Rider Time Zi-O: Roze from Remnant
Chapter 108 – 2019: True Kiva's Supernova
Woz was currently running through the streets of Tokyo, going down the same path that both Sougo and Tsukuyomi had taken. He didn't have his book open but he still felt the need to narrate despite the urgency. Not only that but everywhere seemed to be dulled and frozen in time, Woz utilizing his special narrative abilities to hasten his arrival.
"There now remain two Watches that Tokiwa Sougo must collect," Woz said between breaths as he continued to rush forward, "While Miss Rose, Polendina, Belladonna, and Xiao Long are off world, we've managed to run into a few issues as the second to last Legend Rider makes himself known to us."
He turned a corner, not even needing to see where he was going as he dodged out of the way of a pole that anyone else would've ran straight into.
"Another Kiva appeared, but we soon got wrapped up in a young woman's sisterly dilemma due to the appearance of Dark Kiva. While trying to search for her sister, she was separated from us and as a result we split up as we tried to deal with rogue monsters that also popped up," Woz explained, "However this case goes much deeper than we thought… and these seemingly random events are all connected to each other… so I can only hope I'm not too late now that we have a better idea of what's going on."
Earth – Mid June 2019
Dark Kiva yelled out as a dark aura surrounded him before bursting off, explosions occurring all around as he watched his opponent charge forward.
Zi-O continued to yell as he didn't let the explosions deter him, leaping up and soon kicking out at Dark Kiva who awaited his kick with open arms.
Dark Kiva waited for Zi-O's leg to come closer before moving his arms inwards at the last second, batting the Rider's leg down before grabbing Zi-O by the throat with his left hand.
Zi-O choked out as he grabbed onto Dark Kiva's left arm with his right arm before chuckling.
"What's so funny?" Dark Kiva asked as he pulled Zi-O in close.
[RIDER FINISH TIME!]
"This," Zi-O said as he used his free hand to initiate his finisher before rotating his Driver, pink energy gathering in his left hand as he punched forward.
Dark Kiva gave a gasp before growling, unleashing black and green electrical energy outwards to try and fry Zi-O before he could.
[TWICE TIME BREAK!]
Zi-O yelled out and punched, withstanding the electrical shocks as he nailed Dark Kiva directly in the chest. The resulting energies clashed against each other and exploded outwards, both Riders rolling away from the ensuing explosion.
Despite this, both managed to keep their transformations. The two then slowly but surely picked themselves up as they got in fighting stances.
"You can just stand down now," Dark Kiva suggested.
"Not happening," Zi-O replied, "I can do this all day."
"Well you've got the confidence and power," Dark Kiva remarked before yelling out and charging forward.
Zi-O yelled out and charged forward, reeling back as he saw Dark Kiva do the same. He then punched forward, meeting Dark Kiva's fist as the two tried to overtake each other's punch.
"…My Overlord!"
Zi-O turned in surprise, wincing as his fist was pushed back slightly, "Woz?!"
"The two of you must stop at once!" Woz shouted, "It has all been a misunderstanding!"
"Finally," Zi-O groaned out as he quickly hopped away from Dark Kiva who stumbled forward.
"What?" Dark Kiva asked.
"Your brother gave us what finer details he could of the situation," Woz stated to Dark Kiva, "Honestly, why not explain from the start?"
"Because I don't need the help," Dark Kiva growled out as he began to approach Zi-O.
"Okay, good, someone who can tell us what's going on," Zi-O sighed in relief as he held a hand out towards his opponent, "Can you at least let Woz…" he paused as he looked underneath him, a blood red version of Kiva's sigil appearing beneath both of them, "Huh?"
"Huh?" Dark Kiva looked down.
The two Riders looked up at each other and quickly rolled out of the way as the sigil exploded, both gasping out and rolling backwards due to the force from the blast.
It wasn't long before a horde of Rat Fangire began leaping into the warehouse, either busting through windows, jumping in from the entrances, or coming out of whatever hiding places there were.
Woz let out a gasp as he readied Ginga Taiyo, dodging out of the way of a swipe, "Henshin!"
[HEY-YO! TAIYO! GINGATAIYO!]
Woz's transformation kicked in as he braced with his arms to block the swords of the Rat Fangires that slashed at him. He released bursts of fire from his hands to force his opponents back.
Zi-O and Dark Kiva meanwhile began dodging out of the way, punching and kicking in retaliation.
"These grunts," Zi-O said as he began looking around, "Another Kiva?"
"As I was saying my Overlord," Woz spoke up, "It's-"
"I have not been waiting all these years just for some wannabe to steal the reveal of my revenge."
Zi-O paused as he forced a Rat Fangire's arms down, "That voice…"
Walking out of from behind some cover was Yasuko with a red leather coat in her arms, being accompanied by Bassha and Dogga. In a swift motion she put the coat on before untying her hair while pocketing her glasses, making her look just like her sister Rin Kitamura. While she hadn't transformed or brought out an Anotherwatch, just her presence being ignored by Bassha, Dogga, and the Fangire was enough to confirm her status.
"So you finally reveal your true colors," Dark Kiva hissed out as he backhanded a Rat Fangire before spinning around and kicking another one away, "Just like your sister, you seek to dethrone me and my brother while taking it for yourself…"
"Wait, Rin?" Zi-O asked in surprise at the outfit change.
"No my Overlord," Woz shook his head before gesturing forward as he stared at Yasuko, "You do indeed look just like your sister, Yasuko Kitamura, or rather Another Kiva."
"Yasuko…" Zi-O spoke softly before realizing something, "Wait, what happened to Tsukuyomi?"
"She's just knocked out, don't worry," Yasuko admitted, "I had heard from the one who gave me more power that she was a nuisance. So I was glad she was the one to follow you that way I could easily catch her off guard."
"Smart," Woz muttered in a near impressed tone as he blocked another Rat Fangire before kicking it away.
"So everything you talked about, everything you said… it was a lie?" Zi-O questioned, hurt by the betrayal but this was also his chance to get a read on what Another Kiva was about finally.
"I may have smudged some details, but I was honest about most things," Yasuko admitted with a sad smile, "Dark Kiva is an executioner, and he was after me because of my sister…" she trailed off before looking up with a glare, "…Since I wish to get revenge for what him and his brother Kiva did to her 9 years ago!"
"What?" Zi-O asked before recalling Dark Kiva's words from earlier, "Wait…"
"Go ahead and tell those Riders how you killed her in cold blood! How she did nothing wrong and you just killed her with no remorse!" Yasuko shouted, continuing to glare as her eyes began to water up, "How you took away my only family right in front of my eyes!"
"Yasuko…" Zi-O muttered.
"I wasn't sure if I could before… but now with the power I was given I know for sure," Yasuko bitterly smiled as she narrowed her eyes despite the tears, "I will become a Queen and make it so that people like my sister aren't trampled over by the royal bloodline of the Fangires that should have been extinct ages ago!"
[KIVA!]
It wasn't long before dark energy bats began circling her as stained glass printing formed on her cheeks and neck, the bats converging to transform her into Another Kiva.
Another Kiva hissed out as she walked forward only to pause when she saw Zi-O step in front of Dark Kiva with his arm held out, "What are you doing?"
"Don't do this Yasuko," Zi-O shook his head, "You won't feel any better if you fully go down this path!"
"Shut up!" Another Kiva yelled out as she gripped her chest, "Do you even know what it's like to have your family taken away from you?! Do you know the feeling where your life is completely taken out of your hands and crushed by the whims of those with more power?!"
"Of course I do!" Zi-O shouted in near anger, surprising the two Kivas before him. He recalled how at a young age he was powerless to stop Swartz from doing as he pleased, but he knew that needless revenge against the Time Jacker leader would solve nothing, "But revenge isn't going to help you get through this. Is this even what your sister would-?"
"Do not dare bring her into this…!" Another Kiva nearly screamed out as she stepped forward before aiming her fingers towards Zi-O.
It wasn't long before all the Rat Fangires groaned before shattering, their shards suddenly gathering together into a single clump that suddenly began to burst forth with energy. The energy began to grow larger and larger until fully erupting and forming a massive chandelier-like monster with mechanical arms and a long neck with a skull-like face attached to it.
The result of summoning this massive creature was that it instantly tore through most of the roof of the warehouse, its arms extending outwards and completely destroying the upper side walls of it.
Dark Kiva gasped as he backed away from the falling debris, "A Six Pillars Sabbath?"
"I feel like we're blowing up more warehouses lately!" Zi-O yelped as he dodged out of the way, Woz quickly getting nearby and unleashing a few fire blasts to destroy any stray debris, "Thanks Woz!"
"There is no need to worry my Overlord," Woz held his chest briefly, "None of us in this story need to truly be bothered by or how often these damages occur."
"Destroy them, my beast!" Another Kiva shouted as the Six Pillars Sabbath roared out, unleashing dozens of fireballs out. This resulted in massive explosions all around the three Riders.
