XDR Interlude: Moving Forward
(Takes place after the events of Book 3: XDR Rising)
Gjallarhorn; a powerful yet dangerous complete relic with the ability to connect to other worlds whenever a crisis or an abnormality occurs. The relic originated within the Symphogear world and was discovered during an expedition by Finé, under the guise of Ryoko Sakurai. However, after the fated Zwei Wing Incident, the relic became inactive and was kept securely deep within a secret facility only Finé knows.
But on 31st December 2044, a malicious group called the Neo Time Jackers, an improved version of the Time Jackers, discovered Gjallarhorn's location and planned to steal it for their own nefarious schemes. But that plan was derailed by an unknown third party that broke the complete relic into numerous fragments and scattered them all across the multiverse via a dimensional veil. This act unintentionally caused Dimensional Quakes to occur across the multiverse, causing people who were thought to be dead to be revived, and random people being warped away from their homeworlds. The Gjallarhorn fragments can also cause distortions of the worlds as time goes by. If a fragment is left unattended for far too long without being obtained, it will eventually cause a world's existence to permanently cease with no hope of reviving it.
Woz, chronicler of the Kamen Rider timelines, is sent to Prime Earth under the order of his mysterious benefactor to search for chosen heroes and task them to form a multiversal team in order to deal with the threat of the Neo Time Jackers and the distortions. Zeo Naotora, Gaius Cornell and Akira Naotora are those three chosen heroes to accept the task as the newest Kamen Riders and Pretty Cure. Zeo as the new Kamen Rider Zi-O, Gaius as the new Kamen Rider Geiz, and Akira Naotora as the newest Pretty Cure by naming herself as Cure Starlight with the powers of Happiness Charge Pretty Cure.
During their journey as multiversal saviours, they've recruited new allies, gained new abilities, saved two worlds from the distortions by obtaining the Gjallarhorn fragments and stored them inside special Ridewatches, and discovered the truth about Gjallarhorn when visiting the Symphogear world where the complete relic originated from. With the many allies they've gained, the three chosen heroes declared the name for the alliance called... Xross Drive Rebellion; or Team XDR for short.
Now our heroes are about to begin travelling to a new world they've yet to explore in search of the next Gjallarhorn fragment. But before they could go there, they had to take care of a few loose ends in a world they've saved before from the distortion; the world of Azure Striker Gunvolt...
Gunvolt's World
Kamizono Mansion, Living Room
Daytime
Inside the Kamizono Mansion, Mytyl Kamizono, sister of Copen Kamizono, is having lunch which was prepared by Nori and Quinn Sakurazaki after taking a break from her home studies using her tablet. In time, she'll finally be able to attend school ever since her health improved after the fall of Eden a few weeks ago, with a little help from a miracle thanks to Gunvolt and Copen's relic pendants and the power of the 'Muse' Septima.
*Knock! Knock! Knock!*
*Ding-Dong!*
"Hm? Did you order a delivery, Quinn?" Mytyl asked after hearing the door knocking along with the doorbell.
"Not really, no." Quinn shook her head. "Maybe it's Xiao coming back instead?"
"Allow me to answer it." Nori said as she approached the door without opening it. "State your business."
"It's me, Copen! Could you let me and Lola inside?"
"Master Copen?!" Nori gasped with her eyes widening upon hearing a familiar voice she hadn't heard for quite a while. She opened the door and saw Copen, Lola, Gaius and Akira waiting outside in their casual attire.
"It's been a while, hasn't it, Nori?" Copen greeted.
"It has indeed." Nori replied before bowing. "Welcome back. And good to see you again too, Lola, Gaius."
"Yep, good to be back!" Lola replied back with a smile.
"What's up?" Gaius greeted with a wave.
Nori nodded, before noticing a newcomer. "Hm? Who is this?"
"I'm Akira Naotora, Zeo's sister. Nice to meet you, Nori." She greeted with a bow.
"Ah, so you're his sister. A pleasure to meet you too, Akira." Nori bowed back, but then noticing said someone is missing. "Hm? Is your brother not with you at the moment?"
"Oh, he went with GV and Joule to pay Xiao a visit." Akira replied. "GV already made the call earlier."
"I see. So Gunvolt and Joule are also here." Nori noted.
"Copen, you don't mind if I ask the others to visit your mansion for a bit?" Gaius requested.
"I don't see why not. Go for it." Copen nodded.
"Great. Be back in a sec." Gaius replied before heading back to the Zi-O Liner parked somewhere safe nearby to invite the other teammates.
"May we come in now? I wanna see Mytyl's face again." Lola asked the maid.
"Of course. Right this way." Nori nodded before escorting the three inside and closed the door.
"Hey Mytyl, guess who!" Lola called out, earning Quinn and Mytyl's attention with surprise.
"Ah!" Mytyl gasped in shock, noticing her brother's arrival before standing up. "Copen! Lola!" She exclaimed as she ran towards them and hugged them. "Welcome home!"
"Thanks, sis. Good to be home." Copen smiled back as the three embraced each other before letting go. "How are you feeling?"
"Doing well, thanks!" Mytyl replied. "How was the mission?"
"It's... still a work in progress." Copen answered. "The enemy we're facing is becoming more dangerous than we thought."
"How dangerous?" Nori asked.
"The Neo Time Jackers recruited alchemist remnants from a cult called the Bavarian Illuminati to their side ever since the cult lost their leader. And they can summon creatures called the Alca-Noise which can turn humans into carbons with a single touch."
"That's horrible...!" Quinn gasped.
"Yup." Lola nodded. "We're still going with Zeo and the others to deal with that threat. We chose to come back here and see how's everything's doing while awaiting our next mission.
"I see." Quinn noted. "By the way, is GV and Joule with you at the moment?"
"Actually, they're looking to pay Xiao a visit, and my brother is with them too." Akira answered. "Oh, I'm Akira Naotora, by the way. Zeo's sister."
"Oh, you're his sister? Nice to meet you, Akira." Quinn greeted back.
"I really hope to see GV and Joule again." Mytyl said.
"You'll see them again soon, Mytyl. Just give them a moment to finish their meeting with Xiao." Copen assured while rubbing her hair and making her smile.
*Knock! Knock! Knock!*
"Hey! I'm back with the others! Can we come in?" Gaius' voice was heard from behind the entrance door.
"You're free to come in, Gaius! It's open!" Copen replied.
"Okay!" Gaius replied back as he went inside the mansion with Vent, Aile and Lumine following behind before Lumine closed the door. "Hi Quinn, Mytyl. It's been a while, huh?"
"Oh, Gaius! Yes, it has." Mytyl greeted before noticing the newcomers. "Are those people the rest of your new friends?"
"Actually, we've made more allies than this." Copen answered. "Only a few of us chose to come with me and the others. Unfortunately, Kanade and Serena chose not to come along with us due to personal reasons."
"I see. Well that's too bad." Quinn noted. "Hope we get to see those two again someday."
"I'm sure you'll get that chance soon." Akira assured. "Anyway, these are our new friends; Lumine, Vent and Aile."
"So you're Mytyl, Copen's sister. Nice to meet you." Aile greeted with a smile.
"Hello!" Mytyl greeted and smiled back.
"And you must be Quinn. GV told me about you. Good to meet you." Vent greeted.
"Good to meet you too, Vent." Quinn greeted with a smile, before blinking at the similarities. "Sorry to ask but, are you both twins?"
"Yep, pretty much." Aile confirmed. "Just try not to mistake Vent as a girl because of the long hair."
"Do you have to have to mention that, Aile?" Vent deadpanned.
"Just making sure." Aile winked.
"So you must be Nori, Copen's maid?" Lumine asked, earning a nod from her in confirmation. "I see. Nice to meet you."
"A pleasure to meet a friend of Master Copen." Nori bowed, while also noticing Lumine's outfit. "Interesting outfit you're wearing, Lumine."
"Thanks. I'm just a passing through traveler, that's all." Lumine replied.
"Nori. Did you manage to find a nearby school for her to attend?" Copen asked.
"The search process is taking quite a while even after Eden is long gone." Nori replied.
"I see." Copen noted. "Well, you can wait no longer, because I've found a perfect school Mytyl can attend to."
"Really?! Which school is it?" Mytyl asked.
"A place called Lydian Academy where Serena is beginning her first school year. I was hoping if you're interested with joining her." Copen answered.
"Not only that, you get to make new friends, especially Kirika and Shirabe, Serena's childhood friends." Lola added.
"Kanade was once a student in that academy... until she had to quit due to personal reasons." Akira also added.
"Kanade was also a student in that academy? Wow." Quinn mused.
"Lydian Academy, huh?" Nori repeated with her hand on her chin before turning to Mytyl. "Mytyl, would you like to attend that academy under Master Copen's request?"
"Sounds like fun since Serena's also attending that academy!" Mytyl smiled before turning to her brother and nodded. "Okay brother, I'll go to Lydian Academy!"
"I was hoping you'd say that." Copen smiled back. "But... there's a catch."
"Eh? What catch?" Mytyl responded with confusion.
"...We're gonna have to move, meaning I'll have to sell the mansion."
"What?!" Mytyl, Nori and Quinn exclaimed at Copen's sudden decision.
"You're selling your family mansion? What made you decide that outcome?" Nori questioned.
"It's for Mytyl's safety." Lola answered. "Sure, Eden and Sumeragi bit the dust, but who knows if there's some other shady organization planning to harm her or any of our friends."
"I see... you do make a valid point there." Quinn noted.
"Lola." Copen called while giving his Zikan Phone to her. "Help me pack up our things and store them inside my phone. Leave nothing behind."
"You got it, Ix!" Lola complied before heading for Copen's Room.
"Now then, while she's packing up my things..." Copen began as he sat down on the chair along with everyone else. "...It's time I tell you about what me and the others are doing."
"Are you telling us a story, brother?" Mytyl guessed.
