Disclaimer: These two franchises belong to their respective owners. I own nothing at all.
Journey Through Remnant
Chapter 11: The King of Time and the Retainer
"My name is Kamen Rider Woz! And this is the first page in a new chapter of history!"
The loud proclamation rang out across Beacon, making everyone pause in their step.
"Kamen Rider Woz?" "A third one?" "What's up with that speech?" "That belt is so loud." Mutters came from the crowds that were watching the fight.
"Woz? When did he get here?" Decade wondered as he continued to push back Another Fourze. He began to speculate why the retainer and Another Riders, remainders of the World of Zi-O, have appeared on Remnant in the back of his mind.
"Forgive me," Woz apologized, "It has been a while since I last rejoiced anything."
Jikan DESPEAR! YARISUGI!
Conjuring a black and neon green spear, Woz readied himself for his battle.
Somewhere, in another World...
A city in ruin... Civilians attempting to escape the calamity only to be felled by monsters and beings of unimaginable powers... A strange wall dividing the city... Many towers standing undisturbed by the disaster... And standing in the chaos was a black and golden warrior...
"IWAE! The ultimate King of Time who will rule over the past and future. And his name is Oma Zi-O! This is the moment in which we arrive in the last chapter of history!"
An evil laugh...
"I've been waiting for this moment! I pushed Tokiwa Sougo to the brink of despair for this! It's time for me to take Oma Zi-O's power!" A sinister voice, one which oozed with arrogance...
"What grand power! With this power, I'll be able to surpass my little sister! I will truly inherit the crown then!" Dark purple energy connected the two... One a true king, the other a pretender... Without warning, the dark presence recoiled in pain... Unable to handle the supreme power...
"Did you think someone like you could absorb my power?" A voice filled with pain... Filled with anger and despair... Watches appearing out of thin air around the king... "My power... is the power of all Riders!"
"Tokiwa..." A voice called out from beyond the darkness.
"The power of all Riders..." The boy mumbled sleepily. Riders... What did he mean by that?
"Tokiwa!" That voice shouted directly in his ear, jarring the student out of his nap.
"What?! What happened?!" The boy said without thinking. As if on cue, the entire class laughed at his misfortune. Standing in front of his desk, with an irritated expression, was his teacher.
"Tokiwa Sougo, how many times do I have to warn you? Do not fall asleep in class!" Evidently, this was not the first time the 18-year-old student was caught dozing off at school.
"I'm sorry, sensei! I promise it won't happen again!"
Normal high-schooler, Tokiwa Sougo... From the look of him, one can assume that he was your average Japanese student. Living with his uncle in a clock shop, he gets an average grade (most of the time...) and goes to Hikarigamori High School with his friends. One wouldn't even think that beneath that innocent face was a dark secret that no even he knows about.
"You're so lucky that sensei only gave you a stern warning. That was the fourth time he caught you sleeping!" One of his classmates, Owada, said, "What's up with you, Tokiwa? You've been taking naps nearly every day now."
"I'm not sure. I keep finding myself tired all the time." Sougo replied.
"Well, just make sure to get some rest at home later, okay? We don't want you getting sick as Myoukouin did," Geiz had fallen ill earlier that week, leaving him and Tsukuyomi in their small group.
"That reminds me, where's Tsukuyomi? I thought she was here earlier?"
"Ahh... The principal called her to his office while you were asleep, something about needing her medical records." And that left Sougo to walk home by himself...
Later...
Cycling back to his uncle's clock shop, Sougo found himself thinking of the latest of his strange dreams. Recently, he had been dreaming of armored heroes similar to those he watched growing up. It started normally at first (or at least as normal a bug-themed superhero could be). Sougo initially couldn't remember much about them, but now the details became more and more clear each day.
"The King of Time, huh…" While it was true Sougo dreamed of being a king, he never envisioned himself being the King of Time. So, what did that dream mean?
Hopping off his bike, Sougo walked up a staircase onto a bridge as he usually does on his way back home. What usually doesn't happen is a strange man in white approaching him.
"Hello there." The man said with a smile on his face.
"Umm... Hello?" Sougo responded warily, "What do you want?"
"I need you to hold on to this for me," The man tossed the teen a strange gray pocket watch. Oddly enough, there was no clock on it, "And keep an eye out for the other Double!"
Without any warning, the man suddenly disappeared. As if he wasn't even there in the first place.
"What just happened?" Sougo was completely confused and took a look at the watch, "And what's this?" He asked no one in particular. A strange feeling of deja vu washed over him. As if something like this happened before.