Dark Kiva yelled out as several had impacted near and against him. The result had forced him out of his transformation as the Kivat that maintained his armor clattered away from him. He could only gasp out, his clothes charred as several cuts and bruises could be seen on him.
Woz meanwhile had managed to form a miniature sun around himself and Zi-O as a shield, the two being relatively protected within it.
"Taiga Nobori, Wielder of Kivat Bat the 2nd," Another Kiva stated as she walked forward and snatched the dazed Kivat.
"What are you...?" The Kivat gasped out before yelling as Another Kiva unleashed electrical pulses, his body falling limp as she gripped it tightly, "Ugh…"
"With the power of Dark Kiva… I can finally be rid of you and your brother," Another Kiva stared down at Taiga and aimed her free hand at the fallen Rider, "Now then…"
"Garulu Saber!"
The Garulu Saber was launched forward, spinning and slicing into Another Kiva, sending her to the ground before it was recalled. Kiva soon leapt into view in a crouched state, his left arm now blue and wolfen themed while having blue eyes and a blue chest with silver fangs encroaching on it. Even Kivat's eyes had taken on a blue coloration.
Another Kiva yelled out as she rolled across the ground before hissing out, "You… so that's why I couldn't bring Garulu back."
"Sougo!"
"Zi-O!"
Both Weiss and Geiz rushed in from the opposite side, the two having their weapons at the ready as Geiz was in his base form for the time being.
"Where's Tsukuyomi?" Geiz asked as he looked around.
"Try and find her!" Zi-O shouted, "She got separated and knocked out!"
"On it," Geiz called out as he rushed off deeper into the warehouse.
"Stop this Yasuko," Kiva said as he stood up straight, his form reverting to normal as the Garulu Saber transformed back into the Arms Monster it was formed from. The Rider then walked over to Taiga to check on him before looking at his Another Rider counterpart, "You don't need to do this."
"Oh I do," Another Kiva said stubbornly before holding up a hand, "However for now I can see that my plan didn't work out. I can't allow myself to be shattered by any of you… not until my sister's avenged."
"Do you really think we'll let you walk away?" Taiga growled out as he tried to stand only to wince and fall, "Especially after you took such an important servant from me?!"
"Brother, stay calm, you're not in any condition to fight right now," Kiva said as he tried to keep Taiga still.
Taiga let out a hiss, "But!"
"Brother, please," Kiva insisted, "You're just as important as he is, and I don't mean as a King either."
Taiga stared at Kiva before glancing away, "Fine…"
"What a beautiful sibling bond…" Another Kiva muttered as a tear dropped from her eye, trailing down her cheek, "One that I wish I could still have…"
"Yasuko…" Weiss muttered as she had managed to catch what was said.
"I'll at least hold out some foolish hope that my pet can deal with you all," Another Kiva spoke up and turned to walk away. Dogga and Bassha disappeared in bursts of lightning and water respectively before Another Kiva turned into a multitude of bats that launched out through one of the entrances.
The Six Pillars Sabbath roared out as it began charging up more energy to launch at the Riders.
"Looks like we'll have to call Castle Doran," Kivat spoke up as Kiva nodded, the Rider ready to draw out the method to do so from the holsters on his belt when his wrist was grabbed.
"Allow me to take care of this," Woz said politely as he stepped past Kiva, "We cannot afford to dilly dally now that our enemy is known to us."
"Very well," Kiva nodded, deciding to move back to help his brother.
[FINALLY! BEYOND THE TIME!]
Woz floated upwards as flames began to gather in the palm of his right hand. He raised it up but in an instant a large ball of light with heat comparable to the sun appeared over his raised hand.
"Behold the intensity of the sun," Woz stated before throwing his hand forward, "And disappear!"
The Six Pillar Sabbath roared and launched its fireballs out at the sun projection only for them to easily be dispersed by the intensity of the attack. It could only roar out as it was engulfed by the attack, its body being burned to a crisp and turning into ashes as a result.
[BURNING SUN EXPLOSION!]
Surprisingly there was no explosion, only the bright flash of the attack disappearing as ashes were the only things that remained of the gigantic monster before them.
"Dang," Zi-O said as he went to dismiss his transformation as Weiss hurried over.
"Are you alright?" Weiss asked.
"Yeah, thankfully," Sougo nodded, "What about you?"
"Well as you can see," Weiss gestured towards Kiva, "We had a bit of help after you left."
"I see," Sougo said as he watched Garulu walk off while Kiva walked over and dismissed his transformation, "So you're Kiva, right?"
"Yes," Wataru nodded, "Wataru Kurenai, it's a pleasure."
"It's nice to meet you," Sougo said as he held up a Blank Ridewatch, "Mind holding onto this?"
"Sure," Wataru nodded as he took the device.
Geiz meanwhile was searching for any sign of Tsukuyomi. When he heard she was unconscious he got extremely worried given the damage the Six Pillars Sabbath had done to the entire area. He feared the worse and quickly began looking around.
"Come on, where are you…" Geiz muttered as he looked around, "Tsukuyomi!"
A light groan was heard, with Geiz quickly rushing over. To his surprise, he saw that Tsukuyomi was still unconscious but somehow unharmed. There were debris near her but she didn't seem like she was hit by any of them. Oddly enough, and something that seemed weird to Geiz at least, was that there were small piles of sand around her.
"Tsukuyomi…?" Geiz asked as he dismissed his transformation and hurried over, shaking her, "Hey, are you alright?"
Tsukuyomi let out a murmur as she was slowly drifting back into consciousness. As she did however she received another strange memory flash.
The strange white eyed and red bodied monster from an earlier memory was currently kneeling down, and she was standing in front of it.
"My princess you need not worry, I will always protect you…"
Tsukuyomi gave a light gasp as she was startled awake at this before remembering what had happened. She could only groan as she held her head, recalling that Dogga had managed to knock her out.
"Hey, easy," Geiz said as he gently grabbed onto his friend to calm her, "You're alright."
"Right… I am…" Tsukuyomi nodded slowly as she began to sit up. Admittedly now that the shock had passed, she was curious about what the memory flash she had meant, "What's going on?"
"Too much," Geiz sighed, "We'll explain on the way."
"Alright," Tsukuyomi said before tensing up when she watched Garulu approach, "Geiz…"
"Huh?" Geiz looked over, "Oh it's fine… Kiva managed to get him back on our side."
"Our side…?" Tsukuyomi asked, "So you mean those three monsters that showed up were being controlled?"
"Something kind of like that," Geiz said.
"You two ready?" Garulu asked as he shifted back into his human form of Jiro, though compared to his formal outfit at the castle, now he was wearing an outfit of black leather components, his jacket having fur on the collar and wrists, with a red shirt underneath, "When it comes to those with family and the concept of revenge… things get messy too fast if you're too slow."
"Huh?" Tsukuyomi tilted her head at this.
"Again, we'll explain everything in a bit," Geiz sighed.
Cinder was currently staring at the city before her, sitting on a ledge as she glanced at her Roze Anotherwatch. The cracks were still there but she could tell after the quick procedure, her powers were stabilized for the time being.
"So," Uhr said as he walked over, "Did it work?"
"It didn't fix this," Cinder held the Anotherwatch up while not looking back, feeling it being grabbed from her but not bothering looking back, "You've got any ideas?"
"No clue," Uhr admitted as he tried to pour some of his power into the Anotherwatch though that didn't fix the cracks, "Seems like you'll need something more to fully fix this."
"Roze's power…" Cinder muttered as she was handed back the Anotherwatch before pocketing it, "That being said I want to test out what you've given me."
"I was going to suggest that regardless," Uhr admitted, "After all, you can't exactly let that Another Kiva run around, right?"
"She's a threat to my position," Cinder growled out, "What was Ora thinking?"
"Clearly she wasn't," Uhr said and chuckled a bit at his comment before clearing his throat, "Either that or clearly she thinks she can do better than you and Finis."
"Well I suppose it's time to shut her up," Cinder gave a devilish smile.
Upon gathering everyone up, Wataru had led the group not to the main castle of the Fangire, but his home that he had inherited from his father, Otoya. Once everyone had settled in, Wataru went to explain why exactly Yasuko was targeting both him and Taiga alongside the truth behind it all.
"That's insane…" Geiz replied, "This is entirely a misunderstanding."
"I'll say," Weiss said as she had just finished using her Recovery Card on Taiga while Tsukuyomi helped bandage him up.
"Did you all even try to explain the situation?" Woz asked.
"That's kind of hard when she suddenly just shuts down and refuses to see anyone," Taiga called out in slight annoyance, "Any attempt at trying to tell her just caused her to run off."
"We figured that giving her space to grieve might be the best thing to do," Wataru admitted, "I did attempt to explain to her the situation when some time had passed, but… she simply called me a liar and told me to never show myself to her again."
"Ouch," Sougo winced, "Given what she saw though…"
"Yeah, unless you have solid proof then you can't exactly tell her what she saw was wrong," Geiz agreed.
