Rider Time Zi-O: Roze from Remnant
Chapter 02 – Rabbit! Rose? Best Match 2017
In a dark void Woz stepped into view while holding his book, reading through it before closing it with a sigh.
"Normally according to this book, in September 2018… The ordinary high schooler, Tokiwa Sougo, has a future wherein he becomes the overlord and ruler of time, Oma Zi-O. In order to prevent this, Geiz and Tsukuyomi arrive from the future. However, Tokiwa Sougo chooses to obtain the power of Kamen Rider Zi-O. But… a strange girl known as Ruby Rose has made viewing future events, most unclear. It was written in this book that Zi-O will steal the power of Kamen Rider Build… oh, have I read too far ahead? Maybe, that is if history is still untouched…"
Earth – Early September 2018:
Geiz slotted the Ghost Watch onto the left free slot before spinning the Driver once more.
[ARMOR TIME!]
Suddenly full body armor formed, the shoulders being two giant eye-like devices while the chest held an eye symbol on it, the thighs holding bone outlines on them. The armor latched over Geiz's body, forming the Ghost Armor as he gained Hiragana spelling out Ghost. Geiz walked past the armor as it broke apart and began attaching to his body to complete the transformation.
[KAIGAN! GHOST!]
"Here I come, Oma Zi-O!" Geiz called out.
"Wait he can do that?" Ruby asked, a bit amazed by the armor but also realizing Sougo now had a big target on his back.
"J-Just a sec…!" Sougo yelped.
Geiz held his hands up, performing a hand sign as four ghostly parka's formed out of his eye shoulders, rushing forward alongside him as he closed in with a yell.
Sougo yelped as the Ghost Parka's began swarming him and Ruby, Ruby being forced to dodge out of the way and drop the Faiz Phone X while Sougo was beaten back, losing his weapon too. "I've got a bad feeling about this!"
Tsukuyomi meanwhile noticed her weapon had been dropped and quickly hurried over to grab it. She then ran off, figuring out a plan for trying to stop Geiz.
Ruby gave a groan as she realized fighting Geiz would be harder than she thought, quickly thinking she saw Sougo's weapon and grabbed it. "You're not Crescent Rose but you'll do." She said noticing the watch slot and remembering the watches that Geiz had on him. "That's it!"
"You haven't done anything wrong yet, in this time," Geiz admitted coldly as he kicked Sougo back. "But this is for the future's sake." He was ready to initiate his finisher when he was suddenly struck from behind. "What?" He turned only to get struck again, seeing now that it was Ruby who attacked him.
"I won't let you kill him," Ruby glared as she got in a fighting stance.
"Out of my way," Geiz said, moving forward to throw a punch, he figured he'd at least incapacitate Ruby if she was going to get in his way. What he wasn't expecting was Ruby to slip around his punch, grabbing onto his arm. "Let go!" He called out as he managed to shove Ruby off.
Ruby gave a grunt as she staggered back onto the ground before giving a grin, "Gotcha." She soon held up her prize. "Now I can-!" She suddenly stopped when she saw that she wasn't able to grab the watch she wanted, instead grabbing a blank one. "Oh…"
"What?" Geiz turned before noticing the blank watch on his arm was gone. He gave a scoff as he glanced towards Ruby. "I see, you wanted to get my other active watch. Sorry to say but you picked a dud."
"Even so…" Ruby said as she slowly stood up, gripping the blank watch tightly as she held the Zikan Girade forward. "I'm not going to let you hurt him just because he might become an Evil Overlord!"
"Might?! He does!" Geiz yelled back. "Why do you think I'm here?!"
"There's no way I can believe that," Ruby shook her head. "The Sougo I know wouldn't become someone like that. That's why; I'll make sure he can follow his dream!" With her last call out suddenly her aura began to instinctively flow into the blank Ridewatch. Ruby felt something odd and raised her hand with the watch, giving a surprised look as it shined brightly, her aura flickering as it reacted to it. The back of it was now a bright red while it gained a black dial casing that could be turned alongside a black button, a partial face being on the watch. Oddly enough for year there was none, listing 0000 as the date. "Eh?"
"The Ridewatch reacted to her?" Geiz questioned in surprise. "She's too dangerous." He then began to walk towards her before kicking off and floating forward.
Ruby quickly turned the dial and pressed down on the button.
[ROZE!]
Ruby blinked a bit in surprise at the name before shaking her head and slotting it into the Zikan Girade.
[FINISH TIME!]
Red energy began to flow from the watch into the blade, turning it a bright red with a black outline. Ruby spun and quickly pulled the trigger as she slashed towards Geiz.
[ROZE GIRI GIRI SLASH!]
Suddenly a sickle-like wave of energy shot towards Geiz. The male Rider was too close to Ruby when the attack was launched, yelling out as he was blasted backwards by the energy.
"Ruby that was amazing, I didn't know you could do that," Sougo ran over to her.
"Me either," Ruby admitted as she removed her watch from the weapon. "I'm not sure what happened but… we should probably get out of here while he's recovering."
"Ah you're right!" Sougo said as he looked around on an idea to escape, then he remembered that while most of the watches on his holsters were blank one wasn't. He looked up and saw a grey watch that read 'bike'. "Bike?" He activated it before throwing it forward, transforming it into a fully functional motorcycle known as the Ride Striker. "Ruby get on." He said as he mounted it with Ruby following suit.
