KrXMs: Wizard and Sakura

by Despicable-D

It has been two years since Sakura became the Card Mistress and is now enjoying her junior high school life. However a string of disappearances has hit Tomoeda and a new face in Tomoeda seems to be in the middle of it. What can Sakura do when this mysterious masked magician reveals himself and even stranger is hows he's her new English teacher. Discontinued for foreseeable future

21. The Monkey King's Showtime!

The Kamen Rider's Best Friend. The Monkey King's Showtime.

"Finale!" Wizard called out as a ruby red magic circle appeared beneath his feet prompting him to throw back his coat tails as his boots were alight in flames. The twin orbs of scarlet of flame responded to his call as they merged into his magic circle, filtering their own power into the mage as he geared up to prepare his signature finisher, improved by the combined power of his two allies. His body now fully alight Wizard dashed forward and broke into a somersault before vaulting into the air. The Kamen Rider twisted his body through the air as he became a burning meteor of magical flame aimed straight toward the snarling multi-armed Phantom beast.

The Improved Strike Wizard Rider Kick exploded straight through the massive monster, depositing Wizard back to the ground as he slid to a halt as the flames died down around him. The Phantom beast howled in mortifying defeat before exploding, back dropping the crouched, back turned figure of the magician as he rose to his feet, turned to face the camera with a thumbs up before giving a victorious "Fui!"

(Film Ends)

The usual round of applause and awed comments could be heard by the group as they finished watching the latest of Tomoyo's self filmed and edited productions of the Senshii's in action. The entirety of the Senshii's and their Kamen Rider friends were gathered in Carter's apartment to host a sort of "Introductory Mingle", as the guest of honor called it. For the two latest members of their group it was their first time seeing one of the young girl's films.

Shishido complimented the piece for its very professional seeming production and editing despite being done by only a single teenage girl. Tomoyo had blushed in thanks as her friends cheered and applauded her fine work once again, though as loud as that was…it couldn't drown out the very loud, very disrespectful cackling done by their very latest addition.

"Kakakakakaka!" Sage cackled in a high pitched, monkey like trill while holding his stomach as he fell back onto the floor, seemingly caught up in a fit of pure laughter. "Oh my god! Carter looks the coolest!" The Phantom youth howled semi-sarcastically at the expense of his tea drinking friend who for his part was trying very hard to keep his expression set in only an irked state as he quietly sipped his beverage. "Maybe we should send this to a tv network! Such sure signs of selling out definitely warrants you getting your own show!" The Phantom finally managed to calm himself down enough to pick himself off the floor and sit on the couch with his arm slung around the older looking man's shoulder. "Seriously where's the ad for "Kamen Rider approved Energy Drinks" that goes with that goofy thumbs up of yours?" The Phantom soon fell into another, more controlled fit of giggling as Carter started downing his steaming cup so fast he accidentally scalded his tongue.

"Ya Aaaah! Bloody-! Hrrrrrm!" Carter stifled himself while his singed tongue throbbed painfully. Sage saw his friend was currently up for talking and decided it was time to mingle. He literally leaped from the couch toward the inner part of the living room where he landed softly on his feet before the four teenagers he recently learned were his friend's students.

"So kids, tell me, what was my best buddy like when he first came here? Feel me in on any dirt." He whispered the last part so Carter wouldn't hear.

"What was Yu-kun like?" Tomoyo repeated as she and Sakura pondered to their first encounters with the magician. "Well, the first time we ever saw him was at the park."

"That's right!" Sakura followed up. "He was doing magic tricks for a group of kids." The puzzled look on the older teens face said he did not expect such an answer but he gestured for them to continue. "There was also a Phantom attack that day, it was the first time I had ever seen such monsters before so I wasn't certain what to do, but then Yu-kun came to the rescue and helped us fight the Phantom off and showed us how to save a Gate who had fallen to despair." The nod from Sage indicated he expected as much this time around.

"After that, was the first time Yu-kun introduced himself as Yu-sensei." Tomoyo added. "He made a real impression on us on that first day. Though he definitely seemed odd and peculiar for a teacher…"

"He was also very nice and energetic and he always tries to make class a lot of fun and enjoyable." Sakura finished and it seemed Sage had heard enough as he pounced back to the couch with his arms crossed and an accusing look in his eye pointed at the brown haired man trying to cool off his burnt tongue.

"Blut?" Carter inquired, his tongue swollen impeding his speech.

"Oh I see how it is." Sage immediately grabbed the taller man in a headlock as the teacher struggled to get free. "The Japanese kids get nice guy Carter Hughes but us lowly Americans get the grumpy, kill joy, stick up his butt Carter Hughes, is that right?"

Now it was Carter's friends' turn to look puzzled, even Shishido paused in his preparing of the tiny bash's refreshments to mull over the Phantom's comment.

Upon meeting the seemingly human kaijin, Carter filled his friends in a bit more on how he knew the oddity of a Phantom. As it turned out Carter had mentioned him once before, though at the time he had only mentioned having a friend who had always had his back, this time he explained more specifically. As it turned out, Carter had become friends with Sage while he was still human.

The mage explained that Japan had not been his first off shore hunt for Phantoms and that under the advising of his mentors, he took a year to study abroad; both for his schooling and his magical training, to America. Though he had come mainly for the purpose of increasing his abilities as a mage, Carter unexpectedly found a friend in his outgoing, though he also prefaced it with obnoxiously, room mate, Sage West.

Though the two did not speak much of how Sage had become a Phantom, the older man seemed to allude a great deal of the fault being on him, but the cheerful Phantom teen waved it off, swearing to his friend, for the umpteenth time apparently, that he never blamed him for what happened. He then made a comment about his dating prospects being much wider now that he was "eternally 18" and that seemed to irk the mage once again as he attempted to throttle his best friend who swiftly alluded capture, cackling cheekily the entire time.

"Hold up?" Kero as well paused in his consuming of all of the table's sweets to address the odd comment. "Are you sure you're talking about the same guy?" Kero his accentuated his point by tapping the pinned mage on the nose. "The guy who gets up early every morning to buy a baker's dozen of Japanese sweets?"

"And goes to eat dinner at one of several Grill Houses every Saturday night." Shishido added, tapping his nose knowingly at Carter's betrayed expression.

"Seriously dude?" Sage looked at his friend with a disturbed expression. "I knew you had a sweet tooth but have some self control."

"I don't wanna hear that from the guy who picked an entire privately owned orchard clean and then got his friend sent to jail with him because he brought his spoils home with him. You trying being the Brit in the American prison. It's not fun!"

"Hey we ate like kings those few days before I was caught!"

"You flooded our kitchen with nothing but Peaches!"

"Exactly how are you two friends again?" Syaoran asked, a skeptical look crossing his face more than once as he watched the two older men interact in what has been mainly attempted throttling, taunts, goading and the occasional remarks in an odd type of English dialect the inexperienced teens were unable to decipher but clearly got a rise out of the normally well mannered man, prompting more throttling.

"Because I complete him." Sage responded, shifting his arms around so that his headlock seemed more like an affectionate hug with the simian Phantom attempting to nuzzle against the other male who seemed to desperately trying to push him away.

"Get away from me you flea ridden- BAH!" Sage finally released his hold on Carter, allowing him to fall off the couch and onto the floor as the Phantom nimbly made his way back to the center of the bash.

"Hey, you guys wanna see some pics of your teach from his college days?" The nods of curiosity from the three girls and Kero were all the incentive he needed as he pulled out his cell and scrolled to a picture he had saved on it. "Look at this grumpy little bookworm!" Sage instructed in a mockingly doting voice.

"Wait, I don't see Yu-kun in this picture." Sakura said confused as she scanned the image of four friends, two men (one of them clearly Sage) and two girls, huddled together real close so that they were all in frame.

"I think…he's the scowling one…in glasses…with food on his face?"

"Oh bugger." Carter groaned, immediately understanding what his young friends were seeing and not feeling the least bit proud of it.

"The first time Carter ever had good old fashion American Barbecue. I just had to take a commemorative pic."

"Yu-sensei, you certainly looked…different when you were in college." Meilin commented, not sure how to describe the very different figure, with his large rimmed glasses, darker brown hair styled prominently in an ivy league cut and wearing a school jacket compared to his companions who were all dressed mainly in modified school clothes, and then look to her fairly stylishly groomed and dressed teacher. Suffice to say the insight was jarring.

"I believe the word you are looking for is conservative." Carter explained, attempting to save face. "I was studying in another country while on the trail of a large horde of Phantoms on my Master and Teacher's instructions. I was trying to keep a low profile while also trying to make a good impression."

