Pikatwig: And now, chapter 10. The last chapter of this current bunch of chapter. Uh… sorry for the wait.

KKD: Honestly, work has kept me on the busy end, but I understand the impatience at times.

Pikatwig: Yeah… uh… gotta be honest, while we have a vague road map of the story's direction, the chapter count is very much to be determined.

KKD: That's fine, though, as it can give us a little bit more wiggle room in that regard.

Pikatwig: Yeah. It'll be a fun story and there will be as many happy things that can happen as I can grant.

KKD: Considering all the crap most Riders go through, it'll be worth it.

Pikatwig: Anyway, let's go onto this chapter. It'll be fun.

KKD: Let's find out.

Disclaimers: Neither KKD nor Pikatwig own the rights to anything in this story apart from original concepts, characters, and story elements they came up with. Credit to Kai Yuuto and Kasumi "Kassie" Yuuto belongs to Sylver Blaze, formerly known as Silver Maxus. The remaining concepts used within belong to their respective creators such as Toei, BandaiNamco, SEGA, Sonic Team, etc.


It was a fairly calm Saturday morning for Takeshi and the others. Only a few days had passed since Hana had been informed about the truth. The five friends had gathered at the bakery in order to get some homework done, Takeshi scratching his scalp as he stared over his papers and just groaned a bit.

"I really hate math homework…" Takeshi whined.

"Probably doesn't help that Takeshi and I weren't able to listen in class because of… y'know…" Luna exhaled.

"You're lucky that we have someone who knows what they're doing…" Yoko sighed.

"Math is not that hard. You all are just babies," Daisuke countered.

"Oi! You're one to talk, Mr. Prodigy! Plus, I'm neurodivergent!" Takeshi spoke.

"At least it means we get to hang out a bit," Hana offered.

"Don't you dare…"

After a few minutes, the front door had opened up and somebody walked in.

"Good… I think we finally get a break, Okaa-san's home," Takeshi exhaled.

"Nah. Someone else needs homework help," Mrs. Narumi announced.

"Oh great. Who?"

Soon, someone walked over. The five turned to see that he was a young teen that looked to be a year younger than Takeshi, Hana, Yoko, and Luna. He had on a blue vest, was wearing a Pokemon T-shirt underneath it, had on a pair of black shorts, a pair of shoes that noticeably had no laces and were clearly slip on, he had blonde hair, light blue eyes, and had a small smile.

"Hi," he waved.


(Cue Intro Theme: Dimension Tripper; Neptune the Animation Theme)

*As the opening melody played, images of Takeshi, Yoko, Luna, Daisuke, and Hana all flew by*

Imi fumei moji noraretsu (An incomprehensible code sequence) *Takeshi was seen running by as he tried to get into his school, with Yoko and Luna soon following after him*

Oshiete KONPAIRA (Tell me what what it means, Compiler!) *Luna smiled as she managed to help give them a ride before they got into class and took a moment to catch their breaths*

matomaranai BAINARI- TSURI- (I can't make sense of this binary tree) *Yoko gave the two a calm smile as she followed them out of the room after the bell rang.*

0 to 1 dake ja nanimo tsutaerannai yo ne… (Just 0s and 1s won't help you communicate) *Daisuke was working on something, with Hinatan monitoring his progress, only for Hana to somehow leap in and tackle Daisuke into a hug, with Hinatan's icon simply giving an annoyed sigh*

Pingurinku! tsunagaru KIMI to ATASHI-tashi ga (How nice it'd be if our hearts could connect.) *Payactions could be seen swarming outside the school. Yoko gave a look to her friends, and they quickly snuck outside.*

Hitto chekku! KIMERU nara ima (And we were on the same page.) *As they snuck out, people in the school could be seen mindlessly spending money on Impact of the Wild as if they were drones. Takeshi and Luna managed to get outside and both got their Drivers on*

Hapi furu pyua You're a dimenshon torippa-! (Eveything's pure. You're a Dimension tripper) *Takeshi and Luna stood side by side before they both transformed into their Rider forms.*

Jigen no tobira, kettobashi oide yo (Kick open the dimensional gates and get over here!) *The two Riders kicked the various Payactions and watched as they exploded into pixels*

KIRA KIRA no kocchi no sekai he (In this sparkling world) *SEGA and Playstation gave each-other a high five and then reverted back, with Yoko running over and hugging the two, making them both smile.*

Kizuna hyakubai no saikyou PA-TI- "KIMI MO NAKAMA DA" (We can just form the strongest party. And you'll be one of us!) *Takeshi, Luna, and Yoko stood together and then walked forward. The trio smiled at each-other as they continued forward. Daisuke and Hana watched from nearby, smiling as the trio walked off.*

Shin Kamen Rider SEGA

Shin Level 10: Our (Metaphorical) Little Brother


"Oh, hey, Kota!" Takeshi smiled, "It's been a while since we've gotten to hang out face-to-face!"

"Hi guys," the teen, Kota, greeted, waving a little nervously.

"Kota-kun~!" Yoko giggled before hugging Kota with a smile.

"How's our little brother been?" Hana smiled.

"I'm alright. Classes have been… ok…" Kota responded.

"Mrs. Narumi said you needed help with homework," Daisuke responded, "Well, we got a team of people doing homework right now, so, let's see where we go."

Kota nodded, with Yoko letting go of the hug. Kota pulled up a chair and got out his paper and then showed the first question on the paper.

"Well, since you are here, let's get to work, shall we?" Daisuke offered.

"Yeah," Kota nodded.

"Alright. 'A person has a patio that is ten feet by twenty-three feet in diameter. Reduce the area by nine twenty-fifths. What are the new dimensions of the patio?'" Daisuke read, only to then blink heavily in confusion, "...what kind of question is that?"

"Wait wait wait! Even the person tutoring us doesn't get it?!" Hana gawked.

Takeshi, Hana, and even Luna couldn't help but laugh at this bit as Daisuke just stared at the question for a bit.

"This is one of the most horribly worded questions I think I have ever read from math homework…" Daisuke said before exhaling, "First off, there's a fraction and everybody hates fractions. Even I struggle with fractions at points. Second off, 'reduce by'? What does that mean in this context?"

"I don't know. The sub that gave us the homework just wanted us to leave the classroom because he was mad at all the students who didn't behave," Kota informed.

"Oh my megami-tachi, this is just one of the dumbest questions I've heard in a while…" Daisuke exhaled, rubbing his forehead a little.

"So, this has something to do with a patio?" Luna asked.

"Something like that," Kota confirmed.

"Here's the solution, buy a new house," Hana joked.

The others all busted out laughing in response

"But seriously. This sub of yours must not know where your class is at if you didn't get any help…" Daisuke groaned, getting out some paper to help guide his thoughts.

"The sub just seemed to hate students," Kota shrugged.

"I will never understand why people who hate kids try to be teachers," Takeshi sighed, "It makes absolutely NO sense if you ask me. I mean, the only reason they'd want to do that is if they're lazy and want to get paid over the summers…"

"I'll say…" Luna added.

"You couldn't pay me enough to be a teacher," Yoko commented.

Daisuke just exhaled as he wrote out some stuff on a piece of paper to try to figure out how to begin to solve the question, "Seriously, this is just… oi vey…"

"There were some easier questions," Kota admitted as he took the paper back and flipped it to the second page, "Like this one. 'There is an hour and a half recording of audio. The editor is requested to remove five minutes of quiet where nothing is said. Now long is the finished recording, assuming there are no other edits?' Obviously, hour and twenty-five minutes."

"I get the impression you know that because you help edit," Takeshi guessed.

"And that question is worded way simpler," Daisuke remarked.

"Yea… I can imagine that was easier for you…" Takeshi responded.

"Ok… and I need a minute to figure out this stupid question," Daisuke sighed, "If you have other homework, then try to focus on that."

The group sighed, but went through their bags to find other homework.


Takeshi and Yoko were both working on some language homework, Luna was working on science homework, and Hana was focusing on history homework.

"I don't get this. 'What was the name of the secret military force that acted during the 1860s in Japan when there was a need to protect the Shogunate?'. How am I supposed to know that?!" Hana complained.

"The Shinsengumi," Kota said.

"Huh?" Hana blinked.

"The answer is the Shinsengumi. That was the time period they were active in and the description matches up with them," Kota explained.

"He's right," Takeshi responded.

"Okay, we only just started to cover that period of history in our classes, how the heck do you know that?" Daisuke asked.

"...it was in a video game I was playing once, I looked it up, and it seemed accurate," Kota shrugged.

"I still don't get how history is your best subject," Daisuke admitted, "You somehow manage to hang ongo dates and odd facts like glue."

"I don't get it either," Kota responded with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

"It's funny what each of us tend to specialize in when it comes to school," Takeshi observed.

Daisuke simply nodded and then looked over a visualization of the math question, looking curious and frustrated by it, "This question is awful."

"Considering it's gotten you stumped for almost ten minutes, I dread to imagine what it'll be like for Kota's classmates…" Luna remarked.

Kota simply shrugged a bit, then saw Hana trying to read a history textbook in confusion. He glanced over the question she was on and then spoke, "Okita Souji."

"Huh?"

"The person being described is Okita Souji," Kota told her, "That's easy."

"You are the best little brother ever," Hana smiled, hugging Kota for a moment, then writing the answer down.

"Man, how is it that this kid can get something that's a year ahead of his grade level?" Takeshi asked.

"Again, I know about the Shinsengumi because of a video game," Kota informed.

"That can't be your only answer for everything…" Hana exhaled.

"It's true in this instance!"

There was then a thud, with the group seeing Daisuke had put his elbows on the table in irritation.

"I seriously don't get this question. How this hasn't been complained about is baffling to me, because our two schools have the same math department head and we never got this question when we were in your grade level," Daisuke spoke.

-It says something that the best person with math is struggling,- Hinatan observed.

"Hinatan? Just show me the stupid answer, I give up on it," Daisuke exhaled.

The AI gave a nod and then displayed the answer on Daisuke's phone, along with the work.

"Just copy the work and the answer down. That is one of the worst math questions I have seen in my entire life…"

"Ok. Thank you," Kota responded as he worked to copy the answer as best he could.

-Again, says a lot,- Hinatan joked.

Daisuke just grumbled a little bit in response, crumbling and then tossing the paper he was writing on for the question into the recycling bin, "Ok. Do you have any more math questions, Kota?"

"...little bit, but I can wait since this isn't due until Monday," Kota informed.

"Ok. Can you wait a little bit while I focus on the others?"

"Sure," Kota nodded.

"You have anymore homework?" Luna asked.

"Just French stuff," Kota informed.

"I will never understand why your stupid school doesn't offer Japanese. It is literally the second most spoken language on this island. It'd be like if a school in Texas didn't offer Spanish," Takeshi observed.

"C'est la vie," Kota shrugged.

"...what does Sai- …oh! Nevermind, I'm dumb," Hana spoke.

"What?"

"...I thought he said 'Sailor V', but then I realized it was French," Hana responded.

"...that was the name of an insert song in Sailor Moon because of that phonetic similarity," Yoko remarked.

"Oh for crying out loud, that is silly…" Hana exhaled.

Yoko just giggled a little bit in response to that, while Kota just walked over to the living room and sat down on the couch.

"You can do what you want, Kota," Takeshi told him.

"Okay," he nodded, grabbing the remote and starting to search for something to watch.


The group eventually ended up finishing the few math questions they needed to do, and Daisuke was soon trying to help Kota as best he could. The younger kid had some snacks by his side as Daisuke was staring at the paper for a bit, trying his best to not make too much noise.

"This homework sheet… is the dumbest thing I think I have ever seen. Who wrote this?!" Daisuke groaned, "The fact you even got four questions of the twenty on here even close to filled out is a miracle…"

"Yeah…" Kota nodded.

"Who was your sub again?" Daisuke asked before Kota handed him a piece of paper with the name on it, "Alright. I'll talk to the math department head on Monday. This cannot have been intentional homework."

"Ok…" Kota nodded.

"Not very talkative today. You feeling ok, buddy?" Takeshi checked.

"Yeah… just been a little nervous…" Kota admitted.

"About…?"

"Partly about school, and partly about the attacks that have been happening. They say that there's monsters or something causing it…"

Takeshi and Daisuke both paled a tiny bit upon hearing that latter comment, not that Kota seemed to notice this.

"Plus… your school has been having issues lately, so… I'm worried about you guys, too," Kota added.

"Hey, don't worry about it, buddy. I'm sure everything will turn out okay. No need to worry and all that jazz," Takeshi responded.

