SHARD 1: Fragmented Memories
A woman was leaving for home, going into an underground parking lot to get to her car. As she was reaching for her keys, something appeared in the reflection of her car's window. A strange ringing sound was heard but she didn't seem to hear it. Suddenly, a pair of arms shot out of the window of the van behind her and grabbed her. She screamed as she was being dragged into a large glass covered poster that was mounted against the wall. However, a motorbike suddenly shot out of the reflection on the glass, the back wheel hitting the Gelnewt and forcing the monster to release the woman.
The motorbike landed and skidded to a halt as the rider turned to face the monster. The mysterious armored rider wore a dark bodysuit with black gauntlets and boots. Black torso armor crested by a bat on the chest was worn over the bodysuit. He wore a black helmet with a fanged faceplate and a visor with vertical slits and the points at the top edges that looked like bat ears. Attached to his left hip was a holster with a sword with a bat-like crossguard.
His name was Zodiac Rider Shadow.
He heard a ringing sound and three more Gelnewts jumped out of the glass like it was made of water. The Rider revved up his engine and dashed towards the monsters, ducking under their strikes. When they attacked again, he kicked and punched at them, sending them staggering. He then balanced his bike on his front wheel and spun the vehicle around, striking the Gelnewts with the back wheel, knocking them down.
He then dismounted from his bike and drew his sword. The Gelnewts took the huge shurikens mounted on their backs and charged at the fighter. One swung at him but its attack was parried by the sword. He kicked the Gelnewt in the stomach, sending it staggering. The rest of the Gelnewts attacked and tried to overpower the fighter, only for the fighter to parry their attacks with ease. When they jumped him, he vanished into the shadow under his feet, causing them to pile onto each other. The fighter then jumped out of another shadow and pulled the back of his sword to open the guard, revealing a chamber. He then reached down to his belt, which held a rectangular gold bat crested black case in the centre. He drew a card which depicted a lance on the face. He put the card into the chamber and closed it.
"Sword Vent!" the sword called out and he sheathed his sword. A screech was heard and a giant mechanical bat flew out of a nearby reflection, knocking the Gelnewts down and dropping the lance into the fighter's hand. He then charged at the Gelnewts that were rising to their feet, thrusting his lance at them. Though they had numbers on their sides, they could do nothing against the bat-armored fighter. He continued to rain blows on them, putting them into a daze. Once he was satisfied, he decided to finish it. He opened the guard of his sword and drew a card that depicted the crest on his belt buckle and activated it with his sword.
"Final Vent!"
He rushed at them and jumped, the bat attaching to his back to become a cloak that wrapped around his body. The cloak spun into a drill as he dove down on the Gelnewts, destroying them simultaneously with a single explosive blow.
The fighter walked out of the circle of flames, satisfied that the woman was safe. He then mounted his bike and drove out of the parking lot. Out in the streets, a vertical ring of energy surrounded him and split apart to strip him of his armor as he sped away.
People in Jump City have been disappearing under mysterious circumstances. They just vanished without a trace and didn't seem to have a connection with one another. It didn't matter what race, age or gender they were, they still disappeared. The Titans were assisting the police but so far hadn't gotten any clues. This was a mystery, but a mystery Robin was going to crack.
Robin was staying up late at his computer, reading up on all the recent disappearances. He rubbed his temples. "What is their connection? There has to be something in here."
If the case itself wasn't weird enough, it was giving Robin a sense of déjà vu. It was like he had seen a case like this before, but he knew that wasn't true. Inspecting the last scene had only made that feeling grow. Beast Boy suggested aliens abducting people, which Robin subtly reminded the changeling that one off their members was an alien too. Of course, Starfire knew what he meant and didn't take offense. There were lots of alien species whom would abduct humans after all. Still, Robin felt like he could have predicted that comment word for word. It was all giving him a headache.
