"Build possesses endless potential. Thank you for your time. See you!" Rick, Morty, and Ryuga watched the video that soon played after the Project Build title. Morty's jaw was slightly dropped as he saw the very Rider he became, Build, being proposed as a product.
"Are you FUCKING kidding me?!" Morty was about to toss the monitor into the trash can before Isurugi held his arms. "This motherfucking asshole made Build!? And wanted to use it as a weapon?!" Morty shook within Isurugi's arms.
"Well, it was made for defense. You heard what he said." Isurugi said.
"Yeah… Defense from his own goons!" Ryuga said.
"I mean, I did take the belt to protect Misora from Faust so…" Isurugi shrugged.
"And this whole system! The Hazard Levels… The Driver…" Ryuga smashed his hand against the wall. "It was all to make guinea pigs for the Build Driver! That bastard got what he deserved."
"Speaking of…" Rick interjected as he stood up. "We still don't know who killed him. We know Faust had to do with it given how desperate they are to get his data, but the direct killer, that's something else entirely…" Rick said.
"It's obviously Blood Stalk. He was there when we found Katsuragi's body and he went after his mom." Morty sighed as Isurugi let go of him. "Come on Rick, the sooner we take him out and prove he killed Katsuragi, the sooner we can clear Ryuga's name." As Morty said that…
DING!
The microwave door popped open as Morty ran to the door and grabbed the FullBottle inside.
"A lock!" Morty exclaimed as Misora walked out of the chamber.
"Tired… Want money… Going to sleep…" Misora muttered. Morty looked over to a table of the Fullbottles.
"Hmm… There's only two organic Fullbottles I have that don't have Best Matches…" He took the Kaizoku Fullbottle. "Pirates lock treasures in chests, so…" He plugged the two Bottles in.
KAIZOKU! LOCK!
… Nothing.
"Hmmm… Either I haven't discovered it yet or…" He turned to see Ryuga. "Mind if I see the Dragon Fullbottle?" Morty asked.
"Dude, last time you had that, you got hurt." Ryuga said.
"It was probably because it was too powerful and needed a restraining bolt." Morty said.
"… I hope you're right." Ryuga tossed Morty the Dragon FullBottle as he plugged the two in.
DRAGON! LOCK! BEST MATCH!
"Score! This will definitely turn the tide against Faust!" Morty said.
"Or what's left of it… Last I checked, you blew up their HQ and have their data. They're backed into a corner right now. In my time of fighting against organizations like these, that means they're poised to make a desperate attempt." As Rick said that, he glanced over to Isurugi for a brief second before keeping his pupils on Morty.
"It's been a while, Namba…" Gentoku sat with Namba at an old bathhouse.
"Yes, it makes me feel like a kid again, being here." Namba gave a smile as Gentoku turned his head to him.
"What is this about?" Gentoku asked.
"I've been given a rather interesting proposition in Hokuto. One that is much more cost effective than yours." As Namba said that, Gentoku tensed up.
"What?"
"A strapping young lad created a system that'd be more powerful than even the Fullbottles. I don't even need to pay him a cent, since he's directly funded by the government. You, on the other hand, are a liability at best now. If word gets out that Namba funds a terrorist organization, I'll be ruined." Namba kept a smile as Gentoku clenched his fists.
"So what? Are you telling me that you're abandoning us?" Gentoku said.
"No… I'm warning you. Give me a reason for me to continue investing in Faust and I'll reconsider my decision. If not…" He gave a slow, creepy chuckle as Gentoku slammed his fist against the side of the tub, the water slowing his fist. "Though… There is a way you could convince me… You just need to prove yourselves worthy of my time and money."
"How?" Gentoku snarled as Namba smirked.
Rick was back to work at the Touto Institute of Advanced Matter Physics. He sighed. If only he could get close to the Pandora Box enough to give it a scan like he did the lab, if only to match a suspicion he had.
"Gentlemen." He turned to see Utsumi come by.
"Let me guess, you need to push a pencil somewhere?" As Rick said that, two of his co-workers gave a chuckle. Utsumi gave a narrowed glare before he slammed down a series of papers.
"The three prime ministers will be coming over to inspect the Pandora Box. Give me a report on your findings by tomorrow." Utsumi said.