Hearing that made Kota perk up a little bit, smiling a little as he felt at least a little reassured.

"Thanks."

As the two hugged a bit, they soon heard Hana walk over.

"Bakashi. You feeling up for that rematch?" Hana asked, holding her deck box.

"Uh…" Takeshi spoke before turning to Kota, "When do you need to get home?"

"It is Saturday, so I don't need to be home until at least sundown," Kota confirmed.

"And we're mostly done with our homework, so…" Takeshi spoke before he smiled, "Alright, fine."


Soon, the group had set up another stream and another duel had gone underway between the twins. Everyone looked amazed as Takeshi managed to bring back Shining Flare Wingman and Hana had gotten Vennominon the King of Poisonous Snakes onto the field.

"Shining Flare Wingman gains attack points equal to the number of Elemental HEROs in my Graveyard, which brings it up to 4000 attack points!" Takeshi announced.

(Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman; ATK: 2500-4000)

"Well, not bad, Bakashi. But all it'll take is one measly little attack for my king of snakes to beat your silly little superhero! I've got enough attack points to wipe out your measly 1000 life points!" Hana shouted.

"...how strong is the snake king right now?" Kota asked from the side.

"8000," Hana informed.

(Vennominon the King of Poisonous Snakes; ATK: 0-8000)

"We'll see about that. I end my turn here," Takeshi spoke.

"Draw. I don't even need this card, King of Poisonous Snakes, end this duel!"

"You're right about one thing… this duel will end! I discard Honest from my hand!" Takeshi shouted.

"Wait, what?! No!" Hana shouted.

"That's right! When I use this effect of Honest, my Light monster will gain attack points equal to your attacking monster's current attack points! That sends Shining Flare Wingman up to 12000!"

(Elemental HERO Shining Flare Wingman; ATK: 4000-12000)

"This can't be happening!" Hana yelled.

"It is. And with that, I'll end this! Shining Flare Wingman attack! Solar Shining!" Takeshi yelled.

(Hana: 1000-0)

With that win, Hana just let out a small sigh, clearly irked by that before she smiled, "Good game. I wanted my rematch, and you beat me fair and square. I just needed to ensure you gave it your all and not pulled out like before."

"Fair's fair. You actually gave me a good challenge, Hana. Good game."

-Someone just donated and said 'Did you know that, in the anime, Honest boosted Level 7 or higher Warrior monsters?'. That is true,- Hinatan commented.

"That's a neat random fact…" Hana shrugged.

"The fact it boosted both Neos and Rainbow Neos, which were Lights, was a coincidence, I guess," Daisuke remarked.

"I guess so," Takeshi shrugged.

-We got another donation that asked 'Who's the kid that looks like Yoko's younger brother?'. …they do not look related.-

"Why is it that everybody thinks all of the blondes that I hang out with are my relatives?" Yoko exhaled.

"Uh, hi. I'm Kota. I have my own YouTube channel and I do stuff with Takeshi and the others. I also edit a lot of videos for everyone," Kota said as he waved, "Uh… I only play Duel Links, before I get asked why I didn't partake. I don't have the physical cards."

"We understand. It still is cool that he is able to join us and hang out," Takeshi responded, "But, uh, yeah. That was the duel. Uh… Yoko, do you have your deck or…?"

"No."

"Alright. I guess we can do a Q&A for a little bit," Takeshi shrugged.

-Ok. So the next donation asks if you guys pay Kota for editing.-

"Yes. He does a lot of great work and deserves that compensation. He doesn't edit for all of our channels, just if we need some additional help," Takeshi informed.

"Yea, I still edit some of our other videos, but he does help," Daisuke added.

"It's fun," Kota responded.

-A new donation came in and asked how did you meet Kota.-

"Now that is quite the question. It's a bit of a long story, but a story we can share. Alright, so, several years ago, Kota and his family moved out to Industria and Kota ended up being in some school that our school was doing a 'big brother/big sister' sort of mentorship thing. Because of some weird technical stuff, I actually didn't have a partner for a while to mentor," Takeshi started to explain.

"Let me interject to say that Kota was the only well-behaved kid at that grade level. NONE of the other kids were even remotely close to caring or kind. I remember one incident where my 'little sibling' thought it would be a fun idea to prank me and spray ink all over my clothes!" Luna nearly yelled, clearly irritated from the memory, "I was so lucky my mom was able to get me a clean set of clothes."

"The kid I was mentoring threw pies at my face that she had brought as a fake peace offering," Hana exhaled.

"Then the kid I had threw a football at my chest that hit so hard that I blacked out," Daisuke added.

"And mine just flat out never showed up a single time. Ever," Yoko added.

"I ended up being Kota's 'big brother' sometime after he moved to the islands and I was kinda the guy who helped him come out of his shell a little bit. The others all eventually had to ditch their partners because Kota was, quite literally, the only well behaved kid in the program. After that, he basically became an actual unofficial brother to our family. The program got canceled because the older kids kept getting bullied by the younger ones," Takeshi proceeded to continue to explain, "I don't recall who got it canceled, but enough of the older kids were just so done with it."

"Probably didn't help the kid I got once punched me where the sun doesn't shine…" Daisuke groaned.

"That happened to me once too, so I can relate to that pain," Kota added.

"...I'm sorry, what?!" Hana nearly yelled, looking genuinely upset about this little revelation, "When?! Who?!"

"It was before I moved out here. I was trying to prove the existence of Ambipom since it was before the Gen 4 games released outside of Japan, and one of the kids I was talking to got so mad at me, even though I had genuine back-up to prove my claims, he punched me right in the privates. I'm fairly certain the kid got expelled after that because I never saw him after that day…"

"Yeesh. Serves him right. He was lucky he never met us," Luna responded.

Hana began to genuinely fume, gripping her shirt so tight that it almost seemed like she would rip it, "That little brat! If someone hurt my little brother, then I'd bury them in the ground! Or so the goddesses be my witnesses!"

The group went silent at this little proclamation, nobody quite sure what exactly to say in response to that.

"I mean… I think we all would, but I don't think saying that out loud is a good idea…" Takeshi remarked.

Hana exhaled, then did her best to try to calm down a little.

"Uh… are you ok?" Takeshi checked.

"Yeah. Sorry. I guess I ended up letting off more steam than was intended…" Hana apologized, nervously smiling.

-We got a donation that asks 'Why is Hana so kind towards Kota?'-

"Reasons that I am not able to share on something that is public," Hana spoke.

"Trust us, there are some things that need to stay private," Takeshi added.

"And before anyone even dares ask, no, it's not romantic feelings. Kota's like our little brother. That'd be awkward and gross," Hana added.

"Yeah, Hana's more like a big sister. She is pretty, but, again, she's like a big sister," Kota stated with a bit of a smile.

He rest of the group nodded in response before the AI went back to checking the chat.

"...just wanna say, I think Hinatan has a nice voice," Kota commented.

-...wait, really?-

"Yeah. It just sounds really nice."

-D'aww. Thank you. I don't think anyone has ever said that to me,- Hinatan responded.

Kota smiled in response as the AI went to find another question.


After a little bit longer, the stream had ended and the group was simply hanging around upstairs for a little bit and just relaxing.

"How have classes been for you?" Takeshi asked.

"Alright. I'm sort of one of the few well behaved kids in most of them, but what else is new?" Kota responded with a shrug.

"Touché. Well hopefully, things will go alright. And don't worry about the attacks. Just try to focus on the things right in front of you and what's important in the moment," Hana added on.

"I'll try…" Kota nodded.

"I still don't get why people think you look like my little brother apart from us having similar hair colors and eye colors," Yoko added.

"It's a little silly that they think 'blonde equals relative'," Luna observed.

"Yeah…"

The group just laughed a little, taking a moment to just enjoy the day that they had off.


An hour or so had passed before Kota ended up deciding to head back home, with Takeshi proceeding to drive him back. Daisuke soon teleported over to the base in order to run some scans on some things, and Hana soon followed after him.

"Hana, please, I'm trying to get something done here…" Daisuke spoke.

"I had a feeling. I just needed to use one of the super computers here to check on something. That good?" Hana asked.

"Go ahead, I guess," he shrugged.

Hana smiled and quickly searched up a name, soon finding some old newspaper records and an arrest file. She typed away to see some dates, then she nervously exhaled and then closed the files.

"That's… bad…" she said aloud.

"What?" Daisuke asked.

"Someone who should've spent the rest of their life in jail might be able to get out soon…" Hana responded.

"...huh?" Daisuke blinked.

"I don't know if I've ever mentioned the story to you about why it is that I'm kinda protective of Kota," Hana said to Daisuke.

"Yeah, I don't think I was there when whatever happened… happened. I think it was during some point when our family was trying to find mine and Luna's biological family members," Daisuke admitted.

"So, when the Hikaris moved here, there were four of them that came. Kota, his mom, his dad, and then… some… other person. I can't recall if it was a nephew or a cousin or something. His name was Ren…" Hana began to speak, eventually pulling out a chair to sit down so she could try to talk calmly.

"I don't remember hearing about this person before now…" Daisuke honestly responded.

"For good reason…" Hana exhaled, "Ren was a bully and borderline abusive. He constantly yelled at Kota, hit him for no reason, stole his stuff, tried to forbid him from watching or reading certain things, made bets against Kota having good fortune, that kind of thing. Kota's parents were also victims of his actions, but to a lesser degree."

"...ok…"

"He used to have to be Kota's babysitter for when his parents had other things to do and he couldn't go with them. His parents really didn't want to do that, but, given they were new to the islands at the time and didn't really know many other people, they just went with it. Remember how there were points when Kota had wounds that had no explanation and he was a little quieter? …quieter than usual?"

"...yeah. …this Ren guy did it to him?"

"Yup…" Hana sighed, "And there was one incident that happened that basically made sure Ren wouldn't hurt Kota ever again. I don't remember how many years ago it was off of the top of my head, but it was a long time ago…"


Takeshi and Hana were just hanging around the house one day, minding their own business and just enjoying the weekend. Suddenly, both of their phones went off to indicate a text had been sent.

"Oh. Kota!" Takeshi smiled as he got his phone, "...huh?"

"What's the matter?" Hana asked.

"Check your phone."

All the text had said was 'help me'. Takeshi and Hana both attempted to send messages, but came out with an error when they tried to send them.

"What should we do?" Hana asked.

Takeshi didn't say anything at first, but then he just started to head for the door.

"Where are you going?"

"If Kota's in danger, we both know that sorry excuse of a relative won't do anything to protect him!"

"...alright."


"We left the house with a note saying we had to check on Kota, and we were both really worried about what was happening since we still didn't get anything more than 'help me'..." Hana spoke, "We eventually got to the house and saw something… concerning…"


"Uh… the door's not locked…" Hana whispered, gently poking the front door open a little.

Takeshi turned towards her and then gave her a 'shh' motion. Hana gave her own little 'shh' motion, then nodded her head. The former slowly opened the door so as to not make much noise, then the twins slowly snuck into the house and began to look around.


"You know how they say that moments of trauma or deep importance will always stick with you? What I saw will probably haunt me for the rest of my life…" Hana admitted.


The two then heard what sounded like signs of someone yelling from another room. They slowly snuck over to near the entrance of the master bedroom and the sounds were growing louder as they approached.

"You're not gonna see the sun ever again!"

The two picked up their pace and got to the door of the master bedroom, seeing it was also opened up. Takeshi and Hana managed to peak in and saw a much older teen, if not a young adult, intentionally trying to put as much weight as possible onto a pile of blankets and pillows that was covering up something. They both heard a very weak 'help' from under the pile, which made the twins grow several shades paler.

"Nobody's coming to help you, you brat! Just die already!" the older person yelled.

There was a whimper, followed by the older person punching the source of it. Takeshi then just ran into the room and tackled himself right into the older figure, managing to move him just enough to knock his balance off of the pile.

"What the?!" he shouted.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Takeshi yelled, trying his best to keep the older person away from the pile.

Hana quickly rushed over to the pile and pulled off as many of the pillows and blankets as she could, which eventually showed Kota with a few bruises, his face somewhere closer to a blue, and tears coming from his eyes.

"Well… guess I gotta find a way to bury three bodies. You brats aren't leaving either!" the older person yelled, clawing right at Takeshi's face. This ended up striking him hard enough to cause some bleeding.

"You're not gonna hurt us!" Takeshi yelled, managing to land another punch.

"Kota! Kota! Kota! Please, say something!" Hana pleaded, trying to shake Kota a little bit.

