*Camera switches on.*
*In front of the camera is Triple M and Ice. Both of them are looking to the left beyond the camera's view before they turn back to look at the camera.*
M3: *Start with, "And welcome back. I'm M3…"*
IceBite: "And I'm IceBite…"
M3: "Before we start the chapter, we would like to introduce two individuals that you will be seeing later." *Looks to the left* "Gentlemen, you can introduce yourselves now."
*M3 and Ice move a bit, allowing the individuals to be in front of the camera as well.*
*One of the two individuals looks like the Connor from the story, wearing some light attire matching the era of time depicted in it.*
*The other resembles the Daniel from the story, wearing modern attire and a Gamer Driver…*
Guardian Connor: *Looking to the camera* "Hello, I'm Connor Thomas, or Guardian Connor for the time being."
Bugster Daniel: "And I'm Daniel Mitchell, but just call me Bugster Daniel...or Graphite the 2nd, if you're feeling up to it…"
M3: "Thank you two for introducing yourselves." *Gives them a cue to leave.*
*The two NMotT characters shortly depart from the camera's view after that.*
M3: "Of course, you can look forward to seeing those two give commentary once everything is ready."
IceBite: "Until then...Triple-M and I will still be doing it…"
M3: "Anyway, let's get to the chapter."
*Camera switches over.*
*Chapter 4 starts.*
Arc 2: Knights in Training
Chapter 4: Simulated Skirmish
The next day, the 7th Platoon headed out and met with Jagen. "The 7th Platoon and its commander, Daniel, are all present and accounted for, yes? From today forth, you will train together as a team in your bid to become fully-fledged knights. The first half of your training will focus on developing your practical skills. Without further ado, I will introduce the senior knight who is to be your instructor."
A man in red armor stepped forward. "I am Cain, the knight in charge of your practical training! To hone your practical skills, we will have a contest in the form of combat. If you let your guard down, it won't be just an injury you'll be walking home with!"
"Even amongst the Altean knights, Cain is one of our strongest men. You must all become strong enough to earn his approval," Jagen commented. With that, Cain began leading the 7th away.
While they were traveling, Connor made sure to keep pace with Daniel as he ended up saying quietly to him, "Do you think Cain knows about what the two of us can do?"
Daniel shrugged. "Dunno...no telling just how far word spread...heck, everyone in the Altean Knights, recruit or veteran, might know…"
"Guess we'll see soon…" Connor noted back in response as he kept pace.
Once they reached a forested area, Cain began talking again. "Well then, let's begin today's training! Your enemies will consist of us Altean knights, as well as brave warriors whom I am proud to call friends. The opponents are determined by the ability of each platoon. 7th Platoon, your opponent is…"
At that point, a Pegasus Knight arrived. "My squires, my friends; please go easy on me," she commented.
Katarina immediately gushed, "Oh, it's Princess Caeda! Prince Marth's fiancee! She's so pretty... I feel nervous at the thought of fighting her…"
"As do I, but we have to get past this nervousness in order to get the most out of our training." Connor retorted to Katarina.
"Taddle Quest! (Medieval-Styled Song)"
The group turned to Daniel, who already had his Driver on, and a Gashat in hand. The Taddle Quest Title Screen appeared behind him and an energy wave appeared, as per usual. This time, however, treasure chests were spawned by the energy wave.
"Guess Daniel is not going low key from here on out…" Connor thought to himself as he made sure to locate his sheathed sword on his back.
Caeda watched Daniel closely, as she remembered the armored warrior that defeated Jagen...and this young man was looking similar...
Daniel inserted the Gashat, but this time, didn't wait to go Level 1 before saying, "Advancing to Level 2!" and pulling the lever.
"Gachan! Level Up! (Medieval-styled song) Taddle Meguru! Taddle Meguru! Taddle Quest~!"
The icons appeared again, but this time, Daniel reached out to the left, and tapped the icon there, which resembled a knight's helmet. The icon expanded and the resulting armor...resembled a thin suit of knight's armor, although the type of knight would be recognized better by Daniel and Connor, due to it more resembling a knight from their world's medieval times, than a knight of the world they're in. The armor also had cyan blue parts, along with black.
"Kamen Rider Brave...Quest Gamer...Level 2…" Daniel declared.
Then a ring and icon, akin to the one that summoned the Gashacon Magnum appeared...only this time, it summoned the-
"Gashacon Sword!"
