In his bedroom, a young man, barely 22, with black hair and blue eyes, lay on his bed, controller in hand. He had just finished the story of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
He laid the controller on its side, sighed, and wiped away the tears that had fallen shortly before the final battle, which he hadn't taken the time to wipe away beforehand.
"Damn it... Square you really are bastards for getting our hopes up."
The next day, he left a second-hand store with a copy of Crisis Core Reunion, having found it at a good price. Preferring to buy it physically for less than if he paid full price on the Playstation Store.
He stopped walking when he felt he was being followed and turned to see an Asian woman with long black hair tied back in a side ponytail with a black headband, dressed in a short black skirt dress, holding a pair of black and yellow boxes.
"Uh... can I help you?" He asked.
"Congratulations, after careful consideration, you have been chosen. From this day forward, you are Kamen Riders." Said the mysterious woman, holding the two boxes in front of the couple.
"...What?" He asked, confused.
"You, Arthur Constantine, have been chosen to take part in a tournament as Kamen Riders, alongside other participants." Said the woman, handing the young man a yellow box with a black lid featuring a yellow exclamation mark.
"Listen. I don't know how you know me, or even why I'd be chosen to take part in a tournament I never entered. But I'm not interested." Said the young man as he went on his way.
"Even if taking part would allow you to grant a wish your heart desires the most? Whatever it may be." asked the woman.
This made Arthur stop and turn his head curiously towards her.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"Unfortunately, I can't say any more than that. If you want answers, then you'll have to choose to participate. Of course, you're also free to drop out at any time. I still have more people to meet, so I wish you a good day." Said the woman, placing the box in the arms of a surprised Arthur, before turning and walking away.
Arthur was back in his room, staring hesitantly at the box. He could hardly believe it, but the idea of a tournament allowing him to grant any wish was something extremely tempting.
He slid the lid off the box and pulled out a black and grey device with a circular slot in the center and a diagonal black stripe running across it.
He also found a manual in the box and read it, learning that the device was called "Desire Driver".
"To activate it, you need to put it on and insert the Core ID supplied with the Desire Driver." He said, reading the instructions aloud.
He wondered what this "Core ID" was, and saw a white circular object with an illustration of a white fox's head in black background. He then placed the Desire Driver at his waist, causing a strap to appear and secure it in place.
Desire Driver!
He was surprised by this, and hesitated to go any further, still unaware of what the tournament was all about. But then he thought about the wish he could grant and finally decided to take the plunge, and placed the ID Core in the circular slot in the center of the Desire Driver.
Entry!
Suddenly, there was a flash of light and he disappeared.
When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing on a floating platform surrounded by pillars and strange machines spinning at its base. In the middle of the floor were the letters DGP in red. What was most alarming was that the platform was hundreds of meters in the air.
He wasn't alone either, for there were also several other people with Desire Drivers, just as lost and confused as he was.
"Hello everyone!" Said the strange woman who had given Arthur the Desire Driver as she appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the platform, standing atop a raised pedestal. "I'm Tsumuri your navigator for this game. Welcome to the Desir Grand Prix!"
This made everyone even more confused, looking at each other. Hoping someone had some answers.
"I understand you're confused, but you've all been chosen to fight as Kamen Riders to protect the world from the threat of the Jyamatos. In order to fight against them, we set up the Desire Grand Prix." Tsumuri explained while everyone remained confused.
"All of you. You must be asking yourselves, "What is this all about?" I understand you're confused. To keep the rest of the world from worrying about the Jyamato, the Desire Grand Prix is designed to erase everyone's memories when it ends. The only ones who remember are those of you with Core IDs. You'll become Kamen Riders to fight the Jyamato. And then the winner, whom we call the God of Desire, will have the opportunity to create his own ideal world."
"My ideal world..." Arthur murmured, with a thoughtful look.
