Theme song: Uverworld -Hakanaku Mo Towa No Kanashi
Remember how bad The End of Shocker turned out to be? I believe I promised better work this time, and I'm pretty sure I delivered. I think I have, anyway. This was a fun one to write, and the one I looked forward to the most from the start. I believe the end is a bit weak, and this is the shortest yet, but the movie takes place between approximately four days, and as you get farther you'll realize I didn't have a lot of empty room in those days to make this longer with a lot of character interaction. Because, at the end of the day, this is about the two Kaizo Ningen. Stronger, and Tackle.
I just must state this: there is some sexual content here. It fit, and these movies were aimed at an older audience after all. I think.
Shigeru/Stronger - Takayuki Tsubaki (Kamen Rider Blade from Kamen Rider Blade); I used his appearances in Decade as a template for his appearance. As Stronger, I used a custom of Kamen Rider Stronger by KillingMonkey.
Yuriko/Tackle - Yuriko Shiratori (Hana from Kamen Rider Den-O); I used a Den-O appearance as a template for her appearance. As Tackle, Google "SIC Tackle" and you should find it.
Kamen Rider: The Strongest
The terrorist organization known as "Shocker" has fallen with three of its lead executive members. However, the deaths of these members was not in vain for the Great Leader. Using the object they were sent to retrieve, Shocker has evolved from beyond a mere terrorist organization based around the use of modified humans known as "Kaizo Ningen" into utilization of a mix of cybernetics and magic.
Using the power of the ancient object known as the GaGa Armlet, Shocker has evolved into an organization now calling itself "Gel-Shocker". Their newest creations are all strengthened in power, thanks to the powers of the mystical Armlet, making the newest batches of Kaizo Ningen into the strongest yet. Few can stand against the power of the Shockers. These few consist of Interpol, and the group now counting of four Kaizo Ningen; modified humans who have devoted themselves to fighting against the powers of Shocker.
The Kamen Riders.
As his eyes opened, he realized his body was in excruciating pain. Somehow this pain during the operation had not forced him awake. The anesthetic must have been extremely powerful. But as far as he knew, they didn't use anesthetic. So why? Well, that didn't really matter.
The pain was more than he had ever felt. He opened his mouth a crack, but let nothing escape his lips. If he did, something bad might happen. Besides, he wasn't the sort who would let out a cry of pain. He was better than that. Because so much was riding on him. Riding on his ability to handle pain.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw his shoulder. It was covered in a crimson armor of some sort. It looked like leather. He could also see a black collar coming up around his neck, like the collar of a shirt or jacket being brought up. He felt the material pressing partially against his cheek. He also felt something wrapped around his neck. It was a softer material; not like the metal restraints on his wrists and ankles that bound him to the table, legs straight out, arms bent upwards at the elbows so his hands were just above his head, the elbows bending the arms into right angles.
A scarf? That's what it felt like, as odd as that was. Turning his eyes a little more he saw a small bit of white. Gloves? That had to be it. Gloves. Glancing down as far as he could, he saw some covering over his chest. It was risen up, not skintight. It was red, with a white and black design partially over the center of the chest, winding its way down. If he had to guess it was a seal, and something was inside of the chest armor. The seal would likely be the way into it.
Everything was just as planned so far. He didn't know what he was now, what he could do. But this was all according to plan. Even being in control of the pain, being conscious and thinking properly at this stage in the operation to make him into a Kaizo Ningen.
He closed his eyes when he saw the shadow of the scientist fall over him. He felt his head being slightly lifted up, and a helmet being slid over his head. As soon as it was partially on he opened his eyes, looking through the darkness as his eyes soon matched up with the emerald eyes of the helmet. The scientist was reaching down, attaching a mouthpiece onto the helmet. It went into place with a click.
And then it was time.
He tore his arms free and shot his body up into a sitting position, ramming his elbow back at the surprised scientist, smashing him in the upper chest. He heard bones snapping from the force of the blow. He quickly tore his legs free with a quick jerk of them and swung off of the elevated steel table, landing with an audible thud onto the cold, hard steel ground in this room of steel and machinery, darkened by the pure gray look of everything.
Killing the man brought a small pang of regret, but not much. If he worked for Gel-Shocker, then his life was forfeit. He wasn't wearing a gasmask; he was no Combatman. He was still a man of the terrorist organization, however, and thus his death was of no worry for Jo, Shigeru. It was an acceptable kill, even if killing someone was a bit difficult. Always. Except of less difficulty this time. He no longer had the same pain filling himself that he always had in the past.
He had no time to care. He had things to do before anything went wrong. He turned and walked away from the corpse, walking to the thick steel door and tearing it open with one hand, instead of figuring out how to unlock it. He was in too much of a hurry. He hurried down the dark steel hallways, his eyes scanning out through his helmet, through the slightly emerald filters that he saw through. He stopped at a door and turned to look at it. It was silver, and reflective. He looked at himself for the first time to see what Gel-Shocker had made him.
He had white boots, with crimson running up the center of the boot from just off the toe all the way up. The boots ended a bit before his knees. He had black leather armor running up to his waist. The red continued up, even over his kneecap armor which protruded out slightly, up until his hips, where the red stopped before the large belt he wore. A silver belt, wide, with red boxes on the hips. The center had a yellow colored turbine, while there were red projections coming off in a cross pattern, and then at the angles between the bars. His black leather suit from the waist went down below the belt, a flap hanging down below it, but secured thanks to his belt.
His chest had multiple colors. From the center of the belt widening out a bit was a red piece of armor in three segments. Coming off was a blue piece of armor, much thinner and smaller, rising up off of the center segment. Coming off of the bottom was a green piece on each side, similar to the blue, just rising upwards. Each piece seemed bolted down, as did the red in each segment's sides. This armor rested over black leather.
Above that is where he had seen his thicker armor. It was rising up around his breast area of his chest. Fully red, boxy, and segmented with small bolts once more keeping it all together. The black and white loop appeared in the shape of an "S" of sorts. This armor rose up around him and sealed in the back, while rising up to go over the area just off of his shoulders as risen red armor, right next to the black leather collar that rose up, which in turn sealed off the white scarf he wore around his neck, ending in two tails behind him.
His arms were black leather, with a crimson line running up the outsides. He wore white gloves that rose almost to his elbows, with an emblem emblazoned on the backs of the hands that appeared like an eagle; the logo of Shocker. Gel-Shocker hadn't changed their emblem. At his shoulders he had rounded red armor that rested only on the tops of the shoulders, only curling slightly over. It also had the bolts holding it.
His helmet revealed that he was a beetle-based Kaizo Ningen. He had a crimson horn that rose up between the eyes, spreading off to make a "Y" pattern, with the emerald eyes sitting on either side of the start of the horn. The rest of his rounded helmet was black, ending just under the bottom of the crimson horn. Then he had the silver mouthpiece that had been attached, consisting of various grooves for likely aesthetics.
Looking at himself only took a few moments. Soon alarms were blaring around him, and he heard the pounding of feet coming from down the hall both ways; in front and behind him. He clenched his fists; it was time for a fight.
As the Combatmen slowed, their forms black with gasmasks over their faces, hiding all individual features, Shigeru just stood there. He didn't drop into a fighting stance of any sort, he didn't show any worry. He just looked over his left shoulder, and then back in front of himself. The Combatmen were unarmed; all of them hand-to-hand fighters. That was what they were trained for, and that was how they apparently always fought. They were skilled, however. One shouldn't let their guard down around them, or get cocky.
"Come," Shigeru told the group in front of him, making no movements.
Five of their number ran forward for him. Shigeru tensed and rushed forward. The ones behind him came for him at that moment, while the rest of the ones in front also came, following the ones that had initially attacked.
Shigeru clotheslined one of them, flipping him to the ground. He stomped on the body and span around, giving a mule kick to the face of another of the initial five. He rammed his knee forward as hard and fast as he could, dealing with one of the group from behind, which was now his front. The Combatman was thrown back, smashing into two of his partners and taking them down.
Two grabbed him from behind. Shigeru span around, shaking them off with brute force. He took two steps forward, ramming both fists into the faces of two more Combatmen, throwing them through the crowd and down the hall, their bodies bouncing off of the floor. One rammed into him from behind, sending Shigeru stumbling forward, and one in front punched him in the face, but Shigeru's head only turned from the punch. He ended up spinning quickly, driving a knee into the Combatman's side, throwing him down. He span around and leapt forward, giving a leaping punch into one's chest. The body of the Combatman flew into three others, taking them all down from the sheer force of Shigeru's blow.
The alarms continued to blare as he took them down. He had to get moving, but it seemed that more were appearing as he took some down. Soon they were all moving in. He would elbow one aside, knee another, but more would keep pressing in on him, grabbing at him and hitting him. He didn't take serious damage, but the injuries were adding up. His body was jut stronger than theirs, it seemed. He knew that even the group calling themselves Kamen Riders had trouble with these guys, but he wasn't.
He was stronger. He was the birth of a marriage between magic and technology, though he was still a cyborg variant of the Kaizo Ningen. He was just superior. But right now it wasn't looking like it. He wasn't able to move.
He clenched both fists at the same time. He felt a charge; electricity. Electricity was running freely around his hands. As it charged, running up his arms, he punched to both of his sides. The electricity blew into the Combatmen he struck, running from their bodies into more bodies, and it continued. Most were downed from that attack, while the survivors were running over the fallen and dissolving bodies, trying to get at Shigeru.
Shigeru drew his hands up, looking at them. He clenched them, letting the electricity focus. As they rushed, he ran for the wall and kicked off of it, spinning towards them and letting it all loose, pounding the Combatmen with electricity, dropping the rest of them.
As he landed they were already dissolving. Shigeru looked at the spots where they had just been, and looked at the now empty hallway, where there were scores of Combatmen not too long ago.
"I am the strongest," he said to nothing, hurrying down the hall.
As he ran he continued to keep his senses open. He was listening, looking at each door he passed. They all looked identical to him, with only the numbers being different for scientists and staff to identify them by. But he knew nothing, so they didn't help him.
He finally stopped outside a specific door. This was it. He knew this was the room, based on the heartbeat he heard inside. He tore the door open as soon as he found it locked, rushing inside and seeing a young woman strapped down to the steel operating table, and a scientist working on a machine, turning to see him.
Shigeru ran and leapt over the small railing that kept the door sealed off as a slightly raised observation area. He landed on the side of the table, rolling on impact to come around and get in front of the scientist. He rose, grabbing the man by the throat and lifting him up. He span and threw the man at the wall, letting him slump to the ground, no doubt dead from the throw.
Shigeru looked at the table, at the woman. She was clad in ladybug themed armor, though far less covering.
She wore yellow boots with no other design or marking, rising up to a bit short of the knee. From there she wore nothing, until a crimson leather skirt hung down, just a little longer than her thigh. It had a pleating pattern on it, as if folded, though the detail was small. There were also small slits in the front of the skirt, exposing more skin, higher up.
She wore a yellow belt with studs along the sides, similar to how Shigeru's had them. In the center, encased in a silver rounded casing, was a crimson inset, with a black design playing across the front, like a "T".
It appeared that her skirt was part of the entire suit, and not something separate. From the belt on up was red leather, tight against her body, with black insets rising up, two on each side, very close to each other. The pleating from her skirt continued up, resting alongside these black marks which helped with the ladybug theme.
On the sides, curving to just over the black, was thicker armor. It was just a thicker leather, similar to Shigeru's chest armor. It was red, with some black marks running along the shoulders which came slightly out to the sides, indicating shoulder armor of a similar sort to Shigeru's; an extra padding there. She had chest armor of black rising out from the red for the sake of her breasts, with yellow marks over the top. She also wore a yellow scarf that hang back in two tails, but had no collar.
Her arms became normal leather again after the shoulders. Tighter and less armored overall. The leather here ran down into yellow gloves that rose to nearly her elbow joint all around, but ran to her elbows in the back, the gloves being slightly longer in the back.