"So…this is you naturally?" Syaoran inquired, stifling an uncharacteristic chuckle at the embarrassing photograph.

"But of course!" Carter cooed as he ran a hand through his light brown hair. "This ideal princely visage is nothing if not natural. Also I wear contacts now, got to keep the baby blues bright."

"Yeah…" Sage clicked his tongue uncomfortably as he turned the phone to face Carter. "Talk all that garbage when we haven't seen you with food on your face."

"Dammit West! If you're not gonna delete that picture at least show them a better one." Carter suddenly snatched the device from the Phantoms hand as he scrolled for a new picture as Sage cried out in outrage. Carter suddenly got an evil grin on his face as he turned the phone back around. "Like this one." The Senshii's crowded in to see as Sage trilled in shock and embarrassment."

"Impressively executed." Shishido complimented. The new picture was once again of Carter and Sage, only this time, instead of being at a restaurant the two were apparently in what was likely their dorm room, and instead of a friendly selfy this picture seemed more mean spirited and embarrassing as it showed Sage, on his stomach with Carter sitting on his back and holding the other teen's arms and head in a full nelson position, clearly causing him discomfort as he seemed to be attempting to tap out but unable to reach.

"That day Sage learned to never underestimate an opponent classier than he was." Carter chuckled mischievously.

"That was back when I didn't know how to fight. I'm much better than I was the last time you saw me." Sage declared defensively.

"Oh really now." A challenging twinkle seemed to gleam in the Kamen Rider's eye as he snapped suddenly. Almost in response to his action, a Connect portal appeared in one of the walls of Carter's apartment. "Step inside." Carter instructed as he hopped to his feet and waltzed through the large gateway with Sage right behind him, cracking his knuckles expectantly.

The Senshii's and Shishido looked to each other unsure of these recent developments before Carter poked his head back through. "C'mon this'll be fun to watch, I guarantee it." Meilin and Kero didn't need much convincing as they too sprang for the open gateway, Sakura, Syaoran and Tomoyo still seemed uncertain but they too followed after their friends, leaving Shishido aproned up at Carter's stove and nobody around to feed his soon to be ready Hors d'oeuvres to.

"So I guess I slaved over a hot stove for nothing?" He asked to an empty room. "Merda." He cursed as he turned off the stove, threw down his apron and followed the group inside.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Undisclosed location

"Focus, Ototo!" The Blue clad assassin instructed his larger red clad pupil as he fluidly redirected and nullified each of the larger man's attacks. "We were made fools of in that last battle. We underestimated our opponents and allowed them to exploit our weaknesses. It must not happen again!"

"Yes, Ani-ue!" The Red Ogre Phantom tightened his stance as he drove his fist forward sharper and faster than before, retracting almost with a snap as his master had to sidestep the blow instead of parrying just so Red could smash forward once again. But the older Phantom was well versed in his pupil's attacks by now and quickly read the attack's path as it was coming. In the instant his pupil's arm was fully extended to its apex he quickly dove under the far reaching limb, tracing its length until he was completely within his opponent's guard where he had a clear shot to his exposed chest.

The Blue Ogre lanced his fingers until his hand was like a spear ready to run his foe through. "You're mine!" His strike soared straight for the Red Ogre's heart, only to stop mere inches from reaching his mark. The Blue Ogre hummed pleased as he looked up to his pupil's focused and clear eyed face. "Excellent, my apprentice." Blue complimented as he tapped the massive fist poised inches from his head, hooking so that the moment his own attack landed his head would have been blown clean off in the same instant.

"I swear on our honor that they besmirched, Wizard and his freak friend will pay." Red growled as he lowered his guard and bowed to his master, his eyes still sharp and focused but deeply motivated by fury.

"The last Phantom who swore something like that was Phoenix." The two instantly turned as a pair of familiar figures approached. The first was the young man who had greeted them when they arrived in this city, an eccentric Phantom by the name of Beelzebub. The other who by her feminine voice was the one who spoke and judging by the way Beelzebub stayed by her side respectfully but also protectively, it was clear this was their client, the Phantom Mistress. "We are still in the process of cleaning up the messes he left us after he bit off more than he could chew. I certainly hope you aren't planning to end up like him, are you Red-kun?"

The Red Ogre snarled at the petite woman in a veil-like hood, prompting Beelzebub to draw his sword and glare back to the larger Phantom. "Ototo." Was all Blue needed to say, causing the younger assassin to lower his eyes and bow respectfully to their client.

"I spoke out of frustration and ego. Rest assured, Madame, we shall complete the mission you have requested of us, as was agreed."

"Hmhm." The Phantom Mistress hummed to herself, pleased by the attitude shift as she waved her own attendant down. "Quite commendable words. I'll be counting on you from here on out, Red-kun."

"My thanks." Red responded without raising his eyes. Blue placed a hand on his student's arm and nodded approvingly to him for his display of tact and control.

"I must express my own commendations to you, Mr. Blue. He seems like such a handful, but you have this brute trained so well!" The Mistress complimented the elder ogre profusely. "We simply must exchange words at some point in the future. Based on recent events, it seems I must refine my tactics on controlling my own peons." Blue remained silent and emotionless with his hands regally tucked into his sleeves as Red grimaced but continued to bow. "Well, I'll leave you two to your preparations. Gambatene!" With that parting call of good faith, the Phantom woman turned on her heel and began to waltz away with a girlish cheer in her steps as Beelze bowed respectfully in parting as he followed close behind his master.

Red finally raised his head once the two were far enough away and looked to his brother and mentor worriedly. "Ani-ue…" Red started before Blue placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"That'll be all for today, Ototo." Blue said with a smile. "Meditate and continue to sharpen your mind and fury for our inevitable next duel with Wizard and Hannuman. I'll need all of your power and strength to defeat them." Red was dumbstruck by such kind words and immediately fell to a knee as he bowed to his benefactor and Idol in gratitude.

"Sifu, I shall not let you down!"

"Now, now. None of that." Blue said with a chuckle as he too turned to leave. "I have my own meditations to dwell on. I will reconvene with you later this evening."

"Understood, Ani-ue." Red nodded, correcting himself this time as he turned to walk away as well. What the younger Phantom failed to notice was the tightening of his brother's jaw after their client departed and now that he was looking away, Blue allowed his true face, one of pure hate and eyes steely like a murderous blade, to show.

'That woman…unforgivable!'

"My lady, I have never disapproved of your actions, but I must express my curiosity over why you play so cruelly with those you even deem allies." Beelzebub inquired to his mistress once they were far enough away. She simply snickered to herself knowingly.

"I just find all of this so truly amusing. To see Phantoms, Humanities antithesis, who casted aside their old lives and feelings for power and freedom they did not have as Humans, act so…sentimental, like they were not Phantoms at all."

"I assume you also speak of Empousa and Phoenix when you say that."

"This entire war has been so much fun. So many people for me to play with." The Phantom woman giggled coldly. "And soon we'll have a new player to entertain me further." She expressed expectantly.

"Yes… he did finally send us a response." Beelzebub gulped despite himself. "His presence shall likely change this battle in more ways than one."

"But enough of that." The Mistress said dismissively as she glanced back to her attendant. "On to that other matter."

"He has been ordered to attack as you instructed; equipped with our little gift, of course."

"Very good." The Mistress hummed. "This shall mark the end of our little pest problem and we've saved the best for last. If he's what you say he is."

"It was widely believed that he rivaled Cherufee and Sphinx in ability among Phoenix's splinter group. Likely he was kept out of the battle that saw Phoenix's end so that he could be used as a secret weapon against us should we have called in additional forces, like our two assassins back there."

"Phoenix's pillar of muscle and ferocity. He may be a good measure to see just what kind of threat Wizard's newest ally shall be for us. This will be fun. Hmhmhmhahahahahaha!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Dude… what was your rent again?" Sage whistled in awe as he stepped from the Connect portal to the large room that could not have physically existed considering the dimensions of his house.

"This place…it's like the Haven Hiragizawa constructed." Syaoran surmised as he too reviewed the spacious chamber as he and the others stepped through behind a beaming Carter who waltzed comfortably to the middle of the massive area.

"Excellent deduction, Syaoran-kun. Welcome friends to my secret training ground!" Carter welcomed them to the massive rectangular chamber; designed in the style of a martial arts dojo, with a flourish. "Constructed by my Master and where he trained me to become the lean, mean Phantom butt kicking machine I am today."

