Rider Time Zi-O: Roze from Remnant
Chapter 50 – The Enigma of Zi-O 2017
"As it is written in this book, average high schooler Tokiwa Sougo embarks on a path which leads him to become the overlord of time, Oma Zi-O." Woz narrated as usual in his narrative void despite his current situation. "Tokiwa Sougo is now Zi-O II, while Myokoin Geiz has evolved into Geiz Revive. In order to prevent their climactic battle, I have obtained the power of Kamen Rider Woz. With it I engage in combat with Miss Belladonna and Miss Xiao Long to get to Geiz."
He paced around as he looked at the many current forms of the Time Riders through his book, it stopping on Silver Roze of all forms, "Miss Rose meanwhile has seemed to find clarity, now on a mission to find her friends for some unknown purpose. Meanwhile, Tsukuyomi has not only found Oscar Pine, but both will learn of important secrets regarding the past of Tokiwa Sougo."
The book was suddenly closed with a slam and Woz gave a bow, "Oh dear, I've added unnecessary details once again, and I really should be somewhere else, shouldn't I?"
Earth – Unknown Timeframe
Young Sougo and the other kids that were now stranded in this strange time with the Dai Mazines could only back up in fear as one of the Dai Mazine's seemed to notice them. The gigantic machine began to move towards their location.
"Now, royal candidates…" Swartz said as he was on higher ground behind a railing, he gave a near sadistic grin, "Survive this test."
"Come on, there has to be a way," Tsukuyomi tried to find some way to get down but her, Oscar and Tsukasa were completely isolated when it came to debris blocking their path. Not to mention they were on higher ground so attempting to jump down carried risk, especially since the area didn't seem too stable.
The Dai Mazine began punching the building near it, sending multiple human sized chunks of rubble flying towards the grouping of kids. Most of the debris missed though a few nearly hit as everyone began screaming and running. Sougo was among the group running when he suddenly turned back, seeing a set of debris about to hit an unconscious Hiryu.
"Look out!" Sougo yelled out as his forehead began to shine a bright pink.
The katakana for 'Look Out' suddenly emerged from his forehead, the lettering flying forward in pieces as it flew towards where Hiryu was. In an instant time had stopped, the debris being suspended in mid-air. Unlike the time stop used by the Time Jacker's, aside from a few minor glitches, there was no colored tint or distortion at all.
Swartz could only stare in slight surprise, while Tsukasa gave a curious look. Tsukuyomi and Oscar were completely surprised by this display though. Despite the two knowing that Sougo would become Oma Zi-O, seeing him utilize time stop as a kid was a shock to them.
Sougo was ready to move forward when he felt a presence, turning and seeing the Dai Mazine reaching towards him. He gave a glare as it suddenly began to jitter, its hand stopping and shuddering as it stopped near Sougo. An invisible pulse was sent out, the mechanical giants hand corroding away before corrosion spread up its arm, similar corrosive spots spreading from all over as it turned to rust before disintegrating into dust in an instant.
"Jeez, that might've been helpful against Cordovin…" Oscar let out a nervous chuckle.
"This is…" Tsukuyomi could only stare in shock as she witnessed this ability. It was essentially an almost instant version of one of Oma Zi-O's signature techniques. Where he'd wipe out an army in a single swipe, rapidly aging them to where they all turned to dust in an instant.
Sougo however could only stare in disbelief at what had happened as the dust that fell near him from the Dai Mazine slowly blew away to reveal Swartz.
"Boy… You are a natural born ruler," The man held his hat to fix it and keep it in place as he stared down at Sougo. He walked over and placed a hand on Sougo's shoulder before kneeling near a panicking Sougo. "You will… become a king. And your duty will be saving this world from destruction."
"Those words…" Tsukuyomi shuddered a bit at this, the fact that Sougo's dream seemed to be fabricated from the stunt that Swartz had just pulled. Just what was going on?
Swartz looked at the young boy intently, "What's your name?"
"Sougo Tokiwa," Sougo managed to speak up despite his fear.
"I see," Swartz soon held his hand towards Sougo's forehead, a strange purple energy flowing from the palm of his hand into Sougo's head.
In that instant, oddly enough, the time stop that Sougo had brought out had dismissed itself. Sougo somehow realized this and quickly hurried over to Hiryu, grabbing him and rolling away to avoid the debris.
"Sougo!" Tsukuyomi yelled out as the impact of the debris had caused dust to kick up and cover whether or not Sougo had made it out alive with Hiryu. Despite knowing the obvious answer the time traveler couldn't help but be concerned by this.
"Hey, look out!" Oscar quickly grabbed onto Tsukuyomi and held her close as he activated his aura, a set of debris coming straight towards them as he pulled her back.
Earth – Late February 2019
"Again, sorry about this," Ruby said as she fumbled through her pockets, she had accidentally scooped up some Cell Medals alongside the Mukade, Hachi, and Ari Medals. As a result she had ended up mixing them up in her pockets and every time she had found three she had ended up taking out Cell Medals instead.
"Well you're giving me a good meal," Ankh said as he absorbed the Cell Medals that Ruby was currently dropping into Ankh's left hand.
Eiji could only give a bit of a chuckle at this, "That Muchiri must have been made of a bunch of them huh?"
"Yeah apparently Hiryu's desire to kill Sougo really runs deep," Ruby admitted with a nervous chuckle as she spoke. She reached into her pockets again, this time grasping more than three and managing to get the three new Core Medals with several Cell Medals as a result. "Ah, here they are!"
"There we go," Ankh quickly snatched the grouping of Medals away, pocketing the Core Medals while absorbing what Cell Medals there were.
"Hmm," Ruby shook her pockets a bit more, "I think I have a bit more."
"Keep them," Eiji spoke first, ignoring the annoyed look his partner was giving him, "Kougami has Ride Vendors all over, if you need an extra ride or a Candroid then those bits of Cell Medals will come in handy for a bit."
"Thanks," Ruby smiled.
"Don't get too cheery," Ankh called out as he decided to warn Ruby, "That man is fickle, he won't just let anyone use his machinery."
Images came back to his head, remembering how Kougami had shut off access to the Ride Vendors just to extort their pay ratio. He also remembered how stupid Eiji looked when he tilted the Ride Vendor on its side before mounting it.
"Uh… Ankh," Eiji spoke up, "You know she's employed by him now right?"
Ankh's eyes widened as his head snapped in Eiji's direction, "Since when?!"
"Since the new year," Ruby mentioned. "Weiss said you all called, how did you not know?"
"I knew," Eiji defended with a huff and looking at Ankh, "Someone didn't pay attention to me talking about it then."
"Well I'm sorry you're absolutely boring to listen to," Ankh scoffed as he crossed his arms and looked away.
Ruby could only giggle a bit at the duo's antics and giving a bow, "Anyway I need to get going, thank you for being patient with me."
"It's no problem," Eiji said as he elbowed his friend in the gut a few times, "Right Ankh?"
"Whatever," Ankh remarked as he went to walk away, "You better make sure you have that doppelganger situation of yours figured out before she causes more trouble."
