Chapter 36: Turncoats
I've gotta believe!
(Kirito and Ex-Aid are back to back, facing a horde of Bugsters. They lift their weapons and charge as the title appears)
I don't wanna know heta na shinjitsu nara
(The SAO gang are chilling out together in a nearby café)
I don't wanna know shiranai kurai ga ii noni
(Suddenly, all bystanders all transform into Ride-Players)
Why? Why? Why? Why? Kizukeba I came too far
(Brave remembers the time that Yuko died, with Asuna's afterimage looking at him; Snipe remembers the time he was defeated by Graphite, with Sinon's afterimage looking at him)
Tomaranai kanjiru kono yokan wa
(The Riders and the SAO gang together walk towards the horde of Ride Players)
The new beginning
(The Riders hold up their Gashats)
Michi no ryuoiki ima wo kirihirakunda
(The Riders transform into their Lv 2 forms)
I've gotta believe!
(The SAO gang turn on Ordinal Scale)
(Turn it on!) soutou
(Together, they all charge at the Ride Player horde)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Takanaru
(Ex-Aid goes into Lv 20, and splits into XXL and XXR; Brave twirls into Lv 50, sending a bunch of Ride Players back)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Kokoro ga
(Snipe jumps into Lv 50, and rains fire upon the Ride Players; Ex-Aid jumps down in Lv 99, and slams the ground)
Michibiku ano basho e kakenukete ikudake
(The Ordinal Scale players make their way through the horde one by one)
(Hey!) I'm on a mission right now
(Klein, Lisbeth, Silica, Agil, and Leafa stay back, while six figures strike a battle-ready pose. Ex-Aid raises the Breaker to his face, while Kirito goes into his battle stance. Asuna also goes into her battle stance, while Brave flips his Sword around, so he could grab the blade with his free hand. Sinon and Snipe both their weapons tightly)
(Hey!) I'm on a mission right now
(A silhouette of Kamen Rider Para-DX Lv 99 glares at them, with his eyes glowing)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Kotae wa
(Ex-Aid and Para-DX smash their fists together)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Kotae wa
(The SAO gang fight various Bugsters from all of the games from the Gashats)
(One!) kono te no naka
(Snipe and Sinon go back to back)
(Two!) susumubeki Life
(Brave and Asuna slash right next to each other)
(Three!) ikitekudake
(Ex-Aid and Kirito together jump up and slash downward, cutting back to the title)
There was stillness in the air. Poppy was sitting on a main computer processor, while Pallad was playing on his mobile game device a bit away from her. Graphite entered the room after a few minutes have passed.
"So…" He spoke. "I heard the Lovelica lost?"
"Well… not exactly." Pallad corrected. "It's more like his heart got hit with a wrench."
Graphite couldn't help but chuckle at that. For some odd reason, having Lovelica's ego being crushed was somehow amusing.
"Alright then…" He admitted. "I guess it's my turn…"
"Well, not yet." Pallad interrupted. "Leave this to me for a while."
With that said, Graphite simply nodded, and sat down on another computer. Poppy quickly got up though. Something seemed… a bit off with her.
"What are you going to do?" She asked.
"Is something the matter?" Graphite replied, worried for his Bugster comrade.
"N-No…" Poppy replied a bit timidly. "Just… curious…"
Pallad listened to her answer, and just simply walked out. Graphite just sat on the computer, with Poppy turning away.
"Poppy Pipopapo smiled?" Hiro asked.
It was early morning, and the two doctors, Emu and Hiro, were just resting on one of the tables. Hiro poured himself a cup of coffee as he sat down though.
"Yes." Emu replied. "When Taiga and Nico reconciled…"
He recalled to the moment in the previous chapter. When Lovelica was beaten, she whispered "Thank goodness…", but no one noticed it. Emu did, and that's been on his mind ever since.
"Pallad said that her memory was reset though." Hiro commented. "It might have been her approval of how the game was playing."
"No." Emu spoke up. "I've been with her long enough to know her smiles. And that smile… was a genuine one."
The two stayed silent, pondering what to do next. However, the alarms suddenly went off, signaling that there was a patient in need. The two ran out to save that patient.
Elsewhere, a phone buzzed. Nico picked it up, and saw that it was a Bugster alarm. She walked over to another room, where all of her stuff was decked ornately. Taiga was just lying on a nearby bed, fiddling with a Rubik's Cube.
"Hey, Taiga." Nico spoke. "You got a call. You going for it?"
"No need." Taiga replied, finishing one side. "Our only goal is beating Kamen Rider Chronicle."
He then sat up, as Nico placed his phone beside him and pulled out her own.
"More importantly, have there been any Bugster sightings?" He asked.
Nico hummed a bit as she searched through her social media page.
"Yep." She responded after a while. "Salty and Alhambra."
Then, with that said, the two stood up and left to fight those two Bugsters.
