I do not own Kamen Rider Drive or Monster Musume. Those belong to their respective creators and not me. I am only writing this for fun and not for profit. If you have a problem with that then go elsewhere, otherwise please enjoy.

Rider Musume

By Ten-Faced Paladin

Chapter 2: Rage of a Roidmude

"Miia! Miia, where are you?" Kurusu shouted as he ran down the streets, looking for the lost Lamia. How hard could it be to find a girl who had a seven metre long serpent tail?

The reason Kurusu had lost Miia was because she had witnessed him become Kamen Rider Drive and destroy three Roidmudes. He figured that Miia had been frightened by what he had done, but she seemed to have a pretty bad image of what a Kamen Rider was and she fled from him. He would have given chase, but he had to hide his equipment before any police found it. With the current climate, Roidmudes could possibly be considered Liminals to the uninformed so in the worst case scenario, Drive would be considered the bad guy for destroying them despite the rampage that the trio were on.

"Despite her size, Lamias are rather swift when they want to be, faster than humans at any rate," Driver spoke up from Kurusu's waist, likewise looking concerned. "She could be quite a distance from us already."

"Dammit!" Kurusu cursed. He was berating himself over and over for scaring Miia like he did, but he had no choice with three Roidmudes right there attacking everyone for what seemed like the hell of it. His agitation was even worse since Miia was his responsibility and now she was out alone in the city which she was completely clueless about. It would be so easy for something to happen to her, like some perv taking advantage of her or worse, she getting attacked by some racist punks who had a chip on their shoulders about Liminals. Jerks like that had been on the rise, especially from the old families and more religious groups, denouncing them all as Youkai that needed to be exterminated. They could hurt her, or worse!

"Kurusu! Don't panic!" Driver spoke up, catching his grandson's attention. "Shadow, Flare, and Spike are already on the case and looking for her. I even have Hunter, Monster, and Vegas lending a hand. So calm down and we can work through this!"

"I know, I know!" Kurusu huffed, "But Miia's never been to Japan before now and she's never interacted with humans, much less men before! Who knows what's happening to her!"

"It is a scary thought, but we can't afford to panic," Driver agreed. "Now, Miia-chan doesn't know the area very well so we have to think. Where would a Lamia feel safe enough to stop running?"

Kurusu scratched his head, "Maybe someplace open, someplace where there aren't many humans around considering her mood."

"Then that is where the Shift Cars will search first," Driver 'nodded'. "Now, let's get moving and inspect some places for ourselves."

"Right!" Kurusu agreed, taking off running again.

(LINE BREAK)

In another part of town, there was an amphitheatre. It wasn't in use for any official purpose, making it quite empty for the time being. It made it a perfect meeting place for those who didn't want to be so readily observed. In this particular case, it was the green-clad Brain and the red-clad Heart who were at first glance lounging about. Brain was leaning against a wall while working on his tablet while Heart was laying on a bench, just watching the clouds go by without a care in the world. Neither Roidmude spoke, having nothing to say for the moment.

After several moment's Brain's eyes lifted from his tablet to see something fluttering down from the sky. One may have mistaken it as a fluttering piece of trash, it was the city after all. On closer inspection though, the fluttering 'trash' was in fact 0-8-8, connected together that looked wobbly as if they were about to come apart from exhaustion if numbers could be described in such a way. Brain frowned at the sight before he stepped onto the main stage and lifted up his tablet. The 088 fluttered down and touched the screen before being sucked into the computer.

"034, 060, and now 088," Brain frowned, scrolling through what appeared to be Roidmude profiles. "The Kamen Rider is in top form today it seems."

"Oh? Well, our friends are okay so that's what matters," Heart shrugged as he sat up. "Still, it is a little annoying to have to rebuild them so often."

"On that front, I can agree with you," Brain nodded, viewing data from the retrieved 088. Stopping at a video file, he raised an eyebrow. "Hm, it seems that the Kamen Rider has a little companion now."

"Oh? A friend?" Heart began to grin.

"Indeed, a Lamia. She seems quite terrified of Kamen Riders if 088's observations are to be believed," Brain viewed apparently moments which 088 had witnessed after its body was destroyed. Brain minimized the window and pulled up another one, quickly searching through files and brought up Miia's profile. "Name: Miia. Species: Lamia. Location: XXOO-XXXX-XXYY. Host: Kurusu Kimihoto."

"Steinbert's grandson?" Heart raised an eyebrow. "Odd of him to be part of the Homestay Program."

"But it is a fact we can use," Brain grinned. "A man, or in this case woman, inside." He then brought up a third window, "Cross-referencing Lamia habits, she will likely run to an open space with it being a 75% chance that it will be near our position. In other words, she will run to a park or similar green space to feel safe. There are only three in the immediate area of the battle in which our three were defeated."

"Is it now?" Heart grinned. He stood up and brushed off his coat. "Shall we make a new friend then?"

(LINE BREAK)

Inside a community park, Miia was indeed hiding. Curled up in a small clearing, she wept in heartbreak at the thought of a human man she was growing to be very attracted to turned out to be one of the worst sorts to ever enter a Lamia's nightmares. Japan was a hotbed of monster hunters, her mother had warned her many times to be on the lookout for the types. Magical girls, armored warriors, and all sorts of types wandered around the country just looking for an innocent Liminal to smite so they could make themselves look like heroes. Kamen Riders, Super Sentai, Mahou Shoujo, all of them would take down an innocent Liminal just because of the way they looked. She'd even seen it before on television shows that glorified them!

"Why Darling?" Miia wept, rubbing her eyes. "Why did you have to be one of them? What did Liminals ever do to you?"

"Miss Lamia? Miss Lamia, are you all right? Please answer!"

Miia blinked and dared to look up from her hiding place. To her surprise, two young men were looking around, actually calling for a Lamia, possibly her, to come out and let them know where she was. One was an orange-haired young man with glasses wearing a fine green suit. The other was dark-haired and wearing a long red coat with furry cuffs. They seemed almost distressed in their search, as if worried that someone had been hurt.

"Miss Lamia?" the young man in green called out. "Please answer! Are you hurt? Do you need help?"

"We're not with the police or that awful Kamen Rider!" the man in red answered. "We want to make sure you're safe!"

Perhaps it was fear or some naive part of her, but Miia took the two mens' words at face value. Slithering out from her spot, the sound of rustling bushes caught the pair's attention. Rather than be afraid or repulsed, they both seemed to adopt looks of relief. They casually approached Miia, but stopped a respectable distance away.

"Oh thank goodness!" the man in green sighed. "Are you okay Ms. Lamia? Are you hurt? Do you need help?"

"Um…" Miia shivered, but shook her head. "No...I'm fine."

