Previously on the Disciple Arc...
"With what happened back at the colony, I don't blame you for taking some time to yourself, especially with Bea's death."
"If you don't hear back from me tomorrow, I've been killed and have returned to my lost friends."
"Sharla's is the most powerful of them all, the Valkyrie."
"I'm scared, Gonta. Is there nothing we can do?"
"The true climax of the Killing Titan War has begun."
Disciple Arc Chapter 15: Henshin! Enter the Kamen Riders!
It's been half an hour since I found out about Mirai's death. I haven't even realized that night had already struck until I checked the time on my phone. I let out a sigh as I laid on my back on the Empty Throne. It's not the most comfortable position I've been in, but since Prison Island is our new base of operations because of what Zanza did the day before, I'll take what I can get.
Lorithia promised Ajia that her clubmates won't die if she allowed the usage of devices called 'Bestia Drivers' and orb-like gemstones known as 'Chimera Orbs', a deal which she agreed to. This was weird even for her since from what I heard, Beshi, Dora, and Kiba ran off with not just their own Bestia Drivers and Chimera Orbs, but with four spare drivers and orbs to give to whoever they see worthy of using them. Either way, the fact that the sushi chef was willing to put her friends' lives on the line gave me an implication that something was off about her.
Is there something we don't know that she hasn't told us? If there is, I have to find out exactly what it is. I thought to myself before I heard my phone ringing.
Seeing that it was a video call from Gita, I took it and saw that she was calling from the Banquet Hall with the sounds of various animal noises in the background.
"Gonta, you have to come down here right now!" She exclaimed with panic in her voice.
"What's going on, Gita? It sounds like there's a whole goddamn zoo behind you." I asked.
"Everybody, hit the deck!" Kiyo's voice suddenly shouted from off-camera before Gita quickly ducked out of the way of what looked like the talons of an eagle made out of Ether.
"Apparently when the Bionis woke up, it made the guardian animals of the lives this war has taken very upset." The guitarist explained. "Because some of them knew us, they're taking all their built-up rage out on us because of it. They already slaughtered several of the monsters in the Banquet Hall for crying out loud!"
"That doesn't sound good. Try to hold them off as long as possible." I said as I got up from the Empty Throne. "I'll be right down."
"Got it! Just get down here and help us out!" She confirmed before I ended the call as I rushed to reach the transporter.
When I got to the Banquet Hall, I was surprised to see several rampaging animals made out of Ether everywhere, Kiyo, Miyadera, Tsumugi, Angie, Kokichi, and Murakumo in their transformation costumes trying to fight some of the guardians directly, and Ajia and Gita struggling to keep more of the beasts from joining the individual brawls.
I looked up and saw the eagle from earlier charging directly at me. Instinctively, I drew out my katana and blocked its talons, sending me barreling onto the floor in front of the sushi chef and guitarist as I tried to keep the eagle from getting any closer.
"Gonta!" Both girls cried out.
"I'm alright." I assured, struggling to keep my weapon up against my feathered foe. "A little help here?"
"Looks like there's no other choice." Ajia said, looking at Gita as she pushed a guardian animal backwards.
The green streaked girl gasped. "You mean..? To get rid of these things, you're gonna have to use that?"
The sushi chef nodded before pulling out a Chimera Orb. It was midnight blue in color and appeared to have the face of a dragon inside it surrounded by metallic silver rims. Ajia pressed a finger on the top of the orb, causing the orb to light up for a moment.
I felt the force being pressing down onto me start to fade as I noticed that the eagle had become frozen in place. It screeched in what I assumed was pain as Ether was being pulled off of it and being sucked into a certain point I couldn't see with it in the way at the angle I was at. Taking advantage of its stopped movement, I thrusted the blade of my katana forward, knocking it off me.
That seemed to speed up the disintegration process as more Ether was knocked off its body and into the twister surrounding it. I got up from the floor and was surprised to see that it was coming from Ajia's mouth. Soon enough, the twister vanished and the black haired girl swallowed down the last of the guardian animal's Ether before sighing in relief.
"Did you just... eat that thing whole?" I asked as I approached her.
