Disclaimer: Still don't own anything. Moving on.
Previously on Across the Kaleidoscope
"I'm the genius gamer, Dairiki Emu! Kamen Rider Ex-Aid!"
"The Game World is sealed until the Bugster is eliminated. When we finish our mission, we can leave."
"Here's the hint: the only way to clear this mission is trust."
"It has plenty to do with everything, both for them and you."
"Fine, if it's a final battle they want then it's a final battle they'll get!"
"Hey… Wakey, wakey…" A smooth voice whispered into Ritsuka's ear, rousing him from his slumber slightly.
"Zzz…" Still, he kept his eyes closed and tried to continue his sleep.
"Wake up already!" A second voice, more harshly, shouted at him. That worked as well as the other one, though.
"Aight, tried to wake you up the hard way, but that failed. Don't say we didn't try." Whoever was trying to wake him up sounded amused.
"Hey, wai-!" "A one, a two and-"
Lukewarm water suddenly splashed on his face, jolting Ritsuka awake for real.
"What the-?! Who did that?!" The now-soaking teen roared as he shot up. Moving his hair out of the way of his eyes, he saw Kiriya laughing to himself with a bucket in his hand. Behind him, Emu was facepalming, Taiga was seething, and Hiiro was setting a small pot on the campfire.
"…Emu."
"No, you can't kill him."
"You're lucky this time, Lazer." Ritsuka glared at said Kamen Rider. "When you go to sleep tonight, make sure to keep one eye open. You hear me? One. Eye. Open."
"Yeah, right. Your threats don't scare me." Kiriya chuckled at Ritsuka's warning. "I'll continue to outrace my fate fore-!"
"Lazer! Go back and get more water!" Taiga angrily ordered Kiriya.
"Got it, boss." He mock-saluted the other Rider before leaving the camp.
"No good bike…" Ritsuka grumbled, glaring at Kiriya's back as the latter went off to get the requested water.
"Sorry 'bout that, Fujimaru-san," Emu apologized in Kiriya's stead. "We've been trying to wake you up for the past ten minutes and…"
"That annoying biker used the water that we were going to use for the stew." Taiga was as equally frustrated as Ritsuka was. "By the way, we sent your friends back to town to buy some ingredients."
"…You sure I can't kill him?"
"Yes, we unfortunately still need him."
Chapter 5: The Five Rider Super Co-Play!
Back in town…
"That would be 294 gold." The shopkeeper told the two teens.
"Here you go," Tetsuya said before a small pile of gold coins dropped on the counter.
"Thank you." The two left the store not carrying anything thanks to Game World logic.
"You know, when I heard Game World, I expected we'd be climbing volcanoes, crossing seas and deserts, spelunking in dungeons. Stuff like that." Tetsuya sighed. "Not running errands for the Chosen One…s."
"Quit your whining. It's still better than sitting around doing nothing like last time."
"You're not wrong, but-" "Hey, can I ask you something?" Ryoko interrupted him.
"Sure, I guess? What's up?"
"I've been wondering… about that voice we heard the other day."
"When Ritsuka threw Yuusuke inside that van, right? Who was that anyway?"
"Not sure… Although something about him seemed familiar." Ryoko admitted as the two reached the gate.
Appearing on the other side, Tetsuya said, "Really? I mean, yeah, there was something about that voice that I recognized."
"Right? But he was definitely a stranger. He definitely knew us though, or at least Ritsuka."
"Hmm…" Tetsuya thought back to what that voice had said. "He lost himself again…"
"What?"
"That guy said again. So this has happened before?" Tetsuya speculated. "But how would that guy know?"
"Well, we don't know who that guy is in the first place, so any guess is as good as the other. Though I think we should bring this up with Ritsu," suggested Ryoko. "Since whoever that was seems to know his past."
"True, but would he even know that guy is?"
"Probably not, but if that guy appears again when Ritsu's not crazy, then he won't be as surprised as he normally would."
Meanwhile…
Kiriya hummed a cheerful tune as he made his way towards a nearby river alone, bucket swinging wildly as he went down the dirt road. Unbeknownst to him, several pairs of eyes were watching him from within the forest.
Soon, the Rider reached a wooden bridge and went off the beaten path to reach the slow-flowing stream. Squatting down, he scooped up a bucket load and was about to head back to the others when he heard a noise; the sound of a twig snapping.
He snapped his head towards the direction of the noise but did not see anything out of the ordinary within the treeline.
"…" Kiriya continued his walk back to the camp at a much slower pace. He barely made ten feet before something tried to jump him from behind. Of course, he was way too fast for it and easily dodged the surprise attack, dropping the bucket in the process.
"Hey, hey. Hasn't anyone told you sneak attacks are for wimps?" Kiriya taunted his attacker, who he now knew was a standard Bugster. "I mean, I do it too sometimes but that's different."
Now, a lot more Bugster mooks were coming out of the forests, wielding various types of weaponry.
"All of you just to deal with little ol' me?" Kiriya smirked as he took out and put on his Gamer Driver. Pink straps shot out of the buckle and wrapped around his waist, keeping the Driver in place. Finally, he took out a yellow Gashat depicting a biker riding in a wasteland and made one last remark. "Fine by me, let's go for a ride."
Bakusou Bike!
Upbeat rock music played as the starting screen appeared behind Kiriya. Various trophies then flew out of the screen and levitated around them.
Kiriya spun around and posed before flipping the Bakusou Bike Gashat and inserting it into the first slot of his Driver. "Henshin."
Gashat! Let's game! Metcha game! Mutcha game! What's your name?! I'm a Kamen Rider!
A yellow ring appeared around him along with various thumbnails of different characters. Kiriya then kicked one as it stopped in front of him, the portrait flipping completely and the word "Select" popping up. Yellow energy covered his body as the picture flew back into Kiriya's body.
Instantly, his armor formed and it was rather… unorthodox. Somehow, he had grown shorter in order to fit into his Level 1 Form, which was best described as a chibi as it had short arms and legs and a pudgy body. White plating covered the black undersuit and the Rider Gauge was hooked onto his chest. A big mask with equally big blue eyes and pink spiky mohawk covered his head with two handlebars sticking out from the sides. In his hands, Lazer was equipped with two guns that were hooked onto wheels.