'The other Double?' Strangely, Sougo felt like he knew exactly what the man was talking about while simultaneously not having a single clue as to who or what Double even is...
"I'm home!" Sougo said as he entered his home.
"Welcome back, Sougo. Oh, you can come back for it in two days." His uncle, Tokiwa Junichirou, answered back before resuming talking with his customer.
Going into the dining room, Sougo placed his bag on one of the chairs. Taking another look at the gray watch, the teen felt he knew what it was and who that strange man was. However, the names continue to elude him.
"Oh, Sougo!" His uncle shouted from the other room, "Geiz called earlier! He wanted me to tell you to visit him for something."
"Sure, I'll change first!" Temporarily putting the matter in the back of his mind, Sougo went upstairs...
Having grown up in the area, Sougo knew many shortcuts and pathways around town. The way to Geiz's apartment would normally take a bit from his house, but Sougo had long since discovered an alternate way through an abandoned warehouse district that other people seldom go.
Humming to himself, Sougo didn't realize that someone, or rather something, was watching him. Conjuring a green cyclone, the being sent the teen flying off his bike.
"Ow! Who's there!" Being thrown off onto the pavement caused Sougo to hit his head, "Show yourself!"
From the shadows of a warehouse, a strange monster stepped out into the light. An abomination, the monster was split down the middle with stitches. The right side of its body was green and looked like it was made of tattered cloth. A golden brace covered the wrist with a golden V etched onto its chest. Opposite to it, its body's left side was black and was made of a metallic substance. Purple spikes covered its arm with a purple V contrast the right side. A golden belt buckle in the shape of a W infused into its waist glowed brightly. On its face was a creepy smile permanently stitched on. Glowing eyes under a red visor stared down the teenager who took a step back. On its left leg was the word 'Double.'
For a brief moment, an unknown memory flashed in Sougo's mind. A half-and-half detective. He didn't know where he recognized the monster from.
"NoW, cOuNt Up YoUr SiNs," The monster's voice was distorted, as if two different voices were speaking as one.
"Who are you? How do I know you?" Sougo whispered to himself.
In the brief moment of hesitation on the latter's part, the strange monster quickly charged him. Out of instinct, Sougo somehow managed to dodge a swipe from the monster. The monster clearly wasn't expecting any resistance and couldn't recover fast enough before its target retreated into the building...
He didn't know how but Sougo had managed to lose the monster temporarily. Ducking behind one of the massive pieces of machinery left behind, the teenager took a moment to catch his breath.
"Yo, how you doing, kid?" From out of nowhere, the strange man from earlier appeared right next to him.
"What the-? What are you doing here?" Sougo tried his best to be as quiet as possible, "Is that what you mean by the other Double?"
"Yup," The man said without a single care in the world, "Do you still have the RideWatch?"
RideWatch? Does he mean the pocket watch? Taking it out of his pocket, Sougo showed it to the man, "You mean this?"
"Hmm... It's still not responding."
"CoMe OuT, cOmE oUt WhErE eVeR yOu ArE," The monster called out into the darkness, its eyes still glowing.
"I think you should follow me." The man said. Suddenly, a gray translucent wall appeared beside the stranger(?).
"Hang on a moment. What is going on?"
"Would you rather get to safety or be left with the Another Rider?" Rider... That word again. From the depth of his consciousness, something was screaming at him that he knew what it meant.
"FoUnD yOu!" Before he could choose, the Another Rider leaped over the machine and landed a few feet in front of him.
"Come on, let's go." The strange man grabbed Sougo's arm and pulled him into the wall. Instead of hitting themselves, the wall rippled out and allowed the two to go through.
"No!" Despite its best effort, the Another Rider only managed to grab air as the wall disappeared before it could pass through...
"WHERE AM I!?" Sougo screamed as he suddenly found himself on top of a building.
"Calm down. The Another Rider won't find us here." The strange man said as he peered over the edge of the roof.
"And who are you!? How do you know me? Why was that monster after me?" Sougo had been having a pretty bad day so far.
"You know the answers to that. You just don't remember yet," The man cryptically said.
"What do you mean by that? I've never met you before!"
"Yes, you have. In your old World," Old World? What was that supposed to mean? "When you awaken to your powers again, you'll know everything."
"My powers?"
"Yes, your power, Oh Mighty King of Time." King of Time...
Suddenly, a loud explosion rang out from below.
"What's going on now..." All Sougo wanted to do now was lie down and rest. Walking up next to the man who (maybe) saved his life, the displaced teen looked down to the ground...
