[Mecha Musume Themes, TF, Minionization]

"Finally, I thought he was lying when he said he'd send me one of these!"

An excited young lady's voice echoed through the entrance as she ripped open the letter she had received, one signed by a name she knew well from her online chats. 'Deva'. And within was the thing that she had been waiting for...

A tiny little medal with a slot to attach a cable, allowing it to dock with her PC. This was her ticket to playing that game that everyone was so hyped about.

Galaxian Generations. If you were to believe the marketing, it was a game about creating your very own mech and fighting against the others across the many worlds, across time and space for the sake of becoming the strongest. That was the marketing, anyway. Most people didn't really buy into the lore and just went ahead and made whatever they would have the most fun with, before heading straight to PVP to duke it out.

Honestly, not a game that she was too interested in! She didn't think that she was the most creative person, which was why she usually went for more puzzle-oriented games where she didn't have to think about an open assignment, and more try to find a solution with the tools that she had available.

Who was she? Nobody special, really. Her name was Constance. And while she tried her best to keep up a good look at school, formal uniform and her hair neatly brushed so she could look like a good student. But at home, she was much more loose. Much more emotional. Wild red hair, loose sweatshirt with one of her favorite idols printed on it, and shorts that had been torn a little. Not her fault they couldn't handle her after all this time!

Constance practically threw herself into her bedroom, where she had the whole setup hooked up already. Not only that, but she had prepared a special model...

Okay, calling it special was a stretch. It was a standard mech that you could get as a promotional item if you bought the physical edition of Galaxian Generations. Deva had told her that she needed it. Even after she complained she wouldn't be able to give it all the customization that it needed, Deva insisted that it both wasn't necessary, and that the mech itself was the important part.

"Still don't understand why I need these two things. Don't I just install it or something?" Constance said as she rummaged behind her computer, trying to plug the cable into the back. Almost knocking her screen over in the process from how much she had hooked up back there. Not her fault there were a ton of accessories that made gaming way more immersive nowadays!

'WELCOME TO GALAXIAN WARS!'

A sensual and excited voice echoed from her speakers the second she pushed the cable into an available slot on the back of her PC, causing Constance to blink a little as she pulled herself back into her seat. "Eh? Galaxian Wars? Isn't it Galaxian Generations?" She paused as she looked at the small medal that she had plugged in. "Did Deva convince me to buy a bootleg?!"

The suffocatingly stuffy air inside her room smothered the silence left by that question, prompting Constance to shrug her shoulders and simply put the mech on the medal, just as Deva had told her to. "Screw it, if it's a bootleg, then at least it's a bootleg that I can play with Deva. He better not be scamming me either, otherwise I'm going to-"

She didn't get to finish. The second that she put the mech onto the medal, her screen suddenly turned into one big hole. And as she screamed in shock, her voice was silenced. All thanks to the hole pulling her in, every single bit of her body converted into a cube of data that was swallowed by that hole...

A hole that swallowed her mech as well...

---

"Welcome!"

Constance blinked as she opened her eyes. Looking straight up at what looked to be a metallic green rabbit? No, too humanoid to be a rabbit. Yet at the same time, too abstract to be human. Some sort of machine?

"Uh. Hello?" She said, not really sure how she should react. At least, right up until the moment that her mind caught up to what had just happened. "Wait, no, what's going on!? Who are you!? Where am I?! Am I still cubes!?" She cried out in rapid succession, quickly putting her hands all over her body to try and understand what had happened.

Good news! Not cubes. Bad news, no clothes.

Good news. Not naked. Bad news, wrapped in latex? Or at least some sort of spandex. Well, better than being naked.

Worst news? Definitely not in Kansas. Or anywhere she could recognize at that. It kinda looked like she was in some sort of marble hallway, leading out towards a single bright light...

Constance took a moment to look at the thing that had greeted her, getting up onto her feet with surprising ease. Wasn't too hard to handle, despite the fact that the weird substance that covered her was extremely clingy. So clingy that she wondered if it was actually a second layer of skin. Or if it was her skin. Wait, that'd mean she was naked.

