Disclaimer: I don't own anything that doesn't belong to me.
"Talk? What's left for us to talk about?" Hana demanded.
"We're not going to have a fight, are we, we just finished having a big one!" Vice whined.
Giff turned away from them briefly, looking up at the Zea Wheel, which seemed to be staring right back at him.
It probably was, come to think of it.
"My family," he began. "Today has been a truly wonderful day, one I shall never forget. I have learned so much… About humanity, about the world, and most importantly how much I do not know. I realize now that what I've been doing, and my reasons for it, may not have been right.
"However… That doesn't mean I'm ready to concede that I was wrong. Not completely."
He turned back to them, a solemn look on his face. "While I now understand my comprehension of humanity was flawed… I still am not convinced that you can save yourselves from extinction. True, there are many truly great individuals among you, heroes, sources of inspiration, trying to change the world. But… Is it enough?"
He gestured at the smoldering amusement park around them. "Kamen Riders and other heroes have been fighting to save this world nonstop for at least 50 years. And yet the world continues to be in danger, not just from aliens or monsters or evil organizations, but from more endemic issues that cannot be fixed just by kicking them in the face. Or, for the wealthier of you, throwing money at the problem."
"Money does help," Aruto pointed out.
"Yeah, but not all of us are lucky enough to be in charge of multibillion-dollar corporations," George commented.
"Fair," Aruto admitted reluctantly.
"While I will acknowledge that I still do not know enough about the current state of things to be certain, from what I've gleaned so far, I am not confident humanity will survive to the end of the century," Giff continued. "If some force of evil doesn't wipe you out, you may very well do it to yourselves out of mundane, pointless, utterly commonplace greed or hatred. Which is why, until I can be convinced otherwise… I will continue trying to conquer this planet, to save you from yourselves."
"We don't need to be saved," Ikki protested.
"If that were true, then why do heroes even exist at all?" Giff argued. "Why do new threats keep emerging to endanger the planet? Are you truly helping, or merely treating the symptoms while ignoring the cause?"
"Even if that's true, that doesn't mean taking over the world is a better solution," Genta argued.
"You may be right," Giff admitted. "Which is why I fully intend to educate myself on the problems your planet faces. If I can be convinced that there is a better method, that your species does not need to be subjugated… Then I shall end my campaign. But, if I can't…"
"Then… We'll have to fight?" Tamaki asked unhappily.
"Great grandpa Giff, I don't want to fight you anymore!" Lovekov protested.
"I do not wish to fight you either, Lovekov," Giff confessed. "Any of you. However, we are on opposite sides of an ideological divide. We both wish to save this world, but we are unable to agree on how. I wish for you to join me and aid me in guiding humanity into a new age. You wish for me to give up my ambitions and dismantle everything I have worked for. And… There is a part of me which very much would like to do so."
"But not enough to actually do so," Hiromi intuited.
Giff shook his head. "No. Not yet."
They regarded each other uncertainly, with more than a hint of sadness.
"Is this truly the only way you see to go forward, Giff?" Astarte asked sadly." I, too, believe that humanity needs to be guided, but… Not like this."
"You have always been the more optimistic of the two of us," Giff said with a bittersweet smile. "Perhaps that is how you were able to accomplish what I could not, and get a kingdom and family, as fleeting as they were. But… I am not you, and I do not think what works for you will work for me."
He paused, then glanced down at himself, then at her. "And the fact that you are far more aesthetically pleasing to humans then I am doesn't really help."
"… Fair," Astarte admitted.
"She is very pretty," Vail conceded.
"My girlfriend is beautiful, love!" Lovekov cheered.
"So is mine! Wow, I still can't believe I even have a girlfriend," Tamaki burbled happily, earning him a hug from Ampaz.
"You aren't the only one," Vice grunted.
"Then… Where do we go from here?" Ikki asked.
Giff looked contemplative for a moment. "… I am not yet certain," he admitted. "As I said, I have much to think about. Much more to learn about this planet and the people who live on it. Whatever decision I make, I must be certain I am acting on complete information, unlike how I have been before."
