I stepped over to the door and looked through the peephole to see who had knocked. My eyebrow quirked as I saw an Asian man who couldn't be much older than I was. His feathery black hair was tucked under a dark grey newsboy cap and he wore a well fitting black shirt, light khaki's, brown motorcycle gloves… and a red ascot. A fairly outdated style, but considering I don't give a shit about fashion and we're out in the middle of nowhere, I didn't really care. The thing that had me wondering is… why did he seem so damn familiar?
It might not have been wise of me to do this, but I opened the door. Immediately the man looked over with an infectious smile on a rather handsome face, speaking before I could, his voice surprisingly rich, "Hey, uh… this might sound really weird but the office manager said you might need a ride to the next town?"
I stared for a few moments… then stepped back from the door, shutting it quickly.
That certainly was fucking weird, whoever the hell you are.
As I looked over at the phone, I heard the man apologize through the door, but my thoughts were elsewhere…
But what if the manager's one of them? Then why the hell would they bring me out of that place? Why wouldn't they just let me die? ...Think rationally.
…
Oh wait, I'm…
...There really isn't any more 'rationality' in my life, is there?
I rubbed my face with both hands, wishing I had someone I knew to talk to, but running through what I knew of this scenario… contacting people I knew would likely be a death sentence for them.
Grabbing my meager belongings… I made an executive decision.
I stepped outside and immediately noticed the Asian man wasn't standing outside. I heard his voice call out from the level below and looked down to see him waving next to a white motorcycle with red detailing, Japanese make… and irritatingly familiar.
"I need somethin' to eat first… and I'd like to know who the heck is takin' me to God knows where.", I said in as cool a tone as I could manage, my voice hoarse from earlier.
"Eh? Hah, yeah, I should've figured! There's this diner just up the road we could...", he began, but trailed off as he saw me heading off in the opposite direction of the stairs down.
Thankfully, he was telling the truth. The diner in question was literally within walking distance. I nodded and came down the stairs to see him half pouting in a concerned expression.
"...You're not fleeing from the law or anything, are you? I've been around the block and you sure look tense.", the Asian man asked in a softer tone.
I shook my head in reply, "No, just… a bad streak of luck after a nice vacation."
Yeah… that… works.
He continued staring at me pityingly for a few moments before tossing me a helmet and climbing onto his motorcycle. I put the helmet on and climbed on after him. He was nice enough to let me get settled before he did exactly what he said he was going to do – take us up the road to the diner.
I felt much better after getting some food in my system – sucks that folks out this way don't know a damn thing about sweet tea, but the water was ice cold and soothed my throat… and the man who'd volunteered to help me out kept quiet while we ate.
...But then the strange shit just had to come rampaging back the second I'd started to feel normal.
"So, introductions! My name is Hayato Ichimonji! And you ar-"
I choked on the piece of toast I was shoveling into my mouth. The few other customers looked towards me as I gagged and pounded my chest, turning red until it passed. Squinting my eyes as tight as I could, I took a few moments to breathe.
WHAT.
WHAT IS.
HOWWHYWHAT.
Opening them again, sight fuzzy from the film of tears… I confirmed that the man was still sitting in front of me. I wasn't having some kind of hallucination.
"-A-are you sure you're alright?", he asked, his voice almost a whisper, as though I were a scared animal.
...Which I was now… wasn't I? ...I could tell him… if I… believed what I was seeing. My gaze drifted back outside, to the motorcycle we had ridden on over here, my eyes studying it as I sipped my water again. I knew a thing or two about motorcycles… and I really couldn't place what make it was. And… it would make some sense… SHOCKER base out in the desert… they generally traveled the world…
...Dear God, this could be one of the Legendary Seven…
Slowly I returned my eyes to his as I spoke back in a hoarse whisper, "My name's Paige Shepard… and... and..."
Again I froze.
And that's when we heard a scream from outside.
Hayato was outside before I could blink, and I slipped out with the other patrons to see what was going on…
...I wish I hadn't.
We found a man slumped over an ancient Harley Davidson, his skin slate grey as he clawed weakly at the air… with a stump of an arm which was quickly disintegrating into ash. Hayato's eyes were wide with horror at what was happening to this man – I don't think he had ever seen a Kaijin do this.
I had… and, like a broken record, I still couldn't believe what I was seeing.
An Orphenoch attack.
"I-ichi-", I started to call out.
"We need to go. Now.", he interrupted me as he grabbed my arm and nearly dragged me over to the Cyclone 2. Quickly donning the helmet he'd loaned me, we raced off barely a few seconds later… and I clung on for dear life. I'd never been on anything faster than a dirt bike that could only go up to thirty, but this legendary Rider Machine was hitting at least a hundred right out of the gate.
