Kamen Rider SideRide Chronicles: Oscura's Encore

Requiem III: Witch Hunting Game Part 1

Anne was exhausted. Sasha was a brutal taskmaster today, forcing her and Marcy to train until they were dead tired. After that, they all went home. As soon as Anne entered her room, she collapsed on her bed. Her body felt sore all over and the only thing she wanted to do at this point was just sleep for two whole days.

Her door was ajar so her cat Domino was able to slip in through the crack. The black and white feline padded over to Anne and licked the fingers of her hand which hung over the side of the bed. Anne felt the tongue licking her fingers and turned her head to see who it was.

"Oh, Domino," Anne smiled tiredly. "Come up, girl." Anne rolled on her back and Domino jumped on her stomach to curl up on her owner. "That's a good girl." Anne gently ran her hand across Domino's fur as her cat used her stomach as a bed. Petting Domino always cheered her up.

Anne was still bothered about Sasha's request. Actually, it sounded more like an order. She wanted her to act friendly towards Amity and Luz so she could swipe their Raise Buckles from them. But without their Buckles, how were they supposed to fight? Amity may have magical powers, but would that be enough to protect her and Luz? And this was a life-or-death game. If Anne did that, she might as well kill them herself.

"I don't know what to do, Domino. I don't want to upset Sasha, but what she's asking me to do is wrong. What do you think I should do?"

Domino raised her head and then walked over to Anne's face to lick her chin.

"You're right. I should just talk to Sasha and tell her I can't do it. I mean, what if I got caught? I could be disqualified and I've got my own wish too."

Domino rubbed her head against Anne's chin.

"Thanks, girl. I knew you were a good listener."

If there was one thing Sasha learned from Marcy, it was to make notes about people. Right now, she had two people in her sights: Amity Blight and Luz Noceda.

Amity was a witch and she had magic. That gave her an unfair advantage. And yet, she was still allowed to compete. Well, Sasha would just have to show her that all her magic would not help her win this tournament.

Then there was Luz Noceda and Sasha knew there was something off about her. She did not know what it was, but the girl had an intimidating presence when she needed to make a point. Sasha would never admit to being afraid of anyone or anything, but Luz Noceda was not someone to be messed with.

"Without their Raise Buckles, they won't be much of a threat," Sasha said as she paced in her room. "I'll just ask Anne to swipe Magnum and Zombie and leave them with their weaker Buckles." She wasn't a monster. "And Blight has her magic. So, she can survive without her big bad Zombie Buckle."

Sasha was still going to win and she was determined to have her wish granted. With Anne and Marcy's help, she was going to succeed.

Her phone buzzed and she saw it was a message from Anne.

[Hey, Sash, can I come over tomorrow? I need to talk with you about the plan to steal Luz and Amity's Buckles.]

'That's my girl, wanting to hammer out the plan,' Sasha thought, smiling.

"'Sure, my 'rents are going to be out for most of the day, just come on by around eleven so we have some privacy and talk about it'," she replied as she texted back. "Aaand send."

Sasha smirked when she saw Anne reply with a frog emoji that had a thumbs up.

"Heh, you dork."

"Stealing is not allowed, Ms. Waybright."

"AAAAAAAH!"

Luz moaned as the sun hit her eyes. Opening them, she felt someone lying beside her. Gazing down, she saw that it was Amity. The two girls were naked under the blanket and Amity was wearing a pair of cat ears on her head. Lying at the foot of the bed were their clothes.

Now, how did they get here? Oh, right. They had a date at the pool yesterday, and after dinner, they went straight to bed…Amity's bed.

Holding the sleeping witch close, Luz just wanted to sleep in, but they would need to wake up sooner or later. Camila made sure her daughter always woke up early, even if it was summer vacation. She believed in having an early start each day.

Luz would rather not have her mom catch them like this. While she had little doubt that her mom knew what they did behind the closed door, it would still be embarrassing to be caught like this.

"Wake up, gatita (kitten)," Luz said gently as she attempted to rouse her girlfriend from her sleep. "It's morning."