"No kidding? So the old man made this place?" Sage commented simply, brushing past Carter who was irked at being so easily ignored. Sage then noticed a set up dumbbells and equipment similar to a bo-flex sitting in the corner, prompting him to pick up a single large weight in one hand and juggle it dexterously and effortlessly between his fingers. "So this is where you work out?"

"But of course. How do think I keep down all those carbs?"

"Catch."

"Bah!" Carter had to step back suddenly as the massive black disk smashed into the ground where he had been standing with a loud clang. Carter glared outraged at his friend who was in the process of removing his top layers and shoes so that he was left in just his jeans and a white tank top he wore beneath his shirt.

"Get up here…"Sage called in challenge to his best friend as he began stretching in warmup. "Cause I just thought of a way to sweeten this situation."

"I'm listening." Carter responded curiously.

"I win, you have to do something for me, no questions ask. Vice versa if I lose."

"Simple enough stakes, if not ominous. But you know I'm not a betting man, especially when I don't know what's at stake exactly."

"Bawk-bakack!" Much to their audiences shock and surprise, the Phantom youth had started squawking loudly, flapping his arms like a bird while sneering at Carter who began rubbing the bridge of his nose in embarrassment for his friend.

"That didn't work when we were in college and it won't-"

"Ba-KACK!"

"Alright! Alright!" Carter caved just to end the ridiculous display. "But I'm adding extra terms of my own." Carter then walked out of the middle of the rectangular ring to a side wall. "Since this is your first time in here, I may as well give you the full experience of what this training ground has to offer." Carter suddenly knocked against a wood panel on the wall he stood in front of, revealing a hidden alcove which he retrieved a familiar looking object from. "So here are my terms. 2 rounds, I'll fight you for the second round but to get to me you have to go through these guys first." Carter proclaimed as he revealed a small black rock covered in red molten lines zigzagging across its face.

"Ghouls? Really?" Sage asked, unimpressed.

"Yo Wizard, aren't the Ghouls you make really weak and kind of dumb?" Kero pointed out, remembering how they used them as "Extras" during Tomoyo's film.

"Yes, but these aren't my Ghouls." Carter revealed as he tossed the rock to the middle of the area in front of Sage where it instantly cracked, letting lose blood red smoke. Sage surveyed the unnatural fog curiously, until a blur of black and red exploded from the fog rushing straight for him. The Phantom teen squawked surprised as he summoned his golden cudgel to his hands, blocking the unusually strong blow as he was sent skidding back. "These mean little blighters belong to my Master."

From the fog stepped a trio of ebony skinned Ghouls, snarling menacingly at their new surroundings as they flexed and tested their newly constructed forms. Physically speaking they did not appear all that different than normal ghouls save for the dark color of their skin and the molten red cracks and fissures lining their body. But on closer inspection, one could notice that their horns were slightly longer than the norm and in place of the simple carved face of other Ghouls the faces of these Ghouls were far more menacing looking with a crooked jack-o-lantern grin running across their faces. One of the Black ghouls suddenly took notice of Carter and company standing on the side lines and without warning, it dashed straight towards the sideline, prompting the group to reach for their weapons while covering Tomoyo, save for Carter who hit another panel on the wall.

"Graa!" The Ghoul pounced mere inches before the line when it suddenly ran face first into some unseen obstacle that became visible for a second as waves that seemed to ripple in open air.

"Down boy." Carter sighed as gestured for everyone to relax. "My master never really gave these things much programming besides what he deemed necessary. So there's no real way to control these things, which is why he devised a barrier for keeping these things inside during my training."

"So basically I'm stuck in here till I crush these things?" Sage deduced as he laid his staff across his shoulders while he gave his opponents a once over. The one that had attacked Carter's group was still at the barrier, growling and clawing at the invisible wall like a wild animal trapped in a cage, while the other two were busy circling the Monkey King Phantom, sizing him up as he was them. "You got anymore? I'm feeling a little underestimated."

"Those Ghouls are made of stronger magic than the average Ghoul." Carter explained just as one of the circling duo sprang forward, leaping into the air and pulling its fist back. Sage nimbly back flipped away as the Ghoul came crashing down, driving its fist into the mat with such force that the entire floor shook with the impact. "They're stronger, tougher and much more vicious than your average familiar. I'd wager they're half as strong as the average Phantom."

"Your Master made you fight these things as training?!" Meilin gasped in disbelief, mimicking her friend's shocked and disturbed faces. Carter rubbed the back of his head awkwardly as he tried to give them a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, Faust was a real piece of work."

"So you fought these things as a kid?" Sage repeated, mulling over this new information as he finally took a stance, bringing his cudgel around as he set his feet apart and placed his hands on the end and middle part of his staffs length. "Then as an Above Average Phantom, this should be a piece of cake." Now all three Ghouls had their focus on him as Sage slowly crept into the middle of their group, prompting them to circle him once more and hiss at him hatefully. "Anytime you're ready, boys."

The Ghouls didn't need much goading and rushed him as a group, raking their claws through the air for the untransformed Monkey Kings throat. In the span of a second before the claws hit him, Sage instantly planted his staff into the floor as he leaped up, balancing on his golden Bo and pole vaulting over the trio so that they only swiped at empty air. The moment he landed the Ghouls were already whirling around to face him, but he didn't need to take his time to turn as he jabbed his staff under his arm, smashing its face into one of the Ghouls' chest and knocking it away from its partners. The Phantom teen then twisted around to face his remaining foes, bringing his staff around with him as he slammed it against the opposing Ghoul's head causing it to smash into the side of the other one and sending them both flying to the side.

Sage giggled as he turned to face Carter who was still behind the barrier and had taken a comfortable seat on a nearby bench, alongside the others. "So you gonna get in here and give me a real fight?" Carter's only response was a knowing grin and gesture to look behind him. Sage instinctively ducked as a Ghoul sailed over his head to collide with the barrier right in front of Carter, only to get back up again and dash straight for the cheeky monkey who began twirling his staff around him in a defensive measure as he noticed the other Ghouls were back up as well. "Right, tougher, I'll remember next time."

The charging Ghoul reeled back a stone fist before Sage jabbed it in the chest again, only this time he pressed his offensive as he quickly struck with his staff over and over, pulling his cudgel in only to shoot it back out again as he literally began stabbing at the stone beast, striking its chest, head, arms and legs as he pressed it back. A solid strike to its thigh finally brought the Ghoul to a knee, prompting Sage to press in for one final attack as he drove his open handed strike straight into the Ghoul's chin, sending its head flying from its shoulders as its body flopped to the side. "One down." He grinned, turning to face the other two.

"He's actually pretty good." Shishido admitted as he and the Senshiis watched with varying degrees of awe and respect. "The way he handles that stick you'd be surprised he's actually a beginner."

"His bojustu skills really remind me of certain schools back home." Meilin added as she watched the Phantom staff fighter leap up only to smash his staff down, forcing the grouped together Ghouls to separate so that he may focus on one instead of warding off both at once. "Like he's been training for years back in Hong Kong."

"It looks that way…but there are subtle differences I'm noticing in some of his stances and initiations." Syaoran added in his own observation as he watched Sage parry a clawing strike by the Ghoul and counter with a swift kick to its torso to force it back, the Phantom then repositioned his stance so that he was turned sideways with his right side towards the Ghoul and his hand held up in challenge while his cudgel was held in his left hand and hidden behind his body. "It's almost as if he's observed the movements and attacks of legitimate Bo fighters and has personalized their kata for his own style."

"Yeah, Sage really loves Kung-fu movies." Carter said nonchalantly, smirking when Syaoran sent him an incredulous look. "Granted he definitely has improved. Last I saw him he mostly swung that cudgel around like a club or a bat. It's clear he's put a lot of work in."

"Starting to get worried, Yu-kun?" Tomoyo giggled, noticing that despite the man's praise for his friend, he was tapping his leg in an almost nervous fashion, plus she saw the hints of a bead of sweat running down the Kamen Rider's brow. "You did agree to do whatever he said if you lose." Her more devious side found his sudden flinch at her seeing right through him to be quite amusing.

"I know that! I just…um…I'll be right back." Carter declared as he suddenly got up from his seat from his bench seat to walk back to the portal, disappearing back through it."

"Yu-kun really seems worried about losing." Sakura observed for herself. "I wonder what he thinks Sage-san will make him do."

"Probably something real bad considering the lengths he's going to make sure he wins." Meilin stated simply, her attention more on the fight than the conversation as she watched Sage try and choke out one of the Ghouls with his staff pressed against its neck.

"What do you mean?" Sakura inquired, confused when she saw all of her friends sigh and shrug at once by her innocent naivety.

