Chapter Nine: That Is Our Miracle
"What…the Power…"
Hongo stared in shock at the change that had come over the young man. In all of his years fighting the evils of Shocker and seeing the world around him change, he had never seen anything like this. Weihan had literally gone from being down and almost out to powering up immensely within the blink of an eye and changing into a suit of armour that defied all expectation. Whatever it was, it was doing a very good job at intimidating the Spider Mutants and completely blindsiding the Wraith. Personally, he thought the face on the torso was a bit cheesy and not becoming of a true Rider but he had seen much worse on a few other Riders. As the Orange Rider settled into a saurian stance, he wondered when the attack would come…and if the tail-like assembly on the back required that much counterbalancing.
Closing his eyes, Weihan readied his mind and body for the attack. The combined powers of his Ultra Crystal and Rider System were flooding his body with the same level of power he had felt when he activated the Battlizer. He felt connected with the Grid around him and could see every single life around him blaze with a brilliant light. There was also something in Kenzaki, a small dot of power that seemed to pulse with an organic nature. He had no idea what that could be or if it was just a figment of his power rush imagination but, for once at least, he didn't care. Whatever it was; it wasn't for him to worry about right now – he had a Wraith to destroy and a whole world of people waiting for him to make it back to them safe.
Taking into account how easily he had destroyed Xonix, he felt extremely confident that he could put the Awakened Wraith down for good. On the other hand, it didn't mean he couldn't put on a show for the girls. Snapping his eyes open, he launched himself at the monster with a punch that bordered on supersonic – shattering the thick armour on its chest like it had shattered the Rider Blade moments earlier. The Wraith flew back as its mind, evolved and awakened as it was, tried to think up of a way it could salvage the situation. Watching the monster fly for a few more moments, he turned back to the group of Riders and motioned with his head to the Spider Mutants before taking off after the flying spider.
Kotaro was the first to act, pulling out the Revolcane once again and leaping into the air to deliver a powerful slash across the back of the nearest monster. Snapped from their nervous stupor, the Mutants charged the eight Riders – but they were ready for them. Following up the slash with an overhead cut that severed one of the arms of the mutant, Kotaro rolled to the side and changed into his stronger Robo Rider form. Spinning the Vortech Shooter in one hand, he tapped into the reserve of solar energy as Takatora and Daisuke stepped up. The white-clad Rider took off his Sengoku Driver and pulled out a device that almost looked like a small juicer of some kind; placing it on his belt and pulling out a lighter coloured version of his Lock Seed with a translucent blue casing.
"Melon Energy"
Connecting it to the Drive Bay, Takatora slid the lever to the left and initiated the transformation into Melon Energy Arms. Unlike the more fruit-based colouring of his regular Arms, the Melon Energy Arms looked more like the inside of a musk melon, with an orange 'sash' covering his right upper arm and shoulder. The Melon Defender shield vanished from his HUD menu, though he knew that he could call upon it if he needed the extra protection, replaced by the Sonic Arrow. Not wanting to waste any time, he took off the opened Lock Seed and, excusing the awful pun, locked it into place on the Sonic Arrow. Neon green energy began to coalesce on the tip of the weapon as he pulled the arrow back. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Drake activate his Clock Up ability, vanishing in a blur of motion. Slowing down his breathing, he released the energy arrow and sent it flying through the air at the same time as Kotaro and Daisuke initiated their finishers. The Spider Mutant exploded in a light green ball of fire as the other two mutants scattered; though other Riders were slowly zeroing in on their prey.
Eiji wordlessly transformed into his Super TaToBa combo and executed a blitzkrieg slashing attack on the Spider Mutant in front of him, managing to cut through its leathery armour and draw the strangest looking, and smelling, blood he had ever seen. He could see Kenzaki next to him using the powers of the Mach Jaguar Rouse Card to execute a similar looking attack with his King Rouser, the Rider also transformed into his strongest form – King Form. Both Spider Mutants collapsed to the ground as the RAPTOR Rider finally reached the Wraith, batting it towards the group. Privately, Eiji wondered why he was taking the time to do that as he should just destroy it but he dismissed the thought. After all, it was natural to want to seek some form of revenge or humiliation on the thing that had hurt you, right? Activating his Scanning Charge kick as Blade readied the Royal Straight Flush, the two Riders sent their finishing attacks towards the mutants; destroying both of them on impact.
Honoka smiled at the explosions signifying the defeat of the Mutants before blinking in surprise as the Spider Wraith flew past the group, followed by the Interdimensional Rider. Interestingly, he hadn't yet pulled any of the blades from the tail assembly, preferring to strike at the monster bare-handed. A stream of reflective liquid poured out of the gaping wound on its chest and she could see it trying to shape more weapons from it. The air around his hands seemed to ignite as he slammed his fists into the Wraith countless times in a row; shattering more of the protective armour it had gained upon its full awakening. In fact, it seemed that all of the advantages it had gained were negated by the sheer speed, power and ferocity the Ultra Mode had unlocked. Her friends, already cheering the destruction of the Mutants, turned to the ongoing battle and began cheering the Orange Rider on. Although she wasn't so sure he knew what they were saying, they would make up the language barrier with spirit.
