"The rest of our men haven't reported in yet?" Slick asked the Banker and the latter was calling someone on his phone, only to get no response.
"No…dammit, what is it with tonight?" The Banker sighed. "The holdouts are still fine, but the ones in the Circa…"
"Has Neon committed treachery?" Sir Fred suggested.
"I don't know, maybe." Banker said. "We'll find out soon enough."
"I hope so. Because with the way tonight is going, we all have a chance to-" Tut started before the driver hit the brakes, due to the Syndicate car in front of them stopping. "Huh?"
The gang leaders exited the car to see a shocking sight: trashed cars littered on the streets, with the bodies of the Roadhogs scattered around. One, however, was still alive, though not for long.
"My boys!" Maximum shouted, leaping out of the first car and racing to the dying grunt's side. "Sammy…dear god, what happened?!"
"B-Boss…" the grunt moaned in pain. "W-We were driving away from the Speedway…trying to get away from the Beastman…b-but then…it all went dark and…and…o-oh, oh God…"
"It was that gackin' Enderman, wasn't it?!" Maximum raged. "I'll gackin' kill that freak!"
"N-N-No…it wasn't an Enderman." the grunt coughed. "It…It was a-a-a…monster. It made things dark and…w-we tried to fight but…it was too strong…"
"N-No, c'mon man, stay with us here…" Maximum pleaded.
"I…I'm…scared…boss…" the grunt wheezed before his body went limp.
Maximum was silent before he pounded the ground. "Dammit!" he cried. "Y-You guys can't just go and gackin' die on me…you gackin' punks…"
"Wait…he said it wasn't an Enderman that killed them. So that Color Fighter wasn't the murderer?" Tut asked.
"Well, if it wasn't that creature, then what killed my men?" Bill asked.
Just then, the gang leaders heard a croaking noise, turning behind them to see the Darkness Devil, standing in the shadows.
FOUND YOU.
"What in blazes…" Laissez Faire gaped. "What is that thing?!"
"A beast of the darkness! No doubts remain; that is our murderer!" Sir Fred declared, drawing his sword. "Have at thee, foul creature!" he declared, charging towards the Primal Devil.
"Fred, wait!" Slick tried to warn the knight. But it was in vain; as the Knight stepped into the shadow the Darkness Devil was standing in, he jerked to a stop and a blade of darkness manifested straight in his chest, piercing his heart. With a shocked gasp and a death moan, he dropped his weapon, fell to his knees, and collapsed on the ground.
"FRED!" the Big Men cried out.
"The…The cars! Quick!" Malcolm cried as he made a break for the Syndicate vehicle.
"But…that thing killed my boys!" Maximum argued.
"And it'll do the same to you if you don't get your butt in gear!" Shia-Kazing said.
Clenching his teeth, Maximum ran to the car with the others, while Malcolm was in the driver's seat, starting the engine.
"Go, go, go!" Banker said as The surviving Big Men piled into their car, the leader shooting at the Darkness Devil as the drivers put the gas pedal to the floor. However, the cars weren't moving, even as the tires burned rubber.
"What the hell?!" Mr. Neon said as they saw the Primal Devil manifesting shadowy hands that grabbed the cars, keeping them from getting away as the area around them darkened. "Oh shoot, shoot, shoot! Step on it!"
"I'm giving it all she's got!" Malcolm shrieked.
"We're gonna die!" Tut said, cowering in his seat.
As the Darkness Devil began pulling the cars towards the shadows, the darkness above its head…shattered like glass as Ender came down, holding an oversized mallet.
"Hammer Time!" he shouted as he swung the hammer down onto the Primal Devil.
The devil was forced to turn its attention away from the gangsters to keep the attack from hitting, allowing the vehicles to move and speed out of the darkness.
"Bye bye!" Ender said as he teleported away before the Darkness Devil could counterattack.
And so, the Primal Devil was alone, the face on its torso adopting a look that was a mixture of annoyance and confusion before turning back resuming their normal looks. The Primal would sink back into the darkness.
The contract would be complete. Then…it would be safe once more…
"What the hell was that thing?!" Shia-Kazing asked as the gang leader sped away from the scene.
"I-I think I heard about it! It's the Darkness Devil!" Malcolm answered in a panic. "Shoot, we…we have to get to a safe place!"
"Screw that! We're skipping town!" Mr. Neon barked. "Ain't no way we can take that thing on!"
Their conversation was cut short when the car came to a sudden stop. The reason for this stop was none other than Fujin and Maera, who stood in the road.
"Oh great, the Dark Garden mutts again?" Faire muttered.
Ender then teleported in front of them, waving to the gang leaders.
"Hey! Are you guys okay?" he asked.
"Uh…yeah. Thanks for the help, I guess." The Banker said, getting out of the car. "What do you want? We kinda need to…get out of here. That…thing is after us."
