4.0: The Riddle is the Key
"Well, we won't find any answer just staying here," said Alan as he started working on the controls as Rena and Shinichi watched. "We're taking you home!" he pointed to Shinichi.
"Really?" Shinichi said and a smile formed on his face. He was going home. He was finally going home.
"That accidental interception of our signals allowed my TARDIS to get a lock on your universe's coordinates. I just need to plot a course and we'll be there in no time flat," said Alan.
"And I get to see our Shin-kun again!" Rena smiled.
"Yeah, and when we're all together, we can figure out who switched their places and why," said Alan. "And also figure out the answer to that riddle."
"Is that really necessary?" asked Shinichi. "I mean, you said you can bring me home and take your Shinichi back."
"Yeah, but this thing won't be over until we find the answer to that riddle," said Alan. "We might end up with you switching places again and we'll have to do this all over again."
Shinichi frowned. He didn't want to be taken away from his home, friends and family without warning ever again. He hated it the first time. There was no way he was going to have a repeat of that.
"But it's still a strange riddle," said Rena. She recited, "'What is golden, goes around and around infinitely, and affects everything? We can't escape from it, we can't run from it, and we can't stop it. It starts but never ends and we must always obey it.'"
"Did you really have to recite that riddle all over again?" Shinichi frowned. He was getting sick of this situation and wanted to get back home. He was feeling anxious and the anticipation of getting home was getting to him.
"It's OK," said Alan. "Once we've put everyone where they should be, we'll have the time to solve that riddle."
Shinichi remarked, "You know, I've always wondered about time travel. Does it mean you can just delay things because you exist outside of time?"
"Well, I wouldn't say I could always delay," Alan frowned. "Time's not exactly something you can escape from. It always manages to catch up to us in the end. Time is also one of the ultimate forces of the universe and will go on even once we're gone." He then froze. "...Oh, Son of a Bitch."
"What is it, partner?" Bazel asked. He removed his glasses and punched himself in the face. "Partner!?"
"Alan, why did you just hit yourself?" Rena asked.
"I was just punishing myself for being extremely thick!" Alan exclaimed. "The answer was staring us right in the face! It wasn't just staring at us, but mocking us with that riddle!"
"Wait, are you telling me you've solved the riddle?" Shinichi asked. "What's the answer then?"
"It's time! Time is the answer!" answered Alan.
"Time?" Shinichi asked. "How can it be time?"
"The riddle!" Rena gasped. "In the first verse, it asked 'what is golden?'"
"There's an old saying: time is golden. Time is rare and valuable so we can't ever afford to waste time," Alan clarified.
"And we can never run from time," Shinichi realized. "It was that simple?"
"Indeed, it was," said a familiar voice in amusement. "Congratulations, it took you long enough."
"Hey! No uninvited guests in my TARDIS!" Alan shouted. "Now, why don't you show yourself and we can talk over some coffee?"
"I'm afraid I can't do that, young time jumper," said the voice. "You see, there's still something else I must do. Now that you've answered the riddle, the next phase of the plan must be executed."
"What plan? What phase?" Alan questioned. Suddenly, Rena, Shinichi and Alan were blinded by a bright golden light. Once the flash subsided, Rena had spots in her eyes but Alan had recovered.
"Um, partner," said Bazel."You need to do a head count because someone is missing."
Alan and Rena realized what he meant.
Shinichi was gone.
"Where did he go!?" Rena shouted. Alan immediately started up the TARDIS' engines. "Alan?"
"Hold on! We're going to cross dimensions! We're going to look for him!" said Alan. "Up, up and away!"
Meanwhile, in another universe...
It was getting late so Lina led Shinichi over to one of the empty quarters they had so he could sleep. It had been a very long night for all of them. Moka had gone back to her dormitory as Leon returned to his mansion in Providence. Once Shinichi entered the room, Lina returned to the bridge to see Yuji sitting in one of the chairs. He seemed to be deep in thought.
"What are you thinking about?" she said and he turned to look at her.
"It's about this whole cross-dimensional business," said Yuji. "A whole other universe. It just seems so unbelievable and extraordinary."
"Well, we just saw the proof for ourselves," said Lina.
"I'm not sure if I should be glad or upset," frowned Yuji. "I mean, I'm glad that Shin, our Shin, is fine but there's a chance he won't be able to come back."
