Chapter 6: Project MODERN Act I
Disclaimer: The Kamen Rider Franchise and Symphogear belong to their respective owners. OCs belong to their creators.
At an unknown location, a woman with blond hair sat at a long table and she talked on a phone with an unknown male who was speaking in fluent English.
"Solomon's Cane… What happened to the activation test of the Holy Relic we handed over?" asked the male.
"As reported, the test showed that complete relics need a significant level of phonic gain. It can't be done so easily." The woman responded in accented English before testing the abilities of the oddly shaped cane that the silver haired girl used to summon some Noise.
"Black Art… Unveiling the vanished prehistoric civilization technology and definitively make it be our own."
"It's all give and take. I appreciate for the support of your country. I will leave the next month's duck hunt and later successes to you."
"So, you absolutely have a mind to use me. If that's the case, let's see if your action matches this deal."
"Of course, I would do nothing less. As they always say, obedience is the key to longevity." The woman stated before hanging up. "How vulgar and disgusting. Just like his homeland." The woman spat in Japanese after setting up the deal she had. "No need to tell someone like him that Soloman's Cane had already been activated." The woman walked towards a spot where the silver-haired girl was seen tied up to some sort of machine along with another female who had dark brown hair and appeared to be unconscious. "Don't you agree, Chris?" The woman moved her hand to the silver haired girl who she addressed as Chris. "Are you in pain? You poor dear. Your hesitation got you into this mess."
Then the woman grabbed the girl's chin. "You were supposed to bring the boy and girl here after they took the bait. Not only did you fail, but also returned empty-handed too."
"This is necessary, right?" asked Chris who had a tamed tone despite how she acted earlier in the battle.
"What do you mean?" asked the woman though she knew the girl's next answer.
"I have to obey you if I want to see my wish granted, don't I?" asked the silver haired girl.
"Exactly, you have to accept me without a shred of doubt. Otherwise, I'd have to hate you." The woman pulled down on the lever activating an electrical circuit that non-lethally shocked the girl. She screamed in pain from the torture she received along with the brunette who was shocked awake from the pain.
"You're so cute, Chris. Only I can give you the love you deserve." The woman calmly smiled as if she took pleasure in torturing the poor girl. "Don't forget this, Chris. Pain is the only thing that can connect people's hearts. That's how it has always been."
"You may be right on that, ma'am." The brunette commented.
"Oh? It seems you're finally awake. Had a good sleep, dear?"
"Could do without the sudden wake-up shock." The brunette joked as if waving off the pain she just felt.
"Good, now let's eat together."
Chris looked as if she was happy to know that the woman was being merciful. But the woman made a sadistic smile before pulling the lever again, putting both females under the shock of electrical voltage. This left Chris unconscious, but the brunette female breathed heavily from the pain and was still awake.
"You know what to do." The woman untied the brunette's restraints and allowed her to crouch down to catch her breath from the torture session she shared with Chris. "I expect you and the other two to retrieve the boy this time. The power that he wields will put a chip in my plans." The woman ordered to the freed brunette.
The brunette stood up and nodded in confirmation with her orders. "Yes ma'am, but what if he resists?"
"Then you have full permission to do whatever is necessary, even if you have to bring his broken body here." The woman ordered with her smirk still present.
The female frowned from the orders she was given, but she had to comply. "Fine, but I don't think I will need to. I will hold up my end of the bargain as long as you hold up yours." Then the brunette left while leaving the blond woman alone.
"*Malicious Chuckle* I never expected her child could cause so much trouble for me… But that will change once I have him under my control…" The blond woman smiled cunningly.
(Sanctuary- Tamaki Nami)
/Bokutachi wa mina kitto Te wo nobashiterun da/
From a cloud of black ash, a young man with red hair walks out. Then his face is shown to be Akakishi as both of his eyes glowed. He walks forward with the Reverse IXA Knuckle on his left hand. Then he stops to the view of rocky cliffs and a starry night sky.
/Tooku tooi basho e to/
The scene shifts to Hibiki who stood on top of a tower of rock looking toward the sky. Then the scene turns to her back as wings sprout out of it. She flies off the pillar of rock and into the sky.
Akakishi follows her action and jumps towards the sky from the rocks. While Hibiki flies toward him in the opposite direction. Then the title appears with the two turning into silhouettes.
/Kaze ni fukare aruite yuku/
Then Akakishi is shown on his motorcycle looking toward the sky as the wind blew. Then a silhouette of an armored man with red compound eyes came to his mind.
/Umare kita imi wo shiritakute/
The scene changes to Hibiki who is staying to the sky at the Lydian Academy. Then an image of Kanade and Tsubasa fighting in the Zwei Concert incident appears in her mind.
/Tatoeba ushinau toki ga kitemo/
The scene changes to Miku who watches a meteor shower then reaching out to the same shower. A shift to Kanade and an unknown male in a trench coat where they are shown watching a concert performed by Tsubasa. Eiji also watched Tsubasa except he was in the situation/observation room with Genjuro, Tendou, and the other members of the Second Division. Then Gentarou is shown walking the streets with his friends with Tridoron passing the group on a road. Noticeably, a girl with silver hair in a majenta dress also passed the group.
/Dakishimeru koto ima, erabou/
Several colored chains wrap around Akakishi's body as he falls into an unconscious state. As ash gathered and dissipated, Hibiki is shown sitting in a fetal position with a sad look with chains of orange binding her. Tsubasa also is restrained in blue chains as her eyes closed. Yoku is also seen with yellow chains covering her and her chained hand reaches out.
Instrumental
The scene shifts back to an awakened Akakishi as he tears off the chains with each colored chain breaking in succession with the music and in the order of orange, blue, and purple. He reaches out to the chained Hibiki who smiles at his appearance and she reaches out with her chains shattering. Tsubasa sees Eiji who reaches out to her and she reaches out to his hand with her chains shattering. Yoku's outstretched hand is grabbed by Shinnosuke who embraced her in a protective hug, causing her chains to break apart.
Then the scene transitions to the armored form of Ixa R with several shadowed Kamen Riders at his side.
/Bokutachi wa mina kitto/
In a factory, Hibiki charges into the fray of battle swinging her fists into each Noise in her way with practiced ease. Then Ixa R kicks down a large Noise before punching a Noise in sync with Hibiki.
/Te wo nobashiterun da/
Tsubasa jumps in by cutting down several Noise with the blades on her legs. Next, Kamen Rider OOO lands and supports the singer by cutting down foes with his sword.
Then Kamen Rider Drive crashes through some Noise before Yoku swings her hammer and smashes through several Noise in seconds.
/Nakusenai mono ni mukatte/
The next scene shows off Kamen Rider Kabuto in his unmasked form with an unknown female behind him.
Then Kamen Rider Fourze is shown with his Rocket Module active as he flies into battle.
Next came a shadowed figure with a cape and yellow lens with a feminine figure at his back with a blue visor.
/Kagayaita yume dake wo/
Ixa R takes out a fuestle and equips his Reverse Knuckle while Hibiki pulls out the piston on her gauntlet.
/Taguriyosenagara/
The two run through the long range attacks of the Noise and punch forward, ending the scene with a view of their knuckles.
/Tooku tooi basho e to/
The camera shows the armored hand of Ixa R reaching out and the armored hand of Hibiki grabbing it. The hands lace their fingers as the armors transition off. The scene flashes and dies down to reveal Akakishi standing with Hibiki with their eyes staring off into the blue horizon. Behind them is Eiji with Tsubasa, and Shinnosuke with Yoku.
At Amanogawa High School, Akakishi had finished his classes along with Haru and Ran. The three were walking to the Space Kamen Rider club room with Akakishi wondering if the club was willing to come to the Second Division's headquarters. What he saw was the entire club with a man in a suit talking to each other.
