Chapter 3: Wake Up for Kiva!
"Okay, where was I?" asked Frankie.
"You said something about the Fangire," said Apple, "which…are?"
"They're the ones that suck out your life energy until you're nothing but a transparent shell," said Dexter.
"Yeah, those things, they're creepy," said Clawdeen.
"Just how creepy?" asked Raven.
"Creepy enough to break this leg," said Abbey as she limped back to her chair and sat down.
"And hurt some more of us," said Frankie, "but I'm getting ahead of myself again. I need to tell you a bit about Ian, Lance and Jessie." She looked at Avery, "you were right about them coming from different worlds and being recruited by Alabaster to counter Obsidian. But there's more."
"Let me guess," said Tobias, "they all grew up in the same house on the same street, just in different realities."
"No," said Frankie, "not really."
"They all have completely different backgrounds and dreams for the future," said Clawdeen. "Lance is the heir to a good-sized fortune."
"Ian's studying to become a writer," said Frankie, "while Jessie has a part-time job at her uncle's garage."
"The one thing they have in common is their desire to do the right thing," said Robecca, "to uphold the values of truth, love and courage. That and to stop the Orphnochs from wiping out humanity."
"They didn't know why Obsidian wanted Draculaura's necklace," said Clawdeen, "or what The Star of Rosskarn was, but they agreed that under no circumstances were we to let the enemy have either."
"Good thing they showed up when they did," said Cupid.
"They got here a few months before that dingo Orphnoch attacked us," said Lagoona, "excuse me, Jackal Orphnoch."
"They fought and destroyed a few Orphoch before we ran into them," said Frankie, "and they helped us destroy a few more afterwards."
"There was a Coral Snake Orphnoch," said Clawdeen, "Jessie fought that one, and then Lance fought a Gecko Orphnoch."
"Three people as the same Rider?" Tobias asked.
"I already told you that they could only be Faiz for fifteen minutes," said Frankie.
"That doesn't really make much sense," said Avery, "why would Alabaster chose three people to be the same Rider? And again, why choose them only to be restricted by a time limit?"
"We don't know," said Frankie, "and Preston Chase doesn't know either, or he's keeping it to himself."
"Who?" Dexter asked.
"Preston Chase" said Frankie, "Ian, Lance and Jessie's liaison with Alabaster."
"We didn't have a liaison with Alabaster," said an annoyed Tobias, "we didn't need one."
"But these three do," said Avery, "again, why? What is going on with Alabaster?"
"They're ethereal blokes from beyond time and space," said Lagoona, "go figure."
"Did they at least talk about what forms Alabaster took when they were chosen?" Avery asked.
"Ask them yourselves," said Cleo, "they should be here soon, along with Siegfried."
"Who's Siegfried?" Raven asked.
"You'll meet him too," said Frankie, "now, about The Fangire. We first ran into them about a week after we met with Ian, Lance and Jessie. That was the day we really made progress in getting Hector back in shape."
"That thing's still a piece of junk," muttered Clawdeen.
"Anyway," said an annoyed Frankie as she ignored Clawdeen's comment, "there we were, trying to get back to our lives and forget, at least for a while, the horrible things out to get us, when…"
…Monster High Auto Shop Classroom…A Few Weeks Ago…
"Okay, the new battery and sparkplugs are in," said Deuce as he, Clawd and Jackson stood around Frankie's Cadillac Eldorado, the three boys wearing grease and oil-stained coveralls and wiping lubricant off of their hands.
"The carburetor and gears look good," said Jackson, "the oil and coolant have all been topped off and the exhaust system's as clean as we're gonna get it right now."
"I'd say we're ready to give The Lummox a go," said Clawd, earning a laugh from Draculaura, whom sat nearby with Clawdeen, Lagoona and Cleo, the three of them nursing their wounds.
"Don't call Hector that!" snapped an irate Frankie, whom stood with Ghoulia, Abbey and Gil, while also in the school garage was Ian, Lance and Jessie, whom were working on their armored SUV.
"Frankie, you're being irrational," said Jackson, "I mean, we've gotten your car as fixed up as we can, and I'm sure it'll run okay enough to be allowed back on the road, but…"
"But what?" asked Frankie as her neck bolts sparked, "you still don't believe in Hector, do you!"