Nope. Not letting her mind wander. She had played enough games with naughty premises during her time with puzzles. There were no naughty bits on her, she was safe!

As for the being that she had been distracted from observing...

"You are very vocal and very energetic, Miss! That's the kind of spirit that we're looking for! The kind of spirit that might make it all the way to the tip top of the Galaxian Wars and challenge the Galaxian Ascendant herself!"

The being was... Essentially a tube with a rabbit-like triangle stacked on top. Given the fact that she had just been turned into cubes moments ago, that thing had to be some sort of AI? Well that's the best answer she had, she wasn't going to try and figure out what else it could be if she could describe it well like that!

"Really? I mean, I don't think I'm that good in a fight, but-" Constance blinked a few times, before grabbing hold of the triangle-headed AI and lifting it up as she tugged on the sides of the triangle. "What makes you think that I'll actually fight!? I just wanted to play with my friend Deva, not get pulled into a weird game!"

The AI didn't react too adversely to the way that it was being pulled. All while still wearing such an incredibly stupid smile on its face. "Refrain from tugging on my facial features too heavily. I may not be the same sort of life as you, Miss, but I am sentient to an extent!" It requested, prompting Constance to slowly lower it. "Thank you!"

Right. Okay. She was talking to an AI that was... Well, sentient, as said. And she was stuck wearing a weird black suit with pearly white lines bringing emphasis to her limbs. Great. So she had to fight or something? Not what she really wanted to do, but if she had no other choice, then...

"...If you're sentient, do you have a name? Are there more like you?" Constance asked, all while looking out at the bright light ahead. She didn't really want to start fighting, that wasn't her thing at all. But... But if she really had to, then she just had to.

"You can call me Star! I, as well as the other Stars that are assigned to Galaxians like you, and the many others that serve as the processes keeping the Galaxian Wars running, are here to ensure that everything goes well! Whether by ensuring that you all remain fed and well rested within this world, or armed and aided in a fight!" The 'Star' explained, still beaming due to its completely unflinching smile. Almost a little concerning that it would keep smiling like that, but it's not like it could do anything else.

It's explanation was certainly helpful, but it also didn't explain anything at all. Which prompted Constance to rub her temples. It was a lot of information to process, and if she stayed here, she was probably going to get a headache. She could go for a raw tomato right about now, just... Crush it and eat the wet chunks from the palm of her hand to try and get her mind off things.

But she couldn't have that. All she could do was move forward and hope for the best. And if she had to guess...

"Ah! Your opponent is done preparing! You have to move quick, you will be penalized if you stay in here for too long after your enemy has finished their preparations!"

The Star once again didn't let Constance try and figure things out and piece things together at the slow pace that she liked to move at. Instead, it shoved at her back, making her stumble her way out towards the light.

"Slow down, how am I supposed to-" Constance tried to protest, but the bars shut behind her the moment that she stumbled into the light. Letting her gaze and take in the surroundings, because she wasn't going to get another chance...

Constance found herself standing at the edge of a marble arena. The same sort of arena that she would find abandoned in her puzzle games, from ancient roman or greek times. Or whatever was back there, she wasn't a history girl. Which was probably also why the many pillar-like Stars that lined the arena didn't feel odd enough to trigger something.

And in the center of it all, flanked by another Star, was a young girl. A young girl with green bangs covering her eyes, quietly flicking a tool as she watched Constance come closer.

"I thought nobody was dumb enough to join the Galaxian Wars after the last person got eliminated." The girl said, firmly grasping the handle of her tool as she glared towards Constance. "What's your title, newbie?"

For a short girl like her, who barely looked like she was old enough to be in a proper fight... She was really cocky. Another reason why Constance didn't really play games like these, they were full of jerks who thought they were better than everyone else. "Title? Listen, I just put the mech down on the medal that my friend sent me, I don't know anything!"

The girl sighed as she threw her tool to the air. "Fine. Whatever. I'll just knock you out and spare you the trouble!" She cried out, as a star started to shine above her. "Galaxian Access!"

