"My Princess Chronera, the Future King of Time, is confronted by Kamen Rider Blade. Would she be able to overcome the challenge set by the Legendary Rider of the Spade, or will she fall. Honestly, I support my future Demon King. I am sure she will overcome any obstacle in her path to reaching Oma Zi-O's throne," Woz said as he slammed his book shut.

She-Ra and Zi-O backpedaled away in order to avoid the flurry of attacks from Blade. He was strong, way stronger than any of the Another Riders they had faced before. Was this the true power of a Kamen Rider in action?

"Why are you doing this?!" Zi-O yelled as she blocked a series of strikes from Blade's weapon with her own.

"To see for my own eyes what kind of ruler you will be!" Blade struck hard while keeping She-Ra at bay. He only seemed focused on fighting Zi-O and not She-Ra, which made him fight defensively against the Princess of Power.

He fanned out the cards on his arm-mounted Rouze Absorber, before choosing two specific cards: The Queen and the Jack of Spades. He held up his arm and inserted the Queen card into it, before sliding the Jack card through it.

Absorb Queen! Fusion Jack!

Suddenly, the silver armor on Blade's chest and faceplate became golden, and he gained a set of wings pertaining to the Eagle Undead's power. He spread his wings out, before taking flight into the air.

"You can fly too?! That seems unfair!" Zi-O yelled as she was struck several times by Blade's Jack form. He definitely had the advantage in this battle.

"Chronera!" She-Ra yelled, as she charged and slashed at him with her sword, but he easily parried it with his own.

"This world depends on you to protect it but can you protect it from a threat like her?" Blade asked She-Ra, kicking her back.

Zi-O was taking careful note of Blade as they fought. Those wings certainly gave him aerial superiority. In order to defeat him, she would need to clip them.

She had an idea.

She removed the Drive Ridewatch to replace it with another.

Kabuto!

With Kabuto's speed, she would be able to best Blade.

Armor Time! Change Beetle! Kabuto!

Decked in the Kabuto Armor, Zi-O attacked Blade with a multitude of quick slashes. Sparks flew as their swords clashed and the two Riders battle ferociously. All of a sudden, time seemed to freeze for everyone save for the Princess of Time. She was moving so fast that everything seemed to be at a standstill.

Capitalizing on her advantage, Zi-O went for the killing blow and struck Blade across the chest. Sparks exploded, then froze in midair. Blade fell back in reality and he quickly responded with a new card from his Rouzer.

Mach!

As easily as she had the advantage, the power of the Jaguar Undead surged through Blade, allowing him to keep up with the power of Kabuto. The two broke apart and Zi-O got ready with a finisher.

Finish Time! Kabuto!

Blade responded by scanning two cards through his Rouzer.

Slash! Thunder!

Clock Time Break!

Lightning Slash!

Zi-O and Blade flew at each other to perform their attacks. Zi-O delivered a jumping roundhouse Rider Kick as Blade swung his sword to deliver his Lightning Slash.

Boot and sword collided, resulting in a powerful explosion.

"Chronera!" She-Ra yelled.

The smoke cleared and dust settled to reveal Blade holding Chronera under his right arm.

She was unconscious.

"Here," Blade said as he tossed Chronera to She-Ra and she caught her friend. "I'll be taking these." Blade showed She-Ra the Drive and Kabuto Ridewatches which he had claimed as his prize.

"Hey, give those back!" She-Ra shouted.

"Tell her that if she wants these back, she has to come find me in front of the temple in the Whispering Woods. I'll be waiting," Blade challenged before he flew away.

Chronera was out for the count, a loud groan escaping from her lips as she laid in She-Ra's arms.

She-Ra gritted her teeth as she transformed back into Adora, and looked at the mostly unconscious girl. This was seriously not good. They just lost two of their Ridewatches to another Kamen Rider, something none of them expected to happen. And how was he able to transform into that Another Rider as well? She looked down at Chronera one more time, before looking to Glimmer and Bow. They had come back once the fight was over.

"We need to find Woz, right now."

"My Princess… Lost? This was not what I expected!" Woz said, sitting down at his desk and looking through his many history texts. He looked more frazzled than he usually did, not knowing what had happened. A Kamen Rider suddenly appeared? It was impossible.