"Don't think you can just run!" Geiz called out ready to activate his own Ride Striker only to suddenly get smacked away by a large arm, reverting back to his base form. It was because of Tsukuyomi who was using her Time Mazine in its robot mode.
"Zi-O, you need to run!" Tsukuyomi called out, while it was counterproductive to let Sougo run around as he pleased, Ruby's presence threw an odd wrench into things.
"Let's go!" Sougo called out, Ruby making sure he was secure before they took off at great speeds on the Ride Striker.
"I don't think so!" Geiz called out as he managed to slip underneath Tsukuyomi's Time Mazine Unit and activate his own Ride Striker. He quickly mounted it before taking off after the duo.
Swartz meanwhile was very perplexed as he watched the two Riders disappear off into the distance on their bikes. "Just what is this young girl? And is she the reason that Build wasn't erased?"
Sougo was definitely relieved, figuring that Tsukuyomi was holding Geiz off and that he could relax a bit. At least until the two heard revving.
Ruby turned, soon noticing Geiz very steadily catching up to them. "Faster! Faster!"
"I'm trying my best!" Sougo called out as he began to pick up speed.
Suddenly Geiz managed to get beside them, trying to grab at them only for Ruby to smack his hand away.
"You are really annoying!" Geiz growled out.
"I could say the same to you!" Ruby called back as she threw her leg out to force Geiz to pull his motorcycle away from them while decreasing speed. Ruby looked over at her friend. "Can't this go any faster?"
"I am trying my best," Sougo admitted as he tried to keep picking up speed but the motorcycle would only go so fast. That was until he got a possible idea. "Hey, you can't use your semblance on a bike, can you?"
"Pretty sure I can't," Ruby groaned before realizing something. "Wait." She then turned the dial on her Ridewatch before pressing it again.
[ROZE!]
Suddenly the Ride Striker began to glow a bright red as petals began flying off of it, the speed beginning to pick up tremendously as the bike reacted to the watch. Suddenly Sougo, Ruby and the Ride Striker became a gigantic red blur, a flurry of rose petals being thrown behind as a trail.
Geiz gasped out, the petals beginning to overwhelm him as he had to skid to a stop, barely being able to see as he began wiping down his helmet. When he did stop he noticed that both Sougo and Ruby had vanished, the two having likely shot farther ahead. He gritted his teeth, realizing he wouldn't be able to catch up with them as a result. He sighed as he dismissed his transformation and reverted his bike to it's watch form.
The Time Mazine then came into view, back in its vehicle mode as it landed, Tsukuyomi exiting to a very annoyed Geiz.
"What are you trying to pull?!" Geiz questioned. "Why did you stop me?"
"I don't really know myself," Tsukuyomi admitted. "But something's off."
"It doesn't matter; just don't stop me next time." Geiz replied. "I have to beat him."
"Geiz, we need to reassess the situation here, heavily," Tsukuyomi narrowed her eyes, a more serious tone forming. "We know where he lives; we'll be able to visit whenever we want to. The issue is that girl…"
"Just who is she?" Geiz questioned. "From what we looked up, she shouldn't even exist. Yet here she is."
"Whatever she is, it's clear she's not from this world," Tsukuyomi answered, remembering the display of Aura from back at Café Nascita alongside Ruby's Semblance in general.
"That was so cool! We literally just went all zoom and stuff!" Sougo called out excitedly as he began to slow down, realizing they were getting close to his Uncle's shop. He parked in a secluded area, him and Ruby dismounting.
"Huh, did not think that would work," Ruby admitted as she glanced at her Ridewatch.
"Okay, there we go," Sougo then dismissed his bike before undoing his transformation. "What a mess…" He sighed.
"A cool mess though," Ruby admitted, the two planning on walking back to 9-5-DO to draw less suspicion. Of course that was until they saw the hooded man, Woz, off to the side waiting for them. Sougo yelped and immediately clung onto Ruby in surprise while the huntress herself backed up. This resulted in the two crashing onto the ground. "Ouch!"
"It is an honor to encounter you again, my Overlord. Though I did not expect you to be with such… peculiar company," Woz greeted as he removed his hood, giving a bow.
"Buddy, just who are you?" Sougo asked as he managed to get up before helping Ruby up.
"Are you with Geiz and Tsukuyomi?" Ruby asked.
"My name is Woz, and unlike Geiz and Tsukuyomi, I am on the young Overlord's side," Woz introduced as he gestured to his book. "Normally according to this book, young Sougo here will rise to become the ruler of time, by walking a path of conquest. However… there are Time Jackers who would impede his ascension, in an attempt to groom others to be king."
"Um wait what do you mean normally?" Ruby asked.
"So everybody's trying to change history?" Sougo asked, getting the gist of the situation.
"I am the only one who seeks to protect history as it has been," Woz explained before sighing and turning towards Ruby with a more stern expression. "However it seems as though you've made things more complicated with your mere presence."
"Huh? Me?" Ruby asked as she pointed towards herself.
"My book has been unclear and unable to determine what might happen next. Something unprecedented that has given me nothing but worry. I assumed that it was the Time Jacker's but now I'm sure it was you," Woz stated more firmly. "From the history I read, my Overlord never had friends before or after beginning his conquest… and yet here you are."
"I mean I'm technically like a housemate? But I guess we really are good friends," Ruby chuckled as she rubbed the back of her head. Even then Sougo was so friendly so it was a shock to her originally that he didn't have friends.