He glanced at them. "For the time being, however, I think I will call a cease-fire. I never had much of a stomach for fighting my own flesh and blood, and after the wonderful day I've spent with you all, that feeling has only deepened."
"A cease-fire?" Hiromi repeated with a frown.
Giff nodded. "No more attacks. No more trying to force innocent people to get stamped and move to ARARAT. For the time being, I will withdraw our forces behind the walls of ARARAT and focus on figuring out the proper way to go forward and shift my campaign towards better PR and goodwill. If there are any attacks, they will not be under my authorization and I will deal with them personally. In return, I ask that you make no attempt to breach the walls of ARARAT or attack any demons or members of Fenix without provocation. Is this acceptable?"
Hiromi frowned. "I think we'll need to talk to Karizaki about this."
"I'm okay with it," George quipped.
"I wasn't talking about you."
"I think we could probably do that," Ikki said, speaking for everyone else.
"Yeah, so long as you don't break your end of the agreement first!" Vice suspiciously.
"I will endeavor not to," Giff promised.
"And you really think this will work, father?" Vail asked skeptically, crossing his arms.
"I do not know," Giff admitted. "But as I said, I no longer want to fight any of you. If there is a way that can be avoided…"
"And what if it can't be avoided?" Hana asked. "What if you can't think of a better way to save the world than taking over the human race?"
"Then I will give you fair warning before the war begins anew," Giff said regretfully. "And… I promise that no matter what, I will not kill any of you. Not if I can help it. And… If you really, truly believe that I am wrong, that I've made a mistake, that there is a better path… Convince me of that. I beg of you. If I'm really wrong, prove it. Stop me. Whatever it takes."
"We will," Yukimi promised. "We won't give up on you. You're family, after all, and family never gives up on each other."
She was looking at Daiji when she said that part. Her younger son couldn't meet her eyes.
"Thank you," Giff whispered in relief, once more on the brink of tears. "My family."
He turned to Hiromi. "I do not suppose you would be willing to return Olteca and the other Deadmans executives to me? They were a very good food source."
"Absolutely not," the former Rider stated.
"Even if I promised to keep them cocooned in my dimension and never let them out again?"
"My answer hasn't changed," Hiromi said bluntly.
Giff sighed. "Oh well, had to try… I suppose, given everything they've done to you all, that's understandable."
"That is an understatement," Hana growled.
Giff turned to Azuma. "Azuma, will you help me? I no longer trust Akaishi. I need someone I can count on at my side, someone to help me gain a better perspective of the world I have been away from for so very long."
Azuma smiled and bowed. "It would be my honor, my Lord."
"Wait, are we sure this is a good idea?" Vice murmured. "Didn't this guy kick off World War I?"
"Well, yeah, but he's sorry about it," Tamaki pointed out.
"I like Azuma, love!" Lovekov chimed in.
Vail rolled his eyes. "You like everyone."
"Not everyone, kobu."
"However, I am not certain just how good a guide I can be," Azuma continued, looking apologetic. "After all, I have kept myself away from most of the world for many decades."
"I'm aware of that," Giff conceded. "Which is why…"
He turned to Daiji. "Daiji, would you be willing to help me?"
"M-me?!" Daiji stammered.
"HIM?!" Everyone else cried.
"Indeed," Giff said. "You are a child of the modern age, so have more experience and understanding of the world in its current state then either Azuma or myself do. Any information and advice you can give me will go a long way towards helping me make my final decision. Plus, it'll make up for all the times I've been ignoring you so we can get in some great grandfather-grandson bonding! Wouldn't that be great?"
Strange. Daiji didn't seem particularly enthused by this prospect. Humans didn't turn that shade of pale when they were happy, right?
"Of course, if you don't want to, you can return to your family," Giff continued, much to Daiji and everyone else's surprise. "They miss you a great deal, after all."
Daiji swallowed. "I…"
"Daiji," Yukimi said gently. "Please. Come home. We are all waiting for you."