"Don't wanna…" Amity whined as she clung to Luz and buried her face in her chest. She just wanted to sleep in and cuddle with her girlfriend. She was just so warm.

"I know you just wanna sleep in, but it's already morning and we've got stuff to do. You don't want to be late for work."

"OK," Amity grumbled as she reluctantly extricated herself from her girlfriend. She kissed Luz on the cheek. "You were great last night."

"You weren't so bad yourself," Luz responded as she pecked Amity on the cheek. "The sexy cat cosplay was a nice touch."

"Oh, I knew you'd like that," Amity giggled. "You could barely keep your hands off me."

"And why would I want to?" Luz retorted, caressing Amity's cheek. "I've got a hot witch girlfriend all to myself."

The two shared a kiss before they got out of bed and got dressed. Luz took her time to watch Amity get dressed until the witch used her magic to throw her blanket over her head.

Anne finally mustered up the courage to tell Sasha no to this plan of stealing the Raise Buckles. God, she was nervous. Like, really nervous. Whenever Sasha said, 'End. Of. Discussion' it normally, and literally, meant the discussion was final and done and she would accept no other argument to the contrary. But this was different. It was one thing for her to do something like that while they were in school, or out having fun, but this game was too dangerous to be doing something like that. There were just too many risk factors that could end up with Luz or Amity dying in the middle of the game.

'If Marcy were here, she would probably argue that this game is only going to get harder and more dangerous. Since, like any video game, the higher the levels, the more dangerous the enemies. And if we keep advancing, the Jyamatos are probably going to get stronger, and if we take away the one thing that Luz and Amity need to at the very least survive, then we might as well be committing murder,' thought Anne. 'I know Sasha's not like that. She would never want to hurt someone like that. I'll just reason with her. Tell her that we're strong enough to win this game, together, with our skills and teamwork, even if Amity has magic! Yeah! She'll understand…right?'

"Ugh…Why does this have to be so damn hard?" Anne groaned in dismay.

"I get it, Anna-banana, but try not to let her push you around, okay?"

Anne shook her head as she remembered Marcy's words from their last video call.

"Sasha doesn't push me around. You'll see, Mar-Mar. I'll get there, and we'll have a normal, civilized, adult conversation about the consequences of stealing," Anne reasoned.

Anne pulled up to Sasha's driveway. From what she could tell, her parents weren't home. She got out of her car and looked at her reflection in the side view mirror. Why was she fussing over how she looked? Anne slapped the sides of her face.

'Focus, Anne!'

The Thai teen walked up to the front door, back straight, shoulders squared, with a confident, but non-threatening look on her face. She wanted to project confidence, not defiance. After knocking on the door, she waited about a minute or two before the door finally opened. All that bravado immediately tanked when she saw the state of dress Sasha was in. Now, granted, they have had many sleepovers and girls-night-outs over their high school career. But even still, context mattered, and right now, the context was just…wow.

Sasha was dressed in a rather loose-fitting tank top. Her hair was undone and allowed to cascade down her back and shoulders. Of course, her shorts hugged her waist, rear, and thighs just right to give a good outline of her figure.

'Stupid sexy Sasha!'

"H-Hey, Sash," Anne nervously greeted, trying to hide her blush.

"Hey," came Sasha's lacklustre response.

Anne's embarrassment faded a little when she heard Sasha's tone.

"Sasha, what's wrong? You sound…" Defeated? Down? "Tired."

"Ugh, come in. I'll explain."

Anne followed Sasha inside her house, up the stairs, and into her room. Sasha had Anne wait in the doorway for a moment as the blonde, for some reason, started to search her room. Sasha looked under her bed, in the closet, and even in obscure places like the corners of the room, under her desk, and even in the very narrow crack of space between the shelf and wall.

"Uh, Sash, are you…alright?" Anne asked with concern.

"One sec." Sasha came up and looked behind Anne, craning her neck over the Thai teen's shoulder as she looked back and forth down the hallway.

