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Journey Through Remnant

Chapter 15: Reasons for Fighting (Part 2)

2019: Pseudo-World of Zi-O...

"There's something I want to ask, sir." Ruby spoke up. They had been listening about Earth's history from Eiji for some time now.

"Yes? What is it?" Eiji said.

"I've been wondering about something. Woz said that each universe had its own Kamen Rider. What does that mean?"

"It's exactly what that means. Each World tends to have its own Rider."

"How about Remnant? It doesn't have one of you guys." Yang chimed in.

"I said 'tends to.' Not all of them have one, like yours and this one."

"Hang on. Sougo and Woz are Kamen Riders from this universe, right? What do you mean that this universe doesn't have one?"

"Tsukasa explained that to me. Well, he gave me the gist of it," Eiji corrected himself, "He said that because Sougo lost his powers, this World technically doesn't have its own Rider."

"And Woz?"

"Tsukasa said something about Woz not being reincarnated in this World along with the others, he is not considered to be a Rider of this World."

"'Reincarnated'?"

"...Hey Woz? Can you explain more for me?"

"No." Woz denied Eiji's request.

"We can talk about that later," Eiji recovered quickly, "Where was I... Oh right! About Tokyo."

2010: World of OOO...

"I think I'm getting used to this." Sougo was starting to feel better. The headaches he's been getting from the memory flashes were starting to numb out.

"Where are we now?" Ren asked. They emerged right near what looked like an outdoor theater of all places.

"We're in 2010." Tsukasa answered. Another brief memory flashed through Sougo's head.

"These are yours, aren't they?" The man in the suit held out two RideWatches with the year 2010 on them—a yellow and green RideWatch along with a pure red one.

"And we have to be extra careful here." Tsukasa continued.

"Why?" Blake asked this time.

"Because there is someone here who has very aware of his surroundings. If we're not careful, we'll be spotted by him."

"Who? The Rider here?"

"No, Eiji isn't that observant."

"Then who are you tal- Wait, did you say that Professor Hino is here?"

"Yes, this is the World of OOO."

"What would happen if he spots us?" Ren asked.

"Don't know. I never bothered to read up much on paradoxes. Now come on, over here." He called them over to see a familiar man transforming.

Taka! Tora! Batta! TaToBa! TaToBa TaToBa!

The Eiji of this time was fighting against a monster with the Medajalibur. Said monster was a humanoid and had cat-like features. It was also rather portly.

"What is that?"

"That is what is known as a Yummy," Tsukasa explained, "Eiji used to fight them back in the day."

"And who is that?" Sougo pointed to a man with dirty blonde hair perch on top of a steel beam supporting the building. Additionally, everything below his right elbow was that of a monster's. Said man was overlooking the battle between OOO and the Yummy.

"That is... I think it'll be better if Eiji tells you when we get back."

"Why?"

"No reason. Now focus, do you remember anything about OOO?"

"...Not yet."

"Then keep watching."

The battle wasn't going too well for the past Eiji. Every attack he made with the Medajalibur just bounced off the Yummy's body.

"Still can't cut it!" The past Eiji said. Evidently, he had already fought this Yummy before.

"Looks like it's grown grotesquely again," The man watching the battle sounded rough and annoyed, "Eiji, cut deeper!"

"But if I cut too deeply, the man inside-" The Yummy hit Eiji's back before he could finish talking. He had turned to the perched man and took his eyes off the monster.

"'Man inside'?! There's someone in there?!" Blake was shocked at that information.

"Don't be so loud. We have to stay hidden, remember?"

"Sorry. But there is someone in that...Yummy?"

"Yes, Yummy. And there is someone in there," Tsukasa confirmed, "He'll be fine. Just keep watching."

"..."

"Hah! Hah!" The past Eiji shouted as he slashed at the monster's stomach repeatedly, only for gray coins to fall out of its body. They could faintly hear the strangled cries of someone coming from the monster.

"I see! If I can push aside the Cells-" Eiji was interrupted again by the monster.

"I see. Eiji, try using the Medal you just got." The perched man was holding the Cheetah medal in his hand and threw it at the past OOO.

Swapping out the Batta Medal, the past Eiji ducked an attack from the Yummy before scanning the Medals in the OOO Driver.

