Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I was on vacation and traveling around a bit, and most of the places with internet I was at didn't have the best internet, so I couldn't post the chapter. I spent a week at home unwinding from the traveling, so here's the next chapter of Song of Drive.
After the reviews of course.
Guest: The figure will be revealed in the future.
Kamencolin: Did I make good banter? I usually write what comes to mind first, read it, and make corrections.
DragonWarrior74: Technic will be next.
Onto the chapter.
Chapter 7: Explosive Photography
"No, it's not 47. X is 90."
"What? But I wrote down everything!"
"You did, but you added 2 instead of multiplying by 2. If this was a test, you'd have missed it already." Will handed back Hibiki's math homework, showing her everything she got wrong on it. "Seriously… I thought you and Miku were going to a private school. Private schools usually have harder problems than this."
"We are! Do you know how hard it was for me to pass the entrance exam?!"
"Hibiki, you're smart, but you have trouble understanding things."
"No I don't!"
"I'm going to give you a hypothetical situation. Tell me what you'll do in this situation, alright?"
"Okay!"
"Good… A train is barrowing down the tracks towards five people. Beside you is an incredible large man that could stop the train if you push him. What do you do?"
"Um… uh…" She looked completely confused by what he said, thinking deeply to try and come up with a response. "Um… ask the conductor to stop the train?"
"… I never said the people were tied down on the tracks, nor would the large man die."
"Oh."
"Case in point." He turned his attention to the tub of ice cream in front of him, using his spoon to pick up a small amount of the delectable frozen treat before putting it into his mouth.
Hibiki pouted towards him before looking down at her homework, correcting her mistakes. She took no more than half a minute before handing her homework to him again, examining it before nodding.
"Alright, you're done. Anything else?"
"Nope. That was it."
"Great." He replied as he used his spoon to reach for another scoop of ice cream, catching nothing but air. He looked into the tub to see he had already eaten the entire tub.
Will sighed as he got up, placing the lid on the tub as he went to throw it away. Once he was away from the table and at the trash can, he felt his pocket vibrate as he heard the upbeat jazz music that was his ringtone.
Hibiki turned towards him when she heard his phone ringing, getting up from her spot at the table as she felt curious into who was calling him so late.
He dropped the empty container in the garbage as he took his phone out and checked who was calling him before he answered.
"Hello?"
"William, my shift just ended, so I'm on my way home now. I was planning on grabbing dinner for us, so do you have any preferences?" April's voice spoke out from his phone as he seemed to think for a second.
"Hm… I'm okay with anything. If you go to a fast food place, I'd like the usual."
"Okay. I'll be home in a few minutes. Don't get into any trouble, and please… don't eat ice cream before your dinner. You always spoil your appetite when you do."
'Too late for that…' "I won't."
"… you already ate all the ice cream, haven't you."
"… maybe."
"William." Her voice became stern, sending a shiver down his spine when he heard it.
"… Yes…"
"William… times like these remind me that you're also Akihira's son."
"… Is… Is that a good thing, or…?"
"No. I'll be home soon, and you're buying the next tub of ice cream." The call ended when she hung up, lowering his phone from beside his head as he sighed. He knew about the trouble he could get in when it was related to his mother and how she disapproved his fondness for ice cream. But, like almost every mother in the world, she despised it when he tried to lie to her.
That was a line no child should ever cross.
"Hey Will." Hibiki came up from behind, making him almost jump when he didn't realize she was behind him.
"Y-Yeah?"
"I'm gonna go back to my school. I told Miku I wouldn't be late since she offered to help me with history since you're no good at it."
He felt a nervous bead of sweat appear on his forehead when she said her words so bluntly.
"It's not that I'm not good at history… it's just I have a hard time learning about the past."
"Oh, okay." She said as she grabbed all her stuff and put it into her bag, waving at him as she made her way to leave. "Bye!"
"See you later." He responded as he watched her leave, the sound of the front door opening and closing soon following.
"You seem to have a close relationship with your friend." Krim spoke out by using Shift Wild, coming out from behind a lamp on the table.
"Really? We've been this way since we first became friends."
"A bond like that should be treasured. There are a lot of untrustworthy people in the world, so it is best to know who you can and cannot trust."
"You're saying this in fear of people finding out about me being Drive and ensuring no one can use the Drive system for evil, aren't you?"
"Indeed. After all… it was my trust that became my undoing…"His words became more of a mumble with the second sentence, to the point it was impossible for Will to understand what he said.
He shrugged as he decided not to bother finding out what Krim said. If it was important, he wouldn't have mumbled it. Will stretched his arms as he made his way to the couch, falling down on the soft cushions as his hand reached for the remote, turning on the TV.
"This is the fifth building to have been blown up this week." The words of the news reporter caught his attention as he turned his gaze to look at the screen. "As with previous cases, police are finding little to no evidence to where the bombs were placed inside the buildings. Another notice is that no one has been claiming to be the bomber for these attacks, giving the police little to no trails of finding the criminal. Until further notice, the Chief of Police has advised any and all major and minor business buildings to be prepared in case of a bombing."
"A bombing…" Will muttered as he thought about it for a second. The buildings looked as though they were picked at random, so the bomber must've been a madman. "Hey Krim… do you think…"
"A Roidmude is behind this? It is possible. They seem to like going into hiding periodically, minus Chaser of course. He seems to always be on the hunt for you."
"Considering their leader 'Brain' saw my face, I wouldn't doubt it if they know who I am now."
"That's a danger we are forced to prepare for. But again… for the Roidmudes to have hidden themselves for half a year this time…"
"Yeah… they really acknowledge Drive as a threat, so they've gone into hiding to prepare themselves for me. But, luckily for us, they always reveal themselves eventually."
"Fortunately for us, Drive's arsenal is also still being improved. Rinna has begun creating Drive's next body, and it will be ready once she gets the required research for it. She is almost done with creating Drive's next weapon."
"A new weapon? What will it be this time?"
"Hm… I'd rather let it surprise you."
"Really? Well, you are the belt… I guess…"
"Driver."
"Driver?"
"Yes. Driver. While I am the belt, the belt is also known as the Drive Driver."
"Drive… Driver? That's… not a very creative name."
"And Handle-Ken is?"
"Touché."
"We've just received reports of Noise appearing 5 miles east of the city." The news caught their attention again as they both looked at the screen, listening to their words. "Police have already cut off the roads leading to the east to prevent anyone coming in contact. Soldiers have been deployed to destroy the Noise and minimize any possible casualties."
Will looked down at Shift Wild, half his mind saying to grab the Shift Car and run outside for the Tridoron. The other half said to stay where he was because he knew someone else would be taking care of the Noise in Drive's place.
"Will. Do you want to go and help?"
"No… by the time we get there, the soldiers might be dead and we'll most likely see either Chaser or Tsubasa when we get there. It'll be best if we let Tsubasa do this one since she's not being hunted by a Roidmude executioner."
"I suppose you are right. It will be best for us to engage Chaser again when Drive's new weapon is complete."
Soldiers were engaged in a fight against a large army of Noise, all of them firing at the Noise in hopes of killing them before they could get any closer.
Their bullets had no effect on the Noise at all, either just bouncing off or being absorbed into the Noise's bodies.
"S-Sergeant! The Noise aren't backing down at all! What do we do?!" A solider asked his superior, his gun having run out of ammunition.
"Use the tanks! If our bullets don't work, use the tanks and explosives!" The sergeant gave them the order as the tanks rolled in from behind. From their barrels, much larger and explosive canisters were loaded in before firing. Upon contact, they released a large explosion that engulfed numerous groups of the Noise.
Some of the soldiers smiled slightly, thinking they were succeeding in killing the Noise. Their hopes were crushed, however, when the Noise they thought had blown up were still standing, but were now gathering together before combining to create a much larger, humanoid shaped Noise.
Their looks of hope were instantly replaced by those of fear, some even shaking in their boots at the size of the giant Noise.
"By the gods…" The sergeant couldn't help but look at the Noise in either fear, or awe. His eyes were almost glued onto its giant form, unaware of the helicopter flying above.
Imyuteus Ame no Habakiri Tron
The sound of someone singing caught the soldier's attention, confusing them when they heard it.
(Ya-Haiya- setsuna hibiku Ya-Haiya- mujō e)
(Ya-Haiya-Haiya-Haiya-ie chikara yo kaeran)
(Ya-Haiya-Haiya-Haiya-ie Ame no Habakiri Yae-)
From the helicopter, the familiar form of a certain bluenette jumped out from the side, falling down towards the ground as her body was encircled by a glowing white sphere that flashed, engulfing her body before her transformation took place.
Hayate wo iru gotoki yaiba uruwashiki wa sen no hana
Yoi ni kirameita zangetsu kanashimi yo jōdo ni kaerinasai...towa ni
Dōkoku ni hoetatsu shura isso tsurezure to shizuku wo nugutte
Omoide mo hokori mo hitofuri no raimei e to
Tsubasa landed on the ground, her transformation finishing as it released a pulse that not only changed the Noise's color, but also gave them physical forms that she could attack.
"Tsubasa, gauge the enemy's strength and then assist the army." Genjuro's order came through the small earpiece she had as she reached to her hip, a small compartment opening in her armor before a small dagger came out. She grabbed the dagger, pulling it out as it immediately grew larger to take on the form of a katana.
"There is no need. I can handle this alone." She responded, going against his order.
"Tsubasa!" Genjuro yelled out to try and get her to listen to him again, but he couldn't continue as she ran towards the Noise.
Sarinasai! Musō ni takeru honō
Kagura no kaze ni meshi sangese yo
Yami wo sake suikyō no iroha uta yo rin to ai wo kazashite
Iza yukan...kokoro ni michita ketsui shin naru yūki mune ni toite
Ā kizuna ni subete wo toshita senkō no ken yo
The blades on her heels grew longer as she jumped forward, flipping halfway through the air as she landed on her hand. Upon contact, she began spinning while using only her hand to keep her up, the blades on her heels cutting through the Noise as she traveled through them and began cutting through them as she moved.
Wight Slayer
Shi no go no iwazu ni ina, yo no shibuki to hate yo
Waga yo tare zo tsune naran" to zenrei ni te iza hofuru
Mayoi wo tachikiru sube nado kakugo wo kiba e to kaeru shika...shiranai
She used her arm to push herself into the air, flying high into the air as numerous swords began forming around her. Once they finished multiplying, she gave them the command to fall down, each one falling straight to the ground while also cutting through Noise, impaling them and killing them.