"Such is the drama of the Fangire," Jiro said as he lounged about, "When it comes to things like this… the cycle of hate is strong… it is a destructive and mindless beast that can consume all without warning…"
"Is he always like this?" Tsukuyomi asked as she raised an eyebrow.
"He doesn't get out often," Wataru chuckled sheepishly, "Even if we've relaxed on their contracts the prior King had set up…"
"Like I'll go out when my favorite cup of coffee nosedives," Jiro sighed as he stared out the window he was near in melancholy, "Seriously that was a good cup… and then the new management kicked in…"
"That kind of problem huh…" Sougo trailed in disbelief.
"I feel as though we should get back on topic," Woz said, "How exactly do we go about this?"
"The only thing that we can do is have a direct confrontation now that her secret is out in the open," Sougo answered before thinking a bit on the events that led them to this point, "Admittedly her plan is kind of ingenious… draw both us and Taiga out, get us into a position where she's the victim and then basically tell us the minimal truths while taking advantage of Taiga's personality to pretty much go straight into conflict…"
"I'm not sure if we should be praising her for us nearly fumbling over ourselves," Weiss deadpanned.
"If someone showed up sooner…" Geiz looked over at Wataru.
"S-Sorry about that," Wataru apologized, "It's because brother was very insistent and tried to keep me from finding out."
"Thankfully dad is usually reliable in making sure we have info," Kivat spoke up.
"So the bat thingy Yasuko took is your dad?" Sougo asked before speaking up again, "You know aside from the coloration the resemblance is pretty strong."
"Why thank you," Kivat spoke up in a bit of pride before growing slightly angered, "But he's not a bat thingy! He's a Kivat, just like me!"
"How do you all even differentiate yourselves anyway?" Weiss asked, "Do you have particular names or…"
"Oh he's Kivat Bat the 2nd, while I'm Kivat Bat the 3rd!" Kivat answered.
"Generational Titles it is then," Weiss said in near deadpan before looking over at her boyfriend, "But what was that about a direct confrontation?"
"We need either Wataru or Taiga to act as bait to draw her out," Sougo replied, "Then when she arrives we all fight her at once and get rid of her Another Rider transformation."
"Can Taiga even still fight?" Geiz questioned.
"I wasn't only just Dark Kiva," Taiga called out before giving a wince and holding his side, "Damn…"
"I wasn't referring to you transforming," Geiz remarked.
"Brother, please leave it to me," Wataru reassured before looking around, "Do you all have anyone else we can call on?"
"It's just us for the time being, sorry," Sougo apologized before thinking along the same lines, "What about you all?"
"Unfortunately it's likely just me," Wataru admitted, "The only other Rider is Ixa and all the users are currently unavailable."
"Huh, so Nago and Megumi actually took that vacation?" Taiga asked in surprise, "Even Kengo's unavailable?"
"I believe he's also out of town at the moment," Wataru replied with a nod.
"Huh…" Jiro heard this as he glanced over at the conversation before fully standing up and walking off, "I'm going to get some air before we do anything alright, but don't wait up for me…"
"Odd," Woz noticed that Jiro seemed to purposely leave, curious as to what the last of the Wolfen was planning.
"The Riders we have should be good even if it's not the most ideal," Sougo replied, "Plus we have a Huntress with a really good Semblance so I think we'll be fine."
"Given the other monsters don't seem as fast as Jiro then I should be fine," Weiss admitted before giving a light frown at how many close calls she's had recently. Of course she wasn't aware that Sougo had noticed her frown.
"How do we draw her out though?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"I have an idea actually," Wataru raised his hand as he walked over and held up a violin case, "Aside from assisting my brother whenever I can with Fangire business, I do have my professional job as a violinist."
"I knew you seemed familiar when you introduced yourself," Weiss snapped her fingers in realization as she broke out of her funk briefly, "Wataru Kurenai, the famous violinist. I've listened to a few of your concerts that were recorded, you play a lovely violin."
"Ah, thank you…" Wataru blushed a bit at the compliment as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"So what's your plan?" Geiz asked.
"I can put up a sudden show to draw her to my location," Wataru explained after brushing past the compliment, "Have the stage set, literally, for us to confront her and end this."
"How can we be sure she'll show up?" Woz asked.
"I'll send her a personal invitation," Wataru replied, "Thanks to her sister's actions, we've sort of kept tabs on her and know where she frequents. So we'll just send the invitations to those places and hope she's at one."
"That's good and all but we've got an issue," Geiz admitted.
"And what would that be?" Woz asked.
"She's a Fangire," Geiz said as he looked around the room, "Do you really think when we defeat her as Another Kiva that we'll be out of it yet?"
"I haven't known you for long but you're speaking the most sense here," Taiga said as he looked over, more specifically at Wataru, "I understand the idea of defeating her but what's to stop her from continuing after the fight ends?"
"That's true…" Wataru said as he looked down, realizing what his brother was implying.
"She needs some kind of closure," Geiz added as he stepped forward and stared directly at Wataru, "Which is why I need a specific date and time, now."
Yasuko was currently in her sister's apartment in the bathroom, washing her face as she thought over her next move. Her plan to turn the Riders against one another had failed. But even she had to admit her subterfuge had been hastily made from the get go. Her original plan was to simply draw out Kiva and Dark Kiva before taking their Kivats and gaining ultimate power. But as cruel and dangerous as it was to pull off, she wanted to have more fun when it came to dealing with the Kiva brothers.
"I must admit I'm impressed," Ora said as she was leaning on the door frame that led out of the bathroom, giving a smirk, "You managed to trick those guys good. You're just lucky there were only so many of them otherwise it would've fallen apart faster."
"Don't worry, I plan on finishing this by the end of tonight," Yasuko said as she stared at the mirror in front of her, giving an almost fond smile when she saw how her current look reminded her of her sister. This only had her determination grow stronger, "I've already taken Dark Kiva's power. You'll not only get your Queen when I get Kiva's power but you'll also be getting the Queen of the Fangire. The Ultimate Queen if you will…"
"I do hope that's not bravado," Ora said as she turned away, "Don't make me regret giving you this power."
"I will not fail, not when I'm so close," Yasuko smiled further, it growing from soft to sadistic in only a few short seconds, "Get ready Kiva…"
Earth – June 15th 2010
It was a rainy night on the 15th of June in the year of 2010, though there was one bright spot despite the clouds and downpour. That bright spot however ended up opening up into a time portal as the Geiz Unit Time Mazine launched out of it. It wasn't long before Geiz landed the Time Mazine in a discreet location as he checked the time.
7:33 PM
"About thirty minutes until it happens…" Geiz said as he rubbed his wrists a bit and looked at the downpour going on from the cameras of his Time Mazine, "I should have brought an umbrella…" he then worked on getting the Time Mazine's temporal cloaking up before taking hold of the Taka Watchroid and Kodama Suika Arms, "Now then…"
Earth – Mid June 2019
Everyone was currently minding their own business around Wataru's manor, though when it came to interactions, Taiga was off the table. The brother of Wataru and wielder of Dark Kiva made it clear he didn't intend to get too friendly around everyone. That made it especially hard when Wataru had to currently plan the setup they'd have for the bait while Woz had chosen to vanish for the time being.
"Hmm…" Sougo hummed a bit.
"You okay?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Worried a bit about Weiss," Sougo admitted in a low voice as Weiss was currently on the lower level of the manor, "She seemed a bit down."
"I think it might be because of the fights but I'm unsure," Tsukuyomi replied, "Maybe you should go talk to her?"
"You really think she'll let me know?" Sougo asked.
"Sougo, if there's anyone she's going to open up to it's you," Tsukuyomi reassured, "If you're worried about not getting the Kiva Ridewatch, then let me talk to Wataru… I kind of wanted to talk to him anyway."
"Huh, okay," Sougo nodded before walking off with Tsukuyomi, heading down to the lower levels before finding Weiss.
"I'll leave you two be," Tsukuyomi said before heading off to search for Wataru as she wasn't noticed by Weiss.
"Hey, Weiss," Sougo spoke up.
"Huh," Weiss was lost in thought, having been practicing summoning her standard Glyphs in her hands when she heard Sougo. She turned and looked over, "Sougo? Is something up?"
"That's what I should be asking you," Sougo said as he walked over, "You seem nervous about something."
"Less nervous and more frustrated," Weiss admitted, "My Semblance is my best asset next to the Chalice Arrow, and yet my defense with it is severely lacking."
"Oh, was this about when the hammer almost hit you?" Sougo asked.
"Not just that, Jiro was tearing through my shields left and right," Weiss admitted, "It reminded me of the Battle of Haven, except fully focusing on defense now unlike back then didn't help this time."
"Well…" Sougo trailed in thought before snapping his fingers, "I'm not sure if this will work, but there's something you could try."
"And what would that be?" Weiss asked, a bit skeptical when it came to combat advice from Sougo.
"The best defense is a good offense," Sougo explained, "Maybe instead of going for full defensive with them then you should counter with an attack instead?"
