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


"Julius, please, just listen-"

"I am listening, Marcus, you just aren't saying anything I haven't heard before."

Marcus Antonio Brutus sighed and massaged his temples. His last name was fairly apt, for he was indeed a brute, a hulking, overly muscular giant of a man at least 8 feet tall, with a short red cape, a breastplate with the face of a snorting boar embossed on it, pauldrons with boar tusks jutting out of them, sandals and grieves resembling hooves, massive gauntlets covering his immense fists with claws resembling tusks, and a sword that was practically a meat cleaver. His helmet, which had a plume of boar hair and tusks to match, was lying on the ground next to his seat. He held out an empty glass, and a slave girl dutifully refilled it with wine.

Brutus was sitting in the war tent of his friend and leader, Julius Caesar, in the heart of Fort Invictus, the seat of operations for the Roman army on Egyptian soil, a bustling war camp with thousands of soldiers and monsters and even more camp followers and slaves. The sounds of clashing steel, marching, bawdy songs, and the screams of whores being used and prisoners being tortured was a backdrop he'd long since grown used to, to the point he had trouble sleeping when he couldn't hear it. The tent, as fitted the leader of the greatest empire in the world, was the largest and most luxurious in the camp, with throw rugs and plush pillows and reclining couches, elegant wall hangings and trophies taken from dozens of conquered nations, and slaves and officers constantly coming and going on various tasks. A large golden idol of an eagle clutching lightning bolts in its talons and beak stood against the back of the tent, so big its wingtips brushed the ceiling. An incredibly detailed map of Egypt took up the center of the main room of the tent, with numerous figurines representing the Roman army, the Egyptian army, and a number of other factions placed here and there.

Looming over the map, a scowl on his face, was Caesar, Emperor of the Roman Empire. He was not nearly as big as Brutus, and much leaner and wiry, but he possessed a charisma and strength of will which made him seem 10 times as tall as almost any man he happened to be sharing a room with. A long red cape with the insignia of Rome hung down to the ground, a gold breastplate with the Eagle and bull emblem that had become his personal device embossed on it, and a golden wreath was wrapped around his graying, thinning hair. He had aristocratic features and an aquiline nose, possibly the second most impressive nose Brutus had ever seen, the first, naturally, being Cleopatra's.

"Julius, the Senate is growing impatient," Brutus started again, in hopes that his liege might actually listen this time.

"The Senate is always growing impatient," Caesar said dismissively, still not looking at him.

"You've been here in Egypt too long on this fool's errand," Brutus continued. "And diverting resources and manpower we need to deal with some of the very real problems back home. The Empire is starting to come apart at the seams without you there to lead it."

"Rome has lasted for hundreds of years, it's not going to collapse just because I'm gone for a few months," Caesar grunted.

"It's been a lot longer than a few months," Brutus argued. "The Senate is getting worried you're allowing your obsessions with chasing relics in Egypt to interfere with your duties as Emperor. And then, of course, there is the small matter of the Gauls-"

Caesar slammed his fist on the map, startling Brutus and some of the slaves. "There is nothing small about the Gauls!" He snapped. "I conquered their nation years ago, but that one tiny insignificant village of indomitable warriors has resisted everything I've thrown at them! My strongest armies, my mightiest beasts, my most cunning schemes… Despite everything, they still stand!"

He finally looked at Brutus, a frustrated and almost fearful expression on his face. "And so long as they exist, so long as those blasted Gauls go around the Empire fighting my subordinates and inciting rebellion, the Empire will never be safe! The Senate says Rome is falling apart? Well, those barbarians certainly aren't helping!"

His shoulders sagged, looking exhausted for a moment. "So long as they stand, they inspire hope. Everywhere they go, every Army they crush or monster they defeat, people start fighting back against us as they realize we aren't invincible after all. The Eyes of Alexander are our only hope of conquering them and putting their resistance to an end once and for all. Only then can we know peace."

Brutus grimaced, grudgingly admitting his master had a point. "… That may be so, but declaring war on Egypt while we have a growing insurrection back home isn't really helping matters."

Caesar sighed. "Cleopatra has made it clear she has no interest in letting me have the Eyes, believing that with their power, I would reconquer her nation and once again make it a part of Rome."

"Well, you would," Brutus pointed out.

"And there was a time when she wouldn't have minded that!" Caesar snapped. "But then those damnable old gods of hers had to get in her head and turn her against me… We nearly had a child together, you know that?"

