Disclaimer: I don't own anything that doesn't belong to me.

…

"Luuma Gonga Lujuna!"

With a flick of Ariel's wand, magic circles materialized over each of their heads and passed over their bodies, causing them to flash briefly. It also filled them with a warm, tingly feeling which didn't last nearly as long as they would've liked.

"There," the sorceress declared. "That should keep us safe from the fungus." She frowned. "At least, I hope it will. It worked to vaccinate my parents, aunt, and uncle from getting infected by Hades Beast Fungal Mold, so in theory it should work on cosmic space fungus, too."

"We'll find out one way or another soon enough," Goro said grimly.

"Thank you, Ariel," Nushi thanked the fox, smiling at her. The positive emotions that elicited in the mage triggered similar emotions in the team leader, and they – reluctantly – had to glance away to keep from being caught in an adorable but rather inconvenient feedback loop.

"Since we are connected to you through the Buzzing, that means we know all of your spells," Mibojin spoke up. "Should that not mean we can cast them, as well?"

"Let me try," Shin volunteered, rising to the occasion. "Majuna Majuna!"

Nothing happened.

"Majuna Majuna!" Ariel echoed, twirling her wand.

And suddenly, Shin disappeared.

"You have no idea how useful this would've been back in the day," the now-invisible Kamen Rider remarked.

"It would be very useful in my line of work as well," Mibojin observed. "So why were you unable to successfully cast the spell?"

"It's one thing to know the incantation, it's another to have the power to pull it off," Ariel explained. "I'm a Heavenly Saint, which means I'm literally made of magic. Casting spells is second nature to me. For a human to do it, they either need to have the Gift – either through bloodline, blessing from a Heavenly Saint or other magical patron, or quirk of fate – draw power from some sort of artifact, or sell your soul to a willing buyer. There are also some people who've managed to obtain magic through years of study and meditation, but it's really tricky to pull off."

"Or you could subjugate your inner Phantom," Shin, still invisible, added.

Ariel made a face. "Yeah, but that's easier said than done. Plus, it only works for people with a certain threshold of magical potential, which all of you lack."

"You're a Heavenly Saint. Can you empower us?" A curious Nushi asked. "It could certainly be useful for the fights ahead."

Ariel shook her head. "I'm way too young to even think about doing something like that. I wouldn't even know where to start. I guess I could petition Arch Saint Magiel, but I don't know if anything will come of it."

"That's fine," Goro assured her. "We can probably make do with what we've already got."

"Indeed," Formic agreed. "None of my previous champions have relied on magic before, and things turned out just fine."

"Well I for one am eager to see what sorts of magic you can pull off," Lepidoptera told Ariel. "All of my champions have been dreamers, artists, actors and performers… But I've never had a magician! Not a real one! I'm excited to see what sort of a show you'll put on!"

"I'll be sure to make it a good one," Ariel promised.

Shin, in the meantime, had pulled a tablecloth from one of the tables and thrown it over his head and was now menacing Goro, who looked as if he was having trouble holding back laughter. "Oooooh. I am a ghost. Oooooh. My name is Takeru Tenkuji, and I'm terrible at meeting literal deadlines or avoiding dying all the time! My life is burning bright! I believe in myself! Ooooooh."

"Cut it out!" Goro cried, finally giving into laughter.

His amusement flowed into everyone through the Buzzing, making them feel like laughing as well. Even Mibojin managed to crack a smile.

Chuckling, Nushi gazed out the window of the dining car, out into the endless wastes of time. "If you told me a month ago that I would be the leader of a team of empowered champions chosen by my idol to protect the world, I wouldn't have believed you, "she told Coccinella, grinning. "If you told me that I'd also get to ride around in an honest-to-goodness Time Machine owned by a guy currently doing a terrible impression of Kamen Rider Ghost-"

"I'll have you know my impression is spot on!" Shin insisted.

"– As well, I'd have laughed you out of the room," Nushi finished.

"And yet here we are," Coccinella replied.

Nushi nodded, glancing over her shoulder with a fond smile as Shin playfully chased Goro around the car while Ariel animated other tablecloth to act as Shin's ghostly minions and Mibojin just watched from a bar stool, rolling her eyes in amusement and sipping some wine. "Here we are," she agreed, basking in the thoughts and feelings of the four vibrant souls she was eternally bound to, and the millions of other souls all connected through the Buzzing.

