Rider Time Zi-O: Roze from Remnant
Chapter 10 – Count the Medals 2010
Woz once again sat in his black void, a few clattering coins could be heard in the background as he stared at his book. He had gotten used to the static that filled it, but relief filled him when he found that pages involving Oma Zi-O still remained untouched.
"As it is normally written in this book, average high schooler Tokiwa Sougo embarks on a path which leads him to become the overlord of time, Oma Zi-O," Woz narrated as usual. "After receiving the power of Kamen Rider's Wizard and Beast, his era of reign looms ever closer…"
Images of Geiz using Wizard Armor as well as Ruby using Beast's weapon the Dice Saber in combat against Another Wizard were shown on the pages. Suddenly dozens of stylized animal symbols appeared to blot out the images, all of them being drawn into a single figure before a bright light occurred.
"Until yet another king arrived to impede his ascension," Woz switched gears before clicking his tongue and shutting his book. "But I suppose those events are still in the future, for you…"
Earth – Mid October 2018
In a sports bar, various people were playing pool and throwing darts at their leisure, one flying through the air before it was suddenly stuck mid-flight. A familiar green static filled the air, the Time Jacker's soon emerging from the various hiding spots as they converged for a meeting.
"Honestly… these plans aren't working out at all." Ora crossed her arms as she walked forward, soon giving a light glare towards Finis and Tid. "I thought you two were supposed to make things easier?"
"Now, now, it just proves how strong our opponents are," Finis reminded. "We're all at equal footing due to our failures."
"Someone was too caught up in trying to kill Zi-O that he forgot we were trying to pick a good candidate," Uhr remarked as he glanced at Tid. "I mean giving a dummy monster sentience and expecting it to beat Zi-O? Talk about pathetic."
"Like you would have done any better brat," Tid gave a sharp glare though Uhr didn't seem to be too fazed by it.
"Do you know how Oma Zi-O rose to conquer all of time?" Swartz interrupted as he came closer towards his compatriots, having hung back while they bit their heads off. "Because he acted in accordance with his desires. He never doubted his right as king." He gave a small smirk before wondering if he was being understood. "Do you see what I am saying?"
"Just get to the point, Swartz…" Uhr rolled his eyes.
"The people we've been trying to turn into the new king…" Ora trailed as she figured what Swartz was getting at "They didn't want it enough?"
"Correct, either they were driven by a personal motive, devoid of any true personality traits, or were used for less than constructive measures…" Swartz said, glancing at Tid on his last example.
"In that case, I'll find us the perfect candidate," Uhr said, since Swartz had yet to say he was jumping in finally, Uhr took this chance to take the next spot. He grabbed the dart in mid-air and threw it, managing a perfect bullseye.
At a research facility in Tokyo, things would seem fairly normal on the outside. It had standard security, average workers arriving and entering for work, and it being a fairly standard building. Or at the very least one would assume if they weren't familiar with the name of the Kougami Foundation.
Inside had security officers in black jumpsuits and motorcycle helmets walking around, surprisingly carrying around shotguns. They were patrolling around a specific main lab area, various researchers inside on computers. At the back of the room were dozens of tubes filled to the brim with silver coin-like medals. The center tank contained several sets of three similarly colored medals, green, yellow, grey, and blue. The medals held images of animals on them, with there also being a set of two red coins alongside them. The third was in a smaller tank in front of the central one. This medal was special as it was split in half, as if it had broken apart.
At the base of the tanks was a case where there were similar medals, but these were silver rimmed instead of gold like the others. This added to the mystery of what they were since they seemed like exactly like the others aside from that small detail. Especially since all of these Medals seemed to be exact replica of the ones in the main tank.
The researchers continued to work hard, seemingly gathering data on their screens as they worked on trying to figure the connection between the silver and gold rimmed medals.
One man was overseeing the process, he had black bushy hair that reached down to his neck, a black long sleeved shirt with a puffy green sleeveless jacket and green cargo pants. He was staring specifically at the broken medal though, recalling all the events that lead up to now. "Eiji… you just need to wait a bit longer." He muttered.
"Goto sir, shouldn't you take a break?" One of the researchers asked. "We're relieved your personally overseeing the process, but you've been staring for hours."
"Yeah, we're glad you're back even for a bit, but please rest up a bit," A second researcher pleaded.
"Hmm… maybe I should get a drink," The man relented as he turned to leave.
Unknown to him however, an invisible force was also watching. The medals radiated a strong sense of desire and greed to it.
'Mine…'
'This is all mine…'
It made its way forward and began to reach out towards the case of silver rimmed medals. That was until time stopped for it and everyone else, the familiar green tint washing over the room. The force struggled against the time stop, its desire too strong to even try and be stopped at this point.
Unaware of the invisible entity, Uhr sped past everyone and walked over to the case of silver rimmed medals, holding out a blank Ridewatch. He held it out towards the medals, clicking it once.
[OOO!]
'That power…!'
"Medals that hold a powerful desire to them… while not a person I think I can work with this," Uhr said as he let the OOO Anotherwatch drop.
'I will reclaim that power!'
The invisible entities desire was so powerful it moved through the frozen time, Uhr feeling a chill as it did. The entity soon entered the silver rimmed medals as the Anotherwatch broke through the case and landed on top. The silver rimmed medals began to glow a bright gold before overlapping with each other, forming a gold medal with a silver rim that synchronized with the Anotherwatch.
Soon enough purple wisps began forming a body from just the Anotherwatch itself, creating a chimera-like Another Rider. Its body almost seemed to be entirely made out of leather-like materials. The legs were monstrously grasshopper themed, the abdomen and forearms having black with yellow jagged stripes, yellow tiger claws attached to the arms. The biceps, shoulders, chest and head were hawk themed, the Another Rider having a beak-like mouth with gritted teeth and dark green eyes. On the front of it were the symbols of a hawk, tiger and grasshopper, the name OOO emblazoned in the center, while the back held a dull metal plate with the year 2010.
"…" Another OOO slumped over before looking at its body, before giving a chuckle. "I did it…"
Uhr took a step back in surprise when it spoke, "Sentience already?"
"I did it…" Another OOO chuckled further before laughing loudly. "I have returned, the one true OOO has returned!" It then looked over at Uhr. "Boy… do I have you to thank for my revival?"
"Um… yes?" Uhr said in an almost question like manner if only because he was confused. "If you don't mind me asking… who are you? I come from far in the future so…"
"Is my reign truly that pathetic?" Another OOO stroked its chin. "No matter, standing before you boy is the original user of OOO, I am the King who ordered the creation of the Core Medals and Greeed all those years ago!"
Uhr blinked but couldn't help but grin even further. "A King you say? What if I told you that my allies and I were looking for a King to rule?"