Brutus rolled his eyes. The subject came up almost every time conversation turned to Cleopatra. "Yes, I'm aware."

"He would've been a boy… My perfect, beautiful Ceasarion… My precious heir…" Caesar narrowed his eyes and gnashed his teeth. "But now it will never be. All because of those gods…"

He laughed harshly and spun around to bow his head to the huge idol at the back of the tent. "Well, she isn't the only one with the gods on her side. Hers claim she is destined to restore Egypt to glory? Well, mine say that I am to rule the world! They can't both be right!"

"That may all be true," Brutus admitted. He wasn't a priest, so didn't dare to claim to understand the will of the gods, capricious and ineffable as they were. "But… Look, could you at least come home for a little while? Smooth things over, put out some fires, grease some palms, let everyone know you're still thinking about them and that you haven't abandoned them?" He hesitated, unsure if he should even mention this, then quietly added, "There are rumors the Senate is planning to assassinate you."

Caesar scoffed and rolled his eyes. "There's always rumors the Senate is trying to assassinate me. The only reason those old fools would dare to even suggest such a possibility is because I'm not there right now."

"Which, you know, is kind of the problem," Brutus pointed out, taking some grapes from a slave and munching on them.

Caesar grimaced, but grudgingly admitted he had a point. "I know I've been away too long," he finally conceded. "But we're so close, and who can I possibly trust to handle things in my absence? Oh yes, all of my soldiers say they're loyal, but with the temptation of absolute power… Every man has his price."

Brutus considered this for a moment as he drank some more wine. "What about Antony? I can't imagine him ever betraying you."

Caesar made a face. "Mark? No, no, that won't do. The boy idolizes me, but he lacks the temperament to do what is necessary. And besides, he's infatuated with Cleopatra."

"So's at least half the Army," Brutus pointed out, grabbing a side of beef from a slave and tearing into it with his teeth. "And you."

"Have you seen her?!" Caesar snapped, turning red.

Brutus, who had indeed seen her on more than one occasion, conceded the point.

A legionnaire suddenly entered the tent and saluted. "Ave, Caesar! Legate Antony is here to see you!"

Caesar's features creased into a grin as Mark Antony, a handsome younger man with dark hair, olive skin, a long blue cape, and silver armor decorated with eagles, a helmet with an eagle motif tucked under one arm, entered the tent. "Well, speak of Pluto! If it isn't my favorite honorary nephew! Welcome back, Antony!"

Antony smiled and saluted. "Thank you, uncle! It's good to be back!"

"How did your mission go?" Brutus asked, grabbing an apple from a slave and chewing on it.

"We put every last one of the insurgents to the sword," Antony reported.

Caesar nodded. "And the people supporting them?"

Antony hesitated, then said, "We burned the village to the ground, salted the earth, crucified the elderly, and put the rest in chains. They are on their way back to the markets in Rome to be sold into slavery as we speak."

"Excellent! Good job," Caesar congratulated his subordinate, turning back to the map table and moving a few pieces around.

Antony fidgeted. "Uncle, I do not mean to question your orders, but were such measures… Really necessary? Those people did nothing wrong."

"They sheltered fugitives and terrorists," Caesar replied, smiling briefly at the altered layout of the map before turning back to Antony. "An example has to be made to dissuade further rebellion."

"It feels like we've been making a lot of examples lately, though," Antony pointed out.

"Then we need to keep making them until everyone gets the message that we are not to be opposed," Caesar said grimly. He narrowed his eyes and gazed to the north. "And once a certain village is taken care of once and for all, maybe that will finally teach them…"

Brutus rolled his eyes and started munching on a drumstick. "And once we reconquer Egypt."

"Right, that too," Caesar said quickly.

"Uncle, do we really need to reconquer Egypt, though?" Antony insisted.

"Even if we take care of the Gauls-" Brutus started.

"When we take care of the Gauls," Caesar snarled.

"Egypt could still be seen as a beacon of hope for all the other territories we've conquered," Brutus pointed out. "Cleopatra and her cohorts are the first people who've managed to completely drive us out in centuries. Even the Gauls have only been able to slow down our conquests and have yet to liberate their homeland. We're going to need to deal with Egypt sooner or later."

"Maybe so," Antony reluctantly admitted. "But the longer we stay here, and the more losses we take, the more morale plummets. A lot of the soldiers just want to go home. Many of their tours have been extended longer than is legal. And then of course, there's the Senate-"

"Oh, not you too!" Caesar groaned, rolling his eyes. "I'll deal with the Senate when I get back! Which, thankfully, won't be much longer now. We're days away from finding the Eyes of Alexander!"

