A/N: This chapter has been revised and is in the process of revision. To those of you who read this chapter before I started making corrections... sorry. I should've done a better job of writing it the first time around.
Enjoy.
Chapter 5: Unfinished Business
The rest of the day past by quickly and without incident. Eddy spent his time listening to his old disco records, Double D locked himself in his room to write an entire notebook of theories based around time, and Ed spent hours in front of his television watching old reruns of sci-fi movies.
Night came, and everyone in the cul-de-sac put aside their activities to wait for the next day. Though it seemed that everyone had gone to sleep easily, the prospect of rest was a far-flung concept for Eddy. He tossed and turned as he found himself stuck in a dream.
He stood on the shoreline of a lake with no one around. Not a single sound was made. The only thing present was an empty boat that slowly drifted from the middle of the lake towards him. When it finally hit the shoreline, Eddy ran out and looked inside the boat to find a golden pocket watch. He picked it up and turned it around to read a single sentence inscribed on the back.
The past should give us hope.
"Eddy."
Eddy looked up towards the lake. His eyes widened at the sight of a young man with short, brown hair wearing a yellow jacket with a single blue strip down the left side.
"Chris!" Eddy pushed the boat off of the shore, jumped in, and rowed the oars as fast as he could.
"He is behind this." Even though Chris was at the very middle of the lake, Eddy heard his voice so clearly it was as if he were right next him.
"Who?" Eddy panted out. He was struggling to get the boat out into the water by himself. There were four oars, and Eddy was struggling with two of them.
He didn't know how long he rowed or how he managed to do it by himself, but he was able to reach the lake's middle. He got on his knees and reached out over the side of the boat, desperately trying to bring his brother into the vessel and back into his life.
At that very moment, Chris slipped quickly and soundlessly beneath the lake's surface.
Eddy sprung up in a cold sweat. He planted his face in his hands for several minutes before regaining his composure. He then dug into the drawers of his nightstand to pull out the same pocket watch from his dream. He fiddled it around in his hands and ran his fingers of the inscription.
"I know you're still out there, Chris," Eddy said to himself. "I promise I'll find you."
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Since it was Saturday, the Eds decided to meet up at Ed's house to spend most of the day. They congregate in his room where they watched TV while coming up with scam after of scam.
"I just got the idea of a lifetime, guys!" Eddy exclaimed. "Since its fall, kids everywhere are gonna be forced to rake their lawns. What's the solution? The Eds Amazing Lawn Cover! Protect your lawn from annoying leaves so you don't have to work like a dog later! We'll be rolling in the dough in no time!"
"That actually sounds decent. What are we going to make the covers out of?" Double D asked.
"We'll just get a bunch of blankets and spray paint them to look all professional-like."
"Eddy, a bed sheet is not going to be wide enough to cover the entire surface area of the average lawn."
"Exactly, that's why we charge double for the premium-sized lawn covers. It's genius!"
"Eddy's the man with the plan!" Ed exclaimed.
"Ain't that the truth lumpy?"
"And how, pray tell, are we going to aquire the appropriate supplies?" Double D cynically questioned.
"Glad you asked, Double D," Eddy said. "So what size bed do your parents sleep in?"
Suddenly, Sarah's voice reverberated throughtout the entire house, pulling the Eds from their planning with a wave of mutual anxiety. "Ed! Jimmy and I want to play house, so you better make us a fort or I'm gonna tell mom!"
"On it baby sister!" Ed shouted. As soon as he started to run towards the stairs, Eddy grabbed him by the collar and made fall flat on his back.
"What're you doing Ed? We need you to help Double D get the blankets for the scam!"
"Now hold on, mister! I never agreed to robbing my parents of their linen for this fiasco!" Double D stated incensed.
"I must help Sarah or she will inflict the pain of a thousand nightmares," Ed claimed as he frantically marched in places with panic.
"No sweat, Ed. I'll take care of everything." Eddy casually went up the stairs before taking a deep breath and shouted at the top of his lungs. "You can shove your fort up your nose you little brat! Ed ain't helping you do nothing no how!"
Eddy quickly grabbed the closest thing near him and jammed the door just in time as Sarah began ramming into it.
