Chapter 38: Throwdowns & Callbacks
I've gotta believe!
(Kirito and Ex-Aid are back to back, facing a horde of Bugsters. They lift their weapons and charge as the title appears)
I don't wanna know heta na shinjitsu nara
(The SAO gang are chilling out together in a nearby café)
I don't wanna know shiranai kurai ga ii noni
(Suddenly, all bystanders all transform into Ride-Players)
Why? Why? Why? Why? Kizukeba I came too far
(Brave remembers the time that Yuko died, with Asuna's afterimage looking at him; Snipe remembers the time he was defeated by Graphite, with Sinon's afterimage looking at him)
Tomaranai kanjiru kono yokan wa
(The Riders and the SAO gang together walk towards the horde of Ride Players)
The new beginning
(The Riders hold up their Gashats)
Michi no ryuoiki ima wo kirihirakunda
(The Riders transform into their Lv 2 forms)
I've gotta believe!
(The SAO gang turn on Ordinal Scale)
(Turn it on!) soutou
(Together, they all charge at the Ride Player horde)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Takanaru
(Ex-Aid goes into Lv 20, and splits into XXL and XXR; Brave twirls into Lv 50, sending a bunch of Ride Players back)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Kokoro ga
(Snipe jumps into Lv 50, and rains fire upon the Ride Players; Ex-Aid jumps down in Lv 99, and slams the ground)
Michibiku ano basho e kakenukete ikudake
(The Ordinal Scale players make their way through the horde one by one)
(Hey!) I'm on a mission right now
(Klein, Lisbeth, Silica, Agil, and Leafa stay back, while six figures strike a battle-ready pose. Ex-Aid raises the Breaker to his face, while Kirito goes into his battle stance. Asuna also goes into her battle stance, while Brave flips his Sword around, so he could grab the blade with his free hand. Sinon and Snipe both their weapons tightly)
(Hey!) I'm on a mission right now
(Kamen Rider Para-DX Lv 99 glares at them, with his eyes glowing)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Kotae wa
(Ex-Aid and Para-DX smash their fists together)
EXCITE! EXCITE! Kotae wa
(The SAO gang fight various Bugsters from all of the games from the Gashats)
(One!) kono te no naka
(Snipe and Sinon go back to back)
(Two!) susumubeki Life
(Brave and Asuna slash right next to each other)
(Three!) ikitekudake
(Ex-Aid and Kirito together jump up and slash downward, cutting back to the title)
"PALLAD IS LEVEL 99?" Poppy exclaimed to the doctors.
The ones that were present at Para-DX's debut of Level 99 had returned to Hiro's office. Hiro had a bandage wrapped around his head, while Taiga just had a simple band-aid over his cheek. The SAO gang were present as well. Asuna was currently getting treated by Kazuto, and Yui was right by her side. Suguha had just put a bandage on Shino's face, while Rika and Keiko just had a pack of ice on their hands and head. Nico was just standing by, pouting that she lost her go at Pallad.
"It's just one problem after another…" Taiga complained.
"Where's Emu now?" Poppy asked.
"Pallad took him away." Hiro replied.
Just then, Nico had a thought. She confronted Poppy about it.
"Hey." She started. "You know where the Bugster hideout is right?"
"Well, yeah." Poppy replied, realizing what she was saying. "I'll get him back right now!"
Nico and Poppy then proceeded out of the room, but Snipe stopped them.
"Don't even think about it!" He sneered. "As long as Pallad infects Ex-Aid… we can't do anything about it."
"But…" Poppy muttered.
Just then, Ryotarou walked in. He had just finished taking Andrew back to his café, and even got him clearance to play Kamen Rider Chronicle. He was about to say his greetings, but then he noticed the atmosphere.
"Did I miss something?" He asked.
Speaking of Pallad, he was back in that basement room of the GENM Corp. building. He was smiling, with Emu just straining from the Bugster virus on the floor beside him. Pixleating orange, but still determined, Emu struggled up and confronted Pallad. However, Pallad spoke first.
"That fight with you, honestly, was kinda boring." He said.
He stood up from the server he was sitting on, and he crouched down to Emu's level.
"You can do so much better!" He whined, grabbing Emu's collar. "So… I'll awaken you to get it."
Pallad's eyes glowed red, which also made Emu's glow red. Then, Pallad fazed into Emu, becoming one with him again.
Back to Hiro's office, they were still wondering on how to rescue Emu. Ryotarou was just told everything.
"So… what you're saying is that Pallad guy is Emu's Bugster?" He saked again. "That's how he could transform into Ex-Aid?"
"Yeah." Rika replied. "It was quite a surprise, tell you what."
"But just how do we save him now?" Keiko asked. "We can't just fight Emu, even if it is Pallad."
Just then, Yui spoke up. She had grown to her human size, and was holding a chestbox. On top of the box was the small booklet she went through with the title of "Level 0".
"Poppy and I found this." She stated. "I think it might help us."
She placed the chestbox on the table. Setting the booklet down from the top of the chestbox, she opened it to reveal a Gamer Driver and a Gashat. A black Proto Mighty Action X Gashat. Everyone was surprised by this.
"Whoa!" Nico exclaimed. "What's this?"
Everyone else quickly crowded around the table. Shino grabbed the booklet, and she began to read through it. Taiga, on the other hand, grabbed the black Gashat and observed it cautiously.
"Proto Mighty Action X should be purple…" He muttered. "Why is this one black?"
"Is this the sixth Gamer Driver?" Hiro asked, picking up the Driver. "Where did you find these?"
Yui opened her mouth to speak, but Poppy patted her shoulder, replying the answer herself.
"I followed the memories inside me." She replied.
