(Author's Note)
Hey guys, so you know how I said a week? Yeah, I'm not waiting that long, I'm hyped!
With that said, let's get right on into this!
"...Ah, maybe… But no, that… Hm…"
"What are you doing?"
"Brainstorming team attacks, or partner skills or whatever you want to call 'em." I said, leaning back in my chair in the Library as Yang looked down at the notebook laid out in front of me, multiple ideas scratched out with a few mismatched scattered across the pages.
"Team attacks?" Yang asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yang, we learned about them in combat class two days ago." Ruby said, sitting down across from me along with Weiss and Blake.
Weiss shook her head. "Honestly, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, but how could you of all people forget something like this?"
"Hey, I was distracted!" Yang defended herself, pulling a chair out as she sat down. "Finally got a shot against Pyrrha-"
"A fight you lost." I said, looking up at Yang with a deadpan expression on my face. I gave a quick look around the table. It was just the five of us here at the moment. Ruby, Yang and Weiss all seemed interested in the current conversation, with the exception of Blake, who was busy with the book that she was practically sticking her nose into. I shook my head and looked back down at my notebook, scribbling things down once more. "...Puzzles and Dragons? No, none of us have an affinity that could be considered close to a dragon… Unless Woz has been holding out on me…"
"I mean, Yang sort of counts…" Ruby said, suddenly zooming over to my left, looking over my shoulder as the speed built up sent my bangs flying to the side.
"Yeah, but I'm trying to figure out combos for my team members first. And yeah, I get we're on a team, but it's a bit different in that regard…" I said, rolling my neck before writing down Yang and Parado's name under Puzzles and Dragons before circling the whole thing for future reference.
"Why ARE you thinking this over right now?" Weiss asked, looking at me with crossed arms. "The assignment isn't due for another month and you'll need your teammates to even test these out."
I let out a sigh. "I would have them here to do that, but Parado's busy 'practicing with his semblance' and Woz is…"
"Woz?" Blake asked, looking up from her book.
I rolled my eyes. "Ran off to who knows where, yes." I said, rolling my neck. "So until either of them are back for us to try these out, I'm left brainstorming combinations and callouts."
"...And you've been brainstorming for how long now?" Yang asked.
"What time is it?"
"It's 2:30." Weiss said.
"I've been here 12 hours." I said, scribbling down 'Randomize' under Woz and Parado's name with a question mark.
"12 hours!?" Weiss asked, standing up.
There was a sudden and loud shushing that spread around the library, directed specifically at the Schnee Heiress. Weiss slowly sat down as Yang blinked at me silently. "...Okay, I know what we're doing today." Yang said, crossing her arms under her chest. "We're taking Bryce out to the town."
"What, why?" I asked, putting my pencil down as I looked up in confusion.
"Because you've been cooped up in here for way too long, and we've yet to have a nice team outing since the incident at the docks." Yang said, nodding to herself.
"Uh, Yang? That wasn't exactly the best of outings either…" Ruby said, speaking up beside me.
"And knowing my luck we'll get dragged into something that'll ruin the outing anyways…" I said, looking off to the right.
"Oh come on, it'll be fun! Come on, Weiss, Blake, Ruby, you three agree with me, yeah?" Yang said, standing up.
"Ooh, I know a good cafe that we can go to!" Ruby said, clenching her hands in front of her. "We can go there!"
"A cafe? I wouldn't be opposed to some coffee." Weiss said.
"It's also got a library in it." Ruby said, looking at Blake.
"That sounds like a good idea." Blake said, her bow twitching ever so slightly. It was a lot easier to notice those twitches now that I was sort of aware they were happening.
"I don't get a say in this, do I?" I asked, looking at the four in front of me.
"Nope." Ruby and Yang said, popping the P in sync with a grin.
"Figured as much…" I said, shaking my head with a small smile as I closed my notebook and stuffed it in my pocket. "Right then, where too?"
"So Ruby, what's this cafe you brought up?" Yang asked as the five of us walked down the street, streamers still up celebrating the upcoming Vytal Festival. Honestly, I'm surprised that there's so much of this stuff being put up in advance… It's like that feeling I get when Christmas Trees go up in October. Like, the festival isn't even until the next semester, so why set this stuff up this early then?
"Bryce?"
"Hm?" I blinked and turned around, looking at the four in front of me. "Sorry, spaced out, what's up?"
"We need to go this way to get to Milk Dippers." Ruby said, pointing to the left.
"Oh, right…" I nodded, as the four stopped and walked down a side street. I moved to follow them before I stopped as I thought about what Ruby just said. "...Wait, wha-Ow!"
I felt something smack into the top of my head, as I let out a grunt of pain as I rubbed the top of my head with my hand. "The hell was that?" I asked, looking up above me at the sky. "...Okay, then…" I let out a sigh as I looked ahead and took a step forward, before my foot kicked against something hard on the sidewalk. "Eh?"
I moved my foot aside as I crouched down, picking up a familiar black object. "A Rider Pass?" I asked, running my hand over the front of the Denliner train pass. I blinked as I looked at the logo engraved on the pass. "...Isn't that?"
I quickly shuffled through my pocket as I pulled out my Ride Watch, looking down at the logo above the 2018 text. "It's the same…" I muttered, looking at the Pass in my hand. "But why?"
"Are you still spacing out?" Weiss asked, turning the corner.
"Huh? Oh right!" I stood up to a stand, pocketing both the pass and the Ride Watch away as I ran after Weiss.
"This is uncanny…" I muttered to myself, looking at the building before me. It wasn't exactly what you'd expect to see from a cafe, but the sign with 'Milk Dipper' displayed on the front did explain enough information, so...
"Why's that?" Blake asked as she walked up next to me.
"It's… Well, it's one to one with the show…" I said, crossing my arms.
"This is from your world too?" Blake asked,
I shrugged. "Yeah, this was… well, one of Den-O's bases of operation." I said, placing my hand in my pocket, before pulling out the Rider Pass. I tapped the pass against my other hand as I looked at the door.
