Disclaimer: I don't own anything that doesn't belong to me.


Chaos ensued as the Giff Juniors spread throughout Hiden Land, attacking everything in sight. Many of the employees, both HumaGear and human alike, valiantly put their lives on the line to help their coworkers and civilians escape. The mascots, the ones wearing suits resembling the various forms of Zero-One or his companion Riders, were the most effective, along with the Mamoru-class security androids, fighting so effectively one could easily be mistaken for thinking they were none other than President Aruto himself, somehow split into his multiple guises.

Several Rider and Lost Models had materialized as well, some guiding terrified parkgoers safety, others viciously engaging the demons in battle.

Not everyone was able to escape so easily, though.

A sobbing woman and her child, cornered near the carousel, desperately looked up at the nearby sign of Isamu Fuwa pointing out the rules of the ride. "Please… Somebody… Save us!"

She held her son tight and closed her eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks as the ferocious demons moved in…

And so failed to notice a beam of light shooting from the center of the Zea Wheel and striking the sign, which started glowing.

PROGRISE! REGISTRATION! VULCAN COMPANY LIMITED! LONE WOLF! IT'S MY RULE!

There was the sound of several gunshots, then bodies hitting the floor.

Tentatively, the woman opened her eyes to see she was surrounded by several Giff Junior corpses…

And standing protectively over her was the translucent figure of Kamen Rider Vulcan Lone Wolf, holding a smoking ShotRiser.

She thought she could hear a wolf howling.

"Y-you…" She stammered. "You're… You're St. Fuwa!"

The ghost paid no attention to her and walked off, ShotRiser in hand. There were lots of other people in danger, and he couldn't rest until they were all safe.

It was his rule.


In another corner of the park, over a dozen children were screaming in terror, trapped inside the Subaru Rocket, which was being shaken violently as Giff Juniors tried to force their way inside. Numerous dents had already formed in the door, and the demons' claws and swords had already torn gashes in the hull, allowing the passengers frightening glimpses of the ravenous monsters outside.

"Mr. Subaru, save us!" One child shouted at the hologram of Subaru Uchuyaro who served as the ride's navigator and educational host, teaching passengers about the wonders of space, the history of spaceflight, and Hiden Intelligence's space program.

"I'll get my brother," the hologram promised, blinking out of existence.

The child blinked. "Your brother?"

"He left us! We're all gonna die!" Another kid screamed, setting everyone off again.

Had any of them looked out the window – not that they would have been able to see much, given they were mostly blocked by Giff juniors – they might have seen four beams of light streaking out from the Zea Wheel.

Moments later, the door caved in with a crash, and everyone screamed in terror as half a dozen Giff Juniors stormed inside-

PROGRISE! CONNECTION! (CONNECTION!) COMPLETE! METSUBOUJINRAI! QUARTET WITH UNIFIED WILL!

There was the sound of metal slicing through flesh, and suddenly all of the demons were bisected, falling to the ground in pieces and revealing a spectral purple figure wielding a katana.

"Giff Juniors will be extinct!" Kamen Rider MetsubouJinrai proclaimed, which probably would have been more dramatic if it hadn't been in English, which most of the children didn't understand.


A group of civilians, guided by mascots dressed as all of Zero-One's base forms except for Rising Hopper, made it into the Plaza just before the front gates. The parkgoers sighed in relief, seeing escape was at hand.

And that's when a dozen Giff Juniors rushed into view, blocking the path to the exit.

Civilians screamed. The mascots tried to urge them back, only for more Giff Juniors to appear at all the other paths leading away from the Plaza, blocking them in. The HumaGears fanned out in a circle to protect their terrified charges as they gathered up around the statue of the Hiden family at the center, the demons slowly approaching…

And then a beam of light struck the statue of Soreo Hiden.

CYCLONERISE! ROCKING HOPPER! TYPE-1.

An armored figure flipped through the air, landing before the frightened group and their defenders, startling the demon horde.

"A Kamen Rider fights… So that everyone can leap towards their dreams!" The spirit of Kamen Rider Type-1 declared, eyes and muffler glowing.


"How's it look?" Aruto asked, glaring angrily out at the park, or rather specifically, at the Giff Juniors besieging the replica of Hiden Intelligence headquarters, from the replica of his office.

"Evacuation measures are proceeding accordingly. While our drills were geared more towards attacks from the Ark, our employees have been trained well and are doing everything they can to get as many people out of the park, or, failing that, to shelters as possible," Izu reported, ear modules buzzing. "Casualties are within an acceptable range, and they have returned to help out."

"Good," Aruto replied. "Not the casualty thing, I don't consider any casualties to be acceptable unless it's just loss of property, but that they're back. Hope I get a chance to talk to them before it's over… Any word on reinforcements?"

"A. I. M. S. Has been contacted, and Yaiba's unit is en route. It may take them some time to get here, however," Izu informed him.

"Which means we should go out there and do our best to help out," Aruto concluded.

She smiled at him. "Precisely."

"Who's responsible for this? It's not Giff, is it? He seemed weirdly trustworthy," Aruto asked, pressing a button and causing the large window behind his replica desk to slide open, exposing them to the elements.

"He has nothing to do this. His subordinate director Hideo Akaishi of Fenix entered the park and accosted the Igarashi family, who refused to give up 'Cousin Giffrey's' location, resulting in a fight," Izu told him. "He also summoned reinforcements of his own, none of whom paid for admission."

Aruto scowled. "They didn't buy tickets? Well, we can't have that, now can we? We better catch up to them and make them pay!" He struck a pose. "And that's how you know it's an Aruto!"

Out in the park, the spirit of Vulcan felt an instinctive urge to laugh.

"Sigh," Izu said out loud, hiding a smile.

"You knew what you were getting into when you married me!" Aruto joked, extending a hand. "Shall we?"

She took it. "Always."

Together, the two of them jumped out the window.

As they plummeted in freefall, the Zea Wheel fired two beams of light at them. One struck Aruto around the waist, causing a belt to form around it.

ZERO-TWO DRIVER!

ZERO-TWO JUMP!

"HENSHIN!"

ZERO-TWO RISE! ROAD TO GLORY HAS TO LEAD TO GROWIN' PATH TO CHANGE ONE TO TWO! KAMEN RIDER ZERO-TWO! IT'S NEVER OVER.

As Aruto transformed into Kamen Rider Zero-Two, Izu's entire body was lit up by the beam which struck her, making her look even more divine. The light eventually coalesced around her waist, transforming into a belt resembling Zea as a satellite, but more streamlined, white in coloration with teal lines and circuit patterns covering the casing.

ZEA-RO DRIVER!

A compartment extended from both of her ear modules, a ProgRise key popping out of each one and landing in her hands. One of them resembled the Zero-Two ProgRise key, only white and teal and labeled Dreaming Hopper, while the other looked like a HumaGear ProgRise key, only much more sparkly, showing Izu's profile with a butterfly -shaped ribbon over it and was labeled Evolving Izu.

PARADISE!

TRANSCEND!

Izu slid both ProgRise keys into slots on either side of her Driver, causing the lines to start glowing in a rainbow hue and the "eye" in the center to light up. "Henshin!"