"Instead of defense I should attack…" Weiss muttered as she thought about how she'd even implement that. Projectiles and parrying seemed like the only option since her Glyphs were essentially shields when it came to the shape… shape… the shape of her Glyphs, "That's it…"
"Huh?" Sougo looked in surprise.
"I think I've got an idea," Weiss said as she hugged Sougo, "Thanks."
"Hey, I'm just glad I could help," Sougo smiled at this as he hugged back, "So you think you're good for tonight?"
"Of course," Weiss said before noticing a picture on one of the counters that were downstairs, "Wait…"
"What?" Sougo asked as he watched over to the counter before following. His eyes widened however, "Wait…"
The two were looking at one of the few pictures Wataru had of his father, except the man in said picture looked a lot like Kazumi Sawatari, Kamen Rider Grease.
"Ho… I see you two found a picture of Wataru's father," Kivat said as he was hanging upside down from a ledge that was above the counter, "Otoya Kurenai."
"Wait, really?" Sougo asked as he looked down at the picture, "He looks like a friend of ours."
"Yeah, this guy named Kazumi," Weiss said, "They look strikingly similar."
"Well there are urban legends that do say everyone has a doppelganger of themselves," Kivat mused.
Tsukuyomi's search for Wataru led her outside, the Rider having gone to call in a few favors to get the venue ready for the staged battle he was to have.
"Yes, yes thank you," Wataru said as he began to finish up his call, "I appreciate you getting this all together for me on such short notice," he said before noticing that Tsukuyomi was approaching, "I'll leave the preparations to you, bye."
"Was I interrupting?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Not at all, I just got finished," Wataru shook his head, "Did you need something?"
"I'm curious admittedly," Tsukuyomi started, "Mostly on the whole arrangement between you, your brother, the Fangire in general…"
"Oh right, well my brother and I are heirs to the previous King and Queen from 1986," Wataru explained, "I knew that my brother would be targeted if he became King. Fangire society can be rather brutal on those within it. I took up the role so he wouldn't have to… even if that came with its own set of problems…"
"I see," Tsukuyomi nodded.
"Eventually we decided to make it to where we'd both be active as King's in our own ways," Wataru explained as he looked up to view the late afternoon sky, "My brother would enforce the laws, and I'd try whatever I could to help. He also had it arranged to where this would be the first to have two active Kings as a precaution against rogue Fangire. That way even if one of us fell, they'd still have to deal with another one of us before fully taking the throne."
"Huh, so then…" Tsukuyomi started to speak up but paused as she thought on her next words carefully, recalling the memory flash she had just gotten and although she was jumping to conclusions based on one word... she needed to know, "Did you… were you ever shocked to know you were part of a royal bloodline?"
"Honestly, yes," Wataru admitted, "I had lived my life barely knowing anything about my past or my lineage. I only knew so much, and then the entire world opened up further and it scared me… I made some hasty decisions… regretful ones… stupid ones… and I nearly lost myself through it all…"
"It must've been rough," Tsukuyomi said.
"No matter how bleak or terrible it looks, things will get better," Wataru reassured as he put a hand on her shoulder instinctively.
"I suppose so," Tsukuyomi nodded, "How were you able to get through it?"
"I had good friends supporting me," Wataru explained with a fond smile, "Even if I was too stubborn and tried to keep them out of my heart."
"I see," Tsukuyomi said as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before smiling, "Thank you. I think I've got a good answer out of that."
Wataru smiled back before feeling something warm in his pocket, "Huh?"
Tsukuyomi backed away as Wataru drew out the Blank Ridewatch, only now the base of it was pure black with a yellow dial and button that held Kiva's face on it.
"The Kiva Watch," Tsukuyomi said, "It looks like we have a better way to defeat Another Kiva now."
"A better way…?" Wataru asked as he held it out.
"My friends' stronger forms can defeat Another Riders, but they're very powerful," Tsukuyomi explained as she took the Ridewatch, "An Armor Time meanwhile gets the same job done but it's weaker. If we want her to survive then I need to be the one who lands the final blow on her."
"I'll leave it to you then," Wataru said before realizing something, "I am curious on something though."
"What would that be?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Why exactly ask me that earlier question?" Wataru asked.
"Just curiosity I suppose," Tsukuyomi lied as even though she knew why she asked, she was going off a blind guess, "You see my friend Sougo's dream is to become a King and Kamen Rider, though he wasn't born into the role… I think. I just wanted to compare your experience out of curiosity."
"Ah I see," Wataru chuckled, "I suppose that isn't too farfetched of a goal given my brother and I…"
"Yes," Tsukuyomi said before hearing her Faizphone X ring, "Hello, Geiz?"
"Hey…" Geiz spoke up, "I got what I need, and I'm heading back."
"Geiz, is everything alright?" Tsukuyomi asked, noticing the more reserved and quiet tone.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Geiz reassured, "We just need to make sure and show this to Yasuko before she does something she regrets."
"Of course," Tsukuyomi said, "See you soon."
Yasuko had been left alone by Ora and was currently lounging about and wondering how she was going to go about taking care of her business. She stared at the inactive Kivat Bat the 2nd and knew she would use his power when the time came. But the issue was trying to figure out where exactly she would enact her revenge.
Her thoughts were interrupted however when she heard the doorbell of the apartment ring and the sound of something being slipped underneath the door. Immediately she stood up and stood at a ready stance, waiting for anything… only to drop her guard when nothing happened for a straight minute.
She walked over to see if there was anyone still by the door when she saw an envelope that had been slid through.
"What's this?" Yasuko asked as she picked up the envelope and drew out a letter, reading it as she narrowed her eyes before a smile crossed her lips, "So this is where you wish to end it… very well…"
That Evening…
(Insert: 渡– Kamen Rider Kiva OST)
The stage for the fateful confrontation had been set, it being held at an outdoor stage as the sun began to fully set and the night sky began to overtake the city. Of course lights had been set up so that the stage and seating were properly lit.
However there was only a lone man on the stage with no extra equipment so to speak but a violin case. It was Wataru and he was currently staring at the empty stands that surrounded the main stage. He didn't say anything as he opened up the case and brought out his personal violin, closing his eyes as he got in position.
Despite this entirely being a setup, Wataru was completely immersed in his performance as he kept his eyes closed and continued to play his heart out. While only having the violin and the outdoors likely not being suitable for playing it, the violin was able to echo out despite it all, its music penetrating all around as it managed to shout out into the night.
Of course, as he played he was seemingly unaware that his invitation had been answered. Yasuko had arrived at the edge of the stands, staring down at the stage as she had a manhole cover in her hand. She stared long and hard at Wataru who didn't even seem to notice her. So choosing to use this as a chance, she lifted up the cover before tossing it forward.
The whirring of the manhole cover was drowned out by the violin that Wataru played, it growing closer and closer… until it stopped suddenly. Glitch effects began to form from it as the cover had been frozen in time.
Yasuko could only step back in slight shock before narrowing her eyes, watching as Sougo, Geiz, Tsukuyomi, Woz and Weiss all walked out from the backstage area. Tsukuyomi had her hand held up as she was the one who had stopped the manhole cover. With a swing of her arm she unleashed an invisible pulse that launched it back and sent it clattering into a couple of seats.
Wataru continued to play his song, slowing down steadily once he had heard the clattering. He looked up to see Yasuko and lowered his violin.
(Insert End)
"I suppose it's time we end this tonight," Yasuko said as she walked forward and down the stands towards the stage, "I see your brother isn't here… trying to protect him?"
"I'm just as much a part of this as he is," Wataru answered, "But…"
"But…?" Yasuko tilted her had in confusion.
"There's something we want you to see," Geiz said as the Taka Watchroid and Kodama Suika Arms both activated, the two hopping around as they transmitted data to Tsukuyomi's tablet before she brought out a holographic projection.
Yasuko's eyes could only widen as she saw the date the footage was captured. It being…
2010/06/15
8:01 PM
Rin Kitamura was able to be seen leading a several men and women in suits down the street. All of them had umbrellas to protect them from the rain. The group had made their way to the main base of operations that the brother Kings of the Fangire were set up at. It wasn't long before the rain began to die down for a moment, calming enough for the group to cast their umbrellas aside.
Standing before her group was both Wataru and Taiga, the two already transformed into Kiva and Dark Kiva. Though for Wataru, his transformation as Kiva was different. It was a bright mirror to Dark Kiva's as it was primarily gold with red accents and bright red eyes.
Rin transformed into the plant themed Thorn Fangire as the other members of her group transformed into various Fangire forms of their own. The footage sped forward as the two parties rushed towards each other to meet in battle. Despite their odds, the two Kivas easily decimated Rin's Fangire forces despite being outnumbered. A few relentless attackers were completely shattered, while those who didn't have the nerve to keep fighting ran off. The footage had finally gone back to normal speed just as the battle reached its conclusion.
Rin however stood defiantly until her legs gave out on her, falling to her hands and knees as she reverted back to her human form.
Dark Kiva went to step forward only for Kiva to grab him by the shoulder.
"No," Kiva shook his head, "There's been enough loss tonight."