Double D went on the verge of having a breakdown. "Eddy, what have you done?! Once Sarah breaks in, we're all going to pay for your thougtless actions!"
Eddy grabbed Ed's mattress and started pulling it towards the door. "I've got a plan. Help me block the door with anything that's not nailed down!"
Ed was the first to respond. He grabbed the mattress from Eddy and chucked it at the door, completely sealing the entire entrance.
Double D started grabbing chairs and propping them behind the mattress as a support. The entire time, the door sounded as if it were being repetitvely ran into by a car.
"This barrier will never withstand Sarah's outrageous anger issues!" Double D wailed. "Our only choice is to escape through Ed's window!"
"Don't sweat it Double D, I've got everything figured out," Eddy stated. "What time is it?"
Puzzled as to why he wanted to know, but to distracted to query, Double D checked his wristwatch. "It's exactly 12:59 and fifty-five seconds."
"Quick, get to the bathroom!" Eddy ordered before leading by example. Ed and Double D were quick to follow suit.
Double D eyed his shorter friend with skeptic displeasure. "Eddy, this is the last place I want to hide. Not only is this obvious, but Ed's bathroom is a breeding ground for every bacteria and mold known to man."
"We're ain't gonna hide in the bathroom; we're just using it to get out of the house."
"I'm confused," Ed stated.
"No surprise. By the time Sarah breaks in, we'll be safe on the DenLiner. What time is it now?"
"1:00 and thirty seconds," Double D announced.
The sound of Ed's doorframe cracking under Sarah's assault filled their hearts with a new level of urgency.
"You're in big trouble, mister!" Sarah roared.
"We won't have enough time to get away!" Double D cried as he prepared to accept the inevitable.
"Shut up and just keep track of the time!" Eddy demanded. Bullets of sweat made their way down his face as he refused to pull his eyes away from the swiftly diminishing barrier.
Ed decided that now would be the best time to get on his knees and beg the horrible demon that was his younger sibling to spare them all."Have mercy, depraved child of the netherworld!"
Double D swallowed against the fear-enduced dryness that overtook his mouth. "Its 1:00 and fifty seconds."
The mattress began to quiver and shake as Sarah was no doubt clawing at the other side. It would not be long before the obstacle impeding her wrath gave in.
"Eddy…" Ed moaned.
"I know, just hang on!" Eddy took out the Rider Pass and got ready to press the button.
The next eleven seconds felt like a torturous eternity.
"Now!" Double D shouted.
Eddy jammed the button in and threw the bathroom door open in one, fluid motion. Double D and Ed fell in right behind him as all three rushed into the bathroom and slammed the door.
At that exact moment, the barrier caved in. Sarah came flying down the stairs with Jimmy helplessly dragged along.
"I can't believe those idiots thought they could hide in the bathroom," Sarah scoffed.
Jimmy gleefully bounced on his toes. "Go get 'em, sister!"
Sarah threw open the bathroom door with enough force to send the doorknob right through the wood paneling of the wall.
"Huh?" Sarah looked around everywhere, but there were no signs of life, aside for the mold growing on the wall. A vein visibly pulsed on her forehead as her face became beet red. She shouted loud enough for everyone in the cul-de-sac to hear her.
"I'M GONNA KILL YOU WHEN I FIND YOU, ED!"
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Hana's attention was pulled from the boxcar window as the entrance door slid open, depositing the Eds onto the floor in a heap.
Eddy got to his feet and wiped the dust from his clothes. "Told you it would work."
"I must admit, the situation could have ended in a worse manner," Double D said.
"We are safe once again," Ed declared happily. "Hey, it's Hana!"
Hana waved from her seat. "How are things going, guys?"
"Okay, I guess," said Eddy. "We just got away from Ed's migraine of a little sister. Think I can get some coffee?"
"Coming right up!" Naomi immediately came from behind the counter and poured a steaming cup. "Would you like some cake with that?"
"Sure thing!" Eddy took a seat and laid back. "Too bad about the scam, but at least we can hang out here for awhile."
"Just don't go making a bunch of noise," the Ogre Imagin tersely told them . He himself was lazily sprawled out on one of the tables. "I don't need you punks makin' a big racket in my new casa."
"That reminds me," Double D started. "We never asked you your name."
