I don't own Kamen Rider Gaim or RWBY. This week's episode; Ruby is kidnapped! Can the team save her before she goes through some serious break the cutie events!? On the other hand, two of the 108 Roidmudes were destroyed. Just what the hell are these creatures? What are their origins and goals? Why are their top fighters named after organs of a Human instead of numbers like the rest of the mooks? Is Mashin Chaser the new rival a Roidmude himself? So much still unknown... .
BUT DRIVE ONNN!
Symbolic Joker: Just wanna say that I feel that there's an extremely high chance we're going to get a World of Remnant episode next time. We always seem to get that after we get a big cliffhanger. Also, I don't own KR Gaim or RWBY either. They belong to Toei and Rooster Teeth.
Updated AN:
Symbolic Joker: I'm sorry for the late update everybody! I was going through my final test in high school and here in Malaysia; it's very strict since it's decide whether you're gonna live big or you're gonna live in a cardboard box. And so, my parents agreed to take away my computer. Hence, no chance for updating. This was entirely my fault. And since they took it away pretty quickly, I only got the chance to tell Riku and some other Authors I'm close with that I gotta go on hiatus. Didn't have the chance to get Riku a replacement for the time being... .
Special thanks to OathtoOblivion for taking the time out of his life to help me finish editing this evil, evil chapter.
Lock Seven: Riders and Pieces
*Lock Open!*
Kumon Kaito had fought against enemies that had made modern armies, consisting of supposedly trained grown men, run away in panic and terror. The abomination standing right in front of him, staring at him face-to-face, didn't scare him much. Especially after being compared to other things he had seen and fought. Hell, Kaito even led the first Armored Rider Defense Squad unfazed when the Overlords first invaded Earth.
Of course, said squad consisted of the most unlikely people to join forces with one another.
Oren Pierre Alfonso, a very flamboyant baker that somehow was also very capable at holding his own in combat.
And wherever Oren was, that little four-eyed weakling Jonouchi Hideyasu followed him like a little lost puppy, who finally grew a pair and decided to defend the city they were born in from the invaders from another world.
Zack, his trusted second-in-command (and who Kaito would grudgingly admit was also the closest thing he had to a best friend) who he had left Team Baron with after he started his journey to take down Yggdrasil. For some odd reason, Kaito could never quite remember what his best friend's last name was.
Then there was Minato Yoko, the bodyguard who had been abandoned by the person she was supposed to protect, Sengoku Ryoma, when it was made clear that the Overlord invasion could no longer be contained. Her loyalties quickly shifted to Kaito when she found something about him that seemed amazing in her eyes.
The Beat Rider Defense Squad soon fought off wave after wave of Inves until Demushu finally came back to challenge them. Unfortunately, he came back with a power up (that caused horns to grow from his shoulders) that allowed him to defeat them all with ease. Good thing Kazuraba came back with a power up of his own…
During one of the times where the Defense Squad took a breather from all the patrols they did in wiping the Inves out, Jonouchi once estimated that they might've slain at least a hundred Inves in that first battle alone. Kaito merely chuckled at his estimation since he actually kept count and the numbers went way higher.
Every single Rider in the Squad was strong (yes, even Jonouchi was different from when he and Hase backstabbed him during their Beat Rider days) and skilled. Kaito acknowledged that battle was one of the more memorable moments in his life, to fight alongside so many who were strong.
Another reason why he punched Ryoma in his smug face when he smack talked about Gridon and Bravo.
They may have been enemies in the past but they were strong compared to the crazy and amoral professor.
That's the thing about being a Rider, you always faced odds that would make lesser men weep but you merely endured those challenges. Kaito welcomed those odds as it was in those moments in life where he felt like he was truly living instead of being stuck in the state called peace that dulls his mind. If Kaito had had his way after he had finished remaking Earth into a world where no one would be oppressed anymore, he would've gone straight to the other parts of the Universe and done the same to other worlds.
He was no Demushu, who enjoyed the suffering of others just to prove his superiority, but Kaito wasn't a big fan of unmoving peace either. If it takes destroying a world for the weak to not taste oppression anymore, then so be it. He was willing to be called many monstrous things so long as the weak would stop being oppressed no matter where they were.
But enough about the past. Though, unlike in the past, he had little-to-no knowledge on how some of his fellow 'teammates' fight. Right now he, Ryugen, Gaim, Pyrrha and Blake were trying to wound the Sasori Shika Grimves (that's what he's going to call it until he has time to come up with a better name) with little success. Half of the forest was already covered in fire from their attempt to bring the thing down along with its 'little' birdie friend.
Said birdie friend was being kept busy by a team consisting of Nora, Ruby, Yang and Weiss. However, the thing took advantage of the fact that those four could not fly and stayed high enough so it could dodge their attacks with ease. The same could be said for the girls. Their reflexes and the distance between them and their opponent allowed to dodge its attacks, which consisted of nothing more then shooting its feathers at them.