"Is it normal for her to have faith in a car?" Lance asked as he and Ian bolted on a fresh piece of armor on the front bumper, "is it normal for Monsters?"
"I'm sure she's alright," said Ian as he used a ratchet to tighten the bolts, "there's nothing like having your first car. I remember my mom and dad taking me to get my first car. They wanted me to get a Prius. Instead I got a Ford F150 at a used truck dealership."
"My parents told me I could either get the car they picked out for me or have no car at all," said Jessie. "I got this abomination here." She then patted the armored SUV, "it was alright, until I was chosen by Alabaster and they said I could take it with me," she then grinned mischievously, "if only my folks could see what I've done with it."
"My parents won't even let me have a car," said Lance in a miserable tone, "they say it's too dangerous," he then laughed in a scoffing manner, "I then pointed out that mom's a motorcycle cop and dad drives a security truck."
"Dude, I thought you were rich or something," said Deuce.
"My spinster great-aunt is rich," said Lance, "she named me her heir, and my folks will do pretty much anything to make sure nothing happens to me and I get that fortune."
"I'm sure they're just worried about you," said Frankie. She then looked at her friends, "and I know you guys are worried about me and I'm glad you care. But this is my car and I believe that Hector can and will be the best car on the road if we just give him the chance."
"I'd agree with you, Frankie," said Clawd, "we all do, but…"
"But what?" an impatient Frankie asked.
At that Ghoulia moaned something.
"She's right," said Jackson, "there's just too many uncertainties. We still don't know what those buttons on the dashboard do."
"We'll never know if we don't try them," said Frankie as she walked over to the car and got into the driver's seat.
"At least the seatbelts didn't need replacing," said Gil as Frankie buckled up, "but there's no airbag."
"Cadillac didn't start putting airbags in their cars until the late 1970's," said Ian, "I've got a bad feeling about this.
"Frankie, as your best fiend and fellow driver," said Draculaura, "I humbly ask you to wait on this."
"At least until we can install an airbag in the steering column," said Clawd.
"I'm just starting the engine," said Frankie as she pulled the key from her pocket and put it in the ignition, "I'm not even going to put it in Drive. Honestly, you people, what's the worst that can happen?" she then turned the key and the motor could be heard moving, but refused to fully start.
"What?" Frankie asked. She then turned the key again, a determined look on her face as the engine still refused to start, "come on, Hector! I know you can do it!"
"At least it didn't blow up," said a relieved Clawd.
"I'm amazed she managed to get the car here from the dealership," said Gil.
"I don't get it," said Frankie as she got out of the car and popped open the hood, "what could have gone wrong?"
"Got a pencil?" asked a Clawdeen.
At that Frankie glared at Clawdeen, a look of annoyance on her face as her neck bolts sparked again. But then Frankie sighed and sat down on a nearby bench, "maybe you ghouls are right. Maybe I should just give up and hope I can get my money back somehow."
"Frankie, we're not trying to hurt you," said Lagoona as she sat down next to her, "we just didn't want you to get hurt."
"But sometimes you have to get hurt in order to learn something," said Clawdeen.
"Yeah, never take anything for granted," said Clawd.
At that Ghoulia moaned something.
"Yes," said Cleo, "'especially if it's a used car.'"
"I wouldn't give up hope just yet," said Jackson as he bent up from examining the engine, holding a finger covered in peanut butter, "guess what I found in the carburetor?"
At that Frankie stood up, a look of utter outrage on her face as her neck bolts sparked furiously, "alright! I want to know which of you was eating peanut butter around Hector! I will find out!" she then grabbed Jackson and leaned close to smell his breath, "okay, you're clean. Gil! Get over here!"
"My breath always smells fishy!" exclaimed Gil as he backed away from Frankie, "and how could I possibly get a peanut butter sandwich past this?" he then tapped the glass helmet containing his supply of fresh water.
"Nobody's had lunch yet, Frankie," said Lagoona.
"Well, someone's been eating peanut butter," said Clawdeen as she sniffed the air,
"the nose knows."