"Mr. Ogawa?" asked Akakishi upon recognizing the man.
"It's good you're doing fine, Akakishi-kun. I was talking to the Space Kamen Rider Club about their trip to the Second Division. Good news is that there was a unanimous agreement with everyone." The four turned to look at the club members.
"Second Division KIIITAAA!" shouted Gentarou and Yuki while they raised their arms.
"That's good to hear, Mr. Ogawa. How about Yoku-san and Mr. Tomari?"
"Detective Tomari will join us, and Yoku will be with him at the base when we arrive."
"Um, what is this about?" asked Ran who was confused what was going on.
"Oh, let me introduce myself. My name is Shinji Ogawa, one of the agents of the Disaster Relief Second Division." The manager offered his hand as a friendly greeting.
"Oh, so you must be the ones fighting the Noise, right? It's a pleasure to meet you." Ran smiled and shook the man's hand.
"Likewise. It appears you two have already been somewhat briefed on what Akakishi does in our group. We will explain more when we get there." Ogawa said before he heard the ring of his phone and responded. "Yes, it's done? Good." Then he put away the phone into his breast pocket. "Speaking of which, your transport is ready and here. Let's go."
"Understood, Ogawa-san." Akakishi saluted to the older man who nodded in response.
"Wow, it's not even a week and you're already bringing us into a storm of craziness!"
The redhead turned to meet an older female with a black bob cut. "Um, sorry about that, umm… I don't believe we have properly met."
The young woman made a gesture with an expression of genuine surprise. "Oops, I forget about that! My name is Miu Kazashiro, the Space Kamen Rider Club's Chairman and a first year in college."
"Nice to meet you, Chairman. My name is Akakishi. You can call me by my full name or Aka."
"It's nice to meet you, Aka-kun. This is Shun, my boyfriend."
"Hey, the name's Shun Daimonji, any Rider who is a friend of Gentarou's is also my friend."
"Likewise, sempai." Akakishi smiled before nodding in respect to the young man.
"Come on, you slowpokes!" shouted Yuki who as the doorway along with the rest of the club.
"*Chuckle* Let's not keep everyone waiting." Miu walked forward with a queen-like aura but shared a friendly smile.
During the trip, Akakishi rode on his motorcycle along with Gentarou and Ryusei who rode their respective Rider Machines and drove along with the transport to the Lydian Music Academy. Upon reaching the Academy, the Club members did not expect that their destination was the school that specialized in music.
"So the Second Division base is the Lydian Music Academy? That's Incredible!" Yuki commented while still staring at the school.
"From my sources, I heard that the idol, Tsubasa goes here! Man, this is awesome!" JK stated.
"But why establish a base in a Music School? Is there a specific reason for it?" wondered Kengo who thought with an inquisitive look. The intellectual did had a point of the odd circumstances.
"You all can figure it out when we meet with the Commander." Shinji said to the group in a friendly manner.
The transport drove into the parking lot where the car parked in front of the main building entrance while the motorcyclists were guided to their own areas to park their bikes. The Space Kamen Rider Club entered the main building where Shinji led everyone into the high-express elevator. Along the way down, the club looked in awe at the ancient murals that cover the entire walls that surround the elevator.
"Whoa…" Ran looked as each of them.
Tomoko appeared to be the most awed member of the club with recognition in her eyes. "I've only seen photos of these murals in dilapidated conditions! But these look pristine!"
"Tomoko-sempai, do you know what these paintings are?" Haru asked the goth.
"These aren't any ordinary paintings, they're from an ancient civilization that had managed to master magic and create various objects of incredible power! I never thought I get to see these murals in such good condition!" Tomoko said with surprising glee.
"I never seen Tomoko this happy before." Shun muttered to Miu who nodded.
"It's quite disturbing." Miu agreed with a whisper.
Tomoko closed in on the redhead with a look of unbridled passion "You! Aka-whatever! You must tell me if you have mastered the Black Magic that the ancients have created and wielded! If you do not, I will curse you into oblivion!"
"Um… Sempai, I'm just the guy who fights the Noise. If you want to talk about Black Magic, Miss Ryoko will be more than willing to oblige." Akakishi said with a couple of sweat drops pouring from his face.
Then the young Rider was saved by the bell of the elevator.
"We have arrived, everyone." Shinji said to the group as the doors opened.
The club entered the base's main control center with amazement evident on their faces at the numerous monitors in the room.
"Whoa…" Yuki looked at the number of monitors present. "This place kind of reminds me of the Rabbit hatch!"
"Well everyone, let me welcome you all to the main headquarters of the Second Division! A group that is tasked with the protection of Humanity. And well… the usual stuff considering you guys have been in this business for a while." Akakishi said to the club with a friendly smile. "But… there is one thing that is bothering me…"
"What is it, Akakishi-kun?" asked Shinji who had a sneaking suspicion about the youth's question.
Akakishi turned to Shinji with a questioning and confused look. "Where's the Commander? He usually prepares a party to welcome everyone new."
"Apparently he's out." Shinnosuke said from his seat on the couch, catching everyone's attention.
"And who are you?" asked Kengo while thinking where he had seen Shinnosuke's face.
"Oh Shin-sempai! Did you arrive early?" asked Gentarou as he walked to the detective's side.
The detective stood up to meet his junior with a smile. "Yep. Been here for a while with my partner and Yoku."
Then the delinquent turned to his smarter friend and introduced the man as a friend. "Guys, this is Shin-sempai! He's a Kamen Rider like me and Ryusei!"
"Shin? As in Detective Shinnosuke Tomari? I read that he is one of the more public Kamen Riders!" Tomoko remembered that there was an influx of news that mentioned about a detective who revealed himself as a Kamen Rider.
"That is correct though you can blame my old chief for that leak. Nice to meet you all, I am Shinnosuke Tomari. A Detective and liaison of the First Division in the Police Department, and the Kamen Rider: Drive. And this is my partner, Mr. Belt." The detective gestured to the belt strapped on his waist which made a smile.
"It is also my pleasure of meeting you all! I am Krim Steinbelt, the second half of Drive! But you can also call me, Mr. Belt!" Mr. Belt introduced himself as the gentleman that he was.
"EEEEEHHHHHH?!" shouted the Space Rider Club members that had not met the two.
"D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-Did that belt… JUST TALK?!" shouted JK.
"Incredible! A Driver with a sentient AI!" said Kengo with an intrigued look.
"AWESOME!" Yuki exclaimed before mock saluting. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Belt!"
"*Laugh* Ah, to be young again." Mr. Belt said with an amused tone at the energetic reaction that the group gave.
"Yes~ Yes~ Mr. Belt here is quite a fascinating fellow, everyone." Then Ryoko entered the control room from a nearby door with Yoku following her. Noticeably, the younger girl with light blue hair was eating a bar of chocolate.
"Miss Ryoko!" Akakishi noticed the woman before giving a smile. Then he gave a questioning look. "Do you know where the Commander is?"
The brunette scientist gave his question a thought with her usual carefree expression. "He's meeting up with an old acquaintance, Aka-chan. And the Vice Commander is also out for now, so I'm in charge until either of them get back~"
Akakishi gave a breath of relief knowing both Commanders weren't MIA. "That's good to know, Miss Ryoko."
"So this is the Space Kamen Rider Club? My, what an impressive number of cuties~!" Ryoko smiled with her eyes closed. Then she placed her hands on her hips and puffed her chest out in pride. "My name is Ryoko Sakurai, the brains of the operation here. Nice to meet you all."
The club member returned the greeting introduced themselves respectively to the researcher.
