第1章:不愉快 CHANGE

Chapter 1: an Unwelcome Change

Shortly after they left town, they reached a forest that Chrom said was a short way west of the capital. It wasn't long until the sun started to set.

"I told you—it's getting dark already! ...Ech! And now the bugs are out! Noisy, disgusting bugs that buzz around and crawl all over and bite you when—" Lissa complained until a bug flew into her mouth. "Agh! Won goph in mah mouph! Blech! Ptooey!" She tried to spit it out.

"Aw, come on now, Lissa. Hardship builds character. Want to help me gather firewood?" Chrom teased.

"Tpht! Tpht! Yeeeeeuck! ...I think I swallowed it…" Lissa continued to complain. "I'll pass on finding firewood, thanks. I think I've built QUITE enough character for one day!" She then snapped at Chrom.

"We should probably get some food." James suggested

"Yes, I should think a little hunting and gathering is in order. Now, who wants to clear a campsite?" Frederick added.

"I'll do it." James offered.

It wasn't long until Everyone was sitting around a campfire with a good amount of meat in front of them. "Mmm... It's been too long since I last had bear meat. Delicious!" Chrom remarked until he noticed that Lissa wasn't eating. "What's wrong, Lissa? Dig in."

"Pass! ...Gods, couldn't you spear us an animal normal people eat for once?" Lissa complained "I mean, come on! Who eats bear?! You're meddling with the food chain. Right, James? ...Uh, James?" She looked over to the Tactician, only to find him completely absorbed in his meal.

"I suppose a person would enjoy just about anything after not eating for days…" Lissa sighed.

"Just eat it, Lissa. Meat is meat." Chrom requested.

"Since when does meat smell like old boots?! Wait, I take that back—boots smell better!" she continued to complain.

"Every experience makes us stronger, milady. Even those we don't enjoy." Frederick countered.

Lissa pouted until she noticed something. "Really? Then why don't I see YOU eating, Frederick?" She pointed out.

"Me? Oh, well... I'm not hungry. I...I had a large lunch! Yes, quite." he responded, though this was clearly just an excuse.

"Yeah right, Frederick!" Lissa protested.

About an hour later, Chrom and Lissa had fallen asleep. James on the other hand was wide awake, staring at Mighty Action X. Soon, Frederick returned from patrolling the immediate area.

"I see you're still awake." He remarked as he sat down next to James.

"Can't sleep." James admitted.

Frederick noticed the gashat in his hand. "That was the first time you took a life, wasn't it." James nodded. "It pains to say this but, that feeling will never go away, you simply grow used to it." He said calmly. That didn't seem to do anything to improve how James was feeling.

"Your swordplay needs work." Frederick commented, causing James to look up at him. "If you can't sleep then we might as well train." Frederick said as he lifted a bronze sword he purchased in town.

James Nodded and pressed the button on his gashat.

Mighty Action X!

He summoned his weapon without transforming.

Gashacon Breaker!

Ja Kīn!

From there, Frederick started to train James in proper swordsmanship.

Some time later, James and Frederick were sound asleep. James cuddling the Gashacon Breaker as he slept. As the two slept, something woke Chrom.

"Huh?" he said as he woke.

This was enough to wake Lissa somehow, despite her not even noticing James and Frederick's training.

"What's wrong, Big Brother?" Lissa yawned.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, but... Something is amiss…" Chrom apologized.

"Define "something"." Lissa questioned.

"I'm not sure... I think I'll have a look around." Chrom said as he picked up his sword.

"Not alone, you won't! I'm coming too." Lissa insisted, grabbing her staff.

Chrom nodded "Heh. Thanks, Lissa." he said as they started going.

As they walked they felt that something was wrong. "It sure is dark." Lissa said before realizing something. "And quiet. Where did the birds go?"

"Something is wrong here." As soon as Chrom said that, the ground started violently shaking.

"Aaah! Chrom!" Lissa shouted as she clinged to her brother.

"Gods, what is this madness?! Lissa, stay close!" Chrom ordered until felt something change. " Lissa, run." he ordered.