"In other words, you can make all your wishes come true. Now, could you write your wishes on your Desire Cards?" Tsumuri asked, as blank cards with the DGP logo on their black and white backs appeared in the contestants' hands, along with a black quill pen.
Immediately, everyone began to think and write down their wishes.
Arthur looked at his Desire Card, then at the hand clutching the quill. He wasn't sure what he wanted to write. Remembering last night's game, he had an idea, but was it possible? Could he even afford it?
He looked around hesitantly, until he caught sight of one of the contestants whose long, light-brown hair, braided and tied with a large pink ribbon, was all he could make out because of the people between them.
It wasn't much, but it was enough to make him decide to write his wish on the Desire Card. A surreal wish, but he didn't know what he had to lose by trying.
Shortly afterwards, in a forest, a gigantic red circular barrier with barbed wire radiating out from it was formed. All participants were transported to different locations.
All were now wearing black and blue hooded jackets, matching pants and boots.
"And now, let the Desire Grand Prix begin!" Tsurumi said from a phone in their trouser pocket, which Arthur noticed as he searched for the source of her voice and pulled it out to hear her better. "The first round of your destiny. Your first mission is a treasure-hunting game!"
This puzzled the participants as strange white-headed humanoid creatures, resembling chess pawns dressed as pirates, made their presence known to the participant, ready to attack.
"Retrieve the treasure chests the Jyamato have taken and win the reward!" She said as the Jyamato attacked the players. "However, I must point out to certain players that weapons and abilities not supplied during the Desire Grand Prix or not authorized by the Game Master are forbidden. On the other hand, you can use your environment or things on site to defend yourself. So be vigilant, and if in doubt, fight barehanded."
Arthur hesitated to fight, but dodged a sword blow from a Jyamato and found himself back to back with another player before each turned to attack the other's Jyamato by surprise.
Arthur's target was punched in the stomach, while the other player's target was struck by a branch.
The two Jyamato fell before getting up and fleeing, leaving behind two black and pink boxes, similar to those containing the Desire Drivers and ID Cores.
They picked up the boxes in front of them and opened them. Arthur received a small black and blue object with a shield depicted on it. And the other player got a similar item but red instead of blue and with a spear on it.
"I wonder what it's for?" Arthur said, looking at the object.
"Me too." Said the other player in a young woman's voice that sounded very familiar to Arthur before they faced each other, leaving Arthur confused and speechless.
From the look of her hair, this was the person he'd seen earlier before writing his wish. And she was the spitting image of Aerith.
"Is it okay?" She asked, confused when she saw Arthur's surprised face.
"U-uh... Y-Yes." Arthur stammered before coughing into his free hand.
A few minutes later, the two participants were standing next to a water court and Arthur was splashing water on his face.
"So, why are you taking part in the Desire Grand Prix?" Asked the participant as she ran one of her hands through the water, as if savoring the contact with something so simple.
"It's... it's complicated and a little awkward."
"If that's what your heart desires, then it isn't." She retorted, causing the young man to sigh.
"I've...umm... wished I could be at the side of someone I care about, to save her." He admitted vaguely, which made the young woman smile. "What about you?"
"I wished for something similar." She confessed in turn. "I wished for a world where those who destroy my world can no longer harm it?"
She stood up, as did Arthur, who wondered what she meant by "my world", and gave him a friendly smile.
"By the way, we haven't met. My name's Aerith."
This intrigued Arthur a little more. He refused to believe, despite the resemblance, that it was Aerith he was rubbing shoulders with at the moment. After all, Final Fantasy VII was fiction. But all this new information, even if it seemed unthinkable, he was obliged to believe it, while maintaining a reasonable degree of doubt.
"I'm Arthur." He said, returning her smile.
Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival behind them of a man dressed like a butler with a long red jacket reaching to his knees.
"Congratulations on obtaining your items". He said to the two participants, who turned to look at him. "Now, if you'll follow me."
They followed him, wondering where he would lead them.