-ACCESS GRANTED. GALAXIAN - CAELUM!-

A booming voice echoed. Still feminine like the voice that had greeted Constance when she got the medal plugged in, yet this one had a bit more authority to it. Almost like some sort of divine power...

In response to the voice, a mechanical form emerged from behind the young girl. It looked kind of like the same base model that she had planted on the medal...

Before it got cracked open by a chisel, revealing a much sharper yet at the same time much rougher looking yellow and blue mech. Not only that, but it looked hollow. Like it was about to split open...

Which it did, right before Constance's eyes.

The two arm units snapping onto the young girl's arms, integrating perfectly with her latex-like bodysuit as the two chisels on the surface flicked forward, rapidly slamming forward as if it was ready to make a brand new statue for the girl to gawk at.

The two leg units snapped on as well, and while they weren't equipped with chisels, they practically looked like they had been chiseled out of metal, giving them a rough yet extremely dense look...

While the chest and torso armor were plain, yet at the same time matching the arms and legs to ensure cohesion, the helmet that slammed onto her was nothing more than a hollow rock. A rock that she slammed her own chisels into, shattering it and turning it into a mechanical gladiatorial helm with a scoped visor, so she could pick out where her enemy's most intimate weak spots were..!

"You stand before Caelum, the Chisel! Now prepare yourself, Galaxian! Access your power, lest I chisel you into a fine and obedient sculpture!"

Constance wasn't sure how to feel about the fact that she had just watched a young girl basically transform into a mechanized warrior. Not full on mechanical transformation, more so something like... What was it Deva called them, Magical Girls? Ahhh, what the hell, how was she supposed to fight against something like that!?

"I'm not a Galaxian or whatever, no matter what you or that Star say! How am I supposed to access a Power that I don't have?!" Constance cried out, stomping as she grabbed at the black suit she wore. Or her own skin, she still wasn't sure what it was! "And why do I have to wear this just to be a Galaxian or whatever?!"

Caelum was this close to just breaking her like one of her failed projects and starting over. Not sure how she'd start over on a living person, but she'd find a way if she kept this up. "The power's a part of you, newbie! Now just try and reach in and hold it or something!" How was she supposed to help her figure this out? She didn't get help herself, she just chiseled it out of herself eventually. After barely managing to scrape by...

"Hold it? Like... This?" Okay, now she was getting somewhere. If her power was in her, and she just had to grab it... Then... Was this all some sort of techno spiritualism? If she could get ahold of Deva, she could definitely figure it out. But...

Ahhh... She wasn't good with abstract things. She had grabbed her chest, but that was clearly not the route. And the blush on her cheeks proved that point. But if she held her hands right in front of her, then...

-NEW GALAXIAN REGISTERED. ACCESS GRANTED. GALAXIAN - DORADO!-

The voice boomed once more. And instead of merely holding her own hands in front of her like she was trapping a fly in a tiny space, she was like... Holding a mech's hand..?

No, not just any mech. A mech that looked like some sort of mechanical spearfish? Like, not literally 1-1, but it definitely had the theme. A lot sleeker than she expected a mech to look too, but it definitely had what looked like not only sharp and pointy blades attached to the head and to the ends of the arms... But also a bit of a mohawk-like element to the helmet, and similar blade-like parts to the arms and legs. Like she could not only stab, but also slice. Not really much of a spear in that case, but she wasn't about to pass up more ability to attack!

Constance let go, and the mech blew apart as well. Each part of the six-part suit slamming onto her body. Arming her legs, her arms, her torso and her head, giving her the kind of equipment that she never thought she'd use... And at the same time, causing a brand new sensation to rush through her...

Her heart was pumping now that the mechanical bits were attached to her. These pearly white pieces of mechanical armor were shimmering. Begging for her to use them. She swore she could even see the stars in the blades on her arms. As if she embodied a whole galaxy or something. Then again, she was called a Galaxian, so...

"Announce your name and get on with it!"

