Chapter 24: Para-DX's M
Ex-Aid Online
"PIPUPEPO PANIC!" Poppy screamed at the top of her lungs.
She was in her human size, yelling in an open space in the living room. Flailing her arms all over the place, she was panicking. Ex-Aid was getting healed by Leafa on a couch, Asuna and Sinon were sitting nearby.
"Prave and Pnipe attacked Pex-Aid, and now we've got a new Pamen Piper popping into the fight!" She whined.
"Yeah, we noticed." Sinon grunted.
"Pex-Aid! What should we do?" Poppy asked, flying over to Ex-Aid.
"I don't know…" Ex-Aid sighed.
Ex-Aid thought long and hard. Everything is just a giant mess now. Brave and Snipe just assaulting him out of nowhere, the introduction of Para-DX, and on top of all that, he has no idea of why the patient is hating on him.
But his train of thought stopped when two people walked in. Liz and Silica came into the living room with messy hair and tired expressions. They then just collapsed onto the floor.
"Silica! Liz!" Leafa called, getting up to help.
She lifted them up to a chair.
"What happened?" She asked.
"Nico…" Liz sighed.
"She's…" Silica groaned.
Asuna and Ex-Aid both got up.
"We'll see what's up." Asua told them.
Asuna and Ex-Aid then ran down the mansion and into the room where Nico was staying in. When they walked in, all of the words they were about to say evaporated.
Nico must've had a lot of time on her hands. The walls were now decorated with all sorts of feminine items. Such things included streamers of pink, some plushies were bundled in a corner, and some balloons hung on the corners of the bed. There was even a clothes rack next to the bed.
"EHHHHHH?!" Both Ex-Ad and Asuna yelled.
Then they followed up with their own reactions.
"So cute!" Asuna squealed.
"Wait, what?!" Ex-Aid spluttered. "What is all this?!"
Nico smirked and sat down on a free chair.
"Well, seeing as you people locked me in here." She ecplained, crossing her legs. "I thought I could make this place more… liveable?"
Ex-Aid looked around again. He had no idea how to respond to this.
"Look, let's just get you back in bed, okay?" He asked, reaching out to her.
Nico pulled out her sword in defiance. She pointed it viciously at Ex-Aid.
"You better stay away from me!" She yelled.
But, she winced, and collapsed back onto the ground. Ex-Aid began to approach her to help, but Asuna stopped him, telling him that he'll make his situation worse.
"Why do I have to be at the mercy of this douche…?" Nico scowled quietly to herself.
Ex-Aid had had enough of this ambiguity.
"Alright, so what did I exactly do for you to hate me so much?" He asked.
"Ex-Aid, back away!" Asuna ordered.
After yanking him out of range, she turned to him.
"Can't you see it?" Asuna asked. "You're the source of her stress!"
"Oh." Ex-Aid replied. "That actually explains a lot."
"So what, you here to finish me off or something?" Nico asked.
"No, no, no! That's not it!" Ex-Aid reminded. "I'm here to cure you!"
Asuna then began to shove Ex-Aid out of the room, but Ex-Aid resisted her move.
"I want to make you smile again…!" Ex-Aid shouted.
"Okay, out you go!" Asuna interrupted, pushing Ex-Aid out of the room.
Closing the room door, she then began to make an idea.
"I'll ask what's stressing her out." She said. "You'll only get in the way."
"No… I think I have an idea." Ex-Aid replied, getting back up.
The two began to walk back to the living room. Once they were gone, a Spriggan appeared on the wall. He approached the door and opened it.
Pallad was lounging around in a hammock in a dark forest. He was smiling away. He was very happy. However brief, he was able to finally fight the Riders. He looked at his Gashat Gear Duel like a puppy overjoyed with seeing its food. But then, someone swiped the Gashat away from him.
"Why did you not take Gashat?" Genmu asked.
"Hey now…" Pallad chuckled. "You do know why I'm helping you to begin with, right?"
Pallad jumped out of his hammock and landed in front of Genmu. He looked at him with determined eyes.
"I just want to play the ultimate game." He stated. "And I want to have the most exciting game ever."