Said sword resembled a plastic toy sword depicting fire on the blade.
"Alright...let's get to it…" Brave declared.
"Interesting, you certainly have a level of style…" Caeda mused, before saying, "Let us see if you've got the ability. Talys's mercenaries shall fight you first."
A small group of Talys mercenaries, Mercenaries and Fighters, took to the field, at least one soldier for each of them, arrived.
The 7th charged forward, each taking on an opponent, except for Brave and Ryan, who teamed up. Although, two of their enemies, a Mercenary and a Fighter, teamed up against them.
Connor unsheathed his sword, landing a solid slash on his Mercenary opponent. A attack sent by them ended up missing as Connor dodged. On the followup, Connor landed a harder slash, bringing his opponent to the ground, unable to fight.
Luke and Roderick handled the opponents they got fairly well as they helped get attention off Connor as he fought another Mercenary by himself.
Meanwhile, Brave and Ryan were fighting their opponents, with Brave staying in the front while Ryan stayed behind. The two mercenaries double-teamed Brave, but were having difficulty penetrating his armor. Finally, Brave declared, "I've had enough!" He then removed the Taddle Quest Gashat from his Driver, and pressed a button on the Gashacon Sword.
"Ko Chīn!"
The sword blade rotated, and the fire on the blade turned to ice. Then, he inserted the Taddle Quest Gashat into the slot on the sword and pressed the other button.
"Taddle Critical Finish!"
Brave rushed forward and slashed the enemies, freezing them solid...Seeing as they were officially defeated, he pressed the first button on the sword again.
"Ka Chīn!"
Then, after removing the Gashat and returning it to the driver, he began pressing the special attack button on the sword to help melt the ice on the Talys Mercenaries… … …
… … ...It took the rest of the battle to thaw them out… … ...and they were not pleased…
While that happened, Connor took down another Mercenary down with his sword before it became apparent that the all of the Talys Mercenaries were defeated.
That's when another person joined the training fight…
"So, a myrmidon, then?" Caeda asked, "No...wait, you look like that person I've heard who changed into some unknown creature. That is you, right?"
"Sorry Caeda, I think you must be confusing me for someone else...I'm just a myrmidon." Connor lied as he got his sword ready.
She took his answer and just replied, "Then show me what you can do with that sword of yours!" before she got ready to fight.
The Pegasus Knight attacked first with her lance, only to end up missing Connor as he dodged out of the way in time. Connor followed up with an aimed slash on his opponent, landing the attack.
They exchange attacks again as Connor didn't end up getting hit, but Caeda did instead. And Connor struck again, managing to defeat Caeda on his third and last attack in their fight.
"Ngh..!" emerged out from her as she ended up falling off her steed following the defeating blow landing on her. The lance she was using ends up away from her hand, prompting Connor to sheathe his sword…
As he retrieved the lance and offered a hand to help to Caeda up if she needed it.
"I believe that you did well, despite me winning. Of course, I'm not used to battling against flying knights…So thank you for challenging me." Connor politely commented.
The Peagsus Knight took his hand to help back up before he also made sure to hand her lance back over.
It wasn't long before the rest of the 7th caught up.
"That was a thrilling fight. You are the first squires to have bested me in combat. Promise me that you'll become knights worthy of helping Marth."
"That's what I hope to achieve, Princess Cadea." Connor retorted.
"We'll do our best," Daniel replied, nodding.
"If you ever need help during the practical training, do call on me. And I'll fight, but as your companion," Caeda offered.
"I think from all of us, we thank you for the offering and companionship." Connor politely said back, "But something tells me we may not be able to accept it, or can we actually?"
Katarina then replied, "What should we do? I know, how about we ask Sir Jagen?"
Once they found him, the 7th Platoon conversed with Jagen about Caeda's offer.
"I have no qualms about your proposal. You may borrow the help of friends if they offer as much."
"What a relief. I'm certain Princess Caeda will make a reliable ally," Katarina commented.
"I'm just not seeing the point of having someone important as Caeda fighting alongside us. Aren't we trying to not rely on others in our training at first?" Connor asked.
"Hmph. Don't tell me you're still in the dark about Prince Marth's method of fighting during the War of Shadows?" Jagen retorted.
"Unfortunately, I am not..." Connor noted back.