Taka! Tora! Cheetah!

The Batta Legs were swiftly replaced with the Cheetah Legs, the past Eiji moved much faster while dodging the Yummy's attack, and stopped a small distance away from his previous spot.

"Oh, I see! I can do with these legs." He said, this being the first time Eiji had used the Cheetah Medal. Yellow energy ran down to his legs from the emblem on his chest, with steam shooting out of the Cheetah Legs. Turning into a blur, the past Eiji dashed towards the Yummy and leaped at it.

"Hah!" The past Eiji grappled onto the Yummy and was rapidly kicking its stomach, with Cell Medals flying off from the monster's body again.

"Is that-" Ren spotted something in the gaping hole that was forming on the Yummy's stomach, or rather, someone.

"Yes. Now just watch, especially you, Sougo."

"Sa-save me!" The man in the Yummy cried out as he tried to reach out to the past OOO. The latter was also trying to reach out his hand to the man.

"I'll save you! I swear it!" Eiji pledged, trying to reach for the man's hands, "If I don't reach out my hand when I can, the regret would make me wish I was dead."

Another memory went through Sougo's head, too quickly for him to process.

"I reach out my hand because I don't want that." The past Eiji said, grunting as he went deeper to grab the man's hand. Finally, he managed to grab and pull the man out of the monster along with a plethora of Medals.

"Professor Hino..."

"You're an interesting one," The man in the suit let out a short laugh, "You better remember this if you want to be king: There are things you can't do alone."

"Things I can't do alone?" He repeated, confused.

"Even if you badly want to save someone...there are some lives you can't save alone," The man in the suit paused for a brief moment, as if recalling something, "That's why I've reached out my hand to many people. That's why I became a politician. Someday I will try reaching out my hand to everyone in this country."

"I like you." He smiled at the man.

"You bastard. You're going to betray me?" Another man, dressed in some rather extravagant clothes, said.

"My king, have you ever tried to reach out your hand to another?" He asked the extravagant man.

"Of course not. Peasants are not even allowed to touch me!" The king proclaimed with an arrogant tone.

"That sounds really mean," He said, "I see now that's wrong. I just wanted to see what kind of people demon kings were."

"I'm not a demon king!" The extravagant man denied, "I'm a king!"

oOo

A black material surrounded the king, turning him into Another OOO.

Taking out the Zi-O RideWatch, he tried to turn the dial on it, only for it to be knocked out of his hand.

"Die regretting your folly!" Another OOO restrained him, only to be thrown back by the man in the suit.

"You're in the way!" Unfortunately, the man was quickly sent flying into a nearby desk.

"You're powerless!" Another OOO mocked the man in the suit, "What can you do?!"

"Even so, I won't let go of a hand I've grasped!"

"Hey, Sougo," Tsukasa was snapping his fingers in front of the teen's face, "Snap out of it."

"Wha- Sorry," Sougo apologized before noticing the frozen looks of surprise of Ren and Blake, "What's with them?"

"They're still in shock over Eiji's sword," Tsukasa waved off Sougo's concern, "Apparently, reality-slicing swords are not something they're used to yet."

"What?!"

"Come on. We're going."

Pseudo-World of Zi-O...

"38 million people?!" Weiss had a double-take at that information. Despite already knowing that over 7 billion people lived on Earth, she still didn't expect that many people living in one city.

"Last time I checked," Eiji rubbed his ears to clear the ringing, "I think it's 2019 here."

"2019? Oh right, time difference and all that..." Jaune said, before realizing something, "Wait a minute, sir."

"Yes, Jaune?"

"This isn't your universe?"

"No, not at all. This is Sougo's." Eiji said.

"Oh, then what year is it in your universe?"

"It was 2020... Good thing I got out of there when I did."

"Why, sir?"

"...Don't ask."

2005: World of Blade...

The next stop was in a forest. The loud sounds of clashing metal rang throughout the woods.

"A forest?" Ren noted, "Who's fighting what here?"

"It's not a who versus what; it's a who versus who." Tsukasa corrected. He was walking towards the source of the clashes.

"Are you going to explain what's going on here now?" Blake asked. The three of them were following the magenta Rider's lead.