Meanwhile, a Ride-Player was fighting a Bugster. But it wasn't your usual Bugsters.
Para-DX was just wailing on him. He had just powered up with a Speed Up Energy Item, and was now currently running this way and that to dodge all of the Ride-Player's attacks. After a bit, Para-DX landed a punch on the Ride-Player's back. The Ride-Player stumbled a bit, but he stood back up quick.
"Wow…" Para-DX complimented. "You're surprisingly resilient."
"Thanks." The Ride-Player smiled.
He used that opening to get a small scratch on Para-DX. He stumbled a bit, but then the Ride-Player used his weapon to land a strike on his stomach. Para-DX, while not taking any sort of real damage, he was taken back a bit.
"Huh…" Para-DX muttered. "You… you're one of them, aren't you?"
The Ride-Player braced himself for another attack, but was interrupted when Hiro and Emu rolled in.
"Pallad!" Emu called out.
Para-DX turned around and smiled brightly as he saw Emu.
"Been waiting for ya, M!" He called back. "Wanna play with me?"
Emu and Hiro ignored Para-DX, and just put on their Gamer Drivers and pulled on their Gashats.
"Save the patient." Hiro ordered, pressing his Gashats.
"Right." Emu replied, pressing his Gashat.
MAXIMUM MIGHTY X!
TADDLE QUEST!
DOREMIFA BEAT!
As all of the Gashat's activated, they both inserted their Gashats into their Drivers.
MAXIMUM GASHATTO!
GASHATTO! GASHATTO!
"Proceeding to Level 3." Hiro stated. "Henshin."
"Max Dai Henshin!" Emu called out.
Then together, they opened up their Drivers.
GACHANN! LEVEL MAX!
SAIDAIKYU NO POWERFUL BODY! MAXIMUM POWER! X!
GACHANN! LEVEL UP!
TADORU MEGURU! TADORU MEGURU! TADDLE QUEST!
A GACCHA!
DO-DO-DO-RE-MI-FA! SO-LA-SI-DO! OK! DOREMIFA BEAT!
Emu and Hiro both quickly transformed into Ex-Aid Level 99 and Brave Level 3 respectively. Then, they both jumped down to face Pallad. Brave quickly threw a punch at Para-DX, but he just knocked the punch away. Ex-Aid then marched over, and despite the large body, he was quite agile. Para-DX threw an arm swing at Ex-Aid, and Ex-Aid simply caught it and twisted, so that Para-DX is unable to move.
"I'm leaving him to you!" Brave called, quickly running over to the Ride-Player.
"Right!" Ex-Aid replied.
Ex-Aid then threw Para-DX to the side, and began to engage him. Brave, on the other hand, made his way over to the Ride-Player, who seemed to recognize them.
"You guys?" The Ride-Player said. "You fellas here to help?"
"You know us?" Brave asked.
The Ride-Player pulled out his Gashat, and he pressed it cancelling out of his transformation. It was revealed that the Ride-Player was Agil.
"You?" Brave spluttered. "Why are you playing this?"
"Well…" Agil argued. "This game has been all of the rage lately… so I decided to give it a go!"
"You know this game is dangerous!" Brave scolded. "Stop this now!"
"Why?" Agil asked. "Give me an explanation!"
Just then, alarm sounds blared across the area. Just then, Poppy pixelated into the game area, wearing the cyan BugVisor and her smile.
"Hi!" She called. "Poppy Pipopapo will guide you through the game!"
Ex-Aid looked over to see Poppy. He quickly threw Para-DX away from him, and quickly began to make his way over to her.
"elping players is against the rules!" Poppy said, pulling out a pink Gashat.
She pressed the Gashat, and then twirled around.
TOKI MEKI CRISIS!
"Henshin…" She uttered, inserting the Gashat into the BugVisor and pressing the button below it.
GASHATTO! BUCKLE UP…
DREAMING GIRL! HEY! KOI NO SIMULATION! OTOME WA ITSUMO TOKI MEKI CRISIS! HEY!
Poppy quickly transformed into Kamen Rider Poppy, along with her red eyes, and she raised the BugVisor to her hand.
"Popapipu Penalty…" She said in her ominous voice again. "Disqualification."
She aimed the BugVisor at Agil, and she fired. Brave quickly shoved him out of the way, but he took the full front of the attack. Somehow, he was forced out of his transformation, turning back into Hiro.
"What the…" He whispered, looking around him.
Ex-Aid stopped when he just saw what happened. He was just as surprised as Hiro was.
"Poppy, stop!" He begged.
Poppy quickly pivoted her head over to face Ex-Aid, and just smiled innocently.
"I'm a navigator." She smiled. "I'm a character that punishes those that break the rules!"
Agil, angrily standing back up, quickly pressed his Gashat again.
KAMEN RIDER CHRONICLE…
"Well, I ain't standing here getting mocked by a game character!" He shouted, pressing the Gashat again.