"Wait, the memory of the person you infected?" Hiro asked.
"Yeah." Poppy said. "I saw Kuroto as a young boy…"
"Genmu?" Taiga spluttered.
Shino, who had been reading the small booklet page by page, then found a passage that seemed to be imporatnat.
"Hey, have a look at this!" She called, showing everyone else the page.
The page showed the following passage:
Use the original version of the game as the prototype.
Convert Mighty Action Prototype Version Alpha to Level 0.
Origin Gashat = Level 0 Gashat.
It means "no power", and suppresses the Bugster virus.
This Gashat was specially programmed to perform such a function.
The doctors took a special note at the "suppresses the Bugster virus" bit.
"Suppress the virus?" Hiro repeated.
"So, we thought this." Yui said. "If we use that Gashat, we can cure Emu and stop Pallad from controlling him!"
"Don't even try." Taiga shot down.
Everybody looked at Taiga cautiously. Taiga breathed in, and looked at the Gashat dangerously.
"This was probably created even before the Proto-Gashats." He explained. "That's a big red herring if anything."
Poppy just looked down at her feet. Taiga wasn't wrong. Plus, unbeknownst to them, Taiga had actually used a Proto-Gashat himself, so he knew from experience how dangerous the Proto-Gashats are. Despite this, the alarms inside Hiro's office went off, signaling another game disease patient.
The gang wasted no time arriving to the scene. There, they found a Ride-Player fighting a Bugster. The Bugster in question was Motors, who was just punching and shoving the Ride-Player.
"So… it's not Para-DX?" Taiga scoffed.
However, that wasn't the issue at the moment. Despite being a lower-tier Bugster, Motors was still a hand-full.
"C'mon, c'mon!" He roared. "Even without my bike… the race of hell will never end!"
"That game is dangerous!" Hiro shouted. "Please, stop playing immediately!"
Taiga nad Hiro put on their Gamer Drivers. They pulled out their Gashats, but Poppy stopped them.
"Wait!" She said. "You're too injured to fight. Don't push yourselves!"
She then turned around. Grabbing the cyan BugVisor from her pocket, she stood her ground.
"I'll do it." She declared, putting on the BugVisor.
GACHANN…
"You mean 'We'll' do it, right?" Nico chimed in, pulling out her Rider Chronicle Gashat.
Poppy looked beside her saw that Nico was willing to help her. On the other side, the SAO were in their Ordinal Scale armor. Poppy smiled, and just pulled out her Gashat, while Nico pressed hers.
KAMEN RIDER CHRONICLE…
TOKI MEKI CRISIS!
"Henshin!" the two girls called out.
Nico did a little dance before transforming, while Poppy inserted the Gashat and pressed the button underneath.
ENTER THE GAME! RIDING THE END!
GASHATTO! BUCKLE UP…
DREAMING GIRL! HEY! KOI NO SIMULATION! OTOME WA ITSUMO TOKI MEKI CRISIS! HEY!
Nico now wore brown armor with her little decals in, and Poppy transformed into Kamen Rider Poppy. However, the only difference being is that her eyes are now blue instead of red.
"Huh?" Lis muttered. "Poppy, your eyes are blue!"
"Oh?" Poppy replied. "Oh, that's because I'm a good Bugster now!"
With that said, the Ordinal Scale players raised their weapons, while Poppy and Nico raised theirs. Together, they all charged at Motors.
First, Leafa and Silica grabbed the Ride-Player and pulled him clear. Then, the others moved in to attack. First, Kirito slashed right down Motors' body, then Poppy rolled in with a kick. Motors, engines revving, went for a kick, however, he couldn't land it, as Nico and Lis quickly dived in for a flying stab attack. Then, to finish it off, Sinon fired her rifle, while Klein landed a kick himself. Motors tumbled back, but he quickly recovered.
"Don't underestimate a street racer's soul, buck-os!" He shouted, pulling out the steering rods of a motorcycle. "Race me!"
He then turned back, and pulled the rods to his body. He revved one of them, and black smoke bellowed out of the exhaust pipes on his back.
"Become the wind~~~~~~!" He yelled as he ran down the road away from them very comically.
The heroes tried to grab onto him, but they weren't able to catch him.
"What the hell!" Nico complained. "Even without his bike, he's still fast!"
"Where's Bakusou Bike when you need it!" Klein added.
A bit away from them, the Ride-Player just cancelled out of his transformation. A few seconds after he did, he held his chest as he began to pixelate orange. Hiro quickly rushed over with Taiga just watching.
"Are you okay, sir?" He asked.
"It hurts…" The Ride-Player groaned.
"What's up, everyone?" called a voice.
Then, to everyone's surprise, Emu walked up to them, looking fresh as a daisy.
"Emu!" Poppy cried, walking up to him. "You escaped?"
"Yeah, somehow." Emu replied, rubbing the back of his head. "I'm surprised I even got out without a scratch on me."
Everyone sighed a sigh of relief. At least one of their problems have been solved.
"That's one problem solved." Hiro admitted.
"Hey, glad to have you back." Kirito said.
"Thanks." Emu smiled. "For looking out for me (ore)."
Everyone stopped at that one word. "Ore". Emu usually doesn't talk in that tone.
"'Ore'?" Nico repeated.
That was enough to send alarms in Taiga's head.
"That's not Ex-Aid!" He called out. "That's Pallad!"
Then, Emu bursted out laughing.
"I'm really that obvious?" He asked.
Then, blue and red streams of the Bugster Virus spewed out of Emu's body, and they assimilated into the figure of Pallad. Emu, himself, collapsed on his knees and hands, pixelating orange.