"In a second," He stopped and turned to Sougo, "What do you remember about 2004?"

"2004? That's where-I mean when we are?" Sougo asked.

"No, we're in 2005. Now answer the question."

"Nothing much. I was 4 years old."

"I meant what do you remember about the Kamen Rider from 2004?"

"Umm..." Two RideWatches flashed through his head: a blue and silver one and a black and gold one.

"Unfortunately, without Zi-O II..." Woz spoke as his lord detransformed, "...we'll need the original Rider's power."

Opening his book, Woz continued speaking, "I think that was Another Blade. This Kamen Rider was active in 2004."

"Kamen Rider...Blades?" Sougo was not confident in his answer, still suffering from a small headache.

"Close, it was Blade. No 's'" Tsukasa corrected.

"Hang on, if this Rider you're talking about is in 2004..." Blake interrupted, "Then why are we in 2005?"

"It's just early January of 2005. Kazuma was still around at this time."

"And we're here because..."

"Because what is about to happen is important to Sougo," Tsukasa explained, "It led to him gaining Kazuma's powers along with a new power."

"A new power..." Sougo mumbled.

Zi-O II... Geiz Revive... White Woz... Something about those three came to his mind.

"I assume this Kazuma is this Kamen Rider Blade?" Ren asked.

"Kenzaki Kazuma, the Eternal Trump," Tsukasa elaborated, "Why are you asking?"

"Just in case, it's nice to know more about this."

"Whatever. Just don't go telling anyone."

"I think we're getting closer," Blake said. Indeed, they could see two figures fighting in a small clearing next to a river. The first was a green and black monster with a few sickly green liquids sprayed all over its body. The second was more noticeable. The warrior clad in golden armor was clearly the Kamen Rider of this World. He had a large blue and gold sword in his hands.

"Here I come, Joker!" The Rider proclaimed as he fought it and sent it rolling. Golden energy glowed on his body before going into his sword.

ROYAL STRAIGHT FLUSH

5 large cards materialized in front of the golden Rider. Dashing through them, he slashed the black monster again. A large explosion sending both of them flying back into the forest.

"Umm...sir?"

"Yes, Blake?"

"Can you explain what's going on now?"

"Might as well," Tsukasa yawned for a moment, feeling tired again, "As you probably could tell, the golden Rider is Blade."

"Hmm...that's odd," Sougo muttered, "I remember him being blue and silver, not gold."

"That's because Kazuma is using his ultimate form."

"His ultimate form?" Ren repeated.

"Yes, it's called King Form."

"What about that monster? I heard Blade call it Joker."

"Yes, he is the Joker Undead," Tsukasa pointed at the said monster, "Also known as Aikawa Hajime, Kamen Rider Chalice."

"That thing's a Kamen Rider?!"

"What did I say about shouting?"

"Sorry..."

"Anyway, as I said, Hajime is what is known as an Undead, an immortal being."

"Immortal?"

"Yes, immortal," Tsukasa turned to Sougo again, "What do you remember about the Joker Undead?"

"..." Sougo closed his eyes, trying to recall his previous life.

"Kamen Rider Chalice and Kamen Rider Blade here..." Woz said as they regrouped back in his lord's house, "...are beings known as Jokers."

"Jokers are drawn to each other..." The older man spoke from his seat, green blood dripping from the sides of his lips, "When they encounter each other, they have to fight. Like we did earlier. That's why I tried to make it so that I would never see Hajime again."

"What happens if you fight?" Geiz asked, no longer leaning on one of the display cases.

"When the battle ends...and one Joker remains...the world will be destroyed."

"Eh!"

"What's wrong, Sougo?" Ren was startled by Sougo's sudden outburst.

"The world will be destroyed?! Is that right?!"

"What?! What do you mean?!" Blake demanded to know.

"I remember something about the world being destroyed when one Joker remains..."

"No shouting," Tsukasa reprimanded again, "And yes, when there is on Joker left, the world will be destroyed."

"So that's what's happening now? This Chalice is destroying this world?"

"Not intentionally, it's simply a law set by the god of this World."

"God?"

"Long story, I'll tell you some other time," Tsukasa said, "All you need to know is that Hajime, as the last Undead, is bringing about the end of the world."