"Yeeeeeeeeah, no…" Rick stood up and stretched his arms. "Don't believe in the whole Karoshi thing or whatever you guys call 'overworking someone to death'. Man, you're lucky this isn't a video game company or you'd be fuuuuuuuuuucked." As Rick got his lab coat, Utsumi sighed.
"Rick, if anyone's going to crack the secrets behind the Pandora Box, it'd be you." One of his co-workers, Kuwata, said.
"Yeah, you said you were Katsuragi's friend, right? If he was alive, he'd have already unlocked the Pandora Box's secrets by now!" The other co-worker, Kawai, said. Rick stopped and turned around.
"… What did you say?" Rick asked.
"I said he'd have already unlocked the-" Rick held up his hand.
"Thank you. So, Utsuki, was it? I decided to stay after all." Rick gave a smirk, sat down, and took a swig from his flask before Utsumi yanked it out of his hands.
"First of all, no drinking on the job. And second, my name is Utsumi." With that, he turned and walked away. Rick cracked his fingers, having the final pieces of the puzzle click together.
"Isn't this a bit dangerous, Ryuga? I mean, you and Misora shouldn't be out here." Morty asked Ryuga, who along with Misora were dressed up as typical Japanese high-schoolers, sat with Morty at a small ice cream parlour.
"Come on, Morty, live a little! When's the last time you went out with some friends?" Ryuga asked.
"… None." Morty muttered, starting more at his ice cream sundae.
"Huh?" Ryuga raised an eyebrow while he dug into a cream soda float.
"I mean, if you count Rick as a friend, then probably, but…" Morty shook his head. "No, I mostly don't have friends. If anything, you're the closest one I have."
"Damn…" Ryuga muttered.
"I'm… on the same boat as you, Morty." Misora said, already halfway done with her parfait. "Though, that was more because I was in a coma for seven years." Morty and Ryuga dropped their spoons.
"SEVEN!?" Both Morty and Ryuga shouted. Misora looked around, then held her hand up.
"Not so loud!" Misora said as she saw a customer glance her way. "… It was around the Skywall disaster. I fainted not too long after it happened and when I woke up… I had this." Misora held up her hand, showing Morty something he had always seen: a golden bracelet. "With it, I'm able to purify the bottles… Before Morty came along, doing so would have put me in a week-long coma…" Ryuga turned to Morty.
"Wait, so you're saying that big microwave device…" Ryuga was about to finish his question before Morty interjected.
"Yep. My very first all-Morty invention. … Grandpa Rick helped improve it though. Now she just needs to sleep a few hours before she's back on her feet!" Morty said. Ryuga stared at his float before he sighed.
"We could have had normal, pleasant lives… Instead, Faust came along and ruined it. That's why… I can't forgive Katsuragi and what he's done." Ryuga said.
"I can't forgive him either… But he's dead now. All that matters is cleaning up the mess he made." As Morty said that, the trio heard screams. Morty and Ryuga stood up and saw several Guardians holding machine guns, on route to the ice cream store.
"Wait, don't they know that you've been framed?" Morty asked Ryuga. As Ryuga stood firm, ready to fight, the Guardians said something that kicked Morty's gears into hyperdrive.
"Isurugi Misora sighted. Commencing capture."
"We have to go, now!" Morty ran and took Misora's hand before they ran off.
On their way to a sidewalk overseeing a river, Night Rogue hopped down and impeded Morty's path.
"Hand over the girl and you will be spared." Night Rogue said.
"Never! Her father worked hard to save her and I'm not going to let you take her! Ryuga, hand it over!" Morty turned to Ryuga as he took out the Dragon Fullbottle and gave it to Morty. "Go! If you come across any more Guardians, call my grandpa and tell him we're in trouble." Ryuga ran off with Misora as Morty took out the Lock Fullbottle. He slapped on the Driver, shook the two bottles, and placed them in.
DRAGON! LOCK! BEST MATCH!
With no hesitation, Morty cranked the Driver as the liquids inside formed two halves, the navy Dragon half and a golden half with a key-like blade attached to the arm and a padlock on his shoulder.
ARE YOU READY!?
"LET'S BUILD UP!" The two halves snapped onto Morty as steam escaped from the gaps in between.
THE SECURITY FANTASY! KEYDRAGON! YEAH!
