Kuuga Chapter

Part 2: Altered

"What's the matter?"

Godai gasped as another wave of pain swept over him, rolling back over the wreckage of a phone-booth, hands scrabbling against the ground as he pushed himself to his feet.

"Come on!"

With a cry of desperation, Godai wheeled on his ankle, making a half-turn back towards his tormentor; a powerfully-built monster of white and gold, covered in finery like an emperor of old—the being the police called #0. He swung a punch with his spin, but #0 caught it with contemptuous ease, twisting his arm painfully back towards him.

"Come on! Smile for me, Kuuga! Smile some more!"

Some kind of spark flew from #0's fingers and a wall of flames smashed into Godai, hurling him back down the street. He hit an abandoned car, crumpling the bonnet and smashing the windshield, rolling off with a weak groan.

He never admitted defeat. Nothing was impossible. But right now...he couldn't think of a way. He could hardly think at all, with the final Grongi's boyish laugh ringing in his ears. He was in his new black-armoured form, stronger than he'd ever been, but against #0 nothing he did had the slightest effect. And every time he was thrown back, every time he let himself stumble and give the beast more time, more people died, their cries barely reaching him before they were snuffed out.

Around him the world was on fire.

He threw himself at #0 again, locking his arms around the monster's waist and hauling him off to the side, causing his latest pyrokinetic arc to fly wide, allowing the targeted family to get out of harm's way. Maybe the first people he'd saved during this entire ordeal.

"That's cute…" #0 brought an elbow down into the side of his head, smacking him to the ground again. One of the Kuuga form's eyes cracked. Godai hadn't even realised that could happen.

"Why…?" he almost sobbed. "Why are you doing this? Any of this?" This was the one that had set up the whole Grongi death-game from the start.

"Why do you think?" For a moment, the Grongi flickered back to his human form, grinning from ear to ear before reverting.

"Because you enjoy it?" Godai's fist pounded into the ground, cracking the road. "What kind of reason is—uhlk" A vicious kick into his ribs turned him flat onto his back again, a sick feeling rising inside him.

"That's the reason you do anything, isn't it?" He began forming another ball of flames between his clawed fingertips. "I thought you'd be more fun. The last Kuuga was stronger…"

"TOH!"

The cry had come from above, but by the time #0 looked to its source, the rooftop it had originated from was empty. When he looked back down, someone, or something, was standing between him and the fallen Kuuga, crimson scarf streaming out behind it in the unnatural storm #0 had called up.

"What are you supposed to be?" he snorted. Some kind of strange Linto fashion? No, wait—he gave a sniff. Is this a man or a machine?

If this is the Grongi leader, he could be even stronger than the other one I fought… Hongo glanced around at the destruction around them. I can believe that. Has Kuuga really been fighting things like this all year?

"Well, whatever." #0 closed in, striking down at Hongo with flame-wreathed hands—the Rider spun to face away, blocking each with a raised forearm on either side of his head, the same spin sweeping his leg under the Grongi's and staggering it back a step. Hongo drew back, heading towards Kuuga. Even from that one exchange, his limbs were shaking, his gloves half-blackened from the heat.

There's no way. With my current power… His gaze rested for a moment on a damaged panel at the side of his belt. Especially without that...I have no chance of winning. Kuuga, however… He hefted the fallen warrior over his shoulder, his antennae flashing as he summoned the remote-controlled Cyclone bike to him.

"Like I'll let you," #0 chuckled, positioning himself between them and the bike.

Hongo took two steps' worth of a running start, then—"RIDER JUMP!"—launched himself into the air a breathtaking distance, far over #0's head, coming back down on top of Cyclone, still carrying Kuuga. He wheeled the bike around, preparing to speed off, turning to deliver a parting message to #0 first.

"Stop this useless violence!" he commanded. "All you want now is to fight Kuuga, isn't it? He will fight you-once I've helped him become a true challenge for you. That'll only happen if you have patience! Let these humans be."

"Heheh...we'll see."

"If you want your perfect battle, those are the terms!" Cyclone's engine roared, and they were off.

Sakurako squinted as the last pair of symbols lined up. This carving hadn't been neatly-printed like the other Linto writings in the ruins—it had been messily scratched into the floor next to the coffin the original Kuuga had lain dormant in for so long. That made it even harder than usual to translate, but it seemed important. Like a warning of some kind.

Finally, she had it all pieced together. There was the symbol for 'Grongi'. Then 'danger', circled three times for emphasis. Next, 'Leader'.

Then finally, a series of phonetic symbols—a name?

