Reviews:

Guest: En el mejor de los casos, una gran devastacion donde lo haga. En el peor, un agujero negro.

Guest: Gracias. Tus deseos son mis ordenes.

Lord Ri The Husbu King: Yeah, they make a better couple than Hazuki. At least Bragi can be reasoned with and calmed down whereas in contrast, Hazuki just has a narrow-minded way of looking at life. Also, don't worry. This is just Lilith's initial fight. A little spoiler, but since she's just like Adam, she can transform too. But I'm going to be honest with you. Adam is probably the least impressive out of all the antagonists in the series. St. Germain and Hibiki were beating him around and cut his arm off, even when they were tired from fighting each other. And St. Germain was pressing him at times. Of course, after he transforms, it's another matter entirely. But before that, he's not that strong. So by extension, neither is Lilith since she's directly weaker than he is in this story. I want to talk to you about her transformation, so feel free to send me a message since you're one of the people who suggested her character creation along with Tigracho.

Caballero lector rojo: Un gusto verte de nuevo caballero. Tienes razon, la epicidad de esa pelea esta en su punto maximo y es menor no desperdiciarlo. Me gustan la cancion de Knight, pero me la guardare para mas adelante en la serie en momentos mas clave para su personaje. Aun que la de Ouja no me termina de convencer mucho.

501awezome: He's literally built differently lol. This is a battle of anomalies who refuse to die.

primenidus: I'm sure he's just smiling the whole time imagining he's beating Hajime around instead of his copy. You can imagine he won't stop bringing it up if he wins to have something over him.

SoutaAmetsuchi: Yeah, he had it in the bag. But right, S. Ryuki was thinking ahead back then when he rebelled against St. Germain and the others. This power-stealing thing pretty much is carrying him.

Tenzalucard123: Bragi is redeeming his mistakes from before by fighting for his friends and getting rid of a powerful enemy like S. Ryuki. A lot of battles going on right now.

Chapter 107
The Will Inherited from a Mother

"Strings?" S. Ryuki pondered.

"Just a little trick I learned from my Mama's research. It's what she used to do when in combat." He explained, swinging his arm and tearing through the ground with strings."Let's see how well you like them!"

Metalgelas stood in front of the attacks, the strings cutting into its fire body but not destroying it. He aimed his index finger at S. Ryuki firing web bullets at him. The S. Ryuki ignited his flames, incinerating the attacks before they reached him. He sent a disk of fire toward Alternative, forcing him to parry it with his Slashdagger. Metalgelas grabbed a nearby tree and threw it in his direction, but the Rider used his gravity abilities to prevent it from reaching his body.

S. Ryuki teleported in front of him, going for a punch but the forcefield blocked the attack.'There it is again!'

Metalgelas appeared as well, swinging his arms but the forcefield prevented him from attacking too. Alternative moved out of the way of the attacks and went for a thrust, but this time, S. Ryuki wrapped his tail around Bragi and twisted his arm.

"So that forcefield thing of yours...it seems you can generate your own gravitational force and prevent things from touching you. However, that also applies to you as well. This is why you need to move out of the way of the attacks before turning it off. Not bad."

The fire rhino huffed, raising his arms to crush Alternative. But to his surprise, Psycho-Rogue appeared below him and blocked the attack.

Advent: Psycho-Rogue

"Now it's two on two!" Alternative declared, ducking just in time as Psycho-Rogue unleashed several rockets from the holes in its head. Metalgelas fell to the ground due to the constant explosions, and S. Ryuki was forced into the offensive. He teleported into the air, but Alternative did so as well and they both began teleporting around the area, the environment beginning to shift due to the force of their attacks.

Alternative wrapped strings around his sword once more, making a make-shift lance, and drew a card.

Booster Vent

Boosters behind his calves and arms appeared, igniting to life as he propelled himself against S. Ryuki, who conjured his Dragzweishield. But unlike before, the drill pierced through the shield and stabbed S. Ryuki's shoulder. The Shadow Rider was sent flying away, but strings appeared behind him and held him in place. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by strings everywhere.

"Lights out!" Alternative swung his arms as the strings came undone and were about to tear S. Ryuki into mince meat. He morphed into Dragranzer, unleashing flames and burning the strings before flying toward Alternative and attempting to devour him. A giant fist of dark matter smashed against the dragon's head, knocking him back, but its tail wrapped around Alternative, taking him along for the ride. They both crashed against a mountain, their battle continuing as they began to destroy it with their attacks.

Alternative grabbed S. Ryuki by the head and slammed him against the mountain, pushing him down further as they split the mountain in two. The Shadow Rider formed two arms of fire and grasped Alternative's body, throwing him into the air as the mountain kept breaking apart. Bragi glanced around, looking for S. Ryuki.

'Where the hell did he go?'

Suddenly, he saw a fireball coming straight at him and blocked it with his Slashdagger. To his surprise, the attack was strong, so he had to put considerable effort into holding it down. But what he didn't expect was for this to be a distraction. S. Ryuki shot himself like a rocket from behind, kicking Alternative's head and snapping his neck, causing him to lose concentration and take the fireball head-on.

'As expected. He can't activate the brief inviolability if he's touching something. Oh, Prince. You're so full of openings.' S. Ryuki sprouted out his tail, lunging at Alternative, and pierced through his neck during the confusion. The hybrid choked on his blood, pressing his right hand against S. Ryuki's chest and blasting him away with a Repel. He mended his wounds, spitting blood.

'The amount of fucking damage I've taken is getting a little too much. This guy is insanely resilient. He's the Boy Wonder's copy, alright.' Alternative began jumping from rock to rock as the debris continued to fall.'I should be far enough from the others. And there's no civilian nearby in the next hundreds of kilometers. Which means I can use that."

He clasped his hands together, concentrating."Catastrophic World Breaker."