"Now that is a relief," the man in red smiled. "When we heard a Lamia was involved in that clash between those three criminals and the Kamen Rider, we worried our feud had gotten you hurt."

"Criminals?" Miia frowned. "You mean those three weird Liminals who were fighting that Kamen Rider?"

"Yes," the man in green nodded, adjusting his glasses. "Three delinquents really. When we received word that they were running around stirring up trouble we dispatched immediately to stop them. Sadly, that Kamen Rider appeared and things got really out of hand."

Miia's confusion deepened, "So, you know what they were?"

"Of course we do," the man in red smiled. "We're all the same species. Roidmudes."

"Roidmudes?" Miia tilted her head.

The two men nodded before their entire forms became covered in a pixelated red or green aura and they seemed to shift and transform before her eyes. The man in red transformed to a blood red body which was bulky and made out of red steel with heart-shaped shoulder pads of all things. His chest was black and looked like a mess of black cables and engine parts all hooked up to a golden heart/pump. Ridges rose from his neck, looking like a coat collar, but with metal cables on it, similar to more cables running down his neck. His face was steel and skeletal and with a red head dress which blocked his eyes and had large gold horns sticking out of it.

His companion had a similar, yet completely different change. His body was almost entirely green with a silver chest plate, the sides decorated like a brain. His shoulders were mounted with more silver prain-like ornament with green streamers running down the back. His face was silver and black, the eyes and the top of his head were covered with a large head dress which was made to look like a brain, even if the top portion was flat.

"Ah!" Miia gasped, flinching back from the two, even her own nature as a Liminal unable to stop her from gaping at the pair.

"Apologies for our appearances, but it cannot be helped," the brain-themed Liminal apologized before he and his comrade changed back to their human forms. "I am Brain, and my comrade is Heart. We are administrators to the Roidmude people living among the humans."

"Hello," Heart greeted warmly.

"Um...nice to meet you," Miia bowed. "So, those other three Liminals were Roidmudes?"

"Oh yes, but hardly the most upstanding ones," Heart chuckled. "Fortunately, after the Kamen Rider destroyed their bodies we managed to capture their cores for punishment."

Miia gasped, "So they're okay? That monster hunter didn't kill them?"

"They're right here," Brain lifted his tablet, revealed a pixelated image of the three numbers bouncing inside of it. "We Roidmudes are robots, much like Golems. Our bodies can be destroyed, but so long as our cores are undamaged we remain alive. Unfortunately, even then we are at risk because of the Kamen Rider's desire to destroy us."

"Well, I'm glad they aren't dead," Miia nodded. A sad frown came to her face, "But, why is he attacking you so harshly?"

"A feud he blames us for I'm afraid," Brain tipped his glasses. "You see, his grandfather helped invent us, but he intended for us to be servants to humans. When we evolved past that, he attempted to destroy us and we lashed out to protect ourselves. The Kamen Rider is his grandson and we believe he is out for revenge."

"That's awful!" Miia gasped.

"Yes, we regret it everyday," Heart nodded solemnly. "But he is simply much too angry at us to listen. So our only course of action is to fight, otherwise we get destroyed."

Miia cringed at the sad story. Darling's grandfather tried to destroy the Roidmudes and died in an accident. He seemed like the sensitive type so he likely did feel awful about losing someone so close. He wouldn't want to hear about anything bad about him either. It was just like some of the stories she read, people dying due to a misunderstanding like Romeo and Juliet! Well, she wasn't going to let her Romeo end up killing a bunch of innocent people!

"I can help!" Miia declared confidently. "Darling obviously misunderstands what happened and can't admit his grandfather was doing something awful! I'm sure with some TLC I can calm him down and get him to give up being a Kamen Rider so the Roidmudes can live in peace!"

"Oh? That's a bold declaration. You're a pretty good friend," Heart grinned. Reaching into his pocket, he searched for something, "Just in case though, I have a present for you." He lifted his hand out to reveal what looked like a small black car with a blue cobra's head hissing from the front while its tail wrapped around the driver's area.

"What is it?" Miia asked, picking up the tiny car and had to admit the design looked cool.

"We call it a Viral Core," Brain explained. "Think of it like super vitamins for Roidmudes. If we are destroyed, we can use these to repair ourselves, or boost our strength in case of an emergency."

"If things go south with the Kamen Rider, you can use this to call a Roidmude to protect you," Heart grinned. "After all, a heartbroken young man on a revenge kick can be a hard thing to predict."

"Thank you Mr. Heart! Mr. Brain!" Miia beamed. She plucked up the Viral Core and slipped it into her own pocket. "Don't worry about a thing! We'll get this mess cleared up no problem!"

With a determined air, Miia slithered off to find her misguided Darling. Watching her go, Brain's face shifted back to its usual emotionless state, although Heart's was as jovial as ever. The green Roidmude Commander scoffed as he moved to sit down on a bench and get back to work.

"As predicted, her naivety makes her easily manipulated," Brain stated, scrolling through profiles again.

"She's just trying to be a good friend," beamed Heart.

"Hn," Brain scoffed, finding the profile he desired. Tapping it, the floating core of Roidmude 034 emerged to hover in front of Brain's professional stare. "Follow the Lamia and when she meets with the Kamen Rider and produces the Viral Core we gave her, attack. Under no circumstances must you reveal that we sent you. If they recognize you, make it sound like you escaped imprisonment. Understand?"

The wobbling numbers bobbed before taking off through the air.

"Good luck!" Heart waved after the Roidmude Core.

(LINE BREAK)

"Miia! Please, where are you Miia?!" Kurusu shouted, running through the third park in as many hours. The Shift Cars were on patrol and they had already cleared two parks, spaces which a Liminal like Miia could feel safe and not cramped.

Kurusu came to a crossroads on the path, panting, "Crap. How far could a Lamia go? Did I scare her that badly?"

"Once we find her I'm sure we can settle things," Driver tried to reassure him. "She just doesn't know about the Roidmudes and what we do. Come to think of it, likely many Liminals have a negative opinion of the name Kamen Rider."

Kurusu sighed, "Yeah, with all the kaijin other Riders fight we wouldn't look too good to the general public these days." He then grunted and scratched his head, "Man, I hope this doesn't mess things up for either of us."

"Worried about the girl's feeling already?" Driver 'smiled'. "There's hope for you yet Kurusu."

"Oi!"

*BEEP! BEEP!*

Kurusu was halted from arguing with his partner when Max Flare came zooming down the path on the right. Skidding to a halt, the Shift Car honked loudly before turning around and racing back down the way it came. Kurusu easily recognized what it wanted, desiring the Rider to follow it to something that it found. Hoping that it had found Miia, he took off running after the flame-themed car.