One Thousand Tears
Sadame no higeki no kako wo tsuyoku...tsuyoku nareba itsuka kireru to
Nazeka...nazeka...nazeka? Namida nado iranu no ni
She fell back onto the ground, using her sword to slice through a Noise that tried to jump on her from behind. She let her momentum carry her blade, the blade shrinking before becoming a dagger again as she threw it at the shadow of the giant Noise.
Shadow Weaving
The Noise found it impossible to move, not capable of creating even the smallest movement of its arms or legs.
Hotobashire! Kono inochi tsukiru made
Tomo ni mita yume ga kanau toki made
Kanadeatta ano hibi wo torimodosa'n onibi no seisai nite
Iza toban...seotta dotō no hane danzai no tenkū ni maite
Tashikameyou onaji basho ni wa irarenai...dakara
She used the blades on her heels to cut through the Noise with swift kicks, cutting them in half or into smaller pieces before they disintegrated. She turned around swiftly as she used her hand to punch a Noise, her fist knocking it back and into another as she ran towards both to use the blades on her heels to cut them both in half with one kick.
Jareru ni wa akita ina, hi no mokuzu to kie yo
Hakanaki kioku no merodi yurari fuwari to kaoru
Hoshi wo miage chikai wo tateru mou nigenai...mō nakanai to
Ā...rasetsu no sōyoku yo ima koso sā...zen no kaihō wo
Once she was sure she had finished the normal sized Noise, she ran towards the giant one. She went under its legs as she knelt down, grabbing her dagger from its shadow as it grew back into its katana form. Once free, the giant Noise turned around, lifting its arm above itself and bringing it down to smash the ground.
Tsubasa used the force of the attack to send her into the air, her blade growing additional plating before they combined to make her katana take on the form of a large greatsword.
Sarinasai! Musō ni takeru honō
Kagura no kaze ni meshi sangese yo
Yami wo sake suikyō no iroha uta yo rin to ai wo kazashite
Iza yukan...kokoro ni michita ketsui shin naru yūki mune ni toite
Ā kizuna ni subete wo toshita senkou no ken yo
Blue energy gathered around the blade of her weapon, bringing it over her head before she swung. The blade released a familiar wave of blue energy that flew through the air and towards the Noise.
Blue Flash
Upon contact with the Noise, the attack cut straight through its body, cutting it in half as both sides turned black as it disintegrated. Its ash was blown away by the wind, the remains leaving the scene as its once giant form was reduced to nothing more than small bits of carbon.
Shi no go no iwazu ni ina, yo no shibuki to hate yo
(Ya-Haiya-Haiya-Haiya-ie chikara yo kaeran)
(Ya-Haiya-Haiya-Haiya-ie Ame no Habakiri Yae-)
Tsubasa landed on the ground, some plates on her armor opening to release some steam as her armor cooled itself down. Her sword returned to its katana form as she jumped to leave the scene, her form disappearing into the dark sky above.
The soldiers were left standing there, unsure of what they just saw.
Morning had come as a man was standing on a rooftop across from a building that was in the process of being constructed with a camera in his hands. The man was also whistling, adjusting his camera as he prepared it to take a photo.
Once he was sure the camera was ready, he lifted it up to look at the building, his finger on the button to take a photo.
The moment he placed his finger on the button, an explosion occurred at the building across from him, crumbling downwards as he took a picture of it.
"And this is the third building to collapse…" Rinna said as she looked at the board beside Jun's desk, pictures of each scene where a building collapsed for some reason. "Kyo, were there any similarities?"
"Each one occurred in the morning. Luckily, there haven't been any casualties… yet." He tapped on his keyboard for a second as a new window popped up. "But, the strange thing is that each building were built by Kaishima City Construction."
"Then… what does this mean…?" Jun was pondering as they spoke, sounding somewhat oblivious to the conversation around him.
"It means they aren't accidents, but attacks. And the culprit… also has a grudge against the construction company." She waved her stirring rod slightly before pointing it towards Gen right next to her.
He blinked slightly as he looked at her, clearing his throat. "Don't even think about it. There weren't any of your particle things at any of the scenes!"
"But it doesn't add up… What's the meaning?"
"The meaning is that there are none of your stupid monsters involved, that's what!"
Jun frowned slightly as he raised his phone in front of him. "My fortune says I'm going to have bad luck with money…" He spoke again as his eyes grew wide the next second. "Eh?! 'You'll make a remarkable discovery?!' What do you think it means?!" He said as he turned his phone around to let everyone else see the screen.
Gen, Rinna, and Kyo all faltered slightly when they realized he wasn't paying attention to the conversation at all.
"You weren't listening at all?!" Gen said, believing Jun was talking about the collapsed buildings and not his fortunes. He fixed himself as he stood back up, looking around the room as he realized something. "By the way… where are the kids?"
"Will called in to say he was going to be late. He said he slept through his alarm clock. Hisui said she's going to be late or gone today completely because she and her mother are apparently preparing for her brother. She says her brother was in America for the past few years with a family friend, so they're preparing for him to come here."
"Really? Is her brother anything like her?"
"Gen! We told you she was acting that way because her mother was missing!"
"Whatever!" Gen said as he left the office.
As they were speaking, Jun was reading a paper that showed the unit's budget, suddenly yelling in shock when he realized something.
"I knew it! The coma was in the wrong spot! Our precious unit's budget has been cut!"
Will ran beside the streets, adjusting his scarf around his neck as he had little time to properly prepare himself for today.
'Dang it! I knew I shouldn't have left that thing on sleep!' He thought to himself, slightly cursing himself for forgetting to turn his alarm clock on again as Midnight Shadow had to wake him up again.
He turned the corner in front of him as he saw the station in front of him, smiling slightly as he was glad he was going to get there quickly. He ran towards it as his pace slowly began dwindling, eventually stopping entirely when he made it into the front parking lot.
He sighed as he managed to catch his breath quick, pulling straightening himself as he pushed on his back. Once he felt ready, he stepped towards the doors to the station as his hand stopped moving the moment he heard the sound of a click.
He turned towards the direction he heard the click, realizing it sounded like the one a camera would make. The source oddly came from the bushes on the front of the station.
Growing concerned and curious, he pulled his hand away from the doors as he instead moved to find the person or thing that took a photo of him. As he got closer, he saw the bushes begin to shake, his eyes narrowing as he jumped forward, his hand reaching into the bushes as he grabbed cloth.
"I-I'm sorry!" The voice of a man spoke out from inside the bushes under him, his hand coming off the cloth. The bushes shook again as a man came out from the bushes, revealing themselves to be young with black hair and a brown outfit that looked like one a photographer from a previous decade would wear.
"Who are you and why are you taking photos outside a police station?"
"I'm just a photographer! Here! I have my card!" He reached into the breast pocket on his jacket, pulling out a card as Will took it from his hand.
"Takasugi Kenta? East City Times Society Reporter?" He read from the card before turning his onyx orbs towards Kenta. "Alright, why is a reporter outside a police station and taking pictures?"
"I'm… I'm hoping to get a scoop on the Kamen Rider." Kenta replied, looked at Will with eyes that looked as though they were filled with determination to achieve his goal.
"Wait… what?" Will asked, confused by his words as he could feel worry building up inside him. 'Oh no… did he somehow find out I'm Drive? Does this mean he's a Roidmude instead?'
"You're an officer with the Special Crimes Unit, so I thought that if I hang around you or atleast find you, I'd see the Kamen Rider."
'Oh, that makes things easier.' Will stepped backwards to get out of the bush, Kenta behind him as he handed back his card. "Look, I know of the whole thing a reporter will do a lot of things to get a big scoop, but don't hang around us, please. The cases we handle are dangerous, maybe even life threatening for those who aren't prepared."
"I… I understand…"
"Alright. See you later." Will turned around and began making his way to the station, waving his hand over his shoulder. "Good luck with your scoop."
Before Will could open the door to the station, Gen stepped out, immediately looking towards him.
"Kid! You're coming with me!"
"Uh… what did I do?"
"Nothing! But you're coming with me anyways!"
"O… kay?"
Gen grabbed Will by his shoulder and pulled him along. Kenta watched both of them, pulling his camera up as he decided to follow.
Will got back up to his feet as he stopped looking at the rubble around him. Officers were everywhere as they were examining the scene, Gen speaking with another to get a report.
"Great… so another building did collapse…" He said to himself as he looked at the destruction that was the scene. Whatever happened here… it definitely looks like it wasn't pretty. "Hey, Gen. Why did you bring me here? This just looks like a regular bombing, so I don't see why I had to be brought."
"That's because the higher ups said it'd be best to make sure. Besides, it was either you and Hisui, or Kyo and Rinna. And I already know the nerd can't do anything more than look at a screen all day."
'To think I would expect something nice from you at least once. Good to know I was wrong…' He pulled his scarf up as he covered his mouth, looking around the scene again as his eyes spotted a familiar head of blonde hair with a familiar looking device on their person. "Hisui?"
She turned around when she heard someone call her name, seeing Will as she lowered the end of her Pikopiko. "Will?"
"I thought you were helping your mother with preparing for your brother."
"I was, but mom told me to go to work today since she can finish the rest." She took the helmet off her head as well as the straps, putting the device on the ground to rid herself of the weight on her back. "I guess Gen dragged you here."
"Yep." He replied, his eyes wandering to the Pikopiko. "Did you find any signs a Density Shift was here?"
"No. It hasn't responded to anything the whole time." She answered, hitting its side with a weak kick. "Either it's broken, or the culprit isn't a Roidmude."
"Well, not every case in the city has to be one with a Roidmude in it. That'd make finding them too easy."
"Yeah… hey, by the way, do you know that guy?" She pointed over his shoulder, causing him to turn around to see who she was pointing at as he saw Kenta taking pictures of the scene.
"You've got to be kidding me… he's a reporter I met not even half an hour ago."
"New friend of yours?"
"Just an acquaintance. For all I know, he might be trouble… I'm going to talk to him for a second." He adjusted the Shift Brace on his wrist as he moved towards Kenta.
As he moved, between he and Kenta, an explosion suddenly occurred, knocking over a pair of officers that were unlucky to be standing near it. Will had to step back and use his arm to cover himself to prevent any debris from flying towards his head, pulling his arm down to see the smoke coming from the newly made hole.