"Aka-whatever said that you know about the murals we saw during our trip from the elevator. Is it true you discovered the magic of the Ancient Civilization?" asked Tomoko with eagerness.
"My, a fellow fanatic of Black Magic? Why yes, of course, Tomo-chan~! My research into their magic allowed me to create the Symphogears! Like Yoku-chan's here!" Ryoko pulled Yoku by the shoulders and presented the girl to everyone.
"H-Hey, the name's Yoku Hikari, and I'm glad to finally meet you all! *Nervous Chuckle*" The light blue-haired girl said with a timid smile.
"Sakurai-san said that you have something called a Symphogear. What is it?" asked Kengo who was curious about the object in question.
"Symphogear? Oh, you mean the Relics!" Yoku remembered before she took out a necklace with the magenta-colored crystal.
"A gem? What is so special about-" Yuki wondered before she yelped from being knocked away by the club's goth.
"What is this crystal? I feel something strong emanating from it." Tomoko took a closer look at the Relic crystal with curiosity. The girl moved her ear closer to the Relic crystal as if straining herself to hear whatever the object sung. "Not only that… but a faint tune?"
"Is she having those 'feelings' you tell us about, sempai?" asked Ran.
"Seems like it. That's how she figured out about the Fire Switch." Gentarou remembered about that moment when he first befriended the girl.
"So there is something special about this crystal, Nozama-san?" Kengo asked her.
"Yes. I'm just not sure why…"
Ryoko stared at Tomoko with a hint of surprise in her eyes. Then she smiled at the fortune meeting someone with such a rare gift. "My, you are quite gifted, Tomo-chan~ Not many can hear the voices of the Relics as sensitively as you. Not even I can hear them as clearly."
"The voice of the Relics?" wondered Kengo.
"Does it have something to do with Yoku-san's transformation?" asked Ryusei who remembered the events of last night.
"Correct! Ryu-chan!" Ryoko said with a smile while giving the martial artist a nickname that he didn't like if there was anything to go by his grimace. She took out a remote and pressed a button that revealed a screen which provided information on the Relic crystal in Yoku's possession. Then the crystal shifted to its activated state. "Symphogears are armors that draw from the fragments of Relics or objects that shaped the myths and stories we are very fond of hearing. The Relic that Yoku has in her possession is known as Ukonvasara."
"Ukonvasara… As in the magical weapon used by the Finnish thunder god Ukko?" Tomoko said with look of realization.
"Correct!"
"So it is safe to assume that this Ancient civilization that Tomoko is so interested in is also responsible for creating these Relics? And these Symphogears help us fight the Noise?" Miu intuitively guessed on the connection between the two.
"Spot on, Miu-chan. As your friends, Gen-chan and Ryu-chan, have experienced fighting the Noise, there is a noticeable gap in fighting them off, correct?"
"Yeah, I barely won the fight against those Noise Kaijin, Sakurai-san." Ryusei said with an honest tone.
"And that massive Noise took my magnet guns as if it was nothing! Even the finisher failed to kill it."
Ryoko smiled reassuringly. "But you two managed to hit them and defeat the smaller ones, so it is safe to assume that Cosmic Energy has an effect, albeit a small one. But your problems are shared with all the Riders who do not meet a certain specification."
"A certain specification? And what is that?" asked Kengo.
"An Aufwachen Wavelength Form." Ryoko answered while pressing the remote in her right hand which cause the main screen to reveal readings that pulse off the Relic Crystal. "The Relic crystals generate this particular wavelength that causes the Noise to become vulnerable. And when the Relic fragment is activated, it grants the user incredible power."
The brunette genius absorbed the information with his curiosity still at its peak. "I see… And what is the method of activation?"
"Songs." Ryoko simply responded which the Space Kamen Rider club gave dumbfounded looks. "As ridiculous as it sounds, songs are what activate these fragments of ancient weapons and objects. But each Relic only responds to a particular singer and song, so simply humming a tune won't work. We call these people who activated them, Attuned."
Then the nearby mechanical door opened and Hibiki ran in with a panicked look.
"Sorry I'm late! I needed to finish some homework, so- Eh?!" The amber-haired girl looked surprised at the sudden new faces she did not recognize. "Who are you all?"
Akakishi took the chance to greet his childhood friend. "Hibiki! I was wondering where you were, a few days ago."
"Aka! Do you know who these people are?"
"Them? They're from a Kamen Rider club that I accidentally found out while I enrolled into their school."
"School? So you're going to school now? Why wasn't I told?" asked Hibiki who obviously did not like that her friend was keeping secrets. She pouted at his supposed act of deception.
"Well, it was pretty sudden for me as well, Hibiki. Technically, I enrolled just yesterday. *Chuckle*" The redhead rubbed his head while smiling nervously.
Then Hibiki understood what he meant and let him off. "Oh! But it's nice that you already made a lot of friends so quickly! And I didn't know there were Kamen Rider clubs!"
"I didn't know either, but we managed to find two more riders. The delinquent-looking sempai is Gentarou Kisaragi who is also known as Kamen Rider Fourze. And the disciplined and stoic-looking sempai is Ryusei Sakuta who is known as Kamen Rider Meteor."
The delinquent in question approached the two with a friend look of eagerness. "Nice to meet you, Hibiki! My name is Gentarou Kisaragi, a founder of the Space Kamen Rider Club and the space Kamen Rider Fourze! I look forward to befriending you and the other Symphogears!"
"O-Oh, nice to meet you Gentarou-sempai! My name is Hibiki Tachibana! I hope to be a help to you and the others!" Hibiki smiled before she accepted the handshake, but she was surprised by how Gentarou did his signature friendship handshake.
"There! Now we're friends!" Gentarou smiled with a toothy grin.
Hibiki looked at her hand before nodding with a smile on her face. "Yeah!" The girl turned to see Ryusei approach her.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Tachibana-san. Though Akakishi-kun here had introduced me I would like to repeat just for good measure. My name is Ryusei Sakuta and I hope we can work together to protect humanity." The brunette offered his hand and Hibiki accepted his gesture and they also did the friendship handshake.
"Yeah! I hope so as- Eep!" Hibiki noticed Tomoko darkly glaring at her and the girl quickly let go his hand and ran behind Akakishi.
"Hm?" Ryusei turned around and noticed Tomoko glaring at Hibiki. "Tomoko, what did I tell you about scaring off girls?"
"Hmph, she was holding your hand too long." The goth replied. "I should be the only woman you can hold hands with that long."
Akakishi looked between the two with an awkward feeling in the back of his head. "Are you two in a relationship?" asked the redhead.
"No." Ryusei immediately replied with a small blush evident on his face.
"Not yet." Tomoko replied at the same time with a blush on her face.
The Space Kamen Rider club gave knowing looks at the evident feeling that the two share. Even some of the Second Division members looked amused.
"Aw~ Young love at such a young age. I hope for you two a happy and healthy relationship~!" Ryoko said with her usual carefree smile that somehow beamed brightly at the sight. "Though I hope a certain two to have such a relationship too~"
Hibiki gave a sweat drop at the comment. "R-Right, Ryoko-san." Then she turned to look at the other members before noticing Yoku wearing a necklace with a Relic Crystal. "Is she a new Symphogear user, Aka?" asked the amber-haired girl with a curious tone.
"Yep. Hey Yoku! This is my friend Hibiki and she's just like you, an Attuned!"
The blue-haired girl took notice and approached the two with a curious gaze, specifically Hibiki. "Just like me? Um… Well, I'm Yoku Hikari. W-What is your Symphogear's name? No wait! I-I mean, what is your name?"
"It's fine, Yoku-chan! My name is Hibiki Tachibana! And if I remember correctly, my Symphogear is Gungnir." Hibiki said while remembering the name of the relic she was attuned with.