Suddenly, the falling rubble began to fly up into the sky, the mountain seemingly challenging the laws of gravity.

S. Ryuki was slammed into a rock, his body floating into the sky as well."This is..."

'But the Boy Wonder was able to challenge the Second during this attack, even if he was fused with Dragreder. So I can't let me guard down-'

Out of nowhere, a huge fireball slammed against Alternative's back, knocking him into another rock."That hurt! Wait, what was-?!"

The fireball was Metalgelas, balled up and jumping from rock to rock like a pinball, gaining momentum before heading for Alternative again.

"God damn it, this attack sucks, Second! Repel!"

The spinning wheel of fire was pushed away but continued bouncing around. S. Ryuki created a condensed sphere of fire, earning Alternative's attention. He concentrated the flames at his fingertips before waving his arms, creating a spiderweb of fire that cut through the rocks like butter. Bragi groaned in pain, his left leg and right shoulder having been torn apart before he dodged out of the way. S. Ryuki swapped places with a rock in front of Alternative, but he saw this coming and ducked at the last second he threw his punch, slamming the black core of his attack into him and pushing him away.

S. Ryuki gritted his teeth and the flying rocks were now starting to concentrate on him, beginning to form a dome. Metalgelas came back around, forcing Alternative to push it once more, but unlike before, crashed into the dome that had become S. Ryuki, sending it right at Alternative. From within, the Shadow Rider ignited his flames, turning the meteor into a comet in an instant and since he had just his repel and was still on cooldown, Bragi took the full force of the attack. The rocks started to follow them, the once tall mountain now gone, as they headed toward a large lake in the vicinity. The comet landed at the bottom of the lake, creating a huge tidal wave that washed over the area.

'Repel!'

The water around Bragi was pushed back due to the gravitational force, with Alternative in the middle. Suddenly, an arm of fire grabbed his face as several tendrils of fire dug themselves against the ground to help S. Ryuki not be sent flying.

"Got you now!" S. Ryuki cackled but Alternative swatted his hand away and kicked him in the face. But the Shadow Rider did not back down for even a second. He morphed his head to be Dragranzer's charging up a blast of fire but Alternative smacked his head down, shooting at the ground. The explosion sent both of them flying in opposite directions, completely clearing out the lake and making it a giant wasteland.

'I have to attack now before he summons Metalgelas again!' He tried to teleport, but his energy reserves were getting too low, and his concentration wasn't up to the task.

S. Ryuki tried to teleport as well, but he was also running low on energy. He clicked his tongue, igniting his boosters and flying toward Alternative at top speed.

Alternative drew a card from his Deck, scanning it immediately.

Hop Vent

A pair of grasshopper legs appeared around Alterantive's legs, using them to kick the ground and launch himself forward.'I gotta end this right now! Everyone is counting on me to win!'

Positive Harmony Karma Orb

He threw his attack, but S. Ryuki was able to dodge it with ease.

'Huh. That's weird. Why did he shoot it from so far away? Unless-'

"You just noticed, didn't you? But my Positive Harmony Karma's ability relies mainly on pushing! A huge explosion! NOW BURST!"

S. Ryuki saw a red light behind him as the orb combusted, pushing him and burning his back. He was sent flying directly into Alternative's second consecutive Positive Harmony Karma Orb, bursting it right in his face and blowing his head off. The explosion of the attack turned night into day for a few seconds as a pillar of energy rose into the stratosphere.

Bragi was now lying on a mountainside, panting for air as he regenerated the destroyed limbs from taking the explosion at point-blank range. He was running dangerously low on energy. Using his new gravity abilities was a detriment to his stamina. Not to mention the energy consumption he used to regenerate his body.

"Come on, stop playing dead and get up!" He sighed as he stood up."I know that didn't kill you! You can't regenerate, can you? I finally figured you out. You Shadow Riders...you're two in one, unlike regular Riders. It struck me as odd when I cut off your arms and you switched to Dragranzer's arms. But then when I tried to cut them off again, you decided to sacrifice one of your legs instead of your arm. Which means you're not regenerating, you're replacing the lost body parts with your Advent Beast. So since you have Shadow Gai's powers, this is a 2 vs. 1"

Bragi's vision was getting blurry and he felt light-headed.'How much energy did I lose? At this rate, I don't know if I can properly help the others after I-'

From afar, a pink burst of condensed flames shot to Alternative. He reacted at the last second, jumping up but the attack completely disintegrated his lower half and his left hand.

From the sides, a creature of fire lunged at him and touched the side of his face before exploding. His right eye fell out of his socket and he fell to the ground, perplexed.'What just hit me...? It destroyed my lower half! I couldn't withstand it at all...!'

"You're one about one thing, Prince Bragi. Ordinarily, Shadow Riders come two in one."

S. Ryuki was now sporting two dragon wings and a long tail, his torso slightly wider and his limbs completely that of Dragranzer's as well as his head."But I am a little different than the rest, just like you, my fellow copy."

Chimera Fusion Beast - Ryugranzer

Metalgelas huffed, his body building up from the fire, but around him were Gazelle monsters hopping around.

'Those are Zelles...One of them is what exploded and destroyed my face...' Bragi observed, grimacing as he mended his wounds and regrew his legs."Still...I got you to your last life. If I destroy your head again you're through."

"The same could be said about you. I know Adam destroyed your head but you didn't die. I wonder...that blast completely obliterated your lower half. What if I can make it strong enough to disintegrate every cell in your body? Will you come back then?"

Bragi bit his lower lip, and Ryuganzer took this as an answer and laughed.

"We're both at the end of our ropes, but you are even more so since you keep spamming regeneration. I'd say you're more tired than I am due to the critical damage you have taken. Why do you fight so hard?"

