THE LEGACY OF CAIN
Part 20: The Cobra's Revenge
"Wait, I was born on a Ferris Wheel?" Shinichi asked. He and his mother were working on another book together when Shinichi suddenly brought up the question regarding the circumstances of his own birth.
"Yes, that's right," Shiori confirmed.
Shiori and her husband Shotaro were at an amusement park. Shiori's stomach was bulging, indicating that she was pregnant. She would be due pretty soon and they had tried spicy food and sex to induce labor but unfortunately they hadn't worked. They had been told that high altitudes would work.
"Let's go on the Ferris Wheel," Shotaro suggested.
"Lead the way, Sho-chan," smiled Shiori.
"So we got on the Ferris Wheel and it was fun…until we got to the very top," Shiori told her son.
"What happened?" asked Shinichi.
"The Ferris Wheel jammed and we got stuck. But that wasn't the worst part." Shinichi could tell where this was going as his mother said, "My water broke."
"Sho-chan, it's coming! It's coming!" Shiori gasped before she began screaming. "Oh, Kami! It hurts!"
"Just relax, Shiori!" said Shotaro. They were stuck in a Ferris Wheel car and at the very top and now his wife was in labor. "What do I do!?" She grabbed him by the collar and glared at him venomously.
"YOU'RE GOING TO GET THIS—UGH—KID OUT OF ME!" Shiori snapped in his face. He paled and nodded quickly.
"Sho-chan was so nervous," said Shiori as she remembered that, "And I was in so much pain as I was pushing you out of me…"
Shinichi looked rather uncomfortable as his mother continued to go into detail.
Shiori screamed as Shotaro knelt between her legs after removing her panties which now dangled from her left ankle.
"Shiori, just push! Push!" he told her.
"I AM PUSHING!" she shouted. "OH, KAMI-SAMA IT HURTS! I SWEAR, SHOTARO! YOU'RE GOING TO GET A VASECTOMY AFTER THIS!"
"You actually said that?" Shinichi questioned.
Blushing, Shiori admitted defensively, "I was in A LOT of pain."
"I see the head!" Shotaro told Shiori. "Just one more push! You can do it, Shiori!"
"ARGH!" Shiori screamed and then…
"WAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Shotaro quickly wrapped the baby up in his coat to keep him warm. Shiori was trying to catch her breath as she lowered her legs. "Sho-chan…is that…?"
"Yes…it's our son," smiled Shotaro. Shiori looked at her son's face as he continued to cry.
"Our son…" Shiori released tears of joy.
Then the Ferris Wheel started back up.
"Here's the newspaper clipping right here," said Shiori as she opened up a scrapbook. She pointed at the picture, "That's me, that's your father and that little bundle in his coat is you."
Shinichi was amazed. "Wait, who's that guy?" Shinichi pointed to another man who was standing close to his parents.
"Oh, that was the Ferris Wheel operator, Shinji Akari," Shiori told her son.
"Wait, what? His name's Shinji too?" asked Shinichi.
"Well, we had to name you something and he was the one who fixed the Ferris Wheel," Shiori answered. "That's why we named you after him. He was our hero."
"Oh…" Shinichi realized.
Deep in the mountains of Canada, at a log cabin, a very muscular man was chopping firewood. He wore his reddish-blonde hair short and was dressed in a red shirt with blue jeans, suspenders and hiking boots. He brought the axe down on the log, chopping it in half, before picking another log up and chopping it in half before repeating the process again.
Roger Stevenson had been living alone since that fateful day. He was the only survivor of a horrible incident which had taken place in the military camp he'd been stationed at. All of his brothers-in-arms had died. Only Stevenson had survived but that was only because he had been the subject for an experiment to create a new breed of super soldier. Since the traumatic experience, Stevenson decided to just mourn and grieve in solitude. He got a job as a construction worker and went into town to do his job, driving a pickup truck down the mountain road so he could get to work and not be late. Sometimes he would go to the bar to try and get drunk but his enhanced metabolism wouldn't allow it. A few times he had women checking him out but he just ignored them. It was a lonely life but he was content. As long as he had a roof on his head and food on the table he was OK with being alone.
Stevenson then picked up some people coming and looked up to see a couple of guys approaching. One was dressed in white with white hair and red eyes while the other was dressed in a crocodile skin jacket and wore a scowl on his face. "Private 1st Class Roger Stevenson, I presume?" the man-in-white asked.
"Just Stevenson now," said Stevenson as he replied to the man-in-white's question. "What brings you up here to these parts?"
"Simple, we're offering you closure," said the man-in-white.
"Closure?" Stevenson questioned.
"Haven't you ever thought of avenging all your brothers-in-arms? Haven't you thought of finding and punishing those responsible?"
Stevenson answered, frowning, "I'm over it."
"Are you?" the man-in-white asked. "Really? I can see it in your eyes. You want answers. You want to know how it happened."
"I barely remember all the details. It's a bit fuzzy," Stevenson admitted but he was lying. He remembered it all but tried to forget it.