"Huh?" she questioned, confused.

"I mean it! Go!" Chrom shouted. She listened and the two started running to find James and Frederick. As they did, the earth split open and lava poured out. Flaming rocks were launched from the crevice. Causing large parts of the forest to catch fire.

The two ran as fast as they could. "Hey! This Way!" Chrom said as he turned towards their camp.

Once they had escaped the flaming part of the forest, they stopped to catch their breath. Lissa looked up and saw something. "Chrom, what IS that?!" The sky seemed fold in on itself for a moment as light gathered in one point. It then dispersed, leaving a ring of symbols around a group of floating crystals. The crystals opened like an eye. Two figures fell from the eye.

After they landed, they began to stand up, the looked almost human. Their skin was ash-grey, their eyes glow red. Both of them carried an ax. One of them rushed Chrom, he blocked the attack and slashed its stomach. The creature turned around to attack again. Chrom knocked it down and stabbed its back, causing it to dissolve into a black missed.

Chrom heard Lissa scream, he turned to see one of the creatures approaching her. Chrom ran as fast as he could as Lissa saw someone leap from the eye in the sky. When they landed, they sprinted in between Lissa and the creature's axe, blocking it with their sword. The person was a blue-haired man with a mask covering most of his face.

"Help!" The man called to Chrom, as the creature was still pressing down on their sword. Chrom snapped out of his distracted state as a result of seeing someone jump out the sky. Chrom nodded his head and ran at the creature, causing it to raise its head and ax, leaving for both swordsmen to attack, causing it to dissolve.

Chrom looked to the masked man. "Quite an entrance. What's your name?" before he could get an answer however, Frederick and James both made an appearance.

"Milord! Milady! Are you hurt?" Frederick questioned as he arrived.

"Frederick! James!" Lissa shouted as she ran to them for cover.

"Are these things normal?" James asked as he looked at the creatures.

"They most certainly are not." Frederick responded. "And no one is injured, thank the gods."

"Thank the masked man who saved me! If it wasn't for him, I'd be…" Lissa said as she looked towards where the man was, only to see he was gone. "Hey, where did he go?"

"We can worry about that after these things are dead!" James said as he put on the Gamer Driver.

Chrom nodded as looked to the group of creatures that was approaching the western edge of the forest.

As James prepared to fight he noticed a pair of forts nearby, he quickly came up with a plan. "Chrom, you take shelter in that fort to the south, it should give you an advantage." Chrom nodded "Frederick, you go through the forest and take the monsters by surprise, Lissa you stay with him, just in case." They both nodded. "I'll head to northern fort and draw their attention." he raised the gashacon breaker. "On my mark, GO!" James and Chrom ran to the forts as Frederick and Lissa moved through the forest.

Once at his fort Chrom fought and injured one of the monsters, however it was soon drawn away when James enacted his plan.

James stood at the highest point of the fort and pressed the button on his gashat.

Mighty Action X!

He pressed the B button on the breaker and threw it skyward.

Ba Kōn!

"Henshin" he inserted the gashat into the driver.

Gashatto! Let's Game! Metcha Game! Mutcha Game! What's your name?!

He tapped his icon.

"I'm a Kamen Rider!"

His transformation drew the attention of most of the monsters. He was able to fight off the horde for a few minutes, until someone came out of the forest. It was a female red haired mounted knight, with someone riding with her on her horse.

Ex-Aid tapped on scanning mode and zoomed in allowing him to see who was with her. It took him a second until he realized that it was Yume.

"Captain Chrom! Wait! I'm coming!" She called out until she saw the monsters. "Agh, I knew I shouldn'ta left 'em. All right, you ash-faced freaks! Which one of ya wants to try my lance on for size first? I know just the spot for it: shoved right up your—" She started to shout until a man with light blue hair and fancy clothes followed them out of forest.

"Hold, milady!" The man said.

"Muh?" the knight said as she and Yume gave him a strange look.

