Dr Ex's Anthology: A compilation of oneshots

by Dr. Exposition

This is an anthology of random stories, compiled and put together for your enjoyment. Some may become new series, others may be adopted, and some are oneshots that don't really fit in any category. Please, read and review. If you wish to adopt, please let me know. Latest entry: SideRide Chronicles.

152. First 5 Chapters of Heroes Fall Arc

"Special Weapon-The Obliterator"

One night, while everyone in Hinamizawa was sleeping, the silence of the night was disturbed by what sounded like metal footsteps. The footsteps were loud, echoing in the night. The owner's features were hidden by the blanket of night but what could be discerned from its features was a pair of cold blue eyes that shone in the dark.

The mysterious figure was making its way towards a familiar house where a brother and sister resided, namely Satoko Houjou and Satoshi Houjou. The siblings were fast asleep but their rest would soon be interrupted when all of a sudden…

CRASH!

The front door was smashed wide open.

Startled and alarmed, Satoko and Satoshi jumped out of their respective futons and cautiously went to investigate. What they saw was something they hadn't expected to see.

It was a Cyberman.

"Sa…Sato…Satoko…Sato…shi…" the Cyberman spoke, its voice cracked but still in monotone.

"What the…?" Satoshi uttered in confusion. How did the Cyberman know their names? What was it even doing here? As far as they knew, the Cybermen were gone. The others said so.

The Cyberman grabbed a piece of the broken door which had jagged edges, and tossed it at them. Satoshi ducked while pushing Satoko down before they got hit and were injured. Spotting a table, it grabbed it and raised it up before throwing it at the Houjou siblings. They dodged again and the table smashed against the wall, breaking to pieces.

They distanced themselves from the insane cyborg who seemed to be obsessed with killing them. It wasn't even giving them a chance to fight back.

The Cyberman threw a lamp and other objects at the siblings, forcing the two dodge every thrown item.

"OK who do you think you are coming into this house and trying to kill us?-!" Satoshi demanded.

"Don't pretend... you don't know... me" the Cyberman stated still in a monotone voice but its stance was quite hostile.

"We don't know you, you tin psychopath." Satoko shouted.

"I see... maybe this will... jog your memory. Remember... the... time... we...spent... together? Remember.. when... I...used...to...beat you kids up when you were in my care?" the Cyberman said, slowly giving the siblings an idea of its true identity.

"Uncle Teppei?!" Satoshi shouted.

"But how did this happen?!" Satoko added.

"A white-haired, red-eyed bastard turned me into this thing! That's how! This is all your fault!" Cyberman Teppei shouted.

"You're one to talk!" Satoshi shot back as he dodged a swing from Cyberman Teppei, "You should be blaming yourself instead of others!"

"That's right!" Satoko agreed and smirked, "Besides the Kamen Riders were the ones who put you in jail again, not us."

"That may be right...punks. So...I am here...to kill you and those...masked freaks for...letting this...happen!" Cyberman Teppei roared. He swung his arms down on the siblings. They dodged the blows and have the ground splinter from impact.

"Sorry, Uncle Teppei, but we're not the weak kids you can push around and beat up anymore," Satoshi stated.

"This time we can fight back," Satoko explained. "Henshin!" The Houjou siblings called. Cyberman Teppei attacks, ignoring the flashing lights the Houjou siblings were covered in.

Suddenly, Cyberman Teppei was punched in the chest by V3, sending their demented uncle stumbling back. Cyberman Teppei then received a flying kick to the face courtesy of Riderwoman.

"What the hell?!" Cybermen Teppei exclaimed. "What are you?!"

"I am Kamen Rider V3!" V3 posed.

"And I am Riderwoman!" Riderwoman posed.

"Che, even if you have some fancy suits, I can still kill you brats!" Cyberman Teppei exclaimed as he charged at the two siblings, thinking he could take them.

Oh how wrong he was.

Cyberman Teppei charged forward only to be pelted by bullets from Riderwoman's Machine Gun Arm. Riderwoman then moved in to kick Cyberman Teppei in the chest, sending him staggering backwards.

The Cyberman made a move to punch the female Rider but she ducked, and got on her hands and knees. V3 ran up to his sister and used her back as a springboard. Leaping into the air, he smashed both his feet into Cyberman Teppei's face, sending the evil cyborg flying out of their house.

"You little shits!" Cyberman Teppei cursed as he got up.

"That's what you get for underestimating us," Riderwoman smirked as she stood beside V3.

"Time to send you where you belong! To the junkyard!" V3 declared. The siblings Riders charged at Cyberman Teppei who swung clumsily at them. With her Power Arm, Riderwoman took swipes at the Cyberman, cutting chunks off his plate armor. V3 also assisted by knocking the Cyberman back with a vicious uppercut. Jumping up, Riderwoman used a reverse roundhouse that threatened to knock the Cyberman's metal head off.

"Let's finish this!" announced Riderwoman as she formed her Drill Arm and darted towards Cyberman Teppei. "THIS IS FOR WHAT YOU DID TO US!" She drove her Drill Arm into his chest, causing him to scream. Withdrawing her weapon, she spun away as Satoshi came down with his own finishing move.

"V3 KICK!"

His kick connected with Cyberman Teppei's body and sent it skidding backwards. He collapsed onto his knees, his body trembling and sparking all over before exploding into metal shrapnel.

"He's...he's gone...he's finally gone..." said Riderwoman, in relief. They had once believed that he would be gone from their lives after being sent to prison, but then he somehow returned as a wreck of a Cyberman. Now, he was nothing more than pieces of scorched scrap metal. The only thing that remained intact was the head. The neighbours had come out and witnessed the Cyberman's destruction. No way a commotion like that could be ignored.

"We better go," said V3. No doubt one of the neighbours had called the police. The two pseudo-Riders needed to get away and hide somewhere before they could revert back to human form lest they be questioned.

Meanwhile, another entity had been watching the brother and sister. Hidden in the grass, and in the dark, nobody noticed the single glowing red eyes. Rising up on four spindly legs, the entity crawled away as there was nothing else of interest in the area to see.

(LINE BREAK)

Yuji yawned as he entered the bathroom to get himself ready for the day. As he entered the shower, he did not notice that something was watching him, its red eye focused on the centre of his forehead. It climbed up the shower head and was ready to pounce as he shampooed his hair. It bent its joins and prepared itself before leaping for him. Yuji ducked to grab his soap and his assailant went flying over, slamming into the wall. Yuji, not noticing the sound of metal striking the wall due to the sound of the shower, turned off the shower and dried his hair. He then proceeded to brush his teeth. Once he was done, he opened the medicine cabinet and grabbed the floss and mouthwash. Using the floss first then the mouthwash, he gargled and spat into the sink. He put the items away and closed the medicine cabinet only to see in the mirror, behind him, was a spider-like automaton preparing itself for a jump.

It jumped at him as he spun around. It managed to dig the tips of its legs into the skin of his face as he struggled to get the thing off. "Get off!". Yuji struggled with the creature as a spike came out of the underside of its body, spinning like a drill. His eyes crossed as they were focused on the drill that was aimed between his eyes. Its legs were trying to dig their way deeper into his head as he gripped it. "God...damn it...!" He finally managed to tear it off his face, scratching his skin.

He exited the bathroom in a haste and called out, "Scrappy, breakfast!" He tossed the mechanical spider into the air and their pet scraplet, Scrappy, leapt and caught the creature in its mouth, chewing and, eating up the menacing creature. Scrappy happily bounced up and down after receiving the delicious treat.

"There," he dusted off his hands. "That's better." He felt a draft and looked down at himself. His towel had fallen off. "Oh..." He wasn't alone either. Yuji realized he was giving all the girls a free show. Maria and Wendy's eyes were being covered by Misato to spare them the sight as they were too young. "Uh...oops?"

(LINE BREAK)

"Ah...ahh...ahhh...pushing. Ahhh...hernia," Yokoshima grunted as he pushed a crate outside of the base. Battler stood nearby, watching.

"Battler!" Battler turned his head to see Washam looking at the spectacle in annoyance.

"Hey, Dr. Washam!" Battler greeted. "What's up?"

"What the hell are these crates doing outside the base?" Washam demanded.

"Don't ask me. He was doing this when I got here. I think Yokoshima's been pushing them all morning," Battler answered, pointing at the Pillbug Cyborg and bearer of the Blue Scarab.

"Yokoshima! What the hell are you doing?" Washam yelled at Yokoshima.

As he stopped pushing the crate to catch his breath, Yokoshima replied, "You told me to clean up the storage room, Dr. Washam."

"Yeah, but all these crates can't be just laying around outside," Washam retorted, gesturing to all the crates.

"Why not?"

"What do you mean why not? They're outside!"

"He's got a good point, Dr. Washam. These crates are waterproof. Who cares if they're outside?" Battler questioned.

Washam ignored him as he reminded Yokoshima, "I told you to organize the crates. I told you to stack them in rows, remember? I said that it's just like Tetris."

"Well I did stack them like in Tetris. But every time I made full row they didn't disappear like they're supposed to!" Yokoshima snapped.

"That's not how it works!" Washam snapped.

"Actually that's exactly how Tetris works. What, you haven't played the game before?" Battler questioned.

"This is real life, Battler!" Washam shouted in annoyance.

"The only way to win is not to play," Yokoshima quoted.

Battler suggested, "Hey, Yokoshima. Maybe you should try humming that Russian song from the game. That might make them disappear."

"Well that's worth a shot." Yokoshima said. he cleared before beginning to sing "Dee dee dee, dee dee dee, deedeedee, deedeedee... Deedeedee, deedeedee!"

"Stop that," Dr. Washam hissed.

"Deedeedee, deedeedee deedeedee, deedeedee deedeedee."

"Yokoshima," Dr. Washam said in a warning tone.

"Dee dee dee deedeedee dee dee dee! Dee Da Dai! Didon don dondondon... dondon!" Yokoshima continued.

"Yokoshima!" Dr. Washam snapped.

"Sorry..." Yokoshima apologized.

Dr. Washam spoke, "Okay now that that's over with. We can't just leave everything from the storage room out in the middle of the canyon. Where are we going to put all this stuff?"

"Well, the storage room is empty," Yokoshima suggested.

Washam slapped his forehead "Uh! Okay, great. Let's put it all in there."

"And I'll get back to work!" Yokoshima sang, "Deedeedee deedeedee dee dee dee."

"YOKOSHIMA!"

"Sorry..."

"Well, if you guys don't mind, I'm gonna go and see Junior. Later!" Battler said before entering the base. "Hey, Junior!"

"Honk!"

(LINE BREAK)

"Alan, Shinichi, thanks for coming on short notice," said Inspector Akasaka as he welcomed Alan and Shinichi into the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. The young Lantern was wearing a visitor's pass.

"So, what is it about this time?" Alan asked. Whenever Inspector Akasaka would call them, it was always to help solve cases which were beyond what the department were used to dealing with.

"My guess is that it's something freaky as usual," commented Shinichi.

"Come with me," said Akasaka as he brought Alan into the coroner's office. "I don't normally do this, but since I've gotten some pretty weird cases, I know that I can only turn to you."

"So, what is it you want us to do?" Alan inquired.

Inspector Akasaka gestured towards the operating table where a body lay. Over the body was a sheet of cloth which covered everything but the feet. A tag was tied to one of the toes. "I want you to take a look at this body here."

"A murder?" Alan asked.

"Not exactly," said Inspector Akasaka. "He and two others were involved in a bank robbery the other day. The other two escaped but this one was killed at the crime scene. His weapon is stored in the evidence room right now but I can show it to you later."

Akasaka pulled the cloth down to reveal the man's face. He was pale, with sunken eyes. Of course what got Shinichi & Alan's attention were the piercings done on the sides of the head as well as the hole on the top.

"Damn, this looks like a bad piercing accident," commented Shinichi. "What happened to him?"

Alan asked, "And who was he?"

"Fingerprint and dental records identify him as Takuya Yagami," Akasaka said as he looked at the clipboard. "He was reported missing 5 weeks ago."

"5 weeks ago?" Alan asked. "Then he turns up at a bank robbery, holding it up with two others?"

"That doesn't seem normal," Shinichi added.

"It isn't normal," Akasaka said. "But there's something else." There was a tray covered by a sheet of cloth and Akasaka took off the cloth and Alan's eyes widened. "He was wearing this on his head." It was metal, saucer-shaped, with four spider-like legs sticking up in the air as it was lying on its back. A blood-stained spike stuck out of its body, pointing up like its legs.

"It's a Cyberdrone," Alan identified.

"So, both of you have seen one of these things before?" Akasaka questioned.

"Yes, a long time ago," Shinichi said.

Alan studied the dead Cyberdrone and looking at the bloodstained legs and spikes siad,, "This thing was attached to his head, the spike and legs going into his brain. It was controlling him, like a puppet." He saw the bullet hole, which had pierced the eye.

"Nice shot," admired Shinichi. It had gone clean through.

"It was. No matter how many times we shot at him, he wouldn't go down. It took a direct hit to the thing on his and he just died," Akasaka added. "I lost a lot of good men too."

"That means he'd been dead ever since this thing attached itself to him," Alan concluded. "He was reported missing for five weeks, right? That was how long he's been a puppet."

"Where did it come from?" Akasaka asked.

"Remember the DALEKs?" Alan asked and he saw Akasaka's eyes widen. The DALEKs, even though their worldwide attack had been short, still left plenty of people emotionally scarred and traumatized. They had appeared and attacked, following Shiro's orders to cause as much death and destruction as they possibly. The attack had been a distraction so Shiro could destroy another one of the sealing stones in Kyoto. It had been effective on another, planting the fear of DALEKs into the memory of the people who'd survived. The mention of the name 'DALEK' could bring up feelings of terror in the weak and strong-hearted alike. The name, however, brought nothing but anger, hatred and disgust to Alan. "Well, this thing was made by the same guy who built those things."

"You mean the person who made those things made this?" Akasaka asked and Alan nodded to confirm.

"Yeah, but he's supposed to be dead," Shinichi told him. Alan was visibly upset and angry too. He was a Green Lantern and his job was to protect the innocent. To see this happen to someone made him sick.

"Could I see the weapon?" Alan requested.

Akasaka took Shinichi and Alan to the evidence room and after signing in, the three of them found the section for recently acquired evidence. "Here it is," said Akasaka as he took down the box. Putting it down, Akasaka opened it up and took out a zip lock bag and handed it to Alan. Alan held it and his eyes widened as he examined it.

"I've seen this before," said Alan. It was a pistol with a barrel shaped like a DALEK gunstick. The only wielder. He took out his Sonic Screwdriver and pushed the tip up to increase its power. Akasaka cocked an eyebrow as he watched Alan hold the tube-shaped device over the bag, a green light shining on the tip as it made a faint buzzing sound.

"What is that?" Akasaka asked as he'd never seen Alan use the device before.

"Sonic Screwdriver," Shinichi answered. He noted Akasaka's skeptical look. "Yes, I know it doesn't look like a screwdriver but it's sonic and way beyond anything that can be built here on Earth, at this time"

"So, it's alien?" Akasaka asked.

"The screwdriver or the gun?" Shinichi questioned.

"Both," Akasaka clarified.

"Oh, both were built on Earth but the Sonic Screwdriver is made using alien technology," Shinichi answered. Lala had built the original for him, which got destroyed, but then Alan built a new one.

"The gun's advanced but it's not alien." Alan grimaced. "It's the same." He then used his Sonic Screwdriver to permanently disable the gun. It was still charged and could become dangerous. "Here, I disabled it for you. It will never fire again," informed Alan as he handed the bag back to Akasaka.

"So, the guy who built that spider-drone-"

"Cyberdrone," Alan interrupted, correcting the inspector.

"Right, so the guy who built that Cyberdrone and this gun is the same one who made those DALEK things."

"Yeah, but he's dead," said Shinichi .

"How can you be sure?"

"We were there," Shinichi and Alan answered in unison.

"He got absorbed by a eight-headed dragon," Alan added. "Then I blew up the eight-headed dragon."

"Nothing could've survived that. Not even him," Shinichi added. "You can bet on that."

"So, the big question is, how did these things get here?" Alan asked.

(LINE BREAK)

After Yokoshima had returned the crates to the storage room, he and Battler were summoned by Dr. Magi. He needed them for a mission.

"Now, as you know, GIN-SHOCKER has warehouses hidden all over the world. It is where equipment and weaponry is stored away for safe keeping and later use. Since the organization disbanded, I've been taking advantage of the situation by getting replacement equipment from there," Dr. Magi explained.

"Wow, that explains how you can run this place so well without going bankrupt. That's a money saver," Battler commented, impressed.

"Yes, even though ARMOR did help build this base for us, GIN-SHOCKER technology should be compatible. If not, it could be modified to be compatible," Dr. Magi replied.

"So, you want us to go and get you some stuff, huh, Pops?" questioned Yokoshima. "Piece of cake."

"There's more. You see, I also want to send two others to keep an eye on the both of you," answered Dr. Magi.

"Keep an eye on us?" Battler asked, feeling slightly offended by the lack of trust. "What for?"

"Dr. Washam informed me that Yokoshima misunderstood his orders to clean up the storage room by taking out all the crates and leaving them out in the canyon," Dr. Magi answered.

"Anyone could make that mistake. Besides, how was I supposed to clean the storage room with all those boxes in the way?" argued Yokoshima.

"And what about me?" Battler asked.

"Well, you just watched and didn't help," said Dr. Magi.

"I was looking after Junior," Battler retorted. "Little guy needs my attention or he gets cranky!"

"Yes...cranky..." sighed Dr. Magi, knowing that a cranky Junior tended to bite people. "Still, you're going to need help." He handed the two a list. "Here's the list of things I want you to bring back."

"Damn!" Yokoshima exclaimed after reading it. "Wait, is that a decimal or comma?"

"A comma," Dr. Magi clarified.

"Damn!" Yokoshima repeated.

Battler read the list, "There's no way we can carry all that stuff back here ourselves, super strength or not."

"Which is why I said you'll need help and supervision. Fortunately, the twins were free and they were happy enough to help out," Dr. Magi informed them.

"Twins?" echoed Yokoshima and Battler in unison.

(LINE BREAK)

The Teleportal opened allowing Battler, Yokoshima and the twins to step out and stand in the middle of a forest. "Where are we?"

"Somewhere near the warehouse," said Yokoshima.

"Couldn't he have opened the Teleportal inside the warehouse and save us the trouble?" Battler complained.

"The warehouse has a sort of disruption field around it preventing a Teleportal from opening inside. We can't get a lock on to the exact coordinates because of it but we can set coordinates nearby," Yokoshima explained.

"Hey, we're wasting time here," said Mion Sonozaki. "Dr. Magi did tell us he needs all the stuff on the list.

"Yes, and it wouldn't be nice to keep him waiting," agreed Shion Sonozaki.

"Right, let's go," Yokoshima said as he led the way.

"The warehouse is that way," Mion pointed to the opposite direction.

Yokoshima turned and walked in that direction, "Like I said, let's go."

"Why do I get the feeling this won't be an easy job?" mumbled Shion.

"I'm getting the same feeling, but I doubt it'd be that bad," said Mion.

It didn't take long for them to find the warehouse, which was camouflaged. "OK, if I remember correctly..." Yokoshima murmured as he entered the entry code on the keypad. "Aha! Open Sesame!"

The door opened for them.

"What was the code?" Battler asked.

"No way can I tell you that!" Yokoshima huffed defensively.

"Come on, I wanna see what's inside," said Mion eagerly. She had never seen a GIN-SHOCKER warehouse up-close or the inside of one before.

"Onee, you can be such a kid," Shion giggled. They entered and the door shut behind them, leaving them in total darkness.

"Wow, it's dark," said Battler.

"Don't worry. I'll find a light switch," said Yokoshima. He felt around and his hand landed on something soft.

"Hey!" Mion yelled.

SLAP!

"OK, that wasn't it," Yokoshima said as he felt around again and his hand landed on something soft again.

"Stop that!" Shion yelled as she smacked him.

SLAP!

The lights turned on. "Oh yeah, it was a clapper," Yokoshima realized. He saw that Shion, Mion and Battler were frozen, eyes wide. "What?" He blinked and drawled, "There's something horrible behind me, isn't there?" He turned and his eyes widened in horror as he stood face to face with a DALEK. Backing away in fright, he realized that they were standing in a room filled with DALEKs.

"DALEKS!" Battler aimed his gun hand at the DALEKs as Yokoshima's arms turned into energy blasters which he aimed at the mechanical menaces. They were ready to fight. However, the DALEKs weren't moving. They were just standing there, motionless. Their eyestalks were hanging along with their plunger and gunstick arms.

"OK, why are they just standing there?" asked Shion as she and her terrified twin hugged each other.

"Wait a minute," Yokoshima said as he scanned them. He was relieved when he discovered something from them. "Everyone, relax. They're just empty shells." He demonstrated by rapping one on the dome with his knuckle. It did not respond to it. "See?" He lightly shoved it back. No response.

"Empty...?" Battler cautiously poked one in the eye. It didn't react. "Empty..." he repeated as he breathed in relief.

They don't even have active power cells," added Yokoshima.

Mion asked, terrified, as she demanded an explanation "But what the are these things doing here!?"

"My guess is Shiro must've found this place and used it for extra storage space," Yokoshima assumed. Looking closer, he noticed that the DALEK units were covered in a thin layer of dust. "Must've been here for months."

"How much extra space would he need?" Shion questioned. "Didn't he have a giant pyramid-shaped base?"

"You can never have too much storage space. Ask my dad. He had to have an extra storage shed built just for his collection of cowboy movies he loves so much," said Battler.

"Come on, let's just go find whatever it is Dr. Magi wants and get away from these killer saltshakers of death," said Mion, uncomfortable at the sight of DALEKs. Even if Shiro's ultimate plan had failed, the plan to cement DALEKs as an object of fear in people had succeeded.

"The sooner we get home the better," said Shion, rubbing her arm. She just felt a chill as she looked at the DALEK units. These things had attacked Hinamizawa and attempted to exterminate all of the villagers. Shinichi had come in time to prevent that. They walked deeper into the warehouse, avoiding the DALEK units out of discomfort rather than fear.

