Unknown World…
"Stop him!" "Fire! Fire!"
"AHH!" "Kurasaki!"
'All these soldiers and all they can do is bore me….'
Despite the near-deafening gunshots and panicked shouting, Eternal, or rather, Nanaya Shiki, couldn't bring himself to care about the situation. Even if they hit him when he's not transformed, the guns the resistance was using weren't effective against him at all. His body was no longer human; weaponry like that was utterly useless. This whole mission his new boss sent him on was an incredibly simple one despite Nanaya taking his time with it.
It was only a matter of him getting close enough to his targets to slit their throats, stab them in the heart, or even a simple neck snap. In the incredibly brief time he's been stationed in this World, Nanaya had already eradicated a couple of resistance cells with no survivors, something the other three working for his boss's supposed colleague couldn't achieve so far. Sufficed to say, he had garnered the disdain of those three, which Nanaya didn't care about either. If they tried anything against him, he'd send them down to hell with little effort.
On a similar note, if he ever ran into the biggest thorn in his boss's side, he could deal with that guy with no problem. Killing a kid who got in way over his head wouldn't even come close to the worst thing he has ever done.
"Kawamura!" The last remaining resistance fighter cried as Nanaya slaughtered another of his compatriots.
As the body dropped to the ground, he flicked his knife before wiping the blood off. "You people are fighting to free this World and this is all you can muster?" Nanaya scoffed, "I'm impressed you lot didn't get wiped out already. Those guys supposed to deal with you all have been slacking." 'What's the point of being revived if this is all I have to do?'
The only reason Nanaya hadn't just left was Swartz promising him something that'd make his heart race would happen. All he had to do was wait and do as told.
'Fine then, I'll be your puppet for now,' he mentally laughed as he twirled his knife. He had a dark grin on his face, narrowing his eyes at the last resistance member standing. "Sorry, but a job's a job. For going against the new order of this World, enjoy eternal hell."
Chapter 31: The End of the Rider War (Part 3)
Despite their best efforts, their search around the Temple yielded nothing; the three soon regrouped in front of the shrine, discussing their findings, or lack thereof.
"Nothing, huh…" Ritsuka mumbled.
He heard Shirou sigh before saying, "It was a decent shot but I think we can say for sure that it isn't here."
While logic told him yes and they should move on, Ritsuka felt they were in the right place; he felt his entire body screaming at him that they were close and something about his other self's comment made sense despite him not knowing what he meant. They just needed a clue to lead them in the right direction.
"Still need help?"
'Shut up.'
"You're really stubborn; you know that?" Again, logic told him that he should let him help, but there was nothing logical about Fujimaru's existence. Why should he listen to him? Maybe he was pulling dumb reasons out of nowhere but Ritsuka didn't care.
However, Fujimaru didn't care for his opinion either—"Well, I'm gonna help you either way and you're gonna like it."
'Asshole.'
Ignoring the insult, Fujimaru told Ritsuka, "That which can grant wishes, however distorted, can only materialise in four places. The Mirror we're searching for can be found in one of these locations."
'Which is here.' Ritsuka rightfully assumed. He didn't know what Fujimaru meant by "that which can grant wishes", but he once again felt he understood what he was talking about.
Fujimaru, however, didn't acknowledge his interruption and continued talking. "We once found that which granted wishes a long time ago…. well, several actually, but the first one we found was here—within the city of never-ending flames."
'Get to the point already.'
"You see, this mountain has a couple hidden entrances that led to this big—"
'I said get to the point already.'
"You're no fun," huffed Fujimaru. "Fine, there's a cave entrance to the side somewhere. I don't remember where; it's been years, but it's definitely here."
"That… was actually useful…" Ritsuka mumbled in slight surprise, which got Ciel's attention. While he had been discussing with himself, she and Shirou had planned where to go next.
"What did you say, Fujimaru-kun?"
"…Nothing," he lied. 'And how am I supposed to find this cave?'
"Normally, I'd try to get you to remember where it is but since I don't know, that's impossible. So…"
'So…?'
"I'll just make things easy and take you two there. Hang onto your butts." The snarky tone in his voice was all the warning Ritsuka got before an Aurora Curtain suddenly appeared and quickly washed over them.
Just as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared… and left behind a confused Ciel alone. Her confusion lasted a couple of seconds before she realised what had just happened. "…Dammit," she grumbled under her breath at losing the two.
"—uh?" Shirou voiced as he and Ritsuka reappeared in a dark, absurdly spacious cavern. They appeared in the middle but ahead of them was a cliff face leading up to another level—and sitting on the edge was…
"Welcome, you two." Fujimaru's voice echoed throughout the chamber; a noticeable smirk was on his face as he greeted them.
"You're—"
Shirou was interrupted by Fujimaru loudly sighing as he got to his feet. The two saw the other Ritsuka nearly lose his footing and fall off—some rock and dust falling off the cliff—but he got his balance and backed away from the edge.
Now that he had moved, they could now see what Fujimaru was hiding behind him (thanks to the angle they were looking at)—a large slab of glass covered in drawings. All Shirou needed was a single glance at the glass slab to know what it was.
"What do you think, Emiya?" Fujimaru asked with a tiny hint of amusement in his voice. "All this time, you and your friend were searching for the Core Mirror and it was right under his nose the entire time."
"Under…" That clue confused Shirou for a few seconds before he finally put two and two together and remembered something from a while back—a minor passing remark said friend made during some small talk.
"There are caverns underneath the temple. After someone snuck into the temple through them., they've been sealed off for years."
"We're—" "—underneath the temple, yes," Fujimaru confirmed with a slight grin. Leaning against the Core Mirror, he turned his attention towards his real self. "Does being here bring back any memories, me?"
Ritsuka, who had been silent the entire time, continued to stay quiet; he simply stared at his doppelganger with an unreadable expression.
"Hmph, it was a moot question anyway," he shrugged before tapping his temple, saying, "I know what you're thinking. Saying it out loud doesn't matter. In any case—"
Without warning, Fujimaru suddenly ripped off one of the drawings and tossed it in their direction. The paper floated in the air for a few seconds before one side glowed brightly, illuminating the cave. In a flash of light, the drawing turned into a giant monstrous spider— one that Shirou found immediately familiar from his first encounter with the Mirror World.
"Now then, impress me. Defeat that, and I'll let you destroy the Core Mirror."
It wasn't like they could refuse that challenge now—the giant Spider Monster let out a loud screech as it raised its front legs, already raring to attack them. With little choice, the two took out their transformation devices and readied themselves. For Shirou, it'd be the last battle he needed to face; for Ritsuka, it was another day in the office (well, cave). While the latter simply strapped on his Driver, the former raised his Advent Deck in the air. He wasn't sure why he thought it'd work, but surprisingly enough, the buckle manifested in front of him before latching onto his waist.
"Henshin!" "Henshin."
KAMENRIDE: DECADE
As soon as they completed their transformation, both rolled away in opposite directions as the Monster leapt towards them. The giant spider let out another screech before choosing to go after Decade, circling on the spot and facing the magenta Rider. It rushed towards him and tried to impale him with its legs but the Rider managed to deflect the metallic and sharp appendage with the RideBooker.
Meanwhile, above them, Fujimaru watched as himself and Ryuki tried to fight the Mirror Monster—the latter using his Sword Vent card. He let out another small hum as he felt nostalgia run through him. However, it wasn't his nostalgia but rather, Ritsuka's. It wasn't exactly as it was all those years ago, but fighting within this dark cavern again brought up feelings from the past.
"What are you doing?" His thoughts were interrupted by the voice of none other than Kanzaki Shirou, whose reflection appeared within the Core Mirror he was leaning on.