He took Yume's hand "Life may be long, but attraction is fleeting! You must stay by my side so that I may protect you." he said trying to sound impressive.

"Uh, who are you?" Yume said sounding annoyed.

"Ha! Is the lady intrigued?" he said still trying to be impressive. "Of course you are—it's only natural. I am myth and legend! I am he who strides large across history's greatest stage! The man who puts the "arch" in "archer"! My name, dear lady, is Vi—"

"I'm sorry, but I think we should get going." Yume said before the knight's horse started moving towards the battle.

"Virion! ...Er, my name. It's Virion. W-wait! Where are you going? Pray, at least tell me your name!" he got out as he tried to follow.

The knight stopped so he could catch up. "My name is Yume." She said politely.

""Yume"! How divine! A starkly beautiful name, as befits its owner, truly. Will you marry me, my dearest Yum—" he was interrupted by Yume smacking him on the head.

"If you want to impress me, it'll alot more then shallow flattery and boasting." She said firmly.

"I like you, I'm Sully be the way." the knight said shaking Yume's hand.

"Of course, then allow me to be of assistance." Virion insisted.

Seeing this, Ex-Aid had a wonderful idea. He took a deep breath and started shouting loud enough to heard by everyone in the area. "Oi! Fancy pants, you said you're an archer? Then cover Chrom! Sully, you help Frederick and drop Yume off with me!" The tactician instructed, everyone did as they were told.

Once Yume arrived at the fort, she was met with James, who had undone his transformation to talk to her. "Yume" he said "I know this sounds ridiculous, but the Gamer Driver and the gashats actually work."

She looked skeptical "Okay then, prove it." she said bluntly

James nodded and pressed the button on his gashat

Mighty Action X!

A screen appeared behind with the words 'Game Start' floating in front of him. "Okay, your turn." he said calmly as she pulled out her Gamer Driver and attached to her waist and pressed the button on her gashat.

Taddle Quest!

James nodded at her and the both held their gashats over the slots.

"Henshin!" they said together.

Gashatto! Let's Game! Metcha Game! Mutcha Game! What's your name?!

They both tapped their corresponding icons to transform.

"I'm a Kamen Rider!"

After the light died down Yume started to stumble do to the new body shape. Before she could fall, Ex-Aid caught. "Alright!" he said "Now you're Kamen Rider Brave Quest Gamer LV.1!"

Her helmet resembled a knight out of a fairy tale with a blue plumage. She also had blue shield.

"Alright, just focus on your weapon." Ex-Aid instructed

Gashacon Breaker!

"I'm trying but nothing's happening." Brave replied.

Ex-Aid put his hand to his 'chin' and thought for a moment. He then handed her a bronze sword he found in the fort. "This will have to do for the time being, now, let's go." he said as he rushed out of the fort.

They were met by a group of about fifteen of the monsters. Without saying a thing, Ex-Aid smashed one of the nearby blocks he had produced. Out of it came an object which looked like some sort of token, it quickly absorbed into Ex-Aid's body.

Muscle Up!

His body briefly bulked up as his strength increased. Brave did the same.

Speeding Up!

Her speed greatly increased. With Ex-Aid's strength made it so he could destroy the monsters in one blow, whereas Brave was fast enough that none of them could hit her.

It in a matter of minutes, the two reduced the enemy numbers to just one. This one however, stood seven feet tall and was much more aggressive, rushing at the riders as soon as they were in sight. Ex-Aid managed to dodge without a problem, Brave on the other hand took a blow from it's ax dead on, shattering her sword.

"Brave, It's time to level up." Ex-Aid suggested, to which Brave nodded.

"Dai Henshin!"

"Proceeding with level 2"

They both opened their levers.

Gachan! Level Up! Mighty Jump! Mighty Kick! Mighty, Mighty Action X!

Gachan! Level Up! Taddle! Meguru! Taddle! Meguru! Taddle Quest!