"I must admit the atmosphere here is quite lovely." Weiss noted, walking over to the door with Ruby and Yang. "Where did you learn about this place, Ruby?"
"Oh, well it's a bit of a long story." Ruby said, opening the front door.
"We should catch up with them." Blake said, walking over to the door and following the other three inside.
"Yeah…" I said, looking down at the pass before walking over to the door as it closed behind Team RWBY. I gripped the door and pulled it open, looking behind me before taking a step inside and closing the door behind me. "Right then, so-"
I paused as I looked ahead. My feet gave a little to the sand below my feet as I looked out at the vast yet beautiful expanse before me. "...Oh." I muttered, before turning around and opening the door behind me. I quickly stepped out and closed the door once more, before slowly opening the door to reveal the interior of the cafe. "...I guess it was just that time of day… or something?"
I shook my head as I stepped inside, quickly scanning the room for the table containing Team RWBY. "Oh, Bryce! Over here!" Yang said, grabbing my attention as I looked at a table on the right side of the room, coincidentally right next to the bookshelf that Blake was currently scanning through. "You, uh… Why do you have sand on your shoes?"
I sighed, idly tapping the front of my shoes on the floor to dust off the sand before I walked over and sat down at the open spot the 4 girls left me. "I accidentally walked into the sands of time for a brief moment." I said, shrugging as Ruby handed me a menu.
"The… what?" Ruby asked, looking at me in confusion.
"The sands of time." I said, placing the menu down. "It's something from Den-O. Think of it like a physical manifestation of the flow of time. Each spec of sand being a second or minute or event throughout time. In Den-O using the sands of time they can traverse through time itself, whether that be past or future."
"And you just… accidentally walked into this place? In a matter of seconds while we were sitting down?" Weiss asked.
"...Yes." I nodded, picking the menu back up as I gave a look through it. "Hmm… What to get?"
"It's not a large selection, but it has a lot of interesting things to read." Blake said, sitting down with a book. I noticed from the cover it seemed to be based around astrology. "Where did you find this place? Bryce mentioned he was also familiar with it, so did he show you this place?"
"Wait, you know Milk Dipper?" Ruby asked, looking at me.
"It's…" I looked around the rather quiet cafe, noting the small crowd of people huddled over by the front of the main service counter. "From a Kamen Rider's series back home. And before today I didn't know it was even here."
"So how did you find this place then rubes?" Yang asked, turning to look at her sister.
"Ah, well I was out getting the next volume of my weapons magazine and I ended up running into this… kinda weird guy."
"Weird?" Blake asked.
"Well, he was kind of stuck up in a tree? On his bike?" Ruby said, putting a hand on her chin.
"...What?" I asked, almost in a deadpan as I stared blankly at Ruby.
"I uh, helped him down and since he had a bag of groceries on him that he needed to get back here I decided to help him out." Ruby said. "After that his sister treated me to a cup of hot chocolate and uh… yeah!"
"...Real… Real quick…" I said, rubbing my temples.
"Bryce, you okay there?" Yang asked.
"I'm fine." I nodded, before looking up at Ruby. "But uh, yeah, this guy you saw, Did he have brown hair, a red scarf and… well, seemed used to getting stuck up in trees?"
"Yeah, he said that was the second time that month actually." Ruby nodded, before blinking. "Wait, how did you-?"
"Ryotaro Nogami, otherwise known as Kamen Rider Den-O." I said, letting out a sigh. "If there was anyone with a semblance that was literally just bad luck, it would be his."
"Ah, Ruby! It's good to see you again, how's Beacon been treating you?" I turned my head to the side, catching Airi Nogami standing next to me with a menu in hand.
Now, I've seen Den-O, so it really shouldn't have surprised me as much as it did when I saw her. Airi is beautiful, a fact that's a bit of a plot point in the show, considering how many male patrons the elder Nogami gets.
I wasn't smitten when watching the show, she was beautiful sure, but not enough to cause my brain to stall or anything like that.
That said, if Ryotaro had a semblance of Bad Luck, Airi had one that empathized her looks, and I clearly was stunned considering how I've been inner monologuing for this long.
"And for you?" Airi asked, snapping me out as I blinked.
"Oh, uh… I'll have what she's having." I said, pointing to Ruby with my thumb.
"Alright, I'll just be a minute." Airi said, walking over to the counter.
"So…" Yang began, leaning forward. "You alright there, champ?"
"Yang, not ONE word." I said, turning back to the grinning brawler.
"It is quite rude to stare, Bryce." Weiss said, nodding to herself, though not without a slight raise to the corners of her lips.
"I wasn't… why is everyone on this planet unnaturally pretty?" I asked, dropping my head into my arms as I rested my face on the table. "...I said that out loud didn't I?"
"Yep!" Yang said, popping the P. I didn't need to look up from my position to know she was grinning.
"Ugh… I'd take something inconvenient right now over being here at the moment…" My voice muffled against the cloth of my coat.
As if the universe decided to throw me a bone, the whole cafe began to shake suddenly. I pulled my head up to look at the table. "...I just want it known, I was kidding when I said that!"
"We can talk later, right now we need to see what that was!" Ruby said, quickly getting out of her seat. "Sorry, Airi, we're checking that out!"
"Be careful!" I heard Airi call out as I rushed out the door.
"Also, called it Yang!" I shouted, running down the street with the team in tow.
"Yeah yeah. You are just a magnet for trouble, aren't ya?"
I let out a sigh as I looked ahead, noticing the cloud of smoke rising ahead. "Over there!"
"I'll go on ahead!" Ruby said, surging past with her semblance leaving a trail of rose petals in her wake.
"So I know we're running towards obvious danger, but does anyone know how Ruby's semblance leave rose petals behind as she runs?" I asked.
"Why ask this now of all times?" Blake asked, running up beside me.
"Because it's on my mind and I'll forget if I don't ask now!" I said, before turning the corner to see the site of the smoke. "We're here!"
I slowed to a stop, the rest of Team RWBY pulling up behind me as we looked ahead. "Alright, so, who wants to place bets?" Yang asked, stepping forwards.