"Something like that, and it's actually true." Copen answered. "Nori, Quinn, you need to hear this too."
"Oh, okay." Quinn replied while Nori nodded.
"I'll start this off with this; have you ever heard of the multiverse?" Akira asked.
"You're talking about the existence of other worlds?" Nori asked back, earning a nod from Akira. "Well... I have heard little of its existence, but I'm not sure if it's real or not."
"Well guess what, it's real because Akira, Zeo and I are not from this world." Gaius revealed.
"And neither am I nor Vent and Aile." Lumine added with Vent and Aile nodding.
"Huh?" Quinn, Nori and Mytyl responded with surprise.
"It all started with a powerful complete relic called Gjallarhorn..." Copen began his story.
Sewer Area
"GV, of all the places you've picked for your meeting... why did it have to be in a place like this?" Zeo questioned as he, Gunvolt, Hibiki and Kiana are waiting outside of the Time Mazine in the Sewer Area in their casual attire (except Kiana who's wearing her White Comet battlesuit and Gunvolt who's wearing his battle attire) where the meeting will take place.
"Because no one would expect an Azure Striker like me to visit this place since I'm weak to water." Gunvolt answered.
"Does that mean you can't swim?" Kiana guessed.
"Actually I can swim no problem, but I cannot use my Septima when I'm too wet." Gunvolt answered. "I'll have to find a safe place to recover until I can use my Septima again."
"Ah, I see."
"What about your gun? Can you still use it while you're underwater?" Hibiki asked.
"My Dart Leader can only tag my targets, not deal damage." Gunvolt answered. "I'll have to use My Faust Robe if I want my gun to deal damage while tagging them, but I don't think I should use it underwater since water and electricity don't mix well."
"At this rate, I think you're gonna need an X-Baton to rectify that handicap." Zeo said.
"Yeah, you're right." Gunvolt agreed. "Not to mention how versatile that weapon is. Guess I'll have to pay a visit to Copen to make one for me."
"Maybe I should get those as well, two of them in fact." Kiana pondered. "Sure my Water Spirit guns are great, but they can't transform into a baton or a gladius."
"I'm sure Copen wouldn't mind making the X-Baton for you, Kiana-chan." Hibiki assured, until they heard approaching footsteps at a distance. "Someone's coming."
"It's Xiao, Zeno and Moniqa. I'm sure of it." Gunvolt deduced.
"Hibiki, Kiana, stay here and guard the Time Mazine while GV and I go on ahead to greet them." Zeo instructed.
"You got it, Zeo." Kiana nodded.
"Hope the meeting goes well, GV." Hibiki said.
"Yeah, I hope so too." Gunvolt replied. "Though I'm a little bit nervous, to be honest."
"Heiki, hecchara! Just have some courage in your heart and mind, and you'll be just fine. Trust me." Hibiki assured with a cheerful smile.
"Hehe. Hibiki's right, you know. You'll be alright." Joule added while inside Gunvolt's relic pendant.
"Heh, thanks for the support, Hibiki, Joule." Gunvolt smiled before taking a deep breath. "Alright... let's do this." He and Zeo then went on ahead to meet up with Gunvolt's allies.
A few moments of walking later, the two saw Xiao, Zeno and Moniqa waiting at a distance and approached them. "Thanks for coming, guys. It's been a while, huh?" Gunvolt greeted them, gaining their attention with Zeno and Moniqa gasping in surprise.
"Yeah, indeed it has, GV." Xiao greeted back. "Hey, Zeo. Good to see you too."
"Likewise." Zeo nodded. "Anything happening while we're gone?"
"Not much ever since Eden is long gone." Xiao replied. "Just a few Sumeragi remnants to hunt down while I was working at QUILL as usual."
"I see."
"GV..." Zeno whispered.
"Gunvolt, is that really you?" Moniqa asked.
"Yeah, it's me alright." Gunvolt confirmed. "Were you expecting someone else? I did contact Xiao earlier to bring the two of you along to see me."
"Ah, no." Moniqa shook her head. "It's just that... it's been a very long time since... you know..."
"Yeah... sorry for walking away like that." Gunvolt apologized. "I was too upset to think at the moment that I didn't want to reveal the truth. But now, I'm finally ready to talk about it."
"I see."
"So you must be GV's new buddy Xiao's been talking about?" Zeno asked.
"Mhm." Zeo nodded. "Zeo Naotora, nice to meet you Zeno, Moniqa."
"By the way, thanks for saving me and Moniqa when were turning into monsters by that time jacking jerk Eins."
"You told them about it?" Zeo questioned Xiao.
"Well they had a feint memory about what happened to them." Xiao explained. "So I had to be the one to tell them who the saviours are."
"Ah, I see. That's fine." Zeo noted before turning to Zeno. "And you're welcome, by the way."
"Okay, no more waiting around. It's time for me to reveal the truth about what happened during the final battle against Sumeragi." Gunvolt declared. "Just to confirm, is there anyone else watching us?"
"No, it's just us. No other QUILL agent followed us, so you're safe." Moniqa confirmed.
"Good." Gunvolt nodded. "Well, you remember what happened to Azimov once I got into the Orbital Elevator?"
"Yeah, he seemed to have vanished and we can't find him anywhere." Zeno replied. "My guess is that he ninja'd his way into the elevator."
"And you were actually right. He indeed snuck into the elevator without being noticed by us." Gunvolt confirmed. "Later on after I defeated Copen and moved deeper into Firmanent, he ran into Azimov. He defeated Copen, broke his gear, stole his gun, and then left to find me and Joule."
"He did what?!" Moniqa gasped.
"Wait, how did you know that?" Zeno questioned.
"Copen and I are friends now, so I was able to hear his part of the story." Gunvolt answered.
"So that's how." Zeno noted. "Still can't believe the Adept Slayer is now your buddy. Xiao told us about that part during your battle against Eden."
"Actually he's now called Luminous Avenger Ix; an avenger who protects innocent people and adepts, becoming a shining light of hope." Zeo explained.
"Luminous Avenger Ix, huh? Now that's a way better title."
"I wonder how he earned a change of heart?" Moniqa pondered.
"It's a long story." Gunvolt replied. "Anyway, as for the gun Azimov stole from Copen, there's a reason for that. And brace yourselves, you're not gonna like the truth I'm about to reveal."
"Just go for it, GV. I'm ready to listen." Zeno replied.
"I'm also ready to hear it." Moniqa added with Xiao nodding.
"Okay... here goes." Gunvolt took a deep breath before explaining. "After I've defeated Nova and rescued Joule, we were about to leave the orbital station until we ran into Azimov. He congratulated us and told us that we're ready to become king and queen, ushering in a new era."
"King and queen?/Ushering in a new era?" Zeno and Moniqa repeated in confusion.
"He revealed to me that he was using QUILL for his own agenda to destroy Nova and Sumeragi so that he can use Firmament, Joule's songs, and my Septima, so that Adepts will become the superior race and humankind to become extinct."
"WHAT?!" The QUILL agents exclaimed in shock at the revelation.
"This is not the kind of freedom I was fighting for, so me and Joule refused his offer. King and queen of a new world with the extinction of humankind? That's gotta be a gacking joke." Gunvolt said with disgust.
"No gacking way... he literally revealed his true agenda to you and Joule, and not us?!" Zeno questioned in shock. "What is our leader thinking?! I thought we're supposed to be heroes of justice!"
"Yeah, I couldn't believe what he told me and Joule either." Gunvolt agreed. "Anyway, remember that gun he stole from Copen? It has special rounds that can take down adepts that not even my Prevasion could avoid. And he used it to shoot me and Joule for dead."
"?!" Moniqa gasped in utter shock at what the leader of QUILL did.
"I would've died there, if were not for Joule making a special pendant for me earlier, which was made by jewels I've found during missions. Her pendant saved my life, and I'm grateful for that miracle. Unfortunately, Joule wasn't so lucky. I wanted to mourn for her death, but under Lumen's advice, there was one important thing I must do first."
"You went on ahead to catch up with Azimov who's taking the elevator..." Zeno deduced in realization, earning a confirmed nod from Gunvolt.
"Then... that means..." Moniqa began to put all of the pieces together from Gunvolt's story.
"Yeah, I killed Azimov before he could plan his next move." Gunvolt answered. "But he didn't go down without a fight since he also has a Septima. MY Septima."
"Wait... what?! Our leader has the same Septima as you?! The Azure Striker?!" Zeno exclaimed.
"Yes, and I was not expecting that." Gunvolt admitted. "And well... I think you both know what happened in the end."
"So... that was the truth behind Azimov's death... That's...!" Moniqa said in utter shock along with shedding a few tears.
"Damn it, Azimov...! Why did you have a twisted agenda hidden away from us, or even QUILL?! WHY?!" Zeno snapped as he punched the ground in frustration while also shedding tears.
"Wait... Teseo mentioned you killing Azimov." Xiao recalled during a mission last time. "Then... that rumor is actually true?!"
"Yeah, and here's my proof to show that I'm not lying." Gunvolt replied as he took out something from his pocket and showed it to them, revealing to be the same pendant that saved his life, with a bullet still planted on the pendant. "To be honest, I really wanted to tell you guys the truth sooner or later, but I couldn't muster up the courage and the willpower to say it." He admitted as he put away the pendant. "It was only thanks to some encouragement and support from Zeo, Copen, and my new friends that I was able to finally reveal this horrible truth."
"I see..." Xiao noted.
"He's had enough of running away and chose to face his fears. I guess this is what it means by 'the truth will set you free', even though knowing about it will mentally hurt." Zeo stated.
"All I want to hear is your forgiveness." Gunvolt said to the QUILL agents. "If you still hate me after hearing the truth, I'll respect your choice. So, go ahead and say it."
