Thomas Wayne sat alone in the darkness of his house with a bottle of whiskey, half of which sat in his stomach, in his right hand, with his eyes glued to the damaged portrait of his family. He would shed a tear if he had any left, for his years of mourning were replaced with that rage and, as of late, sorrow. The isolated billionaire sat with his thoughts, the words of Kivaara repeating endlessly within the confines of his skull.
"Would your wife and son want this?" He growled, gripping the bottle's body with such pressure that it shattered in his hands. He stood up and stared at the dark corners of the cellar with a wave of anger and fury behind his eyes, "I know you're there. Now come out before I drag you out."
"Always perceptive, Dr. Wayne." From the shadows, Narutaki walked out smiling as he made himself known to The Bat of this Gotham. "I find it commendable, your strength and awareness of your surroundings."
"Skip to the part where you tell me why you're here." Yelled Thomas, his other voice coming forth with ease. Narutaki chuckled as he sat across from the standing Thomas, sighing as he did so.
"Decade has Bruce, your son," Narutaki told the Bat. Thomas, without a moment of hesitation, transformed into his Rider form and towered over the manipulative fisherman.
"How?! How did you… did you bring him back? And let him fall into his hands?" He yelled.
Narutaki, unfazed, looked him into his glowing eyes. "I did no such thing. Decade is a crafty and strong one. He and Bruce are going off to defeat Zeus. And if they succeed, you know what that means, don't you?"
Thomas couldn't say a word, he felt something was off, that Narutaki had to have been lying to him. His son was dead, same with his wife and everything he'd held dear. But there was that ever-present kernel of doubt in his mind, that refused to be ignored no matter the chances.
"I know. I already agreed to be your god's boogeyman, and I have fought him before. But you haven't told me everything, such as why I should be afraid of him? From what I've seen, the only thing that makes him a Devil is his pompous attitude." The Bat grabbed Narutaki by the collar, hoisting him out of his chair so they could now meet at eye level. "Why do you want me to kill him so badly?"
"Because he is a destroyer of worlds." Narutaki told him. "He endangers, if not destroys everything he touches. You may not like how the world is now, but if he's here too long, eventually, something will happen…and you will have nothing left. Not even your life. But right now, you have a chance, however small you might think it, to get back that which you lost. Are you truly ready to throw away that chance, Mr. Wayne?"
The Bat slowly reverted back into his human form, chucking Narutaki onto his chair as he slowly walked away. His fists were clenched in aggravation as he avoided Narutaki's gaze, "What is it then? What do you want me to do?"
Narutaki' face began to contort into a sinister smile, everything was coming close to his end goal. The death of Kamen Rider Decade.
GCPD HQ
Jim Gordon stood on the rooftop of the GCPD. His daily routine was a simple one as he entered the night shift, a cigarette in his mouth as he stood near the edge and looked over the city as the sun fell beneath the horizon, his mind wandering off to thoughts about his daughter but also the chaos awaiting him the moment he went back into his office.
*CLICK*
"Nice night, isn't it, Commissioner?" Jim quickly turned around and found Tsukasa Kadoya sitting against the door to the building with his camera in hand and a somewhat bored expression on his face.
"Kadoya?! What the hell are you doing up here?" Asked Jim, who quickly pocketed his unlit cigarette.
"It's a nice night." Tsukasa quipped. "And we have some questions."
"We?" Jim raised an eyebrow, only to look up and see a looming shadow appear above Tsukasa on the roof exit. The glowing white eyes of Bat-Rider sent shivers down Gordon's spine, causing him to quickly reach for his gun. "Freeze! That's the-"
The gun was swiftly knocked out of his hand by Bat-Riders batarang, allowing him to leap down and slowly approach Jim.
"Jim Gordon. We need information, and you're the only one who can give it to us." Jim clenched his fist and quickly threw a punch against the armored jaw of Bat-Rider, which did nothing but break his hand and cause him to swear endlessly.
Tsukasa cringed. "Oof…that's gonna leave a mark." He commented as Jim tried to calm himself down, his eyes twitching. "We're gonna need you to calm down, commish. He's not our enemy."
"The hell are you talking about, Kadoya?! He's a goddamn vigilante! How can you even think about trusting him?!" Jim slowly rose back to his feet, only for Bat-Rider to move closer to Jim Gordon and place a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"You don't have to trust me Jim, god knows I likely don't deserve it. But I can tell you that you feel something bad coming, and you'll need to help us if you want to protect Barbara." Jim froze and glared at the two men, looking at Tsukasa who simply shrugged and said nothing. Jim ran his hand through his graying hair and sighed before looking at our two heroes.
"First off, never talk about my daughter. Ever. Second, it might be that I'm tired and sick of having that tower overlooking my city or the fact that Montoya told me that you turned into a pink armored monster two days ago. But know this Kadoya, this goes belly up and I'll have your badge! Understand?"
"Understood, sir!" Tsukasa responded with a salute, standing up. "Also, it's magenta."
Jim just facepalmed and huffed before walking back into the building, with him conveniently dropping his keys on the floor behind him. Bat-Rider picked them up and held up the keys to Gordon's office, tossing them to Tsukasa as he walked towards the ledge.
"In all fairness, that went better than the first time we actually met. At least this time he didn't shoot me." Commented Bat-Rider. Tsukasa snorted. "Lots of people try to kill me when we first meet."
"Can't imagine why." Was all he said before leaping off the ledge of the building and vanishing.
Tsukasa let out a "tch," before heading inside.
As he went inside, he walked through the hallways before coming across the commissioner's office. After making sure nobody was around to see, either in the hallways or in the office, he unlocked the door and headed inside. There he found Bat-Rider already peering through the filing cabinet nearest to the open window, "You took some time, I'm assuming you were making sure you weren't followed or watched?"
"Some of us prefer a more civilized approach." Tsukasa responded with a light smirk, opening a cabinet. Bat-Rider pulled out a manila folder, holding it out as he scanned the contents of it before turning to Tsukasa.
"I found something, it's a crime report. Namely a murder case that dates back a couple of years, a history professor who died in his own home." Bat-Rider handed the folder to Tsukasa who took it and began to read the details himself, making note of two integral details.