Dark Kiva turned towards his brother, "But!"
"She's done, let's go," Kiva said before walking away.
Dark Kiva said nothing before giving a nod and walking off with his brother.
"Damn it… I will not let you two continue to lounge about and ruin our race's chance to grow!" Rin yelled out as she managed to fully stand and transform into her Thorn Fangire form before yelling and charging forward. She brought out a blade and coated it in red energy as she slashed at the two brothers.
Kiva gave a gasp and pushed Dark Kiva to the ground while trying to defend with his Zanvat Sword. Despite this, sparks flew as he was struck, his sword being flung into the air as he fell back. Dark Kiva saw this and yelled out in near anger, leaping and grasping the sword once he could before dropping down with a slash.
"Brother, wait!" Kiva shouted as he held a hand out.
Dark Kiva yelled out as he dropped down, slashing through the Thorn Fangire's sword and slicing diagonally into her.
The footage by this point had also been showing a separate screen in the corner. In the footage was a wandering Yasuko trying to find her sister, only to show her stare in horror as she arrived just to witness the tail end of what just occurred.
Kiva gasped, "Brother!"
"I'm sorry Wataru," Dark Kiva apologized in a low voice as he stepped away from the Thorn Fangire who had reverted back to her human form. He stared at the blade in his hand and gripped it tightly, "But I wasn't about to let her keep hunting us down."
"You really care about him, don't you?" Rin asked in a low voice as rain started to fall once more while she stared up in a daze, having fallen to her knees.
"What are you on about?" Dark Kiva questioned as he stared at Rin.
Kiva meanwhile walked over, "Rin…"
"Seeing you protect him with such intensity… it makes me regret what I've done tonight…" Rin continued in a low voice, it being drowned out by the rain with only Kiva, Dark Kiva, and the enhanced footage being able to hear her, "Because I've left my sister all alone…"
"I see…" Kiva said.
"I have… a foolish request if you'd hear me out," Rin gasped out as her body began to turn brittle and glass-like, "Please… keep my sister… keep Yasuko safe…"
Kiva and Dark Kiva could only stare at Rin who fully turned brittle before shattering, a single shard falling and landing on the manhole cover that she had ended up standing on upon her death.
The footage soon showed a screaming Yasuko running out of hiding from where she was and rushing over to the shard. Kiva attempted to try and offer some comfort only for Dark Kiva to hold him back, the two backing away into the night as they realized that Yasuko needed to grieve.
Playback End
"That's a lie… that has to be a lie!" Yasuko shouted as she saw the footage end, taking a step forward, "My sister… she was rough around the edges, a bit unruly, but she wouldn't do something that stupid!"
"I'm sorry," Geiz apologized, "But it's the truth that you needed to see."
"I wanted nothing more but to walk away, and I can't apologize for my brother's actions," Wataru replied as he put up his violin before staring at the female Fangire, "But she was someone so caught up in her beliefs that she'd fight us to try and get her way no matter what."
"No… I refuse to believe it!" Yasuko yelled in near anger as she began her transformation into Another Kiva.
[KIVA!]
Another Kiva hissed out as Bassha and Dogga formed beside her, though that wasn't the only thing that happened. Her eyes shined a bright green as Kivat-Bat the 2nd was summoned in front of her before slamming against her waist.
"Gaburi…"
Green waves of energy were released as Another Kiva shifted into Dark Kiva, her eyes sporting a stained glass pattern instead of the usual green. In this case they were made of yellow, orange, and red stained glass. Upon this transformation, Dogga switched into his Hammer Form while Bassha switched into his Magnum Form. The two landed in Dark Kiva's hands as she rested the Dogga Hammer against her shoulder while having the Bassha Magnum at her side.
"Servants wronged by Kiva and his allies… arise," Dark Kiva said as shards began forming beside her, soon forming two high class Fangire, the Lion Fangire and the Swallowtail Fangire.
Wataru stepped forward in surprise, "Rook and Bishop?"
"Did our plan really not work?" Tsukuyomi asked as she prepared her transformation.
"To be honest I wasn't counting on the proof making her stand down," Geiz admitted.
"She needs to let out all that pain…" Weiss said as she brought out her weapons.
"Yeah," Sougo nodded as he prepared Zi-O Trinity, "So we'll fight to allow her to release that pain!"
"Well said my Overlord," Woz smiled.
"Then let's go," Wataru said, "Kivat!"
"Let's go, Kiva!" Kivat flew around Wataru before being caught, soon biting down on Wataru's hand, "Gaburi!"
Wataru's belt was summoned as he latched Kivat onto it while the other Riders finished their transformations.
"Henshin!"
[TRINITY TIME! MITTSU NO CHIKARA! KAMEN RIDER ZI-O! GEIZ! WOZ! T-RIN-I-TY~! TRINITY!]
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN~ RI~DER~ TSUKU~YOMI! TSU-KU-YO-MI!]
The three Riders and Weiss stood together as the transformations completed, all four waiting for the signal to begin the battle.
"Slaughter them all!" Dark Kiva shouted as she rushed forward while raising the Dogga Hammer up, Rook and Bishop following after her with Bishop drawing out its sword.
The three Riders and one Huntress all shouted before charging forward as well. Dark Kiva had leapt upwards, slamming the Dogga Hammer down on Kiva who braced against it and was forced back. She was ready to move forward before bracing against several energy blasts.
"You're not just facing him," Tsukuyomi said as she was firing at the dark Rider with her Zikan Girade Tsu.
Zi-O and Weiss meanwhile went to deal with both Rook and Bishop, their fights ending up at the base of the stage near the stands while Kiva, Tsukuyomi and Dark Kiva were fighting on the stage itself.
Of course the group had an audience that had yet to reveal themselves. It was Cinder who was watching in amusement as everything went down. She couldn't help but feel some pity for Yasuko, but she figured she'd leave her to be defeated by Kiva and Tsukuyomi. That left her with two targets however, a grin crossing her lips as she drew out her Anotherwatch.
[HI-ROZE!]
Becoming a ball of fire, she launched forward and slammed into Zi-O to force him against the wall that was the base of the stage.
"Sougo!" Weiss called out before gasping out as she dodged out of the way of a swipe from the Rook.
"What?" Zi-O gasped out before watching as the flames pinning him down dispersed, "Wait, Cinder?!"
"Yes, that would be me," Hi-Roze chuckled, "I figured I'd join in."
"Idiot, we've seen your powers already starting to backfire," Geiz called out, "You don't scare us!"
"Indeed," Woz agreed.
"Oh I don't think I'll run into that problem for the time being," Hi-Roze chuckled, "So how about we have some fun?"
"We don't have time for this!" Zi-O shouted as the lettering for 'Zi-O Saikyo' launched out, striking Hi-Roze in the gut and forcing her back. The Saikyo Zikan Girade was summoned not long after, Zi-O shouting as he slashed a few times. The energy blade extended out during his slashes, forcing Hi-Roze back further.
Hi-Roze gasped as sparks flew, staggering back from the slashes, "Why you…"
Zi-O quickly turned towards Weiss who was slowly but surely being pushed into a corner by the two Fangires she was facing. He was ready to move forward when his right arm was suddenly tied up and bound to his chest.
"What?" Geiz asked.
"We're not done yet," Hi-Roze hissed out as she had formed a wire and hook made of orange projected energy, having ensnared Zi-O with it, "Not until I say we are!"
Zi-O was struggling against the energy rope, grabbing at it to try and tear it apart before pausing at what he was seeing.
Hi-Roze held out her free hand as a static image of Fourze began to glitch over her body. She formed multiple superheated glass rockets mid-air, with the rockets taking a similar shape to that of Fourze's Rocket Module.
"Hey… isn't that…?" Zi-O trailed.
"We need to defend, now!" Geiz shouted.
"On it," Woz took control of his side of Zi-O, bringing out the Despear and slicing through the energy rope with the tip of its spear formation.
Zi-O soon yelped as the rockets were all launched forward, quickly rolling as he was seemingly caught in the glass rockets crashing down and exploding.
Weiss meanwhile was so busy, despite glancing and seeing the rocket bombardment, she couldn't take her eyes away from the fight she was dealing with. Despite her remarks earlier about Jiro not being around being a good thing, she was counting on only Dogga and Bassha being active. But now she was pitted against two Fangires she had no real details on.
Realizing she needed some kind of space for a Summon she brought out two Glyphs as Rook and Bishop rushed forward.
The Fangires ended up slamming into them, bouncing off due to not expecting them. Before they could react, the points of the Glyphs themselves launched outwards before spiraling towards the Fangires. The two could only gasp out as they were struck several times, sparks flying as a result.
"I did it," Weiss smiled as she breathed a bit heavily, surprised she was able to pull the idea with her Glyphs off on her first try.
Rook and Bishop both growled out, the two ready to move forward when they suddenly felt a chill, turning and watching as Taiga was walking down the steps of the stands.
"Huh?" Weiss looked in surprise, "Taiga?!"
"Oh?" Hi-Roze looked over.