The QUILL agents looked at each other while pondering at their own conflicting thoughts after hearing about Gunvolt's truth. After a few moments, Zeno gave a loud sigh as he stood up and wiped away his tears before speaking. "Man, GV. No wonder you feel so depressed when we saw you at the elevator. Though it would be nice if you could explain the truth to us much sooner, but you don't wanna make the mood worse. Heck, I would've done the same thing you did if that happened to me, and I completely understand that. With that in mind... I forgive you, man."
"Zeno..." Gunvolt whispered.
"Hey, at least you're feeling a lot better than before thanks to your new friends. And you finally got to reveal the truth which left us hanging for so long." Zeno stated with a smile. "It's kinda like one of those anime moments when a protagonist has some kind of hidden dark truth that's afraid of revealing it to avoid losing trust or being betrayed. But as time goes by, the protagonist slowly gains trust from friends until the perfect moment to reveal the truth. It felt like losing a very large load of stress off the protagonist's back and finally free of the burden when those friends accept the truth, even if it hurts. The protagonist can finally move forward without worrying about hiding the dark truth anymore."
"Ah, a man of culture if you're a fan of anime." Zeo remarked in agreement. "Watching anime can really help you learn some important life lessons. I should know since I'm also quite the anime fan."
"Wait, for real?" Zeno questioned, earning a nod from Zeo. "Hehe, you and I are gonna get along just fine, Zeo."
"Thanks for the compliment, Zeno." Zeo smiled back.
"So Zeno, are we cool?" Gunvolt asked while offering a hand.
"As long as we get to become friends again, then yeah, we're cool as ice." Zeno replied with a smile and shook Gunvolt's hand.
"Ice, huh? And I was expecting you to say steel or titanium instead." Gunvolt quipped.
"Hey, making wisecracks is my job, not yours." Zeno quipped back before the two chuckled and released their handshake.
Everyone then turned to Moniqa as she began to speak. "I... I'm at a lost for words right now. I still can't believe the truth you told me, Gunvolt. But... you're not the type of person to lie about something like this. Back at the orbital elevator, the broken look I saw on your eyes and face says it all. And I fear what would happen to me, Zeno or QUILL if you died for real and Azimov won. He'd kill us all without a second thought once his goal was achieved."
"Yeah. I had to stop him for everyone's sake." Gunvolt replied.
"Well... you did the right thing, Gunvolt. If I was in your shoes, I'd definitely refuse Azimov's offer. His ideal world is nothing but complete genocide, and I don't want that. No one wants that. With that said... I forgive you, Gunvolt."
"Thanks for your answer, Moniqa." Gunvolt smiled as he offered a hand once more. "So, are we back to being friends now?"
"Yeah, good to have you back as a friend and ally." Moniqa smiled back and shook Gunvolt's hand... and then hugged him which surprised everyone.
"Well... that was unexpected. But at least she's happy. Hehe." Joule giggled silently.
"Hey, Moniqa? Since when did you start having feelings with GV?" Zeno teased.
"Don't kill the mood, Zeno." Gunvolt and Moniqa glared at him.
"Gh?! Oops... sorry. Should've kept my mouth shut." Zeno sheepishly chuckled while rubbing the back of his head.
"Zeno, you dumbass..." Zeo thought as he facepalmed while Gunvolt and Moniqa broke off their hug.
"Alright Xiao, your turn. I wanna hear your opinion on this." Gunvolt asked.
"Well... oh boy." Xiao deeply sighed. "I was not expecting you revealing a truth this heavy. I thought Azimov was an honorable guy... until he revealed his true agenda to you without anyone within QUILL noticing."
"Do you still think that humans and adepts can live in peace together?"
"Yeah, I still think it's possible if the right steps are taken." Xiao nodded. "But I never thought he'd try to eradicate all of humankind instead of making peace between them and adepts. I wonder what made him that way in the first place?"
"Even I don't know the answer to that question, Xiao." Gunvolt answered.
"Yeah, and neither did Moniqa and I." Zeno added with Moniqa nodding.
"If only we knew where his hatred stem from, we might be able to help him." Zeo pondered.
"Hm, true." Gunvolt nodded. "But it's already far too late, but I'm making a vow that I'll not become like him."
"Don't worry, GV. Me and the others will make sure of that." Zeo assured.
"Thanks." Gunvolt smiled. "Heiki, hecchara, right?"
"What does that mean?" Zeno asked.
"Everything's going to be fine. A new friend of mine taught me that." Gunvolt answered.
"So Xiao, will you accept GV's apology?" Moniqa asked.
"Mhm, I do. At least I know the reason why GV had to stop Azimov." Xiao nodded. "Anyway, how's the progress with the Neo Time Jackers?"
"Not as good as we hoped." Zeo informed in a serious tone. "They've gotten stronger as of late by recruiting alchemists remnants from a cult called the Bavarian Illuminati."
"Alchemists?" Xiao and Moniqa repeated.
"Another term for Adepts." Gunvolt clarified.
"Oh."
"The Illuminati... why did it have to be the gacking Illuminati?!" Zeno complained.
"Different kind of illuminati, Zeno." Zeo pointed out with a sweatdrop.
"Wait, remnants? What happened to their leader?" Moniqa asked.
"The leader of the Illuminati named Adam Weishaput was defeated by our new friends." Gunvolt answered. "Without their leader, their numbers began to dwindle."
"So that explains why the alchemist remnants chose to join the Neo Time Jackers. Probably for revenge against the ones that defeated their previous leader." Xiao noted. "I wonder if Eins was responsible for this?"
"Actually, it was another general named Zwei after we did some interrogating with one of the Bavarian alchemists." Gunvolt revealed.
"Another general?!" Xiao exclaimed.
"Dude, it's kinda obvious that there's more than one general in an organization, including the head honcho." Zeno pointed out.
"Also, we did get a bit of a clue about Zwei's charater since he made the Another Ridewatches and enhancing drugs." Zeo said.
"So Zwei is some kind of scientist?" Moniqa pondered.
"That seems to be the case." Gunvolt replied.
"Our enemies are already making moves ahead of us, so we need to be on the move as well." Zeo stated. "This is the reason why I arranged this meeting besides helping Gunvolt with his problem."
"So you wanted Gunvolt to regain our trust." Moniqa deduced, earning a nod from Zeo. "Well, it worked. Nicely done, Zeo. You'd might become a good leader someday."
"He just did a few days ago." Gunvolt confirmed with a smirk. "He, alongside Gaius and Akira, are now the founders of a new team Copen and I are now a part of; Xross Drive Rebellion, or Team XDR for short."
"Seriously?!" Xiao exclaimed while Zeno and Moniqa felt surprised. "Wow, you've been busy. Speaking of which, where's Gaius at the moment?"
"He, alongside Copen and Lola, are visiting Mytyl, Nori and Quinn at the Kamizono Mansion." Zeo explained. "Sadly, Kanade and Serena didn't come along with us since they're busy with another mission or taking an R&R."
"Ah, I see. Been a while since I last saw them."
"But I can introduce to some friends of mine who chose to come with us." Zeo added as he turned to Gunvolt. "You okay with that, GV?"
"Well, Zeno and Moniqa are back to being friends with me, so I don't see why not." Gunvolt approved before turning to the QUILL agents. "Come and follow us, you three. There's some friends of mine I wanted you to meet."
"Alright then, lead the way." Moniqa nodded as they escorted her, Zeno and Xiao to the Time Mazine where Hibiki and Kiana are keeping watch.
Once they've arrived, Zeno and Moniqa gasped in awe at the large vehicle they have at their disposal. "That... is one awesome looking hoverbike." Zeno remarked. "Is this your ride, GV?"
"Actually, it's mine." Zeo answered with a raised hand.
"Ah, Zeo-san, GV, welcome back!" Hibiki greeted.
"Did the meeting went well?" Kiana asked.
"Heiki, hecchara." Gunvolt answered with a fist pump. "Everything's gonna be just fine since I've got my old friends back."
"Hehe! You said my catchphrase!" Hibiki giggled.
"It felt really good letting out that secret, and I'm glad that they accepted it and earned their forgiveness."
"I'm glad to hear it, GV." Kiana nodded and smiled, before turning to the QUILL agents. "So you must be Gunvolt's allies, right? I'm Kiana Kaslana, and this is Hibiki Tachibana."
"Nice to meet you, Zeno, Moniqa, Xiao!" Hibiki greeted with a cheerful smile.
"Nice to meet you too, Hibiki, Kiana." Moniqa smiled back with a bow.
"Damn, GV. Since when did you start having a harem?" Zeno questioned, but earned glares from Gunvolt, Zeo, and even Moniqa, which made him stutter. "A-Ah, right. Sorry, nearly stepped a landmine there."
"Honestly, you never changed a bit." Gunvolt sighed. "However, Hibiki and Kiana already have some important persons in their lives, so you're gonna have to respect their choices. Sorry, Zeno."
"Ah, right. No problem." Zeno noted. "Even I won't cross that line."
"Any unexpected intruders detected while we're away?" Zeo asked.
"Nope, nothing as of late." Kiana shook her head. "But... the Time Mazine detected some kind of unknown energy suddenly."
"What kind of energy?" Gunvolt asked.
"Well I wanna find out what it is, but Hibiki and I needed to wait for you two to come back first." Kiana replied.
"But now that you're back, do you want to help us investigate that energy signature?" Hibiki requested.
"Hmm... what do you guys think?" Zeo asked the group.
"An unknown energy signature hidden within the Sewer Area, huh?" Xiao pondered with his hand on his chin. "I think I remember seeing a description like that back at QUILL HQ's mission board. They were planning to investigate that area to see if it might be some kind of weapon made by Sumeragi."
"Ah, crap." Zeno muttered. "I just hope the other QUILL agents never thought about taking this mission earlier, otherwise GV and the others are busted."
"If it does happen however, we're gonna do our best to divert their attention away from you guys." Moniqa stated.
"Thanks. That would be a huge help." Gunvolt replied with gratitude.
"Then we'd better investigate that energy signature first before they do. Everyone inside the Time Mazine." Zeo declared before turning to the QUILL agents. "That goes for you guys, too."