Silence stretched for hours as we rode through the desert. As night fell, so did a thick covering of clouds which obscured the brilliantly clear sky, much to my disappointment. It would have been nice to see something calmly wondrous after…
...Orphenoch attack. Why? First a Lord, and now…
A flash of lightning rippled across the clouds. I yelped from a sudden shock, causing Hayato to glance back in concern, "Eheh, sorry about that, whenever a storm brews up I get kind of staticky."
He then turned away with a sigh, "I was hoping to get to Amarillo at least, but we might have to pull over at the next rest stop and wait out the storm."
I nodded quietly, looking down to hide a slight smile. Hope had woken up… or at least a sense of safety thanks to that stupid shock. I know a thing or two about being 'staticky', but that was… that had to be. Then the bottom dropped out, immediately soaking us to the bone.
We rode for another five minutes before coming across essentially a dive bar, which Hayato grimaced at. Didn't know why at the time – I'd been in a few dive bars and they were usually pretty friendly…
As soon as I walked through the door and heard the catcalls from the grungiest looking leather-clad men I had ever seen in my life, I realized that this is probably why Hayato frowned.
"Guys, c'mon, she's had a hard enough day.", he shot back at the catcallers.
"Oh, we'll give'er somethin' hard!", a man who was old enough to be my father called out from the group.
To say I was a little disgusted was an understatement. It was like an old movie – painfully stereotypical – but compared to the shit I'd seen (and done) earlier today… this was a welcome traipse back into some semblance of reality. I rolled my eyes before sloshing over to the bar and climbing onto a stool, Hayato following closely behind.
The bikers went back to their own business, which could be easily overheard despite the storm raging outside:
"Didja hear about Lenny?"
"Yeah… poor guy, he was headin' home tonight, too..."
"If I find the sonnovabitch that did'm in..."
"They even have an ID on the asshole?"
"Nothin' but his ride... some fuckin' crotch rocket, red an' white."
...Silence fell; the air grew tense. Glancing up from the stain-sticky menu through my still dripping bangs, I noticed the bikers were staring at us with suspicious sneers. Though I tried to look away again, I soon felt a heavy clap on my shoulder. I froze, but Hayato looked back with a charming smile, "Can I help you?"
"Yeah, innit funny that the two of you show up out of nowhere on a bike matchin' a certain description.", the biker who looked old enough to be my father growled.
...Is this for fuckin' real?, is all I could think as I sideglanced at the older man, staying silent.
Hayato blinked, a look of pure innocence falling over his face, "I wasn't aware that would be a problem?"
"Not really… if this were any other time. I want some questions answered… and I think you and your lady here can help us out?", he continued to grumble in an implicating tone.
Hayato nodded, getting up from his stool, but as he saw me shifting to get down from mine, looked over and said rather sharply, "Stay here."
I nodded, scooting back into my chair and watched Hayato go off with the bikers. I couldn't help but feel incredibly wary as he explained that they saw the aftermath but not who has actually done it… but as they seemed to ease off the interrogation, I became a lot less worried.
...Then the door slammed open and a young Hispanic man slumped inside.
"'ey, Jaime!", called out one of the men… but Jaime didn't reply. His eyes were glazed over as he walked silently to the bar and sat down. The father-aged biker man stepped over, looking at his friend with concern… then let out a pained gasp as a blur of grey shot through the older man's chest and out his back. Blood splashed from the wound, coating the doorway already slick with mud and rain… and then the old man fell, holding the wound as a slate grey tentacle slid back into Jaime's gaping mouth.
Silence fell as we all stared in horror at what we just witnessed… the only sound was the storm outside and the dying gasps of 'Father', punctuated by the hiss of sand as he began to disintegrate into ash like 'Lenny' had earlier. Moments later, another figure appeared at the doorway – a massive hulk of a human with a strangely high pitched voice, "Tsk, tsk, sonny! You started too soon… remember, I told you to start when-"
And then there was pitch blackness.
"-the generator finally quit!"
I don't care if I'm fucking Gills or whatever – there were two goddamn Orphenochs within three yards of my ass! Instead of boldly charging in, I shoved myself back out of my stool with a shout… but I didn't feel the ground. Something rushed by with incredible speed right as I saw the flash of gunfire all through the bar, illuminating the carnage of the two Orphenochs ripping apart the other bikers… not even trying to sire them…. Then there was only a pitch black silence.
"I don't care what you hear out there… do not leave this spot.", the rich yet stern voice of Hayato spoke to me out of the darkness.
I started to nod… then spoke up, "Y-yeah…"
Moments later… my suspicions were confirmed. My God, I wish I could see this…
"HEN...SHIN."