"Let's split up," suggested Mion. "We can cover more ground that way and get Dr. Magi what he needs faster."

"Good idea," Yokoshima agreed.

"You still have to do the heavy lifting, though," Shion added. "Bye." The twins walked off.

"Women, huh?" Battler remarked, recalling his his mom and Beato would get him to carry their shopping bags.

"I hear ya," Yokoshima agreed. "Still, we are the men. We bring home the bacon and carry the heavy stuff."

(LINE BREAK)

"So, which crate are we supposed to be looking for?" Battler asked. Yokoshima looked it up on a sheet of paper.

"GS-098G-XG-556," Yokoshima read.

"Geez, couldn't they just label this stuff with simple words," said Battler as he looked around for the crate marked with that serial number.

"They just think putting a random combination of numbers and letters together would be-" Battler suddenly shushed him, which Yokoshima thought was rude. "Hey!"

"Do you hear something?" Battler asked.

"Sorry, but not all of us have your super-sensitive hearing, Battler," Yokoshima remarked. Battler put a finger to his lips and did a 'follow me' gesture. The Pillbug Cyborg followed the the redhead and they turned a corner before stopping.

It was another area filled with DALEKs, which were hopefully dead. However, one of them was not dead as it was moving.

"Crap..." groaned Battler.

The DALEK was different from the ones they had faced before. It was completely black with silver hemispheres decorating its skirt-like lower half. Instead of appendages in front, it had them attached to the sides. It had a pair of chain-guns for arms that looked extremely deadly. It also appeared heavily armored.

It was swiveling its head around, examining the DALEK units before coming across one which drew its interest. It glided closer as the centre of its chest opened up and a plunger extended. The plunger attached itself to the back of the immobile DALEK and began to siphon energy from its power cell.

"HOLY SHIT! WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT THING DOING!?" Yokoshima shouted. The DALEK's dome head swiveled around and it leveled its eye at them as it removed its plunger.

"TARGETS SIGHTED! OB-LIT-ER-ATE!"

Battler deadpanned, "Nice going, dumbass."

An energy cannon extended from its chest. It was big, badass, and capable of brutal destruction. Firing off, it let loose a barrage of lethal energy bullers from its chainguns as it also fired energy blasts from its cannon. The Special War DALEK, codenamed the 'Obliterator' was aiming to kill them. Battle and Yokoshima jumped and dodged the assault, doing their best not to get hit.

"What the hell?-!" Battler shouted. "Since when do DALEKs have machine guns and laser cannons?-!"

"I don't know but it's about to get sent to the scrapyard!" Yokoshima shouted as he transformed into the Blue Beetle, forming his own laser cannon with his arms. Taking aim and powering up his weapons, he glared at the prototype Dalek. "Suck on this, ya evil metal bitch!"

BOOM!

Blue Beetle and Battle stared at the cloud of smoke and the sounds of metal hitting the floor. The two looked at one another, giving eachother a high five until a new sound made them gap at the smoke cloud in fear.

"TARGETS HAVE BECOME HOSTILE! TARGETS ARE NOW A LEVEL 4 THREAT! TARGETS SHALL NOW BE DEALT WITH!" it shouted as it came out of the smoke cloud, its body only slightly singed from Blue Beetle's attack. "OB-LIT-ER-ATE!"

"What the fuck?-!-!-!" Blue Beetle screamed as he and Battler dodged more gunfire. "What is this thing on!? Steroids?-!"

Mion and Shion had heard the commotion and the eldest twin asked, "What's going on?"

"Never mind that right now!" Battler shouted "Everyone, hold hands and brace yourselves!" They didn't question or hesitate as they did as told before they were teleported away to safety.

(LINE BREAK)

"That's strange," said Dr. Magi. "It seems as though I've lost contact with them."

"Is something the matter, Dr. Magi?" Rika asked as she walked over with her boyfriend Kai. She and Kai had been using the training room for some sparring.

"It seems that I've lost contact with the team I sent to the warehouse," said Dr. Magi.

"Do you think something happened to them?" Kai questioned.

"Considering their luck, and statistics, they probably are," said Dr. Magi. He could be exaggerating, but numbers don't lie. "They probably need assistance."

"Then send us," Rika volunteered.

"If they're in trouble we should help them," agreed Kai.

"OK," Dr. Magi accepted. "I'm setting the coordinates for the warehouse."

(LINE BREAK)

As the warehouse was large, Battler had teleported himself, Mion, Shion and Blue Beetle to another area, as far away as possible from the Super DALEK trying to kill them.

"OK, we should be safe for now," said Battler as they hid behind several large containers.

"That was a DALEK! A living, moving, homicidal DALEK!" babbled Mion.

"We kinda got that while it was shooting at us!" Yokoshima shot back.

"Which it wouldn't have if you hadn't made so much noise!" Battler argued.

"OK, but why is it moving while the others aren't?" Shion asked.

"It looked like it was siphoning energy from the other inactive units," said Battler. "I don't know how long it's been active itself but long enough to drain almost every single DALEK here dry."

"So, why don't we just get out of here and bring backup?" Yokoshima asked.

"Why can't you guys just destroy it?" Mion asked.

"If we could, we would've," answered Yokoshima. "I blasted it but I didn't even make a dent. That thing seems to have been made to withstand anything and that's just its armor. It's armed to the teeth too." The chainguns and cannon were intimidating and deadly.

"It looked different too. Must be a new prototype or something," Battler added. The DALEK they had escaped from hadn't shared the standard design. Up until now, all the DALEKs had looked the same.

"I vote that we leave and lock this thing up in the warehouse permanently," recommended Mion. She really didn't want to face a DALEK.

"I thought you guys have been trained to fight DALEKs," Yokoshima pointed out.

"In the simulator, where it's safe, and the worst we have to worry about are just aches and pains!" Mion exclaimed. Battler shushed her.

"Keep it down," Battler scolded. "Now that it knows we're here it's going to come looking for us."

"It's the hunter and we're the prey," Yokoshima added.

"So, are we just going to hide?" Mion shot back.

"No, we're going to have to destroy it. It's too dangerous to leave it here alive. Who knows how long before it breaks out of this place and goes on a rampage?" Battler said. "But first, what do you girls know about DALEKs?"

"Well, they were built to kill humans," Shion answered.

"Their armor is bullet proof and they have a force field too for added protection," continued Mion.

"And their weak spot?" Battler asked.

"The eye!" the twins answered in unison.

"So, aimed for the aid and it's blind, but we still have to worry about weapons," said Yokoshima.

Now, here came Battler's 'flip the Chessboard' strategy which his mother had taught him. "Guys, I have a plan."

(LINE BREAK)

The Obliterator DALEK was seeking out its prey. Turning right into an aisle of crates and containers, it swiveled its head around, the pupil in its eyeball dialating as it focused to find and obliterate its targets.

"Hey ugly!" The Obliterator DALEK's head spun around 180 degrees and it spotted Yokoshima standing behind it. "Yoohoo! Over here!"

"TARGET SIGHTED!" the Obliterator DALEK screamed as it turned its body around. "OBLITERATE!" It began to fire its payload, a deadly salvo of energy bullets being expelled by the chainguns. Yokoshima screamed as he ran to the right with the DALEK in hot pursuit. "CEASE RUNNING! CEASE RUNNING AND BE OBLITERATED!"

"I'm not that stupid!" Yokoshima shouted as he dodged the chainguns. The energy cannon came into play and was fired. Yokoshima immediately laid flat on the floor as the energy burst flew over him, hitting and destroying several crates and containers in front of him. "Yikes!" He stood up and continued running, dodging the Obliterator DALEK as it continued to fire.

Once Yokoshima had led the Obliterator DALEK into an open area of the warehouse. Battler, standing atop a container, shouted, "NOW!"

Mion came out of hiding from between two containers and aimed a high tech gun at the DALEK's back. It resembled a rifle, but with a capsule-shaped container attached on top. She'd gotten it from one of the crates. "Hey, trashcan! Check me out!" The Obliterator DALEK spun its head around to look just in time as Mion pulled the trigger. The gun fired a sphere of blue goo which hit the DALEK's eyeball, blinding it.

"VISION IMPAIRED! VISION IMPAIRED!" the Obliterator DALEK screamed in what appeared to be panic as it started to fire its chainguns in random directions.

"PLEASE TELL ME THERE'S MORE TO THIS PLAN!?" Yokoshima hollered as he and Mion ducked for cover.

The answer came in the form of Kamen Rider Nigo and Meta leaping off their perches and attacking the now blind Obliterator DALEK with a Double Rider Kick. The Obliterator DALEK was sent skidding out of control before it went crashing straight into a container.

"TAKE COVER!" Meta shouted as the container exploded.

KA-BOOM!

It had been a container filled filled with volatile explosives and the unstable contents had detonated when the DALEK smashed into them, consuming the DALEK in flames.

The four of them admired what they had done. They had stopped what had to be the most powerful DALEK they had ever seen.

"Yay, you killed it!" Yokoshima cheered but then he went pale as the DALEK came out of the smoke. "Oh hell, you didn't kill it!"

"You just had to jinx it," Meta grumbled. The blue goo in its eye was also gone now as the DALEK glared at them. Its force field had protected it from the blast but it had also been weakened as a result. The left chain guns were damaged, though.

"OBLITERATE!" it shouted as it fired its energy cannon and they leapt out of the way before they were killed.

(LINE BREAK)

Meanwhile, not too far away, a Teleportal opened up in front on the warehouse entrance. Rika entered the code and the entrance opened up for them. Going inside, they saw smoke rising into the air and the sound of laser fire as well as screaming.

"I guess Dr. Magi was right. They are in trouble," said Kai.

"Come on, let's go save their skins," said Rika as she donned Kamen Rider X's armor.

"Right behind you, Rika," Kai said.

(LINE BREAK)

Blue Beetle, Ichigo, Nigo and Meta were sent flying into the air by an explosion. They went sprawling all over the floor. The Obliterator DALEK studied their prone forms and compared their images to those in its memory banks. They were labeled as Kamen Riders and Kamen Riders were the enemy. Thus, enemies would be obliterated on the spot.

Training its cannon and charging it up the DALEK prepared to obliterate them with extreme prejudice. "OBLITE-"

A bolt of lightning struck the DALEK in the back, stunning it instantly as it went sliding forward, electricity crackling all over its body.

"Huh? Where did that come from?" Meta asked and he spotted Kai and Kamen Rider X.

"Rika-chan!" Nigo said in relief.

"Hey, dudes," Kai waved.

"Are you all OK?" Kamen Rider X asked.

"We're fine, for the most part. Still alive, definitely," said Meta.

"Is that a DALEK?" Kai asked. It didn't look like the ones they had found along the way.

"It may not look like the rest but it's just as nuts," said Blue Beetle. "It's been trying to kill us since we got here."

"Well, don't worry. I think I must've short-circuited it with my lightning," boasted Kai. With its force field weakened, there was no way for it to protect itself.

"OBLITERATE!"

"Or not," Kai corrected as the Obliterator DALEK stood in the distance. It aimed its energy cannon and prepared to fire. However, when it tried, nothing came out. The cannon was just spewing out nothing. "WEAPONS MALFUNCTION! FIREPOWER IS INSUFFICIENT! FIREPOWER IS INSUFFICIENT!"

"I think you damaged its weapon system," Kamen Rider X praised Kai.

"Yeah, that was so my plan," bragged Kai. Blue Beetle strode over to the Obliterator DALEK condescendingly.

"Look at you! Without your guns your nothing but a walking, talking trashcan! What are you gonna do now, huh? Huh?" He poked its eye. "Huh? What are ya gonna do now?"

"Yokoshima, I don't think it's a good idea to taunt the crazy killing machine," advised Ichigo.

"But it can't kill us now! How is it going to kill us without its weapons?" Blue Beetle questioned, mocking the Obliterator DALEK at the same time.

"INITIATE SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE!"

"Oh, that." Blue Beetle sweatdropped.

"COMPLETE SELF-DESTRUCTION IN 30 SECONDS!" If it was going to die, it was going to kill them as well.

"RUN!" X screamed.

"YOU DON'T NEED TO TELL ME TWICE!" Kai yelled.

(LINE BREAK)

"Dr. Magi, open a Teleportal, NOW!" Rika shouted from the other end.

"Alright!" Dr. Magi opened up the Teleportal. The instant he did, he saw them running for him, followed by an explosion. The explosion sent them flying out of the Teleportal, tumbling along the floor of the Hive's Main Hall. Dr. Magi closed the Teleportal after that and looked to see Mion, Shion, Rika, Kai, Yokoshima and Battler intact but spooked.

"So, what happened?" he asked. They gave him a very detailed report about what had happened. Dr. Magi listened and understood. "So, Shiro was using that warehouse to store his DALEKs and you came across a stronger and deadlier model."

"With BIG guns," Yokoshoma added for emphasis.

"Well, then it's a good thing that it's destroyed. It's a shame about the warehouse though. There was a lot of equipment there we could've used," lamented Dr. Magi sadly. He looked at the satellite image to see a huge crater in place of the warehouse. "A shame."

(LINE BREAK)

"Hey, Alan. Don't you think it's there's been a lot of coincidences lately?" Shinichi asked. He and Alan were sitting in a booth in Angel Mort with Celine and Alice, having cake and milkshakes.

"You mean like Cyberdrones attaching themselves to people's heads and turning them into meat puppets?" questioned Alan.

"And not just that. I mean Satoko and Satoshi told me that they got attacked by their abusive uncle who'd come back as a deranged Cyberman, and just recently I heard from Dr. Magi that some of the others found a warehouse filled with DALEKs and a new model of DALEK unit with new weapons and armor," Shinichi added. "Then Yuji told me he got attacked by a Cyberdrone this morning while in the bathroom. Not to mention I've been attacked by..." He paused as he chose his words carefully around children. "...Cyberman and DALEK hybrids." He originally wanted to use the term 'bastard children of a Cyberman and DALEK.' "I mean, the one thing they have in common is him and we both know what happened to him."

Shiro Juuyon had once been a cyborg of GIN-SHOCKER, created to replace Shinichi. He had been destroyed but then revived as a bio-android by the Religion of Crime. He had attempted to revive the Yamata no Orochi, building DALEKs and Cybermen to act as his soldiers. He had been killed though, a victim of his own hubris. However, even without him, his creations were still able to act independantly. The DALEKs had left Earth to become stronger elsewhere and the Cybermen had attempted to recreate their Cyber Master in Detroit. There had also been that Cybermen tomb but Shogo had blown it up.

"Shinichi, you and I both know more than anybody that in this line of work there are no such things as coincidences," said Alan grimly. He poked at his cake and repeated, "No such things as coincidences." It was no coincidence that they were still dealing with Shiro's legacy. Even when dead he still manages to be a menace. Alan let a out sigh as he added, "I miss the days when the worst I had to deal with was Black Hand putting me in a cliche death trap or Shark trying to eat me..."

(LINE BREAK)

Meanwhile, in an undisclosed location, the words "SPECIAL WAR DALEK...CODENAME: OBLITERATOR...HAS BEEN DESTROYED" went across a monitor screen.

"A shame. It would have been useful. At least I still have my other projects," a deep, distorted electronic voice spoke.

(LINE BREAK)

KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The Obliterator DALEK here is based on both the Special Weapons Dalek from "Remembrance of the Daleks" and Dalek STORM.

(LINE BREAK)

"Eternal Winter"

Kintaro Mitsuhide was reading a book in his study when he heard a knock at his door. "Enter," he allowed and it opened to reveal his butler. "What is it?"

"Sir, there is someone here to see you. It's your sister," the butler informed him. Kintaro had only one sister.

"Send her in," Kintaro ordered and the butler allowed Shiori entry into Kintaro's study. "Hello, Shiori," he greeted politely as he stood up. "What brings you here?"

"This isn't a social call, Kin-niisama. I actually came asking for your…for your…" She bit her lip and spat it out, "Help." Just saying it made her want to wash out her mouth.

"You want my help?" Kintaro questioned. He knew he wasn't Shiori's favorite brother. After all, he took a lot after their father who'd driven Shiori away. "Why not ask Gintaro?"

"Because Gin-niisama doesn't have the same connections you do, which I need," Shiori admitted.

"Alright, now what do you want?" Kintaro asked, curious. If Shiori was desperate enough to come to him for help then he might as well give her a few minutes of his time. Despite not being on such good terms, they were still family.

"I want to start a campaign to support the Kamen Riders," Shiori told him causing his eyebrows to raise slightly.

"You must be joking, Shiori," remarked Kintaro.

"I'm serious, Kin-niisama," said Shiori. "The Riders are being persecuted on the media by that DJ Mikogami."

"Even if I did say yes, you know that even I can't change public opinion." That video which was shown on TV showing the NEO-NUMBERS at their worst had really affected public opinion on them, though it was slowly changing. However, there were still those who believed they were dangerous. "Plus Mikogami has devoted fans who hang on his every word," said Kintaro. "It would just be a waste of time and resources."

"But this could help you in the long run," suggested Shiori.

Kintaro blinked. "How so?"

"If you support the Riders whom have done so much for the world, it might help with your political career. You might even get a chance to become Prime Minister in the next election," Shiori explained. She knew what buttons to press when it concerned her eldest brother.

"Hm, you're probably right. Even if Mikogami has turned a fraction of the population against the Riders, I can't deny that they're also popular." He narrowed his eyes, "But how do I know this won't hurt me if this plan fails?"

"Because, if the Riders are a symbol and if they were as terrible as Mikogami had claimed them to be they would've attacked him in retaliation by now," Shiori said.

"True…" Kintaro nodded.

"So, do we have a deal?" Shiori questioned.

Kintaro's face scrunched up in thought and consideration. He could win support by supporting the Riders whom have done a lot of good despite the bad they did in the past. Shiori did have a point that they were popular among children who loved superheroes and the younger generation. Finding more pros than cons, he finally agreed, "Very well then. I'll lend my support in your Pro-Kamen Rider Campaign."

"Thank you, Kin-niisama."

"Just don't make me regret this," he warned her.

(LINE BREAK)

The time was now ripe as Felix Faust, clad in his trademark dark blue robe and cowl. The robe was accessorised by gold bands around his wrists and forehead as well as a gold belt around his waist. Held within his hands an ancient tome, older than the artifact he'd discovered months before. It was known as the Casket of Ancient Winters and there was power inside. The casket was enchanted, it needed a special key to open the lock and Felix Faust had searched a long time for the tome which contained the key. It was an incantation designed to release the seal upon the Casket of Ancient Winters.

Months ago, Felix Faust had led an expedition. He, along with a group of RoC grunts rode dog-drawn sleds across the snow. There was something he was looking for. He had a map to guide him, an ancient sheet made out of animal hide, depicting a treasure that was not meant to be found. The map had on it a set of clues that needed to be deciphered from its language and even translated it had been a riddle to solve.

But hard work paid off and Faust finally found the ice cavern. With their flashlights they had entered the cavern and much to the shock of his subordinates they had found the bodies of many dead Vikings, frozen in ice, preserved by the cold. They had probably been here for centuries, overwhelmed by the cold. However, their faces were contorted in death masks of fear and terror and they looked like they had been trying to flee from something.

In the centre of the cavern's chamber, untouched by the ice, was a coffin. Despite the ages which had past it still shone as new as if it had just been made. Crimson and gold, and locked for all eternity. It was built to keep someone out, or keep something in. Faust had been pleased as he admired the Casket of Ancient Winters, the final resting place of the God of Blizzards, Iceon. But the time of admiration was over. It was time to conduct the ritual.

Frost opened the tome to the specific page and read its text which was written in an ancient language. However, years of study had allowed him to understand and pronounce the text properly. Mistakes were not an option as one error could spell disaster.

As soon as he finished reading the final line of text, the Casket of Ancient Winters emitted a glow which slowly faded.

Faust nodded and turned to the men in the chamber with him. "Open the casket," he ordered. These men, with Cyberdrones mounted on their heads, obeyed without question. Faust smiled in approval. These 'Robomen' as they were called did have their uses after all.

The six Robomen each grabbed hold of the Casket's lid and lifted. As soon as they did, a powerful blizzard burst from the Casket. Faust protected himself with a spell but the Robomen were not as lucky as they were hit with the gale of frost winds. They had been frozen instantly. A mist had formed around the Casket as a figure rose up. It spoke, in a deep voice, "Who here has disturbed my slumber?"

"It is I, Felix Faust, a simple sorcerer and your faithful servant," Faust introduced himself. "I was the one who awoke you, Lord Iceon."

(LINE BREAK)

Alan was headed home after he went out to do some shopping. He even bought a new manga for Celine and Daiki to enjoy. He suddenly sneezed and rubbed his nose. "That's weird...it felt chilly all of a sudden."

That was when snow began to fall, right in the middle of September.

(LINE BREAK)

Faust had finally revived the great Blizzard God Iceon. Using his lies and power of persuasion, the sorcerer was able to convince the Blizzard God that he wasn't the enemy. He told Iceon that humans had forgotten about him and worshipped technology. This did not sit well for Iceon, not in the least. He once lived in an era where he was worshipped and respected but now his existence had fallen into forgotten mythology.

Iceon was humanoid, to an extent. He was inhumanly tall, standing at ten feet and possessing an elegant yet imposing build. His garb resembled those worn by gladiators of ancient times and he had a stiletto (a dagger a long slender blade and needle-like point, primarily intended as a stabbing weapon) kept in a holster on his belt.

What was inhuman about him was his head which was that of a gorilla covered in snow white fur.

Wanting to see the present era for himself, Iceon disguised himself by mimicking a human teenager and decided to watch and learn. What he saw disgusted him to the core. It appeared that humans had forgotten their past and that Faust had been telling the truth, that humans had indeed become worshippers of technology. The Age of Gods had been forgotten.

Well, if that was the case than Iceon would remind them of the Age of Gods by himself!

He did not expect any opposition at all.

(LINE BREAK)

The canyon was hit by a sudden blizzard and the pool on top was frozen solid. The waterfall and lake nearby were also frozen. This was unfortunate as Daichi had been swimming with both Leviathan and Mika. Now the two girls felt chilly as they were wearing bikinis that didn't offer much protection in the cold.