"Level 1 should be good enough to handle you guys, right?" He mockingly asked before he started blasting them with his guns. Energy bolts peppered the group of Bugsters and, within seconds, they all fell to the ground and exploded into orange particles.
"Well, that was easy." Lazer would have patted himself on the back but his arms were too short.
As he walked (Well, more like a waddled) over to the dropped bucket, a light bulb popped over his head.
"Hmm… Should I use Level 2 to get back to base?" He muttered to himself, standing over the bucket. "But how will I carry it?"
A soft hum rang in the air as the orange particles slowly reformed behind Kiriya. Unfortunately, he was not able to hear it over his own words.
"If I hang it up here and Level Up, will it stay on or will it just fly off?" He bent over to try to pick up the bucket. He was still next to the river so if it did fly off, he can easily refill the bucket.
Before he could try hanging the bucket on his handlebar though, a small scuffle behind him did manage to get his attention. Spinning around, he barely had time to react before a sword was brought down on his head.
"Ow!" Lazer yelped in pain as he stumbled backward, dropping the bucket again and his health bar going down slightly.
He looked back up to see who attacked him. "More of you?!" A slightly larger group of Bugsters had ambushed him. However, another noise from behind him alerted Lazer to more Bugsters. He turned around and, sure enough, a bunch more had formed.
"Oh." He looked back at the first group. He then looked at the second group behind him. "…I'm in trouble, aren't I?"
"EEE!" The orange-heads cried before they all charged at the lone Rider.
Their swings were wild though, and the fireballs thrown at Kiriya were not very accurate. Maybe it also had to do with the Rider running around frantically but somehow, he was able to avoid most of the attacks thrown at him.
"You know what?! It's times like these that call for a strategic retreat! 2nd Gear!" Lazer called out as he opened the pink lever on the Gamer Driver. A yellow screen came out of the Driver as the Level 2 announcement played.
Gachan! Level Up! Bakusou dokusou gekisou bousou! Bakusou Bike!
The yellow screen moved backward and passed through the Kamen Rider. His weapons then floated out of his hands as his armor broke apart and flew off, leaving a thin yellow-and-black body. Lazer's head, which had shrunk a lot, remained still as the rest of his body spun around before the two wheels attached to both ends of his body.
Lazer's eyes flashed for a brief second as his wheels landed on the dirt. Now, his new form was much more unorthodox as he was, simply put, a shiny bike.
Without missing a beat, his wheels started turning and kicked up the dirt before Lazer took off towards the camp. "Beep beep! Move over or get run over!"
Somehow, his warning worked as the Bugsters got out of his way as he sped back to the camp.
"We're back!" Tetsuya announced his and Ryoko's return to the campsite. They saw Emu and Hiiro sorting through some herbs and mushrooms that they had harvested.
"Eh? Ritsu, why are you wet?"
"Mark my words: That bike will be dying tonight."
"Um, what?"
"Ignore him," Taiga told them. "You got what we need?"
"Yup… How do I take it out?" Tetsuya asked.
After a minute or so of Taiga teaching mainly Tetsuya on how to take things out of their inventory, the latter and Ryoko went to sit by a still grumbling Ritsuka while Taiga went to prepare the ingredients.
"Good morning."
"Meh."
"Oh, come on. Don't be so moody this early." Ryoko lightly scolded Ritsuka.
"Why don't you get splashed awake and let's see if you can be so chipper." Ritsuka quietly grumbled.
"What was that?" "Nothing," he huffed. "So what's up?"
"Well… How do I say this?" Ryoko muttered to herself, puzzling Ritsuka a bit. "It's something we meant to bring up yesterday but things got a bit… hectic."
"What is it?"
"When you went berserk and fought Yuusuke, you dragged him into a reflection," Tetsuya explained.
"The Mirror World?" Ritsuka could not help but say despite not knowing what it meant yet.
"Mirror World?" "Don't ask, I don't have a clue either."
"Anyway, when we tried to get you to stop, we heard someone's voice," said Ryoko.
"…"
"We don't know who it was but he seemed to know you." "And he called Ryoko an idiot," Tetsuya added, much to the girl's chagrin.
"Both of you heard him?" Ritsuka asked.
"Yup." "Uh-huh."
"…" If it was who Ritsuka thought it was, then that changes the situation somewhat.
"That voice implied that you going insane and attacking Yuusuke was nothing new," Tetsuya told him.
"I see…" Ritsuka muttered, eyes gazing downwards. "And that guy hasn't talked to you two since then?"
"Nope." Ryoko shook her head. "I know you don't remember anything and all, but do you know who that guy is?"
"Of course not. Why would I?" He did not know what compelled him to lie but he did. "But thanks for telling me about this."
"No problem." Tetsuya smiled slightly. "Since whoever that guy was might come back, you should know about him."
"Yeah…"
"Say, where did Kiriya-san go off to?" Ryoko asked, noticing that the guy was not around.
"He's-" "I'm back!"
Before Ritsuka could answer her, a yellow dirt bike broke through the treeline and entered the camp, stopping in between the two groups of three.
"Kiriya?" Emu said, recognizing the bike. "Why-?"
"We've got a problem. A big problem." The front of the bike wobbled as it spoke.
"You're… Kiriya?" Ryoko and Tetsuya blinked to make sure they were seeing things right. "Why…?"
"Hmm?" The front of the bike turned to look at the two and an unsurprised Ritsuka, letting them see the two glowing animated eyes. "Oh, Ryoko-chan! You're back. Say, do you want to go on a ride? I promise I won't go too fa-"
"Lazer!"
"Oh, right." Lazer turned back to the other trio.
"What happened? What's this big problem?"
"Simply, a bunch of Bugsters jumped me on my way back. And by a bunch, I mean a lot." The yellow bike began explaining to them. "I had to run away as fast as I could 'cause there were just too many of them."
"Did they follow you?" Taiga asked urgently.
"Don't know. I can't exactly look back, you know."
"What you're saying is that we could be attacked any moment now?" Hiiro remarked.
"Probably." Kiriya did the best impression of a shrug as he could. "Hang on a mo'."
Gachon!
The pink lever on his Gamer Driver then closed on its own. Suddenly, armor flew through the air at him and a moment later, Lazer stood in his Level 1 Form.
"That's much better." The now humanoid Rider sighed as he waved his arms around.
"…What?"