"Hey, can I help it if I oversleep and forget breakfast every now and then?" asked Heath as he stood nearby, the remains of a peanut butter sandwich in his hand
"HEATH?!" exclaimed Frankie, Draculaura, Clawdeen, Lagoona and Cleo irately. Frankie then walked up to and began pushing Heath towards the doors out to the school corridors.
"What?!" asked Heath, "I'm sorry I gummed up your car, sorry!"
"Just be glad I don't make you clean the mess out of Hector with your tongue!" said Frankie as she shoved Heath out the door and slammed it shut."
…Hexiciah Steam's Workshop…Present Day…
"Frankie, I'm sure this is very fascinating and relevant to you," said Cupid, "but…"
"I know, I'm dragging things out a bit," said Frankie, "just be patient a little longer. Okay, I threw Heath out the classroom. Jackson and I then cleaned the peanut butter out of the carburetor and checked the rest of the engine for more. I was just about try starting Hector again, when…"
…Monster High Auto Shop…A Few Weeks Ago…
"Wait!" said Clawdeen as she sniffed the air, "does anyone else smell that?"
"Smell what?" Frankie asked impatiently as she got out of the car again.
"That smell!" exclaimed a disgusted Draculaura as she, Clawd and Clawdeen covered their noses with both hands, "it's horrible!"
"It is rather unpleasant," said Ian as he and the others made disgusted faces.
"But what is it?" asked Jessie.
"If you take a rotten egg, put it in a moldy shoe and burry it beneath a chicken coop," said Lance, "you're about halfway there."
"How do you know that?" Cleo asked.
"Can you keep a secret?" asked Lance.
"Of course," said a mildly insulted Cleo.
"So can I," said Lance.
"That still doesn't explain where this great stink is coming from!" said Deuce, while his hair snakes made angry hisses and tried to cover each other so they would smell the stench.
"Who wants to bet that Toralei's behind it?" asked Clawdeen.
"I resent that!" exclaimed Toralei. Everyone looked up and saw a certain tiger-striped Werecat lounging atop a metal tool cabinet. She then gracefully jumped off of the cabinet and landed neatly on her feet, "I was here the whole time, trying to figure out how to mess up Frankie's car when Heath beat me to it. I should have brought some peanut butter."
"Well, if you didn't do it, who did?" asked Frankie.
Just then the door opened and Rochelle ran into the room, "Oh, mes chers amis!" exclaimed the Gargoyle from Scaris, "Headmistress Bloodgood is about to declare an evacuation of the school!"
"The whole school?" asked Frankie as she and the others hurried out the classroom and into the corridors, where the student body of Monster High was franticly trying to deal with the stench. Some were using wet paper towels as masks, while others had fashioned anything they could get their hands, claws, tentacles and whatnot to block out the stink.
Just then Bloodgood's voice could be heard over the intercom; "Attention Students of Monster High! This is your Headmistress speaking, and I say with whole heartedness that someone has pulled a vile prank on our beloved school, one done in emphatically bad taste!"
Everyone then heard a horse neighing uncomfortably.
"Yes, Nightmare, I know you're suffering, we all are," said Bloodgood, "anyway, all students and staff are to calmly but quickly exit the building. I promise you all that as soon as we're all in the fresh air and the authorities contacted, those responsible for this shall be punished with extreme prejudice! That is all."
"Who could have done this?" asked Frankie as she and the others headed for the nearest emergency exit.
"Becha it was something Holt set up," said Jackson. "Wait, no, a stink bomb isn't his style."
"It couldn't be Meowlody and Pursephony," said Clawdeen, "those two wouldn't even think of something without Toralei."
"Hey, my best fiends are purrfectly capable of coming up with a prank on their own!" said an irate Toralei, "we're just used to doing things together, that's all. Besides, my feline senses tell me that no one at Monster High did it."
"Well, if that's true" said Cleo as they got outside and into the open air, with Draculaura opening her parasol to shield herself from the sun, "and that's a big if, then who did it?"
"I did," said a woman's voice from high above. Everyone looked up and saw a woman in her mid 20's wearing an electric pink dress with a green and orange hat standing atop the school roof.