"Just tell us who this Kamen Rider Blade is before I shove my fist into your face." Adora threatened, not quite calmed down from her fight with Blade.

"One moment! Please." Woz said, opening up one of his tomes, before stopping and looking inside of it. "According to my research, Kamen Rider Blade was a man named Kazuma Kenzaki. He alongside three other Riders: Chalice, Garren, and Leangle participated in an event called the Battle Fight."

"The Battle Fight? That sounds kinda redundant," Glimmer noted, but Woz silenced her by putting his hand up and motioning for her to quiet down.

"As I was saying. They were to fight and seal away creatures known as the Undead. However, Chalice was a special Undead known as the Joker. In order to save Chalice from his fate of being sealed away, Kazuma Kenzaki overused the power of the Category King Undead in order to become a Joker Undead as well, thus leaving the Battle Fight at a stalemate."

"So that thing we fought before he turned into Blade wasn't Another Rider? But this Joker Undead?" Adora raised an eyebrow.

"Most likely. He did so to make you to transform and fight him, knowing you'd think he was Another Rider. But the way he easily defeated both of you is… disconcerting to say the least." Woz closed his book and sighed. "How he got here is what worries me the most. He is ageless and immortal, but he should not be on Etheria."

"So what are we supposed to do?" Bow asked. "He already took two of our Ridewatches! And he won't give them back unless Chronera fights him again. Alone."

"The only way my dear princess can defeat Blade is to use the power of Oma Zi-O, and channel her rage to defeat Kamen Rider Blade. But as long as she fears her rage, I believe it'll be impossible for her to win." Woz sighed a bit, looking down at his normal book and opening it up. "This is truly unprecedented."

When Chronera regained consciousness, she found herself in the palace's infirmary. In two other beds lay the guards who had been posted at the gate. Blade likely injured them when he had tried to enter the palace grounds.

She noted that she was not too injured, just a few scratches and scrapes, nothing too serious. The armor had taken the brunt of Blade's attack while she performed her Rider Kick. If it was not for that power, she would've been seriously hurt.

"Chronera, you're awake!" Glimmer entered with Adora and Bow.

"Lady Glimmer, Lady Adora, Sir Bow," Chronera smiled, happy to see her friends. For some reason, they did not look very happy. "What's wrong?"

"Well, how do we say this?" Bow seemed nervous. "You remember that Rider that attacked you?"

"Blade."

"Yes, that guy. Well..."

Adora decided to interject.

"He took the Drive and Kabuto Ridewatches."

Chronera reacted as expected.

"WHAT!?" She quickly covered her mouth and looked to the other occupied beds, hoping she had not disturbed the injured guards. "I'm sorry, what?"

"After he beat you, he took them."

'Angry' did not come close to describing what Chronera was feeling right now. She and Adora had risked going into the Fright Zone to claim those Ridewatches. To have them taken from her was like having all her efforts to get them in the first place becoming wasted. She threw the covers off and got out of bed.

"What are you doing?" Glimmer asked.

"I'm going to find him and I'm going to get my Ridewatches back," Chronera stated firmly.

"No, you're not," Glimmer protested. "You're still hurt."

"And he did kick your butt," Bow added.

"Bow!"

"What? Oh, sorry, but it's true. But you don't need to feel bad about it, Chronera. He was a way older, way more experienced Rider."

"What do you mean?" Chronera asked.

"Woz told us about Blade," Adora began to explain. "He used to be human but he used his powers so much that he turned into something called a Joker Undead. That's why he looked like an Another Rider before he transformed into a Kamen Rider."

"He was a Rider...who became a monster..." Chronera slowly spoke.

Like Oma Zi-O.

"And according to Woz, Undead are immortal," Adora finished.

"So, I can't kill him," Chronera concluded. "That doesn't mean I can't defeat him."

"Look, we know how important the Ridewatches are, but you got hurt and you need to rest. Plus, we need a plan to get them back and beat Blade," Glimmer said, trying to talk Chronera out of doing something reckless.

"...You're right," Chronera relented. "My apologies, Lady Glimmer. So is there anything else?"

"Blade challenged you to a duel," Adora answered. "He said that if you wanted your Ridewatches back, you'd have to face him in the Whispering Woods."