"Then you my boy have chosen the perfect candidate to do so!" King gave a laugh as he looked around. "So this is the modern era…" He then spied with his eyes the original Core Medals and Cell Medals. "And such a wonderful buffet of desire before me…"
"Do whatever it takes to rule over this era," Uhr replied. "Not even that annoying ZI-O and Roze can stop you… I'm sure of it."
"Wonderful!" He yelled out as he gathered energy in his claws, unleashing yellow slashes of energy that broke through the holding tanks. Uhr snapping his fingers and vanishing as time resumed.
To say the Goto was surprised was an understatement, he had his back turned for what seemed like a few seconds only to turn as the alarms blared immediately, soon seeing the Another OOO breaking through the holding tanks. "…What?"
"Happy Birthday, to the one true OOO…!" King yelled out as he began absorbing the Cell Medals into his body, releasing an invisible wave that resonated with the remaining Medals, even the broken one. It was to the point where even they were drawn into his body, entering as he gave a satisfied sigh.
"That voice…!" Goto's eyes widened.
In the span of just a few minutes, the peaceful and unassuming research facility was littered with several internal explosions, catching quite the attention. Various researchers began yelling as they ran out, some on their phones while the guards from earlier were sent flying out of various spots of it. Goto was nowhere to be seen as King began to walk out of the building. It wasn't long before sirens began to sound, various emergency services on their way.
King gave a chuckle as outside security began shooting at him, sparks flying but he remained undeterred as he kept striding forward. "The World will belong to me… and I will surpass it like I intended." He laughed out as he began slashing and cutting through the security.
As he began to pass by the security box the monitor that could be seen from the window suddenly lit up. On the screen was the man that was spying on and had celebrated the birth of Zi-O, Geiz and Roze.
"Happy Birthday!"
This startled King a bit as the two seemed to have a very similar voice.
"Dear… what should I call you?" The man asked curiously. "False OOO, Another Rider, Greeed, Monster OOO, Another OOO?"
"The one true OOO from those long centuries ago," King replied, this time startling the man on screen. He was already starting to put things together. "…To think, my descendent would try and carry on my plan. You wretched cur, only I and I alone are worthy of the Medals."
"Oh," The man spoke with a more stoic expression on his face. "How intriguing, to think the Another Rider for OOO would be my ancestor…"
"Watch and learn for however long I let you live, for this will be the starting point of my new era," King called out before walking off.
"You are way too stressed out for being a high school student," Geiz sighed as he stared at Sougo from across the dining room table.
It was a surprisingly empty day at 9-5-DO as it was only Sougo and Geiz at the shop for the moment. Sougo was currently going through a list of various gift items that Ruby might like for her birthday and was crossing them out one by one because he was second guessing himself.
"I just got to find the right gift," Sougo admitted. "It'll be a year since she arrived when her birthday's said and done, and I want to make it the best one ever."
"To think the Overlord who subjugates the entire world is worried about a birthday," Geiz scoffed, still holding the same opinion of Sougo.
"That's because I'm going to be the greatest, most beloved Overlord," Sougo gave his trademark smile.
"Speaking of Ruby, where is she anyway?" Geiz asked, ignoring the smile so he could resist the urge to strangle the future king.
"Oh, she decided to take Tsukuyomi for a Girls Day Out or something like that," Sougo mentioned absentmindedly as he kept trying to figure out what to get Ruby.
"This is big trouble!" Junichiro yelled out as he entered the dining room in a hurry. "Did you see the news?! Where's the TV…" He quickly found his bearings and went over to the TV next to the Ridewatch Daizer, turning it on. "Here, take a look!"
"What is it?" Sougo asked, a bit curious though still smiling due to the way his uncle overreacted about everything.
"This just in, one of the Kougami Foundation's Research Centers has supposedly just experienced a massive gas leak." A News Reporter spoke, standing in front of the burning research facility from the street across.
"Reports also suggest a strange laughing monster could be seen making its way out." She said as blurred images of Another OOO were shown on the side. "Several people and organizations are worried, as the Kougami Foundation has been rumored to have had involvement in the various incidents that plagued the city back in 2010."
"The city's been getting a bit dangerous lately, that near viral outbreak, and now research stations just blowing up," Junichiro frowned as he began to make his way to the kitchen. "I'm surprised you all are so free spirited to just roam around with all that danger."
"Well it's not like we try looking for trouble," Sougo half lied, sometimes the Another Rider business just came to them instead of them looking for it. In this case it also seemed to be true as well.
"This isn't good," Geiz said before glancing at the Daizer and noticing the Secondary Watches were all gone. While he did get some relief that Ruby was armed, he still didn't like that the Another Rider was on the loose. "Ruby and Tsukuyomi are still out and about."
"We should go find them then," Sougo quickly grabbed his Ridewatches before going to rush out.
"Sougo, wait!" Junichiro called, managing to get his nephew to stop. "If you're going out, can you bring home some chicken for dinner?"
"Got it," Sougo said as he rushed out.
"And- Oh…" Junichiro realized he wasn't fast enough the second time around.
"Time Jackers…" Geiz muttered as he grabbed his Watches before heading out after Sougo.
"Oh, are you going too?" Junichiro asked Geiz but had to speed up his talking when the time traveler didn't respond. "Can you tell Sougo to make sure he gets thighs, not breasts-" He stopped when he heard the door slam shut. "Um… I hope he heard me."
The two Riders didn't get too far though; the street just outside 9-5-DO was currently being blocked off by none other than Goto who was staring at the two Riders as they stopped. He had a few scuff marks and ashes on him but he was relatively fine. Of course the thing that caught both Sougo and Geiz's attention was the Driver at his waist, being grey and a green accented capsule theme with a gold dial.
"What?" Geiz questioned.
"A Kamen Rider…?" Sougo asked.
Goto cleared his throat before crossing his arms, "Zi-O, and Geiz. I need you two to come with me immediately."
"How do you know our names?" Geiz asked.
"Whoa, are we famous already?" Sougo wondered.
"Something like that… my boss wants to talk to you all, it's concerning the new Another Rider," Goto answered.
Geiz was a bit surprised at how quickly this was going but went over to Goto with a glare. "Okay well this progress is all well and good but we still have-"
"My associate has been sent to pick up both your friend Tsukuyomi and Roze, it's urgent that we get all of you to the boss," Goto stayed firm.
"If they're taking care of Ruby and Tsuki, then it's all good," Sougo said, deciding to trust Goto on his word before going over and standing by his side. He gave a smile towards Geiz. "Come on Geiz, let's get going, King's orders."
Geiz's eye twitched slightly at how nonchalant Sougo was being, especially given how he was basically ordered to abandon his friends and leave them to a stranger.