"Who are you?" Cleo asked as she and the others looked up, "and who does your fashion designing? He or she needs more experience."
"I do my own designing," said the woman. She then jumped down from the roof as if taking a walk in the park, then strode up to Draculaura, "anyway, hand over the necklace."
"Oh, not another one!" exclaimed Lagoona.
"A Rider's work is never done," said Jessie pulled out the briefcase with the Faiz Gear.
"Listen, lady," said Clawd as he got in front Draculaura, "you're the fourth Orphnoch who wanted Draculaura's necklace. And we'll tell you the same thing we told the other three! You ain't getting it!"
"You dare compare me to those dullards!" exclaimed the woman in an outraged manner, "I am no Orphnoch, you furball freak!"
"Who are you calling furball freaks, lady!" exclaimed an irate Clawd, while Clawdeen growled and Toralei hissed, while at the same time Draculaura and the others looked angrily at the woman.
"I am calling you freaks, because that's what you are," said the woman, "as are Orphnochs."
"A self-hating Orphnoch?" Ian asked.
"I don't think this is an Orphnoch," said Gil.
"How right you are, fish boy!" said the woman as she smiled wickedly.
It was then that a pair of fang-like glass shards appeared above Gil and stabbed right through his water helmet, impaling him below the gills and causing him to cry out in agony as he collapsed to the ground.
"GIL!" exclaimed Lagoona as she rushed to his side. The shards then flew out from Gil as his helmet drained of water.
"What the bloody hell is happening!?" exclaimed Robecca as she and Venus ran over.
"He's…he's been…" said Lagoona as she examined the puncher marks on Gil but was surprised and confused to find no trace of blood.
"Look!" said Frankie as the glass fangs flew over and merged into the woman.
"Monster Energy," said the woman dryly, "it takes the edge off of the hunger, but nowhere near as satisfying as human Life Energy."
"Are…are you some kind of Vampire?" asked Draculaura.
"I am so much more than that," said the woman as stain glass patterns appeared on her skin. With a shimmer of energy, the woman transformed into a creature with features of a black widow spider in with stain glass patterns across its body.
"That ain't no Orphnoch!" exclaimed Jessie as she rapidly attached the laser pointer and camera knuckle duster to the belt and put it on.
"Is it that obvious!?" exclaimed Deuce as he shielded Cleo from the creature, "chill out, everyone. I've got this!" he then lowered his sunglasses. His eyes glowed green with petrifying energy as two beams shot out at the creature.
Yet the Black Widow-like creature simply deflected the beams with a wave of one clawed hand towards a nearby tree, turning it to stone.
"Uh, that's not good," said Deuce.
"It sure ain't," said Jessie as she pulled out the phone, opened it and dialed.
5 5 5
STANDING BY
The phone emitted its klaxon-like sound as Jessie closed it and raised it up. "Henshin!" she shouted as she brought the phone down and clicked it into place on her belt.
COMPLETE
Red energy streamed out from the belt and with a flash of light, Jessie had become Faiz.
With a screech of fury, the Black Widow-like creature rushed at Faiz, whom rushed at it as well and the two began exchanging blows, yet from the start it was clear that the spider-like abomination had the advantage as it was able to block all of Faiz's attacks and land several damaging punches and kicks of its own.
"What are you doing, Jessie?!" shouted Ian, "I've seen you cream Orphnochs even on bad days!"
"I think we've made it clear that this isn't an Orphnoch," said Lance.
"Whatever it is, we can't let it win!" shouted Clawd as he rushed at the creature and grabbed it, yet it threw off his grip and punched him in the torso, all without breaking stride in its fight against Faiz. The spider-like abomination then began alternating between hitting Faiz and Clawd.
Rochelle then ran at the creature and landed a solid punch in its face, only to be kicked in the stomach.
"That's enough!" shouted Venus as she crouched down and placed her hands on the ground, sending out a wave of energy towards the Black Widow creature. Thorny vines sprouted from the ground and ensnared the creature.
"Venus…I…I didn't know you could do that," said an astonished Frankie.
"It just goes to show you not to mess with Mother Nature," said Venus as she stood up and brushed a stray lock of her hair into place.