Baron refocused on his own fight. Those girls seemed to be able to take care of themselves. Plus, they dragged their fight further away from his own so none of the Grimm's attacks would accidentally hit the other team. But he was a bit surprised though, since the Grimm/Inves hybrid was agile like the Shika Inves but with even tougher skin, most likely from the Grimm traits it clearly inherited.
Plus that scorpion tail makes it really hard for close range attacks, something he and Gaim can attest to. However, Gaim at least had some long-range attacks in his arsenal thanks to his Musou Saber's gun feature. Baron? He had to constantly focus on channeling his energy to shoot banana-shaped projectiles at the Sasori Shika Grimves and it was really taking a toll on him.
But it seemed for naught. Their attacks merely seemed to annoy the Grimves. Baron silently snorted to himself. If his own attacks had no effect on the thing, what chance did Gaim's, Pyrrha's, Ryugen's and Blake's peashooters have that they could hurt the thing?
The creature swung its tail at them, knocking Ryugen and Blake back as they were the closest to the creature. Gaim did not falter from seeing his friends get hit. Instead, he chose to combine his two weapons into the Daidaimaru Naginata Mode, and swung the Daidaimaru blade across the creature's chest. But it just shrugged it off like all of their other attacks. The creature raised its tail as it hissed at Gaim, before knocking the blue Rider onto his back with a swing of its powerful arms.
Gaim would have gotten a stinger to the chest had Pyrrha not appear just in time and block it with her shield, Akoúo. The creature was physically very strong, strong to the point Pyrrha had to use her Aura so that she and her shield didn't crumble under the pressure of the creature's stinger. Baron quickly seized an opportunity and jumped towards the creature, intent on stabbing it right in its face.
Baron became the distraction Pyrrha and Gaim needed, as they quickly used the opportunity to fall back with Ryugen and Blake. The four gave a brief nod to each other before they tried shooting the Grimves with their weapons again. They aimed their shots at the head, while Baron (now in his element) attacked its bottom. All five were hoping that they could deal a critical blow on this monster soon, as it wasn't stupid enough to stay in one spot and it constantly used the forest to hide itself.
"WRAHH!" Before Baron's Banaspear could pierce through the tail, it retreated back into the forest again. It then proceeded to come out with a somersault, letting out a fearsome roar. The group immediately got frustrated from the lack of actual damage dealt to it. The Sasori Shika Grimves's pincers were engulfed in flames before it swiped those flames at the group, though luckily they managed to dodge.
"Enough of this!" Ryugen honestly had enough, and decided to try a finisher to see if it had any effect.
HAI~!
BUDOU~SQUASH!
He pointed his Budou Ryuhou at the Grimves, energy from the Budou Lockseed charging into the barrel of the grape-themed gun before Ryugen pulled the trigger. It released a barrage of enhanced energy bullets that when combined took the form of an Asian Lung, which hit the Grimves dead on.
And yet, the damage still wasn't nearly enough to truly damage the creature. Maybe a small part of its armor got chipped, but that was it. It roared in anger as it slapped Ryugen out of the way easily. Blake tried to cut off its tail with her sword yet the monster easily flipped away before that could happen.
Kaito had seen the Shika Inves in its Strengthened Form before and he had always thought of it as nothing more than a giant mook. The Grimm/Invess in front of him? It was tough enough to be considered as a mini boss in video games.
One extremely annoying mini boss, that is.
"It's tough," Pyrrha commented as they all regrouped to regain their bearings. She had faced many Grimm at her last combat school, yet this was the first time she had faced something this hard to wound. To her, the creature in front of her seemed to be some kind of mixture between a Death Stalker and some being from a fairy tale. Whatever it was, its durability surpassed all other opponents everyone had faced as not once any of their attacks seemed to do actual damage.
"It's agile," Ryugen also commented, as he noted during the fight that while the monster took everyone's shots with ease, it was able to skillfully move through any attempt in trying to take it down in close-range combat regardless which body part you're aiming for. Sometimes it used its tail to grab hold of the trees to help it escape whenever they were close to cutting a body part off.
"It's smart," Baron deadpanned. He had fought many Inves before, but this hybrid in front of him was nothing like the other Inves. Despite its large size, it managed to use the woods to hide and was able to time its strikes perfectly whenever any of them let their guard down. The hybrid understood the meaning of stealth, unlike all other common Inves which went for the direct approach.
Baron then thought of using his Suika Lockseed. However, as he thought back to that one time he used it against Lock Dealer Sid, he felt that it would be too slow to use against the monster he was fighting right now. He would be at a slight disadvantage due to the fact that his Inves opponent could actually think and could probably dodge most of his attacks before a solid blow landed.
As an Armored Rider, Kaito knew that there was a time and place to switch Lockseeds during a fight. Right now, it was better for him to stick with what he had. He could use Kiwi Arms, but the Kiwi Gekirin were a bit too heavy for the strategy he wanted to go for. If only he had Ichigo Arms! Considering his situation, he couldn't really afford to care that he would be the pure red one of the group. The lighter Ichigo Kunai would be of more use than the Kiwi Gekirin.
"It's a pain in my ass!" Gaim declared as he got up. He usually wasn't one to curse willy nilly (due to his mother beating it into his skull that cursing was quite frowned upon by society), but dammit he was pissed off by his most annoying enemy yet!