"Yep." Gita responded. "Each Chimera Orb has a special ability that can be activated without the user having to transform. The one Ajia has is the Dragon Chimera Orb, the ability of which allows the user to devour anything of their choice."
"A lot like the creature it's based on." I added.
"Exactly." Ajia confirmed. "Chimera Orbs can also be used in the Bestia Drivers to transform. They essentially allow anyone without a Battle Gem to transform and become stronger. My clubmates have the Falcon, Kamakiri, Harinezumi, and Penguin Chimera Orbs. Beshi, Dora, and Kiba have the Kujaku, Hornet, and Scorpion Chimera Orbs respectively and alongside those, they also took the Shark, Shirokuma, Spider, and Jackal Chimera Orbs when they ran off during the attack on Colony 6 the other day."
"So that means the orbs based on the peafowl, hornet, scorpion, shark, polar bear, spider, and jackal were lost in that battle." I theorized.
"And if Lorithia dies, we'll likely lose the ones based on the falcon, mantis, hedgehog, and penguin as well." Gita added.
"Knowing Mirai's adoptive mother, I highly doubt she won't go down without a fight." Gita theorized before turning to the remaining guardian animals. "Anyway, we should get rid of the rest of these things before someone gets themselves killed."
"Yeah, it doesn't look like the others can hold on for much longer." I said, pulling out my katana and charging forward while the sushi chef and guitarist followed closely behind. "Let's get 'em!"
"Gonta! Wake up! Something weird is going on!"
I groaned for a moment when I heard that voice. Once the rest of the guardian animals were disposed of, Dickson entered the Banquet Hall to reveal that Sharla and her allies were taking the fight straight to us on this very night. Lorithia is currently the one confronting her right now until further notice and all of us must be on high alert from this point onwards even as we called it a night and went to sleep.
I opened my eyes to find Gita over me in her transformation costume, Ajia not far behind also transformed. I looked around and saw that the three of us were floating in the middle of a starry night sky. I was transformed as well, fluttering my wings a bit to get back up before two asteroids collided and smashed apart. The three of us flinched, but were too far from the pieces to be struck directly.
"Where the hell are we?" I asked. "I'm pretty sure that all of us are still asleep right now."
"If I had to take a guess, I'd say we're inside the Bionis' mind." Ajia responded. "I've heard that Shulk and Sharla had both been here in the past while unconscious."
"If they've seen this place in their dreams and we're here now, do you two think that there is something that's doing this?" Gita wondered.
I noticed a figure in the distance and spoke up. "Not something, someone."
I pointed at the figure behind them and the three of us walked up to it to see that it was Alvis, alive and not looking so good. Hell, I think this is the first time any of us have ever seen the seer show any real emotion as he seems completely in agony from the look on his face and the fact he was breathing hard.
"Are you alright, Alvis?" I asked. "You don't look so good."
"Zanza..." The seer muttered in response. "He found out about..."
"About what?!" Gita yelled franticly.
"Do not act like you do not know."
We looked up to see Zanza approaching us. "If my vision at the time was any indication, he only disobeyed me just to save you three."
"OK, we tried to get him to escape with us." I said. "But ultimately, he didn't listen and now this is what he gets for taking the risk."
"Sorry for the mess, Lord Zanza." Ajia apologized. "We'll make sure that doesn't happen again."
Ajia sounds like she's forcing herself to say that though. I'll have to ask her what's on her mind when we wake up. I thought to myself.
"You better. Now then..." Zanza began as he turned to Alvis. "Are you more willing to join Brigitte and Murasaki now that you understand what will happen if you attempt to disobey me again?"
The god then revealed a strange black device that I could tell was akin to the Drivers in Kamen Rider and gave it to the seer. It had an silver upside down triangle with circles at each corner much like the symbol on the back of Alvis' jacket with slots in each circle and gold and dark blue lining similar to the bloodlines on the Faced Mechon surrounding it.
TrinityDriver!