ENTER THE GAME! RIDING THE END!
Agil quickly transformed into another Ride-Player, and just charged at Poppy. However, when he raised his weapon for a slash, Poppy turned her BugVisor around, activating the chainsaw bit. She simply slashed Agil twice, which was enough to launch him back. Agil was thrown into a metal pole, where his transformation got cancelled. Hiro quickly rushed over to him, but then he noticed a large cut Agil got on his leg.
"Why is a navigator attacking players?" He asked.
"I'm also DoReMiFa Beat's Bugster!" Poppy replied. "So be careful, as I might beat you too!"
Ex-Aid opened his mputh to say something, but Para-DX jumped in. However, but he just tossed him aside.
"Poppy, this isn't you!" He cried. "Come to your senses!"
Poppy just tilted her head, making a confused sound.
"Don't waste your energy, intern." Hiro spoke up. "You're not going to change her."
"But…!" Ex-Aid spluttered.
At this point, Para-DX was just getting annoyed. He just wanted to fight Ex-Aid, but the latter was acting like he wasn't even there. He sighed in a very annoyed tone.
"Alright, M!" He called. "Pay attention to our fight here!"
"Move it!" Ex-Aid quickly shot back, pushing Para-DX away.
Para-DX got really ticked off, and just grabbed some Energy Items to get Ex-Aid's attention.
MUSCLE UP! SPEED UP!
Then, he began to vibrate, turning into a blur. He then ran all around Ex-Aid, landing a punch of hits on him. However, Ex-Aid wasn't paying attention to any of that.
"You… said it yourself…!" He called. "That all Bugsters aren't bad!"
Ex-Aid then recalled some time ago, remembering what Poppy said about Bugermon.
"Please, remember!" He begged.
"But…" Poppy started. "It's also against the rules to go against the navigator!"
She then, without hesitation, just aimed her BugVisor at Ex-Aid and fired. Ex-Aid was thrown back a bit, but it wasn't anything major.
"Now you get it, M?" Para-DX chimed in. "Now, stop being a busybody and fight me!"
Para-DX picked Ex-Aid up by his neck, and got prepared for another fight. But still, Ex-Aid was focused more on Poppy. So, he just pulled out his KeySlasher.
"Get lost!" He shouted, slashing Para-DX away.
Para-DX was thrown aside like a ragdoll, and received critical damage. Ex-Aid then turned to Poppy. She was still standing there innocently.
"Looks like I have no choice then!" He told himself.
He pressed the yellow button of the KeySlasher, activating the gun feature.
ZU-KYU-KYU-KYUNN!
He then pulled out the Maximum Mighty X Gashat from his Driver and inserted it into the KeySlasher.
MAXIMUM GASHATTO! KIMEWAZA!
Hiro was actually surprised by what Ex-Aid was about to do.
'Is he going to kill her?' He thought.
Ex-Aid, let the attack charge up as he carefully aimed it Poppy. Poppy, in turn, aimed her BugVisor at Ex-Aid.
MAXIMUM CRITICAL FINISH!
Both Riders fired their attacks, but Ex-Aid's quickly overpowered Poppy's. Ex-Aid's blast hit Poppy, and several pixelating sounds could be heard, along with a large sphere that appeared momentarily. When the attack dissipated, Poppy was cancelled out of her transformation, and she fell on her knees. Ex-Aid looked at her cautiously, but then he also cancelled out his transformation.
GACHANN!
Ex-Aid turned back into Emu, and crouched down to Poppy. He grabbed hold of her hands, and spoke.
"Poppy?" He whispered.
Poppy rolled her eyes around for a bit, but then she focused on Emu.
"Emu…?" She started.
Emu smiled happily at her response.
"Poppy!" He smiled happily. "You're back! Thank goodness!"
Then, surprisingly, Emu hugged Poppy. Poppy, having no idea of what was happening, raised her arms, but she just put them back down. Hiro, standing up, was just as confused as Poppy.
"You reprogrammed her?" He asked.
"Yes." Emu replied, picking up Poppy. "I figured if I rewrote her evil genes, she would go back to normal."
Poppy took what Emu just said in. She quickly turned away and looked into a mirror.
"Go back… to normal?" She whispered to herself.
From behind, Para-DX turned back into Pallad. He was just annoyed now. After all, Emu showed up, but he didn't even bat an eye to him.
"You just don't get it, do you, M?" He said. "Kamen Rider Chronicle is a game where humans and Bugsters fight each other with their lives on the line!"
"Poppy is not one to hurt players!" Emu shot back, looking back at Poppy. "She's a kind, always smiling character, who enjoys music, together with a player!"
Poppy gasped quietly. She had known Emu just as much as he knew about her, but this was something different. Emu was defending her, despite of her state of being a Bugster.
"Emu…" She whispered to herself.
Emu turned to face Poppy. He then extended out a hand.