SOIYA!
ORANGE SQUASH!
Gaim pressed down the Cutting Blade of his Sengoku Driver, causing energy from the Orange Lockseed to course through his body; charging up before gathering into his right foot. Jumping up into the sky, Gaim delivered a flying side kick that left a trail of orange slices made out of orange energy behind him. Surprisingly, the kick actually hit its mark, with Gaim being able to feel the hybrid's mask cracking a bit while the creature itself groaned in pain a bit.
However, Gaim's moment of joy was cut short when the Grimves swung one of its pincers and grabbed Gaim off its face. Now in its grip, Gaim didn't need to be a genius to know what would happen if the monster tightened its pincer. Magical fruit armor be damned, he was going to be cut in half like a hot knife through butter if someone didn't do something!
"Dust!" Before Gaim could be crushed, Baron deployed the Rose Attacker, ramming the motorcycle in the Grimves's face. Gaim fell out of its pincers and impacted the ground, but the two groups were forced to go back-to-back due to both of their opponents being irritating. Ruby and her group hadn't been doing so well either. The Nevermore had simply dodged or barely been nicked by their attacks. However, that was when Ruby got a lightbulb moment.
"Our objective IS to retrieve the relic, right? Since staying here and fighting hasn't done us any good, let's change our location. If possible, we don't even have to fight these things." The rest of the eight nodded in agreement and quickly retreated to the cliffs for a change in battlefield, both Grimves and Grimm in pursuit. Kaito, despite what the others thought of him, also understood when regrouping was needed in a fight. But right now, he needed to think of a counter-strategy for that damn Grimves.
But before they could make it up to the cliffs, the Nevermore swooped down and blocked their path. The Shika Grimves closed in behind them, charging its hands with fire and leaping at the group. Everyone managed to duck in time and Yang sent another shot from her gauntlet right at the beast's chest. Yet it still showed no clear signs of being heavily wounded.
"Say, mind giving me one of those fruit lock thingies so I can transform like you boys?" Yang thought that the boys' little toys were kind of interesting and wanted to transform too. ...The poor fool.
"Now's not the time!" the three Riders yelled in unison, the Nevermore shooting off feathers at the rest of the group. They needed a distraction, badly, to deal with both the Nevermore in the sky and the Shika Grimves on the ground.
"Tch! Watch my back, Ryugen! I'm going in!" Baron activated the Daneliner and engaged in sky combat against the Nevermore. Ruby, Yang, and Ryugen tried their best to cover Baron, firing shots at the Nevermore in the sky while Weiss and the rest of the group tried to land a solid blow against the Shika Grimves. Nora's grenade forced the Grimves back a bit, but then it shot its tail at Nora for a revenge tactic!
However, it was quickly met with Gaim's weapons' Naginata Mode, knocking it back. At this point, Gaim finally decided to try out the Pine Lockseed due to how ineffective Orange Arms seemed against the giant Shika Grimves. He took the Lockseed off his Lockseed Holder and clicked it open.
PINE!
"Here goes nothing." Gaim switched the Lockseeds out, cutting the new one open.
LOCK ON!
SOIYA!
PINE ARMS! FUNSAI DESTROY!
Gaim's orange armor vanished. Above his head, a pineapple emerged and fell down on his head, just like the orange had. The next thing he knew, he had donned a new set of armor. That wasn't too bad, except for the fact that it came with a weapon he had NO idea how to use! He was a swordsman not, a multi-weapon master! He had been using and been practicing with a sword all this time. He can't suddenly master a weapon he'd never used before!
"Kaito? A little help on what the hell I'm holding?" Baron was distracted for a second upon hearing that, which is why he barely managed to duck another one of the Nevermore's feathers. This wasnot the time for him to be babysitting the new Gaim. If he didn't figure it out right now in the heat of combat, then he didn't deserve to be called a Armored Rider.
"Figure it out yourself! I can't help you with everything! Fight to survive another day!" Baron ducked yet another of the Nevermore's attacks. That was the point where he realized that the Dandeliner was dangerously close to being destroyed. Considering he had no idea when he'd be able to get his hands on another Lockvehicle; well, the choice was obvious, wasn't it?
SUIKA!
LOCK ON!
COME ON!
SUIKA ARMS! ODAMA BIG BANG!
GYRO MODE!
Baron switched out to Suika Arms in the air, jumping off and disengaging the Dandeliner in the process. Ever seen a chain gun in action? Well, that was what Suika Arms' Gyro Mode was equipped with. Now compare that to the machine-gun-like firepower of the Dandeliner. Really big difference.
The Suika Arms was able to heavily wound the Nevermore. And because it was in Gyro Mode, it was also pretty fast in midair, not giving the monster any time to rest. Any surprise that it was able to outmaneuver and shoot down that damn bird? Baron was about to go into Yoroi Mode and finish the job when he heard Gaim cry for help.