It was good that they were having this moment of levity, especially given what they were about to face.

Nushi immediately regretted thinking that, as the same thought spread to her companions, dampening the mood significantly. Shin awkwardly pulled off the tablecloth, no longer in the mood to play pretend, and a contrite Ariel put the other tablecloth back and dispelled his invisibility. Goro tapped a foot on the ground uncomfortably and folded his arms, glancing away.

Nushi cringed. She knew they needed to focus on the coming battle, but she hadn't wanted to bring everyone down like this.

"Shin," Mibojin asked suddenly. "Why does Time look like a desert?"

Shin glanced out the window. "Well, have you ever heard of the sands of time?"

"Yes."

Shin gestured at the desert. "There you go."

Goro frowned. "Really?"

Shin shrugged. "The hell if I know. I know enough about time travel to know that I know absolutely nothing about time travel, which, honestly, may be for the best. I have a train that can take me just about anywhere and anywhen I want, and I have no desire to look under the hood and figure out how it works. Doubt I'd understand it, anyway."

"Probably for the best," Caelifer chimed in. "The Hive has always stayed away from time travel for a reason. It's always more trouble than it's worth."

"You don't seem to have a problem riding in this train," Manti pointed out.

The robot grasshopper shrugged. "Desperate times. Plus, it's not as if the Hive made this train, did we?"

"Maybe not, but I bet it could do with a few upgrades," Nushi murmured as she glanced around, already reviewing everything she knew about Hive technology and contemplating how it could be integrated with the ShinLiner. "Shin, I don't suppose you have the plans for the train somewhere, do you?"

"You'd have to ask Cart about that, she's the one really keeping this thing going," the Kamen Rider replied, similarly intrigued and wondering if his Machine ShinBird could be upgraded as well.

With a chime, the door slid open and Cart entered the room, pushing a trolley. "Hello, Master and honored guests! I bought snacks!"

"And speak of the gynoid! Cart, do you think you could send Nushi the schematics for the train? She thinks we can integrate it with Hive technology to make it even better," Shin told his attendant. "Heck, we might even be able to turn this thing into the best time train in existence!"

"In principle, I'm strongly opposed to this idea," Caelifer said loudly.

"That's not going to stop us from doing it," Shin told him.

"No, but if the Queen doesn't grant her approval, you won't," Caelifer argued.

I'm okay with it. While I'm not exactly comfortable with time travel myself, given that we may be forced to rely on it – or least the ShinLiner's transport and combat functionality – in the days to come, I'm kind of curious to see what you can come up with, the Queen spoke up through the Buzzing.

"Oh. Well, I'm still opposed to it," Caelifer grumbled, mildly annoyed. "Just getting that out there."

"None of us really care," Manti said dryly. He glowered at her.

Cart considered as she distributed sweets to the five champions, grateful to have something to eat for the first time in weeks. (Not that they were starving, the honey they been submerged in had been very filling, but it was nice to actually be able to eat something after being under for so long.) "I believe that is well within the realm of possibility. Queen Apista actually offered to upgrade the train in the weeks you were gone, but I am not allowed to authorize any changes to the ShinLiner without your permission. But now that it has been granted… I will transmit the plans to Mistress Nushi right away."

Nushi's pocket vibrated, and she took out her Hiden RisePhone – because how could she not have a phone from a company that made really cool androids and was led by a man who could turn into a grasshopper-themed hero and a staunch supporter of nonhuman rights? – a notification that she had just received a substantial data packet flashing on the screen. "Thanks, Cart!" She said warmly…

And frowned, noticing what had to be dozens of other notifications of missed emails, texts, and phone calls. Puzzled, she unlocked her phone and started scrolling through them, noticing, to her growing alarm, most of them were from home.

"Guys," she said slowly, a substantial feeling of dread rising up within her and spilling out to her friends. "Did any of us think to notify our families that we were going to be out of touch for several weeks while we underwent metamorphosis?"

The shock and horror which blasted out from everyone (except for Mibojin, who regularly was out of touch for lengthy periods of time due to her work) was answer enough for her.

Don't worry, I made sure to contact your families to let them know you would be gone for a while and why, Apista assured him.

Everyone sighed in relief. "Thank you, your Majesty," Goro told her gratefully.

"Then what's with all the messages?" Shin wondered.