"Professor Cyrus… his home was where Mount Olympus is located…" Tsukasa read out. Bat-Rider nodded before taking back the file, and holding it as he moved towards the window.
"In Greek Myth, Zeus came into power after killing his father Cronus in battle. The letters might be off, but while I was trapped inside of Olympus Tower I saw an old room that gave me a hint of what we might be dealing with."
"Heh, Cronuses and father issues." Tsukasa muttered, recalling the adventures of a certain video game themed rider. "And of course you sneak around in old rooms. You really are a bat-"
Before he could even finish his sentence, he looked to see that he was alone and the window was wide open without a trace of his so-called "partner."
"...of course." Tsukasa rolled his eyes. "This is gonna be my whole night, isn't it…"
HOURS LATER-IN THE (WOULD BE) BAT-CAVE
Tsukasa drove into the tunnel of the Bat-Cave, groaning as he found a de-transformed Bat-Rider already there with his arms crossed and staring at a large dart board with various photos pinned to it. "Traffic?" asked Bruce, not even looking back at the arriving Tsukasa.
"We don't all have secret ninja techniques." Tsukasa quipped back, rolling his eyes as he made his way over to Bruce. "What've you got?"
"Nothing concrete, but I'm still thinking. At the moment, all we know for certain is that Zeus killed his father as a possible lead despite almost all records of Zeus prior to his so-called ascension." Bruce said, stroking his chin as the gears in his head worked away. The doors to the cave creaked open as Natsumi ran in with a smile, choosing to ignore the large dartboard on the wall and walked over to Tsukasa with an excited expression.
"Tsukasa-kun! Bruce! Hurry upstairs, Yusuke's awake!" She said before running back upstairs. Tsukasa nodded, running after his comrade while Bruce slowly trailed behind the two.
The three made it upstairs, where Yusuke was, indeed, awake, the AR counterpart to the first Heisei Rider smiling once he saw the two.
"Tsukasa! Natsumi!" He greeted, grunting in pain as he tried to get up to embrace them.
"Yo, Yusuke." Tsukasa said, relief over his face. "Hope our resident 'god' didn't bang you up too badly?"
"This is nothing." Yusuke said while grunting in pain. "Really glad you two are ok. And uh…sorry for uh…that whole Ares thing."
"It's alright." Tsukasa told him, sitting in a chair nearby, Natsumi sitting next to him.
"We're glad you're alright, too." The bat themed rider in white smiled.
Yusuke nodded, glad to see his friends again. "So…what happened? What's with this world?"
"That's…a long story." Tsukasa told him.
"We got time."
Tsukasa shrugged and nodded. "Narutaki, from what we figured out, went to this world to try yet again to kill me, and he found someone in an asylum he could grant powers to. An old delusional man named Maxie Zeus. With this new power, he transformed this world into his own image, and gave us all roles in this new world."
"Tsukasa and Daiki were the only ones to remember everything." Natsumi continued. "Daiki's gotten close with Zeus, presumably so he can steal a treasure, while Tsukasa's gone around investigating the situation. Touching him caused us both to remember, you and me. At some point, some man named the Phantom Stranger contacted us, told us to find Bruce Wayne, who's a Rider in this world. We met his father first, and then found Bruce himself."
Bruce interjected, nodding as he inserted himself into the recap of events. "While I can't confirm everything they've said, that seems to be the gist of it. Hello, my name is Bruce Wayne. In what should be my world, I was given the name Bat-Rider by the people of Gotham."
The dark haired American Kamen Rider extended a hand to Yusuke, who grasped it with a smile and shook his junior's hand in friendship.
"Onodera Yusuke. Kamen Rider Kuuga. It's good to meet you, Bruce."
Bruce nodded.
"So, what's the plan here?" Natsumi asked. "You guys seem to have figured quite a bit out, so what're we gonna do with it?"
"Not much we can do, all we have is a connection." Bruce said as he turned to the other Riders. "What we really need is a true picture, we know that whoever Zeus was before getting his power was connected to the death of what we suspect to be his father."
Tsukasa quickly interjected, "Likely due to a family spat or some form of power emergence that caught Narutaki's eye. But even Narutaki shouldn't be able to alter the world on this scale, and if Zeus had that power he'd have erased us all by now."
Bruce huffed before undercutting Tsukasa's observation. Yusuke and Natsumi noticed the Multiversal Rider's eye twitching at that. "Zeus isn't the problem here. He's clearly just a proxy king setup for Narutaki who's affected this world. What we should do is take Zeus out of his hands."
"And, there's only one way to go about that. We need to break into Olympus Tower and figure out how Narutaki is manipulating him-"
"And how to save whoever Zeus is, and fix whatever he did to my city." Bruce commented, the two now in a standoff in the middle of the room. Yusuke and Natsumi exchanged glances as they watched the two's bizarre exchange go on.
"So this is what it looks like when two men desperate to be the smartest one in the room stand next to one another." commented Yusuke to which Natsumi just nodded in agreement.
"I can help you with that last part," Before the two "partners" could continue, a new voice entered the conversation as Daiki Kaito appeared at the top of the stairwell with his arms crossed as all eyes turned to him. He gave his trademark sly smile, like the true thief that he was and descended down the stairs with the hat of mercury in his hand. "But it'll cost you, Tsukasa."
"Kaito?!" Tsukasa said, only to turn and find Bruce already up the stairs with the renowned multiversal thief in a chokehold. Kaito chuckled, his throat closing from Bruce's hold before Natsumi quickly intervened by rushing to the stairs.
"Bruce! Stop that, let him go!" Bruce released his grip, albeit reluctantly, freeing the multiverse-hopping thief from the chokehold. "Thank you. Now." Natsumi walked up to Daiki, who smiled at her with a sly and seductive look in an attempt to appeal to her better nature…only to receive a punch to the face from the young woman which knocked him out, "Now. Does anyone have any rope?"