"Cool, mine's Ukonbasa-Ukonda-Unkonma…hold on…*Ahem*" Yoku flushed from being unable to pronounce her Relics name. "Ukonvasara. S-Sorry, still getting used to the name." Yoku rubbed her head in embarrassment before noticing an odd thing about Hibiki. "Though there is something odd, I don't see a Crystal in your possession. Y'know, like this one?" The blue haired girl presented the Relic Crystal that hung around her neck.
"Well… The Gungnir fragments are actually inside of my body." Hibiki unbuttoned her collar to reveal the scar on her chest. She pointed at the scar shaped like the letter "F". "Right in here."
"Ouch, is there a reason why there are Relic fragments in your chest?" asked the blue-haired girl who cringed at how the fragments were embedded.
"Well-"
"I remember you now! You are that survivor from the Zwei Wing Concert! Hibiki Tachibana!" JK shouted while making a gesture at how he remembered seeing the girl's face. "I heard there were a bunch of unsavory rumors about you. But to meet you in person is certainly a change in perspective."
Akakishi grabbed his senior's shoulder with his left hand being a bit tense. "Excuse me, JK-sempai. Who said these rumors? I would like to have a word with them…" The redhead had a scowl that promised pain to whoever spoke ill of his childhood friend.
"C-Calm down, Aka! Those rumors died down two years ago! So there's no need to look for those idiots! Besides, I don't think Hibiki-chan wants you to beat up people on her behalf." The senior pointed out in order to reason with the redhead.
Akakishi turned to see Hibiki looked a bit worried and down. "*Sigh* Sorry about that, I just didn't want to see Hibiki sad that's all. But I won't forgive the ones who decided it was even a good idea to spread those rumors. I hope they-"
"Stop it, Aka. Words are just words, even if they hurt. I went through some rough times, but what kept me going was Miku and you and my friends. I enrolled in Lydian to ask Tsubasa-san what happened to you. But you came back to me on the day you left us. So I am happy that you are back!" reasoned Hibiki with a small smile.
"Hibiki… You're right, we shouldn't be dwelling on bad memories!" Akakishi nodded with smile on his face once more.
Then Gentarou pulled the two in a hug with tears streaming down his face. "*Sniff* That… is the most touching chat I have seen between childhood friends! This Kisaragi is glad to have you two as buddies!"
"Eh? Um, sempai… Why are you crying when it should one of us?" asked Hibiki who was as bewildered as Akakishi.
Yuki smiled at the scene and approached the two. "Don't worry about it, Gen-chan has a habit of crying whenever he watches touching moments and learns about people's inner turmoil. Just ask Shun-sempai here."
"Yep, he cried like a water fountain when I told him about my issues. He's always that kind of guy! *Laugh*" Shun chuckled in good nature about the day he finally met someone he could call a good friend.
"Oops! Before we forget, let us introduce ourselves to Hibiki-chan here!" Miu stated with authority as chairman of the Space Kamen Rider Club.
After certain amount of time and introductions, the door to the express elevator opened to allow Commander Genjuro and a man at a similar age walk in on the young group who was chatting about.
Hibiki took notice and waved her hand to the red haired commander. "Master!"
"Commander, you're finally back!" Akakishi greeted the man. "What were you doing?"
"Just picking up an old friend of mines." The commander gestured to the other man in the leather jacket. "So, we finally meet the Space Kamen Rider club! I am Genjuro Kazanari, commander of the Second Division!" Then he turned his head and recognized a certain member. "And, it's nice to finally meet you, Kengo. If your father was still here, he would be proud to see you strong and healthy."
"You knew my father?" asked the intellectual with a surprised expression.
"Of course! *Proud Laugh* He's an old space mission acquaintance of mines, Kengo. As well as a friend to this gentleman you all should meet." The commander gestured to the man who arrived with him.
Akakishi widened his eyes in recognition of the middle-aged man. "Master Oki!" The redhead ran forward eagerly to meet the older man. "Did you just got back to Japan?"
"Yep! Good to see you're still kicking, kid!" said the man as he ruffled the redhead's hair.
"Hey Aka-kun, who is this?" asked Yuki who felt she knew the man from somewhere.
The redhead in question turned around with a bright smile. "Oh, that's right, you guys don't know about him. This is one of my mentors, Kazuya Oki. A former astronaut from a program of NASA's, and the first Space Kamen Rider."
"Eh? The first Space Kamen Rider?" asked JK with amazement in his tone.
"That's right! The Kamen Rider who has reached to the dream that is space itself! I am Kamen Rider Super 1!" The older man did a pose by leaning on his right leg, lifting his right arm vertically, and crossing over his left arm under horizontally. "But you can call me… Kazuya or Oki-san!"
"Awesome! To finally meet the first Space Kamen Rider is an honor!"
Gentarou approached the older identified Rider with friendly look in his eyes. "Nice to meet you Super-sempai! My name is Gentarou Kisaragi, also known as Kamen Rider Fourze!"
"Nice to finally meet you too, Gentarou. I heard about you from the Commander here, but to finally meet the next generation Space Rider fills me with pride!" The man laughed loudly with cheer evident in his voice.
"And I will gladly accept that pride, Super-Sempai!" The delinquent bumped his chest and pointed at the older Rider.
"Where you also responsible for building the Rabbit Hatch, Oki-san?" asked Yuki who looked enthusiastic at finally meeting another astronaut.
"Yep! Kengo's father brought me on board to build that base on the moon as a sort of test of the Cosmic Energy's ability to create wormholes. And I was definitely happy that the test was a success! Though…" The older Rider turned to Kengo with a somber look. "I'm sorry I couldn't save your father, Kengo-kun. His death affected me as much as the loss of the friends I made over the years."
Kengo looked surprised before shaking his head. "If it was the old me, I would have told you to leave me alone. But… after meeting Gentarou and the others, I didn't let that weigh me down. Oki-san, I want to continue my father's work, so that one day we can finally meet the Presenters!"
"Kengo… Thanks, it takes a lot off my shoulders to hear you say that." The man smiled in relief. "I heard from Commander Genjuro that he lost the Rabbit Hatch's signal. Did it really get destroyed?"
The Space Kamen Rider Club gave unhappy looks which answered the question. Gentarou gave a brave face to confirm the veteran's suspicions. "Yes, Kazuya-sempai! The Rabbit Hatch was destroyed. I'm sorry we couldn't save it."
The man gave a disappointed look about the moon base's destruction, but he smiled suddenly and placed his hand on Gentarou's shoulder. "It's fine, shonen. The base can be rebuilt and I'm glad no one died in that ordeal. In truth, I should be the one saying sorry. We did leave you all to deal with our mess."
"…" Gentarou gave a bow and stood straight with a relieved smile on his face. "Thanks Sempai, I'm feeling better already!"
"Wait, do you really have the resources to build a new Rabbit Hatch?" asked Kengo with a hopeful tone.
"Wait… That means we can go back to the moon!" cheered Yuki. "I can't wait to go stargazing with everyone again!"
"*Ahem* I'm glad to see that you all have become happy of hearing that your moon base could be rebuilt, but I fear things aren't going be that simple."
"The Commander's right. With the trouble we have with the Noise, it will delay our plans for a trip to the moon."
The rider club gave knowing looks before turning to the adults with firm looks. Then Miu stepped forward with an aura of grace and authority. "Then we'll help the best we can! As Chairman and Founding member of the Space Kamen Rider Club, I, Miu Kazashiro, wish to lend our support to the Second Division in the coming battles!" Then she offered her hand in a handshake to prove their willingness to assist.