"What's going on?!" a woman's voice yelled, making everybody turn to see Mrs. Hikari had shown up.

"Call an ambulance!" Hana quickly yelled.


Daisuke was left in total silence from what Hana had described to him, the redhead looking very solemn as she gathered herself to keep speaking.

"That text saved his life. We got him to the hospital in time for the doctors to get him breathing again. Ren got arrested for attempted murder and assault on both me and Takeshi, and has basically been in jail ever since. …after that, I resolved that, as long as I could, I would act like an older sibling that actually cared for Kota's well being. He's the only one who I don't do anything to be rude towards if I can help it, as I don't think people who have had rough lives deserve that usual kind of troll attitude…" Hana continued, trying her best to remain as calm as she could, "His near dead face will probably haunt me for the rest of my life. I never want to see it ever again. Ever!"

"My goodness… that's a horrifying story to hear…" Daisuke said with a pale expression on his face.

"...y'know… I suppose that, looking back at that moment, Takeshi more than proved himself worthy of the title of being a Kamen Rider. He fought, even though he had nothing, to protect another person's life. He had more guts than I could imagine myself having in that moment. He fought Ren off like a real hero…"

"And he's getting out of jail?" Daisuke asked.

"Two days from today, Ren's a free man. I sincerely have no idea HOW that is even remotely possible," Hana said.

-Do you want me to warn Kota?- Hinatan quickly asked.

"Hold off on that for right now. I want us to make sure that the rest of us are on the same page and have a plan just in case we need one…" Hana stated.

-...should we tell him about the Rider stuff so that we can use the base as a safe haven for him as well?- Hinatan added on.

"You heard that he was worried about the monster attacks, right? The last thing he needs is to actually be aware there's real monsters out there," Hana responded.

-That… is a good point, but it could still benefit if he knew…-

"Just… just don't. Let him not know for a little while…" Hana spoke adamantly, "I want him to at least have some comfort and not be afraid."

"...there's a good person underneath that trolling exterior. Maybe one day you could shed away that exterior and let that kindness be shining," Daisuke observed.

"Did you say something?" Hana asked.

"Nothing. Just talking to myself," Daisuke told her.


Eventually, Takeshi pulled up by the Hikari residence and Kota got out of the car.

"Bye, Kota. Stay safe, and text us if you need anything," Takeshi told him.

"Got it. Bye," Kota waved as he hopped over to his house and soon went up to his room to unwind a little bit.


Takeshi soon got back to the house and was about to go to work in the bakery, when Hana walked over to him with some papers in tow.

"Everything ok…?" Takeshi asked, only to see the papers Hana brought, "...you're kidding me."

"I wish I was. That sorry excuse of a relative is gonna be let out of jail," Hana informed.

"...emergency meeting in the base. We need a game plan," Takeshi spoke.


After a quick text message was sent out, Takeshi, Hana, Luna, Yoko, and Daisuke had gathered up in the base and sat around a table to formulate a plan of sorts.

"Okay, so, that pathetic excuse of a family member is gonna get out of jail within a few days. If he does anything to try to harm Kota, we'll need a plan to keep him safe. However, it needs to keep the Ridery stuff out of it," Hana spoke.

"Yeah, I agree," Takeshi added.

"...do you guys not see the benefit of using this place as a safe haven, or…?" Daisuke asked.

"No. I think our basement is secure enough in case anything goes wrong," Hana remarked, "We have it set up in case of any kind of disasters, so it should be enough."

"I think he means to protect Kota first and foremost. But, still, you're not wrong," Luna remarked, "Anyway… uh… if we get preoccupied with anything Rider related, then it pretty much has to fall to Hana, right?"

"More or less," Takeshi remarked, "Much as I would want to be there, if something bad happens that requires a Rider…"

"Hey, don't you guys worry. I'll rush to Kota's side and protect him if anything happens," Hana said assuringly.

"I just hope his parents don't offer any form of amnesty. They got hurt by Ren as well, but they didn't have it in their hearts to kick him out until someone almost died…" Yoko remarked.

"Yea… that is kinda harsh…"

Hana just exhaled a little bit, then looked towards some files and glared at the picture of Ren's arrest.

"That jerk is going to be staying away from him if I can help it…" Hana commented.


Meanwhile, over at the Hikari household, Kota was up in his room and playing a bit of Splatoon 1 for a little bit of fun.

"Been so long since I could play this…" Kota said to himself as he ended up finishing the round. He cheered upon seeing that his team had won and then quickly got off of the game. He made a walk towards the bathroom, then went back to his room… only to see a small piece of paper had slipped out from the frame of his door. He then proceeded to unfold the paper to see it had a message on it.

"'You're dead'..." Kota read, before he paled upon recognizing the handwriting, "...oh no…"


Takeshi was about to sit down, but then his phone buzzed with a message from Kota, which had an image of the paper with the threat on it, and then 'help' written underneath it.


"Okaa-san? Do you think you can swing some kind of police escort stuff for Kota to get to and from school?" Takeshi asked.

"I should be able to. Why?" Mrs. Narumi asked.

"That relative of his is gonna be out of jail soon, and he's already somehow sent a threat," Takeshi informed.

"Oh shoot. Not again. I'll make sure to set the alerts ASAP," Mrs. Narumi spoke as she quickly got up from her seat.


Kota was pacing in his room a bit, clearly scared about the whole situation. A few officers had been sent to try to see how the note had even gotten into the house, but there were no signs of any means of forced entry or the like.

"I don't even know how this got in here…" his mom admitted.

"And there's no way he'd be able to get in today. He's still in jail…" Mr. Hikari added on.

"Plus, he doesn't have anyone who could've gotten in to set this up…"

"This is certainly unusual… but, it's not like there's been a lot of usual things going on around these parts…" the officer admitted, "We'll try to look around and see if there's anything we miss. In the meantime, if you three need to go anywhere, an old friend asked if we could make sure you got an escort around."

"O-Ok," Mrs. Hikari nodded.

Kota smiled a little, quickly sending a 'thank you' over to the Narumi family via a text message.


Evening rolled around, and the two officers remained stationed outside of the Hikari household just to be safe. Kota had tried to get to sleep, but was very clearly worried about what was going on as he clutched onto a blanket and tried his best to stay calm about the whole thing.

-Everything is gonna be okay. I promise,- Takeshi said over the phone.

"...I'm so scared…" Kota whispered back, "I don't wanna die…"

-I know. But Hana and I are going to do whatever we can to protect you. As will Yoko, Luna, and Daisuke. You won't be alone if we can help it. If none of the police can protect you, then we will.-

"...okay…" Kota nervously nodded.

-Just try to get some sleep. I promise you that you'll still be alive in the morning. No one is going to hurt you.-

"...okay. Good night…"

-G'night, buddy.-


Hana exhaled as she heard the conversation end and then leaned back into her bed.

"You need to try to get some sleep as well. You'll be of no help if you're too tired," Takeshi told his sister.

"You don't think I know that?" Hana sharply responded.

-I'll keep an eye on him through the night in low power mode,- Hinatan offered, -And, if there is any danger, I should be able to buy a little bit of time.-

"You're an amazing AI," Hana responded.

-Thank you. I do what I can to assist all of you.-


Kota laid in bed, trying to get to sleep, yet wasn't able to. He soon let out a small sigh and looked to his phone, then saw a message had been sent. He nervously picked up the phone, only to see the message had come from Hinatan.

"'Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on you just in case. Try to relax'..." he whispered, then gave a small smile before setting the phone aside and trying to get comfy under the blankets.


Morning had arrived without incident and was proceeding along at a calm pace. A different set of cops were monitoring the outside of the Hikari residence. Things were still quiet and peaceful.

"I will need to go back to the Narumi house… I just need to give them some finished videos to upload," Kota informed.

"Do you have to?" Mrs. Hikari asked.

"There's a bit of a schedule that has to stay on track…"

The older woman just gave a small sigh in response.

"I'd just go there and then come back after they check and see if they like the finished products," Kota elaborated.


During the afternoon, the blonde haired boy was eventually brought over to the Narumi house in a police car and the officers brought him right to the front door.

"Well… that was neat," Kota spoke, not quite sure what else to say before Takeshi opened up the door.

"Hiya Kota," Takeshi smiled as Kota walked into the house and the officers went to a post, "Hope that everything is okay… apart from… well… y'know…"

"I'm okay… I guess…" Kota responded, "I do want to go back home, but… well… work is work."

"I get it. It's not easy to deal with that sort of thing, but we do need to make sure that this stuff is ready. Sorry if this made you feel unsafe," Takeshi apologized.

"It's okay," Kota assured him.

"I'm gonna pay you double for this batch, given everything going on," Takeshi told the younger editor.

"Wait, you don't have-"

"I know I don't have to. I want to. You're part of the gang, our family. You matter just as much as anyone else," Takeshi told him.

"...you're more like family than that jerk ever was…" Kota said with a smile.

The two smiled and hugged it out before they headed downstairs.


Thus, Takeshi and the others were gathered in the basement to go over the finished files. There was one clip that was of Mario Party that went on for a bit, but, in the video, Hana got mad and started yelling and eventually hit Takeshi at one point.

"Ye~ah, I couldn't really edit that out…" Kota admitted.

"Sorry," Hana apologized.

"Are siblings always violent like that?" Yoko soon asked, "If so, makes me really happy I'm an only child."

"Can I say something in my defense?" Hana asked.

"Go for it," Takeshi stated.

"Okay, so, here's the thing. If I do ever get physical with Takeshi, I know he can handle it," Hana spoke, "It's not like I'm hitting someone who can't fight back. And I never try to injure him."

"And this was kinda before you learned… well, y'know…" Takeshi mumbled.

"And what's with how often you yell at me when your standards seem to be 'don't hurt people who have already suffered enough'?" Yoko questioned.

"I do try to hold back if I tease you. I know you're sensitive and stuff, so I try to not take it too far with you," Hana defended.

"But you still tend to get a little… well… mean."

"I don't try to!" Hana nearly yelled, but she managed to stop herself from getting too loud, "...sorry, sorry."

"Let's just keep watching the footage," Daisuke suggested, "The sooner we get this checked, the sooner we can get Kota back home."

They all nodded before Kota scanned through more of the footage that had been finished being edited. They eventually reached a bit of Smash Ultimate footage that was done and Takeshi chuckled at one part.

"That was really well edited, nice work there," Takeshi commented, "The zoom in on the attack before the knock out was great."

Kota gave a small nod, then spoke, "When you strike, be quick as lightning, cold as ice. Master your weapon and seize victory in a single motion, too perfect to be parried."

"...what the heck is that from?" Takeshi asked.

"Just a saying from a wise swordswoman," Kota responded.

Takeshi nodded for a moment, then Kota quickly headed off to the bathroom that was in the basement.

"That is from a video game. I know exactly who said that," Yoko informed.

"Then tell us who," Luna asked.

"Kamisato Ayaka from Genshin Impact."

"...I forgot he plays that too…" Takeshi exhaled.

"You keep forgetting that game exists in general," Luna spoke.

"And that it's Chinese made," Daisuke added on.

"Oh hush up…"

"Either way, at least you're aware of where that line is from," Yoko stated.


After the last of the edits were assured to be of quality, Kota was preparing to get set to go back home.

"Hey," Hana spoke up, walking over towards him, "I went and got you something when I found out you'd be popping over."

Kota blinked a bit before Hana revealed a box of Dots. This made Kota perk up a little as he accepted the candy gift and then hugged Hana. Hana smiled, gently patting his head, Kota giggling in response before he backed off a bit. Takeshi soon walked over with the paycheck for the work and tucked it into a bag that Kota had with him.

"Alright. Hope you get home safely," Takeshi spoke.

"...would you two be willing to make the trip with me?" Kota asked the twins.

"Huh?"

"...I just have a bad feeling…" Kota admitted, "I don't know why… just…"

"Say no more," Takeshi told him, "Your guardian siblings are on the case."

"We'd be glad to go with you," Hana added.


Kota smiled as the Narumi siblings sat down with him in the back row of the car. Eventually, the car got going and began to make the trip forward.

"Well, that's one step closer to home…" Takeshi observed.

"Shame you had to move out of the neighborhood. Would've made a lot of things a lot simpler…" Hana remarked.

All Kota could do was shrug his shoulders as the car got onto the highway to make the trip. Curiously, the highway was mostly empty, making everyone look a little nervous, the Narumi twins in particular were on careful watch for anything that could be out of the ordinary.

