Author's Note: So something I'd just like to note, but with us in the month of May, it's technically and officially been a year since this story began! Not to the date just yet, but hey we're close enough right? Thus it's fairly fitting that we're having the Kuuga Tribute this month.
But of course I do want to thank you all for your support, I didn't mention it but a while back we had ended up crossing a hundred reviews, alongside favorites and follows. It means a lot to me in how this story is growing in reception and I'm really glad to have you all along for the ride. And to add to the whole growing in reception part, last month I discovered that this story had recently been added to the RWBY Crossover Fic Recommendations on TV-Tropes. I found that really cool and I'm glad to have managed to get on that list.
But anyway, I suppose I've done enough rambling, let's get on with the show!
Rider Time Zi-O: Roze from Remnant
Chapter 16 – Resurrection 2000
"Normally according to this book, average high schooler Tokiwa Sougo embarks on a path which leads him to become the overlord of time, Oma ZI-O," Woz explained as he walked through an alleyway, having his book close to his body as he continued to walk. The sounds of destruction were all around him but he remained undeterred.
"Journeying to the city of Futo my Overlord and his compatriots have taken down Another W, adding yet another Rider's power to his collection. However at the end of their journey back home, they are met with a horrible surprise…"
Woz stopped outside the alleyway, seeing various buildings broken apart, debris everywhere, cars crushed, glass shattered. People were screaming as they tried to hide from various monster grunts that were appearing. Guardian Robots, Bugster Virus', Ghouls, Waste Yummy's, Raydragoon's, and Masquerade Dopants were all among the ones that were attacking anyone in sight. Oddly enough, they were the only one's attacking anyone in sight. The grunts seen appeared to be the only enemies present. No actual commanders or monsters leading them, nor were there any other types.
"My Overlord's next task is a perilous one indeed," Woz looked off to the side, seeing the large tower at the center of the city that held the Kuuga symbol on it. "One that spans to the very beginning of the era he will reign at…" He trailed before suddenly turning at a new presence, his eyes widening when he saw what was behind him. "You…"
A camera shutter clicked as a man walked through the streets. It was the same brown bushy haired man in the black suit and silky pink shirt that had caught the tail end of the Mirror World incident. He held his old-fashioned camera in his hands and began to whistle to himself. There was some look of concern on his face as he entered his destination. It seemed to be a photo studio, the man entering and looking around, noticing the front desk was empty.
"Guess she isn't in at the moment," The man noted. He walked through the main hall, turning towards the door to his left and entering.
Inside was a fairly spacious studio for one to take pictures in, though the backdrop was currently rolled up. He looked towards his right, noticing one of the couches was currently being used.
A woman was sitting on it, wearing a white blouse with black collar and cuffs, alongside a long black skirt with black leggings and white heeled shoes. It was hard to tell any other features as there was a lot of light coming from the window despite the darkened skies outside. She simply stared outside, seemingly looking at something and lost in thought.
"You know, things are getting bad out there," The man mentioned. "I'm not sure if they're going to make it this time."
"Have faith in them," The woman replied in a soft voice. "I do have one request however…"
"I'm not sure if I can fulfill it though," The man crossed his arms, looking towards his left. "Even with a little interference, you know I can't exactly play my full hand so early."
"I know," The woman admitted, gripping her hands slightly before turning towards the man. "But, there's still something that only you can do, Tsukasa…"
Earth – Early November 2018
"Damn it, so this is what they were up to!" Geiz hissed out as he rode through the ruined streets of Tokyo. "They were distracting us for an Another Rider takeover!"
Sougo and Ruby stayed silent as they followed after him, the trio of bikers having to just barely avoid a few sets of grunts from prior encounters already. What was worrying is that they had passed several odd stone busts of a monstrous stag beetle-like creature, likely the Another Rider behind this.
"I don't think it's that simple," Tsukuyomi admitted. "I have a hunch but we'll find out when we get back to 9-5-DO."
"What else can it be though?" Geiz asked.
"Come on… come on…" Sougo muttered as he followed after Geiz, his driving patterns were a bit more erratic but that was mostly because of the concern for his uncle.
"Sougo…" Ruby muttered, still trying to figure out what exactly was going on. Something felt off, and that wasn't just because of their Rider Gear acting up.
"We're here," Geiz stopped right outside of 9-5-DO, or at least where he knew 9-5-DO was. Tsukuyomi dismounted, Geiz doing the same and dismissing his bike.
Sougo and Ruby dismounted as well as they dismissed their bikes. Ruby's eyes caught something immediately off with the location though.
"Uncle, we're back!" Sougo called out as he hurried to the door, opening it up only to be greeted with an entirely alien interior. It was the entrance to what appeared to be a café, though from the looks of it, it had been abandoned for a while, the door likely left open. "What?"
"Café Mojimoji," Ruby said as she walked over, seeing the signs at the front of the building. "This is… this wasn't a café though?"
"Just what's going on?" Sougo asked.
"I knew it," Tsukuyomi said as she quickly hurried in, Geiz hurrying over and making sure everyone was in before closing the door. "History has been altered."
"Altered?" Ruby asked. "But how, Another Rider's don't erase the Rider they're created from. There's no way for the Time Jacker's to go far enough into the past and create an Another Rider for them to affect things this badly."
"She's right," Geiz nodded. "Even Another Faiz's creation, or tampering with the Kanzaki remnant in 2002 didn't do this much damage."
"It's my only guess," Tsukuyomi admitted. "Because that's the only thing that explains the Ridewatches acting up like that."
"So… what happened to Uncle?" Sougo asked.
"That I can't say for sure," Tsukuyomi admitted. "But the timeline must have changed enough to where he didn't end up settling into this building. He's an unknown right now."
"Sougo, I know you're worried about Mr. Junichiro," Ruby said as she put an arm around Sougo's shoulders. "At the very least for all we know he might not be in Tokyo but in another city if things have changed this much. All we can do is figure out what's going on and put history back to the way it was."
Sougo took a deep breath before giving a nod, "Right, right…"
"If history's really changed this badly, how do we still exist?" Geiz asked.
"Again, I don't know!" Tsukuyomi suddenly snapped before taking a deep breath. "Sorry, this is something unprecedented." She said as she took out her tablet, trying to search for something but being unable to. "And I can't figure out what's caused the changes, something is jamming the signal."
"So how do we go about this?" Sougo asked.
Ruby looked at everyone before closing her eyes, giving a nod before opening them to address everyone. "Alright, here's the plan. We confirm what Another Rider is responsible for this, they always have a date and name on them. When we do that we get into our Time Mazine's and head to that year, then figure out what the disturbance is, and then we take it out."
Sougo blinked a few times, "Whoa…"
"Did she just go full leader mode on us?" Geiz asked.
"I think she did," Tsukuyomi blinked.
"Hehe…" Ruby rubbed the back of her head with a smile. "Sorry, had to draw into the old Team Leader mentality because we needed some kind of plan to work with."
"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Sougo said as he held out his fist.
Geiz and Tsukuyomi looked at each other before nodding, the two putting their fists near Sougo's.
"Alright, let's go team!" Ruby bumped her fist against the three's before looking around. "Let's-"
A sudden crash occurred as two Guardian Robots tore through the front entrance, grabbing the doors and ripping them off the hinges.
"Run!" Sougo yelled as he went deeper into the café, if it wasn't his Uncle's Shop there had to be a back door for the employee's.
"Gah, not these guys again!" Ruby yelped as she followed after Sougo, Geiz and Tsukuyomi following after her.
