Disclaimer: ...Do you guys even read this part?
Grand (Kamen) Rider in Chaldea
Chapter 8: Very Important Stuff Happens in 36 Hours #2: Electric Boogaloo
"DA VINCI, GO FASTER! THEY'RE CATCHING UP TO US!"
"WE'RE ALREADY GOING AS FAST AS WE CAN! YOU WANNA MAKE THE SHADOW BORDER EXPLODE OR SOMETHING?!"
"THEY'RE SHOOTING ROCKETS AT US!"
"VALKYRIE! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO TURN LEFT!"
"HUH?!" "DON'T BE A BACKSEAT DRIVER!"
"MASH, ARASH! PROTECT THE BORDER!"
"WHAT DO YOU THINK WE'RE DOING UP HERE?!"
"WHY ARE WE LETTING HER DRIVE?!"
"DO YOU KNOW WHERE WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE GOING?!"
"DAMN YOU, DECADE! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"
At that time, Ritsuka didn't think that anything bad would come out of picking one of Decade's cards. Oh, how wrong he was. So very, very, very wrong.
36:00:00 before ?: Novum Chaldea…
"Hmm...This one," Ritsuka whispered, mostly to himself, as he pulled one of the 20 cards Decade showed him. Now, what was this all abou-
"Good, now I've got other things to do. We'll meet again later." Getting out of his seat, Decade left the now completely confused Master by himself.
"...You know what, I'm done for today," Ritsuka sighed as he pocketed his chosen card, not even taking a peek at it. He could cancel the afternoon training session for today. The Support Servants would surely be fine with that.
So, what should he do for the rest of the day? Maybe he could play games with Tomoe? Hang out with Mandricardo? Check in on Mordred, Nezha and Izou in the infirmary?
Answer: None of the above, he wants to meet up with...someone.
35:40:21 before ?: Fujimaru Ritsuka's Room…
Alright, everything was set. Setting up a table for the two of them, checking the vents above his room to make sure no one was up there, some other minor things to make sure he wasn't discovered and he was all set.
Now, all he has to do is call for-
"Fujimaru, Director, come to the Control Room ASAP! We've got a massive problem on our hands!" Da Vinci's voice blared from the PA system, effectively canceling Ritsuka's plans for the day.
…
…
…Ritsuka had only one question: WHY?!
35:34:47 before ?: Chaldea Control Room…
"I've triple-checked it already. There's no doubt about it." Sion grimaced as she listened to Da Vinci, "There really is one there right now."
"I'm here. What is it?" Ritsuka asked as he entered the Control Room. He had only managed to overhear the tail-end of the discussion but he knew from Da Vinci's tone that whatever problem they had was big, "What happened?"
"Senpai… There's…" Mash fell silent as she tried to explain the situation.
"Let us wait for Director Goredolf to arrive first, then we'll brief you two in," Holmes told Ritsuka, "He should be here any moment now."
"O...Kay?" Luckily, Ritsuka didn't have to wait long before the aforementioned Director of Chaldea confidently entered the room.
"Ahem, I have arrived," Goredolf announced his arrival, "Now, what is this urgent matter that interrupts my dessert?"
"I'll put it as simply as possible," Holmes stated, a serious look on his face, "There is a new Lostbelt. Not a Singularity, but a fully-fledged Lostbelt."
"...Where?" Ritsuka, by all accounts, was taking the news rather well.
Goredolf on the other hand- "A new one?!" -wasn't taking it quite as well.
35:30:47 before ?...
"Japan? How did a Lostbelt form there overnight without us noticing?"
"That's the problem," Da Vinci had a grave expression, "It didn't."
"I beg your pardon." Goredolf had beads of sweat running down his forehead as he listened to the Servant, "Then how did Chaldea not pick it up?!"
"Because it didn't exist before…30 minutes ago." Da Vinci paused for a moment to glance at her watch that's never been mentioned before and probably won't be ever again.
"...What?!" This time, Ritsuka wasn't taking the news that well.