"I can tell you who it was and where to find him," said the man-in-white, causing Stevenson to stiffen. "Guess that got your attention."
"Who are you?' Stevenson asked.
"Shiro Juuyon, and we both have something in common. We both want revenge on the same guy," said Shiro.
Stevenson's eyes narrowed. "Come inside so we can talk," invited Stevenson.
In order to avoid a scandal that would ruin the Tigers' reputation and chances at the championship, Keiichi withdrew from the team. There was no reason for the entire team to suffer because of his mistake. They all had worked so hard. It was the right thing to do. Keiichi would have to deal with his mistakes on his own. As for why he had been in the hospital that had been kept a secret except to his parents who pretty much bit his head off for being so stupid. Still, they forgave him as he felt remorse for what he did.
"You did the right thing," said Shinichi as he and Keiichi sat in a booth at Angel Mort.
"Yeah, I guess," said Keiichi. "I guess I'll rejoin next year."
"That's the spirit," smiled Shinichi encouragingly.
"I mean we won the last game because of me so if anyone found out…"
"Sometimes covering up the truth to protect others is a good thing," said Shinichi as he took a sip of coffee. His eyes glanced up to Satoko, Rika and Hanyuu who were busy serving customers. He saw the looks guys were giving his sisters and glowered. Couldn't they have gotten a job elsewhere?
"Still hung up on them working here?" Keiichi asked.
"Well, yeah," said Shinichi, "The customers are a bunch of pervs."
"Aren't you a perv?" Keiichi pointed out.
Shinichi retorted, "Don't lump me with the rest of them. I know my boundaries." He saw a guy reached out to touch Hanyuu's rear. "Oh…that's it!" He stood up but then saw Hanyuu deal with the guy by grabbing his wrist, glaring at him, before the man screamed and ran out as fast as he could.
"You're not the only one who can be scary," said Keiichi, "And isn't Hanyuu-chan more powerful than you are?"
"I can't help it. She's my sister and as her older brother I have to protect her," said Shinichi.
"Isn't she older than she looks?" asked Keiichi.
"Kei, don't ever comment about a woman's age or weight. Those are sensitive matters," warned Shinichi.
"Well, at least you don't have any more problems with her dating Chiaki," said Keiichi.
"Of course not! I can trust him," said Shinichi. Rika looked at him and winked, causing him to look away. "Rika on the other hand I actually hope gets a nice boyfriend soon." Shinichi sighed. While it was true that he may have had a problem with his sisters dating, he wished that Rika could find someone to fall for other than him. If fate were different, he may have considered a relationship with her, but all he could feel for Rika was that of brotherly affection. Since Rika had come onto him he'd felt nervous being alone in the same room with her and his mother wasn't helping matters. She probably thought it could make a great story. He would too if it weren't happening to him.
"I sorta doubt it. Satoshi told me that Satoko told him that Rika has turning down boys left and right like flies," Keiichi said. This made Shinichi sigh in annoyance.
"Well that stinks," mumbled Shinichi. "Well better head back to the Hive."
"Still trying to find them?" Keiichi asked, he was referring to both Gnol and WHITE 14 or Shiro Juuyon as he now referred to himself. They've been trying to track them down via the satellite but so far they were not able to even catch a blip of them.
"Yeah, hopefully we'll find them soon before they start causing any more trouble," Shinichi said. After putting some money on the table he walked out of Angel Mort. Both he and Keiichi weren't aware of a man standing up and walking out of the restaurant at the same time.
After leaving Angel Mort with Keiichi, Shinichi took Rena out and they spent the night in his quarters at the Hive. The following morning, both Rena and Shinichi returned to their apartment, wanting a day to themselves. However, they would be in for an unpleasant surprise upon arrival. When they opened the door both were shocked to see their apartment completely ransacked.
"What the hell...?" Shinichi muttered with his eyes narrowed angrily. It was a huge mess with the TV smashed, their furniture in pieces, and the pictures with Shinichi in them torn to shreds. Books and papers were lying carelessly on the floor as well.
"How did this happen?" Rena asked. Shinichi didn't say anything. He wondered who could have done it. He briefly thought of WHITE 14 before squashing that idea. If it was him, he would have just bombed the place with them inside. When they reached the bedroom, they had their answer.
Someone had carved onto their bedroom wall a message: THERE IS STILL A SURVIVOR OF CAMP COBRA
Shinichi eyes the message, Camp Cobra where has he heard that before. His eyes widen as he remembered something.
"This is Camp Cobra, we require assistance urgently!" a man shouted on the radio before he screamed as #13 warped behind him and slit his throat.
"So there is still a survivor from that time," Shinichi whispered to himself.
"Shin-kun? Do you know who did this?" Rena asked as the message meant nothing to her.