"We left your room just the way you like it! Even though Vice tried to turn it into a party room!" Ikki added.
"It would've been a great party room! You don't know what you're missing out on!" Vice complained.
Daiji trembled. "I… I don't-"
He felt the sharp edges of the Holy Wing Vistamp cutting into his palm, drawing blood. He stiffened.
And then he walked over to Giff, not looking back at his family, not wanting to see the distraught expressions on their faces. "Send me back to ARARAT, please."
Giff frowned, surprised to find himself actually somewhat disappointed. "You are certain of this?"
"Just… Just send me back, okay?" Daiji said hoarsely, feeling everyone's eyes on his back, fighting back tears.
The Vistamp in his hand only seemed to grow heavier.
Giff sighed, then acquiesced. "Very well. If you're certain."
He gestured, and a portal opened. Before anyone could say anything, before he could change his mind, Daiji hurriedly stepped through, the portal shutting behind him.
"… Strange. I wasn't as satisfied about that as I thought I would be," Giff murmured to himself.
Yukimi slumped against Genta, choking back tears. Ikki clenched his fists and a frustrated Sakura punched a wall, shattering it. "Dammit! There he goes, breaking our hearts again!" She snapped.
"Kuzu," Lovekov whimpered, getting a reassuring hug from her girlfriend.
"I really thought I got through to him this time…" Genta muttered unhappily.
"He's as stubborn and foolish as you are," Vail commented, not sounding particularly enthused.
"If he's not ready, then he's not ready," Astarte said softly, stroking Lovekov's head. "Hopefully, he will eventually realize just how much he's hurting everyone… Including himself."
"I'll talk to him," Giff suddenly blurted out, surprising everyone, including himself. "I… I haven't been a very good grandfather to him lately, and I now see that leaving him primarily in Akaishi's care might not have been the best choice."
"No, really?!" Vice sneered sarcastically.
"I see now that he is going through… A great deal," Giff said vaguely. "While I do not entirely understand, if he is unwilling to listen to you all, maybe he will listen to me. It is… At least worth a try. I cannot make any guarantees, but-"
"The fact that you're even offering means more than you can imagine," Yukimi told him, smiling gratefully. "Thank you, Giff."
People were thanking him now. It was strange. Unfamiliar.
He rather liked it.
"I should probably go," he said awkwardly. "Before Akaishi does anything else foolish. Or dies. Either would probably be a bad thing."
"One more than the other," Hana grunted.
"Before you go," Izu said, walking towards him and Azuma. "We have something for the two of you." She held out a pair of tickets. "Lifetime passes to Hiden Land. You may come here whenever you wish, free of charge, and you will receive a warm welcome."
"We can… We can just come back? Whenever we like?" Giff asked, astonished, staring at the passes in disbelief. "After… After everything that has happened here today?"
"But of course. The Hiden family are loyal customers, and you are a member of that family," Izu said warmly.
"And if there's one thing Hiden Intelligence respects, it's the bonds of family," Aruto said proudly.
He found himself on the verge of tears again. "And yet again, I'm reminded of just how much I continue to underestimate humanity. Such kindness and generosity… I've lived for eons, but only rarely has it ever been directed at me, especially as much as I have been given today."
"Dammit, why does he keep saying things that make me actually feel kind of bad for him?" Hana grumbled.
"Being a greater demon has its downsides," Astarte said sadly.
"Kobu," Lovekov murmured, hugging her.
"… Will that be me one day?" Sakura wondered to herself in concern.
"By the way, would you… Happen to know anything about exorcisms?" Aruto asked as Giff and Azuma took the passes. "I mean, not to sound racist or anything, but… You know. Demon and all…"
"I may know a thing or two. Why?" Giff asked, puzzled.
"There is someone we care very much about who is suffering major possession by the Ark," Izu explained. "We are currently having difficulty purifying her."
"Truly? Aren't the two of you the most powerful corporeal members of your religion?" Azuma asked in surprise.