It wasn't long before suddenly Ghouls began crashing through the windows, landing between the four and swinging at them wildly with their staffs. Ruby yelped as she grabbed Tsukuyomi out of instinct, using Petal Burst to launch back towards the entrance and send the two Guardian Robots tumbling.
"Ruby!" Sougo called out before Geiz grabbed him. "Geiz, we need to head back that way!"
"We can't!" Geiz yelled out as he began dragging Sougo away. "There's too many and I don't want to risk transforming, something tells me we won't be a match for any of these low level guys!"
More Ghouls began to jump through as they went to chase after Sougo and Geiz who managed to find the back exit.
"Ruby we need to get back in there!" Tsukuyomi called out, taking out her Faizphone and switching it to its gun mode, firing at a few Guardian's that were closing in from the street. Despite getting hit, the most damage they got was burn marks. She looked at her weapon, while it was still intact the shots were weaker than usual.
"Tsuki as much as I'd love to we're getting swarmed, we'll find a way to meet with them in a bit," Ruby said, bringing out her Rose Attacker before mounting it. "I know history is weird but I need to check something."
"What is it?" Tsukuyomi asked as she mounted the back seat.
"I need to see if anyone else is still around, our best bet is getting more numbers," Ruby admitted before quickly taking off. She and Tsukuyomi were forced to duck a few times, bullet fire flying over their heads as the Guardian's began to follow after while marching.
Ruby was thankful that most of the monster grunts didn't seem to have any vehicle forms or ways to fast travel.
"Ruby, you need to find better cover," Tsukuyomi said as she noticed several Raydragoon's flying after them.
"As much as I'd love to I'm trying to avoid what's in front of me," Ruby answered as she swerved a few times, having to deal with debris and stray grunts.
"Please work," Tsukuyomi clasped her hands against her gun before aiming and firing as best she could. She had managed to strike a Raydragoon in the eyes, managing to blind it and send it hurtling mid-flight into several others. The group of Mirror Monsters slammed against each other and dropped to the ground. "Yes!"
"Okay, almost there, almost there," Ruby repeated as she quickly came to a halt, managing to arrive at her destination, Kikuchi Dry Cleaners or at least the building. "No…" Ruby trailed as she dismounted and quickly hurried over, "No, no, no!"
"Ruby," Tsukuyomi hurried over before realizing what was wrong. The building wasn't a Dry Cleaner anymore as it seemed to just be an ordinary house that was abandoned. "Then… the other Riders were erased too?"
"Is that why the Watches are like that?" Ruby asked before shaking her head. "If they were erased we wouldn't remember them right? I remember them clearly, Sento, Takumi, Goto, Philip, all of them." She rubbed her head in frustration before hearing something and turning.
Tsukuyomi meanwhile tried to see if she could call Geiz but winced when all she got was static feedback, "Not good, we're going to have to search for them the old fashioned way."
"Tsuki…" Ruby immediately got in front of Tsukuyomi. The building they were at was now surrounded from most sides by Masquerade Dopants and Waste Yummy's. The grouping was so large that there was no easy way to try and ride through them to escape. "Stay behind me."
"Should you even transform?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"I have to," Ruby answered as she prepped her transformation despite the glitch effects on her equipment, "Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN RIDER ROZE!]
Ruby quickly drew Crescent Rose, aiming and firing at the crowd, her plan was to try and clear a pathway through where the least Waste Yummy's were. Finding a good chunk of Masquerade Dopants she began firing.
The Masquerade Dopants gasped out as they were hit, getting struck and tumbling backwards. Despite this, Ruby was barely making a dent through them.
"I need more firepower," Ruby drew out the Birth Ridewatch, turning the dial and activating it before slotting it in. "Weapon Time!"
Tsukuyomi blinked a few times as she looked around, "Ruby…" She said when she noticed that the weapon wasn't coming. An announcement was ringing out either, silence among the background noise was all that there was.
"No way, they really won't work?" Ruby asked, she was worried that the watch's power had weakened not that they were unusable. "I've got no choice." She said as she switched her weapon to its Scythe Formation. She then slotted her Ridewatch it into Crescent Rose's slot.
[FINISH TIME! ROZE KAMAKAMA CUTTING!]
Ruby gave a yell as she began twirling and spinning her scythe around, unleashing crescent waves of red energy out towards the field of enemies before her.
It seemed like her desperate attack had worked, the waves of energy slicing through and scattering the Masquerades while the Yummy's dropped to the ground.
"Come on Tsuki, we need to-!" Ruby was cut off and gasped out as she was suddenly struck by several blasts of energy directly in her chest and stomach. Sparks flew from her suit as she reeled back and dropped her weapon, soon falling to her knees.
"Ruby…!" Tsukuyomi quickly ran over before noticing what had attacked, it was just a grouping of Ghouls that had their arms transfigured into cannons. "How are they even doing this much damage…?"
"The armor feels heavier…" Ruby gasped out as she lost her transformation. "It feels like I can barely hold a transformation for long periods of time…"
"We need to go," Tsukuyomi said as she slung her friends arm over her shoulder, lifting Ruby up. They needed to get somewhere narrow to hide and rest.
The Ghoul's saw this and quickly fired again at the two.
Tsukuyomi winced as she braced to get struck, expecting this to be the end. To her surprise she heard… blasts hitting metal?
Sparks flew and caught her attention as she soon stared at the two figures that had saved them, "You two…!"
Standing between Ruby, Tsukuyomi and the horde of monster grunts were none other than Kamen Rider's Para-DX Level 99 and Femme. Parado holding his axe/gun hybrid weapon, the Gashacon Parabragun, while Miho used her Shield Vent to bring out her Wing Shield.
"Wait Parad's here… and Miho too?!" Ruby asked in shock.
Miho couldn't help but chuckle, "Trust me I'm surprised too, I'm going to this wonderful barbecue joint and suddenly the city falls apart while I remember what happened and can transform again."
"Everyone in the hospital vanished without a trace and there are just monsters all over," Parado explained. "I met Miho and a few others."
"But… how?" Ruby asked, with Kikuchi Dry Cleaner's gone, she assumed that meant other Riders were gone too, but Parado was here and now Miho too despite what happened.
"I'm not exactly sure myself," Miho admitted. "I was hoping you might have answers. I shouldn't be a Rider right now but here I am… so I'll do what I do best." She thrust her shield forward, unleashing a plume of feathers out into the crowd of monster grunts to confuse them. "We'll distract them!"
"You know Sento right? He's around too," Parado explained as he loaded his Gashat into his weapon. "We'll cover you, escape through the alleys and get to his warehouse!"
[DUAL GASHAT! KIMEWAZA!]
"But…" Ruby started.
"Just go! We're too tough to be beat!" Parado answered firmly as he reeled his axe back, red and blue flames gathering.
"They're right," Tsukuyomi nodded and recalled the Rose Attacker back into its Lock Vehicle state. She then turned with Ruby, the huntress managing enough strength to walk as they entered a nearby alley.
[KNOCK OUT CRITICAL FINISH!]
"Take this!" Parad yelled as he slashed forward, sending a wide arcing slash of red and blue flames that hit the monster grunts, causing an explosion.
"Damn it, a dead end!" Geiz called out as he turned, noticing that they were being cornered by Bugster Viruses and Guardian Robots. They had found themselves in an alleyway with no exit.
"We have to fight," Sougo said as he put on his Ziku Driver, activating his Ridewatch.
"I don't want to but we've got no choice," Geiz said as he readied himself as well.
"Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME!]