"OK, I thought this canyon maintained a tropical climate all year round!" complained Leviathan as she shivered.

"Wait, where's Daichi?" Mika asked and the ice erupted. Climbing out of the frozen pool was Daichi and the girls gasped. "Daichi!"

"Dai!" Leviathan cried as she went and helped her boyfriend out.

"I...H-h-hate...I-i-ice...!" he stuttered. Even a Cyborg like him didn't like extremely low temperatures.

"Come on, we should get you inside before you catch your death of cold," Mika advised as she and Leviathan led him towards the roof entrance/exit.

(LINE BREAK)

Dr. Magi and Dr. Washam were checking the news all over the world and they all reported the same thing. Every continent on Earth was suffering from the strange and extreme weather which had hit every country and nation. Even countries that didn't get this kind of weather like Malaysia and Africa were affected.

"This is not your typical weather," said Dr. Magi.

"Do you think it's artificial? Man-made?" Dr. Washam asked.

"It wasn't cause by natural means, that's for sure," said Dr. Magi. "We better call everyone and figure out what's causing all this."

Before Washam could agree, they saw Mika and Leviathan helping Daichi out of the elevator, dragging him into the Main Hall and setting him down on a chair.

"Good Lord! What happened to him?" Dr. Washam asked as he went to check up on the cyborg. He noticed that he'd turned slightly blue due to exposure to the cold.

"We were swimming in the pool when the blizzard hit. Daichi was underwater so he got very chilly," answered Mika.

"Will he be OK?" Leviathan asked.

"He should be OK. He was designed to survive harsh climates. However, I recommend you both to take him to the get him warmed up before he catches frostbite or worse," advised Dr. Washam.

"Right!" the two girls agreed as they gently lifted Daichi up to get him to take a warm bath in order to get him nice and warm.

"We really need to call the others," said Dr. Washam to Dr. Magi.

(LINE BREAK)

"Snow! Snow!" Sho cheered as he was running out into the front lawn in winter clothes. He jumped into the snow and flipped onto his back, making snow angels. "Mama, look! Snow!"

Shiori stepped out, wearing a warm coat and held her hand out to catch snowflakes. There was snow falling but it wasn't even winter yet. It was the beginning of fall. Of course, she was smart enough to see that this was not some kind of joke. It really was snowing. Unfortunately, it was happening off season.

And on the news, she learnt it was happening all over the world. Nobody knew the cause of this phenomenon and even if her youngest child was having fun in the snow like all children his age. Well, it just didn't seem normal.

(LINE BREAK)

"This isn't natural," said Amora as she looked out the window. Down in the front lawn of the boarding house, Daiki, Celine and Alice were playing in the snow without a care. They had just built a snowman together and were now having an innocent snowball fight.

"Why? They seem to be having fun," said Lala.

"It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, Lala," warned Amora. There was a strange chill in the air, and not the type of chill associated with winter. This was unnatural, completely unnatural, and not some man-made aberration. The Norse Goddess had actually heard of such a phenomenon.

Alan had just returned and was swarmed by Lala and Celine upon his return. The Green Lantern knew from the get-go that the weather wasn't normal and not just because it was off-season. He was actually feeling chilly and considering his altered physiology due to the nanites rewriting his DNA, that was not possible anymore. The cold shouldn't effect him at all.

(LINE BREAK)

Maria and Wendy, a Witch and a Manakyte, could sense that things were not normal. Even Phoebe could tell. She was a magic-using Pokegirl so she could sense a sort of mystical quality effecting the weather. Manakytes were also closely linked to the elements.

Even Asura herself didn't like the weather and not because of her nature as a fire devil.

"Look baby, snow," Yūji beamed as he held his daughter, the two looking out the window. Yuna giggled in her father's arms as she patted the cold window.

"Something seems off about this," Misato frowned.

"You don't think I know that?" Yūji retorted as he looked to his wife. "It's like what, Autumn or something? Hm, lost track... Anyway, I can tell this ain't natural, especially this level of snowfall."

It was getting hard for vehicles to move with the thick snow covering the roads. And even if there wasn't snow, the roads were slippery as they were covered in ice. Too dangerous for driving.

"Any idea of what's causing it, Papa?" Maria asked.

"In my experience, it's either magic, a demon, some idiot who screwed up a science project or, in the rarest case, all of the above," Yūji listed. "Doubting the last one though..."

"Or it's your sister and her Pokegirl just fooling around with their powers," Sora offered.

"Come on, you know Yuki," Yūji reprimanded, "She never screws around. And Crystal is ten times as serious. Nah, whatever's going on here is something freaky. And if there's many things I don't like, is freaky."

"Well then, that just means this whole world is in trouble, again," said Misato. She turned on the TV and the news was on each channel reporting the weather. "Well, at least there's no change in the North and South Poles."

"How can you tell? It's all ice and snow anyway," remarked Stella.

"Well, better call the others so we can figure out who's screwing around this time," Yūji suggested. Before Yuji could make the call, his communicator alerted him. It was a call from Dr. Magi, summoning him and the others to the Hive.

(LINE BREAK)

In Jersey City, Crystal, Yuki and Rhea were also witnessing snow falling and already covering the city in a white blanket. Yuki's eyes were narrowed. As an Ice Manakyte she instantly knew that this weather was unnatural. She also knew it was not man-made. No, it was caused by supernatural means.

"If things weren't so weird, I would actually enjoy this weather," Crystal frowned as she lay in bed.

"You know, your brother might blame you for this," said Rhea.

"Onii-sama knows I wouldn't do something like this. He's know I'm not capable of it. No, something or someone with a lot of power is doing all this," said Yuki.

(LINE BREAK)

In Paris, Yuri commented, "Wow, Christmas came early."

"This isn't natural, my dear husband," said Anastasia as she put Anita in warm clothes. "I also fear that this is just the tip of the iceberg."

"Hah! You made a cold joke!" Yuri laughed but then his expression turned serious. "But you're right, Ana. This ain't right and even if I love it when things go crazy and chaotic I just don't like it."

"Especially when it isn't you causing the chaos," Shego remarked.

"Damn right," Yuri agreed. "And if I was behind it, I would let everyone know too!"

"And how would that be?" Anastasia asked.

"He'd leave a huge sign in a flat plain of snow that would read 'I'm Yuri Fucking Fudo and I made the entire world snow. Thank me later, bitches.' and broadcast on every channel all over the world," Shego answered.

"Speaking of broadcast, it says here that every body of water in the world is frozen, even the ocean," said Kikyo as she checked the news. Lakes, ponds, rivers and all the Seven Seas had been covered in a thick sheet of ice.

"See, and it would take me forever to freeze all that shit," Yuri supported.

"What about your sister?" Anastasia questioned.

"She'd never do something like this because even she doesn't have the level of speed and power to do this and it's not her style," Yuri defended.

(LINE BREAK)

Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu were both concerned as well. So, they decided to call Alan over to inform him of what was going on. Shinichi and Rena, their neighbors, were called as well. Amora decided to tag along with Alan.

The demi-goddesses served their guests tea as they sat down together in the living room.

"So, what is this about?" Shinichi asked.

"Alan, do you remember what Lord Regulus told you about the gods of this world?" Tsukuyomi asked

"Well, he said there were many who abused their powers and that some of you signed a pact of non-intervention that limited their control over the world thus weakening the gods that abused their powers allowing humans to regain free will," Alan answered.

"Correct, but do you know what happened to those who didn't sign that pact?" Amaterasu questioned.

"No, I don't. What happened?" He was guessing that he wouldn't like the answer.

"Many of those who were against the pact were either killed or sealed away," Amaterasu said "One of them was a god called Iceon."

"I've never heard of him," Alan said.

"He is an old god, from a culture that died out eons ago," Tsukuyomi said. "But that has not stopped Iceon who believed that the humans were nothing more than slaves. It was a tough battle but we were finally able to trap him in something called the Casket of Ancient Winters."

It was at this moment that Amora who'd been having drinking tea did a spit-take. She coughed and Rena rubbed her back.

"I take it you have heard of it," said Amaterasu, noting Amora's reaction.

"Well, yes and no. We have something like that back in my universe," Amora said, somewhat surprised that there was a version of the casket in this universe.

"Ano, how can you be sure this is caused by this Iceon?" asked Rena.

"Only he would be capable of this kind of devastation," answered Tsukuyomi, completely certain. "Someone must've found his tomb and freed him."

"OK, so this guy is tough by god standards. We get it. Is there anyway to defeat him?" Shinichi asked.

"First you need to find him, but since this unnatural winter is caused by him, his magical energy is saturated in the air. It will be like looking for a needle in a haystack," said Amaterasu.

"Well, fortunately for you, you have the Enchantress on your side," boasted Amora.

"Amora, you can find the source?" asked Alan.

"Oh, do you doubt me, my beloved Alan?" Amora asked.

Shinichi got a call, summoning them to the Hive. "We have to go."

(LINE BREAK)

Faust was impressed by the sheer devastation Iceon was causing on the Earth and it had only taken him a few hours to cover the world in snow. It wouldn't be long until a second Ice Age began.

"Lord Iceon, I would like to say that it is a splendid idea to start a second Ice Age," Frost praised as he knelt before Iceon.

"Covering the world in ice and snow is only the first part of my plan," Iceon clarified. He pointed his stiletto blade and shot a whitish beam that hit the ice-covered floor. Faust watched in fascination as humanoid creatures made of ice began to form, rising to full height. They looked thin and gangly, but they weren't fragile either.

"I have summoned you, my envoys for one simple task. Go forth and slay the foolish humans who've forgotten their gods and believes us to be nothing more than myths," Iceon commanded.

The creatures all bowed and answered in unison, "Your will be done, Lord Iceon," before they turned into snowflakes and scattered.

(LINE BREAK)

"We've managed to pinpoint the source of the anomaly," began Dr. Magi.

"Don't you mean me rather than we?" corrected Amora.

"Right...Ms. Amora was able to pinpoint the source of he anomaly using her magic," admitted Dr. Magi.

Alan went up to Amora and gave her a deep kiss. It didn't matter if everyone was watching. He wanted to show her his appreciation. "I love you, you beautiful goddess, you!"

"Thank you, Alan..." Amora purred, blushing. She was so glad she chose Alan over Thor.

Suddenly, the alarms blared as Sheila alerted, "Alert! Several hostile creatures have appeared! Alert! Several hostile creatures have appeared!" Using the Hive Satellite's camera, she got real-time video footage showing beasts made of ice attacking populated cities.

"How many of you guessed this was going to happen?" Alan asked.

"The source of this disturbance is intelligent and aware of our existence," said Amora. "We must make haste before this entire world becomes nothing more than a frozen wasteland. Not even the sun itself could melt this ice."

"She's right," agreed Amaterasu. "If I were a full goddess I could melt all the ice but I can only muster enough strength to melt just so much. If this entire planet is frozen, I doubt I could save it."

"Then we'll just have to go after the source, won't we?" Alan said. "OK, Dr. Magi, send everyone out to handle the ice beasts. Shinichi, Yuji and I will take care of the anomaly."

"I'm coming with you," Amaterasu volunteered.

"Me too," seconded Tsukuyomi.

"As will I," added Amora.

"If Yuji's gonna fight something cold he's gonna need me," said Asura.

"Ice is my specialty," offered Yuki.

"Looks like your team has spoken," smiled Yuji.

"Dr. Magi, set the coordinates. We got an Ice Age to stop," Shinichi said.

"Wait, so basically we're going to take care of the minions while you guys go after whatever's causing all this?" Yokoshima asked. He was glad he wasn't going. Minions were easier to deal with than their masters.

"Yeah, pretty much," Yuji, Shinichi and Alan answered in unison.

"Just making sure," replied Yokoshima. It was a bit freaky how in sync the three were becoming.

"Be careful," Rena said as she gave Shinichi a kiss.

"Don't worry, Rena-chan. This isn't the first time we had to fight malevolent gods," Shinichi assured her.

"You shouldn't be cocky. Iceon is an entirely different entity," Tsukuyomi cautioned.

"That's what they all say," said Alan. "Now, as the Doctor would say, Allons-y!"

With the teams assigned, they were sent to different corners of the world which required priority. This left the main squad to stop this 2nd Ice Age at its source.

(LINE BREAK)

In Hinamizawa and nearby Okinomiya, the NEO-NUMBERS and pseudo-Riders were taking down Ice Beasts.

In USA, the Stakes of Purgatory had to take down what appeared to be Ice Soldiers.

In Australia, Jin and Kai of Team 5D's had to fight against Ice Worms.

Members of Alan and Yuji's harems were also fighting against the threat of Iceon's forces in their own backyard.

Meanwhile, in Europe, Yuri, Anastasia and the members of his harem were fighting savagely and not showing an ounce of mercy to the cold-hearted ice creatures.

(LINE BREAK)

"Hmm..." Iceon frowned in deep thought.

"What is it, Lord Iceon?" asked Faust.

"It appears that some oddly dressed gnats are destroying my envoys," answered Iceon. He had a connection with his envoys, being able to see through their eyes. Faust frowned as he knew whom Iceon was referring to. After all, in a crisis like this, what were the odds of them not interfering?

"Should we be concerned, My Lord?" Faust questioned.

"No, it is nothing to be concerned about, Faust," said Iceon. "They may be able to destroy my envoys but as the world is now part of me they can simply regenerate. It won't matter how many times they are shattered. As long as this winter lasts, they will live forever," said Iceon before he began to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Faust asked.

"It would appear that I have some uninvited guests who've snuck into my domain. I wish to give them a proper welcome," said the Blizzard God.

(LINE BREAK)

"Kami-sama, it's fucking freezing," Shinichi uttered with a shiver as they found themselves in an ice cavern. As soon as they stepped foot in this place, he could already feel the extremely low temperatures effecting him. "I almost feel like my circuits and systems are gonna freeze."

"Well, what did you expect, a warm reception? The guy is called Iceon," remarked Yuji. "He's not gonna keep his place nice and toasty, even for us."

"Be quiet, you two," Tsukuyomi warned. "We don't want him to know we're here."

"I'm afraid that your warning came too late, Moon Goddess Tsukuyomi." Everyone spun around and saw Iceon. He looked annoyed as he glared and sneered at them.

"How did you know we were here?" Amaterasu inquired, though she knew the answer already.

"This is my domain, Sun Goddess Amaterasu," said Iceon. "I may have been sealed away in that casket for many, many winters, but my senses are still as sharp as they were eons ago. I can still sense when demons and gods are near." He then corrected himself in amusement, "Or should I say, former gods." He could sense it. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi had been demoted into demi-goddesses. In spite of their power, they were practically mortal.

Alan stepped forward, pointing his ring at Iceon and ordered, "By the authority granted to me by the Guardians of the Universe and the Green Lantern Corps, I hereby order you to cease and desist. Please return to your Casket to sleep eternally. If you do not comply, I will be forced to take extreme measures. This world just isn't big enough for you anymore."

Iceon just gawked before laughing, "Is he serious? Please, someone tell me if he's serious!" He continued to laugh but then his laughter was abruptly stopped as he was punched in jaw and sent flying into the ceiling.

"Alan?" Amora questioned.

"It's cold, I'm freezing, and I think I'm starting to develop a cold," Alan listed the reasons for his annoyance. "Do you guys think I did something unnecessary?"

Iceon crash down before them, landing on his feet. He massaged his jaw and said, "Hm...that was a surprise. I didn't think mortals still possessed such strength."

"Oh, we're all full of surprises here," said Alan. "So, do I have to repeat myself or do we have to do this the hard way?" Iceon grinned became feral as his body blew up, filling out with thick muscles. His build was no longer that of a teenager, but ripped like an Olympic-class body builder. "Well..." Alan smacked his lips. "Hard way it is then." He mumbled, "Why do they always want to choose the hard way?" He snapped his fingers, "Time to turn up the heat, people!"

Alan was suddenly backhanded by Iceon. Despite his muscle mass the Blizzard God was inhumanly fast. The force of the blow sent Alan crashing into the nearest wall, leaving a human-shaped hole on impact.

"ALAN!" Amaterasu and Amora screamed.

"Teme! Henshin!" Shinichi called out as he transformed. He charged at Iceon as his Oni armor formed in a tornado of fire, wind and lightning. Armed with the Shield of Glen, Higurashi no Yaiba and Oni Kanabo, he swung the mystically-charged weapons at Iceon's face. However, much to the Rider's shock, his attack was deflected by Iceon's stiletto. Iceon threw his fist at Showa to crush him but the Rider was able to block with the Shield of Glen. He was driven back several feet and his arm rattled from the impact.

Meanwhile, Amaterasu and Amora had gone to see if Alan was alright. They managed to get him out of the Alan-shaped hole he'd made and he shook his head left and right to get the ringing out.

"Are you alright?" Amora asked.

"I'm fine, with all things considered. Now I just have a headache to go along with my cold," Alan remarked. Amora smiled. If he could still make quips like that he was obviously fine.

"We need to find the Casket of Ancient Winters. Oonly then will we stand a chance of defeating him," said Amaterasu.

"In that case, the both of you should go further into the cavern to find it. I doubt he'll stray too far from it so it's probably someplace close," Alan instructed. "We'll handle ape-face." Both Amora and Amaterasu nodded.

Yuji rushed at Iceon, fists enveloped in flames shaped like dragon heads. He smashed a fist across the Blizzard God's face and knocked him backwards. Tsukuyomi and Asura attacked simultaneously with the demi-goddess slashing with her swords and the fire demon unleashing a burst of flame directly in his face. He put off the flames with his hand but then was kicked in the head. However, the blow had no effect on him and he grabbed hold of Showa's ankle. "Crap!" Showa screamed as he was brought down at the same time that Iceon brought his knee up.

Showa screamed as he felt like his back had been broken in two before he was tossed through the air. He went tumbling before hitting the wall. Fortunately, his Bio-Metal-plated spine wouldn't be broken so easily. Still, it hurt like hell. Iceon was immediately upon him and he stabbed his stilletto down on Showa's left arm where he wore the Shield of Glen. To his shock, his entire left arm was frozen over. "Now, I think it's best if you were disarmed." Iceon raised his foot to shatter Showa's arm into a million frozen pieces when he was struck by Yuki, Yuji and Asura who executed flying kicks together. He was driven back violently before being bombarded by a barrage of fireballs.

"Take that you Planet of the Ape rejects!" Yuji shouted as he and Asura attacked together. Yuki, along with Tsukuyomi, went to check up on him. "Are you OK?" the Ice Manakyte inquired.

"My fucking arm is frozen," Showa growled. "What the hell do you think!?"

"Sorry," Yuki apologized.

"Can you get the ice off?" Tsukuyomi asked.

"Yes, but it'll take a lot of power," said Showa as he raised his body heat to the point that it would melt the ice covering his left arm. "And I think you girls need to help Alan and the others," he said, gesturing with his head in the direction of the fight.

Iceon then counted and realized something, "I seem to be missing two others." He looked behind him. "Ah, so you sent them ahead to find my Casket."

"That's right, and there's no way you're getting to them!" said Alan as he took out his Sonic Screwdriver. Pressing the button, he activated it. The ice cavern trembled and began to collapse before a cave in concealed the tunnel behind them.

"Do you think this will stop me?" Iceon challenged.

"No, but it will delay you long enough to stop your plans. Plus, I know Amora. This is her realm of expertise," said Alan confidently.

(LINE BREAK)

"It appears our exit is blocked," said Amaterasu.

"It won't matter," prompted Amora. "Come on, Alan is relying on us."

"He trusts you very much," observed Amaterasu.

"And I trust him to survive," Amora told the demi-goddess honestly. He's the reason she gave up her wicked ways after all.

Amaterasu continued to lead the way. Even if the cavern had a series of tunnels, it seemed like she was able to navigate easily. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"I can sense it," confirmed Amaterasu. "And I know Iceon's habit by heart. Destroying the Casket would destroy him so he'll likely keep it close where he can keep it safe and somewhere protected so nobody will get a chance of using it against him."

(LINE BREAK)

Yuji was knocked into the wall by a devastating punch, courtesy of a giant fist made of ice. Iceon had made it and used it on Yuji. He was upset because of the 'Planet of the Apes' insult Yuji had used. Asura and Yuki tried to attack him but they were shoved out of the way by Iceon. Yuji got up and Iceon grinned as he wrapped the lower half of his body with a tornado of snow and dove at Yuji who fired a plume of flame directly in Iceon's face who didn't seem as affected as before. He grabbed hold of Yuji's neck and lifted him up before pulling him over so they were almost nose-to-nose.

"What are you?" Iceon questioned. Yuji's response was to open his mouth and breathe fire into Iceon's face, harming his eyes. The Blizzard God screamed as he was forced to release the Manakyte.

A green anvil crashed down on Iceon's head and drove his body into the icy floor. The anvil then morphed into a jackhammer to drive him further and further down, causing the cavern to shake. Ice stalactites dropped down from the ceiling as the trembling continued before Iceon was driven all the way into the floor.

Alan banished the construct. "That should hold him for a while."

(LINE BREAK)

"There it is," said Amaterasu as she pointed at the Casket of Ancient Winters which was on the altar. There were steps leading up to it. She stepped forward but Amora held her back.

"We're not alone," said Amora and sure enough the guards stepped out of their hiding places. They were Vikings, long dead, but their bodies preserved by the cold. Their cold husks were now reanimated and being used by Iceon to guard his Casket of Ancient Winters. "And I was right." Because of the Casket's importance, Iceon would never leave it unguarded.

"They're undead, reanimated corpses," said Amaterasu.

"Then let's send them back to the grave," said Amora.

"Yes, these poor souls need to rest in peace," added Amaterasu sympathetically.

(LINE BREAK)

The floor exploded and both Asura and Yuki were grabbed by Iceon. He had his meaty arms around their tender bodies and he was crushing them. "It's a shame I would have to kill such lovely creatures, but you insects are threatening my plans." The two girls began to cry out in pain as the life was being squeezed out of them. Suddenly, Iceon was distracted as paper cranes flew at his face. "What is this!?" he demanded as he blew out an ice breath to freeze, the paper cranes dropping and shattering on the floor. "What was that supposed to accomplish?" Iceon questioned and he looked ahead to see Yuji charging at him.