"Hughes intended to use these stronger than average Ghouls to observe and tire out West so that he would have the advantage during their fight in the next round." Syaoran explained and then smirked as the group witnessed Sage stab his staff down at one of the Ghouls' feet before suddenly smashing his weapon up, catching the monster on the chin to send it airborne. The Monkey Phantom swiftly took a batters stance as his foe came down and with all of his muscle behind the blow he smashed the Phantom dead center, popping it back in a low angel until it impacted and crumbled against the barrier.

"Homerun!" Sage whooped pumping his arm and then jabbing his elbow back to ward off the last Ghoul trying to sneak up on him.

"That guy Wizard must be shaking in his boots right now, since his little ploy didn't work." Kero chuckled just as Sage was getting ready to square off with the last Ghoul. "He's missed half the fight and that Monkey isn't even winded."

The Last Ghoul snarled at the other Phantom in defiance as he cockily gestured it forward with his staff resting on his shoulder, either it was too stupid or too proud to deny the challenge it charged headlong finally changing up its tactics as it changed both its forearms to blasters and loosed super hot bolts of magic fire toward the monkey who seemed to twist, turn and step through the volley without concern before the two were once again face to face.

"Oh I've got something special for you." Sage promised as the Ghoul roared, unleashing twin spouts of flame point blank into the Monkey Phantom's face.

"West-san!" Sakura cried out in shock and worry as the teen's entire upper body was cast in flames. She and the rest of the audience each shared mixed looks of fear and concern, Shishido even got up to go and get Carter to call off the fight while Syaoran jumped at the barrier in an attempt to dismantle it. But both of them were suddenly halted in their tracks once they heard a familiar "Kikiki!"

"What's all the fuss about?" Sage called out through the flames, his voice level and amused despite the fire hitting him full on. "Don't you guys remember?" The Ghoul's blasters were suddenly grasped by a pair of strong arms exploding from the flames, forcing them apart with such strength that the Ghoul could not hope to match as its attack was being redirected. As soon as the flames parted the group were able to finally see Sage once more; unharmed, grinning and with his eyes glowing an angry red. "I'm the freaking Monkey King!" Sage declared as he kicked the Ghoul square in the chest to send it flying back, but it wouldn't be flying back in one piece as Sage had not released it arms, so once it went flying back its arms had no choice but to pop loose from their sockets while the rest of it crashed against the far wall.

"Kikiki." Sage hummed as he tossed the severed arms aside and tilted a foot beneath his dropped staff while pulling back his arm like he was about to throw something. "Monkey Magic…" He chanted before popping his staff into the air with his foot so that it fell right before his raised arm. "Grow!" Sage commanded as he smacked the butt of his staff with his palm, sending it flying through the air like a torpedo straight for the still stunned Ghoul.

The Ghoul had only just recovered enough to raise its head when it saw the projectile coming straight for it. On instinct it tilted its head to the side but just then, the staff began to expand, almost exponentially until it was twice as wide as the monster's head, and it was still growing! All the Ghoul could do was cry out in shock before its entire upper body was suddenly crushed by the massive pillar the staff had become. With a quick snap, the cudgel began to shrink down and return to its owners hand, only this time it shrank to the size of a toothpick by the time it reached Sage's hand allowing him to stick it behind his ear so that he could address his stunned audience.

"Can I get a whoop whoop!?" Sage requested, holding his arms up for applause.

"Sugei!"

"That works too!" The Phantom accepted as he bowed while the Senshiis and Shishido applauded his display of power and skill. The barrier came down as promised allowing Sage to run out to accept his hard one props from someone he just noticed was no longer there. "What the hell?! Where's Carter?"

"He stepped out a bit ago. Scarred stiff because he knew he was gonna lose." Meilin snickered and though they loathed to admit it her friends weren't able to rebuke her.

"Oh he better not have ran out on our deal!" Sage growled, planning to search high and low for his rat of a best friend when the Connect portal suddenly reopened.

"Wouldn't dream of it old boy." Out stepped Carter with his hands properly behind his back, dressed now in a t-shirt of his own and loose fitting slacks. "Just had to make a quick change so I'd be better suited to win our little brawl."

"Ooh! You're talking that fancy pants trash now." Sage accused to his friends pompously stoic grin. "Get ready to taste floor, Limey Brit."

"After you my good Yank." Carter invited his friend turned opponent back to the ring as they both stepped to the middle. Sage bounced on the balls of his feet expectantly while Carter stood impassively in the same stance he walked in with. Carter's students and shishido looked to each other in confusion over this sudden attitude change, save for one whom, unlike her peers, noticed that Carter still wore his belt and that it was in Driver mode at the moment. Carter noticed Tomoyo's inquisitive stare and winked to her knowingly.

"I don't know what kind of fancy power ranger style kung-fu you got up your sleeve, but I'm just motivated enough to make sure I win our little wager. So forgive me bro, but this is gonna hurt." Sage said as he smashed his fist into his palm while Carter chuckled smugly. As promised, Sage didn't waste any time and quickly cleared the space between them to deliver a swift jumping roundhouse to the side of Carter's head. But to his shock and dismay, Carter blocked the high handed blow with his forearm, smirking as he twisted his arm around to take a firm grasp of Sage's leg. "Aw hell nooooooooo!"

The gathered teens and Shishido could only watch slack jawed as the seemingly unadvantaged human man suddenly lifted his opponent off his feet and over his head, swinging the tightly held Sage around and around until he was practically weightless as he was carried aloft by the centrifugal force. Carter didn't 'leave him hanging' for long as he suddenly released his grip on the Monkey Phantom, allowing him to fly free until he eventually full body planted spread eagle on the far wall. "Ow." He whimpered as he struggled to unstick himself from his point of impact. "How the hell did you do that?! What kind of roids are you on?!"

"The magic kind." Carter responded cheekily as he finally pulled both his arms out to his sides and to the mixed shock and confusion of his audience, he began to flex. "Haaaaaaaaaauuuuuggggh!" The muscles covered beneath his shirt as well as his formerly hidden from view arm muscles began to swell to sizes and widths that one would have never expected from the thin/averagely built mage. The muscles of his chest and shoulders bulged to such girth that his shirt began to tear right down the middle, revealing washboard abs that would have only have been built upon years of upkeep and exercise. "Huuuuu!" His display finished, Carter smirked as he tossed his shredded t-shirt to the side to even show off his imposing back muscles (Believe me folks, writing this is actually killing me inside.).

"Show me what you got, little man." The imposing mountain of muscle formerly known as Carter Hughes challenged as he took a fighting pose with his massive arms up.

"Heh, so you finally took my advice and got a ring useful for picking up chicks." Sage choked back as he began bouncing on the balls of his feet again. "But you should seriously know better than this man. After all, I kept those meat heads back home off your back all the time. I'm a certified Bully Beater!" Sage was suddenly back in Carter's face, leaning back to deliver another kick, this time straight into Carter's face instead of the side of it. Instinctively, the Mage covered his face with both arms help up to block. But just as soon as he prepared to face the Phantom's heavy handed kick did he suddenly find his vision unobstructed as his block was literally yanked down by Sage's leg reaching up and slipping through the gap between Carter's chest and his arms, forcing the extended limbs down. Carter was so shocked by that swiftness and dexterity of his friend's maneuver that he just barely missed seeing the next kick coming from the side, barely.

The battle trained magician instinctively swayed his upper body back, letting the kick flow harmlessly over his face. And in that same maneuver, Carter quickly locked his arms tight around the leg Sage used to nullify his guard and trapped it to his chest as he tumbled to the side, taking Sage with him. The two were caught in a rolling grabble for a few short seconds before Carter seemed to take the upper hand and plant himself on Sage's back, still locking the teen's leg and twisting it just enough to not cause pain but still immobilize him. "Well isn't this familiar." The empowered mage hummed as he pressed down on his trapped friend who struggled to regain freedom. "Just like our college days."

"Oh you're just loving this aren't you." Sage grumbled as he contemplated transforming in order to escape. His Phantom form would easily trump even his bud's new physical power, but considering Carter hadn't summoned his armor and opted for an increase in his own human abilities instead, it was quite possible the mage knew this and was challenging him to a fair fight of pure magically augmented brawn and fighting skill. "You planned this didn't you?"

Carter chuckled in feigned guilt as he freed up a hand just enough to show off the ring he wore. "Golem's latest masterpiece, the Excite ring, this seemed like the perfect chance to test it out. Besides, I really don't want to lose."