"Don't think too hard about it." Ritsuka simply advised his two friends, noting their very confused looks.
"Wait just a minute," Emu said. "Just how many of them were there?"
"I don't know. 40? 50?" Lazer guesstimated.
"And you escaped them… how?"
"Hey, let's not think too deeply about my miraculous escape. We have to prepare for-" "EEE!"
The battle cry was closely followed by the arrival of many of the Bugster grunts, coming from the same direction as Kiriya had.
"Well, no time to prepare now," Ritsuka remarked, taking out the Decadriver. "You two get out of here."
"Got it boss!"
As Tetsuya and Ryoko retreated, the four remaining untransformed Riders put on their Drivers at the same time. While Emu took out the pink Mighty Action X Gashat, Hiiro and Taiga's Gashats were light and dark blue respectively.
Hiiro's depicted a knight wielding a sword that glowed red and blue while Taiga's portrayed a soldier using a strange rifle.
Mighty Action X!
Taddle Quest!
Bang Bang Shooting!
The three Gashats announced their names in tandem as their Start screens appeared behind their respective Riders. Chocolate blocks, chests, and barrels spawned around them before the four called out.
"Henshin!"
KAMEN RIDE: DECADE
Gashat! Let's game! Metcha game! Mutcha game! What's your name?! I'm a Kamen Rider!
Like Kiriya, character portraits appeared around the three native Riders. The three then selected their avatars and glowing energy covered their bodies. With a flash of light, they all were replaced with their armored form.
And also like Kiriya, the three Gamer Riders' Level 1 Forms were basically chibis, with their bodies all being the same with their large masks being the only way to differentiate them. While Emu was the same spiky, pink-haired helmet similar to his Level 2 Form, Hiiro's was shaped like a knight's helmet, complete with a blue plume on the top of his head and a small shield in his left hand. On the other hand, Taiga's mask was more asymmetrical, with a dark blue tactical helmet with an STG decal imprinted on it. Additionally, a lime eyepiece covered his right eye.
"This is much better, isn't it? Five against 50 is more manageable!" Lazer exclaimed, joining the line of Riders just as his allies summoned their weapons.
Gashacon Breaker/Sword/Magnum!
While Ex-Aid wielded his hammer from the day before, Kamen Rider Brave used what basically looked like a toy sword, with the blade coated in fake fire. On the hilt of the Gashacon Sword were two buttons similar to the Breaker.
On the other hand, Snipe's personal weapon was a gun that followed the aesthetics of his compatriots. The Gashacon Magnum was a black, white, and dark blue and had its A and B button right in front of the trigger.
"I'll clear this game with no continues!"
"Commencing Bugster removal operation."
"Mission start."
"Let's go for a ride!"
"…"
"Um… Ritsuka-san?"
"No, I don't have a catchphrase." Decade remained focused on the task at hand but silently mumbled, "At least not one that fits the situation…"
"Man, why does he get a normal fo- Hey, wait for me!" Lazer exclaimed as the others charged forward.
Xxx
Meanwhile…
"Hmm…" A well-dressed man stared at his computer screen in deep thought.
"Hey, hey, what're you looking at?" His companion peeked over his shoulders to see the data on the screen. "Who's that?"
"…"
"Hey, President? You in there?" The playful young man waved his hand in front of the first man's face, earning his ire.
"Stop that," the man scolded him, slapping his hand away.
"Come on, who's that guy?" The younger of the two pointed at the magenta Kamen Rider fighting alongside Ex-Aid and the others.
"How am I supposed to know?" The President muttered more to himself than his annoying ally, who now had a wide grin on his face.
"So, what are you going to do?" He prodded him. "A new player has entered the game. A completely unknown factor has intruded on your plans for the ultimate game. What-"
"Will you be quiet?!" The man got sick and tired of his ally's incessant rambling and got up from his desk. He opened a drawer and took out a Gamer Driver and a pair of Gashats.
"Parado, keep an eye on the footage and combat data!" He ordered as he exited the room.
"Be careful~!" Parado yelled before sitting in the President's seat and scooting closer to the computer screen. "I'm counting on you…"
Back in the forest…
"That's 14!" Ex-Aid exclaimed as he bashed a Bugster's head in, which then dissolved into orange particles that scattered into the wind. "How about you guys?"
"Stop messing around, Dairiki," Brave admonished the other Rider, cutting down a couple fake knights and turning them to pixels. '12… 13…'
Snipe, meanwhile, remained in-line and kept shooting down the respawning Bugsters. On the other hand, Lazer was just as playful as Ex-Aid was, counting his kills like he was. "You know, I killed like 10 of them earlier so I got about 22 now! Number 5, how much you get?!"
"24." "Liar!" "25 now."
"How many we kill doesn't matter if they just keep reviving," Snipe informed the others. As he had said, for every Bugster grunt they kill, two more took their place.
Mighty Action X!
However, before they could continue fighting, purple energy coursed through the ground beneath their feet, signaling the arrival of a foe the Riders of this world knew very well.
"That was-!"
Gashat! Gachan! Level Up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Mighty Action~ X!
Gyu In!
An energy slash cut through a row of Bugster mooks, destroying them and revealing another Kamen Rider.
"The Black Ex-Aid?!"
Just as Snipe had exclaimed, the new Rider was essentially a recolored version of Emu's Level 2 Form. Instead of a pink-and-black undersuit, the other Ex-Aid's was black-and-purple. What would normally be silver on the normal Ex-Aid, like the chestpiece, was a dark shade of gray. In his right hand was a gamepad-like weapon with a short chainsaw on one end and two gun barrels on the other. Like the Gashacon weapons, an A and B button was on top of the sidearm.
All fighting seized upon this Rider's entrance.
"A Dark Rider…?" Decade muttered as the Black Ex-Aid slowly approached them.
Meanwhile, the other four Riders were more concerned about another thing. "How did he enter the Game World?!" Ex-Aid shouted. As far as they knew, the only way into that World was through the Proto Drago Knight Hunter Z Gashat, which should have been in there with them.
"Who are you?" The Black Ex-Aid questioned Decade in a disguised voice. "Why have you intruded on this world?"
"Why do you care? You aren't this world's ruler." That remark quickly earned Decade the other Ex-Aid's ire.
Chu Don!
In response, the Black Ex-Aid flipped the sides of his weapon so that the gun barrels were pointing out and raised it at Decade.