"Huh… I mean I guess it makes sense though," Sougo started as he looked at Ruby. "You are from Remnant, so you technically aren't supposed to be here."
"She's from what?" Woz turned, a bit confused by Sougo's choice of words.
"I may not be of this world?" Ruby said with a nervous smile. "It's not like I had any real choice though… I sort of ended up here without any say in the matter."
"I see… that would explain the odd energy around you," Woz said, having seen the fight and was mostly out of sight to observe Ruby herself. "What is that?"
"Oh it's Aura, it's this cool shield that protects and heals you," Sougo explained as he activated his Aura briefly, Woz stepping back in surprise. "I thought it was just a Remnant thing but I guess anyone can have it."
"Well Aura is just a representation of your soul," Ruby added. "Anyone with a soul can get an Aura and by extension a Semblance."
"That certainly clears up some questions… yet you seem to be here for a reason. Not just anyone can create their own Ridewatch." Woz mentioned to Ruby who held up her new watch.
"Ridewatch? Is that what these are called?" Ruby questioned though she was a bit uncomfortable with Woz's judging-like looks towards her. "Listen if you're worried I'm going to stop Sougo from becoming King, I won't. I want him to follow his dream."
Woz was still skeptical and more concerned about the effects on the timeline, but he was at least glad that there was someone else on his overlord's side. "I will spare no effort so that he may safely travel his path to becoming overlord. I do hope that you consider the same." He said as he began to head off, a bus horn in the distance catching Ruby and Sougo's attention as Woz vanished right after.
"He's gone…" Sougo trailed as he was astounded at how fast Woz was at leaving.
Ruby meanwhile was caught off guard by how Woz was able to just appear and disappear at random, "Might as well head back to the shop. Running from killer robots and guys in armor really makes you tired." Ruby admitted as she gave a stretch and yawn, she realized that if things were going to get back into her realm of crazy that she'd have to start shaking off the rust some more.
"Freezing him in place and making sure no one finds him in a year sure is annoying," Uhr said as he skipped along, finding an old storage shed before opening the door and revealing Another Build. Though the Another Rider was completely frozen in place, with a snap of his fingers the Another Rider was freed.
Another Build looked around, "Best Match?"
"Yes, Best Match," Uhr gave a smile as he lead the Another Rider out. "I'm going to find you a partner! Isn't that exciting?"
"Cross-Z?" Another Build asked.
"Ooh a smart one already," Uhr gave a grin as he tiptoed to pat the Another Riders head. "With Another Cross-Z you're sure to gain the advantage, especially if you get some more athletes."
"Cross-Z! Build! Best Match!" Another Build called out before it began to wander off towards the nearest fitness gym.
Uhr meanwhile held up another blank watch, a monstrous version of Cross-Z's face forming as it gained a purple coloration like the other watch. "If we have to kill the Riders then so be it."
"Be careful," Swartz suddenly appeared walking behind Uhr much to the boy's surprise. "The timeline has changed."
"What do you mean?" Uhr asked as he turned and backed up. "What happened?"
"The Smash and Guardian's I sent to investigate were unfortunately taken out, Sougo Tokiwa has become Zi-O," Swartz explained in a more somber tone. "However there's another person with him, a random girl. When they were confronted by that soldier, Geiz, she took one of his blank watches and created her own."
"What? She created her own watch? That seems a bit farfetched for a random bystander to even attempt." Uhr mentioned.
"From what I saw she actually seemed familiar with Zi-O," Swartz admitted as he crossed his arms behind his back. "While she doesn't have a Rider Form yet, she'll become a nuisance if she gets in our way."
"What do you want me to do then?" Uhr asked, figuring that's why Swartz had approached him.
"Take out both Zi-O and the girl with that Best Match you're about to create," Swartz gave a grin as he stared directly at the watch that Uhr was holding.
Earth – Early September 2018:
The Next Day
It had been a day since Sougo and Ruby had met Tsukuyomi and Geiz, the two waking up and wondering if they had a strange dream. Of course both having the same dream meant it couldn't have been the case, and Sougo's Driver and Watch alongside Ruby's Watch already confirmed that it was indeed real. While Sougo went down immediately for breakfast Ruby was currently in the room she was staying at.
Various pictures of armored warriors lined the walls, most seeming to be printed out with various notes taped to the walls as well, a few folders and books lining her desk. Of course she wasn't concerned about the mess that was her room as she went to her drawer and drew out the strange device she had received when she arrived. It was exactly just like Sougo and Geiz's Ziku Driver's but with a red tinted coloration where the white would be.
"So is this how I'm supposed to fight…?" Ruby questioned as she held both her Driver and Watch in her hands, staring at them intently.
"And in time obtain a great power that will allow you to change the fates of not one but two worlds."
The words from the mysterious voice echoed throughout her mind, and then she recalled Woz's speech about Zi-O. She wondered if the red Ziku-Driver she had alongside the Watch were what she was meant to obtain. Deciding to not waste much more time she got ready for the day before making sure she pocketed both the Driver and the Watch.
Once the two were downstairs and Junichiro had finished cooking, the trio started on breakfast. Junichiro decided to set down his paper so he could continue to eat, the page being left on a strange news article.
Apparently an athlete kidnapper from a year back had sprung back into action. Ruby had glimpsed the news article and had decided to look at it a bit, finding it somewhat odd since athletes should have been able to fight back.