KAMEN RIDE: FOURZE
Switching gears, Tsukasa's form changed again. This time, his bodysuit was white with orange and black highlights. Similar to Another Fourze, his helmet turned into the shape of a rocket, and his bug-eye visor turned orange. On his right gauntlet was an orange circle, while his left one had a black square. Meanwhile, his right leg had a blue cross, while his left leg contained a yellow triangle.
This new Rider was that of the man who would make friends with all, Kamen Rider Fourze.
On the other hand, Woz had managed to knock Another Shinobi down temporarily. From his MirideWatch Holder, the retainer grabbed a new MirideWatch, which depicted a ninja Rider.
SHINOBI!
Replacing the Woz MirideWatch in his Driver with the Shinobi MirideWatch, Woz pressed the button again to open its gates.
ACTION!
TOEI! Future Time! Dare Ja?! Ore Ja! Ninja! Futuring Shinobi! SHINOBI!
Woz's shoulderpads, chest armor, and helmet were replaced by new purple armor. Instead of the 'Kamen' symbol on his shoulders, shurikens instead took its place. A purple-like cloth replaced the watch strap on Woz's chest with a large purple shuriken. Finally, the word 'Rider' on his helmet was replaced by 'Shinobi' in katakana.
Now, Woz was channeling the power of the Future Rider of 2022. The legendary ninja, Kamen Rider Shinobi.
"Let's finish this, Decade," Woz said as he pressed one of the buttons on his spear.
KAMASHISUGI!
Pulling on the tip of the Jikan Despear, Woz turned it into its sickle mode.
"Hmph, whatever you say." Taking out a Final Attack Ride Card, Tsukasa inserted it into the Neo DecaDriver.
FINAL ATTACK RIDE: FOU-FOU-FOU-FOURZE
Suddenly, an orange rocket and yellow drill materialized on the Rider's right arm and left foot respectively. Using the Rocket Module, Tsukasa launched high into the air.
Once again, Tsukasa aimed for the fake Fourze and kicked the monster with the Drill Module. With its innate weakness to Fourze's power, the Another Rider was finally defeated in a fiery explosion.
BEYOND THE TIME!
Woz, on the other hand, flipped the lever in the BeyonDriver for his own finisher. Subsequently, he pressed the Kama button on his sickle before swiping the screen several times.
NINPOU: JIKAN SHIBARI NO JUTSU!
ICHIGEKI KAMAN!
A green electrical charge surrounds the sickle before Woz stabbed Another Shinobi. Lifting it up and into the air, the green Kamen Rider created copies of himself before slashing the Another Rider multiple times. Finally, the fake Rider was destroyed in a green explosion...
"Awesome..." Sougo knew them. Something in his mind was screaming at him to remember who the two armored heroes were.
"Now then, I'll be taking my leave," The man suddenly said, "Give Tsukasa my regards."
"Wait a minute! You're leaving me here!?"
"Yup, Tsukasa can figure out what to do with you." Just as suddenly as before, the man in white disappeared.
"Oh, man..." Now left by his lonesome, Sougo Tokiwa tried to find his way down from where he was...
"That was amazing, Tsukasa!" Eiji complemented, already de-transformed.
"Later, we have bigger problems now," Tsukasa de-transformed as well, already focused on his next task, "What are you doing here, Woz?"
"I assumed you already knew why. It seems that I was wrong." The retainer simply said.
"Professor Kadoya!" Before they could discuss any further, the trio of spatially displaced Kamen Riders was swarmed by the crowd of students who had been watching the fight.
"How did you managed to defeat them?!" "Who's this new guy?!" "What were those monsters?!" Questions after question flooded their ears.
"Children! Please restrain yourselves!" Thankfully, they were saved by Miss Goodwitch, who had already begun using her Semblance to repair the area, "You three, follow me!"
'Guess we're having a trip to Ozpin again.'
Less than a half-hour later, the two Riders and their new 'friend' found themselves in front of Beacon's Headmaster again. Miss Goodwitch had left earlier to help clear up the aftermath of the battle.
"Are we waiting for Ironwood again?" Tsukasa lazily asked, wanting this meeting done and over with.
"Yes, he shall be here any moment now." Ozpin replied, taking a sip of his drink as if a catastrophe had not happened.
Ding!
"Ahh… That should be him now." Sure enough, the General of Atlas stepped out of the elevator with a tired expression on his face. It looked like he had not been getting any sleep as of late.
"Now then, first of all, why don't you introduce yourself?" Ozpin asked the new Kamen Rider.