Shinichi turn to Rena with concern. "Unfortunately Rena-chan, I do." He was going to have to tell her eventually. He never went into detail about his past but recently his past seemed to be coming back from the shadows to haunt him. 'Guess this is karma…'
"Wait, somebody ransacked your place?" asked Shiori. "Who could've done this?" she asked. Shinichi and Rena were sitting in Shiori's living room and told her what they had found when they had returned to their apartment. "Where were you when it happened?"
Shinichi blushed and answered, "Rena-chan and I were spending the night at the base…"
"Ah…" Shiori understood. "Say no more."
"Kaa-chan, please be careful," Shinichi advised, "This guy is after me."
"You should call the police," said Shiori.
"Can't, I fixed everything," answered Shinichi. Shinichi had used his time powers to reverse time in order to undo all the damage which had fortunately happened within a 24 hour time frame.
"Why would you do that?" asked Shiori.
"Because I doubt this is something that the police can handle."
"What makes you say that?"
"'There is still a survivor of Camp Cobra'," Rena repeated the message that had been written on the wall.
Shiori blinked and asked, "What is that supposed to mean?"
Shinichi sighed. He really hated bringing up memories from the darkest moments of his life but they needed to know. He informed them, "A few years back, when I was part of GIN-SHOCKER, I was sent on a mission with Daichi to steal some top-secret files on a super soldier program from a military base. However, when that failed I was dispatched again to put a stop to it and…" He clenched his eyes shut.
"Shinji, you don't have to go on," said Shiori as she understood how painful it was for him.
"No, you need to know," he said. He continued, "I was sent to put a stop to it and so I killed everyone on the base and destroyed it." Rena gasped.
"Oh, Shin-kun…" she was sympathetic and disgusted by what GIN-SHOCKER had made him do.
"And now apparently someone survived and is coming after me for revenge," said Shinichi. He put his face in his hands, "Maybe this is just karma…"
"You shouldn't blame yourself," objected Shiori. "It wasn't you."
"I still remember, Kaa-chan," he said. "Those memories are part of who I am and…" The phone rang.
"I'll get that," said Shiori as she got up and picked up the phone. "Hello?" After a moment she gasped and then cried, "We'll be right there!" She put the receiver down and shouted, "Shinji, we need to go to the hospital! It's your father!"
Shinichi paled.
Kasai had been assaulted and was now lying in the hospital. His right arm was in an orthopedic cast, with his neck in a brace and forehead covered in bandages.
"Tatsuyoshi-kun!" Shiori cried as she and the rest of the family rushed into his hospital room. When they heard that he was in the hospital, they immediately rushed over there to see if he was okay. "Are you okay? What happened?" she asked in concern.
"I don't know. It happened so fast," Kasai groaned. "I was just returning home after work when I was suddenly attack by this man. I tried to defend myself but he overpowered me. He could have killed me but he didn't. I think he said…it would've been too simple." Kasai winced, he didn't want to say what the assailant had said next, but he felt that they should know. He continued, "He said that he was going to make BLACK 13 and all his loves ones suffer for what happened at Camp Cobra."
Shinichi clenched his fists angrily. He didn't care that someone was targeting him for his sins. However, someone had targeted his stepfather while he had nothing to do with it.
"I'm just glad you're alive," said Shiori, relieved that she wouldn't become a widow for the second time in her life. Shinichi smiled slightly, glad that nothing fatal had happened. Then his eyes widened as he saw a red light right between his mother's eyes.
"GET DOWN!" Shinichi shouted as he pushed his mother to the ground and the window shattered before a bullet embedded itself into the wall. Rena, Rika and Hanyuu screamed when the glass suddenly shattered.
Shinichi glared at the bullet in the hole then quickly looked out the window and concentrated his eyes. His cybernetic augmentations allowed him to see far distances and he spotted someone on the nearest rooftop. He saw a sniper rifle being drawn back and a figure escaping. "I have to go!" said Shinichi before dashing off to catch the sniper.
When he reached the spot on the roof there was no one there. The sniper was long gone, with no trace. Well, almost no trace. Finding a note taped to a wall he tore it off and after analyzing the handwriting hand-writing he could confirm that it was the same man that had ransacked his apartment and attacked his stepfather since the note read: 'REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED AT CAMP COBRA'.
Shinichi growled as he quickly crumpled up the note, mentally swearing to protect his loved ones from this man.
Meanwhile, at the warehouse district, Stevenson growled angrily. He'd missed his chance. He was about to kill the bastard's biological mother to make him feel true pain, but the bastard was able to push his mother out of the way in the nick of time.
"Roger, Roger, Roger," a voice echoed, making the man turn to see Shiro Juuyon and Gnol. "I really must ask; what the hell? I expected a little more out of a man who wanted to avenge the atrocity that happen to his brothers-in arms," Shiro said, shaking his head in mock disappointment. "I mean you could have at least killed his stepdad instead of beating him up."
"I thought of that, but I want to see the look on his face sees his mother die right before his eyes," Stevenson said. That was why he didn't kill Tatsuyoshi Kasai and waited until Shinichi and his family showed up.