In a small apartment, three young men were seated in the living room. The oldest was listening to music on his MP3 player, tapping his knee with his finger. He had spiked up brown hair and was wearing a green t-shirt with blue jeans. Sitting next to him on the couch was a red haired young man with his hair in a braid and wearing a red sleeveless Chinese shirt with black slacks. He was playing a handheld videogame. The third young man had pale skin, wore glasses, and had chin length black hair. He was wearing a black t-shirt and black slacks. He was reading a book.
They were young college students from Japan who came to spend their summer vacation in Jump City. They didn't rent a hotel room but instead rented an apartment. They'd been in Jump City for nearly a week. On their first day they saw the Teen Titans in action.
Takada checked his watch and removed his earphones. "Guys, I gotta go."
"Going to visit that woman again in that club?" Desmond commented.
"Hey, being an exotic dancer is honest work. So she takes her clothes off in front of other men. It's not illegal," Takada retorted.
"Just immoral," scoffed Desmond.
"At least I'm making an effort to get close to the woman I love," said Takada. "What have you two been doing?" Ryo and Desmond frowned. "I thought so. You're scared."
"It's not easy," Desmond said. "We remember, but they don't."
"That's right, and I don't want to put her through the pain of my death again," said Ryo.
"Oh, please…" Takada rolled his eyes. "We're not going to die this time!"
"How can you be sure?" Desmond questioned.
Takada didn't answer. He stuck his tongue out at the dark-clad young man and went out the door after taking his motorbike keys.
"Why does he even bother?" Desmond asked.
"Maybe he's got the right idea," said Ryo.
"What idea?"
"Reconnecting with the girls," Ryo clarified. "Admit it, you miss Raven, and I miss Jinx too."
"We have a mission," Desmond countered. "Remember that and focus."
"I do remember," Ryo stated firmly. "I just wished I wasn't jammed with all these memories."
"If we didn't have these memories we wouldn't be able to do our job," argued Desmond.
"And how well are we doing anyway?" Ryo countered. "There's only three of us in this city and there are a lot of places Mirror Monsters can pop out from. People are still disappearing whether we're here or not. Admit it. We need the Titans."
"All we need are more Riders, and Yui is looking for the others," Desmond assured his comrade. "If you hadn't broken up with Miho…"
"It was a mutual decision," Ryo interrupted. "We parted on good terms."
"But it will be awkward to work together, will it not?" questioned Desmond.
Ryo dropped his game and said, "That's it. I can't talk to you. You're just stressing me out!" He got up and went for the door. "I'm going out to grab a burger or something. You want anything?"
"No."
Ryo shrugged and went out the door.
"Sentimental and idealistic fool," murmured Desmond.
Ryo sat at a diner, waiting for his order. Coming to Jump City had just been an impulsive idea by him for a vacation, and yet it all suddenly went downhill when Yui came to them. One by one she'd approached them and reawakened their memories. For Ryo, it made him remember all that had occurred in the Rider War, including his death.
"Take this, Ryo," said Yui as she presented him with his Advent Deck. It was black and with a gold dragon crest in the middle with the Gemini symbol in the corners. When he held it in his hand, it flashed red, and he was bombarded by a rush of images that knocked him down. "Do you remember?"
"Yes…" Ryo answered. "Yui, I'm so sorry."
"It's alright," Yui said calmly. "I may be dead in the real world but I'm alive with my brother. I'm content. However, things are not safe. Someone has taken control of the Mirror World and the Mirror Monsters and using them to capture humans. You and the other Riders must stop him."
"I'll do my best, Yui. I won't fail."
Ryo took out his Advent Deck and gazed at the crest. "It was like it didn't happen, but it did, and now I have these memories." He rubbed his temples. "Oh…god…" His order came and as he was about to take a bite out of his burger, the bell at the door rang. He looked up out of curiosity and gawked as he saw Jinx enter the diner with Cyborg. "This just gets better and better."
He watched as the two Titans sat at the counter and ordered some pie. As much as he wanted to go and talk to Jinx, he couldn't. Desmond was right. They had a mission, but it still didn't make it hurt any less.