Alvis placed the newly named TrinityDriver on his waist as it formed a silver strap around his waist, holding the belt in place. Zanza smirked as he tossed three Chimera Orbs to the seer which he caught effortlessly. A dark blue one with the face of an owl, a black one with the face of a bear, and a canary yellow one with the face of a lion. The silver haired man sighed before holding up the Chimera Orbs with the lion and bear in his right hand and the owl in his left hand. He pressed on the activation switches on all three of them before a female voice echoed from them.
Fukuro!
Kurokuma!
Lion!
"An owl, a black bear, and a lion?" Ajia questioned.
The three of us watched as Alvis inserted the Kurokuma and Lion orbs in the top left and top right slots respectively and the Fukuro orb in the bottom slot. As soon as the third orb was in the Driver, ominous electronic music played in a loop, serving as a standby for the transformation that about to happen.
The seer rotated his arms in a clockwise motion before placing his hands on the center of the Driver as electricity surged across his body. As he groaned in pain, we could hear Brigitte and Murasaki's voices in similar agony before all of them shouted in unison as the seer rotated the symbol with a quick swipe of both arms, spinning it three sixty degrees until it landed back where it started and locked in place.
"HENSHIN!"
TrinityRise!
Suddenly, dark blue, purple, and yellow particles surrounded Alvis and attached themselves to his body, fully enveloping him in them. Projections of an owl, a bear, and a lion then appeared, letting out a battle cry before spinning around the seer, creating a nearly blinding light that made us cover our eyes from the brightness.
Connection. Complete. Kamen Rider... Trinity!
When the light faded, we saw the results of the transformation where the seer once stood. The newly revealed Kamen Rider Trinity appeared to be gender neutral from the looks of it. They wore a black bodysuit with light armor on the midriff, sides, thighs, in front of their lower legs, and ankles, all with a mixture of silver, blue, purple, and yellow. On their lower arms were gauntlets with retractable purple bear-like claws on the end of them. Their black gloves have silver technological lines going up their fingers with circles on their palms and fingertips. Their black chest armor was molded after the face of a great horned owl with dark blue eyes and the red crystal from Alvis' choker in-between the 'horns' which served as shoulderpads. Their helmet was mainly black with silver technological lines on the sides, a black lion's mane with yellow streaks behind it, and ruby red cat-like eyes that glowed ominously.
"What do you desire of us?" They asked, speaking in the same deep, masculine female voice as the Driver around their waist.
"H-Holy fucking shit..." I muttered, at a complete lost for words. "You actually created a real-life Kamen Rider."
"Correct." Zanza said. "Using the Trinity System implanted in the TrinityDriver, the users' souls and minds are trapped within it to ensure that no one gets in my way ever again."
"So you're saying that Alvis, Brigitte, and Murasaki are stuck like this for the rest of this war?!" Gita asked in stunned disbelief.
The god didn't respond and simply vanished in a flash of light, leaving us with Trinity. I noticed that they were losing their composure from the way their hands were shaking before they let out a pained scream of pain in Alvis, Brigitte, and Murasaki's voices.
"Calm yourselves!" Ajia yelled, grabbing them by their shoulders. "I know you're in agony, but me and the others will make things right. We will put a stop to this war."
Their cat-like eyes met her dark grey ones before speaking in their normal voice. "Really?"
"Yeah." The sushi chef confirmed with a soft smile. "It's a promise."
Trinity 'hummed' for a moment before giving their response. "Understood. The dawn of a new day awaits you three. Now wake up, defiant ones."
Before I knew it, I woke up with a jolt. I scratched the back of my head as I looked around to see I was back on Prison Island and in my normal clothing again. Remembering that I needed to talk to Ajia about her recent uneasiness around Zanza, I decided to wait until after breakfast to discuss the situation with her. As I ate, I noticed she was a little nerved when the dawning final battle was mentioned. Gita noticed this but didn't say anything. Trinity also noticed yet remained composed, not wanting to cause a scene in front of the others.
I can't say I blame them. No one wants be the one who has to calm them down. I thought to myself.
When Ajia left the Banquet Hall, Gita pulled me aside while Trinity advised the others to prepare for the fight ahead. I already knew what this was about.
It was about why Ajia is uneasy as she has been recently.