He then swiped his Gashat Gear Duel back from Genmu.
"Isn't that the reason why you made these?" He asked.
He then walked away, gesturing with his hands.
"And to play that most exciting game." He added. "I would need the best opponent I can get, right?"
"And you're saying that Ex-Aid… no, Hojo Emu fits your criteria?" Genmu asked.
"I'm going to defeat him." Pallad declared. "And me alone."
"Very well." Genmu said, beginning to head out.
"Just make sure that your wish is not too premature." He added, slicing a tree for no good reason.
A monster roared as it shattered into nothing. The player that stood before the defeated monster, was Brave. He had a just cleared a dungeon boss all by himself. He withdrew his sword. While he did beat the monster in order to advance the game, he was thinking about the whole Bugster within Ex-Aid thing.
'It may explain how he can transform…' He thought. 'I have to find out how to separate him from the Bugster…"
Then, a ding went off. He noticed that he had a message. He opened it up and saw that it was from Ex-Aid.
It's Ex-Aid.
I have something to ask you.
Do you have time?
Brave replied to the message.
Come to the flats.
I'll meet you there.
He then sprouted his wings and flew away.
Brave reached the location soon. He landed softly. It was the same place where the Sylphs and Cait Shelter attempted to make a peace treaty with the Salamanders interrupting them some time ago. He found Ex-Aid leaning on a rock. He walked over to him.
"What is it?" He asked.
Ex-Aid stood up and faced Brave.
"I want to know why you and Snipe attacked me." He said.
Brave looked away, as if to avoid the question.
"Does it have anything to do with Nico?" Ex-Aid asked again.
"Huh?" Brave muttered.
"I don't know why, but I'm the one that's stressing her out." Ex-Aid explained. "Do you think it might have something to do with her?"
"Since when did I ever cared for the patient?" Brave asked in an angry voice. "I did it because-"
He stopped mid-sentence. Snipe's words then echoed through his mind.
"Imagine the stress he'll get if he finds out…"
Brave turned around to stop that thought and think of another excuse.
"I did it because you involving yourself with patients is revolting." Brave bluffed.
Ex-Aid was really confused. He wanted to ask more, but he stopped when Brave turned back around and put on his Gamer Driver. He also pulled out his Gashat.
TADDLE QUEST!
The game area spread all over the area. Bravve then inserted the Gashat in.
"Henshin." He said.
GASHATTO!
LET'S GAME! MECCHA GAME! MUCCHA GAME! WHATCHA NAME?!
I'M A KAMEN RIDER!
Brave was replaced by his chibi form. He grabbed the Gashacon Sword and then carefully approached Ex-Aid.
"Show yourself, Bugster!" He shouted.
As Brave slowly walked forward, Ex-Aid began to step back.
"Wait! There aren't any Bugsters here…!" He pleaded.
But, he fell back onto his back. Brave flipped his sword and then raised it to the air. Just then, Asuna popped out of nowhere and struck the sword. She flipped around and landed in front of Ex-Aid.
"Asuna…" Ex-Aid muttered.
Asuna pointed her rapier her viciously. In response to this, Kirito also appeared out of thin air. But he was next to Brave. Kirito didn't say a word. He only unsheathed his swords and got ready for an attack. Asuna just got more confused.
"Kirito!" She called. "Why are you and Brave doing this?"
"It has nothing to do with you!" Kirito shouted back. "I don't want to hurt you, Asuna! Move!"
"I don't want to hurt you either!" Asuna shouted. "Just tell me what is going on!"
Before anyone could say anything more, Brave, Asuna, and Kirito were all sent backward by some bullets. They all looked up and saw Revol, along with some Bugster mooks.
"Operation: Defend target." Revol said robotically.
"There it is!" Ex-Aid called, pulling out his Gashat.
But something strange happened. The Bugster mooks got into a defensive position in front of Ex-Aid. Revol stood next to him.
"Fire." Revol ordered.
The Bugster mooks fired at the others. Luckily, Asuna was able to place a temporary shield to block the bullets.
"Advance." Revol ordered again.