Jinx and Cyborg left the diner. "That was some good pie, huh?"
"Yeah," Jinx agreed, "But now we have to go on patrol. That Robin really knows how to work us, huh?"
"He's leader," Cyborg stated, "Plus this is serious. Innocent people are disappearing and he doesn't know how. It really bugs him."
"He's obsessed with uncovering the truth," Jinx snorted.
"And that's how he finds his answers. Look who his mentor was," said Cyborg.
Jinx laughed. As the two walked past a window, a figure stood watching them from the reflection.
Ryo was finishing his meal when he heard the ringing. Frowning, he slapped the money down on the table before running out of the diner. He followed the ringing.
Cyborg yelled out as a pair of claws grabbed Jinx and dragged her into the window. Cyborg's hands went over the window. "Jinx! Jinx!" He then looked to his right to see Ryo reach into his back pocket thrusting the Dragon Advent Deck out in front of him. Red energy ran down his arm and to his waist, forming the V-Buckle. On the belt was fully formed, he slid the Advent Deck into the hollow centre, locking it into place.
"Henshin!" Ryo called out and the belt activated. The deck spun and flashed red, releasing energy. A waist high ring of crimson energy formed and split in two with a sphere of red energy around him Cyborg stared as the rings folded over the redhead, sweeping over him and donning him in the suit of armor. The rings and sphere vanished, revealing Ryo in a red bodysuit. His gauntlets and boots were black and mounted on his left forearm was a device shaped like a dragon's head. His chestplate was silver and he wore a black helmet with a dragon crest on top. The helmet had round red eyes, obscured by the grilled visor and faceplate.
He was now Zodiac Rider Ryuuki.
He looked to the stunned Cyborg before he jumped into the glass surface which rippled like water, phasing through with ease.
Once in the crystal room, he got in his Ride Shooter. The vehicle then shot forward in the portal, towards the target Mirror Monster.
Meanwhile, Jinx managed to break herself out of the Solospider's grip. The Solospider was a green armored humanoid spider monster with blade like arms and spider-leg like extensions from its back. It hissed at Jinx and lunged at her. As she prepared to hit it with a hex, a pod-like cycle smashed into the Solospider and knocked it away.
Jinx watched as the vehicle stopped and opened up to reveal a man in a red bodysuit and black and silver armor. He glanced at Jinx before focusing his attention on the Solospider as it pushed itself back to its feet. He dashed towards it, ducking under a stream of webbing and jumped forward, landing a punch in its chest. He then followed up with a forward kick and then a back kick that knocked it down. He pushed down a section of his Visor to reveal the chamber and drew a card. He slotted the card in and closed the Visor.
"Sword Vent!"
Jinx heard a roar and looked up to see a red mechanical dragon. Something dropped from it and it was revealed to be a Chinese broadsword. It landed in the armored warrior's hand and he charged at the Solospider. The monster swung its bladed arm at the warrior who parried with his blade, causing sparks to rain down at their feet. They continued to trade blows, sparks exploding from the connecting weapons. The red warrior saw an opening and slashed the monster across the chest, eliciting a shriek of pain. He then kneed it in the gut to knock it backwards before swinging his leg out to send it reeling and knocking it down onto its back.
Ryo then opened up his Visor and drew a card that depicted his crest. He put it in and closed it. The eyes flashed as the Visor spoke, activating the card, "Final Vent!"
The dragon appeared again and roared as it circled around its master. The warrior went into a martial arts stance and then leaped high into the air, following by the dragon. He performed an impressive flip and went into a flying kick position with the dragon behind him. With a roar the dragon breathed out a burst of flames that catapulted its master at the recovering Solospider. The spider monster froze as it saw the warrior rocketing towards it and when the flaming kick collided, the monster was sent flying backwards as it exploded in a blaze. An orb of energy rose from its remains but was captured and devoured by the dragon.