An image of Miku and Elfnein popped into his mind but shook his head."I just want to be stronger than the Boy Wonder, that's all. And when I kill you, I'll be on top of you, undoubtedly."

"True. I suppose I am stronger than he is. While I was created with the data used during his stay in Val Verde, I was heavily modified and improved upon. I'm far stronger than that. So I suppose, if you do beat me, you are stronger than he is. That is IF you beat me. Let's say the third round had no victors. It was a tie. So now, we begin the final round."

"Sounds good to me. I'm getting sick of fighting you." Bragi took a shaky defensive position.

"You got one thing wrong though, Prince." S. Ryugranzer summoned dozens upon dozens of fire Gazelles around him, Metalgelas in front of him for defense."I'm sorry to say, but against me, it's not a 2 vs.1. It's a 3 vs.1. Now die."

Suddenly, all Gazelle lunged from all sides and all hell broke loose. Alternative had no choice but to start fleeing away, skating on the ground as the Gazells started to throw themselves at him, exploding around him. Ryugranzer began charging up his strongest attack and Bragi knew he had a time limit before it was over.

Final Vent: Dead End

Jumping on top of Psycho-Rogue in its bike mode, Alternative began shooting dark matter projectiles at the Gazelles, causing them to explode. But there were too many of them. He hit the break, spinning around at high speeds at the incoming wave of Gazelles. The explosions sent him and Psycho-Rogue flying, damaged by the burst of energy. He readied his Slashdagger, slashing at a group of them and putting up his gravitational forcefield to redirect the explosions. To his dismay, he was only able to put it up for a few seconds, since he was running dangerously low on power.

Metalgelas rammed into Psycho-Rogue, hurling it against Alternative and knocking him to the ground. Psycho-Rogue grabbed its master and threw him away before the Gazelles ganged up on it and blew it up.

"No! Psycho-Rogue!" Fortunately, since he wasn't an actual Rider, he could just either make or repair a new Psycho-Rogue. But now wasn't the time for that. He started jumping from tree to tree as the group of monsters chased him around. He noticed a bright light in the distance as S. Ryuki flew around, keeping him in his sights.

'If that hits me...I will actually die...' For the first time in his life, he was genuinely concerned for his wellbeing. Before, he knew he could count on his regeneration and that there was nothing that could put him down permanently. Even Adam blew up his head and came back from that. He didn't know if he could reform if all the molecules in his body were disintegrated or carbonized. And the very thought scared him.'Am I...going to die here...?'

"Come on, you were so loud and defiant before. What happened to the fire in you?" Ryugranzer taunted from afar."Let me hear your screams of fear! Go on, sing for me!"

A Gazelle jumped in front of him, kicking him in the belly and launching him into another one, exploding in unison. The Prince of the fallen kingdom began to fall through the trees.'In the end, is it all I can do? When everyone was counting on me? Am I just an aimless experiment after all? Do I really...have nothing to fight for, like he said...? No purpose?'

"Please...don't die, okay? I'll show you more around the world. You're my friend, Bragi-kun."

"Miku..."

"You're not a monster. You're a person. And my friend!"

"Hibiki-dono..."

"I love you as if you were my very own son. I'm sure Carol would be proud if she saw you today..."

"What Bragard did has nothing to do with you. I'm happy you made it possible to have a memento of my Mama and Papa."

"Auntie Elfnein...Tobias..."

Bragi clenched his fists. He felt a hand on his shoulder as a feminine voice spoke in his ear.

"You can't lose here. No son of mine is going to lose to such riffraff. You almost got him. You just need to push forward a little more! And if you feel like you can't, then fine. I shall give you a hand. I am always with you, just like Elfnein said."

Bragi opened his eyes but found no one.

"Mama..." He muttered, kicking a tree and flipping his body to land on his feet."That's right...I'm not alone in this...You're with me, Mama. And my friends are counting on me. I was doing this wrong. I shouldn't do this to atone for the Second's sins. I should be doing this because I want to repay the people who accepted me! I WANT TO PROTECT MY FRIENDS AND SEE THE WORLD WITH MIKU-SAN!"

'The doubt surrounding his mind... is gone...' Ryugranzer noted.'Where is this power coming from?'

"Hey, S. Ryuki! You said you wanted to hear me sing?!" Alternative drew a card from his Deck. A card that showed a spiral of four colors."You will kneel to PRINCE BRAGI THIRD DIENHEIM, PEASANT! MY SONGS DON'T COME CHEAP!"

(Play Sforzando no Zankyou)

Alchemy Vent

A purple hair, identical to what Carol wore in her Faust Robe appeared on top of the Prince's head, the four gems shining brightly.

"Let's start with you, Metalgelas!" Alternative rocketed into the sky by reducing his gravity, locking on Metalgelas who was ramming into trees. He raised his arms, concentrating a series of supergravity particles to form a sphere cracking with electricity, chucking it toward the ignited rhino.

"What the fuck?! He can do that too?!" Ryugranzer cried out in disbelief as the ball of gravity collided with the monster. Metalgelas fought against it, but the explosion of the attack completely disintegrated it and destroyed several of the Gazelles around.

"One down! Now come on! Don't think cheap tricks can take down a Prince!" He cried out, swinging his arms and producing strings that cut through several Gazelles, prompting them to explode. He created a fire arrow with his hands, aiming at Ryugranzer from afar. He fired the arrow, leveling the whole forest and killing an army of Gazelle. Ryugranzer panicked, narrowly avoiding the attack at the cost of one of his wings. This caused him to spiral out of control and crash to the ground.

"Proposterous! He shouldn't be able to use any of the elements! His soul should be corrupted, just like Bragard's! So how?! What kind of monster did Carol produce?!"

"I am no monster! I am Prince Bragi Third Dienheim! The Third Hyperion! And I'm...an ALCHEMIST!"