Ruby and Tsukuyomi meanwhile were taking a walk through the streets, the two aware that something had happened due to the sirens but they were heading to an area the opposite of where they were going. So Ruby just shrugged it off since she assumed it was just a normal accident that was occurring.
Tsukuyomi meanwhile was mostly lost in thought while also keeping a close eye on Ruby. She wasn't sure about this 'Girls Day Out' but this was a good opportunity for her. She figured by paying attention to Ruby's reactions to certain places or objects that she'd find the perfect gift for her.
"Hey… Tsuki," Ruby started, deciding to break the recent silence that had fallen between the two. "Could I ask you something?"
"Sure, what did you want to ask?" Tsukuyomi asked back.
"Why… did you push me out of the way with Another Wizard?" Ruby asked.
"Oh," Tsukuyomi realized what Ruby meant. "I uh… honestly, I felt like you could help the guys more than I could. I had been in your room a few times and figured you had a better knowledge of Riders than I did. My search couldn't come up with anything, and from what Geiz said you managed to figure out a location on where to ambush the Another Rider in the past."
"Oh…" Ruby realized what Tsukuyomi was getting at. "Yeah, but I only got really lucky cause of my connection to Kosuke. Then that help from Haruto's friends, it barely had to do with any real Rider knowledge."
"Still… I figured out of the two of us, you're more important," Tsukuyomi admitted. "I can only fight so much, but you're a Rider. Discounting knowledge aside you're a more valuable asset than me."
"Tsuki…" Ruby trailed, trying to come up with something to say to get her over her self-doubt.
A horde of screams broke both out of their thoughts, crowds of people dispersing as blackened dirty grey wrapped mummies with black circles for faces lumbered their way through.
"Uh…" Ruby trailed as she saw them, already prepping her Driver and Ridewatch.
[ROZE!]
Tsukuyomi pulled out her tablet, managing to access the database and surprisingly she found a hit. "These things are called… Yummy's?"
"Okay, weird though I think they seem familiar from my research…" Ruby trailed before initiating her transformation. "It doesn't matter right now though, Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN RIDER ROZE!]
Figuring they were just grunts this time Ruby used Petal Burst to speed over to them, planting a kick in one of the Yummy's stomachs. Despite the force of her kick it only just stumbled back, she went for a few punches with a side kick on another only to yelp when it grabbed her despite her assault. She managed to shove it off before getting away from the mummy creatures.
"Okay, Crescent Rose let's go," She brought out her weapon in its rifle formation, shooting against the Yummy's several times only to lower her weapon in shock when she saw the shots were barely affecting them.
[BURST MODE!]
Tsukuyomi got to Ruby's side and quickly shot several powered up blasts at the Yummy's, despite them being knocked over they were still raring to go as they unnaturally got up.
"Stand back," Ruby put her arm in front of Tsukuyomi defensively before shifting her weapon to its scythe formation.
Tsukuyomi could only give a nod before backing up, realizing that Ruby was about to go full hunting mode.
Ruby drew out Cross-Z's Ridewatch before slotting it on, rushing in as she readied her weapon. She then used the recoil of her weapon to launch herself forward as she leapt up, spinning mid air as she approached the Yummy's.
[CROSS-Z! KAMA KAMA CUTTING!]
An eastern styled dragon formed from blue energy erupted from Ruby's bladed as she began slicing into the Yummy's, the dragon circling around and crashing against the foot soldiers as she landed and continued to spin and slash with her scythe. Spinning further she broke past the grouping, the dragon exploding in a fiery display.
To her and Tsukuyomi's surprise, the Yummy's fell to the ground before their bodies began breaking apart into silver medals, revealing a bunch of thugs covered in medals.
"They were people?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"They were people?!" Ruby called out.
"They were pathetic people," A voice called as suddenly a multicolored blur shot past the rose themed rider, claws slamming into her chest as she cried out.
Ruby fell to the ground as one of her blank watches ended up coming loose, dropping near the pile of medals.
The culprit landed on the other side, it being Another OOO, King. "Pathetic people who thought they're place as a group were worth anything. But I chose to give them a better chance, as my subjects. Sadly they could not truly fulfill their duties."
Tsukuyomi's eyes widened, "Another Rider?"
"Okay what is with our luck on these guys?!" Ruby called out, a bit surprised by how more direct they were starting to get.
"Show a King some proper respect, I am the one true OOO, the one who will rule over as King and ascend into Godhood!" King called out as he spread his arms out.
"Another King…" Tsukuyomi gave a slight groan.
"Another King…? To continue to say such things in my presence… you deserve a punishment worse than death," King growled out as he began to walk towards Tsukuyomi. He gave a light chuckle when he felt Tsukuyomi's attempts at harming him with her Faizphone X. "So weak… to think you dare stand against me."
"Get away from her!" Ruby called out as she rushed forward, slamming her scythe into the Another Rider's shoulder. She was surprised at his durability, a few medals flew from the attack, but otherwise he stood still.
"Learn to respect royalty you lowly warrior," King hissed out, pushing Crescent Rose off of his shoulder before turning and swiping, slamming both claws into Ruby's chest. The huntress rider cried out as she fell to the ground from the strikes.
"Ruby!" Tsukuyomi called out before wincing as she was grabbed by the wrist, King having closed in before taking out a silver medal. "You will learn respect young lady."
Suddenly a screech was heard; a flat grey and red accented hawk-like machine shooting towards King and Tsukuyomi. It's presence in flying around and trying to distract the Another Rider working as Tsukuyomi managed to get free.
"Away you pest," King called out as he slammed the mechanical hawk towards the ground, it clattering next to the fallen watch and medals, sparking as the trio of objects began to glow.
Tsukuyomi meanwhile ran over to Ruby, helping the Rider up. "Are you alright?"
"He hits hard," Ruby groaned out as she held her chest.
"Enough distractions, time to-" King was interrupted yet again by several silver objects flying at high speeds, striking him in the chest and causing massive damage. He yelled out as sparks flew, several silver medals falling from his body.
A woman with long brown hair, in a white business blouse and a grey skirt with black heels was the culprit. She was currently holding a hefty grey gun that was held with both hands, it having yellow accents and a similar capsule motif to Goto's belt.
"You two, get inside now!" The woman gestured towards her vehicle, a white convertible with its roof down.
"Eh, who are you?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"No time, we need to go!" The woman argued as she took off the auxiliary grip, revealing it to be a pod for holding medals. She backed up to the back seat of her car and scooped up some more medals that were lying in an open case, loading them into the gun before returning the grip to its resting place. She continued to fire on King who yelled out as he was struck.
"Enough!" King yelled out as he sent a slash of energy the woman's way, just barely missing her and the car.
[TAKA WATCHROID! TAKA!]
Suddenly a similar hawk-like device flew towards the Another Rider, it being watch shaped this time. However unlike the other one this one suddenly lit on fire.