"Isn't it obvious?" Fujimaru asked sarcastically, "All I cared about was for that guy to appear and he's going to come soon. I see no reason to help you any further."
"Were you always planning to betray me like this?"
"Maybe, maybe not. Really depends on how you look at it. I certainly wasn't planning for it to be this easy for them to get here. Swartz forced me to escalate my plans just a tiny bit." While he was healing up, the pain from the Time Jacker's attack was still there. What didn't help was the strain of bringing those two down there into the Mirror World— that's why he had to lean on the Core Mirror for support. Opening portals was no effortless task. "Oh yeah, where did Swartz and that Shiki guy go? Thought they went to you for help."
"They both already left this World for another." For someone who called him out for betraying him, Kanzaki doesn't seem all that broken up about it, Fujimaru thought. In any case, the only person who could kill him— even temporarily —had left Ryuki's World to cause some trouble elsewhere. But that still left one question in Fujimaru's mind; who actually was Eternal?
He was undoubtedly an A.R. Rider and an Another World Rider— an Another World A.R. Rider, basically —but his name was an oddity. Swartz had called him Shiki, a name Fujimaru recognised. It could just be a coincidence but Eternal's fighting style was also strangely similar to hers— quick, precise, and deadly. Granted, it could be because that was the optimal way to fight with a knife. That still didn't change the fact that Eternal, or Shiki, would be a constant thorn in his side for the foreseeable future. For now though— "So? Where are they? I thought you were gathering all the remaining Riders in this War to stop them?"
Kanzaki didn't answer, only turning his head towards the fight and observing the two Riders, signalling the end of this conversation. Fujimaru let out an annoyed huff but let it go; it wasn't long now till he got what he wanted.
Down below, Decade and Ryuki were trying to cut off the Spider Monster's legs to at least increase their odds of winning. However, it was incredibly armoured and their slashes only bounced off the metallic plating. The two quickly jumped back to avoid another stab from the monster before the magenta Rider sighed in annoyance.
"Fine then. Let's use this. This should fit for something as big as you." Decade quickly pulled out one of his cards and inserted it into his Driver.
KAMENRIDE: HIBIKI
Purple flames erupted all over his body (which naturally surprised Ryuki) before they disappeared with a sharp wave of his arm, revealing his new armour. Using Hibiki's powers again, Decade reached behind his back and summoned his weapons—the Ongekibou Rekka. The tips immediately caught fire before he swung the drumsticks at the spider monster.
Large fireballs flew at the massive spider, exploding on impact and making it let out a shrill scream. Seeing the fire working on their attacker reminded Ryuki of the first time he encountered that same type of species. "Alright, me too."
Strike Vent!
Despite being in a closed space, the dragon gauntlet came down from above and onto Ryuki's hand. Dragredder quickly joined him, flying down next to him with fire gathering in its maw. At the same time, Decade prepared a final fireball to finish it off.
"Haaa!" Both Riders unleashed their finishers and landed a direct hit, blasting the spider monster to kingdom come. It let out one last screech before finally exploding, leaving behind a glowing orb of its life energy. Dragredder roared before flying forward to consume it. An audible gulp echoed through the chamber, and the dragon roared again to announce its departure.
"Alright, now we can—!"
Shoot Vent!
"Huh?" "Get down!"
The next few seconds passed like a blur. One second, Ryuki took a step forward to approach the Core Mirror; the next, Dragredder was blown out of the air and crashed into the ground. The second after, they were sent flying as the earth beneath them blew up.
When Decade hit the ground, pain shot through his body, especially his arm. He realised he had landed on his right arm only a moment later. While it did exactly cripple his ability to use it and he could still move it, his arm felt numb. The Rider still pushed himself back to his feet, now back in his base form.
"I must admit I'm impressed, Emiya," an unfamiliar voice filled the cave. It was clearly the person who blew them up, but he sounded carefree and unbothered. "You accomplished what you set out to do; that's not something that happens to everyone."
"Okazaki?! Why are you here?!" Ryuki shouted as he also got up.
"Isn't it obvious? We're here to stop you." From out of the shadows, a green Kamen Rider stepped out. He had a prominent bull motif and was carrying a massive cannon in his hands. "Don't think we'd let you ruin our chances at getting our wishes granted. We've fought long enough for it and you're not going to take it away from us."
'Us?' "Behind you."
Before he could react, Decade let out a pained cry as something slashed him in the back. He immediately spun on his feet and barely blocked his attacker's follow-up, allowing Decade to identify whoever it was. Judging from the armour, it was apparent which Rider it was.
"Tiger?!" Decade grunted as he deflected another attack. The white and blue Rider didn't say anything, only shouting as he continued attacking him. 'Fine then. I won't hold back either.' They're all here and willing to set their lives down for their wish; he couldn't afford to play around. Not that he usually does that. A quick and decisive fighting style was more his speed.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the large cavern, Ryuki was assaulted by Zolda and another arriving Rider. The latter, like the others, practically came out of nowhere and struck a surprise blow from behind. Stumbling forward from the stab to the back, the first thing Ryuki saw upon turning around was a billowing white cape before being stabbed again by Femme's rapier.
"Gah!" He cried in pain but swiftly tried to steady himself to fight back. He'd rather not fight but needed to defend himself, even against someone like Tohsaka. Metal clanged as their weapons clashed, but Femme quickly pushed him back. Ryuki gritted his teeth as he tried to stand his ground; he might've stood a chance but, unfortunately, it was then that Zolda fired his cannon again.
Ryuki was blown off his feet again, but so was his opponent; Zolda's cannon blast sent him and Femme flying into the nearby rock wall with a loud slam.
"Ah! Grr… Okazaki!" Femme yelled angrily at the perching Zolda.
The bull-themed Rider just let out a small laugh before unapologetically shouting back, "Sorry, you were in the way."
The only female Rider of the war clicked her tongue in derision but pushed herself to continue fighting. While still aimed at taking out Emiya, she already knew this battle would be more like a free-for-all. No one would hesitate with their attacks, even if an "ally" got caught in the crossfire. To that end, Zolda was the one who got the most out of this situation since he could stay to the side the entire time.
Sword Vent!
She scanned the Advent Card in her rapier and summoned a long golden double-bladed staff. While it was not really a sword, she resumed her fight with her target; only now, she was prepared in case Zolda seemed ready to blow her up again. She tried to cut him down in one quick, decisive blow, but Ryuki was already one step ahead and used one of his own Cards.
Guard Vent!
Two large shields in the shape of Dragredder's body and claws appeared in his hands which he immediately used to block Femme's slash. Her blow bounced off one of the shields before Ryuki used the other shield and bashed her in the chest. 'Please, Tohsaka. Stop fighting already….' He silently pleaded. It was an impossible wish, but he hoped to force her to retreat.
He glanced to the other side of the room at the other fight and saw Tiger trying to push his axe into Decade's chest; the latter pushed against a large rock and used his sword to try to stop him. The magenta Rider managed to force Tiger back with a kick and continued fighting on more equal grounds.
Ryuki wanted to help him but doubted he'd cross the cavern without getting blown up by Zolda. Speaking of whom, he turned his attention to the gunslinger just as Zolda was about to pull the trigger.
The dragon Rider raised his shields again in time to defend himself from another powerful blast. This time, he wasn't thrown into the air as most of the force was absorbed by his shields. It still was strong enough to make him skid back but Ryuki stuck his ground. He knew he needed to take care of Zolda soon or he would be the end of him.
He glanced towards where his Contract Monster was lying, still grounded from Zolda's initial volley. Dragredder was still alive—he was confident about that—and Ryuki needed his Monster to get up. 'Let's hope this works.'
Advent!