"You are completely a villain in this situation! You know that!" Meilin called from the sidelines in disapproval. Her friends sweat dropping looks of confliction and Carter's own guiltily hanging head of dejection made it very hard for anyone to refute her claim. But it was also all the distraction Sage needed.

"You're open!" He cried out as he twisted just enough to kick his other leg up towards Carter's head, and again the well trained mahousukai dodged in the nick of time by ducking back, but this time Sage counted on that as he deftly redirected his kick to hook around Carter's neck and shoulder. Then, using his opponent's backwardly swaying position and a fair ounce of his own power, Sage forced Carter down and off of him, freeing his leg in the process.

They tumbled once again only this time Sage came out on top and effectively reversed their positions, except now Carter found himself trapped with his head caught between Sage's leg… and his buttocks.

"Get offa me!" Carter grumbled as he swung his massive arms around in an attempt to force the monkey off his head. "You stink like bananas!"

"Original." Sage deadpanned as he caught one of Carter's swinging limbs and trapped it as he had done to Sage's leg. "I told you I really want to win man! So until you give I suggest you get acquainted with my a-…are you shrinking?"

"Oh what do you know, must have worn off?" Carter hummed in expectation as he used his smaller, natural size and mass to slip out from Sage's leg around his head, cold cock the Phantom in the back with his elbow and roll away so he could right himself once more. "Wears off in a matter of minutes, need to remember that." Carter noted to himself as he dusted himself before he suddenly sneezed and started hugging his bare torso. "Brrr! Oi, timeout so I can put on a shirt?" Carter asked as he brought out his Dress Up ring. Sage and their on-looking friends pitched forward in shock, sweat dropping at the shivering mage's request; the serious nature off their brawl up till now had been dispersed in one moment of silliness as the mage summoned a spare t-shirt to replace the one he had torn.

"This fight is everywhere at once." Kero face palmed in embarrassment for the two men.

"It's certainly not an ordinary fight for what I've seen of Hughes." Syaoran agreed as he had his hand placed under his chin to watch the fight with fading interest as the idiot compatants were starting to square off again.

"I don't know, it kind of reminds me of my youth." Shishido reminisced with a nostalgic smile on his face. "I used to wrestle with the other kids just like that when I was a boy. Now it just seems childish but back then I had the time of my life, testing myself against my peers."

"Maybe you should fight next, Syaoran." Meilin said cheekily. "You might actually have fun for once in your life."

"I think I'll pass." The Chinese boy refused coolly, prompting the girls to giggle knowingly to each other at such a predictable response from their long time friend.

"Alright, skinny. We end this now." Sage declared, huffing not from fatigue but frustration at the fights back and forth nature. "I've been saving this next attack because I've yet to fully test it, but it's time for me to break out MY ULTIMATE SECRET FINISHING MOVE!" The loud declaration prompted Carter to raise a brow perplexed and brought their audiences attention fully back on him.

"Please tell me it's not the same dumb attack you've been trying for years?" Carter inquired skeptically as Sage suddenly took a deep breath and planted his feet apart, pulling his arms to his sides as if he were gathering energy into them.

"Monkey…" Sage started, taking a sideways stance with his feet apart and his arms out with his palms stacked atop each other in opposite directions.

"Oh bloody hell, this again. I told you it's never gonna happen!"

"…Destruction…" Sage continued as he pulled his arms back, forming his hands into a cage like shape.

"I told you a hundred times. It's magic, not Ki, so it can't do that!" Carter reprimanded his stubborn friend fearlessly, until he noticed blue light gathering in the gap between Sage's palms, flickering as Sage seemed to have trouble containing the power trapped in his hands. "Bugger me, no way." Carter stated in stunned disbelief as Sage grinned triumphantly.

"…Wave…" The blue light seemed to expand to its apex as Sage prepared to fire with all the energy he had gathered.

"Hit the deck!" Carter commanded the stunned Senshiis and only Syaoran was right headed enough to take action as he brought a fuda to his hand while Carter took a out one of his rings.

"…BLAST!"

Defend!

"Fuuka Shourai!"

The onlookers covered themselves even despite Syaoran's dome of wind to protect them and Carter took cover behind a shield resembling his Magic Circle as Sage pushed forward, unclasping his hands and letting the light from his palms shine free straight for Carter's hastily constructed defenses.

And then, silence. There was nothing what so ever. No explosion, no rush of wind, not even an impact and the morbid possibility of Carter being blown away in one flash of explosive light and crying out in terror. In fact, the complete lacking of any noise or force was almost…deadpan.

"Psssssssyche! Kikikikikiki!" The sudden cackling laughter of the reckless Phantom stirred everyone from the cover as Syaoran dispersed his wind shield so they all could see what had transpired. To their shock everything was as it was before they closed their eyes. The chamber was still in one piece and Carter still stood walled off behind his own shield. And at the center of it all was Sage; leaning forward, holding his stomach as he burst into a giggling fit. "Made you look!" He cried as he finally collapsed to his knees as they were wobbling under his quivering frame.

"WHAT?!" The Senshii's and Shishido cried out as one, finally understanding they had been tricked.

"Don't get me wrong, I have been and still am trying to figure out that technique." Sage explained through his tears of laughter and gasp for air. "But for now, I figured a little theatricality and sleight of hand of my own would make for a perfect bluff when I need an opponent to back off and turtle up so I can regroup." He revealed the circular LED light's small enough to fit into his closed palm and strapped around the width of his hand and then brought them close together between his two hands, simulating the blue light they assumed was his attack. "I'd say my little ploy worked wouldn't you, bud?"

Plop!

The group all turned in shock to the sudden sound of Carter collapsing backwards, falling to the floor spread eagle with his eyes closed shut.

"Yu-kun?" Sakura called to the mage, dread appearing across her face when he didn't respond, laying their silent as death.

"Carter!" Sage cried out in worry as he rushed to best friend's side, vainly trying to shake him awake.

"Kid! Come on speak to us!" Shishido attempted to rouse his fellow Rider when he noticed a rise and fall along the younger man's chest.

"Oh God, I gave him a heart attack!" Sage jumped to conclusions as he started pressing down on the unmoving man's chest rapidly. "He needs CPR!"

"Um, actually I think he's still br…Pfft!" Shishido had no time to finish what he was saying as he had to turn away to hide his snickering at what he was seeing. Kero blanched dumbfounded as Tomoyo suddenly covered Sakura's eyes, prompting Meilin to cover Syaoran's the two girls laughing to themselves while their two naïve friends were lost on what they found so funny and why they were blinding them to it.

"Breathe! Darn! You!" Sage, having seen his attempt at resuscitation did nothing, cried out in desperation as he started pounding on the unconscious mage's chest with his fist balled, until he Shishido finally stopped him, struggling through his laughter as he explained.

"I don't think he's dead, just unconscious. Though by the looks of it, he may just be asleep."

"ASLEEP?!" Sage responded loudly in disbelief. "Hey why the hell are you napping?!" Sage started shaking the unconscious Carter more vigorously now. "We're in the middle of something!"

"I think it's safe to say that you've won." Meilin talked him down, resulting in Sage letting the still blissfully sleeping Carter fall back to the floor with a bang, the mage still unaffected by his head bouncing against the mat.

"But why did Yu-kun suddenly fall asleep?" Sakura inquired as she peered at his soundly sleeping form, noticing at once the deep bags under the man's eyes and the shear amount of sweat stilling pouring off of him. He looked as if he had just gotten back from running a marathon, twice. "Just a minute ago he seemed full of energy."

"But just a minute ago he was also under the effects of that new ring of his." Shishido pointed out.

"You're saying the ring must have back lashed on him, sapping him of his stamina in exchange for his boost in physical strength." Syaoran followed up, looking at Carter's new spell inquisitively.

"But doesn't Kinimoto-san have a similar spell?" Meilin pointed out as Sakura thought the same, taking the Power card from her pocket. "She never seemed this exhausted after powering up like that."

"The Power doesn't increase strength the same way as the Wizard's spell did." Kero explained, finally getting to show off his knowledge for once. "In the case of the Card, it would be more correct to say that it grants its user an "aura of strength" that increases their power based on the strength of their magic. In that regard, it's much more efficient than a physical power boost that requires the body to change in order to gain the power. The guy's actually lucky he only fell asleep, to force the human body to change so drastically so suddenly might have caused who knows what kind of harm."

"So in other words…I win cause Carter's a crummy mage!" Sage started cackling again, causing the group to sweat drop at his lack of tact. Meilin even smacked him across the head for good measure but he still kept grinning his moronic grin of triumph. "This day can't possibly go wrong!"

"Aroo! Aroo!"