[KAMEN RIDER GEIZ!]
[KAMEN RIDER ZI-O!]
The two Riders transformed but soon lurched forward, the two of them feeling the unstable weight of even their base forms.
"Okay, I see what you mean," Sougo admitted.
"We need to just power through," Geiz answered. "We'll try one big attack with both of our weapons."
"Got it," Sougo said, drawing out his gun while Geiz drew out his bow, the two hitting the special buttons on each.
[TIME CHARGE!]
[5… 4… 3… 2… 1… ZERO TIME!]
"Take this!" Geiz yelled as he took aim and fired with his Zikan Zax
"Eat this!" Sougo yelled out as he took aim and fired with his Zikan Girade.
[KIWA KIWA UCHI!]
[SURE SURE UCHI!]
The two unleashed their blasts, Geiz sending a piercing yellow arrow to break through the mob of grunts defenses while Sougo let out a burst of "ji" katakana lettering that slammed into the enemies and destroyed them.
"Run, now!" Geiz called as he rushed forward.
Sougo followed after Geiz as the ran out of the alleyway, the two managing to make it out The two were suddenly surprised by several Ghouls with gun-like arms, the grouping firing at the two. Both Riders yelled out as they were blasted back in surprise, the two aiming and firing at the Ghouls and managing to destroy a few before getting blasted by them again.
The resulting counter fire had caused Sougo and Geiz to tumble across the ground, both losing their transformations.
"We're getting nowhere," Geiz gritted his teeth. This was starting to become as bad as dealing with Oma Zi-O. He began to stand up, wincing as he realized the armor wasn't protecting them as well as it normally did.
"We've got to keep running," Sougo struggled but managed to get into a standing position. "We need to find Ruby and Tsukuyomi."
[CELL BURST!]
"Then we better clear this grouping for you," A voice called as the two turned before quickly splitting apart, a golden spinning coin shooting between the two and slamming into the Ghouls, causing an explosion.
"Goto," Sougo smiled as he saw the familiar figure of Birth walking over to them.
Geiz turned when he saw a legion of Guardian's approaching, raising his arms.
[START UP!]
Suddenly red drill projections appeared above various key spots of the Guardian mob. They all came crashing down in rapid succession and caused a series of mass explosions as Faiz in his Axel Form jumped out.
[TIME OUT! DEFORMATION!]
Faiz soon reverted to his base form, his eyes glowing due to the dim lighting the city had at the moment.
"Takumi Inui," Geiz said as he saw the Rider. "Just what are you doing here?"
"Protecting whatever dreams I can, it's hard though given the situation," Takumi admitted in a casual manner as he walked over. "I can only guess that this is an Another Rider issue?"
"Sort of, we still have no clue as to what's going on," Sougo admitted. "We've been on the run."
"Let's get you back to our base then," Goto suggested as he walked over. "We can discuss these weird events there."
Sougo and Geiz looked at each other before turning back to Goto, "Base?"
Ruby gave a groan as she sat against the wall of an alleyway, the two having stopped once they were sure they were decently hidden. Especially since the alleyway they had entered had a metal gate with boxes on their side to help cover them.
"Are you alright?" Tsukuyomi asked as she went to see if Ruby had any severe wounds with her tablets scanning function.
"Physically alright," Ruby admitted. "My brain can't handle this though… just what's even going on?"
"We'll need to ask Sento," Tsukuyomi answered.
"I can give you that answer, Kamen Rider Roze," A voice said as the two got on guard, a black suited Kamen Rider walked over, it having a gold armored chest, the motif seeming similar to the stag beetle creature though it was clear this Rider had a different motif despite the similarities. Due to him being behind the fence and standing near the boxes, his belt was unable to be seen.
"How do you know I'm a Rider?" Ruby asked before suddenly realizing something. The Rider's voice was extremely familiar because she had heard it only a few hours ago. It was the same voice belonging to the strange hooded Rider that had saved her in Futo, "Wait, that voice, weren't you in a different form?"
"One, your belt is loud," The Rider replied with one finger pointing up. He then pointed a second finger up. "Second, you catch on well, but I can't give my secret away just yet."
"You know him?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Sort of, I remember his voice but I've never seen this form," Ruby answered. "He helped me with some stray Foundation X Guardians after I finished off the Trigger Dopant."
"I did, and it seems you didn't brace with my warning," The Rider answered.
"How could I?" Ruby asked as she stood up with a slight glare. "You vanished before I could ask anything, and your cryptic 'This isn't the real battle' spiel didn't really help. I didn't think that something would change so suddenly."
"A Rider's life isn't easy," The Rider replied. "Also Build won't have the answers you need."
"How do you know?" Tsukuyomi raised an eyebrow.
"It's because the Riders that still exist don't have a clue why they still exist," The Rider explained. "Me? I'm a special case. That being said, you all should have been erased too, your weakening powers are proof of that."
"So why not? And why do Parado, and even Miho still exist? She didn't even remember the Rider Battle after Another Ryuki was defeated," Ruby replied.
"Remember Ryuki's new Rider Battle was prevented in the end, making it like he never existed once again." The Rider held a hand up. "Thus erasing the base foundation that would lead to your gaining of Ryuki's and Knight's powers, yet they still remained, why is that?"
"I…" Tsukuyomi was ready to question how this Rider knew this, but then paused when she realized what he was getting at. "That's right, how? Even Woz was certain they'd vanish."
"Because someone still remembered Ryuki and his struggles," The Rider pointed towards his head. "That's how."
"But only just remembering couldn't have done that," Ruby replied.
"Well you're right about that," The Rider agreed before pointing at Ruby. "Time for a history lesson, around 2007 or so was when a new type of person was discovered, a Singularity Point. These people come in many shapes and sizes, and some exist before 2007. It was then that the term became more commonplace. Following along?"
"What's 2007 got to do with any of this?" Ruby asked.
"Nothing at all, I just needed to use it as a frame of reference," The Rider answered. "Zi-O himself I'm guessing is one of these, alongside you Ms. Roze. Well sort of, while you aren't a naturally born one like he probably is, you have a similar existence due to your otherworldly origins. What being a Singularity Point means is that you can anchor yourselves and not be affected by these changes."
"So then, you're one too, right?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Not exactly," The Rider shook his head, "But I am special, I will say that."
"Sougo and I are what?" Ruby asked before her eyes widened. "Wait, you know I'm not from this world?"
"That's not what you should be focusing on," The golden Rider clicked his tongue a few times as he wagged his finger. "The point is you're basically safe from the changes being made."
"So then, what about Tsuki and Geiz, how are they still here?" Ruby asked. "What about the other Riders we just saw?"
"It's all about connections and memories," The Rider explained as he held both hands out and apart before clasping them together. "When those anchored and unaffected by time and space pull their hearts and memories together, miracles can occur. Your tightly knit group alongside your connections to the various Kamen Riders is the basis of this."
"So because Ruby's not originally from this world, and because she remembers the Riders, that's why they're still around?" Tsukuyomi asked, trying to wrap her head around this.
"Zi-O is also helping in some regards, but yes, in this case it's mostly her." The Rider gave a nod.
"I'm not sure I get it," Ruby admitted.
"To be honest I don't blame you. I've only got the gist of it," The Rider shook his head as he put a hand on his hip.
"I can only assume this power isn't one that needs to be activated purposely used then?" Tsukuyomi asked, noticing that Ruby had no clue of what was going on.