"So that's why Blade is fighting him? To stop the end of this world?"

"Yes, but not in the way that you think."

"Huh?"

"You see, Undeads are immortals," Tsukasa repeated, "They can't be killed, only sealed away. Unless you're me."

"What does that mean?"

"Later," Tsukasa brushed off that question, pointing at the golden Rider, "Kazuma there is trying to stop the end."

"So, he's trying to seal Chalice?"

"No, not at all," Tsukasa answered.

"Then what is he doing?"

"Just watch."

The two Riders, after recovering from the explosion, got up and slowly walked to each other. Meeting in the middle, they began punching wildly at each other. One final punch ended the battle...and Kenzaki Kazuma stepped back, groaning in pain.

"He-he lost?"

"No…he won." Tsukasa answered enigmatically.

Parts of Kazuma's armor glowed a sickly green color. Both Riders stopped and stood still.

"I..." Kazuma muttered quietly.

"Do it now, Kenzaki," The Joker Undead demanded his opponent, "Seal me."

The golden Rider looked up at Hajime and slowly reached for the belt buckle around his own waist. Kazuma's Driver was a simple bulky silver buckle with a golden spade engraved in the center. Slowly reaching for the lever, Kazuma pulled it, the center flipping and revealing a card inside. Pulling it out, a holographic blue wall with the image of a beetle in it came out from the Driver. The wall then passed through the Kamen Rider, his armor disappearing.

"What's he doing?" Ren whispered, not knowing what's happening.

"Look at his hand." Tsukasa simply ordered.

That's when they saw it; a trickle of green blood dripped out of Kazuma's sleeve.

"Kenzaki!" Hajime saw the blood as well, realizing what the Rider had done.

Kazuma simply threw away his now empty Driver, revealing another belt buckle underneath it. The new one was silver and green, with a sickly green heart in its center, divided by a thin slit. The same belt the Joker Undead was wearing.

Pulling out a card, Hajime slid it through his own belt.

SPIRIT

His form changing, the black and green monster turned into a young man in ragged clothing.

"Kenzaki..." He spoke in between heavy breaths, "you... You are..."

Hajime looked at the palm of his hand, which was covered in the green blood of an Undead.

"...so you've become an Undead?" Kazuma simply smiled in response.

"He...turned himself into a monster? How?" Blake muttered quietly.

"Kazuma's King Form has its risk," Tsukasa said, a sad smile on his face, "If he overused it, he'd end up turning himself into another Joker Undead."

"From the beginning..." Hajime spoke, "...this was your intent..."

Kazuma gave a short nod, exhausted.

Something loud gained everyone's attention. Appearing from the sky, a large black slab that was twisted in the middle descended and landed in between the two Riders of this World. A strange buzzing came from the slab as if trying to communicate.

"The Master says..." Hajime translated, "'Two Undead confirmed. Battle Fight...commence.'"

"...until only one is left...right?" Kazuma spoke up for the first time. Hajime only nodded in confirmation. Then Kazuma did something without any warning.

He punched the slab, shattering it, "I…will not fight."

The slab reformed itself nearby, only to fly away.

"Kenzaki." Hajime moved towards the other Kamen Rider, only for Kazuma to step back.

"Stay away!"

"Kenzaki..." Hajime repeated.

"You and I…are Undeads," Kazuma said, "As long as neither of us are sealed...Battle Fight will be without climax. The day of destruction will not come."

"He's...what..."

"..." Tsukasa remained quiet.

"That's why..." Kazuma continued and took another step back, "...we are forbidden to fight. Being near each other...is forbidden."

"No matter how far apart..." Hajime said, "...the Master will call for us to fight. To comply with our instincts and fight... That is...the fate of the Undead."

"I will fight fate," Kazuma announced confidently, "...and win."

"That is...your response?"

"You should continue living among the humans."

"Where are you going?"

"Where we cannot meet," Kazuma began walking backward, away from Hajime, "Where we cannot contact each other. That should be good enough."

"Kenzaki..." The Rider turned around and faced away from Hajime, continuing to walk away. The latter tried to follow after him, leaving the four travelers by themselves.

"That was... What happened?" Blake didn't know what she had just seen.