"Most of these are from within the last several minutes," Ariel reported, scrolling through her notifications. "When the invasion started, they probably tried to get in touch with us since they knew we would probably be heading right towards the action."

"You should reach out to them," Lepidoptera suggested. "They're probably worried sick."

"Do we have time to catch up with them before we get to Munich?" Nushi asked Shin.

"Uhhh…" He glanced at Cart, who nodded. "Yes. Yes, we do."

"Wait, why do we even have reception in here?" Goro wondered aloud as everyone quickly unlocked their phones and started calling their loved ones.

"Oh, we have a great service plan," Shin told him, holding his phone up to his ear hole.

"… But… We're time traveling… Oh, never mind," Goro sighed, deciding it wasn't worth pushing the issue and quickly called home.

"Hello?"

"Dad! It's me!" Nushi exclaimed.

"Nushi!" Her father exclaimed in relief. "Honey, are you all right? The planet is under attack!"

"I know, we're already on our way," Nushi informed him. "We woke up…"

She checked her phone's clock. Its digits were spinning out of control.

"I don't actually know when," she admitted. "We're traveling through time right now so it's kind of hard to tell."

There was a pause. "… I'm sorry, you're what?"

"One of my teammates is Kamen Rider Shin," she explained.

"Oh! That's right, he has his own time train!" Her father recalled. "That's amazing! You have to tell me everything about it! And if you could get him to open up a bit about his biology-"

"He doesn't like to talk about it."

"Oh," her father murmured in disappointment. "Well… I guess that makes sense – wait, you're working with a Kamen Rider? I thought this was a Super Sentai sort of thing!"

Nushi shrugged, even though she knew her father couldn't see it. "Yeah, he was just as surprised as the rest of us."

"Well, at least you've got a veteran hero looking out for you," her father said in relief. "And… I believe Queen Apista mentioned that you're the team leader? That's incredible! Nushi, I always knew you were destined for great things, but this blows all of our expectations out of the water! Honey, I'm so proud of you!"

She smiled, trying not to cry. "Thanks, dad. And… The Buzzing? I'm hooked up to it, even as we speak, and it's even more beautiful than we ever dreamed."

"Oh, honey," her father whispered. "… I don't suppose you could pull some strings and get me hooked up as well?"

She laughed at that. "I'll see what I can do, dad." Your Majesty?

I'll consider it.

"She says she'll consider it. Oh!" Nushi exclaimed, remembering the most important part. "I have friends now! And… Maybe a girlfriend?" She glanced at Ariel. The fox, who of course had been listening in on the conversation through the Buzzing, smiled and flashed her a thumb's-up, affection surging from her.

"That's wonderful!" Her father gushed. "Oh honey, we were so worried, after what happened a few years ago-"

He cut himself off.

Nushi bit her lip. Concern flooded her through the Buzzing, but she assured everyone she was fine. "… About that…"

"Yes?"

"We never talked about it, but… I need to know. Did you kill him?" Nushi asked.

There was no response.

"I won't be upset if you did," she was quick to assure him. "You've… You've always looked out for me. You've always protected me, when you could. I know my sperm donor isn't the only threat to our family that you… Dealt with. I accepted that part of you ages ago; you're not human, even though you're good at pretending to be, and your morals don't always line up with ours. You're my hero, and I promise I won't think any less of you if you killed him. I just… I'd like to know, that's all."

There was a long pause, followed by a deep breath. Finally, her father said, "No. No, I didn't kill him. I wanted to. I planned to, in fact. But someone else got to him first."

Although we cannot read him through the Buzzing, I believe he is telling the truth, Coccinella whispered through their connection.

I know. He would never lie to me, she said/thought back. "Do you have any idea who did it?"

"No, though if I did, I'd like to shake their hand," her father informed her. "You're not the only student there who had certain… Connections. Nor are you his first victim."

That didn't surprise her in the slightest. "At least he won't hurt anyone ever again."

"No. Just like you're going to make sure these invaders, this… Swarm won't hurt anyone ever again too, right?"

Nushi smiled and nodded. "I always promised I would make the world a better place. I never thought I'd have to do something as hands-on as this, though."

He chuckled. "Life rarely takes us where we expect it to go. When I came to China all those years ago, I never expected to have a daughter as wonderful as you. Now… If you have time, why don't I get your mother, and you can tell us about your new friends… And this girlfriend…"

Nushi groaned as amusement resonated from the others. "Daaaaaaaaaaad!"