"You've said that before," a bored Brutus pointed out, smacking the rear of a slave, who yelped.

"Well this time I mean it! Thanks to the spy who has infiltrated the Library of Alexandria, it shouldn't be much longer now before the location of the Eyes is in our grasp!" Caesar declared.

Antony's eyes widened. "You have a spy in the library?"

Caesar chuckled. "One they'll never see coming! But he'll see them… He sees everything…"

As Antony puzzled that over, another legionnaire entered the tent. "Ave, Caesar! The century you dispatched to investigate that strange crash in the desert have returned!" He hesitated, then added, "What's left of them, anyway."

Caesar's face fell. "The Egyptrangers?"

"The Egyptrangers," the legionnaire confirmed.

Caesar put his face in his hands. "How many made it back?" He asked morosely.

"Two, sir," the legionnaire replied.

"And was Centurion Kentos one of them?"

"No, sir."

Caesar groaned and backhanded a number of pieces off his table.

"I told you this might happen," Brutus said pointedly to Caesar, picking his teeth with the tusks on his helmet.

"I know, I know…" Caesar grumbled, Antony awkwardly patting his shoulder.

"On the plus side, sir, the survivors brought back a prisoner," the legionnaire offered.

Caesar stood up straight, nearly hitting Mark in the face. "A prisoner?! Bring them in!"

A moment later, Antonius and Valentinian were brought in, still carrying the cocooned Masaru between them. The two soldiers immediately saluted. "Ave, Caesar! Legionnaires Anastasius and Valentinian reporting in!" Valentinian barked.

"With precious cargo," Anastasius sneered, prodding the whimpering Masaru.

"Hub. Never seen restraints like that before," Brutus observed, perplexed. "Is that some new thing we do I haven't heard about?"

"It is not," Caesar informed him. "Report! What happened out there?"

"Sir! As per your orders, our century was dispatched under the leadership of Centurion Kentos to investigate the crash out in the desert," Anastasius began.

"When we arrived, we found a large group of strangers in unfamiliar dress. The majority of them were demi-humans, but a few were human, though they didn't look like any human we've ever seen before," Valentinian continued.

Antony frowned, taking a close look at Masaru's face, or what little of it could be seen through the cocoon. "He's right. I've never seen skin this shade, or eyes shaped quite like this."

"Neither have I," an intrigued Caesar murmured. "And you say most of them were demi-humans?"

Valentinian nodded. "Yes, sir. Except they looked even less human then most of the demi-humans in Egypt, and more like the mythical creatures in our army or back home. In addition, most of them look like insects."

"Insect demi-humans? How odd. I didn't think they were common," a puzzled Brutus murmured.

"Centurion Kentos ordered them to surrender. They did not." Anastasius hesitated, then said, "In fact, they turned into Egyptrangers. Ones we've never seen before."

All three Roman officers stiffened, eyes widening in horror. "More Egyptrangers?!" Caesar cried.

"Well, at least it's not the Gauls," Brutus told him, still looking very concerned.

"Well, they didn't call themselves Egyptrangers," Valentinian corrected Anastasius. "In fact, most of them call themselves Bugrangers."

"And two of them claim to be Arachrangers," Anastasius added.

"It matters not what they call themselves! The Egyptrangers are bad enough, now there's more of them?!" Caesar ranted.

"That's more or less what our reaction was," Anastasius admitted.

"And then, of course, the Egyptrangers showed up," Valentinian said gloomily.

Caesar groaned. "Of course they did. And I suppose they all teamed up to defeat Kentos and the rest of your century?"

"You suppose correctly, sir," Anastasius confirmed.

"Not to accuse you of cowardice or desertion, but why are you two the only ones who made it back?" Antony asked.

"While most of our force was focused on fighting the so-called heroes, our division was sent to try and apprehend the civilians that made up the majority of their party," Valentinian reported. "Since they were all women and children, and none of the adults had joined in the fray, we assumed them to be easy pickings."

"We were wrong," Anastasius said, a haunted look in his eyes. "So very wrong."

Brutus snorted in disgust. "You were beaten by women and children?!"

"Two of them could drain the life from our colleagues before our eyes," Anastasius moaned. "Four of them had magic. One of them was very bad at it, which was actually worse for us."