After using the card that would typically summon Dragredder, he heard his dragon let out a snort before it started moving again. It roared and flew back up, setting its sight on Zolda with no input from his master. Either the dragon already knew its command or simply wanted to take revenge on Zolda. In either case, the gunslinger was now kept busy by Dragredder, who was not going to let itself get shot down a second time.
Ryuki heard him curse as he tried to shoot Dragredder only for his cannon blasts to harmlessly whizz past the dragon as it danced through the air. His dragon roared again as it reached Zolda and swung its tail around to knock the cannoneer off his perch. Zolda yelled as he came crashing down into the ground; Ryuki couldn't help but flinch at him smashing into the ground. He'd most likely be fine if briefly taken out of commission. That was helpful but he regretted it had to come to that. 'Sorry,' he muttered an apology in his head before going to help Decade.
Unfortunately, he only took a few steps before the next competitor joined the ring. Again, from nowhere, another Rider stepped in front of him and swung his sword—slashing Ryuki across the chest. A pained cry escaped him as he was sent back. He already knew who's the culprit as the pain he felt was incredibly familiar.
"So… You're going to stop me too, Asagami." He tried his best to hide his hurt and disappointment but knew a bit slipt through.
Knight only scoffed at him—"Why would I? I have a wish I want to be granted, unlike you, Emiya."
He knew that but it still hurt…
"And I'll do whatever it takes to stop you— no matter what…" Knight whispered as he pulled out his strongest Card. His rapier shattered as it turned into the DarkVisorZwei.
"In that case… I have to do the same." 'For my own wish…' Determination filled Ryuki's body as he pulled out his own Survive Card and his Visor transformed. They stared each other down as they simultaneously inserted their Survive Cards and scanned them in their Visors.
Survive!
Flames and winds shrouded the two Riders—transforming them into their Survive Forms. Not only that, shards of glass broke off Dragredder's body as it evolved into Dragrenzer; it grew larger and looked more regal with added gold details. Now powered up, Dragrenzer took the initiative and attacked Femme and Zolda to distract them. That allowed his master and his rival to fight with no interference.
Sword Vent!
"Haa!"
"Become a hero…" Decade heard his opponent mutter again. He had been chanting that to himself as if to convince himself what he was doing was right.
"How sad. Even he's not truly committed to this war of his." 'Quiet.'
ATTACKRIDE: BLAST
Decade used his card as he ducked underneath a swing of Tiger's axe, putting him in the perfect position. With the muzzle pressed against Tiger's chest, he pulled the trigger— "GAAAH!"
Tiger screamed as he was sent flying back by the attack, dropping his axe in the process.
"Impressive," his other self smugly complimented him. "Now then… take him out."
'What?'
"You heard me. No need to hesitate, it's easier to kill him here and now," Fujimaru said with little emotion. "He's trying to kill you so better repay the favour."
' …'
"…Haaaah," Fujimaru let out a long sigh. "Why are you hesitating now? You have no problem with trying to kill Riders before. Why now?"
'I said quiet already. I don't need you constantly talking in my head,' Ritsuka snapped at him.
"Too bad, the only one who's getting what they want is me and—"
Freeze Vent!
Decade's internal argument was swiftly cut short by Tiger using one of his Cards, having picked up his axe. The former was unprepared for the frigid blast of ice sent his way; if it weren't for his armour, he would've got frostbitten by the attack. However, Decade found himself unable to move either way, both from the sheer cold and his legs being encased in ice.
'Damn it!' "That's your own fault." 'JUST SHUT IT ALREADY!' "Head's up."
Fujimaru's warning didn't matter; frozen in place, Decade couldn't do anything to avoid Tiger's axe swing. A pained cry escaped as he now found himself thrown backwards. 'Dammit…' he mentally cursed again. He let out another, smaller, gasp as Tiger stepped on his chest. The white Rider raised his weapon over his to-be victim's head and prepared to bring it down and decapitate him.
However, before he could take Decade's life— Swing Vent! —his life was saved by a crimson whip wrapping around Tiger's arm and pulling him back.
'Who…?' "Oh great, he's here." The exasperated and annoyed tone from Fujimaru raised some questions, but Decade looked towards whoever saved him. Upon seeing the purple armour though, a part of him understood the tired feeling. Just watching the way he choked Tiger told him fighting him was going to be a pain.
He already had deduced who this Rider's identity was—mainly thanks to the process of elimination. There were only two Riders who hadn't shown up yet and something was telling him this wasn't Odin. That meant the purple snake-armoured Kamen Rider was none other than the psychotic madman: Asakura Takeshi, Kamen Rider Ouja.
That assumption was confirmed when he heard Ryuki shout his name, having noticed him in the middle of fighting Knight. His brief distraction unfortunately then led to Knight landing a powerful blow (but not enough to knock him out).
"Wonder why he kept his name. Then again, it was the same for Genm." Fujimaru continued to commentate in his head before giving him yet another warning. "This time, I mean it, do not hesitate. This guy will beat you into a bloody pulp if you do."
Judging from the way Ouja was now kicking Tiger in the stomach, telling him to get up… Yeah, he could see it.
"Mi-zu-ko-shi, I still have to pay you back for that stunt you all pulled last time," Ouja laughed as he pulled Tiger to his feet by the collar. "I knew from the start you were lacking up there but to ruin the chance to get rid of me?! You're a bigger fool than that idiot." It didn't even take a second for Decade to figure out who the idiot being referred to was.
Ouja kneed him in the stomach before throwing Tiger away, watching with amusement judging from his body language at him desperately trying to get to his feet. With a final callous laugh, he slid out a card from his Deck; a card with his emblem on it. Ouja then pulled out his weapon, a sceptre with a purple cobra head, and pushed out the back to reveal a card slot.
Final Vent!
A thunderous roar made of different animals filled the cave as another Contract Monster was summoned, emerging from the ground some distance behind Tiger. Ouja's Monster was unlike any other as it was in essence, a chimaera— a fusion of multiple beasts. It was bipedal with a large metal-plated body. It also had a cobra's head and neck with a sharp tail. Finally, on its back was a pink manta ray as its wing-like appendages.
With his Contract Monster, Genocider, now summoned, Ouja dashed at Tiger to finish him off. Genocider's chest opened up and began sucking the air, trying to pull Tiger in. The force wasn't quite strong enough to pull him in whatever hope he had of escaping was short-lived as Ouja dealt the killing blow. The snake rider leapt into the air and landed a powerful corkscrew kick, easily knocking Tiger off his feet and into Genocider's vortex.
Tiger's scream echoed all around, grabbing everyone's attention as another Rider fell at the hands of Ouja.
"Mizukoshi!" Oddly, or not all, the only one who showed any form of grief was Ryuki. Decade heard him curse Ouja's name but there was little that could be done now. Besides, there was only one person left to deal
"Ahh… That scratches that itch," Ouja let out another laugh, making it out like all he did was take out the trash. "Now… Let's see what you're made of." Decade could practically see the sadistic grin on his face as he turned towards him.
"Welp… good luck!" The mental link between the two Ritsukas was severed, leaving the real one to his fate while the true one watched on from above.
Discounting every major distraction, Ryuki and Knight were absorbed in their duel, near-completely forgetting about everything else going on around them. As expected, it was the latter who was on full offence while Ryuki did his best to keep him back. Steel (or whatever material their weapons are made of) clashed and sparks flew as their swords met.
"Asagami, stand back, please," Ryuki quietly pleaded as they locked blades again. "You know what I'm doing is right."
Knight's response to his pleas was to kick Ryuki to break his defences and slash him. "Shut up already," he scoffed as he sheathed his sword to free his hand. "You're already forgetting what Kanzaki always say? If you don't fight—" he slid out a card from his Deck and activated it in his shield. "—You won't survive."