Three beams of light shot out from her Driver's eye, creating a massive rainbow-colored energy construct of Zea with tiny Rider and Lost Models orbiting it and two smaller constructs, one a white and teal grasshopper and the other a similarly colored butterfly. The satellite construct passed over her body, causing Izu to be clad in a very tight formfitting teal bodysuit which emphasized every last one of her curves, her face covered by a blank plate, while the tiny Rider and Lost Models floated at her sides. The grasshopper and butterfly Rider Models came apart, their components firing DNA-shaped beams at her body which printed armor over the bodysuit, using themselves up in the process, while the tiny Models crystallized and attached themselves to her limbs.

HOLYRISE! A RIDER KICK TO THE SKY TURNS TO WAKE UP TO A DREAM OF THE PROMISED UTOPIA! KAMEN RIDER ZEA-RO! THE DREAM IS NEVER ENDING! IT'S JUST BEGINNING.

White armor with teal and prismatic highlights now covered her body. Her boots had glowing crystals shaped like butterfly wings on their tops, with similar butterfly crystals on her knees and hips. Spines resembling those of a grasshopper's legs grew from the sides of her shins and thighs, each a different color and having the semblance of an animal from either a ProgRise or Zetsumerise key carved in it. Her chest armor had a unit similar to the eye of Zea embedded in the center of a large mass of crystalline circuits shaped like a butterfly. Teal gloves covered her hands, with more butterfly crystals set into the back of her knuckles. More colored spines with animals carved into them grew from the sides of her arms, and multicolored lines stretched from the base of each spike through grooves on the surface of her armor to connect to the crystalline mass on her chest. Iridescent wings shaped like the solar panels Zea used to have back when it was a satellite grew from her back, carvings of every animal from a ProgRise or Zetsumerise key etched into their surfaces. A teal muffler resembling her signature ribbon grew from the side of her neck, patterned like a butterfly, and her face plate was white with teal eyes with lines carved into their surface to look as if they were closed in slumber, a small butterfly-shaped crystal set into her forehead between a pair of butterfly antenna. Her ear modules were still visible in this form, but had wings similar to the ones on her back, and a halo similar to Zea's ring was placed behind her head.

The two Riders hit the ground with an impact great enough to send all of the surrounding Giff Juniors flying and created a crater resembling 0-2 and the Zea satellite. The duo rose from their superhero landing, posing dramatically as their eyes and mufflers glowed, instinctively reaching out to grab each other's hands as they pointed dramatically at the demons.

"There's only one couple that can stop you…" Aruto began.

"And that's us!" Izu finished.

The Giff Juniors exchanged worried looks, getting the sudden impression they were utterly screwed.

They were absolutely right.


"You will remember my name, Ikki Igasaki!" Yasushi roared, dashing at Ikki and Vice at extreme speeds, the fangs on his arm glowing as he prepared to slash them. "I will carve it into your heart if I need to!"

"Cool story, bro! Not happening!"

Yasushi started as Ikki and Vice casually stepped to the side to avoid his attack, then shot past him in streaks of red and blue. Moments later, his fangs shattered. "What?!"

Vice laughed. "Isn't it obvious? The two of us have gotten so powerful you aren't even a threat to us anymore!"

"No! I refuse to believe that!" Yasushi snarled as his fangs regenerated. "After everything I've suffered, I shall have my revenge! With my new and more powerful body-"

"New? More powerful? Please!" Vice taunted. "You look exactly the same, except you're mostly red now and maybe have a few more fangs! You're nothing more than a Gaimdamn recolor! Even TAMAKI looked more threatening when he got a power up, and it's freaking Tamaki! No offense, Tamaki."

"No, that sounds about accurate," Tamaki shouted from the sidelines.

"I'm not the same! My power has increased by a thousand!" Yasushi declared, charging up his fangs again, which grew even longer and sharper.

"So, still weaker than us, then?" Vice teased.

"Vice, don't be mean to him," Ikki lectured his partner. "It's not his fault his power up is such a letdown and he has such an uninspired and unoriginal design."

"Ha, nice!" Vice laughed, giving Ikki a high-five.

Roaring incoherently, Yasushi lashed out, flinging massive crimson energy blades from his arm fangs at the duo. Ikki and Vice raised their arms, crossing them between each other, and caught the blades on them, sparks flying and intense arcs of energy crackling over their bodies and scorching the ground.

They didn't look as if they were exerting any particular effort whatsoever.

They casually flicked their arms to the side, causing the blades to explode on either side of them, revealing Yasushi inches away, arm fangs crackling with power, lunging at them.

In unison, Ikki and Vice's fists shot out, punching him in the stomach so hard his entire body folded on itself, a blast of red and blue energy shooting out of his back into the sky. As Yasushi was flung back, blood and saliva flying from his mouth, Ikki and Vice, again moving in unison, spun about and hit him with a roundhouse kick which sent him flying, smashing him into a booth hard enough to cause it to collapse on him.

"Hey Vice, he really doesn't like me. How do you think he'd feel about even more of me?" Ikki asked Vice.

Vice laughed. "Ha! I see where you're going, partner!"

They removed their Vistamps and stamped them on the ground. The Revice emblem appeared, and from it two new Ultimate Revices spawned. The clones removed their Vistamps and stamped them on the ground at the same time the original pair stamped the ground again, creating two new sets of clones. Then those duplicates removed their Vistamps and stamped the ground at the same time as their progenitors, and so on, and so forth, until several dozen Revis and Vices were standing together.

Yasushi, who finally managed to extricate himself from the booth, stared at the mob for a minute, quivering in horror.

Then he shook his head. "No… There's no way you have an ability as overpowered is this! It's a trick, they're illusions, they have to be!"

Vice cackled malevolently. "Nope, all real!"

"He has a point, though, why don't we use this trick more often?" Ikki wondered.

"Budget!" George yelled from the sidelines. "… By which I mean it would use up too much of the Giffard Rex Vistamp's power if you overused that ability and runs the risk of significantly weakening your Ultimate forms, if not potentially draining all of its energy permanently."

"Oh, that makes sense," Ikki realized

"Yes, exactly that, and no other meaning," Vice agreed with in a side glance.

"I'll take you all out… As many times as necessary… Until you've been wiped from the face of the earth!" Yasushi roared, charging up his fangs.

"No, you!" Vice taunted.

All the Ikkis and all the Vices stamped their Vistamps on their Drivers.

REVICE/VICE GIFFARD FINISH!

All of the Riders leapt into the air, the Ikkis lower legs covered in magenta energy while the Vices legs were covered in cyan energy, and shot towards Yasushi in a flying kick, red rings of energy trailing behind the Ikkis while blue followed the Vices, their body surrounded by waves of alternating red and blue energy.

Roaring in fury, Yasushi generated an energy construct of a huge set of fangs which bit down on the Riders, attempting to chew them up.

The fangs shattered, the Riders striking Yasushi with their kicks, each clone pair exploding in waves of red and blue energy and cyan lightning on impact, his fangs shattering repeatedly as they struggled to regenerate only to be broken by the next attack. Finally, only a single pair were left, the original Ikki and Vice, and after landing their original kick they rebounded and kicked him again, streaking past him in the process.

The duo fist bumped as Yasushi cried out in pain, fell to his knees, and was enveloped in a red and blue explosion.

"Another one done and dusted!" Vice guffawed.

"I forgot his name again already," Ikki joked, and was promptly hit by Vice.

"Dude, not funny!" He hissed. "You're not… You're not serious, are you?"

"N-no, I was just-" Ikki stammered.

"I…KKIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"

Several red energy fangs shot out of the red and blue flames, the duo quickly bracing themselves and using their arms to block against the attack.