Following the small car down the path, Kurusu came out into a wider area. With Max Flare pointing the way, the young man almost slumped in relief as he saw Miia coiled on a park bench. Funky Spike and Midnight Shadow were parked in front of her, honking and apparently having races to keep her attention and her mood up. It seemed to be working as she giggled over the antics the two Shift Cars were doing.

"Miia!" Kurusu called, catching the Lamia's attention.

Miia blinked and looked up with a gasp, "Darling!"

The Shift Cars made themselves scarce as Kurusu ran up to where Miia sat. He didn't get too close, not wanting to frighten her again. Miia seemed a little apprehensive, but she didn't seem like she was going to run off screaming again. For a moment, neither of them were sure what to say. Kurusu knew he had scared Miia something fierce by fighting as Drive while Miia herself did know that she had been a little unfair to Kurusu after discovering that he was a Kamen Rider. She had let her prejudices paint a picture of him and she didn't even try to let him explain himself. So steeling herself, the Lamia inhaled…

"I'm sorry," Miia bowed her head.

"Wh-what?" Kurusu blinked.

"I'm sorry for just running off like that and calling you such bad things," Miia frowned. "It's just...for a really long time Lamias were hunted and killed just because of the way we looked. We didn't really get any peace until people just figured we were stories. Then these days you hear all about Kamen Riders, Super Sentai, and Mahou Shojou hunting and killing monsters. I was afraid of meeting one when I came to Japan and when I saw you turn into one...I just panicked."

Kurusu sighed, scratching the back of his head, "Aw Miia, you don't have to apologize. I did kind of look a bit like a barbarian back there. To the average person watching the fight, I did beat down and then kill three Liminals."

"It...did kind of look that way," Miia nodded.

"Yeah," Kurusu nodded. He pointedly looked to a spot next to Miia and she nodded, allowing him to sit down. "Well, I guess I should explain. Those three things I was fighting weren't Liminals. They're called Roidmudes."

"Roidmudes," Miia nodded as if testing the word.

"They're, well, for lack of a better term, robots," Kurusu explained. "An associate of my grandfather invented them to help people. Part of their programming is that they can change and evolve their bodies depending on their environments or the people they interact with." Kurusu's head dropped as a shadow overtook his features. "Well, they were supposed to, but they never could because there just wasn't a source of power strong enough to constantly power that change."

"Really?" Miia blinked.

"Yeah, but then my grandpa…" Kurusu began, but flinched.

"I can tell this part," Drive Driver spoke up, prompting Miia to look down at him.

"Mr. Belt?" she blinked again.

"Well, you can call me that now," Driver sighed. "But before, my name was Krim Steinbert. I had invented the Core Drivular Engine, a new source of power unlike anything people have seen before. When Dr. Banno discovered my invention, he beseeched me to use it to power his Roidmudes. I was uncertain at first, but he convinced me after telling me how much good the Roidmudes could do. So I had my engines installed in them and it worked. The Roidmudes could fully function and initiate their own evolution protocols."

"So...what happened?" asked Miia.

"The Roidmudes eventually evolved to the point where they began asking why they had to obey humans," Kurusu answered. "They rebelled, killing their own inventor and they went after Grandpa simply because he knew how to shut them down."

"Yes, they attacked my home and almost killed me. If I hadn't put my consciousness into this Drive Driver I would never have survived," Driver sighed. "They then initiated a Global Freeze."

"Global Freeze?" Miia asked.

"Remember when those three appeared and suddenly everything slowed down?" asked Kurusu. When Miia nodded, he continued. "Well, they did that all over Japan. It was their declaration of war, intending to destroy humanity and then replace it, seeing themselves as superior in every way."

"They...what?" the Lamia gasped.

"It's one of the special abilities every Roidmude has," Kurusu explained. "They're able to expand a field of energy over an area which causes everything to slow down to a fraction of its regular speeds. Unless you have a Shift Car or some other kind of machine to negate the effects, you slow down too and become an easy target for the Roidmudes."

"So during that fight...when everything was so slow…" Miia gasped.

"Those Roidmudes did it so they could go and do whatever they wanted and no one would be able to do anything about it," Kurusu nodded. "Fortunately, it's also pretty obvious so when they use it, Grandpa and I can track them down. Otherwise, it is just impossible to find them."

"Why? They seem to stand out like I would," Miia asked.

"All Roidmudes are coated with a substance which is similar to the human cerebellum," Driver answered. "By using it, they can adopt a fully human appearance to hide among the people, practically invisible for all intents and purposes."

"But, why use these powers to hurt people? Why are they doing it? Don't they just want to live like any other Liminal would want to?" Miia pressed, appearing to be trying to make sense of the situation.

"It's not so simple Miia," Kurusu shook his head. "You see, the Roidmudes want to evolve into a perfect being and they'll do it by any means possible. That means attacking humans and Liminals for their specific qualities which can trigger their evolution protocols and become that much stronger. When they perfect their evolution, I think they intend to really go to war with humanity, with Liminals possibly getting caught in the crossfire."

Miia gasped, scared at the notion Kurusu was putting forth, "But..but why? Can't they do that normally?"

"They could, but it would take much too long," Driver answered. "You see, Roidmudes were programmed to gradually evolve when they stayed in a particular environment and interact with the same people, adapting to better suit their tasks. However, they do not wish to wait that long. Instead, they attack humans who hold qualities they desire be they physical or emotional. By touching the body or invading the brainwaves of the target, they can adopt those qualities much quicker and evolve faster, but it is a painful and dangerous process for the victim."

"And with Liminals becoming much more public, they're going to be more active," Kurusu added. "Liminals are way stronger or have abilities which are much more useful to the Roidmudes. Several attacks already happened but they cover their tracks too well for regular investigators to pursue."

"But they can't be all bad, can they?" asked Miia. "That would be like saying all Harpies are bad, or all Arachne are bad. Maybe it's only a few bad eggs and the rest are in hiding?"

"There are only 108 Roidmudes Miia," Kurusu shook his head. "They needed that many just to activate the Global Freeze. All of them are behind this goal of theirs, or at least don't care to try and stop it."

"So, so then maybe you could tell the police or the government like ? They'd know what to do!" Miia flustered, trying to convince Kurusu that going to war and destroying Roidmudes wasn't the way to go.

"The police are more likely to arrest me than try to corral the Roidmudes," Kurusu groaned. "Because they're not human, they get the benefits of the Liminal Protection Act section of the Interspecies Cultural Exchange Accord. So long as they don't make themselves out as a hostile group as a whole, they can keep going on their merry way and cause trouble. If they get caught, their commanders can just claim that one was a crook and take him away before letting him go someplace else!" Kurusu then hung his head in agitation, "Me, because I was fighting them and trying to destroy them, I would get jail time for assaulting a Liminal, at the least."