"Hey, monkey-face!" Yuji shouted. "Have a banana!" He tossed a blue banana and Iceon opened his mouth to retort only for it to enter his mouth and get stuck in his throat. Choking, he released Yuki and Asura who dove away. "Fire in the hole!"

KA-BOOM!

Iceon coughed as smoke rose from his throat. A red beam from the Shield of Glen hit his chest and enclosed him in an unbreakable bubble. It contained him as he tried to break free. The bubble was to keep him in place for what was coming next.

"And now, blue boost for the green ring!" added Alan as his body glowed green with an intense emerald aura thanks to the close proximity of Yuji's ring with his own. He punched forward and shot Iceon out of the cavern with a green blast of swirling energy. "And that is how it's done in my universe!"

"You ring-slingers are just huge showoffs, you know that?" Showa commented, arms crossed.

"Don't be a hater," Yuji quipped.

"So, is he dead?" Asura asked.

"No, he isn't," Alan frowned. "Ever tried killing a god? It's never easy."

"When has it ever been easy?" Showa remarked. "But at least he's out there." He looked to the caved in tunnel. "Hey, do you think they're OK?"

"My sister should be fine," said Tsukuyomi. "She may not seem like it, but she's a force to be reckoned with even as a demi-goddess."

"And don't underestimate Amora. She's been known to give the Mighty Thor a run for his money," added Alan.

(LINE BREAK)

Iceon was lying in the snow and he looked unconscious. However, that was only for a moment. His eyes snapped wide open and he sat up. His nostrils flared as he inhaled and exhaled rapidly. Veins were showing all over him as he began to grow in rage and anger.

"Mortal...SCUM!" he roared.

(LINE BREAK)

While hidden, Faust couldn't help but admire and be awed at Amora's mystical power. He had seen her in action but only in recordings. This was the first time he'd witnessed the blonde Enchantress in action before. Such passion, such fury, and such beauty. Amora, a goddess, was so beautiful and Faust couldn't help but keep gazing upon the sexy female clad in green.

Amaterasu was hurling spheres of solar plasma at the ice zombies as Amora eliminated them with bolts of magic. The reanimated Viking corpses never even stood a chance against their divine might. It would appear that Amora detested the undead while Amaterasu pitied them. Still, the two blondes were able to finish the job as the Casket's guards were dealt with.

"And now, to procure the Casket and put an end to this arctic nightmare," said Amora as she and Conda climbed up the steps to the altar.

(LINE BREAK)

Iceon was about to go back into the cavern to teach the filthy mortals a lesson. However, he heard a voice within his mind. It was Fausts, 'Lord Iceon, you must make haste! The goddesses with golden hair have dealt with your guys and attempting to use your Casket to imprison you once more!'

"THAT I SHALL NOT ALLOW!" Iceon roared as he turned himself into a literal blizzard.

(LINE BREAK)

Back in the cavern, Showa asked, "So, shouldn't we get rid of the rocks here?" as he pointed at the rocks piling up in front of the tunnel.

"Yeah, the girls might need to get out," Yuji agreed.

"You're right, let's get rid of this," said Alan as he prepared to lift up the rocks with his ring. Suddenly, they were all blown into the walls by a blizzard which blasted the rock barrier apart, smashing it to pieces. "WHAT!?"

From within the blizzard, Iceon's face formed as he taunted, "You mortal fools thought you could defeat me? I am a god! You re nothing! As for those treacherous goddesses, they will pay for their insolence!" He then moved into the tunnel to reach Amora and Amaterasu in order to stop them from sealing it away.

Yuki, Tsukuyomi, Asura, Yuji, Alan and Showa were dropped back to the floor. Alan recovered and ordered, "Come on!" He used his super speed to get ahead of them, followed by Showa who used Shunpo to catch up. The others went after them, running or flying as fast as they could.

(LINE BREAK)

Iceon materialised and grabbed both Amaterasu and Amora by their throats. He lifted them up and looked them both in the eye. "You wenches and your friends have become quite the thorn in my side." He then smiled unpleasantly, "However, if you plead for forgiveness I might spare you so you may serve me." Amora's response was to spit him in the eye.

"Get bent," Amora spat in disguse. Iceon's expression contorted into fury as he started to crush her neck when all of a sudden the Kusanagi no Tsurugi was thrown, piercing his wrist. Roaring, he released Amora who gasped for air. Amaterasu was still in his grip but he released her too when the a pair of katana pierced his other wrist, dropping the Sun Goddess.

"Keep your mitts off them you damn, dirty ape," Alan ordered as he quoted from a familiar movie.

"What he said," Tsukuyomi agreed. God or not, Iceon would not touch her sister in such a manner.

"Why...?" questioned Iceon. "Why do you oppose me!?"

"What can we say? We're stubborn," shrugged Yuji.

"We're persistent and we don't understand the concept of surrender," added Yuki.

Showa drew out the Sword of Ascalon and declared, "Bring Order to the Chaos, St. George!" He cut a circle of light above his head and was donned in his draconic armor. "Minna, let't take him down!"

Yuji roared as he transformed into his Enlightened Manakyte Form. In this state he was taller, about 6'5", and had dark metallic blue scales and a bronze chest. He had soul-piercing blue eyes, and long horns curved back from out of his hair that was slightly longer. The claws on his hands and feet were long, sharp and blade-like. His tail was also long, and his bat-like wings had a great wing span.

Asura and Yuki could only gaze at him with reddened cheeks. He appeared so majestic. He then summoned his Crimson Dragon Spear and spun the weapon around before gripping it tight within his hand.

Alan donned the Armor of Bazel, becoming the armored version of his Sentinel persona. He was more powerful, and he had Bazel aiding him. Speaking of Bazel, he'd been quiet the entire time but once his power had been envoked, he said, "Partner, let's put this monkey back on ice!"

Iceon roared and summoned his ice envoys to his side. The creatures reflected their master's fury and lunged at the heroes. Yuki, Tsukuyomi and Asura fought back, the female Manakyte drawing out her Gao Dagger with GaoPhoenix's Gao Jewel set in the guard. It ignited with phoenix flames and the ice creatures were annihilated with a single strike. She drew one of her Desert Eagles and spun in place like a figure skater, riddling them with bullets while missing her comrades.

Asura assumed her six-armed Majin form and with demonic fury lashed out with hellfire. Her main motivation for this was her dislike for the cold and Yuji's appreciation.

Tsukuyomi fought with one sword and performing Iaido which involved the rapid and smooth draw of her sword from its sheathe to slash at her opponent before sliding it back into its scabbard before repeating it again.

This left, Sentinel, Showa and Yuji to deal with Iceon personally. Yuji dashed forward, the blade of the Crimson Dragon Spear enveloped in flames. He struck and Iceon screamed from the intense heat. Showa leapt over Yuji and slashed Iceon across the chest before spinning in the air to plant his foot into the Blizzard God's face, sending him reeling. Sentinel caught him, wrapping his arms around Iceon's waist, then bent backwards to smash Iceon headfirst into the floor using a suplex hold. He then released Icean and grabbed him by his ankle to toss him into the air. In midair, Iceon was struck repeatedly by slashes from his enemies' blades. Yuji was the first who sent him spinning in the air with the Crimson Dragon Spear, followed by Showa and Alan who slashed him repeatedly with their sacred swords before blasting him to the floor with simultaneous kicks to the chest. The ground and chamber shook on impact.

Recovering, Iceon drew his stiletto dagger but it was shot out of his hand by Yuki who smiled at him. Growling, he unleashed a blizzard to freeze them. However, it did no good against Yuji and Alan who smashed their fists into his face. Alan then boxed his ears as Yuji elbowed him in the gut before the two sent him skyward with uppercuts. Jumping after him, they each grabbed an arm and flipped Iceon upside down and smashed him head first into the ground with immense force, causing the chamber to tremble again.

Faust, who'd watched in hiding while cloaking himself with magic, decided it was time to withdraw. Even he wasn't crazy enough to deal with this group on his own.

Yuji and Alan restrained Iceon as Amora and Amaterasu got the Casket of Ancient Winters ready. "Iceon, it's time for you to go back to sleep!"

"No...NOOOOOO!" Iceon roared as he struggled to free himself from the Manakyte and Green Lantern's grip.

"Hold him steady!" Showa said as he got into his stance. He then jumped into the air, an aura of a dragon surrounding him before he executed his finishing move. "ASCALON...RIDER...KICK...!" The aura dragon around him roared as his body ignited with black and gold flames. Yuji and Alan, once they saw Showa was closed, released Iceon who was struck directly in the chest. The wind was knocked out of him as he was blasted backwards and into the Casket of Ancient Winters. Amora put the lid of the casket on and Iceon screamed in outrage as he pounded on the inside. Amaterasu sealed the ancient object shut, trapping Iceon inside for all eternity as he returned to his slumber.

"Now, to put this thing someplace where nobody will ever find it," said Alan as his ring glowed. "Yuji, would you like to help?"

Yuji's blue ring glowed as he nodded. They shot beams at the Casket which they used to carry it out of the cavern. Once outside, they lifted off with their cargo before shooting into space. Showa looked up and murmured, "Che, show offs," but with some amusement in his voice.

(LINE BREAK)

The others team were back at the Hive Queen after battling Iceon's envoys who suddenly melted. They knew the reason behind the phenomenon. They had succeeded and saved the world from a 2nd Ice Age.

"And so Chiaki had to wrestle an ice giant while Daichi was being eaten alive by an ice wolf," Yokoshima began to tell Asmodeus as the Teleportal opened. Alan, Yuji, Yuki, Amaterasu, Amora, Tsukuyomi and Shinichi entered the Main Hall. "Hey guys! Welcome back!"

"You're all here already?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, once the weather was back to normal we were called back," said Hana. "Seems you guys were able to stop all this."

"It was a team effort," smiled Yuji.

"I knew you did this often, but to actually do something was quite exhilarating," said Amaterasu.

Amora looped her arms around Alan's neck. She purred into his ear, "Now then, Alan. I expect you to show your gratitude and give me a proper reward for my aid."

"Only if Amaterasu gets to join," said Alan. Amora gave the demi-goddess a look and shrugged.

"Fine, it's always fun to have a three-way," Amora said.

KAMEN RIDER CHROME:

Iceon: This god of blizzards takes the form of a teenage boy with the head of a gorilla. He is inhumanly tall and has an elegant build. His eyes are blue. His outfit is that of a gladiator carrying a stiletto. He is awakened by *CLASSIFIED*. He's angry that the humans have forgotten him and that the world has been covered by human technology. He begins freezing the earth, starting a new ice age the world over. He's unaware he is being manipulated by *CLASSIFIED*. His true form has four faces. Large ice protrusions come out of his back, his right arm is a giant ice sword and an overly masculine body.

(LINE BREAK)

"Terror of the White DALEK"

The Gauntlet was the ruling body of the Religion of Crime. The Gauntlet was originally, they had six members. However, Hank Henshaw, Dr. Gebok and Anastasia the Witch of Terror had been removed from the Gauntlet through tragic circumstances. Hence, the membership had dwindled to only three made up of their mysterious leader, Manchester Black and Felix Faust. They had yet to replenish their membership but the leader didn't seem to be concerned.

In the Gauntlet's meeting room, the remaining members of the group were watching a playback of Iceon's battle. Iceon had attempted to create a new ice age. However, the world's superheroes had responded and attacked him. He'd underestimated the mortals for even thinking of fighting him. That had cost him as he was defeated by their united strength.

All eyes were on Felix Faust who had planned on using Iceon for the Gauntlet's benefits, but had failed.

"Faust, do you care to explain yourself?" asked the Gauntlet's leader.

"I simply overestimated Iceon's abilities, sir," said Faust apologetically. The plan was to use Iceon to destroy their enemies and then reseal him once his job was done as the Gauntlet did not want a new ice age either. "I assumed he would be able to defeat them."

"Reminds me of what happened to Shiro," remarked Mr. Black. Shiro Juuyon, a former subordinate, had attempted to unseal the Yamata no Orochi. The Gauntlet had allowed him a certain amount of autonomy to accomplish his plans. However, they did not intend for him to succeed. Shiro had merely been a distraction and if he ever overstepped his bounds then the Gauntlet would deal with him. His ultimate failure had been predicted.

"Yes, whom you threw away," Faust frowned. While a man of magic, he had to admit that Shiro's accomplishment had been nothing less than impressive in their own right. Properly motivated, the bio-android had worked hard an assisted the Gauntlet and Religion of Crime in advancing with their plans.

"He was garbage, trash, junk," Mr. Black argued.

"To you, maybe, but up until the end all of his plans were accomplished," Faust defended. While Mr. Black and their leader had forgotten about Shiro, considering him trash that was best swept under the rug (out of sight, out of mind), Felix Faust saw potential. The bio-android's plan had been practically foolproof but it had failed due to his hubris. Unlike them, Faust wasn't one to waste or disregard a possible advantage or commodity.

"He was just meant to distract them, Faust," reminded Mr. Black. He'd promised Shiro he would have a place at the Gauntlet's table. Sadly, that had been a lie to keep Shiro in line.

"Mr. Black is right. Shiro Juuyon was nothing but a distraction and nothing more," said their leader. "However, his creations may still prove useful to us as his work has greatly benefited this organization."

"So, you agree that his contributions have benefited us," concluded Faust.

"Even so, I see no use of talking about Shiro Juuyon. He is simply part of the past and we need to look forward towards the future," said the leader.

(LINE BREAK)

Far outside of the nearest town or city was an abandoned mansion. It had broken windows, a roof needing new shingles, and paint chipping off its wall. The lawn was unkempt with grass and weeds growing tall and uncontrolled. The front gate creaked as the hinges were rusty. The steel fence topped with spikes seemed sturdy still. The building itself had been abandoned for almost forty years. Judging by its architecture, it was a western mansion and was home to foreign immigrants who'd come to live in Japan, at least for awhile.

Felix Faust approached the mansion, walking along the stone path leading from the gate to the building. A long time ago it had been a majestic building, a castle to its masters with thick walls to protect itself. Now, it was just a building that was gathering dust inside and a victim to the harsh elements.

The front door was ajar and Felix Faust entered into the foyer with ease. He looked around. Thick layers of dust covered everything and there were cobwebs in the corners. It seemed the people won once owned this piece of property had vacated post haste. Still, he was meeting someone here.

He approached an old broken grandfather clock and turned the hands so they would point at '1' and '4'. The grandfather clock and a section of the wall slid aside to reveal an elevator. Faust stepped inside and the elevator closed before descending.

The elevator took him down, deep underground before finally stopping. The door opened and he stepped out into a dimly lit room filled with scientific apparatuses.

This was a laboratory, one which a mad scientist would be happy to call home, and Faust was looking for the mad scientist who at the moment was busy with a new experiment.

Scuttling about all over the laboratory were spider-like robots the size of a person's hand. Each of the robotic creatures had a single red eye and four legs. The tips of their legs were sharp and sturdy enough to penetrate a man's skull. The eye was capable of rotating, giving each of them a 360 degree field of vision. Their bodies were shaped like saucers.

They stared at Faust as he walked further into the lab, in search of their master and creator.

(LINE BREAK)

The dark was a terrifying thing. Not being able to see anything before you would cause the cold hand of terror to grip one's mind. One's eyes would dart around madly, trying to seek out a source of light. Sometimes, it was to seek out the enemy which was hidden in the dark, the enemy which was after you and out to kill you.

The woman was locked in a room, kept in the dark for so long. However, she did not know how much time had passed. The only thing on her mind was the cold grip of tearing that was slowly suffocating her very soul.

She had been told that she'd been selected to test a new drug and that she would be paid handsomely. As she needed money, she did not hesitate and was taken to the facility. She had taken some pills but then things slowly went dark.

When she awoke, she thought she had gone blind, but the truth was that the room she had been locked in had no light at all. She felt around and there was a door but she couldn't get it open. She pounded on it until her hands bled and screamed until her throat went sore. However, no answer came.

The worst was she felt like someone was watching her, in the dark. She could not see them, but she knew they were there. She could hear voices, like breathing, and footsteps all around. Someone else was in here with her only whoever they were did not answer. They were just watching her. She tried to feel around, but the room felt empty, like she was the only one around, but she knew someone was there! Someone was there with her.

She shouted for them to answer her, to make their presence known, but all she got was silence in return. She continued to shout, desperate for a response, and still no answer came.

And she continued to hear footsteps and breathing. She continued to feel a presence. Her thoughts began to race. What did the other person want to do to her? All sorts of terrifying scenarios ran through her mind. Her body became cold, she trembled, and she started to scratch her arms and her neck. Her body felt itchy, like she was dirty, like there were things crawling all over her.

The presence, the itchiness, the dirtiness, plagued her mind. What did they want? Why was she here?

"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME!?"

(LINE BREAK)

The female prisoner was being observed on multiple monitors with great scrutiny. Her behavior and reactions were being studied and analysed by an unknown individual who seemed to satisfy their sick pleasures with her torment.

"Subject displays symptoms of paranoia such as anger, suspicion, and fear," her observer reported as he watched, his voice sounding deep and synthesised. The cameras had night vision so the screens only displayed everything in a grainy green. Still, her actions could still be monitored and recorded. Her observer was in the shadows but what could still be seen of him was a red light and a pair of flashing lights on the side.

"Hello? Are you in here?" Faust asked as he entered the surveillance area and soon enough he found who he was looking for.

"Yes, I am here, Faust." The 'person' he was looking for came out of the shadows and was clearly revealed. They stood at six feet tall and covered in white armor. They wore a 'skirt' of silver hemispheres decorating individual panels that reached down to the floor, with the bottom being surrounded by a solid black material to act as its base. Their chest was box-shaped with two rods extending from it. The rod on the right was topped by a three-fingered mechanical claw while the rod on the left resembled a firearm of some kind. Silver rings surrounded the neck, four in total, with studs on them, and at the top was a white dome with two short cylindrical light bulbs on it. Extending from the front of the dome was a metal rod with a metal sphere at the tip. Behind the sphere were five black disks. The sphere glowed red in the centre. Under the rod was XIV.

It was a D.A.L.E.K. and one of superior design.

"I am here," the White DALEK answered in a deep and intimidating voice without inflections between syllables. "What do you want, Faust?"

"I'm just here to check up on your experiment, that's all," Faust smiled.

"The drug is working perfectly," the White DALEK answered. "Paranoia has begun to set in and increasing within the set parameters. Oh Yeon-Kyung really did well when he was able to synthesize this drug before his demise."

"He had good notes," Faust acknowledged. "But you're going to perfect the formula, aren't you?"

"It's what you brought me here for," said the White DALEK. "Also, I would wish to...thank you for bringing me these specimens to assist me."

"It is my pleasure. You do require them for your experiments."

In another section of the lab, there were people who were working machinery and lifting objects. Mainly grunt work as they served no other purpose. Some were armed, functioning as guards. These were the White DALEK's workers.

The White DALEK's workers weren't exactly willing. How would they have any choice of free will when they were being controlled? Mounted on each of their heads was a Cyberdrone with its sharp legs buried deep inside their brain, controlling them under the White DALEK's command. They were no longer human and were merely the Cyberdrones' own extensions.

They were also expendable. One of them suddenly collapsed and dropped dead on the floor. The Cyberdrone attached to his head removed itselfs, the sharp tips of its legs sliding out of the skull. The tips were stained with blood. Finally, it withdrew the spike which it had drilled into the top of the skull to secure itself before crawling towards the White DALEK. It crawled up the DALEK's body before resting itself on the dome.

"It seems you have another dead one," said Faust as he stood next to the White DALEK whose eyestalk looked down at the corpse.

"It is simply garbage that must be disposed of," said the White DALEK coldly as he aimed his DALEK Gunstick at the corpse. "Total obliteration. Disintegrate." The White DALEK fired and the body was disintegrated into nothingness as the laser caused its body to be eaten by blue flames until there was nothing left. The process had only taken seconds. "I can always get more anyway. My Cyberdrones aren't all that picky when searching for hosts."

"Indeed they aren't," said Faust. "So, any advanced in the Cyber-Dalek project?"

The Cyber-Dalek was the result of painstaking and time-consuming research. It was the result of trying to make the perfect weapon. Visually resembling a Cyberman, it did possess the features of a DALEK such as the hemispheres and the DALEK gunstick, enlarged and mounted on the arm as a cannon. Also, it was the brain of the machine that was interesting. With use of genetic manipulation science, the brains of 'volunteers' were mutated into new life forms that were both intelligent and hostile. The prototypes that had been sent out, so far, had been destroyed but the data gained from them had been invaluable.

"The data gained will be used to make them stronger and better," said the White DALEK. "They will be perfect, like me." The White DALEK had originally been the DALEK prototype built by Shiro Juuyon. It had been rebuilt and upgraded ever since, taking on its current form. "But more will need to be sent to gather more data."

"I was wondering why you sent Teppei out," said Faust.

"He was obsolete but still useful. I sent him out to kill his niece and nephew. I didn't care if he was successful or not. I was fine with either outcome," the White DALEK admitted. "I was simply ridding myself of garbage, that is all."

(LINE BREAK)

A trio of high school kids, boys from the nearest school, had just entered the property. They were doing it on a dare. There were three of them and they had bags filled with cans of spray paint. One of them even carried a camera. Their names were Masato, Takumi and Shuji. Their sempai had dared them to go and spray graffiti on the walls inside the abandoned mansion and they needed pictures as proof.

Shuji, the most cowardly of the three, asked, "Um, guys, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Are you scared?" taunted Masato. "Scared like a little chicken? Like a scaredy-cat?"

"Knock it off," ordered Takumi. He turned to Shuji and said, "Shuji, relax. All those stories you heard are just stories. This place isn't haunted. It's just abandoned."

"Yeah, the only scary thing about it is gonna be it's ancient decor," added Masato.

"Well, if you're sure," said Shuji as he handled the camera. Masato and Takumi would be doing the graffiti.\

"Alright, let's do this," said Masato eagerly.

A Cyberdrone hidden in the grass spotted them and was transmitting the footage back to the laboratory where the White DALEK and Faust were watching.