The Bugsters then began to walk forward slowly towards the others. Ex-Aid realized something right then. But he had to test out his theory, so he just put on his Gamer Driver and then pressed his Gashat.
MIGHTY ACTION X!
"Henshin!" He called as he inserted the Gashat.
GASHATTO!
LET'S GAME! MECCHA GAME! MUCCHA GAME! WHATCHA NAME?!
I'M A KAMEN RIDER!
Ex-Aid's figure was also replaced by his chibi figure. Now, both Riders leveled up.
"Proceeding to Level 2." Brave said.
"Dai Henshin!" Ex-Aid called.
GACHANN! LEVEL UP!
MIGHTY JUMP! MIGHTY KICK! MIGHTY MIGHTY ACTION! X!
TADORU MEGURU! TADORU MEGURU! TADDLE QUEST!
Both were replaced by their slimmer Level 2 forms. Brave then pressed the button on the side of the belt.
STAGE SELECT!
The plains have changed into a lovely park with a fountain statue. Brave slashed a mook by its legs and tripped it up. Using that as a distraction for the others, he slashed everyone upwards on their torso. Kirito and Asuna were back to back. Awkwardly though, they weren't speaking to each other. They only had scornful looks as they attacked the Bugsters. Ex-Aid jumped in to help, but every strike he landed was a dud on every Bugster. He then turned to Revol and attacked him. But even he was free.
"So I can't attack them after all…" Ex-Aid confirmed.
Revol turned to him.
"Friendly fire: disabled." He told him.
"Friendly? Me?" Ex-Aid said confused.
Revol turned back to the battle.
"Primary objective: Assist Ex-Aid in assuring victory and achieve perfect form." Revol stated. "Secondary objective: Destroy the Riders."
Revol then turned his attention back to the fight. Ex-Aid now had the information necessary.
'Is the stress me winning games…?' He thought.
Then, a lightbulb went off in his head. He turned to the people fighting.
"Brave! Kirito! Asuna!" He called. "I'll leave this to you guys!"
He began to run from the battle, but a particular Zombie Gamer blocked his way.
"Genmu…" Ex-Aid said.
"I shall be taking back your Gashats." Genmu replied.
Ex-Aid grabbed the Gashacon Breaker in his hands. He then swung at Genmu. He let the strike slide off of his body, and then he flipped around. He grabbed Ex-Aid's arm, and then spin-kicked him in the back. Revol noticed this and ran towards him.
"Mission Change: Protect Ex-Aid." He said.
Revol swung a fist at Genmu. He dodged it and he just kicked him out of the way.
At this moment, Brave slashed the mooks a couple of more times, and then, stabbing the ground, he froze them all. Asuna and Kirito took this chance to shatter them all. Once that was done, they all ran towards Ex-Aid to provide support.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Brave asked.
As Asuna helped him back up, Kirito charged at Genmu. He slammed his blade down, but Genmu just caught it and then kicked Kirito straight into Asuna.
"Kirito! Asuna!" Ex-Aid called.
Brave and Ex-Aid turned to Genmu. They pulled out their much higher Level Gashats.
DOREMIFA BEAT!
MIGHTY BROTHERS XX!
"I don't think so…" Genmu growled.
He pressed the buttons on the BugVisor and then pressed the B button.
CRITICAL DEAD!
A dark black and purple shadow was cast right below them. Then, silouhettes of zombies began to grab hold of both of the Riders. Then they began to blink red. And in a flash, the Riders were consumed by a large explosion. The Riders were thrown out of their transformations.
GASHUNN!
Ex-Aid tumbled back. Brave was also sent back, but he had his Gashats fall on the ground in front of him. Genmu then slowly approached.
Meanwhile, Revol took this chance to escape.
"Temporary setback. Aborting mission." He said, walking away.
Genmu crouched down and picked up the Taddle Quest and DoReMiFa Beat Gashats.
"That's one problem solved…" He said.
Brave struggled up and tried to reach for the Gashats.
"Give them back!" He demanded.
Genmu scoffed and just kicked him off of his leg. He then turned to Ex-Aid.
"I shall be retrieving your Gashats as well." He declared.