"Are you two ok?" Kota asked.

"Sorry. It's just… I have a bad feeling about this," Takeshi admitted.

Suddenly, there was a very loud and angry growling sound that started to follow the car. The cops looked to the rearview mirror, only for the sound to get followed up by loud barking.

"What in the name of the goddesses?" the cops muttered.

The sound of the barking just grew louder and louder, which made Kota curl up a little bit to try to drown out the noise. The twins glanced outside to see what the source wasn't any actual dogs or wolves, but, rather, what almost looked like gemstones in the vague shape of a Doberman Pinscher, yet had that almost iconic symbol on the head that was a blending of an American dollar sign and Japanese yen stitched onto the dog's face instead of any eyes.

"...you're kidding me…" Hana whispered.

There was suddenly a sound of an explosion nearby, which made the twins see that one of the dog Payactions had intentionally exploded.

"Yep. It's them alright," Takeshi sighed as he looked forward, "Officer?! We need you to step on it to protect our precious passenger!"

"Stepping on it!" the cop driving yelled, slamming the accelerator and zoomed the car ahead of the canid monsters.

Takeshi glanced to his phone, seeing that Hinatan was already getting a message over to the others. Kota whimpered a bit, unaware of the actual source of the problem.


Daisuke, Yoko, and Luna were still around the basement and awaiting any kind of text to see if things were ok. They sighed to themselves before they heard Hinatan beeping at first before Daisuke picked up his phone.

-There's a hoard of Payactions following the car!- Hinatan shouted.

"What?!" Yoko and Daisuke yelled.

"I'm on my way!" Luna shouted, quickly getting herself upstairs and out of the house. She quickly teleported over her motorcycle.

=PLAYSTATION DRIVER!=

=DISK READY! NOW LOADING… PERSONA 5!=

"Henshin!" Luna yelled, quickly revving up her motorcycle and speeding off.

=INTO THE MASQUERADE!=

Her Rider form quickly flowed over her body and seemed to increase the speed of her motorcycle's motion.


The Payaction hoard kept chasing after the car, with a few of them exploding again to try to get the car to stop. Takeshi looked back to monitor the situation, trying his best to remain calm.

"Must go faster!" Hana responded to the driver while Kota had just covered his ears and was just looking to the ground to try to drown it out, yet the barks just kept getting louder and louder. Takeshi looked at the window, but then was able to faintly make out another shape that was in front of them, seeming to be a larger Payaction that was in humanoid form.


The Rider sped forward as fast as she could go on the motorcycle, managing to get closer to the hoard.

'...dogs? Why do they look like dogs?!' The Rider thought before she looked ahead, "Okay… this is gonna be a mess."

Without another word, Playstation sped up as fast as she could get her motorcycle to move, managing to leap onto the highway from the on-ramp and input the code Left-Left-Right-Right-Start.

=HISSATSU! PLAYSTATION BREAK!=

Her motorcycle glowed a blue light that soon morphed into a fiery aura dragon that rammed right into the larger Payaction, slamming it into the wall of the highway as powerfully as she could strike. It exploded in one fell swoop, with the Rider soon landing on the ground and continuing to go ahead a bit.

"What is going on?!" the cop driving yelled as he was forced to stop as a result of the blast.

Playstation skidded to a stop not too far away from the car, mimicking the stopping motion from the iconic Akira motorcycle slide.

"Go on and get going. I'll cover you," the Rider spoke.

The cops nodded and got the car going again. The car sped past, with Playstation and Takeshi quickly exchanging a look at each-other. The Rider turned towards the hoard, and began to charge in with her gun and blasting at them.

"Bad dogs! Stay down!" Playstation scolded and yelled as she kept on the attack.

The Payaction dogs did nothing but angrily bark at her, the Rider keeping her blaster trained on the hounds.


The car eventually got to the Hikari residence. The two cops took a moment to catch their breaths, opening the door to step out, while Kota was still trembling from the seat.

"No mean dogs are gonna hurt you," Hana assured Kota, gently patting his back, "We're in front of your house."

Kota nervously looked up, then saw that Hana was being honest.

"Kota. I want you to stay with Hana and not leave the house," Takeshi instructed his little brother-figure, "I'm going to stay out here and make sure those dogs don't come in and get you, ok?"

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Hana asked, feigning ignorance of what Takeshi's intentions were.

"I need to-" Takeshi began to speak, only for Kota to grab onto him.

"Don't go…" he whimpered.

Takeshi was almost taken aback before looking to Hana, who simply patted him a bit.

"Look. I'm not going far. I promise I'll be right back, ok? I'm just going to get a little extra help," Takeshi reassured before turning to his sister, "Hana, you told me you could be the big sister to Kota and protect him, right? Well now's the time to prove it. I'm going to leave Kota in your hands while I deal with this. No trolling or any of that nonsense. Guard him with your life. Got it?"

Hana nodded, managing to get Kota to let go of Takeshi before getting him inside the Hikari household.

"Trust us, Kota. He knows what he's doing," Hana told Kota as Takeshi started to walk away. The cops didn't seem to notice the bluenette hurrying off, simply setting up a perimeter to defend the house.


Playstation kept on the attack with the Arcana Blaster in hand, firing off at the dogs who got close before she moved a hand towards the mask on her helmet.

"Go, Orpheus!" the Rider yelled, the mask on her helmet vanishing to summon a Persona. The Persona quickly unleashed a few fireballs at the Payaction dogs, managing to melt them away. A few dashed towards her, only to suddenly get wrapped up by what looked like a yo-yo.

=INTO THE ADVENTURE!=

"Took you long enough," Playstation panted, turning to see SEGA twirling his yo-yo around before smashing the grunts.

"I got side-tracked making sure the escort mission led to a secure spot, ok?" SEGA quipped.

"Fair…"

"So… uh… question…" SEGA began to speak.

"No. They have never been dogs before. This is new. This is VERY new!" Playstation informed.

"Maybe it has something to do with whoever is controlling them?"

"I guess…" Playstation shrugged before SEGA zipped his yo-yo around them at a rapid pace and managed to destroy a few more, "At least this hoard seems to be getting- …nevermind. I'm not gonna finish that thought."

"Good idea," SEGA nodded.


Kota and Hana were soon in the former's room, with the blonde kid clutching onto a blanket and trembling a little bit. Hana just looked at him a bit, her mind drifting back to the days when she saw him as a much younger kid and needing to protect him or guard him from Ren. She quickly shook herself out of her thoughts, keeping Kota close to her side while scouting the area visible from his window and just maintaining a calm and careful mental state.

"Hana-nee-san? Is Takeshi back yet…?" he said in an almost whisper.

"Not yet. He will be soon… I promise…" Hana told him as calmly as she could.

"I'm scared…"

"If anyone's gonna be okay dealing with hounds, it's him."


The last Payaction soon exploded and faded into nothingness. The two looked at the damage the highway had sustained.

"Well… traffic is gonna be a nightmare with this…" SEGA observed.

-All signs of Payactions cleared,- Daisuke radioed in.

"Good. Also, gonna say this now, I think we do need to start discussing getting me some sort of a Rider Machine in the near future. Playstation got here in record time, so it may be a good idea to think about me getting one in case I need it," SEGA commented.

-Duly noted. Get back to the base and we can talk some things over. We may need to. Where are Hana and Kota?-

"...shoot, I left them back at Kota's house," SEGA realized, almost having a sweatdrop come off his forehead, moreso from panic than worry.

"Do you need to get back?" Playstation asked.

"Yea. Gotta make doubly sure Kota's safe no matter what happened," SEGA nodded, "And, uh… the cops don't think I'm a suspect because I disappeared."

"Good point."


Takeshi soon made it back and slipped in without the cops spotting him.

"Takeshi? Where were you?" Mrs. Hikari asked.

"Oh, hi," he greeted in a quick manner, "Uh… there were some crazy dogs that followed the cop car, and I just made sure that they didn't follow us. Something got them off our trail. They were more persistent than I thought, but they for sure won't be getting closer to here."

"What is going on with this island? Are the rumors that some demonesses cursing it true or something?" Mr. Hikari wondered aloud.

"...what?"

"It's just a rumor some stupid people are insisting is the cause behind the mysterious attacks recently. It's stupid, but it is a rumor," Mrs. Hikari elaborated.

Takeshi wasn't sure how to respond to that one considering all that had transpired in the last few months, but he shrugged it off and ultimately decided to hurry upstairs. Takeshi soon knocked on the door of Kota's room and it opened, with Kota quickly just pulling Takeshi into a hug, crying a little bit.

"You're okay…" he whimpered.

"I had to make sure you were ok, Kota. It's going to be ok now," Takeshi calmly spoke.

Kota just cried a little bit more, with Takeshi just letting him get the emotions out of his system as he just embraced the perceived little brother.


The damage to the road soon made the evening news, alerting people that much of the travels between cities on Industria would have to be postponed and the roads closed for safety.

"All the schools are closed for this whole week because of the damages the monsters caused to the road…" Daisuke informed the two girls in the base with him.

"I can only imagine what this'll mean for our summer vacation…" Yoko observed.

-Time and place, but whatever. So… the dogs?- Takeshi said from over a communication channel that was on his phone.

"Okay, we need to talk about that!" Luna spoke up, "Payactions have NEVER turned into dogs before! EVER! They've always been vaguely humanoid. The only time they've been anything else is just a blob. Never dogs!"

"Look, I have no clue how and why they decided to take these forms. This is news for all of us…" Daisuke exhaled.

-If I may make a suggestion… maybe it has something to do with the monsters you guys fight… whatever they're called?- Hana suggested.

"The Vaijin," Luna infomed.

-Vaijin? Like… Virus Kaijin?-

"It's not like we know what the heck The Alliance calls them!"

-Then again, as far as we know, they're not the most creative of groups given the name of the game they use to source fuel is 'Impact of the Wild'...- Takeshi added.

"But… what sort of video game character commands a horde of dogs? I seriously can't think of anything that could match that description," Daisuke pondered.

-Looks like we're pulling an all nighter…- Hinatan figured.

"Man, do I hate these," Daisuke groaned before they heard shuffling.

-Kota's coming back.-

-Who are you talking to?- Kota asked.

-Just Luna and the others. Sorry, we had a bit of a serious talk in regards to what's been going on. They do want to check in on you, though,- Hana managed to cover.

-Oh, Uh… in that case. Hi Luna. Take-nii-san and Hana-nee-san are keeping me safe and happy.-

"Good to hear," Luna said with a smile, "We're gonna do our utmost to make sure you stay safe. And, good news, no school the rest of the week. The mess earlier caused damage to the road."

-...how?-

"We don't know," Yoko quickly covered.

"Rumors say there were some unforeseen structural integrity issues in regards to where the bridge was," Daisuke explained, "Meaning that no one knew that part of the road was weaker and would suffer the damages it did."

-...ok.-

"Stay safe, you three," Luna said.

-Not like we have better things to do the rest of the week.-


"I'm gonna keep talking to them a bit longer," Takeshi told Hana and Kota, "Promise nothing is the matter. Just wanna make sure of some things. You two go ahead and do whatever you want. I'll be right back as soon as I can."

Kota and Hana nodded as Takeshi stepped outside of the room to continue the conversation.

"So, is school going alright for you?" Hana asked.

"I guess. Some of the subs I've gotten stuck with are annoying…" Kota responded.

"Most subs are. The only teachers I've seen who genuinely care are regular ones," Hana remarked, "...no offense to your mom or anything, I know she's a sub herself."

"None taken."

"Just as long as we get that understanding. Uh… what do you wanna talk about now?"

"Uh… well, what shows have you been watching lately?"


"I don't know how I'll be able to help out given the circumstances. If I disappear for too long, then I might look like a suspect…" Takeshi exhaled.

-Any cop who would dare accuse you is blind and stupid. Plus, you got your mom to help you out,- Luna remarked.

"I don't want to have her as a crutch when it comes to these things. It's irresponsible and might create undue conflicts," Takeshi remarked. He then sighed as he heard his stomach grumble, "I'm gonna go now. I need to eat something."

-Alright. We'll have Hinatan relay info to you if we find anything. Just be sure to be ready.-

"Got it. I'll catch up with you later."


Takeshi looked in the pantry to see if he could find food, and saw several packages of ramen that were still fresh and unused. He picked a couple up and began to prepare some for himself while looking to see Hana and Kota in the middle of playing a round or two of Smash Ultimate. He couldn't help but smile as he saw Kota keeping pace while playing as Megaman, while Hana was easily dodging and swiping at him as Roy. The bluenette chuckled a bit while working on the ramen before he saw Hana turn towards him.