Instantly, Morty ran to Night Rogue and struck him in the chest a few times with his palm. Each hit pulsed with a blue flame. He then spun around and slashed the same area with the key on his arm. Night Rogue was knocked down and was only able to struggle and get up.
"What… is this power!?" Night Rogue growled.
"These… These are the Fullbottles that came from the women you murdered!" Morty ran over and kicked Night Rogue with his left foot as the lock clicked in. Night Rogue took out his gun and tried to fire, only for the trigger to be jammed.
"What? It's… locked!?" Night Rogue said.
"There's no escape for you…" Morty was about to crank the Driver one more time before blue lightning coursed through Morty's body. "W-what the!?" He fell down as the two Fullbottles fell out of the belt, disabling the armor and allowing Night Rogue's gun to not be jammed.
"I no longer have a use for you…" Night Rogue aimed his gun at Morty…
STEAM SHOT!
Suddenly, a purple bolt struck Night Rogue. Morty looked above and saw Blood Stalk hop down from a ledge nearby. Blood Stalk turned to Morty.
"Niceties from me only come once in a lifetime, so take it and run." Blood Stalk said. Morty hesitated, but as Blood Stalk turned his attention to Night Rogue, Morty ran off.
"I don't get it…" Morty said as he was soon a few meters away from the two. "Shouldn't the Lock suppress the Dragon's power? So why…" Before he could answer, he saw some Guardians cornering Ryuga and Misora. He pulled out two Fullbottles and gave them a shake.
The next thing Ryuga and Misora heard was the call of "ROCKETPANDA!" Before the white-and-cyan colored Build swooped in and grabbed the two. Morty flew the two out of the area, leaving the Guardians confused.
"Explain to me why you thought kidnapping her was a good idea." Stalk and Night Rogue had gone to a hidden lab, with Night Rogue out of his Transteam armor.
"She's escaped our notice for so long and-" As Gentoku said that, Blood Stalk slammed his Steam Blade right by his side.
"That's not what this is about, is it? Misora is like the Research Data. She's more useful to us out of our hands than she is in our hands. So why feel the need to disrupt that?" Stalk asked.
"… There's another organization that was founded in Hokuto. Downfall." Gentoku said.
"Quite the ominous name." Stalk relaxed his grip on the Steam Blade.
"Namba is looking to support them over us. According to him, they have a superior Rider System compared to ours. I can't let Hokuto beat us in the arms race." Gentoku gripped his fist and slammed it against the table. "He is willing to pass them up though… If…"
"Hmmm?" Blood Stalk sat down and listened in.
"He told me that the founder of Downfall and his test subject will come with the Hokuto Prime Minister and her advisor. A perfect place to put our powers to the test." Gentoku smirked.
"A workplace competition? Sounds boring if you ask me." Stalk shook his head.
"No. This will be cut and dry… Whoever steals the Pandora Box first will win Namba's investment." Gentoku's smirk turned into a full-on sneer.
Morty landed not too far from Nasicta and dropped Ryuga and Misora off before cancelling his transformation.
"That was too close…" Morty muttered.
"Why were those Guardians after us?" Misora asked.
"… I don't think they're from the government. Back when Sawa and I were rescuing Nabeshima's family, we encountered Guardians that didn't have a faceplate or any insignia. They were clearly Faust's… And… I have a strong reason to believe those Guardians are from Faust as well." Ryuga said.
"So that's it, then… They're just gonna keep coming after us?" Morty muttered, then gripped his fist. "No… I'm going to send a message to them. Ryuga, take Misora home. I'm going to find Rick. Faust will meet its end tonight!" Morty glared before he turned around and ran off. Misora tried to reach out, but Ryuga shook his head.
After about eight hours of non-stop work, Rick stacked a pile of papers that contained his brief research on the Pandora Box.
"Doubt they'll understand all this science jargon… Maaaaybe add in a few more mentions of gigawatt to make it sound authentic…" Rick smiled at his latest work. He took a look around… No one else was in the office. He took a quick swig of his booze before he got up… That's when he saw one of his co-workers walking down the stairs with what seemed to be a gas cannister for a backpack.