"And where exactly in the Whispering Woods can we find him?" Chronera questioned.

"First, you need to rest and then we need to come up with a plan, an actual plan. Not like when we went into the Fright Zone," Adora answered. "We'll head out tomorrow so no sneaking out."

"Very well, Lady Adora. I promise," Chronera swore. She would not disobey Queen Angella by leaving without permission. Also, her friends had a point. They needed a plan to beat Blade and reclaim the Ridewatches. Maybe Woz could help them.

Queen Angella knew about the incident; it was impossible for her not to learn that an intruder had shown up and injured one of the princesses. Fortunately, Chronera's injuries had not been severe.

Woz, Chronera, Adora, Bow and Glimmer stood before Queen Angella. The Queen of Brightmoon knew what this was about.

"You intend to chase after the intruder, don't you?" Queen Angella asked.

"Your Majesty, the intruder has stolen from My Princess. It is our responsibility to find him and reclaim her stolen property," Woz stated.

"Mom, it's really important that Chronera gets her Ridewatches back," added Glimmer, justifying their case further.

"It's like, if someone stole my bow! It's my bow! Without it, who would I be? My name is Bow!" OK, maybe Bow probably wasn't making a good case, but his meaning was clear.

"Your Majesty, Lady Adora and I risked our lives to enter the Fright Zone so we could claim those Ridewatches. I'm not about to let someone take them without a fight," Chronera said.

"And Chronera needs to get stronger so she can help us fight the Horde," added Adora. "So please, let us go after Blade."

After receiving Queen Angella's permission, the group headed to the temple to meet Kenzaki. Swift Wind, with Adora and Glimmer riding on his back, flew ahead and led the way. Chronera rode the Ride Striker with Bow sitting behind her. He had his arms wrapped tightly around her waist due to the vehicle's speed.

Woz said he would meet them there.

Upon their arrival, they found Kenzaki waiting for them. The suited man, once more, removed his sunglasses and stared on at his opponents. His battle with Chronera had left him with a small cut on his face, oozing out green blood. It was true then, Chronera thought, he had been turned into a monster. Woz, as usual, seemingly came out of nowhere as she found him waiting for the group there.

"So you've come, Demon King," Kenzaki said, looking to the girl who had arrived with her friends. The soldier nodded and took out her Ziku-Driver before attaching it to her waist. "And you've brought your friends."

The others simply stood behind Chronera, as Woz watched from behind. He smiled a little bit, staring down Kenzaki.

"This time I won't lose to you," Chronera announced, furrowing her brow a little bit. Kenzaki jumped off the log he was sitting on, before throwing his belt out in front of him. The cards surrounded his waist before snapping shut onto his body.

"I will show you the true power of a King, Demon King," Kenzaki said, glowing a bright gold as he looked at Chronera. "Henshin!"

Turn Up!

Absorb Queen! Evolution King!

Kenzaki stepped through the glowing energy in front of him, stepping out in gold and navy armor that looked even more impressive than what they had seen before.

"That's…" Adora began to say, as Woz's eyes lit up a bit.

"King Form… The fusion of all of Blade's Undead powers." Woz said, writing in his book once more. "This is truly unprecedented! My Princess, you must defeat him and claim back the powers that rightfully belong to you!"

"Right, so a King versus a Princess, huh? I didn't expect this to be how you wanted things to go down, but I'm all for it." Chronera said, smirking a bit. She had to use all of her wit and all of her strength to defeat Blade this time around, especially now that he stood before her in his King Form.

"Transform!"

Rider Time! Kamen Rider~! Zi-O!

Now that she was transformed, with her sword in hand, she looked to Blade who had summoned his King Rouzer to his hands.

"Don't interfere!" Blade said to Chronera's friends. "This is a fight between me and the Demon King. If you get in the way, then I won't show you any mercy."

"I don't intend to show you any mercy either," Zi-O retorted as she mentally prepared for battle.

"Let's begin!" Blade said, running forward and striking at Zi-O's blade. Like she expected, the amount of force he had put over on top of her was mind blowing. Much stronger than anything she had expected.

But she stood her ground and pushed back before landing a strike of her own. Sparks erupted as their swords connected and the two engaged in a furious trade of slashes.