Caelum was impatient. Okay, fair, Constance was taking her time. No, it wasn't Constance anymore, was it? She had a different name. One that the voice had announced. What was it... Oh, right, yes!

"You stand before, uh... No, that's not right." The new Galaxian said, before crashing her blades against each other and pointing her two speared fists towards her chest. "Dorado! Ready for anything!" That's much better. Better first impression, even if it was a little late for first impressions!

"That's more like it!" Caelum cried out, before flicking forth one of the chisels in her arm, grabbing ahold of one of the nearby Stars. "Make yourself useful, Smiley."

"Actually, it's Star, miss-"

Caelum did not listen. Her chisel pistoned forth, rapidly slamming into the Star. Yet it did not break it or injure it. In fact, it seemed to properly chisel away at it as if it was another stone that needed to be formed into a proper statue.

Dorado couldn't really bring herself to go on the offensive. Mainly because of her morbid curiosity. What was she doing exactly? The Star said that they were there to be used for the sake of the Galaxian Wars, and yet... Was this really what it meant?

The Star was being chiseled away further and further. Its lapine head gradually formed into something more resembling an actual feminine face, with its tube-like body going through the same process, revealing a spry and springy form. It was being reshaped into a rabbit statue... Rabbit Girl statue at that...

And once Caelum pulled herself away, the chiseled Rabbit was quick to salute. "I obey, Mistress!" Declaring her loyalty to the Galaxian who had chiseled loyalty and femininity into her, eagerly turning towards her enemy as Caelum's yellow and blue colors started to cover her, really emphasizing the curvaceous parts of her.

"Wait, is that what all of these are for!?" Dorado cried out, as her eyes very quickly darted between all the different idle Stars that were in the arena. If that was the case, then she was in some deep shit, and she had to think fast. But how? She had just gotten these powers!

"They told you their purpose, NEWBIE!" Caelum's fuse had run out. She wasn't going to take things nice and slowly anymore. Now it was time for action. The boosters installed in her leg armor quickly darted her from Star to Star as she began to chisel away at them repeatedly, turning the helpful AI into nothing more than rock-hard helpers that were already bouncing in Dorado's direction!

"For Mistress!" They cried out in turn, each of them leaping at the Galaxian with the intent to kick her, Dorado's quick feet keeping her from being hit while at the same time not giving her much of a chance to strike back due to her lack of experience.

She had to find a way to catch up to Caelum. If she didn't, what was going to happen? What would happen if she lost?

...

She wasn't going to find out. Not just because she had heard more than enough horror stories of 'dying in a game means you die in real life' connected to all sorts of VR nonsense, but also for one simple reason.

If Deva found out she had lost this early? After he had gone through the trouble of sending her that thing? He was going to mock her so badly that she'd want to die from embarrassment!

"Now or never!" Dorado cried out as she took an offensive approach instead of a defensive one. Instead of running away from the bunnies, she ran through them!

Since they were all busy jumping in a pattern, she just had to run under them when they were jumping. They weren't smart enough to stop jumping, so she could just keep running. Just run straight towards the problem..!

"Are you insane, or are you just stupider than I thought?!" Caelum screamed as she noticed that the idiotic newbie was heading straight for her. Because she had been expending so much boost trying to make minions, she was left awfully vulnerable. But that didn't mean that she was out of options!

Both of her chisels slammed forward, as she stomped down and used what boost remained in her tanks to meet Dorado head on. "SUPREME SCULPTURE!" A single hit was all it would take to make a much prettier sculpture out of this Galaxian..!

"DORADO CROSS!"

But she didn't get that single hit. Not before Dorado met it head on with an attack of her own, slashing with the dorsal fin-shaped blades on her arms, perfectly meeting her chisels head on and knocking her off balance. And in the same motion, the newbie Galaxian used the momentum to flip over, the back of her heel now right above Caelum!

"DORADO HEEL CRUSH!"

