Capture their minds and their hearts and souls will follow.

Author Unknown

Sometime in late spring, Gamindustri time.

Late February, Earth time.

It was cold up on the rooftops of Planeptune, but Nathan didn't care. He had faced far worse temperatures than this back home.

The stars of the late night were blocked out by the many bright lights of the lively city, the streets still bustling with energy despite nearing midnight. Skyscrapers tickled the clouds far in the distance, reminding him of the one time he visited Times Square the year before. Nathan wore an old black hoodie, one local to Planeptune, and a common pair of blue jeans to help him blend in with the locals. It surprised him that the culture of Gamindustri would be so similar to western culture, and that one discovery helped him tremendously to understand the people here.

The middle-aged teenager sat with one of his legs dangling over the edge of the building. It used to scare him to do something like this, but he wasn't afraid anymore. The cars below whisked by, the lights flickering across the maze of roads and sidewalks. You couldn't tell that there was a war going on, and they were the ones fighting it. You couldn't tell that their brothers and sisters and fathers and sons were throwing bombs, firing rockets and killing his people. You couldn't tell that in a land far away cities just like this were reduced to nothing but a shell of their former selves.

There was never much Nathan could do to begin with, but he still had a mission.

After a vicious gust of wind nearly caused him to lose his balance, Nathan slid off the edge and onto the ground next to him. He laid with his back against the low wall and pulled his black beanie over his ears. It really was getting chilly, even if he didn't want to admit it.

From his left he pulled out a tiny handheld radio, one used by the military back home. He had it hooked up to a larger antenna to help him project his broadcast across the whole city like he had for the past few days. Nathan had already reviewed the news from back home twice, and was ready to tell this whole world the truth that no one knew.

He held the radio up to his open mouth for a moment, gathering his courage to speak, but before he could a shadow leaped down on him from above, landing a short distance in front of him. He kept his hand off the button to speak and set the radio back on the ground beside him gently. Nathan brought his right hand over to a holster on his thigh, but he just kept his hand right above the grip of the pistol.

The person spoke loudly and clearly, her voice projecting above the whistling of the wind and the hum of the city noise.

"Your time is up, villain!" She stuck a finger out to Nathan, pointing right between his eyes.

Nathan tilted his head, mocking confusion. "Me? A villain?" He brought a finger to point at himself.

"What do you mean, 'Me? A villain'!? Of course I'm talking about you. I have come to deliver justice!" She held up her fists defensively, not taking her eyes off her foe. "Your reign of terror shall come to an end!"

"Alright," Nathan muttered, using the wall to help him to his feet. He threw his arms out, as if he were shrugging. "What I'm doing isn't wrong in the slightest, c'mon! You can't just call me evil and all…"

She frowned. "This Radio Free America of yours is far too harmful to stay on the air. It's illegal and just plain lies! You broadcasted your lies for too long, announcer. Just give it up and come quietly!"

Nathan smiled at this. He didn't really know how well his message was being received by the people of Gamindustri, and since this crazy justice-freak is all over him, he can assume that he's making a pretty strong impact.

"I speak nothing but the truth, lady."

The girl snapped. "You don't fool me for a second. And it's Nisa, the Heroine of Justice to you, villain! Just come quietly and you won't have to get hurt."

"Justice?" Nathan paused. "Do you even know what justice you're fighting for?"

"Of course I do! The law of the land, the freedom of the people-"

"Freedom?" The boy scoffed. "When I look around myself I see nothing but tyranny. Tyranny of your Goddesses."

Nisa crossed her arms, personally offended at his statement. "How dare you say such a thing?" She unfurled her arms, angered and ready to pounce. "I'll have you know that my friends- no- our CPUs are nothing but just! Your lies need to end, now!"

Nathan held his arms up defensively. He had to act, and fast. Fighting was out of the question, he knew how powerful the people from this world were. His weapon was his words.

"I can tell that your justice is corrupt, Nisa!" He blurted, calling out to his enemy over a gust of wind. "You don't know the whole story!"

"Stop! Just stop!" She shook her head. "You're in the wrong here, announcer!"

"If you've been listening to my broadcast, you've known that your people don't keep prisoners!"

Nisa glared at her enemy straight in the eye, clenching her fists out of emotion rather than defense. "You just insult my people with your worthless lies, I know the truth! I know what true justice is! If Planeptune has to go to war, I know that it's nothing but good!"

"And that's just it." Nathan said calmly. "Your casus belli is anything but."

The first casualty of war is truth.

-Rudyard Kipling

Mid Spring, Gamindustri time.

Mid January, Earth time.

"I'm never going to go back." The Deity of Sin sighed without the slightest hint of regret.

Warechu just looked right on ahead, over the hilltops and towards the setting sun. He spoke rather softly for a mouse of his stature, but Arfoire heard it nonetheless. "Well, what do you mean by that, chu?"