"Yes, it's not a normal power but a subconscious one," The Rider explained. "But even this subconscious power has its limits. As you saw only certain Riders still exist with everything intact. And by extension, it's why you all have only weakened. Regardless this girl's heartfelt connection towards Riders in general is what's allowing us a chance to fix this."
"How do we even do that?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"It all starts at the beginning, or at least, the second beginning," The Rider explained before turning. "I've said all I could, but hopefully you can turn the tables against this Another Rider."
"Wait, how do you know I'm not from this world?" Ruby asked.
"I'm a bit of a nosy person," The Rider admitted as he began to walk off. "So it was easy for someone like me."
"Wait!" Ruby called as she jumped onto the boxes, grabbing onto the top of the metal fence before jumping it.
"Hold on!" Tsukuyomi called out as she carefully made her way up the boxes and jumped the fence as well.
Ruby ran in the direction of the mysterious Rider before stopping, sighing when she realized that he had vanished again.
"Ruby, we should…" Tsukuyomi ran over before something caught her attention.
"Let's get to Sento's and hope that the guys made it," Ruby turned only to see Tsukuyomi staring at the nearby street. She turned and then groaned, seeing a mob of various monster henchmen walking towards them. "Oh damn it…"
Suddenly a honk occurred as a large mobile garage-like truck suddenly slammed into the henchmen without effort, tossing them all aside. The most peculiar features was the strange revolving wheel that held what seemed to be vehicle attachments, but also two red eye-like windows and a V-Fin that resembled W's oddly enough.
"What in the world?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"That looks like…" Ruby trailed before the vehicle skidded and turned to face the two, the main body splitting in half and revealing a more spacious interior, on it was the familiar HardBoilder Rider Machine alongside a familiar face.
"Wait… there's a Kamen Rider Cyclone?" Tsukuyomi asked.
Echoing Joker, there was a fully green bodied and gold rimmed W bodied Rider with a silver scarf. The Cyclone Rider gave a familiar chuckle, "Meeting you all like this, how thrilling. But we don't have time to waste."
"Philip!" Ruby called out in relief. "I didn't know you had your own single Memory form."
"I share the Lost Driver with Shotaro," Philip explained. "But anyway, it was strange. After you left, I was doing some research when something shook even the Gaia Library. I came to and then found I was alone, most of Futo was also abandoned. I was worried it might be related to you so I took the RevolGarry and made my way here as fast as I could."
"We really appreciate it," Tsukuyomi smiled.
"Think you can give us a lift?" Ruby asked. "There's somewhere we need to be."
"Of course," Philip answered as the two girls quickly mounted the hollow vehicle, the halves closing back up before the RevolGarry itself took off.
"Honestly, it's good to have you two here," Sento said as he handed Sougo and Geiz some canned coffee.
"I'm just surprised that there are Riders still here," Sougo admitted as he took the drink.
When getting to Sento's warehouse they ended up being greeted by him alongside Nitoh who was attempting to barbecue inside much to the Genius' chagrin. Goto and Takumi had entered and gone to their own little spaces they had set up.
"Do you all have any idea on what's going on?" Geiz asked.
"I have a semi idea," Sento admitted. "At first I thought Ryuga was playing a joke on me, and then I find he really did vanish. I checked my data and I wondered if tampering with parallel worlds was biting me in the butt, but no. It's an Another Rider issue… we think."
"I caught a decent look at it," Takumi spoke up. "It had giant, lanky limbs, ruby red armoring alongside a very disgusting face. I couldn't get a good glimpse at the name and date though. I figured something was wrong and went to find you all but your shops interior was entirely different. Heck when I tried to get Mari and Keitaro to safety I found the dry cleaners turned into something else with no trace of them."
"He kept calling himself the King of the Correct World," Goto added. "Unfortunately whatever he did, the Kougami Foundation is inactive, Eiji and Ankh are both gone too. My equipments still intact and I get Medals when I can off of Yummy's but…"
"We're running into a brick wall," Sento finished as he ruffled his hair in frustration. "We need a way to beat this Another Rider and turn things back to normal."
"Yeah but you saw all the monsters out there right?" Nitoh pointed out. "Even with six of us we don't have enough to break through easily. They're totally flooding straight out of that big tower place and that's likely where he is."
"But we have two more so that puts us at eight," Sento countered. "Not to mention adding in Ruby too."
"Problem, our transformations are weakened," Sougo looked down. "And all the Ridewatches aren't usable."
"Seriously…" Sento looked to the side, wondering just what was going on. He gave a sigh as he ruffled his hair some more, "So we're still at a disadvantage."
"You're not getting depressed over this, none of you are," Geiz suddenly spoke up as he gave a hardened look. "I've fought through hell worse than this, and while this ranks close, the important thing is to not give up. The minute you give up it's all over."
"Geiz…" Sougo looked over towards his ally.
"I wasn't even a Rider when I did what I did," Geiz answered. "All I had was weapons and a heart to never surrender. We won't know what works and what doesn't until we try."
"He's right," Takumi agreed. "We can't just give up, not when so many people are counting on us to figure out how to succeed. Whether they're here right now or not, there's too much at stake."
"I fought to save the world, I'm not letting it end up like this," Goto gave a nod.
"Ah… well if I refuse then I'll look bad," Nitoh remarked before chuckling. "I've faced the impossible before, besides, a great risk carries a great reward!"
"Well would you look at that, giving a rousing speech and rallying the troops," Sento smiled.
"We should still wait for Ruby and Tsukuyomi though," Geiz suggested before turning at the sound of someone opening the door.
It wasn't long before Parado and Miho entered after having dismissed their transformations, the two giving each other a high five as they entered.
"Wait… how is she here?" Geiz whispered to Sougo who shrugged.
"I'm not sure, but nothing's been making sense," Sougo whispered back.
"You two seem to be in high spirits," Sento noted.
"We just cleared out a lot of grunts," Parado smiled.
"And we found Ruby and Tsukuyomi, we told them to meet us here while we caused a distraction," Miho explained.
"Wait, so they're okay!" Sougo said.
"But they haven't shown up yet," Geiz added.
"They haven't?" Miho asked before sighing. "That's not good."
"We were hoping that they would have by now," Parado admitted before staring up at the roof, "I hope Ruby's okay…"
It was then that they'd hear loud screeching outside. The loud noise had caused Sento, Takumi, Parado, Sougo and Geiz to quickly go investigate. The five gave a stare of surprise when they immediately noticed the RevolGarry. The carrier machine soon opened up before revealing Philip without his transformation alongside Ruby and Tsukuyomi.
"Oh my goodness, Sento, Takkun, you guys really are still around too!" Ruby called out as she quickly hopped down, running over in a hurry.
"I'm glad to see you're safe Little Red," Takumi smiled.
"You worried us you know," Parado huffed.
"Sorry Parad," Ruby gave an apologetic smile. "I'll make it up to you in a Score Attack game of Mighty Action X when this is all over."
"Now that's a gift I'll accept," Parado smiled.
"Philip?" Sougo asked. "What are you even doing here?"
"Long story short, I'm what is left of W," Philip said as he dismounted the RevolGarry with Tsukuyomi. "I came in the RevolGarry to assist you all when I figured this might be Another Rider related."
"You can fight without Shotaro?" Sougo asked before noticing the Lost Driver and Cyclone Memory. "Oh…"
"This vehicle is incredible!" Sento called out as he quickly hurried onto the RevolGarry's platform, "A garage styled vehicle used for storing the Rider Machine. Heavy duty metals… likely strong enough to tear through anything, alongside a range of support options for the Rider Machine…" He looked around in a fast manner with a smile as he ruffled his hair. "This is outstanding, incredible, amazing dare I say!"