"You controlled me again?" He spluttered, still wincing from the pain.
"Just to show you something." Pallad replied nonchalantly.
He then put on his Gamer Driver and pulled out his Gashat. He smiled as he inserted it.
DUAL GASHATTO!
THE STRONGEST FIST! WHAT'S THE NEXT STAGE?
"Max Dai Henshin." He called after he did a little pose and opening the Driver.
GACHANN! MAZARU UP!
AKAI KOBUSHI TSUYOSA! AOI PUZZLE RENSA! AKA TO AO NO KOUSA! PERFECT KNOCK OUT!
Pallad transformed into Kamen Roder Para-DX, Level 99. He then glared down at Poppy. He had something he needed to take care of.
"Poppy." He declared. "You betrayed us. As such, you will be eliminated."
Poppy took a step back, gasping quietly. Emu, not able to stop Pallad, just struggled on the ground.
"Pallad!" Nico declared, raising her blade. "I'm… going to beat you! Prepare yourself!"
Then, Nico blindly just charged at Para-DX. She swung her blade, landing a critical hit on his shoulder. However, it amounted it to nothing. Para-DX just grabbed Nico's arm, and just flung her away. With that done, he slowly began to make his way over.
"Well, isn't that cute?" He chuckled.
As he went over, Nico looked at him with scornful eyes. Para-DX couldn't help it. As he continued walking over, he just chuckled.
"Y'know what, let me tell you a little rhyme…" He said, turning to a small singsong voice. "P is for priceless, the look upon your faces…"
As Para-DX got closer, Hiro and Taiga had to act fast. They quickly put on their Gamer Drivers, and pulled out their Gashats.
TADDLE QUEST!
BANG BANG SHOOTING!
They inserted it, and quickly transformed.
"Henshin!" The two yelled.
GACHANN! LEVEL UP!
TADORU MEGURU! TADORU MEGURU! TADDLE QUEST!
BANGBABANG! BABANGBANG! BANG BANG SHOOTING!
With that done, Brave and Snipe quickly entered the scene, they quickly shoved Para-DX out of the way. Then, Brave quickly shoved Poppy clear. Snipe ordered everyone to get back. Para-DX, still in a good mood, just pulled out his weapon again.
GASHACON PARABLAGUN!
The Parablagun appeared in gun form, and Para-DX pressed the B button ten times.
ICHI-NII-SAN-YON-GOU-ROKU-NANA-HACHI-KYU-ZYU!
"E is for extinction…" He continued, aiming the Parablagun. "All your puny races…"
He pulled the trigger. Out of one shot, 10 bullets fired out, hitting all of the surrounding players minus Poppy in the stomach. They were all launched back, cancelling out of their transformations.
ZYU-RENSA!
What followed that sound was an audience's cheers and claps. With that done, Para-DX turned his attention to Poppy. She just stood there as Para-DX approached her, switching the Parablagun to its axe form.
ZU-GONN!
After switching the mode, he pressed the B button ten times again.
ICHI-NII-SAN-YON-GOU-ROKU-NANA-HACHI-KYU-ZYU!
In an instant, Para-DX swung the Parablagun up and down Poppy's body, sending her into a set of construction equipment that was lying around. She fell into with a loud thud, as the damage was very critical.
ZYU-RENDA!
What followed that sound was a TKO bell. Poppy was forced out of her transformation.
GASHUNN!
"Stop…" Emu muttered.
Para-DX, ignoring this, just approached Poppy. Poppy cowered and winced as Para-DX was right on top of her.
"R for rebels…" He said. "One of which is you, Poppy."
Emu slowly struggled up, but Para-DX didn't pay any mind to him.
"This is on you, y'know." Para-DX stated, looking down at Poppy. "For siding with the humans."
"Die." Para-DX then declared ominously.
He raised the Parablagun to strike her down, and then he did, swinging the blade down.
"Stop…" Emu whispered.
Then, raising his voice to a shout, he yelled, "STOP!"
Para-DX stopped his axe blade right on top of her head. That got his attention. He turned his head to Emu, who was now standing, but still pixelating.
"If you want to fight…" He growled. "Then fight me!"
And with that declaration, the orange pixelating on Emu's body dissipated. That surprised everyone, especially Poppy. They didn't know what to say to that. Para-DX, on the other hand, was thrilled.
"There it is!" He laughed. "That's what I've been waiting for!"
Para-DX then reverted back to Pallad. He had finally gotten the resolve he wanted out of Emu.
"Curing your game disease on your own wasn't enough of a drive for you." Pallad explained. "Protecing those who can't protect themselves or your loved ones… is when you're truly awakened."
Emu, walking up to Pallad, then made a declaration.
"Pallad." He said. "I'm… going to excise you!"
Pallad smiled at that. This is the Emu he had wanted to fight since he had gotten his Rider powers. This was finally that moment.
"Then…" Pallad suggested. "Let's have a change of scenery… for our throwdown."
Emu glared at Pallad, but that got an answer Pallad was satisfied with. He then walked away a bit, as if he wanted to give Emu a few parting words to his friends.
"Don't let him trick you!" Hiro called.
"Hiro." Emu replied. "Take care of the rest of the patients for me."
Hiro stopped, and looked over to his patient, who had now struggled over to a tree, but was still heavily panting due to the Bugster virus.
"We're going to be the ones to beat him!" Taiga declared.
"Don't you dare steal my kill!" Nico added.
"Taiga. Nico." Emu replied. "Clear Kamen Rider Chronicle as fast as you can."
The two actually stopped. They briefly looked at each other, and then just replied "Damn right!" to him.
"Y'know this is crazy!" Kazuto shouted.
"Kazuto." Emu replied again. "Take care of your friends."