...Might be a bad time to note that I am fucking terrified of tornadoes. Especially as there was now a localized one tearing the air pressure out of the building… but as I curled over, protecting the back of my head and neck with my arms as I'd been taught in school, I repeated to myself over and over… "It's him… it's really him!"
"Wooooaho, Jaime boy! We reeled in the real fuckin' deal!", the larger Orphenoch squealed out with delight, then snorted derisively, "...Should be easy to wreck his ass, then find the girl!"
Except the slate grey alien form that was once Jaime soon found it wasn't as easy to 'wreck his ass' as the larger Orphenoch had stated. Nigo not only had skill honed by almost fifty years of combat, turning back the young Orphenoch's flailing strikes with precision blocks…
"Rrrider… PUNCH!"
...but a single, powerful right hook sent the young Orphenoch smashing through the wall, causing the entire building to shake. Nigo then snapped his head over to the older Orphenoch, the red lens of his helm shining as a flash of lightning lit the gore-soaked room.
"What do you want with the woman?", Nigo demanded with a harsh growl.
The larger Orphenoch tilted it's tusked head with a snort, "I thought you assholes knew everything SHOCKER did? Aw, right, that was back when you guys were actually somethin'…"
A great barrage of lightning flashed as the Orphenoch and Nigo clashed – strikes parried, kicks turned aside—both of them evenly matched thanks to Nigo's skill against the Orphenoch's… and the thunderous crackle that followed masked the sound of one of the combatants being sent clear through the wall…
I cried out as something smashed into the tiled wall next to where I was huddled. I had pulled myself out of the 'tornado crouch' only moments ago, a little sore from scrunching myself in so close…
...And I noticed whatever sat next to me had large red eyes. My head jerked back over to the hole, and I could see the outline of the tusked Orphenoch leering back. I reached over to lightly shake the Rider, hoping that would jolt him back awake but-
Pain exploded through my right side. The moment I turned away from the Orphenoch, he was on both of us, smashing us straight through the flimsy wall separating the bathroom from the outside. Both Nigo and I rolled through the mud, each time my right side hit the gravel I couldn't help but scream in agony.
"Sonny… you damaged the goods! But the tech I'm gonna rip outta your outdated corpse is gonna more than make up for what I'm gonna lose for bringin' her in!", the tusked Orphenoch squealed as he loomed over us. I propped myself up with my left arm, letting my right dangle uselessly, eyes wide as I stared into the empty black pits that were the kaijin's…
"You got somethin' to say, babe?", he asked as he crouched down, his rancid breath causing the nausea already building from the shooting pains in my arm to explode… and I lost what little was left of my lunch in front of him. The Orphenoch guffawed as he stood up and strolled over to Nigo's still prone form, picking him up and soccer punting him across the back lot into an old pickup truck with a cry of "GOOOOAAAAL!"
No… no… fucking… wake up…
Nigo stayed limp as he crushed the front end of the vehicle… I shook my head, this wasn't right… this wasn't right at all…!
Nigo… Hayato… come on…!
The Orphenoch walked slowly towards him, raising a finger which grew into a long, thin tentacle… time seemed to slow to a crawl as I used my meager strength to push myself up, my right arm flopping uselessly at my side, my shoulder cocked in a strange angle. Taking a deep breath, choked with the torrent of rain that entered my mouth, I screamed out, a flash of feverish heat rippling through me, "LEAVE HIM THE FUCK ALONE!"
The Orphenoch stopped and looked back at me with a laugh, "Or what, honey? You gonna hit me with that fucked up arm?"
Ch-CHCK - "No, I'm going to blast your goddamn head off.", said a powerful female voice from the back door of the bar just a moment before the Orphenoch staggered back from a near point blank blast of assault rifle fire. The owner of the voice quickly reloaded as the monster regained it's footing, firing another shot… the third, however, was cut off by the Orphenoch surging forward in a blur of movement, crushing the gun before tossing it away…
...Then there was another surge of movement – lightning illuminated Nigo's form as he shot skyward in a somersault… then in a physics-bending moment, shot towards the Orphenoch with a side kick that caused the air to ripple. The bar owner dove aside in a practiced roll as Nigo collided with the monster, causing an explosion of steam as incredible heat erupted from the strike point. The Orphenoch let out an ear-splitting scream as he staggered back towards the building…
Then he began to laugh.
"Oh man! I haven't had this much fun in YEARS, boys an' girls!"
My eyes bulged as I realized… we don't have the special technology to take this fucker out…
And then Jaime staggered out of the building. I looked towards the younger creature, noting that it was… something wasn't right with him. Parts of him occasionally twitched and bulged like some kind of Resident Evil bullshit… and what I imagined would happen in the future was enough for me to finally shove myself to my feet, staggering, every step agony as my right arm swung, hitting loose nerves…
Could… could… I control it?