Zi-O meanwhile began to cough as he was in a kneeling stance before glancing to the side, "Huh?"
"That idiot…" Geiz hissed out.
"Brother?" Kiva asked as he held back the Dogga Hammer from Dark Kiva, giving a gasp as he was shoved away.
"You're supposed to be resting!" Tsukuyomi called out before ducking and rolling away from water blasts courtesy of the Bassha Magnum.
"I'm not about to sit around while you all fight, especially for something I caused," Taiga said as he stared forward, holding the same weapon he used while as Dark Kiva, the Jacorder, "Sagarc."
Soon enough a disk shaped bat-like creature flew into view, latching onto his waist and forming a grey strap, revealing the top of it to be a blue circle with a white spiraling snake-like design.
"Henshin," Taiga called out as he slotted the Jacorder into the side of Sagarc before pulling it out, extending the blade as the transformation kicked in.
"Henshin…"
Soon enough the armor formed before shattering off to fully reveal it. It was a Kiva themed Rider, having a black bodysuit with chains of beads snaking all around. The upper armor was white and intricate, with various colored stained glass patterns on it.
"Kamen Rider Saga," he spoke up before walking towards Rook and Bishop.
The two Fangire lackeys looked at each other before charging forward with a few growls. Saga kept walking calmly before swinging out his Jacorder, unleashing its whip form and lashing out at the two.
"He's really taking this seriously," Jiro said, leaning against the wall near Weiss.
"Yeah," Weiss said before giving a yelp and backing up once she looked over, "Where were you?!"
"Grabbing something fun from some old colleagues," Jiro said as he held out a strange half buckle with a red jewel on it, it having a belt strap already attached to it with various Fuestles holstered on the straps, "The Ixa Belt."
"But isn't there no one who can be Ixa?" Weiss asked.
"I used to be Ixa," Jiro admitted while holding up the belt before suddenly tossing it towards Weiss, "However it's not my style anymore."
Weiss was forced to dismiss her weapons, giving a yelp as she caught the belt, "What?"
"You're a capable girl for someone who isn't a Rider," Jiro said before holding out the missing piece of the belt, a gold knuckle-like device that he tossed towards Weiss, "Let's see you use that armor."
Weiss caught the device as well and stared at the belt in surprise, "I…"
"Well?" Jiro asked as he stared at Saga battling Rook and Bishop.
"How does this work?" Weiss asked almost immediately as she wrapped the Ixa Belt around her waist, manually locking it into place before holding up the knuckle.
"Press the Ixa Knuckle against anything solid, like your palm," Jiro explained, "Then slot it into the empty spot."
"Alright," Weiss said as she pressed the Ixa Knuckle against her palm.
[READY!]
"Henshin," Weiss said before slotting the Ixa Knuckle into the empty spot on the belt.
[FIST ON!]
The jewel formed a gold cross-like projection that expanded into full armor that slid back and formed over Weiss before flashing. It was white armor over a black bodysuit, various blue lining and accents alongside hints of gold and red lining the armor. It was very high tech and knight-inspired, the opposite of the Kiva style of armor's that held a very gothic and vampire-like aesthetic. It's most notable feature was a gold face plate that held a thin black visor. Until that portion flashed, soon splitting into three and revealing two ruby-red eyes behind it, heat being expelled from the armor.
Everyone paused again when they saw this, most looking in shock and surprise at the sudden transformation by Weiss.
"She can transform…?" Hi-Roze questioned.
Zi-O grinned behind his helmet as he pumped his fist, "Nice Weiss!"
"What?" Dark Kiva asked.
"I suppose that's one way of bringing in Ixa to help us," Kiva said with a chuckle.
"Hopefully it's more straightforward than Quiz was," Tsukuyomi mused.
"So that's what you were up to," Saga remarked as he backed away from Rook and Bishop and hurried over to Ixa and Jiro, "Good."
"Now we can have some fun," Jiro said before growling out and narrowing his eyes at Rook. He clawed at himself, soon assuming his Wolfen Form of Garulu, "I don't mind either of you tagging in but don't expect me to go after anyone other than Rook!"
"Then I'll take Bishop down," Saga said as he held his Jacorder out.
"Fine by me," Ixa said as she brought out her new armor's weapon, the Ixa Calibur. It was a gun with a long magazine jutting out of its grip. The new user of the Ixa system however was quick on the uptake, especially due to the technological heads up display she had in the helmet. She pushed down on the elongated magazine, pushing it through and revealing that the Ixa Calibur doubled as a blade.
(Insert: Don't Lose Yourself by Keisuke Kato)
It wasn't long before the battles started back up again, Garulu and Saga rushing towards their respective opponents while Ixa moved in to help Garulu with Rook.
Rook punched forward only to hit a Glyph and stagger back, the Glyph's edges launching out and striking it just like before. Ixa wasted no time, rushing forward and slashing past the Fangire's gut.
Garulu howled out as he grabbed onto Rook, kneeing the Fangire in the gut several times only to get smacked away, the Fangire roaring out at the Wolfen.
[BIO!]
Ixa had brought out her Chalice Arrow, still able to use it even in her Rider Form. She had used the vines from the card to ensnare Rook, forcing it into a more prone state.
Garulu shouted before rolling forward and brandishing his claws, swiping several times against Rook's chest and causing sparks to fly.
Saga meanwhile rolled to the side, avoiding Bishop blowing scale powder at him that exploded upon contact. The white Kiva themed Rider lashed out with the Jacorder, it glowing with red energy as it struck Bishop several times.
Zi-O meanwhile continued his battle against Hi-Roze, a static image of Drive starting to glitch over the Another Rider's body in a Bugster-like fashion. She then began summoning various tire constructs made of orange energy, several bearing resemblance to the Shift Car Tires of Drive.
"Okay that really clinches it," Zi-O dodged out of the way while summoning the Zikan Zax in its arrow formation, pulling back and launching out arrows to disperse the energy tires, "The Rider images and the attacks…"
"Something is clearly wrong," Woz stated.
"She should be running out of steam already," Geiz agreed.
"Like it?" Hi-Roze chuckled, "I heard that Kuroto guy was a pain in the ass but he did give the Time Jackers some fancy Legend Rider equipment. Equipment that Uhr so generously gave me."
"What?" Zi-O asked in surprise.
"Now then," Hi-Roze spread her arms out, more blue Bugster-like glitches forming over her body as an image of W began to glitch over her. She slammed her hands into the ground and unleashed a whirlwind right underneath Zi-O, launching him up into the air.
Zi-O yelped as he was launched upwards, managing to just barely get his bearings as he dropped down.
"Got you," Hi-Roze said as an image of Wizard began to glitch over her before she brought out an orange magic circle. She gathered fire in her hands before launching the fire through it, unleashing a powerful stream of flames via the magic circle.
Zi-O quickly brought out the Zikan Jaclaw in its saw mode, thrusting downwards and unleashing its special attack.
[NOKO SETSUZAN!]
The saw of the Jaclaw grew larger and larger, easily cutting through and splitting the fire stream as Zi-O fell further and further. He then held out his free hand as he broke through the fire stream, bringing out the Despear in its spear mode and stabbing down once he was close enough to Cinder.
[YARISUGI!]
Hi-Roze just barely raised her arms in time, gasping out as she was struck and sent staggering back, "Perfect…"
"We're finishing this now," Zi-O said as he initiated his finisher, projections of his base form, Geiz and Woz appearing from behind before entering his body to power himself up.
[FINISH TIME! ZI-O! GEIZ! WOZ!]
Zi-O ran forward as Hi-Roze formed glass shields over her arms, Kabuto in Masked Form appearing over her briefly. Zi-O yelled out as he punched forward, managing to strike a glancing blow and slide past Hi-Roze. Despite this he gathered what energy didn't get expended in his leg, spinning around and performing a roundhouse kick.
[TRINITY TIME BREAK BURST EXPLOSION!]
Hi-Roze had just barely turned in time, the explosive kick slamming against her shields as an explosion occurred. The Another Rider gasped out as she was sent skidding backwards while her shields shattered, her arms and head dropping.
"I see…" Hi-Roze chuckled as she managed to fully straighten up, a surprised Zi-O turning to face her, "So I managed to just barely survive that…"
"You don't sound that angry," Geiz remarked.
"Of course I'm not," Hi-Roze replied as she held back a laugh, "It's clear that Roze RWBY is near or on the same tier as that one… meaning if I survived, I can finally pay back Ruby for that humiliating defeat."
"You really think we're going to let that happen?" Zi-O asked.
"Like I'll let you catch me," Hi-Roze slammed her hands into the ground, cracks traveling towards Zi-O before steam was unleashed all around. Zi-O quickly ran forward and out of the stream only to find no sign of Hi-Roze aside from a bright orange spot flying away from the area at high speeds.
"She's really good at running…" Zi-O remarked.
"Too good," Geiz said, clearly frustrated.