Eiji could only give a nervous chuckle as he glanced at Ankh before bowing towards Ruby, "Good luck in that whole issue."
"I think I've got a few things figured out," Ruby said with a more confident expression. "It's not going any further than today."
"It sure looks like you do," Eiji smiled before taking off after Ankh, "Take care!"
Ruby looked up as she heard a squawk, the Taka Watchroid circling above her before swooping down and landing in her outstretched palm. "Hey there birdie, you got what I need?" She asked as a few chirps of confirmation were given. "Good, lead the way." She lifted her palm up as the Rider Gadget flew off into the sky.
The Taka Watchroid had managed to get a bird's-eye view of the city, Woz's transformation into Kamen Rider Woz having caught its attention. Upon taking a closer look it had found what Ruby had sent it to look for, Aura Signatures. Confirming two of them when Blake and Yang stepped up to face Woz it then rushed back to Ruby. As a result it had mapped out the perfect path for Ruby to take.
As Ruby followed at a steady pace she noticed that she suddenly had her reflection again as she passed a few windows. It even managed to keep pace with her. Of course, she knew better, "So stalking me around?"
"As if," Kagami remarked as she turned, the reflection of Ruby shifting back to Kagami's current look. "You seem to have had an epiphany."
"Just a bit," Ruby replied as she continued to keep walking, "I don't have time to deal with you right now."
"I know you don't," Kagami said as she kept pace, "Which is why I don't plan on interfering in your next move."
"Well aren't you kind," Ruby admitted in an almost sarcastic tone.
"Ooh getting feisty," Kagami chuckled, "I'm just curious if you'll actually go through with this. So expect me to sit back and see if this shift in your mood will mean anything in the long run."
"The next time we meet, things will be different, so make sure you're prepared," Ruby affirmed as she stopped before activating her Rose Attacker Lockseed, mounting the bike while readying her helmet. She then revved up the engine before riding off after her Taka Watchroid, the Rider Gadget speeding up once it noticed that Ruby was riding on her motorcycle.
"Things will be different huh?" Kagami exited the reflective surface before she gave a soft smile. "No, they already are."
Uhr could only stare up at the location he was about to enter. The faint sound of music exiting the doors of an old mansion that despite being abandoned, seemed to have been well kept. Of course it was also at the edge of the city, far away from prying eyes.
"This is the place," Uhr muttered as he skipped forward, entering the mansion with little issue.
The front of the mansion was fairly decorative and standard, there didn't seem to be any attempt to personalize it. The only real strange oddity was that no one was around yet there was a record player that was continually playing classical music.
The well furnished interior of the mansion wasn't what Uhr was after however as he walked towards a door on the first floor, opening it up to reveal that there was a set of stairs that led downwards into a basement area. Of course it was fairly dark aside from the occasional set of candles on both sides to light up the way somewhat.
Walking carefully the young Time Jacker made his way down the steps as he anticipated any potential traps that might occur. He knew exactly who he was dealing with, especially after Swartz had been kind enough to tell them about their temporary 'partnership'. He just hoped that he'd be able to convince the man inside to work with him on one tiny little project.
As he made his way down he'd find himself in a fairly empty stone room. Empty of course except for a set of three brown tables with a multitude of computer monitors and equipment on each. Various video footage of Kamen Rider Ex-Aid alongside other riders, Brave, Snipe, Lazer, Para-DX and Poppy could be seen on a few of the monitors. On the other monitors were various data and statistics on both Riders and various video games. Set on the table were several machines that held blank Gashats plugged into them.
At the center of it all was Kuroto Dan who had been set up there ever since escaping his confinement from CR. He had also changed up his appearance, losing his casual look as he slicked back his hair, wearing a suit of all black components with a button up shirt to match instead of a standard t-shirt.
"Oh…" Kuroto trailed as he turned to face Uhr, "You're one of those Time Jackers aren't you?"
"I am," Uhr answered simply. "How's your little hideout?"
"It's working wonderfully," Kuroto admitted with a satisfied tone but gave an almost bored look, "However I can't imagine that man sent you here just to ask that."
"I'm not on orders from him, I just came on my own," Uhr answered.
"Oh…" Kuroto's bored face turned into one of amusement, "One of his lapdogs choosing to do something on their own… and here I thought you all were boring."
"I'm not his lapdog," Uhr gave an annoyed huff as his eye twitched.
"Well you certainly have the potential to be more," Kuroto admitted as he stood up and walked over, hands behind his back. "If you're looking for information on the remaining Riders, I've already given him the corresponding Gashats."
"I don't need any of that," Uhr answered. "I need an army."
Kuroto gave a skeptical stare, "And you believe I can provide this?"
"You were the one who essentially honed the Bugster Virus right?" Uhr asked. "Being able to turn data into a physical form so that it could interact with this world?"
"There may have been others… but I will take credit for it like always," Kuroto remarked. "What is your point?"
"I want you to create data bodies for these," Uhr said as he held up the Anotherwatches that Hiryu had given him. "The current Another Rider I'm interested in wants to let loose. But he needs a faster way to make an army. What do you say?"
"So this is all you wish for me to do?" Kuroto asked.
"I figured you might not like the prospect," Uhr admitted as he knew he had to try a different tactic at convincing the man before him, "Especially after denying Ora's offer to become Another Ex-Aid. But would you consider doing so just this once? This Another Rider, he has this strong hatred for Zi-O, so much so he wants him dead. Wouldn't you want to help him achieve that ending? After all for a Game Master such as yourself, and your past experience, wouldn't that be incredible?"
"What a dark ending…" Kuroto grinned before snatching the Anotherwatches away from Uhr as he walked over to a corner.
"I'll take that as a yes," Uhr gave a smile, figuring he'd play into the 'Game Master' persona, with it paying off in the end.
The corner lit up suddenly to reveal an empty circular table. Kuroto placed the Ridewatches all near each other in the center. He then drew out the Bugvisor before pressing a combination of buttons. He then held it forward before spraying blue data particles onto the Anotherwatches. The data sunk into the devices before all of them gave a blue flash before fading.
"That's it?" Uhr asked.
"Indeed," Kuroto said as he lowered his arm, "Instead of utilizing a host all you need to do is activate it in order to bring them out."
"Good, thanks for your time," Uhr couldn't help but grin as he walked out and snatched the Anotherwatches before walking off.
"What an interesting kid," Kuroto remarked as he went to go back to his main set of monitors, giving a light grin as the footage of the Riders began to cut down before only showing footage on Brave and Snipe. "Now then… it's time to start planning out how I'll strike at you first."
"You seem to be doing well."
Kuroto gave a light exasperated sigh as he turned, seeing Swartz walking over. Kuroto could only give a sneer as he saw the lead Time Jacker.
"You don't seem pleased," Swartz noted.
"What do you want?" Kuroto asked. "I was getting back into the flow of things after your lapdog interrupted me."
"Oh?" Swartz remarked. "What was one of them doing here?"
"The boy," Kuroto answered. "He's quite the schemer when it comes down to it. I chose to help him out of my own personal good will."
Swartz could only laugh, "To think that you have a good will to lend."