"Where the hell have you been?! WEEKS without a word from you! I've been worried sick!" The dulcet tones of Goro's wife shrieked at him from his speaker.

"Darling, I thought the queen told you that I was going to be out of reach for a while," Goro told her in what he hoped was a soothing tone, cringing as he had to hold the phone away from his ear as more invectives blared from it.

"Oh, and you couldn't be bothered to tell me yourself? I had to hear it secondhand?!"

Goro grimaced. "That's… Yeah, sorry about that. Though to be fair, I didn't even KNOW I was going to be gone for weeks before the process began!"

"You should've called me anyway!" She cried, her anger giving way to worry and fear. "This is the longest I've ever gone without hearing your voice. I… I NEED you, Goro. You know that."

Goro sighed, closing his eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, I know."

A memory – two mismatched, slitted eyes giving him a pleading, desperate look as he and his squad barged into the underground auction – flashed through his mind. Their first meeting hadn't been under the best of circumstances.

"And now you're being deployed again, against an enemy bigger and scarier than anything you've ever fought before," she said quietly. "This isn't some group of terrorists or criminals, Goro. This is… This is out of your league. It's the sort of thing people in colorful costumes with giant robots fight, not soldiers." She hesitated for a moment, and then, almost in a whisper, said, "People like you… They don't usually do well in situations like this. They die in droves so the "real" heroes can look better."

If it weren't for the fact that this came from a place of love and concern, Goro might have been offended. Instead, he gently told her, "You know that I'm one of those people in colorful costumes with giant robots now, right?"

"Sometimes that's not enough," she replied, voice bleak and hopeless. "Sometimes, heroes die, Goro. And if… And if something should happen to you…" She started sniffling. "You and the kittens are all I've got, Goro. I can't… I can't do this without you."

The soldier's brow furrowed, dismayed. The others shot him concerned feelings, but he waved them off. "I've gone into active combat dozens of times, and you've never been this worried."

"I've always been worried, I just never told you," she admitted. "And all those times, it was different. You were up against smaller-scale threats, and had your squad to protect you."

"I have a squad now-"

"But I don't KNOW them!" She interrupted, frantic. "I'm not friends with their spouses, I don't carpool with them or have their kids over for play dates or birthday parties, and they… They weren't there when…"

Another memory. Soldiers wrapping blankets around terrified, malnourished zyumans as they were guided out into the fresh air, the sullen and angry elite who had dared to put a price on another person's life bloodied and beaten and futilely calling for their lawyers, a warm, furry paw in his hand…

"Kari," he told her softly. "This is my first mission with this team, but I can tell you, without hesitation, that I trust every single one of them as much as I trust my old squad, and while our leader is as yet untested, I believe she will soon be the Captain's equal, if not his better."

You really have that much faith in me? Nushi thought, awestruck. In all of us?

I do.

Kari seemed taken aback at this. "The Captain? Really?"

"Really."

This, at last, seemed to convince her. They both knew that the captain of Goro's unit was the only man Kari trusted as much as Goro himself, while Goro himself viewed the man as a second father. "I would like to meet them, this new team of yours."

"That can easily be arranged," he assured her. "Especially since it may be… Safer if you and the kids moved to Hive City with me. I'm going to be stationed there for the foreseeable future."

"Okay," she agreed easily enough. As a base wife, she and the kids were used to moving around the country whenever he and his squad were reassigned. They were a fairly tight-knit unit, so it was rare for them or their families to be separated for long, so the kittens rarely had to suffer the pain of having to say goodbye to new friends and schools whenever they had to be relocated for their father's work. "Speaking of which, I should put the kids on, they are eager to talk to you. But… One more question…"

He smiled fondly. "Yes?"

"Promise me you'll come back?"

"Always."

It was a promise he always made, and one he had yet to fail to keep.

"Mother."

"Daughter," Mibojin stated.

"You are well?"

"I am. The metamorphosis was a painless transformative experience. I am stronger and faster, and I look forward to putting my new abilities to the test in the field," she told her daughter.

"Excellent. I hope to see how you have improved the next time you visit."

"And what of you? Have you been keeping up with your studies?"

"I have. I believe I'll be ready to take my chunin exam in a few months. Will you be able to attend?"

"If my duties do not take me elsewhere."