"He'll come back," said Lina. "Leon told us his brother has a ship that can cross dimensions so we'll be seeing Shinichi soon enough."
"But still, it's that riddle that's getting to me," said Yuji. "Somebody really wanted both of them to switch places. But for what? It can't be just for the fun of it. There's gotta be more but that riddle is really giving me a headache."
"Riddles aren't your thing, huh?" Lina asked.
"They never were," Yuji admitted. "And I really hate this riddle."
"Well, it doesn't sound like it makes sense, but there's gotta be a clue in each of the verses. It's all a matter of cracking the hidden codes," said Lina. "For now, it could be anything."
"But only one answer, right?" Yuji questioned. "So, is he sleeping?"
"Yeah, I think so. You should go back to bed too," said Lina. Yuji reached over and pulled Lina into his lap. "Yuji!"
"How about we go to bed together?" he smiled before kissing her softly.
"I'd like that," Lina smiled before kissing him back. "Just be glad tomorrow's the weekend and there's no school."
"Aunt Shiori isn't due back yet either," said Yuji. "I just hope we can get those two back where they should before I end up having to explain stuff to her."
Meanwhile, Shinichi was lying on the bed and staring at the unfamiliar ceiling above him. He couldn't stop thinking about that riddle. What was the answer? And, who was behind all this? There was something more at work here. Those foot soldiers had come via a dimensional rift while he had switched places with this universe's version of him due to a lightning bolt. Why would someone need two different methods to switch two people across dimensions? A dimensional rift could've easily done the job.
Shinichi screwed his eyes shut. He was good at riddles but this one was making his head hurt. In his travels with Alan, he'd learnt the most insignificant thing could be the key to solving the mystery and all this started because he and his counterpart could not answer the same riddle. Could answering the riddle be the only way for him to get to the bottom of this?
He closed his eyes. He needed to rest. Tomorrow, he'd wake up, have something to eat and train to clear his head. With a clear head, he'd be able to think straight. By then, Alan could come and pick him up and they'd work together to fight whatever enemy was messing with them, as always.
It was the following morning and Shinichi woke up. Phyllis, the Hive Queen's AI, was nice enough to guide him to the mess hall where he got a meal. He then took a shower to get cleaned up and was supplied with a new set of clothes since the ones he was wearing were a bit tight and filthy. He put on the black jumpsuit and gloves and couldn't help but be reminded of the uniforms he and the NUMBERS had worn in GIN-SHOCKER.
As he planned to do some training, he decided to head over to the training room. There was an easy to follow map and he also asked Phyllis for directions so he wouldn't get lost.
When he went down to the training room, he found that he wasn't the first to arrive as he saw Lina in the middle of a drill. She was dressed in the same uniform, only it was white with no sleeves and with shorts instead. She was armed with a battle staff with electrified tips and facing three sphere-shaped drones the size of baseballs. They each had an eye in the middle of their bodies and were shooting lasers at her. She deflected the lasers with her staff and then attacked, swinging the staff to hit one of the drones, damaging it severely as it fell to the ground, deactivated. The remaining two attacked her with a barrage of beams and Shinichi admired as she deflected the shots with ease. She then swung and bashed one of the drones so hard it went flying across the room and smashed against the one. The last one met its end when she drove her staff through the eye. Once it was dead, Lina tossed it away and wiped the sweat off her brow.
"Congratulations, Lina," Phyllis praised.
"Thanks, Phyllis," said Lina and she heard applause. She turned to face the door and saw Shinichi.
"That was good," he complimented.
"It's just standard drill to raise our reflexes for battle," said Lina as she shouldered her staff. "What are you doing down here?"
"Oh, just came here for some training," said Shinichi. "I didn't wanna lie in bed all day and get lazy, even if I am in a different world."
"Sounds like you train a lot," Lina remarked.
"I've had to," Shinichi told her. "The things I've faced taught me that I need to get stronger for what comes next. And something else always comes next."
"Well then, how about you and me go one-on-one?" she challenged.
"A spar?" Shinichi asked. Lina nodded. "OK, if that's what you want. But trust me, you have no idea what you're dealing with."
"I was gonna say the same thing," Lina smirked.
Up on the observation deck, Yuji was watching Lina train when he saw Shinichi come into the training room. He watched with interest as he took a sip of coffee. Yuji had spent the night in the Hive Queen with Lina. The others hadn't arrived yet since they had their own thing to do. Dr. Magi would be arriving soon, though, and Yuji was going to have to inform him on what was going on so they could find a solution. He looked back down as Lina and Shinichi started to spar. They were doing hand-to-hand combat training and he could already see that this Shinichi was more skilled than his cousin. He was using moves and techniques he had never seen his cousin used.