"Watch out!" He was way ahead of Ex-Aid though, already leaping out of the way of the attack. The energy shots instead hit the Bugsters that were behind Decade, killing them with ease.
Gyu In!
"You don't belong here." The Black Ex-Aid calmly but very aggressively said before he charged at Decade and swapped his weapon back to its chainsaw mode. Decade barely had enough time to bring his sword up to block the incoming attack.
"Ritsuka-san! Dai Henshin!" The normal Ex-Aid exclaimed before he pulled the lever on his Driver.
Gachan! Level Up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Mighty Mighty Action X!
Like before, a pink holographic screen came out of the Driver and passed through him, causing his armor to cast off. Ex-Aid now stood back turned to them, his Level 1 mask turning into the back piece of his suit. Spinning around, he quickly joined Decade in fighting off his dark counterpart.
Meanwhile, the remaining three Riders were left to deal with the Bugsters by themselves. Knowing the urgency with fighting the Black Ex-Aid, it went without saying among them that they have to defeat the horde of knights and wizards.
"Skill Level 2." "Tactics Level 2." "I'll just stay on Level 1, thanks!"
Well… Most of them knew the urgency. Brave and Snipe opened their Gamer Driers at the same time, light and dark blue screens appeared in front of them respectively.
Gachan! Level Up!
Taddle meguru! Taddle meguru! Taddle Quest~!
Ba-Ba-Bang! Ba-Ba-Bang! Bang Bang Shooting!
The two ran through their respective screens and Leveled Up. Their suits broke off and revealed their Level 2 Forms.
Kamen Rider Brave's suit was a mix of black and light blue. Similarly, he had light blue pauldrons and the shield he had in Level 1 was hooked on his left wrist. Meanwhile, Kamen Rider Snipe was dark blue and lime green. A lime green scarf/cape draped around his neck and left shoulder. On their backs were their Level 1 masks.
"Stay out of the way," Brave commanded as he slashed a couple Bugsters away. However, they were quickly replaced with several more that continued to block the Riders' way
Back with Ritsuka and Emu, they were holding their own against the Black Ex-Aid.
"How did you get here?" Ex-Aid questioned his counterpart, who responded with a small, digitally-altered laugh.
"A simple lock on this Game World is nothing to me." The Black Ex-Aid claimed before he forced the pink Rider to step back with a slash of his weapon. But before the Dark Rider could continue his assault, Decade stepped in and tried to strike him down. He was not fast enough though, and the Black Ex-Aid blocked it with his weapon.
Decade remained silent as he continued attacking the now equally silent Black Ex-Aid but was either parried or blocked. The only noises coming from the two were the clashing of their weapons.
After another clash of their weapons, the Black Ex-Aid put some distance between them and took a light green Gashat from the holder on his side.
Shakariki Sports!
Of all things that could have come out of the start screen, a bicycle matching Ex-Aid's colors was not the first thing Decade thought of. Regardless, the Black Ex-Aid closed the lever and inserted the Gashat into his Driver.
Gachon! Gashat! Gachan! Level Up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Mighty Action~ X! A Gatcha! Shakariki! Shakariki! Bad! Bad! Shaka to riki to Shakariki Sports!
The bicycle spun around the Black Ex-Aid before attaching itself to him. The wheels were now his new shoulderpads. A bicycle green helmet also covered parts of his mask.
"Level 3?!" Ex-Aid exclaimed before taking out his second Gashat. "In that case-!"
Gekitotsu Robot!
Gachon! Gashat!
"Dai Dai Dai Henshin!"
Gachan! Level Up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Mighty Mighty Action X! A Gatcha! Buttobase! Totsugeki! Gekitotsu punch! Gekitotsu Robots!
The Robot Gamer appeared out of the start screen and chomped down on Ex-Aid's head and turning him into Level 3.
"Time for Round 2!" The pink-and-red Rider announced as he charged up his robot fist and ran at the Black Ex-Aid.
However, the other Kamen Rider was completely disinterested in dealing with him and simply dodged the punch with ease. The Black Ex-Aid then removed the Shakariki Sports Gashat out of his Driver, inserted it into the slot on his side, and pushed the button on it.
Gashun!
Gashat! Kimiwaza!
The black Rider unhooked the pink wheel on his right shoulder and it began charging with energy. Finally, he pressed the button on the Kimiwaza Slot Holder again and initiated his finisher.
Shakariki Critical Strike!
With a mighty swing, the Black Ex-Aid threw the wheel at the two Riders. Ex-Aid was hit first, the wheel bouncing off him and heading for Decade. He, luckily, was quick to block the attack but only just. The wheel ground against the blade of the RideBooker.
"It will… take more than that to stop me!" With a defiant shout, he redirected the wheel towards a nearby group of Bugster… and Kamen Rider Lazer.
"Gah!" Lazer yelped as he just barely dropped to the ground and dodged the spinning wheel. "Watch it!"
The finisher, meanwhile, destroyed the Bugsters Lazer was fighting and returned to the Black Ex-Aid's hand. He then ran towards Decade and continued fighting him.
"Damn it! There has to be a way to stop them from respawning!" Back with Lazer and the others, he gritted his teeth as more reformed in front of him.
"...That's it." An idea suddenly crossed Brave's mind. All they have to do is incapacitate them in a way so that they won't explode and cause more to spawn.
He raised his sword and pressed the A button on the hilt. The blade of his weapon flipped sides, the fake flame that coated it turning to ice.
Ko Chin!
Cutting down another Bugster that tried to attack him, Brave pressed the B button four times. A cool wind radiated from the Gashacon Sword before he slashed through the air. An increasingly enlarging wave of ice came out of the sword and encased the group of Bugster Brave was fighting.
"Hmm?" "Nice going!" Snipe and Lazer (mostly Lazer… Only Lazer) cheered Hiiro's quick thinking. "C'mon, deal with mine first!"
Meanwhile, Decade saw the knight-themed Rider's tactics and froze for a moment.
"That's…" He did not know why, but the sight of people cased in ice brought forth a feeling deep within his chest.
"Why…?" Sirens blared in his head, a distant, foggy memory appearing in his mind. He was fleeing… something with… someone? Why…?
However, he was unable to think about it any further as the Black Ex-Aid took his chance and dealt a powerful blow, slashing across the chest with the chainsaw. He was sent tumbling onto the ground in pain.