He went over to Jinx and asked, "Are you okay?" She gave a nod, silenced and awed by what she'd witnessed. "Come on, time to get you our of here."
When she found her voice, she asked, "Who are you?"
"A friend," he answered. They both stood in front of the window. "We'll see each other again." He then pushed her against the glass which rippled and she went through.
Jinx exited from the other side and an excited Cyborg grabbed her shoulders. "Jinx, you're okay! What happened?"
Jinx answered, still a little freaked from what had happened, and looked back at her reflection. She answered, "Cy, I think I know what happened to all those people."
Ryo walked out of the mirror hung on the wall in the apartment and looked to see Desmond still reading. "You made contact?" Desmond asked.
"I don't want to talk about it," Ryo answered before walking into his room.
Desmond just shook his head.
"Monsters in mirrors?" Robin summarized skeptically after listening to Jinx's explanation.
"That's right!" Jinx nodded. "It grabbed me and took me into some sort of…Mirror World!"
"I saw her get pulled in!" Cyborg backed Jinx up.
"And then this guy in armor fought the monster and saved you," concluded Robin.
Jinx nodded.
"I saw him go in after her. He just transformed into a suit of armor and went in through the window!" Cyborg added.
Robin looked thoughtful. "I think this armored guy has something to do with the disappearances. We better keep a lookout for him."
Ryo sat in his room, eyes closed as he laid in bed. He was mentally going through his memories. He had two sets of memories and they were all being mixed up. One set of memories took place in this timeline and the second set of memories took place in a past timeline which had been erased following Yui and Shiro Kenzaki resetting time to when the Riders and Mirror World did not exist.
And those memories held the good times shared between him and Jinx. "She's still as cute as ever," mused Ryo aloud. "I wonder what she thinks of me now? I did save her again." He sat up and stared at his mirror. Dragredder saw staring back at him. "So, should I ask her out when I see her again?"
"You know, you always ask for me. I wonder why?" Blackfire asked as she traced circles on Takada's chest.
"What can I say? You're my favorite girl," said Takada, hands on her hips.
"Just for that, you get a free lap dance. Hope you can handle it," she purred, looking him eye to eye.
"Oh, I can handle it!" Takada grinned. "Lay it on me, Blackfire!"
"Get ready for a wild ride, handsome!"
Robin frowned as he and the other Titans investigated another missing person, this time inside a gym. People reported several people going into the sauna, but never coming back out. With the wave of disappearances across the city and the numerous super villains which tended to sprout up, the police were called immediately. When the police were called, the Titans likewise began investigating. At the moment, Robin was looking for a clue in the sauna itself. Evidence showed people were there, but not how they managed to vanish.
"Anything Cyborg?" Robin asked as his cybernetic friend walked up to the sauna. His skills letting him know when the tech genius was coming.
"Nothing man," Cyborg sighed, leaning on a door frame. "Security cams caught them going in, but they didn't come out. Before you ask, I put those systems through every detection scan I could think of and a few I discovered along the way. Whatever took them, it did it from inside."
"But how? There's no mirrors in here dude," said Beast Boy, poking at a bucket of water which could be used to get the steam in the sauna going. "Did they make one in here or something?"
"That's not a half bad guess," Rabin sighed. "Considering the kinds of things we've faced, nothings impossible, it just hasn't been done yet."
"Ah man," Cyborg groaned.
"Hmmm, I'm not picking up anything," Jinx frowned as she tried to use what mystical senses she had to try and pick up anything unusual. "What about you Raven?"
"Nothing," the stoic girl answered, closing her eyes to concentrate.
"Oh, friends, this is most unfortunate," Starfire frowned sadly. "More and more of our people are being swept away by this…this…invisible kidnapper! Here must be something we can do!"
"Not unless we catch them in the act," Raven frowned. "And it seems like these guys choose carefully."
"The only lead we do have is that armored guy who saved me," Jinx sighed, glancing at the mirrors in the gym which some of the patrons used for whatever reason. She wondered what it would take to find the guy again if only to ask him a few questions about what was going on.