"What just happened was that Kenzaki Kazuma gave up his life for his friend," Tsukasa said, "So long as there are two Undeads in this World, the World will not end."

"But if they meet, they'll fight again?" Ren asked.

"Yes, and when that fight ends, one Joker will remain, and the day of destruction would arrive."

"So that's what he meant... He'll go away forever so that the end won't come?" Blake asked.

"Yes, Kazuma did it so that Hajime could continue living the life he had," Tsukasa explained, "That's why he turned himself into an Undead."

"...but they did meet again..." Sougo muttered.

Using the Gaim Armor, he fought against the black, red, and gold Kamen Rider, who was defending Another Blade. The latter dodged one of his blows by jumping back a long distance and took out three cards.

Sliding the cards into a slit in his bow, it announced something.

FLOAT

DRILL

TORNADO

Projections of the cards appeared behind the heart-themed Kamen Rider before they shrunk and went into his body.

SPINNING DANCE

The Kamen Rider jumped into the air and did a screw kick. A purple tornado enveloped him before he kicked the King of Time, knocking him back into his base form.

"What the heck?!" He grunted as he was sent rolling onto the ground. The heart-themed Rider was about to continue his attack, only to stop mid-step, as if sensing something.

Turning to his side, he saw someone dressed in rugged clothes. The man approaching the also had a crazed look on his face.

"Kenzaki, why are you here too?!" The heart-themed Kamen Rider asked in surprise.

"Hajime!" The new arrival shouted, anger and despair in his voice, "You used your power, didn't you?! I…sealed away my power for your sake... But you broke the seal!"

A line of cards flew around the man, a silver buckle at the very end, "Why?! Hajime!"

The buckle attached itself to the man's waist, the cards turning into a red belt. A loud continuous whirling came out of the Blay Buckle, "Henshin!"

The man pulled the lever in the buckle's side, flipping the card in it and revealing a golden spade.

TURN UP

A blue holographic wall emerged from the buckle. The man then walked through it, armor appearing on him.

"Now we've regrettably come in contact yet again," The blue Kamen Rider said, unsheathing his sword from his hip, "Is there no avoiding fate?!"

And the battle between the two Jokers resumed, against their will.

"They met again?" Blake asked Sougo, who was massaging his temples.

"I think so. I don't remember what happened that well."

"Sougo's right," Tsukasa confirmed, "After Geiz decided to not go down his path as the Savior, White Woz tried to destroy the World."

"White Woz?" Ren questioned.

"No, he's not the same Woz as the one you've met. That is Black Woz," Tsukasa said, "When he realized that he was about to be erased from the timeline, he tried to end all potential timelines."

"And this 'White Woz' did it by reuniting the two Jokers, I assume." Blake theorized.

"Yes."

"But what I want to know why did he do that." Blake said.

"Eh... Something about not wanting other timelines to exist or something."

"No... I mean Kenzaki Kazuma. Why did he turn himself into an Undead?"

"That's something only he can answer," Tsukasa answered, "I can't even imagine what he was thinking when he decided to spare Hajime."

"Can you...explain a bit more?"

"Nah... I'm too tired," Tsukasa stifled another yawn, "Come on... Let's go."

"Now don't be like that, Tsukasa," Someone else said, "Just tell them some things about us."

Tsukasa groaned, recognizing the voice, "What are you doing here? How did you even know we were here?"

"Come on, Tsukasa," Daiki Kaitou stepped out from behind of a nearby tree, "You know me better than that."

2019: Pseudo-World of Zi-O...

"This universe is much more peaceful than Remnant..." Ruby was quiet. Learning more about a World without Grimms made her feel strange along with the others.

"Well... There's still a lot of problems in the Rider Worlds." Eiji tried to say to make those from Remnant feel better.

"Like?"

"Uh..." Eiji was drawing a blank, "Well... We still have lots of monsters running around, and we don't exactly have Huntsmen to deal with them."

"But they have you guys."

"That's true, but not all of us necessarily are interested in fighting monsters."

"What does that mean?"

"What I mean is, not all Riders are good."

2005: World of Blade...

"Hey!" Sougo pointed at the man dressed in white, "You're the guy who saved me!"

"You are...Daiki Kaitou, right?" Blake asked the mysterious man.