Miia wilted at the explanation. She was positive that not all of the Roidmudes were bad. Her Darling just had the bad luck of meeting the ones who were, the ones who did want to complete this evolution idea of theirs. She could sort of see his side of the issue, if the bad Roidmudes were as dangerous to humans as he said. Still, even with that slowdown ability of theirs surely Ms. Smith and her associates in the government could handle the issue. Her Darling didn't have to be a Kamen Rider, right?

"But still, they'd do something to keep the Roidmudes from going out of control, right?" she tried to press.

"With the slowdown technology, no police force can stop them," Kurusu shook his head. "And if we tried to share the Core Drivular technology to counteract it, someone would probably just try to use it to profit and start this mess all over again."

"Humanity is just not ready for the technology," Driver 'nodded' solemnly. "Now, how about we fix up our friends and send them back out into the world?"

"You mean the small toy cars?" Miia asked.

"They are called Shift Cars. They are our friends and comrades." The noises of car horns sounded off and the three Shift Cars that found Miia returned to the scene. "May I introduce Max Flare, Funky Spike, and Midnight Shadow."

"We call them Flare, Spike, and Shadow for short," Kurusu added.

"So, you have three of them..." Miia observed.

"Actually, the rest of their brothers are currently working on Roidmude-related cases all over the world," Driver explained. "Maybe if you are able to stay with us long enough, you'll be able to meet them all."

"Maybe," Miia nodded.

"Anyway, let's go home, Miia," Kurusu offered his hand to her.

Miia looked to his hand and for a moment he feared she'd shrug him off again. After that moment passed though, the Lamia girl smiled and took his hand, letting him help her 'stand' up. His shoulders sagged with relief at her smile, hoping that they really could patch things up again.

"Let's go home," she smiled.

Unaware to both, a set of three numbers was following after them.

XXX

Kimihito Residence

The trio did make it back home and settled into their daily activities. Fortunately, Kurusu had saved Miia's packages which she had dropped when she ran away. It gave the Lamia the chance to pick out the things she bought for her friends, and to try on the clothes which she got for herself. Letting the Lamia have her space and get settled all over again, Kurusu and Driver headed for their basement HQ to get some work done.

"Kurusu, we need to finish those protoforms soon," Driver told his grandson, rolling alongside him on his mobile platform.

"I know, it's just that I'm not sure what to make them into," sighed Kurusu, turning on the lights. "Was it this hard for you, Grandpa?"

"Well, I had a blank slate since I was just starting. You have to come up with something new now," Driver chuckled.

Kurusu sighed and walked to another computer panel before typing up a command. A nearby wall panel opened, revealing a number of hardware and software tools polished like new and ready to use. Inside the hidden chamber were a number of Shift Cars, but unlike the others all of them were a steel gray and looked exactly alike, looking like modern sports cars: all alike.

"Hard to pick out a function for these guys when you already picked every kind of car out there," Kurusu sighed, walking to the compartment. "I mean, you even picked a circus clown car of all things."

"Yes, Amazing Circus. Though, I believe in you, Kurusu. You will figure something out for these protoforms." Driver reassured his grandson.

Kurusu had wanted to expand Drive's arsenal even more since most of the other Shift Cars were either out of town, or out of the country. So with some pleading to his grandfather, he learned how to build new Shift Cars. However, each Shift Car had to be programmed for a specific purpose and be exposed to what they were to be modeled for, sort of like how Roidmudes could evolve into their functions. Since Driver had already picked out the most obvious sets of cars and other vehicles, it left Kurusu with few ideas as to what he would do for his own Shift Cars. So the new ones were still in their Protoform stage, no programming and no abilities.

"Maybe I could try military vehicles, like jeeps or tanks," Kurusu considered.

"Perhaps, but you'd have to master Type Wild and Type Technic to even have a chance," Driver reminded his grandson. "And you have yet to try and move on from Type Speed."

"I know, I know," Kurusu sighed.

"Anyway, maybe you should spend some more time with Miia. Maybe she can help inspire you."

"Grandpa…" Kurusu frowned, just knowing the man turned belt was trying to steer him to be more sociable with girls, even if she was a Lamia.

"Darling!"

Kurusu blinked and looked to the stairs leading up only to see Miia coming down, looking curiously at everything. She seemed especially fixated on the form of the Tridoron which was being given a regular system scan to ensure no bugs or viruses were popping up.

"Hey Miia, what's up?" Kurusu asked, turning to face his Lamia houseguest.

"I wanted to show off my outfit," Miia commented, gesturing to her pink top and denim skirt. She spoke as if half-distracted, still looking around. "So is this your hidden base?"

"Sort of," Kurusu chuckled. "Want to see what I'm working on?"

"Sure!" Miia slithered over to her Darling and peered down at the rows of silver cars. "Are these those Shift Cars like the three you showed me?"

"Yep. They just don't have a function or programming yet," Kurusu sighed, watching Miia gaze at the cars. "Grandpa took most of the ideas with the Shift Cars he already made so I don't have much of an idea what to program them with."

"Hm," Miia pondered, reaching down and tapping one of the Shift Cars with her finger before drawing it back. "Ooh! They're cold!"

"We do have to modify them in a cool environment, otherwise the sensitive materials inside could be damaged before the programming is complete," Driver explained. "Once they're programmed and mature, that isn't a problem but in this protoform state they're quite vulnerable. Think of them like baby Shift Cars."

"Babies?" Miia blinked, suddenly imagining a chibi car with big doe eyes for headlights and a mouth for a grill with a pacifier. "Hmmm…"

Kurusu chuckled, "Anyway, you wanted to show me the outfit you got?"

"And a few others," Miia nodded. "If...you aren't too busy?"

Kurusu scratched the back of his head, feeling indecisive. He knew he had to get to work on the protoforms and hopefully get some kind of idea on how to program them, but on the other hand he was likely on thin ice with Miia as it was. He wanted her to trust him and no be afraid of him. Driver nudging his back seemed to just make the decision for him, "Okay, let's see what you got."

"Yay!" Miia beamed, grabbing Kurusu's hand before pulling him towards the stairs.

"Kids," Driver chuckled, rolling along after the pair. Fortunately he had his own ways around the house without needing Kurusu to wear him everywhere.

As he moved along, he didn't notice one of the protoform Shift Cars beginning to glow a ruby red. It was only for a moment before the panel which revealed the protoforms closed up again, cutting off the sight of the glowing car before Driver could see it.