He clapped his hands, forming two arms of earth, and began to squash the Gazelle like mere ants. He dug his hands into the ground, flipping the crust upside down and creating an earthquake. Ryugranzer screamed, forming another wing of fire and igniting his boosters to outrun the attack."DO YOUR JOB, S. IMPERER!"

The Gazells began to converge into bigger gazelles, chasing Alternative around the forest. Several of them formed a Gazelle ladder by grabbing onto each other and attempting to blindside the Prince. However, he raised his arm, creating a wall of wind that turned into a tornado, catching several Gazelles in it. The constant explosions turn the tornado into a tornado of flames, launching it toward the sky.

Alternative began sliding down a mountain, hundreds of gazelle behind him and Ryugranzer drawing near, his attack almost completed. Bragi knew he couldn't waste time, so he summoned a giant wave of water from below. The waves completely washed over the Gazelles, extinguishing the fire before the explosions could go off.

"You're too late! YOU LOSE!"

Ryugranzer was in front of him, his hands clasped together and stretched outward and firing his potent attack."NOW YOU DIE!"

"I'm going to dissect you!" Bragi screamed, summoning four giant elemental magic circles in front of him, creating a sphere of golden energy surrounded by black stripes of dark matter that countered the attack."DON'T UNDERSTIMATE MY ALCHEMY! ALKAHEST!"

Alkahest

"My Mama tried to use something like this to dissect the world. But me? I'm going to use it to dissect the pests that stand in my way and harm my friends! Where my Mama and the Second failed...I WILL SUCCEED!"

"Impossible! He can use this level of Alchemy, despite never using elemental Alchemy in his life?!" Ryugranzer was bewildered but shook his head. He began to cackle as his attack began to push back Bragi's."Still, this is nothing! I can hear you slipping! You barely have enough energy to make this work! The moment you let up, even for a second, I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!"

"There is a way...to make this attack stronger." Bragi said."The incineration of memories."

"Incineration of memories?! But you're like 3 months old! You won't have enough and even if by some miracle you live, you'll forget everything! Even your precious friends!"

"Then...it's a good thing that I have 3 people's worth of memories!"

That's when Ryugranzer gasped in horror."3...? All the Bragards...The First and the Second..."

"I'm not the first choice...I'm not the Second choice. I am me. My own person with my own dreams and aspirations! I am the Third! Now, make yourself useful, Second! And lend me YOUR MEMORIES!"

"Stop! Please! Don't hurt my sister!" A young man with red hair cried out from the cage he was in, banging at the bars."Reina! Reina!"

"Now, now. Why make such a big fuss?" Bragard chuckled, holding a small girl with light blue hair by the neck, holding a purple crystal."Just like you, she might be able to become a proper fusion of human and Relic."And if she doesn't...that's fine, too. I have plenty of more test subjects to experiment on, Angelo. Oh, my bad. I suppose I should call you Satan now."

The vision ended, but Bragi could hear the girl's screams of pain in his head.'Were those...the Second's memories...?'

He shook his head, deciding not to worry about that now. He let his full power loose, and as all the 4 elements expanded into several circles, the electrical energy ball expanded before everything turned white and a huge explosion went off that could be seen from outer space.

"Today is the day. After Tachibana and Akatsuki give us the okay, we'll go." Yosuke said as he and the other 3 Riders huddled together."Kuroiwa should be with them, but I don't know which enemy is going to show up there. There's a high chance it's either Raphael or S. Ryuki. I doubt Lilith would show her face there."

"We'll handle her. And you have a score to settle with Raphael, right?" Jades asked.

"Yup. That's why I'll be on standby close to them." The purple-haired young man nodded, shifting his gaze to the red-teal-eyed hybrid."Dienheim, we'll need you to come through. Think you can handle S. Ryuki?"

"Of course."

"Hey. You got this. No need to be nervous." Jades poked him on the sides, causing him to squirm.

"I-I am not!" He protested."I can handle this no problem."

"You sure? You look flustered." Raiden pointed out.

"It's probably because Miku-chan was talking to him earlier." Jades grinned, making the young boy blush profusely."Aw, look at him! That reaction tells me everything I need to know. Trust me. I'm a big brother. These like these are second nature to me. You like Miku-chan."

"I-I don't know what you're talking about..."

"Elfnein can't keep a secret." Raiden spoke up with a smile."She told me."

"W-what?!"

"It's okay to be in love. Miku-chan is a nice and cute girl." Jades placed a hand on his shoulder."She's been through a lot. As you know, her last relationship was far from ideal. Hazuki broke her heart so she's probably still hurting."

"I know...I know that bastard made her sad. And I want to make her feel better. Make her smile, she did to me." He said with determination, still blushing."I want to heal her heart. She deserves that. But...I don't know what to do. I'm clueless about romance stuff...And like you said, she probably is still hurting from that..."

"You want to start somewhere? Here's a tip." Yosuke said, patting him on the head."Win. And come back alive. Tachibana said she's worried sick since we're putting this responsibility on you. So you make sure the great Prince comes back to her and then we'll figure things out."

"Yosuke-dono..." Bragi found himself smiling with newfound confidence."Right! I won't let her down!"

Bragi lay in a pool of his own blood, his Deck had been destroyed in the process, leaving his body vulnerable. His body was covered full of holes and his eyes were completely distant and unresponsive.

"This brat..." Ryugranzer heaved for air."I can't believe him...He did surprise me to the end. If I hadn't pulled that last trick, I would have died..."

In effect, Alternative's Alkahest had enough power to vaporize Ryugranzer. But the Shadow Rider had copied him and burst his attack, separating it into several different beams that flew away from the attack and pierced through him, punching holes from head to toe at the cost of reducing the explosive power. He hadn't been able to vaporize him, as he had intended completely, but he certainly incapacitated him or was probably just dead.

