Episode 5: Win Where it Counts
Shinji sighed as he settled into his desk at ORE Journal, reflecting upon the events of his last fight against Scissors. The Kamen Rider that had intervened, Abyss, said that he was working for someone. This information troubled Shinji greatly, as it meant Scissors was still on the loose and having Volcancer feed on people. But even worse was the fact that Scissors would now have backup when they'd next meet. Fighting one Kamen Rider was a challenge already, but facing multiple Riders at once? That was something that a fighter of incredible skill and strength could handle. Something that, at the moment, Shinji wasn't.
'Tezuka and Ren are fighting alongside me, but who knows how many other Riders Abyss's boss has in their pocket?' Shinji thought as he stared at his computer screen with a worried look on his face. 'All of this fighting for a wish we don't even know is real. But I guess the promise of having your deepest desire overrides reason most of the time, doesn't it? It all makes me wonder what wishes the other Kamen Riders have that compels them to fight?'
"Shinji?" A woman with glasses asked across from him. This was Nanako Shimada, ORE Journal's systems engineer and website designer. "Is something wrong? You look like you're troubled."
"Hm?" Shinji snapped out of his funk. "Oh, nothing's really wrong. Just a bit disappointed Reiko's lead with Kaga was a dead end. Literally."
Reiko offered Shinji a comforting smile. "Hey, not every lead goes somewhere promising, right? Besides, this development just screams that the story goes deeper than I thought! And I really appreciate you picking up where I left off, Shinji."
"Thanks Reiko." Shinji said with a small smile. Suddenly, Shinji felt his personal phone going off in his pocket. "Excuse me. I've gotta take this." Shinji got up from his desk and headed for the hallway, so he didn't disturb his co-workers with his call.
"Hello?" Shinji asked from his end of the call.
"Good to hear you, Shinji." Tezuka replied from the other end of the call. "Are you feeling any better from the last battle?"
Shinji sighed. "Not completely. I'm happy we made it out alright, but I'm still ticked that Scissors managed to get away. And then Abyss left us with the troubling bit of information that he's working for someone, probably another Kamen Rider, and that his employer wanted to recruit Scissors. I just… can't help but feel like I really screwed up, Tezuka."
"I can see where you're coming from Why don't we meet up for lunch? I think it'd do you a world of good for you to talk about this face-to-face." Tezuka suggested.
"Sounds good." Shinji nodded. "Just tell me where to meet you."
After Tezuka gave him the location for their meeting, Shinji informed his boss that he'd be going out to lunch. Once he was excused, Shinji mounted his bike after putting on his helmet, speeding off towards the restaurant Tezuka wanted to meet him at. Upon placing their orders, the pair of heroic Kamen Riders began chatting.
"You think I'm beating myself up over Scissors getting away, right?" Shinji asked as he lightly swirled his glass of water.
Tezuka let out a small chuckle. "It seems you learn quickly both in and out of combat." Tezuka's expression then turned sympathetic. "I can understand where you're coming from Shinji, and it's perfectly valid to feel the way you do about those past events. But dwelling on it will help no one, especially not you."
"I know that." Shinji sighed as he slumped a bit in his chair. "None of us are perfect, we all mess up sometimes. But with this? I feel like I can't afford to mess up even a tiny bit. Just one mistake could spell the end for me, you, or Ren. Or even worse, it could mean that the Mirror Monsters get another victim to fill their bellies."
Tezuka took a deep breath before looking Shinji dead in the eye. "It's good that you have such a sense of responsibility Shinji. But you should know that you did absolutely nothing wrong."
"But Scissors-!" Shinji said as he straightened up a bit.
"Escaped. And there's nothing we can do about that." Tezuka stated calmly. "But you bear no fault in that. Abyss came out of nowhere, and we certainly didn't expect to encounter a mercenary Kamen Rider. Some things we just can't control, and we can't win every fight."
Shinji nodded. "I know that Tezuka."
"However, I think you should know that there's a more important victory to be had than Scissors' capture." Tezuka stated with a knowing smile. "Saving people from the Mirror Monsters. That's why you became a Kamen Rider, isn't it?"