'Sasha's pressing up against me! She's pressing up against me! She's pressing up against me!'

"Okay, come in and close the door behind you," Sasha said after moving away from Anne.

Despite her racing heart, Anne managed to do as Sasha said and closed the door behind her. Once she had done that, Sasha sat on her bed, crossed-legged, while Anne rolled up the desk chair and sat backwards in it.

"Okay, Sasha, what's going on? Why are you acting so paranoid right now?"

Sasha sighed heavily.

"My whole plan to steal the Raise Buckles from Blight and Noceda, we're scrapping it."

"We are?!" Anne gasped excitedly, but then cleared her throat as she changed her tone and asked, "Oh, uh, why? Did you change your mind or…?"

"Last night, I had a little visit from an uninvited guest…"

"TSUMURI!" Sasha yelped.

"Sasha, is everything alright up there?"

Sasha hurried to her door to respond.

"I'm alright, Albert! Just had a jump scare moment from this horror movie I'm streaming!"

"Heh-heh, wow, didn't think you'd make that kind of noise from a movie. Must be good if it scares you like that!" he responded.

Sasha rolled her eyes. Albert was the man her mother married after her parents split up. He had his own kids as well, and they took residence in the other rooms. She didn't hate them, and she didn't particularly dislike them, it just still felt awkward to have them around.

"Yeah, it's a good one," Sasha said. "Sorry about that, I'll try and keep it down!" Sasha closed the door and turned around to see Tsumuri still there. "What the actual EFF?! How the hell did you get in my room?!"

"We have our ways, Ms. Waybright," Tsumuri answered mysteriously, smiling like she had not just broken into Sasha's room.

"Sheesh, yeah, that's not creepy at all," said Sasha in a heavily sarcastic tone. "Anyway, why are you here anyway? Is the next round starting already?"

"Oh no, I just thought I'd draw your attention to one of the rules for the DGP. Please look at your Spider Phone," Tsumuri instructed.

Sasha walked over to her bed and picked up the Spider Phone. Tsumuri then began pressing a few keys on her tablet, and as soon as she did, Sasha's phone brought up the rules for the Desire Grand Prix. It scrolled automatically through the rules until it settled on a highlighted paragraph.

"Wait…what?! 'While taking and using another player's Raise Buckle(s) is allowed during a game, it is prohibited for any player to steal another player's Raise Buckle(s). Personal gambling or exchanging of a Raise Buckle(s) outside of a round is allowed, but the acquisition of a Buckle(s) by means of force, bribery, or trickery, outside a match is grounds for immediate disqualification'!"

Sasha looked back at Tsumuri with disbelief upon reading the rule aloud.

"No freakin' way! You guys just made up this rule, didn't you!?" Sasha accused.

"I assure you, that rule has been in the rulebook since the beginning." Tsumuri lowered her tablet as she smiled sweetly at Sasha. "It would be a shame if you and Ms. Boonchuy were disqualified for such an infraction. I am operating under the belief that you were ignorant of this rule, and it seems my suspicions were correct. Luckily for you, I spared you the embarrassment of being dismissed on such grounds. Please be sure to familiarize yourself with the rest of the rules from here on out."

Sasha looked back at the Spider Phone and gripped it hard.

"Listen, Tsumuri, I – huh?"

When Sasha turned her head to look back at Tsumuri, she was gone. Sasha looked in her closet, under her bed, and even went into the hallway, but there was no sign of Tsumuri at all. It was impossible for her to just vanish like that since she was standing just a couple of feet away from her, and the door to her bedroom was closed the entire time.

"What…the…hell…?"

Anne sat there with a shocked expression on her face. After a minute of silence, Anne managed to find her voice.

"Dude…that's hella creepy."

"Yeah, no kidding. Now I'm thinking she's going to appear out of the corner of my eye the moment I turn my head," Sasha told her.

"That explains why you were looking around your room when I came in, and your, uh, appearance," said Anne as she looked away ever so slightly.

"I called Mar-Mar before you got here, and I asked her if that rule was always there."