Kazuto looked back, as the others had somewhat recovered.
"Emu…" Poppy called, getting up. "Let me join!"
"Poppy!" Emu called back. "Don't."
Emu then turned to the entire ensemble of his friends.
"I'm sorry, everyone." He explained. "This is something I have to do on my own. I need to focus on this operation."
"But don't worry!" He smiled. "I'll find my way home to you guys after this is over."
And with that said, Emu quickly turned around and walked up to Pallad, who was just waiting patiently by sitting on a nearby curb. Pallad stood up when Emu came up to him now.
"Lead the way." Emu ordered.
Pallad obliged, and just walked away, with Emu following closely behind. While the others tended to wounded, Poppy just stood there, ashamed of not being able to do anything.
"Emu…" She whispered quietly.
Then, she remembered everything Emu had doen for her so far. Turning her back from the grasps of the Bugsters, all the other times they had together during ALO, now a distant memory. She quickly punched her thigh. Isn't there anything she could do to help Emu?
A little while later, Poppy sat on one of the chairs silently. As for everyone else, they were getting their wounds treated.
Nico was getting her leg bandaged by Taiga, but it was quite the process as Nico wouldn't stop moving around, as she was amazed by all of the equipment the hospital had in comparison to Taiga's shoddy and not as up-to-par equipment back at his place. Hiro had just rebandaged his head, and placed another band-aid on his cheek. Then, he tended to the others.
Kazuto and Ryotarou only sustained minor injuries, but still had a band-aid here and there. Still they were trying their best. Kazuto just dabbed on one of Asuna's cut on her leg, then he had to tend to Suguha's cut on her arm. Luckily for her, Shino had her wounds handled by Taiga, so she could assist. Ryotarou, meanwhile, had to take care of Rika and Keiko. Keiko was quite easy, as she was able to handle the stinging of her injuries easily. Rika, on the other hand, would always squirm everytime he would just simply dab her bruise with a cotton ball. Hiro assisted wherever he could.
Yui, who had stayed behind due to Asuna and Kazuto's overprotectiveness, flew over to Poppy, who had stayed silent up until now.
"Poppy?" She asked. "Are you okay? You seem… sad."
"It's just…" Poppy admitted. "Emu did so much for me… and I'm just sitting here…"
"Don't worry!" Yui smiled energetically. "Emu is strong. He can handle himself!"
Poppy, while knowing that Emu is strong, still felt unsure. Pallad was now on the same level as Emu. And knowing what kind of tricks Pallad has up sleeves, especially now that she has known him personally, she got even more nervous.
"Should we really let Emu face this on his own?" She finally addressed the room.
That got everyone's attention, but they didn't know how to respond. Despite this, the doctors had an answer.
"Even if we went…" Taiga replied. "We would just get in his way."
"The intern is determined to perform the operation by himself, as a doctor." Hiro added. "So… we have to do what we can on our end."
"What… we have to do…" Poppy repeated quietly.
Her eyes then fell on the table. The table still had the small chestbox, with the Gamer Driver and the black Proto Mighty Action X Gashat just ilding around. She walked up to them, and then picked them up.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Kazuto asked.
Poppy turned around to the others, and stood her ground.
"I'm going to test if Level 0 really has the power to suppress the virus, just in case." She explained. "If we can confirm it, we might be able to use it."
"Don't!" Taiga ordered. "That Gashat is dangerous."
"I'll be fine." Poppy retorted. "I'm a Bugster."
She then looked at the Gashat carefully.
"This… is something I have to do." She stated.
Meanwhile, an abandoned medical workshed creaked loudly. It appears as if no one had used it in a long time. The plastic sheets over some carts silently blew in the whistling wind. There was also a building sign. It read "Next Genome Research Center". Then, some steps could be heard as Pallad and Emu walked in.
"Ah, the memories…" Pallad sighed. "Remember, Emu?"
"Six years ago…" He revealed. "I was separated from you here."
Emu looked over to the various operating tools, rusting away on a table that had seen better days. He also had a bit of a flashback here. He remembered the time, when he was still unconscientious, Zaizen Michihiko and his team did various methods to excise Pallad out of him. However, that is where the memory ended.
"I will not let you hurt anyone elase again!" Emu declared, putting on his Gamer Driver.
He pulled out the Maximum Mighty X Gashat, as he held it steadily in his hands.
"I'll finish this operation… in one go!" He shouted.
Pallad, satisfied with Emu's current mindset, obliged him by putting on his Gamer Driver and pulling out his Gashat.
"Sounds good." He smiled.
Then, the two warriors stared each oher down for a long time, before starting their transformation sequences.
Emu went first. He pressed his Gashat, and then he quickly inserted it into his Driver.
MAXIMUM MIGHTY X!
MAXIMUM GASHATTO!
"Max Dai Henshin!" Emu announced.
He then opened his Driver. He wasted no time with the standby, as he just slammed down the smaller Ex-Aid on the Gashat.
GACHANN! LEVEL MAX!
SAIDAIKYU NO POWERFUL BODY! MAXIMUM POWER! X!
Emu transformed into Ex-Aid, who was consumed by the giant Level 99 armor. He now stood tall, staring down Pallad with an intent to kill.
Pallad obliged Emu once again, as he just inserted his Gashat into his Driver.
DUAL GASHATTO!
THE STRONGEST FIST! WHAT'S THE NEXT STAGE?
"Max Dai Henshin." Pallad smiled, opening his Driver.
GACHANN! MAZARU UP!
AKAI KOBUSHI TSUYOSA! AOI PUZZLE RENSA! AKA TO AO NO KOUSA! PERFECT KNOCK OUT!