Arfoire paused, not quite sure how to respond. She reclined in her aging rocking chair on the porch of her old farmhouse, gently breathing in the cool air of early spring. The Goddess tilted her head back, her aged purple witch's hat still offering her eyes protection from the setting sun. She wore a dirty pair of overalls on top of a newly purchased red-plaid shirt. Warechu, that dumb rat, still stuck with her after all these years. He stood at the decrepit porch railing, letting his ears flutter around when a gust of wind blew by.

The sun still shed some light over the horizon, casting long shadows across Arfoire's eggplant farm in the shape of the young stalks. It was getting a little cold now that the day was coming to an end, but the Deity of Sin didn't mind. The golden glow of the sunset draped a blanket of warmth over her and the swaying grass surrounding the farmhouse, making her feel content at last. After several years of living a peaceful yet isolated life she finally felt proud. This stupid patch of dirt and grass she cultivated turned out to become a sustainable career for the two past ASIC members, although the taste of eggplant does get rather sickening after a while.

Arfoire took in a deep breath as she closed her eyes, at last in peace. "I'm happy with the way things turned out." She opened her eyes, looking directly at her partner. "I hate to admit it, but it might've been good that those CPUs defeated us here."

Warechu scoffed. "You really think so? That's pitiful of you, ya old hag."

"Oh please," Arfoire waved him off. "I've changed, Warechu, don't call me that anymore. I think I'm finally happy with myself." She said as a matter-of-fact.

"Sure… just yesterday you wanted to snag one of those fancy schmancy dresses at the Planeptune Mall for yourself! You don't fool me for a second, chuu."

"Wha!?" One of Arfoire's eyebrows shot up, appalled at the former criminal's accusation. "I'm a changed woman, you rat. Don't you dare say something as preposterous as that!"

Warechu snickered, stepping back from the Goddess with a paw over his mouth. "Hehehe… what a hypocrite you-"

"GET OVER HERE!" Arfoire yelled, jerking up from her seat and bounding towards the red-eyed creature. Her cheeks were red with blind rage. If there's one thing that she kept over the years, it would be her temper.

"Whaa!" Warechu jumped up in surprise and mantled the railing at breakneck speeds, racing towards the eggplant crop. Thinking on his toes, he thought that he could lose her in the farm.

He sprinted across the lawn, the straw-roofed house becoming a distant memory as dust and dirt got kicked up by the duo's fast moving feet as a literal game of cat and mouse emerged.

"Don't think you can hide from me you damn rat! I'll catch you, and when I do, your tiny mouse-brain is gonna get shoved into the dirt!" Arfoire threatened, darting through the thick maze of eggplants at her target.

Once he got a good lead on his past leader, Warechu ducked down into the plants and stood still. His breath ran ragged, but he did his best to be as quiet as possible. What is that woman doing? She's going to destroy the harvest! The mouse thought to himself as he crept onto his knees. He dug his paws into the fertile soil, blending into the darkly tinted ground as dusk inched it's way around the corner. Hehehe, she'll never find me like this! Warechu crawled away from the desperate thrashing of an adrenaline fueled Deity, weaseling through the maze of plants. He was careful to tuck his tail in close, as the moving protrusion could give him away.

The sounds of the hectic Goddess faded into twilight as Warechu kept crawling away towards nothing in particular. He wasn't quite sure when he should reappear, but based on past experience he assumed that he should wait a little while longer before showing his face. Serious injury was not uncommon around his roommate, especially when she was as enraged as she was now. Why was so upset? Who knows. She normally didn't get so temperamental so suddenly, but Warechu didn't question it. He just kept crawling until something very particular made him stop right in his tracks.

There was a person.

At least, at this distance it looked like a person. It's hard to tell from far away as his camouflage blended in rather neatly with the dirt and grass. That combined with the hazy lighting from dusk made the whole picture harder to see in general. The person was laying face-first, the head covered with a jet black beanie that seemed to be the same color as the person's hair. A brown and green camouflaged backpack stuck up and out of the grass, and beside it, on the person's back, was a black rifle.

Shocked for a moment, the mouse was still. He didn't move a muscle for fear that the person was awake and would shoot him. That was always a pain in his past line of work.

After a whole ten seconds of tension, the mouse decided that he should investigate.

He crawled out of the row of plants and into the open before returning to his feet, his back aching from the strain of crawling. After stretching his back out thoroughly he stepped closer to the person. By the shape of the body it looked to be a young male, a thought of confusion running through the rat's head. . Men normally weren't in Planeptune's armed forces, and even then this camouflage was nothing like the ones seen anywhere in Gamindustri, contrasting dramatically from the standard black of Planeptune and Lastation. Could this guy be a part of some sort of special forces? Upon further inspection of the body, Warechu decided that the answer was a solid 'no'. Men were considered to be too inadequate to become anywhere more than a common grunt in all militaries, and the injustice made Warechu tingle in disdain. He never liked how society was so biased against males like him.