"Don't worry, I'll make enough for both of us," Takeshi told her.

"Thank you," Hana responded.

"No problem."

"HA! I got you this time, Hana!" Kota beamed.

"That you did," Hana smiled.


"I'm sorry you two need to stay over…" Mrs. Hikari apologized as she handed them some spare pajamas.

"Don't be. We're just glad Kota is safe and happy to stay over if we need to," Takeshi assured her, "Glad you at least keep us some spare clothes just in case we ever need to stay over."

"Yea. Besides, we haven't seen Kota in a while and we would actually like to have had a sleepover. Admittedly, it would've been under better circumstances, but, things happen," Hana remarked.

"Right. Well… be sure you try to relax a bit."


Takeshi was soon in some blue pajamas that had some light green and purple highlights, and Hana was in a set of pink pjs that had red highlights. The two saw Kota was in his room and trying to unwind, and they both set their sleeping bags down on the ground.

"This feels like a sleepover…" Takeshi remarked.

"Been a while since we had that. It's kinda fun."

"...I'm sorry…"

"Kota. Don't apologize for anything. You were scared something was gonna happen, something did happen, and we're still here to keep you safe. It doesn't matter," Takeshi told him, "Try to get some sleep, ok?"

"...ok."

Takeshi and Hana just smiled, simply happy to see Kota at some form of peace and relaxation.


Hana gave off a small yawn as she got up and walked towards the bathroom downstairs. She quickly washed her hands and started to head back upstairs. She soon heard something and approached a bit more slowly. When she got back to Kota's room, she saw that it was just Kota having a bit of a bad dream.

"Uh ok. Kota-kun?" Hana started before she began to sing a little bit, making sure to do it softly so that it didn't wake anyone up. It seemed to do the trick as Kota started to stop whimpering, slowly smiling before Hana allowed herself to go back to sleep.


The following day arrived, and Takeshi ended up being the first one up. He walked towards the kitchen and was about to put on an apron to work on baked goods, only to see there was no apron.

"...where's my apron?" he asked.

-News flash. You're not at the bakery. Hikari house,- Hinatan chimed in from another unit.

"Oh… right, sorry. Force of habit. Uh… guess I could at least try to make some breakfast to thank the Hikaris for the hospitality, if nothing else…"

With that, he began to look in the pantry to find some things he could bake or cook with. He sighed a little bit with so little to work with before deciding to just bake some croissants and biscuits.

"So… today's the day that sorry excuse of a family member is allowed to walk?" Takeshi asked.

-The cops couldn't find any evidence that would connect him with the threat Kota found, so he's gonna walk free. The restraining orders against him are still in place, so he's outta luck unless he cleans up his act. …which, given all the evidence I have, I sincerely doubt is possible.-

"Given all he's put Kota and his parents through through, I wish he would try something just to see him go down to the blazing pits of the afterlife. Even without knowing the goddesses were real because of recent events, I doubt he would go anywhere but down, down, down to the bottom of the world."

-Depending on what afterlife there is, I think there would at least be some degree of cold where that guy ends up since there's a layer of one afterlife that is cold as ice because it is the furthest away from the god's light,- Hinatan commented.

"I guess…" Takeshi shrugged.


Hana eventually woke up and saw that Kota was still in bed and asleep. She gently moved the sheets off of him and breathed a sigh of relief that his face was still a regular shade and not any kind of blue. She then gently nudged Kota to wake him up and he slowly stirred

"Good morning. Just wanted to make sure you were okay," Hana smiled.

"Hi…"

"Good to see you're ok," Hana smiled as they hugged it out a bit.


Mrs. Hikari walked out and went into the fridge to get some tea, then saw Takeshi was in the midst of baking.

"Good morning. …sorry. Force of habit. I'm just so used to getting up and baking something, and I wanted to do something nice for you allowing me and Hana to stay here overnight," Takeshi quickly explained.

"It's ok. I get it…" she nodded, pouring herself a cup of tea.

"As long as he's ok, I think things will be okay," Takeshi smiled.


-Went over the restraining orders and they are still valid. Ren is not allowed within 500 feet of any of you. Should he violate it, he is going right back into jail,- HInatan reminded.

"I am so glad we all got those put on," Takeshi added, seeing that the Narumi family, Luna and her family circle, and Yoko and her mom, all also had restraining orders just to be cautious.

"That may be crazy at points, but caution is always important," Hana added.

"She's right, you know," Takeshi nodded.

Kota just gave a small nod, only really half paying attention to the conversation as he was having his breakfast over on the couch and watching something on his phone. The breakfast was simply a cup of milk with a flavor pack that made it more vanillay.

"Well… at least he's kinda listening," Hana shrugged.

"Yea. As long as things don't go badly…" Takeshi exhaled.


Hana and Takeshi were soon in some regular clothes and were in the middle of relaxing with Kota, trying their best to mask the worry they both had over the circumstances.

"...do you think he may try anything…?" Kota ended up asking.

"The restraining orders will make him even trying put him right back in the slammer," Takeshi reminded.

"I know. Just… do you think he might try anyway?"

"I… don't really know what to say," Hana responded, sitting up, "I would say something, but I really do not want to jinx it or something. Knowing our luck, even trying to guess may mean something will happen."

Kota just nodded a little bit, just looking to his phone to try to keep himself distracted, while Takeshi and Hana were both about to try and talk a bit. Kota ended up putting in earbuds and pulled up some stuff to distract himself.

"Plus, we still don't know why those things were following us the other day," Hana whispered in as hushed a tone as she could manage.

"The others are still trying to find something…" Takeshi responded.

"Let's hope that it'l work out soon…"

"We just jump up, kick back, whip around, and spin," Kota softly sung, listening to something on his phone.

Takeshi couldn't help but chuckle a little, happy to know his little brother figure was at least relaxing a bit, "I know that song."

Hana giggled a little in response, also clearly recognizing it.


Back over at the base, Yoko and Daisuke had stayed overnight to see what they could uncover. Luna had teleported in with some food for them both, namely a few small doughnuts and drinks.

Daisuke gave an annoyed groan as he sat back down in his seat and continued to try to research anything that would give them a clue. He took the coffee that his cousin had offered, gently sipping it a bit, trying to focus intently on the search. Yoko began to stir, sitting up from the nap that she had taken, as Luna kneeled down to her.

"Hey," Luna greeted.

"Hi," Yoko smiled.

"You ok?"

"Yeah. Just burnt out from all the research…" Yoko admitted, slowly sitting up.

"I'm sorry about that. But I'm sure that we're getting close to the right answer," Luna said with an encouraging smile.

Yoko nodded, accepting the cup of water that Luna had brought over.

"Gonna see if I can find a way to get some stuff over to Takeshi, Hana, and Kota. I think they could use a distraction from all the worrying about that sorry excuse of a relative…" Luna commented.

"I really don't get it. I have not found anything that could even remotely explain the Payactions in a dog form…" Daisuke responded, "Best guess is that it is a new development, but why now? It just isn't making sense…"

Luna gave a small nod before she walked over to her cousin to try to think of something, when…

"Uh…" Yoko soon spoke up, "Is it the season to start snowing already?"

"What?" Daisuke balked, only to see Yoko motioning to the monitor. He turned towards it and saw that, indeed, one part of the island was getting snow, "What?!"

"Okay, that doesn't make sense. Plus, that's not the part of the island that's supposed to get snow…" Luna added.

Daisuke quickly typed away at a keyboard and Hinatan quickly made her own scans to see that there was a snowstorm of sorts forming in one part of the island, while the next part was gonna have a sudden wave of heat.

"Okay, that is clearly a Vaijin…" Yoko commented.

"It's very likely the case. Daisuke, we need to make research on any characters that could manipulate weather and figure out what could be causing this," Luna quickly spoke, getting her mind into action.

"I'll see if I can message Takeshi about this," Yoko added.


Back over at the Hikari house, the trio were in the middle of making a snack using cereal. All of a sudden, the power cut out and Kota gasped, grasping to Takeshi's side out of a bit of sudden worry.

"Where did the power go?" Kota nervously asked.

"Uh… good question…" Takeshi stated simply.

"I'll go ask," Hana added, quickly heading down the stairs, "What's going on?"

"We're figuring that one out…" Mr. Hikari informed.

"And the heat suddenly started to go up…" Mrs. Hikari added on.


A handful of hours went by, and the heat wave had kept on going.

"Okay… this isn't fun…" Hana exhaled, "How did it get so warm all of a sudden?"

"I don't know…" Takeshi sighed.

-I am so glad that my unit can function as a generator…- Hinatan commented, with the power being restored just enough for fans and such to start working again.

"I hope that our work won't need to get thrown out…" Hana exhaled.

"I'm a little worried about what's causing this heat. It is not natural…"


Some distance away, past the damaged main highway, the ground had begun to rumble. People could feel the shaking and quickly hurried away to avoid any kind of quake. Suddenly, out of the ground, emerged a large figure that slammed the ground down and smacked his chest.

The figure seemed to have a mechanical hand and had elements emitting off his back, a head of hair that appeared to be a giant mess that would best be compared to a bird's nest, and he stomped around with military pants and boots, the bottoms of which coated in rocks and water symbols.

=ENTER… THE GAME…=

"Now it's time…" the Vaijin growled, bringing his somewhat organic hand up to summon wind energy of sorts

People began to scream in worry as they ran away, with the large Vaijin starting to make his way towards the neighborhood where the Narumi family lived. He sent down the wind and began to use a tornado to speed off towards the house in question, when suddenly he was hit by a fireball that bounced him back.

=INTO THE DRAGON!=

"Well, well, well…"

The hulking monster turned around, seeing Playstation walking over.

"Lookie here. Vaijin based on the inferior little sibling series," the Rider remarked as she observed the monster, "Or should I call you by your 'name', Crunch Bandicoot?"

The figure stood up and snarled, revealing a twisted bandicoot face with a fiery beard and eyes that were a dark red.

"What are you even supposed to be?"

Playstation blinked a little bit, mainly out of surprise, "...r-really? You don't know what a Kamen Rider is?"

"Doesn't matter who or what you are!" the Vaijin yelled as it just jumped away from her and nearby a house, "Come out here, brat! I know you're in there!"

Playstation looked towards the house in question and just stared a little, before it clicked to her what the house meant, '...that's where the Hikaris used to live!'

The Crunch Vaijin soon yelled and punched out a window, only to not even hear anybody inside. He then peaked in to see that the house was completely empty. He angrily growled, soon ripping off part of the roof and flinging it away. The growling just got worse upon seeing that nobody was there, kicking a wall down with his boot before causing a massive earthquake with it, his hair on fire as his fury grew. And then the house fell apart completely, with nobody being there.

"WHERE IS HE?!" the Vaijin roared in pure anger before turning towards Playstation.

"Now that I have your attention… ahem…" the Rider spoke, "Goshōwa kudasai atashi no na o… Kamen Rider-"

The Vaijin wasted no time just trying to punch her, his fist covered in rocks before trying to explode out with a powerful water current.

"TELL ME WHERE THAT BRAT IS!"

"You think I'd be here if I were going to tell you that?" Playstation scoffed, fans at the ready while starting to generate her own elemental power, unleashing a blast of electricity from her hand fan.

"YOU WILL TELL ME WHAT I WANT, OR ELSE YOU ARE DYING IN A DITCH!"

"...someone's got a temper…" Playstation whispered, the Vaijin trying to blast her with fire as she dodged and hit the monster with her fan's tip, shocking him with electricity that stunned him for a moment. She was about to keep up the attack, only to get blown away by a powerful wind gust that sent her back a little bit. The Rider managed to stop with her own current of wind to soften her landing a bit.

The Crunch Vaijin growled as he brought up a bunch of boulders to encase his arms more, and they became molten with fire before he unleashed a wave of fiery energy.

"Fire with fire!" Playstation said, quickly unleashing a fiery wave of energy from her hand fan to counter the fire from the Vaijin.

The dragon-themed Rider blocked the attacks with her own flames and boulders before sending a chilling wave at the Crunch Vaijin, turning his arms and head into ice, though the head was defrosted rather quickly with his hair already on fire and a powerful roar that would make even the Hulk tremble with fear.

"...oh goddesses…" Playstation whispered.

The Vaijin summoned up a wave of water behind him, seemingly from nowhere before forcing it at Playstation, sending her tumbling.