OLYMPUS TOWER-NARUTAKI'S HIDDEN ROOM
Narutaki looked at the glass container that held the blank floating Wonder Ride Book. He clenched his fists as the device began to glow and crackle with energy from the Dark Rider Cards before the black casing shattered and revealed itself. A sinister smile formed over Narutaki's face as the Ridebook fell into his palm, the cover depicting a pair of glowing red eyes behind shattered glass depicting multiple Earths in the shape of an upside down Omega symbol. The title of the Ride Book was one simple word…
"COUNTDOWN!"
"Finally. I finally created it, the ultimate weapon against that devil." Narutaki began to cackle as he reached to open it, only for the book to glow and blast him back with a powerful wave of black and red energy. He slammed into the wall, groaning as the book simply floated onto the floor gently as a sinister aura surrounded it before fading away instantly. "No. No. NO! Why?!" Narutaki growled as he rose to his feet and snatched the book up, glaring at it as he tried to open it once again only for it to repeat the same course of action by repelling him.
"I did it, I did as you instructed!" yelled the mad man as he slammed his fist against the floor. The book just floated back to the floor, as if taunting him at his inability to open it. "Why won't it open!?"
KRA-KAKOOOM!
The tower shook as the power of thunder and lightning erupted from within the building. Zeus was acting up again. Narutaki groaned as he turned back to the Countdown Ride Book, and promptly left his lab to deal with the seemingly unhinged god that was raging inside of the tower. The Ride Book began to glow sinisterly as its creator left. Black and red clouds of an ominous aura began to seep out of the book and flood the lab.
"WHERE IS IT!?" yelled Zeus, his body now surrounded by his lightning as he blasted another hole in the walls of his tower. "IT SHOULD BE HERE! WHY ISN'T IT HERE!?" The Spartan Soldiers fled in terror as their Lord's power began to strike anything in his vicinity. Narutaki exited the elevator to find Zeus tearing apart his throne room with the red gem on his necklace bursting with red lightning, as if to add to the damage he was causing. Zeus turned to Narutaki and roared as he stomped forward and grabbed the man by the collar while lifting him off the ground with one arm. "ANSWER ME! WHERE? WHERE DID YOU HIDE IT YOU FILTHY MORTAL!? WHERE DID YOU HIDE MY TREASURE?!"
"I don't know what you're talking about, Zeus! What treasure?" Narutaki's words fell on deaf ears as he was promptly thrown across the room and through the doors to the balcony that overlooked Gotham City. Zeus began to float off of the ground, his lightning now shifting from a blue glow to the same crimson as the ruby that sat around his neck.
"MY TREASURE! YOU HID IT FROM ME, DIDN'T YOU!? CONSPIRING AGAINST ME!" Zeus yelled, a ball of red lightning forming in his hand as he glared down at Narutaki. "DON'T YOU KNOW BETTER THAN TO CONSPIRE AGAINST A GOD? AGAINST THE KING OF THE HEAVENS!"
"I would never do such a thing, Zeus! I have always been by your side, I reminded you of who you are!" yelled Narutaki as he stood back on his feet. His mind began to piece together a quick and believable lie. He looked around and found no signs of DiEnd in sight and smirked. "I know, Zeus! I know who stole your treasure!"
Zeus paused, the ball of lightning slowly shrinking in size as he squinted at the man before him. "Who?" Narutaki wasn't clueless, he knew that this would determine whether he lived in the next few minutes or died so he had to make it convincing.
"Hermes. Your faithful messenger couldn't avoid his inner urges as a trickster and a God of Thieves. I know he stole your treasure as a joke, an attempt to arouse you to action after the betrayal of Apollo. Surely you understand?" Zeus went silent, his aura fading away as he landed on the balcony with his eyes still crackling with red lightning.
"Where is Hermes now?" he asked, his voice booming like the thunder he now commanded. Narutaki smiled and pointed towards the center of Gotham City. That was all Zeus needed before growling and vanishing in a crack of lightning that struck the spot he once stood before he vanished out of sight, his voice now echoing amongst the rumbling of thunder that followed, "Then it's time I be a more proactive King and teach him where he stands in this pantheon."
Narutaki exhaled and held his chest, silently proud of his ability to still lie and manipulate his man-made demigod, but this was far too close. The power Zeus was displaying was growing rapidly while his mental fortitude was declining even faster. Everything about this spelt an inevitable doom for all parties involved, including himself. He had what he needed, the Ride Book now existed, but wouldn't open and he had a being strong enough to destroy Decade, but no way to destroy him afterwards.
"Zeus seems more unstable than I last remember." Narutaki looked up to find The Bat-Thomas Wayne hunched over the roof, staring down at him with his crimson eyes. "Care to explain why that might be?"
"Hmph. Times are stressful, Decade's presence is unraveling everything, he fears his kingdom falling into ruin especially with those he's managed to trick into his army." he lied. Thomas growled as he leapt down and stood beside the dimensional traveler, looking out to Gotham City with his own thoughts stirring within his mind. "You're worried about your son?"
"Hmph. Don't try it, I'm already in your corner for the moment. All I want now is Martha and Bruce freed from Decade, but until then, don't think I can be easily puppetted like his highness." Thomas vanished into a colony of bats that flew off into the city, leaving Narutaki alone once again. His right eye twitched as he felt everything around him coming apart at the seams. He needed to recover and fast before it all came apart. He needed this to work. It had to or else he would drag this world and his own into a mess of his own making.
BACK AT THE HIDEOUT (AKA ALFRED'S LIVING ROOM)
Daiki stirred in his chair, groaning as he felt the tightness of ropes around his torso and looked up to find himself surrounded by our heroes. With a smirk and a chuckle he began to speak, "Now Natsumi, if you wanted to see me in ropes all you needed to do was ask politely."
"With how much of a naughty one you are, I'd think you were the one asking." Natsumi quipped, crossing her arms. "Now talk."
"Looks like my usual lines won't work with you anymore. Shame, but regardless, I'm actually here on a peaceful mission. I have information that you might want to know." Bruce glared as he approached Daiki.
"You expect us to buy anything you say? You brought an army to my house and tried to arrest us!" Bruce glared at the thief who just whistled and leaned back into his chair.