"This guy still isn't done?!" Vice complained as Yasushi limped out of the fire, gasping for breath, his fangs shattered, left arm hanging at his side. His body convulsed as he lurched towards them, clearly trying to regenerate, but the damage inflicted by the duo and their replicas was clearly too much to repair. "Well, no big deal, I think another Giffard Finish should end this-"

"Actually, I think at this point it might be overkill," Ikki observed. "Hey, seeing as we're currently in Hiden Land, and given how nice president Aruto was to us… How about we end it with this?" He asked, producing a new Vistamp. "You know, as a sign of respect!"

Vice stared in disbelief and burst into laughter. "That old thing?! Sure, why the heck not? We've barely ever used it anyway!"

"What… What are you doing?!" Yasushi demanded as Ikki removed the Giffard Vistamp and prepared the new one. "I'm not… I'm not worth going all out on?!"

"Honestly, not really," Ikki confessed.

"Be glad we aren't using the Kangaroo Genome! That would be even MORE humiliating!" Vice taunted. "… Especially for me. Which is why I hid the Vistamp somewhere no one would ever be able to find it-"

"Sakura found it in her underwear drawer," Ikki informed him.

"DAMMIT."

"Now my blood's boiling!" Ikki cried, activating the Vistamp.

NEO HOPPER!

"Oh gosh! I'm getting goosebumps!" Vice squealed, dissolving as Ikki stamped his Driver.

COME ON! N-N-NEO HOPPER! BUDDY UP! A JUMP OF OBLIGATION! TURNS TO ASPIRATION! NEO HOPPER! IT'S A WORK OF REVICE!

One transformation sequence later, the duo were wearing armor reminiscent of the first Rider of the Reiwa era, Zero-One!

"There's only one duo that can stop you…" Ikki began.

"And that's us!" Vice finished.

"Damn you… TAKE ME SERIOUSLY!" Yasushi shouted, manifesting a massive energy construct of a sabertooth tiger which charged at the duo.

"Nope!" Vice jeered as Ikki activated a certain feature on his Driver.

REMIX! BUDDY UP! THE FINISHER! CHANGER! ANOTHER! NEO HOPPER!

Yasushi gawked in disbelief as the duo contorted their bodies together to resemble a grasshopper… And then got BIGGER, growing to the same size as his Tiger! "What the-"

The Tiger lunged at the grasshopper, jaws opening wide and claws out…

And was understandably surprised when the Revice Neo Hopper split apart into dozens of much smaller grasshoppers which promptly swarmed around it before converging on its body, each streaking through the air like a laser bullet, piercing its hide again and again until it was so riddled with holes it burst, energy particles flying everywhere.

The grasshoppers all then recombined into their original form, albeit man size, and lunged at Yasushi, digging their mandibles into his neck and biting repeatedly, causing him to scream in agony, before leaping into the sky, spreading their wings to gain more altitude, and threw him downwards with a toss of their head.

In a flash of light, the duo separated again, and Ikki activated their finishing move.

NEO HOPPER STAMPING FINISH!

Lines of magenta and green energy flowed from their legs, a magenta grasshopper leg energy construct forming around Ikki's right leg and a green version around Vice's. They shot downwards, leaving trails of magenta and green energy in their wake, and struck Yasushi in the chest, enveloping the monster in an explosion of magenta and green.

The back of the Deadman's body rippled, and suddenly Yasushi was flung out, screaming and flailing ineffectually, his clothes in tatters and blood streaking his form, hitting the ground at the same time as Ikki and Vice, who landed much more elegantly. As the remains of the Sabertiger Deadman convulsed in the sky, Vice turned to the screen and held up his fingers.

"Three! Two! One! Zero!"

The Deadman exploded, and the duo high-fived.

"But… That was a base form… How could you possibly break my contract so easily?!" Yasushi wailed, incredulous.

"Because we're just that good!" Vice laughed, flipping him off.

"Sakura's not the only one who is still getting stronger," Ikki agreed. "Speaking of, think she's finished her guy yet?"


As a matter of fact, she had, but let's rewind a few minutes so as not to miss out on her fight, one-sided as it undoubtedly will be.

Amahiko cackled as he twirled his polearm, streams of red energy trailing his movements. "Oh, how I have waited for this… Have you thought of me often, Sakura? I dreamed of you almost constantly while I was away…"

Sakura grimaced in disgust. "Honestly, I kinda forgot you existed. Also, ew. You've always been a creep, but that's taking it to a whole new level!"

"You're gross! Icky! The worst!" Lovekov cried.

Amahiko grinned. "Well, I am based off of a kind of flatworm…"

"Fitting. You're nothing but a parasite," Sakura said distastefully. She glanced at Lovekov. "Lovekov, sweetie, I know you would like to help mommy, but I don't want you anywhere near this creep. Why don't you give me some background music as I beat the demon out of him?"

"Okay, love!" Lovekov cheered happily, beginning to play their theme song, 'Cherry-ish,' on her guitar.

Sakura chuckled as she raised her fists. "Yeah, that'll do it…"

She charged towards Amahiko.

Amahiko grinned and pointed his Nodarake Arms at her. "Well, if you want to die so badly-"

Their eyes met, and he stiffened, feeling an intense pressure, a sudden wave of absolute, overwhelming dread washing over him.

For a split second, Sakura seemed… Bigger, larger than her human frame suggested. She was an eggshell, a seething, burning, raging serpent of unimaginable power contained in a fragile vessel. A presence radiated from her, a Dragon like the kind who had roamed and shaped the ancient world in tales of yore, a pitiless, omnipotent God who regarded him with all the contempt a greater being would have for the powerless worms beneath their feet.

And then the moment passed, and Sakura was simply herself again…

And yet Amahiko was still trembling in fear.

What was… what was that?! He thought, frightened. I know she's gotten stronger, but… But there's no way she could be that strong… No! I refuse to believe it! After all I have suffered at her hands, I will not be beaten again!

Snarling, he thrust his polearm forwards, firing orange energy blasts at the Rider.

And Sakura…

Danced.

That was the only way Amahiko could describe it. Her body moved effortlessly, stepping and twirling and flipping through the air as she evaded his projectiles, her ponytail swirling around her and slicing through any blast which tried to hit her, causing them to explode in little bursts of fireworks which only served to make her look more stylish and beautiful. Not only that, all of her movements were somehow synchronized to the music emanating from Lovekov's guitar, moving in perfect harmony to the rhythm.

Wait…

Wasn't Lovekov supposed to be the embodiment of Sakura's weakness or something?

Which meant, if he were to take her out…!

Amahiko charged more energy into his polearm, gathering in a massive ball at its tip…

Which he then pointed at Lovekov, firing a massive orange energy beam in her direction.

Sakura started. "Lovekov!"

She quickly took out a Vistamp and hurled it at her daughter.

Lovekov caught it and stamped it on a panel on her guitar.

LOVE UP! YEAH! TURTLE! KOBUKOBUKOBUKOBU!

She ran the Vistamp along the strings of her guitar, using it as a pick, red and gold soundwaves emanating from her instrument and forming a large energy construct in the form of a turtle which completely encased her in its shell, Amahiko's energy beam smashing into it with no effect.

Amahiko's jaw dropped. "What?!"

"That was a mistake."

Amahiko froze in terror, that inexplicable feeling of incomprehensible dread returning, Sakura radiating so much killing intent he found himself unable to move as she angrily stalked towards him.