"Wait, we get to ride on that thing? Sweet!" Zeno grinned.
"Only for a moment, mind you." Zeo stated. "Now get in."
Everyone boarded the Time Mazine and quickly rode off towards the energy signature with Zeo taking the controls. Zeno and Moniqa were in awe at the inside of the vehicle while Xiao was already used to it since he boarded the vehicle before during the battle against Eden.
"Energy reading's getting really close now." Zeo informed while glancing at the radar. "Just a few more metres and we'll reach our destination."
"I wonder what kind of weapon Sumeragi is making?" Gunvolt pondered with his hand on his chin. "Either way, we can't let them have it. Though I don't know about QUILL though."
"Either they'll tear it apart, or examine it before storing it in a secure area." Xiao replied.
"Let's find out what it looks like first before we can cast judgement on what to do with it." Moniqa stated, earning an agreed nod from the group.
"So... you two can fight, right?" Zeno asked Kiana and Hibiki, who both nodded in response. "What kind of skills you can use?"
"I'm pretty good with handguns and martial arts. I'm currently working on my sword and claymore skills." Kiana answered.
"As for me, I'm an Attuned. I can summon my Symphogear armor by singing. I also sing while I'm fighting with martial arts." Hibiki added.
"You're also an Attuned like Kanade?!" Xiao exclaimed, recalling the other Attuned he met last time.
"Mhm!" Hibiki nodded. "I'm Kanade-san's successor since I have the same relic as hers; Gungnir."
"Wait, Gungnir? As in the spear of Odin?" Zeno asked, earning a nod from Hibiki. "Holy crap, I never thought a weapon from Norse mythology would exist."
"I didn't know you read Norse mythology, Zeno." Gunvolt mused. "Were you also reading history books?
"Actually it was from comics and anime." Zeno answered.
"Oh... should've expected that from you." Gunvolt sweatdropped.
"Okay, we're getting close." Zeo informed the group as he saw the energy reading ringing a bit faster. "We just need to take a left turn, and we're there."
Zeo drove the vehicle forward until he reached a split path. He then drove to the left to where the energy signature is located, until he saw some more dots on the vehicle's radar. "Okay, I'm stopping here to avoid being detected. It seems we're not alone here after all." He informed as he stopped the vehicle.
"Could it be Sumeragi troops up ahead?" Gunvolt pondered.
"Won't know till we find out for ourselves." Moniqa replied. "But some of us need to stay here and keep watch."
"Dang it, I should've brought my rifle along in case something like this happens." Zeno muttered, until he saw Kiana offering him a spare pair of handguns.
"Take my Colt Peacemakers since I'm already using my Water Spirit guns." Kiana offered.
"Ah, thanks Kiana. You're a life saver." Zeno accepted with a grin as he took the guns from Kiana and holstered them in his pockets.
"Zeno, Kiana, you two will go scout ahead without being detected. Report to us about what you saw first before we could make our next move." Zeo instructed.
"Right." Zeno and Kiana nodded before they disembarked the vehicle and silently went ahead to avoid detection.
"Huh, and I was expecting you to send GV to go with Zeno instead." Xiao remarked.
"True, but I don't want anyone noticing GV's involvement. Sumeragi and eventually QUILL will take notice if that happens." Zeo stated.
"Ah, right. Good point. Especially when QUILL started interrogating those troops." Xiao noted.
"Plus, Hibiki and I can't transform since the transformation sequence will make plenty of noise which will earn the enemy's attention."
"Is that so?" Moniqa questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"He's right, since I saw Zeo and Kanade transform before which made some noise." Xiao confirmed.
"Exactly." Zeo nodded before they watched Zeno and Kiana scouting ahead on the monitor.
After a few moments of sneaking forward, Zeno and Kiana noticed several figures up ahead, making them hide behind a wall to avoid detection. "So Kiana, what did you see up ahead?" Zeno whispered.
"Hold on, let me use my visor." Kiana replied, activating her blue transparent visor by tapping the side of her hairband. Using her visor, she zoomed in onto the figures, revealing to be armed troops with rifles along with a familiar logo on the shoulder on the uniform. "Yep. It's Sumeragi, alright. GV told me what the logo looked like."
"Seriously, why are there still remnants of those guys? Nova's long gone, so why are they still acting like they're still in business?" Zeno silently complained.
"I guess some people are too stubborn to let it go." Kiana shrugged, until she noticed something else. "Hold on, it seems that they're checking up on something."
"You think it might be the new weapon Sumeragi's been working on?" Zeno pondered.
"We'd better take a closer look and find out." Kiana replied before the two silently moved forward until they reached a large open area before hiding behind a nearby crate. She then peeked from her hiding spot and saw a few Sumeragi troops examining some kind of four-wheeled battle tank with a blue, black and yellow color scheme with headlights along with a cannon; yellow windows in the cockpit area; a blue and yellow spoiler on the back along with a pair of exhaust mufflers, two on each side; and a weapon rack on the bottom of the tank. "Is that... a tank?"
"Wait, a tank?" Zeno repeated as he also took a peek before his eyes widen in shock. "Holy shit, there really is a tank down here." He remarked before he and Kiana hide back. "How did these guys make an awesome tank like that?"
"I don't know, but this could be a problem if they got something like that in their arsenal." Kiana replied as she took out her Zikan Phone, set it to silent mode and turned off the flash, and took a quick photo of the troops examining the tank. Afterwards, she sent the photo to Zeo for analysis before contacting him. "Kiana here, I've sent you a photo at what we've scouted. Looks like Sumeragi had an unusual looking tank up their sleeves. What do you think of it?"
When Zeo saw the photo Kiana sent on his Zikan Phone, his eyes widen in deep shock as to what it looked like. "No. Gacking. Way. Why is that tank from Blaster Master with Sumeragi?! Did they managed to find it in an expedition or something?!" He mentally exclaimed. "Also, why is it blue? Shouldn't it be red instead?"
"Zeo-san, what's wrong?" Hibiki asked, before she and the others noticed the photo from Kiana. "Is that... a tank?"
"I don't recall Sumeragi creating a tank like that before. I can't even tell which gen its from." Xiao remarked.
"What do you think, GV?" Moniqa asked the Azure Striker, who's eyes widened in shock after taking one look at the tank. "GV? Is something wrong?"
"(GV? Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost or something.)" Joule whispered.
"Uh... guys? Can I ask about something really quick?" Gunvolt spoke up.
"What is it, GV?" Hibiki asked.
"I've... actually seen this tank before, in a really weird dream once."
"...Huh?" The group blinked in response.
"Yeah, no joke. I even drove that tank before that had the same color scheme we're looking at right now, and used it to shoot down mutants... It was a very weird dream." Gunvolt admitted.
"...Are you dead serious, right now?" Zeo questioned.
"Like I said, it was a weird dream." Gunvolt replied as he took another look at the photo of the tank. "But I never thought that dream could be real."
"So... what's our next course of action?" Xiao asked.
"...Change of plans. We're taking that tank away from them. Sumeragi or QUILL must not have this tank since it has the potential to become a very dangerous weapon if it's fully upgraded." Zeo declared after some pondering. "Xiao, Moniqa, you don't mind, right?"
"Usually I won't allow this since me, Xiao and Zeno might get into trouble with the higher-ups... but we'll let this slide, just this once." Moniqa replied.
"We'll try to come up with a report that won't involve you guys." Xiao added.
"Thanks, you two." Gunvolt smiled with gratitude.
"Did you get all of that, Kiana? Zeno? We're liberating that tank away from them." Zeo informed.
"Loud and clear, Zeo." Zeno responded. "So are we going in guns blazing?"
"Actually, we're going for the 'light's out' approach. Kiana, you have that spare night vision sunglasses?"
"Got 'em right here." Kiana replied as she took out said special sunglasses from her pocket.
"Good. Let Zeno use it for a moment. Once GV shuts down the lights, activate the night vision feature and silently disarm their weapons before knocking them out. GV will also assist with the silent takedowns." Zeo instructed. "Once done and after GV turned the lights back on, we'll move in to retrieve the tank."
"And Zeno? Look for GV approaching your location so that you can spring the ambush." Moniqa added.
"Roger." The two complied as Zeno put on the sunglasses before ending the call.
"GV, looks like you're up. Good luck out there." Hibiki said.
"Thanks. This won't take long." Gunvolt replied as he disembarked the vehicle.
As Gunvolt silently moved forward, he eventually saw Zeno and Kiana hiding behind some large crates. Zeno saw Gunvolt's arrival and gave him a two-finger salute, making Gunvolt nod back. Gunvolt began to look for any power lines, until he found them to his right as he moved his hand over it. And then he used his Septima on the power lines, causing the lights to flicker for a moment, gaining the troops' attention.
"What the..." One troop spoke while looking at the flickering lights, until it suddenly shut down, causing the area to go dark. "W-What happened to the power?! We can't do our job with no lights on!"
"Someone head for the power station and fix the problem!"
"I'll do it! Just give me a sec to turn on my flashlight!"
"NOW!" Zeno signaled the ambush as he and Kiana fired their handguns onto the troops' weapons to disarm them before following up with some takedowns which included swift punches and kicks onto vital spots of their bodies. A few moments later, the area became silent.
"Okay, GV! All clear! You can turn the lights back on!" Kiana called, prompting Gunvolt to use his Septima on the power lines to turn the lights back on.
Gunvolt whistled as he moved forward, witnessing all of the Sumeragi troops knocked out cold. "Good going, you two." He praised Zeno and Kiana with a thumbs up. "See, Zeno? Silent ambushes are more useful than going in guns blazing depending on the situation."
"Yeah yeah, I get it." Zeno replied as he and Kiana put away the guns and the glasses and visor respectively. "Still I gotta admit, this was pretty badass. Did you see how Kiana kicked ass? That's straight up gun-kata style to the next level!" He gushed, prompting Gunvolt to nod in agreement.