BOOM!
"What the-?" Jinx cried as she felt a rumble beneath her feet.
"It came from downstairs!" Raven called as she began hovering towards the door.
"Glorious! We will capture the perpetrator!" Starfire smiled as her eyes began to glow green.
Jinx quickly dashed to follow, not noticing three figures inside the reflective mirror fighting through the gym and destroying the equipment on their side of the looking glass.
The three Riders had originally come to the gym for a little workout when they heard the attack warning (ringing). As soon as they did, they knew something was up and immediately went for the Mirror World. However, Ryo had detected another monster in the boiler room under the gym and had used a separate portal to go after it, finding the Sonorabuma.
Shadow had noticed the Titans and had frozen for a second when he saw Raven. However, he had a mission to think about. He could not let himself get distracted. Still, he also wished he could speak with her again.
The Shielderboarder was a humanoid monster decked in thick blue armor with tusks on its face and crowned by spikes. It was armed with a huge shield which resembled a wild boar's face. It used the shield to knock Shadow down and deflect Zoldat's bullets.
"Where's Ryo!" Zoldat shouted.
"He had to deal with ANOTHER monster!" Shadow answered as he slotted a card into his sword.
"Sword Vent!"
Darkwing swooped in and dropped the Wing Lancer into its master's hands. Shadow then charged and attacked the Shieldboarder, his lance causing sparks to rip off the monster's shield as he swung and thrust.
The Sonorabuma was a cicada-type humanoid Mirror Monster and right now Ryuuki was battling with it in an underground boiler room. The monster smashed the Rider against one of the pipes and then swung. Ryuuki ducked and lashed out with his foot, hitting the monster in the gut and sending it staggering. He got up and cracked his knuckles before charging, bashing the Sonorabuma left and right with his fists. He then landed another sidekick into its chest, sending it crashing into a furnace.
Conveniently, there was a single mirror mounted on the wall. He grabbed the monster and then ran with it through the mirror.
Ryuuki and the Sonorabuma ended up tumbling out and entering the battle Shadow and Zoldat were in. He then tossed the Sonorabuma in the direction of the Shieldboarder, knocking them both to the ground.
"About time you got here," said Zoldat.
"I was busy," Ryuuki frowned.
"Focus, people," Shadow said. He drew a card and slotted it into his Dark-Visor.
"Final Vent!"
Ryuuki and Zoldat did the same, drawing their cards, and putting them into their respective Visors.
Magnu-Visor: "Shoot Vent!"
Drag-Visor: "Strike Vent!"
The Drag Claw armed itself to Ryuuki while the Giga Launcher dropped into Zoldat's hands.
"We're ready!" the red and green Riders aimed their weapons at the two monsters.
Shadow leapt into the air, Darkwing attaching to his back. He then dropped down, the cape wrapping around him and spinning into a drill.
Zoldat took aim and fired a shell at the two monsters just as Ryuuki, with the aid of Dragredder, launched a blast of flames at them.
The three attacks collided with the two monsters and sent them to oblivion. Two orbs of energy rose into the air and were eaten up by Dragredder and Darkwing.
"I'll get the next one," said Zoldat.
"Come on," said Shadow. "We're done here."
"Hai," Ryuuki nodded.
The gym investigation turned out to be a bust. The end results were not only was there more people missing, but the boiler room looked like a brawl went on. The Titans had no clue what had happened or how someone with the ability to blow up a boiler could do so and not be noticed. Of course, Robin theorized that the boiler might have gone up on its own if the owner of the gym hadn't given evidence that the item was brand new and properly maintained.
The Titans' stress levels were rising with this case, and that was without the regular crime going on.