Once again, he thought he saw her as a Dragon.

"No… Nononono!"

Managing to break free of his paralysis through sheer force of will, he drove his hand into his chest, ripping out a fistful of Vistamps. Desperate, he threw them at the ground in front of him.

PLANARIAN!

In flashes of red light, half a dozen Phase 1 Planarian Deadmen materialized before him. "Get her!" He shouted.

Not even looking remotely worried, Sakura tossed Lovekov another Vistamp.

LOVE UP! YEAH! TRICERA! KOBUKOBUKOBUKOBU!

This time, Lovekov's song produced an energy construct in the form of a triceratops, which bellowed and rushed forwards. Sakura backflipped and landed on its back, riding it as it plowed through the Deadmen, goring them on its horns and trampling them beneath its feet.

Swearing in disbelief, Amahiko rolled to the side just before it could slam into him, charging energy into his Nodarake Arms and slashing at the dinosaur as it passed, causing the triceratops to dissipate in a blast of energy. Feeling a shadow block out the sun, he quickly pointed his weapon upwards and fired another massive energy beam at Sakura, who had leapt off the triceratops at the last minute and was diving at him from above.

GOD DRAGON STAMPING SMASH!

With a stamp of the God Dragon Vistamp, a red and gold draconic aura formed around her right fist. She thrusted it forwards as the beam shot towards her, the blast parting around her hand, the aura seeming to increase and make her look even more fearsome. Eyes widening in horror as Sakura split the beam, he dove to the side…

Which is probably why when her punch connected and a tremendous explosion of red and gold draconic aura enveloped the area, only two thirds of his body was vaporized, rather than the entire thing.

Amahiko screamed in agony as he collapsed to the ground, what was left of his single remaining leg not enough to support what remained of his body. His left leg and arm were gone, along with most of his torso, and only a bit of his head, his right arm, and his Nodarake Arms remained. "You… You BITCH!" He screamed. "You think this will stop me?! You forget, I can regenerate!"

Sakura tilted her head to the side. "Can you?"

Amahiko grit his teeth and concentrated, the exposed flesh on the left side of his body wriggling as his cells started to regrow themselves…

Only for red and gold flames to ignite, causing him to scream again. "Yeah, you aren't going to be healing anytime soon," Sakura said smugly as she raised her fist, which was still burning. "Ready to call it quits?"

"N…no… NEVER!" Amahiko shouted, thrusting his polearm forwards, the numerous weird little insect mask things all Deadmen had coming to life and launching towards her on the end of writhing wormlike bodies, quickly growing to immense sizes, their mandibles opening wide as they hungrily rushed to devour her.

Sakura threw another Vistamp at Lovekov.

LOVE UP! YEAH! SHOEBILL! KOBUKOBUKOBUKOBU!

A great energy construct of a shoebill manifested from Lovekov's guitar and swooped down, grabbing the grotesque worms in its beak, ripping them out of the Nodarake Arms, and flying away to presumably feed on them.

Amahiko gawked in disbelief. "Seriously?!"

"Seriously," Sakura said, stamping God Dragon again.

GOD DRAGON LIBERAL SMASH!

Draconic aura forming around her hand once again, Sakura rushed forwards and delivered a powerful uppercut to Amahiko which sent him flying skywards. Lovekov, surrounded in a similar aura, slung her guitar onto her back and burrowed into the ground, erupting right beneath Sakura's feet moments later, having transformed into a majestic red and gold Eastern Dragon, wearing a sized up version of her jacket, with her face and yellow eyes visible in her mouth and her guitar gripped in her tail.

The duo shot skywards like a red and gold arrow, quickly catching up to Amahiko. Sakura, who'd been standing on top of her daughters snout, leapt into the air, foot first. Lovekov exhaled red and gold flames which engulfed Sakura in divine fire which briefly took on a draconic appearance right before she struck Amahiko with a Rider Kick.

Amahiko screamed in anguish…

And was abruptly forced out the back of his decaying Deadman form as Sakura shot past, foot still planted in his chest. Lovekov's jaws opened wide and slammed shut on the remains of the Deadman, swallowing it whole before emitting a small fiery belch.

Sakura landed on her feet, posing dramatically, her ponytail billowing behind her as Lovekov twisted about in the air overhead, looking suitably impressive.

Amahiko, on the other hand, landed face first in a garbage can.

"I think I need serious medical attention," he said weakly.

"You know, I did once consider going into medicine myself…" Sakura murmured thoughtfully. "Heard there are some pretty good doctors who are also Kamen Riders…"


Hana moved cautiously, head constantly turning to take in her surroundings.

Her own face stared back at her, reflected dozens of times.

She had pursued the Chameleon Deadman into a hall of mirrors, which she was now seriously regretting, because she quickly lost track of her quarry, and now wasn't even sure where the exit was.

In retrospect, perhaps chasing off a shapeshifter who could also turn invisible into a place full of mirrors wasn't the smartest idea.

"Where are you, Chameleon?" She snarled. "Show yourself!"

She heard laughter.

Caught motion out of the corner of her eye.

She whirled around, lashing out with a kick…

And shattered a mirror that had only been showing her own reflection.

She growled in frustration as shards of glass hit the floor. This was not the first time she'd made that mistake.

"This is why I hate halls of mirrors," she complained. "Wait, have I ever even been to one before now?"

"I don't see when you would've had the time, what with growing up in a cult and all."

Hana spun around…

And hesitated, only seeing her reflection. "Right. Not going to fall for that again."

Her reflection suddenly lunged forwards, tackling her into another mirror, which shattered on impact.

Hana cursed as she hit the ground, Chameleon cackling as he briefly resumed his true form before running off again into the labyrinth. "Dammit! Enough of these games!" she shouted as she chased after him.

"Enough? But Lady Aguilera, we've just gotten started!"

She lashed out, shattering another mirror. Just a reflection.

"That's not my name anymore!"

"Then why do you call yourself Kamen Rider Aguilera?"

Several of the mirrors shimmered, and Hana found herself surrounded by reflections of her former self.

Damn, she looked good in that dress. Maybe she should get a new one made and model it for Sakura sometime? She was really regretting burning her old one now.

She turned slowly, examining each reflection carefully. "Just because it's not my name anymore doesn't mean it's not a part of who I am," she said, tightening her grip on her kunai. "Just because I won't let my past define me anymore doesn't mean I'll deny it happened. After all, I'm not a coward like you."

Chameleon laughed. Hana lashed out, attacking another mirror…

Damn! Another reflection.

Catching movement on her left, she spun about, throwing one of her kunai, only for it to bury itself up to the hilt in a mirror, cracking the glass.

A fireball exploded against her back, knocking her over, and she heard laughter again as Chameleon escaped once more.

Growling, Hana grabbed her kunai and prepared to give chase, only to hesitate. Right now, all she was doing was playing right into his hands. Maybe it was time she turned the tables on him with a mind game of her own…

"See? There you go again. Running away. You really are a coward."

"It's not cowardice to use your abilities to their fullest," Chameleon sneered, his voice echoing all around her. "It's being pragmatic-"

"That's not what I mean."

"… What?"

"You know, it's kind of ironic that you lead me in here, to a hall of mirrors," Hana jeered, moving around slowly. "After all, when's the last time you even looked at your own face? Do you remember what it looks like?"

"I hated that face!" Chameleon snarled, several of the reflections suddenly changing to reveal his true form. (Well, not his true true form, but you get the drift.) "I discarded it the first chance I got!"