"31 minutes ago, we were analyzing the footage from the simulator. Nice job, by the way, we got lots of new data about Decade," Sion complimented Ritsuka, "And then 30 minutes ago, the alarms were blaring and that appeared on our map."
Displayed on the holographic screen above them was a map of the entire world. They had all seen it before, including the two large spots around the British Isles and in South America. However, there was now a new spot on the map; right around Japan.
"Currently, it's not as big as the British or South American Lostbelt, far from it," Sion stated, "But it's growing rapidly. As of right now, it already covers most of Honshu and north-eastern Shikoku."
"...30 minutes ago?" No, it couldn't be...It was probably just a coincidence that he got it at the same time.
"What's wrong, Senpai?" Mash worriedly asked.
"...Nothing," Subconsciously patting the pocket he put the card in, Ritsuka deliberated on whether he should check it or not.
"At any rate, this new Lostbelt requires further investigation," Holmes stated the obvious, "And more importantly, we must prepare to set off as soon as possible."
"...What? Now?"
"This new Japanese Lostbelt spontaneously appeared without a warning of any kind," Da Vinci explained to them, "The Foreign God has no reason to create another Lostbelt now that they're here so someone else must have created it. We must find out for what purpose and how they managed to create one so quickly."
"And the best way to do that, of course, is to head out there as soon as possible," Sion finished the explanation for the Servant.
"But don't we take months to prepare for an expedition?!" Director Goredolf was quick to point out the problem with their plan.
"Please don't mention anything about release dates, Director."
"Are we supposed to be taking this seriously or not?!"
"We are."
"Then don't break the fourth wall!"
"...Where was I? Oh, right," Sion cleared her throat before continuing, "Our new objective is clear; Novum Chaldea is to investigate the appearance of the new Japanese Lostbelt and destroy it before it could spread over the Earth."
"I could get the Shadow Border ready for travel in about 24 hours," Da Vinci added, "We'll set out at noon tomorrow for the Lostbelt."
"Roger!" "Understood!" "Oh, alright…"
"Fujimaru, you know what to do."
"Right, I'll set up a team right away!"
29:54:39 before ?: Chaldea hallways...
Assembling a team for the upcoming Lostbelt shouldn't be so easy. Ritsuka had to consider all the potential enemies that they might encounter, what levels said enemies can be, what allies they may make during their time in the Lostbelt, and a whole host of other factors.
With all that said, Ritsuka already set up his party for the upcoming mission. All he has to do is call for them and inform them of the new Lostbelt. Which he already did, by the way.
Mash was coming, of course, and 4 of the remaining 5 slots were filled up with his other Servants.
That left one slot missing, and the person Ritsuka was looking for in hopes of filling said slot hadn't been seen in the last few hours.
"Where did he go…?" There were only so many places one could go to be alone in the Novum Chaldea, Ritsuka knew that for a fact. So where did Decade wander off to?
"Senpai!" Ritsuka heard Mash call out to him before she ran up from behind him, Fou on her shoulder.
"Oh, Mash, what's wrong?" He asked her.
"Have you seen Decade? Holmes wants to talk to him about something," Mash told him, "The last person to see him was you, right?"
"Yeah, but I haven't seen him around either. I wanted him to follow tomorrow." Even if his new Servant was…problematic to say the least, Decade would certainly be useful in their mission.
"Is that so…" Mash sighed before asking Ritsuka something else, "Who else is coming with us?"
"Hmm…Altria, Arash, the Valkyries," Ritsuka listed off, counting with his fingers as he did so, "And Merlin once he gets back on his feet. There's also you and Decade if I can find him."
"Uh...Senpai?"
"Yes?"
"This isn't farming."
"...I fail to see the problem here."
25:02:18 before ?, Nighttime...
After a couple more hours of searching, Ritsuka had come to the conclusion that Decade was nowhere in Chaldea. That's Independent Action EX at work right there.
With not much else he could be doing, Chaldea's Master decided to head back to his room and rest for the night. However, there was a nagging feeling in the back of his head, preventing him from sleeping.