Wayne Enterprises was usually the kind of place that only a moron or a damn good professional would attempt to break into. It was one of the leading companies in technological advancements next to LexCorp. Its security systems were top of the line and almost unbreakable. However, the emphasis for tonight is going to be needed for the word almost. Several figures cloaked in black and silver with red on their faces, indicating the technologic marvels known as Saldebots, working under Slade himself, had already cracked the codes and disabled the alarms. Their goal was a new piece of technology which Wayne Industries was going to present to an anti-crime summit in relation to curing the victims of Mr. Freeze. It was meant to be a better defrosting process than what was previously used, allowing people to become defrosted faster and with less of a risk for physical damage than before. It was meant to be used as a token of good will and a step towards helping people, but others had dollar signs or plots on the mind.
The Sladebots flipped through several laser barriers, not triggering a single one as they found the main laboratory where the terminals containing the data for the new defrosting process and the prototype were being held. One quickly attached a cable from its arm to the keypad. The item blinked for a few moments before the door unlocked and the Saldebots charged in. However, they didn't get far when they froze, seeing the Teen Titans standing in front of them with their weapons ready.
"I think you guys have the wrong address," Robin frowned as the Saldebots pulled their weapons. "Titans! Go!"
Meanwhile, in the opposite world known as the Mirror World, Zoldat, Ryuuki and Shadow were facing an army of their own. They had received another call from the Mirror World, indicating that monsters were coming through for another attack. The trio transformed and went on the hunt, finding themselves at the Wayne Industries building in Jump City. Most likely they monsters were aiming to take anyone in the late night shifts and considering how many people could fit in the building, and army would be needed. They were originally Sheerghosts but then the larval monsters had molted into their next form, blue armored monsters with dragonfly heads and wings known as Raydragoons.
The Raydragoons were more agile than their previous form and were capable of flight. They also had blades equipped to their arms and weren't shy to use them. Shadow slashed at them with his sword as Ryuuki was using his fists. As usual, Zoldat was armed with the bug guns.
"Shoot Vent!"
He aimed his Giga Launcher and fired at the Raydragoons in the air, shooting them down. "Like shooting fish in a barrel!" he laughed. Suddenly, he was struck from behind and forced to drop his bazooka. He drew his gun and turned, firing.
"Nasty Vent!"
Darkwing swooped in and released a shrill shriek that disoriented the monsters, leaving them open for Shadow's attacks.
"Strike Vent!"
"Hyah!" Ryuuki launched fireballs at the Raydragoon and with Dragredder's help was able to deal some extra damage.
The Titans were unaware of the fight happening in the Mirror World, but the Riders could see the Titans fight all too clearly. The walls were polished so they reflected like mirrors.
"Sword Vent!"
Ryuuki was armed with his Drag Saber and using it to parry one of the Raydragoons when he saw that Jinx was in trouble. She'd been knocked to the ground and the other Titans were too busy to notice her as one of the Sladebots loomed over her with its gun aimed at her and charging up its weapon.
"No!" Ryuuki drove the Raydragoon back with his foot and rushed towards the reflection.
"Hasuma, what are you doing!" Shadow shouted.
Zoldat got an idea and grinned under his helmet. He grabbed a Raydragoon and said, "He's going after one of the monsters!" He then roughly shoved the monster through the reflective surface of the wall and pushed, sending it through a portal just as Ryuuki leapt in.
Shadow gave Zoldat a look and the green Rider spoke, "What? He was going after the monster."
Jinx's shoulder was dislocated and it hurt to move even to use one of the hexes. "So…this is how it ends, huh?"
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" a red figure shouted as he suddenly shot out of the wall and smashed his fist against the robot's head, knocking its block right off its shoulders. The Titans all looked at the new arrival. He knelt down and helped Jinx up. Suddenly, a Raydragoon tumbled out of the wall as well. The Sladebots, unsure of what this creature was, deemed it hostile and attempted to fire. The Raydragoon's self preservation instincts kicked in and its wings buzzed before it took to the air, dodging the shots. It then dove down and stabbed its arm blades into their chests, knocking them down and deactivating them. It withdrew its blades and was confused to not find any blood.