Just then the ensnared creature gave a roar of fury and unleashed a wave of purple and black energy that hit everyone, knocking them to the ground as the dark energy sapped them of their strength.
Only Faiz was still standing as the creature tore its way free of the vines, yet the dark energy had disoriented Faiz enough that the creature ran up and punched her hard enough to knock Faiz down. With a flash of light, Jessie had powered down, the Faiz Belt falling off of her waist and landing a few feet away from her.
It was then that an image of the woman appeared on the stain glass patterns of the creature's body, "I commend your efforts, yet it was for naught. None of you are a match for me."
"How about me then!" shouted Toralei as she leapt from the tree branch she was hiding in, her claws extended and ready to inflict some damage, only for the creature to backhand Toralei in the face before she could even get close. Toralei landed hard on the ground and let out a mewling groan of pain.
"I guess cats don't always land on their feet," said the image of the woman.
…Hexiciah Steam's Labortory…Present Day…
"Good Grief!" exclaimed Cupid, "I didn't think anything could do a number on Toralei like that! She's not…"
"She's made a full recovery," said an annoyed Cleo, "apparently she has more than nine lives."
"Yeah, Toralei walks out of the hospital without a scratch and we still have weeks of recovery to go through," said Clawdeen, "assuming we do recover."
"I may just be able to rectify that," said Apple as she rummaged through her purse and pulled out a rainbow-hued bracelet and what appeared to be a soda can.
"What's that?" asked Dexter.
"Something I had to almost beg on my knees for to get," said Apple as she put the jeweled bracelet on her right wrist, "everyone kept getting hurt fighting The Worms, and there was only so much I could do with just a first aid kit and my own knowledge. So I asked my mother for this Bracelet of Restoration."
"I've heard of that!" said an astonished Raven, "it allows non-magic users to cast healing spells. But how did your mother get it?"
"I asked her when she gave it to me," said Apple. "My mother told me that when I take my place as Queen of the realm, I'll know the answer and so much more, and please don't ask me what I had to promise my mother in order for her to give it to me. I promised I wouldn't talk about it and I've said too much already. Now," she then looked at Clawdeen and the others whom were hurt, "who's first?"
"Uh…" said Clawdeen nervously, while Lagoona and Cleo looked uncomfortably unsure.
"All you ghouls are babies!" said Abbey as she limped over and sat down next to Apple, "do your worst, doctor princess!"
"Oh, please, just Apple," said the scion of Snow White as she made Abbey pull up her wounded leg and rest it on one of the chairs, "now…" she then looked at Frankie, "you never did say how Abbey hurt her leg."
"That happens later," said Frankie, "Do you want me to continue? Or do you need me to be quiet so you can concentrate on…whatever it is you're going to do."
"Any magic needs concentration," said Raven, "but as for healing magic…"
"I can focus on both," said Apple as she held her right hand over Abbey's leg and put her left hand beneath her right wrist, touching the bracelet with her thumb and forefinger, "now, this may feel strange at first, but if I do this right, you'll be feeling a lot better before you know it."
"You never done this before?" asked Abbey as Apple closed her eyes in concentration. The bracelet glowed with rainbow-hued light that flowed into her hand and shown down on Abbey's leg. The statuesque yeti gasped in surprise, but then sighed and smiled with relief, "oh, that feels good."
"I guess it works," said Cupid. She then looked at Frankie, "please, go on."
"Are you sure she's alright?" Frankie asked as she looked at Apple.
"As far as I know," said Raven in a concerned tone, "but she may not be. Magic requires physical stamina to work. If this item works the way I think it works, it could drain Apple of her energy and leave her exhausted."
"If there's one thing I know about Apple White is that she's got energy to spare," said Avery, "she'll be fine."
"And if not, there's this," said Dexter as he indicated the soda can, which happened to be filled with high-energy liquid.
"Enough prattling hither and thither!" exclaimed Maddie as she slammed her teacup into its saucer, "I want to hear more about the story!"
"Oh, right," said Frankie, "so, there we were, hit by this energy-draining stuff and Jessie had been forced to power down."