"I ain't got one. Just call me by whatever I'm supposed to look like... what the heck am I supposed to look like, anyway? Some sorta monkey?"
Eddy pondered upon this for a moment as he gave Momotaros a good look over. "Now that I think about it, you kinda look like the main boss from a video game I used to play all the time. Had something to do with ogres on an island and some kid who has to beat them all."
"Why, that sounds as if your game gained it's plot from the Japanese legend of Momotarō," Double D stated. "It's a fascinating tale, really. A boy who was mystically born from a peach sets off on a grand adventure to save his village from an island of bloodthirsty ogres, or as the Japanese call them, oni. If I recall, he befriends a dog, a monkey, and a pheasant along the way."
"Alright then," Eddy shrugged, "we'll call him peach boy."
"Oh no you won't!" The Ogre Imagin stated decisively. "That's the dumbest name anybody can come up with! Nowhere near cool enough to be used for someone like me!"
"How about Momotaros?" Double D suggested. "It's like the name of the hero from the legend. I find that pretty 'cool'."
"Better than peach boy, but I still want a better name in the future. Something that really reflects my inner awesomeness."
Hana rolled her eyes. "We'll be sure to make that a top priority. Anyways, have you guys had any problems with the imagins?"
"Nope, we haven't run into any more of those monsters since the bat," said Eddy. "That's a good thing, right?" His cake finally arrived and he immediately dug in.
"It depends. This might mean that they haven't started attacking as a whole, or this means that they're moving around without our knowledge," Hana stated. "Either way, we know that the past of this world is their target. You guys need to make sure that they never get the chance to go back in time."
Eddy finished eating and laid back once again. "Well, we can't do anything unless they make a move, so we'll just sit back and relax. Besides, if another imagin pops up, I'll kick it's butt up and down this town like I did to shovel chin's batfink."
"Ha! That's a laugh!" Momotaros jeered. "What, you plan on running around like a little girl named Nacy like ya did last time?"
"Hey, shut up, peachy! I coulda handled myself if ya didn't keep screaming in my head!"
"Gentleman, I believe it is time we return to our timeline... I shall never be used to saying that," said Double D. "Do you think you could drop us off at the Milk Dipper?"
"Sure thing. We'll send you to the alleyway right next to it," Hana said.
The train came to stop and the Eds headed for the door. As Eddy and Ed re-entered their world, Double D lagged behind, wanting to address a certain matter with Hana.
"You know Hana, our doors our open to you in Peach Creek at anytime," Double D politely offered. "You do not have to feel as if you are trapped on this train. With our current situation, it is most likely that we will be visitng you quite frequently. It should only be proper that you return the favor, should it not.?"
With a sincere smile, Hana agreed with a nod. "Er, thanks Double D. I'll do that sometime."
Double D returned the gesture before going off to rejoin his friends.
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The Eds ended up in the alleyway right next to the Milk Dipper, just as promised. It didn't seem like anyone noticed they had mysteriously appeared out of a unlocked boiler room. Either that, or no one cared. Weirder things have happened in Peach Creek, and the Eds almost always found themselves in the middle of them.
The three proceeded to the Milk Dipper, leaving the alley and pushing past the front door with the jingling of the entrance bell. Even before they sat down, it was assumed by all three that they'd head to the counter first, just to touch base with Tiffany.
"Hello guys, having a good day?" She asked.
Eddy plopped himself onto the stool directly in front of the young woman with a huff. "As good as it get's for us."
"Don't worry, Eddy, you just need to think positively. Remember that-."
"Having a positive attitude will draw my star of luck closer, I know," Eddy dismissed. "Geez Tiff, you plan on goin' into the astrology business too? Cuz I think Miss Cleo's got that racket cornered already."
"Look into my nose to see your future," Ed stated in a wavering voice as he fanned his arms in a faux-mystical manner.
Tiffany had to push her glasses back up before they fell from her nose in laughter.
Eddy suddenly shifted into a more serious expression. "Hey Tiff, you remember who told ya that saying? Like, someone who'd say that all the time?"
Tiffany looked up in thought. "No, I can't say I do. It was probably my mother."
Eddy instantly became crestfallen. "Then do you remember who gave you the telescope, at least?"