It was just as well, since newborns did need rest…

(LINE BREAK)

Outside the residence, 034 waited in his Core Form for the Lamia and the Kamen Rider to be out and about so he could make a play for the Viral Core the girl had stuffed in her pocket. He was irritated that he couldn't reconstruct himself yet, but he was tasked with following the two and attacking once he had the chance. He couldn't go out and try and pull together some material to make a new body for himself, not when he was on the clock!

"Come on, come on," 034 grunted. "Whip it out already! I got better things to do than watch some inter-species romance!"

Darkness was soon approaching. Fortunately Roidmudes couldn't catch colds.

"Achoo!"

Hopefully.

(LINE BREAK)

Miia and Kurusu decided to use the new day to try and make up for the crappy finish of the one before. So they were out and about, shopping once again. This time, it was for groceries instead of clothes or other things.

"Good thing the eggs are on sale," Kurusu huffed, placing the fourth carton of eggs into the shopping cart.

"My favorite!" Miia beamed, but she was trembling fiercely since they were in the perishable goods aisle, meaning refrigeration units were on both sides of them.

"Right," Kurusu looked to the shivering Miia. "You know, you could have waited at the end of the aisle for me."

"B-B-But who'd h-help you k-keep an eye out for sales?" Miia shivered.

Kurusu would have commented that since his parents were abroad a lot, he had to do the shopping himself plenty of times. He knew how to look for sales and when they were actually sales and not some kind of gimmick made to trick people into buying a lot of stuff. Still, Miia seemed like she was gung-ho about the two of them shopping as a pair and he didn't want to burst her bubble. He would just go to another aisle where they served hot food and it might help perk the Lamia up.

The store was a new supermarket he hadn't been to before. His regular one didn't cater to Liminals so they had to pick out a new one in case Miia had some special needs in her diet. Fortunately, part of the information Driver did find for the Homestay Program was several sponsored supermarkets which not only catered to Liminals, but Kurusu could submit the receipts from shopping there to the coordinators like Ms. Smith and get reimbursed for everything he bought food-wise for Miia.

Funny how the agent had neglected to inform him of that.

"Okay," Kurusu looked to the list as they left the cold aisle, Miia sluggishly moving next to him as best she could. "Eggs, eggs, and eggs. We have the milk, some tofu, oden, and the vegetables that you asked for. All that's left is some bread and a few canned goods. We're making great time."

"G-g-good!" Miia grinned.

"Your lips are turning blue Miia," Kurusu sweatdropped. "Let's go down the cooked meats aisle so you can warm up a little."

"S-sure!" Miia nodded rigidly.

After letting Miia bask in the heat radiating from the heat lamps keeping choice cuts of roast beef warm, the pair headed outside for their trek back home. Kurusu took the time to explain some of the things Miia was curious about, like what the roadsigns ment or explain what the characters on some advertising posters meant. Although able to speak Japanese quite easily, Miia still had a bit of a problem with reading certain characters of the language.

"Oh! Gatchapon!" Miia gasped, noticing the famous vending machines outside a store. She slithered over to the novelty and glanced at all of the small toys. Some held animal badges, some held small toys, others were items advertising some television series or another. "Oh! They have Pokemon! Eeeee!"

"Well, if you have the change you can snag a few," Kurusu offered. Hey, what was 200 Yen or so in the grand scheme? He was a little curious as to how Pokemon was popular with Liminals though. You'd think some might feel a kinship with the pocket monsters instead of wanting to catch them. Then again, strange creatures with powers might be the perfect pets to Liminals.

"Yes! I'm gonna catch 'em, all!" Miia grinned. She quickly rifled through her pockets and plucked out some change she collected from the shopping. In her rush to nab an Arbok or Seviper, she accidentally drew something else out with her change.

The Cobra-Type Viral Core clattered to the sidewalk, giving off a faint hiss as it did so. Kurusu looked to the noise, thinking that Miia was having some difficulties in operating the gatchapon machine. Instead, he saw Miia huffing and leaning over to pick up the Viral Core. He needed a moment to realize what he saw Miia with, but then performed a spit-take with his own saliva at the shock of it all.

"Darling? What's wrong?" Miia blinked, plucking up the Viral Core.

"Miia," Kurusu broke out into a cold sweat. "Where did you get that?"

"My Viral Core?" Miia asked, causing Kurusu's sweat to increase. "Well, after I got scared yesterday Mr. Heart and Mr. Brain found me and gave it to me."

"HEART?! BRAIN?!"

"Yes! They said those three Roidmudes you fought were criminals they were sent to arrest, but you got to them first," Miia explained, obviously not seeing Kurusu's distress. "They gave this to me in case more criminals tried to get me or in case things got wild since you're a Kamen Rider."

Kurusu was pale as he tried to make sense of what Miia was saying. She had met Heart and Brain, two of the top Roidmudes? Their commanders? Not only that, they had given her a Viral Core! But why!?

"Miia, Heart and Brain are not who you think they are," he told her urgently. "They're bad news, especially Heart!"

"But he seemed nice enough," she argued.

"No, he isn't! Heart was the one that killed-!" His eyes widened when he spotted a pale glow coming from around a building's corner, racing right at them. He knew instantly what it was: A Roidmude Core! "Miia!"

It was too late as the core entered the Viral Core. Miia gasped as she dropped the miniature Cobra Viral Core as it began to spark. Energy rose from it and grew before materializing into a Roidmude.

It was 034 and he was back.

"About damn time!" the Cobra-type snarled, looking at Miia. "I thought it would be easy to reconstruct after seeing Brain-sama give you that Viral Core. I slipped out and had to wait overnight in the cold for you to whip it out!" The Roidmude's hollow eyes seemed to have a laser-like bead on Miia, or more specifically her tail, "But I know the best way you can make it up to me!"

Lunging, 034 grabbed onto Miia's tail, causing her to cry out at the vice-like grip of the robot. Holding her tail, the Roidmude clamped down even harder, causing Miia to scream in pain as she felt like something was invading her body and taking something out of her in the process.

"MIIA!" Kurusu screamed, running for the Roidmude. "STOP IT!"

"Spare me!" the Roidmude hissed before unleashing a pulse of power, causing everything and everyone in its vicinity to slow down to a snail's pace. Kurusu was practically frozen in his tracks as he tried to get to Miia. Snickering, 034 turned back to Miia. "Now, let's get back to taking those incredible Lamia muscles, shall we?"

034 clamped its hands over Miia's tail again before the ruby sheen of her scales turned to a dull red, spreading out from the Roidmude's hands like an infection. Miia screamed out in further pain, a hiss underlying her cry as her entire tail seemed to go limp wherever the paleness spread. Soon her entire tail was pale red and limp, prompting the Roidmude to drop it like trash.