He led them into a lounge where there was a bar with stools, red sofas, coffee tables and potted plants for decoration. It looked like a pleasant place to rest between rounds.
"This is the Desire Grand Prix lounge. Participants are invited to use it, free of charge of course." Explained the butler before going behind the bar to serve a black-haired, red-eyed teenager who was sitting on one of the stools.
"I love this place already." Arthur commented, which made Aerith laugh as they sat down on one of the red sofas.
"I wonder what those objects we had to retrieve are." Aerith asked herself as she pulled out the one she'd retrieved earlier.
Arthur did the same, but also took out the phone that obviously came with their uniforms.
"Maybe we can find some information on it. He said, searching through various applications to find one that served as an encyclopedia of such objects. "Apparently, the name of these objects is Raise Buckle, and the one you picked up is Spear. And mine's Shield."
"These are low-level Buckles. You won't get anywhere with these." commented a young man sitting on another sofa.
The man in question had silver-white hair and big amber eyes, and a golden earring with a green pearl.
"A friend of mine who loves a challenge managed to finish Dark Souls without leveling up, and with the basic equipment." Arthur commented. "Sometimes technique and mastery are more effective than any piece of equipment."
"If you say so. I'm Kamen Rider Rothbart. And you are..." Retorted the young man indifferently before inspecting something on his phone screen. "Dea Geats and Hachi."
"Is that our Rider name?" Arthur wondered aloud before looking at another app on his phone listing Kamen Rider with their civilian names. "Ah yes. And I'm Dea Geats. And your real name is Mytho." He said as Mytho looked away with some contempt. "And if you're so sure we don't stand a chance because of what we've had. What did you loot?"
In reply, Mytho held up a white Raise Buckle with a handle that looked like the front of a revolver's bullet chamber.
"Magnum. Rather ironic, don't you think Rue?!" Mytho asked, looking at the black-haired, red-eyed teenager at the bar.
"You don't deserve it." The latter retorted, looking at her cup.
"Oh yeah?" Mytho asked, standing up and approaching Rue with a proud smile. "I don't think Akira deserved it?"
"I forbid you to talk about him?!" Rue shouted, giving him an angry look as three more people entered the living room.
"Violence of any kind is forbidden here, ladies and gentlemen. Offenders will be eliminated immediately." Reminded the butler, which made Mytho smile before returning to his seat.
"What a jerk." Said Arthur, earning a nod from Aerith.
The phone on the bar began to ring and the butler picked it up, speaking a few seconds later.
"All right." He said before hanging up and turning to the participants. "Listen up, everyone, we've got an emergency.
The remaining participants were transported back to the platform, where Tsurumi explained the situation.
"Thief leader Jyamato has just appeared. We're going to put an end to the treasure hunt and eliminate those who haven't obtained any items."
As she finished her explanation, a hologram displayed the different participants, and twenty of them were darkened with the word "Lose" in red covering their names.
"So that leaves us. Mytho smiled, looking at the other nine participants who paid no attention to him.
"Please use the items obtained to destroy all the Jyamato. Survivors will advance to the first round."
"What do you mean by 'survivors'?" asked an old man.
"In this game, you're putting your lives on the line.
This answer chilled the blood of some of the participants. Aerith and Arthur exchanged glances, while Mytho gave the other participant a fierce look.
"You didn't mention that." commented the old man.
"If we stick together, we'll all survive." Said a woman with red hair.
"All of you if you don't mind, the mission's about to begin."
Following Tsurumi's statement, all the participants were teleported into the forest.
All their Core IDs lit up as their bodies were covered in simple black suits with minimal armor. The lower half of their helmets was jet-black, while the upper half resembled the image on their respective Core IDs.
Arthur's was white and resembled a traditional Japanese fox mask with black patterns and large eyes.
Aerith's looked like a pink bee with black stripes and large eyes.
Rue's was black, with a silver beak-shaped nose and large round eyes.
Mytho's was purple and looked like an owl's head with large eyes.