Her helmet was rounded and crimson, with black around the eyes and going over the nose, with yellow-orange clearer eyeholes in her helmet. She wore no mouthpiece, leaving her mouth and nose and down exposed, until her neck was covered by black leather that clung to it. On top of the helmet were black patterns, to further the ladybug theme. Over her forehead was a silver "horn" coming off, going in both directions with a slight curve towards the end of each arm of the horn.
"Oy! Yuriko!" Shigeru said, folding his arms over his chest and looking towards the door. After a few more moments, "Yuriko!"
He heard a soft sound come from her mouth and turned to look at her. She was sitting up, but having trouble with her arms and legs being strapped down. She sat back down and pulled, tearing herself free and then sitting up again.
"Good. I was just short of kissing you to wake the sleeping beauty," he said, "Of course, "beauty" being used lightly."
"Yeah, nice to see you too, Shigeru," said Misaki, Yuriko. She looked at him without saying anything for a bit, so he looked at her. She figured it was a questioning look, but of course the helmet prevented vision.
"What?" he asked.
"You look…interesting," she said.
"And you look exposed. Too bad Shocker apparently cares about dignity. A little shorter on that skirt might be nice."
"You already said that "beauty" was lightly used," she pointed out, getting off of the table and rising to her full height, a bit shorter than her partner.
"Beauty or no, there are some things that are always nice," he said.
"I don't know what they possibly see in someone like you, Shigeru," she commented, walking up the stairs to the door.
He leapt over the railing to get there first, pulling the door open, not that it had fully closed after he had torn it open. He looked into the hall, but it was empty.
"We're good to go," he said, walking out and heading down the way opposite of his operation room. Yuriko looked back for good measure, and then ran after him. Their scarves flew out behind them as she caught up.
By the time they would get out of the base, and topside on the small island, the night sky was there to greet them. All sense of time had been lost from the start, from the initial allowed kidnappings to the allowed operations. The stars in the sky were the only illumination, as the moon was hidden behind a cloud for now. The air was crisp and cool, with only a slight breeze. The taste of salt was in the air; they were close to the beach, to the ocean.
"I see a fence," Shigeru said, "I imagine over that, and we're good. Then the ocean."
"Swim back?" she asked, "We don't even know where we are."
"Excellent point, but tell me something, if you're so smart as to be a scientist. How else do we get back?"
She had no answer.
"Swim," he said, rushing towards the fence with her. The sounds of footsteps were behind them in moments however, and then, gone.
The ground slightly shook as something landed in front of them, rising to its full height. Shigeru and Yuriko stopped, looking at the figure before them as he rose to his full height. He was a bit taller than Shigeru was, and appeared to be more powerful if one was going by appearance alone.
He was a wolf Kaizo Ningen. Clad in blue, silver, red and black leather armor.
He had black boots which rose up almost seamlessly into black leather armor. Over the kneecaps he had thicker armor for the sake of protection. The thicker armor was visible, and also bolted, like Shigeru's. Up until his waist it was all black armor. His waist was where he wore a crimson band that seemed to act like a belt. The symbol of Shocker rested on the front of it. Noticeably he had some blue leather armor hanging down beyond it, onto his black lower body leather.
His chest was blue and was designed to appear like muscles. The muscles, however, were made in silver, while blue was along the outside and wrapped around his entire chest. From the muscled chest on up was blue, with silver coming down around the shoulders by the neck, creating a short shield over the top of the chest. He had a blue raised leather collar to protect his neck.
His shoulders had the same armor that Shigeru's had, but in black. His arms were blue, his muscles budging out against the tight material. He had blue gloves which were hard to see against the blue sleeves, but ended just short of his elbows. Bolts were on them once again, leaving some small silver designs. On the backs of his hands he wore the Shocker emblem.
His mask was a wolf's head. A snout protruded outwards, with rows of teeth lining the jaws. It was hard to tell if the mouth could open or not, but neither would put it past Shocker to include that as one of his weapons. He had two crimson eyes, and two ears protruding up. If they were for aesthetics or not was hard to tell. They could possibly amplify his already heightened hearing, as a Kaizo Ningen.
He had a red main coming down his back, from the back of his head. It was hard to tell what it was supposed to be. He was a wolf, not a lion, so it was no mane. But it was something. Perhaps a distraction. It wasn't leather, but almost looked like it.
The foe walked towards them, clenching his fists and opening his hands again, repeating the process as he stood about two feet in front of them. Yuriko had brought her arms up and dropped a little in her stance, while Shigeru made no moves to prepare himself.
"Nice mane," Shigeru said, "It'll suit me nicely when I rip you apart," he boasted.
The wolf let out a low laugh from the center of his mask, "Do you know what this is?" he questioned, pointing to it with his right thumb.
"Not the slightest idea," Shigeru said, "Should I?"
"It's the flesh of my victims," he hissed, "Each strand is flayed from a single victim, dyed red in their blood. I am a hunter; I don't let my prey get away from me. And I make them pay for running. Or just for resisting."
"New policy implemented on the spot because I won't run?" Shigeru asked.
"You could say that," the wolf answered, lowering his arm. As it reached his waist, he shot his arm forward, pivoting and throwing a jab.
Shigeru acted quickly, throwing his left arm up and blocking with his forearm, deflecting the arm aside. Yuriko jumped back, barely evading the deflection. "Shigeru!" she shouted as he threw a punch for the wolf, but it was caught by the wolf's other hand.
The wolf drew a knee up, slamming it into Shigeru's chest, knocking him back. It leapt forward, slamming an open palm into his face, throwing Shigeru to the ground. He rolled, so Yuriko ran for the wolf, unsure of how she would end up taking it on.
"No!" Shigeru's voice pounded out at her, forcing her to stop. The wolf rushed forward, throwing a punch for her face. She quickly dodged to the side, swinging her right leg up and hooking it around the arm, then lashed a kick up, hitting the Kaizo Ningen in the face, despite her shorter stature. It didn't seem to do much.
As the wolf growled, Shigeru punched it in the side, knocking it a few steps away. He looked to Yuriko, "This is my fight," he told her, "It looks like it'll be fun. Just stay away."
"Shigeru, do you want to die?" she questioned, looking back at the base. She could hear Combatmen hurrying out of the base as fast as they could. They would arrive soon.
"No. I'm going to win," he told her.
"This isn't like you," she told him, "This isn't the Shigeru I knew!"
"This is who I am," he told her, clenching his fists as the wolf rushed him. "This is who I will be!" he shouted, stepping forward and throwing a punch. His fist collided with the wolf's.
As both drew their arms back, Yuriko ran off, heading for the fence. The wolf threw a hook for Shigeru's head, but he ducked and rammed a punch from his lower position into the wolf's chest, knocking him back a few steps. He followed up by taking three steps forward and ramming his knee in, but that didn't do anything.
The wolf laughed and hooked his hands together, giving a double fisted slam to the back of Shigeru's head, dropping him to one knee. Shigeru looked up and came up with an uppercut, knocking the wolf back. He span around, giving a roundhouse kick directly to his chest, and then leapt forward, throwing a quick snap of a right into his chest, charged with electricity.
The wolf was thrown back, making a loud grunt when hit. The electricity continued to ripple around him as he went down, staying down this time.
"Shigeru!" Yuriko shouted.
As the Combatmen rushed after them, Shigeru looked at them, then looked at Yuriko. He turned back to the wolf, "I am stronger. The strongest," he said, running after Yuriko.
He reached her, finding the fence to be very tall. It was probably at least twenty feet and charged with electricity.
"They must not trust us, or something," Shigeru joked.
"By the look of it, enough electricity is going through here to even stop a Kaizo Ningen," she told him, looking at him, "Please don't do what I think you're going to do…"
"What would that be?" he asked, "I need to know so I know what not to do."
"Shigeru…"
He walked into the fence, tearing it open in order to create an exit. The electricity was flowing into his body, dancing around him as it entered, but nothing happened. Yuriko walked out through the gap, making sure not to touch anything.
"You got lucky," she told him.
"You know, it's odd," he said, "I don't feel anything at all, except a slight recharge."
"You must have maxed out your body's store," she said as they hurried away from the fence.
"Then where did it all go, scientist?" he asked, "The ground?"
"Maybe," she said, "It doesn't matter right now."
The two stopped soon and looked back. They were at a ledge with a twenty or so foot drop into the ocean, while Combatmen were rushing through the hole in the fence. They now stood to oppose the two escaping Kaizo Ningen, ready for a fight. They numbered probably fifty at the least.
"Oh this is going to be good," Shigeru said, rushing at them. He ducked one's punch and returned it to the leg, shattering it. As the Combatman fell, he stomped on his face, using the twisting motion to pivot and punch another.
Yuriko sighed and ran forward. She lashed her leg up around the arm of someone punching at Shigeru. She drew him down and then lashed a kick up into his face once he was away from her partner. She span around, giving a roundhouse to the head of another, before doing the splits to avoid taking a hit. She pushed herself up and came down with an axe kick thanks to the height of her jump, even from such a low position.
As Shigeru span around, punching a Combatman at her side, he glanced to her, "Remind me later of how powerful those legs are."
"Shigeru, something really important," she said.
"What would that be?" he questioned, elbowing a Combatman in the face. He dropped down, sliding past the elbow after impact, ending up a bit behind Shigeru.
"Shut up."
After a little more fighting, Yuriko was done. Her acrobatic fighting had drained her, even with her stronger body. She looked at Shigeru, who was still enjoying the fight.
"Shigeru!" she snapped.
"I'm enjoying myself too much!" he told her, grabbing one and smashing the spine of the Combatman into his knee. He span and threw the body into the crowd.
She rushed over to him, grabbing his arm. Before he could protest she pulled him with surprising strength, pushing him into the ocean. She looked back and leapt up, giving a spinning roundhouse kick to the sole pursuing Combatman to take him down. Before another could attempt to go after them, she leapt off of the edge and into the ocean, vanishing beneath the waves.
Shigeru was a man of around twenty eight years old. He had a handsome and experienced face, but it retained youth, though kept the edge of experience and age as well. He had dull brown hair, hanging down longer in the back, and long in the front, able to cover his eyes if he desired. He kept it away from his eyes, curled along the outsides.
His typical garb, as it currently was, was black pants with a thick leather belt and gold buckle, black leather shoes, and a black button up shirt tucked into his pants, with a wide open collar and a golden necklace around his throat, ending in a small red rose pendant.
Yuriko was a younger woman, around twenty four years old. She had an attractive face and body which stood in testament to Shigeru's comments of her lack of beauty. Brown hair cascaded down her shoulders, a little past them on both the front and back, hanging down to just above her eyes on the forehead.
She forewent a scientist's labcoat for black pants, a red longsleeved shirt that fit a bit closely to her body, and nice black heeled shoes. She chose a professional appearance for now, for meeting with the head of their division in Interpol, instead of her usual garb of a scientist confined to a lab.
"I imagine things went well," their superior said, leaning on his elbows on his desk and looking at the two of them, "You're alive, after all."
"Things went as planned," Yuriko said, looking to Shigeru. She spoke only because he didn't, even though she was in charge of the two. She figured he would have had a comment to give, "We both escaped before mental conditioning was utilized, and eliminated all resistance for the sake of our escape."
"I escaped before mental conditioning," Shigeru clarified, "She was knocked out by them. I imagine she underwent surgery unconscious. Not me. I had to save her and wake her up."
"I'm sorry," Yuriko told him, "I don't know what happened there."
"Forget that," their superior said, "Now, what do you know about the base?"
"They have a sizeable troop of Combatmen," Yuriko said, "And…"
"Not anymore," Shigeru said, "I eliminated a lot of them."
Yuriko looked at him, "Do you have to commentate on everything?"
"Only the things you get wrong," he told her, looking at her.
"Enough!" their superior shouted, "Misaki, continue."