"C'mon!" Adora stepped forward but Woz pulled her back. "Woz, let me go!"

"We cannot interfere, Miss Adora," Woz denied. "Right now, My Princess is fighting to prove she is worthy of her power. We have no choice but to spectate and leave this to My Princess."

Adora's eyes narrowed angrily but she watched Zi-O's fight with Blade nonetheless. She just wished she could do something instead of being stuck on the sidelines.

Zi-O sidestepped a downward swing from Blade before retaliating with a slash of her own. He caught her sword before delivering a jab that sent her staggering back.

This was Blade's King Form and he was at his most powerful. If she wanted to stand a chance against him, she needed power to match his.

Kiva!

"Then a king for a king," Zi-O said as she docked the Kiva Ridewatch into the empty left slot of her Ziku-Driver and spun it around.

Armor Time! Biting! Kiva!

Now augmented with the Kiva Armor, Zi-O resumed her fight with Blade. They crossed swords, looking each other in the eye.

"Tell me, why do you seek power?" Blade asked.

"I need power to destroy the Horde!" Zi-O snapped.

"Is that all?" Blade and Zi-O broke apart and Blade slashed her across the chest. "You seek power to destroy your enemies. Is that all you think it's for, Demon King?"

Chronera had lost so much because of the Horde, it was why she wanted to be part of the Rebellion. It was why she trained and became a royal guard. Now that she had actual power, she would use it to avenge her home, her parents and herself. She would not let anyone get in her way, not even another Kamen Rider.

The yellow characters on her visor glowed and turned red as she furiously attacked Blade. She put more force into her strikes to defeat her enemy. Even if he was immortal, she would make him beg for death once she was done with him.

She would reclaim what was rightfully hers, the power to destroy the Horde.

Holding the Edge of Time in her left hand in a reverse grip, Zi-O threw a right hook which collided with Blade's face. Then she swung her sword, striking him in the chest. He stood his ground, taking the attack.

Zi-O's eyes narrowed as she gritted her teeth. This was the gap of power between her and Blade. His King Form was powerful but that did not make him invincible. His immortality, however, did.

Blade retaliated by delivering a punch that knocked Zi-O back. He then swung his sword and she raised hers to parry, but it was knocked out of her hand. Sparks blasted off her chest as the King Rouzer slashed him and Blade slashed her again, throwing her to the ground while knocking the Kiva Ridewatch out of its slot.

Zi-O fell, reverted to her base form as Blade stood over her with his King Rouzer raised for the killing blow.

"This is where you end, Demon King."

Zi-O squeezed her eyes shut as the sword came down and...

CLANG!

The impact of steel against steel rang, but it was not because Blade's King Rouzer had touched Zi-O. Zi-O opened her eyes and gasped as she saw She-Ra holding the King Rouzer at bay with her Sword of Power.

"Lady She-Ra!" Zi-O cried.

Blade glared at the blonde Princess of Power.

"I told you not to interfere," Blade growled.

"Well, it's too bad that we don't listen!" She-Ra snapped. "Now!"

Woz threw his scarf to wrap it around Blade's King Rouzer. With a tug, he ripped the weapon out of the Rider's hands. Then a sparkle blast hit Blade in the face, blinding him and causing him to recoil.

Bow fired three arrows and they pierced the ground in front of Blade's feet. They then exploded, covering Blade's legs up to his shins in some kind of sticky slime, immobilizing him. Bow fired a quarter dozen more arrows, this time hitting Blade in the chest, and covering his body up to his neck in the sticky slime which soon hardened like cement. Zi-O wasn't sure what was happening, but she looked to see it. Her allies… Her friends were there to stop Blade from finishing her off.

She-Ra smiled and offered her hand to Zi-O. Stunned, Zi-O took the offered hand as the Princess of Power pulled her back up to her feet.

Zi-O's allies stood together with her; Glimmer, Bow, She-Ra and Woz.

Blade struggled to free himself as She-Ra spoke.

"You wanted to see Zi-O's power, well here it is! Our power is her power!"

"Together, we're stronger!" Glimmer added.

"Yeah, we're a team!" Bow said confidently.