"And yet, BLACK 13 was able to stop your assassination attempt," Gnol said. "Now your enemy will be on the clock, making sure you can't target anymore of his loves ones."
"I don't care! That bastard has to pay for his crimes!" Stevenson snapped angrily at them.
"That's good to hear, because I brought two presents for you. They should be able to help you to kill that bastard," said Shiro before snapping his fingers. Stevenson blinked as what looked like a mechanize glider came swooping down from the air, hovering above the ground. "Your first gift is this lovely glider which based on the kind used by a very dangerous individual," Shiro explained, referring to the Green Goblin.
Stevenson smiled and asked, "Interesting. What is the second present?" Shiro then produced from his pocket a dark green, ribbed USB flash drive with a C on it that was stylized to look like a snake.
"Say hello to the Cobra Memory. This little trinket will help you fight against BLACK 13 on an equal playing field." He then tossed the Gaia Memory to Stevenson and he caught it in his hand.
"Really? Well that's good to hear," Stevenson grinned as he admired his new weapons. "I already called him out too. He should be here soon."
"And take some more of those blue pills I gave you. You're going to need the energy," advised Shiro.
"What!? Someone tried to shoot Shiori-sensei!?" Yokoshima cried out in shock.
Shinichi had explained the situation to the other NEO-NUMBERS. This was after the police had been called by the hospital to investigate and they had taken the bullet as evidence. Shiori and her family were also interviewed by the police and asked who would want to hurt her and why. Shinichi knew why but he wasn't about to share that information with the police while he could deal with things personally. This was his problem to deal with, after all.
"That's why I need you to bring everyone here. If he's targeting the people I love to get to me then we need to bring his targets here to the Hive," said Shinichi. Shiori, Rika, Hanyuu and Rena were already at the Hive. After nearly getting shot this was the safest place for her.
"And what about Kasai-sempai?" asked Shogo. "He's in the hospital right now, isn't he?"
"Yes, that is why you, Michiru and Hana will be there to protect him. Michiru and Hana can stay inside the building and guard the door while Shogo will watch from the outside in Rider form," instructed Shinichi.
"We won't fail you, Shinichi," said Michiru.
"Daichi, I need you to go and get the others here," Shinichi instructed.
"And what will you do?" asked Daichi.
"I'm going to prepare," said Shinichi. Sooner or later that survivor from Camp Cobra would act again and Shinichi was going to be ready for him.
Shinichi went back to the apartment to see if he could get a few things for Rena during her stay at the base when he found the note taped to the door. "He's been here again…" Shinichi murmured as he tore the note off the door and read it. 'COME TO THE WAREHOUSE DISTRICT, ALONE. I WILL BE WAITING.' He tore the note to shreds. "Alright, if you want me then I'm coming asshole." Opening the door, he went inside and towards the bedroom. He opened up the closet and took out a box.
Opening the box, Shinichi took out a black leather jacket which had armor padding stitched inside, a rib-like pattern on the front and on the back was XIII. Also included was a black mask Shinichi was getting ready. He was being called out so he was going to 'dress for success.' "If he wants BLACK 13 then he's gonna get BLACK 13." He was well aware he would put the people closest to him at risk. That was a fate unavoidable by heroes and which was they kept their identities a secret. However, the past had a habit of coming back to haunt you.
He heard a knock at the door to his and answered, "Enter." The door opened and Alan came in. Shinichi came out of the bedroom, wearing the jacket and holding the mask. "Alan, what're you doing here?"
"To check up on you," Alan answered. "Shinichi, are you sure about this?" asked Alan.
"Yes, I am," Shinichi said firmly. "And all I need you to do is to protect Rena-chan and my family. He wants me alone so that's what I'll do."
"You're letting him goad you. It's probably a trap."
"Oh, I'm well aware of that but he wants me alone then that's what I'm giving him."
"Just don't cross the line with this one," advised Alan.
"He crossed the line first when he went after my family when they had nothing to do with this," said Shinichi crossly. "But if I do cross the line I'll know you'll be nearby to stop me."
"Of course I will. I won't let you turn into a murderer again," swore Alan.
"I know you won't," said Shinichi, full of trust. He then put on the mask which was round as it covered his head and the upper half of his face with red lenses covering the eyeholes. It was secured by a chin strap as well. It resembled a black skull.
"So, what should I call you now?" asked Alan.
"Black Skull."
Shinichi arrived at the warehouse district on his hover bike before deactivating the vehicle as the metal components shrank and were absorbed into his body via the legs. He then called, "Alright, I'm here! Come on out!"
There was no answer at first, before a whistling noise could be heard. Shinichi quickly jumped out of the way as an RPG round hit the ground and exploded. Shinichi look at the direction where that came from and saw Stevenson walking towards him, holding an RPG launcher in his hands.
"So you decided to show up by yourself. I thought for sure you were going to bring backup, but then again I bet you just wanted to kill me yourself like you did that night," Stevenson accused Shinichi. Stevenson was dressed in a black sleeveless shirt with a picture of a cobra in front, black camouflage pants and combat boots.