"You're right." Shinji smiled. "Besides, now that we've outed Scissors, his new boss is likely to keep him from having Volcancer feed on people. Meaning we'll probably run into him again in the Mirror World while he's forced to hunt monsters!"
Tezuka raised his hand for peace. "Easy there Shinji. It's good to see you enthusiastic again, but we are in public."
"Eh heh!" Shinji chuckled nervously. "Yeah, my bad."
"Bottom line: Don't be too hard on yourself." Tezuka smiled. "You've been beating Mirror Monsters as they come, which keeps people safe, and you've applied the lessons from our training session quickly. At your current rate, you're more than capable of standing on your own."
Shinji beamed at hearing this. "Thanks, Tezuka. Not bad for a guy who walked into this mess on accident, huh?"
"Not bad at all." Tezuka chuckled.
"By the way, if now's not a bad time, you said that you became a Rider by accident too." Shinji began as he shoveled some food into his mouth, chewing and swallowing before continuing. "How did you stumble into the Rider War?"
Tezuka's expression became solemn as he recounted his entrance into the Rider War. "A close friend of mine, Yuichi Saito, was originally supposed to have the deck I now wield. Yuichi was a talented piano player, but an encounter with a mugger left him with broken hands and an inability to play any longer. That's when Shiro Kanzaki appeared before him."
"So, I'm not the only one who's met Yui's brother." Shinji noted. "But why would he approach someone in a crippled condition like you friend?"
"Kanzaki offered the restoration of Yuichi's hands in exchange for becoming a Rider." Tezuka answered, his eyes heavy with sadness. "But Yuichi turned his offer down. He refused to sacrifice others for his own benefit. I was so relieved when he told me that he refused Kanzaki's deal and briefed me on what had happened, but that refusal would unfortunately be his undoing as well. Kanzaki didn't want any loose ends running around that could interfere with the Rider War, so he had one of his enforcer monsters, the Gulds, eat Yuichi. I was at Yuichi's side at the time, and struggle to try and free him from the Guld's grip. Unfortunately, I wasn't successful, and Yuichi was devoured. But the Advent Deck meant for him remained, and it was when I laid my hands on it that I made a choice. I would become a Kamen Rider, and fight to prevent others from suffering the same fate as Yuichi. And, if I could, change the fates of the other Kamen Riders too."
"Tezuka…" Shinji said in awe. It was quite hard for him to not be amazed at Tezuka's resolve. While he and Tezuka were similar regarding both wielding Advent Decks initially meant for other people, Tezuka's entry into the Rider War was far more personal than Shinji's. Along with a loss that would have made lesser people want to distance themselves as far from such a matter as possible. "Thanks for sharing your story. If I had any doubts about fighting in the Rider War, they're certainly gone now. No matter what, I'm with you until the end."
"You have a fire in you that matches your dragon's." Tezuka smiled. "All you need is a steel resolve like Ren's, and you'll be unstoppable."
"Having either of those means squat if I've got an empty stomach." Shinji joked as he chowed down on the rest of his meal. "Ah! That's the stuff! Couldn't eat another bite if I wanted to!"
The pair of heroic Riders shared a laugh as they paid for their meal. They were prepared to head their separate ways until-
*EEEEeeeeEEEEEEeeee!*
Shinji and Tezuka stiffened as they heard the mirror noise sound off. Someone was in trouble, and there wasn't a moment to lose! The pair rushed to the nearest window and pulled out their Advent Decks. Confirming that no one was watching, Shinji and Tezuka held their decks up to their reflections and summoned the V-Buckles onto their waists.
"HENSHIN!" The two cried out as they slotted their decks into the V-Buckles! Phantom images of their armors spun towards them before colliding and transforming the pair. Fully transformed, Ryuki and Raia jumped into the mirror and mounted the Rideshooters waiting for them, speeding off into the Mirror World.
Upon arriving in the Mirror World, the pair of heroic Riders immediately dismounted and broke into a full run, dead-set on finding the Mirror Monster that had abducted someone. As they ran, Ryuki noticed a humanoid monster perched on a nearby rooftop, standing guard over a couple who seemed to be unconscious.