"N...Daguva...Zeba."

I really need to stop passing out… Godai shifted-and immediately rolled off the bench he'd been laid on. The smack of the hard ground beneath him jolted him back to full awareness and he remembered what he'd been doing. #0! He sprang to his feet, then faltered, pain shooting through his legs. Just as he was starting to fall, steady hands caught him and sat him back on the bench. "Easy."

"I have to—#0—" His mouth was running faster than his mind. "I couldn't save them—they're all—"

"Calm down!" Whoever it was shook him by the shoulders, and his eyes finally swam into focus, presenting him with the last person he expected to see.

"...Professor?" He blinked, stunned out of his anguish. "Professor Hongo! What are you—" He spotted the bike behind Hongo, and the scorch-marks just visible on his forearms where his sleeves ended, and put two and two together. "Wait, you're...you saved me back there?"

Hongo nodded, patting Godai's shoulder before sitting on the bench next to him. "Relax, Godai. If all goes to plan, that creature will wait a while before acting again. And if not...I'll take responsibility."

"But, what was that form back there?" Godai didn't quite understand, but it seemed like things were taken care of for the moment, so he did his best not to stay downbeat for long. "That was really cool! Do you have an Amadam too?"

Hongo shook his head. "That's the stone gives you your power, I think? No...you and the Grongi aren't the only things in this world beyond conventional understanding." His face twitched in concentration, and the heavy-set Typhoon belt—a stark contrast to the sleek, rounded one Godai used to become Kuuga-formed around his waist. "I was...remodelled, back in '71…" He took on a pained look for the tiniest instant. "This body is as much metal as flesh now."

Godai nodded, trying to look intelligent. "Uh-huh, uh-huh...apparently the Amadam is changing my body, too. The doctors don't really understand it...I hate to say it, but it's kinda scary." He held out his hand. "So, like...I guess we're both 'altered humans', right?"

Hongo shook it, smiling warmly. "Well said."

Godai leaned back, trying to collect his thoughts. There was so much he wanted to ask, so much he wanted to talk about. Here, finally, might be someone who had felt the same things he had, this past year. "I guess this explains why you were never on campus...I bet you've saved a lot of people, right?"

With a heavy sigh, Hongo stood. "After I became this, I could never stay still for long. I've been travelling and fighting for thirty years now...sometimes it feels like no matter what I do, the troubles of the world just won't diminish, but…" He shrugged. "I just can't help myself. That's what life is now—for me, and the other Kamen Riders."

"Kamen...Rider?"

"Like you and me, altered humans who transform to fight for humanity. Comrades of mine. I was the first—Kamen Rider #1."

"That's so cool!" Godai said again, giving a thumbs-up. "Who'd have thought, my university tutor was such an awesome guy…" He grinned awkwardly. "I wish I could say I aspired to be like you, but if I'm honest, it always seemed like we were kinda incompatible…it was my elementary school teacher I really looked up to all this time..."

Hongo chuckled. "No, that's good. You're your own person, Godai Yusuke, and you've grown into a fine man. I'm proud." And...I'm so, so sorry you had to get involved in something like this. Violence doesn't suit you.

I wish I could shoulder this burden for you, but… He leaned against his bike. "I've only encountered a couple Grongi, but their strength was terrifying. It's clear that if you've been hanging in there this long, your power must greatly exceed mine. Well..."

He tapped a charred, busted panel on the side of his belt. "This is supposed to be a mechanism for temporarily increasing my power, but it's been damaged quite severely. Without it, I definitely can't put a scratch on that Grongi leader. In other words, I can't win this battle for you. But I can help you win."

"What do you mean?"

"When the Riders of the past faced a great crisis, they always trained to overcome it. I think you have the potential to improve a great deal, Godai—hopefully we'll have enough time to achieve that."

"Oh, really?" Godai asked, excitement rising in his voice. "That'd be great! I've done some things kinda like that before," he added. "Learning how to use all Kuuga's forms properly…"

Different forms? Like Kotaro, then… "Well." Hongo stood up straight. "We haven't got much time. Follow me."

"Okay!"

"Daguva, huh?"

"You're gonna stop him, right?" the voice on the other end of the line asked.

"Yeah...yeah, of course. It'll be okay! Actually I met someone really cool who's helping me prepare…"

"Who?"

"It's kinda...I'll tell you everything later, okay? Don't have much time."

"Just...be careful," Sakurako warned. "This one's killed dozens of other Grongi."

So have I, Godai thought.