Ex-Aid tucked in the Mighty Brothers XX Gashat in his coat, but Genmu just grabbed him by his throat and picked him up. Ex-Aid struggled to get out of the grip. Genmu responded by slowly tighting his grip, closing up Ex-Aid's air passageway.
Just then, on the brink of death, Ex-Aid's eyes turned red, and he grabbed Genmu's arm. He then emitted a pulse that sent Genmu off of him. Brave, Kirito and Asuna saw it happened. They were stunned by it. Ex-Aid's eyes reverted back to its original colors, and then a small chuckle can be heard. Everyone turned to see Pallad, sitting on the statue platform of the fountain.
(Cue Excite! In the background)
"Genmu." Pallad called. "This wasn't our agreement, remember?"
Genmu scowled and looked away.
"I just ain't letting anyone getting in the way of fun, even if it's you." Pallad added.
Then, smiling, he turned to Ex-Aid.
"M, we'll play together next time, eh?" He smiled.
Then, both Genmu and Pallad disappeared. The area then reverted back to the plains. Ex-Aid walked over to Brave, who Asuna and Kirito were helping back up.
"Brave! Are you okay?" He asked.
"Your pity's a no thank you." Brave replied coldly.
"We'll do something about your Gashats." Asuna said.
"And thanks to you, I have an idea about the patient." Ex-Aid thanked. "Thank you."
Asuna and Ex-Aid then both took off to the sky. Brave looked up to see them go. Kirito turned to him.
"Well?" He asked.
"There's no mistaking it. He has game disease." Brave confirmed.
"So, there's a Bugster inside him?" Kirito said.
"Yes." Brave replied. "But without a Gashat…"
Kirito only looked on. He only hoped that Asuna would be okay.
Ex-Aid and Asuna arrived back in a rush. They found Sinon, Leafa and Poppy just standing by the room where Nico stayed. Once Ex-Aid and Asuna got inside, Poppy and Sinon followed in. Ex-Aid and Asuna found that Nico was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Nico?" Ex-Aid asked.
"Snipe took her away." Sinon replied.
"And you just let her go?" Asuna asked.
"Well, the patient agreed, so we had to let her." Poppy replied innocently.
"Is there any way we could track them?" Ex-Aid asked.
Just then, Pina flew in and began to sniff the room's air.
"You can leave the tracking to me!" Silica replied.
Once Pina was done sniffing, she flew off down the hallway and outside.
"Pina!" Silica called. "Let's follow her!"
Sprouting wings, Silica, Sinon, Ex-Aid, Poppy, Leafa and Asuna all flew off after her. When they had disappeared, Lisbeth walked out, yawning. She looked around and saw that everyone was gone.
"Did I… miss something?" She asked.
There was a small abandoned cabin out in the forest. It may look old, but the facilities within it were in tiptop shape. On the couch, Nico was lying down, groaning quietly. Snipe then entered, wearing his Gamer Driver and his Gashat in hand.
"You know, if you really care for me, you could just say so." Nico joked.
"Don't take this the wrong way." Snipe replied. "You're only here as bait for Ex-Aid."
Nico got up. She was furious.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.
"Once that's done, you'd better be out of my hair." Snipe told her.
Then, Nico got up on her feet and summonded her sword. She swung the tip straight at Snipe, who dodged it effortlessly.
"Just what are you after?" She asked. "When I asked you to, you didn't beat M… Well, now you're all over him!"
Snipe scowled and walked away.
"It's none of your concern." Snipe answered.
"Quit dodging the question!" Nico shouted.
The duo ran outside and found Ex-Aid, Asuna, Silica, and Sinon outside. Pina was on Silica's shoulder.
"Well… that was quick." Snipe complimented.
"Don't try anything funny." Sinon shot quickly.
Ex-Aid ignored Snipe and looked on at Nico.
"Nico. I finally remember you." He said.
Nico looked surprised and quickly dived onto the couch inside.
"I'm sorry I didn't remember you earlier!" He called.
Then, in a soothing voice, he said this.
"You've grown a lot, Genius Gamer N." He smiled.
The girls looked confused when they heard this.
"Gamer…?" They all spluttered.