"… The Ark has a very strong hold on her soul," Izu said unhappily. "All attempts to pry her from its grasp have ended in failure as well as bringing her spirit closer to the brink of dissolution and complete data erasure. You, however, claim to have the ability to consume the evil and malice within living beings, so…"
Giff considered this. "I'll need to know more about the possessed before I can commit to anything."
"We will compile all the data we have and send it to you as soon as possible," Izu promised.
"And if you can save her… We'll owe you. Big time," Aruto promised, a severe look on his face.
"I will keep that in mind," Giff told him respectfully.
Giff gestured, opening a portal to his dimension. "And with that, I should be off. Farewell, everyone-"
And suddenly, he felt arms around him. Quite a lot of arms. It took him a moment to realize that everyone – not just Lovekov, but his entire family, plus Tamaki, Ampaz, George, Georgina, and even a reluctant and somewhat embarrassed Hana and Vail – were embracing him. Tamaki was bawling uncontrollably because of course he was.
Hiromi and his troops stared from the sidelines, slowly shaking his head in disbelief. "If it were anyone else doing this, I would think I was losing my mind… but it's the Igarashi family, so I find this weirdly plausible." He chuckled. "Masumi will probably throw a fit, though…"
"Husband Aruto? Is something the matter?" Izu asked Aruto, who was staring at the big group hug with a look of longing in his eyes.
"… Hey, Izu. Do you want kids?" He asked abruptly.
She stared him, stunned, ear modules buzzing in overtime. "You did not say your catchphrase."
"I did not."
"You always say your catchphrase after a joke."
"I know."
"You were not joking."
"I wasn't."
"Good."
Izu promptly tackled him to the ground and started aggressively making out with him.
"What… What is this?" Giff asked, startled and overwhelmed.
"Just another way of saying goodbye," Ikki told him warmly.
"And to remind you that no matter what, you are a member of this family," Genta assured him. "Pass that on to Daiji, would you?"
"I-I will," Giff stammered, dazed. Had that really just happened?
"And Giff?" Yukimi said sweetly. "If you ever want to stop by and catch up or use the bathhouse… Cousin Giffrey has an open invitation to visit. We would love to see him again."
"And he… He would love to see you all as well," Giff rasped, struggling not to cry.
Forcing himself to withdraw from the loving embrace, he turned to Azuma, who was smiling at him fondly. "Come, Azuma. We must leave at once, before I… Before I change my mind and am tempted to stay forever."
"And would that actually be such a bad thing, my lord?" The ancient assassin asked kindly.
"… Perhaps not," he said quietly. "But there is much for us to do. We cannot leave Akaishi or Daichi unattended."
Azuma bowed his head. "Indeed we cannot. Very well then. Igarashi family, thank you for the hospitality. It was an honor and privilege to meet you all."
"The open invitation extends to you as well," Yukimi added.
"I may very well take you up on that," Azuma said. He frowned, suddenly realizing they were missing something. "Wait… Lord Giff, our purchases, our souvenirs-"
"We'll make sure they get delivered to ARARAT," Ikki promised.
"Oh, that's all right, then," Azuma said in relief.
"My family… Until we meet again… Farewell!" Giff declared.
"Goodbye, great grandpa Giff and Azuma!" Lovekov cheered.
"Goodbye, Giff and Azuma!" Everyone else echoed.
"Ook," Georgina added.
Aruto and Izu continued kissing each other.
One of the Demons Troopers waved. Hiromi frowned at him, then shrugged and did the same thing.
Stifling tears, Giff waved to everyone, then walked through portal, Azuma giving everyone a respectful bow before following suit, the gateway closing behind them.
"I miss them already!" Lovekov wailed.
"Don't worry, we'll see them again soon," Sakura promised her.
"And weirdly enough, I'm actually looking forward to it," Hana admitted.
"This has been a really weird day," Vice commented.
"Yeah," George said without really paying attention, looking excitedly at the little plastic bag of horn shavings he had managed to collect during the hug when nobody was looking. "Now hurry, while the Hidens are distracted, let's get Georgina out of here and back to the house before they try to force her back into the petting zoo!"