"I'm glad you're impressed," Philip smirked.
"This might just be what we need to get to the central tower," Takumi realized. "Can it fit eight more alongside the three?"
"It will be a bit cramped," Philip admitted. "But if it's needed to break a path, then we can bear with that inconvenience."
"We can bear with it indeed," Sento gave a nod.
It had taken about an hour or so to prepare, Sougo, Geiz and Ruby resting with Tsukuyomi while the other Riders began making sure their gear was all ready to go. Everyone caught up briefly while also getting any food they could. Eventually the Riders began loading themselves onto the RevolGarry in preparation.
Ruby meanwhile had taken the time off to the side to let Sougo and Geiz know about what the mystery Rider had told her and Tsukuyomi.
"I think I've heard of Singularity Points before, but that Kamen Rider hasn't shown his face yet," Geiz admitted after taking all of this in.
"So Ruby, we're definitely the reason we have a chance then, right?" Sougo asked, not understanding what was going on in the slightest.
"I suppose," Ruby replied. "I hardly have any idea of what he meant."
"What's important is that we can still fight and we have allies," Tsukuyomi replied. "I've been having trouble calling the Time Mazine's though."
"That's odd," Geiz admitted. "Still, we find that name, date, and get to them regardless."
"That's our best hope," Ruby agreed before holding her fist out. "Let's go Team."
The other three gave a nod before putting their fists together before they all held them up into the air.
"I hate to interrupt your team bonding but we're ready to go," Sento mentioned as he walked over.
"If we are, then let's not waste anymore time," Ruby said before heading for the RevolGarry with Sento, the others following after them.
To say the RevolGarry was packed was an understatement, while it was certainly spacious, eleven individuals inside was definitely pushing it. And that was also because Parado, Takumi, Nitoh, Goto, Miho and Philip had already transformed, already adding more bulk with their armor.
Sougo, Geiz, Ruby and oddly enough Sento chose to not transform, the first three were obvious as they needed to only use their armor when right when in battle. Sento's reason was a mystery though. But that didn't stop the arguments along the way.
"Please stop stepping on me," Takumi turned towards Goto.
"I'm not though," Goto answered simply.
Miho gave a growl, "Parado you're back dial keeps hitting me!"
"Just step away from it," Parado brushed the complaint off.
"But then she'll step on my feet…" Nitoh whined.
"Everyone," Philip cleared his throat. "We're arriving!" He called as he kept the RevolGarry's path steady, the street that lead towards the tower having dozens upon dozens of various monster henchmen. Together the grunts had created a thick wall right in front of the main entrance. "This is going to get a bit rough so bear with me."
The RevolGarry's eyes lit up brightly as it sped up, the garage vehicle easily tanking through the various long ranged blasts fired towards it. It wasn't long before the machine itself rammed into the wall of henchmen, slowing down slightly but tearing through them all the same.
"Almost…" Philip said as the speed began to drop more as they plowed through them further. "Almost…!" He called out.
"We're not going to make it!" Parad called out.
"We will!" Goto rebutted.
"There!" Philip yelled as he broke through the wall of henchmen, the RevolGarry skidding to a stop and spinning. Thankfully Philip was able to get it to keep from tipping over. "I'm opening the hatch, now. Good luck."
Of course there was still a good amount of monster henchmen in front of the entrance. The Riders were still in for a fight but they'd gotten past the hard part at least. As if to set the mood, the sky darkened further as rain began to fall slowly but surely.
The RevolGarry let out steam as it split open, Philip riding forward on the HardBoilder while Goto, Takumi, Parad, Nitoh, and Miho all rushed forward with yells.
"Let's go," Geiz said as he and Ruby ran forward with Tsukuyomi.
"You ready Geiz?" Ruby asked as she prepared her transformation.
"Yeah," Geiz nodded, doing the same.
"Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME!]
[KAMEN RIDER ROZE!]
[KAMEN RIDER GEIZ!]
The two gave a yell as they charged forward, both bringing out their weapons in their gun formations and firing to help the ragtag group of Riders at long range.
Tsukuyomi glanced back towards Sougo and Sento who had yet to move before turning back to the fight. She prepped her gun before moving forward, Rider or not, she wasn't about to abandon the others.
Both Sento and Sougo stood in silence as they let themselves get pelted by the downpour of rain. The two simply stared out at the battle before them, not making a move or making a word.
"Is something wrong?" Sento finally asked.
"I could say the same," Sougo mentioned as he noticed Sento had yet to transform. "Is it... normal to be scared?"
"It is," Sento answered as he casually stepped down from the RevolGarry. "This is only the start of your third month, and it's already gotten like this. If I was you I'd be terrified."
"But even if I'm scared…" Sougo spoke as he began to follow after Sento. "I have to keep going. I want things to go back to normal."
"Even with our existence on the line, we have to fight." Sento added before giving a soft chuckle. "But it's not like existence ever bothered me anyway. I was ready to accept being overrun by henchmen until Takumi helped me."
"You were going to give up?" Sougo asked.
"I'm not supposed to exist, I'm a made up existence of two people and a third fake life," Sento explained. "And yet, I couldn't just stand around and do nothing after I got a stern talking to. Thinking on it now, even if I'm not meant to exist, others are supposed to. The future I fought for is supposed to. So I can't give up now."
"The future you fought for…" Sougo trailed.
"But I'm rambling," Sento admitted. "Still, you could always run away."
"And abandon them?" Sougo asked as he looked over at Geiz and Ruby fighting in tandem. "I couldn't think of doing that. A King is supposed to protect others, right?"
"Then let's get started, for Love and Peace." Sento readied his Build Driver.
"For Love and Peace," Sougo nodded as he readied his Ziku Driver.
[ZI-O!]
[RABBIT! TANK! BEST MATCH!]
[ARE YOU READY?]
"Henshin!"
[HAGANE NO MOONSAULT! RABBITTANK! YEAHHH!]
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN RIDER ZI-O!]
"We have the winning formula…" Sento trailed before giving a yell and rushing forward, drawing his Drill Crusher and taking a swipe at a Guardian that got near him.
Sougo rushed forward with a yell as well, drawing his Zikan Girade in its sword mode before rushing and slashing at a Bugster that tried to attack him.
"Riders…"
"Kamen Riders…"
"KAMEN RIDERS!"
Suddenly near the top of the Castle Tower, the front wall exploded into chunks, a glowing red fireball shooting downwards and slamming into the ground near the entrance. A red wave shot through the area, destroying any henchmen nearby and forcing all the Riders to skid backwards. The area where the fireball landed was covered in smoke, a figure walking forward.
"What was that?" Ruby asked with a wince.
"Our big bad ruler has shown up," Geiz replied. "That's what."
To Ruby and Geiz's surprise, even Tsukuyomi's and Sougo's, the one who emerged from the smoke was none other than Tid who had an annoyed look on his face.
The Time Jacker gave a scowl, "Why are you Riders here?"
"…Time Jacker?" Geiz asked, but something felt off.
"That's Tid, right?" Ruby asked, Tsukuyomi giving a nod.
"Is he… the ruler?" Sougo asked.
"Why are you Riders appearing?" Tid asked as a dark aura radiated around him. "I am supposed to be ruler of this world, yet Kamen Riders like you all still exist and I want to know why!"
"Someone's angry…" Parad shivered.
"Even if we did know we wouldn't tell you!" Takumi called out.
"What did you even do?!" Ruby questioned.