"Hehe, thanks Zeno." Kiana smiled as they saw the Time Mazine moving in before landing in front of them.
"Nice job with the ambush, guys." Zeo praised as he and the others disembarked the Time Mazine.
"Was there any doubt?" Kiana proclaimed before they glanced at the battletank. "So... how are we gonna get this tank moving?"
"No clue. Heck, even the Sumeragi troops are having trouble entering the tank." Zeno shrugged.
"Huh... how odd." Moniqa remarked with her hand on her chin.
"Hmm..." Gunvolt pondered before he approached the tank. "I wonder..." He began to move his hand forward.
"GV, what are you doing?" Zeo asked.
"Let me try something real quick." Gunvolt replied as his hand touched the tank's window. And at that moment, the tank sprang to life with its engines revving up and its headlights lighting up, surprising the group.
"It's... alive...?!" Hibiki exclaimed.
"Whoa, GV! How did you do that?! Did you use your Septima to turn it on?!" Zeno exclaimed.
"I didn't. All I did was touch it." Gunvolt replied. "I mean I did ride this tank in my dream after all, so I decided to touch it and see what happens."
"Uh, GV? The cockpit's opening up." Xiao said, pointing at the tank opening up its cockpit, earning everyone's attention.
The group went closer to the tank and looked inside the cockpit which contained controls for the tank, along with other functions.. "Okay, I know the specs for the Time Mazine, but I have no gacking clue about the specs of this tank." Zeo remarked before turning to the group. "Anyone know how to see the specs of this tank?"
"Let me try." Moniqa replied before taking a seat inside the tank and pushed a few buttons as the monitor lit up, revealing the info of the tank for everyone to see. "Whoa..." She responded with awe. "This tank... is a lot more advanced than I thought. This battle tank is called the MA, which is a short term for Metal Attacker, and it was made from the Planet Sophia."
"Metal Attacker... Planet Sophia..." Hibiki repeated. "Wait, this tank is from another planet?! How the heck did it get here?!"
"I have absolutely no idea how." Xiao answered. "And I've never heard of Planet Sophia before. I don't think it exists in our solar system."
"Hmm... could this MA traveled trough another dimension by accident or something?" Zeno pondered. "Heck, I don't even know where the driver is."
"Zeno, there's no way this tank can travel through dimensions." Moniqa stated.
"Unless..." Zeo thought with his hand on his chin. "Was this MA struck by a Dimensional Quake? That would explain why it showed up here in GV's world since Planet Sophia never existed here. Huh, now there's another world we need to visit in the future which might give us a clue on where the next Gjallarhorn fragment is hidden."
"Any other info about the MA, Moniqa?" Kiana asked.
"Hold on." Moniqa replied as she continued to read the monitor. "This Metal Attacker has quite the number of features, such as firing missiles from the weapon rack below the tank; a perpetual motion system and auto-repair function; and it can survive environmental conditions. Not only that, it can also jump really high and can handle landing from very high places such as mountains and cliffs."
"Whoa..." The group responded with awe at the MA's features.
"Can this tank fly like the Time Mazine?" Hibiki asked.
"Unfortunately, no." Moniqa shook her head. "There's not even an Aqua Module in this tank, so it can't do well underwater. But at least the weapons are still usable."
"So this tank has a lot of really cool features, but it can't even fly or swim... Well, that sucks." Zeno commented. "I feel like this tank has the potential to become really powerful, if it's not in the enemy's hands."
"I guess so." Gunvolt agreed. "So who gets to drive this MA?"
"You, of course." Zeo answered while staring at the Azure Striker.
"Wait, me?" Gunvolt questioned while pointing at himself.
"Well you did say that you drove this tank in your dream, so I think it's only fair that you drive it."
"Yeah, but still..."
"Uh... guys?" Xiao spoke up, earning everyone's attention. "Does anyone heard footsteps at a distance?"
Everyone turned to the tunnel they've entered before, and heard numerous footsteps approaching. "Damn it, not now...!" Zeno muttered.
"I think we'd better get the hell out of here. I don't know who's coming, but I'm not staying here to find out!" Kiana stated.
"GV, you're gonna have to drive this MA anyway! The rest of us will head back to the Time Mazine!" Zeo said.
"Guess I have no choice." Gunvolt sighed before nodding. "Alright, I'll give it a try."
"Good." Zeo nodded back. "Okay guys, back to the Time Mazine pronto!" Soon after, everyone immediately left the tank and boarded the Time Mazine, while Gunvolt boarded the Metal Attacker and closed the cockpit.
"GV, follow right behind us!" Zeo said before the Time Mazine quickly drove towards the other tunnel.
"Okay, here goes!" Gunvolt said as he pushed a few buttons on the controls, revving up the MA as the exhaust mufflers ignited flames. Once he stepped on the accelerator, the Metal Attacker quickly boosted off after the Time Mazine.
A few minutes later of rushing through the sewer tunnels, both vehicles managed to escape the Sewer Area before the unexpected guests could locate them. Afterwards, they hid in a large alleyway so that no one would notice. And then, everyone disembarked from the vehicles with a sigh of relief.
"That... was way too close." Hibiki remarked.
"But at least we're safe, along with the MA." Kiana stated.
"So, how's the tank?" Zeo asked the Azure Striker.
"It felt like I knew how to control the tank, even though it's not fully upgraded." Gunvolt answered while briefly glancing at the tank. "I guess this means the MA is officially mine."
"Congrats, dude! You've got your very own tank!" Zeno praised. "Plus, it won't get stolen since you're the only one who can authorize it."
"Yeah, pretty much." Gunvolt shrugged.
"So, what now?" Xiao asked.
"As much as I really want to recruit you guys to Team XDR, we need you three to stay here and keep working for QUILL." Zeo answered, shocking the QUILL agents.
"But, why though?" Moniqa questioned.
"Someone needs to keep an eye on this region while Team XDR goes after the Neo Time Jackers."
"Ah, I think I know what you're going with this." Zeno realized. "You're worried that those Time Jackers would come back to this region to cause trouble. Though now that I think about it, they might try to recruit any remnants of Sumeragi or even Eden for revenge."
"Oh... that could be bad for all of us." Moniqa responded with worry.
"If that's the case, then the three of us will help out QUILL to capture the Sumeragi and Eden remnants before the Time Jackers do." Xiao declared.
"That's what I was hoping for." Gunvolt nodded. "Think you three can handle this favor for us while we're gone?"
"Leave it to us, GV! We'll take of things from here!" Zeno replied with a confident grin.
"Don't worry about us, we can handle the remnants during your absence." Moniqa assured with a smile.
"And don't let Eins, Zwei, and the rest of the Time Jackers win, okay guys?" Xiao added.
"Thank you. All of you." Gunvolt smiled with gratitude, with everyone else feeling the same way.
"Consider you three honorary members of Team XDR." Zeo declared to the QUILL agents. "Maybe someday, we're gonna require your services in our battles."
"We'll look forward to that day, Zeo." Moniqa replied with Zeno and Xiao nodding.
"We'll definitely get along just fine." Hibiki cheerfully smiled. "You'll get a chance to see me fight someday."
"Heh, looking forward to it, Hibiki." Zeno smiled back before turning to Kiana. "I guess I should be returning the glasses and guns now."
"Nah, you can keep them. Consider those gifts to you." Kiana replied.
"Sweet!" Zeno cheered with a fist pump. "Thanks, Kiana!"
"Ah, before I forget, how's Joule doing?" Xiao asked.
"Wait, Joule?" Zeno and Moniqa questioned.
"You'll understand why, if GV would allow it." Xiao replied before turning to Gunvolt. "You don't mind, right?"
"I don't see why not, but keep this as our little secret, okay?" Gunvolt replied back.
"Don't worry, our lips are sealed." Moniqa assured with Zeno nodding.
Gunvolt nodded back before tapping his relic pendant. "Joule, reveal yourself."
"As you wish, GV." Joule complied as she flew out of the pendant in a ball of azure light and appeared in her Idol Form right in front of the group, which really surprised Zeno and Moniqa. "Hello Xiao, it's been a while." She greeted with a smile.
"Yep, it has." Xiao greeted back. "Good to know you're doing well."
"Mm." Joule nodded.
"No gacking way... that's Lumen, the Muse Septima!" Zeno exclaimed.
"That's correct, Zeno." Joule confirmed. "But you can call me Joule instead, in honor of my late host. And... sorry for pushing you away like that back at the orbital elevator."
"Ah, right. So that was you who pushed me, huh? That's okay, since I was a bit too demanding at that time." Zeno replied.
"It's good to see you, Lu- I mean Joule. It's a shame we never talked much." Moniqa greeted.
"Hehe, that's fine, Moniqa." Joule giggled. "We'll have plenty of time to chat someday. But like GV said, you and the others have more important duties to deal with at the moment."
"Of course." Moniqa nodded. "Until then, keep watching over GV for us, okay?"
"Always." Joule nodded back.
"Right. We'd better head back to QUILL HQ for now." Xiao declared. "Don't want them to know about our sudden disappearance from duties."
"It's not all bad though." Zeno remarked. "Moniqa and I got to reconcile with GV and became friends again, and we got to briefly work together as Team Sheeps again when dealing with the Sumeragi remnants earlier."
"Team... Sheeps?" Hibiki and Kiana tilted their heads in confusion.
"It was our old team name when I used work alongside Zeno, Moniqa and Azimov. And Azimov was the one who came up with the team name." Gunvolt clarified.
"That's a... questionable choice for a team name." Kiana commented.
"Hey! It's a cool team name nonetheless!" Zeno retorted before turning to Gunvolt. "Ain't that right, GV?"
"I... just chose to roll with it." Gunvolt shrugged.
"What he said." Moniqa added.
"Would you come up with a better team name instead?" Joule asked.