"I came alone since you're specifically targeting me so there is no reason for me to drag anyone else in because of my sins," Shinichi replied
"Your sins?" Stevenson growled, "You're actually sorry for what you did? Sorry for killing my friends, people who I see as brother-in-arms? Sorry for stabbing me with a safety rail? Don't make me laugh!"
"Safety rail?" Shinichi muttered confused before he remembered that after he'd killed the scientists and destroyed most of the equipment, someone had viciously attacked him. He'd delivered the death blow and killed him, though, or at least he thought he had. "You're that soldier! But how!? Even if that rail missed your vital organs when it pierced through you, you were electrocuted because of the lab equipment!" Shinichi shouted in shock.
"Heh, it was thanks to the super soldier formula," Stevenson sneered, ripping off his shirt to reveal a wicked scar on the spot where that safety rail had run him through. "Somehow it gave me the endurance needed to stay alive even after that electrocution and those bombs you activated blew the place up." Stevenson sneered, "I tried to find you afterwards all my leads went dead. I was forced to live a simple life and tried to move on, but I still wanted my revenge against you. But then that man came."
Shinichi frowned, quickly realizing who this man was referring to. "Let me guess, he's a white haired, red-eyed bastard that looks like me."
Stevenson confirmed, "That right. Personally I don't like him, but since he's helping me kill you I can't complain."
"You shouldn't trust Shiro Juuyon, you know. He's just using you and he will betray you as long as it means killing me or once your usefulness has ended," Shinichi told him.
"So what? If it means I can avenge all those you killed at Camp Cobra, then that's a price I'm willing to pay!" Stevenson smirked darkly. "Now enough talk. IT'S TIME TO FIGHT!" Stevenson roared as he threw the RPG launcher at Shinichi who quickly batted it away.
This was a ruse, however, as Stevenson ran towards him and quickly punched Shinichi in the gut. Shinichi gasped but quickly countered by kicking Stevenson in the face making him stumble which allowed Shinichi to deliver a roundhouse kick Stevenson blocked with ease.
Stevenson grinned as he realized that Shiro was right. Using those blue pills did give him the advantage, especially since he took more than one to help amplify his already enhanced strength. He quickly grabbed the leg, spinning Shinichi around before throwing him through the air. However, Shinichi did a mid-air roll and landed on the ground safely.
Shinichi frown. It was night time which meant he should be able to generate the antimatter balls which were the physical manifestation of his Erase powers thanks to the demonic blood from Warren. He could only use this power at night, however. Despite knowing he could easily end this fight with antimatter, he refused to use that lethal ability. It was his fault that turned this man into a monster with his android clone helping to add fuel to the fire.
Shinichi quickly rushed at Stevenson and delivered a barrage of punches and kicks into his stomach. Stevenson growled as he clasped both his hands together and slammed them violently down on Shinichi head, grinning as he saw the mask cracked. However, he was shock to see Shinichi still standing as Shinichi raised his fist which turned into a huge metal fist. Shinichi swung and bashed the fist into Stevenson, sending him flying. He may have refused to use antimatter in this fight, but that didn't mean he wouldn't be using his other abilities.
Shinichi raised his other arm as it morphed into the Hook Arm. He shot the hook at Stevenson and the cable connecting the hook to his arm tied the Camp Cobra survivor up quickly. "Gah!" Stevenson grunted as he was being squeezed, his arms pinned to his sides. Shinichi smirked as he swung Stevenson around and around before slamming him down against the ground.
"GACK!" Stevenson grunted in pain. "Grr, you may be strong, but I still have more tricks up my sleeve." Still bound, Stevenson still managed to get up to his feet and began to tremble. His veins appeared on his arms and across his forehead as he gritted his teeth. All of a sudden, his muscles began to expand right before Shinichi's eyes. Not only was his muscle mass increasing but so was his strength as he snapped the cable holding him with his raw, brute strength. He then jumped high into the air, much to Shinichi's shock, before coming down towards him. Shinichi jumped and rolled out of the way as Stevenson landing, causing a crater to form on impact.
'Guess he really is a SUPER soldier,' thought Shinichi as he saw Stevenson's appearance and gulped. 'No wonder he survived that day.' Shinichi felt a pang of guilt as he remembered that day but pushed the guilt away to focus. This man had gone after his family. As sympathetic as Shinichi was for this man's situation there was no way Shinichi would forgive him for hurting his stepfather and attempting to murder his mother. Getting up to his feet, Shinichi activated his Great Fists and then lunged at Stevenson. He threw his right fist at Stevenson only for him to catch it in one hand. Shinichi, surprised, swung his left fist only for it to be caught as well. Stevenson, his eyes glowing blue due to G-Shock, lifted Shinichi off the ground by his fists and then violently smashed him to the ground. Shinichi grunted but would not give Stevenson the satisfaction of hearing him cry out in pain.