"What did I do?" Tid asked before laughing, slicking his hair back as he paced. "What did I do you ask? I mean its obvious right? I became ruler of the true correct world. A world without Riders that is, which is why I'm annoyed right now!"
"That doesn't explain how everything turned into a wreck in an instant," Nitoh raised his hand.
"Fine, you want to know?" Tid asked before getting distracted. "I could have sworn I killed most of you too already…" He remarked out loud before shaking his head. His eyes began to glow a bright red as the dark aura wrapped around him. Soon enough his bones began to crack as tearing was heard, the dark aura becoming a dark cocoon that grew larger and larger.
Once it stopped growing a large two fingered hand busted its way out before another did, the two hands tearing the cocoon apart and revealing an Another Rider. The same Another Rider that Takumi had described.
"He's the Another Rider?" Sougo asked. "They can do that?"
"You're asking despite seeing?" Geiz questioned, not liking the size of this Another Rider.
Ruby grimaced behind her helmet, not liking how this Another Rider did not have any immediate visible dates on it.
Tsukuyomi however decided to play this smart, taking out the Taka Watchroid and sending it off to the side. The Ride Gadget began using the rain as cover as it circled around to the back of the Another Rider, it's eyes glowing as it found and scanned the name on the back of its right shoulder before scanning the year that was on the back of its left shoulder. The Taka Watchroid soon returned to Tsukuyomi and displayed digital screens of both Name and Date. The transformation was that of Another Kuuga with a date of 2000.
"Guys," Tsukuyomi hurried over to Geiz and Ruby to show them the images. "Look."
"…Another Kuuga?" Geiz asked.
"2000… Unidentified Lifeform #4," Ruby trailed, while she hadn't actually managed any headway on most early Riders, one stood out the most. The one who was usually considered the first Rider of the Heisei Era. "The possible first Heisei Rider, Kuuga."
"I figured, why waste time finding candidates when I could just become King myself," Tid explained with a laugh as he hadn't noticed the group's information gathering yet. "But I also wanted a way to crush the Heisei Era… the Kamen Rider's were a mistake. The reason I joined Swartz' kid group was because I wanted the Kamen Riders erased… but then I find out that they are suddenly unable to be erased."
"Why do you hate Riders so much?" Sento asked.
"What did we ever do to you?" Parado questioned.
"Tools of evil should just remain tools of evil," Tid hissed out. "While Finis believes that corrupting your current existence holds promise, I just want you all gone forever."
Miho decided to push for more information, "If we can't be erased how did you mess time up this badly?"
"I was very forceful in my methods…" Tid admitted as he clasped his hands together before pressing them as if he was crushing something, "I knew that I couldn't track all of you down either. But I figured that disrupting numerous years between nearly two decades would tip things in my favor."
"And how exactly did you do that?" Goto inquired, he needed this villain monologue to keep playing out once he saw that Sougo and the others were starting to plan.
"I took this power for my own and hid for a while. I let it settle for my body to fully get used to it. Then I started my plan… I would jump through time and enter a Riders year they were active, waiting for the right moment before striking and killing them from the shadows," Tid explained with a dry chuckle as he smacked his lips, hunching over a bit. "But not just the Riders themselves, I would go after anyone who had anything to do with them… whether they were allies or monsters. Then I would hide and let my lust for your blood settle before jumping forward in time again and doing the same. I continued to hop forward in time until finally I wrecked the timeline enough to rule everything in peace."
Takumi gritted his teeth behind his helmet as he gripped his fists.
"You damn monster…" Geiz hissed out, this was worse than just a standard erasure. It was a man playing a killing game with great power for nearly the past two decades.
"It did get a bit blurred after a while," Tid admitted. "I think I've killed so much that I forgot how I did so to certain Riders… but it matters not. You all are the last remaining ones somehow. So you all need to perish here today!"
"Geiz… we need to go," Ruby managed to fully stand. While her armor began to glitch further she concentrated slightly as it managed to stabilize briefly.
"Agreed," Geiz gave a nod. "We have a name and date."
Nitoh had overheard the two and gave a nod, "You guys get going, we'll hold out as long as we can just to buy you time."
"Fix this for us, alright?" Sento looked at Sougo and held up his arm, "Even if we likely won't remember it."
Sougo gave a nod, ignoring the glitches on his arm starting to form as he pressed his against Sento's.
"But I can't let Zi-O, Geiz, or Roze just watch as I murder their allies," Tid hissed out as he took a step forward, the ground shaking. "Talking this long, I'm sure they've figured it out by now. Meaning I can't let them leave! So I'll do the sensible thing and crush your only hope first!" He yelled as he extended his arms out, planning on digging his claws into Geiz and Ruby.
[GUARD VENT!]
[SHOVEL ARM!]
Miho quickly got in the way of one claw with her shield, Goto bringing out the Shovel Arm to grab hold of the other. The two gritted their teeth as they held the claws back.
Geiz and Ruby stepped back in surprise when they saw the two protect them. Ruby began to aim Crescent Rose when she heard Goto shout.
"There's a more important mission right?!" Goto yelled as he began slotting another Cell Medal into his Driver. "We'll fight till our last breath if it means you complete it!"
[CATTERPILLAR LEG!]
The armored legs formed as the treads began to spin, Goto using the forward momentum to keep the claw he was gripping back.
"I'm not sure how I got my powers and memories back but they were for a reason," Miho gritted her teeth as she tried to push forward. "So go!"
"We drive, now!" Geiz called as he brought out his Ride Striker, mounting it with Tsukuyomi getting on.
Ruby gave a nod, activating her Rose Attacker before mounting it and riding over to Sougo and Sento. "We need as little vehicles as possible, hop on."
"Right," Sento said as he mounted the Lock Vehicle.
"Good luck," Sento patted his predecessors back before rushing off towards Tid.
Tid yelled out, managing to get a good grip of both Goto's Shovel Arm and Miho's Wing Shield. He then lifted both up with little effort before throwing his arms to the sides and extending them. Miho and Got both gave yells as they were slammed into opposite buildings.
[SIX! FALCO! SABER STRIKE!]
Nitoh had called on his Falco Mantle, soaring high into the sky before launching six energy falcons that dive bombed and struck against Tid. The Another Rider/Time Jacker Hybrid yelled out as he launched a fireball at Nitoh who dodged out of the way.
Nitoh yelled out as he slashed past Tid, turning only to gasp as he was grabbed by the Another Rider.
"Stay down!" Tid yelled as he slammed Nitoh into the ground before stomping on him.
[EXCEED CHARGE!]
Takumi jumped up, forming his energy drill that formed in front of Tid before launching into it.
Tid held up an arm, blocking against it to keep the attack from digging into him. Tid then yelled and threw his arm to the side, slamming Takumi into a nearby car.
[SEVEN! SEVEN RENDA!]
Tid began to move forward only for a red energy filled axe to slam into his face courtesy of Parado who had jumped up to slice forward. He hissed out as he quickly grabbed Parado with both hands. Gripping the Rider tightly he slammed the Bugster Rider into the ground beneath him.
"You Riders cannot hope to even touch me!" Tid yelled as he began to move forward, suddenly sprouting wings as he began flying close to the ground to follow after Geiz and Ruby's bikes.
The RevolGarry suddenly shot past him, skidding and turning before slamming straight into him. As the Another Rider attempted to rip it open, it opened itself. Philip was currently on the HardBoilder. However the green half of the bike was gone as it had been removed to attach a blue and black robotic tank that held a cannon attachment.
"HardGunner…" Philip called out, "Fire!"