Rick followed him down the stairs, to which he heard the sound of a hissing and several bodies dropping to the floor. Rick paused, then took out a face mask to wear before proceeding further…
As he feared, he entered a room full of unconscious guards and his co-worker, Kuwata, at a computer. He approached him, slowly taking out his laser gun. Kuwata heard Rick approach, then turned around, holding a plump-looking Full Bottle.
"THE REVOLUTION HAS-" Just as he was about to shake it, Rick zapped him as he fell down, Kuwata's body twitching. The muscles on his limbs randomly seized up at intervals of a few seconds each. Rick went over to pick up the Fullbottle… Sure enough, it was the same kind that he and Morty would get once they absorb the essence of a Smash.
"Your arms and legs are going to be like this for an hour, so tell me what the fuck you're doing before I make your vital muscles like that." Rick casually aimed his gun at him.
"I… will never tell you…" Kuwata grunted in pain as Rick walked over to his arm. Rick looked directly into his eyes, gave a sigh, then stomped his foot onto his elbow. "AAAAAAAAAAH!"
"Why did you knock out the guards?" Rick asked.
"It… Aaah… Matters not… I… Already…" Kuwata then laughed as Rick saw something on the computer:
SECURITY: UNLOCKED
"… Ah fuck." Rick ran off as he heard loud bleeps. He took out his phone and noticed Morty was calling him. "What is it?"
"Come, we're going to take down Faust!" Morty said.
"I think I know where they are. Come to Touto's Institute." Rick said to him.
"Got it! Ryuga, let's go!" Rick hung up as he rushed to find the closest Faust member to deck.
"Welcome to Touto. It's been a while since we spoke in person." Taizan Himuro, the Prime Minister of Touto, greeted the other two Prime Ministers. Though he expanded his arms, the two simply eyed at something past him… A golden container. As Taizan looked at some security cards already in their hands, he lowered them and nodded. "I understand. Let's get to it then."
Three other people followed the Prime Ministers; Utsumi, Keiji, and Rei. Utsumi glared at Rei for a bit, though the latter didn't seem to care. The Ministers, with Taizan taking out his own security card, swiped at three security card locks before a loud beep came from each. The golden container then unfolded itself before revealing a strange, gunmetal gray cube with smoothed sides.
"So, what brings you two to Touto?" Utsumi asked Rei.
"We're part of Hokuto's Institute, personally invited by Tajimi to accompany her to this event, much like how you were invited." Rei said to Utsumi.
"And what is it that you've been working of as of late? With the Pandora Box over here, I assume you're engaged in some boring task." Utsumi gave a slight chuckle. Keiji stepped forward.
"If you really want to know…" At this same time, Tajimi stared at the Pandora Box.
"There it is… The Pandora Box. A vessel of vast, infinite power…" Tajimi eyed it with a sense of wonder. However, a loud series of alarms distracted her… Briefly. She turned and nodded to Rei and Keiji. They broke away from their chat from Utsumi and surveyed the area.
"What's going on?" Masakuni Mido, the Prime Minister of Seito, asked Taizan.
"That's what I want to know!" Taizan said.
"Relax… If it's those monsters that you have a problem taking care of, Himuro, then you're in luck… I've been working on a secret weapon ever since they leaked into Hokuto." Tajimi said to them. Taizan glared at her.
"What?" He asked her.
"Hmmm-hmm-hmmm-hmmm…" They soon turned their attention to an armored figure approaching them. Rei immediately ran ahead, knowing it was Blood Stalk.
Blood Stalk approached the group as they noticed several guards laid dead by his feet, few of them disintegrating into purple light. Taizan noticed some of his own Guardians were beside Stalk, guns aimed at them. Keiji ran to his side.
"Quite an assembly and… Speeder! I see you've allied yourself with Hokuto!" He noted the tan uniforms that both he and Keiji wore.
"My name is no longer Speeder… It's Rei Kumo… And I'll… avenge the family you've killed! Now, Keiji!" Rei took out his Fullbottle and placed it into his Transteam Gun. Keiji, however, took out a knife that had a slot, which was the perfect size for a jelly pouch he had, which he fitted.
SPIDER!
ZEBRA JELLY!
"Vaporize!" Rei pointed the Transteam Gun to his head.
"Extract!" Keiji crossed his arms. The two of them pulled the trigger on their weapons.