..Does it fucking matter if I can't control it if… if there's something I can do from keeping the three of us from being killed by these things?
Nigo had brought his fists up as he slid in front of me, sideglancing back as he ordered, "RUN."
But I shook my head, I was terrified but… "...I can't let you do this alone..."
He lowered his head – I think that was meant to be an eyebrow raise, the fuck you can tell with those helmets… and I closed my eyes, clenching my left fist so tight I could feel my nails biting into my palm… I dug deep, with all my will… with all my anger… with all my desire… and took a deep breath.
I heard movement, and then felt my left arm shoot out, grabbing the stone-like fist of one of the Orphenochs. My eyes shot open, blazing red, my left arm already covered with thick metallic green chitin, the talons on my fingers grinding sandy ash into the tusked Orphenoch's arm… and I saw his shadow flicker as he snarked, "...Well, I'm impressed."
Nigo took advantage of the Orphenoch standing frozen in front of him with an open handed slam as I stepped back, raising my 'monstered out' arm in front of my face, fist clenched as I felt the rest of my body melt into the new form – the strangest sensation you will ever find, every muscle you had and then some shifting at once along with painless tearing as the not-so-humanoid parts come out – and I leaped to continue the assault, clearing Nigo's shoulder with an effortless leap and sending a lightning fast left punch at the Tusked Orphenoch's face. It was a dance I was glad to join, despite the fact I only had one functional arm.
As we handedly turned the tide on Sonny, the bar owner took care of Jaime with a few point blank blasts from her rifle… I'd like to say I saw the flames erupt over him, but, y'know. Was sorta busy.
Though our advantage didn't last long thanks to Sonny taking a cheap shot at my right arm, causing me to howl out in torment, backing off. Nigo bought us a moment as he brought his knee up into the Orphenoch's skull, causing the beast to wobble drunkenly… and then he whirled on me, grabbing the arm and my shoulder firmly, speaking a single word in his normal, kind voice, "Calm."
...And I thought that my arm hurt before. Suddenly he jerked it back into the socket, and my eyes shot open with a scream that was by no means what one could call 'heroic' – pure, unadulterated pain shot through every fiber of my being… but seconds later, as Sonny got his footing back, I noticed I could move it again...And Sonny was charging at us with incredible speed. I shoved Nigo away as I dove into a roll, then shot back up in a low hunched stance, holding both hands out in what I think was supposed to be some Tiger Kung Fu crap, but trying to postulate what the hell I was doing in that form during the early days was… fuzzy.
Lightning illuminated us three combatants again, the static making me twitch… Nigo was dead silent and statue still… and Sonny was rather irritated by the turn of events. Again he turned towards us, lowering his head… as his lower body shifted into the form of a heavy cloven hooved thing easily the size of the Texas State Bird, a Ford F350. Thunder rumbled to accompany the lightning flash… and then the ground shook as Sonny charged again. In that moment, Nigo and I surged forward, both of us screaming out, building power… wind was sucked into his Typhoon belt, I felt the static from the storm gathering in my fist…
...That's not Gills. What the fuck?
...The shock wave that erupted from our collision set off the alarms on the owner-less motorcycles at the front of the building. The glass in the dilapidated bar showered the area like razor sharp rain drops. Intense heat caused a massive blast of steam to explode outwards from the three of us…
Nigo and I stepped away as Sonny smoldered. Though my right arm throbbed with pain, I kept it up, following Nigo's movements… and then he shifted a leg back.
"You fucking… stupid… bug eyed...", the Boar Orphenoch spat as he staggered forward, more ash falling off his body… but still no flames…
"Double...", I heard Nigo growl as he crouched… and I followed his movements, feeling the heel spikes burst from my feet when I made the same stance…
"RIDER...", he snarled the two of us shot skyward, somersaulting into that physics-be-damned move…
"KIIICK!", WE roared as we shot forward in an 'X' pattern as lightning struck the trashed pickup truck nearby, blinding and deafening us with a cacophony of nature's might.
Sonny never got to finish whatever stupid shit he was trying to say as he erupted into red flame, his hooves collapsing beneath him as they turned to ash. We turned back to stare at the sight of the dying Orphenoch, both of us panting.
...It was over. Dear God, it was over…
Far in the background, a man clothed in black stood watching the proceedings, his delicate arms folded over his chest.
A serpentine humanoid appeared next to him, brandishing a vicious looking halberd… but the man held up a hand to the creature's chest, shaking his head.
"...She's doing My work. You may rest."
The humanoid bowed slightly, bringing it's right hand up, finger and middle pointed out, ring and pinky pointed in, and made a Z-shaped salute across it's heart.