"And what did she say?"

"It has been. From the start of this game. UGH!" Sasha fell backwards on her bed, groaning in annoyance. "I'm such a dumbass! I almost got us both disqualified! Or at the least, you, which is just as bad…I'm so sorry, Anne."

Anne got off the chair and sat on the edge of Sasha's bed as she smiled at her best friend.

"Dude, you had no idea. And luck's on our side since Tsumuri came to warn you. I mean, she didn't have to. She could've just let us go on with the plan and then that would've been it," said Anne.

"I know…luck. It was lucky that I didn't get us both kicked out. I almost cost us our wishes, and almost left Marcy to fight alone," Sasha replied. "Well, I made sure that won't happen again."

"What do you mean?" Anne asked.

"Do you know why I look so tired, Anne?" Anne shook her head in response. "Because I read the entire rulebook, all of it, in one night."

Anne blinked.

"That's impressive…kinda scary, but impressive."

"I am dead ass tired right now…"

"Oh, then, you should rest up. I'll just see myself out and – whoa!" But before Anne could finish her sentence, Sasha reached over, dragged Anne into her bed, and immediately cuddled against the Thai teen. "Uh…S-S-Sash…? I-I should go so you can sleep."

"Nope, you're staying right here, Boonchuy. I'll sleep a lot better with you here. End of discussion."

"S-Sasha, you're not serious," said Anne. "Sash?"

Anne managed to glance at her friend and saw that she had fallen asleep almost immediately after snuggling up against her. The Thai teen was at a loss for what to do right now. This wasn't unusual. Back when they were younger, the three of them would end up in a pile either on the floor or on the bed, having moved around in their sleep and ended up either snuggling together or just in a messed up pile of entangled limbs. So, this kind of close proximity was not unusual for them. But right now, the way Sasha was dressed, and with how damn cute and hot she looked, Anne was trying not to make this weird or awkward, at least for Sasha.

'It's…It's alright to hug her back, right?' Anne thought as she moved her hands, wrapping them around Sasha's waist and bringing her closer. 'T-There's nothing wrong with this. This is still okay for friends, right?'

Sasha moaned contently as she nestled comfortably against Anne.

Anne decided to take this as a sign that Sasha was okay with this. For now, she pushed away her feelings of awkwardness and embarrassment and just allowed herself to enjoy this moment for as long as it may last.

'This…This might be the closest I can get to you, Sash. Without ruining what we have. But…' Anne looked down at the content expression on Sasha's face and smiled. 'If I get my wish, we can have more moments like this. As…As something else.'

In the middle of the town square, a red energy sphere emerged from the ground before it suddenly expanded over Gravesfield. Anyone caught at the edge of the field was stopped cold as they appeared to run into a wall. Upon contact, spectral barb wire could be seen.

"Jya jya…!"

Amity was at her job in the library while Luz decided to help her mom at the veterinary clinic. She loved helping her mom care for her animal patients and she felt like they understood her. Right now, Luz was in the break room and on her computer, looking for any publisher who might be interested in her book. She had received another rejection letter in her email but she would not give up on getting her book published. Her story needed to be shared.

"Mija, is there anything you want for lunch?" Camila called from the front. She had her phone out to order food.

"Anything's good, Mom!" Luz called back.

Camila was a single mother who did her best for her daughter and all she wanted was what was best for her. Ever since her husband died, things were tough, but she needed to be strong for Luz. She encouraged her creativity and imagination.

She used to blame herself for what her daughter went through years ago. If she had not tried to send her daughter off to Reality Check Camp, maybe she would not have suffered and gotten herself corrupted by an unholy stone.

After Luz's return, Camila was horrified by what she learned. She also noticed that the experience had changed her daughter. She was more subdued and depressed. While Luz tried to hide this from her mother, Camila knew she needed to help her daughter. A regular therapist would be out of the question, unfortunately. They would believe Luz was delusional and have her committed to an institute of some kind.