Figuring he could use his Uncles advice on the matter he decided to pretend what really happened was a dream. "So Uncle I had this strange dream. I met this girl who was from the future who was trying to save me from this other person who wanted to kill me. She said fifty years from now, I'm this all-powerful king."
"Well, that certainly sounds like an intense dream," Junichiro admitted. "But you wanted to be a king, right Sougo?"
"Yeah…" Sougo gave a nod.
"So, that's a good thing, then." Junichiro pointed out, despite worrying for his nephews future careers he still felt the need to support him.
"But apparently I'm the most wicked overlord of all time," Sougo added. "So I was pretty torn…"
"Well, no need to rush to an answer," Junichiro admitted. "Y'know, when I was younger I had a chance to chase after my dream, too. But doing so meant taking a big risk. I remember being torn, too."
"What did you do?" Sougo asked while Ruby looked up from her paper.
"I let it pass by me," Junichiro replied as he went to grab a clock from the kitchen counter. "I figured I'd get another chance. It turns out life doesn't give you many chances." He then began manually turning the clock hands. "We can stop the hands of a clock, we can turn them back… but that's just not how life works."
"Huh…" Sougo gave a nod.
"Basically if you have a chance you should take it," Ruby said as she finished reading the paper, her suspicions growing on the athlete kidnapper.
Once the three were done with breakfast Sougo and Ruby had decided to head out on foot, figuring they could use the Ride Striker if they got tired.
"So given it was a pretty big subject yesterday… want to know a bit more about me?" Ruby mentioned as they walked.
"I mean only if you want to tell," Sougo replied. "I'm sure home is a touchy subject for you given everything… the most you mentioned were about Aura and Semblances but I'm not sure why you'd have them."
"Well I did remember one thing that I wanted to share. See back home, not only did we have Aura and Semblances." Ruby explained. "But we also used weapons to fight, because back home there are these monsters called Grimm. It's the job of the Huntsmen and Huntresses to defeat them and protect everyone. I had actually enrolled in combat school to become a Huntress."
"Huh, that is pretty different, combat school and stuff." Sougo admitted. "So why bring it up?"
"Well my case was special, I impressed a headmaster and I ended up getting to go to one of the four main academies, Beacon, a full two years early," Ruby explained.
"Whoa that's impressive!" Sougo called out.
"Yep, but I was absolutely terrified!" Ruby admitted. "On one hand I ended up getting into one of the major huntsman academies. But on the other hand it was so soon, but I knew if I didn't take that chance then I would have had to wait two more years. And I wouldn't have met so many of my friends."
"So you're saying I should take this chance as Zi-O, right?" Sougo asked.
"Don't worry, you have my full support," Ruby said with a salute and a grin.
"Thanks," Sougo admitted before hearing some screams. "Huh?"
"Sounds like trouble," Ruby said as the two exchanged a look. "So you ready to do this?"
"As ready as I'll ever be," Sougo admitted before taking off alongside Ruby, the two soon caught a glimpse of Another Build wandering off after scaring several people. Sougo tilted his head. "Is that… Build?"
"Pretty sure Sento's armor wasn't that ugly," Ruby grimaced, not liking this monster copycat-like creature. "We should stop it."
"Right," Sougo said before a trail of flames shot in front of them, forming a wall of fire as a new Another Rider stepped into view. Sougo and Ruby's eyes widened as a white and blue monstrous version of Cross-Z walked into view, it having more sharp bone-like draconic parts to its armoring. There were some patches of orange along its waist and left arm, with blue bone armored wings sprouting out of its back.
[CROSS-Z]
"Protect… Build!" Another Cross-Z called out as flames spiraled around its hands and arms.
"Okay, we beat this ugly copycat then stop the other!" Ruby called out as she activated her Aura, Sougo doing the same as he prepped his Ziku Driver and watch.
Ruby was just about ready to draw out her Driver to try and transform but stopped all of a sudden. Her mind was still on when she was sent to Earth by the mysterious voice who talked about changing fate. This alongside Woz's words planted some doubt in her. She wondered if she was inadvertently stealing Sougo's future away by being on Earth and if using that Driver and her Watch was just part of a plan to stop Sougo's dream from coming true…
Her thoughts however were suddenly interrupted as the loud noises from both the belt and watch rung out loudly beside her.
[ZIKU DRIVER!]
[ZI-O!]
Sougo then slotted the watch into his driver before unlocking the Driver and spinning it. "Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN RIDER ZI-O!]
Sougo gained his base Rider form, standing side by side with Ruby as Kamen Rider Zi-O. He then summoned his Zikan Girade before handing it over to Ruby.
"Thanks," Ruby said, figuring she'd take it slow for now and wouldn't use the Driver unless necessary. She then noticed a button and pressed down on it, shifting the blade and turning the weapon into a gun.
[JU!]
"Oh I can work with this," Ruby grinned as she took aim. "I'll cover you Sougo!"
"I think we can do this…" Sougo said as he gripped his fist before charging forward, laser blasts shooting past him to strike at Another Cross-Z as he closed in. Ruby's covering fire was thankfully enough to distract Another Cross-Z, allowing Sougo to close in with ease. The new Rider gave a yell and soon threw a punch once he was close enough.
"What were you trying to pull stopping me yesterday?" Geiz finally asked while they walked through town, wanting to search for the source of the foot soldier army from yesterday.