Genjuro, Kazuya, and Ryoko looked happy that the club members were willing to help them in their fights. The red-haired Commander walked forward with a smile and a nod. "Thank you, Kazashiro-san. I hope for a great help from you all." The man shook her hand, but he was surprised the she later did the friendship handshake that he had seen Gentarou use on Shinnosuke.
After the ending fist bump, Miu smiled brightly with a resolute nod with her head. "There, we're friends now."
"Friends? *Laughs* My, that's quite a unique way of providing us with help!" laughed Genjuro who felt the serious mood lighten with a smile on his face.
"Yes~ Yes~ This is definitely a start to a healthy friendship. And… I get more assistants to help with my experiments!" Ryoko brought Yoku, Yuki, Ran, and Tomoko into an embrace before dragging them to her lab in the Second Division Base.
"H-Hey! Where are we going?" asked Ran who was bewildered at the scientist who was dragging her and most of the Space Kamen Rider Club's female members.
"To my lab, silly~ All of you cuties are now my assistants!" Ryoko said with a happy tone with a hint of eagerness.
"Sakurai-san, I still have a few more questions about the Symphogears. Is it okay if I come with you?" Kengo asked with an interested look about the Second Division's means of handling the Noise.
"Sure, Ken-chan~ The more the merrier!" Ryoko smiled with a look in her eyes that gave Kengo the shivers. But he shrugged it off as nothing but her teasing personality.
Akakishi watched as the group went off to Ryoko's lab, and he realized about something. "Commander, where is Master Tendou? Shouldn't he be here right now?"
"Now that you mention it, it is a bit strange that he hasn't returned yet. I'll give him a call." The commander took out his phone and tapped on the quick-call to Tendou's cell.
In a certain location, a phone rang underneath a pile of rubble. Upon a distant view, the area looked as if a major battle occurred and decimated more than half of the building that the pile of rubble was in. Then the rubble shifted before Tendou lifted the rocks on top of him off. Then he reached into his pocket and took out his phone which displayed the caller ID that was calling him.
"Commander. What do you need?" answered the stoic man who stood up and patted off the dust that was still on his clothing.
"Where are you Tendou? Did you get caught up in something?"
"Nothing really." The vice commander replied as a piece of debris fell near him.
"Doesn't sound like nothing." The commander deadpanned. "I'll send Akakishi to your location."
"No need, whoever attacked me is gone now. Though I fathom enough that the attacker is the same one in league with that girl in the Nehustan armor."
"Either way, your disciple is worried sick about you. So just rendezvous with him and we can sort out what happened."
"…" Tendou placed his back to a wall and thought for a moment about the situation at hand. If he didn't accept any assistance, then his attacker would return to finish him off. And there is the danger of the attacker being more than one, so he would be left in a tight spot and likely captured. But if he were to accept the assistance, then Akakishi would be put in danger. The goal of the girl in the Nehustan armor was to capture both Hibiki and Akakishi. So that was another risk to consider. "Very well, but send in Tomari, Hikari, and Oki in his stead. I have a feeling my attacker is more than one. Use my phone to track down my location."
The crimson-hair commander complied with a nod. "Understood. Shinji, get Tendou's location down! He's in trouble!"
"What?! Master Tendou is in trouble? But how?!" asked Akakishi with a panicked look. It was no surprise that the man looked for trouble or trouble would find him. But the man always managed to come out on top.
"He is thinking that this may be the same attacker from a week ago! Shinnosuke, Yoku, and Kazuya. Prepare for battle!" Hibiki and especially Akakishi were surprised that they weren't going to be involved in the rescue mission.
"Eh?! But Master! Why can't Aka and I come?" asked Hibiki.
"You only trained for a couple of days, Hibiki. If this is the same opponent from a few days ago, I don't want to put you at risk." Genjuro said with a reasonable tone.
"But what about Aka?"
"He will stay here with you-" The commander glanced for a moment and noticed the youngest Rider was missing. "Oh no, don't tell me…"
Outside of the base, the redhead wore his helmet and drove off at a high speed to the location where his master was using the location software that the man in question installed into his bike in the event of the Red Beetle Rider going MIA. The bike managed to trace Tendou's most likely location and Akakishi drove into the area where it was one of the more deserted areas due to common Noise sightings in it. As the young Rider drove through the abandoned district of empty or heavily damaged buildings, a silhouette with an orange eye observed him from on top of one of the buildings.
"The target's here, just as you predicted," said the silhouette with a stoic female voice as she placed her right hand over the headphone on her right ear.
"Good, though I never actually thought that he would come alone." A female responded with a weary tone.
The silhouette's eye took notice that there were two more vehicles closing in on the Akakishi. The first vehicle was obviously the Tridoron which was followed by a motorcycle which appeared to be a heavily customized white Harley-Davidson FLH-80 Classic with blue tints.
"It appears he didn't come alone. Though it is quite confusing why he would go in further than his comrades."
"If I know one thing about the kid, he isn't one to wait when one of his masters is in danger. Stall them with Birth. I'll capture the boy." The female said with a hint pride of the redhead's nature.
"Understood. You heard that, Birth?"
"Yes, who do you wish to engage?"
"The one in the Red car. It looks… familiar…"
"Very well, I'll fight other rider. Remember, the plan is to stall them until Blade has Akakishi in her custody. Is that clear, Chaser?"
"Yes." The female silhouette nodded before taking out an odd looking gun and smashing it into the building she was standing on. The building was surprisingly cut into several, clean pieces as a result, causing a large number of debris fell towards the road below.
"What the?!" Shinnosuke was surprised by the sudden collapse and slammed the brake before the Tridoron was pancaked by the falling debris of what was once a building. The same debris separated Kazuya from the detective as he had to swerve out of the danger of the falling pieces of the former building.
Yoku looked surprised by the sudden fall. "I'm sure buildings falling apart isn't normal, Shin-nii san!"
"This means that the enemy has already found us! Be careful, everyone!" warned Mr. Belt. "Kazuya-san! Are you all right?"
"I'm fine, guys! But I'm cut off from you three!" Kazuya radioed in from his side. "Though whoever attacked us won't stop there." Then he got off his motorcycle and looked around his surroundings with a cautious look. From out of the shadows a massive drill flew at his seemingly exposed back.
Akakishi stopped his driving upon hearing the sound of the falling building and noticing a large dust cloud formed from where he was a few minutes.
"What happened over there?" wondered the redhead as he raised the visor to his helmet.
"You really shouldn't let your guard down. Otherwise the enemy may get the drop on you." A female voice warned Akakishi
The redhead gave a look of surprise and turned to see a brunette young woman who wore a black leather jacket, a navy blue polo shirt, a pair of black gloves, a pair of dark blue jeans, and a pair of worn leather boots. "Who are you?" asked Akakishi as he got off his motorcycle and prepared to fight.
"Not anyone important. Just here to escort you, Akakishi. Or do you prefer Aka?" The mysterious brunette smiled.
But the redhead in question felt his instincts telling him this woman was dangerous. "Are you in league with a girl with silver hair? If so, then I am not coming without a fight." Akakishi gave a glare at the woman who he considered to be an enemy at the moment.
"*Sigh* I didn't want to do this, I actually hoped you would just follow me without any reason to go throwing punches. But if I were in your shoes, I would also fight." The woman scratched the back of her head while sighing.
Then Akakishi responded by charging in and attacking the woman with a left hook. But the woman appeared to anticipate the attack and leaned back as Akakishi flew over her. The woman twisted her body and brought her right leg up to kick the redhead who was caught in an open position.