"Has anyone ever told you that if you frown too much, you'll get wrinkles?" Daiki quipped. Bruce clenched his fist as he grabbed Daiki by the collar and pulled him close, only to hear the sound of the ropes falling to the floor and the barrel of the DiEnd Driver against his torso. "Also, never watch a thief's mouth, it's the hands you need to worry about." Daiki tossed his weapon to Tsukasa who caught it and placed a hand on Bruce's shoulders.
"Daiki is many things, but… he wouldn't come to us unless it was something serious. Am I right?" Daiki nodded and Bruce huffed before releasing Daiki from his grasp. "Now, what did you want to tell us?"
"I saw something you might wanna know." Daiki informed them all. "...something bad." He said with a deathly serious look on his face. "...a new Ride Card system."
"What?" Tsukasa's eyes widened at the notion, Yusuke and Natsumi also exchanging a glance before Bruce broke the tension by asking a question.
"I'm going to assume that's a bad thing, regardless, you saw this where? In Olympus Tower?" Asked the detective. Daiki nodded, his mind flashing back to what he saw in Narutaki's lab hidden inside of the Tower.
"I saw it with my own two eyes. He had a wall of Rider Cards like mine and Tsukasa's placed along the wall. There was something else though, a Ride Book like that of Saber's but pitch black. I could feel the power coming off of it and knew that in Narutaki or Zeus' hands it would only be a problem. But when I tried to reach for it, well-"
EARLIER
ZZZZATTTT!
"GAH!" Daily felt his body quake as the book repelled him with a powerful burst of energy. But Daiki felt it, a power that sat on his chest and robbed him of the ability to breathe as a sinister black smog surrounded the Ride Book. Within the black cloud, Daiki could see a pair of eyes that burned crimson red that sent the fear of god into the multiverse's greatest thief for the first time in a long time.
BOOOOOOM!
With no warning, the ghostly aura released Daiki and recalled itself back to the sealed Ride Book. Now free, Daiki could do nothing else but follow his heart and flee for his life. The glowing red eyes burnt into his mind as he made his way to Tsukasa and Co.
NOW
"It wasn't pleasant. Either way, I don't know how much more time we have or what Narutaki's endgame is. But I think it's safe to say that once that book is completed-"
"This world won't see tomorrow." finished Yusuke. The team stood together in silence, a sense of dread permeating the room before Alfred finally broke the tension.
"Well then, we can't have that now can we?" Alfred entered the room from the kitchen, a resolute look upon his aged face drawing the eyes of all the young heroes that surrounded him. "So what are you planning to do? I see five heroes standing in my den mucking about, while a mad man plots to unleash a weapon on my home."
"Alfred." Bruce couldn't help but smile as he heard his butler's words of affirmation. Bruce hid a smirk underneath his mouth, before crossing his arms and looking at the group with a determined look in his eyes. "Here's the plan, Tsukasa and I need to do more digging on Zeus. I have a hunch that'll require his assistance, and in the meantime the three of you will be our key into Olympus Tower."
The four other Riders all raised their eyebrows at Bruce' sudden claim of command, mostly Tsukasa who squinted at the unelected leader of the group.
"Oi! I don't know who died and made you in charge, but I certainly wasn't told about this." Protested Tsukasa.
"Well I will trust you enough to work with you, this is my city." Bruce responded.
"Uh huh, and how has that been working out for you?" Tsukasa crossed his arms. Bruce didn't falter and approached Tsukasa, the two men now glaring at one another as everyone tensed up at the clash of the two heroes' attitudes. Well, everyone except Kaito who was chuckling at the showdown of egos and Alfred who quickly intervened and stopped any potential for in-fighting.
"Now. Now. We're both on the same side and working together, none of this ego stroking at all."
The two men glared at each other a moment longer before stepping back.
"Fine." They spoke together. Now pacified, the crew split up with Daiki taking Yusuke and Natsumi to Olympus Tower while Tsukasa and Bruce drove off towards the Arkham Asylum. Unaware to both parties, Thomas Wayne watched them depart from the rooftops before vanishing into thin air in his pursuit of them.
ARKHAM ASYLUM
As they finally arrived at the rusted gates of the Asylum, Tsukasa couldn't help but marvel at the massive macabre mausoleum that overshadowed Gotham City. The broken and boarded up windows alongside the overwhelming sense of dread that consumed the gothic building, it was almost suffocating in a way. The two men disembarked the Machine Decader and stood before the shackled iron gates, only for Tsukasa to shatter the chains with a shot from the RideBooker. That's when they proceeded in. Both men could feel themselves being watched from an unseen party and continued on their path anyway. From above, the red eyes of Thomas Wayne watched them proceed before vanishing into the shadows.
"The Asylum has definitely seen better days I assume," commented Tsukasa as the two men entered the dilapidated and crumbling remains of the Asylum's front entrance. Years of neglect showed via the cobwebs that decorated the ceilings and the colony of rats that scurried away as they opened the door.
"Not really, it's quite the same in my world, but with less rats and more broken down walls…it's condemned all the same." Bruce commented as they continued forward. As they moved deeper into the catacombs the silence began to grow… well even more awkward as they stopped making observations and talking all together. Tsukasa placed his hands in his coat pockets and just looked at the names engraved on the cell doors. Many of them were pseudonyms that seemed ridiculous to a man such as him.
"Who the heck names themselves Kite Man?"
"I remember him, Charles Brown. He was an amateur thief who I thought had connections to a case, but was just a man who loves kites, parasailing, and robbing people. He was sadly one of my earlier cases in my career as Bat-Rider." Bruce smirked as he recalled the memory.
"Must've been fun. My first mission as Kamen Rider Decade was… less than fun to say the least." Tsukasa couldn't help but look down at his feet as he remembered the fear and confusion on Natsumi's face as she watched the world she called home be destroyed all around her. But he also remembered how good it felt to use the Decadriver again, and how much it felt like a second part of him he'd rediscovered after so many days of being apart.
"Hm. Seems to be a consistent thing about Riders, though truth be told you and your friends are the only other ones I've met who have the title." Bruce stopped as they reached an old stairwell and began to proceed downwards, Tsukasa in tow deciding to continue the conversation.
"So, you're the only Rider in this world? Not the first time I've encountered that but it does lead me to ask why?"
"Why what?"