"A little backup, Kaito?!" Baron stopped himself mid flight to see what was going on. Gaim, despite finally figuring out how the Pine Iron works, was forced into a corner along with the others. Although they were slowly chipping the Shika Grimves defenses down, it was setting fire to everything in its rage. Nora was able to get a couple of good shots at it and Pyrrha even manage to break a piece of its back. Ryugen, on the other hand, was using...Mango Arms?!
He got Mango Arms while Baron was stuck with Kiwi? He was definitely going to trade them later, and he wasn't taking no for an answer! But right now, like it or not, Nora, Gaim, Pyrrha, and Ryugen needed help. Despite the fact that he was just a few moves away from finishing off the Nevermore. Baron gritted his teeth in frustration and turned his head towards Ruby. To his surprise, she actually read his intentions despite him being stuck in a giant mini-mech without any means to see his face. Maybe its instinct or maybe she just can read the flow of combat well, unlike some other fighters he knows.
"Yang, Weiss, Blake! Follow me!" The four headed over to the Nevermore to finish the job. Meanwhile, Baron dropped from the sky onto the Grimves in a surprise attack.
ODAMA MODE!
The big metal ball shaped like a watermelon made impact with the Grimves's back, yet it quickly rolled out the way to avoid most of the damage. Baron had to admit that trying to take the thing out was a lot more tedious than dealing with a Grimm or an Inves. This thing took bullets like it was nothing, had lightning- fast reflexes, and was even able to dodge weapons that were way smaller then its arms. Plus that incredible endurance...
"I have a plan." The four turned towards Gaim, whose voice sounded...confident. Not the usual whining or being unsure of himself, there was actual power behind his words. Kaito, despite not having a reliable countermeasure, was rather intrigued at what Gaim's plan could be. And seeing as through even after 10 minutes they had only barely worn the thing down...
"Kaito, since you're the most durable one right now, I need you to hold it back." Baron accepted that and quickly came to blows with the Shika Grimves. Its pincer manage to match Baron's experience with a spear and the scorpion tail managed to get more than several quick shots at Baron. Hell, it even managed to knock the spear out his hands! Baron was impressed enough by it that he was thinking of adding it to his training routine after this was over.
"Nora, use Pyrrha's shield as a boost and aim for the mask!" Nora jumped on Pyrrha's shield and used the blast from the weapon to launch herself higher and came down with a vengeance. The Shika Grimves was about to dodge again, but found something large and green holding it in place. Namely, one Mr. Banana. Baron's grip on the Grimves didn't let up even as Nora and her hammer came down, shattering the Grimves's armor to reveal its deathstalker-like eyes. It finally managed to shake him off as it let out a roar of pain.
"Ren!"
BUDOU!
LOCK ON!
HAI~!
BUDOU ARMS! RYU, HOU! HA HA HA!
Ryugen, having returned to Budou Arms, charged and fired a barrage that managed to blind the beast. It attempted to stab its tail toward Ryugen, but was caught by Baron before it could do so. Blindness had made this extremely smart and agile creature start doing stuff that was very reckless. That kind of recklessness can cause any creature's death in combat.
"Pyrrha, the tail!" Pyrrha aimed and threw her spear straight though the tail, letting Baron use the stinger to impale the monster . The monster was about to let out another roar, before Gaim, using Pyrrha's shield, jumped up. It wasn't quite as high as it could have been since he was in Pine Arms, but...
SOIYA!
PINE SQUASH!
Gaim fell into his Burai Kick, pineapple slices appearing in thin air to guide him directly at and through the Grimves. It wobbled a bit before it finally fell and exploded.
"That's a wrap." With that said, Jaune canceled his transformation at the same time as they witnesses Ruby Rose performing an execution that made even Kaito impressed. Dragging the bird's head by the cliff and then beheading it like that? Truly someone here was quite strong.
"Four years, huh?" Kaito looked atop the hill and knew in his gut that this was going to be a eventful four years. Unknown to Kaito, the rest of the fights he would encounter in Remnant would make this fight feel like a field trip in comparison.
Just who will the forest choose this time?
"Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladona, Yang Xiao Long. For retrieving the white knight, you four are now Team RWBY with Ruby Rose as its leader." The girls got in front of the headmaster and Weiss couldn't hide the surprise in her face. Kaito, on the other hand, snorted at that. He was in the amphitheater like the rest of the school, but since he wasn't a big fan of crowds he was standing in a quiet corner observing the team naming ceremony.
He had seen Ruby Rose in action and he admitted that she was quite skilled in the way she handled that scythe. A bit dense and naive like Kazuraba, but skilled nonetheless. Weiss was too much of a technical fighter that relied on what she had learned in school. She was the opposite of Ruby yet Kaito could see why they would make a good team since they could cover each other's weaknesses. Yang reminded Kaito a bit of his own combat style; using brute force to plow though his enemies, while Blake was more of the sneaky type that relied on tricks in a battle.
"So, they call you up yet, Kaito?" Jaune asked as he stood beside him. Kaito had to admit that the kid thought of a simple yet effective strategy, using each one of his teammates effectively to tank, deal, and hit specific spots on the enemy. He wasn't much of a warrior, but his strategy wasn't half bad.