"Let's go back to CR." He asked warmly. "You're our friend, right?"
Pallad scowled, and just shoved Emu out of the way.
"No!" He declared. "She's a Bugster. One of us!"
Poppy didn't know how to respond. She was now at a crossroads. She doesn't know which path would be best suited for her.
"Stop screwing around!" Emu shouted back, grabbing Pallad by his collar. "Poppy's our friend!"
"Who cares about that stuff?" Pallad whined. "Just play with me more seriously! There's no point in anything except playing with you!"
Hiro took notice at what Pallad just said.
"Lives are at stake here!" Emu shouted back. "I don't have time to waste playing with you."
Pallad scowled at that remark, but he couldn't do anything about that. He just simply turned away, grabbing Poppy along the way.
"We're leaving." He said.
Poppy couldn't ract in time, as she was just taken away with Pallad, pixelating away. Emu couldn't reach her in time, but he just shouted Poppy's name.
Andrew (Agil) later found himself in CR's examination room. Emu was there, but still preoccupied with Poppy. But, he wasn't alone. Some of the SAO players have assembled here. Kazuto and Ryotarou were the only ones present. The girls are off doing their own business. Emu had just finished a scan, but he was still spaced out.
"Doc." Andrew called. "How's it looking?"
Emu didn't reply. So, in turn, Kazuto stood up and spoke in his stead.
"Agil. You're infected with Poppy's virus." He said.
"I'm infected by the female character's game disease, huh?" Andrew sighed. "Wow, what a turn of events."
Ryotarou, meanwhile, just took a look at Andrew's Rider Chronicle Gashat.
"Y'know, this game is dangerous." He said. "Why were you playing it?"
"I dunno…" Matt admitted, sitting up. "Guess… peer pressure."
"Peer pressure?" Kazuto asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah." Andrew explained. "I saw you guys having so much fun, so I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about."
He then looked at his hand, clenching a fist.
"So…" He began. "All I have to do is beat that character to get cured, right?"
It was at this moment where Emu finally came back to life.
"Excuse me, Mr. Mills…" He began. "But Poppy is not a bad character…"
The three SAO players looked at Emu. Emu braced himself for a storm of retaliation, but surprisingly, Andrew was quite cool with it.
"And judging by what I saw back there, I feel the same." He admitted. "But… you can't really cure me without beating her."
Ryotarou then wrapped his arm around Andrew's neck, giving him a shoulder hug.
"Don't worry, dude!" He smiled. "We'll figure something out!"
Emu smiled. He only hoped that Ryotarou would be right.
Meanwhile, back in Hiro's office, he was just silently helping himself to a coffee cake slice. However, he wasn't eating just as his daily suger intake. He had something on his mind, and was using the cake slice as fuel. Pallad had always been a riddle to him. What he just said before in battle just added more to the confusion.
'Why is he so obsessed with the intern…?' He thought.
Just then, Emu and Kazuto just entered the office. Ryotarou stayed behind to keep Andrew company. Hiro just went back to his cake slice, as Kazuto pulled out his phone and Emu made himself a cup of coffee.
"What should I do…?" Emu muttered. "Andrew's been infected with Poppy's virus…"
"Then we'll just have to cut her." Hiro replied. "She's an enemy of humanity right now."
"But…" Emu argued. "I don't want to fight Poppy as a bad person…"
"Don't let personal feelings get in the way!" Hiro scolded, raising his voice. "A doctor's job is to save the patient."
Emu pouted, but Kazuto didn't seem to respond, though he did react to sudden outburst from Hiro.
"I know…" Emu argued again, sitting down next to Hiro. "I just want to save Poppy too!"
Hiro and Kazuto took that statement in. However, they still had some valid arguments on their side. Hiro was about to say something, but Kazuto spoke up.
"Don't you get it?" He said. "She's still a Bugster. Which means she infected someone herself to get where she is now."
Emu realized what the two were trying to say. He just stared down at his cup of coffee, contemplating what to do.
A young woman seemed to be suffering. She was jerking back and forth on a hospital bed. However, she was shining yellow, while bubbles of orange began to evaporate off of her. With her final moments, she knocked over a vase…
Poppy suddenly gasped violently. She was back in the main server room where the Bugsters seemed to be using as a hideout. She held herself as she slowly recovered from her… nightmare.
"What was that just now?" She asked.
Graphite and Pallad looked up at her. They looked concerned for their comrade.
"What's the matter?" Graphite asked.
"I just… had a nightmare…" Poppy admitted. "But… it was more like a memory… a memory of someone I don't know…"
"Oh…" Pallad replied. "It's probably your host's save data. Courtesy if M's reprogramming."
"Host?" Poppy asked.
Graphite stood up, and walked up to Poppy.
"When Bugsters take over a host's body, their save data is transferred to us." Graphite explained, looking at his hand. "I have memories of Brave's girlfriend. You're no exception."