"It's my way, or you get kicked onto the highway!" the Vaijin roared before kicking Playstation back a fair bit further, leaping into the air before using the wind to fly towards the highway, forcing Playstation to summon her wings to try to brace her sudden crash.

"...ow…" the Rider mumbled. She soon saw the Vaijin crash towards the highway and then leap up to a building that wasn't too far away.

"Listen well, you stupid island people! I have ONE person that I am after, and unless you tell me where he is and I get rid of him by the end of the day, I will level this sorry excuse of a place right DOWN INTO THE OCEAN! WHERE IS KOTA HIKARI?!"

With that proclamation made, the Crunch Vaijin began to jump away, stamping the ground like a child throwing a temper tantrum. His flames began to rise higher and higher before he seemed to disappear into clouds of some sort.

"Ugh…" Playstation whispered.


Luna had teleported back to the base, and soon saw Takeshi warp over as well.

"Hana's got Kota occupied for a bit, I have about twenty minutes, so we need to be brief and fast," Takeshi spoke.

"Okay, that Vaijin clearly has it out for Kota…" Luna said before she gave off a heavy exhale, "No full confirmation, but I highly suspect I know who it is under that mass of code. But, also, that threat…"

"With the Elemental Masks from Crunch's debut game, coupled with how he seems to… basically be growing stronger with his anger like he's the Hulk, I think he might actually be able to sink Industria," Daisuke commented.

"That's pretty bad, isn't it?" Yoko worriedly asked.

"Yea, pretty much."

"That Vaijin clearly knows a lot about him. He knew where Kota used to live, he seemed to know Kota's terrified of dogs, and the fact that he listed Kota as his target…" Takeshi added on.

"Also, 'my way or get kicked onto the highway'? Why does that sound familiar?" Luna continued, "Didn't Kota say that phrase about someone?"

Takeshi thought a little bit about that, searching through his memory about his conversations with Kota…


"You're gonna be okay, I promise…" Takeshi said comfortingly, working to put a bandage over a cut that Kota had on his cheek.

"I don't know why he threw the remote at me. All I wanted was to lower the volume of his stupid sports stuff…" Kota whimpered, "With him, it's not 'it's my way or the highway', it's 'it's my way, or you get kicked onto the highway'..."


"...oh no…" Takeshi realized.

"It's Ren…" Luna concluded.

Takeshi's face grew several shades paler, to the point he'd almost look like a ghost.

"That's it. I have to go back and intercept him before he figures out where Kota is," Takeshi spoke.

"Hold on. There's still one thing we need to put together before you go," Luna spoke, "The Payactions."

"...good point. Him having those may flush Kota out…"

"The Payactions do have a teleportation ability of their own, so that would explain where the threat came from…" Daisuke added.

"There have been minor customizations to Payactions in the past, but that has only really been if there's been a lot of money spent on their stupid game, and never gone anything beyond minor things. The fact they changed forms completely is not a good implication…" Luna spoke.

Daisuke then quickly pulled up some recent news from the island and saw a robbery had occurred with nobody knowing how or why it happened, with a closer inspection of the few photos revealing that, indeed, Payactions were responsible.

"...that explains the robbery…" Takeshi sighed.

"Must've funded himself from that… he is unreprent…" Yoko spoke.

"And the Payactions must've just lucked into finding him, and us destroying them bought us a little bit of time…"

"People are gonna go after Kota, aren't they?" Yoko added.

"That's why I need to get back to him ASAP!" Takeshi retorted, "We good?"

"Yeah," Luna nodded, "That impact didn't hurt as much as it should've, so you're not alone."

The two nodded and grabbed their drivers before hurrying off.


Social media had blown up from the Vaijin's threat, with people trying to locate the Hikari residence so that the island wouldn't be doomed. Many people were more in a panic to find a way to survive. Hana had to take Kota's phone away from him when messages from people at his school were coming in and encouraging the kid to fork himself over, pretty much keeping Kota from dealing with bullies and harassers while doing her best to stay calm. Hana looked to her own social media account, seeing a few messages at the people in their friend circle that were also saying for him to give up for the sake of everyone.

"What are we gonna do?" Hana soon asked Kota's parents.

"We're gonna figure that one out…" Mr. Hikari exhaled.

"Guard him with your life…" Mrs. Hikari told Hana.

"Always," Hana nodded before he hurried over to Kota's room and locked the door, "...hey."

"I don't wanna die…" Kota whimpered.

"Kota. I told you that things are going to be ok, and they will," Hana told him. She then heard her phone buzz, but then saw it was her brother, "Takeshi?"

-Hana. Where are you and Kota right now?-

"Locked up in his room, just hoping for the storm to blow over."

-Let me talk to him.-

Hana nodded, then moved her phone over to Kota.

"...hi…?"

-I promise you, everything is gonna be okay. I'll be sure to protect you no matter what happens. He's not gonna lay a finger on you.-

"...you're a better big brother than he ever was…" Kota spoke.

-I know. And I wear that title with pride and honor.-

"...are you coming back?"

-Yea. Don't worry. I noticed what's happened, and no matter what the jerk has planned, I'll keep him and anyone associated with him away from you. Just make sure to stay safe.-

"Thank you…" Kota responded, handing the phone back over to Hana.

"I tend to forget he even was your older brother. I brought him up to Daisuke a few days ago and said 'nephew' or 'cousin' when trying to describe the familial relation because I genuinely block out of my memory that he was your brother," Hana admitted, "Seriously, he's hardly worth thinking about in any positive light."

-I do not blame you in the slightest…- Takeshi told her.

Hana gave a small nod, then moved the phone closer to herself to make sure Kota wouldn't hear her.

-Huh?-

"Takeshi? Bring him down for all of us," Hana spoke.

-With pleasure.-


The island's skies began to darken and thunder began to crack as the Crunch Vaijin was roaming around. Somebody had given him the information needed and he was marching towards the Hikari household, chuckling darkly as he began to summon up the winds and fire.

=DISK READY! NOW LOADING… SONIC ADVENTURE!/SPYRO THE DRAGON!=

The Vaijin glanced around as the rain began to fall, trying to locate the source, but was surprised when he didn't find where they were, only for Luna to first kick him in the face.

"What the…?" the Crunch Vaijin spoke before Luna landed next to Takeshi, "Oh. You two."

"And you! You're in violation of that restraining order! You're gonna go right back into jail, where you belong!" Takeshi shouted.

"I am not going anywhere until that brat no longer draws breath. He has been nothing but a thorn in my side ever since he was born. Once I get rid of him, I will be satisfied with my life. If you value your lives or this dumb excuse of an island, I suggest you get out of my way."

"...no. I refuse. As long as you're out of prison, you're a threat to Kota, and I promise I won't allow you to get anywhere near him!" Takeshi spoke.

"He's our friend. And friends always stand by each other no matter what happens!"

"Why would anyone want to be friends with A LOSER like that?!"

"Hey! You wanna talk about 'losers'? LOOK AT YOURSELF!" Takeshi yelled, "You had a chance to be a good older brother, and YOU BLEW IT!"

"What would YOU know about being an older brother, huh?!"

"BECAUSE I AM ONE!" Takeshi snapped, "Yea, I'm by blood a twin, but I've been around Kota longer than you, and while we had our differences, I've always encouraged him, helped him, defended him, and given him a chance. After everything he's been through, Kota has sought me out for guidance and support. It doesn't matter what the records may show about you. You never were his brother! If anything… I AM KOTA'S OLDER BROTHER! AND I PROMISE! NO! I VOW TO PROTECT HIM FROM YOUR WRATH AND VENOM UNTIL THE DAY I DIE! OBOETOKE!"

"You're dying first. Just for that… you're going in the ground! Consider this a warning for that brat!"

"HENSHIN!"

=INTO THE ADVENTURE!/DRAGON!=

Both Riders got out of the way of the incoming attack, the armor blocking the sudden boulders before they leaped over and went on the attack as quickly as they both could move.

"He has literally done nothing to you; you just started pestering him for no goddess-darned reason! You just treated him like a punching bag and an outlet for your stupid tantrums!"

"He is nothing but a snot nosed brat who doesn't deserve his life! An eye sore!"

"WOULD YOU SHUT UP?!" Playstation shouted, slamming her knee into the Vaijin's gut, making him lurch over before SEGA performed a spin dash and then leaped in to headbutt the Vaijin and knock him back.

"The brat is a brainless bot! You should know that I-"

"HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT ABOUT SOMEONE WITH MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS!" SEGA roared, quickly inputting another code into his module, summoning forth an orange rocket onto both his arms, which he flung forward, colliding the nose of it with the monster and knocking him back a bit, "You have no excuse to say something like that with how you act! You do something wrong, you OWE UP TO IT! There is no justification for bullying, harassing, discriminating, or insulting someone!"

"And such language is not allowed! That's basically like the r-word here!" Playstation added, kicking the Vaijin between the legs where the sun don't shine, making him wince and grab it in intense pain before the Rider delivered a roundhouse kick that knocked the Vaijin onto his back.

The Vaijin managed to use wind to get back up, turn towards the duo and attempt to launch boulders at them.

"Okay, he is seriously proving to be like the Hulk…" Playstation mumbled, "...oh. Now I get why he doesn't like editing moments where people get really angry."

"Was that not obvious?" SEGA whispered.

"Not until now…" the female Rider admitted before she heavily sighed, "Remind me to apologize to him later about that."

SEGA just sighed, picking up his Yo-Yo and using it to deflect some of the boulders away with ease and then use it to smack the Vaijin upside the head.

The Vaijin then slammed the ground, trying to destabilize it as much as he could, though SEGA managed to leap up to avoid it with Playstation. Eventually, he moved his fists together, slamming them together and send out a sonic blast with electricity following suit, causing an echo a la thunder to sound off. The two Riders got to the ground to avoid the attack, just narrowly avoiding the electrical blasts as well.


The loud blast of electricity echoed, with Kota yelping and then shuddering from the loud and unexpected sound. He clung onto Hana, clearly scared and in a bit of a panicked state of mind.

"Shh… shh…" Hana gently spoke, nuzzling Kota close to her, "Onee-san will keep you safe, Kota-kun. I promise."


SEGA generated energy constructs of Spike Wisps, with Playstation encasing them in ice before launching them forward. The ice shattered after it made contact with the Crunch Vaijin, only for them to suddenly explode in his face.

"Nice move," Playstation commented.

"Thanks. We make a good team, but now's not the time to talk…" SEGA reminded.

Playstation gave a nod, preparing her fans before they saw the Vaijin start to summon up waves of fire to knock them both back a bit.

The Vaijin just growled in anger before he began to spin. The Riders braced themselves as the Vaijin began to roar, summoning up a lot more wind that continued to cyclone around him. The sheer added force from the air powers began to make it turn into an almost tornado, causing a lot of debris to fly up with it and then begin to carry forward.

SEGA looked for an opening, quickly analyzing the area around him before he managed to spot it, soon rushing over to some of the debris, bouncing off some before bracing himself on a larger piece to scout for the ideal spot, and then seeing the way to get in quickly.

'Here goes…'

Some debris began to soar towards him, allowing him to leap off his current platform, run around, and then bounce off more pieces, occasionally kicking some to get a bit higher, 'Jump up… kick back…'

Playstation dodged the barrage, making sure the Vaijin's attention was on her.

'Whip around…' SEGA thought as he sped to the Vaijin's backside and saw his opening, "AND SPIN!"

SEGA quickly used a Drop Dash to knock the Vaijin right off balance, striking at his legs, which managed to stop the wind current's flow. With an opening, SEGA kept on the attack and managed to get the Vaijin vulnerable enough. With his path clear, SEGA zipped forward, quickly inputting Down-Down-Down-A-B-Start into his Command Module.

=HISSATSU! SEGA DASH!=

Without an ounce of hesitation, SEGA went full throttle into unleashing Homing Attack upon Homing Attack. He soon kicked the Vaijin up into the air, then inputted Start-Up-Down-Left-Right-Up-Down.

=COMBO HISSATSU! SEGA STRIKE!=

Blue energy gathered at his legs and he seemed to teleport upwards, getting into the air, then soared down with a Rider Kick that knocked the Vaijin some distance away. An explosion resulted from the combo of finishers, forcing much of the debris to go flying as SEGA skidded to a halt next to Playstation and then posed a bit.

"Strike three, monster! That's enough outta you!" SEGA yelled.

"Victory, player one and player two," Playstation added on.