Blurst Vent!
The shrill screech of Darkraider—Knight's Contract Monster— as it was summoned made Ryuki instinctively cover his ears (as best he could with his helmet anyway). That, however, left him completely open to the twin tornados generated from the vents in Darkraider's wing; Ryuki was sent flying and crashing into the stone with a loud bang.
The dragon Rider could only cough in pain as he tried to get up but as he did, he felt something sharp press against his neck. A second later, he realised it was Knight's sword. And there he froze, kneeling on the ground with Knight ready to decapitate him at a moment's notice.
And yet, Knight took his time in ending his misery. "Answer me, Emiya. How could someone as selfish as you exist?" He questioned him in a low voice.
Ryuki coughed again before asking for clarification— "What do you mean…?"
"You… don't have a wish or stake in this battle. You weren't chosen like the rest of us yet you not only stumbled into it, you had the gall to say our wishes shouldn't be granted."
"I never said that!"
"No? Then what are you doing now?" Knight shot back, "You want to destroy the Core Mirror and leave all of us in the dust. If you destroy that, then what did those like Mizukoshi and Kanuka die for?"
"That's—!"
"To me, choosing to destroy and not let anyone gain anything out of all this death and destruction just shows you're the most selfish out of all those here."
"…And?" Ryuki oddly didn't deny his claims. "Maybe you're right… Maybe I am actually the most selfish person here. I am the one forcing my own ideals on everyone."
"Ah… You've finally admitted it."
"But at least I can say I'm being true to myself," Ryuki continued. "Asagami, you still aren't sure about doing this, aren't you? If you were, you'd have already cut my head off." He didn't need a reply to know he was right, the sound of Knight's gloved hand tightening his grip on his sword was all he needed for confirmation.
For a few moments, both were silent before finally, Knight raised his blade as high as he could and prepared to bring it down. He held his sword in the air, frozen in place. Ryuki hoped that maybe, just maybe, he'd change his mind at the last second.
In the end, his life was saved not by a change of heart but by an unlikely ally stepping in. A single gunshot rang out as Knight's sword was shot out of his hand.
"What? Ah—!" Knight's bafflement was answered by a flying kick to the chest, making him stumble back. "You are… So, you finally came down."
"Well, I can't be sitting on my ass through all of this," Fujimaru replied with a smug grin. He continued while playfully waving his RideBooker, "Every single part of my body might be screaming in pain but if it means getting back at you for trying to kill me. What can I say, I'm a vengeful reflection."
He grabbed Ryuki by the collar and dragged him to his feet before pushing him away. Fujimaru then put on the black Decadriver, the belt snapping into place. "Emiya~" he drew out Ryuki's name as he glanced at him, "You completed my challenge so go ahead and shut down this whole operation. I'll…" he grinned again at Knight, "…take care of everyone who tries to stop you. Henshin."
KAMENRIDE: DECADE
The black and gold armour appeared on Fujimaru as he stretched his arms with a sigh. "Alright, let's have a fun one, Knight~" Dark Decade laughed.
"Tsk, pest."
Despite Knight's half-hearted insult being near-mute, he still heard it and it made him scoff. "Alright, just for that, I'm not going to take this even half as seriously as I would've." He opened his RideBooker again and took out another card. He was planning on just using his own powers but he changed his mind. "For a World where Riders fight to the death… maybe this power fits this place best. Hen…shin."
KAMENRIDE: GAIM
A circular zipper appeared above the black Rider that quickly unzipped itself, opening a portal to a forest. From the portal, a large metal orange slowly came out before dropping down on Dark Decade's head. With a splash of orange energy, a blue padded undersuit with golden plating replaced his normal armour. The orange split open and folded in on itself, forming samurai-like armour.
Soiya! Orange Arms! Hanamichi On Stage!
Nearby, even though he really should have been focused on not getting murdered by Ouja, Decade couldn't help but be in shock at his dark counterpart—both for his intervention and usage of a power he himself hadn't unlocked yet.
"That just goes to show the difference in our abilities," Fujimaru's voice rang out in Ritsuka's mind. "Oh, and duck."
That warning very nearly came too late but Decade managed to duck under Ouja's whip that was going for his neck.
With Dark Decade and Knight, the latter was glaring at the former. He couldn't make the first move as his sword was lying by Dark Decade's feet. The only thing he had on his side was Darkraider and, if those two could get away from Dragrenzer, some allies that might help him. He got the feeling sending his Contract Monster after his opponent wouldn't work out and that left only one choice to make.
Knight snapped his fingers and pointed behind himself—at Dragrenzer. His Monster let out another screech before going to engage Ryuki's. The giant bat blindsided the dragon, slamming into its side just as it tried to chomp down on Zolda. Now that they were finally free of Dragrenzer, he and Femme moved on to help Knight (if only because they didn't have another choice).
"Three on one? None of you know the definition of fair, huh? Then again, all of you are teaming up to kill Emiya," Dark Decade snorted at them as Femme and Zolda joined Knight and circled around him. "Whatever, not that it'd change anything."
Two swords appeared in his hands— one with a large black hilt with a gun muzzle in it and… the other designed after an orange slice. In any other situation, he'd be laughed at but since this was a life-or-death scenario— assuming he was willing to kill now —none of them even spoke.
Both sides waited for the other to make the first move to get a feel for the other's strategy. After a few tense seconds, it was the attacker's side who tied striking first. Zolda unholstered his gun and fired within the blink of an eye just as Femme dashed forward. Without missing a beat, both attacks failed either by Dark Decade dodging or parrying.
After pushing Femme back, he spotted Knight coming after him in his periphery. The fruit samurai quickly turned to cut him down but Knight slid under his slice, getting behind him. Knight picked up his sword and spun around, using his momentum to strengthen his attack. Dark Decade blocked that too, catching Knight's blade between his crossed ones.
"Not bad," he complimented, smirking underneath his helmet, "But that won't be enough!" Dark Decade moved swiftly, using one sword to keep Knight's weapon in place while using the other to cut him across the waist, sending sparks flying and making him stumble back. Now with some distance between him and everyone else, Dark Decade tossed his weapons to the side and took out another card.
FORMRIDE GAIM: JIMBER LEMON
Another zipper appeared above Dark Decade before yet another large metal fruit—this time, a lemon. Both Knight and Zolda tried shooting at him as his orange folded back up and spun on his head, sending waves of orange juic- energy out, preventing their bullets/arrows from landing.
Soiya! Mix! Orange Arms! Hanamichi on stage! Jimber Lemon! Ha-Ha!
The orange and lemon fused, turning into a single large black hunk of metal that dropped onto Dark Decade's shoulders. With another splash of juicy energy and the armour unfolded, revealing some yellow details. A red bow with blue-bladed arms materialised in his hand,
"Now then—!" Dark Decade triumphantly cried as he pulled on the "string" of the Sonic Arrow. "This is my stage now!"
Thanks to Ritsuka's reflection taking the heat, Ryuki was able to slip away and climb the rock face to the upper parts of the cavern. He could see the undefended Core Mirror just up ahead; all he needed to was get close enough to shatter it and end this nightmare.
But as he took his first step towards it, something heavy was thrown at him, knocking him down to the ground again. A few seconds later, he realised that heavy was, in fact, Decade—-and who threw him was none other than Ouja. Ryuki would question how either of them got up there so fast, but he got used to Ouja appearing out of nowhere and messing things up.
"Don't get too ahead of yourself, Emiya. Let's not end this festival too soon," Ouja admonished him with a crack of his whip.
'Fine then… We have to fight him first…' At least he has way fewer reasons to hold back against the madman. Both he and Decade scampered to their feet right as Ouja went on the offensive.