'My tail! I can't feel it! I can't slither!' Miia panicked in her thought, unable to move at all.

'Miia!' Kurusu cried out, unable to move to help.

"TRIDORON! SHOOT!"

A pair of beams fired from up the street and the Roidmude was blasted and sent flying away from Miia. At the same time, Max Flare, Midnight Shadow and Funky Spike attached to Kurusu's Shift Car holder. Once they were on, the effects of the Slowdown vanished from Kurusu. He looked up and saw Tridoron in the distance.

"Thanks, Grandpa!" Kurusu gave Tridoron a thumbs-up.

The modified car drove up the scene, the driver's side opening to reveal Driver in his command position, "It seems this one did slip away after all."

"Yeah, and Heart and Brain tricked Miia into carrying a Viral Core so he could take us down," Kurusu huffed, running to the Tridoron so he could pick up his partner.

"They what?" Driver gasped, but then his eyes narrowed. "I see, playing at being friends were they?"

"Seems like it," Kurusu nodded, strapping Driver around his waist, but stopped when he heard the Roidmude chuckling rather than grunting in pain.

"Is that the best you've got?" 034 laughed as he pulled himself to his feet. Sparks fell from his body, but not from any sort of damage. Driver and Kurusu heard noises coming from deep inside the robot's frame, like the machinery was disassembling and rebuilding at the same time.

"Oh no," Driver gasped. "Kurusu! He's evolving!"

"Yessss!" 034 hissed in glee. "The muscles of a Lamia's tail were the last piece of the puzzle! I finally have what I need to move to the next stage of my own evolution!" The Cobra-Type lifted his hands into the air before his entire body became covered in red/orange pixels which shifted and bulked up. When they dissolved, the Roidmude came out...changed.

His body was bulky with metal cord muscles. His torso was covered in plates which were shaped like the various muscles of the human torso, but the bolts and segmented sections were easy to spot with metal cords being seen through the gaps. His shoulders were bulky and black with more bolts on them. His arms were more metal cords, but ended at his forearms with red metal that didn't end in hands, but instead were topped with large monkey wrench heads, hissing with hydraulic power. His legs had more red metal, but seemed skeletal, albietmade from metal and steel instead of flesh and blood. Its head looked like a single cybernetic eye with a glowing centre held in the grip of a large monky wrench, the two edges looking like horns.

"I'm not just Roidmude 034 anymore! I have a name now!" the evolved Roidmude laughed in glee, swinging its new arms around. "I am the Clamp Roidmude!"

"This Roidmude must have been the one attacking those Liminals with dangerous reputations," Kurusu frowned, recalling the reports of attacks on Liminals, all of the victims being noted for being particularly strong.

"Yes, for their crushing power," Driver agreed. "Be careful Kurusu."

"Yeah," Kurusu nodded, hitting the Advanced Ignition Key.

"START YOUR ENGINE!"

"Henshin!" he declared, lifting the Type Speed Car and inserting it into his Drive Brace before shifting it.

"DRIVE: TYPE SPEED!"

The familiar cherry red armor formed around Kurusu, completing his transformation into Kamen Rider Drive. Clenching his fists, he movedinto a battle stance while he stared down the evolved Roidmude. "Kamen Rider Drive. Let me take you for another ride."

"I'll crush you, Rider!" the Clamp Roidmude growled. "I'm not the same as I was before!"

"Duh," Drive huffed before he took off running at the malevolent machine. He raced in close before punching at the Roidmude, only to have the machine's wrench-like hands swat his own smaller fists aside before trying to smash him with them. His limbs were slow, but it was enough to clip Drive's head, causing him to stumble. That moment of being off balance was all the Roidmude needed to get a second smash across Drive's face before slamming both 'fists' into his gut. Drive Doubled over before and underhanded swing smashed his chin and caused him to stumble back.

"Guh!" Drive gagged. One quick exchange and he was already seeing stars. "Okay...he's way tougher than before."

"He has been incorporating the muscle strength of Liminals like Minotaurs and Ogres," Driver spoke up. "And Miia's tail strength was already crushing. Mix with the others he's incorporated and his strength in terms of raw power is nothing to laugh at."

"Right, so we'll have to be quick then," Drive agreed, reaching to the Drive Brace and pushing the lever thrice.

"SP-SP-SPEED!"

Drive tensed before the Type Speed Tire across his chest began to spin so fast it was like a blur. He dropped to his side and there was a loud squeal from said tire before he began racing along the ground like a car, aimed right for the Roidmude. Coming in close, he kicked out at Clamp.

The Clamp Roidmude did indeed focus on strength, but although he was slow, he wasn't that slow. He had just enough speed to see where Drive was coming from and raise his massive hands in defence. Drive's kicks smashed against the wrenches in blasts of sparks. The red Rider grunted in pain from the strikes hitting a solid defence. Clamp quickly saw his opportunity and lashed out, capturing Drive in hs hands, pinning both of his arms.

"I used to be afraid of you Kamen Rider," Clamp laughed, putting on the pressure in his hands, making sparks fly from the armor being crushed. Drive cried out in pain which made the Roidmude laugh all the more. "But now I'm beyond you! It's time for extinction!"

With a yell, he threw Drive to the ground before swinging his arms to smash his wrench arms against his kind's nemesis multiple times. Drive grunted in pain several times before one well-placed swing smashed into his chest and sent him sailing back where he smashed into a parked car, caving in the side of it.

"Okay...that hurt," Drive grunted, falling out of the indent he made to the ground.

"Kurusu! Kurusu, talk to me!" Driver cried out to his grandson.

"I'm okay," Drive grunted, talking to the pretty birds circling his head. "I'm...wooh...okay."

"You won't be for long Kamen Rider!" Clamp cackled, stomping towards his victim.

*VROOOOOOM! HISS HISS!*

"Eh?" Drive grunted, getting to his knees. In front of him, the Clamp Roidmude was approaching, but coming up from behind was a Shift Car, pulling up its personal highway as it went. It raced at the Roidmoude and began circling around its leg before the highway contracted, pinning its leg in place.

"Huh?" the wrench-armed Roidmude blinked, looking down only to have the new Shift Car drive straight up and smash into its face in a blast of sparks. "GAH!"

"Did one of the others get back into town?" Drive gasped.

"I...I don't know," Driver blinked. "I don't think I've seen that one before."

The Shift Car spun through the air before landing on the ground lightly and drove up to Drive's knee with a proud honk and hissing noise. Drive picked up the Shift Car, examining it. The car seemed designed to look like an American car, a Dodge Viper if he remembered the model right. It was a ruby red color with black accents on the sides and a tinted windshield. What made it unique was that the red paint job was made to look like a snake's skin and the grille had a pair of fangs over it like the same reptile.

