Kamen Rider: Zero Hour

Episode 2: Past and Present

By Ziginz

"Fifty years. Did you just say this is fifty years in the future!?"

Tamiko was dumbfounded by the words of her new acquaintances, mostly because what they were saying sounded like madness. Neither Tsubaki or Kino were surprised by the girl's reaction to the news, but that was the conclusion they had come to after comparing dates. If this was a dream or some sort of sick joke than it had long past stopped being entertaining, or so Tamiko told herself. There was only one way the displaced girl could be sure about her situation and that was to see it all with her own eyes. Before that though she wanted to know exactly how everything had come to pass, not just her apparent time traveling but also the state of the world around her.

Tsubaki's expression when asked about these things made it clear it wasn't going to be a happy story, but then how could it be?

"I don't know all the details, just what my grandparents told me when I was little. Apparently back then people were constantly worried about bombs and chemical weapons being used against their respective countries. Well scientists here in Japan managed to create a technology that could protect entire cities from long range attacks like those. I don't understand all the science behind it or anything, but it had to do with creating a bubble or something."

Tamiko remembered hearing something similar on the news about Osaka and a few other cities were being installed with ion field generators. While it would screw up long range communications when active it was also supposed to be the ultimate defense against weapons of mass destruction. Japan was praised for creating such technology and shared their discoveries with the rest of the world, but not everyone was pleased about it. Countries that had struggled to get nuclear weapons of their own were furious about the shield and endeavored to prevent their completion, even working with terrorists to do so. There had been a number of terror threats made against Osaka recently to that end, or at least it had been recently for Tamiko.

"So what happened? And how did I end up in the future?"

"Well no one is exactly what the cause was, but a massive explosion hit the barrier only minutes after an unscheduled activation. That was when things went wrong in a big way. Like I said I don't understand it exactly but the bubble resonated with the blast and caused immense waves of energy to be released all around it. Everything inside was wrecked almost instantly, and outside things weren't much better. The wave traveled across the globe, each of the other shields it hit strengthening it until soon the entire planet was in chaos."

"…This…you can't be serious…couldn't they have warned the other countries or something!?"

"L-Like I said, the barrier messed up most forms of digital communication so…"

"This can't be…please Jesus don't let this be…"

Tamiko looked at her surroundings once again, her heart racing and her stomach balling up on the inside from the shock. When things got bad she would usually put up a tough front and not let herself get stressed over whatever was happening, but this was completely different. It was all gone; her family, friends, even the city she loved, all grounded into dust. The overwhelmed girl grabbed her mouth as she felt the contents of her stomach suddenly erupting upward, turning away to do what she had to. Kino just grimaced at the sight but Tsubaki's heart ached along with the other woman's, walking over and placing a hand on her back.

"I…I don't now what to say, but I-"

"No, don't do that, not yet anyway. Just tell me how I got here and if I can get back."

"Get back? Even if you could it wouldn't change anything. You'd be walking straight to your death!"

"What're you talking about?! If I found a way back I could warn them about what was coming, maybe prevent it from happening!"

"You don't get it; even if the barrier were shut down the explosion would have still destroyed the city. Besides it was all this that sent you here in the first place."

"What do you mean by that?"

Tsubaki tried to gather her thoughts and explain things as clearly as possible, but the fact was she only had a basic understanding of it all. She only knew of one person who might be able to give a more thorough explanation, but she wasn't exactly sure how the old man would react. After all Tamiko wasn't only a scientific anomaly, but one with a pretty face and nice curves.

"Nothing for it than…we'll just have to go see the Professor."

"Eh!? Tsubaki, you can't be serious! You take a girl as naïve and comely as red 'ere to see the ol' lecher an' he might blow a gasket!"

Tamiko shot a look at Kino that caused him to fall back in his seat, the scavenger's choice of words having apparently not mixed well with her stressed mental state. She then shot a similar look at Tsubaki who was more resistant to her angered expression but still chuckled defensively before looking away. Being called naïve was one thing, comely a whole other animal, but talk of lecherous old men was where she drew the line. Still she needed more answers and it seemed Tsubaki had provided all she could, so her choices were limited.

"Right then…so this professor, where do we find him?"

"He lives in the forest outside the city…well…"

"Well?"

"Well I should say he lives in a cave in the forest outside the city…"

"…"

"Let's just…yeah."

Tsubaki lead the way as the trio began their long trek out of the city, though Kino wasn't so much traveling with them as he was walking the same way they were. After all Tsubaki seemed to like him well enough, both she and Tamiko were certainly easy on the eyes, and it didn't hurt that the former could protect him from Kaijin. All in all it was a sweet situation that he wasn't going to walk away from any time soon. Although he was concerned about how the professor would receive him after his last visit, so maybe he would part ways before that particular encounter.