"They had one Kaizo Ningen that opposed us during our escape. I've codenamed him 'Wolf'. Wolf based, he appeared to possess heightened senses, even beyond the already increased senses of a Kaizo Ningen along with agility and strength exceeding as well. He possibly had fangs as a weapon, but we didn't see if he could open his mouth to bite."
"Anything more on this enemy?" he asked.
"Sadistic," Yuriko said, "He flays skin off of those who try to escape him and Shocker, and dies the flesh in their blood, and wears the strips as a sort of headdress, I guess I would call it."
"Not immune to electricity," Shigeru put in, "Or maybe I was just stronger. Either way, the report should include that; that I took him down."
"And what does that have to do with anything?" he questioned Shigeru, losing his patience.
"If he appears, I should deal with him," Shigeru said, as if the answer was obvious and he didn't need to be stating this.
"Shigeru, please," Yuriko whispered to him.
"What about your new bodies?" asked their superior.
"Shigeru seems to have the ability to use electricity," Yuriko said, "As for myself, I don't know yet. I didn't try anything, as I barely fought."
"Understood. Report anything you learn for the sake of our records," he told her.
"Of course," she said, bowing a little and turning to leave. Shigeru gave a quick bow at his questioning look, and then he followed her out.
"What was that?" Yuriko questioned him as they walked through the hallway away from the office. There were a few doors on their sides. Soon they were among desks and other agents and officers, some using phones, computers, or talking to each other. A few were looking into physical files on their desks.
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"In there," she said, stopping and turning to look at him, "You're acting like a dick."
He shrugged, "I don't see it."
"This isn't like you, Shigeru," she told him.
"How would you know?" he questioned her, "We've barely worked together prior to this. How do you know me? I think I know myself quite well, and yes. This is like me. Who else would it be like?"
"The Shigeru I know of was on the fast track to being someone important in Interpol. Our golden boy. A loyal man who didn't strive to fight, but fought when he had to, and felt regret at taking lives, but knew he had to."
"You read my psych eval?" he asked.
"I had access to it," she said, "Why? You read it, to know what I'm talking about?" she asked.
"Of course," he said, "I got my hands on it shortly after it was filed. Before the mission. So I was like this before."
"No. Something's changed Shigeru," she told him, "Or were you lying on that evaluation?"
"I don't see what this has to do with anything," he said.
"You fought for the sake of fighting. You took down scores of Combatmen, and I imagine both scientists. Did you feel anything?"
"The first scientist, a little. But after that, nothing," he said, "They were enemies. Why should I feel anything?"
"Because a life is a life!" she told him, getting flustered.
"Combatmen aren't truly living," he said.
"The scientists, then!" she told him.
"Like I said, the first one," he reiterated.
As they argued, a scientist in a white labcoat was walking towards them, "Misaki, how did it go?" he asked. He was Japanese as well.
"It went well, Sakuta," she said, giving him a nod and a small smile.
"Those identities I made. I imagine they held?" he asked.
"As far as I know, Shocker didn't suspect anything," Yuriko told him, "They were perfectly made."
The two had been sent in under false identities. Doctored so well by Interpol that Shocker, even if they checked, wouldn't figure out that they were fake. The identities of Jo, Shigeru and Misaki, Yuriko were perfectly safe and concealed. Gel-Shocker wouldn't have known who those two were.
"Good, then my gift held up," he said.
"Gift?" Shigeru questioned, "You call that a gift? Considering the pain it brought on? If they found out who we were, I figure they'd have sooner executed us. I imagine it would have been less painful."
"Shigeru!" Yuriko snapped.
"I'll…see you in the lab later," Sakuta said, leaving quickly.
"What was that?" Yuriko demanded.
"Nothing, once again. Just me," Shigeru told her.
"Again, this isn't you!" she told him.
He shook his head and walked off, "I have work to do," he told her.
She was going to run after him when she heard their superior shouting from his doorway, "Misaki, Jo! Something showed up in town! Go stop it!"
Shigeru looked back, "The wolf?"
"A scorpion!" he called back.
Shigeru walked towards it, smiling. This looked promising. The scorpion Kaizo Ningen turned to look at him, and then blinked. After the blink Shigeru was pulling down his helmet and snapping the silver mouthpiece into place. His eyes flashed emerald after it was attached.
The scorpion was clad in red and black leather armor. He wore black boots that rose up to just a bit before his knees, with black knee armor like always over his red leather armor on his legs. Some darker red – almost purple – hang down like a flap onto the red leg armor, just a little beyond the belt he wore that held the Shocker emblem on the front. It seemed that the Kaizo Ningen were all wearing it now, not just the executives.
He had a muscled black torso with red leather surrounding the sides. However, this then changed into thicker red armor angling down and coming to a stop just over the muscled chest, spreading out, leaving an upsidedown triangle under the neck. This inset leather was red again.
He had a raised red leather collar coming up, with a mask that was a bit scrunched up in appearance, with two inset black eyes, and small pincers over the mouth area. He had a scorpion's stinger coming off the back of his head, curling down. While his helmet was dark red, the stinger was black with a crimson stinging tip.
His shoulders were still covered by the thicker armor that came up at angles. His arms were crimson leather, with black leather padding over the elbows just like the knees. Evidently elbow strikes weren't in his repertoire, as that appeared to impede. Instead he wore a large claw over his right hand, which opened and closed at will, and appeared very sharp and very deadly. It also looked thick and heavy, for just normal swinging attacks. His left was the same, but ended with a nozzle-like ending, presumably a firearm of some sort. No doubt his hands were beneath both weapons, and could be changed to if he desired.
"You have a codename?" Shigeru questioned.
"Scorpion," he said, walking towards Shigeru. He was about Shigeru's height, and didn't have protruding muscles tightly against his leather. He was different from Wolf in that regard, but he had weapons, unlike Wolf.
"You're not quite my type, I don't think," Shigeru commented offhandedly, stopping and standing still and erect, "Prove me wrong."
"With pleasure!" Scorpion hissed, rushing him.
Shigeru waited, blinking, finding Scorpion right in front of him, throwing a blow with his claw. It smashed into Shigeru's chest as he did nothing to stop the blow. He took a step back with his left leg after taking it, but that was the extent that Scorpion could do to him.
"Is that all?" Shigeru questioned, swiftly throwing a right hook into Scorpion's face and sending the other Kaizo Ningen stumbling back. Shigeru walked towards him, his eyes glowing emerald for a moment.
Scorpion rushed forward, stopping short and swinging upwards. Shigeru took the hit, surprised by that move. He threw a punch downwards, but Scorpion dodged back and span around, backhanding Shigeru across the face with the claw.
Shigeru stumbled from that one, gripping a light post as he fell into it. He gave it a twist, snapping it and lifting a good ten feet of steel. He stepped forward and span around, throwing momentum into the swing as he smashed it into the other Kaizo Ningen, sending Scorpion back and rolling. He quickly followed up by standing over Scorpion and ramming the broken tip down at his chest.
Scorpion drew his right arm up, catching the light pole with his pincer. He gave it a twist and slightly rolled onto his side, slamming a kick into Shigeru's side to send him stumbling aside. Shigeru kept a grip on the pole, letting his powers flow into it, sending a current into Scorpion which caused him to cry out as his muscles were being forced to tighten, pinning him for now as Shigeru ran for him, keeping one hand on the pole to keep the current flowing.
Shigeru drew his fist back and sent it forward, slamming his free right into Scorpion's face, sending him rolling away from the pole, which then fell to the ground as Shigeru released his light grasp. He drew his left arm up to his chest, clenching his fist, making electricity visibly race around his closed fist. As Scorpion came up Shigeru snapped his fist forward, sending a bolt of electricity into Scorpion's chest, sending him plowing into a wall, causing it to crumble down on him.
"Give up," Shigeru said as he walked towards Scorpion, flexing his hands and fists, ready for a real fight. He was sick of using electricity.
Scorpion pushed himself free and leapt forward, slamming his pincer down across Shigeru's chest and lashing a leg out to catch Shigeru in the back of his right knee. Shigeru went down, "What?" he demanded, taking a knee to the face and hitting the ground hard.
"I thought you would put up a slightly better fight," Scorpion said simply, lifting his left hand up, leveling the firearm at him, "For someone who calls himself the strongest."
Shigeru came up to one knee, ready to make a move.
"That's far enough."
Scorpion opened fire. A spray of bullets slammed into Shigeru's chest, ripping through his armor and into his chest. His armor took the brunt of it, and his body was strong. The bullets wouldn't be fatal, but they would severely slow him. He drew his arms up as if to protect himself, but most of his body was still exposed; this wouldn't work very well.
Scorpion continued to come towards him, but kept distance. He wasn't foolish enough to close the gap.
Shigeru clenched both fists, charging electricity around both. He thrust them forward, ramming the twin bursts of electricity into Scorpion, stopping the machinegun fire and throwing Scorpion to the ground. Shigeru picked himself up and charged forward, charging electricity into his right hand as he raised his arm up, slamming his fist down as hard and fast as he could, going for a quick finish.
Scorpion lifted his left arm and fired pointblank into Shigeru's side, sending a spray of blood down onto his body; the range was too close for the armor to be of too much use.
Shigeru was forced back, lashing out with his electricity filled fist as the bullets kept coming, trying to stop them, probably destroy them with the electricity. As Scorpion rose he shook out his right wrist and ran forward, stopping his fire at around five feet.
Shigeru looked up, finding the pincer slamming into his face at this moment. He hit the ground hard and stayed down. Scorpion slammed his foot down onto Shigeru's back, keeping him pinned.
"Strongest my ass," he hissed, lifting his firearm to the back of Shigeru's head. He was ready to execute the man.
Shigeru clenched his fist, letting it claw at the ground a little. He was trying to focus power; any electricity would do. He could shock Scorpion away. That should work. But he couldn't get any power. He was out, it seemed. He had drained too much.
"I refuse to die here!" Shigeru shouted.
"You don't have a choice in that," Scorpion said. A click came; he was reloaded and ready to fire.
"Shigeru!"
Scorpion glanced aside in time to see an electrified kick coming. He lifted his left arm up to block and twisted, slashing his claw for her. Yuriko ducked and span away, then span in close and threw another electrified kick, striking him in the throat and knocking him away from Shigeru, who was rising.
"Damn it Yuriko!" he shouted, "This is my fight!"
"Look at yourself," she said, looking at him for a moment, then focusing back on Scorpion, "You're covered in blood and your armor has been shot up. I don't think you could keep fighting. When I arrived you were about to die. Are you sure you were fine?"
"Quiet," he muttered, trying to charge electricity into his hand, but it failed again. He was drained.
"Let me fight him," she said, "I'll help you this time."
"I don't need you to help me. I don't need you to fight my battles for me!" he told her, walking towards Scorpion, "I am the strongest!"
Scorpion lifted his arm and opened fire. Shigeru ducked and started to run forward, then rolled behind a car. He glanced out, ready to make his move, when he saw Yuriko had already reached Scorpion. She span around and threw a backhanded chop into his face, making him stumble. She continued her spin, using an electrified kick into Scorpion's side to take the Kaizo Ningen to the ground.
Scorpion came up, but she gave him a high kick to the face, using her flexibility to her advantage. Scorpion hit the ground again and stayed down instead of rising. He rolled away and came up to his feet a distance away, watching her, "I won't forget this interference!" he shouted, "You're both marked for death by the great Gel-Shocker!"
"Let Shocker try," she said, "But today you lost."
Shigeru walked out, standing beside her, "Next time you show yourself, I'll be sure that I kill you!" he shouted.
"We'll see," Scorpion hissed, turning and fleeing.
Shigeru reached up, undoing his mouthpiece and then pulling his helmet off. He looked to Yuriko as she pulled her helmet off and looked back at him.
"This was my fight," he told her angrily, walking off, "You had no right!"
Yuriko hurried after him, "I had every right! You were going to die! I'm not going to let that happen. I don't know if you would have let me die or not, Shigeru, but I'm sure as hell not going to let you if I can stop it!"
"Just don't interfere!" he shouted, "I know what I'm doing!"