Strike Vent!
Ouja summoned his silver-plated horned gauntlet as he closed the distance. He aimed for Ryuki first but whiffed his attack as the other Rider dodged in time. Decade tried to take advantage of this opening but despite successfully swinging at his shoulder, Ouja just laughed it off and hit him back in the same place.
A pained cry came from Decade as he dropped the RideBooker, no longer able to get a solid grip on it. Ouja then headbutted and dazed him.
Luckily for him, Ryuki intervened before Ouja could do anything more. The psychopathic Rider further proved his hardiness, however, taking Ryuki's sword slashes with little issue but now focused his attention completely on him.
Suffering from a minor case of double vision, Decade picked up the RideBooker in his left hand and tried aiming at Ouja, He knew he had to be quick lest his ally gets defeated. While Ryuki would normally be capable of beating Ouja back with Survive, Knight wore him down enough that Ouja would eventually edge out a victory.
"Come on… get out of the way…." He mentally pleaded while watching those two continue fighting in close combat. If only Ryuki could step back (or Ouja would pick up and throw him away as he did with Decade just a couple of minutes ago), he could shoot with impunity even when he couldn't aim accurately.
Strike Vent!
That was when a deeper-pitched version of the Mirror World Rider's Visors boomed through the cavern. Before any of the three could react to the new voice, black and purple fireballs struck them, blowing them off their feet. Decade hit his head upon landing and, while his helmet protected him, he might've still gotten a concussion… if he didn't already have one anyway.
'Who…' Decade shook his head to get rid of the spinning and focused on the new dark figure approaching them. For a brief second, he thought he was still not seeing straight as the silhouette was instantly recognisable. The problem with that was Ryuki was already nearby, also trying to recover from the ambush.
It was then that Fujimaru's voice rang in his head again: "You're finally here… Ryuga."
A dragon's roar echoed through the chamber again as the blackened version of Dragredder flew around the final warrior to join this free-for-all. Even if he weren't shrouded in darkness, it would've still been hard to make out any notable features about him as his armour was mostly pitch black. One thing was clear; Ryuga was a blackened version of Ryuki. On his right hand was his version of Ryuki's Dragclaw, which he used to attack the three.
"Wha… Who are you?" Ryuki stared in obvious shock at the appearance of the black Rider. "A black… me?"
A low growl came from the Contract Monster before it flew up as its master took off in a sprint at Decade and Ouja, who had already got to his feet and was nearby. The black Dragclaw disappeared as the Dark Rider took a Card out of his Deck.
Sword Vent!
The deeper activation voice boomed as Ryuga quickly scanned his card and summoned his weapon— nearly identical to Ryuki's Dragsaber, only stained black. He immediately slashed both of them, cutting them across the chest with one wide swing. The Dark Rider then kicked Ouja away so he could focus solely on Decade.
Down below, Fujimaru grinned under his mask as his bait finally worked. And now… he could take his leave. All he needed to do was rout his current enemies and make his escape. That should be easy enough; they were already on their last legs, even Knight.
"Just to be clear, this isn't personal," Dark Decade cheerfully said, watching the three struggle to stay on their feet. "So no hard feelings—" FINAL ATTACKRIDE: GA-GA-GAIM "—okay?"
Back to the battle above, Ryuga continued to fight Decade with determination and skill the latter had barely experienced. It felt like Ryuga had a grudge against him and was taking revenge. They locked blades but instead of merely overpowering him, Ryuga kicked him in the leg, forcing Decade to his knees and following up with another— powerful —slash from shoulder to hip.
His shoulder was already injured from Ouja's earlier stab so it multiplied what felt like tenfold. The battered Rider fell to his knees, leaving him open to Ryuga's finishing blow. The Dark Rider raised his sword again, and was ready to bring it down on his head when—-
"Hey! Don't forget about me!" Ouja (metaphorically) cut in, sounding pissed at being kicked away like trash by Ryuga. With nary a sane thought in his head, he tried to attack the black Kamen Rider who easily sidestepped his heavy swing. With another step, he was behind Ouja and slashed him in the back.
"Don't get in my way," a voice loud enough only for the two of them came from Ryuga—a very familiar voice.
"You are… heh… hehehe…" Ouja devolved into a maniac laugh as he figured out Ryuga's identity. He stopped himself suddenly. stating, "How amusing… That makes you more interesting than this guy."
Decade ignored the small slight at him as it meant he had more time to get to his feet.
"Stay out of my way," Ryuga warned again. "My only interest…is him."
"Too bad then, I want to enjoy myself too!" Ouja shouted as he tried— and failed —to hit him. Ryuga was already one step ahead of him, easily dodging his blows and retaliating with another slash and kick to push him back. That still didn't discourage Ouja from continuing and he tried to hit Ryuga again. And of course, Ryuga easily evaded his well-telegraphed attacks and successfully hit back.
The whole time, all Decade could do was watch those two fight. He and Ryuki seemed to now be forgotten, which… was good, actually.
On the other side of the battlefield, Ryuki nearly called out to Decade, seeing him kneeling and holding his shoulder in pain. There was no way for him to get to his injured ally, not without catching Ouja and his doppelganger's attention. That meant there was only one thing left for him to do,
Ryuki turned around and broke into a sprint. His Dragvisorzwei was already in its blade mode; all he needed to do was reach his target. As he ran to the Core Mirror, he heard a voice in his head. He already knew who it was; it was none other than Kanzaki.
"It won't end here, Emiya Shirou," Kanzaki warned him. "The Rider War will continue, so long as those wishes exist in the Rider's hearts."
Ryuki told himself Kanzaki was lying, not letting him erode his morale further. Of course it will end here; how could it not?
"I don't believe that…. So you don't believe that either," his own voice added. It didn't make sense to him but he ignored it; he was so close.
Ten steps, eight, five, three, one…
"He'll just use that card again…"
"Haa!" Ryuki cried as he swung his sword… and shattered the Core Mirror. The slab of glass shattered into a million pieces and exploded out, sending shards everywhere.
It was over, it was destroyed… but nothing happened. 'What…?' For a few seconds, despair sunk into Shirou's heart. It should've been over…
Then his body started dissolving. He didn't know if it was because he shattered the Core Mirror or simply because he reached his time limit. His despair grew as he knew he wouldn't get out in time; he didn't even know how he would get out since he didn't enter the normal way.
Ryuki spun around and saw Ouja's and Decade's bodies dissolving too, but not the black Ryuki's. Then everything shattered—
—and Shirou found himself detransformed in the middle of the Temple's courtyard, back in the real world.
"That was…" He muttered, looking down at his empty hands. He quickly dug through his pockets and found nothing in them. His Deck had disappeared with no trace. Many emotions went through his head but all he could mutter was a quiet "It's over…"
It was finally over. This time of secret conflict and death within Fuyuki was now over and he was the victor of the Rider War. He got his wish and yet… he felt nothing.
"Emiya!" The voice of the one who helped him reach his goals shook him out of his thoughts. Shirou turned to look at Ritsuka, who was approaching him. He saw the other man holding his right arm in pain and recalled how Ouja and Ryuga injured him.
'Sorry… you got hurt because of me…' Shirou mentally apologised as his vision went black. Just as Ritsuka reached him, he passed out from exhaustion…
Within the Mirror World…
"And so…" Fujimaru monologued as he playfully paced around the courtyard of the Temple. "The Rider War came to an end—with Emiya Shirou being the winner."