He also noticed a few things. After speaking with Leon last night, he could see it too. This Shinichi was definitely more at peace with himself. His cousin, on the other hand, still had some psychological issues which warranted meetings with Morrigan for therapy session. His cousin was full of anger directed at GIN-SHOCKER for all they had done to him and made him do and Yuji could understand that. He just wished his cousin could just let go of that anger and move on. All he wanted was for his cousin to be happy and be a normal kid for once in his life.
Sadly, that was a dream and one that was out of reach.
Shinichi and Lina stopped after five minutes to take a break. "I was not expecting you to be able to turn your arms into weapons," Lina remarked. "But it's a good thing I've got psychic powers."
"You gotta expect the unexpected," Shinichi replied. "And your psychic powers are definitely strong."
"Only since Gebok revived me and made me WHITE 14," Lina told him.
"So, you became WHITE 14 in this dimension," Shinichi said to Lina.
"That's right," said Lina, lifting her bangs to reveal her scar. "I'm guessing your WHITE 14 must've been different."
"Yeah, and he was a nightmare..." Shinichi frowned.
"He was that bad?" Lina asked.
"Believe me, he was and one of the worst we've ever faced. There are horror stories about him to this day," Shinichi told her. Shiro hadn't been a very easy enemy to beat. He was as unrelenting and persistent as Gebok, not to mention extremely dangerous and insane. He was also Shinichi's twin and the man responsible for the death of thousands. It was just a good thing that he was dead now.
"I'll take your word for it," agreed Lina. "So, how about another round?"
Moka had joined Yuji in the observation deck. "So, what's going on?" Moka asked as she watched Lina and Yuji spar on the floor below.
"Just thinking," said Yuji. "Do you want me to get you something to drink?"
"Not right now," said Moka. She looked down at Shinichi. "They look so much alike and yet they're so different."
"He's way older than our Shin," said Yuji. "I think he's already matured enough to let go and move on."
"So that gives us hope," said Moka. "That Shinichi-kun will get better."
"But first he needs to come home," said Yuji. "Come on, let's go down there and have a chat with our guest." Yuji went towards the exit and Moka followed.
"So, did you kids have fun?" Yuji asked as he walked into the training room with Moka catching up behind him.
"Yuji, this guy is good," Lina said, gesturing towards Shinichi with her thumb. "He gave me a workout and taught me a few new moves."
"I can't take all the credit. Tsuki-chan and Satie-chan taught me a few moves whenever we sparred," said Shinichi. He was referring to Satan and Tsukuyomi.
"Who are they?" Moka asked.
"Oh, Tsuki-chan's the former Moon Goddess and Satie-chan's the mother of my son," Shinichi confessed.
"YOU HAVE A SON!?" Yuji, Moka and Lina exclaimed.
"Yeah, we call him Hiro. Sorry I didn't mention all this before," said Shinichi.
"What other surprises haven't you told us?" Yuji asked.
"I'm engaged to a princess," said Shinichi. "Her name's Shawna and she's sweet. She's also great with a sword."
"That sounds great, but I really think we need to talk about what we're going to do from here," said Yuji seriously.
"Agreed," said Shinichi. "Alan, Rena and your Shinichi are gonna be here soon to pick me up but this won't be over until we've solved that riddle."
"Yeah, it's been giving me a headache," Yuji grumbled.
"So we can't waste anymore time. We need to find the answer to that riddle," said Moka.
"That's true. Kaa-chan always said that 'Time is Golden,'" said Shinichi and then he paused with a look of realization on his face. "...Oh, you've got to be kidding me."
"What?" Moka asked as Shinichi slapped himself in the forehead.
"The answer to the riddle! Of course! It's been staring us in the face and we never even saw it!" he shouted.
"You've got the answer?" Lina questioned.
"It's TIME! The answer to the riddle is TIME!" Shinichi said. He recited the riddle, "'What is golden, goes around and around infinitely, and affects everything? We can't escape from it, we can't run from it, and we can't stop it. It starts but never ends and we must always obey it.' Time is Golden! And it always goes on and on! Time is also the only thing that can affect everything and anything! That's gotta be it! The answer is time!"