Pallad transformed into Para-DX Level 99, anxious to get his fight with Ex-Aid started. Ex-Aid, while not having the exact same feeling, had the same sort of mind set. He quickly changed the changed the scenery by quickly pressing the button on the side of his belt.
STAGE SELECT!
The area turned into some kind of empty quarry. With Energy Items materializing all over the area, the two Riders stared each other down, knowing that only one Rider is going to walk away from this fight.
Meanwhile, on the roof of the hospital, Poppy stood tall. She was currently wearing the same BugVisor she had on when she transforms into a Rider. She held the black Proto Mighty Action X Gashat in her hand.
"I… wil return Emu's smile!" She declared.
She pressed the Gashat, and twirled around.
MIGHTY ACTION X!
"Henshin!" She called, inserting the Gashat.
GASHATTO!
She pressed the button underneath the Gashat port, but nothing happened. She got confused. She kept on pressing the button, but the Gashat just didn't activate. She looked behind her, and saw the Game Start screen behind her. Strange enough, Mighty was absent.
It should be noted that whenever a Rider activates a Gashat the Game Start Screen is displayed right behind them, which subsequently, spreads the Game Area around. And it was a simple rinse and repeat for every other Rider.
Poppy looked at the Game Start screen. Something didn't seem right if Mighty wasn't present on the screen.
"Okay then…" She whispered.
She turned her entire body over towards the Game Start screen, and then, turning into a flurry of bright pink pixels, she jumped into the screen. She traversed through it, eventually landing on a platform with some brown blocks. However, once she entered, her colors faded towards a black and white scheme.
"So… this is Proto Mighty Action X's world?" She asked.
Then, she heard some rustling around in her pocket. She picked around it, and, to her surprise, Yui popped out.
"Yui?" Poppy exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
Yui twiddled her fingers, afraid to answer.
"Well…" She replied quietly. "I wanted to help you, and, um…"
"What is it?" Poppy asked.
"I wanted to look inside a Gashat!" Yui replied.
Poppy, while she would like to send Yui back, there was no other way now. The only way of getting back out is unless one could go in and out with a Bugster.
"Yui, I understand your sentiment." Poppy said gently. "But Bugsters are dangerous. Too much exposure could risk you getting corrupted."
"I know…" Yui replied. "I'm going to help you regardless."
Poppy realized there was just no talking out of this small HCU (Health Counseling Unit).
"Just stay close, okay?" Poppy asked.
Yui nodded, and the two took a couple of steps on the platform. Not long after, they all were met with three Bugster mooks that acted as Mighty Action X's equivalent to Goombas. Poppy, grabbing Yui, turned 180, and ran away from them as fast as she could.
Back inside the hospital, Hiro had just finished examining the patient. His name was Tetsu Kamuri.
"Doctor…" He said. "I was trying to cure my game disease on my own… too irrational of a thought?"
When he chuckled at that, he coughed slightly. Hiro quickly reassured his position.
"Don't worry, sir." He said. "I'll be operating on you shortly."
"Thank you." Tetsu replied.
Then, with that said, Hiro left the patient's room, and proceeded out. On his way out, he got a text from Kazuto, saying that they found Motors. With that said, he ran out of the hospital.
Eventually, he found Motors. Klein, Kirito, and Asuna were doing their best to keep Motors at bay. However, they weren't able to do much. Motors currently had Kirito pinned to his body, with the bike rod form before acting as a choker, as Kirito was trying to pry Motors off of him. Asuna went for him, but Motors just threw Kirito into her. The couple fell together to a building wall, with Kirito on top. Ignoring this Klein ran up, sword at the ready. However, Motors swung his rod right onto Klein's head, making him fall down and holding his head.
"Time to become my bike, buddy!" Motors cackled, as he made a bike engine revving sound.
Then, someone got his attention. Hiro walked up to him, as he raised his Gashat Gear Dual β.
"I'm… the world's number one… doctor!" He announced, twisting the knob on the Gashat.
TADDLE FANTASY!
"Proceeding to Level 50!" Hiro said. "Henshin!"
He inserted the Gashat into his Driver, and then opened it.
DUAL GASHATTO!
GACHANN! DUAL UP!
TADORU, MEGURU! RPG! TADDLE FANTASY!
Hiro then transformed into Brave Level 50. He raised his sword, and wasted no time in slashing Motors. He first threw the rod out of his hand, and then slashed him once, taking a huge chunk out of his health.
"Owowowow!" Motors groaned. "Hey, ease up on the throttle okay?"
Brave ignored this comment, and just pulled out the Taddle Quest Gashat. He quickly inserted it into the Sword.
GASHATTO! KIMEWAZA!
Then, as the Sword began charging, he turned around and threw the Sword over to Asuna, who caught it, albeit fumbling a bit.
"Huh?" She muttered.
"You finish it." Brave ordered.
Asuna, while still kind of confused, still obliged. She stood up, and approached Motors at quite the speed. She flipped the sword to her face as Motors got closer.
TADDLE CRITICAL FINISH!
And with one simple slash, Motors was sliced clean. Motors shouted a cry of a bike engine dying, and then he exploded. Asuna then made some kind of sheathing pose with the Sword, only for her to quickly realize her force of habit and threw the Sword back to Brave.
"C'mon, Asuna!" Klein groaned. "I was going to go for that one!"
"Well, she beat you to it!" Kirito teased. "Expect nothing less from the Lightning Flash."
Asuna kind of blushed at that, as she received the Gashat-Trophy of Bakusou Bike. Asuna turned to say something to Brave, but Brave was already gone.
Hiro quickly made it back to Tetsu, who was now sitting up on his bed.