'Have to forget about it for now…' Decade thought to himself.
Zu Kyun!
The Black Ex-Aid quickly got a taste of his own medicine though as a powerful shot struck him in the chest, forcing him to stumble back a bit by the blast. More energy shots soon hit the Dark Rider, keeping him distracted while Decade slipped away out of range of the chainsaw.
Nearby, Snipe had changed the Gashacon Magnum into its Rifle Mode and was the one laying covering fire for the magenta Rider.
"3rd Gear!"
Giri Giri Chambara!
A black-and-gold samurai-themed robot flew out of the new start screen summoned by Lazer activating his other Gashat.
Gashat! Gachan! Level Up! Bakusou dokusou gekisou bousou! Bakusou Bike! A Gatcha! Giri-Giri-Giri-Giri Chambara!
Two screens, yellow and white, came out of the Gamer Driver and passed through Lazer. Like before, his Level 1 suit broke off and revealed his bike body. This time though, the Chambara Gamer similarly broke into pieces, the arms and legs swapped places as they attached to him. Its main body covered his groin and its head attached to Lazer's face.
Gashacon Sparrow!
"Haha! Time for some payback!" Lazer Level 3 proclaimed as he summoned his new weapon, a black, yellow, and pink bow-and-arrow. As with the other Gashacon weapons, two large buttons adorned the weapon. Taking aim at the Black Ex-Aid, he pulled the trigger and shot several bolts of energy at him.
The Black Ex-Aid quickly brought up his pink bicycle wheel as a shield to block both the energy bolts and bullets. However, this had left him unable to defend from the combined slashes of Decade and Brave, the latter having finished freezing the last few Bugsters.
Gashun!
Gashat! Kimiwaza! Gekitotsu Critical Strike!
Also taking the chance, Ex-Aid initiated his own finisher and threw a rocket-fueled robot punch at his dark counterpart. The punch hit its target square in the chest, sending the Black Ex-Aid flying back along with the fist into a tree. Upon hitting it, he exploded in a massive explosion and the robot fist flew back onto Ex-Aid's arm. Also out of the fire, both the gamepad-weapon and the Shakariki Sports Gashat flew out and landed on the ground between them.
The fire soon dispersed, the Black Ex-Aid down on his knees in his Level 2 Form and his health gauge very nearly depleted.
"Oh, how the tables have turned…" Lazer chuckled to himself as the five watched the Black Ex-Aid struggling to get up. 'Now to see if it's actually him…'
"No, not yet…" The Black Ex-Aid grunted as he pushed himself to his feet. He took one pained step forward to try getting his weapon and Gashat but was way too slow. By the time he took a second step, the normal Ex-Aid had already picked up the two pieces of equipment.
"Sorry, but you won't be using this again," Ex-Aid told his counterpart. "Now hand over that Gashat. Your days of spreading the virus are ov-"
"Gekidou Ryuga!"
A red lightning slash struck the group of five Riders before he could finish. The shockwave from the resulting explosion threw them back just like the Black Ex-Aid a few moments earlier. Furthermore, Ex-Aid had accidentally dropped the gamepad thanks to the blast.
"That attack… That was-" A familiar figure to the four Gamer Riders came out from within the woods.
"Graphite!" Both Brave and Snipe shouted simultaneously upon seeing the final Bugster.
However, Ex-Aid was more concerned about something else. Specifically, Graphite's new color scheme. "It can't be… You took the Proto Gashat?!"
The Bugster ignored him though, more focused on the Black Ex-Aid instead. "You… How dare you show your face to me after what you've done!"
"Eh… Guess their alliance had broken down…" Lazer quietly commented.
"Graphite. My plan-" "Save your breath! I'm not listening to a word you say!" Graphite cut him off, pointing one end of his spear at the Black Ex-Aid.
"So you are Graphite?" Unfettered by the appearance of the Dragon Warrior, Decade called out to him. "You're the one we have to destroy, right?"
"Hmm? Who are you?" Graphite turned to face him, now interested in the new Kamen Rider. "Y0u are unlike the others."
"Who I am doesn't matter." Decade said as he took out another card. "You won't be alive for too long. Henshin."
KAMEN RIDE: KUUGA
His armor morphed into that of the first Heisei Rider again.
"Ooh!" "He changed forms?"
"Interesting," Graphite remarked before glancing at the Black Ex-Aid. "Be grateful for this outsider. It's thanks to him that you survive this day."
"..." The Black Ex-Aid remained quiet before taking his chance and retreated into the forest, escaping from view.
"Wait! Gah!" Naturally, the other Riders excluding Decade tried to chase after him but immediately fell to their knees, too injured from Graphite's surprise attack.
"Now then, outsider. Let's begin!" Graphite proclaimed before both he and Decade charged at each other.
Upon getting close to him, Graphite tried to thrust his spear into his foe but his attack was easily pushed slightly out of the way. Just enough for the red Rider to get an opening to kick the Bugster in the stomach.
"Gah!" Graphite grunted in pain at the blow before laughing to himself. "Hehehe… You're strong!"
"You really like to talk, don't you?" Ritsuka snarked at him. "Well, you are a video game character. I shouldn't be surprised."
That struck a nerve within the Bugster though. "Be quiet! That has nothing to do with this! Gekidou Ryuga!"
Graphite used his lightning slash again, aimed at Decade. However, he was one step ahead though.
FORM RIDE KUUGA: DRAGON
His armor quickly morphed again and he leaped high in the sky, dodging the attack and landing right behind Graphite. The black dragon monster barely had time to turn around before he, with a couple quick moves, was relieved of his spear and pushed back.
"The Dragon Spear!" Graphite watched as his spear morphed, the two dragon teeth changing into simple thin rounded golden tips with blue gems embedded inside. The main rod of the spear, meanwhile, turned blue-and-gold and Rinto script ran down it just like the Titan Sword.
Kuuga Dragon Form was, naturally, a similar shade of blue as the Dragon Rod and was more light than Mighty Form. His breastplate had turned blue and his shoulderpads had disappeared. His eyes had been dyed blue along with the various gemstones that were embedded in his cuffs and kneepads.
Twirling the Dragon Rod a couple of times, Decade stood resolutely for a moment before charging Graphite. He thrust the spear into the Bugster's chest and sent him flying back with the strong blow.