(Insert End)
Dark Kiva yelled out and slammed Dogga into the ground, the hammer unleashing shockwaves that forced Kiva and Tsukuyomi to duck and roll back to avoid falling over. Before they could fully stand, the dark Rider had aimed at them with Bassha, unleashing water bubbles that exploded upon contact, the two Riders yelling out as they were sent rolling across the stage.
"What a beautiful sight…" Dark Kiva chuckled in an almost maddening way, "Your brotherly rule will end Kiva… and soon my rule as the Queen of the Fangire and this world will take hold…"
"You don't want this Yasuko," Kiva said as he got on one knee, "This isn't-"
"Don't you dare bring Rin's name into this," Dark Kiva interrupted with a hiss, "All that you showed me… it was a lie to weaken my resolve."
"No, it wasn't," Tsukuyomi called out as she sat up, "You just don't want to believe it!"
"It's painful, I know!" Kiva called out, "But this isn't the right way to go about things!"
"Shut up," Dark Kiva hissed out as she began firing wildly all around, striking any random spot in the stage itself with the Bassha Magnum, "Shut up… shut up already! It's a lie! It has to be!"
Kiva and Tsukuyomi looked at each other and nodded, the time traveling Rider bringing out the Kiva Ridewatch.
"Don't worry, it'll all be over soon," Kiva said as he stood up.
"We're going to save you," Tsukuyomi agreed as she prepared the Kiva Ridewatch before initiating the Armor Time.
[ARMOR TIME!]
The Kiva Symbol appeared in red behind Tsukuyomi before it turned gold, bursting into energy bats that latched onto the usual spots that she'd gain the armor for Armor Time.
[GABU! KIVA!]
Her Armor was the same as the other times, the gold armor flashing onto her shins, boots, left forearm and hand with a gold breastplate. The breastplate emulated Kiva's chest on the upper half, with her shoulder armor being half of Kivat Bat the 3rd on each shoulder, pushing back her cape yet again. The bottom and top of her helmet resembled Kiva's with yellow katakana spelling the word 'Kiva' on her crescent visor.
There was one notable change however, her right shin armor, while still retaining the same coloring, was ensnared by silver metal chains in the same manner Kiva's right leg was.
Tsukuyomi said nothing before striking a pose similar to when Kiva would charge forward.
"Tatsulot," Kiva called out as he brought out a new Fuestle that wasn't part of his holstered ones, it being red at the base with a gold organ-like decoration for the tip. He placed it in Kivat's mouth and had the transformation bat blow on it.
"Pyunpyuun!" A cheerful voice called as a small gold dragon soon flew into view, "Tension Fortissimo!"
Tatsulot quickly rushed in, rushing past Kiva's shoulders and breaking the chains on the armor. The armor shined a bright gold and unfolded into bat wings, launching out gold energy bats that circled around. Kiva held up his left arm, Tatsulot launching at it and latching onto it.
"HENSHIN!"
Kiva's right chained leg suddenly broke apart and opened up to reveal a red inside with green orbs, the armor forming bat wings when outstretched. The gold bats soon flew back, latching onto Kiva and closing up his opened armor pieces, fully transforming him into the gold armored state seen in the footage. He threw his left arm to the side, a red cape erupting from a burst of fire and lining his back.
This was Kiva Emperor Form, the Rider standing tall alongside Tsukuyomi as they stared down Dark Kiva.
(Insert: Supernova by Tetra-Fang)
Dark Kiva yelled out and ran forward, having Dogga slung over her shoulder as she aimed and fired Bassha at the two.
The water blasts hit all around the two, pillars of water exploding all around as the two were splashed by the water but unharmed.
"I'm taking them back," Kiva said as he pulled on Tatsulot's head, revealing the gold dragon's back had a roulette of various symbols. Just as it landed on the first result he pulled on the dragon's head again.
[BASSHA FEVER!]
[DOGGA FEVER!]
Kiva spread his arms out as purple and green waves were unleashed from him, the waves passing over Dark Kiva who tilted her head. Though she gave a gasp as the two Arms Monsters she held began resisting and reacting to the waves, the two launching away from her and unleashing a small bit of feedback to force her back.
Both Bassha and Dogga flew behind Kiva and Tsukuyomi, the two forming back into their monsters forms as they looked around in confusion.
"Let's go," Kiva said before he rushed forward.
"Right," Tsukuyomi nodded as she followed.
Dark Kiva yelled out as she punched forward, Tsukuyomi taking the lead and blocking the punch before kneeing the dark Rider in the gut. Dark Kiva gasped out as she stepped back, but wasn't able to do much before Kiva rushed in, performing several rapid kicks that forced her to stagger back further, sparks flying.
Kiva kept up the pressure, using his leg to bat away an attempted punch by Dark Kiva before going for another rapid series of kicks. He then spun before planting his foot into Dark Kiva's stomach and forcing her back.
Dark Kiva yelled out as she brought forth dark energy before launching it at Kiva.
Tsukuyomi quickly moved in front of the elder Rider, holding out her hands and catching the dark energy with an invisible force. She then released a pulse through it, converting and molding the energy into raw power before forming it into an energy sphere, launching it at the ground in front of Dark Kiva.
Dark Kiva gasped out as she was forced to step back from her diverted attack.
As the two Kivas prepared for the finale, the remaining fights were coming to a close as well.
Thanks to Ixa combining the Ixa Calibur and Chalice Arrow alongside working with Garulu, the two were able to easily overwhelm Rook. Meanwhile Saga was able to slowly but surely wear down Bishop, both Fangire copies now back to back with their three opponents on each side of them.
"Finish it good you two," Garulu growled out.
"No need to tell us twice," Ixa said as she prepared a Fuestle alongside Saga, the two slotting it into their belts. While Saga didn't need to do any more, Ixa pushed the knuckle portion of her belt inwards to initiate the finisher.
[IXA CALIBUR, RISE UP!]
[WAKE UP!]
Ixa had dismissed the Chalice Arrow, using her free hand to shift the Ixa Calibur to where its jewel shined brightly, blinding the two Fangires.
"Your judgment is at hand," Saga flicked his wrist forward, the Jacorder launching its blade out and piercing both Fangires with it before hooking onto them. He leapt up into the air, a red Kiva emblem appearing as he flew into it before exiting the other side. He pulled the Jacorder down as he landed, forcing Rook and Bishop to hang off the ground as he held two fingers near his glowing blade.
Electricity crackled as Ixa's blade shined a bright red, the Huntress Rider yelling out and slashing forward, striking both Rook and Bishop at once and causing two large gashes to appear on them.
Just as the slash connected, Saga slid his fingers down his weapon, the two Fangire copies turning brittle before shattering. He stood up and lowered his weapon, Ixa doing the same as they looked at each other and nodded.
"Not bad for a rookie," Garulu chuckled as he put a hand on his hip before looking back towards the stage, "Now then…"
"Let's finish this," Kiva said as he took the lead, "I'm counting on you."
"I won't let you down," Tsukuyomi nodded.
Kiva nodded before pulling on Tatsulot once more.
[WAKE UP FEVER!]
A red heat-like aura began erupting around him before he leapt up and kicked with both feet for a dropkick. Red energy gathered as two fangs formed from the sides of his legs.
Dark Kiva yelled and crossed her arms, gathering dark energy as she braced against the dropkick Kiva had performed. Despite realizing this was the decisive moment, despite all her anger, her arms faltered and began to lower and relax as she thought about what led her to this point.
Kiva yelled out as he pushed forward, the energy fangs striking at Dark Kiva rapidly and breaking through her defenses as a result. He pushed further before kicking off and flipping, soon landing on his feet as he threw his cape back.
Dark Kiva yelled out as she was sent flying back, an explosion occurring as she was broken out of her armor and now back to just Another Kiva. The resulting explosion however had managed to land her in the center row of the stands facing the stage.
Tsukuyomi stepped up next, pressing down on both Ridewatches before rotating her Driver.
[FINISH TIME! KIVA!]
Tsukuyomi crossed her arms before spreading them out, soon lifting her right leg up high as a projection of a blood red crescent moon could be seen in the night sky above the stage now. The leg that she had lifted up was the one that had the armor locked with chains, the chains bursting apart as the leg opened up to reveal a similar red inside and bat wing formation to Kiva's.
Tsukuyomi used the leg she was standing on to launch high into the air, flipping upside down for a brief moment before flipping back correctly, dropping down at high speeds and kicking out with her right leg.
Another Kiva was ready to retaliate only for her arms to drop again when it came time to. Realizing that she didn't have the will to continue on, she spread her arms out and awaited Tsukuyomi's kick.
[WAKE UP TIME JACK!]
Tsukuyomi shouted as her foot connected with Another Kiva's chest, slamming the Another Rider to the ground as the Kiva Symbol was embedded into the ground from the force of the attack.
Another Kiva gasped as her transformation became brittle before breaking apart, Tsukuyomi dismissing her transformation at the same time and backing away.
(Insert End)
Yasuko could only stare up in shock as she realized she was still alive, sitting up and looking to the side as the Kiva Anotherwatch had been ejected, the device crackling with energy before shattering. She didn't notice though that the resulting breaking of her transformation had loosened the locket she was wearing and sent it off to the side.