"All things considered, either an Imagin or an Another Rider." I said, moving on ahead.
"Imagin?" Weiss asked.
There was a sudden scream further in, urging me forwards as I ran past the slowly diminishing smoke. I pulled up to a stop noticing a red and white figure slowly approach a woman before the familiar rose petals of Ruby zoomed past the bringing the woman away from the creature.
"Ruby!" I shouted, as the others caught up with me.
"I got her!" Ruby shouted back.
"Is that an Imagin?" Asked Blake, looking at the monster before us.
"Nope…" I said, looking the figure over before it turned to face us. "...shit, that's Another Den-O."
It was almost dragon like in appearance, with two red horns curling up over where it's eyes would be, and in place of the Den-O belt was a dragon looking plaque.
"You guys handle the civilians, I'll keep its attention." I said, slapping my driver against my waist.
[ZIKU DRIVER!]
"Teme! Snap out of it!" I blinked as I turned to look at the source of the voice.
"Is that?" I asked, watching as a red oni like humanoid jumped onto the side of the another rider.
"Oi! Get ahold of yourself!" Momotaros yelled, whacking Another Den-O over the head with his fist.
"And… what is that?" Yang asked, titling her head at the red demon.
"That's … an Imagin." I said, watching as that said Imagin was flung off the Another Rider, crashing against a wall on the opposite side of the street.
"Oi, Oi, Oi! What's with you!?" Momotaros asked, coming up to a stand, before he noticed us standing off to the side. "Eh? Gaki! Get the hell out of here!"
"Eh? Why is he speaking Japanese?" I asked, blinking at Momotaros before suddenly finding myself lifted off the ground by the Imagin. "Woah!"
"Are you deaf!? Get out of-Eh, Nandato!?" The Imagin stopped as he looked at the Ride Watch holder on my arm. "Kono Yaro… so you're in league with them, heh?"
"With who?" I asked, before being thrown onto my back. "Ow! The hell!?"
"Don't play dumb! Where's that mask Bastard!" Momotaros asked. "Because of him and that blue coated brat, Ryotaro's out of his mind!"
"Hey, lay off him!" Yang shouted, activating her gauntlets.
"He fits the monster description it seems…" Weiss said, activating her rapier. Blake nodded, unsettling Gamble Shroud.
"Guys, we have bigger problems, stall Another Den-O! I'll handle peach boy over here." I said, pushing myself up to a stand.
"PEACH BOY!?" Momotaros yelled, stomping his foot on the ground.
"You sure?" Asked Blake.
"Positive." I said, pulling the Zi-O Ride Watch off my arm holder.
"Alright, let's go!" Yang yelled, running ahead with Weiss and Blake.
"Now, you're gonna tell me how to fix my friend!" Momotaros said, stepping towards me.
"I would if I could." I said, twisting the dial on the Zi-O Ride Watch. "Henshin!"
"Oh no you don't!" Shouted Momotaros, as he suddenly was engulfed by a red aura before slamming into my chest.
I felt my hair suddenly stand up, my eyes flashing red suddenly as the reigns of control over my body passed to the Imagine.
(Play 俺、参上 - Toshihiko Sahashi)
"Heh…" I felt my lips turn into a grin, as Momotaros' voice resonated from my vocal chords.
"Eh, Bryce?" Ruby asked, running over towards my possessed body with confusion apparent on her face.
"Ore," Momotaros began, moving my arm in front of me with my thumb pointed at my chest. My arms suddenly flew outwards, striking a familiar pose. "Sanjou!"
"Huh?" Ruby blinked, looking at me, or Momotaros, oh jeez this is getting confusing.
"Don't worry, I'm only borrowing this guy until he tells me how to fix this." Momotaros said, waving Ruby off.
'Well, should've figured this might happen at some point…'
"Eh!? Nadato!? How are you- Are you a singularity point!?" Momotaros asked, looking down at himself.
'Listen, I'm not your enemy here Momotaros. I want to help.' I said, thought, screw it, I said will work here.
"And why should I trust you?" Momotaros asked, crossing his arms.
'Because as you've no doubt figured out, if I wanted you out, I'd have brought you out already.' I said.
"Grr… Fine!" I felt my teeth grind. "What do we do then?"
"Uh… Bryce?" Ruby asked again
"Gaki, quiet!" Momotaros shouted.
'Oi, watch it! That's my friend!'
"Whatever, what do we do?"
'Press the button on the Ride Watch, slot it on the right, press down on the release button and spin it.'
Momotaros looked at the Zi-O Ride Watch in my hand before looking up. "Fine! Izuko!" He shouted, bringing the Zi-O Ride Watch in front of him with my right hand before slamming down on the activation button with his left.
{ZI-O!}
Momotaros slotted the Ride Watch into the Driver, before quickly slamming my fist onto the top to release the driver. He swung my arms out, mimicking his normal henshin pose.
"Henshin!" He said, smirking as he swung his arm down, slamming my right hand onto the driver, knocking it into a spin before the bell sounded out, activating the transformation.
[RIDER TIME!]
"Eh?" Momotaros blinked, before bands of metal began to spin around him. "Nandato!?"
{KAMEN RIDER! ZI-O!}
"Eh? Gah!" Momotaros blinked behind the helmet, before the three Japanese characters slammed into his visor, sending him rocking back. "The hell!?"
'Calm down, you're transformed now. If we can beat Another Den-O we'll knock him out of his transformation.' I said.
"That so? Yosh!" Momotaros took a step forward. "Ryotaro!"
Another Den-O stopped and turned away from Yang and Blake, looking over at the two of us. "Zi-O…"
'Wait, that's Ryotaro!?'
"You know this better than most! I don't do things like holding back or warning shots! From start to finish I'm at the climax!" Momotaros shouted, pointed his armoured hand at Another Den-O. "Ikuze, Ikuze, Ikuze!"
"Eh, what's with Bryce?" Asked Yang, moving over to Ruby with Blake and Weiss in tow.
"Um… I'm not sure." Ruby said, scratching the side of her head.