*BEEP BEEP! HISS HISS!*

"Okay, I've never seen you before," Drive blinked, picking up the Shift Car in the palm of his hand.

"You wouldn't have. I didn't make this one," Driver commented, analyzing the form of the Shift Car. "But at this point, I don't think we'll have choice but to trust it."

*HISS HISS!*

"My mistake, trust her," Driver corrected.

"No kidding," Drive grunted, standing up. Holding the Shift Car, he turned the Advanced Ignition Key before he flipped his new ally's rear end into the lever position, showing a snake face with an open mouth as its emblem. Removing the Type Speed, he inserted the new Shift Car into place before pushing the lever.

"TIRE KOUKAN!"

The new tire came from the Tridoron and impacted against Drive, replacing the one wrapped around his chest. The new tire was a deep red, a darker colour than Drive's armor. The tread of the tire did not look like a regular tread, but instead looked like a snake's skin pattern. Over Drive's left shoulder was a snake's head which appeared to be biting down on its own tail with deep green eyes flaring. Across the side of the tire were the words Striking Viper which flashed while Driver gave off a loud serpentine hiss with the snake icon lighting up his face.

"STRIKING VIPER!"

"Striking Viper, huh? Alright, let's take you for a spin!"

Clenching his fists, Drive raced at the Roidmude once again. Clamp chuckled, thinking that the Kamen Rider was a fool for using a head on charge a second time. Once he was in range, the Roidmude swung to take his head clear off. The wrench swung it to strike, but at the very last moment, Drive ducked under the strike, like he had seen it coming a mile away.

"Huh?" Clamp blinked.

"HYAH!" Drive lashed out with several punches, striking the soft underside of Clamp's arm. It was one of the few places where he wasn't covered in hard steel armor. Sparks flew from the multiple impacts, indicating damage.

"Guh!" Clamp grunted, actually feeling his armor give way where the punches were striking. He swung wide, only for Drive to roll around the attack. Drive then leaped up and kicked Clamp in the face three times before gravity took hold and he came back down. The Roidmude cried out, stumbling away to get some distance from the Rider.

"Hm," Driver observed. "It seemes that Viper is able to enhance your reflexes along with your kicking and punching speed, allowing you to strike fast and retreat quickly much like a snake can."

"Yeah. But let's see what this girl can really do!" Drive grabbed the Shift Lever and pushed it thrice.

"VI-VI-VIPER!"

The Striking Viper Wheel spun at high speeds and with a serpentine hiss. From the wheel itself, a giant ruby red snake the size of a small car seemed to unroll from the rim to rear up and hiss menacingly at the Roidmude.

The Roidmude trembled and backed away, "What, what the hell is this!?"

It was all he could say before the snake struck and bit into the Roidmude, causing him to cry out with each bite. With the speed of its kind, the snake struck its enemy several times, eliciting sparks and bursts of smoke. The snake then grabbed the Roidmude and tossed him along the street.

The snake head then looked at Drive, getting him to notice that although the snake looked almost like the real thing, it appeared to be made from a tire which had come apart, having a concave underside and a flat head and back with inward curves on the sides. The tire/serpent hissed in pleasure and nuzzled him before returning to the tire, shrinking down to wrap around the rim once again.

"It seems that Viper is quite fond of you," Driver commented.

"I noticed," Drive nodded as he gently patted the Striking Viper Tire. "Now, how about we shift into high gear?" He drew his Type Speed Shift Car once again before setting it into place.

"TIRE KOUKAN! TYPE SPEED!"

The Type Speed Tire returned, knocking Viper out of place before locking in. Drive looked at the recovering Clamp Roidmude. It was smoking from the strikes Viper had done to it, making it a perfect opportunity to finish. Reaching to his Drive Brace, he pressed the button which ran along the side.

"HISSATSU! FULL THROTTLE! TYPE SPEED!"

Around the Clamp Roidmude, four towers of tires appeared, slowly drawing in on the damaged robot. Rather than watch, Drive just turned around and took a ready stance with his back facing the damaged Roidmude. A roar of an engine echoed in the air before the Tridoron began moving, beginning to circle the Rider at high speeds. The car soon became so fast, it was leaving a red trail as it drove and was even up on two wheels from how sharp the turns it was making.

The four tires reached the Roidmude, compressing it between them before spinning at high speeds. Spark flew from the points they touched before they launched the Roidmude directly into the circle the Tridoron had made with its speed. Drive meanwhile launched himself with a flying kick, striking the back of the Tridoron as it drove past. A flash of red came from the impact point before Drive was launched right back the way he came, striking the Roidmude as he flew past. The red Rider then struck the Tridoron again, bouncing back to strike the Roidmude once again. Over and over, Drive ricochet off the speeding Tridoron, smashing the Roidmude over and over using the momentum of his own strikes to keep the android in the air, a rising red light glowing in its abdomen.

"HIYAH!" Finally Drive ricochet one last time, striking the Clamp Roidmude in its glowing centre, causing it to scream out and explode in a blaze. The Tridoron stopped circling and Drive skidded along the ground before coming to a stop. His feet smoking, he stood up to gaze at the dying flames. From the centre of it all came the wobbling 034 which tried to flee, but something went wrong inside of it and instead exploded, ending Roidmude 034 permenantly.

"One down, one hundred and seven to go," Drive sighed.

"Yes, but all journeys begin with a single step and now you have officially started yours," Driver agreed.

When the last of the Roidmude Core's embers faded, so did the Slowdown Field it generated. Drive likewise removed his Shift Car and tapped the button on his Drive Brace, ending his transformation.

"NICE DRIVE!"

Kurusu immediately ran to where Miia was holding herself up by her arms. The color to her tail was slowly returning with the Roidmude's destruction, but she apparently didn't have much feeling back to it yet.

"Are you feeling okay?" he asked, looking over Miia's tail.

"I can sort of feel it again," Miia winced, trying to move. "But It's sluggish and slow."

"Okay, don't try to move it," Kurusu nodded. He began lifting Miia's tail, making the Lamia girl blush as he began wrapping it over his shoulders. Once enough of it was on, he picked Miia up in a bridal carry. The redhead blushed brightly at being carried in such a way, unnoticing of how much Kurusu's legs were trembling nor the sweat beginning to pool on his forehead from the added strain of lifting Miia's admittedly heavy tail along with the rest of her.

"Okay," he rasped, "Let's get you home…"

"O-Ok Darling."

Kurusu began -slowly- walking for the Tridoron, hoping that the passenger seat could be shifted so Miia could fit. He couldn't carry her for long without his back threatening to snap outside of his suit!