"You did alright. You need to practice a bit in your other Arms though. It'll be a long road ahead before you're truly strong, but you did alright." For some reason, Jaune felt something warm and fuzzy, which was not something he expected to feel standing next to Kaito. It felt kind of like getting acknowledged by an older sibling for not screwing up.
"Say, I heard you made a trade with Ren for a Lockseed. Is it true that when we in Rider form touch these odd looking reddish fruits, they change into Lockseeds?" Kaito nodded and pull out his brand new Mango Lockseed out for him to see. He was all for getting more of his old power back.
"Yes. But no matter what, don't ever eat any of the Helheim plants. The forest of Helheim is way more dangerous than you think, and Inves are the least of your worries." Kaito decided to leave out the part about the fact if a non-Rider ate a Helheim fruit, it would turn them into an Inves. There was no need for the naive kid to know that the things they were fighting were once human. Kaito had already grown used to the concept that if he wanted to survive, he sometimes needed to kill. He wasn't a saint like Kazuraba, nor was he a weasel who seeks to make everyone he meet his pet and underling, like Mitsuzane.
Kumon Kaito had always been and always will be a warrior that values honor and true strength above all other principles. As long as one portrays both a noble ideal and the power to back up their ideal, then they would earn Kaito's respect. Jaune's ideal was still a bit naive, and in Kaito's view his strength still had a long way to go.
"Kumon Kaito. Please come for your team assignment. " As Ozpin called his name, a lot of the students started whispering.
"Where's his team?"
"Why is his name so weird?"
"What's with that coat?"
"He smells funny..."
"You people heard the legend about the "Banana knight"?"
As Kaito stand in front of Ozpin, the man smirked. Kaito was confident that since the people he had made eye contact with already had a team he didn't have to work with anyone. But something about Ozpin's smirk set off warning alarms in him. If Kaito didn't know any better, he could swear he saw a "you don't think it would be this easy, do you?" look on Ozpin's face.
"Kumon Kaito retrieved the black knight piece, yet was able to successfully avoid making eye contact with any of the students due to a rather unique route he traveled." Kaito frowned, as he had no idea where Ozpin was going with this. Yet something told him that his hope of solitude was going to be crushed very soon.
"He did make eye contact with Jaune Arc and Ruby Rose when he arrived to retrieve his piece in the forest. But both of them have already gotten their team so Kumon Kaito will be assigned as a special reserve course student. He will be teaming up with Team RWBY and Team JNPR each for a week. This way he can both experience the wonderful joy of working with others and continue on with his studys in Beacon academy." Kaito blood vessels almost popped upon hearing that. He knew that Ozpin knew that he hated working with rookies. So of course he purposely set him up with two groups of skilled yet rookie teams.
Kaito was very tempted to either sock Ozpin in his Overlord form or just punch him in the face right now. But his more rational side told him to endure and find a way for payback later. He was alone in this world, and like it or not Beacon was the only hope he had to locate the rest of the fifteen Drivers. As Ozpin offered his hand for Kaito to shake, he gave Kaito a trollish smile in an angle that only Kaito could see and whispered softly.
"You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?"
"You guys… why the hell are you and your teams in my room?" Kaito growled at Teams RWBY and JNPR, as they had walked right in like they owned the place. Kaito had moved in and finished redecorating his new special reserve course student dorm room, filling it with a few posters of his Team Baron logo along with the logo of his Armored Rider persona. His room had a distinctive red & black color theme, like his clothes and logos.
Speaking of his clothes, he had managed to fix his Team Baron uniform and produced a few copies that now (barely) filled his closet.
What? Living alone required him learning all sorts of things first. All of them he had managed to excel in.
And anybody that dared to call him 'girly' for learning some of those things got punched in the face.
But no matter how annoyed he had been at some people from his past, he wasn't as annoyed to them as annoyed he is right now at Teams RWBY and JNPR. Honestly, just waltzing into his room like that, like they owned the place. It made his blood boil.
Nora was jumping on his bed like a child on a sugar rush while Blake, Pyrrha and Weiss examined his room. Now he wouldn't have such a problem with the latter if it weren't the fact Weiss was inspecting every single inch of his room for something and that really put him on edge. Ren had brought a plate of pancakes (most likely trying to appease him from trying to beat them into senseless pulps) with Jaune, Ruby and her older sister Yang behind him.
There was only one reason that Kaito didn't transform and beat every single last one of them senseless (Ren's pancakes had no say in that. Kaito didn't accept any bribes unless it was mostly beneficial to him. Being 'fed' wasn't really that beneficial to him at all).
He had reports to do.
Specifically the reports he had to give to Ozpin about the fights against the Grimm/Inves hybrid.
Honestly, writing the report down kept him too busy from trying to beat everyone. He had to describe the abomination's appearance, features, strengths and weaknesses. Now that may not sound much but he had to factor things like 'how does an average Huntsman fare against the creature' or 'advantages that can be used against the creature'.
Bleh. What a waste of time. Luckily for Kaito, he did not care much for details even though he had a keen eye for it so the report shouldn't take too much of his time.