"Decade disappeared...and then that Lostbelt appeared…" Ritsuka silently mumbled as he stared at the ceiling. "...And that card…"
He still hasn't checked it since things were getting too hectic…
"...Fine…" Forget that earlier statement, there was something he could do. Slowly getting up from his bed, Ritsuka went to grab his uniform and search its pockets.
"...Here it is," Finding his prize, Ritsuka took out the card he had chosen earlier, "Now, where are the lights?"
After a moment of fumbling around in the dark, Ritsuka switched on the lights of his room and inspected the magenta-and-black card.
"...Guess I was worrying about nothing…" Ritsuka sighed at his own misplaced worries. As it turned out, the card he had was blank and didn't have anything on it. There was some text, sure, but other than that, it was just a simple albeit strange-looking card. Even the backside had nothing on it save for the empty circle in the center of it… "Huh?"
That's...odd. When he picked that card out earlier, he was sure that there was something on it. Ritsuka clearly remembered Decade telling him to ignore the symbols on them…
Then why was there nothing on it anymore?
However, before he could think about it any further, Ritsuka heard a soft creaking from his bed followed by a pillow hitting his face.
"...Lights." "Sorry."
XX:XX:XX before ?...
'Another dream…?' Ritsuka thought as he found himself…somewhere…
Wherever he was, it looked terrible. From what little he could see, he was in a run-down but large warehouse in the middle of nowhere. There was also an equally run-down fence around the perimeter of the warehouse. From where he stood, which Ritsuka assumed to be the first floor, he could see far into the wasteland and...are those buildings on the horizon?
'Is this Decade's memories again?' It certainly seemed like him as hanging around his neck was Decade's signature pink camera along with a pair of binoculars. In addition to that, for some reason, he was wearing a soldiers'(?) uniform.
"Hey, Pinky." Ritsuka heard someone say behind him. A rather familiar voice actually though he can't place his finger on who.
Fortunately for him, Decade turned around to see who was calling out to him and… Ritsuka can't see his face. No matter how hard he tried, he just can't make out the details of who Decade was talking to.
"What do you want, Gorilla?" Now Ritsuka was sure that he was seeing through Decade's eyes...and he couldn't see all that well.
"Don't call me that!" Despite not being able to see who it was, Ritsuka definitely knew him.
"Stop calling me 'Pinky' and I'll stop calling you Gorilla," His Servant retorted, "Now what do you want?"
"You're annoying," The person he was talking to didn't like Decade one bit, it seems, "And I'm here because _ wants to talk to you."
'What?' Why can't he hear what he was saying?
"What for? I'm on lookout duty." Decade, on the other hand, clearly heard what the man before him said.
"That's why I'm here," Gorilla (there's nothing else to call him) sounded annoyed, "He's making me cover your shift for a bit."
"And you're mad about this, why? This job's important."
"I know that!" Gorilla snapped at Decade, "Just…give me the binoculars. You know where to find him."
"Fine by me." Having had his fill of fun, Decade heeded Gorilla's request and handed the binoculars over before leaving.
Like his other dream, Ritsuka was unable to do anything but watched through Decade's eyes as he made his way down to meet up with him, whoever he is.
As Decade went through the warehouse, Ritsuka noticed several others on the ground floor of the warehouse. They were wearing what looked like stitched-together combat attires and guarded the entrance of the warehouse as well as the gate to the wasteland.
'What is this place?' Just what kind of life did Decade have in his World? Oh, wait, this might not actually be his World...
"Hey, _." And before Ritsuka could even blink, he was talking with someone new. The two (three?) of them were in an incredibly spacious room and the person standing before him was gazing at the giant machine in front of them, "Why did you call for me?"
Like with Gorilla earlier, Ritsuka couldn't 'see' the person's face.
"There's something I need you to do," The faceless man spoke, "Tomorrow, you, _ and _ are going out on a mission, right?"
Once again, Ritsuka couldn't hear their names.
"And?" Decade was being as dismissive as always.
"There's another thing I need you to do besides getting supplies," The man was fiddling with something in his pocket, "I know _ and _ won't do this for me, so you're the only one I can trust."