"What you were doing nearly got you killed," she told him.
He didn't answer her. He just kept walking.
"How goes the search for Beetle and Ladybird?" questioned Lady.
Wolf and Scorpion were reporting in. Both of them had their helmets off and resting on tables at their sides, while they wore their suits otherwise. The man whom was Scorpion made a short bow, "I must apologize. I had Beetle and was about to execute him. Ladybird saved him and managed to beat me."
"Beat you?" Youth stifled some laughter.
Lady glared at him from her screen, then looked back at the Kaizo Ningen, "Go on."
"I don't know how it happened, but I wasn't able to stop her. She was too agile," he said, "The next time I will make sure not to lose again. I will crush her and Beetle."
"It will be my duty to do that," Wolf stated, "I wish to add their flesh to my collection."
Youth smiled, "I like your ambition."
"Your habit is yours alone, but it disgusts me," Lady commented.
"I never asked you to like it," Wolf said.
"Let him enjoy himself," Youth told Lady, "Now…just figure something out and go deal with those two."
"What if we both go?" Scorpion asked Wolf. "Are you willing to team up with me?"
"As long as their flesh is mine," Wolf nodded.
"Excellent," Lady said in an even tone, "Both of you go. Bring their heads back here. We will collect them soon."
"Does that mean…," started Scorpion.
"It's exactly what it sounds like," Youth said, propping his legs up on a stool and leaning back in his seat, "We're coming to that base. We have business to deal with."
"Business that takes two executives?" Wolf asked.
"It isn't your place to question things," Lady said simply.
"I beg pardon," Wolf said.
"Granted," she answered.
"Now go," Youth said, making a shooing motion with his hand, "Go and get their heads. Make us feel welcome when we show up."
"Of course," Wolf said, rising and picking up his helmet. Scorpion grabbed his and walked after Wolf. If they could draw the two out it would be over. Beetle was too wounded to put up a good fight, and Ladybird would be nothing to the two of them.
"They don't need to know the truth," Youth commented after they left.
Lady only nodded, "Let them believe those two are just escapees. Leave everything else to us."
"All of you shut up!" Shigeru shouted as he came bleeding and limping back into the Interpol offices. Someone came over and offered help, but Shigeru pushed him aside, "I don't need help from any of you!"
Yuriko was just behind him, apologizing as he went. She reached out and grabbed his shoulder, but he turned and shook her hand off, "You least of all. I don't need help from you either."
"Shigeru, look at yourself!" she told him, "You need someone to patch you up!"
"I'd rather bleed than let a scientist touch me," he said, just trying to hurt her now as he walked off, leaving blood pooling behind him since he had stopped.
"Damn it Shigeru!" she shouted, moving around the blood and following him, "Why are you acting like this? Let someone help you! Let me help you!"
"No!" he shouted.
"What's this shouting about?" their superior demanded as he came out of his office, "Shigeru, you look like hell."
"If you suggest I get fixed up, then don't bother saying anything," Shigeru told him.
"Shigeru, shut your mouth," he told him with a threat in his voice backing his words, "You're under my leadership. You're my star agent. Go and get yourself patched up or I'll finish the job of whoever started filling you with bullets, and put one in your head so I can get some quiet!"
Shigeru looked at him for a while. There was no sound from voices, only from the dripping of blood onto the floor. Shigeru turned and walked off, making no indication of where he was going or why. He was just walking off.
"I'm going after him," Yuriko informed their superior, hurrying out the door.
As they left, an agent hurried over to the other man, "Sir, two Kaizo Ningen are in the city! The scorpion and a wolf! They're killing people!"
"Go and order them to dispatch," he told the agent, hurrying to his office to monitor the situation.
As the agent hurried out he saw the two arguing in the hall not too far away. It was just generic arguing, nothing specific. He hurried over, "You two! You've been ordered to go! A wolf and scorpion Kaizo Ningen have appeared and are killing people!"
"Scorpion and Wolf?" Shigeru smiled a bit, "I get my revenge on both now."
"Thanks," Yuriko told the agent, sending him away. She looked at Shigeru, "You're in no condition. We need a plan."
"I have one," he said.
"Oh?" she questioned, "I somehow doubt that."
He smiled a little, "I'm sure you aren't going to like it."
"What is it?"
He punched her in the gut, letting her fall to the ground. He looked around, and then picked her up. He reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, pocketing it and then he carried her to a nearby closet. He put her inside and closed the door. He grabbed a chair from an office near the closet and propped it against the door, jamming it. He knew she could get out if she needed to, so he had to hurry.
By the time Shigeru arrived, he saw Wolf crouching over corpses, tearing at their clothing and looking for anything of value out of boredom. Apparently none of them were worthy enough to flay.
"Hey!" Shigeru shouted as he hurried forward. His wounds were still bleeding, "I'm here!"
"Finally," Wolf hissed as he rose, "A worthy foe arrives!"
"Not so worthy," Scorpion pointed out, "He's still bleeding from my bullets," he lifted his left arm up.
"Worthy in comparison to these fools," Wolf said, referring to the civilian corpses lying around them. "How do we do this? Because as soon as I begin, there will be nothing left. I don't want his flesh riddled with bullets either; I won't get anything good."
"I won't shoot then," Scorpion said, the gun dropping and his hand emerging. He left his claw, however.
"Just let me rip him apart, and it'll be over," Wolf said.
Scorpion nodded and ran with Wolf. Wolf threw a punch, but Shigeru drew his arm up and blocked the punch aside. He drove a knee up into Wolf's chest and then twisted, launching a side kick. Wolf stumbled back a little as Shigeru span and blocked the claw strike from on high, grabbing the wrist area and forcing the claw down before launching a kick into Scorpion's chest to knock him back.
"Where's your partner?" Wolf demanded as he ran forward, punching Shigeru in the chest and throwing him to the ground.
"We're supposed to bring two heads back, not one," Scorpion agreed, lifting his pincer and slamming it for Shigeru's neck.
Shigeru rolled slightly aside, his shoulder taking a small cut. He lashed a leg up and kicked Scorpion square in the chest to knock him back. He rolled and came to his feet as Wolf punched for him.
Shigeru grabbed the fist with both hands and lifted himself up, using only his hands to keep himself up; the strength of his arms. He swung both legs in, slamming two kicks into Wolf's chest and then pulling off a flip from his chest, using it as his platform. He went up and grabbed for power lines, taking them in his hands and feeling the electricity surge through him.
As he landed, a broken cord in his hand and sparking, he was suited and looked up, his eyes flashing emerald as he looked up at them. He rammed the cord into his chest, feeling more electricity surge into his body. He cast it aside and walked towards the two of them, stating, "I am the strongest."
"We'll see," Wolf growled, rushing him. He threw a punch, but Shigeru ducked and returned one. Wolf knocked it down with his other hand and rammed the elbow into Shigeru's face. As Shigeru stumbled back, Scorpion was there to give him a punch to the face and send him back towards Wolf. Wolf kicked him in the back of the knees and took him down as Scorpion swung his claw down into Shigeru's face, sending him sprawling.
"You're weak," Wolf growled, picking Shigeru up by the scarf and bringing him to his feet. He punched Shigeru in the face, knocking him into Scorpion, who pinned his arms. Wolf leapt forward and delivered a jab into his chest.
"I can feel that you know," Scorpion hissed.
"Then I know it was strong," Wolf told his partner.
Wolf looked up at Shigeru. Blood was running from under the mouthpiece. Shigeru was bleeding from his mouth now; the attack didn't just go past him and into Scorpion; the force went into both of them. The attack had done damage; serious damage, if he were to guess, based on how much he threw into it.
Shigeru was panting. He leapt up, slamming a leg into Wolf to knock him back. As he landed he leapt up again and threw his lower body up, flipping himself behind Scorpion and breaking his grip. He span and gave his foe a roundhouse to the side from behind, sending Scorpion sprawling.
"I won't die!" he shouted, "I won't fail! I will kill you both!" he screamed out as his body crackled with electricity. As the two other Kaizo Ningen stood together to prepare an attack they just stopped and watched.
The electricity swirled around him like a torrent; like a storm. The fierce rage of electricity didn't look like it would end, or allow either enemy to approach. They waited, watching, wondering.
When it ended, Shigeru stood with some changes. The changes to his armor were odd; it seemed like this new armor was made of pure electricity taking on physical or stable form, as it would flicker every so often. His shoulder armor was slanted out and up; more pronounced. His chest was more pronounced and thicker, with a larger node of armor at his upper center. His horn had also changed, becoming more pronounced and a bit more wicked looking.
Electricity flared around him, crackling with every step he took. His eyes were glowing emerald again, the electricity blowing his scarf around, or knocking it around, causing him to take on a fairly intimidating appearance with so much power flaring around him.
"Charge Up," Youth said with a smile as they watched on screens.
"Hm, what was that again?" Lady asked him, "I don't quite remember."
"Right. You thought it was worthless to include," Youth recalled, "It's a super dynamo inside of his body. With enough electricity built up inside of him to activate the dynamo, it releases, pouring out massive amounts of electricity, making him nigh unstoppable, if he does things right. Of course…"
"I remember the rest," she said, watching, "I guess using the power line triggered the dynamo."
"I would have to guess," Youth answered.
Shigeru ran forward, screaming. He dodged under Scorpion's claw strike and twisted, throwing a jab into his throat and throwing him to the ground, gasping for air. He span around and kicked Wolf in the face with a kick that seemed to be hard to differentiate between a side kick and a mule kick. He was sent sprawling.
Scorpion got back up and leapt for him, swinging low. Shigeru stepped back. Scorpion pushed himself forward and punched Shigeru in the face, then followed up with a claw to the chest, swinging upwards, and then another downwards, along the same wound. Shigeru wasn't fazed.
Wolf leapt over the top and came down with a punch to the crown of Shigeru's head. He struck, but electricity ran up his body, blasting him back. Shigeru quickly thrust his right arm up, resting it to the right of Scorpion's head, on his shoulder. He twisted and pivoted, ramming his left fist into Scorpion's chest as he swung his right arm down, at the head. Scorpion flipped down painfully and rolled back from the punch, electricity running around his body.
As Shigeru moved towards Wolf, Yuriko was arriving in her transformed state. She ran towards the battle, calling Shigeru's name, but was blindsided by a tackle. She hit the ground hard and rammed her knee up into the Combatman's chest, followed up by an open palm to his head while twisting her body to knock him off. She came up to her feet and found herself quickly surrounded by the black suited Combatmen.
"Shigeru!" she shouted, trying to get his attention to no avail.
Three Combatmen rushed her from the front. Two grabbed at her arms, managing to catch them while the third punched her in the face and then in the chest. She fell to the ground. The other two stepped on her arms, pinning her while the other one started to stomp on her. The other ones were moving in, kicking her while she was down.
She let out a shout, letting out a wave of electricity. They weren't knocked away very far, but she was free to come up and spin around, giving a kick to one and then jump up and hit another in the side of the head as she continued to turn and kick. She landed and moved forward, elbowing one in the throat and following up with a knee to the chest. She pushed him aside and moved forward.
Shigeru was still screaming. He was smashing his fists into any building he reached as the two enemies continued to move, trying to plan. He tore his fists free and let out a blast of electricity, throwing Scorpion down as it clipped his leg, tearing it open. Shigeru cried out and continued his rampage against buildings, cars, anything. Some Combatmen got too close and were taken out very quickly.
As Yuriko moved towards him she stopped. She observed, and then shook her head, "No…"
His body was constantly shaking. There was something wrong. The shaking, the electricity.
"Shigeru!" she screamed, "You're going to explode if you don't get rid of that power!"
He either didn't hear, or he didn't respond. He just continued to lash out. Then she realized he was trying to get rid of it. He was pouring out his electricity, but in any way he could. He couldn't just pour it all out; he wanted it so he could fight. He was just trying to burn away excess for now. Just enough to save himself and prolong his fight.