"Oh, lighten up, Kaito." Yang was bold, one had to admit, since she didn't seem to be affected at all by Kaito's natural presence which made you feel like you should stay the hell away from him. "Besides, Professor Ozpin told us all about that weird planet eating forest." Kaito's eyes instantly widened before dangerously narrowing. Ozpin told them!? He told them!? What the hell happened to 'keeping the public from panicking'!?
Then again, it should explain why Teams RWBY and JNPR were called to his office when Kaito was shown his special reserve course student dorm room. He probably explained everything he knew about Helheim to them while Kaito was busy decorating (and creating the decorations) his dorm room.
It probably didn't help that they saw him jumped out of a Crack to Helheim he opened up.
Damn. It was all his fault.
"Hey, Kaito… ?" Ruby nervously shuffled as Kaito's attention turned to her. "You're… from another world, right? One where they went through that creepy plant invasion too, right?" Kaito chose not to verbally answer her, merely giving her a nod. "So… what happened during the invasion? Did your world made it out okay?" Ruby asked, and Kaito understood what she wanted to hear.
She wanted to hear if there was hope for Remnant to survive Helheim's Invasion. If one world was able to survive, then so can Remnant, right?
"They're probably right. It's way too dangerous to trust him," Kazuraba Kouta noted as he and Kaito stared at the distance, their view being that of Zawame City being covered from head-to-toe in Helheim plants. This conversation of theirs took place sometime near the end of the Overlord Invasion, right after the Kureshima Brothers had their duel that resulted in the death of Kureshima Takatora.
"That's irrelevant," Kaito stated, unflinching as always. "If he's using us, then we'll use him back." The topic of their conversation was Sengoku Ryoma's offer, where he would show the Rider Defense Squad a secret entrance to Yggdrasil Tower where the Overlords had made their headquaters for the invasion. At the time, they had kidnapped civilians (one of them being Kazuraba's sister and later they found out that Rat and Rica of Team Gaim were amongst those captured as well) for God knows what reason.
Yeah, getting into the Tower was pretty important for the key members of the Squad. If anybody else had given the offer, they most likely would've jumped at the chance. However, Sengoku Ryoma wasn't the most trustworthy person, especially considering the fact that he had abandoned Zawame when his own actions had caused the Overlords to invade.
"You know, I wish I was more like that." Kouta noted with a chuckle. He was telling the truth though. Kaito's attitude may need some major adjustments but he never hesitated when he does something. He could inspire those around him to fight for something. He had the type of personality a guy couldn't help but admire. Kouta truly wished that he was a bit more like Kaito.
Maybe if he had been more like Kaito, someone dear to him and Mai wouldn't have taken the dark path his was walking on right now.
"So this is where you two've been hiding!" Mai's wonderful voice reached their ears, causing the two Armored Riders to turn to the source of her voice. Mai ran up to them, cheerfully smiling all the away. However, Kaito and Kouta knew that the smile was a bit strained. With all the shit going on around them, the two Armored Riders couldn't blame her. They also couldn't help but admire on how optimistic she was in their current situation. "Kaito, have you been wearing your belt the whole time?" Mai inquired, with Kouta noting the same thing within his mind.
What they didn't know was that Kaito had gained a wound recently. When Kouta had found out of Mitsuzane's betrayal, Takatora had stepped in, preventing Mitsuzane from killing Kouta when he had the chance. Kaito was hot on his heels as well, running up to the situation just as it would escalate. However, that Overlord bitch Redyue jumped in from out of nowhere and struck Kaito with her halberd. The resulting wound had infected Kaito with Helheim's poison, something that was slowly killing him as it flowed through his veins.
Which was the reason why he wore his Genesis Driver almost at all times. The nature of the Drivers kept the poison at bay. Had Kaito not gain a Genesis Driver, he would've been using his Sengoku Driver instead, despite the weaker power output. At least he would still had something to slow down the poison.
Knowing that there was no cure and that everybody in the Beat Rider Defense Squad would get distracted had they known of his condition, Kaito chose to kept silent to prevent them from having something else to worry. They already had enough problems as it is, they didn't need more piling up!
"It's a jungle out here. We never know when we'll be attacked." Kaito gave the bullshit excuse that he thought up. He hated having to lie, but if it's to keep the Beat Riders to fight at their maximum efficiency then he would do so. He could suppress the poison to the point it would not hinder his ability to fight. He would stay alive at least long enough to wipe out the Overlords. That was something Kumon Kaito swore to do before he died.
"Yeah, that's you to a tee," Kouta noted, chuckling again at Kaito's attitude. "Not that I can talk, since I've been living off these." Kouta admitted sheepishly as he held up a Himawari Lockseed. Due to the purpose of the Drivers, the Beat Riders could live using the countless Lockseeds that now littered their world. Of course, the non-Armored Beat Riders still had to eat actual food (plus most of them preferred putting 'real' food in their mouths instead of living off those Godforsaken fruits), so they usually left money at whatever store they 'liberated' for food.
"That's no good, Kouta! You need to eat something!" Mai scolded Kouta, as she had seen Kouta turning down 'real' food many times. She often wondered why, and it made her worry, and now she found all this time he had been favoring Lockseeds!? Yeah, it would scorn any woman. "Bandou's been worried about you!" Along with herself, but Kouta didn't need to hear that.