"Go Weihan! Get it good!" Kotori cheered, forgetting that she should use English.
Hearing the cheers of support, Weihan turned around and gave a small wave before ploughing his right foot into the monster. The Wraith was now a bloody mess and a far cry from the confident creature that had promised his destruction. It rolled on the ground as it tried to fashion more of the barbed swords from the blood that poured from its wounds. Unfortunately, he wasn't going to allow the Wraith to gain a second wind and summoned a white-hot fireball into his left palm. As the monster reared back in surprise, he flung the incendiary ball into its chest – cauterising the wound and stopping the flow of blood. Slightly wincing at the unearthly howl of pain from the monster, he took out the Dimension Opener from its subspace pocket and pressed the recall button. Now he was on a time limit but was rather confident he would be able to destroy the creature without having to ask his double to do it for him. After all, he was in a new one-time-only mode that had unlocked a new world of power.
"Wait, what did he just do? What was that?" Nozomi asked the others but they responded with gestures of confusion. She had a strange feeling she wouldn't like the answer one bit.
Placing the Dimensional Opener back in its subspace pocket, he withdrew the Raptor Sabre from the tail array and twirled it in his left hand. He knew the others would be wondering what he had done but the time for explanations would come later. A small part of him wondered if he should have pressed the recall button after the battle had been won, even though it would mean forty five minutes of sitting around doing nothing after the group dispersed. On the other hand, he could think of a much better activity to do with some of the girls but shook his head to keep his mind in the present moment. The Spider Wraith had stopped howling in pain and was looking at him through hatred filled eyes. Resting the blade on his left shoulder, he smirked under his helmet.
"I'm on a time limit now." He shook his head slowly. "I won't allow you to infect a world as bright and beautiful as this."
The Spider Wraith scoffed through the pain and shook its head vehemently. The world around them wasn't filled with light or laughter, it was a dying world filled with the seeds of evil. Riders would come and go throughout the years but everything would end in a fireball catastrophe that would begin with the destruction of the moon. It had seen this future coming to pass as it had sucked up the juices of Grand Bloody. It wouldn't happen tomorrow or even in the next few years but this world would fall and become the domain of monsters so grim, they would defy all expectation. New heroes would rise up but they would eventually die when the glass tower fell. It was all so poetic and it wished it could bathe its fangs with the blood of these new 'heroes' but, sadly, it looked as though it wasn't to be. Still, it could demoralise the Rider a small amount.
"Foolish Rider, look around you! This world is filled with nothing but death and despair, just like your home!" It chuckled darkly, knowing its next words would break his spirit. "Evil will continue to live on in this world, even after you leave. You're nothing but a small stopgap against a tsunami."
He didn't doubt that for a second. The split-second image of the quartet of girls that had flashed up in his mind's eye was clearly from some undetermined point in the future of this world but he knew in his gut that they would be able to rise up to face whatever evils assailed them. The only thing he needed to worry about was the here and now and the destruction of the Wraith in front of him. If that didn't happen, the world where the girls existed and fought would never come to pass. Alternatively, it would come to pass but with massive differences. Gathering his thoughts, he reflected on the dimension he had just come from and the differences present from his own home. There were no Wraiths and Xonix was alive and well, though he had been struck with one of his frequent 'power comas'. There were new Rangers popping up everywhere with slightly weaker Powers than the Rider System but who could wield them effectively. A worrying factor was that Grash'Nak, the Guardian of Hellfire, was seemingly breaking free of his prison but, as much as he hated it, that was a problem for his double.
"You're wrong about that but I don't have time or patience to teach you." He stated, pushing fire to his Sabre.
Narrowing his eyes behind his visor, he rocketed towards the Wraith with his blade drawn back. Reaching the appropriate distance, he plunged his left foot into the ground and used the momentum to deliver another crushing slash to the left shoulder of the creature, neatly severing two of its new limbs and cauterising the wounds. The Wraith howled in pain as it tumbled on the ground, wondering when the advantage it held over the Rider had vanished. It didn't make any sense as it had feasted on the blood of the being that had seen its emergence and absorbed all of the added powers it contained. For a few moments, it was the strongest Wraith to ever walk on any dimension but the Rider had powered up as well. For a brief moment, it had thought it had been merely a cosmetic change and the protection of the face-themed armour would not stand up to his abilities. It had been proven wrong very quickly and it was only now realizing that it had acted a bit too hastily regarding the draining of Grand Bloody.
This new Rider acted impulsively and moved too fast for any of his eight eyes to pick up on. Darting in and out, it felt a brief flash of pain as the remaining limbs that had sprouted from its back were cleanly cut away. A sense of dread and loss washed over it for a brief moment as it knew it wasn't long for the world. Summoning up its remaining rage and hatred, it reasoned that it would fight to the bitter end and sow the seeds of discord into the hearts of the defenders. Rising to its full height as it attempted to control the surging energies in its body, it was distracted by two voices from behind it.