"-jimaru!"
"You're really desperate if you're asking for my help."
"Fujima-!"
"I am. When the three of you break into their facilities, they'll come after you, there's no doubt about it." The man sounded concerned over Decade and whoever he was going with, "While _ and the others escape with the supplies, I want you to-"
"FUJIMARU, WAKE UP!"
15:07:54 before ?...
"Fujimaru!" Da Vinci screamed as she shook the Master awake from his dream.
"Wha-? Da Vinci?" Ritsuka groaned as he rubbed his eyes, "Why are you-?"
"The better question is why are you still in bed?! We've only got 3 hours left before we leave!" Da Vinci not-so-silently reminded him, "Hurry up and get ready!"
"3 hours?" Ritsuka repeated, the confusion apparent on his face.
"I know you can be a heavy sleeper but come on!" Da Vinci grumbled before heading for the door, "Remember; 3 hours!"
And… she was gone…
Sighing, Ritsuka got out of bed and went to get ready for the mission.
12:34:06 before ?: Wandering Sea Hanger, Shadow Border...
"All right! It's in tip-top shape and ready to go!" Da Vinci's hologram cheerfully announced to the inhabitants of the cockpit of the Shadow Border.
"All systems green on my end too," Meuniere confirmed as he checked the monitors, "All we need to do now is initiate Zero Sail and we can head for the Lostbelt."
"Good, good," Director Goredolf huffed as he heard the reports, "So what are we waiting for?"
"We're still loading some supplies onto the Border," Da Vinci informed Goredolf, "Holmes advised us to bring some extra supplies as we don't know the situation inside the new Lostbelt. There's also the matter of King Arthur coming along with us."
"And remind me again why are we going to this Lostbelt so soon and suddenly."
"Because fun and stupid stuff needs to happen," Sion said, popping up from nowhere and just as quickly disappearing without a trace.
"Sion, stop breaking the fourth wall!" Da Vinci shouted at where she had just been.
"Speaking of Holmes," Meuniere interjected, "Where is he? I didn't see him enter the Border."
"Holmes is in the workshop. He's been there since this morning," With her amazing ability to see everything within the Border, Da Vinci watched as Holmes...err… "Don't go in there, he's doing crack."
12:03:43 before ?...
"All right," Ritsuka hummed as he and Mash entered the cockpit of the Shadow Border. After doing a quick headcount of the Servants coming with them, the two decided to check in on everyone else, "How much longer before we leave?"
"Just a few more minutes," Meuniere informed him from the driver's seat, "We're just about done loading everything up."
"Fujimaru," Da Vinci's hologram appeared before them, "I can't help but notice that a certain other Rider isn't on board."
"Yeah… About that…" Ritsuka grimaced as he tried to explain that issue to her, "Decade's… kind of missing at the moment."
"Oh...Okay then…" Da Vinci took the news well, "Anyway, now that everyone else is already in the Border, we can leave when we want."
"Da Vinci," Mash asked, "How long would it take for us to reach the Lostbelt?"
"I estimated us to get there in roughly 12 hours if we take the Imaginary Numbers Space the entire way, give or take a couple of hours," Da Vinci answered back.
"I see," At that precise moment, Holmes decided to show his face in the cockpit, "Now, let's review what we know before we enter Void Space."
"Oh, Holmes, how nice of you to show up," Da Vinci had an annoyed expression on her face when she saw the detective, "How was your trip?"
"It was quite enjoyable, actually," Holmes smiled as he answered the question, "I've been so busy yesterday that I didn't get the chance to-"
"Holmes. Stop talking." Despite being a hologram, the glare that Da Vinci was giving Holmes was frightening, "Anyway, as Holmes said, we should review what we know about this new Lostbelt."
"Go ahead, we're listening."
"As of this moment, this Lostbelt had been active for nearly exactly 24 hours," Da Vinci told them, "Currently, the Lostbelt has stopped expanding and covers most of the islands of Honshu and the Shikoku."
"Yes, yes, we already knew that," Goredolf interrupted the renaissance artist's lecture, "Let's just skip to the new information."