Tiffany turned to the telescope on display and spent several minutes gazing at it. "I can't really say who, but I have a feeling that whoever it was, they were… special to me somehow." Her eyes stared vacantly at something far off and just out of perception.
Eddy's face brightened up, if just a bit. "… Hey Tiffany?"
"Yes Eddy?"
"Will you promise to tell me who it was when you remember?"
An odd request, but Tiffany smiled kindly anyway. "I'd be more than glad to Eddy. Now I need to take care of something in the back, call me if you need anything."
As Tiffany left, Double D turned to Eddy with a disappointed look. "Eddy, you know that she can't remember your brother. Nobody can."
"I know, I know, but you saw the way she looked at that telescope. If we push her enough, she'll remember that thing belongs to my brother, then she'll remember Chris!"
Double D shook his head regrettably. "I know you miss your brother more than anyone else, Eddy. That's why it pains me to tell you this. You have to be realistic; the chances of your brother returning are rather slim. Nobody besides us are even aware Chris existed in the first place. In fact, I'm afraid your brother could even be-."
The banging of Eddy's fist against the counter brought the brainy boy to a halt.
"Shut up!" Eddy yelled indignantly. "Don't you say that, don't you dare say that! My brother will come back, you'll see!"
The commotion caused a few people to look their way. Ed himself jumped out of his seat at Eddy's outburst.
Sighing, Double D lifted his hands pleadingly. "I didn't mean to upset you; I just don't want you to end up getting crushed again like the day you did when your brother disappeared."
It took a moment for Eddy to calm down before he slumped back into his seat. "Look, I'm sorry, but I just can't give up. You know that dream I keep havin'?"
"The one about the lake your family used to visit? Didn't that particular location vanish right off the map?"
"On the same day when Eddy's brother disappeared," Ed agreed solemnly. "Even I can remember that, Double D."
Eddy nodded. "Right, that's the one. Anyways, I had dreamed about that place again. This time, Chris wasn't just some shadow, he was real... and standing out on the middle of the lake."
"You mean in a boat?" Double D queried.
"No, on the water." Eddy leaned in close so that only Double D and Ed could hear him. "He kept tellin' me that he was behind this."
"Behind what, Eddy," Ed asked. "The noodle incident back in second grade?"
"Shush, lumpy! We promised never to talk about that again! I still can't believe the national guard got called in that day..."
Double D cleared his throat. "Ahem, but maybe we should return to the topic at hand. Now who is behind what now?"
Eddy sat back and crossed his arms, frustratingly perplexed. "The heck if I know, he went flying underwater the next second! But that dream felt so real... I think that might have actually been him."
The Eds looked up from their conversation as the front door chimed with another patron's entrance. A boy around their age dressed in a checkered sweatshirt and black-lined jeans walked in and slowly made his way through the establishment. It looked like he purposely kept medium length bangs of black hair in front of his eyes just to mask away his face. The boy may have looked a bit out of the usual, but no one really gave him any mind.
No one gave him any mind, that is, except for the Eds. They never stopped staring the moment he walked in, and the boy seemed to have noticed. He kept his eyes to the ground as he headed for the far end of the counter, away from the Eds.
Both the boy, Double D, and Eddy shifted uncomfortably in their seats as all talking fell to an awkward silence. Did the Eds know this person?
Ed sure smiled as if he did. He never stopped trying to wave the boy over since he saw him.
"Hiya Edwin! Long time no see!" Ed shouted to as if the boy were familiar to him. He ran up to the boy's seat and forcibly dragged it over to the Eds' area of the counter.
Though Ed wore a dopey grin, the atmosphere grew suffocating with unease.
The boy, Edwin, finally spoke up with a nervous smile "Is my sister busy?"
"I would say so. Tiffany is in the back right now," Double D stated. He tugged at his collar uncomfortably as he tried to decide if it would be appropriate to start up a conversation. In the end, he felt things couldn't get worse, so what could be the harm? "…How have you been?"
"Fine, I guess… w-what about you guys?"
"Good," Eddy answered simply. He rubbed his neck in anxiousness. "Um… what you been up to? We haven't seen ya around since... um... yeah."
He didn't know what to say. Edwin, the little brother of Tiffany, had been a good friend since the engagement between their siblings was announced. That all changed with Chris's, disappearance and everyone's memory loss of his existence.