"Understood," her daughter said with calm acceptance. They were both ninja. They understood this was how things had to be, and took whatever small pleasures they could get. "I hear you are to work on a team. Usually you are more of a lone Wolf ninja. Are you certain they will not hold you back?"

"They will not." This was not a brag, merely a statement of fact, as easily said as "water is wet" or "the sky is blue."

"All right. May you slay many fiends this day, mother."

"May you slay many fiends this day, daughter," Mibojin echoed back, the standard farewell for their clan.

Her daughter hung up.

"Very short and succinct," Manti commented, brimming with approval.

Yeah… If we weren't able to hear/smell/feel/taste your thoughts, we might've thought that was pretty cold, shin said/thought.

Mibojin shrugged. "We said what needed to be said. There was no point in frivolously wasting breath. We know what we mean to each other."

Think we could come to this exam? Goro asked.

"No."

"So that's basically the situation," Shin finished telling his girlfriend, Inago, and his son, Shiin.

Inago sighed. "You really stepped in it this time, didn't you, Shin?"

"Wouldn't be me otherwise," he grunted. "How are things on your end? Anyone trying to pull anything stupid?"

The community Inago had established, a safe place for retired monsters and henchmen eager to turn over a new leaf, was understandably a bit of a sticking point as far as the Japanese public was concerned, given that pretty much every member of the community had, at one point or another, threatened to kill if not actually killed a sizable number of people. And while these were, admittedly, legitimate grievances, that didn't make it right for certain politicians and overzealous members of law enforcement to use it as an excuse to stir up public outrage and try to get the refurbished slum shut down and all of its members deported, arrested, and/or executed whenever they needed a scapegoat or distraction from other, more serious problems.

While a sizable number of the hero community supported these reformed monsters, not all of them saw eye to eye on the issue, and if it weren't for Inago's tireless lobbying on her people's behalf, their home would probably have been torn down over a dozen times by now. Shin considered the town a second home when he was off the ShinLiner, since they had long accepted him despite – or rather, because of – his grotesque appearance and his relationship with Inago. His frequent advocating on their behalf, as well as preventing them from being exploited by Foundation X back before they really got their shit together, didn't hurt either.

Whenever there was an invasion or an attack, Monster Town was often under intense scrutiny by the rest of the nation, since of course they would probably flock to the sides of these new evildoers to aid them in crushing humanity the first chance they got.

(Okay, to be fair, whenever there was a big crossover event an alarming number of repeat offenders always popped up to cause trouble, but few if any of them lived in Monster Town! It was blatant racial profiling!)

Shiin sighed. "Same old same old. Soon as the Swarm appeared, some cops with a chip on their shoulder started showing up and threw their weight around to try and provoke a fight. Some of our younger and angrier guys nearly took the bait. I set them straight, though."

After permanently mutating into his current form, Shiin had moved to Monster Town, seeing as how he quickly found himself shunned due to his hideous appearance, and served as a local hero. Much like his father, he had been warmly embraced by the people there, who considered him one of them, a monster who also happened to be a Kamen Rider. Shin was happy for him, but sad that he'd been forced into such a position in the first place, yet another of his long list of regrets.

"Good job," Shin told his son proudly. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there to help."

"It's fine," Shiin was quick to assure his father. "You got called in. We go where we're needed, right?"

"Even so," Shin insisted, refusing to let himself off the hook. "I spent most of your life not being there when you needed me. I promised that wouldn't happen again."

"Dad, it's okay," Shiin insisted. "I forgave you for that a long time ago, remember?"

"I know," Shin admitted, smiling to himself as he felt compassion and understanding surging to him from his companions. "I'm just having trouble forgiving myself for it. But…"

He sent a reciprocal burst of gratitude back to his friends. "I think I'm getting there."

"It sounds like it," Inigo observed. "You sound… Different somehow."

"I am different," Shin replied. "This new change I've undergone, it… It's helped me deal with some things. Exorcised some of minor demons. Even made me a little less ugly," he joked.

"You've never been ugly to me," Inago insisted.

"Speak for yourself, I wouldn't mind getting a makeover," Shiin joked. His tone was half-serious, though.

That could be arranged, Apista told Shin.

"That could be arranged," Shin repeated.

"Wait, seriously?" Shiin asked, startled.

"Yeah. In fact-" His eyes lit up, struck by an idea. (Or had Apista planted it there? Eh, semantics.) "Inago, if the humans are being a problem, you could move everyone to Hive City. They'd be more than welcome there."