"Exactly," Hana retorted. "You hated your appearance so much that rather than accepting yourself, you threw away your identity. Your face, your name… You discarded it. You ran away. You're such a coward that you preferred to walk around with the face of a dead man or become a Deadman rather than be true to yourself."

"… Shut up," the Chameleon growled.

"I've moved past who I once was, but I keep the name as a reminder of who I used to be," Hana continued. "But you? You don't even have a name anymore! You have no identity of your own! You're just the Chameleon Deadman! You, Yasushi, Amahiko… All three of you were losers, but at least they were true to themselves! But you? You're the most pathetic of them all!"

"SHUT UP!" The Chameleon shouted, all of the reflections lunging at her.

Hana immediately drove to the ground, thrusting her kunai upwards as the Chameleon passed over her, slicing deep into his chest as he flew overhead, causing him to cry out in pain as he slammed into another mirror, shattering it.

Triumphant, Hana surged to her feet and raced over, hoping to finish him before he could recover…

"Hana."

And froze, kunai inches away from the eye of Sakura Igarashi.

She stood there, trembling.

It wasn't Sakura. Of course it wasn't. Her beloved was outside, fighting the worm Amahiko alongside their daughter. This was just the Chameleon, playing tricks on her again.

She still couldn't bring herself to drive the blade home.

Smiling sweetly, the fake Sakura pushed the dagger away with one finger and rose to her feet, revealing she was completely naked because of course she was, forcing Hana to drink in every inch of this perfect replica of her girlfriend in all her beauty.

Fuck.

Fuck fuck fuck fuck.

Sakura smiled at her radiantly, wrapped her arms around her, and pushed her breasts into her chest, creating a very pleasing squishing sound. "I love you, Hana," she whispered before kissing her mask.

This was wrong.

This was horribly, horribly wrong.

Hana didn't move a muscle, her body instinctually relaxing, melting into the all-too-familiar body of her soulmate, subconsciously submitting to her mistress and goddess as they vigorously made out.

Hana moaned in lust, eyes fluttering as Sakura gradually moved lower, leaving a trail of kisses on her armor as she knelt on the ground before her, reaching for-

Wait.

She knelt-

Her hand shot out, grabbing Sakura's wrist just before her hand could disengage her Driver. Startled, Sakura looked up. "Hana? What are you doing? You're… You're hurting me."

"You shouldn't have made her kneel."

"What?"

Hana grabbed Sakura by the neck and pulled her up, squeezing until she heard bones start to crack, her body shimmering as she reverted back to the Chameleon Deadman, gasping for breath.

"You shouldn't have made her kneel," Hana snarled, trembling with absolute hate. "I may be a queen… But Sakura Igarashi is a goddess, and she bows to no one!"

She stamped her Week Endriver.

DEADLY APPROVAL! QUEEN BEE STAMPING DESTROY!

Shouting at the top of her lungs, Hana manifested her wings and shot forwards, slamming the screaming Chameleon through every mirror in her path while repeatedly stabbing him with her Needle Kunai, charged with red and yellow energy.

Eventually, they smashed through a wall and flew back out into the park proper. Hana threw him away, then hurled her kunai at his feet, pinning him to the ground and holding him in place.

She stamped her Driver again.

QUEEN BEE STAMPING BREAK!

Hana's leg was covered in magenta energy and a burst of red energy. That energy was then strengthened and accompanied by additional crimson and yellow energy. She performed a roundhouse kick, energy trailing after her leg, striking the Chameleon in the chest, both of them screaming on impact, her in fury, him in terror.

The Chameleon's back rippled, and suddenly his true human form was ejected, bleeding and clothes in tatters, sprawling helplessly on the ground. Hana dramatically turned around as what was left of the Deadman convulsed, howled, and collapsed, exploding.

"Guess that's it… Oh, I hate this," the nameless man whined before passing out.

"No matter what name I go by… I will always be a queen," Hana proclaimed.

She paused, a thought occurring to her. "Wait, how did I do that? I don't have the power to separate Deadmen from their contractors… Do I?"


Akaishi used his incredible speed to zip around Genta, occasionally slashing him with his claws, striking him with his tail, or hitting him with a powerful punch or kick before quickly moving back out of range. "What's wrong, Genta Igarashi? You said you were going to make me pay for stealing your son from you! But all you're doing is just standing there, letting yourself get hit!"

"It was always you, wasn't it?"

Akaishi blinked. "Eh?"

"Vail killed my parents. Masumi Karizaki brought me back from the dead. Agariyama treated me as something less than human and turned me into a weapon…

"But you. You were there from the start. You were the one really pulling the strings at NOAH, weren't you? Just like you manipulated the Deadmans, Fenix, everyone on both sides of this conflict! Everything… All the suffering my family has gone through… You're the architect of it all!" Genta accused him.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," Akaishi said enigmatically. "But if it's true, consider this: if you had not been turned into a Kamen Rider by NOAH, your life as you know it would not exist! There would be no Genta Igarashi. You would not be happily married with three children and co-owner of a charming small business. If I caused all your woes, I also gave you all your joys as well!"

Genta narrowed his eyes. "And I suppose I should be grateful?"

"Whether or not you thank me for my actions is irrelevant. Even if I did create you, you're standing in my way… And if you continue to do so, I will not hesitate to eliminate you!" Akaishi declared.

Genta glanced at Daiji, standing nearby. "And you agree with that, son? You're really going to let him kill your old man?"

"I'm really hoping it won't come to that," Daiji said uncomfortably.

Genta laughed and smashed his fists together. "Well, too bad, because I'm not going to stand down! Not to this bastard, or anyone else!"

Akaishi sneered. "If that's your final decision."

He dashed forwards…

And six mechanical appendages, the Herclaws, suddenly extended from Genta's back, piercing Akaishi's feet, forearms, and torso, stopping him in place. "What?!"

"I wasn't just letting myself get hit, Akaishi. I was taking measure of your abilities… And making sure my timing was perfect!" He declared.

"… Impressive. With my feet pierced, I cannot move, and I cannot regenerate so long as your claws are piercing me," Akaishi observed, surprised. "Unfortunately for you, I am far from helpless!"

Purple energy crackled around his hands, and he grabbed the Herclaws buried in his forearms, sending that energy flowing up the mechanical appendages and engulfing Genta in purple flames.

"Dad!" Daiji gasped in horror as his father screamed.

Akaishi chuckled… And was startled when Genta started laughing as well. "You think… This hurts?!" The Igarashi patriarch cried, producing a Vistamp. "Compared to everything I went through at NOAH… This is NOTHING!"

He stamped the Vistamp on his Driver.

DOMINATE UP! KOMODO DRAGON! NEO BURST!

The Komodo Dragonic Heat gauntlet materialized on his left arm. Shouting at the top of his lungs, Genta channeled the fire engulfing his body into his left hand, the eyes on the gauntlet lighting up as the flames changed color.

"Let's see how YOU like it!" Genta cried, blasting Akaishi with a tremendous blast of flame.

DESTREAM NOVA!

Now it was Akaishi's turn to scream.

HOLY JUSTICE FINISH!

Wings spread, Daiji swooped down, spinning around and using his Livegun's blade to generate several blue and cyan energy slashes around himself. He smashed into the Herclaws, the spinning blades not only shielding him from impact but severing the mechanical legs, flinging both Genta and Akaishi back.