"He had an interesting idea in mind so I chose to humor him," Kuroto admitted as he spun around in his chair. "I assume it can only relate to your current plan. So you're fine with your subordinates interfering?"
"They're doing nothing but pushing the situation further in my favor," Swartz admitted with a light laugh. "No matter what the outcome is I still come out with some sort of win."
"How interesting, playing the long game," Kuroto mused. "I do hope that this prize you get is worth all the trouble then."
"I've waited years for this plan to come to fruition," Swartz admitted before his eyes narrowed, "The only issue remains as Roze."
"Ah yes her," Kuroto said as he rubbed his chin, "Perhaps if she survives whatever your little plan is I can see what I can do about her."
Swartz immediately turned towards his partner, "Really?"
"Really," Kuroto grinned. "I've been interested in her for a bit, so I do hope that she does end up lasting long enough for what I have in mind for my current plans."
Woz rushed forward, sending a few punches against Blake who backed away and worked on batting them back with her weapons. Woz went for a leaping punch, only to be surprised when Blake had used Shadow to dodge, leaving an Ice Dust based clone in her place. Woz gave a grunt as his arm was now caught within the clone as he tried to it pry free.
"Here, let me help!" Yang called out, having scaled one of the nearby pillars to jump down from. Smashing the clone and sending all the ice chunks against Woz to send him tumbling back. She then began launching out several rounds to keep Woz on the defense.
"Trying to keep me on my toes?" Woz asked as quickly brought out his Zikan Despear, bracing against the attacks with a chuckle.
Blake quickly launched forward, rushing to clash blades with Woz while Yang used her as a footstep to leap over Woz and get behind him.
Woz pushed forward to force Blake back before turning and swiping as Yang jumped back to avoid the attack. He was ready for a ranged assault when he suddenly saw Gambol Shroud fly past him, Yang catching it. He suddenly turned when he saw the blonde haired huntress tug on it.
Blake gave a yell as she was pulled towards Woz before performing a dropkick against the Rider, managing to hit with enough force to send him stumbling back.
"Not bad, it appears as though even with this armor I am still but a humble Chronicler," Woz dusted off his chest.
"We're keeping pace decently," Yang admitted as she hurried over to Blake and handed Gambol Shroud back.
"Yeah but we're not hitting him hard enough," Blake said before glancing back, seeing Geiz near his Driver her eyes narrowed, "We're handling this."
"You two can't handle this," Geiz called back, "I'll end this in no time flat."
"He's right," Woz agreed before taking out the Kikai Miridewatch, "You won't be able to beat me, even if you have outpaced me thus far."
[KIKAI! ACTION!]
"Crap!" Yang realized what Woz was trying to do as she began firing at Woz.
Blake noticed this and switched her weapon to its gun formation, firing in tandem.
[TOUEI! FUTURE TIME! DEKAI! HAKAI! GOKAI! FUTERERING KIKAI! KIKAI!]
The rings that spiraled around Woz to initiate his form change protected him, but even when they were gone the Future Time of Kikai allowed him heavier defense. The remaining bullets bounced off of him as he held his arms forward. He began rushing forward through the bullets before spreading his arms out, deflecting the bullets towards the sides, sparks kicking up around him. He then held up a hand, blocking a punch with the palm of his hand from Yang who had closed in.
"Uh oh," Yang quickly backed up.
Woz turned to attack Blake only to realize that she wasn't nearby. Clanging was heard as he turned, seeing a surprised Blake back away from him before he could make his move.
"Okay, he just got a lot sturdier," Blake entered a more defensive stance.
"Your time's up," Geiz called out bluntly as he readied his Ziku Driver and Ridewatches, "It's clear you can't beat him."
[GEIZREVIVE SHIPPU!]
"Geiz, hold on!" Yang called out.
Geiz stared forward before rotating his Driver, "Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME! REVI-REVI-REVI! REVI-REVI-REVI! REVI-I-VE SHI-PPU! SHIPPU!]
"I'm ending this now," Geiz called out.
"Prepare yourself… Geiz," Woz declared as he rushed forward. He went for a few punches, Geiz easily shifting his body to dodge them. Woz gasped as he was struck by a palm, surprised that Geiz' speed form could still pack a punch. He went for a few more punches to counter only for them to get batted away before he was struck by Geiz's claw and sent back.
Blake and Yang could only stare in surprise, Geiz was hardly moving but his reaction time and speed was enough for him to easily shift out of the way of Woz's attacks.
"Kuro-Woz… even after transforming, you can't match my speed," Geiz blocked one of Woz's strikes before grabbing the arm and forcing it down, soon yelling out and throwing Woz away.
Woz gave a gasp as he staggered slightly, "How about this, then?"
[SHINOBI! ACTION!]
[TOUEI! FUTURE TIME! DARE JA? ORE JA? NINJA! FUTURERING SHINOBI! SHINOBI!]
Woz drew his Zikan Despear out in its sickle formation, vanishing in a puff of smoke before appearing farther away from Geiz.
[TSUME RENZAN!]
Geiz had easily sped towards Woz and slashed past him. This game of warping via puffs of smoke only for Geiz to easily catch up and slice through Woz continued for a few more seconds. It ended once Woz had tried to go for the high ground only to get slashed off of it by a faster Geiz. The speedy blue Rider didn't let up as he began rapidly slashing against Woz as he fell before going for one heavy swipe.
Woz gasped out as he fell towards the ground completely overwhelmed but not ready to give up. He picked himself onto his feet only to feel a shiver.
[POWERED TIME! RE-VI-I-VE GORETSU~! GORETSU!]
[NOKO SETSUZAN!]
As soon as Woz turned his chest was slammed into by Geiz's handheld saw, the future Rider having switched to his defensive and strength based armor just as he landed behind Woz. Woz gasped as he was thrown backwards, losing his transformation as he held his chest.
"Jeez, and those Rider Powers are what made Revive too," Yang winced a bit.
"They may have made it but Revive's a combination of Shinobi, Quiz and Kikai," Blake pointed out. "Of course the Future Times alone can't keep up."
"I told you," Geiz called out to Woz as he dismissed his transformation, "I'm going to beat Zi-O. You can't stop me."
Woz however smiled as he managed to lift himself into a sitting position, "Is that so?"
Geiz sputtered as he held in a slight gag, his vision growing blurry as blood began leaking from his eyelids. Blood dropped onto the ground after trailing down his face as he fell to his hands and knees.
Blake quickly hurried over, "Hey are you alright?"
"You really, really need to stop using that armor," Yang suggested as she hurried over.
"I remember telling you something by the way," Woz remarked as he shakily stood up, "The power of Geiz Revive carries its risks… The more you fight, the more damage accumulates within your body. Do you even have the strength left to battle my Overlord, I wonder?"
"You were trying to buy time?" Geiz managed to get out as he tried to get up only to get pushed back down by both Blake and Yang. "Get off."
"Woz's tactic may have been a scummy, but he's right, you're in no condition to fight right now," Yang said.
"You need to rest," Blake insisted.
"Exactly," Woz said as he began to walk away, "I'd advise rest and recuperation, for your own sake."