"Truly?" Inago asked in surprise.

"Truly," Shin replied, speaking – quite literally – with the authority of the Queen.

"… That's… A generous offer, but no. No, we can't do that," Inago said slowly, sounding more sure of herself by the moment. "We worked hard to set up Monster Town, Shin. We're finally starting to get recognized and swaying people to our cause. If we were to just pull up stakes and leave because we wanted to avoid trouble, we would be giving up, admitting that no, we can't find a place in society along with the other, more 'socially acceptable' nonhumans. You don't win a war by running away."

Shin sensed a sharp stab of guilt from the Queen at that. Hastily reassuring her, along with the rest of the Hive, that no, she hadn't run away, Shin said, "Yeah, that makes sense. Still, I thought I should put the option out there."

"Thank you for that," Inago told him.

"What if I got you a meeting with the Queen?" Shin asked, struck by another idea. (Or was it Apista again? Whatever.) "Surely there has to be something we can do to help. Like, I don't know, an official statement that Monster Town has no affiliation with the Swarm? At the very least, you meeting with her would make for good PR."

"That's… An interesting idea," Inago murmured. "Can I get back to you on that?"

"Sure," Shin assured her.

"Dad," Shiin spoke up. "I don't mean to sour the mood, but… This is going to be a bit more involved and longer-term than your usual battles. Are you sure you've got this? I can come over and help."

Shin rolled his eyes. "Setting aside the fact that you'd never make it to Munich in time… Shouldn't it be the father who's worried for his son, and not the other way around?"

"Dad. Be serious," Shiin said firmly.

"I've got this," Shin promised. "The people who've got my back? I trust them with my life, just as I would trust you, or Inago, or Mole Beastman."

"I hope you're right," Inago said seriously. "Because if you don't come back, I will kill them."

Shin was well aware this wasn't hyperbole.

"It won't come to that," Shin insisted, as his teammates promised him the same thing. "I will return to you. Both of you. And Inago?"

"Yes?"

Shin thought of the unopened box currently sitting in a drawer next to his bed.

"When I get back," he told her softly. "There's something I need to ask you. Something very important…"

"Sweetie, you look incredible!" Ariel's mother, Urara Ozu – also known as MagiBlue – gushed, the eyes of her holographic projection running up and down her daughter's body in joy.

"Amazing. You shouldn't have grown another tail for a few more centuries, let alone two," her father, Hikaru – also known as Heavenly Saint Sungel – observed, also there in holographic form, he and his wife projected by Ariel's MagiPhone NX. "And this isn't the result of time magic?"

Ariel shook her head. "No, just alien super-science which helped me access more of my full potential."

"Remarkable."

"I'm so proud of you, Ariel!" Urara cried. "You're going to be a Sentai, just like your parents!"

"You aren't disappointed I'm not going to be a Magiranger like you or the rest of the family?" Ariel asked, a bit of anxiety welling up, only for the reassurance of her friends to help her get it under control.

"Disappointed? Of course not!" Urara exclaimed.

"Well, we did sort of always assume that if you chose to follow in our heroic footsteps, you would be part of the team," Hikaru admitted.

"Hikaru!" Urara cried angrily.

"But we would've been proud of you, no matter what path you took in life," Hikaru was quick to say.

"Exactly," Urara agreed happily.

"Unless you became evil."

"HIKARU!" Urara yelled. "My father was evil!"

"Not willingly!" Hikaru protested. "And it didn't last for very long!"

"15 years isn't 'not very long!'" Urara argued.

"It isn't for us!" Hikaru insisted.

Ariel burst into laughter. "I love you guys so much, you know that, right? I hope that when I get married, my partner will be someone I can have as wonderful a relationship with as you two."

From the worrying gleam in their eyes, Ariel immediately knew she'd made a terrible mistake, and from the way her teammates were silently laughing, she knew she would get no help from them. "Speaking of…" Hikaru began.

Ariel facepalmed. "Can we not talk about this?"

"We just don't want you to be lonely, dear," Urara insisted. "You're always traveling, never staying in any one place for very long…"

Memories of dozens of extremely enjoyable nights in numerous hotel rooms and suites around the world flashed through her mind, to the mingled amusement and dismay of her friends. Nushi made an absolutely adorable squeak, and Ariel immediately vowed she was going to find new and innovative ways to make her make that sound again. "Trust me, I was far from lonely…" She muttered under her breath.