'He was low on energy, and this little stunt he pulled with Alchemy must have drained him even more. His body probably can't regenerate anymore, since he's all out of juice.' Ryugranzer took deep breaths, his body covered in wounds and exhausted. All Gazelles had been destroyed, and Metalgelas was gone. He lost S. Gai and S. Imperer's abilities and his power had diminished considerably.

"But still, this is my victory. You weren't so bad. Your Highness. You nearly defeated me. You were right. You kept on surprising me at all times, making this a very interesting duel. I doubt any of your friends will put up as good of a fight as you did. So rest easy. I will make their deaths as painless as possible, in your honor."

Ryugranzer turned on his heel and started to walk away. He had no more energy, so flying was out of the question. For now, he had to rest and regain his strength. He doubted he'd be able to take on the real Ryuki, especially now since he lost two great assets.

"Where do you think you're going...?"

A raspy voice said from behind. He quickly turned to see Bragi, still full of holes except for the one in his upper body. And the strangest thing was his size. He now looked like a little child, about 8 years old."This is the final round, right...? I didn't hear no bell..."

Suddenly, wires wrapped themselves around Ryugranzer, preventing him from moving.

"Impossible...how are you alive...?"

"I had to shrink my body...since I had no energy to regenerate a teenage body...But the body of a child was easier to do." He grinned, pointing at his head."You fucking piece of shit...I was almost dead...Could have sworn I saw my Mama and the First for a minute there."

"You...But it's over. What can you do, child?" Ryugranzer seethed, trying to break the binds to no avail.

"Oh...You know, I actually didn't want to have to try this, since I don't think I can even control it. And it could be extremely dangerous if it gets out of control. It's a huger gamble, so that's why I need you tied up so I can hit you for real. Earlier, you said it was impossible to mix two types of gravity. Positive and negative. But hey, Alchemy is all about trying new things, right? And like I said, I don't operate on regular laws of physics."

The boy spread his arms, each holding a different type of gravity orb. His left had the Negative Discord Karma and his right the Positive Harmony Karma.

"No...you can't mean...!"

He threw the spheres into the air and combined them, immediately creating a black vortex that began to suck everything in. From earth, water, trees, and more. A black hole that sucked everything in its path.

Ryugranzer was immediately being pulled in. He sunk his tail into the ground, but his atoms were being pulled at a molecular level, same as Bragi as the black hole slowly became bigger."YOU MORON! YOU'RE GOING TO DESTROY THE WHOLE FUCKING PLANET IF YOU MAKE IT ANY BIGGER!"

"Yeah...If it gets out of control, it could very well wipe out the planet. But you underestimate me. These things are...beneath me..." Bragi grunted, compressing the black hole."If I can apply the physics of something I used earlier, I can weaponize this. This ability is born from mixing two types of infinities, making a new infinity, to create an imaginary rush that pulls and pushes everything into it. And with Perfect Sphere...I can do this..."

A pair of hands grabbed his and a booming voice yelled."Concentrate, Bragi! If we must rely on a miracle...just this once, then so be it! We're Alchemist! Nothing exists that's impossible for us!"

A miracle born from Alchemy.

Suddenly, the black hole was now the size of a marble between his fingers. With a flick of his fingers, he fired his attack at Ryugranzer, who couldn't even scream before the ball combusted, immediately eradicating him from existence.

Chaos Zero Perfect Karma

The attack exploded and completely erased a huge chunk of the area, leaving a humongous hole in the ground with no ending sight. The attack had completely erased everything from several kilometers and had scarred the earth itself.

"YES! I DID IT!" Bragi screamed as he began to fall inside the abyss, only a torso since his arms and legs had been caught in the blast radius."I BEAT HIM! I WON!"

He had a toothy smile on his face as he began to lose consciousness, heading into the giant abyss below, until a shadow came in and caught him in their arms.

Yosuke ran down the forest, following the golden figure jumping from tree to tree. He eventually reached a clear area and found Raphael, standing on top of a rock, next to his horse, Donatello, clad in his Relic, Sleipnir.

"So, you've come." Raphael droned, addressing Knight.

"Allow me to reintroduce myself. My name is Yosuke Yanagi, Kamen Rider Knight. Knight of the Wind. And I've come to challenge you once more. wielder of the Excalibur!"

Raphael chuckled at that."Well, it seems your impersonation of a knight has improved...somewhat. Very well, I shall accept your challenge. Let's see if you're up to it."

Knight wasted no time and activated his Survive card, a gust of wind covering the area in a twister.

Survive: Shippu

He unsheathed his Darkblade from his scabbard and pointed it toward Raphael."Let's do this. I'm not the same person whom you once fought."

Without wasting time, Knight dashed toward the golden knight.

"Stay here, Donatello," Raphael ordered his loyal steed, rushing toward Knight. Excalibur met Darkblade, their blades clashing as they began to parry each other's attacks.

'He was not kidding. He's a different person from before. Excalibur does not lie. He has no doubts in his heart!' Raphael went for a kick to try and sweep him off his feet, but Knight blocked with his leg and kicked the knight in the chest, sending him staggering backward.

"I'm not one to do this, but if I were to ask you to stand down, would you do it? I know Tachibana will try to talk St. Germain out of this as well."

"Thanks. But no thanks. We have a role to play. A mission to fulfill. A world without oppression. We herald from different times. A boy that was raised in peace would not understand."

"It's true that times are different. But that being said, it means people can evolve. Sure, there's still oppression and people who want to do bad things. But others will stand up and fight back. Because in the end, it's only natural for us humans to struggle against destiny, isn't it?"

"Well said. But I have a promise to keep to the woman that I love. I sacrificed everything for her. I still aspire for a life where both of us can put this behind us and grow old together. But as long as evil and oppression exist, that just isn't possible!"