"Don't worry," he said out loud, hanging up. He gave Hongo a nod. "Thanks for waiting."

"Let's begin." They both transformed without ceremony, squaring off about ten feet apart.

"Oh, but…" Godai pointed at the open flat ground and piles of crumbled rock around them. "How'd you know about this place? Did you used to live here?"

"No, I...sort of…" Hongo seemed a little embarrassed. "A lot of my old battles ended in quarries, for some reason. After a while, I couldn't help memorising their locations."

"Huh...well, anyway. What kind of training were you thinking of?"

"First, take your strongest form."

"Kay…" Godai focused inwards, trying to recapture the feeling from before. Gold detailing began to form around Kuuga's body, sparks jumping between them. This was the golden power he'd been using for a while now-now for the next step. With another effort of will, he dug even deeper into that reserve. Then, an even more striking change—his red armour became black, the highlights standing out even more now. "This is it. So what should I—"

In the time it took him to blink, Hongo was already upon him, forward hand clenched around his neck. He shoved it away, just barely getting his arms up in time to block a second strike. Fast—!

"You tapped into new source of energy to access this," Hongo noted, his helmet's compound eyes feeding him energy readouts. "But you're only scratching the surface of it!" He broke away, one leg kicking up after the other, the right knocking Godai's block away and the left pushing off his chest, sliding Godai back a few steps while Hongo guided himself to a landing back near his starting position.

"Yeah, you're right…" Godai admitted. "The ancient writings we're working on translating mentioned something like this...well, it was a four-horned Kuuga, but the colour is the same, so I guess I'm getting close. I don't really want to become that, though. Apparently it's 'the ultimate darkness' and it'll 'dry up the holy spring'."

"Do you have any idea what that means?"

"I think so…" Godai looked away. "I think I almost became that version of Kuuga once." He shivered, recalling the school. The needles. The funerals. The list of names, piling up, with nothing he could do. "I was just so angry—it was all I could feel. It was like...becoming a Grongi, I guess. If I try it and lose control…"

"That may be, but there's no choice," Hongo said firmly. "As we are now, you and I are no match for Daguva. And I don't take him for the patient type. The killings will resume, and soon."

"I can't—"

"What other option is there?"

"We could fight him together?"

"I do plan on being there, but Godai...my attacks just now, they didn't hurt, right?"

Godai shrugged. "I didn't wanna say it but, no. You're really good—I couldn't stop you landing hits—but they didn't really do anything." Not in this form, anyway. If I'd been the red Kuuga, even with the golden power, I'd have really been in trouble.

"Exactly." Hongo pointed across at him. "And the gap between you and Daguva is even wider! What can you do in that form?" Perhaps, he thought, if Ichimonji had been here to lend his power...but Rider #2 was in Brazil now, hunting for Badan's latest hideaway alongside Amazon.

Godai was silent for a while, his posture slumped, defeated. At last, he raised his head. "...you're right. Hongo, sir, I'm going to try it." He gave a little bow. "If I go out of control...please, work together with the police and find a way to stop me."

Hongo held out a fist. "I swear it."

"All right." Godai closed his eyes, once more focusing inwards. He knew what he sought lay in the same direction as the power he'd tapped to produce his current form, buried much further down. But it was disturbingly easy to reach all that way down—he'd opened this path once before, if only for a moment.

This wasn't like the other forms he'd had to work to unlock and master; this power, and everything else that came with it, was his for the taking. If he wanted it.

Of course he was scared. But—

I'm not gonna see anyone else cry.

Even if I have to lose myself...I'm gonna make it so everyone can smile again.

His body gave a shudder, a chill wind sweeping over the quarry. Little tongues of fire began lapping up and down his armoured form, his head and limbs twitching jerkily, all in complete silence—more unnerving than any scream, somehow.

He reached the tipping point. For almost ten seconds, he was engulfed in a dome of roaring flames. What finally staggered out was a different Kuuga altogether. The carapace was still black, but it was bulkier, with swept-back spikes curving off the knees, shoulders and elbows, and far more gold detailing, winding like veins around his body. Four horns sat atop his head.

Hongo took a cautious step forwards. "Godai…?"

"I...I did it…" Godai began, then froze, his voice twisting off into a strangled gasp. "I can't—" His helmet's eyes faded from red to black.

"Godai!" Hongo was running now. "Fight it!" He reached his student, taking him by the shoulders. "I'm here! Godai!"

"hhhHHGGHhhhk—" Another fiery explosion erupted from his body, flinging Hongo to the ground. When they cleared, Godai was back in his human form, sinking to his knees and staring blankly up into the sky.