Camila just needed to be there for her daughter and she would not be alone. There was Amity, and Vee to help Luz to recover. The psychological scars would remain, but Luz would know she was loved and cared for.

She was not completely sure if Amity and Luz entering a relationship was the healthiest thing for them as they had hurt each other, but they were helping each other heal as well. Maybe this was their way of coping with everything that happened.

But one incident struck Camila as odd.

Luz was taking a shower so Camila decided to help pick up her daughters' laundry. They could be so messy sometimes. As she picked up the dirty socks and shirts lying on the floor, she came across something that she had never seen before on Luz's desk.

"What is this?" Camila wondered as she picked it up. "Looks like one of those 'Kamen Rider' toy belts."

That was when Luz came in while drying her hair. When she saw her mom holding the 'toy', she completely flipped.

"Mom, put that down!" Luz cried.

"Oh, Mija. I'm so sorry," Camila apologized as she put it down on the desk. "I was just looking at it."

"It's fine, Mama. Sorry for yelling," Luz apologized too.

"I didn't think you were collecting these toys again, not since...what happened to you."

Camila had boxed up all of her daughter's Kamen Rider toys and stored them in the basement. Luz claimed they were a reminder of what she failed to be. She wanted to be a hero but ended up becoming a villain instead. It was truly heartbreaking. Her daughter's inner light had faded but she was glad to see Luz's light returning a little bit each day.

It was strange to see her daughter start collecting again without telling her. She used to be so excited about sharing these things with her. Perhaps she could ask Luz if she would like her old stuff back.

The door to the veterinary clinic opened.

BANG!*

"Aaaaaaahhhh!"

"Mom!"

Luz heard a gunshot and her mom's screams. She rushed out of the break room to see a Pawn-type Jyamato with a hunting rifle standing in the clinic. Camila was on the ground, with a gunshot wound in her shoulder. The other people in the waiting room had already fled.

The Jyamato was dressed like a Puritan from the 17th century and even wore a hat. Luz would have laughed at how ridiculous it looked if the situation was not so dire.

"Jya, jya…" the Jyamato pointed its rifle at Camila to finish the job when Luz went into action.

"Henshin!"

[MAGNUM!]

[Magnum Shooter 40X!]

Leaping over the counter, Lechuz fired upon the Jyamato. As it tried to regain its bearings, Lechuz got close and pistol-whipped the creature. She kept hitting it and hitting it, driving it out the front door. It tumbled onto the street outside the clinic just as Lechuz jumped into the air and came down like a hammer, driving her right foot into the Jyamato's chest, cracking the asphalt beneath. As Lechuz had the monster pinned down, she converted her weapon to its secondary mode.

[Rifle!]

[MAGNUM!]

She attached her Raise Buckle onto the slot under her Magnum Shooter, pressed the barrel against the Jyamato's head, spun the buckle like a bullet chamber and pulled the trigger.

[MAGNUM TACTICAL BLAST!]

She fired a concentrated blast with her Magnum Shooter, mercilessly obliterating the Jyamato on the spot. Seeing no other Jyamato in sight, Lechuz believed she was in the clear and ran back inside the clinic to check on her mother.

"Mom!" Kamen Rider Lechuz rushed to her mother's side and the woman saw her daughter in her Rider form. When Lechuz saw her mother recoil at her appearance, she disengaged her armour, reverting to her civilian form.

"Luz…you're a…" Camila hissed from the pain in her shoulder. "Ow…"

"Mom, you're hurt," Luz said calmly. "Let's take care of that wound and–"

Her Spider Phone went off and she took it out to see the message on the screen:

[ROUND 3 HAS BEGUN: WITCH HUNTER GAME]

"Nice timing, Tsumuri," Luz muttered sarcastically but she ignored it for a moment to focus on her mom. "Mom, stay here. I'm going to get some bandages."

"Luz, what's going on?! Why did you look like that?! I thought you stopped being a 'Kamen Rider' after what happened in the Demon Realm?! So why are you-?!" Camila reached out to her daughter when her fingers lightly grazed the surface of her daughter's ID Core. She let out a gasp when a forgotten memory returned. "…Manny?"