In the end, there were at least four survivors. Fujimaru didn't stick around to confirm whether Knight, Femme, and/or Zolda survived his finisher but excluding himself, the remaining Riders were Shirou, Asakura, whoever Odin was this time (Fujimaru found it odd Kanzaki didn't bring him in but oh well…), and lastly—
"However, that means you lost." He stopped his circling and turned towards the man sitting on the steps of the building. Sorry about that, but what can you do? Both of us are selfish at our core. It's only natural that only one of us could get what we want."
The other person didn't respond and kept a neutral expression, his eyes shut.
"Oh come on, don't even try to ignore me. I'm very persistent and now that I finally found you, you can't run away from me. Not even injuring my real self like that will slow me down." Well, it was more accurate to say Ryuga just made added salt to the wound It was Asakura, the madman, who hurt his shoulder first. However, that was getting off-topic and his real self would get over it soon enough.
"…How did you recover so quickly?" The person finally spoke, opening his eyes and staring at Fujimaru.
"Sorry?"
"You were killed only yesterday yet you could move around as if nothing happened," he pointed out. "For me, it can take weeks or months to recover."
"In case you haven't noticed yet, I'm not exactly a typical reflection of my real-world self," Fujimaru replied with a smirk. "And I, unfortunately, had the pleasure of regularly pulling myself together. I used to die a lot, a long time ago and probably a whole lot more than you, and learned how to speed up my revival."
"And care to share that secret?"
"Yeah… no," the Mirror Ritsuka bluntly denied that request. "I was the one who won; I'm the one who gets to hear your secret. The best I can say is that hiding is not helping you at all, Emiya."
The Mirror World version of Emiya Shirou let out a small snort at being named like that. "Don't call me that. Emiya Shirou is the person who came out of the fire. I'm the one who was burned that night."
"How cool of you," Fujimaru snarkily retorted. "Unfortunately, it's ingrained in me to only call you Emiya since that was how I've always called you… excluding the old guy but that's a whole other story altogether."
Mirror Shirou raised an eyebrow at the insane words Fujimaru was saying but he quickly continued talking without giving him a chance to say anything.
"I should probably start from the beginning, shouldn't I? A few Worlds back, I picked up some interesting intel: a port city that sometimes doesn't exist. And in this city that doesn't exist was a journalist who encountered someone who people think is just a myth," Fujimaru explained what he did in Kiva's World. "So, while my real self was busy doing things, I did some more investigation. Turns out I knew what the "dead-end city" my informant was talking about was Fuyuki, and the journalist… was none other than Emiya Shirou."
The other Shirou knew what he was talking about. That encounter was something no one could ever forget… but everyone did anyway because of him.
"Now, I was thinking that someone was playing a trick on me since this was beyond coincidental… then I learned this place was the new World of Ryuki and knew the "Blessed One" was behind all this." An unsettling smile appeared on Fujimaru's face as he spoke. "Normally, those who encounter him don't usually live to tell the tale and you didn't, did you?"
"…No, I didn't," Mirror Shirou confirmed, giving him a short nod as he recalled the Blessed One's descent on Fuyuki. "No one did. He wiped out the entire city with a wave of his hand."
"But not before he gave you a message for me." Fujimaru confidently accused. "Why else would he leave the safety of wherever he's hiding when he hadn't recovered all his power?"
"Recovered all his power? Heh…" Mirror Shirou let out a small laugh at the idea. He knew Fujimaru wasn't lying but he found it hard to believe the Blessed One wasn't at the peak of his power when they met. Else… how can anyone hope to defeat him? "That… demon erased the entire city off the map like nothing. Everyone—everything—turned to dust and you're saying that he wasn't even at full strength?"
"You don't know the full extent of his power, Emiya," Fujimaru darkly laughed, his playful tone wholly gone. "Now tell me, what was his message?"
"…You're half-right," the Dark Rider answered after a moment. "When he descended, there were only 5 Riders left—including me. When he appeared, only one Rider survived and only because your Blessed One wanted him too."
"Your real self."
"Yes," he nodded. "Because of that, I remember everything that Demon said and he knew that. He kept my real self alive because he was all he needed."
"…What was the message?" Fujimaru was getting impatient at the lack of answers.
"'Your Rider War is only child's play compared to what is to come. The end will come, and the arrival of Decade will signal its beginning. When the day of his arrival comes, your true and final death will soon arrive, so says I—"
"—the King of Time." Fujimaru completed his message before muttering under his breath, "Of course he said that. This is him we're talking about."
"I'm not finished yet. That King also said that the Rider War would never end so long as Decade's story continued," Mirror Shirou resumed.
"Hmph, he's not wrong," he scoffed in response. "It'll always happen so long as Decade exists…." Fujimaru trailed off upon noticing the stare Mirror Shirou was giving him. "Hey, we're not talking about your War."
"And he's right, so long as Decade exists, that ending is an inevitability," he thought to himself. "Is that all?"
The other duplicate shook his head. "No, that wasn't your message."
"…I beg your pardon?"
"That was all directed towards myself and me." The Mirror World's Shirou recalled everything about that day: the grand speech from the Demon King's herald, the absolute terror his real self felt as he was forced to kneel before the golden King with absolute power over everything. The anger he felt when the Demon King slaughtered everyone and laid waste to everything still remained within him after all that time.
All so he could pass on a message. "The Blessed One's message for you is this—"
"Emiya Shirou, the new Kamen Rider Ryuki— No, you will be Ryuga by that time." The man… The demon's deep voice boomed across the now-empty city. "When the true Fujimaru Ritsuka appears before you, you are to tell them these words: by the time you reach this point in your journey, your real self is nearing the truth. He will soon discover who he truly is. When that happens, everything will lead towards that ending again and everyone will suffer for it."
"Suffer like—"
"Silence!" The King snapped at him. "You will soon be faced with the choice you faced years ago—the chance to escape your fate and live the life you believe you don't deserve. If the determination you carry has wavered by then… you can enjoy the life you should have been gifted at the end of your journey."
"And that is your message…." Mirror Shirou muttered after he finished relaying the message. He studied Fujimaru's reaction—a calm, collected face… that soon morphed into one of annoyance.
"That guy… everything's been going under his will," he grumbled. He crossed his arms in frustration while letting out a long sigh. "What are you planning…." All this time, he was still being controlled by that guy.
"…And what are you planning?"
"Hm?"
"Everything in this World, all the suffering all the Riders here go through, is so that I could pass on his message to you." Mirror Shirou frowned. "So tell me, what are you planning to do?" He deserved to know. He believed he deserved it after everything.
Fujimaru, surprisingly, played ball and answered him. "Isn't it obvious? You saw what the future has in store for all of us." He scoffed. "So the only choice for me is simple: I'm going to bring an end to that future."
Sometime later, in the real world…
As he sat in the living room, Ritsuka stared at the restored KamenRide: Ryuki card in his left hand. After returning home, he noticed that the card's power had been restored like the others. 'Why am I going through all this… just for these pow—' "Ow!"
His pondering was interrupted by sharp pain going through his right arm, which Ciel was bandaging from shoulder to fingers. "Can you be a bit more careful with that?"
"I am being careful," she retorted. "Honestly, you're fortunate these wounds aren't worse than they already are. You're already in bad shape because of Asagami; any more and I'd force you to go see a doctor."
Hearing that man's name made Ritsuka sigh in exasperation and annoyance. Other than telling them they succeeded, neither he nor Shirou had told the others anything about what happened under the Temple. He didn't even know if Asagami survived the fight against Fujimaru or he lasted long enough to be booted out. "So, any idea how long it'll take me to heal?" He couldn't afford to slow down on his journey yet. And while the bandaging would help, it would take some time before he could use his dominant hand like he usually could.
Ciel responded with a sarcastic reminder that she wasn't a doctor. After a couple more tight wrappings, she finished bandaging his wounds— clipping the wraps in place to cap it off. "There we go. Just don't put too much pressure or use it too much," she lightly warned him, a tiny hint of exasperated worry in her voice.