Raphael dashed at Knight, but the Rider sidestepped and dealt him a spiral kick to the head, knocking him to the ground.

"Then why is your heart wavering?!"

"What?!"

"I can feel it. You're doubting yourself, aren't you? You know this isn't right!"

"Shut up..."

"You can still stop this!"

"SHUT UP!" Raphael stomped to the ground, releasing an aura of dark energy from his blade, silencing Knight.

"I won't back down! St. Germain's conviction and ideals are everything to me! We came this far just to see her dreams fulfilled! And I'm not about to let you or anyone stop her!"

He raised his blade, preparing Excalibur's attack. However, unlike before, nothing came out."What...?!"

"I told you before. I'm different from when you last saw me. I indeed regret seeing my comrades die. But I do not regret their sacrifices. They all died for a reason and I intend to honor their deaths. I won't betray their trust ever again!"

"Then we're on the same both. We both have people we can't let down. And we'll do whatever it takes to protect them. But...Lady Prelati...Lady Cagliostro..." He shook his head, his body now surrounded by an onyx aura.

"What is he...?"

"If you've conquered the darkness in your heart, then I shall use mine!"

"What?! No! Raphael!"

'Sorry...Cagliostro, Prelati...and you too, Milady...But I'll do what I must. Even if I lose myself!'

The darkness finally cracked the sword, revealing a new form. It was now pitch black with red veins across its blade, and the veins began to cover Raphael's body as he roared.

"Hey! Leave her alone!"

Raphael rushed in to save a girl who was being dragged by her hair on a stormy night by a drunken man. He smacked a wood plank behind his head, knocking him out. The girl was bewildered as the young boy took her hand and guided her away as they heard the sound of men chasing after them, presumably the drunk's friends. The silver-haired boy helped the girl up a horse and they rode away in the rain. He removed his cloak, wrapping it around her.

"It's not much but it should protect you from the rain! Or at least, so you don't keep getting wet." He apologized with a sheepish smile. The white-haired girl said nothing, her mouth agape as they rode in the rain. Eventually, they reached a small hut outside of town and ran to seek shelter. Raphael let Donatello in and looked at his clothes, completely drenched."I hope I do not get sick...I've already missed helping my Father out in the shop too much as it is..."

He turned around to check on the girl, only to see her removing her clothes."W-w-w-what are you doing?!"

"Erm...Repaying you...for saving me..." She meekly said.

"Y-you don't have to do that!" Raphael covered his eyes, blushing."I'm not like those men. I don't want to take advantage of a woman like this so I'm sorry but I have to reject your advances!"

"A-advances?!" The girl shrieked, covering her chest."Y-you're wrong! I do not want to do this!"

"Then why are you doing it?" Raphael asked, grabbing his coat on the floor and wrapping it around here."A woman shouldn't be offering her body like that. Especially a girl of your age."

"I...don't have a choice. I'm a slave...And I need to scrounge up anything I can to bring back home for my Mother..." She said, averting her gaze in shame."I'm sure I'll get a beating for what happened today, but...thank you...I mean it."

"Let me help you..." Raphael reached for her hand. The girl blinked, puzzled at the gentleness she was receiving. His hand did not seek dominance or aggression. Instead, it was comforting her."My Dad and I work for a small establishment that helps slaves. I'm a knight in training for that reason. But of course, it's going to take a long time before we make any progress. Old people can be quite conservative, after all. But...I can help you and your Mother.

"Help us...?"

Raphael reached for his pouch, took a few coins from it, and handed them to her. She was about to protest, but his smile silenced her."Take the money. There's a small shop located by the park near the church. They're open at this hour. Tell them Raphael sent you. They should be able to give you some food with that money. I'd love to take you home but like you said, those men are probably mad. So I'm going to go back and take the beating for you."

"But why?! You don't deserve that!" The girl protested."You're a good person, helping a slave like this...You shouldn't..."

"Because I believe a woman should be treated with respect. They are the mothers of all, after all." Raphael said with a serious tone."My Mother taught me that when I was a baby before she died. It's strange. I remember her words so vividly, despite me being so young. That's why I fight to protect women. Especially in this kind of world where men like back then exist. So let me carry that cross for you. I'd be happy to make your life a little less bad."

With that, Raphael headed for the door, guiding Donatello along."Oh. Keep the cloak! It's fine. Just wash it in case you think I smell weird. Oh, right. I forgot."

The silver-haired boy marched back toward the white-haired girl, kneeling in front of her and kissing her hand."My name is Raphael. What is your name, Milady?"

"It's...It's St. Germain..." She allowed herself a small smile at the gesture."Thank you..."

Raphael released a scream, his body absorbing the black smoke his sword had released. Once the smoke dissipated, a new entity was in his place. His armor had lost its glorious gold color and was now pitch black, covered with red veins.

(If you want to see what he looks like, he looks like Lancelot Berserker from Fate.)

Donatello let out a loud neigh, his body also turning a deep shade of black and his eyes red to match his owner's theme color.

"His power...it just skyrocketed..." Knight noted, baffled by what he just witnessed. Black tendrils emerged from Raphael's back and shot toward Knight, forcing him to parry them with his blade. However, they were too fast and grazed his body.

"You will regret the day you raised your sword against me." The demonic voice of Raphael said before he growled, kicking the ground and blitzing Knight, kicking him in the chest and launching him through several trees. He chased after him, grabbing him by the head and smashing him through the trees before throwing him into the sky. He touched a tree, whithering it and turning it into a javelin, hurling it at Knight and piercing his chest.

Illusion Vent

His body exploded into dozens of bats as clones began to surround Raphael.

Trick Vent: Shadow Illusion

The clones rushed at Raphael from all angles, but the dark knight bent his knees before spinning around at insane speeds, completely cutting through all the Knights in one fell swoop. The real Knight parried the attack with his visor, but his feet were digging deeper into the ground.