Nico winced as she called back a hurtful memory.
(Flashback)
"We are here, everyone! In the 1v1 Overwatch grand tournament, we have entered the final round! 4-4! Against our undefeated champion, M, is a young challenger, N! Is her name an homage to his own, who nows?!"
The final round was fairly simple. Reaper (M) VS Soldier: 76 (N). They were furiously wiggling their controllers around. Then suddenly, N saw that she had lost. All she heard before was Reaper's "Target practice." Line.
"And it's over! M defends his title and wins the tournament once again!"
The crowd cheered loudly. M walked over to N, who was sulking.
"That was a quite a ride. Let's play again sometime, kiddo." He smiled.
(Flashback end)
"You played seriously against a small girl?" Asuna asked.
"Well, I thought it would've been rude otherwise…" Ex-Aid admitted.
"I looked up her status." Snipe chimed in. "Her yearly income is 100 million yen from winning tournaments."
"100 million?!" Silica and Leafa shouted in shock.
"So, you're still at the games, huh?" Ex-Aid smiled. "Man, you're awesome!"
Nico then just elbowed him off of herself. She then faced Ex-Aid.
"You were the only one who beat me." She said. "I'm here to take my revenge!"
"Is that… it?" Sinon asked.
Nico groaned and then went to Snipe, shoving everyone out of the way.
"Hey, what do I have to do use that thing?" She asked, pointing at the Gamer Driver.
Snipe sneered at the statement, but Nico grabbed the Driver off of his waist and eyed it carefully.
"I want to be a Kamen Rider so I can beat M!" Nico said.
Snipe sighed. He walked up behind Nico. He grabbed the Gamer Driver. She tried to keep her grasp on it, but with a swift kick from Snipe, she was thrown into the wall, letting go of the Gamer Driver.
"It's that naïvete that you ended up with game disease!" He scolded.
Nico looked up, but she was struggling. The stress was beginning to pile up.
"This ain't no ordinary game." Snipe continued. "This isn't just for fun!"
"We're all fighting with the only lives we got, so idiots like you will be okay." Snipe finished.
He then put on his Gamer Driver and then walked back.
"If you say you want to be a Kamen Rider one more time, I won't be so lenient." He said.
Nico scoffed, and she picked herself up and walked out. Ex-Aid wanted to go after her, but Asuna stopped him.
"We'll go." She said.
She motioned Leafa and Silica, and the three went after Nico. Snipe approached Ex-Aid shortly.
"You. With me. Now." He said coldly.
Ex-Aid slowly followed Snipe, with Sinon and Poppy not far behind.
The four walked a bit far until they walked into an abandoned park with a staircase. Snipe stopped and then pulled out his Gashat.
"This place should do." He said.
Sinon quickly raised her arrow, but Ex-Aid gently put it down.
"So you weren't playing just to play." He said. "You actually want to take care of your patients."
Snipe looked away.
"I'm different from you doctors." He said.
"But you were angry at Nico because you cared for her, didn't you?" Sinon chimed in, surprising him. "Right?"
"Shut up!" Snipe shouted.
Ex-Aid slowly walked up to Snipe.
"The stress of her is me winning games." Ex-Aid explained. "So, I'm asking you: Would you please operate on her?"
Snipe thought about it, but it was wrapped up quickly as he chuckled lightly.
"You really don't care about yourself, don't ya?" He said, turning to Ex-Aid and Sinon. "It goes without saying: I'll beat all of the Bugsters."
He then pressed the Gashat.
BANG BANG SHOOTING!
As the energy items scattered, he inserted the Gashat into the Driver.
"Henshin." He said.
GASHATTO!
LET'S GAME! MECCHA GAME! MUCCHA GAME! WHATCHA NAME?!
I'M A KAMEN RIDER!
Just then, Revol and more Bugster mooks appeared.
"Mission: Protect Ex-Aid." Revol said.
The mooks all took up positions around Ex-Aid.
"They're all yours!" Ex-Aid called out.
GASHACON MAGNUM!
Snipe summoned the Magnum and began to shoot just as Ex-Aid grabbed Sinon and dove out of the way. Snipe begun fighting Revol and the Bugsters. Sinon sat down next to him.