The storm clouds had passed, but the power was still out for the time being. Evening had gathered around the island, and people were trying to remain calm since the threat had yet to pass as the deadline had yet to be met.

"Hush little friend, don't say a word…" Hana softly spoke, trying her best to be calming given the circumstances.

Just outside, the Payactions managed to find a back door and use their daggers to break the lock open, allowing somebody to get in. The Payactions quickly went around, trying to find both the Hikari parents, and Kota himself.

Both Hana and Kota heard the noise, with Hana giving Kota a small 'shh' motion and then gave a small smile to try to say 'I'll keep you safe'.

The Payactions went invisible as they reached the door, with one of them easily managing to unlock it. It then slammed open with a loud 'thud', and the limited amount of visibility from what little power there was made it clear as day who it was. He had wild brown hair that was a mess, pale skin, a mess of a beard, a sports t-shirt that had a '1' on it, long jeans, and the remains of a prison jumpsuit over him. There were some burn marks, as well as some energy that seemed to be flowing off of him that seemed to be in the shapes of zeros and ones.

"N-n-n-no…" was all Kota managed to utter.

"I'm home…" Ren spoke.

All Kota could do was tremble in pure and uncontained terror at the sight of his biological older brother.

"You are going to come over here, and I am going to kill you. Understand?" Ren spoke. Kota then whimpered a bit, before the invisible Payactions made loud slamming sounds, "UNDERSTAND?!"

"He is not doing anything…"

Ren turned to see Hana had gotten up and was standing between him and Kota. Her arms were spread wide and then she just remained unmoving.

"Oh. Look, the redheaded witch trying to play protector to the brainless bot. What're the odds," Ren insulted/observed.

"I know what you are, you monster…" Hana spoke, seeing the energy that was floating, as well as the shadows of the Payactions that were nearby.

"Get out of my way, and you will live."

"Absolutely not! You know darn well that I will not let you anywhere near him!" Hana shouted, "I will lay down my life… if it means protecting my little brother from the likes of you!"

"So be it. Know her life is on your hands, brat," Ren spoke as he got out a knife.

Kota whimpered in fear as Ren marched closer, just closing his eyes out of fear.

Hana just yelled as she punched Ren back and managed to knock him flat on his back, "...you are… never… hurting any of us… ever again…"

A phone came tumbling out of his pocket, with Hana quickly smashing it. The hardly visible shadows of the Payactions finally vanished into nothing, showing the shattering of the phone terminated whatever connection they had with Ren. And all of a sudden, Ren screamed in pain as more bruises popped up all over his body, and it seemed he would be close to bleeding before Hana took the chance and managed to pin him down.

"Korosa sete… tamaru ka! (As if… I'd let you kill him!)"


The police were able to cuff Ren and drag him kicking and screaming back into a police van. The young adult made every attempt to flee only to get strangled and put in as best they could get him in. Takeshi had managed to slip back in without anybody noticing that he wasn't there previously. A stray comment from one cop revealed that the phone that Ren had with him was stolen from a cop at the prison.

"That explains that…" Hana mumbled.

"Hmm?" one cop spoke, turning towards the twins.

"He violated the restraining order for… basically all of us," Takeshi spoke, "Plus, there were all the acts he basically orchestrated…"

"I'm thinking he's probably gonna spend the rest of his life in jail," the cop informed.

"...good…" Kota spoke.

"We'll need to ensure the courts are able to put it into effect, but rest assured he's going to get solitary confinement for life."

The cops stepped away, giving the twins a moment to look to each-other

"How in the world did he walk off an explosion…?" Hana whispered.

"Best guess, he landed and then exploded…" Takeshi guessed.

Kota seemed to notice the two were whispering, but before he was able to speak…

"YOU WILL NEVER BE SAFE FROM ME! NEVER! I WILL GET OUT AGAIN! I'LL PAY WHATEVER IT TAKES TO KILL YOU AND RID THE ISLANDS OF YOUR DA*NED EXISTENCE!"

The door closed and the van pulled away, allowing Kota to relax a bit as it did. Power soon came back on for the area, allowing Takeshi and Hana to bring Kota back in. The parents were both talking to the cops and would clearly be busy with that for a bit.


After the cops had left Kota's room be, the blonde boy walked back into it and was joined by Takeshi and Hana. There was a bit of silence between the three, with nobody sure what exactly to say. In the end, they sat on the bed together and waited, taking a moment to breathe.

"...blood isn't the only thing that makes family…" Takeshi eventually spoke, getting Kota's attention, "It's the bonds and relationships formed over years. The care poured into those relationships. The sweat and tears shed, care and joy, and all the love in the world for each other. Those are what truly help form a family."

Kota nodded, before the door opened and his parents came in. His mom pulled him into a hug, while his dad just patted his head.

"You're okay… you're okay… thank goodness, you're okay!" Mrs. Hikari smiled.

"I knew these two would keep him safe," Mr. Hikari added.

"Thank you for your faith in us, sir," Hana responded.

"You two are truly like a family…" Mrs. Hikari commented.

Takeshi just chuckled a little sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head as Hana smiled.

"Love and peace," Hana beamed, giving a little 'v' sign with her left hand.

"'To know a moment of peace, is also to know a moment of love. To feel relief and joy, you are never alone'," Takeshi spoke, earning a small head tilt from the Hikari family, "Hearticon, the Book of Purple, Chapter 29, Verse 4."

"Alright. Uh… we still have some police questions we need to answer, so…"

"We got it," Takeshi assured the two.

With that, Mr. and Mrs. Hikari headed out of the room, leaving the three there.

"...you were really cool, Hana-nee-san…" Kota said with a smile.

"Thanks. Um… what was it you said the other day? Something about a move 'too perfect to be parried'?" Hana asked.

"Yeah."

"That's what I felt in that moment. I just found myself in fight mode. Just fight," Hana explained, soon going on to describe what happened as Takeshi smiled, feeling proud of his sister for acting like that.

"You two are both great."

Takeshi and Hana smiled and were both about to get up, but Kota grabbed their hands, surprising them before they turned around.

"...can you stay over? Just for tonight?"

Takeshi and Hana looked to each other a moment before smiling and nodding.


Kota sat in his bed, trying his best to cool off. He had gotten his phone back and saw most of the messages from social media had been deleted, the text chats had been deleted and apologies had been sent, amongst other things. Takeshi and Hana smiled at Kota as they were preparing their own things before the door opened, revealing Luna, Yoko, and Daisuke.

"...how did you all…?" Kota started to ask.

"Bit of luck," was all Daisuke told him as he set a sleeping bag down on the ground.

"We're sorry this whole mess happened to you, but it's over now," Luna spoke.

"Yea… I guess so…" Kota nodded, looking a bit nervous.

"Trust me, I know what's like to not need to think about family. The best way to go about it is to just fill your thoughts with the people who do care about you," Yoko advised.

Kota simply smiled a bit, snuggling into bed while the others all laid down in sleeping bags. The group ended up having some of the snacks that the trio had prepared earlier and were just able to have a little bit of a moment to simply breathe. Hana and Takeshi both smiled a bit, starting to get settled down as they saw the others.

"Hey, Hana. You did great. And I mean that with all sincerity," Takeshi told her, making Hana smile and chuckle.

"Not used to that, but… thanks. I appreciate it," Hana admitted as she leaned back, "...do you think I could be a Kamen Rider?"

"...really?"

"I dunno. Just… do you think?"

"...honestly, you give off more magical girl vibes, if anything," Takeshi commented.

"Hey~. Come on. The genres don't mix THAT well," Hana laughed as Takeshi chuckled in turn.


Some time had passed and everybody was peacefully asleep. They all smiled in peace as Kota snoozed away, in a bit of a peaceful and happy state of sleep.


Arasoiatte kowarekakatta. Kono o chamena hoshi de (I've been wandering under the moonlight. Then I look up and recall...) *Takeshi and Hana were both shown walking down a hallway, then it went over to Yoko walking down alone as well.*

Umareochita hi kara yosomono. (I've always had to accept that I'm alone) *The scene showed Daisuke looking up, while Luna was looking down, both also in a hallway*

Namida kare hateta (But I will dry my eyes.) *Kota was also shown standing alone.*

Kaeriyuku basho wa yume no naka (I dream of having a place to belong, a place to go back to.) *The shadows of people walking away were shown*

Kobore ochita saki de deatta (But right on my failure, I was so lucky) *The currently known Riders were flashed on screen a moment before Takeshi and Luna were shown walking towards unknown locations.*

Tada himitsu o kakae, futsū no furi o shita anata to (Of having bumped into you, who is also trying to be normal, with your secrets) *Yoko, Hana, Daisuke, and Kota were all still walking, trying to focus on their paths*

Sagashi akirameta, watashi no ibasho wa tsukuru monodatta (That's how I realized, if I don't have a place to belong, I'll make it myself) *The group was shown splitting up, all walking individual paths before the camera zoomed up to focus on one spot*

Ano hi kawashita (And right on that day...) *The group all walked along to an intersection and stared at the ground*

Chi ni masaru mono (Something changed inside...) *It appeared the group was now all on their own, seeming to be in their own solitary bubbles before they popped*

Kokorotachi no keiyaku o (And my gray skies are filled with color.) *The group of friends looked up and saw each-other*

Te o tsunagi kaerō ka (Shall we hold hands as we go home?) *The group was shown walking together, with Takeshi holding onto one of Yoko's hands and one of Luna's hands*

Kyō wa nani tabeyō ka (What should we have for dinner tonight?) *Hana and Daisuke were shown talking to each-other a bit*

Konna koto ga atta tte (Here's what happened today) *Kota soon smiled as the group hurried up*

Kimi to hanashitakatta nda (That's what I want to talk about.) *The six were soon in the basement of the bakery and just playing some games togethers*

Itsunohi mo kimi tonara kigekiyo (Any and everyday is a comedy with you.) *They all smiled together as they danced, played board games, video games, and even just hugged*

Odoru kishimu beddo de (Dancing around on a creaking bed.) *Takeshi made everyone snacks and they all enjoyed them*

Waraikorogeta mama de (Rolling around in laughter) *with a bit of laughter after one bit, the group stepped outside to stare at the night sky*

Fuzaketa seikatsu wa tsuzuku sa (We'll keep on with our ridiculous everyday life) *The stars in the sky of the night showed SEGA, Playstation, and then two spots that could be filled by other Riders.*


Kamen Rider: Game Corner!

Takeshi spoke first, "Well, that was a lot more stressful than expected. But we still got a game to cover."

"Do we have to?" Luna exhaled.

"Yes."

"Fi~ne. This game is one… not so fondly remembered in our world. Remember we talked previously about how Spyro and Crash had their roles flipped in our world compared to yours, and the release dates are swapped? Well, the case of these games not doing so well compared to their PS1 predecessors remains… somewhat the same. Except in our world, Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly actually got some quality, while the game the Vaijin of today's episode origins were… far more rushed and buggy than expected. So, yeah, Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex was rushed for a holiday release in our world. And it was so bad, several kids ended up in the hospital for one boss fight that was so bugged and shoddily programmed that people either cheesed it to get it done in record time or found it impossible."

"Enter the Dragonfly still had issues in our world, but far less. They still found ways to add more content, make competent designs for worlds and enemies, even better uses of finding the Dragonflies," Takeshi added on, "Some areas were still inducing actual headaches, but it never got to the point of Wrath of Cortex."

"Obviously in your world, the roles of the games are reversed, though Enter the Dragonfly was not as bad in yours as Wrath of Cortex was in ours. Back to Wrath of Cortex, it did introduce characters that would become vital to the lore of the franchise. Most notably Crunch Bandicoot, the basis of our Vaijin of the day. The idea of the authors was something to do with siblings, and the other candidate being debated was Zero from Megaman X. Crunch won out, though while Crunch wasn't a biological brother, he kinda ended up becoming a surrogate one to Crash and Coco. He's obviously much nicer than the Vaijin, but worth a mention."

"Then again, the other candidate was a robot," Yoko commented.

"Though the alignments of good and evil for Zero ended up the inverse of his 'brothers' later…"

"So, plot. Somehow Cortex got back to the present with his crew and was scolded by his mask Uka-Uka. It goes in some contrived routes before Cortex decides to finish up an experiment, which we later learn to be Crunch, while Uka-Uka frees the four chaotic masks simply called Elementals because… well, they control the elements. With that revealed to Aku-Aku (for some reason), our heroes are supposed to go stop Crunch from completing Uka-Uka and Cortex's plot and whatnot," Luna summarized.