Pillars of darkness began to erupt from the ground, and one of them appeared from beneath Knight, launching him into the sky.

The dark knight swung his blade, unleashing a slash of darkness. Knight gasped, quickly summoning Darkraider.

Blust Vent

Darkraider unfolded his wings, activating the turbines and changing the trajectory of the attack. The slash completely decimated part of the forest, and the darkness began to spread out, contaminating the environment.

"The darkness is spreading...Just how much darkness has that Excalibur collected over the years...?" Knight was now flying in the air, courtesy of Darkraider attaching itself to his back. He heard a neigh from afar, noticing Raphael riding on top of Sleipnir, the eight-legged worse, as it kicked the air. Dakrider activated his turbines once more, taking Knight higher into the air, having superiority in aerial speed.

To his utter shock, Raphael stood on top of Sleipnir, and the horse began to morph, turning into a jet.

"What the fuck?!" It was too bizarre, but he regretted the moment his mind was preoccupied with something else. The jet accelerated, breaking the sound barrier as it rammed into Knight and flew into a mountain, creating a big hole in the side. Knight came out of the other end, multiple black missiles shooting after him.

Guard Vent: Darkcape

Knight's cape surrounded him, forming a dome and blocking the incoming volley of missiles. Knight lashed out his cape, cutting through the mountain and attempting to attack Raphael, but the knight accelerated into the sky, circling the area.

"I won't be able to keep up like this." Knight gritted his teeth, activating another ability

Tempest Vent

A twister covered his legs, boosting his speed as he chased after Raphael, aiming the crossbow mounted on his arm.

Shoot Vent: Darkarrow

"Raphael! You have to stop! This isn't like you!" Knight screamed, attempting to talk him down.'He's not a knight anymore...his swordsmanship is not there...he's turned...'

Raphael roared, shooting several dark red orbs at Knight from his blade.

"A berserker!"

Knight formed a black tornado around himself and shot himself forward, breaking through the orbs and forcing Raphael to meet him face-to-face. Jet met the tornado, and they both fought for dominance. Knight formed two tornados from the sides, colliding them against the jet and crushing it. Raphael recalled his familiar, Donatello, back, and was now flying in the air. Knight's Tempest Vent ran out, so he had to chase after him with Darkraider.

"Is this what you want St. Germain to see?!" Knight cried out, stretching out his hand and unleashing a sharp current of wind. Raphael threw his sword at Knight. The Rider narrowly avoided, but before he knew it, Raphael was gone. On instinct, he turned around and blocked the incoming slash with his visor. The force of the attack was enough to send him rocketing toward the ground, creating a large crater.

Knight groaned, sitting up as he rubbed his aching arm. Raphael landed on the ground, menacingly approaching the Rider.

"Come on, you can't have lost your mind like this, Raphael? Your friends wouldn't want to see you like this. They were preventing you from using Exacalibur because they knew something like this would happen, right?"

Raphael paused.

"I know how it feels to lose comrades. To feel hopeless. But this isn't the way to do things. Using Divine Power to get what you want...you're doing exactly what the Disasters of Valhalla are doing! That just makes you another oppressor in the world!"

The berserker began to scream, grabbing at his head as the dark aura around him intensified.

"Fight it, Raphael! Is this how you want St. Germain to see you?! As a mindless monster?! If you love her so much, then you know this isn't right! You can still make things right with her before you lose her too!"

"SWORD!"

"Huh?"

"Sword...SWORD...S-S-S-SWORD..." Raphael grumbled, smacking himself on the head."SWOOOOOOOOOOOOOORD!"

"The sword...that's right...If I can destroy the sword, he might be able to revert to normal." Yosuke gulped."Still, if it's the Dark Excalibur, not any attack is going to be enough to destroy it. I'll have to hit him with everything I've got. Raphael! I'll help you conquer the darkness in your heart!"

Final Vent: Shippudan

Raphael lunged into the air, summoning Donatello again and transforming him into the jet before taking off into the air. Darkraider turned into his bike mode as Knight jumped on top of it and revved the engine. The bike sprouted two bat wings from the side, taking off into the sky. Both began to clash with each other on occasions before turning to opposite directions to build up their speeds. A flash of darkness and one of wind could be seen from afar, as both of them prepared to unleash their full power on the other.

Fallen Excalibur

Instead of a swing, Raphael thrust his blade forward and accelerated toward Knight. Their blades touched tips, and the battle for power commenced. Knight was immediately beginning to be pushed back, the dark blade pushing back his bike."He's getting stronger and stronger...! The sword is getting out of control!"

"Yosuke Yanagi!"

Raphael screamed, using his free hand to try and pry the helmet off his head."Focus...on my arm! Don't hold back!"

"B-but you-"

"DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME!" Raphael shouted, the armor beginning to overtake him again."I put myself in this situation...! SO DO WHAT YOU MUST TO STOP ME!"

Knight gritted his teeth and roared as loud as he could. Darkraider resonated with him and accelerated as much as it could. Raphael grabbed the hand holding his blade, twisting it and breaking it, allowing Knight the opportunity he needed to break through. In a single instant, the blade reacted to Knight's pure intentions and heart as well as its owner's feelings and shattered upon the full weight of Knight's Final Vent. As a consequence, Knight went past Raphael, completely tearing his arm off before he could even react.

"Thank you..." Raphael muttered as he fell to the ground, the armor breaking. Donatello resumed his original form and caught his master on his back, trotting to the ground to safety.

Knight and Darkraider landed on the ground, the latter returning to his bike form as Survive ran out, reverting them to their normal state."Raphael..."

"At what point in my life did I go wrong? I just wanted to protect her..." The man began to use Alchemy to stop the bleeding, leaning against a tree."Ever since we were kids, I looked after her...I guess it was after her Mother passed away. She changed. And I followed her along because I thought...it would make her happy. I didn't bother to stop her."