"Everyone! Get out now!" Gen commanded the other officers as many began making their way to the exit.
Kenta watched with surprise at the explosion before he took his camera up and took a quick picture. As he did this, he realized one of the officers that were close to the explosion was injured, moving towards the downed officers to help him get up.
"Hey, hang on alright." He said to the officer, looking towards the other officers as he began to yell. "Hey! Someone help!"
Will was on his way to get out of the scene when he heard Kenta's cry for help. He looked at Hisui for a second as she knew what he was telling her, nodding as she made her way to the exit.
He ran towards Kenta and the officer, getting down on his knees as he helped pull the officer up. They carried the officer on their arms towards the exit to get him to safety, but as they got close, another explosion happened in front of them, knocking them down.
Kenta groaned slightly as he was on the ground. Will grunted as he pulled himself up quickly, coughing because of the smoke before he felt a wave of Density Shift run by him.
Hisui was at the exit and looking at the scene before she too was affected by the sudden Density Shift. Gen was on the ground, the Density Shift passing right by him as he felt its affects immediately. 'Oh man… it's happening again!'
From the smoke, a figure could be seen coming into the sight.
The figure was metallic with their head a little off to their right while it looked like a camera's flasher, his left chest having a camera lens that looked as though it could be adjusted with wires connecting the lens and flash, a large plate of metal covering his left shoulder. His right shoulder was protected by a much smaller plate that also had the legs of a tripod hanging from it as his body was black in majority.
Without a doubt, it was a Roidmude that already evolved.
The Roidmude was making its way towards Gen, the officer on the ground backing away in fear slowly due to the Density Shift.
'You've got to be kidding me! Another monster?!'
Will's movement returned to normal when the power of the Shift Cars activated, Hisui soon following as they both looked at each other. They nodded towards the other as Will ran towards a hole in the wall, the Tridoron coming down the street and towards the building.
Hisui reached into the hidden holster she had attached to her belt, pulling out her gun as she fired towards the Roidmude. Sparks flew off its body as it flinched slightly, turning around to look at her as she fired again.
Will jumped over the debris as the Tridoron door opened, his hand going in and grabbing Krim.
"William!"
"On it!" He reached down as he grabbed Shift Wild, turning it. "Let's show him our wild side! Henshin!"
He put it into the Shift Brace as he turned the ignition, flipping Shift Wild.
"Drive: Type Wild!" Urban hip-hop music played as the holographic cylinder appeared around him, the armor latching onto his body as the Tridoron sent forward the tire that attached itself to his shoulder.
Once the transformation finished, Drive flexed his hand as if to make sure the armor fit him correctly. He then ran to the Roidmude, choosing to get his attention.
"Hey, Roidmude!" Drive said, catching its attention as he ran with his fist behind him. "Have this!" He said as he punched the Roidmude in the chest, the strength of Type Wild increasing his punching power as it was sent skidding backwards. "Alright… now that I get a better look at you… you look like a camera. I guess this means you're name is the Scooper Roidmude."
Scooper said nothing as he ran to Drive, swinging at him as he ducked to dodge the attack. Drive returned the favor by using the tire on his shoulder to hit Scooper, the power of the attack sending him flying into the air as he was sent up a level in the scene.
Drive looked up at where he sent Scooper, jumping up as he grabbing a metal bar sticking out of the concrete before pulling himself up to see Scooper running towards him.
As they fought, Gen was still on the ground, looking up as a pillar was blocking the upper halves of Drive and Scooper while they were fighting. 'The Kamen Rider… his legs… are black?'
Drive blocked Scooper's attack by using his arm, using his free hand to punch Scooper in the chest and cause him to fly into a concrete pillar. He followed his attack by grabbing Scooper's arm, pulling him from the pillar and throwing him into another as he hit Scooper's back with his tire, causing Scooper's head to break into the pillar.
Scooper pulled himself out of the pillar, holding onto his head as pain went through his upper half. He made no attempt to speak as his yellow eye glew while his hands grabbed his lens, adjusting it slightly as a rainbow color came from the lens before he snapped a picture, releasing an orb of rainbow colors that flew towards Drive.
Drive ducked to avoid the projectile, but it went over his head and made contact with a steel beam. The orb changed shaped to that of a photograph for a second behind the around covered by the photograph suddenly disappeared. The beam lost the ability to stay up, falling down as Gen was unlucky enough to be under it.
'That's… that's not fair!' He began to panic inside his mind as Drive turned around to look.
Scooper took the chance he had to leave, jumping out of another hole in the wall as he fled the scene.
"Quickly, use Wrecker!" Krim summoned another Shift Car, this one green with a hook on top.
Drive took it and flipped its back, replacing Shift Wild with it as he flipped it.
"Tire Koukan!" A green tire with a wire and hook on it flew up to Drive, taking its place on his shoulder as he turned around to kick Shift Wild's tire towards where Scooper was, not realizing he had escaped before he turned around as the tire planted itself in the wall. "Hooking Wrecker!" Krim's symbol changed to that of a hook.
"Darn… he's gone." Drive complained slightly as he grabbed the hook on his tire, pulling it out to give it more length as he threw it around the beam falling towards Gen, the hook and rope wrapping around it before securely fastening itself to the beam. With little effort, Drive pulled the beam away from Gen and threw it to the side.
Drive turned back to where he last saw Scooper as the hook began retracting back to the tire, stopping at his hand as he began to spin it around. "He's fast… but I'll find him again."
Gen was covered in dust as he was also shaking like a madman.
"Gen, please! Calm down!" Hisui tried to stop his shaking, holding his shoulders as his shaking instead caused her to shake too, immediately pulling her arms off him.
"I am calm! I'm perfectly fine!" He said as other officers came to him to check on him. Hisui chose to let them deal with him instead, looking around to find Will. She found him not that far away, talking with the reporter that was at the scene.
"I told you… the cases we deal with are dangerous." Will was reprimanding him, somewhat ironic considering a teen was scolding a fully grown man.
"Yeah… b-but what about the Kamen Rider?!"
"… He was here."
"Really?! So he is real?!" Kenta grabbed his shoulders, holding onto Will and shaking him slightly. "Please! Tell me everything you know!"
"Please, keep your hands off." Will calmly removed Kenta's arms from his shoulders, looking at the reporter with a stern looking glare. He took a deep breath to calm himself, lifting his hand to wipe off the dust on his face. "Look, just steer clear of the Special Crimes Unit, please. You'll be glad you did."
As Will was talking with Kenta, Hisui realized there was another man on a rooftop opposite of the scene. The man had dark brown hair and a pair of glasses over his eyes as well as a camera in his hands. Once he realized she saw him, he stepped away from the edge and left her sight.
"It seems the earlier incident was caused by compromised steel beams." Krim was playing video footage of the attack Scooper did to cause the steel beam to lose its support and fall as Will and Hisui both watched it.
"The ends of the beam are missing." Hisui noted as Will nodded.
"Indeed. Our new enemy has a strange and dangerous power. We must exercise caution when dealing with him."
"Got it."
"Alright."
Will and Hisui agreed with Krim's words. Honking soon followed their words as Will felt something hitting the side of his foot, looking down to see a Shift Car that was red on the sides and front, but had a solar panel on top of it.
"It looks like Burning Solar needs to recharge."
Will looked down at the Shift Car before he came up with an idea.
"Laying on the grass in the middle of the day is one of the best…" Will let out a happy sigh as he rested his head on his hands, the soft, warm grass around him as Burning Solar honked in agreement.
Will stretched out on the grass to get more comfy as he smiled slightly. His smile disappeared when he heard someone call out to him.
"Officer!" Kenta's voice came from the side, making annoyance fill his mind as he rolled onto his side to avoid seeing the reporter.
"Of course he found me…"
"You did a good job yesterday." Kenta said as he placed a newspaper in front of Will.
Will looked at it for a second before he saw the headline and the picture, realizing it was the destroyed building he was at earlier as it looked to have been taken the moment it was collapsing.
"What the? Is this your photo?"
"No. It's Kusaka's."
"Kusaka?"
"A reporter who was hired the same time I was. We worked together for a while, but he began getting photos that were putting him on the headlines."
'The picture… Kusaka must've been there to take the picture the moment it began to collapse. But… to get a picture like this means he had to have prior knowledge about the building collapsing… I think I'm going to have to pay Kusaka a visit in the future…'
"Kusaka's been getting a lot of scoops about buildings collapsing… but I'm going to catch up to him by getting a scoop of the Kamen Rider! I will accomplish this task!" Kenta stood up, his hand in the air as he held himself triumphantly.
"Yeah… good luck with your goal." Will handed back the newspaper as Kenta accepted it back, putting it under his armor as he began adjusting his camera on his way.
Will let out a deep sigh as he felt grateful he finally left.
"Was it necessary to encourage him?" Hisui came out of nowhere as Will glanced at her for a second before laying back down.
"I don't want to do it… he just finds me now and he's kind of getting annoying. I don't want to really, but I want him to stop bothering me." He said before shooting straight up, his hands going around his body as if he was looking for something that should or should not be on him. "Wait, do I have a tracking device on me that he's using? Is there anything flashing on my back?"
"No, but there is a bright light on your eyes."
"Bright light on my eyes?" He asked, confused as his sight could not see any kind of bright light shining on either of them. He took his phone out and used the black screen's reflection to look at himself, seeing no light on his face other than the sun's. "There's not a bright light on my eyes."
She smirked slightly as she knelt down and grabbed Burning Solar. "There is, you're just not looking hard enough." She said before she turned Burning Solar to just the right spot, causing the attached solar panels to reflect the sunlight directly towards his eyes.
His eyes immediately reacted to the sudden brightness by squinting, lifting his arm to cover them. "Hey, that's not funny! I don't want to go blind!"
She only giggled in response before putting Burning Solar down. "Sorry, just making sure Burning Solar was fully charged."
"By trying to blind me?"
"That just means he's got a full battery. Now, it's time we got back on topic… I hope you've seen the picture on today's newspapers."
"Yeah… I have…"
"It seems he's finally found a method of evolving…" Heart spoke, coming up the steps towards Brain as Chase could be seen leaning against a pillar behind.
"Indeed. And to think he developed this new method in just a year since the fall of that red haired Relic user… He truly is a unique Roidmude."
"Perhaps the human he is with has begun to affect him?"