"Had to say it." Sage face palmed as Golem suddenly rushed into the training area, pushing Carter's crystal ball along with him.

"Golem-chan? What happened?" Sakura asked as she picked up both Golem and the ball so she could show it to the others.

"A Phantom attack, and Wizard's out cold." Shishido stated as he watched the indiscriminate destruction caused by a particularly feral looking Phantom and his pack of ghouls. "Welp, guess it's my time to shine." Shishido volunteered as he started to head for the gateway out and hit the streets, when someone suddenly impeded him.

"Hold it just a second. I've decided!" Sage proclaimed gathering every ones attention. "With all that has transpired, I now realize I must take up the fight in my dear friend's stead. I shall take up his mantle and fight to protect this city from the shadows, just as he did."

"You're making it sound like he's dead when he's not you moron!" Kero pointed out but Sage ignored him, continuing.

"I shall become the next Kamen Rider!"

"What?!" Shishido reeled as the teens and Kero stood there speechless. "But you're a Phantom not a mahousukai."

"I'm a magician where it counts, despite my outward appearance." Sage responded, smacking his chest confidently. "Besides, I know how to play the part." The teen suddenly allowed his tail to pop out as it extended, wrapping about him like an anaconda to the dismay of his onlookers. "Henshin!" He mimicked once his tail seemingly cocooned him only to snap back and retreat to its normal length, spinning the Phantom teen about like a top as it did until he stopped revealed in clothes drastically different to what he wore before. "You think Carter's the only one who knows how to dress for an occasion?" The now dark leather jacket and jeans clad teen snickered as he tugged on his dark gloves and straightened the helmet he wore on his head which had changed to his true phantom appearance, except with large rimmed black sunglasses covering his eyes and a gold trimmed white scarf tied around his neck. "Now then, let's ride!"

"Ride what?" Shishido inquired, still skeptical of this plan. "You don't have a motorcycle."

Sage grinned beneath his mask and looked over to the still unconscious Carter. "But I know where to get one."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Mahousukai! Come out! Graaaauuuuuuhhhh!"

"Bakemono! Nigero!"

Civilians scurried to escape as a pack of stone beast flooded the streets, led by a ferocious figure that was at this moment carrying the full bulk of a fully loaded van on his shoulders and walking as casually as if he held a basket of laundry on his head. "Face me, coward! Or I'll tear this whole city down brick by brick!" The savage Kaijin snarled as he hurled his burden forward, sending it tumbling across the street after a few lagging pedestrians who fearfully leaped to the side to avoid being crushed.

"Round up as many humans as you can find." The snarling Phantom commanded to his Ghouls. "A formal execution of these wretches should pull that bleeding heart out of hiding." The Ghouls responded abruptly as they gave chase to the retreating humans, surrounding and manhandling the stragglers to bring them before their master who glared down at them spitefully. The humans reeled back in terror of him, ripping a satisfied snicker from his throat.

He was the Phantom Were-tiger, a powerhouse of a monster who stood taller than most men and appeared as a rippling figure of solid muscle wrapped in white tiger skin and adorned with the snarling open maw of a beast acting as hood to frame his emotionless inhuman face. He was the very last remnant of Phoenix's Splinter group, even more than that, he was a member of Phoenix's inner circle along with Sphinx and Cherufe.

Were-tiger despised humans. He despised their weakness, their frailty and their cowardice. He wanted nothing more than to rip every stinking one of them apart with his bare hands, but knew under the command of that infernal "lady" he would never get the chance. Even her desire to merely hunt down Gates for the sake of increasing their ranks irked him to a point where his blood boiled. Why waste time scheming and tip toeing around in order to keep potential allies alive when just going for the kill was so much faster and more savory, and if a Phantom was born from the shock of that kill, so be it, if not, what did it matter since now one more piece of human trash was dead. Phoenix had understood his hate and welcomed him to their group, and Were-tiger impatiently dreamed of the day Phoenix took charge of the Phantom scourge and he could hunt humans to his leisure.

But his dream was crushed, his comrades had been slain by the vile mahousukais and he had no choice but to fall back in line like the other defectors who had thankfully not been revealed, yet. It seemed the crafty witch knew more about their group than she let on, and one by one his remaining comrades were sent out on suicide missions, never to return. When his turn came he did not cower as the others had nor beg forgiveness, he simply stated to her his solemn promise to himself and to his broken dream. "I will kill the Kamen Rider." She actually seemed pleased at this and sent him on his way. It was Beelze who finally gave him his orders and to his pleasure he finally saw his chance at hand. He was to lure out and kill Wizard and his friends by any means necessary, they likely thought he'd fail, but today he would prove them wrong.

"Onee-san, I'm scared. I wanna go home." A young pigtailed girl in a grade school uniform clung to her sister, a teenage girl with long brown hair, fearfully as the Ghouls surrounded them and forcefully led them away to join the other captured humans.

"Don't be scared Mio, I'm sure the Kamen Riders will come any minute to save all of us." The equally terrified girl tried to put on a brave face, doing her best to keep up her young sister's spirits in their bleak situation.

"Really?" The elder sister attempted to nod in reassurance when the barbaric boss of the Ghouls stepped forward, having overheard them. He harshly grabbed the elder sister by her hair and turned her face to look deep into his savage visage.

"For your sakes, he had better come." The Phantom shoved the girl aside and grabbed her sister forcefully by the throat, easing up his grip just enough to allow her to breath, and scream. "This child shall be the first!"

"No! Mio!" The elder sister cried out in fear, begging him to take her instead as she was being pulled away Ghouls.

"Dasukete! Kamen Rider!"

"That's right. Scream for him, bring him to me." Were-tiger relished her terror as he tossed Mio into the air, catching her by her leg and shoulder as he held her over his head. "You best hurry Rider, or I'll rip her in two! You have to the count of three."

"NO!"

"Onee-san!"

"One…two…thr-"

Vrooom!

"HOOOOO, DIOOOOOO!"

The roar of an engine, not to mention a very blatantly terrified cry, instantly stopped the Phantom mid-count as he starred in shock at a zooming blur haphazardly speeding towards him in a zigzag pattern. He immediately recognized the speeding motorcycle's rider to be a phantom, that was oddly dressed in black leather riding gear, and even stranger had a helmeted human riding behind him. The leather clad Phantom seemed to take notice of him and his would-be victim and turned to his passenger, passing him some form of instructions which seemed to shock him, especially as the Phantom released his hold on the handles to leap from his seat, an act which sent the bike veering off course before the passenger could take a hold of the bars.

"Cazzo!" The human cursed as he and the bike drove straight into a side alley, his short ride coming to an abrupt stop as a loud "crash!" was heard, followed by a spray of trash being sent flying through the air, followed by even more cursing.

The odd Phantom landed in a crouch from his jump and rose up, almost toweringly to his full height as he marched toward Were-tiger who had finally found his voice again after such a shock.

"Who the hell are you?!" The phantom demanded to know as the intruder remained silent, the wind blowing his scarf around as the Phantom removed his helmet and black shades, no longer obscuring his simian visage and revealing his furious, firey red eyes. "I didn't ask for back up. And I sure as hell don't need it just to tear this trash apart." He retightened his grip on the young girl, causing her to call out in pain. The monkey Phantom seemed to reach for something behind his ear at that moment, it looked like a tooth pick or maybe a needle. "Are you one of those mercs? I'm warning you punk-ass, get in the way of my mission and I'll tear you limb from-"

"Moneky Magic: Jet Lance."

Swip! Bang!

"Gaaaaah!" In almost the blink of an eye, the Monkey Phantom's tiny needle exploded outward as a lance of pure golden light, spanning the distance between the two and smashing straight into Were-Tiger's torso, knocking him backward and loosening his grip on the girl so that he tossed her into the air as he was shot backwards. The girl cried out in terror as her sudden flight would soon send her hurtling back to the hard ground, but in yet another instant, the Monkey Kind was there, riding his staff forward as it continued to grow outward but retracted forward as well so that the Phantom teen was directly under the girl as she fell, catching her in his arms before she ever came close to the ground.

"Daijobuka, kodomo?" Sage worded out as best as he could with his limited Japanese. The little girl seemed wary of him at first; not surprising considering he was still a Phantom, and she tried to escape his arms despite how he seemed to have saved her. He didn't think twice on it as he set the little girl down gently, she backed away from him frightened but he just smiled and gestured for her to seek safety. He suddenly raised his arm up across from her, causing her to flinch back, thinking he was about to attack her, until a piece of rubble came flying straight for her and his arm was there to block it.