"I'm familiar," Daniel replied, "The League led by Prince Marth didn't just consist of Altea: It went beyond the frontiers of nationality, and included friend and foe alike…"
"Yes. Our victory was not just the accomplishment of us Altean knights. Overcoming status and position; being able to fight together as equals... That is how Prince Marth fights. No matter when an ally came to our side, they could instantly join the battle with us. That is also a necessary skill for an Altean knight."
"Ah...I see. The training is more than individual improvement, but also group improvement from being open to accept help from wherever it may come from." Connor commented as he interpreted what he heard.
"If we can combine our strengths when we fight, I'm sure we can achieve anything. Right?" Katarina asked.
Daniel nodded. "Exactly…"
It was night time, and the rest of the 7th Platoon was asleep… … ...except for Daniel. As a Bugster, a being of pure data, he was capable of lasting for long periods of time without sleep.
He wasn't able to sleep easy, anyways...And seeing as he'd slept yesterday, he'd decided to use his link to his Blackspore to get some work done, not to mention telepathically check up on his clone while he was working.
"Pardon, you doing alright Commander Daniel?" Connor asked as he rose from his bed to see Daniel still awake.
"Hmmm? Oh, Connor, hey...Yeah, I'm fine…"
"Hard to sleep knowing you're away from home?" Connor guessed as he tried to figure out what Daniel was doing.
Daniel sighed. "You have NO idea…"
"No, I think I do have a idea of what you mean..." Connor said back. "I miss being back home as well…"
"Right...you said you were from Orleans…" Daniel replied.
"Except...I'm not actually from there and it's not even my real home…"
Daniel raised an eyebrow at that. "What...do you mean?"
"I mean, if you say Avalon is advanced, I expect it to not be as advanced as where I am really from." Connor retorted as his answer.
"Really? And how advanced is that?" Daniel asked, scoffing a bit.
"Advanced enough where every person can have access to devices powered by electricity without having to be physically connected to anything, images you and everyone else can see, and weapons that make bows look ancient and ineffective..." Connor answered back.
As Connor said that, Daniel's eyes widened, shocked...but with a glint of understanding in his eyes...as though he knew what Connor was talking about, as he weakly replied, "...We...are working...on stuff...slightly...more advanced...than...that…"
"Are you really sure about that? Earth-I mean the world-place where I'm from is about as advanced as it can get."
Daniel sighed. "I caught those slip-ups...and… … ...I'd...know if I the nation I'm linked to currently was getting more advanced, however slightly, than my own homeworld…" he said.
"Then do you mind me asking where you're really from?" Connor asked, getting curious about Daniel now.
Daniel replied, "My homeworld's name: Earth…and I know my tech is getting more advanced than it's due to a fictional series from it known as 'Warhammer 40,000'... … ...Some of the tech is from there..."
"... ...Wait, you mean that you're… ...You're from my world?" Connor replied. "Do...you know what a 'Video Game' is in relation to words like 'Borderlands', 'Smash', 'Fire', and 'Emblem'?"
"... … ...Yes…" Daniel replied.
"... ...I...can't...believe it. We're from...the same world. Not to mention… ...The same time period…" Connor said agast. "... ...Do you happen to know where...we are? Because this is clearly not 'our' world..."
"The same world as Fire Emblem Awakening...only 2000 years before…" Daniel stated, "...If you know what that is…"
"I do... … ...And that explains...a lot actually. I knew I was somewhere when I heard and saw Prince Marth, but not exactly where…" Connor replied.
Daniel nodded. "So...now you get how advanced the Imperium is?"
"I do… ...But now I got something else on my mind." Connor said before he sighed. "... ...Do you have powers as well?"
Daniel nodded. "Yes… … ...I was even turned into something 'not human anymore'... … ...specifically, a Bugster… … ...I'd prefer if you kept that secret…"
"And I'd prefer if you did the same for me… ...After all, that 'little' trick of mine…specially referred as a Guardian...is my real form instead of what you see now."
"My current form is also a disguise, but I usually only reveal my Bugster form when needed… … …" Daniel replied.
"Same here...Except I'm trying to not rely on it."
"Yeah, that's part of the reason for me using my Kamen Rider gear: saving my true form as a last resort…"
Connor went quiet for a bit till he said, "...Pardon...you said 'Kamen Rider'...right?"