(LINE BREAK)

"It appears you have intruders," said Felix Faust. "They seem like virgins."

"How can you tell?" asked the White DALEK.

"Only virgins would want to prove themselves like this," said Faust logically. "So, what will you be doing to them?"

"This mansion is rumored to be haunted. Let's have some fun with them first."

(LINE BREAK)

The three boys took out flashlights as they entered the mansion.

"Did we have to do this at night?" questioned Shuji. "Maybe we can come back in the day."

"The dare said we had to do this at night," said Takumi.

"Yeah, so stop whining like a coward," Masato admonished.

Suddenly, the three heard an unearthly scream, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The sound of it caused them to jump in fright. Shuji nearly dropped his flashlight.

"Wha-wha-what was that!?" demanded Shuji, now freaked out.

"It was probably the wind," said Masato as he gulped. He was starting to sweat. "Yeah, it was the wind," he was trying to convince himself.

"Let's just get this over this," said Takumi anxiously, feeling uneasy.

Hidden Cyberdrones continued to watch, transmitting what they saw back to Faust and the White DALEK.

(LINE BREAK)

"Anything else up your sleeves?" Faust asked.

"DALEKs don't have sleeves," said DALEK Shiro. "How about you give it a try, Faust?"

Felix Faust was above such childish games. However, he had nothing to lose. "Alright then," said Faust.

(LINE BREAK)

The boys explored the mansion for a bit, taking pictures. They were looking for a place to do their graffiti. A lot of the walls so they went upstairs to find a place to tag. As they reached the hallway where the bedrooms were, one of the doors at the end of the hall slowly creaked open. Takumi, Masato and Shuji froze as something began to exit. The thing was that it was exiting from the top of the door and crawling on the ceiling. It was human looking, but looking like a spider with long black hair. It then turned its head and stared at them, opening its mouth which spilled out with spiders.

The trio screamed as they began to ran away in the opposite direction.

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT!?" Masato screamed.

"I don't know what it was!" Takumi shot back.

"Let's get out of here!" Shuji screamed.

They reached the stairs but at the bottom was a black mass covered with eyes. It was climbing up the stairs and looking straight at them. "GIVE...ME...YOUR...EYES!" the creature screamed at them.

(LINE BREAK)

"Looks like they've separated," said Faust.

"Let's pick them off one by one," said DALEK Shiro with sadistic glee.

(LINE BREAK)

Shuji had ran into the study. He had been separated from Takumi and Masato. He was soaked in cold sweat and breathing heavily. "I knew this was a bad idea," he panted. He heard something drop and turned his flashlight towards the source to see a book lying on the floor. "Oh shit." He went to open the door but it was locked! "No! No!" He felt a hand brush against his shoulder and turned to see nobody else in the study with him. "I have to get out of here!" He then heard something else and he raised his flashlight to the ceiling. He gawked as he saw disembodied arms hanging from the ceiling and the fingers were wiggling about. Shuji's eyes were wide as he fell to his knees.

A Cyberdrone watching him approached him before jumping up and hugging his face, muffling his screams.

(LINE BREAK)

"One down, two to go," said DALEK Shiro.

(LINE BREAK)

"Takumi? Shuji?" questioned Masato. He'd found himself in a child's playroom. Littering the floor were dusty old toys that had not been played with in years. The dolls sitting on the floor unsettled him the most. It was like they were staring at him. He began to shiver as a chill ran up his spine. "OK, I should get out of here." He turned towards the door but his left leg wouldn't move. Something had grabbed hold. He looked down and one of the dolls had a good hold on his ankle.

Freaking out, Masato tried to shake the doll off and he noticed the other dolls starting to rise and walk towards him. "No!" he shouted as the dolls leapt at him, holding onto his arms and legs. He lost his balance and fell on his back as the dolls continued to swarm him. He flailed about to toss them off but they only recovered to swarm him again. "Get off me!"

Hanging from the ceiling was a Cyberdrone and once in position it dropped and fell on Masato's face as it began the interfacing process with the screaming youth.

(LINE BREAK)

"And now for the third," said Faust as he continued to watch with the White DALEK. They saw that Takumi had gone into the kitchen.

(LINE BREAK)

Takumi didn't know where Masato and Shuji had gone, but he hoped they were safe in this weird place. Going to the front door wasn't an option. The thing at the stairs had moved itself to the front door. Takumi was trying to find the others and maybe even a way out.

The kitchen had everything like the cabinet filled with plates and kitchen knives in the wooden block holder. Nothing out of the ordinary here.

Nothing, but the breathing on his neck. Spinning around, Takumi saw a figure clad in white, with black hair that covered its face, dressed in white rags. It raised its arms towards him as he backed away in terror. He grabbed a kitchen knife and held it out in front of him at the creature.

"Stay back!" he shouted. The ghostly creature continued to approach him, ignoring his warning. "I said stay back!" he shouted as he threw the knife which went through the creature who continued to advance. He grabbed another knife and threw it, only for the same thing to happen. It came closer and closer towards him and his eyes darted towards the nearby window. Without a second thought, he ran for it and jumped through the window. He landed outside the mansion with a painful thud but he was finally outside.

He got up and limped towards the gate. Hope of escape as in front of him as he made his way towards freedom. However, just as he was a foot away from the gate, which was so close, a Cyberdrone launched itself from the long grass and clamped onto his face as he screamed out in horror.

(LINE BREAK)

Takumi, Shuji and Masato were never seen or heard from again. They had simply vanished without a trace. Nobody knew where they went or how they had gone missing. It was simply a mystery.

(LINE BREAK)

Takumi, Shuji and Masato were standing in a row with Cyberdrones mounted on their heads. Their faces were blank, betraying no emotion. DALEK Shiro scanned each of them and was satisfied before giving them their orders. Once their orders were issued, the three new Robomen set out to do their work under the watchful eye of the White DALEK and the Cyberdrones. He needed always slaves and if people were going to throw themselves at him and become his meat puppets then so be it.

Faust's magic was capable of summoning demons, creating horrifying illusions, and bringing to life inanimate objects. It kept up the illusion that the mansion was haunted, which either discouraged people from entering or encouraged them of coming inside. The White DALEK in his old life had experience with magic but no longer would he directly involve himself with magic. Only two things mattered to the intelligent killing machine: Research and Revenge, the two R's.

Standing several feet away from him were cardboard cutouts of Alan Smith, Shinichi Banabara, and Yuji Fudo. Raising its gunstick, the DALEK shouted the battlecry, "EXTERMINATE!" and fired three consecutive beams at the targets, destroying them utterly. He could not wait to use his weapon on the real thing. However, he would need to have patience. He had waited all this time so waiting a little more wouldn't hurt. His DALEK programming disagreed and was eager to kill, and kill, and kill. It took massive willpower not to go to the surface and kill every human he could see. Turning his gaze to the monitors, the White DALEK saw some 'new recruits' entering the mansion. If he could smile, the DALEK would, as his single eye glowed in anticipation whilst the Cyberdrones watched the clueless teenagers enter without realizing the kind of danger that they were in.

"Faust, we have visitors..."

KAMEN RIDER CHROME: The names Takumi, Masato, Shuji are a homage to the main three Riders of Kamen Rider Faiz; Takumi Inui (Faiz), Masato Kusaka (Kaixa) and Shuji Mihara (Delta). Anyway, this is the first appearance of the White DALEK. However, it seems to be different from the DALEKs previously seen in the story. Anyway, the title refers to Science and Magic, two different disciplines, hence two different worlds.

(LINE BREAK)

"Recreation of the DALEKs"

Shiori was working on a new novel while Sho played 'Cops and Robbers' with her husband outside. She sighed and smiled. Tatsuyoshi might look scary and imposing, but he was a kind and gentle man who loved her and Sho and would do anything to protect his family. He may never be a replacement for Shotaro, but her late husband would've wanted her to move on.

Sho had strong male role models like Tatsuyoshi Kasai and her son Shinichi (Shinji) and he would grow up to be a wonderful young man with their guidance and develop a few quirks. Humans weren't perfect. They had flaws and quirks but that was what made them human.

As Shiori began another paragraph, the phone rang. She removed her glasses which hung from a string that looped around her neck so she wouldn't lose them. She only ever wore her glasses to read or write since she'd developed bad eyesight overtime and words just seemed blurry. Maybe she was getting old.

She picked up the phone and answered, "Hello, who is this?"

Tatsuyoshi and Kasai heard a thud inside the house and the man carried his son inside to see what was wrong. He spotted on her knees and trembling in terror. He put down Sho who immediately ran to his mother. "Mama? Mama, daijoubu?" Shiori quickly put her arms around Sho and hugged him. "Mama?"

"Shiori, what's wrong?" Tatsuyoshi asked and Shiori raised a trembling hand, pointing at the phone receiver lying on the floor. Tatsuyoshi picked it up and put it to his ear, only for his eyes to widen behind his shades.

A chant was being repeated, over and over, and it went like this: "EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE."

(LINE BREAK)

Everyone was assembled in the Hive Queen and watching the news report on the big monitor screen in the Main Hall.

"All over the world, people who answered their phones at directly today 2.14 pm have heard a haunting message. It has been months since the attack of those creatures called the DALEKs and they have left their mark on us and our minds. We can never forget all those who've died because of them and now we are being reminded of that horrible day because of these mysterious phone calls. Is it some kind of elaborate prank?"

"OK, seriously what is going on?" Mion asked as she had received a phone call earlier. A pay phone had rung at 2:14 pm and when she answered she heard the chant. People on the streets who'd gotten their hands in the latest in mobile phone technology also received the same call and the same message.

It freaked everyone out because it reminded them of the dreadful day when the DALEKs attacked and even if the NEO-NUMBERS and their allies had stopped their attack, the DALEKs had already left their mark on humanity. The sight of a DALEK could make people quake with fear and even the word itself was banned from a number of schools.

"That's what I want to know," agreed Shinichi. He'd heard from his stepfather that Shiori had been so frightened by the call that she was paralyzed in fear. Shinichi didn't like it when his mother was frightened. If this was some kind of elaborate prank, it was not in good taste.

"It's a scare tactic," said Yuji with a frown. "Freak everyone out who has a fresh memory of that day with that chant. The person who's doing this is one sick bastard if they get off on this shit."

"And it's working too," Alan agreed. When the phone had rung at his place, Nozomu had been unfortunate enough to answer. When he found her, she'd been absolutely terrified. She remembered how the DALEKs had nearly killed Alan.

The DALEKs had scarred many people, adults and children alike. The murderous machines had done their part in carving themselves into the humanity's hearts as something to be feared. The new type of boogieman.

Dr. Magi commanded, "Sheila, play the recording."

"Affirmative," Sheila obeyed and played the recording as requested: "EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE. EX-TER-MIN-ATE."

They all knew what it was and remembered it quite clearly. How could they ever forget? How could anyone forget it?

"The DALEK battle chant," frowned Alan. It was pretty self-explanatory. Even in this universe DALEKs had become feared on Earth and now in space they were probably spreading their terror to other sentient beings and Alan couldn't stop them. Shiro had programmed the DALEKs to kill humans and strike fear into them. They had also evolved without his presence and had retreated into space to develop further without any interference. "At 2:14 pm. That translates to 1414 hours. 14...as in WHITE 14. As in Shiro Juuyon."

"Damn, it's like his ghost is haunting us," Daichi frowned, scratching his head in irritation.

"More like taunting us," added Hana, not liking this at all.

"This ain't cool, dudes," said Kai.

"Aye, you can say that again," spoke Jin.

"Sheila, can you trace the signal to its point of origin?" inquired Alan.

"Negative," Sheila answered. "I apologize, Alan. However, the broadcasted signal appears to come from random places at the same time."

"The person is covering his tracks by scrambling the signal so nobody can track it," Alan concluded. Checking out each of the places would be a waste of time and they could all just be red herrings.

"Incoming transmission," alerted Shiori and all heads snapped towards the main computer's direction. Now who would be calling them at this time?

The image was blurry mixed with static before clearing up with better resolution in order for them to see who was calling. Once the image was clear, their eyes widened as they saw who was calling them.

This had to be a joke, right? It was the only explanation. However, it was right there staring at them.

On their monitor was a White DALEK.

"I thought you said they all went away," said Shinichi.

"They did," Alan answered. They had left in a spaceship. He'd witnessed it for himself.

"Before we begin, I would like to inform you that tracing this signal back to its source will be impossible," the White DALEK informed them. "So don't bother trying to find me. It is useless."

"That is correct," answered Sheila, validating the White DALEK's claim. "I cannot find the source of the transmission."

"As if I were stupid enough to allow your inferior AI to find me," the White DALEK said.

"Hey, who are you calling inferior you stupid pepperpot!?" Yokoshima shouted, offended that someone would insult Sheila like that.

"It's been so long since I've seen your stupid faces," the White DALEK greeted rudely whilst ignoring Yokoshima. "I'm sure you've been enjoying yourself since the day you ruined my plans but I have been waiting and preparing for this moment for a very long time."

"OK, do we know you?" Yuji asked. All DALEKs looked alike to him but this one seemed unique. It wasn't talking in that annoying high-pitched tone of its kind but the deep electronic voice was still annoying.

"I suppose I do look different from when we last met. However, you all haven't changed one bit. It's downright depressing," the White DALEK said in disappointment.

Alan's eyes narrowed. There was just something so familiar about that arrogant tone of voice. He looked at the DALEK, actually looked, and saw the XIV that was inscribed under the base of the eyestalk.

"Who are you?" Alan questioned, wanting to know. "Who are we addressing? Identify yourself now!"

"Haven't you guessed it yet? Then allow me to show you who I am as I tell you.Look upon the face of VENGEANCE! Look upon the face of your DOOM!" There was a hiss as The DALEK's neck rings split down the middle and spread open to reveal the horror that was hidden inside. DALEKs were battle armor and shells for the horrendous creatures within, the heart and soul of the DALEK, filled with hatred for the human race. They were expecting some sort of dark, brain-like, cycloptic creature with writhing tentacles but what they all saw made their eyes widen in recognition and shock.

"I thought so," whispered Alan.

There was a human head inside of the DALEK. Although, to call it human wouldn't be completely accurate. Half of its face was horribly scarred and it only had hair, which was greyish, on the right half of its head, the other half damaged and scarred horribly. The left eye was replaced by a mechanical eyeball that glowed red with hate. The expression it wore was also hateful, with sharp teeth clenched tight. The head was attached with wires that were connected to the White DALEK armor, giving him control over weapons and mobility.

But despite all the damage, they recognized who it was.

It was Shiro Juuyon.

"But you were absorbed!" Shinichi shouted out. "Destroyed with the Orochi!'

"And yet here I am, or what's left of me, no thanks to you!" shouted DALEK Shiro. "Now, I have returned so you will now be looking forward to death and destruction the likes you have never seen!" He sneered at Yuji. "And look, one of you is already trembling in-"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Yuji laughed, throwing his head back, and pointing at the screen.

"...Fear?" Shiro finished in surprise. His eyes darted about, demanding an explanation, "Is he laughing? Why is he laughing!?"

"Oh God! Oh my God!" Yuji continued to laugh hysterically. His sides hurt and he could barely breathe. "That has got to be the funniest shit I have ever seen!"

"WHAT!?" Shiro screamed. "STOP LAUGHING, DAMN YOU!"

"What are you gonna do, Mr. Trashcan!?" Yuji challenged, mocking Shiro. "Do my plumbing? Make me an omelette?"

Shiro shook with rage. "I ORDER YOU TO STOP LAUGHING YOU STUPID LIZARD!"

"Oh, look! Oscar the Grouch is mad!" Yuji continued to make fun and his laughter was contagious.

"STOP LAUGHING! STOP IT! STOP IT OR YOU WILL BE FUCKING EXTERMINATED!" The neck rings closed up, concealing Shiro's head as he continued screaming, "EXTERMINATE! EX-TER-MIN-ATE!" He fired his DALEK Gunstick and the screen turned to static. He'd just blown up his own camera.

"Well, that's one way to end an annoying phone call," remarked Yuji. Was it smart to goad Shiro like that when he'd become more unstable? Maybe not. But it was sure as hell fun.

Alan, however, did not share Yuji's humorous sentiment. Alan's thoughts were grim. This was a creature possessing both Shiro's genius and the mentality of a DALEK. It was a dangerous combination.. "I don't think we should underestimate Shiro even if he's like this."

"Hey, why so serious, Alan?" Yuji asked.

"It's Shiro, fused with a DALEK," said Alan.

"I know. Funniest shit I've ever seen in my life," Yuji chuckled.

"You're forgetting how dangerous Shiro was before and now he's even more dangerous than before," Alan warned. "Also, the DALEKs may not have been much trouble to us, but they were still dangerous."

"Come on, Alan! He's just a head in a trashcan!" Yuji pointed out.

"Yuji's right. How much trouble could a head in a metal trash can be?" Yokoshima pointed out.

"It's because it's his head that we should be worried," Shinichi chimed in. "Remember how much trouble he gave us? It's not his power that makes him a dangerous opponent but his intelligence and resourcefulness."

Alan added in agreement, "Plus you're mixing a genocidal, xenophobic robot with an egotistical douche-bag. This can't end well for anybody."

Yuji frowned, "You just had to dampen my mood." To be honest, Yuji didn't want to be reminded of how Shiro had manipulated them and gotten one step ahead of them until the very end. "But, you're right, we can't underestimate Shiro." However, it was just so much fun and too irresistible to make fun of him now that he was a DALEK.

"But what happened to him?" Michiru asked. "Wasn't he absorbed by the Orochi?"

"I guess when the Orochi was destroyed, what remained of Shiro was expelled. Then someone picked up his head and hooked it up to a DALEK body that was in storage because they saw further use in him," Alan concluded.

Shinichi frowned. He had enough of enemies returning from the dead since Gebok kept coming back despite being defeated so many times. It was just too damn annoying.

"It all makes perfect sense now," said Alan. All eyes were on him, "The Cybermen tomb becoming active, those DALEKs in Nozomu's village, DALEKs taking over NASA, the Vashta Nerada breeding facility, not to mention those Cyberdrones converting people into zombified slaves. He was behind all of it."

"Yeah, but he's not really the one in charge, is he?" Yuji asked.

"The Religion of Crime revived Shiro once again, but this time as something incredibly dangerous, even more so than he was before," said Alan grimly.

"Why is it that it's people like him who always escape death?" Shinichi asked, requesting an explanation. Gebok coming back each time had been annoying now it was just getting frustrating. Rena took hold of his right hand and he looked to her. She smiled at him warmly and he smiled back.

Even if Shiro had come back from beyond the grave, that didn't mean they had anything to fear. They would just have to defeat him again.

Easy, right?

(LINE BREAK)

The computer that DALEK Shiro had used to call the Hive was now completely destroyed, a smoking pile of scrap and slag now with broken glass lying on the ground and melted bits littering in front of the White DALEK's bumper.

"Was that necessary?" questioned Faust.

"SHUT UP!" Due to his DALEK unit's programming, he was mentally a DALEK. Because of this, Shiro found it was trying to overcome his desire to kill anything human. Fortunately, he knew who his enemies were and Faust was not one of them.

"Faust, why won't they just die...?" DALEK Shiro growled angrily.

"They have only been lucky so far."

"BUT IT'S NOT FAIR! HOW DID SOMEONE OF MY SUPERIORITY END UP GETTING KILLED TWICE BY THOSE MORONS!? I WANT REVENGE! RE-VENGE! RE-VENGE!" DALEK Shiro screamed like a deranged maniac.

"Settle down, Shiro. No good can come out of an angry mind," Faust advised.

"...You are correct," the White DALEK answered.

"I warned you that exposing yourself right now may not have been the best idea. The mass phone call was good enough already. You should've stopped while you were ahead," Faust reminded and he regretted his last statement as DALEK Shiro glared at him.

"'Stopped while I was ahead'?" DALEK Shiro repeated. "Is that supposed to be amusing?"

"Sorry," Faust apologized. "But don't forget it was I who found you all those months ago."

(LINE BREAK)

Amongst the rubble left behind in the aftermath of the heroes' battle with the Orochi, Felix Faust had come looking for any remains, specifically the remains of one of the Religion of Crime's most dangerous agents. In spite of Manchester Black's insistence that Shiro had simply been a pawn, Felix Faust had been impressed. The successful planning, strategies and gambits employed by Shiro had made him one of the most dangerous individuals on this world. Sadly, carelessness and hubris proved to be his undoing in the end.

Felix Faust had with him several low-level agents of the Religion of Crime to assist him in his search for anything that Shiro might've left behind. His sword was quite a prize and Felix Faust wanted it. Also, if there were any magical artifacts which had survived. The Pyramid Base had been blown to pieces but Felix knew that some magical artifacts could not be destroyed so easily.

Felix Faust heard scuttling and turned towards the sound. He spotted a lone Cyberdrone on a piece of rubble with its single red eye staring at him. "Hm, so one of you survived." The Cyberdrone ran away. "Hey, get back here!" Felix chased after the Cyberdrone but stopped as it perched itself on a pile of rubble. "There's something under there, isn't there?" Felix Faust called to the agents, "Get over here! Clear away this rubble!"

The agents lifted up the rubble piece by piece and Felix Faust's eyes widened as he saw that lying on the ground. "Well, this is a surprise."

(LINE BREAK)

"And I was the one who revived you..." Faust continued.

(LINE BREAK)

The head of the bio-android had been damaged, but not severely so. It could still be repaired. However, there were no more spare bodies for Shiro Juuyon, except for one thing: the DALEK prototype that Shiro Juuyon had built and sent to the Religion of Crime as per instruction. Felix Faust had found it in storage and it had not been modified since. However, it was functional and still with the space inside to house a Darkloid within. This time, the space would be use to house Shiro's head. With the wire connected to the head, Felix Faust prepared to bring life to Shiro Juuyon once more. He was going to use magic to bring a machine back to life.