"Well that girl…" Tsukuyomi started but was stopped by Geiz raising his hand.
"I mean before we fully found out about her," Geiz replied.
"I don't really know myself," Tsukuyomi admitted as she looked to the side. "But are we sure he's the Oma Zi-O we know?"
"Are you having doubts?" Geiz asked.
"He just felt… so different," Tsukuyomi admitted. "And then there's that Ruby girl too, just what's her story?"
"We should confront them then," Geiz suggested before hearing screams. "Huh?"
Nearby were two baseball players being tossed around by Another Build, the Another Rider took out his empty bottle and managed to capture one. "Baseball!"
"A monster…?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"No an Another Rider, the Time Jackers are starting their move in this era too," Geiz replied, but he could care less, he had his mission. "We should just leave it alone."
"Wait why? I understand that they want to try their own hand at changing things but that's not going to fix our problem," Tsukuyomi replied, her instincts to try and help overriding any attempt at putting this off. "They clearly just want to rule, so we won't get anywhere if we leave them alone."
"Fine…" Geiz trailed as he took out his watch and Driver, readying both of them before activating his watch and slotting it in.
[GEIZ!]
"Henshin!" Geiz called out as he initiated his transformation.
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN RIDER GEIZ!]
Geiz transformed and quickly jumped into the fray, leaping in and grabbing Another Build before throwing himself and the monster to the ground. He then threw the Another Rider off, forcing it to recover as he immediately got up. Geiz chose not to get too relaxed with his semi-docile opponent and relentlessly began punching the Another Rider.
To his surprise Another Build had caught one of his punches before slamming its tank foot into his gut, the tank treads activating and sparks flying as Geiz was forced backwards.
"So you're more than just a punching bag, good." Geiz remarked, he rushed in and ducked under a few swipes from the Another Rider. He then performed a quick series of punches against Another Build's stomach to force it back.
[FINISH TIME!]
Another Build suddenly pulsed, getting a strange feeling of dread as it soon looked over. Suddenly a dull colored copy of it with an explosion forming on its chest formed near it. It then looked up to see Geiz having launched upwards.
It was then that a diagonal trail of Geiz's visor alongside the Hiragana for 'Kick' formed between the two.
[TIME BURST!]
Another Build rushed forward to try and punch at Geiz who closed in rapidly. As he did this the dull copy of him began to rewind its movements, eventually lining up with the present Another Build. The Another Ride wasn't fast enough however as it got struck in the chest. Another Build soon staggered back, stepping right where the dull copy of it formed before exploding.
Geiz was ready to turn and Tsukuyomi ready to rush over when a green tint washed over the area, time suddenly stopping as a result. "Time… Jacker…!"
"I got to say you all are pretty efficient at getting in the way," Uhr skipped his way towards the trail of smoke left by the explosion. As the smoke cleared it revealed the Basketball Player that he had contracted with. Uhr tapped the players head causing them to suddenly sit up in a trance-like state. He then removed the watch before activating it again.
[BUILD!]
"You can't stop us, and if you won't join us you should just roll over already," Uhr remarked as he slammed the watch into the player again.
The Basketball player's body convulsed as he stood up, dark wisps of energy wrapping around him as he became Another Build once more.
[BUILD!]
"See ya," Uhr gave a wave before suddenly vanishing as time resumed for both Geiz and Tsukuyomi.
"So you're back, it doesn't matter…" Geiz growled, hating the Time Jacker's and their ability to easily interfere. He turned and rushed at Another Build, trying to overwhelm him with an assault of punches and kicks. To his surprise however Another Build deflected a hit and pushed Geiz away almost immediately afterwards.
Geiz stumbled as he turned, surprised by how easily the Another Rider was able to counter him. "It's learning?"
Another Build tapped into the power of the baseball player it created a bottle out of, forming energy baseballs before throwing them forward. Geiz was ready to use his Ghost Watch only to get it slammed out of his hand by a baseball, getting struck by a few more and forced onto his back.
[ZIKAN ZAX!]
Geiz summoned a red bow weapon with a black handle with yellow writing on it.
[YU-MI!]
Geiz drew the hammer back on his weapon before releasing a red bolt of energy at the Another Rider to stun it. He then began shooting it several more times to force it back as he got on his feet. Geiz and the Another Rider soon got into a shoot out, Geiz shooting down baseball projectiles while trying to hit Another Build and vice versa. The two began to run and jump along before Geiz saw the baseballs start to aim away from him.
"What?" Geiz noticed they were heading for Tsukuyomi who began to shoot them down but was unable to hit one. "Tsukuyomi!" He called out as he rushed forward, getting struck in the back by the projectile and falling to a knee.
"Geiz!" Tsukuyomi called out as she rushed over.
"Finish!" Another Build called out as it summoned a flaming basketball, dribbling it several times as it began to grow and glow brighter. It then threw it towards Geiz and Tsukuyomi, trying to hit them with it and end them right there.
Suddenly however a familiar face jumped between the two, it was Kamen Rider Build. Sento drew his Drill Crusher and slammed it into the basketball, spinning the drill rapidly to where he managed to tear through and split the attack into two, the energy shooting off to the sides and creating small explosions.
"Found you… copycat," Sento declared as he stood up straight before looking over at the time travelers. "You guys alright?"