Tsukasa stopped as the two arrived at the end of the stairway and found themselves in a barren area of the prison with only four cells inside.
"Why are you fighting?" Bruce stopped and looked at the smirking Tsukasa who stared at him with a stern expression. "I've walked through this world briefly, and while it is awful, this world isn't yours, Bruce. Yet you've shown almost no interest in wanting to go back or return, you just want to take down Zeus and undo his rule. While yes, that might return your world, you don't know that for certain."
"Because I made a vow," Bruce stopped at the north cell. He didn't bother turning around or facing Tsukasa as he continued to speak. "I swore that until the day I die, I'd fight for Gotham. This might not be the Gotham I remember but it's still Gotham. So the promise remains the same."
Tsukasa smirks at his fellow Rider's response, "That's a great answer. You must be really proud of him, aren't you?"
"I figured you knew I was following you."
The two turn to the shadows where they find a pair of glowing red watching them in silence before slowly walking forward to reveal Thomas Wayne with a solemn look on his face. Bruce's eyes widen as he looks at the man standing before him, even with the years of age and scarring, he recognizes the face instantly and could feel tears stinging his eyes.
"D-Dad? But how…"
"Thomas Wayne in this world survived that night," Tsukasa explained. "Instead of you, he became Bat-Rider instead." Tsukasa turned to Thomas. "Right?"
"Yeah. That's the jist of it." Thomas glared at Tsukasa as he slowly looked at Bruce with a touch of happiness in his eyes. Despite the hesitation, the two last remaining Wayne's slowly moved towards each other before embracing one another in a warm yet brief hug. "Bruce. I'm… so happy to see you again. I didn't think it was possible, but I'm glad to see what a fine young man you've grown into."
"Dad…" Thomas cut off Bruce as he pulled himself away and returned his angry glare at Tsukasa.
"But… I can't let you two continue any further. Especially if you both plan on stopping Zeus."
"Why's that?" Tsukasa asked. "You should know how sick that guy is."
"I do… but even so. I made my own vow, like you did Bruce. I vowed that if I ever had the chance to go back and save you and your mother. That I'd take it without question." Thomas' eyes glowed red as his own belt began to appear around his waist. "Even if it meant working with the devil himself."
Tsukasa tensed up as he knew where this was going and looked to Bruce, whose own belt manifested around his waist. "Last chance Bruce, you can leave and come home with me to the manor again. Then once we get back your mother, everything will finally be okay again."
Tsukasa and Bruce made eye contact, nodding subtly at each other, Tsukasa heading off. Bruce said no words and took his pose as the turbine on his belt lit up and filled the room with smoke before revealing Bat-Rider.
"I'm sorry Dad. But you can't stop us from helping this city." Said Bruce. Thomas clenched his fists and held his arm across his chest before his belt did the same and revealed his own Rider form.
"I'm sorry Bruce, for what I have to do to ensure your safety."
The two Bat-Riders squared off before charging towards one another with their fists drawn and ready to strike.
WITH TSUKASA
As he fled deeper into one of the cells, Tsukasa could hear the fight between father and son begin in the background as he finally made it to his destination. A cell that had been destroyed and had the first name on the nameplate scratched off, leaving only one word.
"Zeus."
Tsukasa turned around and scoffed as Narutaki emerged from an Aurora Veil before him. He looked tired and haggard, but had the look of pure hatred within his eyes for the Magenta Hero standing before him.
"Hey, Narutaki. By the looks of things, I'm guessing your plan's not going so well?" Tsukasa smirked. Despite the situation…he couldn't help feeling a bit smug at his old foe's misery. Narutaki scoffed before suddenly breaking out into laughter as he reached for something in his coat pocket.
"On the contrary, Decade. After all these years, all these plans to destroy the demon that you truly are… this is the closest I've ever been to finally erasing you from the face of this and every other world!" Tsukasa felt its presence before Narutaki could fully pull it out of his pocket. The black RideBook Kaito mentioned, now appearing to have changed and now had a cover and a title, sat in Narutaki's hand and oozed a dark, overwhelming presence. "I must thank you, Decade, you did help me in accelerating your demise. Who knew you'd be such a great opponent for Zeus to go up against. You've pushed him to greater heights in two days than Wayne did over several years."
"Narutaki, what the hell are you planning now?" Tsukasa asked, bracing himself, prepared for a fight. Narutaki just chuckled as he opened the book and unleashed an explosion of dark energy that sent Tsukasa flying through the iron door of the cell. Tsukasa groaned as he stood up and raced toward Narutaki only to gasp in horror as he watched the man he considered an enemy be surrounded by black and red clouds with an ominous large red eyed figure hovering over him. The figure was obscured by the darkness emerging from the RideBook, but he could see a stony humanoid face and a large red upside down 'Omega' symbol sitting in the center of his chest.
"I did what I had to do. I sold my soul to the only thing worse than you or even Oma Zi-O! And all it cost me was this world and a foolish child trapped in an asylum. Your end awaits you, Decade!" Narutaki cackled as he vanished once again leaving Tsukasa alone.
"...shit…" Tsukasa cursed.
The sheer power he felt…the pure…evil there…
What the hell even was that…?
As he slowly came to his senses, Tsukasa looked down at his feet and recognized the scribbles that lined the walls of the cell. Images depicting Zeus and the other Greek gods. They were the drawings of a child but had faded from the passage of time, the most eye-catching of which was one that looked like a recreation of Zeus killing his father but with the addition of a kneeling woman watching it.
"What…" He knelt down, inspecting it. That's when he noticed a brick out of place, and realized that it hid something behind it. When he pulled it out, Tsukasa gasped as he found a golden locket in the shape of a lightning bolt. Next to the pendant was a photograph that caused Tsukasa to smile as he placed the two items in his pocket and suddenly got a phone call.
"Yes?" Tsukasa answered, holding it up to his ear. That's when he heard the explosions and the sounds of a battle coming out of the other end, then the sound of Alfred's weakened voice saying one thing.
"Help."
Tsukasa's eyes widened.
Dammit, what happened!?
He looked out into the hallway. Bruce and the investigation could wait. For now, his friends needed him. With that he made to escape the asylum to head out towards the Machine Decader.