"What? You didn't hear that guy's speech?" The traveler snarkily said.
"My name is Woz, retainer to Oma Zi-O." The retainer ignored Tsukasa's comment and answered the question without pause.
'Well, that's just fantastic.' Tsukasa mentally face-palmed. He's spent weeks trying to keep his secrets out of Ozpin's hands and know what of them was just airing out in front of him.
"And who exactly is this Oma Zi-O?" Ozpin was genuinely intrigued by Woz's answer, finally learning something related to his newest allies.
"Waga Maoh is the greatest, kindest, and the most belov- Hey!" Before Woz could finish, Tsukasa had elbowed him just as he did earlier to Eiji.
"Tsukasa, what are you doing?" Eiji questioned.
"If you could please continue." Ironwood interjected, also wanting to know more.
In response, Tsukasa simply stared at him before turning to Ozpin, "Is there any reason he has to be here?"
"Has anyone mention you've been rather... cranky lately?" Eiji asked.
"Not to my face, no."
"Regardless, we need to know what exactly were those things that attacked Beacon. I assume the three of you know the answer."
"Yes." "Not really." "No." They all gave contradicting answers. Although in Eiji's case, he truly didn't know much about them outside of what Tsukasa had told him.
"Tsukasa Kadoya, why do you insist on making things more difficult?" Ironwood didn't seem to be in the mood for any more games.
"You clearly haven't spent a single hour with this man." Woz noted.
"Now, now. There's no need for any quarreling. We simply want to know if there's any way for us to combat this new threat." Ozpin tried to play peacemaker for the group.
"I'll make this clear. What they are something that doesn't concern any of you."
"Seeing as they've attacked Beacon, I say that this does concern us," Ironwood was getting more and more irritated every moment, "You clearly know what they are!"
"So, what if we do? Even if I, for whatever reason, do tell you, there is nothing any of you can do about them."
"Tsukasa!" Eiji reprimanded.
"You three may leave now." Ozpin said without warning.
"Ozpin?!"
"It's clear that Professor Kadoya will not budge on the matter."
"But Ozpin-"
"Leave."
There was no need for him to say it twice, as Tsukasa was already on his way out...
"What's the matter with you, Ozpin? We could have finally found out more about those monsters!"
"I know, but it's imperative that we do not drive him away. If he does, we would never be able to catch him again."
"What do you mean by that?"
"..."
"Ozpin!"
"James, please let this rest." Ozpin pleaded.
"... Alright," With that, Ironwood left Ozpin's office. Of course, the Headmaster of Beacon knew that his old friend would not just lie down and let it pass. He just hoped that the General would not do anything drastic...
"Was that really necessary, Tsukasa?" Eiji questioned. The three had grouped up in the former's room after that disaster of a meeting.
"Not really, but something about that General annoys me," Tsukasa answered, "Now let's focus on our new problem. Woz, why are you here?"
"As I said earlier, I assumed you would know the answer to that."
Tsukasa sighed and breathed in for a moment.
"I think I have an idea, but that still does not explain the Another Riders."
"And what is this idea?" Woz asked.
"First, what happened to Zi-O and the others when the Worlds were restarted?"
"When he rebooted the timeline, Waga Maoh made it so that Geiz and Tsukiyomi are a natural part of the new World. They all go to school together now."
"And the Time Jackers? Did he do anything with them?"
"Yes. Heure and Hora were revived as his schoolmates."
"And Swartz?" The man who got lucky and managed to steal the power of Decade.
"He was reincarnated as a Guidance Counselor in Hikarigamori."
"And I assume none of them remember the old World."
"That is correct."
"Man… I am really out of the loop here..." Eiji mumbled to himself.
"But nothing happened to you at all. You remember everything from before."
"Correct."
"And that means you're the sole remainder of the World of Zi-O." That wasn't a question but a fact.
"Is that important?"
"Maybe... What were you doing before you were transported here?"
"I was recording my Lord's actions, I then found myself in that city without warning,"
"Not even a dimensional wall?"
"I do not think so."
"At least that guy's not involved..."
"Kadoya, do you now know what caused my arrival?"
"To put it simply, you were rejected by the new World."
"...What?"
"Technically, the new timeline Zi-O created is not the same as the old one. It could not even be called a World of Zi-O as there are no Riders in it," Tsukasa explained, "Because you were not reborn with the others, the new World he created didn't recognize you as someone that belong in it."
"So basically," Eiji had been watching from the sidelines, "Woz was thrown out because his World didn't want him?"
"That's the gist of it. That's most likely why I found myself here as well."