"Yea, it was pretty generic to be sure, but at least your version got it done a little better than ours. Our Enter the Dragonfly had all of Spyro's previous villains return. They did forget to explain how Ripto survived, but that's a passable mistake.."

"One of the bigger glitches in our version is with one of the power ups. You need to tip-toe across Nitro Crates that ordinarily… y'know… explode on contact. The programming of that mechanic was so awful that it flat out didn't work, which meant completing the game was basically impossible on launch, and the only reason people saw past that level was because one of the dev kits was still in the game's programming, they discovered that you could use the Konami Code to unlock it, and make Crash totally invincible. Until a second release of the game came out, which took about half a year, it was literally impossible to beat the game without cheating!" Luna groaned, "That was downright stupid and infurating."

"Though thankfully, gamers of both versions found ways to bypass all this with a glitch that somehow clipped you all the way to the final boss, making this game one of the easiest to speedrun in our world. The world record without cutscenes is five minutes flat," Takeshi added, "Granted, it's nowhere near as fast as your Enter the Dragonfly's one minute six seconds, but it's still laughable."

"Wait, really?!" Yoko spoke, almost laughing.

"Yeah. It's that crazy. In our world, though, the best record with no cutscenes and glitches to skip things is a little around twenty minutes."

"So, what were the names of the masks that Crunch used?" Daisuke questioned.

Luna blinked a bit, making her look it up, "Uh… there's Rok-Ko the Earth Elemental, Wa-Wa the Water Elemental, Py-Ro the Fire Elemental, and Lo-Lo the Air Elemental. Wait, wouldn't it make more sense if it was Blow-Lo, he's at least partially wind based?"

All Daisuke was able to do was shrug his shoulders a little bit in response to that.

Luna sighed and rolled her eyes, "Anyway, you fought Crunch every so often. And the fight with Py-Ro was bugged to kingdom come with awful hitbox detection, and the flaming effects getting so out of control that it caused at least one person to have a seizure. And the glitches were so bad in the second version, the AI for Crunch in every battle against him just got worse and worse."

"Part of the reason the world record is so fast is because, in the final fight, there's a bottomless pit that's near Crunch's spawn point, and all it takes is one good push, or a bit of random luck, and he'll fall into it and you'll automatically win," Takeshi elaborated.

"Yea. It's that broke. Ideally in the game, you're going to want to beat him at least once with each of the Elemental masks and then it'll trigger phases where he uses each in the final battle. But if you glitch your way there, he'll only use Rok-Ko and the game ends when you knock him in the pit…" Luna continued.

"Presumably, the game is mixing up the programming for the first boss with the last boss because of that glitching entry…" Daisuke explained, "Cause, people have gone to where the first boss should be on a glitched save file and, sure enough, the final boss is right where the first encounter with Crunch should be."

"The fact this game is still so poorly programmed in spite of getting a second release is mind-blowing…" Yoko commented, "In fact, the idea that while one thing got fixed only for the rest of the game to turn out worse is just… wow."

"As for why Crunch is a villain in this timeline? Something about might makes right and he changes sides because Crash beat him, so he is therefore stronger. I don't know, it doesn't make too much sense, but we also didn't get any of the Crash Titans games where Crunch was explicitly turned a good guy, so… eh," Luna shrugged.

"Or became a Mr. T parody," Daisuke added.

"Oh yeah, that happened in the other world…"

"I think they said they wanted to have him be a parody in our world, but then the dude threatened to sue," Takeshi recalled.

"This whole game is a dumpster fire. It says something that the game eventually got recalled after the second release and Activation has agreed to pay for the medical expenses for every kid who got hospitalized for playing it, and they still do to this day!" Luna spoke.

-It says something else that, on the second hand market, this game goes for pennies. Like… actual pennies,- Hinatan observed.

"Yea. Up to this point, and even after, I've seen games brand new go for anywhere from the equivalent of $30-60 without DLC or special packages, and third-party games that do terrible go for anywhere from 10 cents to $5. So for this game to do bad enough to go for pennies? It has to be awful… and it is from glitches out the wazoo, controls barely working, impossible to beat battles and levels, power-ups that don't work at all, and the new characters just being downright terrible."

"Crunch was a mess of a character…" Daisuke added on.

Takeshi soon spoke up, "Although, following It's About Time, this game has basically been chucked in the 'non-canon' bin, even though Crunch gets referenced here and there. It's likely similar to your world, but for us, Crunch is just viewed as a bad memory that fans would rather run over with a truck."

"The fact It's About Time even saw release in this world feels like a miracle."

"Yea. We ended up with a Treasure Trilogy Sequel called Spyro 4: Space Depart, and while it was a shocking angle to take, it was a nice change of pace exploring planets and getting to see characters from the spin-offs and reboots in the classic Spyro gameplay style. It's About Time came out and, while it does function decently enough, Space Depart roasted it in metacritic scores and reviews."

"We really need to find some way to talk about Space Depart in more depth at one point. It really is a fun game," Luna smiled, "It's About Time is fine, but the difficulty is… bad."

"I do think Coco was a fun character in the games she was in," Yoko soon commented, "I love the hula dancer-styled outfit she has."

"...oh, yeah. In their world, that was just a beta concept that didn't see final release. How they got away with that in an E for Everyone game in our world, I will never know," Luna spoke.

"Not gonna lie, that was surprising, and it makes our rating scale can make the CERO or ESRB rating systems tame."

"I think it says something that, in an official poll in our world, Crunch and Crash both didn't get ANY votes for 'favorite character'. Coco won with a little around 70% of the vote," Takeshi observed.

"Yowza. That is pretty amazing for a character who flat out wasn't meant to exist originally," Daisuke gawked.

"Let's just wrap this segment up. I have a headache…" Luna sighed, the others nodding as the scene faded.


Jikai, Shin Kamen Rider SEGA

Hana: You know, for someone who calls himself a 'Kamen Rider', you don't ride.

Takeshi: A~nd regular Hana is back.

Hana: Am I wrong about that?

Daisuke: We got a prototype ready. We're still trying to get it finalized and ready to fly.

Kota: What's up with you?

Takeshi: Let's just say that I'm practicing something.

Luna: Watch out!

Takeshi: I asked for this…

Shin Level 11: Riding (Free) in the Wind

Takeshi, Luna, and Yoko: Get your game on!


Pikatwig: And there's the next chapter before the next gap period. We apologize for the wait.

KKD: Man, I'm just glad we finally finished this one. It's going to take a while to upload some of these chapters, but I'm glad we got a batch done.

Pikatwig: So, let's talk about this chapter. As we have mentioned before, Takeshi has a loose basis on KKD himself. As should be apparent, Kota has a very loose basis on myself. It's not a self-insert because the circumstances behind details are very different. There is the phrase "write what you know".

KKD: There are limits to that, for sure. But regardless, a piece of the author will always find its way into the characters they write, some more, some less, but it's there and it will influence how the stories progress in some cases. Takeshi's pretty obvious with some of my hobbies and stuff, and for Kota, while subtle, it's noted that he is kinda like my younger brother. Though not all inspirations have to be the positive side.

Pikatwig: And, well, Ren has basis on my real life brother. The bit with the near suffocation… that actually did happen. There was a point I was genuinely terrified I was about to die. My mom did manage to get my brother away from me, so, well, here I am to tell the tale.

KKD: …

Pikatwig: …did I not mention that part?

KKD: NO! NO, YOU FAILED TO BRING THAT UP! WHY WOULD HE DO THAT?! AT ALL?!

Pikatwig: Oh… uh… first off… my bad for not mentioning that before, and second off… yeah, I do not remember anymore. It was years ago.

KKD: Oh… sheesh. That's still sick. So… uh… how much else took basis from real life?

Pikatwig: That bit with the "understand" and then the slam and yell of it was also inspired by something that happened, albeit without the death threat that Ren was putting Kota through. As well as the sort of emotional state that Kota was feeling following the knowledge of the threat. That has a basis in actual emotions from when my brother loses his cool. Write what you know. Also, the fact that Ren became a monster that just grows angrier and angrier was something intentional. Would've also worked had we gone with Zero because of his corrupted nature from a later X game.

KKD: I guess.

Pikatwig: Before I get any comments about anything, I am safe and alive and whatnot. The chapter, in a sense, was kind of a power fantasy, if you will. Sometimes, you just wanna see scenarios play out in a particular way and writing them can give you that little bit of a fantasy.

KKD: True. Is it escapist? Maybe, but it could be something to help encourage others to some extent.

Pikatwig: And Hana's little line at the end of the scene after she pins Ren down came to me the night before we finished this chapter as I was just randomly listening to some music, a song from My Hero Academia came up and the scene it was in had Deku protecting a kid named Kota. The line Hana yells is what Deku yells before he manages to beat the villain. I thought it was fitting.

KKD: What a coinky-dink. It's still a cute thing to be sure.

Pikatwig: Also, the bit about the Shinsengumi from the start is something I know personally. When I was in a Japanese history class, I actually knew about the stuff related to the Shinsengumi before we reached that era of history.

KKD: …how?

Pikatwig: Video game.

KKD: I… *sighs* Alright then. Part of me shouldn't be surprised and yet I still am.

Pikatwig: So, in general, what did you think of the chapter?

KKD: I thought it was cool. Yea, it got dark, but after a lot of cooler stuff, this reminded me that it's still the action series that is Kamen Rider and it's enjoyable. Plus, we get to see Takeshi and Hana both help out their little brother figure. I don't mind the little power fantasy in this one if it means being able to help others to some extent.

Pikatwig: Yeah, this chapter was fun to execute and to make flow in the right way. Having the connection of found family was cute in juxtaposition to the blood family.

KKD: Yea. Family's important regardless no matter where it comes from, but it's the bonds that tie them that are stronger than the blood they share.

Pikatwig: Favorite part?

KKD: Two for me. Both the battle between SEGA and Playstation against the Vaijin for that moment of beating up the monster, and the moment where Hana defended Kota and somehow shattered the phone to really weaken Ren enough for capture. After how we made him to be such a jerk, it was just so satisfying seeing him get his just desserts.

Pikatwig: I agree with both of those, but also the little moments here and there with Takeshi and Hana acting like older siblings. They really do fill the role like a glove.

KKD: True. Those were just sweet moments all around.

Pikatwig: Although, there was a point where you thought the Vaijin wasn't Ren.

KKD: Considering how he somehow walked off an explosion, can you blame me? Most of the monsters die in the big explosion, or at least black out and revert back, after a Rider Kick. That's usually game over for the kaijin.

Pikatwig: Counterpoint. You remember what franchise this has a basis on, right?

KKD: I… uh… oh… right. Crash. You'd need nothing less than a Nitro Crate to finish them, if even that.

Pikatwig: Right… uh… I totally meant that and not the fact the Rider franchise has had monsters walk off explosions before…

KKD: Alright. Let's now address something else.

Pikatwig: Right. The use of the ending theme in this chapter is meant to be for chapters that more so focus on a non-Rider character and/or chapters about the bond between our major characters.

KKD: For those bonding moments, it is a nice touch. Yes, it's from SpyXFamily, but it's a good song all things considered.

Pikatwig: True.

KKD: Anything else?

Pikatwig: We do also seem to get some hints about Yoko's background, even if it's nothing implicit. We'll get to her deal another day.

KKD: That's spoiler material, so we'll try and avoid talking too much about it.

Pikatwig: Before we wrap up this chapter, I do wanna say something else really quick. We're wrapping this up in the middle of October and before the 17th. The 17th is the birthday of Sylver.

KKD: Oh! Wow, Happy Birthday, Sylver… or… is it Jenny Blaze now? Oh, whatever, it's been so long since we properly talked but without you, I don't think this idea would've gotten far in the first place, so thanks again.

Pikatwig: Happy birthday, Sylver. Hope things are going well for you.

KKD: And for her sake, Happy 20th Anniversary to Blinx the Time Sweeper. If we get our Xbox Rider in at some point in the near future, I promise Blinx will be included in some way.

Pikatwig: Yeah. We may not know how yet, but we'll try to do something.

KKD: Right.

Pikatwig: Well, that's about it for this one. Hope you'll be able to be patient for the next set of chapters. Ride on right through gravity with the next one.

KKD: K-...That's a new one. Nice OOO reference, aibou. *thinks about the title for the next chapter* Oh, wait. *chuckles* Well… uh… we'll show you what real speed is next time.

Pikatwig: There you go.

KKD: Keep it Cool, Crossover Kingdom. *salutes* Jaa ne.

Pikatwig: Just Live More.