"Tezuka! Up there!" Ryuki cried as he pointed to the monster's perch!
Raia whipped his head in the direction Ryuki was pointing and nodded. "Let's go, Shinji!"
The Riders scrambled up the building's stairwell to the rooftop. Just like Ryuki had seen, the monster was standing guard over the unconscious couple. Almost as if it were waiting for something. It was blue in color, and the pair of long antennae on the monster's head coupled with the pair of mandibles on its face made the monster resemble a longhorn beetle. On its waist the monster carried a large boomerang with sharpened edges. This was the Zenobiter. And it hissed upon seeing the Riders approach.
"Guess we get to work off our meal." Ryuki quipped as he drew a card from his Advent Deck with Raia following suit. However, a sudden screech got the attention of both Riders as a new Mirror Monster arrived on the scene.
The new monster looked incredibly like the Zenobiter, but with a few key differences. Namely that it was red, had a slimmer figure, and its antennae were hanging forward and framing its face as opposed to the Zenobiter's antennae hanging behind its head. Its boomerang was also more ornate than the Zenobiter's too. This was the Terabiter, a female Mirror Monster and the mate of the Zenobiter.
"Looks like we just crashed a lunch date." Raia remarked as he opened the Evilvisor. The stingray Rider slotted his Swing Vent card with no issue. However, receiving the weapon was another story.
"SWING VENT!"
The visor's announcement went off like normal, but when the whip was dropped down towards Raia by Evildiver, it was knocked away by Terabiter's boomerang! Raia's eyes widened at the display of strategy! But the surprise wasn't over as Terabiter's boomerang came circling back and struck Raia in the shoulder!
"Tezuka!" Ryuki cried out in concern!
Raia motioned for Ryuki to stay put! "I'm fine, it just grazed me! Be careful! They'll knock away any weapons you try to summon!"
Seeing both Riders vulnerable, the Biters charged forward with their boomerangs raised, ready to slash at them! Ryuki side-stepped Zenobiter's swing while Raia narrowly rolled out of the way of Terabiter's slash! Not wanting to waste an opening, Ryuki kicked the Zenobiter in his side, staggering the insect monster for a moment before rushing up to slug it in the face. Unfortunately, the Zenobiter used his boomerang to block Ryuki's punch and shoved him away, getting in a claw swipe as Ryuki was pushed away!
At the same time, Raia wasn't faring much better against Terabiter. While his Evilvisor doubled as a shield and provided a decent defense, it kept Raia on the defensive as Terabiter wildly swung her boomerang at the stingray Rider. As Tezuka kept getting pushed back, he spared quick glances to the unconscious couple who were starting to stir. Those who held an Advent Deck were protected from the Mirror World's corrosive environment, but regular people were fair game. While the dissolving happened slowly, Mirror Monsters never gave their victims a sporting chance to escape. Or any chance at all really. That's why it was imperative to end this fight now! But how could Raia or Ryuki get the upper hand if their weapons kept getting knocked away?
'If I go to retrieve my whip, that leaves me vulnerable. And even worse, Shinji would drop his guard to help me. Meaning we'd both take a beating!' Raia thought as he blocked another swipe from Terabiter before bashing her away with the Evilvisor! 'I'm low on options, so I'll either have to whip out my Final Vent or use my unique Advent Card!'
Back with Ryuki, the dragon rider had been kept in a stalemate with Zenobiter. Every time that Ryuki would try and make a grab for his Dragsaber, Zenobiter force him away from the weapon. Time was of the essence in every fight, and with peoples' lives on the line time wasn't something Ryuki could afford to waste. Especially if the people could fade into nothingness at any moment!