…Monster High…A Few Weeks Ago…
"Now, unless there's any further distractions," said the Black Widow Fangire as it stalked towards Draculaura. Clawd tried to shield himself in front of Draculaura, but the creature merely shoved him out of the way. The Black Widow Fangire then grabbed Draculaura by the front of her blouse and lifted her small frame up, dangling her a few feet in the air and in direct sunlight.
"NO!" shouted Cleo as Draculaura's skin began to emit steam, "she can't be in daylight for more than a few seconds!"
"Then she'd better tell me what I need to know," said the Black Widow Fangire. It then glared at Draculaura, "where's the necklace!?"
"I can't tell you that!" shouted Draculaura as furiously beat her fists against the arm of the creature, delivering minor but definite amounts of damage in the form of hairline cracks, yet the cracks mended themselves mere seconds after each impact.
"I'm sure you wouldn't," said the Black Widow Fangire. It then threw Draculaura towards a tree, causing her to land hard on the ground but in the tree's shade. Draculaura sighed with relief as the sun's rays ceased their effect on her body.
"You may be a crybaby weakling of a lesser vampire species," said the creature, "but you've got enough integrity and backbone to die for a cause if needed. I admire your courage, but your emotions will be your undoing."
It then walked over to Frankie as its glass fangs appeared. The creature grabbed and lifted up Frankie, the glass fangs hovering above her neck, ready to impale and drain Frankie of her life energy.
"I could suck you dry and render you a fragile shell just begging to be smashed," said the Black Widow Fangire. It then tossed Frankie down and then grabbed Clawd.
"NO!" shouted Draculaura as the creature prepared to stab Clawd with its glass fangs. But then the creature idly tossed Clawd towards Draculaura.
"Keep your filthy mutt of a boyfriend," said the Black Widow Fangire, "you'll need a solid shoulder to cry on before I'm done." It then grabbed Jessie and lifted her up.
"Don't you dare!" shouted Lance as he managed to grab the Faiz Belt but lacked the strength to put it on.
"After sucking on those two freaks, I need something to clean my pallet," said the Black Widow Fangire. It then looked at Jessie, "don't struggle; it'll make things easier for both of us."
"Go to hell, Kaijin!" snapped Jessie, whom then spat in the creature's face.
"Good, you've still got some fight in you," said the creature, "I prefer it that way."
Just as the glass fangs raised themselves slightly in preparation of stabbing Jessie, the sound of a rapidly approaching motorcycle could be heard.
The Black Widow Fangire looked and saw too late the approaching motorcycle, just as the front wheel hit it in the chest. The creature was knocked several yards back while dropping Jessie, whom was caught by the helmeted rider of the motorcycle.
"Are you alright?" the helmeted man asked in a slight German accent as he set Jessie safely down.
"I…yeah, I'm fine," said Jessie.
"Who are you?" asked Ian as he and the others began to recover from the energy drain.
"A friend and fellow champion of light," said the helmeted man. He took off his helmet, revealing a man in his late 20's with short sandy blond hair and greenish blue eyes. "But you can call me Siegfried."
"YOU!" shouted the Black Widow Fangire as it got back up, glaring hatefully at Siegfried, "How dare you strike me, you filthy human!"
"That's a laugh, coming from creatures that prey on humans," said Siegfried boldly as he got off the motorcycle.
"Uh…dude?" asked Deuce as Cleo helped him back up, "I don't mean to rain on your parade, but this thing just cleaned our clocks."
"I'm ashamed to admit it, but yeah, we're no match for that thing," said Ian, while Jessie and Lance reluctantly nodded.
"That's because you're using the wrong weapons against a Fangire," said Siegfried, "Kivat!"
Just then a golden bat flew out of nowhere and struck the Black Widow Fangire across the head with enough force to create sparks and nearly knock the creature down. The golden bat flew over and hovered around Siegfried's shoulder, where, upon closer inspection, revealed that it was made of metal yet alive.
"Well, here's another fine mess we're in Siegfried," said the bat, Kivat.
"Oh, how cute!" said a warmly smiling Frankie.
"Yes, he is adorable," said Cleo as she looked at Kivat with puzzled eyes, "but what is it?"