"Where'd the Imagin go?" Blake asked, scanning where she last saw Momotaros.
"The what?" Ruby asked.
"That red monster!" Weiss said.
"That one?" Ruby pointed towards Another Den-O.
Yang sighed. "The other red one, Rubes."
"You know I can hear you four right?" Momotaros asked, before punching Another Den-O in the face, launching the Another Rider back. "Wake up already!"
'You do know we have a sword at our disposal, yeah?'
"Eh? We do?"
'Yeah, the Zikan Girade.'
"Zikan Girade?" Momotaros asked, tilting his hand, before a bright pink light filled his right hand as the sword in question materialized.
[ZIKAN GIRADE!]
[KEN!]
"Gah! Warn me next time!" Momotaros shouted, spinning the sword in his hand. "Yosh… I can work with this. Ore no Hissatsu Waza…"
Momotaros pressed down on the top button of the Zikan Girade, pulling the sword back as red energy began to form over the blade.
[TIME CHARGE!]
[5...4...3...2...1… ZERO TIME!]
"Part 2!" Momotaros swung forwards, sending a wave of energy towards Another Den-O, creating an explosion that covered the area with dust.
[GIRI! GIRI! GIRI!]
"Eh!? That wasn't part 2! What is with this sword?"
'Momotaros! Ryotaro!'
"Eh? Oh, right!" Momotaros said, turning to where Another Den-O once was as the dust cleared, showing the unconscious form of Ryotaro Nogami. "Ryotaro!"
I felt Momotaros hop out of my body, giving me control of my body back, just in time to hear the yells of Team RWBY as they ran over to me.
"Bryce, are you okay?" Ruby asked, grabbing onto my arm.
"He can possess people!?" Weiss asked, looking over at Momotaros.
"Calm down guys, he's with us." I said, pulling the Zi-O Ride Watch off my belt, canceling the transformation. Ignoring the looks I was getting from Team RWBY, I ran over to Ryotaro and Momotaros. "He okay?"
"Yeah. I need to get him back to the DenLiner." Momotaros said.
"Let us help." I said, reaching down as I grabbed Ryotaro's arm. "Not just with him but with your Another Den-O problem."
"Eh? You mean that didn't do it!?" Momotaros asked.
"Unfortunately no." I said. "There's unfortunately a bit more to dealing with Another Riders."
"Kuso…!" Momotaros swore, slamming his hand on his thigh.
"Come on, we should get him back to DenLiner." I said, looking up at Momotaros.
"Can you even get on the train?" The Imagin asked.
"It's fine, I have a pass." I said.
"Eh?"
"This is a public urinal." Weiss said, as the six of us stood in front of the urinal.
"Yep." I nodded, crossing my arms.
"Why exactly are we standing in front of a urinal?"
"We need to get on the DenLiner, and this is the closest and quickest entry point right now." I said, shaking my head.
"DenLiner?" Asked Blake.
"It's… A train that travels through time." I said, looking back at Blake.
Blake put a hand on her chin. "Like the one that Geiz showed up in?"
I paused, before looking to the side. "...I was wondering why Geiz was using a train instead of the traditional Time Mazines from the show…" I muttered to myself, before blinking. "But it also had a mecha form, so is it some weird hybrid?"
"Bryce?" Yang asked, raising an eyebrow. "You're kinda staring off into space."
"Hm? Sorry, but as I was saying. DenLiner has various times when it opens a door to the sands of time, this just happens to be the quickest way there." I said.
Weiss let out a sigh. "Very well… I might as well continue to humour you…"
"Thanks." I said sarcastically with a roll of my eyes.
"Finally! Come on!" Momotaros said, opening the door to the urinal as he took a step inside.
"You heard the Imagin, let's go." I said, stepping through the doorway and onto sand as I looked at the sight before me. "Damn… The show does NOT do this justice…"
"What are you-Wow…!" Ruby popped up beside me, her silver eyes filled with stars as she looked ahead at the Train ahead of us and the surrounding view.
"So this is DenLiner?" Asked Yang as she stepped in after us.
"Yeah, this is it alright." I said with a nod. It was a simple bullet train design, white and black with red accents along the side in a single stripe.
"Ignoring the ridiculousness of stepping into a urinal to get here, I must admit the sight before me is superb…" Weiss said, stepping in after Blake.
"We should probably catch up with Momotaros." I said, running after the Imagin. "We don't want to miss the train!"
I felt the train begin to take off, slowly but surely picking up speed as it raced ahead. "This is… unreal…" I muttered to myself as I looked around.
"Kame! Move aside!" Momotaros ordered, placing Ryotaro down on the table that a blue Imagin was sitting on moments prior.
"Ryotaro!" The blue Imagin stood up, his face more turtle designed than Momotaros' Oni look. The Turtle Imagin leaned over the passed out form of Ryotaro lying down on the table, before looking back at Momotaros. "Senpai, what happened to him?"
"There's more of them?" Weiss asked in surprise, catching the attention of the two Imagin.
"Hmm? Well now, can I help you ladies?" The Blue Imagin asked, flicking his wrist lightly to the side.
Momotaros' hand swung down on the back of the Turtle's head. "Not now, Kame-Ko!"
"Kame?" Yang asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Means turtle in japanese." I said, crossing my arms. "And Momotaros' right, Urataros. Let's not go all casanova right now please."
"Hm? And who's this?" Urataros asked, turning to look at me.
"I'm Bryce… A fan." I said, clapping my hands together. "I was… expecting Kintaros and Ryutaros. Where are they right now?"
"Kintaros? Ryutaros?" Ruby asked me.
"Ah, well Kintaros and Ryutaro are currently out looking for signs of Time Jackers." Urataros said, nodding to himself.
"And why are you here then?" Momotaros asked.
Urataros shrugged. "I had already completed my sweep, nothing of interest." He said, before reaching into Ryotaro's pocket. "Here we are. I'll call them back now."
I blinked at the red phone in Urataros' hand. "The K-Taros?" I asked, blinking as Urataros flipped the phone open.