Geiz gave a gasp as he managed to summon what strength he had to slip past and step away from both Blake and Yang.
"Geiz!"
Despite the three calling his name, Geiz was still determined to continue fighting. He then began to walk off despite staggering, "I made a promise… to settle things… I'm not going to break that promise!"
Woz could only grimace as he quickly hurried off, realizing that the confrontation was inevitable at this point.
"There has to be a way to help him," Blake shook her head as she stood up.
"But how, his body is just going to keep getting hurt by that," Yang pointed out. "There has to be a way to slow it down or at least reverse it…"
"If Jaune were here and Geiz had Aura he could possibly…" Blake had paused mid-thought as she had a moment of realization. "Wait… that's it. It's not a perfect solution but that's it!"
Yang's eyes widened when she realized what Blake was getting at, "You don't mean?"
"We know it can be unlocked because Sougo has Aura remember?" Blake pointed out. "While it won't fix him up entirely, it should at least help him."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Yang gave a grin before rushing off after Geiz.
Blake gave a nod as she hurried off after her partner, and it wasn't long before the two easily caught up to Geiz, rushing past him and getting in his way.
"Don't you dare try to stop me," Geiz glared as he staggered forward, ready to take out his Driver when he noticed Yang held a hand up, "What?"
"We're not going to stop you but we do want to help you," Yang replied. "We've got a way to where it won't take much of a toll on you and you'll recover just a bit."
"Remember how Sougo has Aura?" Blake mentioned as she went to check her Scroll for hers and Yang's Aura levels. "We're going to unlock yours just like Ruby unlocked his."
Geiz stared at the two in surprise when he heard this before managing to stand up straight while staying where he was, "Fine then."
"So who does it?" Yang asked.
"You have the most at the moment," Blake replied.
"Then that's all I need to hear," Yang gave a nod as she walked over to Geiz, she placed her right hand on his chest before grabbing his shoulder, "Close your eyes and concentrate."
"That's all?" Geiz asked before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.
"Alright, let's see if I remember this correctly…" Yang concentrated before closing her eyes as a soft yellow glow appeared around her while a soft red glow appeared around Geiz, "For it is in passing we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and protect thee."
Geiz could feel a new power welling up within him before it rushed through his body as a deep red Aura formed over him. He took a step back once he felt Yang let go of him before opening his eyes and staring in surprise. He gripped his fingers and while the pain didn't completely go away, he was feeling better than he was a few seconds ago. He then lowered his arms as his aura faded in visibility.
Yang was hunched over slightly, taking a few deep breaths as she recovered from performing the unlocking technique.
Geiz took notice, "Hey, are you alright?"
"Yeah," Yang responded while raising one of her right fingers before straightening up by giving a stretch, "It takes a bit out of us since we have to do this by giving some of our Aura to do so."
"It's why I tried to figure out who had more Aura," Blake added as she walked over, "That way we didn't give it up and put ourselves at a low level."
"Why do all this for me?" Geiz finally asked as to him, this went above and beyond their need to want to see Oma Zi-O defeated.
"Because we're your friends," Blake reminded. "Even if we haven't known each other long, we don't want you to waste your life like this."
"We've been kind of horrible at the friend thing admittedly," Yang said, "But we figured this is the least we could do."
"This whole situation stinks," Blake gave a nod, "Especially with how Geiz Revive works."
"Even so," Geiz shook his head as he began to take a few steps forward, "I need to get going."
Blake and Yang could only watch as the future Rider walked off into the distance, the two wondering if what they had done would be enough. They were broken out of their thoughts eventually by the Taka Watchroid, the machine circling above them as Ruby soon drove over.
"There you two are," Ruby said as she dismounted her motorcycle.
"Ruby…" Yang trailed off as she looked over to her sister.
A student was walking around, not minding his own business when suddenly Hiryu got in his way. The student was grabbed before the OOO Anotherwatch was shoved into him.
[OOO!]
Another OOO growled out as it held its head, clawing forward before lumbering off to the side.
"Here's your reward for cooperating," Uhr smiled as he held out the Anotherwatches that Hiryu gave him. "Just activate them and you'll have your army in no time."
Hiryu gave a slight grin as he took them before nodding and walking off with Another OOO trailing behind him, "I'll crush Sougo Tokiwa with these."
"I'm rooting for you," Uhr remarked before taking off from the area. Of course on his way to wander around he noticed that Regulus was shining brighter than before. "Regulus…"
A sudden hand grabbed Uhr before tossing him to the ground, the assailants boot stepping on Uhr's back to hold him in place.
"It seems you were able to pull a fast one on me, boy," Shiro-Woz's familiar voice called out as he was the assailant. "Who were you working with? I would assume it was my black counterpart…" He took his boot off of Uhr, "And? What is he after?"
Before Shiro-Woz could think of continuing the interrogation a long flowing white cloth grabbed him and forced him to stagger back. Finis walked over with a smile as they saw Shiro-Woz's frustrated face, "My, my…" they said with a wry grin, "Someone's angry for getting what they want."
Uhr began to back away as he sat up in surprise, "Finis?"
"Will you not be so childish and answer my question?" Shiro-Woz asked the elder Time Jacker.
"I think it's childish that you have to sneak up on us to be any bit of threatening after you were defanged," Finis remarked with a smile as they stepped between Uhr and Shiro-Woz.
"Besides how would I know what that other Woz wants?" Uhr spat out. "I thought the Day of Oma was the day of the king's coronation! So why's it now all about Zi-O and Geiz having a final battle?"
"That is quite interesting," Finis admitted. "The fact that everyone seems to be pushing those two together, which is exactly why I made my move. Just what are all of you planning?"
"While I cannot tell what Sir Swartz is planning, I can say this," Shiro-Woz remarked. "Nothing done at this point would pose a problem in the slightest. Geiz Revive will defeat the overlord. Or the overlord will defeat Geiz Revive. Another Zi-O may even defeat both of them."
"Another Roze will destroy all three. Or Silver Roze will easily best them all and continue the new future this Earth is on," Finis remarked. "I know those two are the ones you fear the most."
"No matter the outcome, it won't adversely affect our plan," Shiro-Woz answered as he shook slightly.
"Our plan," Finis repeated with a smirk, "So then, I was right in figuring there was something off about you."
"Don't think of interfering," Shiro-Woz hissed out as he realized that he had accidentally revealed sensitive information. "Good day."
"Just what's going on?" Uhr asked.
"Someone's also trying to push this timeline to a new future," Finis replied. "They did so by planting the seeds to do so in a more forceful manner."
Earth – Unknown Timeframe
Tsukasa gave a hum as he took a picture of the destroyed city with his camera. He had used his Aurora Curtains to warp himself, Oscar and Tsukuyomi away from ground zero. He had still kept them to the same unknown time period that they were in but brought them to a hill overlooking the city.
Oscar was currently checking Tsukuyomi for any injuries as she had gotten knocked out before Tsukasa could fully get them away.
Tsukuyomi gave a light moan as she began to stir, "What…"
"You're awake," Oscar sighed in relief as he went to help Tsukuyomi sit up, "Are you feeling alright?"