She noticed that Scorpion and Wolf were keeping away. She ran towards Shigeru, grabbing a Combatman who was trying to stop her. She span him around and then kicked him with a high side kick before hurrying back to Shigeru, reaching out for him.
As soon as she touched him she drew her hand back. The power was too much. He turned to her and threw a punch in his blind rage. She ducked and slammed an open hand into his elbow to force the arm to bend, but she withdrew her arm; the power was too much for her to even touch him like this.
He backhanded her to the face, sending her sprawling. She forced herself to get up and hurry after him, swinging her leg low and taking one leg out. As he stumbled and regained his balance, she was up, right in front of him. She grabbed his chest and opened herself up, taking in as much electricity as she could and screaming alongside him. He did nothing to try to stop her; he just screamed.
"Let's do it now," Scorpion hissed, running for the two. His leg may have been torn open, but he could just shut off his pain receptors and move, thinking of the consequences later.
As Yuriko stumbled back, screaming, Shigeru fell to the ground, his armor normal. She saw Scorpion coming and threw her arms out, unleashing it all in a way that Shigeru hadn't, slamming the massive force of electricity into Scorpion. He screamed and was thrown clear back, hitting the ground hard. Wolf helped him up and the two escaped instead of try to fight. As soon as they were out of sight Yuriko fell to the ground as well.
"I was chosen because I was a scientist, with my main field of research being modified humans. This research became especially important and sped up when Shocker began to make more overt moves, and the threat they presented to the world became visible. The paths of destruction that their creations caused was something I was able to study, and to learn about. It became all the more important for us to have a way to counter them after that.
"That's where I come in. I was already here…and I was the only scientist studying this field. In what we believed to be its infancy, I was the only one interested. By the time we learned it was coming quickly to fruition, I was the one with the most knowledge and intimacy on the subject. I had others working with me. Working under me. Only because of Shocker. For the first time, my research was of interest; more interest. It wasn't just something that could possibly help Interpol in the future; it was going to be the way Interpol helped to save the world.
"I was sent in because of my knowledge. I've only had basic training in combat and firearms, but my knowledge was what was important. I could study a Kaizo Ningen, or I could become one and learn firsthand. You can see which path I chose. The path of danger; the path that I could make something important out of. Sure…actual agents would be better choices, since they could actually fight and do something more. But…I wanted to do this. I wanted to go and be the one to give themselves up.
"And I chose you.
"I chose you to come with me. I knew your reputation as the best Interpol had to offer. Or one of the best. I figured that if I was lacking, you could make up for it. I always trusted you to be able to come back alive, no matter what. I always admired your dedication and skill, Shigeru. And…I hate to admit it. I sound like a schoolgirl…because I have a crush on you. Those are the reasons I chose you to join me."
"Those are the reasons you chose me? Petty, in the end. Except correct; I am the best there is to offer."
"That's the main reason. I chose you for the right reasons, Shigeru. You had the heart to become what the other escapees of Shocker are; you had the heart to become a "Kamen Rider", as they call themselves."
"Had?"
"You changed, since the operation. You still have that heart, but you haven't shown it since you rescued me from the base. The old Shigeru could easily become a 'Kamen Rider', but…you're making it difficult now."
"The title isn't for me. I'm stronger than the others, than those who have taken that name. I am the strongest. That's all the title I need."
She was lying in a bed in the infirmary after taking in all of his electricity. The dynamo inside of him made it so he could handle it with the danger being exploding. She wasn't able to handle it, and was here now. She noticed that he wasn't bleeding and had gotten himself stitched up, at least.
"Shigeru…what changed?" she asked him as he stood up.
"Nothing changed," he said, "Your crush must blind you. This is who I always was, and always will be."
Shigeru was sitting at the bar, dressed as he usually was. Black suit, black button up shirt with an open collar to reveal his rose necklace, black pants, and black boots. He looked like a brooding figure, sitting over his drink, but he had no thoughts on his mind. Brooding was the last thing he was; he was technically nothing.
He heard someone sit next to him at the stool beside his. He glanced over, but he really didn't need to. He looked down at his drink again, "What do you want, Yuriko?"
She ordered herself a drink and then looked to him, "We need to talk."
"We spoke," he said.
"Not enough," she told him.
He took a drink and didn't respond, so she kept talking, "Why don't you take the title?"
He put his drink down and looked to her, "I told you. I don't need an arbitrary title like that. Besides, 'Rider'? What am I riding? And all of us are masked."
She sighed as her drink was placed before her. She thanked the bartender and looked back to Shigeru, "That's a bad excuse."
"I'm the strongest. That's all the title I need," he stated, "But I already told you that. Now stop pestering me about this crap."
"This is important," she told him.
"It's a meaningless title."
"It's a title that's bringing people hope," she told him, "People know about Shocker. People know about their terrorist activities, and the deaths caused by them. They know that those who have escaped them have taken that title, and are now fighting for their wellbeing. Shigeru, you could be a part of that!"
"Do you think people want me as a hero?" he questioned her, "I'm the strongest. I'll fight, and I'll win. But I'm no hero. These Riders seem to be; by the way you talk about them."
"They are heroes," she said, "But you can be one too!"
"I don't care about playing at being a hero. I care about winning and succeeding. Heroes die."
"Everyone dies," she pointed out.
"Heroes die faster because they try to do things to help people," he said.
"You headed out to fight and try to save people," she said, "Oh, by the way, still mad about the closet."
He ignored her and pulled out her phone from his pocket, putting it on the bar and sliding it over to her. She took it and pocketed it.
"Heroes die faster. I went to fight because I knew I was stronger. Because I'm the strongest, after all."
"If you're really the strongest, then why not fight with them? With that logic nobody can stop you, because you are the strongest."
"Enough men can kill even one who is their superior," he said.
She shook her head and took a drink, "You're so hard to get through to."
"I don't care about this, so of course I am," he told her.
She sighed, "Come on Shigeru. There's got to be some way to make you reconsider."
"Why do you care so much?" he questioned, "Why don't you take that title?"
"Because I'm a scientist and I will remain one. I'm not going to remain a fighter and try to save the world, like they are. I'll try, but from my lab, instead of the front lines."
He scoffed, shaking his head, "Everyone will have to fight, sooner or later. Nobody can remain safe in this world, Yuriko. Don't think that you can put in your time fighting and then bow out. You'll always be a fighter, whether you want to be or not."
He finished his drink and rose, pushing his stool back. He turned to go, but she reached out and grabbed his arm. He looked at her as she looked to him.
Shigeru was in her bed, on top of her. Both covered in sweat, both gasping a bit, despite their superior bodies. This was a complicated, passionate, volatile, and likely self-destructive action that was going on between the two, but right now neither cared. Shigeru didn't care that she was annoying; Yuriko didn't care that Shigeru was an ass.
Right now that didn't matter. What did matter was this passion, even if it was misplaced. There was nothing more to this than the physical side; the physical release. The alcohol probably played some role, but in the morning, would either care? It was doubtful. Yuriko hadn't had enough to make her drunk and regret this, and Shigeru, with the way he had been acting since the conversion, wouldn't care either way. He might not be there in the morning, he might go home, but the action itself was something he probably didn't care about happening or not; he would probably enjoy it.
By the time morning came, Yuriko rolled over and opened her eyes, but Shigeru wasn't in bed. She sat up and pulled the blankets over herself, then remembered what happened. If she had slept with him, why the need for privacy if he was about? She glanced to the nightstand, seeing a piece of paper. She reached for it and picked it up, reading over it.
"Shigeru…no…," she breathed, getting up and hurrying to her clothes, dressing and running out. He was going back to the Gel-Shocker base.
Using his Charge Up power, Shigeru was walking through the Combatmen, beating them aside as they came. He wasn't screaming; he was putting up with the pain, now that he knew what to expect. Nothing was able to stop him; the corpses of Combatmen would be all over the hallway, if they didn't dissolve.
As he reached the end of the corridor he found Scorpion and Wolf waiting for him. He didn't know how long he had to get rid of all of his power, but he wouldn't guess more than two minutes at this point. He had to make this fast.
"You're not getting any farther," Wolf told him.
Scorpion nodded, "Not with a head, anyway," he laughed.
"I've grown quite fond of my head," Shigeru said, clenching both fists. Bolts of electricity spiked into the ground from each, ending when he opened his hands again.
Scorpion and Wolf rushed him. He rushed forward, ducking the swing of Scorpion's claw and kicking him back while dodging back and away from Wolf's punch. He span and leapt off of the wall, coming around with another spin, giving Wolf a semi-roundhouse to the shoulder to knock him to the ground.
Scorpion slashed him with his claw, sending him stumbling. It seemed that he wasn't being affected by the rampant electricity from Charge Up. Shigeru rushed forward and punched him in the face, but took a shot to the right ankle from Scorpion's weapon. The bullet pierced him, making him drop a bit. His bullets were stronger.
Scorpion slashed him across the face and sent him sprawling. He rolled across the floor as Scorpion hurried after him, kicking him as he tried to rise, and then lifting his claw and preparing to bring it down on Shigeru's neck.
Shigeru rolled and span around, using his hands to lift himself off of the floor. He swung his legs into Scorpion's to take him down, and then came up, ignoring the pain in his leg. He kicked Scorpion as hard as he could with his good leg, sending him into a wall.
Wolf leapt for him like an animal; from all fours and leading with his front claws. He tackled Shigeru into the wall and pushed himself away, giving a series of punches to Shigeru's face and chest before grabbing him by the chest and throwing him over his shoulder, landing him hard on the ground, cracking the floor of the bleak facility hallway.
"Your electricity doesn't hurt anymore," Wolf told him.
"I figured," Shigeru muttered as he came up. He saw Scorpion and took a slash to the throat, only able to dodge back enough to keep it from being fatal. It was still a critical wound, taking him down.
One minute passed. He wasn't sure how long he could hold it anymore. But they were strong, and should have called for his electricity to deal with. He just wasn't releasing it fast enough with his physical blows. He needed to figure something out. Now.
Scorpion stood about ten feet away at most, lifting his left arm, training it on Shigeru's head.
"He might be down a head," he warned Wolf.
"Close enough," Wolf hissed, "A headless corpse is just as good as a decapitated head."
They were close to each other. Shigeru's hands started to charge electricity. If he could make this count, he'd be fine. He'd burn off enough power, he'd take them both down, and he'd survive.
He heard a click. He threw both hands up, pouring all of the electricity he could through both hands. He shouted and let it fly out at Wolf and Scorpion as the bullet fired. The bullet was burned away by the outburst of electricity.
"Screw this," Wolf hissed, leaping aside. Scorpion looked after him and tried to turn to move, but he was already looking at Wolf, who was on the right; taking the left beam. He accidentally turned that way since he had been looking it; running into the second beam and screaming as the electricity overcame him, causing him to explode in a painful death.
Shigeru collapsed, putting his hands on the ground, panting hard. His suit was normal again. He looked up, but he saw Wolf fleeing. "No…no…!" he shouted, pounding his fist on the ground.
"At least you got one," Yuriko said, running over and crouching beside him, helping him up, "Are you ok, Shigeru?"
"Why did you come?" he demanded.
"You left a note."
"Not for you to follow," he told her, "I told you so you would know. I didn't tell you to follow me. This is suicide for you."
"It's suicide for you too," Yuriko told him, "Look at yourself! You almost died!"
"But I took one out," he muttered.
"You took one out, and nearly died yourself," she said, taking his helmet off for him so she could look at him. She took hers off and set it down.
He shook his head, "Go. This is my fight."
"No, this is our fight," she told him, "If I'm leaving, so are you. You killed one already; take that as a victory and retreat for now. Fight another day!"
"I can't," he said, "I'm going to keep fighting. I'm going to kill Wolf, and I'm going to kill anyone else in this damned base!"
They could hear footsteps. A lot of them. Combatmen were swarming the area, surrounding them with a wall of black suits. Yuriko looked around, turning to see more of the wall, while Shigeru looked from his position on his knees. He struggled up to his feet, swaying a bit, but keeping on his feet. He wasn't sure how many he could take down, but he could fight.