"You okay?" He asked.
"Been better." She replied.
Just then, steps approached the two. Behind them, were Genmu, who had the BugVisor on and his Gashat on hand, and Pallad, who also had his Gashat.
"Let's play, M." He smiled.
"I shall be retrieving Snipe's Gashats." Genmu declared.
Genmu pressed the Gashat, while Pallad turned the knob to the game he selected.
DANGEROUS ZOMBIE!
PERFECT PUZZLE!
WHAT'S THE NEXT STAGE?
"Henshin." They both said.
GASHATTO! BUCKLE UP!
DANGER! DANGER! GENOCIDE! DEATH THE CRISIS! DANGEROUS ZOMBIE!
DUAL UP!
GET THE GLORY IN THE CHAIN! PERFECT PUZZLE!
Both players transformed into their Rider forms, Genmu, the Zombie Gamer, Pallad, into Para-DX.
"I figured you would get here." Ex-Aid stated, putting on his Gamer Driver.
He then pulled out the Mighty Brothers XX Gashat.
"Don't get in the way of the operation!" Ex-Aid ordered as he pressed it.
MIGHTY BROTHERS XX!
"Henshin!" He called, inserting the Gashat into the Driver.
DOUBLE GASHATTO!
Ex-Aid then opened the Driver up.
GACHANN! LEVEL UP!
MIGHTY BROTHERS! FUTARI DE HITORI! MIGHTY BROTHERS! FUTARI DE VICTORY! X!
Ex-Aid turned into his Level 10 chibi form. He then got ready.
"Sinon, you ready?" He asked.
"Just tell me who to shoot." Sinon smiled.
With that said, the two charged at Genmu and Para-DX.
Meanwhile, a bunch of monsters were dying left and right. All one could hear was monster cries before they shattered into nothing. Nico, with a sword out, she began to make her way through random monster spawns. She was about to get another one, but the monster she was aiming for already died in front of her. She looked behind he and saw Asuna, Leafa, and Silica.
"We're leaving. Now." Asuna demanded.
"Leave me alone!" Nico gripped.
She paced away from them, but she collapsed.
"Ex-Aid is curing right now, so be patient, please?" Silica asked.
"I don't even care anymore…" Nico growled.
Leafa had had enough. She then grabbed the girl and then began to head out.
"Hey! Let me go!" Nico shouted.
"No way, girl." Leafa said. "You're coming with us; wheather you like it or not."
Asuna and Silica quickly followed behind them.
Meanwhile, back to the fight, the Riders were in for a treat. Para-DX and Genmu already thrown Sinon out of their hair, and are only fighting Ex-Aid. Genmu first landed a palm strike, and then Para-DX followed up with a knee kick.
Sinon was thrown and landed right into a Bugster mook that was trailing Snipe. Snipe saw this and just shrugged it off, after shooting another mook, he pulled out a familiar looking Gashat and pressed it.
DRAGO KNIGHT HUNTER! Z!
The dragon flew into view and flung back the Bugsters. Sinon had to duck to dodge the dragon's flight. He inserted into the Driver and then opened it up.
GASHATTO!
"Phase 5." He called.
GACHANN! LEVEL UP!
BABABANG! BANGBABANG! YOW! BANG BANG SHOOTING!
A GACCHA!
D-D-DRAGO! KNI-KNI-KNI-KNI~GHT! DRA! DRA! DRAGO KNIGHT HUNTER! Z!
Ex-Aid had the same idea, as he closed his Driver and then opened it back up.
"Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaai…" He began. "Henshin!"
GACHANN! DOUBLE UP!
ORE GA OMAE DE! OMAE GA ORE DE! WE ARE! MIGHTY, MIGHTY BROTHERS! HEY! DOUBLE X!
Ex-Aid split up into the two Ex-Aids that is XXR and XXL. After their brief pose, they began picking their targets.
"I'll take on Para-DX!" XXR declared.
"Then I'll combat Genmu!" XXL shouted.
But as they ran towards their targets, Para-DX closelined them both.