"I think something hit me," Tsukuyomi admitted. "But I should be fine."
"Good, because we're not done yet," Tsukasa admitted as he took another picture.
"Who are you?" Tsukuyomi asked as she was helped up.
"Uh, Tsukuyomi… you don't remember him?" Oscar asked.
"My disguise is just that good," Tsukasa called out proudly, "The name's Tsukasa Kadoya."
Tsukuyomi's eyes widened when she heard this, "Kamen Rider Decade?"
"Wait his disguise was really that good?" Oscar asked.
"You saw right?" Tsukasa changed subjects as he looked at the two, "That was the birth of the overlord you and your friend have been chasing after. The same kid who befriended Kamen Rider Roze."
"Swartz set up the accident that killed Sougo's parents…" Tsukuyomi gave a nod. "He brought those children to this future to test their potential as kings."
"And the one who passed that test was Sougo Tokiwa," Tsukasa confirmed.
"What was Swartz doing? It was like he gave him some kind of power…" Tsukuyomi mused and decided to continue when she got no response, "Where are they now?"
"Swartz sent them back to 2009, to the scene of the accident," Tsukasa replied.
"Why are you here? Why's Oscar with you?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"It's a long story but he helped me out after I chased after Diend," Oscar replied. "I've been living with a friend of his for a while. At least until today, he told me we had a perfect chance to figure out what was going on and insisted I tag along. Unfortunately…"
Tsukuyomi raised an eyebrow, "What?"
"The way he mentioned his thought process… he's a bit extreme about this whole thing," Oscar nervously admitted while rubbing his neck.
"I'm trying to decide whether or not I should destroy this world," Tsukasa said in a dramatic fashion as he walked past them, spreading his arms out. "Normally the answer would be pretty clear, especially if Sougo Tokiwa is to rule it as the most despicable overlord of all time. But…"
"But there might be another way?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Not might, there is and it's been around for quite a while," Tsukasa answered. "Well not here, farther into Sougo's future I mean."
"What do you mean?" Oscar asked.
"We need to take another trip," Tsukasa answered as he held out his hand, an Aurora Curtain forming in front of him. "We saw where it began… now we need to see where it changes."
With a flick of the wrist, the Aurora Curtain slid back and covered all three before vanishing.
Though those three weren't the only ones who were watching the events unfold, there was a third party in all of this. An older man with glasses and a tan colored coat and fisherman hat. He could only stare out at the city after glancing away from where Tsukasa and the others had been.
"Damn you… Zi-O…"
Earth – Late February 2019
"So…" Ruby trailed as she walked over, "Where's Geiz?"
"We managed to catch up to him, but the most we could do to help was unlock his Aura," Blake admitted, "It should help him a bit."
"He's very stubborn," Yang shook her head, "He kept talking about how he and Sougo promised to settle things."
"Yeah, Sougo got a text and is on his way to Saturn Parking," Ruby explained, "Weiss is going with him just in case."
"We should get going then," Blake suggested.
"Actually, there's a reason I showed up," Ruby admitted, "There something I need to get off my chest with you two."
"Wait, what?" Yang asked in surprise.
"It's well…" Ruby closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "It's…"
"Take your time," Blake insisted.
"Alright…" Ruby took another deep breath before opening her eyes and giving a fierce look towards the two, "I can't take it anymore! Think of me how you will with this outburst but I need to finally say it! Do you have any idea how hurt I feel that you all won't give Sougo a chance?!"
Blake and Yang backed away slightly, the two surprised by Ruby's outburst.
"And you two went so much further than just being vocal about it!" Ruby called out in near anger as her eyes began to water. "Yang you basically gave up your powers just to create Geiz Revive and for what?! Now Geiz is going to get himself killed and Shiro-Woz will get what he wants! Do you realize how stupid you were for that?!"
Yang could only stare as she tried to get out the words, "Ruby… I…"
"I just wished you talked to me about this! But I guess you're still thinking we can't really talk because of our argument, right?!" Ruby interrupted with a loud voice. "And again I'm fine with you lying! I understand, but what absolutely hurt me was that you tried to turn it around to demonize Sougo!"
"Ruby, I'm just… I'm just afraid of you getting too close to Sougo and then suffering the consequences!" Yang shouted as her eyes began to water. "That's why I wanted Geiz Revive, so you could be safe! But now I don't know if that was even the right choice anymore!"
"Don't you think I'm afraid too?!" Ruby questioned as she just fell to her knees, the emotional weight being too much for her. She bent down as tears began to stream down her face as she kept shouting. "People hounding Sougo just because Oma Zi-O is his future is unbearable! Just seeing how antagonizing people could be to Sougo about who he'd be even though I lived with him for a year. And then realizing how they had every right to antagonize him after meeting Oma Zi-O myself!"
"…" Yang wasn't sure what to say and just walked over.
"Do you…" Ruby's voice lowered to normal talking as she seemed to not want to yell at the moment. "Do you have any idea how happy I felt for nearly an entire year?"
"Huh?" Blake said as she slowly approached.
"I just… just away from my home world…" Ruby slowly got through her words as tears still continued to stream down, "It was awful dealing with that isolation and I missed you all. But it was so relieving you know? I didn't have to be the fearless team leader of Team RWBY. I could just be Ruby Rose, Sougo's friend, and it was nice."
"Ruby…" Yang muttered as she knelt down.
"And then the Kamen Rider stuff happened, and it felt nice just being support for Sougo…" Ruby chuckled a bit, "But then I got to go back home. And while I had to step into the Leader role again I thought things could be our normal. Especially for Sougo who was the most heartbroken after meeting his future self. I thought Sougo could just start all over but then things spiraled… the Relic, Ozma, you finding out about Oma and the two of you refusing to see Sougo for who he was…"
"Yeah… yeah I did…" Yang admitted.
"I did let my previous relationships color my perception…" Blake admitted as she glanced to the side.
"Even then I thought we could maybe have an easy time getting through our mission on Remnant," Ruby continued as her voice began to shake, "But then I started to panic when I thought the Time Jackers had found Remnant, because we were barely able to deal with Kasshine. Then you all became Riders and I felt relief because I was scared and didn't trust that you all could hold your own even though you've more than proven it by now."
"You had a right to be worried," Blake spoke up, "We aren't exactly in the best position to help out."
"I just thought that maybe going to Earth that you all could see how Sougo could be a Rider," Ruby continued her ramble as her eyes began to grow red from irritation, "But even with Gaim things felt off, then Kaito called me weak which bugged me to no end… Shiro Woz… now Geiz Revive, Another Zi-O, Another Roze… Oma's Day…"
"Hey, hey… it's alright," Yang said as she began to reach a hand forward.
"No, I've always tried to move forward, thinking I could just keep going and going," She buried her face in her hands as she began to cry further and hunched forward even more. Shuddering she took a deep breath as she lowered her hands, "To keep going so I don't have to worry about all the little issues, that's what I've always done. It's what I have to do to stop thinking about all the difficult questions. And I thought I could do that now… but… it's just too much for me to handle by myself! I know I'm your leader and you all look up to me, but I can't keep this up!"