"Could someone please explain what's going on right now?" Yang asked, placing a hand on her hip.
"I believe I'll be of assistance in that regard." Said a voice behind us. I blinked turning around to find a man in a suit with a cane in his hand. "Please, do have a seat."
"Who…?" Ruby tilted her head as she looked at the man.
"Owner." I said, nodding to the man as I sat down next to a table.
"That doesn't exactly explain anything." Yang responded.
"He's the Owner of the DenLiner." I said, as the rest of Team RWBY sat down with me.
"That is correct." Owner said, walking over to where Ryotaro was lying unconscious. "And your tickets?"
"Tickets?" Weiss asked. "You didn't say anything about tickets."
"I was a bit preoccupied, Frosty!" Momotaros said, turning back to face Weiss.
"Frosty!?" Weiss stood up, ignoring the laughing Yang as she glared at Momotaros.
"Now now, I'll have you all know that there is no fighting on DenLiner." Owner said, tapping his cane on the floor.
"But he-!" Weiss began.
"Weiss, drop it please." I said, cutting her off.
"What, why?"
"Because he'll leave us stranded in the middle of time if we don't follow the rules." I said, clenching my fist.
"He can do that?" Asked Yang.
"Yep!" I nodded.
"Wait, we came to help!" Ruby said, holding her hands up. "We don't want to cause any trouble!"
"Is that so?" Owner said.
"Ryotaro!" A deep voice resonated from the side, as two more Imagin ran past us towards Ryotaro, one Yellow and one Purple.
"He's not dead is he?" Asked the purple one, his voice higher pitched than the yellow one.
"Of course not! He's our contract holder! We'd know if he was, Gaki!" Momotaros said, looking at the Purple Imagin.
"Bryce?"
"Kintaros." I said, pointing to the yellow Imagin, before pointing to the purple one. "Ryutaros."
"Are there any more we should expect to show up?" Asked Blake.
"Unless Yuto or Kotaro show up? No, this should be all of the Taros'." I said, shrugging.
"Eh? How do you know me?" Asked Ryutaros, turning to look at me.
"I'm a fan." I said with a shrug. "Bryce Bridged, Kamen Rider Zi-O."
"Zi-O?" All of the Imagin turned to face me. I felt a sudden pressure push down on my shoulders as they looked at me.
"...I'm missing something here, aren't I?" I sighed out.
"Get him!" Momotaros shouted.
"Ah…!" I nodded, before diving to the side and rolling avoiding a dog pile from the 4 Imagin. "This has something to do with my future doesn't it?"
"Now, now, what did I say…" Owner spoke up, grabbing the Taros' attention. "As for your question, it's because of Zi-O, or rather Ohma Zi-O, that we are unable to protect the timeline as we once did. He is also one of the reasons the worlds have fused."
"What do you mean by that?" Ruby asked, turning to look at the Owner.
"This world, remnant, was not normally filled with Kamen Riders." Owner said, turning to look at me. "Your future, be it by your own hand or not, is what has combined us all together."
"What? I'm lost right now." I said.
"He means you're the reason why Kamen Riders exist in this world." A familiar voice said behind me. I spun around, finding Woz standing behind me. "And I've brought your tickets."
Woz opened up the book in his hands before pulling out 5 tickets, one for each member of Team RWBY and himself.
"And what about me?" I asked.
"You don't need one, you hold a Rider Pass, don't you?" Asked Woz.
I blinked, before pulling out the Rider Pass with Zi-O's symbol engraved on it. "This?"
"The reason he says you are the reason for this is because you being here has brought all the world's together as one." Woz said, walking over to a table and sitting down. "Could I get some coffee?"
"Noami?" The Owner spoke up, before a woman in a white attendant suit stepped inside, with one pink stripe in her hair. She pushed along a cart with different cups of coffee prepared.
"Here you are." Naomi said, handing a cup to Woz before handing out a cup to Team RWBY.
Woz took a sip from the cup, a smile on his face as he placed the cup down. Ruby slowly picked the cup up, looking down at the colorful foam atop the cup before taking a sip.
"Eugh-! So bitter!" Ruby said, her face squishing as if she sucked on a lemon, as she placed the cup back down.
"What do you mean by I'm responsible for this? I fused the worlds? How?" I asked, sitting down across from Woz.
"My lord, you specifically are not responsible, but your presence here is one of the reasons why the fusion has proceeded as it has." Woz said.
"Okay, but everyone else remembers things as if remnant was where their original timeline took place." I said, crossing my arms. "So why would-"
"Because I'm a singularity point…" Ryotaro spoke up, sitting up slowly. I blinked, turning to look at the man. He didn't look like his 2007 self, it had been 11 years since Den-O aired after all. "Changes to my timeline don't affect me like they do others."
"Ryotaro!" Momotaros turned to face his contractor. "You alright?"
"Mh…" Ryotaro nodded, looking at me. "What happened? I remember we were searching for the Time Jackers and then…"
"Well, you obviously found them…" Yang said, motioning to Ryotaro with her arm.
"You seem… familiar with them." Ryotaro said, looking over at Team RWBY.
"Hard not to be when he's our teammate." Weiss said.
"Thanks…" I said, rolling my eyes.
"We've run into a few Another Riders already." Blake said. "Some of us more than others."
I let out a sigh, pocketing the Rider Pass I was still holding. "So do you know that masked bastard then?" Momotaros asked, moving in front of me. "He's the reason Ryotaro is stuck in this mess!"
"Ah, so you've met Sougo as well then." I said, shaking my head. "I've run into him twice now. The last Another Rider I fought he made was… annoying to deal with."
"Don't remind me…" Weiss said, shaking her head. "I still think your plan was convoluted to begin with."
"What else was I supposed to do? He gave the Another Rider powers to the actual rider! I couldn't get him to lower his guard to give me his power if I didn't pretend to be working for him!" I said, leaning back in my chair.
"What's this about taking power?" Asked Kintaros.
"The only way to defeat an Another Rider is by using the power of the original." I said, sighing as I took out a blank watch and placed it on the table in front of me. "Of course, I'm essentially stealing said Rider's power so I'm not exactly comfortable with doing so."