Eddy turned his attention to the menu just for an escape from the moment.
Then Edwin quietly said something that made Eddy flip out.
"I'm... I'm sorry about Chris," Edwin barely squeaked.
Eddy threw his stool to the ground in the process of leaping to his feet. "YOU KNEW?! The entire time, YOU KNEW?!" Eddy didn't know whether to be angry or relieved. Anger was winning out. "What the hell is wrong with you?! WE USED TO BE FRIENDS!!"
Edwin shrunk into himself as he tried to scoot away. "I-it's complicated, you know? I-I mean, one day my sister and your brother are together, then the next, my sister goes nearly catatonic because Chris up and leaves!"
"He didn't leave, YOU FINK!" Eddy hollered as he jumped on the counter, looming over Edwin's retreating form for extra effect. "He disappeared! Do you have any idea what that's like?! To just have your sibling poof off the face of the Earth, and not have anyone even care, let alone remember?! WE TRUSTED YOU!"
As Eddy drew in closer, Edwin threw his hands up in defence and cowered from the angered, wrathful boy. "W-what w-was I s-supossed to d-do?!"
"YOU COULD'VE TOLD US WE WEREN'T GOING CRAZY! Just one person tellin' us they remembered would've helped so much!" Eddy threw his arms up. "BUT YOU COULDN'T EVEN DO THAT!"
The moment was interrupted by the chiming of the front door as the jocks from yesterday walked into the shop and straight over to the Eds.
"We've been looking for you guys," One of the jocks said. Double D and Ed got up from their chairs to join Eddy.
Double D brought his chair up as a shield. "Gentleman, please reconsider what you're about to do!"
Ed and Eddy prepared themselves for what they concieved to be an upcoming fight. Edwin, sensing the situation as well, reluctantly stood by the Eds, despite the viscious glare Eddy shot in his direction when he did so.
"Whoah, we don't want to fight. We just wanted to know if you guys saw Kevin since you live in the same neighborhood as him. His dad said he hasn't been home since yesterday, and we haven't seen him since he ran off while looking for his lost charm."
Edwin crossed his arms. "I hope he wasn't grabbed by that monster."
The Eds snapped to attention.
"What monster?" Double D asked quickly.
"You didn't see the news? There are actual recordings of some bat creature attacking people," elaborated Edwin. "All of the victims were carrying a bell."
A sudden current of red static surged out and around Eddy's body.
The jocks and the Eds alike jumped back in shock as the short boy underwent the same drastic change of appearance that he experienced on the playground.
Edwin tried to distance himself as much as he could, tripping over chairs as he backed away from the alarming sight. "W-what the h-heck?!"
Now in control, Momotaros seized the frightened boy right off the ground by his collar. "Where'd it go?"
"W-where'd w-what g-go?!" Edwin stammered out as he gazed into the burning, crimson eyes of the possesed Eddy. He felt very near the point of wetting himself.
Momotaros violently shook the frightened boy like a ragdoll. "The bat, you stupid human! Where'd the bat go?!"
"I-I don't k-know! "T-the news s-said that it-t hung out in t-the commercial p-part of t-town!"
Momotaros heaved Edwin away uncaringly. "That bat bastard is still alive?!" He growled. "I'm gonna make sure that flying rat stays dead!"
Momotaros left and Eddy returned to normal. The jocks backed away in fear, and Ed and Double D ran after Edwin to help him up.
--..--
Momotaros reappeared inside the DenLiner with a burst of red electricity. "Ya hear that Eddy? Head down to the cul-de-sac, now!"
Hana ran up from behind and punched Momotaros in the back of the head, causing him to fall flat on his face. "You idiot, you can't just possess Eddy and throw people around!"
Momotaros got back up and rubbed his head. "Stupid hag. Remember this, Eddy. Even if I'm not present, I'm still linked to you. Hurry up and make your wish so I can get out of here!"
--..--
Eddy heard everything in his mind. "The sooner I get rid of him the better." Eddy muttered. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but we need to find Kevin!"
Ed, Edd, and Eddy ran out of the Milk Dipper in haste.
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"You sure he's this way?" Eddy asked. All three of the Eds had been running for five minutes into the busiest part of town.