Hongo, similarly de-transformed, limped over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "You had it. For a moment, you had it."

"I don't know," Godai almost whispered. "I'm sorry—I hurt you..."

"I'm all right!" the veteran Rider insisted. "We've still got a little time. You can keep trying."

Just then, Godai's phone rang. "H-Hello?" He didn't speak for almost the entire call, his face growing paler and paler. "I'll be there," he said eventually, hanging up and scrambling for his own bike (he'd had it sent here while they were preparing).

Hongo, seeing things were serious, was already heading towards Cyclone. "What is it?"

"Daguva got tired of waiting, I guess," Godai responded. "It's like before. He's just...walking around, destroying everything he sees. By the time the police catch up he's moved on. They've been working on a radar for detecting Grongi, but to do any good it needs to be mounted on this." He patted his bike—the force's fastest prototype, the BeatChaser 2000. "So I'm gonna go pick it up."

Hongo mounted his own bike, revving the engine. "I might be able to catch up to him on Cyclone, but your method is more reliable. On the off-chance I catch him, I'll try and stall him until you arrive. And Godai!" he added, as the younger man turned his machine to leave. "What will you do when you face him?"

"My best," Godai said, donning his helmet and roaring off back towards the inner city.

Godai had thought he'd seen the worst of it. The past year, the things he'd been forced to do, he thought he'd seen the bleakest the world could throw at him. But he'd always held to the thought that it'd been worth it. No matter how bad it got, it was worth it, for that one upside.

Which might've now been torn away right in front of him.

He walked through the wreckage of the police station in an empty daze, feet idly kicking through fragments of burning paper, vaguely acknowledging the words that reached him from the officers swarming around the place.

"—just walked in—"

"—nothing we could do—"

"—weapons completely ineffective—"

"—left carrying Ichijou—"

"—he was alive! They never took prisoners before, why would it—"

"—TryChasers all destroyed—"

Snapping back into focus, Godai grabbed the nearest officer he recognised: Sugita. "Scanner," he said flatly.

"...destroyed," the older policeman said with a resigned look, tensing as Godai's grip on him tightened. This was actually a little terrifying; he'd never seen Godai like this. "But—wait, listen!" He put a hand on the distraught young man's shoulder. "#0 said something...a message for 'Kuuga'. That's you, yeah?"

Godai took a deep breath, forcing himself to stand still long enough to listen.

"He said…'tell him, Mt. Kuro. Hurry.' And..." Sugita's voice began to tremble. "...just...smiled."

Godai was gone before he could say another word.

"Sir!" Sakurai came staggering up to him, managing a salute. "Do we follow?"

Sugita shook his head. "#4 is doing his job. Let's do ours. There's a lot of wounded out there, and rescue teams will be stretched thin after everything #0 did. Get everyone who can walk moving!"

Ichijou gasped as he was finally thrown to the ground, landing face-first in the snow and scrambling to his feet. He grabbed his revolver from its holster, shakily levelling it at the smiling, white-suited boy before him. After a moment he sighed and replaced the weapon. He'd seen enough other officers try to know not to bother.

"What is this?" he asked, falling again. Where did this wind come from? Stupid question. Storms had always followed where #0 went.

Daguva lurched a step towards him, lilting laughter carrying over the wind's howl. "See, I think I might've hit Kuuga a little too hard. Might've broken him. Gotta give him something to get him fired up. So he's gonna come for you with fire in him. That'll be fun, right?"

Ichijou just sat there, staring up into the gleeful eyes. This wasn't some sinister mastermind. This was a violent child. With the power to unmake the world.

"I hope I chose right," Daguva mused, half to Ichijou and half to himself. "I just happened to notice someone who didn't have the same smell as Kuuga—so not family—but was just covered in his smell. Was expecting his woman—got you instead. I learn something about the Linto every day..."

His eyes gleamed. "So let's sit tight 'till he gets here, 'kay?"

Two wheels screamed down the highway, bike and rider making a direct line for the centre of the growing snowstorm.

Please don't die, Kaoru.

If you're gone, I might just become that ultimate darkness.

I looked it up and apparently Mount Kuro is like...on the other side of Japan from Tokyo, but given the BeatChaser 2000's ridiculous top speed a quick bit of division showed it could make the trip in like three hours. (And hell, the Cyclone is a good bit faster even.)

Alternatively it's possible I'm completely wrong about where everything is, in which case it's a good thing I'm leaving timeframes vague.

Anyway, the Kuuga arc concludes next chapter.