There was silence for a while, and despite Blake and Yang reacting as calmly as they could to her outburst, she feared the worst. She wondered if showing this kind of weakness and vulnerability was a mistake. That was until she felt something come in from her side, looking up in surprise to see that it was Yang who had also managed to pull her up into a hug.
"Ruby…" Blake muttered as she felt a few tears form.
"Oh Ruby…" Yang admitted as she began to choke slightly as her vision turned misty, keeping a tight hold of her sister, "I was so stupid… I'm sorry for hurting you like this, especially since I never tried to prod too hard…"
"I know I never say anything…" Ruby sputtered out through her crying, "Because I feel like I shouldn't be weak or let you all down. But I realized I can't hold this in anymore, I needed to let it out before it just consumed me. Kagami's right, I felt as though I couldn't be a Huntress because being a Rider feels better, safer… but that isn't me being true to me… and I projected that onto you all having your powers. I was worried you all wouldn't be able to last without Rider powers…"
"It's not your fault though," Blake reminded as she knelt down near her leader.
"But it is," Ruby insisted as she looked over at her Faunus friend, "I was so busy getting the wrong meaning out of Kaito's words. He said I denied half of myself, and I thought that meant I wasn't using Silver Roze to its fullest. I became so obsessed with not feeling weak that I kept pushing myself in the wrong direction every time something bad happened to you all. I made it seem like I only cared about you all for your Rider powers."
"I get it, I really do," Yang admitted as she kept her arms wrapped around Ruby but loosened them, "This world's so much more different than our own. We knew you were only concerned for our safety, especially after adapting to this world compared to us who just got here."
"I just… she was also right about me pushing forward, never worrying about myself… never stopping to think about the hard questions," Ruby sighed as she shook her head, "I'm just scared that everything I've ignored and pushed way… it'll just consume me until there's nothing left."
"That's why we're here," Blake spoke up as she gave a smile and took hold of Ruby's hands, "You don't have to feel like opening up to us makes you weak. If you need to talk about anything bugging you… then let us know, we'll help you however we can. You don't have to do this alone."
"Yeah, being a team is trusting in each other to help out in a whole bunch of situations," Yang gave a nod, "Trust that I was severely lacking… and I'm only now realizing how much I hurt you with lying about the Spring Maiden."
"I just wish you could have trusted me," Ruby admitted. "It hurt a lot to hear that you kept it from your own team, but especially me… I know I was born after she left, but she's still part of the family. I deserved to know."
"I know, I know," Yang answered. "It was stupid of me to keep it from you at the very least… and I get that now. There really is no right answer sometimes, and the world isn't as black and white as I realize…"
Ruby gave a soft smile before giving a bit of a sad chuckle, "It must be a bit pitiful to see me like this now huh?"
"Honestly, despite everything spiraling out of control, you still decided to do something," Blake admitted as she gripped Ruby's hands. "You chose to risk your self-image just to let everything out. The fact that you chose to do it yourself instead of us prying it out of you shows how you've started to change. But you're still you. And letting out your insecurities won't change the most important aspect about you."
"I'm still me?" Ruby asked.
"I know you don't always know what to do, but like I said, that's never stopped you from doing something," Blake answered as she scooted closer. "I was like that as a girl, but time and… a lot of other things, took their toll on me. Then I wasn't sure if that kind of girl could actually survive in the world… until I met you. It was a little strange at first because you were younger at the time, but I've always looked up to you, Ruby. And despite everything right now, I still do which is why I'm also sorry for how I acted."
"Thanks Blake," Ruby gave a soft smile as she looked back and forth, "Listen, I know you two aren't the fondest of Sougo and Oma Zi-O scares you, but please just trust me."
"We really should," Yang admitted before looking down, "I'm just… I'm scared… I already thought I lost you once with Kasshine. I just really didn't want to lose you forever…"
"I just didn't want you to go down the same road I did," Blake admitted as her ears curled up, "Meeting someone who you think is nice only for them to be manipulating you…"
"I get it, I really do, but Yang I'm a lot older than you think I am and can take care of myself," Ruby admitted as she managed to wiggle her way out of her teammates grasp before wrapping her arms around the two. "Plus I'm just as scared as you are about Sougo, and so was he. Because the whole reason he even obtained Zi-O II was because he was afraid of being an Overlord. But he found a balance because he wants to be a Kamen Rider and a King this time. He believes in a future where everything will turn out all right."
"We really did just let fear get the better of us," Yang sighed as she shook her head.
"Maybe it's time we start believing?" Blake suggested.
"That's all I'm asking," Ruby insisted, "I know the future looks scary and set in stone, but if we can just be good influences and friends to Sougo, he won't turn out like Oma Zi-O."
"Right," Yang gave a nod.
"Yeah," Blake also gave a nod.
"Oma Zi-O…" Ruby muttered in thought as the name stuck with her.
Blake raised an eyebrow, "Ruby?"
"When I was first taken… Oma Zi-O confronted me and told me something strange," Ruby said as now with things slowing down she let her thoughts run wild as she suddenly felt something off about the entire situation. Especially when it came to Oma Zi-O just choosing to drop her off on Remnant and allowing Sougo and Tsukuyomi to follow. "He said that I would obtain a great power that will allow me to change the fate of two worlds. And then he sent me back to Remnant when I came face to face with him again… why?"
"Why?" Yang asked.
"It never made sense at the time, to be honest I didn't even think about it," Ruby admitted. "And I know its weird saying he's on our side but it feels weird that he would jeopardize his future by having me change so much. By having Sougo, Geiz and Tsukuyomi on Remnant with us and you all gaining Rider Powers to create Geiz Revive… I want to believe that the future will change."
"It's odd to think about it," Blake admitted. "But we'll trust in whatever you decide."
"Yeah," Yang gave a nod.
"I think, with all four of us, that we can change the future for Earth and Remnant," Ruby admitted as she began to lift herself up before wiping her eyes. "But first we need to get to Sougo and Geiz."
"I suppose that's all we can do," Yang admitted wiping her eyes as she stretched. "But…"
"We only have the one motorcycle," Blake pointed out as she straightened up, wiping her eyes as well.
"I…" Ruby soon noticed a peculiar vending machine nearby, she then took out a Cell Medal, giving a smile. "Actually I think I might have a way for us to get past that problem."
Earth – Early December 2017
Tsukasa clicked his tongue as the Aurora Curtain formed on top of a building, it sliding back to reveal that Tsukasa, Tsukuyomi and Oscar had made it. Both Tsukasa and Oscar were also back in their standard attire.
"Here we go," Tsukasa spread his arms out, "2017."
"Wait, 2017?" Tsukuyomi asked.
"Uh guys, what's going on?" Oscar asked as he pointed towards the sky.
"Huh," Tsukuyomi looked up before giving a gasp, "Another Earth?"
The group could see a second Earth in full view, Japan was pointed directly at them but this one had a wall with a red outline that split the country in three.
"Build's Earth to be more precise," Tsukasa remarked as he aimed his camera and took a picture. "It's quite the sight, huh?"
"Just what's going on?" Tsukuyomi asked.