"It's events like this that make me remember just how foolish, grotesque, and over how much of a pest their race truly is." Brain turned his head to look over his shoulder and towards Chase, his sight seeing the Roidmude Executioner not paying attention to he or Heart. "Wouldn't you agree, Chase?"
"I couldn't care less about the humans… The only thing I am concerned about…" Chase took the Break Gunner out from his jacket, getting off his pillar before he used his weapon to punch straight through the pillar, causing it to fall onto the ground. "Is how I will kill the Kamen Rider!"
Brain and Heart could only stare at their fellow Roidmude, Heart feeling concerned for him. For Chase to be this obsessed with killing the Kamen Rider…
'This cursed human boy must have truly upset you, Chase.'
"Just how annoying is Takasugi to you?"
"Very."
"But how much on a scale of one to ten?"
"Seven… point five."
"That annoying?"
"… Ish."
"Ish?"
"He's only annoying when he appears out of nowhere and keeps on asking about Drive."
"Oh."
"Yep."
"Would you like to get rid of him?"
"I'm trying already."
"How so?"
"By finishing this case so he can leave me alone. I have reason to believe his friend, Kusaka, is related to the buildings collapsing."
"The reporter who took the pictures of the buildings when they collapsed… I can see why you think so."
"Hey, Will! Hisui! I found him!" Kyo spoke out as they ended their conversation, moving to the otaku officer as they looked at the screen, seeing the profile of Shunsuke Kusaka, a man with dark brown hair and a pair of glasses. "Here's the guy who photographed the buildings when they collapsed."
"Hey, I've seen him before…" Hisui said as Kyo and Will looked at her, gaining their attention. "I saw him after the attack at the scene. He was on a roof opposite of the building before he left."
"So he was there at the scene…" Will said, feeling the pieces in his mind beginning to come together.
"Yeah… hey Kyo, can you show us the photos he's taken already?" Hisui asked as Kyo nodded, pulling open another window that showed the pictures of all four of the buildings that have collapsed.
They all looked at the photos, seeing how each one was taken the exact moment they begun to collapse.
"Each photo… it's almost as if he knew they would be attacked."
"The angle and timing is just too perfect… like he knew in advance."
"If what you guys are saying is right, he's a suspect." Kyo looked back at his profile before typing on his keyboard, bringing up the address of the East City Times building. "Here, he works here. You guys should probably get moving now if you want to find him."
They both nodded as Will spoke up again.
"Hold on, I've got a plan…"
At the East City Times parking lot, Kusaka just unlocked his car as he was preparing to leave.
"Mr. Kusaka?" He turned around to see Hisui walking towards him, holding up her badge to get his attention. "I'm with the Special Crimes Unit. Do you have a minute?"
"What do the police have to do with me?"
"I'm going to go and talk to Takasugi again while you talk with Kusaka. They both got hired at the same time, so there must have been something to have happened for both of them." Will's words echoed through her mind as she continued. "It's about your pictures… they were taken the moment those buildings were collapsing, so did you have prior knowledge to their destruction?"
"What?" Kusaka asked her, sounding annoyed by her question. "What proof do you have to say something like that?"
"According to the security from the building just across the street from the most recent collapse, you were on the roof with your camera before it happened. This means you knew the building was going to collapse before it actually happened."
"Really? That's what this is about?" Kusaka scoffed, now fully annoyed with her. "Then please, explain how I would knock down a building. The reason why those buildings fell down is because of their horrible construction, which is no surprise considering who built them."
Kusaka turned around when he was finished as he got in his car, driving away and leaving the parking lot. Hisui looked at him as she reached down, grabbing Midnight Shadow from her own Shift Car Holder, pointing towards Kusaka's car. "Go after him and keep track of him."
Midnight Shadow honked in response as it drove towards Kusaka's car. She watched the small purple Shift Car drive after Kusaka as she felt her phone vibrate, taking it out to see she had a message. She opened her phone to read the message.
"I'm not having any luck with finding Kenta. He didn't come in today apparently, so I'll wait outside for you to pick me up.
-Will."
She could feel the sigh building up within her throat, deciding not to let it escape as she kept it down.
"Does this mean Kusaka is a suspect?" Kenta had appeared from behind a pillar, standing in front of Hisui.
'Well…I found him, Quinn.' She turned her attention to Kenta, nodding at his question. "Yes, he is a suspect."
"If Kusaka really is a suspect… shouldn't you be chasing after him? I might not know much about police work, but you're supposed to find evidence, right?"
"Yes." She responded as she took her phone out, typing a message.
"I sent Shadow after Kusaka. We'll catch up to him."
She sent the message before turning back to Kenta. "My partner and I got here in a van, so I hope you don't mind joining us."
"Oh… sure." Kenta agreed with what she said as they both got into the Unit van she arrived in. He got in the back as she got in the driver seat, driving out from the parking lot as she got above ground, moving to the front entrance of the building before stopping.
In a minute, the passenger door opened as Will got inside, getting in the passenger seat as he buckled himself.
"By the way, found him." Hisui said as he turned towards her, looking confused.
"Pardon?"
"I found Takasugi."
"Really? Where is he?"
"Right here." Kenta announced his presence to the young Quinn as he turned around, seeing the reporter behind him as all he said a soft 'oh'.
They stepped out onto the area in front of a large building that multiple people were either entering or leaving. Hisui knelt down as Midnight Shadow drove into her hand, picking up the purple Shift Car as she looked back up.
"So… this building will be the next one to collapse…"
"Collapse?" Kenta asked, realizing what she mean't. "You mean Kusaka is going to take down this building?"
"If it's Kusaka, then he's already set up in his location. He'll be ready to snap the next photo when it does fall down." Will kept his eyes up at the roof of the building, not taking his sight off. "We just need to find him to see if he really is the guy taking down buildings."
"Mr. Yoshida!" Kenta called out to an elderly security member, catching their attention as they actually smiled at the sight of the reporter. "I've come for another pep talk!"
"Takasugi, you little guy… how long do I have babysit you?" Yoshida said as he hit Takasugi in the stomach in a playful manner.
"So, he's Takasugi's mentor when he was still working for the paper…" Will and Hisui were right behind them as they moved closer, taking their badges out to show the security guard. "Sorry to interrupt, but we'd like a moment of your time."
When Yoshida saw their badges, he bowed towards both of them. "I see the youth of the current generation have begun taking on dangerous jobs… I'm sorry, but how are two young ones like you both officers?"
"I was helping my mother with her job since I was 13."
"I chose to be an officer and I was hired when I was 15."
"But… how old are both of you right now?"
"16." Will answered.
"17." Hisui answered as Yoshida nodded. He grabbed Kenta by his shoulder, pulling them away from the two teenage officers as they had their own conversation. "Takasugi, did you bring them here?"
"Y-Yes… it's about Kusaka…"
"Kusaka? What did he do?" Yoshida went silent as he began thinking, remembering something from before. "Wait… is it about the story?"
"Pardon me, but what story?" Will stepped forward, hearing what they were talking about. "I hope you don't mind telling us about it."
"Hm… Takasugi, it's your choice if you want to tell them."
"… It began a year ago. Kusaka and I were working together on a big story. Kaishima City Constructions was suspected of negligence. We were thorough in our investigation and got all the evidence we needed. When we turned it in, they said they were going to run through our story. But… it never made it to print. They were accusing Kusaka of staging the photos. There was a lot of arguing, but eventually, Mr. Yoshida took the fall for us."
"So that's why you believe Kusaka won't attack this location…" Hisui realized his reasoning as Kenta nodded.
"Yeah… even for a scoop, even Kusaka wouldn't attack this building with Mr. Yoshida in it."
Will was silent as he could feel it. Inside his mind, he could feel the pieces of the puzzle all coming together and forming the picture they hid, his hand going up to his scarf to tighten it around his neck.
"I see… you knew the truth all along, Kenta. You wanted me to figure it out myself."
"Eh?"
Before either of them could continue, a Density Shift passed by all of them, affecting everyone but Will and Hisui. They both turned to each other, nodding.
"Will! Hisui! He's on the roof of the building across from us!" Krim was speaking to them through Shift Speed, Will quickly kneeling down and grabbing the Shift Car.
"On it!"
"Roger!"
On the roof, Kusaka was whistling calmly as he was putting together his camera, completely unaffected by the Density Shift. He reached his hand out as he grabbed the lens of his camera, putting in on his camera to finish putting it together.
"So you're this desperate to get a scoop?" Will and Hisui arrived on the roof behind him, closing in on him as they moved closer.
"So you really are the culprit…" Hisui said as Will stopped moving, turning to look at her.
"Um, Hisui, he's not the one that's been destroying the buildings."
"Huh?"
"He's right, little lady. You are mistaken." Kusaka spoke with a calm tone behind his words, smirking slightly.
"What do you mean?"
"What we're saying is he's not the Roidmude. There's a second culprit, and he's-"
He was cut off when they both had to duck, avoiding blasts of energy that would have hit them. They both looked up at the source of the attacks, seeing Scooper above.
"Like I was saying, the second culprit was the Roidmude…" Will finished as he stared at Scooper, watching the Roidmude jump down to stand beside Kusaka.
The humans are simply the catalysts we use for our comrades to evolve. Their usefulness ends once we have copied their memories and identity." Brain took his gaze off his tablet, looking up at Heart to see his fellow Roidmude leader smiling. "However, we have found out that humans who have weak wills impede our evolution."
"Which is the reason why 033 decided to assist this human by granting his desires, feeding off him instead of taking his form."
"To think… humans and Roidmudes conspiring together would create a new form of evolution… We grow closer to the Promised Number." Brain's grin slowly shrank, soon becoming a frown. "But, there is still an obstacle in our path… that Kamen Rider…"
"Do not worry, Brain. I am sure our friend will be more than capable of ending his worthless life."
"All this time, I wanted more and more scoops. I will capture the fear and despair brought by disaster!" Kusaka revealed his scheme, laughing as if he would never be stopped.
"Once he gets his pictures, I will absorb his gratitude and become even more powerful!" Scooper said as his hands went straight to the lens on his chest, adjusting it slightly as he fired an orb of energy towards them both.
They jumped to the sides to dodge, Hisui's hand grabbing the gun from her holster as Will flipped Shift Speed and put it in the Shift Brace, his hand going down to his waist to find empty air.
'Right… I don't have Krim yet.'