"Do it! Finish him!" "Go for it, Ritsuka-san!"
Both Lazer and Ex-Aid cheered for him to destroy Graphite. Snipe and Brave, meanwhile, was more nuanced, only nodding silently for Decade to do it.
Not that he needed their permission either way.
FINAL ATTACK RIDE: KU-KU-KUUGA
Gripping the Dragon Rod tightly, he leaped into the air and was about to stab Graphite. However, the Bugster had noticed something next to where he had landed. It will be a dirty trick, he knew that, but it was either that or certain death.
Just as the blue Rider was about to strike him down, Graphite quickly moved aside and dodged the attack. Before Decade could take his spear out of the ground, the Bugster quickly grabbed the dropped Gashacon Bugvisor-
Gyu In!
-and sprayed orange particles into Ritsuka's face.
"Ritsuka-san!" Ex-Aid shouted in concern at Graphite's act.
"You-!" A pained cough came from Decade as he weakly stumbled back. His armor morphed back into his base suit before it disappeared, Ritsuka dropping to the ground in pain. The Dragon Rod, meanwhile, turned back into its normal form which Graphite then pulled out of the ground.
"I apologize." Surprisingly, the Bugster said that to Ritsuka. "You fought well, but this is a fight between humanity and Bugsters. Honor, regrettably, has no place here."
Graphite raised his spear and was prepared to end Ritsuka's life there and then.
Kimiwaza! Gekitotsu Critical Strike!
Before Graphite could bring his spear down though, Ex-Aid intervened and sent a rocket punch flying at him, who blocked it. Powering through the pains shooting through his body, the pink-and-red Kamen Rider ran towards the Bugster and punched into the fist. The blow was enough to force Graphite back.
"Em...mu…" Ritsuka groaned in pain. Orange pixels flickered all over his body, showing that he was now infected with the Bugster Virus.
"Stay back, Ritsuka-san," Emu pleaded to him despite his health bar getting low. "I'll deal with him."
"No. You-! Ah!" Ritsuka tried to stand back up but just fell back down again.
"You barely managed to drag me here last time, Ex-Aid," Graphite pointed out. "With Level lower than before, how do you hope to stop me now?"
"…" The pink Kamen Rider did not respond. Instead, he closed his Driver and removed the Gekitotsu Robots Gashat.
Gachon! Gashun!
"Dairiki!" "Emu! Don't do it!" Brave and Lazer tried to deter him but their pleas fell on deaf ears as he took out the golden Gashat.
Drago Knight Hunter! Z!
"That again?" Graphite huffed but did nothing to stop Ex-Aid as he inserted the Gashat into his Driver. "Fine then. Fight me. That's what you want, right?!"
Gashat!
"Dai Dai Dai Dai Dai Henshin!" He exclaimed and pulled open the Lever.
Gachan! Level Up! Mighty jump! Mighty kick! Mighty Mighty Action X! A Gatcha! Do-Do-Drago! Na-Na-Knight! Dra~! Dra~! Drago Knight Hunter! Z!
The summoned Hunter Gamer roared before it broke apart and attached itself to Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, leveling him up to Level 5. It barely took a few seconds before he started sparking, hurting him further.
"Grr…" He growled through gritted teeth. "I have to… I have to save him!"
Powering through his pain once again, he charged towards Graphite with his bladed right arm raised.
"Damn it, we have to stop him before he gets himself killed." Brave stood up, closing his Driver and taking out a yellow Gashat.
Gachon!
"Why does he always have to be this reckless?" Snipe complained, also closing his Driver and taking out an orange Gashat.
Gachon!
"Skill Level 3." "Tactics Level 3." "I'm already Level 3 so I'll wait."
Do-Re-Mi-Fa Beat!
Jet Combat!
A yellow-and-pink DJ-based and an orange rocket/jet-themed robot appeared out of the screens behind the two Riders.
Gashat! Gachan! Level Up!
Taddle meguru! Taddle meguru! Taddle Quest~! A Gatcha! Do-Do-DoReMiFa-So-La-Ti-Do! Ok! Do-Re-Mi-Fa Bea~t~!
Ba-Ba-Bang! Ba-Ba-Bang! Bang Bang Shooting! A Gatcha! Jet! Jet! In the sky! Jet! Jet! Jet Combat~!
Like the Robot Gamer, the Beat and Combat Gamer chomped down on their respective masters' heads and leveled them up. For Brave, his Level 3 Form gave him mostly yellow-and-black armor that covered his Rider Gauge and shoulders. Additionally, a speaker made out of the Beat Gamer's feet on his left shoulder. On his right arm, meanwhile, was a blue-and-yellow turntable. Completing the DJ look was a yellow cap and a pink visor covering his 'eyes' along with a pair of headphones.
Snipe, on the other hand, gained primarily orange armor for Level 3. As with most of them at that level, his health gauge was now obscured. A pair of wings were attached to his Level 1 mask on his back while he gained two Gatling guns as sidearms. A breathing respirator and an orange visor covered his face, giving him the appearance of a jet pilot.
"Brave, Lazer, get Ex-Aid and #5 out of there," Snipe ordered the other Riders before he took off into the sky.
"Don't order me around."
"Hey, #5 is my nickname for him!"
Despite their complaints, the two still followed his command and jumped into the battle.
Zu Paan!
"Sorry, partner!" Lazer pulled apart the Gashacon Sparrow into its twin Sickle Mode, stepping in between Ex-Aid and Graphite and blocking the blade.
"Don't interfere!" The dragon Bugster was naturally annoyed by Lazer's meddling and was going to attack him instead. Fortunately for the bike Rider, he was saved by Snipe letting loose a barrage of bullets onto the Bugster.
"Fujimaru," Brave said as he went to the sick teen's side and carried him away from the battle. "Save your strength. We will defeat Graphite."
"Wait…" Ritsuka groaned, "I-"
"Just rest." The doctor Rider laid him against a tree before returning to the battlefield.
"C'mon, Emu! Level down already!" Lazer shouted as he held Ex-Aid and tried to drag him away from Graphite, who was now dealing with both Snipe and Brave.
Ka Chin!
Switching the Gashacon Sword back into its Fire Mode, Brave tried to do an overhead slash but Graphite blocked it with his spear's rod.