The former criminal bent over and stole a glance at the guy's shoulder. On it, he saw a patch of a flag he had never seen before, and below it was another patch that he couldn't hope to recognize. He was never good with all that military mumbo-jumbo, so this was all new ground for him. He did know, however, that his country's military was headed off to some far off land, but the farm-mouse was not informed well enough as to know the specifics. It would make sense that the army should be all over the country, but not like this. This guy was far too young to be a professional soldier of any sort; he looked like a teenager!

After minutes of poking and prodding, Warechu had enough. Nothing was happening, and it didn't seem like this guy was waking up anytime soon. He went over his options for a moment, but none of them were good. He settled on calling for help on the issue, despite the fact that his only help being the old woman who doesn't seem to be in a good mood.

He swallowed his pride and his fear before arching his neck back and into the sky. He clasped his paws around his mouth and took in a deep breath.

"HEEEEEY! OLD WITCH! COME HERE, I NEED HELP!" He shouted as loudly as his little lungs would allow, high into the sky. Not even a second passed before he heard the awful din of a raging Goddess. It was headed right towards him!

She emerged from between the stalks like a lumbering giant, towering high over the mouse's meager body. "You! You damn rat… I don't know if I want to listen to you or to snap your neck." She snarled, stepping into the open with caution. "You infuriate me sometimes. One of those times being now!"

"Take it easy now you goth-faced maniac! There's something big here, chuu! Check it!"

Warechu quickly hobbled back and away from the body as the Deity of Sin, still wearing her hat, trampled her way forward. It was getting hard to see as darkness was settling in fast. She could make out the person, but none of the details. After several moments she set her arms on her hips. Frustrated, she sighed.

"Who is this? What is he doing here? Shouldn't he know this is private property? Hmph." She crossed her arms over her chest, clearly not amused by the sudden appearance in her territory. "This kid better not be trying to steal our plants."

Warechu shrugged, getting tired. "That's real doubtful, he looks pretty official."

Nothing was said for some time as they both pondered their options. As the night drew closer and closer, it became obvious to them that things weren't were going to be very quiet from here on out. In the end, they decided it would be best to bring him home. Every day was another challenge just to get by, and this night would become one that they would never forget.

The body of the boy laid with his back on the cushions of an old couch, his backpack sitting upright on the floor beneath it. The rifle he had on him was propped up beside the backpack, it's glimmering black metal reflecting the light of a gas-powered lamp hanging from the ceiling's exposed rafters.

The house was just made of three rooms. A bathroom, a bedroom and a living room which also had a kitchen in the corner. The house was not kept in the best condition, as crumbs dotted the table in front of the couch and the kitchen sink was stacked with a few dirt plates. A simple television was one of the only sources of news the two past criminals had, and that was only considering the times when it worked. The residents could not afford more than what they had, and the scruffy red rug under their feet cost them the revenue of a four months. They managed to get by, however, and the house represented that status. But they were content by themselves, living a simple life on their own.

Warechu crept up to the boy's chest armor, analyzing its complex series of straps and pouches. On his upper-left side of his chest he wore a patch that said a name in big, bold letters. It read, "KIOWA".

"So," The mouse mumbled. "This guy's name is Kiowa, huh. What a strange name."

Arfoire leaned closer, reading the tag. "Agreed. It's rather dull."

Warechu smirked, crossing his arms. "Like your name is any better-"

"Be quiet you rodent!" Arfoire snapped. She relaxed her hands upon her waist as the gaslamp continued to flicker it's light across the room, shaken by the Goddess's sudden movement. She sighed. "What do we do now?"

"I donno. You were the one with the bright idea to bring him inside, chuu."

"Well, excuse me. At least I had an idea."

"Huh? Listen here you wrinkly ol' woman-"

Arfoire violently shushed the mouse before stepping into the kitchen area. Warechu rolled his eyes before sitting down at a small table nearby. He was getting drowsy, and his sleeping area was occupied by a guest. He grumbled to himself as Arfoire pulled two cans and a can opener out of a shelf. Tonight's dinner was fish saturated with dogoo jelly- an ancient Leanbox delicacy.

Satisfied by her actions, Warechu reclined in his chair. "Ah, you're breaking out the good stuff today! What's the occasion?"

Arfoire puffed, annoyed. "We have a guest. Don't you think we should celebrate before he wakes up? Besides, I'm getting tired of eggplant." As Arfoire brought the cans over to the table, she muttered to herself. "Eggplant breakfast… Eggplant lunch… Eggplant dinner…"

With a clang, the cans were set down at the table, and they each took turns opening their cans like a civilized family. But right before either of them could dig into their expensive meals, a pronounced knock on the door rang out. Four hard knocks startled the duo, and Warechu grumbled as he pulled himself out of his seat. However, Arfoire held her hand up, pushing her seat back.