"Kiisama! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Were-Tiger demanded in a furious, hate filled roar as he ripped the head from another Ghoul and shot it straight toward the interloper with the power of a cannon. The Monkey man continued to smile at his charge as the new projectile smashed across the back of his head this time, he did not cringe or show pain, he simply took the abuse while making certain she was safe.

"Go on." He instructed to her kindly, pointing her toward the alley he saw his friend go down, figuring she'd be safer down that way with him. She starred at him uncertain for a few more seconds before finally nodding and going off, but not before looking worriedly back to her sister and the others. The Phantom followed her train of thought and grinned at her while flashing her a thumbs up. He'd take care of it.

"Are you listening to me?! Do you know how badly you just screwed up?! You just betrayed your own kind, for them! For these pathetic, weak, disgusting-!"

"Are you still talking?" Sage asked back to the raging Tiger. "I just barely understand you and I don't like anything I hear." The Phantom's confused silence was all he needed to know his words hand't gotten through. "I'll say it simply then: Urusei, koneko yaro." Sage accentuated his threat by smashing the butt of his staff against the ground at his feet, sending sparks flying as the cudgel grew once more and the Phantom rested it across his shoulder, glaring at the monster in challenge "Buttobasu!"

"You…you…You traitorous scum!" Tiger roared in outrage as he charged the Monkey Phantom, his beastial nature coming to bear as he fell to all fours and dashed toward the "blasphemer" with his claws scraping against the ground. "I'm going to rip you to shreds!" In response, Sage left his cudgel in the ground where he left it and took an unarmed stance with his feet spread apart, his body at a low angle and his hands out to his sides. "I'll tear you to pieces!" The hood like maw of the tiger on the Phantom's back suddenly grew out, taking on a mind of its own as it overtook the Phantom's humanoid head and snarled with primal blood lust as it bore its teeth to chomp down on the Phantom Monkey King. "I'm going to bite off your freaking head!"

"Shut…" Just as the monster's jaws were so close Sage could smell his putrid breath, the teen's knee instantly shot upward, smashing straight into the Tiger's chin and smashing its jaws together with a loud, sickening snap! "UP!"

"Guuuuarg!" Tiger groaned in pain as his head was blasted upwards, leaving him wide open as the Monkey snapped off a reverse round-house kick to the side of his head, blasting him back. "So…strong."

"Everything about you pisses me off." Sage stated coldly as he pressed in on the reeling Tiger, wailing on the monster's face and torso with a flurry of compact punches. "Makes me understand just what I might've become. Makes me think of all the people I could have hurt." Tiger had regained his senses enough to try and guard himself with his arms covering his face, but just as soon as he had did he find his guard being wrenched down by Sage's leg. The Monkey suddenly gave a shrill whistle as his cudgel flew to his hands. "I won't let you hurt one more person!" Sage twirled his staff over his head as he brought it around across the Were-Tiger's exposed torso, howling at the top of his lungs as he put all his power behind the one swing. "Ooooooooaaaaaagh! Buttobasu!"

Were-Tiger couldn't even call out in pain as the golden weapon smashed across his chest, blasting him backwards, but he didn't need to call out in pain, he was right where he needed to be as he landed right into the throng of his human captives. "Crap!" Sage snarled as he stepped forward to finish what he started, but the tenacious Tiger was already back on his feet, holding two hostages by their throats and stopping Sage in his tracks.

"Don't you move, Monkey, or I'll rip their throats out." Even despite the two's language barrier, the Monkey King got the picture, setting his weapon down for good measure as Tiger growled in delight. "Ghouls, take aim!" He commanded as his familiars stepped forward, equipped with blasters as they formed into a firing squad pointed toward the unarmed Sage. "Fire!"

The Ghouls' blaster let loose a cascade of fire balls that rained down on Sage who didn't even pull up his arms to cover himself. Sage's position turned to a literal inferno as the fire balls impacted and set the ground ablaze, but the resilient Phantom teen did not cry or even flinch, not even when one of the blazing balls of fire smacked square into his face, he simply grinned his cheeky grin as his fiery eyes pierced through the flames to glare at Tiger.

"Grrrrr. Again! Fire at will!" Tiger ordered his troops, determined to demolish the traitor while he still had him at his mercy.

"Gao!" A shimmer of light suddenly formed in mid-air behind the firing Ghouls as a figure clad in gold and green sliced the stone creatures in half with a single precise slash, devouring their mana all at once as he patted his torso pleased.

"What?!" Were-Tiger cried out in shock and outrage as he reached for hostages, but Beast was a step ahead of him as the whip like tongue of his Chameleo mantle lashed out at the Phantom, beating him back away from the frightened humans.

"Yo, Goldy! What took you so long?" Hannuman called in greeting as he cast the fire out with a wave of his arm, his form, now in his true armor and clothes, not the least bit damaged by the raging flames.

"Well after you dumped me in that garbage, gonna make you pay for that by the way, I lead the ojou-chan away to safety. These the only hostages left?" Beast inquired as he helped some of the more frightened ones up, grimacing when some of them covered their faces in revulsion as soon as they got a whiff of him.

"Should be." Sage shrugged as he retrieved his staff. "Now all that's left is this guy." Hannuman and Beast turned to the cornered Were-Tiger as he snarled at them, acting more like a beast than a man as he growled hatefully at the humans he wanted to kill oh so badly.

"You idiots disgust me, wasting your power on these sheep! They should all die simply for being the weak trash that they are."

"Does this guy ever shut up?" Sage sighed as he rested his staff across his shoulder tiredly.

"At least you can't understand him. Let's just get this over with, I'm starving." Beast hummed in expectation as Sage took a cautionary step away from the feral Rider, partly from fear, partly to escape the aroma of garbage coming off of him.

"I won't die here. I won't die a meaningless death like those losers. I won't…" Were-Tiger suddenly started clutching his chest as he began breathing deeply, as if every breath were labored. "I won't…"

"Hm? What's that?" Sage inquired as a green glow began resonating from within the Phantom's chest. "I think he ate something that didn't agree with him." But Beast didn't seemed all that reactive to his jokes as he clutched his sword tightly, backing away from the quivering Tiger.

"All of you get back!" Beast cried in warning as Were-Tiger roared in pain and fury, falling onto his hands and knees as his hood covered his face once more.

"I WON'T!" Were-Tiger's body began to grow rapidly as the fangs of his hood grew to the length of razor edged swords and his hands and feet changed to animal like paws with claws that tore apart the ground as he convulsed in the throes of his sudden transformation. The Phantom Beast's body grew and grew until he towered over Sage and Shishido, who could only stare up in shock at the monster their cornered foe had turned into.

"Things just got escalated!" Sage yelled as he jumped back, avoiding being stamped out by one of mutated Phantom's giant paws. "Goldy, use your stink to scare it off!" Beast didn't even grant that remark a rebuttal as he weaved into the swiping claws and fangs of the massive beast, stabbing his blade into the creatures under belly and causing it to roar in outrage as it thrashed about, forcing the lion Rider away before he was crushed.

"So what's the plan, Top Cat?" Sage asked as he pole vaulted over the Tiger when it came charging at him, cheekily smacking the Phantom on the flank with his staff as he passed over head.

"Don't ask me! We had all of us plus one more when we took down something like this." Shishido called back as he jammed his ring into the slot of his Dice-Saber.

Three! Chameleo, Saber Strike!

The trio of projectile chameleons leaped toward the Phantom that was mid-turn from its last charge. But the miniscule projections did little more than infuriate the monster further as it shrugged off each individual explosion and bee-lined for Beast. But a certain someone just suddenly dashed between the two, shocking his two friends as he lowered his ring baring hand to his buckle.

"Excite, Please!"

"Haaaauuuuuuggghhh!" Wizard roared in defiance as his hands caught the oncoming jaws of the Were-Tiger, slowing its charge almost immediately as he skidded back by it momentum. "Sorry, kitty. But I'm real grumpy after a nap." Wizard's armored form suddenly began to grow as well, the arms clamping around the fangs of the mutated Tiger becoming the size of thick tree trunks and his legs and chest grew to accommodate the massive limbs as Wizard changed to a hulking brute whose size matched even the Phantom's in pure bulk. "And you won't like me when I'm grumpy." Only Wizard's head seemed to retain its natural size, but that was hardly a concern once the mahousukai began lifting the furiously struggling Tiger onto his thick shoulders and began spinning on the tips of his toes until he was just a blur of red and white.

"Holy crap." Sage starred in awe, he was shocked when his best friend suddenly appeared after seeming completely knocked out, he was shocked when his friend used the same power that knocked him out to grow to a size he couldn't fathom a normal human becoming, but now he was terrified as he looked to the equally shocked Shishido and remembered how they got here. "You don't think he'll be mad about his bike, do you?"