"And then there was the kitten with the ax," Valentinian whimpered. "You have no idea how many that child killed, with a blank, empty look on their face. The face of a killer…"

"Who would let a child have an ax?" A disturbed Caesar wondered.

"A very irresponsible parent?" Brutus suggested.


Hundreds of miles away, Kari suddenly felt greatly insulted.


"We were only able to survive by playing dead and hiding among the bodies," Anastasius continued. "When the Egyptrangers and the foreigners no longer paid any attention to us, we made a break for it."

"On our way out, we noticed this guy," Valentinian said, nodding at the bound Masaru. "And decided to bring him back with us so we wouldn't return empty-handed. We don't know why they tied him up like this, but I doubt he's their friend."

"And if he is no friend of theirs, perhaps he could become a friend of ours," Caesar murmured, impressed. "Good work, both of you. I'm promoting you to decurion!"

The duo's eyes lit up. "Yes, sir!"

"Now get yourself cleaned and kitted up, you'll be heading back to the front lines to exfiltrate our spy in the library of Alexandria as soon as he gives the signal that he's found the Eyes," Caesar instructed them.

"Yes, sir," they mumbled, their enthusiasm somewhat dulled.

As the newly minted decurions left, Caesar nodded at Brutus. "Brutus, cut him free and let's see what he has to say."

"Okay."

In one smooth motion, Brutus drew his sword, sliced it through the air, then put it back on his belt.

A moment passed, and the cocoon suddenly disintegrated, dropping a gasping Masaru to the ground. As he struggled to catch his breath, Caesar walked over, his shadow looming over him. "I am Julius Caesar, Emperor of the Roman Empire," Caesar said dramatically, swishing his cape behind him. "And who, pray tell, are you?"

Masaru gave him a confused look. "Nani?"

Caesar nodded. "Well, Nani, I have questions for you, and how you answer them may determine whether you live to see another day-"

"Moushiwake ari mase ne ga, watashi wa anata ga nani wo itsu te iru no ka wakari mase ne. Sore wo nihongo de kurikaeshi te itadake masu ka?"

Everyone in the tent stared at Masaru blankly. Caesar turned to Brutus and Antony. "Do either of you have any idea what he just said?"

They shook their heads.

Caesar looked at the slaves and other soldiers in the tent. "How about you? Have any of you heard this language spoken before?"

They all apologetically shook their heads.

Caesar frowned and scratched his head, nearly knocking off his wreath. "Well, that's problematic. How can we interrogate him if we have no idea what he's saying?"

"PERHAPS I CAN BE OF SOME ASSISTANCE."

There was a clap of thunder, and many of the slaves recoiled and screamed in fear as the idol at the back of the tent started crackling with electricity, eyes glowing.

Caesar bowed his head to the idol, quickly gesturing for everyone else do the same. "Lord Jupiter. Do you know from where this man hails, and what language he speaks?"

"FROM HIS APPEARANCE AND DIALECT, HE HAILS FROM LANDS FAR EAST OF HERE, FURTHER THAN EVEN ALEXANDER THE GREAT EVER REACHED," Jupiter boomed. "HOWEVER, I ALSO SENSE ENERGY SIMILAR TO THAT OF MY FATHER SATURN ON HIM. HE IS NOT JUST FROM THE EAST… BUT FROM ANOTHER TIME ENTIRELY! HE HAS NOT EVEN BEEN BORN YET!"

Antony gasped. "He's from the future? Is that even possible?!"

"THERE IS FAR MORE TO THIS WORLD THAN MORTALS SUCH AS YOURSELF CAN EVER COMPREHEND," Jupiter rumbled.

"If he is really from the future… That means all those other strangers who appeared must have traveled to time as well!" Brutus immediately realized.

"And if they're from the future… They may have even more valuable knowledge then we imagined!" Caesar said eagerly. "Perhaps the location of the Eyes of Alexander, or how to defeat the Gauls and secure the Roman Empire for millennia to come! O Jupiter, can you allow us to understand this stranger's speech?"

"HANG ON, LET ME CHECK WITH MINERVA, THIS IS MORE HER DEPARTMENT… OKAY… I SEE… ALL RIGHT, YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND HIM NOW," Jupiter said.

Caesar turned back to the bewildered and alarmed Masaru. "Okay, let's try this again. Nani, I am Julius Caesar, Emperor of the Roman Empire-"

"My name isn't Nani," Masaru interrupted.