The old man's helmet was similar to Mytho's, but brown and with spots at the top.
The woman's was blue and looked like a cat with black bindings.
And finally the last one, a middle-aged man, represented a white wolf.
As the helmets appeared Tsurumi listed the names of the Kamen Rider in order of appearance.
"Dea Geats, Hachi, Kraehe, Rothbart, Ro-Ot, Ny-Oi, Lovo."
As everyone looked at each other, a horde of Jyamato made their presence felt, accompanied by one who looked very different from the others, more imposing in his appearance. It was easy for the Riders to determine that he was their leader.
"Slaughter them all! he ordered.
"Well, well, well. It's not going to be easy." Dea Geats commented.
"Possibly." Said Hachi as the other Riders separated.
She and Blast took out their Raise Buckle and inserted them into the right-hand side of their respective Desire Driver.
Set!
Once inserted into their Desire Driver, a holographic logo appeared next to Dea Geats, with the word "SHIELD" in blue text. Next to Hachi was the word "SPEAR" in green text.
Then Dea Geats pressed the shield and Hachi pulled the spear to activate them.
Armed Spear!
Armed Shield!
At the same time, the holographic logos transformed into an image of their respective Raise Buckle, which merged with them.
They now wore additional armor consisting of a straight breastplate and a silver shoulder pad held in place by straps the color of their Buckle. On the breastplate was their Buckle symbol, and in their right hand was their associated weapon. Their black eyes had also changed color, turning yellow.
Ready, Fight!
"How do we do it then? You attack and I watch your back?" Dea Geats suggested.
"Sounds like a good idea. Hachi agreed.
The two Riders took up their positions and fought the Jyamato while protecting each other.
"How do we do it then? You attack and I watch your back?" Dea Geats suggested.
"Sounds like a good idea." Hachi agreed.
The two Riders took up their positions and fought the Jyamato while protecting each other.
She was armed with a purple sword whose blade was a chainsaw chain.
She turned her head towards Rothbart, who was sure that the look in her eyes was anything but friendly, but he didn't care.
Dea Geats and Hachi continued to confront the Jyamato, their strategy proving effective. This lasted until they came across Ro-Ot, who had on his Desire Driver a white Raise Buckle with what looked like piano keys and a DJ disc.
His additional armor was aesthetically pleasing, with a breastplate that looked like a screen displaying vertical sound bars. The shoulder pads were fitted with tiny speakers. He wore matching gauntlets and his weapon was a guitar that doubled as an axe. The lower part of his helmet had a silver mouthplate and a white chinstrap to which was attached an equally white microphone.
It was obvious from the way he wielded it that he was completely overwhelmed by events.
He simply made random movements with the guitar, missing the Jyamato most of the time.
Without thinking, Dea Geats and Hachi rushed to his aid. But they were too late. Once the Jyamato were beaten unconscious or dead, they could see that Ro-Ot had been de-transformed.
It was too late for the old man. The Jyamato had mortally wounded him.
"Well... I didn't last as long as I'd hoped." Said the old man, trying to keep a smile on his face.
"No, you didn't. You're going to be fine." Said Dea Geats as he lifted the old man, refusing to let him die.
"I may be old, my boy. But I'm not stupid." Said the old man, looking at him and Hachi. "Thank you for saving me. Even if it doesn't change anything for me, it goes straight to my heart."
He then removed the Raise Buckle from his Desire Driver and handed it to Dea Geats.
"Here, you'll probably need this more than I will."
"If you don't mind my asking, what was your wish?" Hachi asked, which made the old man smile sincerely.
"Oh, not much. Just to relive the time when I was 20." He said, pulling out a photo of what appeared to be him younger, and a young woman, both smiling with a mountainous landscape behind them. "That was the best time of my life. The one when my wife and I met. I wish I could have lived that again."
The man's body began to disappear as red and black pixels appeared in various places on his body.
"Good luck..."