Suddenly the second Earth began to move closer as a brief shockwave was felt, everyone having to steady themselves as it rocked the entire Earth.
"You met with W and don't know?" Tsukasa asked as he regained his balance.
"Didn't you guys mention something about Foundation X psycho fans?" Oscar asked.
"Yes, we were trying to uncover their connection behind Foundation X, they were gathering various materials from the… Enigma Incident…" Tsukuyomi trailed as she suddenly realized when they were, "The Enigma Incident… you mean you brought us to late 2017?"
"Early December of 2017 to be more precise," Tsukasa answered. "A good several hours before the good part starts."
"Why bring us here though?" Oscar asked.
"Do you remember the date that Roze said she landed on Earth?" Tsukasa asked.
"November 1st 2017," Tsukuyomi answered. "And then later on in November that's when he met Sougo and Mr. Junichiro, before staying with the two."
"That is correct, but there's one mystery yet to be solved," Tsukasa pointed out before gesturing for them to follow. He was going on his instincts but he could feel that he was close. He walked to one side of the building to see that it held a good clear view of the city.
Various roads had collapsed as yellow gas was emitting from them, strange Bugster grunts emerging from them. They had pale grey heads with blue bodies, a purple stripe running along them. They were attacking anyone who was in their way and infecting them with their virus to make more. Of course that wasn't what Tsukasa wanted to look at.
The collapsing of roads and the various shakes that occurred at different intervals had caused various buildings to lose stability, some crashing down as debris were scattered everywhere. Near the building the trio of travelers was standing on there were two familiar faces starting to approach.
It was Ruby and Sougo, though the two clearly weren't in any position to fight as they merely ran away from the various destruction and Bugsters that were all over.
"Does this normally happen?!" Ruby asked.
"Not usually!" Sougo admitted as he was leading Ruby, trying to find a route that would safely lead them back to 9-5-DO.
Of course what Sougo wasn't expecting was a nearby billboard to suddenly tilt forward as all the shaken had caused it to get loose. It wasn't long before it fell and slammed into a nearby car, puncturing enough of it and causing enough sparks to where the car exploded. The explosion had sent blunt and sharp debris everywhere as a result.
Sougo and Ruby both gasped out as they were sent stumbling away from each other because f the debris. The two had ended up gaining a few cuts and scratches from just barely managing to get past all that.
"Ugh… Ru…by…" Sougo trailed as he picked himself up, his eyes widening when he saw a piece of a building starting to crack and shake, ready to fall where Ruby was, "Ruby look out!"
"Huh?" Ruby looked up and gave a light gasp only to quickly close her eyes as a red flash occurred. She had yet to activate her Aura since arriving and had yet to tell Sougo of her true nature, but the situation meant she couldn't hide it any longer. It didn't take long for the building piece to crack further before breaking off and falling towards her.
Ruby's Aura fully activated as she launched away from the falling debris via Petal Burst. She gave a yelp but managed to land in a slide near Sougo.
"Whoa…" Sougo said with wide eyes.
Ruby gave a nervous chuckle, "Uh, ta-da…"
Despite the worry Ruby held, Sougo was completely star struck at this, "Whoa Ruby, that's so cool!"
Ruby blinked a few times, "Wait, what? No freaking out? No, 'what are you'?"
"I mean yeah kind of," Sougo admitted. "But that doesn't mean it wasn't cool! Seriously how did you do that?"
"Alright," Ruby couldn't help but giggle a bit, "But it has to be kept between us. And even then I'm not sure if you'll believe it."
"You can count on me," Sougo gave a salute before grinning, "Just try me."
"Alright," Ruby took a deep breath, "So I'm not from Earth I'm from this planet called Remnant, it's a long story but I ended up getting sent here somehow. But from where I'm from, we have these things called Aura's and Semblance's."
"Uh huh," Sougo gave a nod, completely engrossed.
"The short answer is Aura acts as a barrier to protect us and it heals us too," Ruby said before holding up her hand, the scratches on her hand beginning to vanish. "It also lets me do really cool things like that speed burst I just did."
"Ooh cool," Sougo gave another nod, still completely fine with this, "So we can just speed our way home right?"
"I still can't believe you're completely alright with this," Ruby admitted before shaking her head, "It's not that simple. I have a limit on how far I can go with it. But…"
"But…?" Sougo asked.
"If you'd let me try something I think I can offer you a bit of protection too," Ruby admitted.
"Uh sure," Sougo gave a nod before noticing Ruby put a hand on his cheek, "What are you going to do?"
"Just close your eyes and concentrate," Ruby explained, giving a nod when she saw that Sougo had followed her instructions, grasping at Sougo's shoulder, "I learned this from a friend though I never thought I'd have to use it, until now."
Sougo gave a light hum but kept his concentration, wanting to see what Ruby was trying to do.
Ruby took a deep breath and closed her eyes, concentrating as a soft red glow surrounded her, a soft pink glow forming around Sougo. "For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."
This had allowed Ruby to unlock Sougo's Aura, but as she finished her words both her and Sougo were unaware of something else that occurred. Upon finishing the process a pink wave rocked through the area, it fading as it passed further and further out but its power was still felt. The air felt different, there was a change that only few could feel, but those who felt it knew. There was a change in the very fabric of reality itself.
Whatever activating Sougo's Aura did, it seemed to react to the power that dwelled inside of him alongside the power that Swartz had gifted him. Tsukasa could only stare intently with Oscar and Tsukuyomi as the trio felt this shockwave.
Sougo's eyes couldn't help but open wide as he felt an incredible energy filling his body completely. He felt just as good as new, even better if he was being honest. "Whoa…" He soon noticed something, "Ruby?"
Ruby had hunched over, taking a few breaths as she lifted her head with a tired smile, "It's alright Sougo, it's a thing we can do back on Remnant. I basically used my Aura to unlock yours."
"Huh," Sougo gave a nod as he looked at the pink glow around him, "Pink huh?"
"I think it suits you," Ruby admitted before looking around, "But with your Aura that should protect us somewhat while we get back to the shop."
"Sounds good to me," Sougo said before looking around, "I think we're not that far from it."
"Let's get going then," Ruby suggested.
"Well then, that was quite enlightening," Tsukasa turned away with a hum as the teens hurried off, looking over at his companions.
"Just what was that?" Oscar asked. "Having your Aura activated shouldn't do that."
"Yes but as we've established, Sougo Tokiwa is no ordinary kid," Tsukasa pointed out.
"Wait," Tsukuyomi soon realized what was going on, "Did his Aura unlocking do something to the power inside of him alongside the power that Swartz possible gave him?"
"Ding, ding, ding…" Tsukasa clapped as he pointed towards the girl in white, "You seem to be getting the gist of it like I have."
"What exactly did it do?" Oscar asked.
"I'm not exactly sure but I do have a few theories," Tsukasa admitted before spreading his arms out, "More importantly, what Ruby Rose did there has resulted in us being given a chance."
"A chance…" Tsukuyomi trailed.
"What kind of chance?" Oscar asked.
"A chance to flip the original narratives of two worlds completely on their heads," Tsukasa answered as he held two fingers up as both his companions could only stare in surprise at his words.