He held back the desire to say that'd be difficult but Ritsuka thought he had already annoyed her enough by disappearing earlier on top of yesterday's event. "I'll… keep that in mind," Ritsuka muttered.
"Why don't I believe you?"
"Ouch, that stings." 'Does it physically hurt you to shut up when I want you to?' Ritsuka mentally retorted to his mirror self's (presumably) fake hurt.
Fujimaru, though, fired back. "And would it kill you to come up with another insult besides "shut up"? I've heard it a bunch of times, and since when has that ever worked?" Ritsuka could see the smug smirk Fujimaru had and that annoyed him to no end.
He had no comeback for that and chose to ignore him, as much as that further annoyed him. "I'm gonna go up. You can follow me if you want."
"Aren't you moving pretty quick, me? Ciel's only seen you shirtless a couple of times." Ritsuka once again tried to ignore the teasing voice. He resisted the urge to argue he was basically still clothed since yesterday's bandages covered his chest.
…And because he didn't mean it in that way. Ciel still declined his offer, saying she wanted to rest downstairs for a while longer while everyone was upstairs.
He just silently put his shirt back on and made his way out into the hallway and up the stairs. His destination wasn't his room where he could crash and go to sleep though. He instead made a beeline for Tetsuya's room where they had left the unconscious Shirou to rest with the room's owner to look after him. Meanwhile, Ryoko had gone to nap earlier, so she would be missing for a few more hours.
Lightly knocking on the door, Ritsuka opened it to see the unexpected sight of Shirou standing on the other side with a surprised look— hand raised to open the door. "…Shouldn't you be resting?"
"I appreciate the hospitality, but I'd rather do that at my own house," Shirou quietly replied. His small voice prompted Ritsuka to glance over the other man's shoulders; he saw Tetsuya lightly snoozing atop his blankets and still in his day clothes. "I woke up and saw Tsunogai sleeping in his chair," Shirou explained.
Ritsuka mentally facepalmed at his friend falling asleep on duty, wondering if the two months they were separated had done nothing to change Tetsuya's ability to sleep peacefully so long as he was comfortable.
"Hmm… Maybe that's why you were drawn to him. Birds of a feather and all that." Fujimaru's voice intruded on his thoughts again.
"…Alright," Ritsuka decided to let Shirou leave since he had no right to keep him from going home. "But… let's talk first."
The two quietly went down and exited Ritsuka's house without making a noise. As soon as they closed the door, Ritsuka took in a long breath before exhaling while Shirou walked down the path to the gate, stopping in the middle of the short stone walkway.
They stood silent for a few seconds, simply taking in the sound of the neighbourhood before Ritsuka finally spoke. "Will the others come after you?"
"…No, I don't think so," Shirou answered honestly after a few more seconds. "They may have been willing to kill me in the Mirror World, but I don't think they'd do so in the real world."
"Besides Asakura."
"Yes, besides him." That was one issue resolved (sort of), but a couple more still needed to be addressed. However, before Ritsuka could bring up any one of them, Shirou asked his own question. "What will you do now?"
Ritsuka wanted to retort how he was supposed to ask that but didn't… but he couldn't bring himself to. "Continue with my journey. I still have a long way to go before I can say I'm done with… whatever it is I'm doing."
"I see…" hummed Shirou.
"And you? The Mirror World is gone and you're no longer a Rider."
"I'm gonna focus on my job, of course. And hopefully, for the first time in a long while, I can do some work without putting myself in danger… hopefully." Shirou let out a wry laugh at his own joke, but it quickly died down. "You know… I still can't believe this day finally arrived."
The end of the Rider War… He only wished that the battle had gone better than it had. 'Asagami… Why did you have to do that…?" He had hoped from the bottom of his heart that Ren would help him in the end but it turns out he had misplaced it.
"…Emiya," Ritsuka called out, getting his attention. "Do you think you can move on from all this?"
A slight frown appeared on Shirou's face before he finally said, "I don't know." He sighed but quickly put on a smile. It was a fake one, but it was convincing. He must have had a lot of practice. "But I can take things one step at a time."
'Why don't I believe that?' He thought. It would be hypocritical of him if he said that out loud.
"You, though, have a long road ahead of you, Fujimaru. Something tells me what happened here is just another stepping stone in your path," Shirou told him. "I wish you all the luck wherever you go. Maybe you'll finally figure out what it is you're doing soon."
"Thanks…"
A more real smile replaced the fake one on Shirou's face. "For now, it's goodbye. Maybe we'll meet again someday and have an actual conversation without all this Rider business."
With a final farewell, Shirou turned around and passed the gate, off to resume his life without the Rider War…
"Until we meet again… Emiya," muttered Ritsuka before he went back inside, leaving behind this World.
A few hours later…
"Mmmood evening," Tetsuya yawned-slash-greeted as he walked into the living room. "What's for dinner?"
"Leftovers," answered Ritsuka from the corner table as he went through his collection of cards. "Lunch is in the fridge."
"Good enough, I guess," he heard Tetsuya mutter as his friend entered the kitchen. With that minor interruption gone, Ritsuka refocused on the remaining cards he had yet to unlock.
He picked up two colourless KamenRide Cards and stared at the silhouettes. "Kabuto… and Den-O…" They were the last two of the nine Riders Ritsuka could theoretically use. Their symbols were on the Decadriver so they should be usable once he unlocks them.
"Hmm… Hey, Ritsu," the girl over his shoulders asked. Ryoko had been watching him organise his cards for the last half hour out of boredom after she came downstairs. "What would happen when you get those nine back to normal?"
"Meaning?" Ritsuka replied without missing a beat.
"Isn't it usually the case that something happens when a hero unlocks all of their power? And don't say that's only for TV shows. Our lives had turned into one since that day."
"…I genuinely have no idea," he finally answered. "If something happens, it'll happen. And if nothing happens, I'll just continue on."
"Boring," Ryoko huffed. "Anyway, where did Ciel go? She isn't upstairs, right?"
"She's using the backroom to do something with that weapon of hers." At least that's what she told him about an hour ago. Since he wasn't using the room to process the few photos he had taken in this World yet, he let her use it.
In any case, they were now done with the World of Ryuki and could move on to the next one in a few minutes— either Kabuto or Den-O's if luck was with them. If they end up in one of the other Worlds… it wouldn't be bad per se, but there wasn't much use in him joining whatever mess the Riders have going on yet.
'Nine Worlds done…' Ritsuka mentally noted before Fujimaru corrected him.
"Wrong, ten Worlds done. Or are you already forgetting our old friend?"
'Touma?' Right… They, or just he, had already gone to Saber's World. That meant they were almost halfway done with everything. There were ten restored cards, excluding Decade's, which left eleven more Riders he had yet to meet.
Ritsuka looked through the KamenRide Cards he had again before he finally realised something. "Ryoko?"
"Yeah?"
"Where's the Saber card?"
The Kamen Rider Saber card, Rekka, and Brave Dragon were safely hidden in the backroom. While it didn't feel right to toss it inside a dark and somewhat dusty room, Ciel thought putting it inside an inconspicuous cardboard box on the bottom shelf was the only thing they could do. Keeping the set inside their rooms wasn't right, nor burying it in the backyard (especially since they were prone to moving so much).
Leaving it sealed in a box was the best way to protect the sacred sword, as dull as it sounded.
At the moment, Ciel was running maintenance on the Seventh Holy Scripture like she had told Ritsuka earlier. His camera equipment had already been carefully covered and moved away so she could use the big table in the centre of the room. Ciel had a sinking feeling she'd find herself needing the greatest weapon a lot more in the future. She could do the task with her eyes closed with how many times she's done it. This meant her mind was preoccupied with other matters while her body autonomously worked on her massive weapon.