"You saw it too, didn't you?" Gita asked. "Something's definitely up with Ajia. She wasn't like this when we revealed our true natures to Sharla and the others in the Mechonis Core."
"There has to be something she's not telling us." I said. "We have to follow her."
Trinity approached us, having seen the sushi chef leave. "We shall take you to Ajia's current location. Follow us."
The black Kamen Rider led the two of us to the Gondorl Cathedral where Ajia was staring at the alter at the end of the hallway. She sighed as she lowered her head while we approached her.
"Why did you come after me?" She asked.
"You should know by now, Ajia." I snarked. "You've been acting strangely recently, especially whenever the upcoming final battle is brought up. Is there something we don't know?"
"Actually, there is." The sushi chef admitted as she turned around. "Did me or Gita ever tell you how we became Zanza's disciples in the first place?"
"No, I don't think so." I said.
"You see, before the Killing Titan War started..." She began. "Me, Gita, and our clubmates were just your average academy students with average lives attending Akademi, a post-high school academy which simulates the feeling of a high school. Our Ultimate titles were given to us by our peers there, but I digress."
I looked at Gita, who appeared melancholy about what the black haired girl was talking about as she continued. "My closest friends outside of my clubmates were these two girls named Eiko Nunomaki, or 'Efude Nurimono' as she preferred, and Tsubaki Uesugi, members of Akademi's art and gardening clubs respectively. Everyone lived their school lives in harmony, for Akademi is synonymous with Harvard and Yale."
Ajia's expression turned dark. "But then, everything changed when the Nemesis incident occurred. It happened shortly after me and Gita became half human and half Homs, so we were able to survive and I managed to deal the killing blow on Nemesis, or as she's known by her real name, Hanako Yamada, but eleven others were killed in the incident, including a teacher that tried to apprehend her."
Gita gripped her shoulders, visibly shaking from the memory. "Efude and Tsubaki... They were killed in front of us. A fight soon ensued and we'd won, ending the killings. The police believed that seeing her older brother together with his girlfriend was her motive as love was something she couldn't bear the thought of, due to fear that he would forget her if he fell in love with someone."
Seriously? That's actually a pretty petty reason to go on a goddamn genocide for... I thought to myself before turning to Ajia.
"In the aftermath, I was... devasted by how much everyone was suffering. I'm not sure what happened next, but..." She paused for a moment before continuing. "We found ourselves in Mysticalia shortly after. Dickson and Lorithia saw potential in us, and we became disciples of Zanza on that fateful day. You probably know the rest by now."
I looked at the sushi chef and guitarist with a sympathetic look in my eyes. Zanza's original trinity of disciples believed that these girls had warrior potential, and they were right, as the two had become the disciples' greatest swordswoman and gunslinger respectively. But that still didn't explain one thing that's been off with Ajia.
"Even with giving your clubmates the power to transform into Kamen Riders, why exactly did you allow Lorithia to use your own clubmates in battle?" I asked after a bit of silence. "What merit is there to gain?"
"Actually, there is a lot to gain from these actions." Trinity responded, remaining in their stoic state as they turned to the sushi chef. "Is that correct, Ashitomi?"
Ajia let out a small sound at the use of her last name before nodding in confirmation. "Yes. In fact, I only partially agreed to her terms. What she doesn't know is that I have a plan of my own."
The sushi chef suddenly reached behind her and revealed a Driver of her own. Unlike the TrinityDriver, this one is mainly silver with gold lining from the two slots leading to a golden circular frame containing a black screen. She placed it on her waist as it formed a gold strap around her, holding the belt in place.
XrossDriver!
Gita gasped in shock and disbelief. "How did you get that?!"
"The night before Mysticalia collapsed, I went inside the Topaz Workshop to search for anything that could put an end to this war." The black haired girl explained as she pulled out her Battle Gem. "I heard a dragon's roar from a briefcase and opened it to find this belt and the Dragon Chimera Orb inside. It knows my desire to end this. Knows that I'm sick of this. Sick of all the pain!"
Dragon Koi Huntress!