MIST MATCH! SPIDER! SPI-SPI-SPIDER! FIRE!
SCLASH MATCH! ZEBRA! ZEBR-BR-BR-BRAAAAH! FLOW!
As Rei was covered in Nebula Steam, Keiji waved his knife as though it was a large bubble blower, creating a thin wall of black and white striped jelly that wrapped over him. The jelly dried and cracked before exploding, revealing a white armored gladiator-like figure with white spandex. The helmet was covered in the striped liquid, now a translucent pane of plastic glass molded to resemble a gladiator's helmet, the visor being a black stripe that was larger than the others. The symbol of a zebra galloping, in a gray translucent plastic, was on its chest.
"Impressive! You created something new out of the Nebula Gas! I can see he's at Hazard Level 4… You have a long way to go, though…" Stalk pointed to Rei, who fired at Stalk. Stalk allowed his Guardians to take the hit. Meanwhile, Keiji rushed in and pummeled the Guardians with hoof-like gauntlets. The strength behind his strikes was enough to cave the chest in.
"What… is going on?" Taizan asked Tajimi, who began to laugh.
"You've been too slow with handling this problem, old man… Now, I will handle this threat once and for-" That's when she noticed Stalk strike down Keiji with a single slash of his sword, then nonchalantly fire point blank at Rei, knocking him down. He then approached Tajimi.
"Nothing personal…" He smacked her down and grabbed the Pandora Box. "I'll be taking this!"
"No! I won't let you!" Taizan grabbed Stalk.
"Himuro! It's too dangerous!" Masakuni said.
"A shame… I didn't want to do this, but…" As Stalk said that, a tendril appeared from his chest, ready to strike Taizan.
"OH NO, YOU DON'T!" Suddenly, Stalk noticed a dragon-powered fist slam into his head before he got knocked down. Taizan saw Ryuga, dressed as a guard, standing before him alongside a young kid in a yellow shirt, jeans, and short curly brown hair.
"I-isn't that…" Masakuni said as Tajimi got up.
"Katsuragi's killer!" Tajimi shouted.
"He didn't kill him, but chances are that he did!" Morty pointed to Stalk.
"You must have some mad devotion if you've come to protect the Prime Ministers. Don't you realize the only way you'll be getting out of this is in cuffs?" Stalk said before he noticed Rei and Keiji slowly get up.
"That doesn't matter… Because… Today will be the final day for Faust!" Morty declared as he slapped on the Build Driver.
"That's…" Taizan muttered as Morty placed the Fullbottles into his belt and cranked it. The Prime Ministers jumped out of the way before they were caught in the strange plastic piping that were the Snap Builders.
RABBIT! TANK! BEST MATCH! ARE YOU READY!?
"Let's Build Up!" Morty said as the armor halves snapped together.
THE FULL METAL MOONSAULT! RABBITTANK! YEAH!
Morty held up his drill-sword as steam leaked out of the seems of his armor. Blood Stalk looked around as he saw his four opponents.
"It'd be a shame if I came up empty. Welp, good thing there's a plan B." As Stalk said that, Morty heard someone running towards them. He turned around to see one of Rick's co-workers, Kawai, arrive. Stalk then took out the key attachment for his sword.
HAZARD ON! DEVIL STEAM!
And he fired a stream of steam at Kawai before the steam engulfed him and he transformed into a dark colored version of the first, ninja-themed Smash form that Nabeshima took on. He took out his swords and attacked Morty.
Morty took out his drill-sword to block the blades while Ryuga ran ahead. Stalk waved a hand as several Guardians rushed at him. With a quick shake of the Dragon Fullbottle, Ryuga struck one of the Guardians with a dragon-powered punch, enough to knock it down. He took another one by surprise before using it as a shield. He gave a smirk as he noticed the robots froze in place. He shoved the Guardian ahead before jumping over the body to punch one of the Guardian's heads off.
Rei and Keiji got up, both blocking Stalk's way. This time, they coordinated their attacks. As Stalk swung his Steam Blade at Keiji, Rei answered with a punch to his gut. As Stalk turned his focus to Rei, Keiji used the hoof to strike his head. Stalk had to act quickly. If Ryuga or Morty were to take out their opponents then…
"HYAH!"