Yuriko went to his back, "If we can make a hole, we escape," she said.
He laughed a bit, "I don't know how many I can take out," he informed her.
"Oh? I thought you were the strongest," she said.
"I am. But like I said, enough enemies, no matter how strong or weak, can kill even the strongest," he reminded.
"Well, that won't happen today," she told him, "I'll make sure of that."
A few moments passed. Nothing was happening.
"They aren't even in fighting stances," Shigeru muttered, "What is this?" he shouted.
They could hear two more sets of footsteps approaching from down the hall. The Combatmen Shigeru was facing moved aside, revealing two figures. A man with a hat and street clothes, and a woman with long hair and a long dress.
"Well done thus far, Beetle. Ladybird," the woman said.
The man smiled, "You get no farther."
"Those your codenames for us?" Shigeru demanded. Yuriko turned to stand at his side, facing the two of them alongside him, leaving their backs open, but there was no threat.
"You two are idiots," Youth laughed, "You especially, Beetle."
"What?" he demanded, clenching his fists.
Yuriko turned to him quickly, "You used all of your power!"
"Exactly," Youth laughed, "You used it all and only killed Scorpion! Combatmen are expendable, but you killed one of our Kaizo Ningen. Only one! And how much power did you pour out? How long did you survive fighting them both on other occasions? You proclaim to be the strongest, yet look at your limited success! You're about to die, and you only took one down! You are far from the strongest, Beetle."
"Scorpion was never a major player," Lady said, "If anything, you killed a minor pawn, not a major one, like Wolf. Wolf is actually important as a guardian. Scorpion not so much. And you wasted it all. It is time for our recapture," she finished.
"If you want to capture Shigeru, you have to go through me!" Yuriko told them, standing before Shigeru, standing tall and trying to look imposing enough.
Lady smirked, "You can't stop us, Ladybird. You'll be captured too; it's part of the plan to have you both back."
"Yuriko…run…," Shigeru said, pulling her behind him, "Just run."
She pushed his hand away and stood by his side, "No. Shigeru, I'm not running. I'm fighting. If you're staying, I'm staying. If you leave, I'll cover your escape. But there is no way I'm leaving and you're staying. We both stay, or you escape, and I try to follow. Make your choice."
He was panting, "I will destroy them. Just go! I won't lose; I will destroy them. I'm the strongest. I'm a killer and a destroyer; you've seen it yourself. You saw me fighting the first time in that other form. You know what I'm like. I'm not the man you think I am. I'm the man you see. I'm a fighter who isn't going to stop. So go, so I don't have to stop. I need to continue…because this is who and what I am!"
Yuriko looked at him for a while and then nodded, "If you're staying, so am I. I will never leave your side, Shigeru. Never."
He looked at her. She looked back. She could see it in his eyes; he was looking at her in a way he never had before. Not in the lustful way the previous night. Not in the way he had been annoyed in the previous fights, ever since their conversions. Not ignorance, like before this mission, when they were both normal. No. This was something more. This was appreciation, this was respect. This was possibly even something more; something deeper.
His racing mind, the racing on what he could do, how he could fight. It stopped. It was slowing rapidly, and then he nodded. Everything he was thinking about for how to stop his enemies was gone. The combat strategies, the rage, the anger. Everything was fading. He was no longer thinking like a fighter, like a destroyer. He wasn't thinking of himself as the strongest, and that he could win.
He was thinking of how to win. He was wondering if he could even win. Even with Yuriko. If anything, she needed to survive. Her words were impacting him. Her words were changing his mind, changing how he thought.
His violence, his urges. They were gone.
"Maybe you were right," Shigeru admitted, "Maybe this isn't who I am."
Lady was laughing. Not specifically at them; just in general. She was walking forward, the sound of her high heels clacking against the floor. She had something in her hand.
It was a mask.
She drew it up and dropped her head. When it was affixed she drew her head back up, fully suited. Youth was walking behind her, mask in hand, but he didn't do anything with it yet.
She wore a grey and green suit. Black boots rose up to just below her knees, covered in buckles up nearly the entirety of the length of the leg, keeping them tight. From there on she had a scale patterned suit of gray and green, rising up without any other detail until the belt, which was brown colored and serving only to hold the Shocker emblem on her belt, like the other executives had had. From there on she had the basic scale pattern rising up again; all of it made in a combination of leather and what appeared to be actual scales.
No detail. Nothing extra. No chains. No designs. Just the patterning over her entire body, nearly skintight, even heavily defining the breasts. Her right arm was normal, ending in claws on the tips of each finger. Her left, however, ended with a snake head gauntlet in gray. No doubt it just covered another clawed hand.
A tail hang down, carrying the detail that a lizard's tail or a snake's underbelly would, and no doubt looking just like a snake's tail on the back, without rattle. Just a normal tail.
Her mask was with the same color and patterning as the rest of her body. She had black slit eyeholes, a fanged mouth, and a rounded head. No extra detail; just basics. She did have two horns rising up from just above where her ears would be, curling up slightly and outwards, with a ringed pattern.
"As an executive member of Gel-Shocker, I am stronger than Wolf or Scorpion. Or you two," she hissed, "Keep that in mind!" she launched herself forward, removing a whip from the back of her belt and lashing it out for the two of them.
Yuriko moved forward, dodging to the side and grabbing the whip, pulling Lady in. She span and thrust a knee forward, but Lady blocked with her gauntlet, letting the fangs bite into Yuriko's exposed flesh, letting blood flow down. She made no sounds, but her face revealed her pain.
She tore her leg free and pivoted, then pivoted forward without setting her foot down. She lashed a kick up, landing her booted kick with her leg into the side of Lady's head, making her stumble. She span around, lashing her tail out, but Yuriko leapt up on one leg, came down, and pushed forward, ramming both open palms forward into her throat, sending her back.
The Combatmen made no moves. They weren't ordered to fight. Shigeru crouched down, grabbing Yuriko's helmet. He rose, "Yuriko!" he shouted, throwing it.
She ducked the slash of the gauntlet and rammed her hand upwards into Lady's armpit to drop her arm down and push her back. She span, caught the helmet, and finished her spin, keeping the helmet on.
Lady shook her head, "It's been a while since I last fought. But trust me, you won't win!" she shouted, running forward. She kicked, but Yuriko ducked back. She set her foot down and pivoted, using a short lash into Yuriko's bleeding knee to force her to drop, slamming hard on the ground.
Shigeru pulled his helmet on. He attached the mouthpiece and moved forward, but Youth was standing in the slight gap of Combatmen, shaking his head, "Bad idea, Beetle."
Yuriko rolled aside to avoid the whip. It shattered the spot it hit; it would have broken her bones had it struck. She came up and span around, throwing the side of her chop into Lady's right shoulder. She continued her spin, ducked to avoid a punch, and came up with an electrified chop to the chest, knocking Lady back.
But her arm was still out from the chop. The whip came out, wrapping around. Lady pulled her in. Hard. Yuriko felt her arm about to be pulled out of the socket. She fought back the pain and came forward, trying to get a strike in first, but Lady slammed her head into Yuriko's, sending her to the ground.
"Now now, Ladybird. Just stop. I don't want to kill you," Lady said.
"My name…is not Ladybird…," hissed Yuriko as she struggled back to her feet, swaying. Electricity crackled around her, but nowhere near as intense as Shigeru had been able to do.
"But that's your name," Lady said. Not condescendingly; seriously.
"That's the name I was given by you people," Yuriko hissed, "My name is Misaki, Yuriko. It's not the name you know me by from my abduction, but that is my name. That is my identity. I am not 'Ladybird', and never will be. I am Tackle!" she shouted, "That is the name I have given myself. It is the name of my choosing, not yours! I am my own warrior, and Shigeru's warrior. I am not Gel-Shocker's!"
Lady shook her head, "What does that name even mean?" she questioned.
"I'll show you," Yuriko said, dropping her stance a bit, as if she were going to tackle or lead with a shoulder. She took two steps before Youth pulled away from Shigeru and appeared in front of her with a few steps, fully suited, backhanding her with his right hand, sending her sprawling and slamming into the wall.
Youth's form was black and brown. He had black boots rising up to about his knees, covered in straps like Lady's, but also covered in chains to add extra damage to his kicks. From there on he had leather armor, but his legs were fully black with no detail to be seen, aside from the coverings over his kneecaps. A chain was present over each kneecap as well.
He wore a black belt with the Shocker emblem on the front, like the other executive members. From there on up he had defined muscles along his chest in black armor, while the rest of his suit was brown and appeared to be like bricks in design. He had shoulder armor similar to Shigeru's, but black over the brown that was the rest of his body. He had elbow armor as well that was similar, once more in black.
His arms were brown, still carrying the brick patterning. His left hand ended in clawed fingertips, while his right had a claw; a hook-like claw. No doubt he had his hand underneath, but for now it wasn't visible. It was small on the bottom, large on the top. He would have to do backhands to use the larger part. It didn't seem to be able to act like a pincer.
His suit had a leather collar rising up, but the collar was black. His mask was a tan styled color, appearing like a lion's head. Red eyes, a snout, red mouth with fangs filling it. His mask looked every part a lion or similar beast. He even had ears rising upwards. However, along the back of the head he wore what looked like a pharaoh's headdress, like something out of Egypt. It was brown and layered in appearance. It fit in with the brick motif, as if he were a sphinx.
"I'm sorry…Tackle, was it?" Youth asked, lifting his claw weapon up, "But no. You die."
Shigeru saw them both approaching Yuriko. This wasn't how a fight should go. He would have fought both Scorpion and Wolf again. He would have traded places with Yuriko. But he was strong enough to hold his own. Yuriko wasn't. She couldn't fight like he could. She didn't have the power he did.
He ran forward, pushing Combatmen away. He was still recovering. He wasn't able to fight to his fullest, he was sure. He couldn't even run very well, but he had to try something.
"Why?" he muttered, "Why so much power?"
He had wasted nearly all of it. His wounds weren't helping. He didn't even have his normal power anymore. He was empty; completely empty.
Two Combatmen grabbed Shigeru. He slammed an elbow back into one and then used his now fully free arm to punch the other over his shoulder. The Combatman went down just like the first. He continued onward, watching Yuriko rising and blocking Youth's kick down before spinning and throwing her own for Lady, who dodged back and whipped her in the shoulder, causing Yuriko to grab her left shoulder in pain.
"Hold this," Lady told Youth, throwing him her whip. She flexed her right hand, lifting her hand up and looking at her claws. She looked at Yuriko, and then leapt forward, snapping her arm forward and driving the claws into Yuriko's chest.
Yuriko screamed as she slumped forward on the claws, her helmet falling to the ground. Shigeru was able to see her eyes wide in shock, in pain. Her mouth moved, but she couldn't form words. Blood welled up out of the wound, from her mouth. She started to convulse a little, noticeably.
"That's my poison at work," she hissed to Yuriko, "No matter what, you die here, Ladybird," she chuckled.
Yuriko looked up with her wide eyes. Her pained eyes. Her eyes that held every emotion she was displaying. Towards Lady anger. Pain. She glanced to Shigeru, revealing it in her eyes.
Love.
She looked back to Lady and lifted her arms up, grabbing her foe's shoulders. She couldn't do much, but she could do this.
"What are you doing?" Lady demanded, "Nothing you do can help!"
"This…can…," she muttered weakly, struggling and turning so she could look over Lady's shoulders and head to see Shigeru. She opened her mouth and spoke, but no sound came. She closed her mouth and tried again, succeeding this time.
"Shigeru…I…I love you. Since we first met…since I first saw you…since you came to the lab for a DNA sample…I've loved you. The man I saw…the man I knew you to be. Yesterday…I…I underplayed what I said. It's more than a crush…I…just didn't know if…you wanted…to know… But Shigeru…last night…was…something I would…cherish…no matter what…"
"Yuriko…," he said, "Yuriko…what…what are you going to do?" he asked with worry. He didn't know how to take these emotions, what emotions to give back. He could just stand there and listen. Take the emotions as they were presented.