"Oi, this is the same as what that masked bastard used!" Momotaros said, grabbing the blank Ride Watch up off the table.
"Not exactly…" I said. "...I think."
"So there's one of these inside Ryotaro right now then?" Urataros asked, looking at the man in question.
"Yeah." I nodded.
"Kuso! So all we have to do is beat it out him?" Momotaros asked, holding the blank Ride Watch up as if poised to strike the man with it.
"Woah woah!" I raised my arms up.
"Are you an idiot!?" Weiss asked.
"Eh? You say something, Frosty!?" Momotaros asked.
"Baka!" Ryutaros parroted Weiss, pointing at Momotaros.
"You wanna go, Gaki!" Momotaros asked, swiveling around to face the dragon based Imagin.
"Guys!" Ryotaro stood up, stumbling slightly as he stood between the two Imagin.
Suddenly, the Ride Watch in Momotaros' hand began to shine, as two holographic clock hands spun around before the Ride watch was engulfed in red light.
"Eh, Nani?" Momotaros asked, holding then now red and white Ride Watch up to look at it.
"It activated?" Ruby asked, looking at the Watch.
"Give it here!" I said, raising my hand.
Momotaros turned to face me, before shrugging as he tossed me the Ride Watch. I caught it out of the air, before looking down at it.
I skimmed my finger over the white dial, before twisting the Ride Watch over in my hand, looking over its red body. "This'll do it." I said, looking up at Ryotaro. "We have what we need to defeat Another Den-O now."
"I believe it would be best we do this outside, I'd rather not break the Den-Liner." Woz said, stepping up from his seat.
"Very well. We'll be making our stop now." Owner said, tapping his cane as the train came to a stop.
"This should work." I said, stepping onto the concrete clearing.
"Now what do we do?" Asked Ryotaro, standing opposite me.
I gave a brief look out at Team RWBY who were standing next to the Taros off to the side. "We need you to transform." I said, turning back to Ryotaro. "Can't exactly break the watch if it's not activated."
"Okay but… how exactly do I do that?" Asked Ryotaro, tilting his head.
"...I don't know." I said, scratching the back of my head. "I figure it'll activate on it's own at some point? Until then I guess… we just wait for something to happen?"
"You won't be waiting long!"
I blinked and turned to my left, watching as a figure in a brown cloak walked towards me, his hood raised over his head, hiding his features. "...You're…" I said, my eyes widening as the familiarity of the outfit finally clicked.
[ZIKU DRIVER!]
"Ohma Zi-O!" Geiz shouted, slapping the driver on his waist. "I'm taking you out now!"
"Who is this punk?" Momotaros asked.
"Geiz." Blake said, looking at the Ride Watch Geiz pulled off his holder. "He was there at the docks too…"
"You think he's…?" Ruby asked, looking ahead.
{GEIZ!}
Geiz swung his right arm to the left, slotting the Ride Watch into the driver before slamming his right hand onto the release button.
"Great, Ryotaro, step back!" I said, slapping my driver onto my waist as I pulled out the Zi-O Ride Watch.
[ZIKU DRIVER!]
{ZI-O!}
Geiz's arms shot forwards, before he swung his arms around in a circular motion before his hands rested on either side of his driver, his left hand on the bottom of the right slot, and his left hand resting on top of the left.
"Henshin!" Geiz shouted, throwing his arms to the side before rolling his shoulders as the transformation began.
{RIDER TIME!}
{KAMEN RIDER~ GEIZ!}
I let out a sigh as the yellow character slammed into the visor of Kamen Rider Geiz. "Look, could you not have done this at any other time?" I asked, slotting the Zi-O watch into my driver, quickly spinning my driver around as Geiz ran at me.
{RIDER TIME!}
{KAMEN RIDER! ZI-O!}
I crossed my arms in front of me in an X pattern, blocking Geiz's kick as my armour formed around me. "Alright, fine!" I shouted, throwing my arms out to the side, sending Geiz back.
"Agh!" I blinked, turning around to see Ryotaro stumble, as purple energy began to roll off him.
"Really? Now of all times?" I asked whatever higher being was listening at the moment, probably Fruit Jesus all things considered. While I was distracted I felt something sharp cut into my back. "Agh!"
I stumbled forwards, turning around quick enough to avoid another swipe from Geiz's Zikan Zax. "Just stand still!" He shouted, swinging more and more.
I ducked under another of his swings before slamming my foot into the side of his head, kicking him to the side as I turned back to Ryotaro, who was finally engulfed in the energy before he re-ememerged as Another Den-O.
{DEN-O!}
"Great, now I have to deal with this too…" I muttered, pulling the Den-O Ride Watch off my holder. I twisted the dial and pushed down on the button, but nothing sounded off. "Eh?"
I looked away from the two for but a moment, before Geiz's axe slammed into my stomach, causing me to fly back and for the Den-O watch to leave my grasp.
"A little help please!" I asked, rolling to the side as Another Den-O tried to step on me.
Geiz turned and began walking towards the dropped Ride Watch, picking up the item before it was suddenly shot out of his hand. His head snapped over to Ruby, who was currently aiming Crescent Rose at him.
"Yosh! Everyone, Pile on! Ikuze, Ikuze, Ikuze!" Momotaros cried out, charging with the other Taros as they jumped at Geiz, dogg piling on top of him, sending the Rider crashing to the ground.
I pulled myself to a stand, looked ahead at Another Den-O who was slowly walking towards me, a sword suddenly in his hand. "Great…" I muttered, holding my hand out to my right. "Edge of Time!"
[ZIKAN GIRADE!]
[KEN!]
I brought my sword forward to block, clashing against Another Den-O's strike. I felt my knees buckle slightly under the power of the attack. "Jesus, what the hell is that Another Watch feeding you?" I asked, swinging my blade to the side before bringing it back around for another slash, cutting across Another Den-O's chest. I blinked, noticing how quickly Another Den-O recovered compared to our last encounter. "The hell? You weren't this hard to put down last time…"
"Bryce!" Ruby shouted. I turned my head to the source of her voice, noticing her hold up the Den-O Ride Watch in her hand, a trail of rose petals floating down behind her. She quickly threw her arm back before throwing the Ride Watch towards me. "Catch!"