"That's why we need to talk." Ender said. "You see, it all started in Hell…"
Meanwhile, at the HyperX Esports Arena inside the Luxor….
"Hmm… This is quite an interesting locale." Craniamon said as he looked around the Esports Arena. "I heard a lot of high-end gaming tournaments take place here."
"How ironic. In a tournament where an entire city is the arena, we'll fight the very first team that opposes us inside this arena." Geld said.
"I'm kinda hopin' it'll be Team Aries. They took out Vegeta's team earlier, and I didn't even know Jexi's brothers were in this until now." Goku said.
"Right, even you have to admit fighting a human supernova is crazy." Naofumi said.
"Hmm… Now that I think about it… I wonder what kinds of tournaments take place here. Based on the databases, the list of competitors in each event were quite numerous." Craniamon said.
"Wow, sounds like lots of tournaments were held here." Goku said.
"Not the ones you're familiar with." Naofumi said. "This kind of arena tailors to people who want to duke it out in more virtual settings."
"Ah, I understand. The E In Esports Stands for electronic, doesn't it?" Jimbei asked.
"Actually, yes. That's exactly what it means." Craniamon said.
"So people fought in here while playing some of those games David usually plays? That sounds kinda weird." Goku said.
"Well, this arena won't be the venue for virtual combat, but an actual one soon." Geld said. "Although, we may be liable for property damage inside here, just as it was reported in the Excalibur."
"Don't worry. David's rich, I'm sure Craniamon can persuade him to pay for anything we break." Naofumi said.
"It's… not that simple." Craniamon said. "Given the air of this place, the damages could be more than we can afford. This place always tries to rip people off. Why do you think they entice so many people to gamble in their casinos?"
"So they can promise people big cashouts, only for people to either throw their money away or become millionaires in one night?" a voice asked as Team Libra entered the scene, who spoke being DJ. "Yeah. That's basically par for the course for Vegas in any world no matter the universe."
"...Oh crap, it's these two." Geiz muttered, glancing at Craniamon and Goku. "This is gonna suck. Oh well, might as well go for it. Shoto, how are you feeling right now?"
"Like I said, I'm fine." Todoroki said.
"No harm in checking." DJ said. "Alright, let's do this."
Garfiel then felt something as he pushed the three down to the ground as they dodged a serpentine rot attack. "Rot? Seriously, Geld?" he asked.
"I knew you could dodge it." Geld said, approaching them.
"Well…isn't this the assortment?" Naofumi said.
"Looks like we're surrounded." Zoro said.
"Yeah, no way out." DJ said. "We're gonna have to fight like we mean it against a team like this."
"If that's the case…" Geiz pointed his Zikan Zax Ono Mode at the Royal Knight. "Your digital butt is mine, Craniamon."
"Very well. Just the way I like it!" Craniamon said.
"Well…guess if he's getting into it…" Zoro said, drawing his swords.
"Yeah. Let's match up and fight." Garfiel said.
The four of them then split into four battles. Garfiel vs Geld. Zoro vs Goku. Todoroki vs Naofumi and DJ vs Jimbei. It didn't take long for these battles to erupt in full fervor as the entire Luxor trembled at the might of it all.
"What's up? You feeling stressed out already?" Naofumi asked as he was blocking against Todoroki's attacks.
"Far from it…I'm feeling a lot of things…but stress isn't one of them!" Todoroki said as he fired both fire and ice at the shield hero.
"Haaa!" Garfiel called out as both he and Geld were locked in a battle of fists against one another.
"Well…it seems this was going to end in an all out battle either way." Jimbei said.
"Yeah…seems like it." Zoro said, drawing his swords. "So we better finish this fast." he said as he went at Goku as Jimbei went for DJ.
"Well…guess I'm the underdog in this fight." DJ remarked dryly as he revved his saws and prepared for Jimbei's first attack.
"Fishman Karate: Water Shot!" Jimbei said as he shot off a droplet of water as it hit DJ like a bullet.
"Ah! See, this is what I mean. What're saws supposed to do against that?" the former assassin asked as he crouched down and jumped towards the Straw Hat Pirate, aiming to cut him from below.
"7000 Brick Roundhouse Kick!" Jimbei said as he did a kick as it blocked the incoming saw attack.
"Gonna be real here, if I can hit you once, I'm considering that a win in my book." DJ said as he swung his other saw towards Jimbei's right side.
"Sharkskin Palm Thrust!" Jimbei said, landing a palm strike and sending the incoming saw flying off the man's hand.
"Aw, come on man! Those aren't exactly cheap!" DJ complained as he managed to brush his hand against the Fishman. "Spin the Record!"
Jimbei soon started to spin as DJ touched him. He seemed to spin and spin with no signs of stopping.
"Whoo, DJ is sending Jimbei for a spin!" Magenta said.