[FIRE HAWK! MOE-TAKA, TAKA!]
The fiery watch hawk slammed into Another OOO several times, managing to force him to take a few stumbles backwards.
"I have no idea what that is but we should get going!" Ruby called out as she pushed herself up, dismissing her transformation before rushing for the woman's car. Tsukuyomi quickly hurried after her, the two getting in as the woman got in as well.
King growled out as he swiped at the Taka Watchroid, unable to land a clean hit as it began spitting fire pellets out at him. "Hold still!" He called before hearing the screeching of tires, he turned to see his opponents fleeing in the convertible. "Why you…"
"That was too close," Ruby sighed as she relaxed just ever so slightly in the front passenger seat.
"Okay, now can you tell us who you are?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"The names Erika Satonaka," Satonaka answered. "I work for the Kougami Foundation, I was on my way to meet with you two and explain things in a calmer manner but it looks like that Another Rider beat me to it."
"Wait, you know what an Another Rider is?!" Ruby asked.
"But how…?" Tsukuyomi questioned.
"My boss is heavily invested in the four of you, which is why he sent Goto and I to pick you all up after Another OOO formed," Satonaka explained as they began to reach their destination, the Kougami foundation. "If we're lucky then they're already here."
To both of the girls' surprise, they arrived at a large building towering above them in record time, a sign outside holding the name Kougami Foundation. The two stared up at the building, wondering just who this Kougami was and what exactly his stake against Another OOO was.
"Happy Birthday to you…!" The same man that had confronted King via video call stood from behind a desk, having the same suit on but this time with an apron. This was the man behind the Kougami Foundation and the one who had summoned the four here, Kousei Kougami. And currently in front of him was a white cake that held the katakana for Rider in Zi-O and Roze's visor shape alongside Geiz's Hiragana in his visors shape.
Sougo and Geiz were unsure of what to make of the man before them, Goto having sat down with a stoic but knowledgeable expression. The elder Rider had seemingly been through this same song and dance multiple times, as if it was habit at this point.
"I've brought them boss," Satonaka walked into the spacious office with Ruby and Tsukuyomi in tow.
"CONGRATULATIONS!" Kougami suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs causing the trio of Riders and Tsukuyomi to jump back in surprise. Goto and Satonaka hadn't even flinched in the slightest, Ruby glancing at them and wondering just how used to this they were.
"Uh…" Ruby trailed before seeing the cake. "Why is there a cake with our Rider Faces on it?"
"He's celebrating," Goto answered.
"What I want to know is how you even know about us," Geiz crossed his arms as he walked closer to the desk. "So what gives?"
"I'm a very big fan," Kougami admitted as he turned the monitor on his desk over, pressing a button as it began to replay most of the fights the group had been through since the start. "You're arrivals at this point, in this era, deserve a celebration! The 20th Heisei Rider, Zi-O! His compatriot Geiz! Last but not least, the Rider who connects two worlds with her existence, Roze!"
"W-Wait you know I'm not from here?!" Ruby questioned.
"Eh?" Goto glanced at Ruby before looking over to Kougami who had changed the footage.
It was labeled as November 1st 2017, a golden flash occurred in the night sky as everyone would soon see Ruby falling onto a roof.
"I was actually going to offer you a job here had you not made any progress in a month," Kougami admitted. "I've had experience in wormholes spitting out people to places they don't belong before. But then well, you met this young man who I felt a great aura from, a great desire from! And low and behold, he has become a Kamen Rider!"
"A great desire huh? Yeah, I guess you could say that," Sougo admitted. "I want to be a King!"
"Wonderful!" Kougami called out.
"Not wonderful!" Geiz slammed his hands onto Kougami's desk. "He becomes the most wicked and evil Overlord of all time!"
Kougami slammed his hands on his desk, staring intently at Geiz before backing up and giving a smile, "The birth of all things, good or evil, is still a thing of beauty, something I wish to celebrate. If his wish is to become an Overlord then I shall respect his desires. So long as they do not get in the way of my own desires, then I shall let him do as he pleases." He began to grow more serious as he spoke. "But speaking of my own desires… the one thing I desire the most is Another OOO's defeat."
Ruby was a bit surprised by Kougami's mentioned of a job, wondering if there were plenty of options for her future if she didn't end up meeting Sougo. But the talk about the Another Rider ended up breaking her from those thoughts.
"Okay, so that brings us up to speed then without having to explain anything," Ruby realized. "The question is who this Another OOO is?"
"He called himself a King, the one true OOO," Tsukuyomi mentioned.
"That… would be my ancestor from several centuries ago," Kougami admitted as all eyes were on him now. "He was driven by one thing, desire, and so he created OOO trying to become a God in the process. It failed, and I tried to pick up where he left off. Needless to say things grew complex, but I will not abandon my work to continue to make use of desire itself!"
"When you put stuff like that, it makes me second guess which side you're on," Tsukuyomi admitted.
"I can vouch for him, he was a bit sketchy, still is, but he's doing this for the betterment of mankind," Goto replied.
"Okay so when did this King OOO exist?" Geiz asked. "We'll go back in time and stop him before he even has a chance to do anything."
"Geiz, as much as I love that plan given we've used it the past two times… I'm pretty sure in this case we'd alter history heavily." Ruby admitted. "Plus how can an Another Rider last that long without drastically changing things?"
"He can't," Kougami replied. "You see, him becoming an Another Rider back then would have already heavily altered history. No, he had ended up dying, becoming a coffin to monsters of desire during his final gambit to become a God. I suspect his will was so strong, his desire so great, that he transcended time and space. So much so that his spirit came to this point in time right now, and became an Another Rider in the present day."
"How can you be so sure?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Behold," Kougami switched the footage once again, this time of the research facility that ended up on the news. Everything playing normally in the main research center until suddenly Another OOO popped in out of nowhere, striking the medal containers and absorbing the Cell and Core Medals.
"That's incredible, a currently alive ancient King!" Sougo called out with excitement.
"Okay so we're dealing with the original OOO and something tells me he's not OOO," Ruby pointed towards Goto.
"I'm not, I'm Birth," Goto said as he suddenly received stares from the newcomers. "What? Given him, that shouldn't have been a surprise." He gestured towards Kougami.
"The true OOO, Kamen Rider OOO, should be arriving shortly," Kougami replied. "Luckily he was in the city and not out of country. We'll need him here to make it work, right?"
"Pretty much," Sougo admitted.
"Ah Kougami," A voice called from the entrance as a man entered, having messy brown hair, wearing pretty loose fitting traveling clothes as well. He gave a surprised face though, "Oh, I heard that I'd be meeting new Riders but I didn't expect them to be here already."
"Who are you?" Geiz asked.
"Eiji Hino, Kamen Rider OOO," Eiji introduced.