"Uh-uh, I don't think so!" He chuckled. "You both will be fighting me!"
Para-DX threw both Ex-Aids to his side, giving Genmu an opening to attack Snipe. Using that opening, Genmu charged towards Snipe as Para-DX battled both Ex-Aids.
Sinon continued firing her arrows. All of the grunts she shoots at are quickly replaced by another being summoned by Revol.
"They just keep coming!" She shouted.
That's when Snipe breathed in heavily. And then, he breathed out a large vortex of flames. Sinon dodged it, and while the fire vortex did torch Revol and the mooks, her tail was singed along with them. She quickly marched up to Snipe to grip.
"Hey! What was that for?!" She demanded.
"You were in the way." Snipe replied.
But that's when Genmu jumped in. He landed a kick on Snipe's shoulder and slashed his front with the Sparrow. Snipe swung his blade down, but it missed, giving Genmu another chance to slice up his body. Sinon also chimed in by shooting a couple of arrows. Genmu blocked them all, but Sinon used that window to get in close and hit him a couple of times with the bow. Genmu only chuckled and grabbed her in a chokehold. He then threw her behind him, only for Snipe to just swat her body out of the way.
"You're in my way!" He shouted.
"Just accept the help of somebody for once!" Sinon cried.
At this moment, Leafa arrived, still holding onto Nico by her arms. Asuna and Silica were close behind.
"Let go of me already!" Nico ordered.
Leafa did. But once she did, she grabbed Nico's arms and had her face the direction of the fight.
"Look." She said.
Nico suddenly became unresponsive. What she saw was a very one-sided fight. In one corner, Para-DX was overwhelming both Ex-Aids. Even with the numbers advantage, Para-DX was still being leisurely.
Near them, Genmu was easily battling Snipe and Sinon. Sinon was on the ground, giving support, while Snipe was fighting Genmu up close. Snipe fired his gun arm, but Genmu twirl-dodged it and then slashed his leg. Snipe collapsed to his knee. Genmu pressed he A Button on the Sparrow, and then slashed Snipe in the neck and the chest. Snipe was also thrown back near Sinon.
"They're putting their lives on the line playing this game to save your life!" Leafa scolded.
As Snipe tried to recover from the attack, Genmu became delighted.
"Would you rather…" He growled. "Give up your Gashats, or give up your life?"
Nico looked away. She couldn't watch this anymore. Now, Snipe's words earlier made a lot more sense. Just then, she realized she had to do something. She quickly drew her sword and marched out to the open.
"Taiga!" She called. "You can't let him beat you!"
Nico then charged. Snipe looked up to notice. Leafa and the others just got confused. Once Nico was in slashing distance, she slashed and sliced Genmu's back. She did this at least three times before Genmu just shattered her sword by blocking it with his arm. He then shoved her towards Snipe, who caught her falling.
"Taiga…" She whispered.
"Don't tell me what I'm going to do." Snipe said. "I'm not getting beaten."
He then motioned Sinon over. She quickly grabbed Nico and quickly left with Leafa. Snipe then pulled out the Drago Knight Hunter Z Gashat and then inserted it into the slot on the side.
GASHUNN! GASHATTO! KIMEWAZA!
After gathering enough energy, he pressed the button again.
DRAGO KNIGHT CRITICAL STRIKE!
Snipe then fired a huge energy blast straight at Genmu, who was soon consumed by an explosion. Leafa, Nico, and the others quickly came out of hiding.
"You did it!" Nico cheered.
She spoke soon. The smoke of the explosion cleared, Genmu's body glowed purple. It then slowly rose back up with crackling sounds of bones. Once Genmu was upright, he breathed in heavily.
"Have you forgotten already, Mr. Radiologist?" He chuckled. "I am immortal."
"Alright, you asked for it!" Snipe shouted.
The two locked blades once again. In between the fight of Para-DX and Genmu, Revol was looking back and forth to figure out what to do.
"Adjusting perimeters. Recalculating. Does not compute." He said, looking back and forth from the fights.
Para-DX kicked both Ex-Aids off of him, and then he raised his arms. Energy Item coins arranged themselvese 4 by 4. He shifted the rows and columns around and then found the three Energy Item coins he was looking for. He flipped them and the coins were absorbed into his body.