Chanting in an ancient language, the sorcerer held out his hands which were pointed to the DALEK unit. Energy crackled along his fingers before shooting towards the machine. Electricity crackled all over it and as soon as it was over…nothing…

Felix Faust sighed. He knew it had been a one shot but he didn't think it would've failed so badly. He turned his back to the DALEK, not noticing that the head inside the hollow part of the DALEK was beginning to stir and open its eyes. Also, the eyestalk began to move up with the iris glowing.

"Where…Am…I…?"

Felix Faust turned slowly around to see Shiro's head and it was alive and talking. The voice did, however, come out electronic due to it being connected to the DALEK's vocal circuitry. The DALEK unit closed up as it screamed, "WHERE AM I!?"

(LINE BREAK)

"I remember that I wanted to kill you when I first saw you," DALEK Shiro recalled.

"Indeed," recalled Faust. Having the deathray aimed at himself was not something he would want to repeat.

(LINE BREAK)

The annoying, high-pitched scream was something Felix Faust could've done without. The DALEK's dome rotated to the left and then to the right before the eye focused on Felix Faust. "WHO ARE YOU!? EX-PLAIN! EX-PLAIN! EX-PLAIN OR BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!" It pointed its deathray gunstick at Felix Faust.

"Wait! Wait!" Felix Faust cried out. "It's me, Felix Faust. Shiro Juuyon, I brought you back to life!"

"SHI-RO…JUU…YON…" the DALEK repeated.

"That is your name," Felix Faust clarified.

"MY…NAME…SHI-RO JUU-YON," the DALEK repeated again.

"The damage must've caused some sort of amnesia," observed Felix Faust as he walked around the DALEK. It followed his movements with its eye.

"NO…I RE-MEM-BER…" the DALEK said. "THEY…KILLED ME. YU-JI FU-DO, A-LAN SMITH, AND SHI-NI-CHI BA-NA-BA-RA…GREEN LAN-TERN AND...KAMEN...RIDERS...! It screamed, "THEY KILLED ME! THEY KILLED ME! THEY MUST BE EX-TER-MIN-A-TED!"

"And we will, my friend," said Faust. He realized that there had been a glitch. It seemed that Shiro now had the mentality of the DALEK. Must've been the DALEK unit's default programming. He just hoped Shiro Juuyon's genius remained intact.

(LINE BREAK)

DALEK Shiro's genius had indeed remained intact. However, due to the damage and trauma he'd received he had a few holes in his memory. Still, it was nothing that he needed to be immediately concerned about.

"I must run now. I have another meeting with the rest of the Gauntlet," said Faust.

"Only three of you remain," DALEK Shiro reminded. "I was promised a place at the table."

Indeed, Shiro had been promised a place but only as incentive and motivation for him to work hard for the Religion of Crime and the ruling council known as the Gauntlet. The leader never intended for Shiro to join in the first place. Mr. Black had simply lied to keep Shiro dreaming and working.

(LINE BREAK)

Manchester Black spoke to Felix Faust after the meeting, "I should warn you, Faust, that Shiro Juuyon is not to be completely trusted." Faust had told them what he'd done.

"I honestly doubt he'd betray me after I revived him," Faust retorted, dismissing Faust's warning.

"Tell that to the last two partners he had," Black remarked. "Oh, wait. They're both dead!" Shiro had used Omega Scorpio as a shield and then absorbed Gnol Gnauh. Of course, the last one had bitten him back in the ass as he was absorbed by the Yamata no Orochi.

"Again, I appreciate the concern, but it still remains that Shiro owes me for his revival," Faust said.

"You really don't get it, do you? What did you revive him as? A DALEK, right? Those things are programmed to kill humans. Add in the fact that he's already unstable, well I don't need to explain what might happen, do I?" Black said.

"Your fears are unfounded," Faust placated as he added confidently, "And I do have some insurance."

"Well, don't say I didn't warn you, Faust."

(LINE BREAK)

Meanwhile, in his underground lab, the White DALEK was performing some final checks on his latest project. If this worked, than his forces would be significantly bolstered. Even though his memory was corrupted, he still remembered plenty of what happened before his last demise. He remembered Kyoto, he remembered the Orochi, and he especially remembered Shinichi Banabara.

The original, the template, and the first man he truly hated.

(LINE BREAK)

Many Months Ago...

It was nighttime and both Shinichi and Shiro were fighting using their respective swords. Shinichi was armed with the Higurashi no Yaiba while Shiro was wielding the Oathbreaker. Both seemed evenly matched it seemed as their swords clashed and sparks rained down around their feet. Locking blades, Shiro decided to start a conversation.

Shiro began, "You know, you and I, we're a lot alike."

Shinichi denied, "No we're not! You're a killer! You're a monster!"

Shiro countered, "I'm also everything you could be and that scares you. Remember, my mind was copied from you. You could be so much more but you choose not to. Such wasted potential."

Shinichi retorted, "Becoming like you would mean losing my morals and humanity, and that's something I will never give up."

Shiro rebutted, "Morals are the first thing that are abandoned in war. All that matters is victory."

"Then why haven't you abandoned yours?" questioned Shinichi.

"What? Abandoned what?" Shiro shot back.

"The thing you said that I should've abandoned. Why haven't you abandoned your humanity?" Shinichi asked.

"I have no humanity!" denied Shiro angrily.

"Oh, I think you do," Shinichi said before breaking his sword free and making some distance between himself and Shiro.

(LINE BREAK)

DALEK Shiro scoffed, "Shows what he knows. My human side has long since died thanks to them."

(LINE BREAK)

Shinichi was looking down at Hiroyuki's who was sleeping in his crib. His son looked so peaceful as he slept. However, he couldn't help but think back to many months ago.

(LINE BREAK)

Shinichi agreed, "You know, I think you're right. You and I are alike. You don't only have my memories, but you possess my humanity too."

Shiro growled, "Shut up..."

Ignoring him, Shinichi continued, "No, it's true. Those catgirls you made into your minions, they're more than just slaves to you. They're your companions. You feel lonely and loneliness is a human concept. You care about them too, and caring is a human concept as well. The thing is, you're more human that you care to believe."

Shiro yelled at Shinichi's audacity, "You...how dare you...!?"

Shinichi went on, "You might be a machine, but you still got a soul too. A soul copied from me, but corrupted nonetheless. You want to wipe out humanity and replace what remains with Cybermen because it's the only way you can truly kill your own humanity and still keep it at the same time. As much as you hate your human side, you can't discard it."

(LINE BREAK)

Shinichi realized to his horror, 'He actually did it. He got rid of his humanity.' A Shiro 'tainted' by humanity had still been dangerous but now he was a completely soulless machine. He was now a DALEK. That was even worse.

He looked at his son in concern and gently caressed his face. "I'm not gonna let that bastard hurt you." Shiro had also been influenced by Gebok and that man had thought that turning children into weapons had been acceptable. A DALEK Shiro Juuyon would think so as well.

(LINE BREAK)

Faust returned to the underground lab to see that DALEK Shiro had finished with his final preparations. For what, he did not know. He still watched with great interest as DALEK Shiro was working on the controls for a machine he just had constructed. The control console had switches and sphere-shaped interface on it that could only be worked by DALEK hands. DALEK Shiro's right appendage was the standard plunger while the left was the three-fingered claw.

Standing ten feet in front of DALEK Shiro and console was a chamber with double doors and walls which were horizontally striped in red. DALEK Shiro was operating the chamber via the console.

Faust wondered what the White DALEK was up to. DALEK Shiro had his Robomen slaves build this chamber and the console for months now. However, whenever Faust questioned him, DALEK Shiro would dodge the question. Maybe the DALEK did not want to brag before whatever he was working on was a success. It was best to brag and gloat after rather than before.

"It is ready," said the DALEK Shiro as he glided back from the console and turned to face Faust.

"What is?" Faust asked and he watched as the chamber began to glow with red electricity arcing around it.

"The future."

"What do you mean? What is going on?" Now Faust really wanted to know since the machine seemed to be something dangerous. DALEK Shiro's eyestalk then turned back to look at the chamber.

"The birth of a new DALEK race of course," the DALEK Shiro answered and the doors slid open. White clouds billowed out and Faust watched as something was coming out.

It was a DALEK, and one that had the same shape, size, design and stature as the White DALEK. After the first DALEK, three more DALEKs glided out one after another. The four DALEKs lined up in a row, facing both the White DALEK and Faust.

"Behold, the recreation of the DALEKs! Behold the birth of the superior beings!" DALEK Shiro declared.

They all looked the same, sporting the same telescopic manipulator arms with three-fingered claws on the right and gunstick on the left mounted on their chest-boxes. The only differences they had were in color. The one on the far left was red, the next was blue, the third was orange and the final one was green. The hemispheres decorating their skirts were silver.

"They are…colorful," Faust offered his opinion. Honestly, what could he say? They were DALEKs with new paint jobs. Nothing else seemed very significant.

"These clones are color-coded in accordance to their roles," the DALEK Shiro explained. "Red is for Warrior, Blue is for Strategist, Orange is for Scientist and Green is for Geneticist."

"Don't they need Darkloids inside them to function?" asked Faust, referring to DALEK Shiro's previous batch of DALEKs. Shiro had originally built completely mechanical DALEKs, but after absorbing Gnol Gnauh's power he had put Dalek Darkloids into each of his creations. It seemed that Shiro was going back to basics.

At least the ridiculous plunger-like appendage was replaced by a more intimidating claw-like apparatus.

"Not these DALEKs. No, these are based on the original fully mechanical DALEKs. They do not need the organic components inside them. As for their programming, each of them is modeled after me but embody a different aspects," the DALEK Shiro explained. "None are a full personality."

"So, they've each adopted a trait from you and crafted said traits into their most dominant characteristics," Faust concluded. "The red one represents your warrior side, the blue one represents your ability to construct plans and strategies, while the orange one represents yours scientific side." He paused, "Though…why would you want a green Geneticist?" Shiro had originally disliked genetics. He'd mentioned that genetics was too messy.

"Why not?" was the response he got from the White DALEK. The truth was, Shiro may have considered the science of genetics as messy, he had been knowledgeable about it. He just never applied it.

"So, what does white symbolize?" Faust asked, regarding the White DALEK's coloring.

"Is it not obvious? I am their master, their leader, the Supreme."

"ALL HAIL THE DALEK SUPREME! ALL HAIL THE DALEK SUPREME!" the four new DALEKs cheered, raising their claw-tipped manipulator arms.

Faust's ears were ringing from the loud cheering. Once the cheering had ceased, he stated, "So, I can assume you will be creating more."

"No," the White DALEK answered in negative, surprising Faust. He elaborated, "These four will be enough and I will construct more only as replacements. Too many would be difficult to control."

Now that was odd. DALEK Shiro should've arrogantly claimed that he could control the DALEKs he created but then Faust understood. These new DALEKs were clones of the White DALEK, each adopting a different aspect but they were basically the same being. The White DALEK did not want to be challenged. As the original, he was the most powerful, but could still be outmatched by an army of clones who wanted to usurp him.

DALEK Shiro gave each of the newly born DALEKs their assignments, delegating their duties, and sent them on their away. The Red Warrior would be supervising the Robomen, the Blue Strategist would be constructing plans and strategies, the Orange Scientist would be performing research and developing weapons and the Green Geneticist would be performing genetic experiments.

Faust watched them with a keen eye as DALEK Shiro delegated and gave each of the new DALEKs their new duties and responsibilities. "Now, this ought to be interesting," he said aloud. Still, he had been unnerved by their stares. They all looked like they wanted to kill him as dictated by their programming.

The machine activated again, surprising DALEK Shiro and Faust. "What is happening?" demanded DALEK Shiro as the chamber opened and it came gliding out.

Faust blinked and if the White DALEK could he would've blinked as well.

A fifth DALEK had been produced by the DALEK cloning machine. However, its coloring was...bright pink. And were those bow ribbons tied around its dome lights?"

"Oh my gosh! This place is so dull and dreary! Seriously, who did your interior decorating? Morticia Addams? Lame-o!" the pink DALEK spoke femininely.

Faust asked in amused interest, "You said these clones each embody an aspect of you. So, what does this one embody?"

"And another thing, why are we underground? I need ventilation and sunlight or my fabulous hot pink paint job will be ruined because of the lack of fresh air and sun!" the pink DALEK complained.

DALEK Shiro''s response was to aim his gunstick at the pink abomination and fire. The pink DALEK was obliterated on the spot, becoming nothing but a memory and one that would soon be deleted. Swiveling his head so his eyestalk was staring at Faust, he said, sternly, "This never happened," before gliding away.

After a moment Faust went 'hm' and sighed, "I guess not everyone is comfortable with their feminine side after all."

KAMEN RIDER CHROME: And so the White DALEK's identity is finally revealed. Then again, it was obvious from the start, wasn't it?

(LINE BREAK)

"The Priest's Curse"

The King Game was similar to Truth or Date but with a different set of rules. Played with numbered raffles, with one marked with a crown/star to represent the 'King' (any item would do, be it slips of paper or chopsticks), a group of people will take the raffles at random and whoever gets the 'King' raffle is the King and thus can command the others to do whatever he/she wants. For example: the King can command #4 and #2 to kiss or #5 and #1 to slap each other. In the end, the King's orders are ABSOLUTE!

(LINE BREAK)

Shinichi, Satoshi, Keiichi, Mion, Shion, Satoko Rena, Rika and Hanyuu were seated around a table in Mion's home. In the centre of the table was a basket filled with folded slips of paper. They all wore intense looks of competition, except for Hanyuu who seemed nervous. Even while most of them were in college and the rest were in high school, it didn't stop the Gaming Club from assembling to have their usual club activities. You were never too old to have fun, right?

"OK, ready?" Mion began. "Take your raffles now." They each took a folded slip of paper, each hoping the one marked 'King' so they could have absolute power over the others. "Now…"

"WHO'S THE KING?" they declared and they each unfolded their slips of paper to see if they were lucky.

"Yeah, I'm the King!" Keiichi declared as everyone groaned. Now he had the power to make them do anything he wanted. "OK, everyone from #1 to #8…burn all my embarrassing photographs!" ordered Keiichi.

"Noooooo!" wailed Mion and Rena.

"Keiichi-kun, please don't! You look so cute in those!" begged Rena.

"Sorry, but you know the rules. The King's orders are ABSOLUTE!" Keiichi laughed. Finally, he could put the past behind him. All those embarrassing costumes he had to wear; the bunny girl, the police woman, the sailor uniform, the school swimsuit. All of it would be forever erased.

It was good to be the King.

However, his victory would be short-lived.

"OK, ready…? WHO'S THE KING?"

(LINE BREAK)

"Damn it! Why does this always happen to me!?" demanded Keiichi as he was in an Angel Mort costume. Mion had gotten the slip of paper marked 'King' and so commanded #4 to dress in an Angel Mort uniform. Keiichi was the unfortunate one to have gotten #4.

"You gotta admit you should've seen this coming after you made her burn those photos," said Shinichi.

"But how did she know I got #4?" demanded Keiichi.

"How indeed, Kei-chan?" Mion smirked and she winked at Shinichi who smiled back.

"OK, let's start again," said Rena eagerly. She wanted to become King next.

"OK, ready...? WHO'S THE KING?"

(LINE BREAK)

"You all look so cute~!" beamed Rena as all her friends were dressed up in cute outfits. Using her power as King, she had ordered them to dress up as amusement park mascots.

"Seriously, Mion, how many costumes do you keep?" Shinichi asked as he was dressed in a dog costume.

Mion, who was dressed in a duck costume, answered, "I'm not telling you." She wondered, "But how did Rena know about them?"

"At least this isn't as embarrassing as what you put me in," Keiichi glared while dressed in a pig costume. Hanyuu was in a cat costume, Rika was in a mouse costume, Shion was in another duck costume, Satoshi was in a raccoon costume and Satoko was in a wolf costume.

"Alright, one more time!" Satoko announced.

"OK, ready…? WHO'S THE KING?"

(LINE BREAK)

Shinichi had become the King and had ordered #2 to slap #5 in the face. Mion and Shion had to obey as they were #2 and #5 respectively.

"OK, ready...? WHO'S THE KING?"

"Yes!" Satoko beamed. "OK, now what do I make who do...?" Her expression was devious, and outright scary as she looked contemplative. She snapped her fingers. "Ah, I got it!"

(LINE BREAK)

"OK, do I have to do this for much longer?" asked Satoshi as he was spinning hula-hoops around his waist. Satoko had ordered for #2 to spin hula-hoops and Satoshi just happened to be #2.

"Just a bit longer, Nii-nii," smiled Satoko as she held up a few more hula-hoops.

"Gambare, Satoshi-kun," cheered Shion.

(LINE BREAK)

The game continued for another half hour with several dares being performed as commanded by the King of each round. Rena and Shinichi had to kiss, Rika and Satoko had to perform 'I'm a Little Teapot', and Keiichi and Satoshi ended up dressed as ballerinas. While they each got a turn to embarrass their friends and be embarrassed in return, there were no hard feelings. After all, this was all in good fun.

And now the final round.

"OK, ready...? WHO'S THE KING!"

"YES!" Shinichi declared. He was the King again. "OK, I command for #1, #3 and #6 to strip down to their underwear!" The ones who got those numbers just happened to be Satoko, Mion and Shion.

"Alright, Shinichi!" Keiichi cheered.

"HENTAI!" they screamed at him.

"You can't disobey! The King's orders are ABSOLUTE!" declared Shinichi. "Now...STRIP!" he commanded, pointing at the three helpless girls. He laughed in a way that reminded them of when he'd become the High Commander of GIN-SHOCKER.

It was all in good fun, but that didn't mean sweet revenge couldn't be sought after later. Satoshi would need to have a few words with Shinichi later.

(LINE BREAK)

"Take this! And this! And this!" Gaap shouted, pummeling Showa from afar, throwing punches and kicks through various portals, striking him over and over. She was having fun until her right arm got stuck in a portal.

"What?!" she shouted, trying to figure out what was wrong until she looked at Showa. Her face paled. He had caught her arm.

"Little thing about teleporters," he said smugly before yanking, pulling Gaap through her portal and right in front of him.

"They get predictable."

He then sent a knee into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her, before tossing her into the air and leaping after her, executing a Rider Kick. However, much to his surprise, she formed a portal in front of him and another behind him. He ended up kicking himself as his foot entered the portal in front of him and exited the portal behind him. The second portal vanished and reappeared over the ground and he landed with a crash as Gaap exited a portal nearby.

"You know, if I hadn't formed that portal, you would've got me," said Gaap as Showa recovered and stood back up. "You're pretty strong."

"I have to be," he said and he charged at her for a punch only to meet a barrier. Looking up, he saw Ronove standing between him and Gaap. "You're in my way."

"I'm sorry, but I simply can't let anymore harm come to Gaap-san. Beatrice-sama's orders," Ronove said with a calm smile.

"Then I guess we got a problem," Showa said.

Showa had transformed into Super-1 and was busy pounding on Ronove's barrier with the Power Hands.

"You might as well give up, young man," said Ronove, "my defenses are not easily broken."

Showa ignored him as he kept punching, but stop when his last hit felt different. Smirking under his helmet, he leaped back and reverted back to his default form.

"Ah, so you see the futility of it?" asked Ronove.

"Nah, I just figured now's the time to go big," said Showa, as he punched his knuckles together, forming his metal-plated Great Fists, "or go home." He jumped up and brought the fists down. Ronove didn't look concerned as he focused his barrier on the spot Showa would likely to hit. The Rider struck but he was promptly repulsed and sent flying backwards.

"Come now, sir. I'm a demon, not a fool," Ronove said with an amused smile and twinkle in his eye.

Showa studied his two opponents. The gentleman named Ronove could create barriers and repel his opponents with the same force that the barrier was hit with. Gaap on the other hand could conjure portals. There were two very tough opponents on their own, but together they were almost invincible.

However, even the toughest opponent's strengths could be exploited. With that in mind, an idea formed in the Rider's mind.

"Hey, Gaap! I guess Ronove lucked out in the powers department! Compared to your portals, a barrier that absorbs and reflects attacks is way cooler," Showa shouted. Ronove smiled at the praise, even if it was in the midst of battle.

Gaap giggled. It seemed that Showa still wanted to play with her. "Cooler than me, huh? Let's see if you still think so after this move!" She formed a black portal in front of her and drove her fist through. An exit portal formed in front of Showa and her fist came shooting out.

"Gotcha!" He ducked under the punch and got behind the portal, forming his Burst Cannon on his chest. Taking aim, he fired a quick burst of energy from the cannon which flew into the portal.

"ARGH!" Ronove shouted as the energy burst slammed into his back. Gaap's first portal had allowed Showa to hit Ronove in the back.

"What!?" Gaap gaped.

"You're wondering what happened, huh?" Showa asked as he deactivated the Burst Cannon. "It's just logic. Your portals work two-ways, on both sides. If you can redirect the direction of your attack with your portal, then there's no reason I can't use the portals for the same thing!" Gaap's portals were two way and both sides were usable. So, if he fired into the back of the portal in front of him, then the shot would exit out of the other side of Gaap's other portal.

"Clever," Ronove complemented, "And resourceful."

"That was how I was trained," said Showa. "And now-"

"I think that's enough," interrupted Beatrice.

Showa looked to the Golden Witch and sighed. He deactivated his armor which vanished and nodded. After all, they had been sparing on her property. The Kuwadorian's lawn was quite spacious and so he had been sparing with Ronove and Gaap, loyal servants and companions to the Endless Witch/Golden Witch Beatrice.

Shinichi was in the Meta-World, a sort of magical pocket dimension. This was the place of residences for witches like Beatrice, Bernkastel and Lambdadelta. Also, there was the Endless Sorcerer Battler who was an alternate version of the Battler he knew. The Endless Witch and Sorcerer were both married. Said Endless Sorcerer still wasn't quite comfortable with being called a grandfather considering his youthful looks but that was one of the consequences as the Seven Stakes of Purgatory were Beatrice's daughters in a fashion.

"Sit down, rest, have some tea, and cookies," said Beatrice as she gestured to the garden table. She was seated with her husband the Endless Sorcerer Battler, and her mentor Virgilia. Also sitting with them was Satan and Yuji. The white-haired Stake of Wrath was cradling Hiroyuki in her arms, rocking him back and forth.