"So if you're going to fight one of us, then get ready to fight all of us!" She-Ra declared, brandishing her sword.

"Well said, all of you," Woz smiled. His Princess was truly remarkable to recruit such a powerful band of retainers. Her path to her throne would indeed be a glorious one with She-Ra siding with her.

Zi-O smiled underneath her mask, a smile that no one else could see. She was… happy. Happy that she could have such good friends already, despite the fact that she had failed them once before. Her rage had empowered her at one point, but now… she had her friends. That was her true strength.

"So, you'll let her become a Demon King?" Blade questioned, his voice still cold as steel. He raised up his sword a bit, ready to clash once more with the enemy. She-Ra ran forward and defiantly struck at Blade with enough force to make him fall back a bit, breaking him out of his cement prison.

"Chronera won't become a Demon King because we won't let her!" She-Ra answered. Zi-O managed to grab hold of her weapon and joined She-Ra in her attack. Together, they were able to make dutiful strikes against Blade, each strike followed through with another. Their synergy was incredible, as Blade could do nothing but use his King Rouzer to block the attacks from striking his armor.

"Well, then you should back your words up with your actions!" Blade huffed a little, as he built up enough strength to strike them back. His sword glowed a bright gold color, as he used its energy to force his opponents back.

"Gah!" They all yelled in unison, as the were flung back through the air. The group were slammed against the temple and fell, groaning in pain.

Blade summoned up a set of five cards from his body then telekinetically inserted them into the King Rouzer's scanner.

"Demon King, this is the fate of the people who follow your lead!" Blade said, his voice not wavering one bit. Was this the end?

Spade 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace! Royal Straight Flush!

A set of five human-sized holographic Rouze cards lined up in front of Blade as he swung his King Rouzer and a burst of energy flew through them, headed for Zi-O friends.

"NO!"

Zi-O pushed herself back up and got up from the ground to shield them with her own body. She took the full brunt of the Royal Straight Flush and screamed. The explosion was immense, and even though her armor was strong, she could feel her body yelling out in pain. Every moment was torture for the young warrior.

"CHRONERA!" the Best Friend Squad screamed.

"MY PRINCESS!" Woz shouted.

The explosion consumed the future King of Time and when it cleared she was still standing albeit without her suit. She then collapsed, her body sprawled on the ground.

Blade stood over Chronera. He was victorious once again. But instead of finishing her off, he offered her his hand.

"Come on, get up." Blade said, as Chronera slowly took his hand. She was pulled back upright as she looked at him. His transformation broke and he smiled a bit, green blood pouring out of his mouth a bit. "You did pretty well against my King Form. It's been awhile since I had such a thrilling battle."

"Wait… what do you mean?"

"I came here to see if you would become the Demon King who will destroy this world. But you took my final attack for your friends. Could an all evil Demon King take my most powerful attack for their friends?" He shook his head a bit, as Zi-O turned back into Chronera.

"You're saying you were… testing me?"

"Correct. And you passed." He handed back the Ridewatches he had taken from her along with the Blade Ridewatch. "Use my powers wisely, Chronera. Do not believe even for one second that you will fall to evil, or you might do so." He turned around as a large blurry wall appeared before them.

"Wait! How did you get here in the first place?! What is that wall?!" Chronera yelled, as Kenzaki turned around and smiled.

"Let's just say… a passing-through Kamen Rider helped me out. Now, I'm sure we'll meet again. See ya." He raised his hand up and put his sunglasses back on, before heading back through the wall. It then phased back out of existence, leaving the five of them alone.

None of them noticed a small sphere-shaped robot hovering nearby, watching them.

"According to this book, Chronera, member of the royal guard is destined to become the new Oma Zi-O. In order to obtain her birthright, she faced off against the powerful Kamen Rider Blade." Woz read from his book. He flipped the page. "She lost to him, but her generosity in protecting her friends led to her obtaining the Blade Ridewatch. And then, she met another Kamen Rider. Impossible! Another Kamen Rider in Etheria besides my Princess? Who could this Rider from the Hidden Kingdom be?"

A/N: As always, a big thanks to KR Chrome for helping out with this chapter. Be sure to leave a review so I can here your thoughts on the series! Feedback is always useful for me! S2 of She-Ra here we come!