These were the old man's last words before disappearing along with his Core ID, which had cracked, leaving only his Desire Driver.
On the platform, Tsurumi marked the old man's elimination on his tablet.
Mission Failed!
"Too bad!" She said almost without emotion.
It was painful for her to see Desire Grand Prix participants die. But she'd seen it so many times that she was now used to it.
As for Dea Geats and Hachi, they were saddened by the old man's death. All he wanted was to relive the life he'd had up to that point and which had fulfilled him, and not only had the Jyamato taken that away from him, they'd killed him.
But they couldn't afford to mourn his loss. For the Jyamato leading the Jyamato thieves presented himself to them.
"One down, six to go." the leader boasted.
"You killed someone. And you were happy about it..." growled Dea Geats.
"You're no better than the Shinra." Said Hachi in turn.
She didn't know it, even if the situation didn't lend itself to it, but this innocuous sentence for her removed all the doubts Arthur had until now. This woman was Aerith, he was sure of it now.
In response, the leader of the thieving Jyamato threw one of his axes at the duo, but Arthur threw his shield, which intercepted the axe before striking the leader's face.
"I'll never forgive you for what you've done." Dea Geats growled as he seethed with rage.
He then removed the Shield Buckle, inserted the one he'd just obtained and pressed the three big buttons.
Set!
This triggered the sound of lively waiting music as a black-and-white holographic "BEAT" logo appeared beside him. He passed his right hand in front of his helmet as if scratching it.
"Henshin!" He said, quickly lowering his hand to turn the Buckle disc.
Beat!
This caused the armor to appear in place of the logo, which a mechanical arm sprouting from his back grabbed before bringing it back to him and causing his eyes to take on the same color as Ro-Ot's when he was transformed.
As the electric guitar appeared in his hand, Dea Geats wasted no time in pouncing on the chef. He lashed out at him, mercilessly landing blows with his axe.
When he was about to retaliate with his own, Dea Geats stepped back. And just as the Jyamato chief was about to throw his axes at him, he was hit by Hachi fire.
Tactical Fire!
Dea Geats scratched the Beat Axe before launching a fireball at Chief Jyamato, who burst into flames from the attack.
He tried to extinguish the flames by gesticulating, but this allowed Dea Geats to get into position and turn the Beat Buckle, while Hachi fired the Spear Buckle.
Beat/Spear Strike!
Hachi unleashed a powerful shot that hit the Jyamato head-on, while Dea Geats ran at him to deliver a powerful high kick followed by a blow from his axe. The combination of these attacks exploded the monster.
Back on the platform, all the Riders were facing Tsurumi, except Ro-Ot who was the only victim of this game.
"And that concludes round one! You've done well! Six of you made it to the end." Tsurumi congratulated. "As soon as the Jyamato show up again, the Desire Grand Prix will begin again. Until then, I bid you farewell."
As she concluded her statement, all the Riders except Arthur and Aerith disappeared from the platform.
"Uh... why are we still here?" Arthur asked.
"In fact, Miss Aerith's case is special. Until the Desire Grand Prix is over, she can't go back to where we found her." Tsurumi explained as Aerith looked away. "And as you seemed very close during that first round. The Game Master would like her to live with you, Mr. Constantine."
This new information surprised the two friends, who looked at each other quickly before looking away, both blushing.
"Well... I've got a spare room, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem..." Arthur said hesitantly.
"Then that's settled." Tsurumi smiled before Arthur and Aerith disappeared in turn.
They reappeared in Arthur's room, each wearing the clothes they'd worn when they arrived at the Desire Grand Prix.
Aerith wore the outfit she wore in Final Fantasy VII Remake and Rebirth.
She looked around, inspecting her friend's room with a certain interest, while he doubted what to do next.
Should he hide the truth about who she was in this world from him, or tell him?
Fate, however, had decided to force his hand, when Aerith inspected the DVD library and found his blue ray of Final Fantasy VII Advent Children...