'Too bad my visor's not a weapon like Ren or Tezuka's!' Ryuki mentally fumed as he dodged a slash from the Zenobiter! 'My cards are the only way I can arm myself! But every card I slot in, the monster will knock the weapon away before it reaches me just like my Sword Vent! And trying to recover my weapons is just giving the monsters a free hit! My sword is on the ground, and the only cards besides my Final Vent are Advent, Guard Vent, and Strike Vent! I can't summon Dragreder with Advent because that would put the kidnapped people at risk! How am I supposed to get my hands on a weapon when those Mirror Monsters keep knocking them out of the way?!' But upon spotting his sword lying on the ground, the solution became clear to Ryuki!
'They've got to keep their attention on the new weapons coming in! So… ' Ryuki thought as he drew a card from his Advent Deck, and slotted it into the Dragvisor.
"STRIKE VENT!"
At the Dragvisor's announcement, the Dragclaw descended towards Ryuki. However, Zenobiter would not allow this to happen and hurled his boomerang at the incoming weapon, knocking it out of the sky and down to the ground. However, this was exactly what Ryuki had wanted! While Zenobiter was focused on the incoming new weapon, he'd taken his attention away from the Dragsaber that was already lying around. Wasting no time, Ryuki dashed for his sword and scooped it up with his hand before slashing Zenobiter in the back, the Mirror Monster hissing in surprise and pain as it stumbled to the ground!
Seeing her mate in distress, Terabiter broke off her clash with Raia and rushed to Zenobiter's side! Now that he had some breathing room, Raia retrieved his whip and lashed out at the female Mirror Monster, sending her tumbling towards her mate! With both monsters down for the moment, Ryuki grabbed the Dragclaw with his free hand and equipped it. As the pair of Mirror Monsters got to their feet, Ryuki snapped his left arm forward and shot out a fireball from the Dragclaw. The fireball hit the monsters and exploded on contact, knocking them back!
"Bet you wish that you had a weapon with that much punch. Eh, Tezuka?" Ryuki said as he glanced over to Raia. "Really helps soften up Mirror Monsters. Too bad you don't have a Strike Vent."
"Don't worry." Raia drew a card from his Advent Deck. The card depicted a sword within a mirror, and another sword seeming to pop out of the mirror. "I'll be getting a copy soon enough."
"COPY VENT!" The Evilvisor announced as Raia slotted in the card. Ryuki was surprised to see his Dragclaw glowing before a phantom image of it emerged and spun towards Raia. When the image reached Raia's outstretched right hand, it solidified into a perfect copy of the Dragclaw! Raia copied the same movement as Ryuki and launched a fireball at the Biters! The resulting explosion catching both monsters in its wake! "Let's finish this, Shinji!"
"Right!" Ryuki nodded as he drew his Final Vent from his Advent Deck. Raia followed suit as he discarded the Copy Dragclaw and drew his Final Vent. Like all Final Vent cards, Raia's depicted the symbol of his Advent Deck against a background the same color as his deck and armor. Both heroic Riders slotted the cards into their visors without delay.
"FINAL VENT!" The visors announced! Ryuki crouched down as Dragreder coiled around him while Raia leaped atop the newly arrived Evildiver. While Ryuki leaped into the air with Dragreder ascending with him, Raia and Evildiver flew away from the monsters before rapidly speeding towards them! As Ryuki was sent flying towards the monsters by Dragreder's flames, Raia crashed into the Terabiter with great force, sending the female Mirror Monsters flying back while Ryuki's Dragon Rider Kick sent the Zenobiter reeling! Both Mirror Monsters exploding a mere instant later!
With the monsters destroyed, Ryuki and Raia immediately dismissed their weapons and retrieved the unconscious couple. Needless to say, the couple was quite surprised to see two armored figures standing over them.
"W-Who are you?!" The man demanded as he stood before his girlfriend in a protective manner.
"We're here to help." Raia answered. "Do you remember something grabbing you, but you couldn't see what it was?" The couple nodded hesitantly.
"It was a monster that lives here. In the Mirror World."
"Mirror World?" The woman asked.
"It's a world that exists behind every reflection." Ryuki informed the couple. "Once a monster sets its sights on you, it never gives up until it gets you and eats you here. We took care of the monster, but the danger isn't over. This place isn't suitable for regular people. If you stay too long… you'll die. My friend and I can enter and exit through any reflective surface, but regular people can only get in or out of the mirror they came from. Please, tell us which mirror you got dragged into. We'll get you there so you can leave before you start to dissolve!"