"Yeah...it's well known in Japan, as far as I know, and some Americans also like it, me included… … ...even if I didn't know Japanese before I came here…" Daniel replied.
"...It's kind of funny...The only reason I recognize 'Kamen Rider' is because an acquaintance of mine called himself 'Kamen Rider Nexus' and some other unique names during the time I've worked with him." Connor noted, thinking back to then.
At the mention of 'Kamen Rider Nexus', Daniel's eyes widened.
"...Do you happen to know the person behind all that stuff?"
"...To quote Obi-Wan Kenobi, 'Of course I know him: he's me.'"
"... ...Wait, you're-" Connor paused as his eyes widened. "...Should have gone with my gut when I heard about 'Imperium of Avalon' and 'Daniel Mitchell'...It's you, IceBite."
"... … ...And now I have a sneaking suspicion you're MarkMartinMagma M3…" Daniel replied.
"Yes.. ...I am who you think I am. And… ...It's good to know someone like you is here as well because I barely have an idea of what's going on." Connor admitted.
"Don't worry: I played the game this time period is based on...well, a translated version of it, since the game was only released in Japan...basically, we arrived a short period of time after Shadow Dragon…" Daniel explained.
"And we'll be going through the events following that one?"
Daniel replied, "Following Shadow Dragon? Yes. Good thing too: I don't remember that one all too well…never played Shadow Dragon..."
"But you still know about 'Prince Marth', the other Altean Knights, and people like 'Katarina', right?"
"Yes…" Daniel nodded.
"That's good...But that being said, is there anything we should worry about that may come up if events unfold as normal?" Connor asked, a bit worried due to not knowing as much.
"... … ...I'm taking it as my responsibility… … ...but keep an eye on Katarina when you're in the same room as her… … …"
"...Do I even want to know what you mean?"
"... … ...You'll see later… … ...Like I said, I'm taking responsibility for it… … ...more specifically trying to avert it… … …" Daniel explained.
"Then, I'll stick to whatever I'm doing at the moment if that's the case…" Connor replied before he yawns. "Of course...I'm going to be asking more questions from here on out….Given that we ended up here as whatever we are…"
Daniel nodded. "Alright… … …" He sighed. "So… … ...what now?"
"I think I'll try to go back to sleep. I suggest you do the same, but you don't have to…" Connor replied.
"Yeah, I literally don't have to… … …" Daniel chuckled.
"Then maybe you can share why that's the case...later… …" Connor said, before he drifted off to sleep.
Daniel nodded, as he went back to what he was doing before… … ...along with another project he was working on… … ...
*Camera switches over.*
M3: "And that's the chapter. Nice to see that they are getting trained now…"
IceBite: "Yeah...although who knows when the next bump in the road will occur…"
M3: "Well, when that times comes, they'll be more prepared…"
M3: *Moving on* "Also in this chapter, we get to see what Connor's combat style and attire is based on. That being a myrmidon."
IceBite: "And Daniel shows ANOTHER Kamen Rider identity...Damn, he must have the whole Ex-Aid Roster under his belt…"
M3: "And both of them sparred against the Talys Mercenaries and Caeda, with Connor being the main one to spar against the latter…."
IceBite: "Yeah, because Daniel froze some of the mercenaries solid and had to spend the rest of the battle thawing them out…"
M3: *Points out* "Though that did seem a bit excessive, mind you…"
IceBite: *shrugs* "Talk to him about it, not me…"
M3: *Going onto something else* "Of course, the last part to talk about is the conversation at night near the end..."
IceBite: "Yup: they finally know they recognize each other...and Daniel shows he can still operate his stuff even from afar…"
M3: "Plus the admission from both of them that their human forms are just disguises and the Bugster and Guardian identities are their 'real' forms, respectfully."
IceBite: "Which are-...Guardians ARE antagonistic, right?"
M3: "Well, yeah, they are part of the Borderlands 1 and Pre-Sequel's variety of enemies, except they show up way later…"
IceBite: "So, both Daniel and Connor are using the powers of two antagonistic groups in the respective series of the groups, but for good instead, then…"
M3: "Which they seem to be doing so far…"
M3: "And I think that's about it. Anything else to add, Ice?"
IceBite: *shrugs* "Not that I can think of…"
M3: "Then we'll see you later when the next chapter is up."
*Camera turns off.*