"The operation was successful." Hiro said as he walked up. "How are you feeling, sir?"
"Well, a lot better." Tetsu replied. "I'm too naïve… thinking I could cure my game disease on my own… Never thought that fight would be this hard."
Hiro then had a thought. He then realized that Emu was also a patient, but instead of just lying in bed, the guy was fighting his own virus for his own well-being.
"Isn't he…" He muttered under his breath. "A patient too?"
"I was going to beat it regardless if he told me too…" Taiga muttered, leaning on a pole.
"Taiga!" Nico called. "I got info on Gutton and Vernier!"
"Alright, let's get cracking." Taiga said, with Nico happily going beside him.
However, all of their hopes were dashed when they did find Gutton and Vernier. Two people had beaten them to the punch. Agil and Sinon had already engaged the two Bugsters. Lis, Silica, and Leafa were just on the sidelines, cheering them on.
Agil was had just threw his axe around, nailing Gutton in the face. Gutton fell on the ground, but quickly got back up.
"Calculating best approach for counterattack…" Gutton muttered.
Agil ignored this, as he just kicked Gutton to the side again.
Vernier, on the other hand, was on the ground, oddly. But, he actually can't fly. Sinon had sniped his wings, so he won't be able to take the grounds advantage. Sinon was just firing at Vernier in all critical locations on his body.
"Winds damaged… attempting repairs!" Vernier groaned, as he took another bullet to his shoulder.
Sinon then proceeded to reload. That would've given Vernier an opening, but Agil threw Gutton at him, causing the two Bugsters to fall on the ground.
"Let's wrap this up, shall we?" Agil asked.
"Yeah, let's." Sinon replied.
Sinon raised her sniper, and then carefully took aim at the two Bugsters. Agil twirled his axe around. Sinon fired, and then Agil followed after the bullet. The bullet tore through the two Bugsters, and then Agil slashed right through them. The two yelled as they exploded. Sinon gave Agil a thumbs up, which Agil returned, then, two Gashat-Trophies fell to their hands. Sinon got Jet Combat, while Agil got Gekitotsu Robots.
"Wow, you guys just took down two mid-tier Bugsters!" Lis complimented.
"It was nothing." Sinon smiled. "I mean, I was the top sniper in GGO."
"Agil, you still got it!" Silica said. "You really still know how to play."
"Eh, really?" Agil replied, rubbing the back of his head.
The gang just jubilated together until Nico walked up and stomped over their parade.
"Hey, you stole my kills!" Nico complained.
"Well, it's not our fault that you were late." Leafa shot back.
Nico got all anime angry, but Agil quickly put a stop to it. Taiga just walked up, uninterested by the look of things. Calming down, Nico then just had a thought.
"Wait!" She started, thinking of something. "As a Ride-Player don't we need to defeat Pallad and get his Gashat-Trophy to reach the last boss?"
"This is my chance!" Nico went on. "Don't even change my mind. It is my 'character', right?"
Taiga didn't even try to argue. So, he just obliged by just walking off. This was a sign that he was going to lead them towards Emu and Pallad. The others just went after them, as they had nothing else to do.
Hiro also had a similar thought, as when he left to go the same place, he blew past Kazuto, Asuna, and Ryotarou. So, the trio decided to follow.
Back in the digital world of the black Proto Mighty Action X, Poppy and Yui were still running away from the three Bugster mooks. Along the way, Yui quickly pulled Poppy behind a block, and the three mooks just blew past them. Once they had walked past, Yui and Poppy quickly came out of hiding, relieved that the trouble was over. However, three more Bugster mooks came around the corner and chased after them. The two quickly ran again, only this time, Poppy getting an idea to lose them. She grabbed Yui and ran to a door. Once Yui was through, she closed it, and the two quickly pushed a brown block to block the door.
"How…" Yui panted. "How long have we been running?"
"I dunno…" Poppy admitted. "Is this really where the power to suppress the virus is?"
Then, the two looked to their side a bit, and saw a Bugster mook just sitting on another block. They quickly panicked and ducked behind the block they blocked the door with, but the Bugster mook didn't seem to move.
"Something's a bit off with this one…" Poppy whispered to Yui.
Then, the mook began to pixelate. It wans't like the Bugsters virus type of pixelating, it was more of like glitching in and out of game reality. The two took a serious look at that Bugster mook, and were surprised by what they saw.
A silent and peaceful quarry was void of any sound. The equipment was still, and everything was calm…
That is until a giant armored warrior fell through and skidded on the ground. Ex-Aid quickly rolled around and stood back up. Para-DX quickly came out as he quickly swung the Parablagun down. Ex-Aid blocked it with his KeySlasher, and he threw Para-DX off of him. Para-DX landed on the ground gracefully, but then, he laughed slightly.
"Y'know, I've always wanted to play with you, M!" He shouted, charging at Para-DX again.
Ex-Aid stood up and quickly blocked a swing from Para-DX. Throwing the weapon off of him, he then went for a punch, which Para-DX also blocked.
"I never wanted to play with you!" Ex-Aid reassured. "I'm only doing this to excise you from my body!"
Para-DX then threw the punch away, only to be met with an upward slash from Ex-Aid. He flew back, but that gave him an opportunity. He flipped around, using some of the quarry equipment as a launch pad, and flew back at Ex-Aid. He flipped around again, and double-kicked Ex-Aid in the torso. Ex-Aid stumbled back as Para-DX landed on the ground again.
"F is for how fucked you are!" He smiled in a singsong tone. "Well, more specifically, how fucked the humans are!"