Ryuuki frowned. A monster had followed after him. "Looks like I have to finish this," said Ryuuki and with his sword he fought the Raydragoon. He then kicked it backwards before drawing a card and putting it in his Visor.
"Final Vent!"
"Final Vent!"
Magnugiga, Zoldat's hulking mechanical robot Advent Beast, rose up in front of him. Shadow, knowing full well the sort of damage the attack could cause, smartly got out of the way and got behind his fellow Rider.
"Say goodnight!" Zoldat said as he waved and put the barrel of his gun into a port behind Magnugiga. The chest opened to reveal missile trays as it raised its own cannon arms with the cannons hidden in its legs folding out. He then pulled the trigger, releasing a salvo of firepower at all the Raydragoons. Zoldat's Final Vent, End of the World, was befitting its name since unlike the Final Vents of most Riders it could do a lot of widespread damage all at once.
However, the explosion and recoil would also end up blowing the two Riders backwards. Sensitive equipment and chemicals still tended to blow up when mixed together and/or ignited even in the Mirror World.
Ryuuki was launched by Dragredder as the dragon sent him flying with a burst of flames. The kick collided with the Raydragoon, causing it to fly backwards and explode. An orb of energy rose up from the flaming remains, only to be captured by Dragredder in a satisfied roar before the Advent Beast dove through the metal walls and vanished back into the Mirror World.
The Titans had just finished off the Sladebots but now all their attention was on one…
Suddenly, Zoldat and Shadow shot out of the wall and hit Ryuuki, causing them to pile up on the red Rider.
…Make that three unknowns.
"Give me some warning before you use that card!" Shadow snapped.
"Hey! I didn't know the explosion would be THAT big!" Zoldat cried.
"Guys, I think we have to worry about something else," said Ryuuki as he got their attention.
"Bloody hell…" Shadow murmured as he saw the Titans staring at them.
"Who are you?" Robin asked suspiciously.
"We don't have time for this!" He slammed his palm onto the floor. Like the walls, the floor was just as polished and reflected their images. As Shadow's hand made contact with the surface, it rippled. The three Riders then slipped through, escaping.
"What the heck just happened?" Beast Boy asked.
"I think we just found our lead to those disappearances," said Robin.
The three Riders exited out of the mirror that led into their apartment. As Riders, they could use mirrors or any and all reflective surfaces as portals. That was an emergency situation and Shadow was not in the mood to answer any difficult questions.
The Riders climbed to their feet and banished their armor. Vertical rings surrounded their bodies and then split apart, taking the armor with them and the three were back in human form.
Desmond was not happy as he glared at his comrades. "Because of you two, the Titans are now all aware of our existence. It won't be long until they find us."
"Desmond, sooner or later we're going to have to talk to them," Takada argued. "I mean they're investigating all the missing people."
"They'll probably think we had something to do with it," Desmond shot back.
"And we just escaped. What do you think that tells them?" Takada rebutted.
Ryo said sternly, "Guys, we have to go talk to them."
"You just want to see Jinx," accused Desmond.
"Don't you want to see Raven?" Ryo retorted. "I know you do. You miss her just as much as I miss Jinx. You may be cold, but you can't hide your emotions all that well."
Takada looked between his friends and sighed. "I'm going to the club. Don't wait up."
"I need to get something to eat," Ryo muttered heading for the door behind Takada. Stopping for a moment, he glanced at his dark friend. "We can't do this by ourselves and you know that. At this point it looks like the Titans are the only ones who can lend any support. We will need to talk to them. Don't keep avoiding the issue because you're afraid of getting hurt."
"What did you say?" Desmond frowned crossly.
"You heard me," Ryo frowned. Turning his back to Desmond he walked out the door to find his favorite burger joint. He needed something big and filling to get his mind off of his low patience for the night. Desmond watched his comrades go before slumping into a chair, resting his chin in his right hand.
"When did the idealistic one get so smart?" he muttered wearily to himself.