After pushing himself back to his feet, Shinichi swung his Great Fists at Stevenson who effortless evaded his strikes, seemingly weaving and dancing around as he bounced on the balls of his feet like a boxer. He ducked under another swing and then saw an opening before charging forward like a bull and hitting Shinichi in the chest with a straight punch. Shinichi was shoved back by the punch but recovered quickly to attack again. This time Stevenson blocked the Great Fiats with his forearms, a move that would normally break them but Stevenson showed no evidence of feeling pain. Angrily, Shinichi tried to hit Stevenson with a punch which he countered with his own. Stevenson's fist smashed against the Great Fist and it was the latter which shattered to pieces, shocking Shinichi, but then Shinichi saw the glowing blue eyes.
'G-Shock,' he realized. Stevenson wasn't just a Super Soldier, he was a Super Soldier under the influence of a super performance enhancer which would normally impair a regular human after a short while but Stevenson was anything but a regular human. His left Great Fist then morphed into the Shovel Claw and he slammed it to the ground, the sharp teeth of the excavator claw digging into the concrete floor before he pulled out a chunk and tossed it at Stevenson. His right arm then morphed into an energy blaster and he fired at the chunk, causing it to explode and turn into dust to blind Stevenson. Shinichi then formed the Tank Legs and used his Fast Forward ability to make himself faster as he sped up to Stevenson through the dust cloud before striking him with a barrage of kicks in a matter of seconds before using a roundhouse kick to send him flying to the side and skidding along the ground.
Shinichi's eyes were focused on Stevenson as he got back up to his feet, his veins still pulsing and his eyes blazing blue. He was briefly reminded of the fights against Mongul and Major Force.
Spitting out some blood and a tooth, Stevenson said, "Looks like I'm going to need that other gift he gave me after all." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Cobra Memory.
"Gaia Memory?" questioned Shinichi. He was really starting to hate those things. They turned people into monsters, making them stronger and granting them new abilities. Stevenson was already a super soldier and was on G-Shock. Now he was about to activate a Gaia Memory and use it on himself.
"COBRA!" the Cobra Memory called as it was slammed into the USH port-shaped tattoo on Stevenson's forearm before it was as digital energy enveloped the man, Stevenson roared furiously as he began to mutate. Shinichi frowned as he witnessed Stevenson turn into the Cobra Dopant and his response was to quickly transform into Showa. "Henshin," he commanded softly. His Spark Core appeared and it spun as the nanites became supercharged. The light produced by the Spark Core was only meant to distract the opponents so they wouldn't attack during the transformation. The nanites formed Shinichi's bodysuit, then his armor and finally Shinichi replaced his mask with his helmet, snapping on the faceplate to secure it to his head.
Stevenson's Dopant form was hideous looking. He now resembled a humanoid reptile with dark, grayish scales covering his body. His head was cobra-like with a pair of glowing blue eyes peaking from between the upper and lower jaws of the cobra head. The fangs dripped with venom. Snakes appeared to be wrapped around his upper arms and thighs. His right arm now resembled a snake's tail and could be used like a whip while his left hand resembled a serpent's head, also with venom dripping from the fangs.
Stevenson felt stronger in this form and just couldn't believe how good it felt. The power was even more intense than his super soldier enhancements. He felt like he could take on the entire world but first he needed to take Shinichi out of it. Hissing, he glared at Showa who glared right back.
"So, to fight a monster (me) you decided to become a monster," Showa observed.
"Don't compare me to you who killed his own comrades," hissed the Cobra Dopant.
"Guess Shiro told you about that," Showa guessed.
"That's right and he also told me how you gunned down the woman you loved," the Cobra Dopant hissed in scorn and disgust. Showa's fists clenched tightly. He hated being reminded of that. "So, wanna dance?"
"I thought you'd never ask!" The Rider and Dopant charged at each other, closing the gap between them before making their move. The Cobra Dopant swung his whip-arm at Showa but the Rider dodged it and slammed his palm against the Dopant's chest but the Cobra Dopant then grabbed the Rider by the shoulder with his snake-hand, the fangs digging into the armor, before tossing him up and smacking him with the whip-arm, sending him flying. Showa tumbled along the ground. He then rolled out of the way as the Cobra Dopant fired corrosive venom from his snake hand in the form of balls that hit the ground, causing it to hiss, smoke and melt.
"I better avoid that," thought Showa aloud. "Zennin, let's strike from the shadows!" Darkness enveloped him as the Cobra Dopant fired another ball of acid, only for it to hit and melt through a log which had suddenly taken Showa's place. The Cobra Dopant wondered where Showa had gone but then was struck from behind by a kick. He swung his whip-arm but the now ninja-like Showa Kage ducked and then landed two hits against his chest before drawing his ninjato from out of nowhere and slashing the Cobra Dopant across the chest, sending sparks flying. Hissing, the Cobra Dopant wrapped his whip-arm around Showa and squeezed, only for him to poof out of existence.
Confused and enraged, the Cobra Dopant demanded, "Show yourself, coward!"