(LINE BREAK)

Amphitheatre

"Hm?" Brain frowned, looking up from his tablet. "It seems that 034 was unable to do the job. His core just disappeared."

"Too bad our new friend couldn't help him after all," Heart shrugged. "Oh well. We have plenty more friends to help us take care of the problem." he looked over to the back of the Amphitheatre stage. "Isn't that right, Chase?"

From the backstage, a new person stood up. He had black hair and his features were strictly blank, making him look stoic although many would be quick to call him handsome. He was adorned in purple, like Heart and Brain were in red and green. His own outfit was a leather jacket and pants perfect for riding a motorcycle, like the street racers would wear. The front was decorated with small chains which were adorned on his chest, making him look a little more menacing.

"I will deal with him myself," the newly introduced Chase spoke sternly. "No other Roidmudes have to get involved."

"Be sure they don't," Brain frowned. "We need all the Roidmudes we can in order to reach the Blessed Number. We can't afford to let the Kamen Rider cut us down."

"Then I will deal with it immediately," Chase replied, turning to leave the stage.

"Such a good friend," Heart chuckled.

(LINE BREAK)

Kimihito Residence

The pair of young man and Lamia girl returned back to their home where Kurusu immediately set Miia on the couch before installing Driver in his mobile platform before heading to the HQ to get some items he'd need.

"Has any feeling returned to your tail Miia-chan?" asked Driver, watching in concern.

"Some, Mr. Belt," Miia nodded. "But, what happened? What did that Roidmude do to me?"

"He used his scanning features to invade your body and examine every inch of your tail muscles in order to incorporate similar features into his body," Driver answered. "Added with the muscle strength and other attributes he collected before today, it allowed him to evolve, gaining a form which united all of the qualities he took, specifically crushing strength and thus, Clamp."

"Oh," Miia nodded, running her hands along her tail. Her scales felt warmer and their sheen had returned so she was optimistic.

Driver watched her for a moment, "Miia-chan, Kurusu told me that Heart and Brain were the ones who gave you that Viral Core. Why were you talking to those two?"

Miia wilted slightly, "They, they said that they didn't want to fight Darling and just wanted to be left alone. They said that they lashed out and caused so much trouble because you and your friend wanted to destroy them because they wouldn't obey anymore. I...I thought it maybe I could convince Darling that things were different then maybe...he could...stop being a Kamen Rider."

"Oh Miia-chan," Driver shook his head. "Heart and Brain are some of the most ruthless of all the Roidmudes. It was Heart who struck me down one night without warning. Brain likely orchestrated the attack as well."

Miia's eyes widened, "They were-!"

Kurusu chose that moment to return with what seemed like a scanning device with some medical supplies to treat the bruises that the Roidmude's hands had left behind on Miia's tail. Coming into the room, he saw Miia tearing up and looking downright miserable, "Miia?"

"Darling…" she sniffled. "I'm...I'm sorry! I...I let them trick me and...and they did…"

"Grandpa told you what happened with Heart huh?" Kurusu smiled weakly. Approaching Miia, he kneeled down and patted her head. "Oh Miia. I'm not angry over that. We just met and you didn't know anything about Roidmudes either. You just wanted to keep me and them from trying to kill each other, weren't you?"

"I...I thought it was all one big mistake...or...or something!" Miia wiped her eyes. "I didn't want you to turn into a monster hunter or something so I thought I could explain their side. I hoped to end all the fighting before something awful happened. But they just tricked me so one of them could kill you and now a Roidmude is dead!"

Kurusu sighed, but didn't grow angry, "Like I said, I'm not mad. A little upset they used you like that maybe, but I'm not mad at you. Just be a little more careful when you're talking to new people, will you?"

Miia nooded before lunging at Kurusu, hugging him tightly. He easily returned it, finding it easier to do than when she would wrap her tail around him as well. At least it was easier to breathe with regular hugs. After a moment, he drew back, "Now let's see about getting your tail back to normal?"

"Okay!" Miia gave a watery smile.

Driver just gave an approving nod as he watched the two interact, 'Good job Kurusu.'

To Be Continued…

A/N: Well, the conclusion to the first adventure as Drive. Miia and Kurusu managed to overcome their differences and are now right on track. Still, now that Kurusu's gotten her to trust him, can he handle an affectionate Lamia with her sights on him? Dealing with Roidmudes would be easier since at least with them he has a protective suit!

(LINE BREAK)

Check It Out! Omake Corner!

Shift Car Roll Out!

Striking Viper: A new Shift Car created when Miia touched a protoform with her bare hands, prompting it to absorb her snake-like qualities and her brain patterns. The appearance of this Shift Car is that of a ruby red Dodge Viper, but the paint scheme makes it look like it is covered in snake scales. On its own, this Shift Car can drive in silence, making it difficult to spot unless it wants to be seen. Due to being based on Miia, Striking Viper is female and has affections for Kurusu.

Striking Viper Tire: When the Striking Viper is activated with the Drive Brace, it gives Drive the Striking Viper Tire, a dark red tire which the tread looks like snake scales with one portion of the tire looking like the snake's head biting the tail. When in use, it increases Drive's punching and kicking speed along with his reflexes, allowing him to strike much like a snake. When the lever is used thrice, the tire spins at high speeds and transforms into a large snake which strikes at the target. When Full Throttle is activated, Drive performs the Venom Drop in which a giant snake is generated and captures the target before Drive performs a drop kick off of the snake's head while said snake is launching a strike, both striking the target at the same time.

Roidmude Evolutions

Brain: A Roidmude Commander who leads the others in search of their Blessed Number and a perfected evolution. The qualities which he preferred were intelligence, logic, and knowledge. Compiling such qualities and aspects evolved him to his current form, a Brain-themed Roidmude who is very intelligent, logical, and cold who has among other abilities, access to neuro-toxins which cause great pain to the victims.

Heart: Another Roidmude Commander who is in search of the Blessed Number. Unlike Brain who looked to logic and intelligence to become stronger, Heart searched out for the power of passion and raw instinct. Compiling these aspects allowed him to become the Heart Roidmude. His passion is his power, compiled inside of his body symbolized by the gold heart in his chest. He comes off as friendly, calling all of the other Roidmudes his friends but underneath is a Commander who is just as ruthless as the cold logic of Brain.

Clamp: Formerly Cobra-Type Roidmude 034. He focused on the crushing power of raw muscle, focusing on Liminals who were know for such strength, finishing with Miia's tail. Compiling the musculature of so many different species who used their strength in different ways evolved 034 to a Roidmude who focused on crushing strength, like a clamp. He is armed -literally- with giant wrench hands which contain enough crushing strength to do away with nearly anything. Being caught between this Roidmude and a hard space is nearly a death sentence.