"Are you absolutely sure about that, Kadoya?"
"Don't worry about it, Woz. You'll get used to it eventually."
"Tsukasa... I don't think that's what you're supposed to say."
"How about the Another Riders? Why are they here?" Woz seemed to be taking the situation well.
"That's the problem. As far as I remember, Swartz didn't revive in the end. They should not be any appearing."
"So, someone is creating them for their own purpose."
"Exactly."
Somewhere on Remnant...
Katsumi Daido had been kept in the dark ever since he arrived in this new World (not that he realized he was in another dimension in the first place). All he knew was that his captor(?)'s name was Salem and seemed to be trying to groom him for something. She had long since realized that the Necro-Over was someone who she would want on her side.
"I see that you are awake. How are you feeling now?" Despite her appearance, she was rather affable.
"Better." Maybe it was a result of his madness, but he felt that he could trust the woman.
"There is something we have to discuss. Come to the hall as soon as you can."
Taking a few minutes to secure his possession, the Dark Rider left for the main hall. When he entered, the two other residents of this strange place, Arthur Watts and Tyrian Callows, were already there. From what he heard, Salem had two more subordinates that were out on missions.
"You've finally arrived. I thought you fell asleep in the hallway again." Arthur was referring to how they initially found him.
"Now, now, Arthur. Don't be disrespectful to our guest." Salem spoke from her seat at the end of the table.
"Sorry, ma'am."
"Take a seat. We have much to talk about."
Katsumi Daido followed the woman's request. Unknowingly, he was to be dragged into a war that has been lasting lifetimes...
"Hello?! Anybody around?!" Sougo was lost, very lost. He had no idea where he was, and no one is around to help, "Where is everybody?"
"Hello? Who's there?" A voice called out. Finally, he found someone!
"Hello? Can you help me?" Sougo didn't have much choice left and had to trust whoever found him, "I need to find someone named Tsukasa."
"You mean the new Professor? Of course!" The person who found him seemed happy to be meeting him, "My name's Penny Polendina!"
Destroy Everything!
Connect Everything!
A/N: Finally done with Chapter 11. Is it as good as the other chapters? That's for you to decide. I also wanna say thank you to you all. This fanfic has reached 100+ Favorites and Follows! Hopefully, this chapter is worthy of such a milestone (or does the last chapter counts as the milestone?).
I also want to address some of the questions asked in the reviews. I actually wanted to talk about it before, but I keep forgetting about it. Firstly, about those asking that several other Riders pop up. I may or may not add them later in the story, BUT first, I want to finish this first 'arc.' Secondly, to those that ask if Decade has access to other forms like Evol Black Hole or Oma Zi-O, I'm saying he does not have them. Why? Because that's too OP.
Now then, I added the Sougo B-plot specifically to set up the next big thing that is gonna happen. When will it happen? Hopefully soon.
The next thing I want to talk about is that I want to remind everyone of where in the Riders' timeline they generally are. Tsukasa and Woz are both post-Zi-O and remember those events. Eiji and Sougo are also post Zi-O but don't know exactly what happened. Eternal, however, is actually from right after his death in the Double movie. He IS NOT the same Eternal that appeared in Zi-O. That would (most likely) be important later.
Finally, as a thank you to everyone, I'm gonna add a preview of the Ultraman/RWBY fanfic I'm writing.
As always, leave a review and let me know what you think about this story and the preview!
Somewhere, on a distant planet...
The Warrior's Peak.
Many have tried braving the elements to attain the powers granted by the Light that shines at its top. Most fail to reach the Light. Many that do are rejected because of their heart. But there are a few who succeed. One such heart had returned, having completed the last mission given to him by the Light.
Standing at its peak, the wanderer waited, a strange object with a ring held in his hands. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity standing within the blizzard, the ring glowed brightly in the dim environment. A strange light flew out of the object and into the air before turning into a glowing translucent paper-like object with alien writings inscribe onto it.
"The planet Remnant, huh?" The man muttered. He had heard of that planet before but hasn't visited it in his rather long life. "'Search for the one who extends the darkness that threatens the land,'" He continued reading his assignment. Moments later, the script vanished, and the man readied himself. This mission seemed simple, go to a planet and help it. He had not known to what extent the battle between good and evil on that planet had affected it.
Now ready, the man pressed a button on the side of the device's handle. The bright light released from the ring enveloped the wanderer and continue to shine. Soon, the light took shape. Now standing where the man was, a large figure stood. About 40 meters tall, the figure flew away, leaving the Planet of O-50 for Remnant...