"Tch." Then Akakishi blocked the attack with while twisting his body to punch the kick. Then he threw himself back a distance by landing on the ground away from the opponent. Then he charged the woman once again with a short-second tactic to fight her. He zig-zagged before bringing his right leg up with a roundhouse kick to the brunette's midsection. But the woman brought her left arm up to guard against the kick which had incredible power if the sound of impact was any indication. However, Akakishi twisted his body into a right spin with his left arm ready to punch. Then he stomped right leg forward within the range that he could punch the woman in the face. With a roar he swung and threw his fist forward. But the woman who was knocked off balance by the roundhouse kick only smirked before she slammed her right foot down and tilted her body to dodge the punch within an inch distance. The result was Akakishi's fist missing its target and the woman's face receiving a scratch on her face.
"What?!" Akakishi's eyes widened as he was now open to a counter.
The woman still smiled and prepared her own fist. "My turn." She swung forward and landed a punch on the redhead's stomach which threw him off his feet. Then the redhead flew bit before crashing into a nearby wall.
Akakishi slowly got up and spat a little blood before looking at the female who was planning to kidnap him. "Who is she? She fought me as if she knew what I was going to do next. Now that I look at her closely, her face almost looks familiar… But why?" Another thing that Akakishi had to worry about was his back that nearly broke from the impact and his stomach's internal bleeding from the punch.
"You've gotten better, Akakishi. You would have knocked me out if I hadn't dodged that punch." The brunette smiled at his skill as if she fought him before. She wiped away a small amount of blood from the small cut she received from the redhead.
The redhead's eyes widened when he heard her words and saw a male with the same shade of brown hair with the same familiar smile. "No…It can't be…" Akakishi coughed as he struggled to get up from the powerful hit he received from fighting the unknown female.
The woman approached him and offered her hand to him. "Now come along Akakishi. Your mother is waiting for you."
"Mother? I… I don't have a mother…" muttered Akakishi as he tried to stand up.
"You really caused us a lot of trouble… Kazuma Kenzaki." A male voice said. The young woman looked surprised before turning her head to see Souji Tendou who may not be in the best condition, but he looked ready to fight.
"Master!" shouted Akakishi who was surprised at the man's appearance.
The brunette simply smiled at how she was figured out by red beetle rider. "So you figured it out, Tendou. What gave me away?"
"The Kabuto Zecter acted a bit odd when you appeared in front of me. At first, I waved it off as nothing more than its excitement, but… I immediately deduced that you may have been someone we know because this wasn't the first time my Zecter acted like this." Tendou explained as the red mechanical beetle flew in circles around the female identified as Kenzaki.
"*Chuckle* The little guy is pretty fond of me since we are fellow beetles." The young lady raised her hand to allow the mechanical beetle to land on it. The robot chirped happily on reuniting with her. "So I guess you already know what Project MODERN is, right?"
"Project MODERN? What is she talking about, master?" asked Akakishi as he stood up with a bit of difficulty.
"The data we recovered from the data retrieved by Kamen Rider Hibiki details the mysterious project known as MODERN. The main goal of the project is to create relics through the means of fusing the fragments of Relics into the systems and bodies of Kamen Riders. Or to forcibly introduce Aufwachen waves into the systems. Kamen Rider Blade was used as a guinea pig for these experiments and became the very person standing before you and me."
"Right on the dot, Tendou. And my… 'benefactor' gave me a more than enough of a reason to 'escort' Akakishi." Tendou noticed that Kenzaki clearly showed a hint of distaste for this benefactor of hers.
"Whatever your goals are, Kenzaki. I will not let you kidnap my student." Tendou stretched his arm out as the Kabuto Zecter flew towards his open hand. He grabbed the metal beetle and prepared to slot it into his belt buckle. "Henshin!"
=HENSHIN=
Hexagons were generated and fused together to form a set of power armor with the helmet having a blue lens and a beetle-like design. The bulky set of armor showed a beetle emblem with the name of the defunct organization known as ZECT. The bodysuit underneath the armor plates were actually a unique form of elastic armor with smaller hexagons comprising of the suit's form.
The brunette woman looked a bit sad before sighing with her eyes closed. "I wanted to avoid fighting you, Tendou. But it can't be helped." Kenzaki took out a magenta colored crystal card and sang a hymn.
Herba Caliburn Tron~
Light poured from the card and created a belt that attached to her waist as armor formed over her body. Kenzaki slotted the card in and the buckle changed to show a spade upon the insertion of the card. A tiara and a headset formed and attached to her head with her eye color turning into a ruby red. A navy blue dress that formed over her body and ended with an overlapping skirt with a frilly back skirt. A silver metal chestplate attached to her chest along with a pair of large shoulder plates with spade marks that formed and connected the sleeves which had metal wrapping over the sleeve's end. Then armored gloves covered her hands and bronze bangles formed on her wrists. A set of metal greaves and boots formed on her feet and blue leggings formed on her legs. A sword known as the Blay Rouzer constructed itself at her left hip.
Akakishi was shocked at the form that his former male sempai transformed into. "No way… That form is a Symphogear!" Then the redhead remembered what he could make out from the hymn she sang. "Master… The Relic she's attuned with is…"
"The Golden Sword of the Victorious." Kabuto finished with his ever-calm tone.
(Insert OST: Blade Brave)
"Kenzaki…this fight makes it our 500th." Kabuto stated with a firm tone.
"That's right, we have 149 wins, 150 losses, and 201 draws in your favor. Be careful, I might overtake you." The brunette teased with a confident smirk.
The red beetle-themed rider nodded in response. "We will see, Kenzaki." He stated with a hint of eagerness.
The two collided with their weapons, a sword vs. an axe, drawn. Kabuto swung his ax at Kenzaki and she dodged the attack by side-stepping it. Then she swung her sword at the red-beetle Rider with the intent of slashing his torso. Kabuto reacted quickly and jumped back to avoid getting hit despite wearing reinforced armor.
Then Kenzaki sang a few lyrics causing two solid-light cards to form behind her. The cards fused into her body and the sword charged with electricity. Then she swung the sword created an energy of lightning that flew in Kabuto's direction.
LIGHTNING SLASH
The armored Kamen Rider dodged the attack though the it managed to slice a part of his exterior shoulder pauldron off. The wave cleaved a building behind them in half, causing it to collapse.
"You managed to dodge that, that's quite impressive, Tendou."
Kabuto changed the grip he had on the Kunaigun and aimed his gun at the converted Symphogear user. He fired shots at her, but she sliced the bullets with ease. "Remember this is still a battle, Kenzaki. Talk will only be a distraction."
"Hmph, same as ever. Actions before words. Then again, I'm not one to talk!" shouted an eager Kanzaki as she charged in with her sword at the ready.
Kabuto changed his grip once again and wielded his weapon in its ax form and swung it to intercept the attack that Kanzaki swung. The collision created a shockwave that blew apart the dust around them. Then a clashing of blades took place with the two veterans of battle trying to overpower the other.
Akakishi brought his hands up and grit his teeth from the shockwaves and clashes that two of his seniors were performing.
"Kenzaki-sempai… What happened that caused you to become like this? And who else has suffered from these experiments that Master mentioned?" Akakishi thought with worry evident on his face. Then his eyes widened after remembering that there may be more.
(Pause OST)
"Akakishi, do you copy?" Akakishi heard the voice of the Commander in his left artificial ear.
"Commander? Yes, I copy!"
"Good, you're all right. What is going on?"
"Master Tendou is fighting Kenzaki-sempai, but… Sempai is now a she."
At the base, Ryoko and the other members of the Kamen Rider Clubs had returned to the situation room after learning that the vice commander was in danger and Akakishi ran off to help him. With the researcher's help, they managed to get a feed on the current situation with the surprise of who Tendou was fighting.
"A woman with Spade armor?" wondered Aoi.
"Not just any woman in armor… If Akakishi said was true, then Tendou is facing a subject of Project MODERN."