Poppy, with that explanation, then just left the room. Pallad quickly went after her, telling Graphite to stay put.
Ex-Aid, in ALO, sat silently on his bed. But he had his eyes set on soemthing. It was a small bed that he had just made just last chapter. It was Poppy's bed. He would always see her small body tucked underneath the covers of the small bed. But he also had a picture. It was of their first Quest together in ALO. The words from Pallad and Kazuto repeated in his mind. Still, he was determined to get Poppy back.
Nightfall came soon. The city was now lit by its streetlights, building lights, and all of the cars' headlights going down the road. Poppy was sitting on a metal cooling unit, where wind blew her pink hair slightly.
"You know, you could get cold up here." Called a voice.
Poppy looked to see that Pallad came to her. He was curious at to what Poppy was doing.
"Whatcha doing up here?" He asked.
"Pallad…" Poppy whispered. "Because of me… someone lost her life…"
"Yeah." Pallad replied. "All the more reason for the humans to hate you."
He then sat down next to her.
"Now, take that as a fuel to beat the humans." Pallad smiled.
Poppy, however, wasn't having it. She still had plenty of questions. She stood up from her seat, facing Pallad.
"Why do we have to fight?" Poppy asked.
Pallad smiled, and stood up from his seat as well.
"That's just how Kamen Rider Chronicle made us to be." He explained. "Bugsters and humans are meant to fight each other."
"Being able to fight humans to our hearts' content…" He continued. "Is the greatest gif that can be bestowed upon us Bugsters!"
"But I-" Poppy started.
Pallad turned a complete 180 from his jovile self. As he grabbed Poppy by her neck and lifted her up. He then darted over to the edge of the building, holding Poppy over by the edge. Poppy's eyes widened with fear as Pallad stared her down.
"You should learn to enjoy the game more…" He whispered ominously.
He then threw Poppy aside back on the roof, and just stormed off. Poppy held her throat, still at the same crossroads she just can't take a stance on.
Next morning, Nico and Taiga were just chilling by a bench. However, Nico seemed to be slightly annoyed.
"Well that was a waste." She whined.
"What is?" Taiga asked.
"Well, we saw the sighting of Salty and Alhambra yesterday…" Nico explained. "And we did beat them… but no Gashat-Trophy! What the hell!"
"That just means someone beat you to them." Called a voice.
Taiga and Nico turned to see Rika, Asuna, and Keiko walking up to them. Usually, they wouldn't just bat an eye to them and tell them to hit the road. However, something caught their attention. Rika was holding the Mighty Action X Gashat-Trophy, while Asuna was holding the Taddle Quest Gashat-Trophy.
"How do you have those?" Nico asked.
"Well…" Rika smirked. "You want the long answer or the short answer?"
"Don't mess with us!" Taiga growled.
"Yeah, yeah." Rika spoke up. "We just beat the Bugsters and got the spoils of war for ya!"
Taiga and Nico got more puzzled.
"Well, we just arranged a party together." Asuna explained. "A group of players can make a party with each other and beat this game together."
"Nico, we already made you a party member." Keiko added. "Have you checked your Augma?"
Nico then looked up. She scrolled down her menu for Kamen Rider Chronicle, and found that she was in a party. Along with the doctor Riders, there were also the SAO survivors.
"Huh." Nico muttered.
Taiga, meanwhile, had other questions.
"How are you able to play this game?" He asked. "I thought the Ministry banned it from the general public."
"Well, we got special clearance." Spoke a voice. "I asked for it myself."
Everyone then saw Shino walking towards them. She had her phone in hand. Taiga scoffed, and just turned away.
"Don't celebrate yet, brats." He said. "They were just lower-tier Bugsters."
"I know, I know." Shino confided.
She just looked at her phone, and checked for any other Bugster sightings.
"Well… would you look at that?" She said. "Poppy Pipopapo has been sighted!"
"Where?" Keiko asked.
Shino scrolled down the forum, and found more information. With that said, the lost all ran in the direction of where Poppy was sighted.
They weren't the only ones who had gotten the notification. Hiro was walking down the halls of the hospital, speaking to Emu on the phone.
"Poppy Pipopapo has been sighted." He said. "I'm on my way now."
"Is it Poppy?" Emu asked.
"Yeah." Hiro replied. "You'll be observing the operation this time."
Emu stopped at that. He bit his lip and tried to respond to it.
"Hey." Hiro spoke up. "Get your resolve straight. We have no other choice."
And with that said, Hiro hung up. Emu dropped his phone into his pocket, and just grasped the current dilemma he was in.
Speaking of Poppy, where is she now? She was just silently watching a dance troupe practicing a routine. She noted that they seemed to be quite happy. She only wished that she could just jump in and join in. She just looked more troubled as she just watched on.
Unbeknownst to her, two Ride-Players had snuck up behind her. They had their weapons at the ready, and were prepared to strike her down.