BACK WITH BRUCE AND THOMAS
Bruce growled as he slammed his fist against his father's jaw. Thomas barely reacted as Bruce continued his attack with kicks and punches to the chest. After several minutes, Thomas growled and grabbed Bruce's fist inches away from his face before landing an uppercut to his son's gut. Bruce gagged as he felt the impact through his armor, causing his stomach to churn.
"I won't warn you again, Bruce." Thomas said, pulling Bruce back to his feet so they could look into each other's eyes. "We were given a chance, Bruce! A chance to be a family again, all of us! All you have to do is leave this behind and forget about fighting against Zeus!"
Bruce responded to his fathers plea with a headbutt to the face, "How can you even say that, dad?!" Thomas groaned as he looked up and was suddenly sent flying by a sidekick to the torso by Bruce. Thomas sighed as he recovered from the kick, and growled as Bruce charged forward and began to land haymaker after haymaker on his father. "Gotham isn't just something you can sacrifice! It's our home!"
Thomas exploded into a colony of bats, avoiding one of the punches before reappearing behind him before sending Bruce flying away with a roundhouse kick. Bruce huffed and groaned as he rushed in once again, only to have his father block and counter each and every strike thrown at him with little effort.
"I'm not giving you a choice, Bruce." Thomas ended his sentence with a powerful right hook followed up by a knee to the stomach. He reached down for his buckle and ignited the turbine once again, causing his armor to glow and burn with energy before pushing his son back and delivering a sidekick with his burning red boot. The impact sent Bruce flying out of his Rider form as he hissed from the pain of the attack and watched his father slowly approach him. "I'm making sure I don't lose you again, even if it means… having to hurt you."
Bruce growled as he slowly pulled himself to his feet, Thomas could see the anger in Bruce's eyes and hated himself for being the target of it. Thomas slowly moved closer to Bruce and landed a precise strike to his neck to ensure that he was knocked out. Thomas sighed as his Rider form vanished in a flash of light as he grabbed his unconscious son and dragged him out of the asylum… he got what he wanted.
AT THE BROWNSTONE (WHAT'S LEFT OF IT)
It was sudden, they didn't expect the attack at all as the Hikari Photo Studio crew and Alfred began to sit together for a cup of coffee. Then… they felt something tingle in the air followed by a flash of light striking the building from the sky. When the smoke cleared, Natsumi struggled to open her eyes as a painful ringing stung her ears endlessly.
"N…smi! NATSUMI! NATSUMI!" Natsumi coughed as she turned to find Kivala screaming her name as the small Kivat-bat struggled to push debris off of someone trapped underneath. Natsumi struggled to her feet and limped over to her partner only to be caught by Yusuke who was now sporting a bleeding head wound and ash covered jacket.
"I got you. Hold on." The two Riders made their way to Kivala and helped clear off the debris to find an injured and bleeding Alfred lying before them.
"Alfred? Alfred, sir, are you ok?" Natsumi asked, helping the butler sit up, checking for any serious wounds.
"B-Bruce." Alfred could only mutter a single word and could barely open his eyes, his body limp with almost no strength left in it before he fell into unconsciousness.
"Dammit," Natsumi cursed. "Yusuke, Kivala, are you both ok enough to go search for some first aid kit or something?"
"On it!"/"ROGER!" The two flee her side as the rumbling sounds of thunder appear overhead before an intense surge of winds tear apart the building, leaving Natsumi alone as Zeus appears before her in his monstrous form.
"Shit…" The bat-themed rider stood up as she stared down Zeus. Yusuke roared as he transformed into Kuuga Mighty to engage with the Sky God in combat. But Kuuga quickly found that his punches were blocked by a wall of air that swirled around his new form.
"Pitiful, like an ember trying to survive in a storm." With a snap of his fingers, Kuuga was sent flying back as the wall of wind expanded outwards, making an arena for the two combatants. Natsumi held up her hands in defense as she watched Zeus float towards Kuuga with lightning arcing between his fingertips. "Now then, I'll spare you some mercy as my former God of War. Where is Hermes and my treasure?"
"Even if I knew what the hell you were talking about," Yusuke groaned as he got back to his feet and entered a combat stance. "Why would I give up my friend to you? CHO-HENSHIN!" Screamed Kuuga as his armor shifted colors to an agile blue and gold form, allowing him to leap high into the air and behind Zeus before quickly shifting back into Rising Mighty to deliver a powerful roundhouse kick to the false god's side. Zeus took the hit and growled as the impact caused him to groan before turning around and firing a burst of lightning only for it to hit nothing but air.
THWACK!
The thunder god felt a sharp pain from the back of his head, as he turned and found Kuuga-Rising Dragon wielding his spear, ready for battle.
"You know you can't beat me. So why bother trying?" Asked Zeus, lightning crackling between his fingers. Kuuga gripped the baton before quickly switching forms once again. The bladed baton had now become the great sword for Rising Titan as the purple and gold armor of Kuuga formed itself around Yusuke.
"Because I made a promise, to fight for the smiles of others. So until I make sure of it, I won't stop fighting."
"Well said." A familiar voice chimed.
Zeus suddenly found himself being knocked into a wall by a leaping magenta, black and white barcode covered motorcycle, its rider holding onto a handle as he leapt up and kicked him in the chest to further the knock back before settling on his bike again, swerving it to a stop on the ground, parking it. "Yo, Yusuke!"
"Dramatic entrance as always. Where's Bruce?" Asked Kuuga as he turned to face Decade.
"We decided to split up," he answered as he dismounted from his bike. Decade dusted off his gloves as he slowly approached the raging 'god' who floated off the ground before him. "Divide and conquer as they say. Get Natsumi and Alfred, I'll deal with Zeus."
"Ha! So the traitorous god has finally decided to face me? Now this, this shall be amusing!" Zeus cackled as he held his hand to the swirling typhoon formed above him, the winds quadrupling in strength as they threatened to tear the very foundations of the neighborhood apart. "Now, destroyer. Die. Die and take all of your evil with you!"