"Perfect!" Sougo quickly pulled out a blank Ridewatch and handed it to Eiji. "I'm Sougo Tokiwa, Kamen Rider Zi-O." He then gestured to Geiz. "That's Geiz who is well… Geiz, Ruby who's Roze, and Tsukuyomi."
"It's nice to meet you all," Eiji gave a smile.
"Ah right," Ruby quickly drew out another blank Ridewatch, tossing it over to Goto who caught it. "Hang onto that."
"Uh, sure…" Goto said as he looked over the blank watch.
"Ah, right," Eiji quickly pulled out a silver watch with red accents, it unfolding into the Taka Watchroid. "You all have watches, does this belong to you?"
"I've never seen a Gadget like that before," Geiz stared.
"Ah, Birdie you came back!" Ruby squealed as she rushed over to take it back.
"Ruby you know what it is?" Sougo asked.
"I have no idea how it formed but it's really cool," Ruby admitted as she held it up in her palms.
"It bears some resemblance to the Taka Candroid." Goto mused. "Perhaps a combination of the Candroid's and your Watches was what created it,"
"Ah!" Ruby realized. "That's right I dropped a blank watch near some of those silver coins, and then the birdie that helped us when Ms. Satonaka came got sent tumbling that way."
"Eh, you were near Cell Medals?" Eiji asked as the Taka Watchroid began flying around.
"What fun," Kougami smiled. "The Cell Medals acted as a bonding agent between the Taka Candroid and blank watch, creating new life, Happy Birthday!"
"Will you cut it out with the Birthday's?!" Geiz shouted.
"Uh, Kougami… sir," Eiji started, "Why exactly did I need to meet the new Riders? And why exactly am I here specifically?"
"It is because… a monstrous twisted version of you has appeared, an Another Rider. He is also your predecessor," Kougami explained simply. "He also manifested at the facility where you left most of your medals alongside the other ones you most recently acquired via Foundation X and took them all."
"Foundation X?" Geiz muttered.
"…Even Ankh's?!" Eiji nearly shouted in shock.
"Ankh?" Ruby and Sougo repeated.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't stop him or get the Medal back," Goto admitted, already having had a first taste of what power Another OOO had. "He was too strong for Birth."
"Goto… I'm not going to blame you," Eiji sighed before ruffling his hair. "We had no way of knowing this would happen."
"Ankh…" Sougo muttered again.
"So where does that leave us with normal combo's?" Eiji asked.
"The TaToBa Combo Medals you have in your possession," Kougami listed. "Plus there are the BuraKaWani Medals and PuToTyra Medals. Both of which have been spread through my Foundation across the world." He added, the newer Riders noting the light shiver Eiji made on the mention of the last set. "And finally, Yadokari, Mukada, Hachi, and Ari."
"Eh?" Eiji tilted his head at the last four.
"You finally completed them?" Goto asked as he stood up.
"At least one set, thanks to the Foundations research regarding Core Medals we pilfered last year." Kougami smiled. "Consider it a present for all of your hard work, Eiji."
"That's good to hear," Eiji said, while he was fine with his standard form, having extra medals wouldn't hurt. At the very least creating new Core Medals meant that there was a chance for Ankh now. But that was when it clicked for him. "Uh, Kougami sir where are they?"
"…" Kougami said nothing and just smiled.
Goto gave a sigh as he walked over to the desk, grabbing the Zi-O Team cake and putting it on the coffee table before grabbing the knives, forks and plates. He began carefully but quickly cutting into the cake, giving everyone a large slice. It wasn't long before a piece of wax paper could be seen as what was underneath cake, four colored circles underneath. Removing the wax paper, Goto revealed centipede, bee, ant, and hermit crab medals.
"Incredible," Eiji said as he grabbed them immediately.
Ruby could only stare at Goto as he was doing this though, "Uh…"
"He does this a lot, I figured once there was no present box that the cake itself was a present," Goto explained. Satonaka meanwhile sat comfortably on the couch before grabbing a fork and eating her cake.
"So I think we can definitely do this," Sougo admitted.
"Mukade, Hachi, and Ari will give you a new Combo; Yadokari was designed to be a Random Combo medal for certain situations." Kougami explained to Eiji.
While Ruby was tempted to dig into the cake, everyone's thoughts were suddenly broken as an alarm on Kougami's monitor sounded. It wasn't long before they managed to get a video feed of what was going on, King as Another OOO was marching towards the Kougami Foundation with a legion of Waste Yummy's.
"You all know what to do," Kougami stared intently towards the group.
"We can't beat him without the Ridewatch, but we can at least try and push him back," Ruby explained.
"Then let's go," Eiji said, him and Goto bolting out the door with Geiz, Tsukuyomi, Ruby and Sougo following afterwards. Sougo though slowed down through the halls when he saw Woz.
"Woz!" Sougo smiled, it was starting to get a bit weird not having him pop up immediately so he was glad to see that the chronicler was still observing.
"I noticed from afar, do you have an interest in this ancient relic who claims to be the one true king?" Woz asked.
"Well, it's not every day you get to meet a living legend," Sougo admitted. "Even if we have to fight and stop him, it'll be an interesting experience I think. Plus I can't exactly have this King steal my own thunder." He finished before hurrying off after the others.
"Impressive my Overlord," Woz smiled. "You've come to realize the nature of your situation."
"To realize how much the world has changed through the era's. But now it is my era once more, with my ascension as king, and soon… my ascension as God!" King called out as he walked with confidence. While he was annoyed by his previous encounter, he decided not to let it get to him too badly. So he figured it would be best to nip any potential issues in the bud for his next course of action.
As he continued to lead his Yummy's towards the Kougami Foundation's main building, he began to come to a crawl as the grouping of Riders and Tsukuyomi showed up. The Time Riders had their Ziku Drivers already on, while Goto had his Birth Driver on, Eiji having yet to take his Driver out.
"Oh, I see my descendant has brought out his attempt to dethrone me," King mused with a light chuckle. "Do you really think you can defeat me?"
"I'm not a fan of anyone that calls themselves king," Geiz got out first.
"You… I can't allow you to abuse the power of the Medals any further," Eij gave a light glare as he took out the OOO Driver placing it on his waist and locking it in place with the strap.
This had ended up giving King a bit of a light shock to see what he used in the hands of someone else. But he also felt disgust. "So you… you are my successor… pitiful," King spat out as he saw Eiji, just the aura around the successor made him sick. "When I'm done here, I'll be taking back the rest of OOO power."
"You won't be doing that," Sougo called out this time as he, Ruby and Geiz activated their Ridewatches and slotted them into their Ziku Drivers. Goto flashed a wrist strap with a Cell Medal in it before taking it out and dropping it into his Driver's coin slot.