"My friend and partner," said Siegfried.
"Oh, of course," said Ian, "I should have known. Two different species of Kaijin require two different Riders."
"He's a Kamen Rider too?" asked Gil as Lagoona helped him up.
It was then that everyone heard the Black Widow Fangire roar wrathfully as it regained its balance.
"I'd love to answer all your questions," said Siegfried, "but I've a pest to exterminate. Let's do it, Kivat!"
"You got it, partner!" said Kivat, "Kivat Ikuze!"
Siegfried then caught Kivat out of the air with his left hand and held the golden bat in front of his right hand.
"Gabut!" shouted Kivat as he bit into the soft flesh between Siegfried's thumb and forefinger. A strange rising and falling whistle could be heard as a line of multi-colored stained glass patterns flowed from the bite up Siegfried's arm to his face and under his eyes.
From out of nowhere appeared several ghostly chains that circled around Siegfried's waist, morphing into a red belt that had six whistle-light objects in slots on the sides.
"Henshin!" said Siegfried as he turned Kivat upside down and clicked him into place on a bat-like slot on the front of the belt. A rippling wave of silver-like energy covered Siegfried, which then shattered, revealing Siegfried wearing a black body suit with silver and red armor and a helmet with bat-like features that had large yellow eyes.
"I knew it! Kiva!" said an astonished Ian as the bat-like Rider rushed at and began grappling with the Black Widow Fangire.
"Okay, what the fudge is going on here? Who is this guy!?" exclaimed Clawd as he and the others watched Kiva repeatedly punch and kick the Black Widow Fangire across the area, clearly having the advantage in the fight.
"Remember when we told you about being recruited by Alabaster to fight Obsidian?" asked Ian, "we're not the only ones."
"But I didn't think they'd send another Rider," said Jessie.
"We didn't think Obsidian would send another species of Kaijin," said Lance.
By now Kiva had delivered enough damage to knock the Black Widow Fangire back several paces in a disoriented state.
"Time to finish this!" said Kiva as he took one of the whistle-like objects from his belt and placed it in the mouth of Kivat.
"WAKE UP!" shouted Kivat as he detached himself from the belt and flew around Kiva, a flute-like melody sounding as he flew down and around Kiva's right calf. The calf armor then flew off, revealing a red section of the body suit that had bat-like whings.
All the while the whole area darkened as the illusion of a lunar eclipse appeared in the sky.
Kiva then rushed at and delivered a hard right kick to the torso of the Black Widow Fangire with enough force to send it slamming against the walls of Monster High, imprinting in the stonework a large bat-like symbol as the creature shattered.
From the destroyed remains of the Black Widow Fangire emerged a pulsating sphere of multi-colored energy that rose into the air as the darkness and eclipse illusion vanished
"That's the essence of a Fangire, its soul, if my knowledge of Kaijin species serves me," said Lance as he and the others looked at the rising energy sphere, "we've got to destroy it before it has a chance to restore itself and regenerate the creature!"
"Already taken care of," said Kiva.
Just then something enormous loudly flew overhead our heroes and allies, followed by a distinctive roar.
"LOOK!" shouted Clawdeen as she pointed up at what turned out to be a large, purple scaled Wyvern that had, apparently, the body of a gothic castle.
The dragon with the castle-like body circled the area a few times before hovering in front of the disembodied Fangire soul.
"What are you waiting for?!" shouted Kivat, "Eat it already!"
With that the purple-scaled dragon leaned its long neck out, opened its mouth and swallowed the Fangire soul whole, before giving a satisfied roar and flying up and vanishing into a cloud.
"I swear, that guy's getting too lazy," said Kivat as Kiva powered down.
"I'd let him get all the exercise he could ever want," said Siegfried, "but you kept insisting that having a dragon flying around would only upset the general public."
"It'd scare the pants off of them, it would," said Kivat. The golden bat then noticed that Frankie and the others were looking at him and Siegfried with confused eyes. "I think we upset these guys too."
"We're not upset," said Frankie, "just…"
"Would someone please tell me what in the name of Osiris is going on?!" exclaimed Cleo, "who are you?! What was that spider creature!? And what pray tell was that dragon thing that looked like it should be holding royal balls for princesses?"