"Shigeru…would it…have worked…?" she asked, but expected no answer, "I…wish it could have…would have…," she glanced down a bit, "But…in this shape…what good am I to you…? Chest impaled…ugly wounds…breast torn apart…"
"Yuriko!" he shouted, "What are you going to do? Tell me!" he screamed with panic and worry, audible this time.
"I can…do this one…more thing…for you…," she gasped, her body glowing as she revealed all of her charged up energy.
A suicide attack.
Lady realized it. Under her mask her eyes widened in fear.
"No!" she screamed.
Youth was beside her now, thanks to Yuriko turning them. She tore her hand free of the wound, feeling her shoulders in pain. She cast her gauntlet aside and used her left hand to grab Youth's wrist. She stepped to the right, yanking him in. It all happened before he could demand an answer to what was happening.
And when he was forced into the position with her hands on his shoulders, he screamed and cursed at Lady, pulling back instantly, but it was already too late.
The energy seemed to retract into Yuriko's core, and then release through her entire body, almost seemingly releasing as a shockwave from her core. Youth screamed. Lady let out a cry as she was only grazed by it, tossed across the room and slamming into the wall. From only a simple graze to her side.
Shigeru lifted his arms, but he was out of range, "Yuriko!" he screamed.
When it was over Yuriko's wounded body lay on the ground. She was bleeding freely, but she was dead. She had died before she hit the floor. Her body had been fully drained of energy; she had burned out everything. Her heart. Lungs. Everything.
Youth was gone. All that remained were pieces of his suit with flesh still inside. Blood splattered everywhere. Shigeru crouched down, idly picking up a piece that had once been torso. He looked at it; the cuts weren't clean. He hadn't had a simple death. It had been painful from her energy releases.
As Shigeru walked towards Yuriko, Lady pushed herself off of the wall and ran down the hall, shouting for Wolf. The remaining Combatmen were unsure of what to do, so they ran for Shigeru from behind as he crouched by Yuriko, running his right hand up slowly, passing the back of his hand over her cheek. Even with his glove on he could feel that she was still warm.
If he hadn't had his helmet on, tears would have been falling. He was stoic, but not that stoic. This woman whom had just professed her love for him was dead because of him. This woman he had feelings for was gone. This woman whom had changed him from the man bent on destruction and fighting into the man he had been…she was gone.
The only woman to love him. The only woman who could love the monster he was sure he was. The only one who could put up with him at Interpol after his conversion. The only woman he could take a liking to from Interpol. Or in his life. His life which revolved around Interpol and his job. She was the only one. He hadn't known her well for long. He still didn't know her well. But she was the only one. He knew that much.
He rose up slowly, turning to look at the possibly twenty Combatmen. His eyes erupted into emerald light.
"This is bad timing," he said simply, rushing forward. He was still weak and drained, but his rage was propelling him. He slammed his fist into one's face, sending him sprawling back and taking out another five or so. The force took them all down, just like Wolf's force had wounded both Shigeru and Scorpion.
He ducked and span around, kicking one in the chest hard enough to kill him on the spot. He dropped his foot down and launched it back in a mule kick. A kill.
He glanced to Yuriko as he set his foot down. He span around, twisting and punching one in the face to kill him. He paused, and then rolled forward as Wolf pounced, taking two more down that had come up behind him. Shigeru span around as he rose, mule kicking another to take him down, leaving only one with Wolf.
Wolf lashed his arm out, backhanding the Combatman and sending him sprawling into the wall, killing him.
"Now it's just us," he hissed.
Shigeru ran forward without a word, throwing a punch. Wolf blocked it down and kneed him in the chest. He stumbled and span around with a roundhouse, knocking Wolf back. Wolf leapt forward, punching him in the right thigh. Shigeru went down and rammed a fist into Wolf's chest at that moment, knocking him back. He picked himself up and ran forward, tackling him with his shoulder and slamming him into the wall.
Wolf used a double fisted slam to knock Shigeru down. Shigeru took a kick while down and was forced to roll away. He slowly came up, taking a kick to the face and being sent down again. Wolf stalked over to him.
"Get up!" he barked, crouching down and lifting him up by the scarf, "You're weak. Get up and fight me!" he threw Shigeru into the wall to let him get up himself, "Get up and prove that you're strong! She was weak. She couldn't fight. Her flesh is worth nothing to me. Yours…it meant something. But not anymore! Prove me wrong! Prove that your flesh is worthy to be my trophy!"
Shigeru came swaying up to his feet, "She was more worthy than you can know, Wolf!" he screamed, running forward.
Wolf only smiled under his helmet and ran forward. He threw a punch as fast as he could, but Shigeru rolled and came up behind him. Wolf span around, backhanding, but Shigeru blocked with his wrist. Using a pivot he came in and thrust his fist upwards, using as much strength as he could into Wolf's jaw and the side of his face with his left. And they stood that way for a few moments.
Then Wolf collapsed. Shigeru crouched and put his hand over Wolf's face. His skull was shattered. He reached over and took hold of the flesh strips, tearing them off, "You don't deserve these," he said, casting them aside. He could do nothing proper for men he didn't know.
He walked over towards Yuriko's corpse and crouched down, placing her helmet on her chest and lifting her hands up to rest on it. He lifted her up and rose to his feet, turning and walking away.
It was two days later. He had finally found a place for her.
He had left Interpol after it had happened. He had gone back and walked in to see his superior. He told him he quit and walked out without another word. That wasn't the best way to leave Interpol, and now men were after him. He knew things, and couldn't just quit that easily. Not so abruptly. They knew something was wrong, and wanted to know.
But they wouldn't. They couldn't. Yuriko's death was his burden to bear. He didn't want others to know. She might have had friends in Interpol, but he was the man she loved. They shared a bond as Kaizo Ningen, after everything they had gone through.
No. This was his to deal with. Nobody else had to know.
A hill. Looking out over the ocean. This was the place. He had dug her grave himself and had fashioned her a casket himself. It wasn't great, but he couldn't get her a real one.
He was sure she wouldn't mind. He had put his time and effort into it, after all. It was something he made himself.
He had gone back to her home and found a long white gown for her. It hid the wounds. He had cleaned her as best as he could and had dressed her. Now this is how she would leave this world.
"The process of becoming a modified human causes one to remain youthful, or however they appeared when they were converted," he recited from the research of hers he had found and read, "Yuriko…you will always appear this way. I hope that death will not affect the body of one of us Kaizo Ningen. If so…I'm sorry. But if not, then you can remain beautiful and young, even as the years pass."
He placed her into the casket and lowered it alone. He wasn't dressed for this. He was dressed in his normal clothing, covered in dirt and sweat. But now she was placed and he was covering the hole. He had fashioned a cross out of wood as well, and that looked better than the coffin.
When he finished he placed the cross at where her head would be. Engraved on it was a simple phrase.
"Misaki, Yuriko. The woman who defeated the strongest"
It was his way of connecting with her. His identity would be imprinted upon her grave, and hopefully it would be something she could take with her. She loved him. Why leave her without anything reminiscent of him?
He removed his rose necklace and dug a small hole over where her chest would be, trying to line it up with where he guessed her heart was. He placed his necklace in that small hole and buried it.
"It's mine. It's not good enough for Heaven," he said softly, "So let it remain here, over your heart. As another reminder. It's all I can do for you. For now."
He rose to his feet and looked out at the ocean for a little, speaking as if she were beside him, "I'll be back. I will return…I can't just leave you here. This is your place now, but it's not a place I can avoid. No. That would be wrong.
"Yuriko…I don't know if I loved you or not. I don't know how I felt about you. You changed me to who I was, from whatever I had become after transforming. I can appreciate that. But I was blind. You loved me. I don't know if I felt the same. Forgive my inability to figure it out, please."
He was silent for a bit.
"I'll be back. This is no sendoff for an angel to Heaven. I'll be back for something proper. Just please…trust me. And watch over me, so I can make good on that promise. Because after…after that fight…I don't know if I can make good on it or not…"
He turned and walked.
In town people noticed him and talked amongst themselves. He was covered in dirt and sweat as before. He must have looked quite the site. A man who took care in his grooming reduced to this. No doubt people wondered if he killed someone and buried them, or what he was doing.
"Jo! Jo, Shigeru!"
He turned to see two Interpol agents approaching him. They were wearing suits, but he couldn't see their weapons. No doubt concealed by their coats. They knew who he was. They knew he would be dangerous.
"What do you want?" he questioned.
"Where have you been?" one demanded, "We were sent to find out what's happened. You can't just walk in and say you're quitting. This isn't some job for a teenager who can quit at any time he likes. This is something important."
The other spoke up, "Come with us, clear things up, and go on your way, if that's what you really want. It's the easiest way."
"The easiest way is to just ignore you," Shigeru corrected.
The first one spoke, "Where's Misaki, Yuriko?"
He didn't answer.
The second spoke up, "You're covered in dirt…Shigeru…did…did you…"
"Don't even say it," Shigeru hissed, "Don't even think it!"
"With the way you acted, I wouldn't be surprised," the first muttered.
Shigeru clenched his fists, but he didn't strike. He restrained himself. He couldn't just lash out like this. No. He needed control. He needed to think. He needed to act appropriately.
If he lashed out, he would cause a scene. Interpol would actively be after him. Right now they were just trying to get in contact, it seemed. If he did something stupid no doubt they'd send more men with bigger guns and would use force. He doubted these two would.
"I would never hurt her," Shigeru told him.
"Is that so?" the second asked, "I heard you knocked her out and locked her in a closet the other day."
"That…"
"I saw you two leaving a bar together," the first one commented, "You two have a sick relationship, you know that? You knock her out, lock her in a closet, and you…go to someone's home with her. Hotel? Whatever. Or was that not it?"
"Just shut up!" Shigeru shouted at them, "Don't you two dare speak about Yuriko! Don't even say her name!"
"What happened?" the first one asked, "Just give us some answers and we can leave. No trouble."
"You two can cause no trouble," Shigeru said, "Because you know who and what I am. You two can't do anything."
"We can, and will," warned the first.
"No, you can't," Shigeru said, turning his back on them.
He heard the second draw his weapon, "Jo, Shigeru. Put your hands behind your head. Now!"
Shigeru was lifting his hands slowly up. When they reached his shirt he pulled it up and ducked, in case the man shot. His belt was visible along with his suit as he pulled his helmet on and attached the mouth.
He ran. He had places to be. He had revenge, and he had to come back and see Yuriko again.
But that could only happen when Lady faced her death. She killed Yuriko. She had to die.
He could hear the agents behind him, but they couldn't catch up or stop him. He could get to the base without any trouble. Interpol would never send agents there in pursuit of him. Not to a Gel-Shocker base. Not like this.
No. The danger was where he was safe.
Shigeru punched a Combatman in the face, throwing him across the room. They swarmed around him, keeping lower, all of them watching, fists clenched, muscles tensed. He walked without turning his head to look, even as they surrounded him.
The blaring sirens around him were no deterrent, even to his advanced senses. They were annoying, but he had no time to think about it. He didn't particularly care either. He just kept walking, beating down any of the Combatmen who chose to get in his way.
They ran at him from behind. He didn't know how many, but there were many of them. He started to spark as electricity covered him, taking on the Charge Up form. As soon as they jumped him from behind their fates were sealed as they fell as a group to the ground, unable to move as he kept walking, keeping his electrical form up.
As he walked through the halls, discharging electricity as he went into the walls for his own safety, he noticed signs of a struggle. Not the fight he was involved in prior, but another fight. Something had happened here.
Very recently.
He kept his senses open, ready for anything that this place could throw at him, but as he walked he encountered nobody. Nothing. Not even the Combatmen that likely should have been around to stop him. Did who or whatever caused this take out the Combatmen for him? Were there no other Kaizo Ningen here to act as guards? To attempt to stop him?