"You say something, Mom?" Luz asked.

"Luz…Luz, mija, you have to listen to me," said Camila with urgency.

"Later, Mom, first we need to get your wound fixed up, and then I need to take you somewhere safe so I can-!"

"Listen to me, Luz!" Camila yelled. "Your father…I…I remember…your father was…was a Kamen Rider, too."

Amity was going about her day working at the library. After she moved to the Human Realm, she decided to find a part-time job so she would not be a freeloader. Fortunately, the library was hiring at the time. At first, she had to get used to the fact that libraries in the Human Realm worked differently than what she was used to–like the filing cabinets were not alive here–but she soon got the hang of things. She also needed to learn how to use a computer but she was a quick study.

She still got to do what she loved when she worked at the Bonesborough Library, namely reading to kids during storytime. It was the one time she could let her hair down and not have to act as Little Miss Perfect or the Best Student at Hexside or be mean. How could she be mean to the little kids? It was during her storytime with the children when her Spider Phone went off, alerting her that a new game had begun and that she was already in the game zone. Not long after that, Amity heard screams alongside the sounds of several gunshots.

The library staff had been trained on what to do in case of an active shooter, but Amity knew that these gunshots were more than likely not from a random gunman. She instructed the children to hide and lie low. Unfortunately, the kids' reading area was in the back of the facility, with a wall behind it, and two large bookcases creating a single entranceway into the reading corner. This essentially trapped them like fish in a barrel.

Amity had taken her Driver with her, just in case and she was glad she did because when she looked around the bookcase, that's when she saw the Jyamatos. They were taking people, and those that dared to try and stop them were shot immediately. Amity watched as one of the people they had captured managed to make a break for it but was swiftly gunned down before they got too far. She made sure to block the children's view so they would not have to see this.

Amity turned around and knelt low so that she was close to eye level with the children.

"Listen, kids. I need you to be as quiet as possible. I'm going to cast a magic spell that will protect you, but you still need to stay out of sight and be quiet. Understand?" she instructed.

"Ms. Amity, I'm scared," one child cried. She was a little girl with pigtails and she was scared. Amity reached out and hugged the little girl close to her and rubbed her back soothingly as she cried.

"Shh, shh, I promise you, you'll all be alright. My girlfriend and I are going to save you and beat the bad people who are hurting everyone."

"Ms. Luz, too?" a little girl asked. Amity had introduced Luz to the children's reading group some time ago and she would often come to visit and even help Amity read to the kids. It did help with Luz's depression since she knew how to tell great stories.

"That's right. And other heroes will be coming too." Amity gently pushed the child away and stepped out until she was past the bookcases. The teenage witch drew a large spell circle, making the children gasp as they witnessed the ring of purple light appear. In a matter of seconds, Amity had created a barrier around the reading area, reinforcing it as best she could. She didn't know how strong these Jyamatos were, even though she knew that any lives lost within this game area would be restored upon completion of the game if they won, but Amity wasn't about to risk the lives of children for anything.

"Jya! Jya, jya!"

"Jya!"

A couple of Witch Hunter Jyamatos found Amity and the kids. The children screamed at the sight of the monsters while Amity glared at them as she strapped on her Desire Driver and attached her Zombie Buckle to it.

[Set!]

"I won't let you hurt these kids! Henshin!"

[ZOMBIE!]

[READY, FIGHT!]

The kids' jaws dropped as they witnessed Amity transform into Kamen Rider Gato. She brandished her Zombie Breaker as she prepared to combat the Jyamatos. Despite how scary she looked, they knew she would protect them.

"Ms. Amity!"

"She's a superhero!"

"But she looks scary!"

"Scary cool!"

"Kick their butts, Ms. Amity!"

The kids cheered and Gato smiled under her helmet as she engaged the two Witch Hunter Jyamatos. They fired at her but she deflected their rounds with her Zombie Breaker as she rushed at them. The first Jyamato received her blade as she slashed it across the chest and then she turned and struck the second Jyamato, disarming it. It backed away in fear as she knocked it down with a slash before she pumped her sword.