"That was Castle Doran," said Siegfried, "as for the rest, it's a long story."
…Hexiciah Steam's Workshop…Present Day…
"And boy, was it a long story," said a slightly exasperated Frankie, "it all started about thirty years ago, when…"
"Frankie, please," said a slightly more exasperated Cupid, "would you mind giving us the abridged version?"
"Don't do the abridged version!" said an offended Maddie, "You lose way too much detail that way."
"But the essential part is still told," said Raven, "I agree with Cupid, this is getting a little drawn out."
"I'm sure we would all love to one day sit down and hear every single aspect of the tale," said Tobias, "but if the situation with Draculaura is as serious as you lead us to believe, then time is of the essence."
"You are dragging things a bit, Frankie," said Cleo.
"But don't do the rushing of the story," said Abbey as Apple finished healing her leg, "take as much of the time as is the necessary." At that Apple leaned back and sighed with satisfied effort.
"You alright?" asked Raven.
"A little…winded, but fine," said a slightly out of breath Apple and sweaty, as if she had just finished a low impact but prolonged workout, "I just need a minute and I can work on the next injury."
"Then it worked?" asked Clawdeen as she, Lagoona and Cleo gathered around Abbey.
"Good as new," said Abbey as she eagerly bounced on her feet, then effortlessly walked around the room.
"Me next!" exclaimed Lagoona as she, Clawdeen and Cleo scrambled and got in each other's way to be the next one to receive healing from Apple.
"Broken hands before a black eye!" shouted Clawdeen.
"Royalty takes precedence!" exclaimed Cleo.
"Give her a chance to catch her breath!" snapped Avery as he got between the bickering Monsters and Apple.
"They'll sort things out," said Cupid as she looked at Frankie, "you were saying? And please try to shorten it."
"Okay then," said Frankie, "The short version. Siegfried told us he's from another world where humans and Fangire have been at war for centuries, but only recently managed a truce that Siegfried helped achieve. Turns out he not only married a Fangire princess in order to secure the peace, he's also half-Fangire himself."
"Really?" asked an intrigued Raven, "how'd that happen? Him being half-Fangire, and marrying a Fangire princess, that too."
"Long story short, Siegfried's mother was a Fangire princess," said Robecca, "she fell in love with a human, which apparently Fangire aren't allowed to do."
"This sounds eerily like the take of Kurenai Wataru," said Tobias, "but that's another tale for later. Anyway, I assume that, as Kiva, he fought on the side of the humans," said Avery, "and forced the Fangire into an armistice where the marriage was one of the conditions to peace between the two races."
"More or less," said Frankie, "anyway, Siegfried married the Fangire princess. They liked each other from the start, love blossomed and the next heir to the Fangire leadership was eventually born."
"He's got a kid?" asked an astonished Avery, "why would Alabaster recruit a Rider with a family?"
"Ian, Jessie and Lance asked him that too," said Clawdeen as Apple began healing her hands, while Cleo and Lagoona waited with eager impatience for their turn, "he told all of us that he has his reasons for coming."
"Well, at least he's here," said Avery, "truth be told, I actually feel better knowing that we have a more experienced Rider on our side."
"What do you mean 'experience?'" asked Raven, "I thought you guys knew what you were doing."
"We did, for the most part," said Avery, "but if you were to ask Dorothea and Madison, and somehow ask Jeffrey and Connor from beyond the grave, and even Clare, assuming she's still alive and willing to cooperate…"
"What he means is that half the time we were operating on instructions from Alabaster," said Tobias, "and half on our own instincts."
"Well, I'm glad it worked out when all put together," said Dexter, "we wouldn't be here if it weren't."
"And it's working out so far with Ian and the others," said Frankie. She then sighed and frowned, "but after what happened with Draculaura, I'm starting to doubt that things will work out at all."
"About that, just what the Tartarus happened to Draculaura?" demanded Cupid, "how did Valentine get his filthy hands on her?"
"You want to know? I'll tell you," said Frankie, "and believe me, when I'm done telling, you'll wish I hadn't."
…The End Is Just The Beginning…