"OK, I will," said Shinichi as he went and sat down for tea and cookies. It would be rude to reject such a request as Beatrice was practically his mother-in-law and also a lethal mistake as she could use her magic to kill him, repeatedly.

Satan gently handed Hiroyuki to Shinichi who smiled down at his red-eyes son. "Hello there, Hiro-chan." The baby stared up at his father and then he began to wail "What!? What did I do!?"

"Idiot, hand him over," Satan took Hiroyuki from Shinichi and the instant the baby was in her arms he calmed down. "You must've held him wrong."

"Babies just seem to have it out for me," complained Shinichi, recalling the time he had to babysit baby Alan and the infant kept using his powers on him. Then there was Junior, who tried to bite a chunk out of his arm.

"Relax, Shin. Babies are like this sometime. Hiro just wants to be close to his mom, that's why," said Yuji. Shinichi gaze towards Satan and the sight of her holding Hiroyuki like that made him smile.

"Of course, with breasts like that, why wouldn't he want to be close to his mother?" Shinichi answered.

"Yes, that's something we can both agree on," ES-Battler agreed, laughing jovially. Satan and Beatrice glared at them, causing them to freeze. "I mean...well..."

"Hmph, men are such breast-hungry beasts," scoffed Beatrice. "Then again, I'm not surprised since they enjoy suckling on succulant breasts like calves." She cradled her breasts. "Husband, do you love my breasts?"

ES-Battler looked around to see everyone staring at him expectantly for his answer. "Well...they are amazing..." He rubbed his head in embarrassment.

"Indeed," Virgilia agreed. "Beatrice does have a beautiful bust and child-bearing hips not unlike young Satan."

"Are we seriously having this conversation?" Shinichi asked and Satan kicked his shin under the table. "Ow!" He turned to look at Satan who turned her nose up at him.

"Just go with it," said Yuji. "The topic of conversation is always weird."

"Actually, this is pretty mild. Conversations with my mother are a little more risque," Shinichi said. Considering that Shiori was a novelist who wrote adult romance literature, there was no doubt about that.

"Your mother, has she written anything new?" Virgilia asked expectantly.

"Isn't she always?" Shinichi questioned rhetorically, suggesting an affirmative. "Ever since she and I reunited, she's been getting so much inspiration."

"Beatrice-sama, may I please go and put Hiroyuki in his crib?" Satan asked politely.

"Oh, sure. He must be tired," allowed Beatrice. "And Shinichi, please accompany Satan, alright?"

"Alright," said Shinichi as he and Satan walked into the Kuwadorian. He whispered, "OK, why are you so mad right now?"

"I'm always mad," said Satan unconvincingly, but her expression softened as she held her son to her, smiling down at his sleeping face.

"Always, huh?" retorted Shinichi skeptically. He then put his hand on her rear and made her gasp. "I doubt that." She blushed and growled at him.

Timidly, which was uncharacteristic for her, she asked Shinichi, "What do you think of my breasts?" They had grown in size since she'd given birth as she was producing breast milk.

"They're spectacular," he answered honestly. "They're the right size, soft as pillows, and just smooth. No wonder Hiro-chan falls asleep on them after each feeding." Satan blushed and smiled at his compliment.

"I bet you say that to all the girls," she said.

"Just the ones who matter," he informed her. Satan smiled sultrily and then whispered into his ear. His eyes widened as his grin spread out.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered before adding, "But not today." His hopes plummeted, making her laugh at his disappointed expression. At the same time, Hiroyuki giggled. "Aw...you're so cute, Hiro."

(LINE BREAK)

As night fell, the nocturnal elements of the city came out of hiding. It was at this time criminal scum prowled the streets to commit misdeeds upon the innocent. However, the ne'er do wells of Shishibone City did not have free reign. The city had its guardians, shrouded in darkness, hidden in the shadows to observe with vigil eyes.

Perched on the edge of a rooftop was the Black Skull, aka Shinichi Banabara. This was the persona he adorned to fight crime. Kamen Rider Showa was reserved only for demons and monsters. For lowly criminals, Black Skull was enough. The perch he was crouched upon gave him the perfect vantage point to scout for any criminal activity. He'd picked this spot due to its strategic location.

His ears picked up sound, a feminine scream. His job was never done. There was no rest for the wicked and thus there was none for him.

(LINE BREAK)

A young lady, petite yet well-endowed, was cornered in an alley. She was dressed quite provocatively but only because the night was hot and anything more would be far too uncomfortable. Plus, she was planning to go dancing. Unfortunately, the brunette had caught the attention of several young ruffians in their early twenties who upon seeing her wanted to have a good time, whether she was willing or not.

They had chased after her, catcalling and whistling as she ran. They were like wolves on a hunt for fresh meat and she was the helpless prey that they would ravish for hours and hours until they grew bored of her and discarded her like leftovers.

As she was forced into a dead end, the lecherous wolves began to close in on her. She screamed for help but would anybody come?

Someone did.

Dropping from the sky and landing in a crouch upon the floor of the alleyway was Shishibone's own Guardian of the Night. He looked up, his skull-styled mask protection his identity, as he glared at the street gang who stared back at him, surprised by his appearance. Standing up, he quipped, "So, is this a private party or can anybody join in?" He counted seven of them in the alley. This would be easy.

(LINE BREAK)

Meanwhile, Shishibone City's second known guardian was patrolling, flying through the air like a guardian angel. His emerald glow was something the citizens had grown accustomed to as he was a symbol of hope and justice. Well, the Blue Comet would more accurately represent hope but the green Sentinel would not argue with them. It was not his attention to correct them. He was a hero and he would do the right thing.

Scanning the city with his enhanced supervision, he spotted a black clad individual jumping down from his tall perch. He recognized him easily and decided to go and see what he was up to. It wasn't for himself, though. He had made a promise to someone special that he would always look out for the one clad in black. It was a promise he intended to keep.

(LINE BREAK)

Shinichi, aka the Black Skull was disturbed as the gangsters were laughing. Well, he was used to it since they would normally underestimate him. They felt that they had better odds with bigger numbers. He was just one man, after all. No, it was the laughter that came from them and their would-be victim. He decided to focus on his sensing ability, to detect their auras, and came to a frightening conclusion.

"Well, crap," he uttered and just like that the woman and the street gang showed their true colors as their appearances melted and morph into something inhuman.

They were donned in black baggy suits with light armor on the torso, forearms and lower legs and they had their heads covered in full face masks, each one resembling a faceless demon with small silver horns on the top. They also had a sash wrapped around each of their waists that seemed to have star-like cluster designs on them and each one of the beings held a sort of weapon in their hands. The weapons ranged from swords to spears to hand-held kunai daggers.

"Darkstars," he mumbled as he recognized them. The first time he'd seen them preceded a battle with a demon named Zagi. The Demon Priests of the Moon Demoness also employed them as foot soldiers. "And I thought I saw the last of you."

The Darkstar who'd disguised itself as a woman lunged for Black Skull's back but was subdued instantly as the green Sentinel dropped down from the sky and smashed it into the wall with a punch.

"Oh, hey Alan," said Shinichi to his younger half-brother.

"Need help?" Alan offered, smiling.

"If I said no, would you go away?" Shinichi returned.

Alan considered it, or looked like he was considering it, and answered, "Probably not."

"Well, I doubt I'd need help. There's just seven of them," said Shinichi.

And just like that, Murphy's Law decided to just turn the whole situation into a SNAFU. Swirling clouds of black smoke appeared all around them, filling up the alley as a small army of Darkstars suddenly had them cornered, forcing them back-to-back.

"And yet again I just jinxed myself," muttered Shinichi. "How many was that already?"

"Too many that I care to count," said Alan. "Well, the usual plan?"

"The usual plan," Shinichi repeated, agreeing to the suggestion. With that said, the two of them charged forward, rushing in opposite directions.

There was an explosions as Darkstars were blown out of the alley as Shinichi rushed out with the Burst Cannon mounted on his chest. "Always start with the big guns," he quipped as he banished the weapon built via the nanites injected into him. He summoned the Shield of Glen with a flick of his wrist, covering his left arm from the elbow down in the dragon-mail shield gauntlet. Flexing the fingers, he got ready for battle.

Meanwhile, back in the alley, Alan broke the Darkstars weapons with his ring. The Green Lantern power ring responded to his thoughts and imagination, creating constructs of green energy. It was an advanced piece of technology forged by immortal dwarfs as peacekeeping tools. On Earth, it could very well be one of the most powerful weapons in existence.

And the ring was not his only weapon either. He moved, faster than a blink, and threw the Darkstars into the air with uppercuts. They went up, up, up, up, before they came crashing down. Alan felt no regret with using lethal force against these creatures. They were just mindless, demonic constructs made of dark energy. Of course, that also made them quite sturdy and since they were mindless they did not understand the concept of surrender.

He cracked his neck and knuckles, preparing for the next wave of attackers to come at him. The alleyway was narrow so their movements were limited. He, on the other hand, was not hindered by such limitations.

Back outside the alleyway, Shinichi had just turned his right arm into a massive sword with a blade that was as long as he was tall. With his constructed weapon, he swiped at the Darkstars. Bringing the sword down and forcing them to dodge, he left a gouge in the ground. Some tried to attack him from behind only to be repelled as he used the Shield of Glen to protect himself, sending them crashing against the wall. He smiled and turned his attention to the other Darkstars. They threw kunai at him and he deflected them with an energy shield. He then turned his right arm into an energy cannon and fired, sending them flying helplessly into the air. Jumping himself and reforming his Great Sword, he slashed at the demonic foot soldiers and sent them to oblivion.

A flash of green light within the alleyway told him that Alan had done cleaning up in there. "Showoff," he muttered before he caught a Darkstar's sword in his left hand without looking. He snapped the sword in half and kicked the demon backwards with a Great Boot, the huge armored foot causing damage on impact. That kick alone could shatter bone and the Darkstar went tumbling. It climbed back to its feet of course only to go down again when a green blast vaporised its head and the rest of its body.

Shinichi looked over his shoulder to see Alan, smiling at him. "I had it."

"I know," said Alan while casually backhanding a Darkstar. "Just being a good brother."

"Well, you're still my little brother," said Shinichi as he caught a Darkstar by its throat and snapped its neck. "You gotta listen to me."

Alan rolled his eyes. "How about we just take these guys out and then we talk about who listens to whom?" he suggested as he jumped and performed a split kick.

"Good idea," said Shinichi as he caught a pair of spears coming at his face. He tore them from the Darkstars grips, spun them around, then drove the spears into their chests, killing them with their own weapons as they turned into dissipating dark clouds.

The two were a great team. Alan had his ring and super powers while Shinichi had his cybernetic enhancements and enchanted weapons. The Black Skull had just stunned a few Darkstars by playing hopscotch with their heads before bounding off a wall and taking them down with a flying side kick, knocking them to the ground. They did not get back up and turned into black clouds which dissipated shortly after.

Alan was surrounded but he had a way to fix this. He spun around and around, accelerating his rotation, picking up speed as he formed a tornado. The tornado picked up the Darkstars surrounding him and they flailed helplessly as the tornado tore them apart. Alan stopped spinning and smiled as he tossed his cape over his shoulder. He dusted off his hands and looked around. "Well, that was easy."

"Yeah," said Shinichi with a frown. "Too easy."

"You didn't just say that," Alan grimaced. With that said, once again Murphy's Law came into play.

After both Alan and Shinichi had destroyed the Darkstars, they heard applause. They turned their gaze to the source to saw a figure coming towards them. He was clad, completely in black. He wore a black cloak with gold trim that had its hood up and under the cloak he wore a black leather coat that was zipped up all the way to his neck. Under the coat he wore black pants and black boots. As he was clapping, the brothers could see that his left arm, from the elbow down was demonic in appearance, made of black and red flesh with golden runes tattooed onto the skin. The demonic hand's fingernails were black. His right arm remained normal, or so it appeared. His face was concealed, hidden from them by a black and white two-toned mask that covered everything except for his mouth and chin.

Shinichi and Alan did not like the looks of this guy. There was just something eerie and chilling about him and it wasn't just his appearance. It was his very aura and presence which was unnerving. It was like being in the presence of something that wasn't meant to exist as its shadow was cast over them.

"You are indeed as amazing as I've heard," praised the hooded masked man. "You were able to dispatch my Darkstars and display such teamwork and concentration. It's like you complement each other."

"OK, creepy guy, who are you?" demanded Shinichi.

"I have no name, but you may call me 'The Priest'," the man introduced himself. While polite, he didn't exactly make Shinichi and Alan feel relaxed. There was something not quite right with this guy.

"So, you summoned those things," Alan concluded.

"That is correct. I simply wanted to see, in person, if you two really are as good as I've heard. I am not disappointed." He paused. "However, it is quite inappropriate to call either of you heroes after all the horrible things you've done."

Alan and Shinichi flinched and thought at the same time, 'Does this guy...know...?'

"What makes you say that we're not heroes?" demanded Alan.

"Because you're not. Oh, you fight evil and you save lives, but you ignore the real point. You're ignoring the Greater Good," the Priest said to them.

"The Greater Good?" Shinichi parroted.

"Do you really think you're doing any good by fighting your enemies? By protecting this world? You're not. You're simply part of the problem. This world, no this whole universe, is no longer balanced because you always try to fight whenever 'evil' appears. You seek to defeat 'evil' and not give it a chance," the Priest continued. "And even as you defeat one evil, another evil appears to take its place. The universe is sending you a message, sirs. Its demanding for balance."

"So what? You're saying this is all our fault?" Shinichi questioned furiously.

"Oh no. You're doing your part. You belong here," the Priest said to Shinichi. "Your half-brother on the other hand, doesn't, and his presence is polluting this world. Even now he's attempting to force his ideals on others by becoming a symbol of Truth & Justice." He addressed the Green Lantern, "Alan Smith, even you must admit that I speak the truth."

"Yeah right! What you're talking about is bullshit!" Alan retorted. He was lying, though. He had long suspected his presence was polluting the timeline.

"Oh, then you admit you did nothing wrong when you became Parallax?" the Priest questioned.

Alan tensed as he recalled that time and scowled with a warning, "Don't you dare go there..." How did this guy even know about that?

"And why not? Aren't you doing the same thing now by trying to force your idea of order and justice upon the world? Isn't that a self-deluded attempt to better it in the way you want even if someone doesn't want the same thing?"

"Don't let him get to you, little brother," Shinichi advised.

"And you, Shinji Banabara, are nothing but a childish whiner," the Priest said as he shifted his attention from Alan to Shinichi.

Shinichi snapped, ticked off by the criticism, "Who are you calling a whiner?-!"

"Shinichi, don't let him get to you," Alan repeated Shinichi's advice.

The Priest continued, "Yes, that is what you are: a whiner. You're quick to quit or rebel faster than anyone I've ever seen in your group of so-called heroes, and your reasons are rather weak. You lost your powers to General Nagazawa and quit, but you knew that ARMOR could have easily given you a new suit of ARMOR to replace the one you lost until you regained it. Oh, and you even went rogue because you lost your former lover to your nemesis. You said you were doing it for your friends, to protect them, but you still withheld vital information on the man which could have stopped his machinations sooner. Perhaps, you could've even stopped Shiro Juuyon from reviving the Yamata no Orochi in the first place."

Shinichi said nothing, but he trembled with anger as he glared at the Priest. How did this masked freak get his information? It wasn't like it was broadcasted for everyone to hear. He even knew about Alan, and he came from an alternate world.

"But the bit I find the most amusing, the most laughable, the most comical is that the second time you quit was because you hurt a friend. Oh, give me a fucking break! Compared to the all the deaths and destruction which happened in Kyoto, and all the horrible things you did as BLACK 13, that was the weakest reason of all for you to quit. Frankly speaking, he was nothing more than a berserker and you did the right thing by knocking him out. Any of your superhero friends would've done the same thing but they wouldn't have given up. You, however, decided to throw a pity party and quit. Even the Cricket Rider, the one that holds hatred for humans put his emotion aside knowing that being a hero comes first. Frankly, you're just a pathetic boy who uses the various upgrades you've received to hide the fact that you are just a selfish little child."

"I'm not!" Shinichi snapped.

"Prove it then!" the Priest challenged. "Or can you only speak empty words?"

"If he's fighting you, so am I," Alan volunteered.

"Very well," the Priest accepted. "Let me properly arm myself then." All of sudden, a pair of magic circles appeared with the Priest standing in between them. The magic circle on his right was dark and purplish with the image of a dragon in the centre. The magic circle on his left was golden, also with the image of a dragon in the centre. The circles' inner and outer rings rotated, ancient runes inscribed in them. He reached into the circles and drew out his swords. They seemed like normal swords, but that was to the untrained eye. They were single-edged, with no guards but between set at the base of the blades, between them and their hilts, were Yin-Yang symbols. Also, the sword in his right hand had a silver blade while the one held in his left hand had a dark blade.

Shinichi and Alan could actually feel it. The swords were ancient and powerful artifacts. They prepared themselves for anything. "Let us dance," the Priest said coolly and with that he charged at both Shinichi and Alan, aiming to 'remove them from the equation'.

(LINE BREAK)

The Priest raised both his swords over his head and cut a pair of circles of light, which linked together before shining upon him. His armor appeared, falling upon his armor, and augmenting him as he posed before both Alan and Shinichi. The right half of his armor was polished silver with gold trim while the left half was pitch black with blood red trim. The armor plating covered him from the neck all the way down to his toes. He sported a belt with the yin-yang symbol. His helmet resembled a wolf's head with a lion's mane and the horns of a dragon. His demonic left arm now looked more metallic than organic.

The two swords he held had also changed drastically. The sword in his right hand, known as the Sword of Faldren, was forged from the talon of a Light Dragon. It had two edges and the blade was at three feet in length and it had strange markings on the middle and there were small gems on the middle as well in regular intervals and the base was surrounded by two strange serpent-like beasts that then covered the flat of the blade on either side. The hand guard was made in a way that the hand guard resembled bat-like wings, with two sharp prongs moving upward, there appeared to some sort of gem under a metal sheath on the middle of the guard and the handle was covered in a scale like pattern, like that of a snake or any reptile, and the handle was good for either a single or double handed grip. The end of the handle had another one of the serpent heads with it's jaws open and a beautiful gem that seemed to shimmer in different colors of the rainbow. The blade itself was made of a metal that seemed to glow with a silvery white light, mixed with gold tint. The hand grip was also made from pure gold…or something that resembled gold. And the handle itself seemed to be made out of another silvery metal inlaid with gold leaf.

The sword grasped in the armored Priest's right hand resembled the Sword of Faldren, and could pass off as its twin. It was forged from the fang of a Chaos Dragon and known as the Sword of Chorvax. The blade was midnight black in the middle while the edges were blood red and there were gemstones in the middle of the blade and there were saw like teeth in the middle of the edges. There was a dragon head that gripped the base of the blade with two fang shaped prongs on the sides of the mouth. The hand guard had a wing design with spikes on the top of the hand-guard. The handle was long, showing that it could be wielded in the same way as the Sword of Faldren, either in a single hand or both. The handgrip was in a scale-like pattern, but were blood red mixed with black and bone white. The pommel was a Dragon claw grasping a human skull that had the mouth open in a scream and had two gems for eyes and the middle of the hand guard had a blood red eye with a black slit in the eye and it was glowing in malevolent fire.

'Lad,' St. George spoke cautiously in Shinichi's mind. 'That armor and those swords...they're imbued with unholy and holy energies.'

"At the same time?" Shinichi asked.

'Yes, but such an amalgam of clashing energies should be impossible,' spoke St. George.

"Not necessarily," said Shinichi, recalling Ichijyo Amakusa. The Vampangel could wield the power of light and darkness, elements considered good and evil respectively.

"Partner, I don't like the looks of this," said Bazel. "Be on your guard."

"You don't need to tell me twice," said Alan as he looked at Priest's armored form. "It just had to be magic," he complained under his breath. At least he had his ring fully charged for this fight.

The Priest made the first move as he crossed the distance in a flash, faster than Shinichi could. Immediately, Alan threw himself into a roll to block the Priest as he came close but compared to the Agent of Order, the Green Lantern was too slow. Sparks flew as Alan blocked the two blades before the Priest withdrew his swords and sent a kick into Alan's gut. In spite of his invulnerability, Alan felt the pain from the blow and collapsed.

"Shocking, isn't it?" the Priest rhetorically asked in a calm yet mocking tone. He crossed both his swords and drew them back to strike Alan down only to spin around and block the Sword of Ascalon as it came for his neck. He held Shinichi back with the Sword of Chorvax as Alan got up and swung the Kusanagi at the Priest's unprotected flank. Steel met steel as the Kusanagi met with the Sword of Faldren.

"Two on one? Hardly seems fair," said the Priest. "Let's equal the odds."

Now, Shinichi was not a stranger to splitting oneself and making copies but he was surprised when Priest's two toned halves split down the middle before becoming whole themselves. the black-clad, Sword of Chorvax wielding Priest shoved Shinichi backwards with a punch while Alan had his hands full with the silver-clad, Sword of Faldren wielding one. Sparks flew as the four swordsmen furiously battled it out for supremacy. Chorvax Priest rushed at Shinichi with his sword glowing with a dark red light. He thrust the sword forward but met with the barrier formed by the Shield of Glen and was pushed back. Shinichi then thrust his sword into the air and called, "Bring Order to the Chaos! St. George!"

Using a punch infused with his Kryptonian strength and the power of his ring, Alan drove Faldren Priest backwards before gripping the Kusanagi no Tsurugi and raising it into the air. "OK, if we're all going to fight in armor, then I might as well join the party!"

"Now you're talking, Partner!" shouted Bazel enthusiastically as the Armor of Bazel formed over Alan's body, changing him into The Sentinel. Shinichi was illuminated as pieces of armor fell upon his body. Showa was clad in his knight-like Ascalon Form armor.

"Ikuze," said Showa as Sentinel nodded. The two dashed towards their opponents who charged at well. White angel wings burst out of Faldren's back as he took to the air with Sentinel shooting towards the sky to engage him. Sparks flew as the Sword of Chorvax and the Sword of Ascalon clashed violently, their wielders filled with the intent to kill.