Scooper let out a confident grunt, but his body flinched as yellow energy began coursing around his body. He seemed to be struggling to maintain himself before his form changed to a bat Roidmude numbered 033.
"Damn… my form is still unstable…" Scooper said as sounded annoyed and angry.
"Hey… what about my scoops?!" Kusaka grabbed Scooper and shook his shoulder.
"I know about your damn scoops!" Scooper growled at him as he threw his arm off his shoulder. "I'll get you a scoop!" Scooper walked past him and towards the edge, yellow energy covering him as he changed back to his evolved form.
Scooper turned towards the building they were just at, lifting his hand up to his lens as he adjusted it slightly before multiple colors danced around the lens. After finishing his adjustments, he snapped a photo.
From his head, his eye glew as a photo began materializing in front of him, the photo being a picture of the building. He grabbed the photo, looking at it as his hand moved to the picture before he poked a part of the building. The photo seemed to distort somewhat around the spot he poked, the same effect happening on the same position of the building.
In less than a second, an entire section of the building disappeared, some pieces falling from the newly made hole in the building.
Will and Hisui both looked at the sudden change in shock, now realizing the power of this Roidmude.
"Now… If I destroy two more spots, then that building will come crumbling down…" Scooper waved his finger in front of the photo, choosing another location to destroy.
Will and Hisui turned to each other, their eyes and expressions telling each other what they needed to know as she raised her gun towards Scooper as Will ran towards him.
She aimed her weapon towards Scooper's hand, pulling the trigger as the bullet inside was fired out of the barrel, flying through the air before hitting Scooper's hand. Sparks flew off his hand as he dropped the photo, Will sliding under his arm as he grabbed the photo and stood up.
"Hey! Give that back!" Kusaka yelled at Will as he ran to get the photo back.
"Sorry, but I'm not letting you take don this building!" Will grabbed the top of the photo with both his hands, ripping it in half. Everyone on the roof looked at him before they all turned towards the building, watching as they were anticipating something.
Seconds went by as none of them brought their gazes off the building. Eventually Will, let out a deep breath, his posture falling completely.
"Thank you lady luck for proving me wrong…"
"The building…" Kusaka was stunned as he saw the building still standing. "It's… still there…"
"Hm… I have to admit… I did wonder what would happen when the photo was torn in half…" Scooper admitted before he shrugged his… 'shoulders.' "I'll just take another picture." He lifted his hands up to his lens again, adjusting it.
"You… damn kid!" Kusaka ran towards Will, but Hooking Wrecker came out of nowhere and used his hook to trip Kusaka, falling onto the ground as the impact caused a small chip to fall off him. Once the chip was gone from him, the effects of the Density Shift immediately hit him.
When he realized the chip was no longer on him, he reached out to get it again.
Will saw the chip, but turned his attention towards what was more important. He lifted his foot up to kick Scooper's lens, causing him to lose the focus and angle he had as he snapped a picture, his eye creating the photo as it was of the sky.
"Why you…"
Will did not respond as Hooking Wrecker came around him, Krim attached to his hook as he dropped the Driver around his waist. Will turned the ignition as he grabbed Shift Speed, saying the magic word.
"Henshin!" He flipped the Shift Car as the cylinder appeared around him, the armor soon latching onto him.
"Drive: Type Speed!" Upbeat jazz music played again as the tire flew up the side of the building, Handle-Ken beside it before both falling onto Drive's torso to finish the transformation as the weapon landed in his hand.
"You're going to have to give me some time to come up with something picture related…" Drive said, confusing Scooper as he threw away his picture of the sky.
"What the heck are you talking abou-" Scooper was cut off when Drive cut his chest, following his attack with a kick to cause the Roidmude to stumble backwards.
Drive lept forward as he cut Scooper again, the Roidmude retaliating by swinging his arm. Drive lifted Handle-Ken up to not only block the attack, but to then slice downwards as sparks flew off his body. Drive didn't stop as he grabbed Scooper by one of his tripod legs hanging from his arm, pulling him and causing him to spin around while he sliced at his head.
Drive kicked him again to put distance between both of them, his hand grabbing Shift Speed and lifting it.
"Spe-Spe-Speed!" His tire began spinning rapidly around his torso, running forward as he began cutting away at Scooper at a much faster speed than before. Sparks were flying off Scooper's body, smoke coming off him shortly as Drive stopped swinging his blade to perform a spin kick to his head, sending him to the ground.
Drive tossed his sword to the side as he pressed the red button on the Shift Brace.
"Hissatsu! Full Throttle: Speed!" Drive jumped into the air, his leg coated in red energy as he performed the finisher.
"Execution!" A familiar dark voice spoke out as a figure got between Drive's finisher and Scooper. "Break Spider!"
Drive's foot was met by a large, silver weapon that blocked the attack, soon overpowering him and forcing him back as Drive fell backwards as he landed on the ground.
Chaser lowered his weapon as he looked at Drive. "Leave. The Kamen Rider is mine."
Scooper said nothing as he got back up, grabbing Kusaka and the chip that came off him as he jumped off the side of the building.
Drive wanted to pursue, but the presence of Chaser prevented him from doing so.
"Kamen Rider… you have been a thorn in the Roidmude's side for too long. Today shall be the day you fall… William Quinn."
"Cruuuuuuud… they do know I'm Drive."
Chaser reached down to his side as he pulled out another Viral Core, this one looking like a snake. He took out the spider one and replaced it.
"Tune: Chaser Cobra!" The sound of a monstrous cobra followed by a hiss came from Chaser's weapon as the front sides of the Fang Spidey folded backwards, a purple pulse traveling down to the cord before reaching the weapon, causing a cobra like whip to form. To show the strength of his weapon, Chaser used it to whip the ground to his side, the whip breaking the concrete beneath him.
"That's… not… good…"
"Will… it is best to avoid being hit by that whip. His spider attachment was powerful enough to match your finisher, and we don't know what he can do with that whip."
"That's what I'm afraid of…" Drive prepared himself as he raised his fists, his sight dashing to the side to look where he dropped Handle-Ken. 'Come on… where did I toss it?'
Chaser began slowly advancing towards him, raising the Tail Whipper as it was moving on its own, even hissing towards Drive. Drive gave up looking for his sword, tightening his fists as he began walking towards Chaser.
Chaser discarded whatever honor that may have been in the fight, swinging his whip towards Drive as he jumped to the side, the whip cracking the ground where his leg was. Drive looked at the spot he just standing at, getting a better understanding of Chaser's new weapon.
"That's not good…" He spoke to himself, looking at Chaser's whip.
Inside the helmet, Will looked at the screen that was provided by the Drive system, checking the status of the armor. He took a deep breath before exhaling, dropping his fists to the side. 'Okay… if he can attack at a longer range than before, I need to know what movements I can and can't make…'
Chaser watched Drive, anticipating the next attack at any second. When he saw Drive seem to lower his guard, he took the opportunity to swing his whip again.
Drive looked up at the whip coming for him, stepping to the side calmly as the whip the ground again. Chaser didn't pull it back as he swung it to the side, intent on the whip wrapping around Drive.
Instead, Drive jumped over the whip, landing on his feet as his hand reached out and grabbed the whip, wrapping it around his arm before pulling. Chaser couldn't hold his ground as he was pulled forward, Drive's foot meeting his face as Drive spun on one foot, bringing his other foot around again to kick Chaser on the side of his head and send him to the side.
Chaser landed on the ground, slamming his fist against it as he began pushing himself up. He looked at Drive again, an angry grunt coming from him as he pushed himself back up to his feet. "Damn you… Kamen Rider!" Chaser ran towards Drive, swinging his whip again as Drive dodged by falling onto his back, flipping over quickly as he got up, grabbing the whip again.
Chaser stopped advancing as he pulled back his weapon, Drive pulling against him as they both entered a test of strength. They found themselves equal in strength, neither gaining any form of distance on the other. Chaser, however, pulled the trigger on the Break Gunner, firing from the barrel as Drive couldn't block them.
The bullets hit Drive, causing him to let go of the Tail Whipper as he stepped backwards, looking back at Chaser to see the whip coming for him as it wrapped around his leg. He silently cursed as his leg was pulled out from under him, falling onto his back before Chaser swung the whip, causing him to slide against the ground before slamming into the railing on the side of the roof. Chaser swung again, lifting the whip into the air as Drive was pulled upwards before slamming back down against the ground.
Drive groaned as he could feel the pain through his armor, his hands going to his leg and grabbing the Tail Whipper to tear it off him. Chaser let him do this as he pulled his whip back, swinging it again as it traveled along the ground, cracking it as it traveled before hitting Drive and knocking him backwards and in the air.
Drive landed on his back, his hands curled into fists that were tightening to try and ignore the pain. Chaser pulled his whip back as he pulled out another Viral Core, this one styled after a bat.
"Tune: Chaser Bat!" The sounds of bat wings followed by a screech came from the break gunner as the two front section moved forward to form the shape of a bow, the whip climbing back inside as purple energy began gathering in its place, soon forming the shape of a large arrow.
"Oh no..." Hisui said with worry behind her words, looking towards Drive.
Drive pulled himself up enough to sit straight up, seeing the new attachment as he could feel the slightest bit of fear grow inside him.
"Farewell, Kamen Rider… may you find peace in death." Chaser aimed the arrow directly for Drive's abdomen, more specifically, towards Krim. His finger found the trigger, squeezing it slightly.
Hisui ran forward, getting between Chaser and Drive as she raised her arms as if to block the attack.
"Human… get out of the way." Chaser commanded her, his aim still where he left it. She made no attempt to move out of the way, staying where she was.
"Hisui! Move! He will kill you!" Krim tried to deter her from staying between them, hoping to get her out of here before it was too late.
"No… if we lose Drive, then the Roidmudes won't be stopped!" She said, intent on staying right where she was.
Chaser had enough of their foolishness, pulling the trigger as he fired the arrow.
Drive stood up, his hand outstretched to reach her as he found his hand stopping.
Just as the arrow came closer to her, it suddenly changed trajectory, flying off to the side before piercing into a pillar before disappearing.
Everyone was silent as they looked at where the arrow disappeared, Drive and Hisui slowly turning to look at Chaser to see the Wing Sniper moving up the cord before reaching his back, turning into a pair of wings he used to fly away.
Drive undid his transformation, shaking his head as Will watched the form of Chaser leave his sight.