"My, I never thought the subject's gender would be changed so drastically after being infused with the Aufwachen Waveform." Ryoko said with a calm face with a curious gaze.
"And there may be more judging by these signals we're getting." Sakuya said as he analyzed the other two signals that could be identified in the area. "All three are unidentified Relics!"
"Well, I know Kenzaki-sempai is Attuned with the relic Caliburn!" Akakishi reported before he grunted in resistance from the large amount of shockwave that the fighting was producing.
"Caliburn?! So someone else managed to find it before us…" Genjuro remembered Yusuke reported that he couldn't find any remnant of the first sword of the past king of Britain.
"It is quite fitting since Kazuma-chan is a King~ *Giggle* Though would she be considered a queen now?" Ryoko said with an off-topic remark.
"…We can worry about that later, Ryoko. I need to think of a plan to get Akakishi out of danger." Genjuro stated while contemplating on how to pull the youngest Rider out of danger.
"I will do it, Shishou!" shouted Hibiki as she stepped forward.
"Hibiki-"
"I know I can't fight since I only trained under you for a few days, but I can get Aka out of danger! He's my precious friend! A friend I need to protect!" announced Hibiki with a firm look.
Gentarou gave a smile and joined her stance. "I want to help as well! Any friend of mines in a pinch is my responsibility to help him out!"
Ryusei also stood at the two's side. "We may not be ready to help a veteran out, but we are willing to rescue our friend!"
Genjuro thought their words through his head and nodded in agreement to their request. "… Very well, you three. I deem you all as the temporary extraction team for Akakishi! Now get him out before the fighting gets frantic!"
"Yes sir!" responded the three.
In the background, Ryoko made a small frown before smiling mysteriously as she took out a remote from her coat and pressed a button.
Back at another battle site, Kazuya landed a far distance from the flying drill that attacked him. His instincts took control at the last second and he quickly jumped out of the weapon's way before it could hit him.
"Wait, that drill." Kazuya said with a hint of recognition after dodging the drill attack.
The drill flew back onto a mechanical crane that was attached to an arm. The figure walked out to reveal a female cyborg with several gatchapon marks all over her plating. Her head had a metal plating where her ears were supposed to be. Her legs were obviously mechanical with a pair of matching shin guards. On her waist is a belt with a buckle that shared similarities to a gatchapon machine. On her collar there was a noticeable Relic Crystal that was activated. "Oki-san." The brunette said with a blank look.
"Goto?! No way, you've also become a subject of Project MODERN?!"
"…Just give up Akakishi and no one has to get hurt." Goto said as she prepared to fight the Showa Rider.
Kazuya gave a troubled face before he gritted his teeth and entered a fighting stance. "Goto… I'm sorry, but my disciple won't be used by whoever is using you. I will defeat you here and get to him."
"… Good, I don't like this as much as you, so defeat me, Super 1!" shouted Goto as she fired her drill again.
Kazuya stood his ground and deflected the heavy drill that flew at him out of its planned trajectory. "Very well! Ikuzo!" The older man summoned a belt which constructed itself onto his waist. Then he made several gestures before holding his hands together with fingers curled out and pushing them out. Then he turned them clockwise to unlock something. "Henshin!"
The sphere split open and an energy disk spun out a solidified form of light that formed over the astronaut's body. The solidified light formed armor plating and a helmet over his face that took on the features of a firefly. The light died down and veteran Rider stood before Goto and did his well-known stance by leaning on his right leg, lifting his right arm vertically, and crossing over his left arm under horizontally.
"Kamen Rider… Super 1 has entered to fight!" announced Super 1 as he charged at Goto ready to end the fight quickly.
At Shinnosuke and Yoku's side, they got out of the Tridoron and looked around for whoever attack them. In case for a surprise attack, Shinnosuke had Mr. Belt on his waist and he held the Speed Shift car in his right hand. Yoku gulped a bit as she held her Relic Crystal in her shaking right hand.
"Yoku…"
"Y-Yes!?" Yoku answered nervously as she turned to her guardian.
"Calm down, you won't be good in a fight if you start acting nervous now."
"B-But, this is the first time I heard that we would be fighting people! Isn't it normal to be scared?"
"Yes, but we can't let that fear control us. We need to be as calm as possible and shift our mental gear into top performance. So eat that chocolate bar you have been saving in your pocket."
"O-Okay, Shin-nii san." Yoku reached into left pocket and pulled out an unwrapped chocolate bar and carefully pulled the wrapper to reveal the chocolate. She took a bite and smiled with a relaxed look at the sensation of the sweet taste in her mouth.
"Feel better?"
Yoku let out a small breath of relief "Yeah…" Then the blue-haired girl turned her head and noticed a woman in a black dress with her right eye covered by a broken mask. The dress appeared to have metal part and characteristics of a kimono. But the skirt was more of European design with the back being a part of the skirt frames normally used in past England. On her chest was an activated Relic Crystal. "Who is she?" Yoku asked in fear at the appearance that young woman had.
"That gun…Where did you get that?" Shinnosuke asked the female.
"Unless… you're Chase aren't you?" asked Mr. Belt.
"Eh? What do you mean, Belt-san?" asked the Detective.
"Do you… know who I am?" The female asked with a blank tone.
"Snap out of this, Chase! You're not a puppet anymore! You're a Kamen Rider, a friend!" reasoned Shinnosuke with a pleading look.
"A friend…? Sorry, but I need to know who I am. She told me that she will tell me if I fight you! If you don't want to get hurt… then fight." Chase said with a melancholic tone.
"She…?" wondered Yoku.
"Chase…I understand. Belt-san, my brain is at top gear!" shouted the detective to his partner as he lifted up the Speed Shift Car.
"Very well…Forgive us, Chase. START YOUR ENGINE!" announced the A.I. as the activation tune was heard.
"Henshin!" shouted Shinnosuke as he shifted the lever of the speed shift car.
=DRIVE! TYPE: SPEED!=
The armored formed and the detective became Kamen Rider Drive: Type Speed. The red sports car-based Kamen Rider leaned on his right leg. "Let me take you along for a ride!" Then he charged at the amnesiac.
"…" Chase responded silently before charging at the two with her weapon raised like a sword.
Back at the site of battle between Kamen Rider Kabuto and former Rider Kenzaki, the two made one last clash that sent them both off their feet. The two landed a fair distance from each other and now circled around, planning their next move.
"Cast Off!" announced Kabuto as he pulled the Zecter's horn to the right side.
=CAST OFF!=
Then the bulky armor that covered him flew off in pieces, revealing the slim, red armor that Kabuto had when he arrived in the battle last night. The horn then attached to the mask plate followed by an announcement to show that the small transformation was complete.
=CHANGE: BEETLE!=
"Seems like our warm up just finished." Kenzaki said with a smile before her eyes widened and she gripped her head in pain.
Akakishi looked surprised as his senior looked like she was in pain. "Kenzaki-sempai?! What's wrong?"
"Not… Now…! Don't… Don't make me turn into that now! AAAGGGGHHH!" screamed the woman as her body suddenly levitated and sparked with energy and then cards flew out of her Spade buckle. On her arm, a box device formed and one of the cards flew into the slot.
"ABSORB QUEEN!" The box announced.
Then a card with a gilded scarab beetle slid into the card section of the box, causing a reaction of golden light on the Symphogear with a spade covering the window screen of the box.
"EVOLUTION KING!" Then the second announcement confirmed the transformation.