I extended my hand quickly, grabbing the Watch out of the air. I let out a sigh as I adjusted my grip on my sword. There was a sudden thud next to me as Momotaros rolled up. "Momotaros?" I asked, looking down at the Imagin before looking up to find Geiz throwing the others off him.
"That won't stop me, Zi-O…" Geiz said, turning to face me.
"What the hell is your problem with me, Geiz? What did I freaking do?" I asked, looking at the Rider from the future.
"What did you do? You of all people should know, after all you were there!" Geiz shouted, throwing his arm forward.
"Geiz, that's not how time works!" I said, waving my arm at him.
"This punk sure has a few screws loose…" Momotaros said, standing up.
"I'm not talking about your older self, Zi-O." Geiz said, shaking his head as he readied his axe. "Enough talk, I'm taking you down!"
"Not so fast!" Ruby shouted, appearing in front of Geiz in a flurry of petals before spinning her scythe around, forcing the Rider back. "Bryce, we'll take care of this guy! You handle Ryotaro!" As if on command, Weiss, Blake and Yang all ran up next to Ruby, weapons drawn.
"Then that leaves us with him." I said, turning to look at Another Den-O. "...Momotaros."
"Eh?" The Imagin turned to look at me.
"Let's work together." I said, looking at the Imagin. "For some reason I'm unable to activate the Den-O watch myself, but if you're possessing me we might get it to activate."
"Heh… Alright then. If this is the only way to free Ryotaro from this, then what the hell!" Momotaros said, standing next to me.
"Woz!" I called, turning to my right to see my ever faithful attendant step up next to me. "Playlist 20th, track 8."
"Very well…" Woz said, stepping back.
"Nandato?" Momotaros turned to look at me.
"Nothing important." I said, shaking my head. "Ryotaro!"
Another Den-O, who was currently walking towards us once more with it's sword drawn, slowed to a stop. "Let me say this to start. We don't do things like holding back or warning shots!"
"From start, to finish, we're at the climax!" Momotaros finished, quickly jumping into me, taking control. The dial of the Den-O Ride Watch was quickly twisted, before Momotaros slammed his open palm on the ride watch as if catching a closed fist.
{DEN-O!}
(Play Double-Action Sword Form)
The Ride Watch was quickly inserted into the left slot of the driver, before Momotaros slammed his fist down on the release button and swung his arms out, getting into position.
'Let's go, Momotaros!' I said.
Momotaros grinned for the both of us behind the helmet. "Heheh, Ikuze! Henshin!" He shouted, swinging his right arm down, sending the driver into a full spin.
[RIDER TIME!]
{KAMEN RIDER! ZI-O!}
Momotaros paused, blinking as what sounded like the Den-Liner closed in on him. "Nani? What's that sound coming from?"
[ARMOUR TIME!]
I felt my eyes widen behind the helmet as a miniature Den-Liner that was about the size of my body circled around us, before it broke apart into different chunks of armour, sliding into place like the Den-O suit.
{SWORD FORM! DEN-O~!}
A slab of pink slid down over the visor of the suit, before it opened up and transformed into the Japanese words for Den-O.
"Rejoice!"
"Eh!?" Momotaros snapped to the side, looking at Woz as the prophet walked ahead.
"The one to inherit all Rider powers, the time king who will rule over the past and the future! His name is Kamen Rider Zi-O Den-O Armour."
"Oi, does he always do that?" Asked Momotaros, looking at Woz.
'Only the first time.' I said.
Momotaros gave another glance at Woz. "...He looks like an idiot."
'You said it, not me.'
"Oh well…" Momotaros shrugged, before turning to look at Another Den-O. He chuckled to himself, before pointing his thumb at his chest. "Ore, Sanjou!"
"Zikan Girade!" Momotaros called, throwing his arm out to the side as the sword formed in his hand.
[ZIKAN GIRADE!]
[KEN!]
Another Den-O shuddered, before it charged ahead, bringing it's sword down on us. Momotaros rose to block, easily stopping the momentum of the attack. "You're gonna have to try harder than that, Ryotaro!" He said, swinging to the side before slicing down across Another Den-O's chest.
The Another Rider stumbled back, before regaining its balance. It let out a grunt of pain, before it charged ahead, sword poised to strike.
Momotaros easily batted aside the sword, giving a clean hit in return. The Another Rider pulled back, before going in for another attack. The Imagin smirked, before breaking Another Den-O's blade in half with a heavy swing. Momotaros then pulled the blade back and swung with the carried momentum of the previous strike, slamming the sword into Another Den-O's stomach.
'Parry this, you casual!' I said, watching as Another Den-O stumbled back, smoking from the wounds. 'The finish?'
"Heh, ikuzo!" Momotaros said, pulling the Den-O watch off the belt and inserting it into his sword.
[FINISH TIME!]
"Ore no Hissatsu Waza…" Momotaros said, red energy crackling over the blade of the sword before he finally pulled the trigger on the grip.
{DEN-O!}
A red blade of energy popped off the sword, as Momotaros swung the blade wide. "ZI-O VERSION!"
[GIRI! GIRI! SLASH!]
The blade of energy shot forward, slicing across Another Den-O's front, before it crossed back around, slicing against his back. Momotaros brought the Zikan Girade up once more, the previous blade of energy dissipating as more energy formed on the sword's blade.
He swung down, sending another wave of energy out that slammed into Another Den-O's front before it exploded, covering the area in smoke. "Heheh, how you like that, kid!?"
'Holy shit dude…' I said. If it wasn't for the fact I wasn't the one in control, I'd probably have flies coming into my mouth.
The smoke finally cleared, revealing Ryotaro dazed on the ground, and the broken remnants of the Another Ride Watch scattered next to him.
'And that's it then.' I said.