"What do you mean you let him live?!" Brain was outraged at what Chaser just told him.
"My work is my concern… not yours…" Chaser responded, his eyes glowing orange in the dark as he began walking away, leaving Brain behind him as Heart came out.
"I should've known… They're all obstinate, capricious, useless fools!" Brain complained as Heart turned towards him, showing the gentle smile he always had.
"Brain, there is no need for you to be so bent out of shape. Defeating the Kamen Rider… that is what Chase is mean't to do…"
As they were speaking, Chase had canceled his transformation, walking through the streets of the dark city with his Break Gunner still in his hand.
"Why… Why could I not shoot her?"
"You do know that even with Drive's armor, pain still goes to you, right?" Hisui asked him as she finished applying disinfectant on the wound on his arm, placing a bandage over it as he nodded.
"Yeah… even if I'm Drive, I'm not an invincible being." He flinched slightly when she finished wrapping his arm, flexing his hand to make sure he didn't experience any other form of damage. "Thank you…"
"You're welcome." She replied, placing the medicine and bandages back in the first aid kit.
"Hello~!" Rinna announced her presence as she entered the Drive Pit, immediately walking towards the two teens in front of her. "There's my favorite pair of officers~!"
"Hi Rinna…"
"Hello."
"Rinna, good to see you."
"Hello Krim!" She turned her attention towards the Rider in the room, standing in front of him. "Now, Will, I heard you got yourself into a nasty situation earlier. Can you tell me what happened?"
"… Chaser. He had more weapons."
"It's true. Because of this, we will have to rush the development of Drive's new gun to counter his weapons." Krim informed her as he also revealed what his next weapon will be.
Will heard it as he needed to say something.
"Hey, uh, Krim…"
"I'm going to have to pull another all nighter?" Rinna whined slightly as Krim turned towards her.
"I am sorry, but we are counting on you."
"Krim…"
"I guess I'll just have to cancel that group date plan…" Rinna turned and left as Hisui followed behind her.
"Now, Will. Go ahead and rest for the night. I'm sure fighting Chaser and fighting him must have used a fair bit of your energy."
"Krim… I'm trying to say-"
"Goodnight." Krim turned off by going into sleep mode, leaving Will as the only person awake in the Drive Pit.
"Dang it Krim…"
The next day had come as Kusaka was walking down the street, as calm as one could be. Behind, Midnight Shadow was following him. He saw Kusaka disappear around a corner, driving after him before he saw a figure jump out from around the corner and shoot at him, causing him to turn around and retreat to hide himself.
Scooper examined the ground in front of him, seeing no signs of the person or thing that was pursuing the photographer.
"Hmph… good. Now there isn't anyone who can get in the way, the scoop of the century should be easy… and so will my true evolution!" His body cackled with energy before turning into his evolved form again, following Kusaka.
"Morning…" Will yawned as he stepped into the Unit, hearing the sound of a camera snapping as he looked through his groggy eyelids before both opened fully.
"As such, I am the one in charge of this Unit!" Jun was speaking into a microphone with a sash around his torso while Kenta was in front of him, taking pictures of him. "The Special Crimes Unit- officially called the Special Affairs Division Crime Scene Unit- is involved in any case that is paranormal or involves the Density Shift! We work tirelessly to protect the people…"
"What the…" He had no idea what he just walked into, only blinking at what he was looking before groaning. "I didn't get enough sleep…"
"Ah, William!" Jun called out to him as it caused him to flinch, Kenta turning around to see him.
"Ah, the young officer!"
'Dang it…' "Hey, Ju- I mean Chief, what are you doing?"
"Isn't it obvious? We're doing an exclusive interview. You didn't hear it before, but our budget has been cut! People have no idea how hard we are working, so I thought I could boost our image." He held his hand towards Kenta as the reporter smiled before bowing. "Oh, and if you have any questions, be free to ask them."
Kenta smiled as he knew just the question, but Jun moved the microphone forward as he was almost shoving it into his face. Kenta did his best to ignore it as he asked his question. "I was hoping… can you tell me everything you know… about the Kamen Rider?"
Jun blinked at him. "You want information about the Human Rider?" Jun asked, completely butchering if not changing what Kenta asked.
"That's… nowhere near what he asked." Kyo said as Gen smirked, stepping forward.
"If you want information about the Kamen Rider, I've got some! I've already seen him twice!"
"You've seen the Human Rider?" Jun asked, still believing what he was asking was the subject.
"Hardly! All you've seen is his arm!" Kyo reputed, but Gen turned around and lifted his leg and pointed at it.
"Not anymore! I've even seen his legs! We've finally got ourselves some leg action! … And just so you know, his legs are black!" Gen began bragging about seeing Drive, eventually turning into an argument with Kyo. Jun was still confused about what they were talking about, soon getting himself involved.
Kenta and Will could only stand to the side and watch the three men.
"Sorry… but… they're more like… how do I put this…" Will looked up at the ceiling, holding his chin as he tried to think of the right words. "Bodily wise, they're men, but in maturity… they're… well, they can act like children and even bicker like them, but they have their moments."
"With the rumors surrounding you guys, I can see it."
"Yeah…" He watched as the other males of the Unit (and the nonofficial member) kept bickering between each other like they truly were children in men's bodies. Jun had an excuse since he was getting old, but Kyo and Gen… that was a different story. "But hey… I need to ask. The reason why you want a scoop on the Kamen Rider… I think I know why."
"Oh?"
Before they could continue, Hisui entered the office, walking straight towards Will.
"Shadow lost sight of Kusaka." She reported.
"Was he? Does that mean he was caught?"
"Wait… does this mean Kusaka is on the loose?" Kenta asked as they both looked at him.
They found themselves back in the East City Times building. Will was looking at the wall that was used to display Kusaka's achievements, reading each one as there weren't too many.
"Despite the renown he has around here, he doesn't have that many trophies to show his efforts…" Hisui noted as he had to agree.
"Here." Kenta came back to them after he went to grab something, handing them a newspaper that was dated a year ago… seeing the photo of a Font-R truck.
'Font-R again? Crush must've left a big impression on humans when he attacked…'
"Font-R was the last big scoop Kusaka and I had. Since then, he's been obsessed with finding another hit story. It was almost as if he became a different person…"
"And since then, you've been looking for this new superhero… the Kamen Rider." Will's words caught his attention as he saw his onyx orbs come off the paper and look towards him. "You didn't do it for the fame… what you wanted to do was save Kusaka from the Roidmude… you wanted to save your friend from a monster. Because of this… you came in contact with an officer in the Special Crimes Unit because all of the recent cases we've had, the Kamen Rider was also related to them. With that in mind, you were hoping that by hanging around us long enough, you'd find him."
Kenta didn't say anything as his gaze wavered, going off to the side as if he couldn't look at Will.
"This is why you stuck up for him back in that building. You were defending him because you knew he's been working with the Roidmude."
Kenta's hands were curled into fists as he gave him. "Yes…" He admitted, his arms somewhat trembling beside him. "Back when the second building collapsed, I saw both of them…"
"So you chose to defend him and save him because you felt guilty." Hisui concluded as Kenta nodded.
"Yes… It's been a year since our scoop on Kaishima has been shot down. He was so desperate to get a big scoop like that, but when we were shot down, he wanted to prove all our evidence was real. I… I was too heartbroken at the time to hear him out. He's sided with a monster… because I abandoned him. I trampled on our friendship." Kenta looked back at both of them, a shine of determination in his eyes. "I need to… I need to face him again! I need to save him from that monster!"
"You know it's dangerous to get near him now, right?" She asked, concerned for him because he was only human and had no method of moving through a Density Shift like either of them.
"Yes… to expose the truth, you have to be willing to get hurt… A man I respected told me those words, and I've followed them since."
"So we can't change your mind… great." Will said as Kenta nodded. He let out a deep breath as he began to think. Just what could he do to make sure he won't go anywhere near Kusaka while Scooper is still around? But more importantly, where will they attack next?
As if answering his curiosity, his phone rang. He took it out of his pocket, answering.
"Hello."
"Will, I managed to dig through the construction company's database, and they were all tied to some politicians." Kyo reported from the other end of the call, Will's eyes narrowing as he listened. "The reason why those guys weren't able to get their story through was because the big shots managed to pay off the news."
"Alright… did you find any trends?"
"I did… each building that collapsed was on ground owned by the politicians, and they've been attacked in order of newest to oldest. I even found out what the next target will be."
"Alright, mind telling me the next location?"
"Believe it or not… the International Sports Stadium."
The van sped down the street, traveling as fast as it could. Will's foot was showing the pedal no mercy as it would have broken through the bottom of the van had he been stronger.
Hisui and Kenta were in the other seats, looking out the windows. They were too preoccupied at the moment to realize a figure was in front of the van, raising their weapon before firing.
Will's foot moved straight from the gas and immediately to the brake, causing the van to come to a stop. They all would have flown out the window if not for their seatbelts, all of them looking at the person who fired at them to see Chase.
"Of course it's him…" Will sounded annoyed at the sight of him again as Kenta looked at him before back at Chase.
"You know the guy?"
"Yeah… you could say he's my biggest fan…" He took his belt off him as he grabbed the door, leaving. "Hisui, the wheel is all yours. I'll catch up."
"R-Right." She swapped seats as Will stood in front of Chase. The van moved forward, passing by Chase as he paid it no mind when it went right by him.
"I have no need to kill humans… They are not worth the effort." He raised the Break Gunner up before he slammed his hand down on the barrel.
"Break Up!" The cylinder appeared around Chase before his armor slammed onto his body, changing him into Mashin Chaser as the light in his eyes slowly died down. "Now, transform into Kamen Rider."
He said nothing as the Tridoron sped up behind him, coming to a stop as he turned around and reached inside, grabbing Krim off his perch before putting him on around his waist. His hand turned the ignition as he took out Shift Speed.
"Fine… let's ride. Henshin." He put Shift Speed into the Shift Brace before lifting it. The holographic cylinder appeared around him before the armor latched onto his body, the tire flying from the Tridoron to attach to his torso.
"Drive: Type Speed!" Upbeat jazz played again as Drive's eyes flashed, signaling the completion of his transformation. He turned around, reaching into the section that pulled back for the front left tire as Handle-Ken materialized and was put into his hand.
Drive and Chaser didn't bother with speaking to each other this time as they ran towards each other, their weapons raised in their hands.