Eiji meanwhile took out Core Medals, a red hawk, yellow tiger, and green grasshopper. He slotted in the hawk and grasshopper medals into their respective side slots before slotting in the tiger in the center. He tilted the Driver before taking out a scanner, swiping it across all three.
"Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME!]
[TAKA, TORA, BATTA!]
*POP*
[KAMEN RIDER ZI-O!]
[KAMEN RIDER GEIZ!]
[KAMEN RIDER ROZE!]
[TA-TO-BA! TATOBA, TA-TO-BA!]
The trio of Time Riders stood as their suits formed around them, the Katakana and Hiragana shooting out and flying back in to latch onto their faces.
Rings of medals surrounded Eiji, three stopping vertically revealing Hawk, Tiger and Grasshopper before forming a singular medal that held all three symbols, it slamming into his body and creating a predominantly black bodysuit, having the same animal features that Another OOO did but in a more refined fashion. Eiji had taken his transformation as the real Kamen Rider OOO.
A large capsule surrounded Goto as multiple smaller ones formed at his chest, back, shoulders, forearms, thighs and shins, forming green and white capsules embedded in silver armor over a black bodysuit. His helmet held a similar capsule motif as well, fully completing his transformation into Kamen Rider Birth.
"If you intend to obstruct my path from sovereignty to sanctity, then you'll find no mercy!" King declared as he barred his claws. "So you all must be the brats that the kid mentioned… I will enjoy the look on his face when I slaughter you all effortlessly."
"Go ahead," Goto said as he took out the same weapon Satonaka had used, the Birth Buster. He loaded it up before firing at the horde of Yummy's, managing to strike and force a few of them down.
"We'll cover you," Ruby said as she took out Crescent Rose in gun mode, this time aiming for the Yummy's joints as she fired in tandem with Goto. The duo had managed clear a path towards King as a result.
Geiz however rushed in immediately, "I could care less about clowns like you all!" He jumped and kicked, managing to strike King in the chest.
The Another Rider only stepped back before swiping forward, his claws scratching against Geiz's armor and forcing him back. Geiz tried to move forward when King's eyes glowed a bright blue, unleashing a torrent of water from them and straight into Geiz's face, the Rider sputtering and staggering back.
"Geiz, don't rush forward!" Sougo called out.
"Don't you dare try and boss me around!" Geiz snapped, drawing his axe and slicing against a few Yummy's that turned and closed in to take advantage of his staggered state.
Eiji glanced between the two before drawing out a black and blue rimmed sword with a clear center revealing a blank inside. "Return those medals!" He called as he began swiping at King. When the Another Rider blocked the slash with his claws, Eiji kicked against his gut to force him back.
"You talk as if they're yours…" King scoffed as he slammed his foot into the ground, creating a tremor to try and trip up Eiji.
Eiji quickly used his grasshopper feet to leap over King, turning and slamming his weapon into the Another Rider's back. A glowing cut was formed and Eiji quickly dug his hand in only to get smacked away. He had managed to grab the grey mammal medals, Rhino, Gorilla, and Elephant.
"Give them back!" King called out.
"You may have commissioned them, and given them life… but you aren't the one who will use them now!" Eiji called out, holstering them in his belt straps medal holder before taking out Yadokari and replacing the center medal with it.
[TAKA, YADOKARI, BATTA!]
His arms retained the same black bodysuit but this time he had light blue shell-like shoulder pads, and hermit crab shell styled gauntlets with large armored gloves over his hands, a hermit crab being on the center of his chest instead of the tiger.
"A new Medal…?" King questioned before giving a hiss, clawing out towards Eiji.
"You want it?" Eiji asked as he braced against the claw with his right shell shaped armored forearm, the claw being blocked. He then pushed it away before swiping left forearm, the pointed shell striking at King's chest, sparks flying as the Another Rider was sent staggering back. "Take it!"
Sougo jumped in bringing out his sword and slashing against the Another Rider's back. What he wasn't expecting was King to spin and smack his sword right into his face. Sougo winced as he stepped back, holding his blade at the ready.
"Get out of my way kid," King warned.
"I'm not just any kid, I'm going to become a king one day," Sougo countered as he pointed his blade at King.
"Like I'll let you interfere with my rule, only one deserves to crush everyone against their feet and become a God," King explained. "And that is me, it is my right."
"Don't you want subjects, those to adore you?" Sougo asked, figuring he'd relate more towards the ego of King in his questions. "Why crush everyone in your path?"
"If they get in my way, which they all will, they deserve to die because of their foolish decision," King answered. "But because my goal is godhood that matters not, when I rule over the world as a deity I can create the perfect followers."
"So, you don't care about helping others?" Sougo asked.
"Why should I help them when they'll be gone in the end?" King questioned. "Replaced by what I choose to create."
"I see…" Sougo said as he lowered his weapon, grasping it with both hands as he switched it to its gun mode.
Geiz meanwhile managed to escape the Yummy's he was thrown into and rushed back into battle, shoving Sougo out of the way.
"Don't even think about contemplating his words!" Geiz growled out as he slashed at King with his axe. To his surprise the Another Rider blocked with a claw, Geiz wincing as he was struck in the stomach by the second claw which was suddenly filled with electricity. "Fine then," He threw his weapon to the side before taking out the Genm Ridewatch. "Ego vs. Ego, let's see who comes out on top."
[GENM! ARMOR TIME!]
Geiz yelled out as he rushed forward, the Genm Armor latching on as he punched at King. Despite his punch being caught he slammed his armored foot into the Another Rider's gut.
[LEVEL UP GENM!]
King gasped out as he was forced back, growling as he gathered energy in his claws, releasing slices of energy towards Geiz.
Geiz crossed his arms, suddenly sinking to avoid the attacks, in actuality a purple video-game styled pipe formed underneath him. It then disappeared before reappearing behind the Another Rider. Geiz leapt out of the pipe and slammed his fist into King's back, sending the Another Rider staggering forward.
King turned and swung his arms around, only for his arm to hit against Eiji's hermit crab shelled arms. Geiz rushed in to go for another punch as Sougo began firing at the still ruler.
The Another Rider was not about to be beaten so easily however, using his grasshopper legs to leap and avoid another swipe from his successor.
Geiz had ended up running into Eiji, the two ended up being blasted by Sougo as a result.
"Ah! Sorry!" Sougo called out as he yelped when King landed in front of him, getting his weapon batted away before getting clawed in the chest. Sparks flew as he yelled and took a few steps back.
Ruby noticed the trio were fairing pretty badly, "Sougo!" She called out, quickly ducking underneath a Yummy. "Damn," She realized she'd have to focus on her current situation.
Ruby and Goto's distraction had worked out well, but the two were swarmed with Waste Yummy's as a result. And despite Goto having dealt with them before, Another OOO presence was somehow amplifying their durability.