"We are…" Tsukuyomi trailed before she recognized Sento's armor from the statues that Oma Zi-O had. "You're Kamen Rider Build!"
"Eh? I have fans in the New World?" Sento questioned before shaking his head, quickly turning towards Another Build. "You can explain later, I've been wondering where he's been for a year. I suppose he really wasn't part of Evolt's scheme." He said as he took out the soda can from his previous attempt, shaking before popping it open and revealing two bottle connecters at the bottom of it. "Let's begin the experiment."
[RABBITTANK SPARKLING!]
Sento had removed his Rabbit and Tank Bottles in order to slot the Sparkling Can in. He then began turning the crank as the Rabbit and Tank Sparkling halves were prepared, both having a more sharp appearance alongside more white that added a soda-like texture to his armor.
[ARE YOU READY?]
"Build Up!" Sento called out as both halves slammed into him, once snapping together they released a burst of soda fizz.
[SHUWATTO HAJIKERU! RABBITTANK SPARKLING! YEA-YEAHHH!]
"S-Sparkling?" Tsukuyomi managed to sputter out.
"It looks like it's the same thing just with a bunch of white," Geiz pointed out.
"Build?" Another Build tilted its head.
In a burst of red, white and blue fizz, Sento used his rabbit foot to launch him forward, managing to cover a much greater distance than before. This caught his Another Rider counterpart off guard as he slammed his tank foot into it. Fizz began spewing out as he activated his tank foot's treads. Sento walked over to Another Build, the latter of which tried to punch and kick at him.
Sento however easily blocked against the punches before countering with his own, his upgraded armor being more than a match for the Another Rider now.
"Come on, come on," Sento called out as he continually beat Another Build back before slamming the Another Rider further back with his rabbit foot.
The Another Rider growled out before throwing a combination of energy basketballs alongside baseballs at Sento. Sento was forced to dodge back before drawing out the Drill Crusher and a comic based sword, the 4-Koma Blade. He used both weapons to brace and slash against the projectiles while closing in. Once close enough he lunged and stabbed Another Build, sparks flying and sending it further back.
"I've got the winning formula!" Sento exclaimed as he initiated his finisher.
[READY GO!]
Sento jumped up and kicked out at Another Build, fizz bursting off his foot as he went for a Rider Kick. Another Build jumped up to try and punch at Sento.
[SPARKLING FINISH!]
Another Build gasped out as Sento's foot hit first, the force of the attack sending him flying back into several bushes as an explosion occurred. The Basketball player lost his transformation and fell unconscious. At least… for a few seconds as his eyes opened wide not long after, a purple glow in them.
Sento landed and gave a chuckle as he rose, dusting off his hands. "There we go, issue solved."
"How is he still here?" Geiz questioned as he got up. "Build should have been…"
"Erased…" Tsukuyomi gave a nod. "That's why Oma rose to power, because every other Rider was erased from history, their power going to him."
"Are you guys alright?" Sento asked as he ran over to the two. "Sorry about that."
"Why are you saying sorry?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Because you guys were attacked by a doppelganger of me, so I take responsibility for it," Sento replied before something clicked for him, he gave a yelp as he staggered back. "You're the one who invaded the café and attacked Ryuga and I!"
"Wait you attacked them?" Geiz asked.
"I needed to get Sougo and Ruby back to 2018," Tsukuyomi protested. "The plan was to knock them out but that girl…"
"Wait so they really were from the future?" Sento asked in surprise before rubbing his helmet in excitement. "This is incredible, this is amazing!"
"I think we're done here," Geiz said ready to leave.
[BUILD!]
The Basketball player began to rise before suddenly transforming into Another Build again. "Me Build! You Fake!"
"This is the worst…" Sento sighed before getting in a fighting stance; he quickly tried the same trick again. He used his rabbit foot to jump forward in a burst of speed while kicking out with his tank tread boot.
Another Build however saw this coming and kicked out with its rabbit foot, using the spring on it to release a force of energy against Sento's kick. The force of energy was strong enough to overpower the treads and sent Sento staggering onto his back.
"It's learning… we need to retreat!" Geiz called out as he ran over to Sento.
"But if we do he'll endanger the public," Sento argued as he began to get up. "I just need to use a stronger form."
"And it'll get back up again, we can't beat him like this," Geiz argued as he grabbed onto Sento's arm to try and pull him back.
Sento however forced Geiz to let go by swinging his arm, "Fine then but we need a good distraction." He said as he took a few steps forward away from Geiz. He then drew out a small red turbocharger-like device with a glass casing over a blue button. He flipped the casing off before hitting the button.
[HAZARD ON!]
He then removed his Sparkling Can while placing the attachment onto the top of the Driver's side where the crank was. Taking out the Rabbit and Tank bottles he shook them before twisting their caps, slotting them in once more.
[RABBIT! TANK!]
[SUPER BEST MATCH!]
Sento then began turning the crank of his Driver, two metal presses with a Build Mold forming in front of and behind him, the two presses connecting together via cables and pipes.
[ARE YOU READY?]
"Build Up," Sento declared, the metal presses suddenly being drawn in and trapping Sento within them, clamping together tightly.
*DING*
The metal presses soon unclamped and began to move away from each other, black smoke exiting as the presses fully disappeared. As the black smoke cleared a fully black build with sharper chest, shoulder and helmet armor appeared, the only pieces of color being the Rabbit Tank eyes.