"A trick like that won't work, Brave." Graphite would have smirked if he had a mouth. "You have to do better than that!"
Pushing the sword away, Graphite kicked Brave back before slashing him with his spear. The Bugster then spun around and sent another lightning slash at the flying Kamen Rider Snipe.
"Gah!" The attack managed to connect and the veteran Kamen Rider fell to the ground with a painful thud. He did not get the chance to get up before Graphite grabbed him and threw him right into Brave.
"Uh-oh!" Kiriya briefly panicked upon seeing Brave and Snipe going down, the two Riders landing right in front of him and Ex-Aid.
"Gekidou Ryuga!" Their string of getting their ass kicked was not over yet as Graphite used his signature attack on them once again.
"AHH!' The four Riders, along with the ground around them, blew up. Not only were they thrown back by the attack, but their transformations were also disengaged against their will.
"Damn it… Not… Not again," said Taiga as he gripped his right shoulder in pain.
"He's too strong," Kiriya groaned as he lay on the ground.
"At this rate, we'll get a Game Over." And there was nothing they could do about it. With the main four too injured to transform again and Ritsuka down with the virus, they were sitting ducks.
"It… can't end like this." Ritsuka tried to push himself to move but found himself too drained to move.
"You all fought bravely, I'll give you that," Graphite complimented them. "But this is where you all will meet your end! Gekidou!"
"Guess I have to bail you out again." A familiar voice complained into Ritsuka's ear.
"Ryuga!" Graphite screamed as he used his signature attack on them. As if time had slowed down, the four native Riders looked away out of reflex, not wanting to see their end coming at them.
KABOOM!
"What?!" Graphite shouted in surprise at the appearance of the silver wall that saved the Riders.
Realizing they were not dead yet and hearing Graphite's shocked shouting, the Gamer Riders looked up to see the same silver wall.
"Isn't that…?" Like Graphite, they recognized the wall. "Why is it here?"
"You… Ack!" A mind-splitting pain shot through Ritsuka's head. His body also started flickering in and out of existence.
"Wait, don't-!" Kiriya's pleas were cut off by the silver wall moving back and passing over the five, Ritsuka being last.
"...Tsk." Graphite growled before he turned into his human form.
He stared at the Proto Drago Knight Hunter Z Gashat in his hand. "...I'll find you again, and defeat you all."
Fujimaru 'residence'...
"Hmm…" Tetsuya hummed as he sat against one of the pillars in the studio room of their house.
"What's wrong? Your face is all scrunched up." Ryoko remarked, looking at her friend from her spot by the windowsill.
"Do you think we may have run away too far?" asked Tetsuya. When Ritsuka told them to retreat, they had gone all the way back to their new home before they realized where they were.
"Probably, but-"
"-eat me!" Before the two could react, the silver wall that had heralded the end of their world passed through the room and dropped off the five very injured Kamen Riders.
"Guys?!" "What happened?!" "Where are we?!"
"Can't any of you be quiet?" Ritsuka grumbled. His headache had subsided a bit but their shoutings were going to make it worse.
"This place is rather empty, ain't it?" Kiriya noted as he entered Ritsuka's room with a bored look. "So how's #5?"
#5, in this case, was currently laying on his futon with Hiiro looking over him, the Game Scope in his hand. The apparatus was currently projecting a screen over Ritsuka and a flame icon was bouncing off the edges of it.
Also in the room were Emu, Tetsuya, and Ryoko.
"He has it," Hiiro confirmed, taking the earpieces of the Game Scope out and hanging the tool around his neck.
"Yeesh, Graphite really got lucky with that shot," Kiriya sighed.
"So, he really is infected with the Bugster Virus?" Tetsuya leaned out from behind Emu.
"Yes." Emu nodded with a somber expression.
"And… how infectious is it?" Ryoko leaned out on the other side. "Since you're not wearing masks, it's fine for us to be here… right?"
"The infectivity of the Bugster Virus is still mostly unknown but we are confident they do not spread from one person to another like a normal virus," Hiiro informed them.
"The only cure to my condition is to defeat Graphite," Ritsuka added to the conversation, sitting up despite the protests of nearly everybody in the room. "Now there's another reason for me to destroy him."
"Another reason we need to defeat him," Emu corrected Ritsuka. "What you need to do is rest and conserve your energy."
"You guys? Graphite handed your asses on a silver platter. How do expect to defeat him without me?" Ritsuka grumbled.
"Hey, #5," Kiriya frowned at his words, "In case you forgot, we've been dealing with monsters like him much longer than you have."
"And in case you forgot, this is my life at stake here. I'm not just going to lie down and- Ack!" Another spike of pain cut him off, Ritsuka's body turning invisible for a moment before reappearing again.
"Calm yourself," Hiiro advised him in a calm tone. "Stressing yourself will just make it worse."
"Listen to him, Ritsu. He's-"
"I get it already," The teen in question grumbled before laying back down on his futon. "Can you all please leave? I want to get some rest."
"That would be best." Hiiro listened to his request and turned to the others. "Come, we can check on him later."
"Alright, you heard the doc!" Kiriya clapped his hands for emphasis. "Let's get outta here!"
"He will be fine, right?" Ryoko asked Emu again as they all gathered back in the main room downstairs.
"Don't worry, I swear that we will beat Graphite and cure Ritsuka-san."
"And who knows, maybe #5 will be nicer to us when we save him," Kiriya commented too. "Guy's really not that friendly with us."
"Yeah, sorry about that," Tetsuya apologized in his friend's stead. "He tends to be a bit…"
"Abrasive?"
"An ass?"
"...I was going to say anti-social but you're not exactly wrong." Tetsuya just hoped that Ritsuka was not listening from the other side of the door.
"It's probably just because he's sick with the virus," Emu tried to suggest but was refuted by the teen's two friends.
"No, he tends to be distant with others," Ryoko told them before muttering, "Including us…"
"He has a lot on his mind nearly all of the time," added Tetsuya. "With his condition, it's not really a surprise."
"Ritsuka-san has amnesia, right?" Emu remembered their story from the day before.
"Ah, yes. The typical video game protagonist trope." Kiriya snickered mostly to himself. "Maybe you guys'll meet a mysterious girl who knew him in the past on your journey or something like that."
"So-" 'Ohh! Better yet, what about a mysterious enemy that turns out to be his brother?"