Then the floating cards absorbed into Kenzaki's form, creating a new set of armor that had turned her blue base form into a gold royal form. Her legs gained greaves that covered up to her thighs with crests that represent different creatures. Her arms gained gold and ebony gauntlets with similar crests and her shoulders were now armored with crests displayed parallel from each other. Her chestplate turn into a golden color with a blue covering the center plate along with a golden scarab beetle in it. The center piece noticeably had the shape of a Spade. Then her headphones while keeping the tiara which turned gold transformed into a headset that had black triangular parts with large golden Spades on both. The skirt of her dress remained, but the back part gained a thin layer of gold armor plating.
Kenzaki landed on her armored feet and opened her eyes before narrowing them in the after-effects of pain. She was catching her breath while sweating from the forced transformation. The brunette looked at her armored hands with shock and fear. "No…"
Akakishi still looked worried about the woman since she still was his sempai. "Sempai! Are you-"
"Don't come near me!" shouted Kenzaki in a warning tone, causing the redhead to once again be taken aback. "I told her this form wasn't stable! But she didn't listen and forced me into it!" The brunette gave an angry scowl that showed her change in attitude.
"Kenzaki, remember we are still fighting." Kabuto stated with his arms crossed. "But it appears I need to get serious as well."
Kenzaki looked at Kabuto with a surprised expression. "Don't do it, Tendou! If you fight me while I am in this state, I could actually kill you!" warned the brunette.
"Then I just need to survive." Kabuto reasoned as he held his left hand out. Then a silver, but smaller mechanical beetle flew through a distortion in space. But this beetle appeared to be a lever and button. Kabuto grasped the beetle and attached it to the left side of his hip. "Hyper Cast Off!" Then he moved the lever of the beetle.
=HYPER CAST OFF!=
Kabuto also glowed with power and his armor took on a new form. The chestplate gained a new layer that was silver and red. His arms and legs gain a matching set of gauntlets and greaves with his gloves turning red and his fingertips covered in silver armor. The shoulders held covers to cooling vents in the armor. On Kabuto's back, a pack that was shaped like a beetle's wing shell formed. The metal horn on his mask turned in a larger form and Kabuto's eyes once again glowed blue.
=CHANGE: HYPER BEETLE!=
Kenzaki looked a bit sad before gritting her teeth with a determined look. "Tendou… I knew it was useless to stop you. But to think you would go this far…"
"Don't talk as if I had already lost, Kazuma." Tendou stated as another distortion in space took place, and out came a golden sword with a pair of insect wings on the hilt. Hyper Kabuto caught the sword from its trajectory and wielded it with both hands.
Kenzaki gave a melancholic smile in response. "Yeah… No battle is truly decided until the last blow." Then several components flew out of her gauntlets and create a golden long sword that had a casing attached to its hilt. She held the sword in front of her with both of her hands on the grip.
Then the two clash once again, but this time with their two-handed weapons. The collision of blades created a shockwave that made the previous shockwaves feel like a speaker blast at low volume. Akakishi was taken off his feet from the clash of forces and his back crashed into a wall behind him.
The redhead winced as he slowly stood up and watched as the battle increased in intensity compared to the earlier "warm up" the veterans had. "At this rate… Master and Sempai are going to turn this district into nothing but rubble!"
The veterans clashed with no bars held back in order to decide the fate of the youngest Kamen Rider.
(God Eater Ost: God and Man)
Instrumental
Akakishi was seen laying on a tree in a ruined field covered in flames as his eyes reflected the night sky. He held his Reverse Knuckle but he appeared to be on his last legs since the light in his left eye was dimming.
Memories keep flooding in showing the paths I should've taken, but
now that time has run away from me I cannot change a thing.
The scene shifts to Eiji who lied on the ground of a hill staring at the same starry sky while gripping two halves of a Red Medal.
I remember how you'd counsel me with wisdom of the ages true:
"Live your best life" you told me and "You walk the earth but once"
Tsubasa sat on her motorcycle and looked up to the night sky while holding her relic necklace.
and now you've come, to see me once again,
I feel safe at last; Although I feel the end is coming closer unto me.
Tendou was seen looking at the sky on a cliff while the Kabuto Zecter sat on his shoulder. In the shadows behind him was Kenzaki who also stared at the starry skies.
If I could only travel back in time, to peaceful days gone by.
Chris gazed at the sky from a mansion window with a look of melancholy.
But this is my price to pay: to not survive beyond this very day.
The camera views Gentarou who was looking the starry sky with a smile.
Oh, the pain is lessened when you're near, there is no fear.
I'm whole again as in days gone by, if only for a while.
Kanade was seen standing on top of a roof while looking at the sky with longing eyes
But it hurts to have to leave you so, I don't want to go.
Yoku was seen sitting on a bench stargazing with Shinnosuke who was laying on the meadow with smiles on their faces.
Could this sacrifice cost me my life?
A man in a trench coat stood in an open field to watch the stars as he held a white tablet with an E.
Oh, just to live my life again, to treasure every little moment then,
satisfied, I'd leave you all behind, accepting of my fate.
Akakishi smiled a bit before slowly closing his eyes in peace as the light of his cybernetics slowly dim to black.
But I am full of grief, to leave this life so incomplete.
My dream is coming to the end.
Then a hand held his hand and he opened his eyes while feeling the energy it granted. He looked to see Hibiki with a relieved look before pulling him to his feet. Akakishi was taken by surprise but stood up with a smile. They turn to see their friends and allies approach with smiles on their faces as the dawn of morning came. The scene fades to a white.
One verse ends and the Chained Symphony sings to the next:
Two former friends clash
"Hyper Clock Up!"
"Two can play at that game!" shouted Kenzaki as two card projections formed behind her.
Three simultaneous battles take place
"Rider punch!" Super 1 threw an earth-shattering punch at Goto who jumped out of the way of the attack.
Drive who wielded his Handle-Ken clashed against Chase who wielded a crooked katana with a black edge with a purple lightweave in it.
And all hope appears lost for the group
"Aka!" shouted Hibiki as she reached out to the redhead who was struggling against the grip of a fourth unknown girl.
Next time on Kamen Rider Ixa R: Project MODERN Act II
"Seems like you need to be taught a lesson in manners and what Hell feels like!" announced a young man in a trench coat as he took out an odd-looking memory stick with the letter E.
Author's Note: Sorry about that everyone, there was a lot to go through with this chapter and let me just say I have exhausted my brain with all of this stuff written down so the next chapter will conclude this arc!
And now, excuse me while I let this out… AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! DAMN IT! WHY THE HELL DID I THINK THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA?! *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* *SMACK* (Yes, I am smashing my head against the desk in frustration and bloody embarrassment.) I NEVER REALLY THOUGHT I WOULD ACTUALLY WRITE THIS CHAPTER FEATURING KAMEN RIDERS TURNED INTO TWISTED FORMS OF SYMPHOGEARS! ESPECIALLY WITH THE RIDICULOUS CRAP MY MIND IS GOING THROUGH I DON'T WHAT THE HELL I AM DOING!
*Ahem* Sorry about that everyone, but in all honesty this idea had been stuck in my head for the plot of the story. Originally, the gender bending victim-related-beetle Rider was going to be Gatack or Arata Kagami. But I went with Kazuma Kenzaki because he had that sad ending. Project Modern was more or less an excuse for how the Riders were converted in entirely female forms. Anime genderbending at its finest, or worse in Goto's case.
And on another note, I might as well be begging for Symphogear OCs because I still haven't gotten any that might help with the appearance of any Heisei Riders. Seriously, I need some help with Symphogear OCs before I decide to go the gender bending route for some Riders. Yes, I am indirectly threatening to turn a couple more Heisei Kamen Riders into feminized and Symphogear-based forms, and entirely female bodies. If you do not wish to see your favorite Heisei Rider become a female, then please, just PM me an OC. For more information, check the second chapter for an idea on the profile of the OC so I can integrate her into the story!
Rate and Review so I can improve on this story!