He thought too soon as he felt a large punch from Ryuga. Blue flames erupted from where his punch landed as he felt the small, blue electricity surge through him. In spite of a light push and knocking the wind out of his lungs, Stalk chuckled.
"Hmmm… You've finally reached Hazard Level 3… Surely though, this isn't your peak…" Stalk struck Ryuga with his Steam Blade, ripping into his clothes and creating a nice cut.
"RYUGA!" Morty shouted as he took out two FullBottles, shook them, then placed them in to the belt before cranking it.
NINJA! LOCK! ARE YOU READY!?
Morty's form changed as he used the key-like attachment on his Lock side to block the next attack from the strengthened Mirage Smash. It freed up an opening for Morty to strike with his ninjato. With the Smash nursing the wounds, Morty ran over to fight Stalk.
Stalk laughed as all four combatants focused on him. Rei's punches landed as sticky webbing erupted and landed on Stalk's armor. Ryuga's punches complimented Keiji's own punches, as both served a megaton of pressure to his chest. Morty, however, served up a painful attack as he used both the key and ninjato as makeshift scissors, severely breaking the cyan cobra chest insignia.
"Hah! This is amazing! You're all at the peak of your performance! Don't disappoint me now…" Stalk said as the chest glowed. The cracks disappeared as several large, holographic cobras that pushed the four away. He walked towards the window, box in hand as he leaped out of it. Morty slashed away the hologram and ran over to see Stalk landing on a pile of Guardians, in the same chicken-walker arrangement. As he landed, they turned bright red as he used it to run off.
Morty looked over to the Mirage Smash, then to Ryuga.
"Take care of him, I'll deal with Stalk!" Morty ran off and leaped out of the window. Mid-air, he took out his phone and placed the Lion Fullbottle into it, transforming it and enlarging it into a bike that he got on.
"Easy for you to say…" Ryuga shook the Dragon Full Bottle as Rei looked at the darkened Smash.
"Wait! This one's different from the others…" Rei said.
"Huh?" Ryuga asked. He noticed the shading and compared it to the Smash that Kyoka became. Rei looked at the Smash before he recoiled.
"His strength is immeasurable. Easily a Hazard Level 2 and yet… That thing he used to power up his Devil Steam… It made the Nebula Gas so unstable that he's essentially at a Hazard Level 1…" Rei said. Ryuga soon remembered Kyoka's death and long with it, Kasumi's…
"… So… That means…" Ryuga muttered.
"Ryuga… We'll deal with him. You get the Prime Ministers to safety." Rei said.
"And why should I trust you? You murdered Katsuragi and framed me for it!" Ryuga shouted. Keiji looked at Rei, who looked down on the ground.
"… I'm not going to deny what I did. But at the same time, I can't confirm if I was the one who killed him. What I do know is that Faust has ruined my life as well. As far as I'm concerned, that makes us allies." Rei said.
"… Who's damn side are you on?" Ryuga muttered and shook his head before he ran off, getting the three Prime Ministers and Utsumi to follow him.
"… Who's side indeed." Rei muttered before he rushed to fight the Mirage Hazard Smash. He tossed Keiji his Transteam Gun as he kept the Mirage Hazard Smash occupied with a flurry of low kicks and high punches. Keiji held out his gun and fired into the combat, with Rei dodging each bullet fired in a way that it hit the Smash.
Rei spun around and grabbed one of the swords from the Smash. He then spun around again and struck the Smash in the midsection before Keiji tossed Rei the Transteam Gun. He hesitated before he loaded the Spider Full Bottle into his Transteam Gun.
SPIDER!
Keiji looked at his companion and pressed a lever on the dagger that compressed the jelly pouch.
SQUASH… CHARGE SLASH!
STEAM BREAK! SPIDER!
Rei fired a large, blue colored fireball at the Smash while Keiji ran at him, his armor suddenly alternating between white and black before settling back to his normal armor. He slashed just as the fireball was about to hit the Smash. There was a small set of black and white stripes that appeared in front of the Mirage Hazard Smash before Keiji slashed them away. As his strike hit the fireball, it exploded and caused the Smash get knocked out of the hole that Blood Stalk made.