"Ook!"
"Wait, hang on, I never said we could keep a gorilla at the house-" Yukimi protested.
"While we're on the subject," Vail said, wrapping his arms around Yukimi and Genta's shoulders and poking his head between them. "You're going to need a bigger bed, because as things stand, I don't think all three of us are going to fit."
Yukimi stared at him in disbelief. "What the fu-"
Giff sighed as the portal closed behind them, once again back in his own dimension, surrounded by demons and sacrifices in stasis, utterly alone.
Well. Maybe not totally alone.
"Azuma. Thank you for agreeing to come with me," Giff told his most faithful servant.
"It was my pleasure, my lord. Besides, I really, really do not want to go back to that cave," Azuma said flatly. "And something tells me that if I stay by your side, I'll have more excitement than I've had in almost a century. I'm looking forward to it!"
"As am I," Giff agreed happily, only for his spirits to plummet almost immediately. "I miss them already."
"You will see them again soon, my Lord," Azuma assured him. "And in the meantime, at least we have our memories, and our souvenirs, once they arrive in the mail."
"Those are some nice souvenirs," Giff agreed. "Perhaps I shall wear some of the new clothes I obtained the next time I go out as Cousin Giffrey. In fact… Maybe I should start my exploration of modern humanity closer to home. If I talked to the residents of ARARAT as Giffrey, I will surely learn many things they might be too afraid to say to my face!"
For some reason, Azuma stared at him for a rather long time. "Let's… table that idea for now," he said vaguely. "In the meantime, I think we should-"
They both started when they heard a chime. "What was that?!" Giff cried.
"It came from you," a startled Azuma observed.
"What?! I don't chime! There's no part of my body that chimes! Trust me, I've checked!" Giff protested, patting himself down, and was surprised to find an unfamiliar object.
No, wait, it was actually a very familiar object, the RisePhone he'd been given earlier that day. And… There was a green word bubble on the screen? What was this?
"I think you've received what is now known as a 'text,' my Lord," Azuma observed. "Someone is sending you a message."
"Oh, right, phones can do that," Giff recalled. "How do I… What do I do to read this…"
Hesitant, he poked the bubble, and nearly dropped the phone in surprise when the screen changed to show the bubble against a different backdrop. "What is this?"
"The texting app, I believe," Giff said, peering over his master's shoulder. "It looks like the message is from… I think it's your family, my Lord!"
"It is?" Giff squinted at the screen and was elated to discover that, according to the icons at the top of the screen, it was. "It is! It says, 'Had a great time, looking forward to seeing you again soon. Here's something to remember us by.' What could that mean?"
"There's some sort of picture," Azuma pointed out.
Cautiously, Giff tapped the picture, and was again startled when the screen changed again to show a grid pattern of numerous pictures of what appeared to be familiar places in Hiden Land featuring other members of his family and himself. "Oh! These are pictures of what we did today!" He realized.
"Ah, I see," Azuma observed. "They must have sent them to you so that you would have a memento of your time together."
"How very thoughtful of them! Azuma, we must take a picture to send them in exchange! One of those…'cell phis,'" Giff exclaimed excitedly.
"That sounds like a capital idea," Azuma agreed.
After an embarrassing amount of trial and error, they figured out how to open the camera app. Then they figured out how to actually take the picture, though it took several attempts, because Giff kept freaking out and hurling the phone away because the flash startled him, and it took a while for them to figure out how to flip the camera around to actually focus on them, and Giff's thumb kept getting in the picture, but eventually they were able to take a picture they liked and sent it to his family using the texting app.
A minute later, they got a reply… Which neither of them could read.
"I don't understand. Is this Japanese?" Giff asked, baffled as he scrutinized the string of characters and mysterious icons filling up the chat bubble.
"From what I recall, many of the youth today communicate through texts using a nearly indecipherable code consisting of shorthand and 'emo Gs' which are a mystery to those of older generations," Azuma observed. "Perhaps you should send a text requesting clarification?"