"Ready man?" One of them asked.
"Let's do this!" The other replied.
Then, together, the two Ride-Players ran at Poppy. Luckily, Poppy saw them just in time to dodge the first attack. She was stunned by the two Ride-Players, with weapons at the ready, raring to get a piece of her.
"You monster!" One of them shouted.
"Prepare to die!" The other shouted.
Poppy didn't want this. She just wanted to be left alone, and just exist. However, her hesitation was overwritten by her instinct to survive, as she just pulled out her cyan BugVisor and attached it to her waist.
GACHANN!
She pulled her out her Gashat, and pressed it, doing a little twirl at the end.
TOKI MEKI CRISIS!
"Henshin…" She uttered, inserting the Gashat into the BugVisor and pressing the button below it.
GASHATTO! BUCKLE UP…
DREAMING GIRL! HEY! KOI NO SIMULATION! OTOME WA ITSUMO TOKI MEKI CRISIS! HEY!
Poppy quickly transformed into Kamen Rider Poppy, complete with the red eyes, but didn't make any sort of move. The Ride-Players made their moves first. They swung their blades this way and that, and Poppy was dodging as much as she can. Meanwhile, Pallad just walked in as the dance troupe ran away.
"That's more like it…" He smiled.
However, his smile faded into a frown when he saw Snipe, in Level 50, Nico, Asuna, Liz, Silica, and Sinon running into the fight.
"You get the Ride-Players!" Snipe ordered. "I'll beat Poppy Pipopapo-"
"First come, first serve!" Nico interrupted, running at Poppy and the Ride-Players.
"H-Hey!" Snipe spluttered.
Nico then pounced on top of Poppy, pushing the Ride-Players out of the way. She then slammed her sword down, but Poppy was able to block it.
"Nico!" Poppy begged. "Please, stop!"
"Put a sock in it, Bugster!" Nico shot back, lifting up her blade.
She then kicked Poppy back, and walked forward to attack her some more. Meanwhile, the two Ride-Players tried to get in on the fight, but Snipe just grabbed them and tossed them behind him.
"You're in the way! Get lost!" He shouted.
But the Ride-Players refused to leave.
"We'll never be cured of our game disease if we don't beat her!" one of the argued.
"Then I'll do it for you low-lives." Snipe growled.
He then fired a cannon blast, which startled the Ride-Players' boots.
"Scram!" Snipe roared.
The Ride-Players made a bunch of cowering sounds, and just bolted out of the area. Snipe then turned his attention back to Poppy, who was getting grounded into a pulp by Nico. Nico just kicked Poppy into a pillar, and Snipe took the opportunity to fire several blasts at her.
Just as Poppy rolled on the ground, Emu, Hiro, and Kazuto walked up.
"Poppy!" Emu shouted out of worry.
"Intern, brace yourself." Hiro reminded.
"M." Pallad's voice spoke up.
The three turned around and saw Pallad walk up to them, with the Gashat Gear Dual in hand.
"You better fight me for real this time." He smiled, raising the Gashat to his face.
Hiro and Emu just put on their Gamer Drivers and raised their Gashats, while Kazuto just raised his Rider Chronicle Gashat. PAllad, in response, turned the knob on his.
KNOCK OUT FIGHTER!
THE STRONGEST FIST! ROUND 1! ROCK AND FIRE!
"Henshin." Pallad muttered.
TADDLE QUEST! DOREMIFA BEAT!
"Proceeding to Level 3." Hiro announced. "Henshin."
MAXIMUM MIGHTY X!
"Max Dai Henshin!" Emu declared.
KAMEN RIDER CHRONICLE…
"Henshin." Kazuto said.
Then, the Riders inserted their Gashats into their Drivers or just pressed their Gashats again.
DUAL UP!
EXPLOSION HIT! KNOCK OUT FIGHTER!
GASHATTO! GASHATTO!
GACHANN! LEVEL UP!
TADORU MEGURU! TADORU MEGURU! TADDLE QUEST!
A GACCHA!
DO-DO-DO-RE-MI-FA! SO-LA-SI-DO! OK! DOREMIFA BEAT!
MAXIMUM GASHATTO!
GACHANN! LEVEL MAX!
SAIDAIKYU NO POWERFUL BODY! MAXIMUM POWER! X!
ENTER THE GAME! RIDING THE END!
Then, all of the following people present transformed into their Rider forms. Pallad became Para-DX Knock Out Fighter form, Hiro became Brave Level 3, and Emu became Ex-Aid Level 99. The only exception was Kirito, who had just got brown garments.
"Alright, let's do this!" Para-DX smiled.
He then threw a punch, making the three warriors duck out of the way. Then, Ex-Aid and Brave pinned Para-DX from both sides.
"I'm leaving Pallad to you!" Brave called, letting go.
He then ran towards the Poppy fight happening just a few feet from where they're standing. Kirito also ran in the same direction.