"Dammit, son, I had him!" Genta snapped in frustration, batting away the feathers Daiji constantly seemed to molt while in flight as his Herclaws started repairing themselves.

"I can't let you take him out!" Daiji yelled as he opened fire with his Livegun, bombarding his father with cyan energy bullets, forcing Genta to raise the Komodo Dragonic Heat, generating a heat barrier which caused the projectile's to curve away from him. "We need him! Humanity needs him!"

"Humanity?! Daiji, do you know how many atrocities this man has caused?! He's responsible for World War II!" Genta shot back.

"Indirectly responsible!" Akaishi insisted, ripping the Herclaws out of his body, sighing in relief as the wounds healed up. "Azuma is the one who killed Archduke Ferdinand!"

"On your orders!" Genta yelled, firing another blast of flames at Akaishi.

Daiji dropped down in front of his master, folding his wings in front of himself to create a shield, the flames breaking against it. Opening his wings back up as soon as the fire died down, Daiji revealed his Livegun was fully charged for another finisher.

HOLY JUSTICE FINISH!

He pulled the trigger, firing a massive cyan blade-shaped energy projectile at his father. Genta put as much power into his heat barrier as he could as the projectile slammed into him, driving his repaired Herclaws into the ground to hold himself in place and keep from being thrown back. He grunted, sweating in exertion as he tried to hold the blast back-

Akaishi fired a massive purple energy blast of his own, the two projectiles co-mingling into a single blast far too large for Genta to defend himself against, overwhelming his barrier and enveloping him in a cyan and purple explosion.

Genta was flung from the blast, crying out as he rolled across the ground, Herclaws broken once again, his gauntlet fading away. Before he could get up, Daiji planted a foot on his stomach, pointing his gun right between his eyes. "It's over. Give it up already! Just tell us where Giff is and this will all be over!"

Genta stared up at him in defiance and disappointment. "… Who are you? I don't know you. You're certainly not the son I raised."

"Shut up."

"The Daiji I know fought for justice. Real justice, not the convenient label fascists used to justify their atrocities," Genta spat. "He wouldn't help a tyrant. He wouldn't fight alongside terrorists. He wouldn't attack helpless civilians or betray his own family!"

Daiji hesitated. "It's for the greater-"

"DON'T!" Genta shouted, causing him to flinch. "Don't you dare finish that sentence! The 'greater good?' My parents were murdered for the greater good. I died and was brought back for the greater good. I was stripped of my name, turned into a weapon, treated as less than human, and made to clean up other people's messes for the greater good! The greater good is, and always will be, an excuse to do horrible, evil acts with a clean conscience. The ends do not justify the means! After everything Akaishi has done to us, to you, how can you possibly still side with him?!"

"BECAUSE AT LEAST HE'S WILLING TO TAKE MY SIDE!"

They stared each other, stunned. Daiji trembled, shocked by what he had just said. "I-"

"I see. So, in the end, on some level it all boils down to you still resenting your siblings and feeling like you're in their shadow," Genta said softly, sadly.

"That's not… No! That's not what I-" Daiji protested.

"I'm not going to fight you, son. Even if I think you're making a terrible mistake, I won't fight. I know you're better than this, even if you don't," Genta said calmly.

Daiji trembled and glanced at Akaishi, who stared him impassively. "I… I don't…"

"However… While I don't want to fight you… I know someone else who has no problem with it," Genta said, producing a very large Vistamp resembling a paint roller.

BLACKOUT!

Daiji's eyes widened in disbelief. "What?!"

"Daiji! Shoot him!" Akaishi shouted, horrified at the realization of just what that Vistamp was.

Daiji tried to pull the trigger…

And froze.

In that instant, Genta rolled the Vistamp across his chest, leaving a streak of red and black paint with a demonic visage in it. "Time to wake up… VAIL!"

He cried out in pain as a massive blast of red and black energy erupted from his chest, hurling Daiji off of him. The mass of dark energy coalesced into a crackling cloud of darkness, a pair of huge purple eyes cracking open and a jagged toothed mouth stretching into a grin.

"I'm back."

With that horrifying proclamation, the cloud compressed on itself, swirling down to the ground and taking on a humanoid form, red energy crackling around it as it solidified into what looked an awful lot like Vice, but with purple eyes, red and black coloration, and no face mask, revealing a jagged red toothed grin.

"No… No, that's not possible!" Daiji wailed. "You died! I saw you die!"

"No, I reabsorbed him," Genta corrected him. "Totally different."

"I almost did die," Vail admitted, voice smooth. "But after spending the last few weeks in Genta's heart, where I truly belong… My body has stabilized, and I am back at full power…" He opened his hand, which crackled with crimson energy. "And then some."

"And you think this will help you? Vail despises you, and your entire family!" Akaishi pointed out.

Genta chuckled as he stood up, clapping Vail on the shoulder. "Nah, the two of us have come to an understanding. We really have a lot in common. Isn't that right, best buddy?"

"I told you not to call me that," Vail grumbled good-naturedly, rolling his eyes.

"… Are you serious?!" Daiji screamed. "You went off on me for working with Akaishi and the other former Deadmans, but you're willing to work with him?! The guy who killed your parents and tried to kill us on numerous occasions?!"

"I forgave him, just as I forgive you," Genta replied immediately. "He is as much a part of this family as you are, Daiji, and none of us is blameless. I killed a lot of people who didn't deserve it back in the day, and didn't care because I was too obsessed with revenge to think any differently. Your mother technically took advantage of my amnesia to shape me into her ideal partner. Vice tried to eat your mother. Sakura is dating her stalker. Lovekov is dating someone way older than her. Your brother briefly dabbled in NFT's and cryptocurrency and nearly cost us the house. If we can't accept each other as we are, warts and all, how can we call each other family? Vail's my inner demon, and as much a part of me as Vice and Lovekov are for your brother and sister.

"And can you really honestly tell me that if Kagerou didn't show up and say he wanted to make things right, you wouldn't accept him back without a second thought?"

Daiji flinched at this, realizing his father was right.

"… You're all insane," Akaishi realized, astonished.

Vail chuckled ruefully. "You're just figuring that out now?"

"You know what to do, partner?" Genta asked Vail, handing him the Crimson Vistamp.

"Rough him up a bit but don't kill him. Just enough to teach him a lesson. Don't worry, I know how to hold back," Vail promised him. "And hey, you know I'm always up for disciplining your brats since you're too much of a softy to do it yourself."

"If I weren't such a softy, you wouldn't be here now," Genta pointed out.

"Heh, fair enough," Vail conceded, activating the Vistamp.

BLACKOUT! CRIMSON UP! CRIMSON VAIL!

"All right, boy," Crimson Vail sneered, revving up his Vistamp. "If I were still a Rider I'd say it was time to take my belt off to you… So I'll have to be satisfied with painting you red instead."

Daiji whimpered.

"And don't think we're done, Akaishi," Genta announced, producing two Vistamps and stamping them on his Driver, one after the other.

DOMINATE UP! KOMODO DRAGON! NEO BURST!

DOMINATE UP! CROCODILE! NEO BURST!

The Komodo Dragonic Heat reappeared on his left arm, while a crocodilian drill, the Croco Wizarolling, manifested on his right.

Akaishi gawked in disbelief. "Both at the same time?!"

"I've been a Rider a lot longer than any of my kids, so my body can handle it," Genta bragged without a hint of strain. "I'd use the Kong Vistamp as well, except I'm out of arms, and my Herclaws aren't exactly suited for boxing."