Once he had reached Lv.2, Ex-Aid looked over to Brave, her suit was mostly blue with large black areas. She white 'sleeves' on her arms and her shield was fitted to her more like a gauntlet. This was Kamen Rider Brave Quest Gamer Lv.2

Ex-Aid couldn't help but notice that chest piece was tightly fitted to her womanly figure. When he noticed this, he blushed under his helmet.

The broken sword brave was still holding started shining.

Gashacon Sword!

The light dispersed to reveal a sword modeled to look as if it were on fire. Both riders ran in and engaged the monster getting a few hits until Brave took a blow from the monster's ax to the stomach.

Ex-Aid ran to his comrade. "C'mon let's finish this freak." Brave nodded. They both raised their weapons and pressed the B buttons.

Ja Kīn!

The gashacon sword made a sound like cracking ice as the sword's blade rotated to reveal a side that looked encased in ice.

Both riders removed their gashats from their Driver and placed them into their weapons. Both weapons overflowed with power until the pulled the triggers on the handles.

Mighty, Taddle… Critical Finish!

Brave's sword created a path of ice for her to skate along as Ex-Aid lept into the air. When they were in range, they both slashed the monster, leaving an 'X' engraved in it's chest before it dissolved into mist.

They both returned to civilian form. Yume nearly collapsed due to the injuries that carried over from the hits she took. "I gotcha." James assured as he helped her back to the group.

Once they arrived, James handed Yume to Lissa to heal. Shortly afterwards the masked man returned. "It seems all the creatures are vanquished. This young man took care of the others." Frederick reported. The masked man stayed silent.

Lissa came to the front of the group. "Um, I never got to thank you...for before. So...thank you. You were very brave." she thanked with a slight blush.

"You saved my sister's life. My name is Chrom. Might I ask yours?" Chrom questioned.

"You may call me Marth." he said plainly.

"Marth? After the heroic king of old? You certainly fight like a hero. Where did you learn your way with a sword?" Chrom wondered out loud.

"I'm not here to talk about me. This world teeters at the brink of a horrible calamity. What you saw tonight was but a prelude. You have been warned." Marth said before taking his leave. After hearing his voice, James noticed something which made him suspicious of the swordsman.

"Huh? What's teetering where now? Hey, wait!" Lissa called to Marth, who didn't slow in the slightest.

"Not much of a talker is he." Yume commented.

"It appears his skills lie elsewhere. I wager we'll hear his name again... But for now I'm more concerned about the capital. We should make haste." Frederick urged, to which everyone nodded and got moving.

Along the way James explained everything he knew to Yume, who in turned explained that Sully was taking her to the capital to find a place to stay.

After they left, two people standing in a tree were talking, one of them had a dragon fang necklace while the other was wearing a sweater. "So, What do you think, Parad?" the one with the necklace asked.

"This is going to be fun once we can start our game." the other one, Parad said "With those things and the people with the gashats, it all so mysterious, like a puzzle." he said with a grin.

"Either way, we should get back soon, the 'king' won't be happy if we're late." the other said.

"Alright, let's go Graphite." Parad said before the two disappeared on a flash.

They reached the capital about an hour after sunrise. It was a large clean looking city with people filling every nook and cranny. "So, this Ylisstol, seems like a nice place." James remarked.

"It appears the capital was spared the chaos we encountered, thank the gods. I see no evidence of the great quake. It must've been limited to the forest." Frederick said relieved

"Well, that's a relief!" Lissa added.

As they walked, an old man called out. "Look! The exalt has come to see us!" the whole group looked to see a blond woman surrounded by a small armed guard detail.

"She's your ruler, right?" Yume asked.

"Yes. Her name is Lady Emmeryn." Frederick confirmed.

"Should she be out in the open like this?" James asked with concern.

"The exalt is a symbol of peace—Ylisse's most prized quality. Long ago, at the dawn of our age, the fell dragon tried to destroy the world. But the first exalt joined forces with the divine dragon and laid the beast low. Exalt Emmeryn reminds us all of the peace we fought for then." Frederick explained. This was something that James would keep in mind.

"With Plegia poking at our borders, the people need her. She's a calming presence, when some might otherwise call for war." Chrom added.