[Poison Charge!]

The first Jyamato went to fire at her but she whirled around and slashed its rifle, melting it before she squeezed the trigger for a follow-up strike.

[TACTICAL BREAK!]

"Hyah!" Gato yelled as she swung her Zombie Breaker, cutting down the first Witch Hunter Jyamato before she finished off the second one, destroying them. It would not be long before the others heard and came to investigate, but she was ready for them.

Amity and Luz were not the only Riders in Gravesfield. The others players had been immediately notified and transported to the town for the latest round of the Desire Grand Prix.

"OK, Penn! Time to be a hero!" Penn said as he appeared with Molly.

[Set!]

After slotting in his Claw Buckle, he did a clawing motion and then tugged on the switch.

"Henshin!"

[Armed Claw! Ready, Fight!]

[Set!]

Molly smiled and hopped in place as she punched the air.

"Let's save some lives! Henshin!"

[Armed Hammer! Ready, Fight!]

Once transformed, the two Riders rushed at the Witch Hunter Jyamatos and attacked, giving the people time to escape. As the Jyamatos fired upon them, Tai-Ger bobbed and weaved between the bullets as they flew past him before he struck them with his Raise Claws, slashing the Jyamatos across the chest. Kamen Rider Joy was hopping around and playing Whack-a-Mole with the Jyamatos as she beat them with her Raise Hammer.

"Let's finish them here!"

"Right behind you, Molly!"

[Hammer Strike!]

[Claw Strike!]

Joy's hammer glowed bright pink as Tai-Ger's claws glowed bright yellow. The staggered Witch Hunter Jyamatos could only stand there as Joy struck the ground with her hammer, unleashing a shockwave of pink energy that threw the monsters into the air. Tai-Ger jumped straight into the air after them and slashed them with his claws. He landed on the other side as the Jyamatos exploded in midair.

"Alright, now we gotta find more of these things," Tai-Ger suggested.

"I can get us there quick," Joy said as she replaced her Raise Buckle.

[Set! Armed Propeller! Ready, Fight!]

"Grab on!" Joy raised her Raise Propeller and it spun like helicopter blades as she took off.

"Hey!" Tai-Ger grabbed hold of her legs and they both flew into the air to find the location of the Boss. Despite it being a competition, Joy was always willing to lend a helping hand. It was basic sportsmanship.

The Witch Hunter Jyamatos were going around town, gathering people and anyone who resisted was killed on sight. The captured people were all dragged to the town square where it was set up for a witch burning. The Boss was a Bishop-type that resembled a Bishop piece from Chess. Its body was covered in Judge robes but what could be seen were its hands which had mushrooms protruding from the knuckles. Stranger still, it wore a Judge's wig.

"Jya! Jya!" the Judge Jyamato commanded and the Witch Hunter Jyamatos dragged a trio of people and tied them to the stakes. Nobody resisted as several other Jyamatos held them at gunpoint and tied up their hands and feet. "Jya!"

Witch Hunter Jyamatos with torches approached the stakes and began to set them on fire. These three would be the first victims of tonight's burning and would not be the last. The victims screamed for mercy when all of a sudden...

[Water Strike!]

A blast of water put out the flames.

"Nobody's burning tonight!" Kata declared heroically as he put out the flames with his Raise Water. Ever since he learned how to properly use it, he realized the weapon was not useless at all.

[Secret Mission Cleared!]

A Mission Box appeared at Kata's feet and he got down to open it. His eyes widened with joy as he found the Boost Buckle.

"Score!"

"Jya!" the Judge Jyamato commanded and the Witch Hunter Jyamatos aimed at Kata who had an 'oh crap' look under his helmet. That was when help arrived as Soaran showed up with Qrok and Newtonne.

"Looks like a party," Soaron commented. "Let's liven things up!" She pressed the keys on her Beat Buckle and catchy K-Pop dance music rang from the speakers on her shoulders. The Witch Hunter Jyamato all stopped before they began to dance to the beat.