The couple immediately told the two Riders where they'd been pulled into the mirrors, and the Riders wasted no time in helping them reach the area. They arrived just in time too as both the man and woman noticed that they were gradually fading. Thankfully, the group had arrived at the mirror where the couple had been abducted. With thankful nods, the couple entered the mirror and reemerged in the real world. As he watched the couple leave, Ryuki couldn't help but smile beneath his helmet. This was the first time he'd actually saved someone while they had been abducted into the Mirror World. While he might not have brought Scissors to justice, he'd saved people from becoming the meal of a Mirror Monster.
"Hey, Tezuka?" Ryuki asked his mentor. "I think I fully understand what you meant earlier. This really was a more important victory."
"You learn lessons quickly, Shinji." Tezuka chuckled. "That's going to serve you well in the coming battles. But for now, let's head back to the real world." Ryuki nodded, and the two exited through one of the windows in a building not too far from where they'd had lunch, the pair reverting to their civilian identities after exiting the Mirror World.
"It's weird Tezuka." The fortune teller paused at hearing Shinji's statement.
"What's weird?"
"I never would have thought Mirror Monsters had love lives." Shinji chuckled before his expression became more pensive. "Kind of makes me wonder when I'll meet that special someone."
"Well, I said that you'd have many fateful encounters, Shinji." Tezuka smiled. "One of them just might be the future Mrs. Kido."
"You really think so?" Shinji blushed a little at picturing his potential girlfriend.
"Maybe." Tezuka chuckled. "If you stay on your current path, you just might bump into her."
"Well, see you around Tezuka. I've gotta get back to work!" Shinji waved farewell to Tezuka, and the two headed their separate ways. He was near his bike when he bumped into someone.
"Oh!" A female voice yelped in surprise.
"Sorry!" Shinji quickly apologized. "I should've been watching where I was… "As he got a good look at who he'd bumped into, Shinji's jaw dropped. The person he'd bumped into was woman about his age with long brown hair wearing blue jeans, and a black tank top covered up by a white jacket. Once he got a good look at her face, Shinji couldn't bring himself to take his eyes off her. The woman blinked before smiling.
"My sister always did say I could get guys to stop in their tracks" The woman giggled.
"S-Sorry for bumping into you!" Shinji stammered as he snapped out of his stupor. "I didn't make you drop anything, did I?"
The woman shook her head. "Not at all."
"That's a relief." Shinji sighed before chuckling. "It's funny. Just a few seconds ago I wished that I'd bump into a beautiful woman. I guess my wish came true!"
"That's certainly a nice way to look at things." The woman smiled.
"I try to look at the good in everything." Shinji smiled. "Bad things can happen in life, but I won't let them beat me!" The woman couldn't help but giggle at this.
"Saying that makes you sound like a superhero."
"Well, I always wanted to be one when I was a kid." Shinji chuckled nervously. "But I got the next best thing: Working at ORE Journal."
"So, you're a mild-mannered news reporter?" The woman smirked. "I don't suppose you're hiding a costume with a red cape under your clothes?"
"Curses! You found out my secret identity!" Shinji playfully fumed with a clenched fist! The two shared a laugh. "Well, it was nice meeting you. Name's Shinji Kido."
"Miho." The woman answered with a small smile. "It was nice meeting you too, Shinji."
"Well, it's been fun, but I've gotta go! My editor-in-chief's a nice guy, but lunch breaks only last for so long."
With that, Shinji headed to his bike, put on his helmet and goggles, and sped off towards ORE Journal. But as he rode, his mind couldn't help but drift back towards Miho. It was quite apparent that his victory against the Mirror Monsters wasn't the only victory for the day. When Shinji returned to his apartment after work, the first thing he did after dinner was go to bed. As he slumbered, Shinji dreamed of the woman he'd met that day. A happy smile on his face as he slept.
'Yep.' Shinji thought as he slept. 'Today was definitely a win.'