Ruby had switched her weapon to its scythe mode, going for wide swings to help Goto who was fighting the old fashioned way once his Birth Buster ran out of ammo.
"Don't you, I don't know, have something other than the gun?" Ruby asked.
"I don't like to waste Cell Medals, they aren't exactly easy to come by," Goto said as he pulled out a Cell Medal and slotted it into his Driver. "Not to mention they're permanently used up unlike Core Medals. But…"
[DRILL ARM]
Suddenly a bulky boxed arm with a blue stripe and a drill attached to the end popped out of the capsule on his right forearm. He then began to use the drill against the Yummy's, managing to strike the ones close to Ruby as she kept them back with her weapon.
"I suppose I don't have a choice!" Goto called out.
Tsukuyomi was at a loss for what to do; everyone seemed to have their own opponent. And all she was really doing was standing around waiting for the result. She sighed before giving a more determined look, taking her Faizphone X and aiming.
[BURST MODE]
Her weapon shot out several red beams that struck the outer mob of the Yummy's. They didn't seem too affected despite losing a few Cell Medals. They then turned and began to make their way towards her.
"Come on," Tsukuyomi aimed her weapon and began shooting at the Yummy's, despite her doing damage their durability was winning out as they approached. "Come on work!"
"Huh," Ruby glanced and saw the stray Yummy's. "Sorry Birth but I got to go!" She jumped up, using her recoil to launch her higher as she used Petal Burst to launch herself downwards. Managing to just barely initiate a finisher with one hand she shifted Crescent Rose to its War Scythe formation, the blade pointing straight.
[FINISH TIME! TIME BLAST!]
Ruby quickly struck the epicenter of the stray Yummy's with the tip of her scythe, releasing a red shockwave that unleashed red rose petals everywhere. The Yummy's were struck by the finisher, groaning out before exploding.
Ruby sighed in relief before hurrying over, "Tsuki are you okay?"
"I'm… I'm fine," Tsukuyomi lied as she glanced downwards.
Ruby was ready to say something when she heard an explosion nearby, she turned and saw King having forced the trio of Riders facing him backwards before grabbing both Sougo and Geiz. She then looked over towards Goto who seemed to be having issues with the Yummy's. Realizing that Goto needed the help more, she knew her decision.
"Alright, just hang… back," Ruby gave a wince as she finished her sentence, sighing afterwards and not liking her choice of words. Quickly thinking she used Petal Burst to launch away from Tsukuyomi and towards the Waste Yummy's.
Eiji winced as he began to get up, realizing that despite having him on the frontlines, King was still in a league of his own. He drew out the blank watch briefly and gave a sigh when he saw that it didn't change. He put it back before taking out the combo Medals that Kougami had given him. "Alright… let's go."
Replacing his trio of Medals he tilted the Driver before scanning the new ones.
[MUKADE, HACHI, ARI!]
Eiji readied himself as the trio of Medals popped up in front of him, combining into a singular medal before latching onto his body, fully transforming him.
[MUKACHIRI CHIRICHIRI! MUKACHIRI CHIRICHIRI!]
Eiji kept the same base bodysuit as prior, this time though he had a purple centipede themed head, the tail sticking out and forward from the top. He had yellow bee themed forearms, his right having a stinger and the left having a honeycomb shield. Lastly his legs had thin grey armoring that resembled ants.
"Whoa… it really is a full combo," Eiji called out, not only in the announcement but a familiar feeling filled him yet again as he felt powered up.
"…More new Medals?" King questioned as he let go of Sougo and Geiz, smacking them away.
Eiji meanwhile looked himself over, trying to figure out what kind of abilities these insects would even give him. He barely had time to react though as the Another Rider closed in. He quickly raised his shield, energy forming and creating a larger barrier that caused King's swipes to bounce off.
Using that to his advantage Eiji jabbed repeatedly with his stinger armament, the strikes managing to create several sparks as the Another Rider staggered back. Surprisingly green spots began to form on King's body, Cell Medals trickling out from the spots.
"W-What…?" King gasped out as he felt the poison eating away at his body. "What is this?!"
"Poison," Eiji realized as he looked at his stinger, he pumped his fists. "With this I can destabilize his body."
"Impossible…" King gasped out as he held his chest.
"There's still one I need to get," Eiji concentrated as his head glowed, the centipede tail lengthening before launching out.
It snaked around King before jabbing into the side of his stomach, the Another Rider gasping out. "What…?"
"Come on, get it!" Eiji pleaded before feeling a pulse in his body, he quickly pulled his head back. The centipede tail retracted from King's body, leaving the Another Rider spewing out a few Cell Medals as it made its way back to Eiji.
Eiji held his hand out as the tail dropped a single medal in his hand; he gave a light gasp though. It was the broken Taka Medal, but the Medal was no longer split in half, the halves were back together. But despite being a singular medal again it still had some cracks in it. The Rider gripped the medal tightly before scanning his medals again.
[SCANNING CHARGE!]
Eiji felt his legs tingling as a grey swarm of insects began gathering around his legs, jumping up he kicked out towards King, his centipede tail shooting out and spiraling around his body to help deal more damage.
King braced as he held his arms up, hoping to try and knock Eiji back. That was until… he realized everything had gone silent and static filled. He lowered his arms as he soon saw the green tinted world that was the Time Jacker's time stop.
"Time… Jacker!" Geiz growled out.
"We can't have you losing this round," Uhr skipped over to King, having taken matters into his own hands. He figured that stopping them before destroying the Another Rider the first time would be a good way to throw them off balance.
"I must admit boy, you impress me with your abilities… you would make an excellent retainer." King chuckled before giving a yell, using his desire to replicate more Cell Medals in his Greeed-like body, patching it up and ridding himself of the poison. He then began gathering energy in his claws before swiping towards Eiji. The energy slashes stopped mid-flight due to being affected by the time stop.
"I'm rooting for you, King," Uhr gave a smile before disappearing alongside time resuming.
Eiji yelled out as he collided with the slashes, slamming onto the ground. Thankfully due to being mid-finisher he had enough energy to where he was able to hold his transformation. He gave a groan as he sat up, but gasped as he searched his hands and medal holster. "Where…" His heart skipped a beat when he saw the cracked Taka Medal on the ground in front of him.
"Hmm," King walked over and picked up the damaged Core Medal, looking it over. "I knew there was something peculiar inside me." He gave a chuckle as he held it up to the sun. "So Ankh, this is the state you've been reduced to."
"Give… give that back!" Eiji called out as he barely managed to stand.
"Oh?" King's eyes glowed alongside the medal, chuckling further. "I see, so he was your retainer… and yet your relationship seemed like more. Perhaps I shall give you your wish." He said as he suddenly stabbed his free clawed arm into himself, gasping out.