"Good thing the people have her then." Yume said with a smile.

"She's also the best big sister anyone could ask for!" Lissa added cheerfully.

"Yeah, I guess she wou—" Yume started to say before realizing the implication. "Wait— then you and Chrom are—"

"The prince and princess of the realm, yes." Frederick finished for her.

"You said you were Shepherds!" Yume exclaimed baffled.

"It's symbolic, Cupcake." James said with a slightly sarcastic tone. Yume's face went red and she tried smack James on the head, only for him to dodge with no effort.

"I told you not to call me that anymore!" She shouted at him, to which he only shrugged. Yume blushed for a moment before bowing to Chrom and Lissa. "I'm so sorry Prince Chrom, please forgive me."

"It's alright." Chrom waved it off. "And just Chrom is fine, I've never been one for formalities." he said causally.

"Good, I wouldn't use them anyway." James commented "Explains why Frederick stands you and Lissa though."

"Indeed. Oh, the sacrifices I make for the good of the realm." Frederick agreed.

"It looks like Emm is returning to the palace." Chrom observed. "Would you like to meet her?" he asked with smile.

"Sure." James answered while Yume nodded excitedly.

The main hall of the palace was possibly the most ornate place James had ever been, though he wasn't sure.

"Chrom! Lissa! Welcome home." Emmeryn called out. "Oh, and good day, Frederick. How fared you all?" She added when the group reached the throne.

"Well—we shouldn't have any bandit problems for awhile." Chrom said with a slight grin.

"Wonderful. And our people?" asked with a warm smile.

"Safe as they can be, Emm. But we still need to watch the borders. The brigands crossed over from Plegia." Chrom reported.

"Forgive me, milord. My pegasus knights should have intercepted them." a woman in armor designed for mobility, presumably Emmeryn's head guard apologized.

"No, Phila. Your duty was here, with the exalt." Chrom countered.

"And besides, we had plenty of help!" Lissa added.

"Ah, you speak of your new companions here?" Emmeryn questioned.

"This is James. He fought bravely with us against the brigands. I've decided to make him a Shepherd." Chrom said pointing to James, he then pointed to Yume. "And this is Yume, she aided us as we made our way back to the capital. I'm planning to ask her to join us as well."

"It sounds as though Ylisse owes you two a debt of gratitude." Emmeryn said thankfully.

"Not at all!, Your Grace." Yume said humbly while James merely nodded.

"Forgive me, Your Grace, but I must speak." Frederick cut in "James claims that he and Yume come from another world, but it is only that: a claim. We cannot rule out the possibility that they are brigands themselves or even Plegian spies." Frederick voiced his concern.

"Frederick!" Chrom shouted, clearly upset.

"Yet you allowed them into the castle, Chrom. Do these people have your trust?" The Exalt asked calmly.

"Yes. They risked their life for our people. That's good enough for me." Chrom answered

"Well then, James and Yume ... It seems you've earned Chrom's faith, and as such you have mine as well." Emmeryn said with a smile.

"Thank you, milady." Yume thanked while James bowed.

Emmeryn looked to Frederick "But thank you, Frederick, for your prudence, as always. Chrom and Lissa are blessed to have so tireless a guardian. I do hope they remember to mention that from time to time…" she said.

"They occasionally express something akin to gratitude, Your Grace." Frederick said dryly before turning to Phila. "Phila. I assume you've heard about the deathly creatures we encountered, yes?" He inquired.

"Yes, milord. They've been sighted all across Ylisse." the knight responded.

"Chrom, we are about to hold council. I was hoping you could join us." Emmeryn told her brother.

"Of course." Chrom responded as the two took their leave.

"I think that's our cue, you two! C'mon, there's a place I want to show you." Lissa said as she took James and Yume with her. James had a feeling that this would be interesting.

Sorry this took so long, definitely took longer than I expected, It is a story heavy chapter with a new rider. Also, what do you think of those people in the forest? Anyway, hopefully the next chapter won't take so long, until next time this is Time-Space lord Eon saying See You Next Game!