"We just want you to be happy, dear!" Urara continued. "And to make me a grandmother."

Ariel facepalmed again as the laughs stopped being silent. "MOM! I have a-" She paused and glanced at Nushi. What are we?

The scholar shrugged unhelpfully.

Rolling her eyes, Ariel continued. "Girlfriend! Sort of. There's this… this thing between me and the team leader that doesn't exactly translate well to speech, and we aren't together together just yet but I think we're going to be, and-"

Urara squealed in joy. "That's wonderful! Can we meet her?"

Ariel glanced at Nushi, only to find that her fearless leader was hiding rather ineffectually under a table. She glared at her. Really?

Well, are you ready to meet my parents? She shot back.

Good point. "Not right now."

Urara was visibly disappointed. Changing the subject, Hikaru said, "Ariel. I notice you aren't in your human form."

Ariel nodded. "Yeah. I don't really feel like wearing a disguise right now. My teammates are fine with me no matter what I look like. If I want to be human, I'll be human, but for now, I feel like stretching my tails. Is that okay?"

Hikaru smiled and said, "It's fine. More than fine, really. If this is what you're comfortable with, and your friends don't mind, then it's no problem at all."

"We're just happy to see that you finally have friends outside of our usual circles whom you feel comfortable enough being with to show your true self," Urara added. "You know that we never, EVER meant for you to feel like it was wrong to be anything other than yourself, right?

"I know," Ariel replied, and she did. "You were just trying to look out for me, like you always have. Just like you're doing now. And I'm glad that you do, even if it can be a little annoying at times. I know that not everyone is lucky to have a family as magical – literally and figuratively – as mine."

"And speaking of the family," Urara spoke up. "All of us are more than willing to lend a hand. We're just a phone call away."

"Your grandmother had to hide your grandfather's armor to keep him from rushing out to join you," Hikaru noted sardonically. "And your uncle Kai would already be there if he weren't down in Infershia. Sphinx should be due any day now."

Ariel laughed at that. "That sounds right. Thank you, but no. This is my battle, mine and my friends. After all, the Magirangers protect the world from magical threats, not alien invaders, so it would be kind of weird to fight something not in your lane."

"Except when we do," Urara pointed out.

"Well, yes, during crossovers," Ariel admitted. "I suppose it's not out of the realm of possibility that we'll have one of those eventually."

"If we do, we'll be ready," Hikaru said seriously. "These Swarm invaders aren't like Infershia. They tried to destroy the planet as an opening act. The last time an enemy tried something so brazen was the Zangyack, and we lost our powers for a full year as a result and would've been defenseless if those space pirates hadn't shown up. Be careful, Ariel. Be very careful."

"I will," Ariel promised. "You don't have to worry about me."

Hikaru smiled sadly. "I'm your father, Ariel. I'll always worry about you."

"But for now, we will leave the world in your more than capable hands," Urara said, eyes glittering with pride. "Our wonderful daughter… Who is most certainly superior to her cousin in every way."

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "Urara…"

"What? Houka has been bragging about how her daughter got the lead in her school play for weeks now!" Urara snapped. "She needs a reminder as to which of us has the more accomplished daughter!"

Hikaru groaned. "This is why I'm glad I was an only child…"

Ariel laughed. Magiel, she loved this family. "I'm glad all of you are so willing to help. But for now, just tell everyone to sit back and watch the show." She winked. "Because you know if I'm involved, it's going to be a good one!"

"We will be arriving in Munich in five minutes," Cart suddenly announced, startling everyone. "Please prepare to disembark shortly."

The heroes hurriedly said their goodbyes to their loved ones – except of course for Mibojin, who'd been done for several minutes and had been listening in on everyone else in amusement – and hung up.

"Five minutes," Shin murmured. "That's not a lot of time."

"We haven't even had a chance to form a plan of attack," Goro said in concern.

"Well, from what I've seen in your years of military experience, no plan survives first contact with the enemy," Nushi pointed out. "Plus, we don't really know that much about what we're heading into, since it's clear the Swarm has changed their tactics for this invasion so all the information we have on them from what they're doing back in the Hive proper is out of date. So… Wouldn't we be better off just going in without any plan at all and playing it by ear?"

They considered this for a moment.

"That's… Leaving a bit more up to a chance then I'd like, but I don't really see much of an alternative," Goro confessed.