"Hmm..." Gunvolt pondered while scratching his cheek. "How does the name Team Strikers sound?"
"Team Strikers, huh?" Xiao pondered before nodding in agreement. "I think that could work."
"I agree. Team Strikers is an awesome name for a team!" Hibiki also agreed.
"Huh, since when did you start coming up with better team names, GV?" Zeno questioned.
"Uhh..." Gunvolt struggled to answer.
"You've been watching too much anime, did you?" Zeno teased.
"Okay, Zeno. That's enough." Moniqa sighed before turning to Gunvolt. "Though I have to admit, I do like the name Team Strikers. Does this mean you'll be our team leader?"
"I'm still working on my leadership skills, but I can handle being the team leader as Striker 1." Gunvolt answered. "Zeno will be Striker 2 and Moniqa would be Striker 3. And if Xiao wants to join in, he can be Striker 4."
"And what codename would I be, GV?" Joule asked.
"You can be... uh... Striker 1.5?"
"Really? That's the best you can think of?" Joule deadpanned.
"Hey, at least I'm trying!" Gunvolt defended, making everyone laugh.
"Hmm... a sub-team, huh?" Zeo thought as he glanced at the group, especially Hibiki, Kiana and Gunvolt. "I wonder if I should pick some of my teammates to become Ace Units like from Valkyria Chronicles? That way, it won't always have to be me, Gaius, Akira and the commanders making the important decisions. I'd better tell Gaius and Akira about their opinion on this idea later." Zeo cleared his throat, earning everyone's attention. "Okay, I think we should get going now. We need to be ready for our next mission."
"Ah, right. Sorry about that." Gunvolt replied before turning to the QUILL agents. "Well then, this is where we part ways. I'm sure we'll see each other again someday."
"Definitely." Zeno nodded before giving a two-finger salute. "Take care of yourselves, guys!"
"See you again soon." Moniqa added with a smile.
"Best of luck, out there!" Xiao also added with a smile.
"Thanks for the help, you three." Zeo replied.
"Have a safe trip back!" Kiana added with a two-finger salute.
"We'll meet again soon!" Hibiki also added with a wave.
"Zeno, Moniqa, Xiao, farewell for now." Joule added with a bow and a smile before they went inside their respective vehicles and drove off, while the QUILL agents went the other way.
Outside the Kamizono Mansion...
Several minutes later, the Time Mazine and the Metal Attacker arrived where they saw the Zi-O Liner parked a few metres away from the mansion. They also saw Gaius, Akira, Copen, Lola, Quinn and Nori waiting outside the train and gasped in shock when they saw the blue battle tank, especially Gaius and Akira.
"Sorry we're late, guys." Zeo greeted the group as he, Gunvolt, Joule, Kiana and Hibiki disembarked their vehicles.
"Brother? Where did that tank come from?" Akira asked while pointing at said tank. "And why does it look so familiar?"
"I'll explain about that part later. But long story short, some Sumeragi remnants were examining the tank in the Sewer Area." Zeo answered. "We were planning to head back here after the meeting, but then Kiana and Hibiki noticed the tank's energy signature from the Time Mazine, which made us want to investigate."
"Zeno, Moniqa and Xiao tagged along with us for a moment to see what those remnants are plotting." Gunvolt added.
"Huh, no wonder you guys took so long to come back." Gaius noted.
"Seriously? There's still Sumeragi remnants out there?" Lola questioned. "They're really starting to act like cockroaches at this point. No matter how many we've defeated, there's bound to be a few more that we missed."
"I agree. These idiots are just too stubborn to stay down, even after Nova's death." Copen agreed.
"Zeno, Moniqa and Xiao are gonna keep working with QUILL to hunt down those remnants while also doing their best to divert QUILL's attention away from us." Joule informed.
"That's good to know." Quinn sighed with relief before smiling at the two familiar faces. "It's good to see you again, GV, Joule."
"Good to see you too, Quinn." Gunvolt replied with a smile. "How are you and the others holding up during our absence?"
"We're doing pretty good ever since Eden is defeated." Quinn replied back. "The region is on the road to recovery, but then you mentioned the Sumeragi remnants. I guess there's still some loose ends to be found."
"I'm afraid so."
"Also, Copen and the others told me, Mytyl and Nori about your secret on Team XDR, along with your journey. I didn't know you and the others were that busy, let alone the existence of the multiverse."
"Yeah, it was one heck of a long and crazy journey as our multiversal team is slowly being formed." Joule replied. "But we're able to make a lot of new friends along the way. Speaking of which..." She then gestured to the newcomers. "These are some of our new friends; Kiana Kaslana and Hibiki Tachibana."
"Hi there!/Nice to meet you, Quinn!" Kiana and Hibiki greeted with a wave.
"Nice to meet you too, Kiana, Hibiki." Quinn greeted back with a smile.
"Good to meet you two as well." Nori also greeted with a bow before turning to the familiar faces. "Gunvolt, Joule, Zeo, good to see you again."
"Good to see you too, Nori." Gunvolt greeted back with Joule nodding.
"I see that Nori's holding her suitcase." Zeo noticed the maid holding said suitcase. "So I'm guessing that you guys finished packing up your belongings?"
"Yup." Copen nodded as he turned to the mansion. "We made sure nothing was left behind. Still, I'm a bit sad to leave my mansion. It served us well for a long time. But now, I think it's time for us to move on."
"Understood." Zeo noted before turning to the maid. "Hope you're ready to come along with us, along with Quinn and Mytyl."
"Um... about that." Quinn spoke. "Nori decided to stay in the world instead."
"Eh?! You're not coming with us, Nori?!" Hibiki exclaimed in shock, with Zeo, Gunvolt and Joule reacting the same way.
"As much as I wanted to come along with all of you, I must stay here to keep an eye on this world, especially when you mentioned Sumeragi remnants earlier." Nori stated. "And since I'm not part of any organization, I can go anywhere I wish."
"In other words, you're gonna become a freelancer." Zeo deduced, earning a nod from Nori. "You sure you can handle it all by yourself?"
"Don't worry, Nori can handle on her own since she's the one who trained me in martial arts, along with physical and weapons training." Copen assured.
"Wow, so you're Copen's instructor at the time?" Kiana asked, earning a nod from Nori. "That's pretty amazing despite being a maid. Maybe Noelle might wanna learn from you someday since she's a maid knight."
"A... maid knight?" Nori repeated.
"She's training to become part of the Knights of Favonius while also fulfilling her maid duties." Joule clarified.
"Ah, I see."
"I wonder if you're gonna ask QUILL for some jobs to hunt down those remnants? I think you still have Xiao's contact number." Gunvolt pondered.
"That's the plan, Gunvolt. I'll have to contact Xiao about it later." Nori confirmed.
"Before you go Nori, there's something I wanna give you to help you out on your missions." Copen said.
"And what would that be, Master Copen?" Nori asked.
"Lola? If you would?"
"You got it, Ix!" Lola complied with a salute as she went inside the Zi-O Liner for a few moments before coming back out with a suitcase and gave it to Copen.
Copen then open the suitcase and revealed the contents to Nori. "I want you to have the Zikan Phone and a pair of X-Batons. The former can allow you to contact me and the others even from across the other worlds, and the latter is a versatile weapon that can transform into a Baton, a Blaster, and a Gladius."
"You... made this for me?" Nori asked.
"You've done so much for me, Lola and Mytyl, so it's only fair for me to return the favor. I've already added my contact number to your phone." Copen answered.
"Ix and I worked hard to build these, so make good use of them, okay?" Lola added.
"I understand." Nori nodded as she took the phone and the X-Batons before Lola closed the case. "Thank you, Master Copen, Lola." She smiled with a bow.
"Right then, I'm gonna bring the tank inside the Zi-O Liner now." Gunvolt declared. "Nice seeing you again, Nori."
"Take care, Nori!" Joule added as she and Gunvolt went inside the MA with the latter driving, and drove it towards the Garage Bay as the door slowly opened up, allowing him to drive inside. The Time Mazine went into autopilot under Zeo's command and drove inside the Garage Bay before the door closed.
"Time for us to go." Copen declared as he offered a hand. "Until we meet again, Nori."
"Until we meet again." Nori nodded and smiled before shaking his hand.
After the group said their goodbyes to the maid, they boarded the Zi-O Liner before the door closed. The train began to move in high speeds before a warp portal appeared in front, allowing the train to go through before the portal vanished, leaving behind Nori who bowed once more before picking up her suitcase and leaving the area, but not without taking one final look at the Kamizono Mansion.
"Thank you... for everything..." Nori bowed to the now-empty mansion before leaving the area to begin her new duty of keeping the world safe during Gunvolt and Copen's absence.
Symphogear World
Tokyo, Japan
Two days later...
As time passes, Quinn and Mytyl are now living in new apartments with the former staying in Gunvolt's and the latter staying in Copen's. Thanks to Genjuro's assistance, Mytyl was able to enroll into Lydian Academy as a first-year student and is part of the same class as Serena. With the success of the Dimensional Warp Drive System, they can now travel through the worlds without going through the Sands of Time, as long as they have the Gjallarhorn Ridewatch. They'll eventually install that new system onto the Guardian Base and S.O.N.G HQ in the future. As for the Metal Attacker Zeo and the others discovered in Gunvolt's world, its now kept within S.O.N.G HQ for examination, repairs, and maybe even possible upgrades with Tesla leading an engineering group to perform the task.
For now though, Team XDR are now in the S.O.N.G Command Center where Elfnein and Einstein are about to reveal some news. "Good to see everyone here." Einstein spoke to the group. "I've just finished with a few enhancements with S.O.N.G's main computer with a little help from Elfnein."
"What kind of enhancements, doc?" Gaius asked.
"By using the Gjallarhorn Ridewatch onto the main computer, we can detect which world we can travel to without the need to go through the Sands of Time, but only if there's a Gjallarhorn fragment stored within the Ridewatch." Elfnein explained. "However, the route through the Sands of Time is still available if we don't have any new Gjallarhorn Ridewatches yet."
