blade itself was thin, firm and long, with a curved tip for more effective cutting.

-In her hands was a Fury, and supporting her was Fay.

In front of her was an army. Above her was an adversary who might as well be an army of her own.

Vert frowned as she saw Samantha's new weapon. The machines aimed their weapons at the Overseer, waiting for any sudden movement. A single order could turn this place into a bloodshed. Samantha's kevlar protected her body against bullets, but even that wouldn't hold out against the sheer firepower Gray Mann's machines possessed.

She wasn't worried.

"Fay." Samantha commanded.

One simple command, but the blonde woman knew exactly what to do. Centuries of working together made them know what the other was planning just by the tone of their voice, or a mere glance. The level of their teamwork could match the level of the Mercenaries.

Fay breathed in and focused inside her body. "Fairy Link!" Her body began to shrink and glow, lighting up her hiding spot with a green sheen. She turned herself into a small orb of light, which flew towards Samantha and entered the Fury. The moment she made contact with the weapon, the gems decorating the sword lit up.

The robots sensed the threat and fired.

From within the sword Fay spoke up.

"Executing: Deadeye."

Time slowed down around Samantha, down to the 1/24th of its normal rate. Everything moved to a crawl where you could even see the bullets soaring through the air.

The brunette herself wasn't affected at all, she could move at her normal speed.

Samantha took 5 steps to the right, ensuring she wouldn't be hit by a stray bullet. While the world around moved at a snail's pace, she herself was unhindered. In her hands wasn't a sword anymore, but rather a long sniper rifle. The Fury could morph into a wide array of weapons, and this Skill required a gun.

Aided by the time dilation, Samantha aimed at the first robot and pressed the trigger. Her aim was perfect, her rifle perfectly accurate. The projectile left the barrel of her Fury and soared towards its head, leaving a golden trail as it did so.

With one machine down, Samantha systematically gunned down each robot. When the skill ended none of the machines were left standing, each one was destroyed with just 1 bullet. All it took was one Skill to destroy them all.

Samantha racked the bolt of her rifle and looked up at Vert. The CPU was struggling to comprehend what she just saw. In one moment Samantha was surrounded and about to die. Then Samantha was somewhere else, and her backup was destroyed.

"...What are you?" Vert asked.

Samantha simply smirked with complete confidence.

"I am a Fairy Fencer."

INVENTORY:

Gehaburn - A sword once belonging to Hilda Gehaburn, now her very soul is infused into it. It has a purple wide blade and dark purple grip and crossguard, with cyan and orange detailing. The soul inside is possessing Falcom's body and can be used only by Falcom.

Stats:

Vast increase to all stats when fighting a CPU.

Permanent increase to Strength and Speed after killing a CPU.

All attacks ignore 50% of target's Defense and Mentality.

Can damage Invincible, Übercharged and Protected targets.

Cursed item: Can't be removed from Falcom's inventory, and sometimes it will be forcefully equipped.

Interdimensional RED-Coded Contract

Even if Driven to the Wall-

And Fay finally appears. 19 chapters after the first reference to her.

...Do you know this feeling of 'oh, this is going to be great!' But then as the time went on you thought this is not going to be as great of an idea as you thought, but you're too far in to stop it.

That's me, right now, as I'm pulling Fairy Fencer F into Sam's backstory. I had him/her being a Fencer planned since the beginning of their introduction, but just now I'm getting doubts. I even had a talk with my editor about it.

...At least FFF was made by the same studio as Neptunia, so there was some relevance. And even then this won't affect the story of RED-Contract in any major way, but now you know why I want to write Samantha-centered prologue before moving onto the Sequel.

You know, I actually liked this idea of a batch updates and I might do it more. Not right now but maybe when the big stuff of Final Arc kicks in. As I have a big idea that will need some fine tuning and time.

Reviews (I will skip those which I answered via PM):

YORCHspartan117

I'm glad you liked the chase sequence, and I hope you liked this fight as well. Personally I prefer listening to music from Legend of Heroes Trails series, like Fateful Confrontation, Transcend Beat or Atrocious Raid.

The reason why there's no Re;Spawn will be implied in the chapter after the next one, so all you need to do is to wait. I also loved Magic's complete disregard to Noire's last stand. Why waste time fighting when you can just bypass them?

As for Saxton Hale… well, at first I wanted him to fight Samantha and Fay, but I couldn't find the right way to do it. So I switched it up for him to fight the CFWs. However he was planned to end the chase from a long time ago… I should've foreshadow it better. But that's what his role in the story is, an Ex Machina.

And yes, things will get really fucked later. If I write the scenes right then Leanbox will be nothing compared to what I have in store for the finale.

I want this story to end with a bang.

- Harmless Orange.