"Wait, hold on… I should go for a finishing blow, should I not…?" DJ wondered. "There's no way I can just beat a Straw Hat just by doing that. Gotta think this through…"
"Arabesque Brick Fist!" Jimbei called out while in spin as DJ felt himself moving a bit before being sent flying into a wall.
"Knew it…" DJ coughed as he pried himself off of the wall. "Okay, how do I do this…?" he said as he looked to a nearby monitor. "Well…guess we're making the bill rise." he said, knocking on the computer as it began to spin. "Okay, here comes…Spin Shot…ah, nevermind the name." he said as he sent the spinning computer at Jimbei.
"5000 Brick Fist!" Jimbei said breaking the computer as the shrapnel ended up scratching him across his body as he did.
"Wait a minute…" DJ realized as he looked to the row of monitors stretching across the room. "Oof, I know I'm breaking some gamers' hearts out there, including mine…but it's gotta be done." he said as he began using his Talent on every monitor, sending them flying towards his opponent one by one.
Jimbei started spinning towards the man himself as he was taking each hit as he was racking up damage on the way.
"...This is not working, is it?" DJ asked Jimbei.
"It never was! Shark Brick Fist!" Jimbei called out as he landed the hit as DJ was sent spinning and flying as he fell unconscious, causing Jimbei to stop spinning.
"And the battle has ended between DJ and Jimbei, leaving the Fishman Karate Blackbelt as the winner." Magenta said.
"(Of course, I didn't expect any less from him.)" Zoro thought as he clashed with Goku.
"Damn…we're already down one." Garfiel said, standing there bloodied as Geld was on the ground after the fight had ended.
"Guess that's fine. Just means we'll have to take on more of the burden." Todoroki said, having captured Naofumi in solid ice.
"And now they've got two of ours. This is not looking good." Craniamon said. "Apologies, David. I hope you understand what I am about to do here." he said as he unleashed his X-Antibody.
"Craniamon X?!" Geiz gawked. "Alright, if that's how you wanna play…" He took out his Faiz Ridewatch and pushed the button.
=FAIZ!=
He then inserted the Ridewatch onto his Ziku Driver and gave the belt a spin after slamming the tilt button.
=ARMOR TIME!=
Armor parts appeared before Geiz before slamming onto him. His form is changed, having a red and silver chest plate, large opened flip-phones as shoulder pads, his helmet is yellow with red lines on it along with the antennae, and the katakana on his visor labelling the word Faiz on it. He also wields the FaizPhone X on his right hand that also functions as a blaster.
=COMPLETE! FAIZ!=
"I see. So this is your true form. This just got a whole lot more interesting!" Craniamon said as he spun his spear.
"Actually, this is one of my armors. I've got plenty more where that came from. Just ask Zi-O." Geiz replied, dialling '555' on his Faizphone.
=READY! SHOT ON!=
A knuckle duster in a shape of a camera appeared on his right hand before doing a wrist flick. "Let's dance, Royal Knight!" He leaped into the air and delivered a flying punch to the knight with the knuckle duster.
"You're gonna have to do better than that. The Black Digizoid armor that covers my entire body is the most sturdy material in the Digital World! Nothing can penetrate it! Shock Bringer!" Craniamon said as he fires a shockwave from his spear that flies at supersonic speeds.
"A little help, Legion?!" Geiz summoned the Arm Legion using his Legatus to block the attack as the Rider jumped away and dialled '555' on his Faizphone X again.
=READY! POINTER ON!=
A laser pointer appeared on the side of his right leg before Geiz initiated his finisher sequence.
=FINISH TIME! FAIZ!=
"Well, if Marcus Damon can break your shield with sheer willpower, then so can I!" Geiz shouted before leaping into the air in a front flip before lunging his right foot forward as the pointer fired a small beam, turning it into a red energy cone when it reached Craniamon.
=EXCEED TIME BURST!=
"Get ready!" Geiz shouted, performing a flying kick onto the energy cone, causing it to spin rapidly like a drill.
Geiz's attack drilled right through Craniamon, as the attack went through his body and appeared behind the Digimon, but….
"Nothing's happening." Megumin said.
"Waaait for it…." Entrapta said.
Soon enough, the Faiz symbol appeared on Craniamon's body before exploding in blue flames.
"A delayed blast? Impressive…" Tanya said.
"I don't know if it's enough… but I'll try something else if he's still kicking." Geiz panted, cautiously taking a few steps back. However, to his surprise, not only was there a barrier around Craniamon, but he was relatively unscathed. "...Of course he had a barrier ready." Geiz muttered.
"Of course. This has been getting fun. I wasn't just going to hand you the victory. Now, for a little something of my own…" Craniamon said as he detached the blades on his arms and grabbed them in his hands. "Grand Grior!" he said as he threw the blades at Geiz.