"I can't do that!" Giff cried, aghast. "Then they'd think I wasn't cool!"
Azuma wisely said nothing in response to this.
"No, there's only one thing we can do, and one person to turn to…" Giff said decisively.
Daiji stared into his mirror, waiting for his reflection to do or say anything out of the ordinary.
All he saw was himself.
"Kagerou… Please… Are you there?" Daiji whispered, still clutching the bloodstained Holy Wing Vistamp.
The mirror didn't say anything.
"Please… I don't… I don't know what to do," Daiji said brokenly. "Nothing makes sense anymore. Nothing has made sense for a long time. I need… I need guidance. I don't know who to trust. I don't… I don't trust myself."
The mirror didn't say anything.
"Please… Tell me what to do!"
Rather abruptly, the door to his room slammed open. "Daiji! I have received a text from Vice and have no idea what he's trying to say-"
Daiji, who had just gotten out of the shower and so was naked, screamed.
Giff screamed back.
Daiji's reflection, which strangely enough hadn't turned like he had to face the door, was struggling not to laugh, unbeknownst to anyone.
Many years later…
"Come on, Hazu, we're going to be late!"
"That is factually incorrect. Not only do we have plenty of time, I am the heir of Hiden Consolidated and the Church of the Divine Zero and Chosen One of Zea. There is nothing in Hiden Land that would dare to happen without my approval which could possibly displease me. I could rail you against that statue in public for hours and not only would we suffer no repercussions, the show still would not start until we arrived."
Pico Hojo squealed and giggled in delight and arousal. "Is that a promise for later? I love it when you abuse your power like that," The human/Bugster hybrid teased hopefully. She was a very beautiful teenage girl whose extremely toned and developed figure was barely held by extremely tight pants and a T-shirt showing the mascots of all of Genm Corp.'s most popular games, as well as a pink studded jacket, a pink scarf covered in images of Mighty, a Zeaist icon, fingerless gloves with several rings, and heavy duty green boots that looked like they would be good for both stomping faces in and dancing. Her short dark hair had a jeweled clip resembling a peach blossom and a vibrant pink streak which hung over her face, highlighting her orange and blue heterochromatic eyes.
Hazu Hiden contemplated this for a moment, her ear modules buzzing in thought. The gorgeous young Humagear woman was the spitting image of her mother with a teenaged body and perhaps a rather more developed figure and chest. She had shoulder length black hair with emerald green and purple streaks and a side ponytail hanging down past her knees, prism colored ear modules with metal angel wings growing from the back, purple-emerald green gradient eyes and nails, and a black bow in her hair with purple-emerald green gradient trimming. She wore an outfit similar to her mother's but with purple piping and emerald green highlights, a shorter skirt, flared sleeves, and a pair of small metallic wings growing from her back. A third eye was sent into her forehead resembling that of Zea. A Mighty and Poppy charm dangled from one of her buttons.
While her face seemed perfectly calm and serene, anyone who knew Hazu intimately was well aware that at that very moment she was, as always, dedicating a rather sizable amount of the processing power from her quantum computer to run a nonstop subroutine dedicated to devising new and shockingly florid ways to make her equally horny girlfriend scream in ecstasy.
"We probably shouldn't," she said finally. "The statue has historical value, after all. It was at this spot where an event of great importance took place, one which has shaped the world as we know it. A moment nearly as important as the one where my father first became a hero."
Pico pouted. "That's never stopped us before! But oh well, if you're sure."
"I am," Hazu decided. "Come, Pico we have a show to make out vigorously during instead of watching."
"And maybe more?" Pico asked hopefully.
"Perhaps, if you behave."
"I will, mistress!"
The two of them set off, a besotted Pico following as always in her lover's footsteps, generating holographic hearts in her wake. The statute, a sculpture of Giff clasping hands with Kamen Rider Revi while the rest of the Igarashi clan looked on, was left unmolested…
This time, anyway.