"Bingo! Congratulations!"
Moka and Lina gasped as Yuji was surprised. Shinichi's eyes narrowed as he heard that disembodied voice.
"Oh, it's you again," said Shinichi. "Come to 'play' again?"
"You did solve my riddle! And now you deserve a prize!"
"Why are you doing all this?" Moka questioned.
"For fun, of course."
"No," Shinichi denied. "That's not it. You're working an angle. There's a reason why you switched our places. I already answered your riddle so I deserve to know what is going on."
"Oh, that is true. Fair is fair," said the voice. "But what is the fun of telling you when I can just show you?"
"Show me?" Shinichi asked and all of a sudden a bright golden flash blinded them all.
"My eyes!" Moka exclaimed.
"Dammit, I can't see!" shouted Yuji.
"Relax, just relax," said Lina as she blinked her eyes. "OK, we should be alright after a while." She was right. Their eyes were fine, if a bit irritated by the golden light show.
"Hey, where did he go?" Moka asked. Shinichi was gone.
"Dammit!" Yuji shouted. They were so close. Why did this have to happen when...
VWOORP! VWOORP! VWOORP!
What was that sound? That was when they saw a red telephone box start to materialize before them. After a few moments it was finally solid and standing before the stunned group.
What now?
The door opened and Alan Smith stepped out with Rena Ryuugu.
"Ah, finally, we're here!" said Alan.
"Hey, it's you guys again," said Yuji. He remembered seeing them on the bridge's monitor.
Alan took out his Psychic Paper and showed it to them, "I'm 'The Traveler'. The name's Alan Smith and here's my card."
Yuji stared at the blank card, "That's blank."
"I don't see anything," said Lina.
"You can't?" Moka asked. She could see the words as plain as day. Why couldn't they?
Alan remarked as he put his Psychic Paper away. "And once again Psychic Paper fails to work on another psychic."
"Did something happen?" Rena asked. "We came here to get Shinichi-kun."
"You're a bit late. He just vanished," said Lina.
"The one with us vanished too," Rena frowned sadly. "I'm sorry."
"They're both gone?" Moka was speechless.
"They're not gone, just misplaced," said Alan. "And the TARDIS will help us."
"That phone booth?" Yuji asked skeptically.
Alan defended, "This 'phone booth' is the the TARDIS."
"TARDIS? What's a TARDIS? You know what, never mind. My cousin just vanished, replaced by his double, and now he's gone too, so I want to know what the heck is going on!"
"That's what I want to know as well," said Leon as he stepped into the training room. He saw the TARDIS, Alan and Rena. "So, you've finally showed up. Bad timing as usual." Alan went over and hugged him. "Alan..." Leon growled.
"Sorry, it's just that I miss you so much!" Alan grinned and let his brother go. He clapped his hands together, "OK, now that we're all here, it's time we went and find those two Shinichi's." He pointed to the TARDIS, "To the TARDIS!" He ran inside and Rena followed.
"How can they fit in there?" said Lina. Leon walked past her and went into the telephone box. "Yuji?"
"If they know how to find Shin, we should go in," said Yuji. He went in, followed by Lina and Moka. As soon as they were inside, they were stunned and speechless.
Moka, Yuji and Lina were all thinking in unison, 'It's bigger on the inside!'
"I know what you're thinking," said Alan, "And I don't have to read your minds." Rena, Leon and Alan were standing around the control console.
"This is impossible," said Lina. Moka couldn't say a word which spoke volumes of her reaction.
"By the Crimson Dragon, this breaks so many laws of physics," said Yuji as he began to sweat. "What is this?"
Alan answered, "It's called the TARDIS. That's T-A-R-D-I-S. It stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space. It's a ship that travels through space, time and dimensions."
"Can your ship find them?" asked Leon.
"Not only can she find them, the TARDIS can take us to where they are, lickity-split!" boasted Alan. "That voice made the mistake of taking your Shinichi away from the TARDIS and she managed to take an energy trail. All we need to do is follow the trail and we'll find where they are."
"And find whoever took them," finished Leon.
"That too! Now, hold on to something because this is gonna be a bumpy ride! First time travelers, hold on tight! Up, up and away!"
KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And now both storylines have converged and finally joined together. It's like a Movie Wars thing, isn't it? Well, I sure hope you'll enjoy the climax and then the finale because we're almost there, people! We're almost there!