"Rough night?" Blackfire asked, resting reassuringly across her man's (when did she think of him that way?) lap. He had come in all stressed and had a drink or two before requesting some private time with her. Since he was her favorite guy, she easily accepted. Seeing him so down and depressed just didn't suit him.
"Roommate being a jerk again," Takada sighed. "Seems to be his specialty."
"Ah. I've met people like that," Blackfire nodded. Smiling, she leaned in close and nuzzled his neck, planting a kiss here and there. "Forget about him. This is going to be our time together. I'll make sure you completely forget about that jerk of a roommate."
"Oh how I wish I could bring you home," Takada laughed, stroking the small of Blackfire's back, making her hum.
"Hmm, maybe if you're till depressed after I finish then maybe I'll take you home with me," Blackfire smiled.
Takada looped an arm around her waist and said, "I think I'll like that."
Robin was reviewing the security tapes. He watched repeatedly as the red one came out from the wall and then destroyed the monster with the aid of a dragon that also flew out of the wall. Then the green and black one also tumbled out before they vanished into the polished wall.
Robin wondered who they were and how they did what they did. He had to find them first but he hadn't had time to put a tracker on them. Still, there was next time. These men, whoever they were, had to know something about the mysterious disappearances. The Teen Wonder was determined to get to the bottom of this case and was not going to rest until he did.
"Robin?" Starfire turned in his seat to see his girlfriend standing in the doorway. He hadn't even heard her come in. "It is late. Why have you not gone to bed?"
"Just watching the footage," answered Robin. "We need to know who these people are and how they can travel through mirrors."
"Robin, Jinx said that the red one saved her life. Maybe they are not villains," said Starfire.
"Maybe, but they know something. I can feel it in my gut. We need to find where they are so we can ask them questions."
"Do you not mean 'interrogate'?" Starfire remarked.
Robin sighed. There was no pulling wool over her eyes. He did plan to interrogate them for answers. He needed to know what was going on. He hated being in the dark about anything.
He replayed the footage to see Ryuuki draw a card out from his belt and put it into his gauntlet. Robin paused and enlarged the image. The back of the card was seen. "Advent Card?"
Why did that sound so familiar?
Raven was deep in meditation. For a brief moment her eyes had locked with Shadow's and she felt a connection with him. She also had a sense of déjà vu when she saw him in his armor. She wondered where she'd met a man like that. She knew armor like that would not be easy to forget but she could not recall where she'd seen it before.
Before she saw him, she'd been getting strange visions. She could not make any sense of them at all. They were more like memories and were very real. She couldn't tell how she knew, but these visions had happened before. Like Robin, she too hated to be in the dark of things. These men in armor, whoever they were, had to be found.
Blackfire left work with Takada. She was clinging to his arm. Takada couldn't tear his eyes from her. She wore a black halter top and a miniskirt along with thigh high boots with bracelets around her wrists. As Club Electra's most popular dancer she got paid well and also got a lot of tips from the men who came to watch her dance. A private dance with her was also pricey, but Takada had the funds for it plus she gave him a special discount.
Takada was grinning. Blackfire was taking him to her place. That could only mean one thing…
The burger joint was opened 24 hours and Ryo was seated at a table eating his 6th cheeseburger. He washed it down with a sip of soda, but it just wasn't enough. The food could not comfort him. Only Jinx could. He wanted to see her, to talk to her, but it would be weird and awkward. He had memories of their meeting and relationship while she had none.
Jinx rolled in bed, trying to get some sleep, but it wouldn't come. The red figure was on her mind. She just couldn't understand his reason for becoming so enraged when that Sladebot had hurt her. Somehow, it was like he knew her for some reason. As strange as that was, she felt like she knew him from somewhere. A name was so close to her mind that she could almost say it out loud, but it still eluded her.
Who was that masked man?
KR CHROME: And the beginning of the sequel to ZODIAC RIDER RYUUKI. See how things play out this time around.