That triggered Ex-Aid, as he pressed the small button the side of his Gashat. The armor ejected Ex-Aid himself at Pallad, who stepped back to let Ex-Aid land on the ground, then the began to exchange blows again. Clashing of metal and game sounds could be heard.
"A lot of lives depend on this battle, M!" Para-DX went on. "You, humanity's strongest… and me, the Bugster's strongest!"
"The winner will reign supreme!" Para-DX continued. "The other… will go extinct!"
With that declaration, he then kicked Ex-Aid off of him. Ex-Aid slid on the ground on his feet, as he stopped himself by stabbing the KeySlasher into the ground.
"I will change humanity's fate with my own hands!" Ex-Aid declared.
"I will change the Bugster's fate with my own hands!" Para-DX declared in tandem. "And now… allow me to reprise…!"
Then, the two charged at each other one more time. They went at it. Even so, they fought so fiercely, that it could give Superman and Zod a run for their money.
For example, when they jumped into the air together, while they did clash blades, Ex-Aid grabbed Para-DX by his neck and threw him to the ground. Ex-Aid then landed back on the ground as Para-DX fell with the impact of a meteor, digging into the ground. However, Para-DX quickly recovered, climbing out of the small crater he made. He then found an Energy Item that could help him. He quickly rushed over and grabbed it.
"E is for Energy Item!" Para-DX smiled. "Which I will gladly take!"
JUMP POWER-UP!
Para-DX then leapt into the air. He slammed down his weapon as he dived down. Ex-Aid took the full brunt of the blow, stumbling back. However, he stumbled onto an Energy Item in his favor.
RECOVERY!
Ex-Aid, rejuvenated, then quickly rolled over to another Energy Item to even up the playing field.
JUMP POWER-UP!
Then, the two Riders leapt into the air again. They quickly exchanged blade clashes, but they quickly bounced off and slashed each other down the side of their torsos. The two fell on the ground with a thud, glaring at each other. Their HP bars just dropped down to the last 5%. Para-DX chuckled.
"Time we finish this, right?" He suggested. "C is for completion, which this fight was!"
"Yeah!" Ex-Aid called out. "Let's end this!"
Then, the two pulled out their Gashats and inserted them into their respective weapons.
MAXIMUM GASHATTO! KIMEWAZA!
DUAL GASHATTO! KIMEWAZA!
The two lurched their bodies forward and their weapons behind them. Their weapons charged as they prepared their attacks.
MAXIMUM MIGHTY CRITICAL FINISH!
KNOCK OUT CRITICAL FINISH!
Then, the two charged at each other with great force. They swung their weapons, and the blades clashed loudly. Energy and sparks fizzed between the weapons, however the Parablagun just delievered a bit more punch. Not being able to hold for any longer, the two Riders exploded, onre taking more damage than the other. Ex-Aid tumbled on the ground, grunting all the way until he ran his back into a pillar. Para-DX just slid on the ground, not as hurt as Ex-Aid.
Ex-Aid, hurt too much, cancelled out of his transformation.
GASHUNN!
The area reverted back to the Next Genome Research Center workshed. Emu winced and struggled on the ground, with cuts and bruises everywhere. Para-DX, on the other hand, laughed out loud. He was happy. He had finally gotten the fight he wanted with Emu.
"T is for Total satisfaction!" He cheered. "That was the best battle I've ever had, Emu!"
Emu propped himself up, but something seemed off to him.
"How…" He muttered. "We should be at the same level!"
Para-DX laughed. He then crouched down to Emu.
"Hate to break it to you." He smiled. "You're only Genius Gamer M… when I'm you."
"You should know that you can't beat the original." Para-DX smirked.
He then stood up, and raised the Parablagun to Emu's head.
"And what I spelt in my little rhyme is the word perfect." He added. "As in Perfect defeat of a loser."
He swung the Parablagun upward, but was stopped by a shout. Emu and Para-DX turned to see Hiro, Taiga, Nico, and the other SAO players run up to them.
"Your opponent is right here!" Taiga shouted as he pulled out his Gashat.
Para-DX just sighed as Hiro and Taiga ran at him. He responded by just simply punching Hiro and kicking Taiga out of the way. They crashed through several carts of equipment. Nico quickly went over to Taiga, while Asuna and Kazuto went over to Hiro. The other just stood there, not knowing what to do. Para-DX, having taken care of the nuisance, turned his attention back to Emu.
"Now… let me show you…" He said. "The ending befitting of a loser…"
He pressed the A button on the Parablagun, and turned it into its gun form.
ZU-GANN!
He carefully aimed it at Emu, and took his sweet time in letting the moment sink in as Emu tried to move, but his injuries were too grave.
"It's been fun… M." Para-DX whispered.
Para-DX raised his finger to pull the trigger, but several laser blasts landed on his back, making him lurch forward. He got really annoyed. He was just in his moment.
"Okay, who did-" He started.
However, he stopped when he saw who it was. The SAO players behind him were just as shocked. Lis actually had to duck to avoid the laser blasts. She turned around to see who it was. The others followed suit, amd were shocked to see a figure standing there.
Standing there, soon walking past the SAO players, now in front of them, was Kamen Rider Genmu. Luckily, it was the Level 2 Genmu. He didn't make any sort of noise, but he did have Poppy's cyan BugVisor in his hands.
"Wait, Genmu?" Hiro asked.
"No…" Taiga corrected. "The color's different!"
He was right. The original Genmu had a purple line going through his suit. This one had gray lines instead.
"Who are you?" Para-DX asked.
Genmu didn't reply, but someone else replied for him.
"Kamen Rider Genmu…" Poppy's voice echoed.
"Level 0!" Yui's voice finished.
Then, Poppy walked up beside Genmu, with Yui, in her human size, walking up to the other side of Genmu.