"Brave, wait!" Ex-Aid called back.
However, Ex-Aid couldn't go after him, as Para-DX got free and continued to fight him.
Nico just landed a kick, making Poppy lose her balance. Just then, Brave used that opening to land a clean slash right across Poppy's torso. Then, Nico would pick her back up and landed another clean slash down her torso again. Snipe shot a flurry of cannon blasts, and they all landed, since Brave and Nico all moved out of the way. Poppy was launched into another pillar.
Meanwhile, Kirito had walked over to the others. Lis, Sinon, Asuna, and Silica. However, they weren't moving.
"Hey, what's up?" He asked.
Silica tightened the grip of her knife.
"It's just…" She spoke quietly. "I can't… bring myself to fight her…"
"Yeah…" Liz agreed. "We've been through a lot…"
"And…" Asuna spoke up. "Look."
She pointed at the fight. Snipe, Brave, and Nico were just wailing on Poppy. Poppy was trying to tank all of these attacks, but even they could tell that she can't keep this up forever.
"She's not even fighting back!" Asuna argued.
Kirito realized that now. They were just bullying her at this point. Sinon simply nodded. Ex-Aid also saw this, but can't do much as Para-DX was just annoying him.
"M, c'mon!" Para-DX whined. "Are you fighting me or not?"
One punch just made Ex-Aid fall forward. However, this gave him the opportunity to take a glimpse at Poppy's situation, who was groaning on the gorund, critically hurt.
"Why's she not fighting back…?" He muttered to himself.
Nico didn't seem to care. She quickly ran over to her and picked her up.
"Taiga! You got a clear shot!" She called, lifting her up.
"Leave it to me." Snipe sneered.
He then aimed all of his cannons at Poppy. They charged up, and that prompted to Sinon to move. But just as she reached Snipe, he pulled all of the triggers. All of the cannons unloaded their load onto Poppy, launching her into the air because of the impact. It was even enough to cancel her out of her transformation.
GASHUNN!
Poppy rolled down the pavement, eventually stopping. But she was now cornered. She struggled to get up, but even if she did, she can't do anything right now.
Sinon grabbed Snipe, wanting an answer.
"Okay, that was too far!" She scolded. "Did you not see that she's not even fight back?!"
"All the more reason to dispose of her faster!" Snipe shouted back, shoving Sinon out of the way. "Now, beat it!"
Luckily, Kirito caught her. But nothing could stop them now. Brave, Snipe, and Nico all converged onto Poppy. Poppy, afraid of her current situation, began to cower as she tried to back away. However, she gave up midway.
"Poppy Pipopapo." Brave stated. "Nothing personal."
With that said, Poppy closed her eyes, and braced for the worst. Slowly, the three Riders raised their weapons. Ex-Aid saw this, and had to act fast. He stood up, and quickly formulated a plan. Para-DX, however, was getting tired of M's half attention to him.
"Hey!" He called out, getting in front of him. "I said: Fight me!"
"Get lost!" Ex-Aid shouted back.
He then grabbed a hold of Para-DX, pinning his arm inside the giant hands of Level 99. Ex-Aid then pressed a small button on the side of the Gashat, which ejected him into the air. Using the momentum, Ex-Aid twirled over to the three Riders. He quickly shoved Brave and Nico aside, and kicked Snipe away from him.
"All of you stop!" He ordered. "Poppy is not an enemy!"
That declaraction made everyone freeze. The SAO players walked up to what was going on, but stayed in the sidelines. Even Para-DX, who had been struggling to get out of the Level 99 suit's hands, stop struggling to see Ex-Aid.
"Ex-Aid, move it!" Snipe ordered. "We're doing this so we can clear this hell-game!"
"And to do that, we have to beat her!" Nico chimed in. "Beat it!"
"Make me!" Ex-Aid shot back
He then spread his legs and arms out. He wasn't going to let anyone harm Poppy.
"Just how many times do I have to tell you this, Intern?" Brave scolded, grabbing Ex-Aid's collar. "This is for the patient!"
"The patient…" Poppy whispered.
"Shut up!" Ex-Aid shouted, pushing Brave away from him.
Brave, disgusted by this, just raised his Sword up to Ex-Aid.
"Is there some other way? Huh?" He demanded.
"Well…" Ex-Aid stuttered.
Poppy had had enough. She began to whimper quietly, even dropping a few tears.
"Just… do it." She finally choked out. "Just get it over with."
Ex-Aid turned back to see his friend.
"After all…" She went on. "I killed someone to be here right now…"
"But you helped us save countless lives afterwards!" Ex-Aid corrected, grabbing hold of her shoulders.
"Humans hate us Bugsters!" Poppy cried, in her whimpering voice.
"You're different!" Ex-Aid protested.
"Bugsters are humanity's enemy!" Poppy finally declared, shoving Ex-Aid off of her.