That was fine for him. His goal was that woman. That snake. She was the one he would kill. He would kill anything in his path that he had to, but that didn't mean he would enjoy a fight at the moment.
A fight would only distract him from the vengeance brimming inside of him, ready to spill over, if it hadn't already.
Yuriko was the thing driving him on. He shouldn't be fighting for rage or anger, or with it. But he was fighting to avenge her. Anger and rage were just a fuel that was helping him move with that motivation. In this mixture it was ok. For this fight. He should never fight this way again, and probably wouldn't, for the sake of Yuriko's memory.
He stopped when he heard footsteps. He watched as he saw the woman in the Chinese dress emerge, holding her left side with her right hand, gripping the wall with her other. She looked up at him and panted, cursing under her breath.
"I'm here to kill you," he said, casting off the rest of the electricity that he had been slowly draining away. The walls exploded and debris rained down around them, but the structural integrity was still holding up. He watched her as she seemed to take a few moments to recover and then stand up.
"You're here to kill me," she hissed, "Is it for that woman, or is this for your own vengeance? Or possibly the orders of Interpol?" she questioned.
"This is for Yuriko," he said, lifting up his fist and clenching it tight. His helmet's eyes shone emerald.
She laughed, "For the woman," she said, pulling the mask from one of the folds of her dress. She lifted it up as she bowed her head down, affixing it. She lifted her head up as soon as it was in place, walking towards him in her full gear.
He drew his left leg back, lifting his right fist up and keeping it clenched. He didn't believe in stances like this, but he wanted to be able to react, and felt this might be the best way of going about it.
She ran for him, slashing with her gauntlet. He sidestepped and rammed his knee up, but she blocked down with her other arm, pushing him back and spinning around, lashing her tail across his chest. As he stumbled she ran for him, lashing her whip into his face and sending him sprawling to the ground.
"You're already showing your weakness," she told him, lashing it down into his back as he tried to rise. He fell with a shout of pain.
"Try that again," he challenged, pushing himself back up. She did it again, but this time electricity shot up the whip and into her arm. She shouted as it surged through her body, forcing her to release the whip. He pushed himself to his feet and took a swift step forward, throwing the strongest punch he could into her face and sending her rolling down the hallway.
As she rose at the other side of the hall, blood ran down her suit. From inside, coming out any gaps that existed for the sake of air. She ran for him, shouting as she lashed her whip out, catching his left wrist. She stepped in quickly, faster than he had anticipated. Delivering a punch with the gauntlet open to his neck, she pulled back, bringing her arm back to her side with blood dripping to the ground and running down Shigeru's neck.
"I won't use my poison to kill you," she hissed, kicking him to the ground with a swift kick to the chest, "No. I'll take your head!" she screamed out.
He coughed hard as he came back to his knees, bleeding on the ground. His vocal cords and everything vital was fine. His suit had helped, but he was still heavily bleeding from her biting attack.
As he heard the whip crash into the ground twice, closer each time, he rolled aside to avoid it. As the ground cracked where he had just been he shot his hand up, firing a small bolt of electricity into her side. She stumbled into the wall, her body convulsing and not acting as she wanted it at all. He pushed himself up and rammed his left fist into her gut and then again, into the side of her face, sending her sprawling to the ground.
"Your wounds," he commented, "You're bleeding more than you should be. You're a Kaizo Ningen like me. Your wounds from Yuriko shouldn't be bleeding like that, even if I opened them. Who's here? Who have you been fighting?"
She laughed as she came swaying up to her feet, "No, you're right. That little bitch couldn't have left wounds like these…"
An electricity filled punch rammed into her chest. She grabbed his wrist with both hands, discarding the gauntlet. She laughed as she pulled his arm up, making it rest on her shoulder, unable to shock her. She drew her left arm back and rammed it into his chest, piercing his suit and his flesh.
She panted, telling him, "I lied. I'll poison you too!" she shouted as she gained strength in her voice.
His mind was racing as he panicked. He pulled his left arm back, grabbing her shoulder and then reaching his right up and grabbing her left wrist. He couldn't pull it out of himself, but he could do this at least. If nothing else, he would give her the fate she deserved, that she had passed onto that other executive member of Gel-Shocker.
As energy built up around Shigeru's body, she shook her head, "No. You won't use that technique," she told him.
"You think you can kill me before I can launch it?" he questioned, "I have more electricity and power than Yuriko did!"
"That's true," she told him, "But that's not who you are. Jo, Shigeru. I already told you I know you're Interpol. Your little disguises and aliases couldn't trick the great Gel-Shocker. We've known since day one who you two were. We honestly didn't know you two were undercover until a little ways in, but we knew you were Interpol."
"Stop lying," Shigeru hissed.
"It's the truth," she said as the energy danced around the two of them, waiting for Shigeru to release it, "We just decided to take you two and turn you into our sleeper agents. Your anger? The way you've felt since you escaped from us? We did that to you," she laughed in his face, "We did that! It made you perfect; a walking bomb for us. Even though we didn't have control over you, the emotions nearly did their job without us needing control. Even though this plan failed, though, that means nothing. We still have the power, and we will still win! Because, Shigeru, you're not the man who would take his life. You're someone who loves living, who loves the vanities of life, who would look down on someone for suicide. Even if this is for revenge, she was just a woman. Find another!"
"We were pawns," he hissed, tightening his grip on her left wrist, "And never. Never! Never refer to Yuriko as another woman! She was the only woman there is to me!" he screamed at her, tearing her hand from his body to her shock. He drew his left hand away from her shoulder and sent it crashing into her face, sending her rolling and smashing down the hall, hitting the far wall with a loud crash.
He ran down the hall for her as she started to get up. She was looking down the hall to her left, ready to run.
He wouldn't have that.
He leapt up, drawing his right fist back. Electricity started to charge around it as he came down for her with a shout, slamming it into her chest as she tried to run. The attack sent her smashing through the wall and into another room, smashing into the far wall and instantly exploding on impact.
All that lingered was the echo of her last scream.
He slumped down on one knee. He looked at the flames in the next room through the hole he had put in the wall with her body. He reached up, removing his mouthpiece and then taking his helmet off, letting them down on the floor.
And he smiled.
"Yuriko…," his smile turned bittersweet, "I killed her. For you. Please rest in peace."
As he rose he lifted his helmet pieces and put them back on, turning and walking down the hall he had come from, his scarf blowing a bit in his haste to get out. He started to run at this point, coming out topside and on the island surface. He stopped suddenly and looked ahead, seeing four figures.
Four other Shockers? Or did they do this to the base?
One of them saw him and walked forward. He had dark blue armor, red scarf down his chest and an insect helmet, holding his hands up a bit to try to show he was no threat. Shigeru looked at the others, but didn't trust this.
One had a dark green and silver body with a red and white helmet and emerald eyes. One had a primarily white suit with a staff in hand, and the other looked reptilian and vicious.
"I don't know who you are, but we're only here for Shocker," the other man told Shigeru, "Are you a Kamen Rider? Or are you a Shocker?"
"I'm no Kamen Rider," Shigeru answered. He still meant that.
The man with the staff weapon moved forward, lifting it up like a rapier, "Hongo," he said.
"Keisuke, be careful," the man named Hongo said, "Are you a…," he got cut off by Shigeru's electric blast that was thrown forward. In the confusion Shigeru moved forward. If they were going to attack him, he was going to make the first move.
The man named Keisuke came forward and swung his weapon. Shigeru blocked it with his forearm and pushed him back, spinning around and giving him a roundhouse kick to the chest. As he stumbled back the reptilian one leapt forward and slashed him across the chest with an arm blade. Shigeru stumbled and dodged the swipe of his claws, returning a knee to the chest and throwing him down. He crouched and punched him in the chest to keep him down.
The insectoid one with the red helmet moved forward, leaping up and coming in with a knee. He could tell that this man was sloppy with such a technique, however, and dodged. That proved to be a mistake as he landed and span around with a roundhouse instantly, catching Shigeru in the chest. He hit the ground hard and took a punch to the chest from the man before being lifted up.
Shigeru broke his grip and kicked him back, throwing a bolt of electricity to his chest to stun him before adding a punch in to take him down.
The man named Hongo ran forward and punched him in the chest. As Shigeru stumbled he took another punch and then a kick to the side of his left leg, dropping down onto that knee before taking a knee to the face and going down again. Before he could take a punch while downed he rolled and threw electricity into Hongo, stunning him long enough to get a punch to the chest in.
As his four enemies stumbled back and Shigeru stumbled back, panting, Hongo stepped forward, "I think we've misunderstood each other," he told Shigeru, "We're Kamen Riders. The way you answered us makes me think otherwise about you. Forgive the mistake, if you're not a Shocker. We're on edge."
"You guys did that to that woman inside?" he questioned.
"She repelled us," the man with the double scarves and insect helmet said, "But we did a lot of damage."
"And I finished it," Shigeru said, removing his helmet, "How did you guys find this base?"
"First, who are you?" the insect armored man questioned.
"Jo, Shigeru. Interpol. I escaped," he said.
"Interpol," Hongo said, gesturing to the other insect armored man as he removed his helmet and mouthpiece, "Shiro and I have a man on the inside there. That's how we learned about this place. We didn't expect you or Misaki to be here," he confessed.
"Yuriko died fighting that woman," Shigeru told him, "I came only for revenge," he walked towards them, "And now that I've had it, I'm leaving. Go on Kamen Riders. Do as you wish."
The three ran forward with only Hongo remaining behind. "We're going into the base to find anything of use. Anything that could point us towards the leader of Gel-Shocker. And the source of their new power. Shigeru, why don't you join us?" he asked, "You've gone through the pain that most of us have. We've all lost people, just like you have. That pain is what makes us Kamen Riders and heroes. We know the pain of losing others, so we know what we have to fight to stop. We have to fight to keep this pain from others by stopping evils like Shocker and now Gel-Shocker.
"Shigeru. I'm giving you our title of Kamen Rider. Please, join with us."
Shigeru actually started to laugh and shake his head, "I'm sorry. I mean you no disrespect, Hongo. Yuriko would have liked you giving me that title. She wanted me to take it…the night before she died. But I refused it then, and I refuse it now."
"Are you sure?" Hongo asked, putting his helmet back on and getting ready to go and join with his allies.
"No, I'm not," he admitted, standing there with his back to Hongo. "Go," he said, "You'll do nothing to convince me."
Hongo looked at him for a few seconds and then ran off to join his allies as Shigeru stood there, looking out at the trees and ocean where he could see it, smiling a little and then looking up towards the sky.
"Kamen Rider Stronger. Because I am stronger than all of my opponents," he said to nobody, but knowing who he meant it to. The one person who would be beyond happy to hear him take the title.
His partner, and the woman he had to admit that he loved.
Shigeru sat by Yuriko's grave, pouring a liquid over it, "Sorry. Not the best wine. Hard to buy something worthy of you without a good budget, and with them freezing my money," he said to Yuriko's grave. He stopped pouring with some left inside and lifted it up, drinking it himself before pouring the last bits on the ground again.
As he watched the last drop fall he rose and set the bottle aside. Looking at the cross that stood in the ground to mark her place of burial, he then looked out and then up to the sky, "Rest well in Heaven," he said quietly, "There may be more like you up there than down here…but I could still use you here. Believe that."
As he started to walk off he stopped and thought about it for a minute. He turned and walked back to her grave before kneeling before it, "Tackle. Yuriko. Whatever title you wish to have, know this. Kamen Rider Stronger is there to protect people. The people you meant and wanted to protect.
"I will go beyond what I could do with Interpol. What we could do as Interpol agents. I will carry on the will you would have wanted. As an escaped and reformed Kaizo Ningen I bear this proud title that you couldn't live to take on yourself. I bear the title of Kamen Rider, and I wear it now with pride, because it is what you wanted for me to have. Yuriko…Tackle…rest in peace. I will eternally be your partner, and the one to carry out your will, until the day I too join you. Just know that until then, I will protect everyone. Because I am the strongest."