"We're right here," Showa said as he, and ten identical copies, appeared around the Cobra Dopant. The Cobra Dopant struck as they lunged at him, the copies of the Shinobi Rider turning into smoke as they were hit. The Cobra Dopant then fired acid at the last one but it turned out to be a fake as well. The spot closest to the Dopant's foot then exploded as Showa flew out and slammed the Cobra Dopant with an uppercut that sent him staggering. Then, in mid-air, Showa tossed the Dai-Shuriken at the Dopant, sparks flying as the sharp blades slashed at him as it flew around him before returning to Showa.
"You bastard!" shouted the Cobra Dopant as the snakes on his arms and legs shot forward and then bit down on Showa's own arms and legs before shocking him with electricity that forced him to his knees. The Cobra Dopant approached Showa and then wrapped his whip-arm around him. He started to squeeze and Showa gritted his teeth. Whilst effective in offense and stealth, Showa Kage had lighter armor. Being shocked too was causing his systems to become damaged and the pressure was slowly killing him. He had to get out of this.
"Zennin…let's bring down…the thunder!" grunted Showa and all of a sudden a tornado of fire, wind and electricity blew the Cobra Dopant away and his whip-arm was also shredded by it. It slowly regenerated as Showa walked out of the dispersing tornado in Oni Form, the snakes on him killed during the transformation. He rushed forward and hit the Cobra Dopant with a wind-powered punch that sent him flying straight through the walls of three warehouses and hitting the wall outside the forth. Looking through the series of holes, he screamed and jumped out of the gap between the fourth and third warehouses as flames roared towards him. Lightning then rained down from the sky and struck the Cobra Dopant at Showa's command.
"You should give up now," said Showa, "I might end up killing you."
"SHUT UP!" The Cobra Dopant's snake and whip arms then turned into human looking ones and they bulged with muscle and power. Even his legs bulged as did his chest. He was focusing on his super soldier enhancements again and the G-Shock in his system.
"Fine, if that's how you want to play it," said Showa as he closed the gap between them and the two started to exchange blows that caused shockwaves with each impact. They kept hitting, and hitting, and hitting each other with all their strength. The strikes were violent and painful but neither was letting up. They were determined to take each other down.
Meanwhile, the mechanical glider was hovering nearby and aiming at Showa's back. Whilst he was distracted, the glider fired missiles that soared through the air. Showa then shouted as he was hit by the missiles as they exploded while the Cobra Dopant jumped back. Showa grunted in pain and looked to see a hi-tech glider floating next to the Cobra Dopant. "What…is that?" he growled out his question.
"My ride," said the Cobra Dopant before he jumped on the glider, clamps locking his feet into place, before it took off. Showa watched as it took to the air before turning around and firing laser beams at Showa.
"If he wants a dogfight he's gonna get a dogfight! Yabuki, time to sing!" He jumped and his armor turned green and samurai-like with wings on his back before taking off. With the Higurashi no Yaiba gripped in his right hand he flew at the Cobra Dopant, weaving around the laser beams before he got close and slashed the Dopant with his sword, causing him to cry out again from the cut.
"Don't you dare hit and run!" the Cobra Dopant hissed as the glider fired homing missiles at Showa. They would follow him to the ends of the Earth until they hit him.
"Who's running? 1000 Crane Slash!" Showa called as he swung his sword at the missiles and energy projection in the shape of paper cranes flew at them, the impact causing the missiles to explode prematurely. The remaining cranes then hit the Cobra Dopant, causing sparks to fly as they hit him and his glider, dealing damage to the monster and his vehicle. The Cobra Dopant hissed as he began swatting the energy cranes away and his eyes widened as he moved quickly to avoid a powerful energy slash courtesy of Showa.
"BASTARD!" the Cobra Dopant roared as he fired the fangs on his cobra head like missiles at Showa, hitting him.
Showa grunted in pain as the fangs hit. He then saw Cobra Dopant as he launched his whip-arm and wrapped it around Showa's sword-wielding arm as a laser weapon extended out in the front of the glider before it began firing at the Kamen Rider. Showa quickly punched at the whip holding him arm with enough force to release him before he swung the Higurashi no Yaiba to deflect the laser. He also destroyed a missile coming at him, covering his sight with smoke. As he cleared away the smoke, he noticed that the Cobra Dopant had gone.
Showa scanned for his opponent, wondering out loud in a whisper, "Where did you go..." He ceased his musing when he heard something coming from… "Above me!" Showa looked up to see the Cobra Dopant smiling sadistically at him as he unleashed all of his glider's weapons upon the Kamen Rider.
A continuous barrage of lasers and missiles hit Showa repeatedly and he was enveloped in explosions and smoke. After he finished blasting, the Cobra Dopant grinned and whispered, "I did it…I finally did it, guys. He's dead. You can rest in peace now."
However, he was dead wrong. From the smoke cloud, a golden ray of light pierced through the cloud followed by another and another before the Cobra Dopant was suddenly blinded by an intense flash of golden light which just burst right in front of him. When he looked again, he saw that Showa had changed once more and was clad in gold.