Ex-Aid then looked at Poppy for a short moment, but he had an idea.
"Is that so?" He asked. "Alright then."
He then did something insane. He just cancelled out of his transformation!
GACHANN! GASHUNN!
Ex-Aid reverted back into Emu. Consequently, the Level 99 armor grabbing Para-DX also disappeared. However, despite being free, Para-DX didn't make any moves.
"If what you say is true…" Emu ordered. "Then fight me."
Poppy suddenly got alert. What was Emu saying to her?
"You wish to kill all humans, right?" Emu asked in a more serious tone. "You wish to rule this world, right?!"
He then grabbed Poppy's BugVisor from her waist and placed it in her hand. Then, he jabbed the weapon into his chest, with Poppy still holding onto it.
"Then kill me!" Emu screamed.
Everyone was taken aback by this. No one would attempt something this crazy. All of the SAO players quickly walked down.
"Do it already!" Emu ordered.
Poppy didn't do anything. She was too overcome with her own dilemmas to do anything. But, after a bit of recollection, she finally reached an answer.
"No…" She whispered.
Then, throwing the BugVisor away, she shouted. "I don't want to hurt anyone anymore!"
She then stood up, and finally affirmed her decision.
"I don't want to make anyone sad!" She stated. "I don't want to hurt anyone…"
Then, with some more whimpering, she covered her mouth with her hands, eventually placing them in front of her chest.
"I just…" She spoke. "I just want to play DoReMiFa Beat with everyone happily!"
Emu, finally satisfied with that answer, stood up next to her. Then, surprisingly, he swung his arms around, embracing Poppy.
"Then let's do it…" He said soothingly. "Together."
He added a little smile at that. Poppy nodded, and cried some more onto his doctor's coat and wrapped her arms around Emu's back. With that said, everyone else cancelled out of their transformation.
GAME CLEAR!
Para-DX reverted to a bitter-looking Pallad, who just walked off.
Meanwhile, Andrew finally stopped pixelating orange. He looked around himself, and Ryotarou was eager to hear what happened.
"I'm cured…" He muttered.
"Hell yeah, you are!" Ryotarou smiled, punching his friend's arm playfully.
Back with Poppy, she had finally stopped crying. Emu released her from his embrace and patted her head. Poppy responded with a smile.
"Question." Nico spoke up. "How did we get cleared again?"
"It's probably because Emu brought back Poppy's smile." Shino suggested. "Right?"
Hiro simply put his hands into his pocket, and walked up to Emu.
"You're really starting to prove yourself, Intern." He said, getting a small bow from Emu.
He then turned to Poppy, but not directly in the eye.
"I owe you an apology." He admitted.
"C'mon, do it properly." Asuna pouted, jabbing Brave's back.
"It's okay." Poppy replied. "I caused you guys just as much trouble. I should be apologizing really."
"Just don't ever turn on us again." Taiga scowled. "Cause if you do…"
"I'm going to pummel you to the next life!" Nico declared.
Poppy got scared by that, so she quickly hid behind Emu. Despite this, Nico shrugged it off by laughing. Then, the motley crew walked off down the road. Along the way, Silica asked if Poppy wanted to play DoReMiFa Beat during the weekend at her house. Poppy replied with a loud yes. However, the happy reunion was interrupted by Pallad, who blocked their way.
"So…" He said. "Looks like you've made your decision… Poppy."
Emu quickly got up front, covering Poppy with his arm.
"You're not laying a finger on her again!" He said.
Pallad pinched the bridge of his nose. He just couldn't get through to him.
"M, why?" He asked. "You said you'd play games with Poppy, but why not me?"
"Because Poppy's different from you." Emu shot back coldly. "You choose to take lives."
"C'mon, M!" Pallad argued. "Aren't we friends?"
"Since when were we your friends?" Kazuto asked.
"You don't make any sense!" Shino added in.
Pallad studied the lot of people behind Emu. He knew his next move. But he didn't notice Hiro sharpening his view.
"It's our destiny to fight, M." He said. "After all, you are…"
"Me." Pallad concluded, eyes glowing red.
Hiro then realized what was about to happen.
"Intern, run!" He shouted.
Emu turned back, but that gave Pallad the opening he needed. He quickly pixelated into a cloud, and then he consumed Emu. Emu lurched forward, taking the amount of Bugster virus as well as he could. But the virus looked different. Instead of the usual orange color, it was red and blue. When it was all over, Emu straightened up, but his eyes glowed red.
"Emu?" Rika asked, walking up to him. "You alright?"
Emu placed hand on Rika's shoulder, but then he just slapped her right across the cheek. Riak fell back, but Keiko caught her.
"Hey, what was that for?" Kazuto asked.
"Intern…" Hiro muttered.
"Emu" then laughed, and then said something uncharacteristic to him.
"Let's play, shall we?" He chuckled. "The most thrilling game ever!"