He revved up his drill as his flamethrower ignited. "You've tussled with my kids, Akaishi, and screwed with my son's head… Now you'll feel what it's like to take on the family patriarch!"

Despite himself, Akaishi found himself uncharacteristically worried.


Things looked pretty dire for Tamaki and Ampaz. After being chased away from the others by a bunch of Giff Juniors, they'd been cornered outside the shooting gallery, and were surrounded by demons, who looked like they were all too eager to rip them to pieces. "I don't suppose us telling you that we are friends with your boss would help?" The Pythonian asked anxiously.

The hisses and snarls from the Giff Juniors indicated that no, it would not.

"Ampaz, I'll distract them," Tamaki said, stepping in front of his girlfriend. "And while they're ripping me limb from limb, you can get away!"

Ampaz gasped in horror. "Tamaki, no! That's a terrible idea! You're so frail and squishy, they'd finish you off in seconds and then turn on me!"

"Dammit, you're right!" Tamaki cursed. "Why must I be so easily killable?!"

"Because if you weren't, you wouldn't be Tamaki!" Olteca sneered, the demons parting as he stepped forward.

"You!" Tamaki snarled, voice dripping with vitriol.

"Hey, buddy! Long time no see!" Olteca said with a disingenuous smile. "I have to say, I really am impressed you got yourself a girlfriend! Good on you! I'm gonna kill her now. I mean, hey, I killed your best friend, might as well make it two for two, right?"

"Oh hell no, I'm not going to be stuffed in a fridge!" Ampaz protested, horrified.

"Yeah, I'm not actually giving you a choice in the matter," Olteca said, producing a horrifyingly familiar device.

DEMONS DRIVER!

Tamaki gasped, eyes widening in horror. "That's…! How did you-"

"Don't worry, that friend of yours is still alive, much to my disappointment. What was his name again? Eh, I don't really care," Olteca said with a shrug, strapping the Driver on. "He called himself Over Demons, which is a stupid name. I think I'm going to call myself Superior Demons instead, because I'm way better than that loser or Kadota."

"Don't you dare talk about Kadota like that!" Tamaki spat, livid.

Olteca scoffed. "Since when do you care about him? Whatever. I'm going to murder your girlfriend and make you watch."

He produced a Vistamp.

STAG BEET-

Without warning, an arrow suddenly struck Olteca's hand, knocking the Vistamp out of it. "GAH! What the hell?! Who-"

"OLTECA!"

Olteca looked up. His eyes widened in disbelief. "No… That's not possible! You died! I killed you!"

"Rumors of my death," Hiromi Kadota declared from his perch atop the shooting gallery, a bow in one hand and a notched arrow in the other, his trenchcoat billowing in the breeze. "Were greatly exaggerated!"

"Mr. Kadota! You're here!" Tamaki exclaimed in delight. "But what about your surgery?"

"The first procedure to undo the damage the Demons Driver did to me was a complete success," Hiromi said. "I'm not quite fit for combat yet… But if I can help, then I absolutely will! And, more importantly…"

He grinned. "I brought reinforcements!"

Suddenly, about a dozen Demons Troopers appeared, attacking the startled Giff Juniors with their Ohinbuster50s and Osutodero50s. Kadota provided support, firing arrow after arrow into the demonic horde as his soldiers engaged the enemy.

Olteca growled in irritation. "Dammit… Whatever! I'm still plenty strong enough to kill you all anyway-"

He stopped, seeing that Tamaki was now holding the Stag Beetle Vistamp. "What the… Tamaki, what are you doing with that?"

"Using it for its real purpose… Fighting monsters like you!" Tamaki declared.

Olteca burst into laughter. "Come on, seriously? You can't use that thing to transform! It's useless to you!"

Tamaki smirked. "But that's where you're wrong, Olteca… I can't transform with it, true… but it's FAR from useless!"

STAG BEETLE!

He stamped the Vistamp on his chest. He screamed in agony, energy crackling around him as the Genomic Stamper briefly flashed over his chest, and then a massive piece of parchment covered in demonic script materialized from his body, rapidly folding on itself before transforming into a monster whose upper half resembled a very angular blue stag beetle with those freaky Deadman insect masks for eyes and reptilian legs.

As Ampaz rushed over to him in concern, Tamaki, gasping for breath and doubled over in pain, pointed at Olteca. "Get him!"

The Stag Deadman shrieked and rushed over to the startled Olteca, opening its pincers wide.

Olteca quickly recovered and caught the beetle monster's horns in his hands. "Really, Tamaki? You think a Phase 1 Deadman is enough to stop me?"

He crushed the pincers in both hands and lashed out with one of his grasshopper legs, flinging the monster back. With a malevolent laugh, Olteca formed a red energy ball and hurled it at the Deadman, who shrieked in agony and fell to its knees, energy crackling as its body destabilized. "See? I win!"

Tamaki grinned. "Are you sure about that?"

The dying Deadman raised its hands… Revealing it was holding the Demons Driver and some other Vistamps!

"WHAT?!" Olteca explained, looking down and patting his pockets only to discover, to his astonishment, he had been deprived of the Driver and the other Vistamps he'd stolen from Hikaru. "No… No, that's not possible! I can't have been outsmarted by freaking TAMAKI!"

The Deadman threw the Driver and Vistamps at Tamaki, who caught them. "You know, Olteca, you may have always thought my card game was stupid… But it actually taught me a lot about strategy!" He bragged.

"I see… You summoned and then sacrificed a monster for a chance at a much greater prize! A classic move!" Ampaz gushed, eyes turning to hearts.

Hiromi smiled proudly. "Well done, Tamaki."

"Thanks for your help," Tamaki told the Deadman, saluting him. "I'll take it from here."

The monster saluted him back, and then exploded.

As Olteca continued to seethe, Tamaki strapped on the Driver and primed the Vistamp.

DEMONS DRIVER!

STAG BEETLE!

"This is for you, Yosuke," Tamaki whispered. "HENSHIN!"

DELETE UP! UNKNOWN. UNREST. UNLIMITED. KAMEN RIDER OVER DEMONS!

"So cool…" Ampaz whispered, smitten. "My boyfriend is a superhero!"

"Wait, THAT'S Over Demons?!" Olteca demanded in disbelief as Tamaki finished his transformation. "But that's just a mashup of the Demons and Vail suits! Wow, I think I may have actually dodged a bullet not using that, thanks."

"Even if the suit is a kitbash, it'll still be more than powerful enough to defeat you!" Tamaki declared.

Olteca burst into laughter. "You seriously still think you can stop me? I can still turn into a Deadman! One even stronger than that form!"

He fired an energy blast at Hiromi, forcing the archer to duck for cover, and quickly produced a new Vistamp.

ANOMALO-

With a hiss of fury, Ampaz bit his wrist, causing him to scream and drop the Vistamp. "YOU BITCH!" He screamed, lashing out with one of his grasshopper legs, but her serpentine body allowed her to undulate out of the way. "I'LL KILL… You… Why's head spinning?" He slurred, wavering on his feet.

"Because I just bit you and injected my most potent venom into your body," Ampaz said smugly. "You're lucky I'm not one of the elite members of my society, or you'd already be dead!"

Olteca groaned, skin turning pale, black veins forming on his face and wrist. "Ugh… You think… This will do anything more than inconvenience me? This body… Doesn't die easily! I'll just metabolize the venom… And kill you both!"