"THIS IS MY TRUE POWER!" Showa shouted as he unveiled his Hinamizawa Guardian Form to the Cobra Dopant. He had not intended to use his most powerful form to defeat Stevenson but the super soldier made it abundantly clear that he would not stop unless he was stopped, for good. Transforming into Jet Mode, Showa then attacked the Cobra Dopant who fought back with his glider's laser beams. The sky was lit with the energy beams of the flier's dogfight.
"LET'S SEE WHAT YOU GOT!" the Cobra Dopant roared.
"YOU ASKED FOR IT!" Showa then fired his missiles and the dart-like projectiles flew towards the Cobra Dopant. While the Cobra Dopant was able to shoot down five of them, the sixth one was able to hit the glider on its left wing. The Cobra Dopant was starting to lose altitude due to the damaged wing, which was what Showa had been waiting for.
The Showa Guardian Jet zoomed towards the Cobra Dopant before changing back to Showa Hinamizawa Guardian form, his body posed for a flying kick. The attack struck the Cobra Dopant and he exploded along with his glider before he fell to the ground, his durability saving him from becoming splat as he crashed hard and left a crater on impact. The Cobra Memory then ejected itself from his body and shattered to piece as Showa hovered down and landed.
Showa loomed over Stevenson with the empowered Higurashi no Yaiba gripped in his hand. He raised it up, power surging through it as energy collected onto the blade and took the shape of a blade several times larger than the blade of the Higurashi no Yaiba as the length was equal to Showa's height.
"Go ahead and do it," challenged Stevenson and Showa swung down. The ground exploded as a dust cloud concealed them. When the dust cloud cleared, the sword was shown to have struck the ground near Stevenson's head and had not cleaved his head in half. "What…?" Stevenson uttered in shock.
"Believe it or not I am sorry about what happened in the past and nothing I can do can change that. You may never forgive me but I can live with that. However, you don't deserve forgiveness from me for hurting my stepfather and attempting to murder my mother who are innocent in all this," Showa said with a scowl. He then took out the C3 and digitized Stevenson, absorbing him into the device before his containment card shot out and Showa caught it. "You're going away for a long time, Stevenson. Maybe in that time you can think about what you did." He then looked up and spotted Sentinel before he flew up to speak to him. "How long have you been here?"
"At the start of your speech," said Sentinel, smiling. "I almost thought you were gonna kill him. I'm glad you didn't." He was relieved.
"I wanted to, but I decided to grant him mercy," admitted Showa. "Shiro got to him."
"He's really out to get you," Sentinel observed.
Snorting, Showa replied, "Well, I did kill him." He sighed, "Why does my past always come back to haunt me?"
"I can't answer that, Shinichi. I wish I could."
"That's OK, Alan. I'll find my own answers. I did come up with one: karma's a bitch."
"True, very true," Sentinel agreed, nodding.
After spending a week at the hospital, Kasai was allowed to go home to his family. With his right arm in a cast he needed Shiori to feed him. He also had to go on a long medical leave due to his condition so he wouldn't be able to go to work until he healed. Shiori was going to make sure her husband recovered.
"Can't you heal me?" Kasai asked his stepson who was sitting with him in the living room while the latter was cleaning the former's shotgun.
"Sorry, but the window of opportunity has closed. I have a twenty four hour limit whenever I reverse time and it's way beyond that," Shinichi said apologetically.
"Oh…" Kasai groaned.
"Hey, Kaa-chan is pampering you. You should consider yourself lucky," said Shinichi, smiling positively.
"I was told you didn't kill the man that did this to me," said Kasai. Shinichi nodded. "Why? I thought you were adamant about using lethal force against all your enemies."
"Because unlike my other enemies he only came after me to avenge the people I killed, his brothers-in-arms," Shinichi answered sympathetically. "He wasn't really a bad guy. He was just warped by revenge…" It reminded him of when he'd waged war on X-SHOCKER and Gebok after Lina's death. "I wanted to, though. He hurt you and almost killed Kaa-chan. I couldn't forgive him for that."
Kasai smiled. He was proud of Shinichi for being the bigger man and showing restraint.
Shinichi added, his eyes hardened, "Although, if he had killed Kaa-chan then after I revived her I would've erased him from existence."
Kasai then frowned. That was more like the usual Shinichi, the unforgiving avenger, and Kasai would agree. If anything were to happen to Shiori then the ones responsible would end up staring down the barrel of his shotgun.
KAMEN RIDER CHROME: Well, I'd like to thank Iron-Mantis for his help in the production of this chapter. If it weren't for his help and input then I wouldn't have been able to finish. My only complaint were the grammatical errors I needed to fix but they were tolerable and I was able to modify, edit and adapt everything Iron Mantis was able to share with me. Therefore, Iron-Mantis, thanks for the help and hopefully you will continue to support me! BTW, the Cobra Dopant's appearance is based on Garagaranda.