"I'll get it." She left her seat and started for the door. "Who would be asking for us at this hour?" She groaned. Once at the door, she tugged back on the doorknob to reveal a girl standing in the darkness that Arfoire thought she would never see again.

"IF?" Arfoire said, taken aback by the sight of the girl. She had assumed that she would never set foot near eggplants again after what she put her through, but it seems as though times must have changed her.

"That's me." IF cleared her throat, brushing off her heavy blue coat. "Or rather, it's Commander IF to you." The guild member looked Arfoire in the eyes before recognizing the resident. "O-Oh! You're Arfoire!"

Arfoire felt insulted. "Of course I am! Who else would it be?"

"Uhh…" IF stood in the doorway, a flustered. "A farmer? I didn't actually think you stayed here since the last time I was here…"

"I'm a woman of my word. Now, are we going to be civilized and enter my house or are you just going to stand there like an idiot?"

"Ah!" IF snapped to her senses, jolting upright. "I don't think that will be necessary as of now, I just came to ask a few questions."

"I have a few questions of my own, you know. If the past is behind us, I'd love to catch up. You say you're a commander now? That's military, not guild. Now…" Arfoire squinted her eyes, scrutinizing IF's body with her eyes. "You weren't conscripted… were you?"

The girl in question as about to respond, but held herself back. She had a reputation to uphold, and since Arfoire is nothing more than a mere citizen now, there's nothing more that should be said. IF just needed to ask a few questions and be done with it. She took in a deep breath of the cool night air before speaking.

"Alright, listen." IF stared Arfoire in the eyes. "We're on high alert right now. We believe that enemy agents have infiltrated into this area during the day. Have you seen anything or anyone suspicious lately? This is a matter of national security."

Arfoire opened her mouth, but didn't know whether to speak or not. She looked back over her shoulder, over to Warechu. He had covered their guest with a thin blanket, making it seem as though nothing was out of the ordinary. It seemed as though the mouse didn't want to reveal their guest just yet, and Arfoire agreed. It would be much better to question the person themselves rather than let the government handle him. One of the things that she did know about the outside world was that Neptune, or more commonly seen as Purple Heart now, was not the nicest person to have around.

Arfoire tugged at her shirt collar, sweating like a maniac. "Uhh… Nope! We've seen nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing at all. Right, Warechu?" Warechu stepped next to Arfoire in the doorway with his hands on his hips.

"We got nothin here, missy. Unless you got Compa with you," He leaned forward and out of the doorway, jerking his head left and right as if his love interest were nearby. "You outta scram, ya chump. We want nothing more to do with the whole lot of you people." He nodded.

"Err… yeah." Arfoire also nodded, looking suspicious. "Nothing to see here."

"O-kay?" IF said, raising an eyebrow. "If not me, then someone else will check up on on you some other time. I'll be seeing you around." She nodded, stepping back carefully, still facing the farmers. She knew something was up, but she didn't know what. Knowing them, they had probably stolen something big and stupid. But it's been awhile since they'd made headlines, so she gave them the benefit of the doubt.

IF stepped off the porch and into the night. Little light bugs had started to emerge over the eggplant crop, illuminating the farm like twinkling stars. On Earth they were called fireflies, and she had only seen them once, when she went down to inspect her soldiers in the South Carolina region. She shuddered at the sight of the eggplants, but kept walking towards her trusty motorcycle. She still hadn't gotten over her phobia of eggplants, even after so much time has passed. A part of her wanted to smash their heads into the dirt for what they did to her, but that would be immature. The Wind Walker of Gamindustri had to keep her own temper in check, lest she become someone like those criminals on the farm.

IF told herself that she was better than them. She was a soldier now.

She climbed onto the motorcycle, it's engines revving up in the silence of the night. The headlight lit up the dirt road in front of her, and as she started to drive she kept her thoughts to herself. The farm became a distant memory to her, and she wanted to keep it that way.

There are but two powers in the world, the sword and the mind. In the long run the sword is always beaten by the mind.

Napoleon Bonaparte

Geez. It's almost been a year since this project begain, and it's weird to look back.

After much evolution, I've gone back and eased the reading of Fin De Sicle, this series's prologue. I still reccomend you read it, but it's not needed.

I also advise you to read while in bed and on a mobile device, or just when you are most susceptible to digesting a story.

Ahead of you waits some of the most authentic warfare in this archive. Unfortunately, between you and that experience is my newbie early writing- that means bits of cliches and gnarly ANs early on- the latter to be deleted promptly.

But it's still Hearts And Minds.

I sincerely hope you enjoy.