*Of course I'm sure!* Momotaros said mentally. *I can sense the bat's presence. He's not too far now.*
A scream pierced the air as a man came falling from the sky. He landed on the asphalt with a sickening thud, and blood quickly rushed out to paint the ground. The crowd was thrown into so much chaos as a result, that no one noticed the Bat Imagin heading towards the roof of a tall building. Luckily, Ed saw.
"Imagin dead ahead!" Ed shouted.
Eddy and Double D looked up just in time to see the bat disappear onto the tall structure.
"It's gonna take forever to get up there," Eddy whined.
"Maybe not," Double D said. "I think it's time to call the DenLiner."
Eddy pulled out his Rider Pass and held down the white button. All three of the Eds ran through a nearby doorway and disappeared. The only indication left of them was the faint sound of a train horn.
--..--
The Bat Imagin held out another bell in front of Kevin, who once again numbly shook his head.
Snarling in frustration, the Bat Imagin threw the bell down and plucked Kevin up by his collar. "You useless, little brat! You're wearing my patience thin!"
The Eds reemerged from the rooftop door. "Wait!" Eddy shouted. He dug into his pocket and pulled out the bell tied to a blue ribbon. "This must be Kevin's bell."
Eddy held the bell out for Kevin to see. "Is this it?" He asked.
Kevin stared at it for a few minutes before nodding listlessly. "My bell… This is it."
The Bat Imagin smiled wickedly. "Good work boy, you just made my task so much easier. The contract is complete."
A green vortex expanded from Kevin's chest, and the Bat Imagin jumped in head first. The portal disappeared thereafter and Kevin flopped to the ground.
"Kevin!" Double D and Ed picked him up. His eyes were glazed over, and he seemed completely unaware of his surroundings.
Hana emerged from the rooftop door. "I came to make sure that you guys were okay. Where's the Imagin?"
"He did a swan dive straight into Kevin!" Eddy said. "What did he just do?!"
Hana's eyes widened in shock. "Oh no, he flew into the past!"
Eddy nervously shrugged. "It can't be that bad, can it?"
No sooner did he say this did chunks from a nearby building began to break away and fall. People everywhere ran screaming to avoid being crushed. Soon other buildings began to crumble as random objects burst into debris.
Except for Kevin, everyone on the roof gawked at the destruction with mouths hanging agape.
"…Oh my goodness," Double D breathed.
Hana pulled a blank card out of her pocket and held it above Kevin's head. The image of the Bat Imagin appeared upon it's surface, along with a date.
"December 24, 1997." She held the card up for Kevin to see. "Do you remember what happened on this date?"
Though Kevin still held a blank expression, his eyes began to tear. "I was with my friends when it happened. There was a car accident. My cellphone was turned off… I didn't know my mother was…"
"…This explains Kevin's anti-social behavior," Double D said solemnly.
Hana placed the card in Eddy's hand. "This is the Time Card. You use it with the pass to travel to whatever time the Imagin flew to."
Eddy nodded sternly. "Got it." He pulled out the Rider Pass and pressed the white button. As soon as the Terminal Belt appeared around his waist, Eddy clicked it into place and pressed the red button on the side, causing the belt scanner to light up in red.
"Henshin again, I guess!" Eddy swiped the Rider Pass over the belt scanner, causing the computerized voice to activate.
"Sword Form."
In a mere instant, Eddy had once again become the Sword Form of Masked Rider Den-O.
Momotaros gained control as soon as the Sword Form armor attached. He jerked his thumb at himself and then struck a pose. "I appear!"
The DenLiner flew out of its usual portal for everyone to jump aboard. Momotaros immediately went to the train's console and sat down in the steering seat.
"This time I'll get that bat for sure." Momotaros inserted the Rider Pass with the Time Card into the console, and the DenLiner zoomed off to it's set destination.
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The Bat Imagin was busy tearing down anything he could get his hands on. Aside for a few Christmas decorations, the Bat would knock down streetlights and toss them at buildings. He would run cars off the road and cut down anyone who got in his way. The police were sent to stop him, but bullets seemed to have no effect. The entire time, Kevin's unconscious form was located behind the entire scene.
When the Bat Imagin was about to crush a fallen police officer with a squad car, The DenLiner flew in and got in the way.