Earth – Late February 2019
Sougo was driving along with Weiss before the two noticed someone up ahead that was starting to walk onto the road.
"Oh no," Weiss muttered.
Sougo stayed silent as he slowed down before coming to a halt as the two were faced by Hiryu who had yet to transform. Before they could even think of possibly turning around, sudden flashes of light occurred. Another Rider after Another Rider started to form, Build, Cross-Z, Ex-Aid, Faiz, Wizard, OOO, Ryuki, W, Kuuga, Ghost and Gaim.
"Oh you've got to be…" Weiss stared straight at the Another Rider army before them. Even this was a lot for her to handle in regards to assisting Sougo.
"Hiryu Kakogawa…" Sougo trailed as he took off his helmet and dismounted.
"It's time to end this, Sougo Tokiwa," Hiryu called out.
"We don't have time for this," Weiss called out as she readied Myrtenaster. "Buzz off!"
"I made a promise," Sougo confirmed. "I need to go meet with Geiz!"
"I'm the one who's going to put an end to you," Hiryu called out as he pressed down on the Anotherwatch before holding it near his waist.
[ZI-O!]
The Another Rider transformation took hold as Hiryu transformed into Another Zi-O, the king of Another Riders leading all the Heisei Another Riders created thus far.
"We've got no choice," Sougo bit his lip before initiating his transformation, "Henshin!"
[RIDER TIME! KAMEN RIDER~! (RIDER~!) ZI-O! (ZI-O!) ZI-O~! II!]
"Stay back," Sougo brought out the Saikyo Girade as he held his arm in front of Weiss. He looked over at Hiryu, "Don't hurt her, it's me you want."
"Sougo…" Weiss said before seeing Sougo glance back at her and nod subtlety. She gave a nod before lowering her weapon, "Fine."
"That's fine by me," Hiryu called out, "Ignore the woman, all of you only attack him and him alone!"
The Another Riders all growled out as they charged forward with Hiryu, even Another Kuuga joining the charge despite its size. Sougo rushed into the swarm of Another Riders, slashing past them and batting away any weapons that came his way as he broke past the swarm.
[ZI-O SAIKYOU! HAOU GIRI!]
Sougo immediately initiated his weapon's Best Face finisher, energy gathering as he turned and slashed multiple times. The two Another Riders that had made their way back to Sougo first were Another Build and Another Ex-Aid. The two gasped and growled out as they were struck multiple times before exploding.
This only cut down the numbers by two however as all the Another Riders rushed in to swarm Sougo now that he had kept still for a few seconds. It wasn't long before they began to surround him before grabbing to pile on him.
Weiss however used Hiryu's orders and Sougo's insistence she be left out to her advantage. Deactivating the Ride Striker and returning it to its Ridewatch mode. She then stabbed her weapon into the ground as she began to use the fight as a distraction to perform a summoning. She needed something fast and unfortunately her Queen Lancer was out as an option. This was especially the case when it came to Another Kuuga and it likely being able to outpace it.
Her other summons weren't mobile based, and even the Inves she had defeated wasn't that quick on its feet. That also wasn't counting the fact that she had yet to properly summon it yet. But the Inves had given her an idea as she practiced more with her summons. And that was the fact that while she didn't personally defeat them, she was still instrumental in defeating a fair few Grimm, and there was one she was thinking on in particular.
"Sougo…" Weiss muttered as she closed her eyes, the Glyph glowing brighter and enlarging as two icy blue feathery wings formed out from behind her. After several seconds Weiss could feel something behind her as she glanced and turned with wide eyes. She had managed to summon a medium sized version of the Giant Nevermore she had faced in initiation back when starting Beacon. She gave a smile, "This will do…"
Sougo gritted his teeth as he punched, kicked and slashed only to gasp out as Hiryu tried to choke him through the Another Rider mob.
"You'll die Sougo Tokiwa!" Hiryu yelled out.
"Sougo, grab on!"
Sougo gave a light gasp as he was in the exact angle to see what was going on, dropping his weapon as he raised his arms up. A powerful gust soon approached as an icy-blue blur suddenly shot right above the Another Rider army, Sougo grabbing onto the blur as he was pulled away from the mob. The resulting gust had also been harsh enough to send the Another Riders stumbling back, some crashing into each other as a result.
"What?" Hiryu recovered and turned towards where Weiss and the Ridestriker were only to see they were gone, "No!"
By the time he had turned to see where the blur had gone, it was already far into the distance and high in the sky.
Sougo gave a gasp as he had grabbed onto the Nevermore's talons, managing to slowly but surely climb onto the Nevermore Summon's back. Once on its back he held on as he dismissed his transformation, slowly but surely moving over to Weiss who was on the front. The two were currently high in the air and flying at great speeds to keep Another Kuuga from following.
"Thanks for that Weiss," Sougo sighed in relief.
"You're just lucky I caught on," Weiss admitted. "This was also a risk since this is my first time bringing this particular summon out."
"I was about to say… I didn't know you had a Nevermore Summon," Sougo admitted.
"I had never thought to try until I got more experimental with my Semblance," Weiss explained as she began petting the neck of her summon. "But even though we won against it as a team, I'm just as much a part of the team as everyone else. So it does count as my victory against it. I barely made progress in summoning it before, but I knew I couldn't let you get hurt by Hiryu… so I used that feeling to make it manifest…"
"Cool," Sougo admitted before hearing his phone buzz, surprised to see it was his Faizphone X, he answered before holding it out to Weiss. "It's for you."
"Huh," Weiss took the phone as she held it to her ear, "Ruby?" She asked before hearing what was said, "Okay, yeah we're heading there right now but Hiryu might show up too," She paused as she listened to her leader's directions. "Alright then," She hung up before handing the Faizphone X back to Sougo. "You know that…"
"I know that Hiryu's probably going to follow us," Sougo gave a nod. "But I have to meet with Geiz."
"If things do go wrong, don't worry," Weiss said with a bit more confidence in her voice. "We can handle it."
Sougo could only smile, "Good."
To Be Continued…
Next Time:
"There's no way that'll happen!"
"Why? Why can't I defeat you?"
"I suggest you savor your final moments."
"Plan all you want, it won't help you!"
"You told me I couldn't beat you alone, you were right."
Chapte 51: Riders United 2019
Author's Note: So here we go folks, the penultimate chapter of the Another Zi-O/Roze Saga. I figured this was the set of chapters in particular that Ruby would have her breakdown and just let everything out. And that was especially needed with Blake and Yang. While change takes time, she's on the right path now.
But of course we have our biggest revelation I knew had to happen in these episodes. That was Sougo getting his Aura and the implications of that. While I'm not ready to bring out his Semblance yet, I figured I could at least show this. Of course, during that whole little modified talk between Tsukuyomi and Tsukasa you might've noticed a particular character making a brief appearance when he didn't show up at all in the main series. Curious as to why he's there, right?
But we've got an explosive finale coming up as you might have noticed that there's only one bit left to adapt to this section and that's everything at Saturn Parking and beyond. Thanks for reading and strap in for next time folks because it's going to be a big one.