'Eternal… Shiki…' Was it really him? If it was, it couldn't be a coincidence. Swartz was the calculating type; there was something beneath the surface of his plans. Noel became Another Kiva so that Ritsuka could be tested, not so her old ally could be given a chance to go on a rampage. Judging from what Swartz said back then, it was also so he and Ritsuka would meet face-to-face.
Similarly, Falchion was let loose on Blade's World to push Ritsuka into searching for Saber. Touma also said that Swartz wanted to draw him out for some reason. Ciel wasn't sure if that was his true intention, but Touma's demise also deprived them of a powerful ally. Everything that happened in Blade's World only served to benefit Swartz in some way…
She had no doubt that whatever he was planning was big. However, it'd be better if she discussed it further with Ritsuka instead of mulling it alone.
Swartz's words regarding Eternal's nature—that he was the same as Ciel before—also stuck heavily to her. There were many ways she could interpret the cryptic message, but none were good. Was he immortal? Did that vampire manage to possess him? A walking corpse? None of those possibilities sat right with Ciel.
Lastly, if Eternal was a version of Shiki, Ciel wondered how and why he ended up becoming a Kamen Rider. Was he even connected to that family anymore? Did he have his Mystic Eyes? There were more possibilities to think about…
Ciel continued maintaining the Seventh Holy Scripture for a while longer before she was satisfied. She didn't actually need to do it since she'd done so the night before. She just did so to be left alone with her thoughts. After carefully putting it on a table to the side, Ciel turned off the light and left the room.
She immediately turned and entered the living room… where a bright light instantly blinded her. The source was naturally the backdrop changing again, signalling their time in Ryuki's World came to an end.
"That chain is very sensitive, huh?" She heard Ryoko say.
Ciel noticed neither Ryoko nor Ritsuka were near the pillar next to the backdrop; she wondered how it changed but it didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. Focusing on the new artwork, the first detail that stuck out to Ciel was not what was in the foreground but in the background. She instantly recognised the desert with an alien sky. When she finally turned her attention to the central focus of the piece, Jiro's off-hand comment from when they went into the Sands of Time came to her mind—"Normally, people who come here would use the trains to get to where they want but we'll be taking something else."
The new backdrop had a white bullet train with a red and black front car travelling through the Sands of Time. No dragon-castle to be seen though.
"Fujimaru-kun. Isn't that…?"
Ritsuka didn't give any sign he heard her; he was too focused on the backdrop himself. "The DenLiner… hmm…" He glanced at one of his cards before muttering, "Lucky me."
Ciel just sighed in exasperation (again) but just went along with it.
"Thank you for your patronage. Please come again!" The (seemingly) cafe owner cheerfully bid his customers goodbye as they left the establishment, leaving it empty except for him. It was still midday and he had some time until the lunch rush; he still had some time to prepare, so for now he went to clean up the table.
The man was in his mid-thirties and had a strong air of friendliness to him. He was also dressed in simple working clothes with a blue apron to cover him up.
As the man was cleaning up, his eyes wandered the cafe until they landed on the calendar behind the bar. A specific date was circled on it with the previous days already crossed out.
"Hey, what's happening today again? I kinda forgot…" A rough and gruff voice asked in the man's head.
"Forgot this special day already? My, how embarrassing for you, senpai~" A suave sounding voice chimed in.
"Hey! If it's sooo important, why don't you tell me what it is?!"
Instead of the second voice answering, a third joined the mental conversation. This voice sounded gruff too but had more of a tough guy persona than the first. "This is the day we've been waiting for all these years. The day a dear ally would be meeting us for the first time."
"Ah-! Oh, it's that day!" The first voice said in realisation. Annoyance then permeated through his voice as he continued, "Can't we postpone it? I've been having such a good day and I don't want that ass to ruin it with his presence."
"Oh come on now, senpai, don't be like that. He was only like that when we first met him. And it's not like the date is up to us in the first place."
"Yeah. Well, something's telling me he'll be an ass this time!"
"Hey, hey!" A fourth voice, this one energetic and childish, yelled over the others. "That guy would be with him, right?! I wanna mess around with him, it's been years!"
"Hmm… I don't believe he is with Fujimaru yet. Didn't he—"
"Alright, settle down everyone," the man laughed to himself at his inner voices' antics. He let out an amused sigh before he finished cleaning and took off his apron. "Now where did I put it…"
The man went behind the counter and rummaged through the drawers. He quickly found what he was looking for and took it out—a silver belt with four coloured buttons and a T-shaped symbol in its buckle.
Next time on Across the Kaleidoscope…
"That's… Swartz, what are you planning?"
"For you, this is the first time we… but this is not when the next step of your journey happens."
"Ladies and gentlemen, madame et monsieur, please remain in your seats as we depart."
"From start to finish, I'm at my climax!"
"You have to stop him from going to the beginning, or it'd be the end of us all."
Chapter 31: Unaltered History
Time passed, and life resumed. Before he knew it, Shirou found himself falling back to how things were before he became a Rider, working in the office and doing fieldwork with Reika. He barely had time to visit Yui's cafe nowadays, and he hadn't seen Ren since…
However, Shirou couldn't help but feel empty inside. The war ended… yet he couldn't bring himself to put on a genuine smile—just like all those years ago.
But life goes on, and he goes along with it. He may wish things ended differently, but there was little use in thinking about it now in public. Shirou continued on his way through the city, simply being another head in the crowd of people on their way to work… even if he stuck out like a sore thumb with his hair colour.
As he walked through the streets, his mind focused on his weekly checklist. 'Have to stock up on groceries… Also have to resupply the office fridge for this week… So much to do.' He was used to it, but that didn't mean he couldn't be slightly tired of the monotonous work. His thoughts, however, were soon interrupted as he caught sight of a certain someone.
"Huh… that's…" Up ahead, he spotted Ren walking the street towards him. At the same time, Ren spotted him and both stopped in their daily commutes. Their eyes met for a brief moment… before they resumed walking.
They passed each other without a word, not even glancing back at each other. Their strained friendship had ended and as far as things were now concerned, they were strangers to one another…
A/N: Annnnnd I'm finally done with this arc! In total, the Ryuki Arc took over eight months to complete (Chapter 27 was uploaded on 14th August). I definitely didn't plan for that, so I'm very sorry for the long delay. I had a hard time writing out the final fight scene to the point I skipped that for a bit and wrote the ending first. Writer's block is annoying as all hell. Having the constant desire to procrastinate is also annoying. It was so bad that I ended up writing a bit of the next chapter before I even finished this one.
As you probably could also tell, the ending also got altered cause of course it did. I don't think I have the ability to settle on one idea for too long… Although my procrastinating ended up being a bit serendipitous with how Ryuki ended up returning in Battle Royale (can't wait to watch that!)
In any case, the next arc will be Den-O's and judging from the ending and preview, you know big things are gonna go down and it'll be confusing. I already have a bit of the next chapter written down but I'm not gonna say too much about it but this arc will be rather important. And let's not forget a small minor idea I mentioned in the anniversary chapter that a certain someone would appear.
Anyway, what do you think of the Ryuki Arc? Did I do well enough or did I falter a bit (I'm banking on the latter, not gonna lie) but I will say that this won't be the end for AR Shirou's story. If you know Ryuki, you know what I mean. I've also finally revealed more of the main story, and I'm sure you can all tell who will be the Big Bad of AtK. But the question is, what's going to happen?
Finally, I apologise again for the massive schedule slippage but please leave a review and see you all next time!