The cannon of the new component began firing against Another Tid to force him backwards.
[READY, GO! VORTEX FINISH!]
An energy chart suddenly formed, the dotted line securing Tid's waist in place. Sento then slid down the chart's line, slamming his foot into Tid's back.
Philip and Sento yelled out, Philip continuing his onslaught of cannon fire while Sento pushed further against Tid.
Ruby and Geiz had managed to drive far enough away for Tsukuyomi and Sougo to no longer see any immediate fighting. And any sounds they heard were now faint as they continued on course.
"I feel really bad leaving them behind," Ruby admitted.
"If we stayed and fought we would have been slaughtered," Geiz replied. "We need to take this chance we were given."
"We just need to make it to the Time Mazines… um, where are they?" Sougo asked.
"I'm tracking them right now and I've got their locations," Tsukuyomi said as she pulled out her tablet, trying to do her best to read and hold on as Geiz drove. "We're still a bit away from them but if we keep up this speed we'll be there in no time."
"Let's try and hurry," Ruby suggested before picking up the speed on her bike a bit more.
Sougo couldn't help but turn when he saw something bright before gasping, "Dodge!"
"Wait what-!" Ruby barely had time to react as a fireball hit directly against the road near them, the two tumbling off the Rose Attacker as a result.
Geiz just barely sped up and spun before skidding to a stop, "Ruby! Zi-O!" his maneuver managed to be enough where one that was heading for him ended up hurtling past him instead.
"Guys," Tsukuyomi called out as she quickly hurried over to them.
"We're okay… just shaken up," Ruby admitted as she managed to shakily stand, thankfully their armor was still holding together for the moment.
"I think I pulled something," Sougo admitted as he got up.
"We're not about to be fine in a bit," Geiz hurried over before pointing, "Look!"
The flapping of gigantic insect wings could be heard as Tid in his Another Kuuga form flew through the sky. The monstrous rider soon slammed into the ground near them, giving a hiss, "You all are persistent I'll give you that. I had to show restraint, only toss them around and crush them because I needed to make sure you all didn't escape."
"You aren't going to win!" Ruby drew out Crescent Rose and began firing at Tid, but the blasts barely did much. A few sparks flew from the chest but nothing that made the Another Rider reel back.
"Foolish girl, I've already won!" Tid laughed out as he was bombarded by more energy blasts, these being from Sougo and Geiz who had drawn their weapons. "I've already won and you're at your limits!"
"We'll see about that," Geiz called out before pulling back and suddenly grasping at nothing. He gave a light gasp as his Zikan Zax began to glitch further before disappearing.
"We're out of steam," Sougo realized as his Zikan Girade had just disappeared as well.
"We have to… keep going," Ruby gritted her teeth as she saw Crescent Rose fade away.
"We still have our armor, let's do what Riders do best," Geiz said, the other two nodding as the three activated their finishers.
[FINISH TIME!]
Pink Katakana for 'kick' began surrounding Tid before closing in and creating a ring that restricted his movement. It wasn't long before yellow Hiragana for 'kick' suddenly pierced through him before splitting into three trails. Red rose petals began to circle around the yellow Hiragana before overlapping it with Red Katakana for 'kick'.
"Take this!" Ruby called out as the trio slammed their feet into the three trails of mixed hiragana and katakana, following them down and striking Tid in the chest.
[TIME BREAK! BURST! BLAST!]
The three Riders yelled out as they pushed further and further, trying to pierce through the Another Rider.
"I'm not about to be beaten by three brats like you all!" Tid called out as he was struck, trying to hold out against the three. He gave a yell as his eyes shined a bright red. He released an energy pulse that broke through his bindings and forced the trio of Ridrs back. "Die!" He reeled his left arm back before backhanding the Riders with his arm, sending them straight against the pavement.
Tsukuyomi quickly hurried over to her friends, "Everyone!"
Ruby winced as she rolled onto her side, losing her transformation alongside Geiz and Sougo who were currently trying to recover from that counterattack.
"We put our all into that, and it wasn't enough?" Sougo asked.
"Damn it, I thought we had him," Geiz pounded a fist into the pavement.
Tid gave a chuckle as he began to approach before he noticed something in the distance. He tilted his head curiously as he stared at what looked to be a mysterious figure walking towards him. He took a visible step back when he saw the man walking towards him.
It was an older man in casual clothing, one who seemed to be in his early 40's at most. Despite this he still had a youthful spark to him. He walked forward undeterred and with a more neutral expression, even as the clouds began to tremble as thunder began to be heard.
"You…" Tid hissed out, his voice trembling as he held a bit of visible fear at the man. "I had been hopping forward in time to avoid this exact confrontation! I figured you simply blurred into the background as I wreaked havoc upon time! And even then with all the chaos and my minion's, you should have been overwhelmed in this present!"
"I was waiting," The man said as he walked past the Riders and Tsukuyomi, walking a few more steps as he stopped. He was now standing between them and Tid as he stared the Another Rider down with a calm expression. "Waiting for this day, to find those who could fix what you did, and to give them the chance they needed."
Ruby winced as she managed to sit up, "W-Who are you?"
"Is he a Rider?" Sougo asked.
The man said nothing as he summoned a silver belt around his waist, it holding a blank jewel at the center buckle. He held both hands near the center before holding his right arm, palm out towards his left, resting his left hand on the buckle. He then spread his right arm from his left to right.
"Henshin!"
Quickly putting his right hand near his left he spread both out, a black bodysuit forming with ruby red armor forming over his body, shoulders, and forearms. The armoring had gold accents on it alongside gold knee pads and ankle armor. His face had two big red bug eyes with a gold crest similar to a stag beetles horn, the mouth being a crusher jaw-like mold.
"That's…" Tsukuyomi trailed in shock.
Ruby blinked a few times, "Kuuga?"
"Return to where it all began, put a stop to this," Kuuga answered as he glanced back towards them. He then stared straight at his Another Rider. "The future is counting on you."
In an instant lightning had struck all around him, blinding anyone who was looking directly at him. When it had cleared, Kuuga gained a more sharper and edged shape, now in full black armor with more gold detailing running all through the armor pieces. His eyes shined a bright red as he held out a hand.
Tid yelled out as his body suddenly burst into flames, gasping as he took several steps back. "No! I won't let you!"
Kuuga said nothing as his feet crackled with electricity, soon rushing forward with his arms spread out.
Tsukuyomi could only stare at the soles of Kuuga's boots, seeing the bottoms being filled with a constant building of energy.
Kuuga jumped up, kicking forward with right leg as the energy from his left sole shifted almost instantly to his right. As a result his right boot combusted into flames as he kicked forward, striking against Tid who yelled out and charged towards the first Heisei Rider.
Before anyone could even see the results they were suddenly shrouded and surrounded by a tornado of grey. The gray wrapped around Sougo, Geiz, Ruby and Tsukuyomi before constricting on top of them.
When the tornado of grey vanished it was revealed to be a scarf, a scarf belonging to none other than Woz who had a bit of a relieved expression, "I am glad that you are safe, my Overlord."
"Woz!" Sougo smiled as he got up and hurried over.
"Where have you been?" Ruby asked as she fully stood.
"I'm not surprised you let us get our asses kicked for so long," Geiz admitted. "But I'm surprised you left your precious Overlord to fend on his own."
"I was coordinating with the man you just saw," Woz explained in a tense manner before opening his book. On the pages a video played, a burning church, a humanoid bat-like creature, and a young man punching his way through that creature as armor formed, becoming Kuuga. "…Kamen Rider Kuuga."