The outskirts outside of Osaka weren't what one would expect from a wasteland, and in fact some spots seemed down right lush with greenery. However this was a deceptive sight as it seemed only one type of plant life was truly thriving; a ferocious sort that was created to consume all other life forms. It did this by rooting out all other vegetation and producing fruit that caused violent mutations in anyone or anything that would so much as take a nibble. This invasive species, called Inves, was not natural in the least and in fact was a weapon created by men for a pointless conflict. In the end it had succeeded beyond all expectations, much to the grief of its creators.

Sitting under one of the few trees left that could be called natural was a man clad in tattered clothing who was looking up at branches above him. The tree was one of the few reminders of the world that once was, and perhaps a sign of hope that things could be the way they were before. No, that wasn't quite right. Things couldn't be as they were, but maybe some of the good things from then could still exist in the now. He quickly realized the pointlessness of his musings, standing up as he sensed several familiar presences approaching him.

Several grey creatures began emerging from the forest and stepped into the clearing where both man and tree stood. They were vaguely humanoid in shape but were clearly something else, looking almost like fungal insects as they lumbered toward the other two life forms. Their instincts compelled them to do two things: eat the fruit of the Inves plants and attack anything that invaded their territory. They couldn't tell if the fruits upon the tree were the sustenance they sought, but they knew the humanoid was not one of their kin. They hissed and bore their claws, their intent to attack as obvious as the noonday sun.

As the man looked upon the lumbering monsters he felt a mix of sorrow and anger rising in his breast. As the creatures rushed in to attack, he crushed his sadness and charged at them with furious eyes that startled even their savage minds! He quickly proved their better, defeating them bare handed with martial prowess that was rarely seen in the modern world! One of the creatures managed to get in a lucky attack, not ripping flesh but still tearing back the man's hood to reveal his stern face, unkempt black hair, and fierce brown eyes. Of course the creature saw nothing in these features, even before its own face had been crushed by a kick from its intended victim.

Soon the few beasts remaining realized how outmatched they were and fled for the safety of the forest, the victor not bothering to pursue them. He didn't feel remorse for his defeated foes, but rather that they had chosen such a terrible fate. To throw away ones humanity just to live on as a beast, but then was he much different from a beast himself? An apple fell from the tree and struck the man upon his head, the blow doing little more than surprising him. He picked up the fruit and then looked at the tree that had produced it, scoffing before taking a bite. It might not seem like much, but a meal was a meal and he wasn't about to complain.

"Why a strawberry?"

"What?"

Tsubaki looked back at the other woman curiously, receiving a similar expression in return. The more experienced of the two woman looked around to make sure they were in a safe location, deciding it was fine to rest for a moment. With no apparent threats for the moment, Tsubaki pulled out her Ichigo Lock Seed and handed it to Tamiko.

"This is a Lock Seed, or at least that's what most people call them because, well, they look like pad locks and have fruit on them. The person who invented them was originally trying to create a method for converting Inves fruit into viable food stuff, and he succeeded. Sengoku Drivers, in other words belts like mine, use nano-machines to incase the core of the fruit inside a Lock Seed and then transfers the calories directly into the wearer's body after they've been heavily refined. Neat right?"

"And the armor?"

"Well…maybe he just didn't want people to forget what normal fruit looked like or something. I can imagine a lot of people were worried about that kind of thing back when the Inves first made land fall."

"Wait, what do you mean by landfall?!"

"The Inves were shot at us by another country during the Post Wave War, or at least that's what I've always heard."

Tamiko had her questioned answered but also learned of something just as horrible as the disaster that had caused so much devastation. Had the few countries that were left really warred against one another even after such a massive calamity? The shocked youth never wanted to believe humanity could be capable of such wanton destruction in the first place, but then when had they not been? It left a horrible feeling deep in her heart, and at the moment she wasn't sure how to deal with it.

Tsubaki could sense her new friend's pain and thought to say something, but when she opened her mouth the words just wouldn't come. The fact was that some people were still that way; willingly harming anyone if it would get them what they wanted. Even so she also knew the opposite existed; those who were willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others. They used to call people like that heroes, but that breed had all but died out since the Pulse wreaked civilization. Or at least that was what most people thought.

Kino…well he didn't really worry about complicated stuff like that, especially not while he was standing in a known hot spot for kaijin activity.

"You ladies gonna sit around mopin' all day, or are we gonna get this here show on the road?"

Tsubaki huffed at the man's words, a half-hearted grin forming across her lips as she turned to Tamiko and put a hand on the girl's shoulder. She reacted in much the same way as her new friend, realizing there was little to gain from lamenting. As she passed the Ichigo Lock back to Tsubaki she wondered just what other kinds of crazy little doodads like it were floating around. Maybe there was one that could make all this right somehow, or at least she was asking God for something like that. For now that's all she could do; pray and keep searching for answers.

The three began their journey once more, unaware that they were being watched by another wild creature who sought to take something precious from them. The insectoid monster didn't want their flesh, nor did he care for what they carried. What it desired was their very existence, or rather to take the place of one of them as a human being. The kaijin vanished in a blur of speed, watching and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. It already knew exactly whose form it would steal, and whose life it would take.