Beast looked at him and patted the teen in pity. "Even if he might forgive you for stealing it, he probably won't let the trash you crashed it into slide. Believe me, I know I won't." The Monkey Phantom whimpered at the prospect of his impending doom just as Carter's rotation seemed to come to an end.

"Rider…Cyclone…"Wizard released his hold on Were-Tiger as his rotation reached its apex, launching the mutant Phantom into the air. "…Shoot!" Were-Tiger howled in terror as it was sent tumbling through the air to altitudes unimaginable considering how he got up there. But Wizard wasn't done with him yet as the hulked out Rider smashed his legs into the ground and stood there in a preparatory crouch, charging his strength into his legs, letting the pressure build. "Rider Jump!" he cried as he literally leaped several stories into the air, careening upwards like a rocket.

"You guys see that?" Meilin asked as she, Sakura, Kero and Syaoran were running as fast they could to catch up with their friend to do what they could during the battle. Right after Carter woke up and was briefed on the situation, in detail, he immediately opened a Connect portal only to disappear, alone into it, leaving the Senshii's to have to change and make their own way to the incident. Now as they were making their way they spied an odd black and red object launching into the sky from the area they knew the Phantom had been attacking. "Am I seeing things, or does that look Wizard?"

"Couldn't be?" Syaoran muttered in disbelief.

"I knew he was mad, but I didn't think Yu-kun would go that extreme over this." Sakura sweat dropped, gaining a new understanding of her teacher and just how immature he could be.

"I feel sorry for whoever he's wailing on right now." Kero grimaced as the group caught sight of Beast and Hannuman, at last.

It was certainly a shock for the giant Tiger-beast when its speeding descent was suddenly joined by the last person it wanted to see at the moment as Wizard suddenly glided down till he was level with it, cracking his massive knuckles expectantly. "I know I just got here but it's seems we've reached our Finale sooner than expected." Wizard quipped as he began swinging his massive right arm like a windmill, gearing up for one big swing. "Sorry kitty, but I gotta put you down." Were-Tiger cried out in terror as the hulking Wizard reared back with his boulder sized fist cocked and ready to fire. "Rider Ougi: London…Smash!" With a crack like thunder and impact like a cannonball, Wizard's fist smashed face first into the beast, sending a shock wave through the air forcing those down below the cover themselves from the gust it brought down on them and blasting Were-Tiger with such force that it was hurled away from the area until it became nothing but a speck in the distance.

"Now that's how you send someone flying." Wizard grinned proudly as he watched his foe disappear over the horizon. "Speaking of flying…how am I…Buuuuuuuuugggggggggeeeeeerrr!"

Crash!

"Ow"

Sage gave a whistle, though he knew his friend would likely be ok in his armor plus all the extra muscle he had to cushion the fall, he had to admit, that looked like it hurt. "I'm ok." Wizard muttered as he pulled himself out of his impact crater, beginning to literally deflate as he retook his normal height and build once more. "Scratch that, I think I'm blacking out."

Kero took a position behind the magician as he became unsteady on his feet, helping him stay lateral as he shook out the grogginess. Wizard thanked the Clow guardian just as his eyes settled on his favorite Phantom trying to tip-toe away. "So did you enjoy your little joy ride?" Carter scrutinized the Monkey as he stopped dead in his tracks, his fur and tail standing on in as he knew he was caught.

"Bro, I swear I will clean and fix up your bike!" Sage cried out, getting on his knees as he begged. "Just please not the face. I'm too pretty to get wailed on!" The college age teen sobbed out the last bit, causing the whole group to sweat drop at his pitiful state while Carter considered his options but already had an idea in mind.

"Alright, I'm willing to forgive this little indiscretion." Sage starred up with hope and admiration in his eyes due to his friend's compassion while the others looked at the magician skeptically, he definitely had ulterior motives. "If, you call us square on our deal." There it was, though his lost was by technicality he still had a bargain to keep, so his best way to weasel out of this situation was to dangle sweeter bait in front of his friend to make him rethink their arrangement. The plan seemed sound, except…

"Hell freaking no!" Now it was Sage the group looked at his shock, even Wizard seemed a bit more deflated that his ploy had been rejected so easily. "We had a deal, so you can pound on me all you want after it's settled."

"Tch, fine." Carter forfeited, knowing he wasn't going to argue over this with his thick skulled friend. When he wanted something, it was near impossible to make him give it up, so best to just take his lumps and deal some of his own back later. "Alright, out with it." Carter instructed as he relaxed back against Keroberus, letting out a huge yawn. "Tell me while I'm still awake."

"Right!" Sage nodded, suddenly getting a serious expression his face. "I think I should tell you first, this is actually the main reason I came here." The Senshiis and Beast looked to the Phantom teen confused while Wizard shook his head groggily. "That deal just seemed like the best way to tell you this cause I know you aren't gonna like this. You'll probably yell at me, hit me and demand that I walk my sorry ass out of your life, for even proposing this. But Carter…" Sage seemed really conflicted on what he had to say as he clenched his knees in frustration, gritting his teeth through the words. "I want you go home, back to London, and forget about all of this!"

"What?!"

"No way…"

"West-san, you want Yu-kun to leave?" Sakura asked in disbelief to the kneeling Phantom who seemed close to fighting back tears.

"You guys saw didn't you!? How messed up Carter got in that fight last time?" He reminded them. "You can't tell me it's the first and only time you've ever seen him push himself to the brink of death while fighting. I've known him for years and I know he's always been like this." Sakura and the others couldn't argue his point, on more than one occasion Carter has thrown himself literally in the line of fire in order to protect them and others. His body taking punishment he seemed overt to ever allow them to experience, and though he seemed to recover quickly and be back on his feet as their smiling magician and teacher, none of them could deny Carter could have easily died all those past times. Throughout their little exchange, Carter had been stoically silent, so Sage continued, hoping his fears would get through. "This battle is more intense than anything we've seen, bro. And I know you've got you survivors guilt syndrome and can't stand seeing people in danger, but you've gotta let this one slide! This battle is gonna escalate to the point where it could literally break you, in fact I know it will! I've seen what kind of monster is heading here, and I don't want you anywhere near him. I'll take your place, I'll keep your kids safe. But I don't want to see my best friend die! So please, just do this for me. Carter!"

"Zzzz…fui. Zzzzzz…fui."

"Eh?" Sage starred with his mouth hanging open and his soul barred as his "best friend" was snoozing away, face still covered by his mask as his chest and headed bobbed to the rhythm of his snoring. "You've gotta be freaking kidding me! You insensitive jerk, how long have you been asleep?!" Sage demanded as he grabbed the sleeping Mage by the collar.

"I'd guess long enough to have missed most if not all of what you just said." Kero guessed, grinning sheepishly at having missed that despite his proximity to the man. "I guess I make a nice pillow?"

"Aaaaaaauuuuurrrrgh!" Sage started clawing at his hair in pure maddening frustration. The thing he's slowly been working up to do ever since he came to Japan and now the recipient of all his concern just missed his heart felt effort by a matter of moments. How crappy could his luck be?!

"I suppose we'll have to leave that matter for later." Shishido mediated as he better position the sleeping mahousukai onto Kero's back so that they could transport him more easily. "Now as for you." Beast stepped up to Sage who was preparing to bludgeon himself with his own cudgel when he realized the intensity of the older man's glare on him. "You need to explain exactly what you're so frightened is going to kill Hughes."

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Yo, been a while! We're finally back with KRxMS updates.

So, first off, I know you guys will ask. Why did I make things up for the Excite ring when they its not something that happened in the show. In all honesty I was a bit disappointed in how little that spell was used, I know Wizard was never about brute strength (til mine) but power like that doesnt seem like something to be just one offed. So, I did something I dont normally do and created a head canon of my own as to why using it has draw backs. And I'd like to point out I'm not the first that has done this, go to the Kamen Rider wiki and look up the Kiva DoGaBaKi form and see what I mean.

Beyond all that, we have some insight into Sage's reason for coming to Japan beyond helping his friend. Will he succeed in convincing Carter to leave Tomoeda? Probably not but lets see him try anyway. And at long last we will gain some insight into the enemy that even has Beelzebub shaking in his boots. Why does this enemy make Sage fear for his friend's life? Find out, next time!

I own neither Kamen Rider Wizard nor Cardcaptor Sakura, both series belong to their respective owners.

Also, new Cardcaptor manga and anime hype! Whose with me!?