"Tsukasa told you about me? I'm touched," Kaitou said with a happy tone, or at least seemed to have that tone, "As he had said, I'm Kamen Rider DiEnd, Kaitou Daiki."

"You're insufferable," Tsukasa was not having any of it, "What are you doing here?"

"Geez, someone's pretty cranky," The cyan Kamen Rider said, "Have you not considered that I'm just here to see how you're doing?"

"If you're not going to tell me who Another Decade is, then we're leaving. Come on." The traveler turned around, not wanting to deal with Kaitou.

"Oh, come on," Kaitou said, "There's something I need to know first."

"What?"

"Why are you bringing him-" Kaitou gestured to Sougo, "-into the past?"

"Shouldn't you know already? Isn't that why you're here?"

"Just to be sure."

"...We're leaving." Tsukasa repeated.

"Sorry, Tsukasa," Kaitou apologized for some reason, "I didn't really want to do this... Nah, I came here exactly to do this."

Before any of them could react, the treasure hunter threw out his hand. The next second, Tsukasa was alone in the forest, with no one else in sight.

"...The Worlds hate me."

?: Unknown World...

None of them knew what happened. One second, the three of them were in a forest. The next, it was nighttime and they found themselves in an alleyway in a city.

"What the-" "What happened?!"

"So, Sougo," Near them, Kaitou was looking around the area, "Can you venture a guess as to where we are?"

"Did you just kidnap us?!"

"I did not kidnap you guys... I abducted."

"Is there a difference?!"

"I have no idea."

"...Where did you take us?"

"I'll give you a hint, Sougo," Kaitou turned back to the teen, "The one in the mirror shows your true self."

"...What?" Sougo had no idea what his abductor meant by that.

"You'll find out soon enough. Take a walk around. I'll be nearby." Before any of them could react, Kaitou had opened another dimensional wall and left.

"...Did he just leave us here?" Ren was still trying to process what had happened in the last 30 seconds.

"I think he just did."

2019: Pseudo-World of Zi-O...

"Man... Remnant really drew the short stick compared to this place." The more Yang learned of Earth, the more her home World seemed worse.

"I mean...I did say that Earth has its own share of problems." Eiji, once again, tried to downplay the Rider Worlds' prosperity.

"Umm… On an unrelated note," Pyrrha said, "When do you think the professor is going to return?"

"That's hard to say. I'm not even sure why Tsukasa even took off to," Eiji admitted, "I'm pretty sure he'll be back by tomorrow."

"That will still take a while," Weiss couldn't help but complain a bit, "Wasn't it you who said that months could have passed the longer we stay here?"

"Kind of. Tsukasa was the one that told us that in the first place."

As if he sensed his name being mentioned, a dimensional wall appeared, Tsukasa himself emerging out of it.

"...I've got good news and bad news." The Destroyer of Worlds said, looking completely exhausted.

"Uh...Sir? Where are the others?" Ruby noticed the conspicuous absence of their friends.

"Bad news first, they were kidnapped by Kaitou."

"What!?" "Kaitou?!" "How!?"

"In my defense," Tsukasa said, "I'm tired, and Kaitou still had his ability to stop time."

"Wait, since when did Kaitou can stop time?!" Eiji was hearing that fact for the first time and was completely shocked.

"Good news, Sougo is starting to remember his old life."

"But he's been kidnapped!"

Destroy Everything!

Connect Everything!

A/N: Got burned it again, so this chapter is going up looking a bit like a wreck. Then again, that is how most of the chapters tend to come out. Basically, I write the chapters whenever I think I get a good idea going.

First things first, I loved today's (31/10) Ultraman Z episode. Ace is one of my favorite Showa Ultras and I have been waiting for today ever since I saw those scans. Also, Ace being Z's godfather was not something I saw coming.

Second of all, Kaitou abducted the trio and is sending them to other Worlds by themselves. What would happen next? I don't know yet. I only had the Worlds that in this and last chapter figured out. Other than that, I've got nothing lined up yet. I didn't even plan on Kaitou abducting them until I reached that part.

If you guys wanna suggest some episode to features, then, by all means, do so.

Finally, as usual, please leave a review telling what you think of this chapter as well as any mistake you may have spotted. I don't really proof-read these chapters.