Both ran towards the other like in their previous encounters, Chaser swinging his weapon towards Drive as he blocked it with his sword. Drive moved his leg to kick Chaser, but he was faster and pushed Drive away before he could attack.
They both pulled their fists back to punch, their fists meeting between them as Drive opened his fist to grab Chaser's, throwing his arm to the side to disable it for a second as he swung at the new opening, cutting Chaser as the Roidmude Executioner stepped back, raising the Break Gunner and pulling the trigger to shoot at Drive.
Drive quickly responded by ducking under his fire, jumping to the side to avoid the next shot as he jumped forward to cut downwards on Chaser. Chaser blocked the attack, taking out a Viral Core as he pushed Drive away, inserting the Viral Core.
"Tune: Chaser Cobra!" Purple energy gathered on his back before moving to his arm, the Tail Whipper forming on his arm as the cord connected it to his back. Chaser swung his whip, Drive countering the attack by swinging his sword and knocking it to the side.
The whip, however, returned to attack again as it slashed across Drive's chest, knocking him to the side as he turned himself back to Chaser, seeing the next attack coming for him from the side as he jumped backwards to avoid it.
Drive reached down to his hip and took out Shift Wild, replacing Shift Speed before lifting.
"Drive: Type Wild!" The cylinder appeared around him before the black armor latched onto him, his suit turning white as the Tridoron sent the new tire forward and onto his shoulder.
However, once the tire was on his shoulder, the Tridoron proceeded to then drive away.
"Huh? H-Hey, wait a minute…"
"Don't worry. This is my doing. Just continue the fight against Chaser until it returns."
Drive nodded as Chaser took out another Viral Core, switching weapons.
"Tune: Chaser Spider!" Chaser's weapon reshaped itself to the next form as he and Drive ran towards the other again to continue fighting.
Kusaka finished adjusting his camera, inspecting the lens as he made sure it was focused properly. Once he was positive it was just right, he spoke out. "Takasugi…" He said, turning around to look at Kenta and Hisui who was running to catch up to him. "What do you want?"
Kenta was quiet at first, but he knelt down and got on his hands and knees. "I was wrong last year. I'm sorry!" He apologized, bowing towards his fellow reporter and friend. "So please… just confess to staging the photos and pay your debts to society! And remember your old ideals!"
"Takasugi… there's no need for you to apologize." Kusaka responded, causing Kenta to look up at him with confusion.
"Eh?"
"Let's be honest, the truth never sells the papers. It's just the headlines being exciting that do."
"No… Kusaka, you're wrong! Please, snap out of it!" He cried to his friend, hoping to convince him to stop working with the Roidmude.
He was stopped when the Density Shift effect happened, affecting only him as Hisui and Kusaka were able to move normally.
"Sorry…" Scooper said, revealing himself. "But I can't let you interfere…"
"Sometimes I see why people hate this job…" Hisui said, pulling her gun out as she aimed at Scooper.
"Tire Koukan! Rumble Dump!"
The tire and drill flew to Drive before attaching to his shoulder and flying into his hand as he tossed Handle-Ken to the side, this time remembering where he threw his weapon so he won't repeat what happened last time.
Chaser swung the Fang Spidey towards him as he ducked, using his drill to deflect the attack from below before punching Chaser's abdomen. Chaser retaliated by swinging downwards, Drive having no time to dodge as he used the drill to block the attack.
He got up to his feet as he swung his drill, missing Chaser as he swung again. Chaser blocked his attack with his weapon, Drive spinning his drill rapidly in hopes to break through his weapon as yellow energy gathered around the drill while purple energy gathered around the Fang Spidey.
His drill kept digging to pierce the material of his weapon, pushing harder with more strength before Chaser pushed him back, punching his chest and knocking him backwards as he dropped his drill.
"Darn it… Even with Type Wild, he still has the advantage!" Drive muttered to himself as he raised his fists, prepared for a fist fight as Chaser walked towards him.
From behind, the familiar sound of the Tridoron's horn honked as Chaser turned around, being met by the Tridoron's projectiles shooting forward and hitting him before knocking him down.
"Good! It was finished just in time!" Krim exclaimed while smiling, causing Drive to look at the door as Rinna stepped out.
"And here's your new weapon, hot off the presses!" She happily said as she held a gun that was black in majority, but for some reason had a car door on the side.
"What the…" Drive said, stunned briefly at the sight of the gun's design as Rinna tossed it to him, fumbling to catch it before he properly held it. "What the heck? Why does there need to be a door on this thing? And what is it? A door gun?"
"P-Please don't name it that…"Krim asked, hoping not to have a repeat with the Acceleration Blade naming.
"It's a gun with a door on the side! It is a Door-Ju, no matter how you look at it!"
"Will!" Rinna called out to him, a sad look finding its way to her expression. "Please don't call it Door-Ju!"
"I'm sorry, but I'll start naming my weapons better when you stop making them look so… so… strange! Handle-Ken was a little odd, but this? Rinna, you are a very smart person, but sometimes I feel like you're pulling my chain."
"Will, please! We can continue this another time, but now is a good chance to test out your new weapon against Chaser!"
"… Krim… I can't."
"W-What do you mean you can't? Chaser is here and now is a good chance to see how your new weapon measures against him."
"Krim… I've had less than ten minutes worth of practice with shooting a gun."
"…"
"…"
"…"
"… Oh dear… That would have been a good thing to know."
"I tried telling you last night. I may be 16 already, but I've hardly had any time to go to a practice range to learn to shoot. And considering I began working when I was younger, they did not hand me a gun for obvious reasons."
"I could've sworn I heard April talking about that sometime when she was still with us…" Rinna said, trying to recall her former colleague's words.
"As dangerous as it sounds, you are going to have to wing it! Just point the gun towards Chaser and let the Drive system help you with aiming. Recoil shouldn't be an issue so long as you're transformed, so just aim and pull the trigger!"
"Okay, but how do I-"
"Kamen Rider! Die!" Chaser exclaimed as he jumped towards Drive.
"Ah!" Drive said, surprised by Chaser as he turned towards him with Door-Ju, accidentily pulling the trigger as a yellow energy projectile flew out of the barrel and hit Chaser, knocking him back.
They were silent as Drive held his gun, looking towards Rinna as he pointed towards her. "You never saw that." He said, trying to make her forget hearing him yell in surprise as she smiled wryly before nodding.
Drive groaned slightly as he pointed Door-Ju towards Chaser again, pulling the trigger as he shot Chaser again.
"Oh Will, I almost forgot to mention. To reload, you have to open and close the door." Rinna informed him after remembering one of the functions of the Door-Ju.
"… That does make sense…" He grabbed the door on his gun and opened it, closing it quickly.
"Charge!" Krim's voice resounded in response, making him question if it was really necessary for all the sounds Krim makes for… basically everything.
Tire Koukan? Hissatsu? Were all of those really necessary? If anything, it told the enemy what he was doing.
He shrugged as he could think about it later, shooting Chaser again as he began walking towards his opponent.
Hisui fired her handgun towards Scooper, the Roidmude blocking each bullet with his hand before he dashed forward, knocking the gun out of her hand before pushing her onto the ground.
"It would be best if you behave yourself." Kusaka stepped forward, smiling as he continued. "You've already earned your positions on the front page. The two 'unfortunate' victims caught in the destruction of a horrible accident."
"Actually…" Scooper said, catching Kusaka's attention. "There will be three victims…"
"Really? Who is the third?"
"I'm talking about you… Kusaka." Scooper turned towards Kusaka, pulling his jacket open to tear off the chip attached to him before shoving him down. Kusaka was immediately affected by the Density Shift without the chip.
"Kusaka!" Kenta yelled out in worry for his friend.
Drive kicked Chaser back as he shot again, causing Chaser to stumble backwards. Chaser ran towards Drive again, raising the Fang Spidey to block his attacks as the projectiles bounced off his weapon. Once he got close enough, he stopped using it as a shield as he swung, missing Drive barely.
Drive pulled his fist back, setting his feet in just the right spot as he sent his fist forward, uppercutting Chaser in his stomach as Type Wild's strength boosted his punch and sent Chaser into the air, Drive following his attack by aiming the Door-Ju and pulling the trigger repetitively to shoot him multiple times as Chaser fell towards him. Once Chaser was in the right spot, Drive spun around on his foot as he kicked Chaser, sending him flying to the side as he skidded to a stop.
Chaser slammed his fist on the ground in anger, cracking the area beneath his fist as he looked at Drive. He pushed himself back up, taking out another Viral Core as he swapped weapons again.
"Tune: Chaser Bat!" The Fang Spidey changed shapes to become the Wing Sniper, aiming his weapon at Drive before releasing a burst of arrows towards the Rider.
Drive rolled to the side, dodging the arrows as he fired at Chaser again, causing Chaser to stumble backwards as each bullet hit him. Once Drive stopped shooting, Chaser slowly looked up at him, curling his open hand into a fist.
"Damn you… Kamen Rider!" He raised the Wing Sniper to aim towards Drive's chest.
"Charge!" Drive reloaded, aiming at Chaser. They both pulled their triggers, firing multiple projectiles towards the other as each one hit the other's attacks, destroying each one before they caused a reaction in the middle, exploding between both of them as they stumbled backwards.
Drive immediately turned to his side, running over as he grabbed Handle-Ken before running towards Chaser. Chaser saw him coming, raising the Wing Sniper again as Drive shot his arm, causing his aim to shift from him to an open area as he pulled the trigger.
Drive got close enough as he swung his sword, cutting across Chaser's body as he raised Door-Ju directly at Chaser's face, pulling the trigger and shooting him in the head at point black range.
Chaser stumbled backwards, holding onto his head as smoke was almost pouring off his face. He growled, raising his weapon again as Drive was faster than him.
Drive dropped his sword again, leaping forward as his fist met Chaser's. The force put behind his fist knocked Chaser off his feet, flying backwards before he hit a rail that was behind him.
Drive stood over him, looking down at Chaser. Chaser could feel his presence, raising his head to look at him as he aimed the Wing Sniper towards him again.
However, as he held his weapon towards Drive, the image of Hisui appeared between them, her arms out as if she was blocking Chaser from Drive again.
Chaser felt his will waver, his hand now shaking.
The image disappeared as Drive stepped through it, his gaze still down on him. Chaser growled again, shooting at Drive as he dodged by turning his body, looking back at Chaser to see the Wing Sniper changing into his wings as he flew away.