"Hey, that's my favourite song," Qrok smiled as she bobbed her head to the beat.

"I know," Soaron smiled.

"And it makes a sweet combat BGM!" Newtonne added.

"Alright, girls! Just like we practised!" Soaron shouted and they charged at the Jyamatos. While Qrok and Soaron took on the dancing Jyamatos, Newtonne focused on freeing the captives. Using her Ninja Dueler, she cut their ropes.

"Go! Run!" Newtonne urged and they did not need to be told twice as they ran for their lives. Newtonne heard her Spider Phone ping and she knew it was a notification telling her she had gained points for saving the people but she did not want to stop and check in the middle of a round.

Clamp was also dancing to the beat, and attacking the Jyamatos as well. He struck them with his Raise Hammer as he danced along with them, knocking them down.

"Not my usual beat, man, but still cool!"

Meanwhile, Vee and Masha watched while the latter took out her phone to take pictures.

"Masha! We gotta go!" Vee urged.

"Just a few more pics, Vee!" Masha said as they refused to budge.

"Are pictures more important than your life!?"

A few Witch Hunter Jyamatos managed to break out of the spell and spotted Masha and Vee. They raised their rifles to fire but then all of a sudden, a Rider dropped on top of them. It was Tai-Ger.

"Tai-Ger, part-time Rider, is here!" he declared heroically as he stood up.

Joy landed softly and brandished her Raise Propeller.

"And Kamen Rider Joy is here to make you smile!" She spotted Kata and waved. "Hiya, Marco!"

"Hey, Molly!" Kata waved back while in the middle of fighting some Jyamatos. He delivered a roundhouse kick, knocking one down then disarmed another with his Raise Water. Using the weapon as a quarterstaff, he took them down with ease.

[Funk Blizzard!]

[TACTICAL BLIZZARD!]

Soaron swung her Beat Axe, freezing several Witch Hunter Jyamatos solid before shattering them with another swing. Looking around, she did not see Noceda or Blight in sight. Good. That meant they were not here to steal the win from her.

Qrok used her Monster Gloves to her full advantage, sending Jyamatos airborne with punches. Each impact caused a starburst effect as she sent them flying one right after the other. Qrok watched as a couple of Jyamatos rushed straight at her. She raised her arms and slightly raised her left leg, getting into a standard Muay Thai fighting stance.

The first Jyamato swung with a wide right hook, which Qrok stopped with her left gauntlet before uppercutting the Jyamato into the air. The second came at her with a haymaker, but Qrok was quicker as she clocked it with a lariat to the throat, throwing it to the ground before raising her right fist and bashing it into the Jyamato's chest, cracking the ground. The Jyamato she sent flying was about to come down. But before it could land, she lunged at it with a knee strike, sending it careening into several of its fellow Jyamatos, knocking them down like bowling pins.

[MONSTER STRIKE!]

Glowing stars gathered around her Monster Gloves and she punched forward, sending giant energy fists flying. The downed Jyamatos had no time to evade as construct fists rained down on them and completely obliterated them in a massive explosion. Some even kept trying to come at her, but Qrok didn't stop throwing punches until all the Jyamatos around her were destroyed. Once her onslaught ceased, Qrok took a deep breath and sighed.

"Nice, work, Anne!" Newtonne praised.

"Thanks, Marcy. How are the prisoners?" Qrok asked.

"I freed them," Newtonne answered proudly.

"And you raked in some serious points," Soaron said as she walked over, showing them the screen of her Spider Phone. "If we keep this up, we'll be in the top 3 of this round for sure."

{The Boss has gone into hiding. Please return to the Lounge,} Tsumuri called them on their phones.

"Guess we just finished the first half, "Qrok remarked.

Dr. Exposition: So, we end the first half of the game here. The next chapter concludes this round. I hope you enjoyed some of the bits like Anne and Sasha's moment, but then we learned a shocking revelation which will be explored in Part 2. Stay tuned for that one, kay?