Rei muttered a curse before he leaped out. He emitted a bit of Nebula Gas that solidified into spider silk, using them as a rope to rappel himself down to the ground. Once he landed, he would catch the Smash with his hands to break the fall, then use an empty Smash Bottle to extract the essence. As the essence was sucked away, the Smash reverted back to being Kawai.
"There. You may rest now." Rei said as he held Kawai in his arms. Kawai, however, shook his head and shoved him away. He landed on his feet and, in spite of his body beginning to weaken, ran off. Rei gave a hardened sigh as he looked up. He could hear Keiji's scream as he saw a chair fly out from the building. Rei sighed and stepped aside where the chair landed and shattered into a dozen large splinters.
Rick ran down the hall, getting his Full Bottles out. That's when he came across Ryuga, Utsumi, and the Prime Ministers.
"Oh, it's you." Rick muttered.
"Sorry, but… You know this guy?" Masakuni asked Ryuga.
"Yes… Unfortunately." Ryuga shook his head. "Look, Stalk's taken the box. Morty's following him…"
"Wait, you two know what's going on here?" Tajimi asked.
"Yes. Long story short, scientists are after alien tech and are using it to make people into monsters." Rick glanced over to Utsumi. "One of the co-workers told me Katsuragi would have unlocked the secrets of the Pandora Box by now… I later found he was working under this terrorist organization, Faust, which was same faction Katsuragi was trying to run from… Which means he succeeded in figuring out the secrets… And didn't like what he found out."
"So… You're saying Faust killed Katsuragi?" Taizan asked.
"Yeah, and we're going to nab the son of a bitch that killed him!" Ryuga said as he caught his own fist. Rick looked around and thought of something.
"Speaking of… Where is that son of a bitch?" Rick asked.
"Does it even matter now!? They took the Pandora Box!" Tajimi shouted.
"We find him, we get the Box back. Does that make sense to you?" Rick asked.
"And why should we trust some wacky scientist like yourself!? You're working with a criminal!" Masakuni said.
"I was framed, damn it!" Ryuga shouted.
"Enough!" Taizan shouted before he glared at the two Prime Ministers. "I don't fully know what's going on here, but I've seen enough to realize that this Kamen Rider has a lot more going on than what was initially reported on. In fact, your project," his eyes darted to Tajimi, "is much more of a threat. We're in a time of peace and you're making weapons behind our backs?"
"And who's to say that Faust and those monsters aren't one of your inventions?" Tajimi fired back.
"I had no idea… But… The responsibility of this Faust rests on my hands… There's no time to waste… We need to…" Taizan suddenly clutched his chest. All sense of conflict was washed away as Masakuni ran to Taizan's side. Tajimi's scowl melted into a semi-frown. Ryuga and Rick watched on as Utsumi quickly called for an ambulance.
ARE YOU READY!?
"Build Up!" Morty shouted as the Ninjya half-body was replaced with the Rabbit half-body. He used the key on his arm brace as a makeshift shield for the oncoming gunfire from Stalk's chicken walker. Morty raced after Blood Stalk on his bike as he held out the golden key hand. Out of the gauntlet was a chain that lassoed the walker's leg. Morty used it as a makeshift tether to drive closer to his mech, then skidded across to cause the chain to circle around the legs.
"I take it you're familiar with Star Wars?" Morty asked Blood Stalk as the chains bounded the legs together and tripped up the walker. "I got the winning formula!" As he said that, he cranked the Build Driver.
READY? GO! VOLTECH ATTACK!
Morty popped a wheelie on his bike as he ran his key across the front wheel, creating an aural buzzsaw. Then, as he drove towards the chicken walker, leaped off the bike and was about fifteen feet in the air before he descended with a flying side kick. Both the bike and him struck the chicken walker, causing a large explosion. As the smoke cleared, all that remained was Morty and Blood Stalk.
"It's over, Blood Stalk." Morty pulled the Full Bottles out from his belt and approached Stalk. "Faust is done." Just as he was about to grab the Pandora Box, Kawai shoved Morty out of the way, with Rei following in tow. Kawai fell onto one knee before he looked at Stalk.
"I did it… I did my duty… Please… Before I go… Please tell me… Are you… Katsuragi?" As Kawai said that, both Morty and Rei froze. "He wouldn't have died the way he did… He's too much of a genius for that!"