"So he's retreated for the time being." Krim spoke as Drive nodded. He turned around, grabbing his sword as he tossed it towards the Tridoron for storage.
"Rinna, thanks for the weapon." Drive thanked her as she smiled.
"You're welcome! And good luck with Scooper!"
He gave her a salute as he held onto Door-Ju, getting into the Tridoron before driving away as Rinna waved him off.
Kusaka was trying to crawl backwards to escape Scooper, the Roidmude standing over him.
"You can die knowing that thanks to you, I've finally absorbed enough energy to make my evolution permanent! All I need now is the fear and despair you feel right now!" Scooper grabbed Kusaka by his neck, lifting him up as his lens began glowing.
Scooper was stopped when he was shot, dropping Kusaka as he turned to see who shot him.
"Now now, you don't want to get his bad side, do you?" Drive stepped out of the Tridoron as he lifted Door-Ju up, seeming to blow the end of the barrel as if he was blowing smoke from it.
"You again… luckily for me, I planned ahead for your interruption!"
Drive tilted his head, trying to figure out what Scooper mean't by that before he heard a familiar voice.
"Kamen Rider!" Drive turned towards the source to see the hands of a Roidmude on the railing across from them, pulling itself up to reveal a cobra Roidmude numbered… 074?
'Oh, sweet… found him.'
"After half a year of searching, I've finally found you!" 074 pulled himself over the railing, standing across from Drive while pointing towards him. "Thanks to 033, I was able to find you once more! And after all this time, I'll finally avenge my bro!" He reached behind him, pulling out three Viral Cores. "Be prepared, Kamen Rider! I'm about to show you my new pow- ack!"
074 was interrupted when Drive shot his hand, causing the Viral Cores in his hand to break when they were shot as the low-class Roidmude held onto his newly hurt hand.
Drive didn't really want to bother with him, grabbing the door to open and close it repetitively.
"Charge! Charge! Charge! Charge! Charge!" Krim's voice resounded multiple times as Drive pointed the Door-Ju towards 074, shooting him in the head as the single bullet managed to pierce right through his head, his body soon exploding as his core was left over.
Drive calmly walked to the core, placing his weapon on the ground to the side as he brought his fists to his sides before slamming his fists together on the core, smashing destroying it.
"Atleast he revealed himself. Now 10 Roidmudes have been defeated."
Drive turned back towards Scooper, picking up his gun. "Ok, where were we again?"
Scooper was silent, his body shaking as if anger was building up inside him because of how calmly Drive just destroyed his fellow Roidmude.
"You… how could you kill one of my comrades so calmly?!" Scooper ran to Drive to attack him, only for a bullet to meet his eye.
He stumbled backwards, holding onto his eye while Drive dashed forward, using his tire to hit Scooper again as he was actually sent flying towards the stadium due to the amount of power behind his attack. With Scooper much further away now, the Density Shift no longer affected Kenta or Kusaka, letting them move normally now.
Scooper pushed himself back up to his feet, groaning slightly as he heard the sound of a car speeding towards him. He didn't bother looking at the source, knowing who it was as he grabbed his lens.
"Damn Kamen Rider… I need action shots!" Scooper began taking multiple pictures of the stadium area around him, using the pictures to cause large pieces of concrete to fall down.
Drive saw the rubble falling from above, pushing down on the gas instead of stopping as the Tridoron sped up. The Tridoron came across a piece of rubble that was shaped oddly like a ramp, causing it to jump into the air.
"Doron Tridoron!" Krim called out as the center piece holding him and Drive was ejected from the frame, the frame flipping over to reveal a dune-buggy styled underside as the center piece fell back in, changing the form of the Tridoron. "Type Wild!"
'Again with the announcement?… I guess it becomes catchy after a while, but still.' Drive thought to himself as he utilized the Tridoron's new form, driving over the rubble as Scooper was running from him.
"Krim, hook him please!"
"Ok! Tire Feuru!" Hooking Wrecker's tire appeared on the side, Drive turning the wheel and hitting the brakes to cause the Tridoron to drift as the hook was sent flying towards Scooper. The hook found a spot on the plating on the back of his neck, reeling backwards as Scooper was flung against a wall.
Drive pressed down on the gas, spinning the Tridoron as he kept throwing Scooper against the walls before flinging him out to the stands of the stadium.
Scooper groaned, multiple dents in his body. He grabbed onto a chair next to him as he pulled himself up. He was back to his feet for a second before sparks flew off his back, turning towards the source as his lens glew for a second, releasing projectiles that were shot towards his attacker.
The projectiles exploded on contact, causing a screen of smoke to pour over his attacker. Scooper laughed slightly, believing he destroyed his attacker.
"Drive: Type Speed!" A red figure jumped out of the smoke after the announcement, shooting him as he stumbled backwards again.
Drive landed on his feet, the light reflecting off Type Speed's red armor as he popped his neck. He brought his hands together, popping his knuckles before following it with his shoulders.
"Hey Scooper." He got the Roidmude's attention as he turned the ignition, taking Shift Speed out of the Shift Brace and putting it into a slot on top of Door-Ju. "Frame this."
Scooper was confused by what he said before Drive fired multiple projectiles that were actually burning.
"Hissatsu: Speed! Full Throttle!" Drive jumped into the air as the image of a tire like the one around his torso appeared, kicking the tire directly into the bullets he fired shortly before as he accelerated their speed, sending them flying towards Scooper as his body was engulfed in fire.
Seconds after the attack, Scooper's body could no longer maintain itself due to the heat, his body exploding as his core floated upwards before exploding.
"Now that makes 11…" Drive brought his hands up as he angled both of them like a frame, looking at where Scooper previously was as he used an imaginary camera to snap a picture. "Someone should really take a picture of when they blow up. It's a nice sight."
"You're not a pyromaniac or bomb fanatic, are you?"
"Heck no. At least… not as far as I know."
"You would know if you had an obsession with explosions."
"True. Though, I wonder what material was used to create Roidmudes when they blow up like that. I mean, hurray and all that when they're defeated, but is the explosion really necessary? I feel like that just causes more damaged to the surrounding area."
Krim fell silent, quietly mumbling to himself. Drive didn't bother listening to his mumbling, instead leaving the area to return to the Tridoron.
The police arrived at the scene some time after because they were told the stadium would be the next attack. When they got there, all they saw was a teenage officer, two reporters, and the sound of a car driving away.
Gen was among them, kicking the ground as he knew more about the case than the other officers around him. "Damn… I just missed the Kamen Rider…"
Kusaka was on his knees, as if he was still in despair from when Scooper revealed his true intentions.
"Kusaka…" Kenta called his name to grab his attention, hoping it worked as he continued. "The Kamen Rider… a lot of people across the world still don't believe he exists. Will you… will you help me tell his story?"
"… What kind of nonsense are you talking about?" Kusaka replied, shaking his head. "I'm a criminal! There's no way I can ever return to this line of work…"
"You can't give up so easily!" Kenta stopped him from going any further with his words, remembering something his friend told him long ago. "'Be prepared to get hurt if you wish to convey the truth.' It's my favorite saying… and it's what you always believed in."
Kusaka slowly turned around, looking up at his friend as he remembered saying those words to him the last time they worked together. "Takasugi…"
"So, the two of you done yet?" Gen stepped between them both, managing to also ruin the moment between them. "Sorry buddy, but your friend has to come with us."
Kenta nodded as he knew there was little he could. Gen took out handcuffs and put them on Kusaka's wrists, escorting him to his cruiser.
Hisui watched as Gen took Kusaka away. She turned around herself, beginning her walk home as she still had to help her mother prepare for her brother's arrival.
She had to wonder… how had her brother changed during his time in America?
"And now, 033 is gone…" Brain said, looking at the tablet of the list of Roidmudes still alive and active. Heart heard his words as he frowned.
"The Kamen Rider is proving to be a very stubborn threat. He has yet to show any signs of stopping his quest to destroy all Roidmudes."
"Indeed. If he is left unchecked any longer, I fear we may never achieve the promised number… for him to have already destroyed 11 Roidmudes…" Brain's hands tightened on his tablet for a second before he took a deep breath, calming himself as he used his handkerchief to wipe his forehead. "Heart, as much as it pains me to ask you, do you have any plan for destroying the Kamen Rider?"
"… What is that human saying? 'Drastic times call for drastic measures?'"
"Heart… what are you getting at?" Brain was now intrigued but also afraid of what his fellow Roidmude was getting at.
"Brain… I believe it is time we make contact with the mistress controlling the Noise. I believe she can prove to be a powerful ally."
"What?! You want us to ally ourselves with a human?!" Brain was outraged at what Heart just suggested. Them? Working WITH humans? The very race they are trying to overthrow?
"Until the Kamen Rider is destroyed, of course. Once he is no longer a threat, then we sever the alliance and destroy her."
Brain was about to argue again before he began thinking about what Heart was suggesting now. Not only would they be getting rid of Drive, but they would also get rid of the inevitable fight against a powerful Relic user. It was almost like they were killing two birds with a single stone.
"Heart… sometimes I question whether you truly are aloof, or acting that way to mask your true genius."
"Thank you, Brain. Of course, we should ally ourselves with her after we bring back our dearest friend…"
"You mean Medic? Yes… it would be a good idea to have her around in case anymore Roidmude cores are damaged."
"Yes… now, where is Chase? Surely he hasn't gone too far."
Brain grabbed the curtain to the window of the building they were in, pulling it out of the way to reveal the lone figure of Chaser outside.
Chaser stood still, looking up at the starry sky above.
"Kamen Rider…" He began muttering to himself. "What is he? …And what am I?"
Somewhere, on the edge of the city, a figure was standing on a ledge and looking towards the city. Any details about the figure were hard to tell because of how dark it was, but one could make the faint shape of what seemed to be a scarf blowing in the wind behind them, along with some sort of weapon in their hand.
The figure jumped off from their ledge, landing on the ground below without sustaining any form of damage. When they looked up, one could see a brief flash of blue in the shape of eyes.
Door-Ju is here, Chaser revealed all of his Viral Core weapons, and a new figure is in the city. Who is this figure?
Well, I'm sure you guys already know with what I said about him already.
Get ready, because after Type Technic appears, it'll be time for the girls to start their singing.
Farewell, and let us meet next time.