MUSCLE UP! SPEED UP! INVISIBLE!
Para-DX turned invisble. And in the blink of and eye, he landed a punch on both Ex-Aids. He then landed a kick on the other side of their bodies, opposite of the punches.
"I can't see him!" XXR called.
"Neither can I!" XXL replied.
Para-DX smiled, and then flash-stepped towards them, landing a critical palm strike on their chests. He then appeared behind them again, and cancelled out his power-ups. XXL and XXR were cancelled out of their transformations and reverted back into Ex-Aid.
GASHUNN!
Para-DX was disappointed by the results.
"C'mon, M!" He cried. "Is that seriously all you got?"
He walked towards Ex-Aid. Just then, a small projectile landed on his back. Para-DX slowly turned around.
"Huh?" He started. "Who just shot me in the back?"
He saw Revol with his arm stretched out. He had just fired a cannon shell.
"Primary objective: Help Ex-Aid attain victory and achieve full form." Revol said.
He then active his shoulder minigun. He fired a billion shots, but Para-DX easily blocked them all with a puzzle-pattern energy shield.
"Well…" He sighed, walking closer to Revol. "I guess NPCs aren't a smart bunch to begin with."
He pulled out his Gashat and turned the knob upward twice.
KNOCK OUT FIGHTER!
THE STRONGEST FIST! ROUND 1! ROCK AND FIRE!
"Dai Henshin." He said, pressing the Gashat.
EXPLOSION HIT! KNOCK OUT FIGHTER!
Para-DX's Perfect Puzzle form soon flipped over to his Knock Out Fighter form.
Genmu just kicked Snipe off of him, and saw what Para-DX was doing.
"Pallad! What are you doing?!" He called. "He's not a priority!"
"I don't care." Para-DX replied. "I eliminate anyone who gets in the way of my fun."
He then pulled out his Gashat again, and twist the knob up and back.
KIMEWAZA!
He then inserted the Gashat back into his holder.
DUAL GASHAT!
KNOCK OUT CRITICAL SMASH!
He then jumped into the air. Revol didn't know how to respond, so he turned around and ran away. But it wasn't fast enough to dodge Para-DX's punch. He was consumed by a large explosion along with a "PERFECT!" over him.
K.O.!
Genmu then detached the BugVisor from his waist and used it to absorb the Bugster residue of Revol.
GAME CLEAR!
Once that was done, both Genmu and Para-DX cancelled out of their transformations.
GASHUNN!
"M." Pallad said. "I'll be looking forward to our more serious fight!"
And with that, Pallad and Genmu both disappeared. Ex-Aid then felt the sharp pain in his head again. He yelled and screamed as Asuna and Leafa ran up to see if he was okay.
"Emu!" Asuna called. "Are you okay?"
"I don't know…" Ex-Aid admitted. "I've been having headaches for a while…"
"When did this happen?" Sinon asked, helping him up.
"Every time I transform; it happens…" Ex-Aid added.
Snipe looked away, but in worry, not of pity.
'His symptoms are getting worse…' He thought.
But his thought trailed off as Nico spoke up to taunt Ex-Aid.
"Wow, man." She yelled condescendingly. "You must be seriously losing your touch if you lost to those guys."
"Talk about rude…" Silica commented.
Ex-Aid smiled at Nico.
"At least your game disease is cured." He said.
Nico looked away as if do avoid a comment. She turned to Snipe.
"Well?" She said. "Say something!"
"What?" Snipe asked.
"Just do it!" Nico shot back.
With nothing on his mind, Snipe just yelled the first thing that came to his mind.
"This goes without saying: I'll take your Gashats too!" He yelled, walking away.
"You heard him! My doctor's gonna pummel you!" Nico chimed in, skipping away with Snipe.
They argued until they had disappeared.
"That was the first time you weren't able to make a patient smile, Emu." Silica sighed.
"And I think it's only gonna get worse…" Ex-Aid admitted, with a sigh.
Then they all sighed as the ALO sunset soon turned into night.