"...You done?"
"Yup."
"So if Ritsuka-san is so unfriendly as you say, then how did you manage to befriend him?" Emu asked the two.
"Long story short, I was there when we found him." Tetsuya simplified his first meeting with Ritsuka. "Maybe that has something to do with it?"
"As for me, I was just curious and persistent," Ryoko said. "That and I was one of the only few girls that weren't interested in him."
"And a chick magnet too? He really is a main character!" Kiriya was starting to sound more serious. "Oh yeah. Speaking of chicks, hey Tai-kun!"
"I'm not cooking chicken back here!" Taiga shouted back from behind the backdrop. "It's just soup!"
"Chicken soup?" "No!"
Meanwhile, in the real world…
"Way to go, Graphite," Parado smirked as he rewatched the recorded footage again. Specifically, the part where the dragon Bugster infected the magenta Kamen Rider.
Before he could rewind the footage, heavy footsteps alerted him to the return of his 'boss'. Peeking over the computer screen, Parado saw him staggering into the office with a very ticked-off look.
"Welcome home, Kuroto-san," Parado greeted him. "How was your trip?"
"Be quiet," Kuroto snapped at him and pulled Parado out of his seat. "Go play something and leave me. Your work here is done for now."
Naturally, Parado ignored the order and sat on the corner of the CEO's desk. "You've gotta admit, that pink Rider really had you on the ropes."
"Shut it!" Kuroto screamed in anger as he began typing quickly on his computer, mumbling, "How dare he look down on me. I'm the creator of that world and every being that exists in there. My talents are godly!"
"There he goes praising himself again," Parado laughed to himself in amusement over Kuroto's action, a large grin on his face. Looking at the screen, he asked, "What are you… do…"
The grin immediately disappeared as he realized what Kuroto was doing. "Wait! What do you think you're doing?!"
"I said be quiet!" Kuroto shouted again, slightly unhinged now. "First, he insults me. Then, he humiliated me. This. This is divine judgment!"
"What about M?!" Parado grabbed the man's arms to stop him. "He's still in the Game World! If you delete that world, he'll-!"
"Get your hands off me!" Parado was pushed away and Kuroto continued trying to delete the Game World the Riders were in.
"...Tch." Parado was in a bind. They were not done with the ultimate game yet so he cannot just get rid of Kuroto yet. 'Do I really have to do this?' He groaned inwardly, knowing what he has to do.
Appeal to Kuroto's megalomaniac side.
"But, great Dan Kuroto, surely outright deleting them will be too quick of a punishment."
"What did you say?" The CEO of Genm Corporation stopped clicking on his computer.
Parado smirked, knowing he got his full attention. "For slighting someone with divine talents like you, simply erasing them out of existence will be too merciful."
"...Continue."
"Why do you not just slowly dissolve the world instead? Then, that Kamen Rider will know true fear as everything collapses around him."
"...Hehe…Ha…Hahahahaha!" Kuroto slowly started chuckling before a full-blown maniacal laugh erupted from the man. "I knew there was a reason I kept you around!"
'Just like fish in a barrel.'
"You're correct. My brief madness clouded my mind." A devilish smile appeared on his face. "Slowly erasing everything around him will be more suitable than simply killing him."
"In that case, my work here is done. I'll be taking my leave." Parado played along and bowed to the man. He then fizzled out of existence, leaving the mad CEO by himself.
"Now then," Kuroto returned to his computer, "Say your prayers…"
Nighttime…
Noises filled Ritsuka's room as he tossed and turned in his sleep. Short, shallow breaths came from the boy, not only a result of his illness but also a troubling dream that filled his mind as he slumbered.
"-were gunshots! But, who's-!?"
"Hmm, so it's begun."
"Initiating-!"
"We can't leave-"
"-made it back-"
"Who's there…?" Ritsuka said in his sleep.
"Although, she called them-"
"Great, I'll be counting on you two to back me up."
"-a wall of ice blocking the east hall."
"-girl froze the… single-handedly."
"Ice…?" Images of the Bugster… no, something else. Something frozen in ice flashed in his mind.
"-a survivor!"
"-glory! Yes, glory!"
"...That voice…" Ritsuka muttered in his sleep, not knowing that somebody had slipped into his room and was now watching over him.
"This always happened to me?"
"You're finally starting to remember something…?"
"I don't wanna die! I'm not ready to die!"
"I can't… I can't let this happen again…" Tears started running down Ritsuka's face, his body flickering again more rapidly.
"One more step to victory!"
"Indeed. You were just one step short."
"No!" Ritsuka shot up in a flash. "What was-?"
"Pleasant nightmare?"
"...Go away," he hissed at his usual visitor. "I mean it this time."
"So you were lying to yourself all the other time? I'm touched." The cloaked man laughed at Ritsuka's unintentional meaning. "Now then, let's do this."
"Eh?"
The young man in black simply took out a black-and-gray Gashat.
"Game Start."
Mighty Action X!
Next time on Across the Kaleidoscope
"How are you-?"
"The final battle is upon us."
"My memories…"
"All together now!"
"Henshin!"
Chapter 6: Dragon's End
A/N: After careful deliberation, I've decided to split this chapter into two parts. Why? Because Ritsuka getting the Bugster virus and getting it cured in the same chapter sounds bad. So this chapter is slightly shorter than usual… again. You know, I planned the first three-part arc of this story to be [REDACTED]. Too bad that plan's changed.
Question: Was I too explicit with that end spot. I mean, we all know [REDACTED] and [REDACTED]. Also,[REDACTED] [REDACTED] [MORE REDACTED].
Now that Saber Wars II is over, I can now come back to the story and start saving up for the 5th anniversary… hopefully. After some quick calculations following the guides on Reddit, I should have around 731(!) SQs and 107 STs by then…. Are we really getting 279 SQs during the anniversary?! Also, that number ignores the Master Missions and stuff like that. Lowest estimate, that puts me at a 350 pulls for Castoria, assuming I don't get tempted by other Saberfaces that are getting Rate-Ups.
And before I forget like last chapter, you can mostly ignore those previews.
Also, do you guys know that Masahiro Inoue recently did a cover of Journey Through the Decade? Go check it out on his YouTube channel if you didn't.
Finally, leave a review as always. Their currently my main source of dopamine (along with stuff that pops up on Reddit).