"Rider Kick!"
"Rider Punch!"
The attacks hit it head on as it was turning to assess the threats. Four eyes went dark immediately, the energised punch destroying them in an instant. It felt a warm trickle of liquid flow down its face but soon realised nothing could be created from vitreous fluids. Swinging one of the barbed blades through the air, it cackled in delight as it scraped against the chest of one of the Riders – throwing him back as sparks flew from the gash. If the Rider it had fought before wouldn't die, it could at least send the ones opposing him into a flurry of despair before sucking out their essences. The innocents in the groups would be next to fall and his revenge would almost be complete.
"You foolish creatures," The Wraith snarled. "You have no idea of the powers I possess!"
Weihan shook his head slowly, resting the red-hot Raptor Sabre on his shoulder. The heat wouldn't eat through the magically enhanced armour or leave any kind of burn mark. He contemplated using the finisher he had used to destroy the Pup Wraith on the powered-up spider beast but he seriously doubted it would stay in one place for him to build up the momentum. Plus, he didn't want to be revisiting his lunch so soon. Although it wasn't the time for it, he snorted as he saw Hongo and Ichimonji attempt to battle the Wraith. They had guts for sure but they wouldn't be getting anywhere without his help. He knew what the Raptor Sabre was capable of and it was a familiar weapon to use but, in order to learn and grow, he needed to use the other weapon in the array – the Rider Sword.
"I don't think they care," Weihan replied, drawing the Rider Sword from the array. "As a matter of fact, neither do I."
Grasping the handle, he leapt towards the Wraith with both blades swinging. He drew on his past experiences battling with two blades to effortlessly disarm the monster and destroy the barbed blades with a blast of fire. A nick behind the knee with the Rider Sword managed to slow the creature down for a fraction of a second; enough time for him to jam both blades into the twisted scar on its chest and pour fire into the Wraith. At the back of his mind, he could feel and hear his Main Three Power Animals snarling and roaring as their bloodlust was satisfied for a brief moment. And, yet, he knew he had to wrap this up quickly for reasons he couldn't readily explain. He still had around forty minutes to spare before the portal opened up and he doubted any form of post-battle debrief would take longer than five or six minutes but there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind. Of course, he knew what it was and it was something he had been telling himself since he had thrown himself at the Wraith.
He didn't belong in this world. As powerful as he was, as much as he could decimate the monsters that threatened the populace…he was an outsider here. If he stayed, there was a good possibility that he could change the very nature of the Rider Grid in ways he couldn't even begin to imagine. He doubted the Power he had probably already exchanged would lead to humans developing forms of mental magic in the future but, the fact of the matter was, he didn't know what could happen. Looking up at the Wraith that was literally in his face and trying to bite through his visor again, he jerked back and blinked as he saw a targeting scope appear over the remaining four eyes. A mechanical whir filled his ears as a burst of light engulfed the Wraith, sending it tumbling again and scrabbling at its eyes. A gloved hand helped him up and he was amazed to see a black and gold Rider in front of him, though the armour melted away to reveal the form of RX. Hongo was next to him, looking somewhat ruefully at the frozen form of Ichimonji where he had fallen.
The three Riders shared a look and nodded in unison, sheathing any weapons that may have been held. A tri-toned burst of light pulsed from the Turbine and new information flowed into his mind as he accepted what needed to be done. Backing up from the blinded Wraith, the three Riders struck similar poses of power and ran at the creature. As they reached a certain, unsaid, point, they leapt into the air as Weihan touched the centre of the Morphing Gem. Reaching the apex of their ascent, they positioned themselves into their respective stances – Hongo with his right leg extended, Kotaro with his left and Weihan holding out both legs in a double-footed drop kick. Fiery energy blasted from both sides of the Turbine to link with the energy being generated by the belts of the other two Riders. In one powerful voice, they yelled out the attack name.
"TRIPLE RIDER KICK!"
The three blows struck the blind Wraith like a freight train, the heat from the expended energy instantly melding its feet to the concrete. It could hear the micro-explosions inside its body as the destructive energies ripped through nerves and organs it was only beginning to realise the uses for. Much to its dismay, there was an organ that could have been used to redirect the energy to a line-of-sight attack that could punch through twenty inches of solid titanium. Now that its eyes had been destroyed, its only purpose was to add more volatile energy to the fires within. Now, it could feel the crackling over its skin as its body hardened and began the transition to the sand that had created it. It tried to move its lips into a smile, though it only marginally succeeded.
"You may have won against me but I will promise you a lifetime of bloodshed and suffering." The frozen Wraith vowed through a cracking mouth. "The events of tonight will haunt you down the road."
In a burst of yellow, green and orange fire, the Awakened Wraith simultaneously exploded into nothingness and crumbled away into a mound of sand. Warily poking the sparking material with the edge of his boot, Weihan suppressed a relieved sigh and felt the adrenalin flood out of his body.
Finally, it was over.
TBC…
AN: Almost over. Just a few more chapters to go.