Zeus screamed as he prepared to summon the mother of all lightning bolts. Tsukusa said nothing in response. All he did was hold his hand out and release the golden pendant which dangled in the air, causing Zeus to freeze at the sight of the item.
"N-No! I… I destroyed that damned thing! I…" Zeus screamed as he clutched his head in agony. He fell to his knees as he even lost his monstrous form, reverting back to a simple human. "Why do you have that?!"
Tsukasa tossed the pendant to Zeus, who further fell to the floor as he rushed to catch it. Zeus, with hands trembling at the sheer touch of the item, opened the locket and began to cry at what was held inside. It was a simple photograph of three boys and their parents standing in front of the Gotham Opera House with smiles all across their faces.
"I solved the mystery of your past, Zeus," began Tsukasa. "You did something horrible when you were young, and you've been paying for it ever since."
Zeus trembled as he held the pendant to his chest, the aura of power fading away in an instant as Tsukasa approached him with sadness on his features, and held up his hands as tears began to fall from the so-called god's eyes.
"Myths reflect life and vice versa, as they say." Tsukasa approached the sobbing Zeus and knelt down with another gift in hand for the crying tyrant, the charred remains of a library book titled-'Tales and Legends of Greek Myths'. "Your favorite story was Theogony, the origin of the Olympians and Zeus' rise to power, wasn't it?"
Zeus could only nod as he clutched the children's book to his chest with his face now fully immersed in his sorrow. The Hikari Photo Studio crew and the injured Alfred could only watch in silence as Tsukasa embraced the crying dictator. They could all see it, the fight within Zeus had faded the very moment Tsukasa produced the pendant.
"So pathetic." spoke a powerful and demonic voice from the sky. All but Zeus turned their attention to the darkened skies above as the powerful storm had once again surged forth and slowly turned a bloody red. From the eye of the storm, a black comet fell towards the destroyed remains of Café Fantome with it landing with a powerful crash, revealing Narutaki with the Ridebook in hand and… an altered appearance.
"Narutaki?" whispered Tsukasa as he looked on in horror at his enemies' new appearance. While his attire remained the same, Narutaki was no longer his former self in any shape or fashion. His skin was now a stone gray coloration with cracks emerging from his sunken and hollow eyes, his irises a burning, intimidating red that was the only source of color within the dark, almost glaring void, almost like his body was now a shell, a shell that was cracked and barely containing something…deep, something evil, something more vile than most everything any of the people in the room had ever encountered. Just this fragment of it was almost on par with the Great Leader of Shocker himself.
"Even when given the power to mimic a false god, your mortal self clings to mediocrity." The voice exiting out of Narutaki' transformed body was not his own but one that matched the overwhelming sense of evil that he exuded. He turned to Zeus and held out his hand towards the crying dictator, "Perhaps that is why you mortals seek us? Because you know you're weak, that you need a firm hand to guide you."
As if on cue, Zeus felt a powerful force wrap itself around his neck and slowly lift him off of the ground and drag him into Narutaki's palm where he replicated the sensation with ease.
"NO!" Yelled Yusuke. Even injured he quickly summoned the Arcle and ran to stop whatever was about to happen as did Natsumi and even Daiki, with each wielding their respective Henshin Devices…only to freeze in place as Narutaki glared at them, causing them to freeze and tremble in terror.
"W-what the hell?!" muttered Yusuke through his teeth. Narutaki, if you could even call this creature by that name, just smirked as he and Zeus began to float into the air with his final glance given to Tsukasa Kadoya.
"Tsukasa Kadoya. The Great Destroyer. This vessel has such hatred for you, and also an immense amount of reverence. I hope you can show me why that is, and soon."
"Oh I'll show you something alright." Tsukasa assured the darkness, unflinching. "I'll show you what exactly the mistake you made this week was. You, and Narutaki." He told the possessed being, his emerald lenses staring into both the Wanderer and the Darkness' eyes.
"Then by all means, let this be a clash of destroyers." The being possessing Narutaki smirked as he floated even higher into the air and held out the Ride Book in his other hand. Daiki' face turned pale as he recognized the Ride Book, but it was now changed and held a crimson upside down Omega Symbol on the cover.
"Everyone! We need to go! Now!" He yelled, clenching his fists as he tried to summon an Aurora Curtain for them to escape into. Tsukasa even did so as well, a small one beginning to peek through on the ground near Natsumi, Alfred, and Yusuke that began to increase in size.
But… It was too late.
OPEN THE OMEGA!
From the deepest pit of the void, the one who shall rule over all ascends!
"Hen…shin."
The entire world went silent, Zeus' screams could barely escape his throat as he felt the burning sensation of chains emerge from the Ride Book and sear into his and "Narutaki" flesh before they were consumed by a crimson and black orb of energy, which shattered and sent a powerful and destructive shockwave across Gotham City. Where there was once two figures, only one stood in solitude in the sky.
Floating above the city was something that could only be described as a monster of myth and legend, with a split black cape that draped over his shoulders and three horns that form the image of a crown that curve around his large crimson eye lenses with a mouth plate that resembles a skeleton's jaw. His body barely resembles any of his prior forms minus the large crimson gem bound to his chest that had now taken on the shape of an upside down Omega symbol. His once white armor was now pitch black and crimson and had lost all its regal appearance.
This was Kamen Rider Zeus Tyhpomega.
Zeus Typhomega looked down and chuckled as he found the ground beneath him removed of the heroes that stood against him. All that was left was those who looked on in horror and reverence for their new ruler who gazed upon them like they were ants.
"Now then, let us prepare this world for the arrival of a true god." Zeus Typhomega chuckled as a loud and explosive BOOM shattered the air behind him forming a large flaming gateway that he floated into before vanishing out of the sky. The crimson storm raged on even more violently as the eye of the storm began to form at the top of Olympus Tower, heralding the arrival of Zeus Typhomega, who floated above the tower with his power surging in his gloved hands. He snapped his fingers, causing the ground beneath the building to quake and shatter as Olympus Tower began to float off of the ground and approach the eye of the storm. Zeus Typhomega chuckled as the eye slowly increased in size and strength, revealing a flaming gateway with an endless black void on the other side.
"For Darkseid."