"Wait, what?" Sougo tilted his head.
"Is he hurting himself?!" Geiz questioned.
"No…" Eiji shook his head.
King gasped further as he ripped off a chunk of his body, Cell Medals pouring out alongside the Peacock and Condor Medals that were in him. As his body regenerated he dropped the Taka Medal into the pile of medals, the trio of red bird medals glowing as the Cell Medals began to take shape.
A humanoid monster with bird features formed in a predominantly red color scheme formed, having a yellow and green gradient across certain portions. It had the features of a hawk, peacock and condor but managed to meld the trio of birds together well. It held a black belt buckle with a missing circular center. But the strange part about its hawk-like head was that parts of the front and the whole right side were missing, bare purple wrappings in its place.
Eiji began to breathe heavier as he saw the creature before him. He then noticed that the right hand was still fully intact. "Ankh…" He named the monster before him.
Ankh glanced towards Eiji but said nothing, slowly walking towards him.
"Ankh," Eiji repeated before hunching over with a yell, "Ankh!"
Ankh said nothing as he continued to walk towards Eiji, holding up his hand as bright red flames began to form.
"So that's Ankh…" Sougo trailed, he knew something was wrong given Eiji's reactions earlier and then now.
"Another opponent and OOO himself is freezing up…" Geiz trailed as he didn't realize what Eiji was attempting to do by calling Ankh's name. He gripped his wrist and flexed his fingers.
"Geiz…" Sougo trailed, already seeing how this was a bad idea based on Eiji's reaction. When he saw Geiz moving forward with raised fists he immediately caught up and grabbed Geiz by the wrist, "Geiz!"
"Listen here," Geiz turned towards Sougo before forcing him to let go. "I'm not going to be listening to your orders anymore. I've been dancing to you and your bodyguards tune since Ex-Aid, I'm taking matters into my own hands." He turned and rushed forward, initiating his finisher.
[FINISH TIME! GENM!]
"No, no, no!" Sougo called out as he quickly brought out the Build Watch to don his armor.
Geiz jumped up and kicked out towards Ankh, purple energy gathering around his foot.
[CRITICAL TIME BURST!]
[ARMOR TIME! BEST MATCH BUILD!]
"Geiz you aren't doing this!" Sougo yelled out as he jumped up and lunged forward, initiating his finisher.
[FINISH TIME! BUILD!]
Suddenly the straight white graph from the Build Armor finisher blocked Geiz's path, causing him to clash against it.
[VORTEX TIME BREAK!]
Sougo then yelled out as he slammed his handheld drill into Geiz to send him away from Ankh and Eiji. In his brash thinking though he hadn't ended up angling himself properly, tumbling to the ground along with Geiz, Sougo losing his Build Armor while Geiz ended up losing his transformation.
"Geiz!" Tsukuyomi yelled out.
"Wait, what just happened?!" Ruby questioned, she had turned away to help Goto finish up the last of the Yummy's when she suddenly saw Eiji about to be attacked and Sougo hitting Geiz out of a finisher that was seemingly meant to help Eiji.
"What the hell are you doing, Zi-O?!" Geiz coughed out as he gave a glare towards Sougo. "That monster is an enemy that the Another Rider created! It's going to kill OOO, our only chance!"
Sougo shakily got up before shaking his head, "No, that's not a monster." He said as he turned towards Ankh and Eiji. "That's a friend."
Eiji was snapped out of his shock when he saw Sougo stop Geiz. "Ankh…" He rushed over to Ankh and grabbed him, "Snap out of it! I know you're in there!" He called out before gasping as he was backhanded in the face. He fell to the ground, the blank watch tumbling next to him. He gritted his teeth before grasping the watch tightly, it pulsing from his touch.
"That's no friend that's a monster!" Geiz yelled out before wincing, holding his arm as that had taken the brunt of the damage from Sougo's attack.
"No, that's his friend." Sougo called out.
Ankh said nothing as he held his hand out, flames forming as Eiji ran towards and tackled him while still gripping the watch.
"Open your eyes and come back Ankh!" Eiji yelled out as flames began to suddenly form in his hand, a bright burst of red coming from the Watch as it transformed into a pure red Ridewatch, the base, casing, and button being different shades of red. The face it held was a more regal and enhanced Taka Head with red eyes.
The watch began to glow as Ankh gave a gasp, holding his head as he began to grunt in pain.
"Ankh…" Eiji looked at the watch that had formed, noticing it wasn't of his TaToBa Combo he wondered if this was something else entirely. Deciding to risk it he lunged in, taking Ankh's hand and forcing him to hold the watch. "Ankh, I'm here!"
[TAJADOR COMBO!]
Ankh continued to gasp and moan in pain as the watch sunk into his hand. He suddenly yelled out as he unleashed an invisible wind, forcing Eiji back as two bright spectral bird wings formed behind him, the wings having the same gradient that his body had.
"Will a reunion be at hand?" Woz asked no one in particular as he sat in the black void yet again, staring at the scene of the fight from his book. "An ancient king and a future king, two trying to co-exist in this era but it is futile. A new era calls for only a single ruler. Whose rule will reign supreme? And will our Legend be able to help them this time?"
To Be Continued…
Next Time:
"Then perhaps we should initiate the change."
"Do you really think he'll make it?"
"It is a pleasure to meet ones with such desire as yourselves."
"What your capable of doing doesn't matter… it's what you want to do that's important."
"The world doesn't need two kings!"
"Welcome home..."
Chapter 11: Time Judged All 2018
Author's Note: Glad to see that people enjoyed the Interlude Chapter, I've got a few ideas on some more but for now let's talk OOO. This was an arc I was excited to do since this is one of the more drastically changed ones due to the absence of Dan Kuroto as Another OOO. Instead I've replaced him with the King OOO. This was mostly stemming from the Final Stage of OOO where the kings desire was so great, he ended up transcending time and space and started traveling to different AR OOO worlds. So I figured, let's take this concept but have him arrive at the future to claim a more corrupted variant on the power he wielded.
Writing this arc was also around the time that Memory of Heroez started showing off some more stuff in regards to OOO. When I found out that Mukachiri was getting its own playable appearance I felt the need to bring it into play as a unique OOO form. I mostly went off what I saw from trailers for the first draft of the fight, before adding in some more stuff once I actually played the game. The background for how the Medals were made was also a nod to the lore in MoH. I also included Yadokari since it was the only new medal unveiled recently that didn't have a dedicated combo, so it worked since I wanted to include at least one mismatch combo.
In regards to Memory of Heroez itself, I may end up doing an Arc relating to it. As it stands with certain things I have planned and have done, I can't do a one for one recreation of it. But I'd still be able to likely make an arc out of it with all the other ideas remaining.