Caesar blinked, mildly confused but also pleased to see that whatever Minerva had done worked. "Then… Who are you?"

"Masaru Aso."

"Right. Masaru, I am Julius Caesar, Emperor of the Roman Empire-"

"Hang on, is that the Great Leader of Shocker back there?" Masaru demanded, pointing at the idol.

Everyone glanced at the idol in confusion, then back at Masaru. "What? No, that's an idol of Jupiter, through which the Lord of Olympus communicates with us," Antony replied

"Although I suppose he can shock people," Brutus pointed out. "God of thunder and all."

"Don't give me that! It's clearly the Great Leader of Shocker pretending to be Jupiter to manipulate you into doing what he wants!" Masaru insisted. "It's so obvious! Who else would communicate using a statue of an eagle as a medium?"

He stood up, shaking his fist angrily at the statue. "What's your game, Great Leader? Did you rebuild the history rewriting machine? Are you screwing with time again?" He hesitated, a confused look on his face. "Or… Have you actually been around even longer than everyone thought? Wait, hold on, does Shocker not exist yet? Shit, did I just give you the idea to create an evil organization called Shocker in the future? Have I just created a time loop?!"

Everyone stared at Masaru, bewildered. "OKAY, MINERVA HAS NO IDEA WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT," Jupiter said after a moment. "WHICH IS WEIRD BECAUSE MINERVA KNOWS JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING. ALTHOUGH…'GREAT LEADER' DOES HAVE A NICE RING TO IT. FROM THIS POINT FORWARD, YOU SHALL CALL ME GREAT LEADER JUPITER!"

"As you wish, Great Leader!" Caesar replied.

"Oh no, maybe I really did create a time loop," Masaru moaned. "Wait… Hold on… You said you're Julius Caesar, ruler of the Roman Empire?"

"That is correct," Caesar confirmed.

"And all those soldiers out there, those monsters, they work for you?" Masaru pressed.

"They do," Caesar replied.

"And you're trying to take over the world?" Masaru continued.

"I am," Caesar answered, wondering where he was going with this.

Masaru's eyes lit up in excitement and he pointed a finger at Caesar. "Aha! That means you're the bad guys!"

"What? I'm not the bad guy!" Caesar protested. "I seek to unite the world and establish order!"

"Which is exactly what a bad guy would say!" Masaru said triumphantly. "And besides, you're torturers, enslavers, I saw people crucified on my way in, I'm pretty sure some of your guys were raping people… All that definitely makes you a bad guy!"

"Just about everyone in the world does that!" Caesar insisted.

"The Egyptians don't," Antony pointed out.

"Well, they used to!"

"You guys must be the primary enemies those Egyptian Sentai fight," Masaru continued, getting even more excited. "Even further proof that you're the bad guys! Which means… If I take you out here, your evil empire will collapse, and I'll be a hero again! Not quite the way I planned it, but even Shin will be impressed!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, but I'm not evil!" Caesar insisted.

"Also, killing him won't cause our empire to collapse, there's still the Senate, and this pretty complex and well established set of procedures we've established to select a new Emperor in case anything should happen to Caesar-" Brutus started.

"But at least your ambitions for Egypt will be ruined!" Masaru continued. "This is it! This is my moment! My big comeback! HENSHIN!"

There was a flash of light, and to everyone's astonishment, Masaru was suddenly clad in a padded green suit with yellow lines running through his body, a circular red jewel in his stomach, and a helmet that made him look like a grasshopper.

"WHAT THE PLUTO?!" Jupiter yelled.

"ZO Kick!" Masaru cried, launching himself in a flying kick at the startled Caesar-

"Nope."

Brutus's massive hand shot out, grabbing Masaru by the ankle just before his foot could break Caesar's very prominent nose. Masaru gulped. "Oh shit-"

Brutus flung him back and forth, smashing him bodily against the floor again and again, before finally slamming him down hard on the floor face first, planting a foot on his neck, and holding his sword millimeters away from his eye. "Just say the word," Brutus growled, glancing at his Emperor.

"He's an Egyptranger? Why didn't anyone tell me he was an Egyptranger?!" A shocked Caesar yelled.

"I think they prefer the term Bugrangers," Antony pointed out hopefully.

"Whatever!"

"I'm not an Egyptranger or Bugranger or any kind of Ranger, I'm a Kamen Rider!" Masaru cried, trying to sound brave and defiant, which was rather difficult due to him quite visibly trembling in fear.