When that call echoed across the room, the sushi chef inserted the gem into the right slot. It fit in perfectly and the screen lit up with a light blue ring pulsing outwards for a moment before Ajia pulled out the Dragon Chimera Orb.
"I refuse to let Zanza manipulate us anymore. Which is why..." She said, looking at the dragon's face within the orb before setting her gaze on us. "I have to do this."
"Ajia..." I muttered.
Trinity had a hand held up to their helmet before suddenly gasping suddenly and turned to the sushi chef. "It is time."
I let out a sound of confusion as I looked at them.
Does that mean the fight between Lorithia and Sharla has begun? If so, does that mean..?! I thought to myself, turning to see Ajia about to hit the activation switch on the Chimera Orb in her hand.
The black haired girl took a deep breath. "Here I go..."
With those words, she pressed on the activation switch and began the transformation.
Dragon!
She inserted the orb into the left slot of the XrossDriver and the screen lit up with a midnight blue ring pulsing outwards before it flashed in both shades of blue as what sounded like Japanese flute music played as a standby. Suddenly, the blue energy materialized into a dragon which seemed to dive straight towards us.
"Watch out!" I yelled as I pushed Gita out of the dragon's path, sending both of us to the floor as it flew over us and turned back to the source of its manifestation before the two of us got up to watch the transformation continue.
Ajia spread her arms outward, raising them towards the ceiling and crossing them in an 'X' formation as the dragon roared behind her. The sushi chef then lowered her arms to near the XrossDriver around her waist, holding the crossed position while doing so.
"Henshin!" She shouted as she closed both slots in one go, causing a pair of crystal 'wings' to spread outward as they glowed blue and the voice of the Chimera Orbs echoed from the driver.
XrossRise!
The dragon roared before it spun around Ajia as she closed her eyes and spread her arms outward again, enveloping her in a flaming blue light and materializing her armor onto her body.
Unleash! Storm! Chain! Break! Kamen Rider Arashi~!
The light vanished in a burst of blue flames, revealing Ajia in a new armor covering her body. She now wore a blue bodysuit with silver armor shaped like a dragon's face with blue eyes covering her chest, white skin-tight fabric around her midriff with a miniskirt and a silver talon underneath the XrossDriver, silver gauntlets with light blue gemstones on the front, and silver boots with light armor reaching near her knees. Her helmet is mainly blue with silver dragonic crown-like armor and pointed dark blue eyes. Ajia had become Kamen Rider Arashi before our eyes.
Me and Gita both gasped at this sudden turn of events as Arashi quickly pulled out her six katanas before disappearing in a flash of blue light. I felt a sudden chill in the air when I turned to look at Trinity with slight interest.
"The Trinity System does have the memories of its users, right?" I asked. "If so, was that where..?"
"Correct." Trinity responded. "You just beared witness to the use of Project: Rider, an experimental project designed to make its users stronger than ever before."
"Then those Drivers and Chimera Orbs that our clubmates have must be..." Gita muttered in shock.
"Part of a special Rider System that enables anyone to transform." The black Rider finished. "Even without a Battle Gem."
The guitarist's mouth was wide open with disbelief. I couldn't blame her, a entire Rider System that brings those fictional superheroes into reality was incredible and definitely not easy to pull off after all.
"Right when I thought you were impressive, this happens." I snarked. "Unbelievable."
"Why didn't she..?" Gita whispered as she turned to Trinity. "Is it possible for you to... create another XrossDriver? Just this once?"
That question took them by surprise. "For what reason do you ask that of us, Yamahato?"
The guitarist sighed. "I don't want Ajia to do this alone. If I could transform like she did, I could protect her and everyone else from harm. So, please, let me fight by her side as a Kamen Rider."
I was surprised by her determination. "Gita..."
Trinity looked at both of us before speaking. "Very well. We shall enhance you with the power of Chimera Orbs."
This is going to be interesting... I thought to myself as the crystal on the black Rider's chest began to glow.
What seems to be mechanical pieces came out of the crystal and gathered in Trinity's hands as they came together piece by piece before in a flash of light, another XrossDriver was in their hands. Gita took it from them and gazed at it in disbelief for a moment before placing it on her waist and letting the strap form around her.