"That wasn't half bad." Momotaros said, jumping out of me. As if on command, the Den-O Armour dematerialized, leaving me in the Zi-O suit.
"Agreed." I said, rolling my shoulders before I turned to look over at Team RWBY who were walking over to us. "Where's Geiz?"
"Left when you beat that thing." Yang said, looking off to the side. "He was… saying a lot of ominous and weird things."
"I wouldn't worry about that." Woz said, stepping up next to me. "I've taken the liberty of keeping our resident troublemakers at bay."
"Thanks for that." I said, nodding before Momotaros walked back over to us, Ryotaro in tow. "Ryotaro! You feel alright?"
Ryotaro nodded, pulling his arm off of Momotaros. "Thanks to your help." He said.
"That's good." Ruby said, nodding as she transformed Crescent Rose back into its compact configuration.
Weiss sighed, shaking her head. "I think I've had quite enough of these incidents right now."
"You and me both." I muttered, shaking my head. I pulled the Zi-O Ride Watch off my belt, dematerializing my suit. "So much for some time out on the town to get away from it all…"
Yang shrugged. "So, since that's all done. What are you two gonna do?"
"Head back to Den-Liner, probably." Momotaros said. "Gotta get this guy good as new!"
"Actually, would you like to come with us?" Ryotaro asked, looking at me.
"Eh?"
"You want me to what!?"
"Oi, oi… Don't I also get a say in this?" Momotaros asked as I sat in across from Ryotaro on the Den-Liner. I was dragged along for the Ride, while Team RWBY headed back towards Beacon. "Ryotaro!"
"Momotaros, we need someone keeping an eye on him." Ryotaro said, motioning to me.
"I am not playing babysitter for this brat!" Momotaros yelled, standing up.
"Sempai, calm down!" Urataros said, quickly moving next to his fellow Imagin.
"I am calm!"
"Bryce Bridged has been the subject of numerous changes to the timeline, and has bore witness to an equally large number of similar events as well." The Owner said. "It would be beneficial for the Den-Liner Police to keep an eye on him."
"What do you mean by I'm the subject of?" I asked.
"Time travel is confusing." Ryutaros said, nodding at me.
"What Ryuta means is, you're at least partially responsible, or are a large factor of numerous individuals' attempts at changing the timeline." Said Urataros.
"Like that rider that fought us earlier for one. What did you say his name was…?" Momotaros asked.
"Geiz." I said.
"Yeah, that prick!" Momotaros nodded.
"Geiz did come back in time to kill me..." I said, looking to the side.
"As did your companion, Woz." The Owner spoke up. "He came back to assist you, altering history himself."
"Okay, but why is history being altered to begin with? Aren't you guys the literal time police?" I asked, crossing my arms.
Ryotaro sighed. "We've been unable to travel through time like we normally could. This business with the Time Jackers and Ohma Zi-O… they're being blocked."
"By your ass of a future self!" Momotaros said, crossing his arms with a huff.
"But… Why!?" I asked, extending my arms out in front of me in confusion.
"Because he wishes to keep the flow of time as it is." The Owner says, turning to look at me. "He forbids us from altering interactions between Another Riders and the Time Jackers in the past, only allowing us the use of this train to hunt down runaway Imagin."
"How is Ohma Zi-O stopping you though?" I asked, leaning forwards.
"He is not called the King of Time for nothing." Kintaros said, sitting up. "His strength would make all of us cry."
"So we have to leverage our options." Ryotaro said, leaning forwards. "And our best option is for Momotaros to follow you."
"...Are you all absolutely sure." I asked, leaning back. "Because this is…"
"Kuso… Fine! This is our best shot at catching these Time Jackers, right?" Momotaros asked, turning to look at Ryotaro, who nodded. The Imagin swirled around to face me. "Then fine, I'll babysit this guy for a while! But unless you can make this interesting-"
"I'm a huntsman in training and I still have a slot open on my team. We have combat class regularly, as well as pointed out, I normally find myself in situations that are normally resolved via combat." I finished, crossing my arms as I looked at Momotaros.
"Is that so? Yosh, I'm in!" Momotaros said, sitting down next to me as he put an arm around my shoulder. "Those Time Bastards won't know what hit 'em!"
"It seems he's finally come around." Ozpin said, looking at his tablet sized scroll's screen. Displayed on it was an image of a team, containing the portraits and basic information on Bryce, Woz, Parado and Momotaros. "I don't believe BWPM will translate accordingly…"
Ozpin took another sip from his mug, savoring the taste of the Hot Chocolate. "I suppose I'll make use of the name Woz recommended earlier then…" The headmaster mused, before typing on a few keys. "There."
He gave a long look at Team ZI-O, before pressing the save button. Ozpin let out a breath as he placed the scroll on the desk, before the sound of the elevator arriving grabbed his attention. "Come in!"
The doors pulled open, as a man in a business suit walked over to Ozpin, a white box in his hand as he smiled at the Headmaster. "Ozpin, it's good to see you."
"And to you the same, Mr. Kougami." Ozpin said.
Kousei Kougami smiled, before looking down at the tablet on the desk. He placed the box down next to the scroll and opened it, a white birthday cake with pink accented frosting decorated the top.
"And Happy Birthday to you… Team ZI-O…" Kougami said, looking up at Ozpin.
Sougo let out a sigh, walking into an empty apartment room as he sat down on the nearby sofa. "So much for that plan…" He muttered. "Though the fact Zi-O needed Momotaros' enhanced strength to best Another Den-O, even in base form shows that my theory is proving strong…"
The time jacker reached up to his face, pulling off the mask and leaving it lying on the sofa as he walked over to a silver tower of sorts, known to some as a Ride Watch Daizer. On it, 4 purple and black Ride Watches sat attached to the sides. "Build… Ex-Aid… Fourze… and Den-O…" the teen said to himself, crossing his arms with a smirk. "4 down, 15 more to go..."
"Zi-O… Omae wo tome rareru no wa tada hitori," Sougo began, before thrusting his thumb at himself. "Ore da."
Sougo smirked, before he placed the mask back on. "God, I love that line…"