[UNCONTROL SWITCH! BLACK HAZARD! YABEI!]
"He has another version of his other forms?" Tsukuyomi asked, wondering just how deep the rabbit and tank theme went.
"I don't like this…" Geiz trailed, getting a really ominous feeling from the form.
"Me Build!" Another Build yelled out as it ran forward only to get punched in the face by Sento. A dark burst of energy was released alongside the punch, sending it tumbling backwards as a result.
"A single punch…" Tsukuyomi trailed.
"Just what kind of raw power does that form have?" Geiz questioned.
Another Build growled out as it began throwing baseballs towards Sento, the genius rider raised his arms, bracing against the attacks as he ran forward.
"I've got you," Sento threw his arms out once he was close enough, performing a string of powerful punches against Another Build. He then ducked underneath a swipe from his counterpart before swinging his arm and slamming his fist into the monster.
Another Build gasped out, the strength of the swing sending it flying backwards into the bushes yet again.
"We need to get going, now." Sento then drew out a phone, taking out and slotting in a yellow Lion bottle before tossing it forward.
[LION! BUILD CHANGE!]
Sento then removed the trigger from his Driver, reverting back into basic RabbitTank before mounting his bike and revving it.
"Come on Tsukuyomi," Geiz drew out the Bike Ridewatch and activated the Ride Striker, getting on with Tsukuyomi mounting up behind him.
"Let's go," Sento quickly drove off with Geiz following.
Another Build yelped out as it staggered out of the bushes, giving a yell and ready to fight only to suddenly realize that Geiz, Sento and Tsukuyomi had vanished. "Huh?" It looked around before suddenly slumping. "Best Match…" It trailed, going back to its instincts before wandering off.
Sougo yelled as he gave a kick, backing away as the Another Rider swung at him. Ruby quickly aimed and began firing at Another Cross-Z, hitting his arms to keep him open.
"Try and hit him now!" Ruby called.
"Right," Sougo rushed in and reeled his arm back, throwing a punch towards the monstrous rider.
"I cannot lose!" Another Cross-Z yelled as he punched forward, managing to clash with Sougo's own punch. Sougo yelled out as sparks flew from his hand, causing him to take a step back. Cross-Z then gathered flames in his foot before spinning and kicking forward, a blue energy dragon snaking and slamming into Sougo, sending him tumbling back.
"Just what is this guy?!" Sougo whined. "He packs a punch!"
"No clue!" Ruby called out as she began shooting at another Cross-Z, while the shots were dealing some damage, the effects were minimal. "Sougo get ready to use your finisher, we need to end this fast!" Ruby quickly activated her watch and slotted it in.
[ROZE!]
Sougo gave a nod and pressed down on his personal watch before unlocking the Ziku Driver.
[FINISH TIME!]
Ruby ran towards Another Cross-Z who followed her lead and ran towards her as well. Ruby however activated her Semblance, turning into a flurry of petals that sped right past and behind the Another Rider. Before the monster could even think to turn, Ruby pulled the trigger as she landed.
[ROZE! SURE SURE SHOOTING!]
A spiraling blast of energy petals shot forward and slammed Another Cross-Z in the back, sending him stumbling forward only to stagger back when he suddenly hit floating katakana that were read as 'kick'. Another Cross-Z realized the word and looked up.
The Katakana began to overlap and combine into one as Sougo kicked forward. The singular Katakana then flew towards Sougo and entered the sole of his boot, Sougo letting out a yell as he kicked out towards the Another Rider.
[TIME BREAK!]
Another Cross-Z yelled out as he was flung backwards from the kick, flying past Ruby and crashing against the ground causing an explosion. When it began to die down however, an ordinary bodybuilder could be seen amidst it.
Ruby let out a small shriek when she saw the bodybuilder while Sougo gave a yelp.
"That was a person?!" Ruby asked.
"I didn't think it was, it wasn't acting human at all," Sougo admitted as he began to walk over only for time to suddenly stop.
"Sorry Zi-O but I can't have you interfering, especially with that weird girl," Uhr said as he stepped in front of them before taking out the Another Cross-Z Watch and reactivating it. He then placed it in the bodybuilder again before releasing the time stop. The Bodybuilder yelled out as he transformed into Another Cross-Z again.
"It's time for a rematch now!" Another Cross-Z yelled out.
"H-How do we beat something that can just come back?!" Sougo questioned.
"Just hit it really, really hard?!" Ruby called out though asked at the same time as she herself had no idea on what to do in this situation.
"This should be fun," Uhr said as he skipped away from sight.
"Hey! First the dark haired me and now Cross-Z has a clone?!" A voice called out, familiar to Ruby and Sougo as behind Another Cross-Z was Ryuga Banjo. He was currently giving a confused stare as he held a bag that seemed to hold stuff for protein shakes and ramen.
"Ryuga?" Sougo asked.
"Ryuga!" Ruby called out in joy.
"Huh? Ah, it's one of the future kids!" Ryuga called out as he pointed towards Ruby, not recognizing Sougo in his armor.
"There can be only one Cross-Z!" Another Cross-Z interrupted as it patted its chest. "That's me!"
Ryuga gave a scoff as he set down his bag, but instead of taking out a Build Driver he took out a strange blue driver with a tube sticking out while there was a wrench lever and only one slot. "You look like Charge a bit, so let's see if this does the trick." He said as he attached the belt to his waist.