"Sorry, sorry!" Kouta apologized in that goofy manner of his, even raising his hands up in an effort to calm Mai down. She was a harpy from Hell when she was scorned, something Kouta could attest to as he had been the victim of her scorn many, many times. "I've just been too worried to actually eat."
"Geez, honestly..." Mai sighed. But still, it was nice to see Kouta still acting like Kouta. It shows that despite their situation, there was still hope for the future for them to still be able to act like how they were during their Beat Rider days. Actually, that gave her an idea... "But you know, when this is over, we should have a big party at Bandou's place! With loads of yummy stuff for us to eat!" Mai offered, with Kouta perking up at the idea.
"Sounds good to me!" Kouta grinned, before he subconsciously adopted a look of melancholy on his face. "And everyone'll be there... ." He muttered, with his two companions knowing exactly what he meant by those words.
"You're still not giving up on Kureshima Mitsuzane?" Kaito scowled, as he threateningly approached Kouta.
"It's like I said before Kaito, we won't..." Mai tried to intervene, but Kaito cut her off.
"I know," Kaito said, confusing Kouta and Mai. "You won't leave anyone behind. That's your strength." Kaito stated, before he turned to Kouta, and walked towards him. "But what about you, Kazuraba?" Kaito questioned.
"I feel the same as Mai," Kouta stated, with Kaito once again cutting him off.
"No. You two are worlds apart." Kaito spat out. Perhaps it was due to jealousy, but this still needed to be said with as much emotion as Kaito would show. "Her strength comes from looking at her own future," Kaito explained, as Kouta seemed to ponder on his words.
"Her future..." Kouta repeated as he continued to think.
"But what about you? You fight only for others, not for yourself," Kaito stated. "Do you even have a future in mind for yourself?"
"I..." Was all Kouta could say. He had this conversation before, with Minato Yoko. She stated that he could never beat Kaito, due to his hesitance at fighting supposed allies and that he didn't seem to have a goal of his own unlike Kaito who knew exactly what he would do once he had the power to do so.
"I wanna know too," Mai said quietly.
"Mai... ." Kouta attempted to say, before being interrupted.
"Promise me something. When the fighting's all over, tell me what you want for your future. Tell me your dream," Mai pleaded.
"...Alright, I'll think it over," Kouta smiled.
Mai grinned as she clasped her hands together. "Alright, shall we head back? I bet they're worried about us."
Unaware to Kouta and Mai, as Kaito started following them he suddenly clutched his left hand in pain as his breathing suddenly became more ragged. Making sure they weren't watching, he lifted up his left sleeve to check on the wound he had gained from Redyue. Due to it's Helheim origin, it still hadn't healed, at all even. Though Kaito pressed on, despite the pain. His Genesis Driver would suppress the poison.
At least, long enough for him to settle things… .
Ruby won't be disappointed.
"…A naive schmuck like you idiots won the Golden Fruit. I have no doubt that he used it to save our World," Kaito said. Knowing Kazuraba, he probably did something crazy like send all the Inves on Earth back to the Femushinmu Planet and lived there with Mai, cutting off any connection between the Femushinmu Planet with Earth. If that were true, it should explain why his Lockvehicles keep sending him back to Remnant instead of Earth.
Then again, there were flaws to his theory. If Kazuraba really did live on the Femushinmu Planet now, he should've at least sensed that Sagara had targeted a new planet by now. Being the naive schmuck he is, Kazuraba would've definitely stopped Sagara from invading Remnant. Or any other world for that matter.
Oh well. It didn't really matter where Kazuraba was right now anyway. Kaito will just focus on the now, just like he always had.
"I came to this world in bizarre circumstances and I have no idea how long I will stay here. But there's one thing I'm sure of: Helheim is coming. You guys have at best around 10 years before the invasion of Helheim comes." Silence filled the room as the only one that don't seem to be affected at all was Nora.
"But worry not. You guys here have someone who's already survived the invasion before. Since I'm stuck with you idiots till the end of my time here, I'll make sure you guys are prepared." Kaito was not much for babysitting, but since he was the oldest member in this little group, he kinda considered this as being Team Baron 2.0. Say what you would about Kaito, but he always looks after his men, no matter what they do.
Here were a bunch of souls who sought guidance to be strong enough to uphold whatever truth they have. Kumon Kaito was not a life coach, but he at least was going to push them to obtain that power.
"Say, Kaito." Yang seemed to have found his deck of cards and was playing with them. "How about a friendly game of cards? Team RWBY VS Team JNPR. If Team RWBY wins, I get ahold of one of those Lockseeds and you have to answer every question we ask." Jaune's ears perked up at that. Like it or not, this was the perfect chance to get more info and he was not going to pass it up.
"If Team JNPR wins, you tell us where to get more Lockseeds and some way to secure those Lockvehicles I saw you using." Jaune personally wondered if he could get his hands on a motorcycle like Kaito. Chicks dig motorcycles, or at least that was what he though.