NEXT TIME OF BAT-RIDER VS. DECADE! THE FINAL BATTLE COMMENCES!
"This world shall be offered to the great Omega!"
"Why are you still fighting Bruce?!"
"Because I'm-"
"-just a passing through Kamen Rider!"
"BAT-RIDER KICK!"
"Is she with you?"
Tune in for the final battle for the soul of AR Gotham!
Same Bat-Time! Same Bat Channel!
WRITERS RIDER CORNER
SpideyViewer: Ah, feels good to be back. So uh…been a while, heheh. Sorry, guys. Real life's been tough on the both of us. It's like it didn't want us to finish chap four. But we have, and thank goodness. Ultra, what'd ya think of this chap?
KingUltra52: Happy it's done and hoping that Chapter 5 doesn't take as long. But really excited to finally drop the ball with the New Gods teaser, and thank you for letting me give Yusuke another cool fight scene.
SpideyViewer: Always happy to do that. And thank you for giving us the opportunity to see Tsukasa and Bruce bounce off of one another, that's fun to write.
KingUltra52: Anytime dude! It was super fun writing them with the sole idea of, they both just want to be the smartest one in the room, and it's the fun type of rivalry where both parties are petty yet willing to work together.
SpideyViewer: Exactly! Plus that makes it satisfying when they do work together, which you guys'll see plenty of next chap, hopefully well done.
KingUltra52: Given the ideas we've already decided on, it's gonna be a blast! Hope y'all enjoy it as much as we do, and hopefully we don't take eight months to get it out to everyone. Fingers crossed.
SpideyViewer: Fingers crossed. Now, if ya don't mind, I actually enjoyed the questions we asked each other, so I was wondering if you'd be up for doing it again?
KingUltra52: Bring it on!
SpideyViewer: Of the Tokus this past year, Geats, King-Ohger, Gotchard, and Blazar, which of em ya like most?
KingUltra52: Oof! That's really hard, but I'm gonna say Blazar and King-Ohger. 2023 was when I finally fell hard into Ultraman and every episode of Blazar has been amazing, and the same can be said with King-Ohger as it's the only Sentai I've watched weekly and freaking love the show. Gotchard is enjoyable and I hope that it stays good, Geats had its ups and downs and the Daiji's… either way. What about you, Spidey?
SpideyViewer: First off, I am stealing the phrase "Ups downs and the Daiji's," secondly…I'm gonna have to say Gotchard's hasn't done it for me at all, but I am considering getting back into it since they seem really serious about Part 2 of the season. Blazar I think has been very good in its characters and it's gotten me VERY invested in the story. Geats and King-Ohger I feel have had good elements, but sadly lacked in execution, though I will say they still have awesome moments and episodes, like Geats IX's debut, or the episode of King-Ohger where they get the Fangs of Defiance. Overall…Blazar and Geats are my favorites.
KingUltra52: Understandable, I do think that Blazar kinda overshadowed every other Toku given Tsuburaya's recent push towards making it super easy to watch Ultraman Blazar with it being both available on their YouTube Channel same day but also with a simulcast dub! Like seriously, Toei and TV Asahi, I'm begging you to just do with Gotchard or BoomBoomger. Or at least give Fuuto PI an English dub!
SpideyViewer: Oh god, an actual quality English Dub of Fuuto PI would be a dream come true!
KingUltra52: RIGHT! Oh yeah, I forgot that last year also brought back two Tokusatsu Titans back to the mainstage with Godzilla Minus One and the release of Shin Kamen Rider on Amazon Prime. Honestly, I loved both but I would've loved Shin Kamen Rider more if it got MORE THAN ONE DAY IN THEATERS!
SpideyViewer: It only got ONE DAY!?
KingUltra52: ONE DAY! And the only theater showing it was like a mile from me. Regardless, let's just say that 2023 was a good year for Tokusatsu overall.
SpideyViewer: Yeah it was. I gotta say, I'm not a fan of BoonBoomger's suits, but let's hope the season's good at least.
KingUltra52: Meh. I hope so too, I personally am interested in a new car themed Sentai. Either way, anything else you wanna ask?
SpideyViewer: Who's your favorite lead of the aforementioned Tokus? Me personally, I'd go with Ace. I may think his season is the most overrated in all of Rider, but Ace Ukiyo himself is an amazing protagonist.
KingUltra52: While I agree that Ace is an amazing and super fun protagonist, I can't deny my bias and say that he's probably tied with Gento from Blazar. Maybe it's because he's the oldest Ultra Host we've ever had cause he's voiced by Johnny Young Bosch in the English Dub which is probably a HUGE reason why I love him, but Gento is such a great lead that works well with the rest of the cast.
SpideyViewer: JYB makes everything amazing. The dude is played by one of the better Neo Heisei Rider villains and dubbed by Johnny Young Bosch. He has it good.
KingUltra52: Indeed he does, I can't wait till the series' upcoming finale and movie. But till then, I'm gonna rewatch the series and enjoy it all over again!
SpideyViewer: And I need to catch up on it already lmao.
KingUltra52: You have time, till then I have one question for you Spidey, if you don't mind me asking.
SpideyViewer: Sure thing!
KingUltra52: As you know, I'm still getting into Sentai from before Gokaiger. I'm like halfway through Kakuranger and just started Hurricanger, any recs you wanna throw my way?
SpideyViewer: Well if you haven't yet, I hear Shinkenger' pretty good. I'm also interested in checking out pre-Gokaiger stuff to see how different it is from the PR seasons. So far I've seen a bit of Dekaranger with my friends on Discord, and we've been having a blast.
KingUltra52: Dekaranger is one I need to get to, especially since SPD and Dino Thunder are kinda the genesis of my whole Tokusatsu obsession. I'll check out Shinkenger soon.
SpideyViewer: Maybe we can check some of that out together.
KingUltra52: Maybe! And maybe I can finally show you the greatness that is Ultraman Z!
SpideyViewer: I should check out more Ultra stuff, yeah. Anything else you wanna say to the readers at FF net?
KingUltra52: Ultraman Super chapter 1 is out on AO3! Check it and everything else in this Tokuverse out!
SpideyViewer: What he said! See ya guys next chapter!