"Use this." Trinity said before they tossed a dark purple Chimera Orb with the image of a cobra to the guitarist.
She caught it with one hand as she pulled out her Battle Gem and inserted it into the right slot of the belt, causing a green ring to pulse outward in the center.
Hisui Rizumu!
The green streaked girl walked towards the center of the hallway to get some space for the upcoming transformation before holding up the Cobra Chimera Orb and pressing on the activation switch.
Cobra!
She inserted it into the left slot, causing a dark purple ring to pulse out from the center of the XrossDriver before it flashed in both purple and green as the standby music started, which sounded like rock guitar music I thought was similar to Slash's standby music. Gita spun around before crossing both her arms over the XrossDriver's slots while a dark purple energy construct of a cobra slithered around her.
"Henshin!" The guitarist shouted before swiping both her arms to close both slots, causing the crystals 'wings' to spread outward and glow in green light that faded into purple.
XrossRise!
The cobra flew around Gita and enveloped her in an orb-like projection which fills with green liquid energy. I could faintly make out the armor forming onto her body before the projection was destroyed in a flash of green light.
Go! Go! Fire to the beat! Bang! Bang! Kamen Rider Suzune~!
Once the light faded, I got a full look at the new armor covering the guitarist's body. She now wore a mainly black bodysuit with emerald green lining that have music notes in an unknown melody. Her arms were covered in loose black fabric reminiscent of the sleeves of her transformation costume and the emerald green image of a cobra was encrypted on her chest area with dark purple lining around it. Her legs were a bit more armored than the rest of her body with emerald green musical notes near her ankles. Her helmet was the same black as the rest of her armor with a dark purple faceplate resembling a cobra with its tail flowing behind her and emerald green eyes. Gita was now Kamen Rider Suzune.
I approached her. "How does it feel, Gita? Or should I call you Suzune when you're in that armor?"
She took a closer look at the armor now covering her body. Even though I couldn't see her face, I could tell from her body language that she was amazed that she actually transformed into a Kamen Rider. She's living every fanatic's dream right now.
"This feels... amazing." She muttered. "Is this how every Rider feels when they first transform? If so, this is incredible."
Before I could say anything more, a flash of blue light caught my attention. I turned to see Arashi had returned as she removed both her Chimera Orb and Battle Gem from her XrossDriver, reverting her back into Ajia.
"Are your friends safe now, Ashitomi?" Trinity asked.
"Yes, my clubmates are OK and they're no longer serving Zanza's cause." She responded. "They should be heading back to Colony 6 as of right now."
"Oh, thank goodness they're alright." Suzune sighed. "Then that means Lorithia..."
"Has been slain." I finished for her. "Ajia, did you find out anything interesting about Sharla's new allies?"
"I did. One of them can transform into a Kamen Rider too." The sushi chef said. "Her name is Jelivane Kurage, also known as Kamen Rider Lumina and the Warrior of Affection and Bravery."
"So, she who defies her destiny has allied herself with a Rider of her own?" Trinity recapped. "Then there is much to be done."
Suzune approached Ajia as she removed her Chimera Orb and Battle Gem from her Driver, reverting her back into Gita before she spoke up. "Don't think you're doing this alone either. We're all in this together, so let's show Zanza the error of his ways."
The black haired girl looked at her with surprise before a smirk appeared on her face. "Yeah, together."
I laughed a bit. "Come on you guys."
I put my left arm forward and Ajia, Gita, and even Trinity put their hands over mine, all looking determined to end this war for good.
"One, two, three!" I called out before all of us threw our arms that were on the pile up towards the ceiling.
"Let's ride!" We all shouted in unison, ready for the battle that lied ahead.
We're gonna help Sharla save this world and be the heroes we were meant to be!
Next time on the Monado Arc...
"The Bionis is regaining its biological functions."
"I'm capable of a lot more than what you've seen so far."
"Enjoy this battle, for it will be your last."
"Jelivane, are you..?!"
"Henshin!"
Monado Arc Chapter 15: Onward! Battle Within the Heart!