"Good to know that we have an alternative way to travel to the next world. Can't rely on one route every time." Akira noted.
"With that said, let's test out the computer." Einstein declared as she turned to Gunvolt. "GV, insert the Ridewatch leading to your world onto the console."
"Okay." Gunvolt complied as he took out the Ridewatch from his pocket, inserted it onto the slot, turned the dial and pushed the button. The main monitor began to lit up as it revealed several places of Gunvolt's world which surprised the group with awe. "I can see it. Places that I've been to in my world for missions, even the orbital elevator and QUILL HQ."
"So this is were you used to work at, GV." Genjuro said while staring at QUILL HQ.
"Yeah, before I chose to quit the organization and stay with Joule." Gunvolt nodded. "But I usually get jobs from them as a freelancer to deal with Sumeragi. At least I still have support from Zeno and Moniqa, and the pay is good enough."
"I see."
"Speaking of Zeno and Moniqa, are you going to recruit them into Team XDR in the future?" Himeko asked.
"They and Xiao are now honorary members of Team XDR, but they'll have to stay in my world for the time being in case those Time Jackers try something sinister while we're away." Gunvolt replied.
"Nori's also staying there to perform as a freelancer, hunting down any remnants of Sumeragi and Eden before the Time Jackers could find them." Copen added.
"Good thing we gave her a Zikan Phone to contact us, just in case something big is about to go down. Along with giving her a pair of X-Batons to defend herself." Lola added.
"Hm, good call there." Fu Hua approved with a nod. "Tasking them to keep up the defence while we go on the offensive."
"Ugh, I can't believe there's still remnants of those Sumeragi jerks." Kanade sighed in annoyance. "How stubborn are these guys?"
"Really really stubborn since they want us dead for the death of Nova." Joule replied with a sigh.
"Wait, you mentioned the Time Jackers finding those remnants." Ashe interrupted with a raised hand. "Is it possible for those guys to recruit them?"
"If they can get the Bavarian alchemist remnants to join their side, then there's no doubt they'll do the same thing to the Sumeragi and Eden remnants." Chris stated.
"Not only that, they might share their technology with them. Maybe give them enhancements to give us a difficult time." Bronya added.
"Oh, now that you mention it, it could be possible." Grey remarked in realization. "And pretty bad for us."
"If that's the case, then we need to be ready for them." Vent stated.
"Our enemies are bound to get stronger overtime, so we need to get stronger too." Zeo stated, earning a nod of agreement from the group.
"Okay, that's enough. You can remove that Ridewatch now." Einstein said, prompting Gunvolt to turn the dial and removed the Ridewatch from the console as the monitor turned off.
"Kiana, insert the Ridewatch leading to Sequin Land." Theresa requested while taking out the Ridewatch from her pocket.
"Got it, Auntie Theresa." Kiana complied as she took the watch from Theresa, inserted it onto the console, turned the dial and pushed the button as the monitor now revealed places of Sequin Land, such as Scuttle Town, Spiderweb Island and Tan Line Island, along with its inhabitants. Everyone who never visited Sequin Land before were in awe, with Hibiki, Serena, Kirika and Shirabe having starry eyes. "Heh, it's been a while since I visited those places." Kiana smiled at the familiar locations.
"Yeah, good times..." Akira smiled and nodded in agreement. "Hope Shantae and friends are doing well during our absence."
"I still miss travelling to those places." Kallen said while staring at the familiar locations on the screen. "Right, Sakura?"
"Mm." Sakura nodded. "Hope we can revisit that world someday."
"Maybe as a vacation spot, or the occasional monster and treasure hunting." Akira said.
"Treasure, huh?" Ashe whispered while hiding an eager grin.
"Oh, I know that look." Vent rolled his eyes after noticing her grin. "You wanted to go looking for treasure, huh?"
"Can you blame me?" Ashe replied with her hands on her hips. "Akira's group hoarded a lot of gems in that world, so I was hoping to join in on the fun someday."
"Just be careful with the traps and curses. Trust me, I've seen my share of those occurrences during my travels." Miriam cautioned.
"Also have a friend on standby in case things go south." Seele added.
"Okay, fine..." Ashe replied.
"So that's Sequin Land, huh?" Serena remarked while staring at Sequin Land's locations. "It's amazing... I even see living mermaids there."
"I never expected mermaids to exist in that world." Maria added.
"It's the multiverse, what do you expect?" Kanade pointed out. "Of course creatures like these exist in other worlds."
"Interesting..." Tsubasa commented.
"I never expected an island to have zombies and ghosts there." Shirabe remarked while staring at Spiderweb Island.
"I-I-I don't wanna go there, d-d-dess..." Kirika shuddered in fear.
"Kirika, you're a grim reaper. Why are you scared of them?" Seele questioned. "I've even made friends with a few zombies."
"Dess?!"
"She's not kidding, Kirika." Kallen confirmed before slightly shuddering. "But for the love of god, never EVER go into a forest called Nightmare Forest."
Akira, Kiana and Sakura shuddered when she mentioned that horrifying forest. "Never again..." They spoke in unison.
"I'm never going into that temple again. Blind idiots..." Regina thought while staring at Tan Line Island.
"(You wanted to beat down that priest for kidnapping us for that stupid reason, huh?)" Fu Hua whispered.
"(Pretty much.)" Regina replied. "(...Do you?)"
"(...Maybe a little.)"
"What are you girls talking about?" Himeko noticed.
"None of your business, Major." Fu Hua answered, making Himeko pout and Mei nervously chuckling.
"Okay, that's enough." Kiana declared as she turned the dial and removed the Ridewatch from the console.
"So now we have three Gjallarhorn Ridewatches we haven't tried out yet, and we're not sure what world we'll be going into." Elfnein said, while holding the three Ridewatchs on the tray.
"Should we show all three of them, or just one?" Prairie asked before they turned to Zeo. "It's your call, Zeo."
"Hmm..." Zeo pondered for a moment with his hand on his chin, until he made a decision. "Let's go with one for now. We're not ready to go for another route split yet."
"Alright." Prairie nodded. "Which one will it be?"
"Hey Lumine, how about you pick one since you're also a dimensional traveler?"
"Me?" Lumine questioned while pointing at herself.
"You never got a chance to go on an adventure yet, so I figured you'll go to the next world with us." Zeo stated.
"I see. Good thing I've gotten plenty of training thanks to Maria and the others, so I'm prepared to face those challenges head on despite losing my powers." Lumine replied.
"You're welcome, by the way." Maria smiled.
"With that said, I'll go with..." Lumine picked up the Ridewatch on the center. "...this one."
"Okay, Lumine-kun." Genjuro nodded. "Insert the Ridewatch onto the console."
Lumine nodded as she inserted the Ridewatch onto the console, turned the dial and pushed the button as the monitor revealed what's on the screen. And what they saw, made Noelle and Sucrose gasp in utter shock.
"Sucrose...! Is that...?!" Noelle exclaimed.
"I-I think it is...! There's no mistaking it!" Sucrose confirmed. "This is Teyvat!"
"WHAT?!" The group exclaimed at Sucrose's confirmation before looking at the monitor once more.
Teyvat revealed to have several breathtaking cliffs, hills, ruins, lakes and coasts, along with a village and a winery. The most notable ones being the statue with a hooded person with wings holding a sky blue orb, and a large kingdom with a large statue of a hooded person with wings and the hands forward in a holding position.
"That kingdom over there is Mondstadt City where Sucrose and I live." Noelle said while pointing at said kingdom.
"And that statue with the orb is the Statue of the Seven." Sucrose added while pointing at said statue. "The shape of the statue is Barbatos, the Anemo Archon, who watches over the Mondstadt region."
"Barbatos, huh?" Miku repeated while staring at the statue.
"Good going, Lumine." Zeo praised. "You managed to find Noelle and Sucrose's homeworld in one try."
"Guess I was a bit lucky." Lumine replied with a smile while rubbing the back of her head.
"Luck or not, we can finally travel to Teyvat." Gaius stated. "But, we're gonna have to lay out a few ground rules when traveling to a new world. We don't want its inhabitants to act skeptical about us."
"True, considering the advanced technology Noelle and I saw so far." Sucrose agreed. "We can't let too many people of Teyvat see this kind of technology, and I especially don't want the Fatui to know about it."
"The who?" Akira asked.
"The Fatui. They are an infamous organization from the nation of Snezhnaya, where its people worships the Cryo Archon, the Tsaritsa." Sucrose explained. "They may act as diplomats, but they're also a military organization with technology that far exceeds Mondstadt and Liyue. I even saw some of the Fatui Skirmishers wielding guns and wearing some kind of metal suit. They're not afraid to resort to killing without showing any mercy."
"Okay, now that's just cheating, not to mention barbaric." Chris frowned. "They have guns and metal suits? Seriously?"
"I agree. And we're not kidding, Chris." Noelle nodded. "Even Master Jean is having trouble dealing with the Fatui who's forcefully providing diplomacy, even wanting to slay Stormterror themselves without reason."
"They're that strong, huh?" Hibiki asked, earning a nod from Noelle.
"Hm... not even the Acting Grand Master is safe from the Fatui." Woz noted. "I wonder why the Knights of Favonius chose not to take action?"
"They know how strong and highly advanced the Fatui are, and they're quite good at manipulating people with their diplomacy." Noelle answered. "One wrong move could provoke them to war, and none of us want that."
"How dare they..." Tsubasa frowned.
"Absolutely unforgivable." Mei also frowned.
"Those sneaky bastards..." Himeko also frowned.
"I see..." Zeo noted before frowning. "Still, that won't stop us from foiling any plan they could throw at us until the time we put a permanent end to them."
"Well said, Zeo." Noelle smiled.
"So we head straight for Snezhnaya and kick the living daylights out of the Fatui and their boss?" Ashe guessed.