"I have no idea what that is and I don't really care," Caesar said flatly.

"Kamen Riders are allies of justice!" Masaru insisted. "… Except when they are evil. Which… If I'm going to be honest, happens pretty often, actually… And even the good ones fight each other a lot for stupid reasons…"

"Still don't care!" Caesar snapped. "Anyway, the only reason I don't have Brutus kill you on the spot for trying to assassinate me is because you're our best chance at understanding these Bugrangers and learning more about the future. So you're going to answer our questions, or find yourself crucified along with all the other wretches you saw on your way here! A little time on the cross will certainly loosen your lips!"

"Please cooperate," Antony pleaded. "Those Bugrangers clearly aren't friends of yours, considering they wrapped you up in a cocoon. If you help us, we can help you get retribution for what they did."

"No way!" Masaru shot back. "I'm not exactly a fan of the Bugrangers right now – especially Shin –but that doesn't mean I'm going to sell them out, either! Despite everything, I'm still a hero, and I won't talk! You're going to have to kill me, because you won't get anything out of me, even if you torture me!"

Please buy my bluff, please buy my bluff, please buy my bluff, he desperately pleaded to himself. While he wasn't exactly looking forward to dying, if he did, at least he would go out a martyr and be remembered as a hero. He really, really didn't want to be tortured, though.

Caesar frowned, then nodded Brutus. "We'll see. Brutus, put out one of his eyes."

Brutus grinned. "Okay."

Masaru's eyes bulged in horror. Fuck!

"THAT MAY NOT BE NECESSARY," Jupiter boomed. "I HAVE VERITAS ON THE LINE HERE. SHE CAN MAKE SURE THE FOREIGNER SPEAKS NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH."

Brutus pouted. "Does that mean I can't torture him?"

"Maybe later," Caesar promised.

"And you guys still think you're not the bad guys?" Masaru muttered. "It doesn't matter if I'm forced to be honest, that doesn't mean I have to actually answer your questions! I'm not like Taro Momoi, who for some reason felt the urge to blab his only weakness to his enemy just because he asked!"

"What's your weakness?" Caesar immediately asked.

"I'm severely out of practice as far as fighting goes due to only being in a very small handful of major battles over the last thirty or so years and suffer from crippling depression and terribly low self-esteem due to a lifetime of failure and regret," Masaru immediately answered. He paused, realizing what he had just said. "Shit."

Everyone in the tent fidgeted awkwardly. "Okay, not quite what I had in mind…" Caesar muttered. "Still, that means you now have no chance but to tell us everything about these new players! But first… I wish to know of the future! Tell me, my little Tithonus-"

"I told you, my name is Masaru," Masaru protested.

"According to Greek legend, Tithonus is a human who was transformed into the first grasshopper after a disastrous attempt to be with his immortal lover," Antony explained helpfully.

"Oh."

"SERVES HIM RIGHT, TRYING TO HOOK UP WITH AURORA," Jupiter said smugly.

"Tell me of the future! Does the Roman Empire still rule in your age?" Caesar demanded.

"No," Masaru told him. "They fell several hundred years before I was even born."

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Wait, really?" Brutus asked in dismay.

"HE IS NOT LYING," Jupiter reported, discomfited.

"How long ago? How much longer do we have?" Caesar demanded.

"Heck if I know, they didn't really teach us much about Roman history back in school, and I didn't really pay attention anyway," Masaru admitted. "I was too busy trying to impress the girls."

"Understandable," Brutus conceded.

"Well… Do you at least know if I succeed in expanding the Empire and bringing forth a new era of prosperity in my lifetime?" Caesar pleaded.

"No clue."

"Do I manage to defeat the Gauls?"

"I have no idea who those are."

"Do you know of any weapons and technologies from your time we can implement here?"

"Plenty, but I have no idea how the hell any of them work, beyond motorcycles, and I rather doubt you've got the tools needed to build one in this time period."

Caesar, looking more and more despondent with each answer, desperately asked, "Have you at least heard of the Eyes of Alexander?!"

"No clue what those are, unless you mean the Alexander Eyecon," Masaru replied.

Caesar perked up at this. "The Alexander Eyecon? What is that?"

"An eye-shaped thing possessing the spirit of Alexander the Great or something?" Masaru said uncertainly.

"Uncle, that sounds like what we're looking for!" Antony said in excitement.

"Tell me of this Eyecon!" Caesar commanded.