"There is something to be said for going with the flow," Mibojin admitted. "A warrior must be able to bend like a reed, lest she be broken like a twig."

"I do it all the time," Shin agreed.

"I usually prefer to follow a script, but I know from experience it pays to be flexible," Ariel spoke up. She winked at Nushi. "And trust me when I say that I can be very flexible."

Nushi turned very red as Ariel – either consciously or unconsciously – transmitted thoughts that made it absolutely clear what she meant by that. Shin and Goro winced, and Mibojin was utterly impassive.

"Please do not do that in the field, it would be very distracting," the ninja said flatly.

"Starting to see a downside to being connected 24/7," Shin grunted, though they all sensed he didn't entirely mean it.

"Something we'll all just have to get used to," Goro said with a shrug. "Not like we really have a choice."

"You did have a choice though," Formic pointed out.

"And you chose this," Caelifer added.

None of them had any argument for that.

Nushi took a deep breath. "Okay. Once we get there, it's probably going to be hell. Are you guys ready? Because I don't think I am. Not entirely. I mean, all of you have experience with this sort of thing, while I… Well, all I've got is my time in your heads, and that's no substitute for the real thing."

"It will seem scary at first," Coccinella admitted. "But once you transform, your combat instincts should take over and help see you through it. Just focus on doing what's necessary and trust that your team will have your back."

"Because we will," Goro promised.

"Always," Ariel said with uncharacteristic seriousness.

"Because we know you've got our back as well," Shin agreed.

Tearing up, Nushi grabbed the three of them and pulled them into a hug, love and trust and friendship flowing in a circle between them, reinforcing their bond. "You guys… Mibojin! Get over here!"

"Must I?" The ninja asked. "I'm not really one for physical affection."

"Yes!" They all replied.

"You really should," Manti suggested.

Mibojin sighed, got off her stool, and awkwardly joined the hug. It was stiff and a little uncomfortable, but they could all sense that she enjoyed it more than she let on.

Suddenly, they felt a sixth person join their embrace, one not connected to them through the Buzzing. Someone hard and cold.

"Cart, what are you doing?" Shin asked his attendant.

"Sorry, Master, I couldn't resist," the gynoid apologized.

Shin rolled his eyes but chuckled good-naturedly. "Oh, very well, I suppose it can't hurt."

"Also, we will be arriving in one minute."

Reluctantly, the team pulled apart. Nushi regarded each of her friends, as they regarded her in turn. They believed and trusted in her, just as she believed and trusted in them.

She would not prove their faith to be a lie. She may not be a seasoned combatant, but she was chosen to lead for a reason, and so lead she would.

Watch over us, your Majesty, she briefly prayed to Apista.

Always, was the reply.

"Okay, everyone," she said aloud. "This is it. The Swarm has declared war on us, and it's up to us to repel their first attack. It's probably going to be tough and a little scary – I mean seriously, they look all kinds of messed up, even if from an entomological standpoint I'm fascinated by their biology – but we're tougher. Earth has been invaded countless times throughout the years, and we've always managed to survive thanks to the efforts and sacrifice of the best humanity has to offer."

She pounded a fist into her palm. "And now it's our turn. We cannot afford to lose. We will win this battle, and every battle to come, until the Swarm is defeated forever, the world is safe again, and Queen Apista is able to reclaim her throne on Hive Prime."

She extended her hand. "For Hive and Queen."

Goro laid his hand on top of hers. "For planet Earth."

Mibojin put her hand on top of theirs. "For our families."

Shin put his hand on top of theirs. "And our friends."

Ariel put her hand on top of all theirs, topping them off. "And for ourselves."

The Buzzing lit up as they replayed the last few minutes; their conversations with their families and loved ones. While perhaps they may have taken up time they could've used to strategize, they didn't regret a second of it, for it reminded them of what was most important… What they were fighting for.

"Who are we?" Nushi cried.

"SUPER SENTAI!" They shouted, throwing their hands into the air.

The ShinLiner's horn blew as they exited the sands of time and returned to Earth, soaring through the skies of Bavaria.

In a household in China, a JSDF base, a secret dojo, a Monster Town bar, a palace in Magitopia, and in the heart of Hive City, several individuals observed the situation with interest and more than a little trepidation, knowing that the people they cared about most in the world were about to enter their greatest challenge yet.

The time had come at last. Their first battle was about to begin.