"Always straightforward, huh Ashe?" Aile sighed. "They're not that easy to deal with considering how large their organization is. That, and we don't even know where Snezhnaya is."
"Correct." Zeo nodded. "We need to foil their plans and lower down their morale, and we'll have to be prepared if they sent elites after us. Once that's done, then we can deal with their boss when we eventually discover where Snezhnaya is located."
"Speaking of elites, do they have a name for that kind of unit?" Gaius asked Sucrose.
"Mm." Sucrose nodded. "They are called the Eleven Fatui Harbingers."
"Fatui Harbingers, huh?" Kiana repeated. "And there's eleven of them."
"Each harbinger has a special object called a Delusion, which is the opposite of Visions." Sucrose explained. "The Delusions act like Visions granting elemental power, but are more powerful and can be mass-produced. The drawback though is that using a Delusion causes nasty side-effects such as draining the user's vitality."
"I see." Woz noted. "When you put it that way, the Visions continued to be superior since it was a blessing from the Archons, while the Delusions causes horrible side-effects since they're artificial."
"When did you learn about those, Sucrose-san?" Elfnein asked.
"I read about them in some books at the Knights of Favonius Library." Sucrose answered.
"Thanks for sharing your knowledge, Sucrose-kun." Genjuro thanked.
"I-It's my pleasure, sir." Sucrose bowed.
"So when can we leave for Teyvat?" Lumine asked Zeo.
"We can leave now if you want, but we're gonna have to bring in a few members along for the ride." Zeo answered. "However, we must not show the people of Teyvat, especially the Fatui, about our highly advanced technology. For example, no use of the Legatus or even Copen's inventions and Shirabe's saw-blades."
"Don't worry, Lola and I will be a bit busy with our own projects, including the Metal Attacker that's still in this base." Copen assured.
"The Bronya will also stay behind." Bronya added.
"I'll stay behind too." Shirabe also added.
"The Guardians and the Mega Men will also stay here." Prairie added with the Mega Men nodding.
"I still can't believe you guys brought back a gacking battle tank that can jump." Chris commented. "Not only that, it's from another planet that's not part of the usual Solar System?"
"The only way Planet Sophia could exist is within the Blaster Master universe, but we're still not sure if one of the two Gjallarhorn Ridewatches could least us straight to that universe." Zeo stated.
"Guess we'll have to find out some other time since we're gonna go to Teyvat first." Akira said. "I know that Lumine, Noelle and Sucrose are definitely coming along with me, Zeo and Gaius."
"I will also come along since I'm a bit curious about Teyvat." Woz added.
"Okay, I'm gonna start listing the people we'll bring along with us to Teyvat. And we're going in groups of four." Zeo declared as he pushed a few buttons on his Zikan Phone before revealing the list on the holo-screen for everyone to see.
Team 1:
Zeo Naotora, Akira Naotora, Gaius Cornell, Woz
Team 2:
Lumine, Noelle, Sucrose, Regina
Team 3:
Kiana Kaslana, Mei Raiden, Fu Hua, Kallen Kaslana
Team 4:
Hibiki Tachibana, Miku Kohinata, Maria Cadenzavna Eve, Kirika Akatsuki
Team 5:
Gunvolt & Joule, Tsubasa Kazanari, Kanade Amou, Chris Yukine
"Hm, seems like a fair choice of teams." Genjuro nodded in agreement.
"You're not bringing along Serena, dess?" Kirika questioned.
"It's okay, I just started my school year alongside Mytyl, so I need to work on my studies." Serena replied. "But please bring back a souvenir if you're free."
"I can think of a few nice gifts in Mondstadt City. I hope you'll like it." Noelle said.
"Thanks, Noelle-san." Serena smiled.
"Remember to do well in your studies while I'm away, okay?" Maria said to her younger sister.
"My sister's in your hands, Serena. Don't be afraid to give her a helping hand, alright?" Copen added.
"I promise, onee-san, Copen." Serena nodded.
"Um, Mr. Genjuro, sir?" Sucrose spoke.
"Yes, Sucrose-kun?"
"I-I was wondering if I could bring along Elfnein to Teyvat. Maybe introduce her to Master Albedo if possible?" Sucrose requested.
"Ah, right! I remember you mentioning your alchemic tutor, Sucrose-san." Elfnein recalled before turning to the commander. "Genjuro-san, may I?"
"I don't see why not. Very well, permission granted." Genjuro approved with a nod.
"Thank you, sir!" Sucrose and Elfnein bowed.
"Miriam, maybe you should come too." Elfnein requested. "Hopefully ask Albedo-san about your crystalization curse."
"Wait, me?" Miriam questioned. "But I don't want to scare people when I look like this."
"Miriam, did you forget that your crystals on your body can act like tattoos?" Kanade reminded.
"Well, yes. But the the horns on my head..."
"Ah, about that. Elfnein and I were able to find a solution to that problem after performing a few experiments." Sucrose informed before taking out a grey shard from her pocket. "Insert this shard into your body, it'll help you hide away your horns. And if you want them back again, you only need to focus."
"Hmm... alright, I'll give it a go." Miriam replied as she took the shard from the alchemist and gently planted it into her body as it slowly went inside. And after a brief glow of light, her demon horns are gone which surprised the group.
"Well what do you know? It worked." Aile said, which made Miriam touch her head for a moment before gasping in shock.
"Thank goodness, Miriam. Now you won't have to worry about your demon horns being noticed." Mei said with relief.
"Oh my, you two did it! Thank you so much!" Miriam smiled and bowed to the two alchemists.
"I-It was nothing, really. It took a few failed attempts to get the formula right." Sucrose replied. "Sorry about the mess in your lab, Elfnein."
"It's fine. S.O.N.G has reliable cleaners to get the job done." Elfnein replied back.
"Did it involve accidental explosions when conducting your experiments?" Gaius guessed.
"...Yes." Sucrose admitted with a sigh.
"Oh." Gaius sweatdropped. "But at least you never gave up."
"You can remove the Ridewatch now, Lumine." Prairie requested, prompting Lumine to nod as she turned the dial and removed the Ridewatch from the console.
"Now, any other questions everyone needs to bring up before we end this meeting?" Zeo asked the group, who then shook their heads after a few moments of deliberating. "Nothing, huh? Okay then. The groups who were picked, bring along what you need for the expedition and then meet up outside the Zi-O Liner. Try not to make us wait for too long, alright?"
"Got it." The chosen groups responded with a nod.
"Good. With that said, dismissed!" Zeo declared.
30 minutes later...
As time passed, the chosen groups along with Elfnein and Miriam finished preparing for their expedition to Teyvat and said their goodbyes to their friends before boarding the Zi-O Liner. Once the groups boarded the train, Zeo, Akira and Gaius went to the cockpit of the train, which has several consoles and monitors. The most notable one is a motorbike at the center of the cockpit which manually controls the train. That certain motorbike happens to be Kamen Rider Zi-O's personal bike; the Ridestriker, which looked like a Honda CRF250 Rally with a silver, grey, and pink highlighted color scheme.
"I still can't believe the manual control of this train happens to be a bike, just like the DenLiner." Zeo remarked.
"Woz did mention that the Zi-O Liner is a prototype of the DenLiner, so it makes sense that the bike acts as the main control." Akira recalled.
"At least it's a little easier than controlling an actual train." Gaius said.
"And Woz was the one who drove this train when we're heading for GV's world to test out the D.W.D System." Zeo said. "Thank god the system worked."
"D.W.D?" Akira repeated.
"Dimensional Warp Drive System for short."
"Ah, okay. I guess saying the whole thing is too long?"
"Yeah..." Zeo sweatdropped.
"Right then." Gaius clasped his hands. "Ready to get started, Zeo?"
"I'm Ret-2-Go!" Zeo gave a thumbs up before riding the bike, took out the Gjallarhorn Ridewatch, inserted the watch onto the bike, turned the dial and pushed the button as a holo-screen lit up, showing the image of Teyvat. He began to slightly turn the accelerator handle back and forth, starting up the train's engines. "Teyvat, here we come!" He declared, fully turning the accel handle, causing the Zi-O Liner to quickly move forward until a warp portal appeared in front after gaining enough speed. The train immediately went through the portal before it vanished.
Next destination; the world of Teyvat.
To be continued in...
Book 4: The Winds of Change
Author's Note: And now the next world of travel is revealed, which is the world of Genshin Impact. Expect a lot of surprises during that story, but I will say that the journey will begin in the Mondstadt region where Noelle and Sucrose reside. You'll eventually find out why I named the title of Book 4 once you read it.
Anyway, a bunch of stuff happened in this interlude. Gunvolt finally told the truth about Azimov to Zeno, Moniqa and Xiao, and earned their forgiveness, making them friends again. Not only that, they and Nori are now honorary members of Team XDR as they remain in Gunvolt's world to keep up the defence and hunting down any enemy remnants with QUILL while the main heroes go after the Neo Time Jackers. Also, the team brought along Quinn and Mytyl to the Symphogear world where they would be safe from harm with the latter now attending Lydian Academy alongside Serena as first-year students; and they also discovered the Metal Attacker from Blaster Master Zero and brought it back to base. As for why it's colored blue, it was an easter egg where Gunvolt is the DLC character for Blaster Master Zero. Team XDR will go to the Blaster Master Universe in a future story.
One other thing as a sneak peek, Team XDR will eventually visit the Pokemon world in a future story, and I have the perfect title for it;
Shining Brilliance of Sinnoh
Of all the regions I've picked, I went with Sinnoh as a tribute to Pokemon Shining Pearl and Brilliant Diamond, but my story will have all of the updated Pokemon except the ones from Pokemon: Arceus Legends. And I might implement some story elements from Pokemon Platinum. Still, I wonder what kind of Perfect Links Team XDR will get? Well... only time will tell... But for now, Teyvat's story will come first.
Until then, stay safe and see you in the next Book!