"Shakkaho!" Showa shouted as he fired the energy ball which Chorvax Priest dodged. Chorcax Priest charged up his own attack as his horns glowed. Showa, seeing this, immediately evaded by using Shunpo, as the energy beam from the enemy horns flew harmlessly through the air. Landing a distance away, Showa pointed his fingers at Chorvax Priest as he fired his spiralled energy blast at him with a cry of, "Makankosappo!"

Chorvax, seeing the blast coming, did not dodge as he raised the Sword of Chorvax. The energy attack, instead of being deflected, was absorbed by the Sword of Chorvax's blade. Showa was stunned as Chorvax Priest grinned. "A blade forged from the fang of a Chaos Dragon has the ability to absorb demonic energy, amplify it, and...SEND IT RIGHT BACK!" He swung and sent a amplified blast of Youki straight towards Showa. Holding his ground, he thrust his left hand forward and formed the protective energy dome provided by the Shield of Glen. The energy splashed against the dome before dispersing. The dome dropped and Showa used Shunpo as Chorvax Priest blurred from sight. While they were unseen, the sound of their clash was still heard as the two were locked in combat.

Sentinel fired his heat vision at Faldren Priest who dodged his attacks with ease. Frustrated, he fired multiple energy beams from his ring which pursued the silver-clad villain. However, once they were about to hit, he wrapped his wings around himself and spun in place, deflecting them. Unfurling his wings, he swooped towards Sentinel with the Sword of Faldren. Gripping the Kusanagi tight in both hands, he raised and blocked the blow. The two swords shone and then repelled one another, driving both wielders back.

Faldren Priest raised his sword then spun it in a circle, creating shining afterimages of the blade. Then, with a forward thrust the after images flew towards Sentinel. He deflected all but one which cut into his shoulder, through the armor, and he gritted his teeth.

"The Sword of Faldren is capable of cutting through any material with ease, no matter what form of enchantment augments it, even armor such as yours," boasted Faldren Priest. "It's no wonder this sword is so precious and valuable."

"You know, I'm getting tired of listening to your voice," said Alan. "So I'm going to shut you up." He formed a second blade with his ring and wielded it along with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi. He flew fast, like a rocket, shooting through the air and cutting across the distance before swinging at Faldren Priest. He blocked the green energy sword, which broke as expected, and parried the Kusanagi. However, Sentinel's right fist touched his stomach.

"Have a taste of GREEN WILLPOWER!" roared Sentinel as he unleashed all his ring's remaining energy in a single blast. The blast engulfed Faldren Priest. Once the blast subsided, Faldren Priest was unscathed. "Huh?"

"Almost got me, but your powers are useless against me in this form." said Priest. "And speaking of which, you're just a phony."

"A phony?" Sentinel repeated, shaken by how easily the Faldren Priest was able to shake off his attack.

"First, your Kryptonian abilities," said Faldren Priest. "You didn't earn them. You only got them because a super-villain was stupid enough to spill nanites on you. As for you emulating "The Doctor", well that's just you trying to delude yourself into thinking you're as great as he is, but you're still just a pathetic little boy."

Sentinel fired his ring at Faldren Priest only for his attacks to be absorbed. "Those attacks are just an annoyance to me. The big one was most impressive, but it was just a waste of time."

Meanwhile, back on the ground, Chorvax Priest leapt away to evade from a swing that would've cleaved him in two. "Now, time to show you why the Sword of Chorvax is the ULTIMATE blade of darkness!"

He dashed towards Showa, thrusting his sword forward to stab Showa in the heart. Showa activated the Shield of Glen to defend himself only for Chorvax Priest to vanish from sight. His eyes went wide and he spun around to block an attack, only to discover that it was only an afterimage. Chorvax Priest had moved so fast and was now right behind Showa. Not fast enough to defend himself or dodge, the Sword of Chorvax stabbed him right in the back.

"ARGH!" Showa screamed as he was stabbed. Chorvax Priest withdrew his sword and kicked Showa away.

"All that power in the palm of your hands, and all that training, and yet it's nothing compared to me," mocked Chorvax Priest. "Now, it's time we ended this."

Sentinel and Faldren Priest were still fighting when Sentinel heard his brother's scream. "Shinichi!" he shouted.

"Partner, watch your flank!" shouted Bazel and Sentinel blocked a strike from Faldren Priest.

"You don't seem to realize the truth," said Faldren Priest.

"And what truth is that?" Sentinel asked.

"That all your efforts will eventually destroy this world!" Faldren Priest snapped. He lectured, "You fight, and fight, and fight, but even if you defeat your enemies, they either come back stronger or something else fills the void they left behind. Each enemy stronger than the last! It never ends, does it?"

"We protect the world! That's what we do!" Sentinel shot back.

"You know what your greatest sin is?" Chorvax Priest asked Showa as he stood shakily. "You turned all your friends and loved ones into weapons."

"I never did that!" Showa denied. "I didn't turn them into weapons...I made them into heroes..."

"And even with eyes that can see far distances and notice the smallest of details, you are still blind," Faldren and Chorvax Priests both said to their opponents. "How sad. I pity you."

Showa and Sentinel gripped their weapons, trembling with rage as they prepared for their opponents' next move.

"It is time we ended this fight," Faldren Priest started.

"And bring about balance and order," Chorvax Priest finished.

Using the magic of their swords, the two Priests blinded their opponents for a minute, giving the Priests the opportunity to strike. With lightning speed, they placed their left hands onto the heroes' chest. The instant they did this, both Alan and Shinichi cried out in pain from the burning sensation as not even their armors could protect them.

Unable to endure the pain any further, Showa unleashed a burst of energy from his chest which drove Chorvax Priest back several feet. However, the damage was already done as Shinichi dropped to his knees as his armor shattered with the Sword of Ascalon lying at his side.

Meanwhile, Sentinel was going through the same pain, even after Faldren Priest had withdrawn his hand. He then knocked Sentinel to the ground, his Bazel Armor shattering before he crashed to the ground, making an imprint on impact as cracks spread out all around him. He had one hand on his chest as he felt like he was burning on the inside.

The two Priests became one again as the armor disappeared. They landed on the ground and looked at the defeated brothers. "This shall be the end for you and every other 'hero', then the poison will be removed from this world."

The Priest vanished as both Shinichi and Alan lost consciousness.

(LINE BREAK)

Yuji, as the Blue Comet, was flying around the city. Earlier, he'd just foiled several break-ins, a mugging, and prevented a rape as well as attempted murder. It seemed like a good night for the blue-clad scion of Hope. That was when he looked down and spotted Alan and Shinichi, lying unconscious below. "What?" He went down to check on them. Scanning them, he saw that they were injured. "Guys!" he ran towards them. Suddenly, he heard something and he used his ring to bring up a barrier. Something slammed into it and he saw that it was a demonic disembodied arm with glowing yellow runes. "What...the...?" The arm vanished into black smoke which began to surround Yuji. "OK, what the hell is going on here?"

"Looks like patience does beget rewards," Priest said as he appeared before Yuji, his arm reattached. "Yuji Fudo, also known as the Blue Comet and formerly known as Kamen Rider Liger."

Yuji didn't know who this freak was, dressed like a Rare Hunter, and exuding some kind of creepy magical aura. However, he could already guess that whoever this guy was, he was responsible for Alan and Shinichi's conditions. "OK, what did you do to my friends?"

"I decided that they should be taken out of the equation to preserve balance," said the Priest, smiling at Yuji. "You're like the Green Lantern too. You don't belong in this world. None of you do."

"I already know I don't belong here," Yuji rebutted. "Only reason I'm here is because people I care about live here. So thanks for stating the obvious, dumbass. Now then, how do you wanna do this?"

"I will start by cleansing this world of your presence, virus," the Priest sneered as the magic circles were summoned and he drew the sealed states of his Faldren and Chorvax swords.

"Oh, now that's a good trick," Yuji acknowledged, maintaining his barrier. "So, let's see what you can do, tough guy!"

The Priest dashed forward, swinging his swords while the Blue Comet blocked the blades with his forearms. While the blades hadn't cut his arms, the impacts from the Priest's power was surprising for the Lantern as he could feel his arms shake a little. Yuji gripped the Priest's wrists and reared his head back, coming in with a headbutt that made the Priest recoil before retaliating with a headbutt of his own. The second impact made both fighters recoil as they shook the ringing going through their brains.

"Shit, what's that skull of yours made of...?" Yuji groaned as he held his head steady.

The Priest didn't give an answer as he charged for Yuji's vital areas, targeting the throat, heart, and forehead. His thrusts were fast, his arms a blur, as he alternated his strikes, stabbing at Yuji with furious determination and ferocious resolve. The Blue Lantern was able to follow his opponent's movements, evading each strike by mere inches. The Priest then did a backflip, his heel slamming into Yuji's jaw as he made some distance between himself and the Manakyte. "OK, you're good," Yuji affirmed, "I'll give ya that."

"I thank you for the compliment. However, that does not change the inevitable outcome of this bout," said the Priest as he spun his black sword in his hand. He was spinning it faster and faster, until it looked like a black disc. He then hurled it at Yuji, the blade spinning at breakneck speed as it sliced through the air straight at Yuji.

"FUCK...!" Yuji cried as he ducked the blade, looking back to see it changing course and returning. "Wonderful... Power check," he whispered.

"Power levels at 89%," his ring reported.

"Better conserve then," he nodded.

"The Blue Light of Hope," the Priest began. "I guess it chose wisely for you to be its wielder. No matter how unfair life turned out for you, you held onto the hope that it would be better." The Priest caught his returning sword. "But where was that hope when Rosa was dying in your arms? Where was that hope when your dear, beloved Yumi died? Where was that hope when a child lost her mother? You see, no matter what you say or do, the truth is that your ring and all your powers, as impressive as they may be, are merely a crutch. Without them, you'd be nothing," the Priest mocked.

"Well, I've learned that shit happens," Yuji explained. "Yumi ended up dead cuz I was still a weak little kid. And I couldn't get my ring to work for a long time, so using it to save Rosa was no go. In a nutshell, you gotta take the good with the bad. There's never a straight line in life, so I might as well keep driving." He continued, "As for you, you're pretty interesting. I haven't run into many chaos beings during this career of mine."

"Chaos? You must be mistaken. While I do wield the Chaos Sword of Chorvax, I also wield the Order Sword of Faldren. I never wield one without the other. Chaos and Order are the two most absolute forces of the universe, and only when united will there be balance. However, that is not true yet as there are elements denying the balance," said the Priest.

"I mean the whole Light and Darkness thing," Yuji clarified. "I think I've only met like...maybe five? You're probably the fifth."

"Well, then let make me the most memorable," said Priest as he raised his swords and cut two linked circles of light. They shone upon him, donning him in his two-toned dragon armor, gripping the true forms of Chorvax and Faldren in his hand. "Hopefully, you'll prove more of a challenge than the Sentinel and the Rider."

"Oh, that is so awesome!" Yuji clapped as he hovered with his legs crossed. "I'm starting to like you, dude. But you hurt my buddies, so I can't let that shit slide..." Yuji whipped out Featherine's brush and twirled it around. It grew and extended, changing shape into the Crimson Dragon Spear. "Too bad this kinda clashes with my look."

"Daddy, now's not the time for a fashion review," Veronica called, "That guy is coming back..."

Lunging at Yuji, the spot he'd jumped from exploding from the force of the jump, the armored Priest swung downward at Yuji with Faldren. Yuji parried with the Crimson Dragon Spear only to be blinded by a sudden flash of light from Faldren.

"OK, that hurt a bit..." he groaned as he shook the spots out of his before getting kicked in the face and flying into a wall. "That hurt too..."

"Is this all you can muster? Is this the strength of the man who defeated the Witch of Terror & Wiraqocha Rasca?" the Priest questioned, seemingly unimpressed. "How shameful."

"To be fair, that wasn't even his real form," Yuji countered, "I think I would've had a harder time against the real thing. Secondly, I'm holding back cuz I don't feel like raising this town to the ground, genius. Oh, and I'm having too much fun to get serious. By the way...we're alone." The Priest looked around, seeing that Shinichi and Alan were nowhere in sight. Either they had regained consciousness and fled as they were still weakened from their bout with the Priest or they had been found and rescued by other parties. "Yeah...can you say 'distraction'? It sucks that a good fighter like you is working for guys like whoever you're hooked up with."

"I am simply fulfilling my duty and responsibility of bringing balance to the world," said Priest as he crossed his swords. They ignited, golden flames enveloping Faldren and dark violet flames enveloping Chorvax. "When Chaos and Order collide, Balance is achieved!" He swung and arches of flames soared towards Yuji. "By the name of Chorvax and Faldren, may these flames purge this world of what corrupts it!" He didn't just sent a couple, but a complete flurry at the Manakyte.

"Shields to max..." Yuji muttered as he guarded himself against the furious flurry of flames. His ring responded to his hope and he hoped to survive and win this fight.

"That ring cannot protect you forever, Yuji Fudo!" the Priest spat as he continued his onslaught. "Not even your friends could stand up to me! What hope could you possibly have? Haven't you already lost everything?"

'No, I haven't,' thought Yuji in disagreement. He still had the girls, he still had his adopted daughters, and he had Misato and his daughter Yuna. He kept going because of them. In spite of all the horrible things which happened in his life that would've forced him to break down in despair, he held onto the hope that things would get better. Even if the world was a horrible place and turned against him, he would always be hopeful. That was what Rosa and Yumi would've wanted.

The Priest switched tactics and went with the direct approach, ceasing his attack. Closing the gap between himself and Yuji, he smashed the Manakyte's defence to pieces with his swords. Yuji counted and with a swing his spear's blade sliced off the Priest's left forearm. Dark blood splashed the ground they stood on as the arm went flying along with Chorvax.

"Looks like you've been disarmed," Yuji teased.

"Daddy, that was in poor taste," Veronica told him.

Momentarily stunned, the Priest began to laugh. "'Disarmed'? Yes, indeed I have been disarmed. However, that does not mean I have been defeated quite yet, Yuji Fudo."

Suddenly, the arm that Yuji had cut off flew and struck Yuji in the chest with its palm. Yuji was sent skidding backwards, painfully. He had a coughing fit as the wind was knocked out of him. The disembodied arm then turned to smoke which joined with the stump of Priest's left arm, reforming into his demonic appendage. He flexed his fingers as he regained his arm. From a magical circle, he drew Chorvax out again.

"Oh, right," Yuji remembered earlier. That disembodied arm had attacked him earlier. He should've seen it coming.

"Your carelessness and foolishness will be your downfall," the Priest claimed.

"Hey, Priest. You called me a virus, right?" Yuji questioned.

"Indeed, because your presence is polluting this world," the Priest answered.

Yuji's eyes turned dark as he growled, ferally, like a beast, "You haven't seen anything yet...because I'm about to rock you...like a hurricane." With a roar, he caused blue flames to encircle him, rotating rapidly until the flames formed a funnel around himself. While those who did not know might assume this was a violent surrender via self-immolation, it was anything but.

The funnel rose into the air, becoming a pillar of flames that could touch the sky. The funnel was now a spinning tower of flames with Yuji at the very centre, the eye of this firestorm. The Priest watched as the pillar itself began to change. To think Yuji had this level of mastery with pyrokinesis. This had to be his most powerful move yet if he ever saw one. So intense was the heat, that the ground beneath Yuji's feet was melting.

The pillar of flames began to morph, taking a serpentine shape. The Priest could make out a reptilian head with horns and glowing white eyes. He also saw wings, and thin legs tipped with claws. He knew of Yuji's devotion to the Crimson Dragon, but to think he could replicate the shape out of his blue flames to form his own Azure Dragon.

The Priest prepared to defend himself as the Azure Dragon came at him. He ignited his mystical swords and prepared to counter this.

(LINE BREAK)

The entire fight and its outcome was being viewed in the Meta-World by Beatrice, ES-Battler, Lambdadelta and Bernkastel. It was the usual room for them, eight sided with a chair to each wall of the room. Only four of the chairs were occupied.

"Hah, that's my boy!" Beatrice cheered as the blue-flaming dragon completely devoured the Priest. It was the most brutal and amazing thing she had ever seen. It appeared her adopted nephew had once again saved the day.

"Now that was awesome!" agreed ES-Battler just as excitedly as Beatrice.

Lambdadelta bit her napkin, frustrated that she had lost a bet. However, Bernkastel remained impassive. She looked neither upset nor happy. Her only response to the events she had just witnessed was to simply drink her tea.

(LINE BREAK)

Yuji watched the flames intently as he suddenly felt a pain in his chest. He recalled that the Priest had struck him in the chest during the fight earlier. "OK, he got one good hit in," he muttered as he spat a bit of blood from his mouth. "I was right, that guy doesn't play games..." While it appeared that he'd defeated the Priest with that Azure Dragon attack, he had a strong feeling that it wouldn't be the last he'd see the Priest and that he would see the masked man in black again in the near future. Guys as strong as him never stayed down for long, if at all. At best. Yuji had only temporarily driven the Priest away.

Thinking back to Shinichi and Alan, he hoped that the two of them had gotten away. They did not look like they were in any condition to fight. The burning sensation in his chest continued to bother him as he took off to return home.

(LINE BREAK)

Once Alan had gotten home, he lamented that the night had not gone so well for him. The young Lantern wasn't the type to accept failure and defeat quite easily. The Priest had been a frightening opponent. He'd practically dominated him and Shinichi. What more, he was still out there. A threat like that couldn't be allowed to roam free. Alan swore he would defeat the Priest next time.

Alan suddenly hissed in pain as he felt a burning pain in his chest. He clenched the front of his shirt tightly. He dragged himself to the bathroom and lifted up his shirt as he faced the mirror. His eyes went wide as he saw strange black markings that were made up of runes, taking the shape of a spider, tattooed on his chest.

"What...is this...?" Alan questioned.

"It doesn't look good, Partner," said Bazel. "It doesn't look good at all."

"But what is it?"

(LINE BREAK)

"OK, did I get drunk and get myself some fucking weird ass tattoo?" wondered Yuji out loud as he saw the mark on his chest. Whatever it was, he knew he didn't have it before and it was at the exact spot where the Priest had struck him earlier.

Just by looking at it, he knew there was something wrong about it.

(LINE BREAK)

Meanwhile, Shinichi was experiencing similar pain. Earlier, he and Alan had regained consciousness. They had discovered at the time that the Priest was fighting with Yuji. As neither out of them were in any condition to fight, they had reluctantly decided to withdraw and hope for the best while watching from a safe distance. Yuji was strong and could take care of himself. However, Shinichi couldn't help but be worried for his friend whom he had left to face the Priest by himself. Unfortunately, the injuries they had sustained fighting the Priest would only cause them to be a hindrance to Yuji. Fortunately, Yuji had been able to defeat the Priest and send him running.

The burning sensation in Shinichi's chest caused him to grunt in pain. Just what was causing it. Entering the bathroom, he took off his shirt and checked the mirror. When he checked in the mirror, he found that he too bore the same mark as Alan did on his chest. "What is this? What does this mean?" He didn't remember ever getting a tattoo and even if he did he wouldn't choose such a design.

'I don't know, but it looks to me like the mark of a curse, Lad,' said St. George.

"A curse? What kind of curse?" Shinichi questioned.

"Death."

(LINE BREAK)

KAMEN RIDER CHROME: With the three most powerful heroes literally marked for death, it is only a matter of time until the final end. Will evil win? Will darkness triumph? Or will hope, truth, justice and light prevail?

Now, info on our new villain... "The Priest"

The Priest's identity is shrouded in mystery. He believes his mission is to bring balance and order to the universe filled with chaos. He wears a black cloak with gold trim and under this he wears a black, leather coat that is closed and reached down to his knees. He wears black pants and black boots. His entire left forearm appears demonic as it is made of black and red flesh with gold runes on the surface and black fingernail. His right arm remains normal. On his face he wears a two-toned black and white mask which covered all but his mouth and chin.

The Priest wields the Sword of Chorvax, an unholy blade forged from the fang of a demonic Chaos Dragon. He also wielded the Sword of Faldren, a sword which represented order. Unlike the Sword of Chorvax, the Sword of Faldren was forged from the talon of a Light Dragon.

The Sword of Faldren: It had two edges and the blade was at three feet in length and it had strange markings on the middle and there were small gems on the middle as well in regular intervals and the base was surrounded by two strange serpent-like beasts that then covered the flat of the blade on either side. The hand guard was made in a way that the hand guard resembled bat-like wings, with two sharp prongs moving upward, there appeared to some sort of gem under a metal sheath on the middle of the guard and the handle was covered in a scale like pattern, like that of a snake or any reptile, and the handle was good for either a single or double handed grip. The end of the handle had another one of the serpent heads with it's jaws open and a beautiful gem that seemed to shimmer in different colors of the rainbow. The blade itself was made of a metal that seemed to glow with a silvery white light, mixed with gold tint. The hand grip was also made from pure gold…or something that resembled gold. And the handle itself seemed to be made out of another silvery metal inlaid with gold leaf.

The Sword of Chorvax: The twin of the Sword of Faldren The blade was midnight black in the middle while the edges were blood red and there were gemstones in the middle of the blade and there were saw like teeth in the middle of the edges. There was a dragon head that gripped the base of the blade with two fang shaped prongs on the sides of the mouth. The hand guard had a wing design with spikes on the top of the hand-guard. The handle was long, showing that it could be wielded in the same way as the Sword of Faldren, either in a single hand or both. The hand grip was in a scale-like pattern, but were blood red mixed with black and bone white. The pommel was a Dragon claw grasping a human skull that had the mouth open in a scream and had two gems for eyes and the middle of the hand guard had a blood red eye with a black slit in the eye and it was glowing in malevolent fire.

The Priest also has a special ability to mark his victims with a Cursed Seal of Destruction on their chest which will kill them within 100 days. However, the seal's effect will also accelerate if the marked victims use their special abilities which would fuel the seal, killing them faster. The Cursed Seal is invisible except to those possessing it and individuals who possess magical ability. Only the Priest has the ability to remove the Cursed Seal of Destruction.

(Note: The swords' designs were based on Holy Talon and Death Fang from Freedom Guard)