"Poppy!" Emu called out.
"Yui!" Kazuto called out.
"Alright, now, as you promised." Poppy spoke to the Genmu. "Help Emu-h-hey!"
Then, Genmu just simply stepped away from them and forward. He then raised his hands.
"Well… this looks fun, Pallad…" He seethed in a familiar voice. "How dare you leave the gamemaster out of this!?"
"Wait, 'Gamemaster'?" Shino repeated.
"So, are you Dan Kuroto?" Hiro asked.
"But… I… how?!" Para-DX spluttered. "I vanished you myself!"
Genmu, ignoring that comment, just twisted the cyan BugVisor around to its chainsaw form and threw himself at Para-DX. He swung the blade around, a bit floppily though. His legs appeared to be like jelly, as everytime he would miss a swing, he would just collapse. However, Para-DX wasn't paying attention, as he landed with his legs back to back with a small tool. Genmu saw a chance, as he just swung the BugVisor to his weapon, locking gazes.
"Hey!" Poppy shouted. "This isn't what we agreed on!"
"Silence!" Genmu roared. "I will never forgive this traitor!"
He activated the chainsaw, slowly grinding the Parablagun.
"You said you would help Emu!" Yui shouted too.
Para-DX, tired of this, just kicked Genmu off of him and then slashed him right away. Genmu fell and tumbled, only stopped by Silica and Suguha's legs. Genmu propped himself up, but Para-DX was bored. He sighed angrily, and just cancelled out of his transformation.
GACHANN! GASHUNN!
Reverting back to Pallad, he went up to Emu.
"Emu, we're leaving." He ordered.
His eyes glowed red, beginning to take Emu over again. However, Emu's eyes didn't glow. And Pallad didn't dissipate into the red and blue Bugster streams. He looked around his body. Nothing changed.
"Wait, what the…?" He muttered.
"Don't even try and take over Hojo Emu…" Genmu growled.
Pallad looked back at Genmu, who was still happily chuckling.
"Genmu Level 0 suppresses all Bugster abilities in a Game Area." Poppy explained.
Pallad then put on a scornful look on his face.
"That's lame." He simply said, before dissipating away.
Rika and Suguha quickly rushed over to Emu, and picked him up to get treated. Meanwhile, Genmu just cackled loudly.
By the time the crew had returned to the hospital, the sun had begun to set. Emu had gotten his injuries sorted out, but something else was bothering them right now. Everyone was staring at something. Even the SAO gang. They were staring… at Dan Kuroto, sitting nonchalantly on his chair.
"What… is this…?" Hiro muttered.
Poppy and Yui walked up front, and they began to explain the situation.
"We were… just as surprised…" Poppy admitted.
(Flashback)
Poppy and Yui stared at the pixelating Bugster mook. It was pixelating between the Bugster mook and Dan Kuroto. Poppy walked up to the mook, while Yui was told to stay back, not risking exposure. Poppy shook the mook, but that stopped the pixelating.
"What should I do…" Poppy asked hserlf.
Then, she remembered something. She pulled out the Gamer Driver that she had, and just put it on the mook's waist. The mook, lurching forward, stood up and then spazzed out madly. Soon, replacing him was the figure of Dan Kuroto. He was in his normal suit, however the jacket he was wearing had stickers of computer blue screens and the word "gamemaster" pasted all over the jacket. And Dan just repeated the words "I am immortal."
Poppy tried everything she could do get Kuroto's attention. She tried prodding him, poking him, shaking him, yelling at him, even yanking on him. However, nothing seemed to be working.
'What should I do now?' She thought.
Then Yui saw an opening she snuck past Poppy, but got her attention nonetheless.
"Yui! Stay back!" Poppy exclaimed.
Yui didn't reply. She simply went back to Poppy and grabbed the black Proto Mighty Action X Gashat. She then walked up to the figure of Kuroto, and then she inserted it into the Driver.
GASHATTO!
Then, Kuroto began to spazz out. Yui fell back in shock, but Poppy quickly caught her. Kuroto spazzed out for a good few seconds. However, when he stopped, he bent his head forward, and breathed in.
"I am…" He began. "IMMORTAL!"
After that yell, Kuroto just looked around his body. He felt several places, as if to check if it was real. Then, his eyes fell upon Poppy and Yui.
"Kuroto?" Poppy saked.
"Poppy…" Kuroto muttered.
Then, realizing something, he began to smile madly. He then began to cheer.
"I… did it…" He said. "I did it! I DID IT!"
"I… truly am…" He began again. "IMMORTAL!"
(Flashback end)
"And then… here he is." Poppy replied. "As a… Bugster."
Kuroto then smiled his devilish smile that he always had. Everyone else still couldn't believe. Their greatest enemy is back… but is on their side?
"Is this some kind of weird drama…?" Rika asked.
"What is this?" Taiga shouted, walking up to Kuroto. "Answer me!"
However, Kuroto raised his hand just pushed Taiga back. Luckily, Nico and Shino caught her.
"You do not order me around!" Kuroto declared.
The heroes looked at Kuroto cautiously.
"I have transcended a Game Over." Kuroto declared. "Watashi wa kami da-!"
But when he just declared that he was god, he was suddenly absorbed into somewhere, still yelling the last word he spoke. Poppy had her BugVisor out and she seemed to have… absorbed Kuroto?
"Wait, what?" Kuroto replied from within the BugVisor. "Hey!"
"Don't get too carried away!" Poppy scolded.
Everyone had a good chuckle, while Nico just cowered behind as she got disgusted. Kuroto, just seemingly wailed on the screen of Poppy's BugVisor, ordering Poppy to let him out.