"But can you do it before I pull off a four-Vistamp Full Genomix?" Tamaki asked.

Olteca gave him an incredulous look. "Four- that's not possible! Even I was only able to make it to three!"

"Hikaru thought it was possible. We all laughed at him… But maybe there was something to it," Tamaki said, raising the first Vistamp. "Let's find out, shall we?"

DOMINATE UP! HOPPER! GENOMIX!

DOMINATE UP! CONDOR! GENOMIX!

DOMINATE UP! SCORPION! GENOMIX!

DOMINATE UP! ANOMALOCARIS! GENOMIX!

Tamaki cried out, energy crackling around his body as his legs became the grasshopper-esque Demon Bottom Higher, the Demon Ridolstringer scorpion tail emerged from his rear, the Demon Rumblejoker wings stretched from his back, and the Demon Bladior claws formed on his arms.

"No… No, no, no, NO!" Olteca shrieked. "That's not possible!"

"For a Kamen Rider… ANYTHING is possible!" Tamaki declared, causing Ampaz to swoon and Hiromi to nod in approval.

MORE! HOPPER! CONDOR! SCORPION! ANOMALOCARIS! DEMONS REQUIEM!

With a flex of his grasshopper legs, Tamaki shot forwards, slashing Olteca with his claws and sending him flying. His wings spread, launching a dozen purple feathers which streaked through the air and impaled Olteca, before thrusting out his scorpion tail, which wrapped around his waist and smashed him into the ground.

Drawing his tail back, Tamaki crouched down and then launched into the air, all of his added parts glowing different colors, then shot down at Olteca in a flying kick. Olteca looked up at him, snarled, and tried to jump away…

Only to fall to his knees, the venom still weakening him. "Dammit! Her bite… Is a lot worse than I thought… This can't be – I can't be beaten by freaking Tamaki-"

Tamaki landed his kick, and they were both engulfed in a violent red explosion.

When the smoke cleared, Tamaki was standing tall.

Olteca, clothes shredded and covered in blood, one of his grasshopper legs broken, wasn't standing at all.

"You did it!" Ampaz exclaimed joyously, only to gasp when Tamaki grunted and fell to one knee, his armaments vanishing. "Tamaki!"

"I'm okay," he insisted, panting. "I'm okay! That… That move just took a lot out of me. Wow. I can't believe I did that." He blinked, then looked up at her. "Was I… Was I actually just cool?"

"You were," Hiromi confirmed as he approached, nodding at the Demons Troopers, who had finished off all of the Giff Juniors, who quickly surrounded Olteca to restrain him. "That was very impressive, Tamaki. I don't think even at my prime I could've pulled off a finisher with that many Vistamps. I'm almost certain that Hikaru couldn't, at least not without putting himself in the hospital."

He regarded Tamaki for a moment, and then smiled. "You know… I think George was wrong. You might actually have what it takes to be a great Kamen Rider."

Tamaki gawked at him, astonished. "You… You really think so, Mr. Kadota?!"

Hiromi nodded. "Without a shadow of a doubt."

"My boyfriend is the coolest!" Ampaz squealed, glomping the dazed Tamaki, kissing him on the cheek. "You're my hero!"

"I'm… I'm your-" Tamaki was reduced to blubbering, tears running down his face, not that it was visible through his mask.

Gently pushing her off of him, he got to his feet. "Tamaki?" She asked, disappointed.

"I may have beaten Olteca," he said. "But there's still work to be done. Mr. Kadota! Let's work together to save the park!"

Hiromi smiled and extended his hand. "I would like nothing more."

The former Demons shook hands with his successor.


It wasn't until a few moments after he started running that Giff realized he hadn't consciously decided to move in the direction of the screaming. Just like in the laser tag arena, his body seemed to be moving on its own.

Fascinating. Why had this happened a second time?

He wasn't even remotely surprised that Yukimi was keeping pace with him. An ordinary human she might've been, but she was no less a hero than her husband and children in his eyes. After all, no mere human could possibly be counted as a member of his family!

Giff was aghast when they came upon a mob of Giff Juniors attacking civilians and staff and tearing apart attractions. "What… What is this?!" He stammered. He quickly glanced at Yukimi. "Yukimi, I swear, I have no idea what's happening-"

"Can you stop them?" She asked him sharply.

"Of course I can!" Giff scoffed. "All of you, cease this foolishness at once!"

All of the Giff Juniors stopped in place, many of them frozen in mid-attack. The terrified civilians stared at the paralyzed demons, shocked, then looked at Giff in fright and confusion.

They were afraid of him. Why were they afraid of him? He had just saved them!

… It was happening again. Why was it happening-

Yukimi touched his shoulder. "Find out what's going on," she told him.

"Oh, of course." Turning back to his minions, he declared, "Explain yourselves!"

"Lord Giff!" They all shouted, immediately going down to one knee. "We have found you, just as Akaishi ordered!"

Yukimi gasped, and Giff bristled. "Akaishi?! He's here?! What is he thinking?!"

"Lady Yukimi! Lord Giffrey! We found you!"

Azuma and Astarte rushed over, looks of relief on their faces.

"Azuma, Astarte, what's going on?" Yukimi demanded. "Where's my family?!"

"They're fighting Akaishi, Daiji, and the Deadmans executives," Astarte informed her.

"Daiji showed up?!" Yukimi cried, a mingled look of relief and dismay crossing her face. "And… Wait, the executives? I thought they were dead!"

"Oh, no, they were all actually transported to my dimension so I could feed off their demons," Giff explained. "They've been there the whole time."

Yukimi gave him a skeptical look. "Really? That seems rather contrived."

"What are they doing here?" Giff demanded. "Why are they attacking the park? I did not authorize anything like this!"

"My Lord, when you decided to spend the day with your family, did you inform Akaishi ahead of time?" Azuma asked.

"I don't have to clear everything with him! He serves me, not the other way around!" Giff snapped. "I left Olteca to tell him what I was up to!"

"Well, apparently that wasn't good enough for him, because he and his underlings accosted us to demand we turn you over to him, claiming that we had put everyone in grave danger by bringing you here and you needed to leave immediately before you destroyed everything," Astarte informed him.

"What? That's preposterous! Why would he think I would do something like that?!" An offended Giff demanded.

"Because you have several times before?" Astarte said pointedly.

Giff stood in awkward silence. "Yes. Well. Be that as it may, this is still a disproportionate response!"

"On that we can agree," Astarte admitted.

"Your family is very loyal to you, my Lord," Azuma said proudly. "When Akaishi demanded they tell him where you were, every last one of them refused."

"Everyone?" Giff asked, astonished. "Even Hana?"

"Even Hana," Azuma confirmed.

"That's… Why… Why would they…" Giff stammered, dumbfounded.

"Because you're family, Giff," Yukimi said sweetly. "I told you as much, didn't I?"

The elder demon looked as if he were on the brink of tears. He sniffed and wiped his eyes, then, with a shaky voice, said, "Well… Such loyalty shall not go unrewarded."

Turning to the motionless demons, he commanded, "All of you are to cease attacking at once. Repair the damage you have done and then depart this place at once."

"Yes, my Lord!" All of the Giff Juniors shouted, getting up to do just that.

Giff turned back to Astarte and Azuma, eyes narrowed in anger. "Now, take us to the others. I think it's high time Akaishi and I had a little chat…"