"Legion!" Geiz called out to the Arm Legion as he attached himself onto the Rider and punched his fists together before going on the offensive as his fists clashed with the Royal Knight's blades.
"Haven't used this a lot. Grand Rock!" Craniamon said as the earth shook before a stalagmite erupted from the ground under Geiz.
"Don't even try!" Geiz retaliated, breaking his astral chain and summoned the Axe Legion to break the stalagmite below the Rider.
"Gotcha!" Craniamon said as he took the opening to strike at Geiz with his spear.
But Geiz took notice of the attack and quickly detached himself out of the Arm Legion, letting it take the blow. "Sorry about this, Legion. But…" Geiz whispered before quickly counter-attacking with the knuckle duster landing onto Craniamon's chest. Upon landing the hit, a large crater could be seen forming on the armor as the knight went and collapsed to the ground.
"It appears…there is still room." Craniamon said as he collapsed.
"And the knight has fallen to the Kamen Rider's awesome might!" Magenta called out. "Meaning only two members are left on Team Taurus!"
"Hmm…so that's how it is, huh?" Goku said, looking a bit worn down.
"Yeah, 'fraid so. So…you gonna call it quits or what?" Zoro asked, looking just as worn out.
"Yeah. Think we can call it here." Goku said.
"Yes. I agree." Jimbei said.
"And Team Taurus has surrendered! Winners are Team Libra!" Magenta called out.
"We'll take our fallen out of here. Good luck." Jimbei said as the remaining two departed.
"We only lost one guy so I say we got off pretty good." Garfiel said.
"Yes but we've taken some heavy hits ourselves." Todoroki said.
"Let's just take a breather before continuing the tournament." Geiz suggested, reverting back to Base Form and dispersed his Legions. "And hopefully not get caught by the other teams."
The intercom then started buzzing. "Attention, this is a message to Teams Libra and Aries. We of Team Virgo challenge all of you." a voice said.
"Is that Tsareena?" Garfiel said.
"At the request of our leader, it's time to see which of us is the best. We're waiting at the Mirage. So come…unless of course…you two are chicken." Tsareena said.
"...Cure Starlight. So this is her choice, huh?" Geiz muttered. "Though calling us chicken is kinda from Tsareena due to her personality."
"If they're calling us out, we'd better not shy away. Besides, this is your chance to see if you're stronger than your friend and his sister." Garfiel said.
"Yeah." Geiz nodded. "If you guys see either of them, let me know. Those fights belong to me."
"Hey, where's Zoro?" Todoroki asked.
"Oh…guess he's already going to the Mirage." Garfiel said.
Geiz facepalmed in response. "He's going in the opposite direction, isn't he?"
"No clue where he would end up." Garfiel said. "But you know, with all the teams falling, it's only gonna get much more dangerous. Meaning, a lot of them will be looking to end it fast."
"Then we'd better do the same." Geiz nodded as the team left the area.
Back with Ender's group…
"...and that's pretty much it." Ender finished his explanation, leaving the gang leaders to process the information.
"So, this…Prime Soul can stop the Darkness Devil?" Malcolm asked.
"Perhaps. It may be our best shot at beating it." Maera nodded. "Alas, without knowing where the prison holding them is, we can't exactly count on it."
"Hmm…this prison, what did it look like?" Mr. Neon asked.
"Oh, it's kinda pale, made of skin, kinda looks like a 3D diamond…" Ender rattled off.
"Crooked smile on one side?" Neon asked.
"Yeah, that's righhhhhow do you know that?" the Color Fighter asked.
Mr. Neon then pulled out a phone and called a number. "Lenny, it's me. Bring a trailer down to the Neon Museum in one hour." he ordered before he ended the call. "You better be right about this, buddy. C'mon, we're heading to the Cultural Corridor."
"Wait, you had it? They have it!" Ender said. "C'mon, let's go!"
"Hmm? Who the hell is that?" one of the men said as a familiar swordsman crossed their path.
"Damn it…they had to go and move the buildings around." Zoro said.
"Oh, that's Zoro, from the Straw Hat Pirates." Ender said, before he called out to him. "Hey! Where are you trying to go?"
"The Mirage. I just finished cutting up that Luxor place and some challenge was called out to our team." Zoro said.
"The Mirage? You passed the turn for it! Head back to the last four way and go right! It's a straight shot from there!"
"It would be easy if you guys quit changing the buildings." Zoro said.
"We didn't change a thing, moron!" most of the gang leaders said.
"Whatever, I'll just make my own way." Zoro said, drawing his sword and cutting a building apart as he went down that path.
"...That was one of Paul's buildings, wasn't it?" Tut asked.
"Enough with this nonsense. Unless you all want the Darkness Devil to catch up to us?" Fujin asked.
In agreement, the group and the gang leaders piled into the cars and headed to the Cultural Corridor.