Knight listened intently, watching the silver-haired man weep.

"If I had been a little bit more like you...full of courage and determination to protect the person you cherish the most...perhaps things wouldn't have ended this way. Maybe we could have lived out our entire lives in peace if we had walked away from that world and had a family." He chuckled dryly."I guess...I convinced myself that was still possible, even now. But the fact of the matter is, we're too far gone for that..."

"I don't know about that. It's true you did horrible things. But it's not too late to prevent further deaths. You can still make things right with her. You were the one with no doubts before, but now it's the opposite. I learned that...my comrades' deaths can't be helped. They died and that's a fact. But I have to give a meaning to their deaths. Make sure their sacrifice meant something and protect those whom I still have. Because I won't be around forever either. One day, I may just die or get killed. So I have to make sure they are prepared to surpass me and look after themselves. You have friends like that too. You must know what it feels like to want to protect them. But the moment you abandon your humanity and let the sword consume you, you betrayed their trust."

"I know...I know..." Raphael clenched his fist."I know...they would be upset if they saw me now, wouldn't they?"

"If you can save St. Germain, I doubt they'll hold it against you." Knight knelt in front of him."It's not too late to make things right. You still have her, remember?"

"Right...Right. You're right." Raphael nodded slowly."I'll do it. I want to help her too...Because I love her with all of my heart..."

"Then it's settled." Knight nodded, satisfied with the answer. A huge explosion went off in the distance, catching their attention."That must be where Dienheim is!"

"Go. I need some time to think things over and recuperate. I'll be here." Raphael said.

Knight didn't want to leave him there but the explosion sounded far away and could feel the tremendous power from it. He summoned Darkwing and equipped him to his back to take off into the sky.

"Lady Prelati...Lady Cagliostro...Is this what we were fighting for, after all?" Raphael leaned his head against the tree, drifting into unconsciousness.

Knight gaped at the giant hole in the ground that expanded for kilometers on end. He also noticed a figure falling and went full speed to scoop them up in his arms.

"Y-Yosuke-dono?" Bragi blinked.

"Glad to see I made it in time. You won?"

Bragi chose grinned from ear to ear, still in a daze."Told you I would."

"You did it. I knew you would." Yosuke smiled under his helmet."Uh...you're a toddler now. And you're a torso with no arms or legs."

"Long story...But my body entered a type of energy conservation mode. It's kind of like...when your phone has a low battery and you can put it on battery mode. I was about to die...and I couldn't heal my wounds since I had run out of energy, so I had to shrink down to this size. I can't use my Alchemy right now...but I should be able to start healing soon."

"I see. Well, that works for me. You're lighter this way and I'm fatigued from my fight." Knight said as they flew back to land."Hey. I'm serious. You pulled through for us here. You did great."

"I wasn't alone. I felt like...my Mama was with me the whole time. And thinking about you guys really got me in high spirits. I didn't want to let you down. And thanks to that, I was able to pull off a miracle." Bragi giggled."Ah...I feel so lightheaded right now..."

"Don't worry, buddy. We'll get you back to your Aunt and get you fixed up." Knight said in reassurance. The hybrid said nothing, his eyes closed.

"Yosuke-dono?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you. For everything."

Knight halted, his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets."Are you dying?!"

"What? No!" Bragi shook his head."I just wanted to express my gratitude, that's all."

"Phrasing, Dienheim. Phrasing! You were making it sound like you were dying!" Yosuke groaned in exasperation.

"I'm okay. Sorry, I'll keep that in mind next time." Bragi apologized profusely.

"It's fine..." The purple-haired young man sighed. "So...did thinking about Kohinata lift your spirits too?"

"Seriously, Yosuke-dono?"

"Did it?"

"I...well, yes..." Bragi confessed, blushing."Is that bad? That I was thinking of her?"

'I guess she must have left quite the impression on him.' Yosuke smiled."I wouldn't say that. She deserves to be happy. As do you."

"Maybe...but..."

"You don't think you're good enough?"

"I don't know. I mean...like you said, she's probably still hurting. And even if she doesn't resent me for my face, I don't think I can make her happy." Bragi admitted, glancing at the sky."I'm having a hard time understanding things around me. And I feel like I made a big progress today. I learned that I want to help others not because I want to atone for the Second's sins, but because it's the right thing to do. But I still feel like I have a long way to go before I understand who I am as a person. Am I a human? A homunculus? And I don't want to hurt her."

"You're a kind soul, Dienheim. You are the best of two worlds. I'm sure Kohinata feels the same way." Yosuke said, catching the hybrid off guard."She probably is scared of approaching you too close because...she feels like she wouldn't be able to save you. She blames herself for not being able to save Kaburagi from the darkness. But I can tell she likes having you around. It'll take time, but I'm sure you can make something work. Before, you said you didn't think you could make her happy. But the question is: do you want to make her happy?"

"I do." Bragi said with a solemn tone."I want to protect her smile and make sure it's always shining. She deserves to be happy. She even accepted someone like me...I want the best for her. That's why I was fighting as hard as I could. I wanted to go back and tell her...mission accomplished."

"She'll be happy. I know. But first things first. Let's get patched up. Our fights are over, but we still got plenty of work to do."

"Right." Bragi nodded, smiling at Knight."Uh...bad news, though. My Deck got destroyed."

"Huh?!"

"But! I got the schematics for it! So I can just make another one but it'll take some time before it's up and running."

"You just love giving me heart attacks, don't you?" Knight deadpanned, causing the monochrome-haired boy to erupt into laughter.

"I'm going to drop you."

"What?! No!"

Two fights are done. We're officially entering the finale of AXZ. I'd say we have about 4 chapters left. Stay tuned for a surprise next chapter!