"Why?" Yasuko asked in confusion as she looked up at Tsukuyomi, "Why spare me?"
"You're someone who's still hurting and was taken advantage of," Tsukuyomi said as the other Riders began to approach, Garulu hanging back as everyone slowly but surely dismissed their transformations, "We're not going to kill you in cold blood for that."
Yasuko was unsure of what to say, that was until everyone suddenly froze around her, the area becoming green tinted, "Huh?"
"What a failure," Ora said with a click of her tongue as she appeared at a distance behind Yasuko, "You had it all and then some silly revelation ends up breaking your resolve?"
Yasuko could only turn towards Ora in fear as she began to crawl away, "No…"
Tsukuyomi meanwhile was trying to force herself to move, not wanting the situation to end like this. She slowly but surely managed to fight against the frozen time, trying to make it before it was too late.
"I'm at my limit," Ora narrowed her eyes and held a finger forward, "I'm not about to play nice and let you live like the others."
"No… No no…" Yasuko quickly covered her face with her arms, "Rin!"
"Bye bye," Ora smiled as energy gathered in her fingertip.
"NO!" Tsukuyomi shouted as she broke free before unleashing an invisible pulse.
Ora gasped out as she was slammed against the ground, that breaking the time stop as everyone quickly went to huddle near and around Tsukuyomi and Yasuko.
Yasuko could only lower her arms in surprise, "I'm alive?"
"You…" Ora trailed in shock as she stared at Tsukuyomi, "You broke free?"
"I'm giving you one warning," Tsukuyomi glared as she stepped in front of Yasuko, "Leave, now. And never bother Yasuko again."
Ora glared back and clicked her tongue before quickly picking herself up and running off. Everyone watched as Ora vanished midway through her run and soon relaxed.
"I… I…" Yasuko trailed as she hunched forward, burying her face in her hands, "Rin! Rin please come back! Don't leave me alone!"
Weiss frowned before noticing a small glint nearby. She walked over and saw the locket, grabbing it and accidentally opened it up. She could only gasp as inside the locket was the last shard of Rin Kitamura. She didn't say anything as she closed the locket, walking over to Yasuko before kneeling down and hugging the grieving Fangire.
Watching from a distance was the same gold ball of light from the previous incident.
"My princess…" it said in a gentle voice, "I think it's time for our reunion…"
A Few Days Later…
Ruby had returned with the others and they were all currently at 9-5-DO as Junichiro had offered to give them some Apple Pie upon returning. While the girls enjoyed the sweet confectionary alongside Geiz and Woz, it was up to Tsukuyomi and Weiss to explain what had happened in their absence. As such they had gathered in the kitchen as everyone was all over the place.
"That stuff with Cinder sounds bad," Yang said before taking another bite of the apple pie she had, "Gods this is too good!"
"Seriously, it took you how long to perfect the crust?" Blake asked after finishing a bite.
"Three days," Junichiro said before chuckling, "I'm glad to see that I've got it down completely for a perfect second try."
"Delicious pie aside, seriously though, it's really good," Ruby said as she tried to not get too off topic, "That doesn't sound good with Cinder… seems like we'll need to take some extra steps but I think we'll be good."
"How did it go anyway?" Geiz asked, having finished his slice before holding out his plate for seconds, Junichiro complying and giving him another slice, "Did you all get what you need?"
"We ran a good amount of tests plus Ozpin's insight was invaluable," Penny explained, "Sento is working on it right now but I do believe we have a way to contain the Maiden Powers."
"The only issue is getting them out," Woz stated with his mouth full before swallowing, "Though I can only assume you've taken my words to heart, Miss Rose?"
"The idea you suggested might be the only way," Ruby nodded, "It's risky, but I'll take that risk."
"But hey let's not get too gloomy," Yang said before drinking some milk, "We got Kiva's Ridewatch!"
"That leaves just one more," Penny held up one finger.
"Indeed," Woz said as he finished his pie before excusing himself and heading out of the room.
"Okay Kiva is cool and all," Ruby said before gesturing towards Weiss, "But we missed Weiss becoming a Kamen Rider… again!"
"Temporarily," Weiss said as she pointed at her partner only to smile and cross her arms, "But I must admit, it was a rather nice feeling."
"And you said you were relieved to be done with Quiz," Blake reminded with a teasing smile.
"Part of the reason it felt so nice was because it was more straightforward than Quiz," Weiss admitted, "Seriously, Quiz has to be the most unorthodox Rider I've ever seen."
"Speaking of unorthodox, where's Sougo?" Yang asked, "Is he out running an errand?"
"Something along those lines," Weiss said, glancing at Tsukuyomi as they both were told what he was planning on doing today.
Admittedly despite Geiz enjoying the apple pie he was having, the talk about Sougo and the Another Kiva incident got him thinking. He was still wondering how Tsukuyomi was unharmed from the debris, and why there were odd placements of sand near her. He shook his head to clear his thoughts, figuring it might be one mystery that would never be solved.
Sougo was currently walking through a cemetery with a bouquet of red roses in his arms. He stayed silent as he walked through the graves before finding the one he was looking for. It was a small one but it still stood out despite it all. On it was the name he was searching for…
'Rin Kitamura'
He placed the roses down near the marker with a somber smile before clasping his hands in prayer. After a few moments of silence he began to walk away from it.
Passing near him was a woman in a black dress, wearing a blue jacket and a blue brimmed hat that shadowed her face. Despite this one could tell she had long hair tied in a ponytail and glasses. Sougo didn't seem to be paying much attention as he passed her.
"Tell your friend, thank you for saving me…"
Sougo paused at the words whispered before turning around and watching the woman walk towards the grave. She turned and despite her face mostly being shadowed, he could see a small smile on her. Sougo smiled back before turning and walking off, despite the tragic nature of the Another Rider incident, there was at least some peace that could be had despite it all.
Woz was nearby, unnoticed by both the woman and Sougo as he opened up his book.
"Thus we have obtained Kiva's Watch despite not being at full power," Woz said as he stared at the events of the prior Another Rider attack, the pages in his book suddenly rewinding and growing faster and faster as all the events he had catalogued up to this point were winding backwards and backwards until there was a blank page, "There remains one final Watch… and with it…"
Zi-O's katakana could be seen within the page, but suddenly gold rimming could be seen around it as it zoomed out to show a shadowed Rider, bulky armor with what appeared to be small statues placed all over adorning it. A strange whistle could be heard be heard echoing through the air as Woz looked up, knowing the time was finally approaching.
Finis was currently standing on a building, sweat pouring down their face as they stared at the Den-O Anotherwatch. There was a particular reason they wanted to keep this one, and that was because they knew their goal could only be completed by one singular object.
Ever since splitting up from the Time Jackers, the elder Time Jacker had utilized the Anotherwatch on its own to boost their powers slightly. This was to allow them brief passage into an odd dimension, an endless desert with a multicolored sky. Train whistles could be heard in the distance every now and again but the hope was to get to a particular place.
They had found it, an odd structure within the vast desolate wasteland. A myriad of failed attempts at claiming history in some way or another all compiled into one location, one graveyard.
And yet despite their powers and the Anotherwatch, they weren't able to get close enough. Den-O's power was not the one they wished to claim either, so they would need someone else to get them to their destination.
"My dominion over the history of Kamen Rider will soon begin…" Finis said as they gripped the Den-O Anotherwatch tightly, "Fools who have strayed from your beautiful purpose… if you cannot correct yourselves then I will correct history for you."
To Be Continued…
Next Time:
"I… have arrived!"
"Well these guys are Oni, right?"
"Oh this is the worst possible situation!"
"They want to stop Zi-O's rise to power."
"We did it…"
Chapter 109: 2007: DenLiner has Arrived!
Author's Note: It was honestly fun to craft a wholly original narrative for these chapters alongside working with a limited main cast. I suppose the ideas really just clicked once I figured I'd not do the expected romantic style of love but instead the familial style. It works well what with both Kivas being brothers, and Yasuko's anger/drive allowed me to touch on similar feelings with Sougo too.
Another fun part was playing around with Rider identities here. Taiga also being Saga allowed me to give Dark Kiva to Yasuko for the Final Battle. Not to mention Weiss utilizing Ixa even if it was only for this chapter, was something I didn't want to pass up. Of course Cinder seems to have found a solution to her deteriorating state, and now she's more dangerous as a result. We've also got Finis ready to initiate their plan as the final Heisei Rider's Ridewatch is upon us. We do have an Interlude before we get to that however, so look forward to that.
As we wrap up I'd like to remind everyone that Roze from Remnant does have a TV Tropes page, feel free to check it out and edit it if you feel inclined to. I'll also mention to those of you who haven't seen yet, but the Roze Gaiden Collection has another entry, this one taking place between the Kabuto and Kiva Chapters. Give it a read if you haven't by now. Finally, thanks for reading and I'll see you all next time.