"...Since yesterday noon, we have discovered a couple of interesting facts about this new Lostbelt," Da Vinci grumbled a bit before continuing with the review, "Firstly, there doesn't seem to be a Tree of Emptiness in the Lostbelt."
"We're not sure whether it's because it recently appeared and the Tree just hasn't grown yet or if something else is keeping it active." Holmes elaborated a bit more, "Our first objective once we enter the Lostbelt should be to figure out which answer is the correct one."
"Another thing we discovered is that the Human Order there is nearly destroyed, as is typical of Lostbelts."
"How is that 'interesting'?" Meuniere spoke up from the driver's seat.
"This is just what we know about the Lostbelt, not all of it is supposed to be interesting," Da Vinci grumbled, "There is one more thing we should mention."
"And that is?"
"It's-" *BEEP!* "Oh! The Paper Moon's ready! Fasten your seatbelt!"
"Hang on! You can't just lea-"
"Fujimaru, fasten your seatbelt!" Hilariously, it was Goredolf who pushed Ritsuka into his seat before going into his own seat.
"Let's go!" And before Ritsuka (or anyone else for that matter) could even protest, the Shadow Border entered the Imaginary Numbers Space...
08:45:27 before ?...
To be completely honest, the next few hours had passed by relatively quickly and without any incident. The most they had was Da Vinci shutting off her hologram to hide from them. For whatever reason that made sense to them, she and Holmes had declined to divulge the last piece of information that they had discovered regarding the Lostbelt.
And so, with nothing else to do, Ritsuka decided to head into the backside of the Shadow Border to check up on his Servants.
"Don't you dare hide from me!" "I'm not hiding." "Sister, please don't!" And Thrud was trying to kill Merlin for whatever reason, being held back by Ortlinde and Hildr. Not that that was really surprising, this is Merlin we're talking about.
"What did Merlin say this time?" Ritsuka asked as he watched the scene unfold in front of him.
"He made a comment about Dating Sims to the eldest Valkyrie," Altria stated, watching the scene with him as she munched on some food, "To be frank, I didn't understand it."
"I...see, and where did Arash go?" Said Archer was nowhere to be seen.
"He wanted to do some maintenance on his bow or something along those lines," Altria shrugged.
"Is that so…" What for? He's a Servant, he doesn't need to do that, "Anyway, seeing as everyone's busy-" "Let me go!" "-I'm going to get some rest."
"Good night." Well, it wasn't actually night but the sentiment was there.
"He has to pay for what he said!"
00:00:57 before ?...
In the end, the trip through Void Space was completely forgettable and wasn't even worth mentioning at all. At least, Decade wasn't around to give him a headache. After a short and uneventful nap, Ritsuka returned to the cockpit of the Shadow Border as it was almost time for them to exit the Imaginary Numbers Space.
"Ahh, just in time," Holmes said as Ritsuka entered, "We are approaching the Lostbelt. Take your seat."
...And as it turns out, their exit from Void Space was just as uneventful.
"Exiting Void Space in 5." Da Vinci's hologram finally appeared again and began the countdown.
"4." What could they expect from this new Lostbelt?
"3." A new friend? A new foe?
"2." And where did Decade go?
"1." Guess they just have to find out on their own.
"0!"
A/N: "At this point, I can say with complete confidence that updates for this fic would be on Monday nights (For me anyway)." - Me, roughly 27 hours ago. Guess what? I was wrong but in a good way. Just don't expect another quick update like this.
Quality may or may not have dropped with this chapter because INSERT BELIEVABLE LIE HERE and INSERT BELIEVABLE LIE #2 HERE. But, hey, that's for you to decide whether the quality dropped or not. Personally, I'm saying that quality dropped by about 25%.
In all honesty, I wanted to get into the next part of the story quickly because... uh... I want to? There's really not much other reason really.
Once again, I must say if anything seems off, keep calm and blame Decade and/or Merlin.
There's really not much else I can say seeing as nothing new has happened in the last 27 hours so...gimme dopamine!