"Woz, we need the Time Mazine's, we have to head back in time and stop Tid from becoming Another Kuuga," Tsukuyomi started, only for the retainer to hold a hand up to silence her. She gave a pout, "Woz!"
"Where do you think we are?" Woz asked as they were inside of an empty hanger bay, the Time Mazine's off to the side in their vehicle forms already. "Like I said, I was coordinating with the man. Getting your Time Mazine's to a safe place was one task. The other was creating a distraction while you all traveled back in time."
"The only thing is we don't know when Tid acquired Kuuga's power," Ruby pointed out.
"That was also why I was noticeably absent," Woz admitted. "I knew that Another W was merely a distraction, but I did not know for what. By the time I found the necessary information it was already too late. I was also not expecting a Time Jacker to get this desperate…"
"So you know when and where he went back then?" Sougo asked.
"Two days before Kamen Rider Kuuga was born to start the Heisei Era," Woz explained. "January 28th 2000, the location is Japan's Chuo Alps. He visited the resting place of the original Kuuga, the Mt. Kurogatake Ruins Excavation Site."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Geiz asked as he walked for his Time Mazine.
"Can we even stop him at this point?" Tsukuyomi asked. "My weapon is nearly useless, and we don't have auxiliary Ridewatches to grow in power. And that's not counting how much you all have weakened in your base forms."
"She's right," Ruby looked at her hand and gripped it tightly. "Not even a triple Rider Kick put a dent in him."
"We have to try regardless," Sougo said, remembering Sento's words. "Otherwise it's over for everyone."
"Going to the year 2000 before he acquires Another Kuuga's powers should stabilize your Rider Powers for the most part," Woz answered. "That will be your chance."
Ruby let her hand relax, taking a deep breath as she closed her eyes to briefly compose herself, "Alright then, let's do this."
"Remember, January 28th 2000, the Chuo Alps," Geiz pointed towards Sougo as he led Tsukuyomi to his Time Mazine.
"Got it," Sougo said as he and Ruby entered his Time Mazine.
Woz could only watch as his Overlord and allies entered the Time Mazines. He clutched his book tightly as he realized this was their only chance to set things right. He gave a sigh as he looked off to the side, "Things are getting too unstable for my liking…"
"Space-Time Transport System, activate." Sougo and Geiz both announced from the cockpits as the hanger doors opened up for them.
The Time Mazine's floated forward and out of the aircraft hanger before taking off into the sky, opening up and entering the time gate.
The same gold armored Rider from before watched from a far off building as the Time Mazine's exited the current year in history to head back two decades. His belt was in full view, having a silver strap attached to a primarily black buckle with a pink center. Dismissing his transformation it revealed that the Rider and the man known as Tsukasa were the same.
"I've done all I can without getting heavily involved," Tsukasa said as he stared up into the sky despite the time gateway having already closed by this point. "It's up to you all now."
Earth – Japan's Chuo Alps, January 28th 2000
The Zi-O and Geiz Time Mazine Unit's made it to their destination with ease, slowly landing in the more forested mountainous area. Both cockpits opened up as Sougo and the others regroup. The Riders then chose to hold out their Ridewatches to test Woz's theory.
The Ridewatches of past Riders like Build, Faiz, and Ryuki seemed to have changed. They were no longer stone colored or patterned but still affected. While the base, dial and button were all a dull grey, the images of the Riders themselves were back in color. Trying to activate them though still gave no positive results.
What did fill them with some relief though was their personal Ridewatches were seemingly returned to normal. They no longer had the same glitch effects as they did previously, the group staring at them for a while just to confirm it.
"Okay, we seem to be stable," Geiz confirmed.
"Then let's get going," Ruby said as she began to hurry towards the Mt. Kurogatake Ruins Excavation Site.
Sougo, Geiz, and Tsukuyomi were quick to follow after her, the four eventually running as a group and reaching the entrance of the excavation site. As they did they began to slow down, noticing Kuuga's symbol near it.
"This is it," Sougo said, ready to step forward when they suddenly heard footsteps.
Tid began to walk out of the entrance, smiling to himself as he had an Anotherwatch in his hand. "There we go Kuuga…" He smiled. "It's time to use your power to end the Heisei Riders." He said, ready to activate it when he stopped, suddenly looking over at the group who saw him. "You brats…"
"Hold it!" Geiz called out.
"Kamen Rider Geiz, Kamen Rider Roze," Tid turned as he tossed the Anotherwatch up and down. "And finally… Kamen Rider Zi-O."
"We're not letting you get away with this," Ruby said as she prepared her Driver, the others doing the same.
"This is where Kamen Rider Kuuga was born and Heisei Rider began," Tid explained as he walked forward, undeterred by their presence. He could already tell the group was at their limits, he wasn't sure how they were, but he knew just based on how roughed up they were. "I'm going to destroy that history. Maybe if you arrived a few more minutes earlier you could have stopped me from obtaining Kuuga's power."
"Power or not we won't let you get away with this," Sougo answered.
"There have been many Riders since Kuuga… that history should be different. I will rewrite history and reign over it." Tid explained, ignoring Sougo's words. "If Riders could not adhere to their original purpose, then they shouldn't exist. All of you… are mistakes."
"Just keep rambling like the power hungry man you are," Geiz remarked.
Tid scoffed as he looked at the Kuuga Anotherwatch before just pocketing it and walking towards the trio of Riders. "Fine then you brats, let me show you what a Time Jacker can really do."
To Be Continued…
Next Time:
"I'm sorry, Kamen Rider?"
"It's a small world… at least for him anyway."
"Even if it looks like the worst odds we've ever faced… we can't give up."
"I'm not about to let you all go again."
"I'm sorry I'm late."
"You're just on time."
Chapter 17: Yusuke 2018
Author's Note: I will say I was wondering if I was being too obvious in "Ghost's" random appearance during the W Tribute. But it seemed like I fooled quite a few of you into thinking it actually was Takeru. No, it was Tsukasa all along!
I also see a few people mentioning Sentai related things, either a crossover or utilizing the Ryusoulger Watch that was made. Sentai wise, I'm honestly not sure yet on what I want to do in regards to either of those ideas.
Onto the Tribute though, this was my chance to do something similar to Heisei Generations Forever's apocalypse scenario, just in a briefer less Meta related fashion. The hardest part of this arc was figuring out how Tid could mess with time enough to cause drastic changes. Especially since I got rid of the Rider's are erased rule from the show. So I figured… let's go full Grongi in regards to Tid screwing up time. And that was him hibernating a bit, waking up, and then slaughtering Riders, Allies, even Villains at the perfect point in the year before hopping to the next year. Rinse and repeat from 2001 to 2018 all while his power continues to grow via the innate nature of Kuuga's evolution… and well you've got someone who can screw up time heavily. He didn't hit every single Rider or Year, but hit enough to cause a lot of destabilization for what occurred in this chapter to happen.
The second hardest part of this arc was specifically Tsukasa's and Tid's explanations, it was hard for me to really nail them down. I was hoping I wouldn't be too wordy but I wanted to make sure the information got out there and made things clear regardless. So both of those scenes went through rewrites and redrafts quite a few times before I settled on something I liked. Speaking of Tsukasa, while we aren't utilizing Den-O yet I did choose to do a reference to it. It's something I sort of decided while writing this arc, that Ruby would hold a similar existence to a Singularity Point due to her origins of being from another world. Mentioning the probability of Sougo being one was also something I wanted to do. Especially just given his already existing powers and nature as Zi-O, it makes sense.