"Well, Ambassador Hell, a future minion of your boss-" Masaru started.

"I TOLD YOU, I AM NOT THE GREAT LEADER OF SHOCKER, THOUGH HE SOUNDS VERY HANDSOME," Jupiter interjected.

"He looks like a male Cyclops Gorgon. I think."

"I'VE DATED UGLIER."

"Right. Anyway, Ambassador Hell came back from the dead for like the umpteenth time and tried to use the Eyecon to take over the world, only for it to be stolen by another minion of your boss, except he got disenchanted and formed his own evil organization, except he was unable to control its power and went berserk and had to be put down, and the Eyecon was destroyed, but then some weirdo claiming to be the 'will of darkness' brought it back somehow and was killed by Takeru Tenkuji harnessing the powers of all the Heisei Riders up to that point and the Eyecon was destroyed forever. Probably."

"… I understood almost none of that," Caesar complained. "Where did this ambassador get the Eyecon from in the first place?"

"It wound up inside the adopted daughter – or niece? Granddaughter? I'm not entirely sure of the familial connection – of the legendary first officially recognized Kamen Rider. Somehow. I don't know how it got there," Masaru said vaguely.

Caesar groaned. "That is spectacularly unhelpful."

"Isn't there anything about the future you can tell us that may be of some use?" Antony pleaded. "Anything at all?"

"Well, they name a salad after Caesar," Masaru reported.

"…A salad. My legacy is a salad?!" Caesar shouted.

"Oh, and I think Caesar is supposed to be assassinated sometime soon," Masaru suddenly recalled.

Everyone started at this. "What?!" Caesar cried.

"I told you," Brutus reminded him, though he looked too alarmed to be satisfied by this.

"Who? When? Where? How?!" Caesar demanded.

"I don't know, I told you, I didn't really pay attention in history!" Masaru cried. "I just know it was a big deal and some author hundreds of years from now will write a play about it and earn the hatred of schoolchildren for generations to come. I think it happens in… March? And you get stabbed… By a lot of people… And I think you are betrayed by someone whose name starts with a B?"

Bruce's eyes widened in alarm. "My name starts with a B!"

Caesar scoffed. "Don't be preposterous, Brutus, I know you would never betray me. It's probably somebody else, there's lots of people whose names start with a B." He frowned and stroked his chin in thought. "Still… This is not the sort of news I was hoping for…"

"Uncle, now that we know about this assassination attempt, maybe we can prepare for it, stop it from happening," Antony suggested.

"Could we?" Caesar wondered, pensive. "Masaru comes from centuries in the future, where all this has already happened. Is destiny truly something that can be changed? Is fate mutable?"

"I'D ASK THE FATES, BUT THEY DON'T LIKE TO TALK TO ME FOR SOME REASON," Jupiter complained.

"Time can be changed," Masaru told them. "Sometimes. Except when it can't. I was actually hoping to try and change history myself so I could have a less sucky life and be a hero again. That's why I tried to hijack the ShinLiner to go back to when my life went to shit and fix things-"

"The ShinLiner?" Caesar interjected.

"Yeah, it's how we all got here in the first place," Masaru explained. "It's a machine that can travel freely through time."

Caesar's eyes lit up. "A machine that can travel through time…" He murmured. "And if you could use it to get from whenever you're from to here… Then maybe I can use it to get to whenever and wherever I want as well!" He started laughing evilly. "Forget the Eyes of Alexander, with that kind of power, I could erase the Gauls from existence before they ever become a threat! Prevent Egypt from ever seceding! Keep Cleopatra from breaking up with me! Make the Senate shut up once and for all! Guarantee that the sun will never set on the Roman Empire!"

Masaru swallowed, realizing he may have just inadvertently handed the keys of Armageddon to one of the most ambitious and power-hungry despots in history. "Oh, crap."

Antony also looked nervous. "Uncle, is that truly wise? There are countless myths about what happens to those who try to overreach when seeking power…"

"YEAH, THEY CRASH AND BURN, AND IT'S ALWAYS HILARIOUS," Jupiter agreed. "WHICH ISN'T ME TELLING YOU TO STOP, MIND YOU, I KINDA WANT TO SEE WHERE THIS IS GOING."

"Me too," Brutus agreed.

An avaricious grin on his face, Caesar leaned down to gaze into the frantic Masaru's eyes. "Tell me more, Masaru. Tell me more about this ShinLiner…"