Kaito simply gave the same laugh he gave Kazaruba after he got blasted with the Kachidoki Charge. It was the laugh signifying that "you people have NO idea who you're messing with." The smile made at least half the group incredibly nervous, and Jaune's flight-or-fight instinct was going off like crazy.
"Game on. I never refuse a challenge."
Symbolic Joker: And lucky number 7 was the longest one of all!
*Gets on the ground and pukes* I HOPE I manage to provide a good chapter as imagining the fight scene was pretty damn hard for me. This chapter dealt with Kaito's team assignment, first fight against the first of the Grimmves, RWBY and JNPR knowing Helheim and stuck with a guy like Kaito to help them prepare for it and in some odd way Kaito starting to connect with the kids. He is the oldest member of the group and in some way he feel like he leading another Team Baron.
Symbolic Joker: *Snorts* Yeah, one where the entire team can protect themselves... .
Grimves/Grimm hybrid/Whatever you people wanna call it: It's an element that's going to come back a lot. Combining the quality of both an Inves and a Grimm. The tough ones are actually going to be a pain in the ass since they have the quality of two worlds.
Kaito not telling the whole truth: *Points to the whole Micchy back stabing scandal* Kaito's blunt as a knife. Being truthful to his desires. But there are times he thinks that it's wiser to hint at the truth. Case in point giving a subtle hint to Kouta that Micchy is EVIL and not down right shaking our orange, screaming at him how much of an idiot he can be at times.
Symbolic Joker: Just because the guy wants more power doesn't mean he doesn't have common sense in his head. He knows when there are times where he shouldn't be so blunt. How about that time he socked Ryoma in the face for constantly getting in everyone's faces for being the one who escalated the Helheim Invasion? He even told Ryoma that no one can really stop him from being so blunt, but at least prepare to get punched in the face if he's going to keep doing it.
The future: 5 Riders known with an Energy Rider still nowhere to be seen…
"Tch! Bloody Hunters and Huntresses. What's a crimnal got to do to get some Dust these days? I mean, it's not like I'm stealing their money." Roman lit another cigar to calm himself down from two recent robberies had ended up in failure. Luckily for him, he still had time before scheduled meeting with his benefactors so he can still collect some amount of Dust for them.
Personally? He didn't like his benefactors. He had no reason to other than the fact that they were the ones who busted him out of prison and even that's not a good excuse to be 'buddy-buddy' with people. The only reason they busted him out anyway was because he was the only one who could help them with a job that he knew very little about. But why out of all the criminals in Vale did they decided to partner up with him?
Roman didn't dare to snoop around to find out the answer to that question. While full of mystery, his benefactors were known to be quite brutal to those who disobeyed orders.
"Boss!" One of his underlings called out to him, gaining his attention. Said underling ran up to him, revealing that he was one of the men he hired from Junior. "We found something in a crash site in Vacuo! It's some kind of strange red belt. We think that it's like the one Zangetsu uses but we found it with a blue Lockseed!" The underling explained, with Roman raising an eyebrow at the explanation as his interest was piqued.
A mysterious belt along with a Lockseed? Now why does that sound so familiar? Ah yes, 'Zangetsu' was a dirty Faunus who had secured himself a strange fruit-themed armor which was summoned by using a mysterious device in the shape of a belt alongside a Lockseed. Roman wasn't that fond of the Faunus but he was definitely a lot less fond of that douche because he's got about as much emotion as a dry loaf of bread and the animal hated him for his choice of lifestyle.
The underling led Roman to a table with a lone briefcase sitting on it, which had about a dozen White Fang members guarding it from being stolen. Considering the power the Zangetsu Armor gave to the douche, he wasn't surprised by the overkill number of guards. Said guards made way for him, their disdain for his kind evident by their scowls at the sight of him and the underling.
The feeling was mutual.
Opening the briefcase, Roman quickly saw similarities with the Zangetsu Belt but there was definitely big differences. The silver brass knuckles decorating both sides of the belts for one thing, along with all the straw-like appendages on the top and bottom of the belt. The straw-like appendage on the bottom seems to connect into the jar-like decoration on the belt, which was right below the port where a Lockseed obviously went.
Next to belt was a Lockseed. Like his underling said, the Lockseed was a clear see-through blue instead of the usual black and silver. The fruit design was themed after a cherry this time, with a different coding style compared to the Lockseed they've gotten from that mysterious forest. This Lockseed's code was 'E.L.S. - 02'.
"A new belt with a new Lockseed, huh?" Roman instantly smirked once he was done inspecting the two. He had just gotten the feeling that he had gotten his hands on something far better than Dust to show to his benefactors by the end of the month.
Until now... . Like always this is a team effort with Symbolic Joker. God bless his soul for dealing with my shit all the time.
Updated Note:
Symbolic Joker: Wonder if you still felt that when we had to deal with the hiatus... . Anyway, again, special thanks to OathtoOblivion for taking the time out of his very busy life to help out finish editing this God forsaken chapter. Trust me when I say it took me forever to make a dent to this thing and it took Oath forever because he has such a busy schedule.