"Is that so? Well, I hate to break it to you… But Katsuragi's dead." Stalk got up. Morty looked to Kawai. As much as he hated Stalk, he had to vouch for him on this front.
"Yeah… I saw his body and everything!" Morty said to Kawai.
"You're wrong! We all know that Katsuragi faked his own death! And someone who is as strong as you… Only a genius like Katsuragi would use the Nebula Gas to its fullest potential!" Kawai's body began to glow golden as he shed tears. "There's no doubt about it… Beneath that armor… You're…" He couldn't finish his sentence before he disappeared into a golden light. Stalk said nothing before he picked up the Pandora Box.
"… So… That explains it then…" Morty muttered.
"Huh?" Rei looked to Morty.
"Two years ago, Katsuragi asked my grandfather and I to help him escape Faust… When we got there, all we found was his corpse… But… Soon after, we found you. Either you're the real killer and you hadn't strayed far from the crime scene or…" Morty said.
"You were Katsuragi, just setting off a trap…" Rei finished. "If… If I was Taro Sato before… That would mean I was in the same area when he died… You just set us up… And for what? To be experimented upon!?" Rei shouted.
"What is it you really wanted to know?" Stalk chuckled.
"The Build System… It was made for national defense. Though, it makes sense now… You needed test subjects for that thing." Morty muttered. Rei looked at Morty, then to Stalk.
"In that case… That's why you ranked Morty higher than me… Why I was told to build up his Hazard Level…" Rei muttered.
"You're right about that part, but for national defense?" Stalk laughed. "The Rider System was always made for combat in mind. The Smash? Nothing more than failed experiments for the real prize." Stalk said.
"Hazard Level 3…" Rei said.
"BINGO! And, if you think what I'm saying is a load of crap…" Blood Stalk held up the charger key attachment. "This is Katsuragi's forbidden item… The Hazard Trigger. This technology is used to strengthen a person at the expense of their health. Such a device isn't considerable for national defense." As Stalk said that, Morty remembered Kyoka's own Smash form and how the black coloring was similar to the Smash he just fought.
"… You… You used that… On your own mother!?" Morty growled as Rei gripped his fists.
"Unforgivable… I thought there was no further low for you to reach…" Rei took out the Transteam Gun as Morty was about to shake the Rabbit and Tank Full Bottles in his hands.
THWACK!
Suddenly, both of them received a strong punch in the back that knocked them to the ground. As Morty laid there, gasping for air, he saw Night Rogue crouch and pick up the Full Bottles that he dropped, before frisking him for more of them. He took out a panel and began to slot the Bottles into it.
"A shame that you don't have all of them… But, it's enough to complete a panel." He started with the Ninjya and Comic Full Bottles, where the panel lit up with both a purple and yellow light, showing the insignia of NC. He followed through with the Harinezumi, Taka, Rabbit, Syoubousha, Gatling, and Tank Full Bottles. Once he got to the Lock Full Bottle, he frisked Morty some more. "Hmm… You're one Bottle short…"
"Give… give them back…" Morty muttered before Night Rogue kicked Morty and knocked him out.
"His grandfather must have the remaining Bottles. Shall we go and take him down?" Blood Stalk asked.
"No. We got what we came for." Night Rogue eyed the Pandora Box. As he and Blood Stalk walked away, Rei marched forward and fired at them. They stopped as the bullets bounced off their armor.
"You two… are worse than scum… To what end is all this for!?" Rei shouted. Night Rogue sighed before he fired at Rei. A bullet dug into his shoulder and knocked him down.
"You're lucky we still need him. Otherwise, that would have gone for the head." Night Rogue continued to walk off as Blood Stalk chuckled.
"Ciao~!" Stalk said as he followed Night Rogue. "So, I guess this means we won Namba's support." Night Rogue took out a cell phone and called Namba.
"Is that so?" Namba sat in his car as he heard the message from Night Rogue. "Very well. I'll continue to fund Faust… Congratulations are in order." He said. He listened in a bit more before he hung up. He rifled through the photos that were taken of Build in his various forms. "I did not doubt them for a minute. They needed a motivation in order for them to truly show their worth. Wouldn't you agree?" Namba turned to a person sitting next to him
"Yes, I would say so." Sawa handed him another photograph. This time of Build's true identities: Rick and Morty.