Disclaimer: The Kamen Rider series created by Shotaro Ishinomori (1938-98) and is owned by Toei
Cover image created using Fantasy Name Generator's Armor Creator tool and modified through Adobe Photoshop. Special thanks to the website's owner Emily for giving me permission to post the image.
This fanfiction follows the following assumed canon timeline:
Showa series (1971) – Heisei Phase 1: Kuuga (2000) = Canon
Agito (2001) – Decade (2009-10) = Alternate Worlds
Heisei Phase 2 starting with W (2010/2011) to Ex-Aid (2016-2017) = Canon
Post-Heisei Phase starting with Build (2017/2018) = Canon?
What is an individual's inner darkness? Is it anger, vengeance, desire, guilt, or could it be all of it? Can they be consciously aware of it, and if so, do they wear a mask over it, fearful of being judged by others over it? Should they be forced to confront it, will they succeed and accept the truth about themselves, or will they be chained down by it forever? How would they go on with their lives afterwards? Perhaps the answer lies within the choices the individual makes... And now, without further ado, let our protagonist, Mitsurugi Ryōko, perform a dance of life as we begin the story of Kamen Rider Kagura...
Rite 0: Pilot
This story begins in the year 2023, during the Fall season. As the world continues to progress, mythology and culture are slowly being thrown aside by society as it embraces technological advances, leaving the world unprepared for threats originating from the realm of the supernatural. One such case is the forgotten history of a group of evil enetities known as the Kusarei, that once terrorized Japan during and after the Sengoku Era.
All of the Kusarei that survived the final battle with the forces of humans and yōkai have been imprisoned in Sealing Temples located all over Japan, with those that still roam the earth being either reformed Kusarei or forced into hiding. Every now and then, the Kusarei would break free, at which point a kitsune warrior chosen by the Shinto gods to bear the title of Kagura would be tasked with recapturing, or if necessary, executing them, for Kagura is the only one in the mortal realm with the power to neutralize the Kusarei's immortality and seal them away.
As of now, it is the tenure of the fifth chosen Kagura, but trouble is already stirring for her as some idiot has been breaking Kusarei out of Sealing Temples all over Japan, yet the suspicious pattern at which each breakout is happening have left her troubled, wondering if the culprit may be seeking a particular Sealing Temple...