Momotaros dropped out of the train on a motorcycle designed like the DenLiner. He rammed the Bat Imagin into the ground and attempted to run him over, but the Bat Imagin took to the air.
The bat swooped down and grabbed Momotaros off the motorcycle, who in turn desperately punching the bat in the face to get free. He pulled out the car devices on the Terminal Belt to recreate the sword and slash the bat across the chest. The bat immediately let go and landed painfully.
"Ready for round two?" Momotaros charged the bat and tackled him to the ground.
The bat tried slashing back, but Momotaros got out of the way and elbow dropped him in the stomach. With one finally kick, Momotaros sent the bat rolling down the road.
He took out the Rider Pass and swiped it over the scanner.
"Full Charge."
In a current of red static, the sword's blade detatched from the hilt and hovered into the air.
"My Certain-Kill Attack…" Momotaros directed the blade up and across the bat, cleaving a long gash in the road. He then navigated the razor projectile into a straight rise into the night air.
"Part 2!" Momotaros vigorously swung the hilt down, sending the sword into a nose dive right into the Bat Imagin.
As the creature was bisected in two, it let out one last scream before bursting into a cloud of sand.
Momotaros was about to walk away until the sand from the Bat Imagin's remains suddenly came together and expanded into a giant, winged monster.
This new creature was a horrible abomination indeed, resembling the disfigured cross between an insect, a bird, and a bat all at once. It rose into the air on three sickingly deformed wings, one on the left consisting of a molting, feathery appendage while the right side held two sporadically beating gossamer ones. In place of legs, it's lower body merged into a thick thorax with a protruding stinger. Rolling open it's bisected mandibles, it's balding, bat head released a piercing screech that cracked the windows of every buidling near it.
*You're kidding me!* Eddy cried mentally.
"Huh, I heard about imagin losing there form and turning into total freaks of nature, but never saw it until now. Looks like the bastard went berserk and ended up changing into a Gigandeth."
The Gigandeth launched a shower of stingers onto Momotaros, who was running as fast as he could to avoid the attack. He jumped onto the motorcycle and sped off.
*What do we do now?!*
"Easy, we fight big with big!" Momotaros declared as he revved the motorcycle in the direction of the DenLiner.
*If this turns out like Power Rangers, I'll quit. I don't care if the world's at stake; I ain't piloting something that looks like a rejected cereal mascot.*
"You and me both. Besides for this bike, I found some stuff that might come in handy."
Momotaros parked the motorcycle back into the DenLiner and headed for the front of the train. He sat in the steering seat and pressed a few buttons. With a hiss, the front of the train unclamped from the main body of cars, rolling away with only three left trailing behind it.
*I don't see what this is gonna do.*
"You'll see. Check this out!"
Momotaros typed in a few more buttons, and the console transformed. Though Eddy had never seen the cockpit of a tank before, he considered what he saw to be a pretty accurate copy.
"I call this the DenLiner Gouka," Momotaros announced proudly.
*I call dibs!* Eddy claimed enthusiastically.
"Like hell you do! I found this, so I get to drive it!"
*Hey, you already got to drive the motorcycle and fight!*
"I don't care."
*Come on, you can drive this anytime you want to.*
Momotaros took a moment to consider before giving in. "Fine, just don't get us all killed." The Sword Form disappeared, leaving only the Plat Form.
Eddy cracked his fingers and laughed manically. "This is gonna be fun!"
The Gigandeath was so absorbed in tearing buildings apart, the DenLiner Gouka had no problems sneaking up and ramming it at full speed. The Gigandeath stabilized itself before falling, and opened fire on the DenLiner, which dodged every shot with ease.
Everyone in the DenLiner's detached cars watched the fight in amazement.
"Cool, this is better than 'Wild Sky Fighters 3'!" Ed shouted while jumping up and down.
"I must admit that Momotaros seems to be quite adept at this." Double D noted.
"Guess again."
Everyone turned to see Momotaros reappear into his original seat with a red wave of static.
Hana looked at the DenLiner Gouka and then at Momotaros. "If you're here, then that means…"
{Yep, it's all me, baby!} Eddy shouted over the radio connected to the train.