The momentum... No, the power in Dorado caused a spiral to swirl around the heel, not unlike if a spike had grown on the back of it. Which only made the hit that much more potent, Caelum forced to release a proper scream of pain as she was downed in one clean strike!

With her being downed, her armor cracking as easily as a fragile sculpture, the Stars that she had converted began to crack as well. Only to turn back into data cubes, to be recycled as they were swept up into the skies above...

"Damnit. Beaten by a Newbie. Not only that, but a damn strong one at that..." Caelum muttered, her mechanical armor shattering into cubes before turning into a single cube in her hand. The standby state of the Galaxian's power, to make it easier to repair it...

But instead of being pitied or mocked, the sculpting girl found a hand extended down towards her. Courtesy of the one that had beat her. "...The hell are you doing?"

"Helping you up. You sound really rude, but you aren't that bad. Just a bit grumpy, and Deva's waaaaay grumpier than you are." Constance said with a grin as her own armor turned into a cube as well, one that she somehow stuffed into her suit to keep it safe and secure. Not that she knew how it got in there or why, and she wasn't going to think about it too much.

"Dev... You know that witch? That demon? No wonder you're so freakishly strong."

Constance blinked. Witch? Demon? What, was Deva some sort of big shot? No wonder he could hook her up with one of those things. Even if that was also why she was stuck... Oh, if he was a demon, that explained way, way more than she would've originally thought.

"I am neither a Witch, nor a Demon, Ain."

...

The redheaded girl whipped around and came face to face with an incredibly familiar sounding woman. Wait, woman? Hold on, that didn't seem right at all. She knew Deva was male, yet at the same time, there was a woman talking the same way that he'd talk. Not only that, but she looked like... Well, she looked like a demon!

Big cape, wings sticking out of her head that complimented her wicked black and white villainess hair, an incredibly tight yet incredibly revealing looking set of straps that made her look more like some sort of sadist, and a mask that hid most of her face. That mask was why she could tell that it was definitely Deva, only he would wear something so obviously over the top. That didn't explain the sexy body or the part where she looked like a succubus or why she was a female in the first place!

"If you don't want to be called a Demon or a Witch, then stop looking like on-"

"DEVA!? WHY ARE YOU A WOMAN?!" Constance cried out, with 'Ain' quietly and annoyedly slamming her face into the ground as she was cut off. All while Constance was left with so many different questions that she knew she wouldn't get good answers to. Because it was Deva, he kept his secrets close to his chest!

Deva was wearing a mask, yet it was clear that she was glaring at Constance behind it. "The Galaxian Wars are for women only. Blame the lead developer. I cracked in and ended up looking like this. I'm not going to repeat this again, I've had enough of it from the others that I've invited." She said, before letting her gaze turn upward at the golden glow in the far, far reaching beyond.

A sigh resounded from behind that mask. That was definitely Deva. His usual grumpy nature was followed by genuine care and concern. "I'm glad that you made it. And I am glad that Ain didn't break you. She's got a reputation around here. One that matches her temper perfectly. Isn't that right, Newbie Killer?"

Ain did not answer. She simply flicked the bird. Prompting Constance to giggle as she watched the two interact. "So, you didn't just get me in here so I could end up turning into a weird mech girl, right?"

"Right. You are one of the bets I've made. The Galaxian Wars are ramping up. If any one of my bets makes it to the top, we can take down the Galaxian Ascendant. And get back to our world."

Constant nodded along, "Right, right, beat the baddies, beat the big bad, get back to our world. Yeah, that sounds-" She paused, as it all clicked.

"GET BACK TO OUR WORLD!?"

The young woman was more out of depth than she ever could've imagined...

---

"Is it the usual audience this time around, or something more?"

"Wouldn't you know, sister? You're the star outside. I'm the star inside."

"Indeed, indeed... Very well. Let's see how this unfolds. Perhaps the other Zodiacs won't dominate the Wars this time."

"Ehe, and if they do, we'll just charm the winner like usual!"

"Indeed..."

Elsewhere, in the golden glittering digital skies above, two voices bounced back and forth...

Scheming, just as they always did...