[SCLASH DRIVER!]
Ryuga then took out what looked to be a silver packet with a blue dragon marked on it, twisting the cap before slotting it in.
[DRAGON JELLY!]
Ryuga got in a readied stance as he held his hands up, his left towards his face while his right was towards the lever. "Henshin!" He called out as he slammed the lever down before standing straight and spreading his arms as he dropped them.
[TSUBURERU! NAGARERU! AFUREDERU!]
Suddenly a giant test container formed around him before filling up with blue liquid. The tube then constricted on him, a quick splash formed a predominantly silver suit with a blank head that held orange eyes. Suddenly blue liquid began spewing out of the top of his head, forming his chest, shoulders and helmet, the shoulders being thin and long versions of the packet he used while the chest and helmet were clear blue with dragon motifs.
[DRAGON IN CROSS-Z CHARGE! BURAA!]
"Whoa!" Sougo called out in surprise.
"Someone got an upgrade…" Ruby said in a singsong voice as she realized that this was likely a stronger form that Ryuga had.
"I get the feeling I can't lose!" Ryuga called out as he held up his left arm before slapping it with his right hand. He then gave a yell as he rushed forward, sending a punch towards Another Cross-Z. Another Cross-Z responded and punched, the two clashing punches until Ryuga's won out, sparks flying as he pushed past his doppelgangers fist before striking him in the chest.
"I can't lose!" Another Cross-Z yelled out as it took a few steps back.
[TWIN BREAKER!]
"There can be only one Cross-Z that wins today, and that's me!" Ryuga pointed at himself while his new weapon formed on his left hand, it being a hand held dual bottle slotted jackhammer-esque weapon. Though two white tubes were out now showing it was in its gun mode. Ryuga though immediately pushed them back, revealing the piston for the melee mode.
[ATTACK MODE!]
Ryuga however didn't stop at this, taking out the Cross-Z Dragon and folding it up before slotting it into the dual bottle slot.
[CROSS-Z DRAGON!]
[READY GO! LET'S BREAK!]
Ryuga let out a yell as he lunged forward against his doppelganger while it braced with both arms. A Chinese energy dragon snaked around before launching out against Another Cross-Z from Ryuga's punch. The Chinese dragon managed to force the doppelganger into the air.
The Another Rider yelled out before its back erupted into flames suddenly, two flaming dragon-like wings forming out from its body as it launched upwards and into the sky.
"NO FAIR!" Ryuga yelled out as he shook his fist in the air before suddenly pouting and crossing his arms. "This is why Sento needs to let me have that Hawk bottle more."
"And it's gone…" Sougo sighed before dismissing his transformation.
"Okay, we seriously need to figure out how to beat that thing," Ruby said as she removed her Roze Watch, watching the Zikan Girade fade away since Sougo wasn't transformed.
Ryuga perked up when he saw Sougo and ran over to the two while dismissing his own transformation. "Ah there he is! I didn't think one of you future kid's was a Kamen Rider."
"Oh so you do remember us," Sougo realized.
"Yeah, Sento and I were trying to figure out if we could find you to ask you about something," Ryuga mentioned.
"Ask us about what?" Ruby asked.
"Well you know that Cross-Z Clone right?" Ryuga mentioned. "What if I told you we ran into a clone of Build like not even an hour after you guys vanished?"
"That sounds a lot like the guy we were trying to follow before that other Cross-Z interrupted us," Ruby realized.
"Yeah definitely," Sougo agreed.
"So you guys know something about that?" Ryuga asked.
"Um kind of…" Ruby started. "Think we can head back to the café to talk?"
"Oh right about that…" Ryuga trailed as he rubbed the back of his head. "We're kind of somewhere else. I'll take you there, but first." He then jogged over towards his stuff he set on the ground before counting everything and heading back towards the two with the bag in hand. "Okay I'm ready whenever you two are."
"One moment," Sougo said as grabbed Ruby and moved her off to the side before whispering. "Hey you know we have no idea what's going on right?"
"Well we kind of do don't we? Plus there's Woz, I'm sure he can just show up randomly to explain what's going on." Ruby argued.
"Wait, what do you mean we kind of know?" Sougo whispered.
"Remember what Woz said about Time Jackers? We were frozen in place and that kid pulled out a watch," Ruby said as she recalled what happened. "So we kind of have an idea."
"Huh, true…" Sougo trailed.
"Hey I don't have all day," Ryuga said as he tapped his foot a few times.
"Right, we'll come with you," Sougo said as he and Ruby turned towards him. "Maybe putting our heads together can give us an idea."
"Good, the more Riders the merrier," Ryuga replied before turning and heading off. "Let's go."
"Right," Ruby gave a nod before following after Ryuga, Sougo following not long after.
To Be Continued…
Next Time:
"I suppose copying my good looks wasn't enough."
"It really is you…"
"But what's important isn't how you got that power… it's what you do with it."
"His name is Kamen Rider Zi-O: Build Armor!"
"We've got the winning formula!"
Chapter 03: Rose of Victory 2018
Authors Note: Well that was certainly a change of pace huh? Things are going fairly differently now compared to how they usually would. If you're wondering about a certain Another Rider, look up the article 'Kamen Rider Zi-O Storyboard Artist Releases Another Rider Designs' if you want to see the others. I figured that bringing in Another Cross-Z would spice things up a bit. So I decided to use what was already there.