"Eddy, what are you doing?!" Double D demanded. "You're not even old enough to drive, let alone pilot a futuristic war machine!"
{I've played enough videogames to make this a breeze. Get a load of this!}
Eddy went into a series of loop-de-loops before flying by the Gigandeath, which was desperately trying to keep up with the DenLiner Gouka's movements.
"Quite showing off and just finish it already," Momotaros grumbled.
{Geez, ruin my fun why don'tcha? Here goes.}
The front of the DenLiner Gouka deployed chain guns and a large turret while the three cars behind it opened up to reveal missiles, bombs, and rockets.
{Let's go wild!}
Eddy laughed insanely as he started circling around the Gigandeth and firing off all of available weaponry. Wings and several other body parts were blown to kingdom come as the Gigandeath was pinned down by the artillery assault.
Once the Gigandeath had finally been knocked to the ground, Eddy brought the train to a stop. Inside the cockpit, the viewing screen had transformed into a targeting system that locked on to the wounded monster with vectors and aiming sights flashing erattically.
{Here come the fireworks!}
Eddy grabbed the controls on his chair and aimed the turret downward. After a quick charge, it unleashed a single shot of energy that reduced the Gigandeth to ashes and sand in a fiery pillar to the sky.
{Think I'll call that number the GouCannon!}
Eddy drove the DenLiner Gouka back to the ground and got out to go to Kevin's location. Kevin had just regained consciousness, and the only thing he could remember was fainting suddenly. He had no idea how his surroundings ended up looking like a battlefield.
Kevin glanced up to see a figure clad in strange and futuristic black, silver, and white armor. Despite the imposing facade, the mysterious figure was short in stature. "What happened? Who are you?"
"No time to explain," The figure said. He sounded familiar, though Kevin could not figure out why. "You need to come with me. It's about your mom."
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Eddy and Kevin had used the motorcycle to reach the local hospital. When they came to a stop, Kevin hopped off and turned back.
"Hey, thanks man. Who are you anyway?"
"The name's Den-O," Eddy said. "Go, your mom needs you." With that, Eddy drove off.
After getting directions, Kevin rushed to the room his mother was being held in. He opened the door to see her unconscious form hooked to a life-support system. His father was kneeling over the bed silently praying.
Kevin's heart jumped into his throat. He ran into the room and grabbed his mother's hand. "Is she going to be okay, dad?" Kevin choked out.
Kevin's father shook his head with a saddened face. "The doctors said that her chances of surviving the night are slim."
Kevin held his mother's hand tightly and cried silently. Please don't die, mom. I need you. Kevin prayed. Please don't go.
A single tear hit his mother's hand, and her eyes opened weakly. She looked at the sight before her and gripped Kevin's hand in assurance. "Kevin." She said hoarsely.
Kevin and his father immediately crowded closer. When Kevin's mother tried to sit up, Kevin's father helped support her.
"I bought this for you." Kevin's mom grabbed a small box from the table near her and handed it to Kevin. Inside was a silver bell tied to a blue ribbon.
Kevin gripped the bell tightly and cried in his mother's arms. Both his father and his mother held him in comfort.
"It's okay." Kevin's mother said with a smile. "Everything's going to be alright. I'm not going anywhere."
The DenLiner passed by the hospital window, giving the Eds and the rest a good look at the heart-warming scene.
"That was a noble thing you did just now, Eddy," Double D complimented.
Hana looked a bit unsure. "It truly was, but doesn't this change the course of time?"
"I believe this is for the better." The Conductor said. "I see no harm in helping to avert a tragedy on Christmas."
"You were a good elf, Eddy. Santa would be proud," Ed declared.
"Uh, thanks Ed," Eddy said unsurely. "Let's get home."
"Merry Christmas everyone!" Naomi declared happily. She was wearing a traditional Santa hat and serving out coffee with green and red whip cream on top.
"Awesome! What presents did I get?" Momotaros asked eagerly.
The DenLiner flew high into the air before passing through a swirling portal of white light that disappeared with a flash.
Unbeknownst to everyone, a figure in a brown trench coat and large floppy hat watched the entire scene. He glanced at a gold pocket watch before closing it and walking away.
A/